^B{^#!16!31 March^N! Feast day of St Benjamin, St Balbina, St Acacius, and St Guy of Pomposa.
^B{1282^B} The Sicilian Vespers, a massacre of the French in Sicily, begun the previous evening, ended. ^B{1889^B} In Paris, the Eiffel Tower, built for the Universal Exhibition, was inaugurated. ^B{1896^B} The first zipper was patented in the US by its inventor, Whitcomb Judson. ^B{1959^B} Tibetan Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama fled from Chinese-occupied Tibet. ^B{1973^B} Racehorse Red Rum set a record of 9 min 1.9 sec for the Grand National Steeplechase. ^B{1986^B} Hampton Court Palace, near Richmond, SW London, UK, was severely damaged by a fire which broke out in the south wing.
^B{^I{^#!14!Born ^N}RenΘ Descartes, French philosopher and mathematician, ^B{1596^B}; Andrew Marvell, English poet, ^B{1621^B}; Franz Joseph Haydn, Austrian composer, ^B{1732^B}; Nikolai Gogol, Russian novelist, ^B{1809^B}; Robert Bunsen, German chemist, ^B{1811^B}; John Fowles, English novelist, ^B{1927^B}.
^B{^I{^#!14!Died ^N}^>}King Francis I of France, ^B{1547^B}; King Philip III of Spain, ^B{1621^B}; John Donne, English poet, ^B{1631^B}; John Constable, English painter, ^B{1837^B}; Charlotte Brontδ, English novelist, ^B{1855^B}; Jesse Owens, US athlete, ^B{1980^B}; Enid Bagnold, English novelist, ^B{1981^B}.^B{
