A Day in the Past

On this day: 6 March

98 things happened on 6 March, from 12 BC to 2016. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.

Printable worksheet Take the quiz

In the UK 5

UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

1943 83 years ago

UK story

World War II: Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel launches the Battle of Medenine in an attempt to slow down the British Eighth Army. It fails, and he leaves Africa three days later.

War & peace Find out more: Erwin Rommel (Wikipedia)

Around the world 17

1820 206 years ago

The Missouri Compromise is signed into law by United States President James Monroe. The compromise allows Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state, brings Maine into the Union as a free state, and makes the rest of the northern part of the Louisiana Purchase territory slavery-free.

Laws & government Find out more: Missouri Compromise (Wikipedia)
1930 96 years ago

Organized by the Communist International, hundreds of thousands of people in major cities around the world marched to protest mass unemployment associated with the Great Depression.

Find out more: Communist International (Wikipedia)

Quick quiz

Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!

  1. In which year did this happen: “Scottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs Bruce, the”?

    1. 1904
    2. 1806
    3. 1957
    Show the answer

    A: 1904. 1904 — that’s 122 years ago. Find it on the page

  2. In which year did this happen: “World War II: Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel launches the Battle of”?

    1. 1788
    2. 1806
    3. 1943
    Show the answer

    C: 1943. 1943 — that’s 83 years ago. Find it on the page

  3. Which of these happened first?

    1. Scottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs Bruce, the
    2. World War II: Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel launches the Battle of
    3. The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement
    Show the answer

    C: The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement. 1904: Scottish National Antarctic Expedition: Led by William Speirs Bruce, the · 1943: World War II: Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel launches the Battle of · 1788: The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement Find it on the page

  4. “The First Fleet arrives at Norfolk Island in order to found a convict settlement” happened in 1788. How many years ago was that?

    1. 228 years
    2. 248 years
    3. 238 years
    Show the answer

    C: 238 years. 2026 − 1788 = 238. Find it on the page

Born on this day 35

Famous people whose birthday is 6 March.

Remembering 21

Well-known people who died on 6 March.

Special days 9

Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 6 March somewhere in the world.

For older readers 11 Show stories about war, disasters, crime and other difficult history

Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.

Where these facts come from

Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “March 6” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.