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October 12 is the 285th day of the year (286th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 80 days remaining until the end of the year.
Up to 1900
- 539 BC – The army of Cyrus the Great of Persia takes Babylon.
- 1216 – King John of England loses his own crown jewels in The Wash.
- 1492 – In his first voyage, Christopher Columbus lands in the present–day Bahamas, in the belief that he'd reached East Asia.
- 1654 – An explosion devastates the city of Delft, Netherlands, killing over 100 people.
- 1692 – The Salem Witch Trials are ended by a letter from Massachusetts Governor William Phips.
- 1748 – War of Jenkins' Ear: Battle of Havana between British and Spanish naval forces.
- 1773 – The United States' first insane asylum opens in Virginia.
- 1792 – First US celebration of Columbus Day, in New York City.
- 1799 – Jeanne Genevieve Labrosse becomes the first woman to jump from a balloon with a parachute.
- 1810 – The tradition of the Munich Oktoberfest begins.
- 1822 – Pedro I of Brazil is proclaimed Emperor.
- 1823 – Charles Macintosh, of Scotland, sells the first raincoat.
- 1860 – The previously Introduced of the so–called Section 377 of the British Indian penal code (Law) was enacted in British India respectively.
- 1871 – The Introduction of the so–called Criminal Tribes Act was enacted in British India respectively.
- 1892 – The Pledge of Allegiance is first recited by students in many public schools.
- 1899 – First fighting of the Second Boer War.
1901 – 2000
- 1901 – The 'Executive Mansion' is renamed the White House by US President Theodore Roosevelt.
- 1902 – The Austria national football team plays its first game, defeating the Hungary national football team 5–0.
- 1915 – World War I: British nurse Edith Cavell is executed by a German firing squad.
- 1917 – World War I: The first Battle of Passchendaele takes place.
- 1918 – A massive forest fire kills 453 people in Minnesota.
- 1928 – An iron lung respirator is first used at the Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
- 1931 – The Christ the Redeemer statue on Sugar Loaf Mountain over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is officially inaugurated.
- 1942 – World War II: Japanese ships retreat after defeat to the US in the Battle of Esperance on Guadalcanal.
- 1944 – World War II: Athens, Greece, is liberated from occupying German forces.
- 1962 – A storm hits the Pacific Northwest of the United States, killing 46 people.
- 1964 – The Soviet Union launches Voskhod 1 into Earth orbit as the first spacecraft with a multi–person crew.
- 1968 – Equatorial Guinea becomes independent from Spain.
- 1968 – The 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City begin.
- 1970 – Vietnam War: Richard Nixon announces the withdrawal of 40,000 US troops before Christmas.
- 1979 – The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is first published.
- 1983 – Prime Minister of Japan Tanaka Kakuei is found guilty of bribery and sent to four years in jail.
- 1984 – The Provisional IRA carries out the Brighton Hotel Bombing in an attempt to kill Margaret Thatcher, who escapes unhurt, though 5 people are killed and 31 injured.
- 1986 – Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visit the People's Republic of China.
- 1987 – General Junhao Zhang fails the Juliet battalion in a skirmish versus the Han Chinese resulting in 50 casualties and the loss of a warehouse containing tonnes of gold.
- 1988 – Birchandra Manu massacre in Tripura, India.
- 1991 – Askar Akayev is confirmed as President of Kyrgyzstan.
- 1992 – A magnitude 5.8 earthquake in Cairo, Egypt kills 510 people.
- 1994 – NASA loses radio contact with the Magellan spacecraft as it passes through the atmosphere of the planet Venus, probably because of the extreme gravity there.
- 1997 – Sidi Daous massacre occurs in Algeria, as 43 people are killed at a fake roadblock.
- 1999 – In Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf takes control in a military coup. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is placed under house arrest.
- 1999 – Abkhazia declares independence from Georgia.
- 1999 – The UN officially designates this as the day that the world population reached six billion.
- 2000 – The USS Cole is badly damaged in Aden, Yemen, by two suicide bombers.
From 2001
- 2002 – A terrorist bombing on the Indonesian island of Bali kills 202 people.
- 2003 – Germany wins the FIFA Women's World Cup, defeating Sweden 2–1.
- 2005 – The second Chinese space flight occurs as Shenzhou 6 is launched, with Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng on board.
- 2007 – Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change win the Nobel Peace Prize.
- 2009 – Elinor Ostrom becomes the first woman to win the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, sharing it with Oliver E. Williamson.
- 2012 – The European Union wins the Nobel Peace Prize.
- 2013 – Cyclone Phailin hits the east coast of India.
- 2013 – 51 people are killed after a truck plunges off a cliff in Peru.
- 2014 – Southeastern India is hit by Cyclone Hudhud, while Japan is hit by a typhoon on the same day.
- 2019 – Typhoon Hagibis hits Japan, becoming the most powerful storm to hit the country in over 60 years.
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Up to 1900
- 1006 – Emperor Go–Ichijo of Japan (d. 1036).
- 1350 – Dmitry Donskoy, Prince of Moscow (d. 1389).
- 1490 – Bernardo Pisano, Italian composer (d. 1548).
- 1537 – Lady Jane Grey, Queen of England for nine days (d. 1554).
- 1537 – King Edward VI of England (d. 1553).
- 1558 – Archduke Maximilian II of Austria (d. 1618).
- 1576 – Thomas Dudley, English–born American colonial magistrate (d. 1653).
- 1664 – Praskovia Saltykova, Tsarina of Russia (d. 1723).
- 1687 – Sylvius Leopold Weiss, German composer (d. 1750)
- 1710 – Jonathan Trumbull, 16th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1785).
- 1775 – Ludovico Micara, Italian cardinal (d. 1847).
- 1792 – Christian Gmelin, German chemist (d. 1860).
- 1798 – Pedro I, Emperor of Brazil and (as Pedro IV) King of Portugal (d. 1834).
- 1801 – Friedrich Frey–Herosé, Swiss statesman (d. 1873).
- 1812 – Ascanio Sobrero, Italian chemist and inventor (d. 1888).
- 1815 – William G. Hardee, American Confederate general (d. 1873).
- 1827 – George Lawson, Canadian botanist (d. 1895).
- 1834 – Infanta Amelia Philippina of Spain (d. 1905).
- 1840 – Helena Modjeska, Polish actress (d. 1909).
- 1844 – George Washington Cable, American writer (d. 1925).
- 1853 – Edward F. Dunne, Governor of Illinois (d. 1937).
- 1855 – Arthur Nikisch, Hungarian conductor (d. 1922).
- 1860 – Elmer Ambrose Sperry, American inventor (d. 1930).
- 1860 – John G. Sargent, 53rd United States Attorney General (d. 1939).
- 1865 – Arthur Harden, English chemist (d. 1940).
- 1866 – Ramsay MacDonald, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1937).
- 1868 – August Horch, German engineer and automobile pioneer, founder of Audi (d. 1951).
- 1868 – Mariano Trias, 1st Vice President of the Philippines (d. 1914).
- 1872 – Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer (d. 1958)
- 1875 – Aleister Crowley, English occultist and writer (d. 1947).
- 1877 – Howard Mason Gore, American politician, 17th Governor of West Virginia (d. 1947).
- 1880 – Louis Hemon, French novelist (d. 1913).
- 1882 – Akiba Rubinstein, Polish chess player (d. 1961).
- 1891 – Edith Stein, Roman Catholic nun (d. 1942).
- 1891 – Fumimaro Konoe, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1945).
- 1894 – Elisabeth of Romania (d. 1956).
- 1896 – Eugenio Montale, Italian poet (d. 1981).
1901 – 1950
- 1904 – Ding Ling, Chinese writer (d. 1986).
- 1905 – Barney Battles Jr., Scottish footballer (d. 1979).
- 1906 – Joe Cronin, American baseball player and executive (d. 1984).
- 1910 – Robert Fitzgerald, American poet and translator (d. 1985).
- 1917 – Roque Maspoli, Uruguayan footballer (d. 2004).
- 1920 – Christopher Soames, Baron Soames, British politician (d. 1987).
- 1921 – Art Clokey, American animator (d. 2010).
- 1921 – Jaroslav Drobny, Czech tennis and ice hockey player (d. 2001).
- 1921 – Logie Bruce Lockhart, Scottish rugby player and journalist.
- 1921 – Kenneth Griffith, Welsh actor (d. 2006).
- 1923 – Wendell Eugene, American jazz trombonist (d. 2017).
- 1923 – Jean Nidetch, American businesswoman (d. 2015).
- 1924 – Doris Grau, American actress (d. 1995).
- 1925 – Essie Mae Washington–Williams, American educator (d. 2013).
- 1926 – Allan Brown, Scottish footballer (d. 2011).
- 1928 – Rangel Valchanov, Bulgarian actor, director and screenwriter (d. 2013).
- 1929 – Magnus Magnusson, Icelandic–British television presenter (d. 2007).
- 1931 – Ole–Johan Dahl, Norwegian computer scientist (d. 2002).
- 1932 – Dick Gregory, American comedian and activist (d. 2017).
- 1932 – Ned Jarrett, American racing driver.
- 1932 – John Moffat, Danish–Canadian physicist.
- 1934 – Richard Meier, American architect.
- 1934 – Albert Shiryaev, Russian mathematician.
- 1934 – Thomas L. Judge, Governor of Montana (d. 2006).
- 1935 – Don Howe, English footballer (d. 2015).
- 1935 – Shivraj Patil, Indian politician.
- 1935 – Luciano Pavarotti, Italian opera singer (d. 2007).
- 1937 – Alberto Goldman, Brazilian politician (d. 2019).
- 1938 – Bob Miller, American NHL broadcaster.
- 1939 – Carolee Schneemann, American artist (d. 2019).
- 1942 – Melvin Franklin, American singer (The Temptations) (d. 1995).
- 1942 – Daliah Lavi, Israeli actress and singer (d. 2017).
- 1943 – Jakob Kuhn, Swiss footballer and coach.
- 1944 – Angela Rippon, British television journalist.
- 1945 – Dusty Rhodes, American professional wrestler (d. 2015).
- 1946 – Rosanna Marani, Italian journalist and television host.
- 1947 – George Lam, Hong Kong actor and singer.
- 1948 – Rick Parfitt, British musician (Status Quo) (d. 2016).
- 1948 – John Engler, former Governor of Missouri.
- 1949 – Carlos the Jackal, Venezuelan terrorist.
- 1950 – Dave Freudenthal, 31st Governor of Wyoming.
1951 – 1975
- 1951 – Ed Royce, American politician.
- 1952 – Danielle Proulx, Canadian actress.
- 1952 – Roger Heath–Brown, English mathematician.
- 1953 – Les Dennis, English comedian and actor.
- 1953 – David Threlfall, English actor.
- 1955 – Ashley Adams, Australian target shooter (d. 2015).
- 1955 – Einar Jan Aas, Norwegian footballer.
- 1955 – Brian Flynn, Welsh footballer and coach.
- 1955 – Ante Gotovina, Croatian general.
- 1955 – Aggie MacKenzie, Scottish television presenter.
- 1956 – Allan Evans, Scottish footballer.
- 1956 – David Vanian, British singer (The Damned).
- 1958 – Bryn Merrick, British musician (The Damned) (d. 2015).
- 1958 – Hara Patnaik, Indian actor, director and writer (d. 2015).
- 1959 – Anna Escobedo Cabral, 42nd Treasurer of the United States.
- 1960 – Alexei Kudrin, Russian politician.
- 1962 – Branko Crvenkovski, former President of the Republic of Macedonia.
- 1962 – Chris Botti, American jazz trumpeter.
- 1963 – Satoshi Kon, Japanese movie director and screenwriter (d. 2010).
- 1963 – Alan McDonald, Northern Irish footballer (d. 2012).
- 1963 – Dave Legeno, British actor and mixed martial artist (d. 2014).
- 1963 – Donna Williams, Australian author (d. 2017).
- 1964 – Sally Rogers, British actress
- 1965 – Anja Niedringhaus, German photojournalist (d. 2014).
- 1966 – Rhona Martin, Scottish curler.
- 1966 – Brian Kennedy, Northern Irish musician and actor.
- 1966 – Jonathan Crombie, Canadian actor (d. 2015).
- 1966 – Wim Jonk, Dutch footballer.
- 1966 – Roberto Nestor Sensini, Argentine footballer.
- 1968 – Hugh Jackman, Australian actor.
- 1968 – Adam Rich, American actor.
- 1969 – Martie Maguire, American musician (Dixie Chicks).
- 1969 – Zejko Milinovic, Slovenian footballer.
- 1970 – Kirk Cameron, American actor.
- 1970 – Origa, Russian–Japanese singer (d. 2015).
- 1973 – Martin Corry, English rugby player.
- 1974 – Lascelles Brown, Jamaican–Canadian bobsledder.
- 1974 – Marie Wilson, American actress.
- 1974 – Stephen Lee, English snooker player.
- 1975 – Marion Jones, American athlete.
From 1976
- 1977 – Jessica Barker, Canadian actress.
- 1977 – Bode Miller, American skier.
- 1979 – Paula Barila Bolopa, Equatoguinean footballer and swimmer.
- 1980 – Nadzeya Ostapchuk, Belarussian shot putter.
- 1980 – Ledley King, English footballer.
- 1981 – Shola Ameobi, English footballer.
- 1983 – Katie Piper, English model and television host.
- 1985 – Greig Laidlaw, Scottish rugby player.
- 1986 – Tyler Blackburn, American actor and singer.
- 1987 – Besian Idrizaj, Austrian footballer (d. 2010).
- 1988 – Sam Whitelock, New Zealand rugby player.
- 1989 – Aggro Santos, Brazilian–English rapper
- 1990 – Melody, Spanish singer.
- 1991 – Michael Carter–Williams, American basketball player
- 1992 – Josh Hutcherson, American actor.
- 1992 – Taylor Horn, American singer, songwriter and actress.
- 1995 – Jordan Howe, Welsh paralympic athlete.
- 1997 – Prince Boris of Bulgaria.
- 2001 – Raymond Ochoa, American actor.
- 2004 – Darci Lynne, American ventriloquist and singer.
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Up to 1900
- 322 BC – Demosthenes, Greek statesman (b. 384 BC).
- 632 – Edwin of Northumbria (b. 586).
- 638 – Pope Honorius I
- 642 – Pope John IV
- 1095 – Leopold II of Austria (b. 1050).
- 1320 – Michael IX Palaiologus, Emperor of the Byzantine Empire (b. 1277).
- 1492 – Piero della Francesca, Italian painter (b. 1415).
- 1576 – Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1527).
- 1600 – Luis Molina, Spanish Jesuit (b. 1535).
- 1730 – Frederick IV of Denmark (b. 1671).
- 1845 – Elizabeth Fry, British social reformer and philanthropist (b. 1780).
- 1850 – Pedro de Sousa Holstein, 1st Duke of Palmela, Prime Minister of Portugal (b. 1781).
- 1870 – Robert E. Lee, American Confederate General (b. 1807).
- 1875 – Jean–Baptiste Carpeaux, French sculptor and painter (b. 1827).
- 1891 – Hobart B. Bigelow, Governor of Connecticut (b. 1834).
- 1896 – Christian Emil Krag–Juel–Vind–Frijs, Danish nobleman and politician (b. 1817).
1901 – 2000
- 1915 – Edith Cavell, English nurse (b. 1865).
- 1920 – Yu Gwan–sun, Korean independence leader (b. 1904).
- 1921 – Philander C. Knox, United States Secretary of State (b. 1853).
- 1924 – Anatole France, French writer (b. 1844).
- 1933 – John Lister, English politician (b. 1847).
- 1937 – Al Brady, American gangster, killed by FBI
- 1943 – Willi Graf, German Resistance activist (b. 1918).
- 1946 – Joseph Stilwell, American general (b. 1883).
- 1948 – Alfred Kerr, German writer (b. 1867).
- 1956 – Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (b. 1872).
- 1957 – Arie de Jong, Dutch linguist (b. 1865).
- 1960 – Inejiro Asanuma, Japanese politician (b. 1898).
- 1965 – Paul Hermann Müller, Swiss chemist (b. 1899).
- 1967 – Ram Manohar Lohia, Indian activist and politician (b. 1910).
- 1969 – Sonja Henie, Norwegian figure skater (b. 1912).
- 1970 – Mustafa Zaidi, Pakistani poet (b. 1930).
- 1971 – Dean Acheson, American politician (b. 1893).
- 1971 – Gene Vincent, American singer–songwriter and guitarist (b. 1935).
- 1973 – Peter Aufschnaiter, Austrian mountaineer (b. 1899).
- 1980 – Alberto Demicheli, Uruguayan politician (b. 1896).
- 1985 – Johnny Olson, American television announcer (b. 1910).
- 1987 – Alf Landon, American politician (b. 1887).
- 1993 – Leon Ames, American actor (b. 1902).
- 1996 – René Lacoste, French tennis player (b. 1904).
- 1997 – John Denver, American singer (b. 1943).
- 1998 – Matthew Shepard, American murder victim (b. 1976).
- 1999 – Wilt Chamberlain, American basketball player (b. 1936).
From 2001
- 2002 – Ray Conniff, American bandleader and musician (b. 1916).
- 2002 – Audrey Mestre, French diver (b. 1974).
- 2003 – Jim Cairns, Australian politician (b. 1914).
- 2003 – Willie Shoemaker, American jockey (b. 1931).
- 2006 – Gillo Pontecorvo, Italian movie director (b. 1919).
- 2007 – Kisho Kurokawa, Japanese architect (b. 1934).
- 2009 – Frank Vandenbroucke, Belgian cyclist (b. 1974).
- 2010 – Manuel Alexandre, Spanish actor (b. 1917).
- 2011 – Dennis Ritchie, American computer scientist (b. 1941).
- 2012 – Sukhdev Singh Kang, 14th Governor of Kerala (b. 1931).
- 2013 – Oscar Hijuelos, American writer (b. 1951).
- 2014 – Roberto Telch, Argentine footballer (b. 1943).
- 2014 – Ali Mazrui, Kenyan professor and writer (b. 1931).
- 2015 – Abdallah Kigoda, Tanzanian politician (b. 1953).
- 2015 – Joan Leslie, American actress and dancer (b. 1925).
- 2017 – Muntaka Connmassie, Nigerian jurist (b. 1946).
- 2018 – Pik Botha, South African politician (b. 1932).
- 2019 – Mel Aull, Canadian football player (b. 1928).
- 2019 – Carlo Croccolo, Italian actor (b. 1927).
- 2019 – Sara Danius, Swedish writer and professor (b. 1962).
- 2019 – Reg Watson, Australian television producer (b. 1926).
- 2019 – Yoshihiza Yoshikawa, Japanese sports shooter (b. 1936).
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- Many observances relating to Christopher Columbus reaching the Caribbean, celebrated around the Americas and Spain.
- Independence Day (Equatorial Guinea).
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