Events
- 1258 - Baghdad falls to the Mongols, and the
Abbasid Caliphate
is destroyed. - 1503 -
Disfida di Barletta
- Famous challenge between 13 Italian and 13 French knights near Barletta. - 1542 - Catherine Howard, the fifth wife of Henry VIII of England, is executed for adultery.
- 1575 - Henry III of France is crowned at
Rheims
. - 1575 - Henry III of France marries Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont.
- 1633 - Galileo Galilei arrives in Rome for his trial before the Inquisition.
- 1635 - The first public school in the U.S., Boston Latin School, is founded.
- 1668 - Spain recognizes Portugal as an independent nation.
- 1689 - William and Mary are proclaimed co-rulers of England.
- 1692 - Massacre of Glencoe : About 78 Macdonalds at Glen Coe, Scotland are killed early in the morning for not promptly pledging allegiance to the new king,
William of Orange
. - 1815 - The Cambridge Union Society founded.
- 1866 - Jesse James and his gang commit the first armed bank robbery in United States history during peacetime in Liberty, Missouri.
- 1880 - Work begins on the covering of the Senne, burying Brussels's primary river and creating the modern central boulevards.
- 1880 - Thomas Edison observes the
Edison effect
. - 1881 - The
feminist
newspaper La Citoyenne is first published in Paris by activist Hubertine Auclert. - 1894 - Auguste and Louis Lumière patent the
Cinematographe
, a combination movie camera and projector. - 1899 - Tallahassee, Florida records its all time coldest temperature of -2 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 1914 - Copyright: In New York City the
ASCAP
(for American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) isestablished to protect the copyrighted musical compositions of itsmembers. - 1920 - The
Negro National League
is formed. - 1934 - The Soviet
steamship
Cheliuskin
sinks in the Arctic Ocean. - 1935 - A jury in Flemington, New Jersey finds Bruno Hauptmann guilty of the 1932 kidnapping and murder of the Lindbergh baby, the son of Charles Lindbergh.
- 1945 - World War II: Red Army forces take Budapest, Hungary from Wehrmacht forces.
- 1945 - World War II: The Royal Air Force bombers were dispatched to Dresden, Germany to raid the city by massive aerial bombardment (see Bombing of Dresden in World War II).
- 1955 - Israel obtains 4 of the 7 Dead Sea scrolls.
- 1960 - Nuclear testing: France tests its first
atomic bomb
. - 1971 - Vietnam War: Backed by American air and artillery support, South Vietnamese troops invade Laos.
- 1974 - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, winner of the
Nobel Prize in literature
in 1970, is exiled from the Soviet Union. - 1975 - A fire erupts in the World Trade Center in New York City, New York.
- 1978 - Hilton bombing: a bomb explodes in a refuse truck outside the
Hilton Hotel
in Sydney, Australia, killing two refuse collectors and a policeman. - 1979 - The intense February 13, 1979 Windstorm strikes western Washington and sinks a 1/2-mile-long section of the Hood Canal Bridge.
- 1981 - A series of sewer explosions destroys more than two miles of streets in Louisville, Kentucky.
- 1984 - Konstantin Chernenko succeeds the late Yuri Andropov as general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
- 1990 - German reunification: An agreement is reached for a two-stage plan to reunite Germany.
- 1991 - Gulf War: Two laser-guided "
smart bombs
" destroy a bunker in Baghdad. The bunker was being used as a military communications outpost and unknown to allied forces, as a shelter for Iraqi civilians. - 1997 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes above 7,000 for the first time closing at 7,022.44.
- 2000 - The last original "Peanuts" comic strip appears in newspapers one day after Charles M. Schulz dies.
- 2001 - An earthquake measuring 6.6 on the
Richter Scale
hits El Salvador, killing at least 400. - 2004 - The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics discovers the universe's largest known diamond, white dwarf star BPM 37093.
- 2007 - Taiwan opposition leader Ma Ying-jeou resigns as the chairman of the Kuomintang party after being indicted by the
Taiwan High Prosecutors Office
on charges of embezzlement during his tenure as the mayor of Taipei; Ma also announces his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election. - 2008 - Prime Minister Kevin Rudd of Australia delivers a formal apology to the Stolen Generations, following over a decade of debate.
Births
- 1457 - Mary of Burgundy, daughter of
Charles the Bold
and wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1482) - 1480 - Girolamo Aleandro, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1542)
- 1599 - Pope Alexander VII (d. 1667)
- 1672 - Étienne François Geoffroy, French chemist (d. 1731)
- 1721 - John Reid, British army general and composer (d. 1807)
- 1728 - John Hunter, Scottish surgeon (d. 1793)
- 1743 - Joseph Banks, English botanist and naturalist (d. 1820)
- 1766 -
Thomas Robert Malthus
, demographer and political economist (d. 1834) - 1768 - Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier, French marshal (d. 1835)
- 1769 - Ivan Krylov, Russian fabulist (d. 1844)
- 1805 -
Peter Gustav Dirichlet
, German mathematician (d. 1859) - 1835 - Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Founder of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community (d. 1908)
- 1855 - Paul Deschanel, French President (d. 1922)
- 1873 - Feodor Chaliapin, Russian bass (d. 1938)
- 1876 - Fritz Buelow, German-born American baseball player (d. 1933)
- 1879 - Sarojini Naidu, Indian freedom fighter (d. 1949)
- 1881 - Eleanor Farjeon, English author (d. 1965)
- 1884 - Alfred Carlton Gilbert, American athlete, inventor, and businessman (d. 1961)
- 1885 - Bess Truman, First Lady of the United States, wife of President Harry S. Truman (d. 1982)
- 1891 - Kate Roberts, Welsh nationalist and writer (d. 1985)
- 1891 - Grant Wood, American painter (d. 1942)
- 1903 - Georges Simenon, Belgian writer (d. 1989)
- 1906 - Agostinho da Silva, Portuguese philosopher (d. 1994)
- 1910 - William Shockley, American physicist and eugenicist, Nobel Laureate (d. 1989)
- 1911 - Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Pakistani Urdu poet, Lenin Peace Prize winner (d. 1984)
- 1915 - Aung San, Burmese general and politician (d. 1945)
- 1915 - Lyle Bettger, American actor (d. 2003)
- 1918 - Patty Berg, American golfer (d. 2006)
- 1919 - Tennessee Ernie Ford, American musician (d. 1991)
- 1919 - Eddie Robinson, American football coach (d. 2007)
- 1920 - Boudleaux Bryant, American songwriter (d. 1987)
- 1920 - Eileen Farrell, American opera soprano (d. 2002)
- 1922 - Francis Pym, British
Foreign Secretary
1982-83 - 1922 - Gordon Tullock, American economist
- 1923 - Michael Bilandic, Mayor of Chicago (d. 2002)
- 1923 - Yfrah Neaman, Lebanese-born violinist (d. 2003)
- 1923 - Chuck Yeager, American fighter & test pilot, and the first person to break the "sound barrier" in level flight (1947)
- 1924 - Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber, French journalist (d. 2006)
- 1928 - Dorothy McGuire, American singer (The McGuire Sisters)
- 1929 - Omar Torrijos, Panamanian ruler (d. 1981)
- 1930 - Ernst Fuchs, Austrian artist
- 1932 - Susan Oliver, American actress (d. 1990)
- 1933 - Paul Biya, Cameroon politician
- 1933 - Costa Gavras, Greek-French filmmaker
- 1933 - Kim Novak, American actress
- 1933 - Caroline Blakiston, British actress
- 1934 - George Segal, American actor
- 1935 - Dr. Don Panoz, American entrepreneur and motorsports impresario (ALMS)
- 1937 - Ali El-Maak, Sudanese writer (d. 1992)
- 1938 - Oliver Reed, English actor (d. 1999)
- 1939 - Beate Klarsfeld, German Nazi hunter
- 1941 - Andrea Conte, First Lady of Tennessee 2003 - present
- 1941 - Sigmar Polke, German painter
- 1942 - Carol Lynley, American actress
- 1942 - Peter Tork, American musician and actor (The Monkees)
- 1943 - Geoff Edwards, American game show host
- 1944 - Rebop Kwaku Baah, Nigerian percussionist (d. 1983)
- 1944 - Stockard Channing, American actress
- 1944 - Jerry Springer, American television host
- 1944 - Bo Svenson, Swedish-born actor
- 1944 - Oduvil Unnikrishnan, Indian actor (d. 2006)
- 1945 - King Floyd, American musician (d. 2006)
- 1946 - Louis Kondos, Greek actor
- 1946 - Colin Matthews, British composer
- 1947 - Mike Krzyzewski, American basketball player and coach
- 1950 - Peter Gabriel, English musician (Genesis), composer and
humanitarian - 1951 - Greg Fulginiti, American
mastering
engineer - 1951 - David Naughton, American actor and singer
- 1952 - Freddy Maertens, Belgian cyclist
- 1953 - Rico J. Puno, Filipino pop singer
- 1954 - Donnie Moore, American baseball player (d. 1989)
- 1955 - Joe Birkett, American lawyer
- 1956 - Peter Hook, English bassist (Joy Division and New Order)
- 1956 - Yiannis Kouros, Greek-Australian runner
- 1956 - Princess Alia bint Al Hussein, Jordanian Royal Family member
- 1956 - Liam Brady, Irish footballer
- 1957 - Denise Austin, American fitness expert
- 1958 - Pernilla August, Swedish actress
- 1958 - Derek Riggs, British artist
- 1958 - Tip Tipping, British actor and stuntman (d. 1993)
- 1959 - Gaston Gingras, National Hockey League defenceman
- 1959 - Gord Hampson, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1960 - Pierluigi Collina, Italian football referee
- 1960 - Gary Patterson, American football coach
- 1960 - Matt Salinger, American actor
- 1960 - Artur Yusupov, Russian-German chess player
- 1961 - Henry Rollins, American musician
- 1961 - Marc Crawford, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1962 - AnÃÂbal Acevedo Vilá, American politician
- 1964 - Mark Patton, American actor
- 1964 - Ylva Johansson, Swedish politician
- 1966 - Jeff Waters, Canadian musician (Annihilator)
- 1967 - Stanimir Stoilov, Bulgarian soccer player and coach
- 1968 - Kelly Hu, American actress
- 1970 - Karoline Krüger, Norwegian singer
- 1971 - Sonia, British singer
- 1971 - Mats Sundin, Swedish ice hockey player
- 1971 - Todd Williams, American baseball player
- 1972 - Charlie Garner, American football player
- 1974 - Gus Hansen, Danish professional poker player
- 1974 - Robbie Williams, English singer
- 1974 - Jeff Duran, American radio personality
- 1975 - Iván González, Puerto Rican writer and musician
- 1976 - Martin Sastre, Uruguayan artist
- 1976 -
Feist
, Canadian singer and songwriter - 1976 - Dave Padden, Canadian musician (Annihilator)
- 1977 - Randy Moss, American football player
- 1977 - Ben Collins, British racing driver
- 1978 - Mini Anden, Swedish model and actress
- 1978 - Hamish Glencross, Scottish heavy metal guitarist My Dying Bride
- 1979 - Rafael Márquez, Mexican footballer
- 1979 - Mena Suvari, American actress
- 1980 - Sebastian Kehl, German footballer
- 1981 - Luisão, Brazilian footballer
- 1981 - Liam Miller, Irish footballer
- 1981 - Luke Ridnour, American basketball player
- 1982 - Michael Turner,
Running Back
for the San Diego Chargers - 1982 - Lanisha Cole, American model
- 1985 - Kwak Ji-min, South Korean actress
- 1985 - Alexandros Tziolis, Greek footballer
- 1986 - Luke Moore, English footballer
- 1989 - Carly McKillip, Canadian actress
Deaths
- 858 -
Kenneth I of Scotland - 1130 - Pope Honorius II
- 1141 - Béla II of Hungary (b. 1110)
- 1219 - Minamoto no Sanetomo, Japanese shogun (b. 1192)
- 1332 - Andronikos II Palaiologos,
Byzantine Emperor
(b. 1259) - 1539 - Isabella d'Este, Marquise of Mantua (b. 1474)
- 1542 - Catherine Howard, fifth wife of Henry VIII of England (executed) (b. 1525)
- 1571 - Benvenuto Cellini, Italian artist (b. 1500)
- 1585 - Alfonso Salmeron, Spanish Jesuit biblical scholar (b. 1515)
- 1592 - Jacopo Bassano, Italian painter
- 1600 - Gian Paolo Lomazzo, Italian painter (b. 1538)
- 1602 - Alexander Nowell, English clergyman
- 1608 - Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski, Lithuanian prince (b. 1526)
- 1624 - Stephen Gosson, English satirist (b. 1554)
- 1657 - Miles Sindercombe, attempted assassin of Oliver Cromwell
- 1660 - King
Charles X of Sweden
(b. 1622) - 1662 -
Elizabeth Stuart
(b. 1596) - 1727 - William Wotton, English scholar (b. 1666)
- 1728 - Cotton Mather, American Puritan minister (b. 1663)
- 1732 - Charles-René d'Hozier, French historian (b. 1640)
- 1787 -
Ruđer BoÅ¡ković
, Croatian scientist and diplomat (b. 1711) - 1787 - Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes, French statesman and diplomat (b. 1717)
- 1813 - Samuel Ashe, Governor of North Carolina (b. 1725)
- 1818 - George Rogers Clark, American military leader (b. 1752)
- 1826 - Petr Alekseevich Pahlen, Russian general (b. 1745)
- 1837 - Mariano José de Larra, Spanish journalist and writer (b. 1809
- 1845 - Henrik Steffens, Norwegian-German philosopher (b. 1773)
- 1883 - Richard Wagner, German composer (b. 1813)
- 1888 -
Jean Baptiste Lamy
, 1st Archbishop of Santa Fe (b. 1814) - 1905 - Konstantin Savitsky, Russian painter (b. 1844)
- 1950 - Rafael Sabatini, Italian author (b. 1875)
- 1951 - Lloyd C. Douglas, American author (b. 1877)
- 1952 - Josephine Tey, English author (b. 1896)
- 1958 - Georges Rouault, French painter (b. 1871)
- 1964 - Werner Heyde, German psyhiatrist (b. 1902)
- 1968 - Mae Marsh, American actress (b. 1895)
- 1975 - André Beaufre, French General (b. 1902)
- 1976 - Murtala Mohammed, Nigerian military leader (b. 1938)
- 1976 - Lily Pons, French-born soprano (b. 1904)
- 1980 - David Janssen, American actor (b. 1931)
- 1984 - Andre Stander, South African police captain and bank robber (b. 1946)
- 1989 - Wayne Hays, American politician (b. 1911)
- 1991 - Arno Breker, German sculptor (b. 1900)
- 1992 - Nikolay Bogolyubov, Russian mathematician (b. 1909)
- 1996 - Martin Balsam, American actor (b. 1919)
- 1997 - Mark Krasnosel'skii, Russian-Ukrainian mathematician (b. 1920)
- 2000 - James Cooke Brown, American author and inventor (b. 1921)
- 2002 - Waylon Jennings, American musician (b. 1937)
- 2003 -
Kid Gavilan
, Cuban boxer (b. 1926) - 2003 - Axel Jensen, Norwegian author (b. 1932)
- 2003 -
Walt Rostow
, U.S. government official (b. 1916) - 2004 - Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, Chechen leader (b. 1952)
- 2005 - Nelson Briles, baseball player (b. 1943)
- 2005 - Lúcia Santos, Carmelite nun (b. 1907)
- 2005 - Maurice Trintignant, French race car driver (b. 1917)
- 2005 - Dick Weber, American professional bowler (b. 1929)
- 2005 - Emilios T. Harlaftis, Greek astrophysicist (b. 1965)
- 2006 - Andreas Katsulas, American actor (b. 1946)
- 2007 - Elizabeth Jolley, Australian writer (b. 1923)
- 2007 - Johanna Sällström, Swedish actress (b. 1974)
- 2007 - Richard Gordon Wakeford, Air Marshal, Royal Air Force (b. 1922)
Holidays and Observances
- Saint Beatrice
- Saint Ermenildis
- Saint Fulcran
- Saint Polyeuctus
- See also February 13 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)