March 2 is the 61st day of the year (62nd in leap years ) in the Gregorian calendar ; 304 days remain until the end of the year.

Events [ edit ]

Pre-1600 [ edit ]

• 537 – Siege of Rome : The Ostrogoth army under king Vitiges begins the siege of the capital. Belisarius conducts a delaying action outside the Flaminian Gate ; he and a detachment of his bucellarii are almost cut off. ^[1]
• 986 – Louis V becomes the last Carolingian king of West Francia after the death of his father, Lothaire . ^[2]
• 1331 – Fall of Nicaea to the Ottoman Turks after a siege . ^[3]
• 1444 – Skanderbeg organizes a group of Albanian nobles to form the League of Lezhe . ^[4]
• 1458 – George of Pod?brady is chosen as the king of Bohemia . ^[5]
• 1476 – Burgundian Wars : The Old Swiss Confederacy hands Charles the Bold , Duke of Burgundy , a major defeat in the Battle of Grandson in Canton of Neuchatel . ^[6]
• 1484 – The College of Arms is formally incorporated by Royal Charter signed by King Richard III of England . ^[7]
• 1498 – Vasco da Gama 's fleet visits the Island of Mozambique . ^[8]

1601?1900 [ edit ]

• 1657 – The Great Fire of Meireki begins in Edo (now Tokyo ), Japan, causing more than 100,000 deaths before it exhausts itself three days later.
• 1776 – American Revolutionary War : Patriot militia units attempt to prevent capture of supply ships in and around the Savannah River by a small fleet of the Royal Navy in the Battle of the Rice Boats . ^[9]
• 1791 – Claude Chappe demonstrates the first semaphore line near Paris.
• 1797 – The Bank of England issues the first one-pound and two-pound banknotes .
• 1807 – The U.S. Congress passes the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves , disallowing the importation of new slaves into the country.
• 1811 – Argentine War of Independence : A royalist fleet defeats a small flotilla of revolutionary ships in the Battle of San Nicolas on the River Plate .
• 1815 – Signing of the Kandyan Convention treaty by British invaders and the leaders of the Kingdom of Kandy .
• 1836 – Texas Revolution : The Declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico is adopted.
• 1855 – Alexander II becomes Tsar of Russia.
• 1859 – The two-day Great Slave Auction , the largest such auction in United States history, begins.
• 1865 – East Cape War : The Volkner Incident in New Zealand.
• 1867 – The U.S. Congress passes the first Reconstruction Act .
• 1877 – Just two days before inauguration, the U.S. Congress declares Rutherford B. Hayes the winner of the 1876 U.S. presidential election even though Samuel J. Tilden had won the popular vote.
• 1882 – Queen Victoria narrowly escapes an assassination attempt by Roderick Maclean in Windsor.

1901?present [ edit ]

• 1901 – United States Steel Corporation is founded as a result of a merger between Carnegie Steel Company and Federal Steel Company which became the first corporation in the world with a market capital over $1 billion.
• 1901 – The U.S. Congress passes the Platt Amendment limiting the autonomy of Cuba , as a condition of the withdrawal of American troops.
• 1903 – In New York City the Martha Washington Hotel opens, becoming the first hotel exclusively for women.
• 1917 – The enactment of the Jones?Shafroth Act grants Puerto Ricans United States citizenship.
• 1919 – The first Communist International meets in Moscow. ^[10]
• 1932 – Finnish president P. E. Svinhufvud gives a radio speech, which four days later finally ends the Mantsala Rebellion and the far-right Lapua Movement that started it. ^{[11] [12]}
• 1937 – The Steel Workers Organizing Committee signs a collective bargaining agreement with U.S. Steel , leading to unionization of the United States steel industry. ^[13]
• 1939 – Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli is elected Pope and takes the name Pius XII . ^[14]
• 1941 – World War II : First German military units enter Bulgaria after it joins the Axis Pact .
• 1943 – World War II: During the Battle of the Bismarck Sea Allied aircraft defeated a Japanese attempt to ship troops to New Guinea.
• 1949 – Captain James Gallagher lands his B-50 Superfortress Lucky Lady II in Fort Worth, Texas , after completing the first non-stop around-the-world airplane flight in 94 hours and one minute. ^[15]
• 1955 – Norodom Sihanouk , king of Cambodia , abdicates the throne in favor of his father, Norodom Suramarit . ^[16]
• 1962 – In Burma , the army led by General Ne Win seizes power in a coup d'etat . ^[17]
• 1962 – Wilt Chamberlain sets the single-game scoring record in the National Basketball Association by scoring 100 points . ^[18]
• 1965 – The US and Republic of Vietnam Air Force begin Operation Rolling Thunder , a sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam . ^[19]
• 1968 – Baggeridge Colliery closes marking the end of over 300 years of coal mining in the Black Country . ^[20]
• 1969 – In Toulouse , France, the first test flight of the Anglo-French Concorde is conducted. ^[21]
• 1970 – Rhodesia declares itself a republic , breaking its last links with the British crown. ^[22]
• 1972 – The Pioneer 10 space probe is launched from Cape Canaveral , Florida with a mission to explore the outer planets . ^[23]
• 1977 – Libya becomes the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya as the General People's Congress adopted the " Declaration on the Establishment of the Authority of the People ". ^[24]
• 1978 – Czech Vladimir Remek becomes the first non-Russian or non-American to go into space , when he is launched aboard Soyuz 28 . ^[25]
• 1978 – The late iconic actor Charlie Chaplin 's coffin is stolen from his grave in Switzerland. ^[26]
• 1983 – Compact discs and players are released for the first time in the United States and other markets. ^[27] They had previously been available only in Japan. ^[28]
• 1989 – Twelve European Community nations agree to ban the production of all chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) by the end of the century. ^[29]
• 1990 – Nelson Mandela is elected deputy president of the African National Congress . ^[30]
• 1991 – Establishment of Kuwait Democratic Forum , center-left political organization in Kuwait . ^[31]
• 1991 – Battle at Rumaila oil field brings an end to the 1991 Gulf War .
• 1992 – Start of the war in Transnistria .
• 1992 – Armenia , Azerbaijan , Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Moldova , San Marino , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan , all of which (except San Marino) were former Soviet republics , join the United Nations .
• 1995 – Researchers at Fermilab announce the discovery of the top quark .
• 1998 – Data sent from the Galileo spacecraft indicates that Jupiter 's moon Europa has a liquid ocean under a thick crust of ice.
• 2002 – U.S. invasion of Afghanistan : Operation Anaconda begins, (ending on March 19 after killing 500 Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters, with 11 Western troop fatalities).
• 2004 – War in Iraq : Al-Qaeda carries out the Ashoura Massacre in Iraq , killing 170 and wounding over 500.
• 2012 – A tornado outbreak occurs over a large section of the Southern United States and into the Ohio Valley region, resulting in 40 tornado-related fatalities.
• 2017 – The elements Moscovium , Tennessine , and Oganesson are officially added to the periodic table at a conference in Moscow, Russia .
• 2022 – Russian forces capture the city of Kherson during the Russian invasion of Ukraine , which subsequently began the start of the Russian occupation and military-civilian administration in Kherson . ^[32] Kherson is the only regional capital in Ukraine that Russia captured.

Births [ edit ]

Pre-1600 [ edit ]

• 480 – Benedict of Nursia , Italian Christian saint (d. 543 or 547)
• 1316 – Robert II of Scotland (d. 1390)
• 1409 – Jean II, Duke of Alencon (d. 1476)
• 1432 – Countess Palatine Margaret of Mosbach , countess consort of Hanau (d. 1457)
• 1453 – Johannes Engel , German doctor, astronomer and astrologer (d. 1512) ^[33]
• 1459 – Pope Adrian VI (d. 1523) ^[34]
• 1481 – Franz von Sickingen , German knight (d. 1523)
• 1545 – Thomas Bodley , English diplomat and scholar, founded the Bodleian Library (d. 1613)
• 1577 – George Sandys , English traveller, colonist and poet (d. 1644)

1601?1900 [ edit ]

• 1628 – Cornelis Speelman , Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1684)
• 1651 – Carlo Gimach , Maltese architect, engineer and poet (d. 1730)
• 1705 – William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield , Scottish lawyer, judge, and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (d. 1793)
• 1740 – Nicholas Pocock , English naval painter (d. 1821)
• 1760 – Camille Desmoulins , French journalist and politician (d. 1794)
• 1769 – DeWitt Clinton , American lawyer and politician, 6th Governor of New York (d. 1828)
• 1770 – Louis-Gabriel Suchet , French general (d. 1826)
• 1779 – Joel Roberts Poinsett , American physician and politician, 15th United States Secretary of War (d. 1851)
• 1793 – Sam Houston , American soldier and politician, 1st President of the Republic of Texas (d. 1863)
• 1800 – Yevgeny Baratynsky , Russian-Italian poet and philosopher (d. 1844)
• 1810 – Pope Leo XIII (d. 1903)
• 1816 – Alexander Bullock , American lawyer and politician, 26th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1882)
• 1817 – Janos Arany , Hungarian journalist and poet (d. 1882)
• 1820 – Multatuli , Dutch writer (d. 1887)
• 1824 – Bed?ich Smetana , Czech pianist and composer (d. 1884)
• 1829 – Carl Schurz , German-American general, lawyer, and politician, 13th United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1906)
• 1836 – Henry Billings Brown , American lawyer and judge (d. 1913)
• 1842 – Carl Jacobsen , Danish brewer, art collector, and philanthropist (d. 1914)
• 1846 – Marie Roze , French soprano (d. 1926)
• 1849 – Robert Means Thompson , American commander, lawyer, and businessman (d. 1930)
• 1859 – Sholem Aleichem , Ukrainian-American author and playwright (d. 1916)
• 1860 – Susanna M. Salter , American activist and politician (d. 1961)
• 1862 – John Jay Chapman , American lawyer, author, and poet (d. 1933)
• 1869 – Julien Felix , French military officer and aviator (d. 1914) ^[35]
• 1876 – James A. Gilmore , American businessman and baseball executive (d. 1947) ^[36]
• 1876 – Pope Pius XII (d. 1958)
• 1886 – Willis H. O'Brien , American animator and director (d. 1962)
• 1886 – Kurt Grelling , German logician and philosopher (d. 1942)
• 1900 – Kurt Weill , German-American pianist and composer (d. 1950)

1901?present [ edit ]

• 1901 – Grete Hermann , German mathematician and philosopher (d. 1984)
• 1902 – Moe Berg , American baseball player and spy (d. 1972) ^[37]
• 1902 – Edward Condon , American physicist and academic (d. 1974)
• 1904 – Dr. Seuss , American children's book writer, poet, and illustrator (d. 1991) ^[37]
• 1905 – Marc Blitzstein , American composer and songwriter (d. 1964)
• 1905 – Geoffrey Grigson , English poet and critic (d. 1985)
• 1908 – Walter Bruch , German engineer (d. 1990)
• 1909 – Mel Ott , American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (d. 1958)
• 1912 – Henry Katzman , American pianist, composer, and painter (d. 2001)
• 1913 – Godfried Bomans , Dutch television host and author (d. 1971)
• 1913 – Mort Cooper , American baseball player (d. 1958)
• 1914 – Martin Ritt , American actor and film director (d. 1990)
• 1915 – John Burton , Australian public servant and diplomat, Australian High Commissioner to Ceylon (d. 2010)
• 1917 – Desi Arnaz , Cuban-American actor, singer, and producer (d. 1986) ^[37]
• 1917 – David Goodis , American author and screenwriter (d. 1967)
• 1917 – Jim Konstanty , American baseball player and coach (d. 1976)
• 1919 – Jennifer Jones , American actress (d. 2009) ^[37]
• 1919 – Eddie Lawrence , American actor, singer, and playwright (d. 2014)
• 1919 – Tamara Toumanova , Russian-American ballerina and actress (d. 1996)
• 1921 – Kazimierz Gorski , Polish footballer and coach (d. 2006)
• 1921 – Ernst Haas , Austrian-American photographer and journalist (d. 1986)
• 1922 – Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis , American saxophonist (d. 1986)
• 1922 – Bill Quackenbush , Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 1999)
• 1922 – Frances Spence , American computer programmer (d. 2012)
• 1923 – Basil Hume , English cardinal (d. 1999)
• 1923 – Robert H. Michel , American soldier and politician (d. 2017)
• 1923 – Dave Strack , American basketball player and coach (d. 2014)
• 1924 – Cal Abrams , American baseball player (d. 1997)
• 1924 – Renos Apostolidis , Greek philologist, author, and critic (d. 2004)
• 1926 – Bernard Agre , Ivorian cardinal (d. 2014)
• 1926 – Murray Rothbard , American economist and historian (d. 1995)
• 1927 – Roger Walkowiak , French cyclist and economist (d. 2017) ^[38]
• 1930 – John Cullum , American actor and singer ^[39]
• 1930 – Emma Penella , Spanish actress (d. 2007)
• 1930 – Tom Wolfe , American journalist and author (d. 2018)
• 1931 – Mikhail Gorbachev , Russian lawyer and politician, the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union , Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2022)
• 1932 – Gun Hagglund , Swedish journalist and translator (d. 2011)
• 1933 – Leo Dillon , American illustrator (d. 2012) ^[40]
• 1934 – Howard Cassady , American football player (d. 2019) ^[41]
• 1934 – Dottie Rambo , American singer-songwriter (d. 2008)
• 1935 – Gene Stallings , American football player and coach
• 1936 – Haroon Ahmed , Pakistani-English engineer and academic
• 1936 – John Tusa , Czech-English journalist and academic
• 1937 – Abdelaziz Bouteflika , Algerian soldier and politician, 5th President of Algeria (d. 2021)
• 1938 – Clark Gesner , American author and composer (d. 2002)
• 1938 – Ricardo Lagos , Chilean economist, lawyer, and politician, 33rd President of Chile
• 1938 – Lawrence Payton , American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 1997)
• 1939 – Jan Howard Finder , American author and academic (d. 2013)
• 1940 – Billy McNeill , Scottish footballer (d. 2019)
• 1941 – John Cornell , Australian actor, director, and producer (d. 2021)
• 1941 – David Satcher , American admiral and physician, 16th Surgeon General of the United States
• 1942 – John Irving , American novelist and screenwriter ^[39]
• 1942 – Claude Larose , Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1942 – Mir-Hossein Mousavi , Iranian architect and politician, 79th Prime Minister of Iran
• 1942 – Lou Reed , American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (d. 2013) ^[37]
• 1942 – Derek Woodley , English footballer (d. 2002)
• 1943 – George Layton , English actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1943 – Peter Straub , American author and poet (d. 2022)
• 1943 – Robert Williams , American painter and cartoonist
• 1945 – Derek Watkins , English trumpet player and composer (d. 2013)
• 1947 – John Dawkins , Australian politician ^[42]
• 1947 – Nelson Ned , Brazilian singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
• 1947 – Harry Redknapp , English footballer and manager
• 1948 – Larry Carlton , American guitarist and songwriter
• 1948 – Rory Gallagher , Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1995) ^[37]
• 1948 – Jeff Kennett , Australian journalist and politician, 43rd Premier of Victoria
• 1948 – Carmen Lawrence , Australian politician, 25th Premier of Western Australia
• 1950 – Karen Carpenter , American singer (d. 1983) ^[37]
• 1952 – Mark Evanier , American author and screenwriter
• 1952 – Laraine Newman , American actress and comedian ^[39]
• 1953 – Russ Feingold , American lawyer and politician
• 1953 – Kazuo Kitagawa , Japanese politician ^[43]
• 1954 – Ed Johnstone , Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1955 – Dale Bozzio , American pop-rock singer-songwriter
• 1955 – Jay Osmond , American singer, drummer, actor, and TV/film producer ^[39]
• 1955 – Ken Salazar , American lawyer and politician, 50th United States Secretary of the Interior
• 1955 – Steve Small , Australian cricketer
• 1956 – John Cowsill , American musician, songwriter, and producer ^[39]
• 1956 – Mark Evans , Australian rock bass player
• 1957 – Mark Dean , American inventor and computer engineer
• 1957 – Hossein Dehghan , Iranian general and politician, Iranian Minister of Defense
• 1957 – Dito Tsintsadze , Georgian film director and screenwriter
• 1958 – Kevin Curren , South African-American tennis player
• 1958 – Ian Woosnam , English-Welsh golfer
• 1959 – Larry Stewart , American singer-songwriter and guitarist ^[39]
• 1961 – Simone Young , Australian conductor, director, and composer
• 1962 – Jon Bon Jovi , American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor ^[39]
• 1962 – Paul Farrelly , English journalist and politician
• 1962 – Tom Nordlie , Norwegian footballer and coach
• 1962 – Brendan O'Connor , Australian politician, Australian Minister for Employment
• 1962 – Raimo Summanen , Finnish ice hockey player and coach
• 1962 – Gabriele Tarquini , Italian race car driver
• 1963 – Anthony Albanese , Australian politician, 31st Prime Minister of Australia ^[37]
• 1963 – Alvin Youngblood Hart , American singer and guitarist ^[39]
• 1964 – Laird Hamilton , American surfer and actor
• 1964 – Mike Von Erich , American wrestler (d. 1987)
• 1965 – Ron Gant , American baseball player and journalist
• 1965 – Lembit Opik , Northern Irish politician
• 1966 – Ann Leckie , American author
• 1966 – Simon Reevell , English lawyer and politician
• 1968 – Daniel Craig , English actor and producer ^[39]
• 1970 – James Purnell , English politician, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
• 1970 – Ciriaco Sforza , Swiss footballer and manager
• 1970 – Wibi Soerjadi , Dutch pianist and composer
• 1971 – Roman ?echmanek , Czech ice hockey player (d. 2023) ^[44]
• 1971 – Dave Gorman , English comedian, author and television presenter
• 1971 – Method Man , American rapper, record producer and actor ^[37]
• 1972 – Mauricio Pochettino , Argentinian footballer and manager
• 1973 – Dejan Bodiroga , Serbian basketball player
• 1973 – Trevor Sinclair , English footballer and manager
• 1974 – Hayley Lewis , Australian swimmer and television host
• 1975 – Daryl Gibson , New Zealand rugby player
• 1977 – Dominique Canty , American basketball player and coach
• 1977 – Chris Martin , English singer-songwriter ( Coldplay ) ^[45]
• 1977 – Heather McComb , American actress ^[39]
• 1977 – Stephen Parry , English swimmer and sportscaster
• 1977 – Andrew Strauss , South African-English cricketer
• 1978 – Jim Chalmers , Australian politician ^[46]
• 1978 – Gabby Eigenmann , Filipino actor and singer
• 1978 – Lee Hodges , English footballer and manager
• 1978 – Sebastian Janikowski , Polish gridiron football player ^[47]
• 1978 – Toma? Kaberle , Czech ice hockey player
• 1979 – Damien Duff , Irish footballer ^[48]
• 1979 – Jim Troughton , English cricketer
• 1979 – Nicky Weaver , English footballer
• 1980 – Chris Barker , English footballer and manager (d. 2020)
• 1980 – Rebel Wilson , Australian actress and screenwriter ^[39]
• 1981 – Lance Cade , American wrestler (d. 2010)
• 1981 – Bryce Dallas Howard , American actress ^[39]
• 1982 – Kevin Kuranyi , German footballer
• 1982 – Henrik Lundqvist , Swedish ice hockey player
• 1982 – Joel Lundqvist , Swedish ice hockey player ^[49]
• 1982 – Ben Roethlisberger , American football player ^[37]
• 1982 – Corey Webster , American football player
• 1983 – Deuce , American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1983 – Lisandro Lopez , Argentine footballer
• 1983 – Jay McClement , Canadian ice hockey player
• 1983 – Glen Perkins , American baseball player
• 1983 – Ryan Shannon , American ice hockey player
• 1984 – Jonathan Ericsson , Swedish ice hockey player ^[50]
• 1985 – Reggie Bush , American football player
• 1985 – Robert Iler , American actor ^[39]
• 1985 – Suso Santana , Spanish footballer
• 1986 – Jonathan D'Aversa , Canadian ice hockey player
• 1986 – Jason Smith , American basketball player ^[51]
• 1987 – Jonas Jerebko , Swedish basketball player
• 1988 – Edgar Andrade , Mexican footballer
• 1988 – James Arthur , English singer-songwriter
• 1988 – Laura Kaeppeler , American beauty queen, Miss America 2012
• 1988 – Matthew Mitcham , Australian diver
• 1988 – Dexter Pittman , American basketball player ^[52]
• 1988 – Geert Arend Roorda , Dutch footballer
• 1989 – Toby Alderweireld , Belgian footballer ^[53]
• 1989 – Alemao , Brazilian footballer
• 1989 – Nathalie Emmanuel , English actress ^[54]
• 1989 – Marcel Hirscher , Austrian skier
• 1989 – Andre Bernardes Santos , Portuguese footballer
• 1989 – Shane Vereen , American football player
• 1989 – Chris Woakes , English cricketer
• 1990 – Rauno Alliku , Estonian footballer
• 1990 – Malcolm Butler , American football player
• 1990 – Luke Combs , American singer-songwriter ^[55]
• 1990 – Tiger Shroff , Indian actor
• 1991 – Nick Franklin , American baseball player
• 1992 – Charlie Coyle , American ice hockey player ^[56]
• 1993 – Nicolas Brussino , Argentine-Italian basketball player ^[57]
• 1993 – Adolis Garcia , Cuban baseball player ^[58]
• 1995 – Miguel Andujar , Dominican baseball player ^[59]
• 1995 – Max Domi , Canadian ice hockey player ^[60]
• 1995 – Ange-Freddy Plumain , French footballer
• 1997 – Becky G , American singer and actress ^[39]
• 1997 – Arike Ogunbowale , American basketball player ^[61]
• 1998 – Tua Tagovailoa , American football player ^[62]
• 1999 – Isiah Pacheco , American football player ^[63]
• 2016 – Prince Oscar, Duke of Skane

Deaths [ edit ]

Pre-1600 [ edit ]

• 274 – Mani , Persian prophet and founder of Manichaeism (b. 216)
• 672 – Chad of Mercia , English bishop and saint (b. 634)
• 968 – William , archbishop of Mainz (b. 929)
• 986 – Lothair , king of West Francia (b. 941)
• 1009 – Mokjong , king of Goryeo (b. 980)
• 1127 – Charles the Good , Count of Flanders (b. 1084) ^[64]
• 1316 – Marjorie Bruce , Scottish daughter of Robert the Bruce (b. 1296)
• 1333 – Wladyslaw I , king of Poland (b. 1261)
• 1589 – Alessandro Farnese , Italian cardinal and diplomat (b. 1520)

1601?1900 [ edit ]

• 1619 – Anne of Denmark , queen of Scotland (b. 1574)
• 1729 – Francesco Bianchini , Italian astronomer and philosopher (b. 1662)
• 1755 – Louis de Rouvroy , French duke and diplomat (b. 1675)
• 1791 – John Wesley , English cleric and theologian (b. 1703)
• 1793 – Carl Gustaf Pilo , Swedish-Danish painter and academic (b. 1711)
• 1797 – Horace Walpole , English historian and politician (b. 1717)
• 1829 – Josefa Ortiz de Dominguez , Mexican revolutionary (b. ca. 1773) ^[65]
• 1830 – Samuel Thomas von Sommerring , German physician, anatomist, and anthropologist (b. 1755)
• 1835 – Francis II , Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1768)
• 1840 – Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers , German physician and astronomer (b. 1758)
• 1855 – Nicholas I , Russian emperor (b. 1796)
• 1864 – Ulric Dahlgren , American colonel (b. 1842)
• 1865 – Carl Sylvius Volkner , German-New Zealand priest and missionary (b. 1819)
• 1880 – John Benjamin Macneill , Irish engineer (b. 1790)
• 1895 – Berthe Morisot , French painter (b. 1841) ^[66]
• 1895 – Isma'il Pasha , Egyptian politician (b. 1830)
• 1896 – Jubal Early , American general (b. 1816)

1901?present [ edit ]

• 1921 – Champ Clark , American lawyer and politician, 41st Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1850)
• 1930 – D. H. Lawrence , English novelist, poet, playwright, and critic (b. 1885)
• 1938 – Ben Harney , American pianist and composer (b. 1871)
• 1939 – Howard Carter , English archaeologist and historian (b. 1874)
• 1943 – Gisela Januszewska , Austrian physician (b.1867) ^[67]
• 1944 – Ida Maclean , British biochemist, the first woman admitted to the London Chemical Society (b. 1877) ^[68]
• 1945 – Emily Carr , Canadian painter and author (b. 1871)
• 1946 – Fidel Palffy , Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of Agriculture (b. 1895)
• 1946 – George E. Stewart , American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1872)
• 1947 – Frans Johan Louwrens Ghijsels , Dutch architect and urban planner (b. 1882)
• 1949 – Sarojini Naidu , Indian poet and activist (b. 1879)
• 1953 – James Lightbody , American runner (b. 1882)
• 1957 – Selim Sırrı Tarcan , Turkish educator and politician (b. 1874)
• 1958 – Fred Merkle , American baseball player and manager (b. 1888)
• 1962 – Charles Jean de la Vallee-Poussin , Belgian mathematician and academic (b. 1866)
• 1967 – Jose Martinez Ruiz , Spanish author and critic (b. 1873)
• 1972 – Leo-Ernest Ouimet , Canadian director and producer (b. 1877) ^[69]
• 1977 – Eugenie Brazier , French chef (b. 1895) ^[70]
• 1979 – Christy Ring , Irish hurler (b. 1920)
• 1982 – Philip K. Dick , American philosopher and author (b. 1928)
• 1987 – Randolph Scott , American actor and director (b. 1898)
• 1987 – Lolo Soetoro , Indonesian geographer and academic (b. 1935)
• 1991 – Serge Gainsbourg , French singer-songwriter, actor, and director (b. 1928)
• 1992 – Sandy Dennis , American actress (b. 1937)
• 1994 – Anita Morris , American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1943)
• 1999 – Dusty Springfield , English singer (b. 1939)
• 2000 – Sandra Schmirler , Canadian curler (b. 1963)
• 2003 – Hank Ballard , American singer-songwriter (b. 1927)
• 2003 – Malcolm Williamson , Australian pianist and composer (b. 1931)
• 2004 – Cormac McAnallen , Irish footballer (b. 1980)
• 2004 – Mercedes McCambridge , American actress (b. 1916) ^[71]
• 2004 – Marge Schott , American businesswoman (b. 1928)
• 2005 – Martin Denny , American pianist and composer (b. 1911)
• 2007 – Thomas S. Kleppe , American soldier and politician, 41st United States Secretary of the Interior (b. 1919)
• 2007 – Clem Labine , American baseball player (b. 1926)
• 2007 – Ivan Safronov , Russian colonel and journalist (b. 1956)
• 2007 – Henri Troyat , Russian-French historian and author (b. 1911)
• 2008 – Jeff Healey , Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1966)
• 2009 – Joao Bernardo Vieira , Bissau-Guinean politician, President of Guinea-Bissau (b. 1939)
• 2010 – Winston Churchill , English journalist and politician (b. 1940)
• 2012 – Lawrence Anthony , South African environmentalist, explorer, and author (b. 1950)
• 2012 – Van T. Barfoot , American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1919)
• 2012 – Norman St John-Stevas , English academic and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (b. 1929)
• 2012 – James Q. Wilson , American political scientist and academic (b. 1931)
• 2013 – Peter Harvey , Australian journalist (b. 1944)
• 2013 – Giorgos Kolokithas , Greek basketball player (b. 1945)
• 2013 – Shabnam Shakeel , Pakistani poet and author (b. 1942)
• 2014 – Ryhor Baradulin , Belarusian poet and translator (b. 1935)
• 2015 – Dean Hess , American minister and colonel (b. 1917)
• 2015 – Dave Mackay , Scottish-English footballer and manager (b. 1934)
• 2015 – Mal Peet , English author and illustrator (b. 1947)
• 2016 – Benoit Lacroix , Canadian priest, historian, and philosopher (b. 1915)
• 2016 – Aubrey McClendon , American businessman (b. 1959)
• 2018 – Billy Herrington , American actor (b. 1969)
• 2018 – Lin Hu , Chinese lieutenant general (b. 1927)
• 2019 – Mike Oliver , British sociologist, disability rights activist (b. 1945) ^[72]

Holidays and observances [ edit ]

• Air Force Day ( Sri Lanka )
• Baloch Culture Day ( Balochistan )
• Christian feast day :
  • Agnes of Bohemia
  • Angela of the Cross
  • Blessed Charles the Good, Count of Flanders
  • Chad of Mercia ( Catholic Church , Anglican Communion , Eastern Orthodox Church )
  • John Maron
  • March 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Feast of 'Ala (Loftiness), First day of the 19th month of the Baha?i calendar ( Baha?i Faith ) and first day of the Baha?i Nineteen Day Fast
• Jamahiriya Day ( Libya )
• National Read Across America Day ( United States ) ^{[73] [74]}
• Peasants' Day ( Myanmar )
• Texas Independence Day
• Adwa Victory Day ( Ethiopia )

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to March 2 .

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times : On This Day
• Historical Events on March 2