1813

  • March 16- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    March 16 in History

    • 934 – Meng Zhixiang declares himself emperor and establishes Later Shu as a new state independent of Later Tang.
    • 1190 – Massacre of Jews at Clifford’s Tower, York.
    • 1244 – Over 200 Cathars who refuse to recant are burned to death after the Fall of Montségur.
    • 1322 – The Battle of Boroughbridge takes place in the Despenser Wars.
    • 1521 – Ferdinand Magellan reaches the island of Homonhon in the Philippines.
    • 1621 – Samoset, a Mohegan, visited the settlers of Plymouth Colony and greets them, “Welcome, Englishmen! My name is Samoset.”
    • 1660 – The Long Parliament of England is dissolved so as to prepare for the new Convention Parliament.
    • 1689 – The 23rd Regiment of Foot, or Royal Welch Fusiliers, is founded.
    • 1782 – American Revolutionary War: Spanish troops capture the British-held island of Roatán.
    • 1782 – Anglo-Spanish War (1779): Action of 16 March 1782.
    • 1792 – King Gustav III of Sweden is shot; he dies on March 29.
    • 1797 – French Revolutionary Wars: An Austrian column is defeated by the French in the Battle of Valvasone.
    • 1802 – The Army Corps of Engineers is established to found and operate the United States Military Academy at West Point.
    • 1812 – The Siege of Badajoz begins: British and Portuguese forces besiege and defeat the French garrison during the Peninsular War.
    • 1815 – Prince Willem proclaims himself King of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, the first constitutional monarch in the Netherlands.
    • 1818 – In the Second Battle of Cancha Rayada, Spanish forces defeated Chileans under José de San Martín.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: During the Red River Campaign, Union troops reach Alexandria, Louisiana.
    • 1865 – American Civil War: The Battle of Averasborough began as Confederate forces suffer irreplaceable casualties in the final months of the war.
    • 1870 – The first version of the overture fantasy Romeo and Juliet by Tchaikovsky receives its première performance.
    • 1872 – The Wanderers F.C. won the first FA Cup, the oldest football competition in the world, beating Royal Engineers A.F.C. 1–0 at The Oval in Kennington, London.
    • 1894 – Jules Massenet’s opera Thaïs is first performed.
    • 1898 – In Melbourne the representatives of five colonies adopted a constitution, which would become the basis of the Commonwealth of Australia.
    • 1900 – Sir Arthur Evans purchased the land around the ruins of Knossos, the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete.
    • 1916 – The 7th and 10th US cavalry regiments under John J. Pershing cross the US–Mexico border to join the hunt for Pancho Villa.
    • 1917 – World War I: A German auxiliary cruiser is sunk in the Action of 16 March 1917.
    • 1918 – Finnish Civil War: Battle of Länkipohja is infamous for its bloody aftermath as the Whites executed 70–100 capitulated Reds.
    • 1924 – In accordance with the Treaty of Rome, Fiume becomes annexed as part of Italy.
    • 1925 – An earthquake occurs in Yunnan, China.
    • 1926 – History of Rocketry: Robert Goddard launches the first liquid-fueled rocket, at Auburn, Massachusetts.
    • 1935 – Adolf Hitler orders Germany to rearm herself in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Conscription is reintroduced to form the Wehrmacht.
    • 1936 – Warmer-than-normal temperatures rapidly melt snow and ice on the upper Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, leading to a major flood in Pittsburgh.
    • 1939 – From Prague Castle, Hitler proclaims Bohemia and Moravia a German protectorate.
    • 1940 – First person killed (James Isbister) in a German bombing raid on the UK in World War II during a raid on Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands.
    • 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Iwo Jima ended, but small pockets of Japanese resistance persisted.
    • 1945 – Ninety percent of Würzburg, Germany is destroyed in only 20 minutes by British bombers, resulting in around 5,000 deaths.
    • 1958 – The Ford Motor Company produces its 50 millionth automobile, the Thunderbird, averaging almost a million cars a year since the company’s founding.
    • 1962 – A Flying Tiger Line Super Constellation disappears in the western Pacific Ocean, with all 107 aboard missing and presumed dead.
    • 1966 – Launch of Gemini 8, the 12th manned American space flight and first space docking with an Agena Target Vehicle.
    • 1968 – Vietnam War: My Lai Massacre occurs; between 347 and 500 Vietnamese villagers (men, women, and children) are killed by American troops.
    • 1968 – General Motors produces its 100 millionth automobile, the Oldsmobile Toronado.
    • 1969 – A Viasa McDonnell Douglas DC-9 crashes in Maracaibo, Venezuela, killing 155.
    • 1976 – British Prime Minister Harold Wilson resigns, citing personal reasons.
    • 1977 – Assassination of Kamal Jumblatt, the main leader of the anti-government forces in the Lebanese Civil War.
    • 1978 – Former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro is kidnapped. (He is later murdered by his captors.)
    • 1978 – A Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Tupolev Tu-134 crashes near Gabare, Bulgaria, killing 73.
    • 1978 – Supertanker Amoco Cadiz splits in two after running aground on the Portsall Rocks, three miles off the coast of Brittany, resulting in the largest oil spill in history at that time.
    • 1979 – Sino-Vietnamese War: The People’s Liberation Army crosses the border back into China, ends the war.
    • 1983 – Demolition of the Ismaning radio transmitter, the last wooden radio tower in Germany.
    • 1984 – William Buckley, the CIA station chief in Lebanon, is kidnapped by Hezbollah. (He later dies in captivity.)
    • 1985 – Associated Press newsman Terry Anderson is taken hostage in Beirut. He is released on December 4, 1991.
    • 1988 – Iran–Contra affair: Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North and Vice Admiral John Poindexter are indicted on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States.
    • 1988 – Halabja chemical attack: The Kurdish town of Halabja in Iraq is attacked with a mix of poison gas and nerve agents on the orders of Saddam Hussein, killing 5,000 people and injuring about 10,000 people.
    • 1988 – The Troubles: Ulster loyalist militant Michael Stone attacks a Provisional IRA funeral in Belfast with pistols and grenades. Three persons, one of them a member of PIRA are killed, and more than 60 others are wounded.
    • 1991 – The airplane carrying eight members of Reba McEntire’s touring band crashed on the side of Otay Mountain.
    • 1995 – Mississippi formally ratifies the Thirteenth Amendment, becoming the last state to approve the abolition of slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment was officially ratified in 1865.
    • 2001 – A series of bomb blasts that took place in the city of Shijiazhuang, China killed 108 people and injured 38 others, was the biggest mass murder in China in decades.
    • 2003 – American activist Rachel Corrie is killed in Rafah trying to obstruct the demolition of a home by being run over by a bulldozer.
    • 2005 – Israel officially hands over Jericho to Palestinian control.
    • 2014 – Crimea votes in a controversial referendum to secede from Ukraine to join Russia.
    • 2016 – A bomb detonates in a bus carrying government employees in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing 15 and injuring at least 54.
    • 2016 – Two suicide bombers detonate their explosives at a mosque during morning prayer on the outskirts of Maiduguri, Nigeria, killing 22 and injuring 18.

    Births on March 16

    • 1399 – The Xuande Emperor, ruler of Ming China (d. 1435)
    • 1445 – Johann Geiler von Kaisersberg, Swiss priest and theologian (d. 1510)
    • 1465 – Kunigunde of Austria, Archduchess of Austria (d. 1520)
    • 1473 – Henry IV, Duke of Saxony (d. 1541)
    • 1559 – Amar Singh I, successor of Maharana Pratap of Mewar (d. 1620)
    • 1581 – Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, Dutch historian and poet (d. 1647)
    • 1585 – Gerbrand Bredero, Dutch poet and playwright (d. 1618)
    • 1590 – Ii Naotaka, Japanese daimyō (d. 1659)
    • 1596 – Ebba Brahe, Swedish countess (d. 1674)
    • 1609 – Michael Franck, German baker, teacher, poet, and composer (d. 1667)
    • 1609 – Agostino Mitelli, Italian painter (d. 1660)
    • 1621 – Georg Neumark, German poet and composer (d. 1681)
    • 1631 – René Le Bossu, French critic (d. 1680)
    • 1638 – François Crépieul, Jesuit missionary (d. 1702)
    • 1654 – Andreas Acoluthus, German scholar (d. 1704)
    • 1670 – François de Franquetot de Coigny, French general (d. 1759)
    • 1673 – Jean Bouhier, French jurist and scholar (d. 1746)
    • 1687 – Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, queen consort of Frederick William I (d. 1757)
    • 1693 – Malhar Rao Holkar, Indian nobleman (d. 1766)
    • 1701 – Daniel Lorenz Salthenius, Swedish theologian (d. 1750)
    • 1729 – Maria Louise Albertine (d. 1818)
    • 1741 – Carlo Amoretti, Italian scientist (d. 1816)
    • 1744 – Nicolas-Germain Léonard, French poet and novelist (d. 1793)
    • 1750 – Caroline Herschel, German-English astronomer (d. 1848)
    • 1751 – James Madison, American academic and politician, 4th President of the United States (d. 1836)
    • 1753 – François Amédée Doppet, French general (d. 1799)
    • 1760 – Johann Heinrich Meyer, Swiss painter and writer (d. 1832)
    • 1766 – Jean-Frédéric Waldeck, French antiquarian, cartographer, artist and explorer (d. 1875)
    • 1771 – Antoine-Jean Gros, French painter (d. 1835)
    • 1773 – Juan Ramón Balcarce, Argentinian general and politician, 6th Governor of Buenos Aires Province (d. 1836)
    • 1774 – Matthew Flinders, English navigator and cartographer (d. 1814)
    • 1789 – Francis Rawdon Chesney, English general and explorer (d. 1872)
    • 1789 – Georg Ohm, German physicist and mathematician (d. 1854)
    • 1794 – Ami Boué, Austrian geologist and ethnographer (d. 1881)
    • 1797 – Alaric Alexander Watts, English poet and journalist (d. 1864)
    • 1799 – Anna Atkins, English botanist and photographer (d. 1871)
    • 1800 – Emperor Ninkō of Japan (d. 1846)
    • 1805 – Peter Ernst von Lasaulx, German philologist and politician (d. 1861)
    • 1806 – Félix De Vigne, Belgian painter (d. 1862)
    • 1808 – Hannah T. King, British-born American writer and pioneer (d. 1886)
    • 1813 – Gaëtan de Rochebouët, French prime minister (d. 1899)
    • 1819 – José Paranhos, Brazilian politician (d. 1880)
    • 1820 – Enrico Tamberlik, Italian tenor (d. 1889)
    • 1821 – Eduard Heine, German mathematician and academic (d. 1881)
    • 1822 – Rosa Bonheur, French painter and sculptor (d. 1899)
    • 1822 – John Pope, American general (d. 1892)
    • 1823 – William Henry Monk, English organist and composer (d. 1889)
    • 1825 – Camilo Castelo Branco, Portuguese writer (d. 1890)
    • 1828 – Émile Deshayes de Marcère, French politician (d. 1918)
    • 1834 – James Hector, Scottish geologist and surgeon (d. 1907)
    • 1836 – Andrew Smith Hallidie, English-American engineer and businessman (d. 1900)
    • 1839 – Sully Prudhomme, French poet and critic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1907)
    • 1839 – John Butler Yeats, Irish painter (d. 1922)
    • 1840 – Shibusawa Eiichi, Japanese businessman (d. 1931)
    • 1840 – Georg von der Gabelentz, German linguist and sinologist (d. 1893)
    • 1845 – Umegatani Tōtarō I, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 15th Yokozuna (d. 1928)
    • 1846 – Gösta Mittag-Leffler, Swedish mathematician and academic (d. 1927)
    • 1846 – Rebecca Cole, American physician and social reformer (d. 1922)
    • 1846 – Jurgis Bielinis, Lithuanian book smuggler (d. 1918)
    • 1848 – Axel Heiberg, Norwegian financier and diplomat (d. 1932)
    • 1851 – Otto Bardenhewer, German patrologist (d. 1935)
    • 1851 – Martinus Beijerinck, Dutch microbiologist and botanist (d. 1931)
    • 1856 – Napoléon, Prince Imperial of France (d. 1879)
    • 1857 – Charles Harding Firth, English historian and academic (d. 1936)
    • 1859 – Alexander Stepanovich Popov, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1906)
    • 1865 – Patsy Donovan, Irish-American baseball player and manager (d. 1953)
    • 1869 – Willy Burmester, German violinist (d. 1933)
    • 1871 – Hans Merensky, South African geologist and philanthropist (d. 1951)
    • 1871 – Frantz Reichel, French rugby player and hurdler (d. 1932)
    • 1874 – Frédéric François-Marsal, French prime minister (d. 1958)
    • 1877 – Léo-Ernest Ouimet, Canadian director and producer (d. 1972)
    • 1878 – Clemens August Graf von Galen, German cardinal (d. 1946)
    • 1878 – Paul Jouve, French painter (d. 1973)
    • 1881 – Fannie Charles Dillon, American composer (d. 1947)
    • 1882 – James Lightbody, American runner (d. 1953)
    • 1883 – Ethel Anderson, Australian poet, author, and painter (d. 1958)
    • 1884 – Eric P. Kelly, American journalist and author (d. 1960)
    • 1885 – Giacomo Benvenuti, Italian composer and musicologist (d. 1943)
    • 1885 – Sydney Chaplin, English actor (d. 1965)
    • 1886 – Herbert Lindström, Swedish tug of war player (d. 1951)
    • 1887 – Emilio Lunghi, Italian runner (d. 1925)
    • 1887 – S. Stillman Berry, American marine zoologist (1984)
    • 1889 – Reggie Walker, South African athlete (d. 1951)
    • 1892 – César Vallejo, Peruvian poet, playwright, and journalist (d. 1938)
    • 1895 – Ernest Labrousse, French historian (d. 1988)
    • 1897 – Antonio Donghi, Italian painter (d. 1963)
    • 1897 – Conrad Nagel, American actor (d. 1970)
    • 1900 – Cyril Hume, American novelist (d. 1966)
    • 1900 – Mencha Karnicheva, Macedonian revolutionary and assassin (d. 1964)
    • 1901 – Alexis Chantraine, Belgian footballer (d. 1987)
    • 1903 – Mike Mansfield, American politician and diplomat, 22nd United States Ambassador to Japan (d. 2001)
    • 1906 – Francisco Ayala, Spanish sociologist, author, and translator (d. 2009)
    • 1906 – Maurice Turnbull, Welsh-English cricketer and rugby player (d. 1944)
    • 1906 – Henny Youngman, English-American violinist and comedian (d. 1998)
    • 1908 – René Daumal, French author and poet (d. 1944)
    • 1908 – Ernest Rogez, French water polo player (d. 1986)
    • 1908 – Robert Rossen, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1966)
    • 1910 – Aladár Gerevich, Hungarian fencer (d. 1991)
    • 1910 – Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, Indian-English cricketer and politician, 8th Nawab of Pataudi (d. 1952)
    • 1911 – Pierre Harmel, Belgian lawyer and politician, 40th Prime Minister of Belgium (d. 2009)
    • 1911 – Josef Mengele, German physician and captain (d. 1979)
    • 1911 – Philip Pavia, American painter and sculptor (d.2005)
    • 1912 – Pat Nixon, First Lady of the United States (d. 1993)
    • 1913 – Rémy Raffalli, French soldier (d. 1952)
    • 1915 – Kunihiko Kodaira, Japanese mathematician and academic (d. 1997)
    • 1916 – Mercedes McCambridge, American actress (d. 2004)
    • 1916 – Tsutomu Yamaguchi, Japanese engineer and businessman (d. 2010)
    • 1917 – Louis C. Wyman, American lawyer and politician (d. 2002)
    • 1917 – Laure Pillay, Mauritian lawyer and jurist (d. 2017)
    • 1917 – Mehrdad Pahlbod, Iranian politician (d. 2018)
    • 1918 – Aldo van Eyck, Dutch architect (d. 1999)
    • 1918 – Frederick Reines, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
    • 1920 – John Addison, English-American soldier and composer (d. 1998)
    • 1920 – Sid Fleischman, American author and screenwriter (d. 2010)
    • 1920 – Traudl Junge, German secretary (d. 2002)
    • 1920 – Leo McKern, Australian-English actor (d. 2002)
    • 1922 – Harding Lemay, American screenwriter and playwright (d. 2018)
    • 1923 – Heinz Wallberg, German conductor (d. 2004)
    • 1925 – Cornell Borchers, Lithuanian-German actress and singer (d. 2014)
    • 1925 – Mary Hinkson, American dancer and choreographer (d. 2014)
    • 1925 – Ervin Kassai, Hungarian basketball player and referee (d. 2012)
    • 1925 – Luis E. Miramontes, Mexican chemist and engineer (d. 2004)
    • 1926 – Charles Goodell, American lawyer and politician (d. 1987)
    • 1926 – Jerry Lewis, American actor and comedian (d. 2017)
    • 1927 – Vladimir Komarov, Russian pilot, engineer, and astronaut (d. 1967)
    • 1927 – Daniel Patrick Moynihan, American sociologist and politician, 12th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (d. 2003)
    • 1927 – Olga San Juan, American actress and dancer (d. 2009)
    • 1928 – Wakanohana Kanji I, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 45th Yokozuna (d. 2010)
    • 1928 – Christa Ludwig, German soprano and actress
    • 1929 – Betty Johnson, American singer
    • 1929 – Tihomir Novakov, Serbian-American physicist and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1929 – Nadja Tiller, Austrian actress
    • 1930 – Tommy Flanagan, American pianist and composer (d. 2001)
    • 1930 – Minoru Miki, Japanese composer (d. 2011)
    • 1931 – Augusto Boal, Brazilian theatre director, writer and politician (d. 2009)
    • 1931 – Alan Heyman, American-South Korean musicologist and composer (d. 2014)
    • 1931 – Anthony Kenny, English philosopher and academic
    • 1931 – John Munro, Canadian lawyer and politician, 22nd Canadian Minister of Labour (d. 2003)
    • 1932 – Don Blasingame, American baseball player and manager (d. 2005)
    • 1932 – Walter Cunningham, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1932 – Kurt Diemberger, Austrian mountaineer and author
    • 1932 – Herbert Marx, Canadian politician (d. 2020)
    • 1933 – Keith Critchlow, English architect and academic, co-founded Temenos Academy
    • 1933 – Sanford I. Weill, American banker, financier, and philanthropist
    • 1934 – Jean Cournoyer, Canadian politician
    • 1934 – Ray Hnatyshyn, Canadian lawyer and politician, 24th Governor General of Canada (d. 2002)
    • 1934 – Roger Norrington, English violinist and conductor
    • 1935 – Teresa Berganza, Spanish soprano and actress
    • 1935 – Pepe Cáceres, Colombian bullfighter (d. 1987)
    • 1936 – Raymond Vahan Damadian, Armenian-American inventor, invented the MRI
    • 1936 – Fred Neil, American folk singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2001)
    • 1937 – David Frith, English historian, journalist, and author
    • 1937 – Attilio Nicora, Italian cardinal (d. 2017)
    • 1937 – Amos Tversky, Israeli-American psychologist and academic (d. 1996)
    • 1938 – Carlos Bilardo, Argentinian footballer and manager
    • 1939 – Yvon Côté, Canadian teacher
    • 1940 – Bernardo Bertolucci, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2018)
    • 1940 – Vagif Mustafazadeh, Azerbaijani pianist and composer (d. 1979)
    • 1940 – Jan Pronk, Dutch academic and politician, Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment
    • 1940 – Keith Rowe, English guitarist
    • 1941 – Robert Guéï, Ivorian soldier and politician, 3rd President of Côte d’Ivoire (d. 2002)
    • 1941 – Chuck Woolery, American game show host and television personality
    • 1942 – Roger Crozier, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 1996)
    • 1942 – Gijs van Lennep, Dutch race car driver
    • 1942 – Jean-Pierre Schosteck, French politician
    • 1942 – James Soong, Chinese-Taiwanese politician, Governor of Taiwan Province
    • 1942 – Jerry Jeff Walker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1943 – Ursula Goodenough, American biologist, zoologist, and author
    • 1943 – Hans Heyer, German racing driver
    • 1943 – Álvaro de Soto, Peruvian diplomat
    • 1944 – Andrew S. Tanenbaum, American computer scientist and academic
    • 1946 – Sigmund Groven, Norwegian harmonica player and composer
    • 1946 – Mary Kaldor, English economist and academic
    • 1946 – J. Z. Knight, American New Age teacher and author
    • 1946 – Guesch Patti, French singer
    • 1948 – Michael Owen Bruce, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1948 – Richard Desjardins, Canadian singer-songwriter and director
    • 1948 – Catherine Quéré, French politician
    • 1949 – Erik Estrada, American actor
    • 1949 – Victor Garber, Canadian actor and singer
    • 1949 – Elliott Murphy, American-French singer-songwriter and journalist
    • 1950 – Peter Forster, English bishop
    • 1950 – Kate Nelligan, Canadian actress
    • 1950 – Edhem Šljivo, Bosnian footballer
    • 1951 – Ray Benson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1951 – Abdelmajid Bourebbou, Algerian footballer
    • 1951 – Oddvar Brå, Norwegian skier
    • 1951 – Joe DeLamielleure, American football player
    • 1951 – Alexandre Gonzalez, French long-distance runner
    • 1953 – Claus Peter Flor, German conductor
    • 1953 – Isabelle Huppert, French actress
    • 1953 – Rainer Knaak, German chess player
    • 1953 – Richard Stallman, American computer scientist and programmer
    • 1954 – David Heath, English politician
    • 1954 – Jimmy Nail, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1954 – Tim O’Brien, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1954 – Dav Whatmore, Sri Lankan-Australian cricketer and coach
    • 1954 – Nancy Wilson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actress
    • 1955 – Svetlana Alexeeva, Russian ice dancer and coach
    • 1955 – Rimantas Astrauskas, Lithuanian physicist
    • 1955 – Bruno Barreto, Brazilian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1955 – Linda Lepomme, Belgian actress and singer
    • 1955 – Bob Ley, American sports anchor and reporter
    • 1955 – Andy Scott, Canadian politician (d. 2013)
    • 1955 – Jiro Watanabe, Japanese boxer
    • 1956 – Ozzie Newsome, American football player and manager
    • 1956 – Clifton Powell, American actor, director, and producer
    • 1956 – Yoriko Shono, Japanese writer
    • 1956 – Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, Swiss lawyer and politician
    • 1958 – Phillip Wilcher, Australian pianist and composer
    • 1958 – Kate Worley, American author (d. 2004)
    • 1958 – Jorge Ramos, Mexican-American journalist and author
    • 1959 – Michael J. Bloomfield, American astronaut
    • 1959 – Sebastian Currier, American composer and educator
    • 1959 – Greg Dyer, Australian cricketer
    • 1959 – Flavor Flav, American rapper and actor
    • 1959 – Charles Hudson, American baseball player
    • 1959 – Steve Marker, American musician
    • 1959 – Jens Stoltenberg, Norwegian economist and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Norway, 13th Secretary General of NATO
    • 1960 – John Hemming, English businessman and politician
    • 1960 – Duane Sutter, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1960 – Jenny Eclair, English comedian, actress and screenwriter
    • 1961 – Brett Kenny, Australian rugby league player and coach
    • 1961 – Todd McFarlane, Canadian author, illustrator, and businessman, founded McFarlane Toys
    • 1962 – Franck Fréon, French race car driver
    • 1962 – Liliane Gaschet, French athlete
    • 1963 – Jerome Flynn, English actor and singer
    • 1963 – Kevin Smith, New Zealand actor and singer (d. 2002)
    • 1964 – Patty Griffin, American singer-songwriter
    • 1964 – Jaclyn Jose, Filipino actress
    • 1964 – Pascal Richard, Swiss racing cyclist
    • 1964 – Gore Verbinski, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Steve Armstrong, American wrestler
    • 1965 – Cindy Brown, American basketball player
    • 1965 – Mark Carney, Canadian-English economist and banker
    • 1965 – Cristiana Reali, Italian-Brazilian actress
    • 1966 – Chrissy Redden, Canadian cross-country cyclist
    • 1967 – Tracy Bonham, American singer and violinist
    • 1967 – John Darnielle, American musician and novelist
    • 1967 – Lauren Graham, American actress and producer
    • 1967 – Ronnie McCoury, American bluegrass mandolin player, singer and songwriter
    • 1967 – Heidi Zurbriggen, Swiss alpine skier
    • 1968 – Trevor Wilson, American basketball player and police officer
    • 1969 – Judah Friedlander, American comedian and actor
    • 1969 – Ottis Gibson, Barbadian cricketer and coach
    • 1969 – Alina Ivanova, Russian athlete
    • 1969 – Evangelos Koronios, Greek basketball player and coach
    • 1970 – Joakim Berg, Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1971 – Franck Comba, French rugby player
    • 1971 – Alan Tudyk, American actor
    • 1972 – Ismaïl Sghyr, French-Moroccan long-distance runner
    • 1973 – Andrey Mizurov, Kazakhstani road bicycle racer
    • 1973 – Vonda Ward, American boxer
    • 1974 – Georgios Anatolakis, Greek footballer and politician
    • 1974 – Anne Charrier, French actress
    • 1974 – Heath Streak, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1975 – Luciano Castro, Argentine actor
    • 1975 – Sienna Guillory, English model and actress
    • 1975 – Lionel Torres, French archer
    • 1976 – Blu Cantrell, American singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1976 – Leila Lejeune, French handballer
    • 1976 – Susanne Ljungskog, Swedish cyclist
    • 1976 – Abraham Núñez, Dominican baseball player
    • 1976 – Zhu Chen, Qatari chess Grandmaster
    • 1977 – Mónica Cruz, Spanish actress and dancer
    • 1977 – Thomas Rupprath, German swimmer
    • 1978 – Brooke Burns, American fashion model and actress
    • 1978 – Annett Renneberg, German actress and singer
    • 1979 – Christina Liebherr, Swiss equestrian
    • 1979 – Rashad Moore, American football player
    • 1979 – Sébastien Ostertag, French handball player
    • 1979 – Leena Peisa, Finnish keyboard player and songwriter
    • 1979 – Andrei Stepanov, Estonian footballer
    • 1980 – Todd Heap, American football player
    • 1980 – Felipe Reyes, Spanish basketball player
    • 1981 – Andrew Bree, Irish swimmer
    • 1981 – Curtis Granderson, American baseball player
    • 1981 – Julien Mazet, French road bicycle racer
    • 1981 – Fabiana Murer, Brazilian pole vaulter
    • 1982 – Miguel Comminges, Guadeloupean footballer
    • 1982 – Riley Cote, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1982 – Tommy Hansen, Czech actor
    • 1982 – Jesús Del Nero, Spanish road bicycle racer
    • 1982 – Brian Wilson, American baseball player
    • 1983 – Stephen Drew, American baseball player
    • 1983 – Brandon League, American baseball player
    • 1983 – Nicolas Rousseau, French road bicycle racer
    • 1983 – Tramon Williams, American football player
    • 1984 – Levi Brown, American football player
    • 1984 – Aisling Bea, Irish comedienne and actress
    • 1984 – Sharon Cherop, Kenyan long-distance runner
    • 1984 – Michael Ennis, Australian rugby player
    • 1984 – Hosea Gear, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1984 – Brandon Prust, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Teddy Atine-Venel, French athlete
    • 1985 – Eddy Lover, Panamanian singer-songwriter
    • 1985 – Aleksei Sokirskiy, Russian hammer thrower
    • 1986 – Alexandra Daddario, American actress
    • 1986 – Toney Douglas, American basketball player
    • 1986 – Kenny Dykstra, American wrestler
    • 1986 – T. J. Jordan, American basketball player
    • 1986 – Boaz Solossa, Indonesian footballer
    • 1986 – Daisuke Takahashi, Japanese figure skater
    • 1987 – Fabien Lemoine, French football player
    • 1988 – Jessica Gregg, Canadian speed skater
    • 1988 – Patrick Herrmann, German footballer
    • 1989 – Blake Griffin, American basketball player
    • 1989 – Jung So-min, South Korean actress
    • 1989 – Magalie Pottier, French racing cyclist
    • 1989 – Theo Walcott, English footballer
    • 1990 – Andre Young, American basketball player
    • 1991 – Reggie Bullock, American basketball player
    • 1991 – Wolfgang Van Halen, American bassist
    • 1993 – George Ford, English rugby union player
    • 1993 – Marine Lorphelin, Miss France
    • 1994 – Joel Embiid, Cameroonian basketball player
    • 1995 – Inga Janulevičiūtė, Lithuanian figure skater
    • 1997 – Florian Neuhaus, German football player

    Deaths on March 16

    • AD 37 – Tiberius, Roman emperor (b. 42 BC)
    • 455 – Valentinian III, Roman emperor (assassinated; b. 419)
    • 455 – Heraclius, Roman courtier (primicerius sacri cubiculi )
    • 842 – Xiao Mian, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty
    • 933 – Takin al-Khazari, Egyptian commander and politician, Abbasid Governor of Egypt
    • 943 – Pi Guangye, Chinese official and chancellor (b. 877)
    • 1021 – Heribert of Cologne, German archbishop and saint (b. 970)
    • 1072 – Adalbert of Hamburg, German archbishop (b. 1000)
    • 1181 – Henry I, Count of Champagne
    • 1185 – Baldwin IV of Jerusalem (b. 1161)
    • 1279 – Jeanne of Dammartin, Queen consort of Castile and León (b. 1216)
    • 1322 – Humphrey de Bohun, 4th Earl of Hereford, English general and politician, Lord High Constable of England (b. 1276)
    • 1405 – Margaret III, Countess of Flanders (b. 1350)
    • 1410 – John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset, French-English admiral and politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1373)
    • 1457 – Ladislaus Hunyadi, Hungarian politician (b. 1433)
    • 1485 – Anne Neville, queen of Richard III of England (b. 1456)
    • 1559 – Anthony St. Leger, English-Irish politician Lord Deputy of Ireland (b. 1496)
    • 1649 – Jean de Brébeuf, French-Canadian missionary and saint (b. 1593)
    • 1679 – John Leverett, English general and politician, 19th Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (b. 1616)
    • 1721 – James Craggs the Elder, English politician, Postmaster General of the United Kingdom (b. 1657)
    • 1736 – Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Italian organist and composer (b. 1710)
    • 1737 – Benjamin Wadsworth, American minister and academic (b. 1670)
    • 1738 – George Bähr, German architect, designed the Dresden Frauenkirche (b. 1666)
    • 1747 – Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst (b. 1690)
    • 1838 – Nathaniel Bowditch, American captain and mathematician (b. 1773)
    • 1841 – Félix Savart, French physicist and psychologist (d. 1791)
    • 1868 – David Wilmot, American politician, sponsor of Wilmot Proviso (b. 1814)
    • 1884 – Art Croft, American baseball player (b. 1855)
    • 1888 – Hippolyte Carnot, French politician (b. 1801)
    • 1892 – Samuel F. Miller, American lawyer and politician (b. 1827)
    • 1898 – Aubrey Beardsley, English author and illustrator (b. 1872)
    • 1899 – Joseph Medill, American journalist and politician, 26th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1823)
    • 1903 – Roy Bean, American lawyer and judge (b. 1825)
    • 1907 – John O’Leary, Irish politician (b. 1830)
    • 1912 – Max Burckhard, Austrian theater director (b. 1854)
    • 1914 – Gaston Calmette, French journalist (b. 1858)
    • 1914 – Charles Albert Gobat, Swiss lawyer and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1843)
    • 1914 – John Murray, Scottish oceanographer, biologist, and limnologist (b. 1841)
    • 1925 – August von Wassermann, German bacteriologist and hygienist (b. 1866)
    • 1930 – Miguel Primo de Rivera, Spanish general and politician, Prime Minister of Spain (b. 1870)
    • 1935 – John James Rickard Macleod, Scottish physician and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1876)
    • 1935 – Aron Nimzowitsch, Latvian-Danish chess player (b. 1886)
    • 1936 – Marguerite Durand, French actress, journalist, and activist (b. 1864)
    • 1937 – Alexander von Staël-Holstein, Estonian orientalist and sinologist (b. 1877)
    • 1940 – Selma Lagerlöf, Swedish author and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)
    • 1945 – Börries von Münchhausen, German poet (b. 1874)
    • 1955 – Nicolas de Staël, French-Russian painter and illustrator (b. 1914)
    • 1957 – Constantin Brâncuși, Romanian-French sculptor, painter, and photographer (b. 1876)
    • 1958 – Leon Cadore, American baseball player (b. 1891)
    • 1961 – Chen Geng, Chinese general and politician (b. 1903)
    • 1961 – Václav Talich, Czech violinist and conductor (b. 1883)
    • 1963 – Laura Adams Armer, American author and photographer (b. 1874)
    • 1965 – Alice Herz, German activist (b. 1882)
    • 1967 – Thomas MacGreevy, Irish poet (b. 1893)
    • 1968 – Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Italian-American pianist and composer (b. 1895)
    • 1968 – Gunnar Ekelöf, Swedish poet and translator (b. 1907)
    • 1970 – Tammi Terrell, American singer (b. 1945)
    • 1971 – Bebe Daniels, American actress (b. 1901)
    • 1971 – Thomas E. Dewey, American lawyer and politician, 47th Governor of New York (b. 1902)
    • 1972 – Pie Traynor, American baseball player (b. 1898)
    • 1975 – T-Bone Walker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1910)
    • 1977 – Kamal Jumblatt, Lebanese lawyer and politician (b. 1917)
    • 1979 – Jean Monnet, French economist and politician (b. 1888)
    • 1980 – Tamara de Lempicka, Polish-American painter (b. 1898)
    • 1983 – Arthur Godfrey, American actor and television host (b. 1903)
    • 1983 – Fred Rose, Polish-Canadian politician (b. 1907)
    • 1985 – Roger Sessions, American composer, critic, and educator (b. 1896)
    • 1985 – Eddie Shore, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1902)
    • 1988 – Jigger Statz, American baseball player (b.1897)
    • 1988 – Mickey Thompson, American race car driver (b. 1928)
    • 1990 – Ernst Bacon, American pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1898)
    • 1991 – Chris Austin, American country singer (b .1964)
    • 1991 – Jean Bellette, Australian artist (b. 1908)
    • 1992 – Yves Rocard, French physicist and engineer (b. 1903)
    • 1994 – Eric Show, American baseball player (b. 1956)
    • 1998 – Derek Barton, English-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
    • 1998 – Esther Bubley, American photographer (b. 1921)
    • 1999 – Gratien Gélinas, Canadian actor, director, and playwright (b. 1909)
    • 2000 – Thomas Ferebee, American colonel and pilot (b. 1918)
    • 2000 – Pavel Prudnikau, Belarusian poet and author (b. 1911)
    • 2000 – Michael Starr, Canadian judge and politician, 16th Canadian Minister of Labour (b. 1910)
    • 2000 – Carlos Velázquez, Puerto Rican pitcher (b. 1948)
    • 2001 – Bob Wollek, French race car driver (b. 1943)
    • 2003 – Rachel Corrie, American activist (b. 1979)
    • 2003 – Ronald Ferguson, English captain, polo player, and manager (b. 1931)
    • 2004 – Vilém Tauský, Czech conductor and composer (b. 1910)
    • 2005 – Todd Bell, American football player (b. 1958)
    • 2005 – Ralph Erskine, English architect, designed The London Ark (b. 1914)
    • 2005 – Dick Radatz, American baseball player (b. 1937)
    • 2007 – Manjural Islam Rana, Bangladeshi cricketer (b. 1984)
    • 2008 – Bill Brown, Australian cricketer and soldier (b. 1912)
    • 2008 – Ivan Dixon, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1931)
    • 2008 – Gary Hart, American wrestler and manager (b. 1942)
    • 2010 – Ksenija Pajčin, Serbian singer, dancer and model (b. 1977)
    • 2011 – Richard Wirthlin, American religious leader (b. 1931)
    • 2012 – Donald E. Hillman, American colonel and pilot (b. 1918)
    • 2012 – Takaaki Yoshimoto, Japanese poet, philosopher, and critic (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Jamal Nazrul Islam, Bangladeshi physicist and cosmologist (b. 1939)
    • 2013 – José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz, Argentinian economist and politician, Minister of Economy of Argentina (b. 1925)
    • 2013 – Yadier Pedroso, Cuban pitcher (b. 1986)
    • 2013 – Ruchoma Shain, American-born teacher and author (b. 1914)
    • 2013 – Marina Solodkin, Russian-Israeli academic and politician (b. 1952)
    • 2013 – Frank Thornton, English actor (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Gary Bettenhausen, American race car driver (b. 1941)
    • 2014 – Donald Crothers, American chemist and academic (b. 1937)
    • 2014 – Yulisa Pat Amadu Maddy, Sierra Leonean author, poet, and playwright (b. 1936)
    • 2014 – Steve Moore, English author and illustrator (b. 1949)
    • 2014 – Alexander Pochinok, Russian economist and politician (b. 1958)
    • 2015 – Jack Haley, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1964)
    • 2015 – Don Robertson, American pianist and composer (b. 1922)
    • 2016 – Alexander Esenin-Volpin, Russian-American mathematician and poet (b. 1924)
    • 2016 – Frank Sinatra Jr., American singer and actor (b. 1944)
    • 2017 – Lewis Rowland, American neurologist (b. 1925)
    • 2018 – Louise Slaughter, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York (b. 1929)
    • 2019 – Dick Dale, American surf-rock guitarist, singer, and songwriter (b. 1937)

    Holidays and observances on March 16

    • Christian feast day:
      • Abbán
      • Finian Lobhar (Finian the Leper)
      • Heribert of Cologne
      • Hilarius of Aquileia
      • Julian of Antioch
      • March 16 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Day of the Book Smugglers (Lithuania)
    • Remembrance day of the Latvian legionnaires (Latvia)
    • Saint Urho’s Day (Finnish Americans and Finnish Canadians)
    • Austin 3:16 Day (Not official, but leisure day)

  • March 15- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    In the Roman calendar, March 15 was known as the Ides of March.

    March 15 in History

    • 474 BC – Roman consul Gnaeus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years’ truce.
    • 44 BC – Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger and his fellow conspirators, Gaius Cassius Longinus, Decimus Junius Brutus, and several other Roman senators, march to the Capitol following the assassination of Julius Caesar, but there is no response to their appeals to the population, who have left the streets in fear. Caesar’s body remains in its place
    • 351 – Constantius II elevates his cousin Gallus to Caesar, and puts him in charge of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire.
    • 493 – Odoacer, the first barbarian King of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, is slain by Theoderic the Great, king of the Ostrogoths, while the two kings were feasting together.
    • 856 – Michael III, emperor of the Byzantine Empire, overthrows the regency of his mother, empress Theodora (wife of Theophilos) with support of the Byzantine nobility.
    • 933 – After a ten-year truce, German King Henry the Fowler defeats a Hungarian army at the Battle of Riade near the Unstrut river.
    • 1147 – Conquest of Santarém: The forces of Afonso I of Portugal capture Santarém.
    • 1311 – Battle of Halmyros: The Catalan Company defeats Walter V, Count of Brienne to take control of the Duchy of Athens, a Crusader state in Greece.
    • 1493 – Christopher Columbus returns to Spain after his first trip to the Americas.
    • 1564 – Mughal Emperor Akbar abolishes “jizya” (per capita tax).
    • 1672 – Charles II of England issues the Royal Declaration of Indulgence.
    • 1781 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Guilford Court House: Near present-day Greensboro, North Carolina, 1,900 British troops under General Charles Cornwallis defeat a mixed American force numbering 4,400 in a Pyrrhic victory.
    • 1783 – In an emotional speech in Newburgh, New York, George Washington asks his officers not to support the Newburgh Conspiracy. The plea is successful and the threatened coup d’état never takes place.
    • 1819 – French physicist Augustin Fresnel is adjudged the winner of the Grand Prix of the Académie des Sciences for his “Memoir on the Diffraction of Light”, which verifies the Fresnel integrals, accounts for the limited extent to which light spreads into shadows, and thereby demolishes Newton’s initial objection to the wave theory of light.
    • 1820 – Maine becomes the 23rd U.S. state.
    • 1827 – University of Toronto is founded.
    • 1848 – A revolution breaks out in Hungary. The Habsburg rulers are compelled to meet the demands of the Reform party.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: The Red River Campaign: U.S. Navy fleet arrives at Alexandria, Louisiana.
    • 1874 – France and Vietnam sign the Second Treaty of Saigon, further recognizing the full sovereignty of France over Cochinchina.
    • 1875 – Archbishop of New York John McCloskey is named the first cardinal in the United States.
    • 1877 – First ever official cricket test match is played: Australia vs England at the MCG Stadium, in Melbourne, Australia.
    • 1878 – Restoration of the Scottish Catholic hierarchy, broken off back in 1603.
    • 1888 – Start of the Anglo-Tibetan War of 1888.
    • 1895 – Heian Shrine is founded.
    • 1906 – Rolls-Royce Limited is incorporated.
    • 1916 – United States President Woodrow Wilson sends 4,800 United States troops over the U.S.–Mexico border to pursue Pancho Villa.
    • 1917 – Tsar Nicholas II of Russia abdicates the Russian throne ending the 304-year Romanov dynasty.
    • 1921 – Talaat Pasha, former Grand Vizir of the Ottoman Empire and chief architect of the Armenian Genocide is assassinated in Berlin by a 23-year-old Armenian, Soghomon Tehlirian.
    • 1922 – After Egypt gains nominal independence from the United Kingdom, Fuad I becomes King of Egypt.
    • 1926 – The dictator Theodoros Pangalos is elected President of Greece without opposition.
    • 1927 – The first Women’s Boat Race between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge takes place on The Isis in Oxford.
    • 1931 – SS Viking explodes off Newfoundland, killing 27 of the 147 onboard.
    • 1933 – Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss keeps members of the National Council from convening, starting the Austrofascist dictatorship.
    • 1939 – Germany occupies Czechoslovakia.
    • 1939 – Carpatho-Ukraine declares itself an independent republic, but is annexed by Hungary the next day.
    • 1941 – Philippine Airlines, the flag carrier of the Philippines takes its first flight between Manila (from Nielson Field) to Baguio City with a Beechcraft Model 18 making the airline the first and oldest commercial airline in Asia operating under its original name.
    • 1943 – World War II: Third Battle of Kharkov: The Germans retake the city of Kharkov from the Soviet armies in bitter street fighting.
    • 1945 – World War II: Soviet forces begin an offensive to push Germans from Upper Silesia.
    • 1951 – the Iranian oil industry is nationalized.
    • 1952 – In Cilaos, Réunion, 1870 mm (73 inches) of rain falls in a 24-hour period, setting a new world record (March 15 through March 16).
    • 1961 – At the 1961 Commonwealth Prime Ministers’ Conference, South Africa announces that it will withdraw from the Commonwealth when the South African Constitution of 1961 comes into effect.
    • 1965 – President Lyndon B. Johnson, responding to the Selma crisis, tells U.S. Congress “We shall overcome” while advocating the Voting Rights Act.
    • 1978 – Somalia and Ethiopia signed a truce to end the Ethio-Somali War.
    • 1986 – Collapse of Hotel New World: Thirty-three people die when the Hotel New World in Singapore collapses.
    • 1990 – Mikhail Gorbachev is elected as the first President of the Soviet Union.
    • 1991 – Cold War: The Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany comes into effect, granting full sovereignty to the Federal Republic of Germany.
    • 2008 – Stockpiles of obsolete ammunition explode at an ex-military ammunition depot in the village of Gërdec, Albania, killing 26 people.
    • 2011 – Beginning of the Syrian Civil War.
    • 2019 – Fifty-one people are killed in the Christchurch mosque shootings.
    • 2019 – Beginning of the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests.
    • 2019 – Approximately 1.4 million young people in 123 countries go on strike to protest climate change.

    Births on March 15

    • 270 – Saint Nicholas, Greek bishop and saint (d. 343)
    • 1097 – Fujiwara no Tadamichi, Japanese noble (d. 1164)
    • 1275 – Margaret of England, Duchess of Brabant (d. 1333)
    • 1407 – Jacob, Margrave of Baden-Baden (d. 1453)
    • 1444 – Francesco Gonzaga, Catholic cardinal (d. 1483)
    • 1493 – Anne de Montmorency, French captain and diplomat (d. 1567)
    • 1513 – Hedwig Jagiellon, Electress of Brandenburg (d. 1573)
    • 1516 – Alqas Mirza, Safavid prince (d. 1550)
    • 1582 – Daniel Featley, English theologian and controversialist (d. 1645)
    • 1584 – Philip, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg (d. 1663)
    • 1591 – Alexandre de Rhodes, French missionary and lexicographer (d. 1660)
    • 1611 – Jan Fyt, Flemish painter (d. 1661)
    • 1638 – Shunzhi Emperor of China (d. 1661)
    • 1666 – George Bähr, German architect, designed the Dresden Frauenkirche (d. 1738)
    • 1754 – Archibald Menzies, Scottish surgeon and botanist (d. 1842)
    • 1767 – Andrew Jackson, American general, judge, and politician, 7th President of the United States (d. 1845)
    • 1779 – William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1848)
    • 1790 – Ludwig Immanuel Magnus, German mathematician and academic (d. 1861)
    • 1791 – Charles Knight, English author and publisher (d. 1873)
    • 1809 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts, American-Liberian historian and politician, 1st President of Liberia (d. 1876)
    • 1809 – Karl Josef von Hefele, German bishop and theologian (d. 1893)
    • 1813 – John Snow, English physician and epidemiologist (d. 1858)
    • 1818 – Mariano Álvarez, Filipino general and politician (d. 1924)
    • 1821 – Johann Josef Loschmidt, Austrian physicist and chemist (d. 1895)
    • 1821 – William Milligan, Scottish theologian, author, and educator (d. 1892)
    • 1824 – Jules Chevalier, French priest, founded the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (d. 1907)
    • 1830 – Paul Heyse, German author, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1914)
    • 1830 – Élisée Reclus, French geographer and academic (d. 1905)
    • 1831 – Saint Daniele Comboni, Italian missionary and saint (d. 1881)
    • 1835 – John Henry Kagi, American lawyer and activist (d. 1859)
    • 1835 – Eduard Strauss, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1916)
    • 1838 – Karl Davydov, Russian cellist, composer, and conductor (d. 1889)
    • 1851 – John Sebastian Little, American lawyer and politician, 21st Governor of Arkansas (d. 1916)
    • 1851 – William Mitchell Ramsay, Scottish archaeologist and scholar (d. 1939)
    • 1852 – Augusta, Lady Gregory, Anglo-Irish landowner, playwright, and translator (d. 1932)
    • 1854 – Emil von Behring, German physiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1917)
    • 1857 – Christian Michelsen, Norwegian businessman and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Norway (d. 1925)
    • 1858 – Liberty Hyde Bailey, American botanist and academic, co-founded the American Society for Horticultural Science (d. 1954)
    • 1860 – Waldemar Haffkine, Russian-Swiss bacteriologist and microbiologist (d. 1930)
    • 1864 – Johan Halvorsen, Norwegian violinist, composer, and conductor (Oslo Philharmonic) (d. 1935)
    • 1865 – Manuk Abeghian, Armenian author and scholar (d. 1944)
    • 1866 – Matthew Charlton, Australian miner and politician (d. 1948)
    • 1866 – Johan Vaaler, Norwegian inventor, often erroneously identified as the inventor of the Paper clip (d. 1910)
    • 1868 – Grace Chisholm Young, English mathematician (d. 1944)
    • 1869 – Stanisław Wojciechowski, Polish scholar and politician, 2nd President of the Republic of Poland (d. 1953)
    • 1874 – Eugène Fiset, Canadian physician, general, and politician, 18th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (d. 1951)
    • 1874 – Harold L. Ickes, American journalist and politician, 32nd United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1952)
    • 1878 – Reza Shah, Iranian king (d. 1944)
    • 1886 – Wladimir Burliuk, Ukrainian-Greek painter and illustrator (d. 1917)
    • 1887 – Marjorie Merriweather Post, American businesswoman and philanthropist, founded General Foods (d. 1973)
    • 1887 – Lütfi Kırdar, Turkish physician and politician, Turkish Minister of Health (d. 1961)
    • 1879 – Benjamin R. Jacobs, American biochemist (d. 1963)
    • 1890 – Boris Delaunay, Russian mathematician and mountaineer (d. 1980)
    • 1892 – James Basevi Ord, Mexican-American colonel (d. 1938)
    • 1897 – Jackson Scholz, American runner (d. 1986)
    • 1900 – Gilberto Freyre, Brazilian sociologist, anthropologist, historian and writer (d. 1987)
    • 1904 – George Brent, Irish-American actor (d. 1979)
    • 1904 – J. Pat O’Malley, English-American actor (d. 1985)
    • 1905 – Berthold Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, German lawyer and judge (d. 1944)
    • 1907 – Zarah Leander, Swedish actress and singer (d. 1981)
    • 1909 – Jaroslava Muchová Syllabová, Czech painter (d. 1986)
    • 1912 – Lightnin’ Hopkins, American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1982)
    • 1912 – Louis Paul Boon, Flemish journalist and author (d. 1979)
    • 1913 – Macdonald Carey, American actor (d. 1994)
    • 1913 – Jack Fairman, English race car driver (d. 2002)
    • 1916 – Frank Coghlan, Jr., American actor and pilot (d. 2009)
    • 1916 – Fadil Hoxha, Kosovar commander and politician, 2nd President of Kosovo (d. 2001)
    • 1916 – Harry James, American trumpet player, bandleader, and actor (d. 1983)
    • 1918 – Richard Ellmann, American author and critic (d. 1987)
    • 1918 – Punch Imlach, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 1987)
    • 1919 – Lawrence Tierney, American actor (d. 2002)
    • 1920 – E. Donnall Thomas, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2012)
    • 1921 – Madelyn Pugh, American television writer and producer (d. 2011)
    • 1922 – Eddie Calvert, English trumpeter (d. 1978)
    • 1926 – Ben Johnston, American composer and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1926 – Norm Van Brocklin, American football player and coach (d. 1983)
    • 1927 – Christian Marquand, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2000)
    • 1927 – Carl Smith, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2010)
    • 1928 – Bob Wilber, American clarinetist and saxophonist (d. 2019)
    • 1930 – Zhores Alferov, Belarusian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2019)
    • 1932 – Alan Bean, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2018)
    • 1932 – Arif Mardin, Turkish-American record producer (d. 2006)
    • 1933 – Ruth Bader Ginsburg, American lawyer and judge
    • 1933 – Philippe de Broca, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
    • 1934 – Richard Layard, Baron Layard, English economist and academic
    • 1934 – Kanshi Ram, Indian politician (d. 2006)
    • 1935 – David Andrews, Irish politician, 21st Minister of Foreign Affairs for Ireland
    • 1935 – Judd Hirsch, American actor
    • 1935 – Jimmy Swaggart, American pastor and television host
    • 1935 – Leonid Yengibarov, Russian-Armenian clown and boxer (d. 1972)
    • 1936 – Howard Greenfield, American songwriter (d. 1986)
    • 1937 – Marcus Raichle, American neurologist and physiologist
    • 1937 – Valentin Rasputin, Russian environmentalist and author (d. 2015)
    • 1938 – Charles Lloyd, American saxophonist and flute player
    • 1939 – Ted Kaufman, American engineer and politician
    • 1939 – Robert Nye, English author, poet, and playwright (d. 2016)
    • 1939 – Julie Tullis, English mountaineer (d. 1986)
    • 1940 – Frank Dobson, English politician, Secretary of State for Health (d. 2019)
    • 1940 – Phil Lesh, American bassist
    • 1941 – Mike Love, American singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1941 – Carolyn Hansson, Canadian materials engineer
    • 1943 – David Cronenberg, Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1943 – Lynda La Plante, English actress, screenwriter, and author
    • 1943 – Michael Scott-Joynt, English bishop (d. 2014)
    • 1943 – Sly Stone, American singer-songwriter, musician, and producer
    • 1943 – The Iron Sheik, Iranian-American wrestler and actor
    • 1944 – Chi Cheng, Taiwanese runner and politician
    • 1944 – Jacques Doillon, French director and screenwriter
    • 1944 – Francis Mankiewicz, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1993)
    • 1944 – A. K. Faezul Huq, Bangladeshi lawyer and politician (d. 2007)
    • 1945 – Mark J. Green, American lawyer and politician
    • 1946 – Bobby Bonds, American baseball player and coach (d. 2003)
    • 1946 – John Dempsey, English born Irish international footballer, centre-back and manager
    • 1947 – Ry Cooder, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1947 – Gino Ferrin, German footballer and manager
    • 1947 – Juraj Kukura, Slovak-German actor
    • 1948 – Kate Bornstein, American author and activist
    • 1948 – Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (d. 2003)
    • 1950 – Jørgen Olsen, Danish singer-songwriter
    • 1950 – Kurt Koch, Swiss cardinal
    • 1951 – David Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool, English educator and politician
    • 1952 – Howard Devoto, English singer-songwriter
    • 1952 – Philip Green, English businessman
    • 1952 – Howard Koh, American physician and politician, 14th United States Assistant Secretary for Health
    • 1953 – Richard Bruton, Irish economist and politician, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation
    • 1953 – Heather Graham Pozzessere, American author
    • 1953 – Kumba Ialá, Bissau-Guinean educator and politician, President of Guinea-Bissau (d. 2014)
    • 1954 – Massimo Bubola, Italian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1954 – Isobel Buchanan, Scottish soprano and actress
    • 1954 – Bob Budiansky, American author and illustrator
    • 1954 – Henry Marsh, American runner and businessman, co-founded MonaVie
    • 1954 – Craig Wasson, American actor
    • 1955 – Mohsin Khan, Pakistani cricketer
    • 1955 – Dee Snider, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1956 – Clay Matthews, Jr., American football player and coach
    • 1957 – Joaquim de Almeida, Portuguese-American actor
    • 1957 – Víctor Muñoz, Spanish footballer and manager
    • 1957 – David Silverman, American animator, director, and screenwriter
    • 1958 – Anne Davies, English television presenter and newsreader
    • 1959 – Harold Baines, American baseball player and coach
    • 1959 – Renny Harlin, Finnish director and producer
    • 1959 – Lisa Holton, American journalist and author
    • 1959 – Ben Okri, Nigerian poet and author
    • 1960 – Mike Pagliarulo, American baseball player and coach
    • 1960 – Phil Walsh, Australian rules footballer and coach (d. 2015)
    • 1961 – Terry Cummings, American basketball player and singer
    • 1961 – Craig Ludwig, American ice hockey player and coach
    • 1962 – Terence Trent D’Arby, American singer-songwriter
    • 1962 – Jimmy Baio, American actor
    • 1963 – Bret Michaels, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1964 – Davide Pinato, Italian footballer
    • 1964 – Rockwell, American singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1965 – Sunetra Gupta, Indian epidemiologist, author, and academic
    • 1965 – Robyn Malcolm, New Zealand actress
    • 1967 – Naoko Takeuchi, Japanese manga artist, creator of Sailor Moon
    • 1968 – Kahimi Karie, Japanese singer
    • 1968 – Mark McGrath, American singer-songwriter and television host
    • 1968 – Terje Riis-Johansen, Norwegian politician, Norwegian Minister of Petroleum and Energy
    • 1968 – Sabrina Salerno, Italian singer-songwriter, actress, and producer
    • 1969 – Rona Ambrose, Canadian journalist and politician, former Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada
    • 1969 – Gianluca Festa, Italian footballer and coach
    • 1969 – Yutaka Take, Japanese jockey
    • 1970 – Christine Anu, Australian singer
    • 1970 – Naka Drotske, South African rugby player
    • 1970 – Derek Parra, American speed skater and coach
    • 1971 – Penny Lancaster, English model and photographer
    • 1971 – Joanne Wise, English long jumper
    • 1972 – Mark Hoppus, American singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
    • 1972 – Holger Stromberg, German chef
    • 1972 – Mike Tomlin, American football player and coach
    • 1973 – Robin Hunicke, American video game designer and producer
    • 1973 – Masayuki Naruse, Japanese wrestler and mixed martial artist
    • 1974 – Robert Fick, American baseball player
    • 1975 – Eva Longoria, American actress and producer
    • 1975 – Veselin Topalov, Bulgarian chess player
    • 1975 – Darcy Tucker, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1975 – will.i.am, American rapper, producer, and actor
    • 1976 – Katherine Brooks, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1976 – Abhay Deol, Indian actor
    • 1976 – Cara Pifko, Canadian actress
    • 1977 – Joe Hahn, American DJ, producer, and director
    • 1977 – Brian Tee, Japanese-American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1978 – Takeru Kobayashi, Japanese competitive eater
    • 1979 – Kyle Mills, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1979 – Kevin Youkilis, American baseball player and scout
    • 1980 – Freddie Bynum, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Eric Grothe, Jr. Australian rugby league player and guitarist
    • 1980 – Claudiney Ramos, Brazilian footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1981 – Young Buck, American rapper, producer, and actor
    • 1981 – Mikael Forssell, German-Finnish footballer
    • 1981 – Veronica Maggio, Swedish singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Jens Salumäe, Estonian skier
    • 1982 – Tom Budge, Australian actor
    • 1982 – Emily Dunn, American actress and dancer
    • 1982 – Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich, Kenyan runner
    • 1983 – Sean Biggerstaff, Scottish actor
    • 1983 – Umut Bulut, Turkish footballer
    • 1983 – Ben Hilfenhaus, Australian cricketer
    • 1983 – Kostas Kaimakoglou, Greek basketball player
    • 1983 – Golda Marcus, Salvadoran swimmer
    • 1983 – Daryl Murphy, Irish footballer
    • 1983 – Heiko Niidas, Estonian basketball player
    • 1983 – Ricky Sekhon, English actor
    • 1983 – Yo Yo Honey Singh, Indian music producer
    • 1984 – Badradine Belloumou, French-Algerian footballer
    • 1984 – Malin Buska, Swedish actress
    • 1984 – Olivier Jean, Canadian speed skater
    • 1984 – Kostas Vasileiadis, Greek basketball player
    • 1984 – Wilson Aparecido Xavier Júnior, Brazilian footballer
    • 1987 – Eric Decker, American football player
    • 1988 – Éver Guzmán, Mexican footballer
    • 1988 – James Reimer, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1988 – Jolo Revilla, Filipino actor and politician
    • 1988 – Alexander Sims, English race car driver
    • 1989 – Sam Baldock, English footballer
    • 1989 – Bryce Gibbs, Australian footballer
    • 1989 – Sandro, Brazilian international footballer, midfielder
    • 1989 – Gil Roberts, American sprinter
    • 1989 – Adrien Silva, Portuguese footballer
    • 1989 – Caitlin Wachs, American actress
    • 1990 – Siobhan Magnus, American singer-songwriter
    • 1991 – Tavon Austin, American footballer
    • 1991 – Kurt Baptiste, Australian rugby league player
    • 1991 – Xavier Henry, American basketball player
    • 1996 – Seonaid McIntosh, Scottish sports shooter
    • 2000 – Kristian Kostov, Russian-Bulgarian singer-songwriter

    Deaths on March 15

    • 44 BC – Julius Caesar, Roman general and statesman (b. 100 BC)
    • 220 – Cao Cao, Chinese general, warlord and statesman (b. 155)
    • 493 – Odoacer, the first king of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire (b. 433)
    • 752 – Pope Zachary
    • 963 – Romanos II, Byzantine emperor (b. 938)
    • 990 – Siegfried I (the Older), German nobleman
    • 1086 – Richilde, Countess of Hainaut, Flemish consort and regent (b. c. 1018)
    • 1124 – Ernulf, Bishop of Rochester (b. c. 1040)
    • 1190 – Isabella of Hainault, queen of Philip II of France (b. 1170)
    • 1311 – Walter V, Count of Brienne (b. 1275)
    • 1311 – Thomas III d’Autremencourt, Lord of Salona, Marshal of Achaea
    • 1311 – Albert Pallavicini, Margrave of Bodonitza
    • 1311 – George I Ghisi, Triarch of Euboea, Baron of Chalandritsa, Lord of Tinos, Mykonos, Serifos and Keos
    • 1327 – Albert of Schwarzburg, grand preceptor of the Knights Hospitaller
    • 1346 – Shah Jalal, Sufi saint of Bengal (b. 1271).
    • 1536 – Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha, Ottoman politician, 35th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1493)
    • 1575 – Annibale Padovano, Italian organist and composer (b. 1527)
    • 1644 – Countess Louise Juliana of Nassau (b. 1576)
    • 1657 – David Pardo, Dutch rabbi and scholar (b. 1591)
    • 1673 – Salvator Rosa, Italian painter and poet (b. 1615)
    • 1711 – Eusebio Kino, Italian priest and missionary (b. 1645)
    • 1820 – Clement Mary Hofbauer, Austrian priest and saint (b. 1751)
    • 1832 – Otto Wilhelm Masing, Estonian linguist and clergyman (b. 1763)
    • 1842 – Luigi Cherubini, Italian composer and theorist (b. 1760)
    • 1849 – Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, Italian cardinal and linguist (b. 1774)
    • 1891 – Joseph Bazalgette, English engineer and academic (b. 1819)
    • 1897 – James Joseph Sylvester, English mathematician and academic (b. 1814)
    • 1898 – Henry Bessemer, English engineer and businessman (b. 1813)
    • 1921 – Talaat Pasha, Ottoman politician, 281st Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1874)
    • 1927 – Hector Rason, English-Australian politician, 7th Premier of Western Australia (b. 1858)
    • 1933 – Gustavo Jiménez, Peruvian colonel and politician, 73rd President of Peru (b. 1886)
    • 1937 – H. P. Lovecraft, American short story writer, editor, and novelist (b. 1890)
    • 1938 – Nikolai Bukharin, Russian journalist, and politician (b. 1888)
    • 1939 – Luis Barceló, Spanish colonel (b. 1896)
    • 1941 – Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian-German painter (b. 1864)
    • 1944 – Otto von Below, Prussian general (b. 1857)
    • 1951 – John S. Paraskevopoulos, Greek-South African astronomer and academic (b. 1889)
    • 1957 – Ernst Nobs, Swiss politician (b. 1886)
    • 1959 – Lester Young, American saxophonist and clarinet player (b. 1909)
    • 1962 – Charles Bartliff, American soccer player (b. 1886)
    • 1962 – Arthur Compton, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
    • 1966 – Abe Saperstein, American basketball player and coach (b. 1902)
    • 1969 – Miles Malleson, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1888)
    • 1969 – Musashiyama Takeshi, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 33rd Yokozuna (b. 1909)
    • 1970 – Tarjei Vesaas, Norwegian author and poet (b. 1897)
    • 1971 – Jean-Pierre Monseré, Belgian cyclist (b. 1948)
    • 1972 – Aleksandr Ivanovich Laktionov, Russian painter and educator (b. 1910)
    • 1975 – Aristotle Onassis, Greek-Argentinian businessman (b. 1906)
    • 1977 – Hubert Aquin, Canadian author and activist (b. 1929)
    • 1977 – Antonino Rocca, Italian-American wrestler and referee (b. 1921)
    • 1981 – René Clair, French director and screenwriter (b. 1898)
    • 1983 – Coloman Braun-Bogdan, Romanian footballer and manager (b. 1905)
    • 1983 – Rebecca West, English author and critic (b. 1892)
    • 1985 – Radha Krishna Choudhary, Indian historian and author (b. 1921)
    • 1986 – Alexandru Giugaru, Romanian actor (b. 1897)
    • 1987 – Douglas Abbott, Canadian lawyer and politician, 10th Canadian Minister of National Defence (b. 1899)
    • 1988 – Dmitri Polyakov, Ukrainian general and spy (b. 1926)
    • 1989 – Muhammad Jameel Didi, Maldivian poet and politician (b. 1915)
    • 1990 – Farzad Bazoft, Iranian-English journalist (b. 1958)
    • 1990 – Tom Harmon, American football player and sportscaster (b. 1919)
    • 1991 – Bud Freeman, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1906)
    • 1992 – Rahi Masoom Raza, Indian Urdu poet (b.1927)
    • 1997 – Gail Davis, American actress (b. 1925)
    • 1997 – Victor Vasarely, Hungarian-French painter (b. 1906)
    • 1998 – Tim Maia, Brazilian singer-songwriter (b. 1942)
    • 1998 – Benjamin Spock, American pediatrician and author (b. 1903)
    • 1999 – Guy D’Artois, Canadian soldier (b. 1917)
    • 2001 – Gaetano Cozzi, Italian historian and academic (b. 1922)
    • 2001 – Ann Sothern, American actress and singer (b. 1909)
    • 2003 – Thora Hird, English actress (b. 1911)
    • 2003 – Paul Stojanovich, American television producer, created World’s Wildest Police Videos (b. 1956)
    • 2004 – Philippe Lemaire, French actor (b. 1927)
    • 2004 – Bill Pickering, New Zealand-American scientist and engineer (b. 1910)
    • 2004 – John Pople, English-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1925)
    • 2005 – Bob Bellear, Australian engineer and judge (b. 1944)
    • 2005 – Otar Korkia, Georgian basketball player and coach (b. 1923)
    • 2005 – Shoji Nishio, Japanese martial artist (b. 1927)
    • 2006 – Georgios Rallis, Greek lieutenant and politician, 173rd Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1918)
    • 2006 – Red Storey, Canadian football player and referee (b. 1918)
    • 2007 – Charles Harrelson, American murderer (b. 1938)
    • 2007 – Bowie Kuhn, American lawyer and businessman (b. 1926)
    • 2007 – Stuart Rosenberg, American director and producer (b. 1927)
    • 2008 – Mikey Dread, Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1954)
    • 2008 – Vytautas Kernagis, Lithuanian singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1951)
    • 2008 – G. David Low, American astronaut and engineer (b. 1956)
    • 2008 – Ken Reardon, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1921)
    • 2008 – Sarla Thakral, First Indian woman to earn a pilot’s license. (b. 1914)
    • 2009 – Ron Silver, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1946)
    • 2011 – Nate Dogg, American rapper (b. 1969)
    • 2011 – Smiley Culture, English singer and DJ (b. 1963)
    • 2012 – Mervyn Davies, Welsh rugby player (b. 1946)
    • 2012 – Eb Gaines, American businessman and diplomat (b. 1927)
    • 2012 – Luis Gonzales, Filipino actor (b. 1928)
    • 2012 – Bernardino González Ruíz, Panamanian physician and politician, President of Panama (b. 1911)
    • 2012 – Fran Matera, American illustrator (b. 1924)
    • 2012 – Dave Philley, American baseball player and manager (b. 1920)
    • 2013 – James Bonk, American chemist and academic (b. 1931)
    • 2013 – Booth Gardner, American businessman and politician, 19th Governor of Washington (b. 1936)
    • 2013 – Hardrock Gunter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1925)
    • 2013 – Shannon Larratt, Canadian publisher, founded BMEzine (b. 1973)
    • 2013 – Terry Lightfoot, English clarinet player (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – Leverne McDonnell, Australian actress (b. 1963).
    • 2013 – Masamichi Noro, Japanese-French martial artist, founded Kinomichi (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – Kallam Anji Reddy, Indian engineer and businessman, founded Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (b. 1940)
    • 2013 – Peter Worsley, English sociologist (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Felipe Zetter, Mexican footballer (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Scott Asheton, American drummer (b. 1949).
    • 2014 – David Brenner, American comedian, actor, and author (b. 1936)
    • 2014 – Bo Callaway, American soldier and politician, 11th United States Secretary of the Army (b. 1927)
    • 2014 – Clarissa Dickson Wright, English chef, author, and television personality (b. 1947)
    • 2014 – Everett L. Fullam, American priest and scholar (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Cees Veerman, Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1943)
    • 2015 – Collins Chabane, South African politician (b. 1960)
    • 2015 – Robert Clatworthy, English sculptor and educator (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Narayan Desai, Indian author and activist (b. 1924)
    • 2015 – Sally Forrest, American actress and dancer (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Curtis Gans, American political scientist and author (b. 1937)
    • 2015 – Mike Porcaro, American bass player (b. 1955)
    • 2016 – Sylvia Anderson, English voice actress and television and film producer (b. 1927)
    • 2016 – Asa Briggs, English historian and academic (b. 1921)
    • 2016 – Daryl Coley, American singer and pastor (b. 1955)
    • 2016 – Seru Rabeni, Fijian rugby player (b. 1978)
    • 2019 – Larry DiTillio, American film and TV series writer (b. 1948)
    • 2020 – Vittorio Gregotti, Italian architect (b. 1927)

    Holidays and observances on March 15

    • Christian feast day:
      • Aristobulus of Britannia
      • Clemens Maria Hofbauer
      • Leocritia
      • Longinus
      • Louise de Marillac
      • Raymond of Fitero
      • March 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Constitution Day (Belarus)
    • Earliest day on which Birth of Benito Juárez can fall, while March 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of March. (Mexico)
    • Earliest day on which Palm Sunday can fall, while April 18 is the latest; celebrated on the sixth Sunday of Lent. (Christianity)
    • Hōnen Matsuri (Japan)
    • International Day Against Police Brutality (International)
    • J. J. Roberts’ Birthday (Liberia)
    • National Day, celebrating the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 (Hungary)
    • World Consumer Rights Day (International)
    • World Contact Day
    • World Day of Muslim Culture, Peace, Dialogue and Film (International)
    • World Speech Day
    • Youth Day (Palau)

  • March 14- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1590 – Battle of Ivry: Henry of Navarre and the Huguenots defeat the forces of the Catholic League under Charles, Duke of Mayenne, during the French Wars of Religion.
    • 1647 – Thirty Years’ War: Bavaria, Cologne, France and Sweden sign the Truce of Ulm.
    • 1663 – According to his own account, Otto von Guericke completes his book De Vacuo.
    • 1674 – The Third Anglo-Dutch War: The Battle of Ronas Voe results in the Dutch East India Company ship Wapen van Rotterdam being captured with a death toll of up to 300 Dutch crew and soldiers.
    • 1757 – Admiral Sir John Byng is executed by firing squad aboard HMS Monarch for breach of the Articles of War.
    • 1780 – American Revolutionary War: Spanish forces capture Fort Charlotte in Mobile, Alabama, the last British frontier post capable of threatening New Orleans.
    • 1794 – Eli Whitney is granted a patent for the cotton gin.
    • 1885 – The Mikado, a light opera by W. S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, receives its first public performance at the Savoy Theatre in London.
    • 1900 – The Gold Standard Act is ratified, placing the United States currency on the gold standard.
    • 1903 – Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, the first national wildlife refuge in the US, is established by President Theodore Roosevelt.
    • 1920 – In the second of the 1920 Schleswig plebiscites, about 80% of the population in Zone II votes to remain part of Weimar Germany.
    • 1926 – The El Virilla train accident, Costa Rica, kills 248 people and wounds another 93 when a train falls off a bridge over the Río Virilla between Heredia and Tibás.
    • 1931 – Alam Ara, India’s first talking film, is released.
    • 1939 – Slovakia declares independence under German pressure.
    • 1942 – Anne Miller becomes the first American patient to be treated with penicillin, under the care of Orvan Hess and John Bumstead.
    • 1943 – The liquidation of the Kraków Ghetto is completed.
    • 1945 – The R.A.F. drop the Grand Slam bomb in action for the first time, on a railway viaduct near Bielefeld, Germany.
    • 1951 – Korean War: United Nations troops recapture Seoul for the second time.
    • 1961 – A USAF B-52 bomber crashes near near Yuba City, California whilst carrying nuclear weapons.
    • 1964 – Jack Ruby is convicted of killing Lee Harvey Oswald, the assumed assassin of John F. Kennedy.
    • 1967 – The body of U.S. President John F. Kennedy is moved to a permanent burial place at Arlington National Cemetery.
    • 1978 – The Israel Defense Forces launch Operation Litani, a seven-day campaign to invade and occupy southern Lebanon.
    • 1980 – LOT Flight 7 crashes during final approach near Warsaw, Poland, killing 87 people, including a 14-man American boxing team.
    • 1982 – The South African government bombs the headquarters of the African National Congress in London.
    • 1988 – In the Johnson South Reef Skirmish Chinese forces defeat Vietnamese forces in an altercation over control of one of the Spratly Islands.
    • 1995 – Norman Thagard becomes the first American astronaut to ride to space on board a Russian launch vehicle.
    • 2006 – The 2006 Chadian coup d’état attempt ends in failure.
    • 2007 – The Nandigram violence in Nandigram, West Bengal results in the deaths of at least 14 people.
    • 2008 – A series of riots, protests, and demonstrations erupt in Lhasa and subsequently spread elsewhere in Tibet.
    • 2019 – Cyclone Idai makes landfall near Beira, Mozambique, causing devastating floods and over 1000 deaths.

    Births on March 14

    • 1638 – Johann Georg Gichtel, German mystic (d. 1710)
    • 1790 – Ludwig Emil Grimm, German painter and engraver (d. 1863)
    • 1800 – James Bogardus, American inventor and architect (d. 1874)
    • 1801 – Kristjan Jaak Peterson, Estonian poet (d. 1822)
    • 1804 – Johann Strauss I, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1849)
    • 1813 – Joseph P. Bradley, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1892)
    • 1820 – Victor Emmanuel II of Italy (d. 1878)
    • 1822 – Teresa Cristina of the Two Sicilies (d. 1889)
    • 1823 – Théodore de Banville, French poet and critic (d. 1891)
    • 1833 – Frederic Shields, English painter and illustrator (d. 1911)
    • 1833 – Lucy Hobbs Taylor, American dentist and educator (d. 1910)
    • 1835 – Giovanni Schiaparelli, Italian astronomer and historian (d. 1910)
    • 1836 – Isabella Beeton, English author of Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management (d. 1865)
    • 1837 – Charles Ammi Cutter, American librarian (d. 1903)
    • 1844 – Umberto I of Italy (d. 1900)
    • 1844 – Arthur O’Shaughnessy, English poet and herpetologist (d. 1881)
    • 1847 – Castro Alves, Brazilian poet and playwright (d. 1871)
    • 1853 – Ferdinand Hodler, Swiss painter (d. 1918)
    • 1854 – Paul Ehrlich, German physician and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1915)
    • 1854 – John Lane, English publisher, co-founded The Bodley Head (d. 1925)
    • 1854 – Alexandru Macedonski, Romanian author and poet (d. 1920)
    • 1854 – Thomas R. Marshall, American lawyer and politician, 28th Vice President of the United States of America (d. 1925)
    • 1862 – Vilhelm Bjerknes, Norwegian physicist and meteorologist (d. 1951)
    • 1863 – Casey Jones, American engineer (d. 1900)
    • 1868 – Emily Murphy, Canadian jurist, author, and activist (d. 1933)
    • 1869 – Algernon Blackwood, English author and playwright (d. 1951)
    • 1874 – Anton Philips, Dutch businessman, co-founded Philips Electronics (d. 1951)
    • 1879 – Albert Einstein, German-American physicist, engineer, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1955)
    • 1882 – Wacław Sierpiński, Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1969)
    • 1885 – Raoul Lufbery, French-American soldier and pilot (d. 1918)
    • 1886 – Firmin Lambot, Belgian cyclist (d. 1964)
    • 1887 – Sylvia Beach, American-French publisher, founded Shakespeare and Company (d. 1962)
    • 1898 – Reginald Marsh, French-American painter and illustrator (d. 1954)
    • 1899 – K. C. Irving, Canadian businessman, founded Irving Oil (d. 1992)
    • 1901 – Sid Atkinson, South African hurdler and long jumper (d. 1977)
    • 1903 – Adolph Gottlieb, American painter and sculptor (d. 1974)
    • 1904 – Doris Eaton Travis, American actress and dancer (d. 2010)
    • 1905 – Raymond Aron, French journalist, sociologist, and philosopher (d. 1983)
    • 1906 – Ulvi Cemal Erkin, Turkish composer and educator (d. 1972)
    • 1908 – Ed Heinemann, American designer of military aircraft (d. 1991)
    • 1908 – Maurice Merleau-Ponty, French philosopher and academic (d. 1961)
    • 1908 – Philip Conrad Vincent, English engineer and businessman, founded Vincent Motorcycles (d. 1979)
    • 1911 – Akira Yoshizawa, Japanese origamist (d. 2005)
    • 1912 – Cliff Bastin, English footballer (d. 1991)
    • 1912 – Les Brown, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (d. 2001)
    • 1912 – W. Graham Claytor, Jr. American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 15th United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 1994)
    • 1912 – W. Willard Wirtz, American lawyer and politician, 10th United States Secretary of Labor (d. 2010)
    • 1914 – Lee Hays, American singer-songwriter (d. 1981)
    • 1914 – Bill Owen, English actor and songwriter (d. 1999)
    • 1914 – Lee Petty, American race car driver and businessman, founded Petty Enterprises (d. 2000)
    • 1915 – Alexander Brott, Canadian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2005)
    • 1916 – Horton Foote, American author, playwright, and screenwriter (d. 2009)
    • 1917 – Alan Smith, English lieutenant and pilot (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Zoia Horn, American librarian (d. 2014)
    • 1919 – Max Shulman, American author and screenwriter (d. 1988)
    • 1920 – Hank Ketcham, American author and cartoonist, created Dennis the Menace (d. 2001)
    • 1920 – Dorothy Tyler-Odam, English high jumper (d. 2014)
    • 1921 – S. Truett Cathy, American businessman, founded Chick-fil-A (d. 2014)
    • 1921 – Ada Louise Huxtable, American author and critic (d. 2013)
    • 1922 – Les Baxter, American pianist and composer (d. 1996)
    • 1923 – Diane Arbus, American photographer (d. 1971)
    • 1925 – William Clay Ford, Sr., American businessman (d. 2014)
    • 1925 – Joseph A. Unanue, American sergeant and businessman (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – François Morel, Canadian pianist, composer, conductor, and educator (d. 2018)
    • 1928 – Frank Borman, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1928 – Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente, Spanish environmentalist (d. 1980)
    • 1929 – Bob Goalby, American golfer
    • 1932 – Mark Murphy, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2015)
    • 1932 – Naina Yeltsina, Russian wife of Boris Yeltsin, First Lady of Russia
    • 1933 – Michael Caine, English actor and author
    • 1933 – Quincy Jones, American singer-songwriter, trumpet player, and producer
    • 1934 – Eugene Cernan, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2017)
    • 1934 – Paul Rader, American 15th General of The Salvation Army
    • 1936 – Bob Charles, New Zealand golfer
    • 1937 – Peter van der Merwe, South African cricketer and referee (d. 2013)
    • 1938 – Eleanor Bron, English actress and screenwriter
    • 1938 – Jan Crouch, American televangelist, co-founder of the Trinity Broadcasting Network (d. 2016)
    • 1938 – John Gleeson, Australian cricketer (d. 2016)
    • 1939 – Raymond J. Barry, American actor
    • 1939 – Bertrand Blier, French director and screenwriter
    • 1939 – Yves Boisset, French director and screenwriter
    • 1941 – Wolfgang Petersen, German-American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1942 – Rita Tushingham, English actress
    • 1943 – Anita Morris, American actress and singer (d. 1994)
    • 1944 – Boris Brott, Canadian composer and conductor
    • 1944 – Václav Nedomanský, Czech ice hockey player and manager
    • 1944 – Bobby Smith, English footballer and manager
    • 1944 – Tom Stannage, Australian historian and academic (d. 2012)
    • 1945 – Jasper Carrott, English comedian, actor, and game show host
    • 1945 – Michael Martin Murphey, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1945 – Walter Parazaider, American saxophonist
    • 1946 – William Lerach, American securities and class action attorney
    • 1946 – Wes Unseld, American basketball player, coach, and manager
    • 1947 – Roy Budd, English pianist and composer (d. 1993)
    • 1947 – William J. Jefferson, American lawyer and politician
    • 1947 – Jona Lewie, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
    • 1948 – Tom Coburn, American physician and politician (d. 2020)
    • 1948 – Billy Crystal, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1948 – Theo Jansen, Dutch sculptor
    • 1950 – Rick Dees, American actor and radio host
    • 1951 – Jerry Greenfield, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Ben & Jerry’s
    • 1953 – Nick Keir, Scottish singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1955 – Jonathan Kaufer, American director and screenwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1956 – Alexey Pajitnov, Russian video game designer and computer engineer, creator of Tetris
    • 1956 – Butch Wynegar, American baseball player and coach
    • 1957 – Tad Williams, American author
    • 1958 – Albert II, Prince of Monaco
    • 1959 – Laila Robins, American actress
    • 1959 – Tamara Tunie, American actress
    • 1960 – Heidi Hammel, American astronomer and academic
    • 1961 – Garry Jack, Australian rugby league player and coach
    • 1961 – Mike Lazaridis, Turkish–Canadian businessman and philanthropist, founded BlackBerry Limited
    • 1963 – Bruce Reid, Australian cricketer and coach
    • 1965 – Kevin Brown, American baseball player and coach
    • 1965 – Aamir Khan, Indian film actor, producer, and director
    • 1965 – Billy Sherwood, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
    • 1965 – Kevin Williamson, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1966 – Jonas Elmer, Danish actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1966 – Elise Neal, American actress and producer
    • 1968 – Megan Follows, Canadian-American actress
    • 1969 – Larry Johnson, American basketball player and actor
    • 1970 – Kristian Bush, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1972 – Irom Chanu Sharmila, Indian poet and activist
    • 1973 – Rohit Shetty, Indian film director and producer
    • 1974 – Patrick Traverse, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1975 – Steve Harper, English footballer and referee
    • 1975 – Dmitri Markov, Belarusian-Australian pole vaulter
    • 1976 – Phil Vickery, English rugby player and sportscaster
    • 1977 – Vadims Fjodorovs, Latvian footballer and coach
    • 1977 – Naoki Matsuda, Japanese footballer (d. 2011)
    • 1977 – Jeremy Paul, New Zealand-Australian rugby player
    • 1978 – Pieter van den Hoogenband, Dutch swimmer
    • 1979 – Nicolas Anelka, French footballer and manager
    • 1979 – Chris Klein, American actor
    • 1979 – Sead Ramović, German-Bosnian footballer
    • 1980 – Aaron Brown, English footballer and coach
    • 1980 – Ben Herring, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1981 – Bobby Jenks, American baseball player
    • 1981 – George Wilson, American football player
    • 1982 – Carlos Marinelli, Argentinian footballer
    • 1982 – François Sterchele, Belgian footballer (d. 2008)
    • 1983 – Bakhtiyar Artayev, Kazakh boxer
    • 1986 – Elton Chigumbura, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1986 – Jessica Gallagher, Australian skier and cyclist
    • 1986 – Andy Taylor, English footballer
    • 1988 – Stephen Curry, American basketball player
    • 1988 – Rico Freimuth, German decathlete
    • 1989 – Kevin Lacroix, Canadian race car driver
    • 1990 – Joe Allen, Welsh footballer
    • 1990 – Tamás Kádár, Hungarian footballer
    • 1990 – Haru Kuroki, Japanese actress
    • 1990 – Kolbeinn Sigþórsson, Icelandic footballer
    • 1991 – Emir Bekrić, Serbian hurdler
    • 1991 – László Szűcs, Hungarian footballer
    • 1991 – Steven Zellner, German footballer
    • 1993 – Philipp Ziereis, German footballer
    • 1994 – Ansel Elgort, American actor and DJ
    • 1996 – Batuhan Altıntaş, Turkish footballer
    • 1997 – Simone Biles, American gymnast
    • 2008 – Abby Ryder Fortson, American actress

    Deaths on March 14

    • 840 – Einhard, Frankish scholar
    • 968 – Matilda of Ringelheim, Saxon queen (b. c. 896)
    • 1555 – John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford (b. 1485)
    • 1647 – Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange (b. 1584)
    • 1648 – Ferdinando Fairfax, 2nd Lord Fairfax of Cameron, English general and politician (b. 1584)
    • 1696 – Jean Domat, French lawyer and jurist (b. 1625)
    • 1748 – George Wade, Irish field marshal and politician (b. 1673)
    • 1757 – John Byng, British admiral and politician, 11th Commodore Governor of Newfoundland (b. 1704)
    • 1791 – Johann Salomo Semler, German historian and critic (b. 1725)
    • 1803 – Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, German poet (b. 1724)
    • 1811 – Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, English academic and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1735)
    • 1823 – Charles François Dumouriez, French general and politician, French Minister of War (b. 1739)
    • 1860 – Carl Ritter von Ghega, Italian engineer, designed the Semmering railway (b. 1802)
    • 1877 – Juan Manuel de Rosas, Argentinian general and politician, 17th Governor of Buenos Aires Province (b. 1793)
    • 1883 – Karl Marx, German philosopher and theorist (b. 1818)
    • 1884 – Quintino Sella, Italian economist and politician, Italian Minister of Finances (b. 1827)
    • 1932 – George Eastman, American inventor and businessman, founded Eastman Kodak (b. 1854)
    • 1953 – Klement Gottwald, Czechoslovak Communist politician and 14th President of Czechoslovakia (b. 1896)
    • 1957 – Evagoras Pallikarides, Cypriot activist (b. 1938)
    • 1965 – Marion Jones Farquhar, American tennis player (b. 1879)
    • 1968 – Erwin Panofsky, German historian and academic (b. 1892)
    • 1969 – Ben Shahn, Lithuanian-American painter, illustrator, and educator (b. 1898)
    • 1973 – Howard H. Aiken, American computer scientist and engineer (b. 1900)
    • 1973 – Chic Young, American cartoonist (b. 1901)
    • 1975 – Susan Hayward, American actress (b. 1917)
    • 1976 – Busby Berkeley, American director and choreographer (b. 1895)
    • 1977 – Fannie Lou Hamer, American activist and philanthropist (b. 1917)
    • 1980 – Mohammad Hatta, Indonesian politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Indonesia (b. 1902)
    • 1980 – Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente, Spanish environmentalist (b. 1928)
    • 1984 – Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet (b. 1915)
    • 1989 – Zita of Bourbon-Parma, Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary (b. 1892)
    • 1991 – Howard Ashman, American playwright and composer (b. 1950)
    • 1995 – William Alfred Fowler, American physicist and astronomer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
    • 1997 – Fred Zinnemann, Austrian-American director and producer (b. 1907)
    • 1999 – Kirk Alyn, American actor (b. 1910)
    • 1999 – John Broome, American author (b. 1913)
    • 2003 – Jack Goldstein, Canadian-American painter (b. 1945)
    • 2003 – Jean-Luc Lagardère, French engineer and businessman (b. 1928)
    • 2006 – Lennart Meri, Estonian director and politician, 2nd President of Estonia (b. 1929)
    • 2007 – Lucie Aubrac, French educator and activist (b. 1912)
    • 2008 – Chiara Lubich, Italian activist, co-founded the Focolare Movement (b. 1920)
    • 2010 – Peter Graves, American actor (b. 1926)
    • 2012 – Pierre Schoendoerffer, French director and screenwriter (b. 1928)
    • 2012 – Ċensu Tabone, Maltese general and politician, 4th President of Malta (b. 1913)
    • 2013 – Jack Greene, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1930)
    • 2013 – Aramais Sahakyan, Armenian poet and author (b. 1936)
    • 2013 – Ieng Sary, Vietnamese-Cambodian politician, Cambodian Minister for Foreign Affairs (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Tony Benn, English politician, Postmaster General of the United Kingdom (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Meir Har-Zion, Israeli commander (b. 1934)
    • 2016 – John W. Cahn, German-American metallurgist and academic (b. 1928)
    • 2016 – Peter Maxwell Davies, English composer and conductor (b. 1934)
    • 2016 – Suranimala Rajapaksha, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (b. 1949)
    • 2018 – Jim Bowen, English stand-up comedian and TV personality (b. 1937)
    • 2018 – Marielle Franco, Brazilian politician and human rights activist (b. 1979)
    • 2018 – Stephen Hawking, English physicist and author (b. 1942)
    • 2018 – Liam O’Flynn, Irish uileann piper (b. 1945)
    • 2019 – Jake Phelps, American skateboarder and Thrasher editor-in-chief (b. 1962)

    Holidays and observances on March 14

    • Christian feast day:
      • Leobinus
      • March 14 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Constitution Day (Andorra)
    • Heroes’ Day (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)
    • Mother Tongue Day (Estonia)
    • Nanakshahi New Year, first day of the month of Chet (Sikhism)
    • Pi Day
    • Summer Day (Albania)
    • White Day on which men give gifts to women; complementary to Valentine’s Day (Japan and other Asian nations)

  • March 8 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem Shahnameh.
    • 1126 – Following the death of his mother Urraca, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of Castile and León.
    • 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between bourgeois militias and the army of the bishop of Strasbourg.
    • 1576 – Spanish explorer Diego García de Palacio first sights the ruins of the ancient Mayan city of Copán.
    • 1618 – Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion.
    • 1655 – John Casor becomes the first legally-recognized slave in England’s North American colonies where a crime was not committed.
    • 1658 – Treaty of Roskilde: After a devastating defeat in the Northern Wars (1655–1661), Frederick III, the King of Denmark–Norway is forced to give up nearly half his territory to Sweden to save the rest.
    • 1702 – Queen Anne, the younger sister of Mary II, becomes Queen regnant of England, Scotland, and Ireland
    • 1722 – The Safavid Empire of Iran is defeated by an army from Afghanistan at the Battle of Gulnabad, pushing Iran into anarchy.
    • 1736 – Nader Shah, founder of the Afsharid dynasty, is crowned Shah of Iran.
    • 1775 – An anonymous writer, thought by some to be Thomas Paine, publishes “African Slavery in America”, the first article in the American colonies calling for the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of slavery.
    • 1777 – Regiments from Ansbach and Bayreuth, sent to support Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War, mutiny in the town of Ochsenfurt.
    • 1782 – Gnadenhutten massacre: Ninety-six Native Americans in Gnadenhutten, Ohio, who had converted to Christianity, are killed by Pennsylvania militiamen in retaliation for raids carried out by other Indian tribes.
    • 1801 – War of the Second Coalition: At the Battle of Abukir, a British force under Sir Ralph Abercromby lands in Egypt with the aim of ending the French campaign in Egypt and Syria.
    • 1817 – The New York Stock Exchange is founded.
    • 1844 – King Oscar I ascends to the thrones of Sweden and Norway.
    • 1862 – American Civil War: The Naval Battle of Hampton Roads begins.
    • 1868 – Sakai incident: Japanese samurai kill 11 French sailors in the port of Sakai, Osaka.
    • 1910 – French aviator Raymonde de Laroche becomes the first woman to receive a pilot’s license.
    • 1914 – First flights (for the Royal Thai Air Force) at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok.
    • 1916 – World War I: A British force unsuccessfully attempts to relieve the siege of Kut (present-day Iraq) in the Battle of Dujaila.
    • 1917 – International Women’s Day protests in St. Petersburg mark the beginning of the February Revolution (February 23rd in the Julian calendar).
    • 1917 – The United States Senate votes to limit filibusters by adopting the cloture rule.
    • 1920 – The Arab Kingdom of Syria, the first modern Arab state to come into existence, is established.
    • 1921 – Spanish Prime Minister Eduardo Dato Iradier is assassinated while exiting the parliament building in Madrid.
    • 1924 – A mine disaster kills 172 coal miners near Castle Gate, Utah.
    • 1936 – Daytona Beach and Road Course holds its first oval stock car race.
    • 1937 – Spanish Civil War: The Battle of Guadalajara begins.
    • 1942 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Army forces gave an ultimatum to Dutch East Indies Governor General Jonkheer Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer and KNIL Commander in Chief Lieutenant General Hein Ter Poorten, to unconditionally surrender.
    • 1942 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Army forces captured Rangoon, Burma from British.
    • 1947 – Thirteen thousand troops of the Republic of China Army arrive in Taiwan after the February 28 Incident and launch crackdowns which kill thousands of people, including many elites. This turns into a major root of the Taiwan independence movement.
    • 1949 – President of France Vincent Auriol and ex-emperor of Annam Bảo Đại sign the Élysée Accords, giving Vietnam greater independence from France and creating the State of Vietnam to oppose Viet Minh-led Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
    • 1957 – Egypt re-opens the Suez Canal after the Suez Crisis.
    • 1957 – The 1957 Georgia Memorial to Congress, which petitions the U.S. Congress to declare the ratification of the 14th and 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution null and void, is adopted by the U.S. state of Georgia.
    • 1963 – The Ba’ath Party comes to power in Syria in a coup d’état by a clique of quasi-leftist Syrian Army officers calling themselves the National Council of the Revolutionary Command.
    • 1965 – Thirty-five hundred United States Marines are the first American land combat forces committed during the Vietnam War.
    • 1966 – Nelson’s Pillar in Dublin, Ireland, destroyed by a bomb.
    • 1971 – The Fight of the Century between Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali commences. Frazier wins in 15 rounds via unanimous decision.
    • 1974 – Charles de Gaulle Airport opens in Paris, France.
    • 1979 – Philips demonstrates the compact disc publicly for the first time.
    • 1983 – Cold War: While addressing a convention of Evangelicals, U.S. President Ronald Reagan labels the Soviet Union an “evil empire”.
    • 1985 – A supposed failed assassination attempt on Islamic cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah in Beirut, Lebanon kills at least 45 and injures 175 others.
    • 2004 – A new constitution is signed by Iraq’s Governing Council.
    • 2014 – Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, carrying a total of 239 people, disappears en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
    • 2017 – The Azure Window, a natural arch on the Maltese island of Gozo, collapses in stormy weather.

    Births on March 8

    • 1286 – John III, Duke of Brittany (d. 1341)
    • 1293 – Beatrice of Castile (d. 1359)
    • 1495 – John of God, Portuguese friar and saint (d. 1550)
    • 1514 – Amago Haruhisa, Japanese daimyō (d. 1562)
    • 1518 – Sidonie of Saxony, Duchess of Brunswick-Calenberg (d. 1575)
    • 1550 – William Drury, English politician (d. 1590)
    • 1658 – Thomas Trevor, 1st Baron Trevor, British Baron (d. 1730)
    • 1566 – Carlo Gesualdo, Italian lute player and composer (d. 1613)
    • 1712 – John Fothergill, English physician and botanist (d. 1780)
    • 1714 – Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German pianist and composer (d. 1788)
    • 1726 – Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, English admiral and politician, Treasurer of the Navy (d. 1799)
    • 1746 – André Michaux, French botanist and explorer (d. 1802)
    • 1748 – William V, Prince of Orange (d. 1806)
    • 1761 – Jan Potocki, Polish ethnologist, historian, linguist, and author (d. 1815)
    • 1799 – Simon Cameron, American journalist and politician, 26th United States Secretary of War (d. 1889)
    • 1804 – Alvan Clark, American astronomer and optician (d. 1887)
    • 1822 – Ignacy Łukasiewicz, Polish inventor and businessman, invented the Kerosene lamp (d. 1882)
    • 1826 – Johann Köler, Estonian painter and academic (d. 1899)
    • 1827 – Wilhelm Bleek, German linguist and anthropologist (d. 1875)
    • 1830 – João de Deus, Portuguese poet and educator (d. 1896)
    • 1839 – Josephine Cochrane, American inventor (d. 1913)
    • 1841 – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., American colonel, lawyer, and jurist (d. 1935)
    • 1848 – LaMarcus Adna Thompson, American engineer and businessman, developed the roller coaster (d. 1917)
    • 1856 – Bramwell Booth, English 2nd General of The Salvation Army (d. 1929)
    • 1856 – Colin Campbell Cooper, American painter and academic (d. 1937)
    • 1859 – Kenneth Grahame, Scottish-English banker and author (d. 1932)
    • 1865 – Frederic Goudy, American type designer, created Copperplate Gothic and Goudy Old Style (d. 1947)
    • 1879 – Otto Hahn, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1968)
    • 1886 – Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1972)
    • 1892 – Juana de Ibarbourou, Uruguayan poet and author (d. 1979)
    • 1896 – Charlotte Whitton, Canadian journalist and politician, 46th Mayor of Ottawa (d. 1975)
    • 1899 – Elmer Keith, American gun designer and author (d. 1984)
    • 1900 – Howard H. Aiken, American physicist and computer scientist, created the Harvard Mark I (d. 1973)
    • 1902 – Louise Beavers, American actress and singer (d. 1962)
    • 1902 – Jennings Randolph, American journalist and politician (d. 1998)
    • 1907 – Konstantinos Karamanlis, Greek lawyer and politician, 3rd President of Greece (d. 1998)
    • 1909 – Beatrice Shilling, English motorcycle racer and engineer (d. 1990)
    • 1909 – Paula Strasberg, American actress and acting coach (d. 1966)
    • 1910 – Claire Trevor, American actress (d. 2000)
    • 1911 – Alan Hovhaness, Armenian-American pianist and composer (d. 2000)
    • 1912 – Preston Smith, American businessman and politician, 40th Governor of Texas (d. 2003)
    • 1912 – Meldrim Thomson, Jr., American publisher and politician, 73rd Governor of New Hampshire (d. 2001)
    • 1914 – Yakov Borisovich Zel’dovich, Belarusian-Russian physicist and astronomer (d. 1987)
    • 1918 – Eileen Herlie, Scottish-American actress (d. 2008)
    • 1920 – Douglass Wallop, American author and playwright (d. 1985)
    • 1921 – Alan Hale, Jr., American actor (d. 1990)
    • 1921 – Sahir Ludhianvi, Indian poet and songwriter (d. 1980)
    • 1922 – Ralph H. Baer, German-American video game designer, created the Magnavox Odyssey (d. 2014)
    • 1922 – Cyd Charisse, American actress and dancer (d. 2008)
    • 1922 – Carl Furillo, American baseball player (d. 1989)
    • 1922 – Yevgeny Matveyev, Russian actor and director (d. 2003)
    • 1922 – Shigeru Mizuki, Japanese author and illustrator (d. 2015)
    • 1924 – Anthony Caro, English sculptor and illustrator (d. 2013)
    • 1924 – Georges Charpak, Ukrainian-French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
    • 1924 – Sean McClory, Irish-American actor and director (d. 2003)
    • 1925 – Warren Bennis, American scholar, author, and academic (d. 2014)
    • 1926 – Francisco Rabal, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2001)
    • 1929 – Hebe Camargo, Brazilian actress and singer (d. 2012)
    • 1930 – Bob Grim, American baseball player (d. 1996)
    • 1930 – Douglas Hurd, English politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
    • 1931 – Neil Adcock, South African cricketer (d. 2013)
    • 1931 – John McPhee, American author and educator
    • 1931 – Gerald Potterton, English-Canadian animator, director, and producer
    • 1931 – Neil Postman, American author and critic (d. 2003)
    • 1934 – Marv Breeding, American baseball player and scout (d. 2006)
    • 1935 – George Coleman, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader
    • 1936 – Sue Ane Langdon, American actress and singer
    • 1936 – Gábor Szabó, Hungarian guitarist and composer (d. 1982)
    • 1937 – Richard Fariña, American singer-songwriter and author (d. 1966)
    • 1937 – Juvénal Habyarimana, Rwandan politician, 2nd President of Rwanda (d. 1994)
    • 1938 – Pete Dawkins, American football player, colonel, and politician
    • 1939 – Jim Bouton, American baseball player and journalist (d. 2019)
    • 1939 – Lynn Seymour, Canadian ballerina and choreographer
    • 1939 – Lidiya Skoblikova, Russian speed skater and coach
    • 1939 – Robert Tear, Welsh tenor and conductor (d. 2011)
    • 1941 – Norman Stone, Scottish-English historian, author, and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1942 – Dick Allen, American baseball player and tenor
    • 1942 – Ann Packer, English sprinter, hurdler, and long jumper
    • 1943 – Susan Clark, Canadian actress and producer
    • 1943 – Michael Grade, English businessman
    • 1943 – Lynn Redgrave, English-American actress and singer (d. 2010)
    • 1943 – Dionysis Simopoulos, Greek physicist and astronomer
    • 1944 – Sergey Nikitin, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1945 – Jim Chapman, American lawyer and politician
    • 1945 – Micky Dolenz, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and actor
    • 1945 – Anselm Kiefer, German painter and sculptor
    • 1945 – Sylvia Wiegand, American mathematician
    • 1946 – Robert Jaworski, Filipino basketball player, coach, and politician
    • 1946 – Randy Meisner, American singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1947 – Carole Bayer Sager, American singer-songwriter and painter
    • 1947 – Michael S. Hart, American author, founded Project Gutenberg (d. 2011)
    • 1947 – Vladimír Mišík, Czech singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1947 – Florentino Pérez, Spanish engineer and businessman
    • 1948 – Robert W. Boyd, American physicist and academic
    • 1948 – Gyles Brandreth, German-English actor, screenwriter, and politician
    • 1948 – Mel Galley, English rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2008)
    • 1948 – Sam Lacey, American basketball player (d. 2014)
    • 1948 – Peggy March, American pop singer
    • 1948 – Jonathan Sacks, English rabbi, philosopher, and scholar
    • 1949 – Teofilo Cubillas, Peruvian footballer
    • 1951 – Phil Edmonds, Zambian-English cricketer and businessman
    • 1951 – Dianne Walker, American tap dancer
    • 1952 – George Allen, American lawyer and politician, 67th Governor of Virginia
    • 1953 – Jim Rice, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
    • 1954 – Steve James, American documentary filmmaker
    • 1954 – David Wilkie, Sri Lankan-Scottish swimmer
    • 1956 – Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (d. 1989)
    • 1956 – David Malpass, American economist and government official
    • 1957 – Clive Burr, English rock drummer (d. 2013)
    • 1957 – William Edward Childs, American pianist and composer
    • 1957 – Bob Stoddard, American baseball player
    • 1958 – Andy McDonald, English lawyer and politician
    • 1958 – Gary Numan, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1959 – Aidan Quinn, Irish-American actor
    • 1960 – Jeffrey Eugenides, American author and academic
    • 1960 – Irek Mukhamedov, Russian ballet dancer
    • 1960 – Buck Williams, American basketball player and coach
    • 1961 – Camryn Manheim, American actress
    • 1961 – Larry Murphy, Canadian ice hockey player and journalist
    • 1962 – Leon Robinson, American actor and producer
    • 1964 – Kate Betts, American journalist and author
    • 1965 – Kenny Smith, American basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1966 – Greg Barker, Baron Barker of Battle, English politician
    • 1966 – Jaime Levy, American computer scientist and academic
    • 1967 – Joel Johnston, American baseball player
    • 1968 – Michael Bartels, German race car driver
    • 1968 – Shawn Mullins, American singer-songwriter
    • 1969 – Juan de Dios Ramírez Perales, Mexican footballer
    • 1970 – Jason Elam, American football player
    • 1971 – Kit Symons, English-Welsh footballer and manager
    • 1972 – Georgios Georgiadis, Greek footballer and manager
    • 1972 – Matthew Nable, Australian rugby player and actor
    • 1972 – Lena Sundström, Swedish journalist and author
    • 1973 – Boris Kodjoe, Austrian-born American actor and producer
    • 1973 – Anneke van Giersbergen, Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1975 – Mauro Briano, Italian footballer
    • 1976 – Gaz Coombes, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1976 – Juan Encarnación, Dominican baseball player
    • 1976 – Freddie Prinze, Jr., American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1977 – James Van Der Beek, American actor
    • 1977 – Johann Vogel, Swiss footballer
    • 1978 – Nick Zano, American actor and producer
    • 1979 – Apathy, American rapper and producer
    • 1979 – Tom Chaplin, English singer-songwriter
    • 1979 – Andy Ross, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1980 – Stephen Milne, Australian footballer
    • 1981 – Michael Beauchamp, Australian footballer
    • 1981 – Timothy Jordan II, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 2005)
    • 1981 – Joost Posthuma, Dutch cyclist
    • 1982 – Nicolas Armindo, French racing driver
    • 1982 – Leonidas Kampantais, Greek footballer
    • 1982 – Isak Strand, Norwegian drummer, composer, and producer
    • 1983 – André Santos, Brazilian footballer
    • 1983 – Mark Worrell, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Rafik Djebbour, Algerian footballer
    • 1984 – Ross Taylor, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1984 – Sasha Vujačić, Slovenian basketball player
    • 1987 – Jonathan Wright, Australian rugby league player
    • 1988 – Benny Blanco, American rapper and producer
    • 1990 – Asier Illarramendi, Spanish footballer
    • 1990 – Petra Kvitová, Czech tennis player
    • 1990 – Nico Salva, Filipino basketball player
    • 1990 – Ben Tozer, English footballer
    • 1991 – Miriam Bryant, Swedish-Finnish singer-songwriter
    • 1991 – Tom English, Australian rugby player
    • 1992 – Uki Satake, Japanese singer, actress, and radio host
    • 1994 – Pablo Dyego, Brazilian footballer
    • 1994 – Claire Emslie, Scottish footballer
    • 1994 – Dylan Tombides, Australian footballer (d. 2014)
    • 1996 – Matthew Hammelmann, Australian rules footballer
    • 1998 – Tali Darsigny, Canadian weightlifter

    Deaths on March 8

    • 865 – Rudolf of Fulda, German theologian
    • 1126 – Urraca of León and Castile (b. 1079)
    • 1137 – Adela of Normandy, by marriage countess of Blois (b. c. 1067)
    • 1144 – Pope Celestine II
    • 1223 – Wincenty Kadłubek, Polish bishop and historian (b. 1161)
    • 1365 – Queen Noguk of Korea
    • 1403 – Bayezid I, Ottoman sultan (b. 1360)
    • 1441 – Margaret of Burgundy, Duchess of Bavaria
    • 1466 – Francesco I Sforza, Duke of Milan (b. 1401)
    • 1550 – John of God, Portuguese friar and saint (b. 1495)
    • 1619 – Veit Bach, German baker and miller (b. 1550)
    • 1641 – Xu Xiake, Chinese geographer and explorer (b. 1587)
    • 1702 – William III of England (b. 1650)
    • 1717 – Abraham Darby I, English blacksmith (b. 1678)
    • 1723 – Christopher Wren, English architect, designed St. Paul’s Cathedral (b. 1632)
    • 1731 – Ferdinand Brokoff, Czech sculptor (b. 1688)
    • 1771 – Louis August le Clerc, French-Danish sculptor and academic (b. 1688)
    • 1819 – Benjamin Ruggles Woodbridge, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (b. 1739)
    • 1844 – Charles XIV John of Sweden (b. 1763)
    • 1869 – Hector Berlioz, French composer, conductor, and critic (b. 1803)
    • 1872 – Cornelius Krieghoff, Dutch-Canadian painter (b. 1815)
    • 1874 – Millard Fillmore, American lawyer and politician, 13th President of the United States (b. 1800)
    • 1887 – Henry Ward Beecher, American minister and activist (b. 1813)
    • 1887 – James Buchanan Eads, American engineer, designed the Eads Bridge (b. 1820)
    • 1889 – John Ericsson, Swedish-American engineer, designed the USS Monitor (b. 1803)
    • 1917 – Ferdinand von Zeppelin, German general and businessman, founded the Zeppelin Company (b. 1838)
    • 1923 – Krišjānis Barons, Latvian linguist and author (b. 1835)
    • 1923 – Johannes Diderik van der Waals, Dutch physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1837)
    • 1930 – William Howard Taft, American lawyer, jurist, and politician, 27th President of the United States (b. 1857)
    • 1930 – Edward Terry Sanford, American lawyer, jurist, and politician, United States Assistant Attorney General (b. 1865)
    • 1935 – Hachikō, Japanese dog (b. 1923)
    • 1937 – Howie Morenz, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1902)
    • 1941 – Sherwood Anderson, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1876)
    • 1942 – José Raúl Capablanca, Cuban chess player and theoretician (b. 1888)
    • 1944 – Fredy Hirsch, German Jewish athlete who helped thousands of Jewish children in the Holocaust (b. 1916)
    • 1945 – Frederick Bligh Bond, English archaeologist and architect (b. 1864)
    • 1948 – Hulusi Behçet, Turkish dermatologist and scientist (b. 1889)
    • 1957 – Othmar Schoeck, Swiss composer and conductor (b. 1886)
    • 1961 – Thomas Beecham, English conductor and composer (b. 1879)
    • 1971 – Harold Lloyd, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1893)
    • 1973 – Ron “Pigpen” McKernan, American keyboard player and songwriter (b. 1945)
    • 1975 – George Stevens, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1904)
    • 1976 – Alfons Rebane, Estonian colonel (b. 1908)
    • 1983 – Chabuca Granda, Peruvian-American singer-songwriter (b. 1920)
    • 1983 – Alan Lennox-Boyd, 1st Viscount Boyd of Merton, English lieutenant and politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (b. 1904)
    • 1983 – William Walton, English composer (b. 1902)
    • 1985 – Edward Andrews, American actor (b. 1914)
    • 1988 – Amar Singh Chamkila, Indian singer-songwriter (b. 1961)
    • 1988 – Werner Hartmann, German physicist and academic (b. 1912)
    • 1991 – John Bellairs, American author and academic (b. 1938)
    • 1993 – Billy Eckstine, American trumpet player (b. 1914)
    • 1996 – Jack Churchill, British colonel (b. 1906)
    • 1997 – Gershon Liebman, French rabbi (b. 1905)
    • 1998 – Ray Nitschke, American football player and actor (b. 1936)
    • 1999 – Adolfo Bioy Casares, Argentinian journalist and author (b. 1914)
    • 1999 – Peggy Cass, American actress and comedian (b. 1924)
    • 1999 – Joe DiMaggio, American baseball player and coach (b. 1914)
    • 2001 – Edward Winter, American actor (b. 1937)
    • 2003 – Adam Faith, English singer (b. 1940)
    • 2003 – Karen Morley, American actress (b. 1909)
    • 2004 – Muhammad Zaidan, Syrian terrorist, founded the Palestine Liberation Front (b. 1948)
    • 2005 – César Lattes, Brazilian physicist and academic (b. 1924)
    • 2005 – Aslan Maskhadov, Chechen commander and politician, 3rd President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (b. 1951)
    • 2007 – John Inman, English actor (b. 1935)
    • 2007 – John Vukovich, American baseball player and coach (b. 1947)
    • 2009 – Hank Locklin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1918)
    • 2009 – Zbigniew Religa, Polish surgeon and politician, Polish Minister of Health (b. 1938)
    • 2011 – Mike Starr, American bass player (b. 1966)
    • 2012 – Simin Daneshvar, Iranian author and academic (b. 1921)
    • 2012 – Minoru Mori, Japanese businessman, founded the Mori Art Museum (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Steven Rubenstein, American anthropologist and academic (b. 1962)
    • 2013 – Haseeb Ahsan, Pakistani cricketer and manager (b. 1939)
    • 2013 – John O’Connell, Irish journalist and politician, 17th Irish Minister of Health (b. 1927)
    • 2013 – Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin, German soldier and publisher (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – Leo Bretholz, Austrian-American Holocaust survivor and author (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – William Guarnere, American sergeant (b. 1923)
    • 2015 – Tjol Lategan, South African rugby player (b. 1925)
    • 2015 – Sam Simon, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1955)
    • 2016 – Aldo Ferrer, Argentinian economist and diplomat (b. 1927)
    • 2016 – Ross Hannaford, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1950)
    • 2016 – George Martin, English composer, conductor, and producer (b. 1926)
    • 2018 – Kate Wilhelm, American author (b. 1928)
    • 2019 – Marshall Brodien, American actor (b. 1934)
    • 2019 – Cedrick Hardman, American football player and actor (b. 1948)
    • 2020 – Max von Sydow, Swedish actor (b. 1929)

    Holidays and observances on March 8

    • Christian feast day:
      • Edward King (Church of England)
      • Felix of Burgundy
      • Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy (the Church of England, The Episcopal Church (USA))
      • John of God
      • Philemon the actor
      • March 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Earliest day on which Canberra Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March (Australian Capital Territory)
    • Earliest day on which Commonwealth Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March (Commonwealth of Nations)
    • Earliest day on which Decoration Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Wednesday in March (Liberia)
    • Earliest day on which Passion Sunday can fall, while April 17 is the latest; observed on the fifth Sunday of Lent (Christianity)
    • International Women’s Day, and its related observances:
      • International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day

  • March 7- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 161 – Marcus Aurelius and L. Commodus (who changes his name to Lucius Verus) become joint emperors of Rome on the death of Antoninus Pius.
    • 1277 – The University of Paris issues the last in a series of condemnations of various philosophical and theological theses.
    • 1573 – A peace treaty is signed between the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Venice, ending the Ottoman–Venetian War and leaving Cyprus in Ottoman hands.
    • 1799 – Napoleon Bonaparte captures Jaffa in Palestine and his troops proceed to kill more than 2,000 Albanian captives.
    • 1814 – Emperor Napoleon I of France wins the Battle of Craonne.
    • 1827 – Brazilian marines unsuccessfully attack the temporary naval base of Carmen de Patagones, Argentina.
    • 1827 – Shrigley abduction: Ellen Turner is abducted by Edward Gibbon Wakefield, a future politician in colonial New Zealand.
    • 1850 – Senator Daniel Webster gives his “Seventh of March” speech endorsing the Compromise of 1850 in order to prevent a possible civil war.
    • 1862 – American Civil War: Union forces engage Confederate troops at the Pea Ridge in northwestern Arkansas.
    • 1876 – Alexander Graham Bell is granted a patent for an invention he calls the “telephone”.
    • 1900 – The German liner SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse becomes the first ship to send wireless signals to shore.
    • 1902 – Second Boer War: Boers, led by Koos de la Rey, inflict the biggest defeat upon the British since the beginning of the war, at Tweebosch.
    • 1914 – Prince William of Wied arrives in Albania to begin his reign as King.
    • 1936 – Prelude to World War II: In violation of the Locarno Pact and the Treaty of Versailles, Germany reoccupies the Rhineland.
    • 1941 – Günther Prien and the crew of German submarine U-47, one of the most successful U-boats of World War II, disappear without a trace.
    • 1945 – World War II: American troops seize the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine river at Remagen.
    • 1950 – Cold War: The Soviet Union issues a statement denying that Klaus Fuchs served as a Soviet spy.
    • 1951 – Korean War: Operation Ripper: United Nations troops led by General Matthew Ridgway begin an assault against Chinese forces.
    • 1951 – Iranian prime minister Ali Razmara is assassinated by Khalil Tahmasebi, a member of the Islamic fundamentalist Fada’iyan-e Islam, inside a mosque in Tehran.
    • 1965 – Bloody Sunday: A group of 600 civil rights marchers is brutally attacked by state and local police in Selma, Alabama.
    • 1967 – The Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat Sementara (MPRS), Indonesia’s provisional parliament, revoked Sukarno’s mandate as President of Indonesia.
    • 1968 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnamese military begin Operation Truong Cong Dinh to root out Viet Cong forces from the area surrounding Mỹ Tho.
    • 1971 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, political leader of then East Pakistan (present day-Bangladesh), delivers his historic 7th March speech in the Racecourse Field (Now Suhrawardy Udyan) in Dhaka.
    • 1986 – Challenger Disaster: Divers from the USS Preserver locate the crew cabin of Challenger on the ocean floor.
    • 1987 – Lieyu massacre: Taiwanese military massacre of 19 unarmed Vietnamese refugees at Donggang, Lieyu, Kinmen.
    • 1989 – Iran and the United Kingdom break diplomatic relations after a fight over Salman Rushdie and his controversial novel, The Satanic Verses.
    • 1993 – The tugboat Thomas Hebert sank off the coast of New Jersey, USA.
    • 2006 – The terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba coordinates a series of bombings in Varanasi, India.
    • 2007 – The British House of Commons votes to make the upper chamber, the House of Lords, 100% elected.
    • 2009 – The Real Irish Republican Army kills two British soldiers and injures two other soldiers and two civilians at Massereene Barracks, the first British military deaths in Northern Ireland since the end of The Troubles.

    Births on March 7

    • 189 – Publius Septimius Geta, Roman emperor (d. 211)
    • 942 – Mu’ayyad al-Dawla, Buyid emir (d. 983)
    • 1437 – Anna of Saxony, Electress of Brandenburg (d. 1512)
    • 1481 – Baldassare Peruzzi, Italian architect and painter (d. 1537)
    • 1482 – Fray Thomas de San Martín, Roman Catholic prelate and bishop (d. 1555)
    • 1543 – John Casimir of the Palatinate-Simmern, German prince and reigning count palatine of Simmern (d. 1592)
    • 1556 – Guillaume du Vair, French lawyer and author (d. 1621)
    • 1671 – Rob Roy MacGregor, Scottish outlaw (d. 1734)
    • 1678 – Filippo Juvarra, Italian architect, designed the Basilica of Superga (d. 1736)
    • 1693 – Clement XIII, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 1769)
    • 1715 – Ewald Christian von Kleist, German soldier and poet (d. 1759)
    • 1723 – Prince Vittorio Amedeo Theodore of Savoy (d. 1725)
    • 1730 – Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, French soldier and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1807)
    • 1765 – Nicéphore Niépce, French inventor, invented photography (d. 1833)
    • 1785 – Alessandro Manzoni, Italian author and poet (d. 1873)
    • 1788 – Antoine César Becquerel, French physicist and biochemist (d. 1878)
    • 1792 – John Herschel, English mathematician and astronomer (d. 1871)
    • 1811 – Increase A. Lapham, American botanist and author (d. 1875)
    • 1837 – Henry Draper, American physician and astronomer (d. 1882)
    • 1839 – Ludwig Mond, German-born chemist and British industrialist who discovered the metal carbonyls (d. 1909)
    • 1841 – William Rockhill Nelson, American businessman and publisher, founded The Kansas City Star (d. 1915)
    • 1843 – Marriott Henry Brosius, American senator (d. 1901)
    • 1849 – Luther Burbank, American botanist and author (d. 1926)
    • 1850 – Champ Clark, American lawyer and politician, 41st Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1921)
    • 1850 – Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, Austrian-Czech sociologist and politician, 1st President of Czechoslovakia (d. 1937)
    • 1857 – Julius Wagner-Jauregg, Austrian physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1940)
    • 1872 – Piet Mondrian, Dutch-American painter (d. 1944)
    • 1873 – Madame Sul-Te-Wan, American actress (d. 1959)
    • 1875 – Maurice Ravel, French pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1937)
    • 1878 – Boris Kustodiev, Russian painter and stage designer (d. 1927)
    • 1885 – Milton Avery, American painter (d. 1965)
    • 1885 – John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey, English admiral (d. 1971)
    • 1886 – Virginia Pearson, American actress (d. 1958)
    • 1886 – G. I. Taylor, English mathematician and physicist (d. 1975)
    • 1886 – Wilson Dallam Wallis, American anthropologist (d. 1970)
    • 1888 – William L. Laurence, Lithuanian-American journalist and author (d. 1977)
    • 1888 – Alidius Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer, Dutch lawyer and politician, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1978)
    • 1894 – Ana María O’Neill, Puerto Rican scholar and activist (d. 1981)
    • 1895 – Dorothy de Rothschild, English philanthropist and activist (d. 1988)
    • 1902 – Heinz Rühmann, German actor (d. 1994)
    • 1903 – Maud Lewis, Canadian folk artist (d. 1970)
    • 1904 – Ivar Ballangrud, Norwegian speed skater (d. 1969)
    • 1904 – Reinhard Heydrich, German SS officer (d. 1942)
    • 1908 – Anna Magnani, Italian actress (d. 1973)
    • 1910 – Will Glickman, American playwright (d. 1983)
    • 1911 – Sachchidananda Vatsyayan, Indian modern poet, journalist and author (d. 1987)
    • 1911 – Stefan Kisielewski, Polish libertarian writer and politician (d. 1991)
    • 1912 – Adile Ayda, Turkish engineer and diplomat (d. 1992)
    • 1913 – Dollard Ménard, Canadian general (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – Jacques Chaban-Delmas, French general and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 2000)
    • 1917 – Janet Collins, American ballerina and choreographer (d. 2003)
    • 1917 – Betty Holberton, American engineer and programmer (d. 2001)
    • 1922 – Olga Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 2004)
    • 1922 – Mochtar Lubis, Indonesian journalist and author (d. 2004)
    • 1922 – Peter Murphy, English footballer, inside left (d. 1975)
    • 1922 – Andy Phillip, American basketball player and coach (d. 2001)
    • 1924 – Morton Bard, American psychologist (d. 1997)
    • 1924 – Bill Boedeker, American football player (d. 2014)
    • 1925 – Rene Gagnon, American soldier (d. 1979)
    • 1925 – Richard Vernon, British actor (d. 1997)
    • 1927 – James Broderick, American actor and director (d. 1982)
    • 1929 – Dan Jacobson, South African-English author and critic (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, English photographer and politician (d. 2017)
    • 1930 – Robert Trotter, Scottish actor and photographer (d. 2013)
    • 1933 – Jackie Blanchflower, Northern Irish footballer and accountant (d. 1998)
    • 1933 – Ed Bouchee, American baseball player (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Willard Scott, American television personality and actor
    • 1936 – Florentino Fernández, Cuban-American boxer and coach (d. 2013)
    • 1936 – Georges Perec, French author and screenwriter (d. 1982)
    • 1938 – David Baltimore, American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1938 – Janet Guthrie, American professional race car driver, first woman to qualify and compete in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500
    • 1939 – Danyel Gérard, French singer-songwriter
    • 1940 – Daniel J. Travanti, American actor
    • 1941 – Piers Paul Read, English historian and author
    • 1942 – Michael Eisner, American businessman
    • 1942 – Tammy Faye Messner, American evangelist, television personality, and talk show host (d. 2007)
    • 1943 – Chris White, English singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1944 – Ranulph Fiennes, English soldier and explorer
    • 1944 – Townes Van Zandt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1997)
    • 1945 – Bob Herbert, American journalist
    • 1945 – Arthur Lee, American singer-songwriter and musician (d. 2006)
    • 1945 – Elizabeth Moon, American lieutenant and author
    • 1946 – John Heard, American actor and producer (d. 2017)
    • 1947 – Helen Eadie, Scottish politician (d. 2013)
    • 1947 – Walter Röhrl, German race car driver
    • 1949 – Ghulam Nabi Azad, Indian politician, Indian Minister of Health and Family Welfare
    • 1950 – Billy Joe DuPree, American football player
    • 1950 – Franco Harris, American football player and businessman
    • 1950 – J. R. Richard, American baseball player and minister
    • 1952 – William Boyd, Ghanaian-English author and screenwriter
    • 1952 – Ernie Isley, American guitarist and songwriter
    • 1952 – Viv Richards, Antiguan cricketer and footballer
    • 1952 – Lynn Swann, American football player, sportscaster, and politician
    • 1954 – Eva Brunne, Swedish bishop
    • 1955 – Tommy Kramer, American football player
    • 1956 – Bryan Cranston, American actor, director, and producer
    • 1956 – Andrea Levy, English author (d. 2019)
    • 1957 – Robert Harris, English journalist and author
    • 1957 – Mark Richards, Australian surfer
    • 1957 – Tomás Yarrington, Mexican economist and politician, Governor of Tamaulipas
    • 1958 – Rick Bass, American author and environmentalist
    • 1958 – Rik Mayall, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
    • 1958 – Merv Neagle, Australian footballer and coach (d. 2012)
    • 1959 – Tom Lehman, American golfer
    • 1959 – Donna Murphy, American actress and singer
    • 1960 – Joe Carter, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1960 – Ivan Lendl, Czech tennis player and coach
    • 1960 – Jim Spivey, American runner and coach
    • 1961 – David Rutley, English businessman and politician
    • 1961 – Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, French politician
    • 1962 – Taylor Dayne, American singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1963 – Mike Eagles, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1963 – E. L. James, English author
    • 1964 – Bret Easton Ellis, American author and screenwriter
    • 1964 – Wanda Sykes, American comedian, actress, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Steve Beuerlein, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1965 – Jesper Parnevik, Swedish golfer
    • 1966 – Terry Carkner, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1966 – Tony Daly, Australian rugby player
    • 1967 – Muhsin al-Ramli, Iraqi author, poet, translator, and academic
    • 1967 – Ruthie Henshall, English actress, singer, and dancer
    • 1967 – Ai Yazawa, Japanese author and illustrator
    • 1968 – Jeff Kent, American baseball player
    • 1969 – Massimo Lotti, Italian footballer
    • 1969 – Hideki Noda, Japanese race car driver
    • 1970 – Rachel Weisz, English-American actress and producer
    • 1971 – Peter Sarsgaard, American actor
    • 1971 – Matthew Vaughn, English director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1972 – Craig Polla-Mounter, Australian rugby league player
    • 1973 – Jason Bright, Australian race car driver
    • 1973 – Sébastien Izambard, French tenor and producer
    • 1973 – Işın Karaca, English-Turkish singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1974 – Jenna Fischer, American actress
    • 1974 – Facundo Sava, Argentinian footballer and manager
    • 1977 – Ronan O’Gara, Irish rugby player and coach
    • 1977 – Paul Cattermole, British singer and actor
    • 1978 – Jaqueline Jesus, Brazilian psychologist and activist
    • 1979 – Rodrigo Braña, Argentinian footballer
    • 1979 – Amanda Somerville, American singer-songwriter
    • 1980 – Murat Boz, Turkish singer-songwriter
    • 1980 – Eric Godard, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1980 – Laura Prepon, American actress
    • 1981 – Brent Kite, Australian rugby league player
    • 1983 – Manucho, Angolan footballer
    • 1983 – Sebastián Viera, Uruguayan footballer
    • 1984 – Mathieu Flamini, French footballer
    • 1984 – Lindsay McCaul, American singer-songwriter
    • 1985 – Andre Fluellen, American football player
    • 1985 – Cameron Prosser, Australian swimmer
    • 1985 – Gerwyn Price, Welsh darts player
    • 1986 – Ben Griffin, Australian footballer
    • 1987 – Hatem Ben Arfa, French footballer
    • 1987 – Niclas Bergfors, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1988 – Larry Asante, American football player
    • 1991 – Michele Rigione, Italian footballer
    • 1994 – Chase Kalisz, American swimmer
    • 1995 – Jerome Binnom-Williams, English footballer
    • 1995 – Aboubakar Kamara, French footballer, forward
    • 1996 – Liam Donnelly, Northern Irish footballer

    Deaths on March 7

    • 161 – Antoninus Pius, Roman emperor (b. 86)
    • 413 – Heraclianus, Roman politician and failed usurper
    • 851 – Nominoe, King (or duke) of Brittany
    • 974 – John of Gorze, Frankish abbot and diplomat
    • 1226 – William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, English commander (b. 1176)
    • 1274 – Saint Thomas Aquinas, Italian priest and philosopher (b. 1225)
    • 1393 – Bogislaw VI, Duke of Pomerania (b.c. 1350)
    • 1407 – Francesco I Gonzaga, ruler of Mantua
    • 1517 – Maria of Aragon, Queen of Portugal (b. 1482)
    • 1550 – William IV, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1493)
    • 1578 – Margaret Douglas, English daughter of Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (b. 1515)
    • 1625 – Johann Bayer, German lawyer and cartographer (b. 1572)
    • 1724 – Pope Innocent XIII (b. 1655)
    • 1767 – Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, Canadian politician, 2nd Colonial Governor of Louisiana (b. 1680)
    • 1778 – Charles De Geer, Swedish entomologist and archaeologist (b. 1720)
    • 1809 – Jean-Pierre Blanchard, French inventor, best known as a pioneer in balloon flight (b. 1753)
    • 1810 – Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood, English admiral (b. 1750)
    • 1838 – Robert Townsend, American spy (b. 1753)
    • 1897 – Harriet Ann Jacobs, African American Abolitionist and author (b. 1813)
    • 1904 – Ferdinand André Fouqué, French geologist and petrologist (b. 1828)
    • 1913 – Pauline Johnson, Canadian poet and author (b. 1861)
    • 1920 – Jaan Poska, Estonian lawyer and politician, 1st Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1866)
    • 1928 – Robert Abbe, American surgeon and radiologist (b. 1851)
    • 1932 – Aristide Briand, French journalist and politician, Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)
    • 1934 – Ernst Enno, Estonian poet and author (b. 1875)
    • 1938 – Andreas Michalakopoulos, Greek politician, 116th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1876)
    • 1947 – Lucy Parsons, American communist anarchist labor organizer (b. c 1853)
    • 1949 – Bradbury Robinson, American football player, physician, and politician (b. 1884)
    • 1952 – Paramahansa Yogananda, Indian guru and philosopher (b. 1893)
    • 1954 – Otto Diels, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1876)
    • 1957 – Wyndham Lewis, English painter and critic (b. 1882)
    • 1961 – Govind Ballabh Pant, Indian lawyer and politician, 2nd Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh (b. 1887)
    • 1967 – Alice B. Toklas, American writer (b. 1877)
    • 1971 – Richard Montague, American mathematician and philosopher (b. 1930)
    • 1973 – Lalo Ríos, Mexican actor (b. 1927)
    • 1975 – Mikhail Bakhtin, Russian philosopher and critic (b. 1895)
    • 1976 – Wright Patman, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician (b. 1893)
    • 1981 – Kirill Kondrashin, Russian conductor (b. 1914)
    • 1982 – Ida Barney, American astronomer, mathematician, and academic (b. 1886)
    • 1983 – Igor Markevitch, Ukrainian conductor and composer (b. 1912)
    • 1986 – Jacob K. Javits, American colonel and politician, 58th New York State Attorney General (b. 1904)
    • 1988 – Divine, American drag queen and film actor (b. 1945)
    • 1991 – Cool Papa Bell, American baseball player (b. 1903)
    • 1993 – Tony Harris, South African cricketer (b. 1916)
    • 1993 – J. Merrill Knapp, American musicologist (b. 1914)
    • 1993 – Martti Larni, Finnish writer (b. 1909)
    • 1993 – Carlo Mazzarella, Italian actor and journalist (b. 1919)
    • 1993 – Angelo Piccaluga, Italian footballer (b. 1906)
    • 1993 – Eleanor Sanger, American television producer (b. 1929)
    • 1993 – Josef Steindl, Austrian economist (b. 1912)
    • 1993 – Frank Wells, Australian rules footballer (b. 1909)
    • 1997 – Edward Mills Purcell, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
    • 1999 – Sidney Gottlieb, American chemist and theorist (b. 1918)
    • 1999 – Stanley Kubrick, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1928)
    • 2000 – Pee Wee King, American singer-songwriter (b. 1914)
    • 2001 – Frankie Carle, American pianist and bandleader (b. 1903)
    • 2004 – Paul Winfield, American actor (b. 1941)
    • 2005 – John Box, English production designer and art director (b. 1920)
    • 2005 – Debra Hill, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1950)
    • 2006 – Gordon Parks, American photographer, director, and composer (b. 1912)
    • 2006 – Ali Farka Touré, Malian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1939)
    • 2007 – Ronnie Wells, American singer and educator (b. 1943)
    • 2012 – Ravi, Indian director and composer (b. 1926)
    • 2012 – Włodzimierz Smolarek, Polish footballer and manager (b. 1957)
    • 2013 – Peter Banks, English guitarist and songwriter (b. 1947)
    • 2013 – Sybil Christopher, Welsh actress (b. 1929)
    • 2013 – Damiano Damiani, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1922)
    • 2013 – Frederick B. Karl, American lieutenant and politician (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Claude King, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Anatoly Borisovich Kuznetsov, Russian actor and director (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Ned O’Gorman, American poet and educator (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Victor Shem-Tov, Israeli lawyer and politician, 8th Israeli Minister of Health (b. 1915)
    • 2015 – G. Karthikeyan, Indian lawyer and politician (b. 1949)
    • 2015 – F. Ray Keyser, Jr., American lawyer and politician, 72nd Governor of Vermont (b. 1927)
    • 2015 – Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Japanese author and illustrator (b. 1935)
    • 2016 – Adrian Hardiman, Irish lawyer and judge (b. 1951)
    • 2017 – Lynne Stewart, American attorney and activist (b. 1939)

    Holidays and observances on March 7

    • Christian feast day:
      • Blessed José Olallo
      • Blessed Leonid Feodorov (Russian Greek Catholic Church)
      • Perpetua and Felicity
      • Pierre-Henri Dorie, Siméon-François Berneux (part of The Korean Martyrs)
      • March 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Liberation of Sulaymaniyah (Iraqi Kurdistan)
    • Teacher’s Day (Albania)

  • March 6- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 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
    • 1978 – Sage Rosenfels, American football player
    • 1978 – Chad Wicks, American wrestler
    • 1979 – Clint Barmes, American baseball player
    • 1979 – Érik Bédard, Canadian baseball player
    • 1979 – David Flair, American wrestler
    • 1979 – Tim Howard, American soccer player
    • 1980 – Emílson Cribari, Brazilian footballer
    • 1981 – Ellen Muth, American actress
    • 1983 – Andranik Teymourian, Armenian-Iranian footballer
    • 1984 – Daniël de Ridder, Dutch footballer
    • 1984 – Eskil Pedersen, Norwegian politician
    • 1984 – Chris Tomson, American drummer
    • 1985 – Bakaye Traoré, French-Malian footballer
    • 1986 – Jake Arrieta, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Francisco Cervelli, Venezuelan-Italian baseball player
    • 1986 – Ross Detwiler, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Eli Marienthal, American actor
    • 1986 – Charlie Mulgrew, Scottish footballer
    • 1987 – Kevin-Prince Boateng, Ghanaian-German footballer
    • 1987 – José Manuel Flores, Spanish footballer
    • 1988 – Agnes Carlsson, Swedish singer
    • 1988 – Marina Erakovic, New Zealand tennis player
    • 1988 – Simon Mignolet, Belgian footballer
    • 1989 – Agnieszka Radwańska, Polish tennis player
    • 1990 – Derek Drouin, Canadian athlete
    • 1991 – Lex Luger, American keyboard player and producer
    • 1991 – Emma McDougall, English footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1991 – Tyler Gregory Okonma, American rapper
    • 1993 – Andrés Rentería, Colombian footballer
    • 1994 – Nathan Redmond, English footballer
    • 1994 – Marcus Smart, American basketball player
    • 1994 – Wesley Hoedt, Dutch footballer
    • 1995 – Georgi Kitanov, Bulgarian footballer
    • 1996 – Christian Coleman, American sprinter
    • 1996 – Tyrell Fuimaono, Australian rugby player
    • 1996 – Timo Werner, German footballer

    Deaths on March 6

    • 190 – Liu Bian (poisoned by Dong Zhuo) (b. 176)
    • 653 – Li Ke, prince of the Tang Dynasty (b. 619)
    • 766 – Chrodegang, Frankish bishop and saint
    • 903 – Lu Guangqi, Chinese official and chancellor
    • 903 – Su Jian, Chinese official and chancellor
    • 1070 – Ulric I, Margrave of Carniola
    • 1251 – Rose of Viterbo, Italian saint (b. 1235)
    • 1353 – Roger Grey, 1st Baron Grey de Ruthyn
    • 1466 – Alvise Loredan, Venetian admiral and statesman (b. 1393)
    • 1490 – Ivan the Young, Ruler of Tver (b. 1458)
    • 1491 – Richard Woodville, 3rd Earl Rivers
    • 1531 – Pedro Arias Dávila, Spanish explorer and diplomat (b. 1440)
    • 1616 – Francis Beaumont, English playwright (b. 1584)
    • 1754 – Henry Pelham, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1694)
    • 1758 – Henry Vane, 1st Earl of Darlington, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Durham (b. 1705)
    • 1764 – Philip Yorke, 1st Earl of Hardwicke, English lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of the United Kingdom (b. 1690)
    • 1796 – Guillaume Thomas François Raynal, French historian and author (b. 1713)
    • 1836 – Deaths at the Battle of the Alamo:
      • James Bonham, American lawyer and soldier (b. 1807)
      • James Bowie, American colonel (b. 1796)
      • Davy Crockett, American soldier and politician (b. 1786)
      • William B. Travis, American lieutenant colonel and lawyer (b. 1809)
    • 1854 – Charles Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, Irish colonel and diplomat, Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies (b. 1778)
    • 1866 – William Whewell, English priest, historian, and philosopher (b. 1794)
    • 1867 – Charles Farrar Browne, American-English author and educator (b. 1834)
    • 1888 – Louisa May Alcott, American novelist and poet (b. 1832)
    • 1895 – Camilla Collett, Norwegian novelist and activist (b. 1813)
    • 1899 – Kaʻiulani of Hawaii (b. 1875)
    • 1900 – Gottlieb Daimler, German engineer and businessman, co-founded Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (b. 1834)
    • 1905 – John Henninger Reagan, American surveyor, judge, and politician, 3rd Confederate States of America Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1818)
    • 1905 – Makar Yekmalyan, Armenian composer (b. 1856)
    • 1919 – Oskars Kalpaks, Latvian colonel (b. 1882)
    • 1920 – Ömer Seyfettin, Turkish author and educator (b. 1884)
    • 1932 – John Philip Sousa, American conductor and composer (b. 1854)
    • 1933 – Anton Cermak, Czech-American lawyer and politician, 44th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1873)
    • 1935 – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., American colonel, lawyer, and jurist (b. 1841)
    • 1939 – Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician and academic (b. 1852)
    • 1941 – Francis Aveling, Canadian priest, psychologist, and author (b. 1875)
    • 1941 – Gutzon Borglum, American sculptor and academic, designed Mount Rushmore (b. 1867)
    • 1948 – Ross Lockridge, Jr., American author, poet, and academic (b. 1914)
    • 1948 – Alice Woodby McKane, First Black woman doctor in Savannah, Georgia (b. 1865)
    • 1950 – Albert François Lebrun, French engineer and politician, 15th President of France (b. 1871)
    • 1951 – Ivor Novello, Welsh singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1893)
    • 1951 – Volodymyr Vynnychenko, Ukrainian playwright and politician, Prime Minister of Ukraine (b. 1880)
    • 1952 – Jürgen Stroop, German general (b. 1895)
    • 1955 – Mammad Amin Rasulzade, Azerbaijani scholar and politician (b. 1884)
    • 1961 – George Formby, English singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1904)
    • 1964 – Paul of Greece (b. 1901)
    • 1965 – Margaret Dumont, American actress (b. 1889)
    • 1967 – John Haden Badley, English author and educator, founded the Bedales School (b. 1865)
    • 1967 – Nelson Eddy, American actor and singer (b. 1901)
    • 1967 – Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer, linguist, and philosopher (b. 1882)
    • 1970 – William Hopper, American actor (b. 1915)
    • 1973 – Pearl S. Buck, American novelist, essayist, short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
    • 1974 – Ernest Becker, American anthropologist and author (b. 1924)
    • 1976 – Maxie Rosenbloom, American boxer (b. 1903)
    • 1977 – Alvin R. Dyer, American religious leader (b. 1903)
    • 1978 – Dennis Viollet, English-American soccer player and manager (b. 1933)
    • 1981 – George Geary, English cricketer and coach (b. 1893)
    • 1981 – Rambhau Mhalgi, Indian politician and member of the Lok Sabha (b. 9 July 1921)
    • 1982 – Ayn Rand, Russian-American philosopher, author, and playwright (b. 1905)
    • 1984 – Billy Collins, Jr., American boxer (b. 1961)
    • 1984 – Martin Niemöller, German pastor and theologian (b. 1892)
    • 1984 – Homer N. Wallin, American admiral (b. 1893)
    • 1984 – Henry Wilcoxon, Dominican-American actor and producer (b. 1905)
    • 1986 – Georgia O’Keeffe, American painter (b. 1887)
    • 1988 – Mairéad Farrell, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1988 – Daniel McCann, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1988 – Seán Savage, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1965)
    • 1994 – Melina Mercouri, Greek actress and politician, 9th Greek Minister of Culture (b. 1920)
    • 1997 – Cheddi Jagan, Guyanese politician, 4th President of Guyana (b. 1918)
    • 1997 – Michael Manley, Jamaican soldier, pilot, and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Jamaica (b. 1924)
    • 1997 – Ursula Torday, English author (b. 1912)
    • 1999 – Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Bahrain king (b. 1933)
    • 2000 – John Colicos, Canadian actor (b. 1928)
    • 2002 – Bryan Fogarty, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1969)
    • 2004 – Hercules, American wrestler (b. 1957)
    • 2004 – Frances Dee, American actress (b. 1909)
    • 2005 – Hans Bethe, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)
    • 2005 – Danny Gardella, American baseball player and trainer (b. 1920)
    • 2005 – Tommy Vance, English radio host (b. 1943)
    • 2005 – Teresa Wright, American actress (b. 1918)
    • 2005 – Gladys Marín, Chilean activist and political figure. (b.1938)
    • 2006 – Anne Braden, American journalist and activist (b. 1924)
    • 2006 – Kirby Puckett, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1960)
    • 2007 – Jean Baudrillard, French photographer and theorist (b. 1929)
    • 2007 – Ernest Gallo, American businessman, co-founded E & J Gallo Winery (b. 1909)
    • 2008 – Peter Poreku Dery, Ghanaian cardinal (b. 1918)
    • 2009 – Francis Magalona, Filipino rapper, producer, and actor (b. 1964)
    • 2010 – Endurance Idahor, Nigerian footballer (b. 1984)
    • 2010 – Mark Linkous, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1962)
    • 2010 – Betty Millard, American philanthropist and activist (b. 1911)
    • 2012 – Francisco Xavier do Amaral, East Timorese politician, 1st President of East Timor (b. 1937)
    • 2012 – Donald M. Payne, American businessman and politician (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Helen Walulik, American baseball player (b. 1929)
    • 2013 – Chorão, Brazilian singer-songwriter (Charlie Brown Jr.) (b. 1970)
    • 2013 – Stompin’ Tom Connors, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1936)
    • 2013 – Alvin Lee, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1944)
    • 2013 – W. Wallace Cleland, American biochemist and academic (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Alemayehu Atomsa, Ethiopian educator and politician (b. 1969)
    • 2014 – Frank Jobe, American soldier and surgeon (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Sheila MacRae, English-American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1921)
    • 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

  • March 4- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title princeps iuventutis (head of the youth).
    • 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia.
    • 852 – Croatian Knez Trpimir I issues a statute, a document with the first known written mention of the Croats name in Croatian sources.
    • 938 – Translation of the relics of martyr Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia, Prince of the Czechs.
    • 1152 – Frederick I Barbarossa is elected King of Germany.
    • 1238 – The Battle of the Sit River is fought in the northern part of the present-day Yaroslavl Oblast of Russia between the Mongol hordes of Batu Khan and the Russians under Yuri II of Vladimir-Suzdal during the Mongol invasion of Rus’.
    • 1351 – Ramathibodi becomes King of Siam.
    • 1386 – Władysław II Jagiełło (Jogaila) is crowned King of Poland.
    • 1461 – Wars of the Roses in England: Lancastrian King Henry VI is deposed by his House of York cousin, who then becomes King Edward IV.
    • 1493 – Explorer Christopher Columbus arrives back in Lisbon, Portugal, aboard his ship Niña from his voyage to what are now The Bahamas and other islands in the Caribbean.
    • 1519 – Hernán Cortés arrives in Mexico in search of the Aztec civilization and its wealth.
    • 1628 – The Massachusetts Bay Colony is granted a Royal charter.
    • 1665 – English King Charles II declares war on the Netherlands marking the start of the Second Anglo-Dutch War.
    • 1675 – John Flamsteed is appointed the first Astronomer Royal of England.
    • 1681 – Charles II grants a land charter to William Penn for the area that will later become Pennsylvania.
    • 1776 – American Revolutionary War: The Continental Army fortifies Dorchester Heights with cannon, leading the British troops to abandon the Siege of Boston.
    • 1789 – In New York City, the first Congress of the United States meets, putting the United States Constitution into effect. The United States Bill of Rights is written and proposed to Congress.
    • 1790 – France is divided into 83 départements, cutting across the former provinces in an attempt to dislodge regional loyalties based on ownership of land by the nobility.
    • 1791 – The Constitutional Act of 1791 is introduced by the British House of Commons in London which envisages the separation of Canada into Lower Canada (Quebec) and Upper Canada (Ontario).
    • 1791 – Vermont is admitted to the United States as the fourteenth state.
    • 1794 – The 11th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is passed by the U.S. Congress.
    • 1797 – John Adams is inaugurated as the 2nd President of the United States of America, becoming the first President to begin his presidency on March 4.
    • 1804 – Castle Hill Rebellion: Irish convicts rebel against British colonial authority in the Colony of New South Wales.
    • 1813 – Cyril VI of Constantinople is elected Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.
    • 1814 – Americans defeat British forces at the Battle of Longwoods between London, Ontario and Thamesville, near present-day Wardsville, Ontario.
    • 1837 – The city of Chicago is incorporated.
    • 1848 – Carlo Alberto di Savoia signs the Statuto Albertino that will later represent the first constitution of the Regno d’Italia.
    • 1849 – President-Elect Zachary Taylor and Vice President-Elect Millard Fillmore did not take their respective oaths of office (they did so the following day), leading to the erroneous theory that outgoing President pro tempore of the United States Senate David Rice Atchison had assumed the role of acting president for one day.
    • 1861 – The first national flag of the Confederate States of America (the “Stars and Bars”) is adopted.
    • 1865 – The third and final national flag of the Confederate States of America is adopted by the Confederate Congress.
    • 1882 – Britain’s first electric trams run in east London.
    • 1890 – The longest bridge in Great Britain, the Forth Bridge in Scotland, measuring 1,710 feet (520 m) long, is opened by the Duke of Rothesay, later King Edward VII.
    • 1899 – Cyclone Mahina sweeps in north of Cooktown, Queensland, with a 12 metres (39 ft) wave that reaches up to 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) inland, killing over 300.
    • 1908 – The Collinwood school fire, Collinwood near Cleveland, Ohio, kills 174 people.
    • 1909 – U.S. President William Taft used what became known as a Saxbe fix, a mechanism to avoid the restriction of the U.S. Constitution’s Ineligibility Clause, to appoint Philander C. Knox as U.S. Secretary of State.
    • 1913 – First Balkan War: The Greek army engages the Turks at Bizani, resulting in victory two days later.
    • 1913 – The United States Department of Labor is formed.
    • 1917 – Jeannette Rankin of Montana becomes the first female member of the United States House of Representatives.
    • 1933 – Franklin D. Roosevelt becomes the 32nd President of the United States.
    • 1933 – Frances Perkins becomes United States Secretary of Labor, the first female member of the United States Cabinet.
    • 1933 – The Parliament of Austria is suspended because of a quibble over procedure – Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss initiates an authoritarian rule by decree.
    • 1941 – World War II: The United Kingdom launches Operation Claymore on the Lofoten Islands; the first large scale British Commando raid.
    • 1943 – World War II: The Battle of the Bismarck Sea in the south-west Pacific comes to an end.
    • 1943 – World War II: The Battle of Fardykambos, one of the first major battles between the Greek Resistance and the occupying Royal Italian Army, begins. It ends on 6 March with the surrender of an entire Italian battalion and the liberation of the town of Grevena.
    • 1944 – World War II: After the success of Big Week, the USAAF begins a daylight bombing campaign of Berlin.
    • 1957 – The S&P 500 stock market index is introduced, replacing the S&P 90.
    • 1960 – The French freighter La Coubre explodes in Havana, Cuba, killing 100.
    • 1962 – A Caledonian Airways Douglas DC-7 crashes shortly after takeoff from Cameroon, killing 111 – the worst crash of a DC-7.
    • 1966 – A Canadian Pacific Air Lines DC-8-43 explodes on landing at Tokyo International Airport, killing 64 people.
    • 1966 – In an interview in the London Evening Standard, The Beatles’ John Lennon declares that the band is “more popular than Jesus now”.
    • 1970 – French submarine Eurydice explodes underwater, resulting in the loss of the entire 57-man crew.
    • 1974 – People magazine is published for the first time in the United States as People Weekly.
    • 1976 – The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention is formally dissolved in Northern Ireland resulting in direct rule of Northern Ireland from London by the British parliament.
    • 1977 – The 1977 Vrancea earthquake in eastern and southern Europe kills more than 1,500, mostly in Bucharest, Romania.
    • 1980 – Nationalist leader Robert Mugabe wins a sweeping election victory to become Zimbabwe’s first black prime minister.
    • 1985 – The Food and Drug Administration approves a blood test for AIDS infection, used since then for screening all blood donations in the United States.
    • 1986 – The Soviet Vega 1 begins returning images of Halley’s Comet and the first images of its nucleus.
    • 1990 – American basketball player Hank Gathers dies after collapsing during the semifinals of a West Coast Conference Tournament game.
    • 1996 – A derailed train in Weyauwega, Wisconsin (USA) causes the emergency evacuation of 2,300 people for 16 days.
    • 1998 – Gay rights: Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc.: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that federal laws banning on-the-job sexual harassment also apply when both parties are the same sex.
    • 2001 – BBC bombing: A massive car bomb explodes in front of the BBC Television Centre in London, seriously injuring one person; the attack was attributed to the Real IRA.
    • 2002 – Afghanistan: Seven American Special Operations Forces soldiers and 200 Al-Qaeda Fighters are killed as American forces attempt to infiltrate the Shah-i-Kot Valley on a low-flying helicopter reconnaissance mission.
    • 2009 – The International Criminal Court (ICC) issues an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. Al-Bashir is the first sitting head of state to be indicted by the ICC since its establishment in 2002.
    • 2012 – A series of explosions is reported at a munitions dump in Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of the Congo, killing at least 250 people.
    • 2015 – At least 34 miners die in a suspected gas explosion at the Zasyadko coal mine in the rebel-held Donetsk region of Ukraine.
    • 2018 – Former MI6 spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter are poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, England, causing a diplomatic uproar that results in mass-expulsions of diplomats from all countries involved.
    • 2019 – The Indian Attack submarine was spotted by the Pakistan Navy.
    • 2020 – Former Daredevil Nik Wallenda is the first person to walk over the Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua.

    Births on March 4

    • 895 – Liu Zhiyuan, founder of the Later Han Dynasty (d. 948)
    • 977 – Al-Musabbihi, Fatimid historian and official (d. 1030)
    • 1188 – Blanche of Castile, French queen consort (d. 1252)
    • 1394 – Henry the Navigator, Portuguese explorer (d. 1460)
    • 1484 – George, margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1543)
    • 1492 – Francesco de Layolle, Italian organist and composer (d. 1540)
    • 1502 – Elisabeth of Hesse, princess of Saxony (d. 1557)
    • 1519 – Hindal Mirza, Mughal emperor (d. 1551)
    • 1526 – Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (d. 1596)
    • 1602 – Kanō Tan’yū, Japanese painter (d. 1674)
    • 1634 – Kazimierz Łyszczyński, Polish philosopher (d. 1689)
    • 1651 – John Somers, 1st Baron Somers, English lawyer, jurist, and politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain (d. 1716)
    • 1655 – Fra Galgario, Italian painter (d. 1743)
    • 1665 – Philip Christoph von Königsmarck, Swedish soldier (d. 1694)
    • 1678 – Antonio Vivaldi, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1741)
    • 1702 – Jack Sheppard, English criminal (d. 1724)
    • 1706 – Lauritz de Thurah, Danish architect, designed the Hermitage Hunting Lodge and Gammel Holtegård (d. 1759)
    • 1715 – James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave, English historian and politician (d. 1763)
    • 1719 – George Pigot, 1st Baron Pigot, English politician (d. 1777)
    • 1729 – Anne d’Arpajon, French wife of Philippe de Noailles (d. 1794)
    • 1745 – Charles Dibdin, English actor, playwright, and composer (d. 1814)
    • 1745 – Casimir Pulaski, Polish-American general (d. 1779)
    • 1756 – Henry Raeburn, Scottish painter and educator (d. 1823)
    • 1760 – William Payne, English painter (d. 1830)
    • 1760 – Hugh Ronalds, British nurseryman who cultivated and documented 300 varieties of apples (d. 1833)
    • 1769 – Muhammad Ali, Ottoman military leader and pasha (d. 1849)
    • 1770 – Joseph Jacotot, French philosopher and academic (d. 1840)
    • 1778 – Robert Emmet, Irish commander (d. 1803)
    • 1781 – Rebecca Gratz, American educator and philanthropist (d. 1869)
    • 1782 – Johann Rudolf Wyss, Swiss philosopher, author, and academic (d. 1830)
    • 1792 – Isaac Lea, American conchologist, geologist, and publisher (d. 1886)
    • 1793 – Karl Lachmann, German philologist and critic (d. 1851)
    • 1814 – Napoleon Collins, Rear Admiral of the United States Navy during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War (d. 1875)
    • 1817 – Edwards Pierrepont, American lawyer and politician, 34th United States Attorney General (d. 1892)
    • 1820 – Francesco Bentivegna, Italian rebel leader (d. 1856)
    • 1822 – Jules Antoine Lissajous, French mathematician and academic (d. 1880)
    • 1823 – George Caron, Canadian businessman and politician (d. 1902)
    • 1826 – August Johann Gottfried Bielenstein, German linguist, ethnographer, and theologian (d. 1907)
    • 1826 – John Buford, American general (d. 1863)
    • 1826 – Elme Marie Caro, French philosopher and academic (d. 1887)
    • 1826 – Theodore Judah, American engineer, founded the Central Pacific Railroad (d. 1863)
    • 1828 – Owen Wynne Jones, Welsh clergyman and poet (d. 1870)
    • 1838 – Paul Lacôme, French pianist, cellist, and composer (d. 1920)
    • 1847 – Carl Josef Bayer, Austrian chemist and academic (d. 1904)
    • 1851 – Alexandros Papadiamantis, Greek author and poet (d. 1911)
    • 1854 – Napier Shaw, English meteorologist and academic (d. 1945)
    • 1856 – Alfred William Rich, English painter, author, and educator (d. 1921)
    • 1861 – Arthur Cushman McGiffert, American theologian and author (d. 1933)
    • 1862 – Jacob Robert Emden, Swiss astrophysicist and meteorologist (d. 1940)
    • 1863 – R. I. Pocock, English zoologist and archaeologist (d. 1947)
    • 1863 – John Henry Wigmore, American academic and jurist (d. 1943)
    • 1864 – David W. Taylor, American admiral, architect, and engineer (d. 1940)
    • 1866 – Eugène Cosserat, French mathematician and astronomer (d. 1931)
    • 1867 – Jacob L. Beilhart, American activist, founded the Spirit Fruit Society (d. 1908)
    • 1867 – Charles Pelot Summerall, senior United States Army officer (d. 1955)
    • 1870 – Thomas Sturge Moore, English author and poet (d. 1944)
    • 1871 – Boris Galerkin, Russian mathematician and engineer (d. 1945)
    • 1873 – Guy Wetmore Carryl, American journalist and poet (d. 1904)
    • 1873 – John H. Trumbull, American colonel and politician, 70th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1961)
    • 1875 – Mihály Károlyi, Hungarian politician, President of the Hungary (d. 1955)
    • 1875 – Enrique Larreta, Argentinian historian and author (d. 1961)
    • 1876 – Léon-Paul Fargue, French poet and author (d. 1947)
    • 1876 – Theodore Hardeen, Hungarian-American magician (d. 1945)
    • 1877 – Alexander Goedicke, Russian pianist and composer (d. 1957)
    • 1877 – Fritz Graebner, German geographer and ethnologist (d. 1934)
    • 1877 – Garrett Morgan, African-American inventor (d. 1963)
    • 1878 – Takeo Arishima, Japanese author and critic (d. 1923)
    • 1878 – Egbert Van Alstyne, American pianist and songwriter (d. 1951)
    • 1879 – Bernhard Kellermann, German author and poet (d. 1951)
    • 1880 – Channing Pollock, American playwright and critic (d. 1946)
    • 1881 – Todor Aleksandrov, Bulgarian educator and activist (d. 1924)
    • 1881 – Thomas Sigismund Stribling, American lawyer and author (d. 1965)
    • 1881 – Richard C. Tolman, American physicist and chemist (d. 1948)
    • 1882 – Nicolae Titulescu, Romanian academic and politician, 61st Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1941)
    • 1883 – Maude Fealy, American actress and screenwriter (d. 1971)
    • 1883 – Robert Emmett Keane, American actor (d. 1981)
    • 1883 – Sam Langford, Canadian-American boxer (d. 1956)
    • 1884 – Red Murray, American baseball player (d. 1958)
    • 1884 – Lee Shumway, American actor (d. 1959)
    • 1886 – Paul Bazelaire, French cellist and composer (d. 1958)
    • 1888 – Rafaela Ottiano, Italian-American actress (d. 1942)
    • 1888 – Jeff Pfeffer, American baseball player (d. 1972)
    • 1888 – Emma Richter, German paleontologist (d. 1956)
    • 1888 – Knute Rockne, American football player and coach (d. 1931)
    • 1889 – Oscar Chisini, Italian mathematician and statistician (d. 1967)
    • 1889 – Oren E. Long, American soldier and politician, 10th Territorial Governor of Hawaii (d. 1965)
    • 1889 – Pearl White, American actress (d. 1938)
    • 1889 – Robert William Wood, English-American painter (d. 1979)
    • 1890 – Norman Bethune, Canadian soldier and physician (d. 1939)
    • 1891 – Dazzy Vance, American baseball player (d. 1961)
    • 1893 – Charles Herbert Colvin, American engineer, co-founded the Pioneer Instrument Company (d. 1985)
    • 1893 – Adolph Lowe, German sociologist and economist (d. 1995)
    • 1894 – Charles Corm, Lebanese businessman and philanthropist (d. 1963)
    • 1895 – Milt Gross, American animator, director, and screenwriter (d. 1953)
    • 1896 – Kai Holm, Danish actor and director (d. 1985)
    • 1897 – Lefty O’Doul, American baseball player and manager (d. 1969)
    • 1898 – Georges Dumézil, French philologist and academic (d. 1986)
    • 1898 – Hans Krebs, German general (d. 1945)
    • 1899 – Peter Illing, Austrian born, British film and television actor (d. 1966)
    • 1899 – Emilio Prados, Spanish poet and author (d. 1962)
    • 1900 – Herbert Biberman, American director and screenwriter (d. 1971)
    • 1901 – Wilbur R. Franks, Canadian scientist, invented the g-suit (d. 1986)
    • 1901 – Charles Goren, American bridge player and author (d. 1991)
    • 1901 – Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo, Malagasy-French author, poet, and playwright (d. 1937)
    • 1902 – Rachel Messerer, Lithuanian-Russian actress (d. 1993)
    • 1902 – Russell Reeder, American soldier and author (d. 1998)
    • 1903 – William C. Boyd, American immunologist and chemist (d. 1983)
    • 1903 – Malcolm Dole, American chemist and academic (d. 1990)
    • 1903 – Dorothy Mackaill, English-American actress and singer (d. 1990)
    • 1903 – John Scarne, American magician and author (d. 1985)
    • 1904 – Luis Carrero Blanco, Spanish admiral and politician, 69th President of the Government of Spain (d. 1973)
    • 1904 – George Gamow, Ukrainian-American physicist and cosmologist (d. 1968)
    • 1904 – Joseph Schmidt, Austrian-Hungarian tenor and actor (d. 1942)
    • 1906 – Meindert DeJong, Dutch-American soldier and author (d. 1991)
    • 1906 – Avery Fisher, American violinist and engineer, founded Fisher Electronics (d. 1994)
    • 1906 – Georges Ronsse, Belgian cyclist and manager (d. 1969)
    • 1907 – Edgar Barrier, American actor (d. 1964)
    • 1908 – T. R. M. Howard, American surgeon and activist (d. 1976)
    • 1908 – Thomas Shaw, American singer and guitarist (d. 1977)
    • 1909 – Harry Helmsley, American businessman (d. 1997)
    • 1909 – George Edward Holbrook, American chemist and engineer (d. 1987)
    • 1910 – Tancredo Neves, Brazilian lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Brazil (d. 1985)
    • 1911 – Charles Greville, 7th Earl of Warwick, English actor (d. 1984)
    • 1912 – Afro Basaldella, Italian painter and academic (d. 1976)
    • 1912 – Ferdinand Leitner, German conductor and composer (d. 1996)
    • 1912 – Carl Marzani, Italian-American activist and publisher (d. 1994)
    • 1913 – Taos Amrouche, Algerian singer and author (d. 1976)
    • 1913 – John Garfield, American actor and singer (d. 1952)
    • 1914 – Barbara Newhall Follett, American author (d. 1939)
    • 1914 – Ward Kimball, American animator, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
    • 1914 – Robert R. Wilson, American physicist, sculptor, and architect (d. 2000)
    • 1915 – László Csatáry, Hungarian art dealer (d. 2013)
    • 1915 – Frank Sleeman, Australian lieutenant and politician, Lord Mayor of Brisbane (d. 2000)
    • 1915 – Carlos Surinach, Spanish-Catalan composer and conductor (d. 1997)
    • 1916 – William Alland, American actor, director, and producer (d. 1997)
    • 1916 – Giorgio Bassani, Italian author and poet (d. 2000)
    • 1916 – Hans Eysenck, German-English psychologist and theorist (d. 1997)
    • 1917 – Clyde McCullough, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1982)
    • 1918 – Kurt Dahlmann, German pilot, lawyer, and journalist (d. 2017)
    • 1918 – Margaret Osborne duPont, American tennis player (d. 2012)
    • 1919 – Buck Baker, American race car driver (d. 2002)
    • 1919 – Tan Chee Khoon, Malaysian physician and politician (d. 1996)
    • 1920 – Jean Lecanuet, French politician, French Minister of Justice (d. 1993)
    • 1920 – Alan MacNaughtan, Scottish-English actor (d. 2002)
    • 1921 – Halim El-Dabh, Egyptian-American composer and educator (d. 2017)
    • 1921 – Joan Greenwood, English actress (d. 1987)
    • 1921 – Dinny Pails, English-Australian tennis player (d. 1986)
    • 1922 – Richard E. Cunha, American director and cinematographer (d. 2005)
    • 1922 – Dina Pathak, Indian actor and director (d. 2002)
    • 1923 – Russell Freeburg, American journalist and author
    • 1923 – Francis King, English author and poet (d. 2011)
    • 1923 – Patrick Moore, English astronomer and television host (d. 2012)
    • 1924 – Kenneth O’Donnell, American soldier and politician (d. 1977)
    • 1925 – Alan R. Battersby, English chemist and academic (d. 2018)
    • 1925 – Paul Mauriat, French conductor and composer (d. 2006)
    • 1926 – Henri de Contenson, French archaeologist and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1926 – Prince Michel of Bourbon-Parma, French businessman, soldier and race car driver (d. 2018)
    • 1926 – Richard DeVos, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Amway (d. 2018)
    • 1926 – Pascual Pérez, Argentinian boxer (d. 1977)
    • 1926 – Don Rendell, English saxophonist and flute player (d. 2015)
    • 1927 – Phil Batt, American soldier and politician, 29th Governor of Idaho
    • 1927 – Thayer David, American actor (d. 1978)
    • 1927 – Jacques Dupin, French poet and critic (d. 2012)
    • 1927 – Robert Orben, American magician and author
    • 1927 – Dick Savitt, American tennis player and businessman
    • 1928 – Samuel Adler, German-American composer and conductor
    • 1928 – Alan Sillitoe, English novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet (d. 2010)
    • 1929 – Bernard Haitink, Dutch violinist and conductor
    • 1929 – Peter Swerling, American theoretician and engineer (d. 2000)
    • 1931 – Wally Bruner, American journalist and television host (d. 1997)
    • 1931 – Bob Johnson, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 1991)
    • 1931 – William Henry Keeler, American cardinal (d. 2017)
    • 1931 – Alice Rivlin, American economist and politician (d. 2019)
    • 1932 – Sigurd Jansen, Norwegian pianist, composer, and conductor
    • 1932 – Ryszard Kapuściński, Polish journalist, photographer, and poet (d. 2007)
    • 1932 – Miriam Makeba, South African singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2008)
    • 1932 – Ed Roth, American illustrator (d. 2001)
    • 1932 – Frank Wells, American businessman (d. 1994)
    • 1933 – Nino Vaccarella, Italian race car driver
    • 1934 – Mario Davidovsky, Argentinian-American composer and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1934 – John Duffey, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1996)
    • 1934 – Anne Haney, American actress (d. 2001)
    • 1934 – Barbara McNair, American singer and actress (d. 2007)
    • 1934 – Sandra Reynolds, South African tennis player
    • 1934 – Janez Strnad, Slovenian physicist and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1935 – Edward Dębicki, Ukrainian-Polish poet and composer
    • 1935 – Bent Larsen, Danish chess player and author (d. 2010)
    • 1936 – Eric Allandale, Dominican trombonist and songwriter (d. 2001)
    • 1936 – Jim Clark, Scottish race car driver (d. 1968)
    • 1936 – Aribert Reimann, German pianist and composer
    • 1937 – José Araquistáin, Spanish footballer
    • 1937 – William Deverell, Canadian lawyer, author, and activist
    • 1937 – Graham Dowling, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1937 – Leslie H. Gelb, American journalist and author (d. 2019)
    • 1937 – Yuri Senkevich, Russian physician and explorer (d. 2003)
    • 1937 – Barney Wilen, French saxophonist and composer (d. 1996)
    • 1937 – Richard B. Wright, Canadian journalist and author (d. 2017)
    • 1938 – Anton Balasingham, Sri Lankan-English negotiator (d. 2006)
    • 1938 – Alpha Condé, Guinean politician, President of Guinea
    • 1938 – Allan Kornblum, American police officer and judge (d. 2010)
    • 1938 – Angus MacLise, American drummer and composer (d. 1979)
    • 1938 – Don Perkins, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1938 – Paula Prentiss, American actress
    • 1938 – Adam Daniel Rotfeld, Polish academic and politician, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs
    • 1939 – Jack Fisher, American baseball player
    • 1939 – Robert Shaye, American film producer
    • 1940 – Wolfgang Hoffmann-Riem, German scholar and judge
    • 1940 – David Plante, American novelist
    • 1941 – John Hancock, American film and television actor (d. 1992)
    • 1941 – Adrian Lyne, English director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1941 – James Zagel, American lawyer and judge
    • 1942 – Gloria Gaither, American singer-songwriter
    • 1942 – Charles C. Krulak, American general
    • 1942 – David Matthews, American keyboard player and composer
    • 1942 – Lynn Sherr, American journalist and author
    • 1942 – James Gustave Speth, American lawyer and politician
    • 1942 – Zorán Sztevanovity, Serbian-Hungarian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1943 – Lucio Dalla, Italian singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2012)
    • 1943 – Aldo Rico, Argentinian commander and politician
    • 1944 – Harvey Postlethwaite, English engineer (d. 1999)
    • 1944 – Anthony Ichiro Sanda, Japanese-American physicist and academic
    • 1944 – Len Walker, English footballer and manager
    • 1944 – Bobby Womack, American singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
    • 1945 – Tommy Svensson, Swedish footballer and manager
    • 1945 – Gary Williams, American basketball player and coach
    • 1946 – Michael Ashcroft, English businessman and politician
    • 1946 – Danny Frisella, American baseball player (d. 1977)
    • 1946 – Haile Gerima, Ethiopian born US filmmaker
    • 1946 – Patricia Kennealy-Morrison, American journalist and author
    • 1947 – David Franzoni, American screenwriter and film producer
    • 1947 – Jan Garbarek, Norwegian saxophonist and composer
    • 1947 – Bob Lewis, American guitarist
    • 1947 – Pēteris Plakidis, Latvian pianist and composer (d. 2017)
    • 1948 – Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton, New Zealand-Australian author
    • 1948 – James Ellroy, American writer
    • 1948 – Tom Grieve, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster
    • 1948 – Mike Moran, English musician, songwriter and record producer
    • 1948 – Jean O’Leary, American nun and activist (d. 2005)
    • 1948 – Chris Squire, English singer-songwriter and bass guitarist (d. 2015)
    • 1948 – Shakin’ Stevens, British singer-songwriter
    • 1949 – Sergei Bagapsh, Abkhazian politician, 2nd President of Abkhazia (d. 2011)
    • 1949 – Carroll Baker, Canadian singer-songwriter
    • 1950 – Ofelia Medina, Mexican actress and screenwriter
    • 1950 – Rick Perry, American captain and politician, 47th Governor of Texas
    • 1950 – Safet Plakalo, Bosnian author and playwright (d. 2015)
    • 1951 – Edelgard Bulmahn, German educator and politician, German Federal Minister of Education and Research
    • 1951 – Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, South Korean-American author, director, and producer (d. 1982)
    • 1951 – Kenny Dalglish, Scottish footballer and manager
    • 1951 – Pete Haycock, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
    • 1951 – Peter O’Sullivan, Welsh international footballer, winger
    • 1951 – Sam Perlozzo, American baseball player and manager
    • 1951 – Chris Rea, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1951 – Glenis Willmott, English scientist and politician
    • 1951 – Zoran Žižić, Montenegrin politician, 4th Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (d. 2013)
    • 1952 – Peter Kuhfeld, English painter
    • 1952 – Ronn Moss, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1952 – Svend Robinson, American-Canadian lawyer and politician
    • 1952 – Umberto Tozzi, Italian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1953 – John Edwards, Australian director and producer
    • 1953 – Emilio Estefan, Cuban-American drummer and producer
    • 1953 – Paweł Janas, Polish footballer and manager
    • 1953 – Ray Price, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
    • 1953 – Reinhold Roth, German motorcycle racer
    • 1953 – Chris Smith, American lawyer and politician
    • 1953 – Agustí Villaronga, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1953 – Daniel Woodrell, American novelist and short story writer
    • 1954 – Timur Apakidze, Russian general and pilot (d. 2001)
    • 1954 – Theresa Hak Kyung Cha, Korean American author (d. 1982)
    • 1954 – François Fillon, French lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of France
    • 1954 – Peter Jacobsen, American golfer and sportscaster
    • 1954 – Catherine O’Hara, Canadian-American actress and comedian
    • 1954 – Irina Ratushinskaya, Russian poet and author (d. 2017)
    • 1955 – Tim Costello, Australian minister and politician
    • 1955 – Joey Jones, Welsh footballer and manager
    • 1957 – Nicholas Coleridge, English journalist and businessman
    • 1957 – Ron Fassler, American film and television actor and author
    • 1957 – Mykelti Williamson, American actor and director
    • 1958 – Patricia Heaton, American actress
    • 1958 – Massimo Mascioletti, Italian rugby player and coach
    • 1958 – Tina Smith, American politician, junior senator of Minnesota
    • 1959 – Rick Ardon, Australian journalist
    • 1959 – Plamen Getov, Bulgarian footballer
    • 1960 – Chonda Pierce, American comedian
    • 1961 – Ray Mancini, American boxer
    • 1961 – Steven Weber, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1961 – Roger Wessels, South African golfer and educator
    • 1962 – Simon Bisley, English author and illustrator
    • 1962 – Paul Canoville, English footballer
    • 1962 – Stephan Reimertz, German historian and author
    • 1963 – Jason Newsted, American heavy metal singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1964 – Dave Colclough, Welsh computer programmer and poker player (d. 2016)
    • 1964 – Brian Crowley, Irish lawyer and politician
    • 1964 – Tom Lampkin, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1964 – Paolo Virzì, Italian director and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Greg Alexander, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
    • 1965 – Paul W. S. Anderson, English director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Andrew Collins, English journalist and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Khaled Hosseini, Afghan-born American novelist
    • 1965 – Yury Lonchakov, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1965 – John Murphy British film composer
    • 1966 – Emese Hunyady, Hungarian speed skater
    • 1966 – Kevin Johnson, American basketball player and politician, 55th Mayor of Sacramento
    • 1966 – Fiona Ma, American accountant and politician
    • 1966 – Helmut Mayer, Austrian skier
    • 1966 – Glen Nissen, Australian rugby league player
    • 1966 – Dav Pilkey, American author and illustrator
    • 1966 – Grand Puba, American rapper
    • 1966 – Mike Small, American golfer and coach
    • 1967 – Daryll Cullinan, South African cricketer and coach
    • 1967 – Evan Dando, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1967 – Ivan Lewis, English lawyer and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
    • 1967 – Terry Matterson, Australian rugby league player and coach
    • 1967 – Dave Rayner, English cyclist (d. 1994)
    • 1967 – Sam Taylor-Johnson, English filmmaker and photographer
    • 1967 – Kubilay Türkyilmaz, Swiss footballer
    • 1967 – Tim Vine, English comedian, actor, and author
    • 1968 – Giovanni Carrara, Venezuelan baseball player
    • 1968 – Jorge Celedón, Colombian singer
    • 1968 – Patsy Kensit, English model and actress
    • 1968 – Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greek banker and politician, Prime Minister of Greece
    • 1968 – Graham Westley, English footballer and manager
    • 1969 – Pierluigi Casiraghi, Italian footballer and manager
    • 1969 – Wayne Collins, English footballer, midfielder
    • 1969 – Annie Yi, Taiwanese singer, actress, and writer
    • 1970 – Àlex Crivillé, Spanish motorcycle racer
    • 1970 – Will Keen, English actor
    • 1970 – Caroline Vis, Dutch tennis player
    • 1971 – Iain Baird, Canadian soccer player and manager
    • 1971 – Claire Baker, Scottish politician
    • 1971 – Emily Bazelon, American journalist
    • 1971 – Jason Croot, English actor and director
    • 1971 – Anders Kjølholm, Danish bass player
    • 1971 – Satoshi Motoyama, Japanese race car driver
    • 1971 – Geraldine O’Rawe, Northern Irish actress
    • 1972 – Katherine Center, American journalist and author
    • 1972 – Nocturno Culto, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1972 – Robert Smith, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1972 – Ivy Queen, Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, rapper, actress and record producer
    • 1972 – Jos Verstappen, Dutch race car driver
    • 1972 – Alison Wheeler, English singer-songwriter
    • 1973 – Massimo Brambilla, Italian footballer and coach
    • 1973 – Phillip Daniels, American football player and coach
    • 1973 – Valery Kobelev, Russian ski jumper
    • 1973 – Penny Mordaunt, English lieutenant and politician, Minister of State for the Armed Forces
    • 1973 – Linus of Hollywood, American singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1973 – Len Wiseman, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1973 – Chandra Sekhar Yeleti, Indian director and screenwriter
    • 1974 – Crowbar, American wrestler
    • 1974 – Mladen Krstajić, Serbian footballer and manager
    • 1974 – Karol Kučera, Slovak tennis player
    • 1974 – Ariel Ortega, Argentinian footballer
    • 1974 – Tommy Phelps, South Korean-American baseball player and coach
    • 1974 – ICS Vortex, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1974 – David Wagner, American tennis player and educator
    • 1974 – Bill Young, Australian rugby player
    • 1975 – Mats Eilertsen, Norwegian bassist and composer
    • 1975 – Patrick Femerling, German basketball player
    • 1975 – Antti Aalto, Finnish ice hockey player
    • 1975 – Kristi Harrower, Australian basketball player
    • 1975 – Hawksley Workman, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1976 – Robbie Blake, English footballer
    • 1976 – Tommy Jönsson, Swedish footballer
    • 1977 – Nacho Figueras, Argentinian polo player and model
    • 1977 – Traver Rains, American fashion designer and photographer
    • 1978 – Pierre Dagenais, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1978 – Denis Dallan, Italian rugby player and singer
    • 1978 – Jean-Marc Pelletier, American ice hockey player
    • 1979 – Sarah Stock, Canadian wrestler and trainer
    • 1980 – Rohan Bopanna, Indian tennis player
    • 1980 – Omar Bravo, Mexican footballer
    • 1980 – Suzanna Choffel, American singer-songwriter
    • 1980 – Giedrius Gustas, Lithuanian basketball player
    • 1980 – Scott Hamilton, New Zealand rugby player and coach
    • 1980 – Jack Hannahan, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Michael Henrich, American ice hockey player
    • 1980 – Phil McGuire, Scottish footballer and manager
    • 1980 – Aja Volkman, American singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Ariza Makukula, Portuguese footballer
    • 1981 – Helen Wyman, English cyclist
    • 1982 – Landon Donovan, American soccer player and coach
    • 1982 – Cate Edwards, American lawyer and author
    • 1982 – Ludmila Ezhova, Russian gymnast
    • 1982 – Yasemin Mori, Turkish singer
    • 1983 – Samuel Contesti, French-Italian figure skater
    • 1983 – Adam Deacon, English film actor, rapper, writer and director
    • 1983 – Jaque Fourie, South African rugby player
    • 1983 – Drew Houston, American billionaire and Internet entrepreneur
    • 1984 – Josh Bowman, English actor
    • 1984 – Tamir Cohen, Israeli footballer
    • 1984 – Anders Grøndal, Norwegian race car driver
    • 1984 – Spencer Larsen, American football player
    • 1984 – Jeremy Loops, South African singer-songwriter and record producer
    • 1984 – Raven Quinn, American singer-songwriter
    • 1984 – Zak Whitbread, American-English footballer
    • 1985 – Jake Buxton, English footballer
    • 1985 – Chinedum Ndukwe, American football player
    • 1985 – Whitney Port, American fashion designer and author
    • 1986 – Steven Burke, English road and track cyclist
    • 1986 – Tom De Mul, Belgian footballer
    • 1986 – Mike Krieger, Brazilian-American computer programmer and businessman, co-founded Instagram
    • 1986 – Siim Roops, Estonian footballer
    • 1986 – Bohdan Shust, Ukrainian footballer
    • 1986 – Manu Vatuvei, New Zealand rugby league player
    • 1986 – Margo Harshman, American actress
    • 1987 – Ben McKinley, Australian footballer
    • 1987 – Cameron Wood, Australian footballer
    • 1987 – Tamzin Merchant, English actress
    • 1988 – Gal Mekel, Israeli basketball player
    • 1988 – Laura Siegemund, German tennis player
    • 1988 – Adam Watts, English footballer
    • 1989 – Benjamin Kiplagat, Ugandan long-distance runner
    • 1990 – Andrea Bowen, American actress
    • 1990 – Draymond Green, American basketball player
    • 1990 – Paddy Madden, Irish footballer
    • 1990 – Fran Mérida, Spanish footballer
    • 1992 – Nick Castellanos, American baseball player
    • 1992 – Erik Lamela, Argentinian international footballer, midfielder
    • 1992 – Bernd Leno, German footballer
    • 1992 – Karl Mööl, Estonian footballer
    • 1993 – Bobbi Kristina Brown, American singer and actress (d. 2015)
    • 1993 – Richard Peniket, English footballer
    • 1994 – Callum Harriott, English footballer
    • 1994 – AJ Tracey, British hip-hop artist and record producer
    • 1995 – Chlöe Howl, British singer-songwriter
    • 1995 – Bill Milner, English actor
    • 1996 – Lukas Webb, Australian rules footballer
    • 2002 – Jacob Hopkins, American actor

    Deaths on March 4

    • 306 – Adrian and Natalia of Nicomedia, Christian martyrs
    • 480 – Landry of Sées, French bishop and saint
    • 561 – Pelagius I, pope of the Catholic Church
    • 934 – Abdullah al-Mahdi Billah, Fatimid caliph (b. 873)
    • 1172 – Stephen III, king of Hungary (b. 1147)
    • 1193 – Saladin, founder of the Ayyubid Sultanate (b. 1137)
    • 1238 – Joan of England, queen of Scotland (b. 1210)
    • 1238 – Yuri II, Russian Grand Prince (b. 1189)
    • 1303 – Daniel of Moscow, Russian Grand Duke (b. 1261)
    • 1314 – Jakub Świnka, Polish priest and archbishop
    • 1371 – Jeanne d’Évreux, queen consort of France (b. 1310)
    • 1388 – Thomas Usk, English author
    • 1484 – Saint Casimir, Polish prince (b. 1458)
    • 1496 – Sigismund, archduke of Austria (b. 1427)
    • 1583 – Bernard Gilpin, English priest and theologian (b. 1517)
    • 1604 – Fausto Sozzini, Italian theologian and educator (b. 1539)
    • 1615 – Hans von Aachen, German painter and educator (b. 1552)
    • 1710 – Louis III, duke of Bourbon (b. 1668)
    • 1733 – Claude de Forbin, French admiral and politician (b. 1656)
    • 1744 – John Anstis, English historian and politician (b. 1669)
    • 1762 – Johannes Zick, German painter (b. 1702)
    • 1793 – Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, Duke of Penthièvre (b. 1725)
    • 1795 – John Collins, American politician, 3rd Governor of Rhode Island (b. 1717)
    • 1805 – Jean-Baptiste Greuze, French painter (b. 1725)
    • 1807 – Abraham Baldwin, American minister, lawyer, and politician (b. 1754)
    • 1811 – Mariano Moreno, Argentinian journalist, lawyer, and politician (b. 1778)
    • 1832 – Jean-François Champollion, French philologist and scholar (b. 1790)
    • 1851 – James Richardson, English explorer (b. 1809)
    • 1852 – Nikolai Gogol, Ukrainian-Russian short story writer, novelist, and playwright (b. 1809)
    • 1853 – Thomas Bladen Capel, English admiral (b. 1776)
    • 1853 – Christian Leopold von Buch, German geologist and paleontologist (b. 1774)
    • 1858 – Matthew C. Perry, American naval commander (b. 1794)
    • 1864 – Thomas Starr King, American minister and politician (b. 1824)
    • 1866 – Alexander Campbell, Irish-American minister and theologian (b. 1788)
    • 1872 – Carsten Hauch, Danish poet and playwright (b. 1790)
    • 1883 – Alexander H. Stephens, American lawyer and politician, Vice President of the Confederate States of America (b. 1812)
    • 1888 – Amos Bronson Alcott, American philosopher and educator (b. 1799)
    • 1903 – Joseph Henry Shorthouse, English author (b. 1834)
    • 1906 – John Schofield, American general and politician, 28th United States Secretary of War (b. 1831)
    • 1915 – William Willett, English inventor, founded British Summer Time (b. 1856)
    • 1916 – Franz Marc, German painter (b. 1880)
    • 1925 – Moritz Moszkowski, Polish-German pianist and composer (b. 1854)
    • 1925 – James Ward, English psychologist and philosopher (b. 1843)
    • 1925 – John Montgomery Ward, American baseball player and manager (b. 1860)
    • 1927 – Ira Remsen, American chemist and academic (b. 1846)
    • 1938 – George Foster Peabody, American banker and philanthropist (b. 1852)
    • 1938 – Jack Taylor, American baseball player (b. 1874)
    • 1940 – Hamlin Garland, American novelist, poet, essayist, and short story writer (b. 1860)
    • 1941 – Ludwig Quidde, German activist and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)
    • 1944 – Fannie Barrier Williams, American educator and activist (b. 1855)
    • 1944 – Louis Buchalter, American mob boss (b. 1897)
    • 1944 – Louis Capone, Italian-American gangster (b. 1896)
    • 1944 – René Lefebvre, French businessman (b. 1879)
    • 1945 – Lucille La Verne, American actress (b. 1872)
    • 1945 – Mark Sandrich, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1900)
    • 1948 – Antonin Artaud, French actor and director (b. 1896)
    • 1949 – Clarence Kingsbury, English cyclist (b. 1882)
    • 1952 – Charles Scott Sherrington, English neurophysiologist and pathologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1857)
    • 1954 – Noel Gay, English composer and songwriter (b. 1898)
    • 1960 – Herbert O’Conor, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 51st Governor of Maryland (b. 1896)
    • 1963 – William Carlos Williams, American poet, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1883)
    • 1969 – Nicholas Schenck, Russian-American businessman (b. 1881)
    • 1972 – Harold Barrowclough, New Zealand general, lawyer, and politician, 8th Chief Justice of New Zealand (b. 1894)
    • 1972 – Charles Biro, American author and illustrator (b. 1911)
    • 1974 – Adolph Gottlieb, American painter and sculptor (b. 1903)
    • 1976 – John Marvin Jones, American judge and politician (b. 1882)
    • 1976 – Walter H. Schottky, Swiss-German physicist and engineer (b. 1886)
    • 1977 – Anatol E. Baconsky, Romanian poet, author, and critic (b. 1925)
    • 1977 – Nancy Tyson Burbidge, Australian botanist and curator (b. 1912)
    • 1977 – Andrés Caicedo, Colombian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1951)
    • 1977 – William Paul, American lawyer and politician (b. 1885)
    • 1977 – Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk, German jurist and politician, German Minister for Foreign Affairs (b. 1887)
    • 1978 – Wesley Bolin, American businessman and politician, 15th Governor of Arizona (b. 1909)
    • 1978 – Joe Marsala, American clarinet player and songwriter (b. 1907)
    • 1979 – Willi Unsoeld, American mountaineer and educator (b. 1926)
    • 1980 – Alan Hardaker, English lieutenant and businessman (b. 1912)
    • 1981 – Torin Thatcher, American actor (b. 1905)
    • 1981 – Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer, German admiral (b. 1900)
    • 1986 – Albert L. Lehninger, American biochemist and academic (b. 1917)
    • 1986 – Richard Manuel, Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1943)
    • 1986 – Elizabeth Smart, Canadian poet and author (b. 1913)
    • 1987 – Seibo Kitamura, Japanese sculptor (b. 1884)
    • 1988 – Beatriz Guido, Argentine author and screenwriter (b. 1924)
    • 1989 – Tiny Grimes, American guitarist (b. 1916)
    • 1990 – Hank Gathers, American basketball player (b. 1967)
    • 1991 – Godfrey Bryan, English cricketer (b. 1902)
    • 1992 – Art Babbitt, American animator and director (b. 1907)
    • 1992 – Pare Lorentz, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1905)
    • 1993 – Art Hodes, Ukrainian-American pianist and composer (b. 1904)
    • 1993 – Tomislav Ivčić, Croatian singer-songwriter and politician (b. 1953)
    • 1993 – Izaak Kolthoff, Dutch chemist and academic (b. 1894)
    • 1993 – Nicholas Ridley, Baron Ridley of Liddesdale, English lieutenant and politician, Secretary of State for the Environment (b. 1929)
    • 1994 – John Candy, Canadian comedian and actor (b. 1950)
    • 1994 – George Edward Hughes, Irish-Scottish philosopher and author (b. 1918)
    • 1995 – Matt Urban, American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1919)
    • 1996 – Minnie Pearl, American entertainer (b. 1912)
    • 1996 – John Sauer, American football player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1925)
    • 1997 – Joe Baker-Cresswell, English captain (b. 1901)
    • 1997 – Robert H. Dicke, American physicist and astronomer (b. 1916)
    • 1998 – Ivan Dougherty, Australian general (b. 1907)
    • 1999 – Harry Blackmun, American lawyer and judge (b. 1908)
    • 1999 – Del Close, American actor and educator (b. 1934)
    • 1999 – Miłosz Magin, Polish pianist and composer (b. 1929)
    • 2000 – Hermann Brück, German-Scottish physicist and astronomer (b. 1905)
    • 2000 – Michael Noonan, New Zealand-Australian author and screenwriter (b. 1921)
    • 2000 – Ta-You Wu, Chinese physicist and academic (b. 1907)
    • 2001 – Gerardo Barbero, Argentinian chess player (b. 1961)
    • 2001 – Jean René Bazaine, French painter and author (b. 1904)
    • 2001 – Fred Lasswell, American cartoonist (b. 1916)
    • 2001 – Jim Rhodes, American businessman and politician, 61st Governor of Ohio (b. 1909)
    • 2001 – Harold Stassen, American educator and politician, 25th Governor of Minnesota (b. 1907)
    • 2002 – Ugnė Karvelis, Lithuanian author and translator (b. 1935)
    • 2002 – Elyne Mitchell, Australian skier and author (b. 1913)
    • 2002 – Velibor Vasović, Serbian footballer and manager (b. 1939)
    • 2003 – Jaba Ioseliani, Georgian playwright, academic, and politician (b. 1926)
    • 2003 – Sébastien Japrisot, French author, screenwriter, and director (b. 1931)
    • 2004 – Claude Nougaro, French singer-songwriter (b. 1929)
    • 2005 – Nicola Calipari, Italian general (b. 1953)
    • 2005 – Yuriy Kravchenko, Ukrainian police officer and politician (b. 1951)
    • 2005 – Carlos Sherman, Uruguayan-Belarusian author and activist (b. 1934)
    • 2006 – John Reynolds Gardiner, American author and engineer (b. 1944)
    • 2006 – Edgar Valter, Estonian author and illustrator (b. 1929)
    • 2007 – Thomas Eagleton, American lawyer and politician, 38th Lieutenant Governor of Missouri (b. 1929)
    • 2007 – Tadeusz Nalepa, Polish singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1934)
    • 2007 – Ian Wooldridge, English journalist (b. 1932)
    • 2008 – Gary Gygax, American game designer, co-created Dungeons & Dragons (b. 1938)
    • 2008 – Leonard Rosenman, American composer and conductor (b. 1924)
    • 2009 – Yvon Cormier, Canadian wrestler (b. 1938)
    • 2009 – Horton Foote, American playwright and screenwriter (b. 1916)
    • 2009 – George McAfee, American football player (b. 1918)
    • 2010 – Raimund Abraham, Austrian architect and educator, designed the Austrian Cultural Forum New York (b. 1933)
    • 2010 – Johnny Alf, Brazilian pianist and composer (b. 1929)
    • 2010 – Vladislav Ardzinba, Abkhazian historian and politician, 1st President of Abkhazia (b. 1945)
    • 2010 – Fred Wedlock, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
    • 2011 – Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, Nepalese journalist and politician, 29th Prime Minister of Nepal (b. 1924)
    • 2011 – Vivienne Harris, English journalist and publisher, co-founded the Jewish Telegraph (b. 1921)
    • 2011 – Ed Manning, American basketball player and coach (b. 1943)
    • 2011 – Arjun Singh, Indian politician (b. 1930)
    • 2011 – Alenush Terian, Iranian astronomer and physicist (b. 1920)
    • 2011 – Simon van der Meer, Dutch-Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1925)
    • 2012 – Paul McBride, Scottish lawyer and politician (b. 1965)
    • 2012 – Don Mincher, American baseball player (b. 1938)
    • 2013 – Lillian Cahn, Hungarian-American businesswoman, co-founded Coach, Inc. (b. 1923)
    • 2013 – Mickey Moore, Canadian-American actor and director (b. 1914)
    • 2013 – Toren Smith, Canadian businessman, founded Studio Proteus (b. 1960)
    • 2014 – Mark Freidkin, Russian author and poet (b. 1953)
    • 2014 – Elaine Kellett-Bowman, English lawyer and politician (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Jack Kinzler, American engineer (b. 1920)
    • 2014 – Wu Tianming, Chinese director and producer (b. 1939)
    • 2015 – Dušan Bilandžić, Croatian historian and politician (b. 1924)
    • 2015 – Ray Hatton, English-American runner, author, and academic (b. 1932)
    • 2016 – Bud Collins, American journalist and sportscaster (b. 1929)
    • 2016 – Pat Conroy, American author (b. 1945)
    • 2016 – P. A. Sangma, Indian lawyer and politician, Speaker of the Lok Sabha (b. 1947)
    • 2016 – Zhou Xiaoyan, Chinese soprano and educator (b. 1917)
    • 2017 – Clayton Yeutter, American politician (b. 1930)
    • 2018 – Davide Astori, Italian soccer player (b. 1987)
    • 2019 – Keith Flint, English singer (The Prodigy) (b. 1969)
    • 2019 – Luke Perry, American actor (b. 1966)
    • 2020 – Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Peruvian politician and diplomat

    Holidays and observances on March 4

    • Christian feast day:
      • Adrian of Nicomedia
      • Casimir
      • Felix of Rhuys
      • Giovanni Antonio Farina (Catholic Church)
      • Blessed Humbert III, Count of Savoy (Roman Catholic Church)
      • Paul Cuffee (Episcopal Church)
      • Peter of Pappacarbone
      • Blessed Zoltán Meszlényi
      • March 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • St Casimir’s Day (Poland and Lithuania)

  • February 26 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 747 BC – Epoch (origin) of Ptolemy’s Nabonassar Era.
    • 364 – Valentinian I is proclaimed Roman emperor
    • 1233 – Mongol–Jin War: The Mongols capture Kaifeng, the capital of the Jin dynasty, after besieging it for months.
    • 1266 – Battle of Benevento: An army led by Charles, Count of Anjou, defeats a combined German and Sicilian force led by Manfred, King of Sicily. Manfred is killed in the battle and Pope Clement IV invests Charles as king of Sicily and Naples.
    • 1365 – The Ava Kingdom and the royal city of Ava (Inwa) founded by King Thado Minbya
    • 1606 – The Janszoon voyage of 1605–06 becomes the first European expedition to set foot on Australia, although it is mistaken as a part of New Guinea.
    • 1616 – Galileo Galilei is formally banned by the Roman Catholic Church from teaching or defending the view that the earth orbits the sun.
    • 1775 – The British East India Company factory on Balambangan Island is destroyed by Moro pirates
    • 1794 – The first Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen burns down.
    • 1815 – Napoleon Bonaparte escapes from Elba.
    • 1876 – Japan and Korea sign a treaty granting Japanese citizens extraterritoriality rights, opening three ports to Japanese trade, and ending Korea’s status as a tributary state of Qing dynasty China.
    • 1909 – Kinemacolor, the first successful color motion picture process, is first shown to the general public at the Palace Theatre in London.
    • 1914 – HMHS Britannic, sister to the RMS Titanic, is launched at Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast.
    • 1919 – President Woodrow Wilson signs an act of Congress establishing the Grand Canyon National Park.
    • 1929 – President Calvin Coolidge signs an executive order establishing the 96,000 acre Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
    • 1935 – Adolf Hitler orders the Luftwaffe to be re-formed, violating the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles.
    • 1935 – Robert Watson-Watt carries out a demonstration near Daventry which leads directly to the development of radar in the United Kingdom.
    • 1936 – In the February 26 Incident, young Japanese military officers attempt to stage a coup against the government.
    • 1952 – Vincent Massey is sworn in as the first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada.
    • 1960 – A New York-bound Alitalia airliner crashes into a cemetery in Shannon, Ireland, shortly after takeoff, killing 34 of the 52 persons on board.
    • 1966 – Apollo program: Launch of AS-201, the first flight of the Saturn IB rocket
    • 1971 – U.N. Secretary-General U Thant signs United Nations proclamation of the vernal equinox as Earth Day.
    • 1979 – The Superliner railcar enters revenue service with Amtrak.
    • 1980 – Egypt and Israel establish full diplomatic relations.
    • 1987 – Iran–Contra affair: The Tower Commission rebukes President Ronald Reagan for not controlling his national security staff.
    • 1992 – Nagorno-Karabakh War: Khojaly Massacre: Armenian armed forces open fire on Azeri civilians at a military post outside the town of Khojaly leaving hundreds dead.
    • 1993 – World Trade Center bombing: In New York City, a truck bomb parked below the North Tower of the World Trade Center explodes, killing six and injuring over a thousand people.
    • 1995 – The UK’s oldest investment banking institute, Barings Bank, collapses after a rogue securities broker Nick Leeson loses $1.4 billion by speculating on the Singapore International Monetary Exchange using futures contracts.
    • 2008 – The New York Philharmonic performs in Pyongyang, North Korea; this is the first event of its kind to take place in North Korea.
    • 2012 – Trayvon Martin was shot and killed at the age of 17 in Sanford, Florida.
    • 2012 – A train derails in Burlington, Ontario, Canada killing at least three people and injuring 45.
    • 2013 – A hot air balloon crashes near Luxor, Egypt, killing 19 people.

    Births on February 26

    • 1361 – Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia (d. 1419)
    • 1416 – Christopher of Bavaria (d. 1448)
    • 1564 – Christopher Marlowe, English playwright, poet and translator (d. 1593)
    • 1584 – Albert VI, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1666)
    • 1587 – Stefano Landi, Italian composer and educator (d. 1639)
    • 1629 – Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll, Scottish peer (d. 1685)
    • 1651 – Quirinus Kuhlmann, German Baroque poet and mystic (d. 1689)
    • 1671 – Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 3rd Earl of Shaftesbury, English philosopher and politician (d. 1713)
    • 1672 – Antoine Augustin Calmet, French monk and theologian (d. 1757)
    • 1677 – Nicola Fago, Italian composer and teacher (d. 1745)
    • 1718 – Johan Ernst Gunnerus, Norwegian bishop, botanist and zoologist (d. 1773)
    • 1720 – Gian Francesco Albani, Italian cardinal (d. 1803)
    • 1746 – Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma (d. 1806)
    • 1770 – Anton Reicha, Bohemian composer and flautist (d. 1836)
    • 1777 – Matija Nenadović, Serbian priest, historian, and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Serbia (d. 1854)
    • 1786 – François Arago, French mathematician and politician, 25th Prime Minister of France (d. 1853)
    • 1799 – Benoît Paul Émile Clapeyron, French physicist and engineer (d. 1864)
    • 1802 – Victor Hugo, French author, poet, and playwright (d. 1885)
    • 1808 – Honoré Daumier, French painter, illustrator, and sculptor (d. 1879)
    • 1808 – Nathan Kelley, American architect, designed the Ohio Statehouse (d. 1871)
    • 1829 – Levi Strauss, German-American fashion designer, founded Levi Strauss & Co. (d. 1902)
    • 1842 – Camille Flammarion, French astronomer and author (d. 1925)
    • 1846 – Buffalo Bill, American soldier and hunter (d. 1917)
    • 1852 – John Harvey Kellogg, American surgeon, co-created Corn flakes (d. 1943)
    • 1857 – Émile Coué, French psychologist and pharmacist (d. 1926)
    • 1861 – Ferdinand I of Bulgaria (d. 1948)
    • 1861 – Nadezhda Krupskaya, Russian soldier and politician (d. 1939)
    • 1866 – Herbert Henry Dow, Canadian-American businessman, founded the Dow Chemical Company (d. 1930)
    • 1877 – Henry Barwell, Australian politician, 28th Premier of South Australia (d. 1959)
    • 1877 – Rudolph Dirks, German-American illustrator (d. 1968)
    • 1879 – Frank Bridge, English viola player and composer (d. 1941)
    • 1880 – Kenneth Edgeworth, Irish astronomer (d. 1972)
    • 1881 – Janus Djurhuus, Faroese poet (d. 1948)
    • 1882 – Husband E. Kimmel, American admiral (d. 1968)
    • 1885 – Aleksandras Stulginskis, Lithuanian farmer and politician, 2nd President of Lithuania (d. 1969)
    • 1887 – Grover Cleveland Alexander, American baseball player and coach (d. 1950)
    • 1887 – William Frawley, American actor and vaudevillian (d. 1966)
    • 1887 – Stefan Grabiński, Polish author and educator (d. 1936)
    • 1893 – Wallace Fard Muhammad, American religious leader, founded the Nation of Islam (disappeared 1934)
    • 1893 – Dorothy Whipple, English novelist (d. 1966)
    • 1896 – Andrei Zhdanov, Ukrainian-Russian civil servant and politician (d. 1948)
    • 1899 – Max Petitpierre, Swiss jurist and politician, 54th President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 1994)
    • 1900 – Halina Konopacka, Polish discus thrower and poet (d. 1989)
    • 1900 – Fritz Wiessner, German-American mountaineer (d. 1988)
    • 1902 – Jean Bruller, French author and illustrator, co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit (d. 1991)
    • 1903 – Giulio Natta, Italian chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1979)
    • 1903 – Orde Wingate, English general (d. 1944)
    • 1906 – Madeleine Carroll, English actress (d. 1987)
    • 1908 – Tex Avery, American animator, producer, and voice actor (d. 1980)
    • 1908 – Nestor Mesta Chayres, Mexican operatic tenor and bolero vocalist (d. 1971)
    • 1908 – Jean-Pierre Wimille, French race car driver (d. 1949)
    • 1909 – Fanny Cradock, English chef, author, and critic (d. 1994)
    • 1909 – Talal of Jordan (d. 1972)
    • 1910 – Vic Woodley, English footballer (d. 1978)
    • 1911 – Tarō Okamoto, Japanese painter and sculptor (d. 1996)
    • 1912 – Dane Clark, American actor and director (d. 1998)
    • 1913 – George Barker, English author and poet (d. 1991)
    • 1914 – Robert Alda, American actor, singer, and director (d. 1986)
    • 1916 – Jackie Gleason, American actor and singer (d. 1987)
    • 1918 – Otis R. Bowen, American physician and politician, 44th Governor of Indiana (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Pyotr Masherov, Leader of Soviet Belarus (d. 1980)
    • 1918 – Theodore Sturgeon, American author and critic (d. 1985)
    • 1919 – Mason Adams, American actor (d. 2005)
    • 1920 – Danny Gardella, American baseball player and trainer (d. 2005)
    • 1920 – Tony Randall, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2004)
    • 1920 – Lucjan Wolanowski, Polish journalist and author (d. 2006)
    • 1921 – Betty Hutton, American actress and singer (d. 2007)
    • 1922 – Bill Johnston, Australian cricketer and businessman (d. 2007)
    • 1922 – Margaret Leighton, English actress (d. 1976)
    • 1924 – Noboru Takeshita, Japanese soldier and politician, 74th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 2000)
    • 1924 – Marc Bucci, American composer, lyricist, and dramatist (d. 2002)
    • 1925 – Everton Weekes, Barbadian cricketer and referee
    • 1926 – Doris Belack, American actress (d. 2011)
    • 1926 – Verne Gagne, American football player, wrestler, and trainer (d. 2015)
    • 1927 – Tom Kennedy, American game show host and actor
    • 1928 – Fats Domino, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2017)
    • 1928 – Ariel Sharon, Israeli general and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Israel (d. 2014)
    • 1931 – Ally MacLeod, Scottish footballer and manager (d. 2004)
    • 1931 – Robert Novak, American journalist and author (d. 2009)
    • 1931 – Josephine Tewson, English actress
    • 1932 – Johnny Cash, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 2003)
    • 1933 – James Goldsmith, French-British businessman and politician (d. 1997)
    • 1934 – Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina, Algerian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1936 – José Policarpo, Portuguese cardinal (d. 2014)
    • 1937 – Paul Dickson, American football player and coach (d. 2011)
    • 1939 – Chuck Wepner, American professional boxer
    • 1940 – Oldřich Kulhánek, Czech painter, illustrator, and stage designer (d. 2013)
    • 1942 – Jozef Adamec, Slovak footballer and manager (d. 2018)
    • 1943 – Paul Cotton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1943 – Bill Duke, American actor and director
    • 1943 – Dante Ferretti, Italian art director and costume designer
    • 1943 – Bob “The Bear” Hite, American singer-songwriter and musician (d. 1981)
    • 1944 – Christopher Hope, South African author and poet
    • 1944 – Ronald Lauder, American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Austria
    • 1945 – Peter Brock, Australian race car driver (d. 2006)
    • 1945 – Marta Kristen, Norwegian-American actress
    • 1945 – Mitch Ryder, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1946 – Colin Bell, English footballer
    • 1946 – Ahmed Zewail, Egyptian-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2016)
    • 1947 – Sandie Shaw, English singer and psychotherapist
    • 1948 – Sharyn McCrumb, American author
    • 1949 – Simon Crean, Australian trade union leader and politician, 14th Australian Minister for the Arts
    • 1949 – Elizabeth George, American author and educator
    • 1949 – Emma Kirkby, English soprano
    • 1950 – Jonathan Cain, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
    • 1950 – Helen Clark, New Zealand academic and politician, 37th Prime Minister of New Zealand
    • 1951 – Steve Bell, English cartoonist
    • 1951 – Wayne Goss, Australian lawyer and politician, 34th Premier of Queensland (d. 2014)
    • 1953 – Michael Bolton, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1954 – Prince Ernst August of Hanover
    • 1954 – Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkish politician, 12th President of Turkey
    • 1955 – Andreas Maislinger, Austrian historian and academic, founded the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service
    • 1956 – Michel Houellebecq, French author, poet, screenwriter, and director
    • 1957 – David Beasley, American lawyer and politician, 113th Governor of South Carolina
    • 1957 – Joe Mullen, American ice hockey player and coach
    • 1957 – Keena Rothhammer, American swimmer
    • 1958 – Paul Ackford, English rugby player
    • 1958 – Greg Germann, American actor and director
    • 1958 – Susan Helms, American general, engineer, and astronaut
    • 1958 – Tim Kaine, American lawyer and politician, 70th Governor of Virginia
    • 1959 – Rolando Blackman, American basketball player and coach
    • 1959 – Ahmet Davutoğlu, Turkish political scientist, academic, and politician, 37th Prime Minister of Turkey
    • 1960 – Jaz Coleman, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
    • 1962 – Ahn Cheol-soo, South Korean physician, academic, and politician
    • 1963 – Chase Masterson, American actress, singer, and activist
    • 1965 – James Mitchell, American wrestler and manager
    • 1966 – Garry Conille, Haitian physician and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Haiti
    • 1966 – Marc Fortier, French-Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1966 – Najwa Karam, Lebanese singer
    • 1967 – Mark Carroll, Australian rugby league player
    • 1967 – Kazuyoshi Miura, Japanese footballer
    • 1968 – Tim Commerford, American bass player
    • 1969 – Hitoshi Sakimoto, Japanese composer and producer
    • 1970 – Mark Harper, English accountant and politician, Minister of State for Immigration
    • 1970 – Scott Mahon, Australian rugby league player
    • 1971 – Erykah Badu, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1971 – Max Martin, Swedish-American record producer and songwriter
    • 1971 – Hélène Segara, French singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1973 – Marshall Faulk, American football player
    • 1973 – Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Norwegian footballer and manager
    • 1973 – Jenny Thompson, American swimmer
    • 1974 – Sébastien Loeb, French race car driver
    • 1974 – Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski, Filipina television actress, host and equestrienne
    • 1976 – Nalini Anantharaman, French mathematician
    • 1976 – Chad Urmston, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1977 – Marty Reasoner, American ice hockey player and coach
    • 1977 – Tim Thomas, American basketball player
    • 1977 – Shane Williams, Welsh rugby union player
    • 1978 – Abdoulaye Faye, Senegalese footballer
    • 1979 – Corinne Bailey Rae, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1979 – Steve Evans, Welsh footballer
    • 1979 – Pedro Mendes, Portuguese international footballer, midfielder
    • 1980 – Steve Blake, American basketball player
    • 1981 – Kertus Davis, American race car driver
    • 1981 – Oh Seung-bum, South Korean footballer
    • 1982 – Li Na, Chinese tennis player
    • 1982 – Matt Prior, South African-English cricketer
    • 1982 – Nate Ruess, American singer-songwriter
    • 1983 – Jerome Harrison, American football player
    • 1983 – Pepe, Brazilian-Portuguese footballer
    • 1984 – Emmanuel Adebayor, Togolese international footballer, forward
    • 1984 – Natalia Lafourcade, Mexican singer-songwriter
    • 1984 – Beren Saat, Turkish actress
    • 1985 – Fernando Llorente, Spanish international footballer, striker
    • 1986 – Hannah Kearney, American skier
    • 1989 – Gabriel Obertan, French footballer
    • 1990 – Kateřina Cachová, Czech heptathlete
    • 1990 – Takanoiwa Yoshimori, Mongolian sumo wrestler
    • 1991 – Lee Chae-rin, South Korean singer
    • 1992 – Mikael Granlund, Finnish professional hockey player
    • 1992 – Michael Chee Kam, New Zealand rugby league player
    • 1997 – Reghan Tumilty, Scottish footballer

    Deaths on February 26

    • 420 – Porphyry of Gaza, Greek bishop and saint (b. 347)
    • 943 – Muirchertach mac Néill, king of Ailech (Ireland)
    • 1154 – Roger II of Sicily (b. 1093)
    • 1266 – Manfred, King of Sicily (b. 1232)
    • 1275 – Margaret of England, Queen consort of Scots (b. 1240)
    • 1349 – Fatima bint al-Ahmar, Nasrid princess in the Emirate of Granada (b. c.1260)
    • 1360 – Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March, English commander (b. 1328)
    • 1462 – John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford, English politician (b. 1408)
    • 1548 – Lorenzino de’ Medici, Italian writer and assassin (b. 1514)
    • 1577 – Eric XIV of Sweden (b. 1533)
    • 1603 – Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress, spouse of Maximilian II (b. 1528)
    • 1608 – John Still, English bishop (b. 1543)
    • 1611 – Antonio Possevino, Italian priest and diplomat (b. 1533)
    • 1625 – Anna Vasa of Sweden, Polish and Swedish princess (b. 1568)
    • 1630 – William Brade, English violinist and composer (b. 1560)
    • 1638 – Claude Gaspard Bachet de Méziriac, French mathematician and linguist (b. 1581)
    • 1723 – Thomas d’Urfey, English poet and playwright (b. 1653)
    • 1726 – Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria (b. 1662)
    • 1770 – Giuseppe Tartini, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1692)
    • 1790 – Joshua Rowley, English admiral (b. 1730)
    • 1802 – Esek Hopkins, American admiral (b. 1718)
    • 1806 – Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, Haitian-French general (b. 1762)
    • 1813 – Robert R. Livingston, American lawyer and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Foreign Affairs (b. 1746)
    • 1815 – Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (b. 1737)
    • 1821 – Joseph de Maistre, French lawyer and diplomat (b. 1753)
    • 1864 – Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, Canadian jurist and politician, 3rd Premier of Canada East (b. 1807)
    • 1883 – Alexandros Koumoundouros, Greek lawyer and politician, 56th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1817)
    • 1887 – Anandi Gopal Joshi, First Indian women physician (b. 1865)
    • 1889 – Karl Davydov, Russian cellist and composer (b. 1838)
    • 1903 – Richard Jordan Gatling, American engineer, invented the Gatling gun (b. 1818)
    • 1906 – Jean Lanfray, Swiss convicted murderer (b. 1874)
    • 1913 – Felix Draeseke, German composer and academic (b. 1835)
    • 1921 – Carl Menger, Polish-Austrian economist and academic (b. 1840)
    • 1930 – Mary Whiton Calkins, American philosopher and psychologist (b. 1863)
    • 1931 – Otto Wallach, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1847)
    • 1936 – February 26 Incident:
      • Takahashi Korekiyo, Japanese accountant and politician, 20th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1854)
      • Saitō Makoto, Japanese admiral and politician, 30th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1858)
      • Jōtarō Watanabe, Japanese general (b. 1874)
    • 1943 – Theodor Eicke, German general (b. 1892)
    • 1945 – Sándor Szurmay, Minister of Defence of the Hungarian portion of Austria-Hungary (b. 1860)
    • 1947 – Heinrich Häberlin, Swiss judge and politician, President of the Swiss National Council (b. 1868)
    • 1950 – Harry Lauder, Scottish comedian and singer (b. 1870)
    • 1951 – Sabiha Kasimati, Albanian ichthyologist (b. 1912) executed with 20 others
    • 1952 – Theodoros Pangalos, Greek general and politician, President of Greece (b. 1878)
    • 1961 – Karl Albiker, German sculptor, lithographer, and educator (b. 1878)
    • 1961 – Mohammed V of Morocco (b. 1909)
    • 1966 – Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Indian poet and politician (b. 1883)
    • 1969 – Levi Eshkol, Israeli soldier and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Israel (b. 1895)
    • 1969 – Karl Jaspers, German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher (b. 1883)
    • 1981 – Robert Aickman, English author and activist (b. 1914)
    • 1981 – Howard Hanson, American composer, conductor, and educator (b. 1896)
    • 1985 – Tjalling Koopmans, Dutch-American economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
    • 1989 – Roy Eldridge, American trumpet player (b. 1911)
    • 1993 – Constance Ford, American model and actress (b. 1923)
    • 1994 – Bill Hicks, American comedian (b. 1961)
    • 1995 – Jack Clayton, English director and producer (b. 1921)
    • 1997 – David Doyle, American actor (b. 1929)
    • 1998 – Theodore Schultz, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
    • 2000 – George L. Street III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1913)
    • 2002 – Lawrence Tierney, American actor (b. 1919)
    • 2004 – Adolf Ehrnrooth, Finnish general (b. 1905)
    • 2004 – Boris Trajkovski, Macedonian politician, 2nd President of the Republic of Macedonia (b. 1956)
    • 2005 – Jef Raskin, American computer scientist, created Macintosh (b. 1943)
    • 2006 – Georgina Battiscombe, British biographer (b. 1905)
    • 2008 – Bodil Udsen, Danish actress (b. 1925)
    • 2009 – Johnny Kerr, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1932)
    • 2009 – Wendy Richard, English actress (b. 1943)
    • 2009 – Norm Van Lier, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1947)
    • 2010 – Jun Seba, also known as “Nujabes”, Japanese record producer, DJ, composer and arranger (b. 1974)
    • 2011 – Arnošt Lustig, Czech author, playwright, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
    • 2012 – Richard Carpenter, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1929)
    • 2013 – Marie-Claire Alain, French organist and educator (b. 1926)
    • 2013 – Stéphane Hessel, German-French diplomat and author (b. 1917)
    • 2013 – Simon Li, Hong Kong judge and politician (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – Sorel Etrog, Romanian-Canadian sculptor, painter, and illustrator (b. 1933)
    • 2014 – Phyllis Krasilovsky, American author and academic (b. 1927)
    • 2014 – Paco de Lucía, Spanish guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1947)
    • 2015 – Sheppard Frere, English historian and archaeologist (b. 1916)
    • 2015 – Theodore Hesburgh, American priest, theologian, educator, and academic (b. 1917)
    • 2015 – Earl Lloyd, American basketball player and coach (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Tom Schweich, American lawyer and politician, 36th State Auditor of Missouri (b. 1960)
    • 2016 – Andy Bathgate, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (b. 1932)
    • 2016 – Don Getty, Canadian football player and politician, 11th Premier of Alberta (b. 1933)
    • 2017 – Joseph Wapner, American lieutenant and judge (b. 1919)

    Holidays and observances on February 26

    • Christian feast day:
      • Alexander of Alexandria
      • Emily Malbone Morgan (Episcopal Church (USA))
      • Isabelle of France
      • Li Tim-Oi (Anglican Church of Canada)
      • Porphyry of Gaza
      • February 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • The first day of Ayyám-i-Há (Bahá’í Faith) (Please note that this observance is only locked into this date the Gregorian calendar on this date if Bahá’í Naw-Rúz takes place on March 21, which it doesn’t in all years)
    • Day of Remembrance for Victims of Khojaly Massacre (Azerbaijan)
    • Liberation Day (Kuwait)
    • Saviours’ Day (Nation of Islam)

  • February 25 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 138 – Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor
    • 628 – Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II
    • 1336 – Four thousand defenders of Pilenai commit mass suicide rather than be taken captive by the Teutonic Knights.
    • 1797 – Colonel William Tate and his force of 1000–1500 soldiers surrender after the Last invasion of Britain.
    • 1831 – Battle of Olszynka Grochowska, part of Polish November Uprising against Russian Empire.
    • 1836 – Samuel Colt is granted a United States patent for the Colt revolver.
    • 1843 – Lord George Paulet occupies the Kingdom of Hawaii in the name of Great Britain in the Paulet Affair (1843).
    • 1848 – Provisional government in revolutionary France, by Louis Blanc’s motion, guarantees workers’ rights.
    • 1856 – A Peace conference opens in Paris after the Crimean War.
    • 1866 – Miners in Calaveras County, California, discover what is now called the Calaveras Skull – human remains that supposedly indicated that man, mastodons, and elephants had co-existed.
    • 1870 – Hiram Rhodes Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in the U.S. Congress.
    • 1875 – Guangxu Emperor of Qing dynasty China begins his reign, under Empress Dowager Cixi’s regency.
    • 1901 – J. P. Morgan incorporates the United States Steel Corporation.
    • 1912 – Marie-Adélaïde, the eldest of six daughters of Guillaume IV, becomes the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
    • 1916 – World War I: The Germans capture Fort Douaumont during the Battle of Verdun.
    • 1918 – German occupation of Estonia during World War I: Pernau, Reval, and Pskov are captured.
    • 1919 – Oregon places a one cent per U.S. gallon tax on gasoline, becoming the first U.S. state to levy a gasoline tax.
    • 1921 – Tbilisi, capital of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, is occupied by Bolshevist Russia.
    • 1928 – Charles Jenkins Laboratories of Washington, D.C. becomes the first holder of a broadcast license for television from the Federal Radio Commission.
    • 1932 – Adolf Hitler obtains German citizenship by naturalization, which allows him to run in the 1932 election for Reichspräsident.
    • 1933 – The USS Ranger is launched. It is the first US Navy ship to be designed from the start of construction as an aircraft carrier.
    • 1939 – The first of 2​1⁄2 million Anderson air raid shelters appeared in North London.
    • 1941 – February strike: In the occupied Amsterdam, a general strike is declared in response to increasing anti-Jewish measures instituted by the Nazis.
    • 1947 – The formal abolition of Prussia is proclaimed by the Allied Control Council. The Prussian government had already been abolished by the Preußenschlag of 1932.
    • 1948 – Cold War: The Communist Party takes control of government in Czechoslovakia and the period of the Third Republic ends.
    • 1951 – The first Pan American Games were officially opened in Buenos Aires, Argentina by President Juan Perón.
    • 1954 – Gamal Abdel Nasser is made premier of Egypt.
    • 1956 – Cold War: In his speech On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences, Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union denounces the cult of personality of Joseph Stalin.
    • 1964 – North Korean Prime Minister Kim Il-sung calls for the removal of feudalistic land ownership aimed at turning all cooperative farms into state-run ones.
    • 1968 – Vietnam War: One hundred thirty-five unarmed citizens of Hà My village in South Vietnam’s Qu?ng Nam Province are killed and buried en masse by South Korean troops in what would come to be known as the Hà My massacre.
    • 1980 – The government of Suriname is overthrown by a military coup led by Dési Bouterse.
    • 1986 – People Power Revolution: President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the Philippines’ first woman president.
    • 1987 – Southern Methodist University’s football program is the first college football program to be banned from competition by the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions.
    • 1991 – Gulf War: An Iraqi scud missile hits an American military barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia killing 28 U.S. Army Reservists from Pennsylvania.
    • 1991 – Cold War: The Warsaw Pact is abolished.
    • 1992 – Khojaly massacre: About 613 civilians are killed by Armenian armed forces during the conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan.
    • 1994 – Mosque of Abraham massacre: In the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank city of Hebron, Baruch Goldstein opens fire with an automatic rifle, killing 29 Palestinian worshippers and injuring 125 more before being subdued and beaten to death by survivors.
    • 1997 – Yi Han-yong, a North Korean defector, was murdered by unidentified assailants in Bundang, South Korea.
    • 2009 – Soldiers of the Bangladesh Rifles mutiny at their headquarters in Pilkhana, Dhaka, Bangladesh, resulting in 74 deaths, including 57 army officials.
    • 2009 – Turkish Airlines Flight 1951 crashed during landing at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Netherlands, primarily due to a faulty radio altimeter, resulting in the death of nine passengers and crew including all three pilots.
    • 2015 – At least 310 people are killed in avalanches in northeastern Afghanistan.
    • 2016 – Three people are killed and fourteen others injured in a series of shootings in the small Kansas cities of Newton and Hesston.

    Births on February 25

    • 1259 – Infanta Branca of Portugal, daughter of King Afonso III of Portugal and Urraca of Castile (d. 1321)
    • 1337 – Wenceslaus I, Duke of Luxembourg (d. 1383)
    • 1475 – Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, last male member of the House of York (d. 1499)
    • 1540 – Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, English aristocrat and courtier (d. 1614)
    • 1543 – Sharaf Khan Bidlisi, Emir of Bitlis (d. 1603)
    • 1591 – Friedrich Spee, German poet and author (d. 1635)
    • 1643 – Ahmed II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1695)
    • 1663 – Peter Anthony Motteux, French-English author, playwright and translator (d. 1718)
    • 1670 – Maria Margarethe Kirch, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1720)
    • 1682 – Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist and pathologist (d. 1771)
    • 1707 – Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright and composer (d. 1793)
    • 1714 – René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of France (d. 1792)
    • 1728 – John Wood, the Younger, English architect, designed the Royal Crescent (d. 1782)
    • 1752 – John Graves Simcoe, English-Canadian general and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (d. 1806)
    • 1755 – François René Mallarmé, French lawyer and politician (d. 1835)
    • 1778 – José de San Martín, Argentinian general and politician, 1st President of Peru (d. 1850)
    • 1806 – Emma Catherine Embury, American author and poet (d. 1863)
    • 1809 – John Hart, English-Australian politician, 10th Premier of South Australia (d. 1873)
    • 1812 – Carl Christian Hall, Danish lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1888)
    • 1816 – Giovanni Morelli, Italian historian and critic (d. 1891)
    • 1833 – John St. John, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Kansas (d. 1916)
    • 1841 – Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French painter and sculptor (d. 1919)
    • 1842 – Karl May, German author, poet, and playwright (d. 1912)
    • 1845 – George Reid, Scottish-Australian lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1918)
    • 1855 – Cesário Verde, Portuguese poet and author (d. 1886)
    • 1856 – Karl Gotthard Lamprecht, German historian and academic (d. 1915)
    • 1856 – Mathias Zdarsky, Czech-Austrian skier, painter, and sculptor (d. 1940)
    • 1857 – Robert Bond, Canadian politician; first Prime Minister of Newfoundland (d. 1927)
    • 1860 – William Ashley, English historian and academic (d. 1927)
    • 1865 – Andranik, Armenian general (d. 1927)
    • 1866 – Benedetto Croce, Italian philosopher and politician (d. 1952)
    • 1869 – Phoebus Levene, Russian-American biochemist and physician (d. 1940)
    • 1873 – Enrico Caruso, Italian-American tenor; the most popular operatic tenor of the early 20th century and the first great recording star. (d. 1921)
    • 1877 – Erich von Hornbostel, Austrian musicologist and scholar (d. 1935)
    • 1881 – William Z. Foster, American union leader and politician (d. 1961)
    • 1881 – Alexei Rykov, Russian politician, Premier of Russia (d. 1938)
    • 1883 – Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (d. 1981)
    • 1885 – Princess Alice of Battenberg, mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (d. 1969)
    • 1888 – John Foster Dulles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 52nd United States Secretary of State (d. 1959)
    • 1890 – Myra Hess, English pianist and educator (d. 1965)
    • 1894 – Meher Baba, Indian spiritual master (d. 1969)
    • 1898 – William Astbury, physicist and molecular biologist (d. 1961)
    • 1901 – Vince Gair, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Queensland (d. 1980)
    • 1901 – Zeppo Marx, American comedian (the youngest of the Marx Brothers) and theatrical agent (d. 1979)
    • 1903 – King Clancy, Canadian ice hockey player, referee, and coach; rated one of the 100 greatest NHL players (d. 1986)
    • 1905 – Perry Miller, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1963)
    • 1906 – Mary Coyle Chase, American journalist and playwright; author of Harvey (d. 1981)
    • 1907 – Sabahattin Ali, Turkish journalist, author, and poet (d. 1948)
    • 1908 – Mary Locke Petermann, cellular biochemist (d. 1975)
    • 1908 – Frank G. Slaughter, American physician and author (d. 2001)
    • 1910 – Millicent Fenwick, American journalist and politician (d. 1992)
    • 1913 – Jim Backus, American actor and screenwriter; the voice of Mr. Magoo (d. 1989)
    • 1913 – Gert Fröbe, German actor; title role in Goldfinger (d. 1988)
    • 1917 – Anthony Burgess, English author, playwright, and critic (d. 1993)
    • 1918 – Bobby Riggs, American tennis player; winner of three major titles, 1939–1941 (d. 1995)
    • 1919 – Monte Irvin, American baseball player and executive (d. 2016)
    • 1920 – Philip Habib, American academic and diplomat, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (d. 1992)
    • 1921 – Pierre Laporte, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec (d. 1970)
    • 1921 – Andy Pafko, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
    • 1922 – Molly Reilly, Canadian aviator (d. 1980)
    • 1924 – Hugh Huxley, English-American biologist and academic (d. 2013)
    • 1925 – Shehu Shagari, former President of Nigeria (d. 2018)
    • 1925 – Lisa Kirk, American actress and singer (d. 1990)
    • 1926 – Masatoshi Gündüz Ikeda, Japanese-Turkish mathematician and academic; noted for contributions to algebraic number theory (d. 2003)
    • 1927 – Ralph Stanley, American bluegrass singer and banjo player; member of International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame (d. 2016)
    • 1928 – Paul Elvstrøm, Danish yachtsman; winner of four Olympic gold medals, 1948–1960 (d. 2016)
    • 1928 – A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., prominent African-American civil rights advocate, author, and federal court judge (d. 1998)
    • 1928 – Larry Gelbart, American author and screenwriter; creator and producer of M*A*S*H TV series (d. 2009)
    • 1928 – Richard G. Stern, American author and academic (d. 2013)
    • 1932 – Tony Brooks, English racing driver; six Formula One victories, second in 1959 World Championship
    • 1932 – Faron Young, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist; member of Country Music Hall of Fame (d. 1996)
    • 1934 – Tony Lema, American golfer; winner of the 1964 Open Championship (d. 1966)
    • 1935 – Oktay Sinanoglu, Turkish physical chemist and molecular biophysicist; two-time nominee for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (d. 2015)
    • 1937 – Tom Courtenay, award-winning English actor
    • 1937 – Bob Schieffer, American political author, journalist and TV interviewer
    • 1938 – Herb Elliott, Australian 1500 metres runner; 1960 Olympic champion and world record holder
    • 1938 – Farokh Engineer, Indian international cricketer; successful as batsman and wicketkeeper
    • 1940 – Ron Santo, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2010)
    • 1941 – David Puttnam, English film producer and academic
    • 1943 – George Harrison, English singer-songwriter, guitarist and film producer; lead guitarist of The Beatles (d. 2001)
    • 1944 – François Cevert, French racing driver (d. 1973)
    • 1946 – Jean Todt, French racing driver and team manager; FIA President, 2009–2021
    • 1947 – Lee Evans, American sprinter and athletics coach; two gold medals and world 400m record at 1968 Olympics
    • 1949 – Amin Maalouf, Lebanese-French journalist and author
    • 1950 – Francisco Fernández Ochoa, Spanish skier; 1972 Olympic slalom champion (d. 2006)
    • 1950 – Neil Jordan, Irish film director, screenwriter and author
    • 1950 – Néstor Kirchner, Argentinian politician; 51st President of Argentina, 2003–2007 (d. 2010)
    • 1951 – Don Quarrie, Jamaican sprinter and coach; four Olympic medals and two world records
    • 1952 – Joey Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle road racing champion; holds record for most wins (26) at the Isle of Man TT (d. 2000)
    • 1953 – José María Aznar, Spanish politician; Prime Minister of Spain, 1996–2004
    • 1958 – Kurt Rambis, American basketball player and coach; four-time NBA Finals champion
    • 1962 – Birgit Fischer, German kayaker; winner of eight Olympic gold medals
    • 1963 – Paul O’Neill, American baseball player and sportscaster; five-time World Series champion
    • 1967 – Ed Balls, British politician; Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
    • 1968 – Oumou Sangaré, Grammy Award-winning Malian Wassoulou musician
    • 1971 – Sean Astin, American actor, director and producer
    • 1974 – Dominic Raab, British politician; First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
    • 1981 – Park Ji-sung, South Korean footballer; the most successful Asian player with 19 career trophies
    • 1982 – Flavia Pennetta, Italian tennis player; winner of the 2015 US Open
    • 1988 – Tom Marshall, British photo colouriser and artist
    • 1999 – Gianluigi Donnarumma, Italian international footballer; youngest goalkeeper to play for Italy

    Deaths on February 25

    • 806 – Tarasios, patriarch of Constantinople
    • 891 – Fujiwara no Mototsune, Japanese regent (b. 836)
    • 944 – Lin Ding, Chinese official and chancellor
    • 1246 – Dafydd ap Llywelyn, Welsh king (b. 1212)
    • 1321 – Beatrice d’Avesnes, consort of Henry VI, Count of Luxembourg
    • 1495 – Sultan Cem, Ottoman politician (b. 1459)
    • 1522 – William Lily, English scholar and educator (b. 1468)
    • 1536 – Berchtold Haller, German-Swiss theologian and reformer (b. 1492)
    • 1536 – Jacob Hutter, founder of the Hutterites
    • 1547 – Vittoria Colonna, marchioness of Pescara (b. 1490)
    • 1558 – Eleanor of Austria (b. 1498)
    • 1600 – Sebastian de Aparicio, Spanish colonial industrialist and saint (b. 1502)
    • 1601 – Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1566)
    • 1634 – Albrecht von Wallenstein, Austrian general and politician (b. 1583)
    • 1655 – Daniel Heinsius, Flemish poet and scholar (b. 1580)
    • 1682 – Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (b. 1639)
    • 1710 – Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, French soldier and explorer (b. 1639)
    • 1713 – Frederick I of Prussia (b. 1657)
    • 1723 – Christopher Wren, English architect, designed St Paul’s Cathedral (b. 1632)
    • 1756 – Eliza Haywood, English actress and poet (b. 1693)
    • 1796 – Samuel Seabury, American bishop (b. 1729)
    • 1798 – Louis Jules Mancini Mazarini, French poet and diplomat (b. 1716)
    • 1805 – Thomas Pownall, English politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (b. 1722)
    • 1819 – Francisco Manoel de Nascimento, Portuguese-French poet and educator (b. 1734)
    • 1822 – William Pinkney, American politician and diplomat, 7th United States Attorney General (b. 1764)
    • 1831 – Friedrich Maximilian Klinger, German author and playwright (b. 1752)
    • 1841 – Philip Pendleton Barbour, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 12th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1783)
    • 1850 – Daoguang Emperor of China (b. 1782)
    • 1852 – Thomas Moore, Irish poet and lyricist (b. 1779)
    • 1865 – Otto Ludwig, German author, playwright, and critic (b. 1813)
    • 1870 – Henrik Hertz, Danish poet and playwright (b. 1797)
    • 1875 – Thomas Reynolds, English-Australian politician, 5th Premier of South Australia (b. 1818)
    • 1877 – Jung Bahadur Rana, Nepalese ruler (b. 1816)
    • 1878 – Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (b. 1804)
    • 1888 – Josif Pancic, Serbian botanist and academic (b. 1814)
    • 1899 – Paul Reuter, German-English journalist and businessman, founded Reuters (b. 1816)
    • 1906 – Anton Arensky, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1861)
    • 1910 – Worthington Whittredge, American painter and educator (b. 1820)
    • 1911 – Friedrich Spielhagen, German author, theorist, and translator (b. 1829)
    • 1912 – William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (b. 1852)
    • 1914 – John Tenniel, English illustrator (b. 1820)
    • 1915 – Charles Edwin Bessey, American botanist, author, and academic (b. 1845)
    • 1916 – David Bowman, Australian politician (b. 1860)
    • 1920 – Marcel-Auguste Dieulafoy, French archaeologist and engineer (b. 1844)
    • 1922 – Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (b. 1869)
    • 1928 – William O’Brien, Irish journalist and politician (b. 1852)
    • 1934 – Elizabeth Gertrude Britton, American botanist and academic (b. 1857)
    • 1934 – John McGraw, American baseball player and manager (b. 1873)
    • 1945 – Mário de Andrade, Brazilian author, poet, and photographer (b. 1893)
    • 1950 – George Minot, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
    • 1953 – Sergei Winogradsky, Ukrainian-Russian microbiologist and ecologist (b. 1856)
    • 1957 – Mark Aldanov, Russian author and critic (b. 1888)
    • 1957 – Bugs Moran, American mob boss (b. 1893)
    • 1963 – Melville J. Herskovits, American anthropologist and academic (b. 1895)
    • 1964 – Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian sculptor and illustrator (b. 1887)
    • 1964 – Hinrich Lohse, German politician (b. 1896)
    • 1964 – Grace Metalious, American author (b. 1924)
    • 1970 – Mark Rothko, Latvian-American painter and academic (b. 1903)
    • 1971 – Theodor Svedberg, Swedish chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1884)
    • 1972 – Gottfried Fuchs, German-Canadian Olympic soccer player (b. 1889)
    • 1975 – Elijah Muhammad, American religious leader (b. 1897)
    • 1978 – Daniel James, Jr., American general and pilot (b. 1920)
    • 1980 – Robert Hayden, American poet and academic (b. 1913)
    • 1983 – Tennessee Williams, American playwright, and poet (b. 1911)
    • 1996 – Haing S. Ngor, Cambodian-American physician and author (b. 1940)
    • 1997 – Andrei Sinyavsky, Russian journalist and publisher (b. 1925)
    • 1998 – W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright (b. 1914)
    • 1999 – Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
    • 2001 – A. R. Ammons, American poet and critic (b. 1926)
    • 2001 – Donald Bradman, Australian international cricketer; holder of world record batting average (b. 1908)
    • 2005 – Peter Benenson, English lawyer, founded Amnesty International (b. 1921)
    • 2010 – Ihsan Dogramaci, Turkish pediatrician and academic (b. 1915)
    • 2012 – Louisiana Red, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1932)
    • 2015 – Harve Bennett, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1930)
    • 2015 – Eugenie Clark, American biologist and academic; noted ichthyologist (b. 1922)
    • 2020 – Dmitry Yazov, last Marshal of the Soviet Union (b. 1924)

    Holidays and observance on February 25

    Christian feast day

    Further information: February 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Æthelberht of Kent
    • Blessed Ciriaco María Sancha y Hervás
    • Gerland of Agrigento
    • John Roberts, writer and missionary
    • Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani
    • Saint Walpurga (she was canonised on 1 May and Walpurgis Night is celebrated 30 April)

  • February 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1339 – The Milanese army and the St. George’s (San Giorgio) Mercenaries of Lodrisio Visconti clash in the Battle of Parabiago; Visconti is defeated.
    • 1472 – Orkney and Shetland are pawned by Norway to Scotland in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark.
    • 1547 – Edward VI of England is crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey.
    • 1685 – René-Robert Cavelier establishes Fort St. Louis at Matagorda Bay thus forming the basis for France’s claim to Texas.
    • 1792 – The Postal Service Act, establishing the United States Post Office Department, is signed by United States President George Washington.
    • 1798 – Louis-Alexandre Berthier removes Pope Pius VI from power.
    • 1813 – Manuel Belgrano defeats the royalist army of Pío de Tristán during the Battle of Salta.
    • 1816 – Rossini’s opera The Barber of Seville premieres at the Teatro Argentina in Rome.
    • 1835 – The 1835 Concepción earthquake destroys Concepción, Chile.
    • 1846 – Polish insurgents lead an uprising in Kraków to incite a fight for national independence.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Olustee: The largest battle fought in Florida during the war.
    • 1865 – End of the Uruguayan War, with a peace agreement between President Tomás Villalba and rebel leader Venancio Flores, setting the scene for the destructive War of the Triple Alliance.
    • 1872 – The Metropolitan Museum of Art opens in New York City.
    • 1877 – Tchaikovsky’s ballet Swan Lake receives its premiere at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.
    • 1901 – The legislature of Hawaii Territory convenes for the first time.
    • 1909 – Publication of the Futurist Manifesto in the French journal Le Figaro.
    • 1913 – King O’Malley drives in the first survey peg to mark commencement of work on the construction of Canberra.
    • 1920 – An earthquake kills between 114 and 130 in Georgia and heavily damages the town of Gori.
    • 1931 – The U.S. Congress approves the construction of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge by the state of California.
    • 1933 – The U.S. Congress approves the Blaine Act to repeal federal Prohibition in the United States, sending the Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution to state ratifying conventions for approval.
    • 1933 – Adolf Hitler secretly meets with German industrialists to arrange for financing of the Nazi Party’s upcoming election campaign.
    • 1935 – Caroline Mikkelsen becomes the first woman to set foot in Antarctica.
    • 1942 – Lieutenant Edward O’Hare becomes America’s first World War II flying ace.
    • 1943 – American movie studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor movies.
    • 1943 – The Saturday Evening Post publishes the first of Norman Rockwell’s Four Freedoms in support of United States President Franklin Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union address theme of Four Freedoms.
    • 1944 – World War II: The “Big Week” began with American bomber raids on German aircraft manufacturing centers.
    • 1944 – World War II: The United States takes Eniwetok Island.
    • 1952 – Emmett Ashford becomes the first African-American umpire in organized baseball by being authorized to be a substitute umpire in the Southwestern International League.
    • 1956 – The United States Merchant Marine Academy becomes a permanent Service Academy.
    • 1959 – The Avro Arrow program to design and manufacture supersonic jet fighters in Canada is cancelled by the Diefenbaker government amid much political debate.
    • 1962 – Mercury program: While aboard Friendship 7, John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit the earth, making three orbits in four hours, 55 minutes.
    • 1965 – Ranger 8 crashes into the Moon after a successful mission of photographing possible landing sites for the Apollo program astronauts.
    • 1971 – The United States Emergency Broadcast System is accidentally activated in an erroneous national alert.
    • 1979 – An earthquake cracks open the Sinila volcanic crater on the Dieng Plateau, releasing poisonous H2S gas and killing 149 villagers in the Indonesian province of Central Java.
    • 1986 – The Soviet Union launches its Mir spacecraft. Remaining in orbit for 15 years, it is occupied for ten of those years.
    • 1988 – The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast votes to secede from Azerbaijan and join Armenia, triggering the Nagorno-Karabakh War.
    • 1991 – In the Albanian capital Tirana, a gigantic statue of Albania’s long-time leader, Enver Hoxha, is brought down by mobs of angry protesters.
    • 1998 – American figure skater Tara Lipinski, at the age of 15, becomes the youngest Olympic figure skating gold-medalist at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
    • 2003 – During a Great White concert in West Warwick, Rhode Island, a pyrotechnics display sets the Station nightclub ablaze, killing 100 and injuring over 200 others.
    • 2005 – Spain becomes the first country to vote in a referendum on ratification of the proposed Constitution of the European Union, passing it by a substantial margin, but on a low turnout.
    • 2009 – Two Tamil Tigers aircraft packed with C4 explosives en route to the national airforce headquarters are shot down by the Sri Lankan military before reaching their target, in a kamikaze style attack.
    • 2010 – In Madeira Island, Portugal, heavy rain causes floods and mudslides, resulting in at least 43 deaths, in the worst disaster in the history of the archipelago.
    • 2014 – Dozens of Euromaidan anti-government protesters died in Ukraine’s capital Kiev, many reportedly killed by snipers.
    • 2015 – Two trains collide in the Swiss town of Rafz resulting in as many as 49 people injured and Swiss Federal Railways cancelling some services.
    • 2016 – Six people are killed and two injured in multiple shooting incidents in Kalamazoo County, Michigan.

    Births on February 20

    • 1358 – Eleanor of Aragon, queen of John I of Castile (d. 1382)
    • 1469 – Thomas Cajetan, Italian philosopher (d. 1534)
    • 1523 – Jan Blahoslav, Czech writer (d. 1571)
    • 1549 – Francesco Maria II della Rovere, Duke of Urbino, last Duke of Urbino (d. 1631)
    • 1552 – Sengoku Hidehisa, Daimyō (d. 1614)
    • 1608 – Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Hadham (d. 1649)
    • 1631 – Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds, English politician, Treasurer of the Navy (d. 1712)
    • 1633 – Jan de Baen, Dutch painter (d. 1702)
    • 1705 – Nicolas Chédeville, French musette player and composer (d. 1782)
    • 1726 – William Prescott, American colonel (d. 1795)
    • 1745 – Henry James Pye, English poet and politician (d. 1813)
    • 1751 – Johann Heinrich Voss, German poet, translator, and academic (d. 1826)
    • 1753 – Louis-Alexandre Berthier, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (d. 1815)
    • 1759 – Johann Christian Reil, German physician, physiologist, and anatomist (d. 1813)
    • 1774 – Vicente Sebastián Pintado, Spanish cartographer, engineer, military officer and land surveyor of Spanish Louisiana and Spanish West Florida (d. 1829)
    • 1784 – Judith Montefiore, British linguist, travel writer, philanthropist (d. 1862)
    • 1792 – Eliza Courtney, French daughter of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire (d. 1859)
    • 1794 – William Carleton, Irish author (d. 1869)
    • 1802 – Charles Auguste de Bériot, Belgian violinist and composer (d. 1870)
    • 1819 – Alfred Escher, Swiss businessman and politician (d. 1882)
    • 1839 – Benjamin Waugh, English activist, founded the NSPCC (d. 1908)
    • 1844 – Ludwig Boltzmann, Austrian physicist and philosopher (d. 1906)
    • 1844 – Joshua Slocum, Canadian sailor and adventurer (d. 1909)
    • 1848 – E. H. Harriman, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1909)
    • 1857 – A. P. Lucas, English cricketer (d. 1923)
    • 1866 – Carl Westman, Swedish architect, designed the Stockholm Court House and Röhsska Museum (d. 1936)
    • 1867 – Louise, Princess Royal of England (d. 1931)
    • 1870 – Jay Johnson Morrow, American engineer and politician, 3rd Governor of the Panama Canal Zone (d. 1937)
    • 1874 – Mary Garden, Scottish-American soprano and actress (d. 1967)
    • 1879 – Hod Stuart, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1907)
    • 1880 – Jacques d’Adelswärd-Fersen, French author and poet (d. 1923)
    • 1882 – Elie Nadelman, Polish-American sculptor (d. 1946)
    • 1887 – Vincent Massey, Canadian lawyer and politician, 18th Governor General of Canada (d. 1967)
    • 1888 – Georges Bernanos, French soldier and author (d. 1948)
    • 1889 – Hulusi Behçet, Turkish dermatologist and physician (d. 1948)
    • 1893 – Elizabeth Holloway Marston, American psychologist and author (d. 1993)
    • 1895 – Louis Zborowski, English race car driver and engineer (d. 1924)
    • 1897 – Ivan Albright, American painter (d. 1983)
    • 1898 – Ante Ciliga, Croatian politician, writer and publisher (d. 1992)
    • 1899 – Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1992)
    • 1901 – René Dubos, French-American biologist and author (d. 1982)
    • 1901 – Louis Kahn, American architect, designed the Salk Institute, the Kimbell Art Museum and the Bangladesh Parliament Building (d. 1974)
    • 1901 – Muhammad Naguib, Egyptian general and politician, 1st President of Egypt (d. 1984)
    • 1901 – Ramakrishna Ranga Rao of Bobbili, Indian lawyer and politician, 6th Chief Minister of Madras Presidency (d. 1978)
    • 1902 – Ansel Adams, American photographer and environmentalist (d. 1984)
    • 1904 – Alexei Kosygin, Russian soldier and politician, 8th Premier of the Soviet Union (d. 1980)
    • 1906 – Gale Gordon, American actor (d. 1995)
    • 1912 – Pierre Boulle, French soldier and author (d. 1994)
    • 1912 – Johnny Checketts, New Zealand flying ace of the Second World War (d. 2006)
    • 1913 – Tommy Henrich, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2009)
    • 1914 – John Charles Daly, South African–American journalist and game show host (d. 1991)
    • 1916 – Jean Erdman, American dancer and choreographer
    • 1918 – Leonore Annenberg, American businesswoman and diplomat (d. 2009)
    • 1919 – James O’Meara, English soldier and pilot (d. 1974)
    • 1920 – Karl Albrecht, German businessman, co-founded Aldi (d. 2014)
    • 1921 – Buddy Rogers, American wrestler (d. 1992)
    • 1923 – Victor G. Atiyeh, American businessman and politician, 32nd Governor of Oregon (d. 2014)
    • 1923 – Forbes Burnham, Guyanese lawyer and politician, 2nd President of Guyana (d. 1985)
    • 1923 – Rena Vlahopoulou, Greek actress (d. 2004)
    • 1924 – Gloria Vanderbilt, American actress, fashion designer, and socialite (d. 2019)
    • 1925 – Robert Altman, American director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
    • 1925 – Tochinishiki Kiyotaka, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 44th Yokozuna (d. 1990)
    • 1926 – Matthew Bucksbaum, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded General Growth Properties (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – Gillian Lynne, English ballerina, choreographer, and director (d. 2018)
    • 1926 – Richard Matheson, American author and screenwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – Bob Richards, American Olympic track and field athlete
    • 1926 – María de la Purísima Salvat Romero, Spanish Roman Catholic nun; later canonized (d. 1998)
    • 1927 – Roy Cohn, American lawyer and political activist (d. 1986)
    • 1927 – Ibrahim Ferrer, Cuban singer and musician (d. 2005)
    • 1927 – Sidney Poitier, Bahamian-American actor, director, and diplomat
    • 1928 – Roy Face, American baseball player and carpenter
    • 1928 – Jean Kennedy Smith, American diplomat, 25th United States Ambassador to Ireland
    • 1929 – Amanda Blake, American actress (d. 1989)
    • 1931 – John Milnor, American mathematician and academic
    • 1932 – Adrian Cristobal, Filipino journalist and author (d. 2007)
    • 1934 – Bobby Unser, American race car driver
    • 1935 – Ellen Gilchrist, American novelist, short story writer, and poet
    • 1936 – Marj Dusay, American actress (d. 2020)
    • 1936 – Larry Hovis, American actor and singer (d. 2003)
    • 1936 – Shigeo Nagashima, Japanese baseball player and coach
    • 1937 – David Ackles, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1999)
    • 1937 – Robert Huber, German biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1937 – Roger Penske, American race car driver and businessman
    • 1937 – Robert Evans, Australian minister and amateur astronomer
    • 1937 – Nancy Wilson, American singer and actress (d. 2018)
    • 1938 – Richard Beymer, American actor, director, and cinematographer
    • 1940 – Jimmy Greaves, English international footballer, forward and TV pundit
    • 1941 – Lim Kit Siang, Malaysian lawyer and politician
    • 1941 – Buffy Sainte-Marie, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1942 – Phil Esposito, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager
    • 1942 – Mitch McConnell, American lawyer, and politician
    • 1942 – Claude Miller, French director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
    • 1943 – Antonio Inoki, Japanese wrestler, mixed martial artist, and politician
    • 1943 – Mike Leigh, English director and screenwriter
    • 1944 – Robert de Cotret, Canadian economist and politician, 56th Secretary of State for Canada (d. 1999)
    • 1944 – Lew Soloff, American trumpet player, composer, and actor (d. 2015)
    • 1944 – Willem van Hanegem, Dutch footballer and coach
    • 1945 – Alan Hull, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1995)
    • 1946 – Brenda Blethyn, English actress
    • 1946 – Sandy Duncan, American actress, singer, and dancer
    • 1946 – J. Geils, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2017)
    • 1947 – Peter Osgood, English footballer (d. 2006)
    • 1947 – Peter Strauss, American actor and producer
    • 1948 – Pierre Bouchard, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
    • 1948 – Jennifer O’Neill, American model and actress
    • 1949 – Eddie Hemmings, English cricketer
    • 1949 – Ivana Trump, Czech-American socialite and model
    • 1950 – Walter Becker, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2017)
    • 1950 – Peter Marinello, Scottish footballer, forward
    • 1950 – Tony Wilson, English journalist and businessman (d. 2007)
    • 1951 – Edward Albert, American actor (d. 2006)
    • 1951 – Gordon Brown, Scottish historian and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
    • 1951 – Randy California, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1997)
    • 1951 – Phil Neal, English footballer and manager
    • 1953 – Poison Ivy, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1954 – Jon Brant, American bass player
    • 1954 – Anthony Head, English actor
    • 1954 – Patty Hearst, American actress and author
    • 1957 – Glen Hanlon, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1959 – Scott Brayton, American race car driver (d. 1996)
    • 1959 – David Corn, American journalist and author
    • 1959 – Bill Gullickson, American baseball player
    • 1960 – Joel Hodgson, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter
    • 1960 – Cándido Muatetema Rivas, Equatoguinean politician and diplomat, Prime Minister of Equatorial Guinea (d. 2014)
    • 1961 – Steve Lundquist, American swimmer
    • 1962 – Dwayne McDuffie, American author, screenwriter, and producer, co-founded Milestone Media (d. 2011)
    • 1963 – Charles Barkley, American basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1963 – Ian Brown, English singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1963 – Joakim Nystrom, Swedish tennis player
    • 1963 – Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou, Greek lawyer and politician, Greek Minister of Health
    • 1963 – Cui Yongyuan, Chinese former anchor
    • 1964 – Willie Garson, American actor and director
    • 1964 – Tom Harris, Scottish journalist and politician
    • 1964 – Jeff Maggert, American golfer
    • 1964 – French Stewart, American actor
    • 1966 – Cindy Crawford, American model and businesswoman
    • 1967 – Paul Accola, Swiss alpine skier
    • 1967 – Kurt Cobain, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1994)
    • 1967 – David Herman, American comedian and actor
    • 1967 – Andrew Shue, American actor and activist, founded Do Something
    • 1967 – Lili Taylor, American actress
    • 1967 – Tom Waddle, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1969 – Kjell Ove Hauge, Norwegian school principal and track and field athlete
    • 1969 – Siniša Mihajlović, Serbian footballer and manager
    • 1969 – Danis Tanović, Bosnian director and screenwriter
    • 1971 – Calpernia Addams, American actress, author, and activist
    • 1971 – Jari Litmanen, Finnish footballer
    • 1971 – Joost van der Westhuizen, South African rugby player (d. 2017)
    • 1972 – Neil Primrose, Scottish drummer
    • 1974 – Karim Bagheri, Iranian footballer and manager
    • 1975 – Liván Hernández, Cuban baseball player
    • 1975 – Brian Littrell, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1975 – Niclas Wallin, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1977 – Stephon Marbury, American basketball player
    • 1977 – Gail Kim, Canadian professional wrestler
    • 1978 – Lauren Ambrose, American actress and producer
    • 1980 – Imanol Harinordoquy, French rugby player
    • 1980 – Luis Gabriel Rey, Colombian footballer
    • 1981 – Tony Hibbert, English footballer
    • 1981 – Fred Jackson, American football player
    • 1982 – Jason Hirsh, American baseball player
    • 1983 – Jose Morales, Puerto Rican-American baseball player
    • 1983 – Justin Verlander, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Brian McCann, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Trevor Noah, South African comedian, actor, and television host
    • 1984 – Ramzee Robinson, American football player
    • 1985 – Ryan Sweeney, American baseball player
    • 1985 – Julia Volkova, Russian singer and actress
    • 1985 – TJ Kirk, American YouTube personality and podcast host
    • 1987 – Luke Burgess, English rugby league player
    • 1987 – Miles Teller, American actor
    • 1988 – Kealoha Pilares, American football player
    • 1988 – Ki Bo-bae, South Korean archer
    • 1988 – Rihanna, Barbadian-American singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1988 – Jiah Khan, Indian singer and actress (d. 2013)
    • 1989 – Daly Cherry-Evans, Australian rugby league player
    • 1990 – Ciro Immobile, Italian footballer
    • 1991 – Hidilyn Diaz, Filipino weightlifter
    • 1991 – Giovanni Kyeremateng, Italian footballer
    • 1991 – Angelique van der Meet, Dutch tennis player
    • 1991 – Antonio Pedroza, English-Mexican footballer
    • 1991 – Jocelyn Rae, English-Scottish tennis player
    • 1992 – Kyle Turner, Australian rugby league player
    • 1994 – Elseid Hysaj, Albanian footballer

    Deaths on February 20

    • 789 – Leo of Catania, saint and bishop of Catania (b. 709)
    • 922 – Theodora, Byzantine empress
    • 1054 – Yaroslav the Wise, grand prince of Veliky Novgorod and Kiev (b. 978)
    • 1154 – Saint Wulfric of Haselbury (b. c. 1080)
    • 1171 – Conan IV, Duke of Brittany (b. 1138)
    • 1194 – Tancred, King of Sicily (b. 1138)
    • 1258 – Al-Musta’sim, Iraqi caliph (b. 1213)
    • 1408 – Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, English politician, Earl Marshal of the United Kingdom (b. 1342)
    • 1431 – Pope Martin V (b. 1368)
    • 1458 – Lazar Branković, Despot of Serbia
    • 1513 – King John of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden (b. 1455)
    • 1524 – Tecun Uman, Mayan ruler (b. 1500)
    • 1579 – Nicholas Bacon, English politician (b. 1509)
    • 1618 – Philip William, Prince of Orange (b. 1554)
    • 1626 – John Dowland, English lute player and composer (b. 1563)
    • 1762 – Tobias Mayer, German astronomer and academic (b. 1723)
    • 1771 – Jean-Jacques d’Ortous de Mairan, French geophysicist and astronomer (b. 1678)
    • 1773 – Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia (b. 1701)
    • 1778 – Laura Bassi, Italian physicist and scholar (b. 1711)
    • 1790 – Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1741)
    • 1806 – Lachlan McIntosh, Scottish-American general and politician (b. 1725)
    • 1810 – Andreas Hofer, Tyrolean rebel leader (b. 1767)
    • 1850 – Valentín Canalizo, Mexican general and politician. 14th President (1843–1844) (b. 1794)
    • 1862 – William Wallace Lincoln, American son of Abraham Lincoln (b. 1850)
    • 1871 – Paul Kane, Irish-Canadian painter (b. 1810)
    • 1893 – P. G. T. Beauregard, American general (b. 1818)
    • 1895 – Frederick Douglass, American author and activist (b. 1818)
    • 1900 – Washakie, American tribal leader (b. 1798)
    • 1907 – Henri Moissan, French chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
    • 1910 – Boutros Ghali, Egyptian educator and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Egypt (b. 1846)
    • 1916 – Klas Pontus Arnoldson, Swedish journalist and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1844)
    • 1920 – Jacinta Marto, Portuguese saint (b. 1910)
    • 1920 – Robert Peary, American admiral and explorer (b. 1856)
    • 1933 – Takiji Kobayashi, Japanese writer (b. 1903)
    • 1936 – Max Schreck, German actor (b. 1879)
    • 1957 – Sadri Maksudi Arsal, Turkish scholar and politician (b. 1878)
    • 1961 – Percy Grainger, Australian-American pianist and composer (b. 1882)
    • 1963 – Jacob Gade, Danish violinist and composer(b. 1879)
    • 1966 – Chester W. Nimitz, American admiral (b. 1885)
    • 1968 – Anthony Asquith, English director and screenwriter (b. 1902)
    • 1969 – Ernest Ansermet, Swiss conductor (b. 1883)
    • 1972 – Maria Goeppert-Mayer, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)
    • 1972 – Walter Winchell, American journalist and actor (b. 1897)
    • 1976 – René Cassin, French lawyer and judge, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887)
    • 1976 – Kathryn Kuhlman, healing evangelist, known for belief in Holy Spirit (b. 1907)
    • 1981 – Nicolas de Gunzburg, French-American banker and publisher (b. 1904)
    • 1987 – Wayne Boring, American illustrator (b. 1905)
    • 1992 – A. J. Casson, Canadian painter (b. 1898)
    • 1992 – Dick York, American actor (b. 1928)
    • 1993 – Ferruccio Lamborghini, Italian businessman, founded Lamborghini (b. 1916)
    • 1993 – Ernest L. Massad, American general (b. 1908)
    • 1996 – Solomon Asch, American psychologist and academic (b. 1907)
    • 1996 – Audrey Munson, American model (b. 1891)
    • 1996 – Toru Takemitsu, Japanese pianist, guitarist, and composer (b. 1930)
    • 1999 – Sarah Kane, English playwright (b. 1971)
    • 1999 – Gene Siskel, American journalist and critic (b. 1946)
    • 2000 – Anatoly Sobchak, Russian lawyer and politician, 1st Governor of Saint Petersburg (b. 1937)
    • 2001 – Rosemary DeCamp, American actress (b. 1910)
    • 2001 – Donella Meadows, American environmentalist, author, and academic (b. 1941)
    • 2003 – Mushaf Ali Mir, Pakistani air marshal (b. 1947)
    • 2003 – Maurice Blanchot, French philosopher and author (b. 1907)
    • 2003 – Orville Freeman, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 29th Governor of Minnesota (b. 1918)
    • 2005 – Sandra Dee, American actress (b. 1942)
    • 2005 – Josef Holeček, Czechoslovakian canoeist (b. 1921)2005 – John Raitt, American actor and singer (b. 1917)
    • 2005 – Hunter S. Thompson, American journalist and author (b. 1937)
    • 2006 – Curt Gowdy, American sportscaster (b. 1919)
    • 2006 – Lucjan Wolanowski, Polish journalist and author (b. 1920)
    • 2008 – Emily Perry, English actress and dancer (b. 1907)
    • 2009 – Larry H. Miller, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1944)
    • 2010 – Alexander Haig, American general and politician, 59th United States Secretary of State (b. 1924)
    • 2012 – Knut Torbjørn Eggen, Norwegian footballer and manager (b. 1960)
    • 2012 – Katie Hall, American educator and politician (b. 1938)
    • 2013 – Kenji Eno, Japanese game designer and composer (b. 1970)
    • 2013 – David S. McKay, American biochemist and geologist (b. 1936)
    • 2013 – Antonio Roma, Argentinian footballer (b. 1932)
    • 2014 – Rafael Addiego Bruno, Uruguayan jurist and politician, President of Uruguay (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Walter D. Ehlers, American lieutenant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Garrick Utley, American journalist (b. 1939)
    • 2015 – Govind Pansare, Indian author and activist (b. 1933)
    • 2015 – Henry Segerstrom, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1923)
    • 2015 – John C. Willke, American physician, author, and activist (b. 1925)
    • 2016 – Fernando Cardenal, Nicaraguan priest and politician (b. 1934)
    • 2017 – Vitaly Churkin, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United Nations (b. 1952)
    • 2017 – Mildred Dresselhaus, American physicist (b. 1930)
    • 2017 – Steve Hewlett, British journalist (b. 1958)
    • 2020 – Joaquim Pina Moura, Portuguese Minister of Economy and Treasury and MP

    Holidays and observances on February 20

    • Christian feast day:
      • Eleutherius of Tournai
      • Eucherius of Orléans
      • Francisco Marto and Jacinta Marto
      • Frederick Douglass (Episcopal Church (USA))
      • Wulfric of Haselbury
      • February 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Day of Heavenly Hundred Heroes (Ukraine)
    • World Day of Social Justice