33 BC – Lucius Marcius Philippus, step-brother to the future emperor Augustus, celebrates a triumph for his victories while serving as governor in one of the provinces of Hispania.
395 – Emperor Arcadius marries Aelia Eudoxia, daughter of the Frankish general Flavius Bauto. She becomes one of the more powerful Roman empresses of Late Antiquity.
629 – Shahrbaraz is crowned as king of the Sasanian Empire.
711 – Islamic conquest of Hispania: Moorish troops led by Tariq ibn Ziyad land at Gibraltar to begin their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus).
1296 – First War of Scottish Independence: John Balliol’s Scottish army is defeated by an English army commanded by John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey at the Battle of Dunbar.
1509 – Pope Julius II places the Italian state of Venice under interdict.
1521 – Battle of Mactan: Explorer Ferdinand Magellan is killed by natives in the Philippines led by chief Lapu-Lapu.
1522 – Combined forces of Spain and the Papal States defeat a French and Venetian army at the Battle of Bicocca.
1539 – Re-founding of the city of Bogotá, New Granada (now Colombia), by Nikolaus Federmann and Sebastián de Belalcázar.
1565 – Cebu is established becoming the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines.
1578 – Duel of the Mignons claims the lives of two favourites of Henry III of France and two favorites of Henry I, Duke of Guise.
1595 – The relics of Saint Sava are incinerated in Belgrade on the Vračar plateau by Ottoman Grand Vizier Sinan Pasha; the site of the incineration is now the location of the Church of Saint Sava, one of the largest Orthodox churches in the world.
1650 – The Battle of Carbisdale: A Royalist army from Orkney invades mainland Scotland but is defeated by a Covenanter army.
1667 – Blind and impoverished, John Milton sells Paradise Lost to a printer for £10, so that it could be entered into the Stationers’ Register.
1777 – American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Ridgefield: A British invasion force engages and defeats Continental Army regulars and militia irregulars at Ridgefield, Connecticut.
1805 – First Barbary War: United States Marines and Berbers attack the Tripolitan city of Derna (The “shores of Tripoli” part of the Marines’ Hymn).
1813 – War of 1812: American troops capture York, the capital of Upper Canada, in the Battle of York.
1861 – American President Abraham Lincoln suspends the writ of habeas corpus.
1865 – The New York State Senate creates Cornell University as the state’s land grant institution.
1906 – The State Duma of the Russian Empire meets for the first time.
1909 – Sultan of Ottoman Empire Abdul Hamid II is overthrown, and is succeeded by his brother, Mehmed V.
1911 – Following the resignation and death of William P. Frye, a compromise is reached to rotate the office of President pro tempore of the United States Senate.
1927 – Carabineros de Chile (Chilean national police force and gendarmerie) are created.
1936 – The United Auto Workers (UAW) gains autonomy from the American Federation of Labor.
1941 – World War II: German troops enter Athens.
1941 – World War II: The Communist Party of Slovenia, the Slovene Christian Socialists, the left-wing Slovene Sokols (also known as “National Democrats”) and a group of progressive intellectuals establish the Liberation Front of the Slovene Nation.
1945 – World War II: The last German formations withdraw from Finland to Norway. The Lapland War and thus, World War II in Finland, comes to an end and the Raising the Flag on the Three-Country Cairn photograph is taken.
1945 – World War II: Benito Mussolini is arrested by Italian partisans in Dongo, while attempting escape disguised as a German soldier.
1953 – Operation Moolah offers $50,000 to any pilot who defected with a fully mission-capable Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 to South Korea. The first pilot was to receive $100,000.
1960 – Togo gains independence from French-administered UN trusteeship.
1961 – Sierra Leone is granted its independence from the United Kingdom, with Milton Margai as the first Prime Minister.
1967 – Expo 67 officially opens in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with a large opening ceremony broadcast around the world. It opens to the public the next day.
1974 – Ten thousand march in Washington, D.C., calling for the impeachment of U.S. President Richard Nixon.
1978 – Former United States President Nixon aide John D. Ehrlichman is released from an Arizona prison after serving 18 months for Watergate-related crimes.
1978 – The Saur Revolution begins in Afghanistan, ending the following morning with the murder of Afghan President Mohammed Daoud Khan and the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan.
1981 – Xerox PARC introduces the computer mouse.
1986 – The city of Pripyat and surrounding areas are evacuated due to Chernobyl disaster.
1987 – The U.S. Department of Justice bars Austrian President Kurt Waldheim (and his wife, Elisabeth, who had also been a Nazi) from entering the US, charging that he had aided in the deportations and executions of thousands of Jews and others as a German Army officer during World War II.
1989 – The April 27 demonstrations, student-led protests responding to the April 26 Editorial, during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
1992 – The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, comprising Serbia and Montenegro, is proclaimed.
1992 – Betty Boothroyd becomes the first woman to be elected Speaker of the British House of Commons in its 700-year history.
1992 – The Russian Federation and 12 other former Soviet republics become members of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
1993 – Most of the Zambia national football team lose their lives in a plane crash off Libreville, Gabon en route to Dakar, Senegal to play a 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Senegal.
1994 – South African general election: The first democratic general election in South Africa, in which black citizens could vote. The Interim Constitution comes into force.
2005 – Airbus A380 aircraft had its maiden test flight.
2006 – Construction begins on the Freedom Tower (later renamed One World Trade Center) in New York City.
2007 – Estonian authorities remove the Bronze Soldier, a Soviet Red Army war memorial in Tallinn, amid political controversy with Russia.
2007 – Israeli archaeologists discover the tomb of Herod the Great south of Jerusalem.
2011 – The 2011 Super Outbreak devastates parts of the Southeastern United States, especially the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Tennessee. 205 tornadoes touched down on April 27 alone, killing more than 300 and injuring hundreds more.
2012 – At least four explosions hit the Ukrainian city of Dnipropetrovsk with at least 27 people injured.
2018 – The Panmunjom Declaration is signed between North and South Korea, officially declaring their intentions to end the Korean conflict.
Births on April 27
85 BC – Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus, Roman politician and general (d. 43 BC)
1468 – Frederick Jagiellon, Primate of Poland (d. 1503)
1564 – Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland (d. 1632)
1556 – François Béroalde de Verville, French writer (d. 1626)
1593 – Mumtaz Mahal, Mughal empress buried at the Taj Mahal (d. 1631)
1650 – Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel, Queen Consort of Denmark (1670-1699) (d. 1714)
1654 – Charles Blount, English deist and philosopher (d. 1693)
1701 – Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia (d. 1773)
1718 – Thomas Lewis, Irish-born American surveyor and lawyer (d. 1790)
1748 – Adamantios Korais, Greek-French philosopher and scholar (d. 1833)
1755 – Marc-Antoine Parseval, French mathematician and theorist (d. 1836)
1759 – Mary Wollstonecraft, English philosopher, historian, and novelist (d. 1797)
1788 – Charles Robert Cockerell, English architect, archaeologist, and writer (d. 1863)
1791 – Samuel Morse, American painter and inventor, co-invented the Morse code (d. 1872)
1812 – William W. Snow, American lawyer and politician (d. 1886)
1812 – Friedrich von Flotow, German composer (d. 1883)
1820 – Herbert Spencer, English biologist, anthropologist, sociologist, and philosopher (d. 1903)
1822 – Ulysses S. Grant, American general and politician, 18th President of the United States (d. 1885)
1840 – Edward Whymper, English-French mountaineer, explorer, author, and illustrator (d. 1911)
1848 – Otto of Bavaria (d. 1916)
1850 – Hans Hartwig von Beseler, German general and politician (d. 1921)
1853 – Jules Lemaître, French playwright and critic (d. 1914)
1857 – Theodor Kittelsen, Norwegian painter and illustrator (d. 1914)
1861 – William Arms Fisher, American composer and music historian (d. 1948)
1866 – Maurice Raoul-Duval, French polo player (d. 1916)
1875 – Frederick Fane, Irish-born, English cricketer (d. 1960)
1880 – Mihkel Lüdig, Estonian organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1958)
1882 – Jessie Redmon Fauset, American author and poet (d. 1961)
1887 – Warren Wood, American golfer (d. 1926)
1888 – Florence La Badie, Canadian actress (d. 1917)
1891 – Sergei Prokofiev, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1953)
1893 – Draža Mihailović, Serbian general (d. 1946)
1893 – Allen Sothoron, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1939)
1894 – George Petty, American painter and illustrator (d. 1975)
1894 – Nicolas Slonimsky, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1995)
1896 – Rogers Hornsby, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1963)
1896 – William Hudson, New Zealand-Australian engineer (d. 1978)
1896 – Wallace Carothers, American chemist and inventor of nylon (d. 1937)
1898 – Ludwig Bemelmans, Italian-American author and illustrator (d. 1962)
1899 – Walter Lantz, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and actor (d. 1994)
1900 – August Koern, Estonian politician and diplomat, Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs in exile (d. 1989)
1902 – Tiemoko Garan Kouyaté, Malian educator and activist (d. 1942)
1904 – Cecil Day-Lewis, Anglo-Irish poet and author (d. 1972)
1904 – Nikos Zachariadis, Greek politician (d. 1973)
1905 – John Kuck, American javelin thrower and shot putter (d. 1986)
1906 – Yiorgos Theotokas, Greek author and playwright (d. 1966)
1910 – Chiang Ching-kuo, Chinese politician, 3rd President of the Republic of China (d. 1988)
1911 – Bruno Beger, German anthropologist and ethnologist (d. 2009)
1911 – Chris Berger, Dutch sprinter and footballer (d. 1965)
1912 – Jacques de Bourbon-Busset, French author and politician (d. 2001)
1912 – Zohra Sehgal, Indian actress, dancer, and choreographer (d. 2014)
1913 – Philip Abelson, American physicist and author (d. 2004)
1913 – Irving Adler, American mathematician, author, and academic (d. 2012)
1913 – Luz Long, German long jumper and soldier (d. 1943)
1916 – Robert Hugh McWilliams, Jr., American sergeant, lawyer, and judge (d. 2013)
1916 – Enos Slaughter, American baseball player and manager (d. 2002)
1917 – Roman Matsov, Estonian violinist, pianist, and conductor (d. 2001)
1918 – Sten Rudholm, Swedish lawyer and jurist (d. 2008)
1920 – Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (d. 1956)
1920 – Mark Krasnosel’skii, Ukrainian mathematician and academic (d. 1997)
1920 – James Robert Mann, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (d. 2010)
1920 – Edwin Morgan, Scottish poet and translator (d. 2010)
1921 – Robert Dhéry, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
1922 – Jack Klugman, American actor (d. 2012)
1922 – Sheila Scott, English nurse and pilot (d. 1988)
1923 – Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, Seminole chief (d. 2011)
1924 – Vernon B. Romney, American lawyer and politician, 14th Attorney General of Utah (d. 2013)
1925 – Derek Chinnery, English broadcaster (d. 2015)
1926 – Tim LaHaye, American minister, activist, and author (d. 2016)
1926 – Basil A. Paterson, American lawyer and politician, 59th Secretary of State of New York (d. 2014)
1926 – Alan Reynolds, English painter and educator (d. 2014)
1927 – Coretta Scott King, African-American activist and author (d. 2006)
1927 – Joe Moakley, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (d. 2001)
1929 – Nina Ponomaryova, Russian discus thrower and coach (d. 2016)
1931 – Igor Oistrakh, Ukrainian violinist and educator
1932 – Anouk Aimée, French actress
1932 – Pik Botha, South African lawyer, politician, and diplomat, 8th South African Ambassador to the United States (d. 2018)
1932 – Casey Kasem, American disc jockey, music historian, radio celebrity, and voice actor; co-created American Top 40 (d. 2014)
1932 – Chuck Knox, American football coach (d. 2018)
1932 – Derek Minter, English motorcycle racer (d. 2015)
1932 – Gian-Carlo Rota, Italian-American mathematician and philosopher (d. 1999)
1933 – Peter Imbert, Baron Imbert, English police officer and politician, Lord Lieutenant for Greater London (d. 2017)
1935 – Theodoros Angelopoulos, Greek director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
1935 – Ron Morris, American pole vaulter and coach
1936 – Geoffrey Shovelton, English singer and illustrator (d. 2016)
1937 – Sandy Dennis, American actress (d. 1992)
1937 – Robin Eames, Irish Anglican archbishop
1937 – Richard Perham, English biologist and academic (d. 2015)
1938 – Earl Anthony, American bowler and sportscaster (d. 2001)
1938 – Alain Caron, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1986)
1939 – Judy Carne, English actress and comedian (d. 2015)
1939 – Stanisław Dziwisz, Polish cardinal
1941 – Fethullah Gülen, Turkish preacher and theologian
1941 – Dilip Kumar Chakrabarti, Indian archaeologist
1941 – Lee Roy Jordan, American football player
1942 – Ruth Glick, American author
1942 – Jim Keltner, American drummer
1943 – Helmut Marko, Austrian race car driver and manager
1944 – Michael Fish, English meteorologist and journalist
1944 – Cuba Gooding Sr., American singer (d. 2017)
1944 – Herb Pedersen, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1945 – Martin Chivers, English footballer and manager
1945 – Jack Deverell, English general
1945 – Helen Hodgman, Scottish-Australian author
1945 – Terry Willesee, Australian journalist and television host
1945 – August Wilson, American author and playwright (d. 2005)
1946 – Franz Roth, German footballer
1947 – G. K. Butterfield, African-American soldier, lawyer, and politician
1947 – Nick Greiner, Hungarian-Australian politician, 37th Premier of New South Wales
1947 – Pete Ham, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1975)
1947 – Keith Magnuson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2003)
1947 – Ann Peebles, American soul singer-songwriter
1948 – Frank Abagnale Jr., American security consultant and criminal
1948 – Josef Hickersberger, Austrian footballer, coach, and manager
1948 – Kate Pierson, American singer-songwriter and bass player
1949 – Grant Chapman, Australian businessman and politician
1950 – Jaime Fresnedi, Filipino politician
1950 – Paul Lockyer, Australian journalist (d. 2011)
1951 – Ace Frehley, American guitarist and songwriter
1952 – Larry Elder, American lawyer and talk show host
1952 – George Gervin, American basketball player
1952 – Ari Vatanen, Finnish race car driver and politician
1953 – Arielle Dombasle, French-American actress and model
1954 – Frank Bainimarama, Fijian commander and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Fiji
1954 – Herman Edwards, American football player, coach, and sportscaster
1954 – Mark Holden, Australian singer, actor, and lawyer
1955 – Gudrun Berend, German hurdler (d. 2011)
1955 – Eric Schmidt, American engineer and businessman
1956 – Bryan Harvey, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2006)
1956 – Jeff Probyn, English rugby player, coach, and manager
1957 – Willie Upshaw, American baseball player and manager
1959 – Sheena Easton, Scottish-American singer-songwriter, actress, and producer
1959 – Marco Pirroni, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1960 – Mike Krushelnyski, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1961 – Andrew Schlafly, American lawyer and activist, founded Conservapedia
1962 – Ángel Comizzo, Argentinian footballer and manager
1962 – Seppo Räty, Finnish javelin thrower and coach
1962 – Im Sang-soo, South Korean director and screenwriter
1962 – Andrew Selous, English soldier and politician
1963 – Russell T Davies, Welsh screenwriter and producer
1965 – Anna Chancellor, English actress
1966 – Peter McIntyre, Australian cricketer
1966 – Yoshihiro Togashi, Japanese illustrator
1967 – Willem-Alexander, King of the Netherlands
1967 – Tommy Smith, Scottish saxophonist, composer, and educator
1967 – Erik Thomson, Scottish-New Zealand actor
1967 – Jason Whitlock, American football player and journalist
1968 – Dana Milbank, American journalist and author
1969 – Cory Booker, African-American lawyer and politician
1969 – Darcey Bussell, English ballerina
1971 – Olari Elts, Estonian conductor
1972 – Nigel Barker, English photographer and author
1972 – Almedin Civa, Bosnian footballer and coach
1973 – Duško Adamović, Serbian footballer
1973 – Sharlee D’Angelo, Swedish bass player and songwriter
1973 – Sébastien Lareau, Canadian tennis player
1974 – Frank Catalanotto, American baseball player
1974 – Richard Johnson, Australian footballer
1975 – Rabih Abdullah, American football player
1975 – Chris Carpenter, American baseball player and manager
1975 – Pedro Feliz, Dominican baseball player
1975 – Kazuyoshi Funaki, Japanese ski jumper
1976 – Isobel Campbell, Scottish singer-songwriter and cellist
1976 – Sally Hawkins, English actress
1976 – Walter Pandiani, Uruguayan footballer
1976 – Faisal Saif, Indian director, screenwriter, and critic
1979 – Will Boyd, American bass player
1979 – Natasha Chokljat, Australian netball player
1979 – Vladimir Kozlov, Ukrainian wrestler
1980 – Sybille Bammer, Austrian tennis player
1980 – Talitha Cummins, Australian journalist
1980 – Christian Lara, Ecuadorian footballer
1981 – Joey Gathright, American baseball player
1981 – Patrik Gerrbrand, Swedish footballer
1982 – François Parisien, Canadian cyclist
1982 – Alexander Widiker, German rugby player
1983 – Ari Graynor, American actress and producer
1983 – Martin Viiask, Estonian basketball player
1984 – Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Canadian ice hockey player
1984 – Daniel Holdsworth, Australian rugby league player
1984 – Patrick Stump, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1985 – José António de Miranda da Silva Júnior, Brazilian footballer
1985 – Meselech Melkamu, Ethiopian runner
1986 – Jenna Coleman, English actress
1986 – Hayley Mulheron, Scottish netball player
1986 – Dinara Safina, Russian tennis player
1987 – Taylor Chorney, American ice hockey player
1987 – Elliott Shriane, Australian speed skater
1987 – William Moseley, English actor
1987 – Wang Feifei, Chinese singer and actress
1988 – Joeri Dequevy, Belgian footballer
1988 – Kris Thackray, English footballer
1988 – Semyon Varlamov, Russian ice hockey player
1988 – Lizzo, American singer and rapper
1989 – Lars Bender, German footballer
1989 – Sven Bender, German footballer
1989 – Tim Glasby, Australian rugby league player
1989 – Dmytro Kozban, Ukrainian footballer
1990 – Trude Raad, Norwegian deaf track and field athlete
1991 – Isaac Cuenca, Spanish footballer
1991 – Eric Fukusaki, Peruvian singer
1991 – Lara Gut, Swiss skier
1992 – Keenan Allen, American football player
1994 – Corey Seager, American baseball player
1995 – Nick Kyrgios, Australian tennis player
1997 – Josh Onomah, English footballer
Deaths on April 27
630 – Ardashir III of Persia (b. 621)
1160 – Rudolf I, Count of Bregenz (b. 1081)
1272 – Zita, Italian saint (b. 1212)
1321 – Nicolò Albertini, Italian cardinal statesman (b. c. 1250)
1353 – Simeon of Moscow, Grand Prince of Moscow and Vladimir
1403 – Maria of Bosnia, Countess of Helfenstein (b. 1335)
1404 – Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1342)
1463 – Isidore of Kiev (b. 1385)
1521 – Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese sailor and explorer (b. 1480)
1599 – Maeda Toshiie, Japanese general (b. 1538)
1605 – Pope Leo XI (b. 1535)
1607 – Edward Cromwell, 3rd Baron Cromwell, Governor of Lecale (b. 1560)
1613 – Robert Abercromby, Scottish priest and missionary (b. 1532)
1656 – Jan van Goyen, Dutch painter and illustrator (b. 1596)
1694 – John George IV, Elector of Saxony (b. 1668)
1695 – John Trenchard, English politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (b. 1640)
1702 – Jean Bart, French admiral (b. 1651)
1782 – William Talbot, 1st Earl Talbot, English politician, Lord Steward of the Household (b. 1710)
1813 – Zebulon Pike, American general and explorer (b. 1779)
1873 – William Macready, English actor and manager (b. 1793)
1882 – Ralph Waldo Emerson, American poet and philosopher (b. 1803)
1893 – John Ballance, Irish-born New Zealand journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1839)
1896 – Henry Parkes, English-Australian businessman and politician, 7th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1815)
1915 – John Labatt, Canadian businessman (b. 1838)
1915 – Alexander Scriabin, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1872)
1932 – Hart Crane, American poet (b. 1899)
1936 – Karl Pearson, English mathematician and academic (b. 1857)
1937 – Antonio Gramsci, Italian sociologist, linguist, and politician (b. 1891)
1938 – Edmund Husserl, Czech mathematician and philosopher (b. 1859)
1952 – Guido Castelnuovo, Italian mathematician and statistician (b. 1865)
1961 – Roy Del Ruth, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1893)
1962 – A. K. Fazlul Huq, Bangladeshi-Pakistani lawyer and politician, Pakistani Minister of the Interior (b. 1873)
1965 – Edward R. Murrow, American journalist (b. 1908)
1967 – William Douglas Cook, New Zealand farmer, founded the Eastwoodhill Arboretum (b. 1884)
1969 – René Barrientos, Bolivian soldier, pilot, and politician, 55th President of Bolivia (b. 1919)
1970 – Arthur Shields, Irish rebel and actor (b. 1896)
1972 – Kwame Nkrumah, Ghanaian politician, 1st President of Ghana (b. 1909)
1973 – Carlos Menditeguy, Argentinian race car driver and polo player (b. 1914)
1977 – Stanley Adams, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1915)
1988 – Fred Bear, American hunter and author (b. 1902)
1989 – Konosuke Matsushita, Japanese businessman, founded Panasonic (b. 1894)
1992 – Olivier Messiaen, French organist and composer (b. 1908)
1992 – Gerard K. O’Neill, American physicist and astronomer (b. 1927)
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
1080 – Harald III of Denmark dies and is succeeded by Canute IV, who would later be the first Dane to be canonized.
1349 – The rule of the Bavand dynasty in Mazandaran is brought to an end by the murder of Hasan II.
1362 – Kaunas Castle falls to the Teutonic Order after a month-long siege.
1492 – Spain and Christopher Columbus sign the Capitulations of Santa Fe for his voyage to Asia to acquire spices.
1521 – Trial of Martin Luther over his teachings begins during the assembly of the Diet of Worms. Initially intimidated, he asks for time to reflect before answering and is given a stay of one day.
1524 – Giovanni da Verrazzano reaches New York harbor.
1797 – Sir Ralph Abercromby attacks San Juan, Puerto Rico, in what would be one of the largest invasions of the Spanish territories in the Americas.
1797 – Citizens of Verona begin an unsuccessful eight-day rebellion against the French occupying forces.
1861 – The state of Virginia’s secession convention votes to secede from the United States, later becoming the eighth state to join the Confederate States of America.
1863 – American Civil War: Grierson’s Raid begins: Troops under Union Army Colonel Benjamin Grierson attack central Mississippi.
1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Plymouth begins: Confederate forces attack Plymouth, North Carolina.
1869 – Morelos is admitted as the 27th state of Mexico.
1876 – Catalpa rescue: The rescue of six Fenian prisoners from Fremantle Prison in Western Australia.
1895 – The Treaty of Shimonoseki between China and Japan is signed. This marks the end of the First Sino-Japanese War, and the defeated Qing Empire is forced to renounce its claims on Korea and to concede the southern portion of the Fengtien province, Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands to Japan.
1905 – The Supreme Court of the United States decides Lochner v. New York, which holds that the “right to free contract” is implicit in the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
1907 – The Ellis Island immigration center processes 11,747 people, more than on any other day.
1912 – Russian troops open fire on striking goldfield workers in northeast Siberia, killing at least 150.
1941 – World War II: The Kingdom of Yugoslavia surrenders to Germany.
1942 – French prisoner of war General Henri Giraud escapes from his castle prison in Königstein Fortress.
1944 – Forces of the Communist-controlled Greek People’s Liberation Army attack the smaller National and Social Liberation resistance group, which surrenders. Its leader Dimitrios Psarros is murdered.
1945 – World War II: Montese, Italy, is liberated from Nazi forces.
1946 – The last French troops are withdrawn from Syria.
1951 – The Peak District becomes the United Kingdom’s first National Park.
1961 – Bay of Pigs Invasion: A group of Cuban exiles financed and trained by the CIA lands at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba with the aim of ousting Fidel Castro.
1969 – Sirhan Sirhan is convicted of assassinating Robert F. Kennedy.
1969 – Communist Party of Czechoslovakia chairman Alexander Dubček is deposed.
1970 – Apollo program: The ill-fated Apollo 13 spacecraft returns to Earth safely.
1971 – The Provisional Government of Bangladesh is formed.
1975 – The Cambodian Civil War ends. The Khmer Rouge captures the capital Phnom Penh and Cambodian government forces surrender.
1978 – Mir Akbar Khyber is assassinated, provoking a communist coup d’état in Afghanistan.
1982 – Constitution Act, 1982 Patriation of the Canadian constitution in Ottawa by Proclamation of Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada.
1992 – The Katina P is deliberately run aground off of Maputo, Mozambique and 60,000 tons of crude oil spill into the ocean.
2006 – A Palestinian suicide bomber detonates an explosive device in a Tel Aviv restaurant, killing 11 people and injuring 70.
2013 – An explosion at a fertilizer plant in the city of West, Texas, kills 15 people and injures 160 others.
2014 – NASA’s Kepler space telescope confirms the discovery of the first Earth-size planet in the habitable zone of another star.
Births on April 17
44 – Pope Evaristus (d. 107)
1277 – Michael IX Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1320)
1455 – Andrea Gritti, Doge of Venice (d. 1538)
1497 – Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador, conquered northern Chile (d. 1553)
1573 – Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria (d. 1651)
1586 – John Ford, English poet and playwright (d. 1639)
1598 – Giovanni Battista Riccioli, Italian priest and astronomer (d. 1671)
1620 – Marguerite Bourgeoys, French-Canadian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal (d. 1700)
1635 – Edward Stillingfleet, British theologian and scholar (d. 1699)
1676 – Frederick I of Sweden (d. 1751)
1683 – Johann David Heinichen, German composer and theorist (d. 1729)
1710 – Henry Erskine, 10th Earl of Buchan, Scottish politician (d. 1767)
1734 – Taksin, King of Thailand (d. 1782)
1741 – Samuel Chase, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1811)
1750 – François de Neufchâteau, French academic and politician, French Minister of the Interior (d. 1828)
1756 – Dheeran Chinnamalai, Indian commander (d. 1805)
1766 – Collin McKinney, American surveyor, merchant, and politician (d. 1861)
1794 – Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius, German botanist and explorer (d. 1868)
1798 – Étienne Bobillier, French mathematician and academic (d. 1840)
1814 – Josif Pančić, Serbian botanist and academic (d. 1888)
1816 – Thomas Hazlehurst, English architect and philanthropist (d. 1876)
1820 – Alexander Cartwright, American firefighter and inventor of baseball (d. 1892)
1833 – Jean-Baptiste Accolay, Belgian violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1900)
1837 – J. P. Morgan, American banker and financier, founded J.P. Morgan & Co. (d. 1913)
1842 – Maurice Rouvier, French businessman and politician, 53rd Prime Minister of France (d. 1911)
1849 – William R. Day, American jurist and politician, 36th United States Secretary of State (d. 1923)
1852 – Cap Anson, American baseball player and manager (d. 1922)
1863 – Augustus Edward Hough Love, English mathematician and theorist (d. 1940)
1865 – Ursula Ledóchowska, Polish-Austrian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of the Ursulines of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus (d. 1939)
1866 – Ernest Starling, English physiologist and academic (d. 1927)
1875 – Aleksander Tõnisson, Estonian general and politician, 5th Estonian Minister of War (d. 1941)
1877 – Matsudaira Tsuneo, Japanese diplomat (d. 1949)
1878 – Emil Fuchs, German-American lawyer and businessman (d. 1961)
1878 – Demetrios Petrokokkinos, Greek tennis player (d. 1942)
1879 – Henri Tauzin, French hurdler (d. 1918)
1882 – Artur Schnabel, Jewish-Polish pianist and composer (d. 1951)
1888 – Herms Niel, German soldier, trombonist, and composer (d. 1954)
1891 – George Adamski, Polish-American ufologist and author (d. 1965)
1895 – Robert Dean Frisbie, American soldier and author (d. 1948)
1896 – Señor Wences, Spanish-American ventriloquist (d. 1999)
1897 – Nisargadatta Maharaj, Indian philosopher and educator (d. 1981)
1897 – Thornton Wilder, American novelist and playwright (d. 1975)
1897 – Edouard Wyss-Dunant, Swiss physician and mountaineer (d. 1983)
1899 – Aleksander Klumberg, Estonian decathlete and coach (d. 1958)
1903 – Nicolas Nabokov, Russian-American composer and educator (d. 1978)
1903 – Gregor Piatigorsky, Ukrainian-American cellist and educator (d. 1976)
1903 – Morgan Taylor, American hurdler and coach (d. 1975)
1905 – Louis Jean Heydt, American journalist and actor (d. 1960)
1905 – Arthur Lake, American actor (d. 1987)
1906 – Sidney Garfield, American physician, co-founded Kaiser Permanente (d. 1984)
1909 – Alain Poher, French politician, President of France (d. 1996)
1910 – Evangelos Averoff, Greek historian and politician, Greek Minister of Defence (d. 1990)
1910 – Ivan Goff, Australian screenwriter and producer (d. 1999)
1910 – Helenio Herrera, French footballer and manager (d. 1997)
1911 – Hervé Bazin, French author and poet (d. 1996)
1911 – Lester Rodney, American soldier and journalist (d. 2009)
1912 – Marta Eggerth, Jewish-Hungarian-American actress and singer (d. 2013)
1914 – George Davis, American art director (d. 1984)
1914 – Mac Raboy, American illustrator (d. 1967)
1915 – Martin Clemens, Scottish soldier (d. 2009)
1915 – Joe Foss, American general and politician, 20th Governor of South Dakota (d. 2003)
1915 – Regina Ghazaryan, Armenian painter (d. 1999)
1916 – Win Maung, 3rd President of Union of Myanmar (d. 1989)
1916 – A. Thiagarajah, Sri Lankan educator and politician (d. 1981)
1916 – Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, world’s first female prime minister (d. 2000)
1918 – William Holden, American actor (d. 1981)
1919 – Gilles Lamontagne, Canadian lieutenant and politician, 24th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec (d. 2016)
1919 – Chavela Vargas, Costa Rican-Mexican singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2012)
1920 – Edmonde Charles-Roux, French journalist and author (d. 2016)
1923 – Lindsay Anderson, English actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1994)
1923 – Solly Hemus, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2017)
1923 – Neville McNamara, Australian air marshal (d. 2014)
1923 – Gianni Raimondi, Italian lyric tenor (d. 2008)
1923 – Harry Reasoner, American soldier and journalist (d. 1991)
1924 – Kenneth Norman Jones, Australian public servant
1924 – Donald Richie, American-Japanese author and critic (d. 2013)
1925 – René Moawad, Lebanese lawyer and politician, 13th President of Lebanon (d. 1989)
1926 – Joan Lorring, British actress (d. 2014)
1926 – Gerry McNeil, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (d. 2004)
1927 – Margot Honecker, East German politician and First Lady (d. 2016)
1928 – Victor Lownes, American businessman (d. 2017)
1928 – Cynthia Ozick, American short story writer, novelist, and essayist
1928 – Heinz Putzl, Austrian fencer
1928 – Fabien Roy, Canadian accountant and politician
1929 – James Last, German-American bassist, composer, and bandleader (d. 2015)
1930 – Chris Barber, English trombonist and bandleader
1931 – John Barrett, English tennis player and sportscaster
1931 – Malcolm Browne, American journalist and photographer (d. 2012)
1934 – Don Kirshner, American songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
1934 – Peter Morris, Australian-English surgeon and academic
1935 – Bud Paxson, American broadcaster, founded Home Shopping Network and Pax TV (d. 2015)
1937 – Ronald Hamowy, Canadian historian and academic (d. 2012)
1937 – Ferdinand Piëch, Austrian-German engineer and businessman (d. 2019)
1938 – Ben Barnes, American businessman and politician, 36th Lieutenant Governor of Texas
1938 – Doug Lewis, Canadian lawyer and politician, 41st Canadian Minister of Justice
1938 – Ronald H. Miller, American theologian, author, and academic (d. 2011)
1938 – Kerry Wendell Thornley, American theorist and author (d. 1988)
1939 – Robert Miller, American art dealer (d. 2011)
1940 – Eric Dancer, English businessman and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Devon
1940 – Billy Fury, English singer-songwriter (d. 1983)
1940 – John McCririck, English journalist (d. 2019)
1940 – Chuck Menville, American animator and screenwriter (d. 1992)
1940 – Anja Silja, German soprano and actress
1940 – Agostino Vallini, Italian cardinal and vicar general of Rome
1941 – Lagle Parek, Estonian architect and politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
1942 – Buster Williams, American jazz bassist
1943 – Richard Allen Epstein, American lawyer, author, and academic
1946 – Clare Francis, English sailor and author
1947 – Nigel Emslie, Lord Emslie, Scottish lawyer and judge
1947 – Richard Field, English lawyer and judge
1947 – Sherrie Levine, American photographer
1947 – Tsutomu Wakamatsu, Japanese baseball player, coach, and manager
1948 – Jan Hammer, Czech pianist, composer, and producer
1948 – Alice Harden, American educator and politician (d. 2012)
1948 – Pekka Vasala, Finnish runner
1951 – Olivia Hussey, Argentinian-English actress
1951 – Börje Salming, Swedish ice hockey player and businessman
1952 – Joe Alaskey, American voice actor (d. 2016)
1952 – Pierre Guité, Canadian ice hockey player
1952 – John McColl, English general and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey
1952 – Željko Ražnatović, Serbian commander (d. 2000)
1952 – John Robertson, Scottish businessman and politician
1954 – Riccardo Patrese, Italian race car driver
1954 – Roddy Piper, Canadian professional wrestler and actor (d. 2015)
1954 – Michael Sembello, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1955 – Todd Lickliter, American basketball player and coach
1955 – Pete Shelley, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
1955 – Mike Stroud, English physician and explorer
1956 – Colin Tyre, Lord Tyre, Scottish lawyer and judge
1957 – Teri Austin, Canadian actress
1957 – Afrika Bambaataa, American disc jockey
1957 – Nick Hornby, English novelist, essayist, lyricist, and screenwriter
1957 – Julia Macur, English lawyer and judge
1957 – Frank McDonough, British historian
1958 – Laslo Babits, Canadian javelin thrower (d. 2013)
1959 – Sean Bean, English actor
1959 – Jimmy Mann, Canadian ice hockey player
1959 – Li Meisu, Chinese shot putter
1960 – Vladimir Polyakov, Russian pole vaulter
1961 – Frank J. Christensen, American labor union leader
1961 – Norman Cowans, Jamaican-English cricketer
1961 – Boomer Esiason, American football player and sportscaster
1961 – Bella Freud, English fashion designer
1962 – Paul Nicholls, English jockey and trainer
1964 – Ken Daneyko, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1964 – Maynard James Keenan, American singer-songwriter and producer
1964 – Rachel Notley, Canadian politician
1964 – Lela Rochon, American actress
1966 – Vikram, Indian actor and singer
1967 – Kimberly Elise, American actress
1967 – Marquis Grissom, American baseball player and coach
1967 – Ian Jones, New Zealand rugby player
1967 – Barnaby Joyce, Australian politician, 17th Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
1967 – Liz Phair, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1968 – Julie Fagerholt, Danish fashion designer
1968 – Phil Henderson, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
1968 – Eric Lamaze, Canadian jockey
1968 – Roger Twose, New Zealand cricketer
1968 – Richie Woodhall, English boxer and trainer
1970 – Redman, American rapper, producer, and actor
1971 – Claire Sweeney, English actress
1972 – Gary Bennett, American baseball player
1972 – Tony Boselli, American football player and sportscaster
1972 – Jennifer Garner, American actress
1972 – Muttiah Muralitharan, Sri Lankan cricketer
1972 – Yuichi Nishimura, Japanese footballer and referee
1972 – Terran Sandwith, Canadian ice hockey player
1973 – Katrin Koov, Estonian architect
1973 – Brett Maher, Australian basketball player and sportscaster
1973 – Theo Ratliff, American basketball player
1974 – Mikael Åkerfeldt, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1974 – Victoria Beckham, English singer and fashion designer
1975 – Heidi Alexander, English politician
1975 – Travis Roy, American ice hockey player
1976 – Maurice Wignall, Jamaican hurdler and long jumper
1977 – Chad Hedrick, American speed skater
1977 – Frederik Magle, Danish composer, organist, and pianist
1978 – Monika Bergmann-Schmuderer, German skier
1978 – Lindsay Hartley, American actress
1978 – Jason White, Scottish rugby player
1979 – Eric Brewer, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Marija Šestak, Serbian-Slovenian triple jumper
1980 – Fabián Vargas, Colombian footballer
1980 – Curtis Woodhouse, English footballer, boxer, and manager
1981 – Jenny Meadows, English runner
1981 – Hanna Pakarinen, Finnish singer-songwriter
1981 – Ryan Raburn, American baseball player
1981 – Chris Thompson, English runner
1981 – Zhang Yaokun, Chinese footballer
1982 – Brad Boyes, Canadian ice hockey player
1982 – Chuck Kobasew, Canadian ice hockey player
1983 – Stanislav Chistov, Russian ice hockey player
1983 – Roberto Jiménez, Peruvian footballer
1983 – Andrea Marcato, Italian rugby player
1984 – Pablo Sebastián Álvarez, Argentinian footballer
1984 – Jed Lowrie, American baseball player
1984 – Raffaele Palladino, Italian footballer
1985 – Rooney Mara, American actress
1985 – Luke Mitchell, Australian actor and model
1985 – Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, French tennis player
1986 – Romain Grosjean, French race car driver
1988 – Takahiro Moriuchi, Japanese singer-songwriter
43 BC – Battle of Forum Gallorum: Mark Antony, besieging Caesar’s assassin Decimus Brutus in Mutina, defeats the forces of the consul Pansa, but is then immediately defeated by the army of the other consul, Aulus Hirtius.
AD 69 – Vitellius, commander of the Rhine armies, defeats Emperor Otho in the Battle of Bedriacum to take power over Rome.
AD 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus, son of emperor Vespasian, surrounds the Jewish capital with four Roman legions.
193 – Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans).
966 – After his marriage to the Christian Doubravka of Bohemia, the pagan ruler of the Polans, Mieszko I, converts to Christianity, an event considered to be the founding of the Polish state.
972 – Co-Emperor Otto II, a son of Otto I (the Great), marries the Byzantine princess Theophanu. She is crowned empress by Pope John XIII at Rome.
1028 – Henry III, son of Conrad, is elected King of Germany.
1205 – Battle of Adrianople between Bulgarians and Crusaders.
1294 – Temür, grandson of Kublai, is elected Khagan of the Mongols and Emperor of the Yuan dynasty with the reigning titles Oljeitu and Chengzong.
1341 – Sack of Saluzzo (Italy) by Italian-Angevine troops under Manfred V, Marquess of Saluzzo.
1434 – The foundation stone of Nantes Cathedral, France is laid.
1471 – In England, the Yorkists under Edward IV defeat the Lancastrians under the Earl of Warwick at the Battle of Barnet; the Earl is killed and Edward IV resumes the throne.
1561 – A celestial phenomenon is reported over Nuremberg, described as an aerial battle.
1639 – Imperial forces are defeated by the Swedes at the Battle of Chemnitz. The Swedish victory prolongs the Thirty Years’ War and allows them to advance into Bohemia.
1699 – Khalsa: The Sikh religion was formalised as the Khalsa – the brotherhood of Warrior-Saints – by Guru Gobind Singh in northern India, in accordance with the Nanakshahi calendar.
1775 – The first abolition society in North America is established. The Society for the Relief of Free Negroes Unlawfully Held in Bondage is organized in Philadelphia by Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Rush.
1816 – Bussa, a slave in British-ruled Barbados, leads a slave rebellion and is killed. For this, he is remembered as the first national hero of Barbados.
1828 – Noah Webster copyrights the first edition of his dictionary.
1849 – Hungary declares itself independent of Austria with Lajos Kossuth as its leader.
1865 – U.S. President Abraham Lincoln is shot in Ford’s Theatre by John Wilkes Booth; Lincoln died the next day.
1865 – U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward and his family are attacked at home by Lewis Powell.
1881 – The Four Dead in Five Seconds Gunfight is fought in El Paso, Texas.
1890 – The Pan-American Union is founded by the First International Conference of American States in Washington, D.C.
1894 – The first ever commercial motion picture house opened in New York City using ten Kinetoscopes, a device for peep-show viewing of films.
1900 – The Exposition Universelle begins.
1902 – James Cash Penney opens his first store in Kemmerer, Wyoming.
1906 – The Azusa Street Revival opens and will launch Pentecostalism as a worldwide movement.
1908 – Hauser Dam, a steel dam on the Missouri River in Montana, U.S., fails, sending a surge of water 25 to 30 feet (7.6 to 9.1 m) high downstream.
1909 – A massacre is organized by the Ottoman Empire against the Armenian population of Cilicia.
1912 – The British passenger liner RMS Titanic hits an iceberg in the North Atlantic at 23:40 (sinks morning of April 15th).
1927 – The first Volvo car premieres in Gothenburg, Sweden.
1928 – The Bremen, a German Junkers W 33 type aircraft, reaches Greenly Island, Canada – the first successful transatlantic aeroplane flight from east to west.
1931 – The Spanish Cortes deposes King Alfonso XIII and proclaims the Second Spanish Republic.
1935 – The Black Sunday dust storm, considered one of the worst storms of the Dust Bowl, swept across the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles and neighboring areas.
1939 – The Grapes of Wrath, by American author John Steinbeck is first published by the Viking Press.
1940 – World War II: Royal Marines land in Namsos, Norway in preparation for a larger force to arrive two days later.
1941 – World War II: German general Erwin Rommel attacks Tobruk.
1944 – Bombay explosion: A massive explosion in Bombay harbor kills 300 and causes economic damage valued then at 20 million pounds.
1945 – Razing of Friesoythe: The 4th Canadian (Armoured) Division deliberately destroyed the German town of Friesoythe on the orders of Major General Christopher Vokes.
1958 – The Soviet satellite Sputnik 2 falls from orbit after a mission duration of 162 days. This was the first spacecraft to carry a living animal, a female dog named Laika, who likely lived only a few hours.
1967 – Gnassingbé Eyadéma overthrows President of Togo Nicolas Grunitzky and installs himself as the new president, a title he would hold for the next 38 years.
1978 – Tbilisi Demonstrations: Thousands of Georgians demonstrate against Soviet attempts to change the constitutional status of the Georgian language.
1981 – STS-1: The first operational Space Shuttle, Columbia completes its first test flight.
1986 – The heaviest hailstones ever recorded (1 kilogram (2.2 lb)) fall on the Gopalganj district of Bangladesh, killing 92.
1988 – The USS Samuel B. Roberts strikes a mine in the Persian Gulf during Operation Earnest Will.
1988 – In a United Nations ceremony in Geneva, Switzerland, the Soviet Union signs an agreement pledging to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan.
1991 – The Republic of Georgia introduces the post of President after its declaration of independence from the Soviet Union.
1994 – In a U.S. friendly fire incident during Operation Provide Comfort in northern Iraq, two United States Air Force aircraft mistakenly shoot-down two United States Army helicopters, killing 26 people.
1999 – NATO mistakenly bombs a convoy of ethnic Albanian refugees. Yugoslav officials say 75 people were killed.
1999 – A severe hailstorm strikes Sydney, Australia causing A$2.3 billion in insured damages, the most costly natural disaster in Australian history.
2002 – Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez returns to office two days after being ousted and arrested by the country’s military.
2003 – The Human Genome Project is completed with 99% of the human genome sequenced to an accuracy of 99.99%.
2003 – U.S. troops in Baghdad capture Abu Abbas, leader of the Palestinian group that killed an American on the hijacked cruise liner the MS Achille Lauro in 1985.
2005 – The Oregon Supreme Court nullifies marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples a year earlier by Multnomah County.
2006 – Twin blasts triggered by crude bombs during Asr prayer in Jama Masjid, Delhi injure 13 people.
2010 – Nearly 2,700 are killed in a magnitude 6.9 earthquake in the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture.
2014 – Twin bomb blasts in Abuja, Nigeria, kill at least 75 people and injures 141 others.
2014 – Two hundred seventy-six schoolgirls are abducted by Boko Haram in Chibok, Nigeria.
2016 – In Japan, the foreshock of Kumamoto earthquakes occurs.
Births on April 14
1126 – Averroes, Spanish physician and philosopher (d. 1198)
1204 – Henry I, king of Castile (d. 1217)
1331 – Jeanne-Marie de Maille, French Roman Catholic saint (d. 1414)
1527 – Abraham Ortelius, Flemish cartographer and geographer (d. 1598)
1572 – Adam Tanner, Austrian mathematician, philosopher, and academic (d. 1632)
1578 – Philip III of Spain (d. 1621)
1629 – Christiaan Huygens, Dutch mathematician, astronomer, and physicist (d. 1695)
1668 – Magnus Julius De la Gardie, Swedish general and politician (d. 1741)
1678 – Abraham Darby I, English iron master (d. 1717)
1709 – Charles Collé, French playwright and songwriter (d. 1783)
1714 – Adam Gib, Scottish minister and author (d. 1788)
1738 – William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1809)
1741 – Emperor Momozono of Japan (d. 1762)
1769 – Barthélemy Catherine Joubert, French general (d. 1799)
1773 – Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, French politician, 6th Prime Minister of France (d. 1854)
1788 – David G. Burnet, American politician, 2nd Vice-President of Texas (d. 1870)
1800 – John Appold, English engineer (d. 1865)
1812 – George Grey, Portuguese-New Zealand soldier, explorer, and politician, 11th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1898)
1814 – Dimitri Kipiani, Georgian publicist and author (d. 1887)
1819 – Harriett Ellen Grannis Arey, American educator, author, editor, and publisher (d. 1901)
1827 – Augustus Pitt Rivers, English general, ethnologist, and archaeologist (d. 1900)
1852 – Alexander Greenlaw Hamilton, Australian biologist (d. 1941)
1854 – Martin Lipp, Estonian pastor and poet (d. 1923)
1857 – Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom (d. 1944)
1865 – Alfred Hoare Powell, English architect, and designer and painter of pottery (d. 1960)
1866 – Anne Sullivan, American educator (d. 1936)
1868 – Peter Behrens, German architect, designed the AEG turbine factory (d. 1940)
1870 – Victor Borisov-Musatov, Russian painter and educator (d. 1905)
1870 – Syd Gregory, Australian cricketer and coach (d. 1929)
1872 – Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Indian-English scholar and translator (d. 1953)
1876 – Cecil Chubb, English barrister and one time owner of Stonehenge (d. 1934)
1881 – Husain Salaahuddin, Maldivian poet and scholar (d. 1948)
1882 – Moritz Schlick, German-Austrian physicist and philosopher (d. 1936)
1886 – Ernst Robert Curtius, German philologist and scholar (d. 1956)
1886 – Árpád Tóth, Hungarian poet and translator (d. 1928)
1889 – Arnold J. Toynbee, English historian and academic (d. 1975)
1891 – B. R. Ambedkar, Indian economist, jurist, and politician, 1st Indian Minister of Law and Justice (d. 1956)
1891 – Otto Lasanen, Finnish wrestler (d. 1958)
1892 – Juan Belmonte, Spanish bullfighter (d. 1962)
1892 – V. Gordon Childe, Australian archaeologist and philologist (d. 1957)
1892 – Claire Windsor, American actress (d. 1972)
1902 – Sylvio Mantha, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and referee (d. 1974)
1903 – Henry Corbin, French philosopher and academic (d. 1978)
1903 – Ruth Svedberg, Swedish discus thrower and triathlete (d. 2002)
1904 – John Gielgud, English actor, director, and producer (d. 2000)
1905 – Elizabeth Huckaby, American author and educator (d. 1999)
1905 – Georg Lammers, German sprinter (d. 1987)
1905 – Jean Pierre-Bloch, French author and activist (d. 1999)
1906 – Faisal of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabian king (d. 1975)
1907 – François Duvalier, Haitian physician and politician, 40th President of Haiti (d. 1971)
1912 – Robert Doisneau, French photographer and journalist (d. 1994)
1912 – Georg Siimenson, Estonian footballer (d. 1978)
1913 – Jean Fournet, French conductor (d. 2008)
1916 – Don Willesee, Australian telegraphist and politician, 29th Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 2003)
1917 – Valerie Hobson, English actress (d. 1998)
1917 – Marvin Miller, American baseball executive (d. 2012)
1918 – Mary Healy, American actress and singer (d. 2015)
1919 – Shamshad Begum, Pakistani-Indian singer (d. 2013)
1919 – K. Saraswathi Amma, Indian author and playwright (d. 1975)
1920 – Ivor Forbes Guest, English lawyer, historian, and author (d. 2018)
1921 – Thomas Schelling, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2016)
1922 – Audrey Long, American actress (d. 2014)
1923 – Roberto De Vicenzo, Argentinian golfer (d. 2017)
1924 – Shorty Rogers, American trumpet player and composer (d. 1994)
1924 – Joseph Ruskin, American actor and producer (d. 2013)
1924 – Mary Warnock, Baroness Warnock, English philosopher, and academic (d. 2019)
1925 – Abel Muzorewa, Zimbabwean minister and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia (d. 2010)
1925 – Rod Steiger, American soldier and actor (d. 2002)
1926 – Barbara Anderson, New Zealand author (d. 2013)
1926 – Frank Daniel, Czech director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1996)
1926 – Gloria Jean, American actress and singer (d. 2018)
1926 – Liz Renay, American actress and author (d. 2007)
1927 – Alan MacDiarmid, New Zealand chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2007)
1927 – Dany Robin, French actress and singer (d. 1995)
1929 – Gerry Anderson, English director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
1929 – Inez Andrews, African-American singer-songwriter (d. 2012)
1930 – Martin Adolf Bormann, German priest and theologian (d. 2013)
1930 – Arnold Burns, American lawyer and politician, 21st United States Deputy Attorney General (d. 2013)
1930 – René Desmaison, French mountaineer (d. 2007)
1930 – Bradford Dillman, American actor and author (d. 2018)
1931 – Geoffrey Dalton, English admiral
1931 – Paul Masnick, Canadian ice hockey player
1932 – Bill Bennett, Canadian lawyer and politician, 27th Premier of British Columbia (d. 2015)
1932 – Atef Ebeid, Egyptian academic and politician, 47th Prime Minister of Egypt (d. 2014)
1932 – Loretta Lynn, American singer-songwriter and musician
1932 – Cameron Parker, Scottish businessman and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Renfrewshire
1933 – Paddy Hopkirk, Northern Irish racing driver
1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.
1612 – Miyamoto Musashi defeats Sasaki Kojirō at Funajima island.
1613 – Samuel Argall, having captured Native American princess Pocahontas in Passapatanzy, Virginia, sets off with her to Jamestown with the intention of exchanging her for English prisoners held by her father.
1742 – George Frideric Handel’s oratorio Messiah makes its world-premiere in Dublin, Ireland.
1777 – American Revolutionary War: American forces are ambushed and defeated in the Battle of Bound Brook, New Jersey.
1829 – The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 gives Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom the right to vote and to sit in Parliament.
1849 – Lajos Kossuth presents the Hungarian Declaration of Independence in a closed session of the National Assembly.
1861 – American Civil War: Fort Sumter surrenders to Confederate forces.
1865 – American Civil War: Raleigh, North Carolina is occupied by Union Forces.
1870 – The New York City Metropolitan Museum of Art is founded.
1873 – The Colfax massacre, in which more than 60 black men are murdered, takes place.
1909 – The military of the Ottoman Empire reverses the Ottoman countercoup of 1909 to force the overthrow of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.
1919 – Jallianwala Bagh massacre: British Indian Army troops lead by Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer killed approx 379-1000 unarmed demonstrators including men and women in Amritsar, India; and approximately 1,500 injured.
1941 – A pact of neutrality between the USSR and Japan is signed.
1943 – World War II: The discovery of mass graves of Polish prisoners of war killed by Soviet forces in the Katyń Forest Massacre is announced, causing a diplomatic rift between the Polish government-in-exile in London and the Soviet Union, which denies responsibility.
1943 – The Jefferson Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C., on the 200th anniversary of President Thomas Jefferson’s birth.
1944 – Relations between New Zealand and the Soviet Union are established.
1945 – World War II: German troops kill more than 1,000 political and military prisoners in Gardelegen, Germany.
1945 – World War II: Soviet and Bulgarian forces capture Vienna.
1948 – In an ambush, 78 Jewish doctors, nurses and medical students from Hadassah Hospital, and a British soldier, are massacred by Arabs in Sheikh Jarrah. This event came to be known as the Hadassah medical convoy massacre.
1953 – CIA director Allen Dulles launches the mind-control program Project MKUltra.
1958 – American pianist Van Cliburn is awarded first prize at the inaugural International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow.
1960 – The United States launches Transit 1-B, the world’s first satellite navigation system.
1964 – At the Academy Awards, Sidney Poitier becomes the first African-American male to win the Best Actor award for the 1963 film Lilies of the Field.
1970 – An oxygen tank aboard the Apollo 13 Service Module explodes, putting the crew in great danger and causing major damage to the Apollo command and service module (codenamed “Odyssey“) while en route to the Moon.
1972 – The Universal Postal Union decides to recognize the People’s Republic of China as the only legitimate Chinese representative, effectively expelling the Republic of China administering Taiwan.
1972 – Vietnam War: The Battle of An Lộc begins.
1975 – An attack by the Phalangist resistance kills 26 militia members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, marking the start of the 15-year Lebanese Civil War.
1976 – The United States Treasury Department reintroduces the two-dollar bill as a Federal Reserve Note on Thomas Jefferson’s 233rd birthday as part of the United States Bicentennial celebration.
1976 – Forty workers die in an explosion at the Lapua ammunition factory, the deadliest accidental disaster in modern history in Finland.
1992 – Basements throughout the Chicago Loop are flooded, forcing the Chicago Board of Trade Building and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to close.
1997 – Tiger Woods becomes the youngest golfer to win the Masters Tournament.
2003 – A bus near the Vale of Tempe, Greece was involved in a major vehicle accident with a truck and multiple cars, leaving 21 students in the tenth grade of Makrochori, Imathia High School dead and nine injured during their return to their homes from a trip to Athens.
2017 – The US drops the largest ever non-nuclear weapon on Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan.
Births on April 13
1229 – Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1294)
1350 – Margaret III, Countess of Flanders (d. 1405)
1506 – Peter Faber, French priest and theologian, co-founded the Society of Jesus (d. 1546)
1519 – Catherine de’ Medici, Italian-French wife of Henry II of France (d. 1589)
1570 – Guy Fawkes, English soldier, planned the Gunpowder Plot (probable; d. 1606)
1573 – Christina of Holstein-Gottorp (d. 1625)
1593 – Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1641)
1618 – Roger de Rabutin, Comte de Bussy, French author (d. 1693)
1636 – Hendrik van Rheede, Dutch botanist (d. 1691)
1648 – Jeanne Marie Bouvier de la Motte Guyon, French mystic (d. 1717)
1713 – Pierre Jélyotte, French tenor (d. 1797)
1729 – Thomas Percy, Irish bishop and poet (d. 1811)
1732 – Frederick North, Lord North, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1792)
1735 – Isaac Low, American merchant and politician, founded the New York Chamber of Commerce (d. 1791)
1743 – Thomas Jefferson, American lawyer and politician, 3rd President of the United States (d. 1826)
1747 – Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans (d. 1793)
1764 – Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, French general and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1830)
1769 – Thomas Lawrence, English painter and educator (d. 1830)
1771 – Richard Trevithick, Cornish-English engineer and explorer (d. 1833)
1780 – Alexander Mitchell, Irish engineer, invented the Screw-pile lighthouse (d. 1868)
1784 – Friedrich Graf von Wrangel, Prussian field marshal (d. 1877)
1787 – John Robertson, American lawyer and politician (d. 1873)
1794 – Jean Pierre Flourens, French physiologist and academic (d. 1867)
1802 – Leopold Fitzinger, Austrian zoologist and herpetologist (d. 1884)
1808 – Antonio Meucci, Italian-American engineer (d. 1889)
1810 – Félicien David, French composer (d. 1876)
1824 – William Alexander, Irish archbishop, poet, and theologian (d. 1911)
1825 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee, Irish-Canadian journalist and politician (d. 1868)
1828 – Josephine Butler, English feminist and social reformer (d. 1906)
1828 – Joseph Lightfoot, English bishop and theologian (d. 1889)
1832 – Juan Montalvo, Ecuadorian author and diplomat (d. 1889)
1841 – Louis-Ernest Barrias, French sculptor and academic (d. 1905)
1850 – Arthur Matthew Weld Downing, Irish astronomer (d. 1917)
1851 – Robert Abbe, American surgeon and radiologist (d. 1928)
1851 – William Quan Judge, Irish occultist and theosophist (d. 1896)
1852 – Frank Winfield Woolworth, American businessman, founded the F. W. Woolworth Company (d. 1919)
1854 – Lucy Craft Laney, Founder of the Haines Normal and Industrial School, Augusta, Georgia (d. 1933)
1860 – James Ensor, English-Belgian painter (d. 1949)
1866 – Butch Cassidy, American criminal (d. 1908)
1872 – John Cameron, Scottish international footballer and manager (d. 1935)
1872 – Alexander Roda Roda, Austrian-Croatian journalist and author (d. 1945)
1873 – John W. Davis, American lawyer and politician, 14th United States Solicitor General (d. 1955)
1875 – Ray Lyman Wilbur, American physician, academic, and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1949)
1879 – Edward Bruce, American lawyer and painter (d. 1943)
1879 – Oswald Bruce Cooper, American type designer, lettering artist, graphic designer, and educator (d. 1940)
1880 – Charles Christie, Canadian-American businessman, co-founded the Christie Film Company (d. 1955)
1885 – Vean Gregg, American baseball player (d. 1964)
1885 – Juhan Kukk, Estonian politician, Head of State of Estonia (d. 1942)
1885 – György Lukács, Hungarian philosopher and critic (d. 1971)
1885 – Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy, Dutch politician (d. 1961)
1887 – Gordon S. Fahrni, Canadian physician and golfer (d. 1995)
1889 – Herbert Yardley, American cryptologist and author (d. 1958)
1890 – Frank Murphy, American jurist and politician, 56th United States Attorney General (d. 1949)
1890 – Dadasaheb Torne, Indian director and producer (d. 1960)
1891 – Maurice Buckley, Australian sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1921)
1891 – Nella Larsen, Danish/African-American nurse, librarian, and author (d. 1964)
1891 – Robert Scholl, German accountant and politician (d. 1973)
1892 – Sir Arthur Harris, 1st Baronet, English air marshal (d. 1984)
1892 – Robert Watson-Watt, Scottish engineer, invented Radar (d. 1973)
1894 – Arthur Fadden, Australian accountant and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1973)
1894 – Joie Ray, American runner (d. 1978)
1896 – Fred Barnett, English footballer (d. 1982)
1897 – Werner Voss, German lieutenant and pilot (d. 1917)
1899 – Alfred Mosher Butts, American architect and game designer, created Scrabble (d. 1993)
1899 – Harold Osborn, American high jumper and decathlete (d. 1975)
1900 – Sorcha Boru, American potter and ceramic sculptor (d. 2006)
1900 – Pierre Molinier, French painter and photographer (d. 1976)
1901 – Jacques Lacan, French psychiatrist and psychoanalyst (d. 1981)
1901 – Alan Watt, Australian public servant and diplomat, Australian Ambassador to Japan (d. 1988)
1902 – Philippe de Rothschild, French Grand Prix driver, playwright, and producer (d. 1988)
1902 – Marguerite Henry, American author (d. 1997)
1904 – David Robinson, English businessman and philanthropist (d. 1987)
1905 – Rae Johnstone, Australian jockey (d. 1964)
1906 – Samuel Beckett, Irish novelist, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1989)
1906 – Bud Freeman, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1991)
1907 – Harold Stassen, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Minnesota (d. 2001)
1909 – Eudora Welty, American short story writer and novelist (d. 2001)
1911 – Ico Hitrec, Croatian footballer and manager (d. 1946)
1911 – Jean-Louis Lévesque, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 1994)
1911 – Nino Sanzogno, Italian conductor and composer (d. 1983)
1913 – Dave Albritton, American high jumper and coach (d. 1994)
1913 – Kermit Tyler, American lieutenant and pilot (d. 2010)
1914 – Orhan Veli Kanık, Turkish poet and author (d. 1950)
1916 – Phyllis Fraser, Welsh-American actress, journalist, and publisher, co-founded Beginner Books (d. 2006)
1917 – Robert Orville Anderson, American businessman, founded Atlantic Richfield Oil Co. (d. 2007)
1917 – Bill Clements, American soldier, engineer, and politician, 15th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense (d. 2011)
1919 – Roland Gaucher, French journalist and politician (d. 2007)
1919 – Howard Keel, American actor and singer (d. 2004)
1919 – Madalyn Murray O’Hair, American activist, founded American Atheists (d. 1995)
1920 – Roberto Calvi, Italian banker (d. 1982)
1920 – Claude Cheysson, French lieutenant and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2012)
1920 – Liam Cosgrave, Irish lawyer and politician, 6th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 2017)
1920 – Theodore L. Thomas, American chemical engineer, Patent attorney and writer (d. 2005)
1922 – Heinz Baas, German footballer and manager (d. 1994)
1922 – John Braine, English librarian and author (d. 1986)
1922 – Julius Nyerere, Tanzanian politician and teacher, 1st President of Tanzania (d. 1999)
1922 – Valve Pormeister, Estonian architect (d. 2002)
1923 – Don Adams, American actor and director (d. 2005)
1923 – A. H. Halsey, English sociologist and academic (d. 2014)
1923 – Stanley Tanger, American businessman and philanthropist, founded the Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (d. 2010)
1924 – John T. Biggers, American painter (d. 2001)
1924 – Jack T. Chick, American author, illustrator, and publisher (d. 2016)
1924 – Stanley Donen, American film director and choreographer (d. 2019)
1926 – Ellie Lambeti, Greek actress (d. 1983)
1926 – John Spencer-Churchill, 11th Duke of Marlborough, English businessman (d. 2014)
1927 – Rosemary Haughton, English philosopher, theologian, and author
1927 – Antonino Rocca, Italian-American wrestler (d. 1977)
1927 – Maurice Ronet, French actor and director (d. 1983)
1928 – Alan Clark, English historian and politician, Minister of State for Trade (d. 1999)
1928 – Gianni Marzotto, Italian racing driver and businessman (d. 2012)
1929 – Marilynn Smith, American golfer (d. 2019)
1931 – Anita Cerquetti, Italian soprano (d. 2014)
1931 – Robert Enrico, French director and screenwriter (d. 2001)
1931 – Dan Gurney, American race car driver and engineer (d. 2018)
1931 – Jon Stone, American composer, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1997)
1932 – Orlando Letelier, Chilean-American economist and politician, Chilean Minister of National Defense (d. 1976)
1933 – Ben Nighthorse Campbell, American soldier and politician
1934 – John Muckler, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager
1936 – Pierre Rosenberg, French historian and academic
1937 – Col Joye, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1937 – Edward Fox, English actor
1937 – Lanford Wilson, American playwright, co-founded the Circle Repertory Company (d. 2011)
1938 – Klaus Lehnertz, German pole vaulter
1938 – John Weston, English poet and diplomat
1939 – Seamus Heaney, Irish poet and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
1939 – Paul Sorvino, American actor and singer
1940 – Mike Beuttler, Egyptian-English racing driver (d. 1988)
1940 – Lester Chambers, American singer and musician
1940 – J. M. G. Le Clézio, Breton French-Mauritian author and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1940 – Vladimir Cosma, French composer, conductor and violinist
1940 – Jim McNab, Scottish footballer (d. 2006)
1940 – Max Mosley, English racing driver and engineer, co-founded March Engineering, former president of the FIA
823 – Lothair I is crowned King of Italy by Pope Paschal I.
919 – The second Fatimid invasion of Egypt begins, when the Fatimid heir-apparent, al-Qa’im bi-Amr Allah, sets out from Raqqada at the head of his army.
1081 – Alexios I Komnenos is crowned Byzantine emperor at Constantinople, bringing the Komnenian dynasty to full power.
1242 – During the Battle on the Ice of Lake Peipus, Russian forces, led by Alexander Nevsky, rebuff an invasion attempt by the Teutonic Knights.
1536 – Royal Entry of Charles V into Rome: The last Roman triumph.
1566 – Two hundred Dutch noblemen, led by Hendrick van Brederode, force themselves into the presence of Margaret of Parma and present the Petition of Compromise, denouncing the Spanish Inquisition in the Seventeen Provinces.
1609 – Daimyō (Lord) Shimazu Tadatsune of the Satsuma Domain in southern Kyūshū, Japan, completes his successful invasion of the Ryūkyū Kingdom in Okinawa.
1614 – In Virginia, Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe.
1621 – The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth, Massachusetts on a return trip to England.
1710 – The Statute of Anne receives the royal assent establishing the Copyright law of the United Kingdom.
1722 – The Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen discovers Easter Island.
1792 – United States President George Washington exercises his authority to veto a bill, the first time this power is used in the United States.
1795 – Peace of Basel between France and Prussia is made.
1818 – In the Battle of Maipú, Chile’s independence movement, led by Bernardo O’Higgins and José de San Martín, win a decisive victory over Spain, leaving 2,000 Spaniards and 1,000 Chilean patriots dead.
1862 – American Civil War: The Battle of Yorktown begins.
1879 – Chile declares war on Bolivia and Peru, starting the War of the Pacific.
1900 – Archaeologists in Knossos, Crete, discover a large cache of clay tablets with hieroglyphic writing in a script they call Linear B.
1904 – The first international rugby league match is played between England and an Other Nationalities team (Welsh and Scottish players) in Central Park, Wigan, England.
1915 – Boxing challenger Jess Willard knocks out Jack Johnson in Havana, Cuba to become the Heavyweight Champion of the World.
1922 – The American Birth Control League, forerunner of Planned Parenthood, is incorporated.
1932 – Dominion of Newfoundland: Ten thousand rioters seize the Colonial Building leading to the end of self-government.
1933 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs two executive orders: 6101 to establish the Civilian Conservation Corps, and 6102 “forbidding the Hoarding of Gold Coin, Gold Bullion, and Gold Certificates” by U.S. citizens.
1936 – Tupelo–Gainesville tornado outbreak: An F5 tornado kills 233 in Tupelo, Mississippi.
1942 – World War II: The Imperial Japanese Navy launches a carrier-based air attack on Colombo, Ceylon during the Indian Ocean raid. Port and civilian facilities are damaged and the Royal Navy cruisers HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire are sunk southwest of the island.
1943 – World War II: American bomber aircraft accidentally cause more than 900 civilian deaths, including 209 children, and 1,300 wounded among the civilian population of the Belgian town of Mortsel. Their target was the Erla factory one kilometer from the residential area hit.
1944 – World War II: Two hundred seventy inhabitants of the Greek town of Kleisoura are executed by the Germans.
1945 – Cold War: Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito signs an agreement with the Soviet Union to allow “temporary entry of Soviet troops into Yugoslav territory”.
1946 – Soviet troops end their year-long occupation of the Danish island of Bornholm.
1946 – A Fleet Air Arm Vickers Wellington crashes into a residential area in Rabat, Malta during a training exercise, killing all 4 crew members and 16 civilians on the ground.
1949 – A fire in a hospital in Effingham, Illinois, kills 77 people and leads to nationwide fire code improvements in the United States.
1951 – Cold War: Ethel and Julius Rosenberg are sentenced to death for spying for the Soviet Union.
1956 – Cuban Revolution: Fidel Castro declares himself at war with Cuban President Fulgencio Batista.
1956 – In Sri Lanka, the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna win the general elections in a landslide and S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike is sworn in as the Prime Minister of Ceylon.
1957 – In India, Communists win the first elections in united Kerala and E. M. S. Namboodiripad is sworn in as the first Chief Minister.
1958 – Ripple Rock, an underwater threat to navigation in the Seymour Narrows in Canada is destroyed in one of the largest non-nuclear controlled explosions of the time.
1969 – Vietnam War: Massive antiwar demonstrations occur in many U.S. cities.
1971 – In Sri Lanka, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna launches a revolt against the United Front government of Sirimavo Bandaranaike.
1976 – In China, the April Fifth Movement leads to the Tiananmen Incident.
1977 – The US Supreme Court rules that congressional legislation that diminished the size of the Sioux people’s reservation thereby destroyed the tribe’s jurisdictional authority over the area in Rosebud Sioux Tribe v. Kneip.
1986 – Three people are killed in the bombing of the La Belle discotheque in West Berlin, Germany.
1991 – An ASA EMB 120 crashes in Brunswick, Georgia, killing all 23 aboard including Sen. John Tower and astronaut Sonny Carter.
1992 – Alberto Fujimori, president of Peru, dissolves the Peruvian congress by military force.
1992 – Peace protesters Suada Dilberovic and Olga Sučić are killed on the Vrbanja Bridge in Sarajevo, becoming the first casualties of the Bosnian War.
1998 – In Japan, the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge opens to traffic, becoming the longest bridge span in the world.
1999 – Two Libyans suspected of bringing down Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988 are handed over for eventual trial in the Netherlands.
2000 – UEFA Cup semi-final violence: Four Galatasaray fans are arrested for the stabbings to death of two Leeds United fans.
2009 – North Korea launches its controversial Kwangmyŏngsŏng-2 rocket. The satellite passed over mainland Japan, which prompted an immediate reaction from the United Nations Security Council, as well as participating states of Six-party talks.
2010 – Twenty-nine coal miners are killed in an explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia.
Births on April 5
1170 – Isabella of Hainault (d. 1190)
1219 – Wonjong of Goryeo, 24th ruler of Goryeo (d. 1274)
1279 – Al-Nuwayri, Egyptian Muslim historian (d. 1333)
1288 – Emperor Go-Fushimi of Japan (d. 1336)
1315 – James III of Majorca (d. 1349)
1365 – William II, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1417)
1472 – Bianca Maria Sforza, Italian wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1510)
1521 – Francesco Laparelli, Italian architect (d. 1570)
1523 – Blaise de Vigenère, French cryptographer and diplomat (d. 1596)
1533 – Giulio della Rovere, Italian Catholic Cardinal (d. 1578)
1539 – George Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1603)
1549 – Princess Elizabeth of Sweden, (d. 1597)
1568 – Pope Urban VIII (d. 1644)
1588 – Thomas Hobbes, English philosopher (d. 1679)
1591 – Frederick Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg (d. 1634)
1595 – John Wilson, English composer and educator (d. 1674)
1604 – Charles IV (d. 1675)
1616 – Frederick, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken (d. 1661)
1622 – Vincenzo Viviani, Italian mathematician, astronomer, and physicist (d. 1703)
1649 – Elihu Yale, American-English merchant and philanthropist (d. 1721)
1656 – Nikita Demidov, Russian industrialist (d. 1725)
1664 – Élisabeth Thérèse de Lorraine, French noblewoman and Princess of Epinoy (d. 1748)
1674 – Margravine Elisabeth Sophie of Brandenburg, (d. 1748)
1691 – Louis VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt (d. 1768)
1692 – Adrienne Lecouvreur, French actress (d. 1730)
1719 – Axel von Fersen the Elder, Swedish field marshal and politician, Lord Marshal of Sweden (d. 1794)
1726 – Benjamin Harrison V, American politician, planter and merchant (d. 1791)
1727 – Pasquale Anfossi, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1797)
1729 – Frederick Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (d. 1809)
1730 – Jean Baptiste Seroux d’Agincourt, French archaeologist and historian (d. 1814)
1732 – Jean-Honoré Fragonard, French painter and etcher (d. 1806)
1735 – Franziskus Herzan von Harras, Czech Roman Catholic cardinal (d. 1804)
1739 – Philemon Dickinson, American lawyer and politician (d. 1809)
1752 – Sébastien Érard, French instrument maker (d. 1831)
1761 – Sybil Ludington, American heroine of the American Revolutionary War (d. 1839)
1769 – Sir Thomas Hardy, 1st Baronet, English admiral (d. 1839)
1773 – José María Coppinger, governor of Spanish East Florida (d. 1844)
1773 – Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, (d. 1839)
1777 – Marie Jules César Savigny, French zoologist (d. 1851)
1782 – Wincenty Krasiński, Polish nobleman (d. 1858)
1784 – Louis Spohr, German violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1859)
1788 – Franz Pforr, German painter (d. 1812)
1793 – Casimir Delavigne, French poet and dramatist (d. 1843)
1793 – Felix de Muelenaere, Belgian politician (d. 1862)
1795 – Henry Havelock, British general (d. 1857)
1799 – Jacques Denys Choisy, Swiss clergyman and botanist (d. 1859)
1801 – Félix Dujardin, French biologist (d. 1860)
1801 – Vincenzo Gioberti, Italian philosopher, publicist and politician (d. 1852)
1804 – Matthias Jakob Schleiden, German botanist (d. 1881)
1809 – Karl Felix Halm, German scholar and critic (d. 1882)
1810 – Sir Henry Rawlinson, British East India Company army officer and politician (d. 1895)
1811 – Jules Dupré, French painter (d. 1889)
1814 – Felix Lichnowsky, Czech soldier and politician (d. 1848)
1822 – Émile Louis Victor de Laveleye, Belgian economist (d. 1892)
1827 – Joseph Lister, English surgeon and academic (d. 1912)
1832 – Jules Ferry, French lawyer and politician, 44th Prime Minister of France (d. 1893)
1834 – Prentice Mulford, American humorist and author (d. 1891)
1834 – Wilhelm Olbers Focke, German medical doctor and botanist (d. 1922)
1834 – Frank R. Stockton, American writer and humorist (d. 1902)
1835 – Vítězslav Hálek, Czech poet, writer, journalist, dramatist and theatre critic. (d. 1874)
1837 – Algernon Charles Swinburne, English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic (d. 1909)
1839 – Robert Smalls, African-American ship’s pilot, sea captain, and politician (d. 1915)
1840 – Ghazaros Aghayan, Armenian historian and linguist (d. 1911)
1842 – Hans Hildebrand, Swedish archaeologist (d. 1913)
1845 – Friedrich Sigmund Merkel, German anatomist and histopathologist (d. 1919)
1845 – Jules Cambon, French diplomat (d. 1935)
1846 – Sigmund Exner, Austrian physiologist (d. 1926)
1846 – Henry Wellesley, British peer and politician (d. 1900)
1848 – Thure de Thulstrup, American illustrator (d. 1930)
1848 – Ulrich Wille, Swiss army general (d. 1925)
1850 – Enrico Mazzanti, Italian engineer and cartoonist (d. 1910)
1852 – Émile Billard, French sailor (d. 1930)
1852 – Walter W. Winans, American marksman and sculptor (d. 1920)
1852 – Franz Eckert, German composer and musician (d. 1916)
1856 – Booker T. Washington, African-American educator, essayist and historian (d. 1915)
1857 – Alexander of Battenberg (d. 1893)
1858 – Washington Atlee Burpee, Canadian businessman, founded Burpee Seeds (d. 1915)
1859 – Reinhold Seeberg, German theologian (d. 1935)
1860 – Harry S. Barlow, British tennis player (d. 1917)
1862 – Louis Ganne, French conductor (d. 1923)
1862 – Leo Stern, English cellist (d. 1904)
1863 – Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine (d. 1950)
1867 – Ernest Lewis, British tennis player (d. 1930)
1869 – Sergey Chaplygin, Russian physicist, mathematician, and engineer (d. 1942)
1869 – Albert Roussel, French composer (d. 1937)
1870 – Motobu Chōki, Japanese karateka (d. 1944)
1871 – Stanisław Grabski, Polish economist and politician (d. 1949)
1872 – Samuel Cate Prescott, American microbiologist and chemist (d. 1962)
1873 – Joseph Rheden, Austrian astronomer (d. 1946)
1874 – Emmanuel Célestin Suhard, French Cardinal of the Catholic Church (d. 1949)
1874 – Manuel María Ponce Brousset, President of Peru (d. 1966)
1878 – Albert Champion, French cyclist (d. 1927)
1878 – Georg Misch, German philosopher (d. 1965)
1878 – Paul Weinstein, German high jumper (d. 1964)
1879 – Arthur Berriedale Keith, Scottish lawyer (d. 1944)
1879 – Nikolaus zu Dohna-Schlodien, German naval officer and author (d. 1956)
1880 – Eric Carlberg, Swedish Army officer, diplomat, shooter, fencer and modern pentathlete (d. 1963)
1880 – Vilhelm Carlberg, Swedish Army officer and shooter (d. 1970)
1882 – Song Jiaoren, Chinese revolutionary (d. 1913)
1882 – Natalia Sedova, 2nd wife of Leon Trotsky (d. 1962)
1883 – Walter Huston, Canadian-American actor and singer (d. 1950)
1884 – Ion Inculeț, Bessarabian academic and politician, President of Moldova (d. 1940)
1885 – Dimitrie Cuclin, Romanian composer (d. 1978)
1886 – Gotthelf Bergsträsser, German linguist (d. 1933)
1886 – Frederick Lindemann, British physicist (d. 1957)
1886 – Gustavo Jiménez, Peruvian colonel and politician, 73rd President of Peru (d. 1933)
1887 – William Cowhig, British gymnast (d. 1964)
1889 – Vicente Ferreira Pastinha, Brazilian martial artist (d. 1981)
1890 – Karl Kirk, Danish gymnast (d. 1955)
1890 – William Moore, British track and field athlete (d. 1956)
1891 – Arnold Jackson, English runner, soldier, and lawyer (d. 1972)
1891 – Laura Vicuña, Chilean nun (d. 1904)
1892 – Raymond Bonney, American ice hockey player (d. 1964)
1893 – Frithjof Andersen, Norwegian wrestler (d. 1975)
1893 – Clas Thunberg, Finnish speed skater (d. 1973)
1894 – Lawrence Dale Bell, American industrialist and founder of Bell Aircraft Corporation (d. 1956)
1894 – Hans Hüttig, German SS officer (d. 1980)
1894 – Carl Rudolf Florin, Swedish botanist (d. 1965)
1895 – Mike O’Dowd, American boxer (d. 1957)
1896 – Einar Lundborg, Swedish aviator (d. 1931)
1897 – Hans Schuberth, German politician (d. 1976)
1899 – Alfred Blalock, American surgeon and academic (d. 1964)
1900 – Herbert Bayer, Austrian-American graphic designer, painter, and photographer (d. 1985)
1900 – Roman Steinberg, Estonian wrestler (d. 1928)
1900 – Spencer Tracy, American actor (d. 1967)
1901 – Curt Bois, German actor (d. 1991)
1901 – Chester Bowles, American diplomat and ambassador (d. 1986)
1901 – Melvyn Douglas, American actor (d. 1981)
1901 – Doggie Julian, American football, basketball, and baseball player and coach (d. 1967)
1902 – Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Russian-American rabbi (d. 1994)
1903 – Marion Aye, American actress (d. 1951)
1904 – Richard Eberhart, American poet and academic (d. 2005)
1906 – Albert Charles Smith, American botanist (d. 1999)
1906 – Fernando Germani, Italian organist (d. 1998)
1906 – Ted Morgan, New Zealand boxer (d. 1952)
1907 – Sanya Dharmasakti, Thai jurist (d. 2002)
1908 – Bette Davis, American actress (d. 1989)
1908 – Kurt Neumann, German director (d. 1958)
1908 – Jagjivan Ram, Indian politician, 4th Deputy Prime Minister of India (d. 1986)
1908 – Herbert von Karajan, Austrian conductor and manager (d. 1989)
1909 – Albert R. Broccoli, American film producer, co-founded Eon Productions (d. 1996)
1909 – Giacomo Gentilomo, Italian film director and painter (d. 2001)
1909 – Károly Sós, Hungarian footballer and manager (d. 1991)
1909 – Erwin Wegner, German hurdler (d. 1945)
1910 – Sven Andersson, Swedish politician (d. 1987)
1910 – Oronzo Pugliese, Italian football manager (d. 1990)
1911 – Hedi Amara Nouira, Tunisian politician (d. 1993)
1911 – Johnny Revolta, American golfer (d. 1991)
1912 – Jehan Buhan, French fencer (d. 1999)
1912 – Habib Elghanian, Iranian businessman (d. 1979)
1912 – Antonio Ferri, Italian scientist (d. 1975)
1912 – Carlos Guastavino, Argentine composer (d. 2000)
1912 – Makar Honcharenko, Ukrainian footballer and manager (d. 1997)
1912 – John Le Mesurier, English actor (d. 1983)
1912 – István Örkény, Hungarian author and playwright (d. 1979)
1912 – Bill Roberts, English sprinter and soldier (d. 2001)
1913 – Antoni Clavé, Catalan artist (d. 2005)
1913 – Nicolas Grunitzky, 2nd President of Togo (d. 1969)
1913 – Ruth Smith, Faroese artist (d. 1958)
1914 – Felice Borel, Italian footballer (d. 1993)
1916 – Gregory Peck, American actor, political activist, and producer (d. 2003)
1917 – Robert Bloch, American author (d. 1994)
1917 – Frans Gommers, Belgian footballer (d. 1996)
1919 – Lester James Peries, Sri Lankan director, screenwriter, and producer (d. 2018)
1920 – Barend Biesheuvel, Dutch politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 2001)
1920 – Arthur Hailey, English-Canadian soldier and author (d. 2004)
1920 – Alfonso Thiele, Turkish-Italian race car driver (d. 1986)
1920 – John Willem Gran, Swedish bishop (d. 2008)
1921 – Christopher Hewett, English actor and theatre director (d. 2001)
1922 – Tom Finney, English footballer (d. 2014)
1922 – Harry Freedman, Polish-Canadian horn player, composer, and educator (d. 2005)
1922 – Andy Linden, American race car driver (d. 1987)
1922 – Gale Storm, American actress and singer (d. 2009)
1923 – Ernest Mandel, German-born Belgian Marxist economist, Trotskyist activist and theorist (d. 1995)
1923 – Michael V. Gazzo, American actor (d. 1995)
1923 – Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, Vietnamese general and politician, 5th President of South Vietnam (d. 2001)
1924 – Igor Borisov, Soviet rower (d. before 2005)
1925 – Janet Rowley, American human geneticist (d. 2013)
1925 – Pierre Nihant, Belgian cyclist (d. 1993)
1926 – Roger Corman, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1926 – Liang Yusheng, Chinese writer (d. 2009)
1927 – Thanin Kraivichien, Thai lawyer and politician
1927 – Arne Hoel, Norwegian ski jumper (d. 2006)
1928 – Enzo Cannavale, Italian actor (d. 2011)
1928 – Tony Williams, American singer (d. 1992)
1929 – Hugo Claus, Belgian author, poet, and painter (d. 2008)
1929 – Ivar Giaever, Norwegian-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1929 – Nigel Hawthorne, English actor and producer (d. 2001)
1929 – Joe Meek, English songwriter and producer (d. 1967)
1929 – Mahmoud Mollaghasemi, Iranian wrestler
1930 – Mary Costa, American singer and actress
1930 – Pierre Lhomme, French director of photography (d. 2019)
1931 – Jack Clement, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2013)
1931 – Héctor Olivera, Argentine director, producer and screenwriter
1933 – Feridun Buğeker, Turkish footballer (d. 2014)
1933 – Frank Gorshin, American actor (d. 2005)
1933 – Barbara Holland, American author (d. 2010)
1933 – K. Kailasapathy, Sri Lankan journalist and academic (d. 1982)
1934 – John Carey, English author and critic
1934 – Roman Herzog, German lawyer and politician, 7th President of Germany (d. 2017)
1934 – Moise Safra, Brazilian businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Banco Safra (d. 2014)
1934 – Stanley Turrentine, American saxophonist and composer (d. 2000)
1935 – Giovanni Cianfriglia, Italian actor
1935 – Peter Grant, English talent manager (d. 1995)
1935 – Donald Lynden-Bell, English astrophysicist and astronomer (d. 2018)
1935 – Frank Schepke, German rower (d. 2017)
1936 – Ronnie Bucknum, American race car driver (d. 1992)
1936 – Glenn Jordan, American director and producer
1936 – Dragoljub Minić, Yugoslavian chess Grandmaster (d. 2005)
1937 – Joseph Lelyveld, American journalist and author
1937 – Jean-Pierre Petit, French scientist
1937 – Colin Powell, American general and politician, 65th United States Secretary of State
1937 – Andrzej Schinzel, Polish mathematician
1937 – Arie Selinger, Israeli volleyball player and manager
1937 – Juan Vicente Lezcano, Paraguayan footballer (d. 2012)
1938 – Colin Bland, Zimbabwean-South African cricketer (d. 2018)
1938 – Mal Colston, Australian educator and politician (d. 2003)
1938 – Nancy Holt, American sculptor and painter (d. 2014)
1938 – Natalya Kustinskaya, Soviet actress (d. 2012)
1939 – Leka I, Crown Prince of Albania (d. 2011)
1939 – Crispian St. Peters, English singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
1939 – Haidar Abu Bakr al-Attas, Prime Minister of Yemen
1939 – Ronald White, American singer-songwriter (d. 1995)
1939 – David Winters, English-American actor, choreographer and producer (d. 2019)
1940 – Tommy Cash, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1940 – Gilles Proulx, Canadian journalist, historian, and radio host
1941 – Michael Moriarty, American-Canadian actor
1941 – Dave Swarbrick, English singer-songwriter and fiddler (d. 2016)
1942 – Allan Clarke, English singer-songwriter
1942 – Pascal Couchepin, Swiss politician
1942 – Juan Gisbert Sr., Spanish tennis player
1942 – Peter Greenaway, Welsh director and screenwriter
1943 – Dean Brown, Australian politician, 41st Premier of South Australia
1943 – Max Gail, American actor and director
1943 – Fighting Harada, Japanese boxer
1943 – Miet Smet, Belgian politician
1943 – Jean-Louis Tauran, French cardinal (d. 2018)
1944 – Willeke van Ammelrooy, Dutch actress and director
1944 – János Martonyi, Hungarian politician
1944 – Evan Parker, British musician
1944 – Douangchay Phichit, Laotian politician (d. 2014)
1944 – Willy Planckaert, Belgian cyclist
1944 – Pedro Rosselló, Puerto Rican physician and politician, 7th Governor of Puerto Rico
1944 – Peter T. King, American soldier, lawyer, and politician
1945 – Ove Bengtson, Swedish tennis player
1945 – Steve Carver, American director and producer
1945 – Cem Karaca, Turkish musician (d. 2004)
1945 – Tommy Smith, English footballer (d. 2019)
1946 – Jane Asher, English actress
1946 – Julio Ángel Fernández, Uruguayan astronomer
1946 – Björn Granath, Swedish actor (d. 2017)
1946 – Georgi Markov, Bulgarian Greco-Roman wrestler
1947 – Đurđica Bjedov, Yugoslav swimmer
1947 – Willy Chirino, Cuban-American musician
1947 – Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Filipino academic and politician, 14th President of the Philippines
1947 – Ramón Mifflin, Peruvian footballer
1947 – Virendra Sharma, Indian-English lawyer and politician
1948 – Pierre-Albert Chapuisat, Swiss footballer
1948 – Dave Holland, English drummer (d. 2018)
1948 – Roy McFarland, English footballer and manager
1949 – Stanley Dziedzic, American wrestler
1949 – Larry Franco, American film producer
1949 – Judith Resnik, Ukrainian-American engineer and astronaut (d. 1986)
1950 – Ann C. Crispin, American writer (d. 2013)
1950 – Franklin Chang Díaz, Costa Rican-Chinese American astronaut and physicist
1950 – Agnetha Fältskog, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
1950 – Toshiko Fujita, Japanese actress, singer and narrator (d. 2018)
1950 – Miki Manojlović, Serbian actor
1951 – Les Binks, Irish drummer and songwriter
1951 – Yevgeniy Gavrilenko, Belarusian hurdler
1951 – Nedim Gürsel, Turkish writer
1951 – Dean Kamen, American inventor and businessman, founded Segway Inc.
1951 – Dave McArtney, New Zealand singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
1951 – Ubol Ratana, Thai Princess
1952 – Alfie Conn, Scottish international footballer, midfielder
1952 – John C. Dvorak, American author and editor
1952 – Sandy Mayer, American tennis player
1952 – Dennis Mortimer, English footballer
1952 – Mitch Pileggi, American actor
1953 – Frank Gaffney, American journalist and radio host
1953 – Keiko Han, Japanese actress
1953 – Tae Jin-ah, South Korean singer
1953 – Raleb Majadele, Israeli politician
1953 – Ian Swales, English accountant and politician
1954 – Guy Bertrand, Canadian linguist and radio host
1954 – Peter Case, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1954 – Mohamed Ben Mouza, Tunisian footballer
1954 – Stan Ridgway, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1954 – Yoshiichi Watanabe, Japanese footballer
1955 – Charlotte de Turckheim, French actress, producer, and screenwriter
1955 – Ricardo Ferrero, Argentine footballer (d. 2015)
1955 – Christian Gourcuff, French footballer and manager
1955 – Anthony Horowitz, English author and screenwriter
1955 – Bernard Longley, English prelate
1955 – Akira Toriyama, Japanese illustrator
1955 – Takayoshi Yamano, Japanese footballer
1956 – Diamond Dallas Page, American wrestler and actor
1956 – Leonid Fedun, Russian businessman
1956 – Reid Ribble, American politician
1957 – Sebastian Adayanthrath, Indian bishop
1957 – Karin Roßley, German hurdler
1958 – Henrik Dettmann, Finnish basketball coach
1958 – Ryoichi Kawakatsu, Japanese footballer
1958 – Johan Kriek, South African-American tennis player
1958 – Daniel Schneidermann, French journalist
1958 – Lasantha Wickrematunge, Sri Lankan lawyer and journalist (d. 2009)
1959 – Paul Chung, Hong Kong actor and host (d. 1989)
1960 – Asteris Koutoulas, Romanian-German record producer, manager, and author
1960 – Larry McCray, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1960 – Ian Redford, Scottish footballer and manager (d. 2014)
1960 – Hiromi Taniguchi, Japanese long-distance runner
1960 – Adnan Terzić, Bosnian politician
1961 – Andrea Arnold, English filmmaker and actress
1961 – Anna Caterina Antonacci, Italian soprano
1961 – Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, Bahraini-Danish human rights activist
1961 – Lisa Zane, American actress and singer
1962 – Lana Clarkson, American actress and model (d. 2003)
1962 – Sara Danius, Swedish scholar of literature and aesthetics
1962 – Richard Gough, Swedish born Scottish international footballer
686 – Maya king Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ahk’ assumes the crown of Calakmul.
801 – King Louis the Pious captures Barcelona from the Moors after a siege of several months.
1043 – Edward the Confessor is crowned King of England.
1077 – The first Parliament of Friuli is created.
1559 – The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis treaty is signed, ending the Italian Wars.
1860 – The first successful United States Pony Express run from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, begins.
1865 – American Civil War: Union forces capture Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederate States of America.
1882 – American Old West: Robert Ford kills Jesse James.
1885 – Gottlieb Daimler is granted a German patent for his engine design.
1888 – The first of eleven unsolved brutal murders of women committed in or near the impoverished Whitechapel district in the East End of London, occurs.
1895 – The trial in the libel case brought by Oscar Wilde begins, eventually resulting in his imprisonment on charges of homosexuality.
1922 – Joseph Stalin becomes the first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
1933 – First flight over Mount Everest, by the British Houston-Mount Everest Flight Expedition, led by the Marquis of Clydesdale, and funded by Lucy, Lady Houston.
1936 – Bruno Richard Hauptmann is executed for the kidnapping and death of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., the baby son of pilot Charles Lindbergh.
1942 – World War II: Japanese forces begin an assault on the United States and Filipino troops on the Bataan Peninsula.
1946 – Japanese Lt. General Masaharu Homma is executed in the Philippines for leading the Bataan Death March.
1948 – Cold War: U.S. President Harry S. Truman signs the Marshall Plan, authorizing $5 billion in aid for 16 countries.
1948 – In Jeju Province, South Korea, a civil-war-like period of violence and human rights abuses begins, known as the Jeju uprising.
1955 – The American Civil Liberties Union announces it will defend Allen Ginsberg’s book Howl against obscenity charges.
1956 – Hudsonville–Standale tornado: The western half of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan is struck by a deadly F5 tornado.
1968 – Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech. He was assassinated the next day.
1969 – Vietnam War: United States Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird announces that the United States will start to “Vietnamize” the war effort.
1973 – Martin Cooper of Motorola makes the first handheld mobile phone call to Joel S. Engel of Bell Labs.
1974 – The 1974 Super Outbreak occurs, the second biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history (after the 2011 Super Outbreak). The death toll is 315, with nearly 5,500 injured.
1975 – Bobby Fischer refuses to play in a chess match against Anatoly Karpov, giving Karpov the title of World Champion by default.
1980 – US Congress restores a federal trust relationship with the 501 members of the Shvwits, Kanosh, Koosharem, and the Indian Peaks and Cedar City bands of the Paiute people of Utah.
1981 – The Osborne 1, the first successful portable computer, is unveiled at the West Coast Computer Faire in San Francisco.
1989 – The US Supreme Court upholds the jurisdictional rights of tribal courts under the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 in Mississippi Choctaw Band v. Holyfield.
1996 – Suspected “Unabomber” Theodore Kaczynski is captured at his Montana cabin in the United States.
1997 – The Thalit massacre begins in Algeria; all but one of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas.
2000 – United States v. Microsoft Corp.: Microsoft is ruled to have violated United States antitrust law by keeping “an oppressive thumb” on its competitors.
2004 – Islamic terrorists involved in the 2004 Madrid train bombings are trapped by the police in their apartment and kill themselves.
2007 – Conventional-Train World Speed Record: A French TGV train on the LGV Est high speed line sets an official new world speed record.
2008 – ATA Airlines, once one of the ten largest U.S. passenger airlines and largest charter airline, files for bankruptcy for the second time in five years and ceases all operations.
2008 – Texas law enforcement cordons off the FLDS’s YFZ Ranch. Eventually, 533 women and children will be taken into state custody.
2009 – Jiverly Antares Wong opens fire at the American Civic Association immigration center in Binghamton, New York, killing thirteen and wounding four before committing suicide.
2010 – Apple Inc. released the first generation iPad, a tablet computer.
2013 – More than 50 people die in floods resulting from record-breaking rainfall in La Plata and Buenos Aires, Argentina.
2016 – The Panama Papers, a leak of legal documents, reveals information on 214,488 offshore companies.
2017 – A bomb explodes in the St Petersburg metro system, killing 14 and injuring several more people.
2018 – YouTube headquarters shooting.
Births on April 3
1016 – Xing Zong, Chinese emperor (d. 1055)
1151 – Igor Svyatoslavich, Russian prince (d. 1202)
1438 – John III of Egmont, Dutch nobleman (d. 1516)
1529 – Michael Neander, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1581)
1540 – Maria de’ Medici, Italian noblewoman, the eldest daughter of Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and Eleonora di Toledo. (d. 1557)
1593 – George Herbert, English poet (d. 1633)
1639 – Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (d. 1682)
1643 – Charles V, duke of Lorraine (d. 1690)
1682 – Valentin Rathgeber, German organist and composer (d. 1750)
1693 – George Edwards, English ornithologist and entomologist (d. 1773)
1715 – William Watson, English physician, physicist, and botanist (d. 1787)
1764 – John Abernethy, English surgeon and anatomist (d. 1831)
1769 – Christian Günther von Bernstorff, Danish-Prussian politician and diplomat (d. 1835)
1770 – Theodoros Kolokotronis, Greek general (d. 1843)
1778 – Pierre Bretonneau, French doctor who performed the first successful tracheotomy (d. 1862)
1781 – Swaminarayan, Indian religious leader (d. 1830)
1782 – Alexander Macomb, American general (d. 1841)
1783 – Washington Irving, American short story writer, essayist, biographer, historian (d. 1859)
1791 – Anne Lister, English diarist, mountaineer, and traveller (d.1840)
1798 – Charles Wilkes, American admiral, geographer, and explorer (d.1877)
1807 – Mary Carpenter, English educational and social reformer (d. 1877)
1814 – Lorenzo Snow, American religious leader, 5th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (d. 1901)
1822 – Edward Everett Hale, American minister, historian, and author (d. 1909)
1823 – George Derby, American lieutenant and journalist (d. 1861)
1823 – William M. Tweed, American politician (d. 1878)
1826 – Cyrus K. Holliday, American businessman (d. 1900)
1837 – John Burroughs, American botanist and author (d. 1921)
1842 – Ulric Dahlgren, American colonel (d. 1864)
1848 – Arturo Prat, Chilean lawyer and captain (d. 1879)
1858 – Jacob Gaudaur, Canadian rower (d. 1937)
1860 – Frederik van Eeden, Dutch psychiatrist and author (d. 1932)
1864 – Emil Kellenberger, Swiss target shooter (d. 1943)
1875 – Mistinguett, French actress and singer (d. 1956)
1876 – Margaret Anglin, Canadian actress, director, and producer (d. 1958)
1876 – Tomáš Baťa, Czech businessman, founded Bata Shoes (d. 1932)
1880 – Otto Weininger, Jewish-Austrian philosopher and author (d. 1903)
1881 – Alcide De Gasperi, Italian journalist and politician, 30th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1954)
1882 – Philippe Desranleau, Canadian archbishop (d. 1952)
1883 – Ikki Kita, Japanese philosopher and author (d. 1937)
1885 – Allan Dwan, Canadian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1981)
1885 – Bud Fisher, American cartoonist (d. 1954)
1885 – Marie-Victorin Kirouac, Canadian botanist and academic (d. 1944)
1885 – St John Philby, English colonial and explorer (d. 1960)
1886 – Dooley Wilson, American actor and singer (d. 1953)
1887 – Ōtori Tanigorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 24th Yokozuna (d. 1956)
1887 – Nishizō Tsukahara, Japanese admiral (d. 1966)
1888 – Neville Cardus, English author and critic (d. 1975)
1888 – Thomas C. Kinkaid, American admiral (d. 1972)
1889 – Grigoraș Dinicu, Romanian violinist and composer (d. 1949)
1893 – Leslie Howard, English actor (d. 1943)
1895 – Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Italian-American composer and educator (d. 1968)
1895 – Zez Confrey, American pianist and composer (d. 1971)
1897 – Joe Kirkwood Sr., Australian golfer (d. 1970)
1897 – Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos, Greek general (d. 1989)
1898 – David Jack, English footballer and manager (d. 1958)
1898 – George Jessel, American actor, singer, and producer (d. 1981)
1898 – Henry Luce, American publisher, co-founded Time Magazine (d. 1967)
1900 – Camille Chamoun, Lebanese lawyer and politician, 7th President of Lebanon (d. 1987)
1900 – Albert Walsh, Canadian lawyer and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland (d. 1958)
1903 – Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, Indian social reformer and freedom fighter (d. 1988)
1904 – Iron Eyes Cody, American actor and stuntman (d. 1999)
1904 – Sally Rand, American dancer (d. 1979)
1904 – Russel Wright, American furniture designer (d. 1976)
1905 – Robert Sink, American general (d. 1965)
1909 – Stanislaw Ulam, Polish-American mathematician and academic (d. 1984)
1910 – Ted Hook, Australian public servant (d. 1990)
1911 – Nanette Bordeaux, Canadian-American actress (d. 1956)
1911 – Michael Woodruff, English-Scottish surgeon and academic (d. 2001)
1911 – Stanisława Walasiewicz, Polish-American runner (d. 1980)
1912 – Dorothy Eden, New Zealand-English author (d. 1982)
1912 – Grigoris Lambrakis, Greek physician and politician (d. 1963)
1913 – Per Borten, Norwegian politician, 18th Prime Minister of Norway (d. 2005)
1914 – Ray Getliffe, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2008)
1914 – Sam Manekshaw, Indian field marshal (d. 2008)
1915 – Piet de Jong, Dutch politician and naval officer, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 2016)
1915 – İhsan Doğramacı, Turkish physician and academic (d. 2010)
1916 – Herb Caen, American journalist and author (d. 1997)
1916 – Cliff Gladwin, English cricketer (d. 1988)
1916 – Louis Guglielmi, Catalan composer (d. 1991)
1918 – Mary Anderson, American actress (d. 2014)
1918 – Louis Applebaum, Canadian composer and conductor (d. 2000)
1919 – Ervin Drake, American songwriter and composer (d. 2015)
1919 – Clairette Oddera, French-Canadian actress and singer (d. 2008)
1920 – Stan Freeman, American composer and conductor (d. 2001)
1920 – Yoshibayama Junnosuke, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 43rd Yokozuna (d. 1977)
1921 – Robert Karvelas, American actor (d. 1991)
1921 – Jan Sterling, American actress (d. 2004)
1922 – Yevhen Bulanchyk, Ukrainian hurdler (d. 1996)
1922 – Doris Day, American singer and actress (d. 2019)
1923 – Daniel Hoffman, American poet and academic (d. 2013)
1924 – Marlon Brando, American actor and director (d. 2004)
1924 – Roza Shanina, Russian sergeant and sniper (d. 1945)
1925 – Tony Benn, English pilot and politician, Secretary of State for Industry (d. 2014)
1926 – Alex Grammas, American baseball player, manager, and coach (d. 2019)
1926 – Gus Grissom, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1967)
1927 – Wesley A. Brown, American general and engineer (d. 2012)
1928 – Don Gibson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2003)
1928 – Emmett Johns, Canadian priest, founded Dans la Rue (d. 2018)
1928 – Earl Lloyd, American basketball player and coach (d. 2015)
1928 – Jennifer Paterson, English chef and television personality (d. 1999)
1929 – Fazlur Rahman Khan, Bangladeshi engineer and architect, co-designed the Willis Tower and John Hancock Center (d. 1982)
1929 – Poul Schlüter, Danish lawyer and politician, 37th Prime Minister of Denmark
1930 – Lawton Chiles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 41st Governor of Florida (d. 1998)
1930 – Helmut Kohl, German politician, Chancellor of Germany (d. 2017)
1930 – Mario Benjamín Menéndez, Argentinian general and politician (d. 2015)
1930 – Wally Moon, American baseball player and coach (d. 2018)
1931 – William Bast, American screenwriter and author (d. 2015)
1933 – Bob Dornan, American politician
1933 – Rod Funseth, American golfer (d. 1985)
1934 – Pamela Allen, New Zealand children’s writer and illustrator
1934 – Jane Goodall, English primatologist and anthropologist
1934 – Jim Parker, American football player (d. 2005)
1936 – Jimmy McGriff, American organist and bandleader (d. 2008)
1936 – Harold Vick, American saxophonist and flute player (d. 1987)
1938 – Jeff Barry, American singer-songwriter, and producer
1938 – Phil Rodgers, American golfer (d. 2018)
1939 – François de Roubaix, French composer (d. 1975)
1939 – Hawk Taylor, American baseball player and coach (d. 2012)
1939 – Paul Craig Roberts, American economist and politician
1941 – Jan Berry, American singer-songwriter (d. 2004)
1941 – Philippé Wynne, American soul singer (d. 1984)
1942 – Marsha Mason, American actress
1942 – Wayne Newton, American singer
1942 – Billy Joe Royal, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2015)
1943 – Mario Lavista, Mexican composer
1943 – Jonathan Lynn, English actor, director, and screenwriter
1943 – Richard Manuel, Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1986)
1943 – Hikaru Saeki, Japanese admiral, the first female star officer of the Japan Self-Defense Forces
1944 – Peter Colman, Australian biologist and academic
1944 – Tony Orlando, American singer
1945 – Doon Arbus, American author and journalist
1945 – Bernie Parent, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1945 – Catherine Spaak, French actress
1946 – Nicholas Jones, English actor
1946 – Dee Murray, English bass player (d. 1992)
1946 – Hanna Suchocka, Polish lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Poland
1947 – Anders Eliasson, Swedish composer (d. 2013)
1948 – Arlette Cousture, Canadian author and screenwriter
1948 – Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Dutch academic, politician, and diplomat, 11th Secretary General of NATO
1948 – Hans-Georg Schwarzenbeck, German footballer
1948 – Carlos Salinas de Gortari, Mexican economist and politician, 53rd President of Mexico
1949 – Lyle Alzado, American football player and actor (d. 1992)
1949 – A. C. Grayling, English philosopher and academic
1949 – Richard Thompson, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1950 – Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Sri Lankan cricketer and economist
1951 – Brendan Barber, English trade union leader
1951 – Annette Dolphin, British academician and educator
1951 – Mitch Woods, American singer-songwriter and pianist
1952 – Mike Moore, American lawyer and politician
1953 – Sandra Boynton, American author and illustrator
1953 – Wakanohana Kanji II, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 56th Yokozuna
1953 – James Smith, American boxer
1953 – Craig Taubman, American singer-songwriter and producer
1954 – Elisabetta Brusa, Italian composer
1954 – K. Krishnasamy, Indian physician and politician
1956 – Kalle Kulbok, Estonian politician
1956 – Boris Miljković, Serbian director and producer
1956 – Miguel Bosé, Spanish musician and actor
1956 – Ray Combs, American game show host (d. 1996)
1958 – Alec Baldwin, American actor, comedian, producer and television host
1958 – Adam Gussow, American scholar, musician, and memoirist
1958 – Francesca Woodman, Jewish-American photographer (d. 1981)
1959 – David Hyde Pierce, American actor and activist
1960 – Arjen Anthony Lucassen, Dutch singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1961 – Tim Crews, American baseball player (d. 1993)
1961 – Eddie Murphy, American actor and comedian
1962 – Dave Miley, American baseball player and manager
1962 – Mike Ness, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1962 – Jaya Prada, Indian actress and politician
1963 – Les Davidson, Australian rugby league player
1963 – Ricky Nixon, Australian footballer and manager
1963 – Criss Oliva, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1993)
1964 – Marco Ballotta, Italian footballer and manager
1964 – Nigel Farage, English politician
1964 – Claire Perry, English banker and politician
1964 – Bjarne Riis, Danish cyclist and manager
1964 – Andy Robinson, English rugby player and coach
1964 – Jay Weatherill, Australian politician, 45th Premier of South Australia
1965 – Nazia Hassan, Pakistani pop singer-songwriter, lawyer and social activist (d. 2000)
1966 – John de Vries, Australian race car driver
1967 – Cat Cora, American chef and author
1967 – Pervis Ellison, American basketball player
1967 – Brent Gilchrist, Canadian ice hockey player
1967 – Cristi Puiu, Romanian director and screenwriter
1967 – Mark Skaife, Australian race car driver and sportscaster
1968 – Sebastian Bach, Bahamian-Canadian singer-songwriter and actor
1968 – Charlotte Coleman, English actress (d. 2001)
1968 – Jamie Hewlett, English director and performer
1968 – Tomoaki Kanemoto, Japanese baseball player
1969 – Rodney Hampton, American football player
1969 – Peter Matera, Australian footballer and coach
1969 – Ben Mendelsohn, Australian actor
1969 – Lance Storm, Canadian wrestler and trainer
1971 – Vitālijs Astafjevs, Latvian footballer and manager
1971 – Emmanuel Collard, French race car driver
1971 – Picabo Street, American skier
1972 – Jennie Garth, American actress and director
1972 – Catherine McCormack, English actress
1972 – Sandrine Testud, French tennis player
1973 – Nilesh Kulkarni, Indian cricketer
1973 – Adam Scott, American actor
1974 – Marcus Brown, American basketball player
1974 – Drew Shirley, American guitarist and songwriter
1974 – Lee Williams, Welsh model and actor
1975 – Shawn Bates, American ice hockey player
1975 – Michael Olowokandi, Nigerian-American basketball player
1975 – Aries Spears, American comedian and actor
1975 – Yoshinobu Takahashi, Japanese baseball player
1975 – Koji Uehara, Japanese baseball player
1976 – Nicolas Escudé, French tennis player
1978 – Matthew Goode, English actor
1978 – Tommy Haas, German-American tennis player
1978 – John Smit, South African rugby player
1979 – Simon Black, Australian footballer and coach
1980 – Andrei Lodis, Belarusian footballer
1980 – Megan Rohrer, American pastor and transgender activist
1981 – Aaron Bertram, American trumpet player
1981 – DeShawn Stevenson, American basketball player
1982 – Jared Allen, American football player
1982 – Iain Fyfe, Australian footballer
1982 – Cobie Smulders, Canadian actress
1983 – Ben Foster, English footballer
1983 – Stephen Weiss, Canadian ice hockey player
1984 – Jonathan Blondel, Belgian footballer
1984 – Maxi López, Argentinian footballer
1985 – Jari-Matti Latvala, Finnish race car driver
1985 – Leona Lewis, English singer-songwriter and producer
1986 – Amanda Bynes, American actress
1986 – Stephanie Cox, American soccer player
1986 – Annalisa Cucinotta, Italian cyclist
1986 – Sergio Sánchez Ortega, Spanish footballer
1987 – Rachel Bloom, American actress, writer, and producer
1987 – Jay Bruce, American baseball player
1987 – Yileen Gordon, Australian rugby league player
1987 – Jason Kipnis, American baseball player
1987 – Martyn Rooney, English sprinter
1987 – Julie Sokolow, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1988 – Kam Chancellor, American football player
1988 – Brandon Graham, American football player
1988 – Peter Hartley, English footballer
1988 – Tim Krul, Dutch footballer
1989 – Romain Alessandrini, French footballer
1989 – Israel Folau, Australian rugby player and footballer
1989 – Joel Romelo, Australian rugby league player
1989 – Thisara Perera, Sri Lankan cricketer
1990 – Karim Ansarifard, Iranian footballer
1990 – Madison Brengle, American tennis player
1990 – Sotiris Ninis, Greek footballer
1990 – Natasha Negovanlis, Canadian actress and singer
1991 – Hayley Kiyoko, American actress and singer
1992 – Simone Benedetti, Italian footballer
1992 – Yuliya Yefimova, Russian swimmer
1993 – Pape Moussa Konaté, Senegalese footballer
1994 – Kodi Nikorima, New Zealand rugby league player
1996 – Mayo Hibi, Japanese tennis player
1997 – Gabriel Jesus, Brazilian footballer
1998 – Paris Jackson, American actress, model and singer
Deaths on April 3
963 – William III, Duke of Aquitaine (b. 915)
1153 – al-Adil ibn al-Sallar, vizier of the Fatimid Caliphate
1171 – Philip of Milly, seventh Grand Master of the Knights Templar (b. c. 1120)
1203 – Arthur I, Duke of Brittany (b. 1187)
1253 – Saint Richard of Chichester
1287 – Pope Honorius IV (b. 1210)
1325 – Nizamuddin Auliya, Sufi saint (b. 1238)
1350 – Odo IV, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1295)
1538 – Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire (b. 1480)
1545 – Antonio de Guevara, Spanish chronicler and moralist (b. 1481)
1606 – Charles Blount, 8th Baron Mountjoy, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1563)
1630 – Christopher Villiers, 1st Earl of Anglesey, English noble (b. c. 1593)
1680 – Shivaji, Indian emperor, founded the Maratha Empire (b. 1630)
598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro-Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague.
1282 – The people of Sicily rebel against the Angevin king Charles I, in what becomes known as the Sicilian Vespers.
1296 – Edward I sacks Berwick-upon-Tweed, during armed conflict between Scotland and England.
1699 – Guru Gobind Singh establishes the Khalsa in Anandpur Sahib, Punjab.
1815 – Joachim Murat issues the Rimini Proclamation which would later inspire Italian unification.
1818 – Physicist Augustin Fresnel reads a memoir on optical rotation to the French Academy of Sciences, reporting that when polarized light is “depolarized” by a Fresnel rhomb, its properties are preserved in any subsequent passage through an optically-rotating crystal or liquid.
1822 – The Florida Territory is created in the United States.
1841 – The National Bank of Greece is founded in Athens.
1842 – Ether anesthesia is used for the first time, in an operation by the American surgeon Dr. Crawford Long.
1844 – One of the most important battles of the Dominican War of Independence from Haiti takes place near the city of Santiago de los Caballeros.
1855 – Origins of the American Civil War: “Border Ruffians” from Missouri invade Kansas and force election of a pro-slavery legislature.
1856 – The Treaty of Paris is signed, ending the Crimean War.
1861 – Discovery of the chemical elements: Sir William Crookes announces his discovery of thallium.
1863 – Danish prince Wilhelm Georg is chosen as King George of Greece.
1867 – Alaska is purchased from Russia for $7.2 million, about 2-cent/acre ($4.19/km²), by United States Secretary of State William H. Seward.
1870 – Texas is readmitted to the United States Congress following Reconstruction.
1885 – The Battle for Kushka triggers the Panjdeh Incident which nearly gives rise to war between the Russian and British Empire.
1899 – German Society of Chemistry issues an invitation to other national scientific organizations to appoint delegates to the International Committee on Atomic Weights.
1912 – Sultan Abd al-Hafid signs the Treaty of Fez, making Morocco a French protectorate.
1918 – Outburst of bloody March Events in Baku and other locations of Baku Governorate.
1939 – The Heinkel He 100 fighter sets a world airspeed record of 463 mph (745 km/h).
1940 – Second Sino-Japanese War: Japan declares Nanking capital of a new Chinese puppet government, nominally controlled by Wang Jingwei.
1944 – World War II: Allied bombers conduct their most severe bombing run on Sofia, Bulgaria.
1944 – Out of 795 Lancasters, Halifaxes and Mosquitos sent to attack Nuremberg, 95 bombers do not return, making it the largest RAF Bomber Command loss of the war.
1945 – World War II: Soviet forces invade Austria and capture Vienna; Polish and Soviet forces liberate Danzig.
1949 – Cold War: A riot breaks out in Austurvöllur square in Reykjavík, when Iceland joins NATO.
1959 – Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, flees Tibet for India.
1961 – The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs is signed in New York City.
1965 – Vietnam War: A car bomb explodes in front of the United States Embassy, Saigon, killing 22 and wounding 183 others.
1972 – Vietnam War: The Easter Offensive begins after North Vietnamese forces cross into the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) of South Vietnam.
1976 – Israeli-Palestinian conflict: in the first organized response against Israeli policies by a Palestinian collective since 1948, Palestinians create the first Land Day.
1979 – Airey Neave, a British Member of Parliament, is killed by a car bomb as he exits the Palace of Westminster. The Irish National Liberation Army claims responsibility.
1981 – U.S. President Ronald Reagan is shot in the chest outside a Washington, D.C., hotel by John Hinckley, Jr.; three others are wounded in the same incident.
1982 – Space Shuttle program: STS-3 mission is completed with the landing of Columbia at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.
2002 – 2002 Lyon car attack takes place.
2009 – Twelve gunmen attack the Manawan Police Academy in Lahore, Pakistan.
2017 – SpaceX conducts the world’s first reflight of an orbital class rocket.
Births on March 30
892 – Shi Jingtang, founder of the Later Jin Dynasty (d. 942)
1135 – Maimonides, Spanish rabbi and philosopher (April 6 also proposed, d. 1204)
1326 – Ivan II of Moscow (d. 1359)
1432 – Mehmed the Conqueror, Ottoman sultan (d. 1481)
1510 – Antonio de Cabezón, Spanish composer and organist (d. 1566)
1551 – Salomon Schweigger, German theologian (d. 1622)
1606 – Vincentio Reinieri, Italian mathematician and astronomer (d. 1647)
1632 – John Proctor, farmer hanged for witchcraft in the Salem witch trials (d. 1692)
1640 – John Trenchard, English politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (d. 1695)
1727 – Tommaso Traetta, Italian composer and educator (d. 1779)
1746 – Francisco Goya, Spanish-French painter and sculptor (d. 1828)
1750 – John Stafford Smith, English organist and composer (d. 1836)
1793 – Juan Manuel de Rosas, Argentinian soldier and politician, 13th Governor of Buenos Aires Province (d. 1877)
1805 – Ferdinand Johann Wiedemann, German-Swedish linguist and botanist (d. 1887)
1811 – Robert Bunsen, German chemist and academic (d. 1899)
1820 – Anna Sewell, English author (d. 1878)
1820 – James Whyte, Scottish-Australian politician, 6th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1882)
1844 – Paul Verlaine, French poet (d. 1896)
1853 – Vincent van Gogh, Dutch-French painter and illustrator (d. 1890)
1853 – Arnoldo Sartorio, German composer, pianist, and teacher (d. 1936)
1857 – Léon Charles Thévenin, French engineer (d. 1926)
1858 – Siegfried Alkan, German composer (d. 1941)
1863 – Mary Calkins, American philosopher and psychologist (d. 1930)
1864 – Franz Oppenheimer, German-American sociologist and economist (d. 1943)
1874 – Charles Lightoller, English 2nd officer on the RMS Titanic (d. 1952)
1874 – Josiah McCracken, American hammer thrower, shot putter, and football player (d. 1962)
1874 – Nicolae Rădescu, Romanian general and politician, Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1953)
1875 – Thomas Xenakis, Greek-American gymnast (d. 1942)
1879 – Coen de Koning, Dutch speed skater (d. 1954)
1880 – Seán O’Casey, Irish dramatist, playwright, and memoirist (d. 1964)
1882 – Melanie Klein, Jewish Austrian-English psychologist and author (d. 1960)
1888 – J. R. Williams, Canadian-born cartoonist (d. 1957)
1891 – Chunseong, Korean monk, writer and philosopher (d. 1977)
1892 – Stefan Banach, Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1945)
1892 – Fortunato Depero, Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1960)
1892 – Erhard Milch, German field marshal (d. 1972)
1892 – Johannes Pääsuke, Estonian photographer and director (d. 1918)
1892 – Erwin Panofsky, German historian and academic (d. 1968)
1894 – Tommy Green, English race walker (d. 1975)
1894 – Sergey Ilyushin, Russian engineer, founded Ilyushin Aircraft Company (d. 1977)
1895 – Jean Giono, French author and poet (d. 1970)
1895 – Carl Lutz, Swiss vice-consul to Hungary during WWII, credited with saving over 62,000 Jews (d. 1975)
1895 – Charlie Wilson, English footballer (d. 1971)
1899 – Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, Indian author, playwright, and screenwriter (d. 1970)
1902 – Brooke Astor, American socialite and philanthropist (d. 2007)
1902 – Ted Heath, English trombonist and composer (d. 1969)
1903 – Joy Ridderhof, American missionary (d. 1984)
1904 – Ripper Collins, American baseball player and coach (d. 1970)
1905 – Archie Birkin, English motorcycle racer (d. 1927)
1905 – Mikio Oda, Japanese triple jumper and academic (d. 1998)
1905 – Albert Pierrepoint, English hangman (d. 1992)
1907 – Friedrich August Freiherr von der Heydte, German general (d. 1994)
1910 – Józef Marcinkiewicz, Polish soldier, mathematician, and academic (d. 1940)
1911 – Ekrem Akurgal, Turkish archaeologist and academic (d. 2002)
1912 – Jack Cowie, New Zealand cricketer (d. 1994)
1912 – Alvin Hamilton, Canadian lieutenant and politician, 18th Canadian Minister of Agriculture (d. 2004)
1913 – Marc Davis, American animator (d. 2000)
1913 – Richard Helms, American soldier and diplomat, 8th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 2002)
1913 – Frankie Laine, American singer-songwriter (d. 2007)
1913 – Ċensu Tabone, Maltese general, physician, and politician, 4th President of Malta (d. 2012)
1914 – Sonny Boy Williamson I, American singer-songwriter and harmonica player (d. 1948)
1915 – Pietro Ingrao, Italian journalist and politician (d. 2015)
1917 – Els Aarne, Ukrainian-Estonian pianist, composer, and educator (d. 1995)
1919 – McGeorge Bundy, American intelligence officer and diplomat, 6th United States National Security Advisor (d. 1996)
1919 – Robin M. Williams, New Zealand mathematician and academic (d. 2013)
1921 – André Fontaine, French historian and journalist (d. 2013)
1922 – Turhan Bey, American actor (d. 2012)
1922 – Arthur Wightman, American physicist and academic (d. 2013)
1923 – Milton Acorn, Canadian poet and playwright (d. 1986)
1926 – Ingvar Kamprad, Swedish businessman, founded IKEA (d. 2018)
1927 – Wally Grout, Australian cricketer (d. 1968)
1928 – Robert Badinter, French lawyer and politician, French Minister of Justice
1928 – Colin Egar, Australian cricket umpire (d. 2008)
1928 – Tom Sharpe, English-Spanish author and educator (d. 2013)
1929 – Richard Dysart, American actor (d. 2015)
1929 – Ray Musto, American soldier and politician (d. 2014)
1929 – István Rózsavölgyi, Hungarian runner (d. 2012)
1930 – John Astin, American actor
1930 – Rolf Harris, Australian singer-songwriter
1933 – Jean-Claude Brialy, French actor and director (d. 2007)
1934 – Paul Crouch, American broadcaster, co-founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network (d. 2013)
1934 – Hans Hollein, Austrian architect and academic, designed Haas House (d. 2014)
1935 – Karl Berger, German pianist and composer
1935 – Willie Galimore, American football player (d. 1964)
1935 – Gordon Mumma, American composer
1937 – Warren Beatty, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1937 – Ian MacLaurin, Baron MacLaurin of Knebworth, English businessman
1938 – John Barnhill, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
1938 – Klaus Schwab, German economist and engineer, founded the World Economic Forum
1940 – Norman Gifford, English cricketer
1940 – Jerry Lucas, American basketball player and educator
1940 – Hans Ragnemalm, Swedish lawyer and judge (d. 2016)
1941 – Graeme Edge, English singer-songwriter and drummer
1941 – Ron Johnston, English geographer and academic
1941 – Wasim Sajjad, Pakistani lawyer and politician, President of Pakistan
1941 – Bob Smith, American soldier and politician
1942 – Ruben Kun, Nauruan lawyer and politician, 14th President of Nauru (d. 2014)
1942 – Tane Norton, New Zealand rugby player
1942 – Kenneth Welsh, Canadian actor
1943 – Jay Traynor, American pop and doo-wop singer (d. 2014)
1944 – Mark Wylea Erwin, American businessman and diplomat
1944 – Brian Wilshire, Australian radio host
1945 – Eric Clapton, English guitarist and singer-songwriter
1947 – Dick Roche, Irish politician, Minister of State for European Affairs
1947 – Terje Venaas, Norwegian bassist
1948 – Nigel Jones, Baron Jones of Cheltenham, English computer programmer and politician
1948 – Eddie Jordan, Irish racing driver and team owner, founded Jordan Grand Prix
1948 – Mervyn King, English economist and academic
1948 – Jim “Dandy” Mangrum, American rock singer
1949 – Liza Frulla, Canadian talk show host and politician, 3rd Minister of Canadian Heritage
1949 – Dana Gillespie, English singer-songwriter and actress
1949 – Naomi Sims, American model and author (d. 2009)
1950 – Janet Browne, English-American historian and academic
1950 – Robbie Coltrane, Scottish actor
1950 – Grady Little, American baseball player, coach, and manager
1950 – Warren Snowdon, Australian educator and politician, 39th Australian Minister for Veterans’ Affairs
1951 – Paul Da Vinci, English singer-songwriter
1952 – Stuart Dryburgh, English-New Zealand cinematographer
1952 – Peter Knights, Australian footballer and coach
1955 – Randy VanWarmer, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2004)
1956 – Bill Butler, Scottish educator and politician
1956 – Juanito Oiarzabal, Spanish mountaineer
1956 – Shahla Sherkat, Iranian journalist and author
1957 – Marie-Christine Koundja, Chadian author and diplomat
1957 – Paul Reiser, American actor and comedian
1958 – Maurice LaMarche, Canadian voice actor and stand-up comedian
1958 – Joey Sindelar, American golfer
1959 – Martina Cole, English television host and author
1960 – Laurie Graham, Canadian skier
1960 – Bill Johnson, American skier (d. 2016)
1961 – Mike Thackwell, New Zealand racing driver
1961 – Doug Wickenheiser, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 1999)
1962 – Mark Begich, American politician
1962 – MC Hammer, American rapper and actor
1962 – Gary Stevens, English international footballer, defender and manager
1963 – Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, Mongolian journalist and politician, 4th President of Mongolia
1963 – Eli-Eri Moura, Brazilian composer and conductor
1963 – Panagiotis Tsalouchidis, Greek footballer
1964 – Vlado Bozinovski, Macedonian-Australian footballer and manager
1964 – Tracy Chapman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1965 – Piers Morgan, English journalist and talk show host
1966 – Efstratios Grivas, Greek chess player and author
1966 – Dmitry Volkov, Russian swimmer
1966 – Leonid Voloshin, Russian triple jumper
1967 – Christopher Bowman, American figure skater and coach (d. 2008)
1967 – Richard Hutten, Dutch furniture designer
1967 – Julie Richardson, New Zealand tennis player
1968 – Celine Dion, Canadian singer-songwriter
1969 – Troy Bayliss, Australian motorcycle racer
1970 – Tobias Hill, English poet and author
1970 – Sylvain Charlebois, Canadian food/agriculture researcher and author
1971 – Mari Holden, American cyclist
1971 – Mark Consuelos, American actor and television personality
1972 – Mili Avital, Israeli-American actress
1972 – Emerson Thome, Brazilian footballer and scout
1972 – Karel Poborský, Czech footballer
1973 – Adam Goldstein, American keyboard player, DJ, and producer (d. 2009)
1973 – Jan Koller, Czech footballer
1973 – Kareem Streete-Thompson, Caymanian-American long jumper
1974 – Martin Love, Australian cricketer
1975 – Paul Griffen, New Zealand-Italian rugby player
1976 – Ty Conklin, American ice hockey player
1976 – Obadele Thompson, Barbadian sprinter
1976 – Troels Lund Poulsen, Danish politician, Minister for Education of Denmark
1977 – Abhishek Chaubey, Indian director and screenwriter
1978 – Paweł Czapiewski, Polish runner
1978 – Chris Paterson, Scottish rugby player and coach
1978 – Bok van Blerk, South African singer-songwriter and actor
1979 – Norah Jones, American singer-songwriter and pianist
1979 – Anatoliy Tymoshchuk, Ukrainian footballer
1980 – Ricardo Osorio, Mexican footballer
1981 – Jammal Brown, American football player
1981 – Andrea Masi, Italian rugby player
1982 – Mark Hudson, English footballer
1982 – Philippe Mexès, French footballer
1982 – Javier Portillo, Spanish footballer
1982 – Jason Dohring, American actor
1983 – Jérémie Aliadière, French footballer
1984 – Mario Ančić, Croatian tennis player
1984 – Samantha Stosur, Australian tennis player
1985 – Giacomo Ricci, Italian racing driver
1986 – Sergio Ramos, Spanish footballer
1987 – Trent Barreta, American wrestler
1987 – Calum Elliot, Scottish footballer
1987 – Kwok Kin Pong, Hong Kong footballer
1987 – Marc-Édouard Vlasic, Canadian ice hockey player
1988 – Will Matthews, Australian rugby league player
1988 – Thanasis Papazoglou, Greek footballer
1988 – Richard Sherman, American football player
1988 – Larisa Yurkiw, Canadian alpine skier
1989 – Chris Sale, American baseball player
1989 – João Sousa, Portuguese tennis player
1990 – Thomas Rhett, American country music singer and songwriter
1990 – Michal Březina, Czech figure skater
1992 – Palak Muchhal, Indian playback singer
1993 – Anitta, Brazilian singer and entertainer
1994 – Jetro Willems, Dutch footballer
1997 – Cha Eun-woo, South Korean singer and actor, A member of the South Korean boy band, Astro
1998 – Kalyn Ponga, Australian rugby league player
2000 – Colton Herta, American race car driver
Deaths on March 30
116 – Quirinus of Neuss, Roman martyr and saint
365 – Ai of Jin, emperor of the Jin Dynasty (b. 341)
943 – Li Bian, emperor of Southern Tang (b. 889)
987 – Arnulf II, Count of Flanders (b. 960)
1180 – Al-Mustadi, Caliph (b. 1142)
1202 – Joachim of Fiore, Italian mystic and theologian (b. 1135)
1465 – Isabella of Clermont, queen consort of Naples (b. c. 1424)
1472 – Amadeus IX, Duke of Savoy (b. 1435)
1486 – Thomas Bourchier, English cardinal (b. 1404)
1526 – Konrad Mutian, German humanist (b. 1471)
1540 – Matthäus Lang von Wellenburg, German cardinal (b. 1469)
1559 – Adam Ries, German mathematician and academic (b. 1492)
1587 – Ralph Sadler, English politician, Secretary of State for England (b. 1507)
1662 – François le Métel de Boisrobert, French poet and playwright (b. 1592)
1689 – Kazimierz Łyszczyński, Polish atheist and philosopher (b. 1634)
1707 – Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, French general and engineer (b. 1633)
1764 – Pietro Locatelli, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1695)
1783 – William Hunter, Scottish anatomist and physician (b. 1718)
1804 – Victor-François, 2nd duc de Broglie, French general and politician, French Secretary of State for War (b. 1718)
1806 – Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (b. 1757)
2012 – Francesco Mancini, Italian footballer and coach (b. 1968)
2012 – Granville Semmes, American businessman, founded 1-800-Flowers (b. 1928)
2012 – Leonid Shebarshin, Russian KGB officer (b. 1935)
2013 – Daniel Hoffman, American poet and academic (b. 1923)
2013 – Bobby Parks, American basketball player and coach (b. 1962)
2013 – Phil Ramone, South African-American songwriter and producer, co-founded A & R Recording (b. 1934)
2013 – Edith Schaeffer, Chinese-Swiss religious leader and author, co-founded L’Abri (b. 1914)
2013 – Bob Turley, American baseball player and coach (b. 1930)
2014 – Ray Hutchison, American lawyer and politician (b. 1932)
2014 – Kate O’Mara, English actress (b. 1939)
2015 – Helmut Dietl, German director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1944)
2015 – Roger Slifer, American author, illustrator, screenwriter, and producer (b. 1954)
2015 – Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld, Dutch astronomer and academic (b. 1921)
2018 – Bill Maynard, English actor (b. 1928)
2020 – Bill Withers, American musician (b. 1938)
Holidays and observances on March 30
Christian feast day:
Blessed Amadeus IX, Duke of Savoy
Blessed Maria Restituta Kafka
John Climacus
Mamertinus of Auxerre
Quirinus of Neuss
Thomas Son Chasuhn, Marie-Nicolas-Antoine Daveluy (part of The Korean Martyrs)
Tola of Clonard
March 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Earliest day on which the first day of Hocktide can fall, while April 3 is the latest; observed on the second Monday after Easter. (Hungerford, England; popular in medieval England)
Land Day (Palestine)
National Doctors’ Day (United States)
Spiritual Baptist/Shouter Liberation Day (Trinidad and Tobago)
45 BC – In his last victory, Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger in the Battle of Munda.
180 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of eighteen, following the death of his father, Marcus Aurelius.
455 – Petronius Maximus becomes, with support of the Roman Senate, emperor of the Western Roman Empire; he forces Licinia Eudoxia, the widow of his predecessor, Valentinian III, to marry him.
1001 – The Raja of Butuan in what is now the Philippines sends a tributary mission to the Song dynasty.
1337 – Edward, the Black Prince is made Duke of Cornwall, the first Duchy in England.
1452 – The Battle of Los Alporchones is fought in the context of the Spanish Reconquista between the Emirate of Granada and the combined forces of the Kingdom of Castile and Murcia resulting in a Christian victory.
1560 – Fort Coligny on Villegagnon Island in Rio de Janeiro is attacked and destroyed during the Portuguese campaign against France Antarctique.
1677 – The Siege of Valenciennes, during the Franco-Dutch War, ends with France’s taking of the city.
1776 – American Revolution: The British Army evacuates Boston, ending the Siege of Boston, after George Washington and Henry Knox place artillery in positions overlooking the city.
1780 – American Revolution: George Washington grants the Continental Army a holiday “as an act of solidarity with the Irish in their fight for independence”.
1805 – The Italian Republic, with Napoleon as president, becomes the Kingdom of Italy, with Napoleon as King of Italy.
1824 – The Anglo-Dutch Treaty is signed in London, dividing the Malay archipelago. As a result, the Malay Peninsula is dominated by the British, while Sumatra and Java and surrounding areas are dominated by the Dutch.
1842 – The Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is formed.
1852 – Annibale De Gasparis discovers in Naples the asteroid Psyche from the north dome of the Astronomical Observatory of Capodimonte
1860 – The First Taranaki War begins in Taranaki, New Zealand, a major phase of the New Zealand Wars.
1861 – The Kingdom of Italy is proclaimed.
1891 – SS Utopia collides with HMS Anson in the Bay of Gibraltar and sinks, killing 562 of the 880 passengers on board.
1921 – The Second Polish Republic adopts the March Constitution.
1939 – Second Sino-Japanese War: Battle of Nanchang between the Kuomintang and Japan begins.
1941 – In Washington, D.C., the National Gallery of Art is officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
1942 – Holocaust: The first Jews from the Lvov Ghetto are gassed at the Belzec death camp in what is today eastern Poland.
1945 – The Ludendorff Bridge in Remagen, Germany, collapses, ten days after its capture.
1947 – First flight of the B-45 Tornado strategic bomber.
1948 – Belgium, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Brussels, a precursor to the North Atlantic Treaty establishing NATO.
1950 – Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley announce the creation of element 98, which they name “californium”.
1957 – A plane crash in Cebu, Philippines kills Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay and 24 others.
1958 – The United States launches the first solar-powered satellite.
1960 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the National Security Council directive on the anti-Cuban covert action program that will ultimately lead to the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
1963 – Mount Agung erupted on Bali killing more than 1,100 people.
1966 – Off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean, the DSV Alvin submarine finds a missing American hydrogen bomb.
1968 – As a result of nerve gas testing by the U.S. Army Chemical Corps in Skull Valley, Utah, over 6,000 sheep are found dead.
1969 – Golda Meir becomes the first female Prime Minister of Israel.
1973 – The Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph Burst of Joy is taken, depicting a former prisoner of war being reunited with his family, which came to symbolize the end of United States involvement in the Vietnam War.
1979 – The Penmanshiel Tunnel collapses during engineering works, killing two workers.
1985 – Serial killer Richard Ramirez, aka the “Night Stalker”, commits the first two murders in his Los Angeles murder spree.
1988 – A Colombian Boeing 727 jetliner, Avianca Flight 410, crashes into a mountainside near the Venezuelan border killing 143.
1988 – Eritrean War of Independence: The Nadew Command, an Ethiopian army corps in Eritrea, is attacked on three sides by military units of the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front in the opening action of the Battle of Afabet.
1992 – Israeli Embassy attack in Buenos Aires: Car bomb attack kills 29 and injures 242.
1992 – A referendum to end apartheid in South Africa is passed 68.7% to 31.2%.
2000 – Five hundred and thirty members of the Ugandan cult Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God die in a fire, considered to be a mass murder or suicide orchestrated by leaders of the cult. Elsewhere another 248 members are later found dead.
2003 – Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Robin Cook, resigns from the British Cabinet in disagreement with government plans for the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
2004 – Unrest in Kosovo: More than 22 are killed and 200 wounded. Thirty-five Serbian Orthodox shrines in Kosovo and two mosques in Serbia are destroyed.
Births on March 17
763 – Harun al-Rashid, Abbasid caliph (d. 809)
1231 – Emperor Shijō of Japan (d. 1242)
1473 – James IV of Scotland (d. 1513)
1523 – Giovanni Francesco Commendone, Catholic cardinal (d. 1584)
1537 – Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Japanese daimyō (d. 1598)
1611 – Robert Douglas, Count of Skenninge, Swedish field marshal (d. 1662)
1665 – Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre, French harpsichord player and composer (d. 1729)
1676 – Thomas Boston, Scottish philosopher and theologian (d. 1732)
1686 – Jean-Baptiste Oudry, French painter and engraver (d. 1755)
1725 – Lachlan McIntosh, Scottish-American general and politician (d. 1806)
1777 – Patrick Brontë, Irish-English priest and author (d. 1861)
1777 – Roger B. Taney, American politician and jurist, 5th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1864)
1780 – Thomas Chalmers, Scottish minister, economist, and educator (d. 1847)
1781 – Ebenezer Elliott, English poet and educator (d. 1849)
1804 – Jim Bridger, American fur trader and explorer (d. 1881)
1806 – Norbert Rillieux, African American inventor and chemical engineer (d. 1894)
1820 – Jean Ingelow, English poet and author (d. 1897)
1834 – Gottlieb Daimler, German engineer and businessman, co-founded Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (d. 1900)
1839 – Josef Rheinberger, Liechtensteiner-German organist and composer (d. 1901)
1846 – Kate Greenaway, English author and illustrator (d. 1901)
1849 – Charles F. Brush, American businessman and philanthropist, co-invented the Arc lamp (d. 1929)
1849 – Cornelia Clapp, American marine biologist (d. 1934)
1856 – Mikhail Vrubel, Russian painter (d. 1910)
1862 – Silvio Gesell, Belgian merchant and economist (d. 1930)
1864 – Joseph Baptista, Indian engineer, lawyer, and politician (d. 1930)
1866 – Pierce Butler, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1939)
1867 – Patrice Contamine de Latour, Spanish poet (d. 1926)
1877 – Edith New, British militant suffragette (d. 1951)
1877 – Otto Gross, Austrian-German psychoanalyst and philosopher (d. 1920)
1880 – Patrick Hastings, English lawyer and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (d. 1952)
1880 – Lawrence Oates, English lieutenant and explorer (d. 1912)
1881 – Walter Rudolf Hess, Swiss physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1973)
1884 – Alcide Nunez, American clarinet player (d. 1934)
1885 – Ralph Rose, American track and field athlete (d. 1913)
1886 – Princess Patricia of Connaught (d. 1974)
1888 – Paul Ramadier, French lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1961)
1889 – Harry Clarke, Irish stained-glass artist and book illustrator (d. 1931)
1891 – Ross McLarty, Australian politician, 17th Premier of Western Australia (d. 1962)
1892 – Sayed Darwish, Egyptian singer-songwriter and producer (d. 1923)
1894 – Paul Green, American playwright and academic (d. 1981)
1895 – Lloyd Rees, Australian painter (d. 1988)
1901 – Alfred Newman, American composer and conductor (d. 1970)
1902 – Bobby Jones, American golfer and lawyer (d. 1971)
1904 – Chaim Gross, Austrian-American sculptor and educator (d. 1991)
1906 – Brigitte Helm, German-Swiss actress (d. 1996)
1907 – Jean Van Houtte, Belgian academic and politician, 50th Prime Minister of Belgium (d. 1991)
1907 – Takeo Miki, Japanese politician, 41st Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1988)
1910 – Sonny Werblin, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1991)
1912 – Bayard Rustin, American activist (d. 1987)
1914 – Sammy Baugh, American football player and coach (d. 2008)
1915 – Robert S. Arbib Jr., American ornithologist, writer and conservationist (d. 1987)
1915 – Ray Ellington, English drummer and bandleader (d. 1985)
1915 – Bill Roycroft, Australian equestrian rider (d. 2011)
1919 – Nat King Cole, American singer, pianist, and television host (d. 1965)
1920 – Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladeshi politician, 1st President of Bangladesh (d. 1975)
1921 – Meir Amit, Israeli general and politician, 12th Israeli Minister of Communications (d. 2009)
1922 – Patrick Suppes, American psychologist and philosopher (d. 2014)
1924 – Stephen Dodgson, English composer and educator (d. 2013)
1925 – Gabriele Ferzetti, Italian actor (d. 2015)
1926 – Siegfried Lenz, Polish-German author and playwright (d. 2014)
1927 – Betty Allen, American soprano and educator (d. 2009)
1928 – William John McKeag, Canadian businessman and politician, 17th Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba (d. 2007)
1930 – Paul Horn, American-Canadian flute player and saxophonist (d. 2014)
1930 – James Irwin, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1991)
1931 – Patricia Breslin, American actress (d. 2011)
1931 – David Peakall, English-American chemist and toxicologist (d. 2001)
1933 – Myrlie Evers-Williams, American journalist and activist
1933 – Penelope Lively, English author
1935 – Fred T. Mackenzie, American biologist and academic
1935 – Adam Wade, American singer, drummer, and actor
1936 – Ida Kleijnen, Dutch chef (d. 2019)
1936 – Ladislav Kupkovič, Slovakian composer and conductor (d. 2016)
1936 – Ken Mattingly, American admiral, pilot, and astronaut
1937 – Galina Samsova, Russian ballerina
1938 – Rudolf Nureyev, Russian-French dancer and choreographer (d. 1993)
1938 – Keith O’Brien, Northern Ireland-born Scottish cleric, theologian, and cardinal (d. 2018)
1938 – Zola Taylor, American singer (d. 2007)
1939 – Jim Gary, American sculptor (d. 2006)
1939 – Bill Graham, Canadian academic and politician, 4th Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs
1939 – Robin Knox-Johnston, English sailor and first person to perform a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the globe
1939 – Giovanni Trapattoni, Italian footballer and manager
1940 – Mark White, American lawyer and politician, 43rd Governor of Texas (d. 2017)
1941 – Wang Jin-pyng, Taiwanese soldier and politician
1941 – Paul Kantner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2016)
1941 – Max Stafford-Clark, English director and academic
1942 – John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer and rapist (d. 1994)
1943 – Jeff Banks, Welsh fashion designer
1943 – Andrew Brook, Canadian philosopher, author, and academic
1944 – Pattie Boyd, English model, author, and photographer
1944 – Cito Gaston, American baseball player and manager
1944 – John Sebastian, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1945 – Michael Hayden, American general, 20th Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
1947 – Dennis Bond, English footballer, midfielder
1947 – Yury Chernavsky, Russian-American songwriter and producer
1948 – William Gibson, American-Canadian author and screenwriter
1948 – Alex MacDonald, Scottish footballer and manager
1949 – Patrick Duffy, American actor, director, and producer
1949 – Pat Rice, Irish footballer and coach
1949 – Stuart Rose, English businessman
1951 – Scott Gorham, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1951 – Craig Ramsay, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1951 – Kurt Russell, American actor and producer
1952 – Barry Horne, English activist (d. 2001)
1953 – Filemon Lagman, Filipino activist (d. 2001)
1953 – Chuck Muncie, American football player (d. 2013)
1954 – Lesley-Anne Down, English actress
1955 – Cynthia McKinney, American activist and politician
1955 – Paul Overstreet, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1955 – Gary Sinise, American actor, director, and bass player
1956 – Patrick McDonnell, American author and illustrator
1956 – Rory McGrath, British comedian, television personality, and writer
1957 – Michael Kelly, American journalist and author (d. 2003)
1958 – Christian Clemenson, American actor
1959 – Danny Ainge, American baseball and basketball player
1959 – Paul Black, American singer-songwriter and drummer
1960 – Arye Gross, American actor
1960 – Vicki Lewis, American actress and singer
1961 – Sam Bowie, American basketball player
1961 – Dana Reeve, American actress, singer, and activist (d. 2006)
1961 – Casey Siemaszko, American actor
1962 – Carsten Almqvist, Swedish business executive
1962 – Ank Bijleveld, Dutch politician
1962 – Janet Gardner, American singer and guitarist
1962 – Clare Grogan, Scottish singer and actress
1962 – Rob Sitch, Australian actor, director, and producer
1963 – Roger Harper, Guyanese cricketer and coach
1964 – Stefano Borgonovo, Italian footballer (d. 2013)
1964 – Lee Dixon, English footballer and journalist
1964 – Rob Lowe, American actor and producer
1964 – Jacques Songo’o, Cameroonian footballer and coach
1965 – Andrew Hudson, South African cricketer
1966 – Andrew Rosindell, English journalist and politician
1967 – Jason Alchin, Australian rugby league player
1967 – Billy Corgan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, pianist, and producer
1967 – Barry Minkow, American pastor and businessman
1968 – Eri Nitta, Japanese singer-songwriter and actress
1968 – Mathew St. Patrick, American actor and producer
1969 – Edgar Grospiron, French skier
1969 – Alexander McQueen, English fashion designer, founded own eponymous brand (d. 2010)
1970 – Patrick Lebeau, Canadian ice hockey player
1970 – Gene Ween, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1971 – Bill Mueller, American baseball player and coach
1972 – Melissa Auf der Maur, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and bass player
1972 – Torquil Campbell, English-Canadian singer-songwriter and actor
1972 – Mia Hamm, American soccer player
1973 – Rico Blanco, Filipino singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor
1973 – Caroline Corr, Irish singer and drummer
1973 – Vance Wilson, American baseball player and manager
1974 – Mark Dolan, English comedian and television host
1975 – Justin Hawkins, English singer-songwriter
1975 – Puneeth Rajkumar, Indian actor, singer, and producer
1975 – Test, Canadian-American wrestler (d. 2009)
1975 – Natalie Zea, American actress
1976 – Scott Downs, American baseball player
1976 – Stephen Gately, Irish singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2009)
1976 – Álvaro Recoba, Uruguayan footballer
1977 – Tamar Braxton, American singer-songwriter and actress
1978 – Zachery Kouwe, American journalist
1979 – Stormy Daniels, born Stephanie Gregory, American adult film actress
1979 – Andrew Ference, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Stephen Kramer Glickman, Canadian-American actor, director, producer, and fashion designer
1979 – Samoa Joe, American professional wrestler
1980 – Danny Califf, American soccer player
1980 – Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi, Pakistani tennis player
1981 – Aaron Baddeley, American-Australian golfer
1981 – Servet Çetin, Turkish footballer
1981 – Kyle Korver, American basketball player
1981 – Nicky Jam, American-Puerto-Rican singer and songwriter
1982 – Steven Pienaar, South African footballer
1983 – James Heath, English golfer
1983 – Raul Meireles, Portuguese footballer
1983 – Attila Vajda, Hungarian sprint canoeist
1984 – Ryan Rottman, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
2006 – Ray Meyer, American basketball player and coach (b. 1913)
2006 – İstemihan Taviloğlu, Turkish composer and educator (b. 1945)
2007 – John Backus, American mathematician and computer scientist, designed Fortran (b. 1924)
2007 – Roger Bennett, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1959)
2008 – Roland Arnall, French-American businessman and diplomat, 63rd United States Ambassador to the Netherlands (b. 1939)
2009 – Clodovil Hernandes, Brazilian television host and politician (b. 1937)
2010 – Alex Chilton, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1950)
2010 – Sid Fleischman, American author and screenwriter (b. 1920)
2011 – Michael Gough, English actor (b. 1916)
2011 – Ferlin Husky, American country music singer (b. 1925)
2012 – Shenouda III, pope of Alexandria (b. 1923)
2012 – Margaret Whitlam, Australian swimmer and author (b. 1919)
2013 – William B. Caldwell III, American general (b. 1925)
2013 – Lawrence Fuchs, American scholar and academic (b. 1927)
2013 – A.B.C. Whipple, American journalist and historian (b. 1918)
2014 – Marek Galiński, Polish cyclist (b. 1974)
2014 – Joseph Kerman, American musicologist and critic (b. 1924)
2014 – Rachel Lambert Mellon, American gardener, philanthropist, art collector and political patron (b. 1910)
2015 – Frank Perris, Canadian motorcycle racer (b. 1931)
2016 – Meir Dagan, Israeli general (b. 1945)
2016 – Zoltán Kamondi, Hungarian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1960)
2018 – Mike MacDonald, Canadian comedian (b. 1954)
2018 – Phan Văn Khải, the fifth Prime Minister of Vietnam (b. 1933)
Holidays and observances on March 17
Children’s Day (Bangladesh)
Christian feast day:
Alexius of Rome (Eastern Church)
Gertrude of Nivelles
John Sarkander
Joseph of Arimathea (Western Church)
Patrick of Ireland
March 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Evacuation Day (Suffolk County, Massachusetts)
Saint Patrick’s Day, a public holiday in Ireland, Montserrat and the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, widely celebrated in the English-speaking world and to a lesser degree in other parts of the world.
363 – Roman Emperor Julian moves from Antioch with an army of 90,000 to attack the Sasanian Empire, in a campaign which would bring about his own death.
1046 – Nasir Khusraw begins the seven-year Middle Eastern journey which he will later describe in his book Safarnama.
1279 – The Livonian Order is defeated in the Battle of Aizkraukle by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
1496 – King Henry VII of England issues letters patent to John Cabot and his sons, authorising them to explore unknown lands.
1616 – Nicolaus Copernicus’s book On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres is added to the Index of Forbidden Books 73 years after it was first published.
1766 – Antonio de Ulloa, the first Spanish governor of Louisiana, arrives in New Orleans.
1770 – Boston Massacre: Five Americans, including Crispus Attucks, are fatally shot by British troops in an event that would contribute to the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War (also known as the American War of Independence) five years later.
1811 – Peninsular War: A French force under the command of Marshal Victor is routed while trying to prevent an Anglo-Spanish-Portuguese army from lifting the Siege of Cádiz in the Battle of Barrosa.
1824 – First Anglo-Burmese War: The British officially declare war on Burma.
1836 – Samuel Colt patents the first production-model revolver, the .34-caliber.
1850 – The Britannia Bridge across the Menai Strait between the island of Anglesey and the mainland of Wales is opened.
1860 – Parma, Tuscany, Modena and Romagna vote in referendums to join the Kingdom of Sardinia.
1868 – Mefistofele, an opera by Arrigo Boito, receives its premiere performance at La Scala.
1872 – George Westinghouse patents the air brake.
1906 – Moro Rebellion: United States Army troops bring overwhelming force against the native Moros in the First Battle of Bud Dajo, leaving only six survivors.
1912 – Italo-Turkish War: Italian forces are the first to use airships for military purposes, employing them for reconnaissance behind Turkish lines.
1931 – The British Raj: Gandhi–Irwin Pact is signed.
1933 – Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party receives 43.9% at the Reichstag elections, which allows the Nazis to later pass the Enabling Act and establish a dictatorship.
1936 – First flight of K5054, the first prototype Supermarine Spitfire advanced monoplane fighter aircraft in the United Kingdom.
1940 – Six high-ranking members of Soviet politburo, including Joseph Stalin, sign an order for the execution of 25,700 Polish intelligentsia, including 14,700 Polish POWs, in what will become known as the Katyn massacre.
1942 – World War II: Japanese forces capture Batavia, capital of Dutch East Indies, which is left undefended after the withdrawal of the KNIL garrison and Australian Blackforce battalion to Buitenzorg and Bandung.
1943 – First Flight of the Gloster Meteor, Britain’s first combat jet aircraft.
1944 – World War II: The Red Army begins the Uman–Botoșani Offensive in the western Ukrainian SSR.
1946 – Cold War: Winston Churchill coins the phrase “Iron Curtain” in his speech at Westminster College, Missouri.
1953 – Joseph Stalin, the longest serving leader of the Soviet Union, dies at his Volynskoe dacha in Moscow after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage four days earlier.
1960 – Indonesian President Sukarno dismissed the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat (DPR), 1955 democratically elected parliament, and replaced with DPR-GR, the parliament of his own selected members.
1963 – American country music stars Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins, Cowboy Copas and their pilot Randy Hughes are killed in a plane crash in Camden, Tennessee.
1965 – March Intifada: A Leftist uprising erupts in Bahrain against British colonial presence.
1966 – BOAC Flight 911, a Boeing 707 aircraft, breaks apart in mid-air due to clear-air turbulence and crashes into Mount Fuji, Japan, killing all 124 people on board.
1970 – The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons goes into effect after ratification by 43 nations.
1974 – Yom Kippur War: Israeli forces withdraw from the west bank of the Suez Canal.
1978 – The Landsat 3 is launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
1979 – Soviet probes Venera 11, Venera 12 and the German-American solar satellite Helios II all are hit by “off the scale” gamma rays leading to the discovery of soft gamma repeaters.
1981 – The ZX81, a pioneering British home computer, is launched by Sinclair Research and would go on to sell over 11⁄2 million units around the world.
1982 – Soviet probe Venera 14 lands on Venus.
2003 – In Haifa, 17 Israeli civilians are killed in the Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing.
2012 – Tropical Storm Irina kills over 75 as it passes through Madagascar.
Births on March 5
1133 – Henry II of England (d. 1189)
1224 – Saint Kinga of Poland (d. 1292)
1324 – David II of Scotland (d. 1371)
1326 – Louis I of Hungary (d. 1382)
1340 – Cansignorio della Scala, Lord of Verona (d. 1375)
1451 – William Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, English Earl (d. 1491)
1512 – Gerardus Mercator, Flemish mathematician, cartographer, and philosopher (d. 1594)
1523 – Rodrigo de Castro Osorio, Spanish cardinal (d. 1600)
1527 – Ulrich, Duke of Mecklenburg (d. 1603)
1539 – Christoph Pezel, German theologian (d. 1604)
1563 – John Coke, English civil servant and politician (d. 1644)
1575 – William Oughtred, English minister and mathematician (d. 1660)
1585 – John George I, Elector of Saxony (d. 1656)
1585 – Frederick I, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg (d. 1638)
1637 – Jan van der Heyden, Dutch painter and engineer (d. 1712)
1658 – Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, French explorer and politician, 3rd Colonial Governor of Louisiana (d. 1730)
1693 – Johann Jakob Wettstein, Swiss theologian and scholar (d. 1754)
1696 – Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Italian painter (d. 1770)
1703 – Vasily Trediakovsky, Russian poet and playwright (d. 1768)
1713 – Edward Cornwallis, English general and politician, Governor of Gibraltar (d. 1776)
1713 – Frederick Cornwallis, English archbishop (d. 1783)
1723 – Princess Mary of Great Britain (d. 1773)
1733 – Vincenzo Galeotti, Italian-Danish dancer and choreographer (d. 1816)
1739 – Benjamin Ruggles Woodbridge, American colonel and physician (d. 1819)
1748 – Jonas Carlsson Dryander, Swedish botanist and biologist (d. 1810)
1748 – William Shield, English violinist and composer (d. 1829)
1750 – Jean-Baptiste-Gaspard d’Ansse de Villoison, French scholar and academic (d. 1805)
1751 – Jan Křtitel Kuchař, Czech organist, composer, and educator (d. 1829)
1774 – Christoph Ernst Friedrich Weyse, Danish organist and composer (d. 1842)
1779 – Benjamin Gompertz, English mathematician and statistician (d. 1865)
1785 – Carlo Odescalchi, Italian cardinal (d. 1841)
1794 – Jacques Babinet, French physicist, mathematician, and astronomer (d. 1872)
1794 – Robert Cooper Grier, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1870)
1814 – Wilhelm von Giesebrecht, German historian and academic (d. 1889)
1800 – Georg Friedrich Daumer, German poet and philosopher (d. 1875)
1815 – John Wentworth, American journalist and politician, 19th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1888)
1817 – Austen Henry Layard, English archaeologist, academic, and politician, Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (d. 1894)
1830 – Étienne-Jules Marey, French physiologist and chronophotographer (d. 1904)
1830 – Charles Wyville Thomson, Scottish historian and zoologist (d. 1882)
1834 – Félix de Blochausen, Luxembourgian politician, 6th Prime Minister of Luxembourg (d. 1915)
1834 – Marietta Piccolomini, Italian soprano (d. 1899)
1853 – Howard Pyle, American author and illustrator (d. 1911)
1862 – Siegbert Tarrasch, German chess player and theoretician (d. 1934)
1867 – Louis-Alexandre Taschereau, Canadian lawyer and politician, 14th Premier of Quebec (d. 1952)
1869 – Michael von Faulhaber, German cardinal (d. 1952)
1870 – Frank Norris, American journalist and author (d. 1902)
1870 – Evgeny Paton, French-Ukrainian engineer (d. 1953)
1871 – Rosa Luxemburg, Polish-Russian economist and philosopher (d. 1919)
1871 – Konstantinos Pallis, Greek general and politician, Minister Governor-General of Macedonia (d. 1941)
1873 – Olav Bjaaland, Norwegian skier and explorer (d. 1961)
1874 – Henry Travers, English-American actor (d. 1965)
1875 – Harry Lawson, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Victoria (d. 1952)
1876 – Thomas Inskip, 1st Viscount Caldecote, English lawyer and politician, 8th Lord Chief Justice of England (d. 1947)
1876 – Elisabeth Moore, American tennis player (d. 1959)
1879 – William Beveridge, Bangladeshi-English economist and academic (d. 1963)
1879 – Andres Larka, Estonian general and politician, 1st Estonian Minister of War (d. 1943)
1880 – Sergei Natanovich Bernstein, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1968)
1882 – Dora Marsden, English author and activist (d. 1960)
1883 – Pauline Sperry, American mathematician (d. 1967)
1885 – Marius Barbeau, Canadian ethnographer and academic (d. 1969)
1886 – Dong Biwu, Chinese judge and politician, Chairman of the People’s Republic of China (d. 1975)
1886 – Freddie Welsh, Welsh boxer (d. 1927)
1887 – Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazilian guitarist and composer (d. 1959)
1894 – Henry Daniell, English-American actor (d. 1963)
1898 – Zhou Enlai, Chinese politician, 1st Premier of the People’s Republic of China (d. 1976)
1898 – Misao Okawa, Japanese super-centenarian (d. 2015)
1900 – Lilli Jahn, Jewish German doctor (d. 1944)
1900 – Johanna Langefeld, German guard and supervisor of three Nazi concentration camps (d. 1974)
1901 – Friedrich Günther, Prince of Schwarzburg (d. 1971)
1901 – Julian Przyboś, Polish poet, essayist and translator (d. 1970)
1904 – Karl Rahner, German priest and theologian (d. 1984)
1905 – László Benedek, Hungarian-American director and cinematographer (d. 1992)
1908 – Fritz Fischer, German historian and author (d. 1999)
1908 – Irving Fiske, American author and playwright (d. 1990)
1908 – Rex Harrison, English actor (d. 1990)
1910 – Momofuku Ando, Taiwanese-Japanese businessman, founded Nissin Foods (d. 2007)
1910 – Ennio Flaiano, Italian author, screenwriter, and critic (d. 1972)
1912 – Jack Marshall, New Zealand colonel, lawyer, and politician, 28th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1988)
1915 – Henry Hicks, Canadian academic and politician, 16th Premier of Nova Scotia (d. 1990)
1915 – Laurent Schwartz, French mathematician and academic (d. 2002)
1918 – Milt Schmidt, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 2017)
1918 – Red Storey, Canadian football player, referee, and sportscaster (d. 2006)
1918 – James Tobin, American economist and academic (d. 2002)
1920 – José Aboulker, Algerian surgeon and activist (d. 2009)
1920 – Virginia Christine, American actress (d. 1996)
1920 – Rachel Gurney, English actress (d. 2001)
1920 – Wang Zengqi, Chinese writer (d. 1997)
1921 – Elmer Valo, American baseball player and coach (d. 1998)
1922 – James Noble, American actor (d. 2016)
1922 – Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1975)
1923 – Juan A. Rivero, Puerto Rican biologist and academic (d. 2014)
1923 – Laurence Tisch, American businessman, co-founded the Loews Corporation (d. 2003)
1924 – Roger Marche, French footballer (d. 1997)
1927 – Jack Cassidy, American actor and singer (d. 1976)
1927 – Robert Lindsay, 29th Earl of Crawford, Scottish businessman and politician
1928 – J. Hillis Miller, American academic and critic
1929 – Erik Carlsson, Swedish race car driver (d. 2015)
1929 – J. B. Lenoir, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1967)
1930 – John Ashley, Canadian ice hockey player and referee (d. 2008)
1930 – Del Crandall, American baseball player and manager
1931 – Fred, French author and illustrator (d. 2013)
1931 – Barry Tuckwell, Australian horn player and educator (d. 2020)
1932 – Paul Sand, American actor
1933 – Walter Kasper, German cardinal and theologian
1934 – Daniel Kahneman, Israeli-American economist and psychologist, Nobel Prize laureate
1935 – Letizia Battaglia, Italian photographer and journalist
1935 – Philip K. Chapman, Australian-American astronaut and engineer
1936 – Canaan Banana, Zimbabwean minister and politician, 1st President of Zimbabwe (d. 2003)
1936 – Dale Douglass, American golfer
1936 – Dean Stockwell, American actor
1937 – Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigerian general and politician, 5th President of Nigeria
1938 – Paul Evans, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1938 – Lynn Margulis, American biologist and academic (d. 2011)
1938 – Fred Williamson, American football player, actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1939 – Samantha Eggar, English actress
1939 – Tony Rundle, Australian politician, 40th Premier of Tasmania
1939 – Benyamin Sueb, Indonesian actor and comedian (d. 1995)
1939 – Peter Woodcock, Canadian serial killer (d. 2010)
1939 – Pierre Wynants, Belgian chef
1940 – Tom Butler, English bishop
1940 – Ken Irvine, Australian rugby league player (d. 1990)
1940 – Graham McRae, New Zealand race car driver
1940 – Sepp Piontek, German footballer and manager
1941 – Des Wilson, New Zealand-English businessman and activist
1942 – Felipe González, Spanish lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Spain
1942 – Mike Resnick, American author and editor (d. 2020)
1942 – David Watkins, Welsh rugby player
1943 – Lucio Battisti, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1998)
1944 – Peter Brandes, Danish painter and sculptor
1944 – Roy Gutman, American journalist and author
1945 – Wilf Tranter, English footballer
1946 – Richard Bell, Canadian pianist (d. 2007)
1946 – Guerrino Boatto, Italian illustrator and painter (d. 2018)
1946 – Graham Hawkins, English footballer and manager (d. 2016)
1946 – Murray Head, English actor and singer
1947 – Clodagh Rodgers, Northern Irish singer and actress
1947 – Kent Tekulve, American baseball player and sportscaster
1948 – Paquirri, Spanish bullfighter (d. 1984)
1948 – Eddy Grant, Guyanese-British singer-songwriter and musician
1948 – Richard Hickox, English conductor and scholar (d. 2008)
1948 – Elaine Paige, English singer and actress
1948 – Jan van Beveren, Dutch footballer and coach (d. 2011)
1949 – Bernard Arnault, French businessman, philanthropist, and art collector
1949 – Franz Josef Jung, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of Defence
1949 – Tom Russell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1951 – Rodney Hogg, Australian cricketer and coach
1952 – Petar Borota, Serbian footballer and coach (d. 2010)
1952 – Mike Squires, American baseball player and scout
1953 – Katarina Frostenson, Swedish poet and author
1953 – Michael J. Sandel, American philosopher and academic
1953 – Tokyo Sexwale, South African businessman and politician, 1st Premier of Gauteng
1954 – Marsha Warfield, American actress
1954 – João Lourenço, Angolan president
1955 – Penn Jillette, American magician, actor, and author
1956 – Teena Marie, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2010)
1956 – Christopher Snowden, English engineer and academic
1957 – Mark E. Smith, English singer, songwriter and musician (d. 2018)
1957 – Ray Suarez, American journalist and author
1958 – Volodymyr Bezsonov, Ukrainian footballer and manager
1958 – Bob Forward, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1958 – Andy Gibb, English-Australian singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1988)
1959 – Vazgen Sargsyan, Armenian colonel and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Armenia (d. 1999)
1960 – Paul Drayson, Baron Drayson, English businessman and politician, Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology
1963 – Joel Osteen, American pastor, author, and television host
1964 – Bertrand Cantat, French singer-songwriter
1964 – Gerald Vanenburg, Dutch footballer and manager
1965 – José Semedo, Portuguese footballer and coach
1966 – Oh Eun-sun, South Korean mountaineer
1966 – Bob Halkidis, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1966 – Michael Irvin, American football player, sportscaster, and actor
1966 – Aasif Mandvi, Indian-American actor, producer, and screenwriter
1966 – Zachery Stevens, American singer-songwriter
1968 – Gordon Bajnai, Hungarian businessman and politician, 7th Prime Minister of Hungary
1968 – Theresa Villiers, English lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
1969 – Paul Blackthorne, English actor and producer
1969 – Danny King, English author and playwright
1969 – Moussa Saïb, Algerian footballer and manager
1969 – M.C. Solaar, Afro-French rapper
1970 – Mike Brown, American basketball player and coach
1970 – John Frusciante, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1970 – Yuu Watase, Japanese illustrator
1971 – Greg Berry, English footballer and coach
1971 – Jeffrey Hammonds, American baseball player and scout
1971 – Yuri Lowenthal, American voice actor, producer, and screenwriter
1971 – Filip Meirhaeghe, Belgian cyclist
1971 – Mark Protheroe, Australian rugby league player
1973 – Yannis Anastasiou, Greek footballer and manager
1973 – Nelly Arcan, Canadian author (d. 2009)
1973 – Juan Esnáider, Argentinian footballer and manager
1973 – Ryan Franklin, American baseball player
1973 – Nicole Pratt, Australian tennis player, coach, and sportscaster
1973 – Špela Pretnar, Slovenian skier
1974 – Kevin Connolly, American actor and director
1974 – Jens Jeremies, German footballer
1974 – Eva Mendes, American model and actress
1975 – Luciano Burti, Brazilian race car driver and sportscaster
1975 – Sasho Petrovski, Australian footballer
1975 – Chris Silverwood, English cricketer and coach
1976 – Neil Jackson, English actor, producer, and screenwriter
1976 – Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Lithuanian basketball player and coach
1976 – Paul Konerko, American baseball player
1976 – Norm Maxwell, New Zealand rugby player
1977 – Taismary Agüero, Cuban-Italian volleyball player
1978 – Jared Crouch, Australian footballer
1978 – Mike Hessman, American baseball player and coach
1978 – Kimberly McCullough, American actress, singer, and dancer
1978 – Carlos Ochoa, Mexican footballer
1979 – Martin Axenrot, Swedish drummer
1979 – Lee Mears, English rugby player
1980 – Shay Carl, American businessman, co-founded Maker Studios
1981 – Barret Jackman, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Paul Martin, American ice hockey player
1982 – Dan Carter, New Zealand rugby player
1982 – Philipp Haastrup, German footballer
1983 – Édgar Dueñas, Mexican footballer
1984 – Branko Cvetković, Serbian basketball player
1984 – Guillaume Hoarau, French footballer
1985 – David Marshall, Scottish footballer
1985 – Brad Mills, American baseball player
1985 – Kenichi Matsuyama, Japanese actor
1986 – Alexandre Barthe, French footballer
1986 – Matty Fryatt, English footballer
1987 – Anna Chakvetadze, Russian tennis player
1987 – Chris Cohen, English footballer
1988 – Liassine Cadamuro-Bentaïba, Algerian footballer
1990 – Danny Drinkwater, English footballer
1990 – Mason Plumlee, American basketball player
1990 – Alex Smithies, English footballer
1991 – Ramiro Funes Mori, Argentinian footballer
1991 – Daniil Trifonov, Russian pianist and composer
1993 – El Hadji Ba, French footballer
1993 – Joshua Coyne, American violinist and composer
1993 – Harry Maguire, English footballer
1994 – Daria Gavrilova, Russian-Australian tennis player
1994 – Kyle Schwarber, American baseball player
1996 – Taylor Hill, American model
1996 – Emmanuel Mudiay, Congolese basketball player
1997 – Milena Venega, Cuban rower
1998 – Bo Bichette, American baseball player
1999 – Madison Beer, American singer, songwriter and producer.
2007 – Roman Griffin Davis, British actor, second youngest Golden Globe recipient.
Deaths on March 5
254 – Pope Lucius I (b. 200)
824 – Suppo I, Frankish nobleman
1239 – Hermann Balk, German knight
1410 – Matthew of Kraków, Polish reformer (b. 1335)
1417 – Manuel III Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond (b. 1364)
1534 – Antonio da Correggio, Italian painter and educator (b. 1489)
1539 – Nuno da Cunha, Portuguese admiral and politician, Governor of Portuguese India (b. 1487)
1599 – Guido Panciroli, Italian historian and jurist (b. 1523)
1611 – Shimazu Yoshihisa, Japanese daimyō (b. 1533)
1622 – Ranuccio I Farnese, Duke of Parma (b. 1569)
1695 – Henry Wharton, English writer and librarian (b. 1664)
1726 – Evelyn Pierrepont, 1st Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull, English politician, Lord President of the Council (b. 1655)
1770 – Crispus Attucks, American slave (b. 1723)
1778 – Thomas Arne, English composer and educator (b. 1710)
1815 – Franz Mesmer, German physician and astrologist (b. 1734)
1827 – Pierre-Simon Laplace, French mathematician and astronomer (b. 1749)
1827 – Alessandro Volta, Italian physicist and academic (b. 1745)
1829 – John Adams, English sailor and mutineer (b. 1766)
1849 – David Scott, Scottish historical painter (b. 1806)
1876 – Marie d’Agoult, German-French historian and author (b. 1805)
1893 – Hippolyte Taine, French historian and critic (b. 1828)
1895 – Nikolai Leskov, Russian author, playwright, and journalist (b. 1831)
1895 – Sir Henry Rawlinson, 1st Baronet, English general and scholar (b. 1810)
1907 – Friedrich Blass, German philologist, scholar, and academic (b. 1843)
1925 – Johan Jensen, Danish mathematician and engineer (b. 1859)
1927 – Franz Mertens, Polish-Austrian mathematician and academic (b. 1840)
1929 – David Dunbar Buick, Scottish-American businessman, founded Buick (b. 1854)
1934 – Reşit Galip, Turkish academic and politician, 6th Turkish Minister of National Education (b. 1893)
1935 – Roque Ruaño, Spanish priest and engineer (b. 1877)
1940 – Cai Yuanpei, Chinese philosopher and academic (b. 1868)
1944 – Max Jacob, French poet and author (b. 1876)
1945 – Lena Baker, African American maid and murderer (b. 1900)
1947 – Alfredo Casella, Italian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1883)
1950 – Edgar Lee Masters, American poet, author, and playwright (b. 1868)
1950 – Roman Shukhevych, Ukrainian general and politician (b. 1907)
1953 – Herman J. Mankiewicz, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1897)
1953 – Sergei Prokofiev, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1891)
1953 – Joseph Stalin, Soviet dictator and politician of Georgian descent, 2nd leader of the Soviet Union (b. 1878)
1955 – Antanas Merkys, Lithuanian lawyer and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Lithuania (b. 1888)
1963 – Patsy Cline, American singer-songwriter (b. 1932)
1963 – Cowboy Copas, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1913)
1963 – Hawkshaw Hawkins, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1921)
1965 – Chen Cheng, Chinese general and politician, 27th Premier of the Republic of China (b. 1897)
1965 – Pepper Martin, American baseball player and manager (b. 1904)
1966 – Anna Akhmatova, Ukrainian-Russian poet, author, and translator (b. 1889)
1967 – Mischa Auer, Russian-American actor (b. 1905)
1967 – Mohammad Mosaddegh, Iranian political scientist and politician, 60th Prime Minister of Iran (b. 1882)
1967 – Georges Vanier, Canadian general and politician, 19th Governor General of Canada (b. 1888)
1971 – Allan Nevins, American journalist and author (b. 1890)
1973 – Robert C. O’Brien, American journalist and author (b. 1918)
1974 – John Samuel Bourque, Canadian colonel and politician (b. 1894)
1974 – Billy De Wolfe, American actor (b. 1907)
1974 – Sol Hurok, Ukrainian-American businessman (b. 1888)
1976 – Otto Tief, Estonian lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Estonia (b. 1889)
1977 – Tom Pryce, Welsh race car driver (b. 1949)
1980 – Jay Silverheels, Canadian-American actor (b. 1912)
1981 – Yip Harburg, American songwriter and composer (b. 1896)
1982 – John Belushi, American actor (b. 1949)
1984 – Pierre Cochereau, French organist and composer (b. 1924)
1984 – Tito Gobbi, Italian operatic baritone (b. 1913)
1984 – William Powell, American actor (b. 1892)
1988 – Alberto Olmedo, Argentine comedian and actor (b. 1933)
1990 – Gary Merrill, American actor and director (b. 1915)
1995 – Vivian Stanshall, English singer-songwriter and musician (b. 1943)
1996 – Whit Bissell, American character actor (b. 1909)
1997 – Samm Sinclair Baker, American writer (b. 1909)
1997 – Jean Dréville, French director and screenwriter (b. 1906)
1999 – Richard Kiley, American actor and singer (b. 1922)
2000 – Lolo Ferrari, French dancer, actress and singer (b. 1963)
2005 – David Sheppard, English cricketer and bishop (b. 1929)
2008 – Joseph Weizenbaum, German computer scientist and author (b. 1923)
2010 – Charles B. Pierce, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1938)
2010 – Richard Stapley, British actor and writer (b. 1923)
