August 21st, 1542

Born on August 21st, 1542

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 176,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 248 days, exactly on March 31st, 2027, people who were born on August 21st, 1542 will be 177,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on August 21st?

August 21st, 2007

BioShock was released in North America, becoming a critical success and a demonstration of video games as an art form.

August 21st, 2015

Passengers on a Thalys train from Amsterdam to Paris confronted and subdued an attacker who attempted a mass shooting.

August 21st, 2013

Syrian civil war: Areas controlled by the Syrian opposition in Ghouta, Damascus, were attacked by rockets (launcher pictured) containing sarin, killing at least 281 people.

August 21st, 1986

A limnic eruption of Lake Nyos in Cameroon released a cloud of carbon dioxide, suffocating 1,746 people and 3,500 livestock.

August 21st, 1963

South Vietnamese special forces loyal to Ngô Đình Nhu, the brother of President Ngô Đình Diệm, raided and vandalised Buddhist pagodas (one pictured) across the country, arresting thousands and leaving hundreds dead.

August 21st, 1945

American physicist Harry Daghlian accidentally dropped a tungsten carbide brick onto a plutonium bomb core, exposing himself to neutron radiation and later becoming the first Manhattan Project fatality due to a criticality accident.

August 21st, 1944

World War II: A combined Canadian–Polish force captured the town of Falaise, France, in the final offensive of the Battle of Normandy.

August 21st, 1942

World War II: The Imperial Japanese Army lost the Battle of the Tenaru, the first of its three major land offensives during the Guadalcanal campaign.

August 21st, 1911

Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa (pictured) was stolen from the Louvre by museum employee Vincenzo Peruggia and was not recovered until two years later.

August 21st, 1858

The first of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas (both pictured), candidates for an Illinois seat in the U.S. Senate, was held in Ottawa, Illinois.

August 21st, 1808

Peninsular War: British and Portuguese forces put an end to the first French invasion of Portugal at the Battle of Vimeiro.

August 21st, 1789

The national colours of Italy first appeared on a tricolour cockade in Genoa.

August 21st, 1717

Austro-Turkish War: Austrian troops under Prince Eugene of Savoy captured the strategically important city of Belgrade from the Ottoman Empire.

August 21st, 1716

Seventh Ottoman–Venetian War: Ottoman forces suddenly abandoned their siege of Corfu, allowing the Republic of Venice to preserve its rule over the Ionian Islands.

August 21st, 1689

Jacobite clans clashed with a regiment of Covenanters in the streets of Dunkeld, Scotland.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on August 21st

Same year
Born in 1542

63

Akbar

Mughal emperor from 1556 to 1605

*October 15th, 1542, Umarkot Fort †October 25th, 1605, Fatehpur Sikri

44

Mary, Queen of Scots

Queen of Scotland from 1542 to 1567

*December 8th, 1542, Linlithgow †February 8th, 1587, Fotheringhay Castle

49

John of the Cross

Spanish mystic and Roman Catholic saint

*June 24th, 1542, Fontiveros †December 14th, 1591, Úbeda

63

Jan Zamoyski

Polish magnate, statesman and military commander (1542–1605)

*March 19th, 1542, Skokówka †June 3rd, 1605, Zamość

33

Isabella de' Medici

Daughter of Cosimo I. de’ Medici and Eleonora of Toledo (1542-1576)

*August 31st, 1542, Florence †July 16th, 1576, Cerreto Guidi

58

Henriette of Cleves

Duchess of Nevers, Countess of Rethel

*October 31st, 1542, La Chapelle-d'Angillon †June 24th, 1601, Paris

74

Tarquinia Molza

Italian singer and composer

*November 1st, 1542, Modena †August 8th, 1617, Modena

73

Anders Sørensen Vedel

Danish historian (1542-1616)

*November 9th, 1542, Vejle †February 13th, 1616, Ribe

80

Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter

English politician (1542-1623)

*May 5th, 1542, London †February 8th, 1623, London

64

Wolfgang Amling

*March 8th, 1542, Münnerstadt †May 18th, 1606, Zerbst

67

Georg Rollenhagen

*May 2nd, 1542, Bernau bei Berlin †May 20th, 1609, Magdeburg

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on August 21st

Fixed holidays (Christian Feast Day) which are celebrated on August 21st.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

No: With 365 days 1542 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
August 1542