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What happened in history on this day: March 18?
On March 18 in ...
- 235 - Marcus Aurelius Alexander, Syrian emperor of Rome (222-235), murdered.
- 417 - Saint Zosimus begins his reign as Catholic Pope.
- 731 - Saint Gregory III begins his reign as Catholic Pope.
- 978 - Edward the Martyr, King of Anglo-Saxons (975-78)/st, murdered at age 15.
- 978 - Saint Edward the Martyr king of Anglo-Saxons (975-78) dies.
- 1123 - First Latern Council (9th ecumenical council) opens in Rome.
- 1167 - Battle of El-Babein, Egypt: Franks under Amalrik versus Syrians.
- 1190 - Crusaders kill 57 Jews in Bury Street, Edmonds, England.
- 1227 - Honorius III [Cencio Savelli], Pope (1216-27), dies.
- 1229 - German emperor Frederick II crowns himself king of Jerusalem.
- 1314 - Jacques De Molay the last grand master of Order of Knights, dies.
- 1380 - Birth of Liduina van Schiedam Dutch "Christ's bride"/saint.
- 1438 - Albrecht II von Habsburg becomes king of Germany.
- 1483 - Birth of Raphael painter (Sistine Madonna).
- 1493 - John of Lannoy Flemish Governor/viceroy of Netherlands/Zealand, dies at age 82.
- 1509 - Emperor Maximilian I names Margaretha land guardians of Netherlands.
- 1532 - English parliament bans payments by English church to Rome.
- 1543 - Hernan de Soto observes first recorded flood in America (Mississippi River).
- 1548 - Birth of Cornelis Ketel Dutch portrait painter/poet.
- 1556 - Birth of François-Hercule de Valois French duke of Anjou/Brabant.
- 1578 - Birth of Adam Elsheimer German painter/cartoonist/etcher, baptized.
- 1582 - Jean Jaurequi, of Basque, Spain, attempts an assassination of Willem of Orange at Antwerp. He fails, is caught and lynched.
- 1583 - Dutch States General and Anjou sign treaty.
- 1584 - Ivan IV the terrible, Russian tsar (1547-84), dies at age 53.
- 1609 - Birth of Frederick III king of Denmark and Norway (1648-70), absolutist.
- 1644 - Birth of Gottfried Wegner composer.
- 1662 - First scheduled bus service, between Porte de Sainte-Antoine and Porte du Luxembourg, in France. Fare is 5 sous.
- 1673 - Lord Berkley sells his half of New Jersey to the Quakers.
- 1690 - Birth of Christian Goldbach in Königsberg; mathematician (theory of curves, infinite series, Goldbach's conjecture).
- 1745 - Robert Walpole first English premier (1722-42), dies at age 68.
- 1754 - Duke of Newcastle becomes English premier.
- 1765 - Birth of David H Chassé Dutch baron/General (fought Napoleon at Waterloo).
- 1766 - British Parliament reinstitutes the Stamp Act.
- 1768 - Lawrence Sterne writer (Sentimental Journey France and Italy), dies.
- 1773 - Oliver Goldsmith' "She Stoops to Conquer" premieres in London.
- 1782 - Birth of John Caldwell Calhoun in Abbeville, South Carolina, USA; Andrew Jackson's Vice President (1829-37).
- 1793 - Second Battle at Neerwinden: Austria army beats France.
- 1813 - David Melville, of Newport, Rhode Island, USA patents apparatus for making coal gas.
- 1818 - US Congress approves first pensions for government service.
- 1829 - Birth of William Robertson Boggs in Georgia, USA; Brigadier General (Confederate Army), chief of engineers under Braxton Bragg (dies 1911).
- 1834 - First railroad tunnel in US completed, in Pennsylvania (275 metres long).
- 1837 - Birth of Stephen Grover Cleveland in Caldwell, New Jersey, USA; lawyer, Eric County district attorney (1863-65), Erie County sheriff (1871-73), mayor of Buffalo (1881), governor of New York (1882-85), 22nd US President (1885-89), 24th US President (1893-97).
- 1838 - Birth of Randal Cremer in Great Britain; trade unionist, pacifist (Nobel Prize 1903).
- 1839 - Birth of Francis Fessenden; US Major General (Union volunteers) (dies 1906).
- 1842 - Birth of Stéphane Mallarmé; French poet (L'Après-midi d'un faune).
- 1843 - Birth of Jules Vandenpeereboom; premier of Belgium (1899).
- 1844 - Birth of Nicolai Andreevich Rimski-Korsakov in Tikhvin, Russia; composer (Flight of the Bumble Bee, Scheherazade).
- 1847 - First Dutch public telegram.
- 1848 - Birth of Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, daughter of Queen Victoria (dies 1939).
- 1848 - Birth of Nathaniel Herreshoff; America's Cup yacht designer.
- 1850 - Henry Wells and William Fargo form American Express in Buffalo, New York.
- 1852 - In New York City, Henry Wells and William G. Fargo join with several other investors to launch the Wells, Fargo and Company shipping company.
- 1858 - Birth of Rudolph C K Diesel; German engineer (Diesel motor).
- 1858 - Dutch Van der Brugghen government resigns.
- 1859 - Vera Cruz besieged by Miramón (Cons) in Mexican War of Reform.
- 1864 - Birth of Karl M Lybeck; Finnish/Swedish language poet (Samlade Arbeten).
- 1864 - Dale Dike on Humber River crumbles drowning some 240.
- 1865 - Battle of Wilson's raid to Selma, Alabama.
- 1865 - Congress of Confederate States of American adjourns for last time.
- 1866 - Birth of John Loudon; Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs (1913-18).
- 1867 - Birth of Michael G de Boer; historian (Harbor of Amsterdam).
- 1869 - Congress passes the Act to Strengthen the Public Credit, by paying off US obligations in coin.
- 1869 - Birth of Arthur Neville Chamberlain; British Prime Minister (Conservative, 1937-40).
- 1870 - First US National Wildlife Preserve (Lake Meritt in Oakland, California).
- 1871 - Communards revolt in Paris, France.
- 1877 - Birth of Clem Hill; cricket player (all-time great Australian batsman).
- 1877 - President Rutherford Hayes appoints Frederick Douglass marshal of Washington DC.
- 1881 - Birth of Oliver Seibert; hall of fame hockey player (elected 1963).
- 1881 - [PT] Barnum and [James A] Bailey's Greatest Show on Earth opens (Madison Square Garden, New York, USA).
- 1882 - Morgan Earp, brother of Wyatt Earp, is shot and killed while playing billiards in Tombstone, Arizona.
- 1886 - Birth of Edward Everett Horton in Brooklyn, New York, USA; actor/narrator (The Bullwinkle Show).
- 1886 - Birth of Kurt Koffka in Germany; Gestalt psychologist.
- 1886 - Birth of Marianne Goudeket-Philips; Dutch author (Between Heaven and Earth).
- 1886 - Leopold Zunz, German intellect (Synagogue Poetry), dies at age 91.
- 1890 - First US state naval militia organized (Massachusetts).
- 1890 - Birth of Gerardus van der Leeuw; Dutch religion historian/minister of Education.
- 1891 - Britain is linked to the European continent by telephone.
- 1892 - Birth of Robert P Tristram Coffin; poet/reporter (WWII).
- 1892 - Lord Frederick Arthur Stanley of Preston proposes silver challenge cup for hockey (Stanley Cup).
- 1893 - Birth of Wilfred Owen in England; anti-war poet (Anthem for Doomed Youth).
- 1897 - Birth of Betty Compson; actress (Big City, Docks Of New York).
- 1899 - Birth of Lavrenti Beria; chief of Soviet secret police under Josef Stalin.
- 1899 - Douglas Strutt Galton, English engineer (rails, trains), dies at age 76.
- 1899 - Phoebe, a moon of Saturn, is discovered by Pickering.
- 1899 - Svetolik Rankovic, Serbian writer (Crushed Ideals), dies at age 35.
- 1900 - António Nobre, Portuguese poet (Só), dies at age 32.
- 1902 - Enrico Caruso becomes first well-known performer to make a record.
- 1905 - Birth of John Kirkpatrick in New York City, New York, USA; pianist (Concord Sonata).
- 1905 - Birth of Mollie Parnis in New York City, New York, USA; fashion designer (Mollie Roberts Collection).
- 1905 - Birth of Robert Donat in Withington, Manchester, England; actor (Goodbye Mr Chips, Citadel).
- 1906 - Traian Vuia flies a self-propelled heavier-than-air aircraft, taking off without help of a catapult.
- 1906 - Birth of Roy L Johnson; US Admiral (WWII-Pacific Ocean).
- 1907 - Birth of Eleanor L "Betty" Compton; US actress (Here Comes Trouble).
- 1909 - Einar Dessau of Denmark uses a short-wave radio transmitter, becoming the first radio broadcaster.
- 1911 - Birth of Smiley Burnette in Summum, Illinois, USA; cowboy comic/singer ("The National Barn Dance" radio show, Ozark Jubilee TV show, Charlie - Petticoat Junction).
- 1913 - Birth of Margaret Hesse; princess of Hesse/Rhine.
- 1913 - Birth of Rene Clement in Bordeaux, France; director/writer (Is Paris Burning).
- 1913 - George I, king of Greece (1861-1913), assassinated by Schinas at age 67.
- 1914 - White Wolf gang beats government army in Jingdezhen, China.
- 1915 - Failed British attack in Dardanelles.
- 1915 - French battleship Bouvet explodes, 640 killed.
- 1915 - Turkey's Canakkale (Trojan) Sea Victory against allied powers (USA, Australia, England, Italy).
- 1917 - William Shalders, South African cricket batsman (12 Tests 1895-1907), dies.
- 1918 - Socialist Youth AJC organizes in Amsterdam.
- 1919 - Birth of Laila Schou Nilsen in Norway; downhill skier (Olympics-gold-1936).
- 1919 - Birth of Len Johnson; cricket player (Australian fast bowler played Test in 1948).
- 1920 - Birth of John Paul II [Karol Wojtyla] in Poland; Pope (1978-).
- 1920 - Greece adopts the Gregorian calendar.
- 1921 - Second Peace of Riga, Poland enlarged.
- 1921 - Steamer Hong Kong runs aground off Swatow China killing 1,000.
- 1922 - First US intercollegiate indoor polo championship (Princeton versus Yale).
- 1922 - British magistrates in India sentence Mohandas K Gandhi to six years in prison for disobedience.
- 1924 - Birth of Madhussudan Rege; cricket player (15 runs in only Test India versus West Indies 1948-49).
- 1925 - Eight 60-MPH tornadoes speed through Missouri, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and Tennessee killing 689.
- 1926 - Birth of Peter Graves in Minneapolis, Minnesota; actor (James Phelps - Mission Impossible).
- 1927 - Birth of George Plimpton in New York City, New York, USA; sports writer (Paper Lion), actor (dies 2003).
- 1927 - Birth of John Harold Kander; composer (Cabaret, Funny Lady, Kramer versus Kramer).
- 1928 - Birth of Fidel V Ramos; President (Philippines).
- 1928 - Paul van Ostaijen, Flemish writer (Outlawed), dies at age 32.
- 1929 - Birth of Christa Wolf; German novelist (Divided Heaven).
- 1930 - Birth of Maurice Peress in New York City, New York, USA; conductor (Kansas City Philharmonic 1974-80).
- 1930 - Boston Bruins win record 20th NHL home game.
- 1931 - First electric shavers go on sale in US (Schick).
- 1931 - Birth of Howard Coble; American politician (Representative-Republican-North Carolina, 1985-).
- 1931 - Juan Bautista Aznar becomes premier of Spain.
- 1932 - Birth of F[rederik] W[illem] de Klerk; President of South Africa (1989-94).
- 1932 - Birth of John Updike in Shillington, Pennsylvania, USA; poet/novelist (A Month of Sundays, Brazil, The Centaur, Rabbit Run).
- 1933 - Luigi A, duke of the Abruzzi, Italian explorer (Ruwenzori), dies at age 60.
- 1933 - US Ladies Figure Skating Championship won by Maribel Vinson.
- 1933 - US Men's Figure Skating Championship won by Roger Turner.
- 1936 - Birth of Hans Peter Bleuel; writer (Sex and Society in Nazi Germany).
- 1936 - Birth of Robert Lee Smith; American singer ("Tams", "You Lied to Your Daddy").
- 1936 - Birth of Tony Nash in England; bobsled (Olympics-gold-1964).
- 1936 - Egon Friedell, Austrian journalist (Kleine Portratgalerie), dies at age 58.
- 1937 - Birth of Mark Donohue; auto racer (1972 Indianapolis 500).
- 1937 - Gas explosion in school in New London, Texas, USA; 296 die.
- 1937 - The human-powered aircraft, Pedaliante, flies 1 kilometre outside Milan, Italy.
- 1938 - Birth of Carl Gottlieb; comedian (Ken Berry Wow Show).
- 1938 - Birth of Charley Pride in Sledge, Mississippi, USA; country singer ("Just Between You And Me", "Sweet Country").
- 1938 - Birth of Shashi Kapoor in Calcutta, India; actor (Shalimar, Heat and Dust).
- 1938 - New York first requires serological blood tests of pregnant women.
- 1938 - Mexico expropriates property of 17 American and British oil companies for failure to comply with wage decisions.
- 1939 - Birth of Travis Pritchett; rocker (Travis and Bob).
- 1939 - The Soviet Commissar for Foreign Affairs, Maxim Litvinov, suggests to British Ambassador Sir William Seeds that delegates from the United Kingdom, Soviet Union, France, Poland, and Romania should meet to discuss collective action in the event of war with Germany.
- 1939 - American President Franklin Roosevelt imposes punitive tariffs on imports from Germany.
- 1940 - Italy's Benito Mussolini joins Adolf Hitler in Germany's war against France and Britain.
- 1941 - Birth of Wilson Pickett in Prattville, Alabama, USA; soul singer ("In the Midnight Hour", "Land of 1,000 Dances", "Funky Broadway", "Mustang Sally", "I'm a Midnight Mover").
- 1942 - Two black players, Jackie Robinson and Nate Moreland, request a tryout with the Chicago White Sox; they are allowed to work out.
- 1942 - Birth of Ann Packer in England; 800 metre runner (Olympics-gold-1964).
- 1942 - Illegal Free Netherlands announces boycott of theaters.
- 1943 - Birth of Kevin Dobson in Jackson Heights, New York, USA; actor (Kojak, Knots Landing, Shannon).
- 1943 - Red Army evacuates Belgorod.
- 1944 - 2,500 women trample guards and floorwalkers to purchase 1,500 alarm clocks announced for sale in a Chicago, Illinois department store.
- 1945 - 1,250 US bombers attack Berlin.
- 1945 - Birth of Aleksey Vakhonin in USSR; bantam weight (Olympics-gold-1964).
- 1945 - Birth of Eric Woolfson in Glasgow, Scotland; composer/musician (Alan Parsons Project, Woolfson Entertainment Group).
- 1945 - Maurice "Rocket" Richard becomes the first NHL player to score 50 goals.
- 1945 - US Task Force 58 attacks targets on Kiushu.
- 1947 - Birth of Barry Wilson in England; rock drummer (Procol Harum - "A Whiter Shade of Pale").
- 1947 - Birth of David Lloyd; cricket player (England opener, 214 versus India 1974).
- 1947 - Birth of Robert Harrison; rocker (Procol Harum - "A Whiter Shade of Pale").
- 1947 - Birth of Steven H Schiff; American politician (Representative-Republican-New Mexico).
- 1948 - Birth of Eknath Solkar; cricket player (India 1969-77, brilliant short-leg fielder).
- 1948 - France, Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg sign Treaty of Brussels.
- 1948 - Philips begin experimental TV broadcasting.
- 1949 - Birth of Alex "Hurricane" Higgins; Irish snooker player (two-time world-champion).
- 1949 - Birth of Starr Danias in New York City, New York, USA; ballerina (Turning Point).
- 1949 - NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) pact ratified.
- 1950 - Birth of Brad Dourif in Huntington, West Virginia, USA; actor (Ragtime, Eyes of Laura Mars, Fatal Beauty, Deadwood).
- 1950 - Birth of James Conlon in New York City, New York, USA; conductor (Cincinnati May Festival-1979).
- 1950 - Birth of John Hartman in Falls Church, Virginia, USA; rock drummer (Doobie Brothers - "Taking it to the Streets").
- 1951 - Birth of Ben Cohen; ice cream entrepreneur (Ben & Jerry's).
- 1951 - Pat O'Sullivan wins LPGA Titleholders Golf Championship.
- 1952 - First plastic lens for cataract patients fitted (Philadelphia).
- 1952 - Communist offensive in Korea.
- 1953 - 15th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Indiana beats Kansas 69-68.
- 1953 - Birth of Helmer C Koetje; Dutch second chamber member (CDA).
- 1953 - Birth of Jamie West-Oram; rocker (Fixx).
- 1953 - Birth of Margaret L Augustine in Buffalo, New York, USA; project manager (Biosphere 2).
- 1953 - Birth of Nicholas Wisdom; cricket player (son of comic Norman, two games Sussex 1974).
- 1953 - Earthquake strikes West Turkey, 250 die.
- 1953 - National League approves Boston Braves' move to Milwaukee (first shift since 1903).
- 1954 - Birth of James F Reilly II on Mount Home Air Force Base, Idaho, USA; PhD/astronaut (STS 89).
- 1954 - Walter Mead, cricket player (one Test for England 1899), dies.
- 1955 - Birth of Graham Porter; cricket player (one day international for Australia 1979).
- 1955 - I Hatojama recognized as premier of Japan.
- 1956 - Birth of "The Model" Rick Martel [Richard Vignault]; wrestler (WWF/AWA).
- 1956 - Birth of Ingemar Stenmark in Sweden; slalom skier (Olympics-2 gold-1980).
- 1956 - Friedrich Panzer, German germanist (Hilde-Gudrun), dies at age 85.
- 1957 - Birth of Christer Fuglesang in Stockholm, Sweden; physicist/astronaut (Mir backup).
- 1957 - Birth of Melvin Gentry; vocalist, guitarist (Midnight Star - "No Parking").
- 1958 - Birth of Andreas Wenzel in Liechtenstein; skier (Olympics-silver-1980).
- 1959 - Birth of Irene Cara in Bronx, New York City, New York, USA; actress/singer (Fame, DC Cab, Certain Fury).
- 1959 - President Dwight D Eisenhower signs Hawaii statehood bill.
- 1960 - Birth of Claudia Udy in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA; actress (Out of Control, Nightforce).
- 1960 - Birth of Guy Carbonneau in Sept-Iles, Québec, Canada; NHL center (Dallas Stars).
- 1960 - Birth of Richard Biggs in Columbus, Ohio, USA; actor (Marcus - Days of Our Lives).
- 1961 - Birth of Kevan James; cricket player (all-rounder four wickets/4 balls and ton versus India 1996).
- 1961 - Birth of Mark Van Thillo in Wilrijk, Belgium; co-captain (Biosphere 2).
- 1961 - Poppin' Fresh Pillsbury Dough Boy introduced.
- 1962 - Algerian War ends after 7.5 years of fighting (250,000 die), Ben Bella flees.
- 1962 - Birth of Thomas Ian Griffith; actor (Vampires, Catlin - Another World, One Tree Hill, The Guardian).
- 1962 - Birth of Trevor Franklin; cricket player (opened for New Zealand mid-1980s).
- 1962 - Dmitri Shostakovich becomes member of Supreme Soviet of USSR.
- 1963 - Birth of Vanessa L Williams in Tarrytown, New York, USA; Miss America (1984), singer ("Colors of the Wind"), actress (Eraser, Ugly Betty).
- 1963 - France performs underground nuclear test at Ecker, Algeria.
- 1963 - US Supreme Court's Miranda Decision: defendants must have lawyers.
- 1964 - Birth of Bonnie Blair in Champaign, Illinois, USA; speed skater (Olympics-5 gold/bronze-1988, 1992, 1994).
- 1964 - Norbert Wiener, US mathematician (cybernetics), dies at age 69.
- 1964 - Birth of Scott Saunders; keyboardist (Sons of the Desert).
- 1965 - Birth of Geronimo Berroa in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; outfielder (Oakland Athletics).
- 1965 - Birth of Jeff Labarr; rocker (Cinderella - "Heartbreak Station").
- 1965 - Farouk I, last King of Egypt (1936-52), dies at age 45 in Rome, Italy.
- 1965 - USSR launches Voshkod 2; Alexei Leonov makes first spacewalk (20 minutes).
- 1966 - Birth of Jerry Cantrell; US rock guitarist (Alice in Chains - "Dirt").
- 1966 - General Suharto forms government in Indonesia.
- 1966 - Scott Paper begins selling paper dresses for US$1.
- 1967 - The Beatles' "Penny Lane" single goes #1.
- 1967 - Birth of Andre Rison; NFL wide receiver (Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs).
- 1967 - Birth of Derrick Graham; NFL tackle (Green Bay Packers, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks).
- 1967 - Jimmy Blaine, singer ("Stop the Music"), dies at age 42.
- 1967 - The Pirates of the Caribbean attraction opens in New Orleans Square at Disneyland. It includes 119 Audio-Animatronics figures; 64 human, 55 animals. The whole attraction cost US$8 million to build.
- 1967 - The oil tanker Torrey Canyon runs aground off Corwell, UK, spilling 93.2-146 million litres of crude oil.
- 1967 - Birth of Miki Berenyi; singer (Lush).
- 1968 - Birth of Joseph Ouellet; hockey forward (Team France 1998).
- 1968 - Birth of Pat Terrell; NFL strong safety (Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers).
- 1969 - Barbara Bates, actress (Kathy - It's a Great Life), dies at age 43.
- 1969 - Birth of Michael Dumas; NFL free safety (San Diego Chargers, Jacksonville Jaguars).
- 1969 - Birth of Shaun Udal; cricket player (Hants off-spinner, England tourist to Australia 1994-95).
- 1969 - Birth of Sheila Taormina; 4X200 metre freestyle swimmer (Olympics-gold-1996).
- 1970 - Birth of Michael Rapaport; actor (Zak - Zebrahead).
- 1970 - Birth of Queen Latifah AKA Dana Owens in Newark, New Jersey; rap singer/actress (Khadijah James - Living Single).
- 1970 - Cambodia military coup under General Lon Nol; prince Sihanuk flees.
- 1970 - US mail service paralyzed by first major postal strike.
- 1970 - NFL selects Wilson as official football and scoreboard as official time.
- 1971 - 200 die in landslide into Lake Yanahuani, Chungar, Peru.
- 1971 - Birth of Mariaan de Swardt in Johannesburg, South Africa; tennis star (1996 third round Australia).
- 1971 - George Wood, England cricket wicketkeeper (versus South Africa 1924), dies.
- 1972 - AIAW first basketball championship, Immaculata beats West Chester State 52-48.
- 1972 - Cornell NCAA hockey team shut out for first time in 225 games (Boston University).
- 1972 - Memphis Pros' Larry Miller sets ABA record of 67 points in a game.
- 1972 - People's Rebublic of China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor.
- 1973 - Birth of Marlon Kerner; NFL cornerback (Buffalo Bills).
- 1973 - Birth of Rob Johnson; NFL quarterback (Jacksonville Jaguars).
- 1973 - Lauritz L H Melchior, Danish baritone/actor (Luxury Liner), dies at age 82.
- 1973 - Sandra Haynie wins LPGA Orange Blossom Golf Classic.
- 1974 - Birth of Petra Kamstra in Rotterdam, Holland; tennis star (1995 Surabaya doubles).
- 1974 - Birth of Tina Krizan in Maribor, Slovenia; tennis star (1995 Surabaya doubles).
- 1974 - Birth of Torrian Gray; safety (Minnesota Vikings).
- 1974 - David C Imboden, actor (King of Kings), dies at age 87.
- 1974 - Most Arab oil-producing nations end embargo against US.
- 1975 - Birth of Kimmo Timonen; hockey defenseman (Team Finland Olympics-Bronze-1998).
- 1975 - Kurds end fight against Iraqi army.
- 1977 - Birth of Devin Lima; singer (LFO).
- 1977 - Marien Ngouabi, President of Congo-Brazzaville, is murdered.
- 1977 - US restricts citizens from visiting Cuba, Vietnam, North Korea, and Cambodia.
- 1977 - In the Philippine Islands, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurs, centered about 300 kilometers northeast of Manilla.
- 1977 - The CBS TV network airs the last The Sonny and Cher Show TV show in the USA.
- 1977 - Vietnam hands over missing-in-action soldiers to US.
- 1978 - 250,000 attend rock concert California Jam II in Ontario, California.
- 1978 - Birth of Dionne Bainbridge in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; New Zealand 200 metre swimmer (Olympics-1996).
- 1978 - Faith Baldwin, US author (They Who Love), dies at age 84.
- 1978 - Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Prime Minister of Pakistan, is sentenced to death by hanging for ordering the assassination of a political opponent.
- 1978 - Death of Peggy Wood at age 86 of a stroke; American actress (One Life to Live, Mama - Mama) (born 1892).
- 1979 - Battles between Kurds and Iranians break in Sananday, Iran.
- 1979 - Joanne Carner wins LPGA Honda Civic Golf Classic.
- 1979 - Birth of Adam Levine; American singer (Maroon 5).
- 1979 - Ten miners die in a methane gas explosion at Golborne Colliery near Wigan, Lancashire.
- 1980 - Death of Erich Fromm at age 79 in Muralto, Switzerland (born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany); writer, professor of psychoanalysis (born 1900).
- 1980 - Herman Griffith, cricket player (13 Tests for West Indies, 44 wickets), dies.
- 1980 - Fifty people are killed at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia, when a Vostok-2M rocket explodes on its launch pad during a fueling operation.
- 1981 - Buffalo Sabres sets NHL record of 9 goals in one period (they beat Toronto Maple Leafs 14-4).
- 1981 - ABC airs the first episode of TV show The Greatest American Hero.
- 1982 - Georg G Lampe, Dutch painter/director (Free Academy), dies at age 60.
- 1982 - An Argentinean scrap metal dealer raises the Argentinean flag in South Georgia.
- 1983 - In New Ireland region, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake occurs.
- 1983 - Umberto of Piemonte, King Umberto II of Italy (1946), dies.
- 1984 - Death of Charlie Lau, American baseball player/coach (Chiacgo Cubs), at age 50 (born 1933).
- 1984 - Chris Johnson wins LPGA Tucson Conquistadores Golf Open.
- 1985 - In Mindanao, Philippine Islands, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake occurs.
- 1985 - Baseball Commissioner Peter Ueberroth reinstates Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays. The two had been banned from associating with major league baseball due to their employment with Atlantic City casinos.
- 1985 - Capital Cities Communications Inc acquires ABC TV.
- 1985 - Jack Miller, orchestra leader (Kate Smith Evening Hour), dies at age 89.
- 1986 - Bernard Malamud, US writer (Fixer, Natural), dies at age 71.
- 1986 - Exciting draw in final gives New South Wales the Sheffield Shield over Queensland.
- 1986 - US Treasury Department announces plans to alter paper money.
- 1987 - Bil Baird, puppeteer (Jack Paar Show), dies at age 82.
- 1987 - Gerber survey find most popular names for newborns in USA: Jessica and Matthew.
- 1987 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site.
- 1989 - 27th space shuttle mission, STS-29 (Discovery 8), returns to Earth.
- 1989 - California Quake amusement ride opens at Universal Studios.
- 1989 - Dino Ciccarelli sets Washington Capitals' record of 7 points in a game.
- 1989 - Investor group led by George W Bush and Edward W Rose purchases controlling interest of Texas Rangers.
- 1989 - William Challee, actor (Desperate, Moonchild), dies.
- 1989 - In Egypt, a 4,400-year-old mummy is found in the Great Pyramid of Giza.
- 1990 - First free elections in German Democratic Republic; Conservatives beat Communists.
- 1990 - After a 32-day lockout, Major League Baseball players and owners reach an agreement on a four-year contract.
- 1990 - A Tampa Florida little league player dies after being struck by a pitch.
- 1990 - Colleen Walker wins Circle K Tucson LPGA Golf Open.
- 1990 - Twelve paintings, collectively worth US$100+ million, are stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts by two thieves posing as police officers. This is the largest art theft in US history, and the paintings (as of 2007) have not been recovered.
- 1990 - Loyola Marymount beats Michigan Wolverines 149-115, highest NCAA score.
- 1990 - Robin Harris, actor (House Party, Mo' Better Blues), dies at age 36.
- 1991 - Mike Tyson beats Razor Ruddock in the 7th round.
- 1991 - Philadelphia '76ers retire Wilt Chamberlain's #13 jersey.
- 1991 - Reggie Miller (Indiana) ends NBA free throw streak of 52 games.
- 1991 - Vilma Banky, actress (Eagle, Son of Sheik, Rebel), dies at age 93.
- 1992 - Cornelis B Vaandrager [C Vaan], poet (Giant of Rotterdam), dies at age 56.
- 1992 - Zimbabwe beats England by nine runs in World Cup at Albury.
- 1992 - On CNN's Larry King Live, Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot announces that he will run for U.S. President as an independent, if volunteers put him on the ballot in all 50 states.
- 1993 - Amsterdam stock exchange hits record 12.2 billion gulden.
- 1993 - Sri Lanka beat England in Test match by five wickets.
- 1994 - South Africa Goldstone committee reveals existence of secret police.
- 1994 - Space shuttle STS-62 (Columbia 16) lands.
- 1994 - Zsa Zsa Gabor files for bankruptcy.
- 1995 - Heinrich Sutermeister, Swiss composer (Raskolnikov), dies at age 84.
- 1995 - Basketball superstar Michael Jordan announces he's returning to basketball with his former team, the Chicago Bulls.
- 1995 - NASA space shuttle mission STS 67 (Endeavour 8) lands after 16.5 days in orbit.
- 1995 - Spanish princess Elena (31) weds Jaime de Marichalar y Saenez Tejada.
- 1996 - Alepoude Odysseus Elytis, Greek poet, Nobel Prize laureate, dies at age 84 (born 1911).
- 1997 - The tail of a Russian An-24 charter plane breaks off while en-route to Turkey, causing the plane to crash, killing all 50 on board, and resulting in the grounding of all An-24s.
- 1997 - The UPN TV network debuts the Social Studies show.
- 2000 - Chen Shui-bian is elected President of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Democratic Progressive Party ends Kuomintang rule for the first time.
- 2001 - Death of John Phillips at age 65 of heart failure; singer (The Mamas and the Papas - "California Dreamin'", "San Francisco [Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair]").
- 2003 - The United Kingdom government recognises British Sign Language as an official British language.
- 2003 - The Parliament of the United Kingdom votes in favour of a motion understood as giving the government final authority to join the invasion of Iraq.
- 2003 - Serbia's parliament elects Zoran Zivkovic as new prime minister.
- 2003 - Procter & Gamble buys German beauty firm Wella, for 6.5 billion euros (US$6.9 billion).
- 2003 - About US$1 billion is taken from Iraq's Central Bank by Saddam Hussein and his family, just hours before the United States begins bombing Iraq; biggest bank robbery in history.
- 2003 - A pipeline at the Santos terminal on the Brisbane River in Australia ruptures, spilling up to 1.5 million litres of crude oil.
- 2003 - FBI agents raid the corporate headquarters of HealthSouth Corporation in Birmingham, Alabama on suspicion of massive corporate fraud led by the company's top executives.
- 2003 - Death of Adam Osbourne in India of a rare organic brain disorder. Osborne founded Osborne Computer company in the USA, and released the Osborne I computer in 1981.
- 2006 - Death of Bill Beutel at age 75 in Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA; longtime TV anchor of Eyewitness News on WABC-TV, New York, and host of ABC's AM America.
- 2007 - The 2007 Formula 1 World Championship Begins with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.
- 2008 - The US Federal Reserve cuts the interest rate by a further 0.75, down to 2.25 percent.
- 2008 - The London PM fix for spot price of gold closes at US$1006.75 per ounce.
- 2008 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes 420 points higher than the previous day.
- 2008 - Death of Sir Arthur C. Clarke, science fiction writer, in Sri Lanka at age 90 (born 1917 in Somerset, England).
- 2008 - Death of Anthony Minghella, British film director (The English Patient, Cold Mountain, The Talented Mr. Ripley) and writer, at age 54, following a cancer operation (born 1954).
- 2009 - A new constitution is adopted by Bolivia, changing the country's official name from Republic of Bolivia to Estado Plurinacional de Bolivia (Multinational State of Bolivia).
- 2009 - The US Federal Reserve, for the first time since the 1960s, announces it will buy up to US$300 billion of government Treasury bonds. The Federal Reserve also announces it will expand an existing program to buy debt and securities to US$1.45 trillion.
- 2009 - In England, Sean Hodgeson is released after spending 27 years in jail for the murder of Teresa De Simone, which new DNA tests prove he did not commit.
- 2012 - Death of George Tupou V, King of Tonga (born 1948).
- 2015 - For a few hours, Paris, France, becomes the world's most polluted city.
- 2018 - First incident of a self-driving car hitting and killing a pedestrian, in Temp, Arizona.
- 2018 - City of Afria in northern Syria is taken by militias backed by Turkey, from Kurdish militias backed by the USA.
- 2018 - In the Russian presidential election, Vladimir Putin is elected for a fourth term.
- 2020 - The Eurovision Song Contest 2020 is cancelled due to COVID-19 in Europe, the first cancellation in the contest's 64-year history.
- 2020 - The European Central Bank announces emergency asset-purchase scheme: 750 billion euros (US$809 billion) in government and corporate bonds.
- 2020 - The government of the United Kingdom orders all schools closed until further notice.
- 2020 - The New York Stock Exchange closes trading floors, to re-open March 23 fully electronic.
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