Wikipedia: September 20

September 20
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). There are 102 days remaining.

Events

451 - Atilla, king of the Huns, invades Gaul, but is defeated by Aetius with the help of Roman Foederati in the Battle of Chalons
1519 - Ferdinand Magellan begins his voyage around the world.
1596 - Diego de Montemayor founded the city of Monterrey, Mexico.
1643 - English Civil War: Battle of Newbury - Parliamentarian Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex defeats a Royalist army commanded by Charles I of England at Newbury.
1644 - Shunzhi Emperor of China moved the capital city from Shenyang to Beijing.
1565 - Spaniards capture French Fort Caroline, near present-day Jacksonville, Florida
1792 - Battle of Valmy - France defeats Prussia
1797 - The USS Constitution is launched in Boston, Massachusetts
1850 - Slave trading is abolished in the District of Columbia
1854 - Battle of Alma - British and French troops defeat Russians in the Crimea
1860 - The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII of the United Kingdom) visits the United States
1863 - Battle of Chickamauga ends
1870 - Bersaglieri corps enters Rome at Porta Pia and completes the unification of Italy
1881 - Chester A. Arthur is inaugurated as the 21st President of the United States.
1946 - First Cannes Film Festival
1954 - First FORTRAN program runs
1962 - James Meredith, an African-American, is barred from entering the University of Mississippi
1973 - Billie Jean King beats Bobby Riggs in battle-of-sexes tennis match
1979 - Lee Iacocca elected president of the Chrysler Corporation
1979 - Coup in Central African Empire overthrows Emperor Bokasa I
1984 - Suicide bomber in a car attacks the United States embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, killing twelve people
2000 - After playing 2,632 consecutive games for the Baltimore Orioles, baseball player Cal Ripken, Jr takes a day off.
2003 - Referendum in Latvia over the joining of the European Union

Births

356 BC - Alexander the Great († 323 BC)
1842 - Sir James Dewar, chemist
1853 - Chulalongkorn (Rama V), king of Thailand
1861 - Herbert Putnam, Librarian of Congress
1873 - Sidney Olcott, pioneer film director
1878 - Upton Sinclair, writer, politician
1890 - Jelly Roll Morton, composer
1899 - Elliott Nugent, actor, director
1917 - Red Auerbach, National Basketball Association coach
1918 - Peg Phillips, actress
1922 - William Kapell, pianist
1924 - Gogi Grant (Audrey Brown), singer
1925 - James Galanos, fashion designer
1927 - Johnny Dankworth, musician, composer
1927 - Rachel Roberts, actress
1928 - Doctor Joyce Brothers, psychologist, advice columnist
1928 - Donald A. Hall, author
1929 - Anne Meara, comedienne, actress
1931 - Peter Palmer, actor
1934 - Sophia Loren, actress
1938 - Pia Lindstrom, journalist
1948 - George R. R. Martin, science fiction writer
1951 - Guy Lafleur, National Hockey League star
1956 - Gary Cole, actor
1975 - Juan Pablo Montoya, Formula 1 racer
1975 - Asia Argento, actress

Deaths

1460 - Gilles Binchois, composer
1863 - Jacob Grimm, folklorist
1908 - Pablo de Sarasate, violinist
1947 - Fiorello LaGuardia, former mayor of New York City
1949 - Nikolaos Skalkottas, composer
1957 - Jean Sibelius, composer
1973 - Jim Croce, singer-songwriter
1996 - Paul Erdös, mathematician
1999 - Raisa Gorbachev, First Lady of the Soviet Union
2000 - Gherman Titov, cosmonaut
2003 - Simon Muzenda, vice president of Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe

Holidays

In ancient Greece, the seventh day of the Eleusinian mysteries, when the secret rites in the Telesterion began.

September 19 · September 21 · August 20 · October 20 · more historical anniversaries

See Also: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December - more historical anniversaries