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On This Day in History — February 14

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Highlights of February 14

2018 — An lone gunman shot and killed seventeen people and injured seventeen others in a mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Read more
2011 — Arab Spring: On the Day of Rage, Bahraini youths began an uprising against the government in 55 marches across 25 locations. Read more
2008 — A gunman opened fire into a crowded lecture hall at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, killing five people and injuring twenty-one others. Read more
2007 — The first of several bombings in Zahedan, Iran, killed 18 members of the Revolutionary Guards. Read more
2005 — The online video platform YouTube was founded by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. Read more
1992 — Sri Temasek (pictured), the official residence of the prime minister of Singapore, was declared a national monument. Read more
1990 — Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashed near Hindustan Airport during its approach to the airport, which resulted in 92 out of the 146 people on board being killed. Read more
1990 — The NASA space probe Voyager 1 took Pale Blue Dot (detail pictured), a photograph of Earth from a record distance of 40.5 astronomical units (6.06 billion km; 3.76 billion mi). Read more
1989 — Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa calling for the death of Salman Rushdie, the author of The Satanic Verses, a novel considered to be blasphemous by some Muslims. Read more
1979 — Adolph Dubs, United States Ambassador to Afghanistan, was kidnapped by unknown agents and killed during a gun battle between Afghan police and the perpetrators. Read more
1961 — Lawrencium, the radioactive synthetic element with atomic number 103, was first synthesized at the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. Read more
1943 — World War II: General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim's 5th Panzer Army launched a concerted attack against Allied positions in Tunisia. Read more
1938 — The Singapore Naval Base, the cornerstone of the Singapore strategy, a British naval defence policy, was opened. Read more
1924 — The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company was renamed as International Business Machines (IBM), later growing into one of the world's largest companies by market capitalization. Read more
1919 — The Battle of Bereza Kartuska, the first serious armed conflict of the Polish–Soviet War, took place near present-day Biaroza, Belarus. Read more
1916 — World War I: Britain, France and Russia made the Declaration of Sainte-Adresse, stating that they would refuse to sign any peace treaty with the Central Powers that failed to ensure the political and economic independence of Belgium. Read more
1914 — The animated film Gertie the Dinosaur was released, later greatly influencing future animators such as the Fleischer brothers and Walt Disney. Read more
1895 — Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest (production pictured), once described as the second-most quoted English-language play after Hamlet, premiered in London. Read more
1852 — The Hospital for Sick Children, the first hospital in England to provide in-patient beds specifically for children, was founded in London. Read more
1804 — Serb chieftains elected Đorđe Petrović as their leader and began an uprising against the Ottoman Empire. Read more
1779 — Native Hawaiians killed the English explorer Captain James Cook as he attempted to kidnap Kalaniʻōpuʻu, the ruling chief of the island of Hawaii. Read more
1779 — American Revolutionary War: At the Battle of Kettle Creek, a militia of Patriots decisively defeated and scattered a Loyalist militia that was on its way to British-controlled Augusta, Georgia. Read more
1655 — Arauco War: The Mapuche carried out a series of coordinated attacks against Spanish settlements and forts in colonial Chile, beginning a ten-year period of warfare. Read more

Events

2020 — At least 22 people are killed in an attack on a village in Northwest Region, Cameroon. Read more
2019 — Pulwama attack takes place in Lethpora in Pulwama district, Jammu and Kashmir, India in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel and a suicide bomber were killed and 35 were injured. Read more
2018 — Jacob Zuma resigns as President of South Africa. Read more
2018 — A shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida is one of the deadliest school massacres with 17 fatalities and 17 injuries. Read more
2011 — As a part of Arab Spring, the Bahraini uprising begins with a 'Day of Rage'. Read more
2008 — Northern Illinois University shooting: A gunman opens fire in a lecture hall of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb County, Illinois, resulting in six fatalities (including the gunman) and 21 injuries. Read more
2005 — In Beirut, 23 people, including former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri, are killed when the equivalent of around 1,000 kg of TNT is detonated while Hariri's motorcade drives through the city. Read more
2005 — Seven people are killed and 151 wounded in a series of bombings by suspected al-Qaeda-linked militants that hit Makati, Davao City, and General Santos, all in the Philippines. Read more
2005 — YouTube is launched by a group of college students, eventually becoming the largest video sharing website in the world and a main source for viral videos. Read more
2004 — In a suburb of Moscow, Russia, the roof of the Transvaal water park collapses, killing more than 28 people, and wounding 193 others. Read more
2003 — Iraq disarmament crisis: UNMOVIC Executive Chairman Hans Blix reports to the United Nations Security Council that disarmament inspectors have found no weapons of mass destruction in Ba'athist Iraq. Read more
2000 — The spacecraft NEAR Shoemaker enters orbit around asteroid 433 Eros, the first spacecraft to orbit an asteroid. Read more
1998 — An oil tanker train collides with a freight train in Yaoundé, Cameroon, spilling fuel oil. One person scavenging the oil created a massive explosion which killed 120. Read more
1990 — Ninety-two people are killed when Indian Airlines Flight 605 crashes in Bangalore, India. Read more
1990 — The Voyager 1 spacecraft takes the photograph of planet Earth that later becomes famous as Pale Blue Dot. Read more
1989 — Union Carbide agrees to pay $470 million to the Indian government for damages it caused in the 1984 Bhopal disaster. Read more
1989 — Iranian leader Ruhollah Khomeini issues a fatwa encouraging Muslims to kill Salman Rushdie, author of The Satanic Verses. Read more
1983 — United American Bank of Knoxville, Tennessee collapses. Its president, Jake Butcher, is later convicted of fraud. Read more
1979 — In Kabul, Setami Milli militants kidnap the American ambassador to Afghanistan, Adolph Dubs who is later killed during a gunfight between his kidnappers and police. Read more
1961 — Discovery of the chemical elements: Element 103, Lawrencium, is first synthesized at the University of California. Read more
1954 — First Indochina War - small French garrison at Đắk Đoa is overrun by the Viet Minh after a week's siege. Read more
1949 — The Knesset (parliament of Israel) convenes for the first time. Read more
1949 — The Asbestos Strike begins in Canada. The strike marks the beginning of the Quiet Revolution in Quebec. Read more
1947 — The act abolishing all noble ranks and related styles comes into force in Hungary. Read more
1946 — The Bank of England is nationalized. Read more
1945 — World War II: On the first day of the bombing of Dresden, the British Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces begin fire-bombing Dresden. Read more
1945 — World War II: Navigational error leads to the mistaken bombing of Prague, Czechoslovakia by a United States Army Air Forces squadron of B-17s assisting in the Soviet Red Army's Vistula–Oder Offensive. Read more
1945 — World War II: Mostar is liberated by Yugoslav partisans Read more
1945 — President Franklin D. Roosevelt meets King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia aboard the USS Quincy, officially beginning U.S.-Saudi diplomatic relations. Read more
1944 — World War II: In the action of 14 February 1944, a Royal Navy submarine sinks a German-controlled Italian Regia Marina submarine in the Strait of Malacca. Read more
1943 — World War II: Rostov-on-Don, Russia is liberated. Read more
1943 — World War II: Tunisia Campaign: General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim's Fifth Panzer Army launches a counter-attack against Allied positions in Tunisia. Read more
1942 — World War II: Battle of Pasir Panjang contributes to the fall of Singapore. Read more
1939 — World War II: German battleship Bismarck is launched. Read more
1929 — Saint Valentine's Day Massacre: Seven people, six of them gangster rivals of Al Capone's gang, are murdered in Chicago. Read more
1924 — The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company changes its name to International Business Machines Corporation (IBM). Read more
1920 — The League of Women Voters is founded in Chicago. Read more
1919 — The Polish–Soviet War begins. Read more
1918 — Soviet Russia adopts the Gregorian calendar. Read more
1912 — Arizona is admitted as the 48th and the last contiguous U.S. state. Read more
1912 — The U.S. Navy commissions its first class of diesel-powered submarines. Read more
1903 — The United States Department of Commerce and Labor is established (later split into the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor). Read more
1900 — The British Army begins the Battle of the Tugela Heights in an effort to lift the Siege of Ladysmith. Read more
1899 — Voting machines are approved by the U.S. Congress for use in federal elections. Read more
1879 — The War of the Pacific breaks out when the Chilean Army occupies the Bolivian port city of Antofagasta. Read more
1876 — Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray. Read more
1859 — Oregon is admitted as the 33rd U.S. state. Read more
1855 — Texas is linked by telegraph to the rest of the United States, with the completion of a connection between New Orleans and Marshall, Texas. Read more
1852 — Great Ormond St Hospital for Sick Children, the first hospital in England to provide in-patient beds specifically for children, is founded in London. Read more
1849 — In New York City, James Knox Polk becomes the first serving President of the United States to have his photograph taken. Read more
1835 — The original Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, in the Latter Day Saint movement, is formed in Kirtland, Ohio. Read more
1831 — Ras Marye of Yejju marches into Tigray and defeats and kills Dejazmach Sabagadis in the Battle of Debre Abbay. Read more
1804 — Karađorđe leads the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire. Read more
1797 — French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of Cape St. Vincent: John Jervis, (later 1st Earl of St Vincent) and Horatio Nelson (later 1st Viscount Nelson) lead the British Royal Navy to victory over a Spanish fleet in action near Gibraltar. Read more
1779 — American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Kettle Creek is fought in Georgia. Read more
1779 — James Cook is killed by Native Hawaiians near Kealakekua on the Island of Hawaii. Read more
1778 — The United States flag is formally recognized by a foreign naval vessel for the first time, when French Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte renders a nine gun salute to USS Ranger, commanded by John Paul Jones. Read more
1655 — The Mapuches launch coordinated attacks against the Spanish in Chile beginning the Mapuche uprising of 1655. Read more
1613 — Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Frederick V of the Palatinate at Whitehall Palace, London. Read more
1556 — Having been declared a heretic and laicized by Pope Paul IV on 4 December 1555, Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer is publicly defrocked at Christ Church Cathedral. Read more

Born on February 14

2002 — Jaxon Smith-Njigba, American football player Read more
2000 — Gabriel Moreno, Venezuelan baseball player Read more
1999 — Tyler Adams, American soccer player Read more
1997 — Jaehyun, South Korean singer and actor Read more
1997 — Breel Embolo, Swiss footballer Read more
1996 — Nikolaj Ehlers, Danish ice hockey player Read more
1996 — Poasa Faamausili, New Zealand rugby league player Read more
1996 — Lucas Hernandez, French footballer Read more
1993 — Jadeveon Clowney, American football player Read more
1993 — Alberto Rosende, American actor and singer Read more
1992 — Christian Eriksen, Danish footballer Read more
1992 — Freddie Highmore, English actor Read more
1992 — Petr Mrázek, Czech ice hockey player Read more
1991 — Karol G, Colombian singer and songwriter Read more
1991 — Daniela Mona Lambin, Estonian footballer Read more
1990 — Chris Babb, American basketball player Read more
1990 — Brett Dier, Canadian actor Read more
1990 — Bogdan Kiselevich, Russian ice hockey player Read more
1990 — Sefa Yılmaz, German-Turkish footballer Read more
1989 — Néstor Calderón, Mexican footballer Read more
1989 — Adam Matuszczyk, Polish footballer Read more
1989 — Emma Miskew, Canadian curler Read more
1989 — Byron Mullens, American basketball player Read more
1989 — Derek Norris, American baseball player Read more
1989 — Brandon Sutter, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
1989 — Jurij Tepeš, Slovenian ski jumper Read more
1989 — Kristian Thomas, English gymnast Read more
1988 — Katie Boland, Canadian actress, producer, and screenwriter Read more
1988 — Ángel Di María, Argentinian footballer Read more
1988 — Siim Liivik, Estonian ice hockey player Read more
1987 — Edinson Cavani, Uruguayan footballer Read more
1987 — Tom Pyatt, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
1987 — David Wheater, English footballer Read more
1987 — Candice Wiggins, American basketball player Read more
1986 — Michael Ammermüller, German racing driver Read more
1986 — Oliver Lee, English actor, director, and screenwriter Read more
1986 — Gao Lin, Chinese footballer Read more
1986 — Tiffany Thornton, American actress and singer Read more
1985 — Karima Adebibe, English model and actress Read more
1985 — Tyler Clippard, American baseball player Read more

Died on February 14

2026 — Tom Noonan, American actor, director, and screenwriter (born 1951) Read more
2021 — Carlos Menem, Argentine former president, lawyer, and statesman (born 1930) Read more
2021 — William Meninger, American Trappist monk and a principal developer of Centering Prayer (born 1932) Read more
2019 — Andrea Levy, English author (born 1956) Read more
2018 — Ruud Lubbers, Dutch politician and diplomat, Prime Minister and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (born 1939) Read more
2018 — Morgan Tsvangirai, 2nd Prime Minister of Zimbabwe (born 1952) Read more
2016 — Eric Lubbock, 4th Baron Avebury, English lieutenant, engineer, and politician (born 1928) Read more
2016 — Steven Stucky, American composer and academic (born 1949) Read more
2015 — Louis Jourdan, French-American actor and singer (born 1921) Read more
2015 — Philip Levine, American poet and academic (born 1928) Read more
2015 — Franjo Mihalić, Croatian-Serbian runner and coach (born 1920) Read more
2014 — Tom Finney, English footballer (born 1922) Read more
2014 — Chris Pearson, Canadian lawyer and politician, 1st Premier of Yukon (born 1931) Read more
2014 — Mike Stepovich, American lawyer and politician, Governor of Alaska Territory (born 1919) Read more
2013 — Glenn Boyer, American historian and author (born 1924) Read more
2013 — Ronald Dworkin, American philosopher and scholar (born 1931) Read more
2012 — Mike Bernardo, South African boxer and martial artist (born 1969) Read more
2012 — Tonmi Lillman, Finnish drummer and producer (born 1973) Read more
2012 — Dory Previn, American singer-songwriter (born 1925) Read more
2012 — Péter Rusorán, Hungarian swimmer, water polo player, and coach (born 1940) Read more
2011 — George Shearing, English-American pianist and composer (born 1919) Read more
2010 — Doug Fieger, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1952) Read more
2010 — Dick Francis, Welsh jockey and author (born 1920) Read more
2010 — Linnart Mäll, Estonian historian, orientalist, and translator (born 1938) Read more
2009 — Bernard Ashley, English engineer and businessman, co-founded Laura Ashley plc (born 1926) Read more
2009 — Louie Bellson, American drummer and composer (born 1924) Read more
2008 — Perry Lopez, American actor (born 1929) Read more
2007 — Ryan Larkin, Canadian animator and director (born 1943) Read more
2007 — Gareth Morris, English flute player and educator (born 1920) Read more
2006 — Lynden David Hall, English singer-songwriter and producer (born 1974) Read more
2005 — Rafic Hariri, Lebanese businessman and politician, 60th Prime Minister of Lebanon (born 1944; assassinated) Read more
2004 — Marco Pantani, Italian cyclist (born 1970) Read more
2003 — Johnny Longden, English jockey and trainer (born 1907) Read more
2002 — Nándor Hidegkuti, Hungarian footballer and manager (born 1922) Read more
2002 — Mick Tucker, English drummer (born 1947) Read more
1999 — John Ehrlichman, American lawyer and politician, 12th White House Counsel (born 1925) Read more
1999 — Buddy Knox, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1933) Read more
1998 — Peter Koch (wood scientist), American industrial engineer and wood scientist (born 1920) Read more
1996 — Bob Paisley, English footballer and manager (born 1919) Read more
1995 — Michael V. Gazzo, American actor and playwright (born 1923) Read more

Holidays & observances

Christian feast day: Cyril and Methodius, patron saints of Europe (Roman Catholic Church); Christian feast day: Eleuchadius; Christian feast day: Manchan; Christian feast day: Valentine (see also Valentine's Day); Christian feast day: Vicente Vilar David; Christian feast day: February 14 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Statehood Day (Arizona, United States); Statehood Day (Oregon, United States); Presentation of Jesus at the Temple (Armenian Apostolic Church); Parents' Worship Day (parts of India)

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Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “February 14”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.