March 19

March 19 is the 78th day of the year (79th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 287 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 1279 – A Mongolian victory at the Battle of Yamen ends the Song dynasty in China.
• 1563 – The Edict of Amboise is signed, ending the first phase of the French Wars of Religion and granting certain freedoms to the Huguenots.
• 1649 – The House of Commons of England passes an act abolishing the House of Lords, declaring it "useless and dangerous to the people of England".
• 1687 – Explorer Robert Cavelier de La Salle, searching for the mouth of the Mississippi River, is murdered by his own men.
• 1812 – The Cádiz Cortes promulgates the Spanish Constitution of 1812.
• 1853 – The Taiping reform movement occupies and makes Nanjing its capital until 1864.
• 1861 – The First Taranaki War ends in New Zealand.
• 1863 – The SS Georgiana, said to have been the most powerful Confederate cruiser, is destroyed on her maiden voyage with a cargo of munitions, medicines and merchandise then valued at over $1,000,000.
• 1865 – American Civil War: The Battle of Bentonville begins. By the end of the battle two days later, Confederate forces had retreated from Four Oaks, North Carolina.
• 1885 – Louis Riel declares a provisional government in Saskatchewan, beginning the North-West Rebellion.
• 1895 – Auguste and Louis Lumière record their first footage using their newly patented cinematograph.
• 1918 – The U.S. Congress establishes time zones and approves daylight saving time.
• 1920 – The United States Senate rejects the Treaty of Versailles for the second time (the first time was on November 19, 1919).
• 1921 – Irish War of Independence: One of the biggest engagements of the war takes place at Crossbarry, County Cork. About 100 Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteers escape an attempt by over 1,300 British forces to encircle them.
• 1931 – Gambling is legalized in Nevada.
• 1932 – The Sydney Harbour Bridge is opened.
• 1941 – World War II: The 99th Pursuit Squadron also known as the Tuskegee Airmen, the first all-black unit of the US Army Air Corps, is activated.
• 1943 – Frank Nitti, the Chicago Outfit Boss after Al Capone, commits suicide at the Chicago Central Railyard.
• 1944 – World War II: Nazi forces occupy Hungary.
• 1945 – World War II: Off the coast of Japan, a dive bomber hits the aircraft carrier USS Franklin, killing 724 of her crew. Badly damaged, the ship is able to return to the U.S. under her own power.
• 1945 – World War II: Adolf Hitler issues his "Nero Decree" ordering all industries, military installations, shops, transportation facilities and communications facilities in Germany to be destroyed.
• 1946 – French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion become overseas départements of France.
• 1954 – Joey Giardello knocks out Willie Tory in round seven at Madison Square Garden in the first televised prize boxing fight shown in colour.
• 1954 – Willie Mosconi sets a world record by running 526 consecutive balls without a miss during a straight pool exhibition at East High Billiard Club in Springfield, Ohio. The record still stands today.
• 1958 – The Monarch Underwear Company fire leaves 24 dead and 15 injured.
• 1962 – Highly influential artist, Bob Dylan releases his first album, Bob Dylan, on Columbia Records label.
• 1962 – The Algerian War of Independence against the French ends.
• 1965 – The wreck of the SS Georgiana, valued at over $50,000,000 and said to have been the most powerful Confederate cruiser, is discovered by teenage diver and pioneer underwater archaeologist E. Lee Spence, exactly 102 years after its destruction.
• 1966 – Texas Western becomes the first college basketball team to win the Final four with an all-black starting lineup.
• 1969 – The 385 metres (1,263 ft) tall TV-mast at Emley Moor transmitting station, United Kingdom, collapses due to ice build-up.
• 1979 – The United States House of Representatives begins broadcasting its day-to-day business via the cable television network C-SPAN.
• 1982 – Falklands War: Argentinian forces land on South Georgia Island, precipitating war with the United Kingdom.
• 1987 – Televangelist Jim Bakker resigns as head of the PTL Club due to a brewing sex scandal; he hands over control to Jerry Falwell.
• 1989 – The Egyptian Flag is raised on Taba, Egypt announcing the end of the Israeli occupation after the Yom Kippur War in 1973 and the peace negotiations in 1979.
• 1990 – The ethnic clashes of Târgu Mureș begin four days after the anniversary of the Revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire.
• 2002 – Zimbabwe is suspended from the Commonwealth on charges of human rights abuses and of electoral fraud, following a turbulent presidential election.
• 2004 – Konginkangas bus disaster: A semi-trailer truck and a bus crash head-on in Äänekoski, Finland. A total of 24 people are killed and 13 injured.
• 2004 – A Swedish DC-3 shot down by a Russian MiG-15 in 1952 over the Baltic Sea is finally recovered after years of work. The remains of the three crewmen are left in place, pending further investigations.
• 2004 – 3-19 shooting incident: Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian is shot just before the country's presidential election on March 20.
• 2008 – GRB 080319B: A cosmic burst that is the farthest object visible to the naked eye is briefly observed.
• 2011 – Libyan Civil War: After the failure of Muammar Gaddafi's forces to take Benghazi, French Air Force launches Opération Harmattan, beginning foreign military intervention in Libya.

Births

• 1434 – Ashikaga Yoshikatsu, Japanese shogun (d. 1443)
• 1488 – Johannes Magnus, Swedish archbishop and theologian (d. 1544)
• 1534 – José de Anchieta, Spanish missionary and saint (d. 1597)
• 1590 – William Bradford, English-American politician, 2nd Governor of Plymouth Colony (d. 1657)
• 1601 – Alonzo Cano, Spanish painter, sculptor, and architect (d. 1667)
• 1603 – John IV of Portugal (d. 1656)
• 1629 – Alexis of Russia (d. 1676)
• 1641 – Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi, Syrian author and scholar (d. 1731)
• 1661 – Francesco Gasparini, Italian composer and educator (d. 1727)
• 1684 – Jean Astruc, French physician and scholar (d. 1766)
• 1721 – Tobias Smollett, Scottish-Italian poet and author (d. 1771)
• 1734 – Thomas McKean, American lawyer and politician, 2nd Governor of Pennsylvania (d. 1817)
• 1739 – Charles-François Lebrun, duc de Plaisance, French lawyer and politician (d. 1824)
• 1742 – Túpac Amaru II, Peruvian rebel leader (d. 1781)
• 1748 – Elias Hicks, American farmer, minister, and theologian (d. 1830)
• 1749 – Princess Louisa of Great Britain (d. 1768)
• 1778 – Edward Pakenham, Irish general and politician (d. 1815)
• 1809 – Fredrik Pacius, German composer and conductor (d. 1891)
• 1813 – David Livingstone, Scottish missionary and explorer (d. 1873)
• 1816 – Johannes Verhulst, Dutch composer and conductor (d. 1891)
• 1821 – Richard Francis Burton, English soldier, geographer, and diplomat (d. 1890)
• 1823 – Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria (d. 1914)
• 1824 – William Allingham, Irish poet, author, and scholar (d. 1889)
• 1829 – Carl Frederik Tietgen, Danish businessman (d. 1901)
• 1844 – Minna Canth, Finnish journalist, playwright, and activist (d. 1897)
• 1847 – Albert Pinkham Ryder, American painter (d. 1917)
• 1848 – Wyatt Earp, American police officer (d. 1929)
• 1849 – Alfred von Tirpitz, Polish-German admiral and politician (d. 1930)
• 1851 – William Henry Stark, American businessman (d. 1936)
• 1860 – William Jennings Bryan, American lawyer and politician, 41st United States Secretary of State (d. 1925)
• 1861 – Lomer Gouin, Canadian lawyer and politician, 13th Premier of Quebec (d. 1929)
• 1864 – Charles Marion Russell, American painter and sculptor (d. 1926)
• 1865 – William Morton Wheeler, American entomologist, myrmecologist, and academic (d. 1937)
• 1868 – Senda Berenson Abbott, Lithuanian-American basketball player and educator (d. 1954)
• 1871 – Schofield Haigh, English cricketer and coach (d. 1921)
• 1872 – Anna Held, Polish-American actress and singer (d. 1918)
• 1873 – Max Reger, German pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1916)
• 1878 – Henricus Tromp, Dutch rower (d. 1962)
• 1881 – Edith Nourse Rogers, American social worker and politician (d. 1960)
• 1882 – Gaston Lachaise, French-American sculptor (d. 1935)
• 1883 – Norman Haworth, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1950)
• 1883 – Joseph Stilwell, American general (d. 1946)
• 1885 – Attik, Greek pianist and composer (d. 1944)
• 1888 – Josef Albers, German-American painter and educator (d. 1976)
• 1888 – Léon Scieur, Belgian cyclist (d. 1969)
• 1891 – Earl Warren, American lieutenant, jurist, and politician, 14th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1974)
• 1892 – James Van Fleet, American general and diplomat (d. 1992)
• 1894 – Moms Mabley, American comedian, actress, and singer (d. 1975)
• 1898 – Karl Theodor Bleek, German politician, Mayor of Marburg (d. 1969)
• 1900 – Frédéric Joliot-Curie, French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
• 1901 – Jo Mielziner, French-American set designer (d. 1976)
• 1902 – Louisa Ghijs, Belgian-German actress (d. 1985)
• 1904 – John Sirica, American lawyer and judge (d. 1992)
• 1905 – Joe Rollino, American weightlifter and boxer (d. 2010)
• 1905 – Albert Speer, German architect and politician (d. 1981)
• 1906 – Adolf Eichmann, German SS officer (d. 1962)
• 1909 – Attilio Demaría, Argentinian footballer (d. 1990)
• 1909 – Louis Hayward, South African-American actor (d. 1985)
• 1910 – Joseph Carroll, American general (d. 1991)
• 1911 – Simone Renant, French actress (d. 2004)
• 1911 – Arnold Viiding, Estonian shot putter and discus thrower (d. 2006)
• 1912 – Hugh Watt, Australian-New Zealand engineer and politician, Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1980)
• 1914 – Leonidas Alaoglu, Canadian-American mathematician and theorist (d. 1981)
• 1914 – Jay Berwanger, American football player and coach (d. 2002)
• 1914 – Fred Clark, American actor (d. 1968)
• 1915 – Robert G. Cole, American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1944)
• 1915 – Patricia Morison, American actress and singer
• 1916 – Eric Christmas, English-Canadian actor (d. 2000)
• 1916 – Irving Wallace, American journalist, author, and screenwriter (d. 1990)
• 1917 – Peggy Ahern, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 2012)
• 1917 – Laszlo Szabo, Hungarian chess player (d. 1998)
• 1919 – Lennie Tristano, American pianist, composer, and educator (d. 1978)
• 1920 – Tige Andrews, American actor (d. 2007)
• 1920 – Kjell Aukrust, Norwegian author, poet, and painter (d. 2002)
• 1920 – Paul Hagen, Danish actor and singer (d. 2003)
• 1920 – Laurent Noël, Canadian bishop
• 1921 – Martha Carson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2004)
• 1921 – Tommy Cooper, Welsh comedian and magician (d. 1984)
• 1922 – Hiroo Onoda, Japanese lieutenant (d. 2014)
• 1923 – Pamela Britton, American actress (d. 1974)
• 1923 – Betty Goodwin, Canadian sculptor and painter (d. 2008)
• 1923 – Benito Jacovitti, Italian illustrator (d. 1997)
• 1923 – Henry Morgentaler, Polish-Canadian physician and activist (d. 2013)
• 1923 – Giuseppe Rotunno, Italian cinematographer
• 1924 – Joe Gaetjens, Haitian footballer (d. 1964)
• 1924 – Mary Wimbush, English actress (d. 2005)
• 1925 – Brent Scowcroft, American general and diplomat, 9th United States National Security Advisor
• 1927 – Richie Ashburn, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1997)
• 1928 – Hans Küng, Swiss theologian and author
• 1928 – Patrick McGoohan, Irish-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2009)
• 1928 – David Lumsden, English organist and conductor
• 1929 – Miquel Martí i Pol, Catalan poet and educator (d. 2003)
• 1930 – Gualtiero Marchesi, Italian chef
• 1930 – Eugene Selznick, American volleyball player and coach (d. 2012)
• 1931 – Maurice Peston, Baron Peston, English economist and politician
• 1932 – Gay Brewer, American golfer (d. 2007)
• 1932 – Peter Hall, English geographer, author, and academic (d. 2014)
• 1932 – Gail Kobe, American actress and producer (d. 2013)
• 1933 – Norman King, English admiral (d. 2013)
• 1933 – Phyllis Newman, American actress and singer
• 1933 – Philip Roth, American author
• 1933 – Renée Taylor, American actress and screenwriter
• 1933 – Richard Williams, Canadian-English animator, director, and screenwriter
• 1935 – Nancy Malone, American actress, director, and producer (d. 2014)
• 1935 – Burt Metcalfe, Canadian-American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1936 – Ursula Andress, Swiss actress
• 1936 – Birthe Wilke, Danish singer
• 1937 – Clarence "Frogman" Henry, American singer and pianist
• 1937 – Egon Krenz, German politician
• 1937 – Maurice Roëves, English-Scottish actor
• 1939 – Joe Kapp, American football player, coach, and actor
• 1942 – Richard Dobson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1942 – Heather Robertson, Canadian journalist and author (d. 2014)
• 1943 – Mario J. Molina, Mexican chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1943 – Mario Monti, Italian economist and politician, Prime Minister of Italy
• 1943 – Vern Schuppan, Australian race car driver
• 1944 – Said Musa, Belizean lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Belize
• 1944 – Sirhan Sirhan, Palestinian-Jordanian assassin of Robert F. Kennedy
• 1945 – John Holder, English cricketer and umpire
• 1945 – Modestas Paulauskas, Lithuanian basketball player and coach
• 1945 – Raymond Plant, Baron Plant of Highfield, English academic and politician
• 1946 – Paul Atkinson, English guitarist (The Zombies) (d. 2004)
• 1946 – Bigas Luna, Spanish director and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1946 – Ruth Pointer, American singer-songwriter and producer (Pointer Sisters)
• 1946 – Jack Schaeffer, American singer, saxophonist, and producer (Royale Monarchs)
• 1947 – Glenn Close, American actress and producer
• 1947 – Marinho Peres, Brazilian footballer and coach
• 1948 – Peep Lassmann, Estonian pianist and educator
• 1948 – David Schnitter, American saxophonist and educator
• 1948 – Vintcent van der Bijl, South African cricketer and umpire
• 1949 – Blase J. Cupich, American archbishop
• 1949 – Hirofumi Hirano, Japanese politician
• 1949 – Valery Leontiev, Russian singer and actor
• 1950 – Jose S. Palma, Filipino archbishop
• 1950 – James Redfield, American author, screenwriter, and producer
• 1951 – Christine Laser, German pentathlete
• 1951 – PJ Torokvei, Canadian actor and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1952 – Wolfgang Ambros, Austrian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Austria3)
• 1952 – Chris Brubeck, American pianist and composer
• 1952 – Warren Lees, New Zealand cricketer and coach
• 1952 – Martin Ravallion, Australian economist and academic
• 1952 – Harvey Weinstein, American director and producer, co-founded Miramax Films and The Weinstein Company
• 1953 – Ian Blair, English police officer
• 1953 – Peter Hendy, English businessman
• 1953 – Billy Sheehan, American bass player and songwriter (Mr. Big and Niacin)
• 1953 – Ricky Wilson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The B-52's) (d. 1985)
• 1954 – Jill Abramson, American journalist and author
• 1954 – Cho Kwang-rae, South Korean footballer, coach, and manager
• 1954 – Rashid Nugmanov, Kazakh director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1955 – John Burnside, Scottish poet and academic
• 1955 – Pino Daniele, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2015)
• 1955 – Bruce Willis, German-American actor, singer, and producer
• 1955 – Simon Yam, Hong Kong actor and producer
• 1956 – Yegor Gaidar, Russian economist and politician, First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (d. 2009)
• 1958 – Andy Reid, American football player and coach
• 1959 – Terry Hall, English singer-songwriter (The Specials, Fun Boy Three, The Colourfield, and Vegas)
• 1960 – Simo Aalto, Finnish magician
• 1960 – Eliane Elias, Brazilian singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1960 – Cousin Junior, American wrestler (d. 2009)
• 1961 – Jos Lansink, Dutch-Belgian horse rider
• 1962 – Iván Calderón, Puerto Rican baseball player (d. 2003)
• 1962 – Jim Korderas, Canadian wrestling referee
• 1963 – Brazo de Plata, Mexican wrestler
• 1963 – Neil LaBute, American director and screenwriter
• 1963 – Mary Scheer, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
• 1964 – Mesut Bakkal, Turkish footballer and manager
• 1964 – Yoko Kanno, Japanese pianist and composer (Seatbelts)
• 1964 – Jake Weber, English actor
• 1965 – Kevin F. Harris, American composer and author
• 1965 – Fred Stoller, American actor and screenwriter
• 1966 – Michael Crockart, Scottish police officer and politician
• 1966 – Andy Sinton, English footballer and manager
• 1967 – Michael Bletsas, Greek engineer and academic
• 1967 – Sergei Bragin, Estonian footballer
• 1967 – Vladimir Konstantinov, Russian-American ice hockey player
• 1967 – Katia Tiutiunnik, Australian viola player and composer
• 1968 – Tyrone Hill, American basketball player and coach
• 1968 – Mots'eoa Senyane, Lesotho diplomat, Lesotho High Commissioner to Canada
• 1969 – Gary Jules, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1969 – Tuulikki Laesson, Estonian chess player
• 1969 – Tom McRae, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1969 – Connor Trinneer, American actor
• 1970 – Gert Bettens, Belgian guitarist and songwriter (K's Choice)
• 1970 – Michael Krumm, German race car driver
• 1971 – Nadja Auermann, German model and actress
• 1971 – Sébastien Godefroid, Belgian sailor
• 1972 – Nate Quarry, American mixed martial artist and sportscaster
• 1973 – Bun B, American rapper and producer (UGK)
• 1973 – Brant Bjork, American drummer (Kyuss, Vista Chino, and Fu Manchu)
• 1973 – Ashley Giles, English cricketer and coach
• 1973 – Simmone Jade Mackinnon, Australian actress
• 1973 – Sergey Makarov, Russian javelin thrower
• 1974 – Vida Guerra, Cuban-American model and actress
• 1974 – Marcel Tiemann, German race car driver
• 1975 – Brann Dailor, American drummer and songwriter (Mastodon, Lethargy, and Today Is the Day)
• 1975 – Antonio Daniels, American basketball player
• 1975 – Vivian Hsu, Taiwanese singer and actress
• 1975 – Mason Jennings, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1975 – Lucie Laurier, Canadian actress
• 1975 – Matthew Richardson, Australian footballer and sportscaster
• 1976 – Rachel Blanchard, Canadian actress
• 1976 – Andre Miller, American basketball player
• 1976 – Alessandro Nesta, Italian footballer
• 1976 – Stelios Sfakianakis, German-Greek footballer
• 1977 – Fayez Banihammad, Emirati terrorist, hijacker of United Airlines Flight 175 (d. 2001)
• 1977 – Jorma Taccone, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1978 – Cydonie Mothersille, Jamaican-Caymanian sprinter
• 1979 – Abby Brammell, American actress
• 1979 – Sheldon Brown, American football player
• 1979 – Hee-seop Choi, South Korean-American baseball player
• 1979 – Ivan Ljubičić, Croatian tennis player
• 1979 – Christos Patsatzoglou, Greek footballer
• 1979 – Hedo Türkoğlu, Turkish basketball player
• 1980 – Luca Ferri, Italian footballer
• 1980 – Taichi Ishikari, Japanese wrestler
• 1980 – Mikuni Shimokawa, Japanese singer-songwriter (NapsaQ and Checkicco)
• 1981 – Steve Cummings, English cyclist
• 1981 – Kim Rae-won, South Korean actor
• 1981 – Kolo Touré, Ivorian footballer
• 1982 – Jonathan Fanene, American football player
• 1982 – Brad Jones, Australian footballer
• 1982 – Matt Littler, English actor and director
• 1982 – Eduardo Saverin, Brazilian-American businessman, co-founded Facebook
• 1983 – Evan Bourne, American wrestler
• 1983 – Ana Rezende, Brazilian guitarist and director (CSS)
• 1984 – Tanushree Dutta, Indian model and actress, Femina Miss India 2004
• 1985 – Inesa Jurevičiūtė, Lithuanian figure skater
• 1985 – Michael Timlin, English-Irish footballer
• 1985 – E. J. Viso, Venezuelan race car driver
• 1986 – Tyler Bozak, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1987 – Lee Jooyeon, South Korean singer and actress (After School)
• 1987 – AJ Lee, American wrestler
• 1987 – Josie Loren, American actress
• 1987 – Alexander Metz, German rugby player
• 1987 – Michal Švec, Czech footballer
• 1987 – Miloš Teodosić, Serbian basketball player
• 1988 – Clayton Kershaw, American baseball player
• 1989 – Ben Briley, American singer
• 1989 – Babak Ghorbani, Iranian wrestler (d. 2014)
• 1989 – Craig Lamar Traylor, American actor
• 1991 – Garrett Clayton, American actor, singer, and dancer
• 1991 – Aleksandr Kokorin, Russian footballer
• 1995 – Philip Daniel Bolden, American actor
• 1995 – Julia Montes, Filipino actress and dancer
• 1995 – Alexei Sintsov, Russian figure skater
• 1996 – Barbara Haas, Austrian tennis player
• 1997 – Rūta Meilutytė, Lithuanian swimmer

Deaths

• 1238 – Henry I the Bearded, Polish son of Bolesław I the Tall (b. 1163)
• 1263 – Hugh of Saint-Cher, French cardinal (b. 1200)
• 1279 – Emperor Bing of Song (b. 1271)
• 1286 – Alexander III of Scotland (b. 1241)
• 1330 – Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent, English politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1301)
• 1406 – Ibn Khaldun, Tunisian sociologist, historian, and scholar (b. 1332)
• 1612 – Sophia Olelkovich Radziwill, Belarusian saint (b. 1585)
• 1637 – Péter Pázmány, Hungarian cardinal (b. 1570)
• 1649 – Gerhard Johann Vossius, German scholar and theologian (b. 1577)
• 1683 – Thomas Killigrew, English playwright and manager (b. 1612)
• 1687 – René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, French-American explorer (b. 1643)
• 1697 – Nicolaus Bruhns, German organist and composer (b. 1665)
• 1711 – Thomas Ken, English bishop and hymn-writer (b. 1637)
• 1717 – John Campbell, 1st Earl of Breadalbane and Holland, Scottish soldier (b. 1636)
• 1721 – Pope Clement XI (b. 1649)
• 1746 – Grand Duchess Anna Leopoldovna of Russia (b. 1718)
• 1783 – Frederick Cornwallis, English archbishop (b. 1713)
• 1790 – Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha, Ottoman general and politician, 182nd Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1713)
• 1816 – Philip Mazzei, Italian-American physician and philosopher (b. 1730)
• 1871 – Wilhelm Karl Ritter von Haidinger, Austrian mineralogist, geologist, and physicist (b. 1795)
• 1882 – Carl Robert Jakobson, Estonian journalist and politician (b. 1841)
• 1897 – Antoine Thomson d'Abbadie, Irish-French geographer, ethnologist, linguist, and astronomer (b. 1810)
• 1900 – John Bingham, American lawyer and politician, 7th United States Ambassador to Japan (b. 1815)
• 1900 – Charles-Louis Hanon, French pianist and composer (b. 1819)
• 1914 – Giuseppe Mercalli, Italian priest, geologist, and volcanologist (b. 1850)
• 1916 – Vasily Surikov, Russian painter (b. 1848)
• 1930 – Arthur Balfour, Scottish-English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1848)
• 1942 – Clinton Hart Merriam, American zoologist, ornithologist, and entomologist (b. 1855)
• 1943 – Frank Nitti, Italian-American gangster (b. 1883)
• 1944 – William Hale Thompson, American politician, 41st Mayor of Chicago (b. 1869)
• 1949 – James Somerville, English admiral and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Somerset (b. 1882)
• 1950 – Edgar Rice Burroughs, American soldier and author (b. 1875)
• 1950 – Norman Haworth, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1883)
• 1958 – Hellmer Hermandsen, Norwegian target shooter (b. 1871)
• 1973 – Lauritz Melchior, Danish-American tenor and actor (b. 1890)
• 1974 – Anne Klein, American fashion designer (b. 1923)
• 1974 – Edward Platt, American actor and producer (b. 1916)
• 1976 – Albert Dieudonné, French actor and author (b. 1889)
• 1976 – Paul Kossoff, English guitarist and songwriter (Free, Black Cat Bones, and Back Street Crawler) (b. 1950)
• 1977 – William L. Laurence, Lithuanian-American journalist (b. 1888)
• 1978 – M. A. Ayyangar, Indian lawyer and politician, 2nd Speaker of the Lok Sabha (b. 1891)
• 1978 – Gaston Julia, Algerian-French mathematician and academic (b. 1893)
• 1979 – Richard Beckinsale, English actor (b. 1947)
• 1981 – Marcel Cadieux, Canadian diplomat, Canadian Ambassador to the United States (b. 1915)
• 1982 – Alan Badel, English actor (b. 1923)
• 1982 – J. B. Kripalani, Indian lawyer and politician (b. 1888)
• 1982 – Randy Rhoads, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (Quiet Riot) (b. 1956)
• 1984 – Garry Winogrand, American photographer (b. 1928)
• 1986 – Sabino Barinaga, Spanish footballer and manager (b. 1922)
• 1987 – Louis de Broglie, French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
• 1988 – Bun Cook, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1904)
• 1989 – Alan Civil, English horn player (b. 1929)
• 1989 – Valérie Quennessen, French actress (b. 1957)
• 1990 – Andrew Wood, American singer-songwriter (Malfunkshun and Mother Love Bone) (b. 1966)
• 1992 – Cesare Danova, Italian-American actor (b. 1926)
• 1993 – Henrik Sandberg, Danish production manager and producer (b. 1915)
• 1995 – Yasuo Yamada, Japanese voice actor (b. 1932)
• 1997 – Willem de Kooning, Dutch-American painter and educator (b. 1904)
• 1997 – Eugène Guillevic, French poet and author (b. 1907)
• 1998 – E. M. S. Namboodiripad, Indian politician, 1st Chief Minister of Kerala (b. 1909)
• 1999 – Tofilau Eti Alesana, Samoan politician, 5th Prime Minister of Samoa (b. 1924)
• 1999 – Jaime Sabines, Mexican poet and author (b. 1926)
• 2000 – Joanne Weaver, American baseball player (b. 1935)
• 2000 – Shafiq-ur-Rahman, Pakistani physician and author (b. 1920)
• 2001 – Charles K. Johnson, American activist (b. 1924)
• 2003 – Émile Genest, Canadian-American actor (b. 1921)
• 2003 – Michael Mathias Prechtl, German soldier and illustrator (b. 1926)
• 2004 – Mitchell Sharp, Canadian economist and politician, 23rd Canadian Minister of Finance (b. 1911)
• 2005 – John DeLorean, American engineer and businessman, founded the DeLorean Motor Company (b. 1925)
• 2007 – Calvert DeForest, American actor (b. 1921)
• 2007 – Luther Ingram, American singer-songwriter (b. 1937)
• 2008 – Raghuvaran, Indian actor (b. 1958)
• 2008 – Arthur C. Clarke, English explorer and author (b. 1917)
• 2008 – Hugo Claus, Belgian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1929)
• 2008 – Paul Scofield, English actor (b. 1922)
• 2009 – Maria Bergson, Austrian-American architect and interior designer (b. 1914)
• 2009 – Ion Dolănescu, Romanian singer and politician (b. 1944)
• 2011 – Kym Bonython, Australian drummer and radio host (b. 1920)
• 2012 – Hanne Borchsenius, Danish actress (b. 1935)
• 2012 – Jim Case, American director and producer (b. 1927)
• 2012 – Gene DeWeese, American author (b. 1934)
• 2012 – Ulu Grosbard, Belgian-American director and producer (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Anton Jude, Sri Lankan actor (b. 1960)
• 2012 – Clancy Lyall, American sergeant (b. 1925)
• 2012 – Hugo Munthe-Kaas, Norwegian intelligence agent (b. 1922)
• 2013 – Khalid Ahmad, Pakistani journalist and poet (b. 1943)
• 2013 – Holger Juul Hansen, Danish actor (b. 1924)
• 2013 – Lester Lewis, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1966)
• 2013 – Fergus Montgomery, English politician (b. 1927)
• 2013 – David Parland, Swedish guitarist (Dark Funeral, War, Necrophobic, and Infernal) (b. 1970)
• 2013 – Irina Petrescu, Romanian actress (b. 1941)
• 2013 – Harry Reems, American porn actor and director (b. 1947)
• 2014 – Robert Butler, American painter (b. 1943)
• 2014 – Ken Forsse, American toy creator and author, created Teddy Ruxpin (b. 1936)
• 2014 – Patrick J. McGovern, American businessman, founded IDG (b. 1937)
• 2014 – Fred Phelps, American lawyer, pastor, and activist, founded the Westboro Baptist Church (b. 1929)
• 2014 – Heather Robertson, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1942)
• 2014 – Robert S. Strauss, American diplomat, United States Ambassador to Russia (b. 1918)
• 2014 – Lawrence Walsh, Canadian-American lawyer, judge, and politician, 4th United States Deputy Attorney General (b. 1912)
• 2014 – Joseph F. Weis, Jr., American lawyer and judge (b. 1923)
• 2015 – Michael Brown, American keyboardist-songwriter (The Left Banke) (b. 1949)
• 2015 – Gus Douglass, American politician, Agriculture Commissioner of West Virginia (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Joseph of Nazareth (Western Christianity)
  • March 19 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Minna Canth's Birthday (Finland)
• Earliest day on which Maundy Thursday can fall, while April 22 is the latest; celebrated on Thursday before Easter. (Christianity)
• St Joseph's Day (Roman Catholicism and Church of England) related observances:
  • Father's Day (Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Honduras, and Bolivia)
  • Las Fallas, celebrated on the week leading to March 19. (Valencia)
  • "Return of the Swallow", annual observance of the swallows' return to Mission San Juan Capistrano in California.
• The Kashubians' Unity Day.
• The first day of Quinquatria, held in honor of Minerva. (Roman Empire)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada