590

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

    • 590 – Emperor Maurice proclaims his son Theodosius as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
    • 1027 – Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor.
    • 1169 – Saladin becomes the emir of Egypt.
    • 1344 – The Siege of Algeciras, one of the first European military engagements where gunpowder was used, comes to an end.
    • 1351 – Combat of the Thirty: Thirty Breton knights call out and defeat thirty English knights.
    • 1484 – William Caxton prints his translation of Aesop’s Fables.
    • 1552 – Guru Amar Das becomes the Third Sikh guru.
    • 1636 – Utrecht University is founded in the Netherlands.
    • 1697 – Safavid government troops take control of Basra
    • 1812 – An earthquake devastates Caracas, Venezuela.
    • 1812 – A political cartoon in the Boston Gazette coins the term “gerrymander” to describe oddly shaped electoral districts designed to help incumbents win reelection.
    • 1830 – The Book of Mormon is published in Palmyra, New York.
    • 1839 – The first Henley Royal Regatta is held.
    • 1871 – The elections of Commune council of the Paris Commune are held.
    • 1885 – The Métis people of the District of Saskatchewan under Louis Riel begin the North-West Rebellion against Canada.
    • 1913 – First Balkan War: Bulgarian forces capture Adrianople.
    • 1915 – The Vancouver Millionaires win the 1915 Stanley Cup Finals, the first championship played between the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the National Hockey Association.
    • 1917 – World War I: First Battle of Gaza: British troops are halted after 17,000 Turks block their advance.
    • 1922 – The German Social Democratic Party is founded in Poland.
    • 1931 – Swissair is founded as the national airline of Switzerland.
    • 1931 – Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union is founded in Vietnam.
    • 1934 – The United Kingdom driving test is introduced.
    • 1939 – Spanish Civil War: Nationalists begin their final offensive of the war.
    • 1942 – World War II: The first female prisoners arrive at Auschwitz concentration camp in German-occupied Poland.
    • 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Iwo Jima ends as the island is officially secured by American forces.
    • 1954 – Nuclear weapons testing: The Romeo shot of Operation Castle is detonated at Bikini Atoll. Yield: 11 megatons.
    • 1958 – The United States Army launches Explorer 3.
    • 1958 – The African Regroupment Party is launched at a meeting in Paris.
    • 1967 – Ten thousand people gather for one of many Central Park be-ins in New York City.
    • 1970 – South Vietnamese President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu implements a land reform program to solve the problem of land tenancy.
    • 1971 – East Pakistan declares its independence from Pakistan to form Bangladesh and the Bangladesh Liberation War begins.
    • 1975 – The Biological Weapons Convention comes into force.
    • 1979 – Anwar al-Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter sign the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty in Washington, D.C.
    • 1981 – Social Democratic Party (UK) is founded as a party.
    • 1982 – A groundbreaking ceremony for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is held in Washington, D.C.
    • 1991 – Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay sign the Treaty of Asunción, establishing Mercosur, the South Common Market.
    • 1997 – Thirty-nine bodies are found in the Heaven’s Gate mass suicides.
    • 1998 – During the Algerian Civil War, the Oued Bouaicha massacre sees fifty-two people, mostly infants, killed with axes and knives.
    • 2005 – Around 200,000 to 300,000 Taiwanese demonstrate in Taipei in opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of China.
    • 2010 – The South Korean Navy corvette Cheonan is torpedoed, killing 46 sailors. After an international investigation, the President of the United Nations Security Council blames North Korea.
    • 2017 – Russia-wide anti-corruption protests in 99 cities. The Levada Center survey showed that 38% of surveyed Russians supported protests and that 67 percent held Putin personally responsible for high-level corruption.

    Births on March 26

    • 1031 – Malcolm III, king of Scotland (d. 1093)
    • 1516 – Conrad Gessner, Swiss botanist and zoologist (d. 1565)
    • 1554 – Charles of Lorraine, duke of Mayenne (d. 1611)
    • 1584 – John II, duke of Zweibrücken (d. 1635)
    • 1633 – Mary Beale, British artist (d. 1699)
    • 1634 – Domenico Freschi, Italian priest and composer (d. 1710)
    • 1656 – Nicolaas Hartsoeker, Dutch mathematician and physicist (d. 1725)
    • 1687 – Sophia Dorothea of Hanover, queen consort of Prussia (d. 1757)
    • 1698 – Prokop Diviš, Czech priest, scientist and inventor (d. 1765)
    • 1749 – William Blount, American politician (d. 1800)
    • 1753 – Benjamin Thompson, American-French physicist and politician, Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies (d. 1814)
    • 1773 – Nathaniel Bowditch, American mathematician and navigator (d. 1838)
    • 1794 – Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, German painter (d. 1872)
    • 1804 – David Humphreys Storer, American physician and academic (d. 1891)
    • 1824 – Julie-Victoire Daubié, French journalist (d. 1874)
    • 1829 – Théodore Aubanel, French poet (d. 1886)
    • 1842 – Alexandre Saint-Yves d’Alveydre, French occultist (d. 1909)
    • 1850 – Edward Bellamy, American author, socialist, and utopian visionary (d. 1898)
    • 1852 – Élémir Bourges, French author (d. 1925)
    • 1854 – Maurice Lecoq, French target shooter (d. 1925)
    • 1856 – William Massey, Irish-New Zealand farmer and politician, 19th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1925)
    • 1857 – Théodore Tuffier, French surgeon (d. 1929)
    • 1859 – A. E. Housman, English poet and scholar (d. 1936)
    • 1859 – Adolf Hurwitz, Jewish German-Swiss mathematician and academic (d. 1919)
    • 1860 – André Prévost, French tennis player (d. 1919)
    • 1866 – Fred Karno, English producer and manager (d. 1941)
    • 1868 – King Fuad I of Egypt (d. 1936)
    • 1873 – Dorothea Bleek, South African-German anthropologist and philologist (d. 1948)
    • 1874 – Robert Frost, American poet and playwright (d. 1963)
    • 1875 – Max Abraham, Polish-German physicist and academic (d. 1922)
    • 1875 – Syngman Rhee, South Korean journalist and politician, 1st President of South Korea (d. 1965)
    • 1876 – William of Wied, prince of Albania (d. 1945)
    • 1876 – Kate Richards O’Hare, American Socialist Party activist and editor (d. 1948)
    • 1879 – Othmar Ammann, Swiss-American engineer, designed the George Washington Bridge and Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge (d. 1965)
    • 1879 – Waldemar Tietgens, German rower (d. 1917)
    • 1881 – Guccio Gucci, Italian fashion designer, founded Gucci (d. 1953)
    • 1882 – Hermann Obrecht, Swiss politician (d. 1940)
    • 1884 – Wilhelm Backhaus, German pianist and educator (d. 1969)
    • 1884 – Georges Imbert, French chemical engineer and inventor (d. 1950)
    • 1886 – Hugh Mulzac, Vincentian-American soldier and politician (d. 1971)
    • 1888 – Elsa Brändström, Swedish nurse and philanthropist (d. 1948)
    • 1893 – James Bryant Conant, American chemist, academic, and diplomat, 1st United States Ambassador to West Germany (d. 1978)
    • 1893 – Palmiro Togliatti, Italian journalist and politician, Italian Minister of Justice (d. 1964)
    • 1894 – Viorica Ursuleac, Ukrainian-Romanian soprano and actress (d. 1985)
    • 1895 – Vilho Tuulos, Finnish triple jumper (d. 1967)
    • 1898 – Rudolf Dassler, German businessman, founded Puma SE (d. 1974)
    • 1898 – Charles Shadwell, English conductor and bandleader (d. 1979)
    • 1900 – Angela Maria Autsch, German nun, died in Auschwitz helping Jewish prisoners (d. 1941)
    • 1904 – Joseph Campbell, American mythologist and author (d. 1987)
    • 1904 – Emilio Fernández, Mexican actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1986)
    • 1904 – Attilio Ferraris, Italian footballer (d. 1947)
    • 1905 – Monty Berman, English cinematographer and producer (d. 2006)
    • 1905 – André Cluytens, Belgian-French conductor and director (d. 1967)
    • 1905 – Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (d. 1997)
    • 1906 – Rafael Méndez, Mexican trumpet player and composer (d. 1981)
    • 1907 – Azellus Denis, Canadian lawyer and politician, Postmaster General of Canada (d. 1991)
    • 1907 – Mahadevi Varma, Indian poet and activist (d. 1987)
    • 1908 – Franz Stangl, Austrian-German SS officer (d. 1971)
    • 1909 – Chips Rafferty, Australian actor (d. 1971)
    • 1910 – K. W. Devanayagam, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 10th Sri Lankan Minister of Justice (d. 2002)
    • 1911 – Lennart Atterwall, Swedish javelin thrower (d. 2001)
    • 1911 – J. L. Austin, English philosopher and academic (d. 1960)
    • 1911 – Bernard Katz, German-English biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2003)
    • 1911 – Tennessee Williams, American playwright, and poet (d. 1983)
    • 1913 – Jacqueline de Romilly, Jewish Franco-Greek philologist, author, and scholar (d. 2010)
    • 1913 – Paul Erdős, Hungarian-Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1996)
    • 1914 – Toru Kumon, Japanese mathematician and academic (d. 1995)
    • 1914 – William Westmoreland, American general (d. 2005)
    • 1915 – Lennart Strandberg, Swedish sprinter (d. 1989)
    • 1915 – Hwang Sun-won, North Korean author and poet (d. 2000)
    • 1916 – Christian B. Anfinsen, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1995)
    • 1916 – Bill Edrich, English cricketer and footballer (d. 1986)
    • 1916 – Sterling Hayden, American actor and author (d. 1986)
    • 1917 – Rufus Thomas, American R&B singer-songwriter (d. 2001)
    • 1919 – Strother Martin, American actor (d. 1980)
    • 1919 – Roger Leger, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1965)
    • 1920 – Sergio Livingstone, Chilean footballer and journalist (d. 2012)
    • 1922 – William Milliken, American politician, 44th Governor of Michigan (d. 2019)
    • 1922 – Oscar Sala, Italian-Brazilian physicist and academic (d. 2010)
    • 1922 – Guido Stampacchia, Italian mathematician and academic (d. 1978)
    • 1923 – Gert Bastian, German general and politician (d. 1992)
    • 1923 – Bob Elliott, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1925 – Maqsood Ahmed, Pakistani cricketer (d. 1999)
    • 1925 – Pierre Boulez, French pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2016)
    • 1925 – Vesta Roy, American politician, Governor of New Hampshire (d. 2002)
    • 1925 – Edward Graham, Baron Graham of Edmonton, English soldier and politician (d. 2020)
    • 1925 – Ben Mondor, Canadian-American businessman (d. 2010)
    • 1925 – James Moody, American saxophonist and composer (d. 2010)
    • 1927 – Harold Chapman, English photographer
    • 1929 – Edward Sorel, American illustrator and caricaturist
    • 1929 – Edwin Turney, American businessman, co-founded Advanced Micro Devices (d. 2008)
    • 1930 – Sandra Day O’Connor, American lawyer and jurist
    • 1930 – Gregory Corso, American poet (d. 2001)
    • 1931 – Leonard Nimoy, American actor (d. 2015)
    • 1932 – Leroy Griffith, American businessman
    • 1932 – James Andrew Harris, American chemist and academic (d. 2000)
    • 1933 – Tinto Brass, Italian director and screenwriter
    • 1934 – Alan Arkin, American actor
    • 1934 – Edvaldo Alves de Santa Rosa, Brazilian footballer (d. 2002)
    • 1937 – Wayne Embry, American basketball player and manager
    • 1937 – Barbara Jones, American sprinter
    • 1937 – James Lee, Canadian businessman and politician, 26th Premier of Prince Edward Island
    • 1938 – Norman Ackroyd, English painter and illustrator
    • 1938 – Anthony James Leggett, English-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1940 – James Caan, American actor and singer
    • 1940 – Nancy Pelosi, American lawyer and politician, 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
    • 1941 – Richard Dawkins, Kenyan-English ethologist, biologist, and academic
    • 1941 – Lella Lombardi, Italian racing driver (d. 1992)
    • 1942 – Erica Jong, American novelist and poet
    • 1943 – Mustafa Kalemli, Turkish physician and politician, Turkish Minister of the Interior
    • 1943 – Bob Woodward, American journalist and author
    • 1944 – Diana Ross, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1945 – Paul Bérenger, Mauritian politician, Prime Minister of Mauritius
    • 1945 – Mikhail Voronin, Russian gymnast and coach (d. 2004)
    • 1946 – Johnny Crawford, American actor and singer
    • 1946 – Alain Madelin, French politician, French Minister of Finance
    • 1947 – Subhash Kak, Indian-American professor and author
    • 1947 – John Rowles, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter
    • 1948 – Kyung-wha Chung, South Korean violinist and educator
    • 1948 – Richard Tandy, English pianist and keyboard player (Electric Light Orchestra)
    • 1948 – Steven Tyler, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1949 – Jon English, English-Australian singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2016)
    • 1949 – Rudi Koertzen, South African cricketer and umpire
    • 1949 – Vicki Lawrence, American actress, comedian, talk show host, and singer
    • 1949 – Fran Sheehan, American bass player
    • 1949 – Patrick Süskind, German author and screenwriter
    • 1949 – Ernest Lee Thomas, American actor
    • 1950 – Teddy Pendergrass, American singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
    • 1950 – Graham Barlow, English cricketer
    • 1950 – Martin Short, Canadian-American actor, screenwriter, and producer
    • 1950 – Alan Silvestri, American composer and conductor
    • 1951 – Željko Pavličević, Croatian professional basketball coach and former professional player
    • 1951 – Carl Wieman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1952 – Didier Pironi, French racing driver (d. 1987)
    • 1953 – Lincoln Chafee, American academic and politician, 74th Governor of Rhode Island
    • 1953 – Elaine Chao, Taiwanese-American banker and politician, 24th United States Secretary of Labor
    • 1953 – Tatyana Providokhina, Russian runner
    • 1954 – Clive Palmer, Australian businessman and politician
    • 1954 – Curtis Sliwa, American talk show host and activist, founded Guardian Angels
    • 1954 – Dorothy Porter, Australian poet and playwright (d. 2008)
    • 1956 – Charly McClain, American country singer
    • 1956 – Park Won-soon, South Korean lawyer and politician, 35th Mayor of Seoul
    • 1957 – Fiona Bruce, Scottish lawyer and politician
    • 1957 – Leeza Gibbons, American talk show host and television personality
    • 1957 – Paul Morley, English journalist, producer, and author
    • 1957 – Shirin Neshat, Iranian visual artist
    • 1958 – Elio de Angelis, Italian racing driver (d. 1986)
    • 1960 – Marcus Allen, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1960 – Jennifer Grey, American actress and dancer
    • 1960 – Graeme Rutjes, Australian-Dutch footballer
    • 1961 – William Hague, English historian and politician, First Secretary of State
    • 1962 – Richard Coles, English pianist, saxophonist, and priest
    • 1962 – Kevin Seitzer, American baseball player and coach
    • 1962 – Yuri Gidzenko, Russian pilot and cosmonaut
    • 1962 – John Stockton, American basketball player and coach
    • 1962 – Eric Allan Kramer, American-Canadian actor
    • 1963 – Natsuhiko Kyogoku, Japanese author
    • 1964 – Martin Bella, Australian rugby league player
    • 1964 – Martin Donnelly, Irish racing driver
    • 1964 – Maria Miller, English businessman and politician, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
    • 1964 – Ulf Samuelsson, Swedish-American ice hockey player and coach
    • 1965 – Trey Azagthoth, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
    • 1965 – Violeta Szekely, Romanian runner
    • 1966 – Michael Imperioli, American actor and screenwriter
    • 1967 – Jason Chaffetz, American politician
    • 1968 – Laurent Brochard, French cyclist
    • 1968 – Kenny Chesney, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1968 – James Iha, American guitarist and songwriter
    • 1969 – Alessandro Moscardi, Italian rugby player
    • 1970 – Paul Bosvelt, Dutch footballer
    • 1970 – Jelle Goes, Dutch footballer and coach
    • 1970 – Thomas Kyparissis, Greek footballer
    • 1970 – Martin McDonagh, English-born Irish playwright, screenwriter, and director
    • 1971 – Behzad Ghorbani, Iranian zoologist
    • 1971 – Martyn Day, Scottish politician
    • 1971 – Erick Morillo, Colombian-American DJ and producer
    • 1971 – Rennae Stubbs, Australian tennis player and sportscaster
    • 1971 – Paul Williams, English footballer and manager
    • 1972 – Leslie Mann, American actress
    • 1972 – Jason Maxwell, American baseball player
    • 1973 – Larry Page, American computer scientist and businessman, co-founder of Google
    • 1973 – T. R. Knight, American actor
    • 1973 – Matt Burke, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
    • 1974 – Irina Spîrlea, Romanian tennis player
    • 1974 – Vadimas Petrenko, Lithuanian footballer
    • 1974 – Michael Peca, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1976 – Amy Smart, American actress and former model
    • 1976 – Alex Varas, Chilean footballer
    • 1976 – Eirik Verås Larsen, Norwegian sprint kayaker
    • 1977 – Kevin Davies, English footballer
    • 1977 – Bianca Kajlich, American actress
    • 1977 – Sylvain Grenier, Canadian wrestler
    • 1978 – Anastasia Kostaki, Greek basketball player
    • 1979 – Nacho Novo, Spanish footballer
    • 1979 – Ben Blair, New Zealand rugby union footballer
    • 1979 – Hiromi Uehara, Japanese pianist and composer
    • 1979 – Pierre Womé, Cameroonian footballer
    • 1979 – Juliana Paes, Brazilian actress
    • 1980 – Margaret Brennan, American journalist
    • 1980 – Son Ho-young, South Korean singer
    • 1980 – Richie Wellens, English footballer
    • 1981 – Sébastien Centomo, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1981 – Baruch Dego, Ethiopian-Israeli footballer
    • 1981 – Massimo Donati, Italian footballer
    • 1981 – Josh Wilson, American baseball player
    • 1982 – Mikel Arteta, Spanish footballer
    • 1982 – Brendan Ryan, American baseball player
    • 1982 – Nate Kaeding, American football player
    • 1983 – Andreas Hinkel, German footballer
    • 1983 – Floriana Lima, American actress
    • 1983 – Roman Bednář, Czech footballer
    • 1983 – Mike Mondo, American wrestler
    • 1984 – Jimmy Howard, American ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Drew Mitchell, Australian rugby player
    • 1984 – Felix Neureuther, German skier
    • 1984 – Marco Stier, German footballer
    • 1984 – Gregory Strydom, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1984 – Sara Jean Underwood, American model, television host, and actress
    • 1985 – Keira Knightley, English actress
    • 1985 – Matt Grevers, American swimmer
    • 1985 – Jonathan Groff, American actor and singer
    • 1985 – Prosper Utseya, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1986 – Maxime Biset, Belgian footballer
    • 1986 – Rob Kearney, Irish rugby player
    • 1986 – Emma Laine, Finnish tennis player
    • 1987 – Kim Dong-suk, South Korean footballer
    • 1987 – Jermichael Finley, American football player
    • 1987 – Steven Fletcher, Scottish footballer
    • 1989 – Simon Kjær, Danish footballer
    • 1990 – Choi Woo-shik, South Korean actor
    • 1990 – Patrick Ekeng, Cameroonian footballer (d. 2016)
    • 1990 – Yuya Takaki, Japanese idol, singer, dancer, model and actor
    • 1990 – Xiumin, South Korean singer and actor, member of South Korean boy band EXO
    • 1991 – Matt Davidson, American baseball player
    • 1992 – Nina Agdal, Danish model
    • 1992 – Stoffel Vandoorne, Belgian racing driver
    • 1994 – Jed Wallace, English footballer
    • 1996 – Zane Musgrove, New Zealand rugby league player
    • 1996 – Kathryn Bernardo, Filipino actress
    • 1998 – Satoko Miyahara, Japanese figure skater
    • 2003 – Bhad Bhabie, American rapper and social media personality

    Deaths on March 26

    • 752 – Pope-elect Stephen
    • 809 – Ludger, Frisian missionary
    • 903 – Sugawara no Michizane, Japanese poet
    • 908 – Ai, emperor of the Tang Dynasty (b. 892)
    • 922 – Mansur Al-Hallaj, Persian mystic and poet (b. 858)
    • 929 – Wang Du, Chinese warlord and governor (jiedushi)
    • 973 – Guntram (“the Rich”), Frankish nobleman
    • 983 – ‘Adud al-Dawla, Iranian ruler (b. 936)
    • 1091 – Wallada bint al-Mustakfi, Andalusian poet
    • 1130 – Sigurd the Crusader, Norwegian king (b. 1090)
    • 1132 – Geoffrey of Vendôme, French cardinal and theologian (b. 1065)
    • 1212 – Sancho I of Portugal (b. 1154)
    • 1242 – William de Forz, 3rd Earl of Albemarle
    • 1324 – Marie de Luxembourg, Queen of France (b. 1304)
    • 1326 – Alessandra Giliani, anatomist (b. c. 1307)
    • 1402 – David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, heir to the throne of Scotland (b. 1378)
    • 1437 – Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, Scottish nobleman and regicide
    • 1517 – Heinrich Isaac, Flemish composer (b. 1450)
    • 1535 – Georg Tannstetter, Austrian mathematician, astronomer, and cartographer (b. 1482)
    • 1546 – Thomas Elyot, English scholar and diplomat (b. 1490)
    • 1566 – Antonio de Cabezón, Spanish organist and composer (b. 1510)
    • 1625 – Giambattista Marini, Italian poet (b. 1569)
    • 1649 – John Winthrop, English lawyer and politician, 2nd Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
    • 1679 – Johannes Schefferus, Swedish historian and author (b. 1621)
    • 1697 – Godfrey McCulloch, Scottish politician (b. 1640)
    • 1726 – John Vanbrugh, English playwright and architect, designed Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard (b. 1664)
    • 1772 – Charles Pinot Duclos, French author and politician (b. 1704)
    • 1776 – Samuel Ward, American jurist and politician, 31st Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island (b. 1725)
    • 1780 – Charles I, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (b. 1713)
    • 1793 – John Mudge, English physician and engineer (b. 1721)
    • 1797 – James Hutton, Scottish geologist and physician (b. 1726)
    • 1814 – Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, French physician and politician (b. 1738)
    • 1827 – Ludwig van Beethoven, German pianist and composer (b. 1770)
    • 1858 – John Addison Thomas, American lieutenant, engineer, and politician, 3rd United States Assistant Secretary of State (b. 1811)
    • 1862 – Uriah P. Levy, American commander (b. 1792)
    • 1881 – Roman Sanguszko, Polish general and activist (b. 1800)
    • 1885 – Anson Stager, American general and businessman, co-founded Western Union (b. 1825)
    • 1888 – Barghash bin Said of Zanzibar (b. 1837)
    • 1892 – Walt Whitman, American poet, essayist, and journalist (b. 1819)
    • 1902 – Cecil Rhodes, English-South African colonialist, businessman and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Cape Colony (b. 1853)
    • 1905 – Maurice Barrymore, American actor (b. 1849)
    • 1910 – Auguste Charlois, French astronomer (b. 1864)
    • 1920 – William Chester Minor, American surgeon and lexicographer (b. 1834)
    • 1923 – Sarah Bernhardt, French actress and screenwriter (b. 1844)
    • 1926 – Constantin Fehrenbach, German lawyer and politician, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1852)
    • 1932 – Henry M. Leland, American machinist, inventor, engineer, automotive entrepreneur and founded of Cadillac and Lincoln (b. 1843)
    • 1934 – John Biller, American jumper and discus thrower (b. 1877)
    • 1940 – Wilhelm Anderson, German-Estonian astrophysicist (b. 1880)
    • 1940 – Spyridon Louis, Greek runner (b. 1873)
    • 1942 – Jimmy Burke, American baseball player and manager (b. 1874)
    • 1942 – Carolyn Wells, American novelist and poet (b. 1862)
    • 1945 – David Lloyd George, English-Welsh lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1863)
    • 1951 – James F. Hinkle, American banker and politician, 6th Governor of New Mexico (b. 1864)
    • 1954 – Charles Perrin, French rower (b. 1875)
    • 1957 – Édouard Herriot, French politician, Prime Minister of France (b. 1872)
    • 1958 – Phil Mead, English cricketer and footballer (b. 1887)
    • 1959 – Raymond Chandler, American crime novelist and screenwriter (b. 1888)
    • 1966 – Victor Hochepied, French swimmer (b. 1883)
    • 1969 – John Kennedy Toole, American novelist (b. 1937)
    • 1973 – Noël Coward, English playwright, actor, and composer (b. 1899)
    • 1973 – Johnny Drake, American football player (b. 1916)
    • 1979 – Beauford Delaney, American-French painter (b. 1901)
    • 1979 – Jean Stafford, American author and academic (b. 1915)
    • 1980 – Roland Barthes, French linguist and critic (b. 1915)
    • 1983 – Anthony Blunt, English historian and spy (b. 1907)
    • 1984 – Ahmed Sékou Touré, Guinean politician, 1st President of Guinea (b. 1922)
    • 1987 – Eugen Jochum, German conductor (b. 1902)
    • 1987 – Walter Abel, American actor (b. 1898)
    • 1990 – Halston, American fashion designer (b. 1932)
    • 1992 – Barbara Frum, American-Canadian journalist and radio host (b. 1937)
    • 1993 – Louis Falco, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1942)
    • 1995 – Eazy-E, American rapper and producer (b. 1964)
    • 1996 – Edmund Muskie, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 58th United States Secretary of State (b. 1914)
    • 1996 – David Packard, American engineer and businessman, co-founded Hewlett-Packard (b. 1912)
    • 2000 – Alex Comfort, English physician and author (b. 1920)
    • 2002 – Randy Castillo, American drummer and songwriter (b. 1950)
    • 2003 – Daniel Patrick Moynihan, American sociologist and politician, 12th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (b. 1927)
    • 2004 – Jan Sterling, American actress (b. 1921)
    • 2005 – James Callaghan, English lieutenant and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1912)
    • 2005 – Frederick Rotimi Williams, Nigerian lawyer and politician (b. 1920)
    • 2006 – Anil Biswas, Indian journalist and politician (b. 1944)
    • 2006 – Paul Dana, American racing driver (b. 1975)
    • 2006 – Nikki Sudden, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1956)
    • 2008 – Robert Fagles, American poet and academic (b. 1933)
    • 2008 – Manuel Marulanda, Colombian rebel leader (b. 1930)
    • 2009 – Shane McConkey, Canadian skier and BASE jumper (b. 1969)
    • 2009 – Arne Bendiksen, Norwegian singer and composer (b. 1926)
    • 2010 – Charles Ryskamp, American art collector and curator (b. 1928)
    • 2011 – Roger Abbott, English-Canadian actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1946)
    • 2011 – Geraldine Ferraro, American lawyer and politician (b. 1935)
    • 2011 – Diana Wynne Jones, English author (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Sisto Averno, American football player (b. 1925)
    • 2012 – Michael Begley, Irish carpenter and politician (b. 1932)
    • 2012 – Thomas M. Cover, American theorist and academic (b. 1938)
    • 2012 – David Craighead, American organist and educator (b. 1924)
    • 2012 – Manik Godghate, Indian poet and educator (b. 1937)
    • 2012 – Helmer Ringgren, Swedish theologian and academic (b. 1917)
    • 2013 – Tom Boerwinkle, American basketball player and sportscaster (b. 1945)
    • 2013 – Krzysztof Kozłowski, Polish journalist and politician, Polish Minister of Interior (b. 1931)
    • 2013 – Dave Leggett, American baseball player (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Don Payne, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1964)
    • 2014 – Roger Birkman, American psychologist and author (b. 1919)
    • 2014 – Dick Guidry, American businessman and politician (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Marcus Kimball, Baron Kimball, English politician (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Dinkha IV, Iraqi patriarch (b. 1935)
    • 2015 – Friedrich L. Bauer, German mathematician, computer scientist, and academic (b. 1924)
    • 2015 – Tomas Tranströmer, Swedish poet, translator, and psychologist Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1931)
    • 2016 – Jim Harrison, American novelist, essayist, and poet (b. 1937)
    • 2018 – Fabrizio Frizzi, Italian television presenter (b. 1958)

    Holidays and observances on March 26

    • Christian feast days:
      • Castulus
      • Emmanuel and companions
      • Felicitas
      • Harriet Monsell (Church of England)
      • Larissa
      • Ludger
      • Richard Allen (Episcopal Church (USA))
      • March 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Independence Day and National Day (Bangladesh), celebrates the declaration of independence from Pakistan in 1971.
    • Martyr’s Day or Day of Democracy (Mali)
    • Prince Kūhiō Day (Hawaii, United States)
    • Purple Day (Canada and United States)
    • Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel (Eastern Christianity)

  • February 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    February 15 in History

    • 590 – Khosrau II is crowned king of Persia.
    • 706 – Byzantine emperor Justinian II has his predecessors Leontios and Tiberios III publicly executed in the Hippodrome of Constantinople.
    • 1002 – At an assembly at Pavia of Lombard nobles, Arduin of Ivrea is restored to his domains and crowned King of Italy.
    • 1113 – Pope Paschal II issues Pie Postulatio Voluntatis, recognizing the Order of Hospitallers.
    • 1214 – During the Anglo-French War (1213–1214), an English invasion force led by John, King of England, lands at La Rochelle in France.
    • 1493 – While on board the Niña, Christopher Columbus writes an open letter (widely distributed upon his return to Portugal) describing his discoveries and the unexpected items he came across in the New World.
    • 1637 – Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
    • 1690 – Constantin Cantemir, Prince of Moldavia, and the Holy Roman Empire sign a secret treaty in Sibiu, stipulating that Moldavia would support the actions led by the House of Habsburg against the Ottoman Empire.
    • 1764 – The city of St. Louis is established in Spanish Louisiana (now in Missouri, USA).
    • 1798 – The Roman Republic is proclaimed after Louis-Alexandre Berthier, a general of Napoleon, had invaded the city of Rome five days earlier.
    • 1835 – Serbia’s Sretenje Constitution briefly comes into effect.
    • 1862 – American Civil War: Confederates commanded by Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd attack General Ulysses S. Grant’s Union forces Fort Donelson, Tennessee. Unable to break the fort’s encirclement, Lloyd surrenders the following day.
    • 1870 – Stevens Institute of Technology is founded in New Jersey, USA and offers the first Bachelor of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering.
    • 1879 – Women’s rights: US President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court of the United States.
    • 1891 – Allmänna Idrottsklubben (AIK) (Swedish Sports Club) is founded.
    • 1898 – The battleship USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana harbor in Cuba, killing 274. This event leads the United States to declare war on Spain.
    • 1901 – The association football club Alianza Lima is founded in Lima, Peru, under the name Sport Alianza.
    • 1909 – The Flores Theater fire in Acapulco, Mexico kills 250.
    • 1921 – Kingdom of Romania establishes its legation in Helsinki.
    • 1923 – Greece becomes the last European country to adopt the Gregorian calendar.
    • 1925 – The 1925 serum run to Nome: The second delivery of serum arrives in Nome, Alaska.
    • 1933 – In Miami, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate US President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but instead shoots Chicago mayor Anton J. Cermak, who dies of his wounds on March 6, 1933.
    • 1942 – World War II: Fall of Singapore. Following an assault by Japanese forces, the British General Arthur Percival surrenders. About 80,000 Indian, United Kingdom and Australian soldiers become prisoners of war, the largest surrender of British-led military personnel in history.
    • 1944 – World War II: The assault on Monte Cassino, Italy begins.
    • 1944 – World War II: The Narva Offensive begins.
    • 1945 – World War II: Third day of bombing in Dresden.
    • 1946 – ENIAC, the first electronic general-purpose computer, is formally dedicated at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
    • 1949 – Gerald Lankester Harding and Roland de Vaux begin excavations at Cave 1 of the Qumran Caves, where they will eventually discover the first seven Dead Sea Scrolls.
    • 1952 – King George VI of the United Kingdom is buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
    • 1954 – Canada and the United States agree to construct the Distant Early Warning Line, a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic regions of Canada and Alaska.
    • 1961 – Sabena Flight 548 crashes in Belgium, killing 73, including the entire United States figure skating team along with several of their coaches and family members.
    • 1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.
    • 1971 – The decimalisation of British coinage is completed on Decimal Day.
    • 1972 – Sound recordings are granted U.S. federal copyright protection for the first time.
    • 1972 – José María Velasco Ibarra, serving as President of Ecuador for the fifth time, is overthrown by the military for the fourth time.
    • 1982 – The drilling rig Ocean Ranger sinks during a storm off the coast of Newfoundland, killing 84 workers.
    • 1989 – Soviet–Afghan War: The Soviet Union officially announces that all of its troops have left Afghanistan.
    • 1991 – The Visegrád Agreement, establishing cooperation to move toward free-market systems, is signed by the leaders of Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland.
    • 1992 – Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is sentenced in Milwaukee to life in prison.
    • 1992 – Air Transport International Flight 805 crashes near Toledo Express Airport in Ohio, killing all four people on board.
    • 1996 – At the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China, a Long March 3 rocket, carrying an Intelsat 708, crashes into a rural village after liftoff, killing many people.
    • 2001 – The first draft of the complete human genome is published in Nature.
    • 2003 – Protests against the Iraq war take place in over 600 cities worldwide. It is estimated that between eight million to 30 million people participate, making this the largest peace demonstration in history.
    • 2010 – Two trains collide in the Halle train collision in Halle, Belgium, killing 19 and injuring 171 people.
    • 2012 – Three hundred sixty people die in a fire at a Honduran prison in the city of Comayagua.
    • 2013 – A meteor explodes over Russia, injuring 1,500 people as a shock wave blows out windows and rocks buildings. This happens unexpectedly only hours before the expected closest ever approach of the larger and unrelated asteroid 2012 DA14.

    Births on February 15

    • 1377 – Ladislaus of Naples (d. 1414)
    • 1458 – Ivan the Young, son of Ivan III of Russia (d. 1490)
    • 1471 – Piero the Unfortunate, Italian ruler (d. 1503)
    • 1506 – Juliana of Stolberg, German countess (d. 1580)
    • 1519 – Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, first Spanish Governor of Florida (d. 1574)
    • 1557 – Alfonso Fontanelli, Italian composer (d. 1622)
    • 1564 – Galileo Galilei, Italian astronomer, physicist, and mathematician (d. 1642)
    • 1571 – Michael Praetorius, German organist and composer (probable; d. 1621)
    • 1612 – Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, French soldier, founded Montreal (d. 1676)
    • 1627 – Charles Morton, Cornish nonconformist minister (d. 1698)
    • 1638 – Zeb-un-Nissa, Mughal princess and poet (d. 1702)
    • 1705 – Charles-André van Loo, French painter (d. 1765)
    • 1710 – Louis XV of France (d. 1774)
    • 1725 – Abraham Clark, American surveyor, lawyer, and politician (d. 1794)
    • 1734 – William Stacy, American colonel (d. 1802)
    • 1739 – Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, French architect, designed the Paris Bourse (d. 1813)
    • 1748 – Jeremy Bentham, English jurist and philosopher (d. 1832)
    • 1759 – Friedrich August Wolf, German philologist and critic (d. 1824)
    • 1760 – Jean-François Le Sueur, French composer and educator (d. 1837)
    • 1797 – Henry E. Steinway, German-American businessman, founded Steinway & Sons (d. 1871)
    • 1809 – André Dumont, Belgian geologist and academic (d. 1857)
    • 1809 – Cyrus McCormick, American journalist and businessman, co-founded International Harvester (d. 1884)
    • 1810 – Mary S. B. Shindler, American poet, writer, and editor (d. 1883)
    • 1811 – Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, Argentinian journalist and politician, 7th President of Argentina (d. 1888)
    • 1812 – Charles Lewis Tiffany, American businessman, founded Tiffany & Co. (d. 1902)
    • 1820 – Susan B. Anthony, American suffragist and activist (d. 1906)
    • 1825 – Carter Harrison, Sr., American lawyer and politician, 29th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1893)
    • 1834 – V. A. Urechia, Moldavian-Romanian historian, author, and playwright (d. 1901)
    • 1835 – Demetrius Vikelas, Greek businessman and philanthropist (d. 1908)
    • 1840 – Titu Maiorescu, Romanian philosopher, academic, and politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1917)
    • 1841 – Manuel Ferraz de Campos Sales, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 4th President of Brazil (d. 1913)
    • 1845 – Elihu Root, American lawyer and politician, 38th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1937)
    • 1847 – Robert Fuchs, Austrian composer and educator (d. 1927)
    • 1849 – Rickman Godlee, English surgeon and academic (d. 1925)
    • 1850 – Sophie Bryant, Irish mathematician, academic and activist (d. 1922)
    • 1851 – Spiru Haret, Romanian mathematician, astronomer, and politician, 55th Romanian Minister of Internal Affairs (d. 1912)
    • 1856 – Emil Kraepelin, German psychiatrist and academic (d. 1926)
    • 1861 – Martin Burns, American wrestler and coach (d. 1937)
    • 1861 – Charles Édouard Guillaume, Swiss-French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1938)
    • 1861 – Alfred North Whitehead, English mathematician and philosopher (d. 1947)
    • 1873 – Hans von Euler-Chelpin, German-Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1964)
    • 1874 – Ernest Shackleton, Anglo-Irish captain and explorer (d. 1922)
    • 1883 – Sax Rohmer, English-American author (d. 1959)
    • 1890 – Robert Ley, German politician (d. 1945)
    • 1892 – James Forrestal, American lieutenant and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Defense (d. 1949)
    • 1892 – Roy Rene, Australian comedian (d. 1954)
    • 1893 – Roman Najuch, Polish professional tennis player (d. 1967)
    • 1896 – Arthur Shields, Irish republican and actor (d. 1970)
    • 1897 – Gerrit Kleerekoper, Jewish-Dutch gymnast and coach (d. 1943)
    • 1898 – Totò, Italian actor, singer, and screenwriter (d. 1967)
    • 1899 – Georges Auric, French composer (d. 1983)
    • 1899 – Gale Sondergaard, Danish-American actress (d. 1985)
    • 1904 – Mary Adshead, English painter (d. 1995)
    • 1904 – Antonin Magne, French cyclist and manager (d. 1983)
    • 1905 – Harold Arlen, Jewish-American composer (d. 1986)
    • 1907 – Jean Langlais, French organist and composer (d. 1991)
    • 1907 – Cesar Romero, American actor (d. 1994)
    • 1908 – Sarto Fournier, Canadian lawyer and politician, 38th Mayor of Montreal (d. 1980)
    • 1909 – Miep Gies, Austrian-Dutch humanitarian, helped hide Anne Frank and her family (d. 2010)
    • 1910 – Irena Sendler, Polish nurse and humanitarian, Righteous Gentile (d. 2008)
    • 1912 – George Mikes, Jewish Hungarian-English journalist and author (d. 1987)
    • 1913 – Erich Eliskases, Austrian chess player (d. 1997)
    • 1914 – Hale Boggs, American lawyer and politician (d. 1972)
    • 1914 – Kevin McCarthy, Jewish-Irish American actor (d. 2010)
    • 1916 – Mary Jane Croft, American actress (d. 1999)
    • 1918 – Allan Arbus, Jewish-American actor and photographer (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Hank Locklin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2009)
    • 1919 – Ducky Detweiler, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
    • 1920 – Endicott Peabody, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 62nd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1997)
    • 1920 – Eio Sakata, Japanese Go player (d. 2010)
    • 1922 – John B. Anderson, Swedish-American lawyer and politician (d. 2017)
    • 1923 – Yelena Bonner, Jewish Soviet-Russian activist (d. 2011)
    • 1924 – Robert Drew, American director and producer (d. 2014)
    • 1925 – Angella D. Ferguson, American pediatrician
    • 1927 – Frank Dunlop, English actor and director
    • 1927 – Harvey Korman, American actor and comedian (d. 2008)
    • 1927 – Yehoshua Neuwirth, Israeli rabbi and scholar (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Norman Bridwell, American author and illustrator, created Clifford the Big Red Dog (d. 2014)
    • 1928 – Joseph Willcox Jenkins, American composer, conductor, and educator (d. 2014)
    • 1929 – Graham Hill, English race car driver and businessman (d. 1975)
    • 1929 – James R. Schlesinger, American economist and politician, 12th United States Secretary of Defense (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Bruce Dawe, Australian poet and academic
    • 1931 – Claire Bloom, English actress
    • 1931 – Jonathan Steele, English journalist and author
    • 1934 – Jimmy Bloomfield, English footballer and manager (d. 1983)
    • 1934 – Graham Kennedy, Australian television host and actor (d. 2005)
    • 1934 – Niklaus Wirth, Swiss computer scientist, created the Pascal programming language
    • 1934 – Abe Woodson, American football player and minister (d. 2014)
    • 1935 – Susan Brownmiller, American journalist and author
    • 1935 – Roger B. Chaffee, American lieutenant, engineer, and astronaut (d. 1967)
    • 1935 – Gene Hickerson, American football player (d. 2008)
    • 1937 – Gregory Mcdonald, American author (d. 2008)
    • 1937 – Coen Moulijn, Dutch footballer (d. 2011)
    • 1940 – İsmail Cem İpekçi, Turkish journalist and politician, 45th Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2007)
    • 1940 – John Hadl, American football player and coach
    • 1940 – Hamzah Haz, Indonesian journalist and politician, 9th Vice President of Indonesia
    • 1940 – Vaino Vahing, Estonian psychiatrist, author, and playwright (d. 2008)
    • 1941 – Florinda Bolkan, Brazilian actress
    • 1941 – Brian Holland, American songwriter and producer
    • 1944 – Mick Avory, English drummer
    • 1945 – Jack Dann, American-Australian author and poet
    • 1945 – John Helliwell, English saxophonist and keyboard player
    • 1945 – Douglas Hofstadter, American author and academic
    • 1946 – Clare Short, English civil servant and politician, Secretary of State for International Development
    • 1947 – John Adams, American composer
    • 1947 – Marisa Berenson, American model and actress
    • 1948 – Art Spiegelman, Swedish-American cartoonist and critic
    • 1949 – Ken Anderson, American football quarterback and coach
    • 1951 – Markku Alén, Finnish race car driver
    • 1951 – Melissa Manchester, American singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1951 – Jane Seymour, English-American actress, producer, and jewelry designer
    • 1952 – Tomislav Nikolić, Serbian politician, 4th President of Serbia
    • 1952 – Nikolai Sorokin, Russian actor and director (d. 2013)
    • 1953 – Tony Adams, Irish-American screenwriter and producer (d. 2005)
    • 1953 – Ernie Howe, English footballer, defender and manager
    • 1954 – Matt Groening, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1955 – Janice Dickinson, American model, agent, and author
    • 1955 – Christopher McDonald, American actor
    • 1956 – Desmond Haynes, Barbadian cricketer and coach
    • 1956 – Ann Westin, Swedish comedian
    • 1957 – Jake E. Lee, American guitarist and songwriter
    • 1957 – Jimmy Spencer, American race car driver and sportscaster
    • 1958 – Chrystine Brouillet, Canadian author
    • 1958 – Tony McKegney, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1958 – Matthew Ward, American singer-songwriter
    • 1959 – Adam Boulton, English journalist
    • 1959 – Ali Campbell, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1959 – Brian Propp, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
    • 1959 – Martin Rowson, English author and illustrator
    • 1959 – Hugo Savinovich, Ecuadorian wrestler and sportscaster
    • 1960 – Darrell Green, American football player
    • 1960 – Jock Hobbs, New Zealand rugby player (d. 2012)
    • 1962 – Milo Đukanović, Montenegrin politician, 29th Prime Minister of Montenegro
    • 1964 – Chris Farley, American comedian and actor (d. 1997)
    • 1964 – Leland D. Melvin, American engineer and astronaut
    • 1964 – Mark Price, American basketball player and coach
    • 1965 – Craig Matthews, South African cricketer
    • 1967 – Jane Child, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1967 – Syed Kamall, English academic and politician
    • 1967 – Craig Simpson, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
    • 1969 – Birdman, American rapper and producer
    • 1970 – Shepard Fairey, American artist and activist
    • 1971 – Alex Borstein, American actress, voice artist, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1971 – Renee O’Connor, American actress, director, and producer
    • 1972 – Jaromír Jágr, Czech ice hockey player
    • 1973 – Kateřina Neumannová, Czech skier
    • 1973 – Amy van Dyken, American swimmer
    • 1974 – Miranda July, American actress, director, and screenwriter
    • 1974 – Ugueth Urbina, Venezuelan baseball player
    • 1974 – Alexander Wurz, Austrian race car driver and businessman
    • 1975 – Serge Aubin, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1975 – Annemarie Kramer, Dutch sprinter
    • 1975 – Brendon Small, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and actor
    • 1976 – Brandon Boyd, American singer-songwriter
    • 1976 – Óscar Freire, Spanish cyclist
    • 1979 – Josh Low, English footballer
    • 1979 – Hamish Marshall, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1979 – James Marshall, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1979 – Scott Severin, Scottish footballer
    • 1979 – Gordon Shedden, Scottish race car driver
    • 1980 – Conor Oberst, American singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Heurelho Gomes, Brazilian international footballer, goalkeeper
    • 1981 – Matt Hoopes, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1981 – Rita Jeptoo, Kenyan runner
    • 1981 – Diego Martínez, Mexican footballer
    • 1981 – Vivek Shraya, Canadian singer and songwriter
    • 1982 – Shameka Christon, American basketball player
    • 1982 – James Yap, Filipino basketball player
    • 1983 – Don Cowie, Scottish footballer
    • 1983 – David Degen, Swiss footballer
    • 1983 – Philipp Degen, Swiss footballer
    • 1983 – Alan Didak, Australian footballer
    • 1983 – Russell Martin, Canadian baseball player
    • 1985 – Serkan Kırıntılı, Turkish footballer
    • 1986 – Valeri Bojinov, Bulgarian footballer
    • 1986 – Johnny Cueto, Dominican baseball player
    • 1986 – Laura Sallés, Andorran judoka
    • 1987 – Jarrod Sammut, Australian rugby league player
    • 1988 – Jarryd Hayne, Australian rugby league player and football player
    • 1988 – Hironori Kusano, Japanese singer and actor
    • 1988 – Tim Mannah, Australian-born Lebanese rugby league player
    • 1988 – Rui Patrício, Portuguese footballer
    • 1990 – Charles Pic, French race car driver
    • 1991 – Ángel Sepúlveda, Mexican footballer
    • 1993 – Ravi, South Korean rapper

    Deaths on February 15

    • 670 – Oswiu, king of Northumbria (b. c. 612)
    • 706 – Leontios, Byzantine emperor
    • 706 – Tiberios III, Byzantine emperor
    • 956 – Su Yugui, Chinese chancellor (b. 895)
    • 1043 – Gisela of Swabia, Holy Roman Empress (b. 990)
    • 1145 – Lucius II, pope of the Catholic Church
    • 1152 – Conrad III, king of Germany (b. 1093)
    • 1382 – William de Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk (b. c. 1339)
    • 1417 – Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford, English commander (b. 1385)
    • 1508 – Giovanni II Bentivoglio, tyrant of Bologna (b. 1443)
    • 1600 – José de Acosta, Spanish Jesuit missionary and naturalist (b. 1540)
    • 1621 – Michael Praetorius, German organist and composer (b. 1571)
    • 1637 – Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1578)
    • 1738 – Matthias Braun, Czech sculptor (b. 1684)
    • 1781 – Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German philosopher, author, and critic (b. 1729)
    • 1818 – Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen (b. 1746)
    • 1835 – Henry Hunt, English farmer and politician (b. 1773)
    • 1839 – François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier, Canadian rebel (b. 1803)
    • 1842 – Archibald Menzies, Scottish surgeon and botanist (b. 1754)
    • 1844 – Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1757)
    • 1847 – Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician and engineer (b. 1794)
    • 1848 – Hermann von Boyen, Prussian general and politician, Prussian Minister of War (b. 1771)
    • 1849 – Pierre François Verhulst, Belgian mathematician and theorist (b. 1804)
    • 1857 – Mikhail Glinka, Russian composer (b. 1804)
    • 1869 – Ghalib, Indian poet and educator (b. 1796)
    • 1885 – Gregor von Helmersen, Estonian-Russian geologist and engineer (b. 1803)
    • 1897 – Dimitrie Ghica, Romanian lawyer and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1816)
    • 1905 – Lew Wallace, American author, general, and politician, 11th Governor of New Mexico Territory (b. 1827)
    • 1911 – Theodor Escherich, German-Austrian pediatrician and academic (b. 1859)
    • 1924 – Lionel Monckton, English composer (b. 1861)
    • 1928 – H. H. Asquith, English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1852)
    • 1932 – Minnie Maddern Fiske, American actress and playwright (b. 1865)
    • 1933 – Pat Sullivan, Australian animator and producer, co-created Felix the Cat (b. 1887)
    • 1935 – Basil Hall Chamberlain, English-Swiss historian, author, and academic (b. 1850)
    • 1939 – Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin, Russian painter and author (b. 1878)
    • 1956 – Vincent de Moro-Giafferi, French lawyer and politician (b. 1878)
    • 1959 – Owen Willans Richardson, English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
    • 1961 – Laurence Owen, American figure skater (b. 1944)
    • 1965 – Nat King Cole, American singer and pianist (b. 1919)
    • 1966 – Gerard Antoni Ciołek, Polish architect and historian (b. 1909)
    • 1966 – Camilo Torres Restrepo, Colombian priest and theologian (b. 1929)
    • 1967 – Antonio Moreno, Spanish-American actor and director (b. 1887)
    • 1970 – Hugh Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding, Scottish air marshal (b. 1882)
    • 1973 – Wally Cox, American actor (b. 1924)
    • 1973 – Tim Holt, American actor (b. 1919)
    • 1974 – Kurt Atterberg, Swedish composer and engineer (b. 1887)
    • 1981 – Mike Bloomfield, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1943)
    • 1981 – Karl Richter, German organist and conductor (b. 1926)
    • 1984 – Avon Long, American actor and singer (b. 1910)
    • 1984 – Ethel Merman, American actress and singer (b. 1908)
    • 1988 – Richard Feynman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
    • 1992 – María Elena Moyano, Peruvian activist (b. 1960)
    • 1992 – William Schuman, American composer and academic (b. 1910)
    • 1996 – McLean Stevenson, American actor (b. 1929)
    • 1998 – Martha Gellhorn, American journalist and author (b. 1908)
    • 1999 – Henry Way Kendall, American physicist and mountaineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1926)
    • 1999 – Big L, American rapper (b. 1974)
    • 2000 – Angus MacLean, Canadian commander and politician, 25th Premier of Prince Edward Island (b. 1914)
    • 2002 – Howard K. Smith, American journalist and actor (b. 1914)
    • 2002 – Kevin Smith, New Zealand actor (b. 1963)
    • 2004 – Jens Evensen, Norwegian lawyer, judge, and politician, Norwegian Minister of Trade (b. 1917)
    • 2005 – Pierre Bachelet, French singer-songwriter (b. 1944)
    • 2005 – Samuel T. Francis, American historian and journalist (b. 1947)
    • 2007 – Walker Edmiston, American actor (b. 1925)
    • 2007 – Ray Evans, American songwriter (b. 1915)
    • 2008 – Johnny Weaver, American wrestler and sportscaster (b. 1935)
    • 2010 – Jeanne M. Holm, American general (b. 1921)
    • 2012 – Cyril Domb, English-Israel physicist and academic (b. 1920)
    • 2013 – Sanan Kachornprasart, Thai general and politician (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – Ahmed Rajib Haider, Bangladeshi atheist blogger
    • 2014 – Thelma Estrin, American computer scientist and engineer (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – Christopher Malcolm, Scottish-Canadian actor, director, and producer (b. 1946)
    • 2015 – Haron Amin, Afghan diplomat, Afghan Ambassador to Japan (b. 1969)
    • 2015 – Arnaud de Borchgrave, American journalist and author (b. 1926)
    • 2015 – Steve Montador, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1979)
    • 2016 – George Gaynes, Finnish-American actor (b. 1917)
    • 2016 – Vanity, Canadian-American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress (b. 1959)
    • 2017 – Stuart McLean, Canadian radio broadcaster (b. 1948)
    • 2019 – Lee Radziwill, American socialite (b. 1933)
    • 2020 – Caroline Flack, English Actress and TV Presenter (b. 1979)

    Holidays and observances on February 15

    • Christian feast day:
      • Blessed Michał Sopoćko
      • Claude de la Colombière
      • Faustinus and Jovita
      • Oswiu
      • Quinidius
      • Sigfrid of Sweden
      • Thomas Bray (Episcopal Church)
      • Walfrid
      • February 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Earliest day on which Family Day can fall, while February 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday in February. (parts of Canada)
    • Earliest day on which Washington’s Birthday can fall, while February 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday in February. (United States)
    • Traditionally the feast day for the ancient Roman fertility festival of Lupercalia
    • International Duties Memorial Day (Russia, regional)
    • John Frum Day (Vanuatu)
    • Liberation Day (Afghanistan)
    • National Flag of Canada Day (Canada)
    • Parinirvana Day, also celebrated on February 8. (Mahayana Buddhism)
    • Singles Awareness Day
    • Statehood Day (Serbia)
    • Susan B. Anthony Day (Florida, United States)
    • The ENIAC Day (Philadelphia, United States)
    • Total Defence Day (Singapore)