March 1
March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the
Gregorian calendar (61st in
leap years). There are 305 days remaining.
*
86 BC -
Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a
Roman Republic army, enters in
Athens, removing the
tyrant Aristion who was supported by troops of
Mithridates VI of Pontus.
*
317 -
Crispus and
Constantine II, sons of
Roman Emperor Constantine I, and
Licinius iunior, son of
Licinius, are made
Caesares*
1457 - The
Unitas Fratrum is established in the village of Kunvald, on the Bohemian-Moravian borderland. It is to date the second oldest Protestant denomination.
*
1562 - Over 1,000
Huguenots are massacred by
Catholics in
Wassy,
France marking the start of the
French Wars of Religion.
*
1565 - The city of
Rio de Janeiro is founded.
*
1628 - Writs are issued in
February by
Charles I of England that every county in
England (not just seaport towns) pay
ship tax by this date.
*
1633 -
Samuel de Champlain reclaims his role as commander of
New France on behalf of
Cardinal Richelieu.
*
1642 -
Georgeana,
Massachusetts (now known as
York, Maine) becomes the first incorporated city in
the USA.
*
1692 - The
Salem witch trials begin in
Salem Village, Massachusetts.
*
1700 -
Sweden introduces its own
Swedish calendar, in an attempt to reform into the
Gregorian calendar, then reverts to the
Julian calendar on this date in
1712, and then introduces the
Gregorian Calendar on this date in
1753.
*
1781 - The
Continental Congress adopts the
Articles of Confederation.
*
1790 - The first
United States census is authorized.
*
1803 -
Ohio is admitted as the 17th
U.S. state.
*
1805 - Justice
Samuel Chase is acquitted at the end of his
impeachment trial by the
U.S. Senate.
*
1811 - Leaders of the
Mameluke dynasty are killed by
Egyptian ruler
Muhammad Ali.
*
1815 -
Napoleon returns to
France from his banishment on
Elba.
*
1836 - A
Convention of delegates from 57
Texas communities convenes in
Washington-on-the-Brazos, Texas, to deliberate independence from
Mexico.
*
1840 -
Adolphe Thiers becomes prime minister of
France.
*
1845 -
President John Tyler signs a bill authorizing the
United States to annex the
Republic of Texas.
*
1847 - The state of
Michigan formally abolishes the
death penalty.
*
1852 -
Archibald William Montgomerie, 13th Earl of Eglinton appointed
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.
*
1854 -
German psychologist
Friedrich Eduard Beneke disappears; two years later his remains are found in the canal near
Charlottenburg.
*
1867 -
Nebraska becomes the 37th
U.S. state; Lancaster,
Nebraska is renamed
Lincoln and becomes the state capital.
*
1872 -
Yellowstone National Park is established as the world's first
national park.
*
1873 -
E. Remington and Sons in
Ilion, New York, start production of the first practical
typewriter.
* 1873 -
Henry Comstock discovers the
Comstock Lode in
Virginia City, Nevada.
*
1886 -
Anglo-Chinese School,
Singapore is founded by
Bishop William Oldham.
*
1896 -
Battle of Adowa, an
Ethiopian army defeats an outnumbered
Italian force, ending the
First Italo-Abyssinian War.
* 1896 -
Henri Becquerel discovers
radioactivity.
*
1912 -
Albert Berry makes the first
parachute jump from a moving
airplane.
*
1914 - The
Republic of China joins the
Universal Postal Union.
*
1917 -
U.S. government releases the
plaintext of the
Zimmermann Telegram to the public.
*
1918 -
German submarine
U-19 sinks
HMS Calgarian off
Rathlin Island.
*
1919 -
March 1st Movement begins in
Korea.
*
1932 - The son of
Charles Lindbergh,
Charles Augustus Lindbergh III, is kidnapped.
*
1936 -
Hoover Dam is completed.
*
1941 -
World War II:
Bulgaria signs the
Tripartite Pact thus joining the
Axis powers.
* 1941 -
W47NV (now known as
WSM-FM) begins operations in
Nashville, Tennessee becoming the first
FM radio station in the
U.S..
*
1946 - The
Bank of England is nationalised.
*
1947 - The
International Monetary Fund begins financial operations.
*
1949 -
Indonesia seizes
Yogyakarta from the
Dutch.
*
1950 -
Cold War:
Klaus Fuchs is convicted of spying for the
Soviet Union by giving them top secret
atomic bomb data.
*
1953 -
Joseph Stalin collapses, having suffered a stroke. He dies four days later.
*
1954 -
Nuclear testing: The
Castle Bravo, a 15-
megaton hydrogen bomb, is detonated on
Bikini Atoll in the
Pacific Ocean, resulting in the worst
radioactive contamination ever caused by the
United States.
* 1954 -
Puerto Rican nationalists attack the
United States Capitol building, injuring five
Representatives. (See
U.S. Capitol shooting incident (1954).)
*
1955 -
Allen Fieldhouse at the
University of Kansas hosts its first college
basketball game.
*
1956 - The
International Air Transport Association finalizes a draft of the
Radiotelephony spelling alphabet for the
International Civil Aviation Organization.
*
1958 -
Samuel Alphonsus Stritch, is appointed
Pro-Prefect of the
Propagation of Faith and thus becomes the first
American member of the
Roman Curia.
*
1961 -
President of the United States John F. Kennedy establishes the
Peace Corps.
* 1961 -
Uganda becomes self-governing as its first elections held.
*
1962 -
American Airlines Flight 1 crashes on take off in
New York.
*
1966 -
Venera 3 Soviet space probe crashes on
Venus becoming the first
spacecraft to land on another
planet's surface.
* 1966 - The
Ba'ath Party takes power in
Syria.
*
1969 - During a performance at
Miami's
Dinner Key Auditorium,
Jim Morrison of
the Doors is arrested for exposing himself during the show.
*
1971 - A bomb explodes in a men's room in the
United States Capitol: the
Weather Underground claims responsibility.
* 1971 -
Pakistani
President Yahya Khan indefinitely postponed the pending national assembly session, precipitating massive civil disobedience in
East Pakistan.
*
1972 - The
Thai province of
Yasothon is created after being split off from the
Ubon Ratchathani province.
*
1973 -
Black September terrorists stormed the
Saudi embassy in
Khartoum,
Sudan resulting in the
Khartoum diplomatic assassinations.
*
1974 -
Watergate scandal: Seven are indicted for their role in the
Watergate break-in and charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice.
*
1975 -
Colour television transmissions begin in
Australia.
*
1976 -
Bradford Bishop bludgeoned his mother, spouse and three children to death and is still at large.
*
1978 -
Charlie Chaplin's coffin is stolen from a
Swiss cemetery.
*
1980 -
Voyager 1 probe confirms that
Janus (moon of
Saturn) exists.
*
1983 -
Swatch introduces their first timepieces.
*
1989 - The
United States becomes a member of the
Berne Convention copyright treaty.
*
1990 -
Steve Jackson Games is raided by the
United States Secret Service, prompting the later formation of the
Electronic Frontier Foundation.
*
1994 -
Seattle grunge band
Nirvana play their last show in
Munich, Germany.
*
1995 -
Polish Prime Minister Waldemar Pawlak resigns from
parliament and is replaced by ex-
communist Józef Oleksy.
*
2000 - The
Constitution of Finland is rewritten.
* 2000 -
Hans Blix assumes the position of Executive
Chairman of
UNMOVIC.
*
2002 -
U.S. invasion of Afghanistan:
Operation Anaconda begins in eastern
Afghanistan.
* 2002 - The
Envisat environmental satellite successfully reaches an orbit 800 kilometers (500 miles) above the
Earth on its 11th launch, carrying the heaviest
payload to date at 8500 kilograms (9.5 tons).
* 2002 - The
Peseta is discontinued as official
currency of
Spain and is replaced with the
euro (€).
*
2002 -
Space Shuttle Columbia lifts off for mission
STS-109, its final successful mission.
*
2003 - Management of the
United States Customs Service and the
United States Secret Service move to the
United States Department of Homeland Security.
*
2004 -
Terry Nichols is convicted of state murder charges and being an accomplice to
Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.
* 2004 -
Punycode adopted by the national registrars of
Germany,
Austria and
Switzerland.
* 2004 -
Mohammed Bahr al-Uloum becomes
President of
Iraq.
*
2006 -
Tarja Halonen is inaugurated as
president of Finland for the second and last time.
*
2005- British heavy metal band
Judas Priest releases the album
Angel Of Retribution* 2006 - Queen
Elizabeth II officially opens the new debating chamber for the
National Assembly for Wales in
Cardiff, a milestone in devolution.
* 2006 - The first confirmed case of
H5N1 bird flu virus in
Switzerland, a dead swan on
Lake Geneva, near the city of
Geneva.
* 2006 -
English-language Wikipedia reaches its one millionth article.
*
1445 -
Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter (d.
1510)
*
1456 - King
Ladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary (d.
1516)
*
1474 -
Angela Merici, Italian nun (d.
1540)
*
1547 -
Rudolph Goclenius, German philosopher (d.
1628)
*
1597 -
Jean-Charles de la Faille, Belgian mathematician (d.
1652)
*
1610 -
John Pell, English mathematician (d.
1685)
*
1657 -
Samuel Werenfels, Swiss theologian (d.
1740)
*
1683 -
Caroline of Ansbach, wife of
George II of Great Britain (d.
1737)
*
1732 -
William Cushing, 2nd (confirmed)
Chief Justice of the United States. (d.
1810)
*
1760 -
François Nicolas Leonard Buzot, French revolutionary (suicide) (d.
1794)
*
1769 -
François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (d.
1796)
*
1807 -
Wilford Woodruff, president of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d.
1898)
*
1810 -
Frédéric Chopin, Polish-French composer and pianist (d.
1849)
*
1812 -
Augustus Pugin, English-born architect (d.
1852)
*
1821 -
Joseph Hubert Reinkens, German Old Catholic bishop (d.
1896)
*
1837 -
William Dean Howells, American writer, historian, editor, and politician (d.
1920)
*
1852 -
Théophile Delcassé, French statesman (d.
1923)
*
1858 -
Georg Simmel, German sociologist and philosopher (d.
1918)
*
1863 -
Alexander Golovin, Russian painter (d.
1930)
*
1865 -
Abe Iso, Japanese politician (d.
1949)
*
1871 -
Ben Harney, American composer and ragtime pianist (d.
1938)
*
1876 -
Henri de Baillet-Latour, Belgian International Olympic Committee president (d.
1942)
*
1880 -
Giles Lytton Strachey British writer (d.
1932)
*
1886 -
Oskar Kokoschka, Austrian painter, graphic artist, and poet (d.
1980)
*
1888 -
Ewart Astill, English cricketer (d.
1948)
*
1889 -
Watsuji Tetsuro, Japanese ethicist and philosopher (d.
1960)
*
1892 -
Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Japanese writer (d.
1927)
*
1893 -
Mercedes de Acosta, American poet, playwright, costume designer, and socialite (d.
1968)
*
1896 -
Dimitri Mitropoulos, Greek conductor, pianist, and composer (d.
1960)
*
1896 -
Moriz Seeler, German writer, poet, film producer, and man of the theatre (d.
1942)
*
1899 -
Erich von dem Bach, Nazi official (d.
1972)
*
1901 -
Pietro Spiggia, Italian poet
*
1904 -
Glenn Miller, American bandleader (d.
1944)
*
1910 -
Archer John Porter Martin, English chemist,
Nobel Prize laureate (d.
2002)
* 1910 -
David Niven, English actor (d.
1983)
*
1914 -
Ralph Ellison, American writer (d.
1994)
*
1917 -
Robert Lowell, American poet (d.
1977)
*
1918 -
Roger Delgado, British actor (d.
1973)
* 1918 -
João Goulart,
President of Brazil (d.
1976)
*
1920 -
Howard Nemerov, American poet (d.
1991)
*
1921 -
Terence Cardinal Cooke, American Catholic archbishop (d.
1983)
* 1921 -
Richard Wilbur, American poet
*
1922 -
William Gaines, American publisher (d.
1992)
* 1922 -
Yitzhak Rabin,
Prime Minister of Israel, recipient of the
Nobel Peace Prize (d.
1995)
*
1923 -
Kuczka Péter, Hungarian writer, poet, and editor (d.
1999)
*
1924 -
Deke Slayton, astronaut (d.
1993)
*
1926 -
Robert Clary, French actor
* 1926 -
Alvin "Pete" Rozelle, commissioner of American football (d.
1996)
*
1927 -
Harry Belafonte, American musician and actor
*
1928 -
Dr. Seymour Papert, South African mathematician and artificial intelligence researcher
* 1928 -
Jacques Rivette, French film director
*
1929 -
Georgi Markov, Bulgarian dissident, (d.
1978)
*
1930 -
Gastone Nencini, Italian cyclist (d.
1980)
*
1935 -
Robert Conrad, American actor
*
1937 -
Jed Allan, American actor
*
1939 -
Leo Brouwer, Cuban composer and guitarist
*
1942 -
Richard Bowman Myers, U.S. general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
*
1943 -
Gil Amelio, American businessman and venture capitalist
* 1943 -
Rashid Sunyaev, Russian physicist
* 1943 -
Akinori Nakayama, Japanese gymnast
*
1944 -
John Breaux, U.S. Senator from Louisiana
* 1944 -
Mike d'Abo, British singer (
Manfred Mann)
* 1944 -
Roger Daltrey, English musician (
The Who)
*
1945 -
Dirk Benedict, American film and television actor
*
1946 -
Lana Wood, American actress
*
1947 -
Alan Thicke, Canadian actor and songwriter
*
1948 -
Burning Spear, Jamaican singer and musician
*
1952 -
Steven Barnes, American writer
* 1952 -
Martin O'Neill, Northern Irish footballer and football manager
*
1953 -
Richard Bruton, Irish politician and economist
*
1954 -
Catherine Bach, American actress
* 1954 -
Ron Howard, American actor, director, and producer
*
1956 -
Timothy Daly, American actor
*
1958 -
Bertrand Piccard, Swiss balloonist and psychiatrist
*
1963 -
Dan Michaels, musician and record producer
* 1963 -
Thomas Anders, German singer (
Modern Talking)
* 1963 -
Ron Francis, Canadian
ice hockey player
*
1965 -
Stewart Elliott, Canadian jockey
* 1965 -
Booker Huffman, American professional wrestler
*
1967 -
Aron Winter, Dutch soccer player
*
1969 -
Javier Bardem, Spanish actor
* 1969 -
Dafydd Ieuan, Welsh drummer (
Super Furry Animals)
* 1969 -
Doug Creek, baseball player
*
1970 -
Shaun Pollock, South African cricketer
*
1971 -
Tyler Hamilton, American cyclist
*
1973 -
Chris Webber, American basketball player
* 1973 -
Ryan Peake, Canadian guitarist (
Nickelback)
*
1974 -
Mark-Paul Gosselaar, American actor
*
1976 -
Peter Bell, Australian AFL player
*
1977 -
Rens Blom, Dutch athlete
* 1977 -
Esther Cañadas, Spanish actress and supermodel
*
1978 -
Jensen Ackles, American actor
*
1978 -
Alicia Leigh Willis, American actress
*
1980 -
Djimi Traore, Malian footballer
* 1980 -
Shahid Afridi, Pakistani cricketer
*
1981 -
Adam LaVorgna, American actor
* 1981 -
Ana Hickmann, Brazilian supermodel
*
1983 -
Daniel Carvalho, Brazilian soccer player
* 1983 -
Blake Hawksworth, baseball player
*
1984 -
Naima Mora, American model
*
1985 -
Andreas Ottl, German footballer
*
317 -
Valerius Valens, short-lived Roman emperor
*
1131 - King
Stephen II of Hungary (b.
1101)
*
1233 - Count
Thomas I of Savoy (b.
1178)
*
1244 -
Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, son of
Llywelyn the Great (b.
1200)
*
1383 -
Amadeus VI of Savoy (b.
1334)
*
1510 -
Francisco de Almeida, Portuguese soldier and explorer
*
1536 -
Bernardo Accolti, Italian poet (b.
1465)
*
1546 -
George Wishart, Scottish religious reformer (martyred) (b
1513)
*
1620 -
Thomas Campion, English poet and composer (b.
1567)
*
1633 -
George Herbert, English poet and orator (b.
1593)
*
1643 -
Girolamo Frescobaldi, Italian composer (b.
1583)
*
1661 -
Richard Zouch, English jurist (b.
1590)
*
1697 -
Francesco Redi, Italian physician (b.
1626)
*
1706 -
Heino Heinrich Graf von Flemming, German field marshal and Governor of Berlin (b.
1632)
*
1734 -
Roger North, English biographer (b.
1653)
*
1757 -
Edward Moore, English writer (b.
1712)
*
1768 -
Hermann Samuel Reimarus, German philosopher and writer (b.
1694)
*
1773 -
Luigi Vanvitelli, Italian architect (b.
1700)
*
1777 -
Georg Christoph Wagenseil, Austrian composer (b.
1715)
*
1792 -
Leopold II,
Holy Roman Emperor (b.
1747)
*
1841 -
Claude Victor-Perrin, duc de Belluno, French marshal (b.
1764)
*
1862 -
Peter Barlow, English mathematician (b.
1776)
*
1875 -
Tristan Corbière, French poet (b.
1845)
*
1879 -
Joachim Heer, Swiss politician (b.
1825)
*
1884 -
Isaac Todhunter, English mathematician (b.
1820)
*
1898 -
George Bruce Malleson, English officer in India, author (b.
1825)
*
1911 -
Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff, Dutch chemist,
Nobel Prize laureate (b.
1852)
*
1912 -
George Grossmith, English actor and comic writer (b.
1847)
*
1914 -
Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto (b.
1845)
*
1920 -
John H. Bankhead, U.S. Senator (b.
1842)
* 1920 -
Joseph Trumpeldor, Russian Zionist (b.
1880)
*
1922 -
Rafael Moreno Aranzadi, Spanish footballer (b.
1892)
*
1932 -
Frank Teschemacher, American jazz clarinettist (b.
1906)
*
1936 -
Mikhail Kuzmin, Russian writer (b.
1871)
*
1938 -
Gabriele D'Annunzio, Italian writer, war hero, and politician (b.
1863)
*
1940 -
Anton Hansen Tammsaare, Estonian author (b.
1878)
*
1943 -
Alexandre Yersin, Swiss physician (b.
1863)
*
1952 -
Mariano Azuela, Mexican novelist (b.
1873)
*
1966 -
Fritz Houtermans, German physicist (b.
1903)
*
1970 -
Lucille Hegamin, American singer and entertainer (b.
1894)
*
1974 -
Bobby Timmons, American jazz pianist (b.
1935)
*
1979 -
Mustafa Barzani, Kurdish politician (b.
1903)
*
1980 -
Wilhelmina, high-fashion model and owner of model agency (b.
1940)
*
1984 -
Jackie Coogan, American actor (b.
1914)
*
1988 -
Joe Besser, American comedian and actor (b.
1907)
*
1991 -
Edwin H. Land, American inventor (b.
1909)
*
1995 -
Vladislav Listyev, Russian television journalist (b.
1956)
* 1995 -
Georges J.F. Kohler, German biologist, recipient of the
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b.
1946)
*
2000 -
Dennis Danell, American guitarist (
Social Distortion) (b.
1961)
*
2006 -
Peter Osgood, English footballer (b.
1947)
* 2006 -
Jack Wild, English actor (b.
1952)
* 2006 -
Harry Browne, American politician and author (b.
1933)
* 2006 -
Johnny Jackson, American musician (b.
1951)
*Independence Day in
Bosnia and Herzegovina*
Korea -
Independence Movement Day (
Samiljeol; 삼일절).
*
Roman Empire -
Matronalia in honor of
Juno.
*
Roman Empire -
Feriae Marti in honor of
Mars.
*
Roman Empire -
New Year.
*
Roman Empire - The sacred fire of
Rome was renewed (See
Vesta).
*
World Day of Prayer.
*
Bahá'í Faith - Last Day (4 or 5) of
Ayyám-i-Há (
Intercalary Days) - days in the
Bahá'í calendar devoted to service and gift giving.
*
Labour day -
Western Australia.
*
Eight Hours Day -
Tasmania, Australia.
*
Baba Marta - a
Bulgarian custom when the
Martenitsa is worn for good health and luck symbolizing the beginning of the spring season in
Bulgaria.
*
Martisor - a seasonal holiday in
Romania.
*
Iceland - This day is called the
Beer Day, but this day in
1989 beer was allowed again.
*
World Civil Defense Day - This Day commemorates the entry into force in
1972 of the
ICDO Constitution as an inter-governmental organisation. [
1]
*
Self Injury Awareness DayLiturgical feasts
*
Saint David's Day (
National Holiday of
Wales).
*
Saint Albin*
Saint Monan, largely legendary
Scottish saint.
*
Saint Swidbert*
Saint EudoxiaIn
Denmark, spring begins on March 1, while in
Australia autumn begins on March 1. Meteorological spring in the
Northern Hemisphere, also begins on March 1, as meteorological autumn in the
Southern Hemisphere, also begins on March 1.
*Historically, March 1st was considered to be the beginning of the Roman 'work year' as January (the official first month) and February were unfit for warfare. The numerical Latin names of some months reflect this. (
September = Seventh,
October = Eighth,
November = Ninth,
December = Tenth). (see
New Year).
If one begins each year on March 1, till the next March 1, then each date will have the same day number in this year, regardless of whether it is a leap year or not (e.g.
December 25 is always day 300), unlike counting from
January 1. This is due to the fact that the
Gregorian and
Julian calendars are based on the old
Roman Calendar, which had March 1 as the first day of the year. The addition of the
leap day of
February 29 (which is what causes the days of
leap years to fall on different day numbers) is a continuation of the
February placement of the old
Roman calendar's
Mensis Intercalaris (a shortened extra month inserted to bring the 355 day long calendar into rough alignment with the seasons).
Also the months follow a regular 5-month cycle of 153 days, till the end of
February. This can be seen by listing the number of days in the months thus:
Mar 31 Aug 31 Jan 31
Apr 30 Sep 30 Feb 28/29
May 31 Oct 31
Jun 30 Nov 30
Jul 31 Dec 31
This regularity is sometimes used in calendar calculations.
*
BBC: On This Day*
The New York Times: On This Day*
On This Day in CanadaFebruary 1 -
February 28 -
February 29 - (
February 30) -
March 2 -
April 1 --
listing of all days
