March 15: On This Day

Events, births, deaths, holidays and observances for March 15.

Events 51

474 BC – Roman consul Aulus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years' truce.
200 BC – The Roman Republic under its new consuls Publius Sulpicius Galba and Gaius Aurelius Cotta declares war on Philip V of Macedon, starting the Second Macedonian War.
44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar, the dictator of the Roman Republic, by a group of senators takes place on the Ides of March.
351 – Constantius Gallus is elevated as Caesar and then sent to Antioch to govern the Roman East.
493 – Odoacer, the first barbarian King of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, is slain by Theoderic the Great, king of the Ostrogoths, while the two kings were feasting together.
856 – Michael III, emperor of the Byzantine Empire, overthrows the regency of his mother, empress Theodora (wife of Theophilos) with support of the Byzantine nobility.
897 – Al-Hadi ila'l-Haqq Yahya enters Sa'dah and founds the Zaydi Imamate of Yemen.
933 – After a ten-year truce, German King Henry the Fowler defeats a Hungarian army at the Battle of Riade near the Unstrut river.
1147 – Afonso I of Portugal captures in a surprise attack the city of Santarem from the Almoravids.
1311 – Battle of Halmyros: The Catalan Company defeats Walter V, Count of Brienne to take control of the Duchy of Athens, a Crusader state in Greece.
1412 – Treaty of Lublowa: After the Peace of Thorn, Grand Master Heinrich von Plauen asks Sigismund of Hungary for economic aid. Sigismund agrees to mediate reduction to the third installment, demarcation of the Samogitian border, and other matters with a grand tournament. Hunts and lavish feasts were also organized. Sigismund invited, among others, polish king Wladyslaw Jagiello, Heinrich von Plauen and bosnian king Tvrtko II. There were people from 17 countries and languages - 40.000 nobles and 2000 knights were present from all over Europe, even England.
1564 – Mughal Emperor Akbar abolishes the jizya tax on non-Muslim subjects.
1626 – A dam failure causes the sudden flooding of the mining city of Potosí in present-day Bolivia leading to the death of thousands and the massive release of toxic mercury into the environment.
1672 – King Charles II of England issues the Royal Declaration of Indulgence, granting limited religious freedom to all Christians.
1781 – The British under Charles Cornwallis defeat American forces under Nathanael Greene in the battle of Guilford Court House.
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'état never takes place.
1820 – Maine is admitted as the twenty-third U.S. state.
1823 – Sailor Benjamin Morrell erroneously reports the existence of the island of New South Greenland near Antarctica.
1848 – A revolution breaks out in Hungary, and the Habsburg rulers are compelled to meet the demands of the reform party.
1874 – France and Vietnam sign the Second Treaty of Saigon, further recognizing the full sovereignty of France over Cochinchina.
1875 – Archbishop of New York John McCloskey is named the first cardinal in the United States.
1877 – First ever official cricket test match is played: Australia vs England at the MCG Stadium, in Melbourne, Australia.
1888 – Start of the Anglo-Tibetan War of 1888.
1892 – The Lobau bombing is one of the first attacks of the Ère des attentats (1892-1894).
1894 – Madeleine bombing by Désiré Pauwels during the Ère des attentats.
1907 – The first parliamentary elections of Finland (at the time the Grand Duchy of Finland) are held.
1917 – Tsar Nicholas II of Russia abdicates the Russian throne, ending the 304-year Romanov dynasty.
1918 – Finnish Civil War: The battle of Tampere begins.
1919 – Ukrainian War of Independence: The Kontrrazvedka is established as the counterintelligence division of the Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine.
1919 – The American Legion is founded.
1921 – Talaat Pasha, former Grand Vizir of the Ottoman Empire and chief architect of the Armenian genocide, is assassinated in Berlin by a 23-year-old Armenian, Soghomon Tehlirian.
1922 – After Egypt gains nominal independence from the United Kingdom, Fuad I becomes King of Egypt.
1927 – The first Women's Boat Race between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge takes place on The Isis in Oxford.
1939 – Germany occupies Czechoslovakia.
1939 – Carpatho-Ukraine declares itself an independent republic, but is annexed by Hungary the next day.
1943 – World War II: Third Battle of Kharkiv: The Germans retake the city of Kharkiv from the Soviet armies.
1951 – The Iranian oil industry is nationalized.
1961 – At the 1961 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference, South Africa announces that it will withdraw from the Commonwealth when the South African Constitution of 1961 comes into effect.
1965 – President Lyndon B. Johnson, responding to the Selma crisis, tells the U.S. Congress "We shall overcome" while advocating the Voting Rights Act.
1974 – Fifteen people are killed when Sterling Airways Flight 901, a Sud Aviation Caravelle, catches fire following a landing gear collapse at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran.
1978 – Somalia and Ethiopia sign a truce to end the Ethio-Somali War.
1986 – Collapse of Hotel New World: Thirty-three people die when the Hotel New World in Singapore collapses.
1990 – Mikhail Gorbachev is elected as the first and only President of the Soviet Union.
1991 – Cold War: The Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany comes into effect, granting full sovereignty to the Federal Republic of Germany.
2008 – Stockpiles of obsolete ammunition explode at an ex-military ammunition depot in the village of Gërdec, Albania, killing 26 people.
2011 – Beginning of the Syrian revolution.
2019 – Fifty-one people are killed in the Christchurch mosque shootings, which remains the deadliest terror attack in New Zealand history.
2019 – Beginning of the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests.
2019 – Approximately 1.4 million young people in 123 countries go on strike to protest climate change.
2022 – The 2022 Sri Lankan protests begins amidst Sri Lanka's economic collapse.
2026 – Four members of a Palestinian family are shot dead in Tammun by the Israeli military.

Births 189

1493 – Anne de Montmorency, French captain and diplomat (died 1567)
1516 – Alqas Mirza, Safavid prince (died 1550)
1582 – Daniel Featley, English theologian and controversialist (died 1645)
1591 – Alexandre de Rhodes, French missionary (died 1660)
1638 – Shunzhi Emperor of China (died 1661)
1666 – George Bähr, German architect, designed the Dresden Frauenkirche (died 1738)
1754 – Archibald Menzies, Scottish surgeon and botanist (died 1842)
1767 – Andrew Jackson, American general, judge, and politician, 7th President of the United States (died 1845)
1779 – William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (died 1848)
1787 – Adélaïde Ducluzeau, French painter
1790 – Ludwig Immanuel Magnus, German mathematician and academic (died 1861)
1791 – Charles Knight, English author and publisher (died 1873)
1809 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts, American-Liberian historian and politician, 1st President of Liberia (died 1876)
1813 – John Snow, English physician and epidemiologist (died 1858)
1821 – Johann Josef Loschmidt, Austrian physicist and chemist (died 1895)
1821 – William Milligan, Scottish theologian and author (died 1892)
1824 – Jules Chevalier, French priest, founded the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (died 1907)
1830 – Paul Heyse, German author, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1914)
1830 – Élisée Reclus, French geographer and anarchist (died 1905)
1831 – Saint Daniele Comboni, Italian missionary and saint (died 1881)
1835 – Eduard Strauss, Austrian composer and conductor (died 1916)
1838 – Karl Davydov, Russian cellist, composer, and conductor (died 1889)
1851 – John Sebastian Little, American lawyer and politician, Governor of Arkansas (died 1916)
1845 – Hallie Quinn Brown, African-American educator, writer and activist (died 1949)
1851 – William Mitchell Ramsay, Scottish archaeologist and scholar (died 1939)
1852 – Augusta, Lady Gregory, Anglo-Irish landowner, playwright, and translator (died 1932)
1854 – Emil von Behring, German physiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1917)
1857 – Berta Bock, Romanian composer (died 1945)
1857 – Christian Michelsen, Norwegian businessman and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Norway (died 1925)
1858 – Liberty Hyde Bailey, American botanist and academic, co-founded the American Society for Horticultural Science (died 1954)
1866 – Matthew Charlton, Australian miner and politician (died 1948)
1868 – Grace Chisholm Young, English mathematician (died 1944)
1869 – Stanisław Wojciechowski, Polish scholar and politician, President of the Republic of Poland (died 1953)
1874 – Harold L. Ickes, American journalist and politician, United States Secretary of the Interior (died 1952)
1878 – Reza Shah, Iranian Shah (died 1944)
1879 – Benjamin R. Jacobs, American biochemist (died 1963)
1886 – Gerda Wegener, Danish artist (died 1940)
1897 – Jackson Scholz, American runner (died 1986)
1900 – Gilberto Freyre, Brazilian sociologist, anthropologist, historian and writer (died 1987)
1904 – George Brent, Irish-American actor (died 1979)
1904 – J. Pat O'Malley, English-American actor (died 1985)
1905 – Berthold Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg, German lawyer and judge (died 1944)
1907 – Zarah Leander, Swedish actress and singer (died 1981)
1912 – Louis Paul Boon, Flemish journalist and author (died 1979)
1912 – Lightnin' Hopkins, American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1982)
1913 – Macdonald Carey, American actor (died 1994)
1913 – Jack Fairman, English race car driver (died 2002)
1916 – Frank Coghlan, Jr., American actor and pilot (died 2009)
1916 – Fadil Hoxha, Kosovar commander and politician, President of Kosovo (died 2001)
1916 – Harry James, American trumpet player, bandleader, and actor (died 1983)
1918 – Richard Ellmann, American author and critic (died 1987)
1918 – Punch Imlach, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (died 1987)
1919 – Lawrence Tierney, American actor (died 2002)
1920 – E. Donnall Thomas, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2012)
1921 – Madelyn Pugh, American television writer and producer (died 2011)
1924 – Khyber Khan, Pakistani pilot and former Deputy Chief of Air Staff of the PAF (died 2007)
1926 – Ben Johnston, American composer and academic (died 2019)
1926 – Norm Van Brocklin, American football player and coach (died 1983)
1927 – Christian Marquand, French actor, director, and screenwriter (died 2000)
1927 – Carl Smith, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2010)
1928 – Bob Wilber, American clarinetist and saxophonist (died 2019)
1930 – Zhores Alferov, Belarusian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2019)
1932 – Alan Bean, American astronaut and pilot (died 2018)
1932 – Arif Mardin, Turkish-American record producer (died 2006)
1933 – Ruth Bader Ginsburg, American lawyer and judge (died 2020)
1933 – Philippe de Broca, French actor, director, and screenwriter (died 2004)
1934 – Kanshi Ram, Indian politician (died 2006)
1935 – Judd Hirsch, American actor
1935 – Jimmy Swaggart, American pastor and television host (died 2025)
1936 – Howard Greenfield, American songwriter (died 1986)
1937 – Valentin Rasputin, Russian environmentalist and author (died 2015)
1939 – Ted Kaufman, American politician
1939 – Robert Nye, English author, poet, and playwright (died 2016)
1939 – Julie Tullis, English mountaineer (died 1986)
1940 – Frank Dobson, English politician, Secretary of State for Health (died 2019)
1940 – Phil Lesh, American bassist (died 2024)
1941 – Mike Love, American singer-songwriter and musician
1941 – Song Zhenzhong, child internee and revolutionary martyr (died 1949)
1943 – David Cronenberg, Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter
1943 – Lynda La Plante, English actress, screenwriter, and author
1943 – Michael Scott-Joynt, English bishop (died 2014)
1943 – Sly Stone, American musician and record producer (died 2025)
1944 – Chi Cheng, Taiwanese runner
1944 – Jacques Doillon, French director and screenwriter
1944 – Francis Mankiewicz, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1993)
1946 – Bobby Bonds, American baseball player and coach (died 2003)
1946 – John Dempsey, English-Irish footballer and manager (died 2024)
1947 – Ry Cooder, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1948 – Kate Bornstein, American author and activist
1948 – Sérgio Vieira de Mello, Brazilian diplomat (died 2003)
1951 – David Alton, Baron Alton of Liverpool, English politician
1953 – Frances Conroy, American actress
1954 – Isobel Buchanan, Scottish soprano and actress
1954 – Henry Marsh, American runner and businessman
1954 – Craig Wasson, American actor
1955 – Mickey Hatcher, American baseball player and coach
1955 – Mohsin Khan, Pakistani cricketer
1955 – Dee Snider, American singer-songwriter
1957 – Joaquim de Almeida, Portuguese-American actor
1957 – Park Overall, American actress and activist
1957 – Steve Witkoff, American real estate investor, former lawyer, and diplomat
1959 – Harold Baines, American baseball player
1959 – Renny Harlin, Finnish director and producer
1959 – Fabio Lanzoni, Italian-American model and actor
1959 – Ben Okri, Nigerian poet and author
1959 – Eliot Teltscher, American tennis player
1960 – Mike Pagliarulo, American baseball player
1961 – Terry Cummings, American basketball player
1962 – Terence Trent D'Arby, American singer-songwriter
1963 – Bret Michaels, American singer-songwriter, musician, and television personality
1964 – Rockwell, American singer-songwriter and musician
1964 – Marco Van Hees, Belgian politician
1965 – Sunetra Gupta, Indian epidemiologist, author, and academic
1966 – Chris Bruno, American actor
1967 – Naoko Takeuchi, Japanese manga artist and creator of Sailor Moon
1968 – Kahimi Karie, Japanese singer
1968 – Mark McGrath, American singer-songwriter
1968 – Sabrina Salerno, Italian singer-songwriter
1969 – Gianluca Festa, Italian footballer
1969 – Kim Raver, American actress
1969 – Yutaka Take, Japanese jockey
1969 – Timo Kotipelto, Finnish musician and lead singer of the power metal band Stratovarius
1970 – Derek Parra, American speed skater
1971 – Joanne Wise, English long jumper
1972 – Mark Hoppus, American singer-songwriter and musician
1972 – Holger Stromberg, German chef
1972 – Mike Tomlin, American football player and coach
1974 – Robert Fick, American baseball player
1975 – Eva Longoria, American actress
1975 – Darcy Tucker, Canadian ice hockey player
1975 – will.i.am, American rapper, producer, and actor
1976 – Cara Pifko, Canadian actress
1977 – Joe Hahn, American musician, DJ, director, and visual artist
1977 – Brian Tee, Japanese-American actor
1977 – Sandeep Unnikrishnan, Indian military officer (died 2008)
1978 – Takeru Kobayashi, Japanese competitive eater
1979 – Kyle Mills, New Zealand cricketer
1979 – Kevin Youkilis, American baseball player
1980 – Freddie Bynum, American baseball player
1981 – Young Buck, American rapper
1981 – Mikael Forssell, German-Finnish footballer
1981 – Jens Salumäe, Estonian skier
1982 – Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich, Kenyan runner
1983 – Umut Bulut, Turkish footballer
1983 – Ben Hilfenhaus, Australian cricketer
1983 – Kostas Kaimakoglou, Greek basketball player
1983 – Golda Marcus, Salvadoran swimmer
1983 – Daryl Murphy, Irish footballer
1983 – Yo Yo Honey Singh, Indian rapper, producer, and actor
1984 – Badradine Belloumou, French-Algerian footballer
1984 – Olivier Jean, Canadian speed skater
1984 – Kostas Vasileiadis, Greek basketball player
1985 – Eva Amurri, American actress
1985 – Jon Jay, American baseball player and coach
1985 – Kellan Lutz, American actor and model
1986 – Jai Courtney, Australian actor
1986 – Jannik Hansen, Danish ice hockey player
1987 – Eric Decker, American football player
1988 – Lil Dicky, American rapper, comedian, and actor
1988 – Éver Guzmán, Mexican footballer
1988 – James Reimer, Canadian ice hockey player
1989 – Sam Baldock, English footballer
1989 – Gil Roberts, American sprinter
1989 – Sandro, Brazilian footballer
1989 – Adrien Silva, Portuguese footballer
1989 – Caitlin Wachs, American actress
1990 – Nick Ahmed, American baseball player
1990 – Tavon Austin, American football player
1990 – JD McDonagh, Irish professional wrestler
1991 – Xavier Henry, American basketball player
1991 – Trayce Thompson, American baseball player
1992 – Devonta Freeman, American football player
1993 – Alia Bhatt, British actress
1993 – Michael Fulmer, American baseball player
1993 – Taylor Heinicke, American football player
1993 – Aleksandra Krunić, Serbian tennis player
1993 – Paul Pogba, French footballer
1993 – Mark Scheifele, Canadian ice hockey player
1994 – Matt Gay, American football player
1994 – Scott Seiss, American comedian
1995 – Jabari Parker, American basketball player
1996 – Maxwell Jacob Friedman, American professional wrestler
1996 – Seonaid McIntosh, Scottish sports shooter
1996 – Jinjin, South Korean singer and actor
2000 – Kristian Kostov, Russian-Bulgarian singer-songwriter
2001 – Ellie Leach, English actress
2003 – Quinn Ewers, American football player
2004 – Isaiah Bond, American football player
2005 – Rodri Mendoza, Spanish footballer

Deaths 86

44 BC – Julius Caesar, Roman general and statesman (born 100 BC)
220 – Cao Cao, Chinese general, warlord and statesman
493 – Odoacer, first king of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire (born 433)
963 – Romanos II, Byzantine emperor
990 – Siegfried I (the Older), German nobleman
1124 – Ernulf, Bishop of Rochester
1190 – Isabella of Hainault, queen of Philip II of France (born 1170)
1311 – Walter V, Count of Brienne
1536 – Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha, Ottoman politician, Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (born 1493)
1575 – Annibale Padovano, Italian organist and composer (born 1527)
1673 – Salvator Rosa, Italian painter and poet (born 1615)
1711 – Eusebio Kino, Italian priest and missionary (born 1645)
1820 – Clement Mary Hofbauer, Austrian priest and saint (born 1751)
1842 – Luigi Cherubini, Italian composer and theorist (born 1760)
1848 – Johan Jakob Nervander, Finnish poet, physicist and meteorologist (born 1805)
1891 – Joseph Bazalgette, English engineer and academic (born 1819)
1897 – James Joseph Sylvester, English mathematician and academic (born 1814)
1898 – Henry Bessemer, English engineer and businessman (born 1813)
1921 – Talaat Pasha, Ottoman politician, Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (born 1874)
1925 – Sam Dreben, American soldier and mercenary (born 1878)
1927 – Hector Rason, English-Australian politician, 7th Premier of Western Australia (born 1858)
1937 – H. P. Lovecraft, American short story writer, editor, and novelist (born 1890)
1941 – Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian-German painter (born 1864)
1942 – Rachel Field, American author and poet (born 1894)
1948 – Imanuel Lauster, German engineer (born 1873)
1959 – Lester Young, American saxophonist and clarinet player (born 1909)
1962 – Arthur Compton, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1892)
1966 – Abe Saperstein, American basketball player and coach (born 1902)
1969 – Miles Malleson, English actor and screenwriter (born 1888)
1970 – Tarjei Vesaas, Norwegian author and poet (born 1897)
1975 – Aristotle Onassis, Greek-Argentinian businessman (born 1906)
1977 – Hubert Aquin, Canadian author and activist (born 1929)
1977 – Antonino Rocca, Italian-American wrestler and referee (born 1921)
1981 – René Clair, French director and screenwriter (born 1898)
1981 – Philip Testa, Italian-American mobster (born 1924)
1983 – Rebecca West, English author and critic (born 1892)
1985 – Alan A. Freeman, English record producer (born 1920)
1988 – Dmitri Polyakov, Ukrainian general and spy (born 1921)
1990 – Farzad Bazoft, Iranian-English journalist (born 1958)
1990 – Tom Harmon, American football player and sportscaster (born 1919)
1991 – Bud Freeman, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (born 1906)
1997 – Gail Davis, American actress (born 1925)
1997 – Victor Vasarely, Hungarian-French painter (born 1906)
1998 – Benjamin Spock, American pediatrician and author (born 1903)
2001 – Ann Sothern, American actress and singer (born 1909)
2003 – Thora Hird, English actress (born 1911)
2003 – Paul Stojanovich, American television producer, created World's Wildest Police Videos (born 1955)
2004 – Philippe Lemaire, French actor (born 1927)
2004 – Bill Pickering, New Zealand-American scientist and engineer (born 1910)
2004 – John Pople, English-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1925)
2005 – Otar Korkia, Georgian basketball player (born 1923)
2006 – Georgios Rallis, Greek lieutenant and politician, Prime Minister of Greece (born 1918)
2006 – Red Storey, Canadian football player and referee (born 1918)
2007 – Charles Harrelson, American murderer (born 1938)
2007 – Stuart Rosenberg, American director and producer (born 1927)
2008 – Mikey Dread, Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer (born 1954)
2008 – G. David Low, American astronaut and engineer (born 1956)
2008 – Sarla Thakral, First Indian woman to earn a pilot's license. (born 1914)
2009 – Ron Silver, American actor, director, and producer (born 1946)
2010 – Kazim al-Samawi, Iraqi poet (born 1925)
2011 – Nate Dogg, American rapper (born 1969)
2011 – Smiley Culture, English singer and DJ (born 1963)
2012 – Mervyn Davies, Welsh rugby player (born 1946)
2012 – Dave Philley, American baseball player and manager (born 1920)
2013 – Booth Gardner, American businessman and politician, Governor of Washington (born 1936)
2013 – Terry Lightfoot, English clarinet player (born 1935)
2013 – Leverne McDonnell, Australian actress (born 1963)
2013 – Peter Worsley, English sociologist (born 1924)
2014 – Scott Asheton, American drummer (born 1949)
2014 – David Brenner, American comedian, actor, and author (born 1936)
2014 – Bo Callaway, American soldier and politician, United States Secretary of the Army (born 1927)
2014 – Clarissa Dickson Wright, English chef, author, and television personality (born 1947)
2015 – Collins Chabane, South African politician (born 1960)
2015 – Robert Clatworthy, English sculptor and educator (born 1928)
2015 – Sally Forrest, American actress and dancer (born 1928)
2015 – Curtis Gans, American political scientist and author (born 1937)
2015 – Mike Porcaro, American bass player (born 1955)
2016 – Sylvia Anderson, English voice actress and television and film producer (born 1927)
2016 – Asa Briggs, English historian and academic (born 1921)
2016 – Seru Rabeni, Fijian rugby player (born 1978)
2019 – Larry DiTillio, American film and TV series writer (born 1948)
2020 – Vittorio Gregotti, Italian architect (born 1927)
2022 – Barbara Maier Gustern, American vocal coach and singer (born 1935)
2025 – Wings Hauser, American actor (born 1947)
2025 – Nita Lowey, American politician (born 1937)
2025 – Rajnikumar Pandya, Indian writer (born 1938)

Holidays and observances 17

Ancient Roman religious observance: Ides of March
Ides of March
Christian feast day: Aristobulus of Britannia (Roman Catholic Church) Artémides Zatti Clement Mary Hofbauer Leocritia Saint Longinus Louise de Marillac Blessed William Hart March 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Aristobulus of Britannia (Roman Catholic Church)
Artémides Zatti
Clement Mary Hofbauer
Leocritia
Saint Longinus
Louise de Marillac
Blessed William Hart
March 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Constitution Day (Belarus)
International Day To Combat Islamophobia
Joseph Jenkins Roberts' Birthday (Liberia)
National Day, celebrating the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 (Hungary)
World Consumer Rights Day (International)
Youth Day (Palau)