October 18 facts for kids

2025 Calendar

October 18 in recent years

October 18 is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 74 days remain until the end of the year.

October 18th is a day filled with many interesting events throughout history, from ancient times to modern discoveries. It's a day when important battles were fought, new inventions were announced, and famous people were born or passed away. Let's explore some of the key moments that happened on this date.

Historical Events from Early Times
Famous Birthdays
Notable Deaths
Holidays and Observances
See also

Historical Events from Early Times

Ancient World and Middle Ages

33 – Agrippina the Elder, a strong Roman woman, passed away while exiled on an island.
320 – Pappus of Alexandria, a Greek thinker, observed a solar eclipse and wrote about it.
614 – King Chlothar II of the Franks issued the Edict of Paris, a law that protected the rights of nobles.
629 – Dagobert I became the King of the Franks.
1009 – The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, an important Christian church, was destroyed.
1016 – The Danes won a big battle against the English in the Battle of Assandun.
1081 – The Normans defeated the Byzantine Empire in the Battle of Dyrrhachium.
1281 – Pope Martin IV took strong action against King Peter III of Aragon.
1356 – A powerful earthquake hit Basel, Switzerland, causing a lot of damage.
1540 – Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto's forces destroyed the town of Mabila in what is now Alabama.
1561 – In Japan, the fourth Battle of Kawanakajima was fought, ending in a tie.
1565 – Japanese ships tried but failed to capture a Portuguese trading ship in the Battle of Fukuda Bay. This was the first recorded naval battle between Japan and a Western country.
1597 – King Philip II of Spain sent his last large fleet against England, but storms caused it to fail.
1599 – Michael the Brave, a prince, won the Battle of Șelimbăr, which led to the first time the Romanian people were united.

Important Events from 1600 to 1900

1630 – Frendraught Castle in Scotland burned down.
1648 – Shoemakers in Boston formed the first American labor group.
1748 – The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle was signed, ending the War of the Austrian Succession.
1775 – Phillis Wheatley, an African-American poet, gained her freedom from slavery.
1775 – American Revolutionary War: The town of Falmouth (now Portland, Maine) was burned.
1779 – American Revolutionary War: The combined French and American Siege of Savannah ended.
1797 – The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed between France and Austria.
1851 – Herman Melville's famous book Moby-Dick was first published in London.
1860 – The Second Opium War ended with the signing of the Convention of Peking.
1867 – The United States officially took control of Alaska after buying it from Russia. This day is now celebrated as Alaska Day.
1898 – The United States took possession of Puerto Rico from Spain.
1900 – Count Bernhard von Bülow became the leader of Germany.

Modern History: 1901 to Today

1912 – First Balkan War: King Peter I of Serbia called on his people as Serbia joined the war.
1914 – The Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement was started in Germany.
1921 – The Crimean Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was formed.
1922 – The British Broadcasting Company (which later became the BBC) was founded to create a national radio service.
1929 – A Canadian court ruled that women are considered "Persons" under Canadian law, a very important decision for women's rights.
1944 – World War II: The Soviet Union began to free Czechoslovakia from Nazi Germany.
1944 – World War II: A state funeral was held for Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in Germany.
1945 – The USSR received secret plans for the United States' nuclear bomb.
1945 – A group of military officers in Venezuela took control from the president.
1945 – Juan Perón, an Argentine military officer, married actress Eva Duarte.
1954 – Texas Instruments announced the Regency TR-1, the first radio that used transistors and was made for many people to buy.
1963 – Félicette, a cat from Paris, became the first cat to be launched into space.
1967 – The Soviet probe Venera 4 reached Venus and was the first spacecraft to measure the atmosphere of another planet.
1979 – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) allowed people to have home satellite dishes without a special license.
1991 – Azerbaijan declared its independence from the Soviet Union.
2003 – Bolivian gas conflict: The President of Bolivia, Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, had to resign and leave the country.
2019 – NASA Astronauts Jessica Meir and Christina Koch completed the first ever all-female spacewalk outside the International Space Station.
2019 – Protests in Chile's capital, Santiago, grew into bigger conflicts, leading the president to declare a state of emergency.

Famous Birthdays

Born Before 1600

1127 – Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan.
1130 – Zhu Xi, a famous Chinese philosopher.
1405 – Pope Pius II.
1444 – John de Mowbray, 4th Duke of Norfolk.
1482 – Philipp III, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg.
1517 – Manuel da Nóbrega, a Portuguese-Brazilian priest.
1523 – Anna Jagiellon, a Polish princess.
1536 – William Lambarde, an English historian and politician.
1547 – Justus Lipsius, a Belgian scholar.
1553 – Luca Marenzio, an Italian composer.
1569 – Giambattista Marino, an Italian poet.
1587 – Lady Mary Wroth, an English poet.
1595 – Edward Winslow, an American Pilgrim leader.

Born Between 1601 and 1900

1616 – Nicholas Culpeper, an English botanist.
1630 – Henry Powle, an English politician.
1634 – Luca Giordano, an Italian painter.
1653 – Abraham van Riebeeck, a Dutch merchant and governor.
1662 – Matthew Henry, a Welsh minister.
1663 – Prince Eugene of Savoy, a famous general.
1668 – John George IV, Elector of Saxony.
1701 – Charles le Beau, a French historian.
1706 – Baldassare Galuppi, an Italian composer.
1741 – Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, a French general and author.
1770 – Thomas Phillips, an English artist.
1777 – Heinrich von Kleist, a German author.
1785 – Thomas Love Peacock, an English author.
1792 – Lucas Alamán, a Mexican politician.
1804 – Mongkut, a Thai king.
1822 – Midhat Pasha, an Ottoman politician.
1831 – Frederick III, German Emperor.
1836 – Frederick August Otto Schwarz, who founded FAO Schwarz toy stores.
1850 – Basil Hall Chamberlain, an English-Swiss historian.
1854 – Billy Murdoch, an Australian cricketer.
1859 – Henri Bergson, a French philosopher and Nobel Prize winner.
1862 – Mehmet Esat Bülkat, an Ottoman general.
1865 – Arie de Jong, a Dutch linguist.
1865 – Logan Pearsall Smith, an American-English author.
1868 – Ernst Didring, a Swedish author.
1869 – Johannes Linnankoski, a Finnish author.
1870 – D. T. Suzuki, a Japanese scholar.
1872 – Mikhail Kuzmin, a Russian poet.
1873 – Ivanoe Bonomi, an Italian Prime Minister.
1875 – Len Braund, an English cricketer.
1878 – James Truslow Adams, an American historian.
1880 – Ze'ev Jabotinsky, a Ukrainian-Russian journalist.
1881 – Max Gerson, a German-born American physician.
1882 – Väinö Kivisalo, a Finnish politician.
1882 – Lucien Petit-Breton, a French cyclist.
1887 – Takashi Sakai, a Japanese general and governor.
1888 – Paul Vermoyal, a French actor.
1893 – Sidney Holland, a New Zealand Prime Minister.
1893 – George Ohsawa, a Japanese philosopher.
1894 – H. L. Davis, an American author.
1894 – Tibor Déry, a Hungarian author.
1897 – Isabel Briggs Myers, an American author.
1898 – Lotte Lenya, an Austrian singer and actress.

Born from 1901 to Present

1902 – Miriam Hopkins, an American actress.
1902 – Pascual Jordan, a German physicist.
1903 – Lina Radke, a German runner.
1904 – A. J. Liebling, an American journalist.
1905 – Félix Houphouët-Boigny, the first President of Côte d'Ivoire.
1906 – James Brooks, an American painter.
1909 – Norberto Bobbio, an Italian philosopher.
1915 – Victor Sen Yung, an American actor.
1918 – Konstantinos Mitsotakis, a Greek Prime Minister.
1918 – Bobby Troup, an American singer-songwriter.
1919 – Anita O'Day, an American singer.
1919 – Pierre Trudeau, a Canadian Prime Minister.
1920 – Melina Mercouri, a Greek actress and politician.
1921 – Jesse Helms, an American politician.
1921 – Beatrice Helen Worsley, a Canadian computer scientist.
1923 – Jessie Mae Hemphill, an American singer-songwriter.
1924 – Buddy MacMaster, a Canadian fiddler.
1925 – Ramiz Alia, the first President of Albania.
1926 – Chuck Berry, a famous American singer-songwriter and guitarist.
1926 – Klaus Kinski, a German-American actor.
1927 – George C. Scott, an American actor.
1928 – Keith Jackson, an American sportscaster.
1929 – Violeta Chamorro, a Nicaraguan President.
1930 – Esther Hautzig, a Lithuanian-American author.
1931 – Roger Climpson, an English-Australian journalist.
1932 – Vytautas Landsbergis, a Lithuanian politician.
1933 – Forrest Gregg, an American football player and coach.
1933 – Irwin M. Jacobs, an American engineer and entrepreneur.
1934 – Inger Stevens, a Swedish-American actress.
1935 – Peter Boyle, an American actor.
1938 – Dawn Wells, an American actress.
1939 – Mike Ditka, an American football player and coach.
1939 – Paddy Reilly, an Irish folk singer.
1940 – Cynthia Weil, an American songwriter.
1941 – Martha Burk, an American psychologist.
1942 – Gianfranco Ravasi, an Italian cardinal.
1945 – Huell Howser, an American television host.
1946 – Frank Beamer, an American football coach.
1946 – Howard Shore, a Canadian composer.
1947 – Paul Chuckle, an English comedian.
1947 – Joe Morton, an American actor.
1947 – Laura Nyro, an American singer-songwriter.
1948 – Ntozake Shange, an American author and poet.
1949 – Joe Egan, a Scottish singer-songwriter.
1949 – Gary Richrath, an American guitarist.
1950 – Wendy Wasserstein, an American playwright.
1951 – Pam Dawber, an American actress.
1951 – Terry McMillan, an American author.
1952 – Chuck Lorre, an American director and producer.
1952 – Patrick Morrow, a Canadian mountaineer.
1954 – Arliss Howard, an American actor.
1954 – Bob Weinstein, an American film executive.
1955 – Timmy Mallett, an English television host.
1955 – David Twohy, an American director.
1956 – Martina Navratilova, a famous Czech-American tennis player.
1958 – Thomas Hearns, an American boxer.
1958 – Letitia James, an American lawyer and politician.
1959 – Mauricio Funes, a former President of El Salvador.
1960 – Erin Moran, an American actress.
1960 – Jean-Claude Van Damme, a Belgian martial artist and actor.
1961 – Wynton Marsalis, an American trumpet player and composer.
1961 – Rick Moody, an American author.
1962 – Vincent Spano, an American actor.
1964 – Charles Stross, an English author.
1965 – Curtis Stigers, an American singer-songwriter.
1966 – Dave Price, an American journalist.
1967 – Eric Stuart, an American singer-songwriter and voice actor.
1968 – Rhod Gilbert, a Welsh comedian.
1968 – Michael Stich, a German tennis player.
1970 – Doug Mirabelli, an American baseball player.
1971 – Nick O'Hern, an Australian golfer.
1972 – Mika Ninagawa, a Japanese photographer and director.
1972 – Alex Tagliani, a Canadian race car driver.
1973 – James Foley, an American journalist.
1973 – Rachel Nichols, an American journalist.
1974 – Robbie Savage, a Welsh footballer.
1974 – Zhou Xun, a Chinese actress and singer.
1975 – Alex Cora, a Puerto Rican baseball player and manager.
1977 – Ne-Yo, an American singer and songwriter.
1978 – Mike Tindall, an English rugby player.
1979 – Jaroslav Drobný, a Czech footballer.
1981 – Nathan Hauritz, an Australian cricketer.
1982 – Dante, a Brazilian footballer.
1984 – Freida Pinto, an Indian actress.
1984 – Esperanza Spalding, an American singer-songwriter.
1984 – Lindsey Vonn, a famous American skier.
1985 – Yoenis Céspedes, a Cuban baseball player.
1986 – Wilma Elles, a German actress.
1987 – Zac Efron, a popular American actor and singer.
1987 – Freja Beha Erichsen, a Danish model.
1988 – Tessa Schram, a Dutch director and actress.
1989 – Laci Green, an American YouTube personality and educator.
1989 – Joy Lauren, an American actress.
1989 – Riisa Naka, a Japanese model and actress.
1990 – Brittney Griner, an American basketball player.
1990 – Bristol Palin, an American reality television personality.
1991 – Tyler Posey, an American actor and musician.
1992 – John John Florence, an American surfer.
1992 – Barry Keoghan, an Irish actor.
1993 – Ivan Cavaleiro, a Portuguese footballer.
1994 – Pascal Wehrlein, a German-Mauritian race car driver.
1996 – Terance Mann, an American basketball player.

Notable Deaths

Passed Away Before 1600

31 – Lucius Aelius Sejanus, a Roman politician.
325 – Emperor Ming of Jin.
707 – Pope John VII.
815 – Abu'l-Saraya, a rebel leader.
1035 – Sancho III of Pamplona.
1081 – Nikephoros Palaiologos, a Byzantine general.
1101 – Hugh I, Count of Vermandois.
1141 – Leopold, Duke of Bavaria.
1214 – John de Gray, a bishop.
1366 – Petrus Torkilsson, an Archbishop.
1382 – James Butler, 2nd Earl of Ormond, an Irish politician.
1417 – Pope Gregory XII.
1442 – Infante João of Portugal.
1480 – Uhwudong, a Korean dancer and poet.
1503 – Pope Pius III.
1508 – Patrick Hepburn, 1st Earl of Bothwell, a Scottish admiral.
1511 – Philippe de Commines, a French-speaking historian.
1526 – Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, a Spanish explorer.
1541 – Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scotland.
1545 – John Taverner, an English composer.
1558 – Mary of Hungary.
1561 – Yamamoto Kansuke, a Japanese samurai.
1564 – Johannes Acronius Frisius, a Dutch physician.
1570 – Manuel da Nóbrega, a Portuguese-Brazilian priest.

Passed Away Between 1601 and 1900

1604 – Igram van Achelen, a Dutch lawyer.
1646 – Isaac Jogues, a French missionary.
1667 – Fasilides, an Ethiopian emperor.
1678 – Jacob Jordaens, a Belgian painter.
1739 – António José da Silva, a Brazilian-Portuguese playwright.
1744 – Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough.
1770 – John Manners, Marquess of Granby, an English general.
1775 – Christian August Crusius, a German philosopher.
1817 – Etienne Nicolas Méhul, a French composer.
1865 – Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, a British Prime Minister.
1871 – Charles Babbage, an English mathematician who invented early computers.
1876 – Francis Preston Blair, an American journalist.
1886 – Philipp Franz von Siebold, a German botanist.
1889 – Antonio Meucci, an Italian-American engineer.
1892 – William W. Chapman, an American lawyer.
1893 – Charles Gounod, a French composer.

Passed Away from 1901 to Present

1908 – Nozu Michitsura, a Japanese field marshal.
1911 – Alfred Binet, a French psychologist.
1921 – Ludwig III of Bavaria.
1931 – Thomas Edison, a famous American inventor of the phonograph and light bulb.
1931 – Lesser Ury, a German painter.
1934 – Santiago Ramón y Cajal, a Spanish scientist and Nobel Prize winner.
1935 – Gaston Lachaise, a French-American sculptor.
1941 – Manuel Teixeira Gomes, a Portuguese President.
1942 – Mikhail Nesterov, a Russian painter.
1947 – Michiaki Kamada, a Japanese admiral.
1948 – Walther von Brauchitsch, a German field marshal.
1956 – Yoshio Markino, a Japanese painter.
1959 – Boughera El Ouafi, an Algerian-French runner.
1961 – Tsuru Aoki, a Japanese-American actress.
1962 – Iván Petrovich, a Serbian-German actor.
1965 – Henry Travers, an Irish-American actor.
1966 – Elizabeth Arden, a Canadian-American businesswoman who founded a cosmetics company.
1966 – S. S. Kresge, an American businessman who founded Kmart.
1969 – Gyula Mándi, a Hungarian footballer.
1973 – Margaret Caroline Anderson, an American publisher.
1973 – Walt Kelly, an American illustrator.
1973 – Leo Strauss, a German-American philosopher.
1975 – K. C. Douglas, an American blues singer.
1975 – Al Lettieri, an American actor.
1975 – Graham Haberfield, an English actor.
1976 – Viswanatha Satyanarayana, an Indian poet.
1977 – Andreas Baader, a German figure.
1977 – Gudrun Ensslin, a German figure.
1978 – Ramón Mercader, a Spanish journalist.
1980 – Edwin Way Teale, an American photographer.
1982 – Dwain Esper, an American director.
1982 – Pierre Mendès France, a French Prime Minister.
1982 – John Robarts, a Canadian politician.
1982 – Bess Truman, the wife of U.S. President Harry S. Truman.
1983 – Diego Abad de Santillán, a Spanish economist.
1983 – Willie Jones, an American baseball player.
1984 – Henri Michaux, a French painter and poet.
1987 – Adriaan Ditvoorst, a Dutch director.
2000 – Julie London, an American singer and actress.
2000 – Gwen Verdon, an American actress and dancer.
2003 – Preston Smith, a Governor of Texas.
2003 – Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, a Spanish journalist and author.
2005 – Johnny Haynes, an English-Scottish footballer.
2005 – Bill King, an American sportscaster.
2006 – Mario Francesco Pompedda, an Italian cardinal.
2006 – Anna Russell, an English-Canadian singer.

2006 – Laurie Taitt, a Guyanese-English hurdler.

2007 – Alan Coren, an English journalist.
2007 – William J. Crowe, an American admiral and diplomat.
2007 – Vincent DeDomenico, an American businessman.
2007 – Lucky Dube, a South African singer.
2008 – Dee Dee Warwick, an American singer.
2009 – Adriaan Kortlandt, a Dutch biologist.
2009 – Nancy Spero, an American painter.
2010 – Marion Brown, an American saxophonist.
2010 – Billy Raimondi, an American baseball player.
2012 – Brain Damage, an American wrestler.
2012 – Sylvia Kristel, a Dutch model and actress.
2012 – Slater Martin, an American basketball player.
2012 – George Mattos, an American pole vaulter.
2012 – Albert Lee Ueltschi, an American pilot and businessman.
2012 – David S. Ware, an American saxophonist.
2013 – Tom Foley, an American politician and Speaker of the House.
2013 – Bum Phillips, an American football coach.
2013 – Allan Stanley, a Canadian ice hockey player.
2013 – Bill Young, an American politician.
2014 – Mariano Lebrón Saviñón, a Dominican author.
2014 – Edward Regan, an American politician.
2014 – Sidney Shapiro, an American-Chinese author.
2015 – Robert Dickerson, an Australian painter.
2015 – Gamal El-Ghitani, an Egyptian journalist.
2015 – Robert W. Farquhar, an American engineer.
2015 – Frank Watkins, an American bass player.
2015 – Paul West, an English-American author.
2017 – Marino Perani, an Italian football player.
2018 – Lisbeth Palme, a Swedish child psychologist.
2018 – Abdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab, a President of the Sudan.
2019 – Rui Jordão, a Portuguese footballer.
2020 – René Felber, a Swiss President.
2021 – Colin Powell, a notable American military leader and Secretary of State.
2022 – Harvey Wollman, a Governor of South Dakota.

Holidays and Observances

Alaska Day (Alaska, United States)
Christian feast day:
- Justus of Beauvais
- Luke the Evangelist
- Peter of Alcantara, can also be celebrated on October 19.
- October 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Independence Day (Azerbaijan), celebrates the independence of Azerbaijan from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Necktie Day (Croatia)
Persons Day (Canada)
World Menopause Day