141 BC – Liu Che, posthumously known as Emperor Wu of Han, assumes the throne over the Han dynasty of China.
1009 – First known mention of Lithuania, in the annals of the monastery of Quedlinburg.
1226 – Khwarazmian sultan Jalal ad-Din conquers the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.
1230 – Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Asen II defeats Theodore of Epirus in the Battle of Klokotnitsa.
1500 – The fleet of Pedro Álvares Cabral leaves Lisbon for the Indies. The fleet will discover Brazil which lies within boundaries granted to Portugal in the Treaty of Tordesillas.
1701 – Safavid troops retreat from Basra, ending a three year occupation.
1765 – After a campaign by the writer Voltaire, judges in Paris posthumously exonerate Jean Calas of murdering his son. Calas had been tortured and executed in 1762 on the charge, though his son may have actually committed suicide.
1776 – The Wealth of Nations by Scottish economist and philosopher Adam Smith is published.
1796 – Napoléon Bonaparte marries his first wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais.
1811 – Paraguayan forces defeat Manuel Belgrano at the Battle of Tacuarí.
1815 – Francis Ronalds describes the first battery-operated clock in the Philosophical Magazine
1841 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in the United States v. The Amistad case that captive Africans who had seized control of the ship carrying them had been taken into slavery illegally.
1842 – Giuseppe Verdi’s third opera, Nabucco, receives its première performance in Milan; its success establishes Verdi as one of Italy’s foremost opera composers.
1842 – The first documented discovery of gold in California occurs at Rancho San Francisco, six years before the California Gold Rush.
1847 – Mexican–American War: The first large-scale amphibious assault in U.S. history is launched in the Siege of Veracruz.
1862 – American Civil War: USS Monitor and CSS Virginia fight to a draw in the Battle of Hampton Roads, the first battle between two ironclad warships.
1908 – Inter Milan was founded on Football Club Internazionale, following a schism from A.C. Milan.
1916 – Mexican Revolution: Pancho Villa leads nearly 500 Mexican raiders in an attack against the border town of Columbus, New Mexico.
1933 – Great Depression: President Franklin D. Roosevelt submits the Emergency Banking Act to Congress, the first of his New Deal policies
1942 – World War II: Dutch East Indies unconditionally surrendered to the Japanese forces in Kalijati, Subang, West Java, and the Japanese completed their Dutch East Indies campaign
1944 – World War II: Soviet Army planes attack Tallinn, Estonia.
1945 – World War II: A coup d’état by Japanese forces in French Indochina removes the French from power.
1946 – Bolton Wanderers stadium disaster at Burnden Park, Bolton, England, kills 33 and injures hundreds more.
1954 – McCarthyism: CBS television broadcasts the See It Now episode, “A Report on Senator Joseph McCarthy”, produced by Fred Friendly.
1956 – Soviet forces suppress mass demonstrations in the Georgian SSR, reacting to Nikita Khrushchev’s de-Stalinization policy.
1957 – The 8.6 Mw Andreanof Islands earthquake shakes the Aleutian Islands, causing over $5 million in damage from ground movement and a destructive tsunami.
1959 – The Barbie doll makes its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York.
1960 – Dr. Belding Hibbard Scribner implants for the first time a shunt he invented into a patient, which allows the patient to receive hemodialysis on a regular basis.
1961 – Sputnik 9 successfully launches, carrying a dog and a human dummy, and demonstrating that the Soviet Union was ready to begin human spaceflight.
1967 – Trans World Airlines Flight 553 crashes in a field in Concord Township, Ohio following a mid-air collision with a Beechcraft Baron, killing 26 people.
1974 – The Mars 7 Flyby bus releases the descent module too early, missing Mars.
1976 – Forty-two people die in the Cavalese cable car disaster, the worst cable-car accident to date.
1977 – The Hanafi Siege: In a thirty-nine-hour standoff, armed Hanafi Muslims seize three Washington, D.C., buildings.
1978 – President Soeharto inaugurated Jagorawi Toll Road, the first toll highway in Indonesia, connecting Jakarta, Bogor and Ciawi, West Java.
1997 – Comet Hale–Bopp: Observers in China, Mongolia and eastern Siberia are treated to a rare double feature as an eclipse permits Hale-Bopp to be seen during the day.2011 – Space Shuttle Discovery makes its final landing after 39 flights.
Births on March 9
1454 – Amerigo Vespucci, Italian cartographer and explorer (d. 1512)
1564 – David Fabricius, German theologian, cartographer and astronomer (d. 1617)
1568 – Aloysius Gonzaga, Italian saint (d. 1591)
1662 – Franz Anton von Sporck, German noble (d. 1738)
1697 – Friederike Caroline Neuber, German actress (d. 1760)
1737 – Josef Mysliveček, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1781)
1749 – Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau, French journalist and politician (d. 1791)
1753 – Jean-Baptiste Kléber, French general (d. 1800)
1758 – Franz Joseph Gall, German neuroanatomist and physiologist (d. 1828)
1763 – William Cobbett, English journalist and author (d. 1835)
1806 – Edwin Forrest, American actor and philanthropist (d. 1872)
1814 – Taras Shevchenko, Ukrainian poet and playwright (d. 1861)
1815 – David Davis, American jurist and politician (d. 1886)
1820 – Samuel Blatchford, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1893)
1824 – Amasa Leland Stanford, American businessman and politician, founded Stanford University (d. 1893)
1847 – Martin Pierre Marsick, Belgian violinist, composer, and educator (d. 1924)
1850 – Hamo Thornycroft, English sculptor and academic (d. 1925)
1856 – Eddie Foy, Sr., American actor and dancer (d. 1928)
1863 – Mary Harris Armor, American suffragist (d. 1950)
1887 – Fritz Lenz, German geneticist and physician (d. 1976)
1890 – Rupert Balfe, Australian footballer and lieutenant (d. 1915)
1890 – Vyacheslav Molotov, Russian politician and diplomat, Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1986)
1891 – José P. Laurel, Filipino lawyer, politician and President of the Philippines (d. 1959)
1892 – Mátyás Rákosi, Hungarian politician (d. 1971)
1892 – Vita Sackville-West, English author, poet, and gardener (d. 1962)
1902 – Will Geer, American actor (d. 1978)
1904 – Paul Wilbur Klipsch, American soldier and engineer, founded Klipsch Audio Technologies (d. 2002)
1910 – Samuel Barber, American pianist and composer (d. 1981)
1911 – Clara Rockmore, American classical violin prodigy and theremin player, (d. 1998)
1915 – Johnnie Johnson, English air marshal and pilot (d. 2001)
1918 – George Lincoln Rockwell, American sailor and politician, founded the American Nazi Party (d. 1967)
1918 – Mickey Spillane, American crime novelist (d. 2006)
1920 – Franjo Mihalić, Croatian-Serbian runner and coach (d. 2015)
1921 – Carl Betz, American actor (d. 1978)
1922 – Ian Turbott, New Zealand-Australian former diplomat and university administrator (d. 2016)
1923 – James L. Buckley, American lawyer, judge, and politician
1923 – André Courrèges, French fashion designer (d. 2016)
1923 – Walter Kohn, Austrian-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2016)
1926 – Joe Franklin, American radio and television host (d. 2015)
1928 – Gerald Bull, Canadian-American engineer and academic (d. 1990)
1928 – Keely Smith, American singer and actress (d. 2017)
1929 – Desmond Hoyte, Guyanese lawyer, politician and President of Guyana (d. 2002)
1929 – Zillur Rahman, Bangladeshi politician, 19th President of Bangladesh (d. 2013)
1930 – Ornette Coleman, American saxophonist, violinist, trumpet player, and composer (d. 2015)
1931 – Jackie Healy-Rae, Irish politician (d. 2014)
1932 – Qayyum Chowdhury, Bangladeshi painter and academic (d. 2014)
1932 – Walter Mercado, Puerto Rican-American astrologer and actor (d. 2019)
1933 – Lloyd Price, American R&B singer-songwriter
1933 – David Weatherall, English physician, geneticist, and academic (d. 2018)
1934 – Yuri Gagarin, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1968)
1934 – Joyce Van Patten, American actress
1935 – Andrew Viterbi, American engineer and businessman, co-founded Qualcomm Inc.
1936 – Mickey Gilley, American singer-songwriter and pianist[
1936 – Marty Ingels, American actor and comedian (d. 2015)
1937 – Bernard Landry, Canadian lawyer, politician and Premier of Quebec (d. 2018)
1937 – Harry Neale, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and sportscaster
1937 – Brian Redman, English race car driver
1940 – Raul Julia, Puerto Rican-American actor (d. 1994)
1941 – Jim Colbert, American golfer
1941 – Ernesto Miranda, American criminal (d. 1976)
1942 – Ion Caramitru, Romanian actor and artistic director
1942 – Mark Lindsay, American singer-songwriter, saxophonist, and producer
1943 – Bobby Fischer, American chess player and author (d. 2008)
1944 – Lee Irvine, South African cricketer
1945 – Robert Calvert, English singer-songwriter and playwright (d. 1988)
1945 – Robin Trower, English rock guitarist and vocalist
1946 – Alexandra Bastedo, English actress (d. 2014)
1946 – Warren Skaaren, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1990)
1946 – Bernd Hölzenbein, German footballer and scout
1947 – Keri Hulme, New Zealand author and poet
1948 – Emma Bonino, Italian politician, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs
1948 – Eric Fischl, American painter and sculptor
1948 – Jeffrey Osborne, American singer and drummer
1949 – Neil Hamilton, Welsh lawyer and politician
1950 – Doug Ault, American baseball player and manager (d. 2004)
1950 – Andy North, American golfer
1950 – Howard Shelley, English pianist and conductor
1951 – Helen Zille, South African journalist, politician and Premier of the Western Cape1952 – Bill Beaumont, English rugby player and manager
1954 – Carlos Ghosn, Brazilian-Lebanese-French business executive
1954 – Bobby Sands, PIRA volunteer; Irish republican politician (d. 1981)
1954 – Jock Taylor, Scottish motorcycle racer (d. 1982)
1955 – Teo Fabi, Italian race car driver
1955 – Józef Pinior, Polish academic and politician
1956 – Mark Dantonio, American football player and coach
1956 – Shashi Tharoor, Indian politician, Indian Minister of External Affairs
1956 – David Willetts, English academic and politician
1958 – Paul MacLean, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1959 – Takaaki Kajita, Japanese physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1959 – Lonny Price, American actor, director, and screenwriter
1960 – Linda Fiorentino, American actress
1961 – Rick Steiner, American wrestler
1961 – Darrell Walker, American basketball player and coach
1963 – Terry Mulholland, American baseball player
1963 – Jean-Marc Vallée, Canadian director and screenwriter
1964 – Juliette Binoche, French actress
1964 – Phil Housley, American ice hockey player and coach
1965 – Brian Bosworth, American football player and actor
1965 – Benito Santiago, Puerto Rican-American baseball player
1966 – Brendan Canty, American drummer and songwriter
1966 – Tony Lockett, Australian footballer
1968 – Youri Djorkaeff, French footballer
1969 – Kimberly Guilfoyle, American lawyer and journalist
1970 – Naveen Jindal, Indian businessman and politician
1970 – Martin Johnson, English rugby player and coach
1971 – Emmanuel Lewis, American actor
1972 – Jodey Arrington, United States politician
1973 – Liam Griffin, English race car driver
1975 – Juan Sebastián Verón, Argentinian footballer
1977 – Radek Dvořák, Czech ice hockey player
1979 – Oscar Isaac, Guatemalan-American actor
1981 – Antonio Bryant, American football player
1981 – Clay Rapada, American baseball player
1982 – Ryan Bayley, Australian cyclist
1982 – Matt Bowen, Australian rugby league player
1982 – Mirjana Lučić-Baroni, Croatian tennis player
1983 – Wayne Simien, American basketball player[
1983 – Clint Dempsey, American international soccer player, forward
1984 – Abdoulay Konko, French footballer
1984 – Julia Mancuso, American skier
1985 – Brent Burns, Canadian ice hockey player
1985 – Jesse Litsch, American baseball player
1985 – Pastor Maldonado, Venezuelan race car driver
1985 – Parthiv Patel, Indian cricketer
1986 – Colin Greening, Canadian ice hockey player
1986 – Brittany Snow, American actress and producer
1989 – Taeyeon, South Korean artist, member of Girls’ Generation
1990 – Daley Blind, Dutch footballer
1990 – Matt Robinson, New Zealand rugby league player
1990 – YG (rapper), American rapper
1991 – Jooyoung, Korean singer-songwriter
1993 – Suga, South Korean artist (BTS)
1994 – Morgan Rielly, Canadian ice hockey player
Deaths on March 9
886 – Abu Ma’shar al-Balkhi, Muslim scholar and astrologer (b. 787)
1202 – Sverre of Norway
1440 – Frances of Rome, Italian nun and saint (b. 1384)
1444 – Leonardo Bruni, Italian humanist (b. c.1370)
1463 – Catherine of Bologna, Italian nun and saint (d. 1463)
1566 – David Rizzio, Italian-Scottish courtier and politician (b. 1533).
1649 – James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton, Scottish soldier and politician, (b. 1606)
1649 – Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland, English soldier and politician (b. 1590)
1661 – Cardinal Mazarin, Italian-French academic and politician, Prime Minister of France (b. 1602)
1709 – Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu, English courtier and politician (b. 1638)
1808 – Joseph Bonomi the Elder, Italian architect (b. 1739)
1810 – Ozias Humphry, English painter and academic (b. 1742)
1825 – Anna Laetitia Barbauld, English poet, author, and critic (b. 1743)
1847 – Mary Anning, English paleontologist (b. 1799)
1851 – Hans Christian Ørsted, Danish physicist and chemist (b. 1777)1888 – William I, German Emperor (b. 1797)
1895 – Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, Austrian journalist and author (b. 1836)
12 BCE – The Roman Emperor Augustus is named Pontifex Maximus, incorporating the position into that of the emperor.
632 – The Farewell Sermon (Khutbah, Khutbatul Wada’) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
845 – Execution of the 42 Martyrs of Amorium at Samarra.
961 – Byzantine conquest of Chandax by Nikephoros Phokas, end of the Emirate of Crete.
1204 – The Siege of Château Gaillard ends in a French victory over King John of England, who loses control of Normandy to King Philip II Augustus.
1323 – Treaty of Paris of 1323 is signed.
1454 – Thirteen Years’ War: Delegates of the Prussian Confederation pledge allegiance to King Casimir IV of Poland who agrees to commit his forces in aiding the Confederation’s struggle for independence from the Teutonic Knights.
1521 – Ferdinand Magellan arrives at Guam.
1665 – The first joint Secretary of the Royal Society, Henry Oldenburg, publishes the first issue of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, the world’s longest-running scientific journal.
1788 – The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement.
1820 – The Missouri Compromise is signed into law by President James Monroe. The compromise allows Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state, brings Maine into the Union as a free state, and makes the rest of the northern part of the Louisiana Purchase territory slavery-free.
1834 – York, Upper Canada, is incorporated as Toronto.
1836 – Texas Revolution: Battle of the Alamo: After a thirteen-day siege by an army of 3,000 Mexican troops, the 187 Texas volunteers, including frontiersman Davy Crockett and colonel Jim Bowie, defending the Alamo are killed and the fort is captured.
1857 – The Supreme Court of the United States rules in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case.
1869 – Dmitri Mendeleev presents the first periodic table to the Russian Chemical Society.
1882 – The Serbian kingdom is re-founded.
1899 – Bayer registers “Aspirin” as a trademark.
1902 – Real Madrid CF is founded.
1912 – Italo-Turkish War: Italian forces become the first to use airships in war, as two dirigibles drop bombs on Turkish troops encamped at Janzur, from an altitude of 6,000 feet.
1921 – Portuguese Communist Party is founded as the Portuguese Section of the Communist International.
1930 – International Unemployment Day demonstrations globally initiated by the Comintern.
1933 – Great Depression: President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a “bank holiday”, closing all U.S. banks and freezing all financial transactions.
1943 – Norman Rockwell published Freedom from Want in The Saturday Evening Post with a matching essay by Carlos Bulosan as part of the Four Freedoms series.
1943 – World War II: The Battle of Fardykambos, one of the first major battles between the Greek Resistance and the occupying Royal Italian Army, ends with the surrender of an entire Italian battalion, the bulk of the garrison of the town of Grevena, leading to its liberation a fortnight later.
1944 – World War II: Soviet Air Forces bomb an evacuated town of Narva in German-occupied Estonia, destroying the entire historical Swedish-era town.
1945 – World War II: Cologne is captured by American troops. On the same day, Operation Spring Awakening, the last major German offensive of the war, begins.
1946 – Ho Chi Minh signs an agreement with France which recognizes Vietnam as an autonomous state in the Indochinese Federation and the French Union.
1951 – Cold War: The trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg begins.
1953 – Georgy Malenkov succeeds Joseph Stalin as Premier of the Soviet Union and First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
1957 – Ghana becomes the first Sub-Saharan country to gain independence from the British.
1964 – Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad officially gives boxing champion Cassius Clay the name Muhammad Ali.
1964 – Constantine II becomes King of Greece.
1965 – Premier Tom Playford of South Australia loses power after 27 years in office.
1967 – Cold War: Joseph Stalin’s daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva defects to the United States.
1968 – Three rebels are executed by Rhodesia, the first executions since UDI, prompting international condemnation.
1970 – An explosion at the Weather Underground safe house in Greenwich Village kills three.
1975 – For the first time the Zapruder film of the assassination of John F. Kennedy is shown in motion to a national TV audience by Robert J. Groden and Dick Gregory.
1975 – Algiers Accord: Iran and Iraq announce a settlement of their border dispute.
1983 – The first United States Football League games are played.
1984 – In the United Kingdom, a walkout at Cortonwood Colliery in Brampton Bierlow signals the start of a strike that lasted almost a year and involved the majority of the country’s miners.
1987 – The British ferry MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes in about 90 seconds, killing 193.
1988 – Three Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers are shot dead by the SAS in Gibraltar in Operation Flavius.
1992 – The Michelangelo computer virus begins to affect computers.
2003 – Air Algérie Flight 6289 crashes at the Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport in Tamanrasset, Algeria, killing 102 out of the 103 people on board.
2008 – A suicide bomber kills 68 people (including first responders) in Baghdad on the same day that a gunman kills eight students in Jerusalem.
Births on March 6
1340 – John of Gaunt (d. 1399)
1405 – John II of Castile (d. 1454)
1459 – Jakob Fugger, German merchant and banker (d. 1525)
1475 – Michelangelo, Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1564)
1483 – Francesco Guicciardini, Italian historian and politician (d. 1540)
1493 – Juan Luis Vives, Spanish scholar and humanist (d. 1540)
1495 – Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet and diplomat (d. 1556)
1536 – Santi di Tito, Italian painter (d. 1603)
1619 – Cyrano de Bergerac, French author and playwright (d. 1655)
1663 – Francis Atterbury, English bishop and poet (d. 1732)
1706 – George Pocock, English admiral (d. 1792)
1716 – Pehr Kalm, Swedish-Finnish botanist and explorer (d. 1779)
1724 – Henry Laurens, English-American merchant and politician, 5th President of the Continental Congress (d. 1792)
1761 – Antoine-François Andréossy, French general and diplomat (d. 1828)
1779 – Antoine-Henri Jomini, Swiss-French general (d. 1869)
1780 – Lucy Barnes, American writer (d. 1809)
1785 – Karol Kurpiński, Polish composer and conductor (d. 1857)
1787 – Joseph von Fraunhofer, German physicist and astronomer (d. 1826)
1806 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning, English-Italian poet and translator (d. 1861)
1812 – Aaron Lufkin Dennison, American businessman, co-founded the Waltham Watch Company (d. 1895)
1817 – Princess Clémentine of Orléans (d. 1907)
1818 – William Claflin, American businessman and politician, 27th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1905)
1823 – Charles I of Württemberg (d. 1891)
1831 – Philip Sheridan, Irish-American general (d. 1888)
1834 – George du Maurier, French-English author and illustrator (d. 1896)
1841 – Viktor Burenin, Russian author, poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1926)
1849 – Georg Luger, Austrian gun designer, designed the Luger pistol (d. 1923)
1864 – Richard Rushall, British businessman (d. 1953)
1870 – Oscar Straus, Viennese composer and conductor (d. 1954)
1871 – Afonso Costa, Portuguese lawyer and politician, 59th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1937)
1872 – Ben Harney, American pianist and composer (d. 1938)
1879 – Jimmy Hunter, New Zealand rugby player (d. 1962)
1882 – F. Burrall Hoffman, American architect, co-designed Villa Vizcaya (d. 1980)
1882 – Guy Kibbee, American actor and singer (d. 1956)
1884 – Molla Mallory, Norwegian-American tennis player (d. 1959)
1885 – Ring Lardner, American journalist and author (d. 1933)
1886 – Jam Handy, American swimmer and water polo player (d. 1983)
1886 – Nella Walker, American actress and vaudevillian (d. 1971)
1892 – Bert Smith, English international footballer, right half (d. 1969)
1893 – Furry Lewis, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1981)
1893 – Ella P. Stewart, pioneering Black American pharmacist (d. 1987)
1895 – Albert Tessier, Canadian priest and historian (d. 1976)
1898 – Gus Sonnenberg, American football player and wrestler (d. 1944)
1900 – Gina Cigna, French-Italian soprano and actress (d. 2001)
1900 – Lefty Grove, American baseball player (d. 1975)
1900 – Henri Jeanson, French journalist and author (d. 1970)
1903 – Empress Kōjun of Japan (d. 2000)
1904 – José Antonio Aguirre, Spanish lawyer and politician, 1st President of the Basque Country (d. 1960)
1905 – Bob Wills, American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader (d. 1975)
1906 – Lou Costello, American actor and comedian (d. 1959)
1909 – Obafemi Awolowo, Nigerian lawyer and politician (d. 1987)
1909 – Stanisław Jerzy Lec, Polish poet and author (d. 1966)
1910 – Ella Logan, Scottish-American singer and actress (d. 1969)
1912 – Mohammed Burhanuddin, Indian spiritual leader, 52nd Da’i al-Mutlaq (d. 2014)
1917 – Donald Davidson, American philosopher and academic (d. 2003)
1917 – Will Eisner, American illustrator and publisher (d. 2005)
1917 – Frankie Howerd, English comedian (d. 1992)
1918 – Howard McGhee, American trumpeter (d. 1987)
1920 – Lewis Gilbert, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2018)
1921 – Leo Bretholz, Austrian-American holocaust survivor and author (d. 2014)
1923 – Ed McMahon, American comedian, game show host, and announcer (d. 2009)
1923 – Wes Montgomery, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1968)
1924 – Ottmar Walter, German footballer (d. 2013)
1924 – William H. Webster, American lawyer and jurist, 14th Director of Central Intelligence
1926 – Ann Curtis, American swimmer (d. 2012)
1926 – Alan Greenspan, American economist and politician
1926 – Ray O’Connor, Australian politician, 22nd Premier of Western Australia (d. 2013)
1926 – Andrzej Wajda, Polish director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
1927 – William J. Bell, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2005)
1927 – Gordon Cooper, American engineer, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2004)
1927 – Gabriel García Márquez, Colombian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2014)
1929 – Tom Foley, American lawyer and politician, 57th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 2013)
1929 – David Sheppard, English cricketer and bishop (d. 2005)
1930 – Lorin Maazel, French-American violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2014)
1932 – Marc Bazin, Haitian lawyer and politician, 49th President of Haiti (d. 2010)
1932 – Bronisław Geremek, Polish historian and politician, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2008)
1933 – Ted Abernathy, American baseball player (d. 2004)
1933 – William Davis, German-English journalist and economist (d. 2019)
1933 – Augusto Odone, Italian economist and inventor of Lorenzo’s oil (d. 2013)
1934 – Red Simpson, American singer-songwriter (d. 2016)
1935 – Ron Delany, Irish runner and coach
1935 – Derek Kevan, English footballer (d. 2013)
1936 – Bob Akin, American race car driver and journalist (d. 2002)
1936 – Marion Barry, American lawyer and politician, 2nd Mayor of the District of Columbia (d. 2014)
1936 – Choummaly Sayasone, Laotian politician, 5th President of Laos
1937 – Ivan Boesky, American businessman
1937 – Valentina Tereshkova, Russian general, pilot, and astronaut
1938 – Keishu Tanaka, Japanese politician, 17th Japanese Minister of Justice
1939 – Kit Bond, American lawyer and politician, 47th Governor of Missouri
1939 – Adam Osborne, Thai-Indian engineer and businessman, founded the Osborne Computer Corporation (d. 2003)
1940 – Ken Danby, Canadian painter (d. 2007)
1940 – Joanna Miles, French-born American actress
1940 – R. H. Sikes, American golfer
1940 – Willie Stargell, American baseball player and coach (d. 2001)
1940 – Jeff Wooller, English accountant and banker
1941 – Peter Brötzmann, German saxophonist and clarinet player
1941 – Marilyn Strathern, Welsh anthropologist and academic
1942 – Ben Murphy, American actor
1944 – Richard Corliss, American journalist and critic (d. 2015)
1944 – Kiri Te Kanawa, New Zealand soprano and actress
1944 – Mary Wilson, American singer
1945 – Angelo Castro, Jr., Filipino actor and journalist (d. 2012)
1946 – David Gilmour, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1946 – Richard Noble, Scottish race car driver and businessman
1947 – Kiki Dee, English singer-songwriter
1947 – Dick Fosbury, American high jumper
1947 – Anna Maria Horsford, American actress
1947 – Rob Reiner, American actor, director, producer, and activist
1947 – Jean Seaton, English historian and academic
1947 – John Stossel, American journalist and author
1948 – Stephen Schwartz, American composer and producer
1949 – Shaukat Aziz, Pakistani economist and politician, 15th Prime Minister of Pakistan
1949 – Martin Buchan, Scottish footballer and manager
1950 – Arthur Roche, English archbishop
1951 – Gerrie Knetemann, Dutch cyclist (d. 2004)
1952 – Denis Napthine, Australian politician, 47th Premier of Victoria
1953 – Madhav Kumar Nepal, Nepali banker and politician, 34th Prime Minister of Nepal
1953 – Carolyn Porco, American astronomer and academic
1953 – Phil Alvin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1954 – Jeff Greenwald, American author, photographer, and monologist
1954 – Harald Schumacher, German footballer and manager
1955 – Cyprien Ntaryamira, Burundian politician, 5th President of Burundi (d. 1994)
1955 – Alberta Watson, Canadian actress (d. 2015)
1956 – Peter Roebuck, English cricketer, journalist, and sportcaster (d. 2011)
1956 – Steve Vizard, Australian television host, actor, and producer
1960 – Sleepy Floyd, American basketball player and coach
1962 – Alison Nicholas, British golfer
1963 – D. L. Hughley, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
1964 – Linda Pearson, Scottish sport shooter
1965 – Allan Bateman, Welsh rugby player
1965 – Jim Knight, English politician
1966 – Alan Davies, English comedian, actor and screenwriter
1967 – Julio Bocca, Argentinian ballet dancer and director
1967 – Connie Britton, American actress
1967 – Glenn Greenwald, American journalist and author
1967 – Shuler Hensley, American actor and singer
1968 – Moira Kelly, American actress and director
1971 – Darrick Martin, American basketball player and coach
1972 – Shaquille O’Neal, American basketball player, actor, and rapper
1972 – Jaret Reddick, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1973 – Michael Finley, American basketball player
1973 – Peter Lindgren, Swedish guitarist and songwriter
1973 – Greg Ostertag, American basketball player
1973 – Trent Willmon, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1974 – Guy Garvey, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1974 – Matthew Guy, Australian politician
1974 – Brad Schumacher, American swimmer
1974 – Beanie Sigel, American rapper
1975 – Aracely Arámbula, Mexican actress and singer
1975 – Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Canadian pianist and conductor
1976 – Ken Anderson, American wrestler and actor
1977 – Nantie Hayward, South African cricketer
1977 – Giorgos Karagounis, Greek international footballer, midfielder
1977 – Shabani Nonda, DR Congolese footballer
1977 – Marcus Thames, American baseball player and coach
2014 – Martin Nesbitt, American lawyer and politician (b. 1946)
2014 – Manlio Sgalambro, Italian philosopher, author, and poet (b. 1924)
2015 – Fred Craddock, American minister and academic (b. 1928)
2015 – Ram Sundar Das, Indian lawyer and politician, 18th Chief Minister of Bihar (b. 1921)
2015 – Enrique “Coco” Vicéns, Puerto Rican-American basketball player and politician (b. 1926)
2016 – Nancy Reagan, American actress, 42nd First Lady of the United States (b. 1921)
2016 – Sheila Varian, American horse trainer and breeder (b. 1937)
2017 – Robert Osborne, American actor and historian (b. 1932)
2018 – Peter Nicholls, Australian science fiction critic and encyclopedist (b. 1939)
Holidays and observances on March 6
Christian feast day:
Chrodegang
Colette
Fridolin
Kyneburga, Kyneswide and Tibba
Marcian of Tortona
William W. Mayo and Charles Frederick Menninger (Episcopal Church (USA))
Olegarius
March 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
European Day of the Righteous, commemorates those who have stood up against crimes against humanity and totalitarism with their own moral responsibility. (Europe)
Foundation Day (Norfolk Island), the founding of Norfolk Island in 1788.
Independence Day (Ghana), celebrates the independence of Ghana from the UK in 1957.
The Day of the Dude, celebrated by the adherents of Dudeism
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)
1245 – Thomas, the first known Bishop of Finland, is granted resignation after confessing to torture and forgery.
1440 – The Prussian Confederation is formed.
1613 – Mikhail I is unanimously elected Tsar by a national assembly, beginning the Romanov dynasty of Imperial Russia.
1797 – A force of 1,400 French soldiers invaded Britain at Fishguard in support of the Society of United Irishmen. They were defeated by 500 British reservists.
1804 – The first self-propelling steam locomotive makes its outing at the Pen-y-Darren Ironworks in Wales.
1808 – Without a previous declaration of war, Russian troops cross the border to Sweden at Abborfors in eastern Finland, thus beginning the Finnish War, in which Sweden will lose the eastern half of the country (i.e. Finland) to Russia.
1828 – Initial issue of the Cherokee Phoenix is the first periodical to use the Cherokee syllabary invented by Sequoyah.
1842 – John Greenough is granted the first U.S. patent for the sewing machine.
1848 – Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish The Communist Manifesto.
1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Valverde is fought near Fort Craig in New Mexico Territory.
1866 – Lucy Hobbs Taylor becomes the first American woman to graduate from dental school.
1874 – The Oakland Daily Tribune publishes its first edition.
1878 – The first telephone directory is issued in New Haven, Connecticut.
1885 – The newly completed Washington Monument is dedicated.
1896 – An Englishman raised in Australia, Bob Fitzsimmons, fought an Irishman, Peter Maher, in an American promoted event which technically took place in Mexico, winning the 1896 World Heavyweight Championship in boxing.
1913 – Ioannina is incorporated into the Greek state after the Balkan Wars.
1916 – World War I: In France, the Battle of Verdun begins.
1918 – The last Carolina parakeet dies in captivity at the Cincinnati Zoo.
1919 – German socialist Kurt Eisner is assassinated. His death results in the establishment of the Bavarian Soviet Republic and parliament and government fleeing Munich, Germany.
1921 – Constituent Assembly of the Democratic Republic of Georgia adopts the country’s first constitution.
1921 – Rezā Shāh takes control of Tehran during a successful coup.
1925 – The New Yorker publishes its first issue.
1929 – In the first battle of the Warlord Rebellion in northeastern Shandong against the Nationalist government of China, a 24,000-strong rebel force led by Zhang Zongchang was defeated at Zhifu by 7,000 NRA troops.1934 – Augusto Sandino is executed.
1937 – The League of Nations bans foreign national “volunteers” in the Spanish Civil War.
1945 – World War II: During the Battle of Iwo Jima, Japanese kamikaze planes sink the escort carrier USS Bismarck Sea and damage the USS Saratoga.
1945 – World War II: the Brazilian Expeditionary Force defeat the German forces in the Battle of Monte Castello on the Italian front.
1947 – In New York City, Edwin Land demonstrates the first “instant camera”, the Polaroid Land Camera, to a meeting of the Optical Society of America.
1948 – NASCAR is incorporated.
1952 – The British government, under Winston Churchill, abolishes identity cards in the UK to “set the people free”.
1952 – The Bengali Language Movement protests occur at the University of Dhaka in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).
1958 – The CND symbol, aka peace symbol, commissioned by the Direct Action Committee in protest against the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, is designed and completed by Gerald Holtom.
1965 – Malcolm X is assassinated while giving a talk at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem.
1971 – The Convention on Psychotropic Substances is signed at Vienna.
1972 – United States President Richard Nixon visits the People’s Republic of China to normalize Sino-American relations.
1972 – The Soviet unmanned spaceship Luna 20 lands on the Moon.
1973 – Over the Sinai Desert, Israeli fighter aircraft shoot down Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114 jet killing 108 people.
1974 – The last Israeli soldiers leave the west bank of the Suez Canal pursuant to a truce with Egypt.
1975 – Watergate scandal: Former United States Attorney General John N. Mitchell and former White House aides H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman are sentenced to prison.
1995 – Steve Fossett lands in Leader, Saskatchewan, Canada becoming the first person to make a solo flight across the Pacific Ocean in a balloon.
2013 – At least 17 people are killed and 119 injured following several bombings in the Indian city of Hyderabad.
Births on February 21
921 – Abe no Seimei, Japanese astrologer (d. 1005)
1397 – Isabella of Portugal (d. 1471)
1462 – Joanna la Beltraneja, princess of Castile (d. 1530)
1484 – Joachim I Nestor, Elector of Brandenburg (d. 1535)
1498 – Ralph Neville, 4th Earl of Westmorland, English Earl (d. 1549)
1541 – Philipp V, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. 1599)
1556 – Sethus Calvisius, German astronomer, composer, and theorist (d. 1615)
1559 – Nurhaci, Manchu emperor (d. 1626)
1609 – Raimondo Montecuccoli, Italian military commander (d. 1680)
1621 – Rebecca Nurse, Massachusetts colonist, executed as a witch (d. 1692)
1705 – Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke, English admiral and politician (d. 1781)
1728 – Peter III of Russia (d. 1762)
1783 – Catharina of Württemberg (d. 1835)
1788 – Francis Ronalds, British scientist, inventor and engineer who was knighted for developing the first working electric telegraph (d. 1873)
1791 – Carl Czerny, Austrian pianist and composer (d. 1857)
1794 – Antonio López de Santa Anna, Mexican general and politician, 8th President of Mexico (d. 1876)
1801 – John Henry Newman, English cardinal (d. 1890)
1817 – José Zorrilla, Spanish poet and playwright (d. 1893)
1821 – Charles Scribner I, American publisher, founded Charles Scribner’s Sons (d. 1871)
1836 – Léo Delibes, French pianist and composer (d. 1891)
1844 – Charles-Marie Widor, French organist and composer (d. 1937)
1860 – Goscombe John, Welsh-English sculptor and academic (d. 1952)
1865 – John Haden Badley, English author and educator, founded the Bedales School (d. 1967)
1867 – Otto Hermann Kahn, German banker and philanthropist (d. 1934)
1875 – Jeanne Calment, French super-centenarian, oldest verified person ever (d. 1997)
1878 – Mirra Alfassa, French-Indian spiritual leader (d. 1973)
1881 – Kenneth J. Alford, English soldier, bandmaster, and composer (d. 1945)
1885 – Sacha Guitry, Russian-French actor, director, and playwright (d. 1957)
1887 – Korechika Anami, Japanese general and politician, 54th Japanese Minister of War (d. 1945)
1888 – Clemence Dane, English author and playwright (d. 1965)
1892 – Harry Stack Sullivan, American psychiatrist and psychoanalyst (d. 1949)
1893 – Celia Lovsky, Austrian-American actress (d. 1979)
1893 – Andrés Segovia, Spanish guitarist (d. 1987)
1894 – Shanti Swaroop Bhatnagar, Indian chemist and academic (d. 1955)
1895 – Henrik Dam, Danish biochemist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1976)
1896 – Nirala, Indian poet and author (d. 1961)
1900 – Jeanne Aubert, French singer and actress (d. 1988)
1902 – Arthur Nock, English theologian and academic (d. 1963)
1903 – Anaïs Nin, French-American essayist and memoirist (d. 1977)
1903 – Raymond Queneau, French poet and author (d. 1976)
1907 – W. H. Auden, English-American poet, playwright, and composer (d. 1973)
1909 – Hans Erni, Swiss painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 2015)
1910 – Douglas Bader, English captain and pilot (d. 1982)
1912 – Arline Judge, American actress and singer (d. 1974)
1914 – Ilmari Juutilainen, Finnish soldier and pilot (d. 1999)
1914 – Zachary Scott, American actor (d. 1965)
1914 – Jean Tatlock, American psychiatrist and physician (d. 1944)
1915 – Claudia Jones, Trinidad-British journalist and activist (d. 1964)
1915 – Ann Sheridan, American actress and singer (d. 1967)
1915 – Anton Vratuša, Prime Minister of Slovenia (1978–1980) (d. 2017)
1917 – Lucille Bremer, American actress and dancer (d. 1996)
1917 – Tadd Dameron, American pianist and composer (d. 1965)
1921 – John Rawls, American philosopher and academic (d. 2002)
1921 – Richard T. Whitcomb, American aeronautical engineer (d. 2009)
1924 – Thelma Estrin, American computer scientist and engineer (d. 2014)
1924 – Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwean educator and politician, 2nd President of Zimbabwe (d. 2019)
1924 – Dorothy Blum, American computer scientist and cryptanalyst (d. 1980)
1925 – Sam Peckinpah, American director and screenwriter (d. 1984)
1925 – Jack Ramsay, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (d. 2014)
1927 – Erma Bombeck, American journalist and author (d. 1996)
1929 – Chespirito, Mexican actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
1933 – Nina Simone, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2003)
1934 – Rue McClanahan, American actress (d. 2010)
1935 – Richard A. Lupoff, American author
1936 – Barbara Jordan, American lawyer and politician (d. 1996)
1937 – Ron Clarke, Australian runner and politician, Mayor of the Gold Coast (d. 2015)
1937 – Harald V of Norway
1938 – Bobby Charles, American singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
1938 – Kel Tremain, New Zealand rugby player (d. 1992)
1940 – Peter Gethin, English race car driver (d. 2011)
1940 – John Lewis, American activist and politician
1942 – Tony Martin, Trinidadian-American historian and academic (d. 2013)
1942 – Margarethe von Trotta, German actress, director, and screenwriter
1943 – David Geffen, American businessman, co-founded DreamWorks and Geffen Records
1945 – Maurice Bembridge, English golfer
1946 – Tyne Daly, American actress and singer
1946 – Anthony Daniels, English actor and producer
1946 – Alan Rickman, English actor and director (d. 2016)
1946 – Bob Ryan, American journalist and author
1947 – Johnny Echols, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1947 – Olympia Snowe, American politician
1948 – Bill Slayback, American baseball player and singer (d. 2015)
1949 – Frank Brunner, American illustrator
1949 – Jerry Harrison, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1949 – Ronnie Hellström, Swedish footballer
1950 – Larry Drake, American actor (d. 2016)
1951 – Vince Welnick, American keyboard player (d. 2006)
1952 – Jean-Jacques Burnel, English bass player, songwriter, and producer
1952 – Vitaly Churkin, Russian diplomat, former Ambassador of Russia to the United Nations (d. 2017)
1953 – Christine Ebersole, American actress and singer
1953 – William Petersen, American actor and producer
1954 – Christina Rees, British politician
1955 – Kelsey Grammer, American actor, singer, and producer
1958 – Jake Burns, Northern Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist
1958 – Mary Chapin Carpenter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1958 – Kim Coates, Canadian actor
1958 – Alan Trammell, American baseball player, coach, and manager
1959 – José María Cano, Spanish singer-songwriter and painter
1960 – Plamen Oresharski, Bulgarian economist and politician, 52nd Prime Minister of Bulgaria
1960 – Steve Wynn, American singer-songwriter
1961 – Christopher Atkins, American actor and businessman
1962 – Chuck Palahniuk, American novelist and journalist
1962 – David Foster Wallace, American novelist, short story writer, and essayist (d. 2008)
1963 – William Baldwin, American actor
1963 – Ranking Roger, English singer-songwriter and musician (d. 2019)
1963 – Greg Turner, New Zealand golfer
1964 – Mark Kelly, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
1964 – Scott Kelly, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
1965 – Mark Ferguson, Australian journalist
1967 – Leroy Burrell, American runner and coach
1967 – Sari Essayah, Finnish athlete and politician
1969 – James Dean Bradfield, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist (Manic Street Preachers)
1969 – Aunjanue Ellis, American actress and producer
1969 – Petra Kronberger, Austrian skier
1969 – Tony Meola, American soccer player and manager
1969 – Cathy Richardson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1970 – Michael Slater, Australian cricketer and sportscaster
1970 – Eric Wilson, American bass player and drummer
1971 – Pierre Fulke, Swedish golfer
1972 – Seo Taiji, South Korean singer-songwriter
1973 – Heri Joensen, Faroese singer-songwriter and guitarist
1973 – Brian Rolston, American ice hockey player and coach
1974 – Iván Campo, Spanish footballer
1975 – Scott Miller, Australian swimmer
1976 – Ryan Smyth, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Michael McIntyre, English comedian, actor and television presenter
1977 – Jonathan Safran Foer, American novelist
1977 – Steve Francis, American basketball player
1977 – Owen King, American author
1977 – Kevin Rose, American businessman and television host, founded Digg
748 – Abbasid Revolution: The Hashimi rebels under Abu Muslim Khorasani take Merv, capital of the Umayyad province Khorasan, marking the consolidation of the Abbasid revolt.
842 – Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German languages.
1014 – Pope Benedict VIII crowns Henry of Bavaria, King of Germany and of Italy, as Holy Roman Emperor.
1076 – Pope Gregory VII excommunicates Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
1130 – Pope Innocent II is elected.
1349 – Several hundred Jews are burned to death by mobs while the remaining Jews are forcibly removed from Strasbourg.
1400 – Richard II of England dies, most probably from starvation, in Pontefract Castle, on the orders of Henry Bolingbroke.
1530 – Spanish conquistadores, led by Nuño de Guzmán, overthrow and execute Tangaxuan II, the last independent monarch of the Tarascan state in present-day central Mexico.
1556 – Thomas Cranmer is declared a heretic.
1556 – Coronation of Akbar.
1655 – The Mapuches launch coordinated attacks against the Spanish in Chile beginning the Mapuche uprising of 1655.
1778 – The United States flag is formally recognized by a foreign naval vessel for the first time, when French Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte renders a nine gun salute to USS Ranger, commanded by John Paul Jones.
1779 – American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Kettle Creek is fought in Georgia.
1779 – James Cook is killed by Native Hawaiians near Kealakekua on the Island of Hawaii.
1797 – French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of Cape St. Vincent: John Jervis, (later 1st Earl of St Vincent) and Horatio Nelson (later 1st Viscount Nelson) lead the British Royal Navy to victory over a Spanish fleet in action near Gibraltar.
1804 – Karađorđe leads the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire.
1831 – Ras Marye of Yejju marches into Tigray and defeats and kills Dejazmach Sabagadis in the Battle of Debre Abbay.
1835 – The original Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in the Latter Day Saint movement, is formed in Kirtland, Ohio.
1849 – In New York City, James Knox Polk becomes the first serving President of the United States to have his photograph taken.
1852 – Great Ormond St Hospital for Sick Children, the first hospital in England to provide in-patient beds specifically for children, is founded in London.
1855 – Texas is linked by telegraph to the rest of the United States, with the completion of a connection between New Orleans and Marshall, Texas.
1859 – Oregon is admitted as the 33rd U.S. state.
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray.
1879 – The War of the Pacific breaks out when the Chilean Army occupies the Bolivian port city of Antofagasta.
1899 – Voting machines are approved by the U.S. Congress for use in federal elections.
1900 – British forces begin the Battle of the Tugela Heights in an effort to lift the Siege of Ladysmith.
1903 – The United States Department of Commerce and Labor is established (later split into the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor).
1912 – Arizona is admitted as the 48th and the last contiguous U.S. state.
1912 – The U.S. Navy commissions its first class of diesel-powered submarines.
1919 – The Polish–Soviet War begins.
1920 – The League of Women Voters is founded in Chicago.
1924 – The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company changes its name to International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).
1929 – Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre: Seven people, six of them gangster rivals of Al Capone’s gang, are murdered in Chicago.
1942 – Battle of Pasir Panjang contributes to the fall of Singapore.
1943 – World War II: Rostov-on-Don, Russia is liberated.
1943 – World War II: Tunisia Campaign: General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim’s Fifth Panzer Army launches a concerted attack against Allied positions in Tunisia.
1944 – World War II: In the Action of 14 February 1944, a Royal Navy submarine sinks a German-controlled Italian submarine in the Strait of Malacca.
1945 – World War II: On the first day of the bombing of Dresden, the British Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces begin fire-bombing Dresden.
1945 – World War II: Navigational error leads to the mistaken bombing of Prague, Czechoslovakia by an American squadron of B-17s assisting in the Soviet’s Vistula–Oder Offensive.
1945 – World War II: Mostar is liberated by Yugoslav partisans
1945 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt meets King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia aboard the USS Quincy, officially beginning U.S.-Saudi diplomatic relations.
1946 – The Bank of England is nationalized.
1949 – The Knesset (parliament of Israel) convenes for the first time.
1949 – The Asbestos Strike begins in Canada. The strike marks the beginning of the Quiet Revolution in Quebec.
1961 – Discovery of the chemical elements: Element 103, Lawrencium, is first synthesized at the University of California.
1966 – Australian currency is decimalized.
1979 – In Kabul, Setami Milli militants kidnap the American ambassador to Afghanistan, Adolph Dubs who is later killed during a gunfight between his kidnappers and police.
1983 – United American Bank of Knoxville, Tennessee collapses. Its president, Jake Butcher, is later convicted of fraud.
1989 – Union Carbide agrees to pay $470 million to the Indian government for damages it caused in the 1984 Bhopal disaster.
1989 – Iranian leader Ruhollah Khomeini issues a fatwa encouraging Muslims to kill Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses.
1990 – Ninety-two people are killed when Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashes in Bangalore, India.
1990 – The Voyager 1 spacecraft takes the photograph of planet Earth that later become famous as Pale Blue Dot.
1998 – An oil tanker train collides with a freight train in Yaoundé, Cameroon, spilling fuel oil. One person scavenging the oil created a massive explosion which killed 120.
2000 – The spacecraft NEAR Shoemaker enters orbit around asteroid 433 Eros, the first spacecraft to orbit an asteroid.
2004 – In a suburb of Moscow, Russia, the roof of the Transvaal water park collapses, killing more than 25 people, and wounding more than 100 others.
2005 – In Beirut, 23 people, including former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, are killed when the equivalent of around 1,000 kg of TNT is detonated while Hariri’s motorcade drives through the city.
2005 – Seven people are killed and 151 wounded in a series of bombings by suspected al-Qaeda-linked militants that hit Makati, Davao City, and General Santos City, all in the Philippines.
2005 – YouTube is launched by a group of college students, eventually becoming the largest video sharing website in the world and a main source for viral videos.
2008 – Northern Illinois University shooting: A gunman opens fire in a lecture hall of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb County, Illinois, resulting in six fatalities (including the gunman) and 21 injuries.
2011 – As a part of Arab Spring, the Bahraini uprising begins with a ‘Day of Rage’.
2018 – Jacob Zuma resigns as President of South Africa.
2018 – A shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida is one of the deadliest school massacres with 17 fatalities and 15 injuries.
2019 – Pulwama attack takes place in Lethpora in Pulwama district, Jammu and Kashmir, India in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel and a suicide bomber were killed and 35 were injured.
Births on February 14
1404 – Leon Battista Alberti, Italian painter, poet, and philosopher (d. 1472)
1408 – John FitzAlan, 14th Earl of Arundel (d. 1435)
1452 – Pandolfo Petrucci, tyrant of Siena (d. 1512)
1468 – Johannes Werner, German priest and mathematician (d. 1522)
1483 – Babur, Moghul emperor (d. 1530)
1490 – Valentin Friedland, German scholar and educationist of the Reformation (d. 1556)
1513 – Domenico Ferrabosco, Italian composer (d. 1573)
1545 – Lucrezia de’ Medici, Duchess of Ferrara (d. 1561)
1602 – Francesco Cavalli, Italian composer (d. 1676)
1614 – John Wilkins, English bishop, academic and natural philosopher (d. 1672)
1625 – Countess Palatine Maria Eufrosyne of Zweibrücken, Swedish princess (d. 1687)
1628 – Valentine Greatrakes, Irish faith healer (d. 1683)
1640 – Countess Palatine Anna Magdalena of Birkenfeld-Bischweiler (d. 1693)
1670 – Rajaram Raj Bhonsle, third Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire (d. 1700)
1679 – Georg Friedrich Kauffmann, German organist and composer (d. 1735)
1692 – Pierre-Claude Nivelle de La Chaussée, French author and playwright (d. 1754)
1701 – Enrique Flórez, Spanish historian and author (d. 1773)
1763 – Jean Victor Marie Moreau, French general (d. 1813)
1782 – Eleanora Atherton, English philanthropist (d. 1870)
1784 – Heinrich Baermann, German clarinetist (d. 1847)
1799 – Walenty Wańkowicz, Polish painter and illustrator (d. 1842)
1800 – Emory Washburn, American historian, lawyer, and politician, 22nd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1877)
1808 – Michael Costa, Italian-English conductor and composer (d. 1884)
1813 – Lydia Hamilton Smith, African-American businesswoman (d. 1884)
1819 – Christopher Latham Sholes, American journalist and politician, invented the typewriter (d. 1890)
1824 – Winfield Scott Hancock, American general and politician (d. 1886)
1828 – Edmond François Valentin About, French journalist and author (d. 1885)
1835 – Piet Paaltjens, Dutch minister and poet (d. 1894)
1838 – Margaret E. Knight, American inventor (d. 1914)
1846 – Julian Scott, American soldier and drummer, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1901)
1847 – Anna Howard Shaw, American physician, minister, and activist (d. 1919)
1848 – Benjamin Baillaud, French astronomer and academic (d. 1934)
1855 – Frank Harris, Irish author and journalist (d. 1931)
1859 – George Washington Gale Ferris Jr., American engineer, inventor of the Ferris wheel (d. 1896)
1860 – Eugen Schiffer, German lawyer and politician, Vice-Chancellor of Germany (d. 1954)
1869 – Charles Thomson Rees Wilson, Scottish physicist and meteorologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1959)
1878 – Julius Nieuwland, Belgian priest, chemist and academic (d. 1936)
1882 – John Barrymore, American actor (d. 1942)
1884 – Nils Olaf Chrisander, Swedish actor and director (d. 1947)
1884 – Kostas Varnalis, Greek poet and playwright (d. 1974)
1890 – Nina Hamnett, Welsh-English painter and author (d. 1956)
1890 – Dick Richards Welsh international footballer, forward
1891 – Katherine Stinson, American aviator (d. 1977)
1892 – Radola Gajda, Czech commander and politician (d. 1948)
1894 – Jack Benny, American actor and producer (d. 1974)
1895 – Wilhelm Burgdorf, German general (d. 1945)
1895 – Max Horkheimer, German philosopher and sociologist (d. 1973)
1898 – Bill Tilman, English mountaineer and explorer (d. 1977)
1898 – Fritz Zwicky, Swiss-American physicist and astronomer (d. 1974)
1900 – Jessica Dragonette, American singer (d. 1980)
1903 – Stuart Erwin, American actor (d. 1967)
1905 – Thelma Ritter, American actress and singer (d. 1969)
1907 – Johnny Longden, English-American jockey and trainer (d. 2003)
1911 – Willem Johan Kolff, Dutch physician and inventor (d. 2009)
1912 – Tibor Sekelj, Hungarian lawyer, explorer, and author (d. 1988)
1913 – Mel Allen, American sportscaster (d. 1996)
1913 – Woody Hayes, American football player and coach (d. 1987)
1913 – Jimmy Hoffa, American trade union leader (d. 1975)
1913 – James Pike, American bishop (d. 1969)
1916 – Marcel Bigeard, French general (d. 2010)
1916 – Sally Gray, English actress and singer (d. 2006)
1916 – Masaki Kobayashi, Japanese director and producer (d. 1996)
1916 – Edward Platt, American actor (d. 1974)
1917 – Herbert A. Hauptman, American mathematician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2011)
1921 – Hugh Downs, American journalist, game show host, and producer
1921 – Hazel McCallion, Canadian businesswoman and politician, 3rd Mayor of Mississauga
1923 – Jay Hebert, American golfer (d. 1997)
1924 – Patricia Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma (d. 2017)
1927 – Lois Maxwell, Canadian-Australian model and actress (d. 2007)
1928 – William Allain, American soldier and politician, 58th Governor of Mississippi (d. 2013)
1928 – Vicente T. Blaz, American general and politician (d. 2014)
1929 – Vic Morrow, American actor and director (d. 1982)
1931 – Bernie Geoffrion, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2006)
1931 – Brian Kelly, American actor and director (d. 2005)
1932 – Harriet Andersson, Swedish actress
1934 – Florence Henderson, American actress and singer (d. 2016)
1935 – David Wilson, Baron Wilson of Tillyorn, Scottish academic and diplomat, 27th Governor of Hong Kong
1936 – Anna German, Polish singer (d. 1982)
1937 – John MacGregor, Baron MacGregor of Pulham Market, English politician, Secretary of State for Transport
1937 – Magic Sam, American singer and guitarist (d. 1969)
1939 – Razzy Bailey, American country music singer-songwriter and musician
1939 – Blowfly, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2016)
1939 – Eugene Fama, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1940 – James Maynard, American businessman, co-founded Golden Corral
1941 – Donna Shalala, American academic and politician, 18th United States Secretary of Health and Human Services
1941 – Paul Tsongas, American lawyer and politician (d. 1997)
1942 – Michael Bloomberg, American businessman and politician, 108th Mayor of New York City
1942 – Andrew Robinson, American actor and director
1942 – Ricardo Rodríguez, Mexican race car driver (d. 1962)
1943 – Eric Andersen, American singer-songwriter
1943 – Maceo Parker, American saxophonist
1943 – Aaron Russo, American director and producer (d. 2007)
1944 – Carl Bernstein, American journalist and author
1944 – Alan Parker, English director, producer, and screenwriter
1944 – Ronnie Peterson, Swedish race car driver (d. 1978)
1945 – Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein
1945 – Rod Masterson, American lieutenant and actor (d. 2013)
1946 – Bernard Dowiyogo, Nauru politician, President of Nauru (d. 2003)
1946 – Gregory Hines, American actor, singer, and dancer (d. 2003)
1947 – Tim Buckley, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1975)
1947 – Judd Gregg, American lawyer and politician, 76th Governor of New Hampshire
1948 – Kitten Natividad, Mexican-American actress and dancer
1948 – Pat O’Brien, American journalist and author
1948 – Wally Tax, Dutch singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
1948 – Teller, American magician and actor
1950 – Roger Fisher, American guitarist and songwriter
1951 – Terry Gross, American radio host and producer
1951 – Kevin Keegan, English footballer and manager
1952 – Sushma Swaraj, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of External Affairs (d. 2019)
1954 – Jam Mohammad Yousaf, Pakistani politician, Chief Minister of Balochistan (d. 2013)
1955 – Carol Kalish, American publisher (d. 1991)
1956 – Howard Davis Jr., American boxer and trainer (d. 2015)
1956 – Dave Dravecky, American baseball player
1956 – Katharina Fritsch, German sculptor and academic
1957 – Alan Hunter, American television host and actor
1957 – Soile Isokoski, Finnish soprano and actress
1957 – Alan Smith, English bishop
1958 – Grant Thomas, Australian footballer and coach
1959 – Renée Fleming, American soprano and actress
1960 – Philip Jones, English admiral
1960 – Jim Kelly, American football player and businessman
1960 – Meg Tilly, American actress and author
1963 – Enrico Colantoni, Canadian actor, director, and producer
1963 – John Marzano, American baseball player (d. 2008)
1964 – Gianni Bugno, Italian cyclist and sportscaster
1966 – Petr Svoboda, Czech ice hockey player and agent
1967 – Stelios Haji-Ioannou, Greek-English businessman, founded easyJet
1967 – Manuela Maleeva, Bulgarian-Swiss tennis player
1967 – Mark Rutte, Dutch businessman and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
1968 – Jules Asner, American model and television host
1968 – Chris Lewis, Guyanese-English cricketer
1968 – Scott McClellan, American civil servant and author, 25th White House Press Secretary
1969 – Meg Hillier, English journalist and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
1970 – Giuseppe Guerini, Italian cyclist
1970 – Sean Hill, American ice hockey player
1970 – Simon Pegg, English actor, director, and producer
1971 – Kris Aquino, Filipino talk show host, actress, and producer
1971 – Gheorghe Mureșan, Romanian basketball player
1972 – Drew Bledsoe, American football player and coach
1972 – Musōyama Masashi, Japanese sumo wrestler
1972 – Najwa Nimri, Spanish actress and singer
1972 – Jaan Tallinn, Estonian computer programmer, co-developed Skype
1972 – Rob Thomas, American singer-songwriter
1973 – H. D. Ackerman, South African cricketer
1973 – Tyus Edney, American basketball player and coach
1973 – Steve McNair, American football player (d. 2009)
1973 – Annalisa Buffa, Italian mathematician
1974 – Valentina Vezzali, Italian fencer and politician
1976 – Liv Kristine, Norwegian singer-songwriter
1976 – Rie Rasmussen, Danish model, film director, writer, photographer, and actress
1977 – Cadel Evans, Australian cyclist
1977 – Jim Jefferies, Australian comedian and actor
1977 – Darren Purse, English footballer
1977 – Elmer Symons, South African motorcycle racer (d. 2007)
1977 – Anna Erschler, Russian mathematician
1977 – Robert J. Jackson Jr., American law professor
1978 – Richard Hamilton, American basketball player
1978 – Darius Songaila, Lithuanian basketball player and coach
1980 – Josh Senter, American screenwriter and producer
1980 – Michelle Ye, Hong Kong actress and producer
1981 – Matteo Brighi, Italian footballer
1981 – Randy de Puniet, French motorcycle racer
1981 – Brad Halsey, American baseball player (d. 2014)
1982 – Marián Gáborík, Slovak ice hockey player
1982 – John Halls, English footballer and model
1982 – Lenka Tvarošková, Slovak tennis player
1983 – Callix Crabbe, Virgin Islander baseball player
1983 – Rocky Elsom, Australian rugby player
1983 – Bacary Sagna, French footballer
1985 – Karima Adebibe, English model and actress
1985 – Tyler Clippard, American baseball player
1985 – Heart Evangelista, Filipino singer and actress
1985 – Philippe Senderos, Swiss international footballer, centre back
1985 – Miki Yeung, Hong Kong singer and actress
1986 – Michael Ammermüller, German race car driver
1986 – Oliver Lee, English actor, director, and screenwriter
1986 – Gao Lin, Chinese footballer
1987 – Edinson Cavani, Uruguayan footballer
1987 – Tom Pyatt, Canadian ice hockey player
1987 – David Wheater, English footballer
1988 – Katie Boland, Canadian actress, producer, and screenwriter
1988 – Ángel Di María, Argentinian footballer
1988 – Siim Liivik, Estonian ice hockey player
1988 – Asia Nitollano, American singer and dancer
1989 – Néstor Calderón, Mexican footballer
1989 – Adam Matuszczyk, Polish footballer
1989 – Emma Miskew, Canadian curler
1989 – Brandon Sutter, Canadian ice hockey player
1989 – Jurij Tepeš, Slovenian ski jumper
1989 – Kristian Thomas, English gymnast
1990 – Sefa Yılmaz, German-Turkish footballer
1991 – Daniela Mona Lambin, Estonian footballer
1991 – Chris Rowney, English footballer
1992 – Christian Eriksen, Danish footballer
1992 – Freddie Highmore, English actor
1996 – Lucas Hernandez, French footballer
Deaths on February 14
869 – Cyril, Greek missionary bishop (b. 827)
945 – Lian Chongyu, Chinese general
945 – Zhu Wenjin, Chinese emperor
1009 – Bruno of Querfurt, German missionary bishop
1010 – Fujiwara no Korechika, Japanese nobleman (b. 974)
1140 – Leo I, Armenian prince
1140 – Sobĕslav I, duke of Bohemia
1164 – Sviatoslav Olgovich, Kievan prince
1229 – Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson, king of the Isles
1317 – Margaret of France, queen of England
1400 – Richard II, king of England (b. 1367)
1440 – Dietrich of Oldenburg, German nobleman
1489 – Nicolaus von Tüngen, prince-bishop of Warmia
1528 – Edzard I, German nobleman (b. 1462)
1549 – Il Sodoma, Italian painter (b. 1477)
1571 – Odet de Coligny, French cardinal (b. 1517)
1676 – Abraham Bosse, French engraver and illustrator (b. 1602)
1714 – Maria Luisa of Savoy, queen of Spain (b. 1688)
1737 – Charles Talbot, 1st Baron Talbot, English lawyer and politician Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1685)
1744 – John Hadley, English mathematician, invented the octant (b. 1682)
1779 – James Cook, English captain, cartographer, and explorer (b. 1728)
1780 – William Blackstone, English jurist and politician (b. 1723)
1782 – Singu Min, Burmese king (b. 1756)
1808 – John Dickinson, American lawyer and politician 5th Governor of Delaware (b. 1732)
1831 – Vicente Guerrero, Mexican general and politician, 2nd President of Mexico (b. 1782)
1831 – Henry Maudslay, English engineer (b. 1771)
1870 – St. John Richardson Liddell, American general (b. 1815)
1881 – Fernando Wood, American merchant and politician, 73rd Mayor of New York City (b. 1812)
1884 – Lydia Hamilton Smith, African-American businesswoman (b. 1813)
1885 – Jules Vallès, French journalist and author (b. 1832)
1891 – William Tecumseh Sherman, American general (b. 1820)
1894 – Eugène Charles Catalan, Belgian-French mathematician and academic (b. 1814)
1901 – Edward Stafford, Scottish-New Zealand educator and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1819)
1910 – Giovanni Passannante, Italian anarchist (b. 1849)
1922 – Heikki Ritavuori, Finnish lawyer and politician (b. 1880)
1929 – Thomas Burke, American sprinter, coach, and lawyer (b. 1875)
1930 – Thomas Mackenzie, Scottish-New Zealand cartographer and politician, 18th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1853)
1933 – Carl Correns, German botanist and geneticist (b. 1864)
1942 – Adnan Saidi, Malayan lieutenant (b. 1915)
1943 – Dora Gerson, German actress and singer (b. 1899)
1943 – David Hilbert, Russian-German mathematician, physicist, and philosopher (b. 1862)
1948 – Mordecai Brown, American baseball player and manager (b. 1876)
1949 – Yusuf Salman Yusuf, Iraqi politician (b. 1901)
1950 – Karl Guthe Jansky, American physicist and engineer (b. 1905)
1952 – Maurice De Waele, Belgian cyclist (b. 1896)
951 – Guo Wei, a court official, leads a military coup and declares himself emperor of the new Later Zhou.
962 – Emperor Otto I and Pope John XII co-sign the Diploma Ottonianum, recognizing John as ruler of Rome.
1322 – The central tower of Ely Cathedral falls on the night of 12th–13th.
1462 – The Treaty of Westminster is finalised between Edward IV of England and the Scottish Lord of the Isles.
1503 – Challenge of Barletta: Tournament between 13 Italian and 13 French knights near Barletta.
1542 – Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII of England, is executed for adultery.
1633 – Galileo Galilei arrives in Rome for his trial before the Inquisition.
1660 – With the accession of young Charles XI of Sweden, his regents begin negotiations to end the Second Northern War.
1689 – William and Mary are proclaimed co-rulers of England.
1692 – Massacre of Glencoe: Almost 80 Macdonalds at Glen Coe, Scotland are killed early in the morning for not promptly pledging allegiance to the new king, William of Orange.
1726 – Parliament of Negrete between Mapuche and Spanish authorities in Chile bring an end to the Mapuche uprising of 1723–26.
1755 – Treaty of Giyanti signed by VOC, Pakubuwono III and Prince Mangkubumi. The treaty divides the Javanese kingdom of Mataram into 2: Sunanate of Surakarta and Sultanate of Yogyakarta.
1849 – The delegation headed by Metropolitan bishop Andrei Șaguna hands out to the Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria the General Petition of Romanian leaders in Transylvania, Banat and Bukovina, which demands that the Romanian nation be recognized.
1861 – Italian unification: The Siege of Gaeta ends with the capitulation of the defending fortress, effectively bringing an end of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
1867 – Work begins on the covering of the Senne, burying Brussels’s primary river and creating the modern central boulevards.
1880 – Thomas Edison observes Thermionic emission.
1913 – The 13th Dalai Lama proclaims Tibetan independence following a period of domination by Manchu Qing dynasty and initiated a period of almost four decades of independence.
1914 – Copyright: In New York City the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers is established to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of its members.
1920 – The Negro National League is formed.
1931 – The British Raj completes its transfer from Calcutta to New Delhi.
1935 – A jury in Flemington, New Jersey finds Bruno Hauptmann guilty of the 1932 kidnapping and murder of the Lindbergh baby, the son of Charles Lindbergh.
1945 – World War II: The siege of Budapest concludes with the unconditional surrender of German and Hungarian forces to the Red Army.
1945 – World War II: Royal Air Force bombers are dispatched to Dresden, Germany to attack the city with a massive aerial bombardment.
1951 – Korean War: Battle of Chipyong-ni, which represented the “high-water mark” of the Chinese incursion into South Korea, commences.
1954 – Frank Selvy becomes the only NCAA Division I basketball player ever to score 100 points in a single game.
1955 – Israel obtains four of the seven Dead Sea Scrolls.
1960 – With the success of a nuclear test codenamed “Gerboise Bleue”, France becomes the fourth country to possess nuclear weapons.
1960 – Black college students stage the first of the Nashville sit-ins at three lunch counters in Nashville, Tennessee.
1961 – An allegedly 500,000-year-old rock is discovered near Olancha, California, US, that appears to anachronistically encase a spark plug.
1967 – American researchers discover the Madrid Codices by Leonardo da Vinci in the National Library of Spain.
1975 – Fire at One World Trade Center (North Tower) of the World Trade Center in New York.
1978 – Hilton bombing: a bomb explodes in a refuse truck outside the Hilton Hotel in Sydney, Australia, killing two refuse collectors and a policeman.
1979 – An intense windstorm strikes western Washington and sinks a 1⁄2-mile-long section of the Hood Canal Bridge.
1981 – A series of sewer explosions destroys more than two miles of streets in Louisville, Kentucky.
1983 – A cinema fire in Turin, Italy, kills 64 people.
1984 – Konstantin Chernenko succeeds the late Yuri Andropov as general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
1990 – German reunification: An agreement is reached on a two-stage plan to reunite Germany.
1991 – Gulf War: Two laser-guided “smart bombs” destroy the Amiriyah shelter in Baghdad. Allied forces said the bunker was being used as a military communications outpost, but over 400 Iraqi civilians inside were killed.
1996 – The Nepalese Civil War is initiated in the Kingdom of Nepal by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist-Centre).
1999 – The last hockey game is played in Maple Leaf Gardens: the Toronto Maple Leafs lose 6–2 to the Chicago Blackhawks.
2001 – An earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter magnitude scale hits El Salvador, killing at least 944.
2004 – The Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics announces the discovery of the universe’s largest known diamond, white dwarf star BPM 37093. Astronomers named this star “Lucy” after The Beatles’ song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”.
2007 – Taiwan opposition leader Ma Ying-jeou resigns as the chairman of the Kuomintang party after being indicted on charges of embezzlement during his tenure as the mayor of Taipei; Ma also announces his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election.
2008 – Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd makes a historic apology to the Indigenous Australians and the Stolen Generations.
2010 – A bomb explodes in the city of Pune, Maharashtra, India, killing 17 and injuring 60 more.
2011 – For the first time in more than 100 years the Umatilla, an American Indian tribe, are able to hunt and harvest a bison just outside Yellowstone National Park, restoring a centuries-old tradition guaranteed by a treaty signed in 1855.
2012 – The European Space Agency (ESA) conducted the first launch of the European Vega rocket from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
2017 – Kim Jong-nam, brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un, is assassinated at Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
Births on February 13
1440 – Hartmann Schedel, German physician (d. 1514)
1457 – Mary of Burgundy, Sovereign Duchess regnant of Burgundy, married to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1482)
1469 – Elia Levita, Renaissance Hebrew grammarian (d. 1549)
1480 – Girolamo Aleandro, Italian cardinal (d. 1542)
1523 – Valentin Naboth, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1593)
1539 – Elisabeth of Hesse, Electress Palatine (d. 1582)
1569 – Johann Reinhard I, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. 1625)
1599 – Pope Alexander VII (d. 1667)
1602 – William V, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1637)
1672 – Étienne François Geoffroy, French physician and chemist (d. 1731)
1683 – Giovanni Battista Piazzetta, Italian painter (d. 1754)
1719 – George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney, English admiral and politician (d. 1792)
1721 – John Reid, Scottish general (d. 1807)
1728 – John Hunter, Scottish surgeon and anatomist (d. 1793)
1766 – Thomas Robert Malthus, English economist and scholar (d. 1834)
1768 – Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier, French general and politician, 15th Prime Minister of France (d. 1835)
1769 – Ivan Krylov, Russian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1844)
1805 – Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet, German mathematician and academic (d. 1859)
1811 – François Achille Bazaine, French general (d. 1888)
1815 – Rufus Wilmot Griswold, American anthologist, editor, poet and critic (d. 1857)
1831 – John Aaron Rawlins, American general and politician, 29th United States Secretary of War (d. 1869)
1834 – Heinrich Caro, Sephardic Jewish Polish-German chemist and academic (d. 1910)
1835 – Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Indian religious leader (d. 1908)
1849 – Lord Randolph Churchill, English lawyer and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (d. 1895)
1855 – Paul Deschanel, Belgian-French politician, 11th President of France (d. 1922)
1863 – Hugo Becker, German cellist and composer (d. 1941)
1867 – Harold Mahony, Scottish-Irish tennis player (d. 1905)
1870 – Leopold Godowsky, Polish-American pianist and composer (d. 1938)
1873 – Feodor Chaliapin, Russian opera singer (d. 1938)
1876 – Fritz Buelow, German-American baseball player and umpire (d. 1933)
1879 – Sarojini Naidu, Indian poet and activist (d. 1949)
1880 – Dimitrie Gusti, Romanian sociologist, ethnologist, historian, and philosopher (d. 1955)
1881 – Eleanor Farjeon, Jewish-English author, poet, and playwright (d. 1965)
1883 – Hal Chase, American baseball player and manager (d. 1947)
1883 – Yevgeny Vakhtangov, Russian-Armenian actor and director (d. 1922)
1884 – Alfred Carlton Gilbert, American pole vaulter and businessman, founded the A. C. Gilbert Company (d. 1961)
1885 – Bess Truman, American wife of Harry S. Truman, 35th First Lady of the United States (d. 1982)
1887 – Géza Csáth, Hungarian playwright and critic (d. 1919)
1888 – Georgios Papandreou, Greek lawyer, economist, and politician, 162nd Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1968)
1889 – Leontine Sagan, Austrian actress and director (d. 1974)
1891 – Kate Roberts, Welsh author and activist (d. 1985)
1891 – Grant Wood, American painter and academic (d. 1942)
1892 – Robert H. Jackson, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 57th United States Attorney General (d. 1954)
1898 – Hubert Ashton, English cricketer and politician (d. 1979)
1900 – Barbara von Annenkoff, Russian-born German film and stage actress (d. 1979)
1901 – Paul Lazarsfeld, Austrian-American sociologist and academic (d. 1976)
1902 – Harold Lasswell, American political scientist and theorist (d. 1978)
1903 – Georgy Beriev, Georgian-Russian engineer, founded the Beriev Aircraft Company (d. 1979)
1903 – Georges Simenon, Belgian-Swiss author (d. 1989)
1906 – Agostinho da Silva, Portuguese philosopher and author (d. 1994)
1907 – Katy de la Cruz, Filipino-American singer and actress (d. 2004)
1910 – William Shockley, English-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1989)
1911 – Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Indian-Pakistani poet and journalist (d. 1984)
1911 – Jean Muir, American actress and educator (d. 1996)
1912 – Harald Riipalu, Russian-Estonian commander (d. 1961)
1912 – Margaretta Scott, English actress (d. 2005)
1913 – Khalid of Saudi Arabia (d. 1982)
1915 – Lyle Bettger, American actor (d. 2003)
1915 – Aung San, Burmese general and politician, 5th Premier of British Crown Colony of Burma (d. 1947)
1916 – Dorothy Bliss, American invertebrate zoologist (d. 1987)
1919 – Tennessee Ernie Ford, American singer and actor (d. 1991)
1919 – Eddie Robinson, American football player and coach (d. 2007)
1920 – Boudleaux Bryant, American songwriter (d. 1987)
1920 – Eileen Farrell, American soprano and educator (d. 2002)
1921 – Jeanne Demessieux, French pianist and composer (d. 1968)
1921 – Aung Khin, Burmese painter (d. 1996)
1922 – Francis Pym, Baron Pym, Welsh soldier and politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (d. 2008)
1922 – Gordon Tullock, American economist and academic (d. 2014)
1923 – Michael Anthony Bilandic, American soldier, judge, and politician, 49th Mayor of Chicago (d. 2002)
1923 – Chuck Yeager, American general and pilot; first test pilot to break the sound barrier
1924 – Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber, French journalist and politician (d. 2006)
1926 – Fay Ajzenberg-Selove, American nuclear physicist (d. 2012)
1928 – Gerald Regan, Canadian lawyer and politician, 19th Premier of Nova Scotia (d. 2019)
1929 – Omar Torrijos, Panamanian commander and politician, Military Leader of Panama (d. 1981)
1930 – Ernst Fuchs, Austrian painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 2015)
1930 – Israel Kirzner, English-American economist, author, and academic
1932 – Susan Oliver, American actress (d. 1990)
1933 – Paul Biya, Cameroon politician, 2nd President of Cameroon
1933 – Kim Novak, American actress
1933 – Emanuel Ungaro, French fashion designer (d. 2019)
1934 – George Segal, American actor
1937 – Ali El-Maak, Sudanese author and academic (d. 1992)
1937 – Angelo Mosca, American-Canadian football player and wrestler
1938 – Oliver Reed, English actor (d. 1999)
1940 – Bram Peper, Dutch sociologist and politician, Mayor of Rotterdam
1941 – Sigmar Polke, German painter and photographer (d. 2010)
1941 – Bo Svenson, Swedish-American actor, director, and producer
1942 – Carol Lynley, American model and actress (d. 2019)
1942 – Peter Tork, American singer-songwriter, bass player, and actor (d. 2019)
1942 – Donald E. Williams, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2016)
1943 – Elaine Pagels, American theologian and academic
1944 – Stockard Channing, American actress
1944 – Jerry Springer, English-American television host, actor, and politician, 56th Mayor of Cincinnati
1945 – Marian Dawkins, English biologist and academic
1945 – King Floyd, American singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
1945 – Simon Schama, English historian and author
1945 – William Sleator, American author and composer (d. 2011)
1946 – Richard Blumenthal, American sergeant and politician, 23rd Attorney General of Connecticut
1946 – Janet Finch, English sociologist and academic
1946 – Colin Matthews, English composer and educator
1947 – Stephen Hadley, American soldier and diplomat, 21st United States National Security Advisor
1947 – Mike Krzyzewski, American basketball player and coach
1947 – Bogdan Tanjević, Montenegrin-Bosnian professional basketball coach
1947 – Kevin Bloody Wilson, Australian comedian, singer-songwriter, and guitarist
1949 – Peter Kern, Austrian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
1950 – Vera Baird, English lawyer and politician
1950 – Peter Gabriel, English singer-songwriter and musician
1952 – Ed Gagliardi, American bass player (d. 2014)
1953 – Akio Sato, Japanese wrestler and manager
1954 – Donnie Moore, American baseball player (d. 1989)
1955 – Joe Birkett, American lawyer, judge, and politician
1956 – Peter Hook, English singer, songwriter, bass player, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer
1957 – Denise Austin, American fitness trainer and author
1958 – Pernilla August, Swedish actress
1958 – Marc Emery, Canadian publisher and activist
1958 – Jean-François Lisée, Canadian journalist and politician
1958 – Derek Riggs, English painter and illustrator
1958 – Øivind Elgenes, Norwegian vocalist, guitarist and composer
1959 – Gaston Gingras, Canadian ice hockey player
1960 – Pierluigi Collina, Italian footballer and referee
1960 – John Healey, English journalist and politician
1960 – Gary Patterson, American football player and coach
1960 – Artur Yusupov, Russian-German chess player and author
1961 – Marc Crawford, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1961 – cEvin Key, Canadian singer-songwriter, drummer, keyboard player, and producer
1961 – Henry Rollins, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
1962 – Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, Puerto Rican lawyer and politician
1962 – Baby Doll, American wrestler and manager
1962 – Michele Greene, American actress
1964 – Stephen Bowen, American engineer, captain, and astronaut
1964 – Ylva Johansson, Swedish educator and politician, Swedish Minister of Employment
1965 – Peter O’Neill, Papua New Guinean accountant and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea
1966 – Neal McDonough, American actor and producer
1966 – Jeff Waters, Canadian guitarist, songwriter, and producer
1966 – Freedom Williams, American rapper and singer
1967 – Stanimir Stoilov, Bulgarian footballer and coach
1968 – Kelly Hu, American actress
1969 – Joyce DiDonato, American soprano and actress
1970 – Karoline Krüger, Norwegian singer-songwriter and pianist
613 – Eight-month-old Constantine is crowned as co-emperor (Caesar) by his father Heraclius at Constantinople.
871 – Battle of Basing: The West Saxons led by King Æthelred I are defeated by the Danelaw Vikings at Basing.
1506 – The first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrives at the Vatican.
1517 – The Ottoman Empire under Selim I defeats the Mamluk Sultanate and captures present-day Egypt at the Battle of Ridaniya.
1555 – The Ava Kingdom falls to the Taungoo Dynasty in what is now Myanmar.
1689 – The Convention Parliament convenes to determine whether James II and VII, the last Roman Catholic monarch of England, Ireland and Scotland, had vacated the thrones of England and Ireland when he fled to France in 1688.
1808 – The Portuguese royal family arrives in Brazil after fleeing the French army’s invasion of Portugal two months earlier.
1824 – The Ashantis defeat British forces in the Gold Coast.
1849 – Second Anglo-Sikh War: The Siege of Multan ends after nine months when the last Sikh defenders of Multan, Punjab, surrender.
1863 – The January Uprising breaks out in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. The aim of the national movement is to regain Polish–Lithuanian–Ruthenian Commonwealth from occupation by Russia.
1879 – The Battle of Isandlwana during the Anglo-Zulu War results in a British defeat.
1879 – The Battle of Rorke’s Drift, also during the Anglo-Zulu War and just some 15 km away from Isandlwana, results in a British victory.
1889 – Columbia Phonograph is formed in Washington, D.C.
1890 – The United Mine Workers of America is founded in Columbus, Ohio.
1901 – Edward VII is proclaimed King after the death of his mother, Queen Victoria.
1905 – Bloody Sunday in Saint Petersburg, beginning of the 1905 revolution.
1906 – SS Valencia runs aground on rocks on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, killing more than 130.
1915 – Over 600 people are killed in Guadalajara, Mexico, when a train plunges off the tracks into a deep canyon.
1917 – World War I: President Woodrow Wilson of the still-neutral United States calls for “peace without victory” in Europe.
1919 – Act Zluky is signed, unifying the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the West Ukrainian National Republic.
1924 – Ramsay MacDonald becomes the first Labour Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
1927 – Teddy Wakelam gives the first live radio commentary of a football match, between Arsenal F.C. and Sheffield United at Highbury.
1941 – World War II: British and Commonwealth troops capture Tobruk from Italian forces during Operation Compass.
1943 – World War II: Australian and American forces defeat Japanese army and navy units in the bitterly fought Battle of Buna–Gona.
1944 – World War II: The Allies commence Operation Shingle, an assault on Anzio and Nettuno, Italy.
1946 – In Iran, Qazi Muhammad declares the independent people’s Republic of Mahabad at Chahar Cheragh Square in the Kurdish city of Mahabad; he becomes the new president and Haji Baba Sheikh becomes the prime minister.
1946 – Creation of the Central Intelligence Group, forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency.
1947 – KTLA, the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River, begins operation in Hollywood.
1957 – Israel withdraws from the Sinai Peninsula.
1957 – The New York City “Mad Bomber”, George P. Metesky, is arrested in Waterbury, Connecticut and charged with planting more than 30 bombs.
1963 – The Élysée Treaty of cooperation between France and Germany is signed by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer.
1968 – Apollo 5 lifts off carrying the first Lunar module into space.
1968 – Operation Igloo White, a US electronic surveillance system to stop communist infiltration into South Vietnam begins installation.
1970 – The Boeing 747, the world’s first “jumbo jet”, enters commercial service for launch customer Pan American Airways with its maiden voyage from John F. Kennedy International Airport to London Heathrow Airport.
1971 – The Singapore Declaration, one of the two most important documents to the uncodified constitution of the Commonwealth of Nations, is issued.
1973 – The Supreme Court of the United States delivers its decisions in Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton, legalizing elective abortion in all fifty states.
1973 – The crew of Apollo 17 addresses a joint session of Congress after the completion of the final Apollo moon landing mission.
1973 – A chartered Boeing 707 explodes in flames upon landing at Kano Airport, Nigeria, killing 176.
1973 – In a bout for the world heavyweight boxing championship in Kingston, Jamaica, challenger George Foreman knocks down champion Joe Frazier six times in the first two rounds before the fight is stopped by referee Arthur Mercante.
1984 – The Apple Macintosh, the first consumer computer to popularize the computer mouse and the graphical user interface, is introduced during a Super Bowl XVIII television commercial.
1987 – Philippine security forces open fire on a crowd of 10,000–15,000 demonstrators at Malacañang Palace, Manila, killing 13.
1992 – Rebel forces occupy Zaire’s national radio station in Kinshasa and broadcast a demand for the government’s resignation.
1992 – Space Shuttle program: the space shuttle Discovery launches on STS-42 carrying Dr. Roberta Bondar, who becomes the first Canadian woman and the first neurologist in space.
1995 – Israeli–Palestinian conflict: Beit Lid massacre: In central Israel, near Netanya, two Gazans blow themselves up at a military transit point, killing 19 Israelis.
1998 – Space Shuttle program: space shuttle Endeavor launches on STS-89 to dock with the Russian space station Mir.
1999 – Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons are burned alive by radical Hindus while sleeping in their car in Eastern India.
2002 – Kmart becomes the largest retailer in United States history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
2006 – Evo Morales is inaugurated as President of Bolivia, becoming the country’s first indigenous president.
2007 – At least 88 people are killed when two car bombs explode in the Bab Al-Sharqi market in central Baghdad, Iraq.
2015 – An explosion near a civilian trolley-bus in Donetsk kills at least thirteen people.
Births on January 22
826 – Emperor Montoku of Japan (d. 858)
1263 – Ibn Taymiyyah, Syrian scholar and theologian (d. 1328)
1440 – Ivan III of Russia (d. 1505)
1522 – Charles II de Valois, Duke of Orléans, (d. 1545)
1552 – Walter Raleigh, English poet, soldier, courtier, and explorer (d. 1618)
1561 – Francis Bacon, English philosopher and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (d. 1626)
1570 – Sir Robert Cotton, 1st Baronet, of Connington, English historian and politician, founded the Cotton library (d. 1631)
1573 – John Donne, English poet and cleric in the Church of England, wrote the Holy Sonnets (d. 1631)
1592 – Pierre Gassendi, French mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher (d. 1655)
1645 – William Kidd, Scottish sailor and pirate hunter (probable; d. 1701)
1654 – Richard Blackmore, English physician and poet (d. 1729)
1690 – Nicolas Lancret, French painter (d. 1743)
1729 – Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German philosopher and author (d. 1781)
1733 – Philip Carteret, English admiral and explorer (d. 1796)
1740 – Noah Phelps, American soldier, lawyer, and judge (d. 1809)
1781 – François Habeneck, French violinist and conductor (d. 1849)
1788 – Lord Byron, English poet and playwright (d. 1824)
1792 – Lady Lucy Whitmore, English noblewoman, hymn writer (d. 1840)
1796 – Karl Ernst Claus, Estonian-Russian chemist, botanist, and academic (d. 1864)
1797 – Maria Leopoldina of Austria (d. 1826)
1799 – Ludger Duvernay, Canadian journalist, publisher, and politician (d. 1852)
1802 – Richard Upjohn, English-American architect (d. 1878)
