June 15 encyclopedia topics

Events

763 BC - Assyrians record a solar eclipse that will be used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history.
923 - Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and King Charles the Simple is arrested by the supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy.
1184 - King Magnus V of Norway is killed at the battle of Fimreite.
1215 - King John of England puts his seal to the Magna Carta.
1219 - Dannebrog - oldest national flag in the world - and flag of Denmark. According to legend, fell from the sky during the Battle of Lyndanisse (now Tallinn) in Estonia, and turned the Danes' luck.
1246 - With the death of Duke Frederick II, the Babenberg dynasty ends in Austria.
1389 - Battle of Kosovo: The Ottoman Empire defeats Serbs and Bosnians.
1520 - Pope Leo X threatens to excommunicate Martin Luther in papal bull Exsurge Domine.
1580 - Phillip II of Spain declares William the Silent to be an outlaw.
1667 - The first human blood transfusion is administered by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys.
1752 - Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity.
1775 - American Revolutionary War: George Washington is appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army.
1776 - Delaware Separation Day - Delaware votes to suspend government under the British Crown and separate officially from Pennsylvania.
1785 - Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, co-pilot of the first-ever manned flight (1783), and his companion, Pierre Romain, become the first-ever casualties of an air crash when their hot air balloon explodes during their attempt to cross the English Channel.
1804 - New Hampshire approves the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratifying the document.
1808 - Joseph Bonaparte becomes King of Spain.
1836 - Arkansas is admitted as the 25th U.S. state.
1844 - Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.
1846 - The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
1859 - Pig War: Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the "Northwestern Boundary Dispute" between U.S. and British/Canadian settlers.
1864 - American Civil War: Siege of Petersburg begins.
1864 - Arlington National Cemetery is established when 200 acres (0.8 km²) around Arlington Mansion are officially set aside as a military cemetery by U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
1867 - Atlantic Cable Quartz Lode gold mine located in Montana.
1877 - Henry Ossian Flipper becomes the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy.
1888 - Crown Prince Wilhelm becomes Kaiser Wilhelm II and is the last emperor of the German Empire
1904 - A fire aboard the steamboat General Slocum in New York City's East River kills 1000.
1905 - Princess Margaret of Connaught marries Gustav, Crown Prince of Sweden.
1909 - Representatives from England, Australia and South Africa meet at Lord's and form the Imperial Cricket Conference.
1911 - Tabulating Computing Recording Corporation (IBM) is incorporated.
1913 - The Battle of Bud Bagsak in the Philippine concludes.
1916 - U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter.
1919 - John Alcock and Arthur Brown complete the first nonstop transatlantic flight at Clifden, County Galway, Ireland.
1920 - Duluth lynchings in Minnesota.
1934 - The U.S.'s Great Smoky Mountains National Park is founded.
1944 - World War II: Battle of Saipan: The United States invades Saipan.
1944 - In the Saskatchewan general election, 1944, the CCF, led by Tommy Douglas, is elected and forms the first socialist government of North America.
1945 - The General Dutch Youth League (ANJV) is founded in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
1954 - UEFA (Union des Associations Européennes de Football) is formed in Basle, Switzerland.
1955 - The Eisenhower administration stages the first annual "Operation Alert" (OPAL) exercise, an attempt to assess the USA's preparations for a nuclear attack.
1962 - Students for a Democratic Society complete the Port Huron Statement.
1978 - King Hussein of Jordan weds American Lisa Halaby, who takes the name Queen Noor.
1985 - Rembrandt's painting Danaë is attacked by a man later judged insane; he threw sulfuric acid on the canvas and cut it twice with his knife.
1991 - Birth of the first federal political party in Canada that supports Quebec nationalism, le Bloc Québécois.
1992 - The United States Supreme Court rules in United States v. Álvarez-Machaín that it is permissible for the USA to forcibly extradite suspects in foreign countries and bring them to the USA for trial, without approval from those other countries.
1994 - Israel and Vatican City establish full diplomatic relations.
1996 - In Manchester, UK, a terrorist bomb injures over 200 people and devastates a large part of the city centre.
2002 - Near earth asteroid 2002 MN missed the Earth by 75,000 miles (120,000 km), about one-third of the distance between the Earth and the Moon

Births

1330 - Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales (d. 1376)
1519 - Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, illegitimate son of King Henry VIII of England (d. 1536
1594 - Nicolas Poussin, French painter (d. 1665)
1623 - Cornelis de Witt, Dutch politician (d. 1672)
1624 - Hiob Ludolf, German orientalist (d. 1704)
1640 - Bernard Lamy, French mathematician (d. 1715)
1755 - Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist (d. 1809)
1765 - Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German mathematician (d. 1831)
1767 - Rachel Donelson Jackson, First Lady of the United States (d. 1828)
1789 - Josiah Henson, American slave and settlement founder (d. 1883)
1801 - Benjamin Raymond, Mayor of Chicago (d. 1883)
1805 - William Butler Ogden, first Mayor of Chicago (d. 1877)
1809 - François-Xavier Garneau, French-Canadian poet and historian (d. 1866)
1843 - Edvard Grieg, Norwegian composer (d. 1907)
1875 - Herman Smith-Johannsen, cross-country skier (d. 1987)
1882 - Ion Antonescu, Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1946)
1884 - Harry Langdon, American actor (d. 1944)
1888 - Ramón López Velarde, Mexican poet (d. 1921)
1894 - Nikolai Chebotaryov, Ukrainian mathematician (d. 1947)
1894 - Robert Russell Bennett, American composer and arranger (d. 1981)
1900 - Gotthard Günther, German philosopher (d. 1984)
1900 - Otto Luening, German-American composer (d. 1996)
1902 - Erik Erikson, psychoanalyst (d. 1994)
1906 - Léon Degrelle, Belgian SS officer (d. 1994)
1908 - Sam Giancana, American mafioso (d. 1975)
1910 - David Rose, American songwriter, composer and orchestra leader (d. 1990)
1911 - W.V. Awdry, British children's writer (d. 1997)
1914 - Yuri Andropov, General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (d. 1984)
1914 - Saul Steinberg, Romanian/American cartoonist (d. 1999)
1914 - Hilda Terry, American Cartoonist (d. 2006)
1915 - Thomas Huckle Weller, American virologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
1916 - Herbert Simon, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)
1917 - John Fenn, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
1917 - Lash La Rue, American actor (d. 1996)
1917 - Michalis Genitsaris, Greek singer and composer (d. 2005)
1920 - Alberto Sordi, Italian actor and director (d. 2003)
1920 - Alla Kazanskaya, Russian stage and film actress (d. 2008)
1921 - Errol Garner, American musician (d. 1977)
1922 - John Veale, English composer (d. 2006)
1924 - Ezer Weizman, 7th President of Israel (d. 2005)
1926 - Mac McGarry, game show host
1926 - Shigeru Kayano, Japanese Ainu activist (d. 2006)
1927 - Ibn-e-Insha, Pakistani humourist and Urdu poet (d. 1978)
1927 - Hugo Pratt, Italian comic book creator (d. 1995)
1930 - Marcel Pronovost, professional ice hockey player
1932 - Mario Cuomo, Governor of New York
1933 - Sergio Endrigo, Italian singer (d. 2005)
1933 - Mark Jones, English footballer (d. 1958)
1936 - Claude Brasseur, French actor
1936 - William Joseph Levada, American Catholic prelate
1937 - Waylon Jennings, American singer (d. 2002)
1938 - Billy Williams, baseball player
1939 - Ward Connerly, American political figure
1939 - Brian Jacques, British author
1941 - Harry Nilsson, American singer and composer (d. 1994)
1942 - John E. McLaughlin, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
1943 - Xaviera Hollander, Dutch author
1943 - Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark
1943 - Johnny Hallyday, French singer and actor
1943 - Muff Winwood, British songwriter, producer and bassist (Spencer Davis Group)
1944 - Robert Keppel, American criminologist
1945 - Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Philippine senator
1945 - Nicola Pagett, British actress
1945 - Lawrence Wilkerson, American retired military officer
1946 - Noddy Holder, British singer (Slade)
1946 - Demis Roussos, Greek singer
1947 - John Hoagland, American photographer
1947 - Lee Purcell, American actress
1948 - Mike Holmgren, American football coach
1949 - Dusty Baker, baseball player and manager
1949 - Simon Callow, British actor
1949 - Russell Hitchcock, Australian singer (Air Supply)
1949 - Jim Varney, American actor (d. 2000)
1950 - Lakshmi Mittal, Indian industrialist
1951 - Steve Walsh, American singer (Kansas)
1952 - Sandra Cassel, American actress
1953 - Rita Lee, American model and Playboy Playmate
1954 - James Belushi, American actor
1954 - Paul Rusesabagina, Rwandan hotel manager
1954 - Beverley Whitfield, Australian swimmer (d. 1996)
1955 - Julie Hagerty, American actress
1955 - David Kennedy, Kennedy family member (d. 1984)
1956 - Ava Cadell, American actress
1956 - Robin Curtis, American actress
1956 - Polly Draper, American actress
1957 - Seppo Pääkkönen, Finnish actor
1958 - Wade Boggs, American baseball player
1958 - Riccardo Paletti, Italian racing driver (d. 1982)
1959 - Eileen Davidson, American actress
1959 - Alan Brazil, British footballer
1960 - Michèle Laroque, French actress
1960 - Marieke van Doorn, Dutch field hockey player
1961 - Kai Eckhardt, German musician (Garaj Mahal)
1961 - Dave McAuley, Northern Irish boxer
1961 - Yoshimi Iwasaki, Japanese singer/actress
1962 - Andrea Rost, Hungarian soprano
1963 - Mario Gosselin, Quebec ice hockey player
1963 - Helen Hunt, American actress
1963 - Blanca Portillo, Spanish actress
1963 - Nigel Walker, Welsh athlete and rugby union player
1964 - Courteney Cox, American actress
1964 - Michael Laudrup, Danish footballer
1965 - Annelies Bredael, Belgian rower
1965 - Adam Smith, American politician
1966 - Idalis DeLeon, American actress/singer
1967 - Yūji Ueda, Japanese voice actor
1968 - Oh Dal-su, South Korean actor
1969 - Ice Cube, American rapper
1969 - Oliver Kahn, German footballer
1969 - Cédric Pioline, French tennis player
1969 - Maurice Odumbe, Kenyan cricketer
1970 - Leah Remini, American actress
1970 - Gaëlle Méchaly, French soprano
1971 - Edwin Brienen, Dutch director
1971 - Jake Busey, American actor
1971 - Bif Naked, Canadian musician
1971 - Nathan Astle, New Zealand cricketer
1972 - Justin Leonard, American golfer
1972 - Andy Pettitte, American baseball player
1972 - Marcus Hahnemann, American soccer player
1972 - Hank Von Helvete, Turbonegro Frontman
1973 - Neil Patrick Harris, American actor
1973 - Tore André Flo, Norwegian footballer
1973 - Pia Miranda, Australian actress
1973 - Greg Vaughan, American actor
1975 - Elizabeth Reaser, American actress
1975 - Rachel Wacholder, American beach volleyballer
1976 - Gary Lightbody, Northern Irish musician (Snow Patrol)
1977 - Nina Liu, Australian actress
1977 - Michael Doleac, American basketball player
1978 - Wilfred Bouma, Dutch footballer
1978 - Zach Day, American baseball player
1979 - Yulia Nestsiarenka, Belarusian athlete
1979 - Julia Schultz, American model
1979 - Charles Zwolsman Jr., Dutch racing driver
1980 - Mary Carey, American pornographic actress
1980 - Christopher Castile, American actor
1980 - Almudena Cid, Spanish gymnast
1980 - Cara Zavaleta, American model
1981 - William Dean Martin, American musician (Good Charlotte)
1981 - Jeremy Reed, American baseball player
1981 - Jordi Vilasuso, American actor
1982 - Abdur Razzak, Bangladeshi cricketer
1982 - Haley Scarnato, American singer
1983 - Derek Anderson, American football player
1983 - Julia Fischer, German violinist
1983 - Laura Imbruglia, Australian musician
1984 - Tim Lincecum, American baseball player
1984 - Luke Hodge, AFL player for Hawthorn
1985 - Nadine Coyle, Northern Irish singer (Girls Aloud)
1988 - Miku Ishida, Japanese teen idol