Information about 1 February
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Events
- 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer.
- 1411 - Peace of Toruń 1411 signed in Toruń, Poland
- 1662 - The Chinese general Koxinga seizes the island of Taiwan after a nine-month siege.
- 1713 - The Kalabalik or Tumult in Bendery results from the Ottoman sultan's order that his unwelcome guest, King Charles XII of Sweden, be seized.
- 1788 - Isaac Briggs and William Longstreet patent the steamboat.
- 1790 - In New York City the Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time.
- 1793 - French Revolutionary Wars: France declares war on the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
- 1796 - The capital of Upper Canada is moved from Newark to York.
- 1814 - Mayon Volcano, in the Philippines, erupts, killing around 1,200 people; most devastating eruption of Mayon Volcano.
- 1856 - Auburn University is chartered as the East Alabama Male College.
- 1861 - American Civil War: Texas secedes from the United States.
- 1862 - Julia Ward Howe's "Battle Hymn of the Republic" is published for the first time in the Atlantic Monthly.
- 1880 - The first edition of theatrical newspaper The Stage is published.
- 1884 - Edition one of the Oxford English Dictionary is published.
- 1893 - Thomas A. Edison finishes construction of the first motion picture studio, the Black Maria (West Orange, New Jersey).
- 1896 - The opera La bohème premieres (Turin).
- 1897 - Shinhan Bank (former CHB), oldest bank in South Korea, opened in Seoul.
- 1908 - King Carlos I of Portugal and his son, Prince Luis Filipe are killed in Terreiro do Paco, Lisbon.
- 1913 - New York City's Grand Central Terminal opens as the world's largest train station.
- 1918 - Russia adopts the Gregorian Calendar.
- 1920 - The Royal Canadian Mounted Police begin operations.
- 1924 - United Kingdom recognizes USSR.
- 1929 - Frenchman Charles Rigoulet is the first weightlifter to lift over 400 pounds (181 kg) in the "clean and jerk" method.
- 1943 - World War II: Vidkun Quisling is appointed Premier of Norway by the Nazi occupiers.
- 1946 - Trygve Lie of Norway is picked to be the first United Nations Secretary General.
- 1957 - Felix Wankel's first working prototype DKM 54 of the Wankel engine was running at the NSU research and development department Versuchsabteilung TX in Germany
- 1958 - Merger of Egypt and Syria to form the United Arab Republic, which lasted until 1961.
- 1960 - Four black students stage a sit-in at a lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina.
- 1965 - Churchill River, Newfoundland - Hamilton River in Labrador renamed Churchill River in honour of Winston Churchill.
- 1968 - Vietnam War: Viet Cong officer Nguyen Van Lem is executed by Nguyen Ngoc Loan a South Vietnamese National Police Chief. The execution was videotaped and photographed by Eddie Adams and helped sway public opinion against the war.
- 1968 - Official unification of the three military services of Canada, the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force, into the Canadian Forces.
- 1968 - Merger of the historic New York Central Railroad and Pennsylvania Railroad to form ill-fated Penn Central Transportation.
- 1969 - Saturday mail delivery in Canada eliminated.
- 1972 - Kuala Lumpur became a city by a royal charter granted by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.
- 1974 - Joelma Building fire - a fire in a 25-story office building kills 189 and injures 293 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
- 1974 - Kuala Lumpur declared a Federal Territory.
- 1978 - Director Roman Polanski skips bail and flees to France after pleading guilty to charges of engaging in sex with a 13-year-old girl.
- 1979 - Convicted bank robber Patty Hearst is released from prison after her sentence was commuted by President Jimmy Carter.
- 1979 - Ayatollah Khomeini is welcomed back into Tehran, Iran after nearly 15 years of exile.
- 1981 - Trevor Chappell bowls his infamous "Underarm Ball" to Brian McKechnie to prevent New Zealand scoring a 6, and tying the ODI, on the last ball of the third match in the final of the Benson & Hedges World Series Cup. It directly led to the banning of underarm bowling by the International Cricket Council as not within the spirit of the game.
- 1982 - Senegal and Gambia form a loose confederation known as Senegambia.
- 1982 - David Letterman begins an 11-year run as the host of the NBC program Late Night with David Letterman.
- 1989 - The Western Australian towns of Kalgoorlie and Boulder amalgamate to form the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder.
- 1992 - The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal court declares Warren Anderson, ex-CEO of Union Carbide, a fugitive under Indian law for failing to appear in the Bhopal Disaster case.
- 1994 - In Portland, Oregon Tonya Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly pleads guilty for his role in attacking figure skater Nancy Kerrigan.
- 1996 - The Communications Decency Act is passed by the U.S. Congress.
- 2003 - Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrates during reentry into the Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts aboard.
- 2004 - 251 people are trampled to death and 244 injured in a stampede at the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
- 2005 - Nepal King Gyanendra exercises Coup d'état to capture the democracy becoming Chairman of the Councils of ministers.
- 2005 - Canada introduces the Civil Marriage Act, making Canada the fourth country to sanction same-sex marriage.
Births
- 1261 - Walter de Stapledon, English bishop (d. 1326)
- 1459 - Conrad Celtes, German scholar (d. 1508)
- 1462 - Johannes Trithemius, German cryptographer (d. 1516)
- 1552 - Edward Coke, English colonial entrepreneur (d. 1634)
- 1635 - Marquard Gude, German archaeologist (d. 1689)
- 1690 - Francesco Maria Veracini, Italian composer (d. 1768)
- 1761 - Christian Hendrik Persoon, South African mycologist (d. 1836)
- 1796 - Abraham Emanuel Fröhlich, Swiss poet (d. 1865)
- 1801 - Émile Littré, French lexicographer (d. 1881)
- 1820 - George Hendric Houghton, American Protestant Episcopal clergyman (d. 1897)
- 1844 - G. Stanley Hall, American psychologist (d. 1924)
- 1851 - Durham Stevens, American diplomat (d. 1908)
- 1859 - Victor Herbert, Irish composer (d. 1924)
- 1872 - Jerome F. Donovan, American politician (d. 1949)
- 1872 - Andrew Kehoe, American mass murderer (d. 1927)
- 1873 - John Barry, Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross (d. 1901)
- 1874 - Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Austrian writer (d. 1929)
- 1878 - Milan Hodža, Slovak politician (d. 1944)
- 1882 - Louis Stephen St. Laurent, 12th Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1973)
- 1884 - Yevgeny Zamyatin, Russian writer (d. 1937)
- 1887 - Charles Nordhoff, English-born author (d. 1947)
- 1894 - John Ford, American director and producer (d. 1973)
- 1894 - James P. Johnson, American composer (d. 1955)
- 1895 - Conn Smythe, Canadian builder of the National Hockey League (d. 1980)
- 1901 - Clark Gable, American actor (d. 1960)
- 1902 - Langston Hughes American writer (d. 1967)
- 1902 - Therese Brandl, Nazi concentration camp guard (d. 1947)
- 1904 - S. J. Perelman, American humorist (d. 1979)
- 1905 - Emilio G. Segrè, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1989)
- 1906 - Hildegarde, American actress and singer (d. 2005)
- 1907 - Günter Eich, German lyricist (d. 1972)
- 1907 - Camargo Guarnieri, Brazilian composer (d. 1993)
- 1908 - George Pál, Hungarian-born director and producer (d. 1980)
- 1909 - George Beverly Shea, Canadian singer
- 1915 - Stanley Matthews, English football player (d. 2000)
- 1918 - Muriel Spark, Scottish author (d. 2006)
- 1922 - Renata Tebaldi, Italian soprano (d. 2004)
- 1924 - H. Richard Hornberger, American writer (d. 1997)
- 1926 - Stuart Whitman, American actor
- 1930 - Shahabuddin Ahmed, President of Bangladesh
- 1930 - Mario Beaulieu, Quebec politician (d. 1998)
- 1931 - Boris Yeltsin, 1st President of the Russian Federation (d. 2007)
- 1931 - Iajuddin Ahmed, President of Bangladesh
- 1934 - Bob Shane, American folk singer (The Kingston Trio)
- 1936 - Azie Taylor Morton, 35th Treasurer of the United States (d. 2003)
- 1937 - Don Everly, American musician (Everly Brothers)
- 1937 - Garrett Morris, American comedian
- 1937 - Ray Sawyer, American singer (Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show)
- 1938 - Sherman Hemsley, American comedian and actor
- 1939 - Claude François, French singer (d. 1978)
- 1939 - Paul Gillmor, American politician (d. 2007)
- 1940 - Bibi Besch, Austrian-American actress (d. 1996)
- 1940 - Hervé Filion, Quebec harness racer
- 1941 - Karl Dall, German television host
- 1941 - Jerry Spinelli, children's author
- 1942 - Terry Jones, Welsh actor and writer
- 1944 - Burkhard Ziese, German football manager
- 1945 - Serge Joyal, French Canadian politician
- 1947 - Jessica Savitch, American journalist (d. 1983)
- 1948 - Rick James, American musician and composer (d. 2004)
- 1948 - Elisabeth Sladen, British actress
- 1950 - Mike Campbell, American guitarist and producer
- 1953 - Brendan Batson, English former footballer
- 1953 - Duane Chapman, American TV personality
- 1954 - Chuck Dukowski, American musician (Black Flag)
- 1954 - Bill Mumy, American actor and musician
- 1955 - Ernie Camacho, baseball player
- 1956 - Exene Cervenka, American musician
- 1956 - Mike Kitchen, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1958 - Jackie Shroff, Indian actor
- 1958 - Luther Blissett (footballer), English footballer
- 1961 - Volker Fried, German field hockey player
- 1962 - José Luis Cuciuffo, Argentinian footballer (d. 2004)
- 1962 - Tomoyasu Hotei, Japanese guitarist
- 1964 - Linus Roache, English actor
- 1965 - Sherilyn Fenn, American actress
- 1965 - Brandon Lee, American actor (d. 1993)
- 1965 - Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
- 1965 - Noah Blake, American actor and reality series star
- 1966 - Michelle Akers, American soccer player
- 1966 - Rob Lee, English footballer
- 1967 - Patle Shishupal Natthu, Indian politician
- 1968 - Lisa Marie Presley, American singer and actress
- 1968 - Pauly Shore, American comedian
- 1968 - Mark Recchi, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1968 - Kent Mercker, American baseball player
- 1969 - Gabriel Batistuta, Argentine footballer
- 1969 - Joshua Redman, American musician
- 1969 - Brian Krause, American actor
- 1969 - Patrick Wilson, American musician
- 1970 - Yasuyuki Kazama, Japanese racing driver
- 1971 - Michael C. Hall, American actor
- 1971 - Jill Kelly, American porn actress
- 1971 - Ron Welty, American musician
- 1971 - Zlatko Zahovič, Slovenian footballer
- 1972 - Yoshi DeHerrera, American TV personality
- 1972 - Kami (musician), Full name Kamimura Ukyou, Drummer of the Japanese visual kei band Malice Mizer
- 1973 - Yuri Landman, Experimental musical instrument builder, musician and comic book artist
- 1973 - Makiko Ohmoto, Japanese voice actress
- 1974 - Roberto Heras, Spanish cyclist
- 1974 - David Meca, Spanish long distance swimmer
- 1975 - Big Boi, American musician (Outkast)
- 1975 - Ekaterini Thanou, Greek sprinter
- 1976 - Phil Ivey, American poker player
- 1977 - Kevin Kilbane, Irish footballer
- 1979 - Julie Augustyniak, American soccer player
- 1979 - Juan Silveira dos Santos, Brazilian footballer
- 1979 - Valentin Elizalde, Mexican Singer (d.2006)
- 1980 - Héctor Luna, Dominican Republic baseball player
- 1980 - Moisés Muñoz, Mexican footballer
- 1980 - Otilino Tenorio, Ecuadorian footballer (d. 2005)
- 1981 - Luis Lamá, Angolan footballer
- 1981 - Graeme Smith, South African cricketer
- 1981 - Rob Austin, British racing driver
- 1982 - Shoaib Malik, Pakistani cricketer
- 1983 - Kevin Martin, American basketball player
- 1984 - Darren Fletcher, Scottish footballer
- 1984 - Lee Thompson Young, American actor
- 1985 - Dean Shiels, Northern Irish footballer
- 1985 - Rachael Scdoris, American dog musher
- 1985 - Jodi Gordon, Australian actress and model
- 1986 - Lauren Conrad, American TV star
Deaths
- 1248 - Henry II, Duke of Brabant (b. 1207)
- 1328 - King Charles IV of France (b. 1294)
- 1542 - Girolamo Aleandro, Italian Catholic cardinal (b. 1480)
- 1563 - Menas, Emperor of Ethiopia (died of fever)
- 1590 - Lawrence Humphrey,English clergyman and educator
- 1691 - Pope Alexander VIII (b. 1610)
- 1718 - Charles Talbot, 1st Duke of Shrewsbury, English politician (b. 1660)
- 1733 - King Augustus II of Poland (b. 1670)
- 1734 - John Floyer, English physician and writer (b. 1649)
- 1743 - Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni, Italian composer (b. 1657)
- 1761 - Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix, French historian (b. 1682)
- 1768 - Sir Robert Rich, 4th Baronet, British cavalry officer (b. 1685)
- 1793 - William Wildman Shute Barrington, British statesman (b. 1717)
- 1832 - Archibald Murphey, North Carolina politician (b. 1777)
- 1851 - Mary Shelley, English author (b. 1797)
- 1893 - George Henry Sanderson, Mayor of San Francisco (b. 1824)
- 1897 - Constantin von Ettingshausen, Austrian geologist (b. 1826)
- 1903 - George Gabriel Stokes, Irish physicist (b. 1819)
- 1908 - King Carlos I of Portugal (b. 1863)
- 1928 - Hughie Jennings, American baseball player and manager (b. 1869)
- 1944 - Piet Mondriaan, Dutch painter (b. 1872)
- 1957 - Friedrich Paulus, German general (b. 1890)
- 1958 - Clinton Davisson, American physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1888)
- 1959 - Madame Sul-Te-Wan, American actress (b. 1873)
- 1963 - Fleetwood Lindley, the last living person to see Abraham Lincoln's face (b. 1888)
- 1966 - Hedda Hopper, American gossip columnist (b. 1885)
- 1966 - Buster Keaton, American actor (b. 1895)
- 1970 - Alfréd Rényi, Hungarian mathematician (b. 1921)
- 1976 - Werner Heisenberg, German physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1901)
- 1976 - George Whipple, American scientist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1878)
- 1980 - Gastone Nencini, Italian cyclist (b. 1930)
- 1981 - Donald Wills Douglas, Sr., American aircraft manufacturer (b. 1892)
- 1981 - Geirr Tveitt, Norwegian composer (b. 1908)
- 1986 - Alva Myrdal, Swedish politician, diplomat, and writer, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1902)
- 1986 - Gino Hernandez, American wrestler (b. 1957)
- 1988 - Heather O'Rourke, American actress (b. 1975)
- 1989 - Elaine de Kooning, American artist (b. 1918)
- 1991 - Carol Dempster, American actress (b. 1901)
- 1991 - Phil Watson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1914)
- 1997 - Herb Caen, American newspaper columnist (b. 1916)
- 1999 - Paul Mellon, American philanthropist (b. 1907)
- 2001 - André D'Allemagne, Quebec teacher, political observer and essayist (b. 1929)
- 2002 - Hildegard Knef, German actress, singer, and writer (b. 1925)
- 2003 - The crew of the STS-107 Mission (Space Shuttle Columbia disaster), astronauts:
- Michael P. Anderson (b. 1959)
- David Brown (b. 1956)
- Kalpana Chawla (b. 1961)
- Laurel Clark (b. 1961)
- Rick D. Husband (b. 1957)
- Willie McCool (b. 1961)
- Ilan Ramon (b. 1954)
- 2003 - Mongo Santamaria, Cuban percussionist and band leader (b. 1922)
- 2005 - John Vernon, Canadian actor (b. 1932)
- 2006 - Dick Bass, American football player (b. 1937)
- 2007 - Gian Carlo Menotti, Italian-born composer (b. 1911)
- 2007 - Seri Wangnaitham, Thai dance choreographer (b. 1937)
- 2007 - Whitney Balliett, American jazz critic (b. 1926)
- 2007 - Ray Berres, American baseball player (b. 1907)
- 2007 - Ahmad Abu Laban, Danish Muslim leader (b. 1946)
Holidays and observances
- The start of Black History Month in the United States.
- Imbolc - the first day of Spring in Ireland (Irish Calendar) and one of the four Gaelic seasonal (and sometimes religious) festivals. Also part of the Wiccan Wheel of the Year.
- The start of LGBT History Month in the United Kingdom.
Religious observances
- Astina
- St. Brigid, patron saint of Ireland. Feast day in the Roman Catholic Church.
External links
February 2 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 672 - Death of Saint Chad, whose feast day this is.
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February 3 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 4 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 5 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 6 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 7 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 457 - Leo I becomes emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
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February 8 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 421 - Constantius III becomes co-Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
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February 9 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 474 - Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
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February 10 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 1355 - The St.
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February 11 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 660 BC - Traditional founding date of Japan by Emperor Jimmu.
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February 12 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 13 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 1258 - Baghdad falls to the Mongols, and the Abbasid Caliphate is destroyed.
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February 14 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 15 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 399 BC - The philosopher Socrates sentenced to death.
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February 16 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 17 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 18 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 19 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 20 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are left by Norway to Scotland, due to a dowry payment.
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February 21 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 362 - Athanasius returns to Alexandria.
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February 22 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 23 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 24 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
By Roman custom February 24
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By Roman custom February 24
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February 25 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 138 - The Emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius, effectively making him his successor.
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February 26 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 747 BC - Epoch (origin) of Ptolemy's Nabonassar Era.
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February 27 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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February 28 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.
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Events
- 364 - Valentinian I is elevated as Roman Emperor.
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February 1 2005
- Pope John Paul II is taken to a hospital suffering from a serious case of influenza.
- The Palestinian Authority arrests a Palestinian man who had been shooting in the air, on suspicion that he had killed a Palestinian girl the day before.
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February 1, 2004
- A team composed of Russian scientists at Dubna (Joint Institute for Nuclear Research), and U.S. scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory report on the discovery of two new chemical elements, called "superheavies" because of their atomic
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February 1, 2003
- Space Shuttle Columbia incident: The Space Shuttle Columbia was reported to have been broke apart and disintegrated over Texas as it embarked on its final approach to a landing after its 28th space mission. All seven crew members are considered to be lost.
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