American politician, 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
French pianist, composer, conductor
American singer, actress
American poet, playwright
Kenyan/English biologist
American poet, author
Guinean politician, 1st President of Guinea
German pianist, composer
English actor, playwright, composer
English/South African businessman, politician, founded De Beers
An earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale struck Caracas, the capital city of Venezuela, on March 26, 1812. The earthquake destroyed 90% of the city, killing an estimated 15,000–20,000 people.
Municipal elections held in Paris on March 26, 1871, brought revolutionaries to power who formed a Commune government. The Commune was a radical socialist and revolutionary government that ruled Paris for two months until it was violently suppressed by the French government.
In support of Mohammed Ali Shah's coup d'etat against the constitutional government in Persia, a Russian military force invaded northern Persia on March 26, 1909, to relieve the siege of Tabriz.
On March 26, 1942, the first "Eichmann transport" of Jewish prisoners arrived at the Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps. This marked the beginning of the systematic deportation and extermination of Jews during the Holocaust.
On March 26, 1953, Dr. Jonas Salk announced that he had successfully tested a vaccine to prevent Polio. Clinical trials began the following year, leading to the eventual eradication of the disease in many parts of the world.
On March 26, 1966, large-scale anti-Vietnam War protests took place in several cities across the United States, including New York, Washington, D.C., and Chicago. The protests were part of a growing movement against the war that would continue for several years.
On March 26, 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the leader of East Pakistan, declared the region's independence from Pakistan. This led to a nine-month-long war between India and Pakistan, which ultimately resulted in the creation of the independent country of Bangladesh.
The Biological Weapons Convention, which bans the development, production, and stockpiling of biological and toxin weapons, came into effect on March 26, 1975. The treaty has since been ratified by most countries worldwide.
On March 26, 1979, Egypt's President Anwar al-Sadat and Israel's Prime Minister Menachem Begin signed the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty, which ended 30 years of war between the two countries. The treaty was a significant milestone in the history of the Middle East and paved the way for future peace negotiations.
Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay established the Southern Common Market, also known as Mercosur, on March 26, 1991. Mercos