September 1 in History

Iraq War: The United States Armed Forces transfers control of Anbar Province to the Iraqi Armed Forces.

The Beslan school siege begins when armed terrorists take schoolchildren and school staff hostage in North Ossetia, Russia; by the end of the siege, three days later, more than 385 people are dead (including hostages, other civilians, security personnel and terrorists).

The wreck of the Titanic is discovered by an American-French expedition led by Robert Ballard and Jean-Louis Michel.

Cold War: Korean Air Lines Flight 007 is shot down by a Soviet jet fighter after the commercial aircraft strayed into Soviet airspace, killing all 269 on board, including Congressman Lawrence McDonald.

The United States Air Force Space Command is founded.

Central African President David Dacko is ousted from power in a bloodless military coup led by General André Kolingba.

The SR-71 Blackbird sets (and holds) the record for flying from New York to London in the time of one hour, 54 minutes and 56.4 seconds at a speed of 1,435.587 miles per hour (2,310.353 km/h).

A 76-hour multinational rescue effort in the Celtic Sea resulted in the Rescue of Roger Mallinson and Roger Chapman.

A coup in Libya brings Muammar Gaddafi to power.

Six-Day War: The Khartoum Resolution is issued at the Arab Summit, and eight countries adopt the "three 'no's against Israel".

TWA Flight 529 crashed shortly after takeoff from Midway Airport in Chicago, killing all 78 people on board. At the time, it was the deadliest single plane disaster in U.S. history.

World War II: Launch of Operation Ratweek, complicating German retreat.

World War II: Germany and Slovakia invade Poland, beginning the European phase of World War II.

J. Robert Oppenheimer and his student Hartland Snyder publish the Oppenheimer–Snyder model, proving for the first time in contemporary physics how black holes could develop.

The Great Kantō Earthquake devastates Tokyo and Yokohama, killing about 105,000 people.

The Tremont Street Subway in Boston opens, becoming the first underground rapid transit system in North America.

Over 400 people die in the Great Hinckley Fire, a forest fire in Hinckley, Minnesota.

The army of Mohammad Ayub Khan is routed by the British at the Battle of Kandahar, ending the Second Anglo-Afghan War.

Emma Nutt becomes the world's first female telephone operator when she is recruited by Alexander Graham Bell to the Boston Telephone Dispatch Company.

Cetshwayo ascends to the throne as king of the Zulu nation following the death of his father Mpande.

Franco-Prussian War: The Battle of Sedan is fought, resulting in a decisive Prussian victory.

American Civil War: The Battle of Jonesborough, alongside the overall Atlanta campaign, culminates in a Union victory for General William T. Sherman as Confederate General John Bell Hood orders the evacuation of Atlanta.

American Civil War: Confederate forces under General Stonewall Jackson inflict heavy casualties in the Battle of Chantilly during the Union withdrawal from the Northern Virginia campaign.

Carrington Event started - the most intense geomagnetic storm in recorded history.

Saint Andrew's Scots School, the oldest school of British origin in South America, is established.

Narcissa Whitman, one of the first English-speaking white women to settle west of the Rocky Mountains, arrives at Walla Walla, Washington.

The Order of St. Gregory the Great is established by Pope Gregory XVI of the Vatican State to recognize high support for the Vatican or for the Pope, by a man or a woman, and not necessarily a Roman Catholic.

3 Juno, one of the largest asteroids in the Main Belt, is discovered by the German astronomer Karl Ludwig Harding.

Massachusetts Bay colonists rise up in the bloodless Powder Alarm.

The Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa is founded in San Luis Obispo, California.

Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia, endorses Ivan Betskoy's plans for a Foundling Home in Moscow.

At the age of five, Louis XV becomes king of France in succession to his great-grandfather, King Louis XIV.

English Civil War. Scottish Covenanter forces abandon their month-long Siege of Hereford, a Cavalier stronghold, on news of Royalist victories in Scotland.

Battle of Tippermuir: James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose defeats the Earl of Wemyss's Covenanters, reviving the Royalist cause.

Claudio Monteverdi's musical work Vespro della Beata Vergine (Vespers for the Blessed Virgin) is first published, printed in Venice and dedicated to Pope Paul V.

Adi Granth, now known as Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhs, is first installed at Harmandir Sahib.

Lady Anne Boleyn is made Marquess of Pembroke by her fiancé, King Henry VIII of England.

The Spanish fort of Sancti Spiritu, the first one built in modern Argentina, is destroyed by indigenous people.

Tumu Crisis: The Mongols capture the Emperor of China.

King Tvrtko I of Bosnia writes In castro nostro Vizoka vocatum from the Old town of Visoki.

The widow Stamira sacrifices herself in order to raise the siege of Ancona by the forces of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa.

The main altar of Lund Cathedral, at the time the seat of the archiepiscopal see of all the Nordic countries, is consecrated.

The Temple of Juno Regina (Aventine) is dedicated in Rome by Marcus Furius Camillus.

An Yu-jin, South Korean singer and actress

Diane Parry, French tennis player

Mikhail Iakovlev, Israeli Olympic cyclist

Pratika Rawal, Indian cricketer

Cam Reddish, American basketball player

Josh Battle, Australian rules footballer

Josh Okogie, Nigerian-American basketball player

Salah Mohsen, Egyptian footballer

Jeon Jungkook, South Korean singer, songwriter and record producer

Joan Mir, Spanish motorcycle racer

Zendaya, American actress and singer

Nathan MacKinnon, Canadian ice hockey player

Anna Smolina, Russian tennis player

Carlos Sainz Jr., Spanish racing driver

Mario Lemina, Gabonese footballer

Cristiano Biraghi, Italian footballer

Kirani James, Grenadian sprinter

Tomáš Nosek, Czech ice hockey player

Woo Hye-lim, South Korean singer-songwriter

Rhys Bennett, English footballer

Aisling Loftus, English actress

Stanislav Tecl, Czech footballer

Astrid Besser, Italian tennis player

Bill Kaulitz, German singer and songwriter

Jefferson Montero, Ecuadorian footballer

Gustav Nyquist, Swedish ice hockey player

Simona de Silvestro, Swiss racing driver

Miles Plumlee, American basketball player

Chanel West Coast, American rapper-songwriter and model

Leonel Suárez, Cuban decathlete

Mats Zuccarello, Norwegian ice hockey player

Anthony Allen, English rugby player

Gaël Monfils, French tennis player

Stella Mwangi, Kenyan-Norwegian singer-songwriter

Larsen Jensen, American swimmer

Ludwig Göransson, Swedish film composer

László Köteles, Hungarian footballer

Rod Pelley, Canadian ice hockey player

Joe Trohman, American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer

Cameron Borgas, Australian cricketer

Iñaki Lejarreta, Spanish cyclist (died 2012)

José Antonio Reyes, Spanish footballer (died 2019)

Jeff Woywitka, Canadian ice hockey player

Jeffrey Buttle, Canadian figure skater

Paul Dumbrell, Australian racing driver

Ryan Gomes, American basketball player

Zoe Lister-Jones, American actress and director

Boyd Holbrook, American actor

Clinton Portis, American football player

Adam Quick, Australian basketball player

Sammy Adjei, Ghanaian footballer

Chris Riggott, English footballer

Max Vieri, Australian-Italian footballer

David Albelda, Spanish footballer

Raffaele Giammaria, Italian racing driver

Arsalan Iftikhar, American lawyer and author

Aaron Schobel, American football player

Babydaddy, American singer-songwriter and producer

Marcos Ambrose, Australian racing driver

Clare Connor, English cricketer

Érik Morales, Mexican boxer

Sebastián Rozental, Chilean footballer

Natalie Bassingthwaighte, Australian singer-songwriter

Ammon Bundy, American anti-government militant

Cuttino Mobley, American basketball player

Scott Speedman, English-Canadian actor

Burn Gorman, American-born English actor and musician

Jason Taylor, American football player and sportscaster

Yutaka Yamamoto, Japanese director and producer, founder of Ordet Animation Studio

Jhonen Vasquez, American writer, director, cartoonist and comic illustrator

J.D. Fortune, Canadian singer-songwriter

Simon Shaw, English rugby player

Ram Kapoor, Indian actor

Ricardo Antonio Chavira, American actor

Yoshitaka Hirota, Japanese bass player and composer

Maury Sterling, American actor

Hakan Şükür, Turkish footballer and politician

Rachel Zoe, American fashion designer

David Fairleigh, Australian rugby league player and coach

Hwang Jung-min, South Korean actor

Padma Lakshmi, Indian-American actress and author

Henning Berg, Norwegian footballer and manager

Mohamed Atta, Egyptian terrorist (died 2001)

Steve Pemberton, English actor, screenwriter and director

Tim Hardaway, American basketball player and coach

Craig McLachlan, Australian actor and singer

Tibor Simon, Hungarian footballer and manager (died 2002)

Brian Bellows, Canadian ice hockey player

Charlie Robison, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2023)

Stephen Kernahan, Australian footballer

Grant-Lee Phillips, American musician and actor

Tony Cascarino, English-Irish footballer

Ruud Gullit, Dutch footballer and manager

Jeremy Farrar, British academic and educator; director of the Wellcome Trust

Christopher Ferguson, American captain, pilot and astronaut

Boney James, American saxophonist, composer and producer

Ralf Außem, German footballer and manager

Alexandra Aikhenvald, Australian linguist[better source needed]

Gloria Estefan, Cuban-American singer-songwriter and actress

Duško Ivanović, Montenegrin basketball player and coach

Vinnie Johnson, American basketball player and sportscaster

Bernie Wagenblast, transportation journalist, founder of Transportation Communications Newsletter

Bruce Foxton, English singer-songwriter and bass player

Michael Massee, American actor (died 2016)

Juan Cruz Martínez, Mexican politician (died 2026)

Mikhail Fradkov, Russian politician, 36th Prime Minister of Russia

Phil McGraw, American psychologist, author and talk show host

Greg Errico, American drummer and producer

Józef Życiński, Polish archbishop and philosopher (died 2011)

Al Green, American lawyer and politician

P. A. Sangma, Indian lawyer and politician, 11th Speaker of the Lok Sabha (died 2016)

Barry Gibb, Manx-English singer-songwriter and producer

Shalom Hanoch, Israeli rock singer, lyricist and composer

Roh Moo-hyun, South Korean soldier and politician, 9th President of South Korea (died 2009)

Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, Yemeni general and politician, 2nd President of Yemen (died 2026)

Archie Bell, American soul singer-songwriter and musician

Leonard Slatkin, American conductor and composer

Don Stroud, American actor

C. J. Cherryh, American author and educator

Yaşar Büyükanıt, Turkish general (died 2019)

Annie Ernaux, French author, Nobel Prize laureate

Rico Carty, Dominican baseball player (died 2024)

Lily Tomlin, American actress, comedian, screenwriter and producer

Alan Dershowitz, American lawyer and author

Per Kirkeby, Danish painter, sculptor and poet (died 2018)

Francisco Pinto Balsemão, Portuguese politician, Prime Minister of Portugal (died 2025)

Valery Legasov, Soviet inorganic chemist, chief of the commission investigating the Chernobyl disaster (died 1988)

Seiji Ozawa, Japanese conductor and director (died 2024)

Guy Rodgers, American basketball player (died 2001)

Ann Richards, American educator and politician, 45th Governor of Texas (died 2006)

Conway Twitty, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1993)

Derog Gioura, Nauruan politician, 23rd President of Nauru (died 2008)

Abdul Haq Ansari, Indian theologian and scholar (died 2012)

Cecil Parkinson, English accountant and politician, Secretary of State for Transport (died 2016)

Boxcar Willie, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1999)

Turgut Özakman, Turkish lawyer and civil servant (died 2013)

Charles Correa, Indian architect (died 2015)

Mava Lee Thomas, American baseball player (died 2013)

Maurice Vachon, Canadian wrestler (died 2013)

George Maharis, American actor, singer, and artist (died 2023)

Soshana Afroyim, Austrian painter (died 2015)

Abdur Rahman Biswas, Bangladeshi banker and politician, 10th President of Bangladesh (died 2017)

Gene Colan, American illustrator (died 2011)

Art Pepper, American saxophonist, clarinet player and composer (died 1982)

Rocky Marciano, American boxer (died 1969)

Kenneth Thomson, 2nd Baron Thomson of Fleet, Canadian businessman and art collector (died 2006)

Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-American actress and singer (died 2007)

Vittorio Gassman, Italian actor, director and screenwriter (died 2000)

Willem Frederik Hermans, Dutch author, poet and playwright (died 1995)

Richard Farnsworth, American actor and stuntman (died 2000)

Ossie Dawson, South African cricketer (died 2008)

Hilda Hänchen, German physicist and academic (died 2013)

Dorothy Cheney, American tennis player (died 2014)

John H. Adams, American jockey (died 1995)

Ludwig Merwart, Austrian painter and illustrator (died 1979)

E. Herbert Norman, Canadian historian and diplomat (died 1957)

Amir Elahi, Pakistani cricketer (died 1980)

Lou Kenton, English social activist (died 2012)

Walter Reuther, American labor union leader and president of the United Auto Workers (died 1970)

Joaquín Balaguer, Dominican lawyer and politician, 49th President of the Dominican Republic (died 2002)

Eleanor Alice Burford (Jean Plaidy), English author (died 1993)

Father Chrysanthus, Dutch arachnologist (died 1972)

Johnny Mack Brown, American football player and actor (died 1974)

Kazimierz Dąbrowski, Polish psychiatrist and psychologist (died 1980)

Richard Arlen, American actor (died 1976)

Violet Carson, English actress and singer (died 1983)

Andy Kennedy, Irish footballer (died 1963)

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Indian religious leader, founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (died 1977)

Engelbert Zaschka, German engineer and designer, invented the Human-powered aircraft (died 1955)

Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Japanese-American painter and photographer (died 1953)

Leverett Saltonstall, American lieutenant and politician, 55th Governor of Massachusetts (died 1979)

Andrija Štampar, Croatian physician (died 1958)

Blaise Cendrars, Swiss author and poet (died 1961)

Othmar Schoeck, Swiss composer and conductor (died 1957)

Shigeyasu Suzuki, Japanese general (died 1957)

Hilda Rix Nicholas, Australian artist (died 1961)

Sigurd Wallén, Swedish actor and director (died 1947)

Didier Pitre, Canadian ice hockey player (died 1934)

Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (died 1942)

J. F. C. Fuller, English general and historian (died 1966)

Tullio Serafin, Italian conductor and director (died 1968)

Francis William Aston, English chemist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1945)

Rex Beach, American author, playwright, and water polo player (died 1949)

Harriet Shaw Weaver, English journalist and activist (died 1961)

Edgar Rice Burroughs, American author (died 1950)

João Ferreira Sardo the founder of Gafanha da Nazaré (died 1925)

J. Reuben Clark, American lawyer, civil servant, and religious leader (died 1961)

Frank Elbridge Webb, American engineer and presidential candidate (died 1949)

Henri Bourassa, Canadian publisher and politician (died 1952)

John Gretton, 1st Baron Gretton, English sailor and politician (died 1947)

James J. Corbett, American boxer (died 1933)

Akashi Motojiro, Japanese general (died 1919)

Sergei Winogradsky, Ukrainian-Russian microbiologist and ecologist (died 1953)

Innokenty Annensky, Russian poet and critic (died 1909)

Engelbert Humperdinck, German playwright and composer (died 1921)

Aleksei Brusilov, Russian general (died 1926)

John Clum, American journalist and agent (died 1932)

Jim O'Rourke, American baseball player and manager (died 1919)

Emil Zuckerkandl, Hungarian anatomist (died 1910)

Auguste Forel, Swiss myrmecologist, neuroanatomist, and psychiatrist (died 1931)

José María Castro Madriz, Costa Rican lawyer and politician, 1st President of Costa Rica (died 1892)

James Montgomrey, Leader and important benefactor of his home town of Brentford, England (died 1883)

Ferenc Gyulay, Hungarian-Austrian commander and politician (died 1868)

James Gordon Bennett Sr., American publisher, founded the New York Herald (died 1872)

Johann Becker, German organist, composer, and educator (died 1803)

William IV, Prince of Orange (died 1751)

Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer, Bohemian architect, designed Ss. Cyril and Methodius Cathedral (died 1751)

Johann Pachelbel, German organist, composer, and educator (died 1706)

Princess Anna Sophie of Denmark, daughter of King Frederick III of Denmark (died 1717)

Giacomo Torelli, Italian stage designer, engineer, and architect (died 1678)

Nicholas Slanning, English politician (died 1643)

Maria Angela Astorch, Spanish mystic and saint (died 1665)

Henri, Prince of Condé (died 1646)

John Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, Prince-Bishop, Roman Catholic archbishop (died 1634)

Scipione Borghese, Italian cardinal and art collector (died 1633)

Edward Alleyn, English actor and major figure of the Elizabethan theatre; founder of Dulwich College and Alleyn's School (died 1626)

Gervase Helwys, English murderer (died 1615)

Bartolomeo Fanfulla, Italian mercenary (died 1525)

Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, Spanish general (died 1515)

Frederick III the Simple, King of Sicily (died 1377)

Elizabeth Richeza of Poland (died 1335)

Ibn Jubayr, Arab geographer and poet (died 1217)

Jing Zong, emperor of the Liao Dynasty (died 982)

Joe Bugner, Hungarian-British boxer and actor (born 1950)

Linda Deutsch, American journalist (born 1943)

Jimmy Buffett, American singer-songwriter, musician, author and businessman (born 1946)

Barbara Ehrenreich, American writer and journalist (born 1941)

Yang Yongsong, Chinese major general (born 1919)

Erick Morillo, American disc jockey and music producer (born 1971)

Randy Weston, American jazz pianist and composer (born 1926)

Gurgen Dalibaltayan, Armenian general (born 1926)

Dean Jones, American actor and singer (born 1931)

Richard G. Hewlett, American historian and author (born 1923)

Ben Kuroki, American sergeant and pilot (born 1917)

Ahmed Abdi Godane, Somali militant leader (born 1977)

Roger McKee, American baseball player (born 1926)

Joseph Shivers, American chemist and academic, developed spandex (born 1920)

Ignacio Eizaguirre, Spanish footballer and manager (born 1920)

Tommy Morrison, American boxer and actor (born 1969)

Gordon Steege, Australian soldier (born 1917)

Margaret Mary Vojtko, American linguist and academic (born 1930)

Ken Wallis, English commander and pilot (born 1916)

Sean Bergin, South African saxophonist, flute player, and composer (born 1948)

Hal David, American songwriter and composer (born 1921)

Smarck Michel, Haitian businessman and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Haiti (born 1937)

William Petzäll, Swedish politician (born 1988)

Arnaldo Putzu, Italian illustrator (born 1927)

Wakanohana Kanji I, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 45th Yokozuna (born 1928)

Thomas J. Bata, Czech-Canadian businessman (born 1914)

Jerry Reed, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (born 1937)

Roy McKenzie, New Zealand horse racer and philanthropist (born 1922)

György Faludy, Hungarian author and poet (born 1910)

Warren Mitofsky, American journalist (born 1934)

Bob O'Connor, American businessman and politician, 57th Mayor of Pittsburgh (born 1944)

Kyffin Williams, Welsh painter and educator (born 1918)

R. L. Burnside, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1926)

Ahmed Kuftaro, Syrian religious leader, Grand Mufti of Syria (born 1915)

Alastair Morton, South African businessman (born 1938)

Rand Brooks, American actor and producer (born 1918)

Terry Frost, English painter and academic (born 1915)

W. Richard Stevens, Zambian computer scientist and author (born 1951)

Józef Krupiński, Polish poet and author (born 1930)

Cary Middlecoff, American golfer and sportscaster (born 1921)

Osman F. Seden, Turkish director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1924)

Zoltán Czibor, Hungarian footballer (born 1929)

Otl Aicher, German graphic designer and typographer (born 1922)

Edwin O. Reischauer, American scholar and diplomat (born 1910)

A. Bartlett Giamatti, American businessman and academic (born 1938)

Kazimierz Deyna, Polish footballer (born 1947)

Tadeusz Sendzimir, Polish-American engineer (born 1894)

Luis Walter Alvarez, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1911)

Murray Hamilton, American actor (born 1923)

Stefan Bellof, German racing driver (born 1957)

Madeleine de Bourbon-Busset, Duchess of Parma (born 1898)

Henry M. Jackson, American lawyer and politician (born 1912)

Larry McDonald, American physician and politician (born 1935)

Haskell Curry, American mathematician and academic (born 1900)

Władysław Gomułka, Polish activist and politician (born 1905)

Isabel Cristina Mrad Campos, Brazilian student; honored by the Catholicism (born 1962)

Ann Harding, American actress (born 1901)

Albert Speer, German architect and author (born 1905)

Ethel Waters, American singer and actress (born 1896)

Gerd Neggo, Estonian dancer, dance teacher, and choreographer (born 1891)

Alan Brown, English soldier (born 1909)

François Mauriac, French novelist, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1885)

Drew Pearson, American journalist and author (born 1897)

Siegfried Sassoon, English soldier and writer (born 1886)

Nellie McClung, Canadian author and suffragist (born 1873)

Frederick Russell Burnham, American soldier and adventurer (born 1861)

Charles Atangana, Cameroonian ruler (born 1880)

Peeter Põld, Estonian scientist and politician, 1st Estonian Minister of Education (born 1878)

Noe Khomeriki, Georgian Social Democrat politician (born 1883)

Samu Pecz, Hungarian architect and academic (born 1854)

Martha, last known passenger pigeon (hatched 1885)

Ferenc Gyulay, Hungarian-Austrian commander and politician (born 1799)

Izidor Guzmics, Hungarian theologian and educator (born 1786)

William Clark, American soldier, explorer, and politician, 4th Governor of Missouri Territory (born 1770)

François Girardon, French sculptor (born 1628)

Louis XIV of France (born 1638)

Cornelis de Man, Dutch painter (born 1621)

Henry More, English priest and philosopher (born 1614)

Leoline Jenkins, Welsh lawyer, jurist, and politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (born 1625)

Jan Brueghel the Younger, Flemish painter (born 1601)

Marin Mersenne, French mathematician, theologian, and philosopher (born 1588)

Francis Windebank, English statesman (born 1582)

Étienne Pasquier, French lawyer and jurist (born 1529)

Cornelis de Houtman, Dutch explorer (born 1565)

Guru Ram Das, Sikh 4th of the Ten Gurus of Sikhism (born 1534)

Jacques Cartier, French navigator and explorer (born 1491)

Ulrich V, Count of Württemberg (born 1413)

William de Ros, 6th Baron de Ros, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (born 1369)

Philip of Valois, Duke of Orléans (born 1336)

Henry XIV, Duke of Bavaria (born 1305)

Foulques de Villaret, Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller

Kujō Yoritsune, Japanese shōgun (born 1218)

Otto, bishop of Utrecht

Dulce, Queen of Portugal (born 1160)

Pope Adrian IV (born 1100)

Bishop Eusebius of Angers

Muhammad al-Bukhari, Persian scholar (born 810)