August 27 in history — What Happened Today in History

The Troubles: Eighteen British soldiers are killed at the Warrenpoint ambush by the Provisional Irish Republican Army near Warrenpoint, Northern Ireland, in the deadliest attack on British forces during Operation Banner. An IRA bomb also kills British royal family member Lord Mountbatten and three others on his boat at Mullaghmore, Republic of Ireland.

The Governor of Portuguese Timor abandons its capital, Dili, and flees to Atauro Island, leaving control to a rebel group.

An attempted coup d'état fails in the African nation of Chad. The Government of Chad accuses Egypt of playing a role in the attempt and breaks off diplomatic relations.

South Vietnamese junta leader Nguyễn Khánh enters into a triumvirate power-sharing arrangement with rival generals Trần Thiện Khiêm and Dương Văn Minh, who had both been involved in plots to unseat Khánh.

An explosion at the Cane Creek potash mine near Moab, Utah kills 18 miners.

The Mariner 2 unmanned space mission is launched to Venus by NASA.

The nuclear power station at Calder Hall in the United Kingdom was connected to the national power grid becoming the world's first commercial nuclear power station to generate electricity on an industrial scale.

The first edition of the Guinness Book of Records is published in Great Britain.

World War II: Japanese forces evacuate New Georgia Island in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II.

World War II: Aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe razes to the ground the village of Vorizia in Crete.

The Holocaust: first day of the Sarny Massacre, perpetrated by German military forces.

First flight of the turbojet-powered Heinkel He 178, the world's first jet aircraft.

The first Afrikaans Bible is introduced during a Bible Festival in Bloemfontein.

The Kellogg–Briand Pact outlawing war is signed by fifteen nations. Ultimately sixty-one nations will sign it.

Five Canadian women file a petition to the Supreme Court of Canada, asking: "Does the word 'Persons' in Section 24 of the British North America Act, 1867, include female persons?"

Greco-Turkish War: The Turkish army takes the Aegean city of Afyonkarahisar from the Kingdom of Greece.

Mexican Revolution: Battle of Ambos Nogales: U.S. Army forces skirmish against Mexican Carrancistas as part of the Mexican Border War.

World War I: The Kingdom of Romania declares war on Austria-Hungary, entering the war as one of the Allied nations.

Attempted assassination of Bishop Patrick Heffron, bishop of the Diocese of Winona, by Rev. Louis M. Lesches.

World War I: Battle of Étreux: A British rearguard action by the Royal Munster Fusiliers during the Great Retreat.

World War I: Siege of Tsingtao: A Japanese fleet commanded by Vice Admiral Sadakichi Kato imposes a blockade along the whole coastline of German Tsingtao, initiating the Siege of Tsingtao.

The Qing dynasty promulgates the Qinding Xianfa Dagang, the first constitutional document in the history of China, transforming the Qing empire into a constitutional monarchy.

Anglo-Zanzibar War: The shortest war in world history (09:02 to 09:40) occurs, between the United Kingdom and Zanzibar.

Japanese invasion of Taiwan: Battle of Baguashan: The Empire of Japan decisively defeats a smaller Formosan army at Changhua, crippling the short-lived Republic of Formosa and leading to its surrender two months later.

The Sea Islands hurricane strikes the United States near Savannah, Georgia, killing between 1,000 and 2,000 people.

Eruption of Krakatoa: Four enormous explosions almost completely destroy the island of Krakatoa, with a combination of tsunamis and pyroclastic flows killing more than 36,000. Climate effects are observed worldwide.

The Georgia hurricane makes landfall near Savannah, Georgia, resulting in an estimated 700 deaths.

Petroleum is discovered in Titusville, Pennsylvania, leading to the world's first commercially successful oil well.

Sarah Hecken, German figure skater

Olivier Le Gac, French cyclist

Blake Jenner, American actor and singer

Stephen Morris, American football player

Kim Petras, German singer-songwriter

Ayame Goriki, Japanese actress and singer

Lee Sung-yeol, South Korean actor and singer

Tori Bowie, American athlete (died 2023)

Luuk de Jong, Dutch footballer

Romain Amalfitano, French footballer

Juliana Cannarozzo, American figure skater and actress

Alexa PenaVega, American actress and singer

Darren McFadden, American football player

Benno Pludra, German author (born 1925)

Chen Liting, Chinese director and playwright (born 1910)

Bill Peach, Australian journalist (born 1935)

Dave Thomas, Welsh golfer and architect (born 1934)

Neville Alexander, South African linguist and activist (born 1936)

Malcolm Browne, American journalist and photographer (born 1931)

Art Heyman, American basketball player (born 1941)

Ivica Horvat, Croatian footballer and manager (born 1926)

Richard Kingsland, Australian captain and pilot (born 1916)

Geliy Korzhev, Russian painter (born 1925)

Anton Geesink, Dutch martial artist (born 1934)

Luna Vachon, Canadian-American wrestler and manager (born 1962)

Sergey Mikhalkov, Russian author and poet (born 1913)