Year 1800
Fort William College was established at Calcutta.
AUGUST 18
Daily Historical Chronicle
UPSC CSE • State PSC • SSC CGL Matrix
18 August: What Happened On This Day in History
Curated historical timeline of momentous political pacts, freedom struggle uprisings, constitutional developments, scientific breakthroughs, and prominent birthdays recorded on 18 August.
Year 1841
Britain established world’s first National Fire brigade.
Year 1907
Madam Bhikaji Cama, addressed the International Socialist Congress at Stuttgart, Germany.
Year 1920
The 19th amendment of the United States Constitution was ratified, guaranteeing woman suffrage.
Year 1945
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose left Saigon and is believed to have died in a Japanese aeroplane crash at Taihoku Airport in Taiwan.
Year 1945
Sukarno became the First President of Indonesia.
Year 1951
Indian Institute of Technology was opened in Kharagpur, West Bengal.
Year 1957
Tilak Raj was appointed the Narcotics Commissioner of India. He headed his office for four years till 6th September 1961.
Year 1958
Brojen Das became the First Asia Person Who swam across the English Channel in competition.
Year 1963
James Meredith became the first African American to graduate from the University of Mississippi.
Year 1990
President R Venkataraman presented the colours to the Officers Training Academy in recognition of their services to the Nation.
Year 1993
The Transport Development Council decides to abolish Pathkar (entry tax) and increase the fee for national permit from Rs. 1500 to Rs. 5000.
Year 1997
Shanvac-B, India's first genetically engineered vaccine for Hepatitis B was launched.
Year 2000
The Supreme Court rejects a petition filed by former Navy chief Vishnu Bhagwat challenging his dismissal from service and the consequent direction stripping him of the title Admiral.
Year 2005
A massive power blackout hits the Indonesian island of Java, affecting almost 100 million people, one of the largest and most widespread power outages in history.
Year 2008
President of Pakistan Parvez Musharraf resigned under threat of impeachment.
Year 2008
War of Afghanistan: Uzbin Valley ambush occurs.
Year 2017
The first terrorist attack ever sentenced as a crime in Finland kills two and injures eight.
Year 2019
100 activists, officials, and other concerned citizens in Iceland hold a funeral for Okjökull glacier, which has completely melted after once covering six square miles (15.5 km2).
Born 1700
Baji Rao I, the 7th Peshwa of Maratha Empire in India.
Born 1792
John Russell, former Prime Minister of United Kingdom.
Born 1830
Franz-Josef I, an Austro Hungarian emperor who invaded Serbia and helped initiate World War I.
Born 1872
Pandit Vishnu Digambar Paluskar Gadgil, who provided new heights to North Indian classical music, was born at Kundanwadi at Kolhapur district in Maharashtra.
Born 1891
Jain Muni Mishrimalji, poet, social reformer and orator, was born in Pali, Rajasthan.
Born 1896
Raghupati Sahay "Firaq Gorakhpuri", revolutionary Urdu poet, was born. He was honoured with the highest literary awards, including the Sahitya Academy Award in 1960 and Bharatiya Gyanpeeth Award in 1969. His notable works include "Ruh-e-Kayenaat (Spirit of Universe, 1945)" and "Ramz-O-Kinayaat (Suggestion, 1946)".
Born 1900
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Indian diplomat, and politician who became the first woman President of the United Nations General Assembly.
Born 1911
Adityanath Jha, former Governor of Delhi, was born.
Born 1920
Harbhajan Singh, educationist and writer, was born at Lumding.
Born 1923
Jamshed Khudadaad Irani, cricket wicket-keeper for India during the 1947-48 Australia tour, was born in Karachi.
Born 1923
Sadashiv "Sadu" Ganpatrao Shinde, cricketer (Indian leg-spinner during the late 1940's and early 1950's), was born in Bombay.
Born 1933
Roman Polanski, a polish film director who has worked in Europe and the USA, directing films such as Repulsion, Rosemary’s baby, and The Sundance kid.
Born 1934
Gulzar, one of the most popular Urdu poets from India.
Born 1946
Aruna Irani, an Indian actress.
Born 1951
V. K. Sasikala, an Indian politician and the president of the Amma Makkal Munnettra Kazagam political party in Tamil Nadu.
Born 1956
Sandeep Madhusudan Patil, Indian cricketer and coach
Born 1959
Nirmala Sitaraman, Indian Politician. The current minister of finance and former defense minister. She is the second female finance minister and second female defense minister after Indira Gandhi in India.
Born 1967
Daler Mehndi, an Indian recording artist, and performer, helped popularized Bhangra music. His first album Bolo Ta Ra Ra (1995) sold 20 million copies worldwide.
Died 1227
The Mongol ruler Genghis Khan, the conqueror of a vast empire that extends from the pacific to Dnieper River, died after falling from his horse.
Died 1886
Eli Whitney Blake, American inventor, Invented mortise lock.
Died 1945
Subhas Chandra Bose, Indian activist and politician (b. 1897)
Died 1958
Dr.Bhagwandas, famous Congress leader and theosophist, died.
Died 1969
Humayun Kabir, great politician, died.
Died 1979
Vasantrao Naik, Indian politician.
Died 1990
Pandit Narayan Chaturvedi, senior Hindi litterateur, died.
Died 1995
Parvati Giri, also called the Little Mother Teresa, died in Orissa. She was 69. She was a social worker and had taken part during the Quit India movement.
Died 1998
Persis Khambatta, Indian model and actress, Femina Miss India 1965 (b. 1948)
Died 2009
Kim Dae-Jung, eighth President of South Korea.
Died 2012
Ra. Ki. Rangarajan, Indian journalist and author (b. 1927)
Died 2015
Suvra Mukherjee, Wife of former Indian president Pranab Mukherjee. (b. 1940)
Died 2018
Kofi Annan, Ghanaian politician who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006.