FEBRUARY 7

Contents

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

Liturgical feasts

Notes

External links

Events

★ 457 - Leo I becomes emperor of the Byzantine Empire.

★ 1074 - Battle of Montesarchio wherein the prince of Benevento, Pandulf IV, is killed battling the encroaching Normans.

★ 1301 - Edward of Caernarvon (later King Edward II of England) becomes the first English Prince of Wales.

★ 1550 - Julius III becomes Pope.

★ 1795 - The 11th Amendment to the United States Constitution is passed.

★ 1807 - Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Eylau - Napoléon's French Empire begins fighting against Russian and Prussian forces of the Fourth Coalition at Eylau, Poland.

★ 1812 - The strongest in a series of earthquakes strikes New Madrid, Missouri.

★ 1819 - Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles leaves Singapore after just taking over it, leaving it in the hands of William Farquhar.

★ 1842 - Battle of Debre Tabor: Ras Ali Alula, Regent of the Emperor of Ethiopia defeats warlord Wube Haile Maryam of Semien.

★ 1856 - The colonial Tasmanian Parliament passes the first piece of legislation (the Electoral Act 1856) anywhere in the world providing for elections by way of a secret ballot. ^[1]

★ 1863 - ''HMS Orpheus'' sinks off the coast of Auckland, New Zealand, killing 189.

★ 1882 - The last heavyweight boxing championship bare-knuckle fight takes place in Mississippi City, Mississippi.

★ 1894 - The Cripple Creek miner's strike, led by the Western Federation of Miners, begins in Cripple Creek, Colorado.

★ 1898 - Émile Zola is brought to trial for libel for publishing ''J'Accuse''.

★ 1904 - A fire in Baltimore, Maryland destroys over 1,500 buildings in 30 hours.

★ 1914 - Charlie Chaplin first appears as "The Tramp", as his first film ''Kid Auto Races at Venice'' is released at Keystone Studios.

★ 1935 - Birthday of Tottenham Hotspur legend Cliff Jones (footballer).

★ 1944 - World War II: In Anzio, Italy German forces launch a counteroffensive.

★ 1944 - World War II: American Aircraft carrier strike on Truk.

★ 1948 - Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower resigned as Army chief of staff and was succeeded by Gen. Omar Bradley.

★ 1962 - The United States Government bans all Cuban imports and exports.

★ 1967 - A fire at a restaurant in Montgomery, Alabama kills 25 people.

★ 1969 - The original Hetch Hetchy Moccasin Powerhouse is removed from service.

★ 1971 - Women gain the right to vote in Switzerland.

★ 1974 - Grenada becomes independent from the United Kingdom.

★ 1976 - Future Hall of Famer Darryl Sittler of the Toronto Maple Leafs scores six goals and records four assists in an 11-4 victory over the Boston Bruins, setting a NHL record with 10 points in one game.

★ 1979 - Pluto moves inside Neptune's orbit for the first time since either was known to science.

★ 1979 - The final session of Iranian National Consultative Assembly was held.

★ 1984 - Space Shuttle program: STS-41-B Mission - Astronauts Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make the first untethered space walk using the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU).

★ 1986 - Twenty-eight years of one-family rule end in Haiti, when President Jean-Claude Duvalier flees the Caribbean nation.

★ 1990 - Collapse of the Soviet Union: The Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party agrees to give up its monopoly of power.

★ 1991 - Haiti's first democratically-elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, is sworn in.

★ 1991 - The IRA launched a mortar attack on 10 Downing Street during a cabinet meeting.

★ 1992 - The Maastricht Treaty signed, it led to the creation of the European Union.

★ 1995 - Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, was arrested in Islamabad, Pakistan.

★ 1999 - Crown Prince Abdullah became the King of Jordan on the death of his father, King Hussein.

★ 2000 - Bahria University is established through the Presidential Ordinance No. V of 2000 of Government of Pakistan.

Births

★ 1102 - Empress Matilda, Princess of England and wife of Henry V of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1169)

★ 1478 - Sir Thomas More, English statesman, humanist, and author (d. 1535)

★ 1612 - Thomas Killigrew, English dramatist (d. 1683)

★ 1693 - Empress Anna of Russia (d. 1740)

★ 1804 - John Deere, American manufacturer (Deere & Company) (d. 1886)

★ 1812 - Charles Dickens, English novelist (d. 1870)

★ 1842 - Alexandre Ribot, French statesman (d. 1923)

★ 1867 - Laura Ingalls Wilder, American author (d. 1957)

★ 1870 - Alfred Adler, Austrian psychologist (d. 1937)

★ 1877 - Godfrey Harold Hardy, English mathematician (d. 1947)

★ 1885 - Sinclair Lewis, American writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1951)

★ 1885 - Hugo Sperrle, German field marshal (d. 1953)

★ 1887 - Eubie Blake, American musician and composer (d. 1983)

★ 1889 - Harry Nyquist, important contributor to information theory (d. 1976)

★ 1891 - Ann Little, American actress (d. 1984)

★ 1895 - Anita Stewart, American film actress (d. 1961)

★ 1898 - Dock Boggs, American musician (d. 1971)

★ 1905 - Ulf von Euler, Swedish physiologist, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1983)

★ 1905 - Paul Nizan, French author (d. 1940)

★ 1905 - Cyril Demarne, British Firefighter (d.2007)

★ 1906 - Oleg Antonov, Soviet aircraft designer (d. 1984)

★ 1906 - Puyi, Emperor of China (d. 1967)

★ 1907 - Yevgeniy Abalakov, Soviet mountaineer (d. 1948)

★ 1908 - Buster Crabbe, American swimmer and actor (d. 1983)

★ 1909 - Hélder Câmara, Roman catholic archbishop (d. 1999)

★ 1914 - Ramón Mercader, Spanish assassin of Leon Trotsky (d. 1978)

★ 1915 - Eddie Bracken, American actor (d. 2002)

★ 1915 - Teoctist, Ex-Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church (d. 2007)

★ 1918 - Markey Robinson, Northern Irish painter (d. 1999)

★ 1920 - An Wang, Chinese-born computer pioneer (d. 1990)

★ 1924 - Hattie Jacques, English actress (d. 1980)

★ 1926 - Konstantin Feoktistov, cosmonaut

★ 1927 - Juliette Greco, French singer and actor

★ 1927 - Vladimir Kuts, Russian runner (d. 1975)

★ 1932 - Gay Talese, American author

★ 1932 - Al Worden, American astronaut

★ 1933 - John Anderton, English footballer

★ 1934 - Earl King, American musician (d. 2003)

★ 1934 - Eddie Fenech Adami, President of Malta

★ 1934 - King Curtis, American saxophonist (d. 1971)

★ 1937 - Juan Pizarro, Major League Baseball pitcher

★ 1938 - S. Ramachandran Pillai, Indian communist leader

★ 1941 - Peter Foxhall, Australian evangelist

★ 1943 - Gareth Hunt, English actor (d. 2007)

★ 1945 - Gerald Davies, Welsh rugby player

★ 1945 - Pete Postlethwaite, English actor

★ 1945 - Ian Jack, Scottish Journalist

★ 1949 - Joe English (musician), American drummer

★ 1949 - Paulo César Carpegiani, Brazilian footballer and coach

★ 1951 - Benny Ayala, baseball player

★ 1952 - Vasco Rossi, Italian singer

★ 1953 - Dan Quisenberry, baseball player (d. 1998)

★ 1954 - Dieter Bohlen German composer

★ 1955 - Rolf Benirschke, American football player

★ 1955 - Mario Coutinho, Brazilian physician

★ 1955 - Miguel Ferrer, American actor

★ 1956 - Emo Philips, American comedian

★ 1956 - Mark St. John, American musician, former member of Kiss

★ 1957 - Carney Lansford, American baseball player

★ 1960 - James Spader, American actor

★ 1962 - Garth Brooks, American singer

★ 1962 - Eddie Izzard, British actor and comedian

★ 1962 - David Bryan, American musician (Bon Jovi)

★ 1965 - Jason Gedrick, American actor

★ 1965 - Chris Rock, American comedian and actor

★ 1967 - Richie Burnett, Welsh darts player

★ 1967 - Cheung Man, Hong Kong actress

★ 1968 - Peter Bondra, Ukrainian-born hockey player

★ 1968 - Sully Erna, American singer (Godsmack)

★ 1969 - Yves Racine, Canadian ice hockey player

★ 1972 - Alex Bassi, American race car driver

★ 1972 - Robyn Lively, American actress

★ 1974 - Steve Nash, Canadian basketball player

★ 1974 - J Dilla, also known as Jay-Dee, American hip-hop producer (d. 2006)

★ 1975 - Wes Borland, American guitarist (Limp Bizkit)

★ 1975 - Alexandre Daigle, National Hockey League player

★ 1977 - Paul Comrie, Canadian ice hockey player

★ 1978 - Ashton Kutcher, American actor

★ 1978 - Daniel Van Buyten, Belgian international footballer

★ 1978 - Endy Chávez, baseball player

★ 1978 - David Aebischer, National Hockey League goaltender

★ 1979 - Cerina Vincent, American actress

★ 1979 - Jon Leicester, American baseball player

★ 1983 - Christian Klien, Austrian racing driver

★ 1983 - Georgios Gougoulias, Greek footballer

★ 1985 - Tina Majorino, American actress

★ 1985 - Clara Bryant, American actress

★ 1986 - Deanna Casaluce, Canadian actress

★ 1988 - Ai Kago, Japanese singer

★ 1989 - Louisa Lytton, British actress

★ 1991 - Rachel Sibner, American actress

★ 1993 - David Dorfman, American actor

★ 1996 - Mai Hagiwara, Japanese singer

Deaths

★ 999 - Boleslaus II of Bohemia

★ 1045 - Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (b. 1009)

★ 1317 - Robert, Count of Clermont, French founder of the House of Bourbon (b. 1256)

★ 1560 - Bartolomeo Bandinelli, Italian sculptor (b. 1493)

★ 1626 - William V, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1548)

★ 1642 - William Bedell, English clergyman (b. 1571)

★ 1652 - Gregorio Allegri, Italian composer (b. 1582)

★ 1690 - William Morice, English royalist statesman

★ 1693 - Paul Pellisson, French writer (b. 1624)

★ 1736 - Stephen Gray, English astronomer and scientist (b. 1666)

★ 1779 - William Boyce, English composer (b. 1711)

★ 1799 - Qianlong, Emperor of China (b. 1711)

★ 1801 - Daniel Chodowiecki, Polish painter (b. 1726)

★ 1823 - Ann Radcliffe, English novelist (b. 1764)

★ 1837 - King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden (b. 1778)

★ 1839 - Karl August Nicander, Swedish poet (b. 1799)

★ 1871 - Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg, piano manufacturer (Steinway & Sons) (b. 1797)

★ 1873 - Sheridan Le Fanu, Irish writer (b. 1814)

★ 1878 - Pope Pius IX (b. 1792)

★ 1897 - Galileo Ferraris, Italian physicist (b. 1847)

★ 1919 - William Halford, American naval officer and Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1841)

★ 1920 - Aleksandr Vasilevich Kolchak, Russian military commander (b. 1874)

★ 1937 - Elihu Root, American statesman and diplomat, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1845)

★ 1938 - Harvey Firestone, American manufacturer (b. 1868)

★ 1939 - Boris Grigoriev, Russian painter (b. 1886)

★ 1942 - Ivan Bilibin, Russian illustrator (b. 1876)

★ 1959 - Guitar Slim, American blues guitarist (b. 1926)

★ 1960 - Igor Kurchatov, Russian physicist (b. 1903)

★ 1962 - Clara Nordström, German writer and translator (b. 1886)

★ 1963 - Learco Guerra, Italian cyclist (b. 1902)

★ 1968 - Nick Adams, American actor (b. 1931)

★ 1979 - Josef Mengele, Nazi war criminal (b. 1911)

★ 1980 - Secondo Campini, Italian jet pioneer (b. 1904)

★ 1985 - Matt Monro, English singer (b. 1932)

★ 1986 - Cheikh Anta Diop, Senegalese historian (b. 1923)

★ 1990 - Jimmy Van Heusen, American songwriter (b. 1913)

★ 1991 - Amos Yarkoni, legendary Israeli soldier (b. 1920)

★ 1991 - Jean-Paul Mousseau, Quebec painter, member of Les Automatistes (b. 1927)

★ 1992 - Buzz Sawyer, wrestler (b. 1959)

★ 1994 - Witold Lutosławski, Polish composer (b. 1913)

★ 1994 - Stephen Milligan, British journalist and politician (b. 1948)

★ 1996 - Phillip Davidson, US Army general (b. 1915)

★ 1998 - Lawrence Sanders, American author (b. 1920)

★ 1999 - King Hussein of Jordan (b. 1935)

★ 1999 - José Silva, author of Silva Method and the Silva UltraMind ESP System (b. 1914)

★ 1999 - Bobby Troup, American musician and actor (b. 1918)

★ 2000 - Big Pun, Puerto Rican-American rapper (b. 1971)

★ 2000 - Doug Henning, Canadian magician (b. 1947)

★ 2001 - Dale Evans, American actress and singer (b. 1912)

★ 2001 - Anne Morrow Lindbergh, American author and aviator (b. 1906)

★ 2002 - Elisa Bridges, American model (b. 1973)

★ 2002 - Jack Fairman, British racing driver (b. 1913)

★ 2003 - Augusto Monterroso, Guatemalan author (b. 1921)

★ 2003 - John Reading, Mayor of Oakland, California (b. 1917)

★ 2006 - Princess Hadice Hayriye Ayshe Dürrühsehvar (b. 1914)

★ 2007 - Alan MacDiarmid, New Zealand chemist (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances

★ Independence Day in Grenada (1974).

★ Bahá'í Faith - Feast of Mulk[2] (Dominion) - First day of the 18th month of the Bahá'í Calendar.

★ Sapporo Snow Festival in Sapporo, Japan (2005).

★ International Men's Day in Malta.

Liturgical feasts

★ Saints Paul Miki and his 25 companians (d. Nagasaki, 1597)

★ Blessed Eugenia Smet (d. 1871)

★ February 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Notes

1. Terry Newman, 'Tasmania and the Secret Ballot' (2003), 49(1) Aust J Pol & Hist 93 [1], accessed February 27, 2006

External links

★ BBC: On This Day

★

★ On This Day in Canada
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