February 2 facts for kids

February 2 is the 33rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 332 days remain until the end of the year (333 in leap years). February 2nd is a special day filled with many important moments throughout history! From ancient laws to modern sports records, this day has seen lots of interesting events, and many famous people were born or passed away on this date. Let's explore some of the most exciting things that happened on February 2nd!

Exciting Events Through History

Ancient Times and Middle Ages (Before 1600)

• 506 – Alaric II, a king of the Visigoths, created a collection of Roman law called the Breviary of Alaric. This was a big deal for how laws were organized back then!
• 880 – A battle happened at Lüneburg Heath in Saxony. King Louis III of France was defeated by the Great Heathen Army from the Norse lands.
• 962 – Pope John XII crowned Otto I as the Holy Roman Emperor. This was a very important moment for the empire, as it had been almost 40 years since the last emperor.
• 1032 – Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor became the king of Burgundy.
• 1141 – The Battle of Lincoln took place. During this battle, Stephen, King of England was defeated and captured by the allies of Empress Matilda.
• 1207 – The land known as Terra Mariana was created. This area eventually became the countries of Latvia and Estonia.
• 1428 – A very strong earthquake hit Principality of Catalonia. It caused a lot of damage and many people were hurt.
• 1536 – The city of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was founded by a Spanish explorer named Pedro de Mendoza.

From 1600 to 1900

• 1653 – New Amsterdam was officially made a city. You might know it better by its later name: New York City!
• 1709 – A sailor named Alexander Selkirk was rescued after being stuck on a desert island. His real-life adventure helped inspire Daniel Defoe to write the famous book Robinson Crusoe.
• 1814 – The last of the fun River Thames frost fairs came to an end. These were big festivals held on the frozen River Thames in London.
• 1848 – The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed, ending the Mexican–American War.
• 1868 – Pro-Imperial forces took over Osaka Castle from the Tokugawa shogunate in Japan and burned it down.
• 1870 – The Seven Brothers, a famous novel by Finnish author Aleksis Kivi, was published for the first time.
• 1876 – The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs was formed. This was a big step for Major League Baseball!
• 1887 – The very first Groundhog Day was celebrated in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. This is the day when a groundhog supposedly predicts how long winter will last!
• 1899 – Leaders in Australia decided that Canberra would be the country's capital city. They chose a spot between Sydney and Melbourne.
• 1900 – Several major cities agreed to form baseball's American League.

Modern Era (1901–Present)

• 1901 – The funeral of Queen Victoria took place. She was a very important queen who ruled for a long time.
• 1913 – The famous Grand Central Terminal opened in New York City. It's a huge and beautiful train station!
• 1920 – The Tartu Peace Treaty was signed between Estonia and Russia, bringing peace.
• 1922 – The famous novel Ulysses by James Joyce was published.
• 1925 – The amazing Serum run to Nome happened! Dog sled teams raced through Alaska to deliver medicine to people who were sick. This event inspired the famous Iditarod race.
• 1934 – The Export-Import Bank of the United States was officially started.
• 1943 – World War II: The long and difficult Battle of Stalingrad finally ended. Soviet troops accepted the surrender of the German forces in the city.
• 1954 – The Detroit Red Wings played in the first outdoor hockey game ever for an NHL team!
• 1959 – Nine experienced ski hikers in the Ural Mountains of the Soviet Union died under mysterious circumstances. This event is still a mystery today.
• 1971 – The international Ramsar Convention was signed in Ramsar, Mazandaran, Iran. This agreement helps protect important wetlands around the world.
• 1987 – The Philippines created a new constitution after the 1986 People Power Revolution.
• 1989 – Soviet troops finished leaving Kabul, marking the end of the Soviet–Afghan War.
• 1990 – Apartheid: F. W. de Klerk announced that the African National Congress was no longer banned and promised to release Nelson Mandela. This was a huge step towards ending apartheid in South Africa.
• 2000 – The first digital cinema movie was shown in Europe, in Paris. This was a big step for how movies are shown today!
• 2004 – Swiss tennis player Roger Federer became the number one ranked men's singles player. He held this top spot for a record-breaking 237 weeks!
• 2005 – The Government of Canada introduced a law called the Civil Marriage Act, which made same-sex marriage legal in Canada.
• 2012 – The ferry MV Rabaul Queen sank off the coast of Papua New Guinea, and many people sadly lost their lives.
• 2021 – The Burmese military took control of the government in the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état.

Famous Birthdays

Many notable people were born on February 2nd:

• 1455 – John, King of Denmark (died 1513)
• 1585 – Judith Quiney and Hamnet Shakespeare, the children of the famous writer William Shakespeare.
• 1650 – Pope Benedict XIII (died 1730)
• 1650 – Nell Gwyn, a famous English actress and friend of King Charles II of England (died 1687).
• 1754 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, a very important French politician (died 1838).
• 1829 – Alfred Brehm, a German zoologist who studied animals (died 1884).
• 1861 – Solomon R. Guggenheim, an American businessman who founded the famous Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (died 1949).
• 1882 – James Joyce, a famous Irish novelist and poet (died 1941).
• 1883 – Johnston McCulley, an American author who created the character Zorro (died 1958).
• 1895 – George Halas, an American football player and coach, known as "Papa Bear" (died 1983).
• 1905 – Ayn Rand, a Russian-born American novelist and philosopher (died 1982).
• 1926 – Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who became the 20th President of France (died 2020).
• 1927 – Stan Getz, a famous American jazz saxophonist (died 1991).
• 1931 – Les Dawson, a popular English comedian (died 1993).
• 1937 – Tom Smothers, an American comedian and actor (died 2023).
• 1940 – David Jason, a beloved English actor (born 1940).
• 1947 – Farrah Fawcett, a famous American actress (died 2009).
• 1948 – Ina Garten, an American chef and author, known for her cooking shows.
• 1949 – Brent Spiner, an American actor, famous for playing Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
• 1952 – Park Geun-hye, who became the 11th President of South Korea.
• 1953 – Duane Chapman, an American bounty hunter, known as "Dog the Bounty Hunter".
• 1954 – Christie Brinkley, an American model and businesswoman.
• 1963 – Eva Cassidy, an American singer with a beautiful voice (died 1996).
• 1977 – Shakira, a world-famous Colombian singer-songwriter and dancer.
• 1987 – Gerard Piqué, a famous Spanish footballer.
• 1996 – Paul Mescal, an Irish actor.
• 2000 – Munetaka Murakami, a Japanese baseball player.

Notable People Who Passed Away

Here are some important people who died on February 2nd:

• 880 – Bruno, a duke of Saxony.
• 1461 – Owen Tudor, a Welsh nobleman and the founder of the Tudor dynasty (born around 1400).
• 1594 – Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, a very important Italian composer (born 1525).
• 1704 – Guillaume de l'Hôpital, a French mathematician (born 1661).
• 1769 – Pope Clement XIII (born 1693).
• 1804 – George Walton, an American lawyer and politician, who was a Governor of Georgia (born 1749).
• 1907 – Dmitri Mendeleev, a famous Russian chemist who created the periodic table of elements (born 1834).
• 1918 – John L. Sullivan, a famous American boxer (born 1858).
• 1969 – Boris Karloff, an English actor famous for playing Frankenstein's monster (born 1887).
• 1970 – Bertrand Russell, a brilliant English mathematician and philosopher who won the Nobel Prize in Literature (born 1872).
• 1979 – Sid Vicious, an English singer and bass player (born 1957).
• 1995 – Fred Perry, a famous English tennis player (born 1909).
• 1995 – Donald Pleasence, an English actor (born 1919).
• 1996 – Gene Kelly, a legendary American actor, singer, and dancer (born 1912).
• 2014 – Philip Seymour Hoffman, a talented American actor (born 1967).
• 2021 – Captain Sir Tom Moore, a British Army officer who became famous for his charity fundraising (born 1920).
• 2024 – Carl Weathers, an American actor and football player, known for his role as Apollo Creed in the Rocky movies (born 1948).

Holidays and Celebrations

Mosaic of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple

February 2nd is a day for several special holidays and observances around the world:

• Groundhog Day – In the United States and Canada, people watch to see if a groundhog sees its shadow to predict how much longer winter will last!
• Anniversary of Treaty of Tartu (Estonia) – This day celebrates the peace treaty signed between Estonia and Russia.
• Christian Feast Day:
  • Adalbard
  • Cornelius the Centurion
  • Martyrs of Ebsdorf
  • February 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Constitution Day (Philippines) – A day to celebrate the country's constitution.
• Day of Youth (Azerbaijan) – A day dedicated to young people in Azerbaijan.
• Earliest day for Shrove Monday – This Christian observance is the Monday before Ash Wednesday. It has related celebrations like:
  • Bun Day (Iceland)
  • Fastelavn (Denmark/Norway)
  • Nickanan Night (Cornwall)
  • Rosenmontag (Germany)
• Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity) – A Christian holiday that remembers when Jesus was presented at the Temple. It has related observances:
  • A quarter day in the Christian liturgical calendar (Scotland)
  • Celebration of Yemanja or Our Lady of Navigators (Candomblé)
  • Chandeleur (France)
  • Liichtmëssdag (Luxembourg)
  • Our Lady of the Candles (Filipino Catholics)
  • Virgin of Candelaria (Tenerife, Spain)
• Victory of the Battle of Stalingrad (Russia) – This day celebrates the end of the Battle of Stalingrad in Russia.
• World Wetlands Day – This day raises awareness about the importance of wetlands for our planet.

See also

In Spanish: 2 de febrero para niños