Historical events on March 23
MARCH 23, 1989
Two researchers announced the discovery of cold fusion, a claim that was later discredited.
Cold fusion is a hypothesized type of nuclear reaction that would occur at, or near, room temperature. It would contrast starkly with
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MARCH 23, 2005
A fire and explosion at an oil refinery in Texas City, the third-largest in the United States, killed 15 workers.
in 2005, a hydrocarbon vapor cloud ignited and violently exploded at the isomerization process unit of the BP-owned oil refinery in Texas
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MARCH 23, 1888
Chaired by William McGregor, a meeting of ten English football clubs was held in London, eventually resulting in the establishment of the Football League.
William McGregor was a Scottish association football administrator in the Victorian era who was the founder of the Football League, the first
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MARCH 23, 1908
American diplomat Durham Stevens, an employee of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was fatally shot in San Francisco by two Korean immigrants unhappy with his support of increased Japanese presence in Korea.
Durham White Stevens was an American diplomat and later an employee of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, working for the Japanese colonial
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MARCH 23, 1848
The Italian tricolour is adopted for the flag of the Kingdom of Sardinia by Charles Albert of Sardinia during the First Italian War of Independence.
The flag of Italy, often referred to as The Tricolour, is a flag featuring three equally sized vertical pales of green, white
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MARCH 23, 1839
An earthquake struck central Burma, causing significant damage and killing an estimated 300 to 400 people.
The 1839 Ava earthquake, also known as the Amarapura earthquake or Inwa earthquake, was a disastrous seismic event that struck present-day central
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MARCH 23, 1931
Bhagat Singh (pictured), one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Indian independence movement, and two others were executed by the British authorities for their murder of a police officer.
Bhagat Singh was an Indian anti-colonial revolutionary who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer in December 1928
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MARCH 23, 1933
The Nazi Party took the first step in the Gleichschaltung process by having the Enabling Act passed, giving the government the right to make laws without the involvement of the Reichstag.
The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party, was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945
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MARCH 23, 1905
About 1,500 Cretans, led by Eleftherios Venizelos, met at the village of Theriso to call for the island's unification with Greece, beginning the Theriso revolt.
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest
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MARCH 23, 1994
Aeroflot Flight 593 crashed into a hillside in Russia's Kemerovo Oblast, killing all 75 people on board, after the pilot's 15-year-old son unknowingly disabled the autopilot while seated at the controls.
Aeroflot Flight 593 was a passenger flight from Sheremetyevo International Airport, Moscow, Russia, to Kai Tak Airport in Hong Kong. On 23
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MARCH 23, 1993
The demolition of Kowloon Walled City (pictured), a densely crowded slum in Hong Kong, began.
Kowloon Walled City was an extremely densely populated and largely lawless enclave of China within the boundaries of Kowloon City of former
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MARCH 23, 1919
Benito Mussolini and his supporters founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento, the predecessor of the National Fascist Party.
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist
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MARCH 23, 1775
American Revolution: Patrick Henry made his "Give me liberty or give me death!" speech to the House of Burgesses of Virginia, urging military action against the British Empire.
The American Revolution (1765–1783) was an ideological and political movement in the Thirteen Colonies in what was then British America. The revolution
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MARCH 23, 1400
After 175 years of rule, the Trần dynasty of Vietnam was deposed by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official.
The Trần dynasty,, officially Đại Việt, was a Vietnamese dynasty that ruled from 1225 to 1400. The dynasty was founded when emperor
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MARCH 23, 1862
American Civil War: General Stonewall Jackson of the Confederate States Army lost the First Battle of Kernstown, but was still able to prevent the Union Army from reinforcing the Peninsula campaign.
The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States between the Union and the Confederacy, which was formed in
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MARCH 23, 1977
British journalist David Frost began a series of interviews with former U.S. president Richard Nixon, starting with the Watergate scandal.
Sir David Paradine Frost was an English television host, journalist, comedian and writer. He rose to prominence during the satire boom in
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MARCH 23, 1996
Lee Teng-hui (pictured) was elected President of the Republic of China in the first direct presidential election in Taiwan.
Lee Teng-hui was a Taiwanese politician and agricultural scientist who served as the fourth president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) under
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MARCH 23, 1991
The Sierra Leone Civil War began with the invasion of the Revolutionary United Front, with support from the special forces of Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia, in an attempt to overthrow President Joseph Saidu Momoh.
The Sierra Leonean Civil War (1991–2002) was a civil war in Sierra Leone that began on 23 March 1991 when the Revolutionary
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