September 15

Events

668 – Eastern Roman Emperor Constans II is assassinated in his bath at Syracuse, Italy.

921 – At Tetin, Saint Ludmila is murdered at the command of her daughter-in-law.

994 – Major Fatimid victory over the Byzantine Empire at the Battle of the Orontes.

1440 – Gilles de Rais, one of the earliest known serial killers, is taken into custody upon an accusation brought against him by the Jean de Malestroit, Bishop of Nantes.

1556 – Departing from Vlissingen, ex-Holy Roman Emperor Charles V returns to Spain.

1616 – The first non-aristocratic, free public school in Europe is opened in Frascati, Italy.

1762 – Seven Years' War: Battle of Signal Hill.

1776 – American Revolutionary War: British forces land at Kip's Bay during the New York Campaign.

1789 – The United States "Department of Foreign Affairs", established by law in July, is renamed the Department of State and given a variety of domestic duties.

1794 – French Revolutionary Wars: Arthur Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) sees his first combat at the Battle of Boxtel during the Flanders Campaign.

1795 – Britain seizes the Dutch Cape Colony in southern Africa to prevent its use by the Batavian Republic.

1812 – The French army under Napoleon reaches the Kremlin in Moscow.

1812 – War of 1812: A second supply train sent to relieve Fort Harrison is ambushed in the Attack at the Narrows.

1816 – HMS Whiting runs aground on the Doom Bar

1820 – Constitutionalist revolution in Lisbon, Portugal.

1821 – Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica jointly declare independence from Spain.

1830 – The Liverpool to Manchester railway line opens.

1831 – The locomotive John Bull operates for the first time in New Jersey on the Camden and Amboy Railroad.

1835 – HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin aboard, reaches the Galápagos Islands. The ship lands at Chatham or San Cristobal, the easternmost of the archipelago.

1851 – Saint Joseph's University is founded in Philadelphia.

1862 – American Civil War: Confederate forces capture Harpers Ferry, Virginia (present-day Harpers Ferry, West Virginia)

1873 – Franco-Prussian War: The last German troops leave France upon completion of payment of indemnity.

1894 – First Sino-Japanese War: Japan defeats Qing dynasty China in the Battle of Pyongyang.

1915 – The Empire Picture Theatre (now The New Empire Cinema), the oldest running cinema in mainland Australia, opens in Bowral, New South Wales.

1916 – World War I: Tanks are used for the first time in battle, at the Battle of the Somme.

1918 – World War I: Allied troops break through the Bulgarian defenses on the Macedonian Front.

1935 – The Nuremberg Laws deprive German Jews of citizenship.

1935 – Nazi Germany adopts a new national flag bearing the swastika.

1940 – World War II: The climax of the Battle of Britain, when the Royal Air Force shoots down large numbers of Luftwaffe aircraft.

1942 – World War II: U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Wasp is sunk by Japanese torpedoes at Guadalcanal.

1944 – Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill meet in Quebec as part of the Octagon Conference to discuss strategy.

1944 – Battle of Peleliu begins as the United States Marine Corps' 1st Marine Division and the United States Army's 81st Infantry Division hit White and Orange beaches under heavy fire from Japanese infantry and artillery.

1945 – A hurricane strikes southern Florida and the Bahamas, destroying 366 airplanes and 25 blimps at Naval Air Station Richmond.

1947 – Typhoon Kathleen hit the Kanto Region in Japan killing 1,077.

1948 – The F-86 Sabre sets the world aircraft speed record at 671 miles per hour (1,080 km/h).

1950 – Korean War: United States forces land at Inchon

1952 – The United Nations cedes Eritrea to Ethiopia.

1958 – A Central Railroad of New Jersey commuter train runs through an open drawbridge at the Newark Bay, killing 48.

1959 – Nikita Khrushchev becomes the first Soviet leader to visit the United States.

1962 – The Soviet ship Poltava heads toward Cuba, one of the events that sets into motion the Cuban Missile Crisis.

1963 – 16th Street Baptist Church bombing: Four children killed in the bombing of an African-American church in Birmingham, Alabama, United States.

1967 – U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, responding to a sniper attack at the University of Texas at Austin, writes a letter to Congress urging the enactment of gun control legislation.

1968 – The Soviet Zond 5 spaceship is launched, becoming the first spacecraft to fly around the Moon and re-enter the Earth's atmosphere.

1971 – The first Greenpeace ship sets sail to protest against nuclear testing on Amchitka Island.

1972 – A Scandinavian Airlines System domestic flight from Gothenburg to Stockholm is hijacked and flown to Malmö Bulltofta Airport.

1974 – Air Vietnam Flight 706 is hijacked, then crashes while attempting to land with 75 on board.

1975 – The French department of "Corse" (the entire island of Corsica) is divided into two: Haute-Corse (Upper Corsica) and Corse-du-Sud (Southern Corsica)

1978 – Muhammad Ali outpointed Leon Spinks in a rematch to become the first boxer to win the world heavyweight title three times at the Superdome in New Orleans.

1981 – The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approves Sandra Day O'Connor to become the first female justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

1981 – The John Bull becomes the oldest operable steam locomotive in the world when the Smithsonian Institution operates it under its own power outside Washington, D.C.

1981 – Vanuatu becomes a member of the United Nations.

1983 – Israeli premier Menachem Begin resigns.

2000 – The opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics was held in Sydney, Australia.

2001 – George W. Bush, 43rd President of the United States, 46th Governor of Texas, gives Post 9-11 Weekly Address, foreshadowing an interventionist United States foreign policy, leading to the Iraq, and Afghanistan wars.

2004 – National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman announces lockout of the players' union and cessation of operations by the NHL head office.

2008 – Lehman Brothers files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history.

2012 – Muslim protesters shouting anti-American slogans clash with police, injuring 19 people, outside the US embassy in Sydney, Australia.

Births

601 – Ali, First Shi'a imam/Fourth Sunni caliph (d. 661)

767 – Saichō, Japanese monk (d. 822)

786 – Al-Ma'mun, Iraqi caliph (d. 833)

1254 – Marco Polo, Italian merchant and explorer (d. 1324)

1461 – Jacopo Salviati, Italian politician(d. 1553)

1505 – Mary of Hungary, Dutch ruler (d. 1558)

1533 – Catherine of Austria, Queen of Poland (d. 1572)

1580 – Charles Annibal Fabrot, French lawyer and author (d. 1659)

1613 – François de La Rochefoucauld, French soldier and author (d. 1680)

1649 – Titus Oates, English minister, fabricated the Popish Plot (d. 1705)

1666 – Sophia Dorothea of Celle (d. 1726)

1690 – Ignazio Prota, Italian composer and educator (d. 1748)

1715 – Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval, French general and engineer (d. 1789)

1736 – Jean Sylvain Bailly, French astronomer, mathematician, and politician, 1st Mayor of Paris (d. 1793)

1759 – Cornelio Saavedra, Argentinean general and politician (d. 1829)

1760 – Bogislav Friedrich Emanuel von Tauentzien, Prussian general (d. 1824)

1765 – Manuel Maria Barbosa du Bocage, Portuguese poet and author (d. 1805)

1789 – James Fenimore Cooper, American novelist, short story writer, and historian (d. 1851)

1815 – Halfdan Kjerulf, Norwegian journalist and composer (d. 1868)

1819 – Cyprien Tanguay, Canadian priest and historian (d. 1902)

1828 – Alexander Butlerov, Russian chemist and academic (d. 1886)

1830 – Porfirio Díaz, Mexican general and politician, 29th President of Mexico (d. 1915)

1857 – William Howard Taft, American lawyer, jurist, and politician, 27th President of the United States (d. 1930)

1857 – Anna Winlock, American astronomer and academic (d. 1904)

1858 – Charles de Foucauld, French priest and martyr (d. 1916)

1858 – Jenő Hubay, Hungarian violinist, composer, and educator (d. 1937)

1861 – M. Visvesvaraya, Indian engineer, scholar, and Bharat Ratna Laureate, Diwan of the Mysore Kingdom (d. 1962)

1863 – Horatio Parker, American organist, composer, and educator (d. 1919)

1864 – Prince Sigismund of Prussia (d. 1866)

1867 – Vladimir May-Mayevsky, Russian general (d. 1920)

1876 – Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, Indian author (d. 1938)

1876 – Bruno Walter, German-American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1962)

1877 – Jakob Ehrlich, Czech-Austrian politician (d. 1938)

1877 – Yente Serdatzky, Lithuanian-American author and playwright (d. 1962)

1879 – Joseph Lyons, Australian educator and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1939)

1880 – Chujiro Hayashi, Japanese physician (d. 1940)

1881 – Ettore Bugatti, Italian-French businessman, founded Bugatti (d. 1947)

1883 – Esteban Terradas i Illa, Spanish mathematician and engineer (d. 1950)

1886 – Paul Lévy, French mathematician and theorist (d. 1971)

1887 – Carlos Dávila, Chilean journalist and politician, President of Chile (d. 1955)

1888 – Antonio Ascari, Italian race car driver (d. 1925)

1889 – Robert Benchley, American humorist, newspaper columnist, and actor (d. 1945)

1889 – Claude McKay, Jamaican-American poet and author (d. 1948)

1890 – Ernest Bullock, English organist and composer (d. 1979)

1890 – Agatha Christie, English crime novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 1976)

1890 – Frank Martin, Swiss-Dutch pianist and composer (d. 1974)

1892 – Silpa Bhirasri, Italian sculptor and educator (d. 1962)

1894 – Chic Harley, American football player (d. 1974)

1894 – Oskar Klein, Swedish physicist and academic (d. 1977)

1894 – Jean Renoir, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1979)

1897 – Merle Curti, American historian and author (d. 1997)

1898 – J. Slauerhoff, Dutch poet and author (d. 1936)

1901 – Donald Bailey, English engineer, designed Bailey bridge (d. 1985)

1903 – Roy Acuff, American singer-songwriter and fiddler (d. 1992)

1904 – Umberto II of Italy (d. 1983)

1904 – Sheilah Graham Westbrook, English-American actress, journalist, and author (d. 1988)

1906 – Jacques Becker, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1960)

1906 – Walter E. Rollins, American songwriter (d. 1973)

1907 – Gunnar Ekelöf, Swedish poet and author (d. 1968)

1907 – Fay Wray, Canadian-American actress (d. 2004)

1908 – Kid Sheik, American trumpet player (d. 1996)

1908 – Penny Singleton, American actress and singer (d. 2003)

1909 – C. N. Annadurai, Indian educator and politician, 7th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu (d. 1969)

1909 – Phil Arnold, American actor (d. 1968)

1910 – Betty Neels, English nurse and author (d. 2001)

1911 – Karsten Solheim, Norwegian-American businessman, founded PING (d. 2000)

1911 – Luther Terry, American physician and academic, 9th Surgeon General of the United States (d. 1985)

1913 – Henry Brant, Canadian-American composer and conductor (d. 2008)

1913 – Bruno Hoffmann, German glass harp player (d. 1991)

1913 – John N. Mitchell, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 67th United States Attorney General (d. 1988)

1913 – Johannes Steinhoff, German general and pilot (d. 1994)

1914 – Creighton Abrams, American general (d. 1974)

1914 – Adolfo Bioy Casares, Argentinian journalist and author (d. 1999)

1914 – Orhan Kemal, Turkish author (d. 1970)

1914 – Robert McCloskey, American author and illustrator (d. 2003)

1915 – Fawn M. Brodie, American historian and author (d. 1981)

1915 – Al Casey, American guitarist and composer (d. 2005)

1915 – Albert Whitlock, English-American special effects designer (d. 1999)

1915 – Ismail Yassine, Egyptian actor (d. 1972)

1916 – Margaret Lockwood, Pakistani-English actress and singer (d. 1990)

1916 – Frederick C. Weyand, American general (d. 2010)

1917 – Hilde Gueden, Austrian soprano (d. 1988)

1918 – Alfred D. Chandler Jr., American historian and academic (d. 2007)

1918 – Phil Lamason, New Zealand soldier and pilot (d. 2012)

1918 – Margot Loyola, Chilean singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2015)

1918 – Nipsey Russell, American comedian and actor (d. 2005)

1919 – Fausto Coppi, Italian cyclist and soldier (d. 1960)

1919 – Nelson Gidding, American author and screenwriter (d. 2004)

1919 – Heda Margolius Kovály, Czech author and translator (d. 2010)

1920 – Kym Bonython, Australian race car driver, drummer, and radio host (d. 2011)

1921 – Richard Gordon, English surgeon and author

1921 – Snooky Pryor, American harmonica player (d. 2006)

1921 – Gene Roland, American pianist and composer (d. 1982)

1922 – Bob Anderson, English fencer and choreographer (d. 2012)

1922 – Jackie Cooper, American actor (d. 2011)

1922 – Gaetano Cozzi, Italian historian and academic (d. 2001)

1922 – Mary Soames, English author (d. 2014)

1923 – Anton Heiller, Austrian organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1979)

1924 – Lucebert, Dutch poet and painter (d. 1994)

1924 – György Lázár, Hungarian politician, 50th Prime Minister of Hungary (d. 2014)

1924 – Bobby Short, American singer and pianist (d. 2005)

1925 – Stanley Chapman, English architect and author (d. 2009)

1925 – Carlo Rambaldi, Italian special effects artist (d. 2012)

1925 – Helle Virkner, Danish actress and singer (d. 2009)

1926 – Shohei Imamura, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2006)

1926 – Jean-Pierre Serre, French mathematician and academic

1927 – Norm Crosby, American comedian and actor

1927 – Erika Köth, German soprano (d. 1981)

1927 – David Stove, Australian philosopher and academic (d. 1994)

1928 – Cannonball Adderley, American saxophonist and bandleader (d. 1975)

1929 – Eva Burrows, Australian 13th General of The Salvation Army (d. 2015)

1929 – Murray Gell-Mann, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate

1929 – Stan Kelly-Bootle, English singer-songwriter, computer scientist, and author (d. 2014)

1929 – Dick Latessa, American actor

1929 – John Julius Norwich, English historian and author

1929 – Mümtaz Soysal, Turkish academic and politician, 30th Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs

1930 – Endel Lippmaa, Estonian physicist and academic (d. 2015)

1931 – Brian Henderson, New Zealand-Australian journalist, actor, and producer

1932 – Neil Bartlett, English-American chemist and academic (d. 2008)

1933 – Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Spanish conductor and composer (d. 2014)

1934 – Tomie dePaola, American author and illustrator

1934 – Fred Nile, Australian soldier, minister, and politician

1935 – Dinkha IV, Iraqi patriarch (d. 2015)

1936 – Ashley Cooper, Australian tennis player

1936 – Sara Henderson, Australian farmer and author (d. 2005)

1937 – Joey Carew, Trinidadian cricketer (d. 2011)

1937 – Fernando de la Rúa, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 51st President of Argentina

1937 – Robert Lucas Jr., American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate

1937 – Pino Puglisi, Italian priest and martyr (d. 1993)

1938 – Gaylord Perry, American baseball player and coach

1939 – Subramanian Swamy, Indian economist, academic, and politician, Indian Minister of Law and Justice

1939 – George Walden, English journalist and politician

1940 – Merlin Olsen, American football player, sportscaster, and actor (d. 2010)

1941 – Flórián Albert, Hungarian footballer and manager (d. 2011)

1941 – Signe Toly Anderson, American rock singer (d. 2016)

1941 – Mirosław Hermaszewski, Polish general, pilot, and astronaut

1941 – Yuriy Norshteyn, Russian animator, director, and screenwriter

1941 – Viktor Zubkov, Russian businessman and politician, 37th Prime Minister of Russia

1942 – Lee Dorman, American bass player (d. 2012)

1942 – Philip Harris, Baron Harris of Peckham, English businessman and politician

1942 – Ksenia Milicevic, French painter and architect

1944 – Mauro Piacenza, Italian cardinal

1944 – Graham Taylor, English footballer and manager (d. 2017)

1945 – Carmen Maura, Spanish actress

1945 – Jessye Norman, American soprano

1945 – Hans-Gert Pöttering, German lawyer and politician, 23rd President of the European Parliament

1945 – Ron Shelton, American director, producer, and screenwriter

1946 – Tommy Lee Jones, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

1946 – Mike Procter, South African cricketer, coach, and referee

1946 – Oliver Stone, American director, screenwriter, and producer

1946 – Howard Waldrop, American author and critic

1947 – Viggo Jensen, Danish footballer and manager

1947 – Diane E. Levin, American educator and author

1947 – Theodore Long, American wrestling referee and manager

1947 – Charles "Bobo" Shaw, American drummer

1949 – Joe Barton, American lawyer and politician

1950 – Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Pakistani-English caliph and scholar

1951 – Pete Carroll, American football player and coach

1951 – Johan Neeskens, Dutch footballer and manager

1952 – Richard Brodeur, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster

1952 – Paula Duncan, Australian actress

1952 – Ratnajeevan Hoole, Sri Lankan engineer and academic

1952 – Kelly Keagy, American singer and drummer

1953 – Keiko Takeshita, Japanese actress

1954 – Hrant Dink, Turkish journalist (d. 2007)

1955 – Željka Antunović, Croatian politician, 9th Croatian Minister of Defence

1955 – Abdul Qadir, Pakistani cricketer

1955 – Bruce Reitherman, American voice actor, singer, cinematographer, and producer

1955 – Renzo Rosso, Italian fashion designer and businessman, co-founded Diesel Clothing

1956 – Ross J. Anderson, British academic and educator

1956 – Maggie Reilly, Scottish singer-songwriter

1956 – Ned Rothenberg, American saxophonist, clarinet player, and composer

1958 – Joel Quenneville, Canadian ice hockey player and coach

1958 – Wendie Jo Sperber, American actress (d. 2005)

1959 – Mark Kirk, American commander, lawyer, and politician

1960 – Ed Solomon, American director, producer, and screenwriter

1961 – Terry Lamb, Australian rugby league player and coach

1961 – Helen Margetts, British political scientist

1961 – Dan Marino, American football player and sportscaster

1961 – Patrick Patterson, Jamaican cricketer

1962 – Amanda Wakeley, English fashion designer

1963 – Pete Myers, American basketball player and coach

1963 – Stephen C. Spiteri, Maltese military historian

1964 – Robert Fico, Slovak academic and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Slovakia

1964 – Steve Watkin, Welsh cricketer

1964 – Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein, American guitarist and songwriter

1966 – Sherman Douglas, American basketball player

1967 – Paul Abbott, American baseball player and coach

1967 – Rodney Eyles, Australian squash player

1969 – Revaz Arveladze, Georgian footballer

1969 – Allen Shellenberger, American drummer (d. 2009)

1971 – Nathan Astle, New Zealand cricketer and coach

1971 – Josh Charles, American actor and director

1971 – Wayne Ferreira, South African tennis player

1971 – Ben Wallers, English singer-songwriter and guitarist

1972 – Jimmy Carr, English comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter

1972 – Queen Letizia of Spain

1973 – Prince Daniel, Duke of Västergötland, Swedish prince

1974 – Arata Iura, Japanese actor, model, and fashion designer

1975 – Tom Dolan, American swimmer

1975 – Martina Krupičková, Czech painter

1976 – Brett Kimmorley, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster

1976 – Paul Thomson, Scottish drummer

1976 – Matt Thornton, American baseball player

1977 – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Nigerian novelist, essayist, and short story writer

1977 – Angela Aki, Japanese singer-songwriter

1977 – Sophie Dahl, English model and author

1977 – Tom Hardy, English actor

1977 – Leander Jordan, American football player

1977 – Jason Terry, American basketball player

1978 – Zach Filkins, American guitarist

1978 – Eiður Guðjohnsen, Icelandic footballer

1979 – Dave Annable, American actor

1979 – Patrick Marleau, Canadian ice hockey player

1979 – Carlos Ruiz, Guatemalan footballer

1980 – David Diehl, American football player and sportscaster

1980 – Mike Dunleavy Jr., American basketball player

1983 – Yuka Hirata, Japanese actress and model

1983 – Luke Hochevar, American baseball player

1984 – Prince Harry of Wales

1984 – Loek van Mil, Dutch baseball player

1984 – Cyhi the Prynce, American rapper and producer

1985 – François-Olivier Roberge, Canadian speed skater

1986 – Jenna Marbles, American YouTuber and actress

1986 – George Watsky, American rapper and producer

1987 – Aly Cissokho, French footballer

1987 – Clare Maguire, English singer-songwriter

1988 – Michael Cooper, English rugby league player

1988 – Tim Moltzen, Australian rugby league player

1990 – Oliver Gill, English footballer

1991 – Lee Jung-shin, South Korean rapper and bass player

1991 – Phil Ofosu-Ayeh, German-Ghanaian footballer

1995 – Joe Ofahengaue, New Zealand-Tongan rugby league player

1996 – Nao Furuhata, Japanese singer

Deaths

668 – Constans II, Byzantine emperor (b. 630)

921 – Ludmila of Bohemia, Czech martyr and saint (b. 860)

1140 – Adelaide of Hungary, Duchess of Bohemia

1146 – Alan, 1st Earl of Richmond, English soldier (b. 1100)

1231 – Louis I, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1173)

1326 – Dmitry of Tver (b. 1299)

1352 – Ewostatewos, Ethiopian monk and saint (b. 1273)

1397 – Adam Easton, English cardinal

1408 – Edmund Holland, 4th Earl of Kent, English politician (b. 1384)

1496 – Hugh Clopton, Lord Mayor of London (b. c. 1440)

1500 – John Morton, English cardinal and academic (b. 1420)

1504 – Elisabeth of Bavaria, Electress of the Palatinate (b. 1478)

1510 – Saint Catherine of Genoa (b. 1447)

1559 – Isabella Jagiellon, Queen of Hungary (d. 1519)

1596 – Leonhard Rauwolf, German physician and botanist (b. 1535)

1613 – Thomas Overbury, English poet and author (b. 1581)

1643 – Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, English-Irish politician, Lord High Treasurer of Ireland (b. 1566)

1649 – John Floyd, English priest and educator (b. 1572)

1700 – André Le Nôtre, French gardener (b. 1613)

1701 – Edmé Boursault, French author and playwright (b. 1638)

1707 – George Stepney, English poet and diplomat (b. 1663)

1712 – Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1645)

1750 – Charles Theodore Pachelbel, German organist and composer (b. 1690)

1794 – Abraham Clark, American police officer and politician (b. 1725)

1803 – Gian Francesco Albani, Italian cardinal (b. 1719)

1813 – Antoine Étienne de Tousard, French general and engineer (b. 1752)

1830 – François Baillairgé, Canadian painter and sculptor (b. 1759)

1830 – William Huskisson, English financier and politician, Secretary of State for War and the Colonies (b. 1770)

1841 – Alessandro Rolla, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1757)

1842 – Pierre Baillot, French violinist and composer (b. 1771)

1842 – Francisco Morazán, Guatemalan general, lawyer, and politician, President of Central American Federation (b. 1792)

1852 – Johann Karl Simon Morgenstern, German-Estonian philologist and academic (b. 1770)

1859 – Isambard Kingdom Brunel, English architect and engineer, designed the Great Western Railway (b. 1806)

1864 – John Hanning Speke, English soldier and explorer (b. 1827)

1883 – Joseph Plateau, Belgian physicist and academic (b. 1801)

1893 – Thomas Hawksley, English engineer (b. 1807)

1915 – Ernest Gagnon, Canadian organist and composer (b. 1834)

1921 – Roman von Ungern-Sternberg, Austrian-Russian general (b. 1886)

1926 – Rudolf Christoph Eucken, German philosopher and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1846)

1930 – Milton Sills, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1882)

1938 – Thomas Wolfe, American novelist (b. 1900)

1940 – William B. Bankhead, American lawyer and politician, 47th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1874)

1945 – André Tardieu, French journalist and politician, 97th Prime Minister of France (b. 1876)

1945 – Anton Webern, Austrian composer and conductor (b. 1883)

1945 – Linnie Marsh Wolfe, American librarian and author (b. 1881)

1952 – Hugo Raudsepp, Estonian author and playwright (b. 1883)

1965 – Steve Brown, American bassist (b. 1890)

1972 – Ulvi Cemal Erkin, Turkish composer and educator (b. 1906)

1972 – Baki Süha Ediboğlu, Turkish poet and author (b. 1915)

1972 – Geoffrey Fisher, English archbishop and academic (b. 1887)

1973 – Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden (b. 1882)

1973 – Víctor Jara, Chilean singer-songwriter, poet, and director (b. 1932)

1975 – Franco Bordoni, Italian race car driver and pilot (b. 1913)

1978 – Robert Cliche, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1921)

1978 – Willy Messerschmitt, German engineer and academic, designed the Messerschmitt Bf 109 (b. 1898)

1980 – Bill Evans, American pianist and composer (b. 1929)

1981 – Rafael Méndez, Mexican trumpet player and composer (b. 1906)

1983 – Prince Far I, Jamaican DJ and producer (b. 1944)

1985 – Cootie Williams, American trumpet player (b. 1910)

1989 – Jan DeGaetani, American soprano (b. 1933)

1989 – Olga Erteszek, Polish-American fashion designer (b. 1916)

1989 – Robert Penn Warren, American novelist, poet, and literary critic (b. 1905)

1991 – John Hoyt, American actor (b. 1904)

1991 – Warner Troyer, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1932)

1993 – Pino Puglisi, Italian priest and martyr (b. 1937)

1995 – Harry Calder, South African cricketer (b. 1901)

1995 – Gunnar Nordahl, Swedish footballer and manager (b. 1921)

1998 – Louis Rasminsky, Canadian economist, 3rd Governor of the Bank of Canada (b. 1908)

2001 – June Salter, Australian actress and author (b. 1932)

2003 – Garner Ted Armstrong, American evangelist and author (b. 1930)

2004 – Johnny Ramone, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1948)

2004 – Walter Stewart, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1931)

2005 – Guy Green, English director and cinematographer (b. 1913)

2005 – Sidney Luft, American manager and producer (b. 1915)

2006 – Raymond Baxter, English television host and author (b. 1922)

2006 – Oriana Fallaci, Italian journalist and author (b. 1929)

2006 – Pablo Santos, Mexican-American actor (b. 1987)

2007 – Colin McRae, Scottish race car driver (b. 1968)

2007 – Jeremy Moore, English general (b. 1928)

2007 – Aldemaro Romero, Venezuelan pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1928)

2007 – Brett Somers, Canadian-American actress and singer (b. 1924)

2008 – Richard Wright, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player (b. 1943)

2009 – Troy Kennedy Martin, Scottish-English screenwriter (b. 1932)

2010 – Arrow, Caribbean singer-songwriter (b. 1949)

2011 – Frances Bay, Canadian-American actress (b. 1919)

2012 – Tibor Antalpéter, Hungarian volleyball player and diplomat, Hungarian Ambassador of Hungary to the United Kingdom (b. 1930)

2012 – Nevin Spence, Northern Irish rugby player (b. 1990)

2013 – Habib Munzir Al-Musawa, Indonesian cleric and scholar (b. 1973)

2013 – Jerry G. Bishop, American radio and television host (b. 1936)

2013 – Gerard Cafesjian, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1925)

2013 – Jackie Lomax, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1944)

2013 – Tomás Ó Canainn, Irish singer-songwriter and pipe player (b. 1930)

2014 – John Anderson Jr., American lawyer and politician, 36th Governor of Kansas (b. 1917)

2014 – Eugene I. Gordon, American physicist and engineer (b. 1930)

2014 – Nicholas Romanov, Prince of Russia (b. 1922)

2014 – Jürg Schubiger, Swiss psychotherapist and author (b. 1936)

2014 – Wayne Tefs, Canadian anthologist, author, and critic (b. 1947)

2015 – Harry J. Lipkin, Israeli physicist and academic (b. 1921)

2015 – Meir Pa'il, Israeli commander, historian, and politician (b. 1926)

2015 – Bernard Van de Kerckhove, Belgian cyclist (b. 1941)

Holidays and observances

Battle of Britain Day (United Kingdom)

Christian feast day:

Catherine of Genoa

James Chisholm (Episcopal Church)

Joseph Abibos

Nicomedes

Our Lady of Sorrows

September 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics).

Cry of Dolores, celebrated on the eve of Independence Day (Mexico).

Earliest day on which Father's Day can fall, while September 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday in September. (Ukraine)

Earliest day on which German-American Steuben Parade can fall, while September 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Saturday in September. (United States, especially New York City)

Earliest day on which POW/MIA Recognition Day can fall, while September 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Friday in September. (United States)

Earliest day on which Prinsjesdag can fall, while September 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Tuesday in September. (Netherlands)

Earliest day on which Respect for the Aged Day can fall, while September 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday in September. (Japan)

Engineer's Day (India)

Free Money Day (International)

Independence Day, celebrates the independence from Spain in 1821 of Guatemala (a Patriotic Day), El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.

International Day of Democracy

International Dot Day

Knowledge Day (Azerbaijan)

Restoration of Primorska to the Motherland Day (Slovenia)

Silpa Bhirasri Day (Thailand).

The beginning of German American Heritage Month, celebrated until October 15

The beginning of National Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated until October 15 (United States)

World Lymphoma Awareness Day (International)