February 8

## Events
### Up to 1900 
* 421 &ndash; Constantius III becomes co–Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
* 1238 &ndash; Mongols burn the Russian city of Vladimir.
* 1347 &ndash; End of the Byzantine Empire's civil war of 1341 to 1347.
* 1575 &ndash; The University of Leiden in the Netherlands is founded.
* 1587 &ndash; Mary, Queen of Scots is esecuted.
* 1601 &ndash; Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex fails in an attempt to take over England from Elizabeth I.
* 1676 &ndash; Tsar Alexis of Russia dies. His son, Feodor III of Russia, becomes Tsar.
* 1725 &ndash; Tsar Peter I of Russia dies.
* 1807 &ndash; Napoleonic Wars: In the Battle of Eylau in present–day Poland, Napoleon Bonaparte's French troops defeat  the Russians under General Levin August, Count of Bennigsen.
* 1817 &ndash; Juan Gregorio de las Heras crosses the Andes with an army to join Jose de San Martin in liberating Chile from Spain.
* 1837 &ndash; The United States Senate chooses Richard Mentor Johnson to become Vice President of the United States.
* 1853 &ndash; The Oregon Territory is split up, as the northern part becomes the Washington Territory. Oregon becomes a US State in 1859, with Washington doing the same in 1889.
* 1855 &ndash; The Devil's Footprints mysteriously appear in Devon.
* 1865 &ndash; Delaware votes to continue with the practice of slavery, though it bans it in 1901.
* 1879 &ndash; Sandford Fleming proposes the idea of Universal Standard Time at a meeting of the Royal Canadian Institution.
* 1879 &ndash; England's national cricket team is attacked in a riot in Sydney, Australia.
* 1885 &ndash; The first Japanese immigrants to be allowed in by the then–Hawaiian government, arrive in Hawaii.
* 1887 &ndash; The Henry L. Dawes Act allows the President of the United States to survey Native American tribal land.

### 1901 &ndash; 1950 
* 1904 &ndash; A surprise Japanese torpedo attack at Port Arthur, China, starts the Russo-Japanese War.
* 1910 &ndash; The Boy Scouts of America is founded by William D. Boyce.
* 1915 &ndash; D. W. Griffith's racist silent movie Birth of a Nation is first screened in Los Angeles, California.
* 1922 &ndash; Warren G. Harding introduces the first radio in the White House.
* 1924 &ndash; The first state execution by gas chamber takes place in Nevada.
* 1937 &ndash; The Massacre of Malaga during the Spanish Civil War begins. Over the next few days, an estimated 10,000 people are killed.
* 1942 &ndash; World War II: Japan invades Singapore.
* 1945 &ndash; World War II: The United Kingdom and Canada start Operation Veritable to occupy the west bank of the Rhine.
* 1946 &ndash; The first portion of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible is published.
* 1948 &ndash; Official creation of the Korean People's Army in North Korea.
* 1950 &ndash; The Stasi, East Germany's secret police, is founded.

### 1951 &ndash; 2000 
* 1952 &ndash; Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is proclaimed Queen after the death of her father, King George VI of the United Kingdom, two days earlier.
* 1960 &ndash; Queen Elizabeth II issues an Order–in–Council, stating that she and her family would be known as the House of Windsor, and that her descendants would carry the name Mountbatten-Windsor.
* 1960 &ndash; The first eight brass star plaques are installed at the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
* 1962 &ndash; Charonne massacre: Nine Trade unionists are killed by French police, which had been allowed by the–then chief of Paris police, Maurice Papon.
* 1963 &ndash; Travel, financial and commercial transactions by US citizens in Cuba are banned by the John F. Kennedy administration.
* 1963 &ndash; The first full–color television programme is broadcast in Mexico City.
* 1963 &ndash; Iraq's Prime Minister, Brigadier–General Abdul-Karim Qassem is overthrown by the Ba'ath Party.
* 1965 &ndash; Eastern Airlines Flight 663 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after take–off from New York John F. Kennedy International Airport, after trying to avoid a mid–air collision. All on board are killed.
* 1968 &ndash; An attack on African American students from South Carolina State University, protesting in Orangeburg, South Carolina, kills 3 or 4.
* 1969 &ndash; The so–called Allende meteorite lands in Chihuahua State, Mexico.
* 1971 &ndash; South Vietnamese ground forces enter Laos.
* 1971 &ndash; The NASDAQ stock market index opens.
* 1974 &ndash; After 84 days in space, the crew of Skylab 4 returns to Earth.
* 1974 &ndash; A military coup occurs in Upper Volta, present–day Burkina Faso.
* 1978 &ndash; United States Senate proceedings are broadcast on radio for the first time.
* 1979 &ndash; Denis Sassou-Nguesso is elected President of the Republic of the Congo.
* 1981 &ndash; 21 football fans are trampled to death in Neo Faliro, Greece, after a match between Olympiakos and AEK Athens.
* 1983 &ndash; After a record–breaking drought, the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia is affected by a dust storm, and a red dust cloud hangs over the city.
* 1984 &ndash; The 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo begin.
* 1986 &ndash; The Hinton train collision in southern Alberta, Canada, kills 23 people.
* 1989 &ndash; An Independent Air Boeing 707 crashes into Pico Alto Mountain on Santa Maria island, Azores.
* 1992 &ndash; The 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, begin.
* 1993 &ndash; A plane crash in Tehran kills 115 people.
* 1996 &ndash; The massive internet collaboration "24 Hours in Cyberspace" takes place.

### From 2001 
* 2002 &ndash; The 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, begin.
* 2010 &ndash; A freak storm in the Hindu Kush, Afghanistan, causes a series of at least 36 avalanches, killing at least 172 people, and trapping many travelers in the region.
* 2013 &ndash; A strong winter storm affects the northeastern United States.

## Births
### Up to 1800 
* 120 &ndash; Vettius Valens, Greek astrologer (d. 175)
* 412 &ndash; Proclus, Greek philosopher (d. 485)
* 1191 &ndash; Yaroslav II of Russia (d. 1246)
* 1291 &ndash; Afonso IV of Portugal (d. 1357)
* 1405 &ndash; Constantine XI Palaiologus, last Emperor of the Byzantine Empire (d. 1453)
* 1487 &ndash; Ulrich, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1550)
* 1586 &ndash; Jacob Praetorius, German composer (d. 1651)
* 1612 &ndash; Samuel Butler, English poet (d. 1680)
* 1649 &ndash; Gabriel Daniel, French historian (d. 1728)
* 1677 &ndash; Jacques Cassini, French astronomer (d. 1756)
* 1700 &ndash; Daniel Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician and physicist (d. 1782)
* 1708 &ndash; Vaclav Jan Kopriva, Bohemian composer and organist (d. 1789)
* 1720 &ndash; Emperor Sakuramachi of Japan (d. 1750)
* 1754 &ndash; Isaac Tichenor, Governor of Vermont (d. 1838)
* 1762 &ndash; Gia Long, Emperor of Vietnam (d. 1820)
* 1792 &ndash; Carolina Augusta of Bavaria (d. 1873)
* 1798 &ndash; Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich of Russia (d. 1849)

### 1801 &ndash; 1900 
* 1804 &ndash; Richard Lemon Lander, English explorer (d. 1834)
* 1807 &ndash; Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, English sculptor and naturalist (d. 1889)
* 1818 &ndash; Austin Blair, Governor of Michigan (d. 1894)
* 1819 &ndash; John Ruskin, English writer (d. 1900)
* 1820 &ndash; William Tecumseh Sherman, American Union General (d. 1891)
* 1822 &ndash; Maxime Du Camp, French photographer and journalist (d. 1894)
* 1825 &ndash; Henry Walter Bates, English scientist (d. 1892)
* 1828 &ndash; Jules Verne, French writer (d. 1905)
* 1828 &ndash; Antonio Canovas del Castillo, Spanish politician (d. 1897)
* 1830 &ndash; Abdulaziz, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (d. 1876)
* 1834 &ndash; Dmitri Mendeleev, Russian chemist (d. 1907)
* 1849 &ndash; Arisitide Cavallari, Italian cardinal and archbishop (d. 1914)
* 1850 &ndash; Kate Chopin, American writer (d. 1904)
* 1861 &ndash; Harry Ward Leonard, American engineer and inventor (d. 1915)
* 1866 &ndash; Moses Gomberg, Russian–born American chemist (d. 1947)
* 1876 &ndash; Paula Modersohn-Becker, German painter (d. 1907)
* 1878 &ndash; Martin Buber, Austrian–Israeli philosopher (d. 1965)
* 1880 &ndash; Franz Marc, German painter (d. 1916)
* 1880 &ndash; Viktor Schwanneke, German stage director, stage and movie actor (d. 1931)
* 1882 &ndash; Thomas Etholen Selfridge, American military officer and airplane crash victim (d. 1908)
* 1883 &ndash; Joseph Schumpeter, Austrian economist (d. 1950)
* 1884 &ndash; Reginald Baker, Australian athlete and actor (d. 1953)
* 1886 &ndash; Charles Ruggles, American actor (d. 1970)
* 1888 &ndash; Jakob Kaiser, German politician and activist (d. 1961)
* 1890 &ndash; Claro M. Recto, Filipino statesman (d. 1960)
* 1892 &ndash; Ralph Chubb, British poet, artist and printmaker (d. 1960)
* 1893 &ndash; Ba Maw, Burmese politician (d. 1977)
* 1894 &ndash; Ludwig Marcuse, German writer and philosopher (d. 1971)
* 1894 &ndash; King Vidor, American movie director (d. 1982)
* 1897 &ndash; Zakir Hussain, 3rd President of India (d. 1969)
* 1899 &ndash; Lonnie Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1970)
* 1900 &ndash; Ivan Ivanov-Vano, Russian animator and director (d. 1987)

### 1901 &ndash; 1950 
* 1902 &ndash; Demchugdongrub, Mongolian politician (d. 1966)
* 1903 &ndash; Greta Keller, Austrian–American singer and actress (d. 1977)
* 1903 &ndash; Aleksander Mitt, Estonian speed skater (d. 1942)
* 1906 &ndash; Chester Carlson, American physicist and inventor (d. 1968)
* 1909 &ndash; Elisabeth Murdoch, mother of Rupert Murdoch (d. 2012)
* 1911 &ndash; Elizabeth Bishop, American poet (d. 1979)
* 1911 &ndash; Big Joe Turner, American singer (d. 1985)
* 1913 &ndash; Betty Field, American actress (d. 1973)
* 1914 &ndash; Bill Finger, American comic writer (d. 1974)
* 1920 &ndash; Bill Bemer, American computer programmer (d. 2004)
* 1921 &ndash; Lana Turner, American actress (d. 1995)
* 1921 &ndash; Immanuel Jakobovits, Baron Jakobovits, Chief Rabbi of Commonwealth Congregations (d. 1999)
* 1921 &ndash; Eddie Rutherford, Scottish footballer (d. 2007)
* 1922 &ndash; Yuri Averbakh, Russian chess player
* 1924 &ndash; Khamtai Siphandone, former President of Laos
* 1925 &ndash; Jack Lemmon, American actor and movie director (d. 2001)
* 1926 &ndash; Neal Cassidy, American writer (d. 1968)
* 1928 &ndash; Vyacheslav Tikhonov, Russian actor (d. 2009)
* 1928 &ndash; Jack Larson, American actor, screenwriter and producer (d. 2015)
* 1929 &ndash; Claude Rich, French actor (d. 2017)
* 1930 &ndash; Catherine Hardy Lavender, American athlete (d. 2017)
* 1931 &ndash; James Dean, American actor (d. 1955)
* 1932 &ndash; Horst Eckel, German footballer
* 1932 &ndash; John Williams, American composer and director
* 1932 &ndash; Cliff Allison, British racing driver (d. 2005)
* 1933 &ndash; Elly Ameling, Dutch soprano
* 1933 &ndash; Jack Larson, American actor
* 1936 &ndash; Larry Verne, American singer
* 1937 &ndash; Manfred Krug, German actor (d. 2016)
* 1937 &ndash; Harry Wu, Chinese activist (d. 2016)
* 1941 &ndash; Jagjit Singh, Indian musician (d. 2011)
* 1941 &ndash; Nick Nolte, American actor
* 1941 &ndash; Tom Rush, American singer and songwriter
* 1944 &ndash; Roger Lloyd-Pack, British actor (d. 2014)
* 1945 &ndash; Kinza Clodumar, former President of Nauru
* 1947 &ndash; John Roll, American judge (d. 2011)
* 1947 &ndash; Yi Zhongtian, Chinese writer
* 1948 &ndash; Ron Tyson, American singer
* 1948 &ndash; Lynda Lyon Block, American convicted murderer (d. 2002)
* 1949 &ndash; Brooke Adams, American actress

### 1951 &ndash; 1975 
* 1951 &ndash; Rosario Crocetta, Italian politician, former President of Sicily
* 1952 &ndash; Marinho Chagas, Brazilian footballer (d. 2014)
* 1952 &ndash; Carolyn Pickles, British actress
* 1953 &ndash; Mary Steenburgen, American actress
* 1955 &ndash; John Grisham, American writer
* 1955 &ndash; Nancy Oliver, American playwright and television writer
* 1956 &ndash; Marques Johnson, American basketball player
* 1957 &ndash; Mehmet Ali Erbil, Turkish comedian, actor and talk show host
* 1958 &ndash; Marina Silva, Brazilian environmental activist and politician
* 1958 &ndash; Sherri Martel, American professional wrestler (d. 2007)
* 1959 &ndash; Irina Kalinina, Soviet–Russian diver
* 1959 &ndash; Mauricio Macri, Argentine businessman and politician, President of Argentina
* 1960 &ndash; Benigno Aquino III, former President of the Philippines (d. 2021)
* 1960 &ndash; Alfred Gusenbauer, former Chancellor of Austria
* 1960 &ndash; Dino Ciccarelli, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1961 &ndash; Vince Neil, American singer
* 1961 &ndash; Bruce Timm, American character designer, animator and producer
* 1963 &ndash; Mohammad Azharuddin, Indian cricketer
* 1963 &ndash; Jon Hjartarson, Icelandic chess player
* 1964 &ndash; Trinny Woodall, British fashion designer, author and television personality
* 1966 &ndash; Bruno Labbadia, German footballer
* 1966 &ndash; Hristo Stoichkov, Bulgarian footballer
* 1967 &ndash; Lorenzo Minotti, Italian footballer
* 1968 &ndash; Gary Coleman, American actor (d. 2010)
* 1969 &ndash; Mary McCormack, American actress
* 1971 &ndash; Andrus Veerpalu, Estonian cross–country skier
* 1971 &ndash; Aidy Boothroyd, English footballer and manager
* 1972 &ndash; Big Show, American wrestler and actor
* 1974 &ndash; Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, French disc jockey (Daft Punk)
* 1974 &ndash; Seth Green, American actor
* 1974 &ndash; Kimbo Slice, American mixed martial artist (d. 2016)
* 1974 &ndash; Ulises de la Cruz, Ecuadorean footballer

### From 1976 
* 1976 &ndash; Khaled Mashud, Bangladeshi cricketer
* 1976 &ndash; Adam Pialt, American baseball player
* 1976 &ndash; Abi Titmuss, English glamour model
* 1977 &ndash; Sverre Andreas Jakobsson, Icelandic handball player
* 1977 &ndash; Mathieu Turcotte, Canadian short–track speed skater
* 1977 &ndash; Dave Farrell, American musician
* 1979 &ndash; Aaron Cook, American baseball player
* 1979 &ndash; Josh Keaton, American actor and singer
* 1980 &ndash; Ralf Little, English actor and comedian
* 1981 &ndash; Steve Gohouri, Ivorian footballer (d. 2015)
* 1982 &ndash; Liam McIntyre, Australian actor
* 1983 &ndash; Cory Jane, New Zealand rugby player
* 1983 &ndash; Olga Syahputra, Indonesian comedian (d. 2015)
* 1983 &ndash; Jim Verraros, American singer and actor
* 1984 &ndash; Manuel Osborne-Paradis, Canadian alpine skier
* 1984 &ndash; Panagiotis Vasilopoulos, Greek basketball player
* 1985 &ndash; Jeremy Davis, American musician (Paramore)
* 1987 &ndash; Jessica Jerome, American ski jumper
* 1987 &ndash; Carolina Kostner, Italian ice skater
* 1987 &ndash; Francisco Javier Garcia, Spanish footballer
* 1988 &ndash; Nozomi Sasaki, Japanese model
* 1989 &ndash; Dani Harmer, English actress
* 1990 &ndash; Bethany Hamilton, American surfer
* 1990 &ndash; Klay Thompson, American basketball player
* 1991 &ndash; Nam Woo-hyun, South Korean singer, composer, songwriter and actor
* 1992 &ndash; Carl Jenkinson, English footballer
* 1994 &ndash; Nikki Yanofsky, Canadian jazz and pop singer-songwriter
* 1995 &ndash; Joshua Kimmich, German footballer
* 1995 &ndash; Jordan Todosey, Canadian actress
* 1996 &ndash; Kenedy, Brazilian footballer
* 1997 &ndash; Kathryn Newton, American actress

## Deaths
### Up to 1900 
* 1204 &ndash; Alexius IV Angelus, Eastern Roman Emperor (b. 1182)
* 1250 &ndash; Robert I, Count of Artois (b. 1216)
* 1265 &ndash; Hulagu Khan, Mongol ruler (b. 1217)
* 1296 &ndash; King Przemysl II of Poland (b. 1257)
* 1572 &ndash; Cho Shik, Korean scholar, politician, educator and poet (b. 1501)
* 1587 &ndash; Mary, Queen of Scots (b. 1542)
* 1640 &ndash; Murad IV, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1612)
* 1676 &ndash; Alexis of Russia (b. 1629)
* 1696 &ndash; Ivan V of Russia (b. 1666)
* 1709 &ndash; Giuseppe Torelli, Italian composer (b. 1658)
* 1725 &ndash; Peter I of Russia (b. 1672)
* 1749 &ndash; Jan van Huysum, Dutch painter (b. 1682)
* 1750 &ndash; Aaron Hill, English writer (b. 1685)
* 1768 &ndash; George Dance the Elder, English architect (b. 1695)
* 1772 &ndash; Augusta of Saxe-Gotha, Princess of Wales (b. 1719)
* 1849 &ndash; France Preseren, Slovenian poet (b. 1800)
* 1849 &ndash; Francois Antoine Habeneck, French violinist (b. 1781)
* 1856 &ndash; Agostino Bassi, Italian entomologist (b. 1773)
* 1887 &ndash; Charles Wilkes, American naval officer and polar explorer (b. 1798)

### 1901 &ndash; 2000 
* 1918 &ndash; Louis Renault, French jurist (b. 1843)
* 1921 &ndash; Peter Kropotkin, Russian anarchist (b. 1842)
* 1932 &ndash; Yordan Milanov, Bulgarian architect (b. 1867)
* 1935 &ndash; Max Liebermann, German painter (b. 1847)
* 1936 &ndash; Charles Curtis, Vice President of the United States (b. 1860)
* 1956 &ndash; Connie Mack, American baseball manager and executive (b. 1862)
* 1957 &ndash; Walther Bothe, German physicist (b. 1891)
* 1957 &ndash; John von Neumann, Hungarian mathematician and physicist (b. 1903)
* 1960 &ndash; Giles Gilbert Scott, English architect and designer (b. 1880)
* 1963 &ndash; George Dolenz, American actor (b. 1908)
* 1965 &ndash; Wayne Estes, American basketball player (b. 1943)
* 1972 &ndash; Markos Vamvakaris, Greek musician and songwriter (b. 1905)
* 1975 &ndash; Robert Robinson, British chemist (b. 1886)
* 1978 &ndash; Sam H. Jones, Governor of Louisiana (b. 1897)
* 1979 &ndash; Dennis Gabor, Hungarian physicist (b. 1900)
* 1985 &ndash; William Lyons, British entrepreneur (b. 1901)
* 1990 &ndash; Del Shannon, American entertainer (b. 1934)
* 1992 &ndash; Stanley Armour Dunham, grandfather of Barack Obama (b. 1918)
* 1992 &ndash; Denny Wright, British jazz guitarist (b. 1924)
* 1994 &ndash; Raymond Scott, American composer (b. 1908)
* 1994 &ndash; Ken G. Hall, Australian movie director and producer (b. 1901)
* 1998 &ndash; Halldor Laxness, Icelandic writer (b. 1902)
* 1998 &ndash; Enoch Powell, British politician (b. 1912)
* 1998 &ndash; Julian Lincoln Simon, American economist and writer (b. 1932)
* 1999 &ndash; Iris Murdoch, Irish writer (b. 1919)

### From 2001 
* 2001 &ndash; Ivo Caprino, Norwegian movie director and writer (b. 1920)
* 2002 &ndash; Ong Teng Cheong Sing, President of Singapore (b. 1936)
* 2005 &ndash; Keith Knudsen, American drummer and singer-songwriter (b. 1948)
* 2006 &ndash; Akira Ifukube, Japanese composer (b. 1914)
* 2007 &ndash; Anna Nicole Smith, American actress and model (b. 1967)
* 2009 &ndash; Marian Cozma, Romanian handball player (b. 1982)
* 2010 &ndash; John Murtha, American politician (b. 1932)
* 2011 &ndash; Cesare Rubini, Italian water polo player, basketball player and coach (b. 1923)
* 2013 &ndash; Giovanni Cheli, Italian cardinal (b. 1918)
* 2014 &ndash; Maicon Pereira de Oliveira, Brazilian footballer (b. 1988)
* 2014 &ndash; Els Borst, Dutch politician (b. 1932)
* 2015 &ndash; Müzeyyen Senar, Turkish singer (b. 1918)
* 2015 &ndash; Rauni-Leena Luukanen-Kilde, Finnish parapsychologist (b. 1939)
* 2016 &ndash; Amelia Bence, Argentine actress (b. 1914)
* 2016 &ndash; Nida Fazli, Indian poet (b. 1937)
* 2016 &ndash; Charles C. Campbell, American general (b. 1948)
* 2016 &ndash; Johnny Duncan, American actor (b. 1923)
* 2016 &ndash; August P. Mardesich, American politician (b. 1920)
* 2016 &ndash; Viggo Rivad, Danish photographer (b. 1922)
* 2016 &ndash; Violette Verdy, French ballerina (b. 1933)
* 2017 &ndash; Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, English socialite and television personality (b. 1971)
* 2017 &ndash; Peter Mansfield, English physicist (b. 1933)
* 2017 &ndash; Brendan McGahon, Irish politician (b. 1936)
* 2017 &ndash; Alan Simpson, English comedy scriptwriter (b. 1929)
* 2017 &ndash; Steve Sumner, English–New Zealand footballer (b. 1955)
* 2017 &ndash; Mikhail Tolstykh, Ukrainian military commander (b. 1980)
* 2017 &ndash; Mohamud Muse Hersi, Somali politician, President of Puntland (b. 1937)
* 2017 &ndash; Tom Raworth, British poet and visual artist (b. 1938)
* 2018 &ndash; John Martinkovic, American football player (b. 1927)
* 2018 &ndash; Ebony Reigns, Ghanaian singer (b. 1997)
* 2018 &ndash; Lovebug Starski, American rapper and DJ (b. 1960)

## Observances 
* Preseren Day (Slovenia)