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1942 84 years ago Historical Events August 17 4 sources

World War II: U.S. Marines raid the Japanese-held Pacific island of Makin.

On August 17, in the year 1942, World War II: U.S. Marines raid the Japanese-held Pacific island of Makin. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of August 17, one of 414 recorded events on this date across all of history.

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many engaging in total war on an unprecedented scale. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the deaths of 60 to 75 million people, a majority of whom were civilians. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on August 17, 1942 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 4 Wikipedia articles.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 2 August 2026.

On This Date in History 414

Type Year Date Event
Notable Deaths 2025 Aug 17 Terence Stamp, English actor (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2024 Aug 17 Virginia Ogilvy, Countess of Airlie, British countess (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2024 Aug 17 Silvio Santos, Brazilian media mogul and television host (born 1930)
Historical Events 2019 Aug 17 A bomb explodes at a wedding in Kabul killing 63 people and leaving 182 injured.
Historical Events 2017 Aug 17 Barcelona attacks: A van is driven into pedestrians in La Rambla, killing 14 and injuring at least 100.
Notable Deaths 2016 Aug 17 Arthur Hiller, Canadian actor, director, and producer (born 1923)
Historical Events 2015 Aug 17 A bomb explodes near the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, killing at least 19 people and injuring 123 others.
Notable Deaths 2015 Aug 17 Yvonne Craig, American ballet dancer and actress (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2015 Aug 17 Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder, German businessman (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2015 Aug 17 László Paskai, Hungarian cardinal (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2014 Aug 17 Børre Knudsen, Norwegian minister and activist (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2014 Aug 17 Wolfgang Leonhard, German historian and author (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2014 Aug 17 Sophie Masloff, American civil servant and politician, 56th Mayor of Pittsburgh (born 1917)
Notable Deaths 2014 Aug 17 Miodrag Pavlović, Serbian poet and critic (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2014 Aug 17 Pierre Vassiliu, French singer-songwriter (born 1937)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 Odilia Dank, American educator and politician (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 Jack Harshman, American baseball player (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 John Hollander, American poet and critic (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 David Landes, Jewish-American historian and economist (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 Frank Martínez, American painter (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Aug 17 Gus Winckel, Dutch lieutenant and pilot (born 1912)
Notable Deaths 2012 Aug 17 Aase Bjerkholt, Norwegian politician, Minister of Children, Equality and Social Inclusion (born 1915)
Notable Deaths 2012 Aug 17 Victor Poor, American engineer, developed the Datapoint 2200 (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2012 Aug 17 Patrick Ricard, French businessman (born 1945)
Notable Deaths 2012 Aug 17 John Lynch-Staunton, Canadian lawyer and politician (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2010 Aug 17 Francesco Cossiga, Italian lawyer and politician, 8th President of Italy (born 1928)
Historical Events 2009 Aug 17 An accident at the Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam in Khakassia, Russia, kills 75 and shuts down the hydroelectric power…
Historical Events 2008 Aug 17 American swimmer Michael Phelps becomes the first person to win eight gold medals at one Olympic Games.
Notable Deaths 2008 Aug 17 Franco Sensi, Italian businessman and politician (born 1926)
Selected Events 2008 Aug 17 Michael Phelps won his eighth gold medal of the Summer Olympics in Beijing, setting the record for the most gold…
Notable Deaths 2007 Aug 17 Bill Deedes, English journalist and politician (born 1913)
Notable Deaths 2007 Aug 17 Eddie Griffin, American basketball player (born 1982)
Notable Deaths 2006 Aug 17 Shamsur Rahman, Bangladeshi poet and journalist (born 1929)
Historical Events 2005 Aug 17 The first forced evacuation of settlers, as part of Israeli disengagement from Gaza, starts.
Historical Events 2005 Aug 17 Over 500 bombs are set off by terrorists at 300 locations in 63 out of the 64 districts of Bangladesh.
Notable Deaths 2005 Aug 17 John N. Bahcall, American astrophysicist and academic (born 1934)
Historical Events 2004 Aug 17 The National Assembly of Serbia unanimously adopts new state symbols for Serbia: Bože pravde becomes the new anthem…
Notable Deaths 2004 Aug 17 Thea Astley, Australian author and educator (born 1925)
Notable Births 2003 Aug 17 Nastasja Schunk, German tennis player
Notable Births 2003 Aug 17 The Kid Laroi, Australian rapper and songwriter
Notable Births 2000 Aug 17 Lil Pump, American rapper and songwriter
Notable Deaths 2000 Aug 17 Jack Walker, English businessman (born 1929)
Historical Events 1999 Aug 17 The 7.6 Mw İzmit earthquake shakes northwestern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), leaving…
Historical Events 1998 Aug 17 Lewinsky scandal: US President Bill Clinton admits in taped testimony that he had an "improper physical relationship"…
Notable Births 1998 Aug 17 Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Japanese baseball player
Notable Deaths 1998 Aug 17 Władysław Komar, Polish shot putter and actor (born 1940)
Notable Deaths 1998 Aug 17 Tadeusz Ślusarski, Polish pole vaulter (born 1950)
Notable Births 1996 Aug 17 Jake Virtanen, Canadian ice hockey player
Notable Births 1995 Aug 17 Gracie Gold, American figure skater
Notable Births 1995 Aug 17 Dallin Watene-Zelezniak, New Zealand rugby league player

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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