March 13

Events

• 1567 - The Battle of Oosterweel, traditionally regarded as the start of the Eighty Years' War.
• 1591 - At the Battle of Tondibi in Mali, Moroccan forces of the Saadi dynasty, led by Judar Pasha, defeat the Songhai Empire, despite being outnumbered by at least five to one.
• 1639 - Harvard College is named after clergyman John Harvard.
• 1697 - Nojpetén, capital of the last independent Maya kingdom, fell to Spanish conquistadors, the final step in the Spanish conquest of Guatemala.
• 1741 - The Battle of Cartagena de Indias begins.
• 1781 - William Herschel discovers Uranus.
• 1809 - Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden is deposed in the Coup of 1809.
• 1826 - Pope Leo XII publishes the apostolic constitution Quo Graviora in which he renewed the prohibition on Catholics joining freemasonry.
• 1845 - Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto receives its première performance in Leipzig with Ferdinand David as soloist.
• 1848 - The German revolutions of 1848–1849 begin in Vienna.
• 1862 - The Act Prohibiting the Return of Slaves was passed by the United States Congress, effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and setting the stage for the Emancipation Proclamation.
• 1881 - Alexander II of Russia is assassinated.
• 1884 - The Siege of Khartoum begins. It lasts until January 26, 1885.
• 1900 - British forces occupy Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, during the Second Boer War.
• 1920 - The Kapp Putsch briefly ousts the Weimar Republic government from Berlin.
• 1930 - The news of the discovery of Pluto is announced by Lowell Observatory.
• 1933 - Banks in the U.S. begin to re-open after the three-day national "bank holiday" mandated by the Franklin D. Roosevelt's Emergency Banking Act.
• 1943 - German forces liquidate the Jewish ghetto in Kraków.
• 1954 - The Battle of Điện Biên Phủ begins with an artillery barrage by Viet Minh forces under Võ Nguyên Giáp; Viet Minh victory lead to the end of the First Indochina War and French withdrawal from Vietnam.
• 1957 - Cuban student revolutionaries storm the presidential palace in Havana in a failed attempt on the life of President Fulgencio Batista.
• 1969 - Apollo 9 returns safely to Earth after testing the Lunar Module.
• 1979 - The New Jewel Movement, headed by Maurice Bishop, ousts the Prime Minister of Grenada, Eric Gairy, in a coup d'état.
• 1988 - The Seikan Tunnel, the longest undersea tunnel in the world, opens between Aomori and Hakodate, Japan.
• 1992 - The 6.6 Erzincan earthquake strikes eastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII.
• 1996 - The Dunblane massacre leads to the death of sixteen primary school children and one teacher in Dunblane, Scotland.
• 1997 - The Missionaries of Charity choose Sister Nirmala to succeed Mother Teresa as their leader.
• 2003 - An article in Nature identifies the Ciampate del Diavolo as 350,000-year-old hominid footprints.
• 2012 - The Sierre coach crash kills 28 people, including 22 children.
• 2013 - The 2013 papal conclave elects Pope Francis as the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church.
• 2016 - The Ankara bombing kills at least 37 people.
• 2016 - Three gunmen attack two hotels in the Ivory Coast town of Grand-Bassam, killing at least 19 people.

  Births

• 1372 - Louis I, Duke of Orléans
• 1479 - Lazarus Spengler, German hymnwriter
• 1560 - William Louis, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg, Dutch count
• 1593 - Georges de La Tour, French painter
• 1599 - John Berchmans, Belgian Jesuit scholastic and saint
• 1615 - Innocent XII, pope of the Catholic Church
• 1683 - Johann Wilhelm Weinmann, German botanist
• 1700 - Michel Blavet, French flute player and composer
• 1719 - John Griffin, 4th Baron Howard de Walden, English field marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Essex
• 1720 - Charles Bonnet, Swiss historian and author
• 1741 - Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
• 1763 - Guillaume Brune, French general and diplomat
• 1764 - Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
• 1770 - Daniel Lambert, English animal breeder
• 1781 - Karl Friedrich Schinkel, German painter and architect, designed the Konzerthaus Berlin
• 1798 - Abigail Fillmore, American wife of Millard Fillmore, 14th First Lady of the United States
• 1800 - Mustafa Reşid Pasha, Ottoman politician, 212th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire
• 1815 - James Curtis Hepburn, American physician, linguist, and missionary
• 1825 - Hans Gude, Norwegian-German painter and academic
• 1855 - Percival Lowell, American astronomer and mathematician
• 1857 - B. H. Roberts, English-American historian and politician
• 1860 - Hugo Wolf, Slovene-Austrian composer
• 1862 - Paul Prosper Henrys, French general
• 1864 - Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian-German painter
• 1870 - William Glackens, American painter and illustrator
• 1874 - Ellery Harding Clark, American jumper, coach, and lawyer
• 1880 - Josef Gočár, Czech architect
• 1883 - Enrico Toselli, Italian pianist and composer
• 1884 - Hugh Walpole, New Zealand-English author and educator
• 1886 - Home Run Baker, American baseball player and manager
• 1886 - Albert William Stevens, American captain and photographer
• 1888 - Paul Morand, French author and diplomat
• 1890 - Fritz Busch, German conductor and director
• 1892 - Janet Flanner, American journalist and author
• 1897 - Yeghishe Charents, Armenian poet and activist
• 1898 - Henry Hathaway, American director and producer
• 1899 - John Hasbrouck Van Vleck, American physicist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1899 - Pancho Vladigerov, Bulgarian pianist and composer
• 1900 - Andrée Bosquet, Belgian painter
• 1900 - Giorgos Seferis, Greek poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1902 - Hans Bellmer, German-French painter and sculptor
• 1904 - Clifford Roach, Trinidadian cricketer and footballer
• 1907 - Dorothy Tangney, Australian politician
• 1908 - Walter Annenberg, American publisher, philanthropist, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom
• 1908 - Myrtle Bachelder, American chemist and Women's Army Corps officer
• 1910 - Sammy Kaye, American saxophonist, songwriter, and bandleader
• 1910 - Kemal Tahir, Turkish journalist and author
• 1911 - José Ardévol, Cuban composer and conductor
• 1913 - William J. Casey, American politician, 13th Director of Central Intelligence
• 1913 - Sergey Mikhalkov, Russian author and playwright
• 1914 - W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright
• 1914 - Edward O'Hare, American lieutenant and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient
• 1916 - Lindy Boggs, American educator and politician, 5th United States Ambassador to the Holy See
• 1916 - Jacque Fresco, American engineer and academic
• 1920 - Ralph J. Roberts, American businessman, co-founded Comcast
• 1921 - Al Jaffee, American cartoonist
• 1923 - Dimitrios Ioannidis, Greek general
• 1925 - Roy Haynes, American drummer and composer
• 1926 - Carlos Roberto Reina, Honduran lawyer and politician, President of Honduras
• 1929 - Zbigniew Messner, Polish economist and politician, 9th Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland
• 1933 - Mahdi Elmandjra, Moroccan economist and sociologist
• 1933 - Gero von Wilpert, German author and academic
• 1935 - David Nobbs, English author and screenwriter
• 1938 - Robert Gammage, American captain and politician
• 1939 - Neil Sedaka, American singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1941 - Donella Meadows, American environmentalist, author, and academic
• 1942 - Dave Cutler, American computer scientist and engineer
• 1942 - Mahmoud Darwish, Palestinian poet and author
• 1944 - Terence Burns, Baron Burns, English economist and academic
• 1945 - Anatoly Fomenko, Russian mathematician and academic
• 1946 - Yonatan Netanyahu, American-Israeli colonel
• 1947 - Lesley Collier, English ballerina and educator
• 1947 - Beat Richner, Swiss pediatrician and cellist
• 1947 - Lyn St. James, American race car driver
• 1949 - Ze'ev Bielski, Israeli politician
• 1949 - Sian Elias, New Zealand lawyer and politician, 12th Chief Justice of New Zealand
• 1950 - Bernard Julien, Trinidadian cricketer
• 1950 - Charles Krauthammer, American physician, journalist, and author
• 1950 - William H. Macy, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1951 - Charo, Spanish-American singer, guitarist, and actress
• 1952 - Wolfgang Rihm, German composer and educator
• 1952 - Tim Sebastian, English journalist and author
• 1953 - Andy Bean, American golfer
• 1953 - Michael Curry, 27th presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church
• 1954 - Valerie Amos, Baroness Amos, Guyanese-English politician and diplomat
• 1954 - Robin Duke, Canadian actress and screenwriter
• 1955 - Bruno Conti, Italian footballer and manager
• 1955 - Glenne Headly, American actress
• 1955 - Olga Rukavishnikova, Russian pentathlete
• 1956 - Dana Delany, American actress and producer
• 1957 - John Hoeven, American banker and politician, 31st Governor of North Dakota
• 1957 - Moses Hogan, American composer and conductor
• 1958 - Mágico González, Salvadoran footballer
• 1958 - Rick Lazio, American lawyer and politician
• 1958 - Caryl Phillips, Caribbean-English author and playwright
• 1959 - Dirk Wellham, Australian cricketer
• 1960 - Adam Clayton, English-born Irish musician and songwriter
• 1960 - Joe Ranft, American animator, screenwriter, and voice actor
• 1963 - Vance Johnson, American football player
• 1964 - Will Clark, American baseball player
• 1966 - Chico Science, Brazilian singer-songwriter
• 1967 - Andrés Escobar, Colombian footballer
• 1967 - Pieter Vink, Dutch footballer and referee
• 1970 - Tim Story, American director and producer
• 1971 - Annabeth Gish, American actress
• 1971 - Allan Nielsen, Danish international footballer, midfielder and manager
• 1972 - Common, American rapper and actor
• 1973 - Edgar Davids, Surinamese born Dutch international footballer midfielder and manager
• 1973 - Bobby Jackson, American basketball player and coach
• 1974 - Thomas Enqvist, Swedish tennis player and sportscaster
• 1975 - Mark Clattenburg, English football referee
• 1976 - Troy Hudson, American basketball player and rapper
• 1976 - Danny Masterson, American actor and producer
• 1978 - Tom Danielson, American cyclist
• 1978 - Kenny Watson, American football player
• 1979 - Johan Santana, Venezuelan-American baseball player
• 1979 - Cédric Van Branteghem, Belgian sprinter
• 1980 - Caron Butler, American basketball player
• 1982 - Nicole Ohlde, American basketball player
• 1983 - Kaitlin Sandeno, American swimmer
• 1984 - Geeta Basra, Indian actress
• 1985 - Alcides Araújo Alves, Brazilian footballer
• 1985 - Emile Hirsch, American actor
• 1986 - Neil Wagner, South African-New Zealand cricketer
• 1987 - Marco Andretti, American race car driver
• 1987 - Andreas Beck, German footballer
• 1988 - Furdjel Narsingh, Dutch footballer
• 1989 - Holger Badstuber, German footballer
• 1989 - Marko Marin, German footballer
• 1989 - Robert Wickens, Canadian racing driver
• 1990 - Anicet Abel, Malagasy footballer
• 1991 - Daniel Greig, Australian speed skater
• 1991 - Tristan Thompson, American basketball player
• 1994 - Gerard Deulofeu, Spanish footballer
• 1995 - Mikaela Shiffrin, American skier
• 1998 - Jay-Roy Grot, Dutch footballer

  Deaths

• 1202 - Mieszko III the Old, king of Poland
• 1271 - Henry of Almain, English knight
• 1415 - Minye Kyawswa, Crown Prince of Ava
• 1447 - Shah Rukh, Timurid ruler of Persia and Transoxania
• 1573 - Michel de l'Hôpital, French politician
• 1601 - Henry Cuffe, Politician
• 1619 - Richard Burbage, English actor
• 1711 - Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux, French poet and critic
• 1719 - Johann Friedrich Böttger, German chemist and potter
• 1800 - Nana Fadnavis, Indian minister and politician
• 1808 - Christian VII of Denmark
• 1823 - John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent, English admiral and politician
• 1833 - William Bradley, English lieutenant and cartographer
• 1842 - Henry Shrapnel, English general
• 1854 - Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, French politician, 6th Prime Minister of France
• 1873 - David Swinson Maynard, American physician, lawyer, and businessman
• 1879 - Adolf Anderssen, German mathematician and chess player
• 1881 - Alexander II of Russia
• 1884 - Leland Stanford Jr., American son of Leland Stanford
• 1885 - Giorgio Mitrovich, Maltese politician
• 1901 - Benjamin Harrison, American general and politician, 23rd President of the United States
• 1906 - Susan B. Anthony, American activist
• 1912 - Eugène-Étienne Taché, Canadian engineer and architect, designed the Parliament Building
• 1921 - Jenny Twitchell Kempton, American opera singer and educator
• 1936 - Francis Bell, New Zealand lawyer and politician, 20th Prime Minister of New Zealand
• 1938 - Clarence Darrow, American lawyer and author
• 1943 - Stephen Vincent Benét, American poet, short story writer, and novelist
• 1946 - Werner von Blomberg, German field marshal
• 1962 - Anne Acheson, Irish sculptor
• 1965 - Vittorio Jano, Italian engineer
• 1965 - Fan Noli, Albanian-American bishop and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Albania
• 1971 - Rockwell Kent, American painter and illustrator
• 1972 - Tony Ray-Jones, English photographer
• 1975 - Ivo Andrić, Yugoslav novelist, poet, and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1976 - Ole Haugsrud, American sports executive
• 1983 - Paul Citroen, German-Dutch illustrator and educator
• 1990 - Bruno Bettelheim, Austrian-American psychologist and author
• 1995 - Odette Hallowes, French nurse and spy
• 1996 - Krzysztof Kieślowski, Polish director and screenwriter
• 1998 - Judge Dread, English singer-songwriter
• 1998 - Hans von Ohain, German-American physicist and engineer
• 1999 - Lee Falk, American cartoonist, director, and producer
• 1999 - Garson Kanin, American director and screenwriter
• 2001 - John A. Alonzo, American actor and cinematographer
• 2001 - Encarnacion Alzona, Filipino historian and educator
• 2002 - Hans-Georg Gadamer, German philosopher and scholar
• 2004 - Franz König, Austrian cardinal
• 2006 - Robert C. Baker, American businessman, invented the chicken nugget
• 2006 - Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish footballer
• 2006 - Maureen Stapleton, American actress
• 2007 - Arnold Skaaland, American wrestler and manager
• 2009 - Betsy Blair, American actress
• 2009 - Alan W. Livingston, American businessman
• 2010 - Jean Ferrat, French singer-songwriter
• 2011 - Rick Martin, Canadian-American ice hockey player
• 2014 - Reubin Askew, American sergeant, lawyer, and politician, 37th Governor of Florida
• 2014 - Edward Haughey, Baron Ballyedmond, Irish businessman and politician
• 2014 - Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Sierra Leonean economist, lawyer, and politician, 3rd President of Sierra Leone
• 2014 - Icchokas Meras, Lithuanian-Israeli author and screenwriter
• 2015 - Al Rosen, American baseball player and manager
• 2016 - Hilary Putnam, American philosopher, mathematician, and computer scientist
• 2017 - Amy Krouse Rosenthal, American author
• 2018 - Emily Nasrallah, Lebanese writer and women's rights activist.

  Holidays and observances

• Christian feast days:
• *Ansovinus
• *Gerald of Mayo
• *James Theodore Holly
• *Nicephorus
• *Roderick
• *March 13
• Kasuga Matsuri
• National Elephant Day
• Africa Scout Day