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, 1923

The Civic Guard is renamed the Garda Siochana

The Civic Guard, the national police force of the Irish Free State, was renamed Garda Síochána na hÉireann (Guardians of the Peace of Ireland) in 1923. The name change was part of the broader efforts to establish a police force that reflected the ideals and identity of the newly independent Irish state.

August 8, 1694

Birth of Francis Hutcheson, Presbyterian philosopher, in Co. Down

Francis Hutcheson, a significant figure in the history of philosophy and one of the founding figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, was born on August 8, 1694, in Drumalig, a townland near Saintfield, County Down, Ireland. Hutcheson is best known for his work in moral philosophy and his influence on later thinkers, including David Hume and Adam Smith.

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”.