Spoiler:Events
321 – Roman Emperor Constantine I decrees that the dies Solis Invicti (sun-day) is the day of rest in the Empire.
1277 – Stephen Tempier, bishop of Paris, condemns 219 philosophical and theological theses.
1799 – Napoleon Bonaparte captures Jaffa in Palestine and his troops proceed to kill more than 2,000 Albanian captives.
1814 – Napoleon I of France wins the Battle of Craonne.
1827 – Brazil marines unsuccessfully attack the temporary naval base of Carmen de Patagones, Argentina.
1827 – Shrigley Abduction: Ellen Turner is abducted by Edward Gibbon Wakefield, a future politician in colonial New Zealand.
1850 – Senator Daniel Webster gives his "Seventh of March" speech endorsing the Compromise of 1850 in order to prevent a possible civil war.
1862 – American Civil War: Union forces defeat Confederate troops at Pea Ridge in northwestern Arkansas.
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell is granted a patent for an invention he calls the telephone beating Antonio Meucci by four hours.
1886 – The City of Lábrea in Amazonas, Brazil was founded. Today, the town is the seat of the Territorial Prelature of Lábrea.
1912 – Roald Amundsen announces that his expedition had reached the South Pole on December 14, 1911.
1914 – Prince William of Wied arrives in Albania to begin his reign.
1936 – World War II (Prelude to): In violation of the Locarno Pact and the Treaty of Versailles, Germany reoccupies the Rhineland.
1945 – World War II: American troops seize the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine River at Remagen.
1950 – Cold War: The Soviet Union issues a statement denying that Klaus Fuchs served as a Soviet spy.
1951 – Korean War: Operation Ripper – United Nations troops led by General Matthew Ridgeway begin an assault against Chinese forces.
1965 – Bloody Sunday: A group of 600 civil rights marchers are forcefully broken up in Selma, Alabama.
1971 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman delivers his historic "This time the struggle is for our freedom" speech at Ramna Race Course, calling upon the Bengali people to prepare for the freedom struggle ahead.
1985 – The song "We Are the World" had its international release.
1986 – Challenger Disaster: Divers from the USS Preserver locate the crew cabin of Challenger on the ocean floor.
1989 – Iran and the United Kingdom break diplomatic relations after a row over Salman Rushdie and his controversial novel.
1994 – Copyright Law: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that parodies of an original work are generally covered by the doctrine of fair use.
2007 – British House of Commons votes to make the upper chamber, the House of Lords, 100% elected.
[edit] Births
189 – Publius Septimius Geta, Roman Emperor (d. 211)
1481 – Baldassare Peruzzi, Italian architect and painter (d. 1537)
1556 – Guillaume du Vair, French writer (d. 1621)
1671 – Robert Roy MacGregor, Scottish folk hero (d. 1734)
1678 – Filippo Juvarra, Italian architect (d. 1736)
1687 – Jean Lebeuf, French historian (d. 1760)
1693 – Pope Clement XIII (d. 1769)
1715 – Ewald Christian von Kleist, German poet (d. 1759)
1715 – Ephraim Williams, American philanthropist (d. 1755)
1730 – Baron de Breteuil, French statesman (d. 1807)
1765 – Nicéphore Niépce, French inventor of photography (d. 1833)
1785 – Alessandro Manzoni, Italian writer (d. 1873)
1788 – Antoine César Becquerel, French physicist (d. 1878)
1792 – John Herschel, English mathematician and astronomer (d. 1871)
1837 – Henry Draper, American physician and astronomer (d. 1882)
1841 – William Rockhill Nelson, American publisher (The Kansas City Star) and patron of Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (d. 1915)
1849 – Luther Burbank, American botanist (d. 1926)
1850 – Champ Clark, American politician (d. 1921)
1850 – Tomáš Masaryk, first President of Czechoslovakia (d. 1937)
1857 – Julius Wagner-Jauregg, Austrian neuroscientist, Nobel laureate (d. 1940)
1872 – Piet Mondrian, Dutch painter (d. 1944)
1873 – Madame Sul-Te-Wan, American actress (d. 1959)
1875 – Maurice Ravel, French composer (d. 1937)
1878 – Boris Kustodiev, Russian painter (d. 1927)
1887 – Heino Eller, Estonian composer (d. 1970)
1888 – Alidius Warmoldus Lambertus Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer, Dutch lawyer and politician (d. 1978)
1893 – Milton Avery, American artist (d. 1965)
1902 – Heinz Rühmann, German actor (d. 1994)
1904 – Ivar Ballangrud, Norwegian speed skater (d. 1969)
1904 – Reinhard Heydrich, German Nazi SS senior officer (d. 1942)
1908 – Anna Magnani, Italian actress (d. 1973)
1909 – Léo Malet, French writer (Nestor Burma) (d. 1996)
1915 – Jacques Chaban-Delmas, French politician (d. 2000)
1917 – Lee Young, American jazz drummer and singer (d. 2008)
1922 – Olga Aleksandrovna Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician (d. 2004)
1925 – Rene Gagnon, American Marine shown in photograph of the Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima (d. 1979)
1927 – James Broderick, American actor (d. 1982)
1927 – Jean-Paul Desbiens, Quebec writer and teacher (d. 2006)
1927 – Henri Landwirth, Belgian-American hotelier and philanthropist
1930 – Antony Armstrong-Jones, British aristocrat, Lord Snowdon, former husband of Princess Margaret
1933 – Jackie Blanchflower, Northern Irish footballer (d. 1998)
1934 – Willard Scott, American television broadcaster
1934 – Giorgos Katsaros, Greek musician and composer
1938 – David Baltimore, American biologist, Nobel laureate
1938 – Janet Guthrie, American race car driver
1940 – Rudi Dutschke, German student leader (d. 1979)
1940 – Daniel J. Travanti, American actor
1942 – Tammy Faye Bakker, American televangelist (d. 2007)
1942 – Michael Eisner, American film studio executive
1942 – Charles R. Boutin, American politician
1943 – Chris White, British musician (The Zombies)
1944 – Sir Ranulph Fiennes, British soldier and explorer
1944 – Zhiuli Shartava, Georgian politician and the Head of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia (d. 1993)
1944 – Stanley Schmidt, American editor
1944 – Townes Van Zandt, American musician and songwriter (d. 1997)
1945 – John Heard, American actor
1945 – Bob Herbert, American journalist
1945 – Arthur Lee, American musician (Love) (d. 2006)
1946 – Matthew Fisher, British musician (Procol Harum)
1946 – Daniel Goleman, American author and psychologist
1946 – Peter Wolf, American musician (The J. Geils Band)
1947 – Helen Eadie, Scottish politician
1947 – Richard Lawson, American actor
1947 – Walter Röhrl, German race and rally car driver
1949 – Ghulam Nabi Azad, Indian politician
1950 – Iris Chacon, Puerto Rican singer and dancer
1950 – Billy Joe Dupree, American football player
1950 – Franco Harris, American football player
1951 – Francis Rocco Prestia, American musician (Tower of Power)
1952 – Ernie Isley, American musician (The Isley Brothers)
1952 – Viv Richards, Antiguan West Indies cricketer
1952 – Lynn Swann, American football player
1955 – Anupam Kher, Indian actor
1955 – Tommy Kramer, American football player
1956 – Bryan Cranston, American actor
1957 – Robert Harris, English TV reporter and journalist
1958 – Alan Hale, American astronomer
1958 – Rik Mayall, British actor
1959 – Donna Murphy, American actress
1960 – Jim Spivey, American track and field athlete
1960 – Joe Carter, American baseball player
1960 – Ivan Lendl, Czech tennis player
1962 – Taylor Dayne, American recording artist
1962 – Peter Manley, English darts player
1963 – Bill Brochtrup, American actor
1963 – Denyce Graves, American singer
1964 – Bret Easton Ellis, American writer
1964 – Wanda Sykes, American actress and comedienne
1965 – Jack Armstrong, American baseball player
1965 – Steve Beuerlein, American football player
1965 – Cameron Daddo, Australian actor
1965 – Jesper Parnevik, Swedish golfer
1966 – Joy Tanner, American actress
1967 – Ai Yazawa, Japanese mangaka
1967 – Ruthie Henshall, English theatre actress and singer
1967 – Jean-Pierre Barda, Swedish singer (Army of Lovers)
1968 – Denis Boucher, Canadian baseball player
1968 – Jeff Kent, American baseball player
1969 – Warrel Dane, American singer (Nevermore)
1969 – Massimo Lotti, Italian footballer
1969 – Hideki Noda, Japanese racing driver
1969 – Shin Ae Ra, Korean actress and radio DJ
1970 – Rachel Weisz, British actress
1971 – Peter Sarsgaard, American actor
1971 – Matthew Vaughn, British film producer and director
1972 – Jang Dong-gun, South Korean actor and musician
1972 – Maxim Roy, Quebec actress
1973 – Jason Bright, Australian racing driver
1973 – Sébastien Izambard, operatic pop singer (Il Divo)
1973 – Ray Parlour, English footballer
1974 – Larry Bagby, American actor and musician
1974 – Jenna Fischer, American actress
1974 – Facundo Sava, Argentine footballer
1975 – Audrey Marie Anderson, American actress
1975 – TJ Thyne, American actor
1977 – Gianluca Grava, Italian footballer
1977 – Paul Cattermole, British singer, actor and member of pop group S Club
1977 – Ronan O'Gara, Irish rugby union footballer
1977 – Mitja Zastrow, German-born swimmer
1979 – Rodrigo Braña, Argentine footballer
1979 – Amanda Somerville, American singer (Aina) and vocal coach
1980 – Éric Godard, Canadian ice hockey player
1980 – Laura Prepon, American actress
1982 – Kate Michael, American beauty queen
1982 – Erika Yamakawa, Japanese talent
1983 – Manucho, Angolan footballer
1983 – Taylor Tankersley, American baseball player
1984 – Mathieu Flamini, French footballer
1984 – Brandon T. Jackson, American actor
1985 – Thomas Erak, American guitarist
1985 – Andre Fluellen, American football player
1986 – Ben Griffin, Australian soccer player
1987 – Niclas Bergfors, Swedish hockey player
1988 – Larry Asante, American football player
1989 – Gerald Anderson, Filipino actor and model
1990 – Abigail and Brittany Hensel, American conjoined twins
1990 – Lefteris Matsoukas, Greek footballer
1992 – Bel Powley, English actress
2009 – Prince Umberto of Savoy
[edit] Deaths
322 BC – Aristotle, Greek philosopher (b. 384 BC)
161 – Antoninus Pius, Roman Emperor (b. 86)
308 – Saint Eubulus, Christian martyr
413 – Heraclianus, Roman usurper
851 – Nominoe, Duke of Brittany
1226 – William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, English military leader
1274 – Thomas Aquinas, Philosopher (b. 1225)
1578 – Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox (b. 1515)
1625 – Johann Bayer, German astronomer (b. 1572)
1724 – Pope Innocent XIII (b. 1655)
1767 – Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, French colonizer (b. 1680)
1778 – Charles De Geer, Swedish industrialist (b. 1720)
1810 – Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood, British admiral (b. 1750)
1904 – Ferdinand André Fouqué, French geologist (b. 1828)
1913 – Emily Pauline Johnson, Native Canadian poet (b. 1861)
1928 – Robert Abbe, American surgeon (b. 1851)
1932 – Aristide Briand, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (b. 1862)
1938 – Andreas Michalakopoulos, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1876)
1949 – Francis Dodd, English artist (b. 1874)
1949 – Bradbury Robinson, American football player (b. 1884)
1952 – Paramahansa Yogananda, Indian guru (b. 1893)
1954 – Otto Diels, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1876)
1957 – Wyndham Lewis, British author (b. 1882)
1965 – Louise Mountbatten, Swedish queen (b. 1889)
1967 – Alice B. Toklas, American companion to Gertrude Stein (b. 1877)
1974 – Alberto Rabagliati, Italian singer and actor (b. 1906)
1975 – Mikhail Bakhtin, Russian philosopher (b. 1895)
1975 – Ben Blue, Canadian actor (b. 1901)
1976 – Wright Patman, American politician (b. 1893)
1978 – Steve Bilko, American baseball player (b. 1928)
1981 – Kiril Kondrashin, Russian conductor (b. 1914)
1983 – Igor Markevitch, Ukrainian conductor and composer (b. 1912)
1984 – Paul Rotha, English director (b. 1907)
1986 – Jacob Javits, American politician (b. 1904)
1988 – Divine, American actor (b. 1945)
1988 – Robert Livingston, American film actor (b. 1904)
1991 – Cool Papa Bell, American baseball player (b. 1903)
1995 – Paul-Émile Victor, French explorer (b. 1907)
1997 – E. H. Bronner, German-American soap magnate (b. 1908)
1997 – Edward Mills Purcell, Nobel laureate (b. 1912)
1999 – Sidney Gottlieb, American CIA official (b. 1918)
1999 – Stanley Kubrick, American film director (b. 1928)
2000 – Charles Gray, British actor (b. 1928)
2000 – Pee Wee King, American country music songwriter and musician (b. 1914)
2001 – Frankie Carle, American pianist and bandleader (b. 1903)
2004 – Paul Winfield, American actor (b. 1941)
2005 – John Box, British film production designer and art director (b. 1920)
2005 – Debra Hill, American screenwriter and film producer (b. 1950)
2006 – Ali Farka Touré, Malian musician (b. 1939)
2006 – Gordon Parks, photographer (b. 1912)
2006 – John Junkin, British performer (b. 1930)
2009 – Jang Ja-yeon, South Korean actress (b. 1982)
2010 – Mary Josephine Ray, Canadian supercentenarian (b. 1895)
[edit] Holidays and observances
Christian Feast Day
Perpetua and Felicitas
Festa e mёsuesit or Teacher's Day (Albania)
One of the days dedicated to Vesiovus (Roman Empire)
