Explore 4219 historical events from 1980–1989.
The Cold War was a period of international geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc …
Cold War: During a speech at the Brandenburg Gate by the Berlin Wall, US president Ronald Reagan challenged Soviet leade
Basque nationalism is a form of nationalism that asserts that Basques, an ethnic group indigenous to the western Pyrenees, are a nation and promotes the political unity of the Basq…
The Basque separatist group ETA detonated a car bomb at a Hipercor shopping centre in Barcelona, killing 21 people and i
The Montreal flood of 1987 happened on July 14 of that year when a series of strong thunderstorms crossed the island of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, between the noon hour and 2:30 p.m…
More than 100 mm (3.9 in) of rain fell in a two-and-a-half-hour period in parts of Montreal, causing severe flooding.
The Iran–Iraq War, also referred to as the First Imposed War, began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran in September 1980. After eight years of conflict, both countries accepted a ceas…
Iran–Iraq War: In opposition to the American plan to protect Kuwaiti tankers, Iran laid mines and damaged the…
Lynne Cox is an American long-distance open water swimmer, writer, and speaker. She is best known for being the first person to swim between the United States and the Soviet Union,…
Lynne Cox became the first person to swim between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, crossing from Little Diomede to Big…
The Ryugyong Hotel (Korean: 류경호텔), sometimes spelled as Ryu-Gyong Hotel or Yu-Kyung Hotel, is a 330 m (1,080 ft) tall unfinished pyramid-shaped skyscraper in Pyongyang, North Korea…
Construction began on the Ryugyong Hotel (pictured) in Pyongyang, the tallest building in North Korea.
Sikhs are followers of Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the teachings of Guru Nanak. The term …
An assembly of Sikhs, known as a Sarbat Khalsa, officially declare independence for a state of Khalistan
Patrick Allan Morrow, is a Canadian photographer and mountain climber. In 1986 he was the first person to climb the Seven Summits in the Carstensz-Version.
Canadian Patrick Morrow becomes the first person to climb each of the Seven Summits
The Firearm Owners' Protection Act (FOPA) of 1986 is a United States federal law that revised many provisions of the Gun Control Act of 1968.
The Firearm Owners Protection Act is signed into law by U
Jonathan Jay Pollard is an American-born Israeli spy and former intelligence analyst who was jailed for spying for Israel.
Jonathan Pollard pleads guilty to espionage for selling top secret United States military intelligence to Israel
The Three Hundred and Thirty Five Years' War was an alleged state of war between the Netherlands and the Isles of Scilly. It is said to have been extended by the lack of a peace tr…
An alleged state of war lasting 335 years between the Netherlands and the Isles of Scilly declared peace bringing an end
Rodrigo Andrés Rojas de Negri, known as Rodrigo Rojas, was a young photographer who was burned alive during a street demonstration against the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinoc…
Rodrigo Rojas and Carmen Gloria Quintana are burnt alive during a street demonstration against the dictatorship of…
Sudan Airways is the flag carrier airline of Sudan, headquartered in Khartoum. Since 2012, the company has been fully owned by the Government of Sudan.
A Sudan Airways Fokker F27 Friendship is shot down near Malakal in present day South Sudan, killing 60.
Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States. It is a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, in Central Oklahoma. Its population was 94,428 at the 2020 United…
In Edmond, Oklahoma, U.S. Postal employee Patrick Sherrill shoots and kills 14 of his co-workers and then commits…
On 26 April 1986, reactor no. 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, exploded. With dozens of direct casualties and thousands of…
The Chernobyl disaster occurs in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Pripyat, also known as Prypiat, is an abandoned industrial city in Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine, located near the border with Belarus. Named after the nearby river, Pripyat, it was founded…
The city of Pripyat and surrounding areas are evacuated due to the Chernobyl disaster
On 26 April 1986, reactor 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, exploded. With dozens of direct casualties and thousands of hea…
High levels of radiation resulting from the Chernobyl disaster are detected at Forsmark Nuclear Power Plant in Sweden, l
The Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) is a public library system in Los Angeles, California, operating separate from the Los Angeles County Public Library system. The system holds …
A fire at the Central library of the Los Angeles Public Library damages or destroys 400,000 books and other items
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed to carry, launch, recover and support aircraft at sea, equipped with a full-length flight deck and hangar facilities that allow it to serv…
The United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise becomes the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to transit the
Shinji Okazaki is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is best known for winning the Premier League with Leicester City in 2016. He is currently t…
Shinji Okazaki, Japanese footballer
Peter Regin Jensen is a Danish former professional ice hockey player. He was drafted by the Ottawa Senators in the third round of the 2004 NHL entry draft and played his first five…
Peter Regin, Danish ice hockey player
Epke Jan Zonderland is a Dutch artistic gymnast and the 2012 Olympic gold medallist on high bar. He is a 4-time Olympian (2008–20) and has also taken 3 World Championships golds on…
Epke Zonderland, Dutch gymnast
On 26 April 1986, reactor 4 of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, located near Pripyat, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, exploded. With dozens of direct casualties and thousands of hea…
Chernobyl disaster: The City of Chernobyl is evacuated six days after the disaster
Air Lanka Flight 512 was an Air Lanka flight from London Gatwick Airport via Zurich and Dubai to Colombo and Malé, Maldives. On 3 May 1986, the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar serving the …
Twenty-one people are killed and forty-one are injured after a bomb explodes on Air Lanka Flight 512 at Colombo airport