WEDNESDAY, Sept. 2, 2026

31 B.C.: Under his future name Augustus, Roman leader Octavian secures a decisive victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra's fleet in the Battle of Actium. This naval confrontation marks the end of the Roman Republic.

1192: In a mutually unsatisfying agreement, Sultan Saladin and England's King Richard the Lionheart sign the Treaty of Jaffa. This treaty concludes the Third Crusade, with Jerusalem remaining under Islamic control, while granting Christians limited pilgrimage rights and restoring the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

1666: The Great Fire of London ignites at 2 a.m. in Pudding Lane, gradually consuming 80 percent of the city by the time it is extinguished.

1792: During the French Revolution, mob violence erupts in Paris, resulting in the brutal murders of three Roman Catholic bishops, over two hundred priests, and prisoners suspected of royalist sympathies.

1864: Union General William T. Sherman leads his forces to capture and occupy Atlanta, Georgia, effectively ending the Atlanta Campaign during the U.S. Civil War.

1945: On V-J Day, the formal surrender of Japan is signed aboard the USS Missouri. This marks the official conclusion of World War II.

1974: In the United States, President Gerald Ford signs the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which establishes minimum standards for pension plans and other employee benefit programs.