On This Day - What Happened On August 25 - Encyclopedia Britannica

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1944 Paris liberated On this day in 1944, some two months after the Allied invasion of Normandy, Paris was liberated from German occupiers as the Free French 2nd Armored Division under General Jacques-Philippe Leclerc entered the city. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about World War II National Archives, Washington, D.C.

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Sean Connery British actor bornAugust 25, 1930Edinburgh, ScotlanddiedOctober 31, 2020 (aged 90)The Bahamas© Carrienelson1/Dreamstime.com 1958 Tim Burton American director 1954 Elvis Costello British singer-songwriter 1931 Regis Philbin American television personality 1930 Sean Connery British actor 1919 George Wallace American politician See All Biographies On This Day

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2018 American politician John McCain—who developed a reputation as a political maverick while serving in Congress for some 35 years and during his failed bid for the presidency in 2008—died at age 81. Test your knowledge of American politicsCourtesy, Office of U. S. Senator, John McCain 2012 U.S. astronaut Neil Armstrong—who was the first person to set foot on the Moon, an event he described as “one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind”—died at age 82. Take our quiz about famous astronauts and cosmonautsNASA 2009 American politician Ted Kennedy, who was a prominent figure in the Democratic Party and the last surviving brother of President John F. Kennedy, died at age 77. Read our list of 10 Democrats who made historyOffice of U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy 1945 John Birch, an American Baptist missionary and U.S. Army intelligence officer, was killed by Chinese communists, which later inspired the foundation of the John Birch Society—a private organization that considered Birch to be the first hero of the Cold War. 1939 The Wizard of Oz, a film adaptation of L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, was released in theaters. Starring Judy Garland, the movie was nominated for six Academy Awards and won for score and song (“Over the Rainbow”). Learn more about the people, places, and events that shaped the 1930s© 1939 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. 1919 George C. Wallace—a four-time governor of Alabama (1962–66, 1970–78, 1982–86) who led the American South in a fight, eventually abandoned, against federal orders to end racial segregation—was born in Clio, Alabama. Take our Republican or Democrat quizBettmann/Getty Images 1916 U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signed the “Organic Act,” which established the National Park Service. Test your knowledge of national parks and landmarks© Onnes—iStock/Getty Images 1900 German Classical scholar, philosopher, and critic of culture Friedrich Nietzsche, one of the most influential of all modern thinkers, died at age 55. How much do you know about philosophy?Photos.com/Getty Images 1835 New York's The Sun began running a series of news accounts that falsely claimed British astronomer John Herschel had observed all sorts of life on the Moon, including winged human creatures about four feet tall; it became known as the Great Moon Hoax, though The Sun never retracted the stories. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about the MoonNASA/JSC 1530 Ivan IV (the Terrible), grand prince of Moscow and first tsar of Russia, was born. Take our quiz about Russian history© IgorGolovniov/Shutterstock.com 325 The Council of Nicaea—the first ecumenical council of the Christian church, called by the emperor Constantine I—brought to an end the controversy of Arianism, concluding that God the Father was of equal status with God the Son. Test your knowledge of the history of Christianity© Photos.com/Getty Images SIGN UP FOR History's Biggest Headlines Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! SIGN UP By clicking "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.