September 1936

[September 1], 1936 (Tuesday)

• Republican forces bombed Burgos for the first time. Nationalists protested to the International Red Cross in Geneva that a hospital was bombed despite clearly displaying the Red Cross insignia.
• The first Edward VIII postage stamps were issued.
• Central Police University was established in Nanjing, China.

  [September 2], 1936 (Wednesday)

• L'Osservatore Romano criticized recent remarks by Father Charles Coughlin's that called President Roosevelt a liar. "The Holy See wishes to respect all liberties and all conveniences", the editorial said. "It is extremely notable that an orator offends when he inveighs against persons who represent supreme social authority, with the evident danger of disturbing the respect due the authorities themselves by the people."

  [September 3], 1936 (Thursday)

• The Battle of Talavera de la Reina was fought, resulting in a Nationalist victory.
• President Franklin D. Roosevelt met with six state governors, including rival presidential candidate Alf Landon, at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines to discuss government actions in response to the drought.
• Lou Ambers won the World Lightweight Championship of boxing by 15-round decision over Tony Canzoneri in Madison Square Garden.
• Born: Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisian politician, 2nd President of Tunisia, in Hammam Sousse

  [September 4], 1936 (Friday)

• Francisco Largo Caballero became the 66th Prime Minister of Spain. An announcement explained that "because of the length of the civil war, the government believed it advisable to resign to make way for a government embracing all parties comprising the Popular Front."
• The Battle of Irún ended with the Nationalist capture of the city.
• In Paris, 100,000 pro-Republican demonstrators held a march calling on the French government to lift its arms embargo against Spain.

  [September 5], 1936 (Saturday)

• Nationalists drove back a Republican counterattack on Irún.
• The Battle of Cerro Muriano began.
• Beryl Markham completed the first east-to-west transatlantic solo flight by a woman. Due to bad weather eating up her fuel supply she had to make a forced landing at Baleine Cove, Nova Scotia short of her goal of New York. The plane landed in the mud and took significant damage but Markham only sustained a cut to the forehead.
• 8 spectators were killed in the ninth annual Tourist Trophy Race in Northern Ireland when driver Jack Chambers lost control of his Riley on the wet track and crashed into the crowd. The race was never held again.
• This is the purported date that the famous photograph The Falling Soldier was taken by Robert Capa during the Spanish Civil War, although the authenticity of the photo has been called into question.
• Born: Bill Mazeroski, baseball player, in Wheeling, West Virginia

  [September 6], 1936 (Sunday)

• 15 Jews were injured in anti-Jewish and anti-Socialist rioting in Warsaw, Poland. Socialists paraded in the streets demanding help for the government of Spain until they were attacked by congregation members getting out of church where special prayers had been held for Spanish Catholics.
• The Battle of Cerro Muriano ended in Nationalist victory.
• President Roosevelt gave a fireside chat on the subject of drought conditions.
• The comedy-drama film My Man Godfrey starring William Powell and Carole Lombard was released.

  [September 7], 1936 (Monday)

• The British colonial office announced the appointment of John Dill as General officer commanding British forces in Palestine.
• The last known Tasmanian tiger died at Hobart Zoo.
• Born: Buddy Holly, rock and roll musician, in Lubbock, Texas
• Born: George Cassidy, jazz musician and music teacher, in Belfast, Northern Ireland
• Died: Kenneth Robert Balfour, 72 or 73, British politician

  [September 8], 1936 (Tuesday)

• A revolt within the Portuguese Navy was put down. Two mutinous ships tried to steam out of Lisbon for an unknown destination until they were disabled by an artillery bombardment. 6 crew were killed and the rest were taken into custody.
• The 8th Nazi Party Congress opened in Nuremberg. Hitler opened the proceedings with a three-minute address proclaiming that he had "restored full arms sovereignty to the nation."
• Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld and Crown Princess Juliana of the Netherlands announced their engagement.

  [September 9], 1936 (Wednesday)

• Hitler gave an 8,500-word address before 800,000 Nazis on the subject of authority, which he called "the foundation of all harmony". Unlimited individual liberty, Hitler asserted, led to anarchy. Following the speech, a proclamation outlined Nazi Germany's next goal as the restoration of its pre-war colonies and rebuilding its economy through a four-year plan.
• Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence: The French and Syrian governments signed a treaty of alliance and friendship. The pact provided for the French mandate over Syria to end within three years and for Syria to join the League of Nations.
• An international conference for non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War opened in London.
• Aleksandr Mikhailovich Orlov of the NKVD arrived in Spain to oversee the transfer of funds from the Spanish treasury to Moscow. This money would come to be known as Moscow gold.
• Belgian Prime Minister Paul van Zeeland gave a radio address explaining that the world was splitting up between left-wing and right-wing extremists, and the only way to prevent a split within Belgium was to pursue a policy of complete neutrality. This speech signalled a shift in Belgian foreign policy to avoid any kind of alliances that could draw the country into a war.
• The New York Yankees clinched the American League pennant by sweeping a doubleheader against the Cleveland Indians, 11-3 and 12-9.
• The excursion steamship Romance collided with the steamer New York in a fog near Boston Harbor. The Romance sank in less than twenty minutes but the New York was able to rescue all passengers and crew aboard and return to Boston Harbor despite a 12-foot hole in the bow.
• Born: David Gold, businessman, in Stepney, London, England

  [September 10], 1936 (Thursday)

• A massive landslide in the Himalayas wiped out seven villages and left hundreds reported dead.
• Nationalist artillery resumed pounding San Sebastián after a 48-hour unofficial truce.
• The British Trades Union Congress voted in favour of a policy of neutrality in the Spanish Civil War, due to fear that intervention in the conflict would spark a larger war in Europe.
• Germany launched a propaganda campaign against Czechoslovakia, accusing the country of harbouring Soviet aircraft and providing airfields to the Soviet air force.
• The first official Speedway World Championship motorcycle race was held at Wembley Stadium in London, won by Lionel Van Praag of Australia.

  [September 11], 1936 (Friday)

• As part of ceremonies at the World Power Conference, President Roosevelt pressed a golden key in Washington, D.C. to put a small 3,500 horsepower generator into service for Boulder Dam and Boulder City, Nevada.
• The Supreme Electoral Council, the predecessor of the National Electoral Council of Venezuela, was founded.
• The musical play Careless Rapture by Ivor Novello and Christopher Hassall premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London.
• Born: Charles Dierkop, actor, in La Crosse, Wisconsin

  [September 12], 1936 (Saturday)

• The Nationalists captured San Sebastián to win complete control of the Basque region.
• The Battle of Majorca ended in Nationalist victory. The Italian occupation of Majorca began.
• Fred Perry of the United Kingdom beat Don Budge in the men's singles final of the U.S. National Championships. Perry was the first foreigner to ever win the tennis championship.
• Rose Coyle of Philadelphia won the 10th Miss America pageant.
• Born: Guillermo Gómez Rivera, author, historian and linguistic scholar, in Iloilo City, Philippines

  [September 13], 1936 (Sunday)

• Adolf Hitler reviewed 107,000 men of the SA and SS in Nuremberg.
• 17-year old Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians struck out 17 Philadelphia Athletics, setting a new single-game American League record and tying the major league record set by Dizzy Dean in 1933.

  [September 14], 1936 (Monday)

• The Siege of Santuario de Nuestra Señora de la Cabeza began.
• On the final day of the Nuremberg Rally, Hitler watched a flypast of 371 aircraft and gave a final speech assailing democracy as a "channel through which bolshevism spreads poison."
• George McMahon, the man who aimed a revolver at King Edward VIII in July, was sentenced to 12 months hard labour for "intent to alarm the king".
• Born: Walter Koenig, actor, in Chicago
• Died: Irving Thalberg, 37, American film producer

  [September 15], 1936 (Tuesday)

• The German news agency published a message from Spanish Nationalist leader Miguel Cabanellas which stated: "The Spanish nation never will forget the friendship and moral support extended by Germany. Your leader and nation keep watch against bolshevism in the east. We will do the same in the west, where it is no less important in this decisive hour in European history."

  [September 16], 1936 (Wednesday)

• António de Oliveira Salazar ordered the creation of the Portuguese Legion.
• The Nationalists captured Ronda.

  [September 17], 1936 (Thursday)

• The first issue of the Barcelona newspaper Juventud Comunista was published.
• Died: Henry Louis Le Châtelier, 85, French chemist

  [September 18], 1936 (Friday)

• 45 died on the Nile when a pleasure boat and a cargo ship collided.
• A tropical hurricane struck Cape Hatteras along the east coast of the United States, doing considerable damage.
• The was launched.
• Born: Big Tom, country musician, in Castleblayney, Ireland