21 October

Events

Pre-1600

*1096 – A Seljuk Turkish army successfully fights off the People's Crusade at the Battle of Civetot.
* 1097 – First Crusade: Crusaders led by Godfrey of Bouillon, Bohemund of Taranto, and Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse, begin the Siege of Antioch.
* 1392 – Japanese Emperor Go-Kameyama abdicates in favor of rival claimant Go-Komatsu.
*1512 – Martin Luther joins the theological faculty of the University of Wittenberg.
* 1520 – João Álvares Fagundes discovers the islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, bestowing them their original name of "Islands of the 11,000 Virgins".
*1600 – Tokugawa Ieyasu defeats the leaders of rival Japanese clans in the Battle of Sekigahara and becomes shōgun of Japan.

1601–1900

* 1774 – The flag of Taunton, Massachusetts is the first to include the word "Liberty".
* 1797 – In Boston Harbor, the 44-gun United States Navy frigate is launched.
*1805 – Napoleonic Wars: A British fleet led by Lord Nelson defeats a combined French and Spanish fleet under Admiral Villeneuve in the Battle of Trafalgar.
*1824 – Portland cement is patented.
*1854 – Florence Nightingale and a staff of 38 nurses are sent to the Crimean War.
* 1861 – American Civil War: Union forces under Colonel Edward Baker are defeated by Confederate troops in the second major battle of the war.
*1867 – The Medicine Lodge Treaty is signed by southern Great Plains Indian leaders. The treaty requires Native American Plains tribes to relocate to a reservation in the western Indian Territory.
*1879 – Thomas Edison applies for a patent for his design for an incandescent light bulb.
* 1888 – The Swiss Social Democratic Party is founded.
*1892 – Opening ceremonies for the World's Columbian Exposition are held in Chicago, though because construction was behind schedule, the exposition did not open until May 1, 1893.
*1895 – The capitulation of Tainan completes the Japanese conquest of Taiwan.

1901–present

*1907 – The 1907 Qaratog earthquake hits the borders of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, killing between 12,000 and 15,000 people.
*1910 – arrives in Halifax Harbour to become the first ship of the Royal Canadian Navy.
*1912 – First Balkan War: The Greek navy completes the capture of the island of Lemnos for use as a forward base against the Dardanelles.
*1921 – President Warren G. Harding delivers the first speech by a sitting U.S. president against lynching in the Deep South.
*1931 – A secret society in the Imperial Japanese Army launches an abortive coup d'état attempt.
*1940 – The first edition of the Ernest Hemingway novel ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is published.
*1941 – World War II: The Kragujevac massacre against Serbian men and boys takes place.
*1943 – World War II: The Provisional Government of Free India is formally established in Japanese-occupied Singapore.
*1944 – World War II: The first kamikaze attack damages as the Battle of Leyte Gulf begins.
* 1944 – World War II: The Nemmersdorf massacre against German civilians takes place.
* 1944 – World War II: The city of Aachen falls to American forces after three weeks of fighting, the first German city to fall to the Allies.
*1945 – In the 1945 French legislative election French women vote for the first time.
*1950 – Korean War: Heavy fighting begins between British and Australian forces and North Koreans during the Battle of Yongju.
*1956 – The Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya is defeated.
*1959 – In New York City, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum opens to the public.
* 1959 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower approves the transfer of all US Army space-related activities to NASA, including most of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency.
*1965 – Comet Ikeya–Seki approaches perihelion, passing 450,000 kilometers (279,617 miles) from the sun.
*1966 – A colliery spoil tip slips onto houses and a school in the village of Aberfan in Wales, killing 144 people, 116 of whom were schoolchildren.
*1967 – The National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam organizes a march of fifty thousand people from the Lincoln Memorial to the Pentagon.
*1969 – The 1969 Somali coup d'état establishes a Marxist–Leninist administration.
*1971 – A gas explosion kills 22 people at a shopping centre near Glasgow, Scotland.
*1973 – Fred Dryer of the Los Angeles Rams becomes the first player in NFL history to score two safeties in the same game.
*1978 – Australian civilian pilot Frederick Valentich vanishes over the Bass Strait south of Melbourne, after reporting contact with an unidentified aircraft.
*1979 – Moshe Dayan resigns from the Israeli government because of strong disagreements with Prime Minister Menachem Begin over policy towards the Arabs.
*1981 – Andreas Papandreou becomes Prime Minister of Greece, ending an almost 50-year-long system of power dominated by conservative forces.
*1983 – The metre is defined as the distance light travels in a vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second.
*1984 – Niki Lauda claims his third and final Formula One Drivers' Championship Title by half a point ahead of McLaren team-mate Alain Prost at the Portuguese Grand Prix.
*1986 – In Lebanon, pro-Iran kidnappers claim to have abducted American writer Edward Tracy (he is released in August 1991).
*1987 – The Jaffna hospital massacre is carried out by Indian peacekeeping forces in Sri Lanka, killing 70 Tamil patients, doctors and nurses.
*1989 – In Honduras, 131 people are killed when a Boeing 727 crashes on approach to Toncontín International Airport near the nation's capital Tegucigalpa.
*1994 – North Korea and the United States sign an Agreed Framework that requires North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons program and agree to inspections.
* 1994 – In Seoul, South Korea, 32 people are killed when a span of the Seongsu Bridge collapses.
*2005 – Images of the dwarf planet Eris are taken and subsequently used in documenting its discovery.
*2011 – Iraq War: President Barack Obama announces that the withdrawal of United States troops from Iraq will be complete by the end of the year.
*2019 – Thirty people are killed in a fiery bus crash in western Democratic Republic of the Congo.
* 2019 – In Canada, the 2019 Canadian federal election ends, resulting in incumbent Prime Minister Justin Trudeau remaining in office, albeit with the Liberal Party in a minority government.
*2021 – A shooting occurs on the set of the film ''Rust'', in which actor Alec Baldwin discharged a prop weapon which had been loaded, killing the director of photography, Halyna Hutchins, and injuring director Joel Souza.

Births

Pre-1600

*1328 – Hongwu Emperor of China (died 1398)
*1409 – Alessandro Sforza, Italian condottiero (died 1473)'Sfòrza, Alessandro, signore di Pesaro'
''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani''.
*1449 – George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, Irish-English son of Cecily Neville, Duchess of York (died 1478)
*1527 – Louis I, Cardinal of Guise (died 1578)
*1536 – Joachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt (died 1586)
*1581 – Domenichino, Italian painter (died 1641)

1601–1900

*1650 – Jean Bart, French admiral (died 1702)
*1658 – Henri de Boulainvilliers, French nobleman (died 1722)
*1675 – Emperor Higashiyama of Japan (died 1710)
*1687 – Nicolaus I Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician and theorist (died 1759)
*1712 – James Steuart, Scottish economist and author (died 1780)
*1725 – Franz Moritz von Lacy, Austrian field marshal (died 1801)
*1757 – Pierre Augereau, French general (died 1816)
*1762 – Herman Willem Daendels, Dutch general, lawyer, and politician, 36th Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (died 1818)
*1772 – Samuel Taylor Coleridge, English poet, philosopher, and critic (died 1834)
*1775 – Giuseppe Baini, Italian priest, composer, and critic (died 1844)
*1790 – Alphonse de Lamartine, French poet and politician, French Head of State (died 1869)
*1809 – James Clark, American Jesuit (died 1885)
*1811 – Filippo Colini, Italian operatic baritone (died 1863)
*1821 – Sims Reeves, English tenor and actor (died 1900)
*1833 – Alfred Nobel, Swedish chemist and engineer, invented dynamite and founded the Nobel Prize (died 1896)
*1845 – Will Carleton, American poet and journalist (died 1912)
*1847 – Giuseppe Giacosa, Italian poet and playwright (died 1906)
*1851 – George Ulyett, English cricketer and footballer (died 1898)
*1868 – Ernest Swinton, British Army officer (died 1951)
*1874 – Tan Kah Kee, Chinese businessman, community leader, communist and philanthropist (died 1961)
*1877 – Oswald Avery, Canadian-American physician and microbiologist (died 1955)
*1884 – Claire Waldoff, German singer and actress (died 1957)
*1886 – Eugene Burton Ely, American soldier and pilot (died 1911)
*1887 – Krishna Singh, Indian lawyer and politician, 1st Chief Minister of Bihar (died 1961)
*1894 – Edogawa Ranpo, Japanese author and critic (died 1965)
*1895 – Paavo Johansson, Finnish javelin thrower and decathlete (died 1983)
* 1895 – Edna Purviance, American actress (died 1958)
*1896 – Esther Shumiatcher-Hirschbein, Russian-Canadian poet and screenwriter (died 1985)
*1898 – Eduard Pütsep, Estonian wrestler and actor (died 1960)
*1900 – Andrée Boisson, French Olympic fencer (died 1973)

1901–present

*1902 – Eddy Hamel, American footballer (died 1943)
*1907 – Nikos Engonopoulos, Greek painter and poet (died 1985)
*1908 – Niyazi Berkes, Cypriot-English sociologist and academic (died 1988)
*1911 – Mary Blair, American illustrator and animator (died 1978)
*1912 – Don Byas, American saxophonist and educator (died 1972)
* 1912 – Alfredo Pián, Argentinian race car driver (died 1990)
* 1912 – Georg Solti, Hungarian-English conductor and director (died 1997)
*1914 – Martin Gardner, American mathematician and author (died 2010)
*1915 – Owen Bradley, American country music record producer (died 1998)
*1917 – Dizzy Gillespie, American trumpet player, composer, and bandleader (died 1993)
*1918 – Milton Himmelfarb, American sociologist and author (died 2006)
* 1918 – Albertina Sisulu, South African anti-apartheid activist (died 2011)
*1919 – Jim Wallwork, English-Canadian sergeant and pilot (died 2013)
*1921 – Malcolm Arnold, English composer (died 2006)
* 1921 – Bruce Beeby, Australian-English actor (died 2013)
* 1921 – Robert Clothier, Canadian actor (died 1999)
* 1921 – Jim Shumate, American fiddler and composer (died 2013)
* 1921 – Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld, Dutch astronomer and academic (died 2015)
*1922 – Liliane Bettencourt, French businesswoman and philanthropist (died 2017)
*1923 – Samuel Khachikian, Iranian director, screenwriter, and author (died 2001)
*1924 – Joyce Randolph, American actress (died 2024)
* 1924 – Julie Wilson, American actress and singer (died 2015)
*1925 – Celia Cruz, Cuban-American singer (died 2003)
* 1925 – Virginia Zeani, Romanian soprano and educator (died 2023)
*1926 – Bob Rosburg, American golfer (died 2009)
* 1926 – Leonard Rossiter, English actor (died 1984)
*1927 – Fritz Wintersteller, Austrian mountaineer (died 2018)
* 1927 – Howard Zieff, American director and photographer (died 2009)
*1928 – Whitey Ford, American baseball player and coach (died 2020)
* 1928 – Eudóxia Maria Froehlich, Brazilian zoologist (died 2015)
* 1928 – Vern Mikkelsen, American basketball player and coach (died 2013)
*1929 – Pierre Bellemare, French radio and television host (died 2018)
* 1929 – Fritz Hollaus, Austrian footballer (died 1994)
* 1929 – Ursula K. Le Guin, American author and critic (died 2018)
* 1929 – George Stinney Jr., wrongfully convicted African-American inmate; second youngest person in the U.S. to be executed (died 1944)
*1930 – Ivan Silayev, Russian engineer and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Russia (died 2023)
*1931 – Shammi Kapoor, Indian actor and director (died 2011)
* 1931 – Jim Parks Jr., English cricketer and manager (died 2022)
*1932 – Pál Csernai, Hungarian footballer and manager (died 2013)
*1933 – Maureen Duffy, English author, poet, playwright and activist
* 1933 – Francisco Gento, Spanish footballer and manager (died 2022)
*1935 – Derek Bell, Irish harp player, pianist, and songwriter (died 2002)
* 1935 – Mel Street, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1978)
*1937 – Said Afandi al-Chirkawi, Russian spiritual leader and scholar (died 2012)
* 1937 – Hank Nelson, Australian historian and academic (died 2012)
*1938 – Carl Brewer, Canadian ice hockey player (died 2001)
*1940 – Geoffrey Boycott, English cricketer and sportscaster
* 1940 – Frances FitzGerald, American journalist and author
* 1940 – Rhoda Gemignani, American actress
* 1940 – Manfred Mann, South African-English keyboard player and producer
* 1940 – Marita Petersen, Faroese educator and politician, Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands (died 2001)
*1941 – Steve Cropper, American guitarist, songwriter, producer, and actor
*1942 – Elvin Bishop, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1942 – Allan Grice, Australian race car driver and politician
* 1942 – Lou Lamoriello, American ice hockey player, coach, and manager
* 1942 – Judy Sheindlin, American judge and television host
* 1942 – Christopher A. Sims, American economist and statistician, Nobel Prize laureate
* 1942 – John Stevens, Baron Stevens of Kirkwhelpington, English police officer and academic
*1943 – Tariq Ali, Pakistani historian and author
* 1943 – Ron Elliott, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and composer
*1944 – Mandy Rice-Davies, English model and actress (died 2014)
* 1944 – Michael Tugendhat, English lawyer and judge
*1945 – Everett McGill, American actor
* 1945 – Nikita Mikhalkov, Russian filmmaker
* 1945 – Michael White, English journalist
*1946 – Jane Heal, English philosopher and academic
* 1946 – Jim Hill, American football player and sportscaster
* 1946 – Lux Interior, American singer-songwriter (died 2009)
* 1946 – Lee Loughnane, American singer-songwriter and trumpet player
*1948 – Shaye J. D. Cohen, American historian and academic
* 1948 – Allen Henry Vigneron, American archbishop
*1949 – Michel Brière, Canadian ice hockey player (died 1971)
* 1949 – Mike Keenan, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
* 1949 – Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli captain and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Israel
*1950 – Ronald McNair, American physicist and astronaut (died 1986)
* 1950 – Leela Vernon, Belizean musician and cultural conservationist (died 2017)
*1952 – Patti Davis, American actress and author
* 1952 – Allen Hoey, American poet and author (died 2010)
* 1952 – Brent Mydland, German-American keyboard player (died 1990)
*1953 – Charlotte Caffey, American guitarist and songwriter
* 1953 – Eric Faulkner, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1953 – Keith Green, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and minister (died 1982)
* 1953 – Marc Johnson, American bassist, composer, and bandleader
* 1953 – Peter Mandelson, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
*1954 – Brian Tobin, Canadian journalist and politician, 6th Premier of Newfoundland
*1955 – Dick DeVos, American businessman
* 1955 – Catherine Hardwicke, American film director, producer, and screenwriter
* 1955 – Fred Hersch, American pianist and composer
* 1955 – Rich Mullins, American singer-songwriter (died 1997)
*1956 – Carrie Fisher, American actress and screenwriter (died 2016)
* 1956 – Mike Tully, American pole vaulter
*1957 – Julian Cope, English singer-songwriter
* 1957 – Irene Edgar, Scottish lawn bowler
* 1957 – Wolfgang Ketterle, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
* 1957 – Steve Lukather, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
*1958 – Andre Geim, Russian-English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
*1959 – George Bell, Dominican baseball player
* 1959 – Rose McDowall, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1959 – Andy Picheta, English director, producer, and screenwriter
* 1959 – Kevin Sheedy, Welsh-Irish footballer and manager
* 1959 – Ken Watanabe, Japanese actor and producer
* 1959 – Melora Walters, American actress, director, and writer
*1962 – David Campese, Australian rugby player and coach
*1964 – Jon Carin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
*1965 – Ion Andoni Goikoetxea, Spanish footballer and manager
* 1965 – Horace Hogan, American wrestler
* 1965 – Hisashi Imai, Japanese singer-songwriter and guitarist
*1966 – Phillip Price, Welsh golfer
* 1966 – Igor Prins, Estonian footballer and manager
* 1966 – Arne Sandstø, Norwegian footballer and manager
*1967 – Georgi Dakov, Bulgarian high jumper (died 1996)
* 1967 – Paul Ince, English footballer and manager
* 1967 – Gavin Lovegrove, New Zealand javelin thrower and graphic designer
* 1967 – Krzysztof Sitko, Polish association football player (died 2018)
*1968 – Alexandros Alexandris, Greek footballer and manager
* 1968 – Kerstin Andreae, German politician
*1969 – Michael Hancock, Australian rugby league player
* 1969 – Mo Lewis, American football player
*1970 – Louis Koo, Hong Kong actor and singer
*1971 – Hal Duncan, Scottish author and poet
* 1971 – Damien Martyn, Australian cricketer
* 1971 – Nick Oliveri, American singer-songwriter and bass player
* 1971 – Conor O'Shea, Irish rugby player and coach
* 1971 – Paul Telfer, Scottish footballer and coach
* 1971 – Thomas Ulsrud, Norwegian curler
*1972 – Ashutosh Agashe, Indian businessman and cricketer
* 1972 – Matthew Friedberger, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1972 – Orlando Thomas, American football player (died 2014)
* 1972 – Evhen Tsybulenko, Ukrainian scholar and academic
*1973 – Lera Auerbach, American pianist and songwriter
*1974 – Costel Busuioc, Romanian tenor
*1975 – Toby Hall, American baseball player
* 1975 – Henrique Hilário, Portuguese footballer
*1976 – Henrik Gustavsson, Swedish footballer
* 1976 – Jeremy Miller, American actor and singer
* 1976 – Lavinia Miloșovici, Romanian gymnast
* 1976 – Josh Ritter, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1976 – Andrew Scott, Irish actor
* 1976 – Mélanie Turgeon, Canadian skier
*1978 – Will Estes, American actor
* 1978 – Joey Harrington, American football player and sportscaster
* 1978 – Henrik Klingenberg, Finnish singer and keyboard player
* 1978 – Michael McMillian, American actor
*1979 – Khalil Greene, American baseball player
* 1979 – Gabe Gross, American baseball player
*1980 – Kim Kardashian, American reality television personality, actress, model, businesswoman and socialite
* 1980 – Brian Pittman, American bass player
*1981 – Martin Castrogiovanni, Argentinian-Italian rugby player
*1981 – Olivier Pla, French racing driver
* 1981 – Nemanja Vidić, Serbian footballer
*1982 – Matt Dallas, American actor
* 1982 – Jim Henderson, American baseball player
* 1982 – Antony Kay, English footballer
* 1982 – Hari Kondabolu, American comedian, actor, and podcaster
* 1982 – Ray Ventrone, American football player
* 1982 – Lee Chong Wei, Malaysian badminton player
* 1982 – James White, American basketball player
*1983 – Casey Fien, American baseball player
* 1983 – Zack Greinke, American baseball player
* 1983 – Brent Hayden, Canadian swimmer
* 1983 – Gonzalo Klusener, Argentinian footballer
* 1983 – Andy Marte, Dominican baseball player (died 2017)
* 1983 – Amber Rose, American model
* 1983 – Chris Sherrington, English-Scottish martial artist
* 1983 – Charlotte Sullivan, Canadian actress
* 1983 – Ninet Tayeb, Israeli singer
* 1983 – Shelden Williams, American basketball player
*1984 – Anna Bogdanova, Russian heptathlete
* 1984 – Tom Brandstater, American football player
* 1984 – Kenny Cooper, American soccer player
* 1984 – Anouk Leblanc-Boucher, Canadian speed skater
* 1984 – José Lobatón, Venezuelan baseball player
* 1984 – Marvin Mitchell, American football player
* 1984 – Kieran Richardson, English footballer
*1985 – Simone Bracalello, Italian footballer
* 1985 – Dean Collis, Australian rugby league player
* 1985 – Hadise, Belgian-Turkish singer-songwriter and dancer hadisemusic.com
*1986 – Almen Abdi, Swiss footballer
* 1986 – Chibuzor Chilaka, Nigerian footballer
* 1986 – Scott Rendell, English footballer
*1987 – Tonje Brenna, Norwegian politician
* 1987 – Justin De Fratus, American baseball player
* 1987 – Andrey Grechin, Russian swimmer
*1988 – Ricki Olsen, Danish footballer
* 1988 – Glen Powell, American actor
* 1988 – Daniel Schorn, Austrian cyclist
*1989 – Mads Dahm, Norwegian footballer
* 1989 – Festus Ezeli, Nigerian-American basketball player
* 1989 – Luke Murphy, English footballer
* 1989 – Jonathan Viera, Spanish footballer
* 1989 – Sam Vokes, English-Welsh footballer
*1990 – Bengali-Fodé Koita, French footballer
* 1990 – Mathieu Peybernes, French footballer
* 1990 – Ricky Rubio, Spanish basketball player
* 1990 – Kristján Þórður Snæbjarnarson, Icelandic politician
*1991 – Alexander Burmistrov, Russian ice hockey player
* 1991 – Tom Eastman, English footballer
* 1991 – Geoffry Hairemans, Belgian footballer
* 1991 – Rob Keogh, English cricketer
* 1991 – Vadaine Oliver, English footballer
* 1991 – Harry Pell, English footballer
*1992 – Natasha Bassett, Australian actress
* 1992 – Marzia Kjellberg, Italian businessperson and former YouTuber
* 1992 – Damion Lee, American basketball player
* 1992 – Bernard Tomic, German-Australian tennis player
*1993 – Kane Brown, American singer and songwriter
*1995 – Cameron Burgess, Scottish-Australian footballer
* 1995 – Doja Cat, American rapper, singer and songwriter
* 1995 – Antoinette Guedia Mouafo, Cameroonian swimmer

Deaths

Pre-1600

* 645 – Zhenzhu Khan, khan of Xueyantuo
* 1023 – Gero, Archbishop of Magdeburg
*1096 – Walter Sans Avoir, a leader of the First Crusade
*1125 – Cosmas of Prague, Bohemian priest and historian (born 1045)
*1204 – Robert de Beaumont, 4th Earl of Leicester, English politician
*1221 – Alix, Duchess of Brittany (born 1201)
*1266 – Birger Jarl, Swedish politician (born 1210)
*1314 – Geoffrey de Geneville, 1st Baron Geneville
*1422 – Charles VI of France (born 1368)
*1500 – Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado of Japan (born 1442)
*1505 – Paul Scriptoris, German mathematician and educator (born 1460)
*1556 – Pietro Aretino, Italian author (born 1492)
*1558 – Julius Caesar Scaliger, Italian physician and scholar (born 1484)
*1600 – Ōtani Yoshitsugu, Japanese samurai (born 1558)

1601–1900

*1623 – William Wade, English politician and diplomat, Lieutenant of the Tower of London (born 1546)
*1662 – Henry Lawes, English composer (born 1595)
*1687 – Edmund Waller, English poet and politician (born 1606)
*1765 – Giovanni Paolo Panini, Italian painter and architect (born 1691)
*1775 – Peyton Randolph, American lawyer and politician, 1st President of the Continental Congress (born 1721)
*1777 – Samuel Foote, English actor and playwright (born 1720)
*1805 – John Cooke, English captain (born 1763)
* 1805 – George Duff, Scottish captain (born 1764)
* 1805 – Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, English admiral (born 1758)
*1821 – Dorothea Ackermann, German actress (born 1752)
*1835 – Muthuswami Dikshitar, Indian poet and composer (born 1775)
* 1861 – Edward Dickinson Baker, American congressman and colonel (born 1811)
*1872 – Jacques Babinet, French physicist, mathematician, and astronomer (born 1794)
*1873 – Johan Sebastian Welhaven, Norwegian author, poet, and critic (born 1807)
*1896 – James Henry Greathead, South African-English engineer (born 1844)

1901–present

*1903 – Jinmaku Kyūgorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 12th Yokozuna (born 1829)
*1904 – Isabelle Eberhardt, Swiss explorer and journalist (born 1877)
*1907 – Jules Chevalier, French priest, founded the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (born 1824)
*1927 – Borisav Stanković, Serbian author (born 1876)
*1931 – Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian author and playwright (born 1862)
*1938 – Dorothy Hale, American actress (born 1905)
*1939 – Hendrik Wortman, Dutch civil engineer (born 1859)
*1940 – William G. Conley, American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 18th Governor of West Virginia (born 1866)
*1941 – Alexander Greenlaw Hamilton, Australian biologist (born 1852)
*1944 – Alois Kayser, German-French missionary (born 1877)
*1952 – Hans Merensky, South African geologist and philanthropist (born 1871)
*1963 – Józef Franczak, Polish sergeant (born 1918)
*1965 – Bill Black, American bass player and bandleader (born 1926)
*1969 – Jack Kerouac, American novelist and poet (born 1922)
* 1969 – Wacław Sierpiński, Polish mathematician and academic (born 1882)
*1970 – Li Linsi, Chinese educator and diplomat (born 1896)
*1971 – Minnie Evans, American artist (born 1888)
*1973 – Nasif Estéfano, Argentinian race car driver (born 1932)
*1975 – Charles Reidpath, American runner and general (born 1887)
*1977 – Ferit Tüzün, Turkish composer (born 1929)
*1978 – Anastas Mikoyan, Armenian-Russian civil servant and politician (born 1895)
*1980 – Hans Asperger, Austrian physician and psychologist (born 1906)
*1982 – Radka Toneff, Norwegian singer-songwriter (born 1952)
*1983 – Joseph P. Lordi, American government official (born 1919)
*1984 – François Truffaut, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1932)
*1985 – Dan White, American assassin and politician (born 1946)
*1986 – Lionel Murphy, Australian jurist and politician, 22nd Attorney-General of Australia (born 1922)
*1989 – Jean Image, Hungarian-French director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1910)
*1990 – Dany Chamoun, Lebanese engineer and politician (born 1934)
* 1990 – Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar, Indian spiritual guru, philosopher and author (born 1921)
*1991 – Lorenc Antoni, Albanian composer, conductor, and musicologist (born 1909)
*1992 – Ante Ciliga, Croatian politician, writer and publisher (born 1898)
* 1992 – Jim Garrison, American lawyer and judge (born 1921)
*1993 – Sam Zolotow, American journalist and critic (born 1899)
*1995 – Maxene Andrews, American singer (born 1916)
* 1995 – Jesús Blasco, Spanish author and illustrator (born 1919)
* 1995 – Nancy Graves, American sculptor and painter (born 1939)
* 1995 – Shannon Hoon, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1967)
*1996 – Georgios Zoitakis, Greek general and politician (born 1910)
*1998 – Francis W. Sargent, American soldier and politician, 64th Governor of Massachusetts (born 1915)
*1999 – Lars Bo, Danish author and illustrator (born 1924)
* 1999 – Ahmet Taner Kışlalı, Turkish political scientist, lawyer, and politician (born 1939)
*2002 – Edward J. Mortola, American academic and president of Pace University (born 1917)
*2003 – Louise Day Hicks, American politician (born 1916)
* 2003 – Luis A. Ferré, Puerto Rican engineer and politician, 3rd Governor of Puerto Rico (born 1904)
* 2003 – Elliott Smith, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1969)
*2006 – Sandy West, American singer-songwriter and drummer (born 1959)
*2007 – Paul Fox (musician), Paul Fox, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1951)
*2010 – A. Ayyappan, Indian poet and translator (born 1949)
*2011 – Hikmet Bilâ, Turkish journalist and author (born 1954)
* 2011 – Tone Pavček, Slovenian poet and author (born 1928)
*2012 – Yash Chopra, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1932)
* 2012 – Antoni Dobrowolski, Polish educator (born 1904)
* 2012 – Jaroslav Kozlík, Czech volleyball player and educator (born 1907)
* 2012 – Alf Kumalo, South African photographer and journalist (born 1930)
* 2012 – George McGovern, American historian, lieutenant, and politician (born 1922)
*2013 – Bud Adams, American businessman (born 1923)
* 2013 – Gianni Ferrio, Italian composer and conductor (born 1924)
* 2013 – Rune T. Kidde, Danish author, poet, and illustrator (born 1957)
* 2013 – Colonel Robert Morris, American singer-songwriter and drummer (born 1954)
* 2013 – Major Owens, American librarian and politician (born 1936)
* 2013 – Tony Summers, Welsh swimmer (born 1924)
* 2013 – Oscar Yanes, Venezuelan journalist and author (born 1927)
*2014 – Ben Bradlee, American journalist and author (born 1921)
* 2014 – Nelson Bunker Hunt, American businessman (born 1926)
* 2014 – Mohammad-Reza Mahdavi Kani, Iranian cleric and politician, Prime Minister of Iran (born 1931)
* 2014 – Edith Kawelohea McKinzie, Hawaiian genealogist, author, and hula expert (born 1925)
* 2014 – Gough Whitlam, Australian lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 21st Prime Minister of Australia (born 1916)
*2015 – France Bučar, Slovenian lawyer and politician (born 1923)
* 2015 – Marty Ingels, American actor (born 1936)
* 2015 – Norman W. Moore, English conservationist and author (born 1923)
* 2015 – Sheldon Wolin, American philosopher, theorist, and academic (born 1922)
*2020 – Frank Bough, English television presenter (born 1933)
*2021 – Bernard Haitink, Dutch conductor and violinist (born 1929)
*2023 – Bobby Charlton, English footballer and manager (born 1937)
* 2023 – Bobi (dog), Bobi, Portuguese dog (born 1992)
* 2023 – Bill Hayden, Australian politician, 21st Governor General of Australia (born 1933)
* 2024 – Mimi Hines, Canadian singer and comedian (born 1933)

Holidays and observances

*Public holidays in Honduras, Armed Forces Day (Honduras)
*Christian feast day:
**Asterius of Ostia
**Berthold of Parma
**Blessed Charles I of Austria, Charles of Austria (Roman Catholic Church)
**Fintán of Taghmon
**Hilarion
**John of Bridlington
**Laura of Saint Catherine of Siena
**Saint Leticia, Leticia
**Malchus of Syria
**Peter Yu Tae-chol
**Severinus of Bordeaux
** Tuda of Lindisfarne
**Saint Ursula, Ursula
**Viator of Lyons
**October 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
*Public holidays in Egypt, Egyptian Naval Day (Egypt)
*Central Reserve Police Force, Indian Police Commemoration Day (India)
*National Nurses' Day (Thailand)
*Ndadaye Day (Burundi)
*Overseas Chinese Day (Republic of China)
*Trafalgar Day (the British Empire in the 19th and early 20th century)
*Twin Holy Birthdays, Birth of the Báb (2017) (Baháʼí Faith)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:October 21
Days of October