Warning: Zend OPcache API is restricted by "restrict_api" configuration directive in /srv/users/serverpilot/apps/historylookup/public/wp-content/plugins/tubepress/vendor/tedivm/stash/src/Stash/Driver/FileSystem.php on line 253
Today March 17th 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
45 BC – In his last victory, Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger in the Battle of Munda.
180 – Marcus Aurelius dies. Commodus is now the only emperor of the Roman Empire.
1337 – Edward, the Black Prince is made Duke of Cornwall, the first Duchy made in England.
1756 – St. Patrick s Day is celebrated in New York City for the first time (at the Crown and Thistle Tavern).
1776 – American Revolution: British forces evacuate Boston, Massachusetts after George Washington and Henry Knox place artillery overlooking the city.
1805 – The Italian Republic, with Napoleon as president, becomes the Kingdom of Italy, with Napoleon as King.
1845 – The rubber band is patented.
1861 – The Kingdom of Italy (1861-1946) is proclaimed.
1901 – A showing of seventy-one Vincent van Gogh paintings in Paris, 11 years after his death, creates a sensation.
1906 – The Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity is founded at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
1910 – Luther Gulick and his wife Charlotte found Camp Fire Girls (now Camp Fire USA) (formally announced in 1912).
1913 – The Uruguayan Air Force is founded.
1917 – Delta Phi Epsilon is founded at New York University Law School.
1921 – The Second Republic of Poland adopts the March Constitution.
1939 – Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945): The Battle of Nanchang between the Kuomintang and the Japanese breaks out.
1941 – In Washington, D.C., the National Gallery of Art is officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
1942 – Holocaust: The first Jews from the Lviv Ghetto (western Ukraine) are gassed at the Belzec death camp (eastern Poland).
1945 – The Ludendorff Bridge in Remagen, Germany collapses, ten days after its capture.
1948 – Benelux, France, and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Brussels, a precursor to the NATO Agreement.
1950 – University of California, Berkeley researchers announce the creation of element 98, which they name Californium.
1957 – A plane crash in Cebu, Philippines kills Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others.
1958 – The United States launches the Vanguard 1 satellite.
1959 – Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, flees Tibet for India.
1960 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the National Security Council directive on the anti-Cuban covert action program that will ultimately lead to the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
1966 – Off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean, the Alvin submarine finds a missing American hydrogen bomb.
1969 – Golda Meir becomes the first female Prime Minister of Israel.
1970 – My Lai massacre: The United States Army charges 14 officers with suppressing information related to the incident.
1973 – The Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph Burst of Joy is taken, depicting a former prisoner of war being reunited with his family.
1975 – The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific railroad enter third and final bankruptcy, and William M. Gibbons selected as receiver and trustee for the railroad.
1979 – The Penmanshiel Tunnel collapses during engineering works, killing two workers.
1985 – Serial killer Richard Ramirez, the Night Stalker, commits his first two murders in Los Angeles, California murder spree.
1988 – A Colombian Boeing 727 jetliner, Avianca Flight 410, crashes into a mountainside near the Venezuelan border killing 143.
1988 – Eritrean War of Independence: The Nadew Command, an Ethiopian army corps in Eritrea, is attacked on three sides by military units of the Eritrean People s Liberation Front (EPLF) in the opening action of the Battle of Afabet.
1992 – A suicide car-bomb kills 29 and injures 242 at the Israeli Embassy attack in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
2000 – The 800+ deaths of members of the Ugandan cult Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God is considered to be a mass murder and suicide orchestrated by leaders of the cult.
2003 – British Cabinet Minister Robin Cook, resigns over government plans for the war with Iraq.
2004 – Unrest in Kosovo results in more than 22 killed, 200 wounded, and the destruction of 35 Serb Orthodox shrines in Kosovo and two mosques in Belgrade and Nis.
2008 – New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer resigns after a scandal involving a high-end prostitute. David Paterson becomes acting New York State governor.
Births
1231 – Emperor Shijo of Japan (d. 1242)
1473 – King James IV of Scotland (d. 1513)
1628 – François Girardon, French sculptor (d. 1715)
1676 – Thomas Boston, Scottish church leader (d. 1732)
1725 – Lachlan McIntosh, Scottish-born American military and political leader (d. 1806)
1777 – Roger Brooke Taney, 5th Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (d. 1864)
1780 – Thomas Chalmers, Scottish pastor, social reformer, author, and scientist (d. 1847)
1781 – Ebenezer Elliott, British Poet. Know as the Corn Law Rhymer (d. 1849)
1787 – Edmund Kean, English actor (d. 1833)
1804 – Jim Bridger, American trapper and explorer (d. 1881)
1820 – Jean Ingelow, English poet (d. 1897)
1834 – Gottlieb Daimler, German engineer and inventor (d. 1900)
1846 – Kate Greenaway, English children s author and illustrator (d. 1901)
1856 – Mikhail Vrubel, Russian painter (d. 1910)
1862 – Silvio Gesell, Belgian economist (d. 1930)
1864 – Joseph Baptista, Indian Home Rule Movement founder (d. 1930)
1866 – Pierce Butler, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1939)
1870 – Horace Donisthorpe, British entomologist (d. 1951)
1880 – Sir Patrick Hastings, British barrister (d. 1952)
1880 – Lawrence Oates, English army officer and Antarctic explorer (d. 1912)
1881 – Walter Rudolf Hess, Swiss physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1973)
1883 – Urmuz, Romanian writer (d. 1923)
1884 – Alcide Nunez, American jazz clarinetist (d. 1934)
1886 – Princess Patricia of Connaught, British princess (d. 1974)
1888 – Paul Ramadier, French politician (d. 1961)
1892 – Benjamin Drake Van Wissen, Australian Engineer (d. 1984)
1894 – Paul Green, American writer (d. 1981)
1897 – Jozef C. Mazur, American stained glass artist and painter (d. 1970)
1901 – Alfred Newman, American film composer (d. 1970)
1902 – Bobby Jones, American golfer (d. 1971)
1907 – Sonny Werblin, former owner of the New York Jets (d. 1991)
1908 – Brigitte Helm, German actress (d. 1996)
1912 – Bayard Rustin, American civil rights activist (d. 1987)
1914 – Sammy Baugh, American football player (d. 2008)
1915 – Henry Bumstead, American art director (d. 2006)
1916 – Ray Ellington, British singer (d. 1985)
1919 – Nat King Cole, American singer (d. 1965)
1922 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Founding Leader of Bangladesh (d. 1975)
1925 – Gabriele Ferzetti, Italian film and stage actor
1926 – Siegfried Lenz, German writer
1928 – William John McKeag, Canadian politician (d. 2007)
1930 – James Irwin, American astronaut (d. 1991)
1931 – David Peakall, British scientist (d. 2001)
1932 – Donald N. Langenberg, American physicist
1936 – Ladislav Kupkovic, Slovakian composer
1936 – Ken Mattingly, American astronaut
1936 – Patty Maloney, American actress
1937 – Rudy Ray Moore, American comedian and actor (Dolemite) (d. 2008)
1937 – Adam Wade, American singer and actor
1938 – Rudolf Nureyev, Russian-born dancer and choreographer (d. 1993)
1938 – Keith Michael Patrick O Brien, Northern Irish clergyman
1938 – Zola Taylor, American singer (The Platters) (d. 2007)
1939 – Jim Gary, American sculptor (d. 2006)
1939 – Robin Knox-Johnston, British Yachtsman
1940 – Mark White, American politician
1941 – Paul Kantner, American musician (Jefferson Airplane)
1941 – Wang Jin-pyng, Taiwanese politician
1942 – John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer (d. 1994)
1942 – Dimitris Poulikakos, Greek composer, singer and actor
1944 – Pattie Boyd, British photographer and model
1944 – Cito Gaston, American baseball player and manager
1944 – John Sebastian, American singer and songwriter
1945 – Elis Regina, Brazilian singer (d. 1982)
1945 – Michael Hayden, General USAF; Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
1945 – Katri Helena, Finnish singer
1947 – James Morrow, American author
1947 – Jan Andersson, Swedish politician
1947 – Yury Chernavsky, Russian-born Composer and Producer
1948 – William Gibson, American writer
1948 – Alex MacDonald, Scottish Footballer and football manager
1949 – Patrick Duffy, American actor
1949 – Pat Rice, Northern Irish footballer and football manager
1949 – Daniel Lavoie, French Canadian singer and songwriter
1950 – Patrick Adams, American record producer and songwriter
1951 – Donald Findlay, Scottish lawyer
1951 – Scott Gorham, American musician (Thin Lizzy)
1951 – Kurt Russell, American actor
1951 – Craig Ramsay, Canadian ice hockey player
1952 – Nikos Xydakis, Greek musician and composer
1953 – Filemon Lagman, Filipino communist revolutionary (d. 2001)
1953 – Chuck Muncie, American former football running back
1954 – Lesley-Anne Down, English actress
1955 – Gary Sinise, American actor
1955 – Cynthia McKinney, American politician
1956 – Patrick McDonnell, American cartoonist
1957 – Mal Donaghy, Northern Irish footballer
1957 – Michael Kelly, American journalist (d. 2003)
1958 – Pat Bolland, Canadian Broadcaster
1959 – Danny Ainge, American basketball player and coach
1959 – Paul Black, American rock singer
1959 – Christian Clemenson, American actor
1960 – Arye Gross, American actor
1961 – Casey Siemaszko, American actor
1961 – Sam Bowie, American basketball player
1961 – Dana Reeve, American actress and activist (d. 2006)
1961 – Andrew Paul, English actor
1962 – Clare Grogan, Scottish actress-singer
1962 – Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, Dutch politician
1963 – Nick Peros, Canadian composer
1963 – Alex Fong Chung-Sun, Chinese actor
1964 – Rob Lowe, American actor
1964 – Lee Dixon, English footballer
1964 – Jacques Songo o, Cameroonian footballer
1966 – Jeremy Sheffield, English actor
1967 – Billy Corgan, American musician (Smashing Pumpkins)
1967 – Barry Minkow, American religious leader and ex-convict (fraud)
1969 – Mathew St. Patrick, American actor
1969 – Alexander McQueen, British fashion designer
1970 – Gene Ween, American Musician (Ween)
1970 – Yanic Truesdale, Canadian actor
1971 – Bill Mueller, American baseball player
1972 – Melissa Auf der Maur, Canadian musician
1972 – Marc Gunn, poet, podcaster, and Celtic musician (Brobdingnagian Bards)
1972 – Mia Hamm, American soccer player
1973 – Rico Blanco, Filipino singer (Rivermaya)
1973 – Caroline Corr, Irish singer and musician
1973 – Vance Wilson, American baseball player
1973 – Jerome Woods, American Football player for the Kansas City Chiefs
1974 – Marisa Coughlan, American actress
1974 – Mark Dolan, TV show host
1975 – Justin Hawkins, British singer (The Darkness)
1975 – Andrew Test Martin, Canadian professional wrestler
1975 – Natalie Zea, American actress
1976 – Stephen Gately, Irish singer, musician, and actor (Boyzone)
1976 – Brittany Daniel, American actress
1976 – Cynthia Daniel, American actress and photographer
1976 – Álvaro Recoba, Uruguayan footballer
1976 – Scott Downs, American baseball player
1978 – Adam Jennings, British actor, producer and film director
1979 – Nicole Coco Austin, American glamor model
1979 – Andrew Ference, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Samoa Joe, Samoan professional wrestler
1979 – Stormy Daniels, American pornographic actress
1979 – Sharman Joshi, Indian actor
1980 – Danny Califf, American soccer player
1981 – Kyle Korver, American Basketball Player
1981 – Servet Çetin, Turkish Football Player
1981 – Aaron Baddeley, Australian golfer
1982 – Steven Pienaar, South African footballer
1986 – Olesya Rulin, American actress
Deaths
45 BC – Titus Labienus, Roman leader
180 – Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor (b. 121)
461 or 493 – Saint Patrick, patron saint of Ireland
659 – Gertrude of Nivelles, Belgian abbess
1040 – Harold Harefoot, King of England
1058 – King Lulach I of Scotland
1199 – Jocelin, bishop of Glasgow
1272 – Emperor Go-Saga of Japan (b. 1220)
1425 – Ashikaga Yoshikazu, Japanese shogun (b. 1407)
1516 – Giuliano di Lorenzo de Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1478)
1565 – Alexander Ales, Scottish theologian (b. 1500)
1640 – Philip Massinger, English dramatist (b. 1583)
1649 – Gabriel Lallemant, French Jesuit missionary, one of the Canadian Martyrs (b. 1610)
1680 – François de La Rochefoucauld, French writer (b. 1613)
1704 – Menno van Coehoorn, Dutch military engineer (b. 1641)
1713 – Juraj Jánošík, famous Slovak outlaw (b. 1688)
1715 – Gilbert Burnet, Scottish Bishop of Salisbury (b. 1643)
1741 – Jean-Baptiste Rousseau, French poet (b. 1671)
1764 – George Parker, 2nd Earl of Macclesfield, English astronomer
1782 – Daniel Bernoulli, Dutch-born mathematician (b. 1700)
1830 – Laurent, Marquis de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, French marshal (b. 1764)
1846 – Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1784)
1849 – William II of the Netherlands (b. 1792)
1853 – Christian Doppler, Austrian physician and mathematician (b. 1803)
1875 – Ferdinand Laub, Czech violinist (b. 1832)
1893 – Jules Ferry, French statesman (b. 1832)
1912 – Lawrence Oates, English army officer and Antarctic explorer (b. 1880)
1917 – Franz Brentano, German philosopher and psychologist (b. 1838)
1926 – Aleksei Brusilov, Russian general (b. 1853)
1937 – Austen Chamberlain, English statesman, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1863)
1941 – Marguerite Nichols, American actress (b. 1895)
1946 – Dai Li, Chinese spymaster (b. 1897)
1949 – Aleksandra Ekster, Russian painter (b. 1882)
1956 – Fred Allen, American actor and comedian (b. 1894)
1956 – Irene Joliot-Curie, French physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1897)
1957 – Ramon Magsaysay, President of the Philippines (b. 1907)
1961 – Susanna M. Salter, Mayor of Argonia, Kansas (b. 1860)
1965 – Amos Alonzo Stagg, American football coach, player, and innovator (b. 1862)
1974 – Louis Kahn, American architect
1976 – Luchino Visconti, Italian director (b. 1906)
1981 – Paul Dean, American baseball player (b. 1913)
1983 – Haldan Keffer Hartline, American physiologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1903)
1987 – Santo Trafficante, Jr., American gangster (b. 1914)
1988 – Nikolas Asimos, Greek counter-culture composer and singer (b. 1949)
1989 – Merritt Butrick, American actor (b. 1959)
1990 – Capucine, French actress (b. 1931)
1990 – Ric Grech, British bass player (Blind Faith – Traffic) (b. 1946)
1992 – Grace Stafford, American actress (b. 1903)
1993 – Helen Hayes, American actress (b. 1900)
1994 – Mai Zetterling, Swedish actress and director (b. 1925)
1995 – Ronnie Kray, British gangster (b. 1933)
1995 – Rick Aviles, American actor (b. 1952)
1996 – René Clément, French film director and screenwriter (b. 1913)
1996 – Terry Stafford, American singer (b. 1941)
1999 – Ernest Gold, Austrian composer (b. 1921)
1999 – Rod Hull, British comedian (b. 1936)
2002 – Rosetta LeNoire, American actress (b. 1911)
2002 – Pat Weaver, American broadcast executive (b. 1908)
2003 – Su Buqing, Chinese mathematician and educator (b. 1902)
2004 – J. J. Jackson, American television personality (b. 1941)
2005 – George F. Kennan, American Cold War strategist and historian (b. 1904)
2005 – Andre Norton, American writer (b. 1912)
2006 – Bob Blue, American singer/songwriter (b. 1948)
2006 – Oleg Cassini, American fashion designer (b. 1913)
2006 – Ray Meyer, American basketball coach (b. 1913)
2006 – Bob Papenbrook, American voice actor (b. 1955)
2007 – John Backus, American computer scientist (b. 1924)
2007 – Roger Bennett, American Southern Gospel performer (b. 1959)
2007 – Jim Cronin, Animal welfare campaigner and founder of Monkey World in Dorset, England. (b. 1951)
2008 – Roland Arnall, U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands (b. 1939)
Holidays and observances
Ancient Latvia – Kustonu Diena (return of the larks) observed
Feast day of St Patrick: a public holiday in Ireland (National feast), Montserrat and the Canadian Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, widely celebrated elsewhere in North America and worldwide (see Saint Patrick s Day)
Suffolk County, Massachusetts – Evacuation Day
Ancient Rome – the second day of the Bacchanalia in honor of Bacchus
Ancient Rome – the Liberalia in honor of Liber
St. Agricola
St. Joseph of Arimathea
Saint Alexius
National Boxer s Day / National Muay Thai Day
YouTube responded with an error: The request cannot be completed because you have exceeded your <a href="/youtube/v3/getting-started#quota">quota</a>.