March 6

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

    • 12 BCE – The Roman Emperor Augustus is named Pontifex Maximus, incorporating the position into that of the emperor.
    • 632 – The Farewell Sermon (Khutbah, Khutbatul Wada’) of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
    • 845 – Execution of the 42 Martyrs of Amorium at Samarra.
    • 961 – Byzantine conquest of Chandax by Nikephoros Phokas, end of the Emirate of Crete.
    • 1204 – The Siege of Château Gaillard ends in a French victory over King John of England, who loses control of Normandy to King Philip II Augustus.
    • 1323 – Treaty of Paris of 1323 is signed.
    • 1454 – Thirteen Years’ War: Delegates of the Prussian Confederation pledge allegiance to King Casimir IV of Poland who agrees to commit his forces in aiding the Confederation’s struggle for independence from the Teutonic Knights.
    • 1521 – Ferdinand Magellan arrives at Guam.
    • 1665 – The first joint Secretary of the Royal Society, Henry Oldenburg, publishes the first issue of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, the world’s longest-running scientific journal.
    • 1788 – The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement.
    • 1820 – The Missouri Compromise is signed into law by President James Monroe. The compromise allows Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state, brings Maine into the Union as a free state, and makes the rest of the northern part of the Louisiana Purchase territory slavery-free.
    • 1834 – York, Upper Canada, is incorporated as Toronto.
    • 1836 – Texas Revolution: Battle of the Alamo: After a thirteen-day siege by an army of 3,000 Mexican troops, the 187 Texas volunteers, including frontiersman Davy Crockett and colonel Jim Bowie, defending the Alamo are killed and the fort is captured.
    • 1857 – The Supreme Court of the United States rules in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case.
    • 1869 – Dmitri Mendeleev presents the first periodic table to the Russian Chemical Society.
    • 1882 – The Serbian kingdom is re-founded.
    • 1899 – Bayer registers “Aspirin” as a trademark.
    • 1902 – Real Madrid CF is founded.
    • 1912 – Italo-Turkish War: Italian forces become the first to use airships in war, as two dirigibles drop bombs on Turkish troops encamped at Janzur, from an altitude of 6,000 feet.
    • 1921 – Portuguese Communist Party is founded as the Portuguese Section of the Communist International.
    • 1930 – International Unemployment Day demonstrations globally initiated by the Comintern.
    • 1933 – Great Depression: President Franklin D. Roosevelt declares a “bank holiday”, closing all U.S. banks and freezing all financial transactions.
    • 1943 – Norman Rockwell published Freedom from Want in The Saturday Evening Post with a matching essay by Carlos Bulosan as part of the Four Freedoms series.
    • 1943 – World War II: The Battle of Fardykambos, one of the first major battles between the Greek Resistance and the occupying Royal Italian Army, ends with the surrender of an entire Italian battalion, the bulk of the garrison of the town of Grevena, leading to its liberation a fortnight later.
    • 1944 – World War II: Soviet Air Forces bomb an evacuated town of Narva in German-occupied Estonia, destroying the entire historical Swedish-era town.
    • 1945 – World War II: Cologne is captured by American troops. On the same day, Operation Spring Awakening, the last major German offensive of the war, begins.
    • 1946 – Ho Chi Minh signs an agreement with France which recognizes Vietnam as an autonomous state in the Indochinese Federation and the French Union.
    • 1951 – Cold War: The trial of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg begins.
    • 1953 – Georgy Malenkov succeeds Joseph Stalin as Premier of the Soviet Union and First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
    • 1957 – Ghana becomes the first Sub-Saharan country to gain independence from the British.
    • 1964 – Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad officially gives boxing champion Cassius Clay the name Muhammad Ali.
    • 1964 – Constantine II becomes King of Greece.
    • 1965 – Premier Tom Playford of South Australia loses power after 27 years in office.
    • 1967 – Cold War: Joseph Stalin’s daughter Svetlana Alliluyeva defects to the United States.
    • 1968 – Three rebels are executed by Rhodesia, the first executions since UDI, prompting international condemnation.
    • 1970 – An explosion at the Weather Underground safe house in Greenwich Village kills three.
    • 1975 – For the first time the Zapruder film of the assassination of John F. Kennedy is shown in motion to a national TV audience by Robert J. Groden and Dick Gregory.
    • 1975 – Algiers Accord: Iran and Iraq announce a settlement of their border dispute.
    • 1983 – The first United States Football League games are played.
    • 1984 – In the United Kingdom, a walkout at Cortonwood Colliery in Brampton Bierlow signals the start of a strike that lasted almost a year and involved the majority of the country’s miners.
    • 1987 – The British ferry MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes in about 90 seconds, killing 193.
    • 1988 – Three Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers are shot dead by the SAS in Gibraltar in Operation Flavius.
    • 1992 – The Michelangelo computer virus begins to affect computers.
    • 2003 – Air Algérie Flight 6289 crashes at the Aguenar – Hadj Bey Akhamok Airport in Tamanrasset, Algeria, killing 102 out of the 103 people on board.
    • 2008 – A suicide bomber kills 68 people (including first responders) in Baghdad on the same day that a gunman kills eight students in Jerusalem.

    Births on March 6

    • 1340 – John of Gaunt (d. 1399)
    • 1405 – John II of Castile (d. 1454)
    • 1459 – Jakob Fugger, German merchant and banker (d. 1525)
    • 1475 – Michelangelo, Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1564)
    • 1483 – Francesco Guicciardini, Italian historian and politician (d. 1540)
    • 1493 – Juan Luis Vives, Spanish scholar and humanist (d. 1540)
    • 1495 – Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet and diplomat (d. 1556)
    • 1536 – Santi di Tito, Italian painter (d. 1603)
    • 1619 – Cyrano de Bergerac, French author and playwright (d. 1655)
    • 1663 – Francis Atterbury, English bishop and poet (d. 1732)
    • 1706 – George Pocock, English admiral (d. 1792)
    • 1716 – Pehr Kalm, Swedish-Finnish botanist and explorer (d. 1779)
    • 1724 – Henry Laurens, English-American merchant and politician, 5th President of the Continental Congress (d. 1792)
    • 1761 – Antoine-François Andréossy, French general and diplomat (d. 1828)
    • 1779 – Antoine-Henri Jomini, Swiss-French general (d. 1869)
    • 1780 – Lucy Barnes, American writer (d. 1809)
    • 1785 – Karol Kurpiński, Polish composer and conductor (d. 1857)
    • 1787 – Joseph von Fraunhofer, German physicist and astronomer (d. 1826)
    • 1806 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning, English-Italian poet and translator (d. 1861)
    • 1812 – Aaron Lufkin Dennison, American businessman, co-founded the Waltham Watch Company (d. 1895)
    • 1817 – Princess Clémentine of Orléans (d. 1907)
    • 1818 – William Claflin, American businessman and politician, 27th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1905)
    • 1823 – Charles I of Württemberg (d. 1891)
    • 1831 – Philip Sheridan, Irish-American general (d. 1888)
    • 1834 – George du Maurier, French-English author and illustrator (d. 1896)
    • 1841 – Viktor Burenin, Russian author, poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1926)
    • 1849 – Georg Luger, Austrian gun designer, designed the Luger pistol (d. 1923)
    • 1864 – Richard Rushall, British businessman (d. 1953)
    • 1870 – Oscar Straus, Viennese composer and conductor (d. 1954)
    • 1871 – Afonso Costa, Portuguese lawyer and politician, 59th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1937)
    • 1872 – Ben Harney, American pianist and composer (d. 1938)
    • 1879 – Jimmy Hunter, New Zealand rugby player (d. 1962)
    • 1882 – F. Burrall Hoffman, American architect, co-designed Villa Vizcaya (d. 1980)
    • 1882 – Guy Kibbee, American actor and singer (d. 1956)
    • 1884 – Molla Mallory, Norwegian-American tennis player (d. 1959)
    • 1885 – Ring Lardner, American journalist and author (d. 1933)
    • 1886 – Jam Handy, American swimmer and water polo player (d. 1983)
    • 1886 – Nella Walker, American actress and vaudevillian (d. 1971)
    • 1892 – Bert Smith, English international footballer, right half (d. 1969)
    • 1893 – Furry Lewis, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1981)
    • 1893 – Ella P. Stewart, pioneering Black American pharmacist (d. 1987)
    • 1895 – Albert Tessier, Canadian priest and historian (d. 1976)
    • 1898 – Gus Sonnenberg, American football player and wrestler (d. 1944)
    • 1900 – Gina Cigna, French-Italian soprano and actress (d. 2001)
    • 1900 – Lefty Grove, American baseball player (d. 1975)
    • 1900 – Henri Jeanson, French journalist and author (d. 1970)
    • 1903 – Empress Kōjun of Japan (d. 2000)
    • 1904 – José Antonio Aguirre, Spanish lawyer and politician, 1st President of the Basque Country (d. 1960)
    • 1905 – Bob Wills, American Western swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader (d. 1975)
    • 1906 – Lou Costello, American actor and comedian (d. 1959)
    • 1909 – Obafemi Awolowo, Nigerian lawyer and politician (d. 1987)
    • 1909 – Stanisław Jerzy Lec, Polish poet and author (d. 1966)
    • 1910 – Ella Logan, Scottish-American singer and actress (d. 1969)
    • 1912 – Mohammed Burhanuddin, Indian spiritual leader, 52nd Da’i al-Mutlaq (d. 2014)
    • 1917 – Donald Davidson, American philosopher and academic (d. 2003)
    • 1917 – Will Eisner, American illustrator and publisher (d. 2005)
    • 1917 – Frankie Howerd, English comedian (d. 1992)
    • 1918 – Howard McGhee, American trumpeter (d. 1987)
    • 1920 – Lewis Gilbert, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2018)
    • 1921 – Leo Bretholz, Austrian-American holocaust survivor and author (d. 2014)
    • 1923 – Ed McMahon, American comedian, game show host, and announcer (d. 2009)
    • 1923 – Wes Montgomery, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1968)
    • 1924 – Ottmar Walter, German footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1924 – William H. Webster, American lawyer and jurist, 14th Director of Central Intelligence
    • 1926 – Ann Curtis, American swimmer (d. 2012)
    • 1926 – Alan Greenspan, American economist and politician
    • 1926 – Ray O’Connor, Australian politician, 22nd Premier of Western Australia (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – Andrzej Wajda, Polish director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1927 – William J. Bell, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2005)
    • 1927 – Gordon Cooper, American engineer, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2004)
    • 1927 – Gabriel García Márquez, Colombian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2014)
    • 1929 – Tom Foley, American lawyer and politician, 57th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 2013)
    • 1929 – David Sheppard, English cricketer and bishop (d. 2005)
    • 1930 – Lorin Maazel, French-American violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 2014)
    • 1932 – Marc Bazin, Haitian lawyer and politician, 49th President of Haiti (d. 2010)
    • 1932 – Bronisław Geremek, Polish historian and politician, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2008)
    • 1933 – Ted Abernathy, American baseball player (d. 2004)
    • 1933 – William Davis, German-English journalist and economist (d. 2019)
    • 1933 – Augusto Odone, Italian economist and inventor of Lorenzo’s oil (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Red Simpson, American singer-songwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1935 – Ron Delany, Irish runner and coach
    • 1935 – Derek Kevan, English footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1936 – Bob Akin, American race car driver and journalist (d. 2002)
    • 1936 – Marion Barry, American lawyer and politician, 2nd Mayor of the District of Columbia (d. 2014)
    • 1936 – Choummaly Sayasone, Laotian politician, 5th President of Laos
    • 1937 – Ivan Boesky, American businessman
    • 1937 – Valentina Tereshkova, Russian general, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1938 – Keishu Tanaka, Japanese politician, 17th Japanese Minister of Justice
    • 1939 – Kit Bond, American lawyer and politician, 47th Governor of Missouri
    • 1939 – Adam Osborne, Thai-Indian engineer and businessman, founded the Osborne Computer Corporation (d. 2003)
    • 1940 – Ken Danby, Canadian painter (d. 2007)
    • 1940 – Joanna Miles, French-born American actress
    • 1940 – R. H. Sikes, American golfer
    • 1940 – Willie Stargell, American baseball player and coach (d. 2001)
    • 1940 – Jeff Wooller, English accountant and banker
    • 1941 – Peter Brötzmann, German saxophonist and clarinet player
    • 1941 – Marilyn Strathern, Welsh anthropologist and academic
    • 1942 – Ben Murphy, American actor
    • 1944 – Richard Corliss, American journalist and critic (d. 2015)
    • 1944 – Kiri Te Kanawa, New Zealand soprano and actress
    • 1944 – Mary Wilson, American singer
    • 1945 – Angelo Castro, Jr., Filipino actor and journalist (d. 2012)
    • 1946 – David Gilmour, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1946 – Richard Noble, Scottish race car driver and businessman
    • 1947 – Kiki Dee, English singer-songwriter
    • 1947 – Dick Fosbury, American high jumper
    • 1947 – Anna Maria Horsford, American actress
    • 1947 – Rob Reiner, American actor, director, producer, and activist
    • 1947 – Jean Seaton, English historian and academic
    • 1947 – John Stossel, American journalist and author
    • 1948 – Stephen Schwartz, American composer and producer
    • 1949 – Shaukat Aziz, Pakistani economist and politician, 15th Prime Minister of Pakistan
    • 1949 – Martin Buchan, Scottish footballer and manager
    • 1950 – Arthur Roche, English archbishop
    • 1951 – Gerrie Knetemann, Dutch cyclist (d. 2004)
    • 1952 – Denis Napthine, Australian politician, 47th Premier of Victoria
    • 1953 – Madhav Kumar Nepal, Nepali banker and politician, 34th Prime Minister of Nepal
    • 1953 – Carolyn Porco, American astronomer and academic
    • 1953 – Phil Alvin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1954 – Jeff Greenwald, American author, photographer, and monologist
    • 1954 – Harald Schumacher, German footballer and manager
    • 1955 – Cyprien Ntaryamira, Burundian politician, 5th President of Burundi (d. 1994)
    • 1955 – Alberta Watson, Canadian actress (d. 2015)
    • 1956 – Peter Roebuck, English cricketer, journalist, and sportcaster (d. 2011)
    • 1956 – Steve Vizard, Australian television host, actor, and producer
    • 1960 – Sleepy Floyd, American basketball player and coach
    • 1962 – Alison Nicholas, British golfer
    • 1963 – D. L. Hughley, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1964 – Linda Pearson, Scottish sport shooter
    • 1965 – Allan Bateman, Welsh rugby player
    • 1965 – Jim Knight, English politician
    • 1966 – Alan Davies, English comedian, actor and screenwriter
    • 1967 – Julio Bocca, Argentinian ballet dancer and director
    • 1967 – Connie Britton, American actress
    • 1967 – Glenn Greenwald, American journalist and author
    • 1967 – Shuler Hensley, American actor and singer
    • 1968 – Moira Kelly, American actress and director
    • 1971 – Darrick Martin, American basketball player and coach
    • 1972 – Shaquille O’Neal, American basketball player, actor, and rapper
    • 1972 – Jaret Reddick, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1973 – Michael Finley, American basketball player
    • 1973 – Peter Lindgren, Swedish guitarist and songwriter
    • 1973 – Greg Ostertag, American basketball player
    • 1973 – Trent Willmon, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1974 – Guy Garvey, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1974 – Matthew Guy, Australian politician
    • 1974 – Brad Schumacher, American swimmer
    • 1974 – Beanie Sigel, American rapper
    • 1975 – Aracely Arámbula, Mexican actress and singer
    • 1975 – Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Canadian pianist and conductor
    • 1976 – Ken Anderson, American wrestler and actor
    • 1977 – Nantie Hayward, South African cricketer
    • 1977 – Giorgos Karagounis, Greek international footballer, midfielder
    • 1977 – Shabani Nonda, DR Congolese footballer
    • 1977 – Marcus Thames, American baseball player and coach
    • 1978 – Sage Rosenfels, American football player
    • 1978 – Chad Wicks, American wrestler
    • 1979 – Clint Barmes, American baseball player
    • 1979 – Érik Bédard, Canadian baseball player
    • 1979 – David Flair, American wrestler
    • 1979 – Tim Howard, American soccer player
    • 1980 – Emílson Cribari, Brazilian footballer
    • 1981 – Ellen Muth, American actress
    • 1983 – Andranik Teymourian, Armenian-Iranian footballer
    • 1984 – Daniël de Ridder, Dutch footballer
    • 1984 – Eskil Pedersen, Norwegian politician
    • 1984 – Chris Tomson, American drummer
    • 1985 – Bakaye Traoré, French-Malian footballer
    • 1986 – Jake Arrieta, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Francisco Cervelli, Venezuelan-Italian baseball player
    • 1986 – Ross Detwiler, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Eli Marienthal, American actor
    • 1986 – Charlie Mulgrew, Scottish footballer
    • 1987 – Kevin-Prince Boateng, Ghanaian-German footballer
    • 1987 – José Manuel Flores, Spanish footballer
    • 1988 – Agnes Carlsson, Swedish singer
    • 1988 – Marina Erakovic, New Zealand tennis player
    • 1988 – Simon Mignolet, Belgian footballer
    • 1989 – Agnieszka Radwańska, Polish tennis player
    • 1990 – Derek Drouin, Canadian athlete
    • 1991 – Lex Luger, American keyboard player and producer
    • 1991 – Emma McDougall, English footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1991 – Tyler Gregory Okonma, American rapper
    • 1993 – Andrés Rentería, Colombian footballer
    • 1994 – Nathan Redmond, English footballer
    • 1994 – Marcus Smart, American basketball player
    • 1994 – Wesley Hoedt, Dutch footballer
    • 1995 – Georgi Kitanov, Bulgarian footballer
    • 1996 – Christian Coleman, American sprinter
    • 1996 – Tyrell Fuimaono, Australian rugby player
    • 1996 – Timo Werner, German footballer

    Deaths on March 6

    • 190 – Liu Bian (poisoned by Dong Zhuo) (b. 176)
    • 653 – Li Ke, prince of the Tang Dynasty (b. 619)
    • 766 – Chrodegang, Frankish bishop and saint
    • 903 – Lu Guangqi, Chinese official and chancellor
    • 903 – Su Jian, Chinese official and chancellor
    • 1070 – Ulric I, Margrave of Carniola
    • 1251 – Rose of Viterbo, Italian saint (b. 1235)
    • 1353 – Roger Grey, 1st Baron Grey de Ruthyn
    • 1466 – Alvise Loredan, Venetian admiral and statesman (b. 1393)
    • 1490 – Ivan the Young, Ruler of Tver (b. 1458)
    • 1491 – Richard Woodville, 3rd Earl Rivers
    • 1531 – Pedro Arias Dávila, Spanish explorer and diplomat (b. 1440)
    • 1616 – Francis Beaumont, English playwright (b. 1584)
    • 1754 – Henry Pelham, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1694)
    • 1758 – Henry Vane, 1st Earl of Darlington, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Durham (b. 1705)
    • 1764 – Philip Yorke, 1st Earl of Hardwicke, English lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of the United Kingdom (b. 1690)
    • 1796 – Guillaume Thomas François Raynal, French historian and author (b. 1713)
    • 1836 – Deaths at the Battle of the Alamo:
      • James Bonham, American lawyer and soldier (b. 1807)
      • James Bowie, American colonel (b. 1796)
      • Davy Crockett, American soldier and politician (b. 1786)
      • William B. Travis, American lieutenant colonel and lawyer (b. 1809)
    • 1854 – Charles Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, Irish colonel and diplomat, Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies (b. 1778)
    • 1866 – William Whewell, English priest, historian, and philosopher (b. 1794)
    • 1867 – Charles Farrar Browne, American-English author and educator (b. 1834)
    • 1888 – Louisa May Alcott, American novelist and poet (b. 1832)
    • 1895 – Camilla Collett, Norwegian novelist and activist (b. 1813)
    • 1899 – Kaʻiulani of Hawaii (b. 1875)
    • 1900 – Gottlieb Daimler, German engineer and businessman, co-founded Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (b. 1834)
    • 1905 – John Henninger Reagan, American surveyor, judge, and politician, 3rd Confederate States of America Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1818)
    • 1905 – Makar Yekmalyan, Armenian composer (b. 1856)
    • 1919 – Oskars Kalpaks, Latvian colonel (b. 1882)
    • 1920 – Ömer Seyfettin, Turkish author and educator (b. 1884)
    • 1932 – John Philip Sousa, American conductor and composer (b. 1854)
    • 1933 – Anton Cermak, Czech-American lawyer and politician, 44th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1873)
    • 1935 – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., American colonel, lawyer, and jurist (b. 1841)
    • 1939 – Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician and academic (b. 1852)
    • 1941 – Francis Aveling, Canadian priest, psychologist, and author (b. 1875)
    • 1941 – Gutzon Borglum, American sculptor and academic, designed Mount Rushmore (b. 1867)
    • 1948 – Ross Lockridge, Jr., American author, poet, and academic (b. 1914)
    • 1948 – Alice Woodby McKane, First Black woman doctor in Savannah, Georgia (b. 1865)
    • 1950 – Albert François Lebrun, French engineer and politician, 15th President of France (b. 1871)
    • 1951 – Ivor Novello, Welsh singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1893)
    • 1951 – Volodymyr Vynnychenko, Ukrainian playwright and politician, Prime Minister of Ukraine (b. 1880)
    • 1952 – Jürgen Stroop, German general (b. 1895)
    • 1955 – Mammad Amin Rasulzade, Azerbaijani scholar and politician (b. 1884)
    • 1961 – George Formby, English singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1904)
    • 1964 – Paul of Greece (b. 1901)
    • 1965 – Margaret Dumont, American actress (b. 1889)
    • 1967 – John Haden Badley, English author and educator, founded the Bedales School (b. 1865)
    • 1967 – Nelson Eddy, American actor and singer (b. 1901)
    • 1967 – Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer, linguist, and philosopher (b. 1882)
    • 1970 – William Hopper, American actor (b. 1915)
    • 1973 – Pearl S. Buck, American novelist, essayist, short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
    • 1974 – Ernest Becker, American anthropologist and author (b. 1924)
    • 1976 – Maxie Rosenbloom, American boxer (b. 1903)
    • 1977 – Alvin R. Dyer, American religious leader (b. 1903)
    • 1978 – Dennis Viollet, English-American soccer player and manager (b. 1933)
    • 1981 – George Geary, English cricketer and coach (b. 1893)
    • 1981 – Rambhau Mhalgi, Indian politician and member of the Lok Sabha (b. 9 July 1921)
    • 1982 – Ayn Rand, Russian-American philosopher, author, and playwright (b. 1905)
    • 1984 – Billy Collins, Jr., American boxer (b. 1961)
    • 1984 – Martin Niemöller, German pastor and theologian (b. 1892)
    • 1984 – Homer N. Wallin, American admiral (b. 1893)
    • 1984 – Henry Wilcoxon, Dominican-American actor and producer (b. 1905)
    • 1986 – Georgia O’Keeffe, American painter (b. 1887)
    • 1988 – Mairéad Farrell, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1988 – Daniel McCann, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1988 – Seán Savage, Provisional IRA volunteer (b. 1965)
    • 1994 – Melina Mercouri, Greek actress and politician, 9th Greek Minister of Culture (b. 1920)
    • 1997 – Cheddi Jagan, Guyanese politician, 4th President of Guyana (b. 1918)
    • 1997 – Michael Manley, Jamaican soldier, pilot, and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Jamaica (b. 1924)
    • 1997 – Ursula Torday, English author (b. 1912)
    • 1999 – Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, Bahrain king (b. 1933)
    • 2000 – John Colicos, Canadian actor (b. 1928)
    • 2002 – Bryan Fogarty, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1969)
    • 2004 – Hercules, American wrestler (b. 1957)
    • 2004 – Frances Dee, American actress (b. 1909)
    • 2005 – Hans Bethe, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)
    • 2005 – Danny Gardella, American baseball player and trainer (b. 1920)
    • 2005 – Tommy Vance, English radio host (b. 1943)
    • 2005 – Teresa Wright, American actress (b. 1918)
    • 2005 – Gladys Marín, Chilean activist and political figure. (b.1938)
    • 2006 – Anne Braden, American journalist and activist (b. 1924)
    • 2006 – Kirby Puckett, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1960)
    • 2007 – Jean Baudrillard, French photographer and theorist (b. 1929)
    • 2007 – Ernest Gallo, American businessman, co-founded E & J Gallo Winery (b. 1909)
    • 2008 – Peter Poreku Dery, Ghanaian cardinal (b. 1918)
    • 2009 – Francis Magalona, Filipino rapper, producer, and actor (b. 1964)
    • 2010 – Endurance Idahor, Nigerian footballer (b. 1984)
    • 2010 – Mark Linkous, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1962)
    • 2010 – Betty Millard, American philanthropist and activist (b. 1911)
    • 2012 – Francisco Xavier do Amaral, East Timorese politician, 1st President of East Timor (b. 1937)
    • 2012 – Donald M. Payne, American businessman and politician (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Helen Walulik, American baseball player (b. 1929)
    • 2013 – Chorão, Brazilian singer-songwriter (Charlie Brown Jr.) (b. 1970)
    • 2013 – Stompin’ Tom Connors, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1936)
    • 2013 – Alvin Lee, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1944)
    • 2013 – W. Wallace Cleland, American biochemist and academic (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Alemayehu Atomsa, Ethiopian educator and politician (b. 1969)
    • 2014 – Frank Jobe, American soldier and surgeon (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Sheila MacRae, English-American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Martin Nesbitt, American lawyer and politician (b. 1946)
    • 2014 – Manlio Sgalambro, Italian philosopher, author, and poet (b. 1924)
    • 2015 – Fred Craddock, American minister and academic (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Ram Sundar Das, Indian lawyer and politician, 18th Chief Minister of Bihar (b. 1921)
    • 2015 – Enrique “Coco” Vicéns, Puerto Rican-American basketball player and politician (b. 1926)
    • 2016 – Nancy Reagan, American actress, 42nd First Lady of the United States (b. 1921)
    • 2016 – Sheila Varian, American horse trainer and breeder (b. 1937)
    • 2017 – Robert Osborne, American actor and historian (b. 1932)
    • 2018 – Peter Nicholls, Australian science fiction critic and encyclopedist (b. 1939)

    Holidays and observances on March 6

    • Christian feast day:
      • Chrodegang
      • Colette
      • Fridolin
      • Kyneburga, Kyneswide and Tibba
      • Marcian of Tortona
      • William W. Mayo and Charles Frederick Menninger (Episcopal Church (USA))
      • Olegarius
      • March 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • European Day of the Righteous, commemorates those who have stood up against crimes against humanity and totalitarism with their own moral responsibility. (Europe)
    • Foundation Day (Norfolk Island), the founding of Norfolk Island in 1788.
    • Independence Day (Ghana), celebrates the independence of Ghana from the UK in 1957.
    • The Day of the Dude, celebrated by the adherents of Dudeism

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

    February 15 in History

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

    Births on February 15

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

    Deaths on February 15

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

    Holidays and observances on February 15

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