On 14 August 1385 a small Portuguese army destroyed a much larger Castilian invasion at Aljubarrota. Its victory secured Portugal's independence and kept its ruling house on the throne for two centuries.
Aljubarrota
Fighting on foot in a strong position, and supported by English longbowmen, the Portuguese under King John I and his commander Nuno Álvares Pereira destroyed the Castilian attack in a single evening. The invasion had aimed to unite Portugal with the Castilian crown.1
The battle is remembered as the day Portugal kept its crown. Our article on the Battle of Aljubarrota covers the crisis of 1383 to 1385 and the battle itself. › Battle of Aljubarrota, 1385
Hansan Island, 1592
On the same date in 1592, by the Korean calendar conversion used by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, Admiral Yi Sun-sin lured the squadron of Wakisaka Yasuharu out of the narrow Gyeonnaeryang strait and surrounded it off Hansan Island in a crane-wing formation. Korean records count 59 Japanese ships burned or captured. Some English-language accounts give 15 August for the same battle. › Battle of Hansan Island, 1592
Also on this day
- 1914: Battle of Lorraine. At the start of World War I, French armies launched an offensive into Lorraine under Plan XVII, while the Germans planned their main blow through Belgium.
