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Today in History, February 13th

On February 13, 1945, Allied bombers began the raids that destroyed Dresden. Plus William and Mary, Australia's 2008 apology and Grant Wood.

By Today in History Updated November 10, 2026 3 min read Sources checked

Published February 13, 2026 · Last updated November 10, 2026

February 13 is best known for the start of the Allied bombing of Dresden in 1945, one of the most debated air raids of World War II. The date also saw William and Mary proclaimed joint monarchs of England in 1689, Australia’s national apology to its Aboriginal peoples in 2008, and the birth of painter Grant Wood in 1891.

The big story: The Bombing of Dresden Begins (1945)

By early 1945, Germany was losing the war. On the night of February 13, the Allies turned on Dresden, an old Saxon city known for its art and architecture. About 800 bombers from Britain’s Royal Air Force dropped roughly 2,700 tons of bombs, many of them incendiaries, and the fires spread through the historic center. The U.S. Eighth Air Force followed with daytime raids on February 14 and 15. The city was nearly wiped out. Historians generally estimate that 25,000 to 35,000 people died, though far higher figures have circulated, partly because the city was crowded with refugees whose numbers were never recorded. The raids have been argued over ever since. British and American commanders called the attack a military necessity, while critics say its military value could not justify the destruction. After German reunification in 1990, rebuilding Dresden’s old center became a national project.

More events on February 13

Year	What happened
1633	Galileo arrived in Rome to face charges of heresy before the Inquisition for supporting the idea that Earth orbits the Sun.
1689	William III and Mary II were proclaimed joint monarchs of England after the Glorious Revolution (Old Style).
1692	Scottish soldiers under Archibald Campbell killed members of the MacDonald clan at Glencoe in what became known as the Massacre of Glencoe (Old Style).
1914	The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) was founded to help songwriters get paid for public performances of their work.
1920	The League of Nations recognized Switzerland’s permanent neutrality.
1923	Robert L. Douglas organized the New York Renaissance, the first all-Black professional basketball team.
1935	A New Jersey jury convicted Bruno Hauptmann in the kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh’s baby son.
1960	France tested its first atomic bomb in the Sahara.
1965	President Lyndon B. Johnson approved Operation Rolling Thunder, a sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam.
2000	The last original Peanuts comic strip ran, hours after its creator, Charles Schulz, died.
2008	Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd formally apologized to Aboriginal Australians for past wrongs by the government.
2016	Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died in Shafter, Texas.

Born on February 13

1891: Grant Wood, Iowa painter of American Gothic.
1933: Kim Novak, Chicago-born actress who starred in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo.
1950: Peter Gabriel, English singer who fronted Genesis before a long solo career.