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Today February 19th 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
197 – Roman Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies.
1594 – Having already inherited the throne of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth through his mother Catherine Jagellonica of Poland, Sigismund III of the House of Vasa is crowned King of Sweden, succeeding his father John III of Sweden.
1600 – The Peruvian stratovolcano Huaynaputina explodes in the most violent eruption in the recorded history of South America.
1674 – England and the Netherlands sign the Peace of Westminster, ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War. A provision of the agreement transfers the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam to England, and it is renamed New York.
1807 – In Alabama, Former Vice President of the United States Aaron Burr is arrested for treason and confined to Fort Stoddart.
1819 – British explorer William Smith discovers the South Shetland Islands, and claims them in the name of King George III.
1846 – In Austin, Texas the newly-formed Texas state government is officially installed. The Republic of Texas government officially transfers power to the State of Texas government following Texas annexation by the United States.
1847 – The Donner Party is rescued.
1852 – The Phi Kappa Psi fraternity is founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.
1861 – Serfdom is abolished in Russia.
1864 – Knights of Pythias are founded in Washington, DC by Justus H. Rathbone.
1878 – The phonograph is patented by Thomas Edison.
1881 – Kansas becomes the first U.S. state to prohibit all alcoholic beverages.
1915 – World War I: The Battle of Gallipoli begins. Plans for mutiny in the British Indian army, the Ghadar Conspiracy, are uncovered in India.
1937 – During a public ceremony at the Viceregal Palace (the former Imperial residence) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, two Eritrean nationalists attempt to kill viceroy Rodolfo Graziani with a number of grenades.
1941 – World War II: The Afrika Korps, the corps-level headquarters controlling the German Panzer divisions in North Africa, is formed.
1942 – World War II: nearly 250 Japanese warplanes attack the northern Australian city of Darwin killing 243 people.
1942 – World War II: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the executive order 9066, allowing the United States military to relocate Japanese-Americans to Japanese internment camps.
1943 – World War II: Battle of the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia begins.
1945 – World War II: Battle of Iwo Jima – about 30,000 United States Marines land on Iwo Jima.
1949 – Ezra Pound is awarded the first Bollingen Prize in poetry by the Bollingen Foundation and Yale University.
1953 – Censorship: Georgia approves the first literature censorship board in the United States.
1959 – The United Kingdom grants Cyprus its independence, which is then on formally proclaimed on August 16, 1960.
1972 – The Asama-Sanso hostage standoff begins in Japan.
1978 – Egyptian forces raid Larnaca International Airport, in an attempt to intervene in a hijacking situation, without authorisation from the Republic of Cyprus authorities. The Cypriot National Guard and Police forces kill 15 Egyptian commandos and destroy the Egyptian C-130 transport plane in open combat.
1985 – Artificial heart recipient William J. Schroeder becomes the first such patient to leave hospital.
1985 – Iberia Airlines Boeing 727 crashes into Mount Oiz in Spain, killing 148.
1985 – The first episode of the well-known British soap opera EastEnders is broadcast.
1986 – The Soviet Union launches the Mir space station.
1986 – Akkaraipattu massacre, massacre of 80 Tamil farm workers by the Sri Lankan Army in the eastern province of Sri Lanka.
1988 – The Winter Olympics held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
2001 – An Oklahoma City bombing museum is dedicated at the Oklahoma City National Memorial.
2002 – NASA s Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of Mars using its thermal emission imaging system.
2004 – Nazi-hunter Simon Wiesenthal is awarded an honorary knighthood in recognition of a lifetime of service to humanity.
2007 – Three Salvadoran deputies to the Central American Parliament and their driver are murdered in Guatemala.
2008 – Toshiba announces its formal recall of its HD DVD video formatting, ending the format war between it and Sony s Blu-Ray Disc
Births
1473 – Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish mathematician and astronomer (d. 1543)
1526 – Charles de L Ecluse, Flemish botanist (d. 1609)
1552 – Melchior Klesl, Austrian cardinal and statesman (d. 1630)
1630 – Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire (d. 1680)
1660 – Friedrich Hoffmann, German physician and chemist (d. 1742)
1717 – David Garrick, British actor (d. 1779)
1722 – Tiphaigne de la Roche, French writer (d. 1774)
1743 – Luigi Boccherini, Italian composer (d. 1805)
1780 – Richard McCarty, American politician (d. 1844)
1802 – Wilhelm Matthias Naeff, Swiss Federal Councillor (d. 1881)
1804 – Carl Freiherr von Rokitansky, German physician (d. 1878)
1804 – David Wark, Canadian politician (d. 1905)
1821 – August Schleicher, German linguist (d. 1868)
1833 – Élie Ducommun, Swiss journalist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1906)
1859 – Svante Arrhenius, Swedish chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1927)
1865 – Sven Hedin, Swedish explorer (d. 1952)
1876 – Constantin Brancusi, Romanian sculptor (d. 1957)
1877 – Gabriele Münter, German painter (d. 1962)
1880 – Alvaro Obregon, Mexican president (d. 1928)
1888 – José Eustasio Rivera, Colombian writer (d. 1928)
1888 – Aurora Quezon, First Lady of the Philippines (d. 1949)
1893 – Sir Cedric Hardwicke, British actor (d. 1964)
1895 – Louis Calhern, American actor (d. 1956)
1896 – André Breton, French poet (d. 1966)
1897 – Alma Rubens, American actress (d. 1931)
1899 – Yury Olesha, Russian novelist (d. 1960)
1902 – Kay Boyle, American writer (d. 1992)
1904 – Havank, Dutch writer (d. 1964)
1911 – Merle Oberon, British actress (d. 1979)
1912 – Saul Chaplin, American composer (d. 1997)
1913 – Prince Pedro Gastão of Orléans-Braganza, pretender to the Brazilian throne (d. 2007)
1914 – Jacques Dufilho, French comedian (d. 2005)
1916 – Eddie Arcaro, American jockey (d. 1997)
1917 – Carson McCullers, American author (d. 1967)
1920 – C. Z. Guest, American socialite (d. 2003)
1920 – Jaan Kross, Estonian writer (d. 2007)
1920 – George Rose, British music hall entertainer (d. 1988)
1924 – David Bronstein, Ukrainian chess player (d. 2006)
1924 – Lee Marvin, American actor (d. 1987)
1924 – Bruce Norris, American ice hockey executive (d. 1986)
1929 – Jacques Deray, French film director (d. 2003)
1930 – John Frankenheimer, American film director (d. 2002)
1934 – Carole Eastman, American screenwriter (d. 2004)
1936 – Sam Myers, American musician and songwriter (d. 2006)
1936 – Marin Sorescu, Romanian writer and novelist (d. 1997)
1937 – Robert Bilbo Walker Jr., American blues guitarist
1939 – Gwen Taylor, English actress
1940 – Saparmurat Niyazov, President of Turkmenistan (d. 2006)
1940 – Smokey Robinson, American singer
1941 – David Gross, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1942 – Paul Krause, American football player
1943 – Lou Christie, American singer
1943 – Homer Hickam, American author and retired NASA engineer
1943 – Tim Hunt, British biochemist, Nobel laureate
1945 – Michael Nader, American actor
1946 – Paul Dean, Canadian guitarist (Loverboy)
1946 – Peter Hudson, Australian rules footballer
1946 – Karen Silkwood, American activist (d. 1974)
1947 – Tim Shadbolt, mayor of Invercargill, New Zealand
1947 – Tony Iommi, English musician
1948 – Mark Andes, American musician
1948 – Pim Fortuyn, Dutch politician (d. 2002)
1948 – Big John Studd, American professional wrestler (d. 1995)
1948 – Tony Iommi, English guitarist (Black Sabbath)
1949 – Dan Bunten, American software developer (d. 1998)
1949 – William Messner-Loebs, American comics writer
1950 – Andy Powell, British musician
1951 – Stephen Nichols, American actor
1951 – Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri (Db), Pakistani Islamic Sufi Scholar
1952 – Amy Tan, American novelist
1952 – Rodolfo Neri Vela, Mexican astronaut
1953 – Massimo Troisi, Italian actor (d. 1994)
1953 – Cristina Elisabet Fernández – Argentinian politician
1954 – Socrates, Brazilian footballer
1955 – Jeff Daniels, American actor
1956 – Kathleen Beller, American actress
1956 – Roderick MacKinnon, American biologist, Nobel laureate
1956 – Dave Wakeling, English musician (The (English) Beat, General Public)
1957 – Falco, Austrian singer (d. 1998)
1957 – Ray Winstone, British actor
1958 – Helen Fielding, English writer
1960 – Andrew, Duke of York
1960 – Leslie Ash, English actress
1961 – Justin Fashanu, English footballer (d. 1998)
1961 – Andy Wallace, English race car driver
1962 – Hana Mandlíková, Czech tennis player
1962 – John Laroche, American orchid poacher
1963 – Laurell K. Hamilton, American writer
1963 – Seal, English singer
1964 – Dmitri Lipskerov, Russian writer
1964 – Sonu Walia, Indian actress
1964 – Doug Aldrich, American musician (Whitesnake)
1966 – Justine Bateman, American actress
1966 – Paul Haarhuis, Dutch tennis player
1966 – Enzo Scifo, Belgian footballer
1967 – Benicio del Toro, Puerto Rican actor
1969 – Burton C. Bell, American vocalist
1971 – Miguel Batista, Dominican baseball player
1971 – Gil Shaham, Israeli/American violinist
1971 – Lisa McCune, Australian actress
1972 – Francine, American professional wrestler
1974 – Danny Doring, American professional wrestler
1975 – Mikko Kavén, Finnish footballer
1975 – Katja Schuurman, Dutch actress and singer
1975 – Daewon Song, Korean professional skateboarder
1977 – Ola Salo, Swedish singer (The Ark)
1977 – Gianluca Zambrotta, Italian footballer
1978 – Michalis Konstantinou, Greek-Cypriot footballer
1978 – Immortal Technique, American rapper
1979 – Mariska, Finnish rapper
1979 – Clinton Morrison, Irish footballer
1979 – Mariana Ochoa, Mexican singer and actress
1979 – Steve Cherundolo, American soccer player
1980 – Neleh Dennis, American Survivor contestant
1980 – Mike Miller, American basketball player
1980 – Ma Lin, Chinese table tennis player
1981 – Ronnie Arniell, Canadian professional wrestler
1981 – Beth Ditto, American singer (The Gossip)
1981 – Gil Reyes, American boxer
1981 – Nicky Shorey, English footballer
1981 – Vitas, Russian singer
1981 – Kyle Martino, American soccer player
1981 – Daniel Letterle, American Actor and Singer
1983 – Assunta De Rossi, Filipino actress
1983 – Mika Nakashima, Japanese singer/actress
1983 – Ryan Whitney, American ice hockey player
1984 – Chris Richardson, American Idol finalist
1985 – Haylie Duff, American singer/actress
1985 – Arielle Kebbel, American actress
1986 – Kyle Chipchura, Canadian ice hockey player
1986 – Reon Kadena, Japanese model/actress
1986 – Henri Karjalainen, Finnish racing driver
1986 – Maria Mena, Norwegian singer
1986 – Marta, Brazilian footballer
1993 – Victoria Justice, American actress
Deaths
197 – Clodius Albinus, Roman governor of Britain
440 – Mesrop Mashtots, Armenian monk, theologian and linguist
1133 – Irene Ducaena, wife of Alexius I Comnenus (b. 1066)
1553 – Erasmus Reinhold, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1511)
1589 – Saint Philothei, Orthodox martyr and Patron of Athens (b. 1522)
1605 – Orazio Vecchi, Italian composer (b. 1550)
1602 – Philippe Emmanuel, Duke of Mercoeur, French soldier (b. 1558)
1620 – Roemer Visscher, Dutch writer (b. 1547)
1622 – Sir Henry Savile, English educator (b. 1549)
1653 – Luigi de Rossi, Italian composer (b. 1597)
1663 – Adam Adami, German bishop and diplomat (b. 1603)
1670 – King Frederick III of Denmark (b. 1609)
1672 – Charles Chauncy, English-born president of Harvard College (b. 1592)
1709 – Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, Japanese shogun (b. 1646)
1716 – Dorthe Engelbrechtsdatter, Norwegian poet (b. 1634)
1789 – Nicholas Van Dyke, American lawyer and President of Delaware (b. 1738)
1799 – Jean-Charles de Borda, French mathematician, physicist, political scientist, and sailor (b. 1733)
1806 – Elizabeth Carter, English writer (b. 1717)
1837 – Georg Büchner, German playwright (b. 1813)
1873 – Vasil Levski, Bulgarian revolutionary (b. 1837)
1887 – Multatuli, Dutch writer (b. 1820)
1897 – Karl Weierstraß, German mathematician (b. 1815)
1916 – Ernst Mach, Austrian-Czech physicist and philosopher (b. 1838)
1927 – Robert Fuchs, Austrian composer (b. 1847)
1936 – Billy Mitchell, American general and military aviation pioneer (b. 1879)
1936 – Charles Harding Firth, British historian (b. 1857)
1942 – Frank Abbandando, American gangster (executed) (b. 1910)
1951 – André Gide, French writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1869)
1952 – Knut Hamsun, Norwegian author, Nobel laureate (b. 1859)
1957 – Maurice Garin, French cyclist (b. 1871)
1962 – Georgios Papanikolaou, Greek doctor, inventor of the Pap smear (b. 1883)
1968 – Georg Hackenschmidt, Estonian professional wrestler (b. 1878)
1969 – Madge Blake, American actress (b. 1899)
1972 – John Grierson, Scottish documentary filmmaker (b. 1898)
1972 – Tedd Pierce, American animator (b. 1906)
1973 – Joseph Szigeti, Hungarian violinist (b. 1892)
1973 – Kostas Negrepontis, Greek footballer (b. 1897)
1975 – Luigi Dallapiccola, Italian composer (b. 1904)
1977 – Mike González, Cuban baseball player (b. 1890)
1977 – Anthony Crosland, British politician (b. 1918)
1980 – Bon Scott, Australian singer (AC/DC) (b. 1946)
1983 – Alice White, American film actress (b. 1904)
1986 – Adolfo Celi, Italian actor (b. 1922)
1988 – André Frédéric Cournand, French-born physician, Nobel laureate (b. 1895)
1994 – Derek Jarman, British film director (b. 1942)
1996 – Antonio Creus, Spanish racecar driver (b. 1924)
1996 – Charles O. Finley, American sports entrepreneur (b. 1918)
1997 – Deng Xiaoping, Chinese Communist leader and revolutionary (b. 1904)
1997 – Leo Rosten, American Yiddish writer and humorist (b. 1908)
1998 – Grandpa Jones, American entertainer (b. 1913)
1999 – Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr, Iraqi Shiite leader (assassinated)
2000 – Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Austrian artist (b. 1928)
2001 – Priscilla Davis, American socialite (b. 1942)
2001 – Stanley Kramer, American director (b. 1913)
2001 – Charles Trenet, French singer (b. 1913)
2003 – Johnny PayCheck, American singer (b. 1938)
2007 – Janet Blair, American actress (b. 1921)
2007 – Celia Franca, founder of National Ballet of Canada (b. 1921)
2008 – Lydia Shum, Hong Kong comedian and actress (b. 1945)
2008 – Yegor Letov, Russian song writer and singer (b. 1964)
Holidays and observances
Chaoflux (Discordianism)
Astrology: First day of sun sign Pisces
Astrology: Can also be last day of sun sign Aquarius depending on the time of birth and the astrologer s viewpoint.
February 19 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
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