What are the important events that happened on February 24? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
February 24: Facts & Myths About This Day
February 24 is the 55th day of the year 2020 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 311 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Monday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is February 11, 2020 – a Monday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 1,582,502,400 seconds 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 ‘pentacontapentagon’ 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 354 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 2,621 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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February 24: This Day In History
By Roman custom, February 24 is the day added to a leap year in the Julian calendar. The Mensis Intercalaris began on this day or the following day in intercalary years in the pre-Julian calendar. This custom still has some effect around the world; for example, with respect to name days in Hungary.
February 24 Historical Events
- 1387 –King Charles III of Naples and Hungary is assassinated at Buda.
- 1711 –The London première of Rinaldo by George Frideric Handel, the first Italian opera written for the London stage.
- 1848 –King Louis-Philippe of France abdicates the throne.
- 1875 –The SS Gothenburg hits the Great Barrier Reef and sinks off the Australian east coast, killing approximately 100, including a number of high profile civil servants and dignitaries.
- 1895 –Revolution breaks out in Baire, a town near Santiago de Cuba, beginning the second war for Cuban independence, that ends with the Spanish-American War in 1898.
- 1917 –World War I: The U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom is given the Zimmermann Telegram, in which Germany pledges to ensure the return of New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona to Mexico if Mexico declares war on the United States.
- 1920 –The Nazi Party is founded.
- 1942 –The Battle of Los Angeles, one of the largest documented UFO sightings in history; the event lasted into the early hours of February 26, 1942.
- 2006 –Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declares Proclamation 1017 placing the country in a state of emergency in attempt to subdue a possible military coup.
- 2007 –Japan launches its fourth spy satellite, stepping up its ability to monitor potential threats such as North Korea.
Who were born on February 24?
- 1619 –Charles Le Brun, French artist (d. 1690)
- 1927 –Emmanuelle Riva, French actress
- 1950 –Steve McCurry, American photojournalist
- 1956 –Eddie Murray, American baseball player
- 1963 –Mike Vernon, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1965 –Lloyd McGrath, former English footballer
- 1966 –Ben Miller, English comedian, director and actor
- 1970 –Jeff Garcia, American football player
- 1974 –Bonnie Somerville, American actress and singer
- 1987 –Kim Kyu Jong, Korean singer (SS501)
Who died on February 24?
- 1666 –Nicholas Lanier, English composer (b. 1588)
- 1721 –John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby, English statesman and poet (b. 1648)
- 1879 –Shiranui Kōemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 11th Yokozuna (b. 1825)
- 1975 –Nikolai Bulganin, Premier of the Soviet Union (b. 1895)
- 1982 –Virginia Bruce, American actress and singer (b. 1910)
- 1984 –Helmut Schelsky, German sociologist (b. 1912)
- 1991 –Webb Pierce, American music singer (b. 1921)
- 1999 –Andre Dubus, American writer (b. 1936)
- 2002 –Arthur Lyman, American jazz vibraphone and marimba player (b. 1932)
- 2002 –Leo Ornstein, Russian-born composer and pianist (b. 1912)
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