Events for August 08

August 8, 1981

Thomas McElwee, Irish polictical prisoner, dies on hunger strike in Maze prison, Northern Ireland.

Thomas McElwee (30 November 1957 – 8 August 1981) was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer who participated in the 1981 hunger strike. From Bellaghy, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, he died at the age of 23 after 62 days on hunger strike.

August 8, 1296

King Edward I removed to England the Stone of Destiny on which generations of Scottish kings had been crowned.

In 1296 the Stone was captured by Edward I as spoils of war and taken to Westminster Abbey, where it was placed under the Coronation Chair, known as St. Edwards Chair on which English sovereigns sat in order to symbolise their dominion over Scotland as well as England. However, there is some doubt whether Edward I captured the real stone — it has been suggested that monks at Scone Palace hid the real Stone in the River Tay or buried it on Dunsinane Hill. If so, it is possible that the English troops were fooled into taking the wrong stone, which could explain why historic descriptions of the old Stone do not apparently fit the Stone now thought to be the real Stone. If the Monks did hide the real stone, they hid it well, as it has never been found (although the Knights Templar claim to have the original stone in their possession).

August 8, 1503

King James IV married Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England. The marriage was known as the Union of the Thistle and the Rose.

The marriage of King James IV of Scotland to Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England, took place on August 8, 1503. This union is famously referred to as the “Union of the Thistle and the Rose,” symbolizing the national emblems of Scotland and England—the thistle for Scotland and the rose for England. The marriage was a significant event in the history of both nations, with long-lasting implications for the future of the British Isles.

August 6, 1946

Former World flyweight boxing champion Benny Lynch died.

Benjamin Lynch (2 April 1913 – 6 August 1946), known as Our Benny, was a Scottish professional boxer who fought in the flyweight division. He is considered by some to be one of the finest boxers below the lightweight division in his era and has been described as the greatest fighter Scotland ever produced. The Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer rated Lynch as the No. 5 flyweight of all-time while his publication placed him 63rd in its 2002 list of the “Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years”.