On This Day in History.....

0502 Bourgundy King Gundobar delegates royal power
1461 Battle near Towton Field, 33,000 die (War of the Roses)
1638 1st permanent white settlement in Delaware (Swedish Lutherans)
1673 English King Charles II accepts Test Act: Roman Catholic excluded of public functions
1795 Beethoven (24) debuts as pianist in Vienna
1798 Republic of Switzerland forms
1804 Thousands of Whites massacred in Haiti
1814 Battle at Horseshoe Bend AL: Andrew Jackson beats Creek-Indians
1827 20,000 attend Ludwig von Beethovens burial in Vienna
1847 12,000 US troops capture Vera Cruz, Mexico
1848 Niagara Falls stops flowing for 30 hours due to an ice jam
1849 Britain formally annexs Punjab after defeat of Sikhs in India
1850 Ireland's SS Royal Adelaide sinks in storm; 200 die
1852 Ohio makes it illegal for children under 18 & women to work more than 10 hours a day
1860 Dion Boucicault's "Colleen Bawn" premieres in New York NY
1864 Great Britain gives Isotope Islands back to Greece
1864 Union General Steeles troops reach Arkadelphia AR
1865 Appomattox campaign, Virginia, 7582 killed
1865 Battle of Quaker Road, Virginia
1867 British North America Act (Canadian constitution) is passed
1867 Congress approves Lincoln Memorial
1871 Albert Hall is opened by Queen Victoria in London
1879 Tsjaikovski's opera "Jevgeni Onegin" premieres in Moscow
1882 Knights of Columbus chartered for Catholic men
1886 Chemist John Pemberton begins to advertise for Coca-Cola (with cocaine)
1897 Japan adopts Gold Standard
1906 Stanley Cup: Montréal Wanderers sweep Kenora Thisles in 2 games
1912 Captain Robert Scott, blizzard-bound in a tent 18 km from the South Pole, makes last entry in his diary "the end cannot be far"
1919 Stanley Cup: Montréal (NHL) & Seattle (PCHA) win 2 games each with 1 tie; 1919 Stanley Cup not awarded due to flu epidemic
1924 Bayern & Vatican reach accord
1927 Henry O D Segrave races his Sunbeam to a record 203.79 mph at Daytona; 1st auto to exceed 200 mph (322 kph)
1928 Yeshiva College (now University) chartered (New York NY)
1929 Stanley Cup: Boston Bruins sweep New York Rangers in 2 games
1932 Jack Benny debuts on radio
1934 Bank of Travail in Belgium, socialist worker's movement bankrupt
1935 French liner Normandie begins its maiden voyage
1936 10,000 watch the 200" mirror blank passing through Indianapolis
1936 Nazi propaganda claims 99% of Germans voted for Nazi candidates
1940 Joe Louis KOs Johnny Paycheck in 2 to retain heavyweight boxing title
1941 1st performance of Benjamin Britten's "Symphony da Requiem"
1941 3rd NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Wisconsin beats Washington State 39-34
1941 WPAT radio in New Jersey begins broadcasting (country music format)
1942 British cruiser Trinidad torpedoes itself in the Barents Sea
1942 British destroyer Campbeltown explodes in St-Nazaire; 400 Germans die
1942 German submarine U-585 sinks
1943 Meat, butter & cheese rationed in US during WWII (784 gram/week, 2 kilogram for GI's)
1946 1st Test Cricket between Australia & New Zealand
1946 Test Cricket debuts of Lindwall, Miller & Tallon
1947 "Beggar's Holiday" closes at Broadway Theater NYC after 111 performances
1948 Drachtster Boys soccer team forms in Drachten
1948 Yankees & Red Sox tie at 2-2 in 17, spring training game
1949 Turkey recognizes Israel
1951 "King & I" opens at St James Theater NYC for 1246 performances
1951 23rd Academy Awards: "All About Eve", Jose Ferrer & Judy Holliday win
1951 Julius & Ethel Rosenberg convicted of espionage
1953 Patty Berg wins LPGA New Orleans Women's Golf Open
1958 US Ladies Figure Skating Championship won by Carol Heiss
1958 US Men's Figure Skating Championship won by David Jenkins
1959 "Some Like it Hot" with Marilyn Monroe & Jack Lemmon premieres
1959 Wes Hall takes Pakistani cricket hat-trick at Lahore
1960 Darius Milhaud's 9th Symphony, premieres
1961 23rd Amendment is ratified, allows Washington DC residents to vote for President
1961 After a 4½ year trial Nelson Mandela is acquitted on treason charge
1961 KCPT TV channel 19 in Kansas City MO (PBS) begins broadcasting
1962 Argentine President Frondizi flees from the army
1962 Jack Paar's final appearance on the "Tonight Show"
1963 Final episode of soap opera "Young Doctor Malone"
1964 1st true Pirate Radio station, Radio Caroline (England)
1966 "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman" opens at Alvin NYC for 129 performances
1966 Muhammad Ali beats George Chuvalo in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
1967 WCMU TV channel 14 in Mount Pleasant MI (PBS) begins broadcasting
1968 Students seize building at Bowie State College
1969 Communist New People's Army found in Philippines
1970 "Look to the Lilies" opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC for 25 performances
1970 Manchester City wins 10th Europe Cup II
1971 1st Lieutenant William L Calley Jr found guilty in My Lai (Vietnam) massacre
1971 Chile President Allende nationalizes banks/copper mines
1971 Conrad Van Emde Boas becomes West Europe's 1st sexology professor
1971 Development of a serum hepatitis vaccine for children announced
1971 WSVN (now WSBN) TV channel 47 in Norton VA (PBS) begins broadcasting
1973 Dave Cowens wins NBA MVP
1973 Last US troops leave Vietnam, 9 years after Tonkin Gulf Resolution
1974 Mariner 10's, 1st fly-by of Mercury, returns photos
1975 Jane Blalock wins LPGA Karsten-Ping Golf Open
1975 Only 2nd time Islanders beat Rangers
1976 38th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Indiana beats Michigan 86-68
1976 8 Ohio National Guardsmen indicted for shooting 4 Kent State students
1979 Andrew Hilditch given out handled the ball vs Pakistan at WACA
1979 Caryl Churchill's "Cloud Nine" premieres in London
1979 Delhi beat Karnataka by 399 runs to win Cricket's Ranji Trophy
1979 Last day of Test cricket for Mushtaq Mohammad
1981 "Woman of the Year" opens at Palace Theater NYC for 770 performances
1981 Pat Bradley wins LPGA Women's Kemper Golf Open
1981 Tiina Lehtola ski jumps female record 110 meter
1981 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR
1982 2nd Golden Raspberry Awards: Mommie Dearest wins
1982 44th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: North Carolina beats Georgetown 63-62
1982 54th Academy Awards: "Chariots of Fire", Henry Fonda & Katharine Hepburn win
1982 Delhi 707 beat Karnataka 705 on 1st innings to win Ranji Trophy
1984 NFL Baltimore Colts move to Indianapolis under cover of night
1984 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR
1985 Christos Sartzetakis elected President of Greece
1985 Wayne Gretzky breaks own NHL season record with 126th assist
1986 Beatle records officially go on sale in Russia
1987 6th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Louisiana Tech 67-44
1987 Pat Bradley wins LPGA Standard Register Turquoise Golf Classic
1987 Wrestlemania III-93,173 watch Hulk Hogan beat Andre the Giant
1987 Yitzhak Shamir re-elected chairman of right wing Herut Party
1988 "Oba Oba" opens at Ambassador Theater NYC for 46 performances
1988 US Congress discontinues aid to Nicaraguan contras
1989 1st Soviet hockey players are permitted to play for the NHL
1989 1st US private commercial rocket takes suborbital test flight (New Mexico)
1989 61st Academy Awards: "Rainman", Dustin Hoffman & Jodie Foster win
1989 9th Golden Raspberry Awards: Cocktail wins
1989 I M Pei's pyramidal entrance to the Louvre opens in Paris France
1989 Michael Milken, junk bond king, indicted in New York for racketeering
1990 Houston's Akeen Olajuwan scores the 3rd NBA quadruple double 18 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists & 11 blocks vs Milwaukee
1990 NYC's Zodiac killer shoots 2nd victim, Germaine Montenesdro
1992 "Conversations with My Father" opens at Royale NYC for 462 performances
1992 12th Golden Raspberry Awards: Hudson Hawk wins
1992 21st Nabisco Dinah Shore Golf Championship won by Dottie Mochrie
1992 Herb Gardner's "Conversations With My Father" premieres in New York NY
1992 NCAA Basketball Women's Championship at Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Stanford beats Western Kentucky 78-62
1992 World Ice Dance Championship in Oakland won by Klimova & Ponomarenko (CIS)
1992 World Ice Pairs Figure Skating Championship in Oakland won by Mishuktienok & Dmitriev (CIS)
1992 World Ladies Figure Skating Championship in Oakland won by Kristi Yamaguchi (USA)
1992 World Men's Figure Skating Championship in Oakland won by Viktor Petrenko (CIS)
1993 65th Academy Awards: "Unforgiven", Al Pacino & Emma Thompson win
1993 Queensland all out for 75 vs New South Wales in Sheffield Shield Final
1994 Coach Jimmy Johnson quits Dallas Cowboys
1994 Last day of Test cricket for Allan Border
1994 Serbs & Croats signed a cease-fire to end the war in Croatia
1995 Howard Stern Radio Show premieres in Chicago IL on WCKG 105.9 FM
1996 10th Soul Train Music Awards: Patti Labelle, Boyz II Men win
1996 Cleveland Browns choose new name, Baltimore Ravens
1996 New York Yankees beats New York Mets 7-3 in an exhibition game
1997 1st game at Turner Field Atlanta, Braves beats Yankees 2-0 (exhibition)
1997 Actor Harry Hamlin weds actress Lisa Rinna
1997 PBA National Championship Won by Rick Steelsmith
1998 17th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: at Kemper Arena Kansas City,Tennessee beats Louisiana Tech 93-75
1998 27th Nabisco Dinah Shore Golf Championship
1999 61st NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: at ThunderDome St Petersburg, UCONN beats Duke 77-74
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Missing In Action.......

1965 HUME KENNETH E. CINCINNATI OH CRASH AT SEA NO PARASEAT
1969 HESS FREDERICK W. KANSAS CITY MO
1972 BRAUNER HENRY P. FRANKLIN PARK NJ "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG"
1972 CANIFORD JAMES K. FREDERICK MD "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG"
1972 CASTILLO RICHARD CORPUS CRISTI TX "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT,SAR NEG" REMAINS RETURNED 11/86
1972 HALPIN RICHARD C. SAN DIEGO CA "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG" REMAINS RETURNED 03/01/86
1972 MILLER CURTIS D. PALACIOS TX "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG"
1972 PAULSON MERLYN L. FARGO ND "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT," REMAINS RETURNED 03/01/86
1972 PEARCE EDWIN J. MILFORD PA NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT FAMILY REJECTS ID REMAINS RETURNED 03/01/86
1972 RAMSOWER IRVING B. II MATHIS TX NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT. REMAINS RET 03/01/86 ID 08/86
1972 SIMMONS ROBERT E. DE RUYTER NY "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG" REM RETURNED/FAMILY DID NOT ACCEPT ID 3/01/86
1972 SMITH EDWARD D. JR. RED CREEK NY "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, REMAINS RET. 03/01/86" ID 09/86
1972 STEPHENSON HOWARD D. BOLTON MA "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG"
1972 TODD WILLIAM A. MAHOPAC NY "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, REMAINS RET. 03/01/86" ID 09/86
1972 WANZEL CHARLES J. III NEW YORK NY "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, REMAINS RET. 03/01/86" ID 07/86
1972 YOUNG BARCLAY B. FORT LAUDERDALE FL "NO PARA OR RADIO CONTACT, SAR NEG"
1975 GREGORY MARIE 08/75 LEFT SAIGON WITH FAKE PASSPORT
1975 GREGORY PHILIPPE 08/75 LEFT SAIGON WITH FAKE PASSPORT
1975 GOUGLEMANN TUCKER 09/30/77 REMAINS RETURNED BY SRV

Births which occurred on March 29:

1484 Johann Spangenberg composer
1519 Carlo Caraffa Italian cardinal
1561 Santorio Sanctorius Trieste Italy, physician/burned at stake/heretic
1602 John Lightfoot English theologist/literary (Horae Hebraicae)
1616 Johann Erasmus Kindermann composer
1636 Esaias Reusner composer
1725 Joseph Franz Xaver Dominik Stalder composer
1752 Edward Jones composer
1790 John Tyler Charles County VA, (D/W) 10th President (1841-1845)
1799 Edward Stanley Earl Derby ©, British Prime Minister (1852, 1858-59, 1866-68)
1813 John Letcher Governor (Confederacy), died in 1884
1816 James Gallant Spears Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1869
1817 Constantine S Aksakov Russian historian/poet
1819 Edwin Drake drilled 1st productive US oil well
1819 Isaac Mayer Wise rabbi, founded American Hebrew Congregations
1821 Joshua Thomas Owen Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1887
1822 Joseph Quinaux Belgian painter
1826 Wilhelm Liebknecht German MP (social-democratic)
1829 Ritta & Christina Siamese twins, in Sardinia
1829 Robert Emmet Rodes Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1864
1831 Amelia Barr writer
1848 Aleksei Kuropatkin Russian General/minister of War
1867 Cy [Denton True] Young Gilmore OH, winningest pitcher (511 wins, 1890-1911)
1869 Ales Hrdlicka US, anthropologist/curator (US National Museum)
1869 Edwin Lutyens architect, London
1871 Tom Hayward cricketer (great England batsman of the Golden Age)
1875 Lou Henry Hoover 1st lady-Herbert Hoover (1929-33)
1875 Paul Rubens composer
1876 Jan Ingenhoven composer
1876 Joseph Schmidlin German church historian/antifascist
1883 Donald Dexter Van Slyke US chemist (Micromanometric analysis)
1886 Gustaf Adolf Tiburtius Bengtsson composer
1888 Adrianus M de Jong Dutch writer (World Tour of Bulletje & Bonestaak)
1888 James E Casey founder (United Parcel Service)
1889 Howard Lindsay Waterford NY, playwright/actor/director (State of Union)
1889 Warner Baxter Columbus OH, actor (In Old Arizona, Cisco Kid)
1891 Ivan Goll writer
1892 József Mindszenty [Joseph Prehm], Hungarian cardinal
1895 Ernest Jünger German philosopher (Anschwellender Bocksgesang)
1898 Cecil Lewis airman/writer
19-- Brenda Brock Beaumont TX, actress (Brenda-One Life to Live)
1901 Frans U Kailas Finnish poet
1902 Marcel Aymé French writer (Jument Verte)
1902 Onslow Stevens Los Angeles CA, actor (Mr Fisher-This is the Life)
1902 Sir William Walton Oldham Lancashire England, composer (Troilus & Cressida, Wise Virgins)
1905 Annunzio Mantovani Venice Italy, orchestra leader (Mantovani)
1906 E Power Biggs Westcliff-on-Sea England, organist/composer (CBS)
1908 Arthur O'Connell New York NY, actor (Mr Peepers, Second Hundred Years)
1908 Dennis O'Keefe Fort Madison IA, actor/director (T-Men, Fighting Seabees)
1909 Moon Mullican hillbilly pianist (7 Nights of Rock)
1909 Yvonne Waegemans Flemish writer (Gnome Patjoepelke)
1911 Philip Ahn Los Angeles CA, actor (Master Kan-Kung Fu)
1913 Jack Jones British trade unionist (CH)
1913 Niall MacGinnis Dublin Ireland, actor (Curse of the Demon)
1913 Phil Foster Brooklyn NY, comedian (Frank De Fazio-Laverne & Shirley)
1914 Chapman Pincher British journalist/author (about secret service)
1915 George Chisholm Scottish jazz trombonist
1916 Eugene J McCarthy Watkins MN, (Senator-Democrat-MN, Presidential candidate 1968)
1916 John Paul Governor-General (Bahamas)
1917 Arthur Knight CEO (Courtaulds)
1917 Man O'War racehorse (winner of 20 out of 21 races & $249,465)
1918 John Read CEO (TSB Group)
1918 Pearl Bailey Newport News VA, singer (Hello Dolly)
1918 Sam Walton billionaire CEO (Wal-Mart)
1919 Eileen Heckart Columbus OH, actress (Doll's House, Trauma Center)
1921 Hugh Neill Lord-Lieutenant (South Yorkshire)
1921 Sam Loxton cricketer (flamboyant Australian batsman of late 40's)
1923 Julia Montgomery Walsh political consultant/writer
1924 Jules de Corte blind Dutch ballad singer
1925 Emlen Tunnell NFL safety (Giants, Packers)
1925 Lord Justice Beldam
1927 Arthur Ravenel Jr (Representative-Republican-SC)
1927 John McLaughlin TV commentator (McLaughlin Group)
1927 John Vane FRS/pharmacologist
1927 Lord Ross
1928 Vaclav Felix composer
1929 Robert E Rodes led Jackson's flank at Chancellorsville, Major General
1929 Ronald Clive Williams actor/comedian
1929 Sheila Kitzinger author, anthropologist & child birth educator
1930 Donny Conn rocker (Playmates)
1930 G R Sunderam cricket pace bowler (2 Tests India vs New Zealand 1955-56)
1930 Hugh Edward Conway Seymour marquis of Hertford
1930 Marquess of Hertford
1931 Evelyn de Rothschild English banker/multi-millionaire
1931 James Weatherhead moderator (General Assembly of Church of Scotland)
1931 Lord Tebbit British CH
1931 Sylvia Law British town planner
1934 Ernstalbrecht Stiebler composer
1935 Ruby Murray Irish pop singer (Softly Softly)
1936 Richard Rodney Bennett Broadstairs Kent England, composer
1937 Anne Stoddart diplomat
1937 Billy Carter Plains GA, brother of President Carter
1938 Bert de Vries Dutch minister of Social Affairs (CDA)
1938 Margaret Howard British broadcaster
1939 Hanumant Singh cricketer (14 Tests for India-century on debut)
1939 Nancy Kwan Hong Kong, actress (Flower Drum Song, Night Creature)
1940 Raymond Davis US rock vocalist (Funkadelic-Knee Deep)
1941 Terence Hill Venice Italy, actor (Super Fuzz, They Call Me Trinity)
1942 Larry Pressler (Senator-Republican-SD, 1979- )
1943 Eric Idle South Shields Durham England, comedian/actor (Monty Python)
1943 John Major British Prime Minister (C, 1990-97)
1943 Vangelis [Evangelos Papathanassiou] Valos Greece, composer/keyboardist (Chariots of Fire)
1944 Denny McLain Detroit Tiger pitcher (1968 American League MVP/Cy Young/31 wins)
1944 James Diggle FBA, classicist
1944 John Suchet British TV journalist (Independent TV News)
1945 Julie Goodyear British actress (Bet Lynch-Coronation Street)
1945 Walt "Clyde" Frazier NBA guard (New York Knicks)
1945 Willem Ruis Dutch TV host (Willem Ruis Show)
1946 Bruce Weber director (Broken Noses)
1946 Ronald Farrow radio producer/priest
1947 Aleksandr Stepenovich Viktorenko cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-3, 8, 14, 20)
1947 Bobby Kimball [Robert Toteaux] Vinton LA, rocker (Toto-Roseanna. Africa)
1947 Peter Hinchcliffe co-founder (Iceland Frozen Foods)
1948 Bud Cort New Rochelle NY, actor/director (Harold and Maude, Brewster McCloud, MASH)
1949 Michael Brecker jazz musician (The Brecker Brothers)
1949 Uton Dowe cricketer (West Indies pace bowler 1972-73 "Dowe shall not bowl")
1951 Barry Goudreau rocker
1951 Geoff Howarth cricketer (New Zealand captain early 80's)
1952 Teofilo Stevenson Cuba, heavyweight boxer (Olympics-gold-1972, 76, 80)
1954 Karen Anne Quinlan Scranton PA, famous comatose patient (right to die case)
1955 Christopher Lawford actor (Charlie Brent-All My Children)
1955 Dianne Kay Phoenix AZ, actress (Nancy-8 is Enough, Reggie, Glitter)
1955 Earl Campbell NFL running back (Houston, New Orleans, 1977 Heisman)
1955 Henry Bellingham MP
1956 Kurt Thomas US, gymnast (Olympics), actor (Gymkata)
1956 LaToya Jackson singer (If You Feel the Funk)/posed for Playboy
1956 Lisa J Allen TV reporter/lawyer
1956 Sue Fogleman LPGA golfer
1957 Christopher Lambert Great Neck Long Island NY, actor (Highlander, Subway, Greystoke, Why Me)
1958 Fiona Reynolds director/Council for Protection of Rural England
1959 Brad McCrimmon Dodsland, NHL defenseman (Hartford Whalers)
1959 Marina Sirtis London, actress (Deanna Troi-Star Trek: The Next Generation)
1961 Ane-Marie Sanches newscaster (Suriname TV/Radio)
1961 Mike Kingery St James MN, outfielder (Pittsburgh Pirates)
1962 Kirk Alan Triplett Moses Lake WA, PGA golfer (1992 Shell Houston-2nd)
1964 Elle Macpherson Sydney Australia, model (Sports Illustrated 1986, 87, 88)/actress (Sirens)
1964 Jill Goodacre Connick Lubbock TX, model (Victoria Secrets)
1966 Dwayne Harper NFL cornerback (San Diego Chargers)
1966 Eric Gunderson Portland OR, pitcher (Boston Red Sox)
1966 Robb Thomas NFL receiver (Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
1967 Brian Jordan Baltimore MD, outfielder (St Louis Cardinals)
1967 Jerry Olsavsky NFL linebacker (Pittsburgh Steelers)
1968 Chris Calloway NFL wide receiver (New York Giants)
1968 James Williams NFL tackle (Chicago Bears)
1969 [Jane] Kim[berly] Batten McRae GA, 400 meter hurdler (Olympics-silver-96)
1969 Darren Chandler WLAF receiver (Amsterdam Admirals)
1969 James Atkin rocker (EMF-Unbelievable)
1969 Jeff Blackshear guard (Baltimore Ravens)
1969 Jimmy Spencer NFL cornerback (New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals)
1969 Kai Nurminen Turku Finland, hockey forward (Team Finland)
1969 Perry Farrell rocker (Jane's Addiction, Porno For Pyros)
1971 Lennart van Reen son of author Ton v R/publisher Corrie Zelen
1971 Ryan Mark Lambert Cleveland OH, actor/singer (Kids Incorporated, Freeze Frame)
1972 Alex Ochoa Miami FL, outfielder (New York Mets)
1972 John Rothell Titusville FL, 400 meter hurdler
1972 Paul Michael Kent Australia, New Zealand breast-stroker (Olympics-96)
1972 Trevor Kidd Dugald Manitoba, NHL goalie (Calgary Flames)
1973 Brad Bridgewater US, 200 meter backstroke (Olympics-gold-96)
1973 John Oppio Sparks NV, double trap (Olympics-1996)
1973 Marc Overmars Dutch soccer player (Ajax)
1973 Mark Platt Peterborough Ontario, rower (Olympics-96)
1975 Christopher Yule hockey forward (Team Japan 1998)
1976 Jennifer Capriati Long Island NY, tennis pro (Federation Cup-1990, Olympics-gold-92)
1987 7th Golden Raspberry Awards: Howard the Duck wins
2334 Beverly Crusher Copernicus Luna, fictional doctor-Star Trek Next Generation
2336 Deanna Troi Betazed, fictional counsellor-Star Trek Next Generation
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Deaths which occurred on March 29:

1058 Stephen IX [Frederik van Lotharingen], 1st Belgian Pope (1057-58), dies
1546 Cardinal Beaton English archbishop of St Andrews, murdered
1650 Cornelis Galle I Flemish engraver, dies at about 73
1655 Valerius Andreas Flemish historian, dies at 66
1697 Nikolaus Bruhns composer, dies
1745 Robert Walpole 1st British premier (1722-42), dies at 68
1788 Charles Wesley hymn writer, dies
1792 King Gustav III King of Sweden (1771-92), dies of wounds
1794 Marie-J-A-N C Condorcet mathematician (Theory of Comets), dies at 50
1802 Frederic Thieme composer, dies at 51
1826 J H Voß writer, dies at 75
1837 Maria Fitzherbert morganatic wife of King George IV, dies
1839 Bernardus JC Dibbets Dutch baron/General-Major (Maastricht), dies at 56
1847 Auguste De Polignac premier France, dies at 66
1848 John Jacob Astor chartered American Fur Company, dies at 84
1866 Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch Rabbi/Chassidic leader, dies
1880 Jakob Axel Josephson composer, dies at 62
1886 John Keble theologian, Bournemouth
1888 Charles-Henri Valentin Alkan composer, dies at 74
1891 Georges-Pierre Seurat French painter (Pointillism), dies at 31
1892 William Bowman English anatomist, dies at 75
1911 Felix Alexandre Guilmant composer, dies at 74
1912 Robert F Scott British pole explorer (Antarctica), dies
1917 Fran Gerbic composer, dies at 76
1924 Charles Villiers Stanford Irish composer/writer, dies at 71
1930 Anton Bettelheim writer, dies
1933 Alexander Schmuller Russian/Dutch violinist/conductor, dies at 52
1937 Karol Szymanowski Polish/Ukraine composer (Stabat Mater), dies at 54
1945 Karl T Sapper German geographer/geologist (Vulkankunde), dies at 79
1955 Everard Verachtert Flemish linguist (I Can Speak Nicely), dies at 81
1957 Joyce A L Cary English writer (Horse's Mouth), dies at 68
1959 Barthelemy Boganda Central African Republic's 1st President, dies
1959 Sara Wennerberg-Reuter composer, dies at 84
1963 Pola Gojawiczynska Polish author (Stolica), dies at 64
1964 Ted Collins pianist (Kate Smith Evening Hour), dies at 63
1966 Harry Daugherty trombonist (Spike Jones & City Slickers), dies at 50
1972 J Arthur Rank 1st Baron Rank, industrialist/film magnate
1974 Seton I Miller writer, dies at 71
1978 Jayasinghrao Mansinghrao Ghorpade cricketer (8 Tests for India), dies
1979 Melville Cooper TV panelist (I Got a Secret), dies at 82
1980 [Annunzio Paolo] Mantovani orchestra leader, dies at 74
1981 Eric Williams Prime Minister (Trinidad & Tobago), dies at 79
1982 Carl Orff German composer (Mouth, Antigonae), dies at 86
1982 Rudy Bond character actor (Streetcar Named Desire), dies of a heart attack at 68
1982 Walter Hallstein West German politician (CDU, H-doctrine), dies at 80
1983 Richard O'Brien actor (Rocky Horror Show), dies of cancer at 65
1986 Harry Ritz actor (3 Musketeers, On the Avenue), dies at 79
1989 Bernard Blier actor (Les Miserables, Women & War), dies at 73
1990 Germaine Montenesdro 2nd victim of NYC's Zodiac killer, shot dead
1991 Lee Atwater political strategist ®, dies of brain tumor at 40
1991 Matt Bennett actor (Hickey & Boggs), dies of brain tumor at 52
1992 Earl Spencer father of Lady Diana, dies at 68
1992 Paul [G J von] Henreid Austrian actor (Laszlo-Casablanca), dies at 84
1994 Bill Travers actor (Trio, Gorgo, Born Free), dies at 72
1994 Paul Grimault animator, dies at 89
1994 William Natcher (Representative-Democrat-KY), dies at 84
1995 Carl E Jefferson record company owner, dies at 74
1995 Eddie Williams Wiggins alto saxophone/comedian, dies at 78
1995 James Eric Storrar fighter Pilot, dies at 74
1995 John Elliott Terry film financier, dies at 82
1996 Maggie Donnelly bag lady, dies at 46
1997 Eddie Ryder actor (Slick Jones-General Hospital), dies at 74
1997 Ellen Clara Pollock actress (Wicked Lady, Fake), dies at 94

1776 Putnam named commander of New York troops

On this day in 1776, General George Washington appoints Major General Israel Putnam commander of the troops in New York. In his new capacity, Putnam was expected to execute plans for the defense of New York City and its waterways.

A veteran military man, Putnam had served as a lieutenant in the Connecticut militia during the French and Indian War, where he survived capture by Caughanawega Indians at Detroit and led regiments in the victories at Ticonderoga and Montreal. Connecticut elected Putnam to the colony’s General Assembly in 1766 in the wake of the Stamp Act Crisis. He was also among the founders of the Sons of Liberty in Connecticut. At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, Putnam received a commission as a general in the Continental Army under General George Washington.

Putnam’s leadership and battlefield experience served him and the Continental Army most admirably at the Battle of Bunker Hill in June 1775, where he helped develop strategy and distinguished himself on the battlefield. Shortly after taking command of the New York troops in March 1776, though, Putnam’s career took a downturn. In August 1776, British troops forced his retreat at the Battle of Long Island. After retreating again from the New York battles for Fort Montgomery and Fort Clinton in 1777, General Washington began to doubt Putnam’s leadership. Considered one of Washington’s most valuable military men at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, Putnam began to be seen as an ineffective leader. Still, he continued serving in the Continental Army until suffering a career-ending stroke in December 1779.

Israel Putnam was not the only member of his extended family to end his life in disrepute. His ancestors were among the residents of Salem Village (modern-day Danvers), Massachusetts, to execute 20 of their neighbors after accusing them of witchcraft in the famous trials of 1692
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1865 Appomattox campaign begins

The final campaign of the war begins in Virginia when Union troops of General Ulysses S. Grant move against the Confederate trenches around Petersburg. General Robert E. Lee's outnumbered Rebels were soon forced to evacuate the city and begin a desperate race west.

Eleven months before, Grant moved his army across the Rapidan River in northern Virginia and began the bloodiest campaign of the war. For six weeks, Lee and Grant fought along an arc that swung east of the Confederate capital at Richmond. They fought some of the conflict's bloodiest battles at Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor before they settled into trenches for a siege of Petersburg, 25 miles south of Richmond. The trenches eventually stretched all the way back to Richmond, and for ten months the armies glowered at each other across a no man's land. Periodically, Grant launched attacks against sections of the Rebel defenses, but Lee's men managed to fend them off.

Time was running out for Lee, though. His army was dwindling in size to about 55,000, while Grant's continued to grow--the Army of the Potomac now had more than 125,000 men ready for service. On March 25, Lee attempted to split the Union lines when he attacked Fort Stedman, a stronghold along the Yankee trenches. His army was beaten back, and he lost nearly 5,000 men. Grant seized the initiative, sending 12,000 men past the Confederates' left flank and threatening to cut Lee's escape route from Petersburg. Fighting broke out there, several miles southwest of the city. Lee's men could not arrest the Federal advance. Two days later, the Yankees struck at Five Forks, soundly defeating the Rebels and leaving Lee no alternative. He pulled his forces from their trenches and raced west, followed by Grant. It was a race that even the great Lee could not win. He surrendered his army on April 9 at Appomattox Court House.
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1917 Swedish prime minister resigns over WWI policy

Prime Minister Hjalmar Hammarskjold of Sweden, father of the famous future United Nations Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold, resigns on this day in 1917 after his policy of strict neutrality in World War I—including continued trading with Germany, in violation of the Allied blockade—leads to widespread hunger and political instability in Sweden.

The elder Hammarskjold, a professor of law who became active in politics and served as a delegate to the Hague convention on international law in 1907, was asked by King Gustav V of Sweden to become prime minister in 1914 after a popularly elected government was opposed and defeated by conservative forces. From the beginning of his administration, Hammarskjold pursued a policy of strict neutrality in the war, continuing trade with Germany and thus subjecting his country and people to the hardships wrought by the Allied naval blockade in the North Sea, in place from November 1914.

Though the Allies—and many within Sweden—saw Hammarskjold’s neutrality as a pro-German policy, he apparently considered it a necessary product of his firm principles regarding international law. Sweden’s sacrifice during the war, he believed, would prove that it was not an opportunistic nation but a just one; this would put it in a stronger position after the war ended. In practice, however, his policies, and the hunger they produced, hurt Hammarskjold, as did his identification with Sweden’s monarchy and other reactionary forces, just as a movement toward true parliamentary democracy was growing in Sweden.

In 1917, Hammarskjold rejected a proposal for a common trade agreement with Great Britain that had been brokered by Marcus Wallenberg, brother of Sweden’s foreign minister, Knut Wallenberg, and would have brought much-needed economic relief to Sweden. With the obvious conflict between Hammarskjold and Wallenberg, the prime minister lost the support of even his most right-wing allies in parliament, and was forced to submit his resignation at the end of March 1917. He was succeeded by Carl Swartz, a conservative member of parliament who served only seven months. In October 1917, Sweden’s Social Democratic party won their first general election, and Nils Eden became prime minister.
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1945 Patton takes Frankfurt

On this day, Gen. George S. Patton's 3rd Army captures Frankfurt, as "Old Blood and Guts" continues his march east.

Frankfurt am Main, literally "On the Main" River, in western Germany, was the mid-19th century capital of Germany (it was annexed by Prussia in 1866, ending its status as a free city). Once integrated into a united German nation, it developed into a significant industrial city-and hence a prime target for Allied bombing during the war. That bombing began as early as July 1941, during a series of British air raids against the Nazis. In March 1944, Frankfurt suffered extraordinary damage during a raid that saw 27,000 tons of bombs dropped on Germany in a single month. Consequently, Frankfurt's medieval Old Town was virtually destroyed (although it would be rebuilt in the postwar period-replete with modern office buildings).

In late December 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge, General Patton broke through the German lines of the besieged Belgian city of Bastogne, relieving its valiant defenders. Patton then pushed the Germans east. Patton's goal was to cross the Rhine, even if not a single bridge was left standing over which to do it. As Patton reached the banks of the river on March 22, 1945, he found that one bridge -- the Ludendorff Bridge, located in the little town of Remagen -- had not been destroyed. American troops had already made a crossing on March 7 -- a signal moment in the war and in history, as an enemy army had not crossed the Rhine since Napoleon accomplished the feat in 1805. Patton grandly made his crossing, and from the bridgehead created there, Old Blood and Guts and his 3rd Army headed east and captured Frankfurt on the 29th.

Patton then crossed through southern Germany and into Czechoslovakia, only to encounter an order not to take the capital, Prague, as it had been reserved for the Soviets. Patton was, not unexpectedly, livid.
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1971 Calley found guilty of My Lai murders

Lt. William L. Calley is found guilty of premeditated murder at My Lai by a U.S. Army court-martial at Fort Benning, Georgia. Calley, a platoon leader, had led his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians, including women and children, at My Lai 4, a cluster of hamlets in Quang Ngai Province on March 16, 1968.

The unit had been conducting a search-and-destroy mission to locate the 48th Viet Cong (VC) Local Force Battalion. The unit entered Son My village but found only women, children, and old men. Frustrated by unanswered losses due to snipers and mines, the soldiers took out their anger on the villagers, indiscriminately shooting people as they ran from their huts. The soldiers rounded up the survivors and led them to a nearby ditch where they were shot.

Calley was charged with six specifications of premeditated murder. During the trial, Chief Army prosecutor Capt. Aubrey Daniel charged that Calley ordered Sgt. Daniel Mitchell to "finish off the rest" of the villagers. The prosecution stressed that all the killings were committed despite the fact that Calley's platoon had met no resistance and that he and his men had not been fired on.

The My Lai massacre had initially been covered up but came to light one year later. An Army board of inquiry, headed by Lt. Gen. William Peers, investigated the massacre and produced a list of 30 people who knew of the atrocity, but only 14 were charged with crimes. All eventually had their charges dismissed or were acquitted by courts-martial except Calley, whose platoon allegedly killed 200 innocents.

Calley was found guilty of personally murdering 22 civilians and sentenced to life imprisonment, but his sentence was reduced to 20 years by the Court of Military Appeals and further reduced later to 10 years by the Secretary of the Army. Proclaimed by much of the public as a "scapegoat," Calley was paroled in 1974 after having served about a third of his 10-year sentence.
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1973 Last U.S. troops depart South Vietnam

Under the provisions of the Paris Peace Accords signed on January 27, 1973, the last U.S. troops depart South Vietnam, ending nearly 10 years of U.S. military presence in that country. The U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam headquarters was disestablished. Only a Defense Attache Office and a few Marine guards at the Saigon American Embassy remained, although roughly 8,500 U.S. civilians stayed on as technical advisers to the South Vietnamese.

Also on this day: As part of the Accords, Hanoi releases the last 67 of its acknowledged American prisoners of war, bringing the total number released to 591.