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On This Day in History — February 5

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Highlights of February 5

2009 — The United States Navy guided missile cruiser Port Royal ran aground (pictured) on a coral reef off the island of Oahu. Read more
2008 — Eighty-seven tornadoes occurred over the course of the Super Tuesday tornado outbreak across multiple U.S. states, causing 56 deaths and over $1 billion in damage. Read more
2004 — The National Revolutionary Front for the Liberation of Haiti captured the city of Gonaïves, starting a coup d'état against President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's government. Read more
2004 — At least 21 cockle-gatherers were drowned by an incoming tide in Morecambe Bay, England, prompting the establishment of the British government's Gangmasters Licensing Authority. Read more
2000 — Second Chechen War: As the Battle of Grozny came to a close, Russian forces summarily executed at least 60 civilians in Grozny's Novye Aldi suburb. Read more
1985 — The mayors of Carthage and Rome signed a symbolic peace treaty to officially end the Third Punic War, 2,134 years after it began. Read more
1967 — Cultural Revolution: The January Storm revolt in Shanghai reached its apogee as Maoist rebels proclaimed the establishment of the Shanghai People's Commune, a move the previously supportive Mao Zedong criticized. Read more
1958 — After a mid-air collision with a fighter plane during a practice exercise off Tybee Island, Georgia, a U.S. Air Force bomber jettisoned a Mark 15 nuclear bomb, which was presumed lost. Read more
1923 — Australian cricketer Bill Ponsford made 429 runs to break the world record for the highest first-class score. Read more
1917 — The U.S. Congress overrode President Woodrow Wilson's veto to pass the Immigration Act of 1917, establishing new restrictions on immigrants, including the wholesale ban of people from much of Asia. Read more
1913 — Claudio Monteverdi's last opera, L'incoronazione di Poppea, was performed theatrically for the first time in more than 250 years. Read more
1909 — Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland announced his invention of Bakelite (production device pictured), the world's first synthetic plastic. Read more
1869 — Prospectors in Moliagul, Australia, discovered the largest alluvial gold nugget ever found, known as the Welcome Stranger. Read more
1861 — In a speech before the U.S. Congress, Representative John Edward Bouligny refused to join his fellow Louisiana congressmen in heeding the state's secession convention and resigning. Read more
1818 — Charles XIV John (pictured) succeeded to the thrones of Sweden and Norway as the first monarch of the House of Bernadotte. Read more
1783 — The first of five strong earthquakes hit the region of Calabria on the Italian Peninsula, killing more than 32,000 people over a period of nearly two months. Read more
1597 — As part of enforcing Toyotomi Hideyoshi's ban on Christianity in Japan, twenty-six Catholics, a mix of European missionaries and Japanese converts, were executed (depicted) near Nagasaki by crucifixion and impalement. Read more
62 — Pompeii was severely damaged by a strong earthquake, which may have been a precursor to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the town 17 years later. Read more

Events

2020 — United States President Donald Trump is acquitted by the United States Senate in his first impeachment trial. Read more
2020 — Pegasus Airlines Flight 2193 overshoots the runway at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport and crashes, killing three people and injuring 179. Read more
2019 — Pope Francis becomes the first Pope in history to visit and perform papal mass in the Arabian Peninsula during his visit to Abu Dhabi. Read more
2016 — New Zealand politician Steven Joyce is hit by a flung rubber dildo in a Waitangi Day protest. Read more
2016 — Cybercriminals initiate the Bangladesh Bank robbery, using the SWIFT network to fraudulently transfer $101 million from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York account of Bangladesh Bank. Read more
2008 — A major tornado outbreak across the Southern United States kills 57. Read more
2004 — Rebels from the Revolutionary Artibonite Resistance Front capture the city of Gonaïves, starting the 2004 Haiti rebellion. Read more
2000 — Russian forces massacre at least 60 civilians in the Novye Aldi suburb of Grozny, Chechnya. Read more
1997 — The so-called Big Three banks in Switzerland announce the creation of a $71 million fund to aid Holocaust survivors and their families. Read more
1994 — Byron De La Beckwith is convicted of the 1963 murder of civil rights leader Medgar Evers. Read more
1994 — Markale massacres, more than 60 people are killed and some 200 wounded as a mortar shell explodes in a downtown marketplace in Sarajevo. Read more
1988 — Manuel Noriega is indicted on drug smuggling and money laundering charges. Read more
1985 — Ugo Vetere, then the mayor of Rome, and Chedli Klibi, then the mayor of Carthage, meet in Tunis to sign a treaty of friendship officially ending the Third Punic War which lasted 2,131 years. Read more
1981 — Operation Soap: The Metropolitan Toronto Police Force raids four gay bathhouses in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, arresting just under 300, triggering mass protest and rallies. Read more
1975 — Riots break out in Lima, Peru after the police forces go on strike the day before. The uprising (locally known as the Limazo) is bloodily suppressed by the military dictatorship. Read more
1971 — Astronauts land on the Moon in the Apollo 14 mission. Read more
1967 — Cultural Revolution: The Shanghai People's Commune is formally proclaimed, with Yao Wenyuan and Zhang Chunqiao being appointed as its leaders. Read more
1963 — The European Court of Justice's ruling in Van Gend en Loos v Nederlandse Administratie der Belastingen establishes the principle of direct effect, one of the most important, if not the most important, decisions in the development of European Union law. Read more
1962 — French President Charles de Gaulle calls for Algeria to be granted independence. Read more
1958 — Gamal Abdel Nasser is nominated to be the first president of the United Arab Republic. Read more
1958 — A hydrogen bomb known as the Tybee Bomb is lost by the US Air Force off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, never to be recovered. Read more
1945 — World War II: General Douglas MacArthur returns to Manila. Read more
1941 — World War II: Allied forces begin the Battle of Keren to capture Keren, Eritrea. Read more
1933 — Mutiny on Royal Netherlands Navy warship HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën off the coast of Sumatra, Dutch East Indies. Read more
1924 — The Royal Greenwich Observatory begins broadcasting the hourly time signals known as the Greenwich Time Signal. Read more
1919 — Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Douglas Fairbanks, and D. W. Griffith launch United Artists. Read more
1918 — Stephen W. Thompson shoots down a German airplane; this is the first aerial victory by the U.S. military. Read more
1918 — SS Tuscania is torpedoed off the coast of Ireland; it is the first ship carrying American troops to Europe to be torpedoed and sunk. Read more
1917 — The current constitution of Mexico is adopted, establishing a federal republic with powers separated into independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Read more
1917 — The Congress of the United States passes the Immigration Act of 1917 over President Woodrow Wilson's veto. Read more
1913 — Greek military aviators Michael Moutoussis and Aristeidis Moraitinis perform the first naval air mission in history, with a Farman MF.7 hydroplane. Read more
1913 — Claudio Monteverdi's last opera L'incoronazione di Poppea was performed theatrically for the first time in more than 250 years. Read more
1907 — Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland announces the creation of Bakelite, the world's first synthetic plastic. Read more
1905 — In Mexico, the General Hospital of Mexico is inaugurated, initially with four basic specialties. Read more
1901 — J. P. Morgan incorporates U.S. Steel in the state of New Jersey, although the company would not start doing business until February 25 and the assets of Andrew Carnegie's Carnegie Steel Company, Elbert H. Gary's Federal Steel Company, and William Henry Moore's National Steel Company were not acquired until April 1. Read more
1885 — King Leopold II of Belgium establishes the Congo as a personal possession. Read more
1869 — The largest alluvial gold nugget in history, called the "Welcome Stranger", is found in Moliagul, Victoria, Australia. Read more
1859 — Alexandru Ioan Cuza, Prince of Moldavia, is also elected as prince of Wallachia, joining the two principalities as a personal union called the United Principalities, an autonomous region within the Ottoman Empire, which ushered in the birth of the modern Romanian state. Read more
1852 — The New Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, one of the largest and oldest museums in the world, opens to the public. Read more
1818 — Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte ascends to the thrones of Sweden and Norway. Read more
1810 — Peninsular War: Siege of Cádiz begins. Read more
1783 — In Calabria, a sequence of strong earthquakes begins. Read more
1597 — A group of early Japanese Christians are killed by the new government of Japan for being seen as a threat to Japanese society. Read more
1576 — Henry of Navarre abjures Catholicism at Tours and rejoins the Protestant forces in the French Wars of Religion. Read more
1265 — Pope Clement IV is elected as the 183rd Bishop of Rome and head of the Catholic Church. Read more
756 — An Lushan proclaims himself Emperor of China, founding the short-lived state of Yan. Read more
62 — An earthquake with an estimated intensity between IX or X on the Mercalli scale occurs in Pompeii, Italy. Read more
2 BC — Caesar Augustus is granted the title pater patriae by the Roman Senate. Read more

Born on February 5

2016 — Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, Bhutanese prince Read more
2002 — Jisung, South Korean rapper Read more
2002 — Taehyun, South Korean singer-songwriter Read more
2001 — Kim Min-ju, South Korean actress Read more
1997 — Patrick Roberts, English footballer Read more
1996 — Stina Blackstenius, Swedish footballer Read more
1995 — Adnan Januzaj, Belgian-Albanian footballer Read more
1993 — Leilani Latu, Australian rugby league player Read more
1993 — Ty Rattie, Canadian ice hockey player Read more
1992 — Stefan de Vrij, Dutch footballer Read more
1992 — Neymar, Brazilian footballer Read more
1991 — Nabil Bahoui, Swedish footballer Read more
1991 — Gerald Tusha, Albanian footballer Read more
1990 — Dmitry Andreikin, Russian chess player Read more
1990 — Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Indian cricketer Read more
1990 — Jordan Rhodes, Scottish footballer Read more
1989 — Jeremy Sumpter, American actor Read more
1987 — Alex Brightman, American actor, singer, and voice actor Read more
1986 — Vedran Ćorluka, Croatian footballer Read more
1986 — Kevin Gates, American rapper, singer, and entrepreneur Read more
1985 — Lloyd Johansson, Australian rugby player Read more
1985 — Laurence Maroney, American football player Read more
1985 — Cristiano Ronaldo, Portuguese footballer Read more
1984 — Carlos Tevez, Argentinian footballer Read more
1983 — Anja Hammerseng-Edin, Norwegian handball player Read more
1982 — Laura del Río, Spanish footballer Read more
1982 — Kevin Everett, American football player Read more
1982 — Tomáš Kopecký, Slovak ice hockey player Read more
1982 — Rodrigo Palacio, Argentinian footballer Read more
1981 — Mia Hansen-Løve, French director and screenwriter Read more
1981 — Loukas Vyntra, Czech-Greek footballer Read more
1980 — Brad Fitzpatrick, American programmer, created LiveJournal Read more
1980 — Jo Swinson, Scottish politician Read more
1979 — Nate Holzapfel, American entrepreneur and television personality Read more
1978 — Brian Russell, American football player Read more
1978 — Samuel Sánchez, Spanish cyclist Read more
1977 — Ben Ainslie, English sailor Read more
1977 — Adam Dykes, Australian rugby league player Read more
1977 — Adam Everett, American baseball player and coach Read more
1976 — John Aloisi, Australian footballer and manager Read more

Died on February 5

2025 — Irv Gotti, American record producer, co-founded Murder Inc Records (born 1970) Read more
2024 — Toby Keith, American country singer (born 1961) Read more
2023 — Pervez Musharraf, Pakistani military officer and politician, 10th President of Pakistan (born 1943) Read more
2021 — Örs Siklósi, Hungarian singer (born 1991) Read more
2021 — Christopher Plummer, Canadian actor (born 1929) Read more
2020 — Kirk Douglas, American actor (born 1916) Read more
2016 — Ciriaco Cañete, Filipino martial artist (born 1919) Read more
2015 — K. N. Choksy, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, Minister of Finance of Sri Lanka (born 1933) Read more
2015 — Marisa Del Frate, Italian actress and singer (born 1931) Read more
2015 — Val Logsdon Fitch, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1923) Read more
2015 — Herman Rosenblat, Polish-American author (born 1929) Read more
2014 — Robert Dahl, American political scientist and academic (born 1915) Read more
2013 — Reinaldo Gargano, Uruguayan journalist and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs for Uruguay (born 1934) Read more
2013 — Egil Hovland, Norwegian composer and conductor (born 1924) Read more
2013 — Tom McGuigan, New Zealand soldier and politician, 23rd New Zealand Minister of Health (born 1921) Read more
2012 — Sam Coppola, American actor (born 1932) Read more
2012 — Al De Lory, American keyboard player, conductor, and producer (born 1930) Read more
2012 — John Turner Sargent Sr., American publisher (born 1924) Read more
2012 — Jo Zwaan, Dutch sprinter (born 1922) Read more
2011 — Brian Jacques, English author and radio host (born 1939) Read more
2011 — Peggy Rea, American actress and casting director (born 1921) Read more
2010 — Brendan Burke, Canadian ice hockey player and activist (born 1988) Read more
2010 — Harry Schwarz, South African lawyer, anti-apartheid leader, and diplomat, 13th South Africa Ambassador to United States (born 1924) Read more
2008 — Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Indian guru, founded Transcendental Meditation (born 1918) Read more
2007 — Leo T. McCarthy, New Zealand-American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 43rd Lieutenant Governor of California (born 1930) Read more
2006 — Norma Candal, Puerto Rican-American actress (born 1927) Read more
2005 — Gnassingbé Eyadéma, Togolese general and politician, President of Togo (born 1937) Read more
2005 — Michalina Wisłocka, Polish gynecologist and sexologist (born 1921) Read more
2004 — John Hench, American animator (born 1908) Read more
2000 — Claude Autant-Lara, French director and screenwriter (born 1901) Read more
1999 — Wassily Leontief, Russian-American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1906) Read more
1998 — Tim Kelly, American guitarist (born 1963) Read more
1997 — Pamela Harriman, English-American diplomat, 58th United States Ambassador to France (born 1920) Read more
1997 — René Huyghe, French historian and author (born 1906) Read more
1995 — Doug McClure, American actor (born 1935) Read more
1993 — Seán Flanagan, Irish footballer and politician, 7th Irish Minister for Health (born 1922) Read more
1993 — Joseph L. Mankiewicz, American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1909) Read more
1993 — William Pène du Bois, American author and illustrator (born 1916) Read more
1992 — Miguel Rolando Covian, Argentinian-Brazilian physiologist and academic (born 1913) Read more
1991 — Dean Jagger, American actor (born 1903) Read more

Holidays & observances

Christian feast day: Adelaide of Vilich; Christian feast day: Agatha of Sicily; Christian feast day: Avitus of Vienne; Christian feast day: Bertulf (Bertoul) of Renty; Christian feast day: Ingenuinus (Jenewein); Christian feast day: Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson (Episcopal Church (United States)); Christian feast day: 26 Martyrs of Japan (in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Anglican Church in Japan); Christian feast day: February 5 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Kashmir Solidarity Day (Pakistan); Runeberg Day (Finland)

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Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “February 5”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.