March 15 is the 74th day of the year (75th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 291 days remaining until the end of the year. In the Roman calendar, March 15 was known as the Ides of March. [edit] Events - 44 BC – Julius Caesar, Dictator of the Roman Republic, is stabbed to death by Marcus Junius Brutus, Gaius Cassius Longinus, Decimus Junius Brutus and several other Roman senators on the Ides of March.
- 221 – Liu Bei, a Chinese warlord and member of the Han royal house, declares himself emperor of Shu-Han and claims his legitimate succession to the Han Dynasty.
- 351 – Constantius II elevates his cousin Gallus to Caesar, and puts him in charge of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire.
- 933 – After a ten-year truce, German King Henry I defeats a Hungarian army at the Battle of Riade near the Unstrut river.
- 1311 – Battle of Halmyros: The Catalan Company defeats Walter V of Brienne to take control of the Duchy of Athens, a Crusader state in Greece.
- 1493 – Christopher Columbus returns to Spain after his first trip to the Americas.
- 1545 – First meeting of the Council of Trent.
- 1672 – Charles II of England issues the Royal Declaration of Indulgence.
- 1776 – South Carolina becomes the first American colony to declare its independence from Great Britain and set up its own government.
- 1781 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Guilford Courthouse – Near present-day Greensboro, North Carolina, 1,900 British troops under General Charles Cornwallis defeat an American force numbering 4,400.
- 1783 – In an emotional speech in Newburgh, New York, George Washington asks his officers not to support the Newburgh Conspiracy. The plea is successful and the threatened coup d'etat never takes place.
- 1820 – Maine becomes the 23rd U.S. state.
- 1848 – A revolution breaks out in Hungary. The Habsburg rulers are compelled to meet the demands of the Reform party.
- 1877 – The first Test cricket match begins between England and Australia.
- 1906 – Rolls-Royce Limited is incorporated.
- 1916 – President Woodrow Wilson sends 12,000 United States troops over the U.S.-Mexico border to pursue Pancho Villa.
- 1917 – Czar Nicholas II of Russia abdicates the Russian throne and his brother the Grand Duke becomes Tsar.
- 1922 – After Egypt gains nominal independence from the United Kingdom, Fuad I becomes King of Egypt.
- 1926 – The dictator Theodoros Pangalos is elected President of Greece without opposition.
- 1931 – SS Viking explodes off Newfoundland, killing 27 of the 147 on board.
- 1933 – Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss keeps members of the National Council from convening, starting the austrofascist dictatorship.
- 1939 – World War II: German troops occupy the remaining part of Bohemia and Moravia; Czechoslovakia ceases to exist.
- 1943 – World War II: Third Battle of Kharkov – the Germans retake the city of Kharkov from the Soviet armies in bitter street fighting.
- 1944 – World War II: Battle of Monte Cassino – Allied aircraft bomb the German-held monastery and stage an assault.
- 1952 – In Cilaos, Réunion, 1870 mm (73 inches) of rain falls in one day, setting a new world record.
- 1961 – South Africa withdraws from the Commonwealth of Nations.
- 1965 – President Lyndon B. Johnson, responding to the Selma crisis, tells U.S. Congress "We shall overcome" while advocating the Voting Rights Act.
- 1985 – The first Internet domain name is registered (symbolics.com).
- 1988 – The Halabja poison gas attack of the Iran–Iraq War begins.
- 1989 – The United States Department of Veterans Affairs is established.
- 1990 – Gulf War: Iraq hangs British journalist Farzad Bazoft for spying.
- 1990 – Mikhail Gorbachev is elected as the first executive president of the Soviet Union.
- 1990 – The ethnic clashes of Târgu Mureş begin on the anniversary of the Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas.
[edit] Births - 938 – Romanos II, Byzantine emperor (d. 963)
- 1275 – Margaret of England (1275–1333), English princess (d. 1333)
- 1455 – Pietro Accolti, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1532)
- 1493 – Anne de Montmorency, Constable of France (d. 1567)
- 1591 – Alexandre de Rhodes, French Jesuit missionary (d. 1660)
- 1638 – Shunzhi Emperor of China (d. 1661)
- 1666 – George Bähr, German architect (d. 1738)
- 1684 – Francesco Durante, Italian composer (d. 1755)
- 1713 – Nicolas Louis de Lacaille, French astronomer (d. 1762)
- 1767 – Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the United States (d. 1845)
- 1771 – Robert Hett Chapman, American Presbyterian minister and president of the University of North Carolina (d. 1833)
- 1779 – Lord Melbourne, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, (d. 1848)
- 1790 – Ludwig Immanuel Magnus, German mathematician (d. 1861)
- 1791 – Charles Knight, English publisher (d. 1873)
- 1809 – Karl Josef von Hefele, German theologian (d. 1893)
- 1809 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts, first President of Liberia (d. 1876)
- 1813 – John Snow, English epidemiologist (d. 1858)
- 1818 – Mariano Álvarez, Filipino general (d. 1924)
- 1821 – Eduard Heine, German mathematician (d. 1881)
- 1821 – Johann Josef Loschmidt, Austrian scientist (d. 1895)
- 1821 – William Milligan, Scottish theologian (d. 1892)
- 1824 – Jules Chevalier, French priest (d. 1907)
- 1830 – Paul Heyse, German writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1914)
- 1830 – Élisée Reclus, French geographer (d. 1905)
- 1831 – Daniel Comboni, Italian missionary (d. 1881)
- 1835 – John Henrie Kagi, American abolitionist (d. 1859)
- 1835 – Eduard Strauss, Austrian composer (d. 1916)
- 1838 – Karl Davydov, Russian cellist (d. 1889)
- 1851 – William Mitchell Ramsay, Scottish archaeologist (d. 1939)
- 1852 – Augusta, Lady Gregory, Anglo-Irish dramatist (d. 1932)
- 1854 – Emil Adolf von Behring, German physician, Nobel laureate (d. 1917)
- 1864 – Johan Halvorsen, Norwegian composer (d. 1935)
- 1866 – Matthew Charlton, Australian politician (d. 1948)
- 1866 – Johan Vaaler, Norwegian inventor (d. 1910)
- 1867 – Lionel Johnson, British poet (d. 1902)
- 1868 – Grace Chisholm Young, English mathematician (d. 1944)
- 1869 – Stanisław Wojciechowski, President of Poland (d. 1953)
- 1874 – Eugène Fiset, Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (d. 1951)
- 1882 – Jim Lightbody, American runner (d. 1953)
- 1884 – Angelos Sikelianos, Greek poet and playwright (d. 1951)
- 1887 – Marjorie Merriweather Post, American entrepreneur (d. 1973)
- 1890 – Boris Nikolaevich Delaunay, Russian mathematician (d. 1980)
- 1892 – James Basevi Ord, US army officer (d. 1938)
- 1897 – Jackson Scholz, American runner (d. 1986)
- 1899 – George Brent, American film actor (d. 1979)
- 1904 – Yu Gwan-sun, Korean independence fighter (d. 1920)
- 1905 – Berthold von Stauffenberg, German lawyer and Nazi opponent (d. 1944)
- 1907 – Zarah Leander, Swedish actress and singer (d. 1981)
- 1912 – Louis Paul Boon, Flemish journalist and novelist (d. 1979)
- 1912 – Lightnin' Hopkins, American musician (d. 1982)
- 1913 – MacDonald Carey, American actor (d. 1994)
- 1913 – Jack Fairman, British racing driver (d. 2002)
- 1914 – Aniello Dellacroce, American gangster (d. 1985)
- 1915 – Joe E. Ross, American actor and comedian (d. 1982)
- 1915 – Caterina Boratto, Italian film actress
- 1916 – Fadil Hoxha, Yugoslav politician (d. 2001)
- 1916 – Harry James, American musician and band leader (d. 1983)
- 1916 – Frank Coghlan Jr, American actor (d. 2009)
- 1918 – Richard Ellmann, American biographer (d. 1987)
- 1918 – Punch Imlach, Canadian hockey coach and general manager (d. 1987)
- 1919 – Lawrence Tierney, American actor (d. 2002)
- 1920 – Lawrence Sanders, American novelist (d. 1998)
- 1920 – E. Donnall Thomas, American physician, Nobel laureate
- 1921 – Madelyn Pugh, American television writer
- 1921 – Stafford Smythe, Canadian hockey executive (d. 1971)
- 1923 – Charles Wheeler, British journalist (d. 2008)
- 1924 – Walter Gotell, German actor (d. 1997)
- 1925 – Bert Bolin, Swedish meteorologist (d. 2007)
- 1926 – Norm Van Brocklin, American football player (d. 1983)
- 1926 – Ben Johnston, American composer
- 1927 – Stanisław Kania, Polish politician
- 1927 – Christian Marquand, French actor and director (d. 2000)
- 1927 – Carl Smith, American singer
- 1929 – Cecil Taylor, American jazz pianist
- 1930 – Zhores Ivanovich Alferov, Russian physicist, Nobel laureate
- 1930 – Kostas Nestoridis, Greek footballer
- 1932 – Alan Bean, American astronaut
- 1933 – Ruth Bader Ginsburg, American jurist
- 1933 – Philippe de Broca, French film director (d. 2004)
- 1934 – Aldo Giorgini, Italian artist
- 1934 – Richard Layard, Baron Layard, British economist
- 1934 – Kanshi Ram, Indian dalit leader
- 1935 – Judd Hirsch, American actor
- 1935 – Jimmy Swaggart, American televangelist
- 1936 – David Andrews, Irish politician
- 1936 – Howard Greenfield, American songwriter (d. 1986)
- 1936 – Paul Zindel, American author and educator (d. 2003)
- 1939 – David Eisenberg, American biochemist
- 1939 – Ted Kaufman, American politician, junior senator of Delaware
- 1939 – Julie Tullis, British climber (d. 1986)
- 1939 – Jack Whyte, Scottish-Canadian author
- 1940 – Frank Dobson, British politician
- 1940 – Margo Coleman, American advice columnist
- 1940 – Phil Lesh, American musician (Grateful Dead)
- 1940 – Mel Phillips, American radio programmer
- 1941 – Mike Love, American musician (The Beach Boys)
- 1943 – David Cronenberg, Canadian film director
- 1944 – Chi Cheng, Taiwanese athlete and politician
- 1944 – Jacques Doillon, French film director
- 1944 – Sly Stone, American musician
- 1945 – A. K. Faezul Huq, Bengali lawyer and politician (d. 2007)
- 1945 – Mark J. Green, American public official
- 1946 – Bobby Bonds, American baseball player (d. 2003)
- 1946 – Masaharu Satō, Japanese seiyū
- 1946 – Howard E. Scott, American musician (War)
- 1947 – Ry Cooder, American guitarist
- 1947 – Juraj Kukura, Slovak actor
- 1948 – Kate Bornstein, American author
- 1948 – Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (d. 2003)
- 1950 – Jørgen Olsen, Danish singer
- 1952 – Howard Koh, American state government official
- 1953 – Kostas Bigalis, Greek singer and songwriter
- 1953 – Richard Bruton, Irish politician
- 1954 – Craig Wasson, American actor
- 1955 – Dee Snider, American singer (Twisted Sister)
- 1956 – Clay Matthews, American football player
- 1957 – Víctor Muñoz, Spanish football manager
- 1957 – Joaquim de Almeida, Portuguese-American actor
- 1957 – Park Overall, American actress
- 1957 – David Silverman, American animator
- 1959 – Harold Baines, American baseball player
- 1959 – Renny Harlin, Finnish film director
- 1959 – Lisa Holton, American writer
- 1959 – Fabio Lanzoni, Italian model
- 1960 – Marco Pennette, American television producer
- 1960 – Chris Sanders, American animator and director
- 1961 – Terry Cummings, American basketball player
- 1961 – Craig Ludwig, American ice hockey player
- 1962 – Jimmy Baio, American actor
- 1962 – Terence Trent D'Arby, American singer
- 1963 – Bret Michaels, American musician (Poison)
- 1964 – Davide Pinato, Italian footballer
- 1967 – Naoko Takeuchi, Japanese artist
- 1968 – Kahimi Karie, Japanese singer
- 1968 – Mark McGrath, American musician (Sugar Ray)
- 1968 – Terje Riis-Johansen, Norwegian politician
- 1968 – Sabrina Salerno, Italian singer
- 1968 – Jon Schaffer, American guitarist (Iced Earth)
- 1969 – Rona Ambrose, Canadian politician
- 1969 – Gianluca Festa, Italian footballer
- 1969 – Timo Kotipelto, Finnish musician
- 1969 – Kim Raver, American actress
- 1969 – Yutaka Take, Japanese jockey
- 1970 – Derek Parra, American speed skater
- 1971 – Penny Lancaster, English model
- 1971 – Joanne Wise, English long jumper
- 1972 – Mark Hoppus, American musician (+44 and blink-182)
- 1972 – Mike Tomlin, American football coach
- 1973 – Lee Jung-jae, South Korean actor & model
- 1973 – Boris Durdevic, Croatian musician
- 1974 – Robert Fick, American baseball player
- 1974 – John "Beatz" Holohan, American musician
- 1975 – Eva Longoria, American actress
- 1975 – Veselin Topalov, Bulgarian chess player
- 1975 – Darcy Tucker, Canadian hockey player
- 1975 – Will.i.am, American musician
- 1976 – Katherine Brooks, American television director
- 1976 – Cara Pifko, Canadian actress
- 1976 – Jose Sanchez Zolliker, Mexican writer
- 1977 – Adrian Burnside, Australian baseball player
- 1977 – Joe Hahn, American musician (Linkin Park)
- 1977 – Brian Tee, American actor
- 1978 – Takeru Kobayashi, Japanese competitive eater
- 1979 – Kevin Youkilis, American baseball player
- 1980 – Freddie Bynum, American baseball player
- 1981 – Mikael Forssell, Finnish footballer
- 1981 – Veronica Maggio, Swedish singer
- 1981 – Young Buck, American rapper
- 1982 – Jordan Hastings, Canadian drummer (Alexisonfire)
- 1982 – Rafael Pérez, Dominican baseball player
- 1982 – Emily Tyndall, American actress
- 1983 – Sean Biggerstaff, Scottish actor
- 1983 – Daryl Murphy, Irish footballer
- 1984 – Badradine Belloumou, French-born football player
- 1984 – Kostas Vasileiadis, Greek basketball player
- 1985 – Eva Amurri, American actress
- 1985 – Antti Autti, Finnish snowboarder
- 1985 – James MacLurcan, Australian actor
- 1985 – Tom Chilton, British racing driver
- 1985 – Kellan Lutz, American model and actor
- 1985 – Curtis Davies, English footballer
- 1986 – Adrianne Leon, American singer-songwriter and actress
- 1987 – Taiwan Brown, American video jockey
- 1988 – Ever Guzman, Mexican footballer
- 1989 – Caitlin Wachs, American actress
- 1991 – Kie Kitano, Japanese actress
[edit] Deaths - 44 BC – Julius Caesar (murdered) (b. 100 BC)
- 220 – Cao Cao, King of Wei (b. 155)
- 493 – Odoacer, King of Italy (murdered) (b. 435)
- 1145 – Pope Lucius II
- 1311 – Walter V of Brienne, Duke of Athens
- 1416 – John, Duke of Berry, son of John II of France (b. 1340)
- 1536 – Pargalı İbrahim Pasha, Grand Vizier under Suleiman the Magnificent
- 1575 – Annibale Padovano, Italian composer (b. 1527)
- 1644 – Louise Juliana of Nassau, Regent of Bohemia (b. 1576)
- 1670 – John Davenport, Connecticut pioneer (b. 1597)
- 1673 – Salvator Rosa, Italian painter and poet (b. 1615)
- 1701 – Jean Renaud de Segrais, French writer (b. 1624)
- 1711 – Eusebio Kino, Italian Catholic missionary (b. 1645)
- 1820 – Clemens Maria Hofbauer, patron saint of Vienna (b. 1751)
- 1842 – Luigi Cherubini, Italian composer (b. 1760)
- 1849 – Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, Italian cardinal and linguist (b. 1774)
- 1891 – Théodore de Banville, French writer (b. 1823)
- 1891 – Joseph Bazalgette, English civil engineer (b. 1819)
- 1898 – Henry Bessemer, English metallurgist (b. 1813)
- 1937 – H. P. Lovecraft, American writer (b. 1890)
- 1941 – Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian painter (b. 1864)
- 1951 – John S. Paraskevopoulos, Greek-born astronomer (b. 1889)
- 1957 – Ernst Nobs, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1886)
- 1959 – Lester Young, American musician (b. 1909)
- 1962 – Arthur Compton, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
- 1966 – Abe Saperstein, American basketball executive (b. 1902)
- 1969 – Miles Malleson, British actor and dramatist (b. 1888)
- 1970 – Tarjei Vesaas, Norwegian writer (b. 1897)
- 1971 – Jean-Pierre Monseré, Belgian cyclist (b. 1948)
- 1972 – Aleksandr Ivanovich Laktionov, Russian painter (b. 1910)
- 1975 – Aristotle Onassis, Greek shipping magnate (b. 1900)
- 1977 – Antonino Rocca, Argentine professional wrestler (b. 1927)
- 1977 – Hubert Aquin, Quebec novelist, political activist and editor (b. 1929)
- 1981 – René Clair, French film director (b. 1898)
- 1983 – Rebecca West, English writer (b. 1892)
- 1983 – Coloman Braun-Bogdan, Romanian football midfielder and manager (b. 1905)
- 1985 – Radha Krishna Choudhary, Indian historian and writer (b. 1921)
- 1988 – Dmitri Polyakov, Soviet double-agent (b. 1926)
- 1989 – Muhammad Jameel Didi, Maldivian poet (b. 1915)
- 1990 – Farzad Bazoft, Iranian-born journalist (hanged) (b. 1958)
- 1990 – Tom Harmon, American football player and broadcaster (b. 1919)
- 1991 – Bud Freeman, American jazz musician (b. 1906)
- 1997 – Gail Davis, American actress (b. 1925)
- 1997 – Victor Vasarely, Hungarian painter (b. 1906)
- 1998 – Benjamin Spock, American pediatrician and writer (b. 1903)
- 2001 – Ann Sothern, American actress (b. 1909)
- 2003 – Dame Thora Hird, British actress (b. 1911)
- 2003 – Paul Stojanovich, Reality TV pioneer (b. 1956)
- 2004 – Sir William Pickering, New Zealand-born space scientist (b. 1910)
- 2004 – John Pople, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1925)
- 2005 – Bob Bellear, Australian judge (b. 1944)
- 2005 – Shoji Nishio, Japanese martial artist (b. 1927)
- 2006 – George Rallis, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1918)
- 2006 – Red Storey, Canadian football player and hockey referee (b. 1918)
- 2007 – Charles Harrelson, American hitman and father of Woody Harrelson (b. 1938)
- 2007 – Bowie Kuhn, American commissioner of baseball (b. 1926)
- 2007 – Stuart Rosenberg, American film and television director (b. 1927)
- 2008 – Mikey Dread,Jamaican singer (b. 1954)
- 2008 – Vytautas Kernagis, Lithuanian singer, TV shows announcer (b. 1951)
- 2008 – Ken Reardon, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1921)
- 2009 – Ron Silver, American actor (b. 1946)
[edit] Holidays and observances [edit] External links
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