Birthdays in History on November 12

  • 1493 Bartolomeo Bandinelli, Italian sculptor (d. 1560)
  • 1528 Qi Jiguang, Chinese general, born in Luqiao
  • 1547 Claude of Valois, French princess (d. 1575). 2nd daughter of King Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici.

Person of interestJeanne Mance

1606 Jeanne Mance, French-Canadian settler who founded the first hospital in North America, born in Langres, France (d. 1673)

Nurse and Settler of New France Jeanne Mance
Nurse and Settler of New France
Jeanne Mance
  • 1615 Richard Baxter, English clergyman (d. 1691)
  • 1651 Juana Ines de La Cruz, Mexican poet/nun/feminist (Primero Sueno)
  • 1729 Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French explorer (d. 1811)
  • 1746 Jacques-Alexandre-César Charles, Beaugency, French inventor and balloonist who, with Nicholas Robert, was the first to take flight in a hydrogen balloon
  • 1755 Gerhard JD von Scharnhorst, Prussia milt/minister of War (1807-10)
  • 1757 Jacobus Bellamy, [Zelandus], Zealand poet
  • 1786 John Burke, Irish genealogist (Burke's Peerage)
  • 1790 Letitia Christian Tyler, 1st wife of President Tyler

Person of interestElizabeth Cady Stanton

1815 Elizabeth Cady Stanton, American women's rights activist, born in Johnstown, New York (d. 1902)

Women's Rights Activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Women's Rights Activist
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
  • 1817 Bahá'u'lláh, Prophet Founder of the Bahá'í Faith (d. 1892)
  • 1831 Anton Kerner Ritter von Marilaun, Austria botanist

Person of interestAuguste Rodin

1840 Auguste Rodin, French sculptor (Kiss, Thinker), born in Paris, France (d. 1917)

Sculptor Auguste Rodin
Sculptor
Auguste Rodin

Person of interestJohn William Strutt

1841 John William Strutt, 3rd Baron Rayleigh, English physicist and discoverer of argon (Nobel Prize 1904), born in Maldon, Essex, England (d. 1919)

Physicist and Nobel Laureate John William Strutt
Physicist and Nobel Laureate
John William Strutt
  • 1848 Eduard Müller, member of the Swiss Federal Council (d. 1919)
  • 1853 Oskar Panizza, German writer (Das Liebeskonzil), born in Bad Kissingen, Bavaria (d. 1921)

Person of interestSun Yat-sen

1866 Sun Yat-sen, Chinese revolutionary and father of modern China, born in Xiangshan [now Zhongshan], Guangdong, Qing Dynasty (d. 1925)

Father of Modern China Sun Yat-sen
Father of Modern China
Sun Yat-sen
  • 1881 Olev Siinmaa, Estonian architect (d. 1948)
  • 1881 Maximilian von Weichs, German field marshal (d. 1954)
  • 1886 Rad Kortenhorst, Dutch politician (KVP)
  • 1886 Ben Travers, British playwright (d. 1980)
  • 1889 DeWitt Wallace, publisher, founded Readers Digest (1921), born in Saint Paul, Minnesota
  • 1891 Seth Barnes Nicholson, American astronomer who discovered four satellites of Jupiter, born in Springfield, Illinois
  • 1896 Salim Ali, Indian ornithologist (d. 1987)
  • 1898 Abraham J D van Oosten, Dutch poet/author (His Master's Voice)
  • 1908 Hans Werner Richter, German author (Socially Responsible Cinema)
  • 1908 Harry A Blackmun, Ill, 100th Supreme Court justice (1970-94)

Person of interestAmon Göth

1908 Amon Göth, Austrian SS commandant of the Płaszów concentration camp, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1946)

SS Officer Amon Göth
SS Officer
Amon Göth
  • 1911 Luc Estang, [Lucien Bastard], French writer (Stigmates)
  • 1911 William Thomas Pennar Davies, poet author/theologian
  • 1914 Edward "Henricus" Schillebeeckx, Dutch theologist
  • 1915 Roland Barthes, French literary critic (L'Empire des Signer)
  • 1917 Joseph Coors, CEO (Adolph Coors Co Brewery)
  • 1924 Audouin Dollfus, French Astronomer (discovered Janus, a moon of Saturn), born in Paris, France
  • 1926 Jack Ryan, American inventor (Barbie Doll, Hot Wheels, Chatty Cathy)
  • 1927 Yutaka Taniyama, Japanese mathematician (d. 1958)
  • 1928 Johan B W Polak, Dutch publisher/publicist (Bloom of Decadence)
  • 1929 Michael Ende, German fantasy and children's writer (The Neverending Story), born in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bavaria (d. 1995)

  • 1930 Tonke Dragt, Dutch children book author (Towers of February)
  • 1931 Norman Y Mineta, (Rep-R-CA, 1975- )

Person of interestJalal Talabani

1933 Jalal Talabani, Iraqi-Kurdish politician and President of Iraq (2005-2014), born in Kelkan, Iraq (d. 2017)

6th President of Iraq Jalal Talabani
6th President of Iraq
Jalal Talabani

Person of interestCharles Manson

1934 Charles Manson, American criminal, murderer and cult leader (Manson Family), born in Cincinnati, Ohio (d. 2017)

Murderer Charles Manson
Murderer
Charles Manson
  • 1937 Peter Lloyd, British MP
  • 1937 Richard H Truly, Fayette Miss, Rear Adm USN/astro (STS T-2, T-4, 2, 8)
  • 1940 Ria Lubbers, wife of Dutch premier Ruud Lubbers
  • 1940 Michel Audet, Quebec economist and politician
  • 1940 Jürgen Todenhöfer, German politician
  • 1944 Johan van Doorn, [Johnny the Selfkicker], Dutch poet (War & Porridge)
  • 1945 Michael Bishop, American sci-fi author (Nebula, Stolen Faces)
  • 1945 Tracy Kidder, American journalist and author
  • 1947 Patrice Leconte, director (Monsieur Hire, Hairdresser's Husband)
  • 1948 Hassan Rouhani, Iranian politician (President of Iran 2013-), born in Sorkheh, Semnan
  • 1949 Jack Reed, (Rep-D-Rhode Island)
  • 1952 Ronald Burkle, American entrepreneur
  • 1957 Tim Samaras, Lakewood, Col., tornado chaser (Storm Chasers), (d. 2013)
  • 1958 Nick Stellino, Italian-American television chef
  • 1960 Bertice Berry, talk show host (Bertice)
  • 1962 Naomi Wolf, American author and feminist
  • 1962 Neal Shusterman, American author
  • 1969 Ian Bremmer, American political scientist, born in Baltimore, Maryland
  • 1969 Johnny Gosch, American kidnap victim, born in Des Moines, Iowa
  • 1973 Mayte Garcia, American dancer, born in Fort Rucker, Alabama
  • 1987 Bryan Little, Canadian ice hockey player, born in Edmonton, Canada