What are the important events that happened on February 26? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
February 26: Facts & Myths About This Day
February 26 is the 57th day of the year 2017 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 308 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is February 13, 2017 – a Sunday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 413,352 hours has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘pentacontaheptagon’ day.
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Pisces is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Amethyst is the modern birthstone for this month. Bloodstone is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 358 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 1,528 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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February 26 Historical Events
- 1876 –Japan and Korea sign a treaty granting Japanese citizens extraterritoriality rights, opening three ports to Japanese trade, and ending Korea’s status as a tributary state of Qing Dynasty China.
- 1909 –Kinemacolor, the first successful color motion picture process, is first shown to the general public at the Palace Theatre in London.
- 1919 –President Woodrow Wilson signs an act of the U.S. Congress establishing most of the Grand Canyon as a United States National Park (see Grand Canyon National Park).
- 1936 –In the February 26 Incident, young Japanese military officers attempt to stage a coup against the government.
- 1952 –Vincent Massey is sworn in as the first Canadian-born Governor-General of Canada.
- 1966 –Vietnam War: The ROK Capital Division of the South Korean Army massacres 380 unarmed civilians in South Vietnam.
- 1971 –U.N. Secretary General U Thant signs United Nations proclamation of the vernal equinox as Earth Day.
- 1980 –Egypt and Israel establish full diplomatic relations.
- 1987 –Iran-Contra affair: The Tower Commission rebukes President Ronald Reagan for not controlling his national security staff.
- 1995 –The United Kingdom’s oldest investment banking institute, Barings Bank, collapses after a securities broker, Nick Leeson, loses $1.4 billion by speculating on the Singapore International Monetary Exchange using futures contracts.
Who were born on February 26?
- 1896 –Andrei Alexandrovich Zhdanov, Soviet politician and art ideologist (d. 1948)
- 1903 –Orde Charles Wingate, British Major-General, prominent Zionist, eccentric (d. 1944)
- 1906 –Madeleine Carroll, English actress (d. 1987)
- 1912 –Dane Clark, American actor (d. 1998)
- 1921 –Betty Hutton, American actress and singer (d. 2007)
- 1945 –Bob Hite, American singer and harmonicist (Canned Heat) (d. 1981)
- 1977 –Greg Rikaart, American actor
- 1977 –Shane Williams, Welsh rugby player
- 1979 –Shalim Ortiz, Puerto Rican singer and actor
- 1982 –Song Hye Kyo, South Korean model and actress
Who died on February 26?
- 1561 –Jorge de Montemayor, Spanish writer
- 1802 –Esek Hopkins, American Revolutionary War admiral (b. 1718)
- 1821 –Joseph de Maistre, Savoyard diplomat and writer (b. 1753)
- 1864 –Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, Canadian politician (b. 1807)
- 1883 –Alexandros Koumoundouros, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1817)
- 1889 –Karl Davydov, Russian cellist (b. 1838)
- 1913 –Felix Draeseke, German composer (b. 1835)
- 1981 –Robert Aickman, English writer and conservationist (b. 1914)
- 2004 –Shankarrao Chavan, Indian politician (b. 1920)
- 2011 –James A. McClure, American politician (b. 1924)
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