Calendar date · February

What happened on February 23

On February 23, 303: Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution.

Events

66

across history

Notable births

50

Notable deaths

50

Zodiac

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Featured moment · 303

Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution.

The Roman emperor was the ruler and monarchical head of state of the Roman Empire, starting with the granting of the title augustus to Octavian in 27 BC. The title of imperator, originally a military honorific, was usually used alongside caesar, originally a cognomen. When a given Roman is described as becoming emperor in English, it generally reflects his accession as augustus, and later as basileus.

People

Born on February 23

Alice Litman 2002– English transgender woman (2002–2022)
Femke Bol 2000– Dutch hurdler and sprinter (born 2000)
Jamal Murray 1997– Canadian basketball player (born 1997)
D'Angelo Russell 1996– American basketball player (born 1996)
Andrew Wiggins 1995– Canadian basketball player (born 1995)
Triptii Dimri 1994– Indian actress (born 1994)
Neviana Vladinova 1994– Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast
Casemiro 1992– Brazilian footballer (born 1992)
Kyriakos Papadopoulos 1992– Greek footballer (born 1992)
Show 9 more — notable births on February 23
Kevin Connauton 1990– Canadian ice hockey player (born 1990)
Marco Scandella 1990– Canadian ice hockey player (born 1990)
Evan Bates 1989– American ice dancer (born 1989)
Jérémy Pied 1989– French association football player (born 1989)
Wilin Rosario 1989– Dominican baseball player (born 1989)
Nicolás Gaitán 1988– Argentine footballer (born 1988)
Ab-Soul 1987– American rapper (born 1987)
Malik Hairston 1987– American basketball player (born 1987)
Theophilus London 1987– American rapper and singer (born 1987)

People

Died on February 23

Larry Dolan American attorney (1931–2025)
Chris Jasper American singer, composer and producer (1951–2025)
Al Trautwig American sports commentator (1956–2025)
Flaco Owl that escaped from a New York City zoo (2010–2024)
Tony Earl American politician (1936–2023)
John Motson English football commentator (1945–2023)
Ahmed Zaki Yamani Saudi Arabian politician (1930–2021)
Katherine Helmond American actress (1929–2019)
Peter Lustig German television presenter
Show 9 more — notable deaths on February 23
Jacqueline Mattson American baseball catcher (1928–2016)
James Aldridge Australian-British writer and journalist
Rana Bhagwandas Pakistani judge (1942–2015)
W. E. "Bill" Dykes American politician
Alice Herz-Sommer Israeli classical pianist (1903–2014)
Roger Hilsman American soldier, statesman, teacher, and author (1919–2014)
Eugene Bookhammer American politician (1918–2013)
Joseph Friedenson Holocaust survivor, Holocaust historian, Yiddish writer, lecturer and editor (born 1922)
Julien Ries Belgian religious historian, titular archbishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church

Timeline

Every February 23 on record

  1. 303 Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution.

    Ruler of the Roman Empire

    The Roman emperor was the ruler and monarchical head of state of the Roman Empire, starting with the granting of the title augustus to Octavian in 27 BC. The title of imperator, originally a military honorific, was usually used alongside caesar, originally a cognomen. When a given Roman is described as becoming emperor in English, it generally reflects his accession as augustus, and later as basileus.

  2. 532 Byzantine emperor Justinian I lays the foundation stone of a new Orthodox Christian basilica in Constantinople – the Hagia Sophia.

    The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Byzantine Empire, which fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised sovereign authority are included, to the exclusion of junior co-emperors who never attained the status of sole or senior ruler, as well as of the various usurpers or rebels who claimed the imperial title.

  3. 628 Khosrow II, Shahanshah of the Sasanian Empire, is overthrown.

    Emperor of the Sasanian Empire from 590 to 628

    Khosrow II, commonly known as Khosrow Parviz, is considered to be the last great monarch of pre-Islamic Iran, ruling the Sasanian Empire from 590 to 628, including an interruption of one year.

  4. 705 Empress Wu Zetian abdicates the throne, restoring the Tang dynasty.

    Empress of China from 690 to 705

    Empress Wu, commonly known as Wu Zetian, personal name Wu Zhao, was the only undisputed female sovereign in the history of China. She had previously held power as the empress consort of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang dynasty from 660 to 683 and as empress dowager during the reigns of her sons, Emperors Zhongzong and Ruizong, between 683 and 690. She was the sole ruler of the self-styled Zhou dynasty from 690 to 705.

  5. 1455 Traditionally the date of publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western book printed with movable type.

    Earliest major book printed in Europe

    The Gutenberg Bible, also known as the 42-line Bible, the Mazarin Bible or the B42, was the earliest major book printed in Europe using mass-produced metal movable type. It marked the start of the "Gutenberg Revolution" and the age of printed books in the West. The book is valued and revered for its high aesthetic and artistic qualities and its historical significance.

  6. 1725 J. S. Bach leads his Tafel-Music Shepherd Cantata for the birthday of Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels.
  7. 1763 Berbice slave uprising in Guyana: The first major slave revolt in South America.
  8. 1778 American Revolutionary War: Baron von Steuben arrives at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, to help train the Continental Army.
  9. 1820 Cato Street Conspiracy: A plot to murder all the British cabinet ministers is exposed and the conspirators arrested.
  10. 1836 Texas Revolution: The Siege of the Alamo (prelude to the Battle of the Alamo) begins in San Antonio, Texas.
  11. 1847 Mexican–American War: Battle of Buena Vista: In Mexico, American troops under future president General Zachary Taylor defeat Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
  12. 1854 The official independence of the Orange Free State, South Africa is declared.
  13. 1861 President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington, D.C., after the thwarting of an alleged assassination plot in Baltimore, Maryland.
  14. 1870 Reconstruction Era: Post-U.S. Civil War military control of Mississippi ends and it is readmitted to the Union.
  15. 1883 Alabama becomes the first U.S. state to enact an anti-trust law.
Show 15 earlier entries from February 23
  1. 1885 Sino-French War: French Army gains an important victory in the Battle of Đồng Đăng in the Tonkin region of Vietnam.
  2. 1886 Charles Martin Hall produced the first samples of aluminium from the electrolysis of aluminium oxide, after several years of intensive work. He was assisted in this project by his older sister, Julia Brainerd Hall.
  3. 1887 The French Riviera is hit by a large earthquake, killing around 2,000.
  4. 1898 Émile Zola is imprisoned in France after writing J'Accuse...!, a letter accusing the French government of antisemitism and wrongfully imprisoning Captain Alfred Dreyfus.
  5. 1900 Second Boer War: During the Battle of the Tugela Heights, the first British attempt to take Hart's Hill fails.
  6. 1903 Cuba leases Guantánamo Bay to the United States "in perpetuity".
  7. 1905 Chicago attorney Paul Harris and three other businessmen meet for lunch to form the Rotary Club, the world's first service club.
  8. 1909 The AEA Silver Dart makes the first powered flight in Canada and the British Empire.
  9. 1917 First demonstrations in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The beginning of the February Revolution (March 8 in the Gregorian calendar).
  10. 1927 U.S. President Calvin Coolidge signs a bill by Congress establishing the Federal Radio Commission (later replaced by the Federal Communications Commission) which was to regulate the use of radio frequencies in the United States.
  11. 1927 German theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg writes a letter to fellow physicist Wolfgang Pauli, in which he describes his uncertainty principle for the first time.
  12. 1934 Leopold III becomes King of Belgium.
  13. 1941 Plutonium is first produced and isolated by Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg.
  14. 1942 World War II: Japanese submarines fire artillery shells at the coastline near Santa Barbara, California.
  15. 1943 The Cavan Orphanage fire kills thirty-five girls and an elderly cook.

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