September 27Birthdays & History

On this day: September 27 in history

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

1. 1066William the Conqueror and his army set sail from the mouth of the Somme river, beginning the Norman conquest of England.Europe
2. 1331The Battle of Płowce is fought, between the Kingdom of Poland and the Teutonic Order. The Poles are defeated but their leaders escape capture.Europe
3. 1422After the brief Gollub War, the Teutonic Knights sign the Treaty of Melno with Poland and Lithuania.Europe
4. 1529The Siege of Vienna begins when Suleiman I attacks the city.Europe
5. 1540The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) receives its charter from Pope Paul III.Europe
6. 1605The armies of Sweden are defeated by the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Battle of Kircholm.Europe
7. 1669The Venetians surrender the fortress of Candia to the Ottomans, thus ending the 21-year-long Siege of Candia. Crete would remain under Ottoman occupation until 1913.Middle East
8. 1777American Revolution: Lancaster, Pennsylvania becomes the capital of the United States for one day after Congress evacuates Philadelphia.North America
9. 1791The National Assembly of France votes to award full citizenship to Jews.Europe
10. 1810The French army under André Masséna fails to break British forces under the Arthur Wellesley in the battle of Bussaco.Europe
11. 1821The Army of the Three Guarantees triumphantly enters Mexico City, led by Agustín de Iturbide. The following day Mexico is declared independent.Latin America
12. 1822Jean-François Champollion officially informs the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres in France that he has deciphered the Rosetta Stone.Europe
13. 1825The world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, the Stockton and Darlington Railway, is ceremonially opened with the engine Locomotion pulling wagons with coal and passengers from Shildon to Darlington to Stockton.Europe
14. 1854The paddle steamer SS Arctic, owned by the Collins Line of New York, sinks off the coast of Newfoundland, following a collision with a smaller vessel, the SS Vesta. Only 88 of over 300 people on board survive. About a dozen of the occupants of the Vesta are killed when their lifeboat is hit by the Arctic.North America
15. 1875The merchant sailing ship Ellen Southard is wrecked in a storm at Liverpool.Europe
16. 1903"Wreck of the Old 97": an American rail disaster, in which 11 people are killed; it later becomes the subject of a popular ballad.North America
17. 1908Production of the Model T automobile begins at the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant in Detroit.North America
18. 1916Iyasu V is proclaimed deposed as ruler of Ethiopia in a palace coup in favor of his aunt Zewditu.Africa
19. 1922King Constantine I of Greece abdicates his throne in favor of his eldest son, George II.Europe
20. 1928The Republic of China is recognized by the United States.AsiaNorth America
21. 1930Bobby Jones wins the (pre-Masters) Grand Slam of golf.North America
22. 1938The ocean liner Queen Elizabeth is launched in Glasgow.Europe
23. 1940World War II: The Tripartite Pact is signed in Berlin by Germany, Japan and Italy.EuropeAsia
24. 1941World War II: The Greek National Liberation Front is established with Georgios Siantos as acting leader.Europe
25. 1941The SS Patrick Henry is launched, becoming the first of more than 2,700 Liberty ships.North America
26. 1942World War II: Last day of the Matanikau action on Guadalcanal as United States Marines barely escape after being surrounded by Japanese forces.OceaniaNorth AmericaAsia
27. 1944World War II: The Kassel Mission results in the largest loss by a USAAF group on any mission during the war.Europe
28. 1949Zeng Liansong's design is chosen as the flag of the People's Republic of China.Asia
29. 1956USAF Captain Milburn G. Apt becomes the first person to exceed Mach 3. Shortly thereafter, the Bell X-2 goes out of control and Captain Apt is killed.North America
30. 1959Typhoon Vera kills nearly 5,000 people in Japan.Asia
31. 1962Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring is published, inspiring an environmental movement and the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.North America
32. 1962The Yemen Arab Republic is established.Middle East
33. 1964The British TSR-2 aircraft XR219 makes its maiden flight.Europe
34. 1973Texas International Airlines Flight 655 crashes into the Black Fork Mountain Wilderness near Mena, Arkansas, killing all 11 people on board.North America
35. 1975The last use of capital punishment in Spain sparks worldwide protests.Europe
36. 1977Japan Airlines Flight 715 crashes on approach to Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang, Malaysia, killing 34 of the 79 people on board.AsiaAsia
37. 1988The National League for Democracy is formed by Aung San Suu Kyi and others to fight dictatorship in Myanmar.Asia
38. 1992Palestinian prisoners went on a 15-day hunger strike.Middle East
39. 1993The Sukhumi massacre takes place in Abkhazia.Europe
40. 1996The Battle of Kabul ends in a Taliban victory; an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is established.Asia
41. 1996Confusion on a tanker ship results in the Julie N oil spill in Portland, Maine.North America
42. 1998The Google internet search engine retroactively claims this date as its birthday.North America
43. 2001In Switzerland, a gunman shoots 18 citizens, killing 14 and then himself.Europe
44. 2003The SMART-1 satellite is launched.World
45. 2007NASA launches the Dawn probe to the asteroid belt.North America
46. 2008CNSA astronaut Zhai Zhigang becomes the first Chinese person to perform a spacewalk.Asia
47. 2012In Minneapolis, a gunman shoots eight people, killing six and injuring 2 and then kills himself.North America
48. 201463 people are killed in an eruption of Mount Ontake in Japan.Asia
49. 2019Over two million people participated in worldwide strikes to protest climate change across 2,400 locations worldwide.World
50. 2020Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: Azerbaijan launches an offensive against the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, inhabited predominantly by ethnic Armenians.Europe
51. 2024Hurricane Helene devastates the Carolinas as a tropical storm, killing hundreds and injuring more.North America

Source: Wikipedia "September 27" / CC BY-SA 4.0