Events

• 1112 - Ramon Berenguer III of Barcelona and Douce I of Provence marry, uniting the fortunes of those two states.
• 1377 - more than 2,000 people of the Italian city of Cesena are slaughtered by Papal Troops (Cesena Bloodbath).
• 1451 - Sultan Mehmed II inherits the throne of the Ottoman Empire.
• 1488 - Bartolomeu Dias of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, becoming the first known European to travel so far south.
• 1509 - The Battle of Diu, between Portugal and the Ottoman Empire takes place in Diu, India.
• 1690 - The colony of Massachusetts issues the first paper money in America.
• 1706 - During the Battle of Fraustadt Swedish forces defeat a superior Saxon-Polish-Russian force by deploying a double envelopment.
• 1783 - American Revolutionary War: Spain recognizes United States independence.
• 1787 - Shays' Rebellion is crushed.
• 1807 - A British military force, under Brig-Gen. Sir Samuel Auchmuty captures the city of Montevideo, then part of the Spanish Empire now capital of Uruguay.
• 1809 - The Illinois Territory is created.
• 1830 - The sovereignty of Greece was confirmed in a London Protocol.
• 1834 - Wake Forest University is established.
• 1867 - Emperor Meiji becomes the 122nd emperor of Japan.
• 1870 - The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, granting voting rights to citizens regardless of race.
• 1900 - Gubernatorial candidate William Goebel is assassinated in Frankfort, Kentucky.
• 1908 - Foundation of Panathinaikos in Athens, Greece.
• 1913 - The Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, authorizing the Federal government to impose and collect an income tax.
• 1916 - Parliament buildings in Ottawa, Canada burn down.
• 1917 - World War I: The United States breaks off diplomatic relations with Germany a day after the former announced a new policy of unrestricted submarine warfare.
• 1918 - The Twin Peaks Tunnel begins service as the longest streetcar tunnel in the world at 11,920 feet (3,633 meters) long.
• 1923 - The Alpha Zeta chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia founded at Pennsylvania State University.
• 1930 - The Communist Party of Vietnam is established.
• 1931 - The Hawke's Bay earthquake, New Zealand's worst natural disaster, kills 258.
• 1941 - World War II: Nazi Germany forcibly restores Pierre Laval to office in occupied Vichy, France.
• 1944 - World War II: United States troops capture the Marshall Islands.
• 1945 - World War II: The Soviet Union agrees to enter the Pacific Theatre conflict against Japan.
• 1945 - World War II: As part of Operation Thunderclap, 1,000 B-17's of the Eighth Air Force bomb Berlin.
• 1947 - The lowest temperature in North America is recorded in Snag, Yukon.
• 1957 - Senegalese political party Democratic Rally merges into the Senegalese Party of Socialist Action (PSAS).
• 1958 - Founding of the Benelux Economic Union, creating a testing ground for a later European Economic Community.
• 1959 - A plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa kills Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper, and Roger Peterson also known as The Day the Music Died.
• 1966 - The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft makes the first controlled rocket-assisted landing on the Moon.
• 1967 - Ronald Ryan, the last person to be executed in Australia, is hanged in Pentridge Prison, Melbourne.
• 1969 - In Cairo, Yasser Arafat is appointed Palestine Liberation Organization leader at the Palestinian National Congress.
• 1971 - New York Police Office Frank Serpico is shot during a drug bust in Brooklyn and survives to later testify against police corruption.. Many believed the incident proved NYPD officers tried to kill him.
• 1984 - Space Shuttle program: STS-41-B Mission - Astronauts, Bruce McCandless II and Robert L. Stewart make first untethered spacewalks using the Manned Maneuvering Unit.
• 1988 - Iran-Contra Affair: The United States House of Representatives rejects President Ronald Reagan's request for $36.25 million to aid Nicaraguan Contras.
• 1989 - After a stroke, P.W. Botha resigns party leadership and the presidency of South Africa.
• 1989 - A military coup overthrows Alfredo Stroessner, dictator of Paraguay since 1954.
• 1991 - The Italian Communist Party dissolves and splits into the Democratic Party of the Left and the Communist Refoundation Party.
• 1998 - Karla Faye Tucker is executed in Texas becoming the first woman executed in the United States since 1984.
• 1998 - Cavalese cable-car disaster: a United States Military pilot causes the death of 20 people when his low-flying plane cuts the cable of a cable-car near Trento, Italy.
• 1999 - In Jammu and Kashmir the political party Democratic Janata Dal (Jammu and Kashmir) is revived.
• 2007 - A Baghdad market bombing kills at least 135 people and injures a further 339.

Births

• 1338 - Jeanne de Bourbon, wife of Charles V of France (d. 1378)
• 1677 - Jan Santini Aichel, Czech architect (d. 1723)
• 1690 - Richard Rawlinson, English minister (d. 1755)
• 1721 - Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz, Prussian general (d. 1773)
• 1747 - Samuel Osgood, American patriot (d. 1813)
• 1795 - Antonio José de Sucre, South American independence leader (d. 1830)
• 1807 - Joseph E. Johnston, Confederate general (d. 1891)
• 1808 - Princess Marie of Saxe-Weimar, Princess of Prussia (d. 1877)
• 1809 - Felix Mendelssohn, German composer (d. 1847)
• 1811 - Horace Greeley, American journalist, editor, and publisher (d. 1872)
• 1817 - Achille Ernest Oscar Joseph Delesse, French geologist (d. 1881)
• 1821 - Elizabeth Blackwell, American physician (d. 1910)
• 1824 - Ranald MacDonald, Canadian-born Scottish educator and interpreter (d. 1894)
• 1826 - Walter Bagehot, British essayist, journalist and businessman, (d.1877)
• 1830 - Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1903)
• 1842 - Sidney Lanier, American writer (d. 1881)
• 1843 - William Cornelius Van Horne, American-born railway pioneer and executive (d. 1915)
• 1859 - Hugo Junkers, German aircraft designer (d. 1935)
• 1862 - James Clark McReynolds, American Supreme Court Justice (d. 1946)
• 1872 - Lou Criger, American baseball player (d. 1934)
• 1874 - Gertrude Stein, American writer (d. 1946)
• 1876 - William Tedmarsh, silent movie actor (d. 1937)
• 1887 - Juan Negrín, Spanish Prime Minister (d. 1956)
• 1887 - Georg Trakl, Austrian poet (d. 1914)
• 1889 - Carl Theodor Dreyer, Danish film director, (d. 1968)
• 1893 - Gaston Julia, French mathematician (d. 1978)
• 1894 - Norman Rockwell, American illustrator (d. 1978)
• 1898 - Alvar Aalto, Finnish architect (d. 1976)
• 1899 - João Café Filho, Brazilian president (m.1970)
• 1899 - Lao She, Chinese writer (d. 1966)
• 1899 - Doris Speed, English actress (d.1994)
• 1904 - Luigi Dallapiccola, Italian composer (d. 1975)
• 1904 - Pretty Boy Floyd, American gangster (d. 1934)
• 1905 - Arne Beurling, American mathematician(d. 1986)
• 1907 - James Michener, American author (d. 1997)
• 1909 - André Cayatte, French filmmaker (d. 1989)
• 1909 - Simone Weil, French philosopher (d. 1943)
• 1911 - Jehan Alain, French organist and composer (d. 1940)
• 1911 - Robert Earl Jones, American actor (d. 2006)
• 1912 - Jacques Soustelle, French anthropologist (d. 1990)
• 1913 - Richard Seaman, British racing driver (d. 1939)
• 1918 - Joey Bishop, American entertainer, member of the Rat Pack (d. 2007)
• 1918 - Helen Stephens, American runner (d. 1994)
• 1920 - Henry Heimlich, American physician
• 1920 - Tony Gaze, Australian racing driver
• 1923 - Alys Robi, Quebec singer
• 1924 - E. P. Thompson, English socialist historian, (The Making of the English Working Class), (d.1993)
• 1924 - Martial Asselin, French Canadian politician and lieutenant governor of Quebec
• 1925 - Keith Dunstan, Australian author and journalist
• 1925 - John Fiedler, American voice actor (d. 2005)
• 1925 - Leon Schlumpf, member of the Swiss Federal Council
• 1926 - Shelley Berman, American comedian
• 1926 - Hans-Jochen Vogel, German politician
• 1927 - Kenneth Anger, American Underground Filmmaker
• 1927 - Val Doonican, Irish singer and entertainer
• 1927 - Joan Lowery Nixon, American writer (d. 2003)
• 1927 - Blas Ople, Filipino politician (d. 2003)
• 1929 - Ken Shipp, American football coach
• 1930 - Gillian Ayres, English painter
• 1932 - Peggy Ann Garner, American actress (d. 1984)
• 1933 - Paul Sarbanes, American politician
• 1938 - Victor Buono, American actor (d. 1982)
• 1938 - Emile Griffith, US Virgin Islands professional boxer
• 1939 - Michael Cimino, American film director
• 1940 - Fran Tarkenton, American football player
• 1941 - Neil Bogart, American record executive (d. 1982)
• 1943 - Blythe Danner, American actress
• 1943 - Dennis Edwards, American singer (The Temptations)
• 1943 - Shawn Phillips, American singer, guitarist and songwriter
• 1944 - Trisha Noble, Australian singer and actress
• 1945 - Johnny Cymbal, American singer and songwriter (d. 1993)
• 1945 - Bob Griese, American football player
• 1947 - Paul Auster, American novelist
• 1947 - Dave Davies, British musician (The Kinks)
• 1947 - Stephen McHattie, Canadian actor
• 1947 - Melanie Safka, American singer-songwriter
• 1948 - Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo, East Timor politician, Nobel Peace laureate
• 1948 - Henning Mankell, Swedish author
• 1949 - Arthur Kane, American musician
• 1949 - Hennie Kuiper, Dutch cyclist
• 1950 - Morgan Fairchild, American actress
• 1951 - Eugenijus Riabovas, Lithuanian football manager
• 1952 - Fred Lynn, American baseball player
• 1953 - Savvas Tsitouridis, Greek politician
• 1954 - Tiger Williams, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1955 - Stephen Euin Cobb, American novelist
• 1955 - Kirsty Wark, British broadcast journalist
• 1956 - John Jefferson, American football player
• 1956 - Nathan Lane, American actor
• 1956 - Lee Ranaldo, American musician (Sonic Youth)
• 1957 - Chico Serra, Brazilian racing driver
• 1957 - Steven Stapleton, British musician (Nurse With Wound)
• 1958 - N. Gregory Mankiw, American economist
• 1959 - Thomas Calabro, American actor
• 1959 - Yasuharu Konishi, Japanese musician (Pizzicato Five)
• 1959 - Lol Tolhurst, British musician (The Cure)
• 1960 - Kerry Von Erich, American wrestler (d. 1993)
• 1961 - Jay Adams, American skateboarder
• 1961 - Linda Eder, American singer
• 1961 - Keith Gordon, American actor
• 1962 - Michele Greene, American actress
• 1965 - Karlous Marx Shinohamba, Namibian politician
• 1965 - Maura Tierney, American actress
• 1966 - Frank Coraci, American film director
• 1967 - Dave Benson-Phillips, Children's TV Presenter
• 1967 - Bob Taylor, English footballer
• 1968 - Vlade Divac, National Basketball Association player
• 1969 - Retief Goosen, professional golfer
• 1970 - Oscar Cordoba, Colombian footballer
• 1970 - Warwick Davis, British actor
• 1971 - Sean Dawkins, American former football player
• 1971 - Elisa Donovan, American actress
• 1971 - Sarah Kane, English playwright (d. 1999)
• 1971 - Hong Seok-cheon, South Korean actor
• 1972 - Mart Poom, Estonian football player
• 1973 - Ilana Sod, Mexican journalist
• 1974 - Konrad Ga?ka, Polish swimmer
• 1974 - Miriam Yeung, Hong Kong actress
• 1976 - Mathieu Dandenault, Canadian hockey player
• 1976 - Isla Fisher, Australian actress
• 1976 - Dwayne Rudd, American football player
• 1977 - Daddy Yankee , reggaeton singer/rapper.
• 1978 - Adrian R'Mante, American actor
• 1978 - Eliza Schneider, American actress and singer
• 1980 - Sarah Lewitinn, American writer
• 1981 - Alisa Reyes, American actress and singer
• 1981 - Maurice Ross, Scottish footballer
• 1982 - Alan Gurr, Australian V8 Supercar driver
• 1982 - Jessica Harp, American singer (The Wreckers)
• 1983 - Richard Bartel, National Football League quarterback
• 1983 - Silambarasan Rajendar,famous south Indian actor
• 1989 - Slobodan Rajkovi?, Serbian footballer
• 1989 - Ryne Sanborn, American actor
• 1990 - Sean Kingston, American reggae rapper

Deaths

• 619 - Laurence of Canterbury, 2nd Archbishop of Canterbury
• 699 - Saint Werburgh
• 1014 - King Sweyn I of Denmark
• 1116 - King Coloman of Hungary (b. 1070)
• 1399 - John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (b. 1340)
• 1428 - Ashikaga Yoshimochi, Japanese shogun (b. 1386)
• 1451 - Murad II, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1404)
• 1468 - Johannes Gutenberg, German publisher
• 1566 - George Cassander, Flemish theologian (b. 1513)
• 1619 - Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham, English conspirator (b. 1564)
• 1737 - Tommaso Ceva, Italian Mathematician (b. 1648)
• 1802 - Pedro Rodríguez, Conde de Campomanes, Spanish statesman (b. 1723)
• 1832 - George Crabbe, English naturalist (b. 1754)
• 1862 - Jean-Baptiste Biot, French physicist (b. 1774)
• 1866 - François-Xavier Garneau, French Canadian poet and historian (b. 1809)
• 1874 - Lunalilo, Hawaiian monarch (b. 1835)
• 1889 - Belle Starr, American outlaw (b. 1848)
• 1922 - John Butler Yeats, Northern Irish artist (b. 1839)
• 1924 - Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States, Nobel laureate (b. 1856)
• 1929 - Agner Krarup Erlang, Danish scientist (b. 1878)
• 1935 - Hugo Junkers, German engineer (b. 1859)
• 1936 - Sophie of Schönburg-Waldenburg, consort of William of Wied, Prince of Albania (b.1885)
• 1937 - Marija Leiko, Latvian film actress (b. 1887)
• 1945 - Roland Freisler, Nazi leader (b. 1893)
• 1947 - Marc Mitscher, American Navy Admiral (b. 1887)
• 1956 - Émile Borel, French mathematician (b. 1871)
• 1956 - Johnny Claes, Belgian racing driver (b. 1916)
• 1959 - Buddy Holly, American singer (b. 1936)
• 1959 - Ritchie Valens, American singer (b. 1941)
• 1959 - J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, American singer (b. 1930)
• 1960 - Fred Buscaglione, Italian singer and actor (b. 1921)
• 1961 - Viscount Dunrossil, Australian governor-general (b. 1893)
• 1964 - Sir Albert Richardson, English architect (b. 1880)
• 1967 - Joe Meek, English record producer (b. 1929)
• 1969 - Eduardo Mondlane Mozambican independence founder (b. 1920)
• 1975 - William D. Coolidge, American physicist and inventor (b. 1873)
• 1975 - Umm Kulthum, Egyptian singer (b. 1904)
• 1985 - Frank Oppenheimer, American physicist (b. 1912)
• 1989 - John Cassavetes, American actor (b. 1929)
• 1989 - Lionel Newman, American movie music orchestra leader, composer and arranger (b. 1916)
• 1991 - Harry Ackerman, American TV executive producer (b. 1912)
• 1991 - Nancy Kulp, American actress (b. 1921)
• 1993 - Paul Emery, British racing driver (b. 1916)
• 1996 - Audrey Meadows, American actress (b. 1926)
• 1998 - Karla Faye Tucker, American murderer (b. 1959)
• 2000 - Richard Kleindienst, American politician (b. 1923)
• 2003 - Lana Clarkson, American actress (b. 1962)
• 2004 - Jason Raize, American musical theatre actor (b. 1975)
• 2005 - Corrado Cardinal Bafile, Italian Catholic cardinal (b. 1903)
• 2005 - Ernst Mayr, German-born biologist (b. 1904)
• 2005 - Zurab Zhvania, Prime Minister of Georgia (b. 1963)
• 2006 - Al Lewis, American actor (b. 1923)
• 2007 - Pedro Knight, Cuban-American musician, husband of legendary singer Celia Cruz (b. 1921)
• 2007 - Ralph de Toledano, Moroccan-born American political columnist and author (b. 1916)
• 2007 - George Becker, American president of United Steelworkers (1993?2001) (b. 1928)
• 2008 - Douglas Fraser, Scottish pilot (b. 1916)

Holidays and observances

• Japan - the festival of Setsubun before spring.
• Mozambique - Heroes' Day.
• United States - Four Chaplains Day.
• United States - the earliest calendar day that Mardi Gras can occur.
• Saint Blaise, Catholics visit churches to have their throats blessed.
• Aaron the Illustrious, saint of the Syriac Orthodox Church
• Saint Ansgar, patron saint of Denmark
• Saint Hadelin
• Saint Werburgh
• Saint Berlindis
• Saint Margaret of England
• Saint Nona and Saint Celsa
• February 3 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada

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