February 26 in History

The government of Pakistan declares "open war" against the Taliban in Afghanistan, initiating the 2026 Afghanistan–Pakistan War.

A total of 279 female students aged between 10 and 17 are kidnapped by bandits in the Zamfara kidnapping in Zamfara State, Nigeria.

Indian Air Force fighter-jets target Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training camps in Balakot, Pakistan.

A hot air balloon crashes near Luxor, Egypt, killing 19 people.

A train derails in Burlington, Ontario, Canada killing at least three people and injuring 45.

Seventeen-year-old African-American student Trayvon Martin is shot to death by neighborhood watch coordinator George Zimmerman in an altercation in Sanford, Florida.

The New York Philharmonic performs in Pyongyang, North Korea; this was the first such event to take place in North Korea.

The UK's oldest investment banking institute, Barings Bank, collapses after a rogue securities broker Nick Leeson loses $1.4 billion by speculating on the Singapore International Monetary Exchange using futures contracts.

World Trade Center bombing: In New York City, a truck bomb parked below the North Tower of the World Trade Center explodes, killing six and injuring over a thousand people.

First Nagorno-Karabakh War: Khojaly Massacre: Armenian armed forces open fire on Azeri civilians at a military post outside the town of Khojaly leaving hundreds dead.

Iran–Contra affair: The Tower Commission rebukes President Ronald Reagan for not controlling his national security staff.

Egypt and Israel establish full diplomatic relations.

The Superliner railcar enters revenue service with Amtrak.

U.N. Secretary-General U Thant signs United Nations proclamation of the vernal equinox as Earth Day.

Apollo program: Launch of AS-201, the first flight of the Saturn IB rocket.

A New York-bound Alitalia airliner crashes into a cemetery in Shannon, Ireland, shortly after takeoff, killing 34 of the 52 persons on board.

A Kyiv-bound Aeroflot airliner crashes on approach to Snilow Airport in Lviv, killing 32 of the 33 people on board.

Vincent Massey is sworn in as the first Canadian-born Governor General of Canada.

World War II: US troops reclaim the Philippine island of Corregidor from the Japanese.

In the February 26 Incident, young nationalist Japanese military officers assassinate multiple cabinet statesmen and start a rebellion in downtown Tokyo, which is ended 3 days later.

Adolf Hitler orders the Luftwaffe to be re-formed, violating the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles.

Robert Watson-Watt carries out a demonstration near Daventry which leads directly to the development of radar in the United Kingdom.

President Calvin Coolidge signs legislation establishing the 96,000 acres (390 km2) Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.

President Woodrow Wilson signs an act of Congress establishing the Grand Canyon National Park.

HMHS Britannic, sister to the RMS Titanic, is launched at Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast.

Kinemacolor, the first successful color motion picture process, is first shown to the general public at the Palace Theatre in London.

Japan and Korea sign the Treaty of Kangwha, which grants Japanese citizens extraterritoriality rights in Korea, opens three Korean ports to Japanese trade, and ends Korea's status as a tributary state of Qing dynasty China.

The Beach Pneumatic Transit in New York City, intended as a demonstration for a subway line, opens.

Napoleon Bonaparte escapes from exile on the island of Elba.

The first Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen burns down.

The British East India Company factory on Balambangan Island is destroyed by Moro pirates.

Galileo Galilei is formally banned by the Roman Catholic Church from teaching or defending the view that the earth orbits the sun.

The Janszoon voyage of 1605–06 becomes the first European expedition to set foot on Australia, although it is mistaken as a part of New Guinea.

The Ava Kingdom and the royal city of Ava (Inwa) were founded by King Thado Minbya.

Battle of Benevento: An army led by Charles, Count of Anjou, defeats a combined German and Sicilian force led by Manfred, King of Sicily. Manfred is killed in the battle and Pope Clement IV invests Charles as king of Sicily and Naples.

Battle of Kemej: The royal army of Solomon, King of Hungary defeats the force of his rebellious cousin Duke Géza.

Valentinian I is proclaimed Roman Emperor.

Chandragupta I is officially crowned as the first Gupta Emperor.

According to Ptolemy, the epoch (origin) of the Nabonassar Era began at noon on this date. Historians use this to establish the modern BC chronology for dating historic events.

Bibisara Assaubayeva, Kazakhstani chess grandmaster

Jamal Musiala, German footballer

Gerard Martín, Spanish footballer

César Tárrega, Spanish footballer

Yeat, American rapper

Jessie Bates, American football player

Jacob Trouba, American ice hockey player

Mahra Al Maktoum, Emirati princess.

Morgan Gautrat, American soccer player

Mikael Granlund, Finnish hockey player

Lee Chae-rin, South Korean singer

Kevin Plawecki, American baseball player

Takanoiwa Yoshimori, Mongolian sumo wrestler

Gabriel Obertan, French footballer

Mārtiņš Karsums, Latvian ice hockey player

Hannah Kearney, American skier

Fernando Llorente, Spanish footballer

Emmanuel Adebayor, Togolese footballer

Beren Saat, Turkish actress

Jerome Harrison, American football player

Pepe, Brazilian-Portuguese footballer

Li Na, Chinese tennis player

Matt Prior, South African-English cricketer

Kevin Dallman, Canadian-Kazakhstani ice hockey player

Kertus Davis, American race car driver

Simon Maljevac, Slovenian politician

Robert Mathis, American football player

Oh Seung-bum, South Korean footballer

Sharon Van Etten, American singer-songwriter, musician and actress

Steve Blake, American basketball player

Steve Evans, Welsh footballer

Pedro Mendes, Portuguese footballer

Abdoulaye Faye, Senegalese footballer

Marty Reasoner, American ice hockey player and coach

Tim Thomas, American basketball player

Shane Williams, Welsh rugby union player

Nalini Anantharaman, French mathematician

Chad Urmston, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

P. J. Axelsson, Swedish ice hockey player

Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski, Filipina television actress, host and equestrienne

Sébastien Loeb, French racing driver

Marshall Faulk, American football player

Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Norwegian footballer and manager

Jenny Thompson, American swimmer

Max Martin, Swedish-American record producer and songwriter

Hélène Segara, French singer-songwriter and actress

Predrag Danilović, Serbian basketball player and executive

Mark Harper, English accountant and politician, former Secretary of State for Transport and former Minister of State for Immigration

Hitoshi Sakimoto, Japanese composer and producer

Leif Rohlin, Swedish ice hockey player

Kazuyoshi Miura, Japanese footballer

Gene Principe, Canadian sports reporter and broadcaster

Garry Conille, Haitian physician and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Haiti

Marc Fortier, French-Canadian ice hockey player

Najwa Karam, Lebanese singer

James Mitchell, American wrestler and manager

Ahn Cheol-soo, South Korean physician, academic, and politician

Jaz Coleman, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer

Rolando Blackman, Panamanian-American basketball player

Ahmet Davutoğlu, Turkish political scientist, academic, and politician, 37th Prime Minister of Turkey

Liza 'N' Eliaz, Belgian, transgender, hardcore DJ (died 2001)

Susan Helms, American general, engineer, and astronaut

Tim Kaine, American lawyer and politician, 70th Governor of Virginia

David Beasley, American lawyer and politician, 113th Governor of South Carolina

Joe Mullen, American ice hockey player and coach

John Jude Palencar, American artist and illustrator

Keena Rothhammer, American swimmer

Michel Houellebecq, French author, poet, screenwriter, and director

Andreas Maislinger, Austrian historian and academic, founded the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service

Prince Ernst August of Hanover, head of the House of Hanover

Barbara Niven, American actress and writer

Wayne Goss, Australian lawyer and politician, 34th Premier of Queensland (died 2014)

Helen Clark, New Zealand academic and politician, 37th Prime Minister of New Zealand

Billy Steinberg, American songwriter (died 2026)

Simon Crean, Australian trade union leader and politician, 14th Australian Minister for the Arts (died 2023)

Elizabeth George, American author and educator

Emma Kirkby, English soprano

Sharyn McCrumb, American author

Sandie Shaw, English singer and psychotherapist

Colin Bell, English footballer (died 2021)

Bingo Smith, American basketball player (died 2023)

Ahmed Zewail, Egyptian-American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2016)

Peter Brock, Australian racing driver (died 2006)

Christopher Hope, South African author and poet

Ronald Lauder, American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Austria

Paul Cotton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2021)

Dante Ferretti, Italian art director and costume designer

Bob Hite, American singer-songwriter and musician (died 1981)

Jozef Adamec, Slovak footballer and manager (died 2018)

Oldřich Kulhánek, Czech painter, illustrator, and stage designer (died 2013)

Chuck Wepner, American boxer

Paul Dickson, American football player and coach (died 2011)

José Policarpo, Portuguese cardinal (died 2014)

Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina, Algerian director, producer, and screenwriter (died 2025)

James Goldsmith, French-British businessman and politician (died 1997)

Ally MacLeod, Scottish footballer and manager (died 2004)

Fats Domino, American singer-songwriter and pianist (died 2017)

Ariel Sharon, Israeli general and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Israel (died 2014)

Tom Kennedy, American game show host and actor (died 2020)

Doris Belack, American actress (died 2011)

Verne Gagne, American football player, wrestler, and trainer (died 2015)

Henry Molaison, American medical patient (died 2008)

Everton Weekes, Barbadian cricketer and referee (died 2020)

Marc Bucci, American composer, lyricist, and dramatist (died 2002)

Noboru Takeshita, Japanese soldier and politician, 74th Prime Minister of Japan (died 2000)

Bill Johnston, Australian cricketer and businessman (died 2007)

Margaret Leighton, English actress (died 1976)

Betty Hutton, American actress, singer, dancer and comedian (died 2007)

Danny Gardella, American baseball player and trainer (died 2005)

Lucjan Wolanowski, Polish journalist and author (died 2006)

Mason Adams, American actor (died 2005)

Otis Bowen, American physician and politician, 44th Governor of Indiana (died 2013)

Pyotr Masherov, Leader of Soviet Belarus (died 1980)

Theodore Sturgeon, American author and critic (died 1985)

Robert Alda, American actor, singer, and director (died 1986)

Tarō Okamoto, Japanese painter and sculptor (died 1996)

Vic Woodley, English footballer (died 1978)

Fanny Cradock, English chef, author, and critic (died 1994)

Talal of Jordan (died 1972)

Tex Avery, American animator, producer, and voice actor (died 1980)

Nestor Mesta Chayres, Mexican operatic tenor and bolero vocalist (died 1971)

Jean-Pierre Wimille, French racing driver (died 1949)

Madeleine Carroll, English actress (died 1987)

Giulio Natta, Italian chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1979)

Orde Wingate, English general (died 1944)

Jean Bruller, French author and illustrator, co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit (died 1991)

Halina Konopacka, Polish discus thrower and poet (died 1989)

Fritz Wiessner, German-American mountaineer (died 1988)

Max Petitpierre, Swiss jurist and politician, 54th President of the Swiss Confederation (died 1994)

Andrei Zhdanov, Ukrainian-Russian civil servant and politician (died 1948)

Wallace Fard Muhammad, American religious leader, founded the Nation of Islam (disappeared 1934)

Dorothy Whipple, English novelist (died 1966)

Grover Cleveland Alexander, American baseball player and coach (died 1950)

William Frawley, American actor and vaudevillian (died 1966)

Stefan Grabiński, Polish author and educator (died 1936)

Aleksandras Stulginskis, Lithuanian farmer and politician, 2nd President of Lithuania (died 1969)

Husband E. Kimmel, American admiral (died 1968)

Janus Djurhuus, Faroese poet (died 1948)

Kenneth Edgeworth, Irish astronomer (died 1972)

Frank Bridge, English viola player and composer (died 1941)

Henry Barwell, Australian politician, 28th Premier of South Australia (died 1959)

Rudolph Dirks, German-American illustrator (died 1968)

Matti Turkia, Finnish politician (died 1946)

Herbert Henry Dow, Canadian-American businessman, founded the Dow Chemical Company (died 1930)

Gustave Mathieu, French anarchist illegalist, suspected of being one of Ravachol's main accomplices (died 1947)

Ferdinand I of Bulgaria (died 1948)

Nadezhda Krupskaya, Russian soldier and politician (died 1939)

Émile Coué, French psychologist and pharmacist (died 1926)

John Harvey Kellogg, American surgeon, co-created Corn flakes (died 1943)

Buffalo Bill, American soldier and hunter (died 1917)

Camille Flammarion, French astronomer and author (died 1925)

Levi Strauss, German-American fashion designer, founded Levi Strauss & Co. (died 1902)

Honoré Daumier, French painter, illustrator, and sculptor (died 1879)

Nathan Kelley, American architect, designed the Ohio Statehouse (died 1871)

Victor Hugo, French author, poet, and playwright (died 1885)

François Arago, French mathematician and politician, 25th Prime Minister of France (died 1853)

Matija Nenadović, Serbian priest, historian, and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Serbia (died 1854)

Anton Reicha, Bohemian composer and flautist (died 1836)

Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma (died 1804)

Anders Chydenius, Finnish economist, philosopher and Lutheran priest (died 1803)

Gian Francesco Albani, Italian cardinal (died 1803)

Johan Ernst Gunnerus, Norwegian bishop, botanist and zoologist (died 1773)

Biagio Bellotti, Italian painter and architect (died 1789)

Nicola Fago, Italian composer and teacher (died 1745)

Antoine Augustin Calmet, French monk and theologian (died 1757)

Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 3rd Earl of Shaftesbury, English philosopher and politician (died 1713)

Quirinus Kuhlmann, German Baroque poet and mystic (died 1689)

Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll, Scottish peer (died 1685)

Stefano Landi, Italian composer and educator (died 1639)

Albert VI, Duke of Bavaria (died 1666)

Christopher Marlowe, English playwright, poet and translator (died 1593)

Christopher of Bavaria (died 1448)

Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia (died 1419)

Michelle Trachtenberg, American actress (born 1985)

Joseph Wapner, American judge and TV personality (born 1919)

Andy Bathgate, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (born 1932)

Don Getty, Canadian football player and politician, 11th Premier of Alberta (born 1933)

Sheppard Frere, English historian and archaeologist (born 1916)

Theodore Hesburgh, American priest, theologian, educator, and academic (born 1917)

Earl Lloyd, American basketball player and coach (born 1928)

Tom Schweich, American lawyer and politician, 36th State Auditor of Missouri (born 1960)

Sorel Etrog, Romanian-Canadian sculptor, painter, and illustrator (born 1933)

Phyllis Krasilovsky, American author and academic (born 1927)

Marie-Claire Alain, French organist and educator (born 1926)

Stéphane Hessel, German-French diplomat and author (born 1917)

Simon Li, Hong Kong judge and politician (born 1922)

Richard Carpenter, English actor and screenwriter (born 1929)

Arnošt Lustig, Czech author, playwright, and screenwriter (born 1926)

Jun Seba, also known as "Nujabes", Japanese record producer, DJ, composer and arranger (born 1974)

Johnny Kerr, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (born 1932)

Wendy Richard, English actress (born 1943)

Norm Van Lier, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (born 1947)

Bodil Udsen, Danish actress (born 1925)

Georgina Battiscombe, British biographer (born 1905)

Jef Raskin, American computer scientist, created Macintosh (born 1943)

Adolf Ehrnrooth, Finnish general (born 1905)

Boris Trajkovski, Macedonian politician, 2nd President of the Republic of Macedonia (born 1956)

Lawrence Tierney, American actor (born 1919)

George L. Street III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1913)

Raosaheb Gogte, Indian industrialist (born 1916)

Theodore Schultz, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1902)

David Doyle, American actor (born 1929)

Jack Clayton, English director and producer (born 1921)

Bill Hicks, American comedian (born 1961)

Constance Ford, American model and actress (born 1923)

Roy Eldridge, American trumpet player (born 1911)

Tjalling Koopmans, Dutch-American economist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1910)

Robert Aickman, English author and activist (born 1914)

Howard Hanson, American composer, conductor, and educator (born 1896)

Levi Eshkol, Israeli soldier and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Israel (born 1895)

Karl Jaspers, German-Swiss psychiatrist and philosopher (born 1883)

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Indian poet and politician (born 1883)

Karl Albiker, German sculptor, lithographer, and educator (born 1878)

Mohammed V of Morocco (born 1909)

Theodoros Pangalos, Greek general and politician, President of Greece (born 1878)

Sabiha Kasimati, Albanian ichthyologist (born 1912) executed with 21 others

Harry Lauder, Scottish comedian and singer (born 1870)

Heinrich Häberlin, Swiss judge and politician, President of the Swiss National Council (born 1868)

Sándor Szurmay, Minister of Defence of the Hungarian portion of Austria-Hungary (born 1860)

Potato Creek Johnny, American gold prospector (born c. 1866)

Theodor Eicke, German general (born 1892)

February 26 Incident:

February 26 Incident:

February 26 Incident:

Otto Wallach, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1847)

Mary Whiton Calkins, American philosopher and psychologist (born 1863)

Carl Menger, Polish-Austrian economist and academic (born 1840)

Felix Draeseke, German composer and academic (born 1835)

Jean Lanfray, Swiss convicted murderer (born 1874)

Richard Jordan Gatling, American engineer, invented the Gatling gun (born 1818)

Kathinka Kraft, Norwegian memoirist (born 1826)

Karl Davydov, Russian cellist and composer (born 1838)

Anandi Gopal Joshi, First Indian women physician (born 1865)

Alexandros Koumoundouros, Greek lawyer and politician, 56th Prime Minister of Greece (born 1817)

Afzal-ud-Daulah, Asaf Jah V, 5th Nizam of Hyderabad State (born 1827)

Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, Canadian jurist and politician, 3rd Premier of Canada East (born 1807)

Sybil Ludington, American figure of the American Revolutionary War (born 1761)

Joseph de Maistre, French lawyer and diplomat (born 1753)

Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (born 1737)

Robert R. Livingston, American lawyer and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Foreign Affairs (born 1746)

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, Haitian-French general (born 1762)

Esek Hopkins, American admiral (born 1718)

Joshua Rowley, English admiral (born 1730)

Giuseppe Tartini, Italian violinist and composer (born 1692)

Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria (born 1662)

Thomas d'Urfey, English poet and playwright (born 1653)

Claude Gaspard Bachet de Méziriac, French mathematician and linguist (born 1581)

William Brade, English violinist and composer (born 1560)

Anna Vasa of Sweden, Polish and Swedish princess (born 1568)

Antonio Possevino, Italian priest and diplomat (born 1533)

John Still, English bishop (born 1543)

Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress, spouse of Maximilian II (born 1528)

Eric XIV of Sweden (born 1533)

Lorenzino de' Medici, Italian writer and assassin (born 1514)

John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford, English politician (born 1408)

Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March, English commander (born 1328)

Fatima bint al-Ahmar, Nasrid princess in the Emirate of Granada (born c.1260)

Margaret of England, Queen consort of Scots (born 1240)

Manfred, King of Sicily (born 1232)

Roger II of Sicily (born 1095)

Muirchertach mac Néill, King of Ailech (Ireland)

Porphyry of Gaza, Greek bishop and saint (born 347)