What happened on March 17? There are more than 282 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 March 17
March 17 is the 77th day of the year 2024. There are 289 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday. This day falls under the 11th week of the year 2024.
On this day in Corpus Christi, Texas 78427 sunrise occured at 07:34 AM and sunset occured at 07:40 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Pisces. The modern birthstone for this month is Aquamarine while the mystical birthstone is Jade.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 318 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 28 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For March 17
- 45 BCIn his last victory, Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger in the Battle of Munda.
- 180Marcus Aurelius dies leaving Commodus the sole emperor of the Roman Empire.
- 624Led by Muhammad, the Muslims of Medina defeat the Quraysh of Mecca in the Battle of Badr.
- 1337Edward, the Black Prince is made Duke of Cornwall, the first Duchy in England.
- 1776American Revolution: British forces evacuate Boston, Massachusetts, ending the Siege of Boston, after George Washington and Henry Knox place artillery in positions overlooking the city.
- 1780American Revolution: George Washington grants the Continental Army a holiday “as an act of solidarity with the Irish in their fight for independence”.
- 1805The Italian Republic, with Napoleon as president, becomes the Kingdom of Italy, with Napoleon as King.
- 1842The Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is formed;
- 1860The First Taranaki War begins in Taranaki, New Zealand, a major phase of the New Zealand land wars.
- 1861The Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946) is proclaimed.
- 1891SS Utopia collides with HMS Anson in the Bay of Gibraltar and sinks, killing 562 of the 880 passengers on board.
- 1921The Second Republic of Poland adopts the March Constitution.
- 1939Second Sino-Japanese War: Battle of Nanchang between the Kuomintang and Japan begins,
- 1941In Washington, D.C., the National Gallery of Art is officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
- 1942Holocaust: The first Jews from the Lvov Ghetto are gassed at the Belzec death camp in what is today eastern Poland.
- 1945The Ludendorff Bridge in Remagen, Germany collapses, ten days after its capture.
- 1947First flight of the B-45 Tornado strategic bomber.
- 1948Benelux, France, and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Brussels, a precursor to the North Atlantic Treaty establishing NATO.
- 1950Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley announce the creation of element 98, which they name “Californium”.
- 1957A plane crash in Cebu, Philippines kills Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others.
- 1958The United States launches the Vanguard 1 satellite.
- 1959Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, flees Tibet for India.
- 1960U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the National Security Council directive on the anti-Cuban covert action program that will ultimately lead to the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
- 1966Off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean, the Ship DSV submarine finds a missing American hydrogen bomb.
- 1969Golda Meir becomes the first female Prime Minister of Israel.
- 1970My Lai Massacre: The United States Army charges 14 officers with suppressing information related to the incident.
- 1973The Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph Burst of Joy is taken, depicting a former prisoner of war being reunited with his family.
- 1979The Penmanshiel Tunnel collapses during engineering works, killing two workers.
- 1985Serial killer Richard Ramirez, aka the “Night Stalker”, commits the first two murders in his Los Angeles, California murder spree.
- 1988A Colombian Boeing 727 jetliner, Avianca Flight 410, crashes into a mountainside near the Venezuelan border killing 143.
- 1988Eritrean War of Independence: The Nadew Command, an Ethiopian army corps in Eritrea, is attacked on three sides by military units of the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front in the opening action of the Battle of Afabet.
- 1992A referendum to end apartheid in South Africa is passed 68.7% to 31.2%.
- 1992Israeli Embassy attack in Buenos Aires: Suicide car bomb attack kills 29 and injures 242.
- 2000More than 800 members of the Ugandan cult Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God die in what is considered to be a mass murder and suicide orchestrated by leaders of the cult.
- 2003Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Robin Cook, resigns from the British Cabinet in disagreement with government plans for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- 2004Unrest in Kosovo: More than 22 are killed and 200 wounded. 35 Serbian Orthodox shrines in Kosovo and two mosques in Belgrade and Niš are destroyed.
- 2008Governor of New York Eliot Spitzer resigns after a scandal involving a high-end prostitute. Lieutenant Governor David Paterson becomes New York State governor.
Who Were Born On March 17?
- 1231Emperor Shijō of Japan (d. 1242)
- 1473King James IV of Scotland (d. 1513)
- 1628François Girardon, French sculptor (d. 1715)
- 1676Thomas Boston, Scottish church leader (d. 1732)
- 1725Lachlan McIntosh, Scottish-born American military and political leader (d. 1806)
- 1747Johannes Jährig, German linguist (d. 1795)
- 1777Patrick Bronte, Anglo-Irish writer, curate, and father of the Bronte sisters
- 1777Roger Brooke Taney, 5th Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court (d. 1864)
- 1780Thomas Chalmers, Scottish pastor, social reformer, author, and scientist (d. 1847)
- 1781Ebenezer Elliott, British poet (d. 1849)
- 1787Edmund Kean, English actor (d. 1833)
- 1804Jim Bridger, American trapper and explorer (d. 1881)
- 1820Jean Ingelow, English poet (d. 1897)
- 1834Gottlieb Daimler, German engineer and inventor (d. 1900)
- 1846Kate Greenaway, English children’s author and illustrator (d. 1901)
- 1856Mikhail Vrubel, Russian painter (d. 1910)
- 1862Silvio Gesell, Belgian economist (d. 1930)
- 1864Joseph Baptista, Indian Home Rule Movement founder (d. 1930)
- 1866Pierce Butler, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1939)
- 1870Horace Donisthorpe, British entomologist (d. 1951)
- 1872Konstantinos Skarlatos, Greek Olympic shooter (d. 1969)
- 1877Otto Gross, Austrian psychoanalyst (d. 1920)
- 1880Lawrence Oates, English army officer and Antarctic explorer (d. 1912)
- 1880Sir Patrick Hastings, British barrister (d. 1952)
- 1881Walter Rudolf Hess, Swiss physiologist, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
- 1883Urmuz, Romanian writer (d. 1923)
- 1884Alcide Nunez, American jazz clarinetist (d. 1934)
- 1886Princess Patricia of Connaught, British princess (d. 1974)
- 1888Paul Ramadier, French politician (d. 1961)
- 1892Benjamin Drake Van Wissen, Australian Engineer (d. 1984)
- 1894Paul Green, American writer (d. 1981)
- 1897Jozef C. Mazur, American stained glass artist and painter (d. 1970)
- 1900Alfred Newman, American film composer (d. 1970)
- 1902Bobby Jones, American golfer (d. 1971)
- 1907Sonny Werblin, American football franchise owner (d. 1991)
- 1908Brigitte Helm, German actress (d. 1996)
- 1911Vello Kaaristo, Estonian cross-country skier (d. 1965)
- 1912Bayard Rustin, American civil rights activist (d. 1987)
- 1914Sammy Baugh, American football player (d. 2008)
- 1915Henry Bumstead, American art director (d. 2006)
- 1916Ray Ellington, British singer (d. 1985)
- 1919Nat King Cole, American singer (d. 1965)
- 1920Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Founding Leader of Bangladesh (d. 1975)
- 1921Meir Amit, Israeli politician and general (d. 2009)
- 1925Gabriele Ferzetti, Italian film and stage actor
- 1926Siegfried Lenz, German writer
- 1928William John McKeag, Canadian politician (d. 2007)
- 1930James Irwin, American astronaut (d. 1991)
- 1930Paul Horn, American jazz flutist
- 1931David Peakall, British scientist (d. 2001)
- 1932Donald N. Langenberg, American physicist
- 1933Myrlie Evers-Williams, American activist
- 1936Ken Mattingly, American astronaut
- 1936Ladislav Kupkovic, Slovakian composer
- 1936Patty Maloney, American actress
- 1937Adam Wade, American singer and actor
- 1937Rudy Ray Moore, American comedian and actor (d. 2008)
- 1938Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien, Northern Irish clergyman
- 1938Rudolf Nureyev, Russian-born dancer and choreographer (d. 1993)
- 1938Zola Taylor, American singer (The Platters) (d. 2007)
- 1939Jim Gary, American sculptor (d. 2006)
- 1939Robin Knox-Johnston, British Yachtsman
- 1940Mark White, American politician
- 1941Paul Kantner, American musician (Jefferson Airplane)
- 1941Wang Jin-pyng, Taiwanese politician
- 1942John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer (d. 1994)
- 1944Cito Gaston, American baseball player and manager
- 1944John Sebastian, American singer and songwriter
- 1944Pattie Boyd, British photographer and model
- 1945Elis Regina, Brazilian singer (d. 1982)
- 1945Michael Hayden, American Air Force General, CIA director
- 1947James Morrow, American author
- 1947Jan Andersson, Swedish politician
- 1947Yury Chernavsky, Russian-born composer and producer
- 1948Alex MacDonald, Scottish footballer and football manager
- 1948William Gibson, American writer
- 1949Daniel Lavoie, Canadian singer and songwriter
- 1949Pat Rice, Northern Irish footballer and football manager
- 1949Patrick Duffy, American actor
- 1950Patrick Adams, American record producer and songwriter
- 1951Craig Ramsay, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1951Donald Findlay, Scottish lawyer
- 1951Kurt Russell, American actor
- 1951Scott Gorham, American musician (Thin Lizzy)
- 1952Barry Horne, Animal rights activist (d. 2001)
- 1952Nikos Xydakis, Greek musician and composer
- 1953Chuck Muncie, American football running back
- 1953Filemon Lagman, Filipino communist revolutionary (d. 2001)
- 1954Lesley-Anne Down, English actress
- 1955Cynthia McKinney, American politician, Presidential candidate
- 1955Gary Sinise, American actor
- 1956Patrick McDonnell, American cartoonist
- 1956Rory McGrath, English comedian and writer
- 1957Mal Donaghy, Northern Irish footballer
- 1957Michael Kelly, American journalist (d. 2003)
- 1958Pat Bolland, Canadian Broadcaster
- 1959Christian Clemenson, American actor
- 1959Danny Ainge, American basketball player and coach
- 1959Paul Black, American rock singer
- 1960Arye Gross, American actor
- 1960Rebeca Arthur, American actress
- 1960Vicki Lewis, American actress
- 1961Alexander Bard, Swedish artist, singer (Army Of Lovers), music producer, and philosopher
- 1961Andrew Paul, English actor
- 1961Casey Siemaszko, American actor
- 1961Dana Reeve, American actress and activist (d. 2006)
- 1961Marcus Dillistone, Royal premiered and award-winning British film director.
- 1961Sam Bowie, American basketball player
- 1962Ank Bijleveld-Schouten, Dutch politician
- 1962Clare Grogan, Scottish actress-singer
- 1963Alex Fong Chung-Sun, Chinese actor
- 1963Nick Peros, Canadian composer
- 1964Jacques Songo'o, Cameroonian footballer
- 1964Lee Dixon, English footballer
- 1964Rob Lowe, American actor
- 1966Jeremy Sheffield, English actor
- 1967Barry Minkow, American criminal and fraudster
- 1967Billy Corgan, American musician (Smashing Pumpkins)
- 1969Alexander McQueen, British fashion designer (d. 2010)
- 1969Mathew St. Patrick, American actor
- 1969Patricia Ford, American model
- 1970Gene Ween, American musician (Ween)
- 1970Yanic Truesdale, Canadian actor
- 1971Bill Mueller, American baseball player
- 1972Marc Gunn, poet, podcaster, and musician (Brobdingnagian Bards)
- 1972Melissa Auf der Maur, Canadian musician
- 1972Mia Hamm, American soccer player
- 1973Caroline Corr, Irish singer and musician
- 1973Jerome Woods, American football player
- 1973Rico Blanco, Filipino singer (Rivermaya)
- 1973Vance Wilson, American baseball player
- 1974Marisa Coughlan, American actress
- 1974Mark Dolan, British TV show host
- 1974Oliver Palotai, German keyboard player (Doro)
- 1975Andrew “Test” Martin, Canadian wrestler (d. 2009)
- 1975Gina Holden, Canadian actress
- 1975Justin Hawkins, British singer (The Darkness)
- 1975Mason Jennings, American folksinger
- 1975Natalie Zea, American actress
- 1975Puneet Rajkumar, Indian (Kannada) actor, singer and director
- 1976Álvaro Recoba, Uruguayan footballer
- 1976Brittany Daniel, American actress
- 1976Cynthia Daniel, American actress and photographer
- 1976Scott Downs, American baseball player
- 1976Stephen Gately, Irish singer, musician, and actor (Boyzone) (d. 2009)
- 1978Adam Jennings, British actor, producer and director
- 1979Andrew Ference, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1979Nicole “Coco” Austin, American glamor model
- 1979Samoa Joe, Samoan wrestler
- 1979Sharman Joshi, Indian actor
- 1979Stephen Kramer Glickman, American actor and comedian
- 1979Stormy Daniels, American pornographic actress
- 1980Danny Califf, American soccer player
- 1980Katie Morgan, American pornographic actress
- 1981Aaron Baddeley, Australian golfer
- 1981Kyle Korver, American basketball player
- 1981Servet Çetin, Turkish footballer
- 1981Thorsten Stuckmann, German footballer
- 1982Steven Pienaar, South African footballer
- 1983Raul Meireles, Portuguese footballer
- 1985Vassiliki Arvaniti, Greek beach volleyball player
- 1986Edin Džeko, Bosnian footballer
- 1986Miles Kane, British musician
- 1986Olesya Rulin, Russian actress
- 1987Bobby Ryan, American ice hockey player
- 1987Krisnan Inu, New Zealand rugby player
- 1987Rob Kardashian, American model and singer
- 1987Ryan Parent, Canadian hockey player
- 1990Saina Nehwal, Indian badminton player
Who Died On March 17?
- 45 BCTitus Labienus, Roman leader
- 180Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor (b. 121)
- 460Saint Patrick, patron saint of Ireland (b. 387)
- 659Gertrude of Nivelles, Belgian abbess (b. 626)
- 1040Harold Harefoot, King of England
- 1058King Lulach I of Scotland (b. 1030)
- 1199Jocelin, bishop of Glasgow
- 1272Emperor Go-Saga of Japan (b. 1220)
- 1425Ashikaga Yoshikazu, Japanese shogun (b. 1407)
- 1516Giuliano di Lorenzo de' Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1478)
- 1565Alexander Ales, Scottish theologian (b. 1500)
- 1640Philip Massinger, English dramatist (b. 1583)
- 1649Gabriel Lallemant, French Jesuit missionary, one of the Canadian Martyrs (b. 1610)
- 1680François de La Rochefoucauld, French writer (b. 1613)
- 1704Menno van Coehoorn, Dutch military engineer (b. 1641)
- 1713Juraj Jánošík, famous Slovak outlaw (b. 1688)
- 1715Gilbert Burnet, Scottish Bishop of Salisbury (b. 1643)
- 1741Jean-Baptiste Rousseau, French poet (b. 1671)
- 1764George Parker, 2nd Earl of Macclesfield, English astronomer
- 1782Daniel Bernoulli, Dutch-born mathematician (b. 1700)
- 1830Laurent, Marquis de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, French marshal (b. 1764)
- 1846Friedrich Bessel, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1784)
- 1849William II of the Netherlands (b. 1792)
- 1853Christian Doppler, Austrian physicist and mathematician (b. 1803)
- 1871Robert Chambers, Scottish naturalist (b. 1802)
- 1875Ferdinand Laub, Czech violinist (b. 1832)
- 1893Jules Ferry, French statesman (b. 1832)
- 1917Franz Brentano, German philosopher and psychologist (b. 1838)
- 1926Aleksei Brusilov, Russian general (b. 1853)
- 1937Austen Chamberlain, English statesman, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1863)
- 1941Marguerite Nichols, American actress (b. 1895)
- 1946Dai Li, Chinese spymaster (b. 1897)
- 1949Aleksandra Ekster, Russian painter (b. 1882)
- 1956Fred Allen, American actor and comedian (b. 1894)
- 1956Irene Joliot-Curie, French physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1897)
- 1957Ramon Magsaysay, President of the Philippines (b. 1907)
- 1961Susanna M. Salter, American politician (b. 1860)
- 1962Pat Clayton, British surveyor and explorer (b. 1896)
- 1965Amos Alonzo Stagg, American football coach (b. 1862)
- 1974Louis Kahn, American architect
- 1976Luchino Visconti, Italian director (b. 1906)
- 1981Paul Dean, American baseball player (b. 1913)
- 1983Haldan Keffer Hartline, American physiologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1903)
- 1987Santo Trafficante, Jr., American gangster (b. 1914)
- 1988Nikolas Asimos, Greek counter-culture composer and singer (b. 1949)
- 1989Merritt Butrick, American actor (b. 1959)
- 1990Capucine, French actress (b. 1931)
- 1990Ric Grech, British bass player (Blind Faith – Traffic) (b. 1946)
- 1992Grace Stafford, American actress (b. 1903)
- 1993Helen Hayes, American actress (b. 1900)
- 1994Mai Zetterling, Swedish actress and director (b. 1925)
- 1995Rick Aviles, American actor (b. 1952)
- 1995Ronald “Ronnie” Kray, British gangster (b. 1933)
- 1996René Clément, French film director and screenwriter (b. 1913)
- 1996Terry Stafford, American singer (b. 1941)
- 1997Jermaine Stewart, American singer (b. 1957)
- 1999Ernest Gold, Austrian composer (b. 1921)
- 1999Rod Hull, British comedian (b. 1936)
- 2002Pat Weaver, American broadcast executive (b. 1908)
- 2002Rosetta LeNoire, American actress (b. 1911)
- 2002Van Tien Dung, Vietnamese general and politician (b. 1917)
- 2003Su Buqing, Chinese mathematician and educator (b. 1902)
- 2004J.J. Jackson, American television personality (b. 1941)
- 2004Rachel Hudson, British murder victim (b. 1984)
- 2005Andre Norton, American writer (b. 1912)
- 2005George F. Kennan, American Cold War strategist and historian (b. 1904)
- 2006Bob Blue, American singer/songwriter (b. 1948)
- 2006Bob Papenbrook, American voice actor (b. 1955)
- 2006Oleg Cassini, American fashion designer (b. 1913)
- 2006Ray Meyer, American basketball coach (b. 1913)
- 2007Jim Cronin, British animal welfare activist (b. 1951)
- 2007John Backus, American computer scientist (b. 1924)
- 2007Roger Bennett, American gospel performer (b. 1959)
- 2008Roland Arnall, United States Ambassador to the Netherlands (b. 1939)
- 2009Clodovil Hernandes, Brazilian politician and TV host (b. 1937)
- 2010Alex Chilton, American musician (b. 1950)
- 2010Charlie Gillett, British musicologist and radio presenter (b. 1942)
- 2011Michael Gough, British actor (b. 1916)
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