October 13 is the 286th day of the year (287th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 79 days remaining until the end of the year.
54 – Roman Emperor Claudius is poisoned to death under mysterious circumstances. His 17-year-old stepson Nero succeeds him to the Roman throne.
409 – Vandals and Alans cross the Pyrenees and appear in Hispania.
1307 – Hundreds of Knights Templar in France are simultaneously arrested by agents of Phillip the Fair, to be later tortured into a “confession” of heresy.
1332 – Rinchinbal Khan, Emperor Ningzong of Yuan becomes the Khagan of the Mongols and Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty, reigning for only 53 days.
1582 – Because of the implementation of the Gregorian calendar, this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain.
1644 – A Swedish–Dutch fleet defeats the Danes and captures about 1,000 prisoners.
1710 – Port Royal, the capital of French Acadia, falls in a siege by British forces.
1773 – The Whirlpool Galaxy is discovered by Charles Messier.
1775 – The United States Continental Congress orders the establishment of the Continental Navy (later renamed the United States Navy).
1792 – In Washington, D.C., the cornerstone of the United States Executive Mansion (known as the White House since 1818) is laid.
1812 – War of 1812: Battle of Queenston Heights – As part of the Niagara campaign in Ontario, Canada, United States forces under General Stephen Van Rensselaer are repulsed from invading Canada by British and native troops led by Sir Isaac Brock.
1843 – In New York City, Henry Jones and 11 others found B’nai B’rith (the oldest Jewish service organization in the world).
1845 – A majority of voters in the Republic of Texas approve a proposed constitution that, if accepted by the U.S. Congress, will make Texas a U.S. state.
1881 – First known conversation in modern Hebrew by Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and friends.
1884 – Greenwich, in London, England, is established as Universal Time meridian of longitude.
1885 – The Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) is founded in Atlanta, United States.
1892 – Edward Emerson Barnard discovers D/1892 T1, the first comet discovered by photographic means, on the night of October 13–14.
1911 – Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, becomes the first Governor-General of Canada of royal descent.
1914 – In Major League Baseball’s World Series, the Boston Braves defeat the Philadelphia Athletics, 3 to 1, at Fenway Park in Boston, completing the first World Series sweep in history.
1915 – The Battle for the Hohenzollern Redoubt marks the end of the Battle of Loos in northern France, World War I.
1917 – The “Miracle of the Sun” is witnessed by an estimated 70,000 people in the Cova da Iria in Fátima, Portugal.
1918 – Mehmed Talat Pasha and the Young Turk (C.U.P.) ministry resign and sign an armistice, ending Ottoman participation in World War I.
1921 – The Soviet republics of Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia sign the Treaty of Kars with the Grand National Assembly of Turkey to establish the contemporary borders between Turkey and the South Caucasus states.
1923 – Ankara replaces Istanbul as the capital of Turkey.
1943 – World War II: The new government of Italy sides with the Allies and declares war on Germany.
1944 – World War II: Riga, the capital of Latvia is occupied by the Red Army.
1946 – France adopts the constitution of the Fourth Republic.
1958 – Paddington Bear, a classic character from English children’s literature, makes his debut.
1962 – The Pacific Northwest experiences a cyclone the equal of a Cat 3 hurricane. Winds measured above 150 mph at several locations; 46 people died.
1967 – The first game in the history of the American Basketball Association is played as the Anaheim Amigos lose to the Oakland Oaks 134-129 in Oakland, California.
1970 – Fiji joins the United Nations.
1972 – An Aeroflot Ilyushin Il-62 crashes outside Moscow killing 174.
1972 – Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 crashes in the Andes mountains, near the border between Argentina and Chile. By December 23, 1972, only 16 out of 45 people lived long enough to be rescued.
1976 – A Bolivian Boeing 707 cargo jet crashes in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, killing 100 (97, mostly children, killed on the ground).
1976 – The first electron micrograph of an Ebola viral particle is obtained by Dr. F.A. Murphy, now at U.C. Davis, who was then working at the C.D.C.
1977 – Four Palestinians hijack Lufthansa Flight 181 to Somalia and demand release of 11 members of the Red Army Faction.
1983 – Ameritech Mobile Communications (now AT&T Inc.) launched the first US cellular network in Chicago, Illinois.
1990 – End of the Lebanese Civil War. Syrian forces launch an attack on the free areas of Lebanon removing General Michel Aoun from the presidential palace.
1992 – An Antonov An-124 operated by Antonov Airlines registered CCCP-82002, crashes near Kiev, Ukraine killing 8.
2010 – The 2010 Copiapó mining accident in Copiapó, Chile comes to an end as all 33 miners arrive at the surface after surviving a record 69 days underground awaiting rescue.
Births
1162 – Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile (d. 1214)
1381 – Thomas FitzAlan, 12th Earl of Arundel, English military officer (d. 1415)
1453 – Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales (d. 1471)
1474 – Mariotto Albertinelli, Italian painter (d. 1515)
1499 – Claude of France (d. 1524)
1566 – Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, Irish politician (d. 1643)
1613 – Luisa of Guzman (d. 1666)
1696 – John Hervey, 2nd Baron Hervey, English politician and author (d. 1743)
1713 – Allan Ramsay, Scottish painter (d. 1784)
1756 – James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier, English admiral (d. 1833)
1768 – Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, French admiral and explorer (d. 1839)
1820 – John William Dawson, Canadian geologist (d. 1899)
1821 – Rudolf Virchow, German physician, biologist, and politician (d. 1902)
1825 – Charles Frederick Worth, English fashion designer, founded House of Worth (d. 1895)
1844 – Ernest Myers, English poet and author (d. 1921)
1853 – Lillie Langtry, English actress and singer (d. 1929)
1862 – Mary Kingsley, English explorer and author (d. 1900)
1870 – Albert Jay Nock, American author (d. 1945)
1874 – József Klekl, Slovene-Hungarian priest and politician (d. 1948)
1876 – Rube Waddell, American baseball player (d. 1914)
1878 – Patrick Joseph Hartigan, Australian priest and author (d. 1952)
1879 – Edward Hennig, American gymnast (d. 1960)
1880 – Sasha Cherny, Russian poet (d. 1932)
1883 – William Dickey, American diver (d. 1950)
1887 – Jozef Tiso, Slovak priest and politician, President of Slovakia (d. 1947)
1890 – Conrad Richter, American author (d. 1968)
1891 – Irene Rich, American actress (d. 1988)
1895 – Mike Gazella, American baseball player (d. 1978)
1896 – E. Beatrice Riley, Australian super-centenarian (d. 2009)
1900 – Gerald Marks, American composer (d. 1997)
1902 – Arna Bontemps, American poet (d. 1973)
1904 – Wilfred Pickles, English actor (d. 1978)
1905 – Yves Allégret, French director (d. 1987)
1905 – Coloman Braun-Bogdan, Romanian footballer and manager (d. 1983)
1909 – Herblock, American cartoonist (d. 2001)
1909 – Art Tatum, American pianist (d. 1956)
1911 – Ashok Kumar, Indian actor (d. 2001)
1913 – Igor Torkar, Slovenian poet and playwright (d. 2004)
1915 – Terry Frost, English painter (d. 2003)
1915 – Cornel Wilde, American actor (d. 1989)
1917 – George Osmond, American manager (d. 2007)
1917 – Burr Tillstrom, American puppeteer (d. 1985)
1918 – Robert Walker, American actor (d. 1951)
1919 – R. Kanagasuntheram, Sri Lankan Tamil zoologist and academic (d. 2010)
1920 – Laraine Day, American actress (d. 2007)
1921 – Yves Montand, Italian-French actor and singer (d. 1991)
1923 – Cyril Shaps, English actor (d. 2003)
1923 – Faas Wilkes, Dutch footballer (d. 2006)
1924 – Terry Gibbs, American vibraphone player and bandleader
1924 – Moturu Udayam, Indian activist (d. 2002)
1924 – Roberto Eduardo Viola, Argentinian general and politician, 44th President of Argentina (d. 1994)
1925 – Lenny Bruce, American comedian and actor (d. 1966)
1925 – Margaret Thatcher, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2013)
1925 – Gustav Winckler, Danish singer (d. 1979)
1926 – Ray Brown, American bassist (d. 2002)
1926 – Killer Kowalski, Polish-Canadian wrestler (d. 2008)
1926 – Eddie Yost, American baseball player and coach (d. 2012)
1927 – Lee Konitz, American saxophonist and composer
1929 – Richard Howard, American poet
1929 – Walasse Ting, Chinese-American painter (d. 2010)
1930 – Bruce Geller, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1978)
1931 – Raymond Kopa, French footballer
1931 – Eddie Mathews, American baseball player (d. 2001)
1932 – Jack Colvin, American actor (d. 2005)
1932 – Johnny Lytle, American vibraphone player and drummer (d. 1995)
1933 – Thomas Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill, English judge (d. 2012)
1933 – Raynald Fréchette, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2007)
1934 – Nana Mouskouri, Greek singer and politician
1935 – Etterlene DeBarge, American singer-songwriter
1935 – Bruce Morrow, American radio host
1936 – Chitti Babu, Indian veena player and composer
1937 – Sami Frey, French actor
1938 – Hugo Young, English journalist (d. 2003)
1939 – Larry Bowie, American football player (d. 2012)
1939 – T. J. Cloutier, American poker player
1939 – Melinda Dillon, American actress
1940 – Pharoah Sanders, American saxophonist
1940 – Chris Farlowe, English rock, blues and soul singer
1941 – Paul Simon, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Simon & Garfunkel)
1942 – Rutanya Alda, American actress
1942 – Bob Bailey, American baseball player
1942 – Jerry Jones, American businessman
1942 – Walter McGowan, Scottish boxer
1942 – Pamela Tiffin, American actress
1943 – Mike Barnicle, American journalist
1943 – Beverley Goodway, English photographer (d. 2012)
1943 – Peter Sauber, Swiss founder and former team principal of Sauber F1 Team.
1944 – Robert Lamm, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (Chicago)
1945 – Christophe, French singer-songwriter
1945 – Dési Bouterse, Surinamese politician, President of Suriname
1945 – Susan Stafford, American game show host
1946 – Edwina Currie, English politician
1946 – Demond Wilson, American actor
1947 – Sammy Hagar, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Van Halen, Chickenfoot, Montrose, and Hagar Schon Aaronson Shrieve)
1947 – Jerry Trupiano, American sportscaster
1947 – Alan Wakeman, English saxophonist (Soft Machine)
1948 – Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Pakistani singer (d. 1997)
1948 – John Ford Coley, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (England Dan & John Ford Coley)
1948 – Lacy J. Dalton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1949 – Marisol Malaret, Puerto Rican model, Miss Universe 1970
1949 – Tom Mees, American sportscaster (d. 1996)
1949 – Leona Mitchell, American soprano
1949 – Raimundo Fagner, Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor and producer
1949 – Patrick Nève, Belgian race car driver
1949 – Rick Vito, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Fleetwood Mac)
1950 – Mollie Katzen, American chef and author
1950 – Simon Nicol, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Fairport Convention)
1951 – Johann Kniewasser, Austrian skier (d. 2012)
1952 – Beverly Johnson, American model and actress
1952 – John Lone, Hong Kong actor
1953 – Pat Day, American jockey
1954 – Frank Dunn, American businessman
1954 – George Frazier, American baseball player
1954 – Claude Ribbe, French historian
1955 – John Ferenzik, American keyboard player, guitarist and composer
1956 – Chris Carter, American screenwriter, director, and producer
1956 – Joseph Toal, Scottish bishop
1957 – Reggie Theus, American basketball player and coach
1958 – Maria Cantwell, American politician
1958 – Derri Daugherty, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (The Choir and Lost Dogs)
1958 – Jair-Rôhm Parker Wells, American bassist and composer
1959 – Marie Osmond, American singer and actress
1960 – Joey Belladonna, American singer-songwriter (Anthrax)
1960 – Tim Brewster, American football player and coach
1960 – Ari Fleischer, American journalist, 24th White House Press Secretary
1960 – Peter Keisler, American lawyer
1961 – Doc Rivers, American basketball player and coach
1962 – T’Keyah Crystal Keymáh, American actress and author
1962 – Kelly Preston, American actress
1962 – Jerry Rice, American football player
1963 – Colin Channer, Jamaican author
1963 – Chip Foose, American automotive designer
1963 – Scott Andrew Mink, American murderer (d. 2004)
1964 – Allen Covert, American actor
1964 – Nie Haisheng, Chinese astronaut
1964 – Christopher Judge, American actor
1964 – Marco Travaglio, Italian journalist
1965 – Johan Museeuw, Belgian cyclist
1967 – Scott Cooper, American baseball player
1967 – Trevor Hoffman, American baseball player
1967 – Javier Sotomayor, Cuban high jumper
1967 – Steve Vickers, English footballer
1967 – Kate Walsh, American actress
1968 – Tisha Campbell-Martin, American actress and singer
1968 – Carlos Marin, Spanish opera singer and actor (Il Divo)
1969 – Rhett Akins, American singer-songwriter
1969 – Nancy Kerrigan, American figure skater
1969 – Cady McClain, American actress
1970 – Serena Altschul, American journalist
1970 – Mel Jackson, American actor, singer, and producer
1970 – Rob Howley, Welsh rugby player
1970 – Paul Potts, English tenor
1971 – Sacha Baron Cohen, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
1971 – Billy Bush, American television and radio host
1971 – Pyrros Dimas, Greek weightlifter
1971 – Hitesh Modi, Kenyan cricketer
1971 – Luis Tosar, Spanish actor
1971 – Kira Reed, American actress and television host, writer and producer
1972 – Summer Sanders, American swimmer and sportscaster
1973 – Brian Dawkins, American football player
1973 – Peter Dumbreck, Scottish race car driver
1973 – Matt Hughes, American mixed martial artist
1973 – Nanako Matsushima, Japanese actress
1974 – Hawick Lau, Chinese actor and singer
1977 – Gareth Batty, English cricketer
1977 – Benjamin Clapp, American drummer (Baptized By Fire, Skeleton Key, and Amfibian)
1977 – Antonio Di Natale, Italian footballer
1977 – Justin Peroff, Canadian drummer and actor (Broken Social Scene and Junior Blue)
1977 – Paul Pierce, American basketball player
1977 – Kiele Sanchez, American actress
1978 – Jermaine O’Neal, American basketball player
1979 – Wes Brown, English footballer
1979 – Mamadou Niang, Senegalese footballer
1980 – Ashanti, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
1980 – David Haye, English boxer
1980 – Magne Hoseth, Norwegian footballer
1980 – Scott Parker, English footballer
1981 – Ryan Ashford, English footballer
1981 – Taylor Buchholz, American baseball player
1981 – Dimitrios Mougios, Greek rower
1981 – Kele Okereke, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Bloc Party)
1982 – Antonio Pavanello, Italian rugby player
1982 – Ian Thorpe, Australian swimmer
1984 – Coldmirror, German video blogger
1984 – Misono, Japanese singer-songwriter and guitarist (Day After Tomorrow)
1984 – Frank Simek, American footballer
1986 – Gabriel Agbonlahor, English footballer
1986 – Sergio Pérez Moya, Mexican footballer
1987 – Ashley Newbrough, American actress
1988 – Scott Jamieson, Australian footballer
1988 – Enrique Pérez, Mexican footballer
1989 – Breno Borges, Brazilian footballer
1992 – Aaron Dismuke, American voice actor
1993 – D-Pryde, Canadian rapper
Deaths
54 – Claudius, Roman emperor (b. 10 BC)
1093 – Robert I, Count of Flanders (b. 1035)
1282 – Nichiren Japanese monk (b. 1222)
1415 – Thomas FitzAlan, 12th Earl of Arundel, English military officer (b. 1381)
1508 – Edmund de Ros, 11th Baron de Ros, English politician (b. 1446)
1605 – Theodore Beza, French theologian (b. 1519)
1673 – Christoffer Gabel, Danish statesman (b. 1617)
1687 – Geminiano Montanari, Italian astronomer (b. 1633)
1694 – Samuel von Pufendorf, German jurist, philosopher, and economist (b. 1632)
1706 – Iyasu I of Ethiopia (b. 1682)
1715 – Nicolas Malebranche, French philosopher (b. 1638)
1759 – John Henley, English minister (b. 1692)
1788 – Robert Nugent, 1st Earl Nugent, Irish politician and poet (b. 1702)
1812 – Isaac Brock, English general (b. 1769)
1815 – Joachim Murat, French military officer (b. 1767)
1822 – Antonio Canova, Italian sculptor (b. 1757)
1825 – Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria (b. 1756)
1841 – Patrick Campbell, Scottish navy officer (b. 1773)
1869 – Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve, French critic (b. 1804)
1882 – Arthur de Gobineau, French philosopher (b. 1816)
1890 – Samuel Freeman Miller, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1816)
1904 – Pavlos Melas, Greek military officer (b. 1870)
1905 – Henry Irving, English actor (b. 1838)
1909 – Francesc Ferrer i Guàrdia, Spanish philosopher (b. 1849)
1911 – Sister Nivedita, Irish social worker, author, and teacher (b. 1867)
1917 – Florence La Badie, American actress (b. 1888)
1919 – Karl Adolph Gjellerup, Danish author and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1857)
1926 – Hans E. Kinck, Norwegian author and philologist (b. 1865)
1931 – Ernst Didring, Swedish author (b. 1868)
1938 – E.C. Segar, American cartoonist (b. 1894)
1945 – Milton S. Hershey, American businessman, founded The Hershey Company (b. 1857)
1946 – Ole Sæther, Norwegian target shooter (b. 1870)
1950 – Ernest Haycox, American author (b. 1899)
1955 – Manuel Ávila Camacho, Mexican politician, 45th President of Mexico (b. 1897)
1961 – Prince Louis Rwagasore, Burundi politician, Prime Minister of Burundi (b. 1932)
1966 – Clifton Webb, American actor (b. 1889)
1968 – Bea Benaderet, American actress (b. 1906)
1971 – Stafford Smythe, Canadian businessman (b. 1921)
1973 – Albert Mandler, Israeli general (b. 1929)
1974 – Otto Binder, American author (b. 1911)
1974 – Ed Sullivan, American television host (b. 1901)
1979 – Antonio Berni, Argentine painter, illustrator and engraver (b. 1905)
1981 – Rebecca Clarke, English violist and composer (b. 1886)
1987 – Walter Brattain, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
1987 – Kishore Kumar, Indian singer-songwriter, actor, and producer (b. 1929)
1988 – Mike Venezia, American jockey (b. 1945)
1990 – Le Duc Tho, Vietnamese general and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
1992 – Dantrell Davis, American gang shooting victim (b. 1985)
1992 – James Marshall, American children’s author and illustrator (b. 1942)
1993 – Wade Flemons, American singer-songwriter (Earth, Wind & Fire) (b. 1940)
1996 – Beryl Reid, English actress (b. 1919)
1998 – Dmitry Nikolayevich Filippov, Russian-Soviet politician (b. 1944)
2000 – Jean Peters, American actress (b. 1926)
2001 – Peter Doyle, Australian singer (The New Seekers) (b. 1949)
2002 – Stephen Ambrose, American historian and biographer (b. 1936)
2003 – Bertram Brockhouse, Canadian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
2004 – Enrique Fernando, Filipino jurist, 13th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (b. 1915)
2004 – Bernice Rubens, Welsh novelist (b. 1928)
2005 – Vivian Malone Jones, American activist (b. 1942)
2006 – Wang Guangmei, Chinese wife of Liu Shaoqi (b. 1921)
2007 – Bob Denard, French soldier (b. 1929)
2008 – Alexei Cherepanov, Russian ice hockey player (b. 1989)
2008 – Guillaume Depardieu, French actor (b. 1971)
2009 – Stephen Barnett, American scholar (b. 1935)
2009 – Grietje Jansen-Anker, Dutch super-centenarian (b. 1897)
2009 – Al Martino, American singer and actor (b. 1927)
2010 – Vernon Biever, American photographer (b. 1923)
2011 – Barbara Kent, Canadian-American actress (b. 1907)
2012 – Stuart Bell, English politician (b. 1938)
2012 – Paul Brown, American race car driver (b. 1969)
2012 – Gary Collins, American actor (b. 1938)
2012 – Harihar Swain, Indian politician (b. 1939)
2012 – Manuel Torres Félix, alleged Mexican drug trafficker (b. 1954)
