Learn about important dates in French and francophone history: famous birthdays, holidays and celebrations, and other milestones. If the above does not match today's date or you wish to choose a specific date, please click here
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Birthdays
1834 - Edgar Degas (French painter)
1961 - Benoît Mariage (Belgian film director)
Deaths
1838 - Pierre Louis Dulong (French physicist)
1857 - Stefano Franscini (Swiss Federal Councilor)
2003 - Pierre Graber (Swiss Federal Councilor)
Milestones/Events
1544 - Italian War of 1542: The Siege of Boulogne
1870 - Franco-Prussian War: France declared war on Prussia
1900 - Paris: First métro line opened
Errors and Omissions
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