759

  • July 24 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1132 – Battle of Nocera between Ranulf II of Alife and Roger II of Sicily.
    • 1148 – Louis VII of France lays siege to Damascus during the Second Crusade.
    • 1304 – Wars of Scottish Independence: Fall of Stirling Castle: King Edward I of England takes the stronghold using the War Wolf.
    • 1411 – Battle of Harlaw, one of the bloodiest battles in Scotland, takes place.
    • 1412 – Behnam Hadloyo becomes Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Mardin.
    • 1487 – Citizens of Leeuwarden, Netherlands, strike against a ban on foreign beer.
    • 1534 – French explorer Jacques Cartier plants a cross on the Gaspé Peninsula and takes possession of the territory in the name of Francis I of France.
    • 1567 – Mary, Queen of Scots, is forced to abdicate and replaced by her 1-year-old son James VI.
    • 1701 – Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac founds the trading post at Fort Pontchartrain, which later becomes the city of Detroit.
    • 1783 – The Kingdom of Georgia and the Russian Empire sign the Treaty of Georgievsk.
    • 1814 – War of 1812: General Phineas Riall advances toward the Niagara River to halt Jacob Brown’s American invaders.
    • 1823 – Afro-Chileans are emancipated.
    • 1823 – In Maracaibo, Venezuela, the naval Battle of Lake Maracaibo takes place, where Admiral José Prudencio Padilla defeats the Spanish Navy, thus culminating the independence for the Gran Colombia.
    • 1847 – After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City.
    • 1847 – Richard March Hoe, American inventor, patented the rotary-type printing press.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Kernstown: Confederate General Jubal Early defeats Union troops led by General George Crook in an effort to keep them out of the Shenandoah Valley.
    • 1866 – Reconstruction: Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War.
    • 1901 – O. Henry is released from prison in Columbus, Ohio, after serving three years for embezzlement from a bank.
    • 1910 – The Ottoman Empire captures the city of Shkodër, putting down the Albanian Revolt of 1910.
    • 1911 – Hiram Bingham III re-discovers Machu Picchu, “the Lost City of the Incas”.
    • 1915 – The passenger ship SS Eastland capsizes while tied to a dock in the Chicago River. A total of 844 passengers and crew are killed in the largest loss of life disaster from a single shipwreck on the Great Lakes.
    • 1922 – The draft of the British Mandate of Palestine was formally confirmed by the Council of the League of Nations; it came into effect on 26 September 1923.
    • 1923 – The Treaty of Lausanne, settling the boundaries of modern Turkey, is signed in Switzerland by Greece, Bulgaria and other countries that fought in World War I.
    • 1924 – Themistoklis Sofoulis becomes Prime Minister of Greece.
    • 1927 – The Menin Gate war memorial is unveiled at Ypres.
    • 1929 – The Kellogg–Briand Pact, renouncing war as an instrument of foreign policy, goes into effect (it is first signed in Paris on August 27, 1928, by most leading world powers).
    • 1935 – The Dust Bowl heat wave reaches its peak, sending temperatures to 109 °F (43 °C) in Chicago and 104 °F (40 °C) in Milwaukee.
    • 1937 – Alabama drops rape charges against the “Scottsboro Boys”.
    • 1943 – World War II: Operation Gomorrah begins: British and Canadian aeroplanes bomb Hamburg by night, and American planes bomb the city by day. By the end of the operation in November, 9,000 tons of explosives will have killed more than 30,000 people and destroyed 280,000 buildings.
    • 1950 – Cape Canaveral Air Force Station begins operations with the launch of a Bumper rocket.
    • 1959 – At the opening of the American National Exhibition in Moscow, U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev have a “Kitchen Debate”.
    • 1963 – The ship Bluenose II was launched in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The schooner is a major Canadian symbol.
    • 1966 – Michael Pelkey makes the first BASE jump from El Capitan along with Brian Schubert. Both came out with broken bones. BASE jumping has now been banned from El Cap.
    • 1967 – During an official state visit to Canada, French President Charles de Gaulle declares to a crowd of over 100,000 in Montreal: Vive le Québec libre! (“Long live free Quebec!”); the statement angered the Canadian government and many Anglophone Canadians.
    • 1969 – Apollo program: Apollo 11 splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean.
    • 1974 – Watergate scandal: The United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that President Richard Nixon did not have the authority to withhold subpoenaed White House tapes and they order him to surrender the tapes to the Watergate special prosecutor.
    • 1977 – End of a four-day-long Libyan–Egyptian War.
    • 1980 – The Quietly Confident Quartet of Australia wins the men’s 4 x 100 metre medley relay at the Moscow Olympics, the only time the United States has not won the event at Olympic level.
    • 1982 – Heavy rain causes a mudslide that destroys a bridge at Nagasaki, Japan, killing 299.
    • 1983 – The Black July anti-Tamil riots begin in Sri Lanka, killing between 400 and 3,000. Black July is generally regarded as the beginning of the Sri Lankan Civil War.
    • 1983 – George Brett batting for the Kansas City Royals against the New York Yankees, has a game-winning home run nullified in the “Pine Tar Incident”.
    • 1987 – US supertanker SS Bridgeton collides with mines laid by IRGC causing a 43-square-meter dent in the body of the oil tanker.
    • 1987 – Hulda Crooks, at 91 years of age, climbed Mt. Fuji. Crooks became the oldest person to climb Japan’s highest peak.
    • 1998 – Russell Eugene Weston Jr. bursts into the United States Capitol and opens fire killing two police officers. He is later ruled to be incompetent to stand trial.
    • 2001 – Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the last Tsar of Bulgaria when he was a child, is sworn in as Prime Minister of Bulgaria, becoming the first monarch in history to regain political power through democratic election to a different office.
    • 2001 – The Bandaranaike Airport attack is carried out by 14 Tamil Tiger commandos. Eleven civilian and military aircraft are destroyed and 15 are damaged. All 14 commandos are shot dead, while seven soldiers from the Sri Lanka Air Force are killed. In addition, three civilians and an engineer die. This incident slowed the Sri Lankan economy.
    • 2013 – A high-speed train derails in Spain rounding a curve with an 80 km/h (50 mph) speed limit at 190 km/h (120 mph), killing 78 passengers.
    • 2014 – Air Algérie Flight 5017 loses contact with air traffic controllers 50 minutes after takeoff. It was travelling between Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and Algiers. The wreckage is later found in Mali. All 116 people onboard are killed.

    Births on July 24

    • 1242 – Christina von Stommeln, German Roman Catholic mystic, ecstatic, and stigmatic (d. 1312)
    • 1468 – Catherine of Saxony, Archduchess of Austria (d. 1524)
    • 1529 – Charles II, Margrave of Baden-Durlach (d. 1577)
    • 1561 – Maria of the Palatinate-Simmern (d. 1589)
    • 1574 – Thomas Platter the Younger, Swiss physician and author (d. 1628)
    • 1660 – Charles Talbot, 1st Duke of Shrewsbury, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (d. 1718)
    • 1689 – Prince William, Duke of Gloucester, son of Queen Anne of Great Britain and Prince George of Denmark (d. 1700)
    • 1725 – John Newton, English sailor and priest (d. 1807)
    • 1757 – Vladimir Borovikovsky, Ukrainian-Russian painter (d. 1825)
    • 1783 – Simón Bolívar, Venezuelan commander and politician, 2nd President of Venezuela (d. 1830)
    • 1786 – Joseph Nicollet, French mathematician and explorer (d. 1843)
    • 1794 – Johan Georg Forchhammer, Danish mineralogist and geologist (d. 1865)
    • 1802 – Alexandre Dumas, French novelist and playwright (d. 1870)
    • 1803 – Adolphe Adam, French composer and critic (d. 1856)
    • 1803 – Alexander J. Davis, American architect (d. 1892)
    • 1821 – William Poole, American boxer and gangster (d. 1855)
    • 1826 – Jan Gotlib Bloch, Polish theorist and activist (d. 1902)
    • 1851 – Friedrich Schottky, Polish-German mathematician and theorist (d. 1935)
    • 1856 – Émile Picard, French mathematician and academic (d. 1941)
    • 1857 – Henrik Pontoppidan, Danish journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1943)
    • 1857 – Juan Vicente Gómez, Venezuelan general and politician, 27th President of Venezuela (d. 1935)
    • 1860 – Princess Charlotte of Prussia (d. 1919)
    • 1860 – Alphonse Mucha, Czech painter and illustrator (d. 1939)
    • 1864 – Frank Wedekind, German actor and playwright (d. 1918)
    • 1867 – Vicente Acosta, Salvadoran journalist and poet (d. 1908)
    • 1867 – E. F. Benson, English archaeologist and author (d. 1940)
    • 1867 – Fred Tate, English cricketer and coach (d. 1943)
    • 1874 – Oswald Chambers, Scottish minister and author (d. 1917)
    • 1877 – Calogero Vizzini, Italian mob boss (d. 1954)
    • 1878 – Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany, Irish author, poet, and playwright (d. 1957)
    • 1880 – Ernest Bloch, Swiss-American composer and educator (d. 1959)
    • 1884 – Maria Caserini, Italian actress (d. 1969)
    • 1886 – Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, Japanese author (d. 1965)
    • 1888 – Arthur Richardson, Australian cricketer and coach (d. 1973)
    • 1889 – Agnes Meyer Driscoll, American cryptanalyst (d. 1971)
    • 1895 – Robert Graves, English poet, novelist, critic (d. 1985)
    • 1897 – Amelia Earhart, American pilot and author (d. 1937)
    • 1899 – Chief Dan George, Canadian actor (d. 1981)
    • 1900 – Zelda Fitzgerald, American author and poet (d. 1948)
    • 1904 – Leo Arnaud, French-American trombonist, composer, and conductor (d. 1991)
    • 1904 – Richard B. Morris, American historian and academic (d. 1989)
    • 1904 – Delmer Daves, American screenwriter, director and producer (d. 1977)
    • 1909 – John William Finn, American lieutenant, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2010)
    • 1910 – Harry Horner, American director and production designer (d. 1994)
    • 1912 – Essie Summers, New Zealand author (d. 1998)
    • 1913 – Britton Chance, American biologist and sailor (d. 2010)
    • 1914 – Frances Oldham Kelsey, Canadian pharmacologist and physician (d. 2015)
    • 1914 – Ed Mirvish, American-Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 2007)
    • 1914 – Alan Waddell, Australian walker (d. 2008)
    • 1915 – Enrique Fernando, Filipino lawyer and jurist, 13th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (d. 2004)
    • 1916 – John D. MacDonald, American colonel and author (d. 1986)
    • 1917 – Robert Farnon, Canadian trumpet player, composer, and conductor (d. 2005)
    • 1917 – Jack Moroney, Australian cricketer (d. 1999)
    • 1918 – Ruggiero Ricci, American violinist and educator (d. 2012)
    • 1919 – Robert Marsden Hope, Australian lawyer and judge (d. 1999)
    • 1919 – Kenneth S. Kleinknecht, NASA manager (d. 2007)
    • 1919 – John Winkin, American baseball player, coach, and journalist (d. 2014)
    • 1920 – Bella Abzug, American lawyer and politician (d. 1998)
    • 1920 – Constance Dowling, American model and actress (d. 1969)
    • 1921 – Giuseppe Di Stefano, Italian tenor and actor (d. 2008)
    • 1921 – Billy Taylor, American pianist and composer (d. 2010)
    • 1922 – Madeleine Ferron, Canadian radio host and author (d. 2010)
    • 1924 – Wilfred Josephs, English composer (d. 1997)
    • 1924 – Aris Poulianos, Greek anthropologist and archaeologist
    • 1927 – Alex Katz, American painter and sculptor
    • 1927 – Zara Mints, Russian-Estonian philologist and academic (d. 1990)
    • 1930 – Alfred Balk, American journalist and author (d. 2010)
    • 1930 – Keshubhai Patel, Indian politician, 10th Chief Minister of Gujarat
    • 1931 – Ermanno Olmi, Italian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer (d. 2018)
    • 1931 – Éric Tabarly, French commander (d. 1998)
    • 1932 – Gustav Andreas Tammann, German astronomer and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1933 – Doug Sanders, American golfer (d. 2020)
    • 1934 – P. S. Soosaithasan, Sri Lankan accountant and politician (d. 2017)
    • 1935 – Aaron Elkins, American author and academic
    • 1935 – Pat Oliphant, Australian cartoonist
    • 1935 – Mel Ramos, American painter, illustrator, and academic (d. 2018)
    • 1935 – Les Reed, English pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2019)
    • 1935 – Derek Varnals, South African cricketer
    • 1936 – Ruth Buzzi, American actress and comedian
    • 1936 – Mark Goddard, American actor
    • 1937 – Manoj Kumar, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1937 – Quinlan Terry, English architect, designed the Brentwood Cathedral
    • 1938 – Alexis Jacquemin, Belgian economist and academic (d. 2004)
    • 1938 – Eugene J. Martin, American painter (d. 2005)
    • 1938 – John Sparling, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1939 – Walt Bellamy, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
    • 1939 – David Simon, Baron Simon of Highbury, English businessman and politician
    • 1940 – Dan Hedaya, American actor
    • 1941 – John Bond, English banker and businessman
    • 1942 – Heinz, German-English singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2000)
    • 1942 – David Miner, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1942 – Chris Sarandon, American actor
    • 1944 – Jim Armstrong, Northern Irish guitarist
    • 1945 – Frank Close, English physicist and academic
    • 1945 – Azim Premji, Indian businessman and philanthropist
    • 1945 – Hugh Ross, Canadian-American astrophysicist and astronomer
    • 1945 – Anthony Watts, English geologist, geophysicist, and academic
    • 1946 – Gallagher, American comedian and actor
    • 1946 – Friedhelm Haebermann, German footballer and manager
    • 1946 – Hervé Vilard, French singer-songwriter
    • 1947 – Zaheer Abbas, Pakistani cricketer and manager
    • 1947 – Geoff McQueen, English screenwriter and producer (d. 1994)
    • 1947 – Peter Serkin, American pianist and educator
    • 1949 – Michael Richards, American actor and comedian
    • 1950 – Jadranka Stojaković, Yugoslav singer-songwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1951 – Lynda Carter, American actress
    • 1951 – Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury, English politician, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
    • 1952 – Ian Cairns, Australian surfer
    • 1952 – Gus Van Sant, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1953 – Julian Brazier, English captain and politician
    • 1953 – Jon Faddis, American trumpet player, composer, and conductor
    • 1953 – Tadashi Kawamata, Japanese contemporary artist
    • 1953 – Claire McCaskill, American lawyer and politician
    • 1953 – James Newcome, English bishop
    • 1954 – Erdoğan Arıca, Turkish footballer and manager (d. 2012)
    • 1954 – Jorge Jesus, Portuguese footballer and manager
    • 1955 – Brad Watson, American author and academic
    • 1956 – Charlie Crist, American lawyer and politician, 44th Governor of Florida
    • 1957 – Pam Tillis, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
    • 1958 – Jim Leighton, Scottish footballer and coach
    • 1960 – Catherine Destivelle, French rock climber and mountaineer
    • 1961 – Kerry Dixon, English footballer and manager
    • 1962 – Johnny O’Connell, American race car driver and sportscaster
    • 1963 – Louis Armary, French rugby player
    • 1963 – Karl Malone, American basketball player and coach
    • 1964 – Barry Bonds, American baseball player
    • 1964 – Pedro Passos Coelho, Portuguese economist and politician, 118th Prime Minister of Portugal
    • 1964 – Urmas Kaljend, Estonian footballer
    • 1964 – John Rosengren, American journalist and author
    • 1965 – Andrew Gaze, Australian basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1965 – Kadeem Hardison, American actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Doug Liman, American director and producer
    • 1966 – Mo-Do, Italian singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1966 – Aminatou Haidar, Sahrawi human rights activist
    • 1966 – Martin Keown, English footballer and coach
    • 1968 – Kristin Chenoweth, American actress and singer
    • 1968 – Colleen Doran, American author and illustrator
    • 1968 – Malcolm Ingram, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1968 – Laura Leighton, American actress
    • 1969 – Rick Fox, Bahamian basketball player
    • 1969 – Jennifer Lopez, American actress, singer, and dancer
    • 1971 – Dino Baggio, Italian footballer
    • 1971 – Patty Jenkins, American film director and screenwriter
    • 1972 – Kaiō Hiroyuki, Japanese sumo wrestler
    • 1973 – Russell Bawden, Australian rugby league player
    • 1973 – Ana Cristina Oliveira, Portuguese model and actress
    • 1973 – Amanda Stretton, English race car driver and journalist
    • 1974 – Andy Gomarsall, English rugby player
    • 1975 – Tracey Crouch, English politician, Minister for Sport and the Olympics
    • 1975 – Jamie Langenbrunner, American ice hockey player
    • 1975 – Torrie Wilson, American model, fitness competitor, actress and professional wrestler
    • 1975 – Eric Szmanda, American actor
    • 1976 – Rafer Alston, American basketball player
    • 1976 – Tiago Monteiro, Portuguese race car driver and manager
    • 1978 – Andy Irons, American surfer (d. 2010)
    • 1979 – Rose Byrne, Australian actress
    • 1979 – Jerrod Niemann, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1979 – Valerio Scassellati, Italian race car driver
    • 1979 – Anne-Gaëlle Sidot, French tennis player
    • 1979 – Mark Andrew Smith, American author
    • 1979 – Ryan Speier, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Joel Stroetzel, American guitarist
    • 1981 – Doug Bollinger, Australian cricketer
    • 1981 – Summer Glau, American actress
    • 1981 – Mark Robinson, English footballer
    • 1982 – Trevor Matthews, Canadian actor and producer, founded Brookstreet Pictures
    • 1982 – Thiago Medeiros, Brazilian race car driver
    • 1982 – Mewelde Moore, American football player
    • 1982 – Elisabeth Moss, American actress
    • 1982 – Anna Paquin, Canadian-New Zealand actress
    • 1982 – Michael Poppmeier, South African-German rugby player
    • 1983 – Daniele De Rossi, Italian footballer
    • 1983 – Asami Mizukawa, Japanese actress
    • 1984 – Patrick Harvey, Australian actor
    • 1984 – Tyler Kyte, Canadian singer and drummer
    • 1985 – Patrice Bergeron, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Aries Merritt, American hurdler
    • 1985 – Lukáš Rosol, Czech tennis player
    • 1985 – Eric Wright, American football player
    • 1986 – Natalie Tran, Australian actress, online producer
    • 1987 – Filipe Francisco dos Santos, Brazilian footballer
    • 1987 – Nathan Gerbe, American ice hockey player
    • 1987 – Zack Sabre Jr., English wrestler
    • 1988 – Han Seung-yeon, South Korean singer and dancer
    • 1988 – Nichkhun, Thai-American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1988 – Ricky Petterd, Australian footballer
    • 1989 – Maurkice Pouncey, American football player
    • 1989 – Kim Tae-hwan, South Korean footballer
    • 1990 – Daveigh Chase, American actress
    • 1990 – Travis Mahoney, Australian swimmer
    • 1991 – Manuel Fischnaller, Italian footballer
    • 1991 – Emily Bett Rickards, Canadian actress
    • 1992 – Mikaël Kingsbury, Canadian skier
    • 1992 – Mitch Grassi, American singer and songwriter
    • 1994 – Alejandra Álvarez, Ecuadorian tennis player
    • 1994 – Phillip Lindsay, American football player
    • 1995 – Valentine Holmes, Australian rugby league player
    • 1995 – Kyle Kuzma, American basketball player
    • 1995 – Meisei Chikara, Japanese sumo wrestler
    • 1997 – Emre Mor, Turkish football player
    • 2002 – Nicole Pircio, Brazilian rhythmic gymnast

    Deaths on July 24

    • 759 – Oswulf, king of Northumbria
    • 811 – Gao Ying, Chinese politician (b. 740)
    • 946 – Muhammad ibn Tughj al-Ikhshid, Egyptian ruler (b. 882)
    • 1115 – Matilda of Tuscany (b. 1046)
    • 1129 – Emperor Shirakawa of Japan (b. 1053)
    • 1198 – Berthold of Hanover, Bishop of Livonia
    • 1345 – Jacob van Artevelde, Flemish statesman (b. 1290)
    • 1568 – Carlos, Prince of Asturias (b. 1545)
    • 1594 – John Boste, English martyr and saint (b. 1544)
    • 1601 – Joris Hoefnagel, Flemish painter (b. 1542)
    • 1612 – John Salusbury, Welsh politician and poet (b. 1567)
    • 1739 – Benedetto Marcello, Italian composer and educator (b. 1686)
    • 1768 – Nathaniel Lardner, English theologian and author (b. 1684)
    • 1862 – Martin Van Buren, American lawyer and politician, 8th President of the United States (b. 1782)
    • 1891 – Hermann Raster, German-American journalist and politician (b. 1827)
    • 1908 – Vicente Acosta, Salvadoran journalist and poet (b. 1867)
    • 1910 – Arkhip Kuindzhi, Ukrainian-Russian painter (b. 1841)
    • 1927 – Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, Japanese author (b. 1892)
    • 1957 – Sacha Guitry, French actor and director (b. 1885)
    • 1962 – Wilfrid Noyce, English mountaineer and author (b. 1917)
    • 1965 – Constance Bennett, American actress and producer (b. 1904)
    • 1966 – Tony Lema, American golfer (b. 1934)
    • 1969 – Witold Gombrowicz, Polish author and playwright (b. 1904)
    • 1970 – Peter de Noronha, Indian businessman, philanthropist, and civil servant (b. 1897)
    • 1974 – James Chadwick, English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1891)
    • 1980 – Peter Sellers, English actor and comedian (b. 1925)
    • 1985 – Ezechiele Ramin, Italian missionary and martyr (b. 1953)
    • 1986 – Fritz Albert Lipmann, German-American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899)
    • 1986 – Qudrat Ullah Shahab, Pakistani civil servant and author (b. 1917)
    • 1991 – Isaac Bashevis Singer, Polish-American novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
    • 1992 – Arletty, French actress and singer (b. 1898)
    • 1992 – Sam Berger, Canadian lawyer and businessman (b. 1900)
    • 1994 – Helen Cordero, Cochiti Pueblo (Native American) Pueblo potter (b. 1915)
    • 1995 – George Rodger, English photographer and journalist (b. 1908)
    • 1996 – Alphonso Theodore Roberts, Vincentian cricketer and activist (b. 1937)
    • 1997 – William J. Brennan Jr., American colonel and jurist (b. 1906)
    • 1997 – Saw Maung, Burmese general and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Burma (b. 1928)
    • 2000 – Ahmad Shamloo, Iranian poet and journalist (b. 1925)
    • 2001 – Georges Dor, Canadian author, playwright, and composer (b. 1931)
    • 2005 – Richard Doll, English physiologist and epidemiologist (b. 1912)
    • 2007 – Albert Ellis, American psychologist and author (b. 1913)
    • 2007 – Nicola Zaccaria, Greek opera singer (b. 1923)
    • 2008 – Norman Dello Joio, American pianist and composer (b. 1913)
    • 2011 – Frank Dietrich, German politician (b. 1966)
    • 2011 – Dan Peek, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1950)
    • 2011 – Harald Johnsen, Norwegian bassist and composer (b. 1970)
    • 2011 – David Servan-Schreiber, French physician, neuroscientist, and author (b. 1961)
    • 2011 – Skip Thomas, American football player (b. 1950)
    • 2012 – Chad Everett, American actor and director (b. 1937)
    • 2012 – Sherman Hemsley, American actor and singer (b. 1938)
    • 2012 – Larry Hoppen, American singer and guitarist (b. 1951)
    • 2012 – Robert Ledley, American physiologist and physicist, invented the CT scanner (b. 1926)
    • 2012 – Themo Lobos, Chilean author and illustrator (b. 1928)
    • 2012 – John Atta Mills, Ghanaian lawyer and politician, a President of Ghana (b. 1944)
    • 2012 – Gregorio Peces-Barba, Spanish jurist and politician (b. 1938)
    • 2013 – Garry Davis, American pilot and activist, created the World Passport (b. 1921)
    • 2013 – Fred Dretske, American philosopher and academic (b. 1932)
    • 2013 – Virginia E. Johnson, American psychologist and sexologist (b. 1925)
    • 2013 – Pius Langa, South African lawyer and jurist, 19th Chief Justice of South Africa (b. 1939)
    • 2014 – Ik-Hwan Bae, Korean-American violinist and educator (b. 1956)
    • 2014 – Dale Schlueter, American basketball player (b. 1945)
    • 2014 – Hans-Hermann Sprado, German journalist and author (b. 1956)
    • 2015 – Peg Lynch, American actress and screenwriter (b. 1916)
    • 2015 – Ingrid Sischy, South African-American journalist and critic (b. 1952)
    • 2016 – Marni Nixon, American actress and singer (b. 1930)
    • 2017 – Harshida Raval, Indian Gujarati playback singer

    Holidays and observances on July 24

    • Carnival of Awussu (Tunisia)
    • Children’s Day (Vanuatu)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Charbel (Maronite Church/Catholic Church)
      • Christina the Astonishing
      • Christina of Bolsena
      • Declán of Ardmore
      • John Boste
      • Kinga (or Cunegunda) of Poland
      • Martyrs of Daimiel
      • Menefrida of Cornwall
      • Sigolena of Albi
      • July 24 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Pioneer Day (Utah)
    • Police Day (Poland)
    • Simón Bolívar Day (Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, and Bolivia)
      • Navy Day (Venezuela)

  • July 9- History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 491 – Odoacer makes a night assault with his Heruli guardsmen, engaging Theoderic the Great in Ad Pinetam. Both sides suffer heavy losses, but in the end Theodoric forces Odoacer back into Ravenna.
    • 551 – A major earthquake strikes Beirut, triggering a devastating tsunami that affected the coastal towns of Byzantine Phoenicia, causing thousands of deaths.
    • 660 – Korean forces under general Kim Yu-sin of Silla defeat the army of Baekje in the Battle of Hwangsanbeol.
    • 869 – The 8.4–9.0 Mw  Sanriku earthquake strikes the area around Sendai in northern Honshu, Japan. Inundation from the tsunami extended several kilometers inland.
    • 969 – The Fatimid general Jawhar leads the Friday prayer in Fustat in the name of Caliph al-Mu’izz li-Din Allah, thereby symbolically completing the Fatimid conquest of Egypt.
    • 1357 – Emperor Charles IV assists in laying the foundation stone of Charles Bridge in Prague.
    • 1386 – The Old Swiss Confederacy makes great strides in establishing control over its territory by soundly defeating the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Sempach.
    • 1401 – Timur attacks the Jalairid Sultanate and destroys Baghdad.
    • 1540 – King Henry VIII of England annuls his marriage to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves.
    • 1572 – Nineteen Catholics suffer martyrdom for their beliefs in the Dutch town of Gorkum.
    • 1609 – Bohemia is granted freedom of religion through the Letter of Majesty by the Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf II.
    • 1701 – A Bourbon force under Nicolas Catinat withdraws from a smaller Habsburg force under Prince Eugene of Savoy in the Battle of Carpi.
    • 1745 – French victory in the Battle of Melle allows them to capture Ghent in the days after.
    • 1755 – The Braddock Expedition is soundly defeated by a smaller French and Native American force in its attempt to capture Fort Duquesne in what is now downtown Pittsburgh.
    • 1762 – Catherine the Great becomes Empress of Russia following the coup against her husband, Peter III.
    • 1776 – George Washington orders the Declaration of Independence to be read out to members of the Continental Army in Manhattan, while thousands of British troops on Staten Island prepare for the Battle of Long Island.
    • 1789 – In Versailles, the National Assembly reconstitutes itself as the National Constituent Assembly and begins preparations for a French constitution.
    • 1790 – The Swedish Navy captures one third of the Russian Baltic fleet.
    • 1793 – The Act Against Slavery in Upper Canada bans the importation of slaves and will free those who are born into slavery after the passage of the Act at 25 years of age.
    • 1807 – The Treaties of Tilsit are signed by Napoleon I of France and Alexander I of Russia.
    • 1810 – Napoleon annexes the Kingdom of Holland as part of the First French Empire.
    • 1811 – Explorer David Thompson posts a sign near what is now Sacajawea State Park in Washington state, claiming the Columbia District for the United Kingdom.
    • 1815 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord becomes the first Prime Minister of France.
    • 1816 – Argentina declares independence from Spain.
    • 1821 – Four hundred and seventy prominent Cypriots including Archbishop Kyprianos are executed in response to Cypriot aid to the Greek War of Independence.
    • 1850 – U.S. President Zachary Taylor dies after eating raw fruit and iced milk; he is succeeded in office by Vice President Millard Fillmore.
    • 1850 – Persian prophet Báb is executed in Tabriz, Persia.
    • 1863 – American Civil War: The Siege of Port Hudson ends, giving the Union complete control of the Mississippi River.
    • 1868 – The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, guaranteeing African Americans full citizenship and all persons in the United States due process of law.
    • 1875 – The Herzegovina Uprising against Ottoman rule begins, which would last until 1878 and have far-reaching implications throughout the Balkans.
    • 1877 – The inaugural Wimbledon Championships begins.
    • 1893 – Daniel Hale Williams, American heart surgeon, performs the first successful open-heart surgery in United States without anesthesia.
    • 1896 – William Jennings Bryan delivers his Cross of Gold speech advocating bimetallism at the 1896 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
    • 1900 – The Federation of Australia is given royal assent.
    • 1900 – The Governor of Shanxi province in North China orders the execution of 45 foreign Christian missionaries and local church members, including children.
    • 1918 – In Nashville, Tennessee, an inbound local train collides with an outbound express, killing 101 and injuring 171 people, making it the deadliest rail accident in United States history.
    • 1922 – Johnny Weissmuller swims the 100 meters freestyle in 58.6 seconds breaking the world swimming record and the ‘minute barrier’.
    • 1932 – The state of São Paulo revolts against the Brazilian Federal Government, starting the Constitutionalist Revolution.
    • 1937 – The silent film archives of Fox Film Corporation are destroyed by the 1937 Fox vault fire.
    • 1943 – World War II: The Allied invasion of Sicily soon causes the downfall of Mussolini and forces Hitler to break off the Battle of Kursk.
    • 1944 – World War II: American forces take Saipan, bringing the Japanese archipelago within range of B-29 raids, and causing the downfall of the Tojo government.
    • 1944 – World War II: Continuation War: Finland wins the Battle of Tali-Ihantala, the largest battle ever fought in northern Europe. The Red Army withdraws its troops from Ihantala and digs into a defensive position, thus ending the Vyborg–Petrozavodsk Offensive.
    • 1955 – The Russell–Einstein Manifesto calls for a reduction of the risk of nuclear warfare.
    • 1956 – The 7.7 Mw  Amorgos earthquake shakes the Cyclades island group in the Aegean Sea with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The shaking and the destructive tsunami that followed left fifty-three people dead. A damaging M7.2 aftershock occurred minutes after the mainshock.
    • 1958 – A 7.8 Mw  strike-slip earthquake in Alaska causes a landslide that produces a megatsunami. The runup from the waves reached 525 m (1,722 ft) on the rim of Lituya Bay; five people were killed.
    • 1962 – Starfish Prime tests the effects of a nuclear test at orbital altitudes.
    • 1979 – A car bomb destroys a Renault motor car owned by “Nazi hunters” Serge and Beate Klarsfeld outside their home in France in an unsuccessful assassination attempt.
    • 1982 – Pan Am Flight 759 crashes in Kenner, Louisiana, killing all 145 people on board and eight others on the ground.
    • 1986 – The New Zealand Parliament passes the Homosexual Law Reform Act legalising homosexuality in New Zealand.
    • 1993 – The Parliament of Canada passes the Nunavut Act leading to the 1999 creation of Nunavut, dividing the Northwest Territories into arctic (Inuit) and sub-arctic (Dene) lands based on a plebiscite.
    • 1995 – The Navaly church bombing is carried out by the Sri Lanka Air Force killing 125 Tamil civilian refugees.
    • 1999 – Days of student protests begin after Iranian police and hardliners attack a student dormitory at the University of Tehran.
    • 2002 – The African Union is established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, replacing the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). The organization’s first chairman is Thabo Mbeki, President of South Africa.
    • 2006 – One hundred and twenty-five people are killed when S7 Airlines Flight 778, an Airbus A310 passenger jet, veers off the runway while landing in wet conditions at Irkutsk Airport in Siberia.
    • 2011 – South Sudan gains independence and secedes from Sudan.

    Births on July 9

    • 1249 – Emperor Kameyama of Japan (d. 1305)
    • 1455 – Frederick IV of Baden, Dutch bishop (d. 1517)
    • 1511 – Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg (d. 1571)
    • 1526 – Elizabeth of Austria, Polish noble (d. 1545)
    • 1577 – Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, English-American soldier and politician, Colonial Governor of Virginia (d. 1618)
    • 1578 – Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1637)
    • 1654 – Emperor Reigen of Japan (d. 1732)
    • 1686 – Philip Livingston, American merchant and politician (d. 1749)
    • 1689 – Alexis Piron, French epigrammatist and playwright (d. 1773)
    • 1721 – Johann Nikolaus Götz, German poet and author (d. 1781)
    • 1753 – William Waldegrave, 1st Baron Radstock, English admiral and politician, 34th Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland (d. 1825)
    • 1764 – Ann Ward, English author and poet (d. 1823)
    • 1775 – Matthew Lewis, English author and playwright (d. 1818)
    • 1800 – Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle, German physician, pathologist, and anatomist (d. 1885)
    • 1808 – Alexander William Doniphan, American lawyer and colonel (d. 1887)
    • 1819 – Elias Howe, American inventor, invented the sewing machine (d. 1867)
    • 1825 – A. C. Gibbs, American lawyer and politician, 2nd Governor of Oregon (d. 1886)
    • 1828 – Luigi Oreglia di Santo Stefano, Italian cardinal (d. 1913)
    • 1834 – Jan Neruda, Czech journalist and poet (d. 1891)
    • 1836 – Camille of Renesse-Breidbach (d. 1904)
    • 1848 – Robert I, Duke of Parma (d. 1907)
    • 1853 – William Turner Dannat, American painter (d. 1929)
    • 1856 – John Verran, English-Australian politician, 26th Premier of South Australia (d. 1932)
    • 1858 – Franz Boas, German-American anthropologist and linguist (d. 1942)
    • 1867 – Georges Lecomte, French author and playwright (d. 1958)
    • 1879 – Carlos Chagas, Brazilian physician and parasitologist (d. 1934)
    • 1879 – Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer and conductor (d. 1936)
    • 1887 – James Ormsbee Chapin, American-Canadian painter and illustrator (d. 1975)
    • 1887 – Saturnino Herrán, Mexican painter (d. 1918)
    • 1887 – Samuel Eliot Morison, American admiral and historian (d. 1976)
    • 1889 – Léo Dandurand, American-Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and referee (d. 1964)
    • 1893 – George Geary, English cricketer and coach (d. 1981)
    • 1901 – Barbara Cartland, prolific English author (d. 2000)
    • 1902 – Peter Acland, English soldier (d. 1993)
    • 1905 – Clarence Campbell, Canadian ice hockey player and referee (d. 1984)
    • 1907 – Eddie Dean, American singer-songwriter (d. 1999)
    • 1908 – Allamah Rasheed Turabi, Pakistani philosopher and scholar (d. 1973)
    • 1908 – Minor White, American photographer, critic, and educator (d. 1976)
    • 1909 – Basil Wolverton, American author and illustrator (d. 1978)
    • 1910 – Govan Mbeki, South African anti-apartheid and ANC leader and activist (d. 2001)
    • 1911 – Mervyn Peake, English author and illustrator (d. 1968)
    • 1911 – John Archibald Wheeler, American physicist and author (d. 2008)
    • 1914 – Willi Stoph, German engineer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of East Germany (d. 1999)
    • 1914 – Mac Wilson, Australian rules footballer (d. 2017)
    • 1915 – David Diamond, American composer and educator (d. 2005)
    • 1915 – Lee Embree, American sergeant and photographer (d. 2008)
    • 1916 – Dean Goffin, New Zealand composer (d. 1984)
    • 1916 – Edward Heath, English colonel and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2005)
    • 1917 – Krystyna Dańko, Polish orphan, survivor of Holocaust (d. 2019)
    • 1918 – Nicolaas Govert de Bruijn, Dutch mathematician and academic (d. 2012)
    • 1918 – Jarl Wahlström, Finnish 12th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1999)
    • 1921 – David C. Jones, American general (d. 2013)
    • 1922 – Angelines Fernández, Spanish-Mexican actress (d. 1994)
    • 1922 – Jim Pollard, American basketball player and coach (d. 1993)
    • 1924 – Pierre Cochereau, French organist and composer (d. 1984)
    • 1925 – Guru Dutt, Indian actor, director, and producer (d. 1964)
    • 1925 – Charles E. Wicks, American engineer, author, and academic (d. 2010)
    • 1925 – Ronald I. Spiers, American ambassador
    • 1926 – Murphy Anderson, American illustrator (d. 2015)
    • 1926 – Ben Roy Mottelson, American-Danish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1926 – Pedro Dellacha, Argentine football defender and coach (d. 2010)
    • 1926 – Mathilde Krim, Italian-American medical researcher and health educator (d. 2018)
    • 1927 – Ed Ames, American singer and actor
    • 1927 – Red Kelly, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and politician (d. 2019)
    • 1928 – Federico Bahamontes, Spanish cyclist
    • 1928 – Vince Edwards, American actor, singer, and director (d. 1996)
    • 1929 – Lee Hazlewood, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2007)
    • 1929 – Jesse McReynolds, American singer and mandolin player
    • 1929 – Chi Haotian, Chinese general
    • 1929 – Hassan II of Morocco (d. 1999)
    • 1930 – K. Balachander, Indian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Buddy Bregman, American composer and conductor (d. 2017)
    • 1930 – Janice Lourie, American computer scientist and graphic artist
    • 1930 – Elsa Lystad, Norwegian actress
    • 1930 – Roy McLean, South African cricketer and rugby player (d. 2007)
    • 1931 – Haynes Johnson, American journalist and author (d. 2013)
    • 1931 – Sylvia Bacon, American judge
    • 1932 – Donald Rumsfeld, American captain and politician, 13th United States Secretary of Defense
    • 1932 – Amitzur Shapira, Israeli sprinter and long jumper (d. 1972)
    • 1933 – Oliver Sacks, English-American neurologist, author, and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1934 – Michael Graves, American architect, designed the Portland Building and the Humana Building (d. 2015)
    • 1935 – Wim Duisenberg, Dutch economist and politician, Dutch Minister of Finance (d. 2005)
    • 1935 – Mercedes Sosa, Argentinian singer and activist (d. 2009)
    • 1935 – Michael Williams, English actor (d. 2001)
    • 1936 – June Jordan, American poet and educator (d. 2002)
    • 1936 – David Zinman, American violinist and conductor
    • 1937 – David Hockney, English painter and photographer
    • 1938 – Brian Dennehy, American actor (d. 2020)
    • 1938 – Sanjeev Kumar, Indian film actor (d. 1985)
    • 1940 – David B. Frohnmayer, American lawyer and politician, 12th Oregon Attorney General (d. 2015)
    • 1940 – Eugene Victor Wolfenstein, American psychoanalyst and theorist (d. 2010)
    • 1941 – Mac MacLeod, English musician
    • 1942 – David Chidgey, Baron Chidgey, English engineer and politician
    • 1942 – Richard Roundtree, American actor
    • 1943 – John Casper, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1944 – Judith M. Brown, Indian-English historian and academic
    • 1944 – John Cunniff, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2002)
    • 1945 – Dean Koontz, American author and screenwriter
    • 1945 – Root Boy Slim, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1993)
    • 1946 – Bon Scott, Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter (d. 1980)
    • 1947 – Haruomi Hosono, Japanese singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
    • 1947 – Mitch Mitchell, English drummer (d. 2008)
    • 1947 – O. J. Simpson, American football player and actor
    • 1947 – Patrick Wormald, English historian (d. 2004)
    • 1948 – Hassan Wirajuda, Indonesian lawyer and politician, 15th Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs
    • 1949 – Raoul Cédras, Haitian military officer and politician
    • 1950 – Amal ibn Idris al-Alami, Moroccan physician and neurosurgeon
    • 1950 – Adriano Panatta, Italian tennis player and sailor
    • 1950 – Viktor Yanukovych, Ukrainian engineer and politician, 4th President of Ukraine
    • 1951 – Chris Cooper, American actor
    • 1951 – Māris Gailis, Latvian politician, businessman, and former Prime Minister of Latvia
    • 1952 – John Tesh, American pianist, composer, and radio and television host
    • 1953 – Margie Gillis, Canadian dancer and choreographer
    • 1953 – Thomas Ligotti, American author
    • 1954 – Théophile Abega, Cameroonian footballer and politician (d. 2012)
    • 1954 – Kevin O’Leary, Canadian journalist and businessman
    • 1955 – Steve Coppell, English footballer and manager
    • 1955 – Lindsey Graham, American colonel, lawyer, and politician
    • 1955 – Jimmy Smits, American actor and producer
    • 1955 – Willie Wilson, American baseball player and manager
    • 1956 – Tom Hanks, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1956 – Michael Lederer, American author, poet, and playwright
    • 1957 – Marc Almond, English singer-songwriter
    • 1957 – Tim Kring, American screenwriter and producer
    • 1957 – Kelly McGillis, American actress
    • 1957 – Paul Merton, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
    • 1958 – Abdul Latiff Ahmad, Malaysian politician
    • 1958 – Jacob Joseph, Malaysian football coach
    • 1959 – Jim Kerr, Scottish singer-songwriter and keyboard player
    • 1959 – Kevin Nash, American wrestler
    • 1959 – Clive Stafford Smith, English lawyer and author
    • 1960 – Yūko Asano, Japanese actress and singer
    • 1960 – Wally Fullerton Smith, Australian rugby league player
    • 1960 – Eduardo Montes-Bradley, Argentinian journalist, photographer, and author
    • 1963 – Klaus Theiss, German footballer
    • 1964 – Courtney Love, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
    • 1964 – Gianluca Vialli, Italian footballer and coach
    • 1965 – Frank Bello, American bass player
    • 1965 – Thomas Jahn, German director and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Jason Rhoades, American sculptor (d. 2006)
    • 1966 – Pamela Adlon, American actress and voice artist
    • 1966 – Zheng Cao, Chinese-American soprano and actress (d. 2013)
    • 1966 – Gary Glasberg, American television writer and producer (d. 2016)
    • 1966 – Marco Pennette, American screenwriter and producer
    • 1967 – Gunnar Axén, Swedish politician
    • 1967 – Yordan Letchkov, Bulgarian footballer
    • 1967 – Mark Stoops, American football player and coach
    • 1968 – Paolo Di Canio, Italian footballer and manager
    • 1968 – Lars Gyllenhaal, Swedish historian and author
    • 1969 – Nicklas Barker, Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1969 – Jason Kearton, Australian footballer and coach
    • 1970 – Trent Green, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1970 – Masami Tsuda, Japanese author and illustrator
    • 1971 – Marc Andreessen, American software developer, co-founded Netscape
    • 1972 – Ara Babajian, American drummer and songwriter
    • 1973 – Kelly Holcomb, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1974 – Siân Berry, English environmentalist and politician
    • 1974 – Ian Bradshaw, Barbadian cricketer
    • 1974 – Gary Kelly, Irish footballer
    • 1974 – Nikola Šarčević, Swedish singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1975 – Shelton Benjamin, American wrestler
    • 1975 – Isaac Brock, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1975 – Robert Koenig, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1975 – Craig Quinnell, Welsh rugby player
    • 1975 – Jack White, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1976 – Thomas Cichon, Polish-German footballer and manager
    • 1976 – Fred Savage, American actor, director, and producer
    • 1976 – Radike Samo, Fijian-Australian rugby player
    • 1978 – Kara Goucher, American runner
    • 1978 – Nuno Santos, Portuguese footballer
    • 1979 – Gary Chaw, Malaysian Chinese singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Lee Chun-soo, South Korean footballer
    • 1981 – Junauda Petrus, American author and performance artist
    • 1982 – Alecko Eskandarian, American soccer player and manager
    • 1982 – Sakon Yamamoto, Japanese race car driver
    • 1984 – Chris Campoli, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Gianni Fabiano, Italian footballer
    • 1984 – Jacob Hoggard, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1984 – Ave Pajo, Estonian footballer
    • 1984 – Piia Suomalainen, Finnish tennis player
    • 1984 – LA Tenorio, Filipino basketball player
    • 1985 – Paweł Korzeniowski, Polish swimmer
    • 1985 – Ashley Young, English footballer
    • 1986 – Sébastien Bassong, Cameroonian footballer
    • 1986 – Simon Dumont, American skier
    • 1986 – Kiely Williams, American singer-songwriter and dancer
    • 1987 – Gert Jõeäär, Estonian cyclist
    • 1987 – Rebecca Sugar, American animator, composer, and screenwriter
    • 1988 – Raul Rusescu, Romanian footballer
    • 1990 – Earl Bamber, New Zealand race car driver
    • 1990 – Fábio, Brazilian footballer
    • 1990 – Rafael, Brazilian footballer
    • 1991 – Mitchel Musso, American actor and singer
    • 1993 – Mitch Larkin, Australian swimmer
    • 1993 – DeAndre Yedlin, American footballer
    • 1999 – Claire Corlett, American voice actress

    Deaths on July 9

    • 230 – Empress Dowager Bian, Cao Cao’s wife (b. 159)
    • 518 – Anastasius I Dicorus, Byzantine emperor (b. 430)
    • 715 – Naga, Japanese prince
    • 880 – Ariwara no Narihira, Japanese poet (b. 825)
    • 981 – Ramiro Garcés, king of Viguera
    • 1169 – Guido of Ravenna, Italian cartographer, entomologist and historian
    • 1228 – Stephen Langton, English cardinal and theologian (b. 1150)
    • 1270 – Stephen Báncsa, Hungarian cardinal (b. c. 1205)
    • 1386 – Leopold III, Duke of Austria (b. 1351)
    • 1441 – Jan van Eyck, Dutch painter
    • 1546 – Robert Maxwell, 5th Lord Maxwell, Scottish statesman (b. c. 1493)
    • 1553 – Maurice, Elector of Saxony (b. 1521)
    • 1654 – Ferdinand IV, King of the Romans (b. 1633)
    • 1706 – Pierre Le Moyne d’Iberville, Canadian captain and explorer (b. 1661)
    • 1737 – Gian Gastone de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1671)
    • 1742 – John Oldmixon, English historian, poet, and playwright (b. 1673)
    • 1746 – Philip V of Spain (b. 1683)
    • 1747 – Giovanni Bononcini, Italian cellist and composer (b. 1670)
    • 1766 – Jonathan Mayhew, American minister (b. 1720)
    • 1795 – Henry Seymour Conway, English general and politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (b. 1721)
    • 1797 – Edmund Burke, Irish-English philosopher, academic, and politician (b. 1729)
    • 1828 – Cathinka Buchwieser, German operatic singer and actress (b. 1789)
    • 1850 – Báb, Persian religious leader, founded Bábism (b. 1819)
    • 1850 – Zachary Taylor, American general and politician, 12th President of the United States (b. 1784)
    • 1852 – Thomas McKean Thompson McKennan, American lawyer and politician, 2nd United States Secretary of the Interior (b. 1794)
    • 1856 – Amedeo Avogadro, Italian chemist and academic (b. 1776)
    • 1856 – James Strang, American religious leader and politician (b. 1813)
    • 1880 – Paul Broca, French physician and anatomist (b. 1824)
    • 1882 – Ignacio Carrera Pinto, Chilean captain (b. 1848)
    • 1903 – Alphonse François Renard, Belgian geologist and photographer (b. 1842)
    • 1927 – John Drew, Jr., American actor (b. 1853)
    • 1932 – King Camp Gillette, American businessman, founded the Gillette Company (b. 1855)
    • 1937 – Oliver Law, American commander (b. 1899)
    • 1938 – Benjamin N. Cardozo, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1870)
    • 1947 – Lucjan Żeligowski, Polish-Lithuanian general and politician (b. 1865)
    • 1949 – Fritz Hart, English-Australian composer and conductor (b. 1874)
    • 1951 – Harry Heilmann, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1894)
    • 1955 – Don Beauman, English race car driver (b. 1928)
    • 1955 – Adolfo de la Huerta, Mexican politician and provisional president, 1920 (b. 1881)
    • 1959 – Ferenc Talányi, Slovene journalist and painter (b. 1883)
    • 1962 – Georges Bataille, French philosopher, novelist, and poet (b. 1897)
    • 1961 – Whittaker Chambers, American spy and witness in Hiss case(b. 1901)
    • 1967 – Eugen Fischer, German physician and academic (b. 1874)
    • 1967 – Fatima Jinnah, Pakistani dentist and politician (b. 1893)
    • 1970 – Sigrid Holmquist, Swedish actress (b. 1899)
    • 1971 – Karl Ast, Estonian author and politician (b. 1886)
    • 1972 – Robert Weede, American opera singer (b. 1903)
    • 1974 – Earl Warren, American jurist and politician, 14th Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1891)
    • 1977 – Alice Paul, American activist (b. 1885)
    • 1979 – Cornelia Otis Skinner, American actress and author (b. 1899)
    • 1980 – Vinicius de Moraes, Brazilian poet, playwright, and composer (b. 1913)
    • 1984 – Edna Ernestine Kramer, American mathematician (b. 1902)
    • 1985 – Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg (b. 1896)
    • 1985 – Jimmy Kinnon, Scottish-American activist, founded Narcotics Anonymous (b. 1911)
    • 1986 – Patriarch Nicholas VI of Alexandria (b. 1915)
    • 1992 – Kelvin Coe, Australian ballet dancer (b. 1946)
    • 1992 – Eric Sevareid, American journalist (b. 1912)
    • 1993 – Metin Altıok, Turkish poet and educator (b. 1940)
    • 1994 – Bill Mosienko, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1921)
    • 1996 – Melvin Belli, American lawyer (b. 1907)
    • 1999 – Robert de Cotret, Canadian politician, 56th Secretary of State for Canada (b. 1944)
    • 2000 – Doug Fisher, English actor (b. 1941)
    • 2002 – Mayo Kaan, American bodybuilder (b. 1914)
    • 2002 – Rod Steiger, American actor (b. 1925)
    • 2004 – Paul Klebnikov, American journalist and historian (b. 1963)
    • 2004 – Isabel Sanford, American actress (b. 1917)
    • 2005 – Chuck Cadman, Canadian engineer and politician (b. 1948)
    • 2005 – Yevgeny Grishin, Russian speed skater (b. 1931)
    • 2005 – Alex Shibicky, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1914)
    • 2006 – Milan Williams, American keyboard player and producer (b. 1948)
    • 2007 – Charles Lane, American actor (b. 1905)
    • 2008 – Séamus Brennan, Irish accountant and politician, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport (b. 1948)
    • 2010 – Jessica Anderson, Australian author and playwright (b. 1916)
    • 2011 – Don Ackerman, American basketball player (b. 1930)
    • 2011 – Facundo Cabral, Argentinian singer-songwriter (b. 1937)
    • 2012 – Shin Jae-chul, South Korean-American martial artist (b. 1936)
    • 2012 – Chick King, American baseball player (b. 1930)
    • 2012 – Terepai Maoate, Cook Islander physician and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Cook Islands (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Eugênio Sales, Brazilian cardinal (b. 1920)
    • 2013 – Markus Büchel, Liechtensteiner politician, 9th Prime Minister of Liechtenstein (b. 1959)
    • 2013 – Andrew Nori, Solomon lawyer and politician (b. 1952)
    • 2013 – Kiril of Varna, Bulgarian metropolitan (b. 1954)
    • 2013 – Barbara Robinson, American author and poet (b. 1927)
    • 2013 – Toshi Seeger, American activist, co-founded the Clearwater Festival (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – Lorenzo Álvarez Florentín, Paraguayan violinist and composer (b. 1926)
    • 2014 – David Azrieli, Polish-Canadian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – Eileen Ford, American businesswoman, co-founded Ford Models (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – John Spinks, English guitarist and songwriter (b. 1953)
    • 2015 – Christian Audigier, French fashion designer (b. 1958)
    • 2015 – Saud bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Arabian economist and politician, Saudi Arabian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1940)
    • 2019 – William E. Dannemeyer, American politician (b. 1929)
    • 2019 – Ross Perot, American businessman and politician (b. 1930)
    • 2019 – Fernando de la Rúa, 43rd President of Argentina (b. 1937)
    • 2019 – Rip Torn, American actor (b. 1931)
    • 2019 – Freddie Jones, English actor (b. 1927)

    Holidays and observances on July 9

    • Arbor Day (Cambodia)
    • Christian Feast Day:
      • Agilulfus of Cologne
      • Amandina of Schakkebroek (one of Martyrs of Southern Hunan)
      • Blessed Marija Petković
      • Everilda
      • Gregorio Grassi (one of Martyrs of Shanxi)
      • Martyr Saints of China
      • Martyrs of Gorkum
      • Our Lady of Itatí
      • Our Lady of Peace, Octave of the Visitation
      • Our Lady of the Rosary of Chiquinquirá
      • Pauline of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus
      • Stephen Langton, Archbishop of Canterbury (Anglican commemoration)
      • Veronica Giuliani
      • July 9 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Constitution Day (Australia)
    • Constitution Day (Palau)
    • Constitutionalist Revolution Day (São Paulo)
    • Day of the Employees of the Diplomatic Service (Azerbaijan)
    • Earliest day on which Martyrdom of the Báb can fall, while July 10 is the latest; observed on the 17th of Raḥmat (Bahá’í Faith)
    • Independence Day, celebrates the declaration of independence of the United Provinces of South America by the Congress of Tucumán in 1816. (Argentina)
    • Independence Day, celebrates the independence of South Sudan from Sudan in 2011.
    • Nunavut Day (Nunavut)

  • March 20- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    Typically the March equinox falls on March 20, marking the vernal point in the Northern Hemisphere and the autumnal point in the Southern Hemisphere.

    • 235 – Maximinus Thrax is proclaimed emperor.
    • 673 – Emperor Tenmu of Japan assumes the Chrysanthemum Throne at the Palace of Kiyomihara in Asuka.
    • 1206 – Michael IV Autoreianos is appointed Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.
    • 1600 – The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden: five Swedish noblemen are publicly beheaded in the aftermath of the War against Sigismund (1598–1599).
    • 1602 – The Dutch East India Company is established.
    • 1616 – Sir Walter Raleigh is freed from the Tower of London after 13 years of imprisonment.
    • 1760 – The Great Boston Fire of 1760 destroys 349 buildings.
    • 1815 – After escaping from Elba, Napoleon enters Paris with a regular army of 140,000 and a volunteer force of around 200,000, beginning his “Hundred Days” rule.
    • 1848 – German revolutions of 1848–49: King Ludwig I of Bavaria abdicates.
    • 1852 – Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin is published.
    • 1854 – The Republican Party of the United States is organized in Ripon, Wisconsin, US.
    • 1861 – An earthquake destroys Mendoza, Argentina.
    • 1883 – The Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property is signed.
    • 1888 – The premiere of the very first Romani language operetta is staged in Moscow, Russia.
    • 1890 – Prime Minister of the German Empire Otto von Bismarck is dismissed by Emperor Wilhelm II.
    • 1896 – With the approval of Emperor Guangxu, the Qing dynasty post office is opened, marking the beginning of a postal service in China.
    • 1913 – Sung Chiao-jen, a founder of the Chinese Nationalist Party, is wounded in an assassination attempt and dies 2 days later.
    • 1915 – Albert Einstein publishes his general theory of relativity.
    • 1921 – The Upper Silesia plebiscite was a plebiscite mandated by the Versailles Treaty to determine a section of the border between Weimar Germany and Poland.
    • 1922 – The USS Langley is commissioned as the first United States Navy aircraft carrier.
    • 1923 – The Arts Club of Chicago hosts the opening of Pablo Picasso’s first United States showing, entitled Original Drawings by Pablo Picasso, becoming an early proponent of modern art in the United States.
    • 1933 – Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler ordered the creation of Dachau concentration camp as Chief of Police of Munich and appointed Theodor Eicke as the camp commandant.
    • 1942 – World War II: General Douglas MacArthur, at Terowie, South Australia, makes his famous speech regarding the fall of the Philippines, in which he says: “I came out of Bataan and I shall return”.
    • 1948 – With a Musicians Union ban lifted, the first telecasts of classical music in the United States, under Eugene Ormandy and Arturo Toscanini, are given on CBS and NBC.
    • 1951 – Fujiyoshida, a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, in the center of the Japanese main island of Honshū is founded.
    • 1952 – The US Senate ratifies the Security Treaty Between the United States and Japan.
    • 1956 – Tunisia gains independence from France.
    • 1964 – The precursor of the European Space Agency, ESRO (European Space Research Organisation) is established per an agreement signed on June 14, 1962.
    • 1972 – The Troubles: The first Provisional IRA car bombing in Belfast kills seven people and injures 148 others in Northern Ireland.
    • 1985 – Libby Riddles becomes the first woman to win the 1,135-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
    • 1985 – Canadian paraplegic athlete and humanitarian Rick Hansen begins his circumnavigation of the globe in a wheelchair in the name of spinal cord injury medical research.
    • 1987 – The Food and Drug Administration approves the anti-AIDS drug, AZT.
    • 1988 – Eritrean War of Independence: Having defeated the Nadew Command, the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front enters the town of Afabet, victoriously concluding the Battle of Afabet.
    • 1990 – Ferdinand Marcos’s widow, Imelda Marcos, goes on trial for bribery, embezzlement, and racketeering.
    • 1993 – The Troubles: A Provisional IRA bomb kills two children in Warrington, England. It leads to mass protests in both Britain and Ireland.
    • 1995 – The Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo carries out a sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway, killing 13 and wounding over 6,200 people.
    • 1999 – Legoland California, the first Legoland outside of Europe, opens in Carlsbad, California, US.
    • 2000 – Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, a former Black Panther once known as H. Rap Brown, is captured after murdering Georgia sheriff’s deputy Ricky Kinchen and critically wounding Deputy Aldranon English.
    • 2003 – Invasion of Iraq: In the early hours of the morning, the United States and three other countries (the UK, Australia and Poland) begin military operations in Iraq.
    • 2006 – Over 150 Chadian soldiers are killed in eastern Chad by members of the rebel UFDC. The rebel movement sought to overthrow Chadian president Idriss Déby.
    • 2012 – At least 52 people are killed and more than 250 injured in a wave of terror attacks across ten cities in Iraq.
    • 2014 – Four suspected Taliban members attack the Kabul Serena Hotel, killing at least nine people.
    • 2015 – A Solar eclipse, equinox, and a supermoon all occur on the same day.

    Births on March 20

    • 43 BC – Ovid, Roman poet (d. 17)
    • 1253 – Magadu, renamed Wareru, founder of Ramanya Kingdom, renamed Hanthawady Kingdom of Pegu (b. a commoner; d. on a Saturday in January 1307)
    • 1319 – Laurence Hastings, 1st Earl of Pembroke (d. 1348)
    • 1469 – Cecily of York (d. 1507)
    • 1477 – Jerome Emser, German theologian and scholar (d. 1527)
    • 1479 – Ippolito d’Este, Italian cardinal (d. 1520)
    • 1502 – Pierino Belli, Italian soldier and jurist (d. 1575)
    • 1532 – Juan de Ribera, Roman Catholic archbishop (d. 1611)
    • 1612 – Anne Bradstreet, Puritan American poet (d. 1672)
    • 1615 – Dara Shikoh, Indian prince (d. 1659)
    • 1639 – Ivan Mazepa, Ukrainian diplomat, Hetman of Ukraine (d. 1709)
    • 1725 – Abdul Hamid I, Ottoman sultan (d. 1789)
    • 1737 – Rama I, Thai king (d. 1809)
    • 1771 – Heinrich Clauren, German author (d. 1854)
    • 1796 – Edward Gibbon Wakefield, English politician (d. 1862)
    • 1799 – Karl August Nicander, Swedish poet and author (d. 1839)
    • 1800 – Braulio Carrillo Colina, Costa Rican lawyer and politician, President of Costa Rica (d. 1845)
    • 1805 – Thomas Cooper, British poet (d. 1892)
    • 1811 – Napoleon II, French emperor (d. 1832)
    • 1811 – George Caleb Bingham, American painter and politician, State Treasurer of Missouri (d. 1879)
    • 1821 – Ned Buntline, American journalist, author, and publisher (d. 1886)
    • 1824 – Theodor von Heuglin, German explorer and ornithologist (d. 1876)
    • 1828 – Henrik Ibsen, Norwegian poet, playwright, and director (d. 1906)
    • 1831 – Patrick Jennings, Northern Irish-Australian politician, 11th Premier of New South Wales (d. 1897)
    • 1831 – Solomon L. Spink, American lawyer and politician (d. 1881)
    • 1834 – Charles William Eliot, American mathematician and academic (d. 1926)
    • 1836 – Ferris Jacobs, Jr., American general, lawyer, and politician (d. 1886)
    • 1836 – Edward Poynter, English painter, illustrator, and curator (d. 1919)
    • 1840 – Illarion Pryanishnikov, Russian painter (d. 1894)
    • 1851 – Ismail Gasprinski, Ukrainian educator, publisher, and politician (d. 1914)
    • 1856 – John Lavery, Irish painter (d. 1941)
    • 1856 – Frederick Winslow Taylor, American tennis player and engineer (d. 1915)
    • 1870 – Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, German general (d. 1964)
    • 1874 – Börries von Münchhausen, German poet and activist (d. 1945)
    • 1876 – Payne Whitney, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1927)
    • 1879 – Maud Menten, Canadian physician and biochemist (d. 1960)
    • 1882 – René Coty, French lawyer and politician, 17th President of France (d. 1962)
    • 1882 – Harold Weber, American golfer (d. 1933)
    • 1884 – Philipp Frank, Austrian-American physicist, mathematician, and philosopher (d. 1966)
    • 1884 – John Jensen, Australian public servant (d. 1970)
    • 1885 – Vernon Ransford, Australian cricketer (d. 1958)
    • 1888 – Amanda Clement, American baseball player, umpire, and educator (d. 1971)
    • 1890 – Lauritz Melchior, Danish-American tenor and actor (d. 1973)
    • 1894 – Amalie Sara Colquhoun, Australian landscape and portrait painter (d. 1974)
    • 1895 – Fredric Wertham, German-American psychologist and author (d. 1981)
    • 1898 – Eduard Wiiralt, Estonian artist (d. 1954)
    • 1900 – Amelia Chopitea Villa, Bolivia’s first female physician (d. 1942)
    • 1903 – Edgar Buchanan, American actor (d. 1979)
    • 1904 – B. F. Skinner, American psychologist and author (d. 1990)
    • 1905 – Jean Galia, French rugby player and boxer (d. 1949)
    • 1906 – Abraham Beame, American accountant and politician, 104th Mayor of New York City (d. 2001)
    • 1906 – Ozzie Nelson, American actor and bandleader (d. 1975)
    • 1907 – Hugh MacLennan, Canadian author and educator (d. 1990)
    • 1908 – Michael Redgrave, English actor and director (d. 1985)
    • 1910 – Erwin Blask, German hammer thrower (d. 1999)
    • 1911 – Alfonso García Robles, Mexican lawyer and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1991)
    • 1912 – Ralph Hauenstein, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2016)
    • 1913 – Nikolai Stepulov, Russian-Estonian boxer (d. 1968)
    • 1914 – Wendell Corey, American actor and politician (d. 1968)
    • 1915 – Rudolf Kirchschläger, Austrian judge and politician, 8th President of Austria (d. 2000)
    • 1915 – Sviatoslav Richter, Ukrainian pianist and composer (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – Sister Rosetta Tharpe, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1973)
    • 1916 – Pierre Messmer, French lieutenant and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 2007)
    • 1917 – Vera Lynn, English singer, songwriter and actress (d. 2020)
    • 1917 – Yigael Yadin, Israeli archaeologist, general, and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Israel (d. 1984)
    • 1918 – Jack Barry, American game show host and producer, co-founded Barry & Enright Productions (d. 1984)
    • 1918 – Donald Featherstone, English soldier and author (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Marian McPartland, English-American pianist and composer (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Bernd Alois Zimmermann, German composer (d. 1970)
    • 1919 – Gerhard Barkhorn, German fighter ace (d. 1983)
    • 1920 – Pamela Harriman, English-American diplomat, 58th United States Ambassador to France (d. 1997)
    • 1920 – Rosemary Timperley, English author and screenwriter (d. 1988)
    • 1921 – Usmar Ismail, Indonesian filmmaker (d. 1971)
    • 1921 – Dušan Pirjevec, Slovenian historian and philosopher (d. 1977)
    • 1921 – Alfréd Rényi, Hungarian mathematician and theorist (d. 1970)
    • 1922 – Larry Elgart, American saxophonist and bandleader (d. 2017)
    • 1922 – Ray Goulding, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1990)
    • 1922 – Carl Reiner, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2020)
    • 1923 – Con Martin, Irish footballer and manager (d. 2013)
    • 1923 – Shaukat Siddiqui, Pakistani journalist, author, and activist (d. 2006)
    • 1925 – John Ehrlichman, American lawyer, 12th White House Counsel (d. 1999)
    • 1927 – John Joubert, South African-English composer and academic (d. 2019)
    • 1928 – Jerome Biffle, American long jumper and coach (d. 2002)
    • 1928 – James P. Gordon, American physicist and engineer (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Fred Rogers, American television host and producer (d. 2003)
    • 1929 – William Andrew MacKay, Canadian lawyer and judge (d. 2013)
    • 1929 – Germán Robles, Spanish-Mexican actor and director (d. 2015)
    • 1930 – S. Arasaratnam, Sri Lankan historian, author, and academic (d. 1998)
    • 1931 – Hal Linden, American actor, singer, and director
    • 1931 – Rein Raamat, Estonian director and screenwriter
    • 1933 – Lateef Adegbite, Nigerian lawyer and politician (d. 2012)
    • 1933 – George Altman, American baseball player
    • 1933 – Ian Walsh, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Willie Brown, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 41st Mayor of San Francisco
    • 1934 – David Malouf, Australian author and playwright
    • 1935 – Ted Bessell, American actor and director (d. 1996)
    • 1935 – Bettye Washington Greene, American chemist (d. 1995)
    • 1936 – Lee “Scratch” Perry, Jamaican singer, songwriter, music producer, and inventor
    • 1936 – Mark Saville, Baron Saville of Newdigate, English lieutenant, lawyer, and judge
    • 1937 – Lois Lowry, American author
    • 1937 – Jerry Reed, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 2008)
    • 1938 – Sergei Novikov, Russian mathematician and academic
    • 1939 – Gerald Curran, American lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
    • 1939 – Don Edwards, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1939 – Walter Jakob Gehring, Swiss biologist and academic (d. 2014)
    • 1939 – Brian Mulroney, Canadian lawyer and politician, 18th Prime Minister of Canada
    • 1940 – Stathis Chaitas, Greek footballer and manager
    • 1940 – Mary Ellen Mark, American photographer and journalist (d. 2015)
    • 1940 – Giampiero Moretti, Italian race car driver and businessman, founded the Momo company (d. 2012)
    • 1941 – Pat Corrales, American baseball player and manager
    • 1941 – Kenji Kimihara, Japanese runner
    • 1943 – Gerard Malanga, American poet and photographer
    • 1943 – Douglas Tompkins, American businessman, co-founded The North Face and Esprit Holdings (d. 2015)
    • 1943 – Paul Junger Witt, American director and producer (d. 2018)
    • 1944 – John Cameron, English composer and conductor
    • 1944 – Camille Cosby, American author, producer, and philanthropist
    • 1944 – Alan Harper, English-Irish archbishop
    • 1945 – Henry Bartholomay, American soldier and pilot (d. 2015)
    • 1945 – Jay Ingram, Canadian television host and author
    • 1945 – Pat Riley, American basketball player and coach
    • 1945 – Tim Yeo, English politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Health
    • 1946 – Douglas B. Green, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1946 – Malcolm Simmons, English motorcycle racer (d. 2014)
    • 1947 – John Boswell, American historian, philologist, and academic (d. 1994)
    • 1948 – John de Lancie, American actor
    • 1948 – Bobby Orr, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1948 – Nikos Papazoglou, Greek singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
    • 1949 – Marcia Ball, American blues singer-songwriter and pianist
    • 1949 – Richard Dowden, English journalist and educator
    • 1950 – William Hurt, American actor
    • 1950 – Carl Palmer, English drummer, percussionist, and songwriter
    • 1951 – Jimmie Vaughan, American blues-rock singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1952 – Geoff Brabham, Australian race car driver
    • 1952 – David Greenaway, English economist and academic
    • 1953 – Phil Judd, New Zealand singer-songwriter, guitarist and painter
    • 1954 – Mike Francesa, American radio talk show host and television commentator
    • 1954 – Liana Kanelli, Greek journalist and politician
    • 1954 – Paul Mirabella, American baseball player
    • 1955 – Nina Kiriki Hoffman, American author
    • 1955 – Ian Moss, Australian guitarist and singer-songwriter
    • 1955 – Mariya Takeuchi, Japanese singer-songwriter
    • 1956 – Catherine Ashton, English politician, Vice-President of the European Commission
    • 1956 – Anne Donahue, American lawyer and politician
    • 1956 – Naoto Takenaka, Japanese actor, comedian, singer, and director
    • 1957 – Vanessa Bell Calloway, American actress
    • 1957 – David Foster, Australian woodchopper
    • 1957 – Spike Lee, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1957 – Theresa Russell, American actress
    • 1957 – Chris Wedge, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and voice actor
    • 1958 – Holly Hunter, American actress and producer
    • 1958 – Rickey Jackson, American football player
    • 1958 – Joe Reaiche, Australian rugby player
    • 1959 – Dave Beasant, English footballer and coach
    • 1959 – Mary Roach, American author
    • 1959 – Sting, American wrestler
    • 1959 – Peter Truscott, Baron Truscott, British Labour Party politician and peer
    • 1960 – Norm Magnusson, American painter and sculptor
    • 1960 – Norbert Pohlmann, German computer scientist and academic
    • 1960 – Yuri Shargin, Russian colonel, engineer, and astronaut
    • 1961 – Ingrid Arndt-Brauer, German politician
    • 1961 – Jesper Olsen, Danish footballer and manager
    • 1961 – Sara Wheeler, English author and journalist
    • 1962 – Stephen Sommers, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1963 – Paul Annacone, American tennis player and coach
    • 1963 – Kathy Ireland, American model, actress, and furniture designer
    • 1963 – Yelena Romanova, Russian runner (d. 2007)
    • 1963 – David Thewlis, English-French actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1964 – Natacha Atlas, Belgian singer-songwriter
    • 1965 – William Dalrymple, Scottish historian and author
    • 1967 – Xavier Beauvois, French actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1967 – Mookie Blaylock, American basketball player
    • 1968 – Carlos Almeida, Cape Verdean runner
    • 1968 – A. J. Jacobs, American journalist and author
    • 1968 – Paul Merson, English footballer and manager
    • 1968 – Ultra Naté, American singer, songwriter, record producer, DJ, and promoter
    • 1969 – Yvette Cooper, English economist and politician, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
    • 1969 – Fabien Galthie, French rugby player
    • 1970 – Edoardo Ballerini, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1970 – Josephine Medina, Filipino Paralympic table tennis player
    • 1970 – sj Miller, American academic, public speaker, and social justice activist
    • 1970 – Michael Rapaport, American actor, podcast host, and director
    • 1971 – Manny Alexander, Dominican baseball player
    • 1971 – Touré, American journalist and author
    • 1972 – Chilly Gonzales, Canadian-German singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer
    • 1972 – Alex Kapranos, English-Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1972 – Greg Searle, English rower
    • 1972 – Marco Sejna, German footballer
    • 1972 – Cristel Vahtra, Estonian skier
    • 1973 – Nicky Boje, South African cricketer
    • 1973 – Natalya Khrushcheleva, Russian runner
    • 1973 – Talal Khalifa Aljeri, Kuwaiti businessman
    • 1974 – Carsten Ramelow, German footballer
    • 1975 – Ramin Bahrani, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1975 – Isolde Kostner, Italian skier
    • 1976 – Chester Bennington, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (d. 2017)
    • 1978 – Kevin Betsy, English born Seychelles international footballer, midfielder and manager
    • 1978 – Brent Sherwin, Australian rugby league player
    • 1979 – Shinnosuke Abe, Japanese baseball player
    • 1979 – Freema Agyeman, English actress
    • 1979 – Keven Mealamu, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1980 – Jamal Crawford, American basketball player
    • 1980 – Robertas Javtokas, Lithuanian basketball player
    • 1981 – Ian Murray, Scottish footballer
    • 1981 – Carl Webb, Australian rugby league player
    • 1982 – Terrence Duffin, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1982 – Tomasz Kuszczak, Polish footballer
    • 1982 – José Moreira, Portuguese footballer
    • 1983 – Carolina Padrón, Venezuelan journalist
    • 1983 – Jenni Vartiainen, Finnish singer
    • 1984 – Vikram Banerjee, English cricketer
    • 1984 – Christy Carlson Romano, American actress and singer
    • 1984 – Fernando Torres, Spanish footballer
    • 1985 – Morgan Amalfitano, French footballer
    • 1985 – Ronnie Brewer, American basketball player
    • 1985 – Nicolas Lombaerts, Belgian footballer
    • 1986 – Dean Geyer, South African-Australian singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1986 – Julián Magallanes, Argentinian footballer
    • 1986 – Ruby Rose, Australian actress and model
    • 1986 – Román Torres, Panamanian footballer
    • 1987 – Daniel Maa Boumsong, Cameroonian footballer
    • 1987 – Jô, Brazilian footballer
    • 1987 – Pedro Ken, Brazilian footballer
    • 1987 – Sergei Kostitsyn, Belarusian ice hockey player
    • 1989 – Xavier Dolan, Canadian actor and director
    • 1989 – Tamim Iqbal, Bangladeshi Cricketer
    • 1990 – Blake Ferguson, Australian rugby league player
    • 1990 – Marcos Rojo, Argentine footballer
    • 1991 – Mattia Destro, Italian footballer
    • 1991 – Michał Kucharczyk, Polish footballer
    • 1991 – Ethan Lowe, Australian rugby league player
    • 1993 – Sloane Stephens, American tennis player
    • 1995 – Jack Bird, Australian rugby league player

    Deaths on March 20

    • 687 – Cuthbert, Northumbrian (English) monk, bishop, and saint (b. 634)
    • 703 – Wulfram, archbishop of Sens
    • 842 – Alfonso II, king of Asturias (Spain) (b. 759)
    • 851 – Ebbo, archbishop of Reims
    • 1181 – Taira no Kiyomori, Japanese general (b. 1118)
    • 1191 – Pope Clement III (b. 1130)
    • 1239 – Hermann von Salza, German knight and diplomat (b. 1179)
    • 1302 – Ralph Walpole, Bishop of Norwich
    • 1336 – Maurice Csák, Hungarian Dominican friar (b. 1270)
    • 1351 – Muhammad bin Tughluq, Sultan of Delhi
    • 1390 – Alexios III Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond (b. 1338)
    • 1413 – Henry IV of England (b. 1367)
    • 1440 – Sigismund I of Lithuania
    • 1475 – Georges Chastellain, Burgundian chronicler and poet
    • 1549 – Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, English general and politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1508)
    • 1568 – Albert, Duke of Prussia (b. 1490)
    • 1619 – Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1557)
    • 1673 – Augustyn Kordecki, Polish monk (b. 1603)
    • 1688 – Maria of Orange-Nassau, Dutch princess (b. 1642)
    • 1730 – Adrienne Lecouvreur, French actress (b. 1692)
    • 1746 – Nicolas de Largillière, French painter and academic (b. 1656)
    • 1780 – Benjamin Truman, English brewer and businessman (b. 1699)
    • 1793 – William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, Scottish judge and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (b. 1705)
    • 1835 – Louis Léopold Robert, French painter (b. 1794)
    • 1849 – James Justinian Morier, Turkish-English author and diplomat (b. 1780)
    • 1855 – Joseph Aspdin, English businessman (b. 1788)
    • 1865 – Yamanami Keisuke, Japanese samurai (b. 1833)
    • 1874 – Hans Christian Lumbye, Danish composer and conductor (b. 1810)
    • 1878 – Julius Robert von Mayer, German physician and physicist (b. 1814)
    • 1894 – Lajos Kossuth, Hungarian lawyer, journalist and politician (b. 1802)
    • 1897 – Apollon Maykov, Russian poet and playwright (b. 1821)
    • 1899 – Franz Ritter von Hauer, Austrian geologist and author (b. 1822)
    • 1909 – Friedrich Amelung, Estonian historian and businessman (b. 1842)
    • 1918 – Lewis A. Grant, American general and lawyer (b. 1828)
    • 1925 – George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, English politician, 35th Governor-General of India (b. 1859)
    • 1929 – Ferdinand Foch, French field marshal (b. 1851)
    • 1930 – Arthur F. Andrews, American cyclist (b. 1876)
    • 1931 – Hermann Müller, German journalist and politician, 12th Chancellor of Germany (b. 1876)
    • 1933 – Giuseppe Zangara, Italian-American assassin of Anton Cermak (b. 1900; executed)
    • 1940 – Alfred Ploetz, German physician, biologist, and eugenicist (b. 1860)
    • 1945 – Dorothy Campbell, Scottish-American golfer (b. 1883)
    • 1946 – Amadeus William Grabau, American-Chinese geologist, paleontologist, and academic (b. 1870)
    • 1947 – Sigurd Wallén, Swedish actor and director (b. 1884)
    • 1952 – Hjalmar Väre, Finnish cyclist (b. 1892)
    • 1958 – Adegoke Adelabu, Nigerian merchant, journalist, and politician (b. 1915)
    • 1964 – Brendan Behan, Irish republican and playwright (b. 1923)
    • 1965 – Daniel Frank, American long jumper (b. 1882)
    • 1966 – Johnny Morrison, American baseball player (b. 1895)
    • 1968 – Carl Theodor Dreyer, Danish director and screenwriter (b. 1889)
    • 1969 – Henri Longchambon, French politician (b. 1896)
    • 1971 – Falih Rıfkı Atay, Turkish journalist and politician (b. 1894)
    • 1972 – Marilyn Maxwell, American actress (b. 1921)
    • 1974 – Chet Huntley, American journalist (b. 1911)
    • 1977 – Charles Lyttelton, 10th Viscount Cobham, English politician, 9th Governor-General of New Zealand (b. 1909)
    • 1977 – Terukuni Manzō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 38th Yokozuna (b. 1919)
    • 1978 – Jacques Brugnon, French tennis player (b. 1895)
    • 1981 – Gerry Bertier, American football player (b. 1953)
    • 1983 – Ivan Matveyevich Vinogradov, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1891)
    • 1990 – Maurice Cloche, French director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1907)
    • 1990 – Lev Yashin, Russian footballer (b. 1929)
    • 1992 – Georges Delerue, French composer (b. 1925)
    • 1993 – Polykarp Kusch, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
    • 1994 – Lewis Grizzard, American writer and humorist (b. 1946)
    • 1997 – V. S. Pritchett, English short story writer, essayist, and critic (b. 1900)
    • 1999 – Patrick Heron, British painter (b. 1920)
    • 2000 – Gene Eugene, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1961)
    • 2001 – Luis Alvarado, Puerto Rican-American baseball player (b. 1949)
    • 2004 – Juliana of the Netherlands (b. 1909)
    • 2004 – Pierre Sévigny, Canadian colonel and politician (b. 1917)
    • 2005 – Armand Lohikoski, American-Finnish director and screenwriter (b. 1912)
    • 2007 – Raynald Fréchette, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1933)
    • 2007 – Taha Yassin Ramadan, Iraqi politician, Vice President of Iraq (b. 1938)
    • 2007 – Hawa Yakubu, Ghanaian politician (b. 1948)
    • 2010 – Ai, American poet and academic (b. 1947)
    • 2010 – Girija Prasad Koirala, Indian-Nepalese politician, 30th Prime Minister of Nepal (b. 1924)
    • 2010 – Stewart Udall, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 37th United States Secretary of the Interior (b. 1920)
    • 2011 – Johnny Pearson, English pianist, conductor, and composer (b. 1925)
    • 2012 – Lincoln Hall, Australian mountaineer and author (b. 1955)
    • 2012 – Noboru Ishiguro, Japanese animator and director (b. 1938)
    • 2012 – Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg, Polish-Israeli rabbi and author (b. 1910)
    • 2012 – Jim Stynes, Irish-Australian footballer (b. 1966)
    • 2013 – James Herbert, English author (b. 1943)
    • 2013 – George Lowe, New Zealand-English mountaineer and explorer (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Zillur Rahman, Bangladeshi lawyer and politician, 19th President of Bangladesh (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Hennie Aucamp, South African poet, author, and academic (b. 1934)
    • 2014 – Hilderaldo Bellini, Brazilian footballer (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Tonie Nathan, American politician (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Khushwant Singh, Indian journalist and author (b. 1915)
    • 2015 – Eva Burrows, Australian 13th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1929)
    • 2015 – Malcolm Fraser, Australian politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1930)
    • 2016 – Anker Jørgensen, Danish politician, Prime Minister of Denmark (b. 1922)
    • 2017 – David Rockefeller, American billionaire and philanthropist (b. 1915)
    • 2018 – C. K. Mann, a Ghanaian Highlife musician and producer (b. 1936)
    • 2019 – Mary Warnock, English philosopher & writer (b. 1924)
    • 2020 – Kenny Rogers, American singer (b. 1938)

    Holidays and observances on March 20

    • Christian feast day:
      • Alexandra
      • Blessed John of Parma
      • Clement of Ireland
      • Cuthbert of Lindisfarne
      • Herbert of Derwentwater
      • John of Nepomuk
      • Józef Bilczewski
      • María Josefa Sancho de Guerra
      • Martin of Braga
      • Michele Carcano
      • Wulfram
      • March 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Earliest date for the vernal equinox in the Northern hemisphere:
      • Bahá’í Naw-Rúz, started at sunset on March 20. The end of the 19-day sunrise-to-sunset fast. (Bahá’í Faith)
      • Chunfen (China)
      • Earth Equinox Day
      • International Astrology Day
      • New Year (Thelema)
      • Nowruz (Persian, Gilaki, Kurdish, Zoroastrians, and other Iranian people and countries with an Iranian influence)
      • Ostara in the northern hemisphere, Mabon in the southern hemisphere. (Neo-Druidic Wheel of the Year)
      • Shunbun no Hi (Japan)
      • Sun-Earth Day (United States)
      • Vernal Equinox Day/Kōreisai (Japan)
      • World Storytelling Day
    • Earliest day on which Good Friday can fall, while April 23 is the latest; celebrated on Friday before Easter. (Christianity)
    • Great American Meatout (United States)
    • Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Tunisia from France in 1956.
    • International Day of Happiness (United Nations)
    • International Francophonie Day (Organisation internationale de la Francophonie), and its related observances:
      • UN French Language Day (United Nations)
    • National Native HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (United States)
    • World Sparrow Day

  • January 19 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 379 – Emperor Gratian elevates Flavius Theodosius at Sirmium to Augustus, and gives him authority over all the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.
    • 649 – Conquest of Kucha: The forces of Kucha surrender after a forty-day siege led by Tang dynasty general Ashina She’er, establishing Tang control over the northern Tarim Basin in Xinjiang.
    • 1419 – Hundred Years’ War: Rouen surrenders to Henry V of England, completing his reconquest of Normandy.
    • 1511 – The Italian city-fortress of Mirandola surrenders to the French.
    • 1520 – Sten Sture the Younger, the Regent of Sweden, is mortally wounded at the Battle of Bogesund and dies on February 3.
    • 1607 – San Agustin Church in Manila is officially completed; it is the oldest church still standing in the Philippines.
    • 1764 – John Wilkes is expelled from the British House of Commons for seditious libel.
    • 1764 – Bolle Willum Luxdorph records in his diary that a mail bomb, possibly the world’s first, has severely injured the Danish Colonel Poulsen, residing at Børglum Abbey.
    • 1788 – The second group of ships of the First Fleet arrive at Botany Bay.
    • 1795 – The Batavian Republic is proclaimed in the Netherlands, bringing to an end the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands.
    • 1806 – Britain occupies the Dutch Cape Colony after the Battle of Blaauwberg.
    • 1817 – An army of 5,423 soldiers, led by General José de San Martín, crosses the Andes from Argentina to liberate Chile and then Peru.
    • 1829 – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy receives its premiere performance.
    • 1839 – The British East India Company captures Aden.
    • 1853 – Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Il trovatore receives its premiere performance in Rome.
    • 1861 – American Civil War: Georgia joins South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, and Alabama in declaring secession from the United States.
    • 1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Mill Springs: The Confederacy suffers its first significant defeat in the conflict.
    • 1871 – Franco-Prussian War: In the Siege of Paris, Prussia wins the Battle of St. Quentin. Meanwhile, the French attempt to break the siege in the Battle of Buzenval will end unsuccessfully the following day.
    • 1883 – The first electric lighting system employing overhead wires, built by Thomas Edison, begins service at Roselle, New Jersey.
    • 1899 – Anglo-Egyptian Sudan is formed.
    • 1915 – Georges Claude patents the neon discharge tube for use in advertising.
    • 1915 – German strategic bombing during World War I: German zeppelins bomb the towns of Great Yarmouth and King’s Lynn in the United Kingdom killing at least 20 people, in the first major aerial bombardment of a civilian target.
    • 1917 – Silvertown explosion: A blast at a munitions factory in London kills 73 and injures over 400. The resulting fire causes over £2,000,000 worth of damage.
    • 1920 – The United States Senate votes against joining the League of Nations.
    • 1920 – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is founded.
    • 1937 – Howard Hughes sets a new air record by flying from Los Angeles to New York City in 7 hours, 28 minutes, 25 seconds.
    • 1940 – You Nazty Spy!, the first Hollywood film of any kind to satirize Adolf Hitler and the Nazis premieres, starring The Three Stooges, with Moe Howard as the character “Moe Hailstone” satirizing Hitler.
    • 1941 – World War II: HMS Greyhound and other escorts of convoy AS-12 sink Italian submarine Neghelli with all hands 40 miles (64 km) northeast of Falkonera.
    • 1942 – World War II: The Japanese conquest of Burma begins.
    • 1945 – World War II: Soviet forces liberate the Łódź Ghetto. Of more than 200,000 inhabitants in 1940, less than 900 had survived the Nazi occupation.
    • 1946 – General Douglas MacArthur establishes the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo to try Japanese war criminals.
    • 1953 – Almost 72 percent of all television sets in the United States are tuned into I Love Lucy to watch Lucy give birth.
    • 1960 – Japan and the United States sign the US–Japan Mutual Security Treaty
    • 1969 – Student Jan Palach dies after setting himself on fire three days earlier in Prague’s Wenceslas Square to protest about the invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Soviet Union in 1968. His funeral turns into another major protest.
    • 1974 – China gains control over all the Paracel Islands after a military engagement between the naval forces of China and South Vietnam
    • 1977 – President Gerald Ford pardons Iva Toguri D’Aquino (a.k.a. “Tokyo Rose”).
    • 1978 – The last Volkswagen Beetle made in Germany leaves VW’s plant in Emden. Beetle production in Latin America continues until 2003.
    • 1981 – Iran hostage crisis: United States and Iranian officials sign an agreement to release 52 American hostages after 14 months of captivity.
    • 1983 – Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia.
    • 1983 – The Apple Lisa, the first commercial personal computer from Apple Inc. to have a graphical user interface and a computer mouse, is announced.
    • 1986 – The first IBM PC computer virus is released into the wild. A boot sector virus dubbed (c)Brain, it was created by the Farooq Alvi Brothers in Lahore, Pakistan, reportedly to deter unauthorized copying of the software they had written.
    • 1991 – Gulf War: Iraq fires a second Scud missile into Israel, causing 15 injuries.
    • 1993 – Czech Republic and Slovakia join the United Nations.
    • 1995 – After being struck by lightning the crew of Bristow Flight 56C are forced to ditch. All 18 aboard are later rescued.
    • 1996 – The barge North Cape oil spill occurs as an engine fire forces the tugboat Scandia ashore on Moonstone Beach in South Kingstown, Rhode Island.
    • 1997 – Yasser Arafat returns to Hebron after more than 30 years and joins celebrations over the handover of the last Israeli-controlled West Bank city.
    • 1999 – British Aerospace agrees to acquire the defence subsidiary of the General Electric Company plc, forming BAE Systems in November 1999.
    • 2007 – Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink is assassinated in front of his newspaper’s Istanbul office by 17-year-old Turkish ultra-nationalist Ogün Samast.
    • 2007 – Four-man Team N2i, using only skis and kites, completes a 1,093-mile (1,759 km) trek to reach the Antarctic pole of inaccessibility for the first time since 1965 and for the first time ever without mechanical assistance.
    • 2012 – The Hong Kong-based file-sharing website Megaupload is shut down by the FBI.
    • 2014 – A bomb attack on an army convoy in the city of Bannu kills at least 26 Pakistani soldiers and injures 38 others.

    Births on January 19

    • 399 – Pulcheria, Byzantine empress and saint (d. 453)
    • 1200 – Dōgen Zenji, founder of Sōtō Zen (d. 1253)
    • 1544 – Francis II of France (d. 1560)
    • 1617 – Lucas Faydherbe, Flemish sculptor and architect (d. 1697)
    • 1628 – Charles Stanley, 8th Earl of Derby, English noble (d. 1672)
    • 1676 – John Weldon, English organist and composer (d. 1736)
    • 1721 – Jean-Philippe Baratier, German scholar and author (d. 1740)
    • 1736 – James Watt, Scottish-English chemist and engineer (d. 1819)
    • 1737 – Giuseppe Millico, Italian soprano, composer, and educator (d. 1802)
    • 1739 – Joseph Bonomi the Elder, Italian architect, designed Longford Hall and Barrells Hall (d. 1808)
    • 1752 – James Morris III, American captain (d. 1820)
    • 1757 – Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf (d. 1831)
    • 1788 – Pavel Kiselyov, Russian general and politician (d. 1874)
    • 1790 – Per Daniel Amadeus Atterbom, Swedish poet and academic (d. 1855)
    • 1798 – Auguste Comte, French economist, sociologist, and philosopher (d. 1857)
    • 1807 – Robert E. Lee, American general and academic (d. 1870)
    • 1808 – Lysander Spooner, American philosopher and author (d. 1887)
    • 1809 – Edgar Allan Poe, American short story writer, poet, and critic (d. 1849)
    • 1810 – Talhaiarn, Welsh poet and architect (d.1869)
    • 1813 – Henry Bessemer, English engineer and businessman (d. 1898)
    • 1832 – Ferdinand Laub, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1875)
    • 1833 – Alfred Clebsch, German mathematician and academic (d. 1872)
    • 1839 – Paul Cézanne, French painter (d. 1906)
    • 1848 – Arturo Graf, Italian poet, of German ancestry (d. 1913).
    • 1848 – John Fitzwilliam Stairs, Canadian businessman and politician (d. 1904)
    • 1848 – Matthew Webb, English swimmer and diver (d. 1883)
    • 1851 – Jacobus Kapteyn, Dutch astronomer and academic (d. 1922)
    • 1852 – Thomas Price, Welsh-Australian politician, 24th Premier of South Australia (d. 1909)
    • 1863 – Werner Sombart, German economist and sociologist (d. 1941)
    • 1866 – Harry Davenport, American stage and film actor (d. 1949)
    • 1871 – Dame Gruev, Bulgarian educator and activist, co-founded the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (d. 1906)
    • 1874 – Hitachiyama Taniemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 19th Yokozuna (d. 1922)
    • 1876 – Wakashima Gonshirō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 21st Yokozuna (d. 1943)
    • 1876 – Dragotin Kette, Slovenian poet and author (d. 1899)
    • 1878 – Herbert Chapman, English footballer and manager (d. 1934)
    • 1879 – Boris Savinkov, Russian soldier and author (d. 1925)
    • 1882 – John Cain Sr., Australian politician, 34th Premier of Victoria (d. 1957)
    • 1883 – Hermann Abendroth, German conductor (d. 1956)
    • 1887 – Alexander Woollcott, American actor, playwright, and critic (d. 1943)
    • 1889 – Sophie Taeuber-Arp, Swiss painter and sculptor (d. 1943)
    • 1892 – Ólafur Thors, Icelandic lawyer and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Iceland (d. 1964)
    • 1893 – Magda Tagliaferro, Brazilian pianist and educator (d. 1986)
    • 1903 – Boris Blacher, German composer and playwright (d. 1975)
    • 1905 – Stanley Hawes, English-Australian director and producer (d. 1991)
    • 1907 – Briggs Cunningham, American race car driver, sailor, and businessman (d. 2003)
    • 1908 – Ish Kabibble, American comedian and cornet player (d. 1994)
    • 1908 – Aleksandr Gennadievich Kurosh, Russian mathematician and theorist (d. 1971)
    • 1911 – Choor Singh, Indian-Singaporean lawyer and judge (d. 2009)
    • 1912 – Leonid Kantorovich, Russian mathematician and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1986)
    • 1913 – Rex Ingamells, Australian author and poet (d. 1955)
    • 1913 – Rudolf Wanderone, American professional pocket billiards player (d. 1996)
    • 1918 – John H. Johnson, American publisher, founded the Johnson Publishing Company (d. 2005)
    • 1920 – Bernard Dunstan, English painter and educator (d. 2017)
    • 1920 – Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Peruvian politician and diplomat, 135th Prime Minister of Peru (d. 2020)
    • 1921 – Patricia Highsmith, American novelist and short story writer (d. 1995)
    • 1922 – Arthur Morris, Australian cricketer and journalist (d. 2015)
    • 1922 – Miguel Muñoz, Spanish footballer and manager (d. 1990)
    • 1923 – Jean Stapleton, American actress and singer (d. 2013)
    • 1924 – Nicholas Colasanto, American actor and director (d. 1985)
    • 1924 – Jean-François Revel, French philosopher (d. 2006)
    • 1925 – Nina Bawden, English author (d. 2012)
    • 1926 – Hans Massaquoi, German-American journalist and author (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – Fritz Weaver, American actor (d. 2016)
    • 1930 – Tippi Hedren, American model, actress, and animal rights-welfare activist
    • 1930 – John Waite, South African cricketer (d. 2011)
    • 1931 – Robert MacNeil, Canadian-American journalist and author
    • 1932 – Russ Hamilton, English singer-songwriter (d. 2008)
    • 1932 – Richard Lester, American-English director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1932 – Harry Lonsdale, American chemist, businessman, and politician (d. 2014)
    • 1933 – George Coyne, American priest, astronomer, and theologian
    • 1935 – Johnny O’Keefe, Australian singer-songwriter (d. 1978)
    • 1936 – Ziaur Rahman, Bangladeshi general and politician, 7th President of Bangladesh (d. 1981)
    • 1936 – Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, American singer, harmonica player, and drummer (d. 2011)
    • 1936 – Fred J. Lincoln, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1937 – John Lions, Australian computer scientist and academic (d. 1998)
    • 1939 – Phil Everly, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2014)
    • 1940 – Paolo Borsellino, Italian lawyer and judge (d. 1992)
    • 1940 – Mike Reid, English comedian, actor, and author (d. 2007)
    • 1941 – Colin Gunton, English theologian and academic (d. 2003)
    • 1941 – Pat Patterson, Canadian wrestler, trainer, and referee
    • 1942 – Michael Crawford, English actor and singer
    • 1942 – Paul-Eerik Rummo, Estonian poet and politician
    • 1943 – Larry Clark, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1943 – Janis Joplin, American singer-songwriter (d. 1970)
    • 1943 – Princess Margriet of the Netherlands
    • 1944 – Shelley Fabares, American actress and singer
    • 1944 – Thom Mayne, American architect and academic, designed the San Francisco Federal Building and Phare Tower
    • 1944 – Dan Reeves, American football player and coach
    • 1945 – Trevor Williams, English singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1946 – Julian Barnes, English novelist, short story writer, essayist, and critic
    • 1946 – Dolly Parton, American singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1947 – Frank Aarebrot, Norwegian political scientist and academic (d. 2017)
    • 1947 – Paula Deen, American chef and author
    • 1947 – Rod Evans, English singer-songwriter
    • 1948 – Nancy Lynch, American computer scientist and academic
    • 1948 – Frank McKenna, Canadian politician and diplomat, 27th Premier of New Brunswick
    • 1948 – Mal Reilly, English rugby league player and coach
    • 1949 – Arend Langenberg, Dutch voice actor and radio host (d. 2012)
    • 1949 – Robert Palmer, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2003)
    • 1950 – Sébastien Dhavernas, Canadian actor
    • 1951 – Martha Davis, American singer
    • 1952 – Dewey Bunnell, British-American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1952 – Nadiuska, German television actress
    • 1952 – Bruce Jay Nelson, American computer scientist (d. 1999)
    • 1953 – Desi Arnaz, Jr., American actor and singer
    • 1953 – Richard Legendre, Canadian tennis player and politician
    • 1953 – Wayne Schimmelbusch, Australian footballer and coach
    • 1954 – Katey Sagal, American actress and singer
    • 1954 – Cindy Sherman, American photographer and director
    • 1954 – Esther Shkalim, Israeli poet and Mizrahi feminist
    • 1955 – Paul Rodriguez, Mexican-American comedian and actor
    • 1956 – Carman, American singer-songwriter, actor, and television host
    • 1956 – Susan Solomon, American atmospheric chemist
    • 1957 – Ottis Anderson, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1957 – Roger Ashton-Griffiths, English actor, screenwriter and film director
    • 1957 – Kenneth McClintock, Puerto Rican public servant and politician, 22nd Secretary of State of Puerto Rico
    • 1958 – Thomas Kinkade, American painter (d. 2012)
    • 1959 – Danese Cooper, American computer scientist and programmer
    • 1959 – Jeff Pilson, American bass player, songwriter, and actor
    • 1961 – William Ragsdale, American actor
    • 1961 – Wayne Hemingway, English fashion designer, co-founded Red or Dead
    • 1962 – Hans Daams, Dutch cyclist
    • 1962 – Chris Sabo, American baseball player and coach
    • 1962 – Jeff Van Gundy, American basketball player and coach
    • 1963 – Michael Adams, American basketball player and coach
    • 1963 – Martin Bashir, English journalist
    • 1963 – John Bercow, English politician, Speaker of the House of Commons
    • 1964 – Janine Antoni, Bahamian sculptor and photographer
    • 1964 – Ricardo Arjona, Guatemalan singer-songwriter and basketball player
    • 1966 – Sylvain Côté, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1966 – Stefan Edberg, Swedish tennis player and coach
    • 1966 – Lena Philipsson, Swedish singer-songwriter
    • 1968 – David Bartlett, Australian politician, 43rd Premier of Tasmania
    • 1968 – Whitfield Crane, American singer-songwriter
    • 1969 – Edwidge Danticat, Haitian-American novelist and short story writer
    • 1969 – Luc Longley, Australian basketball player and coach
    • 1969 – Predrag Mijatović, Montenegrin footballer and manager
    • 1969 – Junior Seau, American football player (d. 2012)
    • 1969 – Steve Staunton, Irish footballer and manager
    • 1970 – Steffen Freund, German footballer defensive midfielder and manager
    • 1970 – Kathleen Smet, Belgian triathlete
    • 1970 – Udo Suzuki, Japanese comedian and singer
    • 1971 – Phil Nevin, American baseball player
    • 1971 – Shawn Wayans, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1971 – John Wozniak, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1972 – Ron Killings, American wrestler and rapper
    • 1972 – Troy Wilson, Australian footballer and race car driver
    • 1972 – Sergei Zjukin, Estonian chess player and coach
    • 1972 – Yoon Hae-young, South Korean actress
    • 1973 – Antero Manninen, Finnish cellist
    • 1973 – Yevgeny Sadovyi, Russian swimmer and coach
    • 1974 – Dainius Adomaitis, Lithuanian basketball player and coach
    • 1974 – Frank Caliendo, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter
    • 1974 – Ian Laperrière, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1974 – Jaime Moreno, Bolivian footballer and manager
    • 1975 – Natalie Cook, Australian volleyball player
    • 1975 – Zdeňka Málková, Czech tennis player
    • 1976 – Natale Gonnella, Italian footballer
    • 1976 – Tarso Marques, Brazilian race car driver
    • 1977 – Benjamin Ayres, Canadian actor, director, and photographer
    • 1979 – Svetlana Khorkina, Russian gymnast and sportscaster
    • 1979 – Josu Sarriegi, Spanish footballer
    • 1979 – Wiley, English rapper and producer
    • 1980 – Jenson Button, English race car driver
    • 1980 – Pasha Kovalev, Russian-American dancer and choreographer
    • 1980 – Luke Macfarlane, Canadian-American actor and singer
    • 1980 – Arvydas Macijauskas, Lithuanian basketball player
    • 1980 – Michael Vandort, Sri Lankan cricketer
    • 1981 – Paolo Bugia, Filipino basketball player
    • 1981 – Asier del Horno, Spanish footballer
    • 1981 – Lucho González, Argentinian footballer
    • 1982 – Pete Buttigieg, American politician
    • 1982 – Mike Komisarek, American ice hockey player
    • 1982 – Jodie Sweetin, American actress and singer
    • 1982 – Shane Tronc, Australian rugby league player
    • 1982 – Kim Yoo-suk, South Korean pole vaulter
    • 1982 – Robin tom Rink, German singer-songwriter
    • 1983 – Hikaru Utada, American-Japanese singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1984 – Fabio Catacchini, Italian footballer
    • 1984 – Karun Chandhok, Indian race car driver
    • 1984 – Jimmy Kébé, Malian footballer
    • 1984 – Thomas Vanek, Austrian ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Jake Allen, American football player
    • 1985 – Pascal Behrenbruch, German decathlete
    • 1985 – Benny Feilhaber, American soccer player
    • 1985 – Esteban Guerrieri, Argentinian race car driver
    • 1985 – Rika Ishikawa, Japanese singer and actress
    • 1985 – Elliott Ward, English footballer
    • 1985 – Aleksandr Yevgenyevich Nikulin, Russian footballer
    • 1986 – Claudio Marchisio, Italian footballer
    • 1986 – Oleksandr Miroshnychenko, Ukrainian footballer
    • 1986 – Moussa Sow, Senegalese footballer
    • 1987 – Edgar Manucharyan, Armenian footballer
    • 1988 – JaVale McGee, American basketball player
    • 1988 – Tyler Breeze, Canadian wrestler
    • 1990 – Tatiana Búa, Argentine tennis player
    • 1991 – Petra Martić, Croatian tennis player
    • 1991 – Erin Sanders, American actress
    • 1992 – Shawn Johnson, American gymnast
    • 1992 – Logan Lerman, American actor
    • 1992 – Mac Miller, American rapper (d. 2018)
    • 1993 – Erick Torres Padilla, Mexican footballer
    • 1994 – Matthias Ginter, German footballer
    • 1994 – Alfie Mawson, English footballer, centre back

    Deaths on January 19

    • 520 – John of Cappadocia, patriarch of Constantinople
    • 639 – Dagobert I, Frankish king (b. 603)
    • 914 – García I, king of León
    • 1003 – Kilian of Cologne, Irish abbot
    • 1302 – Al-Hakim I, caliph of Cairo
    • 1401 – Robert Bealknap, British justice
    • 1526 – Isabella of Austria, Danish queen (b. 1501)
    • 1547 – Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, English poet (b. 1516)
    • 1565 – Diego Laynez, Spanish Jesuit theologian (b. 1512)
    • 1571 – Paris Bordone, Venetian painter (b. 1495)
    • 1576 – Hans Sachs, German poet and playwright (b. 1494)
    • 1636 – Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, Flemish painter (b.1561)
    • 1661 – Thomas Venner, English rebel leader (b. 1599)
    • 1729 – William Congreve, English playwright and poet (b. 1670)
    • 1755 – Jean-Pierre Christin, French physicist, mathematician, and astronomer (b. 1683)
    • 1757 – Thomas Ruddiman, Scottish scholar and academic (b. 1674)
    • 1766 – Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, Italian-French architect and painter (b. 1695)
    • 1785 – Jonathan Toup, English scholar and critic (b. 1713)
    • 1833 – Ferdinand Hérold, French pianist and composer (b. 1791)
    • 1847 – Charles Bent, American soldier and politician, 1st Governor of New Mexico (b. 1799)
    • 1847 – Athanasios Christopoulos, Greek poet (b. 1772)
    • 1851 – Esteban Echeverría, Argentinian poet and author (b. 1805)
    • 1853 – Karl Faber, German historian and academic (b. 1773)
    • 1865 – Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, French philosopher and politician (b. 1809)
    • 1869 – Carl Reichenbach, German chemist and philosopher (b. 1788)
    • 1874 – August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, German poet and scholar (b. 1798)
    • 1878 – Henri Victor Regnault, French physicist and chemist (b. 1810)
    • 1905 – Debendranath Tagore, Indian philosopher and author (b. 1817)
    • 1906 – Bartolomé Mitre, Argentinian historian and politician, 6th President of Argentina (b. 1821)
    • 1908 – Roberto Bompiani, Italian painter and sculptor (b. 1821)
    • 1929 – Liang Qichao, Chinese journalist, philosopher, and scholar (b. 1873)
    • 1930 – Frank P. Ramsey, British mathematician, philosopher and economist (b. 1903)
    • 1938 – Branislav Nušić, Serbian author, playwright, and journalist (b. 1864)
    • 1945 – Gustave Mesny, French general (b. 1886)
    • 1948 – Tony Garnier, French architect and urban planner, designed the Stade de Gerland (b. 1869)
    • 1954 – Theodor Kaluza, German mathematician and physicist (b. 1885)
    • 1957 – József Dudás, Romanian-Hungarian activist and politician (b. 1912)
    • 1963 – Clement Smoot, American golfer (b. 1884)
    • 1964 – Firmin Lambot, Belgian cyclist (b. 1886)
    • 1965 – Arnold Luhaäär, Estonian weightlifter (b. 1905)
    • 1968 – Ray Harroun, American race car driver and engineer (b. 1879)
    • 1972 – Michael Rabin, American violinist (b. 1936)
    • 1973 – Max Adrian, Irish-English actor (b. 1903)
    • 1975 – Thomas Hart Benton, American painter and educator (b. 1889)
    • 1976 – Hidetsugu Yagi, Japanese engineer and academic (b. 1886)
    • 1979 – Moritz Jahn, German novelist and poet (b. 1884)
    • 1980 – William O. Douglas, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1898)
    • 1981 – Francesca Woodman, American photographer (b. 1958)
    • 1982 – Elis Regina, Brazilian soprano (b. 1945)
    • 1984 – Max Bentley, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1920)
    • 1987 – Lawrence Kohlberg, American psychologist and academic (b. 1927)
    • 1990 – Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Indian guru and mystic (b. 1931)
    • 1990 – Alberto Semprini, English pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1908)
    • 1990 – Herbert Wehner, German politician, 6th Minister of Intra-German Relations (b. 1906)
    • 1991 – Marcel Chaput, Canadian biochemist and journalist (b. 1918)
    • 1995 – Gene MacLellan, Canadian singer-songwriter (b. 1938)
    • 1996 – Don Simpson, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1943)
    • 1997 – James Dickey, American poet and novelist (b. 1923)
    • 1998 – Carl Perkins, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1932)
    • 1999 – Ivan Francescato, Italian rugby player (b. 1967)
    • 2000 – Amatu’l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum, Bahá’í Hand of the Cause of God and wife of Shoghi Effendi (b. 1910)
    • 2000 – Bettino Craxi, Italian lawyer and politician, 45th Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1934)
    • 2000 – Hedy Lamarr, Austrian-American actress, singer, and mathematician (b. 1913)
    • 2001 – Dario Vittori, Italian-Argentinian actor and producer (b. 1921)
    • 2002 – Vavá, Brazilian footballer and manager (b. 1934)
    • 2003 – Milton Flores, Honduran footballer (b. 1974)
    • 2003 – Françoise Giroud, French journalist, screenwriter, and politician, French Minister of Culture (b. 1916)
    • 2004 – Harry E. Claiborne, American lawyer and judge (b. 1917)
    • 2004 – David Hookes, Australian cricketer and coach (b. 1955)
    • 2005 – K. Sello Duiker, South African author and screenwriter (b. 1974)
    • 2006 – Anthony Franciosa, American actor (b. 1928)
    • 2006 – Wilson Pickett, American singer-songwriter (b. 1941)
    • 2006 – Awn Alsharif Qasim, Sudanese author and scholar (b. 1933)
    • 2006 – Geoff Rabone, New Zealand cricketer and pilot (b. 1921)
    • 2007 – Hrant Dink, Turkish-Armenian journalist and activist (b. 1954)
    • 2007 – Denny Doherty, Canadian singer-songwriter (b. 1940)
    • 2007 – Murat Nasyrov, Russian singer-songwriter (b. 1969)
    • 2008 – Suzanne Pleshette, American actress (b. 1937)
    • 2008 – John Stewart, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1939)
    • 2008 – Don Wittman, Canadian sportscaster (b. 1936)
    • 2010 – Bill McLaren, Scottish rugby player and sportscaster (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Peter Åslin, Swedish ice hockey player (b. 1962)
    • 2012 – Sarah Burke, Canadian skier (b. 1982)
    • 2012 – Winston Riley, Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1943)
    • 2012 – Rudi van Dantzig, Dutch ballet dancer and choreographer (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Taihō Kōki, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 48th Yokozuna (b. 1940)
    • 2013 – Stan Musial, American baseball player and manager (b. 1920)
    • 2013 – Frank Pooler, American conductor and composer (b. 1926)
    • 2013 – Earl Weaver, American baseball player and manager (b. 1930)
    • 2013 – Toktamış Ateş, Turkish academician, political commentator, columnist and writer (b. 1944)
    • 2014 – Azaria Alon, Ukrainian-Israeli environmentalist, co-founded the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (b. 1918)
    • 2014 – Christopher Chataway, English runner, journalist, and politician (b. 1931)
    • 2015 – Justin Capră, Romanian engineer and academic (b. 1933)
    • 2015 – Michel Guimond, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1953)
    • 2015 – Ward Swingle, American-French singer-songwriter and conductor (b. 1927)
    • 2016 – Richard Levins, American ecologist and geneticist (b. 1930)
    • 2016 – Ettore Scola, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1931)
    • 2016 – Sheila Sim, English actress (b. 1922)
    • 2017 – Miguel Ferrer, American actor (b. 1955)

    Holidays and observances on January 19

    • Birthday of Edgar Allan Poe (commemorated by the Poe Toaster at his grave in Baltimore)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Bassianus of Lodi
      • Henry of Uppsala
      • Marius, Martha, Audifax, and Abachum
      • Mark of Ephesus (Eastern Orthodox Church)
      • Pontianus of Spoleto
      • Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester
      • January 19 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Confederate Heroes Day (Texas), and its related observance:
      • Robert E. Lee Day (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi)
    • Feast of Sultán (Sovereignty), first day of the 17th month of the Bahá’í calendar (Bahá’í Faith) (only if Nowruz falls on March 21, otherwise the dates shifts)
    • Husband’s Day (Iceland)
    • Kokborok Day (Tripura, India)
    • Theophany / Epiphany (Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy), and its related observances:
      • Timkat, or 20 during Leap Year (Ethiopian Orthodox)
      • Vodici or Baptism of Jesus (North Macedonia)
  • |

    Constituents and Structure Solved MCQs (Set-I) | General Science & Ability

    The universe, Galaxy, Light Year, Solar System, Sun, Earth, Astronomical System of Units

    1) The biggest planet in our solar system is (CSS 2013)

    (a) Venus
    (b) Pluto
    (c) Jupiter
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (c)
    In terms of mass, volume, and surface area, Jupiter is the biggest planet in our Solar System by a wide margin.
    Size and Mass:
    Jupiter’s mass, volume, surface area and mean circumference are 1.8981 x 1027 kg, 1.43128 x 1015 km3, 6.1419 x 1010 km2, and 4.39264 x 105 km respectively. To put that in perspective, Jupiter diameter is roughly 11 times that of Earth, and 2.5 the mass of all the other planets in the Solar System combined.

    2) The universe is ———-. (CSS 1996)

    (a) Stationary
    (b) Expanding
    (c) Contracting
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (b)
    In June 2016, NASA and ESA scientists reported that the universe was found to be expanding 5% to 9% faster than thought earlier, based on studies using the Hubble Space Telescope

    3) The atmosphere of moon consists of: (CSS 2013)

    (a) . 90% Hydrogen, 10% Nitrogen
    (b) . 80%Nitrogen, 20% Hydrogen
    (c) 60% Nitrogen, 40%inert gases
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (d)
    The Moon has no atmosphere. None. That’s why astronauts have to wear their spacesuits when they get outside of their spacecraft on the surface of the Moon.
    Atmosphere of the Moon might be electro statically levitated moon dust. These tiny particles are constantly leaping up and down off the surface of the Moon.

    4) Who gave the first evidence of the Big- Bang theory?

    (a) Edwin Hubble
    (b) Albert Einstein
    (c) S. Chandrasekhar
    (d) Stephen Hawking
    Answer: (a)
    The Hubble Space Telescope was named after astronomer Edwin Powell Hubble (1889–1953), who made some of the most important discoveries in modern astronomy. Dr. Hubble determined that the farther a galaxy is from Earth, the faster it appears to move away. This notion of an “expanding” universe formed the basis of the Big Bang theory, which states that the universe began with an intense burst of energy at a single moment in time — and has been expanding ever since.

    5) Which one of the following planets has largest number of natural satellites or moons?

    (a) Jupiter
    (b) Mars
    (c) Saturn
    (d) Venus
    Answer: (a)
    In the Solar System, there are 179 satellites. A majority of those moons belong to the planet of Jupiter, the second most belonging to Saturn.

    6) Which of the following planets rotates clock wise?

    (a) Mars
    (b) Jupiter
    (c) Venus
    (d) Mercury
    Answer: (c)
    Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise. Venus (radius 3,760.4 miles) is similar to Earth (radius 3,963.19 miles) in size and structure but spins very slowly; a day on Venus is 243 Earth days long.

    7) Which of the following order is given to the planets of solar system on the basis of their sizes?

    (a) Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
    (b) Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, Earth
    (c) Mercury, Earth, Jupiter, Saturn
    (d) Earth, Mercury, Saturn, Jupiter
    Answer: (a)
    Jupiter (69,911 km / 43,441 miles) – 1,120% the size of Earth
    Saturn (58,232 km / 36,184 miles) – 945% the size of Earth
    Uranus (25,362 km / 15,759 miles) –400% the size of Earth
    Neptune (24,622 km / 15,299 miles) – 388% the size of Earth
    Earth (6,371 km / 3,959 miles)

    8) The time taken by the Sun to revolve around the center of our galaxy is

    (a) 50 Million years
    (b) 100 Million years
    (c) 250 Million years
    (d) 365 Million years
    Answer: (c)
    the Sun is dragging us around the galaxy at around 800,000km/h, taking around 250 million years to complete a single orbit.
    That means our Solar System has made around 18 complete circuits since it was formed around 4.5 billion years ago.

    9): The planet having the largest diameter is

    (a) Earth
    (b) Jupiter
    (c) Venus
    (d) Uranus
    Answer: (b)
    Jupiter is composed primarily of gaseous and liquid matter. It is the largest of the four giant planets in the Solar System and hence its largest planet. It has a diameter of 142,984 km (88,846 mi) at its equator

    10) The planet Mercury completes one rotation around the sun is (CSS 2010)

    (a) 88 days
    (b) 365 days
    (c) 98 days
    (d) 60 days
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (a)
    A year on Mercury is just 88 days long. One solar day (the time from noon to noon on the planet’s surface) on Mercury lasts the equivalent of 176 Earth days while the sidereal day (the time for 1 rotation in relation to a fixed point) lasts 59 Earth days. Mercury is nearly tidally locked to the Sun and over time this has slowed the rotation of the planet to almost match its orbit around the Sun. Mercury also has the highest orbital eccentricity of all the planets with its distance from the Sun ranging from 46 to 70 million km.

    11) The biggest planet in our solar system is (CSS 2013)

    (a) Venus
    (b) Pluto
    (c) Jupiter
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (c)
    Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. Jupiter has a mean radius of 43,440.7 miles (69,911 kilometers), about a tenth that of the sun. However, its rapid rotation — it spins once every 9.8 hours

    12) The atmosphere of moon consists of: (CSS 2013)

    (a) 90% Hydrogen, 10% Nitrogen
    (b) 80%Nitrogen, 20% Hydrogen
    (c) 60% Nitrogen, 40%inert gases
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (d)
    The Apollo 17 mission deployed an instrument called the Lunar Atmospheric Composition Experiment (LACE) on the moon’s surface. It detected small amounts of a number of atoms and molecules including helium, argon, and possibly neon, ammonia, methane and carbon dioxide.

    13) Which of the following explains the reason why there is no total eclipse of the sun? (CSS 2009)

    (a) Size of the earth in relation to that of moon
    (b) Orbit of moon around earth
    (c) Direction of rotation of earth around sun
    (d) Area of the sun covered by the moon
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (d)
    A solar eclipse occurs when the moon gets between Earth and the sun, and the moon casts a shadow over Earth. A solar eclipse can only take place at the phase of new moon, when the moon passes directly between the sun and Earth and its shadows fall upon Earth’s surface.

    14) The sun produces most of its energy by (CSS 2012)

    (a) Nuclear fusion which involves converting “H” to “He”
    (b) Nuclear fission involving the burning of uranium & plutonium
    (c) Nuclear fission involving the combining of uranium and palladium
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (a)
    Sun, like all stars, is able to create energy because it is essentially a massive fusion reaction.
    The core of the Sun is the region that extends from the center to about 20–25% of the solar radius. It is here, in the core, where energy is produced by hydrogen atoms (H) being converted into molecules of helium (He) This is possible thanks to the extreme pressure and temperature that exists within the core, which are estimated to be the equivalent of 250 billion atmospheres (25.33 trillion KPa) and 15.7 million kelvin, respectively.

    15) Although the mass of a man on moon remains same as on the earth he will (CSS 2012)

    (a) Be much happier there
    (b) Weigh one sixth as much
    (c) Weigh twice as much
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (b)
    The Moon’s gravity is one sixth of the Earth’s gravity. A 120 kg astronaut weighs 1200 N on Earth. On the Moon they would weigh only 200 N. The astronaut’s mass is 120kg wherever they are.

    16) The planet of the solar system which has maximum numbers of Moon is: (CSS 2011)

    (a) Jupiter
    (b) Venus
    (c) Saturn
    (d) Uranus
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (a)

    17): The earth rotates 011 its axis from_

    (a) North to south
    (b) South to north
    (c) East to west
    (d) West to east
    Answer: (d)
    The Earth rotates from the west towards east. As viewed from North Star or polestar Polaris, the Earth turns counter-clockwise. The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth’s axis of rotation meets its surface.

    18): Name two planets which revolve around their axis from east to west

    (a) Earth and Venus
    (b) Mars and Earth
    (c) Venus and Uranus
    (d) Mars and Uranus
    Answer: (c)
    Planets have no light of their own and all of them expect Venus and Uranus, rotate upon their axis from west to east.

    19) Our sun is classified as (CSS 2012)

    (a) A Blue giant
    (b) A Yellow dwarf
    (c) Supernova
    (d) None of these
    Answer: (b)
    The sun is classified as a G-type main-sequence star, or G dwarf star, or more imprecisely, a yellow dwarf. Actually, the sun — like other G-type stars — is white, but appears yellow through Earth’s atmosphere. Stars generally get bigger as they grow older

    20): Name the planet which revolve approximately 90 degree with its orbital plane_.

    (a) Neptune
    (b) Venus
    (c) Uranus
    (d) Jupiter
    Answer: (c)
    Unlike any other planet, Uranus rotates on its side. That is, the rotation axis is tilted approximately 90 degrees relative to the planet’s orbital plane.

    21): The hottest planet of our solar system is
    (a) Mercury
    (b) Venus
    (c) Mars
    (d) Earth
    Answer: (b)
    Venus’s thick atmosphere made up mainly of CO2 makes it the hottest planet in the solar system. Mercury is colder because it’s atmosphere is thin.

    22): Which of the following constellation contains Pole Star?

    (a) Orion
    (b) Ursa Major
    (c) Ursa Minor
    (d) Scorpio
    Answer: (b)

    23): All the stars appear to move from

    (a) North to south
    (b) South to north
    (c) East to west
    (d) West to east
    Answer: (c)
    Every day, the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars appear to rise in the east and set in the west. Actually, these celestial objects aren’t moving that fast, but Earth is. It spins on its axis from west to east approximately every 24 hours.
    Because we are standing on Earth’s surface, we move along with it. To us, it appears as if everything in the sky is moving from east to west.

    24): The body burning like a star and coming towards the earth

    (a) Comet
    (b) Meteor
    (c) Ceres
    (d) Satellites
    Answer: (b)
    Fleeting trails of light are called meteors or shooting stars and they are created by small particles, some no bigger than a grain of rice, as they are completely burned up high in the atmosphere: about 100 km (or 60 miles) above the Earth. They are over literally in the blink of an eye. Space debris is collectively termed meteoroids, those larger fragments that reach the ground are called meteorites. Very big meteoroids are also known as asteroids. If one collides with Earth it would cause a major catastrophe.

    25) Which of the following is not true?

    (a) Planets rotate on their own axis.
    (b) Planets do not emit light.
    (c) Some planets are gaseous and some are rocky
    (d) Most of the planets have rings around them.
    Answer: (d)

    26) Which is the brightest planet?

    (a) Mars
    (b) Jupiter
    (c) Venus
    (d) Saturn
    Answer: (c)
    Venus is so bright because its thick clouds reflect most of the sunlight that reaches it (about 70%) back into space, and because it is the closest planet to Earth. Venus can often be seen within a few hours after sunset or before sunrise as the brightest object in the sky (other than the moon)

    27) The stars in space are ___.

    (a) Uniformly spread out.
    (b) Distributed completely at random
    (c) Chiefly in the Milky Way
    (d) Mostly contained within widely separated galaxies
    Answer: (d)

    28) “Black holes” refer to: (CSS 2009)

    (a) Hole occurring in heavenly bodies
    (b) Bright spots on the sun
    (c) Collapsing objects of high density
    (d) Collapsing of low density
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (c)

    29) The Milky Way is _____.

    ( a) a gas cloud in the solar system
    (b) a gas cloud in the galaxy of which the sun is a member
    (c) the galaxy of which the sun is a member
    (d) a nearby galaxy
    Answer: (c)

    30) Relative to the center of our galaxy, ____.

    ( a) its starts are stationary
    (b) its stars move entirely at random
    (c) its stars revolve
    (d) Population I starts are stationary and Population II star revolve
    Answer: (c)

    31) Evidence of various kinds suggests that at the center of our galaxy is a ___.

    ( a) Quasar
    (b) Pulsar
    (c) Neutron star
    (d) Black hole
    Answer: (d)
    A supermassive black hole (SMBH) is the largest type of black hole, in the order of hundreds of thousands to billions of solar masses (M☉), and is found in the centre of almost all currently known massive galaxies. In the case of the Milky Way, the SMBH corresponds with the location of Sagittarius A*

    32) A radio telescope is basically a (an) __.

    (a) device for magnifying radio waves
    (b) Telescope remotely controlled by radio
    (c) Directional antenna connected to a sensitive radio receiver
    (d) Optical telescope that uses electronic techniques to produce an image
    Answer: (c)
    Radio telescope is an astronomical instrument consisting of a radio receiver and an antenna system that is used to detect radio-frequency radiation emitted by extraterrestrial sources. Because radio wavelengths are much longer than those of visible light, radio telescopes must be very large in order to attain the resolution of optical telescopes.
    The first radio telescope, built in 1937 by Grote Reber of Wheaton

    33) Sun is a: (CSS 2011)

    (a) Planet
    (b) Comet
    (c) Satellite
    (d) Aurora
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (e)
    The Sun (or Sol), is the star at the centre of our solar system
    The Sun is by far the largest object in the solar system. It contains more than 99.8% of the total mass of the Solar System (Jupiter contains most of the rest).

    34) The age of the solar system is (CSS 2011)

    (a) 4.5 billion years
    (b) 5.5 billion years
    (c) 6.5 billion years
    (d) 7.5 billion years
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (e)
    By studying several things, mostly meteorites, and using radioactive dating techniques, specifically looking at daughter isotopes, scientists have determined that the Solar System is 4.6 billion years old. Well, give or take a few million years. That age can be extended to most of the objects and material in the Solar System.

    35) An eclipse of the sun occurs when (CSS 2011)

    (a) The moon is between the sun and the earth
    (b) The sun is between the earth and the moon
    (c) The earth is between the sun and the moon
    (d) The earth casts its shadow on the moon
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (a)
    A solar eclipse occurs when the moon gets between Earth and the sun, and the moon casts a shadow over Earth. A solar eclipse can only take place at the phase of new moon, when the moon passes directly between the sun and Earth and its shadows fall upon Earth’s surface.

    36) Founder of modern astronomy was: (CSS 2009)

    (a) Archimedes
    (b) William Gilbert
    (c) Nicolaus Copernicus
    (d) Michael Faraday
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (c)
    Considered today to be the father of modern astronomy, Nicolaus Copernicus was born on February 19, 1473 in Torun, Poland.

    37) Orbital period of the planet Mercury around the sun is: (CSS 2009)

    (a) 88 days
    (b) 365 days
    (c) 2 years
    (d) 98 days
    (e) None of these
    Answer: (a)
    Mercury has an orbital period of 88 days (87.969 to be exact), which means a single year is 88 Earth days – or the equivalent of about 0.241 Earth years. But here’s the thing. Because of Mercury’s slow rotation (once every 58.646 days) and its rapid orbital speed (47.362 km/s), one day on Mercury actually works out to 175.96 Earth days.

    38) Primary cosmic rays are composed largely of very fast ___.

    ( a) Protons
    (b) Neutrons
    (c) Electrons
    (d) Gamma rays
    Answer: (a)
    Of primary cosmic rays, which originate outside of Earth’s atmosphere, about 99% are the nuclei (stripped of their electron shells) of well-known atoms, and about 1% are solitary electrons (similar to beta particles). Of the nuclei, about 90% are simple protons, i. e. hydrogen nuclei; 9% are alpha particles, identical to helium nuclei, and 1% are the nuclei of heavier elements, called HZE ions

    39) Cosmic rays ____.

    (a) Circulate freely through space
    (b) are trapped in our galaxy by electric fields
    (c) are trapped in our galaxy by magnetic fields
    (d) are trapped in our galaxy by gravitational fields
    Answer: (c)

    40) The red shift in the spectral lines of light reaching us from other galaxies implies that these galaxies ______.

    ( a) are moving closer to one another
    (b) are moving farther apart from one another
    (c) are in rapid rotation
    (d) Consist predominantly of red giant stars
    Answer: (b)

    41) According to Einstein’s general theory of relativity, the universe _____.

    ( a) Must be expanding
    (b) Must be contracting
    (c) Must be either expanding or contracting
    (d) May be neither expanding nor contracting
    Answer: (c)

    42) Supernova explosions have no connection with _______.

    ( a) The formation of heavy elements
    (b) Cosmic rays
    (c) Pulsars
    (d) Quasars
    Answer: (d)

    43) Current ideas suggest that what is responsible for the observed properties of a quasar is a massive ____.

    (a) Neutron star
    (b) Black hole
    (c) Spiral galaxy
    (d) Star cluster
    Answer: (b)

    44) The age of the universe is probably in the neighborhood of ______.

    ( a) 15 million years
    (b) 4 ½ billion years
    (c) 15 billion years
    (d) 30 billion years
    Answer: (c)

    45) The term big bang refers to ___.

    ( a) the origin of the universe
    (b) the ultimate fate of the universe
    (c) a supernova explosion
    (d) the formation of a quasar
    Answer: (a)

    46) The elements heavier than hydrogen and helium of which the planets are composed probably came from the __.
    ( a) Sun
    (b) Debris of supernova explosions that occurred before the solar system came into being
    (c) Big bang
    (d) Big crunch
    Answer: (b)

    47) Today the universe apparently contains ____.

    ( a) Only matter
    (b) Only antimatter
    (c) Equal amounts of matter and antimatter
    (d) Slightly more matter than antimatter
    Answer: (a)

    48) Radiation from the early history of the universe was Doppler-shifted by the expansion of the universe until today it is in the form of _______.

    ( a) X-rays
    (b) Ultraviolet waves
    (c) Infrared waves
    (d) Radio waves
    Answer: (d)

    49) Present evidence suggests that most of the mass of the universe is in the form of ______.

    ( a) Dark matter
    (b) Luminous matter
    (c) Cosmic rays
    (d) Black holes
    Answer: (a)

    50) It is likely that the planets, satellites, and other members of the solar system were formed ________.

    (a) Together with the sun
    (b) Later than the sun from material it ejected
    (c) Later than the sun from material it captured from space
    (d) Elsewhere and were captured by the sun
    Answer: (a)