Event of Interest
1603 Scottish King James VI son of Mary Queen of Scots, becomes King James I of England in succession to Elizabeth I, thus joining the English and Scottish crowns.
James I and VI
- 1629 1st game law passed in American colonies, by Virginia
Event of Interest
1664 Roger Williams is granted a charter to colonize Rhode Island
Roger Williams
Event of Interest
1721 Johann Sebastian Bach dedicates his Brandenburg Concertos to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt
Johann Sebastian Bach
- 1731 Jerome (aka Hieronimus) de Salis naturalised as British by Act of Parliamentary.
- 1765 Britain enacts Quartering Act, required colonists to provide temporary housing to British soldiers
- 1792 Benjamin West (US) becomes president of Royal Academy of London
- 1801 Aleksandr Pavlovich Romanov becomes Tsar Alexander I of Russia
- 1815 Handel & Haydn Society of Boston founded
Event of Interest
1824 1st performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Missa Solemnis" in St. Petersburg
Ludwig van Beethoven
- 1828 Philadelphia & Columbia Railway (1st state owned) authorized
Event of Interest
1832 Mormon Joseph Smith beaten, tarred & feathered in Ohio
Joseph Smith Jr
- 1837 Canada gives its black citizens the right to vote
- 1848 State of siege proclaimed in Amsterdam
- 1855 Manhattan Kansas founded as New Boston Kansas
- 1860 Clipper Andrew Jackson arrives in San Francisco, 89 days out of New York
- 1868 Metropolitan Life Insurance Co forms
- 1876 37th Grand National: Joe Cannon aboard Regal wins
- 1877 University boat race between Oxford & Cambridge ends in a dead heat
- 1878 British frigate Eurydice sunk; 300 lost
- 1880 Tobacco Growers' Mutual Insurance Company incorporates in CT
Scientific Discovery
1882 German scientist Robert Koch discovers and describes the tubercle bacillus which causes tuberculosis ( Mycobacterium tuberculosis)
Robert Koch
- 1882 44th Grand National: Lord Manners aboard Seaman wins
- 1883 1st telephone call between NY & Chicago
- 1887 Oscar Straus appointed 1st Jewish ambassador from US (to Turkey)
- 1890 Start of Sherlock Holmes "The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge" (BG)
- 1893 55th Grand National: Bill Dollery aboard Cloister wins
- 1894 37 miners killed at Franklin, Washington
- 1899 61st Grand National: George Williamson aboard Manifesto wins
- 1900 New York City Mayor Robert Anderson Van Wyck breaks ground for a new underground "Rapid Transit Railroad" that would link Manhattan and Brooklyn.
- 1905 A group of Cretans dedicated to Crete's union with Greece led by Eleutherios Venizelos, meet at the village of Therisso and proclaim a union in defiance of the Great Powers
- 1906 "Census of the British Empire" shows Great Britain rules 1/5th of the world
- 1907 The first issue of the Georgian Bolshevik newspaper Dro is published
- 1910 83°F highest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in March
- 1911 73rd Grand National: Mr Jack Anthony aboard Glenside wins
- 1913 Netherlands soccer team's 1st victory over England
- 1913 Palace Theater opens at 1564 Broadway, New York City
- 1916 German submarines torpedo the unarmed French cross-channel packet 'Sussex'
- 1920 1st US coast guard air station established (Morehead City, NC)
- 1922 81st Grand National: Lewis Rees aboard Music Hall wins (only 3 horses out of 32 starters finish)
- 1924 Greece becomes a republic
- 1924 1st performance of Jean Sibelius' 7th Symphony in C at the Konsertföreningenin in Stockholm
- 1925 KSL-AM in Salt Lake City UT begins radio transmissions
- 1926 The Beehive in the Hague opens 1st escalator in Netherlands
- 1927 Cuban chess champion Jose Capablanca wins 33-day Grand Chess Tournie
- 1927 Dutch 1st Chamber condemns Belgian & Netherland's Wielingen Treaty
- 1930 1st religious services telecast in US (W2XBS NYC)
- 1932 1st US radio broadcast from a moving train (Belle Baker WABC from MD)
- 1933 Peter I Island incorporated as a Norwegian dependency
- 1933 92nd Grand National: Dudley Williams aboard Kellsboro' Jack
- 1934 U.S. Congress passes the Tydings-McDuffie Act, declaring the Philippines independent after a period of 10 years
- 1935 Major Bowes' Original Amateur Hour goes national on NBC Radio Network
- 1936 Red Wings beat Montreal Maroons in 16 mins & 30 seconds of 6th period Stanley Cup game lasts 9 periods (176 mins), ends 1-0
- 1937 Bus blew a tire, going out of control, killing 18 (Salem Illinois)
- 1937 National Gallery of Art established by Congress
- 1939 98th Grand National: Tim Hyde aboard Workman wins
Film Premier
1939 "Wuthering Heights" based on the novel by Emily Brontë, directed by William Wyler and starring Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier, premieres in Los Angeles
Laurence Olivier
Emily Brontë
Event of Interest
1941 Glenn Miller begins work on his 1st movie for 20th Century Fox
Glenn Miller
- 1941 LIU beats Ohio U 56-42 for NIT basketball championship
- 1941 Richard Wright & Paul Green's "Native Son" premieres in NYC
- 1942 US government begins moving native-born citizens with Japanese ancestry into detention centres under Executive Order 9066, with intention of preventing home-grown espionage
- 1944 76 Allied officers escape Stalag Luft 3 (Great Escape)
- 1944 811 British bombers attack Berlin
- 1944 In occupied Rome, Nazis execute more than 300 civilians
Event of Interest
1945 Generals Eisenhower, Montgomery & Bradley discuss advance in Germany
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Event of Interest
1947 John D. Rockefeller Jr donates NYC East River site to the UN
John D. Rockefeller Jr
- 1949 21st Academy Awards: "Hamlet", Laurence Olivier & Jane Wyman win, Walter & John Huston become 1st father-and-son team to win awards
- 1949 SS police chief in the Netherlands Hanns Albin Rauter's request for a pardon denied, executed by firing squad
- 1950 US Ladies Figure Skating championship won by Yvonne C Sherman
- 1950 US Mens Figure Skating championship won by Richard Button
- 1952 Great demonstrations against apartheid in South Africa
- 1953 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- 1955 1st seagoing oil drill rig placed in service
- 1955 British Army patrols withdraw from Belfast after 20 years
Event of Interest
1955 Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" opens for 694 performances
Tennessee Williams
- 1956 110th Grand National: Dave Dick aboard E.S.B. wins
Elvis Presley in the Army
1958 Elvis Presley joins the army (serial number 53310761)
More >>
- 1959 Iraq withdraws from the Baghdad Pact
- 1959 The Party of the African Federation (PFA) is launched by Léopold Sédar Senghor and Modibo Keita.
- 1960 US appeals court rules novel "Lady Chatterly's Lover" not obscene
- 1961 NY Senate approves $55M for a baseball stadium at Flushing Meadows
- 1962 24th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Cin beats Ohio State 71-59
Event of Interest
1962 Mick Jagger & Keith Richards perform as Little Boy Blue & Blue Boys
Keith Richards
Mick Jagger
- 1962 Welterweight boxing title fight between Benny Paret and Emile Griffith, Paret knocked out 13th round, dies 10 days later. First use of television slow motion replay.
- 1964 Kennedy half-dollar issued
- 1965 US Ranger 9 strikes Moon, 10 miles (16 km) NE of crater Alphonsus
- 1966 Selective Service announces college deferments based on performance
- 1967 University of Michigan holds 1st "Teach-in" after bombing of North Vietnam
- 1969 Francis Turner is sworn in as the director of the Federal Highway Administration
- 1970 Dutch cartoonist Frans Piet ends "Sjors & Sjimmie" strip
- 1971 Serge Gainsbourg releases his concept album "Histoire de Melody Nelson"
- 1972 Great Britain imposes direct rule over Northern Ireland
- 1973 Harley Race beats Dory Funk Jr in Kansas City, to become NWA champ
- 1973 Professional track debut of Kip Keino defeating Jim Ryun in the mile
- 1973 San Francisco 49er pres Lou Spadia proposes NFL expand to 30 teams
- 1974 36th NCAA Mens Basketball Championship: NC State beats Marquette 76-64
Boxing Title Fight
1975 Muhammad Ali TKOs Chuck Wepner in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
Muhammad Ali
- 1976 Argentine President Isabel Martínez de Perón is deposed in a military coup
- 1978 Wings release "With a Little Luck"
- 1979 "Ballroom" closes at Majestic Theater NYC after 116 performances
- 1979 1st appearance as Australian cricket captain for Kim Hughes
- 1979 Columbia flown on carrier aircraft lands at Kennedy Space Center
Event of Interest
1979 10 rebounds & 10 assists, as the Spartans cruise to a 101-67 by Penn Mich State's Earvin "Magic" Johnson registers triple-double 29 pts
Magic Johnson
- 1980 42nd NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Louisville beats UCLA 59-54
Iran Hostage Crisis
1980 ABC's nightly Iran Hostage crisis program renamed "Nightline"
More >>
- 1980 Capitol Records releases some rare Beatles tracks
- 1981 "Nightline with Ted Koppel" premieres on ABC
- 1981 Bombay beat Delhi by innings & 46 to win Ranji Cricket Trophy
- 1981 Colombia drops diplomatic relations with Cuba
- 1982 US sub Jacksonville collides with a Turkish freighter near Virginia
- 1984 Andrea Schone skates ladies world record 5 km (7:34.52)
- 1984 IOC agrees to 6-team exhibition baseball tournament in Olympics
- 1984 Igor Malkov skates world record 10 km (14:21.51)
- 1985 5th Golden Raspberry (Razzie) Awards: "Bolero" wins
- 1985 Norman Gifford makes cricket ODI debuts at age 44 (v Aust, Sharjah)
Event of Interest
1985 Third straight WTA Tour Championship for tennis legend Martina Navratilova; beats Helena Suková 6–3, 7–5, 6–4 at Madison Square Garden, NYC
Martina Navratilova
Event of Interest
1986 Men's International Professional Tennis Council announces Jimmy Connors' 10 week suspension and $20,000 fine for storming off the court after defaulting against Ivan Lendl at Boca Raton, Florida in February
Jimmy Connors
Ivan Lendl
Film Awards
1986 58th Academy Awards: "Out of Africa", William Hurt & Geraldine Page win
Geraldine Page
William Hurt
Music Awards
1987 1st Soul Train Music Awards: Janet Jackson, Luther Vandross win
Janet Jackson
Event of Interest
1989 Mary Martin in "Peter Pan" 1st seen on TV since 1973
Mary Martin
- 1989 Worst US oil spill, Exxon's Valdez spills 11.3 mil gallons off Alaska
- 1990 Indian troops leave Sri Lanka
- 1990 Tom Hunter swims world record 50m freestyle (21.81 sec)
- 1991 11th Golden Raspberry Awards: Ford Fairlane & Ghosts Can't Do It wins
- 1991 Barcelona Dragons beat NY/NJ Knights 19-7 in their 1st WLAF game
- 1991 Danielle Ammaccapane wins LPGA Standard Register Ping Golf Tournament
- 1991 Banks reopen in liberated Kuwait
- 1991 NY Yankees beat NY Mets, 9-3
Event of Interest
1991 Wrestlemania VII in LA, Hulk Hogan pins Sgt Slaughter
Hulk Hogan
- 1992 "Jake's Women" opens at Neil Simon Theater NYC for 245 performances
- 1992 Space Shuttle STS-45 (Atlantis 11) launches into space
- 1992 Sudanese Boeing 707 crashes on mountain Hymettos at Athens: 5-6 die
- 1992 1st Belgium in the space, Dirk Frimout on Atlantis Space Shuttle STS-45 (Atlantis 11) launches into space
- 1993 Ezer Weizman elected president of Israel
- 1994 "Carousel" opens at Beaumont Theater NYC for 322 performances
- 1994 "Song of Jacob Zulu" opens at Plymouth Theater NYC for 53 performances
- 1994 F-16 collides with C-130 Hercules above AFB in NC, 120 die
- 1996 16th Golden Raspberry Awards: "Showgirls" wins
- 1996 Laura Davies wins LPGA Standard Register Ping Golf Tournament
- 1996 MTA raises NYC bridge tolls to $3.50 each way
Film Awards
1997 69th Academy Awards: "The English Patient", Geoffrey Rush and Frances McDormand win
Frances McDormand
Geoffrey Rush
- 1997 Australian parliament overturns world's 1st & only euthanasia law
- 1998 Jonesboro massacre: Two students, ages 11 and 13, fire upon teachers and students at Westside Middle School in Jonesboro, Arkansas; five people are dead and ten are wounded.
- 1998 A tornado sweeps through Dantan in India killing 250 people and injuring 3000 others.
- 1999 Kosovo War: NATO commences air bombardment against Yugoslavia, marking the first time NATO has attacked a sovereign country.
- 1999 Mont Blanc Tunnel Fire: 39 people die when a Belgian transport truck carrying flour and margarine caught fire in the Mont Blanc Tunnel.
Film Premier
1999 "The Matrix" film written and directed by The Wachowskis, starring Keanu Reeve, Lawrence Fishburne and Carrie-Ann Moss premieres
Laurence Fishburne
- 2001 21st Golden Raspberry Awards: "Battlefield Earth" wins
Film Awards
2002 74th Academy Awards: "A Beautiful Mind", Denzel Washington & Halle Berry (first woman of colour) win
Halle Berry
Denzel Washington
- 2003 The Arab League votes 21-1 in favor of a resolution demanding the immediate and unconditional removal of U.S. and British soldiers from Iraq.
Event of Interest
2005 US version of "The Office" created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, developed by Greg Daniels, starring Steve Carell and John Krasinski premieres on NBS
Ricky Gervais
- 2006 Long-term protests in Belarus are broken by police.
Event of Interest
2006 Pope Benedict XVI adds 15 men to the College of Cardinals, in the first consistory of his Pontificate
Benedict XVI
Event of Interest
2010 The World Health Organization appoints Craig David as a Goodwill Ambassador against tuberculosis on World Tuberculosis Day
Craig David
- 2012 African Union deploys 5,000 strong force with the aim of catching or killing warlord Joseph Kony
- 2013 17 soldiers are killed by a suicide bomber at a military checkpoint in North Waziristan, Pakistan
- 2013 25 people are killed by gunmen in a coordinated attack in Adamawa State, Nigeria
- 2013 A series of emergency meetings in Brussels undertaken to resolve Cyprus’ financial situation
- 2013 Scotland defeats Sweden to win the 2013 World Women's Curling Championship
- 2014 Ukraine withdraws its forces from the Crimea
- 2015 Germanwings flight on route between Barcelona and Düsseldorf crashes in the French Alps killing all 150 on board
- 2015 The Opportunity rover becomes the first to complete a Martian marathon
- 2016 Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić found guilty of genocide during 1995 Srebrenica massacre, sentenced to 40 years
- 2016 English footballer Adam Johnson sentenced to 6 years in prison for sexual activity with a schoolgirl
Event of Interest
2017 US President Donald Trump and Republican party forced to pull their attempt to repeal Obamacare after internal opposition
Donald Trump
Barack Obama
- 2018 Tens of thousands attend 'March for Our Lives' rallies held in Washington D.C. and around the world to protest gun violence
- 2018 American conducts it first ever drone strike against Qaeda militants in southern Libya
- 2018 Hundreds of protesters shut down special meeting at Sacramento City Hall investigating police shooting of Stephon Clark
- 2018 Australian batsman Cameron Bancroft is caught on camera rubbing match ball with an object during 3rd Cricket Test in Cape Town, resulting in an infamous ball tampering scandal
March in History
John Manningham Notes the Passing of Queen Elizabeth I
John Manningham was an English lawyer and diarist who wrote this especially moving entry on the passing of Queen Elizabeth I.
March 24, 1603
Murder Most Foul in Olde England
Few murders were so horrific as the one that came to light on this day in history. And few punishments so grisly as that which befell Catherine Hayes.
March 26, 1726
Albert's Monumental Legacy
Architect George Gilbert Scott, who designed the Albert Memorial in honour of Queen Victoria's beloved husband, Prince Albert died on this day.
March 27, 1878
Gucci Chief Falls Prey to the Black Widow
The world of design and fashion was shocked when Maurizio Gucci was shot dead in 1995. His execution would lead to an even greater sensation three years later.
March 27, 1995