What happened on October 26? There are more than 269 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About October 26
October 26 is the 300th day of the year 2024. There are 66 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Saturday. This day falls under the 43rd week of the year 2024.
On this day in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas 71909 sunrise occured at 07:26 AM and sunset occured at 06:25 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Scorpio. The modern birthstone for this month is Opal while the mystical birthstone is Jasper.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 95 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
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Historical Events For October 26
- 306Martyrdom of Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki
- 1597Imjin War: Admiral Yi Sun-sin routs the Japanese Navy of 300 ships with only 13 ships at the Battle of Myeongnyang.
- 1640The Treaty of Ripon is signed, restoring peace between Scotland and Charles I of England.
- 1689General Piccolomini of Austria burned down Skopje to prevent the spread of cholera. He died of cholera himself soon after.
- 1774The first Continental Congress adjourns in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- 1775King George III goes before Parliament to declare the American colonies in rebellion, and authorized a military response to quell the American Revolution.
- 1776Benjamin Franklin departs from America for France on a mission to seek French support for the American Revolution.
- 1795The French Directory, a five-man revolutionary government, is created.
- 1811The Argentine government declare the freedom of expression for the press by decree.
- 1813War of 1812: Canadians and Mohawks defeat the Americans in the Battle of Chateauguay.
- 1825The Erie Canal opens – passage from Albany, New York to Lake Erie.
- 1859The Royal Charter is wrecked on the coast of Anglesey, north Wales with 459 dead.
- 1860Meeting of Teano. Giuseppe Garibaldi, conqueror of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies, gives it to King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy.
- 1861The Pony Express officially ceases operations.
- 1881The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral takes place at Tombstone, Arizona.
- 1905Norway becomes independent from Sweden.
- 1909Itō Hirobumi, Resident-General of Korea, was shot to death by Korean independence supporter Ahn Jung-geun at the Harbin train station in Manchuria.
- 1912First Balkan War: The Ottoman occupied city of Thessaloniki, is liberated and unified with Greece on the feast day of its patron Saint Demetrius. On the same day, Serbian troops captured Skopje.
- 1917World War I: Battle of Caporetto; Italy suffers a catastrophic defeat at the forces of Austria-Hungary and Germany. The young unknown Oberleutnant Erwin Rommel captures Mount Matajur with only 100 Germans against a force of over 7000 Italians.
- 1917World War I: Brazil declared in state of war with Central Powers.
- 1918Erich Ludendorff, quartermaster-general of the Imperial German Army, is dismissed by Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany for refusing to cooperate in peace negotiations.
- 1921The Chicago Theatre opens.
- 1936The first electric generator at Hoover Dam goes into full operation.
- 1940The P-51 Mustang makes its maiden flight.
- 1942World War II: In the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands during the Guadalcanal Campaign, one U.S. aircraft carrier, Hornet, is sunk and another aircraft carrier, Enterprise, is heavily damaged.
- 1943World War II: First flight of the Dornier Do 335 “Pfeil”.
- 1944World War II: The Battle of Leyte Gulf ends with an overwhelming American victory.
- 1947The Maharaja of Kashmir agrees to allow his kingdom to join India.
- 1955After the last Allied troops have left the country and following the provisions of the Austrian Independence Treaty, Austria declares permanent neutrality.
- 1955Ngô Đình Diệm declares himself Premier of South Vietnam.
- 1958Pan American Airways makes the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707 from New York City to Paris, France.
- 1964Eric Edgar Cooke becomes last person in Western Australia to be executed.
- 1967Mohammad Reza Pahlavi crowns himself Emperor of Iran and then crowns his wife Farah Empress of Iran.
- 1968Soviet cosmonaut Georgy Beregovoy pilots Soyuz 3 into space for a four-day mission.
- 1977The last natural case of smallpox is discovered in Merca district, Somalia. The WHO and the CDC consider this date the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, the most spectacular success of vaccination.
- 1979Park Chung-hee, President of South Korea is assassinated by KCIA head Kim Jae-kyu. Choi Kyu-ha becomes the acting President; Kim is executed the following May.
- 1984“Baby Fae” receives a heart transplant from a baboon.
- 1985The Australian government returns ownership of Uluru to the local Pitjantjatjara Aborigines.
- 1992The Charlottetown Accord fails to win majority support in a Canada wide referendum.
- 1992The London Ambulance Service is thrown into chaos after the implementation of a new CAD, or Computer Aided Dispatch, system which failed.
- 1994Jordan and Israel sign a peace treaty
- 1995Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Mossad agents assassinate Islamic Jihad leader Fathi Shikaki in his hotel in Malta.
- 1999Britain’s House of Lords votes to end the right of hereditary peers to vote in Britain’s upper chamber of Parliament.
- 2000Laurent Gbagbo takes over as president of Côte d'Ivoire following a popular uprising against President Robert Guéï.
- 2001The United States passes the USA PATRIOT Act into law.
- 2002Moscow Theatre Siege: Approximately 50 Chechen terrorists and 150 hostages die when Russian Spetsnaz storm a theater building in Moscow, which had been occupied by the terrorists during a musical performance three days before.
- 2003The Cedar Fire, the second-largest fire in California history, kills 15 people, consumes 250,000 acre, and destroys 2,200 homes around San Diego.
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Who Were Born On October 26?
- 1427Archduke Sigismund of Austria (d. 1496)
- 1473Friedrich of Saxony (d. 1510)
- 1491Zhengde Emperor of China (d. 1521)
- 1609William Sprague, English co-founder of Charlestown, Massachusetts (d. 1675)
- 1673Dimitrie Cantemir, Moldavian prince, linguist, and scholar (d. 1723)
- 1684Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin, Prussian field marshal (d. 1757)
- 1685Domenico Scarlatti, Italian composer (d. 1757)
- 1694Johan Helmich Roman, Swedish composer (d. 1758)
- 1757Karl Leonhard Reinhold, Austrian philosopher (d. 1823)
- 1759Georges Jacques Danton, French Revolutionary leader (d. 1794)
- 1768Eustachy Erazm Sanguszko, Polish general and politician (d. 1844)
- 1794Konstantin Thon, Russian architect (d. 1881)
- 1795Nikolaos Mantzaros, Greek composer (d. 1872)
- 1797Giuditta Pasta, Italian soprano (d. 1865)
- 1800Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian field marshal (d. 1891)
- 1802King Miguel of Portugal (d. 1866)
- 1803Joseph Hansom, English architect and inventor (d. 1882)
- 1842Vasili Vasilyevich Vereshchagin, Russian painter (d. 1904)
- 1849Ferdinand Georg Frobenius, German mathematician (d. 1917)
- 1850Grigore Tocilescu, Romanian historian, archaeologist, epigrapher and folkorist (d. 1909)
- 1854C. W. Post, American entrepreneur (d. 1914)
- 1865Benjamin Guggenheim, American businessman (d. 1912)
- 1869Washington Luís Pereira de Sousa, President of Brazil (d. 1957)
- 1871Guillermo Kahlo, father of Frida Kahlo (d. 1941)
- 1873A. K. Fazlul Huq, Sher-E-Bangla (Tiger Of Bengal) (d. 1962)
- 1873Thorvald Stauning, Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1942)
- 1874Abby Aldrich Rockefeller, American socialite and philanthropist (d. 1948)
- 1874Martin Lowry, British chemist (d. 1936)
- 1880Andrei Bely, Russian writer (d. 1934)
- 1883Napoleon Hill, American writer and philosopher (d. 1970)
- 1883Paul Pilgrim, American athlete (d. 1958)
- 1888Nestor Ivanovich Makhno, Ukrainian anarchist (d. 1934)
- 1893Miloš Crnjanski, Serbian poet and author (d. 1977)
- 1899Judy Johnson, American baseball player (d. 1989)
- 1902Beryl Markham, Kenyan horse trainer and author (d. 1986)
- 1902Jack Sharkey, American boxer (d. 1994)
- 1905George Flahiff, Canadian Cardinal (d. 1989)
- 1906Primo Carnera, Italian boxer (d. 1967)
- 1909Dante Quinterno, Argentine comics artist (d. 2003)
- 1911Mahalia Jackson, American singer (d. 1972)
- 1911Sid Gillman, American football player (d. 2003)
- 1911Sorley MacLean, Scottish poet (d. 1996)
- 1912Don Siegel, American director (d. 1991)
- 1913Charlie Barnet, American jazz saxophonist and bandleader (d. 1991)
- 1914Jackie Coogan, American actor (d. 1984)
- 1915Joe Fry, British racing driver (d. 1950)
- 1916Boyd Wagner, First USAAF fighter ace of World War II (d. 1942)
- 1916François Mitterrand, President of France (d. 1996)
- 1919Edward Brooke, American politician
- 1919Frank Bourgholtzer, American television correspondent (d. 2010)
- 1919Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran (d. 1980)
- 1921George Forrest, Northern Irish MP (d. 1968)
- 1925Jan Wolkers, Dutch author (d. 2007)
- 1926Panos Gavalas, Greek singer and musician (d. 1988)
- 1927Warne Marsh, American jazz saxophonist (d. 1987)
- 1928Francisco Solano López, Argentine comics artist
- 1929Neal Matthews, Jr., American singer (The Jordanaires) (d. 2000)
- 1933Takis Kanellopoulos, Greek film director and screenwriter (d. 1990)
- 1934Hans-Joachim Rödelius, German composer and musician (Cluster, Harmonia)
- 1936Shelley Morrison, American actress
- 1940Eddie Henderson, American jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player
- 1940John Horgan, author, professor and politician
- 1941Charlie Landsborough, Singer/Songwriter
- 1942Bob Hoskins, British actor
- 1942Milton Nascimento, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1942Zdenko Runjić, Croatian composor (d. 2004)
- 1945Demetris Th. Gotsis, Greek poet and author
- 1945Pat Conroy, American writer
- 1946Holly Woodlawn, Puerto Rican actress
- 1946Keith Hopwood, British musician (Herman’s Hermits)
- 1946Pat Sajak, American game show host
- 1947Hillary Rodham Clinton, American politician, United States Senator from New York (2001-2009), 67th United States Secretary of State (since 2009)
- 1947Ian Ashley, British racing driver
- 1947Jaclyn Smith, American actress
- 1947Ricardo Asch, Argentine physician
- 1947Trevor Joyce, Irish poet
- 1948Toby Harrah, American baseball player
- 1949Antonio Carpio, Filipino Supreme Court jurist
- 1949Kevin Sullivan, American professional wrestler
- 1949Steve Rogers, American baseball player
- 1951Bootsy Collins, American musician (P Funk)
- 1951Julian Schnabel, American filmmaker
- 1951Tommy Mars, American keyboard player Frank Zappa
- 1952Andrew Motion, English poet and Poet Laureate
- 1952David Was, member of 1980's group Was (Not Was)
- 1953Keith Strickland, American musician (The B-52's)
- 1953Maureen Teefy, American actress
- 1953Rosa Monckton, English fundraiser
- 1954Vassilis Hatzipanagis, Greek footballer
- 1956Rita Wilson, American actress
- 1956Stephen Gumley, Australian businessman
- 1957Bob Golic, American football player
- 1957Julie Dawn Cole, British actress
- 1959Andreas Hinze, German footballer
- 1959Brian Bovell, British actor
- 1959Evo Morales, Bolivian politician
- 1959François Chau, Cambodian actor
- 1959Paul Farmer, American anthropologist
- 1960June Brigman, American comic book artist
- 1960Patrick Breen, American actor
- 1961Dylan McDermott, American actor
- 1961Gerald Malloy, American politician
- 1962Cary Elwes, British actor
- 1963Natalie Merchant, American singer
- 1963Ted Demme, American film and television director (d. 2002)
- 1964Thomas Cavanagh, Canadian actor
- 1965Aaron Kwok Fu-Shing, Hong Kong singer
- 1965Kelly Rowan, Canadian actress and producer.
- 1966Jane Hajduk, American actress
- 1966Jeanne Zelasko, American sportcaster
- 1966Masaharu Iwata, Japanese composer
- 1966Steve Valentine, British actor
- 1967Keith Urban, New Zealand singer
- 1970Dian Bachar, American actor
- 1970Lisa Ryder, Canadian actress
- 1971Anthony Rapp, American singer and actor
- 1971Jim Butcher, American author
- 1973Austin Healey, English rugby player
- 1973Seth MacFarlane, American animator
- 1973Taka Michinoku, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1974Lisa, Japanese musician
- 1974Raveena Tandon, Indian actress
- 1976Miikka Kiprusoff, Finnish hockey player
- 1977Jon Heder, American actor
- 1978CM Punk, American professional wrestler
- 1978Dave Zastudil, American football player
- 1978Eva Kaili, Greek TV presenter and politician
- 1978Jimmy Aggrey, English footballer
- 1979Movsar Barayev, Chechen militant (d. 2002)
- 1980Cristian Chivu, Romanian footballer
- 1981Guy Sebastian, Australian singer
- 1981Sam Brown, American comedian
- 1982Adam Carroll, British racing driver
- 1983Dmitri Sychev, Russian footballer
- 1983Francisco Liriano, Dominican baseball player
- 1983Luke Watson, South African rugby player
- 1984Adriano, Brazilian footballer
- 1984Amanda Overmyer, American singer
- 1984Jefferson Farfán, Peruvian footballer
- 1984Sasha Cohen, American figure skater
- 1985Andrea Bargnani, Italian basketball player
- 1985Asin, Indian actress
- 1985Kieran Read, New Zealand rugby player
- 1985Monta Ellis, American basketball player
- 1986Ibor Bakar, Comorian footballer
- 1987Shawn Lauvao, American football player
- 1988Greg Zuerlein, American ice dancer
- 2000Ellery Sprayberry, American actress
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Who Died On October 26?
- 899Alfred the Great, king of Wessex (b. 849)
- 1235King Andrew II of Hungary (b. 1175)
- 1440Gilles de Rais, French serial killer (b. 1404)
- 1633Horio Tadaharu, Japanese warlord (b. 1596)
- 1671Sir John Gell, 1st Baronet, English politician (b. 1593)
- 1675William Sprague, English co-founder of Charlestown, Massachusetts (b. 1609)
- 1679Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery, British soldier, statesman, and dramatist (b. 1621)
- 1686John Egerton, 2nd Earl of Bridgewater, English politician (b. 1623)
- 1717Catherine Sedley, English mistress of James II of England (b. 1657)
- 1751Philip Doddridge, English religious leader (b. 1702)
- 1764William Hogarth, British painter (b. 1697)
- 1773Amédée-François Frézier, French military engineer and explorer (b. 1682)
- 1803Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford, English politician (b. 1721)
- 1806John Graves Simcoe, first lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada (b. 1752)
- 1817Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin, Austrian scientist (b. 1727)
- 1864“Bloody Bill” Anderson, American Civil War rebel guerrilla leader (b. 1838)
- 1866John Kinder Labatt, Irish-Canadian brewer (Labatt Brewing Company) (b. 1803)
- 1890Carlo Collodi, Italian writer (b. 1826)
- 1896Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour, French statesman (b. 1827)
- 1902Elizabeth Cady Stanton, American feminist and suffragette (b. 1815)
- 1909Hirobumi Ito, Japanese Prime Minister (b. 1841)
- 1930Harry Payne Whitney, American businessman (b. 1872)
- 1930Waldemar Haffkine, Russian-Jewish bacteriologist (b. 1860)
- 1931Charles Comiskey, baseball team owner (b. 1859)
- 1937Józef Dowbór-Muśnicki, Polish general (b. 1867)
- 1941Arkady Gaidar, Russian children’s writer (b. 1904)
- 1943Marc Aurel Stein, Hungarian-born archaeologist (b. 1862)
- 1944Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom, daughter of Queen Victoria (b. 1857)
- 1944William Temple, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1881)
- 1945Alexei Krylov, Russian engineer and mathematician (b. 1863)
- 1945Paul Pelliot, French explorer (b. 1878)
- 1946Ioannis Rallis, Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1878)
- 1947Canon Edwin Sidney Savage, English rector (b. 1862)
- 1949Lionel Halsey, British Royal Navy officer and courtier (b. 1872)
- 1952Hattie McDaniel, American singer and actress (b. 1895)
- 1956Walter Gieseking, German pianist (b. 1895)
- 1957Gerty Cori, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate (b. 1896)
- 1957Nikos Kazantzakis, Greek writer (b. 1883)
- 1962Louise Beavers, American actress (b. 1902)
- 1963Elizabeth Gunn, New Zealand paediatrician (b. 1879)
- 1965Sylvia Likens, American torture victim (b. 1949)
- 1966Alma Cogan, English singer (b. 1932)
- 1971Vincent Coleman, American actor (b. 1901)
- 1972Igor Sikorsky, Kiev, Russian Empire (currently Ukraine) born inventor (b. 1889)
- 1974Bidia Dandaron, Buddhist author and teacher in the USSR (b. 1914)
- 1978Alexander Gerschenkron, Russian-born economic historian (b. 1904)
- 1979Park Chung-hee, President of South Korea (b. 1917)
- 1984Gus Mancuso, baseball player (b. 1905)
- 1986Jackson Scholz, American runner (b. 1897)
- 1989Charles J. Pedersen, American Nobel laureate (b. 1904)
- 1993Oro, Mexican professional wrestler (b. 1971)
- 1994Wilbert Harrison, American singer (b. 1929)
- 1995Gorni Kramer, Italian bandleader and songwriter (b. 1913)
- 1995Wilhelm Freddie, Danish painter (b. 1909)
- 1997Joe Cinque, Australian civil engineer murdered by Anu Singh (b. 1978)
- 1999Hoyt Axton, American actor and country music singer-songwriter (b. 1938)
- 2002Jacques Massu, French general (b. 1908)
- 2002Movsar Barayev, Chechen terrorist (b. 1979)
- 2004Bobby Avila, Mexican-American Major League Baseball player (b. 1924)
- 2005George Swindin, English football player manager (b. 1914)
- 2005Keith Parkinson, American fantasy artist (b. 1958)
- 2006Pontus Hultén, Swedish art collector and museum director (b. 1924)
- 2006Tillman Franks, American songwriter (b. 1920)
- 2007Dr. Arthur Kornberg, American Nobel Prize laureate in 1959 for the discovery of DNA polymerase (b. 1918)
- 2007Friedman Paul Erhardt (Chef Tell), German-American TV chef (b. 1943)
- 2007Khun Sa, Burmese warlord (b. 1934)
- 2007Nicolae Dobrin, Romanian footballer (b. 1947)
- 2008Delmar Watson, American child actor (b. 1926)
- 2008Tony Hillerman, American writer (b. 1925)
- 2009George Na'ope, American musician (b. 1928)
- 2009Teel Bivins, American politician (b. 1947)
- 2010Glen “Frosty” Little, American circus clown (b. 1925)
- 2010Mbah Maridjan, Mount Merapi gatekeeper (b. 1927)
- 2010Romeu Tuma, Brazilian politician (b. 1931)
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