October 15

is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years). There are 77 days remaining.

Events

* 533 - Byzantine general Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the Vandals.
*1552 - Khanate of Kazan is conquered by troops of Ivan Grozny.
*1582 - Pope Gregory XIII implements the Gregorian Calendar. In Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, October 4 of this year is followed directly by October 15.
*1764 - Edward Gibbon observes a group of friars singing in the ruined Temple of Jupiter in Rome, which inspires him to begin work on The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
*1815 - Napoleon I of France begins his exile on St. Helena in the Atlantic Ocean.
*1863 - American Civil War: The first submarine to sink a ship, and first to sink an enemy warship, CSS H. L. Hunley sinks during a test, killing its inventor, Horace L. Hunley.
*1878 - The Edison Electric Light Company begins operation.
*1880 - Mexican soldiers kill Victorio, one of the greatest Apache military strategists.
*1883 - The Supreme Court of the United States declares part of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 to be unconstitutional.
*1894 - Alfred Dreyfus is arrested for spying - Dreyfus affair begins.
*1904 - The Russian Baltic Fleet leaves Reval, Estonia for Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War.
*1904 - Theta Tau, the Professional Engineering Fraternity, is founded at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
*1917 - World War I: At Vincennes outside of Paris, Dutch dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for Germany.
*1928 - The airship, the Graf Zeppelin completed its first trans-Atlantic flight, landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, USA.
*1932 - Tata Airlines (later to become Air India) makes its first flight.
*1939 - The New York Municipal Airport (later renamed La Guardia Airport) is dedicated.
*1940 - The Great Dictator, a satiric social commentary film by and starring Charlie Chaplin, is released.
*1945 - World War II: The former premier of Vichy France Pierre Laval is shot by a firing squad for treason.
*1946 - Nuremberg Trials: Hermann Göring poisons himself the night before his execution.
*1951 - Television sitcom I Love Lucy premieres.
* 1951 - Mexican chemist Luis E. Miramontes synthetized the first oral contraceptive
*1953 - British nuclear test Totem 1 detonated at Emu Field, South Australia.
*1965 - Vietnam War: The National Coordinating Committee to End the War in Vietnam stages the first public burning of a draft card in the United States.
*1966 - US President Lyndon B. Johnson signs a bill creating the United States Department of Transportation.
*1969 - Vietnam War: Hundreds of thousands of people take part in National Moratorium antiwar demonstrations across the United States.
*1970 - Thirty-five construction workers are killed when a section of the new West Gate Bridge in Melbourne collapses.
* 1970 - Anwar Sadat becomes president of Egypt
*1971 - The start of the 2500 Year Celebration of Iran, celebrating the birth of Persia.
*1981 - Professional cheerleader Krazy George Henderson leads what is thought to be the first audience wave in Oakland, California.
*1987 - The Great Storm of 1987 hits France and England.
*1989 - Wayne Gretzky becomes the all time leading points scorer in the NHL.
*1990 - Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to lessen Cold War tensions and open up his nation.
*1991 - Following a bitter confirmation hearing that involved allegations of sexual misconduct, the United States Senate votes to confirm Judge Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court of the United States by one of the closest margins ever, 52-48.
*1992 - In Russia, Andrei Chikatilo is found guilty of 52 serial murders.
*1995 - The Carolina Panthers win their first-ever regular season game by defeating the New York Jets at Clemson Memorial Stadium in South Carolina.
* 1995 - Saddam Hussein gains 99.96% of votes in Iraq's presidential elections.
*1997 - The first supersonic land speed record is set by Andy Green in ThrustSSC (United Kingdom).
* 1997 - The Cassini probe launches from Cape Canaveral on its way to Saturn.
*2001 - NASA's Galileo spacecraft passes within 112 miles of Jupiter's moon Io.
*2003 - China launches Shenzhou 5, its first manned space mission.
* 2003 - Ilham Aliyev becomes President of Azerbaijan succeeding his father Heydar Aliyev.
* 2003 - The Staten Island Ferry boat Andrew J. Barberi collides with a pier at the St. George Ferry Terminal in Staten Island, killing 11 people and injuring 43 others (see 2003 Staten Island Ferry crash)
* 2003 - Terri Schiavo's feeding tube is removed following numerous failed petitions by her parents to prevent such action.
*2005 - Iraqi constitution ratification vote
* 2005 - Riot in Toledo, Ohio breaks out during a National Socialist/Neo-Nazi protest; over 100 are arrested
* 2005 - Brett Hull retires from the NHL as third highest all-time goal scorer

Births

*70 BC - Virgil, Roman poet (d. 19 BC)
*1471 - Konrad Mutian, German humanist (d. 1526)
*1542 - Akbar, Jellaladin Mahommed, Mughal Emperor (died 1605)
*1608 - Evangelista Torricelli, Italian physicist (d. 1647)
*1686 - Allan Ramsay, Scottish poet (d. 1758)
*1701 - Marie-Marguerite d'Youville, Canadian saint (d. 1771)
*1784 - Thomas Robert Bugeaud de la Piconnerie, French marshal (d. 1849)
*1814 - Mikhail Lermontov, Russian author (d. 1841)
*1829 - Asaph Hall, American astronomer (d. 1907)
*1836 - James Tissot, French artist (d. 1902)
*1844 - Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher (d. 1900)
*1858 - John L. Sullivan, American boxer (d. 1918))
*1872 - Wilhelm Miklas, Austrian president (d. 1956))
*1881 - P. G. Wodehouse, British novelist (d. 1975)
*1882 - Charley O'Leary, American baseball player (d. 1941)
*1893 - King Carol II of Romania (d. 1953)
*1894 - Moshe Sharett, second Prime Minister of Israel (d. 1965)
*1898 - Boughera El Ouafi, Algerian athlete (d. 1951)
*1900 - Mervyn LeRoy, American film director (d. 1987)
*1905 - C. P. Snow, British writer (d. 1980)
*1906 - Hiram Leong Fong, American politician (d. 2004)
*1907 - Varian Fry, American journalist (d. 1987)
*1908 - John Kenneth Galbraith, Canadian economist (d. 2006)
*1909 - Robert Trout, American reporter (d. 2000)
* 1909 - Jesse Leonard Greenstein, American astronomer (d. 2002)
*1917 - Jan Miner, American actress (d. 2004)
* 1917 - Arthur Schlesinger Jr., American political commentator
*1920 - Mario Puzo, American novelist (d. 1999)
*1923 - Italo Calvino. Italian writer (d. 1985)
*1924 - Lee Iacocca, American industrialist
* 1924 - Mark Lenard, American actor (d. 1996)
*1926 - Michel Foucault, French philosopher (d. 1984)
* 1926 - Evan Hunter, American author (d. 2005)
* 1926 - Jean Peters, American actress (d. 2000)
* 1926 - Karl Richter, German conductor (d. 1981)
*1930 - FM-2030, philosopher (d. 2000)
*1931 - Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, President of India
*1935 - Bobby Joe Morrow, American athlete
*1937 - Barry McGuire, American singer
*1938 - Fela Kuti, Nigerian musician (d. 1997)
*1940 - Peter Doherty, Australian immunologist, Nobel laureate
*1942 - Penny Marshall, American actress
*1944 - Sali Berisha, President of Albania
* 1944 - David Trimble, Irish politician, Nobel laureate
*1945 - Jim Palmer, baseball player
*1946 - Richard Carpenter, American musician (Carpenters)
*1953 - Tito Jackson, American musician
*1954 - Peter Bakowski, Australian poet
*1955 - Kulbir Bhaura, British field hockey player
*1957 - Mira Nair, Indian director
*1959 - Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York
* 1959 - Emeril Lagasse, American chef
* 1959 - Todd Solondz, American film director
*1964 - Roberto Vittori, Italian astronaut
*1968 - Didier Deschamps, French football player
*1969 - Vanessa Marcil, American actress
*1970 - Eric Benét, American singer
*1971 - Andy Cole, British footballer
*1972 - Sandra Kim, Belgian singer
*1975 - Ginuwine, American singer
*1976 - Yoon Son-ha, South Korean actress
*1977 - Erin McKeown, American musician
* 1977 - David Trézéguet, French football player
*1977 - Patricio Urrutia, Ecuadorian footballer
*1979 - Paul Robinson, English football player
* 1979 - Māris Verpakovskis, Latvian football player
*1980 - Tom Boonen, Belgian cyclist
*1981 - Elena Dementieva, Russian tennis player
* 1981 - Guo Jingjing, Chinese diver
*1990 - Jordan Johnson, American singer
*1984 - Shayne Ward, English singer
*2005 - Prince Christian of Denmark

Deaths

* 412 - Theophilus, Patriarch of Alexandria
*1002 - Otto-Henry, Duke of Burgundy (b. 946)
*1326 - Walter de Stapledon, English bishop (b. 1261)
*1389 - Pope Urban VI
*1564 - Vesalius, Flemish anatomist (b. 1514)
*1715 - Humphry Ditton, English mathematician (b. 1675)
*1730 - Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, French explorer (b. 1658)
*1788 - Samuel Greig, Scottish-Russian admiral (b. 1735)
*1810 - Alfred Moore, American judge (b. 1755)
*1811 - Nathaniel Dance-Holland, English painter (b. 1735)
*1819 - Sergey Vyazmitinov, Russian general and statesman (b. 1744)
*1820 - Karl Philipp Fürst zu Schwarzenberg, Austrian field marshal (b. 1771)
*1837 - Ivan Dmitriev, Russian statesman and poet (b. 1760)
*1880 - Victorio, Apache leader
*1891 - Gilbert Arthur a Beckett, English writer (b. 1837)
*1900 - Zdeněk Fibich, Czech composer (b. 1850)
*1917 - Mata Hari, Dutch dancer and spy (b. 1876)
*1918 - Shirdi Sai Baba, Indian guru (b. circa 1838)
*1934 - Raymond Poincaré, French statesman (b. 1860)
*1945 - Pierre Laval, Prime Minister of Vichy France (executed) (b. 1883)
*1946 - Hermann Göring, German air force commander (suicide) (b. 1893)
*1960 - Clara Kimball Young, American actress (b. 1890)
*1964 - Cole Porter, American composer (b. 1891)
*1976 - Carlo Gambino, American Gangster (b. 1902)
*1988 - Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji, English composer and pianist (b. 1892)
*2000 - Konrad Emil Bloch, German-born biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1912)
*2001 - Zhang Xueliang, Chinese ruler of Manchuria (b. 1901)
*2003 - Bertram N. Brockhouse, Canadian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
* 2003 - Ben Metcalfe, Canadian environmental activist (b. 1919)
*2005 - Jason Collier, American basketball player (b. 1977)
* 2005 - Matti Wuori, Finnish politician (b. 1945)

Holidays and observances

* Roman festivals - the Equirria or October equus: sacrifice of a horse to Mars
* R.C. Saints - Saint Teresa of Avila
*United States - White Cane Safety Day, National Grouch Day, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day
*French Republican Calendar - Amaryllis (Amaryllis) Day, twenty-fourth day in the Month of Vendémiaire

External links

* BBC: On This Day

October 14 - October 16 - September 15 - November 15 - more historical anniversaries