Discover

Contents

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

Liturgical feasts

External links

Events

★ 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet; end of First Punic War.

★ 1629 - Charles I of England dissolves Parliament, starting the Eleven Years Tyranny in which there was no parliament.

★ 1735 - An agreement between Nadir Shah and Paul I of Russia is signed near Ganja and the Russian troops are withdrawn from Baku.

★ 1801 - First census in Great Britain

★ 1804 - Louisiana Purchase: In St. Louis, a formal ceremony is conducted to transfer ownership of Louisiana Territory from France to the United States.

★ 1814 - Napoleon I of France is defeated at the Battle of Laon in France.

★ 1830 - The KNIL also known as the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army is created.

★ 1831 - The French Foreign Legion is established by King Louis-Philippe to support his war in Algeria.

★ 1848 - The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is ratified by the United States Senate, ending the Mexican-American War.

★ 1861 - El Hadj Umar Tall seizes the city of Segou, destroying the Bambara Empire of Mali.

★ 1864 - American Civil War: The Red River Campaign begins as Union troops reach Alexandria, Louisiana.

★ 1876 - Alexander Graham Bell makes the first successful telephone call by saying "Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you."

★ 1880 - Members of the Salvation Army land in the United States and begin operations.

★ 1891 - Almon Strowger, an undertaker in Topeka, Kansas, patents the strowger switch, a device which led to the automation of telephone circuit switching.

★ 1893 - Côte d'Ivoire becomes a French colony.

★ 1902 - Second Boer War: South African Boers win their last battle over British forces, with the capture of a British general and 200 of his men.

★ 1902 - A United States court of appeals rules that Thomas Edison did not invent the movie camera.

★ 1902 - Tochangri, Turkey, is completely destroyed by an earthquake.

★ 1905 - Eleftherios Venizelos asks the independence of Crete and its union with Greece again, starting the Cretan Revolution in Theriso.

★ 1906 - The Courrières mine disaster, Europe's worst ever, kills 1099 miners in Northern France.

★ 1912 - Yuan Shikai is sworn in as the second Provisional President of the Republic of China.

★ 1917 - Batangas was formally founded as one of the Philippines's earliest encomiendas.

★ 1918 - Warner Bros. releases its first major film ''My Four Years in Germany''.

★ 1925 - Olympiacos is founded in Piraeus.

★ 1933 - An earthquake in Long Beach, California kills 120 people.

★ 1945 - The Army Air Force firebombs Tokyo, and the resulting firestorm kills more than 100,000 people, mostly civilians.

★ 1948 - The Indian Union Muslim League is founded, by remnants of the old Muslim League.

★ 1951 - Henri Queuille becomes Prime Minister of France.

★ 1952 - Fulgencio Batista leads a successful coup in Cuba.

★ 1959 - Tibet leads an unsuccessful uprising against ten years of Chinese occupation in Lhasa. Thousands massacred by the occupying Chinese army.

★ 1969 - In Memphis, Tennessee, James Earl Ray pleads guilty to assassinating Martin Luther King Jr. He would later retract his guilty plea.

★ 1970 - Vietnam War: Capt. Ernest Medina is charged with My Lai war crimes.

★ 1975 - Vietnam War: North Vietnamese troops attack Ban Me Thuot, South Vietnam, on their way to capturing Saigon.

★ 1977 - Rings of Uranus: Astronomers discover rings around Uranus.

★ 1982 - The United States places an embargo on Libyan petroleum imports because of their support of terrorist groups.

★ 1982 - Syzygy: all 9 planets align on the same side of the Sun. See also Jupiter_effect

★ 1987 - The Holy See condemns the practice of surrogate motherhood, along with test-tube babies and artificial insemination.

★ 1990 - In Haiti, Prosper Avril is ousted 18 months after seizing power in a coup.

★ 2000 - The NASDAQ stock market index peaks at 5048.62, signaling the beginning of the end of the dot-com boom.

★ 2006 - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter arrives at Mars.

★ 2006 - Mass unrest by the PCC started in São Paulo (the biggest city in Brazil) which would eventually kill more than 152 people

Births

★ 1415 - Vasili II of Russia (d. 1462)

★ 1452 - Ferdinand II of Aragon (d. 1516)

★ 1503 - Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1564)

★ 1536 - Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, English politician (d. 1572)

★ 1628 - Marcello Malpighi, Italian physician (d. 1694)

★ 1709 - Georg Steller, German naturalist (d. 1746)

★ 1749 - Lorenzo da Ponte, Italian librettist (d. 1838)

★ 1769 - Joseph Williamson, English philanthropist and tunnel builder (d. 1840)

★ 1772 - Friedrich von Schlegel, German aesthetician (d. 1829)

★ 1776 - Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (d. 1810)

★ 1788 - Joseph von Eichendorff, German writer (d. 1857)

★ 1810 - Samuel Ferguson, Irish poet (d. 1886)

★ 1842 - Mykola Lysenko, Ukrainian composer (d. 1912)

★ 1844 - Pablo de Sarasate, Spanish violinist (d. 1908)

★ 1845 - Alexander III of Russia (d. 1894)

★ 1847 - Kate Sheppard, New Zealand suffragist (d. 1934)

★ 1850 - Spencer Gore, British tennis player and cricketer (d. 1906)

★ 1880 - Broncho Billy Anderson, American actor (d. 1971)

★ 1887 - Toshitsugu Takamatsu, Grandmaster of Ninjutsu (d. 1972)

★ 1888 - Barry Fitzgerald, Irish actor (d. 1961)

★ 1892 - Arthur Honegger, French-born Swiss composer (d. 1955)

★ 1892 - Gregory La Cava, American director (d. 1952)

★ 1899 - Robert Meier, German WW1 veteran, formerly Germany's oldest man. (d. 2007)

★ 1903 - Bix Beiderbecke, American musician (d. 1931)

★ 1905 - Richard Haydn, English actor (d. 1985)

★ 1915 - Harry Bertoia, Italian artist (d. 1978)

★ 1915 - Sir Charles Groves, English conductor (d. 1992)

★ 1919 - Marion Hutton, American singer (d. 1987)

★ 1920 - Alfred Peet, Dutch-American entrepreneur and the founder of Peet's Coffee & Tea (d. 2007)

★ 1920 - Boris Vian, French writer and musician (d. 1959)

★ 1923 - Val Logsdon Fitch, Nobel Prize laureate

★ 1925 - Manolis Anagnostakis, Greek poet (d. 2005)

★ 1928 - James Earl Ray, American assassin (d. 1998)

★ 1928 - Sara Montiel, Spanish actress and singer

★ 1931 - Georges Dor, Quebec author, playwright, singer and songwriter (d. 2001)

★ 1936 - Sepp Blatter, Swiss hockey and football official

★ 1937 - Joe Viterelli, American actor (d. 2004)

★ 1938 - Marina Vlady, French actress

★ 1940 - Chuck Norris, American actor and martial artist

★ 1940 - Dean Torrence, American singer (Jan and Dean)

★ 1945 - Birgitta Sellén, Swedish politician

★ 1946 - Jim Valvano, American basketball coach (d. 1993)

★ 1946 - Mike Hollands, Australian animator

★ 1947 - Kim Campbell, 19th Prime Minister of Canada

★ 1947 - Paul Condon, Baron Condon, former Commissioner of The Metropolitain Police

★ 1947 - Bob Greene, American journalist

★ 1947 - Tom Scholz, American songwriter

★ 1948 - Richard Park (broadcaster), British Media Consultant and Broadcaster

★ 1952 - Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe politician

★ 1953 - Paul Haggis, Canadian film director

★ 1955 - Youssra, Egyptian actress and singer

★ 1956 - Mitchell Lichtenstein, American actor; son of Roy Lichtenstein

★ 1957 - Shannon Tweed, Canadian actress and model

★ 1957 - Osama bin Laden, Saudi-born Islamic extremist

★ 1957 - Jim White, American folk singer-songwriter

★ 1958 - Steve Howe, American baseball player (d. 2006)

★ 1958 - Sharon Stone, American actress

★ 1960 - Anne MacKenzie, journalist and broadcaster

★ 1961 - Laurel Clark, physician and astronaut (d. 2003)

★ 1961 - Mitch Gaylord, American gymnast

★ 1961 - Bobby Petrino, American football coach

★ 1963 - Jeff Ament, American musician (Pearl Jam)

★ 1963 - Rick Rubin, American record producer

★ 1964 - Neneh Cherry, Swedish musician

★ 1964 - Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex

★ 1964 - David Faber, analyst for CNBC

★ 1964 - Jasmine Guy, American actress

★ 1965 - Rod Woodson, American football player

★ 1966 - Edie Brickell, American singer

★ 1966 - Mike Timlin, American baseball player

★ 1968 - Felice Arena, Australian children's author

★ 1968 - Shoichi Funaki, Japanese professional wrestler

★ 1969 - Paget Brewster, American actress

★ 1971 - Timbaland, American rapper

★ 1971 - Steve Arnold, British racing driver

★ 1972 - Takashi Fujii, Japanese television performer

★ 1972 - Matt Kenseth, American race car driver

★ 1972 - Paraskevi Tsiamita, Greek triple jumper

★ 1973 - Eva Herzigova, Czech model

★ 1973 - Chris Sutton, English footballer

★ 1973 - Mauricio Taricco, Argentine footballer

★ 1973 - John LeCompt, American guitarist

★ 1975 - Lyne Bessette, Quebec professional bicycle racer

★ 1976 - Haifa Wehbe, Lebanese actress, model and singer

★ 1977 - Peter Enckelman, Finnish footballer

★ 1977 - Shannon Miller, American gymnast

★ 1977 - Colin Murray, British radio DJ

★ 1977 - Bree Turner, American dancer and actress

★ 1977 - Matt Rubano, American musician (Taking Back Sunday)

★ 1977 - Robin Thicke, American singer

★ 1977 - Peter Enckelman, Finnish footballer

★ 1978 - Ben Burnley, American musician (Breaking Benjamin)

★ 1981 - Samuel Eto'o, Cameroonian footballer

★ 1981 - Efthimios Kouloucheris, Greek footballer

★ 1981 - Steven Reid, English-born footballer

★ 1982 - Timo Glock, German racing car driver

★ 1982 - Katharine Isabelle, Canadian actress

★ 1983 - Carrie Underwood, American singer

★ 1983 - Reena Virk, Canadian murder victim (d. 1997)

★ 1984 - Ben May, English footballer

★ 1984 - Olivia Wilde, American actress

★ 1985 - Lassana Diarra, French footballer

★ 1985 - Casey Dienel, American singer-songwriter

★ 1985 - Kim Leclerc, Canadian politician

★ 1992 - Emily Osment, American actress

Deaths

★ 1291 - Arghun, Persian ruler

★ 1510 - Johann Geiler von Kaisersberg, Swiss-born preacher (b. 1445)

★ 1513 - John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford, English commander (b. 1443)

★ 1549 - Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, English politician and diplomat

★ 1584 - Thomas Norton, English politician and writer (b. 1532)

★ 1585 - Rembert Dodoens, Flemish physician and botanist (b. 1517)

★ 1588 - Theodor Zwinger, Swiss scholar (b. 1533)

★ 1669 - John Denham, English poet (b. 1615)

★ 1670 - Johann Rudolf Glauber, German chemist (b. 1604)

★ 1776 - Élie Catherine Fréron, French critic (b. 1719)

★ 1776 - Niclas Sahlgren, Swedish merchant and philanthropist (b. 1701)

★ 1792 - John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1713)

★ 1832 - Muzio Clementi, Italian composer (b. 1752)

★ 1861 - Taras Shevchenko, Ukrainian poet (b. 1814)

★ 1872 - Giuseppe Mazzini, Italian politician (b. 1805)

★ 1895 - Charles Frederick Worth, English-born couturier (b. 1826)

★ 1910 - Karl Lueger, mayor of Vienna (b. 1844)

★ 1910 - Carl Reinecke, German pianist, conductor and composer (b. 1824)

★ 1913 - Harriet Tubman, American abolitionist (b. 1820)

★ 1937 - Yevgeny Zamyatin, Russian writer (b. 1884)

★ 1940 - Mikhaïl Boulgakov, Russian writer (b. 1891)

★ 1942 - William Henry Bragg, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)

★ 1948 - Zelda Fitzgerald, American artist, wife of writer F. Scott Fitzgerald (b. 1900)

★ 1948 - Jan Masaryk, Foreign Minister of Czechoslovakia (b. 1886)

★ 1949 - James Rector, American athlete (b. 1884)

★ 1950 - Marguerite De La Motte, American actress (b. 1902)

★ 1951 - Kijūrō Shidehara, Prime minister of Japan (b. 1872)

★ 1966 - Frits Zernike, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1888)

★ 1967 - Yiorgos Batis, Greek composer and musician (b. 1885)

★ 1970 - Vasilis Avlonitis, Greek actor (b. 1904)

★ 1973 - Eugene 'Bull' Connor, American segregationist (b. 1897)

★ 1977 - E. Power Biggs, English-born American organist (b. 1906)

★ 1984 - June Marlowe, American actress (b. 1903)

★ 1985 - Konstantin Chernenko, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (b. 1911)

★ 1985 - Bob Nieman, American baseball player (b. 1927)

★ 1986 - Ray Milland, British actor (b. 1905)

★ 1988 - Andy Gibb, English-born singer (b. 1958)

★ 1994 - Abdelkader Alloula, Algerian playwright (assassinated) (b. 1929)

★ 1996 - Ross Hunter, American film producer (b. 1920)

★ 1997 - La Vern Baker, American singer (b. 1929)

★ 1998 - Lloyd Bridges, American actor (b. 1913)

★ 2001 - Massimo Morsello, Italian musician and far right activist (b. 1958)

★ 2003 - Barry Sheene, British motorcycle racer (b. 1950)

★ 2004 - Dave Blood, real name David Schulthise; American musician, bassist for The Dead Milkmen (b. 1956)

★ 2005 - Dave Allen, Irish comedian (b. 1936)

★ 2005 - Danny Joe Brown, American singer (Molly Hatchet) (b. 1951)

★ 2006 - Anna Moffo, American soprano (b. 1932)

★ 2007 - Richard Jeni, American comedian (b. 1957)

★ 2007 - Ernie Ladd, American football player and professional wrestler (b. 1938)

Holidays and observances

★ Doctors Day - (Venezuela).

★ Tibetan Uprising Day

Liturgical feasts

★ Saint Himelin

★ Saint John Ogilvie (died 1615)

★ Saint Macharius (d. 335)

★ Saint Anastasia

External links

★ BBC: On This Day

★

★ On This Day in Canada
----