February 25

February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 309 days remaining until the end of the year (310 in leap years).

Events

• 138 – The Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius, effectively making him his successor.
• 493 – Odoacer surrenders Ravenna after a 3-year siege and agrees to a mediated peace with Theoderic the Great.
• 628 – Khosrau II is overthrown by his son Kavadh II.
• 1336 – Four thousand defenders of Pilėnai commit mass suicide rather than be taken captive by the Teutonic Knights.
• 1631 – François de Bassompierre, a French courtier, is arrested on Richelieu's orders.
• 1797 – Colonel William Tate and his force of 1000–1500 soldiers surrender after the Last invasion of Britain.
• 1821 – Greek War of Independence: Alexander Ypsilantis issues a proclamation at Iași, announcing that he had "the support of a great power" (i.e. Russia).
• 1831 – Battle of Olszynka Grochowska, part of Polish November Uprising against Russian Empire.
• 1836 – Samuel Colt is granted a United States patent for the Colt revolver.
• 1843 – Lord George Paulet occupies the Kingdom of Hawaii in the name of Great Britain in the Paulet Affair (1843).
• 1848 – Provisional government in revolutionary France, by Louis Blanc's motion, guarantees workers' rights.
• 1856 – A Peace conference opens in Paris after the Crimean War.
• 1866 – Miners in Calaveras County, California, discover what is now called the Calaveras Skull - human remains that supposedly indicated that man, mastodons, and elephants had co-existed.
• 1870 – Hiram Rhodes Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in the U.S. Congress.
• 1875 – Guangxu Emperor of Qing dynasty China begins his reign, under Empress Dowager Cixi's regency.
• 1901 – J. P. Morgan incorporates the United States Steel Corporation.
• 1912 – Marie-Adélaïde, the eldest of six daughters of Guillaume IV, becomes the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
• 1916 – World War I: The Germans capture Fort Douaumont during the Battle of Verdun.
• 1919 – Oregon places a one cent per U.S. gallon tax on gasoline, becoming the first U.S. state to levy a gasoline tax.
• 1921 – Tbilisi, capital of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, is occupied by Bolshevist Russia.
• 1928 – Charles Jenkins Laboratories of Washington, D.C. becomes the first holder of a broadcast license for television from the Federal Radio Commission.
• 1932 – Adolf Hitler obtains German citizenship by naturalization, which allows him to run in the 1932 election for Reichspräsident.
• 1933 – The USS Ranger is launched. It is the first US Navy ship to be built solely as an aircraft carrier.
• 1941 – February strike: In occupied Amsterdam, a general strike is declared in response to increasing anti-Jewish measures instituted by the Nazis.
• 1945 – World War II: Turkey declares war on Germany.
• 1947 – The State of Prussia ceases to exist.
• 1948 – The Communist Party takes control of government in Czechoslovakia and the period of the Third Republic ends.
• 1951 – The first Pan American Games are held in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
• 1954 – Gamal Abdel Nasser is made premier of Egypt.
• 1956 – In his speech On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences, Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union denounces the cult of personality of Joseph Stalin.
• 1964 – North Korean Prime Minister Kim Il-sung calls for the removal of feudalistic land ownership aimed at turning all cooperative farms into state-run ones.
• 1964 – U.S. Air Force launches a satellite employing a US Air Force Atlas/Agena combination from Point Arguello (LC-2-3) in California and from Cape Kennedy in Florida.
• 1968 – Vietnam War: One hundred thirty-five unarmed citizens of Hà My village in South Vietnam's Quảng Nam Province are killed and buried en masse by South Korean troops in what would come to be known as the Hà My massacre.
• 1971 – The first unit of the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station, the first commercial nuclear power station in Canada, goes online.
• 1980 – The government of Suriname is overthrown by a military coup led by Dési Bouterse.
• 1986 – People Power Revolution: President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the Philippines' first woman president.
• 1987 – Southern Methodist University's football program is the first college football program to receive the death penalty by the NCAA's Committee on Infractions. It was revealed that athletic officials and school administrators had knowledge of a "slush fund" used to make illegal payments to the school's football players as far back as 1981.
• 1991 – Gulf War: An Iraqi scud missile hits an American military barracks in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia killing 28 U.S. Army Reservists from Pennsylvania.
• 1991 – The Warsaw Pact is declared disbanded.
• 1992 – Khojaly massacre: About 613 civilians are killed by Armenian armed forces during the conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan.
• 1994 – Mosque of Abraham massacre: In the Cave of the Patriarchs in the West Bank city of Hebron, Baruch Goldstein opens fire with an automatic rifle, killing 29 Palestinian worshippers and injuring 125 more before being subdued and beaten to death by survivors.
• 1997 – Yi Han-yong, a North Korean defector, was murdered by unidentified assailants in Bundang, South Korea.
• 2009 – Members of the Bangladesh Rifles mutiny at their headquarters in Pilkhana, Dhaka, Bangladesh, resulting in 74 deaths, including more than 50 army officials.
• 2015 – At least 310 people are killed in avalanches in northeastern Afghanistan.

Births

• 1337 – Wenceslaus I, Duke of Luxembourg (d. 1383)
• 1552 – Magdalene of Lippe (d. 1587)
• 1591 – Friedrich Spee, German poet and author (d. 1635)
• 1643 – Ahmed II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1695)
• 1644 – Thomas Newcomen, English inventor, ironmonger and Baptist lay preacher (d. 1729)
• 1651 – Johann Philipp Krieger, German organist and composer (d. 1725)
• 1663 – Peter Anthony Motteux, French-English author, playwright, and translator (d. 1718)
• 1670 – Maria Margarethe Kirch, German astronomer (d. 1720)
• 1682 – Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist and pathologist (d. 1771)
• 1692 – Karl Ludwig von Pöllnitz, German author and adventurer (d. 1775)
• 1707 – Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright and composer (d. 1793)
• 1708 – Felix Benda, Bohemian organist and composer (d. 1768)
• 1714 – René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of France (d. 1792)
• 1714 – Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet, English admiral (d. 1782)
• 1725 – Karl Wilhelm Ramler, German poet and educator (d. 1798)
• 1727 – Armand-Louis Couperin, French organist and composer (d. 1789)
• 1728 – John Wood, the Younger, English architect, designed the Royal Crescent (d. 1782)
• 1737 – August Wilhelm Hupel, German-Estonian linguist and publicist (d. 1819)
• 1752 – John Graves Simcoe, English-Canadian general and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (d. 1806)
• 1755 – François René Mallarmé, French lawyer and politician (d. 1835)
• 1778 – José de San Martín, Argentinian general and politician, 1st President of Peru (d. 1850)
• 1812 – Carl Christian Hall, Danish politician, 6th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1888)
• 1816 – Giovanni Morelli, Italian historian and critic (d. 1891)
• 1833 – John St. John, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Kansas (d. 1916)
• 1841 – Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French painter and sculptor (d. 1919)
• 1842 – Karl May, German author, poet, and playwright (d. 1912)
• 1845 – George Reid, Scottish-Australian lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1918)
• 1855 – George Bonnor, Australian cricketer (d. 1912)
• 1855 – Cesário Verde, Portuguese poet and author (d. 1886)
• 1856 – Karl Gotthard Lamprecht, German historian and academic (d. 1915)
• 1856 – Mathias Zdarsky, Czech-Austrian skier, painter, and sculptor (d. 1940)
• 1857 – Robert Bond, Canadian politician, 1st Prime Minister of Newfoundland (d. 1927)
• 1860 – William Ashley, English historian and academic (d. 1927)
• 1861 – Rudolf Steiner, Austrian philosopher and educator (d. 1925)
• 1865 – Andranik, Armenian general (d. 1927)
• 1866 – Benedetto Croce, Italian philosopher and politician (d. 1952)
• 1869 – Phoebus Levene, Russian-American biochemist and physician (d. 1940)
• 1871 – Lesya Ukrainka, Ukrainian-Georgian poet and playwright (d. 1913)
• 1873 – Enrico Caruso, Italian-American tenor and actor (d. 1921)
• 1877 – Tom Crean, Irish seaman and explorer (d. 1938)
• 1877 – Erich von Hornbostel, Austrian musicologist and scholar (d. 1935)
• 1881 – William Z. Foster, American union leader and politician (d. 1961)
• 1881 – Alexei Rykov, Russian politician, Premier of Russia (d. 1938)
• 1883 – Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (d. 1981)
• 1885 – Princess Alice of Battenberg (d. 1969)
• 1885 – Sylvia Brett, English wife of Charles Vyner Brooke (d. 1971)
• 1886 – Wally Hardinge, English cricketer and footballer (d. 1965)
• 1888 – John Foster Dulles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 52nd United States Secretary of State (d. 1959)
• 1889 – Homer S. Ferguson, American lawyer, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the Philippines (d. 1982)
• 1890 – Myra Hess, English pianist and educator (d. 1965)
• 1891 – Arthur Barratt, English Air Chief Marshal (d. 1966)
• 1894 – Meher Baba, Indian mystic and educator (d. 1969)
• 1894 – Philip Babington, English Air Marshal (d. 1965)
• 1895 – Lew Andreas, American basketball player and coach (d. 1984)
• 1897 – Peter Llewelyn Davies, English publisher (d. 1960)
• 1900 – Richard Indreko, Estonian archeologist and historian (d. 1961)
• 1901 – Zeppo Marx, American actor and agent (d. 1979)
• 1903 – King Clancy, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1986)
• 1905 – Harald Lander, Danish dancer and choreographer (d. 1971)
• 1905 – Perry Miller, American historian and author (d. 1963)
• 1906 – Domingo Ortega, Spanish bullfighter (d. 1988)
• 1906 – Boris Papandopulo, Croatian composer and conductor (d. 1991)
• 1907 – Sabahattin Ali, Turkish journalist, author, and poet (d. 1948)
• 1907 – Mary Chase, American journalist, author, and playwright (d. 1981)
• 1908 – Frank G. Slaughter, American physician and author (d. 2001)
• 1910 – Millicent Fenwick, American journalist and politician (d. 1992)
• 1913 – Jim Backus, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1989)
• 1913 – Gert Fröbe, German actor (d. 1988)
• 1914 – John Arlott, English journalist and author (d. 1991)
• 1916 – Reinhard Bendix, German-American sociologist and academic (d. 1991)
• 1917 – Anthony Burgess, English author, poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1993)
• 1917 – Brenda Joyce, American actress (d. 2009)
• 1918 – Barney Ewell, American runner (d. 1996)
• 1918 – Rena Kyriakou, Greek pianist and composer (d. 1994)
• 1918 – Bobby Riggs, American tennis player (d. 1995)
• 1919 – Monte Irvin, American baseball player (d. 2016)
• 1919 – Karl H. Pribram, Austrian-American psychologist and academic (d. 2015)
• 1920 – Gérard Bessette, Canadian author and educator (d. 2005)
• 1920 – Philip Habib, American academic and diplomat (d. 1992)
• 1920 – Sun Myung Moon, South Korean religious leader, founded the Unification Church (d. 2012)
• 1921 – Pierre Laporte, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician (d. 1970)
• 1921 – Andy Pafko, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
• 1922 – Molly Bobak, Canadian painter and educator (d. 2014)
• 1923 – Takeo Kajiwara, Japanese Go player (d. 2009)
• 1924 – Hugh Huxley, English-American biologist and academic (d. 2013)
• 1925 – Janaky Athi Nahappan, Malaysian captain and politician (d. 2014)
• 1926 – Eva Bergh, Norwegian actress (d. 2013)
• 1926 – Masatoshi Gündüz Ikeda, Japanese-Turkish mathematician and academic (d. 2003)
• 1926 – Harvey McGregor, Scottish lawyer and academic (d. 2015)
• 1927 – Dick Jones, American actor (d. 2014)
• 1927 – Ralph Stanley, American singer and banjo player (Stanley Brothers)
• 1928 – Hushang Ebtehaj, Iranian poet and author
• 1928 – Paul Elvstrøm, Danish sailor and engineer
• 1928 – Larry Gelbart, American author and screenwriter (d. 2009)
• 1928 – Richard G. Stern, American author and educator (d. 2013)
• 1929 – Christopher George, American actor (d. 1983)
• 1929 – Tommy Newsom, American saxophonist and bandleader (d. 2007)
• 1930 – Wendy Beckett, South African-born religious sister and art historian
• 1932 – Tony Brooks, English race car driver
• 1932 – Faron Young, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 1996)
• 1934 – David E. Jeremiah, American admiral (d. 2013)
• 1934 – Tony Lema, American golfer (d. 1966)
• 1935 – Sally Jessy Raphael, American journalist and talk show host
• 1935 – Oktay Sinanoğlu, Turkish scientist of physical chemistry, molecular biophysics and biochemistry (d. 2015)
• 1937 – Tom Courtenay, English actor
• 1937 – Barbara Piasecka Johnson, Polish-American heiress, art collector and philanthropist (d. 2013)
• 1937 – Bob Schieffer, American journalist
• 1938 – Diane Baker, American actress
• 1938 – Herb Elliott, Australian runner
• 1938 – Farokh Engineer, Indian cricketer and referee
• 1940 – Danny Cater, American baseball player
• 1940 – Billy Packer, American sportscaster and author
• 1940 – Monica Proietti, Canadian bank robber (d. 1967)
• 1940 – Ron Santo, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2010)
• 1941 – David Puttnam, English film producer and academic
• 1942 – Karen Grassle, American actress
• 1942 – Trevor Roberts, Welsh footballer (d. 1972)
• 1942 – John Saul, American author and playwright
• 1943 – Jack Concannon, American football player and actor (d. 2005)
• 1943 – George Harrison, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (The Beatles, The Quarrymen, Traveling Wilburys, and Plastic Ono Band) (d. 2001)
• 1944 – Matt Guokas, American basketball player and coach
• 1944 – François Cevert, French race car driver (d. 1973)
• 1945 – Elkie Brooks, English singer-songwriter (Vinegar Joe)
• 1945 – Herbert Léonard, French singer
• 1946 – Andrew Ang, Singaporean judge and academic
• 1946 – Jan Groth, Norwegian singer and keyboard player (Just 4 Fun and Aunt Mary) (d. 2014)
• 1946 – Franz Xaver Kroetz, German actor, director, and playwright
• 1946 – Jean Todt, French businessman
• 1946 – Pete Wernick, American banjo player (Hot Rize)
• 1947 – Giuseppe Betori, Italian cardinal
• 1947 – Lee Evans, American runner and coach
• 1947 – Richard French, Canadian businessman and politician
• 1947 – Marc Sautet, French philosopher, author, and academic (d. 1998)
• 1947 – Doug Yule, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Velvet Underground and American Flyer)
• 1948 – Aldo Busi, Italian author and translator
• 1948 – Danny Denzongpa, Indian actor and singer
• 1949 – Ric Flair, American wrestler, manager, and trainer
• 1949 – Jack Handey, American author and screenwriter
• 1949 – Amin Maalouf, Lebanese-French journalist and author
• 1950 – Francisco Fernández Ochoa, Spanish skier (d. 2006)
• 1950 – Neil Jordan, Irish director, screenwriter, and author
• 1950 – Néstor Kirchner, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 51st President of Argentina (d. 2010)
• 1950 – Mick Miller, English comedian and actor
• 1950 – Emitt Rhodes, American singer-songwriter (The Merry-Go-Round)
• 1950 – Jaak Tamm, Estonian politician (d. 1999)
• 1951 – James Brown, American journalist and sportscaster
• 1951 – César Cedeño, Dominican baseball player and coach
• 1951 – Don Quarrie, Jamaican runner and coach
• 1952 – Jerry Chamberlain, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Daniel Amos and The Swirling Eddies)
• 1952 – Joey Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle racer (d. 2000)
• 1953 – José María Aznar, Spanish academic and politician, Prime Minister of Spain
• 1953 – Kim Yeong-cheol, South Korean actor
• 1954 – John Doe, American singer-songwriter, bass player, and actor (X, The Flesh Eaters, and The Knitters)
• 1954 – Gerardo Pelusso, Uruguayan footballer and manager
• 1955 – Rodger McFarlane, American soldier, therapist, and activist (d. 2009)
• 1955 – Camille Thériault, Canadian politician, 29th Premier of New Brunswick
• 1957 – Chuck Strahl, Canadian businessman and politician, 28th Canadian Minister of Transport
• 1957 – Martin Zobel, Estonian ecologist and academic
• 1958 – Jeff Fisher, American football player and coach
• 1958 – Kevin Gray, American actor and educator (d. 2013)
• 1958 – Kurt Rambis, American basketball player and coach
• 1959 – Aleksei Balabanov, Russian director and screenwriter (d. 2013)
• 1959 – Renee Borges, Indian ecologist and academic
• 1959 – Mike Peters, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Alarm and Big Country)
• 1960 – Stefan Blöcher, German field hockey player and golfer
• 1961 – Davey Allison, American race car driver (d. 1993)
• 1961 – Todd Blackledge, American football player and sportscaster
• 1962 – John Lanchester, German-English journalist and author
• 1962 – Faron Moller, Canadian-English computer scientist and academic
• 1962 – Andres Siim, Estonian architect
• 1962 – Foster Sylvers, American singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (The Sylvers)
• 1963 – Joseph E. Duncan III, American serial killer and sex offender
• 1963 – Paul O'Neill, American baseball player and sportscaster
• 1963 – Doug Stahl, American wrestler
• 1964 – Lee Evans, English comedian and actor
• 1964 – Don Majkowski, American football player and sportscaster
• 1964 – Don Topley, English cricketer
• 1965 – Brian Baker, American guitarist and songwriter (Bad Religion, Minor Threat, Junkyard, and Dag Nasty)
• 1965 – Maricel Soriano, Filipino actress, singer, and dancer
• 1965 – Carrot Top, American comedian and actor
• 1966 – Alexis Denisof, American actor
• 1966 – Andrew Feldman, Baron Feldman of Elstree, English lawyer and businessman
• 1966 – Samson Kitur, Kenyan runner (d. 2003)
• 1966 – Téa Leoni, American actress and producer
• 1966 – Nancy O'Dell, American journalist
• 1966 – Sam Phillips, American model, actress, producer, and radio host
• 1967 – Ed Balls, English politician, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
• 1967 – Jonathan Freedland, English journalist and author
• 1968 – Evridiki, Cypriot singer
• 1968 – Sandrine Kiberlain, French actress and singer
• 1969 – Paul Trimboli, Australian footballer and manager
• 1970 – Julie Hesmondhalgh, English actress
• 1970 – Maricel Laxa, Filipino actress
• 1971 – Sean Astin, American actor, director, and producer
• 1971 – Dave Harris, American radio host and songwriter
• 1971 – Sean O'Haire, American wrestler, mixed martial artist, and kick-boxer (d. 2014)
• 1971 – Daniel Powter, Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1972 – Jason Byrne, Irish comedian and radio host
• 1972 – Jaak Mae, Estonian skier
• 1973 – Julio Iglesias, Jr., Spanish singer and actor
• 1973 – Anson Mount, American actor and producer
• 1973 – Normann Stadler, German triathlete
• 1974 – Divya Bharti, Indian actress (d. 1993)
• 1974 – Dominic Raab, English lawyer and politician
• 1974 – Kevin Skinner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1975 – Chelsea Handler, American comedian, actress, author, and talk show host
• 1975 – Naga Munchetty, English journalist
• 1975 – Dmitri Suur, Russian-Estonian ice hockey player
• 1976 – Rashida Jones, American actress and screenwriter
• 1976 – Samaki Walker, American basketball player
• 1977 – Niña Corpuz, Filipino journalist
• 1977 – Sarah Jezebel Deva, English singer-songwriter (Angtoria, Cradle of Filth, and Mystic Circle)
• 1977 – Josh Wolff, American soccer player and manager
• 1978 – Maian Kärmas, Estonian singer-songwriter and journalist
• 1980 – Antonio Burks, American basketball player
• 1980 – Christy Knowings, American actress
• 1981 – Park Ji-sung, South Korean footballer
• 1981 – Shahid Kapoor, Indian actor and dancer
• 1981 – Duc Nguyen, Vietnamese conjoined twin
• 1981 – Viet Nguyen, Vietnamese conjoined twin (d. 2007)
• 1982 – Chris Baird, Northern Irish footballer
• 1982 – Maria Kanellis, American wrestler, actress, and singer
• 1982 – Bert McCracken, American singer-songwriter (The Used)
• 1982 – Flavia Pennetta, Italian tennis player
• 1982 – Anton Volchenkov, Russian ice hockey player
• 1982 – Tara Wilson, Canadian actress
• 1983 – Eduardo da Silva, Brazilian footballer
• 1983 – Steven Lewington, English wrestler
• 1984 – Lovefoxxx, Brazilian singer-songwriter (CSS)
• 1984 – Logan Leistikow, American director and producer
• 1984 – Craig Mackail-Smith, Scottish footballer
• 1984 – Wakana Matsumoto, Japanese actress
• 1984 – João Pereira, Portuguese footballer
• 1984 – Dane Swan, Australian footballer
• 1985 – Benji Marshall, New Zealand rugby player
• 1985 – Joakim Noah, American basketball player
• 1986 – Justin Berfield, American actor and producer
• 1986 – Jameela Jamil, English television presenter, radio presenter and model
• 1986 – James Phelps, English actor
• 1986 – Oliver Phelps, English actor
• 1986 – Danny Saucedo, Swedish singer-songwriter (E.M.D.)
• 1986 – James Starks, American football player
• 1987 – Justin Abdelkader, American ice hockey player
• 1987 – Eva Avila, Canadian singer-songwriter
• 1987 – Marla Boyd, Filipino actress
• 1987 – Mevlüt Erdinç, Turkish footballer
• 1987 – Adrián López Rodríguez, Spanish footballer
• 1987 – Andrew Poje, Canadian figure skater
• 1987 – Jai Reyes, Filipino basketball player
• 1988 – Luca Di Matteo, Italian footballer
• 1988 – Sören Ludolph, German runner
• 1988 – Jimmy Monaghan, American-Irish singer-songwriter and pianist (Music for Dead Birds)
• 1988 – Mehmet Uslu, Turkish footballer
• 1989 – Jimmer Fredette, American basketball player
• 1989 – Kana Hanazawa, Japanese voice actress and singer
• 1989 – E'Twaun Moore, American basketball player
• 1990 – Alejandra Andreu, Spanish model, Miss International 2008
• 1990 – Jairo Araujo, Mexican footballer
• 1990 – Jefferson Alves Oliveira, Brazilian footballer
• 1990 – Marianna Zachariadi, Greek pole vaulter (d. 2013)
• 1991 – Dominika Kaňáková, Czech tennis player
• 1991 – Tony Oller, American singer-songwriter and actor (MKTO)
• 1992 – Max Aaron, American figure skater
• 1994 – Eugenie Bouchard, Canadian tennis player

Deaths

• 805 – De Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 742)
• 1246 – Dafydd ap Llywelyn, Welsh king (b. 1212)
• 1495 – Sultan Cem, Ottoman politician (b. 1459)
• 1522 – William Lily, English scholar and educator (b. 1468)
• 1536 – Berchtold Haller, German-Swiss theologian and reformer (b. 1492)
• 1553 – Hirate Masahide, Japanese samurai (b. 1492)
• 1558 – Eleanor of Austria (b. 1498)
• 1601 – Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1566)
• 1634 – Albrecht von Wallenstein, Austrian general and politician (b. 1583)
• 1643 – Marco da Gagliano, Italian composer (b. 1582)
• 1655 – Daniel Heinsius, Flemish poet and scholar (b. 1580)
• 1682 – Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (b. 1639)
• 1710 – Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, French soldier and explorer (b. 1639)
• 1713 – Frederick I of Prussia (b. 1657)
• 1715 – Pu Songling, Chinese author (b. 1640)
• 1723 – Christopher Wren, English architect, designed St Paul's Cathedral (b. 1632)
• 1756 – Eliza Haywood, English actress and poet (b. 1693)
• 1796 – Samuel Seabury, American bishop (b. 1729)
• 1798 – Louis Jules Mancini Mazarini, French poet and diplomat (b. 1716)
• 1805 – Thomas Pownall, English politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (b. 1722)
• 1815 – Stanoje Glavaš, Serbian soldier (b. 1763)
• 1819 – Francisco Manoel de Nascimento, Portuguese-French poet and educator (b. 1734)
• 1822 – William Pinkney, American politician and diplomat, 7th United States Attorney General (b. 1764)
• 1831 – Friedrich Maximilian Klinger, German author and playwright (b. 1752)
• 1841 – Philip Pendleton Barbour, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 12th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1783)
• 1850 – Daoguang Emperor of China (b. 1782)
• 1852 – Thomas Moore, Irish-English singer-songwriter and poet (b. 1779)
• 1860 – Chauncey Allen Goodrich, American clergyman, lexicographer, and educator (b. 1790)
• 1864 – Anna Harrison, American wife of William Henry Harrison, 9th First Lady of the United States (b. 1775)
• 1865 – Otto Ludwig, German author, playwright, and critic (b. 1813)
• 1870 – Henrik Hertz, Danish poet and playwright (b. 1797)
• 1877 – Jung Bahadur Rana, Nepalese ruler (b. 1816)
• 1878 – Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (b. 1804)
• 1888 – Josif Pančić, Croatian-Serbian botanist and academic (b. 1814)
• 1894 – Steele MacKaye, American actor and playwright (b. 1842)
• 1899 – Paul Reuter, German-English journalist (b. 1816)
• 1906 – Anton Arensky, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1861)
• 1910 – Worthington Whittredge, American painter and educator (b. 1820)
• 1911 – Friedrich Spielhagen, German author, theorist, and translator (b. 1829)
• 1912 – William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (b. 1852)
• 1914 – John Tenniel, English illustrator (b. 1820)
• 1915 – Charles Edwin Bessey, American botanist, author, and academic (b. 1845)
• 1916 – David Bowman, Australian politician (b. 1860)
• 1919 – Josef Christiaens, Belgian race car driver and engineer (b. 1879)
• 1920 – Marcel-Auguste Dieulafoy, French archaeologist and engineer (b. 1844)
• 1922 – Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (b. 1869)
• 1928 – William O'Brien, Irish journalist and politician (b. 1852)
• 1934 – Elizabeth Gertrude Britton, American botanist and academic (b. 1857)
• 1934 – John McGraw, American baseball player and manager (b. 1873)
• 1940 – Mary Mills Patrick, American author and academic (b. 1850)
• 1945 – Mário de Andrade, Brazilian author, poet, and photographer (b. 1893)
• 1946 – René Le Grèves, French cyclist (b. 1910)
• 1950 – George Minot, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
• 1953 – Sergei Winogradsky, Ukrainian-Russian microbiologist and ecologist (b. 1856)
• 1954 – Auguste Perret, French architect, designed the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées (b. 1874)
• 1957 – Mark Aldanov, Russian author and critic (b. 1888)
• 1957 – Bugs Moran, American gangster (b. 1893)
• 1963 – Melville J. Herskovits, American anthropologist and academic (b. 1895)
• 1964 – Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian sculptor and illustrator (b. 1887)
• 1964 – Maurice Farman, French race car driver and pilot (b. 1877)
• 1964 – Hinrich Lohse, German politician (b. 1896)
• 1964 – Grace Metalious, American author (b. 1924)
• 1964 – Kenneth Lee Spencer, American actor and singer (b. 1913)
• 1965 – Philip Babington, English Air Marshal (b. 1894)
• 1966 – James D. Norris, American businessman (b. 1906)
• 1970 – Mark Rothko, Latvian-American painter and academic (b. 1903)
• 1971 – Theodor Svedberg, Swedish chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1884)
• 1975 – Elijah Muhammad, American religious leader (b. 1897)
• 1975 – Georg Olden, African-American graphic designer (b. 1920)
• 1978 – Daniel James, Jr., American general and pilot (b. 1920)
• 1980 – Robert Hayden, American poet and academic (b. 1913)
• 1983 – Tennessee Williams, American playwright and author (b. 1911)
• 1983 – John Cowles, Sr., American publisher, founded the Cowles Media Company (b. 1898)
• 1987 – James Coco, American actor (b. 1930)
• 1988 – Bernard Ashmole, English archaeologist and art historian (b. 1894)
• 1991 – André Turp, Canadian tenor (b. 1925)
• 1993 – Eddie Constantine, American-born French actor (b. 1917)
• 1993 – Mary Walter, Filipino actress (b. 1912)
• 1994 – Baruch Goldstein, American-Israeli physician and murderer (b. 1956)
• 1994 – Jersey Joe Walcott, American boxer and police officer (b. 1914)
• 1996 – Haing S. Ngor, Cambodian-American actor, physician, and author (b. 1940)
• 1996 – Vehbi Koç, Turkish businessman and philanthropist (b. 1901)
• 1997 – Cal Abrams, American baseball player (b. 1924)
• 1997 – Andrei Sinyavsky, Russian journalist and publisher (b. 1925)
• 1998 – Celestine Tate Harrington, American keyboard player (b. 1956)
• 1998 – W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright (b. 1914)
• 1999 – Margaret Meagher, Canadian diplomat (b. 1911)
• 1999 – Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
• 2001 – A. R. Ammons, American poet and critic (b. 1926)
• 2001 – Donald Bradman, Australian cricketer (b. 1908)
• 2001 – Norbert Glanzberg, Polish-French composer (b. 1910)
• 2001 – Sigurd Raschèr, German-American saxophonist (b. 1907)
• 2003 – Tom O'Higgins, Irish judge and politician, 6th Chief Justice of Ireland (b. 1916)
• 2003 – Alberto Sordi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1920)
• 2004 – Albert Chartier, Canadian illustrator (b. 1912)
• 2004 – Donald Hings, English-Canadian inventor, invented the Walkie-talkie (b. 1907)
• 2005 – Peter Benenson, English lawyer, founded Amnesty International (b. 1921)
• 2005 – Edward Patten, American singer-songwriter and producer (Gladys Knight & the Pips) (b. 1939)
• 2006 – Thomas Koppel, Danish pianist and composer (The Savage Rose) (b. 1944)
• 2006 – Darren McGavin, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1922)
• 2007 – William Anderson, American commander and politician (b. 1921)
• 2007 – Mark Spoelstra, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1940)
• 2007 – Clem Windsor, Australian rugby player and surgeon (b. 1923)
• 2008 – Ashley Cooper, Australian race car driver (b. 1980)
• 2008 – Hans Raj Khanna, Indian lawyer, judge, and politician, Indian Minister of Law and Justice (b. 1912)
• 2008 – Static Major, American rapper and producer (Playa) (b. 1974)
• 2009 – Philip José Farmer, American author (b. 1918)
• 2010 – İhsan Doğramacı, Turkish pediatrician and academic (b. 1915)
• 2011 – Nikos Alexiou, Greek painter and set designer (b. 1960)
• 2012 – Lynn Compton, American lieutenant, lawyer, and judge (b. 1921)
• 2012 – Red Holloway, American saxophonist (b. 1927)
• 2012 – Erland Josephson, Swedish actor and director (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Louisiana Red, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1932)
• 2012 – Martha Stewart, American actress and singer (b. 1922)
• 2013 – Abdelhamid Abou Zeid, Algerian terrorist (b. 1965)
• 2013 – Stewart "Dirk" Fischer, American trumpet player and composer (b. 1924)
• 2013 – C. Everett Koop, American surgeon and admiral, 13th Surgeon General of the United States (b. 1916)
• 2013 – Ray O'Connor, Australian soldier and politician, 22nd Premier of Western Australia (b. 1926)
• 2013 – Dan Toler, American guitarist (The Allman Brothers Band and Gregg Allman Band) (b. 1948)
• 2014 – Angèle Arsenault, Canadian singer-songwriter (b. 1943)
• 2014 – Mário Coluna, Portuguese footballer (b. 1935)
• 2014 – Paco de Lucía, Spanish guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1947)
• 2014 – Quentin Elias, French-American singer and actor (Alliage) (b. 1974)
• 2014 – Jim Lange, American game show host (b. 1932)
• 2014 – Chokwe Lumumba, American lawyer and politician (b. 1947)
• 2015 – Harve Bennett, American film and television producer, and screenwriter (b. 1930)
• 2015 – Marie Cathcart, Countess Cathcart (b. 1923)
• 2015 – Eugenie Clark, American biologist and academic (b. 1922)
• 2015 – Terry Gill, English-Australian actor (b. 1939)
• 2015 – A. Vincent, Indian director and cinematographer (b. 1928)
• 2015 – Victor Watson, English businessman and philanthropist (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances

• Armed Forces Day (Dominican Republic)
• Christian feast day:
  • Æthelberht of Kent
  • Blessed Ciriaco María Sancha y Hervás
  • Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani, OSB
  • John Roberts (Episcopal Church (USA))
  • Tarasius (Eastern Orthodox Churches and Traditionalist Catholics)
  • Walburga
  • February 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Day of the Revolution (Suriname)
• Kitano Baika-sai or "Plum Blossom Festival" (Kitano Tenman-gū Shrine, Kyoto)
• Meher Baba's birthday (followers of Meher Baba)
• Memorial Day for the Victims of the Communist Dictatorships (Hungary)
• National Day (Kuwait)
• People Power Day (Philippines)
• Soviet Occupation Day (Georgia)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to February 25.

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