September 5
September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). There are 117 days remaining.
Events
- 1666 - Great Fire of London ends: A large fire in London burns out after three days. 10,000 buildings including St. Paul's Cathedral are destroyed, but only 16 people are known to have died.
- 1698 - In an effort to move his people away from Asiatic customs, Tsar Peter I of Russia imposes a tax on beards; All men except priests and peasants, are required to pay a tax of one hundred rubles a year and the commoners had to pay one kopek each.
- 1774 - First Continental Congress assembles in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- 1793 - In France, the French National Convention votes to implement terror measures to enforce the principles of the French Revolution, initiating the Reign of Terror.
- 1836 - Sam Houston is elected as the first president of the Republic of Texas.
- 1862 - American Civil War: In the Confederacy's first invasion of the North, General Robert E. Lee leads 55,000 men of the Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac River at White's Ford near Leesburg, Virginia, into Maryland.
- 1877 - Indian Wars: Oglala Sioux chief Crazy Horse is bayoneted by a United States soldier after resisting confinement in a guardhouse at Fort Robinson in Nebraska.
- 1882 - The first United States Labor Day parade is held in New York City.
- 1901 - The National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues (later renamed Minor League Baseball), is formed in Chicago, Illinois.
- 1905 - Russo-Japanese War: In New Hampshire, USA, the Treaty of Portsmouth, a treaty mediated by US President Theodore Roosevelt, is signed by victor Japan and defeated party Russia.
- 1906 - Brandbury Robinson throws the first legal forward pass in an American football game.
- 1914 - World War I: First Battle of the Marne begins. Northeast of Paris, the French attack and defeat German forces who are advancing on the capital.
- 1937 - Spanish Civil War: The fall of Llanes.
- 1939 - World War II: The United States declares its neutrality in the war.
- 1943 - World War II: The 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment under U.S. General Douglas MacArthur lands and occupies Nazdab in Papua New Guinea.
- 1945 - Iva Toguri D'Aquino, a Japanese-American suspected of being wartime radio propagandist Tokyo Rose, is arrested in Yokohama.
- 1948 - Robert Schuman becomes Prime Minister of France.
- 1949 - A former sharpshooter in World War II, Howard Unruh kills 13 neighbors in Camden, New Jersey, with a souvenir Luger to become the first U.S. single-episode mass murderer.
- 1960 - Muhammad Ali wins the gold medal in boxing at the Rome Olympic Games.
- 1969 - My Lai Massacre: U.S. Army Lt. William Calley is charged with six specifications of premeditated murder for the death of 109 Vietnamese civilians in My Lai.
- 1970 - Vietnam War: Operation Jefferson Glenn begins: the United States 101st Airborne Division and the South Vietnamese 1st Infantry Division initiate a new operation in Thua Thien Province.
- 1972 - Munich Massacre: A Palestinian terrorist group called "Black September" attack Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games.
- 1975 - In Sacramento, California, a follower of incarcerated cult leader Charles Manson named Lynette Fromme attempts to assassinate U.S. President Gerald Ford, but is thwarted by a Secret Service agent.
- 1977 - Voyager program: Voyager 1 is launched after a brief delay.
- 1977 - Hanns-Martin Schleyer, President of the Employers Association, is kidnapped in Cologne, West Germany. Kidnappers kill three escorting police officers and his chauffeur. They demand release of Red Army Faction prisoners
- 1978 - Camp David Accords: Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat begin peace process at Camp David, Maryland.
- 1980 - The St. Gotthard Tunnel opens in Switzerland as the world's longest highway tunnel at 10.14 miles (16.32 km) stretching from Goschenen to Airolo.
- 1983 - The half-hour Robert MacNeil Report changes its name to the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, becoming the first hour-long network news show.
- 1983 - Tom Brokaw becomes lead anchor for NBC Nightly News
- 1984 - STS-41-D: The Space Shuttle Discovery lands after its maiden voyage.
- 1984 - Western Australia becomes the last Australian state to abolish capital punishment.
- 1986 - Pan Am Flight 73 with 358 people on board is hijacked at Karachi International Airport.
- 1988 - With US$2 billion in federal aid, the Robert M. Bass Group agrees to buy the United States's largest bankrupt thrift, American Savings and Loan Association.
- 1997 - At least 87 people killed in the Beni-Messous massacre
- 1997 - The IOC picks Athens to be the host city for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
- 2000 - Tuvalu joins the United Nations.
- 2001 - Peru's attorney general files homicide charges against ex-President Alberto Fujimori.
- 2001 - Young Left formed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- 2002 - A car bomb kills 30 people in Kabul, Afghanistan, in an apparent assassination attempt on Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
- 2002 - The Sour Biscuit Fire in Oregon and northern California, United States, which burned 499,570 acres (2,020 km²), is finally contained.
- 2004 - Tropical Storm Ivan becomes Hurricane Ivan in the Atlantic Ocean.
Births
- 1187 - Louis VIII of France (d. 1226)
- 1568 - Tommaso Campanella, Italian theologian, philosopher, and poet (d. 1639)
- 1638 - Louis XIV of France (d. 1715)
- 1667 - Giovanni Gerolamo Saccheri, Italian mathematician (d. 1733)
- 1695 - Carl Gustaf Tessin, Swedish politician (d. 1770)
- 1735 - Johann Christian Bach, German composer (d. 1782)
- 1750 - Robert Fergusson , Scottish poet (d. 1774)
- 1771 - Archduke Charles, Austrian general (d. 1847)
- 1774 - Caspar David Friedrich, German artist (d. 1840)
- 1791 - Giacomo Meyerbeer, German composer (d. 1864)
- 1807 - Richard Chenevix Trench, Irish Anglican clergyman and philologist (d. 1886)
- 1827 - Goffredo Mameli, Italian poet and writer
- 1847 - Jesse James, American outlaw (d. 1882)
- 1857 - Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Russian rocket scientist and inventor (d. 1935)
- 1867 - Amy Beach, American composer and pianist
- 1874 - Nap Lajoie, baseball player (d. 1959)
- 1888 - Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, second President of India (d. 1975)
- 1892 - Joseph Szigeti, Hungarian violinist (d. 1973)
- 1902 - Darryl F. Zanuck, American film producer and executive (d. 1979)
- 1905 - Arthur Koestler, Austrian writer (d. 1983)
- 1912 - John Cage, American composer (d. 1992)
- 1912 - Kristina Söderbaum, German actress and photographer (d. 2001)
- 1913 - Frank Thomas, American animator (d. 2004)
- 1916 - Frank Yerby, American novelist (d. 1991)
- 1921 - Jack Valenti, American political advisor and film executive
- 1924 - Paul Volcker, American banker
- 1929 - Bob Newhart, American actor and comedian
- 1929 - Andrian Nikolayev, cosmonaut
- 1934 - Carol Lawrence, American actress and singer
- 1936 - Bill Mazeroski, baseball player
- 1939 - George Lazenby, Australian actor
- 1939 - William Devane, American actor
- 1940 - Raquel Welch, American actress
- 1942 - Werner Herzog, German film director
- 1945 - Al Stewart, Scottish singer and songwriter
- 1946 - Freddie Mercury, Zanzibar-born singer Queen (d. 1991)
- 1946 - Loudon Wainwright III, American singer and composer
- 1946 - Buddy Miles, American musician
- 1948 - Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Austrian diplomat and politician
- 1950 - Cathy Guisewite, American cartoonist
- 1951 - Michael Keaton, American actor (or September 9)
- 1962 - Peter Wingfield, Welsh actor
- 1963 - Juan Alderete, American bassist (Racer X)
- 1965 - Chris Morris, British writer
- 1969 - Dweezil Zappa, American musician
- 1973 - Rose McGowan, Italian-born actress
- 1976 - Tatyana Gutsu, Ukrainian gymnast
Deaths
- 1201 - Constance, Duchess of Brittany (b. 1161)
- 1235 - Henry I, Duke of Brabant (b. 1165)
- 1629 - Domenico Allegri, Italian composer
- 1803 - Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, French general and author (b. 1741)
- 1803 - François Devienne, French composer (b. 1759)
- 1836 - Ferdinand Raimund, Austrian playwright (b. 1790)
- 1838 - Charles Percier, French architect (b. 1764)
- 1857 - Auguste Comte, French sociologist (b. 1798)
- 1877 - Crazy Horse, Sioux chief (b. 1849)
- 1898 - Sarah Edmonds, Canadian nurse, soldier, and spy (b. 1841)
- 1901 - Ignacij Klemenčič, Slovenian physicist (b. 1853)
- 1902 - Rudolf Virchow, German pathologist and politician (b. 1821)
- 1906 - Ludwig Boltzmann, Austrian physicist (b. 1844)
- 1912 - Arthur MacArthur, Jr., U.S. Army general (b. 1845)
- 1930 - Robert Means Thompson, American naval officer (b. 1849)
- 1965 - Thomas Johnston, Scottish-born politician (b. 1882)
- 1966 - Dezső Lauber, Hungarian athlete (b. 1879)
- 1970 - Jochen Rindt, Austrian race car driver (b. 1942)
- 1975 - Georg Ots, Estonian singer (b. 1920)
- 1988 - Gert Fröbe, German actor (b. 1913)
- 1990 - Ivan Mihailov, Bulgarian revolutionary (b. 1896)
- 1992 - Fritz Leiber, American author (b. 1910)
- 1995 - William Kunstler, American lawyer and activist (b. 1919)
- 1997 - Georg Solti, Hungarian conductor (b. 1912)
- 1997 - Mother Teresa, Albanian nun and aid worker (b. 1910)
- 1998 - Leo Penn, American film director (b. 1921)
- 1999 - Allen Funt, American radio and television personality (b. 1914)
- 2001 - Vladimir Zerjavic, Croatian UN statistician (b. 1912)
- 2003 - Gisele MacKenzie, Canadian singer (b. 1927)
Holidays
- Roman festivals - Jupiter Stator to commemorate that Jupiter helped Romulus to stop the Sabine invasion under Titus Tatius.
- RC Saints - Saint Lorenzo Giustiniani ; the feast day of Teresa of Calcutta, currently pending sainthood.
- India - The birthdate of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan is celebrated as Teacher's Day in India.
External links
September 4 - September 6 - August 5 - October 5 – more historical anniversaries