What happened on February 12? There are more than 294 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

Interesting Facts & Myths About February 12

February 12 In HistoryFebruary 12 is the 43rd day of the year 2024. There are 323 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Monday. This day falls under the 7th week of the year 2024.

On this day in Guayama, Puerto Rico 00785 sunrise occured at 06:54 AM and sunset occured at 06:27 PM (local time).

The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Aquarius. The modern birthstone for this month is Amethyst while the mystical birthstone is Bloodstone.

According to the Chinese calendar, there are 352 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).

Birthday curiousity Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the March 31 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)

Historical Events For February 12

  • 881
    Pope John VIII crowns Charles the Fat, the King of Italy: Emperor
  • 1429
    English forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the Comte de Clermont and Sir John Stewart of Darnley in the Battle of Rouvray (also known as the Battle of the Herrings).
  • 1502
    Vasco da Gama sets sail from Lisbon, Portugal, on his second voyage to India.
  • 1541
    Santiago, Chile is founded by Pedro de Valdivia.
  • 1554
    A year after claiming the throne of England for nine days, Lady Jane Grey is beheaded for treason.
  • 1593
    Japanese invasion of Korea: Approximately 3,000 Joseon defenders led by general Kwon Yul successfully repel more than 30,000 Japanese forces in the Siege of Haengju.
  • 1689
    The Convention Parliament declares that the flight to France in 1688 by James II, the last Roman Catholic British monarch, constitutes an abdication.
  • 1733
    Englishman James Oglethorpe founds Georgia, the 13th colony of the Thirteen Colonies, and its first city at Savannah (known as Georgia Day).
  • 1771
    Gustav III becomes the King of Sweden.
  • 1816
    The Teatro di San Carlo, the oldest working opera house in Europe, is destroyed by fire.
  • 1817
    An Argentine/Chilean patriotic army, after crossing the Andes, defeats Spanish troops on the Battle of Chacabuco.
  • 1818
    Bernardo O'Higgins formally approved the Chilean Declaration of Independence near Concepción, Chile.
  • 1825
    The Creek cede the last of their lands in Georgia to the United States government by the Treaty of Indian Springs, and migrate west.
  • 1832
    Ecuador annexes the Galápagos Islands.
  • 1851
    Edward Hargraves announces that he has found gold in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia, starting the Australian gold rush.
  • 1855
    Michigan State University is established.
  • 1894
    Anarchist Émile Henry hurls a bomb into Paris’s Cafe Terminus, killing one and wounding 20.
  • 1909
    New Zealand’s worst maritime disaster of the 20th century happens when the SS Penguin, an inter-island ferry, sinks and explodes at the entrance to Wellington Harbour.
  • 1909
    The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is founded.
  • 1912
    The Xuantong Emperor, the last Emperor of China, abdicates.
  • 1914
    In Washington, D.C., the first stone of the Lincoln Memorial is put into place.
  • 1934
    In Spain the national council of Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional-Sindicalista decides to merge the movement with the Falange Española.
  • 1934
    The Austrian Civil War begins.
  • 1935
    USS Macon, one of the two largest helium-filled airships ever created, crashes into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California and sinks.
  • 1946
    African American United States Army veteran Isaac Woodard is severely beaten by a South Carolina police officer to the point where he loses his vision in both eyes. The incident later galvanizes the Civil Rights Movement and partially inspires Orson Welles’ film Touch of Evil.
  • 1946
    World War II: Operation Deadlight ends after scuttling 121 of 154 captured U-boats.
  • 1947
    A meteor creates an impact crater in Sikhote-Alin, in the Soviet Union.
  • 1961
    U.S.S.R. launches Venera 1 towards Venus.
  • 1968
    Phong Nhi and Phong Nhat massacre.
  • 1974
    Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, winner of the Nobel Prize in literature in 1970, is exiled from the Soviet Union.
  • 1990
    Carmen Lawrence becomes the first female Premier in Australian history when she becomes Premier of Western Australia.
  • 1992
    The current Constitution of Mongolia comes into effect.
  • 1994
    Four men break into the National Gallery of Norway and steal Edward Munch’s iconic painting The Scream.
  • 1999
    President Bill Clinton is acquitted by the United States Senate in his impeachment trial.
  • 2001
    NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft touchdown in the “saddle” region of 433 Eros becoming the first spacecraft to land on an asteroid.
  • 2002
    An Iran Air Tours Tupolev Tu-154 crashes in the mountains outside Khorramabad, Iran while descending for a landing at Khorramabad Airport, killing 119.
  • 2002
    New Year’s Day in Chinese calendar. Start of the year of the Water Horse in Chinese astrology.
  • 2002
    The trial of former President of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milošević begins at the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague. He dies four years later before its conclusion.
  • 2004
    The city of San Francisco, California begins issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in response to a directive from Mayor Gavin Newsom.
  • 2009
    Colgan Air Flight 3407 crashes into a house in Clarence Center, New York while on approach to Buffalo-Niagara International Airport, killing all on board and one on the ground.

Who Were Born On February 12?

  • 1074
    Conrad, King of Germany and Italy (d. 1101)
  • 1218
    Kujo Yoritsune, Japanese shogun (d. 1256)
  • 1567
    Thomas Campion, English composer and poet (d. 1620)
  • 1606
    John Winthrop, the Younger, Governor of Connecticut (d. 1676)
  • 1637
    Jan Swammerdam, Dutch biologist (d. 1680)
  • 1663
    Cotton Mather, New England minister (d. 1728)
  • 1665
    Rudolf Jakob Camerarius, German botanist and physician (d. 1721)
  • 1704
    Charles Pinot Duclos, French writer (d. 1772)
  • 1728
    Étienne-Louis Boullée, French architect (d. 1799)
  • 1752
    Dorothea Ackermann, German actress (d. 1821)
  • 1753
    François-Paul Brueys D'Aigalliers, French admiral (d. 1798)
  • 1768
    Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1835)
  • 1775
    Louisa Adams, First Lady of the United States (1825–1829), widow of John Quincy Adams (d. 1852)
  • 1777
    Bernard Courtois, French chemist (d. 1838)
  • 1777
    Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué, German poet (d. 1843)
  • 1785
    Pierre Louis Dulong, French physicist (d. 1838)
  • 1788
    Carl Reichenbach, German chemist and philosopher (d. 1869)
  • 1791
    Peter Cooper, American Industrialist, inventor and philanthropist (d. 1883)
  • 1794
    Alexander Petrov, Russian chess player (d. 1867)
  • 1804
    Heinrich Lenz, German physicist (d. 1865)
  • 1809
    Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States (1861-his death) (d. 1865)
  • 1809
    Charles Darwin, English naturalist (d. 1882)
  • 1828
    George Meredith, English writer (d. 1909)
  • 1843
    John Graham Chambers, English athlete who wrote the Queensberry rules for boxing (d. 1883)
  • 1857
    Bobby Peel, English cricketer (d. 1943)
  • 1861
    Lou Andreas-Salome, Russian-born author (d. 1937)
  • 1865
    Kazimierz Tetmajer, Polish poet and writer (d. 1940)
  • 1869
    Emperor Kien Phuc, the 7th emperor of the Vietnamese Nguyễn Dynasty (d. 1884)
  • 1870
    Marie Lloyd, English music-hall performer (d. 1922)
  • 1876
    Thubten Gyatso, 13th Dalai Lama (1879-his death) (d. 1933)
  • 1880
    John L. Lewis, American labor union leader (d. 1969)
  • 1884
    Alice Roosevelt Longworth, elder daughter of Theodore Roosevelt (d. 1980)
  • 1884
    Johan Laidoner, Estonian military commander (d. 1953)
  • 1884
    Marie Vassilieff, Russian artist (d. 1957)
  • 1884
    Max Beckmann, German artist (d. 1950)
  • 1885
    Julius Streicher, Nazi German publisher (d. 1946)
  • 1889
    Bhante Dharmawara, Cambodian monk and supercentenarian (d. 1999)
  • 1893
    Omar Bradley, American general, the last surviving five-star general in the United States and the 1st Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (d. 1981)
  • 1897
    Vola Vale, American actress (d. 1970)
  • 1898
    Wallace Ford, English-born actor (d. 1966)
  • 1900
    Roger J. Traynor, American judge (d. 1983)
  • 1902
    William Collier, American stage and film actor (d. 1987)
  • 1903
    Chick Hafey, baseball player (d. 1973)
  • 1903
    Joseph F. Biroc, American cinematographer (d. 1996)
  • 1904
    Ted Mack, American television host (d. 1976)
  • 1907
    Clifton C. Edom, American photojournalism educator (d. 1991)
  • 1907
    Joseph Kearns, American actor (d. 1962)
  • 1908
    August Neo, Estonian wrestler (d. 1982)
  • 1908
    Jacques Herbrand, French logician and mathematician (d. 1931)
  • 1908
    Jean Effel, French painter and journalist (d. 1982)
  • 1909
    Sigmund Rascher, German SS doctor (d. 1945)
  • 1911
    Stephen H. Sholes, American recording executive (d. 1968)
  • 1912
    R. F. Delderfield, English author (d. 1972)
  • 1914
    Arvid Pardo, Maltese diplomat, a.k.a “Father of the Law of the Sea Conference” (d. 1999)
  • 1914
    Tex Beneke, American musician and band leader (d. 2000)
  • 1915
    Lorne Greene, Canadian actor (d. 1987)
  • 1916
    Joseph Alioto, Mayor of San Francisco (d. 1998)
  • 1917
    Raizo Matsuno, Japanese politician (d. 2006)
  • 1918
    Julian Schwinger, American physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1994)
  • 1919
    Forrest Tucker, American actor (d. 1986)
  • 1920
    Pran, Indian actor
  • 1920
    William Roscoe Estep, Baptist historian and professor (d. 2000)
  • 1922
    Hussein Onn, Malaysian politician, Prime Minister (1976–1981) (d. 1990)
  • 1923
    Chaskel Besser, Orthodox rabbi (d. 2010)
  • 1923
    Franco Zeffirelli, Italian film and opera director and designer
  • 1925
    Sir Anthony Berry, British politician (d. 1984)
  • 1926
    Charles Van Doren, American quiz show contestant
  • 1926
    Joe Garagiola, American baseball player and announcer
  • 1930
    Arlen Specter, U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania
  • 1930
    John Doyle, Irish hurler
  • 1931
    Janwillem van de Wetering, Dutch author (d. 2008)
  • 1932
    Axel Jensen, Norwegian author (d. 2003)
  • 1932
    Julian Lincoln Simon, American economist and author (d. 1998)
  • 1933
    Costa-Gavras, Greek filmmaker
  • 1934
    Anne Krueger, American economist
  • 1934
    Annette Crosbie, Scottish actress
  • 1934
    Bill Russell, American basketball player
  • 1935
    Gene McDaniels, American singer
  • 1936
    Joe Don Baker, American actor
  • 1936
    Paul Shenar, American actor
  • 1937
    Charles Dumas, American athlete (d. 2004)
  • 1938
    Judy Blume, American author
  • 1938
    Peter Temple-Morris, Baron Temple-Morris, British politician
  • 1939
    Ray Manzarek, American keyboardist (The Doors)
  • 1940
    Ralph Bates, English actor (d. 1991)
  • 1941
    Naomi Uemura, Japanese adventurer (d. 1984)
  • 1942
    Ehud Barak, Israeli politician, Prime Minister of Israel (1999–2001)
  • 1942
    Pat Dobson, American baseball player (d. 2006)
  • 1944
    Moe Bandy, American singer
  • 1945
    David Friedman, American economist
  • 1945
    Maud Adams, Swedish actress
  • 1946
    Ajda Pekkan, Turkish singer
  • 1946
    Cliff DeYoung, American actor and musician
  • 1946
    Jean Eyeghe Ndong, Prime Minister of Gabon
  • 1947
    Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, Indian leader of Damdami Taksal (d. 1984)
  • 1947
    Jim Durham, American sportscaster
  • 1948
    Mike Robitaille, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1948
    Raymond Kurzweil, American inventor and author
  • 1949
    Joaquín Sabina, Spanish singer and songwriter
  • 1950
    Michael Ironside, Canadian actor
  • 1950
    Steve Hackett, English guitarist (Genesis)
  • 1951
    Steven Parent, Manson murder victim (d. 1969)
  • 1952
    Michael McDonald, American musician
  • 1952
    Simon MacCorkindale, British actor (d. 2010)
  • 1953
    Joanna Kerns, American actress
  • 1953
    Nabil Shaban, British actor
  • 1953
    Robin Thomas, American actor
  • 1954
    Joseph Jordania, Australian/Georgian evolutionary musicologist
  • 1954
    Philip Zimmermann, American cryptographer
  • 1954
    Tzimis Panousis, Greek musician and stand-up comedian
  • 1955
    Bill Laswell, American bassist and record producer
  • 1955
    Chet Lemon, American baseball player
  • 1956
    Arsenio Hall, American actor and talk show host
  • 1956
    Brian Robertson, Scottish musician (Thin Lizzy and Motörhead)
  • 1958
    Bobby Smith, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1958
    Grant McLennan, Australian musician (The Go-Betweens) (d. 2006)
  • 1959
    Dan Puric, Romanian actor, director and writer
  • 1959
    Larry Nance, American basketball player
  • 1959
    Sigrid Thornton, Australian actress
  • 1960
    George Gray, American professional wrestler
  • 1961
    Jim Harris, Canadian politician
  • 1962
    Jimmy Kirkwood, Irish-born field hockey player
  • 1963
    Ed Lover, American radio personality
  • 1963
    Rubén Amaro, Jr., major league baseball outfielder and general manager
  • 1964
    Michel Petit, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1965
    Christine Elise, American actress
  • 1965
    John Michael Higgins, American actor
  • 1967
    Chitravina N. Ravikiran, Indian composer and musician
  • 1967
    Chris McKinstry, Canadian computer scientist
  • 1968
    Christopher McCandless, American nomad, subject of biography Into the Wild (d. 1992)
  • 1968
    Chynna Phillips, American singer
  • 1968
    Grégory Charles, Canadian singer, dancer, pianist, radio and television host
  • 1968
    Josh Brolin, American actor
  • 1969
    Brad Werenka, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1969
    Darren Aronofsky, American director and writer
  • 1969
    Hong Myung-Bo, Korean footballer
  • 1969
    Meja, Swedish singer
  • 1970
    Jim Creeggan, Canadian bassist (Barenaked Ladies)
  • 1970
    Judd Winick, writer and artist
  • 1971
    Scott Menville American voice actor
  • 1972
    Ajay Naidu, Indian-American actor
  • 1972
    Owen Nolan, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1972
    Sophie Zelmani, Swedish singer/songwriter
  • 1973
    Gianni Romme, Dutch speed skater
  • 1973
    Tara Strong, Canadian voice actress
  • 1974
    Toranosuke Takagi, Japanese race car driver
  • 1975
    Cliff Blezinski, Design Director for Epic Games
  • 1975
    Scot Pollard, American basketball player
  • 1976
    Christian Cullen, New Zealand rugby union footballer
  • 1976
    Silvia Saint, Czech pornographic actress
  • 1977
    Jimmy Conrad, American soccer player
  • 1978
    Brett Hodgson, Australian rugby league footballer
  • 1978
    Douglas Fisher, American high school security guard and musician
  • 1978
    Gethin Jones, Welsh television presenter
  • 1978
    Silver Meikar, Estonian politician
  • 1979
    Antonio Chatman, American football player
  • 1979
    Jesse Spencer, Australian actor
  • 1979
    Matt Mauck, American football player
  • 1979
    Richard Barnwell, English footballer
  • 1980
    Christina Ricci, American actress
  • 1980
    Juan Carlos Ferrero, Spanish tennis player
  • 1980
    Sarah Lancaster, American actress
  • 1981
    Lisa Hannigan, Irish singer
  • 1982
    Anthony Tuitavake, New Zealand All Black rugby player
  • 1982
    Jonas Hiller, Swiss ice hockey goaltender
  • 1982
    Louis Tsatoumas, Greek long jumper
  • 1983
    Carlton Brewster, American football player
  • 1984
    Alexandra Dahlström, Swedish actress
  • 1984
    Aylar Lie, Norwegian model
  • 1984
    Brad Keselowski, American racing car driver
  • 1984
    Lolly Badcock, English pornographic actress
  • 1984
    Peter Vanderkaay, American swimmer
  • 1985
    Saskia Burmeister, Australian actress
  • 1986
    Diego Ângelo, Brazilian footballer
  • 1988
    Nana Eikura, Japanese actress
  • 1992
    Faisal ibn Hamad Al Khalifah, prince of Bahrain (d. 2006)
  • 1993
    Apollos Cura, Philippine 9gagger
  • 1993
    Jennifer Stone, American actress

Who Died On February 12?

  • 1538
    Albrecht Altdorfer, German painter
  • 1554
    Lady Jane Grey, claimant to the English throne (b. 1537)
  • 1554
    Lord Guilford Dudley, consort of Lady Jane Grey (b. 1536)
  • 1571
    Nicholas Throckmorton, English diplomat and politician (b. 1515)
  • 1590
    François Hotman, French lawyer and writer (b. 1524)
  • 1612
    Christopher Clavius, German astronomer (b. 1538)
  • 1624
    George Heriot, Scottish goldsmith and philanthropist (b. 1563)
  • 1630
    Fynes Moryson, English traveler and writer (b. 1566)
  • 1700
    Aleksei Shein, Russian general and statesman (b. 1662)
  • 1724
    Elkanah Settle, English writer (b. 1648)
  • 1728
    Agostino Steffani, Italian diplomat and composer (b. 1653)
  • 1762
    Laurent Belissen, French composer (b. 1693)
  • 1763
    Pierre de Marivaux, French writer (b. 1688)
  • 1771
    King Adolf Frederick of Sweden (b. 1710)
  • 1789
    Ethan Allen, American patriot (b. 1738)
  • 1799
    Lazzaro Spallanzani, Italian biologist (b. 1729)
  • 1804
    Immanuel Kant, German philosopher (b. 1724)
  • 1834
    Friedrich Schleiermacher, German philosopher (b. 1768)
  • 1894
    Hans von Bülow, German pianist and composer (b. 1830)
  • 1896
    Ambroise Thomas, French opera composer (b. 1811)
  • 1915
    Émile Waldteufel, French composer (b. 1837)
  • 1916
    Richard Dedekind, German mathematician (b. 1831)
  • 1920
    Aurore Gagnon, Victim of child abuse (b. 1909)
  • 1929
    Lillie Langtry, British singer and actress (b. 1853)
  • 1931
    Samedbey Mehmandarov, Russian general (b. 1855)
  • 1933
    Henri Duparc, French composer (b. 1848)
  • 1935
    Georges Auguste Escoffier, French chef (b. 1846)
  • 1942
    Grant Wood, American painter (b.1891)
  • 1945
    Antonio Villa-Real, Filipino jurist (b. 1880)
  • 1947
    Moses Gomberg, Russian-born American chemist (b. 1866)
  • 1949
    Hassan al Banna, Egyptian founder of the Muslim Brotherhood (b. 1906)
  • 1954
    Dziga Vertov, Russian filmmaker (b. 1896)
  • 1957
    Eric Alfred Knudsen, American folklorist (b. 1872)
  • 1958
    Douglas Hartree, English mathematical physicist (b. 1897)
  • 1960
    Jean-Michel Atlan, French painter (b. 1913)
  • 1961
    Branko Miljković, Serbian poet (b. 1934)
  • 1969
    Paltiel Daykan, Russian-born Israeli jurist (b. 1885)
  • 1970
    Ishman Bracey, American blues musician (b. 1901)
  • 1971
    James C. Penney, American department store founder (b. 1875)
  • 1976
    Sal Mineo, American actor (b. 1939)
  • 1979
    Jean Renoir, French director (b. 1894)
  • 1980
    Muriel Rukeyser, American poet (b. 1913)
  • 1982
    Victor Jory, Canadian actor (b. 1902)
  • 1983
    Eubie Blake, American musician and songwriter (b. 1887)
  • 1984
    Anna Anderson, claimant to the throne of Russia (b. 1896)
  • 1984
    Julio Cortázar, Argentine writer (b. 1914)
  • 1985
    Nicholas Colasanto, American actor (b. 1924)
  • 1989
    Thomas Bernhard, Austrian playwright and novelist (b. 1931)
  • 1991
    Roger Patterson, American death metal bass player (b. 1968)
  • 1992
    Bep van Klaveren, Dutch boxer (b. 1907)
  • 1993
    James Bulger, English murder victim (b. 1990)
  • 1994
    Sue Rodriguez, Canadian assisted suicide advocate (b. 1950)
  • 1995
    Philip Taylor Kramer, American musician (Iron Butterfly) (b. 1952)
  • 1996
    Bob Shaw, Northern Irish novelist (b. 1931)
  • 1998
    Hugh Gardner Ackley, American economist (b.1915)
  • 2000
    Andy Lewis, Australian musician (b. 1967)
  • 2000
    Charles M. Schulz, American comics author (b. 1922)
  • 2000
    Oliver, American pop singer (b. 1945)
  • 2000
    Screamin' Jay Hawkins, American musician (b. 1929)
  • 2000
    Tom Landry, American football coach (b. 1924)
  • 2001
    Kristina Söderbaum, German actress (b. 1912)
  • 2001
    Tiberio Mitri, Italian boxer (b. 1926)
  • 2002
    John Eriksen, Danish footballer (b. 1957)
  • 2003
    Vali Myers, Australian painter (b. 1930)
  • 2005
    Dorothy Stang, Brazilian nun (b. 1931)
  • 2005
    Rafael Vidal, Venezuelan athlete (b. 1964)
  • 2005
    Sammi Smith, American country music singer (b. 1943)
  • 2007
    Peggy Gilbert, American jazz saxophonist and bandleader (b. 1905)
  • 2007
    Randy Stone, American actor and casting director (b. 1958)
  • 2008
    Oscar Brodney, American screenwriter (b. 1907)
  • 2009
    Alison Des Forges, American investigator of the Rwanda genocide (b. 1942)
  • 2009
    Beverly Eckert, American co-chair of the 9/11 Family Steering Committee (b. 1951)
  • 2009
    Coleman Mellett, American musician (b. 1974)
  • 2009
    Gerry Niewood, American musician (b. 1943)
  • 2010
    Nodar Kumaritashvili, Georgian luger (b. 1988)
  • 2011
    Betty Garrett, American actress and dancer (b. 1919)
  • 2011
    Mato Damjanović, Croatian chess grandmaster (b. 1927)

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