By Day: Historical Events on March 15th

Julius Caesar is assassinated by a group of Roman senators, including Brutus and Cassius, in the Roman Senate.

Germanic tribes led by Arminius defeat the Roman legions at the Battle of Idistaviso.

Roman Emperor Galba is assassinated by the Praetorian Guard, leading to the Year of the Four Emperors.

Alfonso VI of Castile takes Toledo, Spain, from the Moors after a siege.

Pope Alexander III canonizes Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury.

King Afonso II of Portugal is born.

A peace treaty between Poland and the Teutonic Knights ends the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War.

The Council of Constance condemns the teachings of Jan Hus and orders his execution.

The Council of Siena convenes to discuss church reforms and address corruption.

Michelangelo begins work on his famous statue of David.

Cesare Borgia captures Urbino after a long siege.

Giordano Bruno is burned at the stake for heresy in Rome.

The first recorded St. Patrick’s Day parade in the U.S. takes place on the Catholic Feast Day of St. Patrick, in the Spanish colony of modern-day St. Augustine, Florida. More than a century later, Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched in Boston in in 1737 and in New York City in 1762. More

Sweden and Russia sign the Treaty of Stolbovo, ending the Ingrian War.

Battle of Guilford Courthouse: American forces under Nathanael Greene defeat the British in North Carolina.

Maine is admitted into the United States Union as the 23rd State.

Tsar Nicholas II of Russia abdicates the throne, leading to the end of the Romanov dynasty. More

Mikhail Gorbachev is elected as the first President of the Soviet Union. He had served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 and additionally as head of state beginning in 1988 and as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet from 1988 to 1989. He was awarded the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize 1990. Gorbachev resigned form the presidency on December 25, 1991 when the Soviet Union disintegrated. More

Civil unrest and protests erupt in Syria against President Bashar al-Assad's regime, marking the start of the Syrian Civil War.

A terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, results in 51 deaths and dozens of injuries.