george i of greece

  • March 18 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1068 – An earthquake in the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula, leaves up to 20,000 dead.
    • 1229 – Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, declares himself King of Jerusalem in the Sixth Crusade.
    • 1241 – First Mongol invasion of Poland: Mongols overwhelm Polish armies in Kraków in the Battle of Chmielnik and plunder the city.
    • 1314 – Jacques de Molay, the 23rd and final Grand Master of the Knights Templar, is burned at the stake.
    • 1438 – Albert II of Habsburg becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
    • 1608 – Susenyos is formally crowned Emperor of Ethiopia.
    • 1644 – The Third Anglo-Powhatan War begins in the Colony of Virginia.
    • 1741 – New York governor George Clarke’s complex at Fort George is burned in an arson attack, starting the New York Conspiracy of 1741.
    • 1766 – American Revolution: The British Parliament repeals the Stamp Act.
    • 1793 – The first modern republic in Germany, the Republic of Mainz, is declared by Andreas Joseph Hofmann.
    • 1793 – Flanders Campaign of the French Revolution, Battle of Neerwinden.
    • 1834 – Six farm labourers from Tolpuddle, Dorset, England are sentenced to be transported to Australia for forming a trade union.
    • 1848 – March Revolution: In Berlin there is a struggle between citizens and military, costing about 300 lives.
    • 1850 – American Express is founded by Henry Wells and William Fargo.
    • 1865 – American Civil War: The Congress of the Confederate States adjourns for the last time.
    • 1871 – Declaration of the Paris Commune; President of the French Republic, Adolphe Thiers, orders the evacuation of Paris.
    • 1874 – Hawaii signs a treaty with the United States granting exclusive trade rights.
    • 1892 – Former Governor General Lord Stanley pledges to donate a silver challenge cup as an award for the best hockey team in Canada; it was later named after him as the Stanley Cup.
    • 1900 – AFC Ajax Amsterdam, The Netherlands’s biggest and most successful football club, was founded.
    • 1902 – Macario Sakay issues Presidential Order No. 1 of his Tagalog Republic.
    • 1913 – King George I of Greece is assassinated in the recently liberated city of Thessaloniki.
    • 1915 – World War I: During the Battle of Gallipoli, three battleships are sunk during a failed British and French naval attack on the Dardanelles.
    • 1921 – The second Peace of Riga is signed between Poland and the Soviet Union.
    • 1921 – The Kronstadt rebellion is suppressed by the Red Army.
    • 1922 – In India, Mohandas Gandhi is sentenced to six years in prison for civil disobedience, of which he serves only two.
    • 1925 – The Tri-State Tornado hits the Midwestern states of Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana, killing 695 people.
    • 1937 – The New London School explosion in New London, Texas, kills 300 people, mostly children.
    • 1937 – Spanish Civil War: Spanish Republican forces defeat the Italians at the Battle of Guadalajara.
    • 1938 – Mexico creates Pemex by expropriating all foreign-owned oil reserves and facilities.
    • 1940 – World War II: Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini meet at the Brenner Pass in the Alps and agree to form an alliance against France and the United Kingdom.
    • 1942 – The War Relocation Authority is established in the United States to take Japanese Americans into custody.
    • 1944 – Mount Vesuvius in Italy erupts, killing 26 people, causing thousands to flee their homes, and destroying dozens of Allied bombers.
    • 1948 – Soviet consultants leave Yugoslavia in the first sign of the Tito–Stalin Split.
    • 1953 – An earthquake hits western Turkey, killing 265 people.
    • 1959 – The Hawaii Admission Act is signed into law.
    • 1962 – The Évian Accords end the Algerian War of Independence, which had begun in 1954.
    • 1965 – Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, leaving his spacecraft Voskhod 2 for 12 minutes, becomes the first person to walk in space.
    • 1967 – The supertanker Torrey Canyon runs aground off the Cornish coast.
    • 1968 – Gold standard: The U.S. Congress repeals the requirement for a gold reserve to back US currency.
    • 1969 – The United States begins secretly bombing the Sihanouk Trail in Cambodia, used by communist forces to infiltrate South Vietnam.
    • 1970 – Lon Nol ousts Prince Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia.
    • 1971 – Peru: a landslide crashes into Yanawayin Lake, killing 200 people at the mining camp of Chungar.
    • 1980 – A Vostok-2M rocket at Plesetsk Cosmodrome Site 43 explodes during a fueling operation, killing 48 people.
    • 1990 – Germans in the German Democratic Republic vote in the first democratic elections in the former communist dictatorship.
    • 1990 – In the largest art theft in US history, 12 paintings, collectively worth around $500 million, are stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.
    • 1994 – Bosnia’s Bosniaks and Croats sign the Washington Agreement, ending war between the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia and the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and establishing the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
    • 1996 – A nightclub fire in Quezon City, Philippines kills 162 people.
    • 1997 – The tail of a Russian Antonov An-24 charter plane breaks off while en route to Turkey causing the plane to crash and killing all 50 people on board.
    • 2014 – The parliaments of Russia and Crimea sign an accession treaty.
    • 2015 – The Bardo National Museum in Tunisia is attacked by gunmen. 23 people, almost all tourists, are killed, and at least 50 other people are wounded.

    Births on March 18

    • 1075 – Al-Zamakhshari, Persian scholar and theologian (d. 1144)
    • 1395 – John Holland, 2nd Duke of Exeter, English military commander (d. 1447)
    • 1495 – Mary Tudor, Queen of France (d. 1533)
    • 1548 – Cornelis Ketel, Dutch painter (d. 1616)
    • 1552 – Polykarp Leyser the Elder, German theologian (d. 1610)
    • 1555 – Francis, Duke of Anjou (d. 1584)
    • 1578 – Adam Elsheimer, German painter (d. 1610)
    • 1590 – Manuel de Faria e Sousa, Portuguese historian and poet (d. 1649)
    • 1597 – Jérôme le Royer de la Dauversière, French religious leader, founded the Société Notre-Dame de Montréal (d. 1659)
    • 1603 – Simon Bradstreet, English colonial magistrate (d. 1697)
    • 1609 – Frederick III of Denmark (d. 1670)
    • 1634 – Madame de La Fayette, French author (d. 1693)
    • 1640 – Philippe de La Hire, French mathematician and astronomer (d. 1719)
    • 1657 – Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni, Italian organist and composer (d. 1743)
    • 1690 – Christian Goldbach, Prussian-German mathematician and academic (d. 1764)
    • 1701 – Niclas Sahlgren, Swedish businessman and philanthropist, co-founded the Swedish East India Company (d. 1776)
    • 1733 – Christoph Friedrich Nicolai, German author and bookseller (d. 1811)
    • 1780 – Miloš Obrenović, Serbian prince (d. 1860)
    • 1782 – John C. Calhoun, American lawyer and politician, 7th Vice President of the United States (d. 1850)
    • 1789 – Charlotte Elliott, English poet, hymn writer, editor (d. 1871)
    • 1798 – Francis Lieber, German-American jurist and philosopher (d. 1872)
    • 1800 – Harriet Smithson, Irish actress, the first wife and muse of Hector Berlioz (d. 1854)
    • 1813 – Christian Friedrich Hebbel, German poet and playwright (d. 1864)
    • 1814 – Jacob Bunn, American businessman (d. 1897)
    • 1819 – James McCulloch, Scottish-Australian politician, 5th Premier of Victoria (d. 1893)
    • 1820 – John Plankinton, American businessman and industrialist, also noted for philanthropy (d. 1891)
    • 1823 – Antoine Chanzy, French general (d. 1883)
    • 1828 – Randal Cremer, English activist and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1908)
    • 1837 – Grover Cleveland, American lawyer and politician, 22nd and 24th President of the United States (d. 1908)
    • 1840 – William Cosmo Monkhouse, English poet and critic (d. 1901)
    • 1842 – Stéphane Mallarmé, French poet and critic (d. 1898)
    • 1844 – Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Russian composer and academic (d. 1908)
    • 1846 – Kicking Bear, Native American tribal leader (d. 1904)
    • 1848 – Nathanael Greene Herreshoff, American architect and engineer (d. 1938)
    • 1858 – Rudolf Diesel, German engineer, invented the Diesel engine (d. 1913)
    • 1862 – Eugène Jansson, Swedish painter (d. 1915)
    • 1863 – William Sulzer, American lawyer and politician, 39th Governor of New York (d. 1941)
    • 1869 – Neville Chamberlain, English businessman and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1940)
    • 1870 – Agnes Sime Baxter, Canadian mathematician (d. 1917)
    • 1874 – Nikolai Berdyaev, Russian-French philosopher and theologian (d. 1948)
    • 1877 – Edgar Cayce, American mystic and psychic (d. 1945)
    • 1877 – Clem Hill, Australian cricketer and engineer (d. 1945)
    • 1878 – Percival Perry, 1st Baron Perry, English businessman (d. 1956)
    • 1882 – Gian Francesco Malipiero, Italian composer and educator (d. 1973)
    • 1884 – Bernard Cronin, English-Australian journalist and author (d. 1968)
    • 1886 – Edward Everett Horton, American actor, singer, and dancer (d. 1970)
    • 1890 – Henri Decoin, French director and screenwriter (d. 1969)
    • 1893 – Costante Girardengo, Italian cyclist (d. 1978)
    • 1893 – Wilfred Owen, English soldier and poet (d. 1918)
    • 1901 – Manly Palmer Hall, Canadian mystic, author and philosopher (d. 1990)
    • 1901 – William Johnson, American painter (d. 1970)
    • 1903 – Galeazzo Ciano, Italian journalist and politician, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1944)
    • 1903 – E. O. Plauen, German cartoonist (d. 1944)
    • 1904 – Srečko Kosovel, Slovenian poet and author (d. 1926)
    • 1904 – Margaret Tucker, Australian author and activist (d. 1996)
    • 1905 – Thomas Townsend Brown, American physicist and engineer (d. 1985)
    • 1905 – Robert Donat, English actor (d. 1958)
    • 1907 – John Zachary Young, English zoologist and neurophysiologist (d. 1997)
    • 1908 – Loulou Gasté, French composer (d. 1995)
    • 1909 – Ernest Gallo, American businessman, co-founded the E & J Gallo Winery (d. 2007)
    • 1909 – C. Walter Hodges, English author and illustrator (d. 2004)
    • 1911 – Smiley Burnette, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1967)
    • 1912 – Art Gilmore, American voice actor and announcer (d. 2010)
    • 1913 – René Clément, French director and screenwriter (d. 1996)
    • 1913 – Werner Mölders, German colonel and pilot (d. 1941)
    • 1915 – Richard Condon, American author and screenwriter (d. 1996)
    • 1922 – Egon Bahr, German journalist and politician, Federal Minister for Special Affairs of Germany (d. 2015)
    • 1922 – Seymour Martin Lipset, American sociologist and academic (d. 2006)
    • 1922 – Fred Shuttlesworth, American activist, co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (d. 2011)
    • 1923 – Andy Granatelli, American race car driver and businessman (d. 2013)
    • 1925 – Alessandro Alessandroni, Italian musician (d. 2017)
    • 1925 – James Pickles, English journalist, lawyer, and judge (d. 2010)
    • 1926 – Peter Graves, American actor and director (d. 2010)
    • 1927 – John Kander, American pianist and composer
    • 1927 – George Plimpton, American journalist and actor (d. 2003)
    • 1927 – Lillian Vernon, German-American businesswoman and philanthropist, founded the Lillian Vernon Company (d. 2015)
    • 1928 – Miguel Poblet, Spanish cyclist (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Fidel V. Ramos, Filipino general and politician, 12th President of the Philippines
    • 1929 – Samuel Pisar, Polish-American lawyer and author (d. 2015)
    • 1930 – James J. Andrews, American mathematician and academic (d. 1998)
    • 1931 – John Fraser, Scottish actor
    • 1932 – John Updike, American novelist, short story writer, and critic (d. 2009)
    • 1933 – Unita Blackwell, American civil rights activist and politician (d. 2019)
    • 1934 – Roy Chapman, English footballer and manager (d. 1983)
    • 1934 – Charley Pride, American country music singer and musician
    • 1935 – Ole Barndorff-Nielsen, Danish mathematician and statistician
    • 1935 – Frances Cress Welsing, American psychiatrist and author (d. 2016)
    • 1936 – F. W. de Klerk, South African lawyer and politician, 2nd State President of South Africa, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1937 – Rudi Altig, German cyclist and sportscaster (d. 2016)
    • 1937 – Mark Donohue, American race car driver (d. 1975)
    • 1938 – Carl Gottlieb, American actor and screenwriter
    • 1938 – Shashi Kapoor, Indian actor and producer (d. 2017)
    • 1938 – Kenny Lynch, English singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2019)
    • 1938 – Timo Mäkinen, Finnish race car driver (d. 2017)
    • 1938 – Machiko Soga, Japanese actress (d. 2006)
    • 1939 – Ron Atkinson, English footballer and manager
    • 1939 – Jean-Pierre Wallez, French violinist and conductor
    • 1941 – Wilson Pickett, American singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
    • 1942 – Kathleen Collins, African-American filmmaker and playwright (d. 1988)
    • 1943 – Dennis Linde, American singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
    • 1944 – Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, Israeli general and politician, 22nd Transportation Minister of Israel (d. 2012)
    • 1944 – Frank McRae, American football player and actor
    • 1944 – Dick Smith, Australian publisher and businessman, founded Dick Smith Electronics and Australian Geographic
    • 1945 – Hiroh Kikai, Japanese photographer
    • 1945 – Michael Reagan, American journalist and radio host
    • 1945 – Susan Tyrrell, American actress (d. 2012)
    • 1945 – Eric Woolfson, Scottish singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (d. 2009)
    • 1946 – Michel Leclère, French race car driver
    • 1947 – Patrick Barlow, English actor and playwright
    • 1947 – Patrick Chesnais, French actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1947 – David Lloyd, English cricketer, journalist, and sportscaster
    • 1947 – B. J. Wilson, English rock drummer (d. 1990)
    • 1948 – Guy Lapointe, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1948 – Brian Lloyd, Welsh footballer
    • 1948 – Eknath Solkar, Indian cricketer (d. 2005)
    • 1949 – Åse Kleveland, Norwegian singer and politician, Norwegian Minister of Culture
    • 1950 – James Conlon, American conductor and educator
    • 1950 – Brad Dourif, American actor
    • 1950 – Linda Partridge, English geneticist and academic
    • 1950 – Larry Perkins, Australian race car driver
    • 1951 – Paul Barber, English actor
    • 1951 – Ben Cohen, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Ben and Jerry’s
    • 1951 – Bill Frisell, American guitarist and composer
    • 1951 – Timothy N. Philpot, American lawyer, author, and judge
    • 1952 – Will Durst, American journalist and actor
    • 1952 – Pat Eddery, Irish jockey and trainer (d. 2015)
    • 1952 – Bernie Tormé, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2019)
    • 1952 – Mike Webster, American football player (d. 2002)
    • 1953 – Franz Wright, Austrian-American poet and translator (d. 2015)
    • 1953 – Takashi Yoshimatsu, Japanese composer
    • 1955 – Francis G. Slay, American lawyer and politician, 45th Mayor of St. Louis
    • 1955 – Jeff Stelling, English journalist and game show host
    • 1956 – Rick Martel, Canadian wrestler
    • 1956 – Deborah Jeane Palfrey, American madam (d. 2008)
    • 1956 – Ingemar Stenmark, Swedish skier
    • 1957 – Christer Fuglesang, Swedish physicist and astronaut
    • 1958 – Richard de Zoysa, Sri Lankan journalist and author (d. 1990)
    • 1959 – Luc Besson, French director, producer, and screenwriter, founded EuropaCorp
    • 1960 – Richard Biggs, American actor (d. 2004)
    • 1960 – Guy Carbonneau, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1960 – James Plaskett, Cypriot-English chess player
    • 1961 – Grant Hart, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2017)
    • 1962 – Michael Andrews, Australian rugby league player
    • 1962 – Irene Cara, American singer-songwriter, actress, and producer
    • 1962 – Brian Fisher, American baseball player
    • 1962 – Thomas Ian Griffith, American actor and martial artist
    • 1962 – James McMurtry, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1962 – Etsushi Toyokawa, Japanese actor and director
    • 1962 – Volker Weidler, German race car driver and engineer
    • 1963 – Jeff LaBar, American guitarist
    • 1963 – Vanessa L. Williams, American model, actress, and singer
    • 1964 – Bonnie Blair, American speed skater
    • 1964 – Alex Caffi, Italian race car driver
    • 1964 – Jo Churchill, British politician
    • 1964 – Courtney Pine, English saxophonist and clarinet player
    • 1964 – Isabel Noronha, Mozambican film director
    • 1966 – Jerry Cantrell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1966 – Peter Jones, English businessman
    • 1966 – Brian Watts, Canadian golfer
    • 1967 – Miki Berenyi, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1968 – Prince Eudes, Duke of Angoulême
    • 1968 – Miguel Herrera, Mexican footballer and manager
    • 1968 – Temur Ketsbaia, Georgian footballer and manager
    • 1968 – Paul Marsden, English businessman and politician
    • 1969 – Andy Cutting, English accordion player and composer
    • 1969 – Vassily Ivanchuk, Ukrainian chess player
    • 1969 – Shaun Udal, English cricketer
    • 1970 – Queen Latifah, American rapper, producer, and actress
    • 1971 – Wayne Arthurs, Australian tennis player
    • 1971 – Mike Bell, American wrestler (d. 2008)
    • 1971 – Mariaan de Swardt, South African-American tennis player, coach, and sportscaster
    • 1971 – Kitty Ussher, English economist and politician
    • 1972 – Dane Cook, American comedian, actor, director, and producer
    • 1972 – Reince Priebus, American lawyer and politician
    • 1973 – Luci Christian, American voice actress and screenwriter
    • 1974 – Laure Savasta, French basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
    • 1974 – Stuart Zender, English bass player, songwriter, and producer
    • 1975 – Sutton Foster, American actress, singer, and dancer
    • 1975 – Brian Griese, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1975 – Kimmo Timonen, Finnish ice hockey player
    • 1975 – Tomas Žvirgždauskas, Lithuanian footballer
    • 1976 – Giovanna Antonelli, Brazilian actress and producer
    • 1976 – Tomo Ohka, Japanese baseball player
    • 1976 – Scott Podsednik, American baseball player
    • 1976 – Mike Quackenbush, American wrestler, trainer, and author, founded Chikara wrestling promotion
    • 1977 – Zdeno Chára, Slovak ice hockey player
    • 1977 – Danny Murphy, English international footballer, midfielder and sportscaster
    • 1977 – Fernando Rodney, Dominican-American baseball player
    • 1977 – Willy Sagnol, French footballer and manager
    • 1977 – Terrmel Sledge, American baseball player and coach
    • 1978 – Fernandão, Brazilian footballer and manager (d. 2014)
    • 1978 – Brooke Hanson, Australian swimmer
    • 1978 – Brian Scalabrine, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
    • 1978 – Jonas Wallerstedt, Swedish footballer, coach, and manager
    • 1979 – Adam Levine, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and television personality
    • 1980 – Sébastien Frey, French footballer
    • 1980 – Sophia Myles, English actress
    • 1980 – Alexei Yagudin, Russian figure skater
    • 1981 – Tora Berger, Norwegian biathlete
    • 1981 – Fabian Cancellara, Swiss cyclist
    • 1981 – Leslie Djhone, French sprinter
    • 1981 – Jang Na-ra, South Korean singer and actress
    • 1981 – Kasib Powell, American basketball player
    • 1981 – Tom Starke, German footballer
    • 1981 – Doug Warren, American soccer player
    • 1981 – Lovro Zovko, Croatian tennis player
    • 1982 – Mantorras, Angolan footballer
    • 1982 – Chad Cordero, American baseball player
    • 1982 – Timo Glock, German race car driver
    • 1982 – Adam Pally, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1983 – Ethan Carter III, American wrestler
    • 1983 – Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro, French tennis player
    • 1983 – Andy Sonnanstine, American baseball player
    • 1983 – Tomasz Stolpa, Polish footballer
    • 1984 – Simone Padoin, Italian footballer
    • 1984 – Rajeev Ram, American tennis player
    • 1984 – Vonzell Solomon, American singer and actress
    • 1985 – Ana Beatriz, Brazilian race car driver
    • 1985 – Marvin Humes, English singer
    • 1985 – Vince Lia, Australian footballer
    • 1986 – Lykke Li, Swedish singer-songwriter
    • 1986 – Abdennour Chérif El-Ouazzani, Algerian footballer
    • 1987 – Rebecca Soni, American swimmer
    • 1989 – Francesco Checcucci, Italian footballer
    • 1989 – Lily Collins, English-American actress
    • 1989 – Shreevats Goswami, Indian cricketer
    • 1989 – Kana Nishino, Japanese singer-songwriter
    • 1989 – Paul Marc Rousseau, Canadian guitarist and producer
    • 1989 – Ming Xi, Chinese model
    • 1991 – Dylan Mattingly, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1991 – Sam Williams, Australian rugby league player
    • 1992 – Ryan Truex, American race car driver
    • 1992 – Takuya Terada, Japanese singer, actor, and model
    • 1997 – Ciara Bravo, American actress
    • 1997 – Rieko Ioane, New Zealand rugby union player

    Deaths on March 18

    • 978 – Edward the Martyr, English king (b. 962)
    • 1076 – Ermengarde of Anjou, Duchess of Burgundy (b. 1018)
    • 1086 – Anselm of Lucca, Italian bishop (b. 1036)
    • 1227 – Pope Honorius III (b. 1148)
    • 1272 – John FitzAlan, 7th Earl of Arundel (b. 1246)
    • 1308 – Yuri I of Galicia
    • 1314 – Jacques de Molay, Frankish knight (b. 1244)
    • 1314 – Geoffroy de Charney, Preceptor of Normandy for the Knights Templar
    • 1321 – Matthew III Csák, Hungarian oligarch (b. c.1260/5)
    • 1582 – Juan Jauregui, attempted assassin of William I of Orange (b. 1562)
    • 1675 – Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, Irish soldier (b. 1606)
    • 1689 – John Dixwell, English soldier and politician (b. 1607)
    • 1745 – Robert Walpole, English scholar and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1676)
    • 1768 – Laurence Sterne, Irish novelist and clergyman (b. 1713)
    • 1781 – Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, French economist and politician, Controller-General of Finances (b. 1727)
    • 1823 – Jean-Baptiste Bréval, French cellist and composer (b. 1753)
    • 1835 – Christian Günther von Bernstorff, Danish-Prussian politician and diplomat (b. 1769)
    • 1845 – Johnny Appleseed, American gardener and missionary (b. 1774)
    • 1871 – Augustus De Morgan, Indian-English mathematician and academic (b. 1806)
    • 1898 – Matilda Joslyn Gage, American author and activist (b. 1826)
    • 1900 – Hjalmar Kiærskou, Danish botanist (b. 1835)
    • 1907 – Marcellin Berthelot, French chemist and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1827)
    • 1913 – George I of Greece (b. 1845)
    • 1918 – Henry Janeway Hardenbergh, American architect, designed the Plaza Hotel (b. 1847)
    • 1930 – Jean Leon Gerome Ferris, American painter (b. 1863)
    • 1936 – Eleftherios Venizelos, Greek journalist, lawyer, and politician, 93rd Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1864)
    • 1939 – Henry Simpson Lunn, English businessman, founded Lunn Poly (b. 1859)
    • 1941 – Henri Cornet, French cyclist (b. 1884)
    • 1947 – William C. Durant, American businessman, co-founded General Motors and Chevrolet (b. 1861)
    • 1954 – Walter Mead, English cricketer (b. 1868)
    • 1956 – Louis Bromfield, American environmentalist and author (b. 1896)
    • 1962 – Walter W. Bacon, American accountant and politician, 60th Governor of Delaware (b. 1880)
    • 1964 – Sigfrid Edström, Swedish businessman, 4th President of the International Olympic Committee (b. 1870)
    • 1965 – Farouk of Egypt (b. 1920)
    • 1973 – Johannes Aavik, Estonian philologist and poet (b. 1880)
    • 1977 – Marien Ngouabi, Congolese politician, President of the Republic of the Congo (b. 1938)
    • 1977 – Carlos Pace, Brazilian race car driver (b. 1944)
    • 1978 – Leigh Brackett, American author and screenwriter (b. 1915)
    • 1978 – Peggy Wood, American actress (b. 1892)
    • 1980 – Erich Fromm, German psychologist and philosopher (b. 1900)
    • 1982 – Patrick Smith, Irish farmer and politician, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (b. 1901)
    • 1983 – Umberto II of Italy (b. 1904)
    • 1984 – Charley Lau, American baseball player and coach (b. 1933)
    • 1986 – Bernard Malamud, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1914)
    • 1988 – Billy Butterfield, American trumpet player and cornet player (b. 1917)
    • 1990 – Robin Harris, American comedian (b. 1953)
    • 1993 – Kenneth E. Boulding, English-American economist and activist (b. 1910)
    • 1996 – Odysseas Elytis, Greek poet and critic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
    • 2000 – Eberhard Bethge, German theologian and academic (b. 1909)
    • 2001 – John Phillips, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Mamas & the Papas) (b. 1935)
    • 2002 – R. A. Lafferty, American soldier and author (b. 1914)
    • 2003 – Karl Kling, German race car driver (b. 1910)
    • 2003 – Adam Osborne, Thai-English engineer and businessman, founded the Osborne Computer Corporation (b. 1939)
    • 2004 – Harrison McCain, Canadian businessman, co-founded McCain Foods (b. 1927)
    • 2006 – Dan Gibson, Canadian photographer and cinematographer (b. 1922)
    • 2007 – Bob Woolmer, Indian-English cricketer, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1948)
    • 2008 – Anthony Minghella, English director and screenwriter (b. 1954)
    • 2009 – Omid Reza Mir Sayafi, Iranian journalist and blogger (b. 1980)
    • 2009 – Natasha Richardson, English-American actress (b. 1963)
    • 2010 – Fess Parker, American actor and businessman (b. 1924)
    • 2011 – Warren Christopher, American lawyer and politician, 63rd United States Secretary of State (b. 1925)
    • 2012 – Furman Bisher, American journalist and author (b. 1918)
    • 2012 – William R. Charette, American soldier, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1932)
    • 2012 – William G. Moore Jr., American general (b. 1920)
    • 2012 – George Tupou V of Tonga (b. 1948)
    • 2013 – Muhammad Mahmood Alam, Pakistani general and pilot (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – Henry Bromell, American novelist, screenwriter, and director (b. 1947)
    • 2013 – Clay Ford, American lawyer and politician (b. 1938)
    • 2014 – Catherine Obianuju Acholonu, Nigerian author, playwright, and academic (b. 1951)
    • 2014 – Kaiser Kalambo, Zambian footballer, coach, and manager (b. 1953)
    • 2014 – Lucius Shepard, American author and critic (b. 1943)
    • 2015 – Zhao Dayu, Chinese footballer and manager (b. 1961)
    • 2015 – Thomas Hopko, American priest and theologian (b. 1939)
    • 2015 – Grace Ogot, Kenyan nurse, journalist, and politician (b. 1930)
    • 2016 – Barry Hines, English author and screenwriter (b. 1939)
    • 2016 – Jan Němec, Czech director and screenwriter (b. 1936)
    • 2016 – Tray Walker, American football player (b. 1992)
    • 2016 – Guido Westerwelle, German lawyer and politician, 15th Vice-Chancellor of Germany (b. 1961)
    • 2017 – Chuck Berry, American guitarist, singer and songwriter (b. 1926)
    • 2020 – Alfred Worden, Apollo 15 command module pilot (b. 1932)

    Holidays and observances on March 18

    • Anniversary of the Oil Expropriation (Mexico)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Alexander of Jerusalem
      • Anselm of Lucca
      • Cyril of Jerusalem
      • Edward the Martyr
      • Fridianus
      • Salvator
      • March 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • The earliest date on which Holy Wednesday can fall, while April 21 is the latest; celebrated on the week before Easter. (Christianity)
    • Flag Day (Aruba)
    • Gallipoli Memorial Day (Turkey)
    • Men’s and Soldiers’ Day (Mongolia)
    • Ordnance Factories’ Day (India)
    • Sheelah’s Day (Ireland, Canada, Australia)
    • Teacher’s Day (Syria)
  • |

    February 27 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity.
    • 425 – The University of Constantinople is founded by Emperor Theodosius II at the urging of his wife Aelia Eudocia.
    • 907 – Abaoji, a Khitan chieftain, is enthroned as Emperor Taizu, establishing the Liao dynasty in northern China.
    • 1560 – The Treaty of Berwick, which would expel the French from Scotland, is signed by England and the Lords of the Congregation of Scotland.
    • 1594 – Henry IV is crowned King of France.
    • 1617 – Sweden and Russia sign the Treaty of Stolbovo, ending the Ingrian War and shutting Russia out of the Baltic Sea.
    • 1626 – Yuan Chonghuan is appointed Governor of Liaodong, after leading the Chinese into a great victory against the Manchurians under Nurhaci.
    • 1700 – The island of New Britain is discovered by Europeans.
    • 1776 – American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge in North Carolina breaks up a Loyalist militia.
    • 1782 – American Revolutionary War: The House of Commons of Great Britain votes against further war in America.
    • 1801 – Pursuant to the District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801, Washington, D.C. is placed under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress.
    • 1809 – Action of 27 February 1809: Captain Bernard Dubourdieu captures HMS Proserpine.
    • 1812 – Argentine War of Independence: Manuel Belgrano raises the Flag of Argentina in the city of Rosario for the first time.
    • 1812 – Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire.
    • 1844 – The Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti.
    • 1860 – Abraham Lincoln makes a speech at Cooper Union in the city of New York that is largely responsible for his election to the Presidency.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: The first Northern prisoners arrive at the Confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia.
    • 1870 – The current flag of Japan is first adopted as the national flag for Japanese merchant ships.
    • 1881 – First Boer War: The Battle of Majuba Hill takes place.
    • 1898 – King George I of Greece survives an assassination attempt.
    • 1900 – Second Boer War: In South Africa, British military leaders receive an unconditional notice of surrender from Boer General Piet Cronjé at the Battle of Paardeberg.
    • 1900 – The British Labour Party is founded.
    • 1900 – Fußball-Club Bayern München is founded.
    • 1902 – Second Boer War: Australian soldiers Harry “Breaker” Morant and Peter Handcock are executed in Pretoria after being convicted of war crimes.
    • 1916 – Ocean liner SS Maloja strikes a mine near Dover and sinks with the loss of 155 lives.
    • 1921 – The International Working Union of Socialist Parties is founded in Vienna.
    • 1922 – A challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote, is rebuffed by the Supreme Court of the United States in Leser v. Garnett.
    • 1933 – Reichstag fire: Germany’s parliament building in Berlin, the Reichstag, is set on fire; Marinus van der Lubbe, a young Dutch Communist claims responsibility.
    • 1939 – United States labor law: The U.S. Supreme Court rules in NLRB v. Fansteel Metallurgical Corp. that the National Labor Relations Board has no authority to force an employer to rehire workers who engage in sit-down strikes.
    • 1940 – Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14.
    • 1942 – World War II: During the Battle of the Java Sea, an Allied strike force is defeated by a Japanese task force in the Java Sea in the Dutch East Indies.
    • 1943 – The Smith Mine #3 in Bearcreek, Montana, explodes, killing 74 men.
    • 1943 – In Berlin, the Gestapo arrest 1,800 Jewish men with German wives, leading to the Rosenstrasse protest.
    • 1951 – The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, limiting Presidents to two terms, is ratified.
    • 1961 – The first congress of the Spanish Trade Union Organisation is inaugurated.
    • 1962 – Two dissident Republic of Vietnam Air Force pilots bomb the Independence Palace in Saigon in a failed attempt to assassinate South Vietnam President Ngô Đình Diệm.
    • 1963 – The Dominican Republic receives its first democratically elected president, Juan Bosch, since the end of the dictatorship led by Rafael Trujillo.
    • 1964 – The Government of Italy asks for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.
    • 1971 – Doctors in the first Dutch abortion clinic (the Mildredhuis in Arnhem) start performing artificially-induced abortions.
    • 1973 – The American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee in protest of the federal government.
    • 1976 – The formerly Spanish territory of Western Sahara, under the auspices of the Polisario Front declares independence as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
    • 1988 – Sumgait pogrom: The Armenian community in Sumgait, Azerbaijan is targeted in a violent pogrom.
    • 1991 – Gulf War: U.S. President George H. W. Bush announces that “Kuwait is liberated”.
    • 2002 – Ryanair Flight 296 catches fire at London Stansted Airport. Subsequent investigations criticize Ryanair’s handling of the evacuation.
    • 2002 – Godhra train burning: A Muslim mob torches a train returning from Ayodhya, killing 59 Hindu pilgrims.
    • 2004 – A bombing of a Superferry by Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines’ worst terrorist attack kills 116.
    • 2004 – Shoko Asahara, the leader of the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo, is sentenced to death for masterminding the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack.
    • 2007 – The Chinese Correction: The Shanghai Stock Exchange falls 9%, the largest drop in ten years.
    • 2010 – An earthquake measuring 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale strikes central parts of Chile leaving over 500 victims, and thousands injured. The quake triggers a tsunami which strikes Hawaii shortly after.
    • 2013 – A shooting takes place at a factory in Menznau, Switzerland, in which five people (including the perpetrator) are killed and five others injured.
    • 2015 – Russian politician Boris Nemtsov is assassinated.

    Births on February 27

    • 272 – Constantine the Great, Roman emperor (d. 337)
    • 1343 – Alberto d’Este, Marquis of Ferrara (d. 1393)
    • 1427 – Ruprecht, Archbishop of Cologne (d. 1480)
    • 1500 – João de Castro, Portuguese nobleman and fourth viceroy of Portuguese India (d. 1548)
    • 1535 – Min Phalaung, Burmese monarch (d. 1593)
    • 1567 – William Alabaster, English poet (d. 1640)
    • 1572 – Francis II, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1632)
    • 1575 – John Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp (d. 1616)
    • 1622 – Carel Fabritius, Dutch painter (d. 1654)
    • 1630 – Roche Braziliano, Dutch pirate (d. 1671)
    • 1659 – William Sherard, English botanist (d. 1728)
    • 1667 – Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł, Prussian-Lithuanian wife of Charles III Philip, Elector Palatine (d. 1695)
    • 1689 – Pietro Gnocchi, Italian composer, director, historian, and geographer (d. 1775)
    • 1703 – Lord Sidney Beauclerk, English politician (d. 1744)
    • 1711 – Constantine Mavrocordatos, Ottoman ruler (d. 1769)
    • 1724 – Frederick Michael, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken (d. 1767)
    • 1732 – Jean de Dieu-Raymond de Cucé de Boisgelin, French cardinal (d. 1804)
    • 1746 – Louis-Jérôme Gohier, French politician, French Minister of Justice (d. 1830)
    • 1748 – Anders Sparrman, Swedish physician and activist (d. 1820)
    • 1767 – Jacques-Charles Dupont de l’Eure, French lawyer and politician, 24th Prime Minister of France (d. 1855)
    • 1779 – Thomas Hazlehurst, English businessman, founded Hazlehurst & Sons (d. 1842)
    • 1789 – Manuel Rodríguez Erdoíza, Chilean lawyer and politician, Chilean Minister of National Defense (d. 1818)
    • 1795 – José Antonio Navarro, American merchant and politician (d. 1871)
    • 1799 – Edward Belcher, British naval officer, hydrographer, and explorer (d. 1877)
    • 1799 – Frederick Catherwood, British artist, architect and explorer (d. 1854)
    • 1807 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet and educator (d. 1882)
    • 1809 – Jean-Charles Cornay, French missionary and saint (d. 1837)
    • 1816 – William Nicholson, English-Australian politician, 3rd Premier of Victoria (d. 1865)
    • 1847 – Ellen Terry, English actress (d. 1928)
    • 1848 – Hubert Parry, English composer and historian (d. 1918)
    • 1859 – Bertha Pappenheim, Austrian-German activist and author (d. 1936)
    • 1863 – Joaquín Sorolla, Spanish painter (d. 1923)
    • 1863 – George Herbert Mead, American sociologist and philosopher (d. 1930)
    • 1864 – Eemil Nestor Setälä, Finnish linguist and politician, Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 1935)
    • 1867 – Irving Fisher, American economist and statistician (d. 1947)
    • 1867 – Wilhelm Peterson-Berger, Swedish composer and critic (d. 1942)
    • 1869 – Alice Hamilton, American physician and academic (d. 1970)
    • 1872 – Alexandru Vaida-Voevod, Romanian politician, Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1950)
    • 1875 – Vladimir Filatov, Russian-Ukrainian ophthalmologist and surgeon (d. 1956)
    • 1877 – Adela Verne, English pianist and composer (d. 1952)
    • 1877 – Joseph Grinnell, American zoologist and biologist (d. 1939)
    • 1878 – Alvan T. Fuller, American businessman and politician, 50th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1958)
    • 1880 – Xenophon Kasdaglis, Greek-Egyptian tennis player (d. 1943)
    • 1881 – Sveinn Björnsson, Danish-Icelandic lawyer and politician, 1st President of Iceland (d. 1952)
    • 1881 – L. E. J. Brouwer, Dutch mathematician, philosopher, and academic (d. 1966)
    • 1886 – Hugo Black, American captain, jurist, and politician (d. 1971)
    • 1887 – Pyotr Nesterov, Russian captain, pilot, and engineer (d. 1914)
    • 1888 – Roberto Assagioli, Italian psychiatrist and psychologist (d. 1974)
    • 1888 – Lotte Lehmann, German-American soprano and actress (d. 1976)
    • 1890 – Mabel Keaton Staupers, American nurse and advocate (d. 1989)
    • 1891 – David Sarnoff, American businessman, founded RCA (d. 1971)
    • 1892 – William Demarest, American actor (d. 1983)
    • 1895 – Miyagiyama Fukumatsu, Japanese sumo wrestler (d. 1943)
    • 1897 – Marian Anderson, American singer (d. 1993)
    • 1899 – Charles Herbert Best, American-Canadian physiologist and biochemist, co-discovered Insulin (d. 1978)
    • 1901 – Marino Marini, Italian sculptor and academic (d. 1980)
    • 1901 – Kotama Okada, Japanese religious leader (d. 1974)
    • 1902 – Lúcio Costa, French-Brazilian architect and engineer, designed Gustavo Capanema Palace (d. 1998)
    • 1902 – Gene Sarazen, American golfer and sportscaster (d. 1999)
    • 1902 – John Steinbeck, American journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1968)
    • 1903 – Reginald Gardiner, English-American actor and singer (d. 1980)
    • 1903 – Hans Rohrbach, German mathematician (d. 1993)
    • 1903 – Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Belorussian-American rabbi and philosopher (d. 1993)
    • 1904 – James T. Farrell, American author and poet (d. 1979)
    • 1904 – André Leducq, French cyclist (d. 1980)
    • 1904 – Yulii Borisovich Khariton, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1996)
    • 1905 – Franchot Tone, American actor, singer, and producer (d. 1968)
    • 1907 – Mildred Bailey, American singer (d. 1951)
    • 1907 – Momčilo Đujić, Serbian-American priest and commander (d. 1999)
    • 1910 – Joan Bennett, American actress (d. 1990)
    • 1910 – Peter De Vries, American journalist and author (d. 1993)
    • 1910 – Genrikh Kasparyan, Armenian chess player and composer (d. 1995)
    • 1910 – Kelly Johnson, American engineer, co-founded Skunk Works (d. 1990)
    • 1911 – Oscar Heidenstam, English bodybuilder (d. 1991)
    • 1912 – Kusumagraj, Indian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1999)
    • 1912 – Lawrence Durrell, Indian-French author, poet, and playwright (d. 1990)
    • 1913 – Paul Ricœur, French philosopher and academic (d. 2005)
    • 1913 – Kazimierz Sabbat, Polish soldier and politician, President of Poland (d. 1989)
    • 1913 – Irwin Shaw, American author and screenwriter (d. 1984)
    • 1915 – Denis Whitaker, Canadian general, football player, and businessman (d. 2001)
    • 1917 – John Connally, American lieutenant and politician, 61st United States Secretary of Treasury (d. 1993)
    • 1920 – Reg Simpson, English cricketer (d. 2013)
    • 1921 – Theodore Van Kirk, American soldier, pilot, and navigator (d. 2014)
    • 1922 – Hans Rookmaaker, Dutch historian, author, and scholar (d. 1977)
    • 1923 – Dexter Gordon, American saxophonist, composer, and actor (d. 1990)
    • 1925 – Pia Sebastiani, Argentine pianist and composer (d. 2015)
    • 1925 – Kenneth Koch, American poet, playwright and professor (d. 2002)
    • 1926 – David H. Hubel, Canadian-American neurophysiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
    • 1927 – Peter Whittle, English-New Zealand mathematician and theorist
    • 1928 – René Clemencic, Austrian composer, recorder player, harpsichordist, conductor and clavichord player
    • 1929 – Jack Gibson, Australian rugby league player, coach, and sportscaster (d. 2008)
    • 1929 – Djalma Santos, Brazilian footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1929 – Patricia Ward Hales, British tennis player (d. 1985)
    • 1930 – Jovan Krkobabić, Serbian politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Peter Stone, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2003)
    • 1930 – Paul von Ragué Schleyer, American chemist and academic (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Joanne Woodward, American actress
    • 1932 – Dame Elizabeth Taylor, English-American actress and humanitarian (d. 2011)
    • 1932 – David Young, Baron Young of Graffham, English businessman and politician, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills
    • 1933 – Raymond Berry, American football player and coach
    • 1933 – Malcolm Wallop, American politician (d. 2011)
    • 1934 – Vincent Fourcade, French interior designer (d. 1992)
    • 1934 – Ralph Nader, American lawyer, politician, and activist
    • 1935 – Mirella Freni, Italian soprano and actress (d. 2020)
    • 1935 – Uri Shulevitz, American author and illustrator
    • 1936 – Sonia Johnson, American feminist activist and author
    • 1936 – Ron Barassi, Australian footballer and coach
    • 1936 – Roger Mahony, American cardinal
    • 1937 – Barbara Babcock, American actress
    • 1938 – Jake Thackray, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and journalist (d. 2002)
    • 1939 – Don McKinnon, English-New Zealand farmer and politician, 12th Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand
    • 1939 – Peter Revson, American race car driver (d. 1974)
    • 1940 – Pierre Duchesne, Canadian lawyer and politician, 28th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
    • 1940 – Howard Hesseman, American actor
    • 1940 – Bill Hunter, Australian actor (d. 2011)
    • 1941 – Paddy Ashdown, British captain and politician (d. 2018)
    • 1942 – Jimmy Burns, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1942 – Robert H. Grubbs, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1942 – Charlayne Hunter-Gault, American journalist
    • 1942 – Klaus-Dieter Sieloff, German footballer (d. 2011)
    • 1943 – Mary Frann, American actress (d. 1998)
    • 1943 – Morten Lauridsen, American composer and conductor
    • 1943 – Carlos Alberto Parreira, Brazilian footballer and manager
    • 1944 – Ken Grimwood, American author (d. 2003)
    • 1944 – Graeme Pollock, South African cricketer and coach
    • 1944 – Sir Roger Scruton, English philosopher and writer (d. 2020)
    • 1947 – Alan Guth, American physicist and cosmologist
    • 1947 – Gidon Kremer, Latvian violinist and conductor
    • 1950 – Annabel Goldie, Scottish lawyer and politician
    • 1950 – Julia Neuberger, Baroness Neuberger, English rabbi and politician
    • 1951 – Carl A. Anderson, 13th Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus
    • 1951 – Lee Atwater, American journalist, activist and political strategist (d. 1991)
    • 1951 – Walter de Silva, Italian car designer
    • 1951 – Steve Harley, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1953 – Gavin Esler, Scottish journalist and author
    • 1953 – Ian Khama, English-Botswanan lieutenant and politician, 4th President of Botswana
    • 1953 – Stelios Kouloglou, Greek journalist, author, director and politician
    • 1954 – Neal Schon, American rock guitarist and singer-songwriter
    • 1956 – Belus Prajoux, Chilean tennis player
    • 1957 – Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1957 – Kevin Curran, American screenwriter and television producer (d. 2016)
    • 1957 – Robert de Castella, Australian runner
    • 1957 – Adrian Smith, English guitarist and songwriter
    • 1957 – Timothy Spall, English actor
    • 1958 – Naas Botha, South African rugby player and sportscaster
    • 1958 – Maggie Hassan, American politician, 81st Governor and United States Senator of New Hampshire
    • 1960 – Andrés Gómez, Ecuadorian tennis player
    • 1960 – Johnny Van Zant, American singer-songwriter
    • 1961 – James Worthy, American basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1962 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
    • 1963 – Nasty Suicide, Finnish musician and pharmacist
    • 1964 – Jeffrey Pasley, American educator and academic
    • 1965 – Noah Emmerich, American actor
    • 1965 – Pedro Chaves, Portuguese race car driver
    • 1966 – Donal Logue, Canadian actor and director
    • 1966 – Oliver Reck, German footballer and manager
    • 1966 – Baltasar Kormákur, Icelandic actor, director, and producer
    • 1967 – Dănuț Lupu, Romanian footballer
    • 1967 – Jony Ive, English industrial designer, former chief design officer (CDO) of Apple
    • 1968 – Matt Stairs, Canadian baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1969 – Gareth Llewellyn, Welsh rugby union player
    • 1969 – Juan E. Gilbert, American computer scientist, inventor, and academic
    • 1970 – Kent Desormeaux, American jockey
    • 1970 – Patricia Petibon, French soprano and actress
    • 1971 – Sara Blakely, American businesswoman, founded Spanx
    • 1971 – Derren Brown, English magician and painter
    • 1971 – David Rikl, Czech-English tennis player
    • 1971 – Roman Giertych, Polish lawyer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland
    • 1971 – Rozonda Thomas, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress (TLC)
    • 1973 – Peter Andre, English-Australian singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1973 – Mark Taylor, Welsh rugby player and manager
    • 1974 – Carte Goodwin, American lawyer and politician
    • 1975 – Aitor González, Spanish racing driver
    • 1975 – Prodromos Korkizoglou, Greek decathlete
    • 1976 – Sergei Semak, Ukrainian-Russian footballer and manager
    • 1976 – Ludovic Capelle, Belgian cyclist
    • 1978 – James Beattie, English footballer and manager
    • 1978 – Kakha Kaladze, Georgian footballer and politician
    • 1978 – Emelie Öhrstig, Swedish skier and cyclist
    • 1978 – Simone Di Pasquale, Italian ballet dancer
    • 1980 – Chelsea Clinton, American journalist and academic
    • 1980 – Scott Prince, Australian rugby league player
    • 1981 – Josh Groban, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
    • 1981 – Natalie Grandin, English-South African tennis player
    • 1981 – Élodie Ouédraogo, Belgian sprinter
    • 1982 – Ali Bastian, English actress
    • 1982 – Pat Richards, Australian rugby league player
    • 1982 – Bruno Soares, Brazilian tennis player
    • 1983 – Devin Harris, American basketball player
    • 1983 – Kate Mara, American actress
    • 1984 – Aníbal Sánchez, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Lotta Schelin, Swedish footballer
    • 1984 – Akseli Kokkonen, Norwegian ski jumper
    • 1985 – Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, Russian footballer
    • 1985 – Braydon Coburn, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Vladislav Kulik, Ukrainian-Russian footballer
    • 1985 – Asami Abe, Japanese singer and actress
    • 1985 – Thiago Neves, Brazilian footballer
    • 1985 – Brett Stewart, Australian rugby league player
    • 1986 – Yovani Gallardo, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Jonathan Moreira, Brazilian footballer
    • 1986 – Sandeep Singh, Indian field hockey player
    • 1987 – Scott Davies, English footballer
    • 1987 – Bridie Kean, Australian wheelchair basketball player
    • 1987 – Florence Kiplagat, Kenyan runner
    • 1987 – Sandy Paillot, French footballer
    • 1987 – Valeriy Andriytsev, Ukrainian wrestler
    • 1987 – Maximiliano Moralez, Argentinian footballer
    • 1988 – Iain Ramsay, Australian footballer
    • 1988 – Dustin Jeffrey, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1989 – David Button, English footballer, goalkeeper
    • 1989 – Lloyd Rigby, English footballer
    • 1990 – Elijah Taylor, New Zealand rugby league player
    • 1991 – Azeem Rafiq, Pakistani cricketer
    • 1992 – Ty Dillon, American race car driver
    • 1992 – Meyers Leonard, American basketball player
    • 1992 – Filip Krajinović, Serbian tennis player
    • 1992 – Ioannis Potouridis, Greek footballer
    • 1992 – Jonjo Shelvey, English footballer
    • 1995 – Laura Gulbe, Latvian tennis player
    • 1998 – Todd Cantwell, English footballer

    Deaths on February 27

    • 640 – Pepin of Landen, Frankish lord (b. 580)
    • 906 – Conrad the Elder, Frankish nobleman
    • 956 – Theophylact, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (b. 917)
    • 1167 – Robert of Melun, English theologian and bishop
    • 1416 – Eleanor of Castile, queen consort of Navarre (b. c. 1363)
    • 1425 – Prince Vasily I of Moscow (b. 1371)
    • 1483 – William VIII of Montferrat (b. 1420)
    • 1558 – Johann Faber of Heilbronn, controversial Catholic preacher (b. 1504)
    • 1558 – Kunigunde of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, German Noblewoman (b. 1524)
    • 1659 – Henry Dunster, English-American clergyman and academic (b. 1609)
    • 1699 – Charles Paulet, 1st Duke of Bolton, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire (b. 1625)
    • 1706 – John Evelyn, English gardener and author (b. 1620)
    • 1712 – Sir William Villiers, 3rd Baronet, English politician (b. 1645)
    • 1720 – Samuel Parris, English-American minister (b. 1653)
    • 1735 – John Arbuthnot, Scottish physician and polymath (b. 1667)
    • 1784 – Count of St. Germain, European adventurer (b. 1710)
    • 1795 – Tanikaze Kajinosuke, Japanese sumo wrestler (b. 1750)
    • 1844 – Nicholas Biddle, American banker and politician (b. 1786)
    • 1887 – Alexander Borodin, Russian composer and chemist (b. 1833)
    • 1892 – Louis Vuitton, French fashion designer and businessman, founded Louis Vuitton (b. 1821)
    • 1902 – Harry “Breaker” Morant, English-Australian lieutenant (b. 1864)
    • 1921 – Schofield Haigh, English cricketer and umpire (b. 1871)
    • 1931 – Chandra Shekhar Azad, Indian revolutionary (b. 1906)
    • 1936 – Joshua W. Alexander, American judge and politician, 2nd United States Secretary of Commerce (b. 1852)
    • 1936 – Ivan Pavlov, Russian physiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1849)
    • 1937 – Hosteen Klah, Navajo artist, medicine man, and weaver (b. 1867)
    • 1937 – Emily Malbone Morgan, American saint, foundress of the Society of the Companions of the Holy Cross (b. 1862)
    • 1943 – Kostis Palamas, Greek poet and playwright (b. 1859)
    • 1956 – Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar, Indian lawyer and politician, 1st Speaker of the Lok Sabha (b. 1888)
    • 1964 – Orry-Kelly, Australian-American costume designer (b. 1897)
    • 1968 – Frankie Lymon, American singer-songwriter (b. 1942)
    • 1969 – Marius Barbeau, Canadian ethnographer and academic (b. 1883)
    • 1973 – Bill Everett, American author and illustrator (b. 1917)
    • 1977 – John Dickson Carr, American author and playwright (b. 1905)
    • 1980 – George Tobias, American actor (b. 1901)
    • 1985 – Ray Ellington, English singer and drummer (b. 1916)
    • 1985 – Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., American politician and diplomat, 3rd United States Ambassador to the United Nations (b. 1902)
    • 1985 – J. Pat O’Malley, English-American actor and singer (b. 1904)
    • 1986 – Jacques Plante, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1929)
    • 1987 – Bill Holman, American cartoonist (b. 1903)
    • 1987 – Joan Greenwood, English actress (b. 1921)
    • 1989 – Konrad Lorenz, Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1903)
    • 1992 – S. I. Hayakawa, Canadian-American linguist and politician (b. 1906)
    • 1993 – Lillian Gish, American actress (b. 1893)
    • 1998 – George H. Hitchings, American pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
    • 1998 – J. T. Walsh, American actor (b. 1943)
    • 1999 – Horace Tapscott, American pianist and composer (b. 1934)
    • 2002 – Spike Milligan, Irish soldier, actor, comedian, and author (b. 1918)
    • 2003 – John Lanchbery, English-Australian composer and conductor (b. 1923)
    • 2003 – Fred Rogers, American minister and television host (b. 1928)
    • 2004 – Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historian and academic (b. 1928)
    • 2004 – Paul Sweezy, American economist and journalist (b. 1910)
    • 2006 – Otis Chandler, American publisher (b. 1927)
    • 2006 – Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American general and author (b. 1908)
    • 2006 – Linda Smith, English comedian and author (b. 1958)
    • 2007 – Bernd Freytag von Loringhoven, German general (b. 1914)
    • 2008 – William F. Buckley, Jr., American author and journalist, founded the National Review (b. 1925)
    • 2008 – Myron Cope, American journalist and sportscaster (b. 1929)
    • 2008 – Ivan Rebroff, German vocalist of Russian descent with four and a half octave range (b. 1931)
    • 2010 – Nanaji Deshmukh, Indian educator and activist (b. 1916)
    • 2011 – Frank Buckles, American soldier (b. 1901)
    • 2011 – Necmettin Erbakan, Turkish engineer and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1926)
    • 2011 – Duke Snider, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (b. 1926)
    • 2011 – Gary Winick, American director and producer (b. 1961)
    • 2012 – Ma Jiyuan, Chinese general (b. 1921)
    • 2012 – Tina Strobos, Dutch physician and psychiatrist (b. 1920)
    • 2012 – Helga Vlahović, Croatian journalist and producer (b. 1945)
    • 2013 – Van Cliburn, American pianist (b. 1934)
    • 2013 – Ramon Dekkers, Dutch mixed martial artist and kick-boxer (b. 1969)
    • 2013 – Dale Robertson, American actor (b. 1923)
    • 2013 – Adolfo Zaldívar, Chilean lawyer and politician (b. 1943)
    • 2014 – Aaron Allston, American game designer and author (b. 1960)
    • 2014 – Terry Rand, American basketball player (b. 1934)
    • 2015 – Boris Nemtsov, Russian academic and politician, First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (b. 1959)
    • 2015 – Leonard Nimoy, American actor (b. 1931)
    • 2015 – Julio César Strassera, Argentinian lawyer and jurist (b. 1933)
    • 2016 – Yi Cheol-seung, South Korean lawyer and politician (b. 1922)
    • 2016 – James Z. Davis, American lawyer and judge (b. 1943)
    • 2018 – Steve Folkes, Australian rugby league player and coach (b. 1959)
    • 2019 – France-Albert René, Seychellois politician, 2nd President of Seychelles (b. 1935)

    Holidays and observances on February 27

    • Christian feast day:
      • Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
      • George Herbert (Anglicanism)
      • Honorina
      • Leander
      • February 27 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • The second day of Ayyám-i-Há (Bahá’í Faith) (Note: this observance is only on this date in the Gregorian calendar if Bahá’í Naw-Rúz takes place on March 21, which it does not in all years)
    • Doctors’ Day (Vietnam)
    • Independence Day (Dominican Republic), celebrates the first independence of Dominican Republic from Haiti in 1844.
    • Majuba Day (some Afrikaners in South Africa)
    • Marathi Language Day (Maharashtra, India)
    • World NGO Day
    • International Polar Bear Day