128 things happened on 8 October, from 319 BC to 2020. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1200 · 826 years ago
Isabella of Angoulême was crowned queen of England as the second wife of King John. She remained queen until 1216. In 1202 Isabella also became Countess of Angoulême in her own right. This means she held the title herself, not just because of her marriage.
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
Isabella of Angoulême was crowned queen of England as the second wife of King John. She remained queen until 1216. In 1202 Isabella also became Countess of Angoulême in her own right. This means she held the title herself, not just because of her marriage.
UK story
Stephenson's Rocket completed the full test set by the judges at the Rainhill Trials in Lancashire. The trials were a contest to decide whether steam locomotives should pull trains on the new Liverpool and Manchester Railway. Rocket was the only engine to finish the trials, reaching a top speed of 30 miles per hour. It won the £500 prize, and the railway agreed to use locomotives.
UK story
The Indian Air Force was officially set up in British India. It began as an auxiliary, or supporting, air force linked to Britain's Royal Air Force. The RAF itself had been formed in 1918, near the end of the First World War. The Indian Air Force is now the air arm of India's armed forces, and India marks Air Force Day every year on 8 October.
UK story
Prime Minister Harold Wilson officially opened a new communications tower in central London, now called the BT Tower. It was built for the General Post Office to hold microwave aerials. These sent telephone and other signals from London to the rest of the country. At 177 metres high, it was London's tallest structure until 1980, and from 1966 it had a revolving restaurant near the top.
UK story
Frankish forces led by Louis the Younger prevent a West Frankish invasion and defeat emperor Charles II ("the Bald").
The army of the Great Horde, led by Akhmat Khan, faced the army of Moscow across the Ugra River. Moscow's forces were led by Grand Prince Ivan III. Rather than a big battle, it became a long stand-off between the two sides. The Great Stand on the Ugra River brought Tatar rule over Moscow to an end.
Jeanne Mance, a French nurse, opened the Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal, the first hospital in Montreal. She had been one of the founders of the city in 1642. It is described as the first lay hospital in North America, which means it was not run by a religious order. Mance cared for most of the patients herself for years and twice went back to France to raise money for it.
The Russian author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. His writing helped the world learn about the harsh treatment of people who disagreed with the Soviet government. This included its prison camps, known as the Gulag. His book The Gulag Archipelago sold tens of millions of copies.
Australian motorboat racer Ken Warby set a world water speed record of 275.97 knots on Blowering Dam in Australia. That is more than 500 kilometres per hour. His record has never been beaten, and he still held it when he died in 2023.
Poland's government banned Solidarity and all other trade unions. A trade union is a group of workers who join together to protect their rights at work. Solidarity had been founded in 1980 at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk. It was the first independent trade union to be officially recognised in any of the communist countries allied with the Soviet Union.
Constantine I defeats Licinius, who loses his European territories.
The Council of Chalcedon, a Christian ecumenical council, opened, and went on to repudiate the Eutychian doctrine of monophysitism and set forth the Chalcedonian Creed.
Dmitar Zvonimir is crowned King of Croatia.
The Spanish siege of Alkmaar ends with the first Dutch victory in the Eighty Years' War.
The Treaty of Ried is signed between Bavaria and Austria.
The Peruvian Navy is established during the War of Independence.
In the American Civil War, the Battle of Perryville was fought west of Perryville, Kentucky.
War of the Pacific: The Chilean Navy defeats the Peruvian Navy in the Battle of Angamos.
The First Balkan War begins when Montenegro declares war against the Ottoman Empire.
KDKA in Pittsburgh's Forbes Field conducts the first live broadcast of a football game.
World War II: Germany annexes western Poland.
World War II: During the preliminaries of the Battle of Rostov, German forces reach the Sea of Azov with the capture of Mariupol.
Major League Baseball pitcher Don Larsen threw the only perfect game in World Series history.
Marxist revolutionary and guerrilla leader Che Guevara was captured near La Higuera, Bolivia.
Yom Kippur War: Israel loses more than 150 tanks in a failed attack on Egyptian-occupied positions.
Spyros Markezinis begins his 48-day term as prime minister in an abortive attempt to lead Greece to parliamentary rule.
Franklin National Bank collapses due to fraud and mismanagement; at the time it is the largest bank failure in the history of the United States.
Upon the expiration of the Brioni Agreement, Croatia and Slovenia sever all official relations with Yugoslavia.
The Croatian Army and Croatian Defence Council launched Operation Southern Move, their last offensive in the Bosnian War.
A new airport for Oslo, Norway, opened at Gardermoen, replacing a smaller one at the same location that had served as a backup to the city's previous main airport at Fornebu.
U.S. president George W. Bush announces the establishment of the Office of Homeland Security.
Anti-government protests calling for free and fair elections began in Baku, Azerbaijan.
About 200 Extinction Rebellion activists block the gates of Leinster House (parliament) in the Republic of Ireland.
Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: Azerbaijan twice deliberately targeted the Church of the Holy Savior Ghazanchetsots of Shusha.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “The Indian Air Force is founded”?
B: 1932. 1932 — that’s 94 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “Isabella of Angoulême is crowned Queen of England”?
B: 1200. 1200 — that’s 826 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
A: Isabella of Angoulême is crowned Queen of England. 1200: Isabella of Angoulême is crowned Queen of England · 1932: The Indian Air Force is founded · 1829: Stephenson's Rocket passes its big test at the Rainhill Trials Find it on the page
“Stephenson's Rocket passes its big test at the Rainhill Trials” happened in 1829. How many years ago was that?
C: 197 years. 2026 − 1829 = 197. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 8 October.
UK story
Betty Boothroyd was a Labour MP for West Bromwich from 1973 to 2000. In 1992 she became Speaker of the House of Commons, the person who chairs debates and keeps order among MPs. She was the first woman ever to do the job, and is still the only one. After leaving the Commons, she sat in the House of Lords.
Well-known people who died on 8 October.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 8 October somewhere in the world.
World Space Week is held every year from 4 to 10 October. More than 95 countries take part. The week celebrates science and technology and the ways they help to improve people's lives. It is organised by the World Space Week Association together with the United Nations.
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.
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 “October 8” 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.