China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735
China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735 crashes in Guangxi, China, killing 132 people.
What happened on March 21
39 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 7 observances. From 1556 to 2026.
Standout on March 21
2006
Phra Phrom
A man smashed the statue of Phra Phrom at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, with a hammer, and was subsequently beaten to death by bystanders.
About March 21
March 21 is the 80th day of the year. These facts are computed from the calendar, not copied from anywhere.
- Day of the year
- Day 80 of 365 (81 in leap years)285 days left in the year (285 in leap years)
- Falls on
- Saturday in 2026, Sunday in 2027, Tuesday in 2028, Wednesday in 2029, Thursday in 2030
- Week
- ISO week 12 of 2026 · Q1
- Zodiac sign
- ♈ Aries (March 21 – April 19)Cusp date — the exact boundary shifts by a day in some years.
- Season
- Spring in the north · Autumn in the south
- March birthstone
- Aquamarine / Bloodstoneserenity, courage and health
- March birth flower
- Daffodil / Jonquilnew beginnings and rebirth
- Next occurrence
- In 148 days
- Roman numerals
- XXI.IIIday.month — see the Roman numeral date tool
Anniversaries in 2026
- 80thLos Angeles Rams1946
- 40thDebi Thomas1986
- 30thAurora Mikalsen1996
- 20thJack Dorsey2006
- 20thPhra Phrom2006
- 20thSocial media2006
- 5thNawal El Saadawi2021
- 1stGeorge Foreman2025
Born on March 21 — ages this year
- 2007Ethan Nwaneriturns 19
- 2003Abbi Pullingturns 23
- 2000Jace Normanturns 26
- 2000Yoon San-haturns 26
- 1998Miles Bridgesturns 28
- 1997Nat Phillipsturns 29
Historical events 39
A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
2019 Xiangshui chemical plant explosion
A major explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng, China, killed 78 people and injured 640 others.
Jack Dorsey
Jack Dorsey sent the first message on the social-media network Twitter.
Social media
The social media site Twitter (now officially named X) is founded.
Phra Phrom
A man smashed the statue of Phra Phrom at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, with a hammer, and was subsequently beaten to death by bystanders.
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II makes his first ever pontifical visit to Israel.
Bertrand Piccard
Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones become the first to circumnavigate the Earth in a hot air balloon.
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change enters into force.
Namibia
Namibia becomes independent after 75 years of South African rule.
Transbrasil Flight 801
Transbrasil Flight 801 crashes into a slum near São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport, killing 25 people.
Debi Thomas
Debi Thomas becomes the first African American to win the World Figure Skating Championships.
Paraplegia
Canadian paraplegic athlete and humanitarian Rick Hansen begins his circumnavigation of the globe in a wheelchair in the name of spinal cord injury medical research.
West Bank
In the West Bank, a number of Palestinian girls complained of breathing difficulties due to strange odors, leading to accusations of poison gas.
1983 West Bank fainting epidemic
The first cases of the 1983 West Bank fainting epidemic begin; Israelis and Palestinians accuse each other of poison gas, but the cause is later determined mostly to be psychosomatic.
Dallas (TV series)
The American soap opera Dallas aired the episode "A House Divided", which led to eight months of international speculation on "Who shot J.R.?"
Cold War
Cold War: American President Jimmy Carter announces a United States boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet–Afghan War.
Earth Day
The first Earth Day proclamation is issued by Joseph Alioto, Mayor of San Francisco.
San Diego Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con, the largest pop and culture festival in the world, hosts its inaugural event.
War of Attrition
War of Attrition: The Battle of Karameh took place between the Israel Defense Forces and allied troops of the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Jordanian Armed Forces.
Battle of Karameh
Battle of Karameh in Jordan between the Israel Defense Forces and the combined forces of the Jordanian Armed Forces and PLO.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. leads 3,200 people on the start of the third and finally successful civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.
Ranger program
Ranger program: NASA launches Ranger 9, the last in a series of uncrewed lunar space probes.
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons closed Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary on Alcatraz Island (pictured) in San Francisco Bay, California.
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary closes.
Sharpeville
Police in Sharpeville, South Africa, opened fire on a group of unarmed black demonstrators who were protesting pass laws, killing 69 people and wounding 180 others.
Apartheid
Apartheid: Sharpeville massacre, South Africa: Police open fire on a group of black South African demonstrators, killing 69 and wounding 180.
Moondog Coronation Ball
The Moondog Coronation Ball, generally considered to be the first major rock and roll concert, took place at the Cleveland Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.
Alan Freed
Alan Freed presents the Moondog Coronation Ball, the first rock and roll concert, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams signed Kenny Washington, making him the first African-American player in the National Football League since 1933.
Blanton Winship
A police squad, acting under orders from Governor of Puerto Rico Blanton Winship, opened fire on demonstrators protesting the arrest of Puerto Rican Nationalist leader Pedro Albizu Campos, killing 21 people and injuring 235 others.
World War I
First World War: The German Army opened the Spring Offensive with Operation Michael, attempting to break through the Allied lines and to seize ports on the English Channel.
Great Dayton Flood
More than 360 were killed and 20,000 homes were destroyed in the Great Dayton Flood in Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Queen's Park F.C.
Queen's Park defeated Clydesdale 2–0 in the final of the inaugural Scottish Cup.
Alexander H. Stephens
Alexander H. Stephens, Vice President of the Confederate States of America, gave an extemporaneous speech laying out the Confederacy's rationale for seceding from the United States.
Baháʼí calendar
The Baháʼí calendar, used in the Baháʼí Faith, began.
Visit of the Marquis de Lafayette to the United States
During his tour of the United States, the Marquis de Lafayette laid the cornerstone for the Nathanael Greene Monument in Savannah, Georgia.
War of the Sixth Coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition: During their march on Paris, Coalition forces defeated Napoleon's French army on the final day of the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube.
Great New Orleans Fire (1788)
A large fire destroyed 856 of the 1,100 structures in New Orleans.
Thomas Cranmer
Thomas Cranmer, a former archbishop of Canterbury and one of the founders of Anglicanism, was burned at the stake for heresy in Oxford, England.
Births 20
A notable person born on this day. Each links to a person page with their dates and story.
Deaths 20
A notable person who died on this day.
Martin McGuinness
Martin McGuinness, Irish republican and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland (born 1950)
Ishaya Bakut
Ishaya Bakut, Nigerian general and politician, Governor of Benue State (born 1947)
Qoriniasi Bale
Qoriniasi Bale, Fijian lawyer and politician, 25th Attorney-General of Fiji (born 1929)
Holidays & observances 7
A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello
Christian feast day: Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello
Birillus
Christian feast day: Birillus
Enda of Aran
Christian feast day: Enda of Aran
Augustine Zhao Rong
Christian feast day: Augustine Zhao Rong
Benedict of Nursia
Christian feast day: Passing of Saint Benedict (Order of Saint Benedict, pre-1970 Calendar)
Nicholas of Flüe
Christian feast day: Nicholas of Flüe
Arbor Day
Arbor Day (Lesotho)
Spread across the centuries
- 16th century1
- 18th century1
- 19th century5
- 20th century45
- 21st century27
Earliest: Thomas Cranmer (1556). Most recent: Michael Lyster (2026).
What the categories mean, and how the standout is chosen
- Historical events
- A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
- Births
- A notable person born on this day. Each links to a person page with their dates and story.
- Deaths
- A notable person who died on this day.
- Milestones
- A first, a founding or a turning point our editors flagged as a landmark moment.
- Holidays & observances
- A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
- Standout / notable
- Editor-written entries come first, then entries covered by the most Wikipedia language editions. For the standout tile we prefer an entry that has a picture.
Nearby and related
Questions about March 21
What day of the year is March 21?
March 21 is the 80th day of the year, with 285 days left after it.
What star sign is March 21?
March 21 falls under Aries (March 21 – April 19), a fire sign ruled by Mars. The birthstone for the month is Aquamarine or Bloodstone.
How many things happened on March 21?
We record 86 entries for March 21: 39 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 7 observances. From 1556 to 2026.
Who was born on March 21?
Ethan Nwaneri (2007) is among the notable births on March 21. The births section lists the rest.
How often is the March 21 page updated?
The day is filled the first time anyone opens it and then re-checked for new entries about every 90 days. Computed facts such as the weekday and the anniversaries update every year.
Get a daily entry like March 21
One short email a day from this calendar. Kept for this site only.
Text adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0 and from Wikidata (CC0). Images come from Wikimedia Commons; credit and licence are shown with each image. Editorial entries are © What's On This Date. Sources & licensing · How this site works.