Calendar: What happened on August 12?

This article serves as a historical calendar, marking significant events, birthdays, and death anniversaries associated with August 12th. Among the notable historical occurrences is the 2023 record-breaking transfer of English striker Harry Kane from Tottenham Hotspur to German football club Bayern Munich for over 100 million euros, making it the most expensive player transfer in Bundesliga history at the time. In 1981, IBM unveiled its first Personal Computer, the 5150, with the operating system provided by Microsoft, a move that propelled Microsoft to global software leadership. The article also recalls 2011, when the leaders of Germany's Left Party condemned the construction of the Berlin Wall as unjust, responding to criticism regarding earlier remarks by party co-leader Gesine Lötzsch. Furthermore, it notes 2006, when Nobel laureate Günter Grass confirmed his late-war conscription into the Waffen-SS. The calendar also includes significant dates like the 1970 signing of the Moscow Treaty by West German Chancellor Willy Brandt and Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin, which normalized relations with Warsaw Pact nations. The piece also commemorates birthdays, including tennis legend Pete Sampras (turning 55 in 2026) and German football coach Klaus Toppmöller (75 in 2026), along with politicians Gerold Tandler and artist Hans Haacke (both turning 90 in 2026). The death anniversary of former Saxon Minister-President Kurt Biedenkopf is also noted.