What Day Is August 23? Black Ribbon Day - Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (1939)
August 23 is the 235th day of the year and the first day of Virgo. In 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact; its secret protocols divided Eastern Europe between them. August 23 is Black Ribbon Day in Europe.
About August 23
August 23 is the 235th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (236th in a leap year). There are 130 days remaining. It is the first day of Virgo; Leo ended on August 22.
The significance of August 23
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, signed in Moscow on August 23, 1939, stunned the world. Germany and the Soviet Union, ideological enemies by definition, agreed not to fight each other. But the real impact came from the secret protocols, which divided Eastern Europe between them: Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania went to the Soviet sphere; Poland was split down the middle. Within ten days of the signing, Germany invaded Poland from the west and the Soviet Union followed from the east. The secret protocols were denied until 1989 when Soviet archives confirmed them. The Baltic states had long marked August 23 as Black Ribbon Day, and the European Parliament officially recognized it as a Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Both Totalitarian Regimes.
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On This Day in History
- 1305William Wallace, Scottish knight and independence fighter, was executed in London on the orders of King Edward I of England by being hanged, drawn, and quartered.
- 1939The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was signed in Moscow by Germany's Foreign Minister Ribbentrop and Soviet Commissar Molotov. The public treaty was a non-aggression pact; its secret protocols divided Eastern Europe into German and Soviet spheres of influence.
Baby Names for This Day
August 23 is the first day of Virgo and Black Ribbon Day. Names connected to this date:
- RosaGirl
St. Rose of Lima (feast August 23) was the first person born in the Americas to be canonized; patron of Latin America and the Philippines.
- WilliamBoy
William Wallace, executed August 23, 1305; his resistance to English rule became the foundation of Scottish national identity.
- VeraGirl
Latin 'true'; Virgo is the sign of precision and honesty; and the Baltic nations who remembered the secret protocol's truth observed Black Ribbon Day.
- VirginiaGirl
From Latin 'Virgo'; the first day of Virgo is August 23.
- MollyGirl
A distant echo of Molotov — more innocuously, a name common in the Soviet era among Western-leaning families.
- SophieGirl
Virgo is associated with wisdom and practical intelligence; Sophie from Greek 'sophia' (wisdom) fits perfectly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What day is August 23?add
August 23 is Black Ribbon Day, marking the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact (1939) and its secret protocols that divided Eastern Europe. The first day of Virgo. William Wallace was executed in 1305. The 235th day of the year.
What number day of the year is August 23?add
August 23 is the 235th day of the year, or the 236th in a leap year, with 130 days remaining.
What zodiac sign is August 23?add
August 23 is the first day of Virgo, which runs from August 23 to September 22.