Events on Feb 6
- 0337St. Julius I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
- 1189Riots of Lynn in Norfolk spread to Norwich England
- 1508Maximilian I crowned Holy Roman Emperor
- 1577King Henri de Bourbon of Navarra becomes leader of Huguenots
- 1626Huguenot rebels and French sign Peace of La Rochelle
- 1693Royal charter granted College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia
- 1716England and Netherlands renew alliance
- 1778England declares war on France
- 1778France recognizes US, signs treaty of aid in Paris; 1st US treaty
- 1788Mass becomes 6th state to ratify constitution
- 1815New Jersey issues 1st US railroad charter (John Stevens)
- 1819Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles founds freeport harbor Singapore
- 18201st organized emigration of blacks back to Africa (NY to Sierra Leone)
- 1820US population announced at 9,638,453 (1,771,656 blacks (18.4%))
- 18321st appearance of cholera at Edinburgh, Scotland
- 1832US ship destroys Sumatran village in retaliation for piracy
- 1840Waitangi Day; treaty signed between Britain and Maoris of New Zealand
- 1854Composer R Schumann is saved from suicide attempt into the Rhine
- 18611st meeting of Provisional Congress of Confederate States of America
- 1861English Admiral Robert Ritzroy issues 1st storm warnings for ships
- 1862Gen Ulysses S Grant captures Fort Henry in Tennessee
- 1862Naval Engagement at Tenn River-USS Conestago vs. CSS Appleton Belle
- 1862Ulysses S Grant begins military campaign in Mississippi
- 1865Robert E Lee appointed Confederate General in Chief
- 1867Peabody Fund forms to promote Black education in South
- 18911st great train robbery by Dalton Gang (Southern Pacific #17)
- 1899Spanish-American War ends, peace treaty ratified by Senate
- 1900Battle at Vaalkrans, South-Africa (Boers vs. British army)
- 1904Russian-Japanese war began
- 19111st old-age home opened in Prescott, Arizona
Born on Feb 6
- 1461Dzore Drzic: Croatian poet
- 1564Christopher Marlowe: English poet / dramatist (Dr Faustus)
- 1608Antonio Vieira: Portuguese Jesuit preacher
- 1612Antoine Arnauld [Grand Arnauld]: French lawyer / theologist
- 1637Toyotomi Hideyoshi: Unified Japan
- 1665Anne Stuart: Queen of England (1702-14)
- 1673Maximilian Dietrich Freisslich: Composer
- 1695Andre Cheron: Composer
- 1705Johann Matthias Leffloth: Composer
- 1756Aaron Burr: Newark, New Jersey -- 3rd US VP (1801-05), dueler
- 1793Pietro Rovelli: Composer
- 1797Joseph Maria von Radowitz: Prussian Minister of Foreign Affairs
- 1804Ragnerus L van Andringa de Kempenaer: Dutch officer / swindler
- 1807Hans Matthison-Hansen: Composer
- 1818William Maxwell Evarts: (Union), died in 1901
- 1830Marcellus Monroe Crocker: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1865)
- 1832John Brown Gordon: Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1904
- 1833James Ewell Brown "JEB" Stuart: Major General (Confederate Army)
- 1834William Dorsey Pender: Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1863
- 1838Henry Irving [John H Brodribb]: England, United Kingdom -- Knighted 1895 / actor (Hamlet)
- 1848Luigi Mancinelli: Composer
- 1860Johan [Eliza J] de Meester: Dutch journalist / writer (Geertje)
- 1864John Henry Mackay: Scottish / German author / poet (Anarchists)
- 1866Karl T Sapper: German geography / geologist (Vulkankunde)
- 1874Milton Bennett Medary: United States -- Architect (Washington Chapel)
- 1876Wilhelm Schmidtbonn[-Schmidt]: German playwright (Der Sprechende Eros)
- 1878Waclaw Gieburowski: Composer
- 1879Carl Ramsauer
- 1881Karl Weigl: Composer
- 1888Ljudmil Stojanow: Bulgarian poet (Metsh i Slowo, Cholera)
Died on Feb 6
- 0891Photius: Byzantine Theologist / patriarch of Constantinople / saint
- 1140Thurstan: Archbishop of York
- 1497John Ockeghem: Flemish singer / composer, dies at 79
- 1612Christopher Clavius: Calendar reformer
- 1617Prosper Alpinus: Italian Physician / botanist, dies at 63
- 1695Ahmed II: 21st Sultan of Turkey (1691-95)
- 1699Jozef Ferdinand of Bavaria: Heir of Spanish King Carlos II
- 1725Johann Philipp Krieger: Composer, dies at 75
- 1783Lancelot "Capability" Brown: English Architect (Kew), dies at about 67
- 1785Iman Willem Falck: Dutch Governor of Ceylon (1765-83), dies at 48
- 1798Niels Schiorring: Composer, dies at 54
- 1804Joseph Priestley: Engl / US Theologist / philosopher / chemist, dies at 70
- 1807John Reid: Composer, dies at 85
- 1859Johannes Josephus Viotta: Composer, dies at 45
- 1865John Pegram: US Confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at 33
- 1881Pieter Mijer: Governor-General of the Netherlands Indies (1866-72), dies at 68
- 1896Abraham Czn van Stolk: Dutch art collector, dies at 82
- 1897Ebenezer C Brewer: British writer (Dictionary of Phrase & Fable)
- 1899Georg Leo Earl von Caprivi: German chancellor, dies at 67
- 1914J Albert Neuhuys: Dutch Painter (Hague School), dies at 69
- 1916Anne C A I van Diest: Belgian Physician / feminist, dies at 73
- 1917Edouard A Drumont: French anti-semite journalist, dies at 72
- 1918Gustav Klimt: Austrian Painter / cartoonist, dies at 55
- 1919Friedrich W Mengelberg: German Sculptor / painter, dies at 81
- 1923Edward E Barnard: US astronomer (5th moon Jupiter), dies at 65
- 1930Eva Strittmatter: Writer, dies at 17
- 1938Marianne V von Werefkin: Russ / German / Swiss house painter, dies at 77
- 1941Maximilien Luce: French painter, dies at 82
- 1942Wobbe de Vries: Dutch linguist, dies at 78
- 1943HA Seyffardt: Dutch Lieutenant General / NSB "minister", dies at 71
Historical events on February 7
- 1301Edward of Caernarion (later Edward II) becomes 1st Prince of Wales
- 1522Treaty of Brussels: Habsburgers split into Spanish / Austrian Branches
- 1550Giovanni Maria del Monte elected Pope Julius III
- 1569King Philip II forms inquistion in South America
- 1613Michail Romanov (16) becomes Czar of Russia
- 1653Nicolas Fouquet appointed superintendant of Finance of France
- 1668Dutch Prince William III dances in premiere of "Ballet of Peace"
- 1792Austria and Prussia sign anti-French covenant
- 179511th Amendment to US Constitution ratified, affirms power of states
- 1795Dutch Prince William V accepts British occupation of Dutch Indies
- 18128.2 earthquake shakes New Madrid, Missouri
- 1812Lord Byron makes his maiden speech in House of Lords
- 18181st successful US educational magazine "Academician, " begins (NYC)
- 1827Ballet (Deserter) introduced to US at Bowery Theater (NYC)
- 1836"Sketches by Boz" (essays) published by Charles Dickens
- 1839Henry Clay declares in Senate "I had rather be right than President"
- 1862Federal fleet attack on Roanoke Island, North Carolina
- 1864Federal troops occupy Jacksonville, Florida
- 1872Alcorn A&M College opens
- 18771st Guernsey Cattle Club organizes (NYC)
- 1881Battle at Ingogo, Transvaal: Boers beat superior British forces
- 1882Last bare knuckle champion John L Sullivan KOs Paddy Ryan in Mississippi
- 1883Lieutenant Colonel Borgnis-Desbordes founds Fort Bamako Niger
- 1884Canadian Rugby Football Union forms
- 1889Astronomical Society of Pacific holds 1st meeting in San Francisco
- 1891Great Blizzard of 1891 begins
- 1900British troops vacate Vaal Krantz, Natal
- 1900Labour Party forms in England
- 1901Queen Wilhelmina marries Prince Heinrich von Mecklenburg-Schwerin
- 1904Baltimore catches fire (1500 buildings destroyed in 80 blocks)
Born on February 7
- 1478Thomas More: Lawyer / lord chancellor of England / Saint (Utopia)
- 1556Maria van Nassau: Dutch Countess of Buren
- 1589Jacob de Witt: Dutch Mayor (Dordrecht) / mathematician
- 1655Jean-Francois Regnard: French comedy writer (Slave in Algeria)
- 1688Maria Louise van Hessen-Kassel [Marijke Meu]: Princess of Orange
- 1700Philippe Buache: French geographer / cartographer (Contourlijnen)
- 1707Carl August Thielo: Composer
- 1710William Boyce: English Organist / composer of Cathedral music
- 1739Joseph Pouteau: Composer
- 1740Adam-Philippe Custine: French Earl / General / MP
- 1753Rhijnvis Feith: Dutch Mayor / writer (Zwolle / Thirsa)
- 1758Benedikt Emanuel Schack: Composer
- 1801John Rylands: England, United Kingdom -- Merchant / philanthropist
- 1817Leroy Pope Walker: US lawyer / Confederate Minister of War (1861)
- 1822Joaquin y Garbayo Gaztambide: Composer
- 1823Richard Genee: Composer
- 1824William Higgins: Discoverer (nature of spiral nebulae)
- 1825Crystobal Oudrid y Segura: Composer
- 1833Ricardo Palma: Peru -- Writer / poet (Tradiciones Peruanas)
- 1834Dmitri I Mendelejev: Russian chemist (Periodic Table)
- 1837James Augustus Henry Murray: Scotland, United Kingdom -- Created Oxford Dictionary
- 1839Nicolaas G Pierson: Dutch banker / Suriname Premier (1897-1901)
- 1842Alexandre Ribit: Premier (France)
- 1847Ernst Franck: German composer / conductor
- 1862Bernard Maybeck: US architect (Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco)
- 1863Mieczyslaw Soltys: Composer
- 1864Arthur Collins: Singer / comedian (Peerless Quartet)
- 1864Ricardo Castro Herrera: Composer
- 1866Raf[ael] Verhulst [Koen Ravestein]: Flemish writer (Jesus of Nazarus)
- 1867Laura Ingalls Wilder: Wisconsin, United States -- Kid book author (Little House on Prarie)
Died on February 7
- 0590Pelagius II: Gothic Pope (579-90), dies from plague
- 1593Jacques Amyot: French humanist / abbot of Bellozanne, dies at 79
- 1609Ferdinand I: Cardinal / ruler of Toscane
- 1743Lodovico Giustini: Composer, dies at 57
- 1749Andre Cardinal Destouches: Composer, dies at 76
- 1820Samuel Adams Holyoke: Composer, dies at 57
- 1823Ann Radcliffe (Ward): English Poet / Author of horror novels, dies at 58
- 1827Franz Anton Dimmler: Composer, dies at 73
- 1830Marcus Antonio da Fonseca Portugal: Portuguese composer, dies at 67
- 1862Frantisek Jan Skroup: Composer, dies at 61
- 1865John Henry Winder: US Confederate Brigadier General / provost marshal, dies at 64
- 1878Pius IX: "Pio Nono", [Giovanni Ferretti], Pope (1846-78), dies at 85
- 1881Fredrik Cygnaeus: Finnish Poet / literature critic, dies at 73
- 1897Galileo Ferraris: Italian physicist (Ferrari), dies at 49
- 1901Benjamin Edward Woolf: Composer, dies at 64
- 1915Wladyslaw Gorski: Composer, dies at 68
- 1918Alexander Sergeyevich Taneyev: Composer, dies at 68
- 1920Alexander Koltsjak: Admiral / leader Russian counter-revolutionary, executed
- 1921Peter Kropotkin: Russ Prince / geologist / revolut anarchist, dies at 78
- 1931Ion Vidu: Composer, dies at 67
- 1937Elihu Root: US Minister of War / Foreign affairs (Nobel 1912), dies at 91
- 1942Dorando di Desiderio Pietri: Marathoner (1908 Olympics - Gold Medalist), dies at 56
- 1948"Red" McKenzie: Blues-jazz singer (played comb-with-tissue-paper)
- 1954Jan Adam Maklakiewicz: Composer, dies at 54
- 1957Rudolph Reti: Composer, dies at 71
- 1958Walter Kingsford: Actor (My Favorite Blonde, Fly by Night), dies at 76
- 1959Daniel F Malan: Premier of South Africa (1948-54), dies at 84
- 1959Napoleon Lajorie: Baseball player, dies at 83
- 1959Slim [Eddie Jones] Guitar: Rocker, dies at 32
- 1960Igor V Kurtshatov: Russian nuclear physicist, dies at 57
Events on Feb 8
- 0421Flavius Constantine becomes Emperor Constantine III of West Roman Empire
- 1526Heavy storm strikes Dutch coast, many die
- 1575University of Leiden Neth opens
- 1600Vatican convicts Scholar Giordano Bruno to death
- 1601Earl Robert Devereux of Essex armies draws into London
- 1622King James I disbands the English parliament
- 1672Isaac Newton reads 1st optics paper before Royal Society in London
- 1690French and Indian troops set Schenectady settlement New York on fire
- 1690Lord Halifax resigns as Lord Privy Seal
- 1693William and Mary college is 2nd college chartered in US
- 17351st opera in US "Flora, " opens in Charleston, South Carolina
- 1743Comet C / 1743 C1 approaches within 0.0390 AUs of Earth
- 1744French / Spanish fleet leaves Toulon
- 1750Minor earthquake in London
- 1775Leidse U 400th anniversary dinner
- 1802Simon Willard patents banjo clock
- 1807Napoleon defeats Russians in battle of Eylau
- 1809Franz I of Austria declares war on France
- 18371st VP chosen by Senate, Richard Johnson (Van Buren admin)
- 1861Confederate States of America organizes in Montgomery, Ala
- 1862Battle of Roanoke Island NC, Federals gain control of Pamlico Sound
- 1862Opera "Lily of Killarney, " premieres in London
- 18651st black Major in US army, Martin Robinson Delany
- 1883Louis Waterman begins experiments to invents fountain pen
- 1887Aurora Ski Club of Red Wing, Minn became the 1st US ski club
- 1887Dawes Act passed (indians living apart from tribe granted citizenship)
- 1889Flood ravages Dutch coast
- 1894Enforcement Act repealed, making it easier to disenfranchise blacks
- 1896Western Conference forms of Midwestern University, later renamed Big 10 Conf
- 1898John Ames Sherman patents 1st envelope folding and gumming mach (Mass)
Born on Feb 8
- 0412St Proclus: Patriarch of Constantinople
- 1291Afonso IV: King of Portugal (1325-57)
- 1577Robert Burton: Writer, Anglican clergyman (Anatomy of Melancholy)
- 1586Jacob Praetorius: Composer
- 1612Samuel Butler: England, United Kingdom -- Poet / satirist (Hudibras)
- 1708Vaclav Jan Kopriva: Composer
- 1741Andre-Ernest-Modeste Gretry: Composer
- 1764Joseph Leopold von Eybler: Austrian composer
- 1789Ludwig Wilhelm Maurer: Composer
- 1795Friedlieb F Runge: German chemist (Chinoline)
- 1795Moritz G [Moses] Saphir: Hungarian journalist / serial writer
- 1807Franciscus J van Vree: Dutch Catholic foreman
- 1810Norbert Burgmuller: Composer
- 1811Edwin Denison Morgan: Confederate States Secretary of War, died in 1883
- 1813Jacob G Agarah: Swedish algologist
- 1817Richard Stoddert Ewell: Lieutenant General (Confederate Army), died in 1872
- 1818Austin Blair: Gov / MC (Union), died in 1894
- 1819John Ruskin: Writer / critic / artist / Gothic Revivalist (Prerafaelite)
- 1820William Tecumseh Sherman: Major General (Union Army), died in 1891
- 1822Maxime Du Camp: France -- Writer / traveler (Les Buveurs de Cendres)
- 1824Barnard Elliot Bee: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1861
- 1828Antonio Cagnoni: Composer
- 1876Paula Modersohn-Becker: German "entartet" painter
- 1878Martin Buber: German / Israeli philosopher / theologist (Ich und Du)
- 1880Franz Marc: German painter (Blaue Reiter)
- 1882George Siegmann: Actor (Birth of Nation, Queen of Sheba, Oliver Twist)
- 1883Joseph A Schumpeter: Austria -- Economist / Minister of finance
- 1885Edith Evans: London, England -- Actress (Tom Jones, David Copperfield)
- 1886Charlie Ruggles: Los Angeles, California -- Actor (Ruggles, Aesop-Bullwinkle Show)
- 1888Matthijs Vermeulen: Dutch composer / music critic
Died on Feb 8
- 1124Stefanus of Thiers / Muret: Founder of order of Grammond / saint
- 1245Johannes de Rupella / de la Rochelle: French theologist
- 1303Nanshu: Zen teacher (Rinzai line) / founder (Zounan temple)
- 1513Alonso de Ojeda: Spanish explorer (Curacao & Bonaire)
- 1611Jan H Van Linschoten: Traveller / writer (Reys-Gheschrift)
- 1650John Adriaensz: Hydraulic engineer (Haarlemmermeer), dies at about 74
- 1676Aleksei M Romanov: 1st Romanov-Czar of Russia, dies at 46
- 1686Francois Tak: Dutch diplomat on Java, murdered
- 1691Carlo di Girolamo Rainaldi: Italian Architect / composer, dies at 79
- 1691Carlo Rainaldi: Composer, dies at 79
- 1709Giuseppi Torelli: Italian composer, dies at 50
- 1725Peter I "the Great" Romanov: Czar of Russia (1682-1725), dies at 52
- 1740Clement XII [Lorenzo Corsini]: Blind Pope (1730-40), dies at 87
- 1749Jan van Huysum: Dutch still life painter, dies at 66
- 1771Augusta von Saxen-Gotha: German Prince Frederick Louis of Wales
- 1797Johann Friedrich Doles: Composer, dies at 81
- 1801Johann Chrysostomus Drexel: Composer, dies at 43
- 1821Paul Anton Wineberger: Composer, dies at 62
- 1824Rhijnvis Feith: Dutch mayor / writer (Zwolle, Julia), dies at 71
- 1849France Preseren: Slovenian Poet (Sonetni Venec), dies at 48
- 1849Francois-Antoine Habeneck: Composer, dies at 68
- 1874David F Strauss: German theologist, dies at 66
- 1878Elias M Fries: Swedish Botanist (mycologicum), dies at 83
- 1884Arnold Henry Guyot: Swiss / US geologist / meteorologist, dies at 76
- 1907Hendrik W Bakhuis Roozeboom: Chemist (fasenleer), dies at 52
- 1909Edouard Silas: Composer, dies at 80
- 1909Mieczyslaw Karlowicz: Composer, dies at 32
- 1920Richard Dehmel: Writer, dies at 56
- 1921Pjotr A Kropotkin: Russian ruler / anarchist, dies at 78
- 1924Gee John: US mobster (1st executed in gas chamber-Nevada)