Today March 26th in history click read more below to view detail events, deaths, births, Holidays and observances, and video clips in hisotry. Please comments, last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1026 – Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor.
1484 – William Caxton printed his translation of Aesop s Fables.
1552 – Guru Amar Das becomes the Third Sikh Guru.
1636 – Utrecht University is founded in The Netherlands.
1808 – Charles IV of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII.
1812 – An earthquake destroys Caracas, Venezuela.
1830 – The Book of Mormon is published in Palmyra, New York.
1839 – The first Henley Royal Regatta is held.
1852 – Decree regarding streets of Paris passed
1881 – Thessaly is freed and becomes part of Greece again.
1913 – Balkan War: Bulgarian forces take Adrianople.
1917 – World War I: First Battle of Gaza – British troops are halted after 17,000 Turks block their advance.
1934 – Driving test introduced in the United Kingdom.
1942 – World War II: In Poland, Auschwitz receives its first female prisoners.
1945 – World War II: In Iwo Jima, US forces declare Iwo Jima secure.
1953 – Jonas Salk announces his polio vaccine.
1958 – The United States Army launches Explorer 3.
1958 – The African Regroupment Party (PRA) is launched at a meeting in Paris.
1965 – A truck loses control down Moosic Street, Scranton, Pennsylvania, killing the driver. This accident later inspired the 1974 Harry Chapin song, 30,000 Pounds of Bananas.
1967 – Ten thousand people gather for the Central Park Be-In.
1971 – East Pakistan declares its independence from Pakistan to form People s Republic of Bangladesh and Bangladesh Liberation War begins.
1975 – The Biological Weapons Convention enters into force.
1976 – Queen Elizabeth II sent out the first royal email, from the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment.
1977 – Focus on the Family is founded by Dr. James Dobson
1979 – Anwar al-Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter sign the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty in Washington, DC.
1982 – A groundbreaking ceremony for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is held in Washington, DC.
1988 – Gokul Chandar born at Coimbatore in India.
1995 – The Schengen Treaty goes into effect.
1996 – The International Monetary Fund approves a $10.2 billion loan for Russia.
1997 – Thirty-nine bodies found in the Heaven s Gate cult suicides.
1998 – Oued Bouaicha massacre in Algeria; 52 people killed with axes and knives, 32 of them babies under the age of 2.
1999 – The Melissa worm infects Microsoft word processing and e-mail systems around the world.
1999 – A jury in Michigan finds Dr. Jack Kevorkian guilty of second-degree murder for administering a lethal injection to a terminally ill man.
2005 – The Taiwanese government calls on 1 million Taiwanese to demonstrate in Taipei, in opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of the People s Republic of China. Around 200,000 to 300,000 attend the walk.
2006 – In Scotland, the prohibition of smoking in all substantially enclosed public places comes into force.
2006 – The military junta ruling Burma officially named Naypyidaw, a new city in Mandalay Division, as the new capital. Yangon had formerly been the nation s capital.
Births
603 – Pacal II ruler of the Maya polity of Palenque
1516 – Conrad Gessner, Swiss naturalist (d. 1565)
1554 – Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Mayenne, French military leader (d. 1611)
1698 – Václav Prokop Diviš, Czech theologian and natural scientist (d. 1765)
1749 – William Blount, American Statesman (d. 1800)
1753 – Benjamin Thompson, American physicist and inventor (d. 1814)
1773 – Nathaniel Bowditch, American mathematician and navigation expert (d. 1838)
1794 – Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, German painter (d. 1872)
1859 – Alfred Edward Housman, English poet (d. 1936)
1859 – Adolf Hurwitz, German mathematician (d. 1919)
1868 – King Fuad I of Egypt (d. 1936)
1871 – Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana‘ole of the Kingdom of Hawaii (d. 1922)
1874 – Robert Frost, American poet (d. 1963)
1875 – Max Abraham, German physicist (d. 1922)
1875 – Syngman Rhee, President of South Korea (d. 1965)
1876 – Prince William of Wied (d. 1945)
1879 – Othmar Ammann, Swiss bridge engineer (d. 1965)
1882 – Hermann Obrecht, Swiss jurist (d. 1940)
1884 – Wilhelm Backhaus, German pianist (d. 1969)
1886 – Hugh Mulzac, America military officer (d. 1971)
1894 – Viorica Ursuleac, Romanian soprano (d. 1985)
1896 – Rudolf Dassler, Founder of PUMA AG (d. 1974)
1898 – Charles Shadwell, English conductor and bandleader (d. 1979)
1888 – Elsa Brändström, Swedish nurse (d. 1948)
1893 – Palmiro Togliatti, Italian communist leader (d. 1964)
1904 – Joseph Campbell, American author (d. 1987)
1904 – Emilio Fernández, Mexican actor, screenwriter and film director (d. 1986)
1904 – Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2004)
Deaths
1905 – Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (d. 1997)
1905 – Monty Berman, British film and television producer (d. 2006)
1906 – Rafael Mendez, Mexican trumpetist (d. 1981)
1908 – Franz Stangl, German concentration camp commandant (d. 1971)
1908 – Henry_(Hank)_Sylvern, U.S. radio personality (d. 1964)
1911 – Bernard Katz, German-born biophysicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2003)
1911 – Tennessee Williams, American dramatist (d. 1983)
1911 – T. Hee, American animator (d. 1988)
1913 – Paul Erdos, Hungarian mathematician (d. 1996)
1914 – Toru Kumon, Japanese educator (d. 1995)
1914 – William Westmoreland, U.S. general (d. 2005)
1916 – Christian B. Anfinsen, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1995)
1916 – Bill Edrich, English cricketer (d. 1986)
1916 – Sterling Hayden, American actor (d. 1986)
1917 – Rufus Thomas, American musician (d. 2001)
1919 – Roger Leger, Quebec ice hockey player (d. 1965)
1919 – Strother Martin, American actor (d. 1980)
1922 – Oscar Sala, Italian-born physicist
1923 – Gert Bastian, German politician (d. 1992)
1923 – Bob Elliott, American comedian
1925 – Pierre Boulez, French composer and conductor
1925 – James Moody, American jazz musician, composer, and actor
1929 – Edwin Turney, American businessman
1929 – Tom Foley, American politician, former Speaker of the House
1930 – Gregory Corso, American poet (d. 2001)
1930 – Sandra Day O Connor, U.S. Supreme Court Justice
1931 – Leonard Nimoy, American actor and director
1934 – Alan Arkin, American actor
1935 – Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestine National Authority
1937 – Wayne Embry, American basketball player
1938 – Anthony James Leggett, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1940 – James Caan, American actor
1940 – Nancy Pelosi, American politician and 60th Speaker of the House
1941 – Richard Dawkins, British evolutionary biologist
1941 – Yvon Marcoux, Quebec politician
1942 – Erica Jong, American author
1943 – Bob Woodward, American journalist
1944 – Diana Ross, American singer (Supremes)
1945 – Mikhail Voronin, Soviet gymnast (d. 2004)
1946 – Johnny Crawford, American actor
1946 – Alain Madelin, French politician
1947 – Dar Robinson, American stuntman (d. 1986)
1948 – Richard Tandy, British keyboardist (Electric Light Orchestra)
1948 – Steven Tyler, American singer (Aerosmith)
1949 – Vicki Lawrence, American actress and singer
1949 – Patrick Süskind, German writer
1950 – Teddy Pendergrass, American singer
1950 – Martin Short, Canadian comedian
1950 – Ernest Thomas, American actor
1950 – Alan Silvestri, American film score composer
1951 – Carl Wieman, American physicist, Nobel laureate
1952 – Didier Pironi, French Formula One driver (d. 1987)
1953 – Elaine Chao, U.S. Secretary of Labor
1953 – Lincoln Chafee, American Senator from Rhode Island
1953 – Youssouf Togoïmi, Chadian rebel (d. 2002)
1954 – Kazuhiko Inoue, Japanese seiyu (voice actor)
1954 – Curtis Sliwa, American founder of the Guardian Angels
1955 – Danny Arndt, Canadian ice hockey player
1956 – Charly McClain, American singer
1957 – Leeza Gibbons, American television host
1957 – Paul Morley, English music journalist and musician
1958 – Chris Codiroli, American baseballer
1958 – Elio de Angelis, Italian racing driver (d. 1986)
1959 – Chris Hansen, American reporter and correspondent
1960 – Marcus Allen, American football player
1960 – Jennifer Grey, American actress
1961 – Leigh Bowery, Australian-born English fashion performance artist (d. 1994)
1961 – William Hague, British politician
1962 – John Stockton, American basketball player
1962 – Paul de Leeuw, Dutch television host
1963 – Natsuhiko Kyogoku, Japanese writer
1963 – Amparo Larrañaga, Spanish actress
1963 – Roch Voisine, Canadian singer and songwriter
1964 – Martin Donnelly, Irish racecar driver
1964 – Ulf Samuelsson, Swedish ice hockey player
1964 – Baz Warne, English Guitarist (The Stranglers)
1966 – Nick Wirth, British engineer
1966 – Michael Imperioli, American actor
1967 – Mark Carroll, Australian rugby league footballer
1968 – Kenny Chesney, American singer
1968 – James Iha, American musician (The Smashing Pumpkins and A Perfect Circle)
1968 – Laurent Brochard, French cyclist
1970 – Paul Bosvelt, Dutch football player
1970 – Martin McDonagh, Anglo-Irish playwright and film director
1971 – Behzad Ghorbani, Iranian zoologist and sociobiologist
1972 – Jon Reep, American comedian and actor
1972 – Jason Maxwell, Retired American Baseball Player
1973 – Heather Goldenhersh, American actress
1973 – Lawrence E. Page, American search engine pioneer
1973 – T.R. Knight, American actor
1973 – Matt Burke, Australian rugby player
1974 – Mike Peca, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Joachim Alcine, Haitian-born Quebec boxer
1976 – Amy Smart, American actress
1976 – Natalia Livingston, American actress
1976 – Nurgül Yesilçay, Turkish actress
1976 – Ufuk Talay, Australian soccer player
1977 – Kevin Davies, English footballer
1977 – Sylvain Grenier, Canadian professional wrestler
1978 – Anastasia Kostaki, Greek basketball player
1979 – Hiromi Uehara, Japanese jazz pianist
1979 – Pierre Wome, Cameroonian footballer
1979 – Nacho Novo, Spanish footballer
1980 – Son Ho Young, Korean singer
1981 – Baruch Dego, Israeli football player
1981 – Jay Sean, British Asian R&B singer
1981 – Josh Wilson, American baseball player
1982 – Mikel Arteta, Spanish footballer
1983 – David Bennett, Canadian powerlifter and steamfitter
1983 – Michael Brendli, American professional wrestler
1984 – Gregory Strydom, Zimbabwean crickaeter
1984 – Stéphanie Lapointe, French-Canadian singer
1984 – Sara Jean Underwood, American model
1985 – Keira Knightley, English actress
1985 – Prosper Utseya, Zimbabwean cricket captain
1985 – Jonathan Groff, American stage actor
1987 – Yui, Japanese musician
1988 – Gokul Chandar, Indian IT Professional
1988 – Suvi Koponen, Finnish supermodel
1990 – Yuya Takaki, Japanese Actor and Singer
1993 – Simran Gill – Eldest daughter of Barinder Gill. The eldest third-generation heiress to the Gill Family business & estates.
Holidays and observances
304 – Saint Emmanuel, Christian martyr killed under Diocletian
922 – Al-Hallaj, Persian Sufi teacher and writer
1130 – King Sigurd I of Norway (b. c. 1090)
1212 – King Sancho I of Portugal (b. 1154)
1517 – Heinrich Isaac, Flemish composer
1535 – Georg Tannstetter, Austrian scientist (b. 1482)
1546 – Thomas Elyot, English diplomat
1566 – Antonio de Cabezón, Spanish composer (b. 1510)
1649 – John Winthrop, second governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
1679 – Johannes Schefferus, Alsatian-born humanist (b. 1621)
1697 – Godfrey McCulloch, Scottish politician and murderer (executed) (b. 1640)
1726 – Sir John Vanbrugh, English dramatist (b. 1664)
1772 – Charles Pinot Duclos, French writer (b. 1704)
1776 – Samuel Ward, American politician (b. 1725)
1780 – Charles I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (b. 1713)
1793 – John Mudge, English physician (b. 1721)
1797 – James Hutton, Scottish geologist (b. 1726)
1814 – Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, namesake of the guillotine (b. 1738)
1827 – Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (b. 1770)
1858 – John Addison Thomas, American soldier (b. 1811)
1881 – Roman Sanguszko, Polish aristocrat (b. 1800)
1885 – Anson Stager, American telegraphist (b. 1825)
1888 – Barghash bin Said, second Sultan of Zanzibar (b. 1837)
1892 – Walt Whitman, American poet (b. 1819)
1902 – Cecil Rhodes, English explorer (b. 1853)
1905 – Maurice Barrymore, actor; patriarch of the Barrymore family (b. 1849)
1910 – Auguste Charlois, French astronomer (b. 1864)
1910 – An Jung-geun, Korean assassin of Ito Hirobumi (executed) (b. 1879)
1920 – William Chester Minor, American surgeon and contributor to the Oxford English Dictionary (b. 1834)
1923 – Sarah Bernhardt, French actress (b. 1844)
1926 – Konstantin Fehrenbach, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1852)
1929 – Katharine Lee Bates, American poet (b. 1859)
1933 – Eddie Lang, American musician (b. 1902)
1940 – Spiridon Louis, Greek runner, winner of the first modern Olympics marathon (b. 1873)
1942 – Jimmy Burke, American baseball player (b. 1874)
1945 – David Lloyd George, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1863)
1951 – James F. Hinkle, American politician, sixth Governor of New Mexico (d. 1864)
1957 – Édouard Herriot, French politician (b. 1872)
1958 – Phil Mead, English cricketer (b. 1887)
1959 – Raymond Chandler, American-born novelist (b. 1888)
1969 – John Kennedy Toole, American author (b. 1937)
1973 – Noel Coward, English composer and playwright (b. 1899)
1973 – Johnny Drake, American football player (b. 1916)
1973 – Don Messer, Canadian fiddler (b. 1909)
1973 – George Sisler, American baseball player (b. 1893)
1976 – Josef Albers, German artist (b. 1888)
1976 – Lin Yutang, Chinese writer (b. 1895)
1978 – Wilfred Pickles, English actor and broadcaster (b. 1904)
1983 – Anthony Blunt, British art historian and spy (b. 1907)
1984 – Ahmed Sékou Touré, President of Guinea (b. 1922)
1987 – Eugen Jochum, German conductor (b. 1902)
1990 – Halston, American fashion designer (b. 1932)
1992 – Barbara Frum, Canadian journalist (b. 1937)
1995 – Eazy-E, American rapper (N.W.A) (b. 1963)
1996 – Edmund Muskie, American politician (b. 1914)
1996 – David Packard, American engineer and businessman (b. 1912)
1997 – Marshall Applewhite, American cult leader (b. 1931)
2000 – Alex Comfort, American author (b. 1920)
2002 – Randy Castillo, American drummer (Ozzy Osbourne, Mötley Crüe) (b. 1950)
2003 – Daniel Patrick Moynihan, U.S. Senator (b. 1927)
2004 – Jan Berry, American musician (Jan and Dean) (b. 1941)
2004 – Jan Sterling, American actress (b. 1921)
2005 – James Callaghan, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1912)
2005 – Gérard Filion, Quebec businessman and journalist (b. 1909)
2005 – Paul Hester, Australian drummer (Split Enz and Crowded House) (b. 1959)
2005 – Marius Russo, American baseball player (b. 1914)
2006 – Anil Biswas, Indian politician (b. 1944)
2006 – Paul Dana, American race car driver (b. 1975)
2006 – Nikki Sudden, British singer/songwriter (b. 1956)
2008 – Heath Benedict, American Football Player (b. 1983)
2008 – Robert Fagles, American translator and professor (b. 1933)
2008 – Wally Phillips, American radio personality (b. 1925)
2008 – Manuel Marulanda Velez aka Tirofijo, founder and lifelong leader of Colombian rebel group FARC-EP (b. 1930)
