March 13 is the 72nd day of the year (73rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 293 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

Pre-1600

• 624 – The Battle of Badr, the first major battle between the Muslims and Quraysh.^[1]
• 1567 – The Battle of Oosterweel, traditionally regarded as the start of the Eighty Years' War.^[2]
• 1591 – At the Battle of Tondibi in Mali, Moroccan forces of the Saadi dynasty, led by Judar Pasha, defeat the Songhai Empire, despite being outnumbered by at least five to one.^[3]

1601–1900

• 1639 – Harvard College is named after clergyman John Harvard.^[4]
• 1697 – Nojpetén, capital of the last independent Maya kingdom, falls to Spanish conquistadors, the final step in the Spanish conquest of Guatemala.^[5]
• 1741 – The Battle of Cartagena de Indias (part of the War of Jenkins' Ear) begins.^[6]
• 1781 – William Herschel discovers Uranus.^[7]
• 1809 – Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden is deposed in the Coup of 1809.^[8]
• 1811 – A French and Italian fleet is defeated by a British squadron off the island of Vis in the Adriatic during the Napoleonic Wars.^[9]
• 1826 – Pope Leo XII publishes the apostolic constitution Quo Graviora in which he renewed the prohibition on Catholics joining freemasonry.^[10]
• 1845 – Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto receives its première performance in Leipzig with Ferdinand David as soloist.^[11]
• 1848 – The German revolutions of 1848–1849 begin in Vienna.^[12]
• 1862 – The Act Prohibiting the Return of Slaves is passed by the United States Congress, effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and setting the stage for the Emancipation Proclamation.^[13]
• 1884 – The Siege of Khartoum begins. It lasts until January 26, 1885.^[14]
• 1888 – The eruption of Ritter Island triggers tsunamis that kill up to 3,000 people on nearby islands.^[15]
• 1900 – British forces occupy Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, during the Second Boer War.^[16]

1901–present

• 1920 – The Kapp Putsch briefly ousts the Weimar Republic government from Berlin.^[17]
• 1930 – The news of the discovery of Pluto is announced by Lowell Observatory.^[18]
• 1940 – The Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union officially ends after the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty.^[19]
• 1943 – The Holocaust: German forces liquidate the Jewish ghetto in Kraków.^[20]
• 1954 – The Battle of Điện Biên Phủ begins with an artillery barrage by Viet Minh forces under Võ Nguyên Giáp; Viet Minh victory led to the end of the First Indochina War and French withdrawal from Vietnam.^[21]
• 1957 – Cuban student revolutionaries storm the presidential palace in Havana in a failed attempt on the life of President Fulgencio Batista.^[22]
• 1969 – Apollo 9 returns safely to Earth after testing the Lunar Module.^[23]
• 1974 – Sierra Pacific Airlines Flight 802 crashes into the White Mountains near Bishop, California, killing 36.^[24]
• 1979 – The New Jewel Movement, headed by Maurice Bishop, ousts the Prime Minister of Grenada, Eric Gairy, in a coup d'état.^[25]
• 1988 – The Seikan Tunnel, the longest tunnel in the world with an undersea segment, opens between Aomori and Hakodate, Japan.^[26]
• 1992 – The M_w  6.6 Erzincan earthquake strikes eastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe).^[27]
• 1993 – The 1993 Storm of the Century affects the eastern United States, dropping feet of snow in many areas.^[28]
• 1996 – The Dunblane massacre leads to the death of sixteen primary school children and one teacher in Dunblane, Scotland.^[29]
• 1997 – The Missionaries of Charity choose Sister Nirmala to succeed Mother Teresa as their leader.^[30]
• 2003 – An article in Nature identifies the Ciampate del Diavolo as 350,000-year-old hominid footprints.^[31]
• 2012 – The Sierre coach crash kills 28 people, including 22 children.^[32]
• 2013 – The 2013 papal conclave elects Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio taking the name Pope Francis as the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church.^[33]
• 2016 – The Ankara bombing kills at least 37 people.^[34]
• 2016 – Three gunmen attack two hotels in the Ivory Coast town of Grand-Bassam, killing at least 19 people.^[35]
• 2020 – President Donald Trump declares the COVID-19 pandemic to be a national emergency in the United States.^[36]
• 2020 – Breonna Taylor is killed by police officers who were forcibly entering her home in Louisville, Kentucky; her death sparked extensive protests against racism and police brutality.^[37]

Births

Pre-1600

• 1372 – Louis I, Duke of Orléans (d. 1407)^[38]
• 1479 – Lazarus Spengler, German hymnwriter (d. 1534)^[39]
• 1560 – William Louis, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg, Dutch count (d. 1620)^[40]
• 1593 – Georges de La Tour, French painter (probable;^[41] d. 1652)
• 1599 – John Berchmans, Belgian Jesuit scholastic and saint (d. 1621)^[42]

1601–1900

• 1615 – Innocent XII, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 1700)^[43]
• 1683 – Johann Wilhelm Weinmann, German botanist (d. 1741)^[44]
• 1700 – Michel Blavet, French flute player and composer (d. 1768)^[45]
• 1719 – John Griffin, 4th Baron Howard de Walden, English field marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Essex (d. 1797)^[46]
• 1720 – Charles Bonnet, Swiss historian and author (d. 1793)^[47]
• 1741 – Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1790)^[48]
• 1763 – Guillaume Brune, French general and diplomat (d. 1815)^[49]
• 1764 – Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1845)^[50]
• 1770 – Daniel Lambert, English animal breeder (d. 1809)^[51]
• 1781 – Karl Friedrich Schinkel, German painter and architect, designed the Konzerthaus Berlin (d. 1841)^[52]
• 1798 – Abigail Fillmore, American wife of Millard Fillmore, 14th First Lady of the United States (d. 1853)^[53]
• 1800 – Mustafa Reşid Pasha, Ottoman politician, 212th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (d. 1858)^[54]
• 1815 – James Curtis Hepburn, American physician, linguist, and missionary (d. 1911)^[55]
• 1825 – Hans Gude, Norwegian-German painter and academic (d. 1903)^[56]
• 1855 – Percival Lowell, American astronomer and mathematician (d. 1916)^[57]
• 1857 – B. H. Roberts, English-American historian and politician (d. 1933)^[58]
• 1860 – Hugo Wolf, Slovene-Austrian composer (d. 1903)^[59]
• 1862 – Paul Prosper Henrys, French general (d. 1943)^[60]
• 1864 – Alexej von Jawlensky, Russian-German painter (d. 1941)^[61]
• 1870 – William Glackens, American painter and illustrator (d. 1938)^[62]
• 1874 – Ellery Harding Clark, American jumper, coach, and lawyer (d. 1949)^[63]
• 1880 – Josef Gočár, Czech architect (d. 1945)^[64]
• 1883 – Enrico Toselli, Italian pianist and composer (d. 1926)^[65]
• 1884 – Hugh Walpole, New Zealand-English author and educator (d. 1941)^[66]
• 1886 – Home Run Baker, American baseball player and manager (d. 1963)^[67]
• 1886 – Albert William Stevens, American captain and photographer (d. 1949)^[68]
• 1888 – Paul Morand, French author and diplomat (d. 1976)^[69]
• 1890 – Fritz Busch, German conductor and director (d. 1951)^[70]
• 1892 – Janet Flanner, American journalist and author (d. 1978)^[71]
• 1897 – Yeghishe Charents, Armenian poet and activist (d. 1937)^[72]
• 1898 – Henry Hathaway, American director and producer (d. 1985)^[73]
• 1899 – John Hasbrouck Van Vleck, American physicist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1980)^[74]
• 1899 – Pancho Vladigerov, Bulgarian pianist and composer (d. 1978)^[75]
• 1900 – Andrée Bosquet, Belgian painter (d. 1980)^[76]
• 1900 – Giorgos Seferis, Greek poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1971)^[77]

1901–present

• 1902 – Hans Bellmer, German-French painter and sculptor (d. 1975)^[78]
• 1904 – Clifford Roach, Trinidadian cricketer and footballer (d. 1988)^[79]
• 1907 – Dorothy Tangney, Australian politician (d. 1985)^[80]
• 1908 – Walter Annenberg, American publisher, philanthropist, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (d. 2002)^[81]
• 1908 – Myrtle Bachelder, American chemist and Women's Army Corps officer (d. 1997)^[82]
• 1910 – Sammy Kaye, American saxophonist, songwriter, and bandleader (d. 1987)^[83]
• 1910 – Kemal Tahir, Turkish journalist and author (d. 1973)^[84]
• 1911 – José Ardévol, Cuban composer and conductor (d. 1981)^[85]
• 1911 – L. Ron Hubbard, American author (d. 1986)^[86]
• 1913 – William J. Casey, American politician, 13th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1987)^[87]
• 1913 – Sergey Mikhalkov, Russian author and playwright (d. 2009)^[88]
• 1914 – W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright (d. 1998)^[89]
• 1914 – Edward O'Hare, American lieutenant and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1943)^[90]
• 1916 – Lindy Boggs, American educator and politician, 5th United States Ambassador to the Holy See (d. 2013)^[91]
• 1916 – Jacque Fresco, American engineer and academic (d. 2017)^[92]
• 1920 – Ralph J. Roberts, American businessman, co-founded Comcast (d. 2015)^[93]
• 1921 – Al Jaffee, American cartoonist (d. 2023)^[94]
• 1923 – Dimitrios Ioannidis, Greek general (d. 2010)^[95]
• 1925 – Roy Haynes, American drummer and composer^[96]
• 1926 – Carlos Roberto Reina, Honduran lawyer and politician, President of Honduras (d. 2003)^[97]
• 1929 – Zbigniew Messner, Polish economist and politician, 9th Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland (d. 2014)^[98]
• 1933 – Diane Dillon, American illustrator^[99]
• 1933 – Mahdi Elmandjra, Moroccan economist and sociologist (d. 2014)^[100]
• 1933 – Gero von Wilpert, German author and academic (d. 2009)^[101]
• 1935 – David Nobbs, English author and screenwriter (d. 2015)^[102]
• 1938 – Robert Gammage, American captain and politician (d. 2012)^[103]
• 1939 – Neil Sedaka, American singer-songwriter and pianist^[57]
• 1941 – Donella Meadows, American environmentalist, author, and academic (d. 2001)^[104]
• 1942 – Dave Cutler, American computer scientist and engineer^[105]
• 1942 – Mahmoud Darwish, Palestinian poet and author (d. 2008)^[106]
• 1942 – Scatman John, American singer-songwriter (d. 1999)^[107]
• 1944 – Terence Burns, Baron Burns, English economist and academic^[108]
• 1945 – Anatoly Fomenko, Russian mathematician and academic^[109]
• 1946 – Yonatan Netanyahu, American-Israeli colonel (d. 1976)^[110]
• 1947 – Lesley Collier, English ballerina and educator^[111]
• 1947 – Beat Richner, Swiss pediatrician and cellist (d. 2018)^[112]
• 1947 – Lyn St. James, American race car driver^[113]
• 1949 – Ze'ev Bielski, Israeli politician^[114]
• 1949 – Sian Elias, New Zealand lawyer and politician, 12th Chief Justice of New Zealand^[115]
• 1950 – Joe Bugner, Hungarian-British boxer and actor^[116]
• 1950 – Bernard Julien, Trinidadian cricketer^[117]
• 1950 – Charles Krauthammer, American physician, journalist, and author (d. 2018)^[118]
• 1950 – William H. Macy, American actor, director, and screenwriter^[57]
• 1951 – Charo, Spanish-American singer, guitarist, and actress^[118]
• 1952 – Wolfgang Rihm, German composer and educator^[119]
• 1952 – Tim Sebastian, English journalist and author^[120]
• 1953 – Andy Bean, American golfer^[57]
• 1953 – Deborah Raffin, American actress (d. 2012)^[121]
• 1953 – Michael Curry, 27th presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church^[122]
• 1954 – Valerie Amos, Baroness Amos, Guyanese-English politician and diplomat^[123]
• 1954 – Robin Duke, Canadian actress and screenwriter^[124]
• 1955 – Bruno Conti, Italian footballer and manager^[125]
• 1955 – Glenne Headly, American actress (d. 2017)^[126]
• 1955 – Olga Rukavishnikova, Russian pentathlete^[127]
• 1956 – Dana Delany, American actress and producer^[57]
• 1956 – Jamie Dimon, North-American businessman and banker^[128]
• 1957 – John Hoeven, American banker and politician, 31st Governor of North Dakota^[57]
• 1957 – Moses Hogan, American composer and conductor (d. 2003)^[129]
• 1958 – Mágico González, Salvadoran footballer^[130]
• 1958 – Rick Lazio, American lawyer and politician^[131]
• 1958 – Caryl Phillips, Caribbean-English author and playwright^[132]
• 1959 – Dirk Wellham, Australian cricketer^[133]
• 1960 – Adam Clayton, English-Irish musician and songwriter^[57]
• 1960 – Joe Ranft, American animator, screenwriter, and voice actor (d. 2005)^[134]
• 1963 – Vance Johnson, American football player^[135]
• 1963 – Fito Páez, Argentinian musician, songwriter and filmmaker ^[136]
• 1964 – Will Clark, American baseball player^[137]
• 1964 – Craig Dimond, Australian rugby league player^[138]
• 1964 – Trevor Gillmeister Australian rugby league player and coach^[139]
• 1966 – Chico Science, Brazilian singer-songwriter (d. 1997)^[140]
• 1967 – Andrés Escobar, Colombian footballer (d. 1994)^[141]
• 1967 – Pieter Vink, Dutch footballer and referee^[142]
• 1969 – Darren Fritz, Australian rugby league player^[143]
• 1970 – Tim Story, American director and producer^[144]
• 1971 – Annabeth Gish, American actress^[124]
• 1971 – Allan Nielsen, Danish international footballer and manager^[145]
• 1972 – Common, American rapper and actor^[57]
• 1972 – Trent Dilfer, American football player, coach, and analyst^[146]
• 1973 – Edgar Davids, Surinamese born Dutch international footballer and manager^[147]
• 1973 – Bobby Jackson, American basketball player and coach^[148]
• 1974 – James Brinkley, Scottish cricketer^[149]
• 1974 – Thomas Enqvist, Swedish tennis player and sportscaster^[150]
• 1975 – Mark Clattenburg, English football referee^[151]
• 1976 – Troy Hudson, American basketball player and rapper^[152]
• 1976 – Danny Masterson, American actor and producer^[118]
• 1978 – Tom Danielson, American cyclist^[153]
• 1978 – Kenny Watson, American football player^[154]
• 1979 – Johan Santana, Venezuelan baseball player^[155]
• 1979 – Cédric Van Branteghem, Belgian sprinter^[156]
• 1980 – Caron Butler, American basketball player^[57]
• 1980 – Brad Watts, Australian rugby league player^[157]
• 1981 – Olena Kot, Ukrainian Journalist^[158][159]
• 1982 – Nicole Ohlde, American basketball player^[160]
• 1983 – Kaitlin Sandeno, American swimmer^[161]
• 1984 – Geeta Basra, Indian actress^[162]
• 1985 – Alcides Araújo Alves, Brazilian footballer^[163]
• 1985 – Emile Hirsch, American actor^[57]
• 1986 – Neil Wagner, South African-New Zealand cricketer^[164]
• 1987 – Marco Andretti, American race car driver^[165]
• 1987 – Andreas Beck, German footballer^[166]
• 1988 – Furdjel Narsingh, Dutch footballer^[167]
• 1989 – Holger Badstuber, German footballer^[168]
• 1989 – Marko Marin, German footballer^[169]
• 1989 – Robert Wickens, Canadian racing driver^[165]
• 1990 – Anicet Abel, Malagasy footballer^[170]
• 1991 – Daniel Greig, Australian speed skater^[171]
• 1991 – Tristan Thompson, American basketball player^[172]
• 1994 – Gerard Deulofeu, Spanish footballer^[173]
• 1994 – Mohammed Siraj, Indian cricketer^[174]
• 1995 – Jang Su-jeong, South Korean tennis player^[175][176]
• 1995 – Mikaela Shiffrin, American skier^[177]
• 1998 – Jay-Roy Grot, Dutch footballer^[178]
• 1998 – Jack Harlow, American rapper, singer-songwriter and actor^[179]
• 2001 – Thomas Dearden, Australian rugby league player^[180]
• 2004 – Coco Gauff, American tennis player^[181]

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 1202 – Mieszko III the Old, king of Poland (b. c. 1121)^[182]
• 1271 – Henry of Almain, English knight (b. 1235)^[183]
• 1415 – Minye Kyawswa, Crown Prince of Ava (b. 1391)^[184]
• 1447 – Shah Rukh, Timurid ruler of Persia and Transoxania (b. 1377)^[185]
• 1573 – Michel de l'Hôpital, French politician (b. 1507)^[186]

1601–1900

• 1601 – Henry Cuffe, Politician (b. 1563)^[187]
• 1619 – Richard Burbage, English actor (b. 1567)^[188]
• 1711 – Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux, French poet and critic (b. 1636)^[189]
• 1719 – Johann Friedrich Böttger, German chemist and potter (b. 1682)^[190]
• 1800 – Nana Fadnavis, Indian minister and politician (b. 1742)^[191]
• 1808 – Christian VII of Denmark (b. 1749)^[192]
• 1823 – John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent, English admiral and politician (b. 1735)^[193]
• 1833 – William Bradley, English lieutenant and cartographer (b. 1757)^[194]
• 1842 – Henry Shrapnel, English general (b. 1761)^[195]
• 1854 – Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, French politician, 6th Prime Minister of France (b. 1773)^[196]
• 1873 – David Swinson Maynard, American physician, lawyer, and businessman (b. 1808)^[197]
• 1879 – Adolf Anderssen, German mathematician and chess player (b. 1818)^[198]
• 1881 – Alexander II of Russia (b. 1818)^[199]
• 1884 – Leland Stanford Jr., American son of Leland Stanford (b. 1868)^[200]
• 1885 – Giorgio Mitrovich, Maltese politician (b. 1795)^[201]

1901–present

• 1901 – Benjamin Harrison, American general and politician, 23rd President of the United States (b. 1833)^[202]
• 1906 – Susan B. Anthony, American activist (b. 1820)^[203]
• 1912 – Eugène-Étienne Taché, Canadian engineer and architect, designed the Parliament Building (b. 1836)^[204]
• 1921 – Jenny Twitchell Kempton, American opera singer and educator (b. 1835)^[205]
• 1936 – Francis Bell, New Zealand lawyer and politician, 20th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1851)^[206]
• 1938 – Clarence Darrow, American lawyer and author (b. 1857)^[207]
• 1943 – Stephen Vincent Benét, American poet, short story writer, and novelist (b. 1898)^[208]
• 1946 – Werner von Blomberg, German field marshal (b. 1878)^[209]
• 1951 – Ants "the Terrible" Kaljurand, Estonian anti-communist, freedom fighter and forest brother (b. 1917)^[210]
• 1953 – Johan Laidoner, Estonian general and statesman (b. 1884)^[211]
• 1962 – Anne Acheson, Irish sculptor (b. 1882)^[212]
• 1965 – Vittorio Jano, Italian engineer (b. 1891)^[213]
• 1965 – Fan Noli, Albanian-American bishop and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Albania (b. 1882)^[214]
• 1971 – Rockwell Kent, American painter and illustrator (b. 1882)^[215]
• 1972 – Tony Ray-Jones, English photographer (b. 1941)^[216]
• 1975 – Ivo Andrić, Yugoslav novelist, poet, and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)^[217]
• 1976 – Ole Haugsrud, American sports executive (b. 1900)^[218]
• 1983 – Paul Citroen, German-Dutch illustrator and educator (b. 1896)^[219]
• 1990 – Bruno Bettelheim, Austrian-American psychologist and author (b. 1903)^[220]
• 1995 – Odette Hallowes, French nurse and spy (b. 1912)^[221]
• 1996 – Krzysztof Kieślowski, Polish director and screenwriter (b. 1941)^[222]
• 1998 – Judge Dread, English singer-songwriter (b. 1945)^[223]
• 1998 – Hans von Ohain, German-American physicist and engineer (b. 1911)^[224]
• 1999 – Lee Falk, American cartoonist, director, and producer (b. 1911)^[225]
• 1999 – Garson Kanin, American director and screenwriter (b. 1912)^[226]
• 2001 – John A. Alonzo, American actor and cinematographer (b. 1934)^[227]
• 2001 – Encarnacion Alzona, Filipino historian and educator (b. 1895)^[228]
• 2002 – Hans-Georg Gadamer, German philosopher and scholar (b. 1900)^[229]
• 2004 – Franz König, Austrian cardinal (b. 1905)^[230]
• 2006 – Robert C. Baker, American businessman, invented the chicken nugget (b. 1921)^[231]
• 2006 – Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish footballer (b. 1944)^[232]
• 2006 – Maureen Stapleton, American actress (b. 1925)^[233]
• 2006 – Peter Tomarken, American television personality, game show host (b. 1942)^[234]
• 2007 – Arnold Skaaland, American wrestler and manager (b. 1925)^[235]
• 2009 – Betsy Blair, American actress (b. 1923)^[236]
• 2009 – Alan W. Livingston, American businessman (b. 1917)^[237]
• 2010 – Jean Ferrat, French singer-songwriter (b. 1930)^[238]
• 2011 – Rick Martin, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1951)^[239]
• 2013 – Clive Burr, English drummer and songwriter (b. 1957)^[240]
• 2014 – Reubin Askew, American sergeant, lawyer, and politician, 37th Governor of Florida (b. 1928)^[241]
• 2014 – Edward Haughey, Baron Ballyedmond, Irish businessman and politician (b. 1944)^[242]
• 2014 – Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, Sierra Leonean economist, lawyer, and politician, 3rd President of Sierra Leone (b. 1932)^[243]
• 2014 – Icchokas Meras, Lithuanian-Israeli author and screenwriter (b. 1934)^[244]
• 2015 – Al Rosen, American baseball player and manager (b. 1924)^[245]
• 2016 – Hilary Putnam, American philosopher, mathematician, and computer scientist (b. 1926)^[246]
• 2017 – Amy Krouse Rosenthal, American author (b. 1965)^[247]
• 2018 – Emily Nasrallah, Lebanese writer and women's rights activist. (b. 1931)^[248]
• 2021 – Marvelous Marvin Hagler, American professional boxer (b. 1954)^[249]
• 2021 – Murray Walker, English motorsport commentator and journalist (b. 1923)^[250]
• 2022 – William Hurt, American actor (b. 1950)^[251]

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast days:
  • Ansovinus^[252]
  • Gerald of Mayo^[253]
  • James Theodore Holly (Episcopal Church (USA))^[254]
  • Nicephorus^[255]
  • Roderick^[252]
  • March 13 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Kasuga Matsuri (Kasuga Grand Shrine, Nara, Japan)^[256]
• National Elephant Day (Thailand)^[257]
• Africa Scout Day^[258]