24th March
Posted: 24 Mar 2015, 06:091603 – James VI of Scotland also becomes James I of England, upon the death of Elizabeth I.
1707 – The Acts of Union 1707 is signed, officially uniting the Kingdoms and parliaments of England and Scotland to create the Kingdom of Great Britain.
1721 – Johann Sebastian Bach dedicated six concertos to Christian Ludwig, margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, now commonly called the Brandenburg concertos, BWV 1046–1051.
1829 – Catholic Emancipation: The Parliament of the United Kingdom passes the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, allowing Catholics to serve in Parliament.
1882 – Robert Koch announces the discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis.
1944 – World War II: In an event later dramatized in the movie The Great Escape, 76 Allied prisoners of war begin breaking out of the German camp Stalag Luft III.
1958 – Rock'N'Roll teen idol Elvis Presley is drafted in the U.S. Army.
1965 – NASA spacecraft Ranger 9, equipped to convert its signals into a form suitable for showing on domestic television, brings images of the Moon into ordinary homes before crash landing.
1972 – The United Kingdom imposes direct rule over Northern Ireland.
1989 – Exxon Valdez oil spill: In Prince William Sound in Alaska, the Exxon Valdez spills 240,000 barrels (38,000 m3) of crude oil after running aground.
1993 – Discovery of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9.
1999 – Mont Blanc Tunnel fire kills 39 people.
1999 – Kosovo War: NATO commences aerial bombardment against Yugoslavia, marking the first time NATO has attacked a sovereign country.
Births
1693 – John Harrison, English carpenter and clockmaker, invented the Marine chronometer (d. 1776)
1834 – William Morris, English poet and designer (d. 1896)
1874 – Harry Houdini, Hungarian-American magician and actor (d. 1926)
1903 – Malcolm Muggeridge, English journalist, author, and scholar (d. 1990)
1930 – Steve McQueen, American actor (d. 1980)
1939 – Lynda Baron, English actress
1945 – Patrick Malahide, English actor
1947 – Alan Sugar, English businessman
1951 – Tommy Hilfiger, American fashion designer, founded the Tommy Hilfiger Corporation
1960 – Grayson Perry, English potter
1979 – Graeme Swann, English cricketer
Deaths
1603 – Elizabeth I of England (b. 1533)
1776 – John Harrison, English carpenter and clockmaker, invented the Marine chronometer (b. 1693)
1882 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet and educator (b. 1807)
1905 – Jules Verne, French author (b. 1828)
1962 – Auguste Piccard, Swiss physicist and explorer (b. 1884)
1976 – Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, English field marshal (b. 1887)
1984 – Sam Jaffe, American actor and singer (b. 1891)
2006 – Lynne Perrie, English actress and singer (b. 1931)
2008 – Richard Widmark, American actor (b. 1914)
2012 – Jocky Wilson, Scottish darts player (b. 1950)
1707 – The Acts of Union 1707 is signed, officially uniting the Kingdoms and parliaments of England and Scotland to create the Kingdom of Great Britain.
1721 – Johann Sebastian Bach dedicated six concertos to Christian Ludwig, margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, now commonly called the Brandenburg concertos, BWV 1046–1051.
1829 – Catholic Emancipation: The Parliament of the United Kingdom passes the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, allowing Catholics to serve in Parliament.
1882 – Robert Koch announces the discovery of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis.
1944 – World War II: In an event later dramatized in the movie The Great Escape, 76 Allied prisoners of war begin breaking out of the German camp Stalag Luft III.
1958 – Rock'N'Roll teen idol Elvis Presley is drafted in the U.S. Army.
1965 – NASA spacecraft Ranger 9, equipped to convert its signals into a form suitable for showing on domestic television, brings images of the Moon into ordinary homes before crash landing.
1972 – The United Kingdom imposes direct rule over Northern Ireland.
1989 – Exxon Valdez oil spill: In Prince William Sound in Alaska, the Exxon Valdez spills 240,000 barrels (38,000 m3) of crude oil after running aground.
1993 – Discovery of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9.
1999 – Mont Blanc Tunnel fire kills 39 people.
1999 – Kosovo War: NATO commences aerial bombardment against Yugoslavia, marking the first time NATO has attacked a sovereign country.
Births
1693 – John Harrison, English carpenter and clockmaker, invented the Marine chronometer (d. 1776)
1834 – William Morris, English poet and designer (d. 1896)
1874 – Harry Houdini, Hungarian-American magician and actor (d. 1926)
1903 – Malcolm Muggeridge, English journalist, author, and scholar (d. 1990)
1930 – Steve McQueen, American actor (d. 1980)
1939 – Lynda Baron, English actress
1945 – Patrick Malahide, English actor
1947 – Alan Sugar, English businessman
1951 – Tommy Hilfiger, American fashion designer, founded the Tommy Hilfiger Corporation
1960 – Grayson Perry, English potter
1979 – Graeme Swann, English cricketer
Deaths
1603 – Elizabeth I of England (b. 1533)
1776 – John Harrison, English carpenter and clockmaker, invented the Marine chronometer (b. 1693)
1882 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet and educator (b. 1807)
1905 – Jules Verne, French author (b. 1828)
1962 – Auguste Piccard, Swiss physicist and explorer (b. 1884)
1976 – Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, English field marshal (b. 1887)
1984 – Sam Jaffe, American actor and singer (b. 1891)
2006 – Lynne Perrie, English actress and singer (b. 1931)
2008 – Richard Widmark, American actor (b. 1914)
2012 – Jocky Wilson, Scottish darts player (b. 1950)