September 17

September 17 in recent years

2024 (Tuesday)

2023 (Sunday)

2022 (Saturday)

2021 (Friday)

2020 (Thursday)

2019 (Tuesday)

2018 (Monday)

2017 (Sunday)

2016 (Saturday)

2015 (Thursday)

September 17 is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 105 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 456 – Remistus, Roman general (magister militum), is besieged with a Gothic force at Ravenna and later executed in the Palace in Classis, outside the city.
• 1111 – Highest Galician nobility led by Pedro Fróilaz de Traba and the bishop Diego Gelmírez crown Alfonso VII as "King of Galicia".
• 1176 – The Battle of Myriokephalon is fought.
• 1462 – The Battle of Świecino (also known as the Battle of Żarnowiec) is fought during Thirteen Years' War.
• 1577 – The Peace of Bergerac is signed between Henry III of France and the Huguenots.
• 1630 – The city of Boston, Massachusetts is founded.
• 1631 – Sweden wins a major victory at the Battle of Breitenfeld against the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years' War.
• 1683 – Antonie van Leeuwenhoek writes a letter to the Royal Society describing "animalcules": the first known description of protozoa.
• 1716 – Jean Thurel enlists in the Touraine Regiment at the age of 17, the first day of a military career that would span for over 90 years.
• 1761 – The Battle of Kosabroma is fought.
• 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The Invasion of Canada begins with the Siege of Fort St. Jean.
• 1776 – The Presidio of San Francisco is founded in New Spain.
• 1778 – The Treaty of Fort Pitt is signed. It is the first formal treaty between the United States and a Native American tribe (the Lenape or Delaware Indians).
• 1787 – The United States Constitution is signed in Philadelphia.
• 1793 – The Battle of Peyrestortes is fought.
• 1794 – The Battle of Sprimont is fought.
• 1809 – Peace between Sweden and Russia in the Finnish War. The territory to become Finland is ceded to Russia by the Treaty of Fredrikshamn.
• 1813 – The Second Battle of Kulm is fought.
• 1814 – Francis Scott Key finishes his poem "Defence of Fort McHenry", later to be the lyrics of "The Star-Spangled Banner".
• 1849 – American abolitionist Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery.
• 1859 – Joshua A. Norton declares himself "Norton I, Emperor of the United States."
• 1861 – Battle of Pavón is fought.
• 1862 – American Civil War: George B. McClellan halts the northward drive of Robert E. Lee's Confederate army in the single-day Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day in American military history.
• 1862 – American Civil War: The Allegheny Arsenal explosion results in the single largest civilian disaster during the war.
• 1894 – Battle of Yalu River, the largest naval engagement of the First Sino-Japanese War.
• 1900 – Philippine–American War: Filipinos under Juan Cailles defeat Americans under Colonel Benjamin F. Cheatham at Mabitac.
• 1901 – The Battle of Blood River Poort is fought.
• 1901 – The Battle of Elands River is fought.
• 1908 – The Wright Flyer flown by Orville Wright, with Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge as passenger, crashes killing Selfridge. He becomes the first airplane fatality.
• 1914 – Andrew Fisher becomes Prime Minister of Australia for the third time.
• 1916 – World War I: Manfred von Richthofen ("The Red Baron"), a flying ace of the German Luftstreitkräfte, wins his first aerial combat near Cambrai, France.
• 1924 – The Border Defence Corps is established in the Second Polish Republic for the defence of the eastern border against armed Soviet raids and local bandits.
• 1924 – The Church of Central Africa, Presbyterian is formed.
• 1932 – A speech by Laureano Gómez leads to the escalation of the Leticia Incident.
• 1939 – World War II: The Soviet Union joins Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland during the Polish Defensive War of 1939.
• 1939 – World War II: A German U-boat U 29 sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Courageous.
• 1939 – Taisto Mäki becomes the first man to run the 10,000 metres in under 30 minutes, in a time of 29:52.6
• 1940 – World War II: Following the German defeat in the Battle of Britain, Hitler postpones Operation Sea Lion indefinitely.
• 1941 – World War II: A decree of the Soviet State Committee of Defense, restoring Vsevobuch in the face of the Great Patriotic War, is issued.
• 1941 – World War II: Soviet forces enter Teheran marking the end of the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran.
• 1943 – World War II: The Russian city of Bryansk is liberated from Germans.
• 1944 – World War II: Allied Airborne troops parachute into the Netherlands as the "Market" half of Operation Market Garden.
• 1948 – The Lehi (also known as the Stern gang) assassinates Count Folke Bernadotte, who was appointed by the United Nations to mediate between the Arab nations and Israel.
• 1948 – The Nizam of Hyderabad surrenders his sovereignty over the Hyderabad State and joins the Indian Union.
• 1949 – The Canadian steamship SS Noronic burns in Toronto Harbour with the loss of over 118 lives.
• 1957 – Malaysia joins the United Nations.
• 1961 – The world's first retractable-dome stadium, the Civic Arena, opens in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
• 1974 – Bangladesh, Grenada and Guinea-Bissau join the United Nations.
• 1976 – The first Space Shuttle, Enterprise, is unveiled by NASA.
• 1978 – The Camp David Accords are signed by Israel and Egypt.
• 1980 – After weeks of strikes at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland, the nationwide independent trade union Solidarity is established.
• 1980 – Former Nicaraguan President Anastasio Somoza Debayle is killed in Asunción, Paraguay.
• 1983 – Vanessa Williams becomes the first black Miss America.
• 1987 – Pope John Paul II embraces an AIDS-infected boy while visiting San Francisco.
• 1991 – Estonia, North Korea, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, the Marshall Islands and Micronesia join the United Nations.
• 1991 – The first version of the Linux kernel (0.01) is released to the Internet.
• 1992 – An Iranian Kurdish leader and his two joiners are assassinated by political militants in Berlin, Germany.
• 2001 – The New York Stock Exchange reopens for trading after the September 11 attacks, the longest closure since the Great Depression.
• 2006 – Fourpeaked Mountain in Alaska erupts, marking the first eruption for the long-dormant volcano in at least 10,000 years.
• 2006 – An audio tape of a private speech by Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány is leaked to the public, in which he confessed that his Hungarian Socialist Party had lied to win the 2006 election, sparking widespread protests across the country.
• 2011 – Occupy Wall Street movement begins in Zuccotti Park, New York City.

Births

• 879 – Charles the Simple, French king (d. 929)
• 1192 – Minamoto no Sanetomo, Japanese shogun (d. 1219)
• 1550 – Pope Paul V (d. 1621)
• 1605 – Francesco Sacrati, Italian composer (d. 1650)
• 1630 – Ranuccio II Farnese, Duke of Parma (d. 1694)
• 1639 – Hans Herr, Swiss bishop (d. 1725)
• 1674 – Ernest Augustus, Duke of York and Albany (d. 1728)
• 1677 – Stephen Hales, English physiologist and chemist, invented Forceps (d. 1761)
• 1687 – Durastante Natalucci, Italian historian (d. 1772)
• 1688 – Maria Luisa of Savoy (d. 1714)
• 1730 – Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, Prussian general (d. 1794)
• 1739 – John Rutledge, American judge and politician, 2nd Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1800)
• 1743 – Marquis de Condorcet, French mathematician and political scientist (d. 1794)
• 1771 – Johann August Apel, German jurist and author (d. 1816)
• 1773 – Jonathan Alder, American captain and farmer (d. 1849)
• 1819 – Marthinus Wessel Pretorius, South African general and politician, 1st President of the South African Republic (d. 1901)
• 1820 – Émile Augier, French playwright (d. 1889)
• 1826 – Bernhard Riemann, German mathematician (d. 1866)
• 1839 – Ira Davenport, American magician (d. 1911)
• 1850 – Guerra Junqueiro, Portuguese lawyer, journalist, and politician (d. 1923)
• 1854 – David Dunbar Buick, Scottish-American businessman, founded Buick Motor Company (d. 1929)
• 1857 – Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Russian scientist (d. 1935)
• 1859 – Frank Dawson Adams, Canadian geologist (d. 1942)
• 1860 – Mihkel Martna, Estonian journalist and politician (d. 1934)
• 1862 – Jean de Madre, French polo player (d. 1934)
• 1864 – James Tancred, British vice-admiral (d.1943)
• 1868 – James Alexander Calder, Canadian politician (d. 1956)
• 1869 – Christian Lous Lange, Norwegian political scientist, historian, and educator, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1938)
• 1874 – Walter Murdoch, Australian academic and author (d. 1970)
• 1878 – Vincenzo Tommasini, Italian composer (d. 1950)
• 1878 – Antoine Védrenne, French rower (d. 1937)
• 1879 – Rube Foster, American baseball player and manager (d. 1930)
• 1879 – Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, Indian businessman, politician, and activist (d. 1973)
• 1881 – Alfred Carpenter, English admiral, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1955)
• 1883 – William Carlos Williams, American pediatrician and poet (d. 1963)
• 1884 – Charles Griffes, American pianist and composer (d. 1920)
• 1890 – Gabriel Heatter, American journalist (d. 1972)
• 1892 – Hendrik Andriessen, Dutch organist and composer (d. 1981)
• 1895 – Georg Faehlmann, Russian-Estonian sailor (d. 1975)
• 1897 – Earl Webb, American baseball player (d. 1965)
• 1900 – Hughie Critz, American baseball player (d. 1980)
• 1900 – J. Willard Marriott, American businessman, founded the Marriott Corporation (d. 1985)
• 1901 – Francis Chichester, English pilot and sailor (d. 1972)
• 1902 – Bea Miles, Australian author (d. 1973)
• 1903 – Karel Miljon, Dutch boxer (d. 1984)
• 1903 – Frank O'Connor, Irish author and educator (d. 1966)
• 1903 – Minanogawa Tōzō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 34th Yokozuna (d. 1971)
• 1904 – Frederick Ashton, Ecuadorian-English dancer and choreographer (d. 1988)
• 1904 – Jerry Colonna, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1986)
• 1904 – Edgar G. Ulmer, Czech-American director, screenwriter, and set designer (d. 1972)
• 1906 – J. R. Jayewardene, Sri Lankan politician, 2nd President of Sri Lanka (d. 1996)
• 1906 – Edgar Wayburn, American physician and environmentalist (d. 2010)
• 1907 – Warren E. Burger, American judge, 15th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1995)
• 1908 – John Creasey, English author (d. 1973)
• 1908 – Rafael Israelyan, Georgian-Armenian architect, designed the Sardarapat Memorial and St. Vartan Cathedral (d. 1973)
• 1909 – Elizabeth Enright, American author and illustrator (d. 1968)
• 1912 – Irena Kwiatkowska, Polish actress and comedian (d. 2011)
• 1913 – M. Srikantha, Sri Lankan civil servant (d. 1982)
• 1914 – Thomas J. Bata, Czech-Canadian businessman (d. 2008)
• 1914 – Shin Kanemaru, Japanese politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1996)
• 1915 – M. F. Husain, Indian painter and director (d. 2011)
• 1916 – Mary Stewart, English-Scottish author (d. 2014)
• 1917 – William Grut, Swedish pentathlete (d. 2012)
• 1917 – Isang Yun, South Korean-German composer and educator (d. 1995)
• 1918 – Lea Gottlieb, Hungarian-Israeli fashion designer, founded the Gottex Company (d. 2012)
• 1918 – Chaim Herzog, Irish-Israeli general and politician, 6th President of Israel (d. 1997)
• 1920 – Dinah Sheridan, English actress (d. 2012)
• 1922 – Agostinho Neto, Angolan politician, 1st President of Angola (d. 1979)
• 1923 – Ralph Sharon, English-American pianist
• 1923 – Hank Williams, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Drifting Cowboys) (d. 1953)
• 1925 – John List, American murderer (d. 2008)
• 1926 – Bill Black, American bass player (The Blue Moon Boys) (d. 1965)
• 1926 – Curtis Harrington, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Hovie Lister, American pianist (The Statesmen Quartet and Masters V) (d. 2001)
• 1926 – Jean-Marie Lustiger, French cardinal (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Jack McDuff, American organist (d. 2001)
• 1926 – Klaus Schütz, German politician (d. 2012)
• 1927 – George Blanda, American football player (d. 2010)
• 1928 – Roddy McDowall, English-American actor, singer, and producer (d. 1998)
• 1929 – Sil Austin, American saxophonist (d. 2001)
• 1929 – Pat Crowley, American actress
• 1929 – Stirling Moss, English race car driver
• 1930 – David Huddleston, American actor
• 1930 – Lalgudi Jayaraman, Indian violinist and composer (d. 2013)
• 1930 – Theo Loevendie, Dutch clarinet player and composer
• 1930 – Edgar Mitchell, American captain, pilot, and astronaut
• 1930 – Jim Rohn, American philosopher and author (d. 2009)
• 1930 – Thomas P. Stafford, American general, pilot, and astronaut
• 1931 – Anne Bancroft, American actress and singer (d. 2005)
• 1931 – Jean-Claude Carrière, French actor and screenwriter
• 1932 – Robert B. Parker, American author (d. 2010)
• 1933 – Chuck Grassley, American politician
• 1933 – Dorothy Loudon, American actress and singer (d. 2003)
• 1933 – Claude Provost, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1984)
• 1934 – Maureen Connolly, American tennis player (d. 1969)
• 1935 – Ken Kesey, American author (d. 2001)
• 1936 – Gerald Guralnik, American physicist and academic (d. 2014)
• 1936 – Michael Hennagin, American composer and educator (d. 1993)
• 1936 – Rolv Wesenlund, Norwegian actor and singer (d. 2013)
• 1937 – Orlando Cepeda, Puerto Rican baseball player
• 1938 – Paul Benedict, American actor (d. 2008)
• 1938 – Perry Robinson, American clarinet player and composer
• 1938 – Bobby Wine, American baseball player and coach
• 1939 – Carl Dennis, American poet and educator
• 1939 – Shelby Flint, American singer-songwriter
• 1939 – David Souter, American jurist
• 1940 – Lorella De Luca, Italian actress and director (d. 2014)
• 1940 – Jan Eliasson, Swedish diplomat, 4th Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
• 1940 – Sotiris Moustakas, Cypriot-Greek actor (d. 2007)
• 1940 – Gilberto Parlotti, Italian motorcycle racer (d. 1972)
• 1941 – Bob Matsui, American politician (d. 2005)
• 1942 – Robert Graysmith, American author and illustrator
• 1942 – Des Lynam, Irish-English journalist and author
• 1942 – Lupe Ontiveros, American actress (d. 2012)
• 1944 – Les Emmerson, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Five Man Electrical Band)
• 1944 – Reinhold Messner, Italian mountaineer and explorer
• 1945 – David Emerson, Canadian economist and politician, 8th Minister of Foreign Affairs for Canada
• 1945 – Phil Jackson, American basketball player and coach
• 1945 – Bruce Spence, New Zealand actor
• 1945 – Bhakti Charu Swami, Indian religious leader
• 1946 – Billy Bonds, English footballer and manager
• 1946 – Heimar Lenk, Estonian journalist and politician
• 1947 – Tessa Jowell, English politician, Minister for the Cabinet Office
• 1947 – Gail Carson Levine, American author
• 1947 – Jeff MacNelly, American cartoonist (d. 2000)
• 1948 – Karl Alber, German footballer
• 1948 – Raphy Leavitt, Puerto Rican composer
• 1948 – John Ritter, American actor and producer (d. 2003)
• 1949 – Ron Stevens, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
• 1950 – Narendra Modi, Indian politician, 14th Chief Minister of Gujarat, current Prime Minister of India]
• 1950 – Fee Waybill, American singer-songwriter and producer (The Tubes)
• 1951 – Piet Kleine, Dutch speed skater
• 1951 – Cassandra Peterson, American actress, television host, and producer
• 1953 – Tamasin Day-Lewis, English chef
• 1953 – Altaf Hussain, Pakistani politician
• 1953 – Rita Rudner, American comedian and actress
• 1953 – Steve Williams, Welsh drummer and songwriter (Budgie)
• 1954 – Joël-François Durand, French pianist and composer
• 1955 – Charles Martinet, American voice actor
• 1955 – Scott Simpson, American golfer
• 1956 – Thad Bosley, American baseball player and coach
• 1956 – Mandawuy Yunupingu, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Yothu Yindi) (d. 2013)
• 1957 – Steve Bryles, American politician (d. 2012)
• 1958 – Janez Janša, Slovenian politician, 5th Prime Minister of Slovenia
• 1958 – Tom Waddell, Scottish-American baseball player
• 1959 – Charles Lawson, Irish actor
• 1960 – John Bottomley, Canadian singer-songwriter (d. 2011)
• 1960 – Kevin Clash, American voice actor and puppeteer
• 1960 – John Franco, American baseball player
• 1960 – Damon Hill, English race car driver
• 1961 – Jim Cornette, American wrestling manager and promoter
• 1961 – Nives Meroi, Italian mountaineer
• 1961 – Ty Tabor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (King's X, Platypus, and The Jelly Jam)
• 1962 – Baz Luhrmann, Australian director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1962 – Dustin Nguyen, Vietnamese-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1962 – Hesham Qandil, Egyptian politician, 51st Prime Minister of Egypt
• 1962 – BeBe Winans, American singer-songwriter and producer (BeBe & CeCe Winans)
• 1963 – Masahiro Chono, American-Japanese wrestler
• 1963 – William Shockley, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1963 – James Urbaniak, American actor
• 1965 – Kyle Chandler, American actor and producer
• 1965 – Yuji Naka, Japanese video game designer, created Sonic the Hedgehog
• 1965 – Guy Picciotto, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Rites of Spring, Fugazi, Happy Go Licky, and One Last Wish)
• 1965 – Bryan Singer, American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1966 – Doug E. Fresh, American rapper and producer
• 1966 – Stéphane Rousseau, Canadian actor
• 1967 – Koen Wauters, Flemish singer-songwriter and actor (Clouseau)
• 1967 – Malik Yoba, American actor and singer
• 1968 – Akhenaton, French rapper and producer
• 1968 – Anastacia, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1968 – Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece
• 1968 – Lord Jamar, American rapper and actor (Brand Nubian)
• 1968 – Jonn Penney, English singer (Ned's Atomic Dustbin)
• 1968 – Tito Vilanova, Spanish footballer and manager (d. 2014)
• 1969 – Steady B, American rapper
• 1969 – Adam Devlin, English guitarist and songwriter (The Bluetones)
• 1969 – Ken Doherty, Irish snooker player
• 1969 – Keith Flint, English singer-songwriter (The Prodigy and Flint)
• 1969 – Greg King, New Zealand lawyer (d. 2012)
• 1969 – Tarvo Seeman, Estonian chess player
• 1969 – Matthew Settle, American actor
• 1970 – Mark Brunell, American football player and coach
• 1970 – Jim Conroy, American voice actor
• 1971 – Nate Berkus, American interior designer and television host
• 1971 – Mike Catt, South African-English rugby player
• 1971 – Adriana Karembeu, Slovak model and actress
• 1971 – Mauro Milanese, Italian footballer
• 1971 – Ian Whyte, Welsh basketball player and actor
• 1972 – Bobby Lee, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter
• 1973 – Diego Albanese, Argentinian rugby player
• 1973 – Ada Choi, Hong Kong actress
• 1973 – Demis Nikolaidis, Greek footballer
• 1974 – Mirah, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Microphones)
• 1974 – Tormod Granheim, Norwegian skier
• 1974 – Rasheed Wallace, American basketball player and coach
• 1975 – Wilko de Vogt, Dutch footballer
• 1975 – Jade Esteban Estrada, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
• 1975 – Jimmie Johnson, American race car driver
• 1975 – Constantine Maroulis, American singer-songwriter and actor (Pray for the Soul of Betty)
• 1975 – Austin St. John, American actor and martial artist
• 1976 – Peja, Polish rapper and producer (Slums Attack)
• 1976 – Daniella Rush, Czech porn actress
• 1977 – Anna Marie Cseh, Hungarian film actress and fashion model
• 1977 – Genaro García, Mexican boxer (d. 2013)
• 1977 – Simone Perrotta, Italian footballer
• 1977 – Yelena Godina, Russian volleyball player
• 1978 – Shawn Horcoff, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1979 – Steffen Algreen, Danish footballer
• 1979 – Akin Ayodele, American football player
• 1979 – Chuck Comeau, Canadian drummer (Simple Plan and Reset)
• 1979 – Billy Miller, American actor
• 1980 – Dan Haren, American baseball player
• 1980 – Oliver Risser, Namibian footballer
• 1981 – Casey Janssen, American baseball player
• 1981 – Bakari Koné, Ivorian footballer
• 1981 – Francis Manioru, Solomon sprinter
• 1982 – Hope Larson, American illustrator
• 1982 – Garth Murray, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1982 – Wade Robson, Australian dancer and choreographer
• 1983 – Sanaya Irani, Indian actress
• 1983 – Jennifer Peña, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1984 – Domenico Citro, Italian footballer
• 1984 – Mary Descenza, American swimmer
• 1984 – De La Ghetto, American-Puerto Rican singer-songwriter (Arcángel & De La Ghetto)
• 1984 – John Kucera, Canadian skier
• 1984 – Patrick van Luijk, Dutch sprinter
• 1984 – Eugenia Volodina, Russian model
• 1985 – Tomáš Berdych, Czech tennis player
• 1985 – Brendan Clarke, Irish footballer
• 1985 – José Gonçalves, Portuguese footballer
• 1985 – Alexander Ovechkin, Russian ice hockey player
• 1985 – Mason Raymond, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1985 – Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala of Tonga
• 1985 – Jon Walker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Panic! at the Disco and The Young Veins)
• 1986 – Paolo De Ceglie, Italian footballer
• 1986 – Ravichandran Ashwin, Indian Cricketer
• 1986 – Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, Japanese voice actor
• 1986 – Yussef Suleiman, Syrian footballer (d. 2013)
• 1987 – Paul Huntington, English footballer
• 1989 – Kate Deines, American soccer player
• 1990 – Minako Kotobuki, Japanese voice actress and singer (Sphere)
• 1990 – Sean Scannell, Irish footballer
• 1991 – Ryo Ishikawa, Japanese golfer
• 1991 – Justyna Jegiołka, Polish tennis player
• 1996 – Ella Purnell, English actress

Deaths

• 454 – Pope Dioscorus I of Alexandria
• 456 – Remistus, Roman general
• 1179 – Hildegard of Bingen, German mystic, composer, and saint (b. 1098)
• 1322 – Robert III, Count of Flanders (b. 1249)
• 1422 – Constantine II of Bulgaria (b. 1370)
• 1563 – Henry Manners, 2nd Earl of Rutland, English soldier (b. 1526)
• 1574 – Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, Spanish admiral and explorer, founded St. Augustine, Florida (b. 1519)
• 1575 – Heinrich Bullinger, Swiss theologian and reformer (b. 1504)
• 1621 – Robert Bellarmine, Italian cardinal and saint (b. 1542)
• 1630 – Thomas Lake, English politician, English Secretary of State (b. 1567)
• 1665 – Philip IV of Spain (b. 1605)
• 1676 – Sabbatai Zevi, Turkish rabbi (b. 1626)
• 1679 – John of Austria the Younger, Spanish general and politician, Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands (b. 1629)
• 1762 – Francesco Geminiani, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1687)
• 1771 – Tobias Smollett, Scottish-Italian author and poet (b. 1721)
• 1803 – Franz Xaver Süssmayr, Austrian composer (b. 1766)
• 1808 – Benjamin Bourne, American judge and politician (b. 1755)
• 1836 – Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, French botanist (b. 1748)
• 1858 – Dred Scott, American slave (b. 1795)
• 1863 – Alfred de Vigny, French author, poet, and playwright (b. 1797)
• 1864 – Walter Savage Landor, English author and poet (b. 1775)
• 1877 – Henry Fox Talbot, English photographer, developed the Calotype Process (b. 1800)
• 1878 – Orélie-Antoine de Tounens, French lawyer and adventurer (b. 1825)
• 1879 – Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, French architect and theorist (b. 1814)
• 1894 – Deng Shichang, Chinese captain (b. 1849)
• 1899 – Charles Alfred Pillsbury, American businessman, co-founded the Pillsbury Company (b. 1842)
• 1904 – Kartini, Indonesian activist (b. 1879)
• 1907 – Ignaz Brüll, Czech-Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1846)
• 1908 – Henri Julien, Canadian cartoonist (b. 1852)
• 1908 – Thomas Selfridge, American lieutenant (b. 1882)
• 1909 – Thomas Bent, Australian politician, 22nd Premier of Victoria (b. 1838)
• 1923 – Stefanos Dragoumis, Greek judge and politician, 92nd Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1842)
• 1925 – Carl Eytel, German-American painter and illustrator (b. 1862)
• 1933 – Joseph De Piro, Maltese priest and missionary (b. 1877)
• 1936 – Ettie Annie Rout, New Zealand author and activist (b. 1877)
• 1938 – Bruno Jasieński, Polish poet (b. 1901)
• 1944 – Eugen Habermann, Estonian architect (b. 1884)
• 1946 – Frank Burke, American baseball player (b. 1880)
• 1948 – Ruth Benedict, American anthropologist (b. 1887)
• 1948 – Folke Bernadotte, Swedish diplomat (b. 1895)
• 1951 – Jimmy Yancey, American pianist and composer (b. 1898)
• 1953 – David Munson, American runner (b. 1884)
• 1965 – Alejandro Casona, Spanish poet and playwright (b. 1903)
• 1966 – Fritz Wunderlich, German tenor (b. 1930)
• 1971 – Carlos Lamarca, Brazilian captain (b. 1937)
• 1972 – Akim Tamiroff, Georgian-American actor (b. 1899)
• 1973 – Hugo Winterhalter, American bandleader and composer (b. 1909)
• 1975 – Nicola Moscona, Greek opera singer (b. 1907)
• 1980 – Anastasio Somoza Debayle, Nicaraguan politician, 73rd President of Nicaragua (b. 1925)
• 1980 – Sergei Varshavsky, Russian writer and art collector (b. 1906)
• 1982 – Manos Loïzos, Greek composer (b. 1937)
• 1984 – Richard Basehart, American actor and director (b. 1914)
• 1985 – Laura Ashley, Welsh fashion designer, founded Laura Ashley plc (b. 1925)
• 1987 – Harry Locke, English actor (b. 1913)
• 1988 – Hilde Gueden, Austrian soprano (b. 1917)
• 1991 – Zino Francescatti, French violinist (b. 1902)
• 1991 – Rob Tyner, American musician (MC5) (b. 1944)
• 1992 – Roger Wagner, American conductor and educator (b. 1914)
• 1993 – Willie Mosconi, American pool player (b. 1913)
• 1993 – Christian Nyby, American director and producer (b. 1913)
• 1994 – Vitas Gerulaitis, American tennis player (b. 1954)
• 1994 – Karl Popper, Austrian-English philosopher (b. 1902)
• 1995 – Isadore Epstein, Estonian-American astronomer (b. 1919)
• 1995 – Lucien Victor, Belgian cyclist (b. 1931)
• 1996 – Spiro Agnew, American soldier and politician, 39th Vice President of the United States (b. 1918)
• 1997 – Red Skelton, American actor, singer, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1913)
• 1998 – Ted Binion, American businessman (b. 1943)
• 1998 – Geoffrey Dutton, Australian historian and author (b. 1922)
• 1998 – Gustav Nezval, Czech actor (b. 1907)
• 1999 – Frankie Vaughan, English singer (b. 1928)
• 2000 – Paula Yates, Welsh television host and author (b. 1959)
• 2003 – Erich Hallhuber, German actor (b. 1951)
• 2005 – Jacques Lacarrière, French journalist and critic (b. 1925)
• 2005 – Alfred Reed, American composer (b. 1921)
• 2006 – Patricia Kennedy Lawford, American daughter of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. (b. 1924)
• 2006 – Kazuyuki Sogabe, Japanese voice actor (b. 1948)
• 2009 – Noordin Mohammad Top, Malaysian terrorist (b. 1968)
• 2011 – Colin Madigan, Australian architect, designed the National Gallery of Australia (b. 1921)
• 2012 – Bafo Biyela, South African footballer (b. 1981)
• 2012 – Melvin Charney, Canadian sculptor and architect (b. 1935)
• 2012 – Lou Kenton, English soldier and potter (b. 1908)
• 2012 – Tedi Thurman, American model and actress (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Russell E. Train, American civil servant (b. 1920)
• 2012 – Ferenc Polikárp Zakar, Hungarian monk (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Martí de Riquer i Morera, Spanish linguist (b. 1914)
• 2013 – Michael Giannatos, Turkish-Greek actor (b. 1941)
• 2013 – Kristian Gidlund, Swedish drummer and journalist (Sugarplum Fairy) (b. 1983)
• 2013 – Larry Lake, American-Canadian trumpet player and composer (b. 1943)
• 2013 – Bernie McGann, Australian saxophonist and composer (b. 1937)
• 2013 – Alex Naumik, Lithuanian-Norwegian singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1949)
• 2013 – Michael J. Noonan, Irish politician, 25th Minister of Defence for Ireland (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Dick O'Neal, American basketball player (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Marvin Rainwater, American singer-songwriter (b. 1925)
• 2013 – Eiji Toyoda, Japanese businessman (b. 1913)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Albert Avogadro
  • Ariadne of Phrygia
  • Hildegard of Bingen
  • Lambert
  • Robert Bellarmine
  • Satyrus of Milan
  • Socrates and Stephen
  • September 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Constitution Day (observed on the previous Friday if it falls Saturday, the following Monday if on a Sunday), Citizenship Day, Von Steuben Day. (United States)
• Heroes' Day (Angola)
• Operation Market Garden is still remembered with parachuting and dedications on this day. (Netherlands)
• Pompéia founding day (1928, State of São Paulo, Brazil)

External links

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