On This Day in History, August 30
In 1799, a British fleet accepted the surrender of a Bavarian fleet during the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland as part of the War of the Second Coalition, one of a series of conflicts sparked by the French Revolution. The surrender of these ships occurred following a mutiny, sparked by sailors aboard a few ships noticing enemy flags upon nearby forts.
In 1914, the Battle of Tannenberg ended as a German victory against Russia, nearly destroying both Russian armies present and forcing them to begin retreating from East Prussia, which is now Poland. Thanks to German rail technology, they were able to fight off both armies. The Russian defeat led to the suicide of their commanding general, Alexander Samsonov.
In 1992, Kevin Harris, family friend of the Weaver’s, surrendered to Federal law enforcement and signaled the coming end of the Ruby Ridge standoff in northern Idaho. The standoff began when a bench warrant for Randy Weaver was issued, though he saw the presence of conflicting court dates related to said warrant as a conspiracy and initiated the standoff which ended with three dead and two wounded.
A Notable Birth
1797 – Mary Shelley (d. 1851) was an English writer best known for her Gothic novel, Frankenstein. Born to political philosopher William Godwin and early feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, she received an informal education in her youth and eventually became romantically involved with a follower of her husband, poet Percy Shelley.
A Notable Death
2006 – Naguib Mahfouz (b. 1911) was an Egyptian writer and Nobel Prize winner. Across his lifetime, he published over thirty books, hundreds of short stories, and a wide array of scripts and op-eds. He received the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.
TREMG news Alexander Samsonov August 30 Battle of Tannenberg British navy First World War Frankenstein French Revolution Mary Shelley Naguib Mahfouz Nobel Prize for Literature On This Day in History Randy Weaver Ruby Ridge standoff Russia War of the Second Coalition