1775

  • June 12 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 910 – Battle of Augsburg: The Hungarians defeat the East Frankish army under King Louis the Child, using the famous feigned retreat tactic of the nomadic warriors.
    • 1240 – At the instigation of Louis IX of France, an inter-faith debate, known as the Disputation of Paris, starts between a Christian monk and four rabbis.
    • 1381 – Peasants’ Revolt: In England, rebels assemble at Blackheath, just outside London.
    • 1418 – Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War: Parisians slaughter Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac and his suspected sympathizers, along with all prisoners, foreign bankers, and students and faculty of the College of Navarre.
    • 1429 – Hundred Years’ War: On the second day of the Battle of Jargeau, Joan of Arc leads the French army in their capture of the city and the English commander, William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk.
    • 1550 – The city of Helsinki, Finland (belonging to Sweden at the time) is founded by King Gustav I of Sweden.
    • 1653 – First Anglo-Dutch War: The Battle of the Gabbard begins, lasting until the following day.
    • 1665 – Thomas Willett is appointed the first mayor of New York City.
    • 1758 – French and Indian War: Siege of Louisbourg: James Wolfe’s attack at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, commences
    • 1772 – French explorer Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne and 25 of his men killed by Māori in New Zealand.
    • 1775 – American Revolution: British general Thomas Gage declares martial law in Massachusetts. The British offer a pardon to all colonists who lay down their arms. There would be only two exceptions to the amnesty: Samuel Adams and John Hancock, if captured, were to be hanged.
    • 1776 – The Virginia Declaration of Rights is adopted.
    • 1798 – Irish Rebellion of 1798: Battle of Ballynahinch.
    • 1817 – The earliest form of bicycle, the dandy horse, is driven by Karl von Drais.
    • 1821 – Badi VII, king of Sennar, surrenders his throne and realm to Isma’il Pasha, general of the Ottoman Empire, ending the existence of that Sudanese kingdom.
    • 1830 – Beginning of the Invasion of Algiers: Thiry-four thousand French soldiers land 27 kilometers west of Algiers, at Sidi Ferruch.
    • 1864 – American Civil War, Overland Campaign: Battle of Cold Harbor: Ulysses S. Grant gives the Confederate forces under Robert E. Lee a victory when he pulls his Union troops from their position at Cold Harbor, Virginia and moves south.
    • 1898 – Philippine Declaration of Independence: General Emilio Aguinaldo declares the Philippines’ independence from Spain.
    • 1899 – New Richmond tornado: The eighth deadliest tornado in U.S. history kills 117 people and injures around 200.
    • 1914 – Massacre of Phocaea: Turkish irregulars slaughter 50 to 100 Greeks and expel thousands of others in an ethnic cleansing operation in the Ottoman Empire.
    • 1921 – Mikhail Tukhachevsky orders the use of chemical weapons against the Tambov Rebellion, bringing an end to the peasant uprising.
    • 1935 – A ceasefire is negotiated between Bolivia and Paraguay, ending the Chaco War.
    • 1939 – Shooting begins on Paramount Pictures’ Dr. Cyclops, the first horror film photographed in three-strip Technicolor.
    • 1939 – The Baseball Hall of Fame opens in Cooperstown, New York.
    • 1940 – World War II: Thirteen thousand British and French troops surrender to Major General Erwin Rommel at Saint-Valery-en-Caux.
    • 1942 – Anne Frank receives a diary for her thirteenth birthday.
    • 1943 – The Holocaust: Germany liquidates the Jewish Ghetto in Brzeżany, Poland (now Berezhany, Ukraine). Around 1,180 Jews are led to the city’s old Jewish graveyard and shot.
    • 1944 – World War II: Operation Overlord: American paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division secure the town of Carentan, Normandy, France.
    • 1954 – Pope Pius XII canonises Dominic Savio, who was 14 years old at the time of his death, as a saint, making him at the time the youngest unmartyred saint in the Roman Catholic Church. In 2017, Francisco and Jacinta Marto, aged ten and nine at the time of their deaths, are declared saints.
    • 1963 – NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers is murdered in front of his home in Jackson, Mississippi by Ku Klux Klan member Byron De La Beckwith during the civil rights movement.
    • 1964 – Anti-apartheid activist and ANC leader Nelson Mandela is sentenced to life in prison for sabotage in South Africa.
    • 1967 – The United States Supreme Court in Loving v. Virginia declares all U.S. state laws which prohibit interracial marriage to be unconstitutional.
    • 1975 – India, Judge Jagmohanlal Sinha of the city of Allahabad ruled that India’s Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had used corrupt practices to win her seat in the Indian Parliament, and that she should be banned from holding any public office. Mrs. Gandhi sent word that she refused to resign.
    • 1979 – Bryan Allen wins the second Kremer prize for a man powered flight across the English Channel in the Gossamer Albatross.
    • 1987 – The Central African Republic’s former emperor Jean-Bédel Bokassa is sentenced to death for crimes he had committed during his 13-year rule.
    • 1987 – Cold War: At the Brandenburg Gate, U.S. President Ronald Reagan publicly challenges Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall.
    • 1988 – Austral Líneas Aéreas Flight 46, a McDonnell Douglas MD-81, crashes short of the runway at Libertador General José de San Martín Airport, killing all 22 people on board.
    • 1990 – Russia Day: The parliament of the Russian Federation formally declares its sovereignty.
    • 1991 – Russians first democratically elected Boris Yeltsin as the President of Russia.
    • 1991 – Kokkadichcholai massacre: The Sri Lankan Army massacres 152 minority Tamil civilians in the village of Kokkadichcholai near the eastern province town of Batticaloa.
    • 1993 – An election takes place in Nigeria and is won by Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola. Its results are later annulled by the military Government of Ibrahim Babangida.
    • 1994 – Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman are murdered outside Simpson’s home in Los Angeles. Her estranged husband, O.J. Simpson is later charged with the murders, but is acquitted by a jury.
    • 1997 – Queen Elizabeth II reopens the Globe Theatre in London.
    • 1999 – Kosovo War: Operation Joint Guardian begins when a NATO-led United Nations peacekeeping force (KFor) enters the province of Kosovo in Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
    • 2009 – Analog television stations (excluding low-powered stations) switch to digital television following the DTV Delay Act.
    • 2009 – A disputed presidential election in Iran leads to wide-ranging local and international protests.
    • 2016 – Forty-nine civilians are killed and 58 others injured in an attack on a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida; the gunman, Omar Mateen, is killed in a gunfight with police.
    • 2017 – American student Otto Warmbier returns home in a coma after spending 17 months in a North Korean prison and dies a week later.
    • 2018 – United States President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un of North Korea held the first meeting between leaders of their two countries in Singapore.

    Births on June 12

    • 950 – Reizei, Japanese emperor (d. 1011)
    • 1107 – Gao Zong, Chinese emperor (d. 1187)
    • 1161 – Constance, Duchess of Brittany (d. 1201)
    • 1519 – Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1574)
    • 1561 – Anna of Württemberg, German princess (d. 1616)
    • 1564 – John Casimir, Duke of Saxe-Coburg (d. 1633)
    • 1573 – Robert Radclyffe, 5th Earl of Sussex, soldier (d. 1629)
    • 1577 – Paul Guldin, Swiss astronomer and mathematician (d. 1643)
    • 1580 – Adriaen van Stalbemt, Flemish painter (d. 1662)
    • 1653 – Maria Amalia of Courland, Landgravine of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1711)
    • 1686 – Marie-Catherine Homassel Hecquet, French writer (d. 1764)
    • 1711 – Louis Legrand, French priest and theologian (d. 1780)
    • 1760 – Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvrai, French author, playwright, journalist, and politician (d. 1797)
    • 1771 – Patrick Gass, American sergeant (Lewis and Clark Expedition) and author (d. 1870)
    • 1775 – Karl Freiherr von Müffling, Prussian field marshal (d. 1851)
    • 1777 – Robert Clark, American physician and politician (d. 1837)
    • 1795 – John Marston, American sailor (d. 1885)
    • 1798 – Samuel Cooper, American general (d. 1876)
    • 1800 – Samuel Wright Mardis, American politician (d. 1836)
    • 1802 – Harriet Martineau, English sociologist and author (d. 1876)
    • 1806 – John A. Roebling, German-American engineer, designed the Brooklyn Bridge (d. 1869)
    • 1807 – Ante Kuzmanić, Croatian physician and journalist (d. 1879)
    • 1812 – Edmond Hébert, French geologist and academic (d. 1890)
    • 1819 – Charles Kingsley, English priest, historian, and author (d. 1875)
    • 1827 – Johanna Spyri, Swiss author, best known for Heidi (d. 1901)
    • 1831 – Robert Herbert, English-Australian politician, 1st Premier of Queensland (d. 1905)
    • 1841 – Watson Fothergill, English architect, designed the Woodborough Road Baptist Church (d. 1928)
    • 1843 – David Gill, Scottish-English astronomer and author (d. 1914)
    • 1851 – Oliver Lodge, English physicist and academic (d. 1940)
    • 1857 – Maurice Perrault, Canadian architect, engineer, and politician, 15th Mayor of Longueuil (d. 1909)
    • 1858 – Harry Johnston, English botanist and explorer (d. 1927)
    • 1858 – Henry Scott Tuke, English painter and photographer (d. 1929)
    • 1861 – William Attewell, English cricketer and umpire (d. 1927)
    • 1864 – Frank Chapman, American ornithologist, photographer, and author (d. 1945)
    • 1877 – Thomas C. Hart, American admiral and politician (d. 1971)
    • 1883 – Fernand Gonder, French pole vaulter (d. 1969)
    • 1883 – Robert Lowie, Austrian-American anthropologist and academic (d. 1957)
    • 1888 – Zygmunt Janiszewski, Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1920)
    • 1890 – Egon Schiele, Austrian soldier and painter (d. 1918)
    • 1892 – Djuna Barnes, American novelist, journalist, and playwright (d. 1982)
    • 1895 – Eugénie Brazier, French chef (d. 1977)
    • 1897 – Anthony Eden, English soldier and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1977)
    • 1899 – Fritz Albert Lipmann, German-American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1986)
    • 1899 – Weegee, Ukrainian-American photographer and journalist (d. 1968)
    • 1902 – Hendrik Elias, Belgian lawyer and politician, Mayor of Ghent (d. 1973)
    • 1905 – Ray Barbuti, American sprinter and football player (d. 1988)
    • 1906 – Sandro Penna, Italian poet (d. 1977)
    • 1908 – Alphonse Ouimet, Canadian broadcaster (d. 1988)
    • 1908 – Marina Semyonova, Russian ballerina and educator (d. 2010)
    • 1908 – Otto Skorzeny, German SS officer (d. 1975)
    • 1910 – Bill Naughton, Irish-English playwright and author (d. 1992)
    • 1912 – Bill Cowley, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1993)
    • 1912 – Carl Hovland, American psychologist and academic (d. 1961)
    • 1913 – Jean Victor Allard, Canadian general (d. 1996)
    • 1913 – Desmond Piers, Canadian admiral (d. 2005)
    • 1914 – William Lundigan, American actor (d. 1975)
    • 1914 – Go Seigen, Chinese-Japanese Go player (d. 2014)
    • 1915 – Priscilla Lane, American actress (d. 1995)
    • 1915 – Christopher Mayhew, English soldier and politician (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – David Rockefeller, American banker and businessman (d. 2017)
    • 1916 – Irwin Allen, American director and producer (d. 1991)
    • 1916 – Raúl Héctor Castro, Mexican-American politician and diplomat, 14th Governor of Arizona (d. 2015)
    • 1918 – Samuel Z. Arkoff, American film producer (d. 2001)
    • 1918 – Georgia Louise Harris Brown, American architect (d. 1999)
    • 1918 – Christie Jayaratnam Eliezer, Sri Lankan-Australian mathematician and academic (d. 2001)
    • 1919 – Uta Hagen, German-American actress and educator (d. 2004)
    • 1920 – Dave Berg, American soldier and cartoonist (d. 2002)
    • 1920 – Peter Jones, English actor and screenwriter (d. 2000)
    • 1921 – Luis García Berlanga, Spanish director and screenwriter (d. 2010)
    • 1921 – Christopher Derrick, English author, critic, and academic (d. 2007)
    • 1921 – James Archibald Houston, Canadian author and illustrator (d. 2005)
    • 1922 – Margherita Hack, Italian astrophysicist and author (d. 2013)
    • 1924 – George H. W. Bush, American lieutenant and politician, 41st President of the United States (d. 2018)
    • 1924 – Grete Dollitz, German-American guitarist and radio host (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Vic Damone, American singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2018)
    • 1928 – Petros Molyviatis, Greek politician and diplomat, Greek Minister for Foreign Affairs
    • 1928 – Richard M. Sherman, American composer and director
    • 1929 – Brigid Brophy, English author and critic (d. 1995)
    • 1929 – Anne Frank, German-Dutch diarist; victim of the Holocaust (d. 1945)
    • 1929 – Jameel Jalibi, Pakistani linguist and academic
    • 1929 – John McCluskey, Baron McCluskey, Scottish lawyer, judge, and politician, Solicitor General for Scotland (d. 2017)
    • 1930 – Jim Burke, Australian cricketer (d. 1979)
    • 1930 – Donald Byrne, American chess player (d. 1976)
    • 1930 – Innes Ireland, Scottish race car driver and engineer (d. 1993)
    • 1930 – Jim Nabors, American actor and singer (d. 2017)
    • 1931 – Trevanian, American author and scholar (d. 2005)
    • 1931 – Rona Jaffe, American novelist (d. 2005)
    • 1932 – Mimi Coertse, South African soprano and producer
    • 1932 – Mamo Wolde, Ethiopian runner (d. 2002)
    • 1933 – Eddie Adams, American photographer and journalist (d. 2004)
    • 1934 – John A. Alonzo, American actor and cinematographer (d. 2001)
    • 1934 – Kevin Billington, English director and producer
    • 1935 – Ian Craig, Australian cricketer (d. 2014)
    • 1935 – Paul Kennedy, English lawyer and judge
    • 1937 – Vladimir Arnold, Russian-French mathematician and academic (d. 2010)
    • 1937 – Klaus Basikow, German footballer and manager (d. 2015)
    • 1937 – Antal Festetics, Hungarian-Austrian biologist and zoologist
    • 1937 – Chips Moman, American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1938 – Jean-Marie Doré, Guinean lawyer and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Guinea (d. 2016)
    • 1938 – Tom Oliver, English-Australian actor
    • 1939 – Ron Lynch, Australian rugby league player and coach
    • 1939 – Frank McCloskey, American sergeant and politician (d. 2003)
    • 1940 – Jacques Brassard, Canadian educator and politician
    • 1941 – Marv Albert, American sportscaster
    • 1941 – Chick Corea, American pianist and composer
    • 1941 – Roy Harper, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1941 – Reg Presley, English singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1941 – Lucille Roybal-Allard, American politician
    • 1942 – Len Barry, American singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1942 – Bert Sakmann, German physiologist and biologist, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1945 – Pat Jennings, Irish footballer and coach
    • 1946 – Michel Bergeron, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1946 – Bobby Gould, English footballer and manager
    • 1946 – Catherine Bréchignac, French physicist and academic
    • 1948 – Hans Binder, Austrian race car driver
    • 1948 – Herbert Meyer, German footballer
    • 1948 – Len Wein, American comic book writer and editor (d. 2017)
    • 1949 – Jens Böhrnsen, German judge and politician
    • 1949 – Marc Tardif, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1949 – John Wetton, English singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer (d. 2017)
    • 1950 – Oğuz Abadan, Turkish singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1950 – Michael Fabricant, English politician
    • 1950 – Sonia Manzano, American actress of Puerto Rican descent, noted for playing Maria on Sesame Street
    • 1950 – Bun E. Carlos, American drummer
    • 1951 – Brad Delp, American musician and singer (d. 2007)
    • 1951 – Andranik Margaryan, Armenian engineer and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Armenia (d. 2007)
    • 1952 – Spencer Abraham, American academic and politician, 10th United States Secretary of Energy
    • 1952 – Junior Brown, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1952 – Pete Farndon, English bass player and songwriter (d. 1983)
    • 1953 – Rocky Burnette, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1954 – Tim Razzall, Baron Razzall, English lawyer and politician
    • 1956 – Terry Alderman, Australian cricketer and sportscaster
    • 1957 – Timothy Busfield, American actor, director, and producer
    • 1957 – Javed Miandad, Pakistani cricketer and coach
    • 1958 – Meredith Brooks, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1959 – John Linnell, American singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1959 – Scott Thompson, Canadian actor and comedian
    • 1960 – Joe Kopicki, American basketball player and coach
    • 1962 – Jordan Peterson, Canadian psychologist, professor and cultural critic
    • 1963 – Philippe Bugalski, French race car driver (d. 2012)
    • 1963 – Warwick Capper, Australian footballer, coach, and actor
    • 1963 – Tim DeKay, American actor
    • 1963 – Jerry Lynn, American wrestler
    • 1964 – Derek Higgins, Irish race car driver
    • 1964 – Kent Jones, American journalist
    • 1964 – Paula Marshall, American actress
    • 1964 – Peter Such, Scottish-born, English cricketer
    • 1965 – Adrian Toole, Australian rugby league player
    • 1965 – Gwen Torrence, American sprinter
    • 1965 – Cathy Tyson, English actress
    • 1966 – Marc Glanville, Australian rugby league player
    • 1966 – Tom Misteli, Swiss cell biologist
    • 1967 – Aivar Kuusmaa, Estonian basketball player and coach
    • 1967 – Frances O’Connor, English-Australian actress
    • 1968 – Scott Aldred, American baseball player and coach
    • 1968 – Htay Kywe, Burmese activist
    • 1968 – Bobby Sheehan, American bass player and songwriter (d. 1999)
    • 1969 – Zsolt Daczi, Hungarian guitarist (d. 2007)
    • 1969 – Héctor Garza, Mexican wrestler (d. 2013)
    • 1969 – Mathieu Schneider, American ice hockey player
    • 1969 – Heinz-Christian Strache, Austrian politician
    • 1971 – Mark Henry, American weightlifter and wrestler
    • 1971 – Ryan Klesko, American baseball player
    • 1971 – Jérôme Romain, Caribbean-Dominican triple jumper and coach
    • 1973 – Jason Caffey, American basketball player and coach
    • 1973 – Darryl White, Australian footballer
    • 1974 – Flávio Conceição, Brazilian footballer
    • 1974 – Hideki Matsui, Japanese baseball player
    • 1974 – Jason Mewes, American actor and producer
    • 1974 – Kerry Kittles, American basketball player
    • 1975 – Bryan Alvarez, American wrestler and journalist
    • 1975 – Stéphanie Szostak, French-American actress
    • 1976 – Antawn Jamison, American basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1976 – Ray Price, Zimbabwean cricketer
    • 1976 – Thomas Sørensen, Danish footballer
    • 1977 – Wade Redden, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1977 – Kenny Wayne Shepherd, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1978 – Lewis Moody, English rugby player
    • 1979 – Dallas Clark, American football player
    • 1979 – Martine Dugrenier, Canadian wrestler
    • 1979 – Diego Milito, Argentine footballer
    • 1979 – Robyn, Swedish singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer
    • 1979 – Earl Watson, American basketball player and coach
    • 1980 – Marco Bortolami, Italian rugby player
    • 1980 – Larry Foote, American football player
    • 1980 – Ifet Taljević, German footballer
    • 1981 – Raitis Grafs, Latvian basketball player
    • 1981 – Paul Hasleby, Australian footballer
    • 1981 – Adriana Lima, Brazilian model and actress
    • 1982 – Ben Blackwell, American drummer
    • 1982 – Diem Brown, German-American journalist and activist (d. 2014)
    • 1982 – Jason David, American football player
    • 1982 – Shailaja Pujari, Indian weightlifter
    • 1982 – James Tomlinson, English cricketer
    • 1983 – Bryan Habana, South African rugby player
    • 1983 – Alexander Pipa, German rugby player
    • 1983 – Christine Sinclair, Canadian soccer player
    • 1984 – James Kwalia, Kenyan-Qatari runner
    • 1984 – Bruno Soriano, Spanish footballer
    • 1985 – Blake Ross, American computer programmer, co-created Mozilla Firefox
    • 1985 – Sam Thaiday, Australian rugby league player
    • 1985 – Kendra Wilkinson, American model, actress, and author
    • 1985 – Chris Young, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1986 – Salim Mehajer, Australian politician
    • 1986 – Harry Taylor, Australian footballer
    • 1987 – Seyi Ajirotutu, American football player
    • 1987 – Antonio Barragán, Spanish footballer
    • 1988 – Artūrs Bērziņš, Latvian basketball player
    • 1988 – Eren Derdiyok, Swiss footballer
    • 1988 – Mauricio Isla, Chilean footballer
    • 1988 – Dave Melillo, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1988 – Dakota Morton, Canadian actor and radio host
    • 1989 – Emma Eliasson, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1989 – Ibrahim Jeilan, Ethiopian runner
    • 1990 – Jrue Holiday, American basketball player
    • 1990 – Kevin López, Spanish runner
    • 1990 – David Worrall, English footballer
    • 1991 – Avisail García, Venezuelan baseball player
    • 1992 – Philippe Coutinho, Brazilian footballer

    Deaths on June 12

    • 796 – Hisham I, Muslim emir (b. 757)
    • 816 – Pope Leo III (b. 750)
    • 918 – Æthelflæd, Mercian daughter of Alfred the Great (b. 870)
    • 1020 – Lyfing, English archbishop (b. 999)
    • 1036 – Tedald, Italian bishop (b. 990)
    • 1144 – Al-Zamakhshari, Persian theologian (b. 1075)
    • 1152 – Henry of Scotland, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon (b. 1114)
    • 1266 – Henry II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (b. 1215)
    • 1294 – John I of Brienne, Count of Eu
    • 1418 – Bernard VII, Count of Armagnac (b. 1360)
    • 1435 – John FitzAlan, 14th Earl of Arundel, English commander (b. 1408)
    • 1478 – Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua (b. 1412)
    • 1524 – Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar, Spanish conquistador (b. 1465)
    • 1560 – Ii Naomori, Japanese warrior (b. 1506)
    • 1560 – Imagawa Yoshimoto, Japanese daimyō (b. 1519)
    • 1565 – Adrianus Turnebus, French philologist and scholar (b. 1512)
    • 1567 – Richard Rich, 1st Baron Rich, English politician, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1490)
    • 1647 – Thomas Farnaby, English scholar and educator (b. 1575)
    • 1668 – Charles Berkeley, 2nd Viscount Fitzhardinge, English politician (b. 1599)
    • 1675 – Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy (b. 1634)
    • 1734 – James FitzJames, 1st Duke of Berwick, French-English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire (b. 1670)
    • 1758 – Prince Augustus William of Prussia (b. 1722)
    • 1772 – Marc-Joseph Marion du Fresne, French explorer (b. 1724)
    • 1778 – Philip Livingston, American merchant and politician (b. 1716)
    • 1816 – Pierre Augereau, French general (b. 1757)
    • 1818 – Egwale Seyon, Ethiopian emperor
    • 1841 – Konstantinos Nikolopoulos, Greek composer, archaeologist, and philologist (b. 1786)
    • 1900 – Lucretia Peabody Hale, American journalist and author (b. 1820)
    • 1904 – Camille of Renesse-Breidbach (b. 1836)
    • 1912 – Frédéric Passy, French economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1822)
    • 1917 – Teresa Carreño, Venezuelan-American singer-songwriter, pianist, and conductor (b. 1853)
    • 1932 – Theo Heemskerk, Dutch lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (b. 1852)
    • 1937 – Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Russian general (b. 1893)
    • 1944 – Erich Marcks, German general (b. 1891)
    • 1946 – Médéric Martin, Canadian politician, mayor of Montreal (b. 1869)
    • 1952 – Harry Lawson, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Victoria (b. 1875)
    • 1957 – Jimmy Dorsey, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (The Dorsey Brothers and The California Ramblers) (b. 1904)
    • 1962 – John Ireland, English composer and educator (b. 1879)
    • 1963 – Medgar Evers, American soldier and activist (b. 1925)
    • 1966 – Hermann Scherchen, German viola player and conductor (b. 1891)
    • 1968 – Herbert Read, English poet and critic (b. 1893)
    • 1969 – Aleksandr Deyneka, Ukrainian-Russian painter and sculptor (b. 1899)
    • 1972 – Edmund Wilson, American critic, essayist, and editor (b. 1895)
    • 1972 – Dinanath Gopal Tendulkar, Indian writer and documentary filmmaker (b. 1909)
    • 1976 – Gopinath Kaviraj, Indian philosopher and scholar (b. 1887)
    • 1978 – Guo Moruo, Chinese historian, author, and poet (b. 1892)
    • 1978 – Georg Siimenson, Estonian footballer (b. 1912)
    • 1980 – Billy Butlin, South African-English businessman, founded the Butlins Company (b. 1899)
    • 1980 – Masayoshi Ōhira, Japanese politician, 68th Prime minister of Japan (b. 1910)
    • 1980 – Milburn Stone, American actor (b. 1904)
    • 1982 – Ian McKay, English sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1953)
    • 1982 – Karl von Frisch, Austrian-German ethologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1886)
    • 1983 – Norma Shearer, Canadian-American actress (b. 1902)
    • 1989 – Bruce Hamilton, Australian public servant (b. 1911)
    • 1990 – Terence O’Neill, Baron O’Neill of the Maine, English captain and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Northern Ireland (b. 1914)
    • 1994 – Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Russian-French rabbi and author (b. 1902)
    • 1995 – Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, Italian pianist (b. 1920)
    • 1995 – Pierre Russell, American basketball player (b. 1949)
    • 1997 – Bulat Okudzhava, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1924)
    • 1998 – Leo Buscaglia, American author and educator (b. 1924)
    • 1998 – Theresa Merritt, American actress and singer (b. 1922)
    • 1999 – J. F. Powers, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1917)
    • 2000 – Purushottam Laxman Deshpande, Indian actor, director, and producer (b. 1919)
    • 2000 – Sandro Rosa do Nascimento, Brazilian criminal (b. 1978)
    • 2002 – Bill Blass, American fashion designer, founded Bill Blass Limited (b. 1922)
    • 2002 – Zena Sutherland, American reviewer of children’s literature (b. 1915)
    • 2003 – Gregory Peck, American actor and political activist (b. 1916)
    • 2005 – Scott Young, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1918)
    • 2006 – Nicky Barr, Australian rugby player and fighter pilot (b. 1915)
    • 2006 – György Ligeti, Romanian-Hungarian composer and educator (b. 1923)
    • 2006 – Kenneth Thomson, 2nd Baron Thomson of Fleet, Canadian businessman and art collector (b. 1923)
    • 2008 – Miroslav Dvořák, Czech ice hockey player (b. 1951)
    • 2008 – Derek Tapscott, Welsh footballer and manager (b. 1932)
    • 2010 – Al Williamson, American illustrator (b. 1931)
    • 2011 – René Audet, Canadian bishop (b. 1920)
    • 2011 – Carl Gardner, American singer (The Coasters) (b. 1928)
    • 2012 – Hector Bianciotti, Argentinian-French journalist and author (b. 1930)
    • 2012 – Henry Hill, American mobster (b. 1943)
    • 2012 – Margarete Mitscherlich-Nielsen, Danish-German psychoanalyst and author (b. 1917)
    • 2012 – Medin Zhega, Albanian footballer and manager (b. 1946)
    • 2012 – Elinor Ostrom, American political scientist and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1933)
    • 2012 – Pahiño, Spanish footballer (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Frank Walker, Australian judge and politician, 41st Attorney General of New South Wales (b. 1942)
    • 2013 – Teresita Barajuen, Spanish nun (b. 1908)
    • 2013 – Jason Leffler, American race car driver (b. 1975)
    • 2013 – Joseph A. Unanue, American sergeant and businessman (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Nabil Hemani, Algerian footballer (b. 1979)
    • 2014 – Dan Jacobson, South African-English author and critic (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Frank Schirrmacher, German journalist (b. 1959)
    • 2015 – Fernando Brant, Brazilian journalist, poet, and composer (b. 1946)
    • 2015 – Frederick Pei Li, Chinese-American physician and academic (b. 1940)
    • 2015 – Patrick Lennox Tierney, American historian and academic (b. 1914)
    • 2016 – Omar Mateen, American mass murderer (b. 1986)
    • 2016 – George Voinovich, American politician (b. 1936)
    • 2016 – Janet Waldo, American actress and voice artist (b. 1920)

    Holidays and observances on June 12

    • Chaco Armistice Day (Paraguay)
    • Christian feast day:
      • 108 Martyrs of World War II
      • Basilides, Cyrinus, Nabor and Nazarius
      • Blessed Hildegard Burjan
      • Enmegahbowh (Episcopal Church)
      • Eskil
      • First Ecumenical Council (Lutheran)
      • Gaspar Bertoni
      • John of Sahagún
      • Onuphrius
      • Pope Leo III
      • Ternan
      • June 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Dia dos Namorados (Brazil)
    • Helsinki Day (Finland)
    • Independence Day, celebrates the independence of the Philippines from Spain in 1898.
    • June 12 Commemoration (Lagos State)
    • Loving Day (United States)
    • Russia Day (Russia)
    • World Day Against Child Labour, and its related observances:
      • Children’s Day (Haiti)

  • June 11- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1184 BC – Trojan War: Troy is sacked and burned, according to calculations by Eratosthenes.
    • 173 – Marcomannic Wars: The Roman army in Moravia is encircled by the Quadi, who have broken the peace treaty (171). In a violent thunderstorm emperor Marcus Aurelius defeats and subdues them in the so-called “miracle of the rain”.
    • 631 – Emperor Taizong of Tang sends envoys to the Xueyantuo bearing gold and silk in order to seek the release of Chinese prisoners captured during the transition from Sui to Tang.
    • 786 – A Hasanid Alid uprising in Mecca is crushed by the Abbasids at the Battle of Fakhkh.
    • 980 – Vladimir the Great consolidates the Kievan realm from Ukraine to the Baltic Sea. He is proclaimed ruler (knyaz) of all Kievan Rus’.
    • 1011 – Lombard Revolt: Greek citizens of Bari rise up against the Lombard rebels led by Melus and deliver the city to Basil Mesardonites, Byzantine governor (catepan) of the Catepanate of Italy.
    • 1118 – Roger of Salerno, Prince of Antioch, captures Azaz from the Seljuk Turks.
    • 1157 – Albert I of Brandenburg, also called The Bear (Ger: Albrecht der Bär), becomes the founder of the Margraviate of Brandenburg, Germany and the first margrave.
    • 1345 – The megas doux Alexios Apokaukos, chief minister of the Byzantine Empire, is lynched by political prisoners.
    • 1429 – Hundred Years’ War: Start of the Battle of Jargeau.
    • 1488 – Battle of Sauchieburn: Fought between rebel Lords and James III of Scotland, resulting in the death of the king.
    • 1509 – Henry VIII of England marries Catherine of Aragon.
    • 1594 – Philip II recognizes the rights and privileges of the local nobles and chieftains in the Philippines, which paved way to the stabilization of the rule of the Principalía (an elite ruling class of native nobility in Spanish Philippines).
    • 1748 – Denmark adopts the characteristic Nordic Cross flag later taken up by all other Scandinavian countries.
    • 1770 – British explorer Captain James Cook runs aground on the Great Barrier Reef.
    • 1775 – The American Revolutionary War’s first naval engagement, the Battle of Machias, results in the capture of a small British naval vessel.
    • 1776 – The Continental Congress appoints Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston to the Committee of Five to draft a declaration of independence.
    • 1788 – Russian explorer Gerasim Izmailov reaches Alaska.
    • 1805 – A fire consumes large portions of Detroit in the Michigan Territory.
    • 1825 – The first cornerstone is laid for Fort Hamilton in New York City.
    • 1837 – The Broad Street Riot occurs in Boston, fueled by ethnic tensions between Yankees and Irish.
    • 1865 – The Naval Battle of the Riachuelo is fought on the rivulet Riachuelo (Argentina), between the Paraguayan Navy on one side and the Brazilian Navy on the other. The Brazilian victory was crucial for the later success of the Triple Alliance (Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina) in the Paraguayan War.
    • 1892 – The Limelight Department, one of the world’s first film studios, is officially established in Melbourne, Australia.
    • 1895 – Paris–Bordeaux–Paris, sometimes called the first automobile race in history or the “first motor race”, takes place.
    • 1898 – The Hundred Days’ Reform, a planned movement to reform social, political, and educational institutions in China, is started by the Guangxu Emperor, but is suspended by Empress Dowager Cixi after 104 days. (The failed reform led to the abolition of the Imperial examination in 1905.)
    • 1901 – The boundaries of the Colony of New Zealand are extended by the UK to include the Cook Islands.
    • 1903 – A group of Serbian officers stormed the royal palace and assassinated King Alexander Obrenović and his wife, Queen Draga.
    • 1917 – King Alexander assumes the throne of Greece after his father, Constantine I, abdicates under pressure from allied armies occupying Athens.
    • 1919 – Sir Barton wins the Belmont Stakes, becoming the first horse to win the U.S. Triple Crown.
    • 1920 – During the U.S. Republican National Convention in Chicago, U.S. Republican Party leaders gathered in a room at the Blackstone Hotel to come to a consensus on their candidate for the U.S. presidential election, leading the Associated Press to coin the political phrase “smoke-filled room”.
    • 1935 – Inventor Edwin Armstrong gives the first public demonstration of FM broadcasting in the United States at Alpine, New Jersey.
    • 1936 – The London International Surrealist Exhibition opens.
    • 1937 – Great Purge: The Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin executes eight army leaders.
    • 1938 – Second Sino-Japanese War: The Battle of Wuhan starts.
    • 1940 – World War II: The Siege of Malta begins with a series of Italian air raids.
    • 1942 – World War II: The United States agrees to send Lend-Lease aid to the Soviet Union.
    • 1942 – Free French Forces retreat from Bir Hakeim after having successfully delayed the Axis advance.
    • 1944 – USS Missouri, the last battleship built by the United States Navy and future site of the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, is commissioned.
    • 1955 – Eighty-three spectators are killed and at least 100 are injured after an Austin-Healey and a Mercedes-Benz collide at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the deadliest ever accident in motorsports.
    • 1956 – Start of Gal Oya riots, the first reported ethnic riots that target minority Sri Lankan Tamils in the Eastern Province. The total number of deaths is reportedly 150.
    • 1962 – Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin allegedly become the only prisoners to escape from the prison on Alcatraz Island.
    • 1963 – American Civil Rights Movement: Governor of Alabama George Wallace defiantly stands at the door of Foster Auditorium at the University of Alabama in an attempt to block two black students, Vivian Malone and James Hood, from attending that school. Later in the day, accompanied by federalized National Guard troops, they are able to register.
    • 1963 – Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Đức burns himself with gasoline in a busy Saigon intersection to protest the lack of religious freedom in South Vietnam.
    • 1963 – John F. Kennedy addresses Americans from the Oval Office proposing the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which would revolutionize American society by guaranteeing equal access to public facilities, ending segregation in education, and guaranteeing federal protection for voting rights.
    • 1964 – World War II veteran Walter Seifert attacks an elementary school in Cologne, Germany, killing at least eight children and two teachers and seriously injuring several more with a home-made flamethrower and a lance.
    • 1968 – Lloyd J. Old identified the first cell surface antigens that could differentiate among different cell types.
    • 1970 – After being appointed on May 15, Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington officially receive their ranks as U.S. Army Generals, becoming the first women to do so.
    • 1971 – The U.S. Government forcibly removes the last holdouts to the Native American Occupation of Alcatraz, ending 19 months of control.
    • 1978 – Altaf Hussain founds the student political movement All Pakistan Muhajir Students Organisation (APMSO) in Karachi University.
    • 1981 – A magnitude 6.9 earthquake at Golbaf, Iran, kills at least 2,000.
    • 1987 – Diane Abbott, Paul Boateng and Bernie Grant are elected as the first black MPs in Great Britain.
    • 1998 – Compaq Computer pays US$9 billion for Digital Equipment Corporation in the largest high-tech acquisition.
    • 2001 – Timothy McVeigh is executed for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing.
    • 2002 – Antonio Meucci is acknowledged as the first inventor of the telephone by the United States Congress.
    • 2004 – Cassini–Huygens makes its closest flyby of the Saturn moon Phoebe.
    • 2007 – Mudslides in Chittagong, Bangladesh, kill 130 people.
    • 2008 – Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper makes a historic official apology to Canada’s First Nations in regard to abuses at a Canadian Indian residential school.
    • 2008 – The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is launched into orbit.
    • 2010 – The first African FIFA World Cup kicks off in South Africa.
    • 2012 – More than 80 people die in a landslide triggered by two earthquakes in Afghanistan; an entire village is buried.
    • 2013 – Greece’s public broadcaster ERT is shut down by then-prime minister Antonis Samaras. It reopened exactly two years later by then-prime minister Alexis Tsipras.
    • 2018 – 3 World Trade Center officially opens.

    Births on June 11

    • 1403 – John IV, Duke of Brabant (d. 1427)
    • 1431 – Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond (d. 1456)
    • 1456 – Anne Neville, Princess of Wales and Queen of England (d. 1485)
    • 1540 – Barnabe Googe, English poet and translator (d. 1594)
    • 1555 – Lodovico Zacconi, Italian composer and theorist (d. 1627)
    • 1572 – Ben Jonson, English poet, playwright, and critic (d. 1637)
    • 1585 – Evert Horn, Swedish soldier (d. 1615)
    • 1588 – George Wither, English poet (d. 1667)
    • 1620 – John Moore, English businessman and politician, Lord Mayor of London (d. 1702)
    • 1655 – Antonio Cifrondi, Italian painter (d. 1730)
    • 1662 – Tokugawa Ienobu, Japanese shōgun (d. 1712)
    • 1672 – Francesco Antonio Bonporti, Italian priest and composer (d. 1749)
    • 1690 – Giovanni Antonio Giay, Italian composer (d. 1764)
    • 1696 – James Francis Edward Keith, Scottish-Prussian field marshal (d. 1758)
    • 1697 – Francesco Antonio Vallotti, Italian organist and composer (d. 1780)
    • 1704 – Carlos Seixas, Portuguese harpsichord player and composer (d. 1742)
    • 1709 – Joachim Martin Falbe, German painter (d. 1782)
    • 1712 – Benjamin Ingham, American missionary (d. 1772)
    • 1723 – Johann Georg Palitzsch, German astronomer (d. 1788)
    • 1726 – Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain (d. 1746)
    • 1741 – Joseph Warren, American physician and general (d. 1775)
    • 1776 – John Constable, English painter and academic (d. 1837)
    • 1797 – José Trinidad Reyes, Honduran philosopher and theorist (d. 1855)
    • 1807 – James F. Schenck, American admiral (d. 1882)
    • 1815 – Julia Margaret Cameron, Indian-Sri Lankan photographer (d. 1879)
    • 1818 – Alexander Bain, Scottish philosopher and academic (d. 1903)
    • 1829 – Edward Braddon, English-Australian politician, 18th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1904)
    • 1832 – Lucy Pickens, American wife of Francis Wilkinson Pickens (d. 1899)
    • 1842 – Carl von Linde, German engineer and academic (d. 1934)
    • 1846 – William Louis Marshall, American general and engineer (d. 1920)
    • 1847 – Millicent Fawcett, English academic and activist (d. 1929)
    • 1861 – Alexander Peacock, Australian politician, 20th Premier of Victoria (d. 1933)
    • 1864 – Richard Strauss, German composer and conductor (d. 1949)
    • 1867 – Charles Fabry, French physicist and academic (d. 1945)
    • 1871 – Stjepan Radić, Croatian lawyer and politician (d. 1928)
    • 1876 – Alfred L. Kroeber, American-French anthropologist and ethnologist (d. 1960)
    • 1877 – Renée Vivien, English-French poet and author (d. 1909)
    • 1879 – Roger Bresnahan, American baseball player and manager (d. 1944)
    • 1880 – Jeannette Rankin, American social worker and politician (d. 1973)
    • 1881 – Spiros Xenos, Greek-Swedish painter (d. 1963)
    • 1881 – Mordecai Kaplan, Lithuanian rabbi, founded Reconstructionist Judaism (d. 1983)
    • 1888 – Bartolomeo Vanzetti, Italian-American anarchist and convicted criminal (d. 1927)
    • 1889 – Hugo Wieslander, Swedish decathlete (d. 1976)
    • 1894 – Kiichiro Toyoda, Japanese businessman, founded Toyota (d. 1952)
    • 1895 – Nikolai Bulganin, Soviet politician (d. 1975)
    • 1897 – Ram Prasad Bismil, Indian activist, founded the Hindustan Republican Association (d. 1927)
    • 1897 – Reg Latta, Australian rugby league player (d. 1970)
    • 1899 – Yasunari Kawabata, Japanese novelist and short story writer Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1972)
    • 1901 – Cap Fear, Canadian football player and rower (d. 1978)
    • 1901 – Benny Wearing, Australian rugby league player (d. 1968)
    • 1902 – Eric Fraser, British illustrator and graphic designer (d. 1983)
    • 1903 – Ernie Nevers, American football player and coach (d. 1976)
    • 1908 – Karl Hein, German hammer thrower (d. 1982)
    • 1908 – Francisco Marto, Portuguese saint (d. 1919)
    • 1909 – Natascha Artin Brunswick, German-American mathematician and photographer (d. 2003)
    • 1910 – Carmine Coppola, American flute player and composer (d. 1991)
    • 1910 – Jacques Cousteau, French biologist, author, and inventor, co-developed the aqua-lung (d. 1997)
    • 1912 – James Algar, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1998)
    • 1912 – William Baziotes, American painter and academic (d. 1963)
    • 1912 – Mohammad Hassan Ganji, Iranian meteorologist and academic (d. 2012)
    • 1913 – Vince Lombardi, American football player, coach, and manager (d. 1970)
    • 1913 – Risë Stevens, American soprano and actress (d. 2013)
    • 1914 – Jan Hendrik van den Berg, Dutch psychiatrist and academic (d. 2012)
    • 1915 – Magda Gabor, Hungarian-American actress (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – Nicholas Metropolis, American mathematician and physicist (d. 1999)
    • 1917 – Joseph B. Wirthlin, American businessman and religious leader (d. 2008)
    • 1918 – Ruth Aarons, American table tennis player and manager (d. 1980)
    • 1919 – Suleiman Mousa, Jordanian historian and author (d. 2008)
    • 1919 – Richard Todd, Irish-English actor (d. 2009)
    • 1920 – Shelly Manne, American drummer, composer, and bandleader (d. 1984)
    • 1920 – Hazel Scott, Trinidadian-American singer, actress, and pianist (d. 1981)
    • 1920 – Keith Seaman, Australian lawyer and politician, 29th Governor of South Australia (d. 2013)
    • 1922 – Jean Sutherland Boggs, Peruvian-Canadian historian, academic, and civil servant (d. 2014)
    • 1922 – Michael Cacoyannis, Greek Cypriot director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2011)
    • 1925 – Johnny Esaw, Canadian sportscaster (d. 2013)
    • 1925 – William Styron, American novelist and essayist (d. 2006)
    • 1926 – Carlisle Floyd, American composer and educator
    • 1927 – Beryl Grey, English ballerina
    • 1927 – John W. O’Malley, American Catholic historian, academic and Jesuit priest
    • 1927 – Kit Pedler, English parapsychologist and author (d. 1981)
    • 1928 – Queen Fabiola of Belgium (d. 2014)
    • 1929 – Ayhan Şahenk, Turkish businessman (d. 2001)
    • 1930 – Charles Rangel, American soldier, lawyer, and politician
    • 1932 – Athol Fugard, South African-American actor, director, and playwright
    • 1932 – Tim Sainsbury, English businessman and politician, Minister of State for Trade
    • 1933 – Gene Wilder, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1937 – Chad Everett, American actor and director (d. 2012)
    • 1937 – Robin Warren, Australian pathologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1939 – Rachael Heyhoe Flint, Baroness Heyhoe Flint, English cricketer and journalist (d. 2017)
    • 1939 – Jackie Stewart, Scottish race car driver and sportscaster
    • 1942 – Parris Glendening, American politician, 59th Governor of Maryland
    • 1943 – Henry Hill, American mobster (d. 2012)
    • 1945 – Adrienne Barbeau, American actress
    • 1947 – Richard Palmer-James, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1948 – Dave Cash, American baseball player and coach
    • 1948 – Lalu Prasad Yadav, Indian politician, 20th Chief Minister of Bihar
    • 1949 – Frank Beard, American drummer and songwriter
    • 1950 – Lynsey de Paul, English singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, cartoonist and actress (d. 2014)
    • 1950 – Graham Russell, English-Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1951 – Matthew Engel, English journalist and author
    • 1951 – Yasumasa Morimura, Japanese painter and photographer
    • 1952 – Yekaterina Podkopayeva, Russian runner
    • 1952 – Donnie Van Zant, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1953 – Steve Bassam, Baron Bassam of Brighton, English politician
    • 1953 – José Bové, French farmer and politician
    • 1953 – Barbara Minty, American model
    • 1954 – John Dyson, Australian cricketer
    • 1954 – Johnny Neel, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
    • 1955 – Yuriy Sedykh, Ukrainian hammer thrower
    • 1955 – Duncan Steel, English-Australian astronomer and author
    • 1956 – Joe Montana, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1956 – Simon Plouffe, Canadian mathematician and academic
    • 1956 – Arthur Porter, Canadian physician and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1956 – Jamaaladeen Tacuma, American bass player and bandleader
    • 1958 – Barry Adamson, English singer and bass player
    • 1959 – Hugh Laurie, English actor and screenwriter
    • 1960 – Mehmet Oz, American surgeon, author, and television host
    • 1962 – Mano Menezes, Brazilian footballer and coach
    • 1963 – Gioia Bruno, American singer-songwriter
    • 1963 – Sandra Schmirler, Canadian curler and sportscaster (d. 2000)
    • 1964 – Jean Alesi, French race car driver
    • 1964 – Kim Gallagher, American runner (d. 2002)
    • 1965 – Georgios Bartzokas, Greek former professional basketball player
    • 1965 – Gavin Hill, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1966 – Bruce Robison, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1967 – Graeme Bachop, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1967 – João Garcia, Portuguese mountaineer
    • 1968 – Alois, Hereditary Prince of Liechtenstein
    • 1968 – Manoa Thompson, Fijian rugby player
    • 1969 – Peter Dinklage, American actor and producer
    • 1969 – Bryan Fogarty, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2002)
    • 1969 – Olaf Kapagiannidis, German footballer
    • 1971 – Vladimir Gaidamașciuc, Moldovan footballer
    • 1971 – Liz Kendall, British politician
    • 1971 – Mark Richardson, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1971 – Kenjiro Tsuda, Japanese voice actor
    • 1972 – Stephen Kearney, New Zealand rugby league player and coach
    • 1973 – José Manuel Abundis, Mexican footballer and coach
    • 1974 – Fragiskos Alvertis, Greek basketball player, coach, and manager
    • 1976 – Reiko Tosa, Japanese runner
    • 1977 – Geoff Ogilvy, Australian golfer
    • 1978 – Joshua Jackson, Canadian-American actor
    • 1978 – Daryl Tuffey, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1979 – Ali Boussaboun, Moroccan-Dutch footballer
    • 1979 – Amy Duggan, Australian footballer and sportscaster
    • 1980 – Yhency Brazoban, Dominican baseball player
    • 1981 – Emiliano Moretti, Italian footballer
    • 1981 – Kristo Tohver, Estonian footballer and referee
    • 1982 – Vanessa Boslak, French pole vaulter
    • 1982 – Jacques Freitag, South African high jumper
    • 1982 – Joey Graham, American basketball player
    • 1982 – Stephen Graham, American basketball player
    • 1982 – Reni Maitua, Australian rugby league player
    • 1982 – Eldar Rønning, Norwegian skier
    • 1982 – Diana Taurasi, American basketball player
    • 1983 – Chuck Hayes, American basketball player
    • 1983 – José Reyes, Dominican baseball player
    • 1984 – Andy Lee, Irish boxer
    • 1984 – Vágner Love, Brazilian footballer
    • 1985 – Tim Hoogland, German footballer
    • 1986 – Sebastian Bayer, German long jumper
    • 1986 – Shia LaBeouf, American actor
    • 1987 – Marsel İlhan, Turkish tennis player
    • 1987 – Didrik Solli-Tangen, Norwegian singer
    • 1988 – Jesús Fernández Collado, Spanish footballer
    • 1988 – Yui Aragaki, Japanese actress, voice actress, singer-songwriter, model, radio host
    • 1989 – Maya Moore, American basketball player
    • 1990 – Christophe Lemaitre, French sprinter
    • 1991 – Daniel Howell, English internet celebrity
    • 1993 – Brittany Boyd, American basketball player
    • 1994 – Ivana Baquero, Spanish actress
    • 1996 – Ayaka Sasaki, Japanese singer
    • 1998 – Charlie Tahan, American actor
    • 1999 – Eartha Cumings, Scottish footballer

    Deaths on June 11

    • 323 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (b. 356 BC)
    • 573 – Emilian of Cogolla, Iberic saint (b. 472)
    • 840 – Junna, emperor of Japan (b. 785)
    • 884 – Shi Jingsi, general of the Tang Dynasty
    • 888 – Rimbert, archbishop of Bremen (b. 830)
    • 1183 – Henry the Young King of England (b. 1155)
    • 1216 – Henry of Flanders, emperor of the Latin Empire (b. c. 1174)
    • 1248 – Adachi Kagemori, Japanese samurai
    • 1253 – Amadeus IV, count of Savoy (b. 1197)
    • 1298 – Yolanda of Poland (b. 1235)
    • 1323 – Bérenger Fredoli, French lawyer and bishop (b. 1250)
    • 1345 – Alexios Apokaukos, chief minister of the Byzantine Empire
    • 1347 – Bartholomew of San Concordio, Italian Dominican canonist and man of letters (b. 1260)
    • 1446 – Henry de Beauchamp, 1st Duke of Warwick (b. 1425)
    • 1479 – John of Sahagun, hermit and saint (b. 1419)
    • 1488 – James III of Scotland (b. 1451)
    • 1557 – John III of Portugal (b. 1502)
    • 1560 – Mary of Guise, queen of James V of Scotland (b. 1515)
    • 1683 – Nikita Pustosvyat, a leader of the Russian Old Believers, beheaded (b. unknown)
    • 1695 – André Félibien, French historian and author (b. 1619)
    • 1712 – Louis Joseph, Duke of Vendôme (b. 1654)
    • 1727 – George I of Great Britain (b. 1660)
    • 1748 – Felice Torelli, Italian painter (b. 1667)
    • 1796 – Samuel Whitbread, English brewer and politician, founded the Whitbread Company (b. 1720)
    • 1847 – John Franklin, English admiral and politician (b. 1786)
    • 1852 – Karl Bryullov, Russian painter (b. 1799)
    • 1859 – Klemens von Metternich, German-Austrian politician, 1st State Chancellor of the Austrian Empire (b. 1773)
    • 1879 – William, Prince of Orange (b. 1840)
    • 1882 – Louis Désiré Maigret, French bishop (b. 1804)
    • 1885 – Matías Ramos Mejía, Argentinian colonel (b. 1810)
    • 1897 – Henry Ayers, English-Australian politician, 8th Premier of South Australia (b. 1821)
    • 1903 – Nikolai Bugaev, Russian mathematician and philosopher (b. 1837)
    • 1903 – Alexander I of Serbia (b. 1876)
    • 1903 – Draga Mašin, Serbian wife of Alexander I of Serbia (b. 1864)
    • 1911 – James Curtis Hepburn, American physician and missionary (b. 1815)
    • 1913 – Mahmud Shevket Pasha, Ottoman general and politician, 279th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1856)
    • 1914 – Adolphus Frederick V, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (b. 1848)
    • 1920 – William F. Halsey, Sr., American captain (b. 1853)
    • 1924 – Théodore Dubois, French organist, composer, and educator (b. 1837)
    • 1927 – William Attewell, English cricketer (b. 1861)
    • 1934 – Lev Vygotsky, Belarusian-Russian psychologist and theorist (b. 1896)
    • 1936 – Robert E. Howard, American author and poet (b. 1906)
    • 1937 – R. J. Mitchell, English engineer, designed the Supermarine Spitfire (b. 1895)
    • 1941 – Daniel Carter Beard, American author and illustrator, founded the Boy Scouts of America (b. 1850)
    • 1955 – Pierre Levegh, French race car driver (b. 1905)
    • 1962 – Chhabi Biswas, Indian actor and director (b. 1900)
    • 1963 – Thích Quảng Đức, Vietnamese monk and martyr (b. 1897)
    • 1965 – Paul B. Coremans, Belgian chemist and academic (b. 1908)
    • 1965 – José Mendes Cabeçadas, Portuguese admiral and politician, 9th President of Portugal (b. 1883)
    • 1970 – Frank Laubach, American missionary and mystic (b. 1884)
    • 1974 – Eurico Gaspar Dutra, Brazilian general and politician, 16th President of Brazil (b. 1883)
    • 1974 – Julius Evola, Italian philosopher and author (b. 1898)
    • 1976 – Jim Konstanty, American baseball player (b. 1917)
    • 1979 – Alice Dalgliesh, Trinidadian-American author and publisher (b. 1893)
    • 1979 – John Wayne, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1907)
    • 1983 – Ghanshyam Das Birla, Indian businessman and politician (b. 1894)
    • 1984 – Enrico Berlinguer, Italian politician (b. 1922)
    • 1986 – Chesley Bonestell, American painter and illustrator (b. 1888)
    • 1991 – Cromwell Everson, South African composer (b. 1925)
    • 1993 – Ray Sharkey, American actor (b. 1952)
    • 1994 – A. Thurairajah, Sri Lankan engineer and academic (b. 1934)
    • 1995 – Rodel Naval, Filipino singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1953)
    • 1996 – George Hees, Canadian politician (b. 1910)
    • 1996 – Brigitte Helm, German-Swiss actress (b. 1908)
    • 1998 – Catherine Cookson, English author (b. 1906)
    • 1999 – DeForest Kelley, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1920)
    • 2001 – Timothy McVeigh, American terrorist (b. 1968)
    • 2001 – Amalia Mendoza, Mexican singer and actress (b. 1923)
    • 2003 – David Brinkley, American journalist and author (b. 1920)
    • 2004 – Egon von Fürstenberg, Swiss fashion designer (b. 1946)
    • 2005 – Vasco Gonçalves, Portuguese general and politician, 103rd Prime Minister of Portugal (b. 1922)
    • 2005 – Anne-Marie Alonzo, Canadian playwright, poet, novelist, critic and publisher (b. 1951)
    • 2006 – Neroli Fairhall, New Zealand archer (b. 1944)
    • 2006 – Bruce Shand, English soldier (b. 1917)
    • 2007 – Imre Friedmann, American biologist and academic (b. 1921)
    • 2007 – Mala Powers, American actress (b. 1931)
    • 2008 – Ove Andersson, Swedish race car driver (b. 1938)
    • 2008 – Võ Văn Kiệt, Vietnamese soldier and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Vietnam (b. 1922)
    • 2011 – Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Israeli physicist and engineer (b. 1947)
    • 2011 – Seth Putnam, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1968)
    • 2012 – Ann Rutherford, Canadian-American actress (b. 1917)
    • 2012 – Teófilo Stevenson, Cuban boxer and engineer (b. 1952)
    • 2013 – Miller Barber, American golfer (b. 1931)
    • 2013 – Carl W. Bauer, American lawyer and politician (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Robert Fogel, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1926)
    • 2013 – James Grimsley, Jr., American general (b. 1921)
    • 2013 – Rory Morrison, English journalist (b. 1964)
    • 2013 – Kristiāns Pelšs, Latvian ice hockey player (b. 1992)
    • 2013 – Vidya Charan Shukla, Indian politician, Indian Minister of External Affairs (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Ruby Dee, American actress (b. 1922)
    • 2014 – Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Spanish conductor and composer (b. 1933)
    • 2014 – Susan B. Horwitz, American computer scientist, engineer, and academic (b. 1955)
    • 2014 – Mipham Chokyi Lodro, Tibetan lama and educator (b. 1952)
    • 2014 – Benjamin Mophatlane, South African businessman (b. 1973)
    • 2014 – Carlton Sherwood, American soldier and journalist (b. 1947)
    • 2015 – Jim Ed Brown, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1934)
    • 2015 – Ornette Coleman, American saxophonist, violinist, trumpet player, and composer (b. 1930)
    • 2015 – Ian McKechnie, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1941)
    • 2015 – Ron Moody, English actor and singer (b. 1924)
    • 2015 – Dusty Rhodes, American wrestler (b. 1945)
    • 2016 – Rudi Altig, German track and road racing cyclist (b. 1937)
    • 2020 – Stella Pevsner, children’s author (b. 1921)

    Holidays and observances on June 11

    • American Evacuation Day (Libya)
    • Brazilian Navy commemorative day (Brazil)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Barnabas the Apostle
      • Bartholomew the Apostle (Eastern Christianity)
      • Blessed Ignatius Maloyan (Armenian Catholic Church)
      • Paula Frassinetti
      • Riagail of Bangor
      • June 11 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Davis Day (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada)
    • Kamehameha Day (Hawaii, United States)
    • Student Day (Honduras)

  • June 10- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 671 – Emperor Tenji of Japan introduces a water clock (clepsydra) called Rokoku. The instrument, which measures time and indicates hours, is placed in the capital of Ōtsu.
    • 1190 – Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowns in the river Saleph while leading an army to Jerusalem.
    • 1329 – The Battle of Pelekanon results in a Byzantine defeat by the Ottoman Empire.
    • 1523 – Copenhagen is surrounded by the army of Frederick I of Denmark, as the city will not recognise him as the successor of Christian II of Denmark.
    • 1539 – Council of Trent: Pope Paul III sends out letters to his bishops, delaying the Council due to war and the difficulty bishops had traveling to Venice.
    • 1596 – Willem Barents and Jacob van Heemskerk discover Bear Island.
    • 1619 – Thirty Years’ War: Battle of Záblatí, a turning point in the Bohemian Revolt.
    • 1624 – Signing of the Treaty of Compiègne between France and the Netherlands.
    • 1692 – Salem witch trials: Bridget Bishop is hanged at Gallows Hill near Salem, Massachusetts, for “certaine Detestable Arts called Witchcraft and Sorceries”.
    • 1719 – Jacobite risings: Battle of Glen Shiel
    • 1782 – King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (Rama I) of Siam (modern day Thailand) is crowned.
    • 1786 – A landslide dam on the Dadu River created by an earthquake ten days earlier collapses, killing 100,000 in the Sichuan province of China.
    • 1793 – The Jardin des Plantes museum opens in Paris. A year later, it becomes the first public zoo.
    • 1793 – French Revolution: Following the arrests of Girondin leaders, the Jacobins gain control of the Committee of Public Safety installing the revolutionary dictatorship.
    • 1805 – First Barbary War: Yusuf Karamanli signs a treaty ending the hostilities between Tripolitania and the United States.
    • 1829 – The first Boat Race between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge takes place on the Thames in London.
    • 1838 – Myall Creek massacre: Twenty-eight Aboriginal Australians are murdered.
    • 1854 – The United States Naval Academy graduates its first class of students.
    • 1861 – American Civil War: Battle of Big Bethel: Confederate troops under John B. Magruder defeat a much larger Union force led by General Ebenezer W. Pierce in Virginia.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Brice’s Crossroads: Confederate troops under Nathan Bedford Forrest defeat a much larger Union force led by General Samuel D. Sturgis in Mississippi.
    • 1868 – Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia is assassinated.
    • 1871 – Sinmiyangyo: Captain McLane Tilton leads 109 US Marines in a naval attack on Han River forts on Kanghwa Island, Korea.
    • 1878 – League of Prizren is established, to oppose the decisions of the Congress of Berlin and the Treaty of San Stefano, as a consequence of which the Albanian lands in the Balkans were being partitioned and given to the neighbor states of Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, and Greece.
    • 1886 – Mount Tarawera in New Zealand erupts, killing 153 people and burying the famous Pink and White Terraces. Eruptions continue for three months creating a large, 17 km long fissure across the mountain peak.
    • 1898 – Spanish–American War: In the Battle of Guantánamo Bay, U.S. Marines begin the American invasion of Spanish-held Cuba.
    • 1916 – The Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire was declared by Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca.
    • 1918 – The Austro-Hungarian battleship SMS Szent István sinks off the Croatian coast after being torpedoed by an Italian MAS motorboat; the event is recorded by camera from a nearby vessel.
    • 1924 – Fascists kidnap and kill Italian Socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti in Rome.
    • 1935 – Dr. Robert Smith takes his last drink, and Alcoholics Anonymous is founded in Akron, Ohio, United States, by him and Bill Wilson.
    • 1935 – Chaco War ends: A truce is called between Bolivia and Paraguay who had been fighting since 1932.
    • 1940 – World War II: The Kingdom of Italy declares war on France and the United Kingdom.
    • 1940 – World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt denounces Italy’s actions in his “Stab in the Back” speech at the graduation ceremonies of the University of Virginia.
    • 1940 – World War II: Military resistance to the German occupation of Norway ends.
    • 1942 – World War II: The Lidice massacre is perpetrated as a reprisal for the assassination of Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich.
    • 1944 – World War II: Six hundred forty-two men, women and children massacred at Oradour-sur-Glane, France.
    • 1944 – World War II: In Distomo, Boeotia, Greece, 218 men, women and children are massacred by German troops.
    • 1944 – In baseball, 15-year-old Joe Nuxhall of the Cincinnati Reds becomes the youngest player ever in a major-league game.
    • 1945 – Australian Imperial Forces land in Brunei Bay to liberate Brunei.
    • 1947 – Saab produces its first automobile.
    • 1957 – John Diefenbaker leads the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada to a stunning upset in the 1957 Canadian federal election, ending 22 years of Liberal Party government.
    • 1963 – The Equal Pay Act of 1963, aimed at abolishing wage disparity based on sex, was signed into law by John F. Kennedy as part of his New Frontier Program.
    • 1964 – United States Senate breaks a 75-day filibuster against the Civil Rights Act of 1964, leading to the bill’s passage.
    • 1967 – The Six-Day War ends: Israel and Syria agree to a cease-fire.
    • 1977 – James Earl Ray escapes from Brushy Mountain State Prison in Petros, Tennessee. He is recaptured three days later.
    • 1980 – The African National Congress in South Africa publishes a call to fight from their imprisoned leader Nelson Mandela.
    • 1982 – Lebanon War: The Syrian Arab Army defeats the Israeli Defense Forces in the Battle of Sultan Yacoub.
    • 1990 – British Airways Flight 5390 lands safely at Southampton Airport after a blowout in the cockpit causes the captain to be partially sucked from the cockpit. There are no fatalities.
    • 1991 – Eleven-year-old Jaycee Lee Dugard is kidnapped in South Lake Tahoe, California; she would remain a captive until 2009.
    • 1994 – China conducts a nuclear test for DF-31 warhead at Area C (Beishan), Lop Nur, its prominence being due to the Cox Report.
    • 1996 – Peace talks begin in Northern Ireland without the participation of Sinn Féin.
    • 1997 – Before fleeing his northern stronghold, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot orders the killing of his defense chief Son Sen and 11 of Sen’s family members.
    • 1999 – Kosovo War: NATO suspends its airstrikes after Slobodan Milošević agrees to withdraw Serbian forces from Kosovo.
    • 2001 – Pope John Paul II canonizes Lebanon’s first female saint, Saint Rafqa.
    • 2002 – The first direct electronic communication experiment between the nervous systems of two humans is carried out by Kevin Warwick in the United Kingdom.
    • 2003 – The Spirit rover is launched, beginning NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover mission.
    • 2009 – James Wenneker von Brunn, who was 88-years-old, opened fire inside the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and fatally shot Museum Special Police Officer Stephen Tyrone Johns. Other security guards returned fire, wounding von Brunn, who was apprehended.
    • 2019 – An Agusta A109E Power crashed onto the AXA Equitable Center on Seventh Avenue in Manhattan, New York City, which sparked a fire on the top of the building. The pilot of the helicopter was killed.

    Births on June 10

    • 867 – Emperor Uda of Japan (d. 931)
    • 940 – Abu al-Wafa’ Buzjani, Persian mathematician and astronomer (d. 998)
    • 1213 – Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi, Persian poet and philosopher (d. 1289)
    • 1465 – Mercurino Gattinara, Italian statesman and jurist (d. 1530)
    • 1513 – Louis, Duke of Montpensier (1561–1582) (d. 1582)
    • 1557 – Leandro Bassano, Italian painter (d. 1622)
    • 1632 – Esprit Fléchier, French bishop and author (d. 1710)
    • 1688 – James Francis Edward Stuart, claimant to the English and Scottish throne (d. 1766)
    • 1713 – Princess Caroline of Great Britain (d. 1757)
    • 1716 – Carl Gustaf Ekeberg, Swedish physician and explorer (d. 1784)
    • 1753 – William Eustis, American physician and politician, 12th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1825)
    • 1804 – Hermann Schlegel, German ornithologist and herpetologist (d. 1884)
    • 1819 – Gustave Courbet, French-Swiss painter and sculptor (d. 1877)
    • 1825 – Sondre Norheim, Norwegian-American skier (d. 1897)
    • 1832 – Edwin Arnold, English poet and journalist (d. 1904)
    • 1832 – Nicolaus Otto, German engineer (d. 1891)
    • 1832 – Stephen Mosher Wood, American lieutenant and politician (d. 1920)
    • 1835 – Rebecca Latimer Felton, American educator and politician (d. 1930)
    • 1839 – Ludvig Holstein-Ledreborg, Danish lawyer and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1912)
    • 1840 – Theodor Philipsen, Danish painter (d. 1920)
    • 1843 – Heinrich von Herzogenberg, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1900)
    • 1854 – Sarah Grand, Irish feminist writer (d. 1943)
    • 1859 – Emanuel Nobel, Swedish-Russian businessman (d. 1932)
    • 1862 – Mrs. Leslie Carter, American actress (d. 1937)
    • 1863 – Louis Couperus, Dutch author and poet (d. 1923)
    • 1864 – Ninian Comper, Scottish architect (d. 1960)
    • 1865 – Frederick Cook, American physician and explorer (d. 1940)
    • 1880 – André Derain, French painter and sculptor (d. 1954)
    • 1882 – Nils Økland, Norwegian Esperantist and teacher (d. 1969)
    • 1884 – Leone Sextus Tollemache, English captain (d. 1917)
    • 1886 – Sessue Hayakawa, Japanese actor and producer (d. 1973)
    • 1891 – Al Dubin, Swiss-American songwriter (d. 1945)
    • 1895 – Hattie McDaniel, American actress (d. 1952)
    • 1897 – Grand Duchess Tatiana Nikolaevna of Russia (d. 1918)
    • 1898 – Princess Marie-Auguste of Anhalt (d. 1983)
    • 1899 – Stanisław Czaykowski, Polish race car driver (d. 1933)
    • 1901 – Frederick Loewe, Austrian-American composer (d. 1988)
    • 1904 – Lin Huiyin, Chinese architect and poet (d. 1955)
    • 1907 – Fairfield Porter, American painter and critic (d. 1975)
    • 1907 – Dicky Wells, American jazz trombonist (d. 1985)[n 1]
    • 1909 – Lang Hancock, Australian soldier and businessman (d. 1992)
    • 1910 – Frank Demaree, American baseball player and manager (d. 1958)
    • 1910 – Howlin’ Wolf, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1976)
    • 1911 – Ralph Kirkpatrick, American harpsichord player and musicologist (d. 1984)
    • 1911 – Terence Rattigan, English playwright and screenwriter (d. 1977)
    • 1912 – Jean Lesage, Canadian lawyer and politician, 11th Premier of Quebec (d. 1980)
    • 1913 – Tikhon Khrennikov, Russian pianist and composer (d. 2007)
    • 1913 – Benjamin Shapira, German-Israeli biochemist and academic (d. 1993)
    • 1914 – Oktay Rıfat Horozcu, Turkish poet and playwright (d. 1988)
    • 1915 – Saul Bellow, Canadian-American novelist, essayist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2005)
    • 1916 – Peride Celal, Turkish author (d. 2013)
    • 1916 – William Rosenberg, American entrepreneur, founded Dunkin’ Donuts (d. 2002)
    • 1918 – Patachou, French singer and actress (d. 2015)
    • 1918 – Barry Morse, English-Canadian actor and director (d. 2008)
    • 1919 – Haidar Abdel-Shafi, Palestinian physician and politician (d. 2007)
    • 1919 – Kevin O’Flanagan, Irish footballer, rugby player, and physician (d. 2006)
    • 1921 – Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
    • 1921 – Jean Robic, French cyclist (d. 1980)
    • 1922 – Judy Garland, American singer, actress, and vaudevillian (d. 1969)
    • 1922 – Bill Kerr, South African-Australian actor (d. 2014)
    • 1923 – Paul Brunelle, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1994)
    • 1923 – Robert Maxwell, Czech-English captain, publisher, and politician (d. 1991)
    • 1924 – Friedrich L. Bauer, German mathematician, computer scientist, and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1925 – Leo Gravelle, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2013)
    • 1925 – Nat Hentoff, American historian, author, and journalist (d. 2017)
    • 1925 – James Salter, American novelist and short-story writer (d. 2015)
    • 1926 – Bruno Bartoletti, Italian conductor (d. 2013)
    • 1926 – Lionel Jeffries, English actor, screenwriter and film director (d. 2010)
    • 1927 – Claudio Gilberto Froehlich, Brazilian zoologist
    • 1927 – László Kubala, Hungarian footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2002)
    • 1927 – Lin Yang-kang, Chinese politician, 29th Vice Premier of the Republic of China (d. 2013)
    • 1927 – Johnny Orr, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)
    • 1927 – Eugene Parker, American astrophysicist and academic
    • 1928 – Maurice Sendak, American author and illustrator (d. 2012)
    • 1929 – James McDivitt, American general, pilot, and astronaut
    • 1929 – Ian Sinclair, Australian farmer and politician, 42nd Australian Minister for Defence
    • 1929 – Thomas Taylor, Baron Taylor of Blackburn, British Labour Party politician (d. 2016)
    • 1929 – E. O. Wilson, American biologist, author, and academic
    • 1930 – Aranka Siegal, Czech-American author and Holocaust survivor
    • 1930 – Carmen Cozza, American baseball and football player (d. 2018)
    • 1930 – Chen Xitong, Chinese politician, 8th Mayor of Beijing (d. 2013)
    • 1931 – Bryan Cartledge, English academic and diplomat, British Ambassador to Russia
    • 1931 – João Gilberto, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2019)
    • 1932 – Pierre Cartier, French mathematician and academic
    • 1933 – Chuck Fairbanks, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Peter Gibson, English lawyer and judge
    • 1934 – Tom Pendry, Baron Pendry, English politician
    • 1935 – Vic Elford, English race car driver
    • 1935 – Lu Jiaxi, Chinese self-taught mathematician (d. 1983)
    • 1935 – Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Japanese author and illustrator (d. 2015)
    • 1938 – Rahul Bajaj, Indian businessman and politician
    • 1938 – Violetta Villas, Belgian-Polish singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2011)
    • 1938 – Vasanti N. Bhat-Nayak, Indian mathematician and academic (d. 2009)
    • 1940 – Augie Auer, American-New Zealand meteorologist (d. 2007)
    • 1940 – John Stevens, English drummer (d. 1994)
    • 1941 – Mickey Jones, American drummer (d. 2018)
    • 1941 – Shirley Owens, American singer
    • 1941 – Jürgen Prochnow, German actor
    • 1941 – David Walker, Australian race car driver
    • 1942 – Gordon Burns, Northern Irish journalist
    • 1942 – Chantal Goya, French singer and actress
    • 1942 – Arthur Hamilton, Lord Hamilton, Scottish lawyer and judge
    • 1942 – Preston Manning, Canadian politician
    • 1943 – Simon Jenkins, English journalist and author
    • 1944 – Ze’ev Friedman, Polish-Israeli weightlifter (d. 1972)
    • 1944 – Rick Price, English rock bass player
    • 1947 – Michel Bastarache, Canadian businessman, lawyer, and jurist
    • 1947 – Ken Singleton, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1947 – Robert Wright, English air marshal
    • 1950 – Elías Sosa, Dominican-American baseball player
    • 1951 – Dan Fouts, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1951 – Tony Mundine, Australian boxer
    • 1951 – Burglinde Pollak, German pentathlete
    • 1952 – Kage Baker, American author (d. 2010)
    • 1953 – Eileen Cooper, English painter and academic
    • 1953 – John Edwards, American lawyer and politician
    • 1953 – Garry Hynes, Irish director and producer
    • 1953 – Christine St-Pierre, Canadian journalist and politician
    • 1954 – Moya Greene, Canadian businesswoman
    • 1954 – Rich Hall, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1955 – Annette Schavan, German theologian and politician
    • 1955 – Andrew Stevens, American actor and producer
    • 1958 – Yu Suzuki, Japanese game designer and producer
    • 1959 – Carlo Ancelotti, Italian footballer and manager
    • 1959 – Ernie C, American heavy metal guitarist, songwriter, and producer
    • 1959 – Eliot Spitzer, American lawyer and politician, 54th Governor of New York
    • 1960 – Nandamuri Balakrishna, Indian film actor and politician
    • 1961 – Kim Deal, American singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1961 – Maxi Priest, English singer-songwriter
    • 1962 – Gina Gershon, American actress, singer and author
    • 1962 – Anderson Bigode Herzer, Brazilian poet and author (d. 1982)
    • 1962 – Wong Ka Kui, Hong Kong singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1993)
    • 1962 – Tzi Ma, Hong Kong American character actor
    • 1962 – Brent Sutter, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1963 – Brad Henry, American lawyer and politician, 26th Governor of Oklahoma
    • 1963 – Jeanne Tripplehorn, American actress
    • 1965 – Susanne Albers, German computer scientist and academic
    • 1965 – Elizabeth Hurley, English model, actress, and producer
    • 1965 – Joey Santiago, American alternative rock musician
    • 1966 – David Platt, English footballer and manager
    • 1967 – Emma Anderson, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1967 – Darren Robinson, American rapper (d. 1995)
    • 1968 – Bill Burr, American comedian and actor
    • 1968 – Derek Dooley, American football player and coach
    • 1969 – Craig Hancock, Australian rugby league player
    • 1969 – Ronny Johnsen, Norwegian footballer
    • 1969 – Kate Snow, American journalist
    • 1970 – Mike Doughty, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1970 – Katsuhiro Harada, Japanese game designer, director, and producer
    • 1970 – Alex Santos, Filipino journalist
    • 1970 – Shane Whereat, Australian rugby league player
    • 1970 – Sarah Wixey, Welsh sport shooter
    • 1971 – JoJo Hailey, American singer
    • 1971 – Bobby Jindal, American journalist and politician, 55th Governor of Louisiana
    • 1971 – Bruno N’Gotty, French footballer
    • 1971 – Erik Rutan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1972 – Steven Fischer, American director and producer
    • 1972 – Radmila Šekerinska, Macedonian politician, Prime Minister of the Republic of Macedonia
    • 1972 – Eric Upashantha, Sri Lankan cricketer
    • 1973 – Faith Evans, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1973 – Flesh-n-Bone, American rapper and actor
    • 1973 – Pokey Reese, American baseball player
    • 1975 – Henrik Pedersen, Danish footballer
    • 1976 – Alari Lell, Estonian footballer
    • 1976 – Esther Ouwehand, Dutch politician
    • 1976 – Stefan Postma, Dutch footballer and coach
    • 1976 – Hadi Saei, Iranian martial artist
    • 1977 – Adam Darski, Polish singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1977 – Mike Rosenthal, American football player and coach
    • 1978 – Raheem Brock, American football player
    • 1979 – Evgeni Borounov, Russian ice dancer and coach
    • 1979 – Kostas Louboutis, Greek footballer
    • 1980 – Matuzalém, Brazilian footballer
    • 1980 – Ovie Mughelli, American football player
    • 1980 – Dmitri Uchaykin, Russian ice hockey player (d. 2013)
    • 1980 – Daniele Seccarecci, Italian bodybuilder (d. 2013)
    • 1980 – James Walsh, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pianist
    • 1981 – Mat Jackson, English race car driver
    • 1981 – Albie Morkel, South African cricketer
    • 1981 – Andrey Yepishin, Russian sprinter
    • 1982 – Tara Lipinski, American figure skater
    • 1982 – Princess Madeleine, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland
    • 1982 – Ana Lúcia Souza, Brazilian ballerina and journalist
    • 1983 – Jade Bailey, Barbadian athlete
    • 1983 – Marion Barber III, American football player
    • 1983 – Aaron Davey, Australian footballer
    • 1983 – Leelee Sobieski, American actress and producer
    • 1983 – Steve von Bergen, Swiss footballer
    • 1984 – Johanna Kedzierski, German sprinter
    • 1984 – Dirk Van Tichelt, Belgian martial artist
    • 1985 – Richard Chambers, Irish rower
    • 1985 – Kaia Kanepi, Estonian tennis player
    • 1985 – Kristina Lundberg, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Dane Nielsen, Australian rugby league player
    • 1985 – Andy Schleck, Luxembourger cyclist
    • 1985 – Vasilis Torosidis, Greek footballer
    • 1985 – Kreesha Turner, Canadian singer-songwriter and dancer
    • 1986 – Al Alburquerque, Dominican baseball player
    • 1986 – Marco Andreolli, Italian footballer
    • 1987 – Martin Harnik, German-Austrian footballer
    • 1987 – Amobi Okoye, Nigerian-American football player
    • 1988 – Jeff Teague, American basketball player
    • 1989 – DeAndre Kane, American basketball player
    • 1989 – David Miller, South African cricketer
    • 1989 – Mustapha Carayol, Gambian footballer
    • 1989 – Alexandra Stan, Romanian singer-songwriter, dancer, and model
    • 1991 – Alexa Scimeca Knierim, American figure skater
    • 1992 – Kate Upton, American model and actress

    Deaths on June 10

    • 323 BC – Alexander the Great, Macedonian king (b. 356 BC)
    • AD 38 – Julia Drusilla, Roman sister of Caligula (b. 16 AD)
    • 223 – Liu Bei, Chinese emperor (b. 161)
    • 779 – Emperor Daizong of Tang (b. 727)
    • 754 – Abul Abbas al-Saffah, Muslim caliph (b. 721)
    • 871 – Odo I, Frankish nobleman
    • 903 – Cheng Rui, Chinese warlord
    • 932 – Dong Zhang, Chinese general
    • 942 – Liu Yan, emperor of Southern Han (b. 889)
    • 1075 – Ernest, Margrave of Austria (b. 1027)
    • 1141 – Richenza of Northeim (b. 1087)
    • 1190 – Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1122)
    • 1261 – Matilda of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg (b. 1210)
    • 1338 – Kitabatake Akiie, Japanese governor (b. 1318)
    • 1364 – Agnes of Austria (b. 1281)
    • 1424 – Ernest, Duke of Austria (b. 1377)
    • 1437 – Joan of Navarre, Queen of England (b. 1370)
    • 1468 – Idris Imad al-Din, supreme leader of Tayyibi Isma’ilism, scholar and historian (b. 1392)
    • 1552 – Alexander Barclay, English poet and author (b. 1476)
    • 1556 – Martin Agricola, German composer and theorist (b. 1486)
    • 1580 – Luís de Camões, Portuguese poet (b. 1524–25)
    • 1604 – Isabella Andreini, Italian actress (b. 1562)
    • 1607 – John Popham, English politician, Attorney General for England and Wales (b. 1531)
    • 1654 – Alessandro Algardi, Italian sculptor (b. 1598)
    • 1680 – Johan Göransson Gyllenstierna, Swedish lawyer and politician (b. 1635)
    • 1692 – Bridget Bishop, Colonial Massachusetts woman hanged as a witch during the Salem witch trials (b. 1632)
    • 1735 – Thomas Hearne, English historian and author (b. 1678)
    • 1753 – Joachim Ludwig Schultheiss von Unfriedt, German architect (b. 1678)
    • 1776 – Hsinbyushin, Burmese king (b. 1736)
    • 1776 – Leopold Widhalm, Austrian instrument maker (b. 1722)
    • 1791 – Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte, French admiral (b. 1720)
    • 1799 – Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Caribbean-French violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1745)
    • 1811 – Charles Frederick, Grand Duke of Baden (b. 1728)
    • 1831 – Hans Karl von Diebitsch, German-Russian field marshal (b. 1785)
    • 1836 – André-Marie Ampère, French physicist and mathematician (b. 1775)
    • 1849 – Thomas Robert Bugeaud, French general and politician (b. 1784)
    • 1849 – Robert Brown, Scottish botanist (b. 1773)
    • 1868 – Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia (b. 1823)
    • 1899 – Ernest Chausson, French composer (b. 1855)
    • 1901 – Robert Williams Buchanan, Scottish poet, author, and playwright (b. 1841)
    • 1902 – Jacint Verdaguer, Catalan priest and poet (b. 1845)
    • 1906 – Richard Seddon, English-New Zealand politician, 15th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1845)
    • 1909 – Edward Everett Hale, American minister, historian, and author (b. 1822)
    • 1914 – Ödön Lechner, Hungarian architect (b. 1845)
    • 1918 – Arrigo Boito, Italian author, poet, and composer (b. 1842)
    • 1923 – Pierre Loti, French soldier and author (b. 1850)
    • 1924 – Giacomo Matteotti, Italian lawyer and politician (b. 1885)
    • 1926 – Antoni Gaudí, Spanish architect, designed the Park Güell (b. 1852)
    • 1930 – Adolf von Harnack, German historian and theologian (b. 1851)
    • 1934 – Frederick Delius, English composer and educator (b. 1862)
    • 1936 – John Bowser, English-Australian politician, 26th Premier of Victoria (b. 1856)
    • 1937 – Robert Borden, Canadian lawyer and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1854)
    • 1939 – Albert Ogilvie, Australian politician, 28th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1890)
    • 1940 – Marcus Garvey, Jamaican journalist and activist, founded the Black Star Line (b. 1887)
    • 1944 – Willem Jacob van Stockum, Dutch mathematician and academic (b. 1910)
    • 1946 – Jack Johnson, American boxer (b. 1878)
    • 1947 – Alexander Bethune, Canadian businessman and politician, 12th Mayor of Vancouver (b. 1852)
    • 1949 – Sigrid Undset, Danish-Norwegian novelist, essayist, and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1882)
    • 1955 – Margaret Abbott, Indian-American golfer (b. 1876)
    • 1958 – Angelina Weld Grimké, American journalist, poet, and playwright (b. 1880)
    • 1959 – Zoltán Meskó, Hungarian politician (b. 1883)
    • 1963 – Timothy Birdsall, English cartoonist (b. 1936)
    • 1965 – Vahap Özaltay, Turkish footballer and manager (b. 1908)
    • 1967 – Spencer Tracy, American actor (b. 1900)
    • 1971 – Michael Rennie, English actor (b. 1909)
    • 1973 – William Inge, American playwright and novelist (b. 1913)
    • 1974 – Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (b. 1900)
    • 1976 – Adolph Zukor, American film producer, co-founded Paramount Pictures (b. 1873)
    • 1982 – Rainer Werner Fassbinder, German actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1945)
    • 1984 – Halide Nusret Zorlutuna, Turkish author and poet (b. 1901)
    • 1986 – Merle Miller, American author and playwright (b. 1919)
    • 1987 – Elizabeth Hartman, American actress (b. 1943)
    • 1988 – Louis L’Amour, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1908)
    • 1991 – Jean Bruller, French author and illustrator, co-founded Les Éditions de Minuit (b. 1902)
    • 1992 – Hachidai Nakamura, Chinese-Japanese pianist and composer (b. 1931)
    • 1993 – Les Dawson, English comedian, actor, writer and presenter (b. 1931)
    • 1996 – George Hees, Canadian soldier, football player, and politician (b. 1910)
    • 1996 – Jo Van Fleet, American actress (b. 1915)
    • 1998 – Jim Hearn, American baseball player (b. 1921)
    • 1998 – Hammond Innes, English soldier and author (b. 1914)
    • 2000 – Hafez al-Assad, Syrian general and politician, 18th President of Syria (b. 1930)
    • 2000 – Brian Statham, English cricketer (b. 1930)
    • 2001 – Leila Pahlavi, Princess of Iran (b. 1970)
    • 2002 – John Gotti, American mobster (b. 1940)
    • 2003 – Donald Regan, American colonel and politician, 11th White House Chief of Staff (b. 1918)
    • 2003 – Bernard Williams, English philosopher and academic (b. 1929)
    • 2003 – Phil Williams, Welsh academic and politician (b. 1939)
    • 2004 – Ray Charles, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actor (b. 1930)
    • 2004 – Odette Laure, French actress and singer (b. 1917)
    • 2004 – Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist and politician, 177th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1904)
    • 2005 – Curtis Pitts, American aircraft designer, designed the Pitts Special (b. 1915)
    • 2007 – Augie Auer, American-New Zealand meteorologist (b. 1940)
    • 2008 – Chinghiz Aitmatov, Kyrgyzstani author and diplomat (b. 1928)
    • 2009 – Stelios Skevofilakas, Greek footballer (b. 1940)
    • 2010 – Basil Schott, American archbishop (b. 1939)
    • 2010 – Sigmar Polke, German painter and photographer (b. 1941)
    • 2011 – Brian Lenihan Jnr, Irish lawyer and politician, 25th Irish Minister for Finance (b. 1959)
    • 2012 – Piero Bellugi, Italian conductor (b. 1924)
    • 2012 – Warner Fusselle, American sportscaster (b. 1944)
    • 2012 – Will Hoebee, Dutch songwriter and producer (b. 1947)
    • 2012 – Georges Mathieu, French painter and academic (b. 1921)
    • 2012 – Joshua Orwa Ojode, Kenyan politician (b. 1958)
    • 2012 – George Saitoti, Kenyan economist and politician, 6th Vice-President of Kenya (b. 1945)
    • 2012 – Sudono Salim, Chinese-Indonesian businessman, founded Bank Central Asia (b. 1916)
    • 2012 – Gordon West, English footballer (b. 1943)
    • 2013 – Doug Bailey, American political consultant (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Enrique Orizaola, Spanish footballer and coach (b. 1922)
    • 2013 – Barbara Vucanovich, American lawyer and politician (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Marcello Alencar, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 57th Governor of Rio de Janeiro (b. 1925)
    • 2014 – Gary Gilmour, Australian cricketer and manager (b. 1951)
    • 2014 – Robert M. Grant, American theologian and academic (b. 1917)
    • 2014 – Jack Lee, American radio host and politician (b. 1920)
    • 2015 – Robert Chartoff, American film producer and philanthropist (b. 1933)
    • 2015 – Wolfgang Jeschke, German author and publisher (b. 1936)
    • 2016 – Christina Grimmie, American singer-songwriter (b. 1994)
    • 2016 – Gordie Howe, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1928)
    • 2017 – Julia Perez, Indonesian singer and actress (b. 1980)
    • 2018 – Neal E. Boyd, American singer, winner of the 2008 season of America’s Got Talent (b. 1975)
    • 2020 – Claudell Washington, American baseball player (b. 1954)

    Holidays and observances on June 10

    • Abolition Day (French Guiana)
    • Army Day (Jordan)
    • World Art Nouveau Day (Worldwide)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Bardo
      • Getulius, Amancius and Cerealus
      • Guardian Angel of Portugal
      • John of Tobolsk (Russian Orthodox Church)
      • Landry of Paris
      • Maurinus of Cologne
      • Maximus of Aveia (or of Aquila)
      • Maximus of Naples
      • Olivia
      • June 10 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Navy Day (Italy)
    • Portugal Day, also Day of Camões (Portugal and the Portuguese communities)
    • Reconciliation Day (Republic of the Congo)
  • |

    May 31- History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome.
    • 1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat Kievan Rus’ and Cumans.
    • 1293 – Mongol invasion of Java was a punitive expedition against King Kertanegara of Singhasari, who had refused to pay tribute to the Yuan and maimed one of its ministers. However, it ended with failure for the Mongols. Regarded as establish City of Surabaya
    • 1578 – King Henry III lays the first stone of the Pont Neuf (New Bridge), the oldest bridge of Paris, France.
    • 1669 – Citing poor eyesight as a reason, Samuel Pepys records the last event in his diary.
    • 1775 – American Revolution: The Mecklenburg Resolves are adopted in the Province of North Carolina.
    • 1790 – Manuel Quimper explores the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
    • 1790 – The United States enacts its first copyright statute, the Copyright Act of 1790.
    • 1795 – French Revolution: The Revolutionary Tribunal is suppressed.
    • 1805 – French and Spanish forces begin the assault against British forces occupying Diamond Rock.
    • 1813 – In Australia, William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth reach Mount Blaxland, effectively marking the end of a route across the Blue Mountains.
    • 1859 – The clock tower at the Houses of Parliament, which houses Big Ben, starts keeping time.
    • 1862 – American Civil War: Peninsula Campaign: Confederate forces under Joseph E. Johnston and G.W. Smith engage Union forces under George B. McClellan outside Richmond, Virginia.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: Overland Campaign: Battle of Cold Harbor: The Army of Northern Virginia engages the Army of the Potomac.
    • 1879 – Gilmore’s Garden in New York City is renamed Madison Square Garden by William Henry Vanderbilt and is opened to the public at 26th Street and Madison Avenue.
    • 1884 – The arrival at Plymouth of Tāwhiao, King of Maoris, to claim the protection of Queen Victoria.
    • 1889 – Johnstown Flood: Over 2,200 people die after a dam fails and sends a 60-foot (18-meter) wall of water over the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
    • 1902 – Second Boer War: The Treaty of Vereeniging ends the war and ensures British control of South Africa.
    • 1909 – The National Negro Committee, forerunner to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), convenes for the first time.
    • 1910 – The South Africa Act comes into force, establishing the Union of South Africa.
    • 1911 – The RMS Titanic is launched in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
    • 1911 – The President of Mexico Porfirio Díaz flees the country during the Mexican Revolution.
    • 1916 – World War I: Battle of Jutland: The British Grand Fleet engages the High Seas Fleet in the largest naval battle of the war, which proves indecisive.
    • 1921 – The Tulsa race massacre kills at least 39, but other estimates of black fatalities vary from 55 to about 300.
    • 1935 – A 7.7 Mw  earthquake destroys Quetta in modern-day Pakistan killing 40,000.
    • 1941 – Anglo-Iraqi War: The United Kingdom completes the re-occupation of Iraq and returns ‘Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.
    • 1942 – World War II: Imperial Japanese Navy midget submarines begin a series of attacks on Sydney, Australia.
    • 1947 – Ferenc Nagy, the democratically elected Prime Minister of Hungary, resigns from office after blackmail from the Hungarian Communist Party accusing him of being part of a plot against the state. This grants the Communists effective control of the Hungarian government.
    • 1961 – The South African Constitution of 1961 becomes effective, thus creating the Republic of South Africa, which remains outside the Commonwealth of Nations until 1 June 1994, when South Africa is returned to Commonwealth membership.
    • 1961 – In Moscow City Court, the Rokotov–Faibishenko show trial begins, despite the Khrushchev Thaw to reverse Stalinist elements in Soviet society.
    • 1962 – The West Indies Federation dissolves.
    • 1970 – The 7.9 Mw  Ancash earthquake shakes Peru with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) and a landslide buries the town of Yungay, Peru. Between 66,794–70,000 were killed and 50,000 were injured.
    • 1971 – In accordance with the Uniform Monday Holiday Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1968, observation of Memorial Day occurs on the last Monday in May for the first time, rather than on the traditional Memorial Day of May 30.
    • 1973 – The United States Senate votes to cut off funding for the bombing of Khmer Rouge targets within Cambodia, hastening the end of the Cambodian Civil War.
    • 1977 – The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System is completed.
    • 1985 – United States–Canada tornado outbreak: Forty-one tornadoes hit Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Ontario, leaving 76 dead.
    • 1991 – Bicesse Accords in Angola lay out a transition to multi-party democracy under the supervision of the United Nations’ UNAVEM II mission.
    • 2005 – Vanity Fair reveals that Mark Felt was “Deep Throat”.
    • 2008 – Usain Bolt breaks the world record in the 100m sprint, with a wind-legal (+1.7 m/s) 9.72 seconds
    • 2010 – Israeli Shayetet 13 commandos boarded the Gaza Freedom Flotilla while still in international waters trying to break the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip; nine Turkish citizens on the flotilla were killed in the ensuing violent affray.
    • 2013 – The asteroid 1998 QE2 and its moon make their closest approach to Earth for the next two centuries.
    • 2013 – A record breaking 2.6 mile wide tornado strikes El Reno, Oklahoma, United States, causing eight fatalities and over 150 injuries.
    • 2017 – A car bomb explodes in a crowded intersection in Kabul near the German embassy during rush hour, killing over 90 and injuring 463.
    • 2017 – U.S. President Donald Trump tweets the word “covfefe” and quickly becomes a worldwide viral phenomenon.
    • 2019 – A shooting occurs inside a municipal building at Virginia Beach, Virginia, leaving 13 people dead, including the shooter, and four others injured.

    Births on May 31

    • 1443 (or 1441) – Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby (d. 1509)
    • 1462 – Philipp II, Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. 1504)
    • 1469 – Manuel I of Portugal (d. 1521)
    • 1535 – Alessandro Allori, Italian painter (d. 1607)
    • 1556 – Jerzy Radziwiłł, Catholic cardinal (d. 1600)
    • 1577 – Nur Jahan, Empress consort of the Mughal Empire (d. 1645)
    • 1613 – John George II, Elector of Saxony (d. 1680)
    • 1640 – Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, King of Poland (d. 1673)
    • 1641 – Patriarch Dositheos II of Jerusalem (d. 1707)
    • 1725 – Ahilyabai Holkar, Queen of the Malwa Kingdom under the Maratha Empire (d. 1795)
    • 1732 – Count Hieronymus von Colloredo, Austrian archbishop (d. 1812)
    • 1753 – Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, French lawyer and politician (d. 1793)
    • 1754 – Andrea Appiani, Italian painter and educator (d. 1817)
    • 1773 – Ludwig Tieck, German poet, author, and critic (d. 1853)
    • 1801 – Johann Georg Baiter, Swiss philologist and scholar (d. 1887)
    • 1815 – Adye Douglas, English-Australian cricketer and politician, 15th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1906)
    • 1818 – John Albion Andrew, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1867)
    • 1819 – Walt Whitman, American poet, essayist, and journalist (d. 1892)
    • 1827 – Kusumoto Ine, first Japanese female doctor of Western medicine (d. 1903)
    • 1835 – Hijikata Toshizō, Japanese commander (d. 1869)
    • 1838 – Henry Sidgwick, English economist and philosopher (d. 1900)
    • 1842 – John Cox Bray, Australian politician, 15th Premier of South Australia (d. 1894)
    • 1847 – William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, Canadian-Irish businessman and politician, Lord Mayor of Belfast (d. 1924)
    • 1852 – Francisco Moreno, Argentinian explorer and academic (d. 1919)
    • 1852 – Julius Richard Petri, German microbiologist, invented the Petri dish (d. 1921)
    • 1857 – Pope Pius XI (d. 1939)
    • 1858 – Graham Wallas, English socialist, social psychologist, and educationalist (d. 1932)
    • 1860 – Walter Sickert, English painter (d. 1942)
    • 1863 – Francis Younghusband, Indian-English captain and explorer (d. 1942)
    • 1866 – John Ringling, American entrepreneur; one of the founders of the Ringling Brothers Circus (d. 1936)
    • 1875 – Rosa May Billinghurst, British suffragette and women’s rights activist (d.1953)
    • 1879 – Frances Alda, New Zealand-Australian soprano (d. 1952)
    • 1882 – Sándor Festetics, Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of War (d. 1956)
    • 1883 – Lauri Kristian Relander, Finnish politician, 2nd President of Finland (d. 1942)
    • 1885 – Robert Richards, Australian politician, 32nd Premier of South Australia (d. 1967)
    • 1887 – Saint-John Perse, French poet and diplomat, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1975)
    • 1892 – Michel Kikoine, Belarusian-French painter (d. 1968)
    • 1892 – Erich Neumann, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1951)
    • 1892 – Konstantin Paustovsky, Russian poet and author (d. 1968)
    • 1892 – Gregor Strasser, German lieutenant and politician (d. 1934)
    • 1894 – Fred Allen, American comedian, radio host, game show panelist, and author (d. 1956)
    • 1898 – Norman Vincent Peale, American minister and author (d. 1993)
    • 1900 – Lucile Godbold, American Olympic athlete (d. 1981)
    • 1901 – Alfredo Antonini, Italian-American conductor and composer (d. 1983)
    • 1908 – Don Ameche, American actor (d. 1993)
    • 1909 – Art Coulter, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2000)
    • 1911 – Maurice Allais, French economist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2010)
    • 1912 – Chien-Shiung Wu, Chinese-American experimental physicist (d. 1997)
    • 1914 – Akira Ifukube, Japanese composer and educator (d. 2006)
    • 1916 – Bert Haanstra, Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1997)
    • 1918 – Robert Osterloh, American actor (d. 2001)
    • 1918 – Lloyd Quarterman, African American chemist (d. 1982)
    • 1919 – Robie Macauley, American editor, novelist and critic (d. 1995)
    • 1921 – Edna Doré, English actress (d. 2014)
    • 1921 – Andrew Grima, Anglo-Italian jewellery designer (d. 2007)
    • 1921 – Howard Reig, American radio and television announcer (d. 2008)
    • 1921 – Alida Valli, Austrian-Italian actress and singer (d. 2006)
    • 1922 – Denholm Elliott, English-Spanish actor (d. 1992)
    • 1923 – Ellsworth Kelly, American painter and sculptor (d. 2015)
    • 1923 – Rainier III, Prince of Monaco (d. 2005)
    • 1925 – Julian Beck, American actor and director (d. 1986)
    • 1927 – James Eberle, English admiral (d. 2018)
    • 1927 – Michael Sandberg, Baron Sandberg, English lieutenant and banker (d. 2017)
    • 1928 – Pankaj Roy, Indian cricketer (d. 2001)
    • 1929 – Menahem Golan, Israeli director and producer (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Clint Eastwood, American actor, director, musician, and producer
    • 1931 – John Robert Schrieffer, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2019)
    • 1931 – Shirley Verrett, American soprano and actress (d. 2010)
    • 1932 – Ed Lincoln, Brazilian pianist, bassist, and composer (d. 2012)
    • 1932 – Jay Miner, American computer scientist and engineer (d. 1994)
    • 1933 – Henry B. Eyring, American religious leader, educator, and author
    • 1934 – Jim Hutton, American actor (d. 1979)
    • 1935 – Jim Bolger, New Zealand businessman and politician, 35th Prime Minister of New Zealand
    • 1938 – Johnny Paycheck, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2003)
    • 1938 – John Prescott, British sailor and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
    • 1938 – Peter Yarrow, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1939 – Terry Waite, English humanitarian and author
    • 1940 – Anatoliy Bondarchuk, Ukrainian hammer thrower and coach
    • 1940 – Augie Meyers, American musician and singer-songwriter
    • 1940 – Gilbert Shelton, American illustrator
    • 1941 – June Clark, Welsh nurse and educator
    • 1941 – Louis Ignarro, American pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1941 – William Nordhaus, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1943 – Sharon Gless, American actress
    • 1943 – Joe Namath, American football player, sportscaster, and actor
    • 1945 – Rainer Werner Fassbinder, German actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1982)
    • 1945 – Laurent Gbagbo, Ivorian academic and politician, 4th President of Côte d’Ivoire
    • 1945 – Bernard Goldberg, American journalist and author
    • 1946 – Ted Baehr, American publisher and critic
    • 1946 – Steve Bucknor, Jamaican cricketer and umpire
    • 1946 – Krista Kilvet, Estonian journalist, politician, and diplomat (d. 2009)
    • 1946 – Debbie Moore, English model and businesswoman
    • 1947 – Junior Campbell, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1947 – Gabriele Hinzmann, German discus thrower
    • 1948 – Svetlana Alexievich, Belarusian journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1948 – John Bonham, English musician, songwriter and drummer (d. 1980)
    • 1948 – Martin Hannett, English bass player, guitarist, and record producer (d. 1991)
    • 1948 – Duncan Hunter, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician
    • 1949 – Tom Berenger, American actor, film producer and television writer
    • 1950 – Jean Chalopin, French director, producer, and screenwriter, founded DIC Entertainment
    • 1950 – Gregory Harrison, American actor
    • 1950 – Edgar Savisaar, Estonian politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
    • 1951 – Karl-Hans Riehm, German hammer thrower
    • 1952 – Karl Bartos, German singer-songwriter and keyboard player
    • 1953 – Pirkka-Pekka Petelius, Finnish actor and screenwriter
    • 1954 – Thomas Mavros, Greek footballer
    • 1954 – Vicki Sue Robinson, American actress and singer (d. 2000)
    • 1955 – Tommy Emmanuel, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1955 – Susie Essman, American actress, comedian, and screenwriter
    • 1956 – Fritz Hilpert, German drummer and composer
    • 1956 – John Young, English singer-songwriter and keyboard player
    • 1957 – Jim Craig, American ice hockey player
    • 1959 – Andrea de Cesaris, Italian racing driver (d. 2014)
    • 1959 – Phil Wilson, English politician
    • 1960 – Greg Adams, Canadian ice hockey player and businessman
    • 1960 – Chris Elliott, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter
    • 1960 – Peter Winterbottom, English rugby player
    • 1961 – Ray Cote, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1961 – Justin Madden, Australian footballer and politician
    • 1961 – Lea Thompson, American actress, director, and producer
    • 1962 – Corey Hart, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1963 – David Leigh, holder of the Sir Samuel Hall Chair of Chemistry at the University of Manchester
    • 1963 – Viktor Orbán, Hungarian politician, 38th Prime Minister of Hungary
    • 1963 – Wesley Willis, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player (d. 2003)
    • 1964 – Leonard Asper, Canadian lawyer and businessman
    • 1964 – Stéphane Caristan, French hurdler and coach
    • 1964 – Yukio Edano, Japanese politician, Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs
    • 1964 – Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, American rapper and producer
    • 1965 – Brooke Shields, American model, actress, and producer
    • 1966 – Roshan Mahanama, Sri Lankan cricketer and referee
    • 1967 – Phil Keoghan, New Zealand television host and producer
    • 1967 – Kenny Lofton, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
    • 1971 – Arun Luthra, Indo-Anglo-American saxophonist, konnakol artist, composer, and arranger
    • 1972 – Christian McBride, American bassist and record producer
    • 1972 – Archie Panjabi, Indo-British actress
    • 1972 – Frode Estil, Norwegian skier
    • 1972 – Antti Niemi, Finnish international footballer, goalkeeper and coach
    • 1972 – Dave Roberts, American baseball player and coach
    • 1974 – Hiroiki Ariyoshi, Japanese comedian and singer
    • 1974 – Chad Campbell, American golfer
    • 1975 – Mac Suzuki, Japanese baseball player
    • 1976 – Colin Farrell, Irish actor
    • 1976 – Matt Harpring, American basketball player and sportscaster
    • 1977 – Theodoros Baev, Bulgarian-Greek volleyball player
    • 1977 – Domenico Fioravanti, Italian swimmer
    • 1977 – Eric Christian Olsen, American actor
    • 1977 – Moses Sichone, Zambian footballer
    • 1977 – Petr Tenkrát, Czech ice hockey player
    • 1979 – Jean-François Gillet, Belgian footballer
    • 1981 – Mikael Antonsson, Swedish footballer
    • 1981 – Daniele Bonera, Italian footballer
    • 1981 – Jake Peavy, American baseball player
    • 1981 – Marlies Schild, Austrian skier
    • 1984 – Andrew Bailey, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Milorad Čavić, Serbian swimmer
    • 1984 – Nate Robinson, American basketball player
    • 1985 – Jordy Nelson, American football player
    • 1986 – Robert Gesink, Dutch cyclist
    • 1989 – Marco Reus, German footballer
    • 1990 – Erik Karlsson, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1992 – Michaël Bournival, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1992 – Laura Ikauniece, Latvian heptathlete
    • 1996 – Normani Korde, American singer
    • 1998 – Santino Ferrucci, American race car driver

    Deaths on May 31

    • 455 – Petronius Maximus, Roman emperor (b. 396)
    • 930 – Liu Hua, princess of Southern Han (b. 896)
    • 960 – Fujiwara no Morosuke, Japanese statesman (b. 909)
    • 1076 – Waltheof, Earl of Northumbria, English politician (b. 1050)
    • 1089 – Sigwin von Are, archbishop of Cologne
    • 1162 – Géza II, king of Hungary (b. 1130)
    • 1321 – Birger, king of Sweden (b. 1280)
    • 1326 – Maurice de Berkeley, 2nd Baron Berkeley (b. 1271)
    • 1329 – Albertino Mussato, Italian statesman and writer (b. 1261)
    • 1349 – Thomas Wake, English politician (b. 1297)
    • 1370 – Vitalis of Assisi, Italian hermit and monk (b. 1295)
    • 1408 – Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, Japanese shōgun (b. 1358)
    • 1410 – Martin of Aragon, Spanish king (b. 1356)
    • 1504 – Engelbert II of Nassau (b. 1451)
    • 1558 – Philip Hoby, English general and diplomat (b. 1505)
    • 1567 – Guido de Bres, Belgian pastor and theologian (b. 1522)
    • 1594 – Tintoretto, Italian painter and educator (b. 1518)
    • 1601 – Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg, Archbishop-Elector of Cologne (b. 1547)
    • 1640 – Zeynab Begum, Safavid princess (date of birth unknown)
    • 1665 – Pieter Jansz. Saenredam, Dutch painter (b. 1597)
    • 1680 – Joachim Neander, German theologian and educator (b. 1650)
    • 1740 – Frederick William I of Prussia (b. 1688)
    • 1747 – Andrey Osterman, German-Russian politician, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1686)
    • 1809 – Joseph Haydn, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1732)
    • 1809 – Jean Lannes, French general (b. 1769)
    • 1831 – Samuel Bentham, English architect and engineer (b. 1757)
    • 1832 – Évariste Galois, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1811)
    • 1837 – Joseph Grimaldi, English actor, comedian and dancer, (b. 1779)
    • 1846 – Philip Marheineke, German pastor and philosopher (b. 1780)
    • 1847 – Thomas Chalmers, Scottish minister and economist (b. 1780)
    • 1848 – Eugénie de Guérin, French author (b. 1805)
    • 1899 – Stefanos Koumanoudis, Greek archaeologist, teacher and writer (b. 1818)
    • 1908 – Louis-Honoré Fréchette, Canadian author, poet, and politician (b. 1839)
    • 1909 – Thomas Price, Welsh-Australian politician, 24th Premier of South Australia (b. 1852)
    • 1910 – Elizabeth Blackwell, English-American physician and educator (b. 1821)
    • 1931 – Felix-Raymond-Marie Rouleau, Canadian cardinal (b. 1866)
    • 1931 – Willy Stöwer, German author and illustrator (b. 1864)
    • 1945 – Odilo Globocnik, Italian-Austrian SS officer (b. 1904)
    • 1954 – Antonis Benakis, Greek art collector and philanthropist, founded the Benaki Museum (b. 1873)
    • 1957 – Stefanos Sarafis, Greek general and politician (b. 1890)
    • 1957 – Leopold Staff, Polish poet and academic (b. 1878)
    • 1960 – Willem Elsschot, Flemish author and poet (b. 1882)
    • 1960 – Walther Funk, German economist, journalist, and politician, German Minister of Economics (b. 1890)
    • 1962 – Henry F. Ashurst, American lawyer and politician (b. 1874)
    • 1967 – Billy Strayhorn, American pianist and composer (b. 1915)
    • 1970 – Terry Sawchuk, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1929)
    • 1976 – Jacques Monod, French biologist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
    • 1977 – William Castle, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1914)
    • 1978 – József Bozsik, Hungarian footballer and manager (b. 1925)
    • 1981 – Barbara Ward, Baroness Jackson of Lodsworth, English economist and journalist (b. 1914)
    • 1982 – Carlo Mauri, Italian mountaineer and explorer (b. 1930)
    • 1983 – Jack Dempsey, American boxer and lieutenant (b. 1895)
    • 1985 – Gaston Rébuffat, French mountaineer and author (b. 1921)
    • 1986 – Jane Frank, American painter and sculptor (b. 1918)
    • 1986 – James Rainwater, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
    • 1987 – John Abraham, Indian director and screenwriter (b. 1937)
    • 1989 – Owen Lattimore, American author and academic (b. 1900)
    • 1989 – C. L. R. James, Trinidadian journalist and historian (b. 1901)
    • 1993 – Honey Tree Evil Eye, or, Spud Mackenzie, a Bull Terrier, dies of kidney failure.
    • 1994 – Uzay Heparı, Turkish actor, producer, and composer (b. 1969)
    • 1994 – Herva Nelli, Italian-American soprano (b. 1909)
    • 1995 – Stanley Elkin, American novelist, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1930)
    • 1996 – Timothy Leary, American psychologist and author (b. 1920)
    • 1998 – Charles Van Acker, Belgian-American race car driver (b. 1912)
    • 2000 – Petar Mladenov, Bulgarian diplomat, 1st President of Bulgaria (b. 1936)
    • 2000 – Tito Puente, American jazz musician (b. 1923)
    • 2000 – A. Jeyaratnam Wilson, Sri Lankan historian, author, and academic (b. 1928)
    • 2001 – Arlene Francis, American actress, talk show host, game show panelist, and television personality (b. 1907)
    • 2002 – Subhash Gupte, Indian cricketer (b. 1929)
    • 2004 – Aiyathurai Nadesan, Sri Lankan journalist (b. 1954)
    • 2004 – Robert Quine, American guitarist (b. 1941)
    • 2004 – Étienne Roda-Gil, French screenwriter and composer (b. 1941)
    • 2006 – Miguel Ortiz Berrocal, Spanish sculptor (b. 1933)
    • 2006 – Raymond Davis, Jr., American physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1914)
    • 2009 – Danny La Rue, Irish-British drag queen performer and singer (b. 1927)
    • 2009 – George Tiller, American physician (b. 1941)
    • 2010 – Louise Bourgeois, French-American sculptor and painter (b. 1911)
    • 2010 – Brian Duffy, English photographer and producer (b. 1933)
    • 2010 – William A. Fraker, American director, producer, and cinematographer (b. 1923)
    • 2010 – Rubén Juárez, Argentinian singer-songwriter and bandoneón player (b. 1947)
    • 2010 – Merata Mita, New Zealand director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1942)
    • 2011 – Pauline Betz, American tennis player (b. 1919)
    • 2011 – Jonas Bevacqua, American fashion designer, co-founded the Lifted Research Group (b. 1977)
    • 2011 – Derek Hodge, Virgin Islander lawyer and politician, Lieutenant Governor of the United States Virgin Islands (b. 1941)
    • 2011 – Hans Keilson, German-Dutch psychoanalyst and author (b. 1909)
    • 2011 – John Martin, English admiral and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey (b. 1918)
    • 2011 – Andy Robustelli, American football player and manager (b. 1925)
    • 2012 – Christopher Challis, English cinematographer (b. 1919)
    • 2012 – Randall B. Kester, American lawyer and judge (b. 1916)
    • 2012 – Paul Pietsch, German racing driver and publisher (b. 1911)
    • 2012 – Orlando Woolridge, American basketball player and coach (b. 1959)
    • 2013 – Gerald E. Brown, American physicist and academic (b. 1926)
    • 2013 – Frederic Lindsay, Scottish author and educator (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Miguel Méndez, American author and poet (b. 1930)
    • 2013 – Tim Samaras, American engineer and storm chaser (b. 1957)
    • 2013 – Jairo Mora Sandoval, Costa Rican environmentalist (b. 1987)
    • 2013 – Jean Stapleton, American actress (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Marilyn Beck, American journalist (b. 1928)
    • 2014 – Marinho Chagas, Brazilian footballer and coach (b. 1952)
    • 2014 – Hoss Ellington, American race car driver (b. 1935)
    • 2014 – Martha Hyer, American actress (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – Lewis Katz, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1942)
    • 2014 – Mary Soames, Baroness Soames, English author (b. 1922)
    • 2015 – Gladys Taylor, Canadian author and publisher (b. 1917)
    • 2016 – Mohamed Abdelaziz, President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (1976–2016) (b. 1947)
    • 2016 – Jan Crouch, American televangelist, co-founder of the Trinity Broadcasting Network (b. 1938)
    • 2016 – Carla Lane, English television writer (b. 1928)
    • 2016 – Rupert Neudeck, German journalist and humanitarian (b. 1939)

    Holidays and observances on May 31

    • Anniversary of Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (Brunei)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Camilla Battista da Varano
      • Hermias
      • Petronella
      • Visitation of Mary (Western Christianity)
      • May 31 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • The beginning of Gawai Dayak (Dayaks in Sarawak, Malaysia and West Kalimantan, Indonesia)
    • World No Tobacco Day (International)

  • May 21 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 293 – Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian appoint Galerius as Caesar to Diocletian, beginning the period of four rulers known as the Tetrarchy.
    • 878 – Syracuse, Sicily, is captured by the Muslim Aghlabids after a nine-month siege.
    • 879 – Pope John VIII gives blessings to Branimir of Croatia and to the Croatian people, considered to be international recognition of the Croatian state.
    • 996 – Sixteen-year-old Otto III is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
    • 1349 – Dušan’s Code, the constitution of the Serbian Empire, is enacted by Dušan the Mighty.
    • 1403 – Henry III of Castile sends Ruy González de Clavijo as ambassador to Timur to discuss the possibility of an alliance between Timur and Castile against the Ottoman Empire.
    • 1554 – Queen Mary I grants a royal charter to Derby School, as a grammar school for boys in Derby, England.
    • 1659 – In the Concert of The Hague, the Dutch Republic, the Commonwealth of England and the Kingdom of France set out their views on how the Second Northern War should end.
    • 1660 – The Battle of Long Sault concludes after five days in which French colonial militia, with their Huron and Algonquin allies, are defeated by the Iroquois Confederacy.
    • 1674 – The nobility elect John Sobieski King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania.
    • 1703 – Daniel Defoe is imprisoned on charges of seditious libel.
    • 1725 – The Order of St. Alexander Nevsky is instituted in Russia by Empress Catherine I. It would later be discontinued and then reinstated by the Soviet government in 1942 as the Order of Alexander Nevsky.
    • 1758 – Ten-year-old Mary Campbell is abducted in Pennsylvania by Lenape during the French and Indian War. She is returned six and a half years later.
    • 1792 – A lava dome collapses on Mount Unzen, near the city of Shimbara on the Japanese island of Kyūshū, creating a deadly tsunami that kills nearly 15,000 people.
    • 1809 – The first day of the Battle of Aspern-Essling between the Austrian army led by Archduke Charles and the French army led by Napoleon I of France sees the French attack across the Danube held.
    • 1851 – Slavery in Colombia is abolished.
    • 1856 – Lawrence, Kansas is captured and burned by pro-slavery forces.
    • 1863 – American Civil War: The Union Army succeeds in closing off the last escape route from Port Hudson, Louisiana, in preparation for the coming siege.
    • 1864 – Russia declares an end to the Russo-Circassian War and many Circassians are forced into exile. The day is designated the Circassian Day of Mourning.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House ends.
    • 1864 – The Ionian Islands reunite with Greece.
    • 1871 – French troops invade the Paris Commune and engage its residents in street fighting. By the close of “Bloody Week”, some 20,000 communards have been killed and 38,000 arrested.
    • 1871 – Opening of the first rack railway in Europe, the Rigi Bahnen on Mount Rigi.
    • 1879 – War of the Pacific: Two Chilean ships blocking the harbor of Iquique (then belonging to Peru) battle two Peruvian vessels in the Battle of Iquique.
    • 1881 – The American Red Cross is established by Clara Barton in Washington, D.C.
    • 1894 – The Manchester Ship Canal in the United Kingdom is officially opened by Queen Victoria, who later knights its designer Sir Edward Leader Williams.
    • 1904 – The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) is founded in Paris.
    • 1911 – President of Mexico Porfirio Díaz and the revolutionary Francisco Madero sign the Treaty of Ciudad Juárez to put an end to the fighting between the forces of both men, concluding the initial phase of the Mexican Revolution.
    • 1917 – The Imperial War Graves Commission is established through royal charter to mark, record, and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of the British Empire’s military forces.
    • 1917 – The Great Atlanta fire of 1917 causes $5.5 million in damages, destroying some 300 acres including 2,000 homes, businesses and churches, displacing about 10,000 people but leading to only one fatality (due to heart attack).
    • 1924 – University of Chicago students Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold, Jr. murder 14-year-old Bobby Franks in a “thrill killing”.
    • 1927 – Charles Lindbergh touches down at Le Bourget Field in Paris, completing the world’s first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean.
    • 1932 – Bad weather forces Amelia Earhart to land in a pasture in Derry, Northern Ireland, and she thereby becomes the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean.
    • 1934 – Oskaloosa, Iowa, becomes the first municipality in the United States to fingerprint all of its citizens.
    • 1936 – Sada Abe is arrested after wandering the streets of Tokyo for days with her dead lover’s severed genitals in her handbag. Her story soon becomes one of Japan’s most notorious scandals.
    • 1937 – A Soviet station, North Pole-1, becomes the first scientific research settlement to operate on the drift ice of the Arctic Ocean.
    • 1939 – The Canadian National War Memorial is unveiled by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
    • 1946 – Physicist Louis Slotin is fatally irradiated in a criticality incident during an experiment with the demon core at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
    • 1951 – The opening of the Ninth Street Show, otherwise known as the 9th Street Art Exhibition: A gathering of a number of notable artists, and the stepping-out of the post war New York avant-garde, collectively known as the New York School.
    • 1961 – American civil rights movement: Alabama Governor John Malcolm Patterson declares martial law in an attempt to restore order after race riots break out.
    • 1966 – The Ulster Volunteer Force declares war on the Irish Republican Army in Northern Ireland.
    • 1969 – Civil unrest in Rosario, Argentina, known as Rosariazo, following the death of a 15-year-old student.
    • 1972 – Michelangelo’s Pietà in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome is damaged by a vandal, the mentally disturbed Hungarian geologist Laszlo Toth.
    • 1976 – Twenty-nine people are killed in the Yuba City bus disaster in Martinez, California.
    • 1979 – White Night riots in San Francisco following the manslaughter conviction of Dan White for the assassinations of George Moscone and Harvey Milk.
    • 1981 – The Italian government releases the membership list of Propaganda Due, an illegal pseudo-Masonic lodge that was implicated in numerous Italian crimes and mysteries.
    • 1981 – Transamerica Corporation agrees to sell United Artists to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for $380 million after the box office failure of the 1980 film Heaven’s Gate.
    • 1982 – Falklands War: A British amphibious assault during Operation Sutton leads to the Battle of San Carlos.
    • 1991 – Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated by a female suicide bomber near Madras.
    • 1991 – Mengistu Haile Mariam, president of the People’s Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, flees Ethiopia, effectively bringing the Ethiopian Civil War to an end.
    • 1992 – After 30 seasons Johnny Carson hosted his penultimate episode and last featuring guests (Robin Williams and Bette Midler) of The Tonight Show.
    • 1994 – The Democratic Republic of Yemen unsuccessfully attempts to secede from the Republic of Yemen; a war breaks out.
    • 1996 – The ferry MV Bukoba sinks in Tanzanian waters on Lake Victoria, killing nearly 1,000.
    • 1998 – In Miami, five abortion clinics are attacked by a butyric acid attacker.
    • 1998 – President Suharto of Indonesia resigns following the killing of students from Trisakti University earlier that week by security forces and growing mass protests in Jakarta against his ongoing corrupt rule.
    • 2001 – French Taubira law is enacted, officially recognizing the Atlantic slave trade and slavery as crimes against humanity.
    • 2003 – The 6.8 Mw  Boumerdès earthquake shakes northern Algeria with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). More than 2,200 people were killed and a moderate tsunami sank boats at the Balearic Islands.
    • 2005 – The tallest roller coaster in the world, Kingda Ka opens at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, New Jersey.
    • 2006 – The Republic of Montenegro holds a referendum proposing independence from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro; 55% of Montenegrins vote for independence.
    • 2010 – JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, launches the solar-sail spacecraft IKAROS aboard an H-IIA rocket. The vessel would make a Venus flyby late in the year.
    • 2011 – Radio broadcaster Harold Camping predicted that the world would end on this date.
    • 2012 – A bus accident near Himara, Albania kills 13 people and injures 21 others.
    • 2012 – A suicide bombing kills more than 120 people in Sana’a, Yemen.
    • 2017 – Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performed their final show at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

    Births on May 21

    • 1471 – Albrecht Dürer, German painter, engraver, and mathematician (d. 1528)
    • 1497 – Al-Hattab, Muslim jurist (d. 1547)
    • 1527 – Philip II of Spain (d. 1598)
    • 1653 – Eleonore of Austria, Queen of Poland (d. 1697)
    • 1688 – Alexander Pope, English poet, essayist, and translator (d. 1744)
    • 1755 – Alfred Moore, American lawyer and judge (d. 1810)
    • 1756 – William Babington, Irish-born, English physician and mineralogist (d. 1833)
    • 1763 – Joseph Fouché, French lawyer and politician (d. 1820)
    • 1775 – Lucien Bonaparte, French soldier and politician (d. 1840)
    • 1780 – Elizabeth Fry, English prison reformer, philanthropist and Quaker (d. 1845)
    • 1790 – William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire, English politician, Lord Chamberlain of the Household (d. 1858)
    • 1792 – Gaspard-Gustave de Coriolis, French mathematician and engineer (d. 1843)
    • 1799 – Mary Anning, English paleontologist (d. 1847)
    • 1801 – Princess Sophie of Sweden, Swedish princess (d. 1865)
    • 1806 – Harriet Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, Duchess of Sutherland, English duchess (d. 1868)
    • 1808 – David de Jahacob Lopez Cardozo, Dutch Talmudist (d. 1890)
    • 1827 – William P. Sprague, American banker and politician (d. 1899)
    • 1828 – Rudolf Koller, Swiss painter (d. 1905)
    • 1835 – František Chvostek, Czech-Austrian physician and academic (d. 1884)
    • 1837 – Itagaki Taisuke, Japanese soldier and politician (d. 1919)
    • 1843 – Charles Albert Gobat, Swiss lawyer and politician, and Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1914)
    • 1843 – Louis Renault, French jurist, educator, and Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1918)
    • 1844 – Henri Rousseau, French painter (d. 1910)
    • 1850 – Giuseppe Mercalli, Italian priest and volcanologist (d. 1914)
    • 1851 – Léon Bourgeois, French police officer and politician, 64th Prime Minister of France, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1925)
    • 1853 – Jacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac, French politician (d. 1905)
    • 1856 – José Batlle y Ordóñez, Uruguayan journalist and politician, President of Uruguay (d. 1929)
    • 1860 – Willem Einthoven, Indonesian-Dutch physician, physiologist, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1927)
    • 1861 – Abel Ayerza, Argentinian physician and academic (d. 1918)
    • 1863 – Archduke Eugen of Austria (d. 1954)
    • 1864 – Princess Stéphanie of Belgium (d. 1945)
    • 1873 – Hans Berger, German neurologist and academic (d. 1941)
    • 1878 – Glenn Curtiss, American cyclist and engineer (d. 1930)
    • 1880 – Tudor Arghezi, Romanian journalist, author, and poet (d. 1967)
    • 1884 – Manuel Pérez y Curis, Uruguayan poet and publisher (d. 1920)
    • 1885 – Princess Sophie of Albania, (Princess Sophie of Schönburg-Waldenburg) (d. 1936)
    • 1893 – Arthur Carr, English cricketer (d. 1963)
    • 1893 – Giles Chippindall, Australian public servant (d. 1969)
    • 1895 – Lázaro Cárdenas, Mexican general, president (1934–1940) and father of Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas (d. 1970)
    • 1898 – Armand Hammer, American physician and businessman, founded Occidental Petroleum (d. 1990)
    • 1898 – Charles Léon Hammes, Luxembourgian lawyer and judge (d. 1967)
    • 1898 – Carl Johnson, American long jumper (d. 1932)
    • 1898 – John McLaughlin, American painter and translator (d. 1976)
    • 1901 – Regina M. Anderson, Multiracial playwright and librarian (d. 1993)
    • 1901 – Horace Heidt, American pianist, bandleader, and radio host (d. 1986)
    • 1901 – Sam Jaffe, American film producer and agent (d. 2000)
    • 1901 – Suzanne Lilar, Belgian author and playwright (d. 1992)
    • 1902 – Earl Averill, American baseball player (d. 1983)
    • 1902 – Marcel Breuer, Hungarian-American architect and academic, designed the Ameritrust Tower (d. 1981)
    • 1902 – Anatole Litvak, Ukrainian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1974)
    • 1903 – Manly Wade Wellman, American author (d. 1986)
    • 1904 – Robert Montgomery, American actor and director (d. 1981)
    • 1904 – Fats Waller, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1943)
    • 1907 – John C. Allen, American roller coaster designer (d. 1979)
    • 1912 – Chen Dayu, Chinese painter and calligrapher (d. 2001)
    • 1912 – John Curtis Gowan, American psychologist and academic (d. 1986)
    • 1912 – Monty Stratton, American baseball player and coach (d. 1982)
    • 1913 – Gina Bachauer, Greek pianist and composer (d. 1976)
    • 1915 – Cathleen Cordell, American actress (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – Chakravarthi V. Narasimhan, Indian Civil Service Officer and former Under Secretary-General of the UN (d. 2003)
    • 1916 – Dennis Day, American singer and actor (d. 1988)
    • 1916 – Tinus Osendarp, Dutch sprinter and police officer (d. 2002)
    • 1916 – Harold Robbins, American author and screenwriter (d. 1997)
    • 1917 – Raymond Burr, Canadian-American actor and director (d. 1993)
    • 1918 – Anthony Steel, English actor and singer (d. 2001)
    • 1919 – George P. Mitchell, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2013)
    • 1920 – Bill Barber, American tuba player and educator (d. 2007)
    • 1920 – Forrest White, American businessman, co-founded the Music Man Company (d. 1994)
    • 1921 – Sandy Douglas, English computer scientist and academic, designed OXO (d. 2010)
    • 1921 – Andrei Sakharov, Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1989)
    • 1923 – Vernon Biever, American photographer (d. 2010)
    • 1923 – Armand Borel, Swiss-American mathematician and academic (d. 2003)
    • 1923 – Ara Parseghian, American football player and coach (d. 2017)
    • 1923 – Dorothy Hewett, Australian feminist poet, novelist and playwright (d. 2002)
    • 1923 – Evelyn Ward, American actress (d. 2012)
    • 1924 – Peggy Cass, American actress, comedian, and game show panelist (d. 1999)
    • 1926 – Robert Creeley, American novelist, essayist, and poet (d. 2005)
    • 1927 – Kay Kendall, English actress and comedian (d. 1959)
    • 1927 – Péter Zwack, Hungarian businessman and diplomat (d. 2012)
    • 1928 – Tom Donahue, American radio host and producer (d. 1975)
    • 1928 – Alice Drummond, American actress (d. 2016)
    • 1929 – Larance Marable, American drummer (d. 2012)
    • 1929 – Robert Welch, English silversmith and industrial designer (d. 2000)
    • 1930 – Tommy Bryant, American bassist (d. 1982)
    • 1930 – Keith Davis, New Zealand rugby player (d. 2019)
    • 1930 – Malcolm Fraser, Australian politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Australia (d. 2015)
    • 1932 – Inese Jaunzeme, Latvian javelin thrower and surgeon (d. 2011)
    • 1932 – Leonidas Vasilikopoulos, Greek admiral and intelligence chief (d. 2014)
    • 1933 – Maurice André, French trumpet player (d. 2012)
    • 1933 – Yevgeny Minayev, Russian weightlifter (d. 1993)
    • 1934 – Jocasta Innes, Chinese-English journalist and author (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Bob Northern, American horn player and bandleader
    • 1934 – Bengt I. Samuelsson, Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1935 – Terry Lightfoot, English clarinet player and bandleader (d. 2013)
    • 1936 – Günter Blobel, Polish-American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2018)
    • 1938 – Lee “Shot” Williams, American singer (d. 2011)
    • 1939 – Heinz Holliger, Swiss oboist, composer, and conductor
    • 1940 – Tony Sheridan, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
    • 1941 – Martin Carthy, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1941 – Bobby Cox, American baseball player and manager
    • 1941 – Ambrose Greenway, 4th Baron Greenway, English photographer and politician
    • 1941 – Ronald Isley, American singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1942 – David Hunt, Baron Hunt of Wirral, English politician, Secretary of State for Wales
    • 1942 – John Konrads, Australian swimmer
    • 1942 – Danny Ongais, American race car driver
    • 1943 – Vincent Crane, English pianist and composer (d. 1989)
    • 1943 – John Dalton, English bass player
    • 1943 – Hilton Valentine, English guitarist and songwriter
    • 1944 – Haleh Afshar, Baroness Afshar, Iranian-English academic and politician
    • 1944 – Marcie Blane, American singer
    • 1944 – Janet Dailey, American author and entrepreneur (d. 2013)
    • 1944 – Mary Robinson, Irish lawyer and politician, 7th President of Ireland
    • 1945 – Ernst Messerschmid, German physicist and astronaut
    • 1945 – Richard Hatch, American actor, writer, and producer (d. 2017)
    • 1946 – Allan McKeown, English-American screenwriter and producer (d. 2013)
    • 1946 – Wayne Roycroft, Australian equestrian rider and coach
    • 1947 – Bill Champlin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1947 – Linda Laubenstein, American physician and academic (d. 1992)
    • 1947 – İlber Ortaylı, Turkish historian and academic
    • 1948 – Elizabeth Buchan, English author and critic
    • 1948 – Joe Camilleri, Maltese-Australian singer-songwriter and saxophonist
    • 1948 – Jonathan Hyde, Australian-English actor
    • 1948 – Denis MacShane, Scottish journalist and politician, UK Minister of State for Europe
    • 1948 – Leo Sayer, English-Australian singer-songwriter and musician
    • 1949 – Andrew Neil, Scottish journalist and academic
    • 1949 – Denis O’Connor, British police officer
    • 1949 – Rosalind Plowright, English soprano
    • 1950 – Will Hutton, English economist and journalist
    • 1951 – Al Franken, American actor, screenwriter, and politician
    • 1951 – Adrian Hardiman, Irish lawyer and judge (d. 2016)
    • 1952 – Mr. T, American actor and wrestler
    • 1953 – Nora Aunor, Filipino actress and recording artist
    • 1954 – D. B. S. Jeyaraj, Sri Lankan-Canadian journalist and blogger
    • 1954 – Janice Karman, American film producer, record producer, singer, and voice actress
    • 1954 – Marc Ribot, American guitarist and composer
    • 1955 – Paul Barber, English field hockey player
    • 1955 – Stan Lynch, American drummer, songwriter, and producer
    • 1957 – James Bailey, American basketball player
    • 1957 – Nadine Dorries, English nurse and politician
    • 1957 – Judge Reinhold, American actor and producer
    • 1957 – Renée Soutendijk, Dutch actress
    • 1958 – Christian Audigier, French fashion designer (d. 2015)
    • 1958 – Muffy Calder, Canadian-Scottish computer scientist and academic
    • 1958 – Michael Crick, English journalist and author
    • 1958 – Naeem Khan, Indian-American fashion designer
    • 1958 – Jefery Levy, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1959 – Nick Cassavetes, American actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1959 – Abdulla Yameen, Maldivian politician, 6th President of the Maldives
    • 1960 – Jeffrey Dahmer, American serial killer (d. 1994)
    • 1960 – Kent Hrbek, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1960 – Mohanlal, Indian actor
    • 1960 – Mark Ridgway, Australian cricketer
    • 1960 – Vladimir Salnikov, Russian swimmer
    • 1962 – David Crumb, American composer and educator
    • 1963 – Richard Appel, American screenwriter and producer
    • 1963 – Patrick Grant, American musician and producer
    • 1963 – David Lonsdale, English actor
    • 1964 – Pete Sandoval, Salvadoran-American drummer
    • 1963 – Kevin Shields, American-Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1963 – Dave Specter, American guitarist
    • 1963 – Laurie Spina, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
    • 1964 – Danny Bailey, English footballer and coach
    • 1965 – Josh Richman, American actor and producer
    • 1966 – Lisa Edelstein, American actress and playwright
    • 1966 – Tatyana Ledovskaya, Belarusian hurdler
    • 1967 – Chris Benoit, Canadian professional wrestler (d. 2007)
    • 1968 – Ilmar Raag, Estonian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1968 – Matthias Ungemach, German-Australian rower
    • 1968 – Julie Vega, Filipino actress and singer (d. 1985)
    • 1969 – Pierluigi Brivio, Italian footballer
    • 1969 – Georgiy Gongadze, Georgian-Ukrainian journalist and director (d. 2000)
    • 1969 – Masayo Kurata, Japanese voice actress and singer
    • 1969 – George LeMieux, American lawyer and politician
    • 1969 – Brian Statham, Rhodesian born English footballer, defender and manager
    • 1970 – Brigita Bukovec, Slovenian hurdler
    • 1970 – Dorsey Levens, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1970 – Pauline Menczer, Australian surfer
    • 1970 – Carl Veart, Australian footballer and coach
    • 1972 – The Notorious B.I.G., American rapper (d. 1997)
    • 1973 – Stewart Cink, American golfer
    • 1973 – Noel Fielding, English comedian, musician and television presenter
    • 1974 – Brad Arthur, Australian rugby league coach
    • 1974 – Fairuza Balk, American actress
    • 1974 – Aditi Gowitrikar, Indian model, actress, and physician, Mrs. World 2001
    • 1974 – Havoc, American rapper and producer
    • 1975 – Anthony Mundine, Australian rugby league player and boxer
    • 1976 – Stuart Bingham, English snooker player
    • 1976 – Abderrahim Goumri, Moroccan runner (d. 2013)
    • 1976 – Deron Miller, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1977 – Quinton Fortune, South African international footballer midfielder and coach
    • 1977 – Michael Fuß, German footballer
    • 1977 – Ricky Williams, American football player and coach
    • 1978 – Max B, American rapper and songwriter
    • 1978 – Briana Banks, German-American porn actress and model
    • 1978 – Jamaal Magloire, Canadian basketball player and coach
    • 1979 – Damián Ariel Álvarez, Argentinian-Mexican footballer
    • 1979 – Jamie Hepburn, Scottish politician, Minister for Sport, Health Improvement and Mental Health
    • 1979 – James Clancy Phelan, Australian author and academic
    • 1979 – Scott Smith, American mixed martial artist
    • 1979 – Sonja Vectomov, Czech musician/composer
    • 1980 – Gotye, Belgian-Australian singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Craig Anderson, American ice hockey player
    • 1981 – Edson Buddle, American soccer player
    • 1981 – Josh Hamilton, American baseball player
    • 1981 – Maximilian Mutzke, German singer-songwriter
    • 1981 – Anna Rogowska, Polish pole vaulter
    • 1983 – Līga Dekmeijere, Latvian tennis player
    • 1983 – Deidson Araújo Maia, Brazilian footballer
    • 1983 – Kaori Shimizu, Japanese voice actress and singer
    • 1984 – Brandon Fields, American football player
    • 1984 – Sara Goller, German volleyball player
    • 1984 – Syamsul Yusof, Malaysian actor, film director, scriptwriter, film producer, rapper and singer
    • 1985 – Mutya Buena, English singer-songwriter
    • 1985 – Alison Carroll, English gymnast, model, and actress
    • 1985 – Mark Cavendish, Manx cyclist
    • 1985 – Alexander Dale Oen, Norwegian swimmer (d. 2012)
    • 1985 – Isa Guha, English cricketer
    • 1985 – Lucie Hradecká, Czech tennis player
    • 1985 – Kano, English rapper, producer, and actor
    • 1985 – Dušan Kuciak, Slovak footballer
    • 1985 – Heath L’Estrange, Australian rugby league player
    • 1985 – Andrew Miller, American baseball player
    • 1986 – Mario Mandžukić, Croatian footballer
    • 1986 – Myra, American singer and actress
    • 1986 – Eder Sánchez, Mexican race walker
    • 1986 – Park Sojin, South Korean singer-songwriter and dancer
    • 1986 – Greg Stewart, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1987 – Beau Falloon, Australian rugby league player
    • 1988 – Claire Cashmore, English Paralympic swimmer
    • 1988 – Park Gyu-ri, South Korean singer
    • 1988 – Jonny Howson, English footballer
    • 1988 – Kaire Leibak, Estonian triple jumper
    • 1989 – Emily Robins, New Zealand actress and singer
    • 1989 – Hal Robson-Kanu, English footballer
    • 1990 – Kierre Beckles, Barbadian athlete
    • 1990 – Rene Krhin, Slovenian footballer
    • 1991 – Guilherme, Brazilian footballer
    • 1992 – Hutch Dano, American actor
    • 1992 – Lisa Evans, Scottish footballer
    • 1992 – Philipp Grüneberg, German footballer
    • 1992 – Olivia Olson, American singer and actress
    • 1993 – Grete Gaim, Estonian biathlete
    • 1993 – Luke Garbutt, English footballer, left-back
    • 1994 – Tom Daley, English diver
    • 1995 – Katharina Andresen, Norwegian heiress and equestrian
    • 1995 – Diego Loyzaga, Filipino actor
    • 1996 – Josh Allen, American footballer
    • 1996 – Indy de Vroome, Dutch tennis player
    • 1996 – Karen Khachanov, Russian tennis player
    • 1997 – Ivan De Santis, Italian footballer
    • 1997 – Sisca Folkertsma, Dutch footballer
    • 1997 – Viktoria Petryk, Ukrainian singer-songwriter

    Deaths on May 21

    • 252 – Sun Quan, Chinese emperor of Eastern Wu (b. 182)
    • 954 – Feng Dao, Chinese prince and chancellor (b. 882)
    • 987 – Louis V, king of West Francia (b. c. 966)
    • 1075 – Richeza of Poland, queen of Hungary (b. 1013)
    • 1086 – Wang Anshi, Chinese statesman and poet (b. 1021)
    • 1237 – Olaf the Black, Manx son of Godred II Olafsson
    • 1254 – Conrad IV, king of Germany (b. 1228)
    • 1416 – Anna of Celje, queen consort of Poland (b. 1386)
    • 1471 – Henry VI, king of England (b. 1421)
    • 1481 – Christian I, king of Denmark (b. 1426)
    • 1512 – Pandolfo Petrucci, Italian ruler (b. 1452)
    • 1524 – Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk, English soldier and politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1443)
    • 1542 – Hernando de Soto, Spanish-American explorer (b. 1496)
    • 1563 – Martynas Mažvydas, Lithuanian writer (b. 1510)
    • 1607 – John Rainolds, English scholar and academic (b. 1549)
    • 1619 – Hieronymus Fabricius, Italian anatomist (b. 1537)
    • 1639 – Tommaso Campanella, Italian astrologer, theologian, and poet (b. 1568)
    • 1647 – Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, Dutch poet and playwright (b. 1581)
    • 1650 – James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, Scottish general and politician (b. 1612)
    • 1664 – Elizabeth Poole, English settler, founded Taunton, Massachusetts (b. 1588)
    • 1670 – Niccolò Zucchi, Italian astronomer and physicist (b. 1586)
    • 1686 – Otto von Guericke, German physicist and inventor of the Magdeburg Hemispheres (b. 1602)
    • 1690 – John Eliot, English-American minister and missionary (b. 1604)
    • 1719 – Pierre Poiret, French mystic and philosopher (b. 1646)
    • 1724 – Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, English politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1661)
    • 1742 – Lars Roberg, Swedish physician and academic (b. 1664)
    • 1762 – Alexander Joseph Sulkowski, Polish and Saxon general (b. 1695)
    • 1771 – Christopher Smart, English actor, playwright, and poet (b. 1722)
    • 1786 – Carl Wilhelm Scheele, German-Swedish chemist and pharmacist (b. 1742)
    • 1790 – Thomas Warton, English poet and critic (b. 1728)
    • 1810 – Chevalier d’Eon, French diplomat and spy (b. 1728)
    • 1844 – Giuseppe Baini, Italian priest and composer (b. 1775)
    • 1858 – José de la Riva Agüero, Peruvian soldier and politician, 1st President of Peru and 2nd President of North Peru (b. 1783)
    • 1862 – John Drew, Irish-American actor and manager (b. 1827)
    • 1879 – Arturo Prat, Chilean lawyer and commander (b. 1848)
    • 1894 – Émile Henry, French anarchist (b. 1872)
    • 1894 – August Kundt, German physicist and academic (b. 1839)
    • 1895 – Franz von Suppé, Austrian composer and conductor (b. 1819)
    • 1901 – Joseph Olivier, French rugby player (b. 1874)
    • 1911 – Williamina Fleming, Scottish-American astronomer and academic (b. 1857)
    • 1915 – Leonid Gobyato, Russian general and engineer (b. 1875)
    • 1919 – Evgraf Fedorov, Russian mathematician, crystallographer, and mineralogist (b. 1853)
    • 1920 – Venustiano Carranza, Mexican politician, 54th President of Mexico (b. 1859)
    • 1925 – Hidesaburō Ueno, Japanese agriculturalist, guardian of Hachikō (b. 1871)
    • 1926 – Ronald Firbank, English-Italian author (b. 1886)
    • 1929 – Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1847)
    • 1932 – Marcel Boulenger, French fencer and author (b. 1873)
    • 1935 – Jane Addams, American activist and author, co-founded Hull House, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1860)
    • 1935 – Hugo de Vries, Dutch botanist and geneticist (b. 1848)
    • 1940 – Billy Minter, English footballer and manager (b. 1888)
    • 1949 – Klaus Mann, German-American novelist, playwright, and critic (b. 1906)
    • 1952 – John Garfield, American actor (b. 1913)
    • 1956 – Harry Bensley, English businessman and adventurer (b. 1877)
    • 1957 – Alexander Vertinsky, Ukrainian-Russian singer-songwriter, actor, and poet (b. 1889)
    • 1964 – James Franck, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1882)
    • 1965 – Marguerite Bise, French chef (b. 1898)
    • 1965 – Geoffrey de Havilland, English pilot and engineer, designed the de Havilland Mosquito (b. 1882)
    • 1968 – Doris Lloyd, English actress (b. 1896)
    • 1970 – E. L. Grant Watson, English-Australian biologist and author (b. 1885)
    • 1973 – Vaughn Monroe, American singer, trumpet player, bandleader, and actor (b. 1911)
    • 1973 – Ivan Konev, Soviet Marshal and general (b. 1897)
    • 1981 – Raymond McCreesh, PIRA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1981 – Patsy O’Hara, INLA volunteer (b. 1957)
    • 1983 – Kenneth Clark, English historian and author (b. 1903)
    • 1984 – Ann Little, American actress (b. 1891)
    • 1988 – Sammy Davis Sr., American actor and dancer (b. 1900)
    • 1991 – Lino Brocka, Filipino director and screenwriter (b. 1939)
    • 1991 – Rajiv Gandhi, Indian politician, 6th Prime Minister of India (b. 1944)
    • 1995 – Les Aspin, American captain and politician, 18th United States Secretary of Defense (b. 1938)
    • 1996 – Paul Delph, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1957)
    • 1996 – Lash LaRue, American actor and producer (b. 1917)
    • 1996 – Villem Raam, Estonian art historian, art critic and conservator (b. 1910)
    • 1998 – Robert Gist, American actor and director (b. 1917)
    • 2000 – Barbara Cartland, English author (b. 1901)
    • 2000 – John Gielgud, English actor (b. 1904)
    • 2000 – Mark R. Hughes, American businessman, founded Herbalife (b. 1956)
    • 2002 – Niki de Saint Phalle, French-American sculptor and painter (b. 1930)
    • 2003 – Alejandro de Tomaso, Argentinian-Italian race car driver and businessman, founded De Tomaso (b. 1928)
    • 2003 – Frank D. White, American captain, banker, and politician, 41st Governor of Arkansas (b. 1933)
    • 2005 – Deborah Berger, American outsider artist (b. 1956)
    • 2005 – Stephen Elliott, American actor (b. 1918)
    • 2005 – Howard Morris, American actor and director (b. 1919)
    • 2006 – Spencer Clark, American race car driver (b. 1987)
    • 2006 – Katherine Dunham, American dancer, choreographer, and author (b. 1909)
    • 2006 – Cherd Songsri, Thai director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1931)
    • 2006 – Billy Walker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1929)
    • 2012 – Eddie Blazonczyk, American singer-songwriter (b. 1941)
    • 2012 – Otis Clark, American butler and preacher, survivor of the Tulsa race riot (b. 1903)
    • 2012 – Constantine of Irinoupolis, Metropolitan of Irinoupolis and Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA (b. 1936)
    • 2012 – Roman Dumbadze, Georgian commander (b. 1964)
    • 2012 – Douglas Rodríguez, Cuban boxer (b. 1950)
    • 2012 – Bill Stewart, American football player and coach (b. 1952)
    • 2012 – Alan Thorne, Australian anthropologist and academic (b. 1939)
    • 2013 – Count Christian of Rosenborg, member of the Danish royal family (b. 1942)
    • 2013 – Frank Comstock, American trombonist, composer, and conductor (b. 1922)
    • 2013 – Cot Deal, American baseball player and coach (b. 1923)
    • 2013 – Mohammad Khaled Hossain, Bangladeshi mountaineer (b. 1979)
    • 2013 – Leonard Marsh, American businessman, co-founded Snapple (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Bob Thompson, American pianist and composer (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Dominique Venner, French journalist and historian (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – David Voelker, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1953)
    • 2014 – Tunku Annuar, Malaysian son of Badlishah of Kedah (b. 1939)
    • 2014 – Evelyn Blackmon, American businesswoman and politician (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – Johnny Gray, American baseball player (b. 1926)
    • 2014 – Jaime Lusinchi, Venezuelan physician and politician, President of Venezuela (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – Alireza Soleimani, Iranian wrestler (b. 1956)
    • 2015 – Annarita Sidoti, Italian race walker (b. 1969)
    • 2015 – Twinkle, English singer-songwriter (b. 1948)
    • 2015 – Jassem Al-Kharafi, Kuwaiti businessman and politician, 8th Kuwaiti Speaker of the National Assembly (b. 1940)
    • 2015 – Fred Gladding, American baseball player and coach (b. 1936)
    • 2015 – Louis Johnson, American bass player and producer (b. 1955)
    • 2016 – Nick Menza, American drummer and songwriter (b. 1964)
    • 2019 – Rik Kuypers, Belgian film director (b. 1925)
    • 2019 – Binyavanga Wainaina, Kenyan writer (b. 1971)
    • 2020 – Alan Merten, fifth President of George Mason University (b. 1941)

    Holidays and observances on May 21

    • Afro-Colombian Day (Colombia)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Arcangelo Tadini
      • Blessed Adílio Daronch and Manuel Gómez González
      • Blessed Franz Jägerstätter
      • Earliest day on which Corpus Christi can fall, while June 24 is the latest; held on Thursday after Trinity Sunday (often locally moved to Sunday). (Roman Catholic Church)
      • Emperor Constantine I
      • Eugène de Mazenod
      • Helena of Constantinople, also known as “Feast of the Holy Great Sovereigns Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the-Apostles.” (Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion)
      • John Elliot (Episcopal Church)
      • Saints of the Cristero War, including Christopher Magallanes
      • May 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Circassian Day of Mourning (Circassians)
    • Day of Patriots and Military (Hungary)
    • Independence Day, celebrates the Montenegrin independence referendum in 2006, celebrated until the next day. (Montenegro)
    • Navy Day (Chile)
    • Saint Helena Day, celebrates the discovery of Saint Helena in 1502. (Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha)
    • World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development (International)
    • International Tea Day (International)

  • May 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 325 – The First Council of Nicaea is formally opened, starting the first ecumenical council of the Christian Church.
    • 491 – Empress Ariadne marries Anastasius I. The widowed Augusta is able to choose her successor for the Byzantine throne, after Zeno (late emperor) dies of dysentery.
    • 685 – The Battle of Dun Nechtain is fought between a Pictish army under King Bridei III and the invading Northumbrians under King Ecgfrith, who are decisively defeated.
    • 794 – While visiting the royal Mercian court at Sutton Walls with a view to marrying princess Ælfthryth, King Æthelberht II of East Anglia is taken captive and beheaded.
    • 1217 – The Second Battle of Lincoln is fought near Lincoln, England, resulting in the defeat of Prince Louis of France by William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke.
    • 1293 – King Sancho IV of Castile creates the Estudio de Escuelas de Generales in Alcalá de Henares.
    • 1449 – The Battle of Alfarrobeira is fought, establishing the House of Braganza as a principal royal family of Portugal.
    • 1497 – John Cabot sets sail from Bristol, England, on his ship Matthew looking for a route to the west (other documents give a May 2 date).
    • 1498 – Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama discovers the sea route to India when he arrives at Kozhikode (previously known as Calicut), India.
    • 1521 – Ignatius of Loyola is seriously wounded in the Battle of Pampeluna.
    • 1570 – Cartographer Abraham Ortelius issues Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, the first modern atlas.
    • 1609 – Shakespeare’s sonnets are first published in London, perhaps illicitly, by the publisher Thomas Thorpe.
    • 1631 – The city of Magdeburg in Germany is seized by forces of the Holy Roman Empire and most of its inhabitants massacred, in one of the bloodiest incidents of the Thirty Years’ War.
    • 1645 – Yangzhou massacre: The ten day massacre of 800,000 residents of the city of Yangzhou, part of the Transition from Ming to Qing.
    • 1741 – The Battle of Cartagena de Indias ends in a Spanish victory and the British begin withdrawal towards Jamaica with substantial losses.
    • 1775 – The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence is allegedly signed in Charlotte, North Carolina.
    • 1802 – By the Law of 20 May 1802, Napoleon Bonaparte reinstates slavery in the French colonies, revoking its abolition in the French Revolution.
    • 1813 – Napoleon Bonaparte leads his French troops into the Battle of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany, against the combined armies of Russia and Prussia. The battle ends the next day with a French victory.
    • 1840 – York Minster is badly damaged by fire.
    • 1861 – American Civil War: The state of Kentucky proclaims its neutrality, which will last until September 3 when Confederate forces enter the state. Meanwhile, the State of North Carolina secedes from the Union.
    • 1862 – U.S. President Abraham Lincoln signs the Homestead Act into law, opening 84 million acres of public land to settlers.
    • 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Ware Bottom Church: In the Virginia Bermuda Hundred campaign, 10,000 troops fight in this Confederate victory.
    • 1873 – Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis receive a U.S. patent for blue jeans with copper rivets.
    • 1875 – Signing of the Metre Convention by 17 nations leading to the establishment of the International System of Units.
    • 1882 – The Triple Alliance between the German Empire, Austria-Hungary and the Kingdom of Italy is formed.
    • 1883 – Krakatoa begins to erupt; the volcano explodes three months later, killing more than 36,000 people.
    • 1891 – History of cinema: The first public display of Thomas Edison’s prototype kinetoscope.
    • 1902 – Cuba gains independence from the United States. Tomás Estrada Palma becomes the country’s first President.
    • 1927 – Treaty of Jeddah: The United Kingdom recognizes the sovereignty of King Ibn Saud in the Kingdoms of Hejaz and Nejd, which later merge to become the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
    • 1932 – Amelia Earhart takes off from Newfoundland to begin the world’s first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean by a female pilot, landing in Ireland the next day.
    • 1940 – The Holocaust: The first prisoners arrive at a new concentration camp at Auschwitz.
    • 1941 – World War II: Battle of Crete: German paratroops invade Crete.
    • 1948 – Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek wins the 1948 Republic of China presidential election and is sworn in as the first President of the Republic of China at Nanjing.
    • 1949 – In the United States, the Armed Forces Security Agency, the predecessor to the National Security Agency, is established.
    • 1956 – In Operation Redwing, the first United States airborne hydrogen bomb is dropped over Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
    • 1964 – Discovery of the cosmic microwave background radiation by Robert Woodrow Wilson and Arno Penzias.
    • 1967 – The Popular Movement of the Revolution political party is established in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
    • 1969 – The Battle of Hamburger Hill in Vietnam ends.
    • 1971 – In the Chuknagar massacre, Pakistani forces massacre thousands, mostly Bengali Hindus.
    • 1980 – In a referendum in Quebec, the population rejects, by 60% of the vote, a government proposal to move towards independence from Canada.
    • 1983 – First publications of the discovery of the HIV virus that causes AIDS in the journal Science by Luc Montagnier.
    • 1983 – Church Street bombing: A car bomb planted by Umkhonto we Sizwe explodes on Church Street in South Africa’s capital, Pretoria, killing 19 people and injuring 217 others.
    • 1985 – Radio Martí, part of the Voice of America service, begins broadcasting to Cuba.
    • 1989 – The Chinese authorities declare martial law in the face of pro-democracy demonstrations, setting the scene for the Tiananmen Square massacre.
    • 1990 – The first post-Communist presidential and parliamentary elections are held in Romania.
    • 1996 – Civil rights: The Supreme Court of the United States rules in Romer v. Evans against a law that would have prevented any city, town or county in the state of Colorado from taking any legislative, executive, or judicial action to protect the rights of gays and lesbians.
    • 2002 – The independence of East Timor is recognized by Portugal, formally ending 23 years of Indonesian rule and three years of provisional UN administration (Portugal itself is the former colonizer of East Timor until 1976).
    • 2012 – At least 27 people are killed and 50 others injured when a 6.0-magnitude earthquake strikes northern Italy.
    • 2013 – An EF5 tornado strikes the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, killing 24 people and injuring 377 others.
    • 2019 – The International System of Units (SI): The base units are redefined, making the international prototype of the kilogram obsolete.

    Births on May 20

    • 1315 – Bonne of Luxembourg, first wife of John II of France (d. 1349)
    • 1470 – Pietro Bembo, Italian cardinal, poet, and scholar (d. 1547)
    • 1505 – Levinus Lemnius, Dutch writer (d. 1568)
    • 1531 – Thado Minsaw of Ava, Viceroy of Ava (d. 1584)
    • 1537 – Hieronymus Fabricius, Italian anatomist (d. 1619)
    • 1575 – Robert Heath, English judge and politician (d. 1649)
    • 1664 – Andreas Schlüter, German sculptor and architect (d. 1714)
    • 1726 – Francis Cotes, English painter and academic (d. 1770)
    • 1743 – Toussaint Louverture, Haitian revolutionary, general, and president (d. 1803)
    • 1759 – William Thornton, Virgin Islander-American architect, designed the United States Capitol (d. 1828)
    • 1769 – Andreas Vokos Miaoulis, Greek admiral and politician (d. 1835)
    • 1772 – Sir William Congreve, 2nd Baronet, English inventor and politician, developed Congreve rockets (d. 1828)
    • 1776 – Simon Fraser, American-Canadian fur trader and explorer (d. 1862)
    • 1795 – Pedro María de Anaya, Mexican soldier. President (1847-1848) (d. 1854)
    • 1799 – Honoré de Balzac, French novelist and playwright (d. 1850)
    • 1806 – John Stuart Mill, English economist, civil servant, and philosopher (d. 1873)
    • 1811 – Alfred Domett, English-New Zealand poet and politician, 4th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1887)
    • 1818 – William Fargo, American businessman and politician, co-founded Wells Fargo and American Express (d. 1881)
    • 1822 – Frédéric Passy, French economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1912)
    • 1824 – Cadmus M. Wilcox, Confederate States Army general (d. 1890)
    • 1825 – Antoinette Brown Blackwell, the first woman to be ordained as a mainstream Protestant minister in the U.S. (d. 1921)
    • 1830 – Hector Malot, French author (d. 1907)
    • 1838 – Jules Méline, French lawyer and politician, 65th Prime Minister of France (d. 1925)
    • 1851 – Emile Berliner, German-American inventor, invented the Gramophone record (d. 1929)
    • 1854 – George Prendergast, Australian politician, 28th Premier of Victoria (d. 1937)
    • 1856 – Henri-Edmond Cross, French Neo-Impressionist painter (d. 1910)
    • 1860 – Eduard Buchner, German chemist, zymologist, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1917)
    • 1875 – Hendrik Offerhaus, Dutch rower (d. 1953)
    • 1877 – Pat Leahy, Irish-American jumper (d. 1927)
    • 1879 – Hans Meerwein, German chemist (d. 1965)
    • 1882 – Sigrid Undset, Danish-Norwegian novelist, essayist, and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1949)
    • 1883 – Faisal I of Iraq (d. 1933)
    • 1886 – Ali Sami Yen, Turkish footballer and manager, founded the Galatasaray Sports Club (d. 1951)
    • 1894 – Chandrashekarendra Saraswati, Indian guru and scholar (d. 1994)
    • 1895 – R. J. Mitchell, English engineer, designed the Supermarine Spitfire and Supermarine S.6B (d. 1937)
    • 1897 – Diego Abad de Santillán, Spanish economist and author (d. 1983)
    • 1897 – Malcolm Nokes, English hammer and discus thrower (d. 1986)
    • 1898 – Eduard Ole, Estonian painter (d. 1995)
    • 1899 – Aleksandr Deyneka, Russian painter and sculptor (d. 1969)
    • 1899 – John Marshall Harlan II, American lawyer and jurist (d. 1971)
    • 1900 – Sumitranandan Pant, Indian poet and author (d. 1977)
    • 1901 – Max Euwe, Dutch chess player, mathematician, and author (d. 1981)
    • 1901 – Doris Fleeson, American journalist (d. 1970)
    • 1904 – Margery Allingham, English author of detective fiction (d. 1966)
    • 1906 – Giuseppe Siri, Italian cardinal (d. 1989)
    • 1907 – Carl Mydans, American photographer and journalist (d. 2004)
    • 1908 – Henry Bolte, Australian politician, 38th Premier of Victoria (d. 1990)
    • 1908 – Louis Daquin, French actor and director (d. 1980)
    • 1908 – Francis Raymond Fosberg, American botanist and author (d. 1993)
    • 1908 – James Stewart, American actor (d. 1997)
    • 1911 – Gardner Fox, American author (d. 1986)
    • 1911 – Annie M. G. Schmidt, Dutch author and playwright (d. 1995)
    • 1913 – Teodoro Fernández, Peruvian footballer (d. 1996)
    • 1913 – William Redington Hewlett, American engineer, co-founded Hewlett-Packard (d. 2001)
    • 1915 – Peter Copley, English actor (d. 2008)
    • 1915 – Moshe Dayan, Israeli general and politician, 5th Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1981)
    • 1915 – Joff Ellen, Australian comedian and actor (d. 1999)
    • 1916 – Owen Chadwick, English rugby player, historian, and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1916 – Alexey Maresyev, Russian soldier and pilot (d. 2001)
    • 1916 – Ondina Valla, Italian sprinter and hurdler (d. 2006)
    • 1917 – Tony Cliff, Israeli-English author and activist (d. 2000)
    • 1917 – Guy Favreau, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician, 28th Canadian Minister of Justice (d. 1967)
    • 1918 – Alexandra Boyko, Russian tank commander (d. 1996)
    • 1918 – Edward B. Lewis, American biologist, geneticist, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2004)
    • 1919 – George Gobel, American comedian (d. 1991)
    • 1920 – John Cruickshank, Scottish lieutenant and banker, Victoria Cross recipient
    • 1921 – Wolfgang Borchert, German author and playwright (d. 1947)
    • 1921 – Hal Newhouser, American baseball player and scout (d. 1998)
    • 1921 – Hao Wang, Chinese-American logician, philosopher, and mathematician (d. 1995)
    • 1922 – Ted Hinton, Northern Irish international footballer (d. 1988)
    • 1923 – Edith Fellows, American actress (d. 2011)
    • 1923 – Sam Selvon, Trinidad-born writer (d. 1994)
    • 1924 – David Chavchavadze, English-American CIA officer and author (d. 2014)
    • 1924 – Zelmar Michelini, Uruguayan journalist and politician (d. 1976)
    • 1925 – Alexei Tupolev, Russian engineer, designed the Tupolev Tu-144 (d. 2001)
    • 1926 – Bob Sweikert, American race car driver (d. 1956)
    • 1927 – Bud Grant, American football player and coach
    • 1927 – David Hedison, American actor (d. 2019)
    • 1927 – Franciszek Macharski, Polish cardinal (d. 2016)
    • 1929 – Gilles Loiselle, Canadian politician and diplomat, 33rd Canadian Minister of Finance
    • 1930 – Sam Etcheverry, American football player and coach (d. 2009)
    • 1931 – Ken Boyer, American baseball player and manager (d. 1982)
    • 1931 – Louis Smith, American trumpeter (d. 2016)
    • 1933 – Constance Towers, American actress and singer
    • 1935 – José Mujica, Uruguayan guerrilla leader and politician, 40th President of Uruguay
    • 1936 – Anthony Zerbe, American actor
    • 1937 – Dave Hill, American golfer (d. 2011)
    • 1937 – Derek Lampe, English footballer
    • 1939 – Balu Mahendra, Sri Lankan-Indian director, cinematographer, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
    • 1940 – Shorty Long, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 1969)
    • 1940 – Stan Mikita, Slovak-Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster (d. 2018)
    • 1940 – Sadaharu Oh, Japanese-Taiwanese baseball player and manager
    • 1941 – Goh Chok Tong, Singaporean politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Singapore
    • 1941 – John Strasberg, American actor and teacher
    • 1942 – Raymond Chrétien, Canadian lawyer and diplomat, Canadian Ambassador to the United States
    • 1942 – Lynn Davies, Welsh sprinter and long jumper
    • 1942 – Carlos Hathcock, American sergeant and sniper (d. 1999)
    • 1942 – Frew McMillan, South African tennis player
    • 1943 – Albano Carrisi, Italian singer, actor, and winemaker
    • 1943 – Deryck Murray, Trinidadian cricketer
    • 1944 – Joe Cocker, English singer-songwriter (d. 2014)
    • 1944 – Boudewijn de Groot, Indonesian-Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1944 – Keith Fletcher, English cricketer and manager
    • 1944 – Dietrich Mateschitz, Austrian businessman, co-founded Red Bull GmbH
    • 1945 – Vladimiro Montesinos, Peruvian intelligence officer
    • 1946 – Cher, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1946 – Bobby Murcer, American baseball player, coach, manager, and sportscaster (d. 2008)
    • 1947 – Steve Currie, English bass player (d. 1981)
    • 1947 – Greg Dyke, English journalist and academic
    • 1949 – Robert Morin, Canadian director, cinematographer, and screenwriter
    • 1949 – Michèle Roberts, English author and poet
    • 1949 – Dave Thomas, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1950 – Andy Johns, English-American engineer and producer (d. 2013)
    • 1950 – Reinaldo Merlo, Argentinian footballer and coach
    • 1951 – Thomas Akers, American colonel, engineer, and astronaut
    • 1951 – Christie Blatchford, Canadian newspaper columnist, journalist and broadcaster (d. 2020)
    • 1951 – Mike Crapo, American lawyer and politician
    • 1952 – Roger Milla, Cameroonian footballer and manager
    • 1952 – Michael Wills, English politician, British Minister of Justice
    • 1953 – Robert Doyle, Australian educator and politician, 103rd Lord Mayor of Melbourne
    • 1954 – David Paterson, American lawyer and politician, 55th Governor of New York
    • 1954 – Colin Sutherland, Lord Carloway, Scottish lawyer and judge
    • 1955 – Steve George, American keyboard player and songwriter
    • 1955 – Zbigniew Preisner, Polish composer and producer
    • 1956 – Ingvar Ambjørnsen, Norwegian-German author and critic
    • 1956 – Gerry Peyton, English born Irish international footballer and coach
    • 1956 – Douglas Preston, American journalist and author
    • 1957 – Yoshihiko Noda, Japanese lawyer and politician, 62nd Prime Minister of Japan
    • 1958 – Ron Reagan, American journalist and radio host
    • 1958 – Jane Wiedlin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
    • 1959 – Susan Cowsill, American singer-songwriter
    • 1960 – Tony Goldwyn, American actor and director
    • 1961 – Clive Allen, English international footballer and manager
    • 1961 – Nick Heyward, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1963 – David Wells, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1964 – Kōichirō Genba, Japanese politician, 80th Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs
    • 1964 – Edin Osmanović, Slovenian footballer, coach, and manager
    • 1964 – Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, English journalist and author
    • 1965 – Ted Allen, American television host and author
    • 1965 – Stu Grimson, Canadian ice hockey player, sportscaster, and lawyer
    • 1966 – Dan Abrams, American journalist and author
    • 1967 – Graham Brady, English politician
    • 1967 – Gabriele Muccino, Italian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1968 – Timothy Olyphant, American actor and producer
    • 1969 – Road Dogg, American wrestler, producer, and soldier
    • 1970 – Terrell Brandon, American basketball player
    • 1970 – Louis Theroux, Singaporean-English journalist and producer
    • 1971 – Šárka Kašpárková, Czech triple jumper and coach
    • 1971 – Tony Stewart, American race car driver
    • 1972 – Michael Diamond, Australian shooter
    • 1972 – Christophe Dominici, French rugby player
    • 1972 – Busta Rhymes, American rapper, producer, and actor
    • 1973 – Nathan Long, Australian rugby league player
    • 1974 – Allison Amend, American novelist and short story writer
    • 1974 – Shiboprosad Mukherjee, Indian film director, writer and actor
    • 1975 – Juan Minujín, Argentinian actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1976 – Ramón Hernández, Venezuelan-American baseball player
    • 1976 – Tomoya Satozaki, Japanese baseball player
    • 1977 – Matt Czuchry, American actor
    • 1977 – Leo Franco, Argentinian footballer
    • 1977 – Angela Goethals, American actress
    • 1977 – Stirling Mortlock, Australian rugby player
    • 1977 – Vesa Toskala, Finnish ice hockey player
    • 1978 – Hristos Banikas, Greek chess player
    • 1978 – Pavla Hamáčková-Rybová, Czech pole vaulter
    • 1978 – Nils Schumann, German runner
    • 1979 – Andrew Scheer, Canadian politician, 28th Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada
    • 1979 – Jayson Werth, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Austin Kearns, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Kassim Osgood, American football player
    • 1981 – Iker Casillas, Spanish footballer
    • 1981 – Rachel Platten, American singer and songwriter
    • 1981 – Lindsay Taylor, American basketball player
    • 1981 – Mark Winterbottom, Australian race car driver
    • 1982 – Petr Čech, Czech footballer
    • 1982 – Imran Farhat, Pakistani cricketer
    • 1982 – Jessica Raine, English actress
    • 1982 – Daniel Ribeiro, Brazilian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1983 – Óscar Cardozo, Paraguayan footballer
    • 1983 – Matt Langridge, English rower
    • 1984 – Mauro Rafael da Silva, Brazilian footballer
    • 1984 – Patrick Ewing, Jr., American basketball player
    • 1984 – Keith Grennan, American football player
    • 1985 – Chris Froome, Kenyan-English cyclist
    • 1985 – Brendon Goddard, Australian footballer
    • 1986 – Dexter Blackstock, English footballer
    • 1986 – Stéphane Mbia, Cameroonian footballer
    • 1986 – Jiřina Svobodová, Czech pole vaulter
    • 1987 – Mike Havenaar, Japanese footballer
    • 1987 – Julian Wright, American basketball player
    • 1988 – Joel Moon, Australian rugby league player
    • 1989 – Siosia Vave, Australian-Tongan rugby league player
    • 1991 – Bastian Baker, Swiss singer, songwriter, and performer
    • 1991 – Emre Colak, Turkish footballer
    • 1992 – Cate Campbell, Malawian-Australian swimmer
    • 1992 – Jack Gleeson, Irish actor
    • 1992 – Enes Kanter, Turkish basketball player
    • 1993 – Caroline Zhang, American figure skater
    • 1996 – Brian Kelly, Australian rugby league player
    • 1998 – Jamie Chadwick, English race car driver
    • 1998 – Nam Nguyen, Canadian figure skater

    Deaths on May 20

    • 685 – Ecgfrith of Northumbria (b. 645)
    • 794 – Æthelberht II, king of East Anglia
    • 965 – Gero the Great, Saxon ruler (b.c. 900)
    • 1062 – Bao Zheng, Chinese magistrate and mayor of Kaifeng (b. 999)
    • 1277 – Pope John XXI (b. 1215)
    • 1285 – John II of Jerusalem (b. 1259)
    • 1291 – Sufi Saint Sayyid Jalaluddin Surkh-Posh Bukhari
    • 1366 – Maria of Calabria, Empress of Constantinople (b. 1329)
    • 1444 – Bernardino of Siena, Italian-Spanish missionary and saint (b. 1380)
    • 1449 – Álvaro Vaz de Almada, 1st Count of Avranches
    • 1449 – Infante Pedro, Duke of Coimbra (b. 1392)
    • 1501 – Columba of Rieti, Italian Dominican tertiary Religious Sister (b. 1467)
    • 1503 – Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de’ Medici, Italian banker and politician (b. 1463)
    • 1506 – Christopher Columbus, Italian explorer, discovered the Americas (b. 1451)
    • 1550 – Ashikaga Yoshiharu, Japanese shōgun (b. 1510)
    • 1579 – Isabella Markham, English courtier (b. 1527)
    • 1622 – Osman II, Ottoman sultan (b. 1604)
    • 1645 – Shi Kefa, Chinese general and calligrapher (b. 1601)
    • 1648 – Władysław IV Vasa, Polish son of Sigismund III Vasa (b. 1595)
    • 1677 – George Digby, 2nd Earl of Bristol, Spanish-English politician, English Secretary of State (b. 1612)
    • 1713 – Thomas Sprat, English bishop (b. 1635)
    • 1717 – John Trevor, Welsh lawyer and politician, 102nd Speaker of the House of Commons (b. 1637)
    • 1722 – Sébastien Vaillant, French botanist and mycologist (b. 1669)
    • 1732 – Thomas Boston, Scottish author and educator (b. 1676)
    • 1782 – William Emerson, English mathematician and academic (b. 1701)
    • 1793 – Charles Bonnet, Swiss botanist and biologist (b. 1720)
    • 1812 – Count Hieronymus von Colloredo, Austrian archbishop (b. 1732)
    • 1834 – Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, French general (b. 1757)
    • 1841 – Joseph Blanco White, Spanish poet and theologian (b. 1775)
    • 1864 – John Clare, English poet (b. 1793)
    • 1873 – George-Étienne Cartier, Canadian soldier, lawyer, and politician, 9th Premier of East Canada (b. 1814)
    • 1880 – Ana Néri, Brazilian nurse and philanthropist (b. 1814)
    • 1896 – Clara Schumann, German pianist and composer (b. 1819)
    • 1909 – Ernest Hogan, American actor and composer (b. 1859)
    • 1917 – Valentine Fleming, Scottish soldier and politician (b. 1887)
    • 1917 – Philipp von Ferrary, Italian stamp collector (b. 1850)
    • 1924 – Bogd Khan, Mongolian ruler (c. 1869)
    • 1925 – Joseph Howard, Maltese politician, 1st Prime Minister of Malta (b. 1862)
    • 1931 – Ernest Noel, Scottish businessman and politician (b. 1831)
    • 1940 – Verner von Heidenstam, Swedish author and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1859)
    • 1942 – Hector Guimard, French Architect (b. 1867)
    • 1946 – Jacob Ellehammer, Danish pilot and engineer (b. 1871)
    • 1947 – Philipp Lenard, Slovak-German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1862)
    • 1947 – Georgios Siantos, Greek sergeant and politician (b. 1890)
    • 1949 – Damaskinos of Athens, Greek archbishop and politician, 137th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1891)
    • 1956 – Max Beerbohm, English essayist, parodist, and caricaturist (b. 1872)
    • 1956 – Zoltán Halmay, Hungarian swimmer and trainer (b. 1881)
    • 1961 – Josef Priller, German colonel and pilot (b. 1915)
    • 1964 – Rudy Lewis, American singer (b. 1936)
    • 1971 – Waldo Williams, Welsh poet and academic (b. 1904)
    • 1973 – Renzo Pasolini, Italian motorcycle racer (b. 1938)
    • 1973 – Jarno Saarinen, Finnish motorcycle racer (b. 1945)
    • 1975 – Barbara Hepworth, English sculptor and lithographer (b. 1903)
    • 1976 – Syd Howe, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1911)
    • 1976 – Zelmar Michelini, Uruguayan journalist and politician (b. 1924)
    • 1976 – Héctor Gutiérrez Ruiz, Uruguayan politician (b. 1934)
    • 1989 – John Hicks, English economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1904)
    • 1989 – Gilda Radner, American actress and comedian (b. 1946)
    • 1995 – Les Cowie, Australian rugby league player (b. 1925)
    • 1996 – Jon Pertwee, English actor, portrayed the Third Doctor (b. 1919)
    • 1998 – Robert Normann, Norwegian guitarist (b. 1916)
    • 2000 – Jean-Pierre Rampal, French flute player (b. 1922)
    • 2000 – Malik Sealy, American basketball player and actor (b. 1970)
    • 2000 – Yevgeny Khrunov, Russian colonel, engineer, and astronaut (b. 1933)
    • 2001 – Renato Carosone, Italian singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1920)
    • 2002 – Stephen Jay Gould, American paleontologist, biologist, and academic (b. 1941)
    • 2005 – Paul Ricœur, French philosopher and academic (b. 1913)
    • 2005 – William Seawell, American general (b. 1918)
    • 2007 – Norman Von Nida, Australian golfer (b. 1914)
    • 2008 – Hamilton Jordan, American politician, 8th White House Chief of Staff (b. 1944)
    • 2009 – Arthur Erickson, Canadian architect and urban planner, designed Roy Thomson Hall (b. 1924)
    • 2009 – Lucy Gordon, American actress and model (b. 1980)
    • 2009 – Pierre Gamarra, French author, poet, and critic (b. 1919)
    • 2011 – Randy Savage, American wrestler and actor (b. 1952)
    • 2012 – Leela Dube, Indian anthropologist and scholar (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Robin Gibb, Manx-English singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1949)
    • 2012 – David Littman, English-Swiss historian, author, and academic (b. 1933)
    • 2012 – Ken Lyons, American bass guitarist (b. 1953)
    • 2012 – Eugene Polley, American engineer, invented the remote control (b. 1915)
    • 2012 – Andrew B. Steinberg, American lawyer (b. 1958)
    • 2013 – Flavio Costantini, Italian painter and illustrator (b. 1926)
    • 2013 – Billie Dawe, Canadian ice hockey player and manager (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Anders Eliasson, Swedish composer (b. 1947)
    • 2013 – Miloslav Kříž, Czech basketball player and coach (b. 1924)
    • 2013 – Ray Manzarek, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer (b. 1939)
    • 2013 – Denys Roberts, English judge and politician (b. 1923)
    • 2013 – Zach Sobiech, American singer-songwriter (b. 1995)
    • 2014 – Sandra Bem, American psychologist and academic (b. 1944)
    • 2014 – Ross Brown, New Zealand rugby player (b. 1934)
    • 2014 – Robyn Denny, English-French painter (b. 1930)
    • 2014 – Arthur Gelb, American journalist, author, and critic (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – Prince Rupert Loewenstein, Spanish-English businessman (b. 1933)
    • 2014 – Barbara Murray, English actress (b. 1929)
    • 2015 – Bob Belden, American saxophonist, composer, and producer (b. 1956)
    • 2015 – Femi Robinson, Nigerian actor and playwright (b. 1940)

    Holidays and observances on May 20

    • Christian feast day:
      • Abercius and Helena
      • Alcuin of York
      • Aurea of Ostia
      • Austregisilus
      • Baudilus
      • Bernardino of Siena
      • Ivo of Chartres
      • Lucifer of Cagliari
      • Sanctan
      • May 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Day of Remembrance (Cambodia)
    • Emancipation Day (Florida)
    • European Maritime Day (European Council)
    • Independence Restoration Day, celebrates the independence of East Timor from Indonesia in 2002.
    • Josephine Baker Day (NAACP)
    • National Awakening Day (Indonesia), and its related observances:
      • Indonesian Doctor Day (Indonesia)
    • National Day (Cameroon)
    • World Bee Day
    • World Metrology Day

  • May 16 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 946 – Emperor Suzaku abdicates the throne in favor of his brother Murakami who becomes the 62nd emperor of Japan.
    • 1204 – Having been elected on May 9, Baldwin IX, Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire.
    • 1426 – Gov. Thado of Mohnyin becomes king of Ava.
    • 1527 – The Florentines drive out the Medici for a second time and Florence re-establishes itself as a republic.
    • 1532 – Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England.
    • 1568 – Mary, Queen of Scots, flees to England.
    • 1584 – Santiago de Vera becomes sixth Governor-General of the Spanish colony of the Philippines.
    • 1739 – The Battle of Vasai concludes as the Marathas defeat the Portuguese army.
    • 1770 – The 14-year-old Marie Antoinette marries 15-year-old Louis-Auguste, who later becomes king of France.
    • 1771 – The Battle of Alamance, a pre-American Revolutionary War battle between local militia and a group of rebels called The “Regulators”, occurs in present-day Alamance County, North Carolina.
    • 1811 – Peninsular War: The allies Spain, Portugal and United Kingdom, defeat the French at the Battle of Albuera.
    • 1812 – Imperial Russia signs the Treaty of Bucharest, ending the Russo-Turkish War. The Ottoman Empire cedes Bessarabia to Russia.
    • 1822 – Greek War of Independence: The Turks capture the Greek town of Souli.
    • 1832 – Juan Godoy discovers the rich silver outcrops of Chañarcillo sparking the Chilean silver rush.
    • 1834 – The Battle of Asseiceira is fought, the last and decisive engagement of the Liberal Wars in Portugal.
    • 1842 – The first major wagon train heading for the Pacific Northwest sets out on the Oregon Trail from Elm Grove, Missouri, with 100 pioneers.
    • 1866 – The United States Congress establishes the nickel.
    • 1868 – The United States Senate fails to convict President Andrew Johnson by one vote.
    • 1874 – A flood on the Mill River in Massachusetts destroys much of four villages and kills 139 people.
    • 1877 – The 16 May 1877 crisis occurs in France, ending with the dissolution of the National Assembly 22 June and affirming the interpretation of the Constitution of 1875 as a parliamentary rather than presidential system. The elections held in October 1877 led to the defeat of the royalists as a formal political movement in France.
    • 1888 – Nikola Tesla delivers a lecture describing the equipment which will allow efficient generation and use of alternating currents to transmit electric power over long distances.
    • 1891 – The International Electrotechnical Exhibition opens in Frankfurt, Germany, and will feature the world’s first long-distance transmission of high-power, three-phase electric current (the most common form today).
    • 1916 – The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the French Third Republic sign the secret wartime Sykes-Picot Agreement partitioning former Ottoman territories such as Iraq and Syria.
    • 1918 – The Sedition Act of 1918 is passed by the U.S. Congress, making criticism of the government during wartime an imprisonable offense. It will be repealed less than two years later.
    • 1919 – A naval Curtiss NC-4 aircraft commanded by Albert Cushing Read leaves Trepassey, Newfoundland, for Lisbon via the Azores on the first transatlantic flight.
    • 1920 – In Rome, Pope Benedict XV canonizes Joan of Arc.
    • 1929 – In Hollywood, the first Academy Awards ceremony takes place.
    • 1943 – The Holocaust: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ends.
    • 1951 – The first regularly scheduled transatlantic flights begin between Idlewild Airport (now John F Kennedy International Airport) in New York City and Heathrow Airport in London, operated by El Al Israel Airlines.
    • 1959 – The Triton Fountain in Valletta, Malta is turned on for the first time.
    • 1960 – Theodore Maiman operates the first optical laser (a ruby laser), at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California.
    • 1961 – Park Chung-hee leads a coup d’état to overthrow the Second Republic of South Korea.
    • 1966 – The Communist Party of China issues the “May 16 Notice”, marking the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.
    • 1969 – Venera program: Venera 5, a Soviet space probe, lands on Venus.
    • 1974 – Josip Broz Tito is elected president for life of Yugoslavia.
    • 1988 – A report by the Surgeon General of the United States C. Everett Koop states that the addictive properties of nicotine are similar to those of heroin and cocaine.
    • 1991 – Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom addresses a joint session of the United States Congress. She is the first British monarch to address the U.S. Congress.
    • 1997 – Mobutu Sese Seko, the President of Zaire, flees the country.
    • 2003 – In Morocco, 33 civilians are killed and more than 100 people are injured in the Casablanca terrorist attacks.
    • 2005 – Kuwait permits women’s suffrage in a 35–23 National Assembly vote.
    • 2011 – STS-134 (ISS assembly flight ULF6), launched from the Kennedy Space Center on the 25th and final flight for Space Shuttle Endeavour.
    • 2014 – Twelve people are killed in two explosions in the Gikomba market area of Nairobi, Kenya.

    Births on May 16

    • 1418 – John II of Cyprus, King of Cyprus and Armenia and also titular King of Jerusalem from 1432 to 1458 (probable; d. 1458)
    • 1455 – Wolfgang I of Oettingen, German count (d. 1522)
    • 1542 – Anna Sibylle of Hanau-Lichtenberg, German noblewoman (d. 1580)
    • 1606 – John Bulwer, British doctor (d. 1656)
    • 1611 – Pope Innocent XI (d. 1689)
    • 1641 – Dudley North, English economist and politician (d. 1691)
    • 1710 – William Talbot, 1st Earl Talbot, English politician, Lord Steward of the Household (d. 1782)
    • 1718 – Maria Gaetana Agnesi, Italian mathematician and philosopher (d. 1799)
    • 1763 – Louis Nicolas Vauquelin, French pharmacist and chemist (d. 1829)
    • 1788 – Friedrich Rückert, German poet and translator (d. 1866)
    • 1801 – William H. Seward, American lawyer and politician, 24th United States Secretary of State (d. 1872)
    • 1804 – Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, American educator who founded the first U.S. kindergarten (d. 1894)
    • 1819 – Johann Voldemar Jannsen, Estonian journalist and poet (d. 1890)
    • 1821 – Pafnuty Chebyshev, Russian mathematician and statistician (d. 1894)
    • 1824 – Levi P. Morton, American banker and politician, 22nd United States Vice President (d. 1920)
    • 1824 – Edmund Kirby Smith, American general (d. 1893)
    • 1827 – Pierre Cuypers, Dutch architect, designed the Amsterdam Centraal railway station and Rijksmuseum (d. 1921)
    • 1831 – David Edward Hughes, Welsh-American physicist, co-invented the microphone (d. 1900)
    • 1862 – Margaret Fountaine, English lepidopterist and diarist (d.1940)
    • 1876 – Fred Conrad Koch, American biochemist and endocrinologist (d. 1948)
    • 1879 – Pierre Gilliard, Swiss author and academic (d. 1962)
    • 1882 – Simeon Price, American golfer (d. 1945)
    • 1883 – Celâl Bayar, Turkish politician, 3rd President of Turkey (d. 1986)
    • 1888 – Royal Rife, American microbiologist and instrument maker (d. 1971)
    • 1890 – Edith Grace White, American ichthyologist (d. 1975)
    • 1892 – Osgood Perkins, American actor (d. 1937)
    • 1894 – Walter Yust, American journalist and writer (d. 1960)
    • 1897 – Zvi Sliternik, Israeli entomologist and academic (d. 1994)
    • 1898 – Tamara de Lempicka, Polish-American painter (d. 1980)
    • 1898 – Desanka Maksimović, Serbian poet and academic (d. 1993)
    • 1898 – Kenji Mizoguchi, Japanese director and screenwriter (d. 1956)
    • 1903 – Charles F. Brannock, American inventor and manufacturer (d. 1992)
    • 1905 – Henry Fonda, American actor (d. 1982)
    • 1906 – Ernie McCormick, Australian cricketer (d. 1991)
    • 1906 – Alfred Pellan, Canadian painter and educator (d. 1988)
    • 1906 – Arturo Uslar Pietri, Venezuelan lawyer, journalist, and author (d. 2001)
    • 1906 – Margret Rey, German author and illustrator (d. 1996)
    • 1907 – Bob Tisdall, Irish hurdler (d. 2004)
    • 1909 – Margaret Sullavan, American actress and singer (d. 1960)
    • 1909 – Luigi Villoresi, Italian race car driver (d. 1997)
    • 1910 – Olga Bergholz, Russian poet and author (d. 1975)
    • 1910 – Higashifushimi Kunihide, Japanese monk and educator (d. 2014)
    • 1910 – Aleksandr Ivanovich Laktionov, Russian painter and educator (d. 1972)
    • 1912 – Studs Terkel, American historian and author (d. 2008)
    • 1913 – Gordon Chalk, Australian politician, 30th Premier of Queensland (d. 1991)
    • 1913 – Woody Herman, American singer, saxophonist, and clarinet player (d. 1987)
    • 1914 – Edward T. Hall, American anthropologist and author (d. 2009)
    • 1915 – Mario Monicelli, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2010)
    • 1916 – Ephraim Katzir, Israeli biophysicist and politician, 4th President of Israel (d. 2009)
    • 1917 – Ben Kuroki, American sergeant and pilot (d. 2015)
    • 1917 – James C. Murray, American lawyer and politician (d. 1999)
    • 1917 – Juan Rulfo, Mexican author and photographer (d. 1986)
    • 1918 – Wilf Mannion, English footballer and manager (d. 2000)
    • 1919 – Liberace, American pianist and entertainer (d. 1987)
    • 1919 – Ramon Margalef, Spanish ecologist and biologist (d. 2004)
    • 1920 – Martine Carol, French actress (d. 1967)
    • 1921 – Harry Carey, Jr., American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
    • 1923 – Victoria Fromkin, American linguist and academic (d. 2000)
    • 1923 – Merton Miller, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2000)
    • 1923 – Peter Underwood, English parapsychologist and author (d. 2014)
    • 1924 – Dawda Jawara, 1st President of the Gambia (d. 2019)
    • 1925 – Nancy Roman, American astronomer (d. 2018)
    • 1925 – Ola Vincent, Nigerian banker and economist (d. 2012)
    • 1925 – Nílton Santos, Brazilian footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Billy Martin, American baseball player and coach (d. 1989)
    • 1929 – Betty Carter, American singer-songwriter (d. 1998)
    • 1929 – John Conyers, American lawyer and politician (d. 2019)
    • 1929 – Claude Morin, Canadian academic and politician
    • 1929 – Adrienne Rich, American poet, essayist, and feminist (d. 2012)
    • 1930 – Friedrich Gulda, Austrian pianist and composer (d. 2000)
    • 1931 – Vujadin Boškov, Serbian footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
    • 1931 – Hana Brady, Jewish-Czech Holocaust victim (d.1944)
    • 1931 – K. Natwar Singh, Indian scholar and politician, Indian Minister of External Affairs
    • 1931 – Lowell P. Weicker, Jr., American soldier and politician, 85th Governor of Connecticut
    • 1934 – Kenneth O. Morgan, Welsh historian and author
    • 1934 – Antony Walker, English general
    • 1935 – Floyd Smith, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1936 – Karl Lehmann, German cardinal (d. 2018)
    • 1937 – Yvonne Craig, American ballet dancer and actress (d. 2015)
    • 1938 – Stuart Bell, English lawyer and politician (d. 2012)
    • 1938 – Ivan Sutherland, American computer scientist and academic
    • 1938 – Marco Aurelio Denegri, Peruvian television host and sexologist (d. 2018)
    • 1941 – Denis Hart, Australian archbishop
    • 1942 – David Penry-Davey, English lawyer and judge (d. 2015)
    • 1943 – Kay Andrews, Baroness Andrews, English politician
    • 1943 – Dan Coats, American politician and diplomat, 29th United States Ambassador to Germany
    • 1943 – Wieteke van Dort, Dutch actress, comedian, singer, writer and artist
    • 1944 – Billy Cobham, Panamanian-American drummer, composer, and bandleader
    • 1944 – Antal Nagy, Hungarian footballer
    • 1944 – Danny Trejo, American actor
    • 1946 – John Law, English sociologist and academic
    • 1946 – Robert Fripp, English guitarist, songwriter and producer
    • 1947 – Cheryl Clarke, American writer
    • 1947 – Darrell Sweet, Scottish drummer (d. 1999)
    • 1947 – Roch Thériault, Canadian religious leader (d. 2011)
    • 1948 – Jesper Christensen, Danish actor, director, and producer
    • 1948 – Judy Finnigan, English talk show host and author
    • 1948 – Enrico Fumia, Italian automobile and product designer
    • 1948 – Emma Georgina Rothschild, English historian and academic
    • 1948 – Staf Van Roosbroeck, Belgian cyclist
    • 1949 – Rick Reuschel, American baseball player
    • 1950 – Georg Bednorz, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1950 – Ray Condo, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2004)
    • 1950 – Bruce Coville, American author
    • 1951 – Christian Lacroix, French fashion designer
    • 1951 – Jonathan Richman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1951 – Janet Soskice, Canadian philosopher and theologian
    • 1952 – James Herndon, American psychologist and academic
    • 1953 – Pierce Brosnan, Irish-American actor and producer
    • 1953 – Peter Onorati, American actor
    • 1953 – Richard Page, American singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1953 – Kitanoumi Toshimitsu, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 55th Yokozuna (d. 2015)
    • 1953 – David Maclean, Scottish politician
    • 1953 – Stephen Woolman, Lord Woolman, Scottish judge and academic
    • 1954 – Dafydd Williams, Canadian physician and astronaut
    • 1955 – Olga Korbut, Soviet gymnast
    • 1955 – Jack Morris, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1955 – Hazel O’Connor, English-born Irish singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1955 – Páidí Ó Sé, Irish footballer and manager (d. 2012)
    • 1955 – Debra Winger, American actress
    • 1956 – Loretta Schrijver, Dutch television host, news anchor
    • 1957 – Joan Benoit, American runner
    • 1957 – Benjamin Mancroft, 3rd Baron Mancroft, English politician
    • 1957 – Yuri Shevchuk, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1957 – Anthony St John, 22nd Baron St John of Bletso, English lawyer and businessman
    • 1957 – Bob Suter, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2014)
    • 1959 – Mitch Webster, American baseball player
    • 1959 – Mare Winningham, American actress and singer-songwriter
    • 1960 – Landon Deireragea, Nauruan politician, Nauruan Speaker of Parliament
    • 1960 – S. Shanmuganathan, Sri Lankan commander and politician (d. 1998)
    • 1961 – Kevin McDonald, Canadian actor and screenwriter
    • 1961 – Charles Wright, American wrestler
    • 1962 – Jimmy Hood, Scottish engineer and politician (d. 2017)
    • 1962 – Helga Radtke, German long jumper
    • 1963 – Rachel Griffith, Anglo-American economist
    • 1963 – David Wilkinson, English theologian and academic
    • 1964 – John Salley, American basketball player and actor
    • 1964 – Boyd Tinsley, American singer-songwriter and violinist
    • 1964 – Milton Jones, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Krist Novoselic, American bass player, songwriter, author, and activist
    • 1965 – Tanel Tammet, Estonian computer scientist, engineer, and academic
    • 1966 – Janet Jackson, American singer-songwriter, producer, dancer, and actress
    • 1966 – Scott Reeves, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1966 – Thurman Thomas, American football player
    • 1967 – Doug Brocail, American baseball player and coach
    • 1967 – Susan Williams, Baroness Williams of Trafford, British politician
    • 1968 – Ralph Tresvant, American singer and producer
    • 1969 – David Boreanaz, American actor
    • 1969 – Tucker Carlson, American journalist, co-founded The Daily Caller
    • 1969 – Steve Lewis, American sprinter
    • 1970 – Gabriela Sabatini, Argentinian tennis player
    • 1970 – Danielle Spencer, Australian singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1971 – Phil Clarke, English rugby league player and sportscaster
    • 1971 – Rachel Goswell, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1972 – Christian Califano, French rugby player
    • 1972 – Matthew Hart, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1973 – Tori Spelling, American actress, reality television personality, and author
    • 1974 – Laura Pausini, Italian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1974 – Sonny Sandoval, American singer-songwriter and rapper
    • 1975 – Tony Kakko, Finnish musician, composer, and vocalist
    • 1975 – Simon Whitfield, Canadian triathlete
    • 1976 – Dirk Nannes, Australian-Dutch cricketer
    • 1977 – Melanie Lynskey, New Zealand actress
    • 1977 – Emilíana Torrini, Icelandic singer-songwriter
    • 1978 – Scott Nicholls, English motorcycle racer
    • 1978 – Lionel Scaloni, Argentinian footballer
    • 1980 – Nuria Llagostera Vives, Spanish tennis player
    • 1981 – Ricardo Costa, Portuguese footballer
    • 1982 – Łukasz Kubot, Polish tennis player
    • 1983 – Daniel Kerr, Australian footballer
    • 1983 – Kyle Wellwood, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Darío Cvitanich, Argentinian footballer
    • 1984 – Tomáš Fleischmann, Czech ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Jensen Lewis, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Rick Rypien, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2011)
    • 1985 – Anja Mittag, German footballer
    • 1985 – Rodrigo Peters Marques, Brazilian footballer
    • 1985 – Corey Perry, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1986 – Megan Fox, American actress
    • 1986 – Andy Keogh, Irish footballer
    • 1986 – Shamcey Supsup, Filipino model and architect
    • 1987 – Tom Onslow-Cole, English race car driver
    • 1988 – Jesús Castillo, Mexican footballer
    • 1988 – Martynas Gecevičius, Lithuanian basketball player
    • 1988 – Jaak Põldma, Estonian tennis player
    • 1989 – Behati Prinsloo, Namibian model
    • 1990 – Amanda Carreras, Gibraltarian tennis player
    • 1990 – Thomas Brodie-Sangster, English actor
    • 1990 – Darko Šarović, Serbian sprinter
    • 1990 – Omar Strong, American basketball player
    • 1991 – Grigor Dimitrov, Bulgarian tennis player
    • 1991 – Joey Graceffa, American internet celebrity
    • 1991 – Ashley Wagner, American figure skater
    • 1992 – Jeff Skinner, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1992 – Kirstin Maldonado, American singer and songwriter
    • 1993 – Johannes Thingnes Bø, Norwegian biathlete
    • 1993 – Karol Mets, Estonian footballer
    • 1993 – IU, Korean singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1995 – Elizabeth Ralston, Australian footballer
    • 1996 – Louisa Chirico, an American tennis player

    Deaths on May 16

    • 290 – Emperor Wu of Jin, Chinese emperor (b. 236)
    • 895 – Qian Kuan, Chinese nobleman
    • 934 – Meng Hanqiong, eunuch official of Later Tang
    • 995 – Fujiwara no Michitaka, Japanese nobleman (b. 953)
    • 1182 – John Komnenos Vatatzes, Byzantine general (b. 1132)
    • 1265 – Simon Stock, English-French saint (b. 1165)
    • 1375 – Liu Bowen, Chinese military strategist, officer, statesman and poet (b. 1311)
    • 1412 – Gian Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (b. 1388)
    • 1561 – Jan Tarnowski, Polish noble and statesman (b. 1488)
    • 1620 – William Adams, English sailor and navigator (b. 1564)
    • 1657 – Andrew Bobola, Polish missionary and martyr (b. 1591)
    • 1667 – Thomas Wriothesley, 4th Earl of Southampton, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1607)
    • 1669 – Pietro da Cortona, Italian painter and architect, designed the Santi Luca e Martina (b. 1596)
    • 1691 – Jacob Leisler, German-American politician, 8th Colonial Governor of New York (b. 1640)
    • 1696 – Mariana of Austria, Queen consort of Spain (b. 1634)
    • 1703 – Charles Perrault, French author and academic (b. 1628)
    • 1778 – Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness, English politician, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (b. 1718)
    • 1790 – Philip Yorke, 2nd Earl of Hardwicke, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire (b. 1720)
    • 1818 – Matthew Lewis, English author and playwright (b. 1775)
    • 1823 – Grace Elliott, Scottish courtesan and spy (b. c.1754)
    • 1830 – Joseph Fourier, French mathematician and physicist (b. 1768)
    • 1862 – Edward Gibbon Wakefield, English politician (b. 1796)
    • 1882 – Reuben Chapman, American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of Alabama (b. 1799)
    • 1890 – Mihkel Veske, Estonian poet, linguist and theologist (b. 1843)
    • 1891 – Ion C. Brătianu, Romanian politician, 14th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1821)
    • 1910 – Henri-Edmond Cross, French Neo-Impressionist painter (b. 1856)
    • 1913 – Louis Perrier, Swiss architect and politician (b. 1849)
    • 1920 – Levi P. Morton, American politician, 22nd United States Vice President (b. 1824)
    • 1926 – Mehmed VI, Ottoman sultan (b. 1861)
    • 1936 – Leonidas Paraskevopoulos, Greek general and politician (b. 1860)
    • 1938 – Joseph Strauss, American engineer, co designed The Golden Gate Bridge (b. 1870)
    • 1943 – Alfred Hoche, German psychiatrist and academic (b. 1865)
    • 1944 – George Ade, American journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1866)
    • 1946 – Bruno Tesch, German chemist and businessman (b. 1890)
    • 1947 – Frederick Gowland Hopkins, English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1861)
    • 1947 – Zhang Lingfu, Chinese general (b. 1903)
    • 1953 – Django Reinhardt, Belgian guitarist and composer (b. 1910)
    • 1954 – Clemens Krauss, Austrian conductor and manager (b. 1893)
    • 1955 – James Agee, American novelist, screenwriter, and critic(b. 1909)
    • 1955 – Manny Ayulo, American race car driver (b. 1921)
    • 1956 – H. B. Reese, American candy-maker and businessman, created Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (b. 1876)
    • 1957 – Eliot Ness, American federal agent (b. 1903)
    • 1961 – George A. Malcolm, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1881)
    • 1973 – Jacques Lipchitz, Lithuanian-American sculptor (b. 1891)
    • 1977 – Modibo Keïta, Malian politician, 1st President of Mali (b. 1915)
    • 1979 – A. Philip Randolph, American union leader and activist (b. 1889)
    • 1981 – Ernie Freeman, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1922)
    • 1981 – Willy Hartner, German physician and academic (b. 1905)
    • 1984 – Andy Kaufman, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (b. 1949)
    • 1984 – Irwin Shaw, American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short story writer (b. 1913)
    • 1985 – Margaret Hamilton, American actress (b. 1902)
    • 1989 – Leila Kasra, Iranian poet and songwriter (b. 1939)
    • 1990 – Sammy Davis Jr., American singer, dancer, and actor (b. 1925)
    • 1990 – Jim Henson, American puppeteer, director, producer, and screenwriter, created The Muppets (b. 1936)
    • 1993 – Marv Johnson, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1938)
    • 1994 – Alain Cuny, French actor (b. 1908)
    • 1996 – Jeremy Michael Boorda, American admiral (b. 1939)
    • 1997 – Elbridge Durbrow, American diplomat (b. 1903)
    • 2002 – Alec Campbell, Australian soldier (b. 1899)
    • 2003 – Mark McCormack, American lawyer and sports agent, founded IMG (b. 1930)
    • 2005 – Andrew Goodpaster, American general (b. 1915)
    • 2008 – Robert Mondavi, American winemaker, co-founded the Opus One Winery (b. 1913)
    • 2010 – Ronnie James Dio, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1942)
    • 2010 – Hank Jones, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1918)
    • 2011 – Ralph Barker, English author (b. 1917)
    • 2011 – Bob Davis, Australian footballer and coach (b. 1928)
    • 2011 – Edward Hardwicke, English actor (b. 1932)
    • 2011 – Kiyoshi Kodama, Japanese actor (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Patricia Aakhus, American author and academic (b. 1952)
    • 2012 – James Abdnor, American soldier and politician, 30th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Chuck Brown, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1936)
    • 2012 – Ernie Chan, Filipino-American illustrator (b. 1940)
    • 2012 – Kevin Hickey, American baseball player (b. 1956)
    • 2013 – Angelo Errichetti, American politician (b. 1928)
    • 2013 – Bryan Illerbrun, Canadian football player (b. 1957)
    • 2013 – Frankie Librán, Puerto Rican-American baseball player (b. 1948)
    • 2013 – Heinrich Rohrer, Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Dick Trickle, American race car driver (b. 1941)
    • 2013 – Bernard Waber, American author and illustrator (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Chris Duckworth, Zimbabwean-South African cricketer (b. 1933)
    • 2014 – Vito Favero, Italian cyclist (b. 1932)
    • 2014 – Bud Hollowell, American baseball player and manager (b. 1943)
    • 2014 – Clyde Snow, American anthropologist and author (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Prashant Bhargava, American director and producer (b. 1973)
    • 2015 – Moshe Levinger, Israeli rabbi and author (b. 1935)
    • 2015 – Flora MacNeil, Scottish Gaelic singer (b. 1928)
    • 2019 – Piet Blauw, Dutch politician (b. 1937)
    • 2019 – Bob Hawke, Australian politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1929)
    • 2019 – I. M. Pei, Chinese-American architect (b. 1917)

    Holidays and observances on May 16

    • Christian feast day:
      • Aaron (Coptic Church)
      • Abda and Abdjesus, and companions:
        • Abdas of Susa
      • Andrew Bobola
      • Brendan the Navigator (Roman Catholic Church, Anglican Communion, Eastern Orthodox Church)
      • Caroline Chisholm (Church of England)
      • Gemma Galgani (Passionists Calendar)
      • Germerius
      • Honoratus of Amiens
      • John of Nepomuk
      • Margaret of Cortona
      • Peregrine of Auxerre
      • Simon Stock
      • Ubald (see Saint Ubaldo Day)
    • Martyrs of Sudan (Episcopal Church (USA))
    • Mass Graves Day (Iraq)
    • National Day, declared by Salva Kiir Mayardit (South Sudan)
    • Teachers’ Day (Malaysia)

  • May 10 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 28 BC – A sunspot is observed by Han dynasty astronomers during the reign of Emperor Cheng of Han, one of the earliest dated sunspot observations in China.
    • 1291 – Scottish nobles recognize the authority of Edward I of England pending the selection of a king.
    • 1497 – Amerigo Vespucci allegedly leaves Cádiz for his first voyage to the New World.
    • 1503 – Christopher Columbus visits the Cayman Islands and names them Las Tortugas after the numerous turtles there.
    • 1534 – Jacques Cartier visits Newfoundland.
    • 1688 – King Narai nominates Phetracha as regent, leading to the revolution of 1688 in which Phetracha becomes king of the Ayutthaya Kingdom.
    • 1768 – Rioting occurs in London after John Wilkes is imprisoned for writing an article for The North Briton severely criticizing King George III.
    • 1773 – The Parliament of Great Britain passes the Tea Act, designed to save the British East India Company by reducing taxes on its tea and granting it the right to sell tea directly to North America. The legislation leads to the Boston Tea Party.
    • 1774 – Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette become King and Queen of France.
    • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: A small Colonial militia led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold captures Fort Ticonderoga.
    • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The Second Continental Congress takes place in Philadelphia.
    • 1796 – War of the First Coalition: Napoleon wins a victory against Austrian forces at Lodi bridge over the Adda River in Italy. The Austrians lose some 2,000 men.
    • 1801 – First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America.
    • 1824 – The National Gallery in London opens to the public.
    • 1837 – Panic of 1837: New York City banks suspend the payment of specie, triggering a national banking crisis and an economic depression whose severity was not surpassed until the Great Depression.
    • 1849 – Astor Place Riot: A riot breaks out at the Astor Opera House in Manhattan, New York City over a dispute between actors Edwin Forrest and William Charles Macready, killing at least 22 and injuring over 120.
    • 1857 – Indian Rebellion of 1857: In India, the first war of Independence begins. Sepoys mutiny against their commanding officers at Meerut.
    • 1865 – American Civil War: In Kentucky, Union soldiers ambush and mortally wound Confederate raider William Quantrill, who lingers until his death on June 6.
    • 1869 – The First Transcontinental Railroad, linking the eastern and western United States, is completed at Promontory Summit, Utah with the golden spike.
    • 1872 – Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for President of the United States.
    • 1876 – The Centennial Exposition is opened in Philadelphia.
    • 1881 – Carol I is crowned the King of the Romanian Kingdom.
    • 1904 – The Horch & Cir. Motorwagenwerke AG is founded. It would eventually become the Audi company.
    • 1908 – Mother’s Day is observed for the first time in the United States, in Grafton, West Virginia.
    • 1916 – Sailing in the lifeboat James Caird, Ernest Shackleton arrives at South Georgia after a journey of 800 nautical miles from Elephant Island.
    • 1922 – The United States annexes the Kingman Reef.
    • 1924 – J. Edgar Hoover is appointed first Director of the United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and remains so until his death in 1972.
    • 1933 – Censorship: In Germany, the Nazis stage massive public book burnings.
    • 1940 – World War II: German fighters accidentally bomb the German city of Freiburg.
    • 1940 – World War II: Winston Churchill is appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom following the resignation of Neville Chamberlain. On the same day, Germany invades France, Belgium and Luxembourg.Meanwhile, the United Kingdom occupies Iceland.
    • 1941 – World War II: The House of Commons in London is damaged by the Luftwaffe in an air raid.
    • 1941 – World War II: Rudolf Hess parachutes into Scotland to try to negotiate a peace deal between the United Kingdom and Nazi Germany.hai Phayap Army invades the Shan States during the Burma Campaign.
    • 1946 – First successful launch of an American V-2 rocket at White Sands Proving Ground.
    • 1962 – Marvel Comics publishes the first issue of The Incredible Hulk.
    • 1967 – The Northrop M2-F2 crashes on landing, becoming the inspiration for the novel Cyborg and TV series The Six Million Dollar Man.
    • 1969 – Vietnam War: The Battle of Dong Ap Bia begins with an assault on Hill 937. It will ultimately become known as Hamburger Hill.
    • 1975 – Sony introduces the Betamax videocassette recorder.
    • 1993 – In Thailand, a fire at the Kader Toy Factory kills over 200 workers.
    • 1994 – Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president.
    • 1996 – A blizzard strikes Mount Everest, killing eight climbers by the next day.
    • 1997 – The 7.3 Mw Qayen earthquake strikes Iran’s Khorasan Province killing 1,567 people.
    • 2002 – FBI agent Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for selling United States secrets to Russia for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds.
    • 2005 – A hand grenade thrown by Vladimir Arutyunian lands about 60 feet from U.S. President George W. Bush while he is giving a speech to a crowd in Tbilisi, Georgia, but it malfunctions and does not detonate.
    • 2012 – The Damascus bombings are carried out using a pair of car bombs detonated by suicide bombers outside of a military intelligence complex in Damascus, Syria, killing 55 people.
    • 2013 – One World Trade Center becomes the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere.

    Births on May 10

    • 874 – Meng Zhixiang, Chinese general and emperor (d. 934)
    • 955 – Al-Aziz Billah, Fatimid caliph (d. 996)
    • 1491 – Suzanne, Duchess of Bourbon (d. 1521)
    • 1604 – Jean Mairet, French author and playwright (d. 1686)
    • 1697 – Jean-Marie Leclair, French violinist and composer (d. 1764)
    • 1727 – Anne-Robert-Jacques Turgot, Baron de Laune, French economist and politician (d. 1781)
    • 1755 – Robert Gray, American captain and explorer (d. 1806)
    • 1760 – Johann Peter Hebel, German author and poet (d. 1826)
    • 1760 – Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French captain, engineer, and composer (d. 1836)
    • 1770 – Louis-Nicolas Davout, French general and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1823)
    • 1788 – Augustin-Jean Fresnel, French physicist and engineer (d. 1827)
    • 1812 – William Henry Barlow, English engineer (d. 1902)
    • 1813 – Montgomery Blair, American lieutenant and politician, 20th United States Postmaster General (d. 1883)
    • 1838 – John Wilkes Booth, American actor, assassin of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1865)
    • 1841 – James Gordon Bennett, Jr., American publisher and broadcaster (d. 1918)
    • 1843 – Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish author and playwright (d. 1920)
    • 1847 – Wilhelm Killing, German mathematician and academic (d. 1923)
    • 1855 – Yukteswar Giri, Indian guru and educator (d. 1936)
    • 1872 – Marcel Mauss, French sociologist and anthropologist (d. 1950)
    • 1876 – Ivan Cankar, Slovenian poet and playwright (d. 1918)
    • 1878 – Konstantinos Parthenis, Greek painter (d. 1967)
    • 1878 – Gustav Stresemann, German journalist and politician, Chancellor of Germany, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1929)
    • 1879 – Symon Petliura, Ukrainian journalist and politician (d. 1926)
    • 1886 – Karl Barth, Swiss theologian and author (d. 1968)
    • 1888 – Max Steiner, Austrian-American composer and conductor (d. 1971)
    • 1890 – Alfred Jodl, German general (d. 1946)
    • 1891 – Mahmoud Mokhtar, Egyptian sculptor and academic (d. 1934)
    • 1893 – Tonita Peña, San Ildefonso Pueblo (Native American) artist (d. 1949)
    • 1894 – Dimitri Tiomkin, Ukrainian-American composer and conductor (d. 1979)
    • 1897 – Einar Gerhardsen, Norwegian politician, Prime Minister of Norway (d. 1987)
    • 1898 – Ariel Durant, American historian and author (d. 1981)
    • 1899 – Fred Astaire, American actor, singer, and dancer (d. 1987)
    • 1900 – Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, English-American astronomer and astrophysicist (d. 1979)
    • 1901 – John Desmond Bernal, Irish-English crystallographer and physicist (d. 1971)
    • 1901 – Hildrus Poindexter, American bacteriologist (d. 1987)
    • 1902 – David O. Selznick, American director and producer (d. 1965)
    • 1903 – Otto Bradfisch, German economist, jurist, and SS officer (d. 1994)
    • 1905 – Markos Vamvakaris, Greek singer-songwriter and bouzouki player (d. 1972)
    • 1908 – Carl Albert, American lawyer and politician, 54th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 2000)
    • 1909 – Maybelle Carter, American autoharp player (d. 1978)
    • 1911 – Bel Kaufman, American author and educator (d. 2014)
    • 1915 – Denis Thatcher, English soldier and businessman, Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2003)
    • 1916 – Milton Babbitt, American composer and educator (d. 2011)
    • 1918 – T. Berry Brazelton, American pediatrician and author (d. 2018)
    • 1918 – Desmond MacNamara, Irish painter, sculptor, and author (d. 2008)
    • 1919 – Ella T. Grasso, Governor of Connecticut (d. 1981)
    • 1920 – Basil Kelly, Northern Irish barrister, judge and politician (d. 2008)
    • 1920 – Bert Weedon, English guitarist (d. 2012)
    • 1922 – David Azrieli, Polish-Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 2014)
    • 1922 – Nancy Walker, American actress, singer, and director (d. 1992)
    • 1923 – Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan general and politician, President of Azerbaijan (d. 2003)
    • 1923 – Otar Korkia, Georgian basketball player and coach (d. 2005)
    • 1926 – Hugo Banzer, Bolivian general and politician, President of Bolivia (d. 2002)
    • 1927 – Nayantara Sahgal, Indian author
    • 1928 – Arnold Rüütel, Estonian agronomist and politician, President of Estonia
    • 1928 – Lothar Schmid, German chess player (d. 2013)
    • 1929 – Audun Boysen, Norwegian runner (d. 2000)
    • 1929 – George Coe, American actor and producer (d. 2015)
    • 1929 – Antonine Maillet, Canadian author and playwright
    • 1930 – George E. Smith, American physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1931 – Ettore Scola, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1933 – Jean Becker, French actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1935 – Larry Williams, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (d. 1980)
    • 1937 – Tamara Press, Ukrainian shot putter and discus thrower
    • 1938 – Manuel Santana, Spanish tennis player
    • 1940 – Arthur Alexander, American country-soul singer-songwriter (d. 1993)
    • 1940 – Wayne Dyer, American author and educator (d. 2015)
    • 1942 – Jim Calhoun, American basketball player and coach
    • 1944 – Jim Abrahams, American director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1944 – Marie-France Pisier, French actress, director, and screenwriter (d. 2011)
    • 1946 – Donovan, Scottish singer-songwriter
    • 1946 – Graham Gouldman, English guitarist and songwriter
    • 1946 – Dave Mason, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1947 – Caroline B. Cooney, American author
    • 1949 – Miuccia Prada, Italian fashion designer
    • 1952 – Sly Dunbar, Jamaican drummer
    • 1955 – Mark David Chapman, American murderer
    • 1956 – Vladislav Listyev, Russian journalist (d. 1995)
    • 1957 – Sid Vicious, English singer and bass player (d. 1979)
    • 1958 – Gaétan Boucher, Canadian speed skater
    • 1958 – Rick Santorum, American lawyer and politician, United States Senator from Pennsylvania
    • 1959 – Victoria Rowell, American actress
    • 1959 – Danny Schayes, American basketball player
    • 1959 – Cindy Hyde-Smith, American politician, United States Senator from Mississippi, Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce
    • 1960 – Bono, Irish singer-songwriter, musician and activist
    • 1960 – Dean Heller, American lawyer and politician, United States Senator from Nevada, Secretary of State of Nevada
    • 1960 – Merlene Ottey, Jamaican-Slovenian runner
    • 1963 – Lisa Nowak, American commander and astronaut
    • 1963 – Debbie Wiseman, English composer and conductor
    • 1965 – Linda Evangelista, Canadian model
    • 1966 – Jonathan Edwards, English triple jumper
    • 1967 – Eion Crossan, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1968 – Al Murray, English comedian and television host
    • 1968 – Tatyana Shikolenko, Russian javelin thrower
    • 1969 – Dennis Bergkamp, Dutch footballer and manager
    • 1969 – John Scalzi, American author and blogger
    • 1970 – Gabriela Montero, Venezuelan-American pianist
    • 1970 – David Weir, Scottish footballer
    • 1971 – Ådne Søndrål, Norwegian speed skater
    • 1972 – Christian Wörns, German footballer
    • 1973 – Joshua Eagle, Australian tennis player
    • 1973 – Ollie le Roux, South African rugby player
    • 1974 – Sylvain Wiltord, French footballer
    • 1975 – Hélio Castroneves, Brazilian race car driver
    • 1975 – Adam Deadmarsh, Canadian-American ice hockey player
    • 1978 – Bruno Cheyrou, French footballer
    • 1981 – Samuel Dalembert, Haitian-Canadian basketball player
    • 1981 – Humberto Suazo, Chilean footballer
    • 1983 – Gustav Fridolin, Swedish journalist and politician, Swedish Minister of Education
    • 1984 – Edward Mujica, Venezuelan baseball player
    • 1985 – Ryan Getzlaf, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1985 – Jon Schofield, English canoe racer
    • 1987 – Wilson Chandler, American basketball player
    • 1990 – Salvador Pérez, Venezuelan baseball player
    • 1990 – Ivana Španović, Serbian long jumper
    • 1995 – Missy Franklin, American swimmer1995 – Gabriella Papadakis, French ice dancer
    • 1996 – Tyus Jones, American basketball player
    • 1996 – Kateřina Siniaková, Czech tennis player

    Deaths on May 10

    • 1299 – Theingapati, heir to the Pagan Kingdom
    • 1403 – Katherine Swynford, widow of John of Gaunt
    • 1482 – Paolo dal Pozzo Toscanelli, Italian mathematician and astronomer (b. 1397)
    • 1493 – Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll, Scottish politician, Lord Chancellor of Scotland (b. 1433)
    • 1521 – Sebastian Brant, German author (b. 1457)
    • 1566 – Leonhart Fuchs, German physician and botanist (b. 1501)
    • 1569 – John of Ávila, Spanish mystic and saint (b. 1500)
    • 1641 – Johan Banér, Swedish field marshal (b. 1596)
    • 1717 – John Hathorne, American merchant and politician (b. 1641)
    • 1726 – Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire (b. 1670)
    • 1774 – Louis XV of France (b. 1710)
    • 1787 – William Watson, English physician, physicist, and botanist (b. 1715)
    • 1794 – Élisabeth of France, French princess and youngest sibling of Louis XVI (b.1764)
    • 1798 – George Vancouver, English navigator and explorer (b. 1757)
    • 1807 – Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau, French general (b. 1725)
    • 1818 – Paul Revere, American engraver and soldier (b. 1735)
    • 1829 – Thomas Young, English physician and linguist (b. 1773)
    • 1849 – Hokusai, Japanese painter and illustrator (b. 1760)
    • 1863 – Stonewall Jackson, American general (b. 1824)
    • 1868 – Henry Bennett, American lawyer and politician (b. 1808)
    • 1889 – Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, Russian journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1826)
    • 1891 – Carl Nägeli, Swiss botanist and mycologist (b. 1817)
    • 1897 – Andrés Bonifacio, Filipino soldier and politician, President of the Philippines (b. 1863)
    • 1910 – Stanislao Cannizzaro, Italian chemist and academic (b. 1826)
    • 1945 – Richard Glücks, German SS officer (b. 1889)
    • 1945 – Konrad Henlein, Czech soldier and politician (b. 1898)
    • 1960 – Yury Olesha, Russian author, poet, and playwright (b. 1899)
    • 1964 – Mikhail Larionov, Russian painter, illustrator, and set designer (b. 1881)
    • 1965 – Hubertus van Mook, Dutch politician, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (b. 1894)
    • 1968 – Scotty Beckett, American actor and singer (b. 1929)
    • 1974 – Hal Mohr, American director and cinematographer (b. 1894)
    • 1977 – Joan Crawford, American actress (year of birth disputed)
    • 1982 – Peter Weiss, German playwright and painter (b. 1916)
    • 1988 – Shen Congwen, Chinese author and academic (b. 1902)
    • 1990 – Walker Percy, American novelist and essayist (b. 1916)
    • 1994 – John Wayne Gacy, American serial killer (b. 1942)
    • 1999 – Shel Silverstein, American poet, author, and illustrator
    • 2000 – Jules Deschênes, Canadian lawyer and judge (b. 1923)
    • 2000 – Dick Sprang, American illustrator (b. 1915)
    • 2001 – Sudhakarrao Naik, Indian politician, Governor of Himachal Pradesh (b. 1934)
    • 2002 – Kaifi Azmi, Indian poet and songwriter (b. 1919)
    • 2002 – Yves Robert, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1920)
    • 2003 – Milan Vukcevich, Serbian-American chemist and chess player (b. 1937)
    • 2006 – Soraya, Colombian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1969)
    • 2008 – Leyla Gencer, Turkish soprano (b. 1928)
    • 2010 – Frank Frazetta, American illustrator and painter (b. 1928)
    • 2012 – Horst Faas, German photographer and journalist (b. 1933)
    • 2012 – Carroll Shelby, American race car driver and designer (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Gunnar Sønsteby, Norwegian captain and author (b. 1918)
    • 2015 – Chris Burden, American sculptor, illustrator, and academic (b. 1946)
    • 2018 – David Goodall, Australian botanist and ecologist (b. 1914)
    • 2019 – Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, Spanish politician and chemist (b. 1951)

    Holidays and observances on May 10

    • Children’s Day (Maldives)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Alphius, Philadelphus and Cyrinus
      • Calepodius
      • Catald
      • Comgall
      • Damien of Molokai
      • Gordianus and Epimachus
      • Job (Roman Catholic Church, pre-1969 calendar)
      • John of Ávila
      • May 10 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Confederate Memorial Day (North Carolina and South Carolina)
    • Constitution Day (Micronesia)
    • Earliest possible day on which Pentecost can fall, while June 13 is the latest; celebrated 50 days after Easter Day.(Christianity)
    • Golden Spike Day (Promontory, Utah)
    • Mother’s Day (Guatemala, and Mexico)

  • April 21 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 753 BC – Romulus founds Rome (traditional date).
    • 43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is murdered shortly after.
    • 900 – The Laguna Copperplate Inscription (the earliest known written document found in what is now the Philippines): the Commander-in-Chief of the Kingdom of Tondo, as represented by the Honourable Jayadewa, Lord Minister of Pailah, pardons from all debt the Honourable Namwaran and his relations.
    • 1092 – The Diocese of Pisa is elevated to the rank of metropolitan archdiocese by Pope Urban II
    • 1506 – The three-day Lisbon Massacre comes to an end with the slaughter of over 1,900 suspected Jews by Portuguese Catholics.
    • 1509 – Henry VIII ascends the throne of England on the death of his father, Henry VII.
    • 1526 – The last ruler of the Lodi dynasty, Ibrahim Lodi is defeated and killed by Babur in the First Battle of Panipat.
    • 1615 – The Wignacourt Aqueduct is inaugurated in Malta.
    • 1782 – The city of Rattanakosin, now known internationally as Bangkok, is founded on the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River by King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke.
    • 1789 – George Washington’s reception at Trenton is hosted by the Ladies of Trenton as he journeys to New York City for his first inauguration.
    • 1792 – Tiradentes, a revolutionary leading a movement for Brazil’s independence, is hanged, drawn and quartered.
    • 1802 – Twelve thousand Wahhabis under Abdul-Aziz bin Muhammad, invaded city of Karbala, killed over three thousand inhabitants, and sacked the city.
    • 1806 – Action of 21 April 1806: A French frigate escapes British forces off the coast of South Africa.
    • 1809 – Two Austrian army corps are driven from Landshut by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon as two French corps to the north hold off the main Austrian army on the first day of the Battle of Eckmühl.
    • 1821 – Benderli Ali Pasha arrives in Constantinople as the new Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire; he remains in power for only nine days before being sent into exile.
    • 1836 – Texas Revolution: The Battle of San Jacinto: Republic of Texas forces under Sam Houston defeat troops under Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
    • 1856 – Australian labour movement: Stonemasons and building workers on building sites around Melbourne march from the University of Melbourne to Parliament House to achieve an eight-hour day.
    • 1894 – Norway formally adopts the Krag–Jørgensen bolt-action rifle as the main arm of its armed forces, a weapon that would remain in service for almost 50 years.
    • 1898 – Spanish–American War: The United States Navy begins a blockade of Cuban ports. When the U.S. Congress issued a declaration of war on April 25, it declared that a state of war had existed from this date.
    • 1914 – Ypiranga incident: A German arms shipment to Mexico is intercepted by the U.S. Navy near Veracruz.
    • 1918 – World War I: German fighter ace Manfred von Richthofen, better known as “The Red Baron”, is shot down and killed over Vaux-sur-Somme in France.
    • 1926 – Al-Baqi cemetery, former site of the mausoleum of four Shi’a Imams, is leveled to the ground by Wahhabis.
    • 1934 – The “Surgeon’s Photograph”, the most famous photo allegedly showing the Loch Ness Monster, is published in the Daily Mail (in 1999, it is revealed to be a hoax).
    • 1945 – World War II: Soviet forces south of Berlin at Zossen attack the German High Command headquarters.
    • 1948 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 47 relating to Kashmir conflict is adopted.
    • 1952 – Secretary’s Day (now Administrative Professionals’ Day) is first celebrated.
    • 1958 – United Airlines Flight 736 collides into a United States Air Force fighter jet near Arden, Nevada in what is now Enterprise, Nevada.
    • 1960 – Brasília, Brazil’s capital, is officially inaugurated. At 09:30, the Three Powers of the Republic are simultaneously transferred from the old capital, Rio de Janeiro.
    • 1962 – The Seattle World’s Fair (Century 21 Exposition) opens. It is the first World’s Fair in the United States since World War II.
    • 1963 – The first election of the Universal House of Justice is held, marking its establishment as the supreme governing institution of the Bahá’í Faith.
    • 1964 – A Transit-5bn satellite fails to reach orbit after launch; as it re-enters the atmosphere, 2.1 pounds (0.95 kg) of radioactive plutonium in its SNAP RTG power source is widely dispersed.
    • 1965 – The 1964–1965 New York World’s Fair opens for its second and final season.
    • 1966 – Rastafari movement: Haile Selassie of Ethiopia visits Jamaica, an event now celebrated as Grounation Day.
    • 1967 – A few days before the general election in Greece, Colonel George Papadopoulos leads a coup d’état, establishing a military regime that lasts for seven years.
    • 1975 – Vietnam War: President of South Vietnam Nguyễn Văn Thiệu flees Saigon, as Xuân Lộc, the last South Vietnamese outpost blocking a direct North Vietnamese assault on Saigon, falls.
    • 1977 – Annie opens on Broadway.
    • 1982 – Baseball: Rollie Fingers of the Milwaukee Brewers becomes the first pitcher to record 300 saves.
    • 1985 – The compound of the militant group The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm of the Lord surrenders to federal authorities in Arkansas after a two-day government siege.
    • 1987 – The Tamil Tigers are blamed for a car bomb that detonates in the Sri Lankan capital city of Colombo, killing 106 people.
    • 1989 – Tiananmen Square protests of 1989: In Beijing, around 100,000 students gather in Tiananmen Square to commemorate Chinese reform leader Hu Yaobang.
    • 1993 – The Supreme Court in La Paz, Bolivia, sentences former dictator Luis García Meza to 30 years in jail without parole for murder, theft, fraud and violating the constitution.
    • 2004 – Five suicide car bombers target police stations in and around Basra, killing 74 people and wounding 160.
    • 2010 – The controversial Kharkiv Pact (Russian Ukrainian Naval Base for Gas Treaty) is signed in Kharkiv, Ukraine, by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev; it was unilaterally terminated by Russia on March 31, 2014.
    • 2012 – Two trains are involved in a head-on collision near Sloterdijk, Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, injuring 116 people.
    • 2014 – The American city of Flint, Michigan switches its water source to the Flint River, beginning the ongoing Flint water crisis which has caused lead poisoning in up to 12,000 people, and 15 deaths from Legionnaires disease, ultimately leading to criminal indictments against 15 people, five of whom have been charged with involuntary manslaughter.
    • 2019 – Eight bombs explode at churches, hotels, and other locations in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday; more than 200 people are killed.

    Births on April 21

    • 1132 – Sancho VI, king of Navarre (d. 1194)
    • 1488 – Ulrich von Hutten, German religious reformer (d. 1523)
    • 1523 – Marco Antonio Bragadin, Venetian lawyer and military officer (d. 1571)
    • 1555 – Ludovico Carracci, Italian painter and etcher (d. 1619)
    • 1619 – Jan van Riebeeck, Dutch founder of Cape Town (d. 1677)
    • 1630 – Pieter Gerritsz van Roestraten, Dutch-English painter (d. 1700)
    • 1631 – Francesco Maidalchini, Catholic cardinal (d. 1700)
    • 1642 – Simon de la Loubère, French mathematician, poet, and diplomat (d. 1729)
    • 1651 – Joseph Vaz, Sri Lankan priest, missionary, and saint (d. 1711)
    • 1652 – Michel Rolle, French mathematician and academic (d. 1719)
    • 1671 – John Law, Scottish economist (d. 1729)
    • 1673 – Wilhelmine Amalia of Brunswick-Lüneburg (d. 1742)
    • 1713 – Louis de Noailles, French general (d. 1793)
    • 1730 – Antonín Kammel, Czech violinist and composer (d. 1788)
    • 1752 – Pierre-Alexandre-Laurent Forfait, French engineer, hydrographer, and politician, French Minister of Marine and the Colonies (d. 1807)
    • 1752 – Humphry Repton, English gardener and author (d. 1818)
    • 1774 – Jean-Baptiste Biot, French physicist, astronomer, and mathematician (d. 1862)
    • 1775 – Alexander Anderson, Scottish-American illustrator and engraver (d. 1870)
    • 1790 – Manuel Blanco Encalada, Spanish-Chilean admiral and politician, 1st President of Chile (d. 1876)
    • 1810 – John Putnam Chapin, American politician, 10th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1864)
    • 1811 – Alson Sherman, American merchant and politician, 8th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1903)
    • 1814 – Angela Burdett-Coutts, 1st Baroness Burdett-Coutts, English art collector and philanthropist (d. 1906)
    • 1816 – Charlotte Brontë, Cornish-English novelist and poet (d. 1855)
    • 1837 – Fredrik Bajer, Danish lieutenant and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1922)
    • 1838 – John Muir, Scottish-American environmentalist and author (d. 1914)
    • 1851 – Charles Barrois, French geologist and palaeontologist (d. 1939)
    • 1854 – William Stang, German-American bishop (d. 1907)
    • 1864 – Max Weber, German economist and sociologist (d. 1920)
    • 1868 – Alfred Henry Maurer, American painter (d. 1932)
    • 1870 – Edwin Stanton Porter, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1941)
    • 1874 – Vincent Scotto, French actor and composer (d. 1952)
    • 1882 – Percy Williams Bridgman, American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)
    • 1885 – Tatu Kolehmainen, Finnish runner (d. 1967)
    • 1887 – Joe McCarthy, American baseball manager (d. 1978)
    • 1889 – Marcel Boussac, French businessman (d. 1980)
    • 1889 – Paul Karrer, Russian-Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1971)
    • 1889 – Efrem Zimbalist, Sr., Russian-American violinist, composer, and conductor (d. 1985)
    • 1892 – Freddie Dixon, English motorcycle racer and racing driver (d. 1956)
    • 1893 – Romeo Bertini, Italian runner (d. 1973)
    • 1898 – Maurice Wilson, English soldier, pilot, and mountaineer (d. 1934)
    • 1899 – Randall Thompson, American composer and academic (d. 1984)
    • 1903 – Luis Saslavsky, Argentinian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1995)
    • 1904 – Jean Hélion, French painter (d. 1987)
    • 1904 – Odilo Globocnik, Italian-Austrian SS officer (d. 1945)
    • 1905 – Pat Brown, American lawyer and politician, 32nd Governor of California (d. 1996)
    • 1911 – Ivan Combe, American businessman, developed Clearasil (d. 2000)
    • 1911 – Kemal Satır, Turkish physician and politician (d. 1991)
    • 1912 – Eve Arnold, Russian-American photojournalist (d. 2012)
    • 1912 – Marcel Camus, French director and screenwriter (d. 1982)
    • 1913 – Norman Parkinson, English photographer (d. 1990)
    • 1914 – Angelo Savoldi, Italian-American wrestler and promoter, co-founded International World Class Championship Wrestling (d. 2013)
    • 1915 – Garrett Hardin, American ecologist, author, and academic (d. 2003)
    • 1915 – Anthony Quinn, Mexican-American actor (d. 2001)
    • 1916 – Estella B. Diggs, American businesswoman and politician (d. 2013)
    • 1918 – Eddy Christiani, Dutch singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2016)
    • 1919 – Don Cornell, American singer (d. 2004)
    • 1919 – Roger Doucet, Canadian tenor (d. 1981)
    • 1919 – Licio Gelli, Italian financer (d. 2015)
    • 1920 – Edmund Adamkiewicz, German footballer (d. 1991)
    • 1922 – Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist and screenwriter (d. 1987)
    • 1922 – Allan Watkins, Welsh-English cricketer (d. 2011)
    • 1923 – John Mortimer, English lawyer and author (d. 2009)
    • 1924 – Ira Louvin, American singer-songwriter and mandolin player (d. 1965)
    • 1925 – Anthony Mason, Australian soldier and judge, 9th Chief Justice of Australia
    • 1925 – John Swinton of Kimmerghame, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire (d. 2018)
    • 1926 – Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and her other realms
    • 1926 – Arthur Rowley, English footballer, manager and cricketer (d. 2002)
    • 1927 – Ahmed Arif, Turkish poet and author (d. 1991)
    • 1928 – Jack Evans, Welsh-Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 1996)
    • 1930 – Hilda Hilst, Brazilian author, poet, and playwright (d. 2004)
    • 1930 – Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (d. 1989)
    • 1930 – Dieter Roth, German-Swiss illustrator and sculptor (d. 1998)
    • 1930 – Jack Taylor, English footballer and referee (d. 2012)
    • 1931 – Morgan Wootten, American high school basketball coach (d. 2020)
    • 1932 – Slide Hampton, African-American trombonist and composer
    • 1932 – Elaine May, American actress, comedian, director, and screenwriter
    • 1932 – Angela Mortimer, English tennis player
    • 1933 – Edelmiro Amante, Filipino lawyer and politician (d. 2013)
    • 1933 – Easley Blackwood, Jr., American pianist, composer, and educator
    • 1933 – Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, Iraqi patriarch (d. 2014)
    • 1935 – Charles Grodin, American actor and talk show host
    • 1935 – Thomas Kean, American academic and politician, 48th Governor of New Jersey
    • 1936 – James Dobson, American evangelist, psychologist, and author, founded Focus on the Family
    • 1936 – Reg Fleming, Canadian-American ice hockey player (d. 2009)
    • 1937 – Gary Peters, American baseball player
    • 1937 – Ben Zinn, Israeli-born American academic and former international soccer player
    • 1939 – John McCabe, English pianist and composer (d. 2015)
    • 1939 – Sister Helen Prejean, American nun, activist, and author
    • 1939 – Reni Santoni, American actor
    • 1940 – Jacques Caron, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1940 – Souleymane Cissé, Malian director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1941 – David L. Boren, American lawyer and politician, 21st Governor of Oklahoma
    • 1942 – Geoffrey Palmer, New Zealand politician, 33rd Prime Minister of New Zealand
    • 1945 – Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan, Indian cricketer and umpire
    • 1945 – Mark Wainberg, Canadian researcher and HIV/AIDS activist (d. 2017)
    • 1945 – Diana Darvey, English actress, singer and dancer (d. 2000)
    • 1947 – Al Bumbry, American baseball player
    • 1947 – Iggy Pop, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
    • 1947 – John Weider, English bass player
    • 1948 – Gary Condit, American businessman and politician
    • 1948 – Paul Davis, American singer-songwriter and musician (d. 2008)
    • 1948 – Josef Flammer, Swiss ophthalmologist
    • 1948 – Dieter Fromm, German runner
    • 1949 – Patti LuPone, American actress and singer
    • 1950 – Shivaji Satam, Indian actor
    • 1951 – Tony Danza, American actor and producer
    • 1951 – Michael Freedman, American mathematician and academic
    • 1951 – Bob Varsha, American sportscaster
    • 1951 – Steve Vickers, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1952 – Gerald Early, American author and academic
    • 1952 – Cheryl Gillan, British businesswoman and politician, Secretary of State for Wales
    • 1953 – John Brumby, Australian politician, 45th Premier of Victoria
    • 1954 – Ebiet G. Ade, Indonesian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1954 – James Morrison, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1955 – Murathan Mungan, Turkish author, poet, and playwright
    • 1955 – Doug Soetaert, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1956 – Peter Kosminsky, English director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1956 – Phillip Longman, German-American demographer and journalist
    • 1957 – Hervé Le Tellier, French linguist and author
    • 1957 – Jesse Orosco, American baseball player
    • 1957 – Herbert Wetterauer, German painter, sculptor, and author
    • 1958 – Andie MacDowell, American model, actress, and producer
    • 1958 – Yoshito Usui, Japanese illustrator (d. 2009)
    • 1958 – Michael Zarnock, American author
    • 1959 – Tim Jacobus, American illustrator and painter
    • 1959 – Olga Kuragina, Russian pentathlete
    • 1959 – Arno Pijpers, Dutch footballer and coach
    • 1959 – Robert Smith, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1960 – Michel Goulet, Canadian ice hockey player and scout
    • 1960 – Julius Korir, Kenyan runner
    • 1961 – Cathy Cavadini, American voice actress
    • 1961 – Carey Hayes, American screenwriter and producer
    • 1961 – Chad Hayes, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1961 – Neale Marmon, English-German footballer, coach, and manager
    • 1961 – David Servan-Schreiber, French physician, neuroscientist, and author (d. 2011)
    • 1962 – Les Lancaster, American baseball player and coach
    • 1962 – Craig Robinson, American basketball player and coach
    • 1962 – Aavo Sarap, Estonian footballer and coach
    • 1963 – Ken Caminiti, American baseball player (d. 2004)
    • 1963 – Roy Dupuis, Canadian actor
    • 1963 – John Cameron Mitchell, American actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1964 – Alex Baumann, Czech-Canadian swimmer
    • 1964 – Ludmila Engquist, Russian-Swedish hurdler
    • 1965 – Ed Belfour, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1965 – Karen Foster, American model and actress
    • 1965 – Gary Grant, American basketball player
    • 1965 – Thomas Helmer, German footballer
    • 1965 – Fiona Kelleghan, American academic, critic and librarian
    • 1967 – Emilio Valle, Cuban hurdler
    • 1968 – Peter van Vossen, Dutch footballer and coach
    • 1969 – John Kibowen, Kenyan runner
    • 1969 – Toby Stephens, English actor
    • 1970 – Jeff Anderson, American actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1970 – Glen Hansard, Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
    • 1970 – Rob Riggle, American actor and comedian
    • 1970 – Nicole Sullivan, American actress, comedian, and screenwriter
    • 1971 – Axl Rotten, American wrestler (d. 2016)
    • 1971 – Michael Turner, American author and illustrator (d. 2008)
    • 1972 – Richard Chelimo, Kenyan runner (d. 2001)
    • 1972 – Gwendal Peizerat, French ice dancer
    • 1973 – Steve Backshall, English naturalist, writer, and television presenter
    • 1973 – Jonathan Nsenga, Belgian hurdler and coach
    • 1974 – Maksim Gruznov, Estonian footballer
    • 1974 – Orlando Jordan, American wrestler
    • 1974 – David Peachey, Australian rugby league player
    • 1975 – Danyon Loader, New Zealand swimmer
    • 1976 – Rommel Adducul, Filipino basketball player
    • 1976 – Petero Civoniceva, Fijian-Australian rugby league player
    • 1977 – Gyula Koi, Hungarian scholar and educator
    • 1977 – Jamie Salé, Canadian figure skater
    • 1978 – Jacob Burns, Australian footballer
    • 1978 – Jukka Nevalainen, Finnish drummer
    • 1978 – Yuliya Pechonkina, Russian hurdler
    • 1979 – Virginie Basselot, French chef
    • 1979 – Tobias Linderoth, French-Swedish footballer and coach
    • 1979 – James McAvoy, Scottish actor
    • 1980 – Jeff Keppinger, American baseball player
    • 1980 – Vincent Lecavalier, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1980 – Tony Romo, American football player
    • 1981 – Mads Junker, Danish footballer
    • 1982 – Khalif Barnes, American football player
    • 1982 – Micheal Luck, Australian rugby league player
    • 1982 – Carnell Williams, American football player
    • 1983 – Paweł Brożek, Polish footballer
    • 1983 – Marco Donadel, Italian footballer
    • 1983 – Tarvaris Jackson, American football player (d. 2020)
    • 1984 – Shayna Fox, American voice actress
    • 1986 – Audra Cohen, American tennis player
    • 1986 – Alexander Edler, Swedish ice hockey player
    • 1986 – Rodney Stuckey, American basketball player
    • 1986 – Mirko Valdifiori, Italian footballer
    • 1987 – Nadif Chowdhury, Bangladeshi cricketer
    • 1987 – Eric Devendorf, American basketball player
    • 1987 – Leroy George, Dutch footballer
    • 1987 – Anastasia Prikhodko, Ukrainian singer
    • 1988 – Ricky Berens, American swimmer
    • 1988 – Jencarlos Canela, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1988 – Pedro Mosquera, Spanish footballer
    • 1988 – Adam Rooney, Irish footballer
    • 1989 – Tatyana McFadden, Russian-American sprinter and skier
    • 1989 – Carlos Muñoz, Chilean footballer
    • 1990 – Aleksandar Prijović, Swiss-born Serbian footballer
    • 1992 – Isco, Spanish footballer
    • 1992 – Rene Santos, Brazilian footballer
    • 1992 – Joc Pederson, American baseball player
    • 1994 – Mitchell Weiser, German footballer

    Deaths on April 21

    • 234 – Emperor Xian of Han, Chinese emperor (b. 181)
    • 586 – Liuvigild, king of the Visigoths
    • 847 – Odgar, Frankish archbishop of Mainz
    • 866 – Bardas, de facto regent of the Byzantine Empire
    • 941 – Bajkam, de facto regent of the Abbasid Caliphate
    • 1073 – Pope Alexander II
    • 1109 – Anselm of Canterbury, Italian-English archbishop and saint (b. 1033)
    • 1136 – Stephen, Count of Tréguier Breton noblemen (b. c. 1058/62)
    • 1142 – Peter Abelard, French philosopher and theologian (b. 1079)
    • 1213 – Maria of Montpellier, Lady of Montpellier, Queen of Aragon (b. 1182)
    • 1329 – Frederick IV, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1282)
    • 1400 – John Wittlebury, English politician (b. 1333)
    • 1509 – Henry VII of England (b. 1457)
    • 1557 – Petrus Apianus, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1495)
    • 1574 – Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1519)
    • 1591 – Sen no Rikyū, Japanese exponent of the tea ceremony (b. 1522)
    • 1650 – Yagyū Jūbei Mitsuyoshi, Japanese samurai (b. 1607)
    • 1668 – Jan Boeckhorst, Flemish painter (b. c. 1604)
    • 1699 – Jean Racine, French playwright and poet (b. 1639)
    • 1719 – Philippe de La Hire, French mathematician and astronomer (b. 1640)
    • 1720 – Antoine Hamilton, Irish-French soldier and author (b. 1646)
    • 1722 – Robert Beverley, Jr., English historian and author (b. 1673)
    • 1736 – Prince Eugene of Savoy (b. 1663)
    • 1740 – Thomas Tickell, English poet and author (b. 1685)
    • 1758 – Francesco Zerafa, Maltese architect (b. 1679)
    • 1815 – Joseph Winston, American soldier and politician (b. 1746)
    • 1825 – Johann Friedrich Pfaff, German mathematician and academic (b. 1765)
    • 1852 – Ivan Nabokov, Russian general (b. 1787)
    • 1863 – Sir Robert Bateson, 1st Baronet, Irish politician (b. 1782)
    • 1900 – Vikramatji Khimojiraj, Indian ruler (b. 1819)
    • 1910 – Mark Twain, American novelist, humorist, and critic (b. 1835)
    • 1918 – Manfred von Richthofen, German captain and pilot (b. 1892)
    • 1924 – Eleonora Duse, Italian actress (b. 1858)
    • 1930 – Robert Bridges, English poet and author (b. 1844)
    • 1932 – Friedrich Gustav Piffl, Bohemian cardinal (b. 1864)
    • 1938 – Muhammad Iqbal, Indian-Pakistani philosopher and poet (b. 1877)
    • 1941 – Fritz Manteuffel, German gymnast (b. 1875)
    • 1945 – Walter Model, German field marshal (b. 1891)
    • 1946 – John Maynard Keynes, English economist and philosopher (b. 1883)
    • 1948 – Aldo Leopold, American ecologist and author (b. 1887)
    • 1952 – Leslie Banks, American actor, director and producer (b. 1890)
    • 1954 – Emil Leon Post, Polish-American mathematician and logician (b. 1897)
    • 1956 – Charles MacArthur, American playwright and screenwriter (b. 1895)
    • 1965 – Edward Victor Appleton, English-Scottish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
    • 1971 – François Duvalier, Haitian physician and politician, 40th President of Haiti (b. 1907)
    • 1973 – Arthur Fadden, Australian accountant and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1894)
    • 1973 – Kemal Tahir, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1910)
    • 1974 – Chic Harley, American football player (b. 1894)
    • 1977 – Gummo Marx, American vaudevillian and talent agent (b. 1893)
    • 1978 – Sandy Denny, English singer-songwriter (b.1947)
    • 1978 – Thomas Wyatt Turner, American biologist and academic (b. 1877)
    • 1980 – Alexander Oparin, Russian biochemist and academic (b. 1894)
    • 1980 – Sohrab Sepehri, Iranian poet and painter (b. 1928)
    • 1983 – Walter Slezak, Austrian-American actor and singer (b. 1902)
    • 1984 – Marcel Janco, Romanian-Israeli artist (b. 1895)
    • 1984 – Hristo Prodanov, Bulgarian engineer and mountaineer (b. 1943)
    • 1985 – Rudi Gernreich, Austrian-American fashion designer, created the monokini (b. 1922)
    • 1985 – Tancredo Neves, Brazilian banker and politician, Prime Minister of Brazil (b. 1910)
    • 1986 – Marjorie Eaton, American painter and actress (b. 1901)
    • 1986 – Salah Jahin, Egyptian poet, playwright, and composer (b. 1930)
    • 1987 – Gustav Bergmann, Austrian-American philosopher from the Vienna Circle (b. 1906)
    • 1989 – James Kirkwood, Jr., American actor, playwright, and author (b. 1924)
    • 1990 – Erté, Russian-French illustrator (b. 1892)
    • 1991 – Willi Boskovsky, Austrian violinist and conductor (b. 1909)
    • 1996 – Zora Arkus-Duntov, Belgian-born American engineer and race car driver (b. 1909)
    • 1996 – Dzhokhar Dudayev, Chechen general and politician, 1st President of Ichkeria (b. 1944)
    • 1996 – Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Pakistani cricketer (b. 1925)
    • 1996 – Jimmy Snyder, American sportscaster (b. 1919)
    • 1998 – Jean-François Lyotard, French sociologist and philosopher (b. 1924)
    • 1999 – Buddy Rogers, American actor (b. 1904)
    • 2003 – Nina Simone, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and activist (b. 1933)
    • 2004 – Mary McGrory, American journalist (b. 1918)
    • 2005 – Gerry Marshall, English race car driver and journalist (b. 1941)
    • 2006 – Johnny Checketts, New Zealand commander and pilot (b. 1912)
    • 2006 – T. K. Ramakrishnan, Indian politician (b. 1922)
    • 2006 – Telê Santana, Brazilian footballer and manager (b. 1931)
    • 2007 – Lobby Loyde, Australian guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1941)
    • 2009 – Vivian Maier, American photographer (b. 1926)
    • 2010 – Gustav Lorentzen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1947)
    • 2010 – Juan Antonio Samaranch, Spanish businessman, seventh President of the International Olympic Committee (b. 1920)
    • 2010 – Kanagaratnam Sriskandan, Sri Lankan-English engineer and civil servant (b. 1930)
    • 2011 – Catharina Halkes, Dutch theologian and academic (b. 1920)
    • 2012 – Doris Betts, American author and academic (b. 1932)
    • 2012 – Charles Colson, American lawyer and activist, founded Prison Fellowship (b. 1931)
    • 2012 – Albert Falco, French captain and diver (b. 1927)
    • 2012 – Charles Higham, English-American author and poet (b. 1931)
    • 2012 – Jerry Toppazzini, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1931)
    • 2013 – Chrissy Amphlett, Australian singer-songwriter and actress (b. 1959)
    • 2013 – Shakuntala Devi, Indian mathematician and astrologer (b. 1929)
    • 2013 – Leopold Engleitner, Austrian Holocaust survivor, author, and educator (b. 1905)
    • 2013 – Gordon D. Gayle, American general and historian (b. 1917)
    • 2014 – Herb Gray, Canadian lawyer and politician, 7th Deputy Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1931)
    • 2014 – Janet Gray Hayes, American politician, 60th Mayor of San Jose (b. 1926)
    • 2014 – George H. Heilmeier, American engineer (b. 1936)
    • 2014 – Win Tin, Burmese journalist and politician, co-founded the National League for Democracy (b. 1930)
    • 2015 – M. H. Abrams, American author, critic, and academic (b. 1912)
    • 2015 – Steve Byrnes, American sportscaster and producer (b. 1959)
    • 2015 – John Moshoeu, South African footballer and manager (b. 1965)
    • 2015 – Janaki Ballabh Patnaik, Indian politician, Governor of Assam (b. 1927)
    • 2015 – Sydney Valpy Radley-Walters, Canadian general (b. 1920)
    • 2015 – Betsy von Furstenberg, German-American actress (b. 1931)
    • 2016 – Prince, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (b. 1958)
    • 2017 – Ugo Ehiogu, English footballer (b. 1972)
    • 2018 – Verne Troyer, American actor (b. 1969)
    • 2018 – Nabi Tajima, Japanese supercentenarian, oldest Japanese and Asian person ever, last verified person born in the 19th century (b. 1900)
    • 2019 – Polly Higgins, Scottish barrister, author and environmental lobbyist, (b. 1968)

    Holidays and observances April 21

    • Christian feast day:
      • Abdecalas
      • Anastasius Sinaita
      • Anselm of Canterbury
      • Beuno
      • Conrad of Parzham
      • Holy Infant of Good Health
      • Shemon Bar Sabbae
      • Wolbodo
      • April 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Civil Service Day (India)
    • Grounation Day (Rastafari movement)
    • Heroic Defense of Veracruz (Mexico)
    • Kang Pan-sok’s Birthday (North Korea)
    • Kartini Day (Indonesia)
    • Local Self Government Day (Russia)
    • National Tea Day (United Kingdom)
    • National Tree Planting Day (Kenya)
    • San Jacinto Day (Texas)
    • Queen’s Official Birthday (Falkland Islands)
    • Tiradentes’ Day (Brazil)
    • Vietnam Book Day (Vietnam)

  • April 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    April 20 in History

    • 1303 – The Sapienza University of Rome is instituted by a bull of Pope Boniface VIII.
    • 1453 – Three Genoese galleys and a Byzantine blockade runner fight their way through an Ottoman blockading fleet a few weeks before the fall of Constantinople.
    • 1534 – Jacques Cartier begins his first voyage to what is today the east coast of Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador.
    • 1535 – The sun dog phenomenon is observed over Stockholm, as later depicted in the famous painting Vädersolstavlan.
    • 1653 – Oliver Cromwell dissolves the Rump Parliament.
    • 1657 – Admiral Robert Blake destroys a Spanish silver fleet under heavy fire at the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
    • 1657 – Freedom of religion is granted to the Jews of New Amsterdam (later New York City).
    • 1689 – Deposed monarch James II of England lays siege to Derry.
    • 1752 – Start of Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War, a new phase in the Burmese Civil War (1740–57).
    • 1770 – The Georgian king, Erekle II, abandoned by his Russian ally Count Totleben, wins a victory over Ottoman forces at Aspindza.
    • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The Siege of Boston begins, following the battles at Lexington and Concord.
    • 1789 – George Washington arrives at Grays Ferry, Philadelphia while en route to Manhattan for his inauguration.
    • 1792 – France declares war against the “King of Hungary and Bohemia”, the beginning of French Revolutionary Wars.
    • 1800 – The Septinsular Republic is established.
    • 1809 – Two Austrian army corps in Bavaria are defeated by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon at the Battle of Abensberg on the second day of a four-day campaign that ended in a French victory.
    • 1810 – The governor of Caracas, Venezuela declares independence from Spain.
    • 1818 – The case of Ashford v Thornton ends, with Abraham Thornton allowed to go free rather than face a retrial for murder, after his demand for trial by battle is upheld.
    • 1828 – René Caillié becomes the second non-Muslim to enter (and the first to return from) Timbuktu, following Major Gordon Laing.
    • 1836 – U.S. Congress passes an act creating the Wisconsin Territory.
    • 1861 – American Civil War: Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army in order to command the forces of the state of Virginia.
    • 1862 – Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard complete the experiment disproving the theory of spontaneous generation.
    • 1865 – Astronomer Angelo Secchi demonstrates the Secchi disk, which measures water clarity, aboard Pope Pius IX’s yacht, the L’Immaculata Concezion.
    • 1876 – The April Uprising begins. Its suppression shocks European opinion, and Bulgarian independence becomes a condition for ending the Russo-Turkish War.
    • 1884 – Pope Leo XIII publishes the encyclical Humanum genus.
    • 1898 – U.S. President William McKinley signed a joint resolution to Congress for declaration of war against Spain, beginning the Spanish–American War.
    • 1902 – Pierre and Marie Curie refine radium chloride.
    • 1908 – Opening day of competition in the New South Wales Rugby League.
    • 1912 – Opening day for baseball’s Tiger Stadium in Detroit, and Fenway Park in Boston.
    • 1914 – Nineteen men, women, and children die in the Ludlow Massacre during a Colorado coal-miners’ strike.
    • 1916 – The Chicago Cubs play their first game at Weeghman Park (currently Wrigley Field), defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7–6 in 11 innings.
    • 1918 – Manfred von Richthofen, a.k.a. The Red Baron, shoots down his 79th and 80th victims, his final victories before his death the following day.
    • 1922 – The Soviet government creates South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within Georgian SSR.
    • 1939 – Adolf Hitler’s 50th birthday’s celebrations in Germany
    • 1945 – World War II: U.S. troops capture Leipzig, Germany, only to later cede the city to the Soviet Union.
    • 1945 – World War II: Führerbunker: On his 56th birthday Adolf Hitler makes his last trip to the surface to award Iron Crosses to boy soldiers of the Hitler Youth.
    • 1945 – Twenty Jewish children used in medical experiments at Neuengamme are killed in the basement of the Bullenhuser Damm school.
    • 1946 – The League of Nations officially dissolves, giving most of its power to the United Nations.
    • 1961 – Cold War: Failure of the Bay of Pigs Invasion of US-backed Cuban exiles against Cuba.
    • 1968 – English politician Enoch Powell makes his controversial “Rivers of Blood” speech.
    • 1972 – Apollo program: Apollo 16 lunar module, commanded by John Young and piloted by Charles Duke, lands on the moon.
    • 1998 – Air France Flight 422 crashes after taking off from El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá, Colombia, killing all 53 people on board.
    • 1999 – Columbine High School massacre: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill 13 people and injure 24 others before committing suicide at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado.
    • 2007 – Johnson Space Center shooting: William Phillips with a handgun barricade himself in NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas before killing a male hostage and himself.
    • 2008 – Danica Patrick wins the Indy Japan 300 becoming the first female driver in history to win an Indy car race.
    • 2010 – The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explodes in the Gulf of Mexico, killing eleven workers and beginning an oil spill that would last six months.
    • 2012 – One hundred twenty-seven people are killed when a plane crashes in a residential area near the Benazir Bhutto International Airport near Islamabad, Pakistan.
    • 2013 – A 6.6-magnitude earthquake strikes Lushan County, Ya’an, in China’s Sichuan province, killing more than 150 people and injuring thousands.
    • 2015 – Ten people are killed in a bomb attack on a convoy carrying food supplies to a United Nations compound in Garowe in the Somali region of Puntland.

    Births on April 20

    • 1494 – Johannes Agricola, German theologian and reformer (d. 1566)
    • 1544 – Renata of Lorraine, Duchess consort of Bavaria (d. 1602)
    • 1586 – Rose of Lima, Peruvian mystic and saint (d. 1617)
    • 1633 – Emperor Go-Kōmyō of Japan (d. 1654)
    • 1646 – Charles Plumier, French botanist and author (d. 1704)
    • 1650 – William Bedloe, English spy (d. 1680)
    • 1718 – David Brainerd, American missionary (d. 1747)
    • 1723 – Cornelius Harnett, American merchant, farmer, and politician (d. 1781)
    • 1727 – Florimond Claude, Comte de Mercy-Argenteau, Belgian-Austrian minister and diplomat (d. 1794)
    • 1745 – Philippe Pinel, French physician and psychiatrist (d. 1826)
    • 1748 – Georg Michael Telemann, German composer and theologian (d. 1831)
    • 1772 – William Lawless, Irish revolutionary and French general (d. 1824)
    • 1808 – Napoleon III, French politician, 1st President of France (d. 1873)
    • 1816 – Bogoslav Šulek, Croatian philologist, historian, and lexicographer (d. 1895)
    • 1818 – Heinrich Göbel, German-American mechanic and engineer (d. 1893)
    • 1826 – Dinah Craik, English author and poet (d. 1887)
    • 1836 – Eli Whitney Blake, Jr., American scientist and academic (d. 1895)
    • 1839 – Carol I of Romania, King of Romania (d. 1914)
    • 1840 – Odilon Redon, French painter and illustrator (d. 1916)
    • 1850 – Daniel Chester French, American sculptor, designed the Lincoln statue (d. 1931)
    • 1851 – Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist (d. 1918)
    • 1851 – Siegmund Lubin, Polish-American businessman, founded the Lubin Manufacturing Company (d. 1923)
    • 1860 – Justinien de Clary, French target shooter (d. 1933)
    • 1871 – Sydney Chapman, English economist and civil servant (d. 1951)
    • 1873 – James Harcourt, English character actor (d. 1951)
    • 1875 – Vladimir Vidrić, Croatian poet and lawyer (d. 1909)
    • 1879 – Paul Poiret, French fashion designer (d. 1944)
    • 1882 – Holland Smith, American general (d. 1967)
    • 1884 – Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (d. 1966)
    • 1884 – Oliver Kirk, American boxer (d. 1960)
    • 1884 – Daniel Varoujan, Armenian poet and educator (d. 1915)
    • 1889 – Albert Jean Amateau, Turkish rabbi, lawyer, and activist (d. 1996)
    • 1889 – Prince Erik, Duke of Västmanland (d. 1918)
    • 1889 – Marie-Antoinette de Geuser, French mystic (d. 1918)
    • 1889 – Adolf Hitler, Austrian born German politician, Führer of Nazi Germany (d. 1945)
    • 1889 – Tonny Kessler, Dutch footballer (d. 1960)
    • 1890 – Maurice Duplessis, Canadian lawyer and politician, 16th Premier of Quebec (d. 1959)
    • 1890 – Adolf Schärf, Austrian soldier and politician, 6th President of Austria (d. 1965)
    • 1891 – Dave Bancroft, American baseball player and manager (d. 1972)
    • 1893 – Harold Lloyd, American actor, comedian, and producer (d. 1971)
    • 1893 – Joan Miró, Spanish painter and sculptor (d. 1983)
    • 1895 – Emile Christian, American trombonist and composer (d. 1973)
    • 1895 – Henry de Montherlant, French essayist, novelist, and dramatist (d. 1972)
    • 1896 – Wop May, Canadian captain and pilot (d. 1952)
    • 1899 – Alan Arnett McLeod, Canadian lieutenant, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1918)
    • 1904 – Bruce Cabot, American actor (d. 1972)
    • 1907 – Miran Bux, Pakistani cricketer (d. 1991)
    • 1907 – Augoustinos Kantiotes, Greek bishop (d. 2010)
    • 1908 – Lionel Hampton, American vibraphone player, pianist, bandleader, and actor (d. 2002)
    • 1910 – Fatin Rüştü Zorlu, Turkish diplomat and politician (d. 1961)
    • 1913 – Mimis Fotopoulos, Greek actor and poet (d. 1986)
    • 1913 – Willi Hennig, German biologist and entomologist (d. 1976)
    • 1913 – Roger Rochard, French runner (d. 1993)
    • 1914 – Betty Lou Gerson, American actress (d. 1999)
    • 1915 – Joseph Wolpe, South African psychotherapist and physician (d. 1997)
    • 1916 – Nasiba Zeynalova, Azerbaijani actress (d. 2004)
    • 1918 – Kai Siegbahn, Swedish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2007)
    • 1919 – Richard Hillary, Australian lieutenant and pilot (d. 1943)
    • 1920 – Frances Ames, South African neurologist, psychiatrist, and human rights activist (d. 2002)
    • 1920 – Clement Isong, Nigerian banker and politician, Governor of Cross River State (d. 2000)
    • 1920 – Ronald Speirs, American colonel (d. 2007)
    • 1920 – John Paul Stevens, American lawyer and jurist, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 2019)
    • 1923 – Mother Angelica, American nun and broadcaster, founded Eternal Word Television Network (d. 2016)
    • 1923 – Irene Lieblich, Polish-American painter and illustrator (d. 2008)
    • 1923 – Tito Puente, American drummer and producer (d. 2000)
    • 1924 – Nina Foch, Dutch-American actress (d. 2008)
    • 1924 – Leslie Phillips, English actor and producer
    • 1924 – Guy Rocher, Canadian sociologist and academic
    • 1925 – Ernie Stautner, German-American football player and coach (d. 2006)
    • 1925 – Elena Verdugo, American actress (d. 2017)
    • 1927 – Bud Cullen, Canadian judge and politician, 1st Canadian Minister of Employment and Immigration (d. 2005)
    • 1927 – Phil Hill, American race car driver (d. 2008)
    • 1927 – K. Alex Müller, Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1928 – Robert Byrne, American chess player and author (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Johnny Gavin, Irish international footballer (d. 2007)
    • 1929 – Harry Agganis, American baseball and football player (d. 1955)
    • 1929 – Bobby Hollander, American film director, actor, and magazine publisher (d. 2002)
    • 1930 – Dwight Gustafson, American composer and conductor (d. 2014)
    • 1930 – Antony Jay, English director and screenwriter (d. 2016)
    • 1931 – Michael Allenby, 3rd Viscount Allenby, English lieutenant and politician (d. 2014)
    • 1931 – John Eccles, 2nd Viscount Eccles, English businessman and politician
    • 1932 – Myriam Bru, French actress
    • 1933 – Kristaq Dhamo, Albanian actor and film director
    • 1936 – Lisa Davis, English and American former child and adult actress
    • 1936 – Pauli Ellefsen, Faroese technician, surveyor, and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands (d. 2012)
    • 1936 – Pat Roberts, American captain, journalist, and politician
    • 1936 – Christopher Robinson, English organist and conductor
    • 1937 – Jiří Dienstbier, Czech journalist and politician, Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2011)
    • 1937 – Antonios Kounadis, Greek discus thrower
    • 1937 – Harvey Quaytman, American painter and educator (d. 2002)
    • 1937 – George Takei, American actor
    • 1938 – Betty Cuthbert, Australian sprinter
    • 1938 – Manfred Kinder, German runner
    • 1938 – Peter Snow, British historian and journalist
    • 1938 – Eszter Tamási, Hungarian actress (d. 1991)
    • 1939 – Elspeth Ballantyne, Australian actress
    • 1939 – Peter S. Beagle, American author and screenwriter
    • 1939 – Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norwegian physician and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Norway
    • 1939 – Johnny Tillotson, American singer-songwriter
    • 1940 – James Gammon, American actor (d. 2010)
    • 1941 – Ryan O’Neal, American actor
    • 1942 – Giles Henderson, English lawyer and academic
    • 1942 – Arto Paasilinna, Finnish journalist and author
    • 1943 – Alan Beith, English academic and politician
    • 1943 – John Eliot Gardiner, English conductor and director
    • 1943 – Edie Sedgwick, American model and actress (d. 1971)
    • 1944 – Toivo Aare, Estonian journalist and author (d. 1999)
    • 1945 – Michael Brandon, American actor and director
    • 1945 – Olga Karlatos, Greek actress and Bermudian lawyer
    • 1945 – Thein Sein, Burmese general and politician, 8th President of Burma
    • 1945 – Naftali Temu, Kenyan runner (d. 2003)
    • 1945 – Steve Spurrier, American football player and head coach, 1966 Heisman Trophy winner
    • 1946 – Sandro Chia, Italian painter and sculptor
    • 1946 – Julien Poulin, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
    • 1946 – Gordon Smiley, American race car driver (d. 1982)
    • 1947 – Rita Dionne-Marsolais, Canadian economist and politician
    • 1947 – David Leland, English actor, director, and screenwriter
    • 1947 – Viktor Suvorov, Russian intelligence officer, historian, and author
    • 1948 – Gregory Itzin, American actor
    • 1948 – Matthias Kuhle, German geographer and academic (d. 2015)
    • 1949 – Veronica Cartwright, English-American actress
    • 1949 – Toller Cranston, Canadian-Mexican figure skater and painter (d. 2015)
    • 1949 – Massimo D’Alema, Italian journalist and politician, 76th Prime Minister of Italy
    • 1949 – Jessica Lange, American actress
    • 1950 – Steve Erickson, American author and critic
    • 1950 – Alexander Lebed, Russian general and politician (d. 2002)
    • 1950 – N. Chandrababu Naidu, Indian politician, 13th Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh
    • 1951 – Louise Jameson, English actress
    • 1951 – Luther Vandross, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2005)
    • 1952 – Louka Katseli, Greek economist and politician
    • 1952 – Božidar Maljković, Serbian basketball player and coach
    • 1952 – Eric Pickles, English politician, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
    • 1953 – Sebastian Faulks, English journalist and author
    • 1955 – Donald Pettit, American engineer and astronaut
    • 1956 – Beatrice Ask, Swedish politician, Swedish Minister for Justice
    • 1956 – Peter Chelsom, English film director, writer, and actor
    • 1956 – Kakha Bendukidze, Georgian economist and politician
    • 1956 – Georgie Glen, Scottish actress
    • 1958 – Viacheslav Fetisov, Russian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1959 – Perry Haddock, Australian rugby league player
    • 1960 – Debbie Flintoff-King, Australian hurdler and coach
    • 1961 – Don Mattingly, American baseball player, coach, and manager
    • 1961 – Konstantin Lavronenko, Russian actor
    • 1961 – Nicholas Lyndhurst, English actor
    • 1961 – Paul Usher, English actor
    • 1963 – Maurício Gugelmin, Brazilian race car driver
    • 1963 – Rachel Whiteread, English sculptor
    • 1964 – Crispin Glover, American actor
    • 1964 – Andy Serkis, English actor and director
    • 1964 – Rosalynn Sumners, American figure skater
    • 1965 – Kostis Chatzidakis, Greek politician, Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism
    • 1965 – Léa Fazer, Swiss film director, screenwriter and actress
    • 1965 – Adrián Fernández, Mexican race car driver
    • 1965 – Rebecca Lacey, English actress
    • 1966 – David Chalmers, Australian philosopher and academic
    • 1966 – David Filo, American businessman, co-founded Yahoo!
    • 1966 – Vincent Riendeau, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1967 – Mike Portnoy, American drummer and songwriter
    • 1967 – Raymond van Barneveld, Dutch darts player
    • 1968 – Julia Morris, Australian entertainer
    • 1968 – Yelena Välbe, Russian skier and manager
    • 1968 – Roman Virastyuk, Ukrainian shot putter
    • 1969 – Felix Baumgartner, Austrian skydiver and BASE jumper
    • 1969 – Will Hodgman, Australian politician, 45th Premier of Tasmania
    • 1970 – Sarantuya, Mongolian soprano
    • 1970 – Avishai Cohen, Israeli singer-songwriter and bassist
    • 1970 – Shemar Moore, American actor
    • 1971 – Carla Geurts, Dutch swimmer, physiologist, and academic
    • 1971 – Allan Houston, American basketball player and manager
    • 1971 – Nikos Kyzeridis, Greek footballer
    • 1972 – Lê Huỳnh Đức, Vietnamese footballer, coach, and manager
    • 1972 – Carmen Electra, American model and actress
    • 1972 – Željko Joksimović, Serbian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1972 – Stephen Marley, American singer, guitarist, and producer
    • 1972 – Julia Peng, Taiwanese singer
    • 1973 – Isabel dos Santos, Angolan businesswoman and first African woman billionaire
    • 1973 – Lamond Murray, American basketball player
    • 1974 – Adrian Ilie, Romanian footballer
    • 1974 – Julie Fernandez, English actress and model
    • 1974 – Urmas Paet, Estonian journalist and politician, 26th Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs
    • 1975 – Killer Mike, American rapper and activist
    • 1976 – Aldo Bobadilla, Paraguayan footballer
    • 1976 – Shay Given, Irish footballer and manager
    • 1976 – Chris Mason, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1976 – Ismail Rasheed, Maldivian actor
    • 1976 – Georgina Rylance, English actress
    • 1979 – Stian Barsnes-Simonsen, Norwegian actor and television host
    • 1979 – Ludovic Magnin, Swiss footballer and coach
    • 1979 – Nate Marquardt, American mixed martial artist
    • 1980 – Gunta Baško, Latvian basketball player
    • 1980 – Sunaina Sunaina, Indian weightlifter
    • 1980 – Jasmin Wagner, German singer and actress
    • 1982 – Jacqueline Govaert, Dutch singer-songwriter and pianist
    • 1982 – Dario Knežević, Croatian footballer
    • 1983 – Danny Granger, American basketball player
    • 1983 – Miranda Kerr, Australian model
    • 1983 – Joanne King, Irish actress
    • 1984 – Nelson Évora, Ivorian-Portuguese triple jumper
    • 1984 – Bárbara Lennie, Spanish actress
    • 1984 – Edixon Perea, Colombian footballer
    • 1984 – Jenna Shoemaker, American triathlete
    • 1985 – Curt Hawkins, American wrestler
    • 1985 – Brent Seabrook, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1987 – Chun Woo-hee, South Korean actress
    • 1988 – Brandon Belt, American baseball player
    • 1989 – Cally-Jo, English fine artist and tattoo artist
    • 1989 – Nina Davuluri, Miss America 2014
    • 1989 – Carlos Valdes, Colombian-American actor and singer
    • 1990 – Luhan, Chinese singer and actor
    • 1990 – Abby Mavers, English actress
    • 1992 – Kristian Álvarez, Mexican footballer
    • 1992 – Marko Meerits, Estonian footballer
    • 1995 – Damian McKenzie, New Zealand rugby union player
    • 1995 – Jean Marie Dongou, Cameroonian footballer
    • 1997 – Alexander “Sascha” Zverev, German tennis player
    • 1998 – Zachary Claman DeMelo, Canadian racing driver

    Deaths on April 20

    • 689 – Cædwalla, king of Wessex (b. 659)
    • 767 – Taichō, Japanese monk (b. 682)
    • 888 – Xi Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 862)
    • 1099 – Peter Bartholomew (b. 1061)
    • 1164 – Antipope Victor IV
    • 1176 – Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, English-Irish politician, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland (b. 1130)
    • 1248 – Güyük Khan, Mongol ruler, 3rd Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (b. 1206)
    • 1284 – Hōjō Tokimune, regent of Japan (b. 1251)
    • 1314 – Pope Clement V (b. 1264)
    • 1322 – Simon Rinalducci, Italian Augustinian friar
    • 1521 – Zhengde, Chinese emperor (b. 1491)
    • 1534 – Elizabeth Barton, English nun and martyr (b. 1506)
    • 1558 – Johannes Bugenhagen, German priest and theologian (b. 1485)
    • 1643 – Christoph Demantius, German composer and poet (b. 1567)
    • 1703 – Lancelot Addison, English clergyman and educator (b. 1632)
    • 1769 – Chief Pontiac, American tribal leader (b. 1720)
    • 1831 – John Abernethy, English surgeon and anatomist (b. 1764)
    • 1873 – William Tite, English architect, designed the Royal Exchange (b. 1798)
    • 1874 – Alexander H. Bailey, American lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1817)
    • 1881 – William Burges, English architect and designer (b. 1827)
    • 1886 – Charles-François-Frédéric, marquis de Montholon-Sémonville, French general and diplomat, French ambassador to the United States (b. 1814)
    • 1887 – Muhammad Sharif Pasha, Greek-Egyptian politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Egypt (b. 1826)
    • 1899 – Joseph Wolf, German ornithologist and illustrator (b. 1820)
    • 1902 – Joaquim de Sousa Andrade, Brazilian poet and educator (b. 1833)
    • 1912 – Bram Stoker, Anglo-Irish novelist and critic, created Count Dracula (b. 1847)
    • 1918 – Karl Ferdinand Braun, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1850)
    • 1927 – Enrique Simonet, Spanish painter and educator (b. 1866)
    • 1929 – Prince Henry of Prussia (b. 1862)
    • 1931 – Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon, 5th Baronet, Scottish-English fencer and businessman (b. 1862)
    • 1932 – Giuseppe Peano, Italian mathematician and philosopher (b. 1858)
    • 1935 – John Cameron, Scottish footballer and manager (b. 1872)
    • 1935 – Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon, English fashion designer (b. 1863)
    • 1942 – Jüri Jaakson, Estonian businessman and politician, 6th State Elder of Estonia (b. 1870)
    • 1944 – Elmer Gedeon, American baseball player and pilot (b. 1917)
    • 1945 – Erwin Bumke, Polish-German jurist and politician (b. 1874)
    • 1946 – Mae Busch, Australian actress (b. 1891)
    • 1947 – Christian X of Denmark (b. 1870)
    • 1951 – Ivanoe Bonomi, Italian politician, 25th Prime Minister of Italy (b. 1873)
    • 1961 – Ado Vabbe, Estonian painter (b. 1892)
    • 1967 – Léo-Paul Desrosiers, Canadian journalist and author (b. 1896)
    • 1968 – Rudolph Dirks, German-American illustrator (b. 1877)
    • 1969 – Vjekoslav Luburić, Croatian Ustaše official and concentration camp administrator (b. 1914)
    • 1980 – M. Canagaratnam, Sri Lankan politician (b. 1924)
    • 1982 – Archibald MacLeish, American poet, playwright, and lawyer (b. 1892)
    • 1986 – Sibte Hassan, Pakistani journalist, scholar, and activist (b. 1916)
    • 1991 – Steve Marriott, English singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1947)
    • 1991 – Don Siegel, American director and producer (b. 1912)
    • 1992 – Marjorie Gestring, American springboard diver (b. 1922)
    • 1992 – Benny Hill, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1924)
    • 1993 – Cantinflas, Mexican actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1911)
    • 1995 – Milovan Đilas, Yugoslav communist, politician, theorist and author (b. 1911)
    • 1996 – Trần Văn Trà, Vietnamese general and politician (b. 1918)
    • 1999 – Casualties of the Columbine High School massacre:
      • Cassie Bernall, American student (b. 1981)
      • Eric Harris, American student and murderer (b. 1981)
      • Dylan Klebold, American student and murderer (b. 1981)
      • Rachel Scott, American student, inspired the Rachel’s Challenge (b. 1981)
    • 1999 – Rick Rude, American wrestler (b. 1958)
    • 2001 – Giuseppe Sinopoli, Italian conductor and composer (b. 1946)
    • 2002 – Alan Dale, American singer (b. 1925)
    • 2003 – Daijiro Kato, Japanese motorcycle racer (b. 1976)
    • 2003 – Bernard Katz, German-English biophysicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
    • 2004 – Lizzy Mercier Descloux, French musician, singer-songwriter, composer, actress, writer and painter (b. 1956)
    • 2005 – Fumio Niwa, Japanese journalist and author (b. 1904)
    • 2007 – Andrew Hill, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1931)
    • 2007 – Michael Fu Tieshan, Chinese bishop (b. 1931)
    • 2008 – Monica Lovinescu, Romanian journalist and author (b. 1923)
    • 2010 – Dorothy Height, American educator and activist (b. 1912)
    • 2011 – Tim Hetherington, English photographer and journalist (b. 1970)
    • 2012 – Bert Weedon, English guitarist and songwriter (b. 1920)
    • 2014 – Mithat Bayrak, Turkish wrestler and trainer (b. 1929)
    • 2014 – Rubin Carter, American-Canadian boxer (b. 1937)
    • 2014 – Neville Wran, Australian lawyer and politician, 35th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1926)
    • 2016 – Victoria Wood, British comedian, actress and writer (b. 1953)
    • 2017 – Cuba Gooding Sr., American singer and actor (b. 1944)
    • 2018 – Avicii, Swedish DJ, and musician (b. 1989)
    • 2019 – Jacqueline Saburido, Venezuelan activist (b. 1978)

    Holidays and observances on April 20

    • 420 (cannabis culture) (International)
    • Christian feast day:
      • Agnes of Montepulciano
      • Beuno
      • Hugh of Anzy le Duc
      • Johannes Bugenhagen (Lutheran)
      • Marcellinus of Gaul (Embrun)
      • Blessed Oda of Brabant
      • Pope Anicetus
      • Theotimos
      • April 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • UN Chinese Language Day (United Nations)