Major Events
- 1173 Pope Alexander III canonizes Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury
- 1613 Michael Romanov, son of the Patriarch of Moscow, is elected the first Russian Tsar of the House of Romanov
- 1804 The world’s first steam locomotive, built by Richard Trevithick, runs for the first time along the tramway of the Penydarren Ironworks in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales
- 1916 Battle of Verdun begins with a German offensive, leads to an estimated 1 million casualties, and becomes the longest battle of the entire war (9 months)
- 1922 Britain declares Egypt a sovereign state
- 1972 Richard Nixon becomes the first US President to visit China, normalizing relations between the countries in a meeting with Chinese leader Mao Zedong in Beijing
- More February 21 Events
Feb 21 in Film & TV
- 1990 "The Batman Theme" by Danny Elfman wins Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition at 32nd Annual Grammy Awards
- 2003 Bill Maher's political talk show "Real Time with Bill Maher" debuts on HBO
Feb 21 in Sport
- 1931 Chicago White Sox & NY Giants play 1st exhibition night game
Did You Know?
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish "The Communist Manifesto" in London
Peter III
Santa Anna
Robert Mugabe
Hubert de Givenchy
John Lewis
Scott Kelly
Alan Rickman
Kelsey Grammer
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Elliot Page
Nina Simone
Fun Fact About February 21
Telegraph manager George Coy of New Haven, Connecticut issues world's 1st telephone directory issued; single page contains info for 50 subscribers
Famous Weddings
- 1807 US President Martin Van Buren (24) weds high school sweetheart Hannah Hoes (23) in Catskill, New York
- 1952 English-American actress Elizabeth Taylor (19) marries for the 2nd time to English actor Michael Wilding (39); divorce in 1957
- 1954 American actor Leonard Nimoy (22) weds American actress Sandra Zober; divorce in1987
More February 21 Weddings
James I
Julius II
Frederick Banting
Anne Frank
Malcolm X
Tim HortonArticles, Photos and Quiz
Nixon Meets Mao
Richard Nixon meets Chairman Mao in Beijing
February 21, 1972
Laykyun Sekkya
The Laykyun Sekkya Buddha, Myanmar
February 21, 2018
Billy Graham, The Peerless Preacher
Billy Graham, one of the most influential Christian leaders of the 20th century and friend to a line of presidents including Obama and Bush, died on this day.
February 21, 2018
