Events
Below, the events of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
have the "WWII" prefix.
January
*
January
January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the first of seven months to have a length of 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the ...
–
August
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo and was originally named ''Sextilis'' in Latin because it was the 6th month in ...
– 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at
Hadamar Euthanasia Centre
The Hadamar killing centre (german: NS-Tötungsanstalt Hadamar) was a killing facility involved in the Nazi "involuntary euthanasia" programme known as ''Aktion T4''. It was housed within a psychiatric hospital located in the German town of Had ...
in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, in the first phase of mass killings under the
Action T4
(German, ) was a campaign of mass murder by involuntary euthanasia in Nazi Germany. The term was first used in post-war trials against doctors who had been involved in the killings. The name T4 is an abbreviation of 4, a street address of ...
program here.
*
January 1
January 1 or 1 January is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the yea ...
–
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
's Prime Minister
Plaek Phibunsongkhram
Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram ( th, แปลก พิบูลสงคราม ; alternatively transcribed as ''Pibulsongkram'' or ''Pibulsonggram''; 14 July 1897 – 11 June 1964), locally known as Marshal P. ( th, จอมพล ...
decrees January 1 as the official start of the
Thai solar calendar
The Thai solar calendar ( th, ปฏิทินสุริยคติ, , "solar calendar") was adopted by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) in 1888 CE as the Siamese version of the Gregorian calendar, replacing the Thai lunar calendar as the lega ...
new year (thus the previous year that began
April 1
Events Pre-1600
* 33 – According to one historian's account, Jesus Christ's Last Supper is held.
* 527 – Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne.
*1081 – Alexios I Kom ...
had only 9 months).
*
January 3
Events Pre-1600
*AD 69, 69 – The Roman legions on the Rhine refuse to declare their allegiance to Galba, instead proclaiming their legate, Aulus Vitellius, as emperor.
* 250 – Emperor Decius orders everyone in the Roman Empire (ex ...
– A decree (''Normalschrifterlass'') promulgated in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
by
Martin Bormann
Martin Ludwig Bormann (17 June 1900 – 2 May 1945) was a German Nazi Party official and head of the Nazi Party Chancellery. He gained immense power by using his position as Adolf Hitler's private secretary to control the flow of information ...
, on behalf of
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
, requires replacement of
blackletter
Blackletter (sometimes black letter), also known as Gothic script, Gothic minuscule, or Textura, was a script used throughout Western Europe from approximately 1150 until the 17th century. It continued to be commonly used for the Danish, Norweg ...
typeface
A typeface (or font family) is the design of lettering that can include variations in size, weight (e.g. bold), slope (e.g. italic), width (e.g. condensed), and so on. Each of these variations of the typeface is a font.
There are list of type ...
s by
Antiqua.
*
January 4
Events Pre-1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar fights Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina.
* 871 – Battle of Reading: Æthelred of Wessex and his brother Alfred are defeated by a Danish invasion army.
1601–1900
*1649 – Engli ...
– The short subject ''
Elmer's Pet Rabbit
''Elmer's Pet Rabbit'' is a 1941 Warner Bros. ''Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on January 4, 1941, and features Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny.
This is the first cartoon in which the name Bugs Bunny is give ...
'' is released, marking the second appearance of
Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny is an animated cartoon character created in the late 1930s by Leon Schlesinger Productions (later Warner Bros. Cartoons) and voiced originally by Mel Blanc. Bugs is best known for his starring roles in the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' ...
, and also the first to have his name on a title card.
*
January 5
Events Pre-1600
*1477 – Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is defeated and killed in a conflict with René II, Duke of Lorraine; Duchy of Burgundy, Burgundy subsequently becomes part of France.
1601–1900
*1675 – Battle of Turckh ...
– WWII:
Battle of Bardia
The Battle of Bardia was fought between 3 and 5 January 1941, as part of Operation Compass, the first British military operation of the Western Desert campaign of the Second World War. It was the first battle of the war in which an Australian ...
in
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
: Australian and British troops defeat
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
forces, the first battle of the war in which an
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
formation takes part.
*
January 6
Events Pre-1600
*1066 – Following the death of Edward the Confessor on the previous day, the Witan meets to confirm Harold Godwinson as the new King of England; Harold is crowned the same day, sparking a succession crisis that will eve ...
** During his
State of the Union
The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to a joint session of the United States Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current conditio ...
address,
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
presents his
Four Freedoms
The Four Freedoms were goals articulated by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Monday, January 6, 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freed ...
, as fundamental global
human rights
Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...
.
** The keel of battleship is laid at the
New York Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a ...
in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
.
*
January 10
Events Pre-1600
*49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war.
* 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and the be ...
– The
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
Act is introduced into the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
.
*
January 11
Events Pre-1600
* 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence.
* 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhamma ...
– WWII: The British
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
light cruiser is bombed, catches fire and has to be sunk off
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, with the loss of 81 crew.
*
January 13
Events Pre-1600
* 27 BC – Octavian transfers the state to the free disposal of the Roman Senate and the people. He receives Spain, Gaul, and Syria as his province for ten years.
* 532 – The Nika riots break out, during the racing ...
– All persons born in
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
since this day are declared U.S. citizens by birth, through U.S. federal law.
*
January 14
Events Pre-1600
*1236 – King Henry III of England marries Eleanor of Provence.
*1301 – Andrew III of Hungary dies, ending the Árpád dynasty in Hungary.
1601–1900
*1639 – The "Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, Fundamenta ...
** WWII:
Commerce raiding
Commerce raiding (french: guerre de course, "war of the chase"; german: Handelskrieg, "trade war") is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than enga ...
German auxiliary cruiser ''Pinguin'' captures the Norwegian whaling fleet near
Bouvet Island
Bouvet Island ( ; or ''Bouvetøyen'') is an island claimed by Norway, and declared an uninhabited protected nature reserve. It is a subantarctic volcanic island, situated in the South Atlantic Ocean at the southern end of the Mid-Atlantic Ri ...
, effectively ending
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean, also known as the Antarctic Ocean, comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60° S latitude and encircling Antarctica. With a size of , it is regarded as the second-small ...
whaling
Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution.
It was practiced as an organized industry ...
for the duration of the war.
** In a BBC radio broadcast from London,
Victor de Laveleye
Victor Auguste de Laveleye (6 November 1894 – 14 December 1945) was a Belgian liberal politician and minister. He also served as announcer on '' Radio Belgique'' during World War II.
De Laveleye was a doctor in law, and was municipality Counci ...
asks all Belgians to use the letter "V" as a rallying sign, being the first letter of ''victoire'' (victory) in French and of ''vrijheid'' (freedom) in Dutch. This is the beginning of the "V campaign" which sees "V" graffities on the walls of Belgium and later all of Europe and introduces the use of the "
V sign
The ''V sign'' is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted to make a V shape while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the circumstances and how it is presented.
When display ...
" for victory and freedom.
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
adopts the sign soon afterwards, though he sometimes gets it the wrong way around and uses the common insult gesture.
*
January 15
Events Pre-1600
* 69 – Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor of Rome, beginning a reign of only three months.
* 1541 – King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to settle the province of ...
–
John Vincent Atanasoff
John Vincent Atanasoff, , (October 4, 1903 – June 15, 1995) was an American physicist and inventor from mixed Bulgarian-Irish origin, best known for being credited with inventing the first electronic digital computer.
Atanasoff invented the ...
and
Clifford Berry
Clifford Edward Berry (April 19, 1918 – October 30, 1963) helped John Vincent Atanasoff create the first digital electronic computer in 1939, the Atanasoff–Berry computer (ABC).
Biography
Clifford Berry was born April 19, 1918, in Gladbr ...
describe the workings of the
Atanasoff–Berry computer in print.
*
January 19
Events Pre-1600
* 379 – Emperor Gratian elevates Flavius Theodosius at Sirmium to ''Augustus'', and gives him authority over all the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.
* 649 – Conquest of Kucha: The forces of Kucha surrender ...
– WWII: British troops attack Italian-held
Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
in Africa.
*
January 20
Events Pre-1600
* 250 – Pope Fabian is martyred during the Decian persecution.
* 649 – King Chindasuinth, at the urging of bishop Braulio of Zaragoza, crowns his son Recceswinth as co-ruler of the Visigothic Kingdom.
* 1156 &ndas ...
–
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
is
sworn in
Traditionally an oath (from Anglo-Saxon ', also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to giv ...
for a third term as President of the United States.
*
January 22
Events Pre-1600
* 613 – Eight-month-old Constantine is crowned as co-emperor (''Caesar'') by his father Heraclius at Constantinople.
* 871 – Battle of Basing: The West Saxons led by King Æthelred I are defeated by the Danelaw Vi ...
** WWII:
Battle of Tobruk: Australian and British forces capture
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...
from the Italians.
** In
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
,
Victor Hasselblad
Victor Hasselblad (8 March 1906 – 5 August 1978) was a Swedish inventor and photographer, known for inventing the Hasselblad 6x6 cm medium format camera.
Life and work
Hasselblad was born in Gothenburg. In 1940 Swedish Air Force officers re ...
registers the
Hasselblad
Victor Hasselblad AB is a Swedish manufacturer of medium format cameras, photographic equipment and image scanners based in Gothenburg, Sweden. The company originally became known for its classic analog medium-format cameras that used a waist- ...
Camera Company.
*
January 23
Events Pre-1600
* 393 – Roman emperor Theodosius I proclaims his eight-year-old son Honorius co-emperor.
* 971 – Using crossbows, Song dynasty troops soundly defeat a war elephant corps of the Southern Han at Shao.
*1264 & ...
– Aviator
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
testifies before the
U.S. Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...
, and recommends that the United States negotiate a
neutrality pact with
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
.
*
January 27
Events Pre-1600
* 98 – Trajan succeeds his adoptive father Nerva as Roman emperor; under his rule the Roman Empire will reach its maximum extent.
* 945 – The co-emperors Stephen and Constantine are overthrown and forced to becom ...
– WWII:
Joseph Grew
Joseph Clark Grew (May 27, 1880 – May 25, 1965) was an American career diplomat and U.S. Foreign Service, Foreign Service officer. He is best known as the ambassador to Japan from 1932 to 1941 and as a high official in the State Department in W ...
, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, reports to Washington a rumor overheard at a diplomatic reception, concerning a planned surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
*
January 28
Events Pre-1600
* 98 – On the death of Nerva, Trajan is declared Roman emperor in Cologne, the seat of his government in lower Germany.
* 814 – The death of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor, brings about the accession o ...
–
Subhas Chandra Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose ( ; 23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*) was an Indian nationalist whose defiance of British authority in India made him a hero among Indians, but his wartime alliances with Nazi Germany and Imperia ...
, the chief of Indian national Army, reaches Kabul, Afghanistan by successfully evading the British authorities in British India.
*
January 30
Events Pre-1600
*1018 – Poland and the Holy Roman Empire conclude the Peace of Bautzen.
*1287 – King Wareru founds the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and proclaims independence from the Pagan Kingdom.
1601–1900
*1607 – An estimated ...
– WWII: Australians capture
Derna, Libya
Derna (; ar, درنة ') is a port city in eastern Libya. It has a population of 85,000–90,000. It was the seat of one of the wealthiest provinces in the Barbary States, and remains the capital of the Derna District, with a much smaller area. ...
, from the Italians.
February
*
February 3
Events Pre-1600
* 1112 – Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona, and Douce I, Countess of Provence, marry, uniting the fortunes of those two states.
*1451 – Sultan Mehmed II inherits the throne of the Ottoman Empire.
*1488 – ...
– WWII: The
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
forcibly restore
Pierre Laval
Pierre Jean Marie Laval (; 28 June 1883 – 15 October 1945) was a French politician. During the Third Republic, he served as Prime Minister of France from 27 January 1931 to 20 February 1932 and 7 June 1935 to 24 January 1936. He again occu ...
to the office of Prime Minister in occupied
Vichy France
Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...
.
*
February 4
Events Pre–1600
* 211 – Following the death of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus at Eboracum (modern York, England) while preparing to lead a campaign against the Caledonians, the empire is left in the control of his two quarrellin ...
– WWII: The
United Service Organization
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
(USO) is created to entertain American troops.
*
February 5
Events Pre-1600
* 62 – Earthquake in Pompeii, Italy.
* 1576 – Henry of Navarre abjures Catholicism at Tours and rejoins the Protestant forces in the French Wars of Religion.
* 1597 – A group of early Japanese Christians ar ...
– The
Air Training Corps
The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a British volunteer-military youth organisation. They are sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Air Force. The majority of staff are volunteers, and some are paid for full-time work – including C ...
is formed in the United Kingdom.
*
February 5
Events Pre-1600
* 62 – Earthquake in Pompeii, Italy.
* 1576 – Henry of Navarre abjures Catholicism at Tours and rejoins the Protestant forces in the French Wars of Religion.
* 1597 – A group of early Japanese Christians ar ...
–
April 1
Events Pre-1600
* 33 – According to one historian's account, Jesus Christ's Last Supper is held.
* 527 – Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne.
*1081 – Alexios I Kom ...
– WWII:
Battle of Keren
The Battle of Keren ( it, Battaglia di Cheren) took place from 3 February to 27 March 1941. Keren was attacked by the British during the East African Campaign of the Second World War. A force of Italian regular and colonial troops defended th ...
– British and
Free French Forces
__NOTOC__
The French Liberation Army (french: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (french: Forces françaises libres, l ...
fight hard to capture the strategic town of
Keren
Keren may refer to:
Places Inhabited places
* Keren, Eritrea, a city in Eritrea, formerly called Cheren
* Keren Subregion, Anseba region, Eritrea
Other places
* House of Keren, a historical house in Taganrog, Rostov Oblast, Russia
* Keren, a cr ...
, in
Italian Eritrea
Italian Eritrea ( it, Colonia Eritrea, "Colony of Eritrea") was a colony of the Kingdom of Italy in the territory of present-day Eritrea. The first Italian establishment in the area was the purchase of Assab by the Rubattino Shipping Company in ...
.
*
February 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1579 – The Archdiocese of Manila is made a diocese by a papal bull with Domingo de Salazar being its first bishop.
1601–1900
* 1685 – James II of England and VII of Scotland is proclaimed King upon the death of ...
– WWII:
Benghazi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
falls to the
Western Desert Force
The Western Desert Force (WDF) was a British Army formation (military), formation active in Egypt during the Western Desert Campaign of the World War II, Second World War.
On 17 June 1940, the headquarters of the 6th Infantry Division (United ...
. Lieutenant-General
Erwin Rommel
Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...
is appointed commander of
Afrika Korps
The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the ...
.
*
February 8
Events Pre-1600
* 421 – Constantius III becomes co-Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
* 1238 – The Mongols burn the Russian city of Vladimir.
*1250 – Seventh Crusade: Crusaders engage Ayyubid forces in the Battle of Al ...
– WWII: The U.S. House of Representatives passes the
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
Act.
*
February 9
Events Pre-1600
* 474 – Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
* 1003 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Poland.
* 1539 – The first recorded race is hel ...
–
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
, in a worldwide broadcast, tells the United States to show its support by sending arms to the British: "Give us the tools, and we will finish the job."
*
February 12
Events Pre-1600
*1404 – The Italian professor Galeazzo di Santa Sophie performed the first post-mortem autopsy for the purposes of teaching and demonstration at the Heiligen–Geist Spital in Vienna.
*1429 – English forces under ...
** WWII:
Erwin Rommel
Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel () (15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox (, ), he served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of Nazi Germany, as well as servi ...
arrives in
Tripoli
Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to:
Cities and other geographic units Greece
*Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...
.
** Reserve Constable
Albert Alexander, a patient at the
Radcliffe Infirmary
The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central north Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street.
History
The initial proposals to build a hospital in Oxford were put forw ...
in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, England, becomes the first person treated with
penicillin
Penicillins (P, PCN or PEN) are a group of β-lactam antibiotics originally obtained from ''Penicillium'' moulds, principally '' P. chrysogenum'' and '' P. rubens''. Most penicillins in clinical use are synthesised by P. chrysogenum using ...
intravenously, by
Howard Florey
Howard Walter Florey, Baron Florey (24 September 189821 February 1968) was an Australian pharmacologist and pathologist who shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945 with Sir Ernst Chain and Sir Alexander Fleming for his role in ...
's team. He reacts positively, but there is insufficient supply of the drug to reverse his terminal infection. A successful treatment is achieved during May.
*
February 13
Events Pre-1600
* 962 – Emperor Otto I and Pope John XII co-sign the ''Diploma Ottonianum'', recognizing John as ruler of Rome.
*1322 – The central tower of Ely Cathedral falls on the night of 12th–13th.
*1462 – The ...
– Aircraft from attack
Massawa
Massawa ( ; ti, ምጽዋዕ, məṣṣəwaʿ; gez, ምጽዋ; ar, مصوع; it, Massaua; pt, Maçuá) is a port city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea, located on the Red Sea at the northern end of the Gulf of Zula beside the Dahlak ...
in Eritrea.
*
February 14
Events Pre-1600
* 748 – Abbasid Revolution: The Hashimi rebels under Abu Muslim Khorasani take Merv, capital of the Umayyad province Khorasan, marking the consolidation of the Abbasid revolt.
* 842 – Charles the Bald and Louis ...
– WWII: Admiral
Kichisaburō Nomura
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and was the ambassador to the United States at the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Early life and career
Nomura was born in Wakayama city, Wakayama Prefecture. He graduated from the 26th class o ...
begins his duties as Japanese Ambassador to the United States.
*
February 19
Events Pre-1600
* 197 – Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies.
* 356 – The anti-paganism policy of Constantius II forbids the worship of pagan ...
–
22 – WWII:
Three Nights' Blitz over
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
, South Wales: Over these 3 nights of intensive bombing, which lasts a total of 13 hours and 48 minutes, Swansea's town centre is almost completely obliterated by the 896 high explosive bombs employed by the
Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
; 397 casualties and 230 deaths are reported.
*
February 22
Events Pre-1600
* 1076 – Having received a letter during the Lenten synod of 14–20 February demanding that he abdicate, Pope Gregory VII excommunicates Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1316 – The Battle of Picotin, between Ferdina ...
– WWII: bombards
Barawa
Barawa ( so, Baraawe, Maay Maay, Maay: ''Barawy'', ar, ﺑﺮﺍﻭة ''Barāwa''), also known as Barawe and Brava, is the capital city, capital of the South West State of Somalia, South West State of Somalia.Pelizzari, Elisa. "Guerre civile et ...
, on the coast between
Kismayo
Kismayo ( so, Kismaayo, Maay Maay, Maay: ''Kismanyy'', ar, كيسمايو, ; it, Chisimaio) is a port city in the southern Lower Juba (Jubbada Hoose) province of Somalia. It is the commercial capital of the autonomous Jubaland region.
The cit ...
and
Mogadishu
Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port ...
.
*
February 23
Events Pre-1600
* 303 – Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution.
* 532 – Byzantine emperor Justinian I lays the foundation stone of a ...
–
Glenn T. Seaborg
Glenn Theodore Seaborg (; April 19, 1912February 25, 1999) was an American chemist whose involvement in the synthesis, discovery and investigation of ten transuranium elements earned him a share of the 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His work in ...
isolates and discovers
plutonium
Plutonium is a radioactive chemical element with the symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibi ...
.
*
February 25
Events Pre-1600
* 138 – Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor.
* 628 – Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (Iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II.
...
– WWII:
** The occupied
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
starts the first popular uprising in Europe against the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
, the "
February strike
The February strike ( nl, Februaristaking) was a general strike in the German-occupied Netherlands in 1941, during World War II, organised by the then-outlawed Communist Party of the Netherlands in defence of persecuted Dutch Jews and against t ...
" against German
deportation
Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...
of Jews in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
and surroundings.
** British submarine attacks an Italian convoy, sinking the
cruiser ''Armando Diaz''.
*
February 27
Events Pre-1600
* 380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity.
* 425 – The University of Constantinople ...
– WWII: The
New Zealand Division
The New Zealand Division was an infantry division of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force raised for service in the First World War. It was formed in Egypt in early 1916 when the New Zealand and Australian Division was renamed after the detachmen ...
cruiser
HMS ''Leander'' (1931) sinks Italian armed merchant raider ''
Ramb I
The Italian ship ''Ramb I'' was a pre-war "banana boat" converted to an auxiliary cruiser in World War II. ''Ramb I'' operated as an armed merchant in the Red Sea and was ordered to sail to Japan after the fall of Massawa to the Allies. She was ...
'' off the
Maldives
Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...
.
March
*
March 1
Events Pre-1600
*509 BC – Publius Valerius Publicola celebrates the first Roman triumph, triumph of the Roman Republic after his victory over the deposed king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus at the Battle of Silva Arsia.
* 293 – Emperor ...
** WWII:
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
signs the
Tripartite Pact
The Tripartite Pact, also known as the Berlin Pact, was an agreement between Germany, Italy, and Japan signed in Berlin on 27 September 1940 by, respectively, Joachim von Ribbentrop, Galeazzo Ciano and Saburō Kurusu. It was a defensive military ...
, thus joining the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
.
**
Arthur L. Bristol
Arthur LeRoy Bristol, Jr. (July 15, 1886 – April 27, 1942) was a vice admiral in the United States Navy, who held important commands during World War I and World War II, and was an early aircraft carrier commander.
Early life and career
B ...
becomes Rear Admiral for the United States Navy's Support Force,
Atlantic Fleet.
*
March 4
Events Pre-1600
*AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title '' princeps iuventutis'' (head of the youth).
* 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia.
* 852 – Croatian Knez Trpimir I issues a st ...
– WWII:
Operation Claymore
Operation Claymore was a British commando raid on the Norwegian Lofoten Islands during the Second World War. The Lofoten Islands were an important centre for the production of fish oil and glycerine, used in the German war economy. The landings ...
– British Commandos carry out a successful raid on the
Lofoten Islands
Lofoten () is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Lofoten has distinctive scenery with dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches and untouched lands. There are two towns, Svolvær ...
, off the north coast of Norway.
*
March 8
Events Pre-1600
* 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem ''Shahnameh''.
*1126 – Following the death of his mother, queen Urraca of León, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of León.
* 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between bour ...
– WWII: The U.S. Senate passes the
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
Act.
*
March 11
Events Pre-1600
* 222 – Roman emperor Elagabalus is murdered alongside his mother, Julia Soaemias. He is replaced by his 14-year old cousin, Severus Alexander.
* 843 – Triumph of Orthodoxy: Empress Theodora II restores the venerati ...
– WWII:
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, President of the United States, signs the Lend-Lease Act into law, providing for the U.S. to provide
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
aid to the
Allies
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
.
*
March 15
Events Pre-1600
* 474 BC – Roman consul Aulus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years' truce.
*44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar takes place.
* 493 – Odoa ...
–
Richard C. Hottelet
Richard Curt Hottelet (September 22, 1917 – December 17, 2014) was an American broadcast journalist for the latter half of the twentieth century.
Hottelet was the last surviving member of the Murrow Boys, a World War II-era team of war correspo ...
is arrested by the
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...
on "suspicion of espionage", but eventually released in July as part of a
prisoner exchange
A prisoner exchange or prisoner swap is a deal between opposing sides in a conflict to release prisoners: prisoners of war, spies, hostages, etc. Sometimes, dead bodies are involved in an exchange.
Geneva Conventions
Under the Geneva Convent ...
with the U.S.
*
March 16
Events Pre-1600
* 934 – Meng Zhixiang declares himself emperor and establishes Later Shu as a new state independent of Later Tang.
*1190 – Massacre of Jews at Clifford's Tower, York.
* 1244 – Over 200 Cathars who refuse ...
– A group of U.S. warships arrive in
Auckland
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
, New Zealand, on a goodwill visit. On March 20, they arrive in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, Australia.
*
March 17
Events Pre-1600
* 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 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of eigh ...
** In
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, the
National Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of char ...
is officially opened by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
.
** British
Minister of Labour Minister of Labour (in British English) or Labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...
Ernest Bevin
Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 – 14 April 1951) was a British statesman, trade union leader, and Labour Party politician. He co-founded and served as General Secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union in the years 1922–19 ...
calls for women to fill vital jobs.
*
March 22
Events Pre-1600
* 106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea.
* 235 – Roman emperor Severus Alexander is murdered, marking the start of the Crisis of the Third Century.
* 871 – Æthelr ...
–
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
state's
Grand Coulee Dam
Grand Coulee Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. Constructed between 1933 and 1942, Grand Coulee originally had two powerhous ...
begins to generate electricity.
*
March 24
Events Pre-1600
* 1199 – King Richard I of England is wounded by a crossbow bolt while fighting in France, leading to his death on April 6.
*1387 – English victory over a Franco- Castilian-Flemish fleet in the Battle of Margate off ...
– WWII: Rommel launches his first offensive in
Cyrenaica
Cyrenaica ( ) or Kyrenaika ( ar, برقة, Barqah, grc-koi, Κυρηναϊκή παρχίαKurēnaïkḗ parkhíā}, after the city of Cyrene), is the eastern region of Libya. Cyrenaica includes all of the eastern part of Libya between ...
.
*
March 25
Events Pre-1600
* 421 – Italian city Venice is founded with the dedication of the first church, that of San Giacomo di Rialto on the islet of Rialto.
* 708 – Pope Constantine becomes the 88th pope. He would be the last pope to vi ...
– WWII: The
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
joins the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
.
*
March 27
Events Pre-1600
*1309 – Pope Clement V imposes excommunication and Interdict (Catholic canon law), interdiction on Venice, and a general prohibition of all commercial intercourse with Venice, which had seized on Ferrara, a papal fiefdom. ...
– WWII:
**
Battle of Cape Matapan
The Battle of Cape Matapan ( el, Ναυμαχία του Ταινάρου) was a naval battle during the Second World War between the Allies, represented by the navies of the United Kingdom and Australia, and the Royal Italian navy, from 27 ...
: Off the
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...
coast in the Mediterranean,
British naval forces defeat those of Italy, sinking 5 warships (the battle ends on
March 29
Events Pre-1600
* 845 – Paris is sacked by Viking raiders, probably under Ragnar Lodbrok, who collects a huge ransom in exchange for leaving.
* 1430 – The Ottoman Empire under Murad II captures Thessalonica from the Republic of ...
).
**
Yugoslav coup d'état
The Yugoslav coup d'état took place on 27 March 1941 in Belgrade, Kingdom of Yugoslavia, when the regency led by Prince Paul of Yugoslavia was overthrown and King Peter II fully assumed monarchical powers. The coup was planned and conducted ...
: An anti-Axis coup d'état in the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
led by General
Dušan Simović
Dušan Simović (; 28 October 1882 – 26 August 1962) was a Yugoslav Serb army general who served as Chief of the General Staff of the Royal Yugoslav Army and as the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia in 1940–1941.
Biography
Simović, born on 28 ...
, Brigadier General
Borivoje Mirković
Borivoje Mirković ( sr-Cyrl, Боривоје Мирковић; 23 September 1884 – 21 August 1969) was a brigadier general in the Royal Yugoslav Air Force.
Early life
Borivoje Mirković was born to Jovan and Smiljana Mirković on 23 Sep ...
, Colonels Dragutin Savić and Stjepan Burazović, Colonel General Miodrag Lazić,
Milorad Petrović
Milorad Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Милорад Петровић; 18 April 188212 June 1981) was an '' Armijski đeneral'' (lieutenant general) in the Royal Yugoslav Army who commanded the 1st Army Group during the April 1941 German-led Axis invasio ...
and many other general officers (with British support) forces
Prince Paul into exile; 17-year-old
King Peter II assumes power following the coup and
Simović Simović ( sr, Симовић, uk, Сімович) is a Serbo-Croatian and Ukrainian surname, a patronymic derived from given name '' Simo''. It is historically anglicized into ''Simovich''. It may refer to:
* Aleksandar Simović, co-conspirator ...
is elected new
Prime Minister of Yugoslavia
The prime minister of Yugoslavia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Премијер Југославије, Premijer Jugoslavije) was the head of government of the Yugoslavia, Yugoslav state, from the Creation of Yugoslavia, creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croa ...
.
**
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese spy
Takeo Yoshikawa
was a Japanese spy in Hawaii before the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
Early career
A 1933 graduate of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy at Etajima (graduating at the top of his class), Yoshikawa served briefly at sea aboard the ...
arrives in
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
, to study the
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor ...
at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
, in preparation for a future attack.
*
March 30
Events Pre-1600
* 598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague.
* 1282 &ndas ...
– WWII:
** All German, Italian and Danish ships anchored in United States waters are taken into "protective custody".
** A German
Lorenz cipher
The Lorenz SZ40, SZ42a and SZ42b were German rotor stream cipher machines used by the German Army during World War II. They were developed by C. Lorenz AG in Berlin. The model name ''SZ'' was derived from ''Schlüssel-Zusatz'', meaning ''cipher ...
machine operator sends a 4,000-character message twice, allowing British mathematician
Bill Tutte
William Thomas Tutte OC FRS FRSC (; 14 May 1917 – 2 May 2002) was an English and Canadian codebreaker and mathematician. During the Second World War, he made a brilliant and fundamental advance in cryptanalysis of the Lorenz cipher, a majo ...
to decipher the machine's coding mechanism.
April
*
April
April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian and Julian calendars. It is the first of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the second of five months to have a length of less than 31 days.
April is commonly associated with ...
– The
Valley of Geysers
The Valley of Geysers (russian: Долина гейзеров) is a geyser field on Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, and has the second largest concentration of geysers in the world. This basin with approximately ninety geysers and many hot springs i ...
is discovered on the
Kamchatka Peninsula
The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and we ...
of Russia, by
Tatyana Ustinova
Tatyana Ustinova (November 14, 1913, Alushta — September 4, 2009, Vancouver) was a USSR, Soviet geologist, who discovered Valley of Geysers in Kamchatka.
Biography
Tatyana Ustinova graduated from Kharkiv University and subsequently worked on p ...
.
*
April 1
Events Pre-1600
* 33 – According to one historian's account, Jesus Christ's Last Supper is held.
* 527 – Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne.
*1081 – Alexios I Kom ...
–
A military coup d'état, launched by
Rashid Ali Al-Gaylani
Rashid Ali al-Gaylaniin Arab standard pronunciation Rashid Aali al-Kaylani; also transliterated as Sayyid Rashid Aali al-Gillani, Sayyid Rashid Ali al-Gailani or sometimes Sayyad Rashid Ali el Keilany (" Sayyad" serves to address higher standing ...
, overthrows the pro-British regime in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
.
*
April 4
Events Pre-1600
* 503 BC – Roman consul Agrippa Menenius Lanatus celebrates a triumph for a military victory over the Sabines.
* 190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground.
* 611 – ...
– WWII: Axis forces capture
Benghazi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
.
*
April 6
Events Pre–1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato (Cato the Younger) at the Battle of Thapsus.
* 402 – Stilicho defeats the Visigoths under Alaric in the Battle of Pollentia.
*132 ...
– WWII: Germany
invades Yugoslavia and the
Battle of Greece
The German invasion of Greece, also known as the Battle of Greece or Operation Marita ( de , Unternehmen Marita, links = no), was the attack of Greece by Italy and Germany during World War II. The Italian invasion in October 1940, which is usu ...
begins.
*
April 9
Events Pre-1600
* 193 – The distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum.
* 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (''Enkyklikon'') to the bishops of his empire, s ...
– The U.S. acquires full military defense rights in
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...
.
*
April 10
Events Pre-1600
* 428 – Nestorius becomes the Patriarch of Constantinople.
* 837 – Halley's Comet makes its closest approach to Earth at a distance equal to 0.0342 AU (5.1 million kilometres/3.2 million miles).
* 1407 ...
– WWII:
** U.S. destroyer , while picking up survivors from a sunken Dutch freighter, drops depth charges on a German
U-boat
U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...
(the first "shot in anger" fired by America against Germany).
** The
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
, a
puppet state
A puppet state, puppet régime, puppet government or dummy government, is a State (polity), state that is ''de jure'' independent but ''de facto'' completely dependent upon an outside Power (international relations), power and subject to its o ...
of the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
, is established with
Ustashe leader
Ante Pavelić
Ante Pavelić (; 14 July 1889 – 28 December 1959) was a Croatian politician who founded and headed the fascist ultranationalist organization known as the Ustaše in 1929 and served as dictator of the Independent State of Croatia ( hr, l ...
as head (''
Poglavnik
() was the title used by Ante Pavelić, leader of the World War II Croatian movement Ustaše and of the Independent State of Croatia between 1941 and 1945.
Etymology and usage
The word was first recorded in a 16th-century dictionary compiled ...
'') of the government.
*
April 12
Events Pre-1600
* 240 – Shapur I becomes co-emperor of the Sasanian Empire with his father Ardashir I.
* 467 – Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
* 627 – King Edwin of Northumbria is converted ...
– WWII: German troops enter
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
.
*
April 13
Events Pre-1600
*1111 – Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.
1601–1900
*1612 – In one of the epic samurai ...
– The
Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact
The , also known as the , was a non-aggression pact between the Soviet Union and the Empire of Japan signed on April 13, 1941, two years after the conclusion of the Soviet-Japanese Border War. The agreement meant that for most of World War II, ...
is signed.
*
April 15
Events Pre-1600
* 769 – The Lateran Council ends by condemning the Council of Hieria and anathematizing its iconoclastic rulings.
* 1071 – Bari, the last Byzantine possession in southern Italy, is surrendered to Robert Guiscar ...
– WWII: Axis forces reach
Halfaya Pass
Halfaya Pass ( ar, ممر حلفيا, translit=Mamarr Ḥalfayā ) is in northwest Egypt, 11.5 kilometres east of the border with Libya and 7.5 kilometres south of the other, more major pass in the ridge today. A high, narrow escarpment extends ...
, on the Libyan-Egyptian frontier.
*
April 18
Events Pre-1600
* 796 – King Æthelred I of Northumbria is murdered in Corbridge by a group led by his ealdormen, Ealdred and Wada. The ''patrician'' Osbald is crowned, but abdicates within 27 days.
* 1428 – Peace of Ferrara betw ...
– WWII:
** The Yugoslav Royal Army capitulates.
** Greek Prime Minister
Alexandros Koryzis
Alexandros Koryzis ( el, Αλέξανδρος Κορυζής; 1885 – 18 April 1941) was a Greek politician who served briefly as the prime minister of Greece in 1941.
Career
Koryzis assumed this role on 29 January 1941, when his predecessor, ...
commits suicide as German troops approach
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
.
*
April 19
Events Pre-1600
*AD 65 – The freedman Milichus betrays Piso's plot to kill the Emperor Nero and all the conspirators are arrested.
* 531 – Battle of Callinicum: A Byzantine army under Belisarius is defeated by the Persians at ...
–
Bertolt Brecht
Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...
's anti-war play ''
Mother Courage and Her Children
''Mother Courage and Her Children'' (german: Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder, links=no) is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical ...
'' (german: Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder) receives its first theatrical production, at the
Schauspielhaus Zürich
The Schauspielhaus Zürich ( en, Zürich playhouse) is one of the most prominent and important theatres in the German-speaking world. It is also known as "Pfauenbühne" (Peacock Stage). The large theatre has 750 seats. The also operates three st ...
.
*
April 21
Events Pre-1600
*753 BC – Romulus founds Rome ( traditional date).
* 43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is murdered ...
– WWII: Greece capitulates.
Commonwealth
A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
troops and some elements of the
Greek Army
The Hellenic Army ( el, Ελληνικός Στρατός, Ellinikós Stratós, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term ''Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the ...
withdraw to
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
.
*
April 23
Events Pre-1600
* 215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene.
* 599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in southe ...
– The
America First Committee
The America First Committee (AFC) was the foremost United States isolationist pressure group against American entry into World War II. Launched in September 1940, it surpassed 800,000 members in 450 chapters at its peak. The AFC principally supp ...
holds its first mass rally in New York City, with
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
as keynote speaker.
*
April 25
Events Pre-1600
* 404 BC – Admiral Lysander and King Pausanias of Sparta blockade Athens and bring the Peloponnesian War to a successful conclusion.
* 775 – The Battle of Bagrevand puts an end to an Armenian rebellion against the ...
–
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, at his regular press conference, criticizes Charles Lindbergh by comparing him to the
Copperheads of the Civil War period. In response, Lindbergh resigns his commission in the U.S. Army Air Corps Reserve on
April 28
Events Pre-1600
* 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V effectively ending the Parthian Empire.
* 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory ...
.
*
April 27
Events Pre-1600
* 247 – Philip the Arab marks the millennium of Rome with a celebration of the ''ludi saeculares''.
* 395 – Emperor Arcadius marries Aelia Eudoxia, daughter of the Frankish general Flavius Bauto. She becomes one of ...
– WWII: German troops enter
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
.
*
April 28
Events Pre-1600
* 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V effectively ending the Parthian Empire.
* 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory ...
–
World War II persecution of Serbs
The Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Genocid nad Srbima u Nezavisnoj Državi Hrvatskoj, separator=" / ", Геноцид над Србима у Независној Држави Хрватској) was the sys ...
:
Gudovac massacre
The Gudovac massacre was the mass killing of around 190 Bjelovar Serbs by the Croatian nationalist Ustaše movement on 28 April 1941, during World War II. The massacre occurred shortly after the German-led Axis invasion of Yugoslavia and the e ...
– Members of the
Croatian nationalist
Croatian nationalism is nationalism that asserts the nationality of Croats and promotes the cultural unity of Croats.
Modern Croatian nationalism first arose in the 19th century after Budapest exerted increasing pressure for Magyarization of Cro ...
Ustashe movement kill around 190
Bjelovar
Bjelovar ( hu, Belovár, german: Bellowar, Kajkavian: ''Belovar'') is a city in central Croatia. It is the administrative centre of Bjelovar-Bilogora County. At the 2021 census, there were 36,433 inhabitants, of whom 93.06% were Croats.
History ...
Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
in the village of
Gudovac
Gudovac is a village in Croatia. It lies near to Bjelovar and about east of the Croatian capital of Zagreb.
Gudovac was first settled during the Middle Ages and had an ethnically mixed population through much of its history. In 1931, Gudovac ha ...
, in the
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
.
May
*
May 1
Events Pre-1600
* 305 – Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman emperor.
* 880 – The Nea Ekklesia is inaugurated in Constantinople, setting the model for all later cross-in-square Orthodox churches.
* 1169 &ndas ...
** The breakfast cereal ''
Cheerios
Cheerios is a brand of cereal manufactured by General Mills in the United States, consisting of pulverized oats in the shape of a solid torus. In some countries, including the United Kingdom, Cheerios is marketed by Cereal Partners under the Ne ...
'' is introduced as ''
CheeriOats
Cheerios is a brand of cereal manufactured by General Mills in the United States, consisting of pulverized oats in the shape of a solid torus. In some countries, including the United Kingdom, Cheerios is marketed by Cereal Partners under the N ...
'' by
General Mills
General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...
in the United States.
**
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...
' film ''
Citizen Kane
''Citizen Kane'' is a 1941 American drama film produced by, directed by, and starring Orson Welles. He also co-wrote the screenplay with Herman J. Mankiewicz. The picture was Welles' first feature film. ''Citizen Kane'' is frequently cited ...
'' premieres in New York City.
** The first Defense Bonds and Defense Savings Stamps go on sale in the United States, to help fund the greatly increased production of military equipment.
*
May 2
Events Pre-1600
* 1194 – King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.
* 1230 – William de Braose is hanged by Prince Llywelyn the Great.
* 1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, is arrested and impris ...
–
Anglo-Iraqi War
The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq under Rashid Gaylani, who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état, with assistance from Germany and Italy. The c ...
: British combat operations against the rebel government of
Rashid Ali
Rashid Ali al-Gaylaniin Arab standard pronunciation Rashid Aali al-Kaylani; also transliterated as Sayyid Rashid Aali al-Gillani, Sayyid Rashid Ali al-Gailani or sometimes Sayyad Rashid Ali el Keilany ("Sayyid, Sayyad" serves to address higher st ...
in the
Kingdom of Iraq
The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq ( ar, المملكة العراقية الهاشمية, translit=al-Mamlakah al-ʿIrāqiyyah ʾal-Hāshimyyah) was a state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958.
It was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdo ...
begin.
*
May 5
Events Pre-1600
* 553 – The Second Council of Constantinople begins.
*1215 – Rebel barons renounce their allegiance to King John of England — part of a chain of events leading to the signing of the Magna Carta.
* 1260 – Ku ...
– WWII: Emperor
Haile Selassie
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...
enters
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
, which has been liberated from Italian forces; this date is subsequently commemorated as
Liberation Day
Liberation Day is a day, often a public holiday, that marks the liberation of a place, similar to an independence day. Liberation marks the date of either a revolution, as in Cuba, the fall of a dictatorship, as in Portugal, or the end of an oc ...
in
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
.
*
May 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1527 – Spanish and German troops sack Rome; many scholars consider this the end of the Renaissance.
*1536 – The Siege of Cuzco commences, in which Incan forces attempt to retake the city of Cuzco from the Spanis ...
– At
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
's
March Field
March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Ma ...
, entertainer
Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...
performs his first
USO
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
Show.
*
May 8
Events Pre-1600
* 453 BC – Spring and Autumn period: The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin.
* 413 – Emperor Honorius signs a ...
– WWII: The
German auxiliary cruiser ''Pinguin'' is sunk by in the Indian Ocean; 555 are killed.
*
May 9
Events Pre-1600
* 328 – Athanasius is elected Patriarch of Alexandria.
*1009 – Lombard Revolt: Lombard forces led by Melus revolt in Bari against the Byzantine Catepanate of Italy.
*1386 – England and Portugal formally rati ...
– WWII: is captured by the British
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
. On board is the latest
Enigma cryptography machine, which Allied cryptographers later use to break coded German messages.
*
May 10
Events Pre-1600
* 28 BC – A sunspot is observed by Han dynasty astronomers during the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han, one of the earliest dated sunspot observations in China.
*1291 – Scottish nobles recognize the authority of Edw ...
** WWII: The
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England.
The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...
is damaged by the
Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
, in an
air raid on London.
**
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess (Heß in German; 26 April 1894 – 17 August 1987) was a German politician and a leading member of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany. Appointed Deputy Führer to Adolf Hitler in 1933, Hess held that position unt ...
parachutes into Scotland, claiming to be on a peace mission.
*
May 11
Events 1601–1900
*1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is Assassination of Spencer Perceval, assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons.
*1813 – William Lawson (explorer), William Lawson, Grego ...
/
May 12
Events Pre-1600
* 254 – Pope Stephen I succeeds Pope Lucius I, becoming the 23rd pope of the Catholic Church, and immediately takes a stand against Novatianism.
* 907 – Zhu Wen forces Emperor Ai into abdicating, ending the Tang d ...
– WWII: The Ustaše
massacre
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
260–373
Serb
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
men in a Catholic church in
Glina, Croatia
Glina is a town in central Croatia, located southwest of Petrinja and Sisak in the Sisak-Moslavina County. It lies on the eponymous river of Glina.
History Early history
Glina was first mentioned as a city in June 1284. Later in September 1737 ...
, where the men have assembled to be received into the Catholic faith in exchange for their lives.
*
May 12
Events Pre-1600
* 254 – Pope Stephen I succeeds Pope Lucius I, becoming the 23rd pope of the Catholic Church, and immediately takes a stand against Novatianism.
* 907 – Zhu Wen forces Emperor Ai into abdicating, ending the Tang d ...
–
Konrad Zuse
Konrad Ernst Otto Zuse (; 22 June 1910 – 18 December 1995) was a German civil engineer, pioneering computer scientist, inventor and businessman. His greatest achievement was the world's first programmable computer; the functional program-c ...
presents the
Z3, the world's first working programmable, fully automatic
computer
A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...
, in Berlin.
*
May 13
Events Pre-1600
*1373 – Julian of Norwich has visions of Jesus while suffering from a life-threatening illness, visions which are later described and interpreted in her book '' Revelations of Divine Love''.
* 1501 – Amerigo Vespu ...
– WWII:
Yugoslav General
Draža Mihailović
Dragoljub "Draža" Mihailović ( sr-Cyrl, Драгољуб Дража Михаиловић; 27 April 1893 – 17 July 1946) was a Yugoslavs, Yugoslav Serb general during World War II. He was the leader of the Chetniks, Chetnik Detachments ...
and a group of 80 soldiers and officers cross the
Drina
The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long Balkans river, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Alps whic ...
river in
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
, arrive at
Ravna Gora, in western
Nazi-occupied Serbia and start fighting with German occupation troops.
*
May 15
Events Pre-1600
* 221 – Liu Bei, Chinese warlord, proclaims himself emperor of Shu Han, the successor of the Han dynasty.
* 392 – Emperor Valentinian II is assassinated while advancing into Gaul against the Frankish usurper Arbog ...
** The first British jet aircraft, the
Gloster E.28/39, is flown.
**
Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak
During the 1941 Major League Baseball (MLB) season, New York Yankees center fielder Joe DiMaggio recorded at least one hit in 56 consecutive games, breaking the MLB record for the longest hitting streak. His run lasted from May 15 to July 16, dur ...
begins, as the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
'
center fielder
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the c ...
goes 1 for 4 against
Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and p ...
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...
Eddie Smith in baseball.
*
May 19
Events
Pre-1600
* 639 – Ashina Jiesheshuai and his tribesmen assaulted Emperor Taizong at Jiucheng Palace.
* 715 – Pope Gregory II is elected.
* 1051 – Henry I of France marries the Rus' princess, Anne of Kiev.
*1445 &n ...
– The
Viet Minh
The Việt Minh (; abbreviated from , chữ Nôm and Hán tự: ; french: Ligue pour l'indépendance du Viêt Nam, ) was a national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1941. Also known as the Việt Minh Fro ...
is formed at
Pác Bó
Pác Bó is a small village in Cao Bằng province, northern Vietnam, 3 km from the Chinese border.
"Pác Bó" in Tày language means “the beginning of the source”.
Near this village is a cave, ''Hang Cốc Bó'' (today often called ''H ...
in
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
, to overthrow
French rule of the nation, as an alliance between the Indochina Communist party, led by
Ho Chi Minh
(: ; born ; 19 May 1890 – 2 September 1969), commonly known as ('Uncle Hồ'), also known as ('President Hồ'), (' Old father of the people') and by other aliases, was a Vietnamese revolutionary and statesman. He served as Prime ...
, and the Nationalist party. It will become the
Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
.
*
May 20
Events Pre-1600
* 325 – The First Council of Nicaea is formally opened, starting the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church.
* 491 – Empress Ariadne marries Anastasius I. The widowed '' Augusta'' is able to choose her ...
– WWII: The
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...
begins, as Germany launches an airborne invasion of
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
, the first mainly airborne invasion in military history.
*
May 21
Events Pre-1600
* 293 – Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as ''Caesar (title), Caesar'' to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
* 878 – Syracuse, Sicily, is Siege of Syracuse ...
– sinks the U.S.-flagged off the west African coast, having allowed the passengers and crew to disembark.
*
May 24
Events Pre-1600
* 919 – The nobles of Franconia and Saxony elect Henry the Fowler at the Imperial Diet in Fritzlar as king of the East Frankish Kingdom.
* 1218 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
* 1276 – Magnus La ...
– WWII:
** In the North Atlantic, sinks
battlecruiser
The battlecruiser (also written as battle cruiser or battle-cruiser) was a type of capital ship of the first half of the 20th century. These were similar in displacement, armament and cost to battleships, but differed in form and balance of attr ...
, killing all but 3 crewmen, from a total of 1,418 aboard the pride of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
.
** British submarine torpedoes and sinks Italian ocean liner .
*
May 26
Events Pre-1600
* 17 – Germanicus celebrates a triumph in Rome for his victories over the Cherusci, Chatti, and other German tribes west of the Elbe.
* 451 – Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sasanian Empire take ...
– WWII: In the North Atlantic,
Fairey Swordfish
The Fairey Swordfish is a biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was also used ...
aircraft from the carrier cripple the steering of in an
aerial torpedo
An aerial torpedo (also known as an airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo) is a torpedo launched from a torpedo bomber aircraft into the water, after which the weapon propels itself to the target.
First used in World War I, air-dropped torped ...
attack.
*
May 27
Events Pre-1600
* 1096 – Count Emicho enters Mainz, where his followers massacre Jewish citizens. At least 600 Jews are killed.
* 1120 – Richard III of Capua is anointed as Prince two weeks before his untimely death.
* 1153 &ndash ...
** WWII:
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, President of the United States, proclaims an "unlimited national emergency."
** WWII:
German battleship ''Bismarck'' is sunk in the North Atlantic, killing 2,300. It is eventually found in
1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...
.
** The
Swiss Socialist Federation The Swiss Socialist Federation (french: Fédération socialiste suisse, abbreviated FSS) was a political party in Switzerland.
Founding
The FSS emerged from a split in the Swiss Socialist Party in 1939. On September 16, 1939 the Swiss Socialist Par ...
is banned.
*
May 29
Events Pre-1600
* 363 – The Roman emperor Julian defeats the Sasanian army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Sasanian capital, but is unable to take the city.
* 1108 – Battle of Uclés: Almoravid troops under ...
– The
Disney animators' strike
The Disney animators' strike in 1941 reflected anger at inequities of pay and privileges at the non-unionized Walt Disney Productions. Walt Disney responded to the five-week strike by firing many of his animators, but was eventually pressured in ...
occurs, due to
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
refusing to recognize his animators and their low pay.
*
May 30
Events Pre-1600
* 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus and his Roman legions breach the Second Wall of Jerusalem. Jewish defenders retreat to the First Wall. The Romans build a circumvallation, cutting down all trees within fifteen kilometres ...
– WWII:
Manolis Glezos
Manolis Glezos ( el, Μανώλης Γλέζος; 9 September 1922 – 30 March 2020) was a Greek left-wing politician, journalist, author, and folk hero, best known for his participation in the World War II resistance.
In Greece, he is best r ...
and
Apostolos Santas
Apostolos Santas ( el, Απόστολος Σάντας; 22 February 1922 – 30 April 2011), commonly known as Lakis, was a Greek veteran of the Resistance against the Axis Occupation of Greece during World War II, most notable for his particip ...
tear down the
Nazi swastika
The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...
on the
Acropolis
An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...
in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, and replace it with the
Greek flag
The national flag of Greece, popularly referred to as the "blue and white one" ( el, Γαλανόλευκη, ) or the "sky blue and white" (, ), is officially recognised by Greece as one of its national symbols and has nine equal horizontal strip ...
.
*
May 31
Events Pre-1600
* 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome.
* 1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat K ...
–
Anglo-Iraqi War
The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq under Rashid Gaylani, who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état, with assistance from Germany and Italy. The c ...
: British troops complete the re-occupation of the
Kingdom of Iraq
The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq ( ar, المملكة العراقية الهاشمية, translit=al-Mamlakah al-ʿIrāqiyyah ʾal-Hāshimyyah) was a state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958.
It was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdo ...
, returning Prince
'Abd al-Ilah
'Abd al-Ilah of Hejaz, ( ar, عبد الإله; also written Abdul Ilah or Abdullah; 14 November 1913 – 14 July 1958) was a cousin and brother-in-law of King Ghazi of the Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq and was regent for his first-cousin once re ...
to power as regent for
Faisal II
Faisal II ( ar, الملك فيصل الثاني ''el-Melik Faysal es-Sânî'') (2 May 1935 – 14 July 1958) was the last King of Iraq. He reigned from 4 April 1939 until July 1958, when he was killed during the 14 July Revolution. This regici ...
.
June
*
June 1
Events Pre-1600
*1215 – Zhongdu (now Beijing), then under the control of the Jurchen people, Jurchen ruler Emperor Xuanzong of Jin, is captured by the Mongols under Genghis Khan, ending the Battle of Zhongdu.
*1252 – Alfonso X is pr ...
– WWII: The
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...
ends, as Crete surrenders to invading German forces.
*
June 4
Events Pre-1600
*1411 – King Charles VI granted a monopoly for the ripening of Roquefort cheese to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon as they had been doing for centuries.
* 1561 – The steeple of St Paul's, the medieval cathedr ...
**
Guidelines for the Conduct of the Troops in Russia Guidelines for the Conduct of the Troops in Russia was a " criminal order" issued on June 4th, 1941, during World War II. The guidelines detailed the expected behaviour of German troops during the Invasion of the Soviet Union. Civilians were include ...
are issued by Nazi high-command through OKW. This order (a lesser known precursor to the Commisar Order) explicitly commands that Jews (in addition to Bolshevik partisans and Commisars) be killed. In a sense, this order--in combination with the
Commissar Order
The Commissar Order (german: Kommissarbefehl) was an order issued by the German High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, OKW) on 6 June 1941 before Operation Barbarossa. Its official name was Guidelines for the Treatment of Political Commissars ...
about to be delivered, and Goring's instruction to Heydrich to look into logistics later in the month, that is mentioned at the beginning of the
Wannsee Conference of the following year--inaugurates the
European Holocaust of the Jews.
*
June 5
Events Pre-1600
*1257 – Kraków, in Poland, receives city rights.
*1283 – Battle of the Gulf of Naples: Roger of Lauria, admiral to King Peter III of Aragon, destroys the Neapolitan fleet and captures Charles II of Naples, Charles ...
**
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
: Four thousand
Chongqing
Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...
residents are asphyxiated in a bomb shelter, during the
Bombing of Chongqing
The bombing of Chongqing (, ja, 重慶爆撃), from 18 February 1938 to 23 August 1943, were massive terror bombing operations authorized by the Empire of Japan's Imperial General Headquarters and conducted by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Se ...
.
**
Smederevo Fortress explosion
The Smederevo Fortress Explosion was a disaster that occurred in Smederevo, then in the Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia (part of Kingdom of Yugoslavia under Nazi Germany, German occupation, now in modern Serbia), on the 5 June ...
: A Serbian ammunition depot explodes at
Smederevo
Smederevo ( sr-Cyrl, Смедерево, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Podunavlje District in eastern Serbia. It is situated on the right bank of the Danube, about downstream of the Serbian capital, Belgrade.
According to ...
on the outskirts of
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
,
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, killing 2,500 and injuring over 4,500.
*
June 6
Events Pre-1600
* 913 – Constantine VII, the eight-year-old illegitimate son of Leo VI the Wise, becomes nominal ruler of the Byzantine Empire under the regency of a seven-man council headed by Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos, appointed b ...
– WWII: The
Commissar Order
The Commissar Order (german: Kommissarbefehl) was an order issued by the German High Command (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht, OKW) on 6 June 1941 before Operation Barbarossa. Its official name was Guidelines for the Treatment of Political Commissars ...
is issued by ''
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'', requiring all Soviet
political commissars identified in
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
among captured forces to receive
summary execution
A summary execution is an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a full and fair trial. Executions as the result of summary justice (such as a drumhead court-martial) are sometimes include ...
.
*
June 8
Events Pre-1600
* 218 – Battle of Antioch: With the support of the Syrian legions, Elagabalus defeats the forces of emperor Macrinus.
* 452 – Attila leads a Hun army in the invasion of Italy, devastating the northern provinces ...
– WWII: British and
Free French
Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...
forces invade
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
.
*
June 13
Events Pre-1600
* 313 – The decisions of the Edict of Milan, signed by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Licinius, Valerius Licinius, granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, are published in Nicomedia.
*1325 – Ib ...
–
TASS
The Russian News Agency TASS (russian: Информацио́нное аге́нтство Росси́и ТАСС, translit=Informatsionnoye agentstvo Rossii, or Information agency of Russia), abbreviated TASS (russian: ТАСС, label=none) ...
, the official Soviet news agency, denies reports of tension between Germany and the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
.
*
June 14
Events Pre-1600
* 1158 – The city of Munich is founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Isar.
*1216 – First Barons' War: Prince Louis of France takes the city of Winchester, abandoned by John, King of England, and soo ...
**
June deportation
The June deportation ( et, juuniküüditamine, lv, jūnija deportācijas, lt, birželio trėmimai) was a Population transfer in the Soviet Union, mass deportation by the Soviet Union of tens of thousands of people from the Soviet occupation of t ...
:
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
officials deport about 65,000 people from
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
,
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
and
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
to
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
.
** All German and Italian assets in the United States are frozen.
*
June 16
Events Pre-1600
* 363 – Emperor Julian marches back up the Tigris and burns his fleet of supply ships. During the withdrawal, Roman forces suffer several attacks from the Persians.
* 632 – Yazdegerd III ascends the throne as king ...
** All German and Italian consulates in the United States are ordered closed, and their staffs to leave the country by July 10.
** WWII: British
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...
aircraft sink the
Vichy
Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais.
It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...
ship
''Chevalier Paul''.
*
June 18
Events Pre-1600
* 618 – Li Yuan becomes Emperor Gaozu of Tang, initiating three centuries of Tang dynasty rule over China.
* 656 – Ali becomes Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate.
* 860 – Byzantine–Rus' War: A fleet of about ...
– The
German–Turkish Treaty of Friendship
The German–Turkish Treaty of Friendship (german: Türkisch-Deutscher Freundschaftsvertrag, tr, Türk-Alman Dostluk Paktı) was a non-aggression pact signed between Nazi Germany and Turkey on 18 June 1941 in Ankara by German ambassador to Turke ...
is signed between
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
and
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, in
Ankara
Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...
.
*
June 20
Events Pre-1600
* 451 – Battle of Chalons: Flavius Aetius' battles Attila the Hun. After the battle, which was inconclusive, Attila retreats, causing the Romans to interpret it as a victory.
* 1180 – First Battle of Uji, starting ...
** The
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...
becomes the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
, with the earlier name reserved solely for the new USAAF's logistics and training elements.
** Walt Disney's live-action/animated feature ''
The Reluctant Dragon'' is released.
*
June 22
Events Pre-1600
* 217 BC – Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom.
* 168 BC – Battle of Pydna: Romans under Lucius Aemilius Paullus defeat Macedonian King Perseus ...
** WWII:
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
:
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
(with allies) invades the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and
declares war on it.
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
promises all possible British assistance to the Soviet Union in a worldwide broadcast: "Any man or state who fights against Nazidom will have our aid. Any man or state who marches with Hitler is our foe." Italy and
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
declare war on the Soviet Union.
** WWII: The
First Sisak Partisan Brigade
The Sisak People's Liberation Partisan Detachment ( sh, Sisački narodnooslobodilački partizanski odred), also known as the 1st Sisak Partisan Detachment (''1. Sisački partizanski odred''), was the first Partisan armed anti-fascist resistance un ...
, the first anti-fascist armed unit in occupied Europe, is founded by
Yugoslav partisans
The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
near
Sisak
Sisak (; hu, Sziszek ; also known by other alternative names) is a city in central Croatia, spanning the confluence of the Kupa, Sava and Odra rivers, southeast of the Croatian capital Zagreb, and is usually considered to be where the Posavin ...
,
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
.
**
June Uprising in Lithuania
The June Uprising ( lt, Birželio sukilimas) was a brief period in the history of Lithuania between the first Soviet occupation and the Nazi occupation in late June 1941. Approximately one year earlier, on June 15, 1940, the Red Army occupied Li ...
: A
Provisional Government of Lithuania
The Provisional Government of Lithuania ( lt, Laikinoji Vyriausybė) was a temporary government aiming for independent Lithuania during the last days of the first Soviet occupation and the first months of German Nazi occupation in 1941.
It w ...
is established by the
Lithuanian Activist Front
The Lithuanian Activist Front or LAF () was a short-lived, far-right underground resistance organization established in 1940 after Lithuania was incorporated by the Soviet Union. The goal of the organization was to liberate Lithuania and re-estab ...
, in an attempt to liberate
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
from
Soviet occupation
During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into two different ...
.
** Rapid escalation of the
Holocaust in Lithuania
The Holocaust in Lithuania resulted in the near total destruction of Lithuanian (Litvaks) and Polish Jews, living in ''Generalbezirk Litauen'' of ''Reichskommissariat Ostland'' within the Nazi-controlled Lithuanian SSR. Out of approximately 208 ...
: Between now and the end of the year, an estimated 190,000-195,000 out of 210,000
Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks () are Jews with roots in the territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania (covering present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, the northeastern Suwałki and Białystok regions of Poland, as well as adjacent areas ...
will be massacred, killing an estimated 95% of the nation's
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
population.
**
Rapid Vienna
Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence.
Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade''. ...
beats
Schalke 04
Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine ...
, in the final of the German ''Fottballchampionship'', after 0:3 with 4:3.
*
June 23
Events Pre-1600
* 229 – Sun Quan proclaims himself emperor of Eastern Wu.
* 1266 – War of Saint Sabas: In the Battle of Trapani, the Venetians defeat a larger Genoese fleet, capturing all its ships.
* 1280 – The Spanish Re ...
– WWII:
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
and
Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
declare war on the Soviet Union.
*
June 24
Events Pre-1600
* 1312 BC – Mursili II launches a campaign against the Kingdom of Azzi-Hayasa.
* 109 – Roman emperor Trajan inaugurates the Aqua Traiana, an aqueduct that channels water from Lake Bracciano, northwest of Rome.
* ...
** The
Soviet Information Bureau
Soviet Information Bureau (russian: Советское информационное бюро, translit=Sovetskoye informatsionnoye byuro, commonly known as Sovinformburo []) was a leading Soviet Union, Soviet news agency, operating from 1941 to 19 ...
, predecessor of RIA Novosti, is founded.
** Rainiai massacre: Approximately 80 political prisoners are killed by the
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union.
...
in Lithuania.
*
June 25
Events Pre-1600
* 524 – The Franks are defeated by the Burgundians in the Battle of Vézeronce.
* 841 – In the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye, forces led by Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeat the armies of Lothair I of ...
– WWII: Finland (as a
co-belligerent
Co-belligerence is the waging of a war in cooperation against a common enemy with or without a formal treaty of military alliance. Generally, the term is used for cases where no alliance exists. Likewise, allies may not become co-belligerents in a ...
with Germany) attacks the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, to start the
Continuation War
The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet-Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, as part of World War II.; sv, fortsättningskriget; german: Fortsetzungskrieg. A ...
.
*
June 28
Events Pre-1600
* 1098 – Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul at the battle of Antioch.
* 1360 – Muhammed VI becomes the tenth Nasrid king of Granada after killing his brother-in-law Ismail II.
* 1461 – ...
– WWII:
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
declares war on the Soviet Union.
*
June 28
Events Pre-1600
* 1098 – Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul at the battle of Antioch.
* 1360 – Muhammed VI becomes the tenth Nasrid king of Granada after killing his brother-in-law Ismail II.
* 1461 – ...
–
30 –
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
: The
Iași pogrom
The Iași pogrom (, sometimes anglicized as Jassy) was a series of pogroms launched by governmental forces under Marshal Ion Antonescu in the Romanian city of Iași against its Jewish community, which lasted from 29 June to 6 July 1941. Accord ...
takes place, killing "at least 13,266"
Romanian Jews
The history of the Jews in Romania concerns the Jews both of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is present-day Romanian territory. Minimal until the 18th century, the size of the Jewish population increased after ...
.
*
June 29
Events Pre-1600
* 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of the Kingdom of Wei.
*1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi.
* 1194 – Sverre is crowned King of Norway, ...
– WWII: Hitler's second-in-command, Reichsmarshall Hermann Göring, is appointed as Hitler's successor in a written decree. The decree will come into effect, should Hitler die in the middle of the war. (The decree becomes void in April 1945, after Göring tries to assume power while Hitler is still alive, leading to Göring's expulsion from the Nazi Party.)
July
* July – The British Army's Special Air Service is formed.
* July 1
** Commercial television is authorized by the Federal Communications Commission in the United States.
*** NBC Television begins commercial operation on WNBT, on Channel 1. The world's first legal TV commercial, for Bulova watches, occurs at 2:29 PM over WNBT, before a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies. The 10-second spot displays a picture of a clock superimposed on a map of the United States, accompanied by the voice-over "America runs on Bulova time." As a one-off special, the first quiz show called "Uncle Bee" is telecast on WNBT's inaugural broadcast day, followed later the same day by Ralph Edwards hosting the second game show broadcast on U.S. television, ''Truth or Consequences'', as simulcast on radio and TV and sponsored by Ivory (soap), Ivory Soap. Weekly broadcasts of the show commence in 1956 in television, 1956, with Bob Barker.
*** CBS Television Network, CBS Television begins commercial operation on New York station WCBW (modern-day WCBS-TV), on Channel 2.
** WWII:
*** German forces capture Riga.
*** Germany and Italy recognize the Japanese-sponsored Reorganized National Government of China, Chinese reorganized national government under Wang Jingwei as the legitimate government of China.
* July 2 – WWII: The Empire of Japan calls up 1 million men for military service.
* July 3 – WWII: Joseph Stalin, in his first address since the German invasion, calls upon the Soviet people to carry out a "scorched earth" policy of resistance to the bitter end.
* July 4 – A Massacre of Lviv professors, massacre of Polish scientists and writers is committed by Nazi Germany, Nazi German troops, in the occupied Polish city of Lviv, Lwów.
* July 5 – WWII:
**
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
: German troops reach the Dnieper River.
** British troopship is torpedoed and sunk by in the Atlantic Ocean, with the loss of around 250 out of about 1,310 on board.
* July 5–July 31, 31: Ecuadorian–Peruvian War is fought.
* July 7
** Uprising in Serbia (1941), Uprising in Serbia: The League of Communists of Yugoslavia, Communist Party of Yugoslavia raises an uprising against the Nazi occupation, beginning when Žikica Jovanović Španac Bela Crkva incident, kill two gendarmes in the village of Bela Crkva (Krupanj), Bela Crkva,
** WWII: American forces take over the defense of Iceland from the British.
* July 10 – The Holocaust: Jedwabne pogrom: Local ethnic Poles massacre at least 340 Jewish residents of Jedwabne, in Occupation of Poland (1939–45), occupied Poland. The Jewish residents are locked in a barn and the barn set on fire
* July 11 – The Northern Rhodesian Labour Party holds its first congress in Nkana.
* July 13
** WWII: Uprising in Montenegro (1941), An uprising in Montenegro against the Axis powers starts, the second popular uprising in Europe (the first being the "
February strike
The February strike ( nl, Februaristaking) was a general strike in the German-occupied Netherlands in 1941, during World War II, organised by the then-outlawed Communist Party of the Netherlands in defence of persecuted Dutch Jews and against t ...
" of February 25 ''(above)'' in the Netherlands).
** Clemens August Graf von Galen, Catholic Bishop of Münster in Germany, preaches the first of 3 sermons against Nazi brutality.
* July 14 – WWII:
Vichy France
Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...
signs armistice terms ending all fighting in
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
and Lebanon.
* July 17 – Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak ends.
* July 19
** WWII: A BBC broadcast by "Colonel Britton" (Douglas Ritchie) calls on the people of occupied Europe to resist the Nazis, under the slogan "V for Victory".
** The Tom and Jerry cartoon short ''The Midnight Snack'' is released; it is the second appearance for the duo, and the first in which they are officially named.
* July 23 – WWII: Italian aircraft damage the British destroyer which has to be sunk.
* July 25 – Postal codes in Germany are introduced.
* July 26 – WWII:
** In response to the Japanese occupation of French Indochina, U.S. President
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
orders the seizure of all Japanese assets in the United States.
** General Douglas MacArthur is named commander of all U.S. forces in the Philippines; the Philippines Army is ordered nationalized by President Roosevelt.
* July 29 – The Vichy Regime signs the Protocol Concerning Joint Defense and Joint Military Cooperation with the Empire of Japan, giving the Japanese a total of 8 airfields, allowing them greater troop presence, and the use of the Indochinese financial system, in return for continued French autonomy.
* July 30 – WWII: Glina massacres#July–August 1941, Glina massacre of July–August 1941 – The Ustaše brutally kill 200
Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
inside a Serbian Orthodox church in
Glina, Croatia
Glina is a town in central Croatia, located southwest of Petrinja and Sisak in the Sisak-Moslavina County. It lies on the eponymous river of Glina.
History Early history
Glina was first mentioned as a city in June 1284. Later in September 1737 ...
, with a total of 700–1,200 being killed in the area of the next few days.
* July 31 – WWII: The Holocaust: Under instructions from
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
, Nazism, Nazi official Hermann Göring orders Schutzstaffel, S.S. General Reinhard Heydrich to "submit to me as soon as possible a general plan of the administrative material and financial measures necessary for carrying out the desired Final Solution of the Jewish question."
August
*
August
August is the eighth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and the fifth of seven months to have a length of 31 days. Its zodiac sign is Leo and was originally named ''Sextilis'' in Latin because it was the 6th month in ...
– The Political Warfare Executive is formed in the United Kingdom to disseminate propaganda to Germany and its occupied countries.
* August 1 – The Willys MB U.S. Army Jeep is first produced.
* August 5 – The
Provisional Government of Lithuania
The Provisional Government of Lithuania ( lt, Laikinoji Vyriausybė) was a temporary government aiming for independent Lithuania during the last days of the first Soviet occupation and the first months of German Nazi occupation in 1941.
It w ...
is dissolved.
* August 6 – Six-year-old Elaine Esposito goes to have an Vermiform appendix, appendix operation in Florida and lapses into a coma, dying 37 years later, still comatose.
* August 7 – WWII: British submarine sinks an Italian Marconi-class submarine.
* August 9 –
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
and
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
meet on board ship at Naval Station Argentia, Dominion of Newfoundland, Newfoundland. The Atlantic Charter (released August 14), setting goals for postwar international cooperation, is created as a result.
* August 16
** The Holocaust: Units of the Wehrmacht and the Einsatzgruppen (as part of
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
) start killing Jewish children, signalling the start of the Jewish Genocide.
** Royal Navy Signals School and Combined Signals School opens at Leydene, near Petersfield, Hampshire, England.
* August 19 – The Tiraspol Agreement is signed between Nazi Germany, Germany and Kingdom of Romania, Romania.
* August 21 – In revenge for the execution two days earlier of French Resistance member Samuel Tyszelman, communist activist Pierre Georges (with others) shoots and kills a member of the German military in occupied Paris, initiating a cycle of assassinations and retribution that will claim hundreds of lives.
* August 25 – WWII: The Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran to secure the Persian Corridor and oilfields begins.
* August 27 – WWII: Kamianets-Podilskyi massacre, 23,600 Jews are shot dead by Einsatzgruppen troops and local collaborators in Ukraine.
* August 28 – WWII: Soviet evacuation of Tallinn – German troops capture Tallinn,
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
from the Soviet Union, while attacks on the evacuating Soviet ships leave more than 12,000 dead in one of the bloodiest naval battles of the war. German forces will capture the entire Estonian territory by December 6.
* August 29
** WWII: The Government of National Salvation, a Serbs, Serb
puppet state
A puppet state, puppet régime, puppet government or dummy government, is a State (polity), state that is ''de jure'' independent but ''de facto'' completely dependent upon an outside Power (international relations), power and subject to its o ...
of the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
, is established by General Milan Nedić in
Nazi-occupied Serbia in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
, under military commander Heinrich Danckelmann; the regime includes 15 Ministers.
** Robert Menzies resigns as Prime Minister of Australia, after losing the support of his United Australia Party, party. He will not return to the Prime Ministership until 1949 Australian federal election, 1949. Arthur Fadden, leader of the National Party of Australia, Country Party, consequently becomes Prime Minister, while former Prime Minister Billy Hughes 1941 United Australia Party leadership election, replaces Menzies as UAP leader.
* August 30
** German troopship ''Bahia Laura'' is sunk by ; 450 are killed.
** Nazi Germany, Germany and Kingdom of Romania, Romania sign another treaty, the Tighina Agreement.
* August 31
** WWII (Uprising in Serbia (1941), Uprising in Serbia): Battle of Loznica (1941), Battle of Loznica: Chetniks capture the town of Loznica, in
Nazi-occupied Serbia.
** ''The Great Gildersleeve'' debuts on NBC Radio in the United States.
September
* September 3 – The Holocaust: ''SS-Hauptsturmführer'' Karl Fritzsch first uses the pesticide Zyklon B, to execute Soviet prisoners of war ''en masse'' at Auschwitz concentration camp; eventually it will be used to kill about 1.2 million people.
* September 6 – The Holocaust: The requirement to wear the Star of David, with the word "Jew" inscribed, is extended to all Jews over the age of 6 in German-occupied areas.
* September 8 – WWII: Siege of Leningrad – German forces begin a siege against the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
's second-largest city, Saint Petersburg, Leningrad. Stalin orders the Volga Germans deported to Siberia.
* September 11
** WWII:
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...
, at an
America First Committee
The America First Committee (AFC) was the foremost United States isolationist pressure group against American entry into World War II. Launched in September 1940, it surpassed 800,000 members in 450 chapters at its peak. The AFC principally supp ...
rally in Des Moines, Iowa, accuses "the British, the Jewish, and the Roosevelt administration" of leading the United States toward war. Widespread condemnation of Lindbergh follows.
** The Medvedev Forest massacre of political prisoners takes place, at the Oryol Prison in the Soviet Union.
* September 12
** WWII: The first snowfall is reported on the Russian front.
** Construction on The Pentagon begins in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
** Franklin Roosevelt gives one of his fireside chats, on the USS Greer (DD-145), USS ''Greer'' incident.
* September 14 – The State of Vermont "declares war" on Germany, by defining the United States to be in "armed conflict", in order to extend a wartime bonus to Vermonters in the service.
* September 15 – The Estonian Self-Administration, headed by Hjalmar Mäe, is appointed by the German military administration.
* September 16 – Rezā Shāh of Iran is forced to resign in favor of his son Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, under pressure from the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, concluding the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran.
* September 16–September 30, 30 – The Nikolaev massacre takes place in Mykolaiv (Soviet Union); 35,782 men, women and children; mostly Jews, are killed by Einsatzgruppe D and local collaborators.
* September 22 – The town of Reshetylivka in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
is occupied by German forces.
* September 23 – The 1941 Texas hurricane makes landfall near Bay City, Texas, causing extensive damage and flooding in Galveston, Texas, Galveston and Houston.
* September 27
** WWII: The National Liberation Front (Greece) (the main Greek Resistance movement) is established, and Georgios Siantos is appointed its first acting leader.
** The first liberty ship, the , is launched at Baltimore.
* September 28 – WWII: The Drama Uprising against the
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n Axis occupation of Greece, occupation in northern Greece begins.
* September 29 – WWII: The Moscow Conference (1941), Moscow Conference begins; U.S. representative Averell Harriman and British representative Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, Lord Beaverbrook meet with Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, to arrange urgent assistance for Russia.
* September 29–September 30, 30 – The Holocaust: Babi Yar massacre – German troops, assisted by Ukrainian police and local collaborators, kill 33,771 Jews in Kiev.
October
* Mid-October – The first P-38E Lightning fighter is produced by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed in the United States.
* October 1
** The Holocaust: The Nazi Germany, Nazi German Majdanek concentration camp (''Konzentrationslager Lublin'') opens in Occupation of Poland (1939–45), occupied Poland, on the outskirts of the town of Lublin. Between October 1941 and July 1944, at least 200,000 people will be killed in the camp.
** The New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy becomes the Royal New Zealand Navy.
* October 2
** WWII: Operation Typhoon begins, as Germany launches an all-out offensive against Moscow.
** Tudeh Party of Iran is founded.
* October 5 – The Holocaust: In Berdychiv, 20–30,000 Jews are shot dead.
* October 7 – John Curtin becomes the 14th Prime Minister of Australia, following the defeat of Arthur Fadden's National Party of Australia, Country/United Australia Party, UAP Coalition (Australia), Coalition Fadden Government, Government, on the floor of the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives.
* October 8 – WWII: In their invasion of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, Germany reaches the Sea of Azov, with the capture of Mariupol.
* October 11 – WWII: Armed insurgents from the People's Liberation Army of Macedonia attack Axis powers, Axis-occupied zones in the city of Prilep, beginning the World War II in Yugoslav Macedonia, National Liberation War of Macedonia.
* October 11–October 12, 12 – Fire destroys a American Printing Company (Fall River Iron Works), Firestone Tire and Rubber Company plant in Fall River, Massachusetts, consuming 15,850 tons of rubber, and causing a setback to the United States war effort.
* October 13 – The Holocaust: Heinrich Himmler instructs SS and Police Leader Odilo Globocnik to begin construction of Bełżec extermination camp, Bełżec, the first of the Operation Reinhard extermination camps.
* October 15 – WWII: British submarine bombards the port of Apollonia, Cyrenaica in Italian Libya.
* October 16 – WWII: The
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
government moves to Kuibyshev (modern Samara, Russia, Samara), but Joseph Stalin, Stalin remains in Moscow.
* October 17 – WWII: Destroyer is torpedoed and damaged near Iceland, killing 11 sailors (the first American military casualties of the war, in which the US is at this time neutral).
* October 18 – General Hideki Tōjō becomes the 40th Prime Minister of Japan.
* October 18 – Film ''The Maltese Falcon (1941 film), The Maltese Falcon'' is released in the United States, starring Humphrey Bogart, directed by John Huston.
* October 21
** WWII: Kragujevac massacre – German soldiers and local auxiliaries massacre more than 2,000 civilian men at Kragujevac, in
Nazi-occupied Serbia.
** Fictional superheroine Wonder Woman, created by William Moulton Marston and H. G. Peter, makes her first appearance in ''All Star Comics'' #8, "Introducing Wonder Woman", in the US (cover date December 1941).
* October 23 –
Walt Disney
Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
's fourth animated film ''Dumbo'' is released in the United States.
* October 25 – WWII: German fighter pilot Franz von Werra disappears during a flight over the North Sea.
* October 29 – The Holocaust: Kaunas massacre of October 29, 1941 – Over 9,200
Lithuanian Jews
Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks () are Jews with roots in the territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania (covering present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, the northeastern Suwałki and Białystok regions of Poland, as well as adjacent areas ...
are shot dead.
* October 30
** WWII:
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
, President of the United States, approves US$1 billion in
Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...
aid to the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
.
** The
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
: 1,500 Jews from Pidhaitsi (in western Ukraine) are sent by the Nazis to the Bełżec extermination camp.
* October 31
** WWII: Destroyer , on convoy escort, is accidentally torpedoed by a German
U-boat
U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...
near Iceland, killing more than 100 United States Navy sailors.
** The last day of carving on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.
November
* November 5 – WWII: The United States holds peace talks with Japan.
* November 6 – WWII: Soviet leader Joseph Stalin addresses the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
for only the second time during his three-decade rule (the first time was earlier this year on July 2). He states that 350,000 Soviet troops have been killed in German attacks, but that the Germans have lost 4.5 million soldiers (a gross exaggeration), and that Soviet victory is near.
* November 7 – WWII: The Soviet hospital ship ''Armenia (Soviet hospital ship), Armenia'' is sunk by German aircraft while evacuating refugees, wounded military and the staff of several Crimean hospitals. It is estimated that more than 5,000 die in the sinking.
* November 10 – In a speech at the Mansion House, London,
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
promises "should the United States become involved in war with Japan, the British declaration will follow within the hour".
* November 12 – WWII:
** As the Battle of Moscow begins, temperatures around Moscow drop to −12 °C, and the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
launches Ski warfare, ski troops for the first time, against the freezing German forces near the city.
** Soviet cruiser Soviet cruiser Chervona Ukraina, ''Chervona Ukraina'' is hit three times in the Severnaya Bay by bombs from German Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers from Sturzkampfgeschwader 77, II./StG 77 during the Siege of Sevastopol (1941–42), Siege of Sevastopol.
* November 14
** WWII: British aircraft carrier sinks under tow off Gibraltar, after being torpedoed the previous day by .
** The Holocaust: In Slonim (Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Byelorussian SSR), German forces engaged in
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
murder 9,000 Jews.
* November 17 – WWII:
Joseph Grew
Joseph Clark Grew (May 27, 1880 – May 25, 1965) was an American career diplomat and U.S. Foreign Service, Foreign Service officer. He is best known as the ambassador to Japan from 1932 to 1941 and as a high official in the State Department in W ...
, the United States ambassador to Japan, cables to Washington, D.C. a warning, that Japan may strike suddenly and unexpectedly.
* November 18 – WWII: Operation Crusader, a British Eighth Army operation to relieve the Siege of Tobruk in North Africa, begins.
* November 19 – WWII: Sinking of HMAS Sydney, Battle between HMAS ''Sydney'' and German auxiliary cruiser ''Kormoran'' – Both commerce raiding German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran, German auxiliary cruiser ''Kormoran'' and Australian cruiser sink following a battle off the coast of Western Australia. There are no survivors from the 645 Australian sailors aboard ''Sydney''.
* November 21 – The live blues radio program ''King Biscuit Time'' is broadcast for the first time on KFFA (AM), KFFA in Helena, Arkansas; it will attain its 17,000th broadcast in 2014 making it the longest-running daily American radio broadcast.
* November 22 – WWII: sinks commerce raiding , ending the longest warship cruise of the war (622 days without in-port replenishment or repair).
* November 26 – WWII:
** The Hull note (Outline of Proposed Basis for Agreement Between the United States and Japan), named for Secretary of State Cordell Hull, is delivered to the Empire of Japan by the United States.
** A task force of 6 aircraft carriers, commanded by Japanese Vice Admiral Chūichi Nagumo, leaves Kasatka Bay, Hitokapu Bay for
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
, under strict radio silence.
* November 27
** WWII: Germans reach their closest approach to Moscow. They are subsequently frozen by cold weather and stopped by attacks by the Soviets.
** A group of young men stop traffic on U.S. Highway 99 south of Yreka, California, handing out fliers proclaiming the establishment of the Jefferson (proposed Pacific state), State of Jefferson.
* November 30 and December 8 – Rumbula massacre: Nazi forces kill approximately 24,000 Latvian Jews and 1,000 German Jews outside of Riga.
December
* December 1 – WWII:
** Fiorello La Guardia, Mayor of New York City and Director of the Office of Civilian Defense, signs s:Administrative Order 9, Administrative Order 9, creating the Civil Air Patrol under the authority of the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
.
** A state of emergency is declared in British Malaya and the Straits Settlements.
* December 2 – WWII: The code message "Climb Mount Niitaka" is transmitted to the Japanese task force, indicating that negotiations have broken down and that the attack on Pearl Harbor is to be carried out according to plan.
* December 4 – The Jefferson (proposed Pacific state), State of Jefferson is declared in Yreka, California, with a judge, John Childs, as governor.
* December 5 – WWII: The United Kingdom declares war on Finland, Hungary and Romania.
* December 6 – WWII:
** Soviet counterattacks begin against German troops encircling Moscow. The German Army, ''Heer'' is subsequently pushed back over .
** British submarine is Naval mine, mined off Cephalonia.
* December 7 (December 8 – 3:18 a.m., Japan Standard Time) – WWII:
** Attack on Pearl Harbor: Aircraft flying from Imperial Japanese Navy Aircraft carrier, carriers launch a surprise attack on the United States fleet at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
in Territory of Hawaii, Hawaii, thus drawing the United States into World War II. The attack begins at 7:55 a.m. Hawaiian Standard Time, and is announced on radio stations in the U.S. at about 11:26 p.m. Pacific Time Zone, PST (19.26 GMT).
** The Japanese declaration of war on the United States and the British Empire is published in Japanese evening newspapers, but not formally delivered to the U.S. until the following day. Canada declares war on Japan.
** Adolf Hitler makes his ''Nacht und Nebel'' decree, declaring that all political prisoners and those involved in both German resistance to Nazism and resistance to Nazism throughout German-occupied Europe are to be apprehended by the
Gestapo
The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe.
The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...
, Sicherheitsdienst and other security forces under Heinrich Himmler's control.
**
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...
's British and Commonwealth garrison is relieved after Axis forces under Rommel withdraw.
* December 8
** WWII: The Battle of Hong Kong begins shortly after 8:00 a.m. (Hong Kong Time, local time), less than 8 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when Japanese forces invade British Hong Kong, Hong Kong, which is defended by British, Canadian and local troops. The United Kingdom officially declares war on the Empire of Japan.
** WWII: The Japanese Invade Shanghai International Settlement, to occupy the British and the American sectors, after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
** WWII: The Japanese invasion of the Philippines begins 10 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, when Japanese forces invade Luzon and destroy U.S. aircraft on Clark Field.
** WWII: President of the United States
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
delivers his "Infamy Speech" to a Joint session of the United States Congress at 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time Zone, EST (17.30 GMT). Transmitted live over all four major national networks, it attracts the largest audience ever for an American radio broadcast, over 81% of homes. Within an hour, Congress agrees to the President's request for a United States declaration of war upon Japan, and he signs it at 4:10 p.m.
** WWII: Australia, New Zealand, The Netherlands, the Free French, Yugoslavia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras also officially declare war on Japan, and the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China declares war on the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
.
[
** WWII: Japanese forces attack British Malaya and ]Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
.[
** WWII: The German advance on Moscow (Operation Typhoon) is suspended for the winter.][
** The Holocaust: The Nazi Germany, Nazi German Chełmno extermination camp opens in Occupation of Poland (1939–45), occupied Poland, near the village of Chełmno nad Nerem. Between December 1941-April 1943 and June 1944-January 1945, at least 153,000 Jews will be killed in the camp.
** The Holocaust The first mass gassing of Jews begins at the Chełmno extermination camp on December 8, 1941, when the Nazis use gas vans to murder people from the Lodz ghetto.
* December 10 – WWII:
**British battleships and battlecruiser HMS Repulse (1916), HMS ''Repulse'' are sunk by Japanese aircraft in the South China Sea north of Singapore.
**The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea officially declares war on Japan.
* December 11 – WWII:
** Nazi Germany, Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Italy German declaration of war against the United States, declare war on the United States. The U.S. responds in kind.
** Mildred Gillars ("Axis Sally") delivers her first propaganda broadcast to Allies of World War II, Allied troops.
* December 11–December 13, 13 – WWII: Battle of Jitra: Japanese compel British troops to withdraw from their positions in Malaya.
* December 12 – WWII:
** Kingdom of Hungary (1920–46), Hungary and Kingdom of Romania, Romania declare war on the United States.
** British India declares war on the Empire of Japan.
** The United States seizes the French ship .
** The Kimura Detachment of the Japanese Imperial forces occupies Legaspi, Albay, Philippines.
* December 13
** WWII: The United Kingdom, New Zealand and South Africa declare war on Bulgaria; Hungary declares war on the United States; and Honduras declares war on Germany and Italy.
** WWII: The Battle of Cape Bon (1941), Battle of Cape Bon Is fought off Cape Bon, Tunisia: Italian cruisers ''Italian cruiser Alberico da Barbiano, Alberico da Barbiano'' and ''Italian cruiser Alberto da Giussano, Alberto da Giussano'' are sunk without loss to the Allies.
** Sweden's low temperature record of −53 °C is set in a village within the Vilhelmina Municipality.
* December 14 – WWII: The ]Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...
declares war on the United States and the United Kingdom.
* December 15 – WWII: At Drobytsky Yar, 15,000 Jews are shot dead by German troops.
* December 19 – WWII:
** Hitler becomes Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the German Army (Wehrmacht), Nazi Army.
** Raid on Alexandria (1941), Raid on Alexandria: Italian Regia Marina divers on human torpedoes place limpet mines on ships of the British Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
Mediterranean Fleet in port at Alexandria, Egypt, disabling battleships HMS Queen Elizabeth (1913), ''Queen Elizabeth'' and HMS Valiant (1914), ''Valiant''.
** Twelve days after the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor, the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland graduates its "Class of 1942" a semester early, so as to induct the graduating students without delay into the U.S. Navy and/or Marine Corps as officers, for immediate stationing in the war.
* December 21
** Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
and Japan sign a military alliance.
** The Holocaust: The Stanisławów Ghetto is established.
* December 22 – WWII: The Arcadia Conference opens in Washington, D.C., the first meeting on military strategy between the heads of government of the United Kingdom and the United States, following the latter's entry into the war.
* December 23 – WWII: A second Japanese landing attempt on Wake Island is successful, and the American garrison surrenders, after a full night and morning of fighting.
* December 24 – WWII:
** British forces capture Benghazi
Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...
.
** Dutch submarine HNLMS K XVI, HNLMS ''K XVI'' is the first Allied ship to sink a Japanese warship, sinking the destroyer ''Sagiri'' near Sarawak; ''K XVI'' is herself torpedoed the following day by Japanese submarine Japanese submarine I-66, ''I-66''.
* December 25 – WWII:
** The Battle of Hong Kong ends after 17 days, with the surrender of the British Crown colony to the Japanese.
** Admiral Émile Muselier seizes the archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon off Newfoundland, the first part of France to be liberated by the Free French Forces
__NOTOC__
The French Liberation Army (french: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (french: Forces françaises libres, l ...
.
* December 26 – WWII: Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
becomes the first British Prime Minister to address a joint session of the United States Congress.
* December 27 – WWII: British Commandos raid the Norwegian port of Vågsøy, Vaagso, causing Hitler to reinforce the garrison and defenses, drawing vital troops away from other areas.
Date unknown
* The ''Classics Illustrated, Classic Comics'' series is launched in the United States, with a version of ''The Three Musketeers''.
* Chosun Tire and Rubber Manufacture, predecessor of South Korean tire brand Hankook Tire, Hankook, is founded in a suburb of Seoul (at this time part of the Empire of Japan).
* Factory Canteen, predecessor of Compass Group, global license food service and contract caterer, is founded in England.
Births
January
* January 1
January 1 or 1 January is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the yea ...
** Asrani, Indian actor and director
** Dardo Cabo, Argentine journalist, activist (d. 1977)
** Martin Evans, British biologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Nobel Prize laureate
** Abdiqasim Salad Hassan, Somali politician, 5th President of Somalia
* January 3
Events Pre-1600
*AD 69, 69 – The Roman legions on the Rhine refuse to declare their allegiance to Galba, instead proclaiming their legate, Aulus Vitellius, as emperor.
* 250 – Emperor Decius orders everyone in the Roman Empire (ex ...
– Shima Iwashita, Japanese actress
* January 4
Events Pre-1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar fights Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina.
* 871 – Battle of Reading: Æthelred of Wessex and his brother Alfred are defeated by a Danish invasion army.
1601–1900
*1649 – Engli ...
** Maureen Reagan, American political activist (d. 2001)
** John Bennett Perry, American actor, singer and former model
* January 5
Events Pre-1600
*1477 – Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is defeated and killed in a conflict with René II, Duke of Lorraine; Duchy of Burgundy, Burgundy subsequently becomes part of France.
1601–1900
*1675 – Battle of Turckh ...
** Harvey Hall, American businessman, politician (d. 2018)
** Chuck McKinley, American tennis player (d. 1986)
** Hayao Miyazaki, Japanese film director, screenwriter
** Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Indian cricketer (d. 2011)
* January 7
** Iona Brown, British violinist, conductor (d. 2004)
** Frederick D. Gregory, African-American astronaut
** John E. Walker, British chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate
* January 8
** Graham Chapman, British comedian (''Monty Python's Flying Circus'') (d. 1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...
)
** Boris Vallejo, Peruvian painter
* January 9
** Joan Baez, American singer, songwriter and activist
** Reza Sheikholeslami, Professor of Persian Studies (d. 2018)
* January 10
Events Pre-1600
*49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war.
* 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and the be ...
– José Greci, Italian actress (d. 2017)
* January 11
Events Pre-1600
* 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence.
* 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhamma ...
** Dave Edwards (musician), Dave Edwards, American musician (d. 2000)
** Gérson, Brazilian footballer
** Pak Seung-zin, North Korean footballer (d. 2011)
** Jimmy Velvit, American singer/songwriter
* January 12 – Long John Baldry, English singer (d. 2005)
* January 13
Events Pre-1600
* 27 BC – Octavian transfers the state to the free disposal of the Roman Senate and the people. He receives Spain, Gaul, and Syria as his province for ten years.
* 532 – The Nika riots break out, during the racing ...
– Pasqual Maragall, Spanish politician
* January 14
Events Pre-1600
*1236 – King Henry III of England marries Eleanor of Provence.
*1301 – Andrew III of Hungary dies, ending the Árpád dynasty in Hungary.
1601–1900
*1639 – The "Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, Fundamenta ...
** Faye Dunaway, American actress
** Milan Kučan, Slovenian politician, 1st President of Slovenia
* January 15
Events Pre-1600
* 69 – Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor of Rome, beginning a reign of only three months.
* 1541 – King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to settle the province of ...
– Captain Beefheart, American singer (d. 2010)
* January 17 – Mircea Snegur, 1st President of Moldova
* January 18
** Bobby Goldsboro, American pop and country singer-songwriter
** David Ruffin, African-American singer (''The Temptations'') (d. 1991)
* January 19
Events Pre-1600
* 379 – Emperor Gratian elevates Flavius Theodosius at Sirmium to ''Augustus'', and gives him authority over all the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.
* 649 – Conquest of Kucha: The forces of Kucha surrender ...
– Pat Patterson (wrestler), Pat Patterson, Canadian professional wrestler
* January 20
Events Pre-1600
* 250 – Pope Fabian is martyred during the Decian persecution.
* 649 – King Chindasuinth, at the urging of bishop Braulio of Zaragoza, crowns his son Recceswinth as co-ruler of the Visigothic Kingdom.
* 1156 &ndas ...
** Clift Tsuji, American politician (d. 2016)
** Allan Young, English footballer (d. 2009)
* January 21
** Plácido Domingo, Spanish opera singer, conductor and arts administrator
** Richie Havens, African-American musician (d. 2013)
** Ivan Putski, Polish-American professional wrestler and bodybuilder
* January 22
Events Pre-1600
* 613 – Eight-month-old Constantine is crowned as co-emperor (''Caesar'') by his father Heraclius at Constantinople.
* 871 – Battle of Basing: The West Saxons led by King Æthelred I are defeated by the Danelaw Vi ...
– Rintaro, Japanese anime director
* January 24
** Neil Diamond, American singer, songwriter
** Aaron Neville, African-American singer
** Dan Shechtman, Israeli chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate
* January 27
Events Pre-1600
* 98 – Trajan succeeds his adoptive father Nerva as Roman emperor; under his rule the Roman Empire will reach its maximum extent.
* 945 – The co-emperors Stephen and Constantine are overthrown and forced to becom ...
** Bobby Hutcherson, African-American jazz musician (d. 2016)
** Beatrice Tinsley, English astronomer (d. 1981)
* January 28
Events Pre-1600
* 98 – On the death of Nerva, Trajan is declared Roman emperor in Cologne, the seat of his government in lower Germany.
* 814 – The death of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor, brings about the accession o ...
– Fernando Serena, Spanish footballer (d. 2018)
* January 29 – Robin Morgan, Poet, author, political theorist, activist, journalist, lecturer, and editor
* January 30
Events Pre-1600
*1018 – Poland and the Holy Roman Empire conclude the Peace of Bautzen.
*1287 – King Wareru founds the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and proclaims independence from the Pagan Kingdom.
1601–1900
*1607 – An estimated ...
** Gregory Benford, American author and astrophysicist
** Dick Cheney, 46th Vice President of the United States, 17th US Secretary of Defense
** Delbert Mann, American television, film director (d. 2007)
** Tineke Lagerberg, Dutch swimmer
* January 31
** Dick Gephardt, American politician
** Eugène Terre'Blanche, South African farmer, pro-apartheid activist (d. in 2010)
** Jessica Walter, American actress
February
* February 1
** Karl Dall, German comedian, singer and television presenter
** Jerry Spinelli, American author
* February 3
Events Pre-1600
* 1112 – Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona, and Douce I, Countess of Provence, marry, uniting the fortunes of those two states.
*1451 – Sultan Mehmed II inherits the throne of the Ottoman Empire.
*1488 – ...
** Dory Funk Jr., American professional wrestler
** Howard Phillips (politician), Howard Phillips, American politician (d. 2013)
* February 4
Events Pre–1600
* 211 – Following the death of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus at Eboracum (modern York, England) while preparing to lead a campaign against the Caledonians, the empire is left in the control of his two quarrellin ...
** Laisenia Qarase, Fijian politician (d. 2020)
** John Steel (drummer), John Steel, English drummer
* February 5
Events Pre-1600
* 62 – Earthquake in Pompeii, Italy.
* 1576 – Henry of Navarre abjures Catholicism at Tours and rejoins the Protestant forces in the French Wars of Religion.
* 1597 – A group of early Japanese Christians ar ...
** Stephen J. Cannell, American director, producer (d. 2010)
** Henson Cargill, American country music singer (d. 2007)
** David Selby, American actor
** Kaspar Villiger, Swiss politician
** Cory Wells, American singer (''Three Dog Night'') (d. 2015)
* February 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1579 – The Archdiocese of Manila is made a diocese by a papal bull with Domingo de Salazar being its first bishop.
1601–1900
* 1685 – James II of England and VII of Scotland is proclaimed King upon the death of ...
– Stephen Albert, American composer (d. 1992)
* February 8
Events Pre-1600
* 421 – Constantius III becomes co-Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
* 1238 – The Mongols burn the Russian city of Vladimir.
*1250 – Seventh Crusade: Crusaders engage Ayyubid forces in the Battle of Al ...
** Nick Nolte, American actor
** Jagjit Singh, Indian singer, composer and musician (d. 2011)
* February 9
Events Pre-1600
* 474 – Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
* 1003 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Poland.
* 1539 – The first recorded race is hel ...
— Kermit Gosnell, American abortionist and serial killer
* February 10 – Michael Apted, British film director
* February 11
** Sergio Mendes, Brazilian jazz musician
** Sonny Landham, American actor (d. 2017)
* February 12
Events Pre-1600
*1404 – The Italian professor Galeazzo di Santa Sophie performed the first post-mortem autopsy for the purposes of teaching and demonstration at the Heiligen–Geist Spital in Vienna.
*1429 – English forces under ...
** Hubert Marcoux, Canadian solo sailor and author (d. 2009)
** Naomi Uemura, Japanese adventurer (d. 1984)
* February 13
Events Pre-1600
* 962 – Emperor Otto I and Pope John XII co-sign the ''Diploma Ottonianum'', recognizing John as ruler of Rome.
*1322 – The central tower of Ely Cathedral falls on the night of 12th–13th.
*1462 – The ...
** Sigmar Polke, German painter
** Bo Svenson, Swedish-American actor
* February 15 – Florinda Bolkan, Brazilian actress and model
* February 16 – Kim Jong-il, Leader of North Korea, Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (d. 2011)
* February 17 – Ron Meyer, American football coach (d. 2017)
* February 18 – Irma Thomas, African-American singer
* February 19
Events Pre-1600
* 197 – Emperor Septimius Severus defeats usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies.
* 356 – The anti-paganism policy of Constantius II forbids the worship of pagan ...
– David Gross, American physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics, Nobel Prize laureate
* February 20 – Buffy Sainte-Marie, Canadian singer
* February 22
Events Pre-1600
* 1076 – Having received a letter during the Lenten synod of 14–20 February demanding that he abdicate, Pope Gregory VII excommunicates Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1316 – The Battle of Picotin, between Ferdina ...
** Hipólito Mejía, President of the Dominican Republic (2000-2004)
** Yau Leung, Hong Kong photographer (d. 1997)
* February 27
Events Pre-1600
* 380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity.
* 425 – The University of Constantinople ...
– Paddy Ashdown, British politician, diplomat (d. 2018)
March
* March 4
Events Pre-1600
*AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title '' princeps iuventutis'' (head of the youth).
* 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia.
* 852 – Croatian Knez Trpimir I issues a st ...
** Richard Benjamin Harrison, American businessman, reality TV star (d. 2018)
** Adrian Lyne, English film director
* March 7 – Andrei Mironov (actor), Andrei Mironov, Soviet and Russian theatre and film actor (d. 1987)
* March 9 – Ernesto Miranda, American criminal (d. 1976)
* March 10 – George P. Smith (chemist), George P. Smith, American biochemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate
* March 12 – Erkki Salmenhaara, Finnish composer (d. 2002)
* March 13 – Mahmoud Darwish, Palestinian poet and author (d. 2008)
* March 14 – Wolfgang Petersen, German film director
* March 15
Events Pre-1600
* 474 BC – Roman consul Aulus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years' truce.
*44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar takes place.
* 493 – Odoa ...
– Mike Love, American musician (''Beach Boys'')
* March 16
Events Pre-1600
* 934 – Meng Zhixiang declares himself emperor and establishes Later Shu as a new state independent of Later Tang.
*1190 – Massacre of Jews at Clifford's Tower, York.
* 1244 – Over 200 Cathars who refuse ...
** Bernardo Bertolucci, Italian film director (d. 2018)
** Robert Guéï, military ruler of Côte d'Ivoire (d. 2002)
** Chuck Woolery, American game show host
* March 17
Events Pre-1600
* 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 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of eigh ...
– Paul Kantner, American rock guitarist (''Jefferson Airplane'') (d. 2016)
* March 18 – Wilson Pickett, African-American singer (d. 2006)
* March 20 – Kenji Kimihara, Japanese long-distance runner
* March 21 – Dirk Frimout, Belgian cosmonaut and astrophysicist
* March 22
Events Pre-1600
* 106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea.
* 235 – Roman emperor Severus Alexander is murdered, marking the start of the Crisis of the Third Century.
* 871 – Æthelr ...
– Bruno Ganz, Swiss actor (d. 2019)
* March 23 – Jim Trelease, American educator, author
* March 26 – Richard Dawkins, British scientist
* March 27
Events Pre-1600
*1309 – Pope Clement V imposes excommunication and Interdict (Catholic canon law), interdiction on Venice, and a general prohibition of all commercial intercourse with Venice, which had seized on Ferrara, a papal fiefdom. ...
** Ivan Gašparovič, 3rd President of Slovakia
** Bunny Sigler, American singer, songwriter and record producer (d. 2017)
* March 28
** Alf Clausen, American composer
** Philip Fang, Hong Kong simultaneous interpretation specialist, United Nations official (d. 2013)
** Jim Turner (placekicker), Jim Turner, American football player
** Rolf Zacher, German actor (d. 2018)
** Jaime Pardo Leal, Colombian lawyer, union leader, and politician (d. 1987)
* March 29
Events Pre-1600
* 845 – Paris is sacked by Viking raiders, probably under Ragnar Lodbrok, who collects a huge ransom in exchange for leaving.
* 1430 – The Ottoman Empire under Murad II captures Thessalonica from the Republic of ...
– Joseph Hooton Taylor Jr., American astrophysicist, Nobel Prize in Physics, Nobel Prize laureate
* March 30
Events Pre-1600
* 598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague.
* 1282 &ndas ...
** Graeme Edge, British rock drummer, songwriter (''The Moody Blues'')
** Wasim Sajjad, President of Pakistan
* March 31 – Rosario Green, Mexican economist, diplomat and politician (d. 2017)
April
* April 2 – Dr. Demento (Barret Eugene Hansen), American radio disc jockey, novelty music collector
* April 3
** Jan Berry, American singer (''Jan & Dean'') (d. 2004)
** Eric Braeden, German-born American actor
** Jorma Hynninen, Finnish baritone
** Philippé Wynne, American musician (d. 1984)
* April 5
** Michael Moriarty, American-Canadian actor
** Dave Swarbrick, English folk musician (d. 2016)
* April 6
Events Pre–1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato (Cato the Younger) at the Battle of Thapsus.
* 402 – Stilicho defeats the Visigoths under Alaric in the Battle of Pollentia.
*132 ...
– Phil Austin, American comedian (''The Firesign Theater'') (d. 2015)
* April 7
** Mussum, Brazilian actor and musician (d. 1994)
** Cornelia Frances, Australian actress (d. 2018)
** Gorden Kaye, British actor ('''Allo 'Allo!'') (d. 2017)
** ʻAkilisi Pōhiva, Tongan politician and activist, 15th Prime Minister of Tonga (d. 2019)
* April 8 – Peggy Lennon, American singer (''The Lennon Sisters'')
* April 9
Events Pre-1600
* 193 – The distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum.
* 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (''Enkyklikon'') to the bishops of his empire, s ...
– Kay Adams (singer), Kay Adams, American country singer
* April 10
Events Pre-1600
* 428 – Nestorius becomes the Patriarch of Constantinople.
* 837 – Halley's Comet makes its closest approach to Earth at a distance equal to 0.0342 AU (5.1 million kilometres/3.2 million miles).
* 1407 ...
** John Kurila, Scottish footballer (d. 2018)
** Paul Theroux, American travel writer and novelist
* April 11
** Frederick Hauck, American astronaut
** Shirley Stelfox, English actress (d. 2015)
* April 12
Events Pre-1600
* 240 – Shapur I becomes co-emperor of the Sasanian Empire with his father Ardashir I.
* 467 – Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
* 627 – King Edwin of Northumbria is converted ...
– Bobby Moore, English football player, World Cup winning captain (d. 1993)
* April 13
Events Pre-1600
*1111 – Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.
1601–1900
*1612 – In one of the epic samurai ...
– Michael Stuart Brown, American geneticist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
* April 14 – Pete Rose, American baseball player
* April 18
Events Pre-1600
* 796 – King Æthelred I of Northumbria is murdered in Corbridge by a group led by his ealdormen, Ealdred and Wada. The ''patrician'' Osbald is crowned, but abdicates within 27 days.
* 1428 – Peace of Ferrara betw ...
– Michael D. Higgins, 9th President of Ireland
* April 19
Events Pre-1600
*AD 65 – The freedman Milichus betrays Piso's plot to kill the Emperor Nero and all the conspirators are arrested.
* 531 – Battle of Callinicum: A Byzantine army under Belisarius is defeated by the Persians at ...
** Roberto Carlos (singer), Roberto Carlos, Brazilian singer-songwriter
** Jürgen Kocka, German historian
* April 20 – Ryan O'Neal, American actor (''Love Story (1970 film), Love Story'')
* April 21
Events Pre-1600
*753 BC – Romulus founds Rome ( traditional date).
* 43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is murdered ...
– Eduardo Guedes, U.S., Portuguese film-maker (d. 2000)
* April 22 – Amir Pnueli, Israeli computer scientist (d. 2009)
* April 23
Events Pre-1600
* 215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene.
* 599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in southe ...
** Arie den Hartog, Dutch road bicycle racer (d. 2018)
** Paavo Lipponen, 59th Prime Minister of Finland
** Ed Stewart, British disc jockey (d. 2016)
** Ray Tomlinson, American computer programmer (d. 2016)
* April 24
** Richard Holbrooke, American diplomat (d. 2010)
** John Williams (guitarist), John Williams, Australian guitarist
* April 25
Events Pre-1600
* 404 BC – Admiral Lysander and King Pausanias of Sparta blockade Athens and bring the Peloponnesian War to a successful conclusion.
* 775 – The Battle of Bagrevand puts an end to an Armenian rebellion against the ...
** Princess Muna al-Hussein, Princess consort of Jordan
** Bertrand Tavernier, French director, screenwriter, actor and producer
* April 26 – Claudine Auger, French actress (d. 2019)
* April 27
Events Pre-1600
* 247 – Philip the Arab marks the millennium of Rome with a celebration of the ''ludi saeculares''.
* 395 – Emperor Arcadius marries Aelia Eudoxia, daughter of the Frankish general Flavius Bauto. She becomes one of ...
** Pat Choate, American economist, politician
** H. Tristram Engelhardt Jr., American philosopher (d. 2018)
** Lee Roy Jordan, American football player
* April 28
Events Pre-1600
* 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V effectively ending the Parthian Empire.
* 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory ...
** Lucien Aimar, French cyclist
** Ann-Margret, Swedish-born American actress, singer and dancer
** K. Barry Sharpless, American chemist, double Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate
** Iryna Zhylenko, Ukrainian poet (d. 2013)
May
* May 3
** Paul Ferris (composer), Paul Ferris, English film composer, actor (d. 1995)
** Kornel Morawiecki, Polish politician and theoretical physicist (d. 2019)
* May 5
Events Pre-1600
* 553 – The Second Council of Constantinople begins.
*1215 – Rebel barons renounce their allegiance to King John of England — part of a chain of events leading to the signing of the Magna Carta.
* 1260 – Ku ...
** Anatoly Levchenko, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 1988)
** Alexander Ragulin, Russian hockey player (d. 2004)
* May 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1527 – Spanish and German troops sack Rome; many scholars consider this the end of the Renaissance.
*1536 – The Siege of Cuzco commences, in which Incan forces attempt to retake the city of Cuzco from the Spanis ...
** Peter Corrigan, Australian architect (d. 2016)
** Ivica Osim, Bosnian football player, manager
* May 8
Events Pre-1600
* 453 BC – Spring and Autumn period: The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin.
* 413 – Emperor Honorius signs a ...
** James Mitchum, American actor
** Yuri Voronov (archaeologist), Yuri Voronov, Abkhazian politician, academic (murdered) (d. 1995)
* May 9
Events Pre-1600
* 328 – Athanasius is elected Patriarch of Alexandria.
*1009 – Lombard Revolt: Lombard forces led by Melus revolt in Bari against the Byzantine Catepanate of Italy.
*1386 – England and Portugal formally rati ...
– Howard Komives, American professional basketball player (d. 2009)
* May 10
Events Pre-1600
* 28 BC – A sunspot is observed by Han dynasty astronomers during the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han, one of the earliest dated sunspot observations in China.
*1291 – Scottish nobles recognize the authority of Edw ...
**Taurean Blacque, American television and stage actor
**Chris Denning, English radio presenter and convicted sex offender
**Aydın Güven Gürkan, Turkish academic, politician (d. 2006)
* May 11
Events 1601–1900
*1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is Assassination of Spencer Perceval, assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons.
*1813 – William Lawson (explorer), William Lawson, Grego ...
– Eric Burdon, British singer
* May 13
Events Pre-1600
*1373 – Julian of Norwich has visions of Jesus while suffering from a life-threatening illness, visions which are later described and interpreted in her book '' Revelations of Divine Love''.
* 1501 – Amerigo Vespu ...
** Senta Berger, Austrian actress
** Ritchie Valens, American singer (''La Bamba (song), La Bamba'') (d. 1959)
* May 14 – Jesús Gómez (equestrian), Jesús Gómez, Mexican equestrian (d. 2017)
* May 16
** Aldrich Ames, American CIA analyst and KGB agent
** Eric Berntson, Canadian politician (d. 2018)
* May 18 – Miriam Margolyes, British-Australian actress
* May 19
Events
Pre-1600
* 639 – Ashina Jiesheshuai and his tribesmen assaulted Emperor Taizong at Jiucheng Palace.
* 715 – Pope Gregory II is elected.
* 1051 – Henry I of France marries the Rus' princess, Anne of Kiev.
*1445 &n ...
** Peter C. Bjarkman, American baseball historian, author (d. 2018)
** Bobby Burgess, American dancer, singer
** Nora Ephron, American film producer, director, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
* May 20
Events Pre-1600
* 325 – The First Council of Nicaea is formally opened, starting the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church.
* 491 – Empress Ariadne marries Anastasius I. The widowed '' Augusta'' is able to choose her ...
– Goh Chok Tong, 2nd Prime Minister of Singapore
* May 21
Events Pre-1600
* 293 – Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as ''Caesar (title), Caesar'' to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
* 878 – Syracuse, Sicily, is Siege of Syracuse ...
– Bobby Cox, American baseball manager
* May 22 – Menzies Campbell, British politician
* May 23
** K. Raghavendra Rao, Indian film director, producer, screenwriter and choreographer
** Rod Thorn, American basketball player, coach, and executive
* May 24
Events Pre-1600
* 919 – The nobles of Franconia and Saxony elect Henry the Fowler at the Imperial Diet in Fritzlar as king of the East Frankish Kingdom.
* 1218 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
* 1276 – Magnus La ...
** Andrés García, Dominican-Mexican actor
** Bob Dylan, American poet, musician and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature
* May 25 – Rudolf Adler, Czech filmmaker
** Vladimir Voronin, 3rd President of Moldova
* May 26
Events Pre-1600
* 17 – Germanicus celebrates a triumph in Rome for his victories over the Cherusci, Chatti, and other German tribes west of the Elbe.
* 451 – Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sasanian Empire take ...
– John Kaufman, British sculptor
* May 27
Events Pre-1600
* 1096 – Count Emicho enters Mainz, where his followers massacre Jewish citizens. At least 600 Jews are killed.
* 1120 – Richard III of Capua is anointed as Prince two weeks before his untimely death.
* 1153 &ndash ...
** Ira Berlin, American historian (d. 2018)
** Teppo Hauta-aho, Finnish double bassist, composer
* May 29
Events Pre-1600
* 363 – The Roman emperor Julian defeats the Sasanian army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Sasanian capital, but is unable to take the city.
* 1108 – Battle of Uclés: Almoravid troops under ...
– Doug Scott, English mountaineer
* May 31
Events Pre-1600
* 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome.
* 1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat K ...
** Louis Ignarro, American pharmacologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
** William Nordhaus, American economist, recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
June
* June 1
Events Pre-1600
*1215 – Zhongdu (now Beijing), then under the control of the Jurchen people, Jurchen ruler Emperor Xuanzong of Jin, is captured by the Mongols under Genghis Khan, ending the Battle of Zhongdu.
*1252 – Alfonso X is pr ...
**Wayne Kemp, American country music singer (d. 2015)
** Jigjidiin Mönkhbat, Mongolian wrestler (d. 2018)
** Alexander V. Zakharov, Alexander Zakharov, Soviet and Russian astronomer
* June 2
** Stacy Keach, American actor
** Charlie Watts, English musician
* June 5
Events Pre-1600
*1257 – Kraków, in Poland, receives city rights.
*1283 – Battle of the Gulf of Naples: Roger of Lauria, admiral to King Peter III of Aragon, destroys the Neapolitan fleet and captures Charles II of Naples, Charles ...
** Martha Argerich, Argentine pianist
** Spalding Gray, American actor, screenwriter (d. 2004)
** Robert Kraft, American businessman
* June 6
Events Pre-1600
* 913 – Constantine VII, the eight-year-old illegitimate son of Leo VI the Wise, becomes nominal ruler of the Byzantine Empire under the regency of a seven-man council headed by Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos, appointed b ...
– Alexander Cockburn, Irish-American political journalist and writer (d. 2012)
* June 7
** Tony Ray-Jones, British photographer (d. 1972)
** Jaime Laredo, Bolivian-American violinist and conductor
* June 8
Events Pre-1600
* 218 – Battle of Antioch: With the support of the Syrian legions, Elagabalus defeats the forces of emperor Macrinus.
* 452 – Attila leads a Hun army in the invasion of Italy, devastating the northern provinces ...
** Robert Bradford (Northern Irish politician), Robert Bradford, Northern Irish politician (murdered in 1981)
** Fuzzy Haskins, American musician
** George Pell, Australian cardinal
* June 9 – Jon Lord, English composer, pianist and organist (d. 2012)
* June 10
**Mickey Jones, American rock drummer, character actor (d. 2018)
** Jürgen Prochnow, German actor
**Aida Vedishcheva, Soviet and Russian singer
* June 12
** Marv Albert, American sports announcer
** Chick Corea, American jazz pianist
** Reg Presley, English musician (d. 2013)
* June 13
Events Pre-1600
* 313 – The decisions of the Edict of Milan, signed by Constantine the Great and co-emperor Licinius, Valerius Licinius, granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire, are published in Nicomedia.
*1325 – Ib ...
– Esther Ofarim, Israeli singer
* June 14
Events Pre-1600
* 1158 – The city of Munich is founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Isar.
*1216 – First Barons' War: Prince Louis of France takes the city of Winchester, abandoned by John, King of England, and soo ...
** Roy Harper (singer), Roy Harper, English guitarist
** John Edgar Wideman, African-American novelist, author and professor
* June 15
** Neal Adams, American comic book artist
** Harry Nilsson, American musician (d. 1994)
* June 16
Events Pre-1600
* 363 – Emperor Julian marches back up the Tigris and burns his fleet of supply ships. During the withdrawal, Roman forces suffer several attacks from the Persians.
* 632 – Yazdegerd III ascends the throne as king ...
– Rosalind Baker, Australian author
* June 17 – Roberta Maxwell, Canadian actress
* June 19
** Gilberto Benetton, Italian billionaire businessman (d. 2018)
** Conchita Carpio-Morales, Filipino Supreme Court of the Philippines, Supreme Court jurist
** Václav Klaus, 2nd President of the Czech Republic
* June 20
Events Pre-1600
* 451 – Battle of Chalons: Flavius Aetius' battles Attila the Hun. After the battle, which was inconclusive, Attila retreats, causing the Romans to interpret it as a victory.
* 1180 – First Battle of Uji, starting ...
** Ulf Merbold, German astronaut and physicist
** Albert Shesternyov, Soviet footballer (d. 1994)
* June 21
**Mitty Collier, American church pastor and gospel (previously rhythm and blues) singer
** Aloysius Paul D'Souza, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Mangalore
** Joe Flaherty, American-Canadian actor, comedian (''Second City Television'')
** Liz Mohn, German businesswoman in management of media conglomerate Bertelsmann, widow of Reinhard Mohn
** Totto Osvold, Norwegian radio entertainer
** Jimmy Rayl, American basketball player (d. 2019)
** Eduardo Suplicy, Brazilian left-wing politician, economist and professor
** Valeri Zolotukhin, Soviet and Russian actor (d. 2013)
* June 22
Events Pre-1600
* 217 BC – Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom.
* 168 BC – Battle of Pydna: Romans under Lucius Aemilius Paullus defeat Macedonian King Perseus ...
** Ed Bradley, African-American journalist (''60 Minutes'') (d. 2006)
** Howard Kindig, American football player
** Michael Lerner (actor), Michael Lerner, American actor
** Terttu Savola, Finnish politician
* June 23
Events Pre-1600
* 229 – Sun Quan proclaims himself emperor of Eastern Wu.
* 1266 – War of Saint Sabas: In the Battle of Trapani, the Venetians defeat a larger Genoese fleet, capturing all its ships.
* 1280 – The Spanish Re ...
** Robert Hunter (lyricist), Robert Hunter, American lyricist, singer-songwriter, translator and poet (d. 2019)
** Madampu Kunjukuttan, Malayalam author
** Tsai Hsun-hsiung, Taiwanese politician
* June 24
Events Pre-1600
* 1312 BC – Mursili II launches a campaign against the Kingdom of Azzi-Hayasa.
* 109 – Roman emperor Trajan inaugurates the Aqua Traiana, an aqueduct that channels water from Lake Bracciano, northwest of Rome.
* ...
** Erkin Koray, Turkish musician
** Julia Kristeva, Bulgarian-French philosopher, literary critic, psychoanalyst, feminist and novelist
** Nelson López, Argentine football defender
** Graham McKenzie, Australian cricketer
** Bill Reardon, American politician, educator
** Charles Whitman, American mass murderer (d. 1966)
* June 25
Events Pre-1600
* 524 – The Franks are defeated by the Burgundians in the Battle of Vézeronce.
* 841 – In the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye, forces led by Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeat the armies of Lothair I of ...
** Denys Arcand, French-Canadian film director, screenwriter and producer
** Miles Feinstein, American criminal law defense attorney, legal commentator
** Eddie Large, British comedian (d. 2020)
** Prince Michel, Count of Évreux
** Mike Stoker, American firefighter, engineer and captain
** Kenneth Walker (Australian cricketer), Kenneth Walker, Australian cricketer
* June 26
** Gil Garrido, Panamanian baseball player
** Nick Macarchuk, American basketball head coach
** Tamara Moskvina, Russian competitive skater and pair skating coach
** Thomas Yeh Sheng-nan, Taiwanese prelate
* June 27
** Jerry Allen, American football running back
** Ian Black (swimmer), Ian Black, British competitive swimmer
** John Goold, Australian rules footballer
** James P. Hogan (writer), James P. Hogan, British author (d. 2010)
** Mike Honda, American politician and educator
** Krzysztof Kieślowski, Polish film director (d. 1996)
** Pavel Schenk, Czech volleyball player
** John Smyth (barrister), John Smyth, British barrister
* June 28
Events Pre-1600
* 1098 – Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul at the battle of Antioch.
* 1360 – Muhammed VI becomes the tenth Nasrid king of Granada after killing his brother-in-law Ismail II.
* 1461 – ...
** Ilana Adir, Israeli Olympic runner and long jumper
** César Bejarano, Paraguayan fencer
** Len Boehmer, American Major League Baseball player
** Joseph Goguen, American computer scientist (d. 2006)
** David Johnston, 28th Governor General of Canada
** Barbara Stolz, German gymnast
* June 29
Events Pre-1600
* 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of the Kingdom of Wei.
*1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi.
* 1194 – Sverre is crowned King of Norway, ...
** Chieko Baisho, Japanese actress, singer
** John Boccabella, American baseball player
** David A. Bramlett, United States Army four-star general
** Stokely Carmichael (later Kwame Ture), Trinidadian-American civil rights activist (d. 1998)
** Margitta Gummel, German Olympic gold medalist
** Larry Stahl, American baseball player
* June 30
** Cyril Atanassoff, French-born Bulgarian ballet dancer
** Roberto Castrillo, Cuban sports shooter
** Mike Leander, English arranger, songwriter and record producer (d. 1996)
** Otto Sander, German actor (d. 2013)
** Nigel Walley, English golfer, tea-chest bass player
July
* July 1
** Alf Duval, Australian rower
** Rod Gilbert, Canadian professional ice hockey forward
** Alfred G. Gilman, American scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 2015)
** Ursula Koch, Swiss politician
** Jaakko Kailajärvi, Finnish weightlifter
** Twyla Tharp, American dancer, choreographer, and author
** Zimani Kadzamira, Malawian academic, civil servant and diplomat
** Denis Michael Rohan, Australian citizen who, on August 21, 1969, set fire to the pulpit of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, in Jerusalem (d. 1995)
** Myron Scholes, Canadian-American financial economist
* July 2
** Mogens Frey, Danish amateur cyclist
** Chris Noel, American actress
** Stéphane Venne, French-Canadian songwriter, composer
* July 3
** Gloria Allred, American lawyer
** Casey Cox, American baseball player
** Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer
** Hertha Haase, German swimmer
** Liamine Zéroual, 4th President of Algeria
* July 4
** Jay Carty, American basketball player (d. 2017)
** Sergio Oliva, Cuban bodybuilder (d. 2012)
** Digger Phelps, American former college basketball coach
* July 5
** Lynley Dodd, New Zealand writer and illustrator
** Peggy Miley, American actress, writer
** Epeli Nailatikau, Fijian chief, 4th President of Fiji
* July 6
** John DeCamp, American politician (d. 2017)
** Randall Robinson, African-American lawyer, author and activist
** Harold Leighton Weller, American conductor
* July 7
** Vivian Barbot, Canadian-Haitian teacher, activist, and politician
** Marco Bollesan, Italian former rugby union player, coach and manager
** Alan Durban, Welsh international footballer, manager
** Louis Friedman, American astronautics engineer, space spokesperson
** Michael Howard, Welsh politician
** Bill Oddie, English writer, composer, musician and comedian
** John Fru Ndi, Cameroonian politician
** Jim Rodford, English musician (d. 2018)
* July 8
** Dario Gradi, Italia amateur football player, coach and manager
** Thunderbolt Patterson, American professional wrestler
** Ken Sanders (baseball), Ken Sanders, American Major League Baseball relief pitcher
* July 9
** Cirilo Bautista, Filipino poet, fictionist, critic and writer of nonfiction
** Tom Black (basketball), Tom Black, American professional basketball player
** Jan Lehane, Australian female tennis player
** Hans-Gunnar Liljenwall, Swedish modern pentathlete
** Takehide Nakatani Japanese lightweight judoka
* July 10
** Jackie Lane (actress), Jackie Lane, British actress
** Robert Pine, American actor
* July 11
** John Kaputin, Papua New Guinean politician
** Clive Puzey, Southern Rhodesian racing driver
** Jürgen Schmidt, German speed skater
** Tommy Vance, British disc jockey (d. 2005)
** Rosa Morena, Spanish flamenco-pop singer and actress (d. 2019)
* July 12
** John Lahr, American drama critic
** Juha Väätäinen, Finnish athlete
** Wu Bangguo, Chinese politician
** Dick Rusteck, American left-handed pitcher
** Benny Parsons, American race car driver (d. 2007)
* July 13
** Affonso Beato, Brazilian cinematographer
** Robert Forster, American actor (d. 2019)
** Zoila Martínez, Dominican lawyer, prosecutor and diplomat
** Jacques Perrin, French actor and filmmaker
* July 14
** Maulana Karenga, African-American author, activist; founder of Kwanzaa
** Dennis Kassian, Canadian professional ice hockey player
** Andreas Khol, Austrian politician
* July 15
** Archie Clark (basketball), Archie Clark, American professional basketball player
** Vicente Guillot, Spanish footballer
** Nikhil Kumar, Indian politician
* July 16
** Valeri Butenko, Soviet midfielder, football referee
** Desmond Dekker, Jamaican singer and songwriter (d. 2006)
** Ken Herock, American college, professional football player
** Seijirō Kōyama, Japanese film director
** Kálmán Mészöly, Hungarian football (soccer) player, coach
** Lloyd Sisco, American football coach
** Hans Wiegel, Dutch politician
* July 17
** Namirembe Bitamazire, Ugandan academic, politician
** Marina Oswald Porter, Russian-born widow of JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald
** Morimichi Takagi, Japanese baseball player (d. 2020)
** Rob van Empel, Dutch breaststroke swimmer
* July 18
** Winston Choo, Singaporean diplomat, civil servant and former general
** Frank Farian, German record producer, songwriter
** Marcia Jones-Smoke, American sprint canoer
** Lonnie Mack, American singer, guitarist (d. 2016)
** Martha Reeves, African-American singer
** Duncan Worsley, British cricketer
* July 19
** Carlos Alberto Álvarez, Argentine cyclist
** Natalia Bessmertnova, Russian ballerina (d. 2008)
** Vikki Carr, American singer
** Neelie Kroes, Dutch politician
** Vittorio Di Prima, Italian actor and voice actor (d. 2016)
* July 20
** Vladimir Lyakhov, Ukrainian-Soviet cosmonaut (d. 2018)
** Frank Natterer, German mathematician
** Vladimir Veber, Moldovan footballer
* July 21
** Diogo Freitas do Amaral, Portuguese politician, 110th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 2019)
** Ron Corry, Australian football (soccer) player, coach
** Gary Waslewski, American baseball player
* July 22
** George Clinton (funk musician), George Clinton, African-American musician
** Rich Jackson, American football player
** Susie Berning, American professional golfer
* July 23 – Sergio Mattarella, Italian lawyer, judge and politician, 12th President of Italy
* July 25
** Margarita Isabel, Mexican actress (d. 2017)
** Nate Thurmond, African-American basketball player (d. 2016)
** Emmett Till, African-American civil rights icon (d. 1955)
* July 26 – Darlene Love, African-American singer, actress
* July 27 – Bill Baxley, Alabama politician
* July 28
** Peter Cullen, Canadian voice actor
** Riccardo Muti, Italian conductor
* July 29
** Jennifer Dunn (politician), Jennifer Dunn, American politician (d. 2007)
** David Warner (actor), David Warner, British actor
* July 30 – Paul Anka, Canadian-American singer, songwriter
August
* August 2 – Ede Staal, Dutch singer-songwriter (d. 1986)
* August 3
** Martha Stewart, American television personality, media entrepreneur
** Hage Geingob, 1st Prime Minister of Namibia, 3rd President of Namibia
* August 4
** Martin Jarvis (actor), Martin Jarvis, English actor and voice actor
** Ted Strickland, American politician
* August 5 – Gil Garcetti, American politician
* August 6 – Lyle Berman, American poker player
* August 8
** Earl Boen, American actor and voice actor
** George Tiller, American physician (d. 2009)
**Anri Jergenia, 4th Prime Minister of Abkhazia (d. 2020)
* August 9 – Shirlee Busbee, American novelist
* August 12 – Deborah Walley, American actress (d. 2001)
* August 14
** Lynne Cheney, Second Lady of the United States, Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities
** Aïcha Chenna, Moroccan women's rights activist (d. 2022)
** David Crosby, American musician (''Crosby, Stills and Nash'')
** Connie Smith, American singer
* August 16
** Théoneste Bagosora, Rwandan army officer, alleged planner of the Rwandan genocide (d. 2021)
** David Dickinson, British antiques expert, television presenter
* August 17
** Ibrahim Babangida, President of Nigeria
** Lothar Bisky, German politician (d. 2013)
** Fritz Wepper, German actor
* August 20 – Slobodan Milošević, 3rd President of Yugoslavia and 1st President of Serbia (d. 2006)
* August 21
** Howard Lew Lewis, English comedian, actor (d. 2018)
** Jackie DeShannon, American singer, songwriter ("What the World Needs Now Is Love, What the World Needs Now")
* August 26
** Akiko Wakabayashi, Japanese actress
** Ayşe Kulin, Turkish writer
* August 27
** Cesária Évora, Cape Verdean singer (d. 2011)
** Yury Malyshev (cosmonaut), Yury Malyshev, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 1999)
* August 28 – A. I. Katsina-Alu, Nigerian judge (d. 2018)
* August 29 – Robin Leach, English television personality (d. 2018)
September
* September 2
** Graeme Langlands, Australian rugby league player (d. 2018)
** Jyrki Otila, Finnish quiz show judge, Member of the European Parliament (d. 2003)
** John Thompson (basketball), John Thompson, American basketball coach (d. 2020)
* September 3 – Sergei Dovlatov, Russian short-story writer, novelist (d. 1990)
* September 4 – Sushilkumar Shinde, Indian politician
* September 8
** Ito Giani, Italian sprinter (d. 2018)
** Bernie Sanders, American politician, United States Senate, U.S. Senator (Democratic Party (United States), D-Vermont, Vt.), and 2016 United States presidential election, 2016 presidential candidate
** Christopher Connelly, American actor (d. 1988)
* September 9
** Otis Redding, African-American singer, musician (''Dock of the Bay'') (d. 1967)
** Dennis Ritchie, American computer scientist, creator of the C (programming language), C programming language (d. 2011)
* September 10
** Christopher Hogwood, English conductor, harpsichordist (d. 2014)
** Gunpei Yokoi, Japanese computer game producer (d. 1997)
* September 13
** Tadao Ando, Japanese architect
** Ahmet Necdet Sezer, 10th President of Turkey
* September 14 – Alberto Naranjo, Venezuelan musician (d. 2020)
* September 15
** Signe Toly Anderson, American singer (d. 2016)
** Etelka Barsi-Pataky, Hungarian politician (d. 2018)
* September 17 – Bob Matsui, U.S. Congressman from California (d. 2005)
* September 18 – Priscilla Mitchell, American country music singer (d. 2014)
* September 19 – Cass Elliot, American singer (''The Mamas & the Papas'') (d. 1974)
* September 20 – Dale Chihuly, American glass sculptor
* September 21 – R. James Woolsey Jr., American lawyer and diplomat
* September 23 – George Jackson (activist), George Jackson, American author (d. 1971)
* September 24
** Jesús Mosterín, Spanish philosopher (d. 2017)
** Guy Hovis, American singer
** Linda McCartney, American activist, musician and photographer (d. 1998)
* September 26 – Martine Beswick, British actress, model
* September 27
** Gay Kayler Ashcroft, Australian country music singer
** Sam Zell, American publisher, investor
* September 28 – Edmund Stoiber, German politician
* September 29 – Fred West, British serial killer (d. 1995)
* September 30 – Angela Pleasence, British actress
October
* October 1 – Vyacheslav Vedenin, Soviet cross-country skier
* October 3 – Chubby Checker, African-American singer (''The Twist (song), The Twist'')
* October 4
** Mighty Shadow, Trinidadian calypsonian (d. 2018)
** Roy Blount Jr., American writer, comedian
** Elizabeth Eckford, African-American activist (''Little Rock Nine'')
** Anne Rice, American writer
* October 5 – Eduardo Duhalde, 50th President of Argentina
* October 8 – Jesse Jackson, African-American clergyman, civil rights activist and presidential candidate
* October 9 – Trent Lott, American politician and author
* October 10
** Peter Coyote, American actor
** Hanan Goldblatt, Israeli actor
** Ken Saro-Wiwa, Nigerian writer, television producer, and environmental activist (d. 1995)
* October 11 – Valerii Postoyanov, Soviet Olympic sport shooter (d. 2018)
* October 13 – Paul Simon, American singer, composer (''Simon and Garfunkel'')
* October 15
** Rosie Douglas, 4th Prime Minister of Dominica (d. 2000)
** Joan Antoni Solans Huguet, Spanish urban planner (d. 2019)
* October 16 – Tim McCarver, American baseball commentator
* October 17 – Earl Thomas Conley, American country music singer (d. 2019)
* October 19 – Peter Thornley, English professional wrestler best known for the ring character Kendo Nagasaki
* October 20 – Anneke Wills, British actress
* October 21 – Dickie Pride, British rock and roll singer (d. 1969)
* October 23 – Mel Winkler, American actor (d. 2020)
* October 24 – Frank Aendenboom, Belgian actor (d. 2018)
* October 25
** Helen Reddy, Australian singer, actress (''I Am Woman'')
** Anne Tyler, American novelist
* October 27
** Gerd Brantenberg, Norwegian feminist author, gay rights activist
** Dick Trickle, American race car driver (d. 2013)
* October 28
** John Hallam, Irish actor
** Hank Marvin, British guitarist, singer and songwriter (''The Shadows'')
* October 30 – Theodor W. Hänsch, German physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics recipient
* October 31 – Sally Kirkland, American actress
November
* November 1
** Marina Baura, Spanish actress
** Nigel Dempster, British journalist, author, broadcaster and diarist (d. 2007)
** Robert Foxworth, American actor
* November 2 – Bruce Welch, British guitarist, singer and songwriter
* November 2 – Arun Shourie, Indian author and economist
* November 5 – Art Garfunkel, American singer (''Simon and Garfunkel'')
* November 6
** Guy Clark, American singer, songwriter (d. 2016)
** Doug Sahm, American musician (d. 1999)
* November 7 – Angelo Scola, Italian cardinal
* November 9 – Tom Fogerty, American guitarist (''Creedence Clearwater Revival'') (d. 1990)
* November 13 – Dack Rambo, American actor (d. 1994)
* November 17 – Tova Traesnaes, Norwegian-American cosmetician and businesswoman; widow of actor Ernest Borgnine
* November 18 – David Hemmings, English actor (d. 2003)
* November 19 – Dan Haggerty, American actor (''Grizzly Adams'') (d. 2016)
* November 20
** Dr. John, American singer and songwriter (d. 2019)
** Oliver Sipple, decorated US Marine, Vietnam War veteran (d. 1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...
)
* November 21 – İdil Biret, Turkish pianist
* November 22 – Tom Conti, British actor, theatre director
* November 23
** Derek Mahon, Irish poet
** Franco Nero, Italian actor
* November 24 – Pete Best, English drummer
* November 25
** Ralph Haben, American politician, Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
** Percy Sledge, African-American singer (d. 2015)
** Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi, Pakistani Sufi author, poet
* November 27
** Tom Morga, American stuntman, stunt coordinator, and actor.
** Henry Carr, American Olympic athlete (d. 2015)
** Aime Jacquet, French football player, manager
** Eddie Rabbitt, American country musician (d. 1998)
* November 28 – Laura Antonelli, Italian actress (d. 2015)
* November 29
** Lothar Emmerich, German footballer (d. 2003)
** Bill Freehan, American baseball player
December
* December 1
** Nigel Rodley, English international human rights lawyer (d. 2017)
** Sean S. Cunningham, American filmmaker, director, producer, and writer
* December 4
** David Johnston (newsreader), David Johnston, Australian newsreader
** Leila Säälik, Estonian actress
* December 6
** Wende Wagner, American actress (d. 1997)
** Richard Speck, American mass murderer (d. 1991)
* December 8 – Geoff Hurst, English footballer
* December 9
** Beau Bridges, American actor
** Dan Hicks (singer), Dan Hicks, American singer, songwriter (d. 2016)
* December 10
** Tommy Rettig, American actor (d. 1996)
** Peter Sarstedt, English singer, songwriter (d. 2017)
** Kyu Sakamoto, Japanese singer, actor ("Sukiyaki") (d. 1985)
* December 11
** J. Frank Wilson, American singer (d. 1991)
** Max Baucus, American politician and diplomat
* December 12 – Vitaly Solomin, Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter (d. 2002)
* December 13 – John Davidson (entertainer), John Davidson, American singer, actor
* December 16
** Poldy Bird, Argentine writer (d. 2018)
** Vittorio Mezzogiorno, Italian actor (d. 1994)
* December 19
** Lee Myung-bak, 17th President of South Korea, President of the Republic of Korea
** Maurice White, African-American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer (d. 2016)
* December 21
** Lo Hoi-pang, Hong Kong-born Chinese actor
** Jared Martin, American actor (d. 2017)
* December 23
** Ron Bushy, American rock musician
** Tim Hardin, American folk musician (d. 1980)
** Mamnoon Hussain, 12th President of Pakistan (d. 2021)
* December 24
** Hans Eichel, German politician
** Lex Hixon, American Sufi author, poet, and spiritual teacher (d. 1995)
* December 27
** Miles Aiken, American basketball player and coach
** Younoussi Touré, 4th List of prime ministers of Mali, prime minister of Mali (d. 2022)
* December 29 – Ray Thomas, English flautist, singer and songwriter (The Moody Blues) (d. 2018)
* December 30 – Mel Renfro, American football player
* December 31 – Alex Ferguson, Sir Alex Ferguson, Scottish football manager (Manchester United F.C., Manchester United)
Deaths
January
* January 1
January 1 or 1 January is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the yea ...
– József Konkolics, Hungarian Slovene writer (b. 1861)
* January 4
Events Pre-1600
*46 BC – Julius Caesar fights Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina.
* 871 – Battle of Reading: Æthelred of Wessex and his brother Alfred are defeated by a Danish invasion army.
1601–1900
*1649 – Engli ...
– Henri Bergson, French philosopher, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature (b. 1859)
* January 8
** Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, English soldier; Scouting, founder of the Scouts (b. 1857)
** Viktor Dankl von Krasnik, Austro-Hungarian general (b. 1854)
* January 10
Events Pre-1600
*49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war.
* 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and the be ...
** Frank Bridge, English composer (b. 1879)
** Sir John Lavery, Anglo-Irish artist (b. 1856)
* January 11
Events Pre-1600
* 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence.
* 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhamma ...
– Emanuel Lasker, German chess champion (b. 1868)
* January 13
Events Pre-1600
* 27 BC – Octavian transfers the state to the free disposal of the Roman Senate and the people. He receives Spain, Gaul, and Syria as his province for ten years.
* 532 – The Nika riots break out, during the racing ...
– James Joyce, Irish writer, poet (b. 1882)
* January 15
Events Pre-1600
* 69 – Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor of Rome, beginning a reign of only three months.
* 1541 – King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to settle the province of ...
– Guglielmo Pecori Giraldi, Italian nobleman, general, and politician (b. 1856)
* January 21 – Rudolf von Brudermann, Austro-Hungarian general (b. 1851)
* January 24 – Josslyn Hay, 22nd Earl of Erroll, British aristocrat, murder victim (b. 1901)
* January 29 – Ioannis Metaxas, Greek military officer, politician and Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1871)
February
* February 2 – Harris Laning, American admiral (b. 1873)
* February 4
Events Pre–1600
* 211 – Following the death of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus at Eboracum (modern York, England) while preparing to lead a campaign against the Caledonians, the empire is left in the control of his two quarrellin ...
– George Lloyd, 1st Baron Lloyd, British politician and diplomat (b. 1879)
* February 5
Events Pre-1600
* 62 – Earthquake in Pompeii, Italy.
* 1576 – Henry of Navarre abjures Catholicism at Tours and rejoins the Protestant forces in the French Wars of Religion.
* 1597 – A group of early Japanese Christians ar ...
– Otto Strandman, 1st Prime Minister of Estonia (b. 1875)
* February 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1579 – The Archdiocese of Manila is made a diocese by a papal bull with Domingo de Salazar being its first bishop.
1601–1900
* 1685 – James II of England and VII of Scotland is proclaimed King upon the death of ...
– Banjo Paterson, Australian poet, journalist (b. 1864)
* February 7 – Giuseppe Tellera, Italian general (died of wounds) (b. 1882)
* February 9
Events Pre-1600
* 474 – Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
* 1003 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Poland.
* 1539 – The first recorded race is hel ...
– Aaron S. Watkins, American temperance movement leader (b. 1863)
* February 11 – Rudolf Hilferding, German economist, Minister of Finance (b. 1877)
* February 21 – Frederick Banting, Canadian physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1891)
* February 24 – Lothar von Arnauld de la Perière, German submarine commander (b. 1886)
* February 27
Events Pre-1600
* 380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity.
* 425 – The University of Constantinople ...
– William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (b. 1895)
* February 28 – King Alfonso XIII of Spain (b. 1886)
March
* March 4
Events Pre-1600
*AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title '' princeps iuventutis'' (head of the youth).
* 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia.
* 852 – Croatian Knez Trpimir I issues a st ...
– Ludwig Quidde, German activist, politician and Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1858)
* March 6 – Gutzon Borglum, American sculptor (''Mount Rushmore'') (b. 1867)
* March 8
Events Pre-1600
* 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem ''Shahnameh''.
*1126 – Following the death of his mother, queen Urraca of León, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of León.
* 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between bour ...
– Sherwood Anderson, American author (b. 1876)
* March 15
Events Pre-1600
* 474 BC – Roman consul Aulus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years' truce.
*44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar takes place.
* 493 – Odoa ...
– Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian painter (b. 1864)
* March 17
Events Pre-1600
* 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 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of eigh ...
– Joachim Schepke, German submarine commander (killed in action) (b. 1912)
* March 18 – Alexander Pfänder, German philosopher (b. 1870)
* March 28
** Kavasji Jamshedji Petigara, Indian police commissioner (b. 1887)
** Virginia Woolf, British writer (b. 1882)
* March 30
Events Pre-1600
* 598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague.
* 1282 &ndas ...
– Vasil Kutinchev, Bulgarian general (b. 1859)
April
* April 3 – Pál Teleki, 2-time Prime Minister of Hungary (b. 1879)
* April 5 – Sir Nigel Gresley, English steam locomotive engineer (''LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman, Flying Scotsman'' and ''LNER Class A4 4468 Mallard, Mallard'') (b. 1876)
* April 13
Events Pre-1600
*1111 – Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.
1601–1900
*1612 – In one of the epic samurai ...
– Annie Jump Cannon, American astronomer (b. 1863)
* April 16 – Josiah Stamp, British baron, banker, civil servant, industrialist, economist and statistician (b.1880)
* April 17 – Hans Driesch, German biologist, philosopher (b. 1867)
* April 24 – King Sisowath Monivong of Cambodia (b. 1875)
* April 30 – Edwin S. Porter, American film director (b. 1870)
May
* May 6
Events Pre-1600
* 1527 – Spanish and German troops sack Rome; many scholars consider this the end of the Renaissance.
*1536 – The Siege of Cuzco commences, in which Incan forces attempt to retake the city of Cuzco from the Spanis ...
– Shūzō Kuki, Japanese philosopher (b. 1888)
* May 7 – James George Frazer, Scottish social anthropologist (b. 1854)
* May 11
Events 1601–1900
*1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is Assassination of Spencer Perceval, assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons.
*1813 – William Lawson (explorer), William Lawson, Grego ...
– Peggy Shannon, American actress (b. 1910)
* May 12
Events Pre-1600
* 254 – Pope Stephen I succeeds Pope Lucius I, becoming the 23rd pope of the Catholic Church, and immediately takes a stand against Novatianism.
* 907 – Zhu Wen forces Emperor Ai into abdicating, ending the Tang d ...
– Ruth Stonehouse, American actress (b. 1892)
* May 16 – Minnie Vautrin, American missionary, heroine of the Nanjing Massacre (b. 1887)
* May 24
Events Pre-1600
* 919 – The nobles of Franconia and Saxony elect Henry the Fowler at the Imperial Diet in Fritzlar as king of the East Frankish Kingdom.
* 1218 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
* 1276 – Magnus La ...
– Lancelot Holland, British admiral (b. 1887)
* May 27
Events Pre-1600
* 1096 – Count Emicho enters Mainz, where his followers massacre Jewish citizens. At least 600 Jews are killed.
* 1120 – Richard III of Capua is anointed as Prince two weeks before his untimely death.
* 1153 &ndash ...
– Günther Lütjens, German admiral (b. 1889)
* May 30
Events Pre-1600
* 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus and his Roman legions breach the Second Wall of Jerusalem. Jewish defenders retreat to the First Wall. The Romans build a circumvallation, cutting down all trees within fifteen kilometres ...
– Prajadhipok, Rama VII, King of Siam (b. 1893)
June
* June 1
Events Pre-1600
*1215 – Zhongdu (now Beijing), then under the control of the Jurchen people, Jurchen ruler Emperor Xuanzong of Jin, is captured by the Mongols under Genghis Khan, ending the Battle of Zhongdu.
*1252 – Alfonso X is pr ...
** Hans Berger, German neurologist (b. 1873)
** Jenny Dolly, American singer (b. 1892)
** Hugh Walpole, Sir Hugh Walpole, British writer (b. 1884)
* June 2 – Lou Gehrig, American baseball player (New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...
), MLB Hall of Famer (b. 1903)
* June 4
Events Pre-1600
*1411 – King Charles VI granted a monopoly for the ripening of Roquefort cheese to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon as they had been doing for centuries.
* 1561 – The steeple of St Paul's, the medieval cathedr ...
– Wilhelm II, German Emperor, Wilhelm II, last Emperor of Germany (b. 1859)
* June 6
Events Pre-1600
* 913 – Constantine VII, the eight-year-old illegitimate son of Leo VI the Wise, becomes nominal ruler of the Byzantine Empire under the regency of a seven-man council headed by Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos, appointed b ...
– Louis Chevrolet, Swiss-born automobile builder, race car driver (b. 1878)
* June 11 – Daniel Carter Beard, American scouting pioneer (b. 1850)
* June 15 – Evelyn Underhill, British writer (b. 1875)
* June 21 – Elliott Dexter, American actor (b. 1870)
* June 25
Events Pre-1600
* 524 – The Franks are defeated by the Burgundians in the Battle of Vézeronce.
* 841 – In the Battle of Fontenay-en-Puisaye, forces led by Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeat the armies of Lothair I of ...
– Luigi Capello, Italian general (d. 1859)
* June 28
Events Pre-1600
* 1098 – Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul at the battle of Antioch.
* 1360 – Muhammed VI becomes the tenth Nasrid king of Granada after killing his brother-in-law Ismail II.
* 1461 – ...
– Richard Carle, American actor (b. 1871)
* June 29
Events Pre-1600
* 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of the Kingdom of Wei.
*1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi.
* 1194 – Sverre is crowned King of Norway, ...
– Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Polish pianist, composer, and third Prime Minister of Poland (b. 1860)
July
* July 1 – Mikhail Kaganovich, Soviet politician (b. 1888)
* July 3 – Friedrich Akel, Estonian diplomat, politician (b. 1871)
* July 4 – Antoni Łomnicki, Polish mathematician (b. 1881)
* July 10 – Jelly Roll Morton, African-American jazz musician, composer (b. 1890)
* July 11 – Arthur Evans, English archaeologist (b. 1851)
* July 15 – Walter Ruttmann, German director (b. 1887)
* July 20 – Lew Fields, American vaudeville performer (b. 1867)
* July 22 – Dmitry Pavlov (general), Dmitry Pavlov, Soviet general (executed) (b. 1897)
* July 23 – José Quiñones Gonzales, Peruvian aviator (b. 1914)
* July 24 – Rudolf Ramek, 5th Chancellor of Austria (b. 1881)
* July 25 – Allan Forrest, American actor (b. 1885)
* July 26 – Henri Lebesgue, French mathematician (b. 1875)
* July 27
**Homer Galpin, America politician and lawyer (b 1871)
**Vladimir Klimovskikh, Soviet general (b. 1885)
* July 29 – James Stephenson, British actor (b. 1889)
* July 30
** Hugo Celmiņš, Prime Minister of Latvia (b. 1877)
** Mickey Welch, American baseball player, MLB Hall of Famer (b. 1859)
August
* August 1 –James Drake (politician), James Drake, Australian politician (b. 1850)
* August 7 – Rabindranath Tagore, Indian author, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1861)
* August 12 – Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon, British politician and colonial administrator, 22nd Viceroy of India (b. 1866)
* August 13 – J. Stuart Blackton, American film producer (b. 1875)
* August 14
** Saint Maximilian Kolbe, German Roman Catholic priest (martyred in Auschwitz concentration camp) (b. 1894)
** Paul Sabatier (chemist), Paul Sabatier, French chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1854)
* August 20 – John Baird, 1st Viscount Stonehaven, British politician, 8th Governor-General of Australia (b. 1874)
* August 30 – Peder Oluf Pedersen, Danish engineer, physicist (b. 1874)
* August 31 – Marina Tsvetaeva, Soviet and Russian poet (b. 1892)
September
* September 1 – Karl Parts, Estonian military commander (b. 1886)
* September 9 – Hans Spemann, German embryologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1869)
* September 11
** Alipio Ponce, Peruvian police officer, Civil Guard hero (b. 1906)
**Christian Rakovsky, Bulgarian revolutionary, Russian Bolshevik and Soviet diplomat, journalist, physician, and essayist (executed) (b. 1873)
** Maria Spiridonova, Russian revolutionary, former leader of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries, Party of Left Socialist Revolutionaries (executed) (b. 1884)
* September 18 – Fred Karno, British music hall comedian (b. 1866)
* September 20 – Mikhail Kirponos, Soviet general (b. 1892)
October
* October 5 – Louis Brandeis, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (b. 1856)
* October 8
** Gus Kahn, German songwriter (b. 1886)
** Valentine O'Hara, Irish author (b. 1875)
* October 9 – Helen Morgan (singer), Helen Morgan, American singer, actress (b. 1900)
* October 16 – Sergei Efron, Russian poet, NKVD operative (b. 1893)
* October 18 – Manuel Teixeira Gomes, 7th President of Portugal (b. 1860)
* October 22 – Ioan Glogojeanu, Romanian general (assassinated) (b. 1888)
* October 25 – Robert Delaunay, French painter (b. 1885)
* October 26
** Arkady Gaidar, Russian writer (b. 1904)
** Victor Schertzinger, American composer, director (b. 1888)
* October 28
** 20 Soviet military officers and politicians executed in Kuybyshev:
*** Pavel Rychagov (b. 1911)
*** Grigori Shtern (b. 1900)
*** Yakov Smushkevich (b. 1902)
*** Filipp Goloshchekin (b. 1876)
*** Mikhail Kedrov (politician), Mikhail Kedrov (b. 1878)
*** Aleksandr Loktionov (b. 1893)
* October 29
** Harvey Hendrick, American baseball player (b. 1897)
** Károly Huszár, 25th Prime Minister of Hungary (b. 1882)
November
* November 7 – Frank Pick, British transport administrator, designer (b. 1878)
*November 10 – Carrie Derick, Canadian botanist and geneticist (b. 1862)
* November 16
** Miina Härma, Estonian composer (b. 1864)
** Henry Fuller Maitland Wilson, Sir Henry Wilson, British general (b. 1859)
* November 17 – Ernst Udet, German World War I fighter ace, Nazi ''Luftwaffe'' official (suicide) (b. 1896)
* November 18
** Émile Nelligan, Canadian poet (b. 1879)
** Walther Nernst, German chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1864)
** Chris Watson, 3rd Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1867)
* November 22
** Kurt Koffka, German psychologist (b. 1886)
** Werner Mölders, German fighter pilot (b. 1913)
* November 23 – Henrietta Vinton Davis, American elocutionist, dramatist, impersonator, and public speaker (b. 1860)
* November 25 – Pedro Aguirre Cerda, President of Chile (b. 1879)
* November 26 – Niels Hansen Jacobsen, Danish sculptor, ceramist (b. 1861)
* November 27 – Charles James Briggs, Sir Charles Briggs, British general (b. 1865)
December
* December 2 – Edward Rydz-Śmigły, Polish marshal (b. 1886)
* December 3 – Christian Sinding, Norwegian composer (b. 1856)
* December 7 – Isaac C. Kidd, American admiral (killed in action) (b. 1884)
* December 9 – Eduard von Böhm-Ermolli, Austrian general, German field marshal (b. 1856)
* December 10 – Tom Phillips (Royal Navy officer), Tom Phillips, British admiral (b. 1888)
* December 11 – Émile Picard, French mathematician (b. 1856)
* December 15 – Blessed Martyrs of Drina, Croatian nuns
* December 25 – Blanche Bates, American stage actress (b. 1873)
* December 29 – Tullio Levi-Civita, Italian mathematician (b. 1873)
* December 30 – El Lissitzky, Russian artist, architect (b. 1890)
Nobel Prizes
* Nobel Prize in Physics, Physics – not awarded
* Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemistry – not awarded
* Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Medicine – not awarded
* Nobel Prize in Literature, Literature – not awarded
* Nobel Peace Prize, Peace – not awarded
References
Further reading
* William K. Klingaman. ''1941: Our Lives in a World on the Edge'' (1988) world perspective based on primary sources by a scholar.
{{Authority control
1941,