AUGUST 15.
1356 B. C. The Eleusinia, or great Grecian mysteries, founded in this year, so celebrated throughout the classical world, were observed by the Athenians at Eleusis, every fifth year for nine days, commencing on the 15th Boedromion; introduced in memory of Ceres.
310 B. C. Agathocles landed in Africa during an eclipse of the sun, not many weeks subsequent to his defeat by the Carthagenians at Himera. Epicurus began in that year to teach at Mitylene and Lampsacus.
423. Honorius, emperor of Rome, died; who, with his brother Arcadius, first divided the empire into east and west sovereignties.
718. The second and memorable siege of Constantinople (under the reign of Leo the Isaurian), by the Saracens, raised. It commenced, according to Theophanes, on the same day of the preceding year.
1038. Stephen I, of Hungary, died. He introduced Christianity into his kingdom, and enacted wise laws for the benefit of his people.
1096. The princes of the crusade began their march through Germany.
1118. Alexius Comnenus I, emperor of Constantinople, died. He usurped the throne 1080, and distinguished himself in his wars with the Turks.
1279. Albert (the great), of Brunswick, died; a monk who acquired great knowledge in an age of ignorance.
1369. Philippa, of England, died; memorable for her humanity towards the six condemned citizens of Calais, when that city fell into the hands of Edward.
1635. Great storm in New England. The tide rose 20 feet, a great many houses and plantations were destroyed, and the Narragansetts were obliged to climb trees for safety; the tide of flood returning before the usual time, many of them were drowned.
1656. James Bowels, a native of Killingworth, England, died, aged 152.
1661. Thomas Fuller, an English historian and divine, died. It is said of his memory, among other incredible things, that he could repeat a sermon verbatim on once hearing it.
1702. Unsuccessful attack of the British under admiral Rooke and the duke of Ormond, on Cadiz.
1702. Battle of Lauzara, in Italy, between the allies under prince Eugene, and the French under the duke de Vendome.
1725. Gerard Noodt, an eminent Dutch civilian, died.
1728. The queen of Sardinia died; she was the daughter of Charles I of England.
1729. Benjamin Neukirch, a German poet, died. He deserves a place in history rather as having taken the first step to reform German literature, than as a good writer.
1733. A Roman pavement of mosaic work discovered in Little St. Helen's, Bishop gate street, London; supposed to have lain over 1700 years.
1741. Behring discovered East cape, the easternmost point of Asia.
1746. Nicholas Hubert de Mongault, an ingenious and learned French critic, died.
1751. Thomas Shaw, an English divine and antiquary, died; a writer on Barbary and the Levant.
1758. Kustrin, the capital of the new march of Brandenburg, bombarded by the Russians, and reduced to a heap of ruins.
1758. Pierre Bouguer, a celebrated French mathematician, died. He was employed to measure a degree of the meridian in Peru, a difficult task, which he accomplished with great fidelity.
1760. Lacy Ryan died; an English dramatic writer, but more eminent as an actor.
1764. Iwan, son of prince Anthony Ulric, of Russia, massacred in prison by his keepers. He was grandson of Peter the Great, and had been kept in prison almost from his birth.
1769. Birthday of Napoleon Bonaparte, at Ajaccio, in the island of Corsica.
1771. Birthday of sir Walter Scott, at Edinburgh.
1780. American general Sumpter attacked and carried a redoubt on the Wateree, and intercepted a convoy from fort Ninety-six, with 40 wagons loaded with stores, and took 100 prisoners.
1782. Briant's Station, near Lexington, Ky., attacked by 500 Indians and Canadians, who were repulsed, and retreated on the third day, having lost 30 killed.
1786. Thomas Trywhitt, an English antiquary and critic, died; author of several learned works, and one of the many commentators on Shakspeare.
1793. Levée en masse was proposed in the French assembly which proved the foundation of the famous but tyrannical conscription act of Napoleon.
1794. French convention ordered the French and American flags to be united and hung up together in the hall of their sitting. James Monroe was received as minister from the United States.
1799. The French under Massena defeated the Austrians and Russians under the archduke Charles, at Richterswyl, Etzel and Schwindelezzi, in Switzerland. Lecourbe forced the famous pass of the Devil's bridge, took possession of St. Gothard, and seized on the Valois.
1801. Charles Louis l'Heritier de Brutelle, a French botanist, assassinated. He published Stirpes Novæ, a splendid book, and was engaged in preparing a work on English plants.
1802. Bonaparte invested with the sole power of nominating his successor and of appointing two subordinate consuls, and nominating a large number of additional senators, &c.
1812. British general Brock summoned the city of Detroit to surrender, occupied by general Hull.
1812. Battle of fort Chicago; the garrison, consisting of 54 regulars and 12 militia, was attacked by the Indians and after a resolute resistance of some hours, in which 26 of the regulars, all the militia, 2 women and 12 children, were killed, they surrendered on the promise of protection. The survivors, however, 25 men and 11 women, were brutally massacred.
1814. Assault on fort Erie by the British under colonel Drummond, who were repulsed with great loss. The attack commenced at 2 o'clock in the morning, and it was a part of the British orders that no quarters should be given. The action was desperate and bloody; the British lost by official report, 57 killed, 309 wounded, 539 missing—by another account they lost 222 killed, 174 badly wounded, and 186 prisoners, besides 200 killed at Snake Hill. Colonel Drummond was killed; acting up
to his barbarous order, when a wounded American officer asked quarter, he shot him with a pistol, whereupon a soldier leveled his piece and shot Drummond in the breast. Total American loss, 93—killed 26, wounded 92, missing 11.
1815. John Meerman, a celebrated Dutch author, died. Under Bonaparte he was made director of the fine arts and minister of public instruction, and became a count of the empire and senator. His library sold in 1824 for 131,000 florins.
1816. Great fire at Constantinople; 1200 houses and 3000 shops and magazines destroyed.
1844. William Leet Stone, a New York editor, died, aged 52. He published memoirs of Brant, and of Red Jacket, and some other works, and edited for a long time the New York Commercial Advertiser. He was also superintendent of common schools in that city.
1849. Riot at Montreal; house of L. H. Lafontaine, head of the Canadian ministry, was assailed by a mob. Fire arms were discharged from the building, by which one person was killed, and the rest driven back.
1851. A violent and destructive tornado occurred at St. Louis, Missouri.
1853. A conspiracy discovered in Rome; 146 persons arrested.
1854. Stephen Simpson, died at Philadelphia. He was at one period of his life an editor, and gained considerable celebrity as a political writer, especially against the United States bank, over the signature of Brutus, in Duane's Aurora.