763 – The Byzantine army of emperor Constantine V defeats the Bulgarian forces in the Battle of Anchialus.
1422 – Battle of Arbedo between the duke of Milan and the Swiss cantons.
1521 – Spanish forces defeat a combined French and Navarrese army at the Battle of Noáin during the Spanish conquest of Iberian Navarre.
1559 – King Henry II of France is mortally wounded in a jousting match against Gabriel, comte de Montgomery.
1651 – The Deluge: Khmelnytsky Uprising: The Battle of Berestechko ends with a Polish victory.
1688 – The Immortal Seven issue the Invitation to William, which would culminate in the Glorious Revolution.
1758 – Seven Years’ War: Habsburg Austrian forces destroy a Prussian reinforcement and supply convoy in the Battle of Domstadtl, helping to expel Prussian King Frederick the Great from Moravia.
1794 – Northwest Indian War: Native American forces under Blue Jacket attack Fort Recovery.
1805 – Under An act to divide the Indiana Territory into two separate governments, adopted by the U.S. Congress on January 11, 1805, the Michigan Territory is organized.
1859 – French acrobat Charles Blondin crosses Niagara Falls on a tightrope.
1860 – The 1860 Oxford evolution debate at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History takes place.
1864 – U.S. President Abraham Lincoln grants Yosemite Valley to California for “public use, resort and recreation”.
1882 – Charles J. Guiteau is hanged in Washington, D.C. for the assassination of U.S. President James Garfield.
1886 – The first transcontinental train trip across Canada departs from Montreal, Quebec. It arrives in Port Moody, British Columbia on July 4.
1892 – The Homestead Strike begins near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
1905 – Albert Einstein sends the article On the Electrodynamics of Moving Bodies, in which he introduces special relativity, for publication in Annalen der Physik.
1906 – The United States Congress passes the Meat Inspection Act and Pure Food and Drug Act.
1908 – The Tunguska Event, the largest impact event on Earth in human recorded history, resulting in a massive explosion over Eastern Siberia.
1912 – The Regina Cyclone, Canada’s deadliest tornado event, kills 28 people in Regina, Saskatchewan.
1916 – World War I: In “the day Sussex died”, elements of the Royal Sussex Regiment take heavy casualties in the Battle of the Boar’s Head at Richebourg-l’Avoué in France.
1921 – U.S. President Warren G. Harding appoints former President William Howard Taft as Chief Justice of the United States.
1922 – In Washington D.C., U.S. Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes and Dominican Ambassador Francisco J. Peynado sign the Hughes–Peynado agreement, which ends the United States occupation of the Dominican Republic.
1934 – The Night of the Long Knives, Adolf Hitler’s violent purge of his political rivals in Germany, takes place.
1936 – Emperor Haile Selassie of Abyssinia appeals for aid to the League of Nations against Italy’s invasion of his country.
1937 – The world’s first emergency telephone number, 999, is introduced in London.
1944 – World War II: The Battle of Cherbourg ends with the fall of the strategically valuable port to American forces.
1953 – The first Chevrolet Corvette rolls off the assembly line in Flint, Michigan.
1956 – A TWA Super Constellation and a United Airlines DC-7 collide above the Grand Canyon in Arizona and crash, killing all 128 on board both airliners.
1959 – A United States Air Force F-100 Super Sabre from Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, crashes into a nearby elementary school, killing 11 students plus six residents from the local neighborhood.
1960 – Belgian Congo gains independence as Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville).
1963 – Ciaculli bombing: a car bomb, intended for Mafia boss Salvatore Greco, kills seven police officers and military personnel near Palermo.
1966 – The National Organization for Women, the United States’ largest feminist organization, is founded.
1968 – Pope Paul VI issues the Credo of the People of God.
1971 – The crew of the Soviet Soyuz 11 spacecraft are killed when their air supply escapes through a faulty valve.
1972 – The first leap second is added to the UTC time system.
1974 – The Baltimore municipal strike of 1974 begins.
1977 – The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization disbands.
1985 – Thirty-nine American hostages from the hijacked TWA Flight 847 are freed in Beirut after being held for 17 days.
1986 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Bowers v. Hardwick that states can outlaw homosexual acts between consenting adults.
1990 – East Germany and West Germany merge their economies.
1994 – During a test flight of an Airbus A330-300 at Toulouse–Blagnac Airport, the aircraft crashes killing all seven people on board.
1997 – The United Kingdom transfers sovereignty over Hong Kong to China.
2005 – MTV Canada is rebranded as Razer
2007 – A Jeep Cherokee filled with propane canisters drives into the entrance of Glasgow Airport, Scotland in a failed terrorist attack. This was linked to the 2007 London car bombs that had taken place the day before.
2009 – Yemenia Flight 626, an Airbus A310-300, crashes into the Indian Ocean near Comoros, killing 152 of the 153 people on board. A 14-year-old girl named Bahia Bakari survives the crash.
2013 – Nineteen firefighters die controlling a wildfire in Yarnell, Arizona.
2013 – Protests begin around Egypt against President Mohamed Morsi and the ruling Freedom and Justice Party, leading to their overthrow during the 2013 Egyptian coup d’état.
2015 – A Hercules C-130 military aircraft with 113 people on board crashes in a residential area in Medan, Indonesia, resulting in at least 116 deaths.
2019 – Donald Trump becomes the first sitting US President to visit the Democratic Republic of Korea.
Births on June 30
1286 – John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey, English magnate (d. 1347)
1468 – John, Elector of Saxony (d. 1532)
1470 – Charles VIII of France (d. 1498)
1478 – John, Prince of Asturias, Son of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile (d. 1497)
1503 – John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (d. 1554)
1533 – Martín de Rada, Spanish missionary (d. 1578)
1588 – Giovanni Maria Sabino, Italian organist, composer, and educator (d. 1649)
1641 – Meinhardt Schomberg, 3rd Duke of Schomberg, German-English general (d. 1719)
1685 – John Gay, English poet and playwright (d. 1732)
1688 – Abu l-Hasan Ali I, ruler of Tunisia (d. 1756)
1722 – Jiří Antonín Benda, Czech composer, violinist and Kapellmeister (d. 1795)
1755 – Paul Barras, French soldier and politician (d. 1829)
1789 – Horace Vernet, French painter and academic (d. 1863)
1791 – Félix Savart, French physicist and psychologist (d. 1841)
1803 – Thomas Lovell Beddoes, English poet, playwright, and physician (d. 1849)
1807 – Friedrich Theodor Vischer, German author, poet, and playwright (d.1887)
1817 – Joseph Dalton Hooker, English botanist and explorer (d. 1911)
1843 – Ernest Mason Satow, English orientalist and diplomat (d. 1929)
1864 – Frederick Bligh Bond, English architect and archaeologist (d. 1945)
1884 – Georges Duhamel, French author and critic (d. 1966)
1889 – Archibald Frazer-Nash, English motor car designer, engineer and founder of Frazer Nash (d. 1965)
1890 – Paul Boffa, Maltese physician and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Malta (d. 1962)
1891 – Man Mountain Dean, American wrestler and sergeant (d. 1953)
1891 – Ed Lewis, American wrestler and manager (d. 1966)
1891 – Stanley Spencer, English painter (d. 1959)
1892 – Pierre Blanchar, Algerian-French actor and director (d. 1963)
1893 – Walter Ulbricht, German soldier and politician (d. 1973)
1895 – Heinz Warneke, German-American sculptor and educator (d. 1983)
1899 – Madge Bellamy, American actress (d. 1990)
1905 – John Van Ryn, American tennis player (d. 1999)
1906 – Anthony Mann, American actor and director (d. 1967)
1907 – Roman Shukhevych, Ukrainian general and politician (d. 1950)
1908 – Winston Graham, English author (d. 2003)
1908 – Luigi Rovere, Italian film producer (d. 1996)
1908 – Rob Nieuwenhuys, Dutch writer (d. 1999)
1909 – Juan Bosch, 43rd President of the Dominican Republic (d. 2001)
1911 – Czesław Miłosz, Polish novelist, essayist, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
1911 – Nagarjun, Indian poet (d. 1998)
1912 – Ludwig Bölkow, German engineer (d. 2003)
1912 – Dan Reeves, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1971)
1912 – María Luisa Dehesa Gómez Farías, Mexican architect (d. 2009)
1913 – Alfonso López Michelsen, Colombian lawyer and politician, 24th President of Colombia (d. 2007)
1913 – Harry Wismer, American sportscaster (d. 1967)
1914 – Francisco da Costa Gomes, Portuguese general and politician, 15th President of Portugal (d. 2001)
1914 – Allan Houser, American sculptor and painter (d. 1994)
1917 – Susan Hayward, American actress (d. 1975)
1917 – Lena Horne, American actress, singer, and activist (d. 2010)
1917 – Willa Kim, American costume designer (d. 2016)
1919 – Ed Yost, American inventor of the modern hot air balloon (d. 2007)
1920 – Eleanor Ross Taylor, American poet and educator (d. 2011)
1921 – Washington SyCip, American-Filipino accountant (d. 2017)
1922 – Al Besselink, American professional golfer
1923 – Andy Jack, English footballer
1924 – Max Trepp, Swiss sprinter
1925 – Fred Schaus, American basketball player and coach (d. 2010)
1925 – Ebrahim Amini, Iranian politician (d. 2020)
1926 – Paul Berg, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1926 – David Berglas, American magician and mentalist
1927 – Shirley Fry Irvin, American tennis player
1927 – James Goldman, American screenwriter and playwright (d. 1998)
1927 – Mario Lanfranchi, Italian director, screenwriter, producer, collector and actor
763 BC – Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history.
844 – Louis II is crowned as king of Italy at Rome by pope Sergius II.
923 – Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and King Charles the Simple is arrested by the supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy.
1184 – The naval Battle of Fimreite is won by the Birkebeiner pretender Sverre Sigurdsson. Sigurdsson takes the Norwegian throne and King Magnus V of Norway is killed.
1215 – King John of England puts his seal to Magna Carta.
1219 – Northern Crusades: Danish victory at the Battle of Lindanise (modern-day Tallinn) establishes the Danish Duchy of Estonia.
1246 – With the death of Frederick II, Duke of Austria, the Babenberg dynasty ends in Austria.
1300 – The city of Bilbao is founded.
1312 – At the Battle of Rozgony, King Charles I of Hungary wins a decisive victory over the family of Palatine Amade Aba.
1389 – Battle of Kosovo: The Ottoman Empire defeats Serbs and Bosnians.
1410 – In a decisive battle at Onon River, the Mongol forces of Oljei Temur were decimated by the Chinese armies of the Yongle Emperor.
1502 – Christopher Columbus lands on the island of Martinique on his fourth voyage.
1520 – Pope Leo X threatens to excommunicate Martin Luther in Exsurge Domine.
1648 – Margaret Jones is hanged in Boston for witchcraft in the first such execution for the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
1667 – The first human blood transfusion is administered by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys.
1670 – The first stone of Fort Ricasoli is laid down in Malta.
1752 – Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity (traditional date, the exact date is unknown).
1776 – Delaware Separation Day: Delaware votes to suspend government under the British Crown and separate officially from Pennsylvania.
1800 – The Provisional Army of the United States is dissolved.
1804 – New Hampshire approves the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratifying the document.
1808 – Joseph Bonaparte becomes King of Spain.
1836 – Arkansas is admitted as the 25th U.S. state.
1844 – Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.
1846 – The Oregon Treaty extends the border between the United States and British North America, established by the Treaty of 1818, westward to the Pacific Ocean.
1859 – Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the “Northwestern Boundary Dispute” between American and British/Canadian settlers.
1864 – American Civil War: The Second Battle of Petersburg begins.
1864 – Arlington National Cemetery is established when 200 acres (0.81 km2) of the Arlington estate (formerly owned by Confederate General Robert E. Lee) are officially set aside as a military cemetery by U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
1877 – Henry Ossian Flipper becomes the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy.
1878 – Eadweard Muybridge takes a series of photographs to prove that all four feet of a horse leave the ground when it runs; the study becomes the basis of motion pictures.
1888 – Crown Prince Wilhelm becomes Kaiser Wilhelm II; he will be the last Emperor of the German Empire. Due to the death of his predecessors Wilhelm I and Frederick III, 1888 is the Year of the Three Emperors.
1896 – The deadliest tsunami in Japan’s history kills more than 22,000 people.
1904 – A fire aboard the steamboat SS General Slocum in New York City’s East River kills 1,000.
1916 – United States President Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter.
1919 – John Alcock and Arthur Brown complete the first nonstop transatlantic flight when they reach Clifden, County Galway, Ireland.
1920 – Following the 1920 Schleswig plebiscites, Northern Schleswig is transferred from Germany to Denmark.
1921 – Bessie Coleman earns her pilot’s license, becoming the first female pilot of African-American descent.
1934 – The United States Great Smoky Mountains National Park is founded.
1936 – First flight of the Vickers Wellington bomber.
1937 – A German expedition led by Karl Wien loses sixteen members in an avalanche on Nanga Parbat. It is the worst single disaster to occur on an 8000m peak.
1940 – World War II: Operation Ariel begins: Allied troops start to evacuate France, following Germany’s takeover of Paris and most of the nation.
1944 – World War II: The United States invades Saipan, capital of Japan’s South Seas Mandate.
1944 – In the Saskatchewan general election, the CCF, led by Tommy Douglas, is elected and forms the first socialist government in North America.
1970 – Charles Manson goes on trial for the Sharon Tate murders.
1972 – Red Army Faction co-founder Ulrike Meinhof is captured by police in Langenhagen.
1977 – After the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, the first democratic elections took place in Spain.
1978 – King Hussein of Jordan marries American Lisa Halaby, who takes the name Queen Noor.
1985 – Rembrandt’s painting Danaë is attacked by a man (later judged insane) who throws sulfuric acid on the canvas and cuts it twice with a knife.
1991 – In the Philippines, Mount Pinatubo erupts in the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century, killing over 800 people.
1992 – The United States Supreme Court rules in United States v. Álvarez-Machaín that it is permissible for the United States to forcibly extradite suspects in foreign countries and bring them to the United States for trial, without approval from those other countries.
1994 – Israel and Vatican City establish full diplomatic relations.
1996 – The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonates a powerful truck bomb in the middle of Manchester, England, devastating the city centre and injuring 200 people.
2001 – Leaders of the People’s Republic of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan formed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
2012 – Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to successfully tightrope walk directly over Niagara Falls.
2013 – A bomb explodes on a bus in the Pakistani city of Quetta, killing at least 25 people and wounding 22 others.
Births on June 15
1330 – Edward, the Black Prince of England (d. 1376)
1479 – Lisa del Giocondo, Italian model, subject of the Mona Lisa (d. 1542)
1519 – Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1536)
1542 – Richard Grenville, English captain and explorer (d. 1591)
1549 – Elizabeth Knollys, English noblewoman (d. 1605)
1553 – Archduke Ernest of Austria (d. 1595)
1605 – Thomas Randolph, English poet and playwright (d. 1635)
1618 – François Blondel, French architect (d. 1686)
1623 – Cornelis de Witt, Dutch politician (d. 1672)
1624 – Hiob Ludolf, German orientalist and philologist (d. 1704)
1640 – Bernard Lamy, French mathematician and theologian (d. 1715)
1645 – Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, English politician (d. 1712)
1749 – Georg Joseph Vogler, German organist, composer, and theorist (d. 1814)
1754 – Juan José Elhuyar, Spanish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1796)
1755 – Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist and entomologist (d. 1809)
1763 – Franz Danzi, German cellist, composer, and conductor (d. 1826)
1763 – Kobayashi Issa, Japanese priest and poet (d. 1827)
1765 – Martin Baum, American businessman and politician, Mayor of Cincinnati (d. 1831)
1765 – Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1831)
1767 – Rachel Jackson, American wife of Andrew Jackson (d. 1828)
1777 – David Daniel Davis, Welsh physician and academic (d. 1841)
1789 – Josiah Henson, American minister, author, and activist (d. 1883)
1792 – Thomas Mitchell, Scottish-Australian colonel and explorer (d. 1855)
1801 – Benjamin Wright Raymond, American merchant and politician, 3rd Mayor of Chicago (d. 1883)
1805 – William B. Ogden, American businessman and politician, 1st Mayor of Chicago (d. 1877)
1809 – François-Xavier Garneau, Canadian poet and historian (d. 1866)
1835 – Adah Isaacs Menken, American actress, painter, and poet (d. 1868)
1843 – Edvard Grieg, Norwegian pianist and composer (d. 1907)
1848 – Gheevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala, Indian bishop and saint (d. 1902)
1872 – Thomas William Burgess, English swimmer and water polo player (d. 1950)
1875 – Herman Smith-Johannsen, Norwegian-Canadian skier (d. 1987)
1878 – Margaret Abbott, Indian-American golfer (d. 1955)
1881 – Kesago Nakajima, Japanese lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army (d. 1945)
1884 – Harry Langdon, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1944)
1886 – Frank Clement, British racing driver (d. 1970)
1888 – Ramón López Velarde, Mexican poet and author (d. 1921)
1890 – Georg Wüst, German oceanographer and academic (d. 1977)
1894 – Robert Russell Bennett, American composer and conductor (d. 1981)
1894 – Nikolai Chebotaryov, Ukrainian-Russian mathematician and theorist (d. 1947)
1898 – Hubertus Strughold, German-American physiologist and academic (d. 1986)
1900 – Gotthard Günther, German philosopher and academic (d. 1984)
1900 – Otto Luening, German-American composer and conductor (d. 1996)
1901 – Elmar Lohk, Russian-Estonian architect (d. 1963)
1902 – Erik Erikson, German-American psychologist and psychoanalyst (d. 1994)
1906 – Gordon Welchman, English-American mathematician and author (d. 1985)
1906 – Léon Degrelle, Belgian SS officer (d. 1994)
1907 – James Robertson Justice, English actor and educator (d. 1975)
1909 – Elena Nikolaidi, Greek-American soprano and educator (d. 2002)
1910 – David Rose, English-American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1990)
1911 – Wilbert Awdry, English author, co-created Thomas the Tank Engine (d. 1997)
1913 – Tom Adair, American songwriter, composer, and screenwriter (d. 1988)
1914 – Yuri Andropov, Russian politician (d. 1984)
1914 – Saul Steinberg, Romanian-American cartoonist (d. 1999)
1914 – Hilda Terry, American cartoonist (d. 2006)
1915 – Nini Theilade, Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, and educator (d. 2018)
1915 – Thomas Huckle Weller, American biologist and virologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2008)
1916 – Olga Erteszek, Polish-American fashion designer (d. 1989)
1916 – Horacio Salgán, Argentinian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2016)
1916 – Herbert A. Simon, American political scientist and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)
1917 – John Fenn, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
1917 – Michalis Genitsaris, Greek singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
1917 – Lash LaRue, American actor and producer (d. 1996)
1918 – François Tombalbaye, Chadian politician, 1st President of Chad (d. 1975)
1920 – Keith Andrews, American race car driver (d. 1957)
1920 – Alla Kazanskaya, Russian actress (d. 2008)
1920 – Sam Sniderman, Canadian businessman, founded Sam the Record Man (d. 2012)
1920 – Alberto Sordi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
1921 – Erroll Garner, American pianist and composer (d. 1977)
1922 – Jaki Byard, American pianist and composer (d. 1999)
1923 – Erland Josephson, Swedish actor and director (d. 2012)
1923 – Ninian Stephen, English-Australian lieutenant, judge, and politician, 20th Governor-General of Australia (d. 2017)
1924 – Hédi Fried, Swedish author and psychologist
1924 – Ezer Weizman, Israeli general and politician, 7th President of Israel (d. 2005)
1925 – Richard Baker, English journalist and author (d. 2018)
1925 – Attilâ İlhan, Turkish poet, author, and critic (d. 2005)
1926 – Alfred Duraiappah, Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer and politician (d. 1975)
1927 – Ross Andru, American illustrator (d. 1993)
1927 – Ibn-e-Insha, Indian-Pakistani poet and author (d. 1978)
1927 – Hugo Pratt, Italian author and illustrator (d. 1995)
1930 – Miguel Méndez, American author and academic (d. 2013)
1930 – Marcel Pronovost, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2015)
1931 – Joseph Gilbert, English air marshal
1931 – Brian Sewell, English art dealer and critic (d. 2015)
1932 – David Alliance, Baron Alliance, Iranian-English businessman and politician
1932 – Mario Cuomo, American lawyer and politician, 52nd Governor of New York (d. 2015)
1932 – Zia Fariduddin Dagar, Indian singer (d. 2013)
1932 – Bernie Faloney, American-Canadian football player and sportscaster (d. 1999)
1933 – Mohammad-Ali Rajai, Iranian politician, 2nd President of Iran (d. 1981)
1933 – Predrag Koraksić Corax, Serbian political caricaturist
1934 – Ruby Nash Garnett, American R&B singer
1936 – William Levada, American cardinal
1937 – Pierre Billon, Swiss-Canadian author and screenwriter
1937 – Waylon Jennings, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)
1938 – Billy Williams, American baseball player and coach
1939 – Ward Connerly, American activist and businessman, founded the American Civil Rights Institute
1941 – Neal Adams, American illustrator
1941 – Harry Nilsson, American singer-songwriter (d. 1994)
1942 – Ian Greenberg, Canadian broadcaster, founded Astral Media
1942 – John E. McLaughlin, American diplomat
1942 – Peter Norman, Australian sprinter (d. 2006)
1943 – Johnny Hallyday, French singer and actor (d. 2017)
1943 – Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, Danish politician, 38th Prime Minister of Denmark
1944 – Robert D. Keppel, American police officer and academic
1945 – Miriam Defensor Santiago, Filipino judge and politician (d. 2016)
1945 – Robert Sarah, Guinean cardinal
1945 – Lawrence Wilkerson, American colonel
1946 – Noddy Holder, English rock singer-songwriter, musician, and actor
1946 – John Horner, American paleontologist and academic
1946 – Demis Roussos, Egyptian-Greek singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2015)
1947 – John Hoagland, American photographer and journalist (d. 1984)
1948 – Mike Holmgren, American football player and coach
1948 – Alan Huckle, English politician and diplomat, Governor of Anguilla
1948 – Henry McLeish, Scottish footballer, academic, and politician, 2nd First Minister of Scotland
1949 – Dusty Baker, American baseball player and manager
1949 – Simon Callow, English actor and director
1949 – Russell Hitchcock, Australian singer-songwriter
1949 – Jim Varney, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (d. 2000)
1950 – Uğur Erdener, Turkish ophthalmologist and professor
1950 – Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Ghanaian nurse and politician
1950 – Deney Terrio, American choreographer and host of the television musical variety series Dance Fever
1950 – Lakshmi Mittal, Indian-English businessman
1951 – Jane Amsterdam, American magazine and newspaper editor (Manhattan, inc., New York Post)
1951 – Vance A. Larson, American painter (d. 2000)
1951 – John Redwood, English politician, Secretary of State for Wales
1951 – Steve Walsh, American rock singer-songwriter and musician
1952 – Satya Pal Jain, Indian lawyer and politician, Additional Solicitor General of India
1953 – Vilma Bardauskienė, Lithuanian long jumper
1953 – Marc Brickman, American lighting and production designer
1953 – Eje Elgh, Swedish racing driver and sportscaster
1953 – Xi Jinping, Chinese engineer and politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party and President of China
1953 – Raphael Wallfisch, English cellist and educator
1954 – Jim Belushi, American actor
1954 – Terri Gibbs, American country music singer and keyboard player
1954 – Paul Rusesabagina, Rwandan humanitarian
1954 – Zdeňka Šilhavá, Czech discus thrower and shot putter
1954 – Beverley Whitfield, Australian swimmer (d. 1996)
1955 – Polly Draper, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
2015 – Kirk Kerkorian, American businessman, founded the Tracinda Corporation (b. 1917)
2016 – Lois Duncan, American author (b. 1934)
2018 – Matt “Guitar” Murphy, American Blues guitarist (The Blues Brothers) (b. 1929)
2019 – Franco Zeffirelli, Italian film director (b. 1923)
Holidays and observances on June 15
Arbor Day (Costa Rica)
Christian feast day:
Abraham of Clermont (or of St Cyriacus)
Alice (or Adelaide) of Schaerbeek
Augustine of Hippo (Eastern Orthodox Church)
Blessed Albertina Berkenbrock
Blessed Clement Vismara
Edburga of Winchester
Evelyn Underhill (Church of England and The Episcopal Church)
Germaine Cousin
Landelin (of Crespin or of Lobbes)
Trillo
Vitus (Guy), Modestus and Crescentia
June 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Day of Valdemar and Reunion Day (Flag Day) (Denmark)
Earliest day on which Father’s Day can fall, while June 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday in June. (United States, and most other countries.)
455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome.
1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat Kievan Rus’ and Cumans.
1293 – Mongol invasion of Java was a punitive expedition against King Kertanegara of Singhasari, who had refused to pay tribute to the Yuan and maimed one of its ministers. However, it ended with failure for the Mongols. Regarded as establish City of Surabaya
1578 – King Henry III lays the first stone of the Pont Neuf (New Bridge), the oldest bridge of Paris, France.
1669 – Citing poor eyesight as a reason, Samuel Pepys records the last event in his diary.
1775 – American Revolution: The Mecklenburg Resolves are adopted in the Province of North Carolina.
1790 – Manuel Quimper explores the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
1790 – The United States enacts its first copyright statute, the Copyright Act of 1790.
1795 – French Revolution: The Revolutionary Tribunal is suppressed.
1805 – French and Spanish forces begin the assault against British forces occupying Diamond Rock.
1813 – In Australia, William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth reach Mount Blaxland, effectively marking the end of a route across the Blue Mountains.
1859 – The clock tower at the Houses of Parliament, which houses Big Ben, starts keeping time.
1862 – American Civil War: Peninsula Campaign: Confederate forces under Joseph E. Johnston and G.W. Smith engage Union forces under George B. McClellan outside Richmond, Virginia.
1864 – American Civil War: Overland Campaign: Battle of Cold Harbor: The Army of Northern Virginia engages the Army of the Potomac.
1879 – Gilmore’s Garden in New York City is renamed Madison Square Garden by William Henry Vanderbilt and is opened to the public at 26th Street and Madison Avenue.
1884 – The arrival at Plymouth of Tāwhiao, King of Maoris, to claim the protection of Queen Victoria.
1889 – Johnstown Flood: Over 2,200 people die after a dam fails and sends a 60-foot (18-meter) wall of water over the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
1902 – Second Boer War: The Treaty of Vereeniging ends the war and ensures British control of South Africa.
1909 – The National Negro Committee, forerunner to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), convenes for the first time.
1910 – The South Africa Act comes into force, establishing the Union of South Africa.
1911 – The RMS Titanic is launched in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
1911 – The President of Mexico Porfirio Díaz flees the country during the Mexican Revolution.
1916 – World War I: Battle of Jutland: The British Grand Fleet engages the High Seas Fleet in the largest naval battle of the war, which proves indecisive.
1921 – The Tulsa race massacre kills at least 39, but other estimates of black fatalities vary from 55 to about 300.
1935 – A 7.7 Mw earthquake destroys Quetta in modern-day Pakistan killing 40,000.
1941 – Anglo-Iraqi War: The United Kingdom completes the re-occupation of Iraq and returns ‘Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.
1942 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Navy midget submarines begin a series of attacks on Sydney, Australia.
1947 – Ferenc Nagy, the democratically elected Prime Minister of Hungary, resigns from office after blackmail from the Hungarian Communist Party accusing him of being part of a plot against the state. This grants the Communists effective control of the Hungarian government.
1961 – The South African Constitution of 1961 becomes effective, thus creating the Republic of South Africa, which remains outside the Commonwealth of Nations until 1 June 1994, when South Africa is returned to Commonwealth membership.
1961 – In Moscow City Court, the Rokotov–Faibishenko show trial begins, despite the Khrushchev Thaw to reverse Stalinist elements in Soviet society.
1962 – The West Indies Federation dissolves.
1970 – The 7.9 Mw Ancash earthquake shakes Peru with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) and a landslide buries the town of Yungay, Peru. Between 66,794–70,000 were killed and 50,000 were injured.
1971 – In accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1968, observation of Memorial Day occurs on the last Monday in May for the first time, rather than on the traditional Memorial Day of May 30.
1973 – The United States Senate votes to cut off funding for the bombing of Khmer Rouge targets within Cambodia, hastening the end of the Cambodian Civil War.
1977 – The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System is completed.
1985 – United States–Canada tornado outbreak: Forty-one tornadoes hit Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario, leaving 76 dead.
1991 – Bicesse Accords in Angola lay out a transition to multi-party democracy under the supervision of the United Nations’ UNAVEM II mission.
2005 – Vanity Fair reveals that Mark Felt was “Deep Throat”.
2008 – Usain Bolt breaks the world record in the 100m sprint, with a wind-legal (+1.7 m/s) 9.72 seconds
2010 – Israeli Shayetet 13 commandos boarded the Gaza Freedom Flotilla while still in international waters trying to break the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip; nine Turkish citizens on the flotilla were killed in the ensuing violent affray.
2013 – The asteroid 1998 QE2 and its moon make their closest approach to Earth for the next two centuries.
2013 – A record breaking 2.6 mile wide tornado strikes El Reno, Oklahoma, United States, causing eight fatalities and over 150 injuries.
2017 – A car bomb explodes in a crowded intersection in Kabul near the German embassy during rush hour, killing over 90 and injuring 463.
2017 – U.S. President Donald Trump tweets the word “covfefe” and quickly becomes a worldwide viral phenomenon.
2019 – A shooting occurs inside a municipal building at Virginia Beach, Virginia, leaving 13 people dead, including the shooter, and four others injured.
Births on May 31
1443 (or 1441) – Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby (d. 1509)
1462 – Philipp II, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. 1504)
1469 – Manuel I of Portugal (d. 1521)
1535 – Alessandro Allori, Italian painter (d. 1607)
1556 – Jerzy Radziwiłł, Catholic cardinal (d. 1600)
1577 – Nur Jahan, Empress consort of the Mughal Empire (d. 1645)
1613 – John George II, Elector of Saxony (d. 1680)
1640 – Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, King of Poland (d. 1673)
1641 – Patriarch Dositheos II of Jerusalem (d. 1707)
1725 – Ahilyabai Holkar, Queen of the Malwa Kingdom under the Maratha Empire (d. 1795)
1732 – Count Hieronymus von Colloredo, Austrian archbishop (d. 1812)
1753 – Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, French lawyer and politician (d. 1793)
1754 – Andrea Appiani, Italian painter and educator (d. 1817)
1773 – Ludwig Tieck, German poet, author, and critic (d. 1853)
1801 – Johann Georg Baiter, Swiss philologist and scholar (d. 1887)
1815 – Adye Douglas, English-Australian cricketer and politician, 15th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1906)
1818 – John Albion Andrew, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1867)
1819 – Walt Whitman, American poet, essayist, and journalist (d. 1892)
1827 – Kusumoto Ine, first Japanese female doctor of Western medicine (d. 1903)
1835 – Hijikata Toshizō, Japanese commander (d. 1869)
1838 – Henry Sidgwick, English economist and philosopher (d. 1900)
1842 – John Cox Bray, Australian politician, 15th Premier of South Australia (d. 1894)
1847 – William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, Canadian-Irish businessman and politician, Lord Mayor of Belfast (d. 1924)
1852 – Francisco Moreno, Argentinian explorer and academic (d. 1919)
1852 – Julius Richard Petri, German microbiologist, invented the Petri dish (d. 1921)
1857 – Pope Pius XI (d. 1939)
1858 – Graham Wallas, English socialist, social psychologist, and educationalist (d. 1932)
1860 – Walter Sickert, English painter (d. 1942)
1863 – Francis Younghusband, Indian-English captain and explorer (d. 1942)
1866 – John Ringling, American entrepreneur; one of the founders of the Ringling Brothers Circus (d. 1936)
1875 – Rosa May Billinghurst, British suffragette and women’s rights activist (d.1953)
1879 – Frances Alda, New Zealand-Australian soprano (d. 1952)
1882 – Sándor Festetics, Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of War (d. 1956)
1883 – Lauri Kristian Relander, Finnish politician, 2nd President of Finland (d. 1942)
1885 – Robert Richards, Australian politician, 32nd Premier of South Australia (d. 1967)
1887 – Saint-John Perse, French poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
1892 – Michel Kikoine, Belarusian-French painter (d. 1968)
1892 – Erich Neumann, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1951)
1892 – Konstantin Paustovsky, Russian poet and author (d. 1968)
1892 – Gregor Strasser, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1934)
1894 – Fred Allen, American comedian, radio host, game show panelist, and author (d. 1956)
1898 – Norman Vincent Peale, American minister and author (d. 1993)
1900 – Lucile Godbold, American Olympic athlete (d. 1981)
1901 – Alfredo Antonini, Italian-American conductor and composer (d. 1983)
1908 – Don Ameche, American actor (d. 1993)
1909 – Art Coulter, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2000)
1911 – Maurice Allais, French economist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
1912 – Chien-Shiung Wu, Chinese-American experimental physicist (d. 1997)
1914 – Akira Ifukube, Japanese composer and educator (d. 2006)
1916 – Bert Haanstra, Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1997)
1918 – Robert Osterloh, American actor (d. 2001)
1918 – Lloyd Quarterman, African American chemist (d. 1982)
1919 – Robie Macauley, American editor, novelist and critic (d. 1995)
1921 – Edna Doré, English actress (d. 2014)
1921 – Andrew Grima, Anglo-Italian jewellery designer (d. 2007)
1921 – Howard Reig, American radio and television announcer (d. 2008)
1921 – Alida Valli, Austrian-Italian actress and singer (d. 2006)
1922 – Denholm Elliott, English-Spanish actor (d. 1992)
1923 – Ellsworth Kelly, American painter and sculptor (d. 2015)
1923 – Rainier III, Prince of Monaco (d. 2005)
1925 – Julian Beck, American actor and director (d. 1986)
1927 – James Eberle, English admiral (d. 2018)
1927 – Michael Sandberg, Baron Sandberg, English lieutenant and banker (d. 2017)
1928 – Pankaj Roy, Indian cricketer (d. 2001)
1929 – Menahem Golan, Israeli director and producer (d. 2014)
1930 – Clint Eastwood, American actor, director, musician, and producer
1931 – John Robert Schrieffer, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2019)
1931 – Shirley Verrett, American soprano and actress (d. 2010)
1932 – Ed Lincoln, Brazilian pianist, bassist, and composer (d. 2012)
1932 – Jay Miner, American computer scientist and engineer (d. 1994)
1933 – Henry B. Eyring, American religious leader, educator, and author
1934 – Jim Hutton, American actor (d. 1979)
1935 – Jim Bolger, New Zealand businessman and politician, 35th Prime Minister of New Zealand
1938 – Johnny Paycheck, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2003)
1938 – John Prescott, British sailor and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
1938 – Peter Yarrow, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1939 – Terry Waite, English humanitarian and author
1940 – Anatoliy Bondarchuk, Ukrainian hammer thrower and coach
1940 – Augie Meyers, American musician and singer-songwriter
1940 – Gilbert Shelton, American illustrator
1941 – June Clark, Welsh nurse and educator
1941 – Louis Ignarro, American pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1941 – William Nordhaus, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1943 – Sharon Gless, American actress
1943 – Joe Namath, American football player, sportscaster, and actor
1945 – Rainer Werner Fassbinder, German actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1982)
1945 – Laurent Gbagbo, Ivorian academic and politician, 4th President of Côte d’Ivoire
1945 – Bernard Goldberg, American journalist and author
1946 – Ted Baehr, American publisher and critic
1946 – Steve Bucknor, Jamaican cricketer and umpire
1946 – Krista Kilvet, Estonian journalist, politician, and diplomat (d. 2009)
1946 – Debbie Moore, English model and businesswoman
1947 – Junior Campbell, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1947 – Gabriele Hinzmann, German discus thrower
1948 – Svetlana Alexievich, Belarusian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate
1948 – John Bonham, English musician, songwriter and drummer (d. 1980)
1948 – Martin Hannett, English bass player, guitarist, and record producer (d. 1991)
1948 – Duncan Hunter, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician
1949 – Tom Berenger, American actor, film producer and television writer
1950 – Jean Chalopin, French director, producer, and screenwriter, founded DIC Entertainment
1950 – Gregory Harrison, American actor
1950 – Edgar Savisaar, Estonian politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
1951 – Karl-Hans Riehm, German hammer thrower
1952 – Karl Bartos, German singer-songwriter and keyboard player
1953 – Pirkka-Pekka Petelius, Finnish actor and screenwriter
1954 – Thomas Mavros, Greek footballer
1954 – Vicki Sue Robinson, American actress and singer (d. 2000)
1955 – Tommy Emmanuel, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1955 – Susie Essman, American actress, comedian, and screenwriter
1956 – Fritz Hilpert, German drummer and composer
1956 – John Young, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
1957 – Jim Craig, American ice hockey player
1959 – Andrea de Cesaris, Italian racing driver (d. 2014)
1959 – Phil Wilson, English politician
1960 – Greg Adams, Canadian ice hockey player and businessman
1960 – Chris Elliott, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter
1960 – Peter Winterbottom, English rugby player
1961 – Ray Cote, Canadian ice hockey player
1961 – Justin Madden, Australian footballer and politician
1961 – Lea Thompson, American actress, director, and producer
1962 – Corey Hart, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
1963 – David Leigh, holder of the Sir Samuel Hall Chair of Chemistry at the University of Manchester
1963 – Viktor Orbán, Hungarian politician, 38th Prime Minister of Hungary
1963 – Wesley Willis, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player (d. 2003)
1964 – Leonard Asper, Canadian lawyer and businessman
1964 – Stéphane Caristan, French hurdler and coach
1964 – Yukio Edano, Japanese politician, Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs
1964 – Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, American rapper and producer
1965 – Brooke Shields, American model, actress, and producer
1966 – Roshan Mahanama, Sri Lankan cricketer and referee
1967 – Phil Keoghan, New Zealand television host and producer
1967 – Kenny Lofton, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
919 – The nobles of Franconia and Saxony elect Henry the Fowler at the Imperial Diet in Fritzlar as king of the East Frankish Kingdom.
1218 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
1276 – Magnus Ladulås is crowned King of Sweden in Uppsala Cathedral.
1487 – The ten-year-old Lambert Simnel is crowned in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Ireland, with the name of Edward VI in a bid to threaten King Henry VII’s reign.
1567 – Erik XIV of Sweden and his guards murder five incarcerated Swedish nobles.
1595 – Nomenclator of Leiden University Library appears, the first printed catalog of an institutional library.
1607 – One hundred English settlers disembark in Jamestown, the first permanent English colony in America.
1621 – The Protestant Union is formally dissolved.
1626 – Peter Minuit buys Manhattan.
1667 – The French Royal Army crosses the border into the Spanish Netherlands, starting the War of Devolution opposing France to the Spanish Empire and the Triple Alliance.
1683 – The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England, opens as the world’s first university museum.
1689 – The English Parliament passes the Act of Toleration protecting dissenting Protestants but excluding Roman Catholics.
1738 – John Wesley is converted, essentially launching the Methodist movement; the day is celebrated annually by Methodists as Aldersgate Day and a church service is generally held on the preceding Sunday.
1798 – The Irish Rebellion of 1798 led by the United Irishmen against British rule begins.
1813 – South American independence leader Simón Bolívar enters Mérida, leading the invasion of Venezuela, and is proclaimed El Libertador (“The Liberator”).
1822 – Battle of Pichincha: Antonio José de Sucre secures the independence of the Presidency of Quito.
1832 – The First Kingdom of Greece is declared in the London Conference.
1844 – Samuel Morse sends the message “What hath God wrought” (a biblical quotation, Numbers 23:23) from a committee room in the United States Capitol to his assistant, Alfred Vail, in Baltimore, Maryland, to inaugurate a commercial telegraph line between Baltimore and Washington D.C.
1856 – John Brown and his men kill five slavery supporters at Pottawatomie Creek, Kansas.
1861 – American Civil War: Union troops occupy Alexandria, Virginia.
1883 – The Brooklyn Bridge in New York City is opened to traffic after 14 years of construction.
1900 – Second Boer War: The United Kingdom annexes the Orange Free State.
1915 – World War I: Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary, joining the conflict on the side of the Allies.
1930 – Amy Johnson lands in Darwin, Northern Territory, becoming the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia (she left on May 5 for the 11,000 mile flight).
1935 – The first night game in Major League Baseball history is played in Cincinnati, Ohio, with the Cincinnati Reds beating the Philadelphia Phillies 2–1 at Crosley Field.
1940 – Igor Sikorsky performs the first successful single-rotor helicopter flight.
1940 – Acting on the orders of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, NKVD agent Iosif Grigulevich orchestrates an unsuccessful assassination attempt on exiled Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky in Coyoacán, Mexico.
1941 – World War II: In the Battle of the Atlantic, the German Battleship Bismarck sinks then-pride of the Royal Navy, HMS Hood, killing all but three crewmen.
1948 – Arab–Israeli War: Egypt captures the Israeli kibbutz of Yad Mordechai, but the five-day effort gives Israeli forces time to prepare enough to stop the Egyptian advance a week later.
1956 – The first Eurovision Song Contest is held in Lugano, Switzerland.
1958 – United Press International is formed through a merger of the United Press and the International News Service.
1960 – Following the 1960 Valdivia earthquake, the largest ever recorded earthquake, Cordón Caulle begins to erupt.
1961 – American civil rights movement: Freedom Riders are arrested in Jackson, Mississippi, for “disturbing the peace” after disembarking from their bus.
1962 – Project Mercury: American astronaut Scott Carpenter orbits the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.
1967 – Egypt imposes a blockade and siege of the Red Sea coast of Israel.
1976 – The Judgment of Paris takes place in France, launching California as a worldwide force in the production of quality wine.
1981 – Ecuadorian president Jaime Roldós Aguilera, his wife, and his presidential committee die in an aircraft accident while travelling from Quito to Zapotillo minutes after the president gave a famous speech regarding the 24 de mayo anniversary of the Battle of Pichincha.
1982 – Liberation of Khorramshahr: Iranians recapture of the port city of Khorramshahr from the Iraqis during the Iran–Iraq War.
1988 – Section 28 of the United Kingdom’s Local Government Act 1988, a controversial amendment stating that a local authority cannot intentionally promote homosexuality, is enacted.
1991 – Israel conducts Operation Solomon, evacuating Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
1992 – The last Thai dictator, General Suchinda Kraprayoon, resigns following pro-democracy protests.
1992 – The ethnic cleansing in Kozarac, Bosnia and Herzegovina begins when Serbian militia and police forces enter the town.
1993 – Eritrea gains its independence from Ethiopia.
1993 – Roman Catholic Cardinal Juan Jesús Posadas Ocampo and five other people are assassinated in a shootout at Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Guadalajara International Airport in Mexico.
1994 – Four men convicted of bombing the World Trade Center in New York in 1993 are each sentenced to 240 years in prison.
1995 – While attempting to return to Leeds Bradford Airport in the United Kingdom, Knight Air Flight 816 crashes in Harewood, North Yorkshire, killing all 12 people on board.
1999 – The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Netherlands indicts Slobodan Milošević and four others for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Kosovo.
2000 – Israeli troops withdraw from southern Lebanon after 22 years of occupation.
2002 – Russia and the United States sign the Moscow Treaty.
2014 – A 6.4 magnitude earthquake occurs in the Aegean Sea between Greece and Turkey, injuring 324 people.
2014 – At least three people are killed in a shooting at Brussels’ Jewish Museum of Belgium.
2019 – Twenty-two students die in a fire in Surat (India).
2019 – Under pressure over her handling of Brexit, British Prime Minister Theresa May announces her resignation as Leader of the Conservative Party, effective as of June 7.
Births on May 24
15 BC – Germanicus, Roman general (d. 19)
1335 – Margaret of Bohemia, Queen of Hungary (d. 1349)
1494 – Pontormo, Italian painter (d. 1557)
1522 – John Jewel, English bishop (d. 1571)
1544 – William Gilbert, English physician, physicist, and astronomer (d. 1603)
1576 – Elizabeth Carey, Lady Berkeley, English courtier (d. 1635)
1616 – John Maitland, 1st Duke of Lauderdale, Scottish politician, Secretary of State, Scotland (d. 1682)
1628 – Marek Sobieski, Polish noble (d. 1652)
1669 – Emerentia von Düben, Swedish royal favorite (d. 1743)
1671 – Gian Gastone de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1737)
1686 – Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, Polish-German physicist and engineer, developed the Fahrenheit scale (d. 1736)
1689 – Daniel Finch, 8th Earl of Winchilsea, English politician, Lord President of the Council (d. 1769)
1743 – Jean-Paul Marat, Swiss-French physician, journalist, and politician (d. 1793)
1789 – Cathinka Buchwieser, German operatic singer and actress (d.1828)
1794 – William Whewell, English priest and philosopher (d. 1866)
1803 – Alexander von Nordmann, Finnish biologist and paleontologist (d. 1866)
1810 – Abraham Geiger, German rabbi and scholar (d. 1874)
1816 – Emanuel Leutze, German-American painter (d. 1868)
1819 – Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (d. 1901)
1830 – Alexei Savrasov, Russian painter and academic (d. 1897)
1855 – Arthur Wing Pinero, English actor, director, and playwright (d. 1934)
1861 – Gerald Strickland, 1st Baron Strickland, Maltese lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Malta (d. 1940)
1863 – George Grey Barnard, American sculptor (d. 1938)
1868 – Charlie Taylor, American engineer and mechanic (d. 1956)
1870 – Benjamin N. Cardozo, American lawyer and judge (d. 1938)
1870 – Jan Smuts, South African lawyer and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of South Africa (d. 1950)
1874 – Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine (d. 1878)
1875 – Robert Garrett, American discus thrower and shot putter (d. 1961)
1878 – Lillian Moller Gilbreth, American psychologist and engineer (d. 1972)
1879 – H. B. Reese, American candy maker, created Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (d. 1956)
1886 – Paul Paray, French organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1979)
1887 – Mick Mannock, Irish soldier and pilot, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1918)
1891 – William F. Albright, American archaeologist, philologist, and scholar (d. 1971)
1895 – Samuel Irving Newhouse Sr., American publisher, founded Advance Publications (d. 1979)
1899 – Suzanne Lenglen, French tennis player (d. 1938)
1899 – Henri Michaux, Belgian-French poet and painter (d. 1984)
1900 – Eduardo De Filippo, Italian actor and screenwriter (d. 1984)
1901 – José Nasazzi, Uruguayan footballer and manager (d. 1968)
1902 – Lionel Conacher, Canadian football player and politician (d. 1954)
1902 – Sylvia Daoust, Canadian sculptor (d. 2004)
1905 – George Nakashima, American woodworker and architect(d. 1990)
1905 – Mikhail Sholokhov, Russian novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1984)
1909 – Wilbur Mills, American banker and politician (d. 1992)
1910 – Jimmy Demaret, American golfer (d. 1983)
1913 – Joe Abreu, American baseball player and soldier (d. 1993)
1914 – Lilli Palmer, German-American actress (d. 1986)
1916 – Roden Cutler, Australian lieutenant and politician, 32nd Governor of New South Wales (d. 2002)
1917 – Alan Campbell, Baron Campbell of Alloway, English lawyer and judge (d. 2013)
1918 – Coleman Young, American politician, 66th Mayor of Detroit (d. 1997)
1923 – Siobhán McKenna, Irish actress (d. 1986)
1924 – Philip Pearlstein, American soldier and painter
1925 – Carmine Infantino, American illustrator and educator (d. 2013)
1925 – Mai Zetterling, Swedish actress and director (d. 1994)
1926 – Stanley Baxter, Scottish actor and screenwriter
1928 – William Trevor, Irish novelist, playwright and short story writer (d. 2016)
1932 – Arnold Wesker, English playwright and producer (d. 2016)
1933 – Jane Byrne, American lawyer and politician, 50th Mayor of Chicago (d. 2014)
1933 – Réal Giguère, Canadian television host and actor
1933 – Aharon Lichtenstein, French-Israeli rabbi and author (d. 2015)
1935 – Joan Micklin Silver, American director and screenwriter
1936 – Harold Budd, American composer and poet
1937 – Maryvonne Dupureur, French runner and educator (d. 2008)
1937 – Archie Shepp, American saxophonist and composer
1938 – Prince Buster, Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2016)
1938 – Tommy Chong, Canadian-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1940 – Joseph Brodsky, Russian-American poet and essayist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
1941 – Bob Dylan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, artist, writer, and producer; Nobel Prize laureate
1941 – Patricia Hollis, Baroness Hollis of Heigham, English academic and politician
1942 – Ali Bacher, South African cricketer and manager
1942 – Hannu Mikkola, Finnish race car driver
1942 – Ichirō Ozawa, Japanese lawyer and politician, Japanese Minister of Home Affairs
1943 – Gary Burghoff, American actor
1944 – Patti LaBelle, American singer-songwriter and actress
1944 – Dominique Lavanant, French actress
1945 – Terry Callier, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2012)
1945 – Steven Norris, English engineer and politician
1945 – Richard Ottaway, English lieutenant and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
1945 – Priscilla Presley, American actress and businesswoman
1946 – Tansu Çiller, Turkish economist and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Turkey
1946 – Jesualdo Ferreira, Portuguese footballer and manager
1946 – Irena Szewińska, Russian-Polish sprinter
1947 – Albert Bouchard, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and drummer
1947 – Mike De Leon, Filipino director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer
1947 – Mike Reid, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and American football player
1947 – Waddy Wachtel, American guitarist, singer-songwriter, and record producer
1947 – Martin Winterkorn, German businessman
1948 – Richard Dembo, French director and screenwriter (d. 2004)
1949 – Jim Broadbent, English actor
1949 – Roger Deakins , English cinematographer
1953 – Alfred Molina, English actor
1955 – Rosanne Cash, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1955 – Philippe Lafontaine, Belgian singer and songwriter
1955 – Rajesh Roshan, Indian composer
1956 – R. B. Bernstein, American constitutional historian
1956 – Larry Blackmon, American singer-songwriter and producer
1956 – Dominic Grieve, English lawyer and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales
1956 – Michael Jackson, Irish archbishop
1958 – Chip Ganassi, American race car driver, team owner and businessman
1959 – Pelle Lindbergh, Swedish-American ice hockey player (d. 1985)
1959 – Barry O’Farrell, Australian politician, 43rd Premier of New South Wales
1960 – Guy Fletcher, English keyboard player, guitarist, and producer
1960 – Bill Harrigan, Australian rugby league referee and sportscaster
1960 – Kristin Scott Thomas, English actress
1961 – Lorella Cedroni, Italian philosopher and theorist (d. 2013)
1961 – Alain Lemieux, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach
1962 – Héctor Camacho, Puerto Rican-American boxer (d. 2012)
1962 – Gene Anthony Ray, American actor, dancer, and choreographer (d. 2003)
1963 – Ivan Capelli, Italian race car driver and sportscaster
1963 – Michael Chabon, American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter
1963 – Joe Dumars, American basketball player
1963 – Rich Rodriguez, American football player and coach
1963 – Valerie Taylor, American computer scientist and educator
1964 – Liz McColgan, Scottish educator and runner
1964 – Adrian Moorhouse, English swimmer
1964 – Isidro Pérez, Mexican boxer (d. 2013)
1964 – Pat Verbeek, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
1965 – John C. Reilly, American actor
1965 – Shinichirō Watanabe, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter
1966 – Éric Cantona, French footballer, manager, and actor
1966 – Ricky Craven, American race car driver and sportscaster
1967 – Tamer Karadağlı, Turkish actor
1967 – Andrey Borodin, Russian-English economist and businessman
1967 – Eric Close, American actor
1967 – Heavy D, Jamaican-American rapper, producer, and actor (d. 2011)
1967 – Carlos Hernández, Venezuelan-American baseball player and manager
1969 – Martin McCague, Northern Irish-English cricketer
1969 – Jacob Rees-Mogg, English politician
1969 – Rich Robinson, American guitarist and songwriter
1971 – Kris Draper, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
1972 – Greg Berlanti, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1973 – Rodrigo, Argentinian singer-songwriter (d. 2000)
1973 – Bartolo Colón, Dominican-American baseball player
1973 – Shirish Kunder, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter
1973 – Vladimír Šmicer, Czech footballer and manager
1974 – Sébastien Foucan, French runner and actor
1974 – Masahide Kobayashi, Japanese baseball player and coach
1974 – Magnus Manske, German biochemist and computer programmer, developed MediaWiki
1975 – Will Sasso, Canadian actor and comedian
1975 – Marc Gagnon, Canadian speed skater
1975 – Giannis Goumas, Greek footballer and coach
1975 – Maria Lawson, English singer-songwriter
1976 – Alessandro Cortini, Italian-American singer and keyboard player
1976 – Catherine Cox, New Zealand-Australian netball player
1976 – Silje Vige, Norwegian singer
1977 – Jeet Gannguli, Indian score composer, music director and singer
1978 – Elijah Burke, American wrestler
1978 – Johan Holmqvist, Swedish ice hockey player
1978 – Brad Penny, American baseball player
1978 – Rose, French singer, songwriter and composer
1979 – Tracy McGrady, American basketball player
1979 – Kareem McKenzie, American football player
1980 – Jason Babin, American football player
1980 – Anthony Minichiello, Australian rugby league player
1981 – Andy Lee, Australian comedian, actor, and screenwriter
1982 – Issah Gabriel Ahmed, Ghanaian footballer
1982 – Rian Wallace, American football player
1983 – Custódio Castro, Portuguese footballer
1983 – Pedram Javaheri, Iranian-American meteorologist and journalist
1983 – Woo Seung-yeon, South Korean model and actress (d. 2009)
1984 – Sarah Hagan, American actress
1984 – Dmitri Kruglov, Estonian footballer
1985 – Tim Bridgman, English race car driver
1986 – Mark Ballas, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, dancer, and actor
1986 – Giannis Kontoes, Greek footballer
1987 – Guillaume Latendresse, Canadian ice hockey player
1988 – Artem Anisimov, Russian ice hockey player
1988 – Monica Lin Brown, American sergeant
1988 – Billy Gilman, American musician
1988 – Lucian Wintrich, American political artist and White House correspondent
1989 – G-Eazy, American rapper
1989 – Andrew Jordan, English race car driver
1990 – Mattias Ekholm, Swedish ice hockey player
1991 – Aled Davies, Welsh discus thrower
1991 – Cody Eakin, Canadian ice hockey player
1992 – Marcus Bettinelli, English footballer, goalkeeper
1994 – Daiya Seto, Japanese swimmer
1994 – Emily Nicholl, Scottish netball player
1994 – Daiya Seto, Japanese swimmer
1994 – Emily Temple Wood, American 2016 Wikipedian of the Year award
1999 – Tarjei Sandvik Moe, Norwegian actor
Deaths on May 24
688 – Ségéne, bishop of Armagh (b. c. 610)
1089 – Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury
1136 – Hugues de Payens, first Grand Master of the Knights Templar (b. c. 1070)
1153 – David I of Scotland (b. 1083)
1201 – Theobald III, Count of Champagne (b. 1179)
1351 – Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Othman, Moroccan sultan (b. 1297)
1408 – Taejo of Joseon (b. 1335)
1425 – Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany, Scottish politician (b. 1362)
1456 – Ambroise de Loré, French commander (b. 1396)
1543 – Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish mathematician and astronomer (b. 1473)
1612 – Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1563)
1627 – Luis de Góngora, Spanish poet and cleric (b. 1561)
1632 – Robert Hues, English mathematician and geographer (b. 1553)
1665 – Mary of Jesus of Ágreda, Spanish Franciscan abbess and mystic (b. 1602)
1734 – Georg Ernst Stahl, German physician and chemist (b. 1660)
1792 – George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney, English admiral and politician, 16th Governor of Newfoundland (b. 1718)
1806 – John Campbell, 5th Duke of Argyll, Scottish field marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Argyllshire (b. 1723)
1843 – Sylvestre François Lacroix, French mathematician and academic (b. 1765)
1848 – Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, German author and composer (b. 1797)
1861 – Elmer E. Ellsworth, American colonel (b. 1837)
1872 – Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, German painter and illustrator (b. 1794)
1879 – William Lloyd Garrison, American journalist and activist (b. 1805)
1881 – Samuel Palmer, English painter and illustrator (b. 1805)
1901 – Louis-Zéphirin Moreau, Canadian bishop (b. 1824)
1908 – Old Tom Morris, Scottish golfer and architect (b. 1821)
1915 – John Condon, Irish-English soldier (b. 1896)
1929 – Nikolai von Meck, Russian engineer (b. 1863)
1941 – Lancelot Holland, English admiral (b. 1887)
1945 – Robert Ritter von Greim, German field marshal and pilot (b. 1892)
1948 – Jacques Feyder, Belgian actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1885)
1949 – Alexey Shchusev, Russian architect, designed Lenin’s Mausoleum and Moscow Kazanskaya railway station (b. 1873)
1950 – Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell, English field marshal and politician, 43rd Governor-General of India (b. 1883)
1951 – Thomas N. Heffron, American actor, director, screenwriter (b. 1872)
1956 – Martha Annie Whiteley, English chemist and mathematician (b. 1866)
1958 – Frank Rowe, Australian public servant (b. 1895)
1959 – John Foster Dulles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 52nd United States Secretary of State (b. 1888)
1963 – Elmore James, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1918)
1965 – Sonny Boy Williamson II, American singer-songwriter and harmonica player (b. 1908)
1974 – Duke Ellington, American pianist and composer (b. 1899)
1976 – Denise Pelletier, Canadian actress (b. 1923)
1979 – Ernest Bullock, English organist, composer, and educator (b. 1890)
1981 – Herbert Müller, Swiss race car driver (b. 1940)
1984 – Vince McMahon Sr., American wrestling promoter and businessman, founded WWE (b. 1914)
1988 – Freddie Frith, English motorcycle road racer (b. 1909)
1990 – Arthur Villeneuve, Canadian painter (b. 1910)
1991 – Gene Clark, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1944)
1992 – Hitoshi Ogawa, Japanese race car driver (b. 1956)
1995 – Harold Wilson, English academic and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1916)
1996 – Enrique Álvarez Félix, Mexican actor (b. 1934)
1996 – Joseph Mitchell, American journalist and author (b. 1908)
1997 – Edward Mulhare, Irish actor (b. 1923)
2000 – Kurt Schork, American journalist and scholar (b. 1947)
2000 – Majrooh Sultanpuri, Indian poet and songwriter (b. 1919)
2002 – Wallace Markfield, American author (b. 1926)
2003 – Rachel Kempson, English actress (b. 1910)
2004 – Henry Ries, German-American photographer (b. 1917)
2004 – Milton Shulman, Canadian author and critic (b. 1913)
2004 – Edward Wagenknecht, American critic and educator (b. 1900)
2005 – Carl Amery, German activist and author (b. 1922)
2005 – Arthur Haulot, Belgian journalist and poet (b. 1913)
2005 – Guy Tardif, Canadian academic and politician (b. 1935)
2006 – Henry Bumstead, American art director and production designer (b. 1915)
2006 – Claude Piéplu, French actor (b. 1923)
2006 – Michał Życzkowski, Polish technician and educator (b. 1930)
2008 – Dick Martin, American actor, comedian, and director (b. 1922)
2008 – Jimmy McGriff, American organist and bandleader (b. 1936)
2009 – Jay Bennett, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1963)
2010 – Ray Alan, English ventriloquist, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1930)
2010 – Paul Gray, American bass player and songwriter (b. 1972)
2010 – Raymond V. Haysbert, American businessman and activist (b. 1920)
2010 – Petr Muk, Czech singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1965)
2010 – Anneliese Rothenberger, German soprano and actress (b. 1926)
2011 – Huguette Clark, American heiress, painter, and philanthropist (b. 1906)
2011 – Hakim Ali Zardari, Indian-Pakistani businessman and politician (b. 1930)
2012 – Klaas Carel Faber, Dutch-German SS officer (b. 1922)
2012 – Kathi Kamen Goldmark, American journalist and author (b. 1948)
2012 – Jacqueline Harpman, Belgian psychoanalyst and author (b. 1929)
2012 – Juan Francisco Lombardo, Argentinian footballer (b. 1925)
2012 – Lee Rich, American production manager and producer (b. 1918)
2013 – Helmut Braunlich, German-American violinist and composer (b. 1929)
2013 – Ron Davies, Welsh footballer (b. 1942)
2013 – Gotthard Graubner, German painter (b. 1930)
2013 – Haynes Johnson, American journalist and author (b. 1931)
2013 – Pyotr Todorovsky, Ukrainian-Russian director and screenwriter (b. 1925)
2014 – David Allen, English cricketer (b. 1935)
2014 – Stormé DeLarverie, known as the “Rosa Parks of the lesbian community” (b. 1920)
2014 – Mahafarid Amir Khosravi, Iranian businessman (b. 1969)
2014 – Knowlton Nash, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1927)
2014 – John Vasconcellos, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician (b. 1932)
2015 – Dean Carroll, English rugby player (b. 1962)
2015 – Kenneth Jacobs, Australian lawyer and judge (b. 1917)
2015 – Tanith Lee, English author (b. 1947)
2018 – Gudrun Burwitz, daughter of Margarete Himmler and Heinrich Himmler (b. 1929)
2018 – John Bain (TotalBiscuit), English gaming commentator and critic (b. 1984)
Holidays and observances on May 24
Aldersgate Day/Wesley Day (Methodism)
Battle of Pichincha Day (Ecuador)
Bermuda Day (Bermuda), celebrated on the nearest weekday if May 24 falls on the weekend.
Christian feast day:
Anna Pak Agi (one of The Korean Martyrs)
Donatian and Rogatian
Jackson Kemper (Episcopal Church)
Joanna
Mary, Help of Christians
Sarah (celebrated by the Romani people of Camargue)
Vincent of Lérins
May 24 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Commonwealth Day (Belize)
Earliest day on which El Colacho tradition can fall, while June 27 is the latest; celebrated on Sunday after Corpus Christi. (Castrillo de Murcia, near Burgos)
Independence Day (Eritrea), celebrates the independence of Eritrea from Ethiopia in 1993.
Lubiri Memorial Day (Buganda)
Saints Cyril and Methodius Day (Eastern Orthodox Church, Julian Calendar) and its related observance:
Bulgarian Education and Culture and Slavonic Literature Day (Bulgaria)
Saints Cyril and Methodius, Slavonic Enlighteners’ Day (North Macedonia)
Victoria Day; celebrated on Monday on or before May 24. (Canada), and its related observance:
National Patriots’ Day or Journée nationale des patriotes (Quebec)
332 – Emperor Constantine the Great announces free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople.
872 – Louis II of Italy is crowned for the second time as Roman Emperor at Rome, at the age of 47. His first coronation was 28 years earlier, in 844, during the reign of his father Lothair I.
1096 – First Crusade: Around 800 Jews are massacred in Worms, Germany.
1152 – The future Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. He would become king two years later, after the death of his cousin once removed King Stephen of England.
1268 – The Principality of Antioch, a crusader state, falls to the Mamluk Sultan Baibars in the Siege of Antioch.
1291 – Fall of Acre, the end of Crusader presence in the Holy Land.
1302 – Bruges Matins, the nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by members of the local Flemish militia.
1388 – During the Battle of Buyur Lake, General Lan Yu leads a Chinese army forward to crush the Mongol hordes of Tögüs Temür, the Khan of Northern Yuan.
1499 – Alonso de Ojeda sets sail from Cádiz on his voyage to what is now Venezuela.
1565 – The Great Siege of Malta begins, in which Ottoman forces attempt and fail to conquer Malta.
1593 – Playwright Thomas Kyd’s accusations of heresy lead to an arrest warrant for Christopher Marlowe.
1631 – In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
1652 – Slavery in Rhode Island is abolished, although the law is not rigorously enforced.
1756 – The Seven Years’ War begins when Great Britain declares war on France.
1783 – First United Empire Loyalists reach Parrtown (later called Saint John, New Brunswick), Canada, after leaving the United States.
1794 – Battle of Tourcoing during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
1803 – Napoleonic Wars: The United Kingdom revokes the Treaty of Amiens and declares war on France.
1804 – Napoleon Bonaparte is proclaimed Emperor of the French by the French Senate.
1811 – Battle of Las Piedras: The first great military triumph of the revolution of the Río de la Plata in Uruguay led by José Artigas.
1812 – John Bellingham is found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging for the assassination of British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval.
1843 – The Disruption in Edinburgh of the Free Church of Scotland from the Church of Scotland.
1848 – Opening of the first German National Assembly (Nationalversammlung) in Frankfurt, Germany.
1860 – Abraham Lincoln wins the Republican Party presidential nomination over William H. Seward, who later becomes the United States Secretary of State.
1863 – American Civil War: The Siege of Vicksburg begins.
1896 – The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that the “separate but equal” doctrine is constitutional.
1896 – Khodynka Tragedy: A mass panic on Khodynka Field in Moscow during the festivities of the coronation of Russian Tsar Nicholas II results in the deaths of 1,389 people.
1900 – The United Kingdom proclaims a protectorate over Tonga.
1912 – The first Indian film, Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne, is released in Mumbai.
1917 – World War I: The Selective Service Act of 1917 is passed, giving the President of the United States the power of conscription.
1926 – Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears in Venice, California.
1927 – The Bath School disaster: Forty-five people, including many children, are killed by bombs planted by a disgruntled school-board member in Michigan.
1927 – After being founded for 20 years, the Government of the Republic of China approves Tongji University to be among the first national universities of the Republic of China.
1933 – New Deal: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
1944 – World War II: Battle of Monte Cassino: Conclusion after seven days of the fourth battle as German paratroopers evacuate Monte Cassino.
1944 – Deportation of Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union government.
1948 – The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
1953 – Jackie Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier.
1955 – Operation Passage to Freedom, the evacuation of 310,000 Vietnamese civilians, soldiers and non-Vietnamese members of the French Army from communist North Vietnam to South Vietnam following the end of the First Indochina War, ends.
1965 – Israeli spy Eli Cohen is hanged in Damascus, Syria.
1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 10 is launched.
1973 – Aeroflot Flight 109 is hijacked mid-flight and the aircraft is subsequently destroyed when the hijacker’s bomb explodes, killing all 82 people on board.
1974 – Nuclear weapons testing: Under project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon becoming the sixth nation to do so.
1977 – Likud party wins the 1977 Israeli legislative election, with Menachem Begin, its founder, as the sixth Prime Minister of Israel.
1980 – Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, United States, killing 57 people and causing $3 billion in damage.
1980 – Students in Gwangju, South Korea begin demonstrations calling for democratic reforms.
1990 – In France, a modified TGV train achieves a new rail world speed record of 515.3 km/h (320.2 mph).
1991 – Northern Somalia declares independence from the rest of Somalia as the Republic of Somaliland but is not recognized by the international community.
1993 – Riots in Nørrebro, Copenhagen, caused by the approval of the four Danish exceptions in the Maastricht Treaty referendum. Police open fire against civilians for the first time since World War II and injure 11 demonstrators.
1994 – Israeli troops finish withdrawing from the Gaza Strip, ceding the area to the Palestinian National Authority to govern.
2005 – A second photo from the Hubble Space Telescope confirms that Pluto has two additional moons, Nix and Hydra.
2006 – The post Loktantra Andolan government passes a landmark bill curtailing the power of the monarchy and making Nepal a secular country.
2009 – The LTTE are defeated by the Sri Lankan government, ending almost 26 years of fighting between the two sides.
2015 – At least 78 people die in a landslide caused by heavy rains in the Colombian town of Salgar.
2018 – A school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas kills 10 people.
Births on May 18
1048 – Omar Khayyám, Persian mathematician, astronomer, and poet (d. 1131)
1186 – Konstantin of Rostov (d. 1218)
1450 – Piero Soderini, Italian politician and diplomat (d. 1513)
1537 – Guido Luca Ferrero, Roman Catholic cardinal (d. 1585)
1631 – Stanislaus Papczyński, Polish priest (d. 1701)
1662 – George Smalridge, English bishop (d. 1719)
1692 – Joseph Butler, English bishop, theologian, and apologist (d. 1752)
1711 – Roger Joseph Boscovich, Ragusan physicist, astronomer, and mathematician (d. 1787)
1777 – John George Children, English chemist, mineralogist, and zoologist (d. 1852)
1778 – Charles Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, Irish soldier and diplomat, British Ambassador to Austria (d. 1854)
1785 – John Wilson, Scottish author and critic (d. 1854)
1797 – Frederick Augustus II of Saxony (d. 1854)
1822 – Mathew Brady, American photographer and journalist (d. 1896)
1835 – Charles N. Sims, American Methodist preacher and 3rd chancellor of Syracuse University (d. 1908)
1850 – Oliver Heaviside, English engineer, mathematician, and physicist (d. 1925)
1851 – James Budd, American lawyer and politician, 19th Governor of California (d. 1908)
1852 – Gertrude Käsebier, American photographer (d. 1934)
1854 – Bernard Zweers, Dutch composer and educator (d. 1924)
1855 – Francis Bellamy, American minister and author (d. 1931)
1862 – Josephus Daniels, American publisher and politician, 41st United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 1948)
1867 – Minakata Kumagusu, Japanese author, biologist, naturalist and ethnologist (d. 1941)
1868 – Nicholas II of Russia (d. 1918)
1869 – Lucy Beaumont, English-American actress (d. 1937)
1871 – Denis Horgan, Irish shot putter and weight thrower (d. 1922)
1872 – Bertrand Russell, British mathematician, historian, and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1970)
1876 – Hermann Müller, German journalist and politician, 12th Chancellor of Germany (d. 1931)
1878 – Johannes Terwogt, Dutch rower (d. 1977)
1882 – Babe Adams, American baseball player, manager, and journalist (d. 1968)
1883 – Eurico Gaspar Dutra, Brazilian marshal and politician, 16th President of Brazil (d. 1974)
1883 – Walter Gropius, German-American architect, designed the John F. Kennedy Federal Building (d. 1969)
1886 – Jeanie MacPherson, American actress and screenwriter (d. 1946)
1889 – Thomas Midgley, Jr., American chemist and engineer (d. 1944)
1891 – Rudolf Carnap, German-American philosopher and academic (d. 1970)
1892 – Ezio Pinza, Italian-American actor and singer (d. 1957)
1895 – Augusto César Sandino, Nicaraguan rebel leader (d. 1934)
1896 – Eric Backman, Swedish runner (d. 1965)
1897 – Frank Capra, Italian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1991)
1898 – Faruk Nafiz Çamlıbel, Turkish poet, author, and playwright (d. 1973)
1901 – Henri Sauguet, French composer (d. 1989)
1901 – Vincent du Vigneaud, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1978)
1902 – Meredith Willson, American playwright and composer (d. 1984)
1904 – Shunryū Suzuki, Japanese-American monk and educator (d. 1971)
1904 – Jacob K. Javits, American colonel and politician, 58th New York Attorney General (d. 1986)
1905 – Ruth Alexander, pioneering American pilot (d. 1930)
1905 – Hedley Verity, English cricketer and soldier (d. 1943)
1907 – Irene Hunt, American author and educator (d. 2001)
1909 – Fred Perry, English-Australian tennis player and academic (d. 1995)
1910 – Ester Boserup, Danish economist and author (d. 1999)
1911 – Big Joe Turner, American blues/R&B singer (d. 1985)
1912 – Richard Brooks, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1992)
1912 – Perry Como, American singer and television host (d. 2001)
1912 – Walter Sisulu, South African politician (d. 2003)
1913 – Jane Birdwood, Baroness Birdwood, Canadian-English publisher and politician (d. 2000)
1914 – Pierre Balmain, French fashion designer, founded Balmain (d. 1982)
1914 – Boris Christoff, Bulgarian-Italian opera singer (d. 1993)
1917 – Bill Everett, American author and illustrator (d. 1973)
1919 – Margot Fonteyn, British ballerina (d. 1991)
1920 – Pope John Paul II (d. 2005)
1921 – Michael A. Epstein, English pathologist and academic
1922 – Bill Macy, American actor (d. 2019)
1922 – Kai Winding, Danish-American trombonist and composer (d. 1983)
1923 – Jean-Louis Roux, Canadian actor and politician, 34th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (d. 2013)
1923 – Hugh Shearer, Jamaican journalist and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Jamaica (d. 2004)
1924 – Priscilla Pointer, American actress
1924 – Jack Whitaker, American sportscaster (d. 2019)
1925 – Lillian Hoban, American author and illustrator (d. 1998)
1927 – Richard Body, English politician (d. 2018)
1927 – Ray Nagel, American football player and coach (d. 2015)
1928 – Pernell Roberts, American actor (d. 2010)
1929 – Jack Sanford, American baseball player and coach (d. 2000)
1929 – Norman St John-Stevas, Baron St John of Fawsley, English lawyer and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (d. 2012)
1930 – Warren Rudman, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (d. 2012)
1930 – Fred Saberhagen, American soldier and author (d. 2007)
1931 – Don Martin, American cartoonist (d. 2000)
1931 – Robert Morse, American actor
1931 – Kalju Pitksaar, Estonian chess player (d. 1995)
1931 – Clément Vincent, Canadian farmer and politician (d. 2018)
1933 – Bernadette Chirac, French politician, First Lady of France
1933 – H. D. Deve Gowda, Indian farmer and politician, 11th Prime Minister of India
1933 – Don Whillans, English rock climber and mountaineer (d. 1985)
1934 – Dwayne Hickman, American actor and director
1936 – Leon Ashley, American singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
1936 – Türker İnanoğlu, Turkish director, producer, and screenwriter
1936 – Michael Sandle, English sculptor and academic
1937 – Brooks Robinson, American baseball player and sportscaster
1937 – Jacques Santer, Luxembourger jurist and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Luxembourg
1938 – Janet Fish, American painter and academic
1939 – Patrick Cormack, Baron Cormack, English historian, journalist, and politician
1939 – Giovanni Falcone, Italian lawyer and judge (d. 1992)
1939 – Gordon O’Connor, Canadian general and politician, 38th Canadian Minister of Defence
1940 – Erico Aumentado, Filipino journalist, lawyer, and politician (d. 2012)
1941 – Gino Brito, Canadian wrestler and promoter
1941 – Malcolm Longair, Scottish astronomer, physicist, and academic
1941 – Miriam Margolyes, English-Australian actress and singer
1942 – Nobby Stiles, English footballer, coach, and manager
1944 – Albert Hammond, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1944 – W. G. Sebald, German novelist, essayist, and poet (d. 2001)
1946 – Frank Hsieh, Taiwanese lawyer and politician, 40th Premier of the Republic of China
1946 – Reggie Jackson, American baseball player and sportscaster
1946 – Gerd Langguth, German political scientist and author (d. 2013)
1947 – John Bruton, Irish politician, 10th Taoiseach of Ireland
1947 – Gail Strickland, American actress
1948 – Joe Bonsall, American country/gospel singer
1948 – Yi Mun-yol, South Korean author and academic
1948 – Richard Swedberg, Swedish sociologist and academic
1948 – Tom Udall, American lawyer and politician, 28th New Mexico Attorney General, United States Senator from New Mexico
1949 – Rick Wakeman, English progressive rock keyboardist and songwriter (Yes)
1949 – Walter Hawkins, American gospel music singer and pastor (d. 2010)
1950 – Rod Milburn, American hurdler and coach (d. 1997)
1950 – Mark Mothersbaugh, American singer-songwriter and painter
1951 – Richard Clapton, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1951 – Jim Sundberg, American baseball player and sportscaster
1951 – Angela Voigt, German long jumper (d. 2013)
1952 – Diane Duane, American author and screenwriter
1952 – David Leakey, English general and politician
1952 – George Strait, American singer, guitarist and producer
1952 – Jeana Yeager, American pilot
1953 – Alan Kupperberg, American author and illustrator (d. 2015)
1954 – Wreckless Eric, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1954 – Eric Gerets, Belgian footballer and manager
1955 – Chow Yun-fat, Hong Kong actor and screenwriter
1956 – Catherine Corsini, French director and screenwriter
1956 – John Godber, English playwright and screenwriter
1957 – Michael Cretu, Romanian-German keyboard player and producer
1957 – Henrietta Moore, English anthropologist and academic
1958 – Rubén Omar Romano, Argentinian-Mexican footballer and coach
1958 – Toyah Willcox, English singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
1959 – Graham Dilley, English cricketer and coach (d. 2011)
1959 – Jay Wells, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1960 – Brent Ashton, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1960 – Jari Kurri, Finnish ice hockey player, coach, and manager
1960 – Yannick Noah, French tennis player
1961 – Russell Senior, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1963 – Marty McSorley, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1963 – Sam Vincent, American basketball player and coach
1964 – Ignasi Guardans, Spanish academic and politician
1966 – Renata Nielsen, Polish-Danish long jumper and coach
1966 – Michael Tait, American singer-songwriter and producer
1967 – Nina Björk, Swedish journalist and author
1967 – Heinz-Harald Frentzen, German race car driver
1967 – Nancy Juvonen, American screenwriter and producer, co-founded Flower Films
1967 – Mimi Macpherson, Australian environmentalist, entrepreneur and celebrity
1968 – Philippe Benetton, French rugby player
1968 – Ralf Kelleners, German race car driver
1969 – Troy Cassar-Daley, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1969 – Martika, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
1969 – Antônio Carlos Zago, Brazilian footballer and manager
1970 – Tina Fey, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
1970 – Tim Horan, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
1970 – Billy Howerdel, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
1970 – Javier Cárdenas, Spanish singer, television and radio presenter
1970 – Vicky Sunohara, Canadian former ice hockey player
1971 – Brad Friedel, American international soccer player, goalkeeper, manager and sportscaster
1971 – Mark Menzies, Scottish politician
1971 – Nobuteru Taniguchi, Japanese race car driver
1972 – Turner Stevenson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1973 – Donyell Marshall, American basketball player and coach
1973 – Aleksandr Olerski, Estonian footballer (d. 2011)
1974 – Nelson Figueroa, American baseball player and sportscaster
1975 – Jem, Welsh singer-songwriter and producer
1975 – John Higgins, Scottish snooker player
1975 – Jack Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1976 – Ron Mercer, American basketball player
1976 – Marko Tomasović, Croatian pianist and composer
1976 – Oleg Tverdovsky, Ukrainian-Russian ice hockey player
1977 – Lee Hendrie, English footballer
1977 – Danny Mills, English footballer and sportscaster
1977 – Li Tie, Chinese footballer and manager
1978 – Ricardo Carvalho, Portuguese footballer
1978 – Marcus Giles, American baseball player
1978 – Charles Kamathi, Kenyan runner
1979 – Jens Bergensten, Swedish video game designer, co-designed Minecraft
1979 – Mariusz Lewandowski, Polish footballer
1979 – Michal Martikán, Slovak slalom canoeist
1979 – Milivoje Novaković, Slovenian footballer
1979 – Julián Speroni, Argentinian footballer
1980 – Reggie Evans, American basketball player
1980 – Michaël Llodra, French tennis player
1980 – Diego Pérez, Uruguayan footballer
1981 – Mahamadou Diarra, Malian international footballer
1981 – Ashley Harrison, Australian rugby league player
1982 – Jason Brown, English footballer
1982 – Marie-Ève Pelletier, Canadian tennis player
1983 – Gary O’Neil, English footballer
1983 – Luis Terrero, Dominican baseball player
1983 – Vince Young, American football player
1984 – Ivet Lalova, Bulgarian sprinter
1984 – Simon Pagenaud, French race car driver
1984 – Darius Šilinskis, Lithuanian basketball player
1984 – Joakim Soria, Mexican baseball player
1984 – Niki Terpstra, Dutch cyclist
1985 – Oliver Sin, Hungarian painter
1985 – Henrique Sereno, Portuguese footballer
1986 – Ahmed Hamada, Egyptian race car driver
1986 – Kevin Anderson, South African tennis player
1988 – Taeyang, South Korean singer
1990 – Dimitri Daeseleire, Belgian footballer
1990 – Yuya Osako, Japanese footballer
1990 – Josh Starling, Australian rugby league player
1992 – Adwoa Aboah, British fashion model
1993 – Stuart Percy, Canadian ice hockey player
1993 – Jessica Watson, Australian sailor
1998 – Polina Edmunds, American figure skater
1999 – Laura Omloop, Belgian singer-songwriter
2000 – Ryan Sessegnon, English footballer
2000 – Steven Sessegnon, English footballer
2002 – Alina Zagitova, Russian figure skater
Deaths on May 18
526 – Pope John I (b. 470)
893 – Stephen I of Constantinople (b. 867)
932 – Ma Shaohong, general of Later Tang
947 – Emperor Taizong of the Liao Dynasty
978 – Frederick I, duke of Upper Lorraine
1065 – Frederick, Duke of Lower Lorraine (b. c. 1003)
1096 – Minna of Worms, Jewish martyr killed during the Worms massacre (1096)
1160 – Eric Jedvardsson (King Eric IX) of Sweden (since 1156); (b. circa 1120)
1297 – Nicholas Longespee, Bishop of Salisbury
1401 – Vladislaus II of Opole (b. 1332)
1410 – Rupert of Germany, Count Palatine of the Rhine (b. 1352)
1550 – Jean, Cardinal of Lorraine (b. 1498)
1551 – Domenico di Pace Beccafumi, Italian painter (b. 1486)
1675 – Stanisław Lubieniecki, Polish astronomer, historian, and theologian (b. 1623)
1675 – Jacques Marquette, French-American missionary and explorer (b. 1637)
1692 – Elias Ashmole, English astrologer and politician (b. 1617)
1721 – Maria Barbara Carillo, victim of the Spanish Inquisition (b.1625)
1733 – Georg Böhm, German organist and composer (b. 1761)
1780 – Charles Hardy, English-American admiral and politician, 29th Colonial Governor of New York (b. 1714)
1781 – Túpac Amaru II, Peruvian-Indian rebel leader (b. 1742)
1792 – Levy Solomons, Canadian merchant and fur trader (b. 1730)
1795 – Robert Rogers, English colonel (b. 1731)
1799 – Pierre Beaumarchais, French playwright and publisher (b. 1732)
1800 – Alexander Suvorov, Russian general (b. 1729)
1807 – John Douglas, Scottish bishop and scholar (b. 1721)
1808 – Elijah Craig, American minister, inventor, and educator, invented Bourbon whiskey (b. 1738)
1844 – Richard McCarty, American lawyer and politician (b. 1780)
1853 – Lionel Kieseritzky, Estonian-French chess player (b. 1806)
1867 – Clarkson Stanfield, English painter (b. 1793)
708 – Pope Constantine succeeds Pope Sisinnius as the 88th pope.
717 – Theodosius III resigns the throne to the Byzantine Empire to enter the clergy.
919 – Romanos Lekapenos seizes the Boukoleon Palace in Constantinople and becomes regent of the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII.
1000 – Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah assassinates the eunuch chief minister Barjawan and assumes control of the government.
1306 – Robert the Bruce becomes King of Scots (Scotland).
1409 – The Council of Pisa opens.
1555 – The city of Valencia is founded in present-day Venezuela.
1576 – Jerome Savage takes out a sub-lease to start the Newington Butts Theatre outside London.
1584 – Sir Walter Raleigh is granted a patent to colonize Virginia.
1655 – Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, is discovered by Christiaan Huygens.
1802 – The Treaty of Amiens is signed as a “Definitive Treaty of Peace” between France and the United Kingdom.
1807 – The Slave Trade Act becomes law, abolishing the slave trade in the British Empire.
1807 – The Swansea and Mumbles Railway, then known as the Oystermouth Railway, becomes the first passenger-carrying railway in the world.
1811 – Percy Bysshe Shelley is expelled from the University of Oxford for publishing the pamphlet The Necessity of Atheism.
1821 – Traditional date of the start of the Greek War of Independence. The war had actually begun on 23 February 1821 (Julian calendar).
1845 – New Zealand Legislative Council pass the first Militia Act constituting the New Zealand Army.
1865 – American Civil War: In Virginia, Confederate forces temporarily capture Fort Stedman from the Union.
1894 – Coxey’s Army, the first significant American protest march, departs Massillon, Ohio for Washington, D.C.
1911 – In New York City, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire kills 146 garment workers.
1917 – The Georgian Orthodox Church restores its autocephaly abolished by Imperial Russia in 1811.
1918 – The Belarusian People’s Republic is established.
1924 – On the anniversary of Greek Independence, Alexandros Papanastasiou proclaims the Second Hellenic Republic.
1931 – The Scottsboro Boys are arrested in Alabama and charged with rape.
1941 – The Kingdom of Yugoslavia joins the Axis powers with the signing of the Tripartite Pact.
1947 – An explosion in a coal mine in Centralia, Illinois kills 111.
1948 – The first successful tornado forecast predicts that a tornado will strike Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.
1949 – More than 92,000 kulaks are suddenly deported from the Baltic states to Siberia.
1957 – United States Customs seizes copies of Allen Ginsberg’s poem “Howl” on obscenity grounds.
1957 – The European Economic Community is established with West Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg as the first members.
1965 – Civil rights activists led by Martin Luther King Jr. successfully complete their 4-day 50-mile march from Selma to the capitol in Montgomery, Alabama.
1969 – During their honeymoon, John Lennon and Yoko Ono hold their first Bed-In for Peace at the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel (until March 31).
1971 – The Army of the Republic of Vietnam abandon an attempt to cut off the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos.
1975 – Faisal of Saudi Arabia is shot and killed by a mentally ill nephew.
1979 – The first fully functional Space Shuttle orbiter, Columbia, is delivered to the John F. Kennedy Space Center to be prepared for its first launch.
1988 – The Candle demonstration in Bratislava is the first mass demonstration of the 1980s against the communist regime in Czechoslovakia.
1995 – WikiWikiWeb, the world’s first wiki, and part of the Portland Pattern Repository, is made public by Ward Cunningham.
1996 – The European Union’s Veterinarian Committee bans the export of British beef and its by-products as a result of mad cow disease (Bovine spongiform encephalopathy).
2006 – Capitol Hill massacre: A gunman kills six people before taking his own life at a party in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.
2006 – Protesters demanding a new election in Belarus, following the rigged 2006 Belarusian presidential election, clash with riot police. Opposition leader Aleksander Kozulin is among several protesters arrested.
Births on March 25
1252 – Conradin, Duke of Swabia (d. 1268)
1259 – Andronikos II Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1332)
1297 – Andronikos III Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1341)
1297 – Arnošt of Pardubice, Polish archbishop (d. 1364)
1345 – Blanche of Lancaster (d. 1369)
1347 – Catherine of Siena, Italian philosopher, theologian, and saint (d. 1380)
1404 – John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset, English military leader (d. 1444)
1414 – Thomas Clifford, 8th Baron de Clifford, English noble (d. 1455)
1434 – Eustochia Smeralda Calafato, Italian saint (d. 1485)
1453 – Giuliano de’ Medici (d. 1478)
1479 – Vasili III of Russia (d. 1533)
1491 – Marie d’Albret, Countess of Rethel (d. 1549)
1510 – Guillaume Postel, French linguist (d. 1581)
1538 – Christopher Clavius, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1612)
1541 – Francesco I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1587)
1545 – John II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg (d. 1622)
1546 – Giacomo Castelvetro, Italian writer (d. 1616)
1593 – Jean de Brébeuf, French-Canadian missionary and saint (d. 1649)
1611 – Evliya Çelebi, Ottoman Turk traveller and writer (d. 1682)
1636 – Henric Piccardt, Dutch lawyer (d. 1712)
1643 – Louis Moréri, French priest and scholar (d. 1680)
1661 – Paul de Rapin, French soldier and historian (d. 1725)
1699 – Johann Adolph Hasse, German singer and composer (d. 1783)
1741 – Jean-Antoine Houdon, French sculptor and educator (d. 1828)
1745 – John Barry, American naval officer and father of the American navy (d. 1803)
1767 – Joachim Murat, French general (d. 1815)
1782 – Caroline Bonaparte, French daughter of Carlo Buonaparte (d. 1839)
1800 – Ernst Heinrich Karl von Dechen, German geologist and academic (d. 1889)
1808 – José de Espronceda, Spanish poet and author (d. 1842)
1824 – Clinton L. Merriam, American banker and politician (d. 1900)
1840 – Myles Keogh, Irish-American colonel (d. 1876)
1863 – Simon Flexner, American physician and academic (d. 1946)
1867 – Gutzon Borglum, American sculptor, designed Mount Rushmore (d. 1941)
1867 – Arturo Toscanini, Italian-American cellist and conductor (d. 1957)
1868 – Bill Lockwood, English cricketer (d. 1932)
1871 – Louis Perrée, French fencer (d. 1924)
1872 – Horatio Nelson Jackson, American race car driver and physician (d. 1955)
1873 – Rudolf Rocker, German-American author and activist (d. 1958)
1874 – Selim Sırrı Tarcan, Turkish educator and politician (d. 1957)
1876 – Irving Baxter, American jumper and pole vaulter (d. 1957)
1877 – Walter Little, Canadian politician (d. 1961)
1878 – František Janda-Suk, Czech discus thrower and shot putter (d. 1955)
1879 – Amedee Reyburn, American swimmer and water polo player (d. 1920)
1881 – Béla Bartók, Hungarian pianist and composer (d. 1945)
1881 – Patrick Henry Bruce, American painter and educator (d. 1936)
1881 – Mary Webb, English author and poet (d. 1927)
1893 – Johannes Villemson, Estonian runner (d. 1971)
1895 – Siegfried Handloser, German general and physician (d. 1954)
1885 – Jimmy Seed, English international footballer, inside forward and manager (d. 1966)
1897 – Leslie Averill, New Zealand doctor and soldier (d. 1981)
1899 – François Rozet, French-Canadian actor (d. 1994)
1901 – Ed Begley, American actor (d. 1970)
1903 – Binnie Barnes, English-American actress (d. 1998)
1903 – Frankie Carle, American pianist and bandleader (d. 2001)
1903 – Nahum Norbert Glatzer, Ukrainian-American theologian and scholar (d. 1990)
1904 – Pete Johnson, American boogie-woogie and jazz pianist (d. 1967)
1905 – Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim, German colonel (d. 1944)
1906 – Jean Sablon, French singer and actor (d. 1994)
1906 – A. J. P. Taylor, English historian and academic (d. 1990)
1908 – David Lean, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1991)
1910 – Magda Olivero, Italian soprano (d. 2014)
1910 – Benzion Netanyahu, Polish-Israeli historian and academic (d. 2012)
1912 – Melita Norwood, English civil servant and spy (d. 2005)
1912 – Jean Vilar, French actor and director (d. 1971)
1913 – Reo Stakis, Cypriot-Scottish businessman, founded Stakis Hotels (d. 2001)
1914 – Norman Borlaug, American agronomist and humanitarian, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2009)
1915 – Dorothy Squires, Welsh singer (d. 1998)
1916 – S. M. Pandit, Indian painter and educator (d. 1993)
1918 – Howard Cosell, American soldier, journalist, and author (d. 1995)
1920 – Paul Scott, English author, poet, and playwright (d. 1978)
1920 – Patrick Troughton, English actor (d. 1987)
1920 – Usha Mehta, Gandhian and freedom fighter of India (d. 2000)
1921 – Nancy Kelly, American actress (d. 1995)
1921 – Simone Signoret, French actress (d. 1985)
1922 – Eileen Ford, American businesswoman, co-founded Ford Models (d. 2014)
1923 – Bonnie Guitar, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2019)
1923 – Wim van Est, Dutch cyclist (d. 2003)
1924 – Roberts Blossom, American actor (d. 2011)
1924 – Machiko Kyō, Japanese actress (d. 2019)
1925 – Flannery O’Connor, American short story writer and novelist (d. 1964)
1925 – Anthony Quinton, Baron Quinton, English physician and philosopher (d. 2010)
1925 – Kishori Sinha, Indian politician, social activist and advocate (d. 2016)
1926 – Riz Ortolani, Italian composer and conductor (d. 2014)
1926 – László Papp, Hungarian boxer (d. 2003)
1926 – Jaime Sabines, Mexican poet and politician (d. 1999)
1926 – Gene Shalit, American journalist and critic
1927 – P. Shanmugam, Indian politician, 13th Chief Minister of Puducherry (d. 2013)
1928 – Jim Lovell, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
1928 – Gunnar Nielsen, Danish runner and typographer (d. 1985)
1928 – Hans Steinbrenner, German sculptor (d. 2008)
1929 – Cecil Taylor, American pianist and composer (d. 2018)
1930 – David Burge, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2013)
1930 – Carlo Mauri, Italian mountaineer and explorer (d. 1982)
1930 – Rudy Minarcin, American baseball player and coach (d. 2013)
1931 – Humphrey Burton, English radio and television host
1932 – Penelope Gilliatt, English novelist, short story writer, and critic (d. 1993)
1932 – Wes Santee, American runner (d. 2010)
1934 – Johnny Burnette, American singer-songwriter (d. 1964)
1934 – Bernard King, Australian actor and chef (d. 2002)
1994 – Bernard Kangro, Estonian poet and journalist (b. 1910)
1994 – Max Petitpierre, Swiss jurist and politician (b. 1899)
1995 – James Samuel Coleman, American sociologist and academic (b. 1926)
1995 – John Hugenholtz, Dutch engineer (b. 1914)
1996 – John Snagge, English journalist (b. 1904)
1998 – Max Green, Australian lawyer (b. 1952)
1998 – Steven Schiff, American lawyer and politician (b. 1947)
1999 – Cal Ripken, Sr., American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1936)
2000 – Helen Martin, American actress (b. 1909)
2001 – Brian Trubshaw, English cricketer and pilot (b. 1924)
2002 – Kenneth Wolstenholme, English journalist and sportscaster (b. 1920)
2005 – Paul Henning, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1911)
2006 – Bob Carlos Clarke, Irish photographer (b. 1950)
2006 – Rocío Dúrcal, Spanish singer and actress (b. 1944)
2006 – Richard Fleischer, American film director (b. 1916)
2006 – Buck Owens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1929)
2007 – Andranik Margaryan, Armenian engineer and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Armenia (b. 1951)
2008 – Ben Carnevale, American basketball player and coach (b. 1915)
2008 – Thierry Gilardi, French journalist and sportscaster (b. 1958)
2008 – Abby Mann, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1927)
2008 – Herb Peterson, American businessman, created the McMuffin (b. 1919)
2009 – Johnny Blanchard, American baseball player (b. 1933)
2009 – Kosuke Koyama, Japanese-American theologian and academic (b. 1929)
2009 – Dan Seals, American musician (b. 1948)
2009 – Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, Turkish politician and member of the Parliament of Turkey (b. 1954)
2012 – Priscilla Buckley, American journalist and author (b. 1921)
2012 – Hal E. Chester, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1921)
2012 – John Crosfield, English businessman, founded Crosfield Electronics (b. 1915)
2012 – Edd Gould, English animator and voice actor, founded Eddsworld (b. 1988)
2012 – Antonio Tabucchi, Italian author and academic (b. 1943)
2013 – Léonce Bernard, Canadian politician, 26th Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island (b. 1943)
2013 – Ben Goldfaden, American basketball player and educator (b. 1913)
2013 – Anthony Lewis, American journalist and academic (b. 1927)
2013 – Jean Pickering, English runner and long jumper (b. 1929)
2013 – Jean-Marc Roberts, French author and screenwriter (b. 1954)
2013 – John F. Wiley, American lieutenant, football player, and coach (b. 1920)
2014 – Lorna Arnold, English historian and author (b. 1915)
2014 – Hank Lauricella, American football player and politician (b. 1930)
2014 – Jon Lord, Canadian businessman and politician (b. 1956)
2014 – Sonny Ruberto, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1946)
2014 – Jonathan Schell, American journalist and author (b. 1943)
2014 – Ralph Wilson, American businessman, founded the Buffalo Bills (b. 1918)
2015 – George Fischbeck, American journalist and educator (b. 1922)
2016 – Shannon Bolin, American actress and singer (b. 1917)
2017 – Cuthbert Sebastian, St. Kitts and Nevis politician (b. 1921)
2018 – Zell Miller, American author and politician (b. 1932)
2019 – Scott Walker, American-born British singer-songwriter (b. 1943)[9]
Holidays and observances on March 25
Anniversary of the Arengo and the Feast of the Militants (San Marino)
Christian feast days:
Ælfwold II of Sherborne
Barontius and Desiderius
Blessed Marie-Alphonsine Danil Ghattas
Omelyan Kovch (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
Dismas, the “Good Thief”
Humbert of Maroilles
Quirinus of Tegernsee
March 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Cultural Workers Day (Russia)
Earliest day on which Seward’s Day can fall, while March 31 is the latest; celebrated on the last Monday in March. (Alaska)
Empress Menen’s Birthday (Rastafari)
EU Talent Day (European Union)
Feast of the Annunciation (Christianity), and its related observances (if March 25 falls in Holy Week or Easter Week the feast is moved to the Monday after the 2nd Sunday of Easter):
Historic start of the new year (Lady Day) in England, Wales, Ireland, and the future United States until the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in 1752. (The year 1751 began on 25 March; the year 1752 began on 1 January.) It is one of the four Quarter days in Ireland and England.
International Day of the Unborn Child (international)
Mother’s Day (Slovenia)
Vårfrudagen or Våffeldagen, “Waffle Day” (Sweden, Norway & Denmark)
Freedom Day (Belarus)
International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade (international)
International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members (United Nations General Assembly)
Maryland Day (Maryland, United States)
Medal of Honor Day (United States)
Independence Day, celebrates the start of Greek War of Independence from the Ottoman Empire, in 1821. (Greece)
705 – Empress Wu Zetian abdicates the throne, restoring the Tang dynasty.
1316 – The Battle of Picotin, between Ferdinand of Majorca and the forces of Matilda of Hainaut, ends in victory for Ferdinand.
1371 – Robert II becomes King of Scotland, beginning the Stuart dynasty.
1495 – King Charles VIII of France enters Naples to claim the city’s throne.
1632 – Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, the dedicatee, receives the first printed copy of Galileo’s Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems .
1651 – St. Peter’s Flood: A storm surge floods the Frisian coast, drowning 15,000 people.
1744 – War of the Austrian Succession: The Battle of Toulon causes several Royal Navy captains to be court-martialed, and the Articles of War to be amended.
1797 – The last Invasion of Britain begins near Fishguard, Wales.
1819 – By the Adams–Onís Treaty, Spain sells Florida to the United States for five million U.S. dollars.
1821 – Greek War of Independence: Alexander Ypsilantis crosses the Prut river at Sculeni into the Danubian Principalities.
1847 – Mexican–American War: The Battle of Buena Vista: Five thousand American troops defeat 15,000 Mexican troops.
1848 – The French Revolution of 1848, which would lead to the establishment of the French Second Republic, begins.
1853 – Washington University in St. Louis is founded as Eliot Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri.
1855 – The Pennsylvania State University is founded in State College, Pennsylvania (as the Farmers’ High School of Pennsylvania).
1856 – The United States Republican Party opens its first national convention in Pittsburgh.
1862 – Jefferson Davis is officially inaugurated for a six-year term as the President of the Confederate States of America in Richmond, Virginia. He was previously inaugurated as a provisional president on February 18, 1861.
1872 – The Prohibition Party holds its first national convention in Columbus, Ohio, nominating James Black as its presidential nominee.
1878 – In Utica, New York, Frank Woolworth opens the first of many of five-and-dime Woolworth stores.
1889 – President Grover Cleveland signs a bill admitting North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Washington as U.S. states.
1899 – Filipino forces led by General Antonio Luna launch counterattacks for the first time against the American forces during the Philippine–American War. The Filipinos fail to regain Manila from the Americans.
1904 – The United Kingdom sells a meteorological station on the South Orkney Islands to Argentina; the islands are subsequently claimed by the United Kingdom in 1908.
1909 – The sixteen battleships of the Great White Fleet, led by USS Connecticut, return to the United States after a voyage around the world.
1915 – World War I: The Imperial German Navy institutes unrestricted submarine warfare.
1921 – After Russian forces under Baron Roman von Ungern-Sternberg drive the Chinese out, the Bogd Khan is reinstalled as the emperor of Mongolia.
1942 – World War II: President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders General Douglas MacArthur out of the Philippines as the Japanese victory becomes inevitable.
1943 – World War II: Members of the White Rose resistance, Sophie Scholl, Hans Scholl, and Christoph Probst are executed in Nazi Germany.
1944 – World War II: American aircraft mistakenly bomb the Dutch towns of Nijmegen, Arnhem, Enschede and Deventer, resulting in 800 dead in Nijmegen alone.
1944 – World War II: The Soviet Red Army recaptures Krivoi Rog.
1946 – The “Long Telegram”, proposing how the United States should deal with the Soviet Union, arrives from the US embassy in Moscow.
1957 – Ngô Đình Diệm of South Vietnam survives a communist shooting assassination attempt in Buôn Ma Thuột.
1958 – Egypt and Syria join to form the United Arab Republic.
1959 – Lee Petty wins the first Daytona 500.
1972 – The Official Irish Republican Army detonates a car bomb at Aldershot barracks, killing seven and injuring nineteen others.
1973 – Cold War: Following President Richard Nixon’s visit to the People’s Republic of China, the two countries agree to establish liaison offices.
1974 – The Organisation of the Islamic Conference summit begins in Lahore, Pakistan. Thirty-seven countries attend and twenty-two heads of state and government participate. It also recognizes Bangladesh.
1974 – Samuel Byck attempts to hijack an aircraft at Baltimore/Washington International Airport with the intention of crashing it into the White House to assassinate Richard Nixon, but is killed by police.
1980 – Miracle on Ice: In Lake Placid, New York, the United States hockey team defeats the Soviet Union hockey team 4–3.
1983 – The notorious Broadway flop Moose Murders opens and closes on the same night at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre.
1984 – President of Bangladesh, H M Ershad upgraded South Sylhet’s sub-division status to a district and renamed it back to Moulvibazar.
1986 – Start of the People Power Revolution in the Philippines.
1994 – Aldrich Ames and his wife are charged by the United States Department of Justice with spying for the Soviet Union.
1995 – The Corona reconnaissance satellite program, in existence from 1959 to 1972, is declassified.
1997 – In Roslin, Midlothian, British scientists announce that an adult sheep named Dolly has been successfully cloned.
2002 – Angolan political and rebel leader Jonas Savimbi is killed in a military ambush.
2005 – The 6.4 Mw Zarand earthquake shakes the Kerman Province of Iran with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), leaving 612 people dead and 1,411 injured.
2006 – At least six men stage Britain’s biggest robbery, stealing £53m (about $92.5 million or €78 million) from a Securitas depot in Tonbridge, Kent.
2011 – New Zealand’s second deadliest earthquake strikes Christchurch, killing 185 people.
2011 – Bahraini uprising: Tens of thousands of people march in protest against the deaths of seven victims killed by police and army forces during previous protests.
2012 – A train crash in Buenos Aires, Argentina, kills 51 people and injures 700 others.
2014 – President Viktor Yanukovych of Ukraine is impeached by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine by a vote of 328–0, fulfilling a major goal of the Euromaidan rebellion.
2015 – A ferry carrying 100 passengers capsizes in the Padma River, killing 70 people.
2018 – A man throws a grenade at the U.S embassy in Podgorica, Montenegro. He dies at the scene from a second explosion, with no one else hurt.
Births on February 22
1028 – Al-Juwayni, Persian jurist and theologian (died 1085)
1040 – Rashi, French rabbi and author (d. 1105)
1302 – Gegeen Khan, Emperor Yingzong of Yuan (d. 1323)
1403 – Charles VII of France (d. 1461)
1440 – Ladislaus the Posthumous, Hungarian king (d. 1457)
1500 – Rodolfo Pio da Carpi, Italian cardinal (d. 1564)
1514 – Tahmasp I, Iranian shah (d. 1576)
1520 – Moses Isserles, Polish rabbi (d. 1572)
1550 – Charles de Ligne, 2nd Prince of Arenberg (d. 1616)
1592 – Nicholas Ferrar, English scholar (d. 1637)
1631 – Peder Syv, Danish historian (d. 1702)
1649 – Bon Boullogne, French painter (d. 1717)
1715 – Charles-Nicolas Cochin, French artist (d. 1790)
1732 – George Washington, American general and politician, 1st President of the United States (d. 1799)
1749 – Johann Nikolaus Forkel, German musicologist and theorist (d. 1818)
1778 – Rembrandt Peale, American painter and curator (d. 1860)
1788 – Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher and author (d. 1860)
1796 – Alexis Bachelot, French priest and missionary (d. 1837)
1796 – Adolphe Quetelet, Belgian mathematician, astronomer, and sociologist (d. 1874)
1805 – Sarah Fuller Flower Adams, English poet and hymnwriter (d. 1848)
1806 – Józef Kremer, Polish historian and philosopher (d. 1875)
1817 – Carl Wilhelm Borchardt, German mathematician and academic (d. 1880)
1819 – James Russell Lowell, American poet and critic (d. 1891)
1824 – Pierre Janssen, French astronomer and mathematician (d. 1907)
1825 – Jean-Baptiste Salpointe, French-American archbishop (d. 1898)
1836 – Mahesh Chandra Nyayratna Bhattacharyya, Indian scholar and academic (d. 1906)
1840 – August Bebel, German theorist and politician (d. 1913)
1849 – Nikolay Yakovlevich Sonin, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1915)
1857 – Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, English general, co-founded The Scout Association (d. 1941)
1857 – Heinrich Hertz, German physicist, philosopher, and academic (d. 1894)
1860 – Mary W. Bacheler, American physician and Baptist medical missionary (d. 1939)
1863 – Charles McLean Andrews, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1943)
1864 – Jules Renard, French author and playwright (d. 1910)
1876 – Zitkala-Sa, American author and activist (d. 1938)
1874 – Bill Klem, American baseball player and umpire (d. 1951)
1879 – Johannes Nicolaus Brønsted, Danish chemist and academic (d. 1947)
1880 – Eric Lemming, Swedish athlete (d. 1930)
1881 – Joseph B. Ely, American lawyer and politician, 52nd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1956)
1881 – Albin Prepeluh, Slovenian journalist and politician (d. 1937)
1882 – Eric Gill, English sculptor and illustrator (d. 1940)
1883 – Marguerite Clark, American actress (d. 1940)
1886 – Hugo Ball, German author and poet (d. 1927)
1887 – Savielly Tartakower, Polish journalist, author, and chess player (d. 1956)
1887 – Pat Sullivan, Australian-American animator and producer (d. 1933)
1888 – Owen Brewster, American captain and politician, 54th Governor of Maine (d. 1961)
1889 – Olave Baden-Powell, English scout leader, founded the Girl Guides (d. 1977)
1889 – R. G. Collingwood, English historian and philosopher (d. 1943)
1891 – Vlas Chubar, Russian economist and politician (d. 1939)
1892 – Edna St. Vincent Millay, American poet and playwright (d. 1950)
1895 – Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre, Peruvian politician (d. 1979)
1897 – Karol Świerczewski, Polish general (d. 1947)
1899 – George O’Hara, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1966)
1900 – Luis Buñuel, Spanish-Mexican director and producer (d. 1983)
1903 – Morley Callaghan, Canadian author and playwright (d. 1990)
1903 – Frank P. Ramsey, English economist, mathematician, and philosopher (d. 1930)
1906 – Constance Stokes, Australian painter (d. 1991)
1907 – Sheldon Leonard, American actor, director, and producer (d. 1997)
1907 – Robert Young, American actor (d. 1998)
1908 – Rómulo Betancourt, Venezuelan politician, 56th President of Venezuela (d. 1981)
1908 – John Mills, English soldier and actor (d. 2005)
1910 – George Hunt, English international footballer, forward (d. 1996)
1914 – Renato Dulbecco, Italian-American virologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2012)
1915 – Gus Lesnevich, American boxer (d. 1964)
1917 – Reed Crandall, American illustrator (d. 1982)
1918 – Sid Abel, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 2000)
1918 – Don Pardo, American radio and television announcer (d. 2014)
1918 – Robert Wadlow, American man, the tallest person in recorded history (d. 1940)
1921 – Jean-Bédel Bokassa, Central African general and politician, 2nd President of the Central African Republic (d. 1996)
1921 – Giulietta Masina, Italian actress (d. 1994)
1922 – Marshall Teague, American race car driver (d. 1959)
1922 – Joe Wilder, American trumpet player, composer, and bandleader (d. 2014)
1923 – Bleddyn Williams, Welsh rugby player and sportscaster (d. 2009)
1923 – François Cavanna, French author and editor (d. 2014)
1925 – Edward Gorey, American illustrator and poet (d. 2000)
1925 – Gerald Stern, American poet and academic
1926 – Kenneth Williams, English actor and screenwriter (d. 1988)
1927 – Florencio Campomanes, Filipino political scientist and chess player (d. 2010)
1927 – Guy Mitchell, American singer (d. 1999)
1928 – Clarence 13X, American religious leader, founded the Nation of Gods and Earths (d. 1969)
1928 – Texas Johnny Brown, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
1928 – Paul Dooley, American actor
1928 – Bruce Forsyth, English singer and television host (d. 2017)
1929 – James Hong, American actor and director
1929 – Rebecca Schull, American stage, film, and television actress
1930 – Marni Nixon, American soprano and actress (d. 2016)
1932 – Ted Kennedy, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (d. 2009)
1932 – Zenaida Manfugás, Cuban-born American-naturalized pianist (d. 2012)
1933 – Katharine, Duchess of Kent
1933 – Sheila Hancock, English actress and author
1933 – Ernie K-Doe, American R&B singer (d. 2001)
1933 – Bobby Smith, English international footballer, centre forward (d. 2010)
1934 – Sparky Anderson, American baseball player and manager (d. 2010)
1936 – J. Michael Bishop, American microbiologist and immunologist, Nobel Prize laureate
1937 – Tommy Aaron, American golfer
1937 – Joanna Russ, American author and activist (d. 2011)
1938 – Steve Barber, American baseball player (d. 2007)
1938 – Tony Macedo, Gibraltarian born English footballer, goalkeeper
1938 – Ishmael Reed, American poet, novelist, essayist
1940 – Judy Cornwell, English actress
1940 – Chet Walker, American basketball player
1941 – Hipólito Mejía, Dominican politician, 52nd President of the Dominican Republic
1942 – Christine Keeler, English model and dancer (d. 2017)
1943 – Terry Eagleton, English philosopher and critic
1943 – Horst Köhler, Polish-German economist and politician, 9th President of Germany
1943 – Dick Van Arsdale, American basketball player
1943 – Tom Van Arsdale, American basketball player
1943 – Otoya Yamaguchi, Japanese assassin of Inejiro Asanuma (d. 1960)
1944 – Jonathan Demme, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2017)
1944 – Mick Green, English rock & roll guitarist (d. 2010)
1944 – Robert Kardashian, American lawyer and businessman (d. 2003)
1944 – Christopher Meyer, English diplomat, British Ambassador to the United States
1944 – Tom Okker, Dutch tennis player and painter
1945 – Oliver, American pop singer (d. 2000)
1946 – Kresten Bjerre, Danish footballer and manager (d. 2014)
1947 – Pirjo Honkasalo, Finnish director, cinematographer, and screenwriter
1947 – Harvey Mason, American drummer
1947 – John Radford, English footballer and manager
1947 – Frank Van Dun, Belgian philosopher and theorist
1949 – John Duncan, Scottish footballer, forward and manager
1949 – Niki Lauda, Austrian racing driver (d. 2019)
1949 – Olga Morozova, Russian tennis player and coach
1950 – Julius Erving, American basketball player and sportscaster
1950 – Lenny Kuhr, Dutch singer-songwriter
1950 – Miou-Miou, French actress
1950 – Genesis P-Orridge, English singer-songwriter (d. 2020)
1950 – Julie Walters, English actress and author
1951 – Ellen Greene, American singer and actress
1952 – Bill Frist, American physician and politician
1952 – Joaquim Pina Moura, Portuguese Minister of Economy and Treasury and MP (d. 2020)
1953 – Nigel Planer, English actor and screenwriter
1955 – David Axelrod, American journalist and political adviser
1955 – Tim Young, Canadian ice hockey player
1957 – Willie Smits, Dutch microbiologist and engineer
1958 – Dave Spitz, American bass player and songwriter
1959 – Jiří Čunek, Czech politician
1959 – Kyle MacLachlan, American actor
1959 – Bronwyn Oliver, Australian sculptor (d. 2006)
1960 – Thomas Galbraith, 2nd Baron Strathclyde, Scottish politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
1961 – Akira Takasaki, Japanese guitarist, songwriter, and producer
1962 – Steve Irwin, Australian zoologist and television host (d. 2006)
1963 – Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Transport
1963 – Devon Malcolm, Jamaican-English cricketer
1963 – Vijay Singh, Fijian-American golfer
1964 – Ed Boon, American video game designer, co-created Mortal Kombat
1964 – Diane Charlemagne, English singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
1964 – Andy Gray, English footballer, midfielder and manager
1965 – Chris Dudley, American basketball player and politician
1965 – Kieren Fallon, Irish jockey
1965 – Pat LaFontaine, American ice hockey player
1966 – Rachel Dratch, American actress and comedian
1966 – Thorsten Kaye, German-English actor
1967 – Psicosis II, Mexican wrestler
1968 – Shawn Graham, Canadian politician, 31st Premier of New Brunswick
1968 – Bradley Nowell, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1996)
1968 – Jeri Ryan, American model and actress
1968 – Jayson Williams, American basketball player and sportscaster
1969 – Thomas Jane, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1969 – Brian Laudrup, Danish footballer and sportscaster
1969 – Marc Wilmots, Belgian footballer and manager
1971 – Super Caló, Mexican wrestler
1971 – Lea Salonga, Filipino actress and singer
1972 – Michael Chang, American tennis player and coach
1972 – Claudia Pechstein, German speed skater
1973 – Philippe Gaumont, French cyclist (d. 2013)
1973 – Juninho Paulista, Brazilian footballer
1973 – Scott Phillips, American drummer and producer
1974 – James Blunt, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1974 – Chris Moyles, English radio and television host
1975 – Drew Barrymore, American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
1977 – Timo Rose, German actor, director, and producer
1977 – Hakan Yakin, Swiss footballer
1978 – Jenny Frost, English singer and dancer
1979 – Brett Emerton, Australian footballer
1979 – Lee Na-young, South Korean actress
1980 – Shamari Fears, American singer-songwriter and actress
1980 – Kang Sung-hoon, South Korean singer
1980 – Jeanette Biedermann, German singer-songwriter and actress
1983 – Shaun Tait, Australian cricketer
1984 – Tommy Bowe, Irish rugby player
1984 – Branislav Ivanović, Serbian footballer
1985 – Hameur Bouazza, Algerian international footballer, winger
1985 – Georgios Printezis, Greek basketball player
1986 – Rajon Rondo, American basketball player
1987 – Han Hyo-joo, South Korean actress and model
1987 – Sergio Romero, Argentinian footballer
1988 – Jonathan Borlée, Belgian sprinter
1988 – Efraín Juárez, Mexican footballer
1988 – Sebastian Tyrała, Polish-German footballer
1989 – Franco Vázquez, Argentinian footballer
1990 – Luca Profeta, Italian footballer
1992 – Alexander Merkel, Kazakhstani-German footballer
1999 – Harry Brook, English cricketer
Deaths on February 22
556 – Maximianus, bishop of Ravenna (b. 499)
606 – Sabinian, pope of the Catholic Church
793 – Sicga, Anglo-Saxon nobleman and regicide
845 – Wang, Chinese empress dowager
954 – Guo Wei, Chinese emperor (b. 904)
965 – Otto, duke of Burgundy (b. 944)
970 – García I, king of Pamplona
978 – Lambert, count of Chalon (b. 930)
1071 – Arnulf III, count of Flanders
1072 – Peter Damian, Italian cardinal
1079 – John of Fécamp, Italian Benedictine abbot
1111 – Roger Borsa, king of Sicily (b. 1078)
1297 – Margaret of Cortona, Italian penitent (b. 1247)
1371 – David II, king of Scotland (b. 1324)
1452 – William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas (b. 1425)
1500 – Gerhard VI, German nobleman (b. 1430)
1511 – Henry, duke of Cornwall (b. 1511)
1512 – Amerigo Vespucci, Italian cartographer and explorer (b. 1454)
1627 – Olivier van Noort, Dutch explorer (b. 1558)
1674 – Jean Chapelain, French poet and critic (b. 1595)
1680 – La Voisin, French occultist (b. 1640)
1690 – Charles Le Brun, French painter and theorist (b. 1619)
1731 – Frederik Ruysch, Dutch physician and anatomist (b. 1638)
1732 – Francis Atterbury, English bishop (b. 1663)
1799 – Heshen, Chinese politician (b. 1750)
1816 – Adam Ferguson, Scottish historian and philosopher (b. 1723)
1875 – Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, French painter and illustrator (b. 1796)
1875 – Charles Lyell, Scottish-English geologist and lawyer (b. 1797)
1888 – Anna Kingsford, English physician and activist (b. 1846)
1890 – John Jacob Astor III, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1822)
1890 – Carl Bloch, Danish painter and academic (b. 1834)
1897 – Charles Blondin, French tightrope walker and acrobat (b. 1824)
1898 – Heungseon Daewongun, Korean king (b. 1820)
1903 – Hugo Wolf, Austrian composer (b. 1860)
1904 – Leslie Stephen, English historian, author, and critic (b. 1832)
1913 – Ferdinand de Saussure, Swiss linguist and author (b. 1857)
1913 – Francisco I. Madero, Mexican president and author (b. 1873)
1923 – Théophile Delcassé, French politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1852)
1939 – Antonio Machado, Spanish-French poet and author (b. 1875)
1942 – Stefan Zweig, Austrian journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1881)
1943 – Christoph Probst, German activist (b. 1919)
1943 – Hans Scholl, German activist (b. 1918)
1943 – Sophie Scholl, German activist (b. 1921)
1944 – Kasturba Gandhi, Indian activist (b. 1869)
1945 – Osip Brik, Russian avant garde writer and literary critic (b. 1888)
1958 – Abul Kalam Azad, Indian scholar and politician, Indian Minister of Education (b. 1888)
1960 – Paul-Émile Borduas, Canadian-French painter and critic (b. 1905)
1961 – Nick LaRocca, American trumpet player and composer (b. 1889)
1965 – Felix Frankfurter, Austrian-American lawyer and jurist (b. 1882)
1971 – Frédéric Mariotti, French actor (b. 1883)
1973 – Jean-Jacques Bertrand, Canadian lawyer and politician, 21st Premier of Quebec (b. 1916)
1973 – Elizabeth Bowen, Anglo-Irish author (b. 1899)
1973 – Katina Paxinou, Greek actress (b. 1900)
1973 – Winthrop Rockefeller, American colonel and politician, 37th Governor of Arkansas (b. 1912)
1976 – Angela Baddeley, English actress (b. 1904)
1976 – Florence Ballard, American singer (b. 1943)
1980 – Oskar Kokoschka, Austrian painter, poet and playwright (b. 1886)
1982 – Josh Malihabadi, Indian-Pakistani poet and author (b. 1898)
1983 – Adrian Boult, English conductor (b. 1889)
1983 – Romain Maes, Belgian cyclist (b. 1913)
1985 – Salvador Espriu, Spanish author, poet, and playwright (b. 1913)
474 – Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
1003 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Poland.
1555 – Bishop of Gloucester John Hooper is burned at the stake.
1621 – Gregory XV becomes Pope, the last Pope elected by acclamation.
1654 – The Capture of Fort Rocher takes place during the Anglo-Spanish War.
1775 – American Revolutionary War: The British Parliament declares Massachusetts in rebellion.
1778 – Rhode Island becomes the fourth US state to ratify the Articles of Confederation.
1788 – The Habsburg Empire joins the Russo-Turkish War in the Russian camp.
1825 – After no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes in the US presidential election of 1824, the United States House of Representatives elects John Quincy Adams as President of the United States.
1849 – The new Roman Republic is declared.
1861 – American Civil War: Jefferson Davis is elected the Provisional President of the Confederate States of America by the Confederate convention at Montgomery, Alabama.
1870 – US president Ulysses S. Grant signs a joint resolution of Congress establishing the U.S. Weather Bureau.
1889 – US president Grover Cleveland signs a bill elevating the United States Department of Agriculture to a Cabinet-level agency.
1895 – William G. Morgan creates a game called Mintonette, which soon comes to be referred to as volleyball.
1900 – The Davis Cup competition is established.
1904 – Russo-Japanese War: Battle of Port Arthur concludes.
1907 – The Mud March is the first large procession organised by the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS).
1913 – A group of meteors is visible across much of the eastern seaboard of North and South America, leading astronomers to conclude the source had been a small, short-lived natural satellite of the Earth.
1920 – Under the terms of the Svalbard Treaty, international diplomacy recognizes Norwegian sovereignty over Arctic archipelago Svalbard, and designates it as demilitarized.
1922 – Brazil becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
1934 – The Balkan Entente is formed.
1941 – World War II: The Cathedral of San Lorenzo in Genoa, Italy, is struck by a bomb which fails to detonate.
1942 – World War II: Top United States military leaders hold their first formal meeting to discuss American military strategy in the war.
1942 – Year-round Daylight saving time (aka War Time) is re-instated in the United States as a wartime measure to help conserve energy resources.
1943 – World War II: Allied authorities declare Guadalcanal secure after Imperial Japan evacuates its remaining forces from the island, ending the Battle of Guadalcanal.
1945 – World War II: Battle of the Atlantic: HMS Venturer sinks U-864 off the coast of Fedje, Norway, in a rare instance of submarine-to-submarine combat.
1945 – World War II: A force of Allied aircraft unsuccessfully attacked a German destroyer in Førdefjorden, Norway.
1950 – Second Red Scare: US Senator Joseph McCarthy accuses the United States Department of State of being filled with Communists.
1951 – Korean War: The two-day Geochang massacre begins as a battalion of the 11th Division of the South Korean Army kills 719 unarmed citizens in Geochang, in the South Gyeongsang district of South Korea
1959 – The R-7 Semyorka, the first intercontinental ballistic missile, becomes operational at Plesetsk, USSR.
1964 – The Beatles make their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, performing before a “record-busting” audience of 73 million viewers across the USA.
1965 – The United States Marine Corps sends a MIM-23 Hawk missile battalion to South Vietnam, the first American troops in-country without an official advisory or training mission.
1971 – The 6.5–6.7 Mw Sylmar earthquake hits the Greater Los Angeles Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), killing 64 and injuring 2,000.
1971 – Satchel Paige becomes the first Negro League player to be voted into the USA’s Baseball Hall of Fame.
1971 – Apollo program: Apollo 14 returns to Earth after the third manned Moon landing.
1975 – The Soyuz 17 Soviet spacecraft returns to Earth.
1976 – Aeroflot Flight 3739, a Tupolev Tu-104, crashes during takeoff from Irkutsk Airport, killing 24.
1978 – The Budd Company unveils its first SPV-2000 self-propelled railcar in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
1986 – Halley’s Comet last appeared in the inner Solar System.
1991 – Voters in Lithuania vote for independence.
1996 – The Provisional Irish Republican Army declares the end to its 18-month ceasefire and explodes a large bomb in London’s Canary Wharf, killing two people.
1996 – Copernicium is discovered, by Sigurd Hofmann, Victor Ninov et al.
2016 – Two passenger trains collided in the German town of Bad Aibling in the state of Bavaria. Twelve people died, and 85 others were injured.
2018 – Winter Olympics: Opening ceremony is performed in Pyeongchang County in South Korea.
Births on February 9
1060 – Honorius II, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 1130)
1274 – Louis of Toulouse, French bishop (d. 1297)
1313 – Maria of Portugal, Queen of Castile, Portuguese infanta (d. 1357)
1344 – Meinhard III, count of Tyrol (d. 1363)
1441 – Ali-Shir Nava’i, Turkic poet, linguist, and painter (d. 1501)
1533 – Shimazu Yoshihisa, Japanese daimyō (d. 1611)
1579 – Johannes Meursius, Dutch classical scholar (d. 1639)
1651 – Procopio Cutò, French entrepreneur (d. 1727)
1666 – George Hamilton, 1st Earl of Orkney, Scottish field marshal (d. 1737)
1711 – Luis Vicente de Velasco e Isla, Spanish sailor and commander (d. 1762)
1737 – Thomas Paine, English-American philosopher, author, and activist (d. 1809)
1741 – Henri-Joseph Rigel, German-French composer (d. 1799)
1748 – Sir John Duckworth, 1st Baronet, English admiral and politician, Commodore Governor of Newfoundland (d. 1817)
1763 – Louis I, Grand Duke of Baden (d. 1830)
1769 – George W. Campbell, Scottish-American lawyer and politician, 5th United States Secretary of the Treasury (d. 1848)
1773 – William Henry Harrison, American general and politician, 9th President of the United States (d. 1841)
1775 – Farkas Bolyai, Hungarian mathematician and academic (d. 1856)
1781 – Johann Baptist von Spix, German biologist and explorer (d. 1826)
1783 – Vasily Zhukovsky, Russian poet and translator (d. 1852)
1789 – Franz Xaver Gabelsberger, German engineer, invented Gabelsberger shorthand (d. 1849)
1800 – Hyrum Smith, American religious leader (d. 1844)
1814 – Samuel J. Tilden, American lawyer and politician, 28th Governor of New York (d. 1886)
1815 – Federico de Madrazo, Spanish painter (d.1894)
1834 – Felix Dahn, German lawyer, historian, and author (d. 1912)
1826 – Keʻelikōlani, Hawaiian royal and governor (d. 1883)
1837 – José Burgos, Filipino priest and revolutionary (d. 1872)
1839 – Silas Adams, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (d. 1896)
1846 – Wilhelm Maybach, German engineer and businessman, founded Maybach (d. 1929)
1846 – Whitaker Wright, English businessman and financier (d. 1904)
1847 – Hugh Price Hughes, Welsh-English clergyman and theologian (d. 1902)
1854 – Aletta Jacobs, Dutch physician and suffrage activist (d. 1929)
1856 – Hara Takashi, Japanese politician, 10th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1921)
1859 – Akiyama Yoshifuru, Japanese general (d. 1930)
1863 – Anthony Hope, English author and playwright (d. 1933)
1864 – Miina Härma, Estonian organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1941)
1865 – Mrs. Patrick Campbell, English-French actress (d. 1940)
1865 – Erich von Drygalski, German geographer and geophysicist (d. 1949)
1867 – Natsume Sōseki, Japanese author and poet (d. 1916)
1871 – Howard Taylor Ricketts, American pathologist and physician (d. 1910)
1874 – Amy Lowell, American poet, critic, and educator (d. 1925)
1876 – Arthur Edward Moore, New Zealand-Australian politician, 23rd Premier of Queensland (d. 1963)
1878 – Jack Kirwan, Irish international footballer (d. 1959)
1880 – Lipót Fejér, Hungarian mathematician and academic (d. 1959)
1883 – Jules Berry, French actor and director (d. 1951)
1885 – Alban Berg, Austrian composer and educator (d. 1935)
1885 – Clarence H. Haring, American historian and author (d. 1960)
1889 – Larry Semon, American actor, producer, director and screenwriter (d. 1928)
1891 – Ronald Colman, English-American actor (d. 1958)
1892 – Peggy Wood, American actress (d. 1978)
1893 – Georgios Athanasiadis-Novas, Greek lawyer and politician, 163rd Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1987)
1895 – Hermann Brill, German lawyer and politician, 8th Minister-President of Thuringia (d. 1959)
1896 – Alberto Vargas, Peruvian-American painter and illustrator (d. 1982)
1897 – Charles Kingsford Smith, Australian captain and pilot (d. 1935)
1898 – Jūkichi Yagi, Japanese poet and educator (d. 1927)
1901 – Brian Donlevy, American actor (d. 1972)
1901 – James Murray, American actor (d. 1936)
1905 – David Cecil, 6th Marquess of Exeter, English hurdler and politician (d. 1981)
1906 – André Kostolany, Hungarian-French economist and journalist (d. 1999)
1907 – Trường Chinh, Vietnamese politician, 4th President of Vietnam (d. 1988)
1907 – Harold Scott MacDonald Coxeter, English-Canadian mathematician and academic (d. 2003)
1909 – Heather Angel, English-American actress (d. 1986)
1909 – Carmen Miranda, Portuguese-Brazilian actress, singer, and dancer (d. 1955)
1909 – Dean Rusk, American colonel and politician, 54th United States Secretary of State (d. 1994)
1910 – Jacques Monod, French biochemist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1976)
1911 – William Orlando Darby, American general (d. 1945)
1912 – Futabayama Sadaji, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 35th Yokozuna (d. 1968)
1912 – Ginette Leclerc, French actress (d. 1992)
1914 – Ernest Tubb, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1984)
1916 – Tex Hughson, American baseball player (d. 1993)
1918 – Lloyd Noel Ferguson, African American chemist (d. 2011)
1920 – Fred Allen, New Zealand rugby player and coach (d. 2012)
1922 – Kathryn Grayson, American actress and soprano (d. 2010)
1922 – Jim Laker, English cricketer and sportscaster (d. 1986)
1922 – C. P. Krishnan Nair, Indian businessman, founded The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts (d. 2014)
1922 – Robert E. Ogren, American zoologist (d. 2005)
1923 – Brendan Behan, Irish rebel, poet, and playwright (d. 1964)
1923 – Tonie Nathan, American radio host, producer, and politician (d. 2014)
1925 – John B. Cobb, American philosopher and theologian
1925 – Burkhard Heim, German physicist and academic (d. 2001)
1926 – Garret FitzGerald, Irish lawyer and politician, 7th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 2011)
1927 – Richard A. Long, American historian and author (d. 2013)
1928 – Frank Frazetta, American painter and illustrator (d. 2010)
1928 – Rinus Michels, Dutch footballer and coach (d. 2005)
1928 – Roger Mudd, American journalist
1929 – A. R. Antulay, Indian social worker and politician, 8th Chief Minister of Maharashtra (d. 2014)
1929 – Clement Meadmore, Australian-American sculptor (d. 2005)
1930 – Garner Ted Armstrong, American evangelist and author (d. 2003)
1931 – Thomas Bernhard, Austrian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1989)
1931 – Josef Masopust, Czech footballer and coach (d. 2015)
1931 – Robert Morris, American sculptor and painter (d. 2018)
1932 – Tatsuro Hirooka, Japanese baseball player and manager
1932 – Gerhard Richter, German painter and photographer
1935 – Lionel Fanthorpe, English-Welsh priest, journalist, and author
1936 – Clive Swift, English actor and singer-songwriter (d. 2019)
1937 – Clete Boyer, American baseball player and manager (d. 2007)
1938 – Ron Logan, Disney theatrical producer and professor
1939 – Mahala Andrews, British vertebrae palaeontologist (d. 1997)
1939 – Barry Mann, American pianist, songwriter, and producer
1939 – Janet Suzman, South African-British actress and director
1940 – Brian Bennett, English drummer and songwriter
1940 – J. M. Coetzee, South African-Australian novelist, essayist, and linguist, Nobel Prize laureate
1941 – Kermit Gosnell, American abortionist and serial killer
1941 – Sheila Kuehl, American actress, lawyer, gay rights activist, and politician
1942 – Carole King, American singer-songwriter and pianist
1943 – Barbara Lewis, American soul/R&B singer-songwriter
1943 – Joe Pesci, American actor
1943 – Joseph Stiglitz, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1944 – Derryn Hinch, New Zealand-Australian radio and television host and politician
1944 – Alice Walker, American novelist, short story writer, and poet
1945 – Mia Farrow, American actress, activist, and former fashion model
1945 – Yoshinori Ohsumi, Japanese cell biologist, 2016 Nobel Prize Laureate in Physiology or Medicine
1945 – Carol Wood, American mathematician and academic
1946 – Bob Eastwood, American golfer
1946 – Vince Papale, American football player and sportscaster
1946 – Jim Webb, American captain and politician, 18th United States Secretary of the Navy
1947 – Carla Del Ponte, Swiss lawyer and diplomat
1947 – Joe Ely, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1947 – Major Harris, American R&B singer (d. 2012)
1947 – Alexis Smirnoff, Canadian-American wrestler and actor (d. 2019)
1948 – Guy Standing, English economist and academic
1949 – Bernard Gallacher, Scottish golfer and journalist
1949 – Judith Light, American actress
1950 – Richard F. Colburn, American sergeant and politician
1951 – David Pomeranz, American singer, musician, and composer
1952 – Danny White, American football player and sportscaster
1953 – Ciarán Hinds, Irish actor
1953 – Ezechiele Ramin, Italian missionary, priest, and martyr (d. 1985)
1953 – Gabriel Rotello, American journalist and author, founded OutWeek
1954 – Jo Duffy, American author
1954 – Chris Gardner, American businessman and philanthropist
1954 – Kevin Warwick, English cybernetics scientist
1955 – Jerry Beck, American historian and author
1955 – Jimmy Pursey, English singer-songwriter and producer
1955 – Charles Shaughnessy, English actor
1956 – Mookie Wilson, American baseball player and coach
1957 – Terry McAuliffe, American businessman and politician, 72nd Governor of Virginia
1957 – Gordon Strachan, Scottish footballer and manager
1958 – Sandy Lyle, Scottish golfer
1958 – Chris Nilan, American ice hockey player, coach, and radio host
1960 – Holly Johnson, English singer-songwriter and bass player
1960 – David Simon, American journalist, author, screenwriter, and television producer
1960 – Peggy Whitson, American biochemist and astronaut
1961 – John Kruk, American baseball player and sportscaster
1962 – Anik Bissonnette, Canadian ballerina
1963 – Brian Greene, American physicist
1963 – Peter Rowsthorn, Australian comedian and actor
1963 – Travis Tritt, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1964 – Debrah Miceli, Italian-American wrestler and manager
1964 – Dewi Morris, English rugby player
1964 – Ernesto Valverde, Spanish footballer and manager
1964 – Alejandro Ávila, Mexican telenovela actor
1964 – Ernesto Valverde, Spanish footballer and manager
1965 – Dieter Baumann, German runner
1966 – Harald Eia, Norwegian comedian, actor, and screenwriter
1967 – Todd Pratt, American baseball player and coach
1967 – Dan Shulman, Canadian sportscaster
1967 – Gaston Browne, Antiguan and Barbudan Prime Minister
1968 – Alejandra Guzmán, Mexican singer-songwriter and actress
1968 – Derek Strong, American basketball player and race car driver
1968 – Gloria Trevi, Mexican singer and actress
1969 – Jimmy Smith, American football player
1970 – Glenn McGrath, Australian cricketer and sportscaster
1971 – Matt Gogel, American golfer
1971 – Johan Mjällby, Swedish footballer and manager
1972 – Darren Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager
1973 – Svetlana Boginskaya, Belarusian gymnast
1973 – Colin Egglesfield, American actor
1973 – Makoto Shinkai, Japanese animator, director, and screenwriter
1974 – Jordi Cruyff, Dutch footballer and manager
1974 – Brad Maynard, American football player
1974 – Amber Valletta, American model
1974 – John Wallace, American basketball player and coach
1975 – Kurt Asle Arvesen, Norwegian cyclist and coach
1975 – Clinton Grybas, Australian journalist and sportscaster (d. 2008)
1975 – Vladimir Guerrero, Dominican-American baseball player
1976 – Charlie Day, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
1978 – A. J. Buckley, Irish-Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter
393 – Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his eight-year-old son Honorius co-emperor.
971 – Using crossbows, Song dynasty troops soundly defeat a war elephant corps of the Southern Han at Shao.
1264 – In the conflict between King Henry III of England and his rebellious barons led by Simon de Montfort, King Louis IX of France issues the Mise of Amiens, a one-sided decision in favour of Henry that later leads to the Second Barons’ War.
1368 – In a coronation ceremony, Zhu Yuanzhang ascends the throne of China as the Hongwu Emperor, initiating Ming dynasty rule over China that would last for three centuries.
1546 – Having published nothing for eleven years, François Rabelais publishes the Tiers Livre, his sequel to Gargantua and Pantagruel.
1556 – The deadliest earthquake in history, the Shaanxi earthquake, hits Shaanxi province, China. The death toll may have been as high as 830,000.
1570 – James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, regent for the infant King James VI of Scotland, is assassinated by firearm, the first recorded instance of such.
1571 – The Royal Exchange opens in London.
1579 – The Union of Utrecht forms a Protestant republic in the Netherlands.
1656 – Blaise Pascal publishes the first of his Lettres provinciales.
1719 – The Principality of Liechtenstein is created within the Holy Roman Empire.
1789 – Georgetown College, the first Catholic university in the United States, is founded in Georgetown, Maryland (now a part of Washington, D.C.).
1793 – Second Partition of Poland.
1795 – After an extraordinary charge across the frozen Zuiderzee, the French cavalry captured 14 Dutch ships and 850 guns, in a rare occurrence of a battle between ships and cavalry.
1846 – Slavery in Tunisia is abolished.
1849 – Elizabeth Blackwell is awarded her M.D. by the Geneva Medical College of Geneva, New York, becoming the United States’ first female doctor.
1870 – In Montana, U.S. cavalrymen kill 173 Native Americans, mostly women and children, in what becomes known as the Marias Massacre.
1879 – Anglo-Zulu War: the Battle of Rorke’s Drift ends.
1899 – The Malolos Constitution is inaugurated, establishing the First Philippine Republic. Emilio Aguinaldo is sworn in as its first President.
1900 – Second Boer War: The Battle of Spion Kop between the forces of the South African Republic and the Orange Free State and British forces ends in a British defeat.
1904 – Ålesund Fire: the Norwegian coastal town Ålesund is devastated by fire, leaving 10,000 people homeless and one person dead. Kaiser Wilhelm II funds the rebuilding of the town in Jugendstil style.
1909 – RMS Republic, a passenger ship of the White Star Line, becomes the first ship to use the CQD distress signal after colliding with another ship, the SS Florida, off the Massachusetts coastline, an event that kills six people. The Republic sinks the next day.
1912 – The International Opium Convention is signed at The Hague.
1920 – The Netherlands refuses to surrender the exiled Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany to the Allies.
1937 – The trial of the anti-Soviet Trotskyist center sees seventeen mid-level Communists accused of sympathizing with Leon Trotsky and plotting to overthrow Joseph Stalin’s regime.
1941 – Charles Lindbergh testifies before the U.S. Congress and recommends that the United States negotiate a neutrality pact with Adolf Hitler.
1942 – World War II: The Battle of Rabaul commences Japan’s invasion of Australia’s Territory of New Guinea.
1943 – World War II: Troops of the British Eighth Army capture Tripoli in Libya from the German–Italian Panzer Army.
1945 – World War II: German admiral Karl Dönitz launches Operation Hannibal.
1950 – The Knesset resolves that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.
1957 – American inventor Walter Frederick Morrison sells the rights to his flying disc to the Wham-O toy company, which later renames it the “Frisbee”.
1958 – After a general uprising and rioting in the streets, President Marcos Pérez Jiménez leaves Venezuela.
1960 – The bathyscaphe USS Trieste breaks a depth record by descending to 10,911 metres (35,797 ft) in the Pacific Ocean.
1961 – The Portuguese luxury cruise ship Santa Maria is hijacked by opponents of the Estado Novo regime with the intention of waging war until dictator António de Oliveira Salazar is overthrown.
1963 – The Guinea-Bissau War of Independence officially begins when PAIGC guerrilla fighters attack the Portuguese army stationed in Tite.
1964 – The 24th Amendment to the United States Constitution, prohibiting the use of poll taxes in national elections, is ratified.
1967 – Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Ivory Coast are established.
1967 – Milton Keynes (England) is founded as a new town by Order in Council, with a planning brief to become a city of 250,000 people. Its initial designated area enclosed three existing towns and twenty one villages. The area to be developed was largely farmland, with evidence of continuous settlement dating back to the Bronze Age.
1968 – USS Pueblo (AGER-2) is attacked and seized by naval forces of North Korea.
1973 – United States President Richard Nixon announces that a peace accord has been reached in Vietnam.
1986 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducts its first members: Little Richard, Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley.
1997 – Madeleine Albright becomes the first woman to serve as United States Secretary of State.
1998 – Netscape announced Mozilla, with the intention to release Communicator code as open source.
2001 – Five people attempt to set themselves on fire in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, an act that many people later claim is staged by the Communist Party of China to frame Falun Gong and thus escalate their persecution.
2002 – U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl is kidnapped in Karachi, Pakistan and subsequently murdered.
2003 – A very weak signal from Pioneer 10 is detected for the last time, but no usable data can be extracted.
2018 – A 7.9 Mw earthquake occurs in the Gulf of Alaska. It is tied as the sixth-largest earthquake ever recorded in the United States, but there are no reports of significant damage or fatalities.
2018 – A double car bombing in Benghazi, Libya, kills at least 33 people and wounds “dozens” of others. The victims include both military personnel and civilians, according to local officials.
Births on January 23
599 – Tai Zong, emperor of the Tang Dynasty (d. 649)
1350 – Vincent Ferrer, Spanish missionary and saint (d. 1419)
1378 – Louis III, Elector Palatine (d. 1436)
1514 – Hai Rui, Chinese politician (d. 1587)
1585 – Mary Ward, English Catholic Religious Sister (d. 1645)
1622 – Abraham Diepraam, Dutch painter (d. 1670)
1719 – John Landen, English mathematician and theorist (d. 1790)
1737 – John Hancock, American general and politician, 1st Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1793)
1745 – William Jessop, English engineer, built the Cromford Canal (d. 1814)
1752 – Muzio Clementi, Italian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1832)
1780 – Georgios Karaiskakis, Greek general (d. 1827)
1783 – Stendhal, French novelist (d. 1842)
1786 – Auguste de Montferrand, French-Russian architect, designed Saint Isaac’s Cathedral and Alexander Column (d. 1858)
1799 – Alois Negrelli, Tyrolean engineer and railroad pioneer active in the Austrian Empire (d. 1858)
1809 – Surendra Sai, Indian activist (d. 1884)
1813 – Camilla Collett, Norwegian novelist and activist (d. 1895)
1828 – Saigō Takamori, Japanese samurai (d. 1877)
1832 – Édouard Manet, French painter (d. 1883)
1833 – Muthu Coomaraswamy, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (d. 1879)
1838 – Marianne Cope, German-American nun and saint (d. 1918)
1840 – Ernst Abbe, German physicist and engineer (d. 1905)
1846 – Nikolay Umov, Russian physicist and mathematician (d. 1915)
1855 – John Browning, American weapons designer, founded the Browning Arms Company (d. 1926)
1857 – Andrija Mohorovičić, Croatian meteorologist and seismologist (d. 1936)
1862 – David Hilbert, Russian-German mathematician and academic (d. 1943)
1862 – Frank Shuman, American inventor and engineer (d. 1918)
1872 – Paul Langevin, French physicist and academic (d. 1946)
1872 – Jože Plečnik, Slovenian architect, designed Plečnik Parliament (d. 1957)
1876 – Otto Diels, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1954)
1878 – Rutland Boughton, English composer (d. 1960)
1880 – Antonio Díaz Soto y Gama, Mexican politician (d. 1967)
1889 – Claribel Kendall, American mathematician (d.1965)
1894 – Jyotirmoyee Devi, Indian author (d. 1988)
1896 – Alf Blair, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 1944)
1896 – Alf Hall, English-South African cricketer (d. 1964)
1897 – Subhas Chandra Bose, Indian activist and politician (d. 1945)
1897 – Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, Austrian architect (d. 2000)
1897 – Ieva Simonaitytė, Lithuanian author (d. 1978)
1897 – William Stephenson, Canadian captain and spy (d. 1989)
1898 – Georg Kulenkampff, German violinist (d. 1948)
1898 – Randolph Scott, American actor (d. 1987)
1898 – Freda Utley, English scholar and author (d. 1978)
1899 – Glen Kidston, English race car driver and pilot (d. 1931)
1900 – William Ifor Jones, Welsh organist and conductor (d. 1988)
1901 – Arthur Wirtz, American businessman (d. 1983)
1903 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, Colombian lawyer and politician, 16th Minister of National Education of Colombia (d. 1948)
1905 – Erich Borchmeyer, German sprinter (d. 2000)
1907 – Dan Duryea, American actor and singer (d. 1968)
1907 – Hideki Yukawa, Japanese physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1981)
1910 – Django Reinhardt, Belgian guitarist and composer (d. 1953)
1912 – Boris Pokrovsky, Russian director and manager (d. 2009)
1913 – Jean-Michel Atlan, Algerian-French painter (d. 1960)
1913 – Wally Parks, American businessman, founded the National Hot Rod Association (d. 2007)
1915 – Herma Bauma, Austrian javelin thrower and handball player (d. 2003)
1915 – W. Arthur Lewis, Saint Lucian-Barbadian economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1991)
1915 – Potter Stewart, American lawyer and judge (d. 1985)
1916 – David Douglas Duncan, American photographer and journalist (d. 2018)
1916 – Airey Neave, English colonel, lawyer, and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (d. 1979)
1918 – Gertrude B. Elion, American biochemist and pharmacologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1999)
1918 – Florence Rush, American social worker and theorist (d. 2008)
1919 – Frances Bay, Canadian-American actress (d. 2011)
1919 – Hans Hass, Austrian biologist and diver (d. 2013)
1919 – Ernie Kovacs, American actor and game show host (d. 1962)
1919 – Bob Paisley, English footballer and manager (d. 1996)
1920 – Gottfried Böhm, German architect
1920 – Henry Eriksson, Swedish runner (d. 2000)
1920 – Walter Frederick Morrison, American businessman, invented the Frisbee (d. 2010)
1922 – Leon Golub, American painter and academic (d. 2004)
1922 – Tom Lewis, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of New South Wales (d. 2016)
1923 – Horace Ashenfelter, American runner (d. 2018)
1923 – Cot Deal, American baseball player and coach (d. 2013)
1923 – Walter M. Miller, Jr., American soldier and author (d. 1996)
1924 – Frank Lautenberg, American soldier, businessman, and politician (d. 2013)
1925 – Marty Paich, American pianist, composer, producer, and conductor (d. 1995)
1926 – Bal Thackeray, Indian journalist, cartoonist, and politician (d. 2012)
1927 – Lars-Eric Lindblad, Swedish-American businessman and explorer (d. 1994)
1927 – Fred Williams, Australian painter (d. 1982)
1928 – Chico Carrasquel, Venezuelan baseball player and manager (d. 2005)
1928 – Jeanne Moreau, French actress (d. 2017)
1929 – Myron Cope, American journalist and sportscaster (d. 2008)
1929 – Phillip Knightley, Australian journalist, author, and critic (d. 2016)
1929 – John Polanyi, German-Canadian chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1930 – Filaret, Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyivan
1930 – Mervyn Rose, Australian tennis player (d. 2017)
1930 – Derek Walcott, Saint Lucian poet and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2017)
1932 – George Allen, English footballer (d. 2016)
1932 – Larri Thomas, American actress and dancer (d. 2013)
1933 – Bill Hayden, Australian politician, 21st Governor General of Australia
1933 – Chita Rivera, American actress, singer, and dancer
1934 – Pierre Bourgault, Canadian journalist and politician (d. 2003)
1935 – Mike Agostini, Trinidadian sprinter (d. 2016)
1935 – Tom Reamy, American author (d. 1977)
1935 – Teresa Żylis-Gara, Polish operatic soprano
1936 – Brian Howe, Australian minister and politician, 8th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
1936 – Jerry Kramer, American football player and sportscaster
1936 – Cécile Ousset, French pianist
1938 – Giant Baba, Japanese wrestler and promoter, founded All Japan Pro Wrestling (d. 1999)
1938 – Georg Baselitz, German painter and sculptor
1939 – Ed Roberts, American disability rights activist (d. 1995)
1940 – Alan Cheuse, American writer and critic (d. 2015)
1940 – Joe Dowell, American pop singer (d. 2016)
1941 – Jock R. Anderson, Australian economist and academic
1941 – João Ubaldo Ribeiro, Brazilian journalist, author, and academic (d. 2014)
1942 – Laurie Mayne, Australian cricketer
1942 – Herman Tjeenk Willink, Dutch judge and politician
1942 – Phil Clarke, New Zealand rugby union player
1943 – Gary Burton, American vibraphone player and composer
1943 – Özhan Canaydın, Turkish basketball player and businessman (d. 2010)
1943 – Gil Gerard, American actor and producer
1944 – Rutger Hauer, Dutch actor, director, and producer (d. 2019)
1945 – Mike Harris, Canadian politician, 22nd Premier of Ontario
1946 – Arnoldo Alemán, Nicaraguan lawyer and politician, President of Nicaragua
1946 – Boris Berezovsky, Russian-English businessman and mathematician (d. 2013)
1946 – Zvonko Bušić, Croatian terrorist, hijacker of TWA Flight 355 (d. 2013)
1946 – Don Whittington, American race car driver
1947 – Tom Carper, American captain and politician, 71st Governor of Delaware
1947 – Megawati Sukarnoputri, Indonesian politician, 5th President of Indonesia
1948 – Anita Pointer, American R&B/soul singer-songwriter
1950 – Richard Dean Anderson, American actor, producer, and composer
1950 – Bill Cunningham, American bass and keyboard player
1950 – Guida Maria, Portuguese actress (d. 2018)
1950 – Suzanne Scotchmer, American economist and academic (d. 2014)
1950 – Luis Alberto Spinetta, Argentinian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and poet (d. 2012)
1951 – Margaret Bailes, American sprinter
1951 – Chesley Sullenberger, American captain and pilot
1952 – Omar Henry, South African cricketer
1953 – John Luther Adams, American composer
1953 – Alister McGrath, Irish priest, historian, and theologian
1953 – Antonio Villaraigosa, American politician, 41st Mayor of Los Angeles
1953 – Robin Zander, American rock singer-songwriter and guitarist
1954 – Trevor Hohns, Australian cricketer
1957 – Caroline, Princess of Hanover
1958 – Sergey Litvinov, Russian hammer thrower (d. 2018)
1959 – Clive Bull, English radio host
1960 – Jean-François Sauvé, Canadian ice hockey player
1960 – Greg Ritchie, Australian cricketer
1961 – Neil Henry, Australian rugby league player and coach
1961 – Yelena Sinchukova, Russian long jumper
1962 – David Arnold, English composer
1962 – Aivar Lillevere, Estonian footballer and coach
1962 – Elvira Lindo, Spanish journalist and author
1964 – Jonatha Brooke, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1964 – Mariska Hargitay, American actress and producer
1964 – Bharrat Jagdeo, Guyanese economist and politician, 7th President of Guyana
1964 – Mario Roberge, Canadian ice hockey player
1965 – Louie Clemente, American drummer
1966 – Damien Hardman, Australian surfer
1966 – Haywoode Workman, American basketball player and referee
1967 – Owen Cunningham, Australian rugby league player
1968 – Taro Hakase, Japanese violinist and composer
1968 – Petr Korda, Czech-Monacan tennis player
1969 – Andrei Kanchelskis, Ukrainian-Russian footballer and manager
1969 – Brendan Shanahan, Canadian ice hockey player and actor
1969 – Susen Tiedtke, German long jumper
1970 – Spyridon Vasdekis, Greek long jumper
1971 – Scott Gibbs, Welsh-South African rugby player and sportscaster
1971 – Kevin Mawae, American football player and coach
1971 – Marc Nelson, American singer-songwriter
1971 – Adam Parore, New Zealand cricketer and mountaineer
1971 – Claire Rankin, Canadian actress
1971 – Lisa Snowdon, English television and radio presenter and fashion model
1972 – Ewen Bremner, Scottish actor
1973 – Tomas Holmström, Swedish ice hockey player
1974 – Glen Chapple, English cricketer
1974 – Rebekah Elmaloglou, Australian actress
1974 – Yosvani Pérez, Cuban baseball player
1974 – Richard T. Slone, English painter
1974 – Tiffani Thiessen, American actress
1975 – Nick Harmer, German musician
1975 – Phil Dawson, American football player
1976 – Brandon Duckworth, American baseball player and scout
1976 – Anne Margrethe Hausken, Norwegian orienteering competitor
1976 – Alex Shaffer, American skier
1979 – Larry Hughes, American basketball player
1979 – Dawn O’Porter, Scottish-English fashion designer and journalist
1979 – Juan Rincón, Venezuelan baseball player and coach
1981 – Rob Friend, Canadian soccer player
1982 – Wily Mo Peña, Dominican baseball player
1982 – Oceana Mahlmann, German singer and songwriter
1982 – Andrew Rock, American sprinter
1983 – Irving Saladino, Panamanian long jumper
1984 – Robbie Farah, Australian rugby league player
1984 – Arjen Robben, Dutch footballer
1985 – Dong Fangzhuo, Chinese footballer
1985 – Doutzen Kroes, Dutch model and actress
1985 – Yevgeny Lukyanenko, Russian pole vaulter
1985 – Aselefech Mergia, Ethiopian runner
1985 – Jeff Samardzija, American baseball player
1985 – San E, South Korean rapper
1986 – Gelete Burka, Ethiopian runner
1986 – Marc Laird, Scottish footballer
1986 – José Enrique, Spanish footballer
1986 – Michael Stevens, American YouTuber and educator
1986 – Steven Taylor, English footballer
1986 – Sandro Viletta, Swiss skier
1987 – Leo Komarov, Finnish ice hockey player
1988 – Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Australian-New Zealand rugby league player
1990 – Şener Özbayraklı, Turkish footballer
1990 – Alex Silva, Canadian wrestler
1990 – Martyn Waghorn, English footballer
1992 – Reina Triendl, Japanese model and actress
1994 – Addison Russell, American baseball player
1995 – Luke Bateman, Australian rugby league player
1995 – Tuimoala Lolohea, New Zealand rugby league player
1998 – XXXTentacion, American rapper (d. 2018)
Deaths on January 23
667 – Ildefonsus, bishop of Toledo
989 – Adalbero, archbishop of Reims
1002 – Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 980)
1199 – Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur, Moroccan caliph (b. 1160)
1252 – Isabella, Queen of Armenia
1297 – Florent of Hainaut, Prince of Achaea (b. c. 1255)
1423 – Margaret of Bavaria, Burgundian regent (b. 1363)
1516 – Ferdinand II of Aragon (b. 1452)
1548 – Bernardo Pisano, Italian priest, scholar, and composer (b. 1490)
1549 – Johannes Honter, Romanian-Hungarian cartographer and theologian (b. 1498)
1567 – Jiajing Emperor of China (b. 1507)
1570 – James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, Scottish politician (b. 1531)
1620 – John Croke, English politician and judge (b. 1553)
1622 – William Baffin, English explorer and navigator (b. 1584)
1650 – Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke (b. 1584)
1744 – Giambattista Vico, Italian historian and philosopher (b. 1668)
1785 – Matthew Stewart, Scottish mathematician and academic (b. 1717)
1789 – Frances Brooke, English author and playwright (b. 1724)
1789 – John Cleland, English author (b. 1709)
1800 – Edward Rutledge, American captain and politician, 39th Governor of South Carolina (b. 1749)
1803 – Arthur Guinness, Irish brewer, founded Guinness (b. 1725)
1805 – Claude Chappe, French engineer (b. 1763)
1806 – William Pitt the Younger, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1759)
1810 – Johann Wilhelm Ritter, German chemist and physicist (b. 1776)
1812 – Robert Craufurd, Scottish general and politician (b. 1764)
1820 – Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (b. 1767)
1833 – Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, English admiral and politician (b. 1757)
1837 – John Field, Irish pianist and composer (b. 1782)
1866 – Thomas Love Peacock, English author and poet (b. 1785)
1875 – Charles Kingsley English priest and author (b. 1819)
1883 – Gustave Doré, French engraver and illustrator (b. 1832)
1893 – Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II, American lawyer and politician, 16th United States Secretary of the Interior (b. 1825)
1893 – José Zorrilla, Spanish poet and playwright (b. 1817)
1921 – Mykola Leontovych, Ukrainian composer and conductor (b. 1877)
1922 – René Beeh, Alsatian painter and draughtsman (b. 1886)
1922 – Arthur Nikisch, Hungarian conductor and academic (b. 1855)
1923 – Max Nordau, Austrian physician and author (b. 1849)
1931 – Anna Pavlova, Russian-English ballerina (b. 1881)
1937 – Orso Mario Corbino, Italian physicist and politician (b. 1876)
1939 – Matthias Sindelar, Austrian footballer and manager (b. 1903)
1943 – Alexander Woollcott, American actor, playwright, and critic (b. 1887)
1944 – Edvard Munch, Norwegian painter and illustrator (b. 1863)
1947 – Pierre Bonnard, French painter (b. 1867)
1956 – Alexander Korda, Hungarian-English director and producer (b. 1893)
1963 – Józef Gosławski, Polish sculptor (b. 1908)
1966 – T. M. Sabaratnam, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (d. 1895)
1971 – Fritz Feigl, Austrian-Brazilian chemist and academic (b. 1871)
1973 – Alexander Onassis, American-Greek businessman (b. 1948)
1973 – Kid Ory, American trombonist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1886)
1976 – Paul Robeson, American actor, singer, and activist (b. 1898)
1977 – Toots Shor, American businessman, founded Toots Shor’s Restaurant (b. 1903)
1978 – Terry Kath, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1946)
1978 – Jack Oakie, American actor (b. 1903)
1980 – Giovanni Michelotti, Italian engineer (b. 1921)
1981 – Samuel Barber, American pianist and composer (b. 1910)
1983 – Fred Bakewell, English cricketer and coach (b. 1908)
1984 – Muin Bseiso, Palestinian-Egyptian poet and critic (b. 1926)
1985 – James Beard, American chef and cookbook author for whom the James Beard Foundation Awards are named (b.1905)
1986 – Joseph Beuys, German sculptor and painter (b. 1921)
1988 – Charles Glen King, American biochemist and academic (b. 1896)
1989 – Salvador Dalí, Spanish painter and sculptor (b. 1904)
1989 – Lars-Erik Torph, Swedish race car driver (b. 1961)
1990 – Allen Collins, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1952)
1991 – Northrop Frye, Canadian author and critic (b. 1912)
1992 – Freddie Bartholomew, American actor (b. 1924)
1993 – Keith Laumer, American soldier, author, and diplomat (b. 1925)
1994 – Nikolai Ogarkov, Russian field marshal (b. 1917)
1994 – Brian Redhead, English journalist and author (b. 1929)
1999 – Joe D’Amato, Italian director and cinematographer (b. 1936)
1999 – Jay Pritzker, American businessman, co-founded the Hyatt Corporation (b. 1922)
2002 – Paul Aars, American race car driver (b. 1934)
2002 – Pierre Bourdieu, French sociologist, anthropologist, and philosopher (b. 1930)
2002 – Robert Nozick, American philosopher, author, and academic (b. 1938)
2003 – Nell Carter, American actress and singer (b. 1948)
2004 – Bob Keeshan, American television personality and producer (b. 1927)
2004 – Helmut Newton, German-Australian photographer (b. 1920)
2005 – Morys Bruce, 4th Baron Aberdare, English lieutenant and politician (b. 1921)
2005 – Johnny Carson, American talk show host, television personality, and producer (b. 1925)
307 – Jin Huaidi becomes emperor of China in succession to his father, Jin Huidi, despite a challenge from his uncle, Sima Ying
871 – Alfred the Great leads a West Saxon army to repel an invasion by Danelaw Vikings.
1297 – François Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, leads his men to capture the fortress protecting the Rock of Monaco, establishing his family as the rulers of Monaco
1454 – The papal bull Romanus Pontifex awards the Kingdom of Portugal exclusive trade and colonization rights to all of Africa south of Cape Bojador
1499 – Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany in accordance with a law set by his predecessor, Charles VIII.
1547 – The first Lithuanian-language book, the Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas, is published in Königsberg.
1735 – The premiere of George Frideric Handel’s Ariodante takes place at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
1746 – Second Jacobite rising: Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.
1790 – George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address in New York City.
1806 – Cape Colony in southern Africa becomes a British colony as a result of the Battle of Blaauwberg.
1811 – An unsuccessful slave revolt is led by Charles Deslondes in the north American settlements of St. Charles and St. James, Louisiana.
1815 – War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans: Andrew Jackson leads American forces in victory over the British.
1828 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized.
1835 – The United States national debt is zero for the only time.
1863 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Springfield.
1867 – African American men are granted the right to vote in Washington, D.C.
1877 – Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their last battle against the United States Cavalry at Wolf Mountain, Montana Territory.
1889 – Herman Hollerith is issued US patent #395,791 for the ‘Art of Applying Statistics’ — his punched card calculator.
1904 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system.
1912 – The African National Congress is founded, under the name South African Native National Congress (SANNC).
1918 – U.S. President Woodrow Wilson announces his “Fourteen Points” for the aftermath of World War I.
1920 – The steel strike of 1919 ends in failure for the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers labor union.
1926 – Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuỵ ascends the throne to become the last monarch of Vietnam.
1926 – Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz.
1936 – Kashf-e hijab decree is made and immediately enforced by Reza Shah, Iran’s head of state, banning the wearing of Islamic veils in public.
1940 – World War II: Britain introduces food rationing.
1945 – World War II: Philippine Commonwealth troops under the Philippine Commonwealth Army units enter the province of Ilocos Sur in Northern Luzon and attack Japanese Imperial forces.
1956 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. missionaries are killed by the Huaorani of Ecuador shortly after making contact with them.
1959 – Charles de Gaulle is proclaimed as the first President of the French Fifth Republic.
1961 – In France a referendum supports Charles de Gaulle’s policies in Algeria.
1963 – Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
1964 – President Lyndon B. Johnson declares a “War on Poverty” in the United States.
1972 – Bowing to international pressure, President of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto releases Bengali leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from prison, who had been arrested after declaring the independence of Bangladesh.
1973 – Soviet space mission Luna 21 is launched.
1973 – Watergate scandal: The trial of seven men accused of illegal entry into Democratic Party headquarters at Watergate begins.
1975 – Ella T. Grasso becomes Governor of Connecticut, the first woman to serve as a Governor in the United States other than by succeeding her husband.
1977 – Three bombs explode in Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
1981 – A local farmer reports a UFO sighting in Trans-en-Provence, France, claimed to be “perhaps the most completely and carefully documented sighting of all time”.
1982 – Breakup of the Bell System: AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions.
1989 – Kegworth air disaster: British Midland Flight 92, a Boeing 737-400, crashes into the M1 motorway, killing 47 of the 126 people on board.
1994 – Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov on Soyuz TM-18 leaves for Mir. He would stay on the space station until March 22, 1995, for a record 437 days in space.
1996 – An Antonov An-32 cargo aircraft crashes into a crowded market in Kinshasa, Zaire, killing up to 223 on the ground; two of six crew members are also killed.
2002 – President George W. Bush signs into law the No Child Left Behind Act.
2003 – Turkish Airlines Flight 634 crashes near Diyarbakır Airport, Turkey, killing the entire crew and 70 of the 75 passengers.
2003 – Air Midwest Flight 5481 crashes at Charlotte-Douglas Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina, killing all 21 people on board.
2004 – The RMS Queen Mary 2, then the largest ocean liner ever built, is christened by her namesake’s granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.
2005 – The nuclear sub USS San Francisco collides at full speed with an undersea mountain south of Guam. One man is killed, but the sub surfaces and is repaired.
2009 – A 6.1-magnitude earthquake in northern Costa Rica kills 15 people and injures 32.
2010 – Gunmen from an offshoot the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda attack a bus carrying the Togo national football team on its way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, killing three.
2011 – The attempted assassination of Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords and subsequent shooting in Casas Adobes, Arizona, in which five people were shot dead.
2016 – Joaquín Guzmán, widely regarded as the world’s most powerful drug trafficker, is recaptured following his escape from a maximum security prison in Mexico.
2020 – Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashes immediately after takeoff at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport; all 176 on board are killed. The plane was shot down by an Iranian anti-aircraft missile.
Births on January 8
1037 – Su Dongpo, Chinese calligrapher and poet (d. 1101)
1345 – Kadi Burhan al-Din, poet, kadi, and ruler of Sivas (d. 1398)
1462 – Walraven II van Brederode, Dutch nobleman (d. 1531)
1529 – John Frederick II, duke of Saxony (d. 1595)
1556 – Uesugi Kagekatsu, Japanese daimyō (d. 1623)
1583 – Simon Episcopius, Dutch theologian and academic (d. 1643)
1587 – Johannes Fabricius, German astronomer and academic (d. 1616)
1587 – Jan Pieterszoon Coen, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1629
1589 – Ivan Gundulić, Croatian poet and playwright (d. 1638)
1601 – Baltasar Gracián, Spanish priest and author (d. 1658)
1628 – François-Henri de Montmorency, duc de Luxembourg, French general (d. 1695)
1632 – Samuel von Pufendorf, German economist and jurist (d. 1694)
1635 – Luis Manuel Fernández de Portocarrero, Spanish cardinal (d. 1709)
1638 – Elisabetta Sirani, Italian painter (d. 1665)
1735 – John Carroll, American archbishop, founder of Georgetown University (d. 1815)
1763 – Edmond-Charles Genêt, French-American translator and diplomat (d. 1834)
1786 – Nicholas Biddle, American banker and financier (d. 1844)
1788 – Rudolf of Austria, Austrian archduke and archbishop (d. 1831)
1792 – Lowell Mason, American composer and educator (d. 1872)
1805 – John Bigler, American lawyer, politician, and diplomat, 3rd Governor of California (d. 1871)
1805 – Orson Hyde, American religious leader, 3rd President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (d. 1878)
1812 – Sigismond Thalberg, Swiss pianist and composer (d. 1871)
1817 – Theophilus Shepstone, English-South African politician (d. 1893)
1821 – James Longstreet, American general and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Turkey (d. 1904)
1823 – Alfred Russel Wallace, Welsh geographer, biologist, and explorer (d. 1913)
1824 – Wilkie Collins, English novelist, playwright, and short story writer (d. 1889)
1824 – Francisco González Bocanegra, Mexican poet and composer (d. 1861)
1830 – Hans von Bülow, German pianist and composer (d. 1894)
1836 – Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Dutch-English painter and academic (d. 1912)
1843 – Frederick Abberline, English police officer (d. 1929)
1843 – Karl Eduard Heusner, German admiral (d. 1891)
1852 – James Milton Carroll, American pastor and author (d. 1931)
1854 – Fanny Bullock Workman, American mountaineer, geographer, and cartographer (d. 1925)
1860 – Emma Booth, English author (d. 1903)
1862 – Frank Nelson Doubleday, American publisher, founded the Doubleday Publishing Company (d. 1934)
1864 – Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (d. 1892)
1865 – Winnaretta Singer, American philanthropist (d. 1943)
1866 – William G. Conley, American educator and politician, 18th Governor of West Virginia (d. 1940)
1867 – Emily Greene Balch, American economist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)
1870 – Miguel Primo de Rivera, Spanish general and politician, Prime Minister of Spain (d. 1930)
1871 – James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, Irish captain and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Northern Ireland (d. 1940)
1873 – Iuliu Maniu, Romanian lawyer and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1953)
1876 – Arturs Alberings, Latvian lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Latvia (d. 1934)
1879 – Charles Bryant, English-American actor and director (d. 1948)
1881 – Henrik Shipstead, American dentist and politician (d. 1960)
1881 – Linnie Marsh Wolfe, American librarian and author (d. 1945)
1883 – Pavel Filonov, Russian painter and poet (d. 1941)
1883 – Patrick J. Hurley, American general, politician, and diplomat, 51st United States Secretary of War (d. 1963)
1885 – John Curtin, Australian journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1945)
1885 – Mór Kóczán, Hungarian javelin thrower and pastor (d. 1972)
1885 – A. J. Muste, Dutch-American pastor and activist (d. 1967)
1888 – Richard Courant, German-American mathematician and academic (d. 1972)
1891 – Walther Bothe, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
1891 – Storm Jameson, English journalist and author (d. 1986)
1891 – Bronislava Nijinska, Russian dancer and choreographer (d. 1972) name=”Jöckle1995″>Clemens Jöckle (1995). Encyclopedia of Saints. Alpine Fine Arts Collection. p. 319. ISBN 978-0-88168-226-7.</ref>
1896 – Jaromír Weinberger, Czech-American composer and academic (d. 1967)
1897 – Dennis Wheatley, English soldier and author (d. 1977)
1899 – S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (d. 1959)
1900 – Dorothy Adams, American character actress (d. 1988)
1900 – Merlyn Myer, Australian philanthropist (d. 1982)
1902 – Georgy Malenkov, Russian engineer and politician (d. 1988)
1902 – Carl Rogers, American psychologist and academic (d. 1987)
1904 – Karl Brandt, German physician and SS officer (d. 1948)
1904 – Tampa Red, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1981)
1905 – Carl Gustav Hempel, German philosopher from the Vienna and the Berlin Circle (d. 1997)
1905 – Giacinto Scelsi, Italian composer and poet (d. 1988)
1906 – Serge Poliakoff, Russian-French painter (d. 1969)
1907 – Keizō Hayashi, Japanese general and civil servant (d. 1991)
1908 – Fearless Nadia, Australian-Indian actress and stuntwoman (d. 1996)
1908 – William Hartnell, English actor (d. 1975)
1909 – Ashapoorna Devi, Indian author and poet (d. 1995)
1909 – Willy Millowitsch, German actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1999)
1909 – Bruce Mitchell, South African cricketer (d. 1995)
1909 – Evelyn Wood, American author and educator (d. 1995)
1910 – Galina Ulanova, Russian actress and ballerina (d. 1998)
1911 – Gypsy Rose Lee, American actress, dancer, and author (d. 1970)
1912 – José Ferrer, Puerto Rican-American actor and director (d. 1992)
1912 – Lawrence Walsh, Canadian-American lawyer, judge, and politician, 4th United States Deputy Attorney General (d. 2014)
1915 – Walker Cooper, American baseball player and manager (d. 1991)
1917 – Peter Matthew Hillsman Taylor, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 1994)
1922 – Dale D. Myers, American engineer (d. 2015)
1923 – Larry Storch, American actor and comedian
1923 – Giorgio Tozzi, American opera singer and actor (d. 2011)
1923 – Johnny Wardle, English cricketer (d. 1985)
1923 – Joseph Weizenbaum, German-American computer scientist and author (d. 2008)
1924 – Benjamin Lees, Chinese-American soldier and composer (d. 2010)
1924 – Ron Moody, English actor and singer (d. 2015)
1925 – Mohan Rakesh, Indian author and playwright (d. 1972)
1926 – Evelyn Lear, American operatic soprano (d. 2012)
1926 – Lazzaro Donati, Italian artist (d. 1977)
1926 – Kerwin Mathews, American actor (d. 2007)
1926 – Kelucharan Mohapatra, Indian dancer and choreographer (d. 2004)
1926 – Hanae Mori, Japanese fashion designer
1926 – Soupy Sales, American comedian and actor (d. 2009)
1927 – Charles Tomlinson, English poet and academic (d. 2015)
1928 – Slade Gorton, American colonel, lawyer, and politician, 14th Attorney General of Washington
1928 – Gaston Miron, Canadian poet and author (d. 1996)
1928 – Luther Perkins, American country guitarist (d. 1968)
1929 – Saeed Jaffrey, Indian-British actor (d. 2015)
1931 – Bill Graham, German-American businessman (d. 1991)
1931 – Clarence Benjamin Jones, American lawyer and scholar
1933 – Nolan Miller, American fashion and jewelry designer (d. 2012)
1933 – Charles Osgood, American soldier and journalist
1933 – Jean-Marie Straub, French director and screenwriter
1933 – Willie Tasby, American baseball player
1934 – Jacques Anquetil, French cyclist (d. 1987)
1934 – Gene Freese, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
1934 – Roy Kinnear, British actor (d. 1988)
1934 – Alexandra Ripley, American author (d. 2004)
1935 – Lewis H. Lapham, American publisher, founded Lapham’s Quarterly
1935 – Elvis Presley, American singer, guitarist, and actor (d. 1977)
1936 – Zdeněk Mácal, Czech-American conductor
1936 – Robert May, Baron May of Oxford, Australian-English zoologist, ecologist, and academic (d. 2020)
1937 – Shirley Bassey, Welsh singer
1938 – Bob Eubanks, American game show host and producer
1938 – Yevgeny Nesterenko, Russian opera singer and educator
