March 7: On This Day

Events, births, deaths, holidays and observances for March 7.

Events 30

161 – Marcus Aurelius and L. Commodus (who changes his name to Lucius Verus) become joint emperors of Rome on the death of Antoninus Pius.
681 – The Third Council of Constantinople deposes patriarch Macarius I of Antioch.
1138 – Konrad III von Hohenstaufen is elected king of Germany at Coblenz in the presence of the papal legate Theodwin.
1277 – The University of Paris issues the last in a series of condemnations of various philosophical and theological theses.
1573 – A peace treaty is signed between the Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Venice, ending the Ottoman–Venetian War and leaving Cyprus in Ottoman hands.
1799 – Napoleon Bonaparte captures Jaffa in Palestine and his troops proceed to kill more than 2,000 Albanian captives.
1814 – Emperor Napoleon I of France wins the Battle of Craonne.
1826 – Shrigley abduction: 15-year old Ellen Turner is abducted by Edward Gibbon Wakefield, a future figure in the establishment of colonies in South Australia and New Zealand.
1850 – Senator Daniel Webster gives his "Seventh of March" speech endorsing the Compromise of 1850 in order to prevent a possible civil war.
1876 – Alexander Graham Bell is granted a patent for an invention he calls the "telephone".
1902 – Second Boer War: Boers, led by Koos de la Rey, defeat the British at the Battle of Tweebosch.
1921 – The short-lived socialist Labin Republic is proclaimed.
1931 – The Parliament House of Finland is officially inaugurated in Helsinki, Finland.
1941 – World War II: Günther Prien and the crew of German submarine U-47, one of the most successful U-boats of World War II, disappear without a trace.
1945 – World War II: The American 9th Armored Division unexpectedly captures an intact bridge over the Rhine.
1951 – Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307 crashes in Lynnhurst, Minneapolis, killing 15 people.
1951 – Korean War: Operation Ripper: United Nations troops led by General Matthew Ridgway begin an assault against Chinese forces.
1951 – Iranian prime minister Ali Razmara is assassinated by Khalil Tahmasebi, a member of the Islamic fundamentalist Fada'iyan-e Islam, outside a mosque in Tehran.
1965 – Bloody Sunday: A group of 600 civil rights marchers are brutally attacked by state and local police in Selma, Alabama.
1965 – Aeroflot Flight 542 crashes in the Yermakovsky District, killing all 31 aboard.
1971 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, political leader of then East Pakistan (present day-Bangladesh), delivers his historic 7th March speech in the Racecourse Field (Now Suhrawardy Udyan) in Dhaka.
1986 – Challenger Disaster: Divers from the USS Preserver locate the crew cabin of Challenger on the ocean floor.
1989 – Iran and the United Kingdom break diplomatic relations after a fight over Salman Rushdie and his controversial novel, The Satanic Verses.
2006 – The terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba coordinates a series of bombings in Varanasi, India.
2007 – Reform of the House of Lords: The British House of Commons votes to make the upper chamber, the House of Lords, 100% elected.
2007 – Garuda Indonesia Flight 200 crashes at Adisutjipto International Airport in the Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, killing 21 people.
2009 – Massereene Barracks shooting: The Real Irish Republican Army kills two British soldiers and injures two other soldiers and two civilians at Massereene Barracks, the first British military deaths in Northern Ireland since the end of The Troubles.
2021 – At least 108 die and 615 are injured in the 2021 Bata explosions in Bata, Equatorial Guinea.
2024 – Sweden officially joins NATO, becoming its 32nd member.
2024 – Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Halyna Hutchins on the set of the movie Rust, the first time someone has been found guilty for causing a death on a movie set.

Births 145

189 – Publius Septimius Geta, Roman emperor (died 211)
1556 – Guillaume du Vair, French lawyer and author (died 1621)
1671 – Rob Roy MacGregor, Scottish outlaw (died 1734)
1678 – Filippo Juvarra, Italian architect, designed the Basilica of Superga (died 1736)
1693 – Clement XIII, pope of the Catholic Church (died 1769)
1715 – Ewald Christian von Kleist, German soldier and poet (died 1759)
1730 – Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, French soldier and politician (died 1807)
1765 – Nicéphore Niépce, French inventor, invented photography (died 1833)
1785 – Alessandro Manzoni, Italian author and poet (died 1873)
1792 – John Herschel, English mathematician and astronomer (died 1871)
1811 – Increase A. Lapham, American scientist (died 1875)
1837 – Henry Draper, American physician and astronomer (died 1882)
1839 – Ludwig Mond, German-born chemist and British industrialist who discovered the metal carbonyls (died 1909)
1841 – William Rockhill Nelson, American businessman and publisher, founded The Kansas City Star (died 1915)
1843 – Marriott Henry Brosius, American senator (died 1901)
1849 – Luther Burbank, American botanist (died 1926)
1850 – Champ Clark, American lawyer and politician, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (died 1921)
1850 – Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, Austrian-Czech politician, 1st President of Czechoslovakia (died 1937)
1857 – Julius Wagner-Jauregg, Austrian physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1940)
1858 – Cecilie Thoresen Krog, Norwegian women's rights pioneer (died 1911)
1872 – Piet Mondrian, Dutch-American painter (died 1944)
1875 – Maurice Ravel, French pianist, composer, and conductor (died 1937)
1885 – Milton Avery, American painter (died 1965)
1885 – John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey, English admiral (died 1971)
1886 – Virginia Pearson, American actress (died 1958)
1886 – G. I. Taylor, English mathematician and physicist (died 1975)
1886 – Wilson Dallam Wallis, American anthropologist (died 1970)
1888 – William L. Laurence, Lithuanian-American journalist (died 1977)
1895 – Dorothy de Rothschild, English philanthropist and activist (died 1988)
1902 – Heinz Rühmann, German actor (died 1994)
1903 – Maud Lewis, Canadian folk artist (died 1970)
1904 – Ivar Ballangrud, Norwegian speed skater (died 1969)
1904 – Reinhard Heydrich, German SS officer and a principle architect of the Holocaust (died 1942)
1904 – Kurt Weitzmann, German-American historian and author (died 1993)
1908 – Anna Magnani, Italian actress (died 1973)
1915 – Jacques Chaban-Delmas, French general and politician, Prime Minister of France (died 2000)
1917 – Janet Collins, American ballerina and choreographer (died 2003)
1917 – Betty Holberton, American engineer and programmer (died 2001)
1922 – Olga Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician and academic (died 2004)
1922 – Peter Murphy, English footballer (died 1975)
1922 – Andy Phillip, American basketball player and coach (died 2001)
1925 – Richard Vernon, British actor (died 1997)
1927 – James Broderick, American actor and director (died 1982)
1929 – Dan Jacobson, South African-English author and critic (died 2014)
1930 – Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon, English photographer and politician (died 2017)
1930 – Robert Trotter, Scottish actor and photographer (died 2013)
1933 – Jackie Blanchflower, Northern Irish footballer and accountant (died 1998)
1933 – Ed Bouchee, American baseball player (died 2013)
1934 – Nari Contractor, Indian cricketer
1934 – Gray Morrow, American illustrator and comic book artist (died 2002)
1934 – Willard Scott, American television personality and actor (died 2021)
1936 – Georges Perec, French author (died 1982)
1938 – David Baltimore, American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2025)
1938 – Janet Guthrie, American race car driver
1940 – Daniel J. Travanti, American actor
1942 – Michael Eisner, American businessman
1942 – Tammy Faye Messner, American evangelist, television personality, and talk show host (died 2007)
1943 – Billy MacMillan, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (died 2023)
1943 – Chris White, English singer-songwriter and bass player
1944 – Ranulph Fiennes, English soldier and explorer
1944 – Townes Van Zandt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1997)
1945 – Bob Herbert, American journalist
1945 – Arthur Lee, American singer-songwriter and musician (died 2006)
1945 – Elizabeth Moon, American author
1946 – Matthew Fisher, English musician, songwriter, and producer
1946 – John Heard, American actor and producer (died 2017)
1946 – Peter Wolf, American singer-songwriter and musician
1947 – Helen Eadie, Scottish politician (died 2013)
1950 – Billy Joe DuPree, American football player
1950 – Franco Harris, American football player and businessman (died 2022)
1950 – J. R. Richard, American baseball player and minister (died 2021)
1952 – William Boyd, British author and screenwriter
1952 – Ernie Isley, American guitarist and songwriter
1952 – Viv Richards, Antiguan cricketer
1952 – Lynn Swann, American football player, sportscaster, and politician
1954 – Eva Brunne, Swedish bishop
1956 – Bryan Cranston, American actor, director, and producer
1956 – Andrea Levy, English author (died 2019)
1957 – Robert Harris, English journalist and author
1957 – Mark Richards, Australian surfer
1958 – Rick Bass, American author and environmentalist
1958 – Rik Mayall, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter (died 2014)
1958 – Merv Neagle, Australian footballer and coach (died 2012)
1959 – Tom Lehman, American golfer
1959 – Donna Murphy, American actress and singer
1959 – Nick Searcy, American actor
1960 – Joe Carter, American baseball player
1960 – Ivan Lendl, Czech tennis player and coach
1960 – Jim Spivey, American runner and coach
1961 – Mary Beth Evans, American actress
1962 – Taylor Dayne, American singer-songwriter and actress
1963 – Mike Eagles, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1963 – E. L. James, English author
1964 – Bret Easton Ellis, American author and screenwriter
1964 – Wanda Sykes, American comedian, actress, and screenwriter
1965 – Jesper Parnevik, Swedish golfer
1966 – Terry Carkner, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1966 – Jeff Feagles, American football player
1967 – Zheng Haixia, Chinese basketball player and coach
1967 – Ruthie Henshall, English actress, singer, and dancer
1968 – Jeff Kent, American baseball player
1969 – Brian Jamieson
1970 – Rachel Weisz, English actress
1971 – Tal Banin, Israeli footballer and manager
1971 – Peter Sarsgaard, American actor
1971 – Matthew Vaughn, English director and producer
1972 – Craig Polla-Mounter, Australian rugby league player
1973 – Jason Bright, Australian race car driver
1973 – Jay Duplass, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1973 – Sébastien Izambard, French tenor and producer
1974 – Jenna Fischer, American actress
1974 – Tobias Menzies, English actor
1974 – Facundo Sava, Argentine footballer and manager
1975 – Audrey Marie Anderson, American actress and model
1975 – T. J. Thyne, American actor
1977 – Paul Cattermole, English singer and actor (died 2023)
1977 – Ronan O'Gara, Irish rugby player and coach
1979 – Rodrigo Braña, Argentine footballer
1980 – Eric Godard, Canadian ice hockey player
1980 – Laura Prepon, American actress
1983 – Manucho, Angolan footballer
1984 – Steve Burtt Jr., American-Ukrainian basketball player
1984 – Mathieu Flamini, French footballer
1984 – Jacob Lillyman, Australian rugby league player
1984 – Brandon T. Jackson, American actor and comedian
1985 – Cameron Prosser, Australian swimmer
1986 – Ryan Ciminelli, American bowler
1987 – Niclas Bergfors, Swedish ice hockey player
1990 – Jeff Withey, American basketball player
1991 – Ian Clark, American basketball player
1992 – Bel Powley, English actress
1994 – Chase Kalisz, American swimmer
1994 – Jake Layman, American basketball player
1994 – Jordan Pickford, English footballer
1995 – Jerome Binnom-Williams, English footballer
1995 – Aboubakar Kamara, French footballer
1995 – Haley Lu Richardson, American actress
1996 – Liam Donnelly, Northern Irish footballer
1996 – Pablo López, Venezuelan baseball player
1997 – Taher Mohamed, Egyptian footballer
1997 – Dylan Strome, Canadian ice hockey player
1998 – Amanda Gorman, American poet and activist
2000 – Rasmus Sandin, Swedish ice hockey player
2000 – Sebastian Schwaighofer, Austrian politician
2007 – Kiyan Anthony, American basketball player

Deaths 64

161 – Antoninus Pius, Roman emperor (born 86)
413 – Heraclianus, Roman politician and failed usurper
851 – Nominoe, Duke of Brittany
1226 – William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, English commander
1274 – Saint Thomas Aquinas, Italian priest and philosopher (born 1225)
1407 – Francesco I Gonzaga, ruler of Mantua
1578 – Margaret Douglas, English noblewoman, daughter of Margaret Tudor and Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (born 1515)
1625 – Johann Bayer, German lawyer and cartographer (born 1572)
1724 – Pope Innocent XIII (born 1655)
1767 – Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, Canadian politician, Colonial Governor of Louisiana (born 1680)
1778 – Charles De Geer, Swedish entomologist and archaeologist (born 1720)
1809 – Jean-Pierre Blanchard, French inventor, best known as a pioneer in balloon flight (born 1753)
1810 – Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood, English admiral (born 1748)
1838 – Robert Townsend, American spy (born 1753)
1897 – Harriet Ann Jacobs, African American Abolitionist and author (born 1813)
1913 – Pauline Johnson, Canadian poet and author (born 1861)
1920 – Jaan Poska, Estonian lawyer and politician, Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs (born 1866)
1928 – Robert Abbe, American surgeon and radiologist (born 1851)
1931 – Akseli Gallen-Kallela, Finnish artist (born 1865)
1932 – Aristide Briand, French journalist and politician, Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1862)
1935 – Baby Doe Tabor, American pioneer (born 1854)
1949 – Bradbury Robinson, American football player, physician, and politician (born 1884)
1954 – Otto Diels, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1876)
1957 – Wyndham Lewis, English painter and critic (born 1882)
1967 – Alice B. Toklas, American writer (born 1877)
1971 – Richard Montague, American mathematician and philosopher (born 1930)
1971 – Stevie Smith, English poet and novelist (born 1902)
1973 – Lalo Ríos, Mexican actor (born 1927)
1975 – Mikhail Bakhtin, Russian philosopher and critic (born 1895)
1976 – Wright Patman, American politician (born 1893)
1981 – Muhammad Zaki Abd al-Qadir, Egyptian journalist and writer (born 1906)
1982 – Ida Barney, American astronomer (born 1886)
1983 – Igor Markevitch, Ukrainian conductor and composer (born 1912)
1986 – Jacob K. Javits, American colonel and politician, New York State Attorney General (born 1904)
1987 – Karl Leichter, Estonian musicologist and academic (born 1902)
1988 – Divine, American drag queen and film actor (born 1945)
1988 – Ülo Õun, Estonian sculptor (born 1940)
1991 – Cool Papa Bell, American baseball player (born 1903)
1993 – Tony Harris, South African cricketer (born 1916)
1993 – J. Merrill Knapp, American musicologist (born 1914)
1993 – Martti Larni, Finnish writer (born 1909)
1993 – Eleanor Sanger, American television producer (born 1929)
1993 – Josef Steindl, Austrian economist (born 1912)
1997 – Edward Mills Purcell, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1912)
1999 – Sidney Gottlieb, American chemist and theorist (born 1918)
1999 – Stanley Kubrick, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1928)
2000 – Pee Wee King, American singer-songwriter (born 1914)
2005 – John Box, English production designer and art director (born 1920)
2005 – Debra Hill, American screenwriter and producer (born 1950)
2006 – Gordon Parks, American photographer, director, and composer (born 1912)
2013 – Peter Banks, English guitarist and songwriter (born 1947)
2013 – Damiano Damiani, Italian director and screenwriter (born 1922)
2013 – Claude King, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1923)
2014 – Ned O'Gorman, American poet and educator (born 1929)
2015 – G. Karthikeyan, Indian lawyer and politician (born 1949)
2015 – F. Ray Keyser, Jr., American lawyer and politician, Governor of Vermont (born 1927)
2015 – Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Japanese author and illustrator (born 1935)
2016 – Adrian Hardiman, Irish lawyer and judge (born 1951)
2016 – Leonard Berney, Bergen-Belsen concentration camp liberator (born 1920)
2017 – Lynne Stewart, American attorney and activist (born 1939)
2019 – Dick Beyer, American professional wrestler (born 1930)
2024 – Steve Lawrence, American actor and singer (born 1935)
2025 – D'Wayne Wiggins, American musical artist (born 1961)
2026 – Jamie Dunn, Australian actor, radio and television host (born 1950)

Holidays and observances 8

Christian feast day: Blessed Leonid Feodorov (Russian Greek Catholic Church) María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa Perpetua and Felicity Siméon-François Berneux (part of The Korean Martyrs) Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart March 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Blessed Leonid Feodorov (Russian Greek Catholic Church)
María Antonia de Paz y Figueroa
Perpetua and Felicity
Siméon-François Berneux (part of The Korean Martyrs)
Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart
March 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Maritime Day in Slovenia