On this day in History - Feb. 20

• 1171- Conan IV, dies, Duke of Brittany (b. 1138).
• 1194 - Tancred, dies, King of Sicily .
• 1431 - Pope Martin V dies .
• 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are annexed to the crown of Scotland.
• 1547 - Edward VI of England is crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey.
• 1567 - Estácio de Sá, explorador português morre.
• 1579 - Nicholas Bacon, dies, English politician (b. 1509) .
• 1626 - John Dowland, dies, composer and lutenist (b. 1563).
• 1664 - Es asesinado el cuarto virrey de Perú, Diego de Acevedo y Zúñiga, conde de Nieva.
• 1694 - Born this day, Voltaire, French writer and philosopher.
• 1720 - Criação da capitania de Minas Gerais, separada da de São Paulo, devido à descoberta das minas de ouro.
• 1724 - The premiere of Giulio Cesare, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel, takes place in London.
• 1725 - The first reported case of white men scalping Native Americans takes place in New Hampshire colony.
• 1751 - Johann Heinrich Voß, was born, German poet (d. 1826) .
• 1757 - John 'Mad Jack' Fuller, was born, philanthropist and patron of the arts and sciences (d. 1834) .
• 1773- King Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy dies (b. 1701) .
• 1790 - Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor dies (b. 1741).
• 1792 - The Postal Service Act, establishing the United States Post Office Department, is signed by President George Washington.
• 1809 - A decision by the United States Supreme Court states that the power of the federal government is greater than any individual state.
• 1810 - Andreas Hofer, Tyrolean patriot and leader of rebellion against Napoleon's forces, was executed.
• 1813 - Batalla de Salta: las tropas patriotas al mando del Gral. Manuel Belgrano, vencen a las realistas.
• 1828 - Se reconoce la independencia de Paraguay.
• 1835 - Concepción, Chile is destroyed by an earthquake .
• 1839 - Revd Benjamin Waugh, was born, founder of NSPCC (d. 1908) .
• 1844 - Ludwig Boltzmann, was born, physicist (d. 1906) .
• 1844 - Joshua Slocum, was born, seaman and adventurer (d. 1909)
• 1848 - Edward Henry Harriman, was born railroad executive (d. 1909).
• 1864 - Battle of Olustee .
• 1871 - Paul Kane, dies, painter (b. 1810) .
• 1872 - In New York City the Metropolitan Museum of Art opens.
• 1873 - The University of California opens its first medical school in San Francisco, California.
• 1901 - Ali Mohammed Neguib, Egyptian general and statesman is born in Khartoum.
• 1887 - Carl Ebert, was born, opera manager and director (d. 1980) .
• 1887 - Vincent Massey, was born, Governor-General of Canada (d. 1967) .
• 1893 - P.G.T. Beauregard, dies, Confederate general (b. 1818) .
• 1895 - Frederick Douglass, dies, American abolitionist writer (b. ca. 1818) .
• 1901 - The legislature of Hawaii Territory convenes for the first time.
• 1902 - Ansel Adams, was born, photographer (d. 1984) .
• 1904 - Alexei Kosygin, was born, Premier of the Soviet Union (d. 1980) .
• 1909 - Heinz Erhardt, was born, German comedian (d. 1979) .
• 1912- Pierre Boulle, was born, author (d. 1994) .
• 1913 - King O'Malley drove in the first survey peg to mark commencement of work on the construction of Canberra.
• 1919 - Muere Martín Coronado, comediógrafo argentino.
• 1920 -Egyptian Christian Copt Premier, Butros Ghali, is assassinated. Ghali, supported by the British was targeted by Islamic Nationalist fanatics.
• 1920 -A Grã-Bretanha reconhece a autonomia do governo da Transjordânia, atual Jordânia.
• 1920 - Morreu Jacinto Marto, um dos três videntes de Fátima.
• 1920 - Robert Peary, dies, explorer (b. 1856) .
• 1921 - The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse film, starring Rudolph Valentino, premieres.
• 1924 - Gloria Vanderbilt, was born, jeans designer and entrepreneur .
• 1925 - Robert Altman, was born, film director .
• 1925 - Heinz Kluncker, was born, labor union leader .
• 1926 - Richard Matheson, was born, author .
• 1926 - Rob Richards, was born, track and field athlete .
• 1927 - Sidney Poitier, was born, US actor .
• 1931 - California gets the go-ahead by the U.S. Congress to build the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.
• 1932 - Agustín P. Justo asume la presidencia de la Nación Argentina.
• 1938 - O ministro de Relações Exteriores da Grã-Bretanha, Anthony Éden, renuncia em protesto contra as políticas do primeiro-ministro Neville Chamberlain de conciliação com o ditador alemão Adolf Hitler.
• 1941 - Primeiro transporte de judeus para os campos de concentração sai da cidade de Plotsk, localizada na Polônia.
• 1942 - Lieutenant Edward O'Hare becomes America's first World War II flying ace.
• 1943 - American movie studio executives agree to allow the Office of War Information to censor movies.
• 1943 - Paricutín volcano begins to form in Paricutín, México.
• 1944 - World War II: "Big Week" begins with American bomber raids on Nazi aircraft manufacturing centers.
• 1944 - World War II: The United States takes Eniwetok Island.
• 1946 - Brenda Blethyn, was born, actress .
• 1946 - Jerome Geils was born, of the J. Geils Band .
• 1947 - Peter Osgood, was born, English football player .
• 1947 - Peter Strauss, was born, actor .
• 1951 - Gordon Brown, was born, British politician .
• 1951 - As part of the long process towards self-determination in Britain's colony of Gold Coast, the country's first parliament is opened in Accra.
• 1952 - Emmett L. Ashford becomes the first African-American umpire in organized baseball by being authorized to be a substitute umpire in the Southwestern International League.
• 1952 - The film The African Queen opens at Capitol Theatre in New York City.
• 1954 - Anthony Stewart Head, was born, actor .
• 1954 - Patty Hearst, was born, socialite .
• 1955 - Kelsey Grammer, was born, actor .
• 1959 - The Avro Arrow programme to design and manufacture supersonic jet fighters in Canada was cancelled by the Diefenbaker government amid much political debate.
• 1962 - Mercury program: While aboard Friendship 7, John Glenn orbits the earth three times in 4 hours, 55 minutes, becoming the first American to orbit the earth.
• 1964, 20 FebruaryAlgeria and Morocco sign an agreement in Rabat to end their border war.
• 1963 - Charles Barkley, American basketball player .
• 1965 - Ranger 8 crashes into the moon after a successful mission of photographing possible landing sites for the Apollo program astronauts.
• 1966 - Cindy Crawford, was born, model .
• 1966 - Chester Nimitz, dies, American admiral (b. 1885) .
• 1967 - Kurt Cobain, was born, rock musician, guitar, vocals, Nirvana, (d. 1994) .
• 1968 - Anthony Asquith, dies, director, writer (b. 1902)
• 1969 - Ernest Ansermet, dies, conductor (b. 1883)
• 1969 - Rumania determina la prohibición de las maniobras de las fuerzas del Pacto de Varsovia en su territorio.
• 1971 - Jari Litmanen, was born, Finnish international football player .
• 1972 - Walter Winchell, dies, journalist, (b. 1897) .
• 1975 - Brian Littrell, was born, musician ("Backstreet Boys") .
• 1976 - The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization disbands.
• 1977 - Stephon Marbury, was born, basketball player .
• 1978 - Vitorino Nemésio, escritor e professor, morreu neste dia do ano de 1978. Nascido em Angra do Heroísmo, foi responsável pelo programa «Se bem me lembro», exibido pela RTP, que o tornou uma destacada figura da comunicação audio-visual.
• 1978 - Encuentro de los dictadores argentino y chileno, Videla y Pinochet, para tratar el conflicto del canal de Beagle.
• 1979- 175 pessoas morrem em uma erupção do vulcão Sinira na Indonésia.
• 1979-Salisbury airport is attacked by nationalist guerrillas.
• 1980 - Imanol Harinordoquy, was born, French international rugby player
• 1985 - Yulia, [Volkova Olegovna], singer half of Russian pop group t.A.T.u.
• 1985 - Clarence Nash, dies, Disney voice actor (b. 1904).
• 1986 - MIR é lançada ao espaço . A URSS lança a primeira estação espacial na a órbita da Terra: a MIR. Situada a 390 quilômetros do solo terrestre, o projeto tinha como objetivo principal o estudo dos efeitos da longa permanência humana no espaço. A estação permaneceu 15 anos em órbita.
• 1987 - Unabomber: In Salt Lake City, Utah a bomb explodes in a computer store.
• 1991 - Alrededor de 100.000 personas se manifiestan en Tirana por la democratización de Albania.
• 1992 - Muere Roberto D'Aubuisson, político salvadoreño, fundador del partido ARENA.
• 1992 - Ross Perot announced his intention to run in the 1992 U.S. presidential election on CNN's Larry King Live.
• 1992 - Dick York, dies, actor (b. 1928) .
• 1993 - Ferrucio Lamborghini, dies, automobile manufacturer .
• 1996 - Toru Takemitsu, dies, composer (b. 1930) .
• 1996 - Solomon Asch, dies, psychologist (b. 1907) .
• 1999 - Sarah Kane, dies, playwright (b. 1971) .
• 1999 - Gene Siskel, dies,film critic (b. 1946) .
• 2001 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is arrested and charged with spying for Russia for 15 years.
• 2002 - In Reqa Al-Gharbiya, Egypt, a fire on a train injures over 65 and kills at least 370.
• 2002 - Winners at the Brit Awards included, Robbie Williams, best male act, Dido, best female act, Travis best British group, S Club 7 best single for Don't Stop Movin', The Strokes best international newcomer and Sting won Outstanding contribution.
• 2003 - In Rhode Island, The Station nightclub fire kills about 100 and injures over 200.
• 2003 - Maurice Blanchot, dies, author (b. 1907) .
• 2003 - Orville Freeman, dies, American politician (b. 1918) .
• 2003 - Willi Hoss, dies, politician .
• 2003 - Harry Jacunski, dies, NFL player .
• 2003 - Ty Longley, dies, guitarist for the heavy-metal band Great White
• 2003 - Ulrich Roski, dies, singer and cabaret artist .
• 2005 - Devido à dissolução da Assembleia da República pelo Presidente da Republica Jorge Sampaio, em consequência da inabilidade do Governo de Pedro Santana Lopes, realizam-se hoje eleições legislativas em Portugal, para eleição dos deputados para a Assembleia da Republica .