September 12 facts for kids

September 12 is the 255th day of the year (256th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 110 days remain until the end of the year.

Welcome to the page about September 12th! This day has seen many important moments throughout history, from ancient battles to modern space exploration. Let's discover some of the key events, famous people born, and notable figures who passed away on this date.

Historical Events on September 12th

Ancient Times and Middle Ages (Before 1600)

• 490 BC – The famous Battle of Marathon took place. In this battle, the Athenians and their allies from Plataea bravely defeated the first invasion force from the Persian Empire.
• 372 – A young boy named Jin Xiaowudi, who was only 10 years old, became the Emperor of the Eastern Jin dynasty in China. He took over after his father, Jin Jianwendi.
• 1213 – During the Albigensian Crusade, a leader named Simon de Montfort, 5th Earl of Leicester, won a victory against Peter II of Aragon at the Battle of Muret.
• 1229 – The Aragonese army, led by James I of Aragon, landed in Santa Ponça, Majorca. Their goal was to conquer the island. This event is known as the Battle of Portopí.
• 1309 – The First siege of Gibraltar happened. This was part of the Spanish Reconquista, where the Kingdom of Castile fought against the Emirate of Granada. The Castilian forces won this important battle.

From the 1600s to the 1900s

• 1609 – The explorer Henry Hudson began his journey to explore the Hudson River in North America. He was sailing on his ship, the Halve Maen.
• 1634 – A gunpowder factory exploded in Valletta, Malta. This terrible accident killed 22 people and damaged many buildings.
• 1683 – In the Austro-Ottoman War, several European armies joined forces. They successfully defeated the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Vienna.
• 1762 – The Sultanate of Sulu gave Balambangan Island to the British East India Company.
• 1814 – During the War of 1812, American soldiers stopped the British advance towards Baltimore at the Battle of North Point.
• 1846 – The famous poet Elizabeth Barrett secretly married Robert Browning.
• 1847 – The Battle of Chapultepec began during the Mexican–American War.
• 1848 – A new constitution was created, officially establishing Switzerland as a federal state. This meant Switzerland became a country with a central government and states.
• 1857 – The ship SS Central America sank off the coast of North Carolina. Sadly, 426 passengers and crew members, including Captain William Lewis Herndon, lost their lives. The ship was carrying a large amount of gold from the California Gold Rush.
• 1885 – A professional football match between Arbroath and Bon Accord ended with a score of 36–0. This set a world record for the highest score in professional football.
• 1890 – The city of Salisbury, which is now the capital of Zimbabwe, was founded.
• 1897 – During the Tirah campaign, a brave group of 21 Sikh soldiers in British service fought against ten thousand Pashtun tribesmen in the Battle of Saragarhi. The tribesmen suffered many casualties.

Modern Times (1901–Present)

• 1906 – The Newport Transporter Bridge was opened in Newport, South Wales. It was opened by Viscount Tredegar.
• 1910 – Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 8 was performed for the first time in Munich. It was a huge performance with 852 singers and 171 musicians.
• 1915 – French soldiers helped rescue over 4,000 survivors of the Armenian genocide who were stuck on Musa Dagh.
• 1923 – Southern Rhodesia, which is now Zimbabwe, became part of the United Kingdom.
• 1933 – While waiting at a traffic light in London, scientist Leó Szilárd came up with the idea of the nuclear chain reaction. This was a very important concept for nuclear energy.
• 1938 – Adolf Hitler demanded that the German-speaking people in the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia be allowed to govern themselves.
• 1940 – Amazing cave paintings were discovered in Lascaux, France. These ancient artworks show animals and symbols.
• 1940 – The Hercules Powder Plant Disaster in the United States caused the deaths of 51 people and injured over 200.
• 1942 – During World War II, the ship RMS Laconia, carrying civilians, Allied soldiers, and Italian prisoners, was torpedoed off the coast of West Africa. It sank with a great loss of life.
• 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Edson's Ridge began during the Guadalcanal Campaign. U.S. Marines were defending Henderson Field from attacks by Imperial Japanese Army troops.
• 1943 – World War II: Benito Mussolini was rescued from house arrest by German commando forces.
• 1944 – World War II: The liberation of Yugoslavia from Axis occupation continued. Bajina Bašta in western Serbia was one of the cities freed.
• 1948 – During the Chinese Civil War, Marshal Lin Biao launched a large attack towards Jinzhou. This marked the start of the Liaoshen Campaign.
• 1953 – U.S. Senator John Fitzgerald Kennedy, who would later become president, married Jacqueline Lee Bouvier in Newport, Rhode Island.
• 1958 – Jack Kilby showed off the first working integrated circuit while working at Texas Instruments. This was a huge step for modern electronics.
• 1959 – The Soviet Union launched a large rocket, Lunik II, towards the Moon. It was the first spacecraft to reach the Moon.
• 1959 – The TV show Bonanza premiered. It was the first regular TV program shown in color.
• 1961 – The African and Malagasy Union was founded.
• 1961 – Air France Flight 2005 crashed near Rabat–Salé Airport in Rabat, Morocco, killing 77 people.
• 1962 – President John F. Kennedy gave his famous "We choose to go to the Moon" speech at Rice University. In this speech, he challenged Americans to land a person on the Moon.
• 1966 – Gemini 11, a mission in NASA's Gemini program, set a human altitude record.
• 1969 – Philippine Airlines Flight 158 crashed in Antipolo, near Manila International Airport in the Philippines, killing 45 people.
• 1970 – In the Dawson's Field hijackings, terrorists blew up three hijacked airplanes in Zarqa, Jordan. They continued to hold passengers hostage.
• 1974 – Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia was removed from power by a military coup. This ended his 58-year reign.
• 1977 – South African anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko died while in police custody.
• 1980 – The government of Turkey was overthrown in a military coup led by General Kenan Evren.
• 1983 – A Wells Fargo depot in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States, was robbed of about US$7 million. This was carried out by a group called Los Macheteros.
• 1983 – The USSR used its veto power in the United Nations Security Council to block a resolution. The resolution would have criticized the Soviet Union for shooting down Korean Air Lines Flight 007.
• 1984 – Dwight Gooden set a new baseball record for the most strikeouts in a season by a rookie, with 276 strikeouts.
• 1988 – Hurricane Gilbert caused great damage in Jamaica. Two days later, it moved towards Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, causing an estimated $5 billion in damage.
• 1990 – The two German states and the Four Powers signed the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany in Moscow. This agreement paved the way for German reunification.
• 1990 – The Red Cross organizations from mainland China and Taiwan signed the Kinmen Agreement. This agreement was about sending illegal immigrants and criminal suspects back to their home areas. It was the first agreement between private groups across the Taiwan Strait.
• 1992 – NASA launched Space Shuttle Endeavour on mission STS-47. This was the 50th shuttle mission. On board were Mae Carol Jemison, the first African-American woman in space; Mamoru Mohri, the first Japanese citizen to fly in a US spaceship; and Mark Lee and Jan Davis, the first married couple in space.
• 1992 – Abimael Guzmán, the leader of the Shining Path group, was captured by Peruvian special forces. Soon after, the rest of the group's leaders were also caught.
• 1994 – Frank Eugene Corder crashed a small plane into the White House's south lawn. Luckily, no one else was hurt.
• 2001 – Ansett Australia, a major Australian airline, stopped operating. This happened because of difficulties in the international airline industry, and 10,000 people lost their jobs.
• 2003 – The United Nations removed sanctions against Libya. This happened after Libya agreed to take responsibility and pay money to the families of victims from the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103.
• 2003 – Iraq War: In Fallujah, U.S. forces accidentally shot and killed eight Iraqi police officers.
• 2003 – Typhoon Maemi, the strongest typhoon ever recorded to hit South Korea, made landfall near Busan.
• 2005 – The Israeli disengagement from Gaza was completed. This involved Israel removing its settlements from the Gaza Strip.
• 2007 – Former Philippine President Joseph Estrada was found guilty of plunder.
• 2007 – Two strong earthquakes, measuring 8.4 and 7.9 on the Richter scale, hit the Indonesian island of Sumatra. These quakes killed 25 people and injured 161.
• 2008 – The 2008 Chatsworth train collision happened in Los Angeles. A commuter train and a freight train crashed, killing 25 people.
• 2011 – The National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City opened to the public. This memorial honors the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
• 2013 – NASA confirmed that its Voyager 1 probe had become the first human-made object to enter interstellar space. This was a huge achievement in space exploration.
• 2014 – A building collapse at the Synagogue Church in Nigeria led to the deaths of 115 people.
• 2015 – A series of explosions in the Indian town of Petlawad killed at least 105 people and injured over 150. The explosions involved propane and illegally stored mining detonators.

Famous People Born on September 12th

• 1494 – Francis I of France, a powerful King of France.
• 1818 – Richard Jordan Gatling, an American inventor who created the Gatling gun.
• 1852 – H. H. Asquith, an English lawyer and politician who became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
• 1888 – Maurice Chevalier, a famous French actor, singer, and dancer.
• 1897 – Irène Joliot-Curie, a French chemist and physicist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
• 1913 – Jesse Owens, an American sprinter and long jumper. He was a legendary Olympic athlete.
• 1921 – Stanisław Lem, a Polish philosopher and author known for his science fiction works.
• 1931 – George Jones, a very popular American country singer-songwriter.
• 1940 – Linda Gray, an American model and actress.
• 1944 – Barry White, an American singer-songwriter known for his deep voice and soul music.
• 1951 – Bertie Ahern, an Irish politician who served as the Taoiseach of Ireland (Prime Minister).
• 1952 – Neil Peart, a Canadian drummer, songwriter, and producer, famous for his work with the band Rush.
• 1957 – Hans Zimmer, a German composer and producer who has created music for many famous movies.
• 1961 – Mylène Farmer, a popular Canadian-French singer-songwriter and actress.
• 1967 – Louis C.K., an American comedian, actor, and producer.
• 1973 – Paul Walker, an American actor, known for his roles in action films.
• 1977 – 2 Chainz, an American rapper.
• 1980 – Yao Ming, a Chinese basketball player who became a star in the NBA.
• 1981 – Jennifer Hudson, an American singer and actress who won an Academy Award.
• 1986 – Emmy Rossum, an American singer and actress.
• 1989 – Freddie Freeman, an American-Canadian baseball player.
• 1989 – Andrew Luck, an American football player.
• 1994 – RM, a South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer, known as the leader of the group BTS.
• 1997 – Sydney Sweeney, an American actress.

Notable People Who Passed Away on September 12th

• 1185 – Andronikos I Komnenos, a Byzantine emperor.
• 1213 – Peter II of Aragon, a King of Aragon.
• 1362 – Pope Innocent VI, a leader of the Catholic Church.
• 1764 – Jean-Philippe Rameau, a French composer.
• 1819 – Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, a Prussian general.
• 1869 – Peter Mark Roget, an English physician who created Roget's Thesaurus.
• 1918 – George Reid, an Australian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Australia.
• 1977 – Steve Biko, a South African anti-apartheid activist.
• 1981 – Eugenio Montale, an Italian writer who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
• 1992 – Anthony Perkins, an American actor, famous for his role in Psycho.
• 1993 – Raymond Burr, a Canadian-American actor.
• 1995 – Jeremy Brett, an English actor, known for playing Sherlock Holmes.
• 2003 – Johnny Cash, a legendary American singer-songwriter and guitarist.
• 2009 – Norman Borlaug, an American agronomist and humanitarian who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in agriculture.
• 2014 – Ian Paisley, a Northern Irish politician and pastor.

Holidays and Observances on September 12th

• Day of Conception (Russia)
• Defenders Day (Maryland, United States)
• Enkutatash (New Year in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and for Rastafari) – This day is celebrated on September 12th in leap years.
• Nayrouz (Coptic Orthodox Church) – Celebrated on September 12th in leap years.
• National Day (Cape Verde)
• National Day of Encouragement (United States)
• Saragarhi Day (Sikhism)
• United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation (International)

See also

In Spanish: 12 de septiembre para niños