Today in History: February 28, Benedict XVI becomes first pope to resign
Today is Saturday, Feb. 28, the 59th day of 2026. There are 306 days left in the year.
Today in history:
On Feb. 28, 2013, Benedict XVI became the first pope in 600 years to resign, ending an eight-year pontificate. (Benedict was succeeded the following month by Pope Francis.)
Also on this date:
In 1844, a massive 12-inch gun aboard the USS Princeton exploded as the ship was sailing on the Potomac River, killing Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur, Navy Secretary Thomas W. Gilmer and several others; President John Tyler, who also was aboard the ship, was uninjured.
In 1953, Francis H.C. Crick announced that he and fellow scientist James D. Watson had discovered the double-helix structure of DNA.
In 1975, 43 people were killed in London’s Underground when a train failed to stop at Moorgate station, smashing into the end of a tunnel.
In 1983, the final episode of the television series “M*A*S*H” aired; nearly 106 million viewers saw the finale, which remains the most-watched episode of any U.S. television series to date.
In 1986, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme was assassinated while walking on a Stockholm street with his wife; his assailant was never captured and remains unidentified.
In 1993, a gun battle erupted at a religious compound near Waco, Texas, when Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents tried to arrest Branch Davidian leader David Koresh for stockpiling illegal weapons; four agents and six Davidians were killed as a 51-day standoff began. (On April 19 of that year, FBI agents stormed the compound with tear gas and armored vehicles, with dozens dead before the standoff was over).
In 2014, President Barack Obama delivered a blunt warning to Moscow about reports of military activity inside Ukraine by Russia and said “there will be costs” for any intervention.
In 2023, a passenger train collided head-on with a freight train more than 200 miles north of Athens, Greece, killing 57 people in that country’s deadliest rail disaster.
In 2024, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the longest-serving U.S. Senate leader in history, announced he would step down from the leadership role the following November. (Twelve months later, the octogenarian senator said his term ending in January 2027 would be his last).
Today’s birthdays:
- Rock singer Sam the Sham (aka Domingo Samudio) is 89.
- Actor-director-choreographer Tommy Tune is 87.
- Hall of Fame auto racer Mario Andretti is 86.
- Actor Mercedes Ruehl is 79.
- Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman is 73.
- Basketball Hall of Famer Adrian Dantley is 71.
- Actor John Turturro is 69.
- Actor Robert Sean Leonard is 57.
- Musician Pat Monahan (Train) is 57.
- Actor Tasha Smith is 55.
- Hockey Hall of Famer Eric Lindros is 53.
- Actor Ali Larter is 50.
- Country musician Jason Aldean is 49.
- NBA guard Luka Dončić is 27.