On this day — August 1 in African history

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

Dahomey (renamed Benin in 1975) gained independence from France, with Hubert Maga becoming its first president.

Sources: U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian ; Asaase Radio

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 took effect across most of the British Empire on this date, beginning the emancipation of enslaved people in colonies including the Caribbean. The Cape Colony in southern Africa was a delayed exception, with abolition there following four months later, on December 1, 1834.

Sources: South African History Online ; Iziko Museums of South Africa

Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-G00372 — CC BY-SA 3.0 DE, Wikimedia Commons

The Berlin Summer Olympics opened; over the following days African-American athlete Jesse Owens won four gold medals, publicly discrediting Nazi claims of Aryan racial superiority.

Sources: History.com (A&E Television Networks) ; U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum

Junior officers of the Kenya Air Force attempted to overthrow President Daniel arap Moi's government in a coup that was put down within hours.

Sources: Africa at LSE (London School of Economics) ; Revolutionary Papers ; The Standard (Kenya)

Justin Benttinen, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Octavian's forces entered Alexandria, Egypt, effectively ending the Ptolemaic Kingdom and bringing the country under Roman control after his victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra.

Sources: Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University ; LacusCurtius, University of Chicago

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

The Battle of the Nile began at Aboukir Bay, Egypt, as a British fleet under Horatio Nelson engaged and decisively defeated Napoleon's French fleet in a night action.

Sources: British Battles ; The Past (History Today group)

The former Belgian Congo was officially renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Sources: African Transitional Justice Hub (Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation) ; Citizenship Rights in Africa Initiative

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

Puntland was established as a self-declared autonomous state in northeastern Somalia following a constitutional conference in Garowe.

Sources: Small Wars Journal (Arizona State University) ; Garowe Online