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February 15

February 15

February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 319 days remaining (320 in leap years).

Events

- 399 - The philosopher Socrates is sentenced to death.
- 1637 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
- 1764 - The city of St. Louis, Missouri is established.
- 1805 - Harmony Society officially formed.
- 1852 - Great Ormond St Hospital for Sick Children, London, admits first patient.
- 1862 - American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant attacks Fort Donelson, Tennessee.
- 1879 - Women's rights: American President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court of the United States.
- 1898 - Spanish-American War: The USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana harbor in Cuba, killing more than 260. This event leads the United States to declare war on Spain.
- 1903 - Morris Michtom and his wife Rose introduce the first teddy bear in America.
- 1906 - The British Labour Party is organized.
- 1933 - In Miami, Florida, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but instead shoots Chicago, Illinois Mayor Anton J. Cermak, who dies of his wounds on March 6, 1933.
- 1942 - World War II: The Fall of Singapore. Following an assault by Japanese forces, the British General Arthur Percival surrenders. About 80,000 Indian, United Kingdom and Australian soldiers become prisoners of war, the largest surrender of British-led military personnel in history.
- 1944 - World War II: Assault on Monte Cassino, Italy begins.
- 1950 - The Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China sign a mutual defense treaty.
- 1953 - Seventeen-year-old Tenley Albright becomes the first American to win the world figure skating championship.
- 1961 - A Boeing 707 crashes in Belgium, killing 73, including the entire United States figure skating team and several coaches.
- 1965 - A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.
- 1970 - A Dominican DC-9 crashes into the sea during takeoff from Santo Domingo, killing 102
- 1971 - Decimalisation of British coinage is completed on Decimal Day.
- 1980 - Television One and Television Two (formerly South Pacific Television) under the newly formed Television New Zealand goes to air for the first time
- 1982 - The drilling rig Ocean Ranger sinks during a storm off the coast of Newfoundland, killing 84 rig workers.
- 1989 - Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan: The Soviet Union officially announces that all of its troops had left Afghanistan.
- 1991 - The Visegrád Agreement, establishing cooperation to move toward free-market systems, is signed by the leaders of Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland.
- 1995 - Hacking: Kevin Mitnick is arrested by the FBI and charged with breaking into some of the United States' most "secure" computer systems.
- 1999 - Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the terrorist organization Kurdistan Workers Party, is arrested in Kenya by Turkish agents.
- 2000 - Indian Point II nuclear power plant in New York vents a small amount of radioactive steam when a steam generator fails.
- 2002 - At the Tri-State Crematory in La Fayette, Georgia, investigators find that bodies that were supposed to have been cremated were in fact disposed of in the woods and buildings on the crematorium's property. The discovery reveals one of the worst incidents of abuse in the funeral service industry.
- 2003 - Global protests aganinst the Iraq war occur in over 600 cities worldwide. Estimates from 10,000,000-15,000,000 make this the largest day of protest in history.
- 2004 - John Daly the PGA golfer, wins his first PGA TOUR event in 9 years by winning the Buick Invitational golf tournament on the first hole of a playoff in San Diego, California.

Births

- 1458 - Ivan the Young, Ruler of Tver (d. 1490)
- 1471 - Piero di Lorenzo de' Medici, ruler of Florence (d. 1503)
- 1543 - Charles II, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1608)
- 1564 - Galileo Galilei, Italian astronomer and physicist (d. 1642)
- 1620 - François Charpentier, French archaeologist (d. 1702)
- 1705 - Charles-André van Loo, French painter (d. 1765)
- 1710 - King Louis XV of France (d. 1774)
- 1723 - John Witherspoon, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (d. 1794)
- 1725 - Abraham Clark, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (d. 1794)
- 1739 - Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, French architect (d. 1813)
- 1759 - Friedrich August Wolf, German philologist and archaeologist (d. 1824)
- 1803 - John Sutter, California pioneer (d. 1880)
- 1809 - Cyrus McCormick, American inventor (d. 1884)
- 1812 - Charles Lewis Tiffany, American jeweler (d. 1902)
- 1815 - Constantin von Tischendorf, German Biblical scholar (d. 1874)
- 1820 - Susan B. Anthony, American feminist and suffragist (d. 1906)
- 1825 - Carter Harrison, Sr., Mayor of Chicago (d. 1893)
- 1835 - Demetrius Vikelas, Greek International Olympic Committee president (d. 1908)
- 1841 - Manoel Ferraz de Campos Salles, President of Brazil (d. 1913)
- 1845 - Elihu Root, American statesman and diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1937)
- 1847 - Robert Fuchs, Austrian composer (d. 1927)
- 1856 - Emil Kraepelin, German psychiatrist (d. 1926)
- 1861 - Charles Edouard Guillaume, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1938)
- 1873 - Hans von Euler-Chelpin, German-born chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1964)
- 1874 - Sir Ernest Shackleton, British polar explorer (d. 1922)
- 1882 - John Barrymore, American actor (d. 1942)
- 1883 - Sax Rohmer, English author (d. 1959)
- 1892 - James Forrestal, first United States Secretary of Defense (d. 1949)
- 1895 - Earl Thomson, Canadian athlete (d. 1971)
- 1896 - Arthur Shields, Irish actor (d. 1970)
- 1898 - Totò, Italian actor, writer, and composer (d. 1967)
- 1898 - Allen Woodring, American runner (d. 1982)
- 1899 - Georges Auric, French composer (d. 1983)
- 1899 - Gale Sondergaard, American actress (d. 1985)
- 1905 - Harold Arlen, American composer (d. 1986)
- 1907 - Jean Langlais, French composer and organist (d. 1991)
- 1907 - Cesar Romero, American actor (d. 1994)
- 1909 - Miep Gies, Dutch biographer of Anne Frank
- 1909 - Guillermo Gorostiza Paredes, Spanish footballer (d. 1966)
- 1914 - Hale Boggs, American politician (d. 1972)
- 1914 - Kevin McCarthy, American actor
- 1916 - Mary Jane Croft, American actress (d. 1999)
- 1918 - Allan Arbus, American actor
- 1919 - Andreas Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1996)
- 1922 - John Bayard Anderson, U.S Congressman and presidential candidate
- 1927 - Harvey Korman, American actor and comedian
- 1929 - Graham Hill, British race car driver (d. 1975)
- 1929 - James Schlesinger, American politician
- 1931 - Claire Bloom, British actress
- 1934 - Niklaus Wirth, Swiss computer scientist
- 1935 - Susan Brownmiller, American feminist and writer
- 1935 - Roger Chaffee, astronaut (d. 1967)
- 1940 - John Hadl, American football player
- 1943 - Geoff Edwards, American television game show host
- 1946 - Marisa Berenson, American actress
- 1947 - Rusty Hamer, American actor (d. 1990)
- 1948 - Ron Cey, baseball player
- 1948 - Art Spiegelman, American cartoonist
- 1949 - Ken Anderson, American football player
- 1951 - Melissa Manchester, American singer
- 1951 - Jane Seymour, British actress
- 1954 - Matt Groening, American cartoonist
- 1955 - Christopher McDonald, American actor
- 1960 - Mikey Craig, British musician (Culture Club)
- 1964 - Chris Farley, American actor and comedian (d. 1997)
- 1971 - Renée O'Connor, American actress and director
- 1972 - Jaromír Jágr, Czech hockey player
- 1973 - Sarah Wynter, Australian actress
- 1974 - Seattle Slew, American racehorse (d. 2002)
- 1974 - Ugueth Urbina, Venezuelan Major League Baseball player
- 1976 - Brandon Boyd, American musician (Incubus)
- 1978 - Tuan Le, American poker player
- 1979 - Alenka Kejžar, Slovenian swimmer
- 1980 - Conor Oberst, American singer and songwriter (Bright Eyes)
- 1984 - Dorota Rabczewska, Polish singer (Virgin)

Deaths

- 1145 - Pope Lucius II
- 1621 - Michael Praetorius, German composer
- 1637 - Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1678)
- 1738 - Matthias Braun, Czech sculptor (b. 1684)
- 1775 - Peter Dens, Belgian Catholic theologian (b. 1690)
- 1781 - Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German author and philosopher (b. 1729)
- 1818 - Friedrich Ludwig, Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen, Prussian general (b. 1746)
- 1835 - Henry Hunt, British politician (b. 1773)
- 1848 - Hermann von Boyen, Prussian field marshal (b. 1771)
- 1857 - Mikhail Glinka, Russian composer (b. 1804)
- 1932 - Minnie Maddern Fiske, Broadway actress (b. 1865)
- 1959 - Owen Willans Richardson, British physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
- 1964 - Robert L. Thornton, American businessman, philanthropist, and Mayor of Dallas, Texas (b. 1880)
- 1965 - Nat King Cole, American singer and musician (b. 1919)
- 1973 - Wally Cox, American actor (b. 1924)
- 1973 - Tim Holt, American actor (b. 1919)
- 1974 - Kurt Atterberg, Swedish composer (b. 1887)
- 1981 - Mike Bloomfield, American musician (b. 1944)
- 1981 - Karl Richter, German conductor (b. 1926)
- 1984 - Ethel Merman, American singer and actress (b. 1908)
- 1988 - Richard Feynman, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
- 1996 - Tommy Rettig, American actor (b. 1941)
- 1996 - McLean Stevenson, American actor (b. 1929)
- 1999 - Big L (Lamont Coleman), American rapper (b. 1974)
- 1999 - Henry Way Kendall, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1926)
- 2002 - Howard K. Smith, American journalist (b. 1914)
- 2002 - Kevin Smith, New Zealand actor (b. 1963)
- 2004 - Jens Evensen, Norwegian minister and International Court of Justice judge (b. 1917)
- 2004 - Jan Miner, American actress (b. 1917)
- 2005 - Samuel Francis, American journalist (b. 1947)

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/february/15 BBC: On This Day]
- [http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20050215.html The New York Times: On This Day] ---- February 14 - February 16 - January 15 - March 15 -- listing of all days ko:2월 15일 ja:2月15日 simple:February 15 th:15 กุมภาพันธ์

February 15

February 15 is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 319 days remaining (320 in leap years).

Events

Births

Deaths

External links

399

Events

- Yazdegerd I becomes king of Persia
- November 27 - St. Anastius I becomes Pope succeeding Pope Siricius.
- Fa-Hien, a Chinese Buddhist monk, travels to India.

Births

- January 19 - Pulcheria, Byzantine empress (d. 453)
- Yazdegerd I of Persia (d. 420)

Deaths

- Bahram IV of Persia Category:399 ko:399년

1637

Events

- February 3 - Tulip mania collapses in the United Provinces (now the Netherlands) by government order
- February 15 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor
- December 17 - Shimabara Rebellion erupts in Japan
- Pierre de Fermat makes a marginal claim to have proof of what would become known as Fermat's last theorem.
- France places a few missionaries in the Côte d'Ivoire, a country it would come to rule more than 200 years later.
- England wages war against the Mashantucket Pequots
- First opera house, Teatro San Cassiona, opens in Venice
- René Descartes - Discours de la Methode
- Elizabeth Poole becomes the first woman to have founded a town (Taunton, Massachusetts) in the Americas.

Births

- January 1 - Emperor Go-Sai of Japan (d. 1685)
- February 12 - Jan Swammerdam, Dutch scientist (d. 1680)
- June 10 - Jacques Marquette, French Jesuit missionary and explorer (d. 1675)
- August 27 - Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore, Governor of the Province of Maryland (d. 1715)
- November 30 - Louis-Sébastien Le Nain de Tillemont, French historian (d. 1698)
- December 6 - Edmund Andros, English governor in North America (d. 1714)
- December 7 - Bernardo Pasquini, Italian composer (d. 1710)
- Dietrich Buxtehude, German composer (d. 1707)
- Pierre Jurieu, French protestant leader (d. 1713) See also :Category:1637 births.

Deaths

- February 15 - Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1578)
- March 19 - Peter Pazmany, Hungarian cardinal and statesman (b. 1570)
- April 1 - Niwa Nagashige, Japanese warlord (b. 1571)
- May 19 - Isaac Beeckman, Dutch scientist and philosopher (b. 1588)
- June 24 - Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc, French astronomer (b. 1580)
- August 6 - Ben Jonson, English writer (b. 1572)
- August 10 - Johann Gerhard, German Lutheran leader (b. 1582)
- August 14 - Gabriello Chiabrera, Italian poet (b. 1552)
- September 8 - Robert Fludd, English mystic (b. 1574)
- September 27 - Lorenzo Ruiz, Filipino saint
- Nicholas Ferrar, English trader (b. 1592) See also :Category:1637 deaths. Category:1637 ko:1637년

Holy Roman Emperor

The Holy Roman Emperor was, with some variation, the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, the predecessor of modern Germany and Austria, during its existence from the 10th century until its collapse in 1806. The terminology of the title is somewhat confusing, the Holy Roman Empire having been famously described by Voltaire as "neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire". The title of "emperor" was considered to have passed from the Romans to the Frankish kingdom when, in AD 800, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne, king of the Franks, emperor in exchange for the protection of the church. After the division of the Frankish realm into three parts by the Treaty of Verdun in 843, the title first remained in the middle Lotharingian realm, but eventually passed to the east when Otto I the Great, king of the East Franks, was crowned emperor in 962. The transfer of the Empire was, in medieval theory, referred to as translatio imperii. Initially, the emperor called himself Imperator Augustus, referring to Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus. The title of "Holy Roman Emperor", as the name of the Holy Roman Empire itself, was only used in later centuries. Until 1508, the King of the Romans, who was elected by a group of princes later known as electors, became emperor when he was crowned by the pope in Rome, after which he remained king (a title with functions in feudal law). By contrast, the title of emperor had a more religious connotation, suggesting the task of protecting the church. The emperor was also ordained as a subdeacon which excluded non-Catholics and women from the throne. The exact relationship between the two functions was never entirely clear and led to much conflict between the German dukes and the pope, for example in the Investiture Controversy in the 11th century. The selection of the king was influenced by a complicated mélange of factors. Formally elected, as opposed to France, the title was only to a degree hereditary, although it frequently remained in a dynasty until there were no more successors. Some scholars suggest that the task of the electors was really to solve succession conflicts, when the dynastic rule was unclear. Still, the process required the most probable candidate to make concessions to the voters, the so-called Wahlkapitulationen (election capitulations), which contributed to the decline of central power in favor of the territories in the Empire. The collegiate of electors was fixed to seven in the Golden Bull in 1356 until 1623, when, during the Thirty Years' War, more electors were added. After 1438, the kingdom remained in the house of Habsburg, with the brief exception of the Wittelsbach Charles VII. In 1508 and permanently after 1556 the king assumed the title of Emperor-elect without travelling to Rome to be crowned by the Pope. Nonetheless, the king was commonly referred to as Emperor. The office of Holy Roman Emperor was abolished with the empire in 1806. Its last occupant, Francis II, had assumed the style Franz I, Emperor of Austria in 1804.

1764

1764 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar).

Events

- January 19 - John Wilkes is expelled from the House of Commons for seditious libel
- February 15 - The American city of St. Louis is established.
- June 21 - The English-language Quebec Gazette is established in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. As of 2005, it is the oldest surviving newspaper in North America.
- November 9 - Mary Campbell, a captive of the Lenape during the French and Indian War, is turned over to forces commanded by Colonel Henry Bouquet.
- November 16 - Chief Pontiac surrenders to the British

Births

- February 11 - Marie-Joseph Chénier, French poet (d. 1811)
- March 13 - Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1845)
- April 3 - John Abernethy, English surgeon (d. 1831)
- April 13 - Laurent, Marquis de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, French marshal (d. 1830)
- May 5 - Robert Craufurd, British general (d. 1812)
- May 26 - Edward Livingston, American jurist and statesman (d. 1836)
- June 21 - Sidney Smith, British admiral (d. 1840)
- December 7 - Claude Victor-Perrin, duc de Belluno, French marshal (d. 1841)

Deaths

- March 6 - Philip Yorke, 1st Earl of Hardwicke, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1690)
- March 17 - George Parker, 2nd Earl of Macclesfield, English astronomer
- March 30 - Pietro Locatelli, Italian composer (b. 1695)
- April 15 - Madame de Pompadour, mistress of King Louis XIV of France (b. 1721)
- April 17 - Johann Mattheson, German composer (b. 1681)
- May 3 - Francesco Algarotti, Italian philosopher (b. 1712)
- June 29 - Ralph Allen, English businessman and politician (b. 1693)
- July 7 - William Pulteney, 1st Earl of Bath, English politician (b. 1683)
- July 16 - Tsar Ivan VI (murdered in prison) (b. 1740)
- July 23 - Gilbert Tennent, Irish-born religious leader (b. 1703)
- September 2 - Nathaniel Bliss, English Astronomer Royal (b. 1700)
- September 12 - Jean-Philippe Rameau, French composer (b. 1683)
- September 23 - Robert Dodsley, English writer (b. 1703)
- September 26 - Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro, Spanish scholar (b. 1676)
- October 2 - William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, Prime Minister of Great Britain
- October 23 - Emmanuel-Auguste de Cahideuc, Comte Dubois de la Motte, French naval officer (b. 1683)
- November 20 - Christian Goldbach, Prussian mathematician (b. 1690) Category:1764 ko:1764년

1805

1805 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar).

Events

- January 11 - Michigan Territory is created.
- February 15 - Harmony Society officially formed
- March 1 - Justice Samuel Chase acquitted of impeachment charges by the U.S. Senate
- April 27 - United States Marines and Berbers attack the Tripolitan city of Derna (The "Shores of Tripoli").
- May 26 - In Milan's cathedral, Napoleon I of France crowns himself King of Italy with the Iron Crown of Lombardy
- June 1 - Luigi Boccherini was buried in Italy after being found dead on May 28.
- June - War ends between Tripoli and the United States of America.
- June 4 - The first Trooping the Colour ceremony at the Horse Guards Parade in London
- June 13 - Lewis and Clark Expedition: Scouting ahead of the expedition, Meriwether Lewis and four companions sight the Great Falls of the Missouri River, confirming they are heading in the right direction.[http://www.lewis-clark.org/GREATFALLSVT/FALLSOFMO/2GRANDFALL/gf03_grandfall-barralet.htm]
- October 21 - Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Trafalgar - British naval fleet led by Admiral Horatio Nelson defeats a combined French and Spanish fleet off the coast of Spain. Admiral Nelson is fatally shot
- November 7 - Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived at the Pacific Ocean.
- November 16 - Battle at Schungrabern - Russian army stops the French
- December 2 - Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Austerlitz - French troops under Napoleon decisively defeat a joint Russo-Austrian force.
- December 26 - Peace of Pressburg between France and Austria
- Sweden declares war on France
- Horse Patrol, mounted law enforcement force, founded in London, England
- Napoleon annuls the ten-day week of the French Revolutionary Calendar. He also orders his soldiers to be vaccinated
- King Anouvong becomes ruler of Vientiane.

Ongoing events

- Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815)-Third Coalition

Births

- January 8 - Orson Hyde, American religious leader (d. 1878)
- January 27 - Samuel Palmer, English artist (d. 1881)
- March 3 - Jonas Furrer, Swiss politician and first President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 1861)
- April 2 - Hans Christian Andersen, Danish writer (d. 1875)
- June 22 - Giuseppe Mazzini Italian patriot, statesman, and writer (d. 1872)
- July 29 - Alexis de Tocqueville, French historian (d. 1859)
- August 4 - William Rowan Hamilton, Irish mathematician (d. 1865)
- August 29 - Frederick Maurice, English theologian (d. 1872)
- November 14 - Fanny Mendelssohn, German composer and pianist (d. 1847)
- December 22 - John Obadiah Westwood, British entomologist (d. 1893)
- December 23 - Joseph Smith, Jr., American religious leader, founder of Mormonism (d. 1844)

Deaths

- January 9 - Noble Jones, American Continental Congressman (b. 1723)
- January 23 - Claude Chappe, French telecommunication pioneer (b. 1763)
- February 25 - Thomas Pownall, British colonial statesman (b. 1722)
- March 4 - Jean-Baptiste Greuze, French painter (b. 1725)
- May 9 - Friedrich Schiller, German playwright (b. 1759)
- May 25 - William Paley, English philosopher (b. 1743)
- May 28 - Luigi Boccherini, Italian composer (b. 1743)
- June 19 - Louis-Jean-François Lagrenée, French painter (b. 1724)
- August 3 - Christopher Anstey, English writer (b. 1724)
- August 28 - Alexander Carlyle, Scottish church leader (b. 1722)
- October 5 - Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British general (b. 1738)
- October 21 - Horatio Nelson, British admiral (mortally wounded in battle) (b. 1758)
- December 23 - Pehr Osbeck, Swedish explorer and naturalist (b. 1723)
- John Moore, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1730) Category:1805 ko:1805년 ms:1805 simple:1805

1852

1852 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar).

Events

- January 14 - President Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte proclaims a new constitution for the French Second Republic.
- January 17 - United Kingdom recognizes independence of the Transvaal
- Devil's Island penal colony opens
- February 11 - First British public toilet for women opens in Bedford Street, London
- February 15 - Great Ormond St Hospital for Sick Children, London, admits first patient
- February 16 - Studebaker Brothers wagon company, precursor of the automobile manufacturer, is established
- February 19 - The Phi Kappa Psi fraternity is founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania
- March 1 - Archibald William Montgomerie, 13th Earl of Eglinton appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
- April 1 - Start of Second Burmese War
- September 24 - French engineer Henri Giffard makes the first airship trip from Paris to Trappes
- October 6 - In Mexico, French settlers under Count Gaston Raousset-Boulbon occupy the city of Hermosillo and declare the Republic of Sonora. The attempt falters when the count contracts dysentery
- November 2 - Democrat Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire defeats Whig Winfield Scott of Virginia in the U.S. presidential election
- November 4 - Count Cavour becomes Piedmont prime minister
- November 11 - New Palace of Westminster opened in Britain
- November 21/November 22 New French Empire confirmed by plebiscite: 7,824,000 for, 253,000 against
- December 2 - Napoleon III becomes Emperor of France.
- French replace semaphores with Morse telegraphs
- Justin Perkins, an American Presbyterian missionary, produces the first translation of the Bible in Assyrian Neo-Aramaic, which is published with the parallel text of the Syriac Peshitta by the American Bible Society
- Uncle Tom's Cabin published

Births

- March 1 - Théophile Delcassé, French statesman (d. 1923)
- April 1 - Edwin Austin Abbey, American painter (d. 1911)
- April 13 - F.W. Woolworth, American merchant and businessman (d. 1919)
- April 22 - Guillaume IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (d. 1912)
- May 1 - Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Spanish histologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1934)
- May 4 - Alice Pleasance Liddell, inspiration for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (d. 1934)
- May 31 - Julius Richard Petri, German bacteriologist (d. 1921)
- July 12 - Hipólito Yrigoyen, President of Argentina (d. 1933)
- August 30 - Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff, Dutch chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1911)
- September 12 - Herbert Henry Asquith, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1928)
- September 28 - Henri Moissan, French chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1907)
- October 2 - William Ramsay, Scottish chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1916)
- October 9 - Hermann Emil Fischer, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1919)
- November 1 - Eugene W. Chafin, American politician (d. 1920)
- November 3 - Mutsuhito of Japan, Meiji Emperor (d. 1912)
- November 11 - Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf, Austro-Hungarian field marshal (d. 1925)
- November 22 - Paul-Henri-Benjamin d'Estournelles de Constant, French diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1924)
- December 15 - Henri Becquerel, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1908)
- December 19 - Albert Abraham Michelson, German-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1931)

Deaths

- January 6 - Louis Braille, French teacher of the blind (b. 1809)
- March 4 - Nikolai Gogol, Russian writer (b. 1809)
- June 29 - Henry Clay, American Senator (b. 1777)
- July 22 - Auguste Marmont, French marshal (b. 1774)
- September 4 - William MacGillivray, Scottish naturalist and ornithologist (b. 1796)
- September 14 - Augustus Pugin, English architect (b. 1812)
- September 14 - Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, British general and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1769)
- September 20 - Philander Chase, American founder of Kenyon College (b. 1775)
- October 24 - Daniel Webster, American statesman (b. 1782)
- November 27 - Augusta Ada King (neé Byron), Countess of Lovelace, early English computer pioneer (b. 1815)
- November 30 - Junius Brutus Booth, English-born actor (b. 1796) Category:1852 ko:1852년 ms:1852 simple:1852 th:พ.ศ. 2395

London

London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. As Europe's richest city, London produces 17% of the UK's GDP, and is one of the world's major business and financial centres. The capital of the former global empire, London is a leader in culture, communications, politics, finance, entertainment and the arts and has considerable influence worldwide. arts]] arts] London is the most populous city in the European Union, with an estimated population on 1 January 2005 of 7,500,000 and a metropolitan area population of between 12 and 14 million. London's population includes an extremely diverse range of peoples, cultures, and religions, making it one of the most cosmopolitan, vibrant and energetic cities on earth. A resident of London is referred to as a Londoner. Over 300 languages are spoken in London, making it the most linguistically diverse city in the world. Initially it was a Roman city and known as Londinium and then as Lunnainn, Llundain and Londain in the Scottish, Welsh and Irish languages respectively. London is known by these names in other languages. London is the home of many global organisations, institutions and companies, and as such retains its leading role in global affairs. A city where cutting-edge meets tradition, London is a major tourist destination and transport hub. It has a great number of important buildings and iconic landmarks, including world-famous museums, theatres, concert halls, galleries, airports, sports stadia and palaces. London is one of the world's major global cities (along with New York City, Tokyo and Paris).

Defining London

Today, "London" usually refers to the conurbation known as Greater London, which is divided into thirty-two London Boroughs and the City of London and forms the London region of England. Historically, "London" referred to the square mile of the City of London at the conurbation's heart, from which the city grew. Between 1889 and 1965 it referred to the former County of London which covered the area now known as Inner London. There are other definitions of "London" which cover varying areas, such as the London postal district; the area covered by the telephone area code 020; the area accessible by public transport using a Transport for London Travelcard; the area delimited by the M25 orbital motorway; the Metropolitan Police district; and the London commuter belt. The coordinates of the centre of London (traditionally considered to be Charing Cross, near the junction of Trafalgar Square, the Strand, Whitehall and the Mall) are approximately . The Romans marked the centre of Londinium with the London Stone in the City.

Geography and climate

London Stone, with Green Park and St. James's Park to its right]] Greater London covers an area of 609 square miles (1,579 km²). London is a port on the Thames, a navigable river. The river has had a major influence on the development of the city. London was founded on the north bank of the Thames and there was only a single bridge, London Bridge, for many centuries. As a result, the main focus of the city was on the north side of the Thames. When more bridges were built in the 18th century, the city expanded in all directions as the mostly flat or gently rolling countryside around the Thames floodplain presented no obstacle to growth. There are some hills in London, examples being Parliament Hill and Primrose Hill, but these provided fine prospects of the city centre without significantly affecting the directions of the spread of the city and London is therefore roughly circular. The Thames was once a much broader, shallower river than it is today. It has been extensively embanked, and many of its London tributaries now flow underground. The Thames is a tidal river, and London is vulnerable to flooding. The threat has increased over time due to a slow but continuous rise in high water level and the slow 'tilting' of Britain (up in the north and down in the south) caused by post-glacial rebound. The Thames Barrier was constructed across the Thames at Woolwich in the 1970s to deal with this threat, but in early-2005 it was suggested that a ten-mile-long barrier further downstream might be required to deal with the flood risk in the future [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4162905.stm]. London has a temperate climate, with warm but seldom hot summers, cool but rarely severe winters, and regular but generally light precipitation throughout the year. Summer temperatures rarely rise much above 33°C (91°F), though higher temperatures have become more common recently. The highest temperature ever recorded in London was 38.1°C (100.6°F), measured at Kew Gardens during the European Heat Wave of 2003. Heavy snowfalls are almost unknown. In recent winters, snow has rarely settled to more than an inch (25 mm). London's average annual precipitation of less than 24 inches (600 mm) is lower than that of Rome or Sydney. London's large built-up area creates a microclimate, with heat stored by the city's buildings: sometimes temperatures are 5°C (9°F) warmer in the city than in the surrounding areas.

History

microclimate bombings of London]] The name London is commonly thought to have come from the Latin name Londinium, as London was founded by the Romans during their reign over the land, around 43AD – although there is some slight evidence of pre-Roman settlement. The [http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/timelines/england/rom_roman_invasion.shtml BBC History website], however, claims that the name Londinium is actually "Celtic, not Latin, and may originally have referred to a previous farmstead on the site"; the root is 'Lond' meaning 'wild' (i.e. overgrown or forested) place. This fortified Roman settlement was the capital of the province of Britannia. According to findings displayed in London Museum, the initial language of London was Latin with much Greek spoken due to the presence of Greek speaking Roman soldiers and businessmen. Another suggestion for where the name of the city comes from could be that of the mythical leader, King Lud. It was said that Lud laid out the first set of roads in the city. His statue can be seen hidden at the church of St Dunstan's In The West, Fleet Street. Around AD 61 the Iceni tribe of Celts lead by Queen Boudica stormed London and took the city from the Romans. The Celts burnt the relatively new Roman town to the ground, and archaeological digs have revealed a layer of red ash beneath the City of London, which is believed to be the burnt remains of the old Roman town. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Londinium was abandoned and a Saxon town named Lundenwic was established approximately one mile to the west in what is now Aldwych, in the 7th century. The old Roman city was then reoccupied during the late-9th or early-10th century. Westminster was once a distinct town, and has been the seat of the English royal court and government since the mediæval era. Eventually, Westminster and London grew together and formed the basis of London, becoming England's largest – though not capital – city (Winchester was the capital city of England until the 12th century). London has grown steadily over centuries, surrounding and making suburbs of neighbouring villages and towns, farmland, countryside, meadows and woodlands, spreading in every direction. From the 16th to the early-20th century, London flourished as the capital of the British Empire. In 1666, the Great Fire of London swept through and destroyed a large part of the City of London. Rebuilding took over 10 years, but London's growth accelerated in the 18th century, and, by the early-19th century, it was the largest city in the world. London's local government system struggled to cope with this rapid growth, especially in providing the city with adequate infrastructure. In 1855 the Metropolitan Board of Works was created to provide London with infrastructure to cope with its growth. In 1889 the MBW was abolished, and the County of London was created which was administered by the London County Council, the first elected London-wide administrative body. Probably the most significant changes to London in the last 100 years were as a result of the Blitz and other bombing by the German Luftwaffe that took place during World War II. The bombing killed over 30,000 Londoners and flattened large tracts of housing and other buildings across London. The rebuilding during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s was characterised by a wide range of architectural styles and has resulted in a lack of unity in architecture that has become part of London's character. Until their 1997 ceasefire, London was regularly a target for IRA bombers seeking to pressurise the British government into negotiations with Sinn Féin on Northern Ireland. On 7 July 2005, there was a series of coordinated bomb attacks by Islamic extremist suicide bombers on three underground stations and a bus. The explosions came less than 24 hours after London was awarded the 2012 Summer Olympics and as the G-8 summit was underway in