March 25

March 25 is the 84th day of the year (85th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 281 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

Up to 1900

421 – Venice is said to have been founded.
708 – Constantine is made Pope.
717 – Theodosius III resigns from the throne of the Byzantine Empire in order to enter the clergy.
1199 – King Richard I of England is wounded by a crossbow while fighting in France, leading to his death on April 6.
1306 – Robert the Bruce becomes King of Scotland.
1409 – The Council of Pisa opens.
1555 – The city of Valencia, Negros Oriental, Venezuela is founded.
1634 – The first settlers arrive in Maryland (led by Lord Baltimore).
1655 – Saturn's largest moon, Titan, is discovered by Christiaan Huygens.
1655 – Protestants take over Maryland at the Battle of the Severn.
1802 – The Treaty of Amiens is signed as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace" between France and the United Kingdom.
1807 – The Slave Trade Act becomes law, abolishing slavery in the United Kingdom.
1811 – Percy Bysshe Shelley is expelled by the University of Oxford for producing the pamphlet, The Necessity of Atheism.
1821 – Greece declares its independence from the Ottoman Empire, beginning the Greek War of Independence.
1865 – The "Claywater Meteorite" explodes just before reaching ground level in Vernon County, Wisconsin. Fragments having a combined mass of 1.5 kg are recovered.
1865 – American Civil War: In Virginia, Confederate forces capture Fort Stedman from the Union.
1894 – Coxey's Army, the first significant American protest march, departs Massillon, Ohio for Washington D.C..

1901 – 2000

1901 – At the five–day "Week of Nice" race in Nice, France, Mercedes wins its first racing victory.
1911 – In New York City the Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire kills 146 garment workers.
1913 – Floods kill 300 people in Dayton, Ohio.
1918 – The Belarusian National Republic was established.
1924 – Greece proclaims itself a republic.
1931 – The Scottsboro Boys are arrested in Alabama and charged with rape.
1939 – Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli becomes Pope Pius XII.
1941 – Kingdom of Yugoslavia joins the Axis powers.
1947 – A explosion in a coalmine in Centralia, Illinois kills 111.
1949 – The extensive deportation campaign was conducted in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The Soviet authorities deported more than 92,000 people from Baltics to remote areas of the Soviet Union.
1955 – United States Customs seizes Allen Ginsberg's "Howl" as obscene.
1957 – The European Economic Community is established (West Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg). It later becomes the European Union.
1960 – In London, United Kingdom, Jacqueline Boyer wins the fifth Eurovision Song Contest for France singing "Tom Pillibi".
1961 – Sputnik 10 is launched into space.
1965 – Civil rights activists led by Martin Luther King, Jr. complete successfully their 4–day 50 mile march from Selma to the capitol in Montgomery.
1969 – During their honeymoon, John Lennon and Yoko Ono hold their first Bed-In for Peace in the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel (until March 31).
1971 – Bangladesh Liberation War: Beginning of Operation Searchlight of Pakistan Army against East Pakistani civilians.
1972 – In Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom, Vicky Leandros wins the seventeenth Eurovision Song Contest for Luxembourg singing "Après toi" (After you).
1975 – Faisal of Saudi Arabia is shot and killed by a mentally ill nephew.
1979 – The first fully functional space shuttle orbiter, Columbia, is delivered to the John F. Kennedy Space Center to be prepared for its first launch.
1980 – The UK announces that it will participate in the Summer Olympics in Moscow.
1988 – The Candle Demonstration in Bratislava is the first mass demonstration of the 1980s against the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia.
1990 – In New York City, a fire at an illegal social club called "Happy Land" kills 87.
1992 – Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev returns to Earth after a 10–month stay aboard the Mir space station.
1992 – The Pakistan national cricket team wins the Cricket World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia.
1995 – Ward Cunningham opens the first wiki, the Portland Pattern Repository.
1996 – An 81–day long standoff between the antigovernment group Montana Freemen and law enforcement in Jordan, Montana begins.
1996 – The EU's Veterinarian Committee bans the export of British beef and its by–products as a result of mad cow disease (BSE).

From 2001

2001 – Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Iceland implement the Schengen Agreement.
2002 – An earthquake in Afghanistan kills 2,000 people.
2004 – Air Holland files for bankruptcy in response to unproven allegations of marijuana abuse by the their pilots.^[source?]
2006 – Several anti–Government demonstrators are arrested in Belarus.
2012 – Hong Kong elects CY Leung as Chief Executive.
2014 – The first cases of the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa are officially reported in Guinea.
2015 – British Top Gear television presenter Jeremy Clarkson is fired by the BBC over a physical attack on a producer.
2015 – It is announced that Zayn Malik is leaving the boy band One Direction.

Births

Up to 1900

1157 – Alfonso II of Aragon (d. 1196)
1252 – Conradin, Duke of Swabia, King of Sicily and Jerusalem (d. 1268)
1259 – Andronikos II Palaiologos, Byzantine Emperor (d. 1332)
1297 – Andronikos III Palaiologos, Byzantine Emperor (d. 1341)
1345 – Blanche of Lancaster, wife of John of Gaunt (d. 1369)
1347 – Catherine of Siena, Italian saint (d. 1380)
1479 – Vasili III, Grand Prince of Moscow (d. 1533)
1539 – Christopher Clavius, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1612)
1541 – Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1587)
1545 – John II, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg (d. 1622)
1593 – Jean de Brébeuf, French–Canadian missionary and saint (d. 1649)
1661 – Paul de Rapin, French historian (d. 1725)
1714 – Matthew Griswold, American politician, Governor of Connecticut (d. 1799)
1767 – Joachim Murat, King of Naples (d. 1815)
1782 – Caroline Bonaparte, Queen of Naples (d. 1839)
1786 – Giovanni Battista Amici, Italian astronomer and botanist (d. 1863)
1808 – José de Espronceda, Spanish writer and poet (d. 1842)
1819 – Venceslaus Ulricus Hammershaimb, Faroese Lutheran minister and linguist (d. 1909)
1821 – Robert Bentley, English botanist (d. 1893)
1840 – Myles Keogh, American soldier of fortune (d. 1876)
1860 – Friedrich Naumann, German theologian and politician (d. 1919)
1865 – Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian–German painter (d. 1941)
1867 – Arturo Toscanini, Italian conductor (d. 1957)
1867 – Gutzon Borglum, American sculptor (d. 1941)
1868 – Bill Lockwood, English cricketer (d. 1932)
1871 – Louis Perée, French fencer (d. 1924)
1872 – Horatio Nelson Jackson, American racing driver and physician (d. 1955)
1873 – Rudolf Rocker, German anarchist (d. 1958)
1874 – Emperor Sunjong of Korea (d. 1926)
1876 – Irving Baxter, American jumper and pole vaulter (d. 1957)
1881 – Béla Bartók, Hungarian composer (d. 1945)
1884 – Georges Imbert, Alsatian chemist (d. 1950)
1886 – Patriarch Athenagoras of Constantinople (d. 1972)
1887 – Chuichi Nagumi, Japanese admiral (d. 1944)

1901 – 1950

1901 – Ed Begley, American actor (d. 1970)
1905 – Pote Sarasin, Thai politician (d. 2000)
1908 – David Lean, British movie director (d. 1991)
1910 – Magda Olivero, Italian operatic soprano (d. 2014)
1911 – Jack Ruby, assassin of Lee Harvey Oswald (d. 1967)
1914 – Norman Borlaug, American agronomist (d. 2009)
1920 – Patrick Troughton, English actor (d. 1987)
1920 – Paul Scott, British novelist (d. 1987)
1921 – Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, Queen of Yugoslavia (d. 1993)
1921 – Simone Signoret, French actress (d. 1985)
1921 – Nancy Kelly, American actress (d. 1995)
1922 – Eileen Ford, American model agency executive (d. 2014)
1924 – Machiko Kyo, Japanese actress
1926 – Laszlo Papp, Hungarian boxer (d. 2003)
1926 – Riz Ortolani, Italian composer (d. 2014)
1926 – Jaime Sabines, Mexican poet (d. 1999)
1926 – Gene Shalit, American journalist and critic (d. 2026)
1927 – P. Shanmugam, Indian politician, 13th Chief Minister of Puducherry
1928 – Roald Aas, Norwegian speed skater (d. 2012)
1928 – Jim Lovell, American astronaut
1930 – Carlo Mauri, Italian mountaineer (d. 1982)
1931 – Paul Motian, American jazz drummer and composer (d. 2011)
1932 – Roger Wilkins, American civil rights activist and journalist (d. 2017)
1934 – Gloria Steinem, American feminist and publisher
1934 – Karlheinz Schreiber, German–Canadian industrialist, lobbyist and arms dealer
1937 – Tom Monaghan, American businessman, founded Domino's Pizza
1938 – Hoyt Axton, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1999)
1938 – Daniel Buren, French sculptor and painter
1940 – Mina, Italian singer
1940 – Anita Bryant, American singer
1940 – Anker Buch, Danish violinist (d. 2014)
1942 – Aretha Franklin, American singer (d. 2018)
1942 – Richard O'Brien, English actor, writer and composer
1942 – Kim Woodburn, English television personality
1946 – Daniel Bensaïd, French philosopher (d. 2010)
1947 – Elton John, English singer and songwriter

1951 – 1975

1951 – Maizie Williams, Montserratian–English performer (Boney M.)
1952 – Stephen Dorrell, English politician
1952 – Antanas Mockus, Colombian mathematician, philosopher and politician, Mayor of Bogota
1955 – Lee Mazzilli, American baseball player, coach and manager
1955 – Jim Shannon, Northern Irish politician
1957 – Christina Boxer, English runner
1957 – Aleksandr Puchkov, Russian hurdler
1958 – John Ensign, American politician
1958 – James McDaniel, American actor and director
1960 – Steve Norman, English saxophonist, songwriter and producer (Spandau Ballet)
1960 – Brenda Strong, American actress
1962 – David Nuttall, English politician
1962 – Marcia Cross, American actress
1963 – Karen Bruce, English dancer and choreographer
1964 – Mike Henry, American voice actor, writer and producer
1964 – René Meulensteen, Dutch footballer and coach
1965 – Avery Johnson, American basketball coach
1965 – Sarah Jessica Parker, American actress
1965 – Frank Ordenewitz, German footballer
1966 – Frank Ferrer, American musician (Guns N' Roses)
1966 – Jeff Healey, Canadian guitarist (d. 2008)
1967 – Debi Thomas, American figure skater
1969 – Cathy Dennis, English singer-songwriter, producer and actress
1970 – Magnus Larsson, Swedish golfer
1971 – Sheryl Swoopes, American basketball player
1972 – Yuichi Yoshimoto, Japanese footballer
1972 – Phil O'Donnell, Scottish footballer (d. 2007)
1973 – Michaela Dorfmeister, Austrian skier
1973 – Anders Fridén, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
1974 – Kseniya Rappoport, Russian actress
1975 – Melanie Blatt, British singer

From 1976

1976 – Reema Vakarua, New Zealand–Italian rugby player
1976 – Cha Tae-hyun, South Korean actor and singer
1976 – GiGi Leung, Hong Kong actress and singer
1976 – Wladimir Klitschko, Ukrainian boxer
1979 – Muriel Hurtis-Houari, French athlete
1981 – Casey Neistadt, American YouTube personality and filmmaker
1982 – Danica Patrick, American racecar driver
1984 – Katharine McPhee, American singer and actress
1985 – Carmen Rasmussen, Canadian–American singer-songwriter and actress
1987 – Jason Castro, American singer
1987 – Nobunari Oda, Japanese figure skater
1987 – Jacob Bagersted, Danish handball player
1987 – Victor Obinna, Nigerian footballer
1988 – Erik Knudsen, Canadian actor
1988 – Ryan Lewis, American DJ and producer
1989 – Scott Sinclair, English footballer
1989 – Alyson Michalka, American actress
1991 – Seychelle Gabriel, American actress
1991 – Samia Yusuf Omar, Somali sprinter (d. 2012)
2005 – Zack Raines,Great Canadian

Deaths

Up to 1900

752 – Pope-elect Stephen
1223 – Afonso II of Portugal (b. 1185)
1345 – Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster (b. 1281)
1558 – Marcos de Niza, French friar and explorer (b. 1495)
1583 – Juan de Garay, Spanish conquistador (b. 1528)
1620 – Johannes Nucius, German composer (b. 1556)
1732 – Lucy Filippini, Italian saint (b. 1672)
1751 – Frederick I of Sweden (b. 1676)
1801 – Novalis, German poet (b. 1772)
1818 – Caspar Wessel, Norwegian–Danish mathematician and cartographer (b. 1745)
1860 – James Braid, Scottish surgeon and physician (b. 1795)
1862 – John Peisley, first Australian born bushranger, hanged (b. 1835)
1873 – Wilhelm Marstrand, Danish painter (b. 1810)

1901 – 2000

1914 – Frédéric Mistral, French poet (b. 1830)
1917 – Spyridon Samaras, Greek composer (b. 1861)
1918 – Claude Debussy, French composer (b. 1862)
1919 – Wilhelm Lehmbruck, German sculptor and artist (b. 1881)
1931 – Ida B. Wells, American journalist and activist (b. 1862)
1932 – Harriet Backer, Norwegian painter (b. 1845)
1945 – Franz Oppenhoff, German jurist and Mayor of Aachen (b. 1902)
1957 – Max Ophüls, German director and screenwriter (b. 1902)
1967 – Renato Cellini, Italian conductor (b. 1913)
1969 – Max Eastman, American poet (b. 1883)
1973 – Edward Steichen, Luxembourg–American photographer (b. 1879)
1975 – Faisal of Saudi Arabia (b. 1906)
1975 – Juan Gaudino, Argentine racing driver (b. 1893)
1979 – Akinoumi Setsuo, Japanese sumo wrestler (b. 1914)
1980 – Roland Barthes, French literary critic and writer (b. 1915)
1980 – Walter Susskind, Czech conductor (b. 1913)
1988 – Robert Joffrey, American dancer, choreographer and director (b. 1931)
1991 – Marcel Lefebvre, French archbishop (b. 1905)
1992 – Nancy Walker, American actress (b. 1922)
1994 – Max Petitpierre, Swiss politician (b. 1899)
1999 – Cal Ripken, Sr., American baseball manager (b. 1936)

From 2001

2002 – Kenneth Wolstenholme, British football commentator (b. 1920)
2005 – Paul Henning, American TV and movie producer (b. 1911)
2006 – Buck Owens, American singer and TV personality (b. 1926)
2007 – Andranik Margaryan, Armenian politician (b. 1951)
2008 – Abby Mann, American movie writer and producer (b. 1927)
2009 – Yukio Endo, Japanese gymnast (b. 1937)
2010 – Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann, German political scientist (b. 1916)
2012 – Antonio Tabucchi, Italian writer (b. 1943)
2014 – Nanda, Indian actress (b. 1939)
2014 – Ralph Wilson, American businessman (b. 1918)
2014 – Jerry Roberts, British World War II code breaker (b. 1920)
2014 – Mohammad Ebrahim Bastani Parizi, Iranian historian and writer (b. 1924)
2014 – Jonathan Schell, American writer, journalist and activist (b. 1943)
2014 – Sonny Ruberto, American baseball player (b. 1946)
2015 – George Fischbeck, American weatherman (b. 1922)
2015 – Ivo Garrani, Italian actor (b. 1924)
2015 – Dick Bond, American politician (b. 1921)
2015 – Bill Slayback, American baseball player (b. 1948)
2015 – Ron Suart, English footballer (b. 1920)
2016 – Abu Ala al-Afri, Iraqi militant (b. 1958)
2016 – Clodomir Santos de Morais, Brazilian sociologist (b. 1928)
2016 – Paolo Poli, Italian actor (b. 1929)
2016 – Imre Pozsgay, Hungarian politician (b. 1933)
2016 – David Snellgrove, British Tibetologist (b. 1920)
2017 – Teodor Oizerman, Soviet–Russian philosopher (b. 1914)
2017 – Cuthbert Sebastian, Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis (b. 1921)

Observances

Annunciation of Blessed Virgin Mary (Catholicism)
- Lady Day – Old official New Year's Day, before it was changed to January 1
- Mother's Day (Slovenia)
Independence Day in Greece
Maryland Day