A Day in the Past

On this day: 22 August

124 things happened on 22 August, from AD 851 to 2023. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.

Printable worksheet Take the quiz

In the UK 8

UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Around the world 29

1639 387 years ago

The Vijayanagara Empire leased a small strip of land in present-day Chennai, the capital of the present-day Indian state of Tamil Nadu, to the East India Company.

Find out more: Vijayanagara Empire (Wikipedia)
1965 61 years ago

Juan Marichal, pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, strikes John Roseboro, catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, on the head with a bat, sparking a 14-minute brawl, one of the most violent on-field incidents in sports history.

Sport Find out more: Juan Marichal (Wikipedia)
2003 23 years ago

Roy Moore, Alabama's chief justice, was suspended after refusing to comply with a U.S. federal court order to remove a rock inscribed with the Ten Commandments from the lobby of the Supreme Court of Alabama building.

Laws & government Find out more: Roy Moore (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!

  1. In which year did this happen: “King Charles I raised the royal standard at Nottingham, marking the beginning”?

    1. 1642
    2. 1995
    3. 1851
    Show the answer

    A: 1642. 1642 — that’s 384 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold used a ruse to convince the”?

    1. 1777
    2. 1967
    3. 1770
    Show the answer

    A: 1777. 1777 — that’s 249 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. At the Battle of Bosworth Field, Lancastrian forces under Henry Tudor, Earl of
    2. American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold used a ruse to convince the
    3. King Charles I raised the royal standard at Nottingham, marking the beginning
    Show the answer

    A: At the Battle of Bosworth Field, Lancastrian forces under Henry Tudor, Earl of. 1485: At the Battle of Bosworth Field, Lancastrian forces under Henry Tudor, Earl of · 1777: American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold used a ruse to convince the · 1642: King Charles I raised the royal standard at Nottingham, marking the beginning Find it on the page

  4. “At the Battle of Bosworth Field, Lancastrian forces under Henry Tudor, Earl of” happened in 1485. How many years ago was that?

    1. 541 years
    2. 551 years
    3. 531 years
    Show the answer

    A: 541 years. 2026 − 1485 = 541. Find it on the page

Born on this day 32

Famous people whose birthday is 22 August.

Remembering 22

Well-known people who died on 22 August.

Special days 8

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 22 August somewhere in the world.

For older readers 25 Show stories about war, disasters, crime and other difficult history

Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.

Where these facts come from

Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “August 22” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.