Unix Timestamp: 1235692800
Friday, February 27. 2009, 12:00:00 AM UTC

Arab Spring: As a result of ongoing protests, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh is succeeded by Vice President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Al-Hadi.

The German Bundestag votes overwhelmingly in support for a Greek bailout. //www.washingtonpost.com/business/markets/german-parliament-to-vote-on-new-greek-bailout-amid-tensions-over-way-forward/2012/02/27/gIQAqrQFdR_story.html (AP via "Washington Post") //www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-28/bundestag-votes-for-greek-bailout/3856162?section=business (ABC News)

An 8.8-magnitude earthquake occurs in Chile, triggering a tsunami over the Pacific and killing at least 525.ref name=muertos//www.interior.gob.cl/filesapp/listado_fallecidos_desaparecidos_27Feb.pdf Subsecretaría del Interior de Chile (January 31 2011). «Informe final de fallecidos y desaparecidos por comuna» The earthquake is one of the largest in recorded history.

The Chinese Correction: World stock markets plummet after China and Europe release less-than-expected growth reports.

A hail storm damages the Space Shuttle "Atlantis", delaying the STS-117 launch originally scheduled for March 15. //www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,254986,00.html (FOX)

Same-sex marriage in the United States: The California Supreme Court refuses a petition by California Attorney General Bill Lockyer asking for an immediate ruling on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage laws and a cease and desist order against San Francisco's granting of marriage licenses to same-sex couples. //www.365gay.com/newscon04/02/022704calCourt.htm (365Gay)

The U.S. Justice Department says it will move to block Oracle Corporation's hostile takeover bid for larger rival PeopleSoft, saying a merger of the two largest accounting and human resources software companies in the U.S. would hurt competition. //www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/02/27/ORACLE.TMPtype=tech (SF Chronicle) //www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1c=Articlecid=1077837010994call_pageid=968350072197col=969048863851 ("Toronto Star")

Shoko Asahara, the leader of a Japanese cult that gassed the Tokyo subway in 1995, is sentenced to death by hanging. //news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/3491488.stm (BBC)

2004 SuperFerry 14 bombing: The Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group is blamed for the deadliest terrorist attack at sea in world history, which kills 116 in the Philippines.

A bombing of a Superferry by Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines' worst terrorist attack kills 116.//www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A14395-2004Feb28.html ("Washington Post")

The WHO issues a global alert on SARS.

Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Ðindic was assassinated in Belgrade.

Former Bosnian Serb leader Biljana Plavšić is sentenced by the U.N. tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, to 11 years in prison.

Career diplomat John Brady Kiesling resigns from the U.S. Foreign Service with a sharp public rebuke for the Bush administration's foreign policy, asking Has "oderint dum metuant" really become our motto? and Is the Russia of the late Romanovs really our model, a selfish, superstitious empire thrashing toward self-destruction in the name of a doomed status quo? //www.snopes.com/politics/mideast/kiesling.asp Full text

Spanish Prime Minister José María Aznar personally asks United States President George W. Bush to silence Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, indicating that Rumsfeld's numerous public remarks on European countries' Iraq policies are generally viewed as inflammatory and overwhelmingly counterproductive within the European diplomatic community. Aznar indicated a preference for Secretary of State Colin Powell. //www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-594124,00.html

The ex-currencies of all euro-using nations cease to be legal tender in the European Union.

Continuing violence in Ahmedabad, India kills 28 police shoot and kill 5 rioters.

The Envisatenvironmental satellite successfully reaches an orbit 800 km above the Earth using an Ariane 5 on its 11th launch, carrying the heaviest payload to date at 8,500 kg.

U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: In eastern Afghanistan, Operation Anaconda begins.

57 people die in Godhra when a Muslim mob sets fire to a carriage on the Sabarmati Express filled with Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists returning from Ayodhya en route to Ahmedabad. After detaching the burned carriage, the train continues to Vadodara, where Hindus beat and stab people leaving the train, killing one. A 17-year-old is later killed in Godhra by police trying to disrupt mobs.

"STS-109": Space Shuttle \'\'Columbia\'\' flies the Hubble Space Telescope service mission, penultimate flight before its ill-fated "STS-107" mission.

Gujarat communal riots begin, wherein 97 people are burnt alive or killed in the Naroda Patiya massacre, and 69 in Gulbarg Society massacre in Ahmedabad.

A series of riots leaves hundreds dead, after 59 Hindu pilgrims die aboard a train burned by a Muslim in Godhra, India.

"STS-109": Space Shuttle "Columbia" flies the Hubble Space Telescope service mission, penultimate flight before its ill-fated "STS-107" mission.

While trying to circumnavigate the world in a hot air balloon, Colin Prescot and Andy Elson set a new endurance record after being aloft for 233 hours and 55 minutes.

One of 4 bombs detonated in Lusaka, Zambia, destroys the Angolan Embassy.

Rwandan Hutu rebels kill and dismember 8 foreign tourists at the Buhoma homestead, Uganda.

The Convention on the Prohibition of Anti-Personnel Mines comes into force.

Divorce becomes legal in the Republic of Ireland.

Pokemon Green was released in Japan as the first game in the world famous Pokemon series.

In Denver, Colorado, Stapleton Airport closes and is replaced by the new Denver International Airport, the largest in the United States.

Australian Federal Sports Environment Minister Ros Kelly resigns over The Sports Rorts Affair, where it was alleged that she apportioned money for community sporting projects in a pork barreling fashion.

Exxon ''Valdez'' oil spill: Exxon and its shipping company are indicted on 5 criminal counts.

Exxon "Valdez" oil spill: Exxon and its shipping company are indicted on 5 criminal counts.

A curfew is imposed in Kosovo, where protests continue over the alleged intimidation of the Serb minority.

Louis Wade Sullivan and James D. Watkins start terms of office as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and U.S. Secretary of Energy respectively.

Venezuela is rocked by the Caracazo, a wave of protests and looting.

The Politieke Partij Radicalen, Pacifistisch Socialistische Partij, Communistische Partij Nederland and the Evangelical People's Party amalgamate to form Netherlands political party GroenLinks (GL, GreenLeft).

The Berne Convention, an international treaty on copyrights, is ratified by the United States.

The Politieke Partij Radicalen, Pacifistisch Socialistische Partij, Communistische Partij Nederland and the Evangelical People\'s Party amalgamate to form Netherlands political party GroenLinks (GL, GreenLeft).

February 29 – Pogrom of Armenians in Sumgait.

Antigua and Barbuda recognizes the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).

The United States Senate allows its debates to be televised on a trial basis.

Atlanta murders of 1979-1981: Wayne Williams is convicted of murdering two adult men and is sentenced to two consecutive life terms.

The annual Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans, Louisiana is canceled due to a strike called by the New Orleans Police Department.

The Polisario Front, Western Sahara's national liberation movement, declares independence of the territory under the name Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).

The Movement 2 June kidnaps West German politician Peter Lorenz. He is released on March 4 after most of the kidnappers' demands are met.

In Lomé, Togo, the European Economic Community and 46 African, Caribbean and Pacific countries sign a financial and economic treaty, known as the first Lomé Convention.

A major tube train crash at Moorgate station, London kills 43 people.

The American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee, South Dakota.

Dick Taverne, having resigned from the Parliament of the United Kingdom on leaving the Labour Party, is re-elected as a 'Democratic Labour' candidate.

The landmark postmodern novel "Gravity's Rainbow" by Thomas Pynchon is published.

The Republic of Ireland general election is held. Liam Cosgrave becomes the new Taoiseach.

Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon", one of rock's landmark albums, is released in the US. It is released in the UK on March 24.

Doctors in the first Dutchabortion clinic (Mildredhuis in Arnhem) start to perform abortus provocatus.

Ex-Teenagers singer Frankie Lymon is found dead from a heroin overdose in Harlem.

The city of Hatogaya, Saitama, Japan is founded.

Queens Park Rangers become the first 3rd Division side to win the League Cup at Wembley Stadium, defeating West Bromwich Albion 3–2.

The first North Sea gas is pumped ashore at Easington, East Riding of Yorkshire.

Brazilian police arrest Franz Stangl, ex-commander of Treblinka and Sobibór concentration cs.

The Dutch government supports British EEC membership.

The Queen Elizabeth Hall is opened in London.

The Red Guards return to schools in China.

The government of Italy asks for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.

The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, limiting Presidents to two terms, is ratified.

The Smith Mine #3 in Bearcreek, Montana, United States explodes, killing 74 men.

March ndash Construction begins on the Badger Army Ammunition Plant (the largest in the United States during WWII).

WWII ndash Battle of the Java Sea: An allied (ABDA) task force of 14 vessels under Dutch command, trying to stem a Japanese invasion of the Dutch East Indies, is defeated by a 19 vessel Japanese task force in the Java Sea 2.300 sailors die, including the commander, admiral Karel Doorman Japanese attain naval hegemony in East-Asia

The New Zealand Division cruiser HMS "Leander" (1931) sinks Italian armed merchant raider "Ramb I" off the Maldives.

The New Zealand Division cruiser HMS \'\'Leander\'\' (1931) sinks Italian armed merchant raider "Ramb I" off the Maldives.

WWII: Bulgaria signs the Tripartite Pact, thus joining the Axis powers.

W47NV begins operations in Nashville, Tennessee, becoming the first FM radio station.

Arthur L. Bristol becomes Rear Admiral for the U.S. Navy's Support Force, Atlantic Fleet.

Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14.

Germany's parliament building in Berlin, the Reichstag, is set on fire (see Reichstag fire).

A challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote, is rebuffed by the Supreme Court of the United States.

Rudolf Diesel applies for a patent on his compression ignition engine (the Diesel engine).

In West Orange, New Jersey, Thomas Edison meets with Eadweard Muybridge, who proposes a scheme for sound film.

The discovery of saccharin is announced.

Newton Booth, 11th Governor of California, resigns, having been elected Senator. Lieutenant Governor of CaliforniaRomualdo Pacheco becomes acting Governor. He is later replaced by elected governor William Irwin.

Russian troops fire upon a crowd in Warsaw protesting Russian rule over Poland, killing 5 protesters.

U.S. Congressman Daniel Sickles shoots Philip Barton Key for having an affair with his wife.

Britain sends Russia an ultimatum to withdraw from two Romanian provinces it had conquered, Moldavia and Wallachia.

The Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti.

Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire.

Washington, D.C. is placed under the jurisdiction of the Congress of the United States.

The Giles resolutions are introduced to the United States House of Representatives, asking the House to condemn Alexander Hamilton's handling of loans.

American Revolution: Battle of Moore\'s Creek Bridge: North Carolina Loyalists charge across Moore's Creek bridge near Wilmington to attack what they mistakenly believe to be a small force of rebels. Several loyalist leaders are killed in the ensuing battle. The patriot victory virtually ends all British authority in the town.

American Revolution: Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge: North Carolina Loyalists charge across Moore's Creek bridge near Wilmington to attack what they mistakenly believe to be a small force of rebels. Several loyalist leaders are killed in the ensuing battle. The patriot victory virtually ends all British authority in the town.

Seven Years' War ndash French and Indian War: Cherokee natives allied with French forces attack a North Carolina militia stationed at Fort Dobbs in the western part of the province. The attack is repelled by the militia.

The Virginia Assembly passes a law making maiming a felony, in response to the practice of gouging.ref name=Hening

Island of New Britain discovered by William Dier in the western Pacific.ref name=Pocket On This Day

John Thurloe is reinstated as England's Secretary of State, having been deprived of his offices late in the previous year.

The Treaty of Stolbovo ends the Ingrian War between Sweden and Russia. Sweden gains Ingria and Kexholm.

Sunspots are observed by telescope by Frisian astronomers Johannes Fabricius and David Fabricius and Johannes publishes the results of these observations in "De Maculis in Sole observatis" in Wittenberg later this year. Such early discoveries are overlooked however, and the first sighting is claimed a few months later by Galileo Galilei and Christoph Scheiner.

Henry IV is crowned King of France at Chartres.

The Treaty of Berwick, which expels the French from the Kingdom of Scotland, is signed by the Kingdom of England and the Congregation of Scotland.

Queen Elizabeth I of England establishes the Church of England, with the Act of Uniformity 1558 and the Act of Supremacy 1559. The Oath of Supremacy is reinstated.

Battle of Ancrum Moor: The Scots are victorious over superior English forces.

George Joye publishes his "Apologye" in Antwerp to clear his name from the accusations of William Tyndale

A group of Anabaptists, led by Jan Matthys, seize Münster in Westphalia and declare it The New Jerusalem, begin to exile dissenters and forcibly baptize all others.

Lutheran princes in the Holy Roman Empire form an alliance known as the Schmalkaldic League.

February or March ndash Battle of Antukyah: Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi of the Adal Sultanate defeats the Ethiopian army.

April ndash Battle of Puná: Francisco Pizarro defeats the island's native inhabitants.

Paolo Cortese publishes "De Cardinalatu", a manual for cardinals, including advice on palatial architecture ndash which inspires Thomas Wolsey in his construction work at Hton Court Palace.

Afonso de Albuquerque of Portugal conquers Goa.

Sir Thomas More becomes undersheriff of the City of London.

Peter Henlein builds the first pocketwatch.

The Grand Prince Vasili III of Muscovy conquers Pskov

Henry Cornelius Agrippa moves to Italy.

The Holy League is formed to defend the Italian States.

The Swedish University of Uppsala is founded, becoming the first university in Sweden and all of Scandinavia.

The University of Constantinople is founded by emperor Theodosius II at the urging of his wife Aelia Eudocia.

Buddhism begins to spread to Southeast Asia.

Edict of Thessalonica: Theodosius I, with co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II, declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to trinitarian Christianity, in accordance with the patriarchs of Rome and Alexandria, implicitly rejecting the Arianism of the patriarch of Constantinople as heretical.

Rome\\\'s enemies the Germans, Sarmatians and Huns are taken into Imperial service as a consequence, barbarian leaders begin to play an increasingly active role in the Roman Empire.

Battle of Thessalonica: The Goths under Fritigern defeat a Roman army in Macedonia. Theodosius I retreats to Thessalonica and leaves Gratian control over the Western Roman Empire.

Rome's enemies the Germans, Sarmatians and Huns are taken into Imperial service as a consequence, barbarian leaders begin to play an increasingly active role in the Roman Empire.