What are the important events that happened on February 15? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

February 15: Facts & Myths About This Day

February 15 is the 46^th day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 319 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Saturday.

Under the Julian calendar, this day is February 2, 2025 – a Saturday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?

When this day started, 28,992,960 minutes has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.

Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘tetracontahexagon’ day.

Aquarius is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Amethyst is the modern birthstone for this month. Bloodstone is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.

According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 367 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.

The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,439 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.

February 15 Historical Events

• 1493 –
  While on board the Niña, Christopher Columbus writes an open letter (widely distributed upon his return to Portugal) describing his discoveries and the unexpected items he came across in the New World.
• 1835 –
  The first constitutional law in modern Serbia is adopted.
• 1862 –
  American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant attacks Fort Donelson, Tennessee.
• 1952 –
  King George VI is buried in St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
• 1970 –
  A Dominican DC-9 crashes into the sea during takeoff from Santo Domingo, killing 102.
• 1972 –
  New Year’s Day in Chinese calendar. Start of the year of the Water Rat in Chinese astrology.
• 1994 –
  Standard of the President of Russia is established.
• 1996 –
  At the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China, a Long March 3 rocket, carrying an Intelsat 708, crashes into a rural village after liftoff, killing many people.
• 1999 –
  Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party, is arrested in Kenya.
• 2003 –
  Protests against the Iraq war take place in over 600 cities worldwide. It is estimated that between 8 million to 30 million people participate, making this the largest peace demonstration in history.

Who were born on February 15?

• 1571 –
  Michael Praetorius, German composer (d. 1621)
• 1861 –
  Alfred North Whitehead, English mathematician and philosopher (d. 1947)
• 1891 –
  Dino Borgioli, Italian lyric tenor (d. 1960)
• 1908 –
  Sarto Fournier, Quebec politician (d. 1980)
• 1932 –
  Troy Kennedy Martin, Scottish film and television screenwriter (d. 2009)
• 1940 –
  John Hadl, American football player
• 1967 –
  Kelley Menighan Hensley, American actress
• 1974 –
  Miranda July, American performance artist
• 1976 –
  Óscar Freire, Spanish cyclist
• 1984 –
  Doda, Polish singer (Virgin)

Who died on February 15?

• 1637 –
  Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1578)
• 1869 –
  Mirza Ghalib, Indian poet (b. 1796)
• 1961 –
  Bradley Lord, American figure skater (b. 1939)
• 1961 –
  Laurence Owen, American figure skater (b. 1944)
• 1966 –
  Gerard Ciołek, Polish architect (b. 1909)
• 1973 –
  Tim Holt, American actor (b. 1919)
• 1988 –
  Richard Feynman, American physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1918)
• 1998 –
  Louie Spicolli, American professional wrestler (b. 1971)
• 2008 –
  Ashley Callie, South African actress (b. 1976)
• 2010 –
  Jeanne M. Holm, American, first woman to receive general’s stars in the USAF (b. 1921)