Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Edward IV of England. 1638 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. 1799 - New York passes a law aimed at gradually abolishing slavery in the state 1806 - The Great National Pike, better known as the Cumberland Road, becomes the first United States federal highway. 1847 - Mexican-American War: United States forces led by General Winfield Scott take Veracruz after a siege. 1848 - An upstream ice jam stops almost all water flow over Niagara Falls. 1849 - The United Kingdom annexes the Punjab 1865 - American Civil War: Battle of Appomattox Court House begins 1867 - Queen Victoria gives Royal Assent to the British North America Act which establishes the Dominion of Canada starting on July 1. 1871 - The Royal Albert Hall is opened by Queen Victoria. 1879 - Anglo-Zulu War: Battle of Kambula: British forces defeat 20,000 Zulus. 1882 - The Knights of Columbus are established. 1930 - Heinrich Brüning is appointed German Reichskanzler. 1941 - World War II: Battle of Cape Matapan - Off the Peloponnesus coast in the Mediterranean, British naval forces defeat those of Italy sinking five warships. Battle started on March 27. 1945 - World War II: Last day of V1 Flying Bomb attacks on England. 1951 - Red Scare: Ethel and Julius Rosenberg are convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. 1961 - The Twenty-third Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, allowing residents of Washington, DC to vote in presidential elections. 1971 - My Lai massacre: Lieutenant William Calley is convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to life in prison. 1971 - A Los Angeles, California jury recommends the death penalty for Charles Manson and three female followers. 1973 - Vietnam War: The last United States soldiers leave South Vietnam. 1974 - NASA's Mariner 10 becomes the first spaceprobe flyby Mercury. It was launched on November 3, 1973. 1981 - First running of the London Marathon 1982 - The Canada Act 1982 (U.K.) receives the Royal Assent by Queen Elizabeth II in London setting the stage for the Queen of Canada to proclaim the Constitution Act, 1982 on April 17 at Parliament Hill in Canada (see 1867 above). 1982 - Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney release their single "Ebony and Ivory" 1993 - Catherine Callbeck becomes Premier of Prince Edward Island, becoming the first female Premier in Canada. 1993 - Edouard Balladur becomes Prime Minister of France 1999 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average closes at 10006.78 which is the first time the index closed above the 10,000 mark. 2001 - A chartered Gulfstream III jet crashes into a hillside during approach into Aspen, Colorado killing 18 Births 1790 - John Tyler, 10th President of the United States († 1862) 1826 - Wilhelm Liebknecht, journalist and politician († 1900) 1835 - Gustaf Zander, physician († 1920) 1867 - Cy Young, Baseball Hall of Famer († 1955) 1874 - Lou Hoover, First Lady of the United States († 1944) 1889 - Warner Baxter, actor († 1951) 1891 - Yvan Goll, lyricist and dramatist († 1950) 1895 - Ernst Jünger, author († 1998) 1899 - Lavrenty Beria, Soviet Communist leader († 1953) 1902 - Marcel Aymé, narrator and dramatist, humorist and satirist († 1967) 1902 - William Walton, composer († 1983) 1908 - Arthur O'Connell, actor († 1981) 1911 - Brigitte Horney, actress († 1988) 1913 - Tony Zale, world champion boxer († 1997) 1913 - R. S. Thomas, Welsh poet († 2000) 1918 - Pearl Bailey, singer, actress († 1990) 1931 - Aleksei Gubarev, cosmonaut 1942 - Stingray Davis, musician (P-Funk) 1943 - Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou, aka Vangelis, new age musician 1943 - Eric Idle, actor, writer, composer 1943 - John Major, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom 1945 - Walt Frazier, basketball player 1950 - Bud Cort, actor 1952 - Teofilo Stevenson, boxer 1955 - Earl Campbell, American football star 1956 - Kurt Thomas, gymnast 1957 - Christopher Lambert, actor 1959 - Perry Farrell, musician ("Jane's Addiction", "Porno for Pyros") 1964 - Elle Macpherson, model 1968 - Lucy Lawless, actress, singer Deaths 1772 - Emanuel Swedenborg, philosopher and mathematician 1792 - King Gustav III of Sweden, after being shot on March 16 1912 - Robert Falcon Scott, explorer 1934 - Otto Hermann Kahn, millionaire and benefactor 1937 - Karol Szymanowski, composer 1959 - Barthelemy Boganda, first President of the Central African Republic 1972 - Lord J. Arthur Rank, movie theater owner 1980 - Mantovani, musician 1991 - Lee Atwater, Republican advisor 1992 - Paul Henreid, actor 1999 - Joe Williams, jazz singer 2001 - Helge Ingstad, explorer Holidays and observances See Also: March 28 - March 30 - February 29 - April 29 -- listing of all days January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
March 28 - March 30 - February 29 - April 29 -- listing of all days
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December