March 26Birthdays & History

On this day: March 26 in history

Oldest first. Tap a year to see it on the World Chronicle timeline.

1. 590Emperor Maurice proclaims his son Theodosius as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire.Europe
2. 624First Eid al-Fitr celebration.Middle East
3. 752Election of Pope Stephen II following the death of Pope Zachary.Europe
4. 1021The death of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, kept secret for six weeks, is announced, along with the succession of his son, al-Zahir li-i'zaz Din Allah.Middle East
5. 1027Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor.Europe
6. 1169Saladin becomes the emir of Egypt.Middle East
7. 1244The crown of Aragon and the crown of Castile agree in the Treaty of Almizra on the limits of their respective expansion into al-Andalus.Europe
8. 1344The Siege of Algeciras, one of the first European military engagements where gunpowder was used, comes to an end.Europe
9. 1351Combat of the Thirty: Thirty Breton knights call out and defeat thirty English knights.Europe
10. 1484William Caxton prints his translation of Aesop's Fables.Europe
11. 1552Guru Amar Das becomes the Third Sikh guru.Asia
12. 1636Utrecht University is founded in the Netherlands.Europe
13. 1640The Royal Academy of Turku, the first university of Finland, is founded in the city of Turku by Queen Christina of Sweden at the proposal of Count Per Brahe.Europe
14. 1651The silver-loaded Spanish ship San José, pushed south by strong winds, is wrecked on the coast of southern Chile and its surviving crew members are killed by indigenous Cuncos.EuropeLatin America
15. 1697Safavid government troops take control of Basra.Middle East
16. 1700William Dampier is the first European to circumnavigate New Britain, discovering it is an island (which he names Nova Britannia) rather than part of New Guinea.EuropeOceania
17. 1812A political cartoon in the Boston-Gazette coins the term "gerrymander" to describe oddly shaped electoral districts designed to help incumbents win reelection.North America
18. 1812An earthquake devastates Caracas, Venezuela.Latin America
19. 1830The Book of Mormon is published in Palmyra, New York.North America
20. 1839The first Henley Royal Regatta is held.Europe
21. 1871The elections of Commune council of the Paris Commune are held.Europe
22. 1885The Métis people of the District of Saskatchewan under Louis Riel begin the North-West Rebellion against Canada.North America
23. 1896An explosion at the Brunner Mine near Greymouth, New Zealand, kills 65 coal miners in the country's worst industrial accident.Oceania
24. 1913First Balkan War: Bulgarian forces capture Adrianople.Europe
25. 1915The Vancouver Millionaires win the 1915 Stanley Cup Final, the first championship played between the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the National Hockey Association.North America
26. 1917World War I: First Battle of Gaza: British troops are halted after 17,000 Turks block their advance.Middle EastEurope
27. 1922The German Social Democratic Party is founded in Poland.Europe
28. 1931Swissair is founded as the national airline of Switzerland.Europe
29. 1931Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union is founded in Vietnam.Asia
30. 1934The United Kingdom driving test is introduced.Europe
31. 1939Spanish Civil War: Nationalists begin their final offensive of the war.Europe
32. 1942The Holocaust: The first female prisoners arrive at Auschwitz concentration camp in German-occupied Poland.Europe
33. 1945World War II: The Battle of Iwo Jima ends as the island is officially secured by American forces.AsiaNorth America
34. 1954Nuclear weapons testing: The Romeo shot of Operation Castle is detonated at Bikini Atoll. Yield: 11 megatons.Oceania
35. 1955Pan Am Flight 845/26 ditches in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Oregon, killing four.North America
36. 1958The United States Army launches Explorer 3.North America
37. 1958The African Regroupment Party is launched at a meeting in Paris.AfricaEurope
38. 1967Ten thousand people gather for one of many Central Park be-ins in New York City.North America
39. 1970South Vietnamese President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu implements a land reform program to solve the problem of land tenancy.Asia
40. 1971East Pakistan, then a province of Pakistan, declares its independence from Pakistan to form Bangladesh; the Bangladesh War of Independence begins.Asia
41. 1975The Biological Weapons Convention comes into force.World
42. 1979Anwar al-Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter sign the Egypt–Israel peace treaty in Washington, D.C.Middle EastNorth America
43. 1979An Interflug Ilyushin Il-18 crashes at Quatro de Fevereiro Airport during a rejected takeoff, killing 10.Africa
44. 1981Social Democratic Party (UK) is founded as a party.Europe
45. 1982A groundbreaking ceremony for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is held in Washington, D.C.AsiaNorth America
46. 1991Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay sign the Treaty of Asunción, establishing Mercosur, the South Common Market.Latin America
47. 1991Singapore Airlines Flight 117 is hijacked by four Pakistani terrorists and diverted to Changi Airport.Asia
48. 1997Thirty-nine bodies are found in the Heaven's Gate mass suicides.North America
49. 1998During the Algerian Civil War, the Oued Bouaicha massacre sees fifty-two people, mostly infants, killed with axes and knives.Africa
50. 2005Around 200,000 to 300,000 Taiwanese demonstrate in Taipei in opposition to the Anti-Secession Law of China.Asia
51. 2010The South Korean Navy corvette Cheonan is torpedoed, killing 46 sailors. After an international investigation, the President of the United Nations Security Council blames North Korea.Asia
52. 2017Russia-wide anti-corruption protests in 99 cities. The Levada Center survey showed that 38% of surveyed Russians supported protests and that 67 percent held Putin personally responsible for high-level corruption.Europe
53. 2024The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapses following a collision between the MV Dali container ship and one of the bridge's support pillars, killing six people.North America

Source: Wikipedia "March 26" / CC BY-SA 4.0