March 27 is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 279 days remaining until the end of the year.
1901 – 2000
- 1910 - A fire at a barn-dance in Hungary kills 312 people.
- 1915 - Mary Mallon, known as Typhoid Mary, is quarantined for the rest of her life.
- 1918 – Moldova and Bessarabia join Romania.
- 1923 – FART construction completed.
- 1941 – Britain supports Peter II of Yugoslavia in a coup in Yugoslavia.
- 1942 – World War II: United Kingdom forces raid the U-boat base at St. Nazaire, France.
- 1945 – World War II: Operation Starvation, the aerial mining of Japan's ports and waterways begins.
- 1952 – Sun Records begins operations.
- 1958 – Nikita Khrushchev becomes Premier of the Soviet Union.
- 1963 – Dr Beeching issues a report calling for huge cuts to the United Kingdom's rail network. See Beeching axe.
- 1964 – The Good Friday Earthquake, the most powerful earthquake in U.S. history at a magnitude of 9.2 strikes South Central Alaska, killing 125 people and inflicting massive damage to the city of Anchorage.
- 1969 – Mariner 7 is launched.
- 1975 - Building work on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline begins in Alaska.
- 1976 – The first 4.6 miles of the Washington, DC subway system is opened.
- 1977 – Tenerife disaster: Two jumbo jets collide on a foggy runway on Tenerife in the Canary Islands, killing 583.
- 1980 – The Norwegian oil platform Alexander Kielland collapses in the North Sea, killing 123 of its crew of 212.
- 1981 - The Solidarity movement in Poland stages a "warning strike", as 12 million workers walk out for 4 hours.
- 1984 - The musical Starlight Express is first performed in London.
- 1986 – Car bomb explodes at Russell Street Police HQ in Melbourne, killing 1 police officer.
- 1988 – Moudud Ahmed becomes Prime Minister of Bangladesh.
- 1989 – Generations, the first American soap opera to have an entire black family in its original core cast, commences telecasts on NBC.
- 1990 – Propaganda: The United States begins broadcasting TV Martí to Cuba.
- 1993 – Jiang Zemin is appointed President of the People's Republic of China.
- 1993 – Albert Zafy becomes President of Madagascar.
- 1993 – Mahamane Ousmane becomes President of Niger.
- 1994 – One of the biggest tornado outbreaks in recent memory hits the Southeastern United States. One tornado slams into a church in Piedmont, Alabama during Palm Sunday services killing 20 and injuring 90.
- 1995 - Forrest Gump wins six awards at the 67th Academy Awards.
- 1996 – Yigal Amir is sentenced to life in prison for murdering Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
From 2001
- 2002 – Passover Massacre: A suicide bomber kills 28 people in Netanya, Israel.
- 2002 - Nanterre Massacre: In Nanterre, France, a gunman opens fire on councilors at the end of a town council meeting, killing 8 councilors and injuring 19.
- 2003 – An explosion in the Nitrochimie dynamite factory in Billy-Berclau, France, kills 4 people.
- 2004 – HMS Scylla, a decommissioned Leander frigate, is sunk as an artificial reef off Cornwall, the first of its kind in Europe.
- 2006 – The United Nations Commission on Human Rights holds its final meeting.
- 2008 – Geert Wilders releases a movie called Fitna. The next days protests were held by people in the Middle East.
- 2009 – The Situ Gintung Dam breaks in Indonesia, leading to at least 99 deaths.
- 2009 - A suicide bomber kills at least 48 people at a mosque in Khyber Agency, Pakistan.
- 2016 - A bomb attack on people celebrating Easter in Lahore, Pakistan, kills over 70 people.
Up to 1800
- 45 - Statius, Roman poet (d. 96)
- 765– Harun al-Rashid, Abbasid Caliph (d. 809)
- 972 – Robert II of France (d. 1031)
- 1123 – Emperor Shizong of Jin (d. 1189)
- 1196 - Sviatoslav III of Vladimir (d. 1252)
- 1306 - Philip III of Navarre (d. 1343)
- 1416 - Antonio Squarcialupi, Italian organist and composer (d. 1480)
- 1416 - Francis of Paola, Italian friar and saint (d. 1507)
- 1679 - Domenico Lalli, Italian poet and librettist (d. 1741)
- 1702 - Johann Ernst Eberlin, German organist and composer (d. 1762)
- 1710 - Joseph Abaco, Belgian cellist and composer (d. 1805)
- 1714 - Francesco Antonio Zaccaria, Italian historian and theologian (d. 1795)
- 1753 - Edward Pigott, British astronomer (d. 1825)
- 1761 – James Sykes, 14th Governor of Delaware (d. 1822)
- 1765 - Franz Xaver von Baader, German philosopher and theologian (d. 1841)
- 1767 - Charles Didelot, Swedish-French dancer and choreographer (d. 1837)
- 1785 – King Louis XVII of France (d. 1795)
1801 – 1900
- 1802 – Charles-Mathias Simons, 3rd Prime Minister of Luxembourg (d. 1874)
- 1809 – Georges-Eugène Haussmann, French civic engineer (d. 1891)
- 1809 – Jean-Louis Beaudry, 11th Mayor of Montreal (d. 1886)
- 1813 - Nathaniel Currier, American illustrator (d. 1888)
- 1813 - David Monro, Scottish-New Zealand physician and politician (d. 1877)
- 1817 – Karl Wilhelm von Nägeli, Swiss botanist and biologist (d. 1891)
- 1822 - Henri Murger, French writer and poet (d. 1861)
- 1824 - Virginia Minor, American activist (d. 1894)
- 1827 - Ernesto Rossi, Italian actor and playwright (d. 1896)
- 1839 - John Ballance, 14th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1893)
- 1845 – Wilhelm Röntgen, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1923)
- 1847 – Otto Wallach, German chemist (d. 1931)
- 1849 - Carlo Dossi, Italian writer and diplomat (d. 1910)
- 1854 - Georges Eekhoud, novelist (d. 1927)
- 1857 - Karl Pearson, British mathematician (d. 1936)
- 1861 - Nikolay Demyanov, Russian chemist (d. 1938)
- 1863 – Henry Royce, English automobile pioneer (d. 1933)
- 1865 - Alessandro Verde, Italian cardinal (d. 1958)
- 1866 - John Allan, Australian politician, 29th Premier of Victoria (d. 1936)
- 1869 – James McNeill, 2nd Governor-General of the Irish Free State (d. 1938)
- 1869 - Walter Dohm, American runner (d. 1894)
- 1871 – Heinrich Mann, German writer (d. 1950)
- 1873 - Christophorus III, Georgian Patriarch (d. 1932)
- 1874 – Andrés de Segurola, Spanish bass (d. 1953)
- 1876 – Ermenegildo Pellegrinetti, Italian cardinal (d. 1943)
- 1879 – Edward Steichen, Luxembourg-American photographer (d. 1973)
- 1879 - Sandor Garbai, 19th Prime Minister of Hungary (d. 1947)
- 1885 - Julio Lozano Diaz, 40th President of Honduras (d. 1957)
- 1886 – Sergey Kirov, Soviet politician (d. 1934)
- 1886 – Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, German architect (d. 1969)
- 1891 – Lajos Zilahy, Hungarian playwright and writer (d. 1974)
- 1893 – Karl Mannheim, Hungarian sociologist and philosopher(d. 1947)
- 1894 - Soeprapto, Indonesian lawyer and judge (d. 1964)
- 1898 – Alma Tell, American stage and movie actress (d. 1937)
- 1898 - Titina De Filippo, Italian actress (d. 1963)
- 1898 - Maria Rasputin, daughter of Grigori Rasputin (d. 1977)
- 1899 – Gloria Swanson, American actress (d. 1983)
- 1900 - Arleigh Winston Scott, Governor-General of Barbados (d. 1976)
1901 – 1950
- 1901 – Carl Barks, American cartoonist and screenwriter (d. 2000)
- 1901 – Erich Ollenhauer, German publicist, historian and writer (d. 1963)
- 1901 – Eisaku Sato, Japanese statesman, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1975)
- 1901 – Kenneth Slessor, Australian poet (d. 1971)
- 1903 – Xavier Villaurrutia, Mexican dramatist (d. 1950)
- 1905 - Rudolf Christoph Freiherr von Gersdorff, German military officer and Resistance activist (d. 1980)
- 1906 – Pee Wee Russell, American clarinet player and songwriter (d. 1969)
- 1909 - Golo Mann, German writer, historian and publicist (d. 1994)
- 1912 – James Callaghan, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2005)
- 1913 - Theodor Dannecker, German SS officer (d. 1945)
- 1914 – Budd Schulberg, American screenwriter (d. 2009)
- 1915 - Bernardo Poli, Italian footballer (d. 1944)
- 1915 - Wang Daohan, Chinese politician, Mayor of Shanghai (d. 2005)
- 1917 – Cyrus Vance, 57th United States Secretary of State (d. 2002)
- 1920 - Richard Hayman, American musician and conductor (d. 2014)
- 1921 – Moacir Barbosa Nascimento, Brazilian footballer (d. 2000)
- 1921 – Fred Foy, American radio and television presenter (d. 2010)
- 1922 – Dick King-Smith, British writer (d. 2011)
- 1923 - Lorenzo Semple Jr., American screenwriter (d. 2014)
- 1924 - Sarah Vaughan, American jazz singer and pianist (d. 1990)
- 1925 - Henry Plumb, Baron Plumb, English farmer and politician
- 1927 – Mstislav Rostropovich, Russian cellist and conductor (d. 2007)
- 1930 – Daniel Spoerri, Romanian-Swiss artist, writer and director
- 1931 - Stephen Reinhardt, American judge (d. 2018)
- 1932 – Roberto Farias, Brazilian screenwriter and director
- 1932 - Bailey Olter, 3rd President of the Federated States of Micronesia (d. 1999)
- 1934 – Peter Schamoni, German movie director, screenwriter, and producer (d. 2011)
- 1934 - Jutta Limbach, German jurist and politician (d. 2016)
- 1934 - Ioannis Paleokrassas, Greek politician
- 1935 - Lars Andreas Larssen, Norwegian actor (d. 2014)
- 1937 - Thomas Aquinas Daly, American painter
- 1937 - Alan Hawkshaw, English keyboardist and songwriter
- 1941 – Liese Prokop, Austrian politician (d. 2006)
- 1941 – Ivan Gasparovic, former President of Slovakia
- 1942 – John E. Sulston, British chemist (d. 2018)
- 1942 – Michael York, British actor
- 1944 - Enrique Baron Crespo, Spanish politician
- 1944 – Miguel Enríquez, Chilean physician and activist (d. 1974)
- 1944 - Lydia Yu-Jose, Filipino political scientist (d. 2014)
- 1945 – Liddy Holloway, New Zealand actress (d. 2004)
- 1945 - Harry Rowohlt, German writer (d. 2015)
- 1946 – Olaf Malolepski, German musician
- 1946 – Michael Aris, British psychologist and writer, husband of Aung San Suu Kyi (d. 1999)
- 1947 – Aleksandr Viktorenko, Soviet pilot and cosmonaut
- 1947 - Daphne Todd, English painter
- 1947 - John Mayhew, English-American musician (Genesis) (d. 2009)
- 1950 – Tony Banks, British musician (Genesis)
- 1950 - Julia Alvarez, Dominican-American poet and novelist
1951 – 1975
- 1952 – Maria Schneider, French actress (d. 2011)
- 1953 - Gabriele Gatti, Sammarinese politician
- 1955 – Mariano Rajoy, Prime Minister of Spain
- 1955 – Christian Sarron, French motorcycle racer
- 1958 - Peter Howson, Scottish painter
- 1960 – Renato Russo, Brazilian rock singer-songwriter (d. 1996)
- 1961 – Tak Matsumoto, Japanese guitarist and songwriter (B'z)
- 1962 – John O'Farrell, English writer and broadcaster
- 1963 – Quentin Tarantino, American director, writer, and producer
- 1963 - Xuxa, Brazilian actress and singer
- 1964 - Clive Rowe, English actor
- 1964 - Ann Sidney, English actress and television host
- 1967 - Anthony Thornton, New Zealand field hockey player
- 1967 - Talisa Soto, American actress and model
- 1968 - Isabelle Tuchband, French-Brazilian sculptor and painter
- 1969 - Gianluigi Lentini, Italian footballer
- 1969 – Mariah Carey, American singer-songwriter
- 1970 – Derek Aucoin, Canadian baseball player
- 1970 - Jarrod McCracken, New Zealand rugby player
- 1971 – Matthew Pegg, English bass player and songwriter (Procol Harum)
- 1971 – David Coulthard, Scottish racing driver and sports commentator (BBC)
- 1971 – Leila Pahlavi, Iranian princess (d. 2001)
- 1972 – Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Dutch footballer
- 1972 – Charlie Haas, American professional wrestler
- 1973 – Rui Jorge, Portuguese footballer
- 1973 - Ade Adepitan, British basketball player
- 1974 – Gaizka Mendieta, Spanish footballer
- 1975 – Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson, American musician (Black Eyed Peas)
From 1976
- 1976 – Danny Fortson, American basketball player
- 1977 - Noname Jane, American pornographic actress
- 1979 – Lee Ji-hoon, South Korean singer-songwriter and actor
- 1979 – Denis Golovanov, Russian tennis player
- 1980 - Cesare Cremonini, Italian singer-songwriter and actor
- 1981 – Cacau, Brazilian-German footballer
- 1981 – JJ Lin, Chinese singer-songwriter and actor
- 1981 - Brian Miner, American comedian
- 1982 - Tracy Phillips, American actress, dancer and choreographer
- 1984 - Adam Ashley-Cooper, Australian rugby player
- 1984 – Brett Holman, Australian footballer
- 1985 – Oren Eizenman, Israeli-Canadian ice hockey player
- 1986 – Manuel Neuer, German footballer
- 1987 – Chad Denny, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1987 - Lene Egeli, Norwegian model
- 1987 - Polina Gagarina, Russian singer
- 1988 – Jessie J, English singer
- 1988 – Brenda Song, American actress
- 1988 - Atsuto Uchida, Japanese footballer
- 1990 - Kimbra, New Zealand singer-songwriter
- 1990 - Joselu, German-Spanish footballer
- 1991 - Shayne Whittington, American basketball player
- 1993 - Matt Hobden, English cricketer (d. 2016)
- 1997 - Princess Sara bint Al Faisal of Jordan
- 1997 - Princess Aisha bint Al Faisal of Jordan
- 1997 - Lisa Manoban, member of Kpop girl group Blackpink
- 2000 - Sophie Nélisse, Canadian actress
- 2004 - Amira Willighagen, Dutch singer
- 2006 - Josh Mayer,YouTuber
- 2006 - Jean Victor,Streamer
Up to 1900
- 710 - Rupert of Salzburg, Austrian saint (b. 660)
- 1191 – Pope Clement III (b. 1130)
- 1350 – Alfonso XI of Castile (b. 1312)
- 1378 – Pope Gregory XI (b. 1336)
- 1462 – Vasili II of Russia (b. 1415)
- 1482 – Mary of Burgundy (b. 1457)
- 1615 – Margaret of Valois, queen of Henry IV of France (b. 1553)
- 1625 – King James I of England and Ireland, James VI of Scotland (b. 1566)
- 1676 – Bernardino de Rebolledo, Spanish poet, soldier and diplomat (b. 1597)
- 1714 – Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen of Denmark (b. 1650)
- 1737 - Vakhtang VI of Kartli, Georgian King (b. 1675)
- 1745 - Tommaso Crudeli, Italian free thinker, poet and lawyer (b. 1702)
- 1840 - Philipp Albert Stapfer, Swiss philosopher and politician (b. 1786)
- 1844 - Dmitry Golitsyn, Russian-French general, statesman and writer (b. 1771)
- 1849 - Archibald Acheson, 2nd Earl of Gosford, 35th Governor General of Canada (b. 1776)
- 1850 – Wilhelm Beer, German astronomer (b. 1797)
- 1867 - Prideaux John Selby, English ornithologist, botanist and artist (b. 1788)
- 1869 - James Harper, American politician, 69th Mayor of New York City (b. 1795)
- 1875 - Juan Crisostomo Torrico, President of Peru (b. 1808)
- 1878 – George Gilbert Scott, English architect (b. 1811)
- 1898 – Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Bahadur, Indian philosopher and activist (b. 1817)
1901 – 2000
- 1910 - Alexander Emanuel Agassiz, Swiss-American scientist and engineer (b. 1835)
- 1918 – Henry Adams, American historian (b. 1838)
- 1921 - Harry Barron, 16th Governor of Western Australia (b. 1847)
- 1923 – James Dewar, Scottish chemist (b. 1842)
- 1926 – Georges Vézina, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1887)
- 1931 – Arnold Bennett, British novelist (b. 1867)
- 1934 - Francis William Reitz, South African politician, 5th President of the Orange Free State (b. 1844)
- 1940 – Michael Joseph Savage, Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1872)
- 1947 - Edith Craig, English actress, director, producer and fashion designer (b. 1869)
- 1952 – Kiichiro Toyoda, Japanese industrialist (b. 1894)
- 1954 - Walter M. Pierce, American politician, 17th Governor of Oregon (b. 1861)
- 1958 - Leon C. Phillips, American politician, 11th Governor of Oklahoma (b. 1890)
- 1967 – Jaroslav Heyrovsky, Czech chemist (b. 1890)
- 1968 – Yuri Gagarin, Soviet cosmonaut (b. 1934)
- 1968 - Vladimir Seryogin, Russian pilot (b. 1922)
- 1969 - Antonio Pigliaru, Italian jurist and philosopher (b. 1922)
- 1971 - Albin Grau, German architect, occultist, production designer, artist and producer (b. 1884)
- 1972 – M. C. Escher, Dutch artist (b. 1898)
- 1974 - Eduardo Santos, 15th President of Colombia (b. 1888)
- 1975 - Arthur Bliss, English conductor and composer (b. 1891)
- 1981 - Mao Dun, Chinese journalist, writer and critic (b. 1895)
- 1982 - Betty Schade, German-American actress (b. 1895)
- 1988 – Renato Salvatori, Italian actor (b. 1934)
- 1993 – Kamal Hassan Ali, Prime Minister of Egypt (b. 1921)
- 1993 - Clifford Jordan, American saxophonist (b. 1931)
- 1997 - Layne Dwinell, American politician, 69th Governor of New Hampshire (b. 1906)
- 1998 – Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche, Austrian technician and automobile designer (b. 1909)
- 1999 – Michael Aris, British academic and husband of Aung San Suu Kyi (b. 1946)
- 1999 - Ernestina de Champourcin, Spanish poet (b. 1905)
- 2000 – Ian Dury, British musician (b. 1942)
From 2001
- 2002 – Milton Berle, American actor, entertainer and comedian (b. 1908)
- 2002 – Dudley Moore, British actor (b. 1935)
- 2002 – Billy Wilder, Austrian-born director (b. 1906)
- 2006 – Stanisław Lem, Polish writer (b. 1921)
- 2007 – Paul Lauterbur, American chemist (b. 1929)
- 2010 – Dick Giordano, American comic artist (b. 1932)
- 2010 – Peter Herbolzheimer, German musician (b. 1935)
- 2010 – Vasily Smyslov, Russian chess player (b. 1921)
- 2010 – Stanley Vann, British church musician (b. 1910)
- 2011 – Farley Granger, American actor (b. 1925)
- 2011 – Dorothea Puente, American serial killer (b. 1929)
- 2012 - Adrienne Rich, American poet and feminist (b. 1929)
- 2013 - Hjalmar Andersen, Norwegian speed skater (b. 1923)
- 2014 - James R. Schlesinger, American politician (b. 1929)
- 2014 - Jeffery Dench, English actor (b. 1928)
- 2014 - Per Lillo-Stenberg, Norwegian actor (b. 1928)
- 2014 - Richard Nelson Frye, American orientalist and historian (b. 1920)
- 2014 - Derek Martinus, British television director (b. 1931)
- 2015 - Olga Syahputra, Indonesian comedian (b. 1983)
- 2015 - Rod Hundley, American basketball player (b. 1934)
- 2015 - T. Sailo, Indian politician (b. 1922)
- 2015 - Amaro Silva, Canadian politician (b. 1957)
- 2015 - Daundre Barnaby, Jamaican-born Canadian runner (b. 1990)
- 2015 - B.J. Crosby, American singer and actress (b. 1952)
- 2015 - Rik Battaglia, Italian actor (b. 1927)
- 2015 - Yusuf Mohamed Ismail, Somali diplomat (b. 1960)
- 2016 - Mother Angelica, American nun (b. 1923)
- 2016 - Alain Decaux, French historian and writer (b. 1925)
- 2016 - Antoine Demoitié, Belgian cyclist (b. 1990)
- 2016 - Anatoly Savin, Russian weapons designer (b. 1920)
- 2016 - Vince Boryla, American basketball player and coach (b. 1927)
- 2017 - Arthur Blythe, American saxophonist and composer (b. 1940)
- 2017 - Arun Sarma, Indian playwright (b. 1931)
- 2017 - David Storey, English novelist (b. 1933)
- 2017 - Chelsea Brown, American-Australian actress (b. 1942)
- 2017 - Armando Nieto, Peruvian Jesuit priest and historian (b. 1931)
- 2017 - Elizabeth Wagele, American writer and musician (b. 1939)
- 2018 - Stéphane Audran, French actress (b. 1932)
- 2018 - Victor Kalashnikov, Russian gundesigner (b. 1942)
- 2018 - Eric McClintock, American businessman (b. 1918)