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On this dayOctober 23

Through history65 events, 283 births and 108 deaths in Wikipedia's lists for the date

Today

A hundred years before

The front pages of October 23, 1926

What 41 American newspapers printed that day, as the Library of Congress keeps them.

MEDIA
The front page of Douglas daily dispatch, Douglas, Ariz., October 23, 1926Douglas daily dispatchDouglas, Ariz.Read it, zoom in, mark it →
32 more front pages that day

All 41 front pages at the Library of Congress ↗From Chronicling America. Public domain: in the Library's words, newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety.

What happened

On October 23

The anniversaries Wikipedia's editors chose for the date, oldest first.

REFERENCE
  1. 1157869 years ago

    The Battle of Grathe Heath ended the Danish Civil War. · Danish Civil Wars

    Photo: Lorenz FrølichPublic domain
  2. 1641385 years ago

    Irish Catholic gentry in Ulster tried to seize control of Dublin Castle, the seat of English rule in Ireland, to force concessions to Catholics. · Irish Rebellion of 1641

  3. 1798228 years ago

    War of the Second Coalition: The Ottoman–Albanian forces of Ali Pasha of Janina defeated French troops and captured the town of Preveza at the Battle of Nicopolis. · Ali Pasha of Yanina

    Photo: Ruedi33aCC BY-SA 4.0
  4. 1850176 years ago

    The inaugural National Women's Rights Convention, presided over by American activist Paulina Wright Davis, began in Worcester, Massachusetts.

  5. 1906120 years ago

    Alberto Santos-Dumont flew his biplane 14-bis for 50 metres (160 ft) at an altitude of about four metres (13 ft). · Santos-Dumont 14-bis

    Photo: Zaida Ben-Yusuf / Adam CuerdenPublic domain
  6. 193492 years ago

    Jeannette Piccard (pictured) piloted a hot-air balloon flight that reached 57,579 feet (17,550 m), becoming the first woman to fly in the stratosphere.

    Photo: author on the file pagePublic domain
  7. 194284 years ago

    World War II: Japanese troops began an unsuccessful attempt to recapture Henderson Field on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands from American forces. · World War II · Battle for Henderson Field

    Photo: Richard OpitzCC BY-SA 3.0 de
  8. 195571 years ago

    The State of Vietnam voted in a referendum to become a republic. · 1955 State of Vietnam referendum

  9. 195670 years ago

    The Hungarian Revolution began as a peaceful student demonstration that attracted thousands while marching through central Budapest to the parliament building. · Hungarian Revolution of 1956 · Student activism

    Photo: ГлавцентроархивCC0
  10. 195769 years ago

    A screening of Mother India, one of the most influential Indian films in history, was held for President Rajendra Prasad and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru two days before its release.

  11. 197254 years ago

    Vietnam War: Operation Linebacker, a U.S. bombing campaign against North Vietnam in response to its Easter Offensive, ended after five months.

    Photo: U.S. Air Force (Operation Holly 1970 (Folder 13 of 15), sheet 182)Public domain
  12. 199531 years ago

    The runway show for Alexander McQueen's collection The Hunger was staged at London's Natural History Museum. · Natural History Museum, London

  13. 200125 years ago

    Grand Theft Auto III was released, helping to popularize open-world and mature-content video games. · Grand Theft Auto III · Open world

  14. 201115 years ago

    During the Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix, Marco Simoncelli (pictured) collided with two other riders, resulting in his death due to serious trauma to the head, neck, and chest. · 2011 Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix

    Photo: Will PittengerCC BY-SA 3.0
  15. 201511 years ago

    Hurricane Patricia, the most intense tropical cyclone on record in the Western Hemisphere, peaked with maximum sustained winds of 215 mph (345 km/h) south of Mexico.

    Photo: MODIS image captured by NASA’s Terra satellitePublic domain
  16. 20188 years ago

    An escalator accident in Rome left 24 people injured, mostly fans of the CSKA Moscow football team who were in town for a UEFA Champions League match against Roma. · 2018 Rome escalator accident · PFC CSKA Moscow

    Photo: LalupaCC BY-SA 3.0
  17. 20224 years ago

    Myanmar civil war: Burmese military forces launched airstrikes that killed at least 80 concertgoers in Kachin State. · Hpakant massacre

    Photo: MPATVCC BY 3.0
  18. 20224 years ago

    Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif is shot and killed by local police in Kajiado, Kenya. · Death of Arshad Sharif

All 65 events Wikipedia lists for October 23, by year

Reading the list…

Born

On October 23

The best-known first, counted by the Wikipedia languages with an article on each.

REFERENCE
  1. 1940PeléBrazilian footballer and actor (died 2022)183 languages
  2. 1957Paul KagameRwandan soldier and politician, 6th President of Rwanda94 languagesPhoto: SaeimaCC BY-SA 2.0
  3. 1986Emilia ClarkeEnglish actress94 languagesPhoto: Vengerb3rgCC0
  1. 1959"Weird Al" Yankovic, American comedy musician, writer, and actor93
  2. 1976Ryan Reynolds, Canadian-American actor and producer91
  3. 1985Masiela Lusha, Albanian-American actress, poet, and humanitarian87
  4. 1942Michael Crichton, American author and screenwriter (died 2008)84
  5. 1954Ang Lee, Taiwanese-American director, producer, and screenwriter83
  6. 1905Felix Bloch, Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1983)81
  7. 1908Ilya Frank, Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1990)74
  8. 1992Álvaro Morata, Spanish footballer70
  9. 1875Gilbert N. Lewis, American chemist and academic (died 1946)66
  10. 1920Gianni Rodari, Italian writer (died 1980)65
  11. 1959Sam Raimi, American director, screenwriter and producer63
  12. 1928Zhu Rongji, Chinese engineer and politician, 5th Premier of the People's Republic of China (died 2026)61
  13. 1994Margaret Qualley, American actress58
  14. 1925Johnny Carson, American television host (died 2005)56
  15. 1979Prabhas, Telugu film actor55
  16. 1927Leszek Kołakowski, Polish-English historian and philosopher (died 2009)54
  17. 1974Aravind Adiga, Indian journalist and author53
  18. 1989Andriy Yarmolenko, Ukrainian footballer53
  19. 1964Robert Trujillo, American bass player and songwriter52
  20. 1835Adlai Stevenson I, American lawyer and politician, 23rd Vice President of the United States (died 1914)51
  21. 1951Fatmir Sejdiu, Kosovan academic and politician, 2nd President of Kosovo51
Everyone else born on October 23: 259 more, by year

Reading the list…

Died

On October 23

The best-known first, counted by the Wikipedia languages with an article on each.

REFERENCE
  1. 1872Théophile GautierFrench journalist, author, and poet (born 1811)90 languagesPhoto: NadarPublic domain
  2. 1944Charles Glover BarklaEnglish-Scottish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1877)81 languagesPhoto: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress)Public domain
  3. 42 BCMarcus Junius Brutus the Younger, Roman general and politician (born 85 BC)76 languages
  1. 1910Chulalongkorn, Thai king (born 1853)72
  2. 1867Franz Bopp, German linguist and academic (born 1791)62
  3. 1986Edward Adelbert Doisy, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1893)59
  4. 2003Soong Mei-ling, Chinese wife of Chiang Kai-shek, 2nd First Lady of the Republic of China (born 1898)57
  5. 2011Herbert A. Hauptman, American chemist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1917)57
  6. 1869Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (born 1799)54
  7. 1921John Boyd Dunlop, Scottish businessman, founded Dunlop Rubber (born 1840)50
  8. 2011Marco Simoncelli, Italian motorcycle racer (born 1987)46
  9. 1893Alexander of Battenberg (born 1857)44
  10. 1950Al Jolson, Lithuanian-American actor and singer (born 1886)42
  11. 1939Zane Grey, American dentist and author (born 1872)41
  12. 2025June Lockhart, American actress (b. 1925)41
  13. 1984Oskar Werner, Austrian-German actor (born 1922)40
  14. 2013Anthony Caro, English sculptor and academic (born 1924)40
  15. 1157Sweyn III, Danish king (born c. 1125)39
  16. 1915W. G. Grace, English cricketer and physician (born 1848)39
  17. 949Yōzei, Japanese emperor (born 869)38
  18. 1456John of Capistrano, Italian priest and saint (born 1386)37
  19. 930Daigo, Japanese emperor (born 885)36
  20. 1935Charles Demuth, American painter and educator (born 1883)34
  21. 1688Charles du Fresne, sieur du Cange, French philologist and historian (born 1610)33
Everyone else died on October 23: 84 more, by year

Reading the list…

Observed

On October 23

Holidays, feast days and observances, as Wikipedia lists them for the date.

REFERENCE

Christian feast day

Events, births, deaths and observances are Wikipedia's On this day for October 23, in its editors' words (CC BY-SA 4.0); the counts of languages are Wikidata's (CC0). Dates are the UTC day, as Wikipedia keeps them. Discover brings one of these at a time.