June 15

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 Ramon Lopez 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 Ruben 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 Jose 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 Belanger, 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 Andre 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 Inaki 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 Jose Froilan Gonzalez, 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 Dore, 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 Confortes, 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
Days of the year