Events in History
- 835 All Saints Day made compulsory by Pope Gregory IV throughout Frankish Kingdom
- 996 First recorded use of modern name for Austria in the 'Ostarrîchi Document'
- 1179 Phillip II crowned King of France aged 14 at Reims, with his father Louis VII in ill health
- 1248 Earl Willem II of Holland crowned as RC German emperor
Event of Interest
1512 Michelangelo's paintings on ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican first exhibited
Michelangelo
- 1570 All Saints Flood, tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland; killing more than 1,000 people.
Event of Interest
1604 William Shakespeare's tragedy "Othello" first presented
William Shakespeare
Event of Interest
1628 French King Louis XIII occupies La Rochelle
Louis XIII
- 1683 The English crown colony of New York is subdivided into 12 counties.
- 1721 Prince Eugenius of Savoye unveals statue of himself
- 1755 Lisbon earthquake kills more than 50,000 in Portugal
- 1765 Stamp Act goes into effect in British colonies
- 1776 Mission San Juan Capistrano founded in California
- 1784 Maryland grants citizenship to Lafayette and his descendants
- 1787 First free school in NYC (African Free School) opens
Event of Interest
1800 John Adams becomes the first US President to live in the White House
John Adams
- 1802 Delegates meet at Chillicothe, Ohio, to form a state constitutional convention.
Event of Interest
1814 Congress of Vienna opens to re-draw the European political map after the defeat of France, in the Napoleonic Wars
Napoléon Bonaparte
WHSmith: a Retail Giant Born From a Widow's Might
1848 WHSmith opens its 1st railway bookstall, at Euston Station in London
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Event of Interest
1861 General George McClellan made general in chief of Union armies
George McClellan
- 1863 -8] Averell's Raid (on)to Lewisburg, West Virginia
- 1863 Fortifications built on Angel Island (San Francisco Bay) by troops
- 1865 Zutphen-Fishing Dutch railway opens
- 1869 Deli Me forms T B V tobacco in Sumatra
- 1870 US Weather Bureau begins operations (24 locations)
- 1876 King Willem III opens North Sea Canal (Amsterdam-IJmuiden)
- 1876 New Zealand's provincial government system is dissolved.
- 1877 Dutch government of Heemskerk-Van Lynden resigns
- 1878 Edward Scripps & John Sweeney found Penny Press (Cleveland Press)
Event of Interest
1894 Nicholas II becomes the new Tsar of Russia after his father, Alexander III, dies.
Nicholas II
- 1896 First bare-breasted women (Zulu) to appear in National Geographic Magazine
- 1901 Sigma Phi Epsilon, the largest national male collegiate fraternity is established at Richmond College, in Richmond, VA.
- 1902 France and Italy sign an Entente under which Italy agrees to remain neutral if France is attacked; this is France's attempt to neutralize the Triple Entente
Historic Publication
1910 First issue of "Crisis" published by editor W.E.B. Du Bois
W.E.B. Du Bois
Italo-Turkish War
1911 The first aerial bomb is dropped by an Italian pilot on Turkish troops in Libya during the Italo-Turkish War
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Event of Interest
1913 Less than a week after the US non-intervention promise, President Woodrow Wilson demands that Mexican dictator Huerta resigns
Woodrow Wilson
Event of Interest
1914 Paul von Hindenburg named marshal of the Eastern front
Paul von Hindenburg
- 1915 Parris Island is officially designated a US Marine Corps Recruit Depot.
- 1916 Paul Miliukov delivers in the Russian State Duma the famous "stupidity or treason" speech, precipitating the downfall of the Boris Stürmer government
- 1918 102 die in a NYC BMT subway derailment at Malbone Street Brooklyn
- 1918 Yugoslav battleship Viribus Unitis sunk by Italians
Event of Interest
1919 British Admiral David Beatty becomes First Sea Lord
David Beatty
Event of Interest
1920 Eugene O'Neill's "Emperor Jones" premieres in NYC
Eugene O'Neill
- 1921 National Birth Control League & Voluntary Parenthood League merge as American Birth Control League
Event of Interest
1922 Queen Wilhelmina opens Dutch Historical Maritime museum in Amsterdam
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
End of the Ottoman Empire
1922 Mustafa Kemal Ataturk takes Constantinople from Mehmed VI, proclaiming the Republic of Turkey and bringing an end to the Ottoman Empire
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Appointment of Interest
1932 Wernher von Braun named head of German liquid-fuel rocket program
Wernher von Braun
Theater Premiere
1935 T. S. Eliot's play "Murder in the Cathedral" premieres in London
T. S. Eliot
Event of Interest
1936 Benito Mussolini describes alliance between Italy and Germany as an "axis"
Benito Mussolini
- 1936 Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (then Cowboys' Turtle Association) is established after disagreement with rodeo promoter W.T. Johnson, who finally gives in to cowboys' pay demands
Execution
1937 Stalinists execute by shooting Pastor Paul Hamberg and seven members of Azerbaijan's Lutheran community (including three women).
Joseph Stalin
Josip Broz Tito
Attack on Pearl Harbor
1941 Japanese naval staff offiicers Suzuki & Maejima arrive at Pearl Harbor
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Famous Photo
1941 Ansel Adams shoots 'Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico', one of his most famous photographs
Ansel Adams
- 1942 10th day of battle at El Alamein
- 1942 John H Johnson publishes 1st issue of Negro Digest
- 1943 Dim-out ban lifted in San Francisco Bay area
- 1943 US troops land on Bougainville Island on Solomon Island
- 1944 Mary Coyle Chase's "Harvey" premieres in NYC
- 1944 Zeeuws & Flanders liberated
- 1944 World War II: Units of the British Army land at Walcheren in the Netherlands.
- 1945 First issue of Ebony magazine published by John H Johnson
- 1946 Charles S Johnson becomes 1st black president of Fisk University
- 1946 West German state of Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony) created
- 1946 Karol Wojtyla is ordained to Catholic priesthood
- 1947 First Aloha Week Parade held in Hawaii
- 1947 UN trusteeship for Nauru granted to Australia, NZ & UK
- 1948 Mao's Red army conquers Mukden, Manchuria
- 1950 82°F highest temperature ever recorded in Cleveland in Nov
Event of Interest
1950 Puerto Rican nationalists try to kill US President Harry Truman at Blair House
Harry Truman
- 1951 1st H Bomb test, code named "Ivy Mike", detonates on Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands, the north Pacific Ocean
Birthdays in History
- 846 Louis the Stammerer, King of West Francia (877-79) (d. 879)
- 1339 Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria (1358-65), born in Vienna (d. 1365)
- 1351 Leopold III, Duke of Austria (1365-68), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1386)
- 1500 Benvenuto Cellini, Italian sculptor, goldsmith and author (Perseus), born in Florence, Italy (d. 1571)
- 1526 Catherine Jagellion, Polish princess and queen of Sweden as the wife of John III of Sweden, born in Kraków, Poland (d. 1583)
- 1530 Étienne de La Boétie, French judge and writer, born in Sarlat-la-Canéda, Périgord, France (d. 1563)
- 1539 Pierre Pithou, French lawyer and scholar (Les Libertés de l’église gallicane), born in Troyes, France (d. 1596)
- 1567 Diego Sarmiento de Acuña, 1st Count of Gondomar, Spanish diplomat, born in Astorga, Spain (d. 1626)
- 1578 Dmitry Pozharsky, Russian prince (known for his military leadership during the Polish–Muscovite War 1611-12), born in Klin County, Moscow Governorate, Tsardom of Russia (d. 1642)
- 1585 Jan Brożek, Polish mathematician, physician, and astronomer, born in Kurzelów, Sandomierz Province, Poland (d. 1652)
- 1607 Georg Philipp Harsdörffer, German poet and translator, born in Nuremberg, Germany (d. 1658)
- 1611 François-Marie, comte de Broglie, Italian-born French commander, born in Piedmont, Italy (d. 1656)
- 1629 St. Oliver Plunkett, Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and last Catholic martyr to die in England, born in Loughcrew, County Meath, Ireland (d. 1681)
- 1636 Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux, French poet and critic, born in Paris (d. 1711)
- 1643 John Strype, English historian and biographer, born in Houndsditch, London (d. 1737)
- 1704 Paul Daniel Longolius, German encylopedist (editor of Grosses vollständiges Universal-Lexicon), born in Dresden, Germany (d. 1779)
- 1720 Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte, French admiral, born in Rennes, France (d. 1791)
- 1727 Ivan Shuvalov, 1st Russian Minister of Education and founder of the Moscow University, born in Moscow (d. 1797)
- 1757 Antonio Canova, Italian sculptor, born in Possagno, Republic of Venice (d. 1822)
Spencer Perceval
1762 Spencer Perceval, British Prime Minister (Tory: 1809-12), born in London (d. 1812)
Spencer Perceval
- 1778 Gustav IV Adolf, King of Sweden (1792-1809), born in Stockholm Palace, Sweden (d. 1837)
- 1782 F. J. Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1827-28), born in Skelton-on-Ure, Yorkshire, England (d. 1859)
- 1798 Benjamin Guinness, Irish brewer and philanthropist, born in Dublin (d. 1868)
- 1808 John Taylor, American religious leader (3rd President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), born in Milnthorpe, Westmorland, England (d. 1887)
- 1815 Crawford Williamson Long, American surgeon and pioneer (use of ether as an anesthetic in surgery), born in Danielsville, Georgia (d. 1878)
- 1815 Douglas H. Cooper, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), born in Amite County, Mississippi (d. 1879)
- 1825 Joseph B. Palmer, American Brigadier General (Confederate Army), born in Rutherford County, Tennessee (d. 1890)
- 1835 Godfrey Weitzel, German-American Major General (Union Army), born in Pirmasens, Germany (d. 1884)
- 1838 Khedrup Gyatso, 11th Dalai Lama of Tibet, born in Lithang (d. 1856)
- 1853 José Santos Zelaya, President of Nicaragua (1893-1910), born in Managua, Nicaragua (d. 1919)
- 1859 Charles Brantley Aycock, 50th Governor of North Carolina (1901-05), born in Wayne County, North Carolina (d. 1912)
- 1860 Boies Penrose, American politician (U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania (1897-1921)), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1921)
Stephen Crane
1871 Stephen Crane, American novelist (Red Badge of Courage), born in Newark, New Jersey (d. 1900)
Stephen Crane
Carlos Saavedra Lamas
1878 Carlos Saavedra Lamas, Argentine politician (Nobel Peace Prize 1936), born in Buenos Aires, Argentina (d. 1959)
Carlos Saavedra Lamas
Alfred Wegener
1880 Alfred Wegener, German polar researcher, geophysicist and meteorologist (continental shift), born in Berlin (d. 1930)
Alfred Wegener
- 1880 Sholem Asch, Polish-Jewish novelist and playwright (East River, Three Cities), born in Kutno, Poland (d. 1957)
- 1886 Hermann Broch, Austrian novelist (Sleepwalkers, Bewitchment), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1951)
- 1887 L. S. Lowry, British painter of industrial scenes, born in Stretford, England (d. 1976)
- 1889 Philip Noel-Baker, British politician and disarmament advocate (Nobel 1959), born in London (d. 1982)
- 1896 Edmund Blunden, English poet and critic (Undertones of War), born in London (d. 1974)
- 1897 Naomi Mitchison, Scottish author (African Heroes, Return to Fairy Hill), born in Edinburgh, Scotland (d. 1999)
- 1902 Nordahl Grieg, Norwegian poet, dramatist and novelist (The Defeat), born in Bergen, Norway (d. 1943)
- 1903 Gerard Nabrink, Dutch anarchist and co-founder (NVSH), born in The Hague, Netherlands (d. 1993)
- 1903 Jean Tardieu, French dramatist, born in St Germain de Joux (d. 1995)
- 1903 Edward "Carji" Greeves, Australian Rules Football midfielder (winner inaugural Brownlow Medal 1924), born in Warragul, Victoria (d. 1963)
- 1905 Paul-Émile Borduas, Canadian abstract painter, born in Saint-Hilaire, Quebec (d. 1960)
- 1907 Terence Cuneo, English artist (official artist for the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953), born in London (d. 1996)
- 1911 Henri Troyat, Russian-French author and historian, born in Moscow (d. 2007)
- 1911 Donald William Kerst, American Physicist who developed the betatron (device to accelerate electron beams), born in Madison, Wisconsin
- 1917 Clarence E. Miller, American politician (Rep-R-OH, 1967-93), born in Lancaster, Ohio (d. 2011)
- 1917 Margaret Taylor-Burroughs, American visual artist and co-founder of DuSable Museum of African American History, born in St. Rose, Louisiana (d. 2010)
- 1917 Zenna Henderson, American sci-fi author (Anything Box), born in Tucson, Arizona (d. 1983)
- 1921 Ilse Aichinger, Austrian writer (Die größere Hoffnung), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 2016)
- 1923 Edward A de Jongh, Antillian author (The Arch)
- 1923 Gordon R. Dickson, Canadian-American sci-fi author (Genetic General), born in Edmonton, Alberta (d. 2001)
- 1924 Robert Rapoport, American social anthropologist, born in Brockton, Massachusetts (d. 1996)
- 1924 Suleyman Demirel, President of Turkey (1993-2000) and Prime Minister, born in Isparta, Atabey (d. 2015)
- 1929 Nicholas Mavroules, American politician (Rep-D-MA, 1979-93), born in Peabody, Massachusetts (d. 2003)
- 1929 Rudy Kousbroek, Dutch writer and literary (Leopold the Buch), born in Pematang Siantar, Sumatra, Dutch East Indies (d. 2010)
- 1930 A. R. Gurney, American playwright (The Dining Room), born in Buffalo, New York (d. 2017)
- 1934 Aat Veldhoen, Dutch artist, born in Amsterdam
- 1934 Hugh Bidwell, 662nd Lord Mayor of London (1989-90) (d. 2013)
- 1934 Umberto Agnelli, Italian automotive executive (Fiat), born in Lausanne, Switzerland (d. 2004)
- 1935 Edward Said, Palestinian-American literary critic, born in Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine (d. 2003)
Charles Koch
1935 Charles Koch, American businessman and philanthropist (Koch Industries billionaire), born in Wichita, Kansas
Charles Koch
- 1939 Barbara Bosson, American actress (Fay-Hill St Blues, Hooperman), born in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania
- 1940 Ramesh Chandra Lahoti, 35th Chief Justice of India, born in Guna, Madhya Pradesh, India
- 1941 Alfio Basile, Argentine football coach, born in Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- 1942 John Spratt, American politician (Rep-D-SC, 1983-2011), born in Charlotte, North Carolina
Larry Flynt
1942 Larry Flynt, American magazine publisher (Hustler), born in Lakeville, Kentucky
Larry Flynt
- 1944 Oscar Temaru, President of French Polynesia 2011-13, born in Faa'a, Tahiti, French Polynesia
- 1946 Yuko Shimizu, Japanese illustrator (creator of Hello Kitty), born in Kyoto, Japan
- 1949 Michael D. Griffin, American aerospace engineer and NASA chief administrator, born in Aberdeen, Maryland
- 1950 Tony Hymphris, political activist
- 1953 Jan Davis, American astronaut (STS 47, 60, 85), born in Cocoa Beach, Florida
- 1958 Jim Steinmeyer, American inventor and designer of magical illusions, born in Oak Park, Illinois
- 1961 Louise Boije af Gennäs, Swedish writer and novelist (Stjärnor utan svindel)
- 1966 Jeremy Hunt, British politician and Foreign Secretary (2018-), born in London, England
- 1966 Willie D., American hip hop artist (Geto Boys), born in The 5th Ward, Houston, Texas
- 1967 Carla van de Puttelaar, Dutch photographer, born in Zaandam, Netherlands
Weddings in History
Wedding of Interest
1940 Theoretical physicist Robert Oppenheimer (36) weds biologist Katherine Harrison Puening
Robert Oppenheimer
- 2014 Counting star Jessa Duggar weds Ben Seewald at the First Baptist Church in Bentonville, Ark
Deaths in History
- 921 Richard, Duke of Burgundy
- 955 Henry I, Duke of Bavaria, dies from an illness at 34 or 36
- 1296 Guillaume Durand, French writer (b. 1230)
- 1391 Amadeus VII of Savoy (b. 1360)
- 1399 John V, Duke of Brittany (b. 1339)
- 1535 Francesco Sforza, Italian ruler (Milan), dies
- 1546 Giulio Romano, Italian painter/architect (Ondergang der Titanen), dies
- 1588 Jean Daurat, French poet (b. 1508)
- 1596 Pierre Pithou, French lawyer and scholar (Les Libertés de l’église gallicane), dies at 57
- 1642 Jean Nicolet, French explorer (b. 1598)
- 1676 Gisbertus Voetius, Dutch theologian (b. 1589)
- 1678 William Coddington, first Governor of Rhode Island (b. 1601)
- 1700 Carlos II, King of Spain (reigns 1665-1700), dies at 39
- 1750 Gustaaf W van Imhoff, Dutch governor of Ceylon (1736-40), dies at 45
- 1770 Alexander Cruden "Alexander the Corrector", Scottish biblical scholar and eccentric, compiler of a concordance to King James Bible, dies at 71
- 1814 Alexander Samoylov, Russian general and statesman (b. 1744)
- 1841 Antoine Philippe Vischer, comte de Celles, Belgian-French politician, dies at 61
- 1877 Oliver Hazard Perry Throck Morton, American politician (Governor of Indiana), dies of a stroke at 56
- 1879 Zachariah Chandler, American merchant and politician (found Republican Party), dies at 65
- 1881 Jacques Perk, Dutch poet (Iris, Wood Song), dies at 22
- 1888 Nikolai Przhevalsky, Russian explorer (b. 1838)
- 1894 Tsar Alexander III of Russia (b. 1845) Reigned from 1881
Theodor Mommsen
1903 Theodor Mommsen, German historian and scholar (Nobel Prize in Literature 1902), dies at 85
Theodor Mommsen
- 1907 Alfred Jarry, French writer (ubu Roi), dies at 33
- 1914 Christopher "Kit" Cradock, English admiral, dies in battle
- 1922 Alfred Capus, French journalist and playwright, dies at 63
- 1935 Émile Francqui, Belgian soldier and diplomat, dies at 72
- 1938 Francis Jammes, French poet and writer (Jammisme), dies at 69
- 1941 Camille Melloy [the Paepe], Belgian priest/poet (Requiem), dies at 50
- 1955 W H van Eemlandt [Haasse], author (Treasure Hunter of Amstel), dies
- 1955 Dale Carnegie, American writer (b. 1888)
- 1956 Pietro Badoglio, 41st Prime Minister of Italy (1943-44) and Italian General (1922-43), dies at 85
- 1959 Gershon Agron, mayor of Jerusalem, dies at 66
- 1961 Alexander Cohen, Dutch anarchist and author, dies at 97
- 1963 Elsa Maxwell, American author (Jack Paar Show), dies at 80
- 1968 Georgios Papandreou, Greek politician and Prime Minister of Greece (1944–45, 1963, 1964–65 dies at 80
- 1971 Gertrud von Le Fort, German writer (The Eternal Woman), dies at 95
Ezra Pound
1972 Ezra Loomis Pound, American poet (Throne), dies at 87
Ezra Pound
- 1979 Mamie Eisenhower, First Lady of the United States (1953-61), dies of a stroke at 82
- 1984 Norman Krasna, author (Dear Ruth), dies of a heart attack at 74
- 1987 René Lévesque, Premier of Quebec, dies at 65
- 1991 Joseph Papp, US theater producer (A Chorus Line, Hair), dies at 70
- 1992 Jeremias Chitunda, vice-chairman (Angolese Unita-rebellion), dies
- 1993 Anatoli Voronov, Russian cosmonaut (Soyuz 12a backup), dies at 63
- 1993 A. N. Sherwin-White, English historian (b. 1911)
- 1993 Severo Ochoa, Spanish-American physician and biochemist (Nobel 1959), dies at 88
- 1994 Richard Krautheimer, art historian, dies at 97
- 1994 Syd Dernley, British hangman (1949-54), dies at 73
- 1995 Brian Lenihan, snr, Irish politician and minister, dies at 64
- 1995 Desmond Shawe-Taylor, British critic and writer (co-author of The Record Guide), dies at 88
- 1995 James Ralph Darling, teacher, dies at 96
- 1995 Lex Hixon, religious teacher/author, dies at 53
- 1996 J. R. [Junius Richard] Jayawardene, 2nd President of Sri Lanka (1978-89) and 7th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (1977-78), dies at 90
- 1996 Maati Bouabid, Prime Minister of Morocco (1979-83), dies at 68
- 1999 Theodore Hall, American physicist and Atomic Spy for the Soviet Union, dies at 74
- 2006 William Styron, American novelist (Confess of Nat Turner, Sophie's Choice), dies at 81
- 2007 Paul Tibbets, US Air Force retired Brigadier General (b. 1915)
- 2008 Jacques Piccard, Swiss ocean explorer (b. 1922)
- 2010 Ernesto Presas, Filipino martial artist (b. 1945)
- 2011 Dorothy Howell Rodham, Mother of US First Lady, Senator and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, dies at 92
- 2017 Ray Robinson, American magazine editor and biographer (Lou Gehrig), dies of a stroke at 96
- 2018 Amal Hussain, Yemeni famine victim who raised world's awareness, dies aged 7