Julius Caesar is assassinated by a group of Roman senators, including Brutus and Cassius, in the Roman Senate on March 15, 44 BCE (The Ides of March) at the Theatre of Pompey. The assassination resulted in the rise of the Roman Empire under Caesar's grandnephew, Octavian (Augustus).
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On This Day in History: March 15
Explore the historical events that shaped our world on March 15th. From major milestones to cultural achievements, see what happened on this day in history. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.
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Explorer Christopher Columbus arrives back in his home port of Palos, Spain on March 15, 1493, following his first voyage to the Americas. His return voyage was difficult, and his ships were separated by a storm; making landfall first in the Azores before reaching Lisbon, Portugal, and eventually arriving back in his home port.
c. 1526, March
William Tyndale, linguist and a leading figure in the Protestant Reformation completes the translation of the New Testament to English in 1526 and goes on to translate parts of the Old Testament (Pentateuch) in 1530. He was arrested in May 1535 and executed in 1536 for heresy, unable to complete the full Bible translation..
Early Bible Translations Overview:
Tyndale: (1525) (Provided the New Testament and the Old Testament from Genesis to 2 Chronicles, translated directly from Hebrew and Greek. Tyndale was arrested in 1535 and executed for heresy in 1536.
Myles Coverdale: (1535), Provided the remaining Old Testament (Ezra to Malachi) and the Apocrypha, largely translated from German (Luther) and Latin sources. Coverdale died from natural sources on January 20, 1569.
John Rogers: (1537), Compiled the existing translations, under the pseudonym "Thomas Matthew," adding marginal notes and prefaces. Rogers was executed as a heretic in 1555.
c. 1580 CE, March
Spain's King Philip II revokes William the Silent's amnesty, c. March 1580, and offers a 25,000 reward (roughly 3 million Euros), and a nobility title for William's assassination. The act ultimately lead to William's assassination on July 10, 1584 but it also renewed hostilities in the Dutch Revolt .
After William was killed, his sons, Maurice of Nassau and Frederick Henry, continued the fight for Dutch independence escalating the Eight Years' War and ultimately leading to Dutch independence from Spain in 1648.
Sweden and Russia sign the Treaty of Stolbovo, ending the Ingrian War.
1672 CE, Circa March
The first formal French-language newspaper, "Le Mercure Galant," is published in France. Its name was changed to Le Mercure de France in 1724. It was suppressed in 1811 and ceased publication in 1825. The name was revived in 1890 as a literary review.
Battle of Guilford Courthouse: American forces under Nathanael Greene defeat the British in North Carolina.
Maine is admitted to the United States on March 15, 1820, becoming the 23rd State of the Union.
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Tsar Nicholas II of Russia abdicates the throne on March 15, 1917 (March 2 O.S), amid the chaos, protests and demonstrations of the Russian Revolution, ending the 300 year Romanov dynasty. More
Hermann Goring, a senior member of Adolf Hitler’s regime, issues an official decree on March 15, 1940, for the reclamation of church bells to secure raw materials such as bronze and for the armaments industry. Approximately 175,000 church bells were confiscated across Germany and Nazi-occupied Europe and about 150,000 of them were melted down .
Nationalist Chinese forces launch a surprise attack on the mainland of the communist People’s Republic of China (PRC) mainland, on March, 15, 1950, capturing the town of Sungmen. The short-lived but significant attack was an attempt to reclaim territory.
The PRC Communist leadership, blamed the United States for assisting the attack, heightening tensions between the U.S. and the PRC.Nationalist forces launched further unsuccessful attacks into Yunnan between 1950 and 1952. These actions were part of the ongoing Chinese Civil War after Chiang Kai-shek's government moved to Taiwan in 1949.
Civil unrest and peaceful pro-democracy protests erupt in Syria against President Bashar al-Assad's regime on March 15, 2011, marking the start of the Syrian Civil War.
Bashar al-Assadwas removed from power on December 8, 2024, ending his 24-year rule and the 53-year reign of the Assad dynasty.
A terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, on March 15, 2019, results in 51 deaths and dozens of injuries.