# What happened on March 20 in history?

**Date:** March 20  
**Events recorded:** 48  
**Years spanned:** 1206 – 2021  
**Full page:** https://thisday.info/events/march/20/

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## Featured Event

**2015** — Syrian civil war: The Siege of Kobanî is broken by the People's Protection Units (YPG) and Free Syrian Army (FSA), marking a turning point in the Rojava–Islamist conflict.

[Read more on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_civil_war)

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## Events on this date

- **1206** — Michael IV Autoreianos is appointed Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_IV_of_Constantinople))
- **1600** — The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden: five Swedish noblemen are publicly beheaded in the aftermath of the War against Sigismund (1598–1599). ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Link%C3%B6ping_Bloodbath))
- **1602** — The Dutch East India Company is established. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_East_India_Company))
- **1616** — Sir Walter Raleigh is freed from the Tower of London after 13 years of imprisonment. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Raleigh))
- **1760** — The Great Boston Fire of 1760 destroys 349 buildings. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Boston_Fire_of_1760))
- **1815** — After escaping from Elba, Napoleon enters Paris with a regular army of 140,000 and a volunteer force of around 200,000, beginning his "Hundred Days" rule. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elba))
- **1848** — German revolutions of 1848–49: King Ludwig I of Bavaria abdicates. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_revolutions_of_1848%E2%80%931849))
- **1852** — Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin is published. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_Beecher_Stowe))
- **1854** — The Republican Party of the United States is organized in Ripon, Wisconsin, US. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States)))
- **1861** — An earthquake destroys Mendoza, Argentina. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1861_Mendoza_earthquake))
- **1883** — The Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property is signed. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Convention_for_the_Protection_of_Industrial_Property))
- **1888** — The premiere of the very first Romani language operetta is staged in Moscow, Russia. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romen_Theatre))
- **1890** — Chancellor of the German Empire Otto von Bismarck is dismissed by Emperor Wilhelm II. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck))
- **1896** — With the approval of Emperor Guangxu, the Qing dynasty post office is opened, marking the beginning of a postal service in China. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guangxu_Emperor))
- **1903** — The first of a series of auctions of sheep farming land in southern Patagonia takes place impacting established settlers. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagonian_sheep_farming_boom))
- **1913** — Sung Chiao-jen, a founder of the Chinese Nationalist Party, is wounded in an assassination attempt and dies 2 days later. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Jiaoren))
- **1914** — In the Curragh incident, over 100 British Army officers threaten to resign if ordered to march against the Ulster Volunteers. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curragh_incident))
- **1916** — Albert Einstein submits his paper, "The Foundation of the General Theory of Relativity", which establishes his general theory of relativity, to the journal Annalen der Physik. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein))
- **1921** — The Upper Silesia plebiscite, mandated by the Versailles Treaty to determine a section of the border between Weimar Germany and Poland, is held. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1921_Upper_Silesia_plebiscite))
- **1922** — The USS Langley is commissioned as the first United States Navy aircraft carrier. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Langley_(CV-1)))
- **1923** — The Arts Club of Chicago hosts the opening of Pablo Picasso's first United States showing, entitled Original Drawings by Pablo Picasso, becoming an early proponent of modern art in the United States. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arts_Club_of_Chicago))
- **1926** — Chiang Kai-shek initiates a purge of communist elements within the National Revolutionary Army in Guangzhou. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiang_Kai-shek))
- **1933** — Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler orders the creation of Dachau concentration camp as Chief of Police of Munich and appoints Theodor Eicke as the camp commandant. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinrich_Himmler))
- **1942** — World War II: General Douglas MacArthur, at Terowie, South Australia, makes his famous speech regarding the fall of the Philippines, in which he says: "I came out of Bataan and I shall return". ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II))
- **1948** — With a Musicians Union ban lifted, the first telecasts of classical music in the United States, under Eugene Ormandy and Arturo Toscanini, are given on CBS and NBC. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Federation_of_Musicians))
- **1951** — Fujiyoshida, a city located in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, in the center of the Japanese main island of Honshū is founded. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujiyoshida))
- **1952** — The US Senate ratifies the Security Treaty between the United States and Japan. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Security_Treaty_between_the_United_States_and_Japan))
- **1956** — Tunisia gains independence from France. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunisia))
- **1964** — The precursor of the European Space Agency, ESRO (European Space Research Organisation) is established per an agreement signed on June 14, 1962. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Space_Agency))
- **1969** — A United Arab Airlines (now Egyptair) Ilyushin Il-18 crashes at Aswan International Airport, killing 100 people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EgyptAir))
- **1972** — The Troubles: The first car bombing by the Provisional IRA in Belfast kills seven people and injures 148 others in Northern Ireland. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles))
- **1985** — Libby Riddles becomes the first woman to win the 1,135-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libby_Riddles))
- **1987** — The Food and Drug Administration approves the anti-AIDS drug, AZT. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_and_Drug_Administration))
- **1988** — Eritrean War of Independence: Having defeated the Nadew Command, the Eritrean People's Liberation Front enters the town of Afabet, victoriously concluding the Battle of Afabet. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eritrean_War_of_Independence))
- **1990** — Ferdinand Marcos's widow, Imelda Marcos, goes on trial for bribery, embezzlement, and racketeering. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Marcos))
- **1993** — The Troubles: A Provisional IRA bomb kills two children in Warrington, England. It leads to mass protests in both Britain and Ireland. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles))
- **1995** — The Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo carries out a sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway, killing 14 and wounding over 6,200 people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo))
- **1999** — Legoland California, the first Legoland outside of Europe, opens in Carlsbad, California, US. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legoland_California))
- **2000** — Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, a former Black Panther once known as H. Rap Brown, is captured after murdering Georgia sheriff's deputy Ricky Kinchen and critically wounding Deputy Aldranon English. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Panther_Party))
- **2003** — Iraq War: The United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Poland begin an invasion of Iraq. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq_War))
- **2006** — Over 150 Chadian soldiers are killed in eastern Chad by members of the rebel UFDC. The rebel movement sought to overthrow Chadian president Idriss Déby. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chadian_National_Army))
- **2010** — Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland begins eruptions that would last for three months, heavily disrupting air travel in Europe. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eyjafjallaj%C3%B6kull))
- **2012** — At least 52 people are killed and more than 250 injured in a wave of terror attacks across ten cities in Iraq. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20_March_2012_Iraq_attacks))
- **2014** — Four suspected Taliban members attack the Kabul Serena Hotel, killing at least nine people. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taliban))
- **2015** — A solar eclipse, equinox, and a supermoon all occur on the same day. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_eclipse_of_March_20%2C_2015))
- **2015** — Syrian civil war: The Siege of Kobanî is broken by the People's Protection Units (YPG) and Free Syrian Army (FSA), marking a turning point in the Rojava–Islamist conflict. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrian_civil_war))
- **2019** — Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is sworn in as acting president of Kazakhstan, following the resignation of long-time president Nursultan Nazarbayev. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kassym-Jomart_Tokayev))
- **2021** — La Plume noire, an anarchist bookstore in Lyon, is targeted by an attack of the far-right, provoking a shock in Lyon's far-left circles. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Plume_noire))

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## Notable births on March 20

- **2004** — **Belle** — American singer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belle_(singer)))
- **2003** — **Cooper Hoffman** — American actor ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooper_Hoffman))
- **2002** — **Jahmyr Gibbs** — American football player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jahmyr_Gibbs))
- **2001** — **Trevor Zegras** — American ice hockey player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trevor_Zegras))
- **2000** — **Hyunjin** — South Korean rapper ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyunjin_(Stray_Kids_singer)))
- **1995** — **Kei** — South Korean singer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kei_(singer)))
- **1995** — **Nick Paul** — Canadian ice hockey player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Paul))
- **1993** — **Fabian Fahl** — German politician ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabian_Fahl))
- **1993** — **JaKarr Sampson** — American basketball player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JaKarr_Sampson))
- **1992** — **Justin Faulk** — American ice hockey player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Faulk))

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## Notable deaths on March 20

- **2026** — **Nicholas Brendon** — American actor (born 1971) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Brendon))
- **2026** — **Filaret Denysenko** — Ukrainian religious leader, Patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate (born 1929) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filaret_Denysenko))
- **2026** — **Robert Mueller** — American attorney, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (born 1944) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mueller))
- **2025** — **Eddie Jordan** — Irish businessman, television personality and motorsport team owner (born 1948) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Jordan))
- **2023** — **John Sattler** — Australian rugby league player (born 1942) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sattler))
- **2023** — **Kyle White** — Australian rugby league player (born 1970) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyle_White_(rugby_league)))
- **2020** — **Amadeo Carrizo** — Argentine footballer (born 1926) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amadeo_Carrizo))
- **2020** — **Kenny Rogers** — American singer (born 1938) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Rogers))
- **2019** — **Mary Warnock** — English philosopher and writer (born 1924) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Warnock%2C_Baroness_Warnock))
- **2018** — **C. K. Mann** — Ghanaian Highlife musician and producer (born 1936) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._K._Mann))

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## About this page

This is a machine-readable Markdown summary of [thisday.info/events/march/20/](https://thisday.info/events/march/20/).  
Historical data is sourced from [Wikipedia/Wikimedia](https://www.wikipedia.org) under [CC BY-SA](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).  
Editorial framing and site content © thisday.info.