October 12

October 12 is the 285th day of the year (286th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 80 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 539 BC – The army of Cyrus the Great of Persia takes Babylon.
• 633 – Battle of Hatfield Chase: King Edwin of Northumbria is defeated and killed by the British under Penda of Mercia and Cadwallon of Gwynedd.
• 1113 – The city of Oradea is first mentioned under the Latin name Varadinum ("vár" means fortress in Hungarian).
• 1216 – John, King of England loses his crown jewels in The Wash, probably near Fosdyke, perhaps near Sutton Bridge.
• 1279 – Nichiren, a Japanese Buddhist monk founder of Nichiren Buddhism, is said to have inscribed the Dai-Gohonzon.
• 1398 – The Treaty of Salynas is signed between Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas the Great and the Teutonic Knights, who received Samogitia.
• 1492 – Christopher Columbus's expedition makes landfall in the Caribbean, specifically in The Bahamas. The explorer believes he has reached the Indies.
• 1582 – Because of the implementation of the Gregorian calendar this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
• 1654 – The Delft Explosion devastates the city in the Netherlands, killing more than 100 people.
• 1692 – The Salem witch trials are ended by a letter from Massachusetts Governor William Phips.
• 1748 – British and Spanish naval forces engage at the Battle of Havana during the War of Jenkins' Ear.
• 1773 – America's first insane asylum opens for 'Persons of Insane and Disordered Minds' in Virginia.
• 1792 – First celebration of Columbus Day in the USA held in New York City.
• 1793 – The cornerstone of Old East, the oldest state university building in the United States, is laid on the campus of the University of North Carolina.
• 1798 – Flemish and Luxembourgish peasants launch the rebellion against French rule known as the Peasants' War.
• 1799 – Jeanne Geneviève Labrosse was the first woman to jump from a balloon with a parachute, from an altitude of 900 meters.
• 1810 – First Oktoberfest: The Bavarian royalty invites the citizens of Munich to join the celebration of the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.
• 1822 – Pedro I of Brazil is proclaimed the emperor of the Empire of Brazil.
• 1823 – Charles Macintosh of Scotland sells the first raincoat.
• 1847 – German inventor and industrialist Werner von Siemens founds Siemens & Halske, which later becomes Siemens AG, the largest engineering company in Europe.
• 1871 – Criminal Tribes Act (CTA) enacted by British rule in India, which named over 160 local communities 'Criminal Tribes', i.e. hereditary criminals. Repealed in 1949, after Independence of India.
• 1890 – Uddevalla Suffrage Association is formed.
• 1892 – The Pledge of Allegiance is first recited by students in many US public schools, as part of a celebration marking the 400th anniversary of Columbus's voyage.
• 1901 – President Theodore Roosevelt officially renames the "Executive Mansion" to the White House.
• 1915 – World War I: British nurse Edith Cavell is executed by a German firing squad for helping Allied soldiers escape from Belgium
• 1917 – World War I: The First Battle of Passchendaele takes place resulting in the largest single day loss of life in New Zealand history.
• 1918 – A massive forest fire kills 453 people in Minnesota.
• 1928 – An iron lung respirator is used for the first time at Children's Hospital, Boston.
• 1933 – The military Alcatraz Citadel becomes the civilian Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary.
• 1942 – World War II: Japanese ships retreat after their defeat in the Battle of Cape Esperance with the Japanese commander, Aritomo Gotō dying from wounds suffered in the battle and two Japanese destroyers sunk by Allied air attack.
• 1944 – World War II: The Axis occupation of Athens comes to an end.
• 1945 – World War II: Desmond Doss is the first conscientious objector to receive the U.S. Medal of Honor.
• 1953 – The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial opens at Plymouth Theatre, New York City
• 1959 – At the national congress of APRA in Peru a group of leftist radicals are expelled from the party. They will later form APRA Rebelde.
• 1960 – Cold War: Nikita Khrushchev pounds his shoe on a desk at United Nations General Assembly meeting to protest a Philippine assertion of Soviet Union colonial policy being conducted in Eastern Europe
• 1960 – Television viewers in Japan unexpectedly witness the assassination of Inejiro Asanuma, leader of the Japan Socialist Party, when he is stabbed and killed during a live broadcast.
• 1962 – Infamous Columbus Day Storm strikes the U.S. Pacific Northwest with record wind velocities; 46 dead and at least U.S. $230 million in damages
• 1963 – After nearly 23 years of imprisonment, Reverend Walter Ciszek, a Jesuit missionary, was released from the Soviet Union.
• 1964 – The Soviet Union launches the Voskhod 1 into Earth orbit as the first spacecraft with a multi-person crew and the first flight without space suits
• 1967 – Vietnam War: US Secretary of State Dean Rusk states during a news conference that proposals by the U.S. Congress for peace initiatives are futile because of North Vietnam's opposition
• 1968 – Equatorial Guinea becomes independent from Spain
• 1970 – Vietnam War: US President Richard Nixon announces that the United States will withdraw 40,000 more troops before Christmas
• 1979 – The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the first of five books in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy comedy science fiction series by Douglas Adams is published.
• 1979 – The lowest recorded non-tornadic atmospheric pressure, 87.0 kPa (870 mbar or 25.69 inHg), occurred in the Western Pacific during Typhoon Tip.
• 1983 – Japan's former Prime Minister Tanaka Kakuei is found guilty of taking a $2 million bribe from Lockheed and is sentenced to four years in jail.
• 1984 – Brighton hotel bombing: The Provisional Irish Republican Army attempt to assassinate Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and her cabinet. Thatcher escapes but the bomb kills five people and wounds 31.
• 1986 – Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visit the People's Republic of China
• 1988 – Jaffna University Helidrop: Commandos of Indian Peace Keeping Force raided the Jaffna University campus to capture the LTTE chief and walked into a trap.
• 1988 – Two officers of the Victoria Police are gunned down execution-style in the Walsh Street police shootings, Australia.
• 1988 – Birchandra Manu massacre in Tripura, India
• 1991 – Askar Akayev, previously chosen President of Kyrgyzstan by republic's Supreme Soviet, is confirmed president in an uncontested poll.
• 1992 – A 5.8 earthquake occurred in Cairo, Egypt. At least 510 died.
• 1994 – The Magellan spacecraft burns up in the atmosphere of Venus.
• 1997 – Sidi Daoud massacre in Algeria that killed 43 at a fake roadblock.
• 1998 – Matthew Shepard, a gay student at University of Wyoming, died five days after he was beaten, robbed and left tied to a wooden fence post outside of Laramie, Wyoming.
• 1999 – Pervez Musharraf takes power in Pakistan from Nawaz Sharif through a bloodless coup.
• 1999 – The former Autonomous Soviet Republic of Abkhazia declares its independence from Georgia
• 2000 – The USS Cole is badly damaged in Aden, Yemen, by two suicide bombers, killing 17 crew members and wounding at least 39.
• 2002 – Terrorists detonate bombs in the Sari Club in Kuta, Bali, killing 202 and wounding over 300.
• 2003 – Michael Schumacher wins his sixth Formula One Drivers' championship at the 2003 Japanese Grand Prix to beat the 48-year-old record held by Juan Manuel Fangio
• 2005 – The second Chinese human spaceflight Shenzhou 6 launched carrying Fèi Jùnlóng and Niè Hǎishèng for five days in orbit.
• 2013 – Fifty-one people are killed after a truck veers off a cliff in La Convención Province in Peru.

Births

• 1008 – Emperor Go-Ichijō of Japan (d. 1036)
• 1350 – Dmitry Donskoy, Russian son of Ivan II of Moscow (d. 1389)
• 1490 – Bernardo Pisano, Italian singer-songwriter and priest (d. 1548)
• 1537 – Edward VI of England (d. 1553)
• 1558 – Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria (d. 1618)
• 1576 – Thomas Dudley, English-American soldier and politician, 3rd Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (d. 1653)
• 1602 – William Chillingworth, English scholar and theologian (d. 1644)
• 1687 – Sylvius Leopold Weiss, German lute player and composer (d. 1750)
• 1710 – Jonathan Trumbull, American colonel and politician, 16th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1785)
• 1725 – Étienne Louis Geoffroy, French pharmacist and entomologist (d. 1810)
• 1792 – Christian Gmelin, German chemist and pharmacist (d. 1860)
• 1798 – Pedro I of Brazil (d. 1834)
• 1801 – Friedrich Frey-Herosé, Swiss lawyer and politician, 5th President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 1873)
• 1815 – William J. Hardee, American general (d. 1873)
• 1840 – Helena Modjeska, Polish-American actress (d. 1909)
• 1855 – Arthur Nikisch, Hungarian conductor and academic (d. 1922)
• 1860 – Elmer Ambrose Sperry, American engineer and businessman, co-invented the gyrocompass (d. 1930)
• 1865 – Arthur Harden, English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1940)
• 1866 – Ramsay MacDonald, Scottish journalist and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1937)
• 1868 – August Horch, German engineer and businessman, founded Audi (d. 1951)
• 1868 – Mariano Trías, Filipino general and politician, 1st Vice President of the Philippines (d. 1914)
• 1872 – Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer and educator (d. 1958)
• 1874 – Jimmy Burke, American baseball player and manager (d. 1942)
• 1875 – Aleister Crowley, English magician and author (d. 1947)
• 1878 – Truxtun Hare, American football player and hammer thrower (d. 1956)
• 1880 – Louis Hémon, French-Canadian author (d. 1913)
• 1887 – Paula von Preradović, Croatian-Austrian author and poet (d. 1951)
• 1891 – Edith Stein, Polish nun, philosopher, and saint (d. 1942)
• 1891 – Fumimaro Konoe, Japanese soldier and politician, 39th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1945)
• 1892 – Gilda dalla Rizza, Italian soprano and actress (d. 1975)
• 1893 – Velvalee Dickinson, American spy (d. 1980)
• 1894 – Elisabeth of Romania (d. 1956)
• 1896 – Eugenio Montale, Italian poet and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1981)
• 1903 – Josephine Hutchinson, American actress (d. 1998)
• 1904 – Lester Dent, American journalist and author (d. 1959)
• 1904 – Ding Ling, Chinese author and educator (d. 1986)
• 1906 – Joe Cronin, American baseball player and manager (d. 1984)
• 1906 – John Murray, American playwright and producer (d. 1984)
• 1908 – Paul Engle, American author, poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1991)
• 1908 – Ann Petry, American journalist and author (d. 1997)
• 1910 – Robert Fitzgerald, American poet, critic, and translator (d. 1985)
• 1910 – Malcolm Renfrew, American chemist and academic (d. 2013)
• 1911 – Piero Taruffi, Italian race car driver and motorcycle racer (d. 1988)
• 1913 – Alice Chetwynd Ley, English author and educator (d. 2004)
• 1916 – Alice Childress, American actress and playwright (d. 1994)
• 1917 – Roque Máspoli, Uruguayan footballer and manager (d. 2004)
• 1919 – Gilles Beaudoin, Canadian politician, 34th Mayor of Trois-Rivières (d. 2007)
• 1919 – Doris Miller, American chef and soldier (d. 1943)
• 1920 – Christy Ring, Irish hurler (d. 1979)
• 1920 – Christopher Soames, Baron Soames, English politician and diplomat, Governor of Southern Rhodesia (d. 1987)
• 1921 – Art Clokey, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and voice actor, created Gumby (d. 2010)
• 1921 – Jaroslav Drobný, Czech-English tennis player and ice hockey player (d. 2001)
• 1921 – Logie Bruce Lockhart, Scottish rugby player and journalist
• 1922 – William H. Sullivan, American soldier and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the Philippines (d. 2013)
• 1923 – Jean Nidetch, American businesswoman, co-founded Weight Watchers (d. 2015)
• 1923 – Goody Petronelli, American boxer, trainer, and manager (d. 2012)
• 1924 – Doris Grau, American actress (d. 1995)
• 1924 – Leonidas Kyrkos, Greek politician (d. 2011)
• 1924 – Mimis Plessas, Greek pianist and composer
• 1925 – Denis Lazure, Canadian psychiatrist and politician (d. 2008)
• 1925 – Essie Mae Washington-Williams, American author and educator (d. 2013)
• 1928 – Al Held, American painter and academic (d. 2005)
• 1928 – Domna Samiou, Greek singer and musicologist (d. 2012)
• 1928 – Rangel Valchanov, Bulgarian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1929 – Nappy Brown, American singer-songwriter (d. 2008)
• 1929 – Brian Cobby, English actor (d. 2012)
• 1929 – Robert Coles, American psychologist, author, and academic
• 1929 – Magnus Magnusson, Icelandic-Scottish journalist and academic (d. 2007)
• 1930 – Denis Brodeur, Canadian ice hockey player and photographer (d. 2013)
• 1930 – Milica Kacin Wohinz, Slovenian historian and author
• 1931 – Ole-Johan Dahl, Norwegian computer scientist and academic, co-developed Simula (d. 2002)
• 1932 – Dick Gregory, American comedian, actor, and author
• 1932 – Ned Jarrett, American race car driver and sportscaster
• 1932 – John Moffat, Danish physicist and academic
• 1933 – Guido Molinari, Canadian painter and art collector (d. 2004)
• 1934 – James "Sugar Boy" Crawford, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 2012)
• 1934 – Richard Meier, American architect, designed the Getty Center and City Tower
• 1934 – Albert Shiryaev, Russian mathematician and academic
• 1934 – Oğuz Atay, Turkish engineer and author (d. 1977)
• 1935 – Don Howe, English footballer and manager (d. 2015)
• 1935 – Tony Kubek, American baseball player and sportscaster
• 1935 – Samuel David Moore, American singer-songwriter (Sam & Dave)
• 1935 – Shivraj Patil, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Defence
• 1935 – Luciano Pavarotti, Italian tenor and actor (d. 2007)
• 1937 – Paul Hawkins, Australian race car driver (d. 1969)
• 1937 – Robert Mangold, American painter
• 1938 – Bob Miller, American sportscaster
• 1938 – Larry Scott, American bodybuilder and actor (d. 2014)
• 1941 – Frank Alamo, French singer (d. 2012)
• 1941 – Michael Mansfield, English lawyer and academic
• 1942 – Melvin Franklin, American singer and actor (The Temptations) (d. 1995)
• 1942 – Daliah Lavi, Israeli actress and singer
• 1943 – Kostas Tsakonas, Greek actor (d. 2015)
• 1944 – Angela Rippon, English journalist and author
• 1945 – Aurore Clément, French actress
• 1945 – Dusty Rhodes, American wrestler and trainer (d. 2015)
• 1946 – Daryl Runswick, English bassist and composer
• 1946 – Susan Saegert, American psychologist and academic
• 1946 – Ali Parvin, Iranian footballer
• 1947 – George Lam, Hong Kong singer-songwriter and actor
• 1947 – Chris Wallace, American journalist
• 1947 – Randy West, American porn actor and producer
• 1948 – Rick Parfitt, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Status Quo)
• 1949 – Dave Lloyd, English cyclist and coach
• 1949 – Carlos the Jackal, Venezuelan murderer
• 1949 – Nigel Thrift, English geographer and academic
• 1949 – Paul Went, English footballer and manager
• 1950 – Susan Anton, American actress and singer
• 1950 – Robin Askwith, English actor
• 1950 – Caroline Ellis, English actress and singer
• 1950 – Dave Freudenthal, American economist and politician, 31st Governor of Wyoming
• 1950 – Takeshi Kaga, Japanese actor
• 1950 – Pilar Pilapil, Filipino model, actress, and producer
• 1951 – Sally Little, South African-American golfer
• 1951 – Ed Royce, American businessman and politician
• 1952 – Béla Csécsei, Hungarian educator and politician (d. 2012)
• 1952 – Roger Heath-Brown, English mathematician and theorist
• 1952 – Danielle Proulx, Canadian actress
• 1953 – Les Dennis, English comedian and actor
• 1953 – David Threlfall, English actor and director
• 1954 – Linval Thompson, Jamaican singer and producer
• 1954 – Massimo Ghini, Italian actor
• 1954 – Cheryl Rixon, Australian actress and model
• 1955 – Einar Jan Aas, Norwegian footballer
• 1955 – Ashley Adams, Australian target shooter (d. 2015)
• 1955 – Ante Gotovina, Croatian general
• 1955 – Brigitte Lahaie, French porn actress and radio host
• 1955 – Aggie MacKenzie, Scottish television host
• 1955 – Joe Raiola, American comedian, journalist, and producer
• 1955 – Jane Siberry, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
• 1956 – Emilio Charles Jr., Mexican wrestler (d. 2012)
• 1956 – David Vanian, English singer-songwriter (The Damned and Dave Vanian and the Phantom Chords)
• 1957 – Kristen Bjorn, English porn actor, director, and producer
• 1957 – Clémentine Célarié, French actress, singer, and director
• 1958 – Steve Austria, American lawyer and politician
• 1958 – Maria de Fátima Silva de Sequeira Dias, Portuguese historian, author, and academic (d. 2013)
• 1958 – Bryn Merrick, Welsh bass player (The Damned) (d. 2015)
• 1958 – Hara Patnaik, Indian actor and director (d. 2015)
• 1959 – Anna Escobedo Cabral, American lawyer and politician, 42nd Treasurer of the United States
• 1960 – Carlo Perrone, Italian footballer and manager
• 1960 – Hiroyuki Sanada, Japanese actor
• 1961 – Chendo, Spanish footballer
• 1962 – Carlos Bernard, American actor and director
• 1962 – Chris Botti, American trumpet player and composer
• 1962 – John Coleman, English footballer and manager
• 1962 – Branko Crvenkovski, Macedonian engineer and politician, 3rd President of the Republic of Macedonia
• 1962 – Deborah Foreman, American actress and photographer
• 1962 – Mads Eriksen, Norwegian guitarist and composer
• 1963 – Raimond Aumann, German footballer
• 1963 – Lane Frost, American bull rider (d. 1989)
• 1963 – Hideki Fujisawa, Japanese composer
• 1963 – Satoshi Kon, Japanese animator and screenwriter (d. 2010)
• 1963 – Dave Legeno, English actor and mixed martial artist (d. 2014)
• 1963 – Alan McDonald, Irish footballer and manager (d. 2012)
• 1963 – Luis Polonia, Dominican baseball player
• 1965 – Dan Abnett, English author
• 1965 – J. J. Daigneault, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1965 – Scott O'Grady, American captain and pilot
• 1966 – Brenda Romero, American game designer
• 1966 – Jonathan Crombie, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter (d. 2015)
• 1966 – Wim Jonk, Dutch footballer
• 1966 – Brian Kennedy, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1968 – Bill Auberlen, American race car driver
• 1968 – Mark Donovan, Welsh actor
• 1968 – Paul Harragon, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
• 1968 – Hugh Jackman, Australian actor, singer, and producer
• 1968 – Adam Rich, American actor
• 1969 – Martie Maguire, American singer-songwriter, violinist, and producer (Dixie Chicks and Court Yard Hounds)
• 1969 – Judit Mascó, Spanish model and actress
• 1969 – Željko Milinovič, Slovenian footballer
• 1969 – Dwayne Roloson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1969 – José Valentín, American baseball player, coach, and manager
• 1970 – Julian, Chilean-American porn actor and director
• 1970 – Origa, Russian-Japanese singer (d. 2015)
• 1970 – Kirk Cameron, American actor, screenwriter, and evangelist
• 1970 – Patrick Musimu, Belgian diver and physiotherapist (d. 2011)
• 1970 – Tanyon Sturtze, American baseball player
• 1970 – Charlie Ward, American basketball player and coach
• 1971 – Tony Fiore, American baseball player
• 1971 – Steve Johnston, Australian motorcycle racer
• 1971 – Bronzell Miller, American football player and actor (d. 2013)
• 1972 – Neriah Davis, American model and actress
• 1972 – Juan Manuel Silva, Argentinian race car driver
• 1972 – Tom Van Mol, Belgian footballer
• 1973 – Lesli Brea, Dominican baseball player
• 1973 – Martin Corry, English rugby player
• 1974 – Kate Beahan, Australian actress
• 1974 – Ebru Gündeş, Turkish singer and actress
• 1974 – Stephen Lee, English snooker player
• 1974 – Marie Wilson, Greek-Canadian actress and singer
• 1975 – Ahmad, American rapper (4th Avenue Jones)
• 1975 – Susana Félix, Portuguese singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1975 – Marion Jones, American basketball player and runner
• 1977 – Jessica Barker, Canadian actress
• 1977 – Bode Miller, American skier
• 1977 – Javier Toyo, Venezuelan footballer
• 1978 – Stefan Binder, German footballer
• 1978 – Baden Cooke, Australian cyclist
• 1979 – Steven Agnew, Irish politician
• 1979 – Jordan Pundik, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (New Found Glory and International Superheroes of Hardcore)
• 1979 – Rie Tomosaka, Japanese actress and singer
• 1980 – Ledley King, English footballer
• 1981 – Sneha, Indian model and actress
• 1981 – Engin Akyürek, Turkish actor
• 1981 – Shola Ameobi, Nigerian-English footballer
• 1981 – Tom Guiry, American actor
• 1981 – Brian Kerr, Scottish footballer
• 1981 – Giuseppe Lanzone, American rower
• 1981 – Brian J. Smith, American actor
• 1981 – Conrad Smith, New Zealand rugby player
• 1981 – Sun Tiantian, Chinese tennis player
• 1982 – Julie Kagawa, American author
• 1983 – Alex Brosque, Australian footballer
• 1983 – Carlton Cole, English footballer
• 1983 – Katie Piper, English model and television host
• 1985 – Mike Green, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1985 – Anna Iljuštšenko, Estonian high jumper
• 1986 – Tyler Blackburn, American actor and singer
• 1986 – Ioannis Maniatis, Greek footballer
• 1986 – Emmanuel Nwachi, Nigerian footballer
• 1986 – Sergio Peter, German footballer
• 1987 – Marvin Ogunjimi, Belgian footballer
• 1988 – Aggro Santos, Brazilian-English rapper
• 1988 – Sam Whitelock, New Zealand rugby player
• 1989 – Anna Ohmiya, Japanese curler
• 1990 – Melody, Spanish singer-songwriter and dancer
• 1990 – Henri Lansbury, English footballer
• 1991 – Nicolao Dumitru, Italian footballer
• 1992 – Kyron Duke, Welsh weightlifter, javelin thrower, and shot putter
• 1992 – Josh Hutcherson, American actor and producer
• 1992 – Cüneyt Köz, German footballer
• 1992 – Bambi Monroe, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1993 – Carl John Barrameda, Filipino actor
• 1993 – Linn Oeymo, Filipino-Norwegian actress and dancer
• 1994 – Sean Monahan, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1995 – Claudio Encarnacion Montero, English actor
• 1995 – Jordan Howe, Welsh sprinter
• 1995 – Karin Ogino, Japanese model and actress
• 1996 – Riechedly Bazoer, Dutch footballer
• 1997 – Prince Boris of Bulgaria
• 2001 – Raymond Ochoa, American actor

Deaths

• 632 – Edwin of Northumbria (b. 586)
• 638 – Pope Honorius I
• 642 – Pope John IV
• 1095 – Leopold II, Margrave of Austria (b. 1050)
• 1152 – Adolf III of Berg (b. 1080)
• 1176 – William d'Aubigny, 1st Earl of Arundel, English politician (b. 1109)
• 1320 – Michael IX Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1277)
• 1491 – Fritz Herlen, German painter (b. 1449)
• 1492 – Piero della Francesca, Italian mathematician and painter (b. 1415)
• 1565 – Jean Ribault, French-American lieutenant and navigator (b. 1520)
• 1576 – Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1527)
• 1590 – Kanō Eitoku, Japanese painter and educator (b. 1543)
• 1600 – Luis de Molina, Spanish priest and philosopher (b. 1535)
• 1632 – Kutsuki Mototsuna, Japanese commander (b. 1549)
• 1646 – François de Bassompierre, French general and courtier (b. 1579)
• 1678 – Edmund Berry Godfrey, English lawyer and judge (b. 1621)
• 1679 – William Gurnall, English minister, theologian, and author (b. 1617)
• 1685 – Christoph Ignaz Abele, Austrian lawyer and jurist (b. 1628)
• 1730 – Frederick IV of Denmark (b. 1671)
• 1758 – Richard Molesworth, 3rd Viscount Molesworth, Irish field marshal and politician (b. 1680)
• 1812 – Juan José Castelli, Argentinian lawyer and politician (b. 1764)
• 1845 – Elizabeth Fry, English nurse and philanthropist (b. 1780)
• 1858 – Hiroshige, Japanese painter (b. 1797)
• 1870 – Robert E. Lee, American general (b. 1807)
• 1875 – Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, French sculptor and painter (b. 1827)
• 1896 – Christian Emil Krag-Juel-Vind-Frijs, Danish lawyer and politician, 9th Council President of Denmark (b. 1817)
• 1898 – Calvin Fairbank, American minister and activist (b. 1816)
• 1914 – Margaret E. Knight, American inventor (b. 1838)
• 1915 – Edith Cavell, English nurse (b. 1865)
• 1923 – Bunny Lucas, English cricketer (b. 1857)
• 1924 – Anatole France, French journalist, author, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1844)
• 1926 – Edwin Abbott Abbott, English theologian and author (b. 1838)
• 1933 – John Lister, English philanthropist and politician (b. 1847)
• 1940 – Tom Mix, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1880)
• 1943 – Tayyar Yalaz, Turkish wrestler (b. 1901)
• 1946 – Joseph Stilwell, American general (b. 1883)
• 1948 – Susan Sutherland Isaacs, English psychologist and psychoanalyst (b. 1885)
• 1954 – George Welch, American soldier and pilot (b. 1918)
• 1956 – Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer and painter (b. 1872)
• 1957 – Arie de Jong, Indonesian-Dutch linguist and physician (b. 1865)
• 1958 – Gordon Griffith, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1907)
• 1960 – Inejiro Asanuma, Japanese lawyer and politician (b. 1898)
• 1965 – Paul Hermann Müller, Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899)
• 1967 – Ram Manohar Lohia, Indian activist and politician (b. 1910)
• 1969 – Sonja Henie, Norwegian figure skater and actress (b. 1912)
• 1969 – Serge Poliakoff, Russian-French painter and academic (b. 1906)
• 1969 – Julius Saaristo, Finnish javelin thrower and soldier (b. 1891)
• 1970 – Feodor Stepanovich Rojankovsky, Russian-American illustrator and painter (b. 1891)
• 1970 – Mustafa Zaidi, Pakistani poet and academic (b. 1930)
• 1971 – Dean Acheson, American lawyer and politician, 51st United States Secretary of State (b. 1893)
• 1971 – Fritz Achterberg, German actor (b. 1880)
• 1971 – Gene Vincent, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1935)
• 1972 – Robert Le Vigan, French-Argentinian actor and politician (b. 1900)
• 1973 – Peter Aufschnaiter, Austrian mountaineer, geographer, and cartographer (b. 1899)
• 1978 – Nancy Spungen, American murder victim (b. 1958)
• 1983 – Ernie Roth, American wrestling manager (b. 1929)
• 1984 – Anthony Berry, English politician (b. 1925)
• 1985 – Johnny Olson, American radio host and game show announcer (b. 1910)
• 1985 – Ricky Wilson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The B-52's) (b. 1953)
• 1987 – Alf Landon, American lieutenant and politician, 26th Governor of Kansas (b. 1887)
• 1987 – Fahri Korutürk, Turkish commander and politician, 6th President of Turkey (b. 1903)
• 1988 – Ruth Manning-Sanders, Welsh-English poet and author (b. 1886)
• 1988 – Coby Whitmore, American painter and illustrator (b. 1913)
• 1989 – Carmen Cavallaro, American pianist (b. 1913)
• 1989 – Jay Ward, American animator, producer, and screenwriter, founded Jay Ward Productions (b. 1920)
• 1990 – Rifaat el-Mahgoub, Egyptian politician (b. 1926)
• 1990 – Peter Wessel Zapffe, Norwegian physician, mountaineer, and author (b. 1899)
• 1991 – Sheila Florance, Australian actress (b. 1916)
• 1991 – Arkady Strugatsky, Russian author and translator (b. 1925)
• 1991 – Regis Toomey, American actor (b. 1898)
• 1993 – Leon Ames, American actor and singer (b. 1902)
• 1994 – Gérald Godin, Canadian journalist and politician (b. 1938)
• 1996 – René Lacoste, French tennis player and fashion designer, co-founded Lacoste (b. 1904)
• 1996 – Roger Lapébie, French cyclist (b. 1911)
• 1997 – John Denver, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (Chad Mitchell Trio and The John Denver Band) (b. 1943)
• 1998 – Mario Beaulieu, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1930)
• 1998 – Matthew Shepard, American murder victim (b. 1976)
• 1999 – Wilt Chamberlain, American basketball player and coach (b. 1936)
• 1999 – Robert Marsden Hope, Australian lawyer and judge (b. 1919)
• 2001 – Quintin Hogg, Baron Hailsham of St Marylebone, English academic and politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1907)
• 2001 – Hikmet Şimşek, Turkish conductor (b. 1924)
• 2002 – Ray Conniff, American bandleader and composer (b. 1916)
• 2002 – Audrey Mestre, French biologist and diver (b. 1974)
• 2003 – Jim Cairns, Australian economist and politician, 4th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1914)
• 2003 – Joan Kroc, American philanthropist (b. 1928)
• 2003 – Bill Shoemaker, American jockey (b. 1931)
• 2005 – C. Delores Tucker, American activist and politician (b. 1927)
• 2006 – Eugène Martin, French race car driver (b. 1915)
• 2006 – Gillo Pontecorvo, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1919)
• 2007 – Noel Coleman, English actor (b. 1919)
• 2007 – Kisho Kurokawa, Japanese architect, designed the Nakagin Capsule Tower (b. 1934)
• 2008 – Karl Chircop, Maltese physician and politician (b. 1965)
• 2009 – Dickie Peterson American singer-songwriter and bass player (Blue Cheer) (b. 1948)
• 2009 – Frank Vandenbroucke, Belgian cyclist (b. 1974)
• 2010 – Austin Ardill, Northern Irish soldier and politician (b. 1917)
• 2010 – Woody Peoples, American football player (b. 1943)
• 2010 – Belva Plain, American author (b. 1919)
• 2011 – Heinz Bennent, German-Swiss actor (b. 1921)
• 2011 – Patricia Breslin, American actress (b. 1931)
• 2011 – Dennis Ritchie, American computer scientist, created the C programming language (b. 1941)
• 2012 – James Coyne, Canadian lawyer and banker, 2nd Governor of the Bank of Canada (b. 1910)
• 2012 – Norm Grabowski, American hot rod builder and actor (b. 1933)
• 2012 – William Goad, British businessman and serial child rapist (b. 1944)
• 2012 – Sukhdev Singh Kang, Indian judge and politician, 14th Governor of Kerala (b. 1931)
• 2012 – Torkom Manoogian, Iraqi-Armenian patriarch (b. 1919)
• 2012 – Erik Moseholm, Danish bassist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Břetislav Pojar, Czech animator, director, and screenwriter (b. 1923)
• 2013 – Glen Dell, South African pilot (b. 1962)
• 2013 – George Herbig, American astronomer and academic (b. 1920)
• 2013 – Oscar Hijuelos, American author and academic (b. 1951)
• 2013 – Hans Wilhelm Longva, Norwegian diplomat (b. 1942)
• 2013 – Malcolm Renfrew, American chemist and academic (b. 1910)
• 2014 – Louise Daniel Hutchinson, American historian and academic (b. 1928)
• 2014 – Tommy Lewis, American football player and coach (b. 1931)
• 2014 – Ali Mazrui, Kenyan-American political scientist, philosopher, and academic (b. 1933)
• 2014 – Graham Miles, English snooker player (b. 1941)
• 2014 – Roberto Telch, Argentinian footballer and coach (b. 1943)
• 2015 – Abdallah Kigoda, Tanzanian politician, 8th Tanzanian Minister of Industry and Trade (b. 1953)
• 2015 – Kazuo Kumakura, Japanese actor (b. 1927)
• 2015 – Joan Leslie, American actress and singer (b. 1925)
• 2015 – Robert Leuci, American police officer and author (b. 1940)
• 2015 – George Mueller, American engineer (b. 1918)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Blessed Louis Brisson
  • Edith Cavell and Elizabeth Fry (Church of England)
  • Heribert of Cologne (private feast day)
  • Our Lady of the Pillar
    • Fiestas del Pilar
  • Our Lady of Aparecida
  • Radim Gaudentius (Czech Republic)
  • Wilfrid of Ripon
  • October 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

• Children's Day (Brazil)
• Discovery of America by Columbus-related observances (see also October 8):
  • Columbus Day (Honduras)
  • Descubrimiento de América (Mexico)
  • Día de la Hispanidad or Fiesta Nacional de España, also Armed Forces Day (Spain)
  • Día de la Raza (El Salvador, Uruguay)
  • Día de la Resistencia Indígena, "Day of Indigenous Resistance" (Venezuela)
  • Día de las Américas (Belize)
  • Día de las Culturas, "Day of the Cultures" (Costa Rica)
  • Día del Respeto a la Diversidad Cultural, "Day of respect for cultural diversity" (Argentina)
• Discovery Day and National Youth Day (the Bahamas)
• Feast for Life of Aleister Crowley, celebrated as "Crowleymas" (Thelema)
• Fiesta Nacional de España (Spain)
• Freethought Day (United States)
• Independence Day (Equatorial Guinea), celebrates the independence of Equatorial Guinea from Spain in 1968.
• National Coming Out Day (United Kingdom)
• UN Spanish Language Day (United Nations)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada