Title: June 15 Content: == Events == === Up to 1900 === *763 BC The Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history. *923 Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and Charles the Simple is arrested by supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy. *1184 King Magnus V of Norway is killed in battle. *1215 King John of England puts his seal to the Magna Carta. *1219 Northern Crusades: Danish victory at Battle of Lyndanisse (present-day Tallinn) leads to the Danish Duchy of Estonia being established. In Legend, it was also the first time that the Dannebrog was used. *1300 The city of Bilbao in the Basque Country is founded. *1389 Battle of Kosovo: The Ottoman Empire defeats the Serbs and Bosnians. *1502 Christopher Columbus reaches the island of Martinique. *1520 Pope Leo X threatens to excommunicate Martin Luther. *1580 Philip II of Spain declares William the Silent an outlaw. *1667 The first blood transfusion is administered by Doctor Jean-Baptiste Denys. *1741 Vitus Bering sets sail on his voyage from Petropavlovsk, Russia that will lead him to Alaska. *1775 American Revolutionary War: George Washington is appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army. *1776 Delaware votes to suspend government under the British crown, and separates from Pennsylvania. *1785 Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier, co-pilot of the first-ever manned flight (in 1783), and his companion, Pierre Romain, become the first-ever air crash casualties when their hot-air balloon explodes during their attempt to cross the English Channel. *1804 New Hampshire ratifies the United States Constitution, after approving the 12th Amendment. *1808 Joseph Bonaparte becomes King of Spain. *1836 Arkansas becomes the 25th State of the United States. *1844 Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber. *1846 The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as being the longest part of the Canada-United States border. *1859 The shooting of a pig in the San Juan Islands on the Pacific Ocean coast of North America leads to the so-called "Pig War" between the United States and Canada, which was then under British control. *1862 Australian bushranger Frank Gardiner and his gang, hold up a coach carrying gold at Eugowra, New South Wales. This is the biggest robbery in Australian history. *1864 Arlington National Cemetery is established in the United States. *1877 Henry Ossian Flipper becomes the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy. *1878 Eadward Muybridge takes a series of photographs that prove that all four of a horse's legs leave the ground when it is running. This is also a key milestone in the development of moving pictures. *1888 Wilhelm II becomes Kaiser of Germany. *1896 A tsunami in Japan kills more than 22,000 people. === 1901 2000 === *1904 The paddle stramer General Slocum sinks on the East River in New York City, killing 1,388 people. *1910 Robert Falcon Scott's ill-fated expedition to Antarctica leaves Cardiff. *1916 Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America. *1919 John Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown complete the first trans-Atlantic flight when they land in Ireland. *1920 A border treaty between Germany and Denmark gives northern Schleswig to Denmark. *1934 Great Smoky Mountains National Park is established in the Appalachian Mountains. *1937 A German expedition led by Karl Wien loses 16 members in an avalanche on Nanga Parbat in the Himalayas. *1940 World War II: Allied troops start to evacuate Paris, following the German take-over. *1944 World War II: The US invades the Japanese-occupied island of Saipan. *1954 UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) is founded. *1969 Georges Pompidou is elected President of France. *1970 Charles Manson goes on trial for the Sharon Tate murders. *1972 Red Army Faction co-founder Ulrike Meinhof is captured by police in Langenhagen. *1977 In the first Spanish election since the Francisco Franco dictatorship, Adolfo Suarez is elected Prime Minister of Spain. *1978 King Hussein of Jordan marries American Lisa Halaby, who chooses to be known as Queen Noor of Jordan. *1991 After showing activity since April 2, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines enters its most destructive phase. *1994 Formal relations between Israel and Vatican City are officially established. *1996 The Provisional IRA explode a large bomb in the centre of Manchester. === From 2001 === *2002 A near-Earth asteroid misses the Earth by 121,000 kilometres. *2006 Microsoft announces the resignation of its "Chief Software Architect" Bill Gates. *2008 Kosovo's Constitution takes effect, following the declaration of independence in February, which Serbia disagrees with. *2011 2011 Vancouver Stanley Cup riot: Rioting occurs in Vancouver, Canada, following the Vancouver Canucks ice hockey team's defeat in the final of the Stanley Cup. *2012 Nik Wallenda successfully walks on a tightrope across Niagara Falls. *2013 The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup begins with the Brazil national football team defeating the Japan national football team 3-0. *2018 The Glasgow School of Art's Mackintosh building is hit by a second fire in just over four years, causing a lot of damage to it. == Births == === Up to 1900 === * 1330 Edward, the Black Prince, heir to the throne of England (d. 1376) * 1479 Lisa del Giocondo, Italian model (d. 1542) * 1519 Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, son of Henry VIII of England (d. 1536) * 1534 Henri I de Montmorency, French nobleman (d. 1614) * 1542 Richard Grenville, English captain and explorer (d. 1591) * 1594 Nicolas Poussin, French painter (d. 1665) * 1623 Cornelis de Witt, Dutch politician (d. 1672) * 1640 Bernard Lamy, French mathematician (d. 1715) * 1749 Georg Joseph Vogler, German composer, organist and theorist (d. 1814) * 1763 Franz Danzi, German cellist, composer and conductor (d. 1826) * 1765 Martin Baum, American businessman and politician (d. 1831) * 1765 Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bonnenberger, German mathematician (d. 1831) * 1767 Rachel Jackson, wife of Andrew Jackson before he became US President (d. 1828) * 1792 Thomas Livingstone Mitchell, Australian explorer (d. 1855) * 1798 Alexander Gorchakov, Russian diplomat (d. 1883) * 1801 Benjamin Wright Raymond, Mayor of Chicago (d. 1883) * 1805 William Butler Ogden, Mayor of Chicago (d. 1877) * 1835 Adah Isaacs Menken, American actress, painter and poet (d. 1868) * 1843 Edvard Grieg, Norwegian composer (d. 1907) * 1848 Gheevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala, Indian bishop and saint (d. 1902) * 1867 Konstantin Balmont, Russian songwriter (d. 1942) * 1875 Herman Smith-Johannsen, Norwegian-born cross country skier and supercentenarian (d. 1987) * 1876 Margaret Abbott, American golfer (d. 1955) * 1882 Ion Antonescu, Romanian military leader (d. 1946) * 1882 Morgan Foster Larson, Governor of New Jersey (d. 1961) * 1884 Harry Langdon, American actor (d. 1944) * 1888 Ramón López Velarde, Mexican poet (d. 1921) * 1890 Wilhelm Leuschner, German political activist and member of the Resistance (d. 1944) * 1894 Trygve Gulbranssen, Norwegian writer (d. 1962) * 1894 Robert Russell Bennett, American composer and arranger (d. 1981) * 1894 Nikolai Chebotaryov, Ukrainian mathematician (d. 1947) * 1900 Otto Luening, German-born American composer (d. 1996) === 1901 1950 === * 1902 Erik Erikson, German-born psychoanalyst (d. 1994) * 1906 Gordon Welchman, British mathematician (d. 1985) * 1908 Sam Giancana, American mafioso (d. 1975) * 1910 David Rose, American songwriter, composer and orchestra leader (d. 1990) * 1911 Wilbert Awdry, British children's writer (d. 1997) * 1914 Yuri Andropov, Soviet political leader (d. 1984) * 1915 Thomas Huckle Weller, American virologist (d. 2008) * 1916 Horacio Salgan, Argentine pianist, composer, orchestra leader and arranger * 1916 Herbert Simon, American economist (d. 2001) * 1917 John Bennett Fenn, American chemist (d. 2010) * 1920 Alberto Sordi, Italian actor and director (d. 2003) * 1923 Erland Josephson, Swedish actor (d. 2012) * 1923 Ninian Stephen, 20th Governor-General of Australia (d. 2017) * 1923 Erroll Garner, American jazz pianist and composer (d. 1977) * 1924 Ezer Weizman, President of Israel (d. 2005) * 1925 Richard Baker, English broadcaster (d. 2018) * 1926 Shigeru Kayano, Japanese activist (d. 2006) * 1927 Hugo Pratt, Italian writer and artist (d. 1995) * 1930 John Fretwell, English diplomat (d. 2017) * 1930 Marcel Pronovost, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2015) * 1932 Mario Cuomo, American politician, former Governor of New York (d. 2015) * 1933 Mohammad-Ali Rajai, 2nd President of Iran (d. 1981) * 1933 Yasukazu Tanaka, Japanese footballer * 1934 Rubén Aguirre, Mexican actor (d. 2016) * 1934 Mikel Laboa, Basque singer and songwriter (d. 2008) * 1936 Claude Brasseur, French actor * 1936 William Levada, American cardinal (d. 2019) * 1937 Waylon Jennings, American musician (d. 2002) * 1937 Anna Hazare, Indian activist * 1938 Billy Williams, American baseball player * 1939 Brian Jacques, British writer (d. 2011) * 1941 Harry Nilsson, American singer and composer (d. 1994) * 1942 John E. McLaughlin, American deputy director of the CIA * 1943 Johnny Hallyday, French rock musician and singer (d. 2017) * 1943 Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, former Prime Minister of Denmark * 1943 Muff Winwood, English musician * 1945 Robert Sarah, Guinean cardinal * 1945 Miriam Defensor Santiago, Filipina politician (d. 2016) * 1946 Brigitte Fossey, French actress * 1946 Noddy Holder, British singer (Slade) * 1946 Demis Roussos, Greek singer-songwriter (d. 2015) * 1948 Henry McLeish, 2nd First Minister of Scotland * 1948 Alan Huckle, English politician and diplomat, Governor of Anguilla * 1948 José Huerta, Peruvian politician (d. 2019) * 1949 Simon Callow, English actor * 1949 Simone Rethel, German actress * 1949 Jim Varney, American actor (d. 2000) * 1950 Lakshmi Mittal, Indian industrialist === 1951 1975 === * 1951 John Redwood, English politician * 1953 Rita Lee, American model * 1953 Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China * 1954 James Belushi, American actor * 1954 Beverley Whitfield, Australian swimmer (d. 1996) * 1955 Julie Hagerty, American actress * 1955 David Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy (d. 1984) * 1955 Mauril Bélanger, Canadian politician * 1956 Robin Curtis, American actress * 1956 Yevgeny Kiselyov, Russian journalist * 1958 Wade Boggs, American baseball player * 1958 Riccardo Paletti, Italian racing driver (d. 1982) * 1959 Alan Brazil, Scottish footballer * 1959 Eileen Davidson, American actress * 1961 Laurent Cantet, French director * 1963 Mario Gosselin, Canadian ice hockey player * 1963 Helen Hunt, American actress * 1963 Blanca Portillo, Spanish actress * 1963 Nigel Walker, Welsh rugby player * 1964 Courteney Cox, American actress * 1964 Michael Laudrup, Danish footballer * 1964 Gavin Greenaway, English composer and conductor * 1965 Karim Massimov, 7th Prime Minister of Kazakhstan * 1966 Raimonds Vejonis, 9th President of Latvia * 1968 Samira Ahmed, British journalist and presenter * 1969 Oliver Kahn, German goalkeeper * 1969 Ice Cube, American rapper * 1969 Bashar Warda, Iraqi archbishop * 1970 Leah Remini, American actress * 1971 Edwin Brienen, Dutch-German actor, director and producer * 1971 Bif Naked, Indian-Canadian singer-songwriter, actress and poet * 1972 Marcus Hahnemann, American goalkeeper * 1973 Neil Patrick Harris, American actor, singer and director * 1973 Tore André Flo, Norwegian footballer * 1973 Greg Vaughan, American actor * 1974 Chakri, Indian movie composer and singer (d. 2014) === From 1976 === * 1976 Gary Lightbody, Northern Irish singer (Snow Patrol) * 1977 Michael Doleac, American basketball player * 1978 Wilfred Bouma, Dutch footballer * 1979 Danielle Lineker, British model * 1979 Yulia Nesterenko, Belarussian athlete * 1980 Iker Romero, Spanish handball player * 1980 Almudena Cid Tastado, Spanish rhythmic gymnast * 1980 Mary Carey, American pornographic actress * 1981 John Paintsil, Ghanaian footballer * 1981 Emma Snowsill, Australian triathlete * 1981 Billy Martin, American musician (Good Charlotte) * 1982 Mike Delany, New Zealand rugby player * 1982 Katie Chapman, English footballer * 1982 Atli Gregersen, Faroese footballer * 1983 Laura Imbruglia, Australian musician * 1984 Amber Coffman, American musician * 1984 Tim Lincecum, American baseball player * 1985 Nadine Coyle, Northern Irish singer (Girls Aloud) * 1986 Stoya, American pornographic actress, writer and model * 1988 Barakat Al-Hartini, Omani sprinter * 1988 Miku Ishida, Japanese singer and actress * 1990 Miwa, Japanese singer- songwriter and musician * 1990 Denzel Whitaker, American actor * 1992 Mohamed Salah, Egyptian footballer * 1992 Dafne Schippers, Dutch heptathlete and sprinter * 1993 Kanna Arihara, Japanese singer (Cute) * 1994 Rina Hidaka, Japanese voice actress * 1994 Iñaki Williams, Spanish footballer == Deaths == === Up to 1900 === * 707 Emperor Mommu of Japan * 923 King Robert I of France (b. 866) * 991 Theophanu, consort of Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 960) * 1073 Emperor Go-Sanjo of Japan (b. 1073) * 1184 King Magnus V of Norway (b. 1156) * 1189 Minamoto no Yoritomo, Japanese warrior (b. 1159) * 1246 Frederick II of Austria (b. 1219) * 1381 Wat Tyler, English peasant leader (b. 1341) * 1383 John VI Cantacuzenus, Byzantine Emperor (b. 1292) * 1389 Murad I, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1326) * 1389 Lazar of Serbia, Serbian saint (b. 1329) * 1416 John, Duke of Berry (b. 1340) * 1467 Philip III, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1396) * 1586 Primoz Trubar, Slovenian religious reformer (b. 1508) * 1768 James Short, Scottish mathematician and optician (b. 1710) * 1772 Louis-Claude Daguin, French composer (b. 1694) * 1785 Jean Francois Pilatre de Rozier, French physicist and balloonist (b. 1757) * 1849 James K. Polk, 11th President of the United States (b. 1795) * 1888 Kaiser Friedrich III of Germany (b. 1831) * 1889 Mihai Eminescu, Romanian poet (b. 1850) * 1890 Unryu Kyukichi, Japanese sumo wrestler (b. 1822) === 1901 2000 === * 1917 Kristian Birkeland, Norwegian physicist (b. 1867) * 1934 Alfred Bruneau, French composer (b. 1857) * 1938 Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German painter and printmaker (b. 1880) * 1945 Carl Gustaf Ekman, Swedish politician (b. 1872) * 1961 Giulio Cabianca, Italian racing driver (b. 1923) * 1962 Alfred Cortot, French-Swiss pianist (b. 1877) * 1971 Wendell Meredith Stanley, American chemist (b. 1904) * 1976 Jimmy Dykes, American baseball player and manager (b. 1896) * 1982 Art Pepper, American saxophonist (b. 1925) * 1989 Maurice Bellemare, Canadian politician (b. 1912) * 1991 Arthur Lewis, British economist (b. 1915) * 1991 Happy Chandler, 44th and 49th Governor of Kentucky and Commissioner of Baseball (b. 1898) * 1993 John Connally, Governor of Texas (b. 1917) * 1993 James Hunt, English racing driver (b. 1947) * 1994 Manos Hadjidakis, Greek composer (b. 1925) * 1995 John Vincent Atanasoff, American computer pioneer (b. 1903) * 1996 Ella Fitzgerald, American singer (b. 1917) * 1996 Fitzroy MacLean, Scottish soldier, writer and politician (b. 1911) === From 2001 === * 2001 Jay Moriarty, American surfer (b. 1978) * 2002 Choi Hong Hi, founder of Taekwondo (b. 1918) * 2003 Hume Cronin, Canadian actor (b. 1911) * 2005 Suzanne Flon, French actress (b. 1918) * 2007 Sherri Martel, American professional wrestler (b. 1958) * 2008 Stan Winston, American filmmaker (b. 1946) * 2010 Heidi Kabel, German actress (b. 1914) * 2013 Heinz Flohe, German footballer (b. 1948) * 2013 Kenneth G. Wilson, American physicist (b. 1936) * 2013 José Froilán González, Argentine racing driver (b. 1922) * 2014 Ray Fox, American NASCAR engine builder and team owner (b. 1916) * 2014 Casey Kasem, American radio presenter, DJ and voice actor (b. 1932) * 2014 Daniel Keyes, American author (b. 1927) * 2015 Jean Doré, Canadian politician, 39th Mayor of Montreal (b. 1944) * 2015 Kirk Kerkorian, American businessman (b. 1917) * 2015 Blaze Starr, American burlesque dancer, stripper and model (b. 1932) * 2015 Jeanna Friske, Russian actress, singer and socialite (b. 1974) * 2015 Harry Rowohlt, German writer (b. 1945) * 2015 Mighty Sam McClain, American soul-blues singer (b. 1943) * 2016 Lois Duncan, American writer (b. 1934) * 2016 Claude Confortès, French actor (b. 1928) * 2017 Aleksey Batalov, Russian actor (b. 1928) * 2017 Ibrahim Abouleish, Egyptian pharmacologist (b. 1937) * 2017 Ajmer Singh Aulakh, Indian playwright (b. 1942) * 2017 P. N. Bhagwati, Indian judge (b. 1921) * 2017 Wilma de Faria, Brazilian politician (b. 1945) * 2017 Bill Dana, American comedian, actor and screenwriter (b. 1924) * 2018 Leslie Grantham, English actor (b. 1947) * 2018 Enoch zu Guttenberg, German conductor (b. 1946) * 2018 Matt Murphy, American blues guitarist (b. 1929) * 2019 Marta Harnecker, Chilean sociologist, political scientist, journalist and activist (b. 1937) * 2019 Wilhelm Holzbauer, Austrian architect (b. 1930) * 2019 Kevin Killian, American poet, author and playwright (b. 1952) * 2019 Franco Zeffirelli, Italian film director (b. 1923) * 2020 Giulio Giorello, Italian philosopher and mathematician (b. 1945) * 2020 Nagendra Nath Jha, Indian politician (b. 1935) * 2020 Badar Uddin Ahmed Kamran, Bangladeshi politician (b. 1951) * 2020 Marinho, Brazilian footballer (b. 1957) * 2020 Anton Schlembach, German Roman Catholic prelate (b. 1932) == Observances == * Separation Day (Delaware) * Statehood Day (Arkansas) * Arbor Day (Costa Rica) * Flag Day (Denmark) * National Salvation Day (Azerbaijan) * Engineers' Day (Italy) * Global Wind Day * World Elder Abuse Awareness Day * Saint Vitus' Day Category:Days of the year