Died on
Who died on February 20
95 figures who shaped history died on February 20.
- 95deaths
- 54events
Best known
Best known
Leo of Catania
Catholic saint and 15th bishop of Catania
Yaroslav the Wise
Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 to 1054
Conan IV of Brittany
Duke of Brittany from 1156 to 1166
Tancred of Sicily
King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194
Al-Musta'sim
37th and last Abbasid Caliph (r. 1242–1258)
Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland
English noble
Leo of Catania — Catholic saint and 15th bishop of Catania, who died on February 20 789.
Yaroslav the Wise — Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 to 1054, who died on February 20 1054.
Conan IV of Brittany — Duke of Brittany from 1156 to 1166, who died on February 20 1171.
Tancred of Sicily — King of Sicily from 1189 to 1194, who died on February 20 1194.
Al-Musta'sim — 37th and last Abbasid Caliph (r. 1242–1258), who died on February 20 1258.
Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland — English noble, who died on February 20 1408.
All entries
- 922TTheodora (wife of Romanos I)Byzantine empress from 920 to 922
- 1154WWulfric of HaselburyAnchorite and saint
- 1431
Pope Martin VHead of the Catholic Church from 1417 to 1431 - 1458
Lazar BrankovićDespot of Serbia from 1456 to 1458 - 1513
Hans, King of DenmarkScandinavian king under the Kalmar Union - 1524
Tecun UmanMayan emperor of Guatemala - 1579
Nicholas Bacon (Lord Keeper)English politician - 1618
Philip William, Prince of OrangePrince of Orange from 1584 to 1618 - 1626
John DowlandEnglish composer and lutenist - 1762
Tobias Mayer18th-century German astronomer - 1771
Jean-Jacques d'Ortous de Mairan18th-century French geophysicist, astronomer, and chronobiologist - 1773
Charles Emmanuel IIIKing of Sardinia from 1730 to 1773 - 1778
Laura BassiItalian physicist and academic - 1790
Joseph II, Holy Roman EmperorHoly Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 - 1806
Lachlan McIntoshAmerican general - 1810
Andreas HoferTyrolean innkeeper and patriot - 1850
Valentín CanalizoPresident of Mexico from 1843 to 1844 - 1862
William Wallace LincolnThird son of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln - 1871
Paul KaneCanadian painter - 1893
P. G. T. BeauregardConfederate States Army general - 1895
Frederick DouglassAmerican abolitionist - 1900
WashakieEastern Shoshone chief - 1907
Henri MoissanFrench chemist and pharmacist - 1916
Klas Pontus ArnoldsonSwedish author, journalist, politician and committed pacifist - 1920
Francisco and Jacinta MartoPortuguese visionaries and Catholic saints - 1920
Robert PearyAmerican explorer - 1933
Takiji KobayashiJapanese writer - 1936
Max SchreckGerman actor - 1947
Viktor GutićCroatian fascist official - 1957
Sadri Maksudi ArsalTatar politician - 1961
Percy GraingerAustralian-born composer, arranger and pianist - 1963
Jacob GadeDanish musician
- 1965
Michał WaszyńskiPolish-American film director and producer - 1966
Chester W. NimitzAmerican naval officer - 1968
Anthony AsquithEnglish film director - 1969
Ernest AnsermetSwiss conductor - 1972
Maria Goeppert MayerGerman–American physicist - 1972
Walter WinchellAmerican gossip reporter
- 1976
René CassinFrench jurist and Nobel laureate - 1976
Kathryn KuhlmanAmerican evangelist - 1981
Nicolas de GunzburgFrench-American editor - 1987
Wayne BoringAmerican comic book artist - 1992
A. J. CassonCanadian painter in the Group of Seven - 1992
Barbara LüdemannGerman politician - 1992
Dick YorkAmerican actor
- 1993
Ferruccio LamborghiniItalian industrialist, founder of Automobili Lamborghini - 1993
Ernest L. MassadUnited States Army general - 1996
Solomon AschPolish-American psychologist - 1996
Audrey MunsonAmerican model and actress - 1996
Tōru TakemitsuJapanese composer and writer - 1999
Sarah KaneEnglish playwright - 1999
Gene SiskelAmerican film critic - 2001
Rosemary DeCampAmerican actress - 2001DDonella MeadowsAmerican environmental scientist, teacher, and writer
- 2003
Mushaf Ali MirPakistani Air Chief Marshal - 2003
Maurice BlanchotFrench writer - 2003
Orville FreemanAmerican politician - 2005
Sandra DeeAmerican actress and model - 2005JJosef Holeček (canoeist)
- 2005
John RaittAmerican actor and singer - 2005
Hunter S. ThompsonAmerican journalist and author - 2006
Curt GowdyAmerican sportscaster - 2006
Lucjan WolanowskiPolish writer - 2008
Emily Perry (English actress)English actress - 2009
Larry H. MillerAmerican businessman - 2010
Alexander HaigAmerican politician and diplomat - 2012KKnut Torbjørn EggenNorwegian footballer and coach
- 2012
Katie Hall (American politician)American politician - 2013
Kenji EnoJapanese musician and video game designer - 2013
David S. McKayAmerican planetary geologist - 2013
Antonio RomaArgentine footballer - 2014RRafael Addiego BrunoUruguayan jurist and political figure
- 2014
Walter D. EhlersUnited States Army soldier
- 2014
Garrick UtleyAmerican television journalist - 2015
Govind PansareIndian political activist and writer - 2015
Henry SegerstromAmerican entrepreneur and philanthropist - 2015JJohn C. WillkeAmerican anti-abortion activist
- 2016
Fernando CardenalNicaraguan Jesuit and theologian - 2017
Vitaly ChurkinRussian diplomat - 2017
Mildred DresselhausAmerican physicist and nanotechnologist - 2017
Steve Hewlett (journalist)British journalist - 2020
Joaquim Pina MouraPortuguese politician - 2021NNurul Haque MiahProfessor at Dhaka College
- 2021
Mauro BellugiItalian footballer - 2024
Andreas BrehmeGerman footballer - 2024
Yoko YamamotoJapanese actress - 2025
David BorenAmerican lawyer and politician - 2025
Jerry ButlerAmerican soul singer and songwriter - 2025
Peter JasonAmerican actor
Frequently asked questions
Who died on February 20?
95 people with a Wikipedia article died on February 20, including Leo of Catania, Yaroslav the Wise, Conan IV of Brittany. The list is in chronological order by year of death and spans all of documented history, from antiquity to the present day. For each person you find their occupation, the year and a link to the Wikipedia biography, where the full story and its sources can be read.
What happened on February 20?
54 documented historical events happened on February 20, from antiquity to the present day. The best known is this: The French colonization of Texas began with the landing of colonists led by Robert de La Salle near Matagorda Bay. On the same day, in another year: The Barber of Seville, an opera buffa composed by Gioachino Rossini, premiered at the Teatro Argentina in Rome to jeers from the audience. On Almanaccolo every event is listed in chronological order, grouped by century, and links to the Wikipedia article it comes from, so you can always read further or check the source. Alongside the events you find who was born and who died on this date, and which observances are celebrated around the world.
Keep exploring
Free app
Every day’s history, in your pocket
Almanaccolo greets you each morning with the almanac of the day, sunrise and sunset times and your saved events.
- Today’s almanac, every morning
- Save the events that strike you
- Sunrise, sunset and weather for your city
- Free, no account required
