September 2
September 2 is the 245th day of the year (246th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 120 days remain until the end of the year.
Events
- 44 BC - Pharaoh Cleopatra VII of Egypt declares her son co-ruler as Ptolemy XV Caesarion.
- 44 BC - The first of Cicero’s Philippics (oratorical attacks) on Mark Antony. He will make 14 of them over the next several months.
- 31 BC - Final war of the Roman Republic: Battle of Actium - Off the western coast of Greece, forces of Octavian defeat troops under Mark Antony and Cleopatra.
- 1649 - The Italian city of Castro is completely destroyed by the forces of Pope Innocent X, ending the Wars of Castro.
- 1666 - The Great Fire of London breaks out and burns for three days, destroying 10,000 buildings including St. Paul's Cathedral.
- 1752 - The United Kingdom adopts the Gregorian Calendar, nearly two centuries later than most of Western Europe.
- 1789 - The United States Department of the Treasury is founded.
- 1792 - During what became known as the September Massacres of the French Revolution, rampaging mobs slaughter three Roman Catholic Church bishops, more than two hundred priests, and prisoners believed to be royalist sympathizers.
- 1807 - Royal Navy bombards Copenhagen with fire bombs and phosphorus rockets to prevent Denmark from surrendering its fleet to Napoleon.
- 1833 - Oberlin College is founded by John Shipherd and Philo P. Stewart.
- 1859 - A solar super storm affects electrical telegraph service.
- 1862 - American Civil War: President Abraham Lincoln reluctantly restores Union General George B. McClellan to full command after General John Pope's disastrous defeat at the Battle of Second Bull Run.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Union forces enter Atlanta, Georgia a day after the Confederate defenders flee the city.
- 1867 - Mutsuhito, the Meiji Emperor of Japan, marries Masako Ichijō. The Empress consort is thereafter known as Lady Haruko. Since her death in 1914, she's called by the posthumous name Empress Shōken.
- 1870 - Franco-Prussian War: Battle of Sedan - Prussian forces take French Emperor Napoleon III and 100,000 of his soldiers prisoner.
- 1885 - In Rock Springs, Wyoming, 150 white miners, who were struggling to unionize so they could strike for better wages and work conditions, attack their Chinese fellow workers, killing 28, wounding 15, and forcing several hundred more out of town.
- 1898 - Battle of Omdurman - British and Egyptian troops defeat Sudanese tribesmen and establishing British dominance in the Sudan.
- 1901 - Vice President of the United States Theodore Roosevelt utters the famous phrase, "Speak softly and carry a big stick" at the Minnesota State Fair.
- 1925 - The U.S. Zeppelin the USS Shenandoah crashes, killing 14.
- 1935 - Labor Day Hurricane of 1935: A large hurricane hits the Florida Keys killing 423.
- 1939 - World War II: Following the invasion of Poland, Freie Stadt Danzig Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) is annexed to Nazi Germany.
- 1945 - Combat in World War II ends in the Pacific Theater: The final official surrender of Japan is accepted aboard the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
- 1945 - Vietnam declares its independence, forming the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam).
- 1958 - U.S. Air Force C-130A-II is shot down by fighters over Yerevan, Armenia when it strays into Soviet airspace while conducting a sigint mission. All crew lost.
- 1963 - CBS Evening News becomes U.S. network television's first half-hour weeknight news broadcast, when the show is lengthened from 15 to 30 minutes.
- 1967 - established The Principality of Sealand, ruled by Prince Paddy Roy Bates.
- 1969 - The first automatic teller machine in the United States is installed in Rockville Center, New York.
- 1970 - NASA announces the cancellation of two Apollo missions to the Moon, Apollo 15 (the designation was re-used by a later mission), and Apollo 19.
- 1990 - Transnistria unilaterally proclaimed as Soviet republic; the Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev declares the decision null and void.
- 1991 - The United States recognizes the independence of the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
- 1996 - A peace agreement is signed between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the Moro National Liberation Front in Malacañang Palace.
- 1998 - Swissair Flight 111 crashes near Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia. All 229 people on board are killed.
- 1998 - The UN's International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda finds Jean-Paul Akayesu, the former mayor of a small town in Rwanda, guilty of nine counts of genocide.
- 2005 - The Natural Bridge, a very popular tourist attraction in Aruba, collapses after thousands of years in good condition.
- 2006 - Waziristan War ends. US and Pakistani Troops leave Waziristan mountain area.
Births
- 1243 - Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Hertford, English politician (d. 1295)
- 1548 - Vincenzo Scamozzi, Italian architect (d. 1616)
- 1661 - Georg Böhm, German organist (d. 1733)
- 1675 - William Somervile, English poet (d. 1742)
- 1753 - Marie Josephine Louise of Savoy, queen of France (d. 1810)
- 1778- Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland (d. 1846)
- 1805 - Esteban Echeverría, Argentine writer (d. 1851)
- 1810 - William Seymour Tyler, American educator and historian (d. 1897)
- 1830 - William P. Frye, American politician (d. 1911)
- 1838 - Liliuokalani of Hawaii, Queen of Hawaii (d. 1917)
- 1847 - Roger Wolcott, 39th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1900)
- 1850 - Albert Spalding, baseball player and sporting goods manufacturer (d. 1915)
- 1850 - Woldemar Voigt, German physicist (d. 1919)
- 1852 - Paul Bourget, French novelist and critic (d. 1935)
- 1853 - Wilhelm Ostwald, German chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1932)
- 1854 - Hans Jæger, Norwegian writer and political activist (d. 1910)
- 1862 - Franjo Krežma, Croatian violinist (d. 1881)
- 1870 - Archduchess Luise of Austria, Princess of Tuscany (d. 1947)
- 1877 - Frederick Soddy, British chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1956)
- 1878 - Werner von Blomberg, German field marshal (d. 1946)
- 1879 - An Jung-geun, Japanese assassin of Ito Hirobumi (d. 1910)
- 1883 - Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria, "The Red Archduchess" (d. 1963)
- 1884 - Dr. Frank C. Laubach, Christian missionary (d. 1970)
- 1894 - Joseph Roth, Austrian novelist (d. 1939)
- 1901 - Andreas Embirikos, Greek surrealist poet (d. 1975)
- 1901 - Adolph Rupp, American college basketball coach (d. 1977)
- 1911 - Romare Bearden, African American painter (d. 1988)
- 1913 - Bill Shankly, English Football Manager (d. 1981)
- 1914 - Tom Glazer, American folk singer and songwriter (d. 2003)
- 1915 - Meinhardt Raabe, actor, notable as Munchkin Coroner on The Wizard of Oz
- 1915 - Benjamin Aaron, American labor law expert (d. 2007)
- 1917 - Cleveland Amory, American author (d. 1998)
- 1917 - Laurindo Almeida, Brazilian guitarist (d. 1995)
- 1923 - Rene Thom, French mathematician (d. 2002)
- 1924 - Daniel arap Moi, President of Kenya
- 1925 - Hugo Montenegro, American composer and bandleader (d. 1981)
- 1928 - Horace Silver, American jazz pianist and composer
- 1929 - Hal Ashby, American film director (d. 1988)
- 1931 - Clifford Jordan, American jazz saxophonist (d. 1993)
- 1933 - Victor Spinetti, Welsh actor
- 1935 - D. Wayne Lukas, American horse trainer
- 1936 - Andrew Grove, American computer chip manufacturer
- 1937 - Peter Ueberroth, American sport executive
- 1937 - Derek Fowlds, British actor
- 1938 - Mary Jo Catlett, American actress
- 1938 - Clarence Felder, American actor
- 1939 - Sam Gooden, American singer (The Impressions)
- 1940 - Jimmy Clanton, American singer
- 1941 - David Bale, South African-born activist (d. 2003)
- 1941 - Graeme Langlands, Australian rugby league footballer
- 1943 - Rosalind Ashford, American singer (Martha and the Vandellas)
- 1943 - Glen Sather, Canadian ice hockey player and executive
- 1943 - Joe Simon, American singer
- 1946 - Billy Preston, American musician (d. 2006)
- 1946 - Luis Avalos, Cuban actor
- 1946 - Walt Simonson, American comic book artist & writer
- 1947 - Richard Coughlan, English drummer and percussionist (Caravan)
- 1948 - Terry Bradshaw, American football player
- 1948 - Christa McAuliffe, American schoolteacher and astronaut (d. 1986)
- 1950 - Rosanna DeSoto, American actress
- 1950 - Michael Rother, German musician (Neu!, Kraftwerk, Harmonia, Cluster)
- 1950 - Yuen Wah, Chinese actor and stuntman
- 1951 - Jim DeMint, American politician
- 1951 - Mark Harmon, American actor
- 1952 - Jimmy Connors, American tennis player
- 1953 - Ahmad Shah Massoud, Afghan commander and a war hero (d. 2001)
- 1953 - John Zorn, American musician
- 1956 - Mario Tremblay, Canadian hockey player and coach
- 1956 - Angelo Fusco, Provisional Irish Republican Army member
- 1957 - Tony Alva, American skateboarder
- 1958 - Olivier Grouillard, French racing driver
- 1959 - Guy Laliberté, founder of Cirque du Soleil
- 1960 - Kristin Halvorsen, Norwegian politician
- 1960 - Rex Hudler, baseball player
- 1960 - Eric Dickerson, American football player
- 1960 - John S. Hall, American poet and spoken-word artist
- 1961 - Carlos Valderrama, Colombian footballer
- 1962 - Prachya Pinkaew, Thai film director
- 1962 - Eugenio Derbez, Mexican comedian and actor
- 1962 - Jon Berkeley, author and illustrator
- 1964 - Keanu Reeves, Canadian actor
- 1965 - Lennox Lewis, British-born boxer
- 1965 - Partho Sen-Gupta, Indian filmmaker
- 1966 - Salma Hayek, Mexican actress
- 1966 - Dino Cazares, American musician
- 1966 - Olivier Panis, French race car driver
- 1966 - Tuc Watkins, American actor
- 1967 - Andreas Möller, German Soccer Player
- 1968 - Cynthia Watros, American actress
- 1968 - Kristen Cloke, American actress
- 1969 - Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey, American singer
- 1969 - Stéphane Matteau, French Canadian ice hockey player
- 1971 - Tommy Maddox, American football player
- 1971 - Kjetil André Aamodt, Norwegian skier
- 1972 - Matthew Dunn, Australian swimmer
- 1973 - Katt Williams, American comedian,actor,and rapper
- 1973 - Jason Blake, American hockey player
- 1973 - Pawan Kalyan, Indian actor
- 1974 - Steven Johnson, Australian racing driver
- 1975 - MC Chris, American Nerdcore Artist
- 1976 - Phil Lipscomb, American musician (Taproot)
- 1976 - Erin Hershey, American actress.
- 1977 - Ramiro Muñoz, Colombian musician
- 1977 - Frédéric Kanouté, Malian footballer
- 1979 - Ron Ng, Hong Kong actor
- 1980 - Dany Sabourin, French Canadian Goaltender in the National Hockey League
- 1980 - Hiroki Yoshimoto, Japanese racing driver
- 1981 - Chris Tremlett, English cricketer
- 1981 - Bracha van Doesburgh, Dutch actress
- 1982 - Joey Barton, English footballer
- 1982 - Mandy Cho, Hong Kong actress
- 1982 - Jason Hammel, American baseball player
- 1983 - Mark Foster (rugby player)
- 1984 - Jack Peñate, English/Spanish singer
- 1987 - Spencer Smith, American musician (Panic! at the Disco)
- 1988 - Ishant Sharma, Indian Cricketer
- 1989 - Alexandre Pato, Brazilian footballer
- 1990 - Marcus Ericsson, Swedish Racing Driver
Deaths
- 490 BC - Pheidippides, Greek hero
- 421 - Constantius III, Roman Emperor
- 1031 - Saint Emeric of Hungary
- 1274 - Prince Munetaka, Japanese shogun (b. 1242)
- 1397 - Francesco Landini, Italian composer
- 1540 - Lebna Dengel, Emperor of Ethiopia (b. 1501)
- 1680 - Per Brahe, Swedish soldier and statesman (b. 1602)
- 1688 - Robert Viner, Lord Mayor of London (b. 1631)
- 1690 - Philipp Wilhelm, Elector Palatine (b. 1615)
- 1764 - Nathaniel Bliss, English Astronomer Royal (b. 1700)
- 1765 - Henry Bouquet, Swiss-born British army officer (b. 1719)
- 1768 - Antoine Deparcieux, French mathematician (b. 1703)
- 1790 - Johann Nikolaus von Hontheim, German historian and theologian (b. 1701)
- 1813 - Jean Victor Marie Moreau, French general (mortally wounded in battle) (b. 1763)
- 1820 - Jiaqing, Emperor of China (b. 1760)
- 1832 - Franz Xaver, Baron Von Zach, Austrian astronomer (b. 1754)
- 1834 - Thomas Telford, Scottish civil engineer (b. 1757)
- 1865 - William Rowan Hamilton, Irish mathematician (b. 1805)
- 1872 - Nicolai Grundtvig, Danish writer and philosopher (b. 1783)
- 1877 - Constantine Kanaris, Greek admiral, freedom fighter and politician (b. 1793)
- 1898 - Wilford Woodruff, fourth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1807)
- 1910 - Henri Rousseau, French painter (b. 1844)
- 1921 - Henry Austin Dobson, English poet (b. 1840)
- 1921 - Anthony Francis Lucas Croatian-born oil pioneer (b. 1855)
- 1934 - Alcide Nunez, American musician (b. 1884)
- 1934 - Russ Columbo, American singer, violinist and actor (b. 1908)
- 1934 - James Allan, New Zealand rugby union player, All Black (b. 1860)
- 1937 - Pierre de Coubertin, French founder of the modern Olympic Games (b. 1863)
- 1942 - Tom Williams, Irish republican
- 1948 - Sylvanus Morley, American archaeologist and spy (b. 1883)
- 1953 - Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV, U.S. general (b. 1883)
- 1962 - William Wilkerson, Founder of the Hollywood Reporter, The Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas and nightclubs such as Ciro's (b. 1890)
- 1964 - Glenn Albert Black, American archaeologist (b. 1900)
- 1964 - Francisco Craveiro Lopes, 13th President of Portugal (b. 1894)
- 1964 - Alvin York, American soldier (b. 1887)
- 1965 - Johannes Bobrowski, German writer (b. 1917)
- 1969 - Ho Chi Minh, President of Vietnam (b. 1890)
- 1973 - Carl Dudley, American film director (b. 1910)
- 1973 - J. R. R. Tolkien, British writer (b. 1892)
- 1976 - Stanisław Grochowiak, Polish writer (b. 1934)
- 1978 - Fred G. Meyer, Founder Fred Meyer Inc. (b. 1886)
- 1984 - Manos Katrakis, Greek actor (b. 1908)
- 1985 - Abe Lenstra, Dutch footballer (b. 1920)
- 1991 - Alfonso García Robles, Mexican diplomat and politician, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1911)
- 1992 - Barbara McClintock, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (b. 1902)
- 1994 - Roy Castle, British entertainer (b. 1932)
- 1997 - Rudolph Bing, Austrian-born opera manager (b. 1902)
- 1997 - Viktor Frankl, Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist (b. 1905)
- 1998 - Jackie Blanchflower, Irish footballer (b. 1933)
- 1998 - Allen Drury, American author (b. 1918)
- 2000 - Elvera Sanchez, Puerto Rican dancer (b. 1905)
- 2000 - Curt Siodmak, German-born author (b. 1907)
- 2001 - Christiaan Barnard, South African heart surgeon (b. 1922)
- 2001 - Troy Donahue, American actor (b. 1936)
- 2002 - Dick Reynolds, Australian rules footballer and coach (b. 1915)
- 2004 - Joan Oró, Catalan scientist (b. 1923)
- 2004 - Eleni Zafeiriou, Greek actress (b. 1916)
- 2005 - Bob Denver, American actor (b. 1935)
- 2006 - Bob Mathias, American athlete and congressman (b. 1930)
- 2006 - Willi Ninja, dancer and choreographer (b. 1961)
- 2007 - Max McNab, National Hockey League executive (b. 1924)
- 2007 - Franz-Benno Delonge, German game designer (b. 1957)
Holidays and observances
- Also see September 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- RC Saints - Saint Castor of Apt.
- Mauritius - Ganesh Chaturthi.
- Transnistria - Independence day, note Transnistria is not an internationally recognized independent state.
- Sedan Day (Sedantag) - traditional national German holiday (see Sedan, France) that commemorates Prussia's victory over France in 1870, making the German Empire a reality.
- Vietnam - National Day (independence from Japan and France, 1945).
- Acepsimas of Hnaita and companions