Calendar date · October

What happened on October 17

On October 17, 690: Empress Wu Zetian establishes the Zhou Dynasty of China.

Events

61

across history

Notable births

50

Notable deaths

50

Zodiac

Libra

Featured moment · 690

Empress Wu Zetian establishes the Zhou Dynasty of China.

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.

People

Born on October 17

Matthew Knies 2002– American ice hockey player (born 2002)
Lily 2002– Australian and South Korean singer (born 2002)
Thomas Strudwick 2001– British motorcycle racer
Robert Williams III 1997– American basketball player (born 1997)
Jake DeBrusk 1996– Canadian ice hockey player (born 1996)
Jamal Adams 1995– American football player (born 1995)
Ha-seong Kim 1995– South Korean baseball player (born 1995)
Kenneth Omeruo 1993– Nigerian footballer
Vincent Poirier 1993– French basketball player (born 1993)
Show 9 more — notable births on October 17
Jacob Artist 1992– American actor, singer, and dancer (born 1992)
Sam Concepcion 1992– Filipino actor and singer
Anthony Gill 1992– American basketball player (born 1992)
Keerthy Suresh 1992– Indian actress (born 1992)
Brenda Asnicar 1991– Argentine actress and singer (born 1991)
Paolo Campinoti 1990– Italian footballer
Maica García Godoy 1990– Spanish water polo player (born 1990)
Ronald González Tabilo 1990– Chilean footballer (born 1990)
Saki Kumagai 1990– Japanese footballer (born 1990)

People

Died on October 17

Mitzi Gaynor American actress (1931–2024)
Toshiyuki Nishida Japanese actor (1947–2024)
Andrew Schally American endocrinologist (1926–2024)
Elijah Cummings American politician (1951–2019)
Gord Downie Canadian musician and writer (1964–2017)
Danièle Delorme French actress and producer (1926–2015)
Howard Kendall English footballer and manager
Anne-Marie Lizin Belgian politician (1949–2015)
Tom Smith American politician and businessman
Show 9 more — notable deaths on October 17
Edwards Barham American politician (1937–2014)
Masaru Emoto Japanese pseudoscientist (1943–2014)
Tom Shaw 20th and 21st-century American Episcopal bishop
Berndt von Staden German diplomat
Mother Antonia American nun (1926–2013)
Terry Fogerty English RL coach and former GB international rugby league footballer
Arthur Maxwell House Canadian politician
Lou Scheimer American animator and voice actor (1928-2013)
Rene Simpson Canadian tennis player

Timeline

Every October 17 on record

  1. 690 Empress Wu Zetian establishes the Zhou Dynasty of China.

    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.

  2. 1091 London tornado of 1091: A tornado thought to be of strength T8/F4 strikes the heart of London.

    One of the strongest tornadoes in British Isles

    The London Tornado of 1091 is the earliest reported tornado in England, occurring in London on Friday, 17 October 1091. It has been estimated by modern assessment as possibly a T8 on the TORRO scale, making it one of the strongest recorded tornadoes in the British Isles, alongside the 1666 Lincolnshire tornado, although this estimate is based on reports written 30 years later.

  3. 1346 The English capture King David II of Scotland at Neville's Cross and imprison him for eleven years.

    King of Scotland from 1329 to 1371

    David II was King of Scotland from 1329 until his death in 1371. Upon the death of his father, Robert the Bruce, David succeeded to the throne at the age of five and was crowned at Scone in November 1331, becoming the first Scottish monarch to be anointed at his coronation. During his childhood, David was governed by a series of guardians, and Edward III of England sought to take advantage of David's minority by supporting an invasion of Scotland by Edward Balliol, beginning the Second War of Scottish Independence.

  4. 1448 An Ottoman army defeats a Hungarian army at the Second Battle of Kosovo.

    Part of the Ottoman wars in Europe and Ottoman-Hungarian Wars

    The Second Battle of Kosovo was a land battle between a Hungarian-led Crusader army and the Ottoman Empire at Kosovo field that took place from 17–20 October 1448. It was the culmination of a Hungarian offensive to avenge the defeat at the Battle of Varna four years earlier. In the three-day battle the Ottoman army under the command of Sultan Murad II defeated the Crusader army of regent John Hunyadi.

  5. 1456 The University of Greifswald is established as the second oldest university in northern Europe.

    Public university in Greifswald, Mecklenburg, Germany

    The University of Greifswald, formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

  6. 1534 Anti-Catholic posters appear in Paris and other cities supporting Huldrych Zwingli's position on the Mass.
  7. 1558 Poczta Polska, the Polish postal service, is founded.
  8. 1604 Kepler's Supernova is observed in the constellation of Ophiuchus.
  9. 1610 French king Louis XIII is crowned in Reims Cathedral.
  10. 1660 The nine regicides who signed the death warrant of Charles I of England are hanged, drawn and quartered.
  11. 1662 Charles II of England sells Dunkirk to Louis XIV of France for 40,000 pounds.
  12. 1713 Great Northern War: Russia defeats Sweden in the Battle of Kostianvirta in Pälkäne.
  13. 1771 Premiere in Milan of the opera Ascanio in Alba, composed by Mozart at age 15.
  14. 1777 American Revolutionary War: British General John Burgoyne surrenders his army at Saratoga, New York.
  15. 1781 American Revolutionary War: British General Charles, Earl Cornwallis surrenders at the Siege of Yorktown.
Show 15 earlier entries from October 17
  1. 1797 Treaty of Campo Formio is signed between France and Austria, ending the War of the First Coalition.
  2. 1800 War of the Second Coalition: Britain takes control of the Dutch colony of Curaçao.
  3. 1806 Former leader of the Haitian Revolution, Emperor Jacques I, is assassinated after an oppressive rule.
  4. 1811 The silver deposits of Agua Amarga are discovered in Chile becoming in the following years instrumental for the Patriots to finance the Chilean War of Independence.
  5. 1814 Eight people die in the London Beer Flood.
  6. 1850 Riots start, which lead to a massacre in Aleppo.
  7. 1860 First The Open Championship (referred to in North America as the British Open).
  8. 1861 Aboriginal Australians kill nineteen Europeans in the Cullin-la-ringo massacre.
  9. 1907 Marconi begins the first commercial transatlantic wireless service.
  10. 1912 Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia declare war on the Ottoman Empire, joining Montenegro in the First Balkan War.
  11. 1919 Leeds United F.C. founded at Salem Chapel, Holbeck after the winding up of Leeds City F.C. for making illegal payments to players during World War I
  12. 1931 Al Capone is convicted of income tax evasion.
  13. 1933 Albert Einstein flees Nazi Germany and moves to the United States.
  14. 1940 The body of Communist propagandist Willi Münzenberg is found in South France, starting a never-resolved mystery.
  15. 1941 World War II: The USS Kearny becomes the first U.S. Navy vessel to be torpedoed by a U-boat.

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