FEBRUARY 23

Contents

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

Liturgical feasts

External links

Events

★ 1455 - Traditional date for the publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western book printed from movable type.

★ 1660 - Charles XI becomes King of Sweden.

★ 1778 - American Revolution: Baron von Steuben arrives at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania to help to train the Continental Army.

★ 1797 - French Forces launch a failed invasion of Britain. See Last Invasion of Britain

★ 1820 - Cato Street Conspiracy: A plot to murder all the British cabinet ministers is exposed.

★ 1830 - Oxford, Ohio, home of Miami University, is incorporated.

★ 1836 - The Siege of the Alamo begins in San Antonio, Texas.

★ 1847 - Mexican-American War: Battle of Buena Vista - In Mexico, American troops defeat Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.

★ 1854 - The official independence of the Orange Free State is declared.

★ 1861 - President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington, D.C., after an assassination attempt in Baltimore, Maryland.

★ 1866 - Lebanon Valley College is founded in Annville, Pennsylvania.

★ 1870 - Military control of Mississippi ends and it is readmitted to the Union.

★ 1874 - Major Walter Clopton Wingfield patents a game called "sphairistike," now more commonly called lawn tennis.

★ 1883 - Alabama becomes the first U.S. state to enact an antitrust law.

★ 1887 - The French Riviera is hit by a large earthquake, killing around 2,000.

★ 1893 - Rudolf Diesel receives a patent for the diesel engine.

★ 1898 - Émile Zola is imprisoned in France after writing "J'accuse", a letter accusing the French government of anti-Semitism and wrongfully placing Captain Alfred Dreyfus in jail.

★ 1900 - In South Africa the Boers and British troops fight in the Battle of Hart's Hill.

★ 1903 - Cuba leases Guantanamo Bay to the United States "in perpetuity".

★ 1904 - For $10 million the United States gains control of the Panama Canal Zone.

★ 1905 - Chicago, Illinois attorney Paul Harris and three other businessmen meet for lunch to form the Rotary Club, the world's first service club.

★ 1909 - The AEA Silver Dart makes the first powered flight in Canada and the British Empire.

★ 1917 - First demonstrations in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The beginning of the February Revolution.

★ 1918 - First victory of Red Army over the Kaiser's German troops near Narva and Pskov. Since 1923 this date become the Day of Red Army in honour of this victory.

★ 1919 - Benito Mussolini forms the Fascist Party in Italy.

★ 1927 - The Federal Radio Commission (later renamed the Federal Communications Commission) begins to regulate the use of radio frequencies.

★ 1934 - Léopold III becomes King of Belgium.

★ 1940 - World War II: Soviet Union troops conquer Lasi Island.

★ 1941 - Plutonium was first produced and isolated by Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg.

★ 1944 - forced deportation of the Chechen and Ingush people to Central Asia

★ 1945 - World War II: During the Battle of Iwo Jima, a group of United States Marines and a commonly forgotten US Navy Corpsman, reach the top of Mount Suribachi on the island and are photographed raising the American flag. The photo would later win a Pulitzer Prize.

★ 1945 - World War II: The capital of the Philippines, Manila, is liberated by American forces.

★ 1945 - World War II: Capitulation of German garrison in Poznań, city is liberated by Soviet and Polish forces.

★ 1945 - World War II: The German town of Pforzheim is completely destroyed by a raid of 379 British bombers.

★ 1947 - International Organization for Standardization(ISO) is founded.

★ 1954 - The first mass vaccination of children against polio begins in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

★ 1955 - First meeting of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO).

★ 1955 - Edgar Faure becomes Prime Minister of France.

★ 1957 - The founding congress of the Senegalese Popular Bloc is opened in Dakar.

★ 1958 - Cuban rebels kidnap 5-time world driving champion Juan Manuel Fangio.

★ 1966 - A military coup in Syria replaces the previous government.

★ 1974 - The Symbionese Liberation Army demands $4 million more to release kidnap victim Patty Hearst.

★ 1975 - In response to the energy crisis, daylight saving time commences nearly two months early in the United States.

★ 1980 - Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini states that Iran's parliament would decide the fate of the American embassy hostages.

★ 1981 - 23-F, Antonio Tejero attempts a coup d'état by capturing the Spanish Congress of Deputies.

★ 1983 - The Spanish Socialist government of Felipe González and Miguel Boyer nationalizes Rumasa, a holding of José María Ruiz Mateos.

★ 1983 - The United States Environmental Protection Agency announces its intent to buy out and evacuate the dioxin-contaminated community of Times Beach, Missouri.

★ 1987 - A supernova is seen in the Large Magellanic Cloud (see Supernova 1987a).

★ 1991 - Gulf War: Ground troops cross the Saudi Arabia border and enter Iraq, thus starting the ground-phase of the war.

★ 1991 - In Thailand, General Sunthorn Kongsompong leads a bloodless coup d'état, deposing Prime Minister Chatichai Choonhavan.

★ 1992 - The Socialist Labour Party is founded in Georgia.

★ 1995 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains 30.28 to close at 4,003.33, closing above 4,000 for the first time.

★ 1997 - A large fire occurs in the Russian Space station, Mir.

★ 1998 - Kissimmee Tornado Outbreak: Tornadoes in central Florida destroy or damage 2,600 structures and kill 42.

★ 1998 - Osama bin Laden publishes a fatwa declaring jihad against all Jews and Crusaders.

★ 1999 - Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Öcalan is charged with treason in Ankara, Turkey.

★ 1999 - An avalanche destroys the Austrian village of Galtür, killing 31.

★ 2005 - Slovakia Summit 2005 begins, marking the first occasion when a sitting American President visits Slovakia; Bush and Putin are in attendance.

★ 2005 - Vote of the controversial French law on colonialism, repealed start of 2006.

★ 2006 - Dubai Ports World agrees to postpone its plans to take over management of six U.S. ports after the proposal ignited harsh bipartisan criticism on Capitol Hill.

★ 2007 - Japan launches its fourth spy satellite, stepping up its ability to monitor potential threats such as North Korea.

★ 2007 - A train derails on an evening express service near Grayrigg, Cumbria, United Kingdom, killing one person and injuring 22. This results in hundreds of points being checked over the UK after a few similar accidents.

Births

★ 1417 - Pope Paul II (d. 1471)

★ 1583 - Jean-Baptiste Morin, French scientist (d. 1656)

★ 1633 - Samuel Pepys, English naval administrator and man of letters, posthumously famous as a diarist (d. 1703)

★ 1646 - Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, Japanese shogun (d. 1709)

★ 1648 - Arabella Churchill, English mistress of James II of England (d. 1730)

★ 1680 - Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, French colonizer and Governor of Louisiana (d. 1767)

★ 1685 - Georg Friedrich Handel, German/British Baroque composer (d. 1759)

★ 1688 - Queen Ulrika Eleonora of Sweden (d. 1741)

★ 1723 - Richard Price, Welsh philosopher (d. 1791)

★ 1729 - Josiah Hornblower, American statesman (d. 1809)

★ 1743 - Mayer Amschel Rothschild, German-born banker (d. 1812)

★ 1840 - Carl Menger, Austrian economist (d. 1921)

★ 1842 - Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann, German philosopher (d. 1906)

★ 1850 - César Ritz, Swiss hotelier (d. 1918)

★ 1868 - W.E.B. DuBois, American civil rights leader (d. 1963)

★ 1873 - Liang Qichao, Chinese scholar (d. 1929)

★ 1874 - Konstantin Päts, Estonian president (d. 1956)

★ 1878 - Kazimir Malevich, Ukrainian painter and art theorist (d. 1935)

★ 1883 - Karl Jaspers, German philosopher (d. 1969)

★ 1889 - Victor Fleming, American director (d. 1949)

★ 1889 - Musidora, French actress and director (d. 1957)

★ 1891 - Harold Horder, Australian Rugby League player (d. 1978)

★ 1899 - Erich Kästner, German writer (d. 1974)

★ 1899 - Norman Taurog, American film director (d. 1981)

★ 1901 - Edgar Ende, German painter (d. 1965)

★ 1904 - Terence Fisher, English film director (d. 1980)

★ 1904 - William L. Shirer, American historian (d. 1993)

★ 1904 - Leopold Trepper, Soviet spy (d. 1982)

★ 1908 - William McMahon, twentieth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1988)

★ 1914 - Theofiel Middelkamp, Dutch cyclist (d. 2005)

★ 1915 - Jon Hall, American actor (d. 1979)

★ 1915 - Paul Tibbets, American pilot

★ 1918 - Richard G. Butler, American fascist (d. 2004)

★ 1920 - Paul Gérin-Lajoie, French Canadian politician

★ 1923 - Rafael Addiego Bruno, Uruguayan politician

★ 1924 - Allan McLeod Cormack, South-African born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1998)

★ 1924 - Claude Sautet, French film director (d. 2000)

★ 1928 - Vasili Lazarev, cosmonaut (d. 1990)

★ 1932 - Majel Barrett, American actress

★ 1937 - Tom Osborne, American football coach and politician

★ 1938 - Diane Varsi, American actress (d. 1992)

★ 1940 - Peter Fonda, American actor

★ 1941 - Ron Hunt, baseball player

★ 1943 - Fred Biletnikoff, American football player and coach

★ 1944 - Bernard Cornwell, English historical novelist

★ 1944 - Johnny Winter, American musician

★ 1945 - Allan Boesak, South African activist

★ 1946 - Rusty Young, American country-rock guitarist (Poco)

★ 1948 - Doug Moench, American comic book writer

★ 1949 - Marc Garneau, French Canadian astronaut

★ 1950 - Maxi, Irish singer and radio personality

★ 1951 - Ed Jones, American football player

★ 1951 - Patricia Richardson, American actress

★ 1952 - Brad Whitford, American musician (Aerosmith)

★ 1954 - Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine

★ 1955 - Tom Bodett, American voice actor, radio personality, and writer

★ 1955 - Howard Jones, British pop singer

★ 1958 - Tony Barrell, English writer and journalist

★ 1958 - David Sylvian, English musician

★ 1959 - Richard Dodds, British field hockey player

★ 1960 - Alan Griffin, Australian politician

★ 1960 - Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan

★ 1962 - Michael Wilton , American musician (Queensrÿche)

★ 1963 - Bobby Bonilla, former baseball player

★ 1963 - Radosław Sikorski, Polish politician

★ 1964 - John Norum, Norweigan guitarist

★ 1965 - Kristin Davis, American actress

★ 1965 - Michael Dell, American computer manufacturer

★ 1965 - Helena Suková, former Czech tennis player

★ 1965 - Veronica Webb, American supermodel and actress

★ 1968 - Justin Bell, British racing driver

★ 1969 - Marc Wauters, Belgian cyclist

★ 1970 - Marie-Josée Croze, French Canadian actress

★ 1970 - Niecy Nash, American actress

★ 1971 - Jeong Chan, South Korean actor

★ 1971 - Don Maxwell, Canadian cricketer

★ 1971 - Melinda Messenger, English television presenter

★ 1972 - Steve Holy, American country singer

★ 1972 - Rondell White, American baseball player

★ 1973 - Jack Case, American artist

★ 1974 - Leko, American DJ

★ 1974 - Jaime Villarreal, Mexican musician

★ 1974 - Herschelle Gibbs, South African cricketer

★ 1975 - Michael Cornacchia, American actor

★ 1975 - Robert Lopez, American composer

★ 1976 - Kelly Macdonald, British actress

★ 1977 - Kristina Šmigun, Estonian cross-country skier

★ 1978 - Dan Snyder, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2003)

★ 1979 - D-Roc, American rapper (Ying Yang Twins)

★ 1981 - Gareth Barry, English footballer

★ 1981 - Charles Tillman, American football player

★ 1983 - Mirco Bergamasco, Italian rugby player

★ 1983 - Mido, Egyptian footballer

★ 1986 - Holly Brook, American musician

★ 1986 - Kazuya Kamenashi, Japanese idol, (member of KAT-TUN)

★ 1989 - Evan Bates, American ice dancer

★ 1994 - Dakota Fanning, American actress

Deaths

★ 943 - Herbert II, Count of Vermandois, (b. 884)

★ 1011 - Willigis, Archbishop of Mainz

★ 1100 - Emperor Zhezong of China (b. 1076)

★ 1270 - Saint Isabel of France, daughter of Louis VIII of France (b. 1225)

★ 1447 - Pope Eugene IV (b. 1383)

★ 1447 - Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester (b. 1390)

★ 1464 - Zhengtong, Emperor of China (b. 1427)

★ 1526 - Diego Colón, Spanish Viceroy of the Indies

★ 1554 - Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, English politician (executed) (bc. 1515)

★ 1572 - Pierre Certon, French composer

★ 1603 - Andrea Cesalpino, Italian philosopher, physician, and botanist (b. 1519)

★ 1669 - Leo Aitzema, Dutch historian and statesman (b. 1600)

★ 1704 - Georg Muffat, French composer (b. 1653)

★ 1730 - Pope Benedict XIII (b. 1649)

★ 1766 - Stanislaw Leszczynski, King of Poland (b. 1677)

★ 1781 - George Taylor, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (bc. 1716)

★ 1792 - Joshua Reynolds, English painter (b. 1723)

★ 1800 - Joseph Warton, English literary critic (b. 1722)

★ 1821 - John Keats, English poet (b. 1795)

★ 1848 - John Quincy Adams, 6th President of the United States (b. 1767)

★ 1855 - Carl Friedrich Gauss, German mathematician, astronomer, and physicist (b. 1777)

★ 1879 - Albrecht Graf von Roon, Prime Minister of Prussia (b. 1803)

★ 1897 - Woldemar Bargiel, German composer (b. 1828)

★ 1908 - Johannes Friedrich August von Esmarch, German surgeon (b. 1823)

★ 1922 - Albert Victor Bäcklund, Swedish physicist (b. 1845)

★ 1930 - Horst Wessel, Nazi ideologue and composer (b. 1907)

★ 1931 - Nellie Melba, Australian opera soprano (b. 1861)

★ 1934 - Edward Elgar, English composer (b. 1857)

★ 1937 - Victim 7 of the Cleveland Torso Murderer

★ 1946 - Tomoyuki Yamashita, Japanese general (hanged) (b. 1885)

★ 1948 - John Robert Gregg, Irish-born publisher and inventor (b. 1866)

★ 1955 - Paul Claudel, French poet and playwright (b. 1868)

★ 1957 - Marika Ninou, Greek singer (b. 1918)

★ 1960 - Arthur Legat, Belgian racing driver (b. 1898)

★ 1965 - Stan Laurel, British born actor and comedian (b. 1890)

★ 1969 - King Saud of Saudi Arabia (b. 1902)

★ 1973 - Dickinson W. Richards, American physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1895)

★ 1974 - Harry Ruby, American composer and writer (b. 1895)

★ 1976 - LS Lowry, English artist (b. 1887)

★ 1979 - W.A.C. Bennett, Canadian politician (b. 1900)

★ 1983 - Herbert Howells, English composer (b. 1892)

★ 1990 - José Napoleón Duarte, President of El Salvador (b. 1925)

★ 1995 - Melvin Franklin, American singer (The Temptations) (b. 1942)

★ 1995 - James Herriot, English writer (b. 1916)

★ 1997 - Tony Williams, American jazz drummer (b. 1945)

★ 1999 - Carlos Hathcock, USMC Sniper, 93 Confirmed Kills (b. 1942)

★ 2000 - Ofra Haza, Israeli singer (b. 1957)

★ 2000 - Stanley Matthews, English footballer (b. 1915)

★ 2001 - Robert Enrico, French film director and screenwriter (b. 1931)

★ 2003 - Robert K. Merton, American sociologist (b. 1910)

★ 2003 - Howie Epstein, American bass guitarist (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) (b. 1955)

★ 2004 - Vijay Anand, Indian film director (b. 1934)

★ 2004 - Carl Anderson, American singer (b. 1945)

★ 2004 - Sikander Bakht, Governor of Kerala (b. 1918)

★ 2004 - Don Cornell, American singer (b. 1919)

★ 2004 - Carl Liscombe, Canadian hockey player (b. 1915)

★ 2006 - Benno Besson, Swiss actor and film director (b. 1922)

★ 2006 - Telmo Zarraonaindía, Spanish footballer (b. 1921)

★ 2007 - John Ritchie, British footballer (b. 1941)

Holidays and observances

★ Roman Empire - Terminalia held in honor of Terminus.

★ Guyana - Mashramani-Republic Day.

★ Italy - Feast of the Incappucciati.

★ Russia - Defender of the Fatherland Day (formerly Red Army Day or Day of Soviet Army and Navy).

★ Brunei - National Day.

Liturgical feasts

★ February 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

★ Catholicism - Feast day of Saint Polycarp of Smyrna (died 155)

★ Saint Lazarus (d. 867)

External links

★ BBC: On This Day

★

★ On This Day in Canada
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