March 24
| March 24 in recent years |
| 2024 (Sunday) |
| 2023 (Friday) |
| 2022 (Thursday) |
| 2021 (Wednesday) |
| 2020 (Tuesday) |
| 2019 (Sunday) |
| 2018 (Saturday) |
| 2017 (Friday) |
| 2016 (Thursday) |
| 2015 (Tuesday) |
March 24 is the 83rd day of the year (84th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 282 days remain until the end of the year.
March 24 is the 365th and last day of the year in many European implementations of the Julian calendar.
Events
- 1401 – Turko-Mongol emperor Timur sacks Damascus.
- 1603 – James VI of Scotland also becomes James I King of England.
- 1731 – Naturalization of Hieronimus de Salis Parliamentary Act is passed.
- 1765 – American Revolutionary War: The Kingdom of Great Britain passes the Quartering Act that requires the Thirteen Colonies to house British troops.
- 1832 – In Hiram, Ohio a group of men beat, tar and feather Mormon leader Joseph Smith, Jr..
- 1837 – Canada gives African men the right to vote.
- 1878 – The British frigate HMS Eurydice sinks, killing more than 300.
- 1882 – Robert Koch announces the discovery of the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis (mycobacterium tuberculosis).
- 1896 – A. A. Popov made the first radio signal transmission in history;
- 1900 – New York City Mayor Robert Anderson Van Wyck breaks ground for a new underground "Rapid Transit Railroad" that would link Manhattan and Brooklyn.
- 1907 – The first issue of the Georgian Bolshevik newspaper Dro is published.
- 1923 – Greece becomes a republic.
- 1934 – U.S. Congress passes the Tydings-McDuffie Act allowing the Philippines to become a self-governing commonwealth.
- 1936 – The longest game in NHL history is played between Detroit and Montreal. Detroit scored at 16:30 of the sixth overtime and won the game 1-0.
- 1944 – Ardeatine Massacre: German troops kill 335 Italian civilians in Rome.
- 1944 – World War II: In an event later dramatized in the movie The Great Escape, 76 prisoners begin breaking out of Stalag Luft III.
- 1958 – Entertainer Elvis Presley was inducted into the U.S. Army.
- 1959 – The Party of the African Federation (PFA) is launched by Léopold Sédar Senghor and Modibo Keita.
- 1965 – NASA spacecraft Ranger 9, equipped to convert its signals into a form suitable for showing on domestic television, brings images of the Moon into ordinary homes before crash landing.
- 1972 – The United Kingdom imposes "Direct Rule" over Northern Ireland.
- 1973 – Kenyan athlete Kip Keino defeats Jim Ryun at the first-ever professional track meet in Los Angeles, California.
- 1976 – In Argentina, the armed forces overthrow the constitutional government of President Isabel Perón and start a 7-year dictatorial period self-styled National Reorganization Process. Since 2006, a public holiday known as Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice is held on this day.
- 1976 – A general strike takes place in the People's Republic of Congo.
- 1980 – Archbishop Óscar Romero is killed while celebrating Mass in San Salvador.
- 1986 – The Loscoe gas explosion leads to new UK laws on landfill gas migration and gas protection on landfill sites.
- 1989 – Exxon Valdez oil spill: In Prince William Sound in Alaska, the Exxon Valdez spills 240,000 barrels (42,000 m³) of petroleum after running aground.
- 1998 – Jonesboro massacre: two students, ages 11 and 13, fire upon teachers and students at Westside Middle School in Jonesboro, Arkansas; five people are killed and ten are wounded.
- 1998 – A tornado sweeps through Dantan in India killing 250 people and injuring 3000 others.
- 1999 – Kosovo War: NATO commences air bombardment against Yugoslavia, marking the first time NATO has attacked a sovereign country.
- 1999 – Mont Blanc Tunnel Fire: 39 people die when a Belgian transport truck carrying flour and margarine catches fire in the Mont Blanc Tunnel.
- 2003 – The Arab League votes 21-1 in favor of a resolution demanding the immediate and unconditional removal of U.S. and British soldiers from Iraq.
- 2008 – Bhutan officially becomes a democracy, with its first ever general election.
Births
- 1494 – Georg Agricola, German scientist (d. 1555)
- 1607 – Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter, Dutch admiral (d. 1667)
- 1628 – Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg, queen of Denmark and Norway (d. 1685)
- 1657 – Arai Hakuseki, Japanese writer and politician (d. 1725)
- 1693 – John Harrison, British clockmaker (d. 1776)
- 1725 – Samuel Ashe, 9th Governor of North Carolina (d. 1813)
- 1725 – Thomas Cushing, American Continental Congressman and acting Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1788)
- 1755 – Rufus King, American politician (d. 1827)
- 1782 – Orest Kiprensky, Russian painter (d. 1836)
- 1796 – John Corry Wilson Daly, Canadian politician (d. 1878)
- 1808 – Maria Malibran, Spanish-French singer (d. 1836)
- 1809 – Mariano José de Larra, Spanish journalist and writer (d. 1837)
- 1809 – Joseph Liouville, French mathematician (d. 1882)
- 1820 – A. E. Becquerel, French physicist (d. 1891)
- 1820 – Fanny Crosby, American hymnist (d. 1915)
- 1828 – Horace Gray, American jurist and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1902)
- 1829 – George Francis Train, American businessman (d. 1904)
- 1829 – Ignacio Zaragoza, Mexican general (d. 1862)
- 1830 – Robert Hamerling, Austrian poet (d. 1889)
- 1834 – William Morris, English writer and designer (d. 1896)
- 1834 – John Wesley Powell, American explorer and environmentalist (d. 1902)
- 1835 – Jožef Stefan, Slovenian physicist (d. 1893)
- 1848 – Honoré Beaugrand, Quebec journalist and newspaper publisher (La Patrie) (d. 1906)
- 1850 – Silas Hocking, British novelist and preacher (d. 1935)
- 1855 – Andrew Mellon, American financier (d. 1937)
- 1855 – Olive Schreiner, South African writer (d. 1920)
- 1874 – Harry Houdini, (Weisz Erik), Hungarian-born magician (d. 1926)
- 1874 – Luigi Einaudi, 2nd President of the Italian Republic (d. 1961)
- 1884 – Peter Debye, Dutch chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1966)
- 1884 – Eugène Cardinal Tisserant, French Cardinal and Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals (d. 1972)
- 1886 – Athenagoras I, 268th Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople (d. 1972)
- 1886 – Edward Weston, American photographer (d. 1958)
- 1887 – Roscoe Arbuckle, American actor (d. 1933)
- 1888 – Viktor Kingissepp, Estonian Bolshevik politician (d. 1922)
- 1889 – Albert Hill, British athlete (d. 1969)
- 1891 – Sergey Ivanovich Vavilov, Soviet physicist (d. 1951)
- 1893 – George Sisler, American baseball player (d. 1973)
- 1893 – Walter Baade, German astronomer (d. 1960)
- 1897 – Wilhelm Reich, Austrian-born psychotherapist (d. 1957)
- 1901 – Ub Iwerks, American cartoonist (d. 1971)
- 1902 – Thomas Dewey, American politician (d. 1971)
- 1903 – Adolf Butenandt, German chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1995)
- 1903 – Malcolm Muggeridge, British author and scholar (d. 1990)
- 1905 – Pura Santillan-Castrence, Filipino writer and diplomat (d. 2007)
- 1906 – Klavdiya Shulzhenko, Soviet singer (d. 1984)
- 1907 – Paul Sauvé, Quebec politician (d. 1960)
- 1910 – Richard Conte, American actor (d. 1975)
- 1911 – Joseph Barbera, American cartoonist (d. 2006)
- 1915 – Gorgeous George, American professional wrestler (d. 1963)
- 1916 – Donald Hamilton, Swedish-American novelist (d. 2006)
- 1917 – John Kendrew, British molecular biologist, Nobel laureate (d. 1997)
- 1917 – Constantine Andreou, Greek-Brazilian artist (d. 2007)
- 1919 – Lawrence Ferlinghetti, American author and publisher
- 1919 – Robert Heilbroner, American economist (d. 2005)
- 1920 – Gene Nelson, American actor (d. 1996)
- 1921 – Vasily Smyslov, Russian chess player
- 1922 – Onna White, Canadian choreographer (d. 2005)
- 1923 – Murray Hamilton, American actor (d. 1986)
- 1924 – Norman Fell, American actor (d. 1998)
- 1925 – Puig Aubert, French rugby league footballer (d. 1994)
- 1926 – Dario Fo, Italian writer, Nobel laureate
- 1926 – Desmond Cardinal Connell, Cardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Dublin
- 1927 – Martin Walser, German author
- 1928 – Byron Janis, American pianist
- 1930 – David Dacko, 1st and 3rd President of the Central African Republic (d. 2003)
- 1930 – Agustín González, Spanish actor (d. 2005)
- 1930 – Steve McQueen, American actor (d. 1980)
- 1934 – William Smith, American actor
- 1935 – Peter Bichsel, Swiss writer
- 1936 – David Suzuki, Canadian scientist and environmentalist
- 1937 – Billy Stewart, American singer (d. 1970)
- 1938 – Holger Czukay, German musician (Can)
- 1938 – David Irving, British historian
- 1940 – Bob Mackie, American fashion designer
- 1940 – Don Jardine, Canadian professional wrestler (d. 2006)
- 1944 – R. Lee Ermey, American actor
- 1944 – Vojislav Koštunica, Serbian Prime Minister
- 1945 – Robert T. Bakker, American paleontologist
- 1945 – Curtis Hanson, American film director
- 1946 – Klaus Dinger, German musician (d. 2008)
- 1947 – Christine Gregoire, American politician, 22nd Governor of Washington
- 1947 – Meiko Kaji, Japanese singer and actress
- 1947 – Alan Sugar, English businessman
- 1948 – Jerzy Kukuczka, Polish mountaineer, second person to climb all fourteen eight-thousanders (d. 1989)
- 1949 – Nick Lowe, British musician
- 1949 – Ruud Krol, Dutch footballer
- 1951 – Pat Bradley, American golfer
- 1951 – Tommy Hilfiger, American fashion designer
- 1951 – Dougie Thomson, British bassist
- 1953 – Louie Anderson, American comedian
- 1954 – Robert Carradine, American actor
- 1954 – Donna Pescow, American actress
- 1955 – Doug Jarvis, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1956 – Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO
- 1957 – Pierre Harvey, Canadian cyclist and cross-country skier
- 1958 – Mike Woodson, American basketball player and head coach
- 1959 – Derek Statham, English footballer
- 1960 – Kelly LeBrock, American actress
- 1960 – Barry Horowitz, American professional wrestler
- 1960 – Nena, German pop singer
- 1960 – Scott Pruett, American race car driver
- 1961 – Dean Jones, Australian cricketer
- 1962 – Angèle Dubeau, Canadian violinist
- 1962 – Star Jones, American television personality
- 1964 – Annabella Sciorra, American actress
- 1965 – Patrick Scales, British-German electric bass guitar player
- 1965 – Peter Jacobson, American actor
- 1965 – Gurmit Singh, Singaporean actor
- 1965 – The Undertaker, American professional wrestler
- 1969 – Houston, American pornographic actress
- 1970 – Lara Flynn Boyle, American actress
- 1970 – Sharon Corr, Irish musician (The Corrs)
- 1970 – Judith Draxler, Austrian swimmer
- 1970 – Mike Vanderjagt, Canadian football player
- 1971 – Megyn Price, American actress
- 1972 – Steve Karsay, American baseball player
- 1973 – Jacek Bąk, Polish footballer
- 1973 – Philippe Boucher, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1973 – Jim Parsons, American Film And Television Actor
- 1973 – Steve Corica, Australian footballer
- 1974 – Chad Butler, American drummer (Switchfoot)
- 1974 – Alyson Hannigan, American actress
- 1975 – Thomas Johansson, Swedish tennis player
- 1975 – Krisdayanti, Indonesian singer, actress and diva
- 1976 – Aaron Brooks, American football player
- 1976 – Aliou Cissé, Senegalese footballer
- 1976 – Athanasios Kostoulas, Greek footballer
- 1976 – Peyton Manning, American football player
- 1977 – Corneille, Rwandan/Canadian singer
- 1977 – Angellica Bell, English TV presenter
- 1977 – Olivia Burnette, American actress
- 1977 – Darren Lockyer, Australian rugby league footballer
- 1978 – Michael Braun, Australian rules footballer
- 1979 – Lake Bell, American actress
- 1979 – Emraan Hashmi, Indian actor
- 1979 – Norris Hopper, American baseball player
- 1979 – Periklis Iakovakis, Greek athlete
- 1979 – Graeme Swann, English cricketer
- 1980 – Tassos Venetis, Greek footballer
- 1981 – Ron Hainsey, American ice hockey player
- 1981 – Dirk Hayhurst, American baseball player
- 1982 – Corey Hart, American baseball player
- 1982 – Dustin McGowan, American baseball player
- 1982 – Nivea, American singer
- 1983 – T. J. Ford, American basketball player
- 1983 – Kelvin Kwan, Hong Kong singer
- 1984 – Chris Bosh, American basketball player
- 1984 – Benoît Assou-Ekotto, French footballer
- 1984 – Adrian D'Souza, Indian field hockey player
- 1985 – Haruka Ayase, Japanese actress and model
- 1986 – Kohei Hirate, Japanese racing driver
- 1986 – Tony McMahon, English footballer
- 1988 – Ryan Higgins, Zimbabwean cricketer
- 1990 – Keisha Castle-Hughes, Australian/New Zealand actress
Deaths
- 809 – Harun al-Rashid, Abbasid caliph (b. 763)
- 1284 – King Hugh III of Cyprus (b. 1235)
- 1381 – Saint Catharine of Sweden, Swedish saint (b. 1332)
- 1396 – Walter Hilton, English mystic (b. 1340)
- 1455 – Pope Nicholas V (b. 1397)
- 1558 – Anna of Egmond, Countess of Egmond and Buren (b. 1533)
- 1563 – Hosokawa Harumoto, Japanese military leader (b. 1514)
- 1575 – Yosef Karo, Spanish-born rabbi (b. 1488)
- 1603 – Queen Elizabeth I of England (b. 1533)
- 1653 – Samuel Scheidt, German composer (b. 1587)
- 1773 – Philip Dormer Stanhope, English statesman (b. 1694)
- 1776 – John Harrison, English clockmaker (b. 1693)
- 1869 – Antoine-Henri Jomini, French general (b. 1779)
- 1881 – Joseph Delesse, French geologist (b. 1817)
- 1882 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American author (b. 1807)
- 1887 – Ivan Kramskoi, Russian painter and art critic (b. 1837)
- 1888 – Vsevolod Garshin, Russian author (b. 1855)
- 1905 – Jules Verne, French author (b. 1828)
- 1909 – John Millington Synge, Irish playwright (b. 1871)
- 1915 – Karol Olszewski, Polish scientist (b. 1846)
- 1916 – Enrique Granados, Spanish composer (b. 1867)
- 1921 – Larry McLean, Canadian baseball player (b. 1881)
- 1944 – Orde Wingate, British soldier (b. 1903)
- 1946 – Alexander Alekhine, Russian chess player (b. 1892)
- 1948 – Sigrid Hjertén, Swedish modernist painter (b. 1885)
- 1950 – James Rudolph Garfield, American politician (b. 1865)
- 1953 – Mary of Teck, Queen Consort to George V of the United Kingdom (b. 1867)
- 1962 – Jean Goldkette, Greek-born musician (b. 1899)
- 1962 – Auguste Piccard, Swiss physicist and explorer (b. 1884)
- 1968 – Alice Guy-Blaché, American film director (b. 1873)
- 1976 – Bernard Montgomery, British field marshal (b. 1887)
- 1980 – Óscar Romero, Salvadoran Catholic archbishop (b. 1917)
- 1984 – Sam Jaffe, American actor (b. 1891)
- 1990 – Ray Goulding, American comedian (b. 1922)
- 1990 – An Wang, Chinese-born computer engineer (b. 1920)
- 1991 – Sir John Kerr, Australian Governor-General (b. 1914)
- 1993 – Albert Arlen, Australian pianist, composer, actor, director (b. 1905)
- 1993 – John Hersey, American author (b. 1914)
- 1995 – Joseph Needham, British academic and sinologist (b. 1900)
- 1997 – Martin Caidin, American aviation writer (b. 1927)
- 1997 – Harold Melvin, American singer (Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes) (b. 1939)
- 1999 – Gertrud Scholtz-Klink, German women's activist (b. 1902)
- 1999 – Birdie Tebbetts, American baseball player and manager (b. 1912)
- 2001 – Muriel Young, English TV entertainer (b. 1928)
- 2002 – César Milstein, Argentine scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1927)
- 2003 – Hans Hermann Groër, Austrian Catholic archbishop (b. 1919)
- 2006 – Lynne Perrie, English actress (b. 1931)
- 2008 – Chalmers "Spanky" Alford, American guitarist (b. 1955)
- 2008 – Neil Aspinall, British record producer (b. 1941)
- 2008 – Hal Riney, American advertising executive (b. 1932)
- 2008 – Richard Widmark, American actor (b. 1914)
- 2009 – George Kell, American baseball player (b. 1922)
Holidays and observances
- Christian Feast Day
- Catherine of Vadstena
- Macartan
- Simon of Trent (cult suppressed)
- Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice (Argentina)
- Kazimiras Diena (Ancient Latvia)
- Student Day (Church of Scientology)
- World Tuberculosis Day (International)
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to March 24.