On This Day

13th Commonwealth Games open in Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. It is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland...

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. It is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of

506,520 in 2020, making it the second-most-populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most-populous in the United Kingdom. The wider metropolitan area had a population of 912,490 in the same year.

Recognised as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th century, Edinburgh is the seat of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Parliament, the highest courts in Scotland, and the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. It is also the annual venue of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Historical Significance

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas.

Events Before

  1. 'Nordu.net' is registered as the world's first domain name on the internet

    This is a list of the oldest extant registered generic top-level domains used in the Domain Name System of the Internet. Until 1986, Domain Registration was limited to organizations with access to…

  2. Israel's government confirms the resettlement of 10,000 Ethiopian Jews

    Israel's government confirms the resettlement of 10,000 Ethiopian Jews

  3. Baseball player Darryl Strawberry (22) weds Lisa Andrews

    Baseball player Darryl Strawberry (22) weds Lisa Andrews

  4. Charity single "We Are the World" recorded by supergroup USA for Africa (Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, B

    Charity single "We Are the World" recorded by supergroup USA for Africa (Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Quincy Jones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, and other pop stars)

  5. South African President P. W. Botha offers to free Nelson Mandela if he denounces violence

    Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid activist and statesman who was the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.

Events After

  1. 60 bodies are recovered from the Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico

    60 bodies are recovered from the Dupont Plaza Hotel fire in Puerto Rico

  2. Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

    Aretha Louise Franklin ( ə-REE-thə; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist.

  3. Astronomers at the University of California witness the first observation of the birth of a galaxy

    Astronomers at the University of California witness the first observation of the birth of a galaxy

  4. Opera impresario Sir Rudolf Bing (85) weds Carroll Douglass (45); annulled in September, 1989

    Opera impresario Sir Rudolf Bing (85) weds Carroll Douglass (45); annulled in September, 1989

  5. Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, sparki

    Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, sparking debate about the boundaries of journalism

More from the 1980s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on July 24, 1986?
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. It is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of 506,520 in 2020, making it the second-most-populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most-populous in the United Kingdom.
Why is 13th Commonwealth Games open in Edinburgh, Scotland significant?
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas.

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