Today in History – September 25 in History
What happened on this day in history – September 25 in History around the world
1396 | The last great Christian crusade, led jointly by John the Fearless of Nevers and King Sigismund of Hungary, ends in disaster at the hands of Sultan Bajazet I’s Ottoman army at Nicopolis. | |
1598 | In Sweden, King Sigismund is defeated at Stangebro by his Uncle Charles. | |
1775 | British troops capture Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticonderoga, when he and a handful of Americans try to invade Canada. | |
1789 | Congress proposes 12 new amendments to the Constitution. | |
1804 | The 12th Amendment is ratified, changing the procedure of choosing the president and vice-president. | |
1846 | American General Zachary Taylor’s forces capture Monterey, Mexico. | |
1909 | The first National Aeronautic Show opens at Madison Square Garden. | |
1915 | An allied offensive is launched in France against the German Army. | |
1918 | Brazil declares war on Austria. | |
1937 | German Chancellor Adolf Hitler meets with Italian Premier Benito Mussolini in Munich. | |
1938 | President Franklin Roosevelt urges negotiations between Hitler and Czech President Benes over the Sudetenland. | |
1942 | The War Labor Board orders equal pay for women in the United States. | |
1943 | The Red Army retakes Smolensk from the Germans who are retreating to the Dnieper River in the Soviet Union. | |
1959 | President Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Khrushchev begin Camp David talks. | |
1974 | Scientists warn that continued use of aerosol sprays will cause ozone depletion, which will lead to an increased risk of skin cancer and global weather changes. | |
1981 | Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice, is sworn in. | |
1983 | Maze Prison escape, County Antrim, Northern Ireland; 38 IRA prisoners escape in the largest prison breakout in British history; known among Irish republicans as the Great Escape. | |
1992 | NASA launches Mars Observer probe; it failed 11 months later. | |
1996 | Ireland’s last Magdalene laundry closes; begun as asylums to rehabilitate “fallen women,” they increasingly took on prison-like qualities. | |
2008 | China launches Shenzhou 7 spacecraft; crew performs China’s first extra-vehicular activity (EVA). | |
2009 | US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy jointly accuse Iran of building a secrecy nuclear enrichment facility. | |
Born on September 25 | ||
1847 | Vinnie Ream, who sculpted President Abraham Lincoln from life shortly before he was assassinated. | |
1897 | William Faulkner, Nobel Prize-winning writer (The Sound and the Fury, Absalom, Absalom!). | |
1906 | Dimitri Shostakovich, Russian composer. | |
1931 | Barbara Walters, television news personality and interviewer. | |
1932 | Glenn Gould, concert pianist best known for his Bach interpretations. | |
1932 | Adolfo Suarez Gonzalez, 1st Duke of Suarez, Grandee of Spain, Spain’s first democratically elected prime minister following Francisco Franco’s dictatorship. | |
1933 | Ian Tyson, singer, songwriter, guitarist, producer; performed with Ian & Sylvia and Great Speckled Bird. | |
1936 | Juliet Prowse, dancer whose career spanned four decades and included work in stage, film and TV productions; (Can-Can; G.I Blues; Mona McCluskey TV series). | |
1943 | Robert Gates, director of CIA under Pres. George H.W. Bush; Secretary of Defense (2006-11). | |
1944 | Michael Douglas, actor, producer; his numerous awards include two Academy Awards (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Wall Street), four Golden Globes and the Cecil B. DeMille Award. | |
1951 | Mark Hamill actor, voice actor, producer, director, writer (Luke Skywalker in Star Wars; voice of the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series). | |
1956 | Kim Thompson, editor, publisher; co-founder of Fantagraphics Books. | |
1961 | Heather Locklear, actress (Dynasty, Melrose Place, Spin City TV series). | |
1964 | Maria Doyle Kennedy, actress (The Tudors), composer, singer, songwriter, musician. | |
1965 | Scottie Pippen, pro basketball player (Chicago Bulls), played important role in Bull’s record 72-win season (1995-96). | |
1968 | Will Smith, rapper (known as The Fresh Prince, “Getting’ Jiggy Wit It”), actor, producer; awards include four Grammys. | |
1969 | Catherine Zeta-Jones, actress (The Darling Buds of May British TV series) won Academy Award and BAFTA Award for her role in Chicago. |