Following its March 11 declaration, the World Health Organization confirmed the COVID-19 pandemic status worldwide, prompting countries to escalate emergency responses and lockdowns.
📍 Geneva, Switzerland
Mikhail Gorbachev was elected the first executive president of the Soviet Union. His reforms of glasnost and perestroika would soon contribute to the USSR's dissolution.
📍 Moscow, Soviet Union
Symbolics.com became the first registered domain name in internet history, marking a milestone in the development of the digital age and global web infrastructure.
📍 Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
World Consumer Rights Day was observed for the first time to raise global awareness about consumer protection. It commemorates U.S. President John F. Kennedy’s address to Congress on consumer rights in 1962.
📍 Global
Following the violence in Selma, Alabama, President Lyndon B. Johnson delivered a historic speech to Congress, advocating for the Voting Rights Act and declaring 'We shall overcome.'
📍 Washington, D.C., United States
American Airlines Flight 1 crashed shortly after takeoff from Idlewild Airport in New York City, killing all 95 people aboard. It was the deadliest U.S. aviation disaster at the time.
📍 New York City, New York, United States
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Philippines was ratified, establishing a semi-independent government under U.S. supervision and setting the stage for full independence in 1946.
📍 Manila, Philippines
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a pioneering advocate for gender equality and later a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, was born. Her legal career reshaped civil liberties and women’s rights in America.
📍 Brooklyn, New York, United States
Facing immense pressure during the February Revolution, Czar Nicholas II abdicated the Russian throne, ending over 300 years of Romanov dynasty rule and paving the way for Bolshevik power.
📍 Pskov, Russia
The first patent for a wireless telephone system was filed by Nathan Stubblefield, a Kentucky farmer and inventor. It laid early groundwork for future mobile communication.
📍 Murray, Kentucky, United States
The Brazilian rubber boom began in earnest, driven by rising global demand for industrial rubber. It transformed the Amazon economy but also led to exploitation and displacement of Indigenous peoples.
📍 Amazon Basin, Brazil
A nationalist uprising began in Budapest, marking the start of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 against Habsburg rule. It was part of a wave of revolutions across Europe demanding democratic reforms.
📍 Budapest, Hungary
Joseph Swan, a British physicist and chemist who independently developed an early incandescent light bulb, was born. His work paralleled and preceded that of Thomas Edison.
📍 Sunderland, England, United Kingdom
Early revolutionary actions supporting Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire were initiated across Europe, including gatherings in the German Confederation, fueling support for the Greek national movement.
📍 Dresden, German Confederation
Henry Bessemer, the English engineer who revolutionized steel production with the Bessemer process, was born. His innovation enabled mass industrialization and infrastructure growth worldwide.
📍 Charlton, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
The Treaty of Amiens was signed, creating a temporary peace between France and Britain during the Napoleonic Wars. Though short-lived, it marked a rare pause in years of European conflict.
📍 Amiens, France
The United States Congress established the Department of War, laying the foundation for the country's military administration, which eventually evolved into the Department of Defense.
📍 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Andrew Jackson, who would become a controversial and populist U.S. president, was born. His presidency shaped modern political campaigns and introduced the spoils system.
📍 Waxhaws region, British America (now North/South Carolina border)
Emilia Lanier, often credited as one of the first Englishwomen to publish a book of original poetry, was born. Some scholars also speculate she may have inspired Shakespeare’s 'Dark Lady' sonnets.
📍 London, England, United Kingdom
Julius Caesar, Roman dictator and military leader, was assassinated by a group of senators including Brutus and Cassius. The event marked a turning point that led to the fall of the Roman Republic and rise of the Roman Empire.
📍 Rome, Roman Republic