Today September 21st 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
1217 – The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu of Lehola was killed in a battle against Teutonic Knights.
1745 – Battle of Prestonpans: A Hanoverian army under the command of Sir John Cope is defeated, in ten minutes, by the Jacobite forces of Prince Charles Edward Stuart
1765 – Antoine de Beauterne announces he had killed the Beast of Gévaudan, but was later proved wrong by more attacks.
1780 – American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold gives the British the plans to West Point.
1792 – The National Convention declares France a republic and abolishes the monarchy.
1827 – Joseph Smith, Jr. claims that the angel Moroni gave him a record of gold plates, one-third of which Smith has translated into The Book of Mormon.
1860 – In the Second Opium War, an Anglo-French force defeats Chinese troops at the Battle of Baliqiao.
1896 – British force under Horatio Kitchener takes Dongola in the Sudan.
1897 – The Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus is published in the New York Sun.
1898 – Empress Dowager Cixi seizes power and ends the Hundred Days Reform in China.
1921 – A storage silo in Oppau, Germany, explodes, killing 500—600 people.
1934 – A large typhoon hits western Honshu, Japan, killing 3,036 people.
1937 – J. R. R. Tolkien s The Hobbit is published.
1938 – The Great Hurricane of 1938 makes landfall on Long Island in New York. The death toll is estimated at 500-700 people.
1939 – Romanian Prime Minister Armand Calinescu is assassinated by ultranationalist members of the Iron Guard.
1942 – On Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, Nazis sent over 1.000 Jews of Pidhaytsi (west Ukraine) to Belzec extermination camp.
1942 – On the end of Yom Kippur, the Germans ordered Konstantynów Jews (Poland) to permanently evacuate Konstantynów and move to the Ghetto – established in Biala Podlaska, meant to assemble Jews from nearby 7 towns among them: Konstantynów, Janów Podlaski, Rossosz, Terespol, and 3 more.
1942 – In Dunaivtsi, Ukraine, Nazis murder 2588 Jews.
1942 – The B-29 Superfortress makes its maiden flight.
1950 – George Marshall sworn in as the 3rd Secretary of Defense of United States.
1961 – Maiden flight of the CH-47 Chinook transportation helicopter.
1964 – Malta becomes independent from the United Kingdom.
1964 – The North American XB-70 Valkyrie, the world s first Mach 3 bomber, made its maiden flight from Palmdale, California.
1965 – Singapore admitted as a part of the United Nations.
1970 – New York Times starts first modern op-ed page.
1972 – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos signs Proclamation No. 1081 placing the entire country under martial law.
1976 – Orlando Letelier is assassinated in Washington, D.C. He was a member of the Chilean socialist government of Salvador Allende, overthrown in 1973 by Augusto Pinochet.
1979 – Two RAF Hawker Siddeley Harrier jump-jets from RAF Wittering collide over the UK. Both pilots ejected safely. One of the jets broke up in midair and fell harmlessly into a field but the other dropped onto the centre of Wisbech in Cambridgeshire, destroying two houses and a bungalow. Several people were injured in the accident and three people were killed.
1980 – Kerry GAA beat Roscommon GAA in Croke Park during the All-Ireland Football Final by 1-9 to 1-6 thus winning the championship and a three-in-a-row.
1981 – Belize is granted full independence from the United Kingdom.
1981 – Sandra Day O Connor is unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate as the first female supreme court justice.
1986 – Kerry GAA beat Tyrone GAA in Croke Park during the All-Ireland Football Final by 2-15 to 1-10 thus winning the championship and a three-in-a-row.
1989 – Hurricane Hugo makes landfall in the U.S. state of South Carolina.
1991 – Armenia is granted independence from Soviet Union.
1993 – Russian President Boris Yeltsin suspends parliament and scraps the then-functioning constitution, thus triggering the Russian constitutional crisis of 1993.
1995 – The Hindu milk miracle occurs, in which statues of the Hindu God Ganesh began drinking milk when spoonfuls were placed near their mouths.
1999 – Chi-Chi earthquake occurs in central Taiwan, leaving about 2,400 people dead.
2001 – Deep Space 1 flies within 2,200 km of Comet Borrelly.
2001 – AZF chemical plant explodes in Toulouse, France, killing 29 people
2001 – University of Roorkee, becomes India s 7th Indian Institute of Technology, rechristened as IIT Roorkee
2003 – Galileo mission terminated by sending the probe into Jupiter s atmosphere, where it is crushed by the pressure at the lower altitudes.
2004 – The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) People s War and the Maoist Communist Centre of India merge to form the Communist Party of India (Maoist).
2004 – Construction of the Burj Dubai starts.
2008 – Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, the two last remaining independent investment banks on Wall Street, become bank holding companies as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis.
2008 – President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa resigns from office, effective September 25.
2008 – Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel formally resigns from office, effective as soon as his successor Tzipi Livni has successfully assembled a new government.
Births
1051 – Bertha of Savoy, German queen and Holy Roman Empire Empress (d. 1087)
1328 – Hongwu Emperor of China (d. 1398)
1411 – Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York, claimant to the English throne (d. 1460)
1415 – Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1493)
1428 – Jingtai Emperor of China (d. 1457)
1452 – Girolamo Savonarola, Dominican priest and ruler of Florence (d. 1498)
1559 – Cigoli, Florentine painter, architect, and sculptor (d. 1613)
1629 – Philip Cardinal Howard, English Catholic cardinal (d. 1694)
1645 – Louis Joliet, Canadian explorer (d. 1700)
1706 – Polyxena Christina of Hesse-Rotenburg, queen of Sardinia (d. 1735)
1756 – John MacAdam, Scottish engineer and road-builder (d. 1836)
1758 – Christopher Gore, 8th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1827)
1760 – Ivan Dmitriev, Russian statesman (d. 1837)
1819 – Princess Louise Marie Thérèse of France (d. 1864)
1840 – Murad V, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1904)
1842 – Abd-ul-Hamid II, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1918)
1849 – Maurice Barrymore, Indian-born patriarch of the Barrymore family (d. 1905)
1853 – Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, Dutch physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1926)
1862 – James E. Talmage, LDS apostle and author (d. 1933)
1863 – John Bunny, American film comedian (d. 1915)
1866 – H. G. Wells, English writer (d. 1946)
1866 – Charles Nicolle, French bacteriologist, received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1936)
1873 – Papa Jack Laine, American musician (d. 1966)
1874 – Gustav Holst, English composer (d. 1934)
1895 – Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet (d. 1925)
1899 – Frederick Coutts, the 8th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1986)
1902 – Luis Cernuda, Spanish poet (d. 1963)
1902 – Sir Allen Lane, British founder of Penguin Books (d. 1970)
1905 – Robert Lebel, French Canadian ice hockey executive (d. 1999)
1906 – Henry Beachell, American plant breeder (d. 2006)
1912 – Chuck Jones, American animator (d. 2002)
1912 – György Sándor, Hungarian pianist (d. 2005)
1916 – Françoise Giroud, French journalist and politician (d. 2003)
1917 – Phyllis Nicolson, British mathematician (d. 1968)
1918 – John Gofman, American Manhattan Project scientist and advocate (d. 2007)
1919 – Mario Bunge, Argentine philosopher and physicist
1919 – Fazlur Rahman, Pakistani scholar (d. 1988)
1926 – Donald A. Glaser, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
1926 – Noor Jehan, Pakistani singer and actress (d. 2000)
1929 – Bernard Williams, English philosopher (d. 2003)
1929 – Sándor Kocsis, Hungarian footballer (d. 1979)
1931 – Larry Hagman, American actor
1933 – Dick Simon, American racing driver
1934 – Leonard Cohen, Canadian singer and songwriter
1935 – Jimmy Armfield, Former English Footballer and Manager
1935 – Henry Gibson, American actor
1936 – Diane Rehm, American radio talk show host for National Public Radio
1936 – Yuriy Luzhkov, Russian politician, mayor of Moscow
1936 – Dickey Lee, American singer and songwriter
1938 – Doug Moe, American basketball player and coach
1940 – Bill Kurtis, American television journalist
1940 – Hermann Knoflacher, Austrian civil engineer
1941 – R. James Woolsey, Jr., Central Intelligence Agency director
1941 – Jack Brisco, American professional wrestler
1944 – Fannie Flagg, American actress and novelist
1944 – Hamilton Jordan, U.S. President Jimmy Carter s original chief of staff
1944 – Steve Beshear, Democratic Governor of Kentucky.
1945 – Jerry Bruckheimer, American film and television producer
1945 – Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner
1945 – Shaw Clifton, the 18th General of The Salvation Army
1946 – Moritz Leuenberger, Swiss Federal Councilor
1947 – Stephen King, American author
1947 – Marsha Norman, American playwright
1947 – Don Felder, American guitarist (Eagles)
1949 – Artis Gilmore, American basketball player
1950 – Charles Clarke, British politician
1950 – Bill Murray, American actor
1951 – Bruce Arena, American soccer coach
1951 – Aslan Maskhadov, Chechen rebel leader (d. 2005)
1952 – Anneliese Michel, German exorcism victim (d. 1976)
1953 – Arie Luyendyk, Dutch race car driver
1954 – Shinzo Abe, Japanese politician
1954 – Phil Philthy Animal Taylor, British musician (Motörhead)
1955 – Mika Kaurismäki, Finnish director
1955 – Richard Hieb, American astronaut
1956 – Jack Givens, American basketball player
1956 – Marta Kauffman, American television producer
1956 – Ricky Morton, American professional wrestler
1957 – Ethan Coen, American film director
1957 – Sidney Moncrief, American basketball player
1957 – Kevin Rudd, Australian politician
1957 – Penny Smith, English television presenter
1958 – Bruno Fitoussi, French poker player
1959 – Dave Coulier, American actor
1959 – Danny Cox, American baseball player
1959 – Corinne Drewery, British singer (Swing Out Sister)
1960 – David James Elliott, Canadian actor
1961 – Nancy Travis, American actress
1962 – Rob Morrow, American actor
1963 – Curtly Ambrose, Antiguan West Indies cricketer
1963 – Cecil Fielder, American baseball player
1963 – Angus Macfadyen, Scottish actor
1964 – Jorge Drexler, Uruguayan singer and composer
1965 – Cheryl Hines, American actress
1965 – David Wenham, Australian actor
1967 – Faith Hill, American singer
1967 – Tyler Stewart, Canadian drummer (Barenaked Ladies)
1968 – Ricki Lake, American actress and talk show hostess
1969 – Jason Christiansen, American baseball player
1970 – John Cudia, American actor
1970 – Bridget Moynahan, American model and actress
1971 – John Crawley, English cricketer
1971 – Alfonso Ribeiro, American actor
1971 – Luke Wilson, American actor
1972 – Liam Gallagher, English singer (Oasis)
1972 – Scott Spiezio, American baseball player
1972 – Jon Kitna, American football player
1972 – David Silveria, American drummer (Ko?n)
1973 – Oswaldo Sanchez, Mexican footballer
1973 – Vanessa Grigoriadis, American journalist
1974 – Taral Hicks, American musician
1974 – Jana Kandarr, German tennis player
1974 – Andy Todd, English footballer
1975 – Doug Davis, American baseball player
1976 – Jonas Bjerre, Danish singer and guitarist (Mew)
1976 – Poul Hübertz, Danish footballer
1977 – Brian Tallet, American baseball player
1978 – Doug Howlett, New Zealand rugby union footballer
1979 – Richard Dunne, Irish footballer
1979 – Chris Gayle, Jamaican West Indies cricketer
1979 – Julian Gray, English footballer
1979 – Jaymee Ong, Chinese-Australian model
1980 – Robert Hoffman, American actor
1980 – Kareena Kapoor, Indian actress
1980 – Nyree Lewis, British Paralympic swimmer
1980 – Aleksa Palladino, American actress
1980 – Autumn Reeser, American actress
1980 – Tomas Scheckter, South African racing driver
1981 – Nicole Richie, American socialite
1981 – Rimi Sen, Indian actress
1981 – Meilinda Soerjoko, Indonesian-Australian actress
1982 – Eduardo Azevedo, Brazilian racing driver
1982 – Danny Kass, American snowboarder
1982 – Marat Izmailov, Russian footballer
1982 – Rowan Vine, English footballer
1982 – Parvati Shallow, American reality-show contestant
1983 – Fernando Cavenaghi, Argentinian footballer
1983 – Maggie Grace, American actress
1983 – Joseph Mazzello, American actor
1983 – Anna Meares, Australian cyclist
1984 – Benjamin Wildman-Tobriner, American swimmer
1985 – Maryam Hassouni, Dutch actor
1986 – Faris Rotter, English vocalist (The Horrors)
1987 – Jimmy Clausen, American football player
1987 – Ashley Paris, American basketball player
1987 – Courtney Paris, American basketball player
1988 – Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistani politician
1988 – Jason Derulo, American Pop singer and actor
1989 – Lyn-Z Adams Hawkins, American skateboarder
1990 – Allison Scagliotti, American actress
1990 – Christian Serratos, American actress
1991 – Jordan Hasay, American track and field athlete
1993 – Chris Gough, Canadian genius
1998 – Brino quadruplets, American actor/actresses
Deaths
19 BC – Virgil, Roman poet (b. 70 BC)
454 – Aëtius, Roman general (b. c.396)
1217 – Lembitu of Lehola, Estonian soldier
1327 – King Edward II of England (b. 1284)
1397 – Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel, English military leader (executed) (b. 1346)
1542 – Juan Boscán Almogáver, Spanish poet
1558 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1500)
1576 – Gerolamo Cardano, Italian mathematician (b. 1501)
1586 – Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle, French church leader (b. 1517)
1626 – François de Bonne, duc de Lesdiguières, Constable of France (b. 1543)
1719 – Johann Heinrich Acker, German writer (b. 1647)
1743 – Jai Singh II, King of Amber-Juiper (b. 1688)
1748 – John Balguy, English philosopher (b. 1686)
1796 – François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (b. 1769)
1798 – George Read, American lawyer and signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1733)
1832 – Sir Walter Scott, Scottish writer (b. 1771)
1860 – Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (b. 1788)
1874 – Jean-Baptiste Élie de Beaumont, French geologist (b. 1794)
1897 – Wilhelm Wattenbach, German historian (b. 1819)
1904 – Chief Joseph, Nez Perce leader (b. 1840)
1906 – Samuel Arnold, Lincoln conspirator (b. 1838)
1926 – Leon Charles Thevenin, French telegraph engineer (b. 1857)
1938 – Ivana Brlic-Mazuranic Croatian writer (b. 1874)
1939 – Armand Calinescu Romanian prime-minister (assassinated) (b. 1893)
1946 – Olga Engl, Austrian actress (b. 1871)
1954 – Kokichi Mikimoto, Japanese inventor (b. 1858)
1957 – King Haakon VII of Norway (b. 1872)
1963 – Paulino Masip, Spanish playwright (b. 1899)
1966 – Paul Reynaud, French politician (b. 1878)
1971 – Bernardo Houssay, Argentine physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1887)
1972 – Henry de Montherlant, French writer (b. 1896)
1974 – Walter Brennan, American actor (b. 1894)
1974 – Jacqueline Susann, American novelist (b. 1918)
1976 – Orlando Letelier, Chilean diplomat (b. 1932)
1982 – Hovhannes Bagramyan, Soviet general (b. 1897)
1985 – Gu Long, Taiwanese writer of wuxia novels (b. 1937)
1987 – Jaco Pastorius, American bassist (b. 1951)
1988 – Glenn Robert Davis, member of United States Congress (b. 1914)
1995 – Rudy Perpich, American politician (b. 1928)
1997 – Jennifer Holt, American actress (b. 1920)
1998 – Florence Griffith Joyner, American athlete (b. 1959)
2000 – Bryan Smith, Man who ran over Stephen King (b. 1957)
2002 – Robert L. Forward, American physicist and writer (b. 1932)
2004 – Barry Noble Wakeman, American naturalist and educator (b. 1939)
2004 – Bob Mason, British actor (b. 1952)
2006 – Boz Burrell, English rock musician (b. 1946)
2007 – Hallgeir Brenden, Norwegian Olympic gold medalist (b. 1929)
2007 – Alice Ghostley, American actress (b. 1926)
2007 – Rex Humbard, American television evangelist (b. 1919)
Holidays and observances
International Day of Peace
Roman Catholic Saints – Matthew the Evangelist
The Nativity of the Theotokos in Russia. Also see September 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Independence Day in Malta (1964), Belize (1981) & Armenia (1991)
Mabon – Neopagan festival of Mabon
In ancient Greece, the eighth day of the Eleusinian Mysteries, when the secret rites in the Telesterion finish and the feast, Pannychis, begin
