25 February

Events

Pre-1600

*138 – Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor.
* 628 – Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (Iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II.
*1336 – Four thousand defenders of Pilenai commit mass suicide rather than be taken captive by the Teutonic Knights.

1601–1900

*1705 – George Frideric Handel's opera ''Nero'' premiered in Hamburg.
*1836 – Samuel Colt is granted a United States patent for his revolver firearm.
*1843 – Lord George Paulet occupies the Kingdom of Hawaii in the name of Great Britain in the Paulet Affair (1843).
*1870 – Hiram Rhodes Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in Congress.
*1875 – Guangxu Emperor of Qing dynasty China begins his reign, under Empress Dowager Cixi's regency.

1901–present

*1912 – Marie-Adélaïde, the eldest of six daughters of Guillaume IV, becomes the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.
*1916 – In the Battle of Verdun, a German unit captures Fort Douaumont, keystone of the French defences, without a fight.
*1918 – German forces capture Tallinn to virtually complete the occupation of Estonia.
*1921 – Georgian capital Tbilisi falls to the invading Russian forces after heavy fighting and the Russians declare the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic.
* 1932 – Hitler, having been stateless for seven years, obtains German citizenship when he is appointed a Brunswick state official by Dietrich Klagges, a fellow Nazi. As a result, Hitler is able to run for Reichspräsident in the 1932 election.
*1933 – Launch of the at Newport News, Virginia. It is the first purpose-built aircraft carrier to be commissioned by the US Navy.
*1939 – As part of British air raid precautions, the first of 2 million Anderson shelters is constructed in a garden in Islington, north London.
*1941 – The outlawed Communist Party of the Netherlands organises a general strike in German-occupied Amsterdam to protest against Nazi persecution of Dutch Jews.
*1947 – The formal abolition of Prussia is proclaimed by the Allied Control Council, the Prussian government having already been abolished by the '' Preußenschlag'' of 1932.
* 1947 – Soviet NKVD forces in Hungary abduct Béla Kovács—secretary-general of the majority Independent Smallholders' Party—and deport him to the USSR in defiance of Parliament. His arrest is an important turning point in the Communist takeover of Hungary.
*1948 – In a coup d'état led by Klement Gottwald, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia takes control of government in Prague to end the Third Czechoslovak Republic.
*1951 – The first Pan American Games are officially opened in Buenos Aires by Argentine President Juan Perón.
*1956 – In his speech ''On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences'', Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union, denounces Stalin.
*1980 – The government of Suriname is overthrown by a military coup led by Dési Bouterse.
*1986 – People Power Revolution: President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the Philippines' first woman president.
*1991 – Disbandment of the Warsaw Pact at a meeting of its members in Budapest.

Births

Pre-1600

*1259 – Infanta Branca of Portugal, daughter of King Afonso III of Portugal and Urraca of Castile (d. 1321)
*1337 – Wenceslaus I, Duke of Luxembourg (d. 1383)
*1475 – Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, last male member of the House of York (d. 1499)
* 1540 – Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, English aristocrat and courtier (d. 1614)
*1543 – Sharaf Khan Bidlisi, Emir of Bitlis (d. 1603)
*1591 – Friedrich Spee, German poet and author (d. 1635)

1601–1900

*1643 – Ahmed II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1695)
*1663 – Peter Anthony Motteux, French-English author, playwright and translator (d. 1718)
*1670 – Maria Margarethe Kirch, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1720)
*1682 – Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist and pathologist (d. 1771)
*1707 – Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright and composer (d. 1793)
*1714 – René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of France (d. 1792)
*1728 – John Wood, the Younger, English architect, designed the Royal Crescent (d. 1782)
*1752 – John Graves Simcoe, English-Canadian general and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (d. 1806)
*1755 – François René Mallarmé, French lawyer and politician (d. 1835)
*1778 – José de San Martín, Argentinian general and politician, 1st President of Peru (d. 1850)
*1806 – Emma Catherine Embury, American author and poet (d. 1863)
*1809 – John Hart, English-Australian politician, 10th Premier of South Australia (d. 1873)
*1812 – Carl Christian Hall, Danish lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1888)
*1816 – Giovanni Morelli, Italian historian and critic (d. 1891)
*1833 – John St. John, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Kansas (d. 1916)
*1841 – Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French painter and sculptor (d. 1919)
*1842 – Karl May, German author, poet, and playwright (d. 1912)
*1845 – George Reid, Scottish-Australian lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1918)
*1855 – Cesário Verde, Portuguese poet and author (d. 1886)
*1856 – Karl Gotthard Lamprecht, German historian and academic (d. 1915)
* 1856 – Mathias Zdarsky, Czech-Austrian skier, painter, and sculptor (d. 1940)
*1857 – Robert Bond, Canadian politician; first Prime Minister of Newfoundland (d. 1927)
*1860 – William Ashley, English historian and academic (d. 1927)
*1865 – Andranik, Armenian general (d. 1927)
*1866 – Benedetto Croce, Italian philosopher and politician (d. 1952)
*1869 – Phoebus Levene, Russian-American biochemist and physician (d. 1940)
*1873 – Enrico Caruso, Italian-American tenor; the most popular operatic tenor of the early 20th century and the first great recording star. (d. 1921)
*1877 – Erich von Hornbostel, Austrian musicologist and scholar (d. 1935)
*1881 – William Z. Foster, American union leader and politician (d. 1961)
* 1881 – Alexei Rykov, Russian politician, Premier of Russia (d. 1938)
*1883 – Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (d. 1981)
*1885 – Princess Alice of Battenberg, mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (d. 1969)
*1888 – John Foster Dulles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 52nd United States Secretary of State (d. 1959)
*1890 – Myra Hess, English pianist and educator (d. 1965)
*1894 – Meher Baba, Indian spiritual master (d. 1969)
*1898 – William Astbury, physicist and molecular biologist (d. 1961)

1901–present

*1901 – Vince Gair, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Queensland (d. 1980)
* 1901 – Zeppo Marx, American comedian (the youngest of the Marx Brothers) and theatrical agent (d. 1979)
*1903 – King Clancy, Canadian ice hockey player, referee, and coach; rated one of the 100 greatest NHL players (d. 1986)
*1905 – Perry Miller, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1963)
*1906 – Mary Coyle Chase, American journalist and playwright; author of ''Harvey'' (d. 1981)
*1907 – Sabahattin Ali, Turkish journalist, author, and poet (d. 1948)
*1908 – Mary Locke Petermann, cellular biochemist (d. 1975)
* 1908 – Frank G. Slaughter, American physician and author (d. 2001)
*1910 – Millicent Fenwick, American journalist and politician (d. 1992)
*1913 – Jim Backus, American actor and screenwriter; the voice of ''Mr. Magoo'' (d. 1989)
* 1913 – Gert Fröbe, German actor; title role in '' Goldfinger'' (d. 1988)
*1915 – S. Rajaratnam, 1st Senior Minister of Singapore (d. 2006)
*1917 – Anthony Burgess, English author, playwright, and critic (d. 1993)
*1918 – Bobby Riggs, American tennis player; winner of three major titles, 1939–1941 (d. 1995)
*1919 – Monte Irvin, American baseball player and executive (d. 2016)
*1920 – Philip Habib, American academic and diplomat, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (d. 1992)
*1921 – Pierre Laporte, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec (d. 1970)
* 1921 – Andy Pafko, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
*1922 – Molly Reilly, Canadian aviator (d. 1980)
*1924 – Hugh Huxley, English-American biologist and academic (d. 2013)
*1925 – Shehu Shagari, former President of Nigeria (d. 2019)
* 1925 – Lisa Kirk, American actress and singer (d. 1990)
*1926 – Masatoshi Gündüz Ikeda, Japanese-Turkish mathematician and academic; developed algebraic number theory (d. 2003)
*1927 – Ralph Stanley, American bluegrass singer and banjo player; member of International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame (d. 2016)
*1928 – Paul Elvstrøm, Danish yachtsman; winner of four Olympic gold medals, 1948–1960 (d. 2016)
* 1928 – A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., prominent African-American civil rights advocate, author, and federal court judge (d. 1998)
* 1928 – Larry Gelbart, American author and screenwriter; creator and producer of ''M*A*S*H'' TV series (d. 2009)
* 1928 – Richard G. Stern, American author and academic (d. 2013)
* 1930 – Wendy Beckett, British nun and art critic for BBC TV with great success in the 1990s (d. 2018)
* 1932 – Tony Brooks, English racing driver; six Formula One victories, second in 1959 World Championship (d. 2022)
* 1932 – Faron Young, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist; member of Country Music Hall of Fame (d. 1996)
*1934 – Tony Lema, American golfer; winner of the 1964 Open Championship (d. 1966)
* 1935 – Oktay Sinanoglu, Turkish physical chemist and molecular biophysicist; two-time nominee for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (d. 2015)
*1937 – Tom Courtenay, award-winning English actor
* 1937 – Bob Schieffer, American political author, journalist and TV interviewer
* 1938 – Herb Elliott, Australian 1500 metres runner; 1960 Olympic champion and world record holder
* 1938 – Farokh Engineer, Indian international cricketer; successful as batsman and wicketkeeper
*1940 – Ron Santo, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2010)
*1941 – David Puttnam, English film producer and academic
*1943 – George Harrison, English singer-songwriter, guitarist and film producer; lead guitarist of The Beatles (d. 2001)
*1944 – François Cevert, French racing driver (d. 1973)
* 1946 – Jean Todt, French racing driver and team manager; FIA President, 2009–2021
*1947 – Lee Evans, American sprinter and athletics coach; two gold medals and world 400m record at 1968 Olympics (d. 2021)
*1949 – Amin Maalouf, Lebanese-French journalist and author
*1950 – Francisco Fernández Ochoa, Spanish skier; 1972 Olympic slalom champion (d. 2006)
* 1950 – Neil Jordan, Irish film director, screenwriter and author
* 1950 – Néstor Kirchner, Argentinian politician; 51st President of Argentina, 2003–2007 (d. 2010)
*1951 – Don Quarrie, Jamaican sprinter and coach; four Olympic medals and two world records
*1952 – Joey Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle road racing champion; holds record for most wins (26) at the Isle of Man TT (d. 2000)
* 1953 – José María Aznar, Spanish politician; Prime Minister of Spain, 1996–2004
*1957 – Raymond McCreesh, Irish Republican, hunger striker (d. 1981)
*1957 – Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore politician; 5th Senior Minister of Singapore
* 1958 – Kurt Rambis, American basketball player and coach; four-time NBA Finals champion
*1962 – Birgit Fischer, German kayaker; winner of eight Olympic gold medals
*1963 – Paul O'Neill, American baseball player and sportscaster; five-time World Series champion
*1967 – Ed Balls, British politician; Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
*1968 – Oumou Sangaré, Grammy Award-winning Malian Wassoulou musician
*1971 – Sean Astin, American actor, director and producer
*1974 – Dominic Raab, British politician; First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
*1981 – Park Ji-sung, South Korean footballer; the most successful Asian player with 19 career trophies
*1982 – Flavia Pennetta, Italian tennis player; winner of the 2015 US Open
* 1988 – Tom Marshall, British photo colouriser and artist
*1989 – Kana Hanazawa, Japanese voice actress and singer
*1992 – Jorge Soler, Cuban baseball player
*1995 – Viktoriya Tomova, Bulgarian tennis player
*1999 – Gianluigi Donnarumma, Italian international footballer; youngest goalkeeper to play for Italy
* 1999 – Rocky, South Korean singer, dancer and songwriter

Deaths

Pre-1600

* 806 – Tarasios, patriarch of Constantinople
* 891 – Fujiwara no Mototsune, Japanese regent (b. 836)
*1522 – William Lily, English scholar and educator (b. 1468)
*1536 – Berchtold Haller, German-Swiss theologian and reformer (b. 1492)
*1547 – Vittoria Colonna, marchioness of Pescara (b. 1490)

1601–1900

* 1601 – Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1566)
*1634 – Albrecht von Wallenstein, Austrian general and politician (b. 1583)
*1655 – Daniël Heinsius, Flemish poet and scholar (b. 1580)
*1682 – Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (b. 1639)
*1710 – Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, French soldier and explorer (b. 1639)
*1713 – Frederick I of Prussia (b. 1657)
*1723 – Christopher Wren, English architect, designed St Paul's Cathedral (b. 1632)
*1756 – Eliza Haywood, English actress and poet (b. 1693)
*1796 – Samuel Seabury, American bishop (b. 1729)
*1805 – Thomas Pownall, English politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (b. 1722)
*1819 – Francisco Manoel de Nascimento, Portuguese-French poet and educator (b. 1734)
*1822 – William Pinkney, American politician and diplomat, 7th United States Attorney General (b. 1764)
*1841 – Philip P. Barbour, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 12th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1783)
*1850 – Daoguang Emperor of China (b. 1782)
*1852 – Thomas Moore, Irish poet and lyricist (b. 1779)
*1865 – Otto Ludwig, German author, playwright, and critic (b. 1813)
*1870 – Henrik Hertz, Danish poet and playwright (b. 1797)
*1877 – Jung Bahadur Rana, Nepalese ruler (b. 1816)
*1878 – Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (b. 1804)
*1899 – Paul Reuter (b. 1816)

1901–present

*1906 – Anton Arensky, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1861)
*1910 – Worthington Whittredge, American painter and educator (b. 1820)
*1911 – Friedrich Spielhagen, German author, theorist, and translator (b. 1829)
*1912 – William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (b. 1852)
*1914 – John Tenniel, English illustrator (b. 1820)
*1915 – Charles Edwin Bessey, American botanist, author, and academic (b. 1845)
*1920 – Marcel-Auguste Dieulafoy, French archaeologist and engineer (b. 1844)
*1928 – William O'Brien, Irish journalist and politician (b. 1852)
*1934 – Elizabeth Gertrude Britton, American botanist and academic (b. 1857)
* 1934 – John McGraw, American baseball player and manager (b. 1873)
*1945 – Mário de Andrade, Brazilian author, poet, and photographer (b. 1893)
*1950 – George Minot, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1885)
* 1953 – Sergei Winogradsky, Ukrainian-Russian microbiologist and ecologist (b. 1856)
*1957 – Mark Aldanov, Russian author and critic (b. 1888)
* 1957 – Bugs Moran, American mob boss (b. 1893)
*1963 – Melville J. Herskovits, American anthropologist and academic (b. 1895)
*1964 – Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian sculptor and illustrator (b. 1887)
* 1964 – Grace Metalious, American author (b. 1924)
*1970 – Mark Rothko, Latvian-American painter and academic (b. 1903)
*1971 – Theodor Svedberg, Swedish chemist and academic, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1884)
*1972 – Gottfried Fuchs, German-Canadian Olympic soccer player (b. 1889)
*1975 – Elijah Muhammad, American religious leader (b. 1897)
*1978 – Daniel James, Jr., American general and pilot (b. 1920)
*1980 – Robert Hayden, American poet and academic (b. 1913)
*1983 – Tennessee Williams, American playwright, and poet (b. 1911)
*1996 – Haing S. Ngor, Cambodian-American physician and author (b. 1940)
*1997 – Andrei Sinyavsky, Russian journalist and publisher (b. 1925)
*1998 – W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright (b. 1914)
*1999 – Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
*2001 – A. R. Ammons, American poet and critic (b. 1926)
* 2001 – Don Bradman, Australian international cricketer; holder of world record batting average (b. 1908)
*2005 – Peter Benenson, English lawyer, founded Amnesty International (b. 1921)
*2008 – Hans Raj Khanna, Indian judge and advocate; upholder of civil liberties (b. 1912)
*2010 – Ihsan Dogramaci, Turkish pediatrician and academic (b. 1915)
*2012 – Louisiana Red, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1932)
*2015 – Harve Bennett, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1930)
* 2015 – Eugenie Clark, American biologist and academic; noted ichthyologist (b. 1922)
*2017 – Bill Paxton, American actor and filmmaker (b. 1955)
*2020 – Dmitry Yazov, last Marshal of the Soviet Union (b. 1924)
*2022 – Farrah Forke, American actress (b. 1968)
* 2022 – Shirley Hughes, English author and illustrator (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances

*Christian feast days:
**Æthelberht of Kent
**Beatification, Blessed Ciriaco María Sancha y Hervás
**Gerland of Agrigento
**John Roberts (missionary), John Roberts, writer and missionary (Anglican Communion)
**Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani
**Saint Walpurga (she was canonised on 1 May c. 870 and Walpurgis Night is celebrated 30 April)
**February 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
*''Kitano Tenman-gu, Kitano Baika-sai'' or "Plum Blossom Festival" (Kitano Tenman-gu, Kitano Tenman-gu Shrine, Kyoto, Japan)
*Memorial Day for the Victims of the Communist Dictatorships (Hungary)
*National Day (Kuwait)
*People Power Revolution, People Power Day (Philippines)
*Public holidays in Suriname, Revolution Day in Suriname
*Soviet Occupation Day (Georgia)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:February 25
Days of the year
February