March 18
March 18 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 288 days remain until the year's end. It falls in winter (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Pisces.
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Astronomy
On March 18 the Sun's declination is approximately -1.2°. At this latitude the Sun is south of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere shorter days than nights.
For specific rise/set times at your location, see the U.S. Naval Observatory, or the NASA APOD archive for any imagery published on a March 18.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
No widely-observed holidays catalogued for this day in our base set. See the external almanacs above for region-specific observances.
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
1314 — Jacques de Molay, the last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, was burned at the stake in Paris. ↗(712 years ago)more
Jacques de Molay, also spelled "Molai", was the 23rd and last grand master of the Knights Templar, leading the order sometime before 20 April 1292 until it was dissolved by order of Pope Clement V in 1312. Though little is known of his actual life and deeds except for his last years as Grand Master, he is one of the best known Templars.
1850 — American Express was founded by Henry Wells and William Fargo in Buffalo, New York. ↗(176 years ago)more
American Express Company (Amex) is an American bank holding company and multinational financial services corporation that specializes in payment cards. It is headquartered at 200 Vesey Street, also known as American Express Tower, in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan.
1965 — Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov made the first space-walk, outside Voskhod 2. ↗(61 years ago)more
Alexei Arkhipovich Leonov was a Soviet and Russian cosmonaut and aviator, Air Force major general, writer, and artist. On 18 March 1965, he became the first person to conduct a spacewalk, exiting the capsule during the Voskhod 2 mission for 12 minutes and 9 seconds.
1990 — In the largest art theft in U.S. history, thieves stole 13 works (estimated US$500 million) from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. ↗(36 years ago)more
In the early hours of March 18, 1990, 13 works of art were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. Security guards admitted two men posing as policemen responding to a disturbance call, and the thieves bound the guards and looted the museum over the next hour.
Notable births
1837 — Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th U.S. President. ↗(189 years ago)more
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Democrat elected president after the American Civil War.
1932 — John Updike, American novelist. ↗(94 years ago)more
John Hoyer Updike was an American novelist, poet, short-story writer, art critic, and literary critic. One of only four writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once, Updike published more than twenty novels, more than a dozen short-story collections, as well as poetry, art and literary criticism and children's books during his career.
Notable deaths
1768 — Laurence Sterne, Anglo-Irish novelist (Tristram Shandy). ↗(258 years ago)more
Laurence Sterne was a British novelist and Anglican cleric. He is best known for his comic novels The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (1759–1767) and A Sentimental Journey Through France and Italy (1768).
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (78) | 2 × 3 × 13 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (288) | 2^5 × 3^2 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 18032026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | -1.21° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 89 days |