February 27

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February 27 is the 58th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 307 days remaining until the end of the year (308 in leap years).

1 Events
2 Births
3 Deaths
4 Holidays and observances
5 External links

Events

1560 - The Treaty of Berwick, which would expel the French from Scotland, is signed by England and the Congregation of Scotland.
1594 - Henry IV is crowned King of France.
1617 - Sweden and Russia sign the Treaty of Stolbovo, ending the Ingrian War and shutting Russia out of the Baltic Sea.
1626 - Yuan Chonghuan is appointed Governor of Liaodong, after he led the Chinese into a great victory against the Manchurians under Nurhaci.
1700 - The island of New Britain is discovered.
1801 - Washington, DC is placed under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress.
1812 - Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire.
1844 - The Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti.
1860 - Abraham Lincoln makes a speech at Cooper Union in the city of New York that is largely responsible for his election to the Presidency.
1861 - A crowd in Warsaw protesting against Russian rule over Poland is fired upon by Russian troops, killing five protesters.
1864 - American Civil War: The first Northern prisoners arrive at the Confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia.
1900 - Second Boer War: In South Africa, British military leaders receive an unconditional notice of surrender from Boer General Piet Cronje at the Battle of Paardeberg.
1900 - The British Labour Party is founded.
1921 - The International Working Union of Socialist Parties is founded in Vienna.
1922 - A challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote, is rebuffed by the Supreme Court of the United States in Leser v. Garnett.
1933 - Reichstag fire: Germany's parliament building in Berlin, the Reichstag, is set on fire.
1939 - American Civil Rights Movement: Sit-down strikes are outlawed by the Supreme Court of the United States.
1940 - Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14
1942 - World War II: During the Battle of the Java Sea, an allied (ABDA) strike force is defeated by a Japanese task force in the Java Sea in the Dutch East Indies
1943 - The Smith Mine #3 in Bearcreek, Montana, explodes, killing 74 men.
1943 - The Rosenstrasse protest starts in Berlin
1945 - Lebanon declares Independence.
1951 - The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, limiting Presidents to two terms, is ratified.
1961 - The first congress of the Spanish Trade Union Organisation is inaugurated.
1963 - The Dominican Republic receives its first democratically elected president, Juan Bosch, since the end of the dictatorship led by Rafael Trujillo.
1964 - The government of Italy asks for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.
1967 - Dominica gains independence from the United Kingdom.
1971 - Doctors in the first Dutch abortion clinic (the Mildredhuis in Arnhem) start to perform aborti provocati.
1973 - The American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee, South Dakota.
1974 - People magazine is published for the first time.
1976 - The formerly Spanish territory of Western Sahara, under the auspices of the Polisario Front declares independence as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
1986 - The United States Senate allows its debates to be televised on a trial basis.
1989 - Venezuela is rocked by the riots of Caracazo.
1991 - Gulf War: U.S. President George H. W. Bush announces that "Kuwait is liberated".
1999 - Olusegun Obasanjo becomes Nigeria's first elected president since mid-1983.
1999 - Korea International School is founded by Soon-Il Chung. It is currently directed by Ann Clapper.
2002 - Ryanair Flight 296 catches fire in London Stansted Airport. Subsequent investigations criticize Ryanair's handling of the evacuation.
2002 - Godhra train burning, a Muslim mob kills 59 Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya;
2003 - Rowan Williams is enthroned as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury in the Anglican church.
2004 - A bombing of a Superferry by Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines worst terrorist attack kills 116.
2004 - Former BPMC general secretary Ordrick Samuel launches a new party in Barbuda, Barbudans for a Better Barbuda.
2007 - The general strike against Lansana Conté in Guinea ends.
2007 - The Chinese Correction: the Shanghai Stock Exchange falls 9%, the largest drop in 10 years.
2008 - Mas Selamat bin Kastari, a suspected JI terrorism leader, escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre in Singapore.

Births

272 - Constantine I, Roman emperor (d. 337)
1691 - Edward Cave, English editor and publisher (d. 1754)
1711 - Constantine Mavrocordatos, Prince of Wallachia and Prince of Moldavia (d. 1769)
1779 - Thomas Hazlehurst, English soap and alkali manufacturer (d. 1842)
1807 - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet (d. 1882)
1831 - Hiram Bond Everest, American cofounder of The Vacuum Oil Company (d. 1913)
1862 - Anastasios Metaxas, Greek architect and shooter (d. 1937)
1878 - Alvan T. Fuller, 50th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1958)
1886 - Hugo Black, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (d. 1971)
1888 - Roberto Assagioli, Italian psychiatrist (d. 1974)
1888 - Earl Caddock, American professional wrestler (d. 1950)
1888 - Lotte Lehmann, German singer (d. 1976)
1890 - Freddie Keppard, American jazz musician (d. 1933)
1891 - David Sarnoff, Russian-born broadcast pioneer (d. 1971)
1891 - Anne Samson, oldest-ever nun documented (d. 2004)
1892 - William Demarest, American actor (d. 1983)
1897 - Marian Anderson, American contralto (d. 1993)
1899 - Charles Best, Canadian medical scientist (d. 1978)
1902 - Gene Sarazen, American golfer (d. 1999)
1902 - John Steinbeck, American writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1968)
1903 - Grethe Weiser, German actress (d. 1970)
1904 - James T. Farrell, American writer (d. 1979)
1904 - Yulii Borisovich Khariton, Russian physicist (d. 1996)
1904 - André Leducq, French cyclist (d. 1980)
1904 - Chick Fullis, American baseball player (d. 1946)
1905 - Franchot Tone, American actor (d. 1968)
1907 - Mildred Bailey, American singer (d. 1951)
1910 - Joan Bennett, American actress (d. 1990)
1910 - Peter De Vries, American writer (d. 1993)
1910 - Ted Horn, American race car driver (d. 1948)
1910 - Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, American aircraft engineer (Lockheed Skunk Works; d. 1990)
1912 - Lawrence Durrell, British writer (d. 1990)
1912 - Kusumagraj, Indian writer (d. 1999)
1913 - Irwin Shaw, American writer (d. 1984)
1913 - Kazimierz Sabbat, Polish president (d. 1989)
1917 - John Connally, Governor of Texas (d. 1993)
1922 - Hans Rookmaaker, Dutch professor and art historian (d. 1977)
1923 - Dexter Gordon, American jazz saxophonist (d. 1990)
1925 - Samuel Dash, American Congressional counsel (d. 2004)
1926 - David H. Hubel, Canadian neuroscientist, Nobel Prize laureate
1927 - Lynn Cartwright, American actress (d. 2004)
1927 - Guy Mitchell, American singer (d. 1999)
1928 - Ariel Sharon, former Prime Minister of Israel
1929 - Djalma Santos, Brazilian footballer
1929 - Jack Gibson, Australian rugby league footballer and coach (d. 2008)
1930 - Paul von Ragué Schleyer, American chemist
1930 - Peter Stone, American writer (d. 2003)
1930 - Joanne Woodward, American actress
1932 - Elizabeth Taylor, British-American actress
1933 - Raymond Berry, American football player
1934 - Vincent Fourcade, French interior designer (d. 1992)
1934 - N. Scott Momaday, American writer
1934 - Ralph Nader, American consumer activist
1934 - Van Williams, American actor
1935 - Mirella Freni, Italian soprano
1936 - Ron Barassi, Australian rules footballer
1936 - Roger Mahony, fourth Archbishop of Los Angeles
1937 - David Ackles, American singer songwriter (d. 1999)
1937 - Barbara Babcock, American actress
1939 - Peter Revson, American racecar driver (d. 1974)
1940 - Howard Hesseman, American actor
1940 - Bill Hunter, Australian actor
1941 - Paddy Ashdown, British politician
1942 - Robert H. Grubbs, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
1942 - Charlayne Hunter-Gault, American journalist
1942 - Michel Forget, French Canadian actor
1943 - Mary Frann, American actress (d. 1998)
1943 - Morten Lauridsen, American composer
1944 - Ken Grimwood, American writer (d. 2003)
1944 - Roger Scruton, British philosopher
1945 - Carl Anderson, American singer and actor (d. 2004)
1947 - Gidon Kremer, Latvian violinist
1951 - Steve Harley, British rock musician (Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel)
1952 - Stathis Psaltis, Greek actor
1953 - Gabriela Svobodová, Czech cross country skier
1954 - Neal Schon, American musician (Journey)
1955 - Peter Christopherson, English musician, video director and designer
1957 - Viktor Markin, Russian athlete
1957 - Timothy Spall, English actor
1957 - Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator
1957 - Adrian Smith, English musician (Iron Maiden)
1958 - Naas Botha, South African rugby union footballer
1958 - Nancy Spungen, girlfriend of Sid Vicious (d. 1978)
1959 - Johnny Van Zant, American singer (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
1960 - Andrés Gómez, Ecuadorian tennis player
1961 - James Worthy, American basketball player
1962 - Adam Baldwin, American actor
1962 - Grant Show, American actor
1963 - Pär Nuder, Swedish politician
1964 - Todd Bodine, American race car driver
1965 - Noah Emmerich, American actor
1965 - Frank Peter Zimmermann, German violinist
1965 - Joakim Sundström, Swedish sound editor, sound designer and musician
1966 - Donal Logue, Canadian actor
1968 - Matt Stairs, Canadian baseball player
1969 - Brad Vander Ark, American musician
1970 - Michael A. Burstein, American writer
1970 - Kent Desormeaux, American jockey
1970 - Matthias Lechner, German art director
1970 - Patricia Petibon, French opera singer
1971 - Derren Brown, British psychological illusionist
1971 - Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas, American singer (TLC)
1973 - Ali Tabatabaee, American Iranian rapper (Zebrahead)
1973 - Mark Taylor, Welsh rugby union footballer
1973 - Peter André, Australian singer - Husband to Katie Price, Glamour model
1975 - Prodromos Korkizoglou, Greek decathlete
1975 - Shelby Walker, American mixed martial artist (d. 2006)
1976 - Tony Gonzalez, American football player
1977 - Lance Hoyt, American professional wrestler
1977 - Ji Sung, South Korean actor
1977 - James Wan, Australian film director
1978 - James Beattie, English footballer
1980 - Bobby Valentino, American singer
1980 - Chelsea Clinton, daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton
1981 - Josh Groban, American singer
1983 - Kate Mara, American actress
1983 - Hayley Angel Wardle, English actress
1983 - Devin Harris, American basketball player
1984 - David Noel, American basketball player
1984 - Antti Tuisku, Finnish singer
1984 - Lotta Schelin, Swedish female footballer
1985 - Juliana Imai, Brazilian model
1989 - Kelly Breeding, American singer from B5
1991 - Azeem Rafiq, Yorkshire CCC & English U15 captain

Deaths

1659 - Henry Dunster, first President of Harvard College (b. 1609)
1699 - Charles Paulet, 1st Duke of Bolton, English politician (b. c. 1625)
1706 - John Evelyn, English diarist (b. 1620)
1720 - Samuel Parris, English-born Puritan minister (b. 1653)
1735 - John Arbuthnot, English physician and writer (b. 1667)
1844 - Nicholas Biddle, President of the Second Bank of the United States (b. 1786)
1887 - Alexander Borodin, Russian composer and chemist (b. 1833)
1892 - Louis Vuitton, French luggage maker (b. 1821)
1902 - Harry 'Breaker' Morant, Anglo-Australian Soldier executed in the Second Boer War under controversial circumstances (b. 1864)
1902 - Peter Handcock, Australian Soldier executed in the Second Boer War under controversial circumstances
1921 - Schofield Haigh, English cricketer (b. 1871)
1932 - William Southam, Canadian newspaper publisher (b. 1843)
1936 - Ivan Pavlov, Russian physiologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1849)
1936 - Joshua W. Alexander, U.S. Secretary of Commerce under Woodrow Wilson (b. 1852)
1941 - William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (b. 1895)
1943 - Kostis Palamas, Greek poet, twice nominated for the Nobel prize (b. 1859)
1964 - Orry-Kelly, Australian costume designer (b. 1897)
1968 - Frankie Lymon, American singer (b. 1942)
1969 - Marius Barbeau, French Canadian folklorist (b. 1883)
1970 - Marie Dionne, one of the French Canadian Dionne quintuplets (b. 1934)
1972 - Pat Brady, American actor and singer (b. 1914)
1977 - John Dickson Carr, American author (b. 1905)
1978 - Vadim Salmanov, Russian composer (b. 1912)
1980 - George Tobias, American actor (b. 1901)
1981 - Jacob H. Gilbert, American politician (b. 1920)
1985 - Henry Cabot Lodge, American politician (b. 1902)
1986 - Jacques Plante, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1929)
1987 - Joan Greenwood, English actress and director (b. 1921)
1989 - Paul Oswald Ahnert, German astronomer (b. 1897)
1989 - Konrad Lorenz, Austrian zoologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1903)
1990 - Nahum Norbert Glatzer, Jewish-American scholar (b. 1903)
1992 - S. I. Hayakawa, Canadian-American linguist and politician (b. 1906)
1993 - Lillian Gish, American actress (b. 1893)
1998 - George H. Hitchings, American scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1905)
1998 - J. T. Walsh, American actor (b. 1943)
2002 - Spike Milligan, Irish comedian (b. 1918)
2003 - John Lanchbery, English composer (b. 1923)
2003 - Fred Rogers, American children's television actor (b. 1928)
2004 - Paul Sweezy, American economist and editor (b. 1910)
2004 - Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historians (b. 1928)
2006 - Otis Chandler, American newspaper publisher (b. 1927)
2006 - Robert Lee Scott, Jr., U.S. General, Flying Tiger, and author (b. 1908)
2006 - Linda Smith, British comedian (b. 1958)
2007 - Bobby Rosengarden, American jazz drummer (b. 1924)
2007 - Bernd von Freytag-Loringhoven, German soldier (b. 1914)
2008 - Myron Cope, American sports broadcaster (b. 1929)
2008 - William F. Buckley, Jr., American conservative author and commentator (b. 1925)
2008 - Boyd Coddington, American automobile designer (b. 1944)