October 26

October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. 66 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 1185 – The Uprising of Asen and Peter begins on the feast day of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki and ends with the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire.
• 1341 – The Byzantine civil war of 1341–47 formally begins with the proclamation of John VI Kantakouzenos as Byzantine Emperor.
• 1377 – Tvrtko I is crowned the first king of Bosnia.
• 1520 – Charles V is crowned as Holy Roman Emperor.
• 1597 – Imjin War: Korean Admiral Yi Sun-sin routs the Japanese Navy of 300 ships with only 13 ships at the Battle of Myeongnyang.
• 1640 – The Treaty of Ripon is signed, restoring peace between Covenanter Scotland and King Charles.
• 1689 – General Piccolomini of Austria burns down Skopje to prevent the spread of cholera. He died of cholera himself soon after.
• 1774 – The first Continental Congress adjourns in Philadelphia.
• 1813 – War of 1812: A combined force of British regulars, Canadian militia, and Mohawks defeat the Americans in the Battle of the Chateauguay.
• 1825 – The Erie Canal opens, allowing direct passage from the Hudson River to Lake Erie.
• 1859 – The Royal Charter is wrecked on the coast of Anglesey with 459 dead.
• 1860 – The Expedition of the Thousand ends when Giuseppe Garibaldi presents his conquests to King Victor Emmanuel of Sardinia.
• 1863 – The Football Association is founded.
• 1892 – Ida B. Wells publishes Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases.
• 1905 – King Oscar II recognizes the dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden.
• 1909 – An Jung-geun assassinates Japan's Resident-General of Korea.
• 1912 – First Balkan War: The Ottomans lose the cities of Thessaloniki and Skopje.
• 1917 – First World War: Brazil declares war on the Central Powers.
• 1918 – Erich Ludendorff, quartermaster-general of the Imperial German Army, is dismissed by Kaiser Wilhelm II for refusing to cooperate in peace negotiations.
• 1921 – The Chicago Theatre opens.
• 1936 – The first electric generator at Hoover Dam goes into full operation.
• 1942 – World War II: In the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands during the Guadalcanal Campaign, one U.S. aircraft carrier is sunk and another carrier is heavily damaged, while two Japanese carriers and one cruiser are heavily damaged.
• 1943 – World War II: First flight of the Dornier Do 335 "Pfeil".
• 1944 – World War II: The Battle of Leyte Gulf ends with an overwhelming American victory.
• 1947 – Kashmir conflict: The Maharaja of Kashmir and Jammu signs the Instrument of Accession with India.
• 1955 – After the last Allied troops have left the country, and following the provisions of the Austrian Independence Treaty, Austria declares that it will never join a military alliance.
• 1955 – Ngô Đình Diệm declares himself Premier of South Vietnam.
• 1956 – Hungarian Revolution: In the towns of Mosonmagyaróvár and Esztergom, Hungarian secret police forces massacre civilians. As rebel strongholds in Budapest hold, fighting spreads throughout the country.
• 1958 – Pan American Airways makes the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707 from New York City to Paris.
• 1967 – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi crowns himself Emperor of Iran.
• 1968 – Soviet cosmonaut Georgy Beregovoy pilots Soyuz 3 into space for a four-day mission.
• 1970 – Muhammad Ali boxes for the first time after Ali's three-year hiatus due to draft evasion.
• 1977 – Ali Maow Maalin, the last natural case of smallpox, develops a rash in Somalia. The World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider this date to be the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, the most spectacular success of vaccination.
• 1979 – Park Chung-hee, President of South Korea, is assassinated by Korean CIA head Kim Jae-gyu.
• 1985 – The Australian government returns ownership of Uluru to the local Pitjantjatjara Aborigines.
• 1991 – Three months after the end of the Ten-Day War, the last soldier of the Yugoslav People's Army leaves the territory of the Republic of Slovenia.
• 1994 – Jordan and Israel sign a peace treaty.
• 1995 – Mossad agents assassinate Islamic Jihad leader Fathi Shaqaqi in his hotel in Malta.
• 1999 – Britain's House of Lords votes to end the right of hereditary peers to vote in Britain's upper chamber of Parliament.
• 2000 – A wave of protests forces Robert Guéï to step down as president after the Ivorian presidential election.
• 2001 – The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law.
• 2002 – Approximately 50 Chechen terrorists and 150 hostages die when Russian special forces troops storm a theater building in Moscow, which had been occupied by the terrorists during a musical performance three days before.
• 2003 – The Cedar Fire, the third-largest fire in California history, kills 15 people, consumes 250,000 acres (1,000 km²), and destroys 2,200 homes around San Diego.
• 2015 – A 7.5 magnitude earthquake strikes in the Hindu Kush mountain range in northeastern Afghanistan, killing 398 people and leaving 2,536 people injured.
• 2016 – An earthquake of magnitude 6.6 strikes central Italy.
• 2017 – Royal cremation of Bhumibol Adulyadej at the Sanam Luang, Bangkok.

Births

• 1416 – Edmund Grey, 1st Earl of Kent, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (d. 1490)
• 1427 – Sigismund, Archduke of Austria (d. 1496)
• 1431 – Ercole I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Italian politician (d. 1505)
• 1473 – Friedrich of Saxony, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights (d. 1510)
• 1483 – Hans Buchner, German Renaissance composer (d. 1538)
• 1491 – Zhengde Emperor of China (d. 1521)
• 1518 – John Basset, Devonshire gentleman (d. 1541)
• 1529 – Anna of Hesse, princess of Hesse (d. 1591)
• 1551 – Charlotte de Sauve, French courtesan (d. 1617)
• 1556 – Ahmad Baba al Massufi, Malian academic (d. 1627)
• 1564 – Hans Leo Hassler, German organist and composer (d. 1612)
• 1609 – William Sprague, English-American settler, co-founded Charlestown, Massachusetts (d. 1675)
• 1612 – Henry Wilmot, 1st Earl of Rochester (d. 1658)
• 1673 – Dimitrie Cantemir, Moldavian geographer, historian, and philosopher (d. 1723)
• 1684 – Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin, Prussian field marshal (d. 1757)
• 1685 – Domenico Scarlatti, Italian harpsichord player and composer (d. 1757)
• 1694 – Johan Helmich Roman, Swedish composer and academic (d. 1758)
• 1747 – Ivan Mane Jarnović, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1804)
• 1757 – Karl Leonhard Reinhold, Austrian philosopher and academic (d. 1823)
• 1759 – Georges Danton, French lawyer and politician, French Minister of Justice (d. 1794)
• 1768 – Eustachy Erazm Sanguszko, Polish general and politician (d. 1844)
• 1794 – Konstantin Thon, Russian architect, designed the Grand Kremlin Palace and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour (d. 1881)
• 1795 – Nikolaos Mantzaros, Greek composer and theorist (d. 1872)
• 1797 – Giuditta Pasta, Italian soprano (d. 1865)
• 1799 – Margaret Agnes Bunn, Scottish actress (d. 1883)
• 1800 – Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian field marshal (d. 1891)
• 1802 – Miguel I of Portugal (d. 1866)
• 1803 – Joseph Hansom, English architect and publisher, designed Birmingham Town Hall (d. 1882)
• 1842 – Vasily Vereshchagin, Russian soldier and painter (d. 1904)
• 1849 – Ferdinand Georg Frobenius, German mathematician and academic (d. 1917)
• 1850 – Grigore Tocilescu, Romanian archaeologist and historian (d. 1909)
• 1854 – C. W. Post, American businessman, founded Post Foods (d. 1914)
• 1860 – Frank Eaton, American marshal and author (d. 1958)
• 1865 – Benjamin Guggenheim, American businessman (d. 1912)
• 1869 – Washington Luís, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 13th President of Brazil (d. 1957)
• 1871 – Guillermo Kahlo, German-Mexican photographer (d. 1941)
• 1873 – A. K. Fazlul Huq, Bangladeshi-Pakistani lawyer and politician, 5th Pakistani Minister of Interior (d. 1962)
• 1873 – Thorvald Stauning, Danish union leader and politician, 24th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1942)
• 1874 – Martin Lowry, English chemist and academic (d. 1936)
• 1874 – Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, American philanthropist, founded the Museum of Modern Art (d. 1948)
• 1875 – H.B. Warner, English actor (d. 1958)
• 1880 – Andrei Bely, Russian novelist, poet, and critic (d. 1934)
• 1881 – Louis Bastien, French cyclist and fencer (d. 1963)
• 1883 – Napoleon Hill, American philosopher and author (d. 1970)
• 1883 – Paul Pilgrim, American runner (d. 1958)
• 1884 – William Hogenson, American sprinter (d. 1965)
• 1890 – Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Indian journalist and politician (d. 1931)
• 1893 – Miloš Crnjanski, Serbian poet and author (d. 1977)
• 1894 – Florence Nagle, English trainer and breeder of racehorses (d. 1988)
• 1899 – Judy Johnson, American baseball player and coach (d. 1989)
• 1900 – Ibrahim Abboud, Sudanese politician and general, 1st President of Sudan (d. 1983)
• 1900 – Karin Boye, Swedish poet and novelist (d. 1941)
• 1902 – Beryl Markham, Kenyan horse trainer and author (d. 1986)
• 1902 – Jack Sharkey, American boxer and referee (d. 1994)
• 1902 – Henrietta Hill Swope, American astronomer and academic (d. 1980)
• 1903 – Mahn Ba Khaing, Burmese politician (d. 1947)
• 1905 – George Bernard Flahiff, Canadian cardinal (d. 1989)
• 1906 – Primo Carnera, Italian boxer and actor (d. 1967)
• 1909 – Ignace Lepp, French psychologist and author (d. 1966)
• 1909 – Dante Quinterno, Argentinian author and illustrator (d. 2003)
• 1910 – John Krol, American cardinal (d. 1996)
• 1911 – Sid Gillman, American football player and coach (d. 2003)
• 1911 – Mahalia Jackson, American singer (d. 1972)
• 1911 – Sorley MacLean, Scottish poet and educator (d. 1996)
• 1912 – Don Siegel, American director and producer (d. 1991)
• 1913 – Charlie Barnet, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1991)
• 1914 – Jackie Coogan, American actor and director (d. 1984)
• 1915 – Ray Crawford, American race car driver, fighter ace, test pilot, and businessman (d. 1996)
• 1915 – Joe Fry, English race car driver (d. 1950)
• 1916 – François Mitterrand, French lawyer and politician, 21st President of France (d. 1996)
• 1916 – Boyd Wagner, American colonel and pilot (d. 1942)
• 1919 – Princess Ashraf of Iran (d. 2016)
• 1919 – Frank Bourgholtzer, American journalist (d. 2010)
• 1919 – Edward Brooke, American captain and politician, 47th Massachusetts Attorney General (d. 2015)
• 1919 – Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran (d. 1980)
• 1920 – Sarah Lee Lippincott, American astronomer and academic
• 1921 – Joe Fulks, American basketball player (d. 1976)
• 1922 – Madelyn Dunham, American grandmother of Barack Obama (d. 2008)
• 1922 – Fred Wood, English actor (d. 2003)
• 1923 – Robert Hinde, English zoologist and academic (d. 2016)
• 1924 – Shaw Taylor, English actor and television host (d. 2015)
• 1925 – Jan Wolkers, Dutch sculptor, painter, and author (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Panos Gavalas, Greek singer (d. 1988)
• 1927 – Warne Marsh, American saxophonist (Supersax) (d. 1987)
• 1928 – Francisco Solano López, Argentinian illustrator (d. 2011)
• 1929 – Neal Matthews Jr., American country/gospel singer (The Jordanaires) (d. 2000)
• 1931 – Suhaila Noah, Spouse of the Prime Minister of Malaysia (d. 2014)
• 1933 – Takis Kanellopoulos, Greek director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1990)
• 1933 – Andrew P. O'Rourke, American judge and politician (d. 2013)
• 1934 – Hot Rod Hundley, American basketball player and sportscaster (d. 2015)
• 1934 – Hans-Joachim Roedelius, German keyboard player and producer
• 1935 – Mike Gray, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1935 – Gloria Conyers Hewitt, American mathematician and academic
• 1936 – Al Casey, American guitarist (d. 2006)
• 1936 – Shelley Morrison, American actress
• 1936 – György Pauk, Hungarian violinist and educator
• 1936 – Etelka Kenéz Heka, Hungarian writer, poet and singer
• 1940 – Eddie Henderson, American trumpet player and educator
• 1940 – John Horgan, Irish academic and politician
• 1941 – Steven Kellogg, American author and illustrator
• 1941 – Charlie Landsborough, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1942 – Bob Hoskins, English actor, singer, and director (d. 2014)
• 1942 – Milton Nascimento, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1942 – Zdenko Runjić, Croatian songwriter and producer (d. 2004)
• 1942 – Jonathan Williams, English race car driver and pilot (d. 2014)
• 1944 – Jim McCann, Irish singer and guitarist (d. 2015)
• 1945 – Pat Conroy, American author (d. 2016)
• 1945 – Demetris Th. Gotsis, Greek poet and author
• 1945 – Nancy Davis Griffeth, American computer scientist and academic
• 1945 – Jaclyn Smith, American actress and producer
• 1946 – Kevin Barron, English electrician and politician
• 1946 – Keith Hopwood, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
• 1946 – Pat Sajak, American journalist, actor, and game show host
• 1946 – Holly Woodlawn, Puerto Rican actress and author (d. 2015)
• 1947 – Ricardo Asch, Argentinian gynecologist and endocrinologist
• 1947 – Ian Ashley, German-English race car driver
• 1947 – Hillary Clinton, American lawyer and politician, 67th United States Secretary of State and 44th First Lady of the United States
• 1947 – Reg Empey, Northern Irish businessman and politician, Lord Mayor of Belfast
• 1947 – Trevor Joyce, Irish poet and scholar
• 1947 – Kenzo Kitakata, Japanese author
• 1948 – Toby Harrah, American baseball player and coach
• 1949 – Antonio Carpio, Filipino lawyer and jurist, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines
• 1949 – Steve Rogers, American baseball player
• 1949 – Kevin Sullivan, American wrestler and booker
• 1951 – Bootsy Collins, American singer-songwriter and bass player
• 1951 – Tommy Mars, American keyboard player
• 1951 – Julian Schnabel, American painter, director, and screenwriter
• 1952 – Bobby Bandiera, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1952 – Edward Garnier, English lawyer and politician, Solicitor General for England and Wales
• 1952 – Andrew Motion, English poet and author
• 1952 – David Was, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1953 – Roger Allam, British actor
• 1953 – Tim Hely Hutchinson, English publisher
• 1953 – Joe Meriweather, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1953 – Keith Strickland, American guitarist and songwriter
• 1954 – Vasilis Hatzipanagis, Greek footballer
• 1954 – Adam Mars-Jones, English author and critic
• 1954 – James Pickens Jr., American actor
• 1954 – D. W. Moffett, American actor and director
• 1956 – Stephen Gumley, Australian engineer and businessman
• 1956 – Rita Wilson, American actress and producer
• 1957 – Bob Golic, American football player and radio host
• 1958 – Shaun Woodward, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
• 1959 – Paul Farmer, American anthropologist and physician
• 1959 – Evo Morales, Bolivian soldier and politician, 80th President of Bolivia
• 1961 – Gerald Malloy, American lawyer and politician
• 1961 – Dylan McDermott, American actor
• 1961 – Joey Salceda, Filipino politician
• 1961 – Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenyan President
• 1962 – Cary Elwes, English actor and producer
• 1962 – Jack Morelli, American comic book professional and author
• 1963 – Ted Demme, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2002)
• 1963 – Natalie Merchant, American singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1964 – Tom Cavanagh, Canadian actor and producer
• 1965 – Kelly Rowan, Canadian actress and producer
• 1965 – Ken Rutherford, New Zealand cricketer
• 1966 – Sverre Gjørvad, Norwegian drummer and composer
• 1966 – Masaharu Iwata, Japanese keyboard player and composer
• 1966 – Jeanne Zelasko, American journalist and sportscaster
• 1967 – Douglas Alexander, Scottish lawyer and politician, former Minister of State for Europe
• 1967 – Keith Urban, New Zealand-American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1968 – Miyuki Imori, Japanese actress and singer
• 1970 – Dian Bachar, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1970 – Lisa Ryder, Canadian actress
• 1971 – Jim Butcher, American author
• 1971 – Audley Harrison, English boxer
• 1971 – Ronnie Irani, English cricketer
• 1971 – Anthony Rapp, American actor and singer
• 1972 – Matsuko Deluxe, Japanese journalist and author
• 1972 – Daniel Elena, Monegasque race car driver
• 1973 – Austin Healey, English rugby player and sportscaster
• 1973 – Seth MacFarlane, American voice actor, singer, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1973 – Taka Michinoku, Japanese wrestler and trainer
• 1974 – Raveena Tandon, Indian actress, producer, and former model
• 1977 – Jon Heder, American actor and producer
• 1977 – Marisha Pessl, American author
• 1978 – Sari Abacha, Nigerian footballer (d. 2013)
• 1978 – Jimmy Aggrey, English footballer and actor
• 1978 – Eva Kaili, Greek journalist and politician
• 1978 – CM Punk, American wrestler, mixed martial artist, and actor
• 1978 – Dave Zastudil, American football player
• 1979 – Movsar Barayev, Chechen terrorist (d.2002)
• 1980 – Cristian Chivu, Romanian footballer
• 1980 – Claire Cooper, English actress
• 1980 – Koichi Watanabe, Japanese kick-boxer
• 1981 – Sam Brown, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1981 – Martina Schild, Swiss skier
• 1981 – Guy Sebastian, Malaysian-Australian singer-songwriter
• 1981 – Chou Ssu-Chi, Taiwanese baseball player
• 1982 – Nicola Adams, English boxer
• 1982 – Adam Carroll, Irish race car driver
• 1983 – Francisco Liriano, Dominican baseball player
• 1983 – Dmitri Sychev, Russian footballer
• 1983 – Luke Watson, South African rugby player
• 1984 – Sasha Cohen, American figure skater
• 1984 – Adriano Correia, Brazilian footballer
• 1984 – Mathieu Crépel, French snowboarder
• 1984 – Jefferson Farfán, Peruvian footballer
• 1984 – Amanda Overmyer, American singer-songwriter
• 1985 – Andrea Bargnani, Italian basketball player
• 1985 – Kafoumba Coulibaly, Ivorian footballer
• 1985 – Monta Ellis, American basketball player
• 1985 – Kieran Read, New Zealand rugby player
• 1986 – Ibor Bakar, French footballer
• 1986 – Jakub Rzeźniczak, Polish footballer
• 1986 – Marco Ruben, Argentinian footballer
• 1986 – Schoolboy Q, German-American rapper
• 1987 – Abudramae Bamba, Ivorian footballer
• 1987 – Shawn Lauvao, American football player
• 1988 – Greg Zuerlein, American figure skater
• 1989 – Dre Kirkpatrick, American football player
• 1989 – Emil Sayfutdinov, Russian motorcycle racer
• 1989 – Felix Kjellberg, Swedish youtuber
• 1990 – Mark Swanepoel, South African rugby player
• 1991 – Riho Iida, Japanese model and actress
• 1992 – Joseph Cramarossa, Canadian hockey player
• 1994 – Waqa Blake, Fijian rugby league player
• 1994 – Allie DeBerry, American model and actress
• 1996 – Rebecca Tunney, English gymnast
• 2002 – Julian Dennison, New Zealand actor

Deaths

• 664 – Cedd, English monk and bishop (b. 620)
• 760 – Cuthbert, archbishop of Canterbury
• 899 – Alfred the Great, English king (b. 849)
• 930 – Li Qi, chancellor of Later Liang (b. 871)
• 1111 – Gómez González, Castilian nobleman and military leader
• 1440 – Gilles de Rais, French knight (b. 1404)
• 1555 – Olympia Fulvia Morata, Italian-German scholar and educator (b. 1526)
• 1580 – Anna of Austria, Queen of Spain (b. 1549)
• 1609 – Matsudaira Tadayori, Japanese samurai and daimyō (b. 1582)
• 1633 – Horio Tadaharu, Japanese daimyō (b. 1596)
• 1671 – Sir John Gell, 1st Baronet, English politician (b. 1593)
• 1675 – William Sprague, English settler, co-founded Charlestown, Massachusetts (b. 1609)
• 1686 – John Egerton, 2nd Earl of Bridgewater, English captain and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire (b. 1623)
• 1717 – Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester (b. 1657)
• 1751 – Philip Doddridge, English minister and hymn-writer (b. 1702)
• 1764 – William Hogarth, English painter and engraver (b. 1697)
• 1773 – Amédée-François Frézier, French mathematician, engineer, and explorer (b. 1682)
• 1803 – Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford, English politician, Lord President of the Council (b. 1721)
• 1806 – John Graves Simcoe, English general and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (b. 1752)
• 1817 – Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin, Dutch-Austrian chemist and botanist (b. 1727)
• 1864 – William T. Anderson, American captain (b. 1838)
• 1866 – John Kinder Labatt, Irish-Canadian brewer, founded the Labatt Brewing Company (b. 1803)
• 1871 – Robert Anderson (Civil War), American general (b. 1805)
• 1890 – Carlo Collodi, Italian journalist and author (b. 1826)
• 1896 – Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour, French philosopher, academic, and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1827)
• 1902 – Elizabeth Cady Stanton, American activist (b. 1815)
• 1909 – Itō Hirobumi, Japanese samurai and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1841)
• 1919 – Akashi Motojiro, Japanese general (b. 1864)
• 1927 – Jūkichi Yagi, Japanese poet (b. 1898)
• 1930 – Waldemar Haffkine, Russian-Swiss physician and microbiologist (b. 1860)
• 1930 – Harry Payne Whitney, American businessman and horse breeder (b. 1872)
• 1931 – Charles Comiskey, American baseball player and manager (b. 1859)
• 1932 – Margaret Brown, American philanthropist and activist (b. 1867)
• 1937 – Józef Dowbor-Muśnicki, Polish general (b. 1867)
• 1941 – Arkady Gaidar, Russian journalist and author (b. 1904)
• 1943 – Aurel Stein, Hungarian-English archaeologist and academic (b. 1862)
• 1944 – Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom (b. 1857)
• 1944 – Hiroyoshi Nishizawa, Japanese lieutenant and pilot (b. 1920)
• 1944 – William Temple, English archbishop and theologian (b. 1881)
• 1945 – Aleksey Krylov, Russian mathematician and engineer (b. 1863)
• 1945 – Paul Pelliot, French sinologist and explorer (b. 1878)
• 1946 – Ioannis Rallis, Greek lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1878)
• 1947 – Edwin Savage, English priest and author (b. 1862)
• 1949 – Lionel Halsey, English admiral and courtier (b. 1872)
• 1952 – Hattie McDaniel, American actress and singer (b. 1895)
• 1956 – Walter Gieseking, French-German pianist and composer (b. 1895)
• 1957 – Gerty Cori, Czech-American biochemist and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1896)
• 1957 – Nikos Kazantzakis, Greek philosopher, author, and playwright (b. 1883)
• 1960 – Toshizō Nishio, Japanese general (b. 1881)
• 1961 – Sadae Inoue, Japanese general (b. 1886)
• 1962 – Louise Beavers, American actress (b. 1902)
• 1963 – Elizabeth Gunn, New Zealand pediatrician (b. 1879)
• 1965 – Sylvia Likens, 16-year-old group torture/murder victim in Indianapolis (b. 1949)
• 1966 – Alma Cogan, English singer (b. 1932)
• 1972 – Igor Sikorsky, Ukrainian-American engineer and academic, founded Sikorsky Aircraft (b. 1889)
• 1973 – Semyon Budyonny, Marshal of the Soviet Union (b. 1883)
• 1974 – Bidia Dandaron, Russian author and educator (b. 1914)
• 1978 – Alexander Gerschenkron, Ukrainian-American historian, critic, and academic (b. 1904)
• 1979 – Park Chung-hee, South Korean general and politician, 3rd President of South Korea (b. 1917)
• 1984 – Gus Mancuso, American baseball player and coach (b. 1905)
• 1986 – Jackson Scholz, American runner (b. 1897)
• 1989 – Charles J. Pedersen, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
• 1993 – Oro, Mexican wrestler (b. 1971)
• 1994 – Wilbert Harrison, American singer and guitarist (b. 1929)
• 1995 – Wilhelm Freddie, Danish painter and sculptor (b. 1909)
• 1995 – Gorni Kramer, Italian bassist, songwriter, and bandleader (b. 1913)
• 1998 – Kenkichi Iwasawa, Japanese mathematician and academic (b. 1917)
• 1999 – Hoyt Axton, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1938)
• 1999 – Eknath Easwaran, Indian-American author and educator (b. 1910)
• 2001 – Hüseyin Hilmi Işık, Turkish scholar and academic (b. 1911)
• 2002 – Jacques Massu, French general (b. 1908)
• 2002 – Sally Hoyt Spofford, American ornithologist (b. 1914)
• 2004 – Bobby Ávila, Mexican baseball player and politician (b. 1924)
• 2005 – Keith Parkinson, American illustrator (b. 1958)
• 2005 – George Swindin, English footballer and manager (b. 1914)
• 2006 – Tillman Franks, American bassist and songwriter (b. 1920)
• 2006 – Pontus Hultén, Swedish art collector and curator (b. 1924)
• 2007 – Nicolae Dobrin, Romanian footballer and manager (b. 1947)
• 2007 – Friedman Paul Erhardt, German-American chef and television host (b. 1943)
• 2007 – Arthur Kornberg, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize (b. 1918)
• 2008 – Tony Hillerman, American journalist, author, and educator (b. 1925)
• 2008 – Delmar Watson, American actor and photographer (b. 1926)
• 2009 – Teel Bivins, American lawyer and politician, 18th United States Ambassador to Sweden (b. 1947)
• 2009 – Yoshirō Muraki, Japanese production designer and art director(b. 1924)
• 2009 – George Naʻope, American singer and dancer (b. 1928)
• 2009 – Troy Smith, American businessman, founded Sonic Drive-In (b. 1922)
• 2010 – Glen Little, American clown (b. 1925)
• 2010 – Mbah Maridjan, Indonesian spiritual leader (b. 1927)
• 2010 – Romeu Tuma, Brazilian police officer and politician (b. 1931)
• 2011 – Jona Senilagakali, Fijian physician and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Fiji (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Mac Ahlberg, Swedish-Italian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer (b. 1931)
• 2012 – Arnold Greenberg, American businessman, co-founded Snapple (b. 1932)
• 2012 – John M. Johansen American architect, designed the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre (b. 1916)
• 2012 – Alan Kirschenbaum, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1961)
• 2012 – Björn Sieber, Austrian skier (b. 1989)
• 2012 – Alan Stretton, Australian general (b. 1922)
• 2013 – Ritva Arvelo, Finnish actress, director, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
• 2013 – Ron Davies, Welsh photographer (b. 1921)
• 2013 – Doug Ireland, American journalist and activist (b. 1946)
• 2013 – Al Johnson, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1948)
• 2013 – Andries Maseko, South African footballer (b. 1955)
• 2013 – Gabriel of Komana (b. 1946)
• 2014 – Vic Allen, English sociologist, economist, and historian (b. 1923)
• 2014 – Mo Collins, American football player and coach (b. 1976)
• 2014 – Germain Gagnon, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1942)
• 2014 – Senzo Meyiwa, South African footballer (b. 1987)
• 2014 – Brian Moore, Australian rugby league player (b. 1944)
• 2014 – Jeff Robinson, American baseball player (b. 1961)
• 2014 – Gordy Soltau, American football player and sportscaster (b. 1925)
• 2014 – Oscar Taveras, Dominican baseball player (b. 1992)
• 2015 – Willis Carto, American activist and theorist (b. 1926)
• 2015 – Leo Kadanoff, American physicist and academic (b. 1937)
• 2015 – Giuseppe Nazzaro, Italian-Syrian bishop and theologian (b. 1937)
• 2017 – Ali Ashraf Darvishian, Iranian novelist, short story writer and academic. (b. 1941)

Holidays and observances

• Accession Day (Jammu and Kashmir)
• Angam Day (Nauru)
• Armed Forces Day (Benin)
• Christian feast day:
  • Alfred the Great (Catholic Church, Anglican Church, Eastern Orthodox Church)
  • Amandus of Strasbourg
  • Beóán (Bean) of Mortlach
  • Blessed Celine Borzecka
  • Cedd
  • Cuthbert of Canterbury
  • Demetrius of Thessaloniki
  • Eadfrith of Leominster
  • Eata of Hexham
  • Pope Evaristus (Aristus)
  • Fulk of Pavia (Roman Catholic Church)
  • Philipp Nicolai, Johann Heermann and Paul Gerhardt (Lutheran Church)
  • Quadragesimus
  • Quodvultdeus
  • Rusticus of Narbonne
  • Witta (Albinus) of Büraburg
• National Day, celebrates the anniversary of the Declaration of Neutrality in 1955. (Austria)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• Today in Canadian History