On This Day in History August 24, 2023 Historical Events 79  Believed until 2018 to be the date of the massive eruption of Mt. Vesuvius which buried the cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Oplontis and Stabiae, killing untold thousands. Latest evidence suggests the eruption occurred after 17 October. 410  Rome overrun by Visigoths under Alaric I for the first time in nearly 800 years, seen as the fall of the Western Roman Empire 1516  Battle of Marj Dabiq: Ottoman forces decisively beat the Mamluk Sultanate 1572  St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of Protestants by Roman Catholics begins in Paris and later spreads to the French provinces 1662  Act of Uniformity requires English to accept Book of Common Prayer 1814  British forces capture Washington, D.C. and destroy many landmarks (War of 1812) 1968  France becomes the world's fifth thermonuclear power with a detonation on Mururoa Atoll in the South Pacific Famous Birthdays Dave Chappelle 50th Birthday Stephen Fry 66th Birthday William Wilberforce 1759 - 1833 Yasser Arafat 1929 - 2004 More Famous Birthdays Famous Deaths Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot 1796 - 1832 Richard Attenborough 1923 - 2014 More Famous Deaths