March, earls of. For English nobles so entitled use Mortimer.

March, Fredric, 1897-1975, American actor, b. Racine, Wis., as Frederick McIntyre Bickel. Equally distinguished on stage and screen, he won Academy Awards for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932) and The Best Years of Our Lives (1947). Originally cast as the dashing hero because of his good looks, March's later roles took advantage of his powerful screen presence and his ability to express the weaknesses in seemingly self-assured professional men. His films include Anna Karenina (1935), Death of a Salesman (1952), Inherit the Wind (1960), and The Iceman Cometh (1973). He appeared on Broadway in O'Neill's Long Day's Journey into Night (1956) and in Gideon (1961).

March: see Morava, river.

March: see month.

march, in music, composition intended to accompany marching. The only constant characteristics of a march are duple meter and a fairly simple rhythmic design. In mood, marches range from the moving death march in Wagner's Götterdämmerung to the brisk military marches of John Philip Sousa and the martial hymns of the late 19th cent. Examples of the varied use of the march can be found in Beethoven's Eroica Symphony, in the marches militaires of Schubert, in the marche funèbre in Chopin's Sonata in B flat minor, and in the Dead March in Handel's Saul.

Musical form having an even metre with strongly accented beats, originally intended to facilitate military marching. Development of the European march may have been stimulated by the Ottoman invasions of the 14th–16th centuries. Marches were not notated until the late 16th century; until then, time was generally kept by percussion alone, often with improvised fife embellishment. With the extensive development of brass instruments, especially in the 19th century, marches became widely popular and were often elaborately orchestrated. Composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Gustav Mahler wrote marches, often incorporating them into their operas, sonatas, or symphonies. The later popularity of John Philip Sousa's band marches was unmatched.

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orig. Frederick Ernest McIntyre Bickel

(born Aug. 31, 1897, Racine, Wis., U.S.—died April 14, 1975, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. actor. He began acting on Broadway, and his parody of John Barrymore in a touring production of The Royal Family earned him a five-year contract with Paramount Pictures; he reprised the role in the reh1d screen adaptation, The Royal Family of Broadway (1930). He subsequently appeared in more than 65 films, including Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932, Academy Award), A Star Is Born (1937), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946, Academy Award), Death of a Salesman (1951), and Inherit the Wind (1960). He starred on the stage, often with his wife, Florence Eldridge, in plays such as The Skin of Our Teeth (1942) and Long Day's Journey into Night (1956, Tony Award). A versatile stage and film actor, his cerebral approach occasionally resulted in stolid, emotionally unconvincing performances, but it more often produced compelling, complex characterizations.

Learn more about March, Frederic with a free trial on Britannica.com.

orig. Frederick Ernest McIntyre Bickel

(born Aug. 31, 1897, Racine, Wis., U.S.—died April 14, 1975, Los Angeles, Calif.) U.S. actor. He began acting on Broadway, and his parody of John Barrymore in a touring production of The Royal Family earned him a five-year contract with Paramount Pictures; he reprised the role in the reh1d screen adaptation, The Royal Family of Broadway (1930). He subsequently appeared in more than 65 films, including Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1932, Academy Award), A Star Is Born (1937), The Best Years of Our Lives (1946, Academy Award), Death of a Salesman (1951), and Inherit the Wind (1960). He starred on the stage, often with his wife, Florence Eldridge, in plays such as The Skin of Our Teeth (1942) and Long Day's Journey into Night (1956, Tony Award). A versatile stage and film actor, his cerebral approach occasionally resulted in stolid, emotionally unconvincing performances, but it more often produced compelling, complex characterizations.

Learn more about March, Frederic with a free trial on Britannica.com.

March is the third month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven months with a length of 31 days.

March in the Southern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent of September in the Northern Hemisphere.

The name of March comes from ancient Rome, when March was the first month of the year and called Martius after Mars, the Roman god of war. In Rome, where the climate is Mediterranean, March is the first month of spring, a logical point for the beginning of the year as well as the start of the military campaign season. The numbered year began on March 1 in Russia until the end of the fifteenth century. Great Britain and her colonies continued to use March 25 until 1752, the same year they finally adopted the Gregorian calendar. Many other cultures and religions still celebrate the beginning of the New Year in March.

In Finnish, the month is called maaliskuu, which originates from maallinen kuu meaning earthy month. This is because in maaliskuu earth started to show from under the snow. Historical names for March include Saxon: Lenctmonat, named for the equinox and eventual lengthening of days and the eventual namesake of Lent. Saxons also called March Rhed-monat or Hreth-monath (for their goddess Rhedam/Hreth), and Angles called it Hyld-monath

Events in March

• American Red Cross Month
• Fire Prevention month (The Philippines)
• Women's History Month (United States)
• Mardi Gras (February 3 to March 9 in regular years or February 4 to March 9 in leap years)
• Ash Wednesday (February 4 to March 10 in regular years; February 5 to March 10 in leap years)
• The wearing of a Martenitsa in Bulgaria and Mărţişor in Romania (March 1)
• Saint David's Day (March 1)
• National Reading Day (United States) (March 2)
• Texas Independence Day (March 2. State holiday in Texas, USA.
• World Maths Day The 1st Wednesday in March
• International Women's Day - March 8
• Pluto Planet Day (New Mexico)- March 13 (discussed here)
• White Day(Asia) (March 14)
• Pi Day (March 14)
• The Ides of March, the anniversary of the assassination of Julius Caesar by Brutus, Cassius, Casca, and others (March 15)
• Remembering to the 1848's Hungarian Revolution (March 15)
• Saint Patrick's Day (March 17)
• Saint Joseph's Day (March 19)
• The equinox named the vernal or spring equinox in the northern hemisphere and the autumnal equinox in the southern hemisphere occurs on dates varying from 19 March to 21 March (in UTC).
• Nowruz: New Year's Day in Iran and several other countries. A holiday in Turkey, and Central Asian countries as well.
• Good Friday (some Friday between March 20 to April 23, being the last Friday before Easter)
• World Water Day (March 22)
• Easter (some Sunday between March 22 to April 25)
• Pakistan Day - March 23
• Day of Polish-Hungarian Friendship (March 23)
• Annunciation (March 25)
• Hanami, the traditional Japanese custom of enjoying the beauty of flowers starts in late March.
• Prince Kūhiō Day - March 26. State holiday in the State of Hawaii, US.
• Independence Day Of Bangladesh - March 26, 1971

March symbols

• March's birthstone is Aquamarine.
• Its birth flower is the Daffodil.

External links

• Astronomy Answers article on the seasons