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1442

September 29 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day, Uncategorized /
  • 61 BC – Pompey the Great celebrates his third triumph for victories over the pirates and the end of the Mithridatic Wars on his 45th birthday.
  • 1011 – Danes capture Canterbury after a siege, taking Ælfheah, archbishop of Canterbury, as a prisoner.
  • 1227 – Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, is excommunicated by Pope Gregory IX for his failure to participate in the Crusades.
  • 1267 – The Treaty of Montgomery recognises Llywelyn ap Gruffudd as Prince of Wales, but only as a vassal of King Henry III.
  • 1364 – English forces defeat the French in Brittany, ending the War of the Breton Succession.
  • 1578 – Tegucigalpa, capital city of Honduras, is claimed by the Spaniards.
  • 1637 – 42-year-old Lorenzo Ruiz dies.
  • 1717 – An earthquake strikes Antigua Guatemala, destroying much of the city’s architecture.
  • 1789 – The United States Department of War first establishes a regular army with a strength of several hundred men.
  • 1789 – The 1st United States Congress adjourns.
  • 1829 – The Metropolitan Police of London, later also known as the Met, is founded.
  • 1848 – The Battle of Pákozd is a stalemate between Hungarian and Croatian forces, and is the first battle of the Hungarian Revolution.
  • 1850 – The papal bull Universalis Ecclesiae restores the Roman Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales.
  • 1855 – The Philippine port of Iloilo is opened to world trade by the Spanish administration.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Chaffin’s Farm is fought.
  • 1864 – The Treaty of Lisbon defines the boundaries between Spain and Portugal and abolishes the Couto Misto microstate.
  • 1885 – The first practical public electric tramway in the world is opened in Blackpool, England.
  • 1907 – The cornerstone is laid at the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (better known as Washington National Cathedral) in Washington, D.C.
  • 1911 – Italy declares war on the Ottoman Empire.
  • 1918 – World War I: Bulgaria signs the Armistice of Salonica.
  • 1918 – The Hindenburg Line is broken by an Allied attack.
  • 1918 – Germany’s Supreme Army Command tells the Kaiser and the Chancellor to open negotiations for an armistice.
  • 1923 – The British Mandate for Palestine takes effect, creating Mandatory Palestine.
  • 1923 – The French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon takes effect.
  • 1923 – The First American Track & Field championships for women are held.
  • 1932 – Chaco War: Last day of the Battle of Boquerón between Paraguay and Bolivia.
  • 1940 – Two Avro Ansons collide in mid-air over New South Wales, Australia, remain locked together, then land safely.
  • 1941 – World War II: German forces, with the aid of local Ukrainian collaborators, begin the two-day Babi Yar massacre.
  • 1949 – The Communist Party of China writes the Common Programme for the future People’s Republic of China.
  • 1954 – The convention establishing CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) is signed.
  • 1957 – The Kyshtym disaster is the third-worst nuclear accident ever recorded.
  • 1971 – Oman joins the Arab League.
  • 1972 – China–Japan relations: Japan establishes diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China after breaking official ties with the Republic of China.
  • 1975 – WGPR becomes the first black-owned-and-operated television station in the US.
  • 1979 – The dictator Francisco Macias of Equatorial Guinea is shot by soldiers from Western Sahara.
  • 1988 – NASA launches STS-26, the first mission since the Challenger disaster.
  • 1990 – Construction of the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (better known as Washington National Cathedral) is completed in Washington, D.C.
  • 1990 – The YF-22, which would later become the F-22 Raptor, flies for the first time.
  • 1991 – A Haitian coup d’état occurs.
  • 1992 – Brazilian President Fernando Collor de Mello is impeached.
  • 2004 – The asteroid 4179 Toutatis passes within four lunar distances of Earth.
  • 2004 – Burt Rutan’s Ansari SpaceShipOne performs a successful spaceflight, the first of two required to win the Ansari X Prize.
  • 2006 – A Boeing 737 and an Embraer 600 collide in mid-air, killing 154 people and triggering a Brazilian aviation crisis.
  • 2007 – Calder Hall, the world’s first commercial nuclear power station, is demolished in a controlled explosion.
  • 2009 – The 8.1 Mw  Samoa earthquake results in a tsunami that kills 189 and injures hundreds.
  • 2011 – The special court in India convicted all 269 accused officials for atrocity on Dalits and 17 for rape in the Vachathi case.
  • 2013 – Over 42 people are killed by members of Boko Haram at the College of Agriculture in Nigeria.
  • 2016 – Eleven days after the Uri attack, the Indian Army conducts “surgical strikes” against suspected militants in Pakistani-administered Kashmir.
  • 2019 – Violence and low turnout mar the 2019 Afghan presidential election.
  • 2019 – At least 59 people are reported dead due to monsoon rains in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India. 350 people have died this year due to rain in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh.

Births on September 29

  • 106 BC – Pompey, Roman general and politician (d. 48 BC)
  • 929 – Qian Chu, Chinese king (Ten Kingdoms) (d. 988)
  • 1240 – Margaret of England, Queen consort of Scots (d. 1275)
  • 1276 – Christopher II of Denmark (d. 1332)
  • 1373 – Margaret of Bohemia, Burgravine of Nuremberg (d. 1410)
  • 1402 – Fernando, the Saint Prince, of Portugal (d. 1443)
  • 1403 – Elisabeth of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brzeg-Legnica and Cieszyn, German princess (d. 1449)
  • 1460 – Louis II de la Trémoille, French military leader (d. 1525)
  • 1463 – Louis I, Count of Löwenstein, founder of the House of Löwenstein-Wertheim (d. 1523)
  • 1511 – Michael Servetus, Spanish physician, cartographer, and theologian (d. 1553)
  • 1527 – John Lesley, Scottish bishop (d. 1596)
  • 1538 – Joan Terès i Borrull, Spanish archbishop and academic (d. 1603)
  • 1547 – Miguel de Cervantes, Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright (d. 1616)
  • 1548 – William V, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1626)
  • 1561 – Adriaan van Roomen, Flemish priest and mathematician (d. 1615)
  • 1574 – Ludovic Stewart, 2nd Duke of Lennox, Scottish nobleman and politician (d. 1624)
  • 1602 – Algernon Percy, 10th Earl of Northumberland, English military leader (d. 1668)
  • 1636 – Thomas Tenison, English archbishop (d. 1715)
  • 1639 – William Russell, Lord Russell, English politician (d. 1683)
  • 1640 – Antoine Coysevox, French sculptor and educator (d. 1720)
  • 1674 – Jacques-Martin Hotteterre, French flute player and composer (d. 1763)
  • 1678 – Adrien Maurice de Noailles, French soldier and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1766)
  • 1691 – Richard Challoner, English bishop (d. 1781)
  • 1703 – François Boucher, French painter and set designer (d. 1770)
  • 1718 – Nikita Ivanovich Panin, Russian soldier and politician, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1783)
  • 1725 – Robert Clive, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Montgomeryshire (d. 1774)
  • 1758 – Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, English admiral (d. 1805)
  • 1766 – Charlotte, Princess Royal of England (d. 1828)
  • 1786 – Guadalupe Victoria, Mexican general, lawyer, and politician, 1st President of Mexico (d. 1843)
  • 1803 – Mercator Cooper, American captain and explorer (d. 1872)
  • 1803 – Jacques Charles François Sturm, French mathematician and theorist (d. 1850)
  • 1808 – Henry Bennett, American lawyer and politician (d. 1868)
  • 1810 – Elizabeth Gaskell, English author (d. 1865)
  • 1816 – Paul Féval, père, French author and playwright (d. 1887)
  • 1832 – Joachim Oppenheim, rabbi and author (d. 1891)
  • 1832 – Miguel Miramón, Unconstitutional president of Mexico, 1859-1860 (d. 1867)
  • 1843 – Mikhail Skobelev, Russian general (d. 1882)
  • 1844 – Miguel Ángel Juárez Celman, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 10th President of Argentina (d. 1909)
  • 1853 – Luther D. Bradley, American cartoonist (d. 1917)
  • 1863 – Hugo Haase, German lawyer, jurist, and politician (d. 1919)
  • 1864 – Miguel de Unamuno, Spanish philosopher and author (d. 1936)
  • 1866 – Mykhailo Hrushevskyi, Ukrainian historian, academic, and politician (d. 1934)
  • 1876 – Charlie Llewellyn, South African cricketer (d. 1964)
  • 1880 – Liberato Pinto, Portuguese colonel and politician, 79th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1949)
  • 1881 – Ludwig von Mises, Austrian-American economist, sociologist, and philosopher (d. 1973)
  • 1882 – Lilias Armstrong, English phonetician (d. 1937)
  • 1885 – George Scott, English footballer (d. 1916)
  • 1891 – Ian Fairweather, Scottish-Australian painter (d. 1974)
  • 1895 – Clarence Ashley, American singer, guitarist, and banjo player (d. 1967)
  • 1895 – Joseph Banks Rhine, American botanist and parapsychologist (d. 1980)
  • 1895 – Roscoe Turner, American pilot (d. 1970)
  • 1897 – Herbert Agar, American journalist and historian (d. 1980)
  • 1898 – Trofim Lysenko, Ukrainian-Russian biologist and agronomist (d. 1976)
  • 1899 – László Bíró, Hungarian-Argentinian journalist and inventor, invented the ballpoint pen (d. 1985)
  • 1899 – Billy Butlin, South African-English businessman, founded Butlins (d. 1980)
  • 1901 – Lanza del Vasto, Italian poet, philosopher, and activist (d. 1981)
  • 1901 – Enrico Fermi, Italian-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1954)
  • 1903 – Miguel Alemán Valdés, Mexican lawyer and civilian politician, 46th President of Mexico (1946-1952) (d. 1983)
  • 1903 – Diana Vreeland, American journalist (d. 1989)
  • 1904 – Greer Garson, English-American actress (d. 1996)
  • 1907 – Gene Autry, American singer, actor, and businessman (d. 1998)
  • 1907 – George W. Jenkins, American businessman, founded Publix (d. 1996)
  • 1908 – Eddie Tolan, American sprinter and educator (d. 1967)
  • 1910 – Bill Boyd, American singer and guitarist (d. 1977)
  • 1910 – Virginia Bruce, American actress (d. 1982)
  • 1911 – Charles Court, English-Australian politician, 21st Premier of Western Australia (d. 2007)
  • 1912 – Michelangelo Antonioni, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1913 – Trevor Howard, English actor (d. 1988)
  • 1913 – Stanley Kramer, American director and producer (d. 2001)
  • 1915 – Vincent DeDomenico, American businessman, founded the Napa Valley Wine Train (d. 2007)
  • 1915 – Oscar Handlin, American historian and academic (d. 2011)
  • 1915 – Brenda Marshall, American actress (d. 1992)
  • 1916 – Carl Giles, English cartoonist (d. 1995)
  • 1919 – Kira Zvorykina, Belarusian chess player (d. 2014)
  • 1920 – Peter D. Mitchell, English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1992)
  • 1920 – Václav Neumann, Czech violinist and conductor (d. 1995)
  • 1921 – John Ritchie, New Zealand composer and educator (d. 2014)
  • 1921 – Albie Roles, English footballer and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1922 – Lizabeth Scott, American actress (d. 2015)
  • 1923 – Stan Berenstain, American author and illustrator (d. 2005)
  • 1923 – Bum Phillips, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Steve Forrest, American actor (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Paul MacCready, American engineer, founded AeroVironment (d. 2007)
  • 1926 – Chuck Cooper, American basketball player (d. 1984)
  • 1926 – Pete Elliott, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1927 – Adhemar da Silva, Brazilian triple jumper and actor (d. 2001)
  • 1927 – Sherwood Johnston, American race car driver (d. 2000)
  • 1927 – Pete McCloskey, American colonel and politician
  • 1927 – Barbara Mertz, American historian and author (d. 2013)
  • 1928 – Eric Lubbock, 4th Baron Avebury, English lieutenant, engineer, and politician (d. 2016)
  • 1928 – Brajesh Mishra, Indian politician and diplomat, 1st Indian National Security Advisor (d. 2012)
  • 1928 – Nathan Shamuyarira, Zimbabwean journalist and politician, Zimbabwean Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Richard Bonynge, Australian pianist and conductor
  • 1930 – Colin Dexter, English author and educator (d. 2017)
  • 1931 – James Cronin, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2016)
  • 1931 – Anita Ekberg, Swedish-Italian model and actress (d. 2015)
  • 1931 – Paul Oestreicher, German-English priest and theologian
  • 1932 – Robert Benton, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1932 – Paul Giel, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2002)
  • 1933 – Samora Machel, Mozambican commander and politician, 1st President of Mozambique (d. 1986)
  • 1934 – Skandor Akbar, American wrestler and manager (d. 2010)
  • 1934 – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Hungarian-American psychologist and academic
  • 1934 – Lance Gibbs, Guyanese cricketer and manager
  • 1934 – Stuart M. Kaminsky, American author and screenwriter (d. 2009)
  • 1934 – Lindsay Kline, Australian cricketer (d. 2015)
  • 1935 – Jerry Lee Lewis, American singer-songwriter and pianist
  • 1936 – Silvio Berlusconi, Italian businessman and politician, 50th Prime Minister of Italy
  • 1936 – James Fogle, American author (d. 2012)
  • 1936 – Hal Trosky, Jr., American baseball player (d. 2012)
  • 1938 – Dave Harper, English footballer (d. 2013)
  • 1938 – Wim Kok, Dutch union leader and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 2018)
  • 1939 – Fikret Abdić, Bosnian economist and politician
  • 1939 – Jim Baxter, Scottish footballer (d. 2001)
  • 1939 – Larry Linville, American actor (d. 2000)
  • 1939 – Rhodri Morgan, Welsh politician, 2nd First Minister of Wales (d. 2017)
  • 1940 – Brute Force, American singer-songwriter
  • 1940 – Carlos Morales Troncoso, Dominican politician, 34th Vice President of the Dominican Republic (d. 2014)
  • 1941 – David Steele, English cricketer
  • 1942 – Felice Gimondi, Italian cyclist
  • 1942 – Madeline Kahn, American actress and singer (d. 1999)
  • 1942 – Ian McShane, English actor
  • 1942 – Bill Nelson, American captain and politician
  • 1942 – Jean-Luc Ponty, French violinist and composer
  • 1942 – Janet Powell, Australian educator and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1942 – Steve Tesich, Serbian-American screenwriter and playwright (d. 1996)
  • 1943 – Wolfgang Overath, German footballer
  • 1943 – Lech Wałęsa, Polish electrician and politician, 2nd President of Poland, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1944 – Mike Post, American composer and producer
  • 1945 – Kyriakos Sfetsas, Greek composer and poet
  • 1945 – Nadezhda Chizhova, Russian shot putter
  • 1946 – Patricia Hodge, English actress
  • 1947 – Ülo Kaevats, Estonian philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 2015)
  • 1947 – S. H. Kapadia, Indian lawyer, judge, and politician, 38th Chief Justice of India (d. 2016)
  • 1947 – Gary Wetzel, American soldier, Medal of Honor recipient
  • 1948 – Mark Farner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Bryant Gumbel, American journalist and sportscaster
  • 1948 – Theo Jörgensmann, German clarinet player and composer
  • 1948 – Mike Pinera, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1949 – George Dalaras, Greek singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1950 – Ken Macha, American baseball player and manager
  • 1951 – Michelle Bachelet, Chilean physician and politician, 34th President of Chile
  • 1951 – Pier Luigi Bersani, Italian educator and politician, 6th President of Emilia-Romagna
  • 1951 – Andrés Caicedo, Colombian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1977)
  • 1951 – Maureen Caird, Australian-New Zealand hurdler
  • 1951 – Mike Enriquez, Filipino journalist and radio commentator
  • 1952 – Roy Campbell, Jr., American trumpet player (d. 2014)
  • 1952 – Gábor Csupó, Hungarian-American animator, director, and producer, co-founded Klasky Csupo
  • 1952 – Richard Hodges, English archaeologist and academic
  • 1952 – Max Sandlin, American lawyer, judge, and politician
  • 1952 – Takanosato Toshihide, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 59th Yokozuna (d. 2011)
  • 1953 – Warren Cromartie, American baseball player, coach, and radio host
  • 1953 – Jean-Claude Lauzon, Canadian director and screenwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1953 – Lawrence Reed, American economist and author
  • 1954 – Uwe Jahn, German footballer and manager
  • 1954 – Mark Mitchell, Australian actor
  • 1955 – Ann Bancroft, American explorer and author
  • 1955 – Gareth Davies, Welsh rugby player and academic
  • 1955 – Joe Donnelly, American politician and lawyer
  • 1955 – Benoît Ferreux, French actor and director
  • 1955 – Gwen Ifill, American journalist (d. 2016)
  • 1956 – Sebastian Coe, English sprinter and politician
  • 1956 – Jenny Morris, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1956 – Suzzy Roche, American singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1957 – Chris Broad, English cricketer and referee
  • 1957 – Sokratis Malamas, Greek singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1957 – Mark Nicholas, English cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1960 – Julian Armour, American-Canadian cellist and educator
  • 1960 – Kenneth Hansen, Swedish race car driver
  • 1960 – Alan McGee, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1960 – Hubert Neuper, Austrian ski jumper
  • 1960 – John Paxson, American basketball player and coach
  • 1960 – David Sammartino, American wrestler and trainer
  • 1960 – Andy Slaughter, English politician
  • 1960 – Carol Welsman, Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist
  • 1961 – Julia Gillard, Welsh-Australian lawyer and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Australia
  • 1961 – Stephanie Miller, American comedian and radio host
  • 1962 – Roger Bart, American actor
  • 1963 – Dave Andreychuk, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1963 – Les Claypool, American bass player, singer, songwriter, and producer
  • 1964 – Brad Lohaus, American basketball player
  • 1966 – Hersey Hawkins, American basketball player and coach
  • 1966 – Ben Miles, English actor
  • 1967 – Brett Anderson, English singer-songwriter
  • 1967 – Sara Sankey, English badminton player
  • 1968 – Patrick Burns, American paranormal investigator
  • 1968 – Luke Goss, English actor
  • 1968 – Matt Goss, English singer-songwriter
  • 1969 – Erika Eleniak, American model and actress
  • 1969 – DeVante Swing, American singer-songwriter, and producer
  • 1969 – Aleks Syntek, Mexican singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1970 – Russell Peters, Canadian comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1970 – Yoshihiro Tajiri, Japanese wrestler and trainer
  • 1970 – Natasha Gregson Wagner, American actress
  • 1970 – Kushboo, South Indian actress and producer
  • 1971 – Yitzhak Yedid, Israeli-Australian composer & pianist
  • 1971 – Tanoka Beard, American basketball player
  • 1971 – Mackenzie Crook, English actor and screenwriter
  • 1971 – Theodore Shapiro, American composer
  • 1972 – Oliver Gavin, English race car driver
  • 1973 – Foivos Delivorias, Greek singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1973 – Shannon Larratt, Canadian publisher, founded BMEzine (d. 2013)
  • 1973 – Scout Niblett, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1974 – Brian Ash, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1974 – Matt Hullum, American actor, director, and producer, co-founded Rooster Teeth
  • 1974 – James Lance, British actor
  • 1975 – Albert Celades, Spanish footballer and manager
  • 1976 – Darren Byfield, English-Jamaican footballer
  • 1976 – Kelvin Davis, English footballer
  • 1976 – Óscar Sevilla, Spanish cyclist
  • 1976 – Andriy Shevchenko, Ukrainian footballer and politician
  • 1977 – Eric Barton, American football player
  • 1977 – Wade Brookbank, Canadian ice hockey player and scout
  • 1977 – Debelah Morgan, American singer-songwriter
  • 1977 – Jake Westbrook, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Mohini Bhardwaj, American gymnast and coach
  • 1978 – Gunner McGrath, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1978 – Karen Putzer, Italian skier
  • 1978 – Kurt Nilsen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – Orhan Ak, Turkish footballer
  • 1979 – Takumi Beppu, Japanese cyclist and manager
  • 1979 – Artika Sari Devi, Indonesian model and actress
  • 1979 – Shelley Duncan, American baseball player and manager
  • 1979 – Jaime Lozano, Mexican footballer
  • 1980 – Patrick Agyemang, English footballer
  • 1980 – Dallas Green, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1980 – Zachary Levi, American actor and singer
  • 1981 – Aris Galanopoulos, Greek footballer
  • 1981 – Shane Smeltz, German-New Zealand footballer
  • 1982 – Matt Giteau, Australian rugby player
  • 1982 – Amy Williams, English skeleton racer
  • 1983 – Lisette Oropesa, American soprano and actress
  • 1984 – Per Mertesacker, German footballer
  • 1985 – Calvin Johnson, American football player
  • 1985 – Niklas Moisander, Finnish footballer
  • 1985 – Dani Pedrosa, Spanish motorcycle racer
  • 1985 – Magnus Gangstad Jørgensen, Norwegian music producer
  • 1986 – Lisa Foiles, American actress and journalist
  • 1986 – Mark Fraser, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Matt Lashoff, American ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Isaac Makwala, Botswanan sprinter
  • 1986 – Benoît Pouliot, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1987 – David Del Rio, American actor and director
  • 1988 – Kevin Durant, American basketball player
  • 1988 – Justin Nozuka, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1989 – Theo Adams, English photographer and director
  • 1989 – Adore Delano, American drag queen and singer
  • 1989 – Yevhen Konoplyanka, Ukrainian footballer
  • 1989 – Aaron Martin, English footballer
  • 1989 – Andrea Poli, Italian footballer
  • 1989 – Fatima Lodhi, Pakistani social activist
  • 1990 – Doug Brochu, American voice actor
  • 1990 – Gerphil Flores, Filipina classical crossover singer and Asia’s Got Talent finalist
  • 1990 – Lena Wermelt, German footballer
  • 1991 – Adem Ljajić, Serbian footballer
  • 1991 – Martin Jensen, Danish musician
  • 1993 – Lee Hong-bin, South Korean singer
  • 1993 – Viktor Romanenkov, Estonian figure skater
  • 1993 – Oleg Vernyayev, Ukrainian artistic gymnast
  • 1998 – Vera Lapko, Belarusian tennis player
  • 1999 – Choi Ye-na, South Korean singer and dancer

Deaths on September 29

  • 722 – Leudwinus, Frankish archbishop and saint (b. 660)
  • 855 – Lothair I, Roman emperor (b. 795)
  • 1186 – William of Tyre, Archbishop of Tyre (b. c. 1130)
  • 1225 – Arnaud Amalric, Papal legate who allegedly promoted mass murder
  • 1298 – Guido I da Montefeltro, Italian military strategist (b. 1223)
  • 1304 – John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, English general (b. 1231)
  • 1360 – Joanna I of Auvergne, queen consort of France (b. 1326)
  • 1364 – Charles I, Duke of Brittany (b. 1319)
  • 1382 – ‘Izz al-Din ibn Rukn al-Din Mahmud, malik of Sistan
  • 1501 – Andrew Stewart, Scottish bishop (b. 1442)
  • 1560 – Gustav I of Sweden (b. 1496)
  • 1622 – Conrad Vorstius, German-Dutch Remonstrant theologian (b. 1569)
  • 1634 – Henry Hyde, English politician and lawyer (b.c. 1563)
  • 1637 – Lorenzo Ruiz, Filipino martyr and saint (b. 1600)
  • 1642 – René Goupil, French missionary and saint (b. 1608)
  • 1642 – William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire (b. 1561)
  • 1703 – Charles de Saint-Évremond, French-English soldier, author, and critic (b. 1610)
  • 1800 – Michael Denis, Austrian poet and author (b. 1729)
  • 1804 – Michael Hillegas, American politician, 1st Treasurer of the United States (b. 1728)
  • 1833 – Ferdinand VII of Spain (b. 1784)
  • 1862 – William “Bull” Nelson, American general (b. 1824)
  • 1887 – Bernhard von Langenbeck, German surgeon and academic (b. 1810)
  • 1889 – Louis Faidherbe, French general and politician (b. 1818)
  • 1900 – Samuel Fenton Cary, American lawyer and politician (b. 1814)
  • 1902 – William McGonagall, Scottish poet and actor (b. 1825)
  • 1902 – Émile Zola, French journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1840)
  • 1908 – Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, Brazilian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1839)
  • 1910 – Winslow Homer, American painter, illustrator, and engraver (b. 1836)
  • 1913 – Rudolf Diesel, German engineer, invented the diesel engine (b. 1858)
  • 1918 – Lawrence Weathers, decorated WWI Australian soldier (b. 1890).
  • 1925 – Léon Bourgeois, French police officer and politician, 64th Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1851)
  • 1927 – Arthur Achleitner, German journalist and author (b. 1858)
  • 1927 – Willem Einthoven, Indonesian-Dutch physiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1860)
  • 1928 – John Devoy, Irish-American Fenian rebel leader (b. 1842)
  • 1930 – Ilya Repin, Ukrainian-Russian painter and illustrator (b. 1844)
  • 1937 – Marie Zdeňka Baborová-Čiháková, Czech botanist and zoologist (b. 1877)
  • 1937 – Ray Ewry, American triple jumper (b. 1873)
  • 1937 – Ernst Hoppenberg, German swimmer and water polo player (b. 1878)
  • 1951 – Thomas Cahill, American soccer player and coach (b. 1864)
  • 1952 – John Cobb, English race car driver and pilot (b. 1899)
  • 1967 – Carson McCullers, American novelist, playwright, essayist, and poet (b. 1917)
  • 1970 – Edward Everett Horton, American actor (b. 1886)
  • 1973 – W. H. Auden, English-American poet, playwright, and critic (b. 1907)
  • 1975 – Casey Stengel, American baseball player and manager (b. 1890)
  • 1981 – Bill Shankly, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1913)
  • 1982 – Monty Stratton, American baseball player and coach (b. 1912)
  • 1986 – Prince George Valdemar of Denmark (b. 1920)
  • 1987 – Henry Ford II, American businessman (b. 1917)
  • 1988 – Charles Addams, American cartoonist (b. 1912)
  • 1989 – Gussie Busch, American businessman (b. 1899)
  • 1989 – Georges Ulmer, Danish-French singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1919)
  • 1993 – Gordon Douglas, American actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1907)
  • 1997 – Roy Lichtenstein, American painter and sculptor (b. 1923)
  • 1998 – Tom Bradley, American lieutenant and politician, 38th Mayor of Los Angeles (b. 1917)
  • 1999 – Jean-Louis Millette, Canadian actor (b. 1935)
  • 2000 – John Grant, English journalist and politician (b. 1932)
  • 2001 – Mabel Fairbanks, American figure skater and coach (b. 1915)
  • 2001 – Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, Vietnamese general and politician, 5th President of South Vietnam (b. 1923)
  • 2004 – Richard Sainct, French motorcycle racer (b. 1970)
  • 2004 – Patrick Wormald, English historian (b. 1947)
  • 2005 – Patrick Caulfield, English painter and academic (b. 1936)
  • 2005 – Austin Leslie, American chef and author (b. 1934)
  • 2006 – Walter Hadlee, New Zealand cricketer and manager (b. 1915)
  • 2006 – Michael A. Monsoor, American soldier, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1981)
  • 2006 – Louis-Albert Vachon, Canadian cardinal (b. 1912)
  • 2007 – Lois Maxwell, Canadian actress (b. 1927)
  • 2007 – Yıldırım Aktuna, Turkish psychiatrist and politician, Turkish Minister of Health (b. 1930)
  • 2008 – Hayden Carruth, American poet and critic (b. 1921)
  • 2009 – Pavel Popovich, Ukrainian general, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1930)
  • 2010 – Tony Curtis, American actor (b. 1925)
  • 2010 – Greg Giraldo, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1965)
  • 2011 – Sylvia Robinson, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1936)
  • 2012 – Hathloul bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Arabian prince (b. 1942)
  • 2012 – Neil Smith, Scottish geographer and academic (b. 1954)
  • 2012 – Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, American publisher (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Malcolm Wicks, English academic and politician (b. 1947)
  • 2013 – Harold Agnew, American physicist and engineer (b. 1921)
  • 2013 – Anton Benning, German lieutenant (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – Pete T. Cenarrusa, American soldier, pilot, and politician, Secretary of State of Idaho (b. 1917)
  • 2013 – Carl Joachim Classen, German scholar and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – L. C. Greenwood, American football player (b. 1946)
  • 2013 – Bob Kurland, American basketball player and politician (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Miguel Boyer, Spanish economist and politician (b. 1939)
  • 2014 – Andreas Fransson, Swedish skier (b. 1983)
  • 2014 – Stan Monteith, American surgeon and author (b. 1929)
  • 2014 – Luis Nishizawa, Mexican painter and educator (b. 1918)
  • 2014 – John Ritchie, New Zealand composer and educator (b. 1921)
  • 2014 – George Shuba, American baseball player (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Nawwaf bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Arabian prince (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Hellmuth Karasek, Czech-German journalist, author, and critic (b. 1934)
  • 2015 – William Kerslake, American wrestler and engineer (b. 1929)
  • 2015 – Jean Ter-Merguerian, French-Armenian violinist (b. 1935)
  • 2015 – Phil Woods, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1931)
  • 2016 – Miriam Defensor Santiago, Filipina politician (b. 1945)
  • 2017 – Tom Alter, Indian actor (b. 1950)
  • 2018 – Otis Rush, American blues guitarist and singer (b. 1934)

Holidays and observances on September 29

  • Christian feast day:
    • Rhipsime
    • September 29 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • the Archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. One of the four quarter days in the Irish calendar. (England and Ireland). Called Michaelmas in some western liturgical traditions
  • Day of Machine-Building Industry Workers (Russia)
  • Inventors’ Day (Argentina)
  • Victory of Boquerón Day (Paraguay)
  • World Heart Day

September 29 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day, Uncategorized

July 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 484 BC – Dedication of the Temple of Castor and Pollux in ancient Rome
  • AD 70 – Titus and his armies breach the walls of Jerusalem. (17th of Tammuz in the Hebrew calendar).
  • 756 – An Lushan Rebellion: Emperor Xuanzong of Tang is ordered by his Imperial Guards to execute chancellor Yang Guozhong by forcing him to commit suicide or face a mutiny. General An Lushan has other members of the emperor’s family killed.
  • 1099 – First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final assault of a difficult siege.
  • 1149 – The reconstructed Church of the Holy Sepulchre is consecrated in Jerusalem.
  • 1207 – King John of England expels Canterbury monks for supporting Archbishop Stephen Langton.
  • 1240 – Swedish–Novgorodian Wars: A Novgorodian army led by Alexander Nevsky defeats the Swedes in the Battle of the Neva.
  • 1381 – John Ball, a leader in the Peasants’ Revolt, is hanged, drawn, and quartered in the presence of King Richard II of England.
  • 1410 – Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War: Battle of Grunwald: The allied forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the army of the Teutonic Order.
  • 1482 – Muhammad XII is crowned the twenty-second and last Nasrid king of Granada.
  • 1738 – Baruch Laibov and Alexander Voznitzin are burned alive in St. Petersburg, Russia. Vonitzin had converted to Judaism with Laibov’s help, with the consent of Empress Anna Ivanovna.
  • 1741 – Aleksei Chirikov sights land in Southeast Alaska. He sends men ashore in a longboat, making them the first Europeans to visit Alaska.
  • 1789 – Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, is named by acclamation Colonel General of the new National Guard of Paris.
  • 1799 – The Rosetta Stone is found in the Egyptian village of Rosetta by French Captain Pierre-François Bouchard during Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign.
  • 1806 – Pike Expedition: United States Army Lieutenant Zebulon Pike begins an expedition from Fort Bellefontaine near St. Louis, Missouri, to explore the west.
  • 1815 – Napoleonic Wars: Napoleon Bonaparte surrenders aboard HMS Bellerophon.
  • 1823 – A fire destroys the ancient Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, Italy.
  • 1834 – The Spanish Inquisition is officially disbanded after nearly 356 years.
  • 1838 – Ralph Waldo Emerson delivers the Divinity School Address at Harvard Divinity School, discounting Biblical miracles and declaring Jesus a great man, but not God. The Protestant community reacts with outrage.
  • 1862 – The CSS Arkansas, the most effective ironclad on the Mississippi River, battles with Union ships commanded by Admiral David Farragut, severely damaging three ships and sustaining heavy damage herself. The encounter changed the complexion of warfare on the Mississippi and helped to reverse Rebel fortunes on the river in the summer of 1862.
  • 1870 – Reconstruction Era of the United States: Georgia becomes the last of the former Confederate states to be readmitted to the Union.
  • 1870 – Rupert’s Land and the North-Western Territory are transferred to Canada from the Hudson’s Bay Company, and the province of Manitoba and the Northwest Territories are established from these vast territories.
  • 1888 – The stratovolcano Mount Bandai erupts killing approximately 500 people, in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan.
  • 1910 – In his book Clinical Psychiatry, Emil Kraepelin gives a name to Alzheimer’s disease, naming it after his colleague Alois Alzheimer.
  • 1916 – In Seattle, Washington, William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporate Pacific Aero Products (later renamed Boeing).
  • 1918 – World War I: The Second Battle of the Marne begins near the River Marne with a German attack.
  • 1920 – The Polish Parliament establishes Silesian Voivodeship before the Polish-German plebiscite.
  • 1922 – Japanese Communist Party is established in Japan.
  • 1927 – Massacre of July 15, 1927: Eighty-nine protesters are killed by the Austrian police in Vienna.
  • 1946 – State of North Borneo, today in Sabah, Malaysia, annexed by the United Kingdom.
  • 1954 – First flight of the Boeing 367-80, prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series.
  • 1955 – Eighteen Nobel laureates sign the Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons, later co-signed by thirty-four others.
  • 1959 – The steel strike of 1959 begins, leading to significant importation of foreign steel for the first time in United States history.
  • 1966 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam begin Operation Hastings to push the North Vietnamese out of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone.
  • 1971 – The United Red Army is founded in Japan.
  • 1974 – In Nicosia, Cyprus, Greek junta-sponsored nationalists launch a coup d’état, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot president.
  • 1975 – Space Race: Apollo–Soyuz Test Project features the dual launch of an Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz spacecraft on the first joint Soviet-United States human-crewed flight. It was both the last launch of an Apollo spacecraft, and the Saturn family of rockets.
  • 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter gives his “malaise speech”.
  • 1983 – An attack at Orly Airport in Paris is launched by Armenian militant organisation ASALA, leaving eight people dead and 55 injured.
  • 1996 – A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport.
  • 1998 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP S. Shanmuganathan is killed by a claymore mine.
  • 2002 – “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and to possession of explosives during the commission of a felony.
  • 2002 – Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan hands down the death sentence to British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh and life terms to three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.
  • 2003 – AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day.
  • 2006 – Twitter, later one of the largest social media platforms in the world, is launched.
  • 2014 – A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 24 and injuring more than 160 others.
  • 2016 – Factions of the Turkish Armed Forces attempt a coup.

Births on July 15

  • 980 – Ichijō, Japanese emperor (d. 1011)
  • 1273 – Ewostatewos, Ethiopian monk and saint (d. 1352)
  • 1353 – Vladimir the Bold, Russian prince (d. 1410)
  • 1359 – Antonio Correr, Italian cardinal (d. 1445)
  • 1442 – Boček IV of Poděbrady, Bohemian nobleman (d. 1496)
  • 1455 – Queen Yun, Korean queen (d. 1482)
  • 1471 – Eskender, Ethiopian emperor (d. 1494)
  • 1478 – Barbara Jagiellon, duchess consort of Saxony and Margravine consort of Meissen (d. 1534)
  • 1573 – Inigo Jones, English architect, designed the Queen’s House (d. 1652)
  • 1600 – Jan Cossiers, Flemish painter (d. 1671)
  • 1606 – Rembrandt, Dutch painter and etcher (d. 1669)
  • 1611 – Jai Singh I, maharaja of Jaipur (d. 1667)
  • 1613 – Gu Yanwu, Chinese philologist and geographer (d. 1682)
  • 1631 – Jens Juel, Danish politician and diplomat, Governor-general of Norway (d. 1700)
  • 1631 – Richard Cumberland, English philosopher (d. 1718)
  • 1638 – Giovanni Buonaventura Viviani, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1693)
  • 1704 – August Gottlieb Spangenberg, German bishop and theologian (d. 1792)
  • 1779 – Clement Clarke Moore, American author, poet, and educator (d. 1863)
  • 1793 – Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps, American educator, author, editor (d. 1884)
  • 1796 – Thomas Bulfinch, American mythologist (d. 1867)
  • 1799 – Reuben Chapman, American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of Alabama (d. 1882)
  • 1800 – Sidney Breese, American jurist and politician (d. 1878)
  • 1808 – Henry Edward Manning, English cardinal (d. 1892)
  • 1812 – James Hope-Scott, English lawyer and academic (d. 1873)
  • 1817 – Sir John Fowler, 1st Baronet, English engineer, designed the Forth Bridge (d. 1898)
  • 1827 – W. W. Thayer American lawyer and politician, 6th Governor of Oregon (d. 1899)
  • 1848 – Vilfredo Pareto, Italian economist and sociologist (d. 1923)
  • 1850 – Frances Xavier Cabrini, Italian-American nun and saint (d. 1917)
  • 1852 – Josef Josephi, Polish-born singer and actor (d. 1920)
  • 1858 – Emmeline Pankhurst, English political activist and suffragist (d. 1928)
  • 1864 – Marie Tempest, English actress and singer (d. 1942)
  • 1865 – Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe, Anglo-Irish businessman and publisher, founded the Amalgamated Press (d. 1922)
  • 1865 – Wilhelm Wirtinger, Austrian-German mathematician and theorist (d. 1945)
  • 1867 – Jean-Baptiste Charcot, French physician and explorer (d. 1936)
  • 1871 – Doppo Kunikida, Japanese journalist, author, and poet (d. 1908)
  • 1880 – Enrique Mosca, Argentinian lawyer and politician (d. 1950)
  • 1887 – Wharton Esherick, American sculptor (d. 1970)
  • 1892 – Walter Benjamin, German philosopher and critic (d. 1940)
  • 1893 – Enid Bennett, Australian-American actress (d. 1969)
  • 1893 – Dick Rauch, American football player and coach (d. 1970)
  • 1894 – Tadeusz Sendzimir, Polish-American engineer (d. 1989)
  • 1899 – Seán Lemass, Irish soldier and politician, 4th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 1971)
  • 1902 – Jean Rey, Belgian lawyer and politician, 2nd President of the European Commission (d. 1983)
  • 1903 – Walter D. Edmonds, American journalist and author (d. 1998)
  • 1903 – K. Kamaraj, Indian journalist and politician (d. 1975)
  • 1904 – Rudolf Arnheim, German-American psychologist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1905 – Dorothy Fields, American songwriter (d. 1974)
  • 1905 – Anita Farra, Italian actress (d. 2008)
  • 1906 – R. S. Mugali, Indian poet and academic (d. 1993)
  • 1906 – Rudolf Uhlenhaut, English-German engineer (d. 1989)
  • 1909 – Jean Hamburger, French physician and surgeon (d. 1992)
  • 1911 – Edward Shackleton, Baron Shackleton, English geographer and politician, Secretary of State for Air (d. 1994)
  • 1913 – Cowboy Copas, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1963)
  • 1913 – Hammond Innes, English journalist and author (d. 1998)
  • 1913 – Abraham Sutzkever, Russian poet and author (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Akhtar Hameed Khan, Pakistani economist, scholar, and activist (d. 1999)
  • 1914 – Howard Vernon, Swiss-French actor (d. 1996)
  • 1915 – Albert Ghiorso, American chemist and academic (d. 2010)
  • 1915 – Kashmir Singh Katoch, Indian army officer (d. 2007)
  • 1916 – Sumner Gerard, American politician and diplomat (d. 2004)
  • 1917 – Robert Conquest, English-American historian, poet, and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1917 – Joan Roberts, American actress and singer (d. 2012)
  • 1917 – Nur Muhammad Taraki, Afghan journalist and politician (d. 1979)
  • 1918 – Bertram Brockhouse, Canadian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2003)
  • 1918 – Brenda Milner, English-Canadian neuropsychologist and academic
  • 1919 – Fritz Langanke, German lieutenant (d. 2012)
  • 1919 – Iris Murdoch, Anglo-Irish British novelist and philosopher (d. 1999)
  • 1921 – Jack Beeson, American pianist and composer (d. 2010)
  • 1921 – Henri Colpi, Swiss-French director and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Robert Bruce Merrifield, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Jean Heywood, British actress (d. 2019)
  • 1922 – Leon M. Lederman, American physicist and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2018)
  • 1922 – Jean-Pierre Richard, French writer (d. 2019)
  • 1923 – Francisco de Andrade, Portuguese sailor
  • 1924 – Jeremiah Denton, American admiral and politician (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Marianne Bernadotte, Swedish actress and philanthropist
  • 1925 – Philip Carey, American actor (d. 2009)
  • 1925 – Taylor Hardwick, American architect, designed Haydon Burns Library and Friendship Fountain Park (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – D. A. Pennebaker, American documentary filmmaker (d. 2019)
  • 1925 – Evan Hultman, American politician
  • 1925 – Antony Carbone, American actor
  • 1925 – Pandel Savic, American football player (d. 2018)
  • 1926 – Driss Chraïbi, Moroccan-French journalist and author (d. 2007)
  • 1926 – Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentinian general and politician, 44th President of Argentina (d. 2003)
  • 1926 – Raymond Gosling, English physicist and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1926 – Sir John Graham, 4th Baronet, English diplomat (d. 2019)
  • 1927 – Nan Martin, American actress (d. 2010)
  • 1927 – Carmen Zapata, American actress (d. 2014)
  • 1927 – Håkon Brusveen, Norwegian cross-country skier
  • 1928 – Carl Woese, American microbiologist and biophysicist (d. 2012)
  • 1928 – Viramachaneni Vimla Devi, Indian parliamentarian (d. 1967)
  • 1929 – Charles Anthony, American tenor and actor (d. 2012)
  • 1929 – Francis Bebey, Cameroonian-French guitarist (d. 2001)
  • 1929 – Ian Stewart, Scottish race car driver (d. 2017)
  • 1930 – Jacques Derrida, Algerian-French philosopher and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1930 – Richard Garneau, Canadian journalist and sportscaster (d. 2013)
  • 1930 – Stephen Smale, American mathematician and computer scientist
  • 1930 – Einosuke Akiya, Japanese Buddhist leader
  • 1931 – Clive Cussler, American archaeologist and author (d. 2020)
  • 1931 – Joanna Merlin, American actress and casting director
  • 1931 – Jacques-Yvan Morin, Canadian lawyer and politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec
  • 1932 – Ed Litzenberger, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2010)
  • 1933 – Guido Crepax, Italian author and illustrator (d. 2003)
  • 1933 – M. T. Vasudevan Nair, Indian author and screenwriter
  • 1934 – Harrison Birtwistle, English composer and academic
  • 1934 – Eva Krížiková, Czech actress (d. 2020)
  • 1934 – Risto Jarva, Finnish director and producer (d. 1977)
  • 1935 – Donn Clendenon, American baseball player and lawyer (d. 2005)
  • 1935 – Alex Karras, American football player, wrestler, and actor (d. 2012)
  • 1935 – Ken Kercheval, American actor and director (d. 2019)
  • 1936 – George Voinovich, American lawyer and politician, 65th Governor of Ohio (d. 2016)
  • 1937 – Prabhash Joshi, Indian journalist (d. 2009)
  • 1938 – Ernie Barnes, American football player, actor, and painter (d. 2009)
  • 1938 – Carmen Callil, Australian publisher, founded Virago Press
  • 1938 – Barry Goldwater, Jr., American lawyer and politician
  • 1939 – Aníbal Cavaco Silva, Portuguese economist and politician, 19th President of the Portuguese Republic
  • 1940 – Denis Héroux, Canadian director and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1940 – Ronald Gene Simmons, American sergeant and convicted murderer (d. 1990)
  • 1940 – Robert Winston, English surgeon, academic, and politician
  • 1942 – Vivian Malone Jones, American civil rights activist (d. 2005)
  • 1943 – Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Northern Irish astrophysicist, astronomer, and academic
  • 1944 – Millie Jackson, American singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Jan-Michael Vincent, American actor (d. 2019)
  • 1945 – David Arthur Granger, Guyanese politician, 9th President of Guyana
  • 1945 – Peter Lewis (musician), American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1945 – Jürgen Möllemann, German soldier and politician, Vice-Chancellor of Germany (d. 2003)
  • 1946 – Linda Ronstadt, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
  • 1946 – Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei
  • 1947 – Peter Banks, English guitarist and songwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1947 – Lydia Davis, American short story writer, novelist, and essayist
  • 1947 – Pridiyathorn Devakula, Thai economist and politician, Thai Minister of Finance
  • 1947 – Roky Erickson, American singer-songwriter and musician (d. 2019)
  • 1948 – Twinkle, English singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1948 – Dimosthenis Kourtovik, Greek anthropologist and critic
  • 1948 – Artimus Pyle, American rock drummer and songwriter (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
  • 1949 – Carl Bildt, Swedish politician and diplomat, Prime Minister of Sweden
  • 1949 – Trevor Horn, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
  • 1949 – Richard Russo, American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter
  • 1950 – Colin Barnett, Australian economist and politician, 29th Premier of Western Australia
  • 1950 – Arianna Huffington, Greek-American journalist and publisher (The Huffington Post)
  • 1951 – Gregory Isaacs, Jamaican-English singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1951 – Jesse Ventura, American wrestler, actor, and politician, 38th Governor of Minnesota
  • 1952 – David Pack, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1952 – Celia Imrie, English actress
  • 1952 – Terry O’Quinn, American actor
  • 1952 – Marky Ramone, American drummer and songwriter
  • 1952 – Johnny Thunders, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1991)
  • 1953 – Jean-Bertrand Aristide, Haitian priest and politician, 49th President of Haiti
  • 1953 – Sultanah Haminah, Malaysian royal consort
  • 1953 – Mohamad Shahrum Osman, Malaysian politician
  • 1953 – Alicia Bridges, American singer-songwriter
  • 1954 – John Ferguson, Australian rugby league player
  • 1954 – Jeff Jarvis, American journalist and blogger
  • 1954 – Giorgos Kaminis, American-Greek lawyer and politician, 78th Mayor of Athens
  • 1954 – Mario Kempes, Argentinian footballer and manager
  • 1956 – Ashoke Sen, Indian theoretical physicist and string theorist
  • 1956 – Ian Curtis, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (Joy Division) (d. 1980)
  • 1956 – Nicholas Harberd, British botanist, educator and academician
  • 1956 – Barry Melrose, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1956 – Steve Mortimer, Australian rugby league player, coach, and administrator
  • 1956 – Joe Satriani, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1956 – Wayne Taylor, South African race car driver
  • 1958 – Gary Heale, English footballer and coach
  • 1958 – Mac Thornberry, American lawyer and politician
  • 1959 – Vincent Lindon, French actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Kim Alexis, American fashion model
  • 1961 – Lolita Davidovich, Canadian actress
  • 1961 – Jean-Christophe Grangé, French journalist and screenwriter
  • 1961 – Scott Ritter, American soldier and international weapons inspector
  • 1961 – Forest Whitaker, American actor
  • 1962 – Nikos Filippou, Greek basketball player and manager
  • 1962 – Michelle Ford, Australian swimmer
  • 1963 – Brigitte Nielsen, Danish-Italian actress
  • 1963 – Steve Thomas, English-Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1965 – Alistair Carmichael, Scottish lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland
  • 1965 – Gero Miesenböck, Austrian neuroscientist and educator
  • 1965 – David Miliband, English politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
  • 1966 – Jason Bonham, English singer-songwriter and drummer
  • 1966 – Irène Jacob, French-Swiss actress
  • 1967 – Adam Savage, American actor and special effects designer
  • 1967 – Elbert West, American singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1968 – Eddie Griffin, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1969 – Ain Tammus, Estonian footballer and coach
  • 1970 – Tarkan Gözübüyük, Turkish bass player and producer
  • 1972 – Scott Foley, American actor
  • 1973 – Brian Austin Green, American actor
  • 1975 – Cherry, American wrestler and manager
  • 1975 – Danny Law, English cricketer
  • 1975 – Ben Pepper, Australian basketball player
  • 1976 – Steve Cunningham, American boxer
  • 1976 – Marco Di Vaio, Italian footballer
  • 1976 – Diane Kruger, German actress and model
  • 1976 – Gabriel Iglesias, Mexican-American comedian and voice actor
  • 1977 – André Nel, South African cricketer
  • 1977 – Lana Parrilla, American actress
  • 1977 – John St. Clair, American football player
  • 1977 – Ray Toro, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1978 – Miguel Olivo, Dominican baseball player
  • 1979 – Laura Benanti, American actress and singer
  • 1979 – Alexander Frei, Swiss footballer
  • 1979 – Edda Garðarsdóttir, Icelandic footballer
  • 1979 – Renata Kučerová, Czech tennis player
  • 1980 – Reggie Abercrombie, American baseball player
  • 1980 – BxB Hulk, Japanese professional wrestler
  • 1980 – Jonathan Cheechoo, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – Julia Perez, Indonesian singer and actress (d. 2017)
  • 1981 – Alou Diarra, French footballer
  • 1981 – Petros Klampanis, Greek bassist and composer
  • 1981 – Marius Stankevičius, Lithuanian footballer
  • 1982 – Alan Pérez, Spanish cyclist
  • 1982 – Neemia Tialata, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1982 – Aída Yéspica, Venezuelan model and actress
  • 1983 – Nelson Merlo, Brazilian race car driver
  • 1983 – Will Rudge, English cricketer
  • 1983 – Heath Slater, American wrestler
  • 1984 – Angelo Siniscalchi, Italian footballer
  • 1984 – Veronika Velez-Zuzulová, Slovak skier
  • 1985 – Sanjeev, Tamil actor
  • 1985 – Tomer Kapon, Israeli actor
  • 1986 – Tyler Kennedy, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1988 – Riki Christodoulou, English race car driver
  • 1989 – Steven Jahn, German footballer
  • 1989 – Alisa Kleybanova, Russian tennis player
  • 1989 – Anthony Randolph, American basketball player
  • 1990 – Zach Bogosian, American ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Damian Lillard, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Danilo, Brazilian footballer
  • 1991 – Derrick Favors, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Evgeny Tishchenko, Russian boxer
  • 1992 – Tobias Harris, American basketball player
  • 1992 – Hokutōfuji Daiki, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1992 – Wayde van Niekerk, South African sprinter
  • 1993 – Håvard Nielsen, Norwegian footballer

Deaths on July 15

  • 756 – Yang Guifei, consort of Xuan Zong (b. 719)
  • 998 – Abū al-Wafā’ Būzjānī, Persian mathematician and astronomer (b. 940)
  • 1015 – Vladimir the Great, Grand prince of Kievan Rus’ (b. c. 958)
  • 1274 – Bonaventure, Italian bishop and saint (b. 1221)
  • 1291 – Rudolf I of Germany (b. 1218)
  • 1299 – King Eric II of Norway (b. c. 1268)
  • 1381 – John Ball, English Lollard priest
  • 1388 – Agnes of Durazzo, titular Latin empress consort of Constantinople (d. 1313)
  • 1397 – Catherine of Henneberg, German ruler (b. c. 1334)
  • 1406 – William, Duke of Austria
  • 1410 – Ulrich von Jungingen, German Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights (b. 1360)
  • 1445 – Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland
  • 1542 – Lisa del Giocondo, subject of Leonardo da Vinci’s painting Mona Lisa (b. 1479)
  • 1544 – René of Châlon (b. 1519)
  • 1571 – Shimazu Takahisa, Japanese daimyō (b. 1514)
  • 1609 – Annibale Carracci, Italian painter and illustrator (b. 1560)
  • 1614 – Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de Brantôme, French soldier, historian, and author (b. 1540)
  • 1655 – Girolamo Rainaldi, Italian architect (b. 1570)
  • 1685 – James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, Dutch-English general and politician, Governor of Kingston-upon-Hull (b. 1649)
  • 1750 – Vasily Tatishchev, Russian ethnographer and politician (b. 1686)
  • 1765 – Charles-André van Loo, French painter (b. 1705)
  • 1767 – Michael Bruce, Scottish poet and composer (b. 1746)
  • 1789 – Jacques Duphly, French harpsichord player and composer (b. 1715)
  • 1828 – Jean-Antoine Houdon, French sculptor (b. 1741)
  • 1839 – Winthrop Mackworth Praed, English poet and politician (b. 1802)
  • 1844 – Claude Charles Fauriel, French philologist and historian (b. 1772)
  • 1851 – Juan Felipe Ibarra, Argentinian general and politician (b. 1787)
  • 1857 – Carl Czerny, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1791)
  • 1858 – Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov, Russian painter (b. 1806)
  • 1883 – General Tom Thumb, American circus performer (b. 1838)
  • 1885 – Rosalía de Castro, Spanish author and poet (b. 1837)
  • 1890 – Gottfried Keller, Swiss author, poet, and playwright (b. 1819)
  • 1898 – Jean-Baptiste Salpointe, French-American archbishop (d. 1825)
  • 1904 – Anton Chekhov, Russian playwright and short story writer (b. 1860)
  • 1919 – Hermann Emil Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1852)
  • 1929 – Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Austrian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1874)
  • 1930 – Leopold Auer, Hungarian violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1845)
  • 1931 – Ladislaus Bortkiewicz, Russian-German economist and mathematician (b. 1868)
  • 1932 – Bahíyyih Khánum, Iranian writer and leader in the Baha’i faith (b. 1846)
  • 1932 – Cornelis Jacobus Langenhoven, South African poet and politician (b. 1873)
  • 1933 – Irving Babbitt, American scholar, critic, and academic (b. 1865)
  • 1933 – Freddie Keppard, American cornet player (b. 1890)
  • 1940 – Eugen Bleuler, Swiss psychiatrist and physician (b. 1857)
  • 1940 – Robert Wadlow, American giant, 8″11′ 271 cm (b.1918)
  • 1942 – Wenceslao Vinzons, Filipino lawyer and politician (b. 1910)
  • 1944 – Marie-Victorin Kirouac, Canadian botanist and academic (b. 1885)
  • 1946 – Razor Smith, English cricketer and coach (b. 1877)
  • 1947 – Walter Donaldson, American soldier and songwriter (b. 1893)
  • 1948 – John J. Pershing, American general (b. 1860)
  • 1953 – Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, Indian archbishop, founded the Order of the Imitation of Christ (b. 1882)
  • 1957 – James M. Cox, American publisher and politician, 46th Governor of Ohio (b. 1870)
  • 1957 – Vasily Maklakov, Russian lawyer and politician (b. 1869)
  • 1959 – Ernest Bloch, Swiss-American composer and academic (b. 1880)
  • 1959 – Vance Palmer, Australian author and critic (b. 1885)
  • 1960 – Set Persson, Swedish politician (b. 1897)
  • 1960 – Lawrence Tibbett, American singer and actor (b. 1896)
  • 1961 – John Edward Brownlee, Canadian lawyer and politician, 5th Premier of Alberta (b. 1884)
  • 1961. – Nina Bari, Russian mathematician (b. 1901)
  • 1965 – Francis Cherry, American lawyer and politician, 35th Governor of Arkansas (b. 1908)
  • 1966 – Seyfi Arkan, Turkish architect (b. 1903)
  • 1974 – Christine Chubbuck, American journalist (b. 1944)
  • 1976 – Paul Gallico, American journalist and author (b. 1897)
  • 1977 – Donald Mackay, Australian businessman and activist (b. 1933)
  • 1979 – Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Mexican academic and politician, 29th President of Mexico, 1964-1970 (b. 1911)
  • 1981 – Frédéric Dorion, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1898)
  • 1982 – Bill Justis, American saxophonist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1926)
  • 1986 – Billy Haughton, American harness racer and trainer (b. 1923)
  • 1988 – Eleanor Estes, American librarian, author, and illustrator (b. 1906)
  • 1989 – Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (b. 1956)
  • 1990 – Zaim Topčić, Yugoslav and Bosnian writer (b. 1920)
  • 1990 – Margaret Lockwood, English actress (b. 1916)
  • 1990 – Omar Abu Risha, Syrian poet and diplomat, 4th Syrian Ambassador to the United States (b. 1910)
  • 1991 – Bert Convy, American actor, singer, and game show host (b. 1933)
  • 1992 – Hammer DeRoburt, Nauruan educator and politician, 1st President of Nauru (b. 1922)
  • 1992 – Chingiz Mustafayev, Azerbaijani journalist and author (b. 1960)
  • 1997 – Justinas Lagunavičius, Lithuanian basketball player (b. 1924)
  • 1997 – Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer, founded Versace (b. 1946)
  • 1998 – S. Shanmuganathan, Sri Lankan politician (b. 1960)
  • 2000 – Louis Quilico, Canadian opera singer and educator (b. 1925)
  • 2001 – C. Balasingham, Sri Lankan lawyer and civil servant (b. 1917)
  • 2003 – Roberto Bolaño, Chilean novelist, short-story writer, poet, and essayist (b. 1953)
  • 2003 – Elisabeth Welch, American actress and singer (b. 1904)
  • 2006 – Robert H. Brooks, American businessman, founder of Hooters and Naturally Fresh, Inc. (b. 1937)
  • 2006 – Alireza Shapour Shahbazi, Iranian archaeologist and academic (b. 1942)
  • 2008 – György Kolonics, Hungarian canoe racer (b. 1972)
  • 2010 – James E. Akins, American politician and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (b. 1926)
  • 2011 – Friedrich Wilhelm Schnitzler, German landowner and politician (b. 1928)
  • 2011 – Googie Withers, British-Australian actress (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Boris Cebotari, Moldovan footballer (b. 1975)
  • 2012 – Tsilla Chelton, Israeli-French actress (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Grant Feasel, American football player (b. 1960)
  • 2012 – David Fraser, English general (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Celeste Holm, American actress and singer (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Yoichi Takabayashi, Japanese director and screenwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Ninos Aho, Syrian-American poet and activist (b. 1945)
  • 2013 – Henry Braden, American lawyer and politician (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – Tom Greenwell, American lawyer and judge (b. 1956)
  • 2013 – Earl Gros, American football player (b. 1940)
  • 2013 – Noël Lee, Chinese-American pianist and composer (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Meskerem Legesse, Ethiopian runner (b. 1986)
  • 2013 – John T. Riedl, American computer scientist and academic (b. 1962)
  • 2014 – Óscar Acosta, Honduran author, poet, and diplomat (b. 1933)
  • 2014 – James MacGregor Burns, American historian, political scientist, and author (b. 1918)
  • 2014 – Saúl Lara, Spanish footballer (b. 1982)
  • 2014 – Edward Perl, American neuroscientist and academic (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Robert A. Roe, American soldier and politician (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Masahiko Aoki, Japanese-American economist and academic (b. 1938)
  • 2015 – Wan Li, Chinese politician, 4th Vice Premier of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1916)
  • 2015 – Aubrey Morris, British actor (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Dave Somerville, Canadian singer (b. 1933)
  • 2017 – Martin Landau, American film and television actor (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances on July 15

  • Christian feast day:
    • Abhai (Syriac Orthodox Church)
    • Anne-Marie Javouhey
    • Bernhard II, Margrave of Baden-Baden
    • Bonaventure
    • Dispersion of the Apostles (No longer officially celebrated by the Catholic Church)
    • Donald of Ogilvy
    • Edith of Polesworth
    • Edith of Wilton
    • Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
    • Plechelm
    • Quriaqos and Julietta
    • Swithun
    • Vladimir the Great (Eastern Orthodox; Catholic Church)
    • July 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which Birthday of Don Luis Muñoz Rivera can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July. (Puerto Rico)
  • Earliest day on which Galla Bayramy can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday of July. (Turkmenistan)
  • Earliest day on which Marine Day can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July. (Japan)
  • Earliest day on which President’s Day (Botswana) can fall, while July 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday of July.
  • Elderly Men Day (Kiribati)
  • Festival of Santa Rosalia (Palermo, Sicily)
  • Sultan’s Birthday (Brunei Darussalam)

July 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

July 3 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /

July 3 in History

  • 324 – Battle of Adrianople: Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium.
  • 987 – Hugh Capet is crowned King of France, the first of the Capetian dynasty that would rule France until the French Revolution in 1792.
  • 1035 – William the Conqueror becomes the Duke of Normandy, reigns until 1087.
  • 1608 – Québec City is founded by Samuel de Champlain.
  • 1754 – French and Indian War: George Washington surrenders Fort Necessity to French forces.
  • 1767 – Pitcairn Island is discovered by Midshipman Robert Pitcairn on an expeditionary voyage commanded by Philip Carteret.
  • 1767 – Norway’s oldest newspaper still in print, Adresseavisen, is founded and the first edition is published.
  • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: George Washington takes command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts.
  • 1778 – American Revolutionary War: Iroquois allied to Britain kill 360 people in the Wyoming Valley massacre.
  • 1819 – The Bank for Savings in the City of New-York, the first savings bank in the United States, opens.
  • 1839 – The first state normal school in the United States, the forerunner to today’s Framingham State University, opens in Lexington, Massachusetts with three students.
  • 1844 – The last pair of great auks is killed.
  • 1848 – Governor-General Peter von Scholten emancipates all remaining slaves in the Danish West Indies.
  • 1849 – France invades the Roman Republic and restores the Papal States.
  • 1852 – Congress establishes the United States’ 2nd mint in San Francisco.
  • 1863 – American Civil War: The final day of the Battle of Gettysburg culminates with Pickett’s Charge.
  • 1866 – Austro-Prussian War is decided at the Battle of Königgrätz, resulting in Prussia taking over as the prominent German nation from Austria.
  • 1884 – Dow Jones & Company publishes its first stock average.
  • 1886 – Karl Benz officially unveils the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, the first purpose-built automobile.
  • 1886 – The New-York Tribune becomes the first newspaper to use a linotype machine, eliminating typesetting by hand.
  • 1890 – Idaho is admitted as the 43rd U.S. state.
  • 1898 – A Spanish squadron, led by Pascual Cervera y Topete, is defeated by an American squadron under William T. Sampson in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba.
  • 1913 – Confederate veterans at the Great Reunion of 1913 reenact Pickett’s Charge; upon reaching the high-water mark of the Confederacy they are met by the outstretched hands of friendship from Union survivors.
  • 1938 – World speed record for a steam locomotive is set in England, by the Mallard, which reaches a speed of 125.88 miles per hour (202.58 km/h).
  • 1938 – United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicates the Eternal Light Peace Memorial and lights the eternal flame at Gettysburg Battlefield.
  • 1940 – World War II: The Royal Navy attacks the French naval squadron in Algeria, to ensure that it will not fall under German control. Of the four French battleships present, one is sunk, two are damaged, and one escapes back to France.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Minsk Offensive clears German troops from the city.
  • 1952 – The Constitution of Puerto Rico is approved by the United States Congress.
  • 1952 – The SS United States sets sail on her maiden voyage to Southampton. During the voyage, the ship takes the Blue Riband away from the RMS Queen Mary.
  • 1967 – The Aden Emergency: The Battle of the Crater in which the British Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders retake the Crater district following the Arab Police mutiny.
  • 1969 – Space Race: The biggest explosion in the history of rocketry occurs when the Soviet N-1 rocket explodes and subsequently destroys its launchpad.
  • 1970 – The Troubles: The “Falls Curfew” begins in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
  • 1970 – Dan-Air Flight 1903 crashes into the Les Agudes mountain in the Montseny Massif near the village of Arbúcies in Catalonia, Spain, killing all 112 people aboard.
  • 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter signs the first directive for secret aid to the opponents of the pro-Soviet regime in Kabul.
  • 1988 – United States Navy warship USS Vincennes shoots down Iran Air Flight 655 over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.
  • 1988 – The Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey is completed, providing the second connection between the continents of Europe and Asia over the Bosphorus.
  • 1996 – British Prime Minister John Major announced the Stone of Scone would be returned to Scotland.
  • 2013 – Egyptian coup d’état: President of Egypt Mohamed Morsi is overthrown by the military after four days of protests all over the country calling for Morsi’s resignation, to which he did not respond. President of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt Adly Mansour is declared acting president.

Births on July 3

  • 321 – Valentinian I, Roman emperor (d. 375)
  • 1423 – Louis XI of France (d. 1483)
  • 1442 – Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado of Japan (d. 1500)
  • 1518 – Li Shizhen, Chinese physician and mineralogist (d. 1593)
  • 1530 – Claude Fauchet, French historian and author (d. 1601)
  • 1534 – Myeongjong of Joseon, Ruler of Korea (d. 1567)
  • 1550 – Jacobus Gallus, Slovenian composer (d. 1591)
  • 1569 – Thomas Richardson, English politician and judge (d. 1635)
  • 1683 – Edward Young, English poet, dramatist and literary critic (Night-Thoughts) (d. 1765)
  • 1685 – Sir Robert Rich, 4th Baronet, English field marshal and politician (d. 1768)
  • 1728 – Robert Adam, Scottish-English architect, designed Culzean Castle (d. 1792)
  • 1738 – John Singleton Copley, American painter (d. 1815)
  • 1778 – Carl Ludvig Engel, German architect (d. 1840)
  • 1789 – Johann Friedrich Overbeck, German-Italian painter and engraver (d. 1869)
  • 1814 – Ferdinand Didrichsen, Danish botanist and physicist (d. 1887)
  • 1823 – Ahmed Vefik Pasha, Greek-Ottoman statesman, diplomat, playwright, and translator (d. 1891)
  • 1844 – Dankmar Adler, German-born American architect and engineer (d. 1900)
  • 1846 – Achilles Alferaki, Russian composer and politician, Governor of Taganrog (d. 1919)
  • 1851 – Charles Bannerman, English-Australian cricketer and umpire (d. 1930)
  • 1854 – Leoš Janáček, Czech composer and theorist (d. 1928)
  • 1860 – Charlotte Perkins Gilman, American sociologist and author (d. 1935)
  • 1866 – Albert Gottschalk, Danish painter (d. 1906)
  • 1869 – Svend Kornbeck, Danish actor (d. 1933)
  • 1870 – R. B. Bennett, Canadian lawyer and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1947)
  • 1871 – William Henry Davies, Welsh poet and writer (d.1940)
  • 1874 – Jean Collas, French rugby player and tug of war competitor (d. 1928)
  • 1875 – Ferdinand Sauerbruch, German surgeon and academic (d. 1951)
  • 1876 – Ralph Barton Perry, American philosopher and academic (d. 1957)
  • 1878 – George M. Cohan, American songwriter, actor, singer, and dancer (d. 1942)
  • 1879 – Alfred Korzybski, Polish-American mathematician, linguist, and philosopher (d. 1950)
  • 1880 – Carl Schuricht, Polish-German conductor (d. 1967)
  • 1883 – Franz Kafka, Czech-Austrian author (d. 1924)
  • 1886 – Raymond A. Spruance, American admiral and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the Philippines (d. 1969)
  • 1888 – Ramón Gómez de la Serna, Spanish author and playwright (d. 1963)
  • 1889 – Richard Cramer, American actor (d. 1960)
  • 1893 – Sándor Bortnyik, Hungarian painter and graphic designer (d. 1976)
  • 1896 – Doris Lloyd, English actress (d. 1968)
  • 1897 – Jesse Douglas, American mathematician and academic (d. 1965)
  • 1898 – Stefanos Stefanopoulos, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1982)
  • 1900 – Alessandro Blasetti, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 1987)
  • 1901 – Ruth Crawford Seeger, American composer (d. 1953)
  • 1903 – Ace Bailey, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1992)
  • 1905 – Johnny Gibson, American hurdler and coach (d. 2006)
  • 1906 – George Sanders, Russian-born British actor (d. 1972)
  • 1908 – M. F. K. Fisher, American author (d. 1992)
  • 1908 – Robert B. Meyner, American lawyer and politician, 44th Governor of New Jersey (d. 1990)
  • 1909 – Stavros Niarchos, Greek shipping magnate (d.1996)
  • 1910 – Fritz Kasparek, Austrian mountaineer (d. 1954)
  • 1911 – Joe Hardstaff Jr., English cricketer (d. 1990)
  • 1913 – Dorothy Kilgallen, American journalist, actress, and author (d. 1965)
  • 1916 – John Kundla, American basketball player and coach (d. 2017)
  • 1917 – João Saldanha, Brazilian footballer, manager, and journalist (d. 1990)
  • 1918 – S. V. Ranga Rao, Indian actor, director, and producer (d. 1974)
  • 1918 – Johnny Palmer, American golfer (d. 2006)
  • 1919 – Cecil FitzMaurice, 8th Earl of Orkney (d. 1998)
  • 1919 – Gerald W. Thomas, American soldier and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1920 – Eddy Paape, Belgian illustrator (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Paul O’Dea, American baseball player and manager (d. 1978)
  • 1921 – Susan Peters, American actress (d. 1952)
  • 1921 – François Reichenbach, French director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1993)
  • 1922 – Guillaume Cornelis van Beverloo, Belgian painter and sculptor (d. 2010)
  • 1922 – Theo Brokmann Jr., Dutch football player (d. 2003)
  • 1924 – Amalia Aguilar, Cuban-Mexican film actress and dancer
  • 1924 – S. R. Nathan, 6th President of Singapore (d. 2016)
  • 1925 – Terry Moriarty, Australian rules footballer (d. 2011)
  • 1925 – Danny Nardico, American professional boxer (d. 2010)
  • 1925 – Philip Jamison, American artist
  • 1926 – Johnny Coles, American trumpet player (d. 1997)
  • 1926 – Rae Allen, American actress, singer, and director
  • 1926 – Laurence Street, Australian jurist and former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales (d. 2018)
  • 1927 – Ken Russell, English actor, director, and producer (d. 2011)
  • 1927 – Tim O’Connor, American actor (d. 2018)
  • 1928 – Evelyn Anthony, English author (d. 2018)
  • 1929 – Clément Perron, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1999)
  • 1929 – Joanne Herring, American socialite, businesswoman, political activist, philanthropist, diplomat, and television talk show host
  • 1930 – Pete Fountain, American clarinet player (d. 2016)
  • 1930 – Carlos Kleiber, German-Austrian conductor (d. 2004)
  • 1930 – Tommy Tedesco, American guitarist (d. 1997)
  • 1932 – Richard Mellon Scaife, American businessman (d. 2014)
  • 1933 – Edward Brandt, Jr., American physician and mathematician (d. 2007)
  • 1935 – Cheo Feliciano, Puerto Rican-American singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
  • 1935 – Harrison Schmitt, American geologist, astronaut, and politician
  • 1936 – Anthony Lester, Baron Lester of Herne Hill, English lawyer and politician
  • 1936 – Baard Owe, Norwegian-Danish actor
  • 1937 – Nicholas Maxwell, English philosopher and academic
  • 1937 – Tom Stoppard, Czech-English playwright and screenwriter
  • 1938 – Jean Aitchison, English linguist and academic
  • 1939 – Brigitte Fassbaender, German soprano and director
  • 1939 – László Kovács, Hungarian politician and diplomat, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1939 – Coco Laboy, Puerto Rican baseball player
  • 1940 – Lamar Alexander, American lawyer and politician, 5th United States Secretary of Education
  • 1940 – Jerzy Buzek, Polish engineer and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Poland
  • 1940 – Lance Larson, American swimmer
  • 1940 – César Tovar, Venezuelan baseball player (d. 1994)
  • 1941 – Gloria Allred, American lawyer and activist
  • 1941 – Liamine Zéroual, Algerian politician, 4th President of Algeria
  • 1942 – Eddy Mitchell, French singer-songwriter
  • 1943 – Gary Waldhorn, British actor
  • 1943 – Judith Durham, Australian folk-pop singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1943 – Kurtwood Smith, American actor
  • 1943 – Norman E. Thagard, American astronaut
  • 1945 – Michael Cole, American actor
  • 1945 – Michael Martin, Baron Martin of Springburn, Scottish politician, Speaker of the House of Commons (d. 2018)
  • 1946 – Johnny Lee, American singer and guitarist
  • 1946 – Leszek Miller, Polish political scientist and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Poland
  • 1946 – Michael Shea, American author (d. 2014)
  • 1947 – Dave Barry, American journalist and author
  • 1947 – Betty Buckley, American actress and singer
  • 1947 – Mike Burton, American swimmer
  • 1948 – Paul Barrere, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Tarmo Koivisto, Finnish author and illustrator
  • 1949 – Susan Penhaligon, English actress
  • 1949 – John Verity, English guitarist
  • 1949 – Johnnie Wilder, Jr., American singer (d. 2006)
  • 1949 – Bo Xilai, Chinese politician, Chinese Minister of Commerce
  • 1950 – Ewen Chatfield, New Zealand cricketer
  • 1950 – James Hahn, American judge and politician, 40th Mayor of Los Angeles
  • 1951 – Jean-Claude Duvalier, Haitian politician, 41st President of Haiti (d. 2014)
  • 1951 – Richard Hadlee, New Zealand cricketer and footballer
  • 1952 – Laura Branigan, American singer-songwriter (d. 2004)
  • 1952 – Lu Colombo, Italian singer
  • 1952 – Andy Fraser, English singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2015)
  • 1952 – Carla Olson, American singer-songwriter and music producer
  • 1952 – Wasim Raja, Pakistani cricketer (d. 2006)
  • 1952 – Amit Kumar, Indian film playback singer, actor, director, music director and musician
  • 1953 – Lotta Sollander, Swedish alpine skier
  • 1954 – Les Cusworth, English rugby player
  • 1955 – Claude Rajotte, Canadian radio and television host
  • 1956 – Montel Williams, American talk show host and television personality
  • 1957 – Poly Styrene, British musician (d. 2011)
  • 1958 – Matthew Fraser, Canadian-English journalist and academic
  • 1958 – Charlie Higson, English actor, singer, and author
  • 1958 – Siân Lloyd, Welsh meteorologist and journalist
  • 1958 – Didier Mouron, Swiss-Canadian painter
  • 1958 – Aaron Tippin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1959 – Julie Burchill, English journalist and author
  • 1959 – Ian Maxtone-Graham, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1959 – Stephen Pearcy, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1959 – David Shore, Canadian screenwriter and producer
  • 1960 – Vince Clarke, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
  • 1962 – Scott Borchetta, American record executive and entrepreneur
  • 1962 – Tom Cruise, American actor and producer
  • 1964 – Yeardley Smith, American actress, voice actress, comedian and writer
  • 1965 – Shinya Hashimoto, Japanese wrestler (d. 2005)
  • 1965 – Connie Nielsen, Danish-American actress
  • 1965 – Komsan Pohkong, Thai lawyer and academic
  • 1965 – Christophe Ruer, French pentathlete (d. 2007)
  • 1966 – Moisés Alou, American baseball player
  • 1967 – Katy Clark, Scottish lawyer and politician
  • 1968 – Ramush Haradinaj, Kosovo-Albanian soldier and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Kosovo
  • 1970 – Serhiy Honchar, Ukrainian cyclist
  • 1970 – Audra McDonald, American actress and singer
  • 1970 – Teemu Selänne, Finnish ice hockey player
  • 1971 – Julian Assange, Australian journalist, publisher, and activist, founded WikiLeaks
  • 1973 – Paul Rauhihi, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1973 – Ólafur Stefánsson, Icelandic handball player
  • 1973 – Fyodor Tuvin, Russian footballer (d. 2013)
  • 1976 – Wade Belak, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2011)
  • 1976 – Henry Olonga, Zimbabwean cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1976 – Wanderlei Silva, Brazilian-American mixed martial artist
  • 1976 – Bobby Skinstad, Zimbabwean-South African rugby union player
  • 1977 – David Bowens, American football player
  • 1978 – Mizuki Noguchi, Japanese runner
  • 1979 – Jamie Grove, English cricketer
  • 1980 – Mazharul Haque, Bangladeshi cricketer (d. 2013)
  • 1980 – Roland Schoeman, South African swimmer
  • 1980 – Harbhajan Singh, Indian cricketer
  • 1983 – Edinson Vólquez, Dominican baseball player
  • 1984 – Manny Lawson, American football player
  • 1984 – Churandy Martina, Dutch sprinter
  • 1984 – Corey Sevier, Canadian actor and producer
  • 1986 – Marco Antônio de Mattos Filho, Brazilian footballer
  • 1986 – Kisenosato Yutaka, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1987 – Sebastian Vettel, German race car driver
  • 1988 – Winston Reid, New Zealand-Danish footballer
  • 1988 – Vladislav Sesganov, Russian figure skater
  • 1988 – James Troisi, Australian footballer
  • 1989 – Mitchell Dodds, Australian rugby league player
  • 1989 – Elle King, American singer, songwriter, and actress
  • 1990 – Nathan Gardner, Australian rugby league player
  • 1990 – Bobby Hopkinson, English footballer
  • 1990 – Lucas Mendes, Brazilian footballer
  • 1991 – Alison Howie, Scottish field hockey player
  • 1991 – Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russian tennis player
  • 1992 – Will Smith, Australian rugby league player
  • 1994 – Ben Winchell, American actor

Deaths on July 3

  • 458 – Anatolius of Constantinople, Byzantine patriarch and saint (b. 449)
  • 710 – Emperor Zhongzong of Tang (b. 656)
  • 896 – Dong Chang, Chinese warlord
  • 964 – Henry I, Frankish nobleman and archbishop
  • 1090 – Egbert II, Margrave of Meissen (b. c. 1060)
  • 1288 – Stephen de Fulbourn, English-born Irish cleric and politician
  • 1503 – Pierre d’Aubusson, Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes (b. 1423)
  • 1570 – Aonio Paleario, Italian academic and reformer (b. 1500)
  • 1642 – Marie de’ Medici, French queen consort and regent (b. 1573)
  • 1672 – Francis Willughby, English ornithologist and ichthyologist (b. 1635)
  • 1749 – William Jones, Welsh-English mathematician and academic (b. 1675)
  • 1790 – Jean-Baptiste L. Romé de l’Isle, French geologist and mineralogist (b. 1736)
  • 1795 – Louis-Georges de Bréquigny, French scholar and author (b. 1714)
  • 1795 – Antonio de Ulloa, Spanish general, astronomer, and politician, 1st Colonial Governor of Louisiana (b. 1716)
  • 1809 – Joseph Quesnel, French-Canadian composer and playwright (b. 1746)
  • 1863 – George Hull Ward, American general (b. 1826)
  • 1863 – Little Crow, American tribal leader (b. 1810)
  • 1881 – Hasan Tahsini, Albanian astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher (b. 1811)
  • 1887 – Clay Allison, American rancher (b. 1841)
  • 1888 – Nguyễn Đình Chiểu, Vietnamese poet and author (b. 1822)
  • 1904 – Édouard Beaupré, Canadian giant and strongman (b. 1881)
  • 1904 – Theodor Herzl, Austrian journalist and playwright (b. 1860)
  • 1908 – Joel Chandler Harris, American journalist and author (b. 1845)
  • 1916 – Hetty Green, American businesswoman and financier (b. 1834)
  • 1918 – Mehmed V, Ottoman sultan (b. 1844)
  • 1921 – James Mitchel, Irish-American weight thrower (b. 1864)
  • 1927 – Gérard de Courcelles, French race car driver
  • 1933 – Hipólito Yrigoyen, Argentinian educator and politician, 19th President of Argentina (b. 1852)
  • 1935 – André Citroën, French engineer and businessman, founded the Citroën Company (b. 1878)
  • 1937 – Jacob Schick, American-Canadian captain and businessman, invented the electric razor (b. 1877)
  • 1940 – Nicolae Bivol, Moldovan businessman and politician, Mayor of Chișinău (b. 1882)
  • 1941 – Friedrich Akel, Estonian physician and politician, Head of State of Estonia (b. 1871)
  • 1954 – Siegfried Handloser, German physician and general (b. 1895)
  • 1954 – Reginald Marsh, French-American painter, illustrator, and academic (b. 1898)
  • 1957 – Dolf Luque, Cuban baseball player and manager (b. 1890)
  • 1957 – Richard Mohaupt, German composer and Kapellmeister (b. 1904)
  • 1958 – Charles Bathurst, 1st Viscount Bledisloe, English politician, 4th Governor-General of New Zealand (b. 1867)
  • 1969 – Brian Jones, English guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1942)
  • 1971 – Jim Morrison, American singer-songwriter (b. 1943)
  • 1974 – John Crowe Ransom, American poet and critic (b. 1888)
  • 1977 – Alexander Volkov, Russian mathematician and author (b. 1891)
  • 1978 – James Daly, American actor (b. 1918)
  • 1979 – Louis Durey, French pianist and composer (b. 1888)
  • 1981 – Ross Martin, American actor and director (b. 1920)
  • 1985 – Frank J. Selke, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (b. 1893)
  • 1986 – Rudy Vallée, American singer, saxophonist, and actor (b. 1901)
  • 1989 – Jim Backus, American actor and voice artist (b. 1913)
  • 1993 – Don Drysdale, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1936)
  • 1994 – Lew Hoad, Australian tennis player and coach (b. 1934)
  • 1995 – Pancho Gonzales, American tennis player (b. 1928)
  • 1995 – Eddie Mazur, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1929)
  • 1998 – Danielle Bunten Berry, American game designer and programmer (b. 1949)
  • 1999 – Mark Sandman, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1952)
  • 1999 – Pelageya Polubarinova-Kochina, Russian mathematician (b. 1899)
  • 1999 – Manoj Kumar Pandey,Param Vir ChakraIndian army personnel
  • 2001 – Mordecai Richler, Canadian author and screenwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2001 – Johnny Russell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1940)
  • 2004 – Andriyan Nikolayev, Russian general, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1929)
  • 2005 – Alberto Lattuada, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1914)
  • 2005 – Gaylord Nelson, American lawyer and politician, 35th Governor of Wisconsin (b. 1916)
  • 2006 – Joseph Goguen, American computer scientist, developed the OBJ programming language (b. 1941)
  • 2007 – Boots Randolph, American saxophonist (b. 1927)
  • 2008 – Clive Hornby, English actor and drummer (b. 1944)
  • 2008 – Oliver Schroer, Canadian fiddler, composer, and producer (b. 1956)
  • 2009 – Alauddin Al-Azad, Bangladeshi author and poet (b.1932)
  • 2009 – John Keel, American journalist and author (b. 1930)
  • 2010 – Abu Daoud, Palestinian terrorist, planned the Munich massacre (b. 1937)
  • 2011 – Ali Bahar, Bahraini singer and guitarist (b. 1960)
  • 2012 – Nguyễn Hữu Có, Vietnamese general and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Andy Griffith, American actor, singer, and producer (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Yvonne B. Miller, American educator and politician (b. 1934)
  • 2012 – Sergio Pininfarina, Italian engineer and politician (b. 1926)
  • 2012 – Richard Alvin Tonry, American lawyer and politician (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Roman Bengez, Slovenian footballer and manager (b. 1964)
  • 2013 – Francis Ray, American author (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – PJ Torokvei, Canadian actress and screenwriter (b. 1951)
  • 2013 – Radu Vasile, Romanian historian and politician, 57th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1942)
  • 2013 – Bernard Vitet, French trumpet player and composer (b. 1934)
  • 2013 – Snoo Wilson, English playwright and screenwriter (b. 1948)
  • 2014 – Jini Dellaccio, American photographer (b. 1917)
  • 2014 – Tim Flood, Irish hurler and coach (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Volkmar Groß, German footballer (b. 1948)
  • 2014 – Ira Ruskin, American politician (b. 1943)
  • 2014 – Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Ukrainian-American rabbi and author (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Diana Douglas, British-American actress (b. 1923)
  • 2015 – Boyd K. Packer, American religious leader and educator (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Wayne Townsend, American farmer and politician (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Phil Walsh, Australian footballer and coach (b. 1960)
  • 2020 – Saroj Khan, Indian dance choreographer, known as “The Mother of Dance/Choreography in India”.(b. 1948)

Holidays and observances on July 3

  • Christian feast day:
    • Anatolius of Constantinople
    • Anatolius of Laodicea
    • Dathus
    • Germanus of Man
    • Gurthiern
    • Heliodorus of Altino
    • Mucian
    • Peregrina Mogas Fontcuberta
    • Pope Leo II
    • Thomas the Apostle
    • July 3 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Emancipation Day (United States Virgin Islands)
  • Independence Day, celebrates the liberation of Minsk from Nazi occupation by Soviet troops in 1944 (Belarus)
  • The start of the Dog Days according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac but not according to established meaning in most European cultures
  • Women’s Day (Myanmar)

July 3 – History, Events, Births, Deaths Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

June 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 763 BC – Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history.
  • 844 – Louis II is crowned as king of Italy at Rome by pope Sergius II.
  • 923 – Battle of Soissons: King Robert I of France is killed and King Charles the Simple is arrested by the supporters of Duke Rudolph of Burgundy.
  • 1184 – The naval Battle of Fimreite is won by the Birkebeiner pretender Sverre Sigurdsson. Sigurdsson takes the Norwegian throne and King Magnus V of Norway is killed.
  • 1215 – King John of England puts his seal to Magna Carta.
  • 1219 – Northern Crusades: Danish victory at the Battle of Lindanise (modern-day Tallinn) establishes the Danish Duchy of Estonia.
  • 1246 – With the death of Frederick II, Duke of Austria, the Babenberg dynasty ends in Austria.
  • 1300 – The city of Bilbao is founded.
  • 1312 – At the Battle of Rozgony, King Charles I of Hungary wins a decisive victory over the family of Palatine Amade Aba.
  • 1389 – Battle of Kosovo: The Ottoman Empire defeats Serbs and Bosnians.
  • 1410 – In a decisive battle at Onon River, the Mongol forces of Oljei Temur were decimated by the Chinese armies of the Yongle Emperor.
  • 1502 – Christopher Columbus lands on the island of Martinique on his fourth voyage.
  • 1520 – Pope Leo X threatens to excommunicate Martin Luther in Exsurge Domine.
  • 1648 – Margaret Jones is hanged in Boston for witchcraft in the first such execution for the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
  • 1667 – The first human blood transfusion is administered by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys.
  • 1670 – The first stone of Fort Ricasoli is laid down in Malta.
  • 1752 – Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity (traditional date, the exact date is unknown).
  • 1776 – Delaware Separation Day: Delaware votes to suspend government under the British Crown and separate officially from Pennsylvania.
  • 1800 – The Provisional Army of the United States is dissolved.
  • 1804 – New Hampshire approves the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratifying the document.
  • 1808 – Joseph Bonaparte becomes King of Spain.
  • 1836 – Arkansas is admitted as the 25th U.S. state.
  • 1844 – Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.
  • 1846 – The Oregon Treaty extends the border between the United States and British North America, established by the Treaty of 1818, westward to the Pacific Ocean.
  • 1859 – Ambiguity in the Oregon Treaty leads to the “Northwestern Boundary Dispute” between American and British/Canadian settlers.
  • 1864 – American Civil War: The Second Battle of Petersburg begins.
  • 1864 – Arlington National Cemetery is established when 200 acres (0.81 km2) of the Arlington estate (formerly owned by Confederate General Robert E. Lee) are officially set aside as a military cemetery by U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
  • 1877 – Henry Ossian Flipper becomes the first African American cadet to graduate from the United States Military Academy.
  • 1878 – Eadweard Muybridge takes a series of photographs to prove that all four feet of a horse leave the ground when it runs; the study becomes the basis of motion pictures.
  • 1888 – Crown Prince Wilhelm becomes Kaiser Wilhelm II; he will be the last Emperor of the German Empire. Due to the death of his predecessors Wilhelm I and Frederick III, 1888 is the Year of the Three Emperors.
  • 1896 – The deadliest tsunami in Japan’s history kills more than 22,000 people.
  • 1904 – A fire aboard the steamboat SS General Slocum in New York City’s East River kills 1,000.
  • 1916 – United States President Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter.
  • 1919 – John Alcock and Arthur Brown complete the first nonstop transatlantic flight when they reach Clifden, County Galway, Ireland.
  • 1920 – Following the 1920 Schleswig plebiscites, Northern Schleswig is transferred from Germany to Denmark.
  • 1921 – Bessie Coleman earns her pilot’s license, becoming the first female pilot of African-American descent.
  • 1934 – The United States Great Smoky Mountains National Park is founded.
  • 1936 – First flight of the Vickers Wellington bomber.
  • 1937 – A German expedition led by Karl Wien loses sixteen members in an avalanche on Nanga Parbat. It is the worst single disaster to occur on an 8000m peak.
  • 1940 – World War II: Operation Ariel begins: Allied troops start to evacuate France, following Germany’s takeover of Paris and most of the nation.
  • 1944 – World War II: The United States invades Saipan, capital of Japan’s South Seas Mandate.
  • 1944 – In the Saskatchewan general election, the CCF, led by Tommy Douglas, is elected and forms the first socialist government in North America.
  • 1970 – Charles Manson goes on trial for the Sharon Tate murders.
  • 1972 – Red Army Faction co-founder Ulrike Meinhof is captured by police in Langenhagen.
  • 1977 – After the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, the first democratic elections took place in Spain.
  • 1978 – King Hussein of Jordan marries American Lisa Halaby, who takes the name Queen Noor.
  • 1985 – Rembrandt’s painting Danaë is attacked by a man (later judged insane) who throws sulfuric acid on the canvas and cuts it twice with a knife.
  • 1991 – In the Philippines, Mount Pinatubo erupts in the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century, killing over 800 people.
  • 1992 – The United States Supreme Court rules in United States v. Álvarez-Machaín that it is permissible for the United States to forcibly extradite suspects in foreign countries and bring them to the United States for trial, without approval from those other countries.
  • 1994 – Israel and Vatican City establish full diplomatic relations.
  • 1996 – The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonates a powerful truck bomb in the middle of Manchester, England, devastating the city centre and injuring 200 people.
  • 2001 – Leaders of the People’s Republic of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan formed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
  • 2012 – Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to successfully tightrope walk directly over Niagara Falls.
  • 2013 – A bomb explodes on a bus in the Pakistani city of Quetta, killing at least 25 people and wounding 22 others.

Births on June 15

  • 1330 – Edward, the Black Prince of England (d. 1376)
  • 1479 – Lisa del Giocondo, Italian model, subject of the Mona Lisa (d. 1542)
  • 1519 – Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1536)
  • 1542 – Richard Grenville, English captain and explorer (d. 1591)
  • 1549 – Elizabeth Knollys, English noblewoman (d. 1605)
  • 1553 – Archduke Ernest of Austria (d. 1595)
  • 1605 – Thomas Randolph, English poet and playwright (d. 1635)
  • 1618 – François Blondel, French architect (d. 1686)
  • 1623 – Cornelis de Witt, Dutch politician (d. 1672)
  • 1624 – Hiob Ludolf, German orientalist and philologist (d. 1704)
  • 1640 – Bernard Lamy, French mathematician and theologian (d. 1715)
  • 1645 – Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, English politician (d. 1712)
  • 1749 – Georg Joseph Vogler, German organist, composer, and theorist (d. 1814)
  • 1754 – Juan José Elhuyar, Spanish chemist and mineralogist (d. 1796)
  • 1755 – Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist and entomologist (d. 1809)
  • 1763 – Franz Danzi, German cellist, composer, and conductor (d. 1826)
  • 1763 – Kobayashi Issa, Japanese priest and poet (d. 1827)
  • 1765 – Martin Baum, American businessman and politician, Mayor of Cincinnati (d. 1831)
  • 1765 – Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1831)
  • 1767 – Rachel Jackson, American wife of Andrew Jackson (d. 1828)
  • 1777 – David Daniel Davis, Welsh physician and academic (d. 1841)
  • 1789 – Josiah Henson, American minister, author, and activist (d. 1883)
  • 1792 – Thomas Mitchell, Scottish-Australian colonel and explorer (d. 1855)
  • 1801 – Benjamin Wright Raymond, American merchant and politician, 3rd Mayor of Chicago (d. 1883)
  • 1805 – William B. Ogden, American businessman and politician, 1st Mayor of Chicago (d. 1877)
  • 1809 – François-Xavier Garneau, Canadian poet and historian (d. 1866)
  • 1835 – Adah Isaacs Menken, American actress, painter, and poet (d. 1868)
  • 1843 – Edvard Grieg, Norwegian pianist and composer (d. 1907)
  • 1848 – Gheevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala, Indian bishop and saint (d. 1902)
  • 1872 – Thomas William Burgess, English swimmer and water polo player (d. 1950)
  • 1875 – Herman Smith-Johannsen, Norwegian-Canadian skier (d. 1987)
  • 1878 – Margaret Abbott, Indian-American golfer (d. 1955)
  • 1881 – Kesago Nakajima, Japanese lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army (d. 1945)
  • 1884 – Harry Langdon, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1944)
  • 1886 – Frank Clement, British racing driver (d. 1970)
  • 1888 – Ramón López Velarde, Mexican poet and author (d. 1921)
  • 1890 – Georg Wüst, German oceanographer and academic (d. 1977)
  • 1894 – Robert Russell Bennett, American composer and conductor (d. 1981)
  • 1894 – Nikolai Chebotaryov, Ukrainian-Russian mathematician and theorist (d. 1947)
  • 1898 – Hubertus Strughold, German-American physiologist and academic (d. 1986)
  • 1900 – Gotthard Günther, German philosopher and academic (d. 1984)
  • 1900 – Otto Luening, German-American composer and conductor (d. 1996)
  • 1901 – Elmar Lohk, Russian-Estonian architect (d. 1963)
  • 1902 – Erik Erikson, German-American psychologist and psychoanalyst (d. 1994)
  • 1906 – Gordon Welchman, English-American mathematician and author (d. 1985)
  • 1906 – Léon Degrelle, Belgian SS officer (d. 1994)
  • 1907 – James Robertson Justice, English actor and educator (d. 1975)
  • 1909 – Elena Nikolaidi, Greek-American soprano and educator (d. 2002)
  • 1910 – David Rose, English-American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1990)
  • 1911 – Wilbert Awdry, English author, co-created Thomas the Tank Engine (d. 1997)
  • 1913 – Tom Adair, American songwriter, composer, and screenwriter (d. 1988)
  • 1914 – Yuri Andropov, Russian politician (d. 1984)
  • 1914 – Saul Steinberg, Romanian-American cartoonist (d. 1999)
  • 1914 – Hilda Terry, American cartoonist (d. 2006)
  • 1915 – Nini Theilade, Danish ballet dancer, choreographer, and educator (d. 2018)
  • 1915 – Thomas Huckle Weller, American biologist and virologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2008)
  • 1916 – Olga Erteszek, Polish-American fashion designer (d. 1989)
  • 1916 – Horacio Salgán, Argentinian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2016)
  • 1916 – Herbert A. Simon, American political scientist and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)
  • 1917 – John Fenn, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
  • 1917 – Michalis Genitsaris, Greek singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
  • 1917 – Lash LaRue, American actor and producer (d. 1996)
  • 1918 – François Tombalbaye, Chadian politician, 1st President of Chad (d. 1975)
  • 1920 – Keith Andrews, American race car driver (d. 1957)
  • 1920 – Alla Kazanskaya, Russian actress (d. 2008)
  • 1920 – Sam Sniderman, Canadian businessman, founded Sam the Record Man (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Alberto Sordi, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
  • 1921 – Erroll Garner, American pianist and composer (d. 1977)
  • 1922 – Jaki Byard, American pianist and composer (d. 1999)
  • 1923 – Erland Josephson, Swedish actor and director (d. 2012)
  • 1923 – Ninian Stephen, English-Australian lieutenant, judge, and politician, 20th Governor-General of Australia (d. 2017)
  • 1924 – Hédi Fried, Swedish author and psychologist
  • 1924 – Ezer Weizman, Israeli general and politician, 7th President of Israel (d. 2005)
  • 1925 – Richard Baker, English journalist and author (d. 2018)
  • 1925 – Attilâ İlhan, Turkish poet, author, and critic (d. 2005)
  • 1926 – Alfred Duraiappah, Sri Lankan Tamil lawyer and politician (d. 1975)
  • 1927 – Ross Andru, American illustrator (d. 1993)
  • 1927 – Ibn-e-Insha, Indian-Pakistani poet and author (d. 1978)
  • 1927 – Hugo Pratt, Italian author and illustrator (d. 1995)
  • 1930 – Miguel Méndez, American author and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1930 – Marcel Pronovost, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2015)
  • 1931 – Joseph Gilbert, English air marshal
  • 1931 – Brian Sewell, English art dealer and critic (d. 2015)
  • 1932 – David Alliance, Baron Alliance, Iranian-English businessman and politician
  • 1932 – Mario Cuomo, American lawyer and politician, 52nd Governor of New York (d. 2015)
  • 1932 – Zia Fariduddin Dagar, Indian singer (d. 2013)
  • 1932 – Bernie Faloney, American-Canadian football player and sportscaster (d. 1999)
  • 1933 – Mohammad-Ali Rajai, Iranian politician, 2nd President of Iran (d. 1981)
  • 1933 – Predrag Koraksić Corax, Serbian political caricaturist
  • 1934 – Ruby Nash Garnett, American R&B singer
  • 1936 – William Levada, American cardinal
  • 1937 – Pierre Billon, Swiss-Canadian author and screenwriter
  • 1937 – Waylon Jennings, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)
  • 1938 – Billy Williams, American baseball player and coach
  • 1939 – Ward Connerly, American activist and businessman, founded the American Civil Rights Institute
  • 1941 – Neal Adams, American illustrator
  • 1941 – Harry Nilsson, American singer-songwriter (d. 1994)
  • 1942 – Ian Greenberg, Canadian broadcaster, founded Astral Media
  • 1942 – John E. McLaughlin, American diplomat
  • 1942 – Peter Norman, Australian sprinter (d. 2006)
  • 1943 – Johnny Hallyday, French singer and actor (d. 2017)
  • 1943 – Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, Danish politician, 38th Prime Minister of Denmark
  • 1944 – Robert D. Keppel, American police officer and academic
  • 1945 – Miriam Defensor Santiago, Filipino judge and politician (d. 2016)
  • 1945 – Robert Sarah, Guinean cardinal
  • 1945 – Lawrence Wilkerson, American colonel
  • 1946 – Noddy Holder, English rock singer-songwriter, musician, and actor
  • 1946 – John Horner, American paleontologist and academic
  • 1946 – Demis Roussos, Egyptian-Greek singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2015)
  • 1947 – John Hoagland, American photographer and journalist (d. 1984)
  • 1948 – Mike Holmgren, American football player and coach
  • 1948 – Alan Huckle, English politician and diplomat, Governor of Anguilla
  • 1948 – Henry McLeish, Scottish footballer, academic, and politician, 2nd First Minister of Scotland
  • 1949 – Dusty Baker, American baseball player and manager
  • 1949 – Simon Callow, English actor and director
  • 1949 – Russell Hitchcock, Australian singer-songwriter
  • 1949 – Jim Varney, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (d. 2000)
  • 1950 – Uğur Erdener, Turkish ophthalmologist and professor
  • 1950 – Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Ghanaian nurse and politician
  • 1950 – Deney Terrio, American choreographer and host of the television musical variety series Dance Fever
  • 1950 – Lakshmi Mittal, Indian-English businessman
  • 1951 – Jane Amsterdam, American magazine and newspaper editor (Manhattan, inc., New York Post)
  • 1951 – Vance A. Larson, American painter (d. 2000)
  • 1951 – John Redwood, English politician, Secretary of State for Wales
  • 1951 – Steve Walsh, American rock singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1952 – Satya Pal Jain, Indian lawyer and politician, Additional Solicitor General of India
  • 1953 – Vilma Bardauskienė, Lithuanian long jumper
  • 1953 – Marc Brickman, American lighting and production designer
  • 1953 – Eje Elgh, Swedish racing driver and sportscaster
  • 1953 – Xi Jinping, Chinese engineer and politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party and President of China
  • 1953 – Raphael Wallfisch, English cellist and educator
  • 1954 – Jim Belushi, American actor
  • 1954 – Terri Gibbs, American country music singer and keyboard player
  • 1954 – Paul Rusesabagina, Rwandan humanitarian
  • 1954 – Zdeňka Šilhavá, Czech discus thrower and shot putter
  • 1954 – Beverley Whitfield, Australian swimmer (d. 1996)
  • 1955 – Polly Draper, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1955 – Julie Hagerty, American model and actress
  • 1956 – Yevgeny Kiselyov, Russian-Ukrainian journalist
  • 1956 – Lance Parrish, American baseball player, coach, and manager
  • 1958 – Wade Boggs, American baseball player
  • 1958 – Riccardo Paletti, Italian racing driver (d. 1982)
  • 1959 – Alan Brazil, Scottish footballer and sportscaster
  • 1959 – Eileen Davidson, American model and actress
  • 1960 – Michèle Laroque, French actress, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Marieke van Doorn, Dutch field hockey player and coach
  • 1961 – Dave McAuley, Irish boxer and sportscaster
  • 1961 – Scott Norton, American wrestler
  • 1962 – Brad Armstrong, American wrestler (d. 2012)
  • 1962 – Chris Morris, English actor, satirist, director, and producer
  • 1962 – Andrea Rost, Hungarian soprano
  • 1963 – Marina Azyabina, Russian hurdler
  • 1963 – Mario Gosselin, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
  • 1963 – Helen Hunt, American actress, director, and producer
  • 1964 – Courteney Cox, American actress and producer
  • 1964 – Michael Laudrup, Danish footballer and manager
  • 1965 – Annelies Bredael, Belgian rower
  • 1965 – Karim Massimov, Kazakhstani politician, 7th Prime Minister of Kazakhstan
  • 1965 – Adam Smith, American lawyer and politician
  • 1966 – Raimonds Vējonis, Latvian politician, 9th President of Latvia
  • 1968 – Károly Güttler, Hungarian swimmer
  • 1969 – Jesse Bélanger, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1969 – Ice Cube, American rapper, producer, and actor
  • 1969 – Idalis DeLeón, American singer and actress
  • 1969 – Nasos Galakteros, Greek basketball player
  • 1969 – Oliver Kahn, German footballer and sportscaster
  • 1969 – Maurice Odumbe, Kenyan cricketer
  • 1969 – Cédric Pioline, French tennis player
  • 1970 – Christian Bauman, American soldier and author
  • 1970 – David Bayssari, Australian rugby league player
  • 1970 – Gaëlle Méchaly, French soprano
  • 1970 – Leah Remini, American actress and producer
  • 1970 – Žan Tabak, Croatian basketball player and coach
  • 1971 – Christos Myriounis, Greek basketball player
  • 1971 – Jake Busey, American actor, musician, and film producer
  • 1972 – Justin Leonard, American golfer
  • 1972 – Andy Pettitte, American baseball player
  • 1973 – Tore Andre Flo, Norwegian footballer and coach
  • 1973 – Neil Patrick Harris, American actor and singer
  • 1973 – Pia Miranda, Australian actress
  • 1976 – Jiří Ryba, Czech decathlete
  • 1977 – Michael Doleac, American basketball player and manager
  • 1978 – Wilfred Bouma, Dutch footballer
  • 1978 – Zach Day, American baseball player
  • 1979 – Yulia Nestsiarenka, Belarusian sprinter
  • 1979 – Christian Rahn, German footballer
  • 1979 – Charles Zwolsman, Jr., Dutch racing driver
  • 1980 – David Lyons, Australian rugby player
  • 1981 – John Paintsil, Ghanaian footballer
  • 1982 – Mike Delany, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1982 – Abdur Razzak, Bangladeshi cricketer
  • 1983 – Julia Fischer, German violinist and pianist[citation needed]
  • 1983 – Laura Imbruglia, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist[citation needed]
  • 1983 – Josh McGuire, Canadian fencer
  • 1984 – Luke Hodge, Australian footballer
  • 1984 – Eva Hrdinová, Czech tennis player
  • 1984 – Tim Lincecum, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Edison Toloza, Colombian footballer
  • 1985 – Ashley Nicole Black, American comedian, actress, and writer
  • 1986 – James Maloney, Australian rugby league player
  • 1986 – Trevor Plouffe, American baseball player
  • 1989 – Víctor Cabedo, Spanish cyclist (d. 2012)
  • 1989 – Bryan Clauson, American race car driver (d. 2016)
  • 1992 – Michał Kopczyński, Polish footballer
  • 1992 – Mohamed Salah, Egyptian footballer
  • 1992 – Dafne Schippers, Dutch heptathlete and sprinter
  • 1993 – Irfan Hadžić, Bosnian footballer
  • 1994 – Inaki Williams, Basque footballer
  • 1997 – Madison Kocian, American gymnast

Deaths on June 15

  • 923 – Robert I of France (b. 866)
  • 948 – Romanos I Lekapenos, Byzantine Emperor (b. c. 870)
  • 952 – Murong Yanchao, Chinese general
  • 960 – Eadburh of Winchester, English princess and saint
  • 970 – Adalbert, bishop of Passau
  • 991 – Theophanu, Byzantine wife of Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 960)
  • 1073 – Emperor Go-Sanjō of Japan (b. 1034)
  • 1184 – Magnus Erlingsson, King of Norway (b. 1156)
  • 1189 – Minamoto no Yoshitsune, Japanese general (b. 1159)
  • 1246 – Frederick II, Duke of Austria (b. 1219)
  • 1337 – Angelo da Clareno, Italian Franciscan and leader of a group of Fraticelli (b. 1247)
  • 1341 – Andronikos III Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1297)
  • 1381 – John Cavendish, English lawyer and judge (b. 1346)
  • 1381 – Wat Tyler, English rebel leader (b. 1341)
  • 1383 – John VI Kantakouzenos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1292)
  • 1383 – Matthew Kantakouzenos, Byzantine emperor
  • 1389 – Lazar of Serbia (b. 1329)
  • 1389 – Murad I, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1319)
  • 1389 – Miloš Obilić, Serbian knight.
  • 1416 – John, Duke of Berry (b. 1340)
  • 1467 – Philip III, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1396)
  • 1521 – Tamás Bakócz, Hungarian cardinal (b. 1442)
  • 1614 – Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, English courtier and politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. 1540)
  • 1724 – Henry Sacheverell, English minister and politician (b. 1674)
  • 1768 – James Short, Scottish mathematician and optician (b. 1710)
  • 1772 – Louis-Claude Daquin, French organist and composer (b. 1694)
  • 1844 – Thomas Campbell, Scottish poet and academic (b. 1777)
  • 1849 – James K. Polk, American lawyer and politician, 11th President of the United States (b. 1795)
  • 1858 – Ary Scheffer, Dutch-French painter and academic (b. 1795)
  • 1888 – Frederick III, German Emperor (b. 1831)
  • 1889 – Mihai Eminescu, Romanian journalist, author, and poet (b. 1850)
  • 1890 – Unryū Kyūkichi, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 10th Yokozuna (b. 1822)
  • 1917 – Kristian Birkeland, Norwegian physicist and academic (b. 1867)
  • 1934 – Alfred Bruneau, French cellist and composer (b. 1857)
  • 1938 – Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, German painter and illustrator (b. 1880)
  • 1941 – Otfrid Foerster, German neurologist and physician (b. 1873)
  • 1941 – Evelyn Underhill, English mystic and author (b. 1875)
  • 1945 – Count Albert von Mensdorff-Pouilly-Dietrichstein, Austrian diplomat
  • 1961 – Giulio Cabianca, Italian racing driver (b. 1923)
  • 1961 – Peyami Safa, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1899)
  • 1962 – Alfred Cortot, Swiss pianist and conductor (b. 1877)
  • 1967 – Tatu Kolehmainen, Finnish runner (b. 1885)
  • 1968 – Sam Crawford, American baseball player, coach, and umpire (b. 1880)
  • 1968 – Wes Montgomery, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1925)
  • 1971 – Wendell Meredith Stanley, American biochemist and virologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
  • 1976 – Jimmy Dykes, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1896)
  • 1984 – Meredith Willson, American playwright, composer, and conductor (b. 1902)
  • 1985 – Andy Stanfield, American sprinter (b. 1927)
  • 1989 – Maurice Bellemare, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1912)
  • 1989 – Ray McAnally, Irish actor (b. 1926)
  • 1991 – Happy Chandler, American businessman and politician, 49th Governor of Kentucky (b. 1898)
  • 1991 – Arthur Lewis, Saint Lucian economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1915)
  • 1992 – Chuck Menville, American animator, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1940)
  • 1992 – Brett Whiteley, Australian painter (b. 1939)
  • 1993 – John Connally, American commander, lawyer, and politician, 61st United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1917)
  • 1993 – James Hunt, English racing driver and sportscaster (b. 1947)
  • 1994 – Manos Hatzidakis, Greek composer and theorist (b. 1925)
  • 1995 – John Vincent Atanasoff, American physicist and inventor, invented the Atanasoff–Berry computer (b. 1903)
  • 1996 – Ella Fitzgerald, American singer and actress (b. 1917)
  • 1996 – Sir Fitzroy Maclean, 1st Baronet, Scottish general and politician (b. 1911)
  • 1996 – Dick Murdoch, American wrestler (b. 1946)
  • 1999 – Omer Côté, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1906)
  • 2000 – Jules Roy, French author, poet, and playwright (b. 1907)
  • 2001 – Henri Alekan, French cinematographer (b. 1909)
  • 2002 – Choi Hong Hi, South Korean general and martial artist, founded Taekwondo (b. 1918)
  • 2003 – Hume Cronyn, Canadian-American actor (b. 1911)
  • 2004 – Ahmet Piriştina, Turkish politician and mayor of İzmir (b. 1952)
  • 2005 – Suzanne Flon, French actress (b. 1918)
  • 2006 – Raymond Devos, Belgian-French comedian and clown (b. 1922)
  • 2006 – Herb Pearson, New Zealand cricketer (b. 1910)
  • 2008 – Ray Getliffe, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1914)
  • 2011 – Bill Haast, American herpetologist and academic (b. 1910)
  • 2012 – Phillip D. Cagan, American economist and author (b. 1927)
  • 2012 – Capitola Dickerson, American pianist and educator (b. 1913)
  • 2012 – Barry MacKay, American tennis player and sportscaster (b. 1935)
  • 2012 – Israel Nogueda Otero, Mexican economist and politician, 10th Governor of Guerrero (b. 1935)
  • 2012 – Jerry Tubbs, American football player and coach (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Heinz Flohe, German footballer and manager (b. 1948)
  • 2013 – José Froilán González, Argentinian racing driver (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Dennis O’Rourke, Australian director and producer (b. 1945)
  • 2013 – Kenneth G. Wilson, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1936)
  • 2014 – Jacques Bergerac, French actor and businessman (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Casey Kasem, American radio host, producer, and voice actor, co-created American Top 40 (b. 1932)
  • 2014 – Daniel Keyes, American short story writer and novelist (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Moise Safra, Brazilian businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Banco Safra (b. 1934)
  • 2015 – Kirk Kerkorian, American businessman, founded the Tracinda Corporation (b. 1917)
  • 2016 – Lois Duncan, American author (b. 1934)
  • 2018 – Matt “Guitar” Murphy, American Blues guitarist (The Blues Brothers) (b. 1929)
  • 2019 – Franco Zeffirelli, Italian film director (b. 1923)

Holidays and observances on June 15

  • Arbor Day (Costa Rica)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Abraham of Clermont (or of St Cyriacus)
    • Alice (or Adelaide) of Schaerbeek
    • Augustine of Hippo (Eastern Orthodox Church)
    • Blessed Albertina Berkenbrock
    • Blessed Clement Vismara
    • Edburga of Winchester
    • Evelyn Underhill (Church of England and The Episcopal Church)
    • Germaine Cousin
    • Landelin (of Crespin or of Lobbes)
    • Trillo
    • Vitus (Guy), Modestus and Crescentia
    • June 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of Valdemar and Reunion Day (Flag Day) (Denmark)
  • Earliest day on which Father’s Day can fall, while June 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Sunday in June. (United States, and most other countries.)
  • Engineer’s Day (Italy)
  • Global Wind Day (international)
  • National Beer Day (United Kingdom)
  • National Salvation Day (Azerbaijan)

June 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 28 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day, Uncategorized /
  • 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V effectively ending the Parthian Empire.
  • 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory over Magnus Magnentius.
  • 1192 – Assassination of Conrad of Montferrat (Conrad I), King of Jerusalem, in Tyre, two days after his title to the throne is confirmed by election. The killing is carried out by Hashshashin.
  • 1253 – Nichiren, a Japanese Buddhist monk, propounds Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō for the very first time and declares it to be the essence of Buddhism, in effect founding Nichiren Buddhism.
  • 1503 – The Battle of Cerignola is fought. It is noted as one of the first European battles in history won by small arms fire using gunpowder.
  • 1611 – Establishment of the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines, the largest Catholic university in the world.
  • 1758 – The Marathas defeat the Afghans in the Battle of Attock and capture the city.
  • 1788 – Maryland becomes the seventh state to ratify the United States Constitution.
  • 1789 – Mutiny on the Bounty: Lieutenant William Bligh and 18 sailors are set adrift and the rebel crew returns to Tahiti briefly and then sets sail for Pitcairn Island.
  • 1792 – France invades the Austrian Netherlands (present day Belgium and Luxembourg), beginning the French Revolutionary Wars.
  • 1794 – Sardinians, headed by Giovanni Maria Angioy, start a revolution against Savoy domination, expelling Viceroy Balbiano and his officials from Cagliari, the capital and largest city of the island.
  • 1796 – The Armistice of Cherasco is signed by Napoleon Bonaparte and Vittorio Amedeo III, King of Sardinia, expanding French territory along the Mediterranean coast.
  • 1869 – Chinese and Irish laborers for the Central Pacific Railroad working on the First Transcontinental Railroad lay ten miles of track in one day, a feat which has never been matched.
  • 1881 – Billy the Kid escapes from the Lincoln County jail in Mesilla, New Mexico.
  • 1887 – A week after being arrested by the Prussian Secret Police, French police inspector Guillaume Schnaebelé is released on order of William I, German Emperor, defusing a possible war.
  • 1910 – Frenchman Louis Paulhan wins the 1910 London to Manchester air race, the first long-distance aeroplane race in England.
  • 1920 – Azerbaijan is added to the Soviet Union.
  • 1923 – Wembley Stadium is opened, named initially as the Empire Stadium.
  • 1930 – The Independence Producers hosted the first night game in the history of Organized Baseball in Independence, Kansas.
  • 1941 – The Ustaše massacre nearly 200 Serbs in the village of Gudovac, the first massacre of their genocidal campaign against Serbs of the Independent State of Croatia.
  • 1944 – World War II: Nine German E-boats attacked US and UK units during Exercise Tiger, the rehearsal for the Normandy landings, killing 946.
  • 1945 – Benito Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci are shot dead by Walter Audisio, a member of the Italian resistance movement.
  • 1947 – Thor Heyerdahl and five crew mates set out from Peru on the Kon-Tiki to demonstrate that Peruvian natives could have settled Polynesia.
  • 1948 – Igor Stravinsky conducted the premiere of his American ballet, Orpheus at the New York City Center.
  • 1949 – The Hukbalahap are accused of assassinating former First Lady of the Philippines Aurora Quezon, while she is en route to dedicate a hospital in memory of her late husband; her daughter and ten others are also killed.
  • 1952 – Dwight D. Eisenhower resigns as Supreme Allied Commander of NATO.
  • 1952 – The Treaty of San Francisco comes into effect, restoring Japanese sovereignty and ending its state of war with most of the Allies of World War II.
  • 1952 – The Sino-Japanese Peace Treaty (Treaty of Taipei) is signed in Taipei, Taiwan between Japan and the Republic of China to officially end the Second Sino-Japanese War.
  • 1965 – United States occupation of the Dominican Republic: American troops land in the Dominican Republic to “forestall establishment of a Communist dictatorship” and to evacuate U.S. Army troops.
  • 1967 – Vietnam War: Boxer Muhammad Ali refuses his induction into the United States Army and is subsequently stripped of his championship and license.
  • 1969 – Charles de Gaulle resigns as President of France.
  • 1970 – Vietnam War: U.S. President Richard Nixon formally authorizes American combat troops to take part in the Cambodian campaign.
  • 1973 – The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, recorded in Abbey Road Studios goes to number one on the US Billboard chart, beginning a record-breaking 741-week chart run.
  • 1975 – General Cao Văn Viên, chief of the South Vietnamese military, departs for the US as the North Vietnamese Army closed in on victory.
  • 1977 – The Red Army Faction trial ends, with Andreas Baader, Gudrun Ensslin and Jan-Carl Raspe found guilty of four counts of murder and more than 30 counts of attempted murder.
  • 1978 – President of Afghanistan, Mohammed Daoud Khan, is overthrown and assassinated in a coup led by pro-communist rebels.
  • 1986 – The United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Enterprise becomes the first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to transit the Suez Canal, navigating from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea to relieve the USS Coral Sea.
  • 1986 – High levels of radiation resulting from the Chernobyl disaster are detected at a nuclear power plant in Sweden, leading Soviet authorities to publicly announce the accident.
  • 1988 – Near Maui, Hawaii, flight attendant Clarabelle “C.B.” Lansing is blown out of Aloha Airlines Flight 243, a Boeing 737, and falls to her death when part of the plane’s fuselage rips open in mid-flight.
  • 1993 – A Zambia Air Force DHC-5 Buffalo crashes off the coast of Libreville, Gabon, killing all 30 passengers, which included the entire Zambia national football team.
  • 1994 – Former Central Intelligence Agency counterintelligence officer and analyst Aldrich Ames pleads guilty to giving U.S. secrets to the Soviet Union and later Russia.
  • 1996 – Whitewater controversy: President Bill Clinton gives a 4½ hour videotaped testimony for the defense.
  • 1996 – Port Arthur massacre, Tasmania: A gunman, Martin Bryant, opens fire at the Broad Arrow Cafe in Port Arthur, Tasmania, killing 35 people and wounding 23 others.
  • 2004 – CBS News released evidence of the Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse. The photographs show rape and abuse from the American troops over Iraqi detainees.

Births on April 28

  • AD 32 – Otho, Roman emperor (d. 69 AD)
  • 1402 – Nezahualcoyotl, Acolhuan philosopher, warrior, poet and ruler (d. 1472)
  • 1442 – Edward IV, king of England (d. 1483)
  • 1545 – Yi Sun-sin, Korean commander (d. 1598)
  • 1573 – Charles de Valois, Duke of Angoulême, son of Charles IX (d. 1650)
  • 1604 – Joris Jansen Rapelje, Dutch settler in colonial North America (d. 1662)
  • 1623 – Wilhelmus Beekman, Dutch politician (d. 1707)
  • 1630 – Charles Cotton, English poet and author (d. 1687)
  • 1676 – Frederick I, prince consort and king of Sweden (d. 1751)
  • 1715 – Franz Sparry, Austrian composer and educator (d. 1767)
  • 1758 – James Monroe, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 5th President of the United States (d. 1831)
  • 1761 – Marie Harel, French cheesemaker (d. 1844)
  • 1765 – Sylvestre François Lacroix, French mathematician and academic (d. 1834)
  • 1819 – Ezra Abbot, American scholar and academic (d. 1884)
  • 1827 – William Hall, Canadian soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1904)
  • 1838 – Tobias Asser, Dutch lawyer and scholar, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1913)
  • 1848 – Ludvig Schytte, Danish pianist, composer, and educator (d. 1909)
  • 1854 – Hertha Marks Ayrton, Polish-British engineer, mathematician, and physicist. (d. 1923)
  • 1855 – José Malhoa, Portuguese painter (d. 1933)
  • 1863 – Josiah Thomas, English-Australian miner and politician, 7th Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 1933)
  • 1863 – Nikolai von Meck, Russian engineer (d. 1929)
  • 1865 – Charles W. Woodworth, American entomologist and academic (d. 1940)
  • 1868 – Lucy Booth, English composer (d. 1953)
  • 1868 – Georgy Voronoy, Ukrainian-Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1908)
  • 1874 – Karl Kraus, Austrian journalist and author (d. 1936)
  • 1874 – Sidney Toler, American actor and director (d. 1947)
  • 1876 – Nicola Romeo, Italian engineer and businessman (d. 1938)
  • 1878 – Lionel Barrymore, American actor and director (d. 1954)
  • 1886 – Erich Salomon, German-born news photographer (d. 1944)
  • 1886 – Art Shaw, American hurdler (d. 1955)
  • 1888 – Walter Tull, English footballer and soldier (d. 1918)
  • 1889 – António de Oliveira Salazar, Portuguese economist and politician, 100th Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1970)
  • 1896 – Na Hye-sok, South Korean journalist, poet, and painter (d. 1948)
  • 1896 – Tristan Tzara, Romanian-French poet and critic (d. 1963)
  • 1897 – Ye Jianying, Chinese general and politician, Head of State of the People’s Republic of China (d. 1986)
  • 1900 – Alice Berry, Australian activist (d. 1978)
  • 1900 – Heinrich Müller, German SS officer (d. 1945)
  • 1900 – Jan Oort, Dutch astronomer and academic (d. 1992)
  • 1901 – H. B. Stallard, English runner and surgeon (d. 1973)
  • 1902 – Johan Borgen, Norwegian author and critic (d. 1979)
  • 1906 – Kurt Gödel, Czech-American mathematician, philosopher, and academic (d. 1978)
  • 1906 – Paul Sacher, Swiss conductor and philanthropist (d. 1999)
  • 1908 – Ethel Catherwood, American-Canadian high jumper and javelin thrower (d. 1987)
  • 1908 – Jack Fingleton, Australian cricketer, journalist, and sportscaster (d. 1981)
  • 1908 – Oskar Schindler, Czech-German businessman (d. 1974)
  • 1909 – Arthur Võõbus, Estonian-American theologist and orientalist (d. 1988)
  • 1910 – Sam Merwin, Jr., American author (d. 1996)
  • 1911 – Lee Falk, American director, producer, and playwright (d. 1999)
  • 1912 – Odette Hallowes, French soldier and spy (d. 1995)
  • 1912 – Kaneto Shindō, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
  • 1913 – Rose Murphy, American singer (d. 1989)
  • 1914 – Michel Mohrt, French author, historian (d. 2011)
  • 1916 – Ferruccio Lamborghini, Italian businessman, created Lamborghini (d. 1993)
  • 1917 – Robert Cornthwaite, American actor (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Rowland Evans, American soldier, journalist, and author (d. 2001)
  • 1921 – Simin Daneshvar, Iranian author and academic (d. 2012)
  • 1923 – Carolyn Cassady, American author (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – William Guarnere, American sergeant (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Dick Ayers, American author and illustrator (d. 2014)
  • 1924 – Blossom Dearie, American singer and pianist (d. 2009)
  • 1924 – Kenneth Kaunda, Zambian educator and politician, 1st President of Zambia
  • 1925 – T. John Lesinski, American judge and politician, 51st Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (d. 1996)
  • 1925 – John Leonard Thorn, English lieutenant, author, and academic
  • 1926 – James Bama, American artist and illustrator
  • 1926 – Bill Blackbeard, American historian and author (d. 2011)
  • 1926 – Harper Lee, American novelist (d. 2016)
  • 1926 – Hulusi Sayın, Turkish general (d. 1991)
  • 1928 – Yves Klein, French painter (d. 1962)
  • 1928 – Eugene Merle Shoemaker, American geologist and astronomer (d. 1997)
  • 1930 – James Baker, American lawyer and politician, 61st United States Secretary of State
  • 1930 – Carolyn Jones, American actress (d. 1983)
  • 1933 – Miodrag Radulovacki, Serbian-American neuropharmacologist and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1934 – Lois Duncan, American journalist and author (d. 2016)
  • 1935 – Pedro Ramos, Cuban baseball player
  • 1935 – Jimmy Wray, Scottish boxer and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1936 – Tariq Aziz, Iraqi journalist and politician, Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2015)
  • 1937 – Saddam Hussein, Iraqi general and politician, 5th President of Iraq (d. 2006)
  • 1937 – Jean Redpath, Scottish singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
  • 1937 – John White, Scottish international footballer(d. 1964)
  • 1938 – Madge Sinclair, Jamaican-American actress (d. 1995)
  • 1941 – Ann-Margret, Swedish-American actress, singer, and dancer
  • 1941 – Lucien Aimar, French cyclist
  • 1941 – John Madejski, English businessman and academic
  • 1941 – Karl Barry Sharpless, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1941 – Iryna Zhylenko, Ukrainian poet and author (d. 2013)
  • 1942 – Mike Brearley, English cricketer and psychoanalyst
  • 1943 – Aryeh Bibi, Iraqi-born Israeli politician
  • 1944 – Elizabeth LeCompte, American director and producer
  • 1944 – Jean-Claude Van Cauwenberghe, Belgian politician, 10th Minister-President of the Walloon Region
  • 1944 – Alice Waters, American chef and author
  • 1946 – Nour El-Sherif, Egyptian actor and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1946 – Ginette Reno, Canadian singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1946 – Larissa Grunig, American theorist and activist
  • 1947 – Christian Jacq, French historian and author
  • 1947 – Nicola LeFanu, English composer and academic
  • 1947 – Steve Khan, American jazz guitarist
  • 1948 – Terry Pratchett, English journalist, author, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
  • 1948 – Marcia Strassman, American actress and singer (d. 2014)
  • 1949 – Jeremy Cooke, English lawyer and judge
  • 1949 – Paul Guilfoyle, American actor
  • 1949 – Bruno Kirby, American actor and director (d. 2006)
  • 1950 – Willie Colón, Puerto Rican-American trombonist and producer
  • 1950 – Jay Leno, American comedian, talk show host, and producer
  • 1950 – Steve Rider, English journalist and sportscaster
  • 1951 – Tim Congdon, English economist and politician
  • 1951 – Larry Smith, Canadian football player and politician
  • 1952 – Chuck Leavell, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • 1952 – Mary McDonnell, American actress
  • 1953 – Roberto Bolaño, Chilean novelist, short-story writer, poet, and essayist (d. 2003)
  • 1953 – Kim Gordon, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1953 – Brian Greenhoff, English footballer and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1954 – Timothy Curley, American educator
  • 1954 – Michael P. Jackson, American politician, 3rd Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security
  • 1954 – Vic Sotto, Filipino actor-producer, singer-songwriter, comedian and television personality
  • 1954 – Ron Zook, American football player and coach
  • 1955 – Eddie Jobson, English keyboard player and violinist
  • 1955 – Dieter Rubach, German bass player
  • 1956 – Jimmy Barnes, Scottish-Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1957 – Wilma Landkroon, Dutch singer
  • 1958 – Hal Sutton, American golfer
  • 1960 – Tom Browning, American baseball player
  • 1960 – Elena Kagan, American lawyer and jurist, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
  • 1960 – Phil King, English bass player
  • 1960 – Ian Rankin, Scottish author
  • 1960 – Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Icelandic strongman and weightlifter (d. 1993)
  • 1960 – Walter Zenga, Italian footballer and manager
  • 1963 – Sandrine Dumas, French actress, director, and screenwriter
  • 1963 – Lloyd Eisler, Canadian figure skater and coach
  • 1963 – Marc Lacroix, Belgian biochemist and academic
  • 1964 – Stephen Ames, Trinidadian golfer
  • 1964 – Noriyuki Iwadare, Japanese composer
  • 1964 – Ajay Kakkar, Baron Kakkar, English surgeon and academic
  • 1964 – Barry Larkin, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster
  • 1964 – L’Wren Scott, American model and fashion designer (d. 2014)
  • 1965 – Jennifer Rardin, American author (d. 2010)
  • 1966 – John Daly, American golfer
  • 1966 – Too Short, American rapper, producer and actor
  • 1967 – Chris White, English engineer and politician
  • 1968 – Howard Donald, English singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1968 – Andy Flower, South-African-Zimbabwean cricketer and coach
  • 1969 – LeRon Perry Ellis, American basketball player
  • 1970 – Richard Fromberg, Australian tennis player
  • 1970 – Nicklas Lidström, Swedish ice hockey player and scout
  • 1970 – Diego Simeone, Argentinian footballer and manager
  • 1971 – Brad McEwan, Australian journalist
  • 1972 – Violent J, American rapper
  • 1972 – Helena Tulve, Estonian composer
  • 1972 – Jean-Paul van Gastel, Dutch footballer and manager
  • 1973 – Jorge Garcia, American actor and producer
  • 1973 – Earl Holmes, American football player and coach
  • 1973 – Andrew Mehrtens, South African-New Zealand rugby player
  • 1974 – Penélope Cruz, Spanish actress and producer
  • 1974 – Margo Dydek, Polish basketball player and coach (d. 2011)
  • 1974 – Richel Hersisia, Dutch boxer
  • 1974 – Vernon Kay, English radio and television host
  • 1974 – Dominic Matteo, Scottish footballer and journalist
  • 1975 – Michael Walchhofer, Austrian skier
  • 1976 – Shane Jurgensen, Australian cricketer
  • 1978 – Lauren Laverne, English singer and television host
  • 1978 – Robert Oliveri, American actor
  • 1978 – Nate Richert, American actor
  • 1979 – Scott Fujita, American football player and sportscaster
  • 1980 – Bradley Wiggins, English cyclist
  • 1981 – Jessica Alba, American model and actress
  • 1981 – Pietro Travagli, Italian rugby player
  • 1982 – Nikki Grahame, English model and journalist
  • 1982 – Chris Kaman, American basketball player
  • 1983 – Josh Brookes, Australian motorcycle racer
  • 1983 – David Freese, American baseball player
  • 1983 – Roger Johnson, English footballer
  • 1983 – Graham Wagg, English cricketer
  • 1983 – Thomas Waldrom, New Zealand-English rugby player
  • 1984 – Dmitri Torbinski, Russian footballer
  • 1985 – Lucas Jakubczyk, German sprinter and long jumper
  • 1985 – Deividas Stagniūnas, Lithuanian ice dancer
  • 1986 – Roman Polák, Czech ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Jenna Ushkowitz, Korean-American actress, singer, and dancer
  • 1987 – Ryan Conroy, Scottish footballer
  • 1987 – Samantha Akkineni, Indian actress and model
  • 1987 – Bradley Johnson, English footballer
  • 1987 – Zoran Tošić, Serbian footballer
  • 1988 – Jonathan Biabiany, French footballer
  • 1988 – Juan Manuel Mata, Spanish footballer
  • 1988 – Katariina Tuohimaa, Finnish tennis player
  • 1989 – Emil Salomonsson, Swedish footballer
  • 1989 – Kim Sung-kyu, South Korean singer
  • 1990 – Niels-Peter Mørck, Danish footballer
  • 1992 – Blake Bortles, American football player
  • 1992 – DeMarcus Lawrence, American football player
  • 1993 – Craig Garvey, Australian rugby league player
  • 1993 – Eva Samková, Czech snowboarder
  • 1995 – Jonathan Benteke, Belgian footballer
  • 1995 – Melanie Martinez, American singer

Deaths on April 28

  • 224 – Artabanus V of Parthia (b. 191)
  • 948 – Hu Jinsi, Chinese general and prefect
  • 988 – Adaldag, archbishop of Bremen
  • 1109 – Abbot Hugh of Cluny (b. 1024)
  • 1192 – Conrad of Montferrat (b. 1140)
  • 1197 – Rhys ap Gruffydd, prince of Deheubarth (b. 1132)
  • 1257 – Shajar al-Durr, sovereign sultana of Egypt
  • 1260 – Luchesius Modestini, founding member of the Third Order of St. Francis
  • 1400 – Baldus de Ubaldis, Italian jurist (b. 1327)
  • 1489 – Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland, English politician (b. 1449)
  • 1533 – Nicholas West, English bishop and diplomat (b. 1461)
  • 1643 – Francisco de Lucena, Portuguese politician (b. 1578)
  • 1710 – Thomas Betterton, English actor and manager (b. 1630)
  • 1716 – Louis de Montfort, French priest and saint (b. 1673)
  • 1726 – Thomas Pitt, English merchant and politician (b. 1653)
  • 1741 – Magnus Julius De la Gardie, Swedish general and politician (b. 1668)
  • 1772 – Johann Friedrich Struensee, German physician and politician (b. 1737)
  • 1781 – Cornelius Harnett, American merchant, farmer, and politician (b. 1723)
  • 1813 – Mikhail Kutuzov, Russian field marshal (b. 1745)
  • 1816 – Johann Heinrich Abicht, German philosopher, author, and academic (b. 1762)
  • 1841 – Peter Chanel, French priest, missionary, and martyr (b. 1803)
  • 1853 – Ludwig Tieck, German author and poet (b. 1773)
  • 1858 – Johannes Peter Müller, German physiologist and anatomist (b. 1801)
  • 1865 – Samuel Cunard, Canadian-English businessman, founded Cunard Line (b. 1787)
  • 1881 – Antoine Samuel Adam-Salomon, French sculptor and photographer (b. 1818)
  • 1883 – John Russell, English hunter and dog breeder (b. 1795)
  • 1902 – Cyprien Tanguay, Canadian priest and historian (b. 1819)
  • 1903 – Josiah Willard Gibbs, American scientist (b. 1839)
  • 1905 – Fitzhugh Lee, American general and politician, 40th Governor of Virginia (b. 1835)
  • 1925 – Richard Butler, English-Australian politician, 23rd Premier of South Australia (b. 1850)
  • 1928 – May Jordan McConnel, Australian trade unionist and suffragist (b. 1860)
  • 1929 – Hendrik van Heuckelum, Dutch footballer (b. 1879)
  • 1936 – Fuad I of Egypt (b. 1868)
  • 1944 – Mohammed Alim Khan, Manghud ruler (b. 1880)
  • 1944 – Frank Knox, American journalist and politician, 46th United States Secretary of the Navy (b. 1874)
  • 1945 – Roberto Farinacci, Italian soldier and politician (b. 1892)
  • 1945 – Hermann Fegelein, German general (b. 1906)
  • 1945 – Benito Mussolini, Italian journalist and politician, 27th Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1883)
  • 1946 – Louis Bachelier, French mathematician and academic (b. 1870)
  • 1954 – Léon Jouhaux, French union leader, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
  • 1956 – Fred Marriott, American race car driver (b. 1872)
  • 1957 – Heinrich Bär, German colonel and pilot (b. 1913)
  • 1962 – Bennie Osler, South African rugby player (b. 1901)
  • 1963 – Wilhelm Weber, German gymnast (b. 1880)
  • 1970 – Ed Begley, American actor (b. 1901)
  • 1973 – Clas Thunberg, Finnish speed skater (b. 1893)
  • 1976 – Richard Hughes, American author and poet (b. 1900)
  • 1977 – Ricardo Cortez, American actor (b. 1900)
  • 1977 – Sepp Herberger, German footballer and coach (b. 1897)
  • 1978 – Mohammed Daoud Khan, Afghan commander and politician, 1st President of Afghanistan (b. 1909)
  • 1980 – Tommy Caldwell, American bass player (b. 1949)
  • 1987 – Ben Linder, American engineer and activist (b. 1959)
  • 1991 – Steve Broidy, American film producer (b. 1905)
  • 1992 – Francis Bacon, Irish painter (b. 1909)
  • 1993 – Diva Diniz Corrêa, Brazilian zoologist (b. 1918)
  • 1993 – Jim Valvano, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1946)
  • 1994 – Berton Roueché, American journalist and author (b. 1910)
  • 1996 – Lester Sumrall, American minister, founded LeSEA (b. 1913)
  • 1997 – Ann Petry, American novelist (b. 1908)
  • 1998 – Jerome Bixby, American author and screenwriter (b. 1923)
  • 1999 – Rory Calhoun, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1922)
  • 1999 – Rolf Landauer, German-American physicist and engineer (b. 1927)
  • 1999 – Alf Ramsey, English footballer and manager (b. 1920)
  • 1999 – Arthur Leonard Schawlow, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1921)
  • 2000 – Jerzy Einhorn, Polish-Swedish physician and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2000 – Penelope Fitzgerald, English author and poet (b. 1916)
  • 2002 – Alexander Lebed, Russian general and politician (b. 1950)
  • 2002 – Lou Thesz, American wrestler and trainer (b. 1916)
  • 2005 – Percy Heath, American bassist (b. 1923)
  • 2005 – Chris Candido, American wrestler (b. 1971)
  • 2005 – Taraki Sivaram, Sri Lankan journalist and author (b. 1959)
  • 2006 – Steve Howe, American baseball player (b. 1958)
  • 2007 – Dabbs Greer, American actor (b. 1917)
  • 2007 – René Mailhot, Canadian journalist (b. 1942)
  • 2007 – Tommy Newsom, American saxophonist and bandleader (b. 1929)
  • 2007 – Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker, German physicist and philosopher (b. 1912)
  • 2007 – Bertha Wilson, Scottish-Canadian lawyer and jurist (b. 1923)
  • 2009 – Ekaterina Maximova, Russian ballerina and actress (b. 1939)
  • 2009 – Richard Pratt, Polish-Australian businessman (b. 1934)
  • 2011 – Erhard Loretan, Swiss mountaineer (b. 1959)
  • 2012 – Fred Allen, New Zealand rugby player and coach (b. 1920)
  • 2012 – Matilde Camus, Spanish poet and author (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Al Ecuyer, American football player (b. 1937)
  • 2012 – Patricia Medina, English actress (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Milan N. Popović, Serbian psychiatrist and author (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – Aberdeen Shikoyi, Kenyan rugby player (b. 1985)
  • 2013 – Brad Lesley, American baseball player (b. 1958)
  • 2013 – Fredrick McKissack, American author (b. 1939)
  • 2013 – John C. Reynolds, American computer scientist and academic (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Jack Shea, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – János Starker, Hungarian-American cellist and educator (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Paulo Vanzolini, Brazilian singer-songwriter and zoologist (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Bernie Wood, New Zealand journalist and author (b. 1939)
  • 2014 – Barbara Fiske Calhoun, American cartoonist and painter (b. 1919)
  • 2014 – William Honan, American journalist and author (b. 1930)
  • 2014 – Dennis Kamakahi, American guitarist and composer (b. 1953)
  • 2014 – Edgar Laprade, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1919)
  • 2014 – Jack Ramsay, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Idris Sardi, Indonesian violinist and composer (b. 1938)
  • 2014 – Frederic Schwartz, American architect, co-designed Empty Sky (b. 1951)
  • 2014 – Ryan Tandy, Australian rugby player (b. 1981)
  • 2015 – Antônio Abujamra, Brazilian actor and director (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Marcia Brown, American author and illustrator (b. 1918)
  • 2015 – Michael J. Ingelido, American general (b. 1916)
  • 2016 – Jenny Diski, English author and screenwriter (b. 1947)
  • 2017 – Mariano Gagnon, American Catholic priest and author (b. 1929)
  • 2018 – James Hylton, American race car driver (b. 1934)
  • 2019 – Richard Lugar, American politician (b.1932)
  • 2019 – John Singleton, American film director (b. 1968)

Holidays and observances on April 28

  • Christian feast day:
    • Aphrodisius and companions
    • Gianna Beretta Molla
    • Kirill of Turov (Orthodox, added to Roman Martyrology in 1969)
    • Louis de Montfort
    • Pamphilus of Sulmona
    • Peter Chanel
    • Vitalis and Valeria of Milan
    • April 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Lawyers’ Day (Odisha, India)
  • Mujahideen Victory Day (Afghanistan)
  • National Heroes Day (Barbados)
  • Restoration of Sovereignty Day (Japan)
  • Sardinia Day (Sardinia)
  • Workers’ Memorial Day and World Day for Safety and Health at Work (international)
    • National Day of Mourning (Canada)

April 28 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day, Uncategorized

April 23 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene.
  • 599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in southern Mexico, defeating queen Yohl Ik’nal and sacking the city.
  • 711 – Dagobert III succeeds his father King Childebert III as King of the Franks.
  • 1014 – Battle of Clontarf: High King of Ireland Brian Boru defeats Viking invaders, but is killed in battle.
  • 1016 – Edmund Ironside succeeds his father Æthelred the Unready as King of England.
  • 1343 – St. George’s Night Uprising commences in the Duchy of Estonia.
  • 1348 – The founding of the Order of the Garter by King Edward III is announced on St. George’s Day.
  • 1516 – The Munich Reinheitsgebot (regarding the ingredients of beer) takes effect in all of Bavaria.
  • 1521 – Battle of Villalar: King Charles I of Spain defeats the Comuneros.
  • 1635 – The first public school in the United States, Boston Latin School, is founded in Boston.
  • 1655 – The Siege of Santo Domingo begins during the Anglo-Spanish War, and fails seven days later.
  • 1660 – Treaty of Oliva is established between Sweden and Poland.
  • 1661 – King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland is crowned in Westminster Abbey.
  • 1815 – The Second Serbian Uprising: A second phase of the national revolution of the Serbs against the Ottoman Empire, erupts shortly after the annexation of the country to the Ottoman Empire.
  • 1879 – Fire burns down the second main building and dome of the University of Notre Dame, which prompts the construction of the third, and current, Main Building with its golden dome.
  • 1914 – First baseball game at Wrigley Field, then known as Weeghman Park, in Chicago.
  • 1918 – World War I: The British Royal Navy makes a raid in an attempt to neutralise the Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge.
  • 1920 – The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) is founded in Ankara. The assembly denounces the government of Sultan Mehmed VI and announces the preparation of a temporary constitution.
  • 1927 – Cardiff City defeat Arsenal in the FA Cup Final, the only time it has been won by a team not based in England.
  • 1935 – The Polish Constitution of 1935 is adopted.
  • 1940 – The Rhythm Club fire at a dance hall in Natchez, Mississippi, kills 198 people.
  • 1941 – World War II: The Greek government and King George II evacuate Athens before the invading Wehrmacht.
  • 1942 – World War II: Baedeker Blitz: German bombers hit Exeter, Bath and York in retaliation for the British raid on Lübeck.
  • 1945 – World War II: Adolf Hitler’s designated successor, Hermann Göring, sends him a telegram asking permission to take leadership of the Third Reich. Martin Bormann and Joseph Goebbels advise Hitler that the telegram is treasonous.
  • 1946 – Manuel Roxas is elected the last President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines.
  • 1949 – Chinese Civil War: Establishment of the People’s Liberation Army Navy.
  • 1951 – Cold War: American journalist William N. Oatis is arrested for espionage by the Communist government of Czechoslovakia.
  • 1961 – Algiers putsch by French generals.
  • 1967 – Soviet space program: Soyuz 1 (Russian: Союз 1, Union 1) a manned spaceflight carrying cosmonaut Colonel Vladimir Komarov is launched into orbit.
  • 1968 – Vietnam War: Student protesters at Columbia University in New York City take over administration buildings and shut down the university.
  • 1971 – Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army and Razakars massacre approximately 3,000 Hindu emigrants in the Jathibhanga area of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).
  • 1985 – Coca-Cola changes its formula and releases New Coke. The response is overwhelmingly negative, and the original formula is back on the market in less than three months.
  • 1990 – Namibia becomes the 160th member of the United Nations and the 50th member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
  • 1993 – Eritreans vote overwhelmingly for independence from Ethiopia in a United Nations-monitored referendum.
  • 1993 – Sri Lankan politician Lalith Athulathmudali is assassinated while addressing a gathering, approximately four weeks ahead of the Provincial Council elections for the Western Province.
  • 1999 – NATO bombs the headquarters of Radio Television of Serbia, as part of their aerial campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
  • 2005 – The first ever YouTube video, titled “Me at the zoo”, was published by co-founder Jawed Karim.
  • 2013 – At least 28 people are killed and more than 70 are injured as violence breaks out in Hawija, Iraq.
  • 2018 – A vehicle-ramming attack kills 10 people and injures 16 in Toronto. A 25-year-old suspect, Alek Minassian, is arrested.
  • 2019 – The 2019 Hpakant jade mine collapse in Myanmar kills four miners and two rescuers.

Births on April 23

  • 1141 (probable) – Malcolm IV of Scotland (d. 1165)
  • 1185 – Afonso II of Portugal (d. 1223)
  • 1408 – John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford (d. 1462)
  • 1420 – George of Poděbrady, King of Bohemia (d. 1471)
  • 1464 – Joan of France, Duchess of Berry (d. 1505)
  • 1464 – Robert Fayrfax, English Renaissance composer (d. 1521)
  • 1484 – Julius Caesar Scaliger, Italian physician and scholar (d. 1558)
  • 1500 – Alexander Ales, Scottish theologian and academic (d. 1565)
  • 1500 – Johann Stumpf, Swiss writer (d. 1576)
  • 1512 – Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel, Chancellor of the University of Oxford (d. 1580)
  • 1516 – Georg Fabricius, German poet, historian, and archaeologist (d. 1571)
  • 1598 – Maarten Tromp, Dutch admiral (d. 1653)
  • 1621 – William Penn, English admiral and politician (d. 1670)
  • 1628 – Johannes Hudde, Dutch mathematician and politician (d. 1704)
  • 1661 – Issachar Berend Lehmann, German-Jewish banker, merchant and diplomat (d. 1730)
  • 1715 – Johann Friedrich Doles, German composer and conductor (d. 1797)
  • 1720 – Vilna Gaon, Lithuanian rabbi and author (d. 1797)
  • 1744 – Princess Charlotte Amalie Wilhelmine of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Plön (d. 1770)
  • 1748 – Félix Vicq-d’Azyr, French physician and anatomist (d. 1794)
  • 1791 – James Buchanan, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 15th President of the United States (d. 1868)
  • 1792 – Thomas Romney Robinson, Irish astronomer and physicist (d. 1882)
  • 1794 – Wei Yuan, Chinese scholar and author (d. 1856)
  • 1805 – Johann Karl Friedrich Rosenkranz, German philosopher and academic (d. 1879)
  • 1812 – Frederick Whitaker, English-New Zealand lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1891)
  • 1813 – Stephen A. Douglas, American educator and politician, 7th Illinois Secretary of State (d. 1861)
  • 1813 – Frédéric Ozanam, Italian-French historian and scholar (d. 1853)
  • 1818 – James Anthony Froude, English historian, novelist, biographer and editor (d. 1894)
  • 1819 – Edward Stafford, Scottish-New Zealand educator and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1901)
  • 1853 – Winthrop M. Crane, American businessman and politician, 40th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1920)
  • 1856 – Granville Woods, American inventor and engineer (d. 1910)
  • 1857 – Ruggero Leoncavallo, Italian composer (d. 1919)
  • 1858 – Max Planck, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1947)
  • 1860 – Justinian Oxenham, Australian public servant (d. 1932)
  • 1861 – Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby, English field marshal and diplomat, British High Commissioner in Egypt (d. 1936)
  • 1861 – John Peltz, American baseball player and manager (d. 1906)
  • 1865 – Ali-Agha Shikhlinski, Russian-Azerbaijani general (d. 1943)
  • 1867 – Johannes Fibiger, Danish physician and pathologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1928)
  • 1876 – Arthur Moeller van den Bruck, German historian and author (d. 1925)
  • 1880 – Michel Fokine, Russian dancer and choreographer (d. 1942)
  • 1882 – Albert Coates, English composer and conductor (d. 1953)
  • 1888 – Georges Vanier, Canadian general and politician, 19th Governor General of Canada (d. 1967)
  • 1889 – Karel Doorman, Dutch admiral (d. 1942)
  • 1893 – Frank Borzage, American actor and director (d. 1952)
  • 1895 – Ngaio Marsh, New Zealand author and director (d. 1982)
  • 1897 – Folke Jansson, American general (d. 1965)
  • 1897 – Lester B. Pearson, Canadian historian and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Canada, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1972)
  • 1898 – Lucius D. Clay, American general (d. 1978)
  • 1899 – Bertil Ohlin, Swedish economist and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1979)
  • 1899 – Minoru Shirota, Japanese physician and microbiologist, invented Yakult (d. 1982)
  • 1900 – Jim Bottomley, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1959)
  • 1900 – Joseph Green, Polish-American actor and director (d. 1996)
  • 1901 – E. B. Ford, English biologist and geneticist (d. 1988)
  • 1902 – Halldór Laxness, Icelandic author and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
  • 1903 – Guy Simonds, English-Canadian general (d. 1974)
  • 1904 – Clifford Bricker, Canadian long-distance runner (d. 1980)
  • 1904 – Louis Muhlstock, Polish-Canadian painter (d. 2001)
  • 1904 – Duncan Renaldo, American actor (d. 1985)
  • 1907 – Lee Miller, American model and photographer (d. 1977)
  • 1907 – Fritz Wotruba, Austrian sculptor, designed the Wotruba Church (d. 1975)
  • 1908 – Myron Waldman, American animator and director (d. 2006)
  • 1910 – Sheila Scott Macintyre, Scottish mathematician (d. 1960)
  • 1910 – Simone Simon, French actress (d. 2005)
  • 1911 – Ronald Neame, English-American director, cinematographer, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1913 – Diosa Costello, Puerto Rican-American entertainer, producer and club owner (d. 2013)
  • 1915 – Arnold Alexander Hall, English engineer, academic, and businessman (d. 2000)
  • 1916 – Yiannis Moralis, Greek painter and educator (d. 2009)
  • 1916 – Sinah Estelle Kelley, American chemist (d. 1982)
  • 1917 – Dorian Leigh, American model (d. 2008)
  • 1917 – Tony Lupien, American baseball player and coach (d. 2004)
  • 1918 – Maurice Druon, French author and screenwriter (d. 2009)
  • 1919 – Oleg Penkovsky, Russian colonel (d. 1963)
  • 1920 – Eric Grant Yarrow, 3rd Baronet, English businessman (d. 2018)
  • 1921 – Judy Agnew, Second Lady of the United States (d. 2012)
  • 1921 – Cleto Bellucci, Italian archbishop (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Janet Blair, American actress and singer (d. 2007)
  • 1921 – Warren Spahn, American baseball player and coach (d. 2003)
  • 1923 – Dolph Briscoe, American lieutenant and politician, 41st Governor of Texas (d. 2010)
  • 1923 – Avram Davidson, American soldier and author (d. 1993)
  • 1924 – Chuck Harmon, American baseball player and scout (d. 2019)
  • 1924 – Bobby Rosengarden, American drummer and bandleader (d. 2007)
  • 1926 – J.P. Donleavy, American-Irish novelist and playwright (d. 2017)
  • 1926 – Rifaat el-Mahgoub, Egyptian politician (d. 1990)
  • 1928 – Shirley Temple, American actress, singer, dancer, and diplomat (d. 2014)
  • 1929 – George Steiner, French-American philosopher, author, and critic (d. 2020)
  • 1932 – Halston, American fashion designer (d. 1990)
  • 1932 – Jim Fixx, American runner and author (d. 1984)
  • 1933 – Annie Easley, American computer scientist, mathematician, and engineer (d. 2011)
  • 1934 – George Canseco, Filipino composer and producer (d. 2004)
  • 1936 – Roy Orbison, American singer-songwriter (d. 1988)
  • 1937 – Victoria Glendinning, English author and critic
  • 1937 – David Mills, English cricketer (d. 2013)
  • 1937 – Barry Shepherd, Australian cricketer (d. 2001)
  • 1939 – Jorge Fons, Mexican director and screenwriter
  • 1939 – Bill Hagerty, English journalist
  • 1939 – Lee Majors, American actor
  • 1939 – Ray Peterson, American pop singer (d. 2005)
  • 1940 – Michael Copps, American academic and politician
  • 1940 – Dale Houston, American singer-songwriter (d. 2007)
  • 1940 – Michael Kadosh, Israeli footballer and manager (d. 2014)
  • 1941 – Jacqueline Boyer, French singer and actress
  • 1941 – Arie den Hartog, Dutch road bicycle racer (d. 2018)
  • 1941 – Paavo Lipponen, Finnish journalist and politician, 38th Prime Minister of Finland
  • 1941 – Michael Lynne, American film producer, co-founded New Line Cinema
  • 1941 – Ed Stewart, English radio and television host (d. 2016)
  • 1941 – Ray Tomlinson, American computer programmer and engineer (d. 2016)
  • 1942 – Sandra Dee, American model and actress (d. 2005)
  • 1943 – Gail Goodrich, American basketball player and coach
  • 1943 – Tony Esposito, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager
  • 1943 – Frans Koppelaar, Dutch painter
  • 1943 – Hervé Villechaize, French actor (d. 1993)
  • 1944 – Jean-François Stévenin, French actor and director
  • 1946 – Blair Brown, American actress
  • 1946 – Carlton Sherwood, American soldier and journalist (d. 2014)
  • 1947 – Robert Burgess, English sociologist and academic
  • 1947 – Glenn Cornick, English bass player (d. 2014)
  • 1947 – Bernadette Devlin McAliskey, Irish civil rights leader and politician
  • 1948 – Pascal Quignard, French author and screenwriter
  • 1948 – Serge Thériault, Canadian actor
  • 1949 – Paul Collier, English economist and academic
  • 1949 – David Cross, English violinist
  • 1949 – John Miles, British rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist
  • 1950 – Rowley Leigh, English chef and journalist
  • 1950 – Barbara McIlvaine Smith, Sac and Fox Nation Native American politician
  • 1951 – Martin Bayerle, American treasure hunter
  • 1952 – Narada Michael Walden, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer
  • 1953 – James Russo, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Stephen Dalton, English air marshal
  • 1954 – Michael Moore, American director, producer, and activist
  • 1955 – Judy Davis, Australian actress
  • 1955 – Tony Miles, English chess player (d. 2001)
  • 1955 – Urmas Ott, Estonian journalist and author (d. 2008)
  • 1957 – Neville Brody, English graphic designer, typographer, and art director
  • 1957 – Jan Hooks, American actress and comedian (d. 2014)
  • 1958 – Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, Icelandic composer and producer
  • 1958 – Ryan Walter, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1959 – Unity Dow, Botswanan judge, author, and rights activist
  • 1960 – Valerie Bertinelli, American actress
  • 1960 – Steve Clark, English guitarist and songwriter (d. 1991)
  • 1960 – Barry Douglas, Irish pianist and conductor
  • 1960 – Léo Jaime, Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1960 – Claude Julien, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1961 – George Lopez, American comedian, actor, and talk show host
  • 1961 – Pierluigi Martini, Italian race car driver
  • 1962 – John Hannah, Scottish actor and producer
  • 1962 – Shaun Spiers, English businessman and politician
  • 1963 – Paul Belmondo, French race car driver
  • 1963 – Robby Naish, American windsurfer
  • 1964 – Gianandrea Noseda, Italian pianist and conductor
  • 1965 – Leni Robredo, Filipina human rights lawyer, 14th Vice President of the Philippines
  • 1966 – Jörg Deisinger, German bass player
  • 1966 – Matt Freeman, American bass player
  • 1966 – Lembit Oll, Estonian chess Grandmaster (d. 1999)
  • 1967 – Rheal Cormier, Canadian baseball player
  • 1967 – Melina Kanakaredes, American actress
  • 1968 – Bas Haring, Dutch philosopher, writer, television presenter and professor.
  • 1968 – Ken McRae, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1968 – Timothy McVeigh, American terrorist, Oklahoma City bombing co-perpetrator (d. 2001)
  • 1969 – Martín López-Zubero, American-Spanish swimmer and coach
  • 1969 – Yelena Shushunova, Russian gymnast
  • 1970 – Egemen Bağış, Turkish politician, 1st Minister of European Union Affairs
  • 1970 – Dennis Culp, American singer-songwriter and trombonist
  • 1970 – Andrew Gee, Australian rugby league player and manager
  • 1970 – Hans Välimäki, Finnish chef and author
  • 1970 – Tayfur Havutçu, Turkish international footballer and manager
  • 1971 – Uli Herzner, German-American fashion designer
  • 1972 – Pierre Labrie, Canadian poet and playwright
  • 1972 – Peter Dench, English photographer and journalist
  • 1972 – Amira Medunjanin, singer from Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • 1973 – Patrick Poulin, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1974 – Carlos Dengler, American bass player
  • 1974 – Michael Kerr, New Zealand-German rugby player
  • 1975 – Bobby Shaw, American football player
  • 1976 – Aaron Dessner, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1977 – John Cena, American professional wrestler and actor
  • 1977 – David Kidwell, New Zealand rugby league player and coach
  • 1977 – Willie Mitchell, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1977 – John Oliver, English comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1977 – Kal Penn, Indian-American actor
  • 1977 – Bram Schmitz, Dutch cyclist
  • 1977 – Lee Young-pyo, South Korean international footballer
  • 1978 – Gezahegne Abera, Ethiopian runner
  • 1979 – Barry Hawkins, English snooker player
  • 1979 – Jaime King, American actress and model
  • 1979 – Joanna Krupa, Polish-American model and television personality
  • 1979 – Samppa Lajunen, Finnish skier
  • 1982 – Tony Sunshine, American singer-songwriter
  • 1983 – Leon Andreasen, Danish international footballer
  • 1983 – Daniela Hantuchová, Slovak tennis player
  • 1983 – Ian Henderson, English rugby league player
  • 1984 – Alexandra Kosteniuk, Russian chess player
  • 1984 – Jesse Lee Soffer, American actor
  • 1985 – Angel Locsin, Filipino actress, producer, and fashion designer
  • 1986 – Sven Kramer, Dutch speed skater
  • 1986 – Alysia Montaño, American runner
  • 1986 – Rafael Fernandes, Brazilian baseball player
  • 1987 – Michael Arroyo, Ecuadorian footballer
  • 1987 – John Boye, Ghanaian footballer
  • 1987 – Emily Fox, American basketball player
  • 1988 – Victor Anichebe, Nigerian footballer
  • 1988 – Alistair Brownlee, English triathlete
  • 1988 – Signe Ronka, Canadian figure skater
  • 1988 – Lenka Wienerová, Slovak tennis player
  • 1989 – Nicole Vaidišová, Czech tennis player
  • 1990 – Rui Fonte, Portuguese footballer, winger
  • 1990 – Dev Patel, English actor
  • 1991 – Nathan Baker, English footballer
  • 1991 – Caleb Johnson, American singer-songwriter
  • 1991 – Paul Vaughan, Australian-Italian rugby league player
  • 1994 – Patrick Olsen, Danish footballer
  • 1994 – Song Kang, South Korean actor
  • 1995 – Gigi Hadid, American fashion model and television personality
  • 1997 – Zach Apple, American swimmer

Deaths on April 23

  • 303 – Saint George, Roman soldier and martyr (b. 275)
  • 711 – Childebert III, Frankish king (b. 670)
  • 725 – Wihtred of Kent (b. 670)
  • 871 – Æthelred of Wessex (b. 837)
  • 915 – Yang Shihou, Chinese general
  • 944 – Wichmann the Elder, Saxon nobleman
  • 990 – Ekkehard II, Swiss monk and abbot
  • 997 – Adalbert of Prague, Czech bishop, missionary, and saint (b. 956)
  • 1014 – Brian Boru, Irish king (b. 941)
  • 1014 – Domnall mac Eimín, Mormaer of Mar
  • 1016 – Æthelred the Unready, English son of Edgar the Peaceful (b. 968)
  • 1124 – Alexander I of Scotland (b. 1078)
  • 1151 – Adeliza of Louvain (b. 1103)
  • 1170 – Minamoto no Tametomo, Japanese samurai (b. 1139)
  • 1196 – Béla III of Hungary (b. c.1148)
  • 1200 – Zhu Xi, Chinese philosopher (b. 1130)
  • 1217 – Inge II of Norway (b. 1185)
  • 1262 – Aegidius of Assisi, companion of Saint Francis of Assisi
  • 1307 – Joan of Acre (b. 1272)
  • 1400 – Aubrey de Vere, 10th Earl of Oxford, English politician and nobleman (b. c. 1338)
  • 1407 – Olivier de Clisson, French soldier (b. 1326)
  • 1501 – Domenico della Rovere, Catholic cardinal (b. 1442)
  • 1554 – Gaspara Stampa, Italian poet (b. 1523)
  • 1605 – Boris Godunov, Russian ruler (b. 1551)
  • 1616 – William Shakespeare, English playwright and poet (b. 1564)
  • 1625 – Maurice, Prince of Orange (b. 1567)
  • 1695 – Henry Vaughan, Welsh poet and author (b. 1621)
  • 1702 – Margaret Fell, English religious leader, founded the Religious Society of Friends (b. 1614)
  • 1781 – James Abercrombie, Scottish general and politician (b. 1706)
  • 1784 – Solomon I of Imereti (b. 1735)
  • 1792 – Karl Friedrich Bahrdt, German theologian and author (b. 1741)
  • 1794 – Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes, French lawyer and politician (b. 1721)
  • 1827 – Georgios Karaiskakis, Greek general (b. 1780)
  • 1839 – Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, French admiral and explorer (b. 1768)
  • 1850 – William Wordsworth, English poet and author (b. 1770)
  • 1889 – Jules Amédée Barbey d’Aurevilly, French author and critic (b. 1808)
  • 1895 – Carl Ludwig, German physician and physiologist (b. 1815)
  • 1905 – Gédéon Ouimet, Canadian politician, 2nd Premier of Quebec (b. 1823)
  • 1907 – Alferd Packer, American prospector (b. 1842)
  • 1915 – Rupert Brooke, English poet (b. 1887)
  • 1936 – Teresa de la Parra, French-Venezuelan author (b. 1889)
  • 1951 – Jules Berry, French actor and director (b. 1883)
  • 1951 – Charles G. Dawes, American banker and politician, 30th Vice President of the United States, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (b. 1865)
  • 1959 – Bak Jungyang, Korean politician
  • 1965 – George Adamski, Polish-American ufologist and author (b. 1891)
  • 1966 – George Ohsawa, Japanese founder of the Macrobiotic diet (b. 1893)
  • 1981 – Josep Pla, Catalan journalist and author (b. 1897)
  • 1983 – Buster Crabbe, American swimmer and actor (b. 1908)
  • 1984 – Red Garland, American pianist (b. 1923)
  • 1985 – Sam Ervin, American lawyer and politician (b. 1896)
  • 1985 – Frank Farrell, Australian rugby league player and policeman (b. 1916)
  • 1986 – Harold Arlen, American composer (b. 1905)
  • 1986 – Jim Laker, English cricketer and sportscaster (b. 1922)
  • 1986 – Otto Preminger, Ukrainian-American actor, director, and producer (b. 1906)
  • 1990 – Paulette Goddard, American actress (b. 1910)
  • 1991 – Johnny Thunders, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1952)
  • 1992 – Satyajit Ray, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
  • 1992 – Tanka Prasad Acharya, Nepalese politician, 27th Prime Minister of Nepal (b. 1912)
  • 1993 – Cesar Chavez, American activist, co-founded the United Farm Workers (b. 1927)
  • 1995 – Douglas Lloyd Campbell, Canadian farmer and politician, 13th Premier of Manitoba (b. 1895)
  • 1995 – Howard Cosell, American lawyer and journalist (b. 1918)
  • 1995 – Riho Lahi, Estonian journalist (b. 1904)
  • 1995 – John C. Stennis, American lawyer and politician (b. 1904)
  • 1996 – Jean Victor Allard, Canadian general (b. 1913)
  • 1996 – P. L. Travers, Australian-English author and actress (b. 1899)
  • 1997 – Denis Compton, English cricketer and footballer (b. 1918)
  • 1998 – Konstantinos Karamanlis, Greek lawyer and politician, 172nd Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1907)
  • 1998 – James Earl Ray, American assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr. (b. 1928)
  • 1998 – Thanassis Skordalos, Greek singer-songwriter and lyra player (b. 1920)
  • 2003 – Fernand Fonssagrives, French-American photographer (b. 1910)
  • 2004 – Herman Veenstra, Dutch water polo player (b. 1911)
  • 2005 – Joh Bjelke-Petersen, New Zealand-Australian politician, 31st Premier of Queensland (b. 1911)
  • 2005 – Robert Farnon, Canadian-English trumpet player, composer and conductor (b. 1917)
  • 2005 – Al Grassby, Australian journalist and politician (b. 1928)
  • 2005 – John Mills, English actor (b. 1908)
  • 2005 – Romano Scarpa, Italian author and illustrator (b. 1927)
  • 2005 – Earl Wilson, American baseball player, coach and educator (b. 1934)
  • 2006 – Phil Walden, American record producer and manager, co-founder of Capricorn Records (b. 1940)
  • 2007 – Paul Erdman, Canadian-American economist and author (b. 1932)
  • 2007 – David Halberstam, American journalist, historian and author (b. 1934)
  • 2007 – Peter Randall, English sergeant (b. 1930)
  • 2007 – Boris Yeltsin, Russian politician, 1st President of Russia (b. 1931)
  • 2010 – Peter Porter, Australian-born British poet (b. 1929)
  • 2011 – James Casey, English comedian, radio scriptwriter and producer (b. 1922)
  • 2011 – Tom King, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1943)
  • 2011 – Geoffrey Russell, 4th Baron Ampthill, English businessman and politician (b. 1921)
  • 2011 – Max van der Stoel, Dutch politician and Minister of State (b. 1924)
  • 2011 – John Sullivan, English screenwriter and producer (b. 1946)
  • 2012 – Lillemor Arvidsson, Swedish trade union leader and politician, 34th Governor of Gotland (b. 1943)
  • 2012 – Billy Bryans, Canadian drummer, songwriter and producer (b. 1947)
  • 2012 – Chris Ethridge, American bass player and songwriter (b. 1947)
  • 2012 – Raymond Thorsteinsson, Canadian geologist and paleontologist (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – LeRoy T. Walker, American football player and coach (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – Bob Brozman, American guitarist (b. 1954)
  • 2013 – Robert W. Edgar, American educator and politician (b. 1943)
  • 2013 – Tony Grealish, English footballer (b. 1956)
  • 2013 – Antonio Maccanico, Italian banker and politician (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Frank W. J. Olver, English-American mathematician and academic (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Kathryn Wasserman Davis, American philanthropist and scholar (b. 1907)
  • 2014 – Benjamín Brea, Spanish-Venezuelan saxophonist, clarinet player, and conductor (b. 1946)
  • 2014 – Michael Glawogger, Austrian director, screenwriter, and cinematographer (b. 1959)
  • 2014 – Jaap Havekotte, Dutch speed skater and producer of ice skates (b. 1912)
  • 2014 – Connie Marrero, Cuban baseball player and coach (b. 1911)
  • 2014 – F. Michael Rogers, American general (b. 1921)
  • 2014 – Mark Shand, English conservationist and author (b. 1951)
  • 2014 – Patric Standford, English composer and educator (b. 1939)
  • 2015 – Richard Corliss, American journalist and critic (b. 1944)
  • 2015 – Ray Jackson, Australian activist (b. 1941)
  • 2015 – Pierre Claude Nolin, Canadian lawyer and politician, Speaker of the Canadian Senate (b. 1950)
  • 2015 – Jim Steffen, American football player (b. 1936)
  • 2015 – Francis Tsai, American author and illustrator (b. 1967)
  • 2016 – Inge King, German-born Australian sculptor (b. 1915)
  • 2016 – Banharn Silpa-archa, Thai politician, Prime Minister from 1995–1996 (b. 1932)
  • 2019 – Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick, American soprano singer and presenter (b.1983)

Holidays and observances on April 23

  • Castile and León Day (Castile and León)
  • Christian feast day:
    • Adalbert of Prague
    • Felix, Fortunatus, and Achilleus
    • George
    • Blessed Giles of Assisi
    • Gerard of Toul
    • Ibar of Beggerin (Meath)
    • Toyohiko Kagawa (Episcopal and Lutheran Church)
    • April 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which the first day of Children’s Day can fall, while April 29 is the latest; celebrated on the last Saturday of April. (Colombia)
  • Independence Day (Conch Republic, Key West, Florida)
  • International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day
  • Khongjom Day (Manipur)
  • National Sovereignty and Children’s Day (Turkey and Northern Cyprus)
  • Navy Day (China)
  • St George’s Day (England) and its related observances:
    • Canada Book Day (Canada)
    • La Diada de Sant Jordi (Catalonia, Spain)
    • World Book Day
  • UN English Language Day (United Nations)

April 23 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 769 – The Lateran Council condemned the Council of Hieria and anathematized its iconoclastic rulings.
  • 1071 – Bari, the last Byzantine possession in southern Italy, is surrendered to Robert Guiscard.
  • 1395 – Timur defeats Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde at the Battle of the Terek River. The Golden Horde capital city, Sarai, is razed to the ground and Timur installs a puppet ruler on the throne.
  • 1450 – Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years’ War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English forces, ending English domination in Northern France.
  • 1632 – Battle of Rain: Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus defeat the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years’ War.
  • 1642 – Irish Confederate Wars: A Confederate Irish militia is routed in the Battle of Kilrush when it attempts to halt the progress of a Royalist Army.
  • 1715 – The Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.
  • 1736 – Foundation of the Kingdom of Corsica.
  • 1738 – Serse, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel receives its premiere performance in London, England.
  • 1755 – Samuel Johnson’s A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London.
  • 1783 – Preliminary articles of peace ending the American Revolutionary War (or American War of Independence) are ratified.
  • 1817 – Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc founded the American School for the Deaf, the first American school for deaf students, in Hartford, Connecticut.
  • 1861 – President Abraham Lincoln calls for 75,000 Volunteers to quell the insurrection that soon became the American Civil War.
  • 1865 – President Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot the previous evening by actor John Wilkes Booth. Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes President upon Lincoln’s death.
  • 1892 – The General Electric Company is formed.
  • 1896 – Closing ceremony of the Games of the I Olympiad in Athens, Greece.
  • 1900 – Philippine–American War: Filipino guerrillas launch a surprise attack on U.S. infantry and begin a four-day siege of Catubig, Philippines.
  • 1907 – Triangle Fraternity is founded at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
  • 1912 – The British passenger liner RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic at 2:20 a.m., two hours and forty minutes after hitting an iceberg. Only 710 of 2,227 passengers and crew on board survive.
  • 1920 – Two security guards are murdered during a robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts. Anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti would be convicted of and executed for the crime, amid much controversy.
  • 1922 – U.S. Senator John B. Kendrick of Wyoming introduces a resolution calling for an investigation of a secret land deal, which leads to the discovery of the Teapot Dome scandal.
  • 1923 – Insulin becomes generally available for use by people with diabetes.
  • 1924 – Rand McNally publishes its first road atlas.
  • 1936 – First day of the Arab revolt in Mandatory Palestine.
  • 1941 – In the Belfast Blitz, two-hundred bombers of the German Luftwaffe attack Belfast, killing around one thousand people.
  • 1942 – The George Cross is awarded “to the island fortress of Malta” by King George VI.
  • 1945 – Bergen-Belsen concentration camp is liberated.
  • 1947 – Jackie Robinson debuts for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking baseball’s color line.
  • 1952 – First flight of the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.
  • 1955 – McDonald’s restaurant dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois.
  • 1960 – At Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Ella Baker leads a conference that results in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, one of the principal organizations of the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
  • 1969 – The EC-121 shootdown incident: North Korea shoots down a United States Navy aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing all 31 onboard.
  • 1970 – During the Cambodian Civil War, massacre of the Vietnamese minority results in 800 bodies flowing down the Mekong river into South Vietnam.
  • 1986 – The United States launches Operation El Dorado Canyon, its bombing raids against Libyan targets in response to a discotheque bombing in West Germany that killed two U.S. servicemen.
  • 1989 – Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 96 Liverpool fans.
  • 1989 – Upon Hu Yaobang’s death, the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 begin in China.
  • 1994 – Marrakesh Agreement relating to foundation of World Trade Organization is adopted.
  • 2013 – Two bombs explode near the finish line at the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, killing three people and injuring 264 others.
  • 2013 – A wave of bombings across Iraq kills at least 75 people.
  • 2014 – In the worst massacre of the South Sudanese Civil War, at least 200 civilians were gunned down after seeking refuge in houses of worship as well as hospitals.
  • 2019 – The cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris in France is seriously damaged by a large fire.

Births on April 15

  • 68 BC – Gaius Maecenas, Roman politician (d. 8 BC)
  • 1282 – Frederick IV, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1329)
  • 1367 – Henry IV of England (d. 1413)
  • 1442 – John Paston, English noble (d. 1479)
  • 1452 – Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, and architect (d. 1519)
  • 1469 – Guru Nanak, the first Sikh guru (d. 1539)
  • 1552 – Pietro Cataldi, Italian mathematician and astronomer (d. 1626)
  • 1563 – Guru Arjan Dev, fifth Sikh leader (d. 1606)
  • 1588 – Claudius Salmasius, French author and scholar (d. 1653)
  • 1592 – Francesco Maria Brancaccio, Catholic cardinal (d. 1675)
  • 1641 – Robert Sibbald, Scottish physician and geographer (d. 1722)
  • 1642 – Suleiman II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1691)
  • 1646 – Christian V of Denmark (d. 1699)
  • 1684 – Catherine I of Russia (d. 1727)
  • 1688 – Johann Friedrich Fasch, German violinist and composer (d. 1758)
  • 1707 – Leonhard Euler, Swiss mathematician and physicist (d. 1783)
  • 1710 – William Cullen, Scottish physician and chemist (d. 1790)
  • 1741 – Charles Willson Peale, American painter and soldier (d. 1827)
  • 1771 – Nicolas Chopin, French-Polish educator (d. 1844)
  • 1772 – Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, French biologist and zoologist (d. 1844)
  • 1793 – Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve, German astronomer and academic (d. 1864)
  • 1795 – Maria Schicklgruber, mother of Alois Hitler and the paternal grandmother of Adolf Hitler (d.1847)
  • 1800 – James Clark Ross, English captain and explorer (d. 1862)
  • 1808 – William Champ, English-Australian politician, 1st Premier of Tasmania (d. 1892)
  • 1809 – Hermann Grassmann, German linguist and mathematician (d. 1877)
  • 1817 – William Crowther, Dutch-Australian politician, 14th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1885)
  • 1828 – Jean Danjou, French captain (d. 1863)
  • 1832 – Wilhelm Busch, German poet, painter, and illustrator (d. 1908)
  • 1841 – Mary Grant Roberts, Australian zoo owner (d. 1921)
  • 1841 – Joseph E. Seagram, Canadian businessman and politician, founded the Seagram Company Ltd (d. 1919)
  • 1843 – Henry James, American novelist, short story writer, and critic (d. 1916)
  • 1856 – Jean Moréas, Greek poet and critic (d. 1910)
  • 1858 – Émile Durkheim, French sociologist, psychologist, and philosopher (d. 1917)
  • 1861 – Bliss Carman, Canadian-British poet and playwright (d. 1929)
  • 1863 – Ida Freund, Austrian-born chemist and educator (d. 1914)
  • 1874 – George Harrison Shull, American botanist and geneticist (d. 1954)
  • 1874 – Johannes Stark, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
  • 1875 – James J. Jeffries, American boxer and promoter (d. 1953)
  • 1877 – Georg Kolbe, German sculptor (d. 1947)
  • 1878 – Robert Walser, Swiss author and playwright (d. 1956)
  • 1879 – Melville Henry Cane, American lawyer and poet (d. 1980)
  • 1883 – Stanley Bruce, Australian captain and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1967)
  • 1885 – Tadeusz Kutrzeba, Polish general (d. 1947)
  • 1886 – Nikolay Gumilyov, Russian poet and critic (d. 1921)
  • 1887 – William Forgan Smith, Scottish-Australian politician, 24th Premier of Queensland (d. 1953)
  • 1888 – Maximilian Kronberger, German poet and author (d. 1904)
  • 1889 – Thomas Hart Benton, American painter and educator (d. 1975)
  • 1889 – A. Philip Randolph, American activist (d. 1979)
  • 1890 – Percy Shaw, English businessman, invented the cat’s eye (d. 1976)
  • 1892 – Theo Osterkamp, German general and pilot (d. 1975)
  • 1892 – Corrie ten Boom, Dutch-American clocksmith, Nazi resister, and author (d. 1983)
  • 1894 – Nikita Khrushchev, Russian general and politician, 7th Premier of the Soviet Union (d. 1971)
  • 1894 – Bessie Smith, African-American singer and actress (d. 1937)
  • 1895 – Clark McConachy, New Zealand snooker player (d. 1980)
  • 1895 – Abigail Mejia, Dominican feminist activist, nationalist, literary critic and educator (d. 1941)
  • 1896 – Nikolay Semyonov, Russian physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1986)
  • 1898 – Harry Edward, Guyanese-English sprinter (d. 1973)
  • 1901 – Joe Davis, English snooker player (d. 1978)
  • 1901 – Ajoy Mukherjee, Indian politician, Chief Minister of West Bengal (d. 1986)
  • 1901 – René Pleven, French businessman and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1993)
  • 1902 – Fernando Pessa, Portuguese journalist (d. 2002)
  • 1903 – John Williams, English-American actor (d. 1983)
  • 1904 – Arshile Gorky, Armenian-American painter and illustrator (d. 1948)
  • 1907 – Nikolaas Tinbergen, Dutch-English ethologist and ornithologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1988)
  • 1908 – eden ahbez, Scottish-American songwriter and recording artist (d. 1995)
  • 1908 – Lita Grey, American actress (d. 1995)
  • 1910 – Sulo Bärlund, Finnish shot putter (d. 1986)
  • 1910 – Miguel Najdorf, Polish-Argentinian chess player and theoretician (d. 1997)
  • 1912 – William Congdon, American-Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1998)
  • 1912 – Kim Il-sung, North Korean general and politician, 1st Supreme Leader of North Korea (d. 1994)
  • 1915 – Elizabeth Catlett, African-American sculptor and illustrator (d. 2012)
  • 1916 – Alfred S. Bloomingdale, American businessman (d. 1982)
  • 1916 – Helene Hanff, American author and screenwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1917 – Hans Conried, American actor (d. 1982)
  • 1917 – Elmer Gedeon, American baseball player and bomber pilot (d. 1944)
  • 1917 – James Kee, American lawyer and politician (d. 1989)
  • 1918 – Hans Billian, German film director, screenwriter, and actor (d. 2007)
  • 1919 – Alberto Breccia, Uruguayan-Argentinian author and illustrator (d. 1993)
  • 1920 – Godfrey Stafford, English-South African physicist and academic (d. 2013)
  • 1920 – Thomas Szasz, Hungarian-American psychiatrist and academic (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Richard von Weizsäcker, German soldier and politician, 6th President of Germany (d. 2015)
  • 1921 – Georgy Beregovoy, Ukrainian-Russian general, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1995)
  • 1921 – Angelo DiGeorge, American physician and endocrinologist (d. 2009)
  • 1922 – Michael Ansara, Syrian-American actor (d. 2013)
  • 1922 – Hasrat Jaipuri, Indian poet and songwriter (d. 1999)
  • 1922 – Harold Washington, American lawyer and politician, 51st Mayor of Chicago (d. 1987)
  • 1922 – Graham Whitehead, English racing driver (d. 1981)
  • 1923 – Artur Alliksaar, Estonian poet and author (d. 1966)
  • 1923 – Robert DePugh, American activist, founded the Minutemen (an anti-Communist organization) (d. 2009)
  • 1924 – M. Canagaratnam, Sri Lankan politician (d. 1980)
  • 1924 – Rikki Fulton, Scottish comedian (d. 2004)
  • 1924 – Neville Marriner, English violinist and conductor (d. 2016)
  • 1927 – Robert Mills, American physicist and academic (d. 1999)
  • 1929 – Gérald Beaudoin, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2008)
  • 1929 – Adrian Cadbury, English rower and businessman (d. 2015)
  • 1930 – Georges Descrières, French actor (d. 2013)
  • 1930 – Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Icelandic educator and politician, 4th President of Iceland
  • 1931 – Kenneth Bloomfield, Northern Irish civil servant
  • 1931 – Tomas Tranströmer, Swedish poet, translator, and psychologist Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2015)
  • 1933 – Roy Clark, American musician and television personality (d. 2018)
  • 1933 – David Hamilton, English-French photographer and director (d. 2016)
  • 1933 – Elizabeth Montgomery, American actress and producer (d. 1995)
  • 1935 – Stavros Paravas, Greek actor and producer (d. 2008)
  • 1936 – Raymond Poulidor, French cyclist
  • 1937 – Bob Luman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1978)
  • 1938 – Claudia Cardinale, Italian actress
  • 1938 – Hso Khan Pha, Burmese-Canadian geologist and politician (d. 2016)
  • 1939 – Marty Wilde, English singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1939 – Desiré Ecaré, Ivorian filmmaker (d. 2009)
  • 1940 – Jeffrey Archer, English author, playwright, and politician
  • 1940 – Penelope Coelen, South African actress, model, beauty queen and 1958 Miss World
  • 1940 – Willie Davis, American baseball player and actor (d. 2010)
  • 1940 – Robert Lacroix, Canadian economist and academic
  • 1941 – Howard Berman, American lawyer and politician
  • 1942 – Francis X. DiLorenzo, American bishop (d. 2017)
  • 1942 – Walt Hazzard, American basketball player and coach (d. 2011)
  • 1942 – Kenneth Lay, American businessman (d. 2006)
  • 1942 – Tim Lankester, English economist and academic
  • 1943 – Pınar Kür, Turkish author, playwright, and academic
  • 1943 – Robert Lefkowitz, American physician and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1943 – Veronica Linklater, Baroness Linklater, English politician
  • 1943 – Hugh Thompson, Jr., American soldier and pilot (d. 2006)
  • 1944 – Dzhokhar Dudayev, Russian-Chechen general and politician, 1st President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (d. 1996)
  • 1944 – Dave Edmunds, Welsh singer, guitarist, and producer
  • 1946 – John Lloyd, Scottish journalist and author
  • 1946 – Pete Rouse, American politician, White House Chief of Staff
  • 1947 – Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, American screenwriter and producer
  • 1947 – Martin Broughton, English businessman
  • 1947 – Lois Chiles, American model and actress
  • 1947 – David Omand, English civil servant and academic
  • 1947 – Cristina Husmark Pehrsson, Swedish nurse and politician, Swedish Minister for Social Security
  • 1947 – Woolly Wolstenholme, English singer and keyboard player (d. 2010)
  • 1948 – Christopher Brown, English historian, curator, and academic
  • 1948 – Michael Kamen, American composer and conductor (d. 2003)
  • 1948 – Phil Mogg, English singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1949 – Alla Pugacheva, Russian singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1949 – Craig Zadan, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2018)
  • 1950 – Josiane Balasko, French actress, director, and screenwriter
  • 1950 – Amy Wright, American actress
  • 1950 – Karel Kroupa, Czech football player
  • 1951 – Heloise, American journalist and author
  • 1951 – John L. Phillips, American captain and astronaut
  • 1951 – Stuart Prebble, English journalist and producer
  • 1951 – Marsha Ivins, American engineer and astronaut
  • 1952 – Kym Gyngell, Australian actor, comedian, and screenwriter
  • 1952 – Brian Muir, English sculptor and set designer
  • 1952 – Avital Ronell, Czech-American philosopher and academic
  • 1955 – Dodi Fayed, Egyptian film producer (d. 1997)
  • 1955 – Joice Mujuru, Zimbabwean politician
  • 1956 – Michael Cooper, American basketball player and coach
  • 1957 – Evelyn Ashford, American runner and coach
  • 1958 – Keith Acton, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1958 – John Bracewell, New Zealand cricketer
  • 1958 – Memos Ioannou, Greek basketball player and coach
  • 1958 – Benjamin Zephaniah, English actor, author, poet, and playwright
  • 1959 – Fruit Chan, Chinese director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1959 – Kevin Lowe, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager
  • 1959 – Emma Thompson, English actress, comedian, author, activist and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Pierre Aubry, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1960 – Susanne Bier, Danish director and screenwriter
  • 1960 – Pedro Delgado, Spanish cyclist and sportscaster
  • 1960 – Tony Jones, English snooker player
  • 1961 – Neil Carmichael, English academic and politician
  • 1961 – Carol W. Greider, American molecular biologist
  • 1961 – Dawn Wright, American geographer and oceanographer
  • 1962 – Nawal El Moutawakel, Moroccan athlete and politician
  • 1962 – Tom Kane, American voice actor
  • 1963 – Alex Crawford, Nigerian-South African journalist
  • 1963 – Manzoor Elahi, Pakistani cricketer
  • 1963 – Manoj Prabhakar, Indian cricketer and sportscaster
  • 1964 – Andre Joubert, South African rugby player
  • 1964 – Lee Kernaghan, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1965 – Linda Perry, American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer
  • 1965 – Kevin Stevens, American ice hockey player
  • 1966 – Samantha Fox, English singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1966 – Mott Green, American businessman (d. 2013)
  • 1967 – Frankie Poullain, Scottish bass player and songwriter
  • 1967 – Dara Torres, American swimmer and journalist
  • 1968 – Ben Clarke, English rugby player and coach
  • 1968 – Brahim Lahlafi, Moroccan-French runner
  • 1968 – Ed O’Brien, English guitarist
  • 1969 – Jeromy Burnitz, American baseball player
  • 1969 – Kaisa Roose, Estonian pianist and conductor
  • 1969 – Jimmy Waite, Canadian-German ice hockey player and coach
  • 1970 – Chris Huffins, American decathlete and coach
  • 1971 – Philippe Carbonneau, French rugby player
  • 1971 – Finidi George, Nigerian footballer
  • 1971 – Jason Sehorn, American football player
  • 1971 – Josia Thugwane, South African runner
  • 1971 – Karl Turner, English lawyer and politician
  • 1972 – Arturo Gatti, Italian-Canadian boxer (d. 2009)
  • 1972 – Lou Romano, American animator and voice actor
  • 1974 – Kim Min-kyo, South Korean actor and director
  • 1974 – Danny Pino, American actor and screenwriter
  • 1974 – Mike Quinn, American football player
  • 1974 – Douglas Spain, American actor, director, and producer
  • 1974 – Tim Thomas, American ice hockey player
  • 1975 – Sarah Teichmann, German-American biophysicist and immunologist
  • 1976 – Jason Bonsignore, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1976 – Darius Regelskis, Lithuanian footballer
  • 1976 – Kęstutis Šeštokas, Lithuanian basketball player
  • 1976 – Steve Williams, English rower
  • 1977 – Sudarsan Pattnaik, Indian sculptor
  • 1977 – Brian Pothier, American ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Milton Bradley, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Tim Corcoran, American baseball player
  • 1978 – Luis Fonsi, Puerto Rican-American singer-songwriter and dancer
  • 1978 – Chris Stapleton, American country singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1980 – Patrick Carney, American drummer, musician, and producer
  • 1980 – James Foster, English cricketer
  • 1980 – Raül López, Spanish basketball player
  • 1980 – Willie Mason, New Zealand-Australian rugby league player
  • 1980 – Aida Mollenkamp, American chef and author
  • 1980 – Billy Yates, American football player
  • 1981 – Andrés D’Alessandro, Argentinian footballer
  • 1982 – Michael Aubrey, American baseball player
  • 1982 – Anthony Green, American singer-songwriter
  • 1982 – Seth Rogen, Canadian-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1983 – Alice Braga, Brazilian actress
  • 1983 – Matt Cardle, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1983 – Dudu Cearense, Brazilian footballer
  • 1983 – Andreas Fransson, Swedish skier (d. 2014)
  • 1983 – Ilya Kovalchuk, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1983 – Martin Pedersen, Danish cyclist
  • 1984 – Antonio Cromartie, American football player
  • 1984 – Cam Janssen, American ice hockey player
  • 1984 – Daniel Paille, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Ryan Hamilton, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Tom Heaton, English footballer
  • 1986 – Sylvain Marveaux, French footballer
  • 1988 – Blake Ayshford, Australian rugby league player
  • 1988 – Steven Defour, Belgian footballer
  • 1988 – Chris Tillman, American baseball pitcher
  • 1989 – Darren Nicholls, Australian rugby league player
  • 1990 – Emma Watson, English actress
  • 1991 – Daiki Arioka, Japanese idol, singer, and actor
  • 1991 – Javier Fernández López, Spanish figure skater
  • 1992 – Jeremy McGovern, Australian rules football player
  • 1994 – Brodie Grundy, Australian rules football player
  • 1994 – Shaunae Miller-Uibo, Bahamian sprinter
  • 1995 – Leander Dendoncker, Belgian footballer
  • 1999 – Denis Shapovalov, Canadian tennis player
  • 2001 – Shanti Dope, Filipino rapper

Deaths on April 15

  • 628 – Suiko, emperor of Japan (b. 554)
  • 943 – Liu Bin, emperor of Southern Han (b. 920)
  • 956 – Lin Yanyu, Chinese court official and eunuch
  • 1053 – Godwin, Earl of Wessex (b. 1001)
  • 1136 – Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare (b. 1094)
  • 1220 – Adolf of Altena, German archbishop (b. 1157)
  • 1237 – Richard Poore, English ecclesiastic
  • 1415 – Manuel Chrysoloras, Greek philosopher and translator (b. 1355)
  • 1446 – Filippo Brunelleschi, Italian sculptor and architect (b. 1377)
  • 1502 – John IV of Chalon-Arlay, Prince of Orange (b. 1443)
  • 1558 – Roxelana, wife of Suleiman the Magnificent (b. c. 1500)
  • 1610 – Robert Persons, English Jesuit priest, insurrectionist, and author (b. 1546)
  • 1632 – George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, English politician, English Secretary of State (b. 1580)
  • 1652 – Patriarch Joseph of Moscow, Russian patriarch
  • 1659 – Simon Dach, German poet and hymnwriter (b. 1605)
  • 1719 – Françoise d’Aubigné, Marquise de Maintenon, French wife of Louis XIV of France (b. 1635)
  • 1754 – Jacopo Riccati, Italian mathematician and academic (b. 1676)
  • 1761 – Archibald Campbell, 3rd Duke of Argyll, Scottish lawyer and politician, Lord President of the Court of Session (b. 1682)
  • 1761 – William Oldys, English historian and author (b. 1696)
  • 1764 – Peder Horrebow, Danish astronomer and mathematician (b. 1679)
  • 1765 – Mikhail Lomonosov, Russian chemist and physicist (b. 1711)
  • 1788 – Giuseppe Bonno, Austrian composer (b. 1711)
  • 1793 – Ignacije Szentmartony, Croatian priest, mathematician, and astronomer (b. 1718)
  • 1854 – Arthur Aikin, English chemist and mineralogist (b. 1773)
  • 1861 – Sylvester Jordan, Austrian-German lawyer and politician (b. 1792)
  • 1865 – Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States (b. 1809)
  • 1888 – Matthew Arnold, English poet and critic (b. 1822)
  • 1889 – Father Damien, Belgian priest and saint (b. 1840)
  • 1898 – Te Keepa Te Rangihiwinui, New Zealand commander and politician
  • 1912 – Victims of the Titanic disaster:
    • Thomas Andrews, Irish shipbuilder (b. 1873)
    • John Jacob Astor IV, American colonel, businessman, and author (b. 1864)
    • Archibald Butt, American general and journalist (b. 1865)
    • Jacques Futrelle, American journalist and author (b. 1875)
    • Benjamin Guggenheim, American businessman (b. 1865)
    • Henry B. Harris, American producer and manager (b. 1866)
    • Wallace Hartley, English violinist and bandleader (b. 1878)
    • James Paul Moody, English Sixth Officer (b. 1887)
    • William McMaster Murdoch, Scottish First Officer (b. 1873)
    • Jack Phillips, English telegraphist (b. 1887)
    • Edward Smith, English Captain (b. 1850)
    • William Thomas Stead, English journalist (b. 1849)
    • Ida Straus, German-American businesswoman (b. 1849)
    • Isidor Straus, German-American businessman and politician (b. 1845)
    • John B. Thayer, American business and sportsman (b. 1862)
    • Henry Tingle Wilde, English chief officer (b. 1872)
  • 1917 – János Murkovics, Slovene author, poet, and educator (b. 1839)
  • 1927 – Gaston Leroux, French journalist and author (b. 1868)
  • 1938 – César Vallejo, Peruvian journalist, poet, and playwright (b. 1892)
  • 1942 – Robert Musil, Austrian-Swiss author and playwright (b. 1880)
  • 1943 – Aristarkh Lentulov, Russian painter and set designer (b. 1882)
  • 1944 – Nikolai Fyodorovich Vatutin, Russian general (b. 1901)
  • 1945 – Hermann Florstedt, German SS officer (b. 1895)
  • 1948 – Radola Gajda, Montenegrin-Czech general and politician (b. 1892)
  • 1949 – Wallace Beery, American actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1885)
  • 1962 – Clara Blandick, American actress (b. 1880)
  • 1962 – Arsenio Lacson, Filipino journalist and politician, Mayor of Manila (b. 1912)
  • 1963 – Edward Greeves, Jr., Australian footballer (b. 1903)
  • 1966 – Habibullah Bahar Chowdhury, Bengali politician, writer, journalist, first health minister of East Pakistan
  • 1967 – Totò, Italian comedian (b. 1898)
  • 1971 – Gurgen Boryan, Armenian poet and playwright (b. 1915)
  • 1971 – Friedebert Tuglas, Estonian author and critic (b. 1886)
  • 1979 – David Brand, Australian politician, 19th Premier of Western Australia (b. 1912)
  • 1980 – Raymond Bailey, American actor and soldier (b. 1904)
  • 1980 – Jean-Paul Sartre, French philosopher and author, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
  • 1982 – Arthur Lowe, English actor (b. 1915)
  • 1984 – Tommy Cooper, Welsh comedian and magician (b. 1921)
  • 1986 – Jean Genet, French novelist, poet, and playwright (b. 1910)
  • 1988 – Kenneth Williams, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1926)
  • 1989 – Hu Yaobang, Chinese soldier and politician, former General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (b. 1915)
  • 1990 – Greta Garbo, Swedish-American actress (b. 1905)
  • 1993 – Leslie Charteris, English author and screenwriter (b. 1907)
  • 1993 – John Tuzo Wilson, Canadian geophysicist and geologist (b. 1908)
  • 1998 – William Congdon, American-Italian painter and sculptor (b. 1912)
  • 1998 – Pol Pot, Cambodian general and politician, 29th Prime Minister of Cambodia (b. 1925)
  • 1999 – Harvey Postlethwaite, English engineer (b. 1944)
  • 2000 – Edward Gorey, American poet and illustrator (b. 1925)
  • 2001 – Joey Ramone, American singer-songwriter (b. 1951)
  • 2002 – Damon Knight, American author and critic (b. 1922)
  • 2002 – Byron White, American football player, lawyer, and jurist, 4th United States Deputy Attorney General (b. 1917)
  • 2004 – Mitsuteru Yokoyama, Japanese illustrator (b. 1934)
  • 2007 – Brant Parker, American illustrator (b. 1920)
  • 2008 – Krister Stendahl, Swedish bishop, theologian, and scholar (b. 1921)
  • 2009 – Clement Freud, German-English journalist, academic, and politician (b. 1924)
  • 2009 – László Tisza, Hungarian-American physicist and academic (b. 1907)
  • 2009 – Salih Neftçi, Turkish economist and author (b. 1947)
  • 2010 – Jack Herer, American author and activist (b. 1939)
  • 2010 – Michael Pataki, American actor and director (b. 1938)
  • 2011 – Vittorio Arrigoni, Italian journalist, author, and activist (b. 1975)
  • 2012 – Paul Bogart, American director and producer (b. 1919)
  • 2012 – Dwayne Schintzius, American basketball player (b. 1968)
  • 2013 – Benjamin Fain, Ukrainian-Israeli physicist and academic (b. 1930)
  • 2013 – Richard LeParmentier, American-English actor and screenwriter (b. 1946)
  • 2013 – Jean-François Paillard, French conductor (b. 1928)
  • 2014 – John Houbolt, American engineer and academic (b. 1919)
  • 2014 – Eliseo Verón, Argentinian sociologist and academic (b. 1935)
  • 2015 – Jonathan Crombie, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter (b. 1966)
  • 2015 – Surya Bahadur Thapa, Nepalese politician, 24th Prime Minister of Nepal (b. 1928)
  • 2017 – Clifton James, American actor (b. 1920)
  • 2017 – Emma Morano, Italian supercentenarian, last person verified born in the 1800s (b. 1899)
  • 2018 – R. Lee Ermey, American actor (b. 1944)
  • 2018 – Vittorio Taviani, Italian film director and screenwriter (b. 1929)

Holidays and observances on April 15

  • Christian feast day:
    • Abbo II of Metz
    • Father Damien (The Episcopal Church)
    • Hunna
    • Paternus of Avranches
    • April 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of the Sun (North Korea)
  • Earliest day on which Sechseläuten can fall, while April 21 is the latest; celebrated on the third Monday in April. (Zürich)
  • Father Damien Day (Hawaii)
  • Hillsborough Disaster Memorial (Liverpool, England)
  • Jackie Robinson Day (United States)
  • National American Sign Language Day (United States)
  • One Boston Day (United States)
  • Poila Boishakh (Bengali New Year)
  • Tax Day, the official deadline for filing an individual tax return (or requesting an extension). (United States, Philippines)
  • Universal Day of Culture
  • World Art Day

April 15 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 9 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground.
  • 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, supporting the Monophysite Christological position.
  • 537 – Siege of Rome: The Byzantine general Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements, 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. He starts, despite shortages, raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate.
  • 1241 – Battle of Liegnitz: Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies.
  • 1288 – Mongol invasions of Vietnam: Yuan forces are defeated by Trần forces in the Battle of Bach Dang in present-day northern Vietnam.
  • 1388 – Despite being outnumbered 16 to 1, forces of the Old Swiss Confederacy are victorious over the Archduchy of Austria in the Battle of Näfels.
  • 1413 – Henry V is crowned King of England.
  • 1440 – Christopher of Bavaria is appointed King of Denmark.
  • 1454 – The Treaty of Lodi is signed, establishing a balance of power among northern Italian city-states for almost 50 years.
  • 1511 – St John’s College, Cambridge, England, founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort, receives its charter.
  • 1585 – The expedition organised by Sir Walter Raleigh departs England for Roanoke Island (now in North Carolina) to establish the Roanoke Colony.
  • 1609 – Eighty Years’ War: Spain and the Dutch Republic sign the Treaty of Antwerp to initiate twelve years of truce.
  • 1609 – Philip III of Spain issues the decree of the “Expulsion of the Moriscos”.
  • 1682 – Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana.
  • 1782 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of the Saintes begins.
  • 1784 – The Treaty of Paris, ratified by the United States Congress on January 14, 1784, is ratified by King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain, ending the American Revolutionary War. Copies of the ratified documents are exchanged on May 12, 1784.
  • 1860 – On his phonautograph machine, Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville makes the oldest known recording of an audible human voice.
  • 1865 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the war.
  • 1909 – The U.S. Congress passes the Payne–Aldrich Tariff Act.
  • 1914 – Mexican Revolution: One of the world’s first naval/air skirmishes takes place off the coast of western Mexico.
  • 1916 – World War I: The Battle of Verdun: German forces launch their third offensive of the battle.
  • 1917 – World War I: The Battle of Arras: The battle begins with Canadian Corps executing a massive assault on Vimy Ridge.
  • 1918 – World War I: The Battle of the Lys: The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps is crushed by the German forces during what is called the Spring Offensive on the Belgian region of Flanders.
  • 1937 – The Kamikaze arrives at Croydon Airport in London. It is the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly to Europe.
  • 1939 – African-American singer Marian Anderson gives a concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution.
  • 1940 – World War II: Operation Weserübung: Germany invades Denmark and Norway.
  • 1940 – Vidkun Quisling seizes power in Norway.
  • 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Bataan ends. An Indian Ocean raid by Japan’s 1st Air Fleet sinks the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire.
  • 1945 – Execution of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, anti-Nazi dissident and spy, by the Nazi regime.
  • 1945 – World War II: The German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer is sunk by the Royal Air Force.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Battle of Königsberg, in East Prussia, ends.
  • 1945 – The United States Atomic Energy Commission is formed.
  • 1947 – The Glazier–Higgins–Woodward tornadoes kill 181 and injure 970 in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
  • 1947 – The Journey of Reconciliation, the first interracial Freedom Ride begins through the upper South in violation of Jim Crow laws. The riders wanted enforcement of the United States Supreme Court’s 1946 Irene Morgan decision that banned racial segregation in interstate travel.
  • 1947 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 22 relating to Corfu Channel incident is adopted.
  • 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán’s assassination provokes a violent riot in Bogotá (the Bogotazo), and a further ten years of violence in Colombia.
  • 1948 – Fighters from the Irgun and Lehi Zionist paramilitary groups attacked Deir Yassin near Jerusalem, killing over 100.
  • 1952 – Hugo Ballivián’s government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines
  • 1957 – The Suez Canal in Egypt is cleared and opens to shipping following the Suez Crisis.
  • 1959 – Project Mercury: NASA announces the selection of the United States’ first seven astronauts, whom the news media quickly dub the “Mercury Seven”.
  • 1960 – Dr Hendrik Verwoerd, Prime Minister of South Africa and architect of apartheid, narrowly survives an assassination attempt by a white farmer, David Pratt in Johannesburg.
  • 1961 – The Pacific Electric Railway in Los Angeles, once the largest electric railway in the world, ends operations.
  • 1965 – Astrodome opens. First indoor baseball game is played.
  • 1967 – The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight.
  • 1969 – The first British-built Concorde 002 makes its maiden flight from Filton to RAF Fairford.
  • 1975 – The first game of the Philippine Basketball Association, the second oldest professional basketball league in the world.
  • 1976 – The EMD F40PH diesel locomotive enters revenue service with Amtrak.
  • 1980 – The Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein kills philosopher Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr and his sister Bint al-Huda after three days of torture.
  • 1981 – The U.S. Navy nuclear submarine USS George Washington accidentally collides with the Nissho Maru, a Japanese cargo ship, sinking it.
  • 1989 – Tbilisi massacre: an anti-Soviet peaceful demonstration and hunger strike in Tbilisi, demanding restoration of Georgian independence, is dispersed by the Soviet Army, resulting in 20 deaths and hundreds of injuries.
  • 1990 – An IRA bombing in County Down, Northern Ireland, kills three members of the UDR.
  • 1990 – Thirteen thousand members of the Dene and Métis tribes sign a land claim agreement for 180,000 square kilometres (69,000 sq mi) in the Mackenzie Valley of the western Arctic.
  • 1991 – Georgia declares independence from the Soviet Union.
  • 1992 – A U.S. Federal Court finds former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of drug and racketeering charges. He is sentenced to 30 years in prison.
  • 1999 – Kosovo War: The Battle of Košare begins.
  • 2003 – Iraq War: Baghdad falls to American forces.
  • 2005 – Charles, Prince of Wales marries Camilla Parker Bowles in a civil ceremony at Windsor’s Guildhall.
  • 2009 – In Tbilisi, Georgia, up to 60,000 people protest against the government of Mikheil Saakashvili.
  • 2013 – A 6.1–magnitude earthquake strikes Iran killing 32 people and injuring over 850 people.
  • 2013 – At least 13 people are killed and another three injured after a man goes on a spree shooting in the Serbian village of Velika Ivanča.
  • 2014 – A student stabs 20 people at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania.
  • 2017 – The Palm Sunday church bombings at Coptic churches in Tanta and Alexandria, Egypt, take place.
  • 2017 – After refusing to give up his seat on an overbooked United Airlines flight, Dr. David Dao Duy Anh is forcibly dragged off the flight by aviation security officers, leading to major criticism of United Airlines.

Births on April 9

  • 1285 – Ayurbarwada Buyantu Khan, Emperor Renzong of Yuan (d. 1320)
  • 1458 – Camilla Battista da Varano, Italian saint (d. 1524)
  • 1498 – Jean, Cardinal of Lorraine (d. 1550)
  • 1586 – Julius Henry, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (d. 1665)
  • 1597 – John Davenport, English minister, co-founded the New Haven Colony (d. 1670)
  • 1598 – Johann Crüger, Sorbian-German composer and theorist (d. 1662)
  • 1624 – Henrik Rysensteen, Dutch military engineer (d. 1679)
  • 1627 – Johann Caspar Kerll, German organist and composer (d. 1693)
  • 1634 – Countess Albertine Agnes of Nassau (d. 1696)
  • 1648 – Henri de Massue, Earl of Galway, French soldier and diplomat (d. 1720)
  • 1649 – James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire (d. 1685)
  • 1654 – Samuel Fritz, Czech Jesuit missionary to South America (d. 1725?)
  • 1680 – Philippe Néricault Destouches, French playwright (d. 1754)
  • 1686 – James Craggs the Younger, English politician, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (d. 1721)
  • 1691 – Johann Matthias Gesner, German scholar and academic (d. 1761)
  • 1717 – Georg Matthias Monn, Austrian organist, composer, and educator (d. 1750)
  • 1770 – Thomas Johann Seebeck, German physicist and academic (d. 1831)
  • 1773 – Étienne Aignan, French author and academic (d. 1824)
  • 1794 – Theobald Boehm, German flute player and composer (d. 1881)
  • 1802 – Elias Lönnrot, Finnish physician and philologist (d. 1884)
  • 1806 – Isambard Kingdom Brunel, English engineer, designed the Clifton Suspension Bridge (d. 1859)
  • 1807 – James Bannerman, Scottish theologian and academic (d. 1868)
  • 1821 – Charles Baudelaire, French poet and critic (d. 1867)
  • 1830 – Eadweard Muybridge, English photographer and cinematographer (d. 1904)
  • 1835 – Leopold II of Belgium (d. 1909)
  • 1835 – Somerset Lowry-Corry, 4th Earl Belmore (d. 1913)
  • 1846 – Paolo Tosti, Italian-English composer and educator (d. 1916)
  • 1848 – Ezequiél Moreno y Díaz, Spanish Augustinian Recollect priest and saint (d. 1906)
  • 1865 – Erich Ludendorff, German general and politician (d. 1937)
  • 1865 – Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Polish-American mathematician and engineer (d. 1923)
  • 1867 – Chris Watson, Chilean-Australian journalist and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1941)
  • 1867 – Charles Winckler, Danish tug of war competitor, discus thrower, and shot putter (d. 1932)
  • 1872 – Léon Blum, French lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1950)
  • 1875 – Jacques Futrelle, American journalist and author (d. 1912)
  • 1880 – Jan Letzel, Czech architect (d. 1925)
  • 1882 – Frederick Francis IV, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (d. 1946)
  • 1882 – Otz Tollen, German actor (d. 1965)
  • 1883 – Frank King, American cartoonist (d. 1969)
  • 1887 – Konrad Tom, Polish actor, writer, singer, and director (d. 1957)
  • 1888 – Sol Hurok, Ukrainian-American talent manager (d. 1974)
  • 1893 – Charles E. Burchfield, American painter (d.1967)
  • 1893 – Victor Gollancz, English publisher, founded Victor Gollancz Ltd (d. 1967)
  • 1893 – Rahul Sankrityayan, Indian linguist, author, and scholar (d. 1963)
  • 1895 – Mance Lipscomb, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1976)
  • 1895 – Michel Simon, Swiss-French actor (d. 1975)
  • 1897 – John B. Gambling, American radio host (d. 1974)
  • 1898 – Curly Lambeau, American football player and coach (d. 1965)
  • 1898 – Paul Robeson, American singer, actor, and activist (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Allen Jenkins, American actor and singer (d. 1974)
  • 1901 – Jean Bruchési, Canadian historian and author (d. 1979)
  • 1901 – Paul Willis, American actor and director (d. 1960)
  • 1902 – Théodore Monod, French explorer and scholar (d. 2000)
  • 1903 – Ward Bond, American actor (d. 1960)
  • 1904 – Sharkey Bonano, American singer, trumpet player, and bandleader (d. 1972)
  • 1905 – J. William Fulbright, American lawyer and politician (d. 1995)
  • 1906 – Rafaela Aparicio, Spanish actress (d. 1996)
  • 1906 – Antal Doráti, Hungarian-American conductor and composer (d. 1988)
  • 1906 – Hugh Gaitskell, British politician and leader of the Labour Party (d. 1963)
  • 1906 – Victor Vasarely, Hungarian-French painter (d. 1997)
  • 1908 – Joseph Krumgold, American author and screenwriter (d. 1980)
  • 1909 – Robert Helpmann, Australian dancer, actor, and choreographer (d. 1986)
  • 1910 – Abraham A. Ribicoff, American lawyer and politician, 4th United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (d. 1998)
  • 1912 – Lev Kopelev, Ukrainian-German author and academic (d. 1997)
  • 1915 – Daniel Johnson Sr., Canadian lawyer and politician, 20th Premier of Quebec (d. 1968)
  • 1916 – Julian Dash, American swing music jazz tenor saxophonist (d. 1974)
  • 1916 – Heinz Meyer, German Fallschirmjäger (paratrooper) during World War II (d. 1987)
  • 1916 – Bill Leonard, American journalist (d. 1994)
  • 1917 – Johannes Bobrowski, German songwriter and poet (d. 1965)
  • 1917 – Ronnie Burgess, Welsh international footballer left-half and manager (d. 2005)
  • 1917 – Brad Dexter, American actor (d. 2002)
  • 1917 – Henry Hewes, American theater writer (d. 2006)
  • 1918 – Jørn Utzon, Danish architect, designed the Sydney Opera House (d. 2008)
  • 1919 – J. Presper Eckert, American engineer, invented the ENIAC (d. 1995)
  • 1921 – Jean-Marie Balestre, French businessman (d. 2008)
  • 1921 – Yitzhak Navon, Israeli politician (d. 2015)
  • 1921 – Frankie Thomas, American actor (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Mary Jackson, African-American mathematician and aerospace engineer (d. 2005)
  • 1922 – Carl Amery, German author and activist (d. 2005)
  • 1923 – Leonard Levy, American historian and author (d. 2006)
  • 1924 – Arthur Shaw, English professional footballer (d. 2015)
  • 1925 – Virginia Gibson, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 2013)
  • 1925 – Art Kane, American photographer (d. 1995)
  • 1926 – Gerry Fitt, Northern Irish soldier and politician; British life peer (d. 2005)
  • 1926 – Hugh Hefner, American publisher, founded Playboy Enterprises (d. 2017)
  • 1926 – Harris Wofford, American politician, author and civil rights activist (d. 2019)
  • 1927 – Tiny Hill, New Zealand rugby player (d. 2019)
  • 1928 – Paul Arizin, American basketball player (d. 2006)
  • 1928 – Tom Lehrer, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and mathematician
  • 1929 – Sharan Rani Backliwal, Indian sarod player and scholar (d. 2008)
  • 1929 – Fred Hollows, New Zealand-Australian ophthalmologist (d. 1993)
  • 1929 – Paule Marshall, American author and academic (d. 2019)
  • 1930 – Nathaniel Branden, Canadian-American psychotherapist and author (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – F. Albert Cotton, American chemist and academic (d. 2007)
  • 1930 – Jim Fowler, American zoologist and television host (d. 2019)
  • 1930 – Wallace McCain, Canadian businessman, founded McCain Foods (d. 2011)
  • 1931 – Richard Hatfield, Canadian lawyer and politician, 26th Premier of New Brunswick (d. 1991)
  • 1932 – Armin Jordan, Swiss conductor (d. 2006)
  • 1932 – Peter Moores, English businessman and philanthropist (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Carl Perkins, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1998)
  • 1933 – Jean-Paul Belmondo, French actor and producer
  • 1933 – René Burri, Swiss photographer and journalist (d. 2014)
  • 1933 – Fern Michaels, American author
  • 1933 – Richard Rose, American political scientist and academic
  • 1933 – Gian Maria Volonté, Italian actor (d. 1994)
  • 1934 – Bill Birch, New Zealand surveyor and politician, 38th New Zealand Minister of Finance
  • 1934 – Tom Phillis, Australian motorcycle racer (d. 1962)
  • 1934 – Mariya Pisareva, Russian high jumper
  • 1935 – Aulis Sallinen, Finnish composer and academic
  • 1935 – Avery Schreiber, American actor and comedian (d. 2002)
  • 1936 – Jerzy Maksymiuk, Polish pianist, composer, and conductor
  • 1936 – Valerie Solanas, American radical feminist author, attempted murderer (d. 1988)
  • 1937 – Simon Brown, Baron Brown of Eaton-under-Heywood, English lieutenant, lawyer, and judge
  • 1937 – Marty Krofft, Canadian screenwriter and producer
  • 1937 – Valerie Singleton, English television and radio host
  • 1938 – Viktor Chernomyrdin, Russian businessman and politician, 30th Prime Minister of Russia (d. 2010)
  • 1939 – Michael Learned, American actress
  • 1940 – Hans-Joachim Reske, German sprinter
  • 1940 – Jim Roberts, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2015)
  • 1941 – Kay Adams, American singer-songwriter
  • 1942 – Brandon deWilde, American actor (d. 1972)
  • 1942 – Margo Smith, American singer-songwriter
  • 1943 – Leila Khaled, Palestinian activist
  • 1943 – Terry Knight, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2004)
  • 1944 – Joe Brinkman, American baseball player and umpire
  • 1944 – Heinz-Joachim Rothenburg, German shot putter
  • 1945 – Steve Gadd, American drummer and percussionist[9]
  • 1946 – Nate Colbert, American baseball player[10]
  • 1946 – Alan Knott, English cricketer[11]
  • 1946 – Sara Parkin, Scottish activist and politician[12]
  • 1946 – David Webb, English footballer, coach, and manager
  • 1947 – Giovanni Andrea Cornia, Italian economist and academic
  • 1948 – Jaya Bachchan, Indian actress and politician
  • 1948 – Michel Parizeau, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1948 – Patty Pravo, Italian singer
  • 1949 – Tony Cragg, English sculptor
  • 1952 – Robert Clark, American author
  • 1952 – Bruce Robertson, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1952 – Tania Tsanaklidou, Greek singer and actress
  • 1953 – John Howard, English singer-songwriter and pianist
  • 1953 – Hal Ketchum, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1953 – Stephen Paddock, American mass murderer responsible for the 2017 Las Vegas shooting (d. 2017)
  • 1954 – Ken Kalfus, American journalist and author
  • 1954 – Dennis Quaid, American actor
  • 1954 – Iain Duncan Smith, British soldier and politician, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
  • 1955 – Yamina Benguigui, Algerian-French director and politician
  • 1955 – Joolz Denby, English poet and author
  • 1956 – Miguel Ángel Russo, Argentinian footballer and coach
  • 1956 – Nigel Shadbolt, English computer scientist and academic
  • 1956 – Vahur Sova, Estonian architect
  • 1956 – Marina Zoueva, Russian ice dancer and coach
  • 1957 – Seve Ballesteros, Spanish golfer and architect (d. 2011)
  • 1957 – Martin Margiela, Belgian fashion designer
  • 1957 – Jamie Redfern, English-born Australian television presenter, and pop singer
  • 1958 – Tony Sibson, English boxer
  • 1958 – Nigel Slater, English food writer and author
  • 1959 – Bernard Jenkin, English businessman and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
  • 1960 – Jaak Aab, Estonian educator and politician, Minister of Social Affairs of Estonia
  • 1961 – Mark Kelly, Irish keyboard player
  • 1961 – Kirk McCaskill, Canadian-American baseball and hockey player
  • 1962 – John Eaves, American production designer and illustrator
  • 1962 – Ihor Podolchak, Ukrainian director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1962 – Imran Sherwani, English field hockey player
  • 1962 – Jeff Turner, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1963 – Marc Jacobs, American-French fashion designer
  • 1963 – Joe Scarborough, American journalist, lawyer, and politician
  • 1964 – Rob Awalt, German-American football player
  • 1964 – Juliet Cuthbert, Jamaican sprinter
  • 1964 – Peter Penashue, Canadian businessman and politician, 9th Canadian Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
  • 1964 – Margaret Peterson Haddix, American author
  • 1964 – Rick Tocchet, Canadian-American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1965 – Helen Alfredsson, Swedish golfer
  • 1965 – Paulina Porizkova, Czech-born Swedish-American model and actress
  • 1965 – Jeff Zucker, American businessman
  • 1966 – John Hammond, English weather forecaster
  • 1966 – Cynthia Nixon, American actress
  • 1967 – Natascha Engel, German-English translator and politician
  • 1967 – Sam Harris, American author, philosopher, and neuroscientist
  • 1968 – Jay Chandrasekhar, American actor, comedian, writer and director
  • 1969 – Barnaby Kay, English actor
  • 1969 – Linda Kisabaka, German runner
  • 1970 – Chorão, Brazilian singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
  • 1971 – Peter Canavan, Irish footballer and manager
  • 1971 – Leo Fortune-West, English footballer and manager
  • 1971 – Austin Peck, American actor
  • 1971 – Jacques Villeneuve, Canadian race car driver
  • 1972 – Bernard Ackah, German-Japanese martial artist and kick-boxer
  • 1972 – Siiri Vallner, Estonian architect
  • 1974 – Megan Connolly, Australian actress (d. 2001)
  • 1974 – Jenna Jameson, American actress and pornographic performer
  • 1975 – Robbie Fowler, English footballer and manager
  • 1975 – David Gordon Green, American director and screenwriter
  • 1976 – Kyle Peterson, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1977 – Gerard Way, American singer-songwriter and comic book writer
  • 1978 – Kousei Amano, Japanese actor
  • 1978 – Jorge Andrade, Portuguese footballer
  • 1978 – Rachel Stevens, English singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
  • 1979 – Jeff Reed, American football player
  • 1979 – Keshia Knight Pulliam, American actress
  • 1980 – Sarah Ayton, English sailor
  • 1980 – Luciano Galletti, Argentinian footballer
  • 1980 – Albert Hammond Jr., American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1981 – Milan Bartovič, Slovak ice hockey player
  • 1981 – A. J. Ellis, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Ireneusz Jeleń, Polish footballer
  • 1981 – Dennis Sarfate, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Eric Harris, American mass murderer, responsible for the Columbine High School massacre (d. 1999)
  • 1982 – Jay Baruchel, Canadian actor
  • 1982 – Carlos Hernández, Costa Rican footballer
  • 1982 – Kathleen Munroe, Canadian-American actress
  • 1983 – Ryan Clark, Australian actor
  • 1984 – Habiba Ghribi, Tunisian runner[13]
  • 1984 – Adam Loewen, Canadian baseball player
  • 1984 – Óscar Razo, Mexican footballer
  • 1985 – Antonio Nocerino, Italian footballer
  • 1985 – David Robertson, American baseball player
  • 1986 – Mike Hart, American football player
  • 1986 – Leighton Meester, American actress
  • 1987 – Kassim Abdallah, French-Comorian footballer
  • 1987 – Graham Gano, American football player
  • 1987 – Craig Mabbitt, American singer
  • 1987 – Jesse McCartney, American singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1987 – Jarrod Mullen, Australian rugby league player
  • 1987 – Jazmine Sullivan, American singer-songwriter
  • 1988 – Michel Alves Baroni, Brazilian footballer
  • 1988 – Jeremy Metcalfe, English racing driver
  • 1989 – Danielle Kahle, American figure skater
  • 1990 – Kristen Stewart, American actress
  • 1990 – Ryan Williams, American football player
  • 1991 – Ryan Kelly, American basketball player
  • 1991 – Mary Killman, American synchronized swimmer
  • 1992 – Joshua Ledet, American singer
  • 1994 – Joey Pollari, American actor
  • 1995 – Domagoj Bošnjak, Croatian basketball player
  • 1995 – Robert Bauer, German-Kazakhstani footballer
  • 1996 – Jayden Brailey, Australian rugby league player[14]
  • 1996 – Giovani Lo Celso, Argentinian international footballer, midfielder[15]
  • 1998 – Elle Fanning, American actress[16]
  • 1999 – Montero Lamar Hill, American rapper[17]
  • 2000 – Jackie Evancho, American singer[18]

Deaths on April 9

  • 585 BC – Jimmu, emperor of Japan (b. 711 BC)
  • AD 93 – Yuan An, Chinese scholar and politician
  • 436 – Tan Daoji, Chinese general and politician
  • 491 – Zeno, emperor of the Byzantine Empire (b. 425)
  • 682 – Maslama ibn Mukhallad al-Ansari, Egyptian politician, Governor of Egypt (b. 616)
  • 715 – Constantine, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 664)
  • 1024 – Benedict VIII, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 980)
  • 1137 – William X, duke of Aquitaine (b. 1099)
  • 1241 – Henry II, High Duke of Poland (b. 1196)
  • 1283 – Margaret of Scotland, queen of Norway (b. 1261)
  • 1327 – Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland, Scottish nobleman (ca. 1296)
  • 1483 – Edward IV, king of England (b. 1442)
  • 1484 – Edward of Middleheim, prince of Wales (b. 1473)
  • 1550 – Alqas Mirza, Safavid prince (b. 1516)[19]
  • 1553 – François Rabelais, French monk and scholar (b. 1494)
  • 1557 – Mikael Agricola, Finnish priest and scholar (b. 1510)
  • 1626 – Francis Bacon, English jurist and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (b. 1561)
  • 1654 – Matei Basarab, Romanian prince (b. 1588)
  • 1693 – Roger de Rabutin, Comte de Bussy, French author (b. 1618)
  • 1747 – Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat, Scottish soldier and politician (b. 1667)
  • 1754 – Christian Wolff, German philosopher and academic (b. 1679)
  • 1761 – William Law, English priest and theologian (b. 1686)
  • 1768 – Sarah Fielding, English author (b. 1710)
  • 1804 – Jacques Necker, Swiss-French politician, Chief Minister to the French Monarch (b. 1732)
  • 1806 – William V, stadtholder of the Dutch Republic (b. 1748)
  • 1872 – Erastus Corning, American businessman and politician (b. 1794)
  • 1876 – Charles Goodyear, American lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1804)
  • 1882 – Dante Gabriel Rossetti, English poet and painter (b. 1828)
  • 1889 – Michel Eugène Chevreul, French chemist and academic (b. 1786)
  • 1909 – Helena Modjeska, Polish-American actress (b. 1840)
  • 1915 – Raymond Whittindale, English rugby player (b. 1883)
  • 1917 – James Hope Moulton, English philologist and scholar (b. 1863)
  • 1922 – Hans Fruhstorfer, German entomologist and explorer (b. 1866)
  • 1926 – Zip the Pinhead, American freak show performer (b. 1857)
  • 1936 – Ferdinand Tönnies, German sociologist and philosopher (b. 1855)
  • 1940 – Mrs Patrick Campbell, English actress (b. 1865)
  • 1944 – Yevgeniya Rudneva, Ukrainian lieutenant and pilot (b. 1920)
  • 1945 – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German pastor and theologian (b. 1906)
  • 1945 – Wilhelm Canaris, German admiral (b. 1887)
  • 1945 – Johann Georg Elser, German carpenter (b. 1903)
  • 1945 – Hans Oster, German general (b. 1887)
  • 1945 – Karl Sack, German lawyer and jurist (b. 1896)
  • 1945 – Hans von Dohnányi, Austrian-German lawyer and jurist (b. 1902)
  • 1948 – George Carpenter, Australian 5th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1872)
  • 1948 – Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, Colombian lawyer and politician, 16th Colombian Minister of National Education (b. 1903)
  • 1951 – Vilhelm Bjerknes, Norwegian physicist and meteorologist (b. 1862)
  • 1953 – Eddie Cochems, American football player and coach (b. 1877)
  • 1953 – C. E. M. Joad, English philosopher and television host (b. 1891)
  • 1953 – Hans Reichenbach, German philosopher from the Vienna Circle (b. 1891)
  • 1959 – Frank Lloyd Wright, American architect, designed the Price Tower and Fallingwater (b. 1867)
  • 1961 – Zog I of Albania (b. 1895)
  • 1963 – Eddie Edwards, American trombonist (b. 1891)
  • 1963 – Xul Solar, Argentinian painter and sculptor (b. 1887)
  • 1970 – Gustaf Tenggren, Swedish-American illustrator and animator (b. 1896)
  • 1976 – Dagmar Nordstrom, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1903)
  • 1976 – Phil Ochs, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1940)
  • 1976 – Renato Petronio, Italian rower (b. 1891)
  • 1978 – Clough Williams-Ellis, English-Welsh architect, designed Portmeirion (b. 1883)
  • 1980 – Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr, Iraqi cleric and philosopher (b. 1935)
  • 1982 – Wilfrid Pelletier, Canadian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1896)
  • 1988 – Brook Benton, American singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1931)
  • 1988 – Hans Berndt, German footballer (b. 1913)
  • 1988 – Dave Prater, American singer (b. 1937)
  • 1991 – Forrest Towns, American hurdler and coach (b. 1914)
  • 1993 – Joseph B. Soloveitchik, American rabbi and philosopher (b. 1903)
  • 1996 – Richard Condon, American author and publicist (b. 1915)
  • 1997 – Mae Boren Axton, American singer-songwriter (b. 1914)
  • 1997 – Helene Hanff, American author and screenwriter (b. 1916)
  • 1998 – Tom Cora, American cellist and composer (b. 1953)
  • 1999 – Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara, Nigerien general and politician, President of Niger (b. 1949)
  • 2001 – Willie Stargell, American baseball player and coach (b. 1940)
  • 2002 – Pat Flaherty, American race car driver (b. 1926)
  • 2002 – Leopold Vietoris, Austrian soldier, mathematician, and academic (b. 1891)
  • 2003 – Jerry Bittle, American cartoonist (b. 1949)
  • 2006 – Billy Hitchcock, American baseball player, coach, manager (b. 1916)
  • 2006 – Vilgot Sjöman, Swedish director and screenwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2007 – Egon Bondy, Czech philosopher and poet (b. 1930)
  • 2007 – Dorrit Hoffleit, American astronomer and academic (b. 1907)
  • 2009 – Nick Adenhart, American baseball player (b. 1986)
  • 2010 – Zoltán Varga, Hungarian footballer and manager (b. 1945)
  • 2011 – Zakariya Rashid Hassan al-Ashiri, Bahraini journalist (b. 1971)
  • 2011 – Sidney Lumet, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – Malcolm Thomas, Welsh rugby player and cricketer (b. 1929)
  • 2013 – David Hayes, American sculptor and painter (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Greg McCrary, American football player (b. 1952)
  • 2013 – Mordechai Mishani, Israeli lawyer and politician (b. 1945)
  • 2013 – McCandlish Phillips, American journalist and author (b. 1927)
  • 2013 – Paolo Soleri, Italian-American architect, designed the Cosanti (b. 1919)
  • 2014 – Gil Askey, American trumpet player, composer, and producer (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Chris Banks, American football player (b. 1973)
  • 2014 – Rory Ellinger, American lawyer and politician (b. 1941)
  • 2014 – Norman Girvan, Jamaican economist, academic, and politician (b. 1941)
  • 2014 – Aelay Narendra, Indian politician (b. 1946)
  • 2014 – A. N. R. Robinson, Trinbagonian politician, 3rd President of Trinidad and Tobago (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Svetlana Velmar-Janković, Serbian author (b. 1933)
  • 2015 – Paul Almond, Canadian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1931)
  • 2015 – Margaret Rule, British marine archaeologist (b. 1928)
  • 2015 – Nina Companeez, French director and screenwriter (b. 1937)
  • 2015 – Alexander Dalgarno, English physicist and academic (b. 1928)
  • 2015 – Ivan Doig, American journalist and author (b. 1939)
  • 2015 – Tsien Tsuen-hsuin, Chinese-American academic (b. 1909)
  • 2016 – Duane Clarridge, American spy (b. 1932)
  • 2016 – Will Smith, American football player (b. 1981)
  • 2017 – John Clarke, New Zealand-Australian comedian, writer, and satirist (b. 1948)

Holidays and observances on April 9

  • Christian feast day:
    • Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Anglicanism, Lutheranism)
    • Gaucherius
    • Materiana
    • Waltrude
    • April 9 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Anniversary of the German Invasion of Denmark (Denmark)
  • Baghdad Liberation Day (Iraqi Kurdistan)
  • Bataan Day or Araw ng Kagitingan (Philippines)
  • Constitution Day (Kosovo)
  • Day of National Unity (Georgia)
  • Day of the Finnish Language (Finland)
  • Feast of the Second Day of the Writing of the Book of the Law (Thelema)
  • Martyr’s Day (Tunisia)
  • National Former Prisoner of War Recognition Day (United States)
  • Remembrance for Haakon Sigurdsson (The Troth)
  • Vimy Ridge Day (Canada)

April 9 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 7 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 451 – Attila the Hun sacks the town of Metz and attacks other cities in Gaul.
  • 529 – First draft of the Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I.
  • 611 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul sacks rival city-state Palenque in southern Mexico.
  • 1141 – Empress Matilda became the first female ruler of England, adopting the title ‘Lady of the English’.
  • 1348 – Charles University is founded in Prague.
  • 1521 – Ferdinand Magellan arrives at Cebu.
  • 1541 – Francis Xavier leaves Lisbon on a mission to the Portuguese East Indies.
  • 1724 – Premiere performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion, BWV 245, at St. Nicholas Church, Leipzig.
  • 1767 – End of Burmese–Siamese War (1765–67).
  • 1776 – Captain John Barry and the USS Lexington captures the Edward.
  • 1788 – American pioneers to the Northwest Territory establish Marietta, Ohio as the first permanent American settlement in the Northwest Territory.
  • 1789 – Selim III became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and Caliph of Islam.
  • 1798 – The Mississippi Territory is organized from disputed territory claimed by both the United States and Spain. It is expanded in 1804 and again in 1812.
  • 1805 – Lewis and Clark Expedition: The Corps of Discovery breaks camp among the Mandan tribe and resumes its journey West along the Missouri River.
  • 1805 – German composer Ludwig van Beethoven premiered his Third Symphony, at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna.
  • 1827 – John Walker, an English chemist, sells the first friction match that he had invented the previous year.
  • 1829 – Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, commences translation of the Book of Mormon, with Oliver Cowdery as his scribe.
  • 1831 – Emperor Pedro I of Brazil resigns. He goes to his native Portugal to become King Pedro IV.
  • 1862 – American Civil War: The Union’s Army of the Tennessee and the Army of the Ohio defeat the Confederate Army of Mississippi near Shiloh, Tennessee.
  • 1868 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee, one of the Canadian Fathers of Confederation, is assassinated by a Fenian activist.
  • 1890 – Completion of the first Lake Biwa Canal.
  • 1906 – Mount Vesuvius erupts and devastates Naples.
  • 1906 – The Algeciras Conference gives France and Spain control over Morocco.
  • 1922 – The United States Secretary of the Interior leases federal petroleum reserves to private oil companies on excessively generous terms.
  • 1927 – The first long-distance public television broadcast (from Washington, D.C., to New York City, displaying the image of Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover).
  • 1933 – Prohibition in the United States is repealed for beer of no more than 3.2% alcohol by weight, eight months before the ratification of the XXI amendment. (Now celebrated as National Beer Day in the United States.)
  • 1940 – Booker T. Washington becomes the first African American to be depicted on a United States postage stamp.
  • 1943 – The Holocaust in Ukraine: In Terebovlia, Germans order 1,100 Jews to undress and march through the city to the nearby village of Plebanivka, where they are shot and buried in ditches.
  • 1943 – Ioannis Rallis becomes collaborationist Prime Minister of Greece during the Axis Occupation.
  • 1945 – World War II: The battleship Yamato, one of the two largest ever constructed, is sunk by American aircraft during Operation Ten-Go.
  • 1945 – World War II: Visoko is liberated by the 7th, 9th, and 17th Krajina brigades from the Tenth division of Yugoslav Partisan forces.
  • 1948 – The World Health Organization is established by the United Nations.
  • 1949 – The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific opened on Broadway; it would run for 1,925 performances and win ten Tony Awards.
  • 1954 – United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower gives his “domino theory” speech during a news conference.
  • 1955 – Winston Churchill resigns as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom amid indications of failing health.
  • 1964 – IBM announces the System/360.
  • 1964 – A bulldozer kills Rev. Bruce W. Klunder, a civil rights activist, during a school segregation protest in Cleveland, Ohio, sparking a riot.
  • 1965 – Representatives of the National Congress of American Indians testify before members of the US Senate against the termination of the Colville tribe in Washington DC.
  • 1968 – Motor racing world champion Jim Clark is killed in an accident during a Formula Two race at Hockenheim.
  • 1969 – The Internet’s symbolic birth date: Publication of RFC 1.
  • 1971 – President Richard Nixon announces his decision to quicken the pace of Vietnamization.
  • 1976 – Member of Parliament and suspected spy John Stonehouse resigns from the Labour Party (UK) after being arrested for faking his own death.
  • 1977 – German Federal prosecutor Siegfried Buback and his driver are shot by two Red Army Faction members while waiting at a red light.
  • 1978 – Development of the neutron bomb is canceled by President Jimmy Carter.
  • 1980 – During the Iran hostage crisis, the United States severs relations with Iran.
  • 1983 – During STS-6, astronauts Story Musgrave and Don Peterson perform the first Space Shuttle spacewalk.
  • 1989 – Soviet submarine Komsomolets sinks in the Barents Sea off the coast of Norway killing 42 sailors.
  • 1990 – Iran–Contra affair: John Poindexter is found guilty of five charges for his part in the scandal (the conviction is later reversed on appeal).
  • 1990 – A fire breaks out on the passenger ferry Scandinavian Star, killing 159 people.
  • 1994 – Rwandan genocide: Massacres of Tutsis begin in Kigali, Rwanda.
  • 1994 – Auburn Calloway attempts to destroy Federal Express Flight 705 in order to allow his family to benefit from his life insurance policy.
  • 1995 – First Chechen War: Russian paramilitary troops begin a massacre of civilians in Samashki, Chechnya.
  • 1999 – The World Trade Organization rules in favor of the United States in its long-running trade dispute with the European Union over bananas.
  • 2001 – Mars Odyssey is launched.
  • 2003 – U.S. troops capture Baghdad; Saddam Hussein’s regime falls two days later.
  • 2009 – Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori is sentenced to 25 years in prison for ordering killings and kidnappings by security forces.
  • 2009 – Mass protests begin across Moldova under the belief that results from the parliamentary election are fraudulent.
  • 2017 – A man deliberately drives a hijacked truck into a crowd of people, killing five people and injuring fifteen others.

Births on April 7

  • 1206 – Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1253)
  • 1330 – John, 3rd Earl of Kent, English nobleman (d. 1352)
  • 1470 – Edward Stafford, 2nd Earl of Wiltshire (d. 1498)
  • 1506 – Francis Xavier, Spanish missionary and saint, co-founded the Society of Jesus (d. 1552)
  • 1539 – Tobias Stimmer, Swiss painter and illustrator (d. 1584)
  • 1613 – Gerrit Dou, Dutch painter (d. 1675)
  • 1644 – François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy, French general (d. 1730)
  • 1648 – John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby, English poet and politician, Lord President of the Council (d. 1721)
  • 1652 – Pope Clement XII (d. 1740)
  • 1713 – Nicola Sala, Italian composer and theorist (d. 1801)
  • 1718 – Hugh Blair, Scottish minister and author (d. 1800)
  • 1727 – Michel Adanson, French botanist, entomologist, and mycologist (d. 1806)
  • 1763 – Domenico Dragonetti, Italian bassist and composer (d. 1846)
  • 1770 – William Wordsworth, English poet (d. 1850)
  • 1772 – Charles Fourier, French philosopher and author (d. 1837)
  • 1780 – William Ellery Channing, American preacher and theologian (d. 1842)
  • 1803 – James Curtiss, American journalist and politician, 11th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1859)
  • 1803 – Flora Tristan, French author and activist (d. 1844)
  • 1811 – Hasan Tahsini, Albanian astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher (d. 1881)
  • 1817 – Francesco Selmi, Italian chemist and patriot (d. 1881)
  • 1848 – Randall Davidson, Scottish archbishop (d. 1930)
  • 1859 – Walter Camp, American football player and coach (d. 1925)
  • 1860 – Will Keith Kellogg, American businessman, founded the Kellogg Company (d. 1951)
  • 1867 – Holger Pedersen, Danish linguist and academic (d. 1953)
  • 1870 – Gustav Landauer, Jewish-German theorist and activist (d. 1919)
  • 1871 – Epifanio de los Santos, Filipino jurist, historian, and scholar (d. 1927)
  • 1873 – John McGraw, American baseball player and manager (d. 1934)
  • 1874 – Frederick Carl Frieseke, German-American painter (d. 1939)
  • 1876 – Fay Moulton, American sprinter, football player, coach, and lawyer (d. 1945)
  • 1882 – Bert Ironmonger, Australian cricketer (d. 1971)
  • 1882 – Kurt von Schleicher, German general and politician, 23rd Chancellor of Germany (d. 1934)
  • 1883 – Gino Severini, Italian-French painter and author (d. 1966)
  • 1884 – Clement Smoot, American golfer (d. 1963)
  • 1886 – Ed Lafitte, American baseball player and soldier (d. 1971)
  • 1889 – Gabriela Mistral, Chilean poet and educator, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
  • 1890 – Paul Berth, Danish footballer (d. 1969)
  • 1890 – Marjory Stoneman Douglas, American journalist and activist (d. 1998)
  • 1891 – Ole Kirk Christiansen, Danish businessman, founded the Lego Group (d. 1958)
  • 1893 – Allen Dulles, American lawyer and diplomat, 5th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1969)
  • 1895 – John Flannagan, American soldier and sculptor (d. 1942)
  • 1895 – Margarete Schön, German actress (d. 1985)
  • 1896 – Frits Peutz, Dutch architect, designed the Glaspaleis (d. 1974)
  • 1897 – Erich Löwenhardt, Polish-German lieutenant and pilot (d. 1918)
  • 1897 – Walter Winchell, American journalist and radio host (d. 1972)
  • 1899 – Robert Casadesus, French pianist and composer (d. 1972)
  • 1900 – Adolf Dymsza, Polish actor (d. 1975)
  • 1900 – Tebbs Lloyd Johnson, English race walker (d. 1984)
  • 1902 – Eduard Eelma, Estonian footballer (d. 1941)
  • 1903 – M. Balasundaram, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (d. 1965)
  • 1903 – Edwin T. Layton, American admiral (d. 1984)
  • 1904 – Roland Wilson, Australian economist and statistician (d. 1996)
  • 1908 – Percy Faith, Canadian composer, conductor, and bandleader (d. 1976)
  • 1908 – Pete Zaremba, American hammer thrower (d. 1994)
  • 1909 – Robert Charroux, French author and critic (d. 1978)
  • 1913 – Louise Currie, American actress (d. 2013)
  • 1913 – Charles Vanik, American soldier, judge, and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1914 – Ralph Flanagan, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1995)
  • 1915 – Stanley Adams, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1977)
  • 1915 – Billie Holiday, American singer-songwriter and actress (d. 1959)
  • 1915 – Henry Kuttner, American author (d. 1958)
  • 1916 – Anthony Caruso, American actor (d. 2003)
  • 1917 – R. G. Armstrong, American actor and playwright (d. 2012)
  • 1918 – Bobby Doerr, American baseball player and coach (d. 2017)
  • 1919 – Roger Lemelin, Canadian author and screenwriter (d. 1992)
  • 1919 – Edoardo Mangiarotti, Italian fencer (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Ravi Shankar, Indian-American sitar player and composer (d. 2012)
  • 1921 – Feza Gürsey, Turkish mathematician and physicist (d. 1992)
  • 1922 – Mongo Santamaría, Cuban-American drummer (d. 2003)
  • 1924 – Johannes Mario Simmel, Austrian-English author and screenwriter (d. 2009)
  • 1925 – Chaturanan Mishra, Indian trade union leader and politician (d. 2011)
  • 1925 – Jan van Roessel, Dutch footballer (d. 2011)
  • 1927 – Babatunde Olatunji, Nigerian-American drummer, educator, and activist (d. 2003)
  • 1927 – Leonid Shcherbakov, Russian triple jumper
  • 1928 – James Garner, American actor, singer, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1928 – Alan J. Pakula, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1998)
  • 1928 – James White, Northern Irish author and educator (d. 1999)
  • 1929 – Bob Denard, French soldier (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Joe Gallo, American gangster (d. 1972)
  • 1930 – Jane Priestman, English interior designer
  • 1930 – Yves Rocher, French businessman, founded the Yves Rocher Company (d. 2009)
  • 1930 – Andrew Sachs, German-English actor and screenwriter (d. 2016)
  • 1930 – Roger Vergé, French chef and restaurateur (d. 2015)
  • 1931 – Donald Barthelme, American short story writer and novelist (d. 1989)
  • 1931 – Daniel Ellsberg, American activist and author
  • 1932 – Cal Smith, American singer and guitarist (d. 2013)
  • 1933 – Wayne Rogers, American actor, investor, and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1933 – Sakıp Sabancı, Turkish businessman and philanthropist (d. 2004)
  • 1934 – Ian Richardson, Scottish-English actor (d. 2007)
  • 1935 – Bobby Bare, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1935 – Hodding Carter III, American journalist and politician, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs
  • 1937 – Charlie Thomas, American singer
  • 1938 – Jerry Brown, American lawyer and politician, 34th and 39th Governor of California
  • 1938 – Spencer Dryden, American drummer (d. 2005)
  • 1938 – Freddie Hubbard, American trumpet player and composer (d. 2008)
  • 1938 – Iris Johansen, American author
  • 1939 – Francis Ford Coppola, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1939 – David Frost, English journalist and game show host (d. 2013)
  • 1939 – Gary Kellgren, American record producer, co-founded Record Plant (d. 1977)
  • 1939 – Brett Whiteley, Australian painter (d. 1992)
  • 1940 – Marju Lauristin, Estonian academic and politician, 1st Estonian Minister of Social Affairs
  • 1941 – James Di Pasquale, American composer
  • 1941 – Peter Fluck, English puppet maker and illustrator
  • 1941 – Cornelia Frances, English-Australian actress (d. 2018)
  • 1941 – Gorden Kaye, English actor (d. 2017)
  • 1942 – Jeetendra, Indian actor, TV and film producer
  • 1943 – Mick Abrahams, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1943 – Dennis Amiss, English cricketer and manager
  • 1944 – Shel Bachrach, American insurance broker, investor, businessman and philanthropist
  • 1944 – Warner Fusselle, American sportscaster (d. 2012)
  • 1944 – Oshik Levi, Israeli singer and actor
  • 1944 – Julia Phillips, American film producer and author (d. 2002)
  • 1944 – Gerhard Schröder, German lawyer and politician, 7th Chancellor of Germany
  • 1944 – Bill Stoneman, American baseball player and manager
  • 1945 – Megas, Icelandic singer-songwriter
  • 1945 – Gerry Cottle, English businessman
  • 1945 – Marilyn Friedman, American philosopher and academic
  • 1945 – Martyn Lewis, Welsh journalist and author
  • 1945 – Joël Robuchon, French chef and author (d. 2018)
  • 1945 – Werner Schroeter, German director and screenwriter (d. 2010)
  • 1945 – Hans van Hemert, Dutch songwriter and producer
  • 1946 – Zaid Abdul-Aziz, American basketball player
  • 1946 – Colette Besson, French runner and educator (d. 2005)
  • 1946 – Herménégilde Chiasson, Canadian poet, playwright, and politician, 29th Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick
  • 1946 – Dimitrij Rupel, Slovenian politician and diplomate
  • 1946 – Stan Winston, American special effects designer and makeup artist (d. 2008)
  • 1947 – Patricia Bennett, American singer
  • 1947 – Florian Schneider, German singer and drummer (d. 2020)
  • 1947 – Michèle Torr, French singer and author
  • 1948 – John Oates, American singer-songwriter guitarist, and producer
  • 1949 – Mitch Daniels, American academic and politician, 49th Governor of Indiana
  • 1950 – Brian J. Doyle, American press secretary
  • 1951 – Bruce Gary, American drummer (d. 2006)
  • 1951 – Janis Ian, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1952 – David Baulcombe, English geneticist and academic
  • 1952 – Jane Frederick, American hurdler and heptathlete
  • 1952 – Gilles Valiquette, Canadian actor, singer, and producer
  • 1952 – Dennis Hayden, American actor
  • 1953 – Santa Barraza, American mixed media artist
  • 1953 – Douglas Kell, English biochemist and academic
  • 1954 – Jackie Chan, Hong Kong martial artist, actor, stuntman, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Tony Dorsett, American football player
  • 1955 – Tim Cochran, American mathematician and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1955 – Gregg Jarrett, American lawyer and journalist
  • 1956 – Annika Billström, Swedish businesswoman and politician, 16th Mayor of Stockholm
  • 1956 – Christopher Darden, American lawyer and author
  • 1956 – Georg Werthner, Austrian decathlete
  • 1957 – Kim Kap-soo, South Korean actor
  • 1957 – Thelma Walker, British politician
  • 1958 – Brian Haner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1958 – Hindrek Kesler, Estonian architect
  • 1960 – Buster Douglas, American boxer and actor
  • 1960 – Sandy Powell, English costume designer
  • 1961 – Thurl Bailey, American basketball player and actor
  • 1961 – Pascal Olmeta, French footballer
  • 1961 – Brigitte van der Burg, Tanzanian-Dutch geographer and politician
  • 1962 – Jon Cruddas, English lawyer and politician
  • 1962 – Andrew Hampsten, American cyclist
  • 1963 – Jaime de Marichalar, Spanish businessman
  • 1963 – Nick Herbert, English businessman and politician, Minister for Policing
  • 1963 – Dave Johnson, American decathlete and educator
  • 1964 – Jace Alexander, American actor and director
  • 1964 – Russell Crowe, New Zealand-Australian actor
  • 1964 – Steve Graves, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1965 – Bill Bellamy, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1965 – Rozalie Hirs, Dutch composer and poet
  • 1965 – Alison Lapper, English painter and photographer
  • 1965 – Nenad Vučinić, Serbian-New Zealand basketball player and coach
  • 1966 – Richard Gomez, Filipino actor and politician
  • 1966 – Zvika Hadar, Israeli entertainer
  • 1966 – Béla Mavrák, Hungarian tenor singer
  • 1966 – Gary Wilkinson, English snooker player
  • 1967 – Artemis Gounaki, Greek-German singer-songwriter
  • 1967 – Bodo Illgner, German footballer
  • 1967 – Simone Schilder, Dutch tennis player
  • 1968 – Duncan Armstrong, Australian swimmer and sportscaster
  • 1968 – Jennifer Lynch, American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1968 – Jože Možina, Slovenian historian, sociologist and journalist
  • 1968 – Vasiliy Sokov, Russian triple jumper
  • 1969 – Ricky Watters, American football player
  • 1970 – Leif Ove Andsnes, Norwegian pianist and educator
  • 1971 – Guillaume Depardieu, French actor (d. 2008)
  • 1971 – Victor Kraatz, German-Canadian figure skater
  • 1972 – Tim Peake, British astronaut
  • 1973 – Marco Delvecchio, Italian footballer
  • 1973 – Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, Dutch lawyer and politician, Dutch Minister of Defence
  • 1973 – Carole Montillet, French skier
  • 1973 – Christian O’Connell, British radio DJ and presenter
  • 1973 – Brett Tomko, American baseball player
  • 1975 – Karin Dreijer Andersson, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1975 – Ronde Barber, American football player and sportscaster
  • 1975 – Tiki Barber, American football player and journalist
  • 1975 – Ronnie Belliard, American baseball player
  • 1975 – John Cooper, American singer-songwriter and bass player
  • 1975 – Simon Woolford, Australian rugby league player
  • 1976 – Kevin Alejandro, American actor and producer
  • 1976 – Martin Buß, German high jumper
  • 1976 – Jessica Lee, English lawyer and politician
  • 1976 – Aaron Lohr, American actor
  • 1976 – Barbara Jane Reams, American actress
  • 1976 – Gang Qiang, Chinese anchor
  • 1978 – Jo Appleby, English soprano
  • 1978 – Duncan James, English singer-songwriter and actor
  • 1978 – Lilia Osterloh, American tennis player
  • 1979 – Adrián Beltré, Dominican-American baseball player
  • 1979 – Patrick Crayton, American football player
  • 1979 – Pascal Dupuis, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Danny Sandoval, Venezuelan-American baseball player
  • 1980 – Dragan Bogavac, Montenegrin footballer
  • 1980 – Tetsuji Tamayama, Japanese actor
  • 1981 – Hitoe Arakaki, Japanese singer
  • 1981 – Kazuki Watanabe, Japanese songwriter and guitarist (d. 2000)
  • 1981 – Vanessa Olivarez, American singer-songwriter, and actress
  • 1981 – Suzann Pettersen, Norwegian golfer
  • 1982 – Silvana Arias, Peruvian actress
  • 1982 – Sonjay Dutt, American wrestler
  • 1982 – Kelli Young, English singer
  • 1983 – Hamish Davidson, Australian musician
  • 1983 – Franck Ribéry, French footballer
  • 1983 – Jon Stead, English footballer
  • 1983 – Jakub Smrž, Czech motorcycle rider
  • 1983 – Janar Talts, Estonian basketball player
  • 1984 – Hiroko Shimabukuro, Japanese singer
  • 1985 – KC Concepcion, Filipino actress and singer
  • 1985 – Humza Yousaf, Scottish politician
  • 1986 – Brooke Brodack, American comedian
  • 1986 – Jack Duarte, Mexican actor, singer, and guitarist
  • 1986 – Andi Fraggs, English singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1986 – Christian Fuchs, Austrian footballer
  • 1987 – Martín Cáceres, Uruguayan footballer
  • 1987 – Eelco Sintnicolaas, Dutch decathlete
  • 1987 – Jamar Smith, American football player
  • 1988 – Antonio Piccolo, Italian footballer
  • 1988 – Ed Speleers, English actor and producer
  • 1989 – Alexa Demara, American actress, model and writer
  • 1989 – Franco Di Santo, Argentinian footballer
  • 1989 – Mitchell Pearce, Australian rugby league player
  • 1989 – Teddy Riner, French judoka
  • 1990 – Nickel Ashmeade, Jamaican sprinter
  • 1990 – Anna Bogomazova, Russian-American kick-boxer, martial artist, and wrestler
  • 1990 – Sorana Cîrstea, Romanian tennis player
  • 1990 – Trent Cotchin, Australian footballer
  • 1991 – Luka Milivojević, Serbian footballer
  • 1991 – Anne-Marie, English singer-songwriter
  • 1992 – Andreea Acatrinei, Romanian gymnast
  • 1992 – Guilherme Negueba, Brazilian footballer
  • 1993 – Ichinojō Takashi, Mongolian sumo wrestler
  • 1994 – Johanna Allik, Estonian figure skater
  • 1994 – Aaron Gray, Australian rugby league player
  • 1996 – Emerson Hyndman, American international soccer player[5]
  • 1997 – Rafaela Gómez, Ecuadorian tennis player

Deaths on April 7

  • AD 30 – Jesus Christ, (possible date of the crucifixion) (b. circa 4 BC)
  • 821 – George the Standard-Bearer, archbishop of Mytilene (b. c. 776)
  • 924 – Berengar I of Italy (b. 845)
  • 1206 – Frederick I, Duke of Lorraine
  • 1340 – Bolesław Jerzy II of Mazovia (b. 1308)
  • 1498 – Charles VIII of France (b. 1470)
  • 1499 – Galeotto I Pico, Duke of Mirandola (b. 1442)
  • 1501 – Minkhaung II, king of Ava (b. 1446)
  • 1606 – Edward Oldcorne, English martyr (b. 1561)
  • 1614 – El Greco, Greek-Spanish painter and sculptor (b. 1541)
  • 1638 – Shimazu Tadatsune, Japanese daimyō (b. 1576)
  • 1651 – Lennart Torstensson, Swedish field marshal and engineer (b. 1603)
  • 1658 – Juan Eusebio Nieremberg, Spanish mystic and philosopher (b. 1595)
  • 1661 – Sir William Brereton, 1st Baronet, English commander and politician (b. 1604)
  • 1663 – Francis Cooke, English-American settler (b. 1583)
  • 1668 – William Davenant, English poet and playwright (b. 1606)
  • 1719 – Jean-Baptiste de La Salle, French priest and saint, founded the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (b. 1651)
  • 1739 – Dick Turpin, English criminal (b. 1705)
  • 1747 – Leopold I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (b. 1676)
  • 1761 – Thomas Bayes, English minister and mathematician (b. 1701)
  • 1766 – Tiberius Hemsterhuis, Dutch philologist and critic (b. 1685)
  • 1767 – Franz Sparry, Austrian composer and director (b. 1715)
  • 1782 – Taksin, Thai king (b. 1734)
  • 1789 – Abdul Hamid I, Ottoman sultan (b. 1725)
  • 1789 – Petrus Camper, Dutch physician, anatomist, and physiologist (b. 1722)
  • 1801 – Noël François de Wailly, French lexicographer and author (b. 1724)
  • 1804 – Toussaint Louverture, Haitian general (b. 1743)
  • 1811 – Garsevan Chavchavadze, Georgian diplomat and politician (b. 1757)
  • 1823 – Jacques Charles, French physicist and mathematician (b. 1746)
  • 1833 – Antoni Radziwiłł, Lithuanian composer and politician (b. 1775)
  • 1836 – William Godwin, English journalist and author (b. 1756)
  • 1849 – Pedro Ignacio de Castro Barros, Argentinian priest and politician (b. 1777)
  • 1850 – William Lisle Bowles, English poet and critic (b. 1762)
  • 1858 – Anton Diabelli, Austrian composer and publisher (b. 1781)
  • 1868 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee, Irish-Canadian journalist, activist, and politician (b. 1825)
  • 1879 – Begum Hazrat Mahal, Begum of Awadh, was the second wife of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah (b. 1820)
  • 1885 – Karl Theodor Ernst von Siebold, German physiologist and zoologist (b. 1804)
  • 1889 – Youssef Bey Karam, Lebanese soldier and politician (b. 1823)
  • 1889 – Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada, Mexican politician and president, 1872-1876 (b. 1823)
  • 1891 – P. T. Barnum, American businessman and politician, co-founded The Barnum & Bailey Circus (b. 1810)
  • 1917 – Spyridon Samaras, Greek composer and playwright (b. 1861)
  • 1918 – David Kolehmainen, Finnish wrestler (b. 1885)
  • 1918 – George E. Ohr, American potter (b. 1857)
  • 1920 – Karl Binding, German lawyer and jurist (b. 1841)
  • 1922 – James McGowen, Australian politician, 18th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1855)
  • 1928 – Alexander Bogdanov, Russian physician, philosopher, and author (b. 1873)
  • 1932 – Grigore Constantinescu, Romanian priest and journalist (b. 1875)
  • 1938 – Suzanne Valadon, French painter (b. 1865)
  • 1939 – Joseph Lyons, Australian educator and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1879)
  • 1943 – Jovan Dučić, Serbian-American poet and diplomat (b. 1871)
  • 1943 – Alexandre Millerand, French lawyer and politician, 12th President of France (b. 1859)
  • 1947 – Henry Ford, American engineer and businessman, founded the Ford Motor Company (b. 1863)
  • 1949 – John Gourlay, Canadian soccer player (b. 1872)
  • 1950 – Walter Huston, Canadian-American actor and singer (b. 1883)
  • 1955 – Theda Bara, American actress (b. 1885)
  • 1956 – Fred Appleby, English runner (b. 1879)
  • 1960 – Henri Guisan, Swiss general (b. 1874)
  • 1965 – Roger Leger, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1919)
  • 1966 – Walt Hansgen, American race car driver (b. 1919)
  • 1968 – Edwin Baker, Canadian co-founder of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) (b. 1893)
  • 1968 – Jim Clark, Scottish race car driver (b. 1936)
  • 1972 – Joe Gallo, American gangster (b. 1929)
  • 1972 – Abeid Karume, Tanzanian politician, 1st President of Zanzibar (b. 1905)
  • 1981 – Kit Lambert, English record producer and manager (b. 1935)
  • 1981 – Norman Taurog, American director and screenwriter (b. 1899)
  • 1982 – Harald Ertl, Austrian race car driver and journalist (b. 1948)
  • 1984 – Frank Church, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (b. 1924)
  • 1985 – Carl Schmitt, German philosopher and jurist (b. 1888)
  • 1986 – Leonid Kantorovich, Russian mathematician and economist (b. 1912)
  • 1990 – Ronald Evans, American captain, engineer, and astronaut (b. 1933)
  • 1991 – Memduh Ünlütürk, Turkish general (b. 1913)
  • 1992 – Ace Bailey, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1903)
  • 1992 – Antonis Tritsis, Greek high jumper and politician, 71st Mayor of Athens (b. 1937)
  • 1994 – Lee Brilleaux, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1952)
  • 1994 – Albert Guðmundsson, Icelandic footballer, manager, and politician (b. 1923)
  • 1994 – Golo Mann, German historian and author (b. 1909)
  • 1994 – Agathe Uwilingiyimana, Rwandan chemist, academic, and politician, Prime Minister of Rwanda (b. 1953)
  • 1995 – Philip Jebb, English architect and politician (b. 1927)
  • 1997 – Luis Aloma, Cuban-American baseball player (b. 1923)
  • 1997 – Georgy Shonin, Ukrainian-Russian general, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1935)
  • 1998 – Alex Schomburg, Puerto Rican-American painter and illustrator (b. 1905)
  • 1999 – Heinz Lehmann, German-Canadian psychiatrist and academic (b. 1911)
  • 2001 – David Graf, American actor (b. 1950)
  • 2001 – Beatrice Straight, American actress (b. 1914)
  • 2002 – John Agar, American actor (b. 1921)
  • 2003 – Cecile de Brunhoff, French pianist and author (b. 1903)
  • 2003 – David Greene, English-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
  • 2004 – Victor Argo, American actor (b. 1934)
  • 2004 – Konstantinos Kallias, Greek politician (b. 1901)
  • 2005 – Cliff Allison, English race car driver (b. 1932)
  • 2005 – Grigoris Bithikotsis, Greek singer-songwriter (b. 1922)
  • 2005 – Bob Kennedy, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1920)
  • 2005 – Melih Kibar, Turkish composer and educator (b. 1951)
  • 2007 – Johnny Hart, American author and illustrator (b. 1931)
  • 2007 – Barry Nelson, American actor (b. 1917)
  • 2008 – Ludu Daw Amar, Burmese journalist and author (b. 1915)
  • 2009 – Dave Arneson, American game designer, co-created Dungeons & Dragons (b. 1947)
  • 2011 – Pierre Gauvreau, Canadian painter (b. 1922)
  • 2012 – Steven Kanumba, Tanzanian actor and director (b. 1984)
  • 2012 – Satsue Mito, Japanese zoologist and academic (b. 1914)
  • 2012 – Ignatius Moses I Daoud, Syrian cardinal (b. 1930)
  • 2012 – David E. Pergrin, American colonel and engineer (b. 1917)
  • 2012 – Bashir Ahmed Qureshi, Pakistani politician (b. 1959)
  • 2012 – Mike Wallace, American television news journalist (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – Marty Blake, American businessman (b. 1927)
  • 2013 – Les Blank, American director and producer (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Andy Johns, English-American record producer (b. 1950)
  • 2013 – Lilly Pulitzer, American fashion designer (b. 1931)
  • 2013 – Irma Ravinale, Italian composer and educator (b. 1937)
  • 2013 – Mickey Rose, American screenwriter (b. 1935)
  • 2013 – Carl Williams, American boxer (b. 1959)
  • 2014 – George Dureau, American painter and photographer (b. 1930)
  • 2014 – James Alexander Green, American-English mathematician and academic (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – V. K. Murthy, Indian cinematographer (b. 1923)
  • 2014 – Zeituni Onyango, Kenyan-American computer programmer (b. 1952)
  • 2014 – John Shirley-Quirk, English opera singer (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – George Shuffler, American guitarist (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Josep Maria Subirachs, Spanish sculptor and painter (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Royce Waltman, American basketball player and coach (b. 1942)
  • 2015 – Tim Babcock, American soldier and politician, 16th Governor of Montana (b. 1919)
  • 2015 – José Capellán, Dominican-American baseball player (b. 1981)
  • 2015 – Stan Freberg, American puppeteer, voice actor, and singer (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Richard Henyekane, South African footballer (b. 1983)
  • 2015 – Geoffrey Lewis, American actor (b. 1935)
  • 2016 – Blackjack Mulligan, American professional wrestler (b. 1942)
  • 2019 – Seymour Cassel, American actor (b. 1935)

Holidays and observances on April 7

  • Christian feast days:
    • Aibert of Crespin
    • Blessed Alexander Rawlins
    • Blessed Edward Oldcorne and Blessed Ralph Ashley
    • Blessed Notker the Stammerer
    • Brynach
    • Hegesippus
    • Henry Walpole
    • Hermann Joseph
    • Jean-Baptiste de La Salle
    • Patriarch Tikhon of Moscow (Eastern Orthodox Church, Episcopal Church (USA))
    • April 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Flag Day (Slovenia)
  • Genocide Memorial Day (Rwanda), and its related observance:
    • International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Rwanda Genocide (United Nations)
  • Motherhood and Beauty Day (Armenia)
  • National Beer Day (United States)
  • Sheikh Abeid Amani Karume Day (Tanzania)
  • Women’s Day (Mozambique)
  • World Health Day (International observance)

April 7 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

January 30 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day /
  • 1018 – Poland and the Holy Roman Empire conclude the Peace of Bautzen.
  • 1287 – King Wareru founds the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and proclaims independence from the Pagan Kingdom.
  • 1607 – An estimated 200 square miles (51,800 ha) along the coasts of the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary in England are destroyed by massive flooding, resulting in an estimated 2,000 deaths.
  • 1648 – Eighty Years’ War: The Treaty of Münster and Osnabrück is signed, ending the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain.
  • 1661 – Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, is ritually executed more than two years after his death, on the 12th anniversary of the execution of the monarch he himself deposed.
  • 1703 – The Forty-seven rōnin, under the command of Ōishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master, by killing Kira Yoshinaka.
  • 1789 – Tây Sơn forces emerge victorious against Qing armies and liberate the capital Thăng Long.
  • 1806 – The original Lower Trenton Bridge (also called the Trenton Makes the World Takes Bridge), which spans the Delaware River between Morrisville, Pennsylvania and Trenton, New Jersey, is opened.
  • 1820 – Edward Bransfield sights the Trinity Peninsula and claims the discovery of Antarctica.
  • 1826 – The Menai Suspension Bridge, considered the world’s first modern suspension bridge, connecting the Isle of Anglesey to the north West coast of Wales, is opened.
  • 1835 – In the first assassination attempt against a President of the United States, Richard Lawrence attempts to shoot president Andrew Jackson, but fails and is subdued by a crowd, including several congressmen as well as Jackson himself.
  • 1847 – Yerba Buena, California is renamed San Francisco, California.
  • 1858 – The first Hallé concert is given in Manchester, England, marking the official founding of The Hallé orchestra as a full-time, professional orchestra.
  • 1862 – The first American ironclad warship, the USS Monitor is launched.
  • 1889 – Archduke Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian crown, is found dead with his mistress Baroness Mary Vetsera in the Mayerling.
  • 1902 – The first Anglo-Japanese Alliance is signed in London.
  • 1908 – Indian pacifist and leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is released from prison by Jan C. Smuts after being tried and sentenced to two months in jail earlier in the month.
  • 1911 – The destroyer USS Terry makes the first airplane rescue at sea saving the life of Douglas McCurdy ten miles from Havana, Cuba.
  • 1925 – The Government of Turkey expels Patriarch Constantine VI from Istanbul.
  • 1930 – The Politburo of the Soviet Union orders the extermination of the Kulaks.
  • 1933 – Adolf Hitler is sworn in as Chancellor of Germany.
  • 1942 – World War II: Battle of Ambon. Japanese forces invade the island of Ambon in the Dutch East Indies. Some 300 captured Allied troops are massacred at Laha airfield. Three-fourths of remaining POWs will not have survived by the end of the war, including 250 men who will be shipped to Hainan Island in South China Sea and never returned.
  • 1944 – World War II: The Battle of Cisterna, part of Operation Shingle, begins in central Italy.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Wilhelm Gustloff, overfilled with German refugees, sinks in the Baltic Sea after being torpedoed by a Soviet submarine, killing approximately 9,500 people.
  • 1945 – World War II: Raid at Cabanatuan: One hundred twenty-six American Rangers and Filipino resistance fighters liberate over 500 Allied prisoners from the Japanese-controlled Cabanatuan POW camp.
  • 1948 – British South American Airways’ Tudor IV Star Tiger disappears over the Bermuda Triangle.
  • 1956 – African-American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.’s home is bombed in retaliation for the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
  • 1959 – The forces of the Sultanate of Muscat occupy the last strongholds of the Imamate of Oman, Saiq and Shuraijah, marking the end of Jebel Akhdar War in Oman.
  • 1959 – MS Hans Hedtoft, said to be the safest ship afloat and “unsinkable” like the RMS Titanic, strikes an iceberg on her maiden voyage and sinks, killing all 95 aboard.
  • 1960 – The African National Party is founded in Chad, through the merger of traditionalist parties.
  • 1964 – In a bloodless coup, General Nguyễn Khánh overthrows General Dương Văn Minh’s military junta in South Vietnam.
  • 1968 – Vietnam War: Tet Offensive launch by forces of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army against South Vietnam, the United States, and their allies.
  • 1969 – The Beatles’ last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records in London. The impromptu concert is broken up by the police.
  • 1972 – The Troubles: Bloody Sunday: British paratroopers open fire on anti-internment marchers in Derry, Northern Ireland, killing 13 people; another person later dies of injuries sustained.
  • 1972 – Pakistan leaves the Commonwealth of Nations in protest of its recognition of breakaway Bangladesh.
  • 1975 – The Monitor National Marine Sanctuary is established as the first United States National Marine Sanctuary.
  • 1979 – A Varig Boeing 707-323C freighter, flown by the same commander as Flight 820, disappears over the Pacific Ocean 30 minutes after taking off from Tokyo.
  • 1982 – Richard Skrenta writes the first PC virus code, which is 400 lines long and disguised as an Apple boot program called “Elk Cloner”.
  • 1989 – The American embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan is closed.
  • 1995 – Workers from the National Institutes of Health announce the success of clinical trials testing the first preventive treatment for sickle-cell disease.
  • 2000 – Kenya Airways Flight 431 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Ivory Coast, killing 169.
  • 2013 – Naro-1 becomes the first carrier rocket launched by South Korea.

Births on January 30

  • 58 BC – Livia, Roman wife of Augustus (d. 29)
  • 133 – Didius Julianus, Roman emperor (probable; d. 193)
  • 1410 – William Calthorpe, English knight (d. 1494)
  • 1520  – William More, English courtier (d. 1600)
  • 1563 – Franciscus Gomarus, Dutch theologian and academic (d. 1641)
  • 1573 – Georg Friedrich, Margrave of Baden-Durlach (d. 1638)
  • 1580 – Gundakar, Prince of Liechtenstein, court official in Vienna (d. 1658)
  • 1590 – Lady Anne Clifford, 14th Baroness de Clifford (d. 1676)
  • 1628 – George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, English statesman (d. 1687)
  • 1661 – Charles Rollin, French historian and educator (d. 1741)
  • 1697 – Johann Joachim Quantz, German flute player and composer (d. 1773)
  • 1703 – François Bigot, French politician (d. 1778)
  • 1720 – Charles De Geer, Swedish entomologist and archaeologist (d. 1778)
  • 1754 – John Lansing, Jr., American lawyer and politician (d. 1829)
  • 1775 – Walter Savage Landor, English poet and author (d. 1864)
  • 1781 – Adelbert von Chamisso, German botanist and poet (d. 1838)
  • 1816 – Nathaniel P. Banks, American general and politician, 24th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1894)
  • 1822 – Franz Ritter von Hauer, Austrian geologist and curator (d. 1899)
  • 1841 – Félix Faure, French politician, 7th President of France (d. 1899)
  • 1844 – Richard Theodore Greener, American lawyer, academic, and diplomat (d. 1922)
  • 1846 – Angela of the Cross, Spanish nun and saint (d. 1932)
  • 1859 – Tony Mullane, Irish-American baseball player and manager (d. 1944)
  • 1861 – Charles Martin Loeffler, German-American violinist and composer (d. 1935)
  • 1862 – Walter Damrosch, German-American conductor and composer (d. 1950)
  • 1866 – Gelett Burgess, American author, poet, and critic (d. 1951)
  • 1878 – Anton Hansen Tammsaare, Estonian author (d. 1940)
  • 1882 – Franklin D. Roosevelt, American lawyer and politician, 32nd President of the United States (d. 1945)
  • 1889 – Jaishankar Prasad, Indian poet and playwright (d. 1937)
  • 1899 – Max Theiler, South African-American virologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1972)
  • 1900 – Martita Hunt, Argentine-born British actress (d. 1969)
  • 1901 – Rudolf Caracciola, German race car driver (d. 1959)
  • 1902 – Nikolaus Pevsner, German-English historian and scholar (d. 1983)
  • 1910 – Chidambaram Subramaniam, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Defence (d. 2000)
  • 1911 – Roy Eldridge, American jazz trumpet player (d. 1989)
  • 1912 – Werner Hartmann, German physicist and academic (d. 1988)
  • 1912 – Francis Schaeffer, American pastor and theologian (d. 1984)
  • 1912 – Barbara W. Tuchman, American historian and author (d. 1989)
  • 1914 – Luc-Marie Bayle, French commander and painter (d. 2000)
  • 1914 – John Ireland, Canadian-American actor and director (d. 1992)
  • 1914 – David Wayne, American actor (d. 1995)
  • 1915 – Joachim Peiper, German SS officer (d. 1976)
  • 1915 – John Profumo, English soldier and politician, Secretary of State for War (d. 2006)
  • 1917 – Paul Frère, Belgian race car driver and journalist (d. 2008)
  • 1918 – David Opatoshu, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1996)
  • 1919 – Fred Korematsu, American activist (d. 2005)
  • 1920 – Michael Anderson, English director and producer (d. 2018)
  • 1920 – Patrick Heron, British painter (d. 1999)
  • 1920 – Delbert Mann, American director and producer (d. 2007)
  • 1922 – Dick Martin, American comedian, actor, and director (d. 2008)
  • 1923 – Marianne Ferber, Czech-American economist and author (d. 2013)
  • 1924 – S. N. Goenka, Burmese-Indian author and educator (d. 2013)
  • 1924 – Lloyd Alexander, American soldier and author (d. 2007)
  • 1925 – Douglas Engelbart, American computer scientist, invented the computer mouse (d. 2013)
  • 1927 – Olof Palme, Swedish statesman, 26th Prime Minister of Sweden (d. 1986)
  • 1928 – Harold Prince, American director and producer (d. 2019)
  • 1929 – Lois Hole, Canadian businesswoman and politician, 15th Lieutenant Governor of Alberta (d. 2005)
  • 1929 – Hugh Tayfield, South African cricketer (d. 1994)
  • 1929 – Lucille Teasdale-Corti, Canadian-Italian physician and humanitarian (d. 1996)
  • 1930 – Gene Hackman, American actor and author
  • 1930 – Magnus Malan, South African general and politician, South African Minister of Defence (d. 2011)
  • 1931 – John Crosbie, Canadian lawyer and politician, 34th Canadian Minister of Justice (d. 2020)
  • 1931 – Shirley Hazzard, Australian-American novelist, short story writer, and essayist (d. 2016)
  • 1932 – Knock Yokoyama, Japanese comedian and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1934 – Tammy Grimes, American actress and singer (d. 2016)
  • 1935 – Richard Brautigan, American novelist, poet, and short story writer (d. 1984)
  • 1935 – Tubby Hayes, English saxophonist and composer (d. 1973)
  • 1936 – Horst Jankowski, German pianist and composer (d. 1998)
  • 1937 – Vanessa Redgrave, English actress
  • 1937 – Boris Spassky, Russian chess player and theoretician
  • 1938 – Islam Karimov, Uzbek politician, 1st President of Uzbekistan (d. 2016)
  • 1941 – Gregory Benford, American astrophysicist and author
  • 1941 – Dick Cheney, American businessman and politician, 46th Vice President of the United States, 17th US Secretary of Defense
  • 1941 – Tineke Lagerberg, Dutch swimmer
  • 1942 – Marty Balin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
  • 1943 – Davey Johnson, American baseball player and manager
  • 1944 – Lynn Harrell, American cellist and academic
  • 1944 – Colin Rimer, English lawyer and judge
  • 1945 – Meir Dagan, Israeli military officer and intelligence official, Director of Mossad (2002–11) (d. 2016)
  • 1945 – Michael Dorris, American author and scholar (d. 1997)
  • 1946 – John Bird, Baron Bird, English publisher, founded The Big Issue
  • 1947 – Les Barker, English poet and author
  • 1947 – Steve Marriott, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1991)
  • 1948 – Nick Broomfield, English director and producer
  • 1948 – Miles Reid, English mathematician and academic
  • 1949 – Peter Agre, American physician and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1950 – Jack Newton, Australian golfer
  • 1951 – Phil Collins, English drummer, singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
  • 1951 – Charles S. Dutton, American actor and director
  • 1951 – Bobby Stokes, English footballer (d. 1995)
  • 1952 – Doug Falconer, Canadian football player and producer
  • 1953 – Fred Hembeck, American author and illustrator
  • 1955 – John Baldacci, American politician, 73rd Governor of Maine
  • 1955 – Tom Izzo, American basketball player and coach
  • 1955 – Curtis Strange, American golfer and sportscaster
  • 1957 – Payne Stewart, American golfer (d. 1999)
  • 1958 – Derek White, Scottish rugby player
  • 1959 – Cynthia Carter, Welsh journalist, author, and academic
  • 1959 – Steve Folkes, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 2018)
  • 1959 – Jody Watley, American entertainer
  • 1962 – Abdullah II of Jordan
  • 1964 – Otis Smith, American basketball player, coach, and manager
  • 1965 – Kevin Moore, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1966 – Danielle Goyette, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1968 – Felipe VI of Spain
  • 1969 – Justin Skinner, English footballer, midfielder and manager
  • 1971 – Kimo von Oelhoffen, American football player
  • 1972 – Jill McGill, American golfer
  • 1972 – Chris Simon, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1973 – Jalen Rose, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1974 – Christian Bale, Welsh actor
  • 1974 – Olivia Colman, English actress
  • 1975 – Juninho Pernambucano, Brazilian footballer
  • 1975 – Yumi Yoshimura, Japanese musician and singer
  • 1976 – Andy Milonakis, American entertainer
  • 1977 – Dan Hinote, American ice hockey player and coach
  • 1978 – Carmen Küng, Swiss curler
  • 1978 – John Patterson, American baseball player
  • 1979 – Trevor Gillies, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – João Soares de Almeida Neto, Brazilian footballer
  • 1980 – Georgios Vakouftsis, Greek footballer
  • 1980 – Wilmer Valderrama, American actor and producer
  • 1981 – Jonathan Bender, American basketball player
  • 1981 – Dimitar Berbatov, Bulgarian footballer
  • 1981 – Afonso Alves, Brazilian footballer
  • 1981 – Peter Crouch, English footballer
  • 1981 – Mathias Lauda, Austrian race car driver
  • 1982 – Jorge Cantú, Mexican baseball player
  • 1984 – Kotoshōgiku Kazuhiro, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1984 – Arthur Chu, Asian-American columnist and former Jeopardy! contestant
  • 1984 – Kid Cudi, American entertainer
  • 1985 – Gisela Dulko, Argentinian tennis player
  • 1985 – Torrey Mitchell, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1985 – Trae Williams, American football player
  • 1986 – Nick Evans, American baseball player
  • 1987 – Ben Cutting, Australian cricketer
  • 1987 – Lance Franklin, Australian footballer
  • 1987 – Phil Lester, English Internet celebrity
  • 1987 – Becky Lynch, Irish wrestler
  • 1987 – Renato Santos, Brazilian footballer
  • 1987 – Arda Turan, Turkish footballer
  • 1988 – Rob Pinkston, American actor and director
  • 1989 – Tomás Mejías, Spanish footballer
  • 1989 – Girish Kumar, Indian film actor
  • 1990 – Yoon Bo-ra, South Korean singer
  • 1990 – Joe Colborne, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Andrew McCullough, Australian rugby league player
  • 1990 – Nils Miatke, German footballer
  • 1990 – Luca Sbisa, Swiss ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Mitchell Starc, Australian cricketer
  • 1990 – Phillip Supernaw, American football player
  • 1991 – Stefan Elliott, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1993 – Katy Marchant, English track cyclist
  • 1995 – Jack Laugher, English diver
  • 1995 – Víctor Sánchez, Venezuelan baseball player (d. 2015)

Deaths on January 30

  • 680 – Balthild, Frankish queen (b. 626)
  • 970 – Peter I of Bulgaria
  • 1030 – William V, Duke of Aquitaine (b. 969)
  • 1181 – Emperor Takakura of Japan (b. 1161)
  • 1240 – Pelagio Galvani, Leonese lawyer and cardinal (b. 1165)
  • 1314 – Nicholas III of Saint Omer
  • 1344 – William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury (b. 1301)
  • 1384 – Louis II, Count of Flanders (b. 1330)
  • 1497 – Lê Thánh Tông, King of Vietnam (b. 1442)
  • 1574 – Damião de Góis, Portuguese historian and philosopher (b. 1502)
  • 1606 – Everard Digby, English criminal (b. 1578)
  • 1606 – John Grant, English conspirator (b. 1570)
  • 1606 – Robert Wintour, English conspirator (b. 1565)
  • 1649 – Charles I of England (b. 1600)
  • 1664 – Cornelis de Graeff, Dutch mayor (b. 1599)
  • 1730 – Peter II of Russia (b. 1715)
  • 1770 – Giovanni Pietro Francesco Agius de Soldanis, Maltese linguist, historian and cleric (b. 1712)
  • 1836 – Betsy Ross, American seamstress, said to have designed the American Flag (b. 1752)
  • 1838 – Osceola, American tribal leader (b. 1804)
  • 1858 – Coenraad Jacob Temminck, Dutch zoologist and ornithologist (b. 1778)
  • 1867 – Emperor Kōmei of Japan (b. 1831)
  • 1869 – William Carleton, Irish author (b. 1794)
  • 1881 – Arthur O’Shaughnessy, English poet and herpetologist (b. 1844)
  • 1889 – Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, heir apparent to the throne of Austria-Hungary (b. 1858)
  • 1926 – Barbara La Marr, American actress (b. 1896)
  • 1928 – Johannes Fibiger, Danish physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1867)
  • 1929 – La Goulue, French model and dancer (b. 1866)
  • 1934 – Frank Nelson Doubleday, American publisher, founded the Doubleday Publishing Company (b. 1862)
  • 1947 – Frederick Blackman, English botanist and physiologist (b. 1866)
  • 1948 – Arthur Coningham, Australian air marshal (b. 1895)
  • 1948 – Mahatma Gandhi, leader of the Indian independence movement against British rule (b. 1869)
  • 1948 – Orville Wright, American pilot and engineer, co-founded the Wright Company (b. 1871)
  • 1951 – Ferdinand Porsche, Austrian-German engineer and businessman, founded Porsche (b. 1875)
  • 1958 – Jean Crotti, Swiss painter (b. 1878)
  • 1958 – Ernst Heinkel, German engineer and businessman; founded the Heinkel Aircraft Company (b. 1888)
  • 1962 – Manuel de Abreu, Brazilian physician and engineer (b. 1894)
  • 1963 – Francis Poulenc, French pianist and composer (b. 1899)
  • 1966 – Jaan Hargel, Estonian flute player, conductor, and educator (b. 1912)
  • 1968 – Makhanlal Chaturvedi, Indian poet, playwright, and journalist (b. 1889)
  • 1969 – Dominique Pire, Belgian friar, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
  • 1973 – Elizabeth Baker, American economist and academic (b. 1885)
  • 1974 – Olav Roots, Estonian pianist and composer (b. 1910)
  • 1977 – Paul Marais de Beauchamp, French zoologist (b. 1883)
  • 1980 – Professor Longhair, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1918)
  • 1982 – Lightnin’ Hopkins, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1912)
  • 1991 – John Bardeen, American physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1908)
  • 1991 – Clifton C. Edom, American photographer and educator (b. 1907)
  • 1994 – Pierre Boulle, French soldier and author (b. 1912)
  • 1999 – Huntz Hall, American actor (b. 1919)
  • 1999 – Ed Herlihy, American journalist (b. 1909)
  • 2001 – Jean-Pierre Aumont, French soldier and actor (b. 1911)
  • 2001 – Johnnie Johnson, English air marshal and pilot (b. 1915)
  • 2001 – Joseph Ransohoff, American surgeon and educator (b. 1915)
  • 2005 – Martyn Bennett, Canadian-Scottish violinist (b. 1971)
  • 2006 – Coretta Scott King, American author and activist (b. 1927)
  • 2006 – Wendy Wasserstein, American playwright and academic (b. 1950)
  • 2007 – Sidney Sheldon, American author and screenwriter (b. 1917)
  • 2008 – Marcial Maciel, Mexican-American priest, founded the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi (b. 1920)
  • 2009 – H. Guy Hunt, American soldier, pastor, and politician, 49th Governor of Alabama (b. 1933)
  • 2010 – Fadil Ferati, Kosovar accountant and politician (b. 1960)
  • 2011 – John Barry, English composer and conductor (b. 1933)
  • 2012 – Frank Aschenbrenner, American football player and soldier (b. 1925)
  • 2012 – Doeschka Meijsing, Dutch author (b. 1947)
  • 2013 – Gamal al-Banna, Egyptian author and scholar (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Patty Andrews, American singer (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – George Witt, American baseball player and coach (b. 1931)
  • 2014 – Stefan Bałuk, Polish general and photographer (b. 1914)
  • 2014 – The Mighty Hannibal, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1939)
  • 2014 – William Motzing, American composer and conductor (b. 1937)
  • 2014 – Arthur Rankin, Jr., American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2015 – Carl Djerassi, Austrian-American chemist, author, and playwright (b. 1923)
  • 2015 – Ülo Kaevats, Estonian academic, philosopher, and politician (b. 1947)
  • 2015 – Geraldine McEwan, English actress (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Gerrit Voorting, Dutch cyclist (b. 1923)
  • 2015 – Zhelyu Zhelev, Bulgarian philosopher and politician, 2nd President of Bulgaria (b. 1935)
  • 2016 – Frank Finlay, English actor (b. 1926)
  • 2016 – Francisco Flores Pérez, Salvadorian politician, President of El Salvador (b. 1959)
  • 2016 – Georgia Davis Powers, American activist and politician (b. 1923)
  • 2018 – Mark Salling, American actor and musician (b. 1982)
  • 2019 – Dick Miller, American actor (b. 1928)

Holidays and observances on January 30

  • Christian Feast Day:
    • Adelelmus of Burgos
    • Aldegonde
    • Anthony the Great (Coptic Church)
    • Armentarius of Pavia
    • Balthild
    • Charles, King and Martyr (various provinces of the Anglican Communion)
    • Hippolytus of Rome
    • Hyacintha Mariscotti
    • Martina
    • Matthias of Jerusalem
    • Mutien-Marie Wiaux
    • Savina
    • Three Holy Hierarchs (Eastern Orthodox), and its related observances:
      • Teacher’s Day (Greece)
    • January 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of Azerbaijani customs (Azerbaijan)
  • Day of Saudade (Brazil)
  • Fred Korematsu Day (California, Florida, Hawaii, Virginia)
  • Martyrdom of Mahatma Gandhi, and its related observances:
    • Martyrs’ Day (India)
    • School Day of Non-violence and Peace (Spain)
    • Start of the Season for Nonviolence January 30 – April 4

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