363 – Emperor Julian marches back up the Tigris and burns his fleet of supply ships. During the withdrawal, Roman forces suffer several attacks from the Persians.
632 – Yazdegerd III ascends the throne as king (shah) of the Persian Empire. He becomes the last ruler of the Sasanian dynasty (modern Iran).
1407 – Ming–Hồ War: Retired King Hồ Quý Ly and his son King Hồ Hán Thương of Hồ dynasty are captured by the Ming armies.
1487 – Battle of Stoke Field: King Henry VII of England defeats the leaders of a Yorkist rebellion in the final engagement of the Wars of the Roses.
1586 – Mary, Queen of Scots, recognizes Philip II of Spain as her heir and successor.
1745 – War of the Austrian Succession: New England colonial troops under the command of William Pepperrell capture the Fortress of Louisbourg in Louisbourg, New France (Old Style date).
1746 – War of the Austrian Succession: Austria and Sardinia defeat a Franco-Spanish army at the Battle of Piacenza.
1755 – French and Indian War: The French surrender Fort Beauséjour to the British, leading to the expulsion of the Acadians.
1779 – Spain declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Great Siege of Gibraltar begins.
1795 – French Revolutionary Wars: In what became known as Cornwallis’s Retreat, a British Royal Navy squadron led by Vice Admiral William Cornwallis strongly resists a much larger French Navy force and withdraws largely intact, setting up the French Navy defeat at the Battle of Groix six days later.
1811 – Survivors of an attack the previous day by Tla-o-qui-aht on board the Pacific Fur Company’s ship Tonquin, intentionally detonate a powder magazine on the ship, destroying it and killing about 100 attackers.
1815 – Battle of Ligny and Battle of Quatre Bras, two days before the Battle of Waterloo.
1819 – A major earthquake strikes the Kutch district of western India, killing over 1,543 people and raising a 6 m high, 6 km wide, ridge, extending for at least 80 km, that was known as the Allah Bund (“Dam of God”).
1836 – The formation of the London Working Men’s Association gives rise to the Chartist Movement.
1846 – The Papal conclave of 1846 elects Pope Pius IX, beginning the longest reign in the history of the papacy.
1858 – Abraham Lincoln delivers his House Divided speech in Springfield, Illinois.
1871 – The Universities Tests Act 1871 allows students to enter the universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Durham without religious tests (except for those intending to study theology).
1883 – The Victoria Hall theatre panic in Sunderland, England, kills 183 children.
1884 – The first purpose-built roller coaster, LaMarcus Adna Thompson’s “Switchback Railway”, opens in New York’s Coney Island amusement park.
1897 – A treaty annexing the Republic of Hawaii to the United States is signed; the Republic would not be dissolved until a year later.
1903 – The Ford Motor Company is incorporated.
1903 – Roald Amundsen leaves Oslo, Norway, to commence the first east-west navigation of the Northwest Passage.
1904 – Eugen Schauman assassinates Nikolay Bobrikov, Governor-General of Finland.
1904 – Irish author James Joyce begins a relationship with Nora Barnacle and subsequently uses the date to set the actions for his novel Ulysses; this date is now traditionally called “Bloomsday”.
1911 – IBM founded as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company in Endicott, New York.
1922 – General election in the Irish Free State: The pro-Treaty Sinn Féin party wins a large majority.
1925 – The most famous Young Pioneer camp of the Soviet Union, Artek, is established.
1930 – Sovnarkom establishes decree time in the USSR.
1933 – The National Industrial Recovery Act is passed in the United States, allowing businesses to avoid antitrust prosecution if they establish voluntary wage, price, and working condition regulations on an industry-wide basis.
1940 – World War II: Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain becomes Chief of State of Vichy France (Chef de l’État Français).
1940 – A Communist government is installed in Lithuania.
1944 – In a gross miscarriage of justice, George Junius Stinney Jr., age 14, becomes the youngest person executed in the United States in the 20th century after being convicted in a two-hour trial for the rape and murder of two teenage white girls.
1948 – Members of the Malayan Communist Party kill three British plantation managers in Sungai Siput; in response, British Malaya declares a state of emergency.
1955 – In a futile effort to topple Argentine President Juan Perón, rogue aircraft pilots of the Argentine Navy drop several bombs upon an unarmed crowd demonstrating in favor of Perón in Buenos Aires, killing 364 and injuring at least 800. At the same time on the ground, some soldiers attempt to stage a coup but are suppressed by loyal forces.
1958 – Imre Nagy, Pál Maléter and other leaders of the 1956 Hungarian Uprising are executed.
1961 – While on tour with the Kirov Ballet in Paris, Rudolf Nureyev defects from the Soviet Union.
1963 – Soviet Space Program: Vostok 6 mission: Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova becomes the first woman in space.
1972 – The largest single-site hydroelectric power project in Canada is inaugurated at Churchill Falls Generating Station.
1976 – Soweto uprising: A non-violent march by 15,000 students in Soweto, South Africa, turns into days of rioting when police open fire on the crowd.
1977 – Oracle Corporation is incorporated in Redwood Shores, California, as Software Development Laboratories (SDL), by Larry Ellison, Bob Miner and Ed Oates.
1981 – US President Ronald Reagan awards the Congressional Gold Medal to Ken Taylor, Canada’s former ambassador to Iran, for helping six Americans escape from Iran during the hostage crisis of 1979–81; he is the first foreign citizen bestowed the honor.
1989 – Revolutions of 1989: Imre Nagy, the former Hungarian prime minister, is reburied in Budapest following the collapse of Communism in Hungary.
1997 – Fifty people are killed in the Daïat Labguer (M’sila) massacre in Algeria.
2000 – The Secretary-General of the UN reports that Israel has complied with United Nations Security Council Resolution 425, 22 years after its issuance, and completely withdrew from Lebanon. The Resolution does not encompass the Shebaa farms, which is claimed by Israel, Syria and Lebanon.
2010 – Bhutan becomes the first country to institute a total ban on tobacco.
2012 – China successfully launches its Shenzhou 9 spacecraft, carrying three astronauts, including the first female Chinese astronaut Liu Yang, to the Tiangong-1 orbital module.
2012 – The United States Air Force’s robotic Boeing X-37B spaceplane returns to Earth after a classified 469-day orbital mission
2013 – A multi-day cloudburst, centered on the North Indian state of Uttarakhand, causes devastating floods and landslides, becoming the country’s worst natural disaster since the 2004 tsunami.
2016 – Shanghai Disneyland Park, the first Disney Park in Mainland China, opens to the public.
2019 – Upwards of 2,000,000 people participate in the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, the largest in Hong Kong’s history.
Births on June 16
1139 – Emperor Konoe of Japan (d. 1155)
1332 – Isabella de Coucy, English daughter of Edward III of England (d. 1379)
1454 – Joanna of Aragon, Queen of Naples (d. 1517)
1514 – John Cheke, English academic and politician, English Secretary of State (d. 1557)
1516 – Yang Jisheng, Ming dynasty official and Confucian martyr (d. 1555)
1583 – Axel Oxenstierna, Swedish politician, Lord High Chancellor of Sweden (d. 1654)
1591 – Joseph Solomon Delmedigo, Greek-Italian physician, mathematician, and theorist (d. 1655)
1606 – Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, Irish soldier and politician (d. 1675)
1613 – John Cleveland, English poet and educator (d. 1658)
1625 – Samuel Chappuzeau, French scholar (d. 1701)
1633 – Jean de Thévenot, French linguist and botanist (d. 1667)
1644 – Henrietta Anne Stuart, Princess of Scotland, England and Ireland (d. 1670)
1653 – James Bertie, 1st Earl of Abingdon, English nobleman (d. 1699)
1713 – Meshech Weare, American farmer, lawyer, and politician, 1st Governor of New Hampshire (d. 1786)
1723 – Adam Smith, Scottish philosopher and economist (d. 1790)
1738 – Mary Katherine Goddard, American publisher (d. 1816)
1754 – Salawat Yulayev, Russian poet (d. 1800)
1792 – John Linnell, English painter and engraver (d. 1882)
1801 – Julius Plücker, German mathematician and physicist (d. 1868)
1806 – Edward Davy, English physician and chemist (d. 1885)
1813 – Otto Jahn, German archaeologist and philologist (d. 1869)
1820 – Athanase Josué Coquerel, Dutch-French preacher and theologian (d. 1875)
1821 – Old Tom Morris, Scottish golfer and architect (d. 1908)
1826 – Constantin von Ettingshausen, Austrian geologist and botanist (d. 1897)
1829 – Geronimo, American tribal leader (d. 1909)
1836 – Wesley Merritt, American general and politician, Military Governor of the Philippines (d. 1910)
1837 – Ernst Laas, German philosopher and academic (d. 1885)
1838 – Frederic Archer, English organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1901)
1838 – Cushman Kellogg Davis, American lieutenant and politician, 7th Governor of Minnesota (d. 1900)
1840 – Ernst Otto Schlick, German engineer and author (d. 1913)
1850 – Max Delbrück, German chemist and academic (d. 1919)
1857 – Arthur Arz von Straußenburg, Austrian-Hungarian general (d. 1935)
1858 – Gustaf V of Sweden (d. 1950)
1863 – Francisco León de la Barra, Mexican politician and diplomat (d. 1939)
1866 – Germanos Karavangelis, Greek-Austrian metropolitan (d. 1935)
1874 – Arthur Meighen, Canadian lawyer and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1960)
1880 – Otto Eisenschiml, Austrian-American chemist and author (d. 1963)
1882 – Mohammad Mosaddegh, Iranian educator and politician, 60th Prime Minister of Iran (d. 1967)
1885 – Erich Jacoby, Estonian-Polish architect (d. 1941)
1888 – Alexander Friedmann, Russian physicist and mathematician (d. 1925)
1888 – Peter Stoner, American mathematician and astronomer (d. 1980)
1890 – Stan Laurel, English actor and comedian (d. 1965)
1896 – Murray Leinster, American author and screenwriter (d. 1976)
1897 – Georg Wittig, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1987)
1899 – Helen Traubel, American operatic soprano (d. 1972)
1902 – Barbara McClintock, American geneticist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1992)
1902 – George Gaylord Simpson, American paleontologist and author (d. 1984)
1906 – Alan Fairfax, Australian cricketer (d. 1955)
1907 – Jack Albertson, American actor (d. 1981)
1909 – Archie Carr, American ecologist and zoologist (d. 1987)
1910 – Juan Velasco Alvarado, Peruvian general and politician, 1st President of Peru (d. 1977)
1912 – Albert Chartier, Canadian illustrator (d. 2004)
1912 – Enoch Powell, English soldier and politician, Secretary of State for Health (d. 1998)
1914 – Eleanor Sokoloff, American pianist and teacher
1915 – John Tukey, American mathematician and academic (d. 2000)
1915 – Marga Faulstich, German glass chemist (d. 1998)
1917 – Phaedon Gizikis, Greek general and politician, President of Greece (d. 1999)
1917 – Katharine Graham, American publisher (d. 2001)
1917 – Aurelio Lampredi, Italian automobile and aircraft engine designer (d. 1989)
1917 – Irving Penn, American photographer (d. 2009)
1920 – Isabelle Holland, Swiss-American author (d. 2002)
1920 – Raymond Lemieux, Canadian chemist and academic (d. 2002)
1920 – José López Portillo, Mexican lawyer and politician, 31st President of Mexico (d. 2004)
1920 – Hemanta Mukharjee, Indian singer and music director
1922 – Ilmar Kullam, Estonian basketball player and coach (d. 2011)
1923 – Ron Flockhart, Scottish race car driver (d. 1962)
1924 – Faith Domergue, American actress (d. 1999)
1925 – Jean d’Ormesson, French journalist and author (d. 2017)
1925 – Otto Muehl, Austrian-Portuguese painter and director (d. 2013)
1926 – Efraín Ríos Montt, Guatemalan general and politician, 26th President of Guatemala (d. 2018)
1927 – Tom Graveney, English cricketer and sportscaster (d. 2015)
1927 – Herbert Lichtenfeld, German author and screenwriter (d. 2001)
1927 – Ariano Suassuna, Brazilian author and playwright (d. 2014)
1929 – Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait
1930 – Vilmos Zsigmond, Hungarian-American cinematographer and producer (d. 2016)
1934 – Eileen Atkins, English actress and screenwriter
1934 – Roger Neilson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2003)
1935 – Jim Dine, American painter and illustrator
1937 – Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Bulgarian politician, 48th Prime Minister of Bulgaria
1937 – Erich Segal, American author and screenwriter (d. 2010)
1938 – Thomas Boyd-Carpenter, English general
1938 – Torgny Lindgren, Swedish author and poet (d. 2017)
1938 – Joyce Carol Oates, American novelist, short story writer, critic, and poet
1939 – Billy “Crash” Craddock, American singer-songwriter
1940 – Māris Čaklais, Latvian poet, writer, and journalist (d. 2003)
1940 – Neil Goldschmidt, American lawyer and politician, 33rd Governor of Oregon
1941 – Rosalind Baker, Australian author
1941 – Lamont Dozier, American songwriter and producer
1941 – Tommy Horton, English golfer (d. 2017)
1941 – Mumtaz Hamid Rao, Pakistani journalist (d. 2011)
1942 – Giacomo Agostini, Italian motorcycle racer and manager
1942 – Eddie Levert, American R&B/soul singer-songwriter, musician, and actor
1944 – Henri Richelet, French painter and etcher
1945 – Claire Alexander, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1945 – Lucienne Robillard, Canadian social worker and politician, 59th Secretary of State for Canada
1946 – Rick Adelman, American basketball player and coach
1946 – John Astor, 3rd Baron Astor of Hever, English businessman and politician
1946 – Karen Dunnell, English statistician and academic
1946 – Tom Harrell, American trumpet player and composer
1946 – Neil MacGregor, Scottish historian and curator
1946 – Iain Matthews, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1946 – Jodi Rell, American politician, 87th Governor of Connecticut
1946 – Mark Ritts, American actor, puppeteer, and producer (d. 2009)
1946 – Derek Sanderson, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1946 – Simon Williams, English actor and playwright
1947 – Tom Malone, American trombonist, composer, and producer
1947 – Buddy Roberts, American wrestler (d. 2012)
1947 – Al Cowlings, American ex-NFL player and close friend of O.J. Simpson and Nicole Brown Simpson
1947 – Tom Wyner, English-American voice actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1948 – Ron LeFlore, American baseball player and manager
1949 – Paulo Cézar Caju, Brazilian footballer
1949 – Ralph Mann, American hurdler and author
1950 – Mithun Chakraborty, Indian actor and politician
1950 – Michel Clair, Canadian lawyer and politician
1950 – Jerry Petrowski, American politician and farmer
1951 – Charlie Dominici, American singer and guitarist
1951 – Roberto Durán, Panamanian boxer
1952 – George Papandreou, Greek sociologist and politician, 182nd Prime Minister of Greece
1952 – Gino Vannelli, Canadian singer-songwriter
1953 – Valerie Mahaffey, American actress
1953 – Ian Mosley, English drummer
1954 – Matthew Saad Muhammad, American boxer and trainer (d. 2014)
1954 – Garry Roberts, Irish guitarist
1955 – Grete Faremo, Norwegian politician, Norwegian Minister of Defence
1955 – Laurie Metcalf, American actress
1955 – Artemy Troitsky, Russian journalist and critic
1957 – Ian Buchanan, Scottish-American actor
1957 – Leeona Dorrian, Lady Dorrian, Scottish lawyer and judge
1958 – Darrell Griffith, American basketball player
1958 – Ulrike Tauber, German swimmer
1958 – Warren Rodwell, Australian soldier, educator and musician
1959 – The Ultimate Warrior, American wrestler (d. 2014)
1960 – Peter Sterling, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster
1961 – Can Dündar, Turkish journalist and author
1961 – Robbie Kerr, Australian cricketer
1961 – Steve Larmer, Canadian ice hockey player
1961 – Margus Metstak, Estonian basketball player and coach
1962 – Wally Joyner, American baseball player and coach
1962 – Arnold Vosloo, South African-American actor
1962 – Anthony Wong, Hong Kong singer
1963 – The Sandman, American wrestler
1964 – Danny Burstein, American actor and singer
1965 – Michael Richard Lynch, Irish computer scientist and entrepreneur; co-founded HP Autonomy
1965 – Richard Madaleno, American politician
1966 – Mark Occhilupo, Australian surfer
1966 – Olivier Roumat, French rugby player
1966 – Phil Vischer, American voice actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, co-created VeggieTales
1966 – Jan Železný, Czech javelin thrower and coach
1967 – Charalambos Andreou, Cypriot footballer
1967 – Jürgen Klopp, German footballer and manager
1968 – Adam Schmitt, American singer-songwriter, musician, and producer
1969 – Shami Chakrabarti, English lawyer and academic
1969 – Mark Crossley, English-Welsh footballer and manager
1970 – Younus AlGohar, Pakistani poet and academic, co-founded Messiah Foundation International
1970 – Clifton Collins Jr., American actor
1970 – Cobi Jones, American soccer player and manager
1970 – Phil Mickelson, American golfer
1971 – Tupac Shakur, American rapper and producer (d. 1996)
1972 – Kiko Loureiro, Brazilian guitarist
1973 – Eddie Cibrian, American actor
1974 – Glenicia James, Saint Lucian cricketer
1975 – Anthony Carter, American basketball player and coach
1977 – Craig Fitzgibbon, Australian rugby league player and coach
1977 – Duncan Hames, English accountant and politician
1977 – Kerry Wood, American baseball player
1978 – Daniel Brühl, Spanish-German actor
1978 – Dainius Zubrus, Lithuanian ice hockey player
1978 – Fish Leong, Malaysian singer
1980 – Brandon Armstrong, American basketball player
1980 – Phil Christophers, German-English rugby player
1980 – Henry Perenara, New Zealand rugby league player and referee
1980 – Martin Stranzl, Austrian footballer
1980 – Joey Yung, Hong Kong singer
1981 – Benjamin Becker, German tennis player
1981 – Kevin Bieksa, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Alexandre Giroux, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Ola Kvernberg, Norwegian violinist
1981 – Miguel Villalta, Peruvian footballer
1982 – May Andersen, Danish model and actress
1982 – Missy Peregrym, Canadian model and actress
1983 – Armend Dallku, Albanian footballer
1984 – Rick Nash, Canadian ice hockey player
1984 – Dan Ryckert, American writer and entertainer
1984 – Steven Whittaker, Scottish footballer
1986 – Rodrigo Defendi, Brazilian footballer
1986 – Urby Emanuelson, Dutch footballer
1986 – Fernando Muslera, Uruguayan footballer
1987 – Diana DeGarmo, American singer-songwriter and actress
1987 – Per Ciljan Skjelbred, Norwegian footballer
1987 – Christian Tshimanga Kabeya, Belgian footballer
1988 – Keshia Chante, Canadian singer
1988 – Jermaine Gresham, American football player
1990 – John Newman, English musician, singer, songwriter and record producer
1991 – Joe McElderry, English singer-songwriter
1991 – Siya Kolisi, South African rugby player
1991 – Matt Moylan, Australian rugby league player
1992 – Vladimir Morozov, Russian swimmer
1993 – Park Bo-gum, South Korean actor
1993 – Gnash, American singer, songwriter, rapper, DJ and record producer
1994 – Grete-Lilijane Küppas, Estonian footballer
1994 – Rezar, Albanian professional wrestler
1995 – Euan Aitken, Australian rugby league player
1995 – Joseph Schooling, Singaporean swimmer
1995 – Akira Ioane, New Zealand rugby Union player
2000 – Bianca Andreescu, Canadian tennis player
Deaths on June 16
840 – Rorgon I, Frankish nobleman (or 839)
924 – Li Cunshen, general of Later Tang (b. 862)
956 – Hugh the Great, Frankish nobleman (b. 898)
1185 – Richeza of Poland, queen of León (b. c. 1140)
1286 – Hugh de Balsham, English bishop
1332 – Adam de Brome, founder of Oriel College, Oxford
1361 – Johannes Tauler, German mystic theologian
1397 – Philip of Artois, Count of Eu, French soldier (b. 1358)
1424 – Johannes Ambundii, archbishop of Riga
1468 – Jean Le Fèvre de Saint-Remy, Burgundian historian and author (b. 1395)
1487 – John de la Pole, 1st Earl of Lincoln (b. c. 1463)
1540 – Konrad von Thüngen, German nobleman (b. c. 1466)
1622 – Alexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline, Scottish lawyer, judge, and politician, Lord Chancellor of Scotland (b. 1555)
1626 – Christian, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Wolfenbüttel, German Protestant military leader (b. 1599)
1666 – Sir Richard Fanshawe, 1st Baronet, English poet and diplomat, English Ambassador to Spain (b. 1608)
1722 – John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire (b. 1650)
1743 – Louise-Françoise de Bourbon, eldest daughter of King Louis XIV of France (b. 1673)
1752 – Joseph Butler, English bishop and philosopher (b. 1692)
1762 – Anne Russell, Countess of Jersey (formerly Duchess of Bedford) (b. c.1705)
1777 – Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset, French poet and playwright (b. 1709)
1779 – Sir Francis Bernard, 1st Baronet, English lawyer and politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (b. 1712)
1804 – Johann Adam Hiller, German composer and conductor (b. 1728)
1824 – Charles-François Lebrun, duc de Plaisance, French lawyer and politician (b. 1739)
1849 – Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette, German theologian and scholar (b. 1780)
1850 – William Lawson, English-Australian explorer and politician (b. 1774)
1858 – John Snow, English epidemiologist and physician (b. 1813)
1862 – Hidenoyama Raigorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 9th Yokozuna (b. 1808)
1869 – Charles Sturt, Indian-English botanist and explorer (b. 1795)
1872 – Norman MacLeod, Scottish minister and author (b. 1812)
1878 – Crawford Long, American surgeon and pharmacist (b. 1815)
1878 – Kikuchi Yōsai, Japanese painter (b. 1781)
1881 – Josiah Mason, English businessman and philanthropist (b. 1795)
1885 – Wilhelm Camphausen, German painter and academic (b. 1818)
1886 – Alexander Stuart, Scottish-Australian politician, 9th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1824)
1902 – Ernst Schröder, German mathematician and academic (b. 1841)
1918 – Bazil Assan, Romanian engineer and explorer (b. 1860)
1925 – Chittaranjan Das, Indian lawyer and politician (b. 1870)
1929 – Bramwell Booth, English 2nd General of The Salvation Army (b. 1856)
1929 – Vernon Louis Parrington, American historian and scholar (b. 1871)
1930 – Ezra Fitch, American lawyer and businessman, co-founded Abercrombie & Fitch (b. 1866)
1930 – Elmer Ambrose Sperry, American inventor, co-invented the gyrocompass (b. 1860)
1939 – Chick Webb, American drummer and bandleader (b. 1905)
1940 – DuBose Heyward, American author (b. 1885)
1944 – Marc Bloch, French historian and academic (b. 1886)
1945 – Aris Velouchiotis, Greek general (b. 1905)
1946 – Gordon Brewster, Irish cartoonist (b 1889)
1952 – Andrew Lawson, Scottish-American geologist and academic (b. 1861)
1953 – Margaret Bondfield, English politician, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (b. 1873)
1955 – Ozias Leduc, Canadian painter (b. 1864)
1958 – Pál Maléter, Hungarian general and politician, Minister of Defence of Hungary (b. 1917)
1958 – Imre Nagy, Hungarian politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Hungary (b. 1895)
1959 – George Reeves, American actor and director (b. 1914)
1961 – Marcel Junod, Swiss physician and anesthesiologist (b. 1904)
1967 – Reginald Denny, English actor (b. 1891)
1969 – Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, English field marshal and politician, 17th Governor General of Canada (b. 1891)
1970 – Sydney Chapman, English mathematician and geophysicist (b. 1888)
1970 – Brian Piccolo, American football player (b. 1943)
1971 – John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, Scottish broadcaster, co-founded BBC (b. 1889)
1974 – Amalie Sara Colquhoun, Australian landscape and portrait painter (b. 1894)
1977 – Wernher von Braun, German-American physicist and engineer (b. 1912)
1979 – Ignatius Kutu Acheampong, Ghanaian general and politician, 6th Head of state of Ghana (b. 1931)
1979 – Nicholas Ray, American actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1911)
1981 – Thomas Playford IV, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of South Australia (b. 1896)
1982 – James Honeyman-Scott, English guitarist and songwriter (b. 1956)
1984 – Lew Andreas, American football player and coach (b. 1895)
1984 – Erni Krusten, Estonian author and poet (b. 1900)
1986 – Maurice Duruflé, French organist and composer (b. 1902)
1987 – Marguerite de Angeli, American author and illustrator (b. 1889)
1988 – Miguel Piñero, Puerto Rican-American actor and playwright (b. 1946)
1993 – Lindsay Hassett, Australian cricketer and soldier (b. 1913)
1994 – Kristen Pfaff, American bass player and songwriter (b. 1967)
1996 – Mel Allen, American sportscaster and game show host (b. 1913)
1997 – Dal Stivens, Australian soldier and author (b. 1911)
1998 – Fred Wacker, American race car driver and engineer (b. 1918)
1999 – Screaming Lord Sutch, English singer and activist (b. 1940)
2003 – Pierre Bourgault, Canadian journalist and politician (b. 1934)
2003 – Georg Henrik von Wright, Finnish–Swedish philosopher and author (b. 1916)
2004 – Thanom Kittikachorn, Thai field marshal and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1911)
2004 – Jacques Miquelon, Canadian lawyer and judge (b. 1911)
2005 – Enrique Laguerre, Puerto Rican-American author and critic (b. 1906)
2008 – Mario Rigoni Stern, Italian soldier and author (b. 1921)
2010 – Marc Bazin, Haitian lawyer and politician, 49th President of Haiti (b. 1932)
2010 – Maureen Forrester, Canadian singer and academic (b. 1930)
2010 – Ronald Neame, English director, producer, cinematographer, and screenwriter (b. 1911)
2011 – Östen Mäkitalo, Swedish engineer and academic (b. 1938)
2012 – Nils Karlsson, Swedish skier (b. 1917)
2012 – Jorge Lankenau, Mexican banker and businessman (b. 1944)
2012 – Sławomir Petelicki, Polish general (b. 1946)
2012 – Susan Tyrrell, American actress (b. 1945)
2013 – Sam Farber, American businessman, co-founded OXO (b. 1924)
2013 – Hans Hass, Austrian biologist and diver (b. 1919)
1411 – King Charles VI granted a monopoly for the ripening of Roquefort cheese to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon as they had been doing for centuries.
1561 – The steeple of St Paul’s, the medieval cathedral of London, is destroyed in a fire caused by lightning and is never rebuilt.
1615 – Siege of Osaka: Forces under Tokugawa Ieyasu take Osaka Castle in Japan.
1745 – Battle of Hohenfriedberg: Frederick the Great’s Prussian army decisively defeated an Austrian army under Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine during the War of the Austrian Succession.
1760 – Great Upheaval: New England planters arrive to claim land in Nova Scotia, Canada, taken from the Acadians.
1783 – The Montgolfier brothers publicly demonstrate their montgolfière (hot air balloon).
1784 – Élisabeth Thible becomes the first woman to fly in an untethered hot air balloon. Her flight covers four kilometres in 45 minutes, and reached 1,500 metres altitude (estimated).
1792 – Captain George Vancouver claims Puget Sound for the Kingdom of Great Britain.
1802 – King Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia abdicates his throne in favor of his brother, Victor Emmanuel.
1812 – Following Louisiana’s admittance as a U.S. state, the Louisiana Territory is renamed the Missouri Territory.
1825 – General Lafayette, a French officer in the American Revolutionary War, speaks at what would become Lafayette Square, Buffalo, during his visit to the United States.
1855 – Major Henry C. Wayne departs New York aboard the USS Supply to procure camels to establish the U.S. Camel Corps.
1859 – Italian Independence wars: In the Battle of Magenta, the French army, under Louis-Napoleon, defeat the Austrian army.
1862 – American Civil War: Confederate troops evacuate Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River, leaving the way clear for Union troops to take Memphis, Tennessee.
1876 – An express train called the Transcontinental Express arrives in San Francisco, via the First Transcontinental Railroad only 83 hours and 39 minutes after leaving New York City.
1878 – Cyprus Convention: The Ottoman Empire cedes Cyprus to the United Kingdom but retains nominal title.
1896 – Henry Ford completes the Ford Quadricycle, his first gasoline-powered automobile, and gives it a successful test run.
1912 – Massachusetts becomes the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage.
1913 – Emily Davison, a suffragette, runs out in front of King George V’s horse at The Derby. She is trampled, never regains consciousness, and dies four days later.
1916 – World War I: Russia opens the Brusilov Offensive with an artillery barrage of Austro-Hungarian lines in Galicia.
1917 – The first Pulitzer Prizes are awarded: Laura E. Richards, Maude H. Elliott, and Florence Hall receive the first Pulitzer for biography (for Julia Ward Howe). Jean Jules Jusserand receives the first Pulitzer for history for his work With Americans of Past and Present Days. Herbert B. Swope receives the first Pulitzer for journalism for his work for the New York World.
1919 – Women’s rights: The U.S. Congress approves the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees suffrage to women, and sends it to the U.S. states for ratification.
1920 – Hungary loses 71% of its territory and 63% of its population when the Treaty of Trianon is signed in Paris.
1928 – The President of the Republic of China, Zhang Zuolin, is assassinated by Japanese agents.
1932 – Marmaduke Grove and other Chilean military officers lead a coup d’état establishing the short-lived Socialist Republic of Chile.
1939 – The Holocaust: The MS St. Louis, a ship carrying 963 Jewish refugees, is denied permission to land in Florida, in the United States, after already being turned away from Cuba. Forced to return to Europe, more than 200 of its passengers later die in Nazi concentration camps.
1940 – World War II: The Dunkirk evacuation ends: British forces complete evacuation of 338,000 troops from Dunkirk in France. To rally the morale of the country, Winston Churchill delivers, only to the House of Commons, his famous “We shall fight on the beaches” speech.
1942 – World War II: The Battle of Midway begins. The Japanese Admiral Chūichi Nagumo orders a strike on Midway Island by much of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
1943 – A military coup in Argentina ousts Ramón Castillo.
1944 – World War II: A hunter-killer group of the United States Navy captures the German submarine U-505: The first time a U.S. Navy vessel had captured an enemy vessel at sea since the 19th century.
1944 – World War II: The United States Fifth Army captures Rome, although much of the German Fourteenth Army is able to withdraw to the north.
1961 – Cold War: In the Vienna summit, the Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev sparks the Berlin Crisis by threatening to sign a separate peace treaty with East Germany and ending American, British and French access to East Berlin.
1967 – Seventy-two people are killed when a Canadair C-4 Argonaut crashes at Stockport in England.
1970 – Tonga gains independence from the United Kingdom.
1975 – The Governor of California Jerry Brown signs the California Agricultural Labor Relations Act into law, the first law in the U.S. giving farmworkers collective bargaining rights.
1979 – Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings takes power in Ghana after a military coup in which General Fred Akuffo is overthrown.
1983 – Gordon Kahl, who killed two US Marshals in Medina, North Dakota on February 13, is killed in a shootout in Smithville, Arkansas, along with a local sheriff, after a four-month manhunt.
1986 – Jonathan Pollard pleads guilty to espionage for selling top secret United States military intelligence to Israel.
1988 – Three cars on a train carrying hexogen to Kazakhstan explode in Arzamas, Gorky Oblast, USSR, killing 91 and injuring about 1,500.
1989 – Ali Khamenei is elected as the new Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran by the Assembly of Experts after the death and funeral of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
1989 – The Tiananmen Square protests are suppressed in Beijing by the People’s Liberation Army, with between 241 and 1,000 dead (an unofficial estimate).
1989 – Solidarity’s victory in the first (somewhat) free parliamentary elections in post-war Poland sparks off a succession of peaceful anti-communist revolutions in Eastern Europe, leads to the creation of the so-called Contract Sejm and begins the Autumn of Nations.
1989 – Ufa train disaster: A natural gas explosion near Ufa, Russia, kills 575 as two trains passing each other throw sparks near a leaky pipeline.
1996 – The first flight of Ariane 5 explodes after roughly 37 seconds. It was a Cluster mission.
1998 – Terry Nichols is sentenced to life in prison for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing.
2010 – Falcon 9 Flight 1 is the maiden flight of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 40.
Births on June 4
1394 – Philippa of England, Queen of Denmark, Norway and Sweden (d. 1430)
1489 – Antoine, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1544)
1563 – George Heriot, Scottish goldsmith (d. 1624)
1604 – Claudia de’ Medici, Italian daughter of Christina of Lorraine (d. 1648)
1665 – Zacharie Robutel de La Noue, Canadian captain (d. 1733)
1694 – François Quesnay, French economist and physician (d. 1774)
1704 – Benjamin Huntsman, English inventor and businessman (d. 1776)
1738 – George III of the United Kingdom (d. 1820)
1744 – Patrick Ferguson, Scottish soldier, designed the Ferguson rifle (d. 1780)
1754 – Miguel de Azcuénaga, Argentinian soldier (d. 1833)
1754 – Franz Xaver von Zach, Slovak astronomer and academic (d. 1832)
1787 – Constant Prévost, French geologist and academic (d. 1856)
1801 – James Pennethorne, English architect, designed Victoria Park (d. 1871)
1821 – Apollon Maykov, Russian poet and playwright (d. 1897)
1829 – Jinmaku Kyūgorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 12th Yokozuna (d. 1903)
1854 – Solko van den Bergh, Dutch target shooter (d. 1916)
1860 – Alexis Lapointe, Canadian runner (d. 1924)
1861 – William Propsting, Australian politician, 20th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1937)
1866 – Miina Sillanpää, Finnish journalist and politician (d. 1952)
1867 – Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, Finnish general and politician, 6th President of Finland (d. 1951)
1873 – Nictzin Dyalhis, American author (d.1942)
1877 – Heinrich Otto Wieland, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
1879 – Mabel Lucie Attwell, English author and illustrator (d. 1964)
1880 – Clara Blandick, American actress (d. 1962)
1885 – Arturo Rawson, Argentinian general and politician, 26th President of Argentina (d. 1952)
1887 – Tom Longboat, Canadian runner and soldier (d. 1949)
1889 – Beno Gutenberg, German-American seismologist (d. 1960)
1903 – Yevgeny Mravinsky, Russian conductor (d. 1988)
1904 – Bhagat Puran Singh, Indian publisher, environmentalist, and philanthropist (d. 1992)
1907 – Jacques Roumain, Haitian journalist and politician (d. 1944)
1907 – Rosalind Russell, American actress (d. 1976)
1907 – Patience Strong, English poet and journalist (d. 1990)
1910 – Christopher Cockerell, English engineer, invented the hovercraft (d. 1999)
1912 – Robert Jacobsen, Danish sculptor and painter (d. 1993)
1915 – Walter Hadlee, New Zealand cricketer (d. 2006)
1915 – Modibo Keïta, Malian educator and politician, 1st President of Mali (d. 1977)
1915 – Nils Kihlberg, Swedish actor, singer, and director (d. 1965)
1916 – Robert F. Furchgott, American biochemist and pharmacologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2009)
1916 – Fernand Leduc, Canadian painter (d. 2014)
1917 – Robert Merrill, American actor and singer (d. 2004)
1921 – Milan Komar, Slovenian-Argentinian philosopher and academic (d. 2006)
1921 – Bobby Wanzer, American basketball player and coach (d. 2016)
1923 – Elizabeth Jolley, English-Australian author and academic (d. 2007)
1923 – Masutatsu Ōyama, Japanese karateka (d. 1994)
1924 – Tofilau Eti Alesana, Samoan politician, 5th Prime Minister of Samoa (d. 1999)
1924 – Dennis Weaver, American actor and director (d. 2006)
1925 – Antonio Puchades, Spanish footballer (d. 2013)
1926 – Robert Earl Hughes, American who was the heaviest human being recorded in the history of the world during his lifetime (d. 1958)
1926 – Ain Kaalep, Estonian poet, playwright, and critic (d. 2020)
1926 – Judith Malina, German-American actress and director, co-founded The Living Theatre (d. 2015)
1927 – Henning Carlsen, Danish director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
1927 – Geoffrey Palmer, English actor
1928 – Ruth Westheimer, German-American therapist and author
1929 – Karolos Papoulias, Greek lawyer and politician, 5th President of Greece
1930 – George Chesworth, English air marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Moray (d. 2017)
1930 – Morgana King, American singer and actress (d. 2018)
1930 – Viktor Tikhonov, Russian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2014)
1931 – Gustav Nossal, Austrian-Australian biologist and academic
1932 – John Drew Barrymore, American actor (d. 2004)
1932 – Oliver Nelson, American saxophonist and composer (d. 1975)
1932 – Maurice Shadbolt, New Zealand author and playwright (d. 2004)
1934 – Monica Dacon, Vincentian educator and politician, 6th Governor-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
1934 – Daphne Sheldrick, Kenyan-British conservationist and author (d. 2018)
1935 – Colette Boky, Canadian soprano and actress
1935 – Berhanu Dinka, Ethiopian economist and diplomat (d. 2013)
1936 – Vince Camuto, American fashion designer and businessman, co-founded Nine West (d. 2015)
1936 – Bruce Dern, American actor
1937 – Freddy Fender, American singer and guitarist (d. 2006)
1937 – Mortimer Zuckerman, Canadian-American businessman and publisher, founded Boston Properties
1938 – John Harvard, Canadian journalist and politician, 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba (d. 2016)
1938 – Art Mahaffey, American baseball player
1939 – Jeremy Browne, 11th Marquess of Sligo, Anglo-Irish peer (d. 2014)
1939 – Denis de Belleval, Canadian civil servant and politician
1939 – Henri Pachard, American director and producer (d. 2008)
1939 – George Reid, Scottish journalist and politician, 2nd Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament
1940 – Ludwig Schwarz, Slovak-Austrian bishop
1941 – Kenneth G. Ross, Australian playwright and screenwriter
1942 – Louis Reichardt, American mountaineer
1942 – Bill Rowe, Canadian lawyer and politician
1943 – John Burgess, Australian radio and television host
1943 – Sandra Haynie, American golfer
1943 – Tom Jaine, English author
1944 – Roger Ball, Scottish saxophonist and songwriter
1944 – Michelle Phillips, American singer-songwriter and actress
1945 – Anthony Braxton, American saxophonist, clarinet player, and composer
1945 – Daniel Topolski, English rower and coach (d. 2015)
1945 – Gordon Waller, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2009)
1947 – Viktor Klima, Austrian businessman and politician, 25th Chancellor of Austria
1948 – Bob Champion, English jockey
1948 – Sandra Post, Canadian golfer and sportscaster
1948 – Jürgen Sparwasser, German footballer and manager
1949 – Gabriel Arcand, Canadian actor
1949 – Mark B. Cohen, American lawyer and politician
1950 – Raymond Dumais, Canadian bishop (d. 2012)
1951 – Leigh Kennedy, American author
1951 – Bronisław Malinowski, Polish runner (d. 1981)
1951 – Melanie Phillips, English journalist and author
1951 – Wendy Pini, American author and illustrator
1951 – David Yip, English actor and playwright
1952 – Bronisław Komorowski, Polish historian and politician, 5th President of Poland
1952 – Dambudzo Marechera, Zimbabwean author and poet (d. 1987)
1953 – Linda Lingle, American journalist and politician, 6th Governor of Hawaii
1953 – Jimmy McCulloch, Scottish musician and songwriter (d. 1979)
1953 – Susumu Ojima, Japanese businessman, founded Huser
1953 – Paul Samson, English guitarist and producer (d. 2002)
1954 – Raphael Ravenscroft, English saxophonist and composer (d. 2014)
1954 – Kazuhiro Yamaji, Japanese actor and voice actor
1955 – Val McDermid, Scottish author
1955 – Mary Testa, American singer and actress
1956 – Keith David, American actor
1956 – John Hockenberry, American journalist and author
1956 – Terry Kennedy, American baseball player and manager
1956 – Joyce Sidman, American author and poet
1957 – Neil McNab, Scottish footballer
1959 – Juan Camacho, Bolivian runner
1959 – Georgios Voulgarakis, Greek politician, 21st Greek Minister for Culture
1960 – Miloš Đelmaš, Serbian footballer and manager
1960 – Kristine Kathryn Rusch, American author
1960 – Paul Taylor, American guitarist and keyboard player
1960 – Bradley Walsh, English television presenter, comedian, singer and former footballer
1961 – El DeBarge, American singer-songwriter and producer
1961 – Ferenc Gyurcsány, Hungarian businessman and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Hungary
1962 – Krzysztof Hołowczyc, Polish race car driver
1962 – Zenon Jaskuła, Polish cyclist
1962 – John P. Kee, American singer-songwriter and pastor
1962 – Junius Ho, Hong Kong solicitor and politician
1963 – Sean Fitzpatrick, New Zealand rugby union player
1963 – Jim Lachey, American football player and sportscaster
1963 – Xavier McDaniel, American basketball player and coach
1964 – Sean Pertwee, English actor
1964 – Kōji Yamamura, Japanese animator, producer, and screenwriter
1965 – Mick Doohan, Australian motorcycle racer
1965 – Andrea Jaeger, American tennis player and preacher
1966 – Cecilia Bartoli, Italian soprano and actress
1966 – Vladimir Voevodsky, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 2017)
1966 – Bill Wiggin, English politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Wales
1967 – Robert S. Kimbrough, American colonel and astronaut
1968 – Roger Lim, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1968 – Niurka Montalvo, Cuban-Spanish long jumper
1968 – Al B. Sure!, American R&B singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
1968 – Scott Wolf, American actor
1969 – Horatio Sanz, Chilean-American actor and comedian
1970 – Deborah Compagnoni, Italian skier
1970 – Richie Hawtin, English-Canadian DJ and producer
1970 – Dave Pybus, English bass player and songwriter
1970 – Izabella Scorupco, Polish-Swedish actress and model
1971 – Joseph Kabila, Congolese soldier and politician, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
1971 – Mike Lee, American lawyer and politician
1971 – Shoji Meguro, Japanese director and composer
1971 – Karl Martin Sinijärv, Estonian journalist and poet
1971 – Noah Wyle, American actor and producer
1972 – Derian Hatcher, American ice hockey defenseman
1972 – Rob Huebel, American comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter
1973 – Mikey Whipwreck, American wrestler and trainer
1974 – Jacob Sahaya Kumar Aruni, Indian chef (d. 2012)
1974 – Darin Erstad, American baseball player and coach
1974 – Andrew Gwynne, English lawyer and politician
1974 – Janette Husárová, Slovak tennis player
1974 – Buddy Wakefield, American poet and author
1975 – Russell Brand, English comedian and actor
1975 – Henry Burris, American football player
1975 – Angelina Jolie, American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian, and activist
1975 – Dinanath Ramnarine, Trinidadian cricketer
1975 – Alex Wharf, English cricketer
1976 – Kasey Chambers, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1976 – Alexei Navalny, Russian lawyer and politician
1976 – Nenad Zimonjić, Serbian tennis player
1977 – Dionisis Chiotis, Greek footballer
1977 – Alex Manninger, Austrian footballer
1977 – Roman Miroshnichenko, Ukrainian guitarist and composer
1977 – Roland G. Fryer Jr., American economist and professor
1978 – Robin Lord Taylor, American actor
1979 – Naohiro Takahara, Japanese footballer
1979 – Daniel Vickerman, South African-Australian rugby player (d. 2017)
1980 – François Beauchemin, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Jennifer Carroll, Canadian swimmer
1981 – Giourkas Seitaridis, Greek footballer
1981 – Natalia Vodopyanova, Russian basketball player
1982 – Abel Kirui, Kenyan runner
1982 – Ronnie Prude, American-Canadian football player
1983 – Romaric, Ivorian footballer
1983 – Emmanuel Eboué, Ivorian footballer
1983 – Olha Saladuha, Ukrainian triple jumper
1984 – Enrico Rossi Chauvenet, Italian footballer
1984 – Rainie Yang, Taiwanese actress
1984 – Ian White, Canadian ice hockey player
1985 – Leon Botha, South African painter and DJ (d. 2011)
1985 – Anna-Lena Grönefeld, German tennis player
1985 – Evan Lysacek, American figure skater
1985 – Lukas Podolski, German footballer
1985 – Oddvar Reiakvam, Norwegian politician
1987 – Luisa Zissman, English businesswoman
1987 – Mollie King, English singer-songwriter and model
1988 – Matt Bartkowski, American ice hockey defenseman
1988 – Kimberley Busteed, Australian model
1989 – Federico Erba, Italian footballer
1989 – Paweł Fajdek, Polish hammer thrower
1990 – Zac Farro, American singer and drummer
1990 – Evan Spiegel, American Internet entrepreneur
1991 – Lorenzo Insigne, Italian footballer
1991 – Matt McIlwrick, New Zealand rugby league player
1991 – Ben Stokes, New Zealand-English cricketer
1993 – Jonathan Huberdeau, Canadian ice hockey player
1995 – Shiori Tamai, Japanese singer
1999 – Kim So-hyun, South Korean actress
2004 – Mackenzie Ziegler, American dancer, singer, actress and model
Deaths on June 4
756 – Shōmu, Japanese emperor (b. 701)
863 – Charles, archbishop of Mainz
895 – Li Xi, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty
946 – Guaimar II (Gybbosus), Lombard prince
956 – Muhammad III of Shirvan, Muslim ruler
1039 – Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 990)
1102 – Władysław I Herman, Polish nobleman (b. c. 1044)
1134 – Magnus I of Sweden (b. 1106)
1135 – Emperor Huizong of Song (b. 1082)
1206 – Adela of Champagne (b. 1140)
1246 – Isabella of Angoulême (b. 1188)
1257 – Przemysł I of Greater Poland (b. 1221)
1394 – Mary de Bohun, wife of Henry IV of England (b.c. 1368)
2013 – Walt Arfons, American race car driver (b. 1916)
2013 – Joey Covington, American drummer (b. 1945)
2013 – Hermann Gunnarsson, Icelandic footballer, handball player, and sportscaster (b. 1946)
2013 – Will Wynn, American football player (b. 1949)
2014 – George Ho, American-Hong Kong businessman (b. 1919)
2014 – Nathan Shamuyarira, Zimbabwean journalist and politician, Zimbabwean Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1928)
2014 – Sydney Templeman, Baron Templeman, English lawyer and judge (b. 1920)
2014 – Don Zimmer, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1931)
2015 – Marguerite Patten, English economist and author (b. 1915)
2015 – Leonid Plyushch, Ukrainian mathematician and academic (b. 1938)
2015 – Jabe Thomas, American race car driver (b. 1930)
2015 – Anne Warburton, British academic and diplomat, British Ambassador to Denmark (b. 1927)
2016 – Carmen Pereira, Bissau-Guinean politician (b. 1937)
2017 – Juan Goytisolo, Spanish essayist, poet and novelist (b. 1931)
Holidays and observances on June 4
Birthday of Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim & Flag Day celebration of the Finnish Defence Forces (Finland)
Christian feast day:
Filippo Smaldone
Francis Caracciolo
Optatus
Petroc of Cornwall
Quirinus of Sescia
Saturnina
June 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Emancipation Day or Independence Day, commemorates the abolition of serfdom in Tonga by King George Tupou in 1862, and the independence of Tonga from the British protectorate in 1970. (Tonga)
Flag Day (Estonia)
International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression (International)
National Unity Day (Hungary)
Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989 Memorial Day (International)
639 – Ashina Jiesheshuai and his tribesmen assaulted Emperor Taizong at Jiucheng Palace.
715 – Pope Gregory II is elected.
1051 – Henry I of France marries the Russian princess, Anne of Kiev.
1445 – John II of Castile defeats the Infantes of Aragon at the First Battle of Olmedo.
1499 – Catherine of Aragon is married by proxy to Arthur, Prince of Wales. Catherine is 13 and Arthur is 12.
1535 – French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships, 110 men, and Chief Donnacona’s two sons (whom Cartier had kidnapped during his first voyage).
1536 – Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, treason, and incest.
1542 – The Prome Kingdom falls to the Taungoo Dynasty in present-day Myanmar.
1568 – Queen Elizabeth I of England orders the arrest of Mary, Queen of Scots.
1643 – Thirty Years’ War: French forces under the duc d’Enghien decisively defeat Spanish forces at the Battle of Rocroi, marking the symbolic end of Spain as a dominant land power.
1649 – An Act of Parliament declaring England a Commonwealth is passed by the Long Parliament. England would be a republic for the next eleven years.
1655 – The Invasion of Jamaica begins during the Anglo-Spanish War.
1743 – Jean-Pierre Christin developed the centigrade temperature scale.
1749 – King George II of Great Britain grants the Ohio Company a charter of land around the forks of the Ohio River.
1776 – American Revolutionary War: A Continental Army garrison surrenders in the Battle of The Cedars.
1780 – New England’s Dark Day, an unusual darkening of the day sky, was observed over the New England states and parts of Canada.
1802 – Napoleon Bonaparte founds the Legion of Honour.
1828 – U.S. President John Quincy Adams signs the Tariff of 1828 into law, protecting wool manufacturers in the United States.
1845 – Captain Sir John Franklin and his ill-fated Arctic expedition depart from Greenhithe, England.
1848 – Mexican–American War: Mexico ratifies the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo thus ending the war and ceding California, Nevada, Utah and parts of four other modern-day U.S. states to the United States for US$15 million.
1911 – Parks Canada, the world’s first national park service, is established as the Dominion Parks Branch under the Department of the Interior.
1917 – The Norwegian football club Rosenborg BK is founded.
1919 – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk lands at Samsun on the Anatolian Black Sea coast, initiating what is later termed the Turkish War of Independence.
1921 – The United States Congress passes the Emergency Quota Act establishing national quotas on immigration.
1922 – The Young Pioneer Organization of the Soviet Union is established.
1934 – Zveno and the Bulgarian Army engineer a coup d’état and install Kimon Georgiev as the new Prime Minister of Bulgaria.
1942 – World War II: In the aftermath of the Battle of the Coral Sea, Task Force 16 heads to Pearl Harbor.
1950 – A barge containing munitions destined for Pakistan explodes in the harbor at South Amboy, New Jersey, devastating the city.
1950 – Egypt announces that the Suez Canal is closed to Israeli ships and commerce.
1959 – The North Vietnamese Army establishes Group 559, whose responsibility is to determine how to maintain supply lines to South Vietnam; the resulting route is the Ho Chi Minh trail.
1961 – Venera program: Venera 1 becomes the first man-made object to fly by another planet by passing Venus (the probe had lost contact with Earth a month earlier and did not send back any data).
1961 – At Silchar Railway Station, Assam, 11 Bengalis die when police open fire on protesters demanding state recognition of Bengali language in the Bengali Language Movement.
1962 – A birthday salute to U.S. President John F. Kennedy takes place at Madison Square Garden, New York City. The highlight is Marilyn Monroe’s rendition of “Happy Birthday”.
1963 – The New York Post Sunday Magazine publishes Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail.
1971 – Mars probe program: Mars 2 is launched by the Soviet Union.
1986 – The Firearm Owners Protection Act is signed into law by U.S. President Ronald Reagan.
1991 – Croatians vote for independence in a referendum.
1997 – The Sierra Gorda biosphere, the most ecologically diverse region in Mexico, is established as a result of grassroots efforts.
2007 – President of Romania Traian Băsescu survives an impeachment referendum and returns to office from suspension.
2010 – The Royal Thai Armed Forces concludes its crackdown on protests by forcing the surrender of United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship leaders.
2012 – Three gas cylinder bombs explode in front of a vocational school in the Italian city of Brindisi, killing one person and injuring five others.
2012 – A car bomb explodes near a military complex in the Syrian city of Deir ez-Zor, killing nine people.
2015 – The Refugio oil spill deposited 142,800 U.S. gallons (3,400 barrels) of crude oil onto an area in California considered one of the most biologically diverse coastlines of the west coast.
2016 – EgyptAir Flight 804 crashes into the Mediterranean Sea while traveling from Paris to Cairo, killing all on board.
2018 – The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is held at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, with an estimated global audience of 1.9 billion.
Births on May 19
1400 – John Stourton, 1st Baron Stourton, English soldier and politician (d. 1462)
1462 – Baccio D’Agnolo, Italian woodcarver, sculptor and architect (d. 1543)
1476 (or 1474) – Helena of Moscow, Grand Duchess consort of Lithuania and Queen consort of Poland (d. 1513)
1593 – Claude Vignon, French painter (d. 1670)
1616 – Johann Jakob Froberger, German organist and composer (d. 1667)
1639 – Charles Weston, 3rd Earl of Portland, English soldier and noble (d. 1665)
1700 – José de Escandón, 1st Count of Sierra Gorda, Spanish sergeant and politician (d. 1770)
1724 – Augustus Hervey, 3rd Earl of Bristol, English admiral and politician, Chief Secretary for Ireland (d. 1779)
1744 – Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, German-born Queen to George III of the United Kingdom (d. 1818)
1762 – Johann Gottlieb Fichte, German philosopher and academic (d. 1814)
1773 – Arthur Aikin, English chemist and mineralogist (d. 1854)
1795 – Johns Hopkins, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1873)
1827 – Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour, French academic and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1896)
1832 – James Watney, Jr., English politician, brewer and cricketer (d. 1886)
1857 – John Jacob Abel, American biochemist and pharmacologist (d. 1938)
1861 – Nellie Melba, Australian soprano and actress (d. 1931)
1871 – Walter Russell, American painter, sculptor, and author (d. 1963)
1874 – Gilbert Jessop, English cricketer and soldier (d. 1955)
1878 – Alfred Laliberté, Canadian sculptor and painter (d. 1953)
1879 – Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, American-English politician (d. 1964)
1880 – Albert Richardson, English architect and educator, designed the Manchester Opera House (d. 1964)
1881 – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (official birthday), Turkish field marshal and statesman, 1st President of Turkey (d. 1938)
1884 – David Munson, American runner (d. 1953)
1886 – Francis Biddle, American lawyer and judge, 58th United States Attorney General (d. 1968)
1887 – Ion Jalea, Romanian soldier and sculptor (d. 1983)
1889 – Tản Đà, Vietnamese poet and author (d. 1939)
1889 – Henry B. Richardson, American archer (d. 1963)
1890 – Eveline Adelheid von Maydell, German-American illustrator (d. 1962)
1890 – Ho Chi Minh, Vietnamese politician, 1st President of Vietnam (d. 1969)
1891 – Oswald Boelcke, German captain and pilot (d. 1916)
1893 – H. Bonciu, Romanian author, poet, and journalist (d. 1950)
1897 – Frank Luke, American lieutenant and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1918)
1898 – Julius Evola, Italian philosopher and painter (d. 1974)
1899 – Lothar Rădăceanu, Romanian journalist, linguist, and politician (d. 1955)
1902 – Lubka Kolessa, Ukrainian-Canadian pianist and educator (d. 1997)
1903 – Ruth Ella Moore, American scientist (d. 1994)
1906 – Bruce Bennett, American shot putter and actor (d. 2007)
1908 – Manik Bandopadhyay, Indian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1956)
1908 – Merriam Modell, American author (d. 1994)
1908 – Percy Williams, Canadian sprinter (d. 1982)
1909 – Nicholas Winton, English banker and humanitarian (d. 2015)
1910 – Alan Melville, South African cricketer (d. 1983)
1913 – Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, Indian lawyer and politician, 6th President of India (d. 1996)
1914 – Max Perutz, Austrian-English biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2002)
1914 – Alex Shibicky, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2005)
1914 – John Vachon, American photographer and journalist (d. 1975)
1915 – Renée Asherson, English actress (d. 2014)
1918 – Abraham Pais, Dutch-American physicist, historian, and academic (d. 2000)
1919 – Georgie Auld, Canadian-American saxophonist, clarinet player, and bandleader (d. 1990)
1919 – Mitja Ribičič, Italian-Slovenian soldier and politician, 25th Prime Minister of Yugoslavia (d. 2013)
1920 – Tina Strobos, Dutch psychiatrist known for rescuing Jews during World War II (d. 2012)
1921 – Leslie Broderick, English lieutenant and pilot (d. 2013)
1921 – Harry W. Brown, American colonel and pilot (d. 1991)
1921 – Daniel Gélin, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
1921 – Yuri Kochiyama, American activist (d. 2014)
1921 – Karel van het Reve, Dutch historian and author (d. 1999)
1922 – Arthur Gorrie, Australian hobby shop proprietor (d. 1992)
1924 – Sandy Wilson, English composer and songwriter (d. 2014)
1925 – Pol Pot, Cambodian general and politician, 29th Prime Minister of Cambodia (d. 1998)
1925 – Malcolm X, American minister and activist (d. 1965)
1926 – Edward Parkes, English engineer and academic (d. 2019)
1926 – Peter Zadek, German director and screenwriter (d. 2009)
1927 – Serge Lang, French-American mathematician, author and academic (d. 2005)
1928 – Colin Chapman, English engineer and businessman, founded Lotus Cars (d. 1982)
1928 – Thomas Kennedy, English air marshal (d. 2013)
1928 – Gil McDougald, American baseball player and coach (d. 2010)
1928 – Dolph Schayes, American basketball player and coach (d. 2015)
1929 – Helmut Braunlich, German-American violinist and composer (d. 2013)
1929 – Richard Larter, Australian painter (d. 2014)
1929 – John Stroger, American politician (d. 2008)
1930 – Eugene Genovese, American historian and author (d. 2012)
1930 – Lorraine Hansberry, American playwright and director (d. 1965)
1931 – Bob Anderson, English race car driver (d. 1967)
1931 – Trevor Peacock, English actor, screenwriter and songwriter
1932 – Alma Cogan, English singer (d. 1966)
1932 – Paul Erdman, American economist and author (d. 2007)
1932 – Bill Fitch, American basketball player and coach
1932 – Elena Poniatowska, Mexican intellectual and journalist
1933 – Edward de Bono, Maltese physician, author, and academic
1934 – Ruskin Bond, Indian author and poet
1934 – Jim Lehrer, American journalist and author (d. 2020)
1935 – David Hartman, American journalist and television personality
1937 – Pat Roach, English wrestler (d. 2004)
1938 – Moisés da Costa Amaral, East Timorese politician (d. 1989)
1938 – Herbie Flowers, English musician
1938 – Igor Ter-Ovanesyan, Ukrainian long jumper and coach
1939 – Livio Berruti, Italian sprinter
1939 – James Fox, English actor
1939 – Nancy Kwan, Hong Kong-American actress and makeup artist
1939 – Jānis Lūsis, Latvian javelin thrower and coach (d. 2020)
1939 – Dick Scobee, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1986)
1940 – Jan Janssen, Dutch cyclist
1940 – Mickey Newbury, American country/pop singer-songwriter (d. 2002)
1941 – Nora Ephron, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
1941 – Igor Judge, Baron Judge, Maltese-English lawyer and judge, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
1942 – Gary Kildall, American computer scientist, founded Digital Research Inc. (d. 1994)
1942 – Robert Kilroy-Silk, English television host and politician
1943 – Eddie May, English footballer and manager (d. 2012)
1943 – Shirrel Rhoades, American author, publisher, and academic
1944 – Peter Mayhew, English-American actor (d. 2019)
1945 – Pete Townshend, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1946 – Claude Lelièvre, Belgian activist
1946 – Michele Placido, Italian actor and director
1946 – André the Giant, French-American wrestler and actor (d. 1993)
1947 – Paul Brady, Irish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1947 – Christopher Chope, English lawyer and politician
1947 – David Helfgott, Australian pianist
1948 – Grace Jones, Jamaican-American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
1949 – Dusty Hill, American singer-songwriter and bass player
1949 – Philip Hunt, Baron Hunt of Kings Heath, English politician
1949 – Archie Manning, American football player
1950 – Tadeusz Ślusarski, Polish pole vaulter (d. 1998)
1951 – Joey Ramone, American singer-songwriter (d. 2001)
1951 – Dick Slater, American wrestler
1952 – Charlie Spedding, English runner
1952 – Bert van Marwijk, Dutch footballer, coach, and manager
1953 – Patrick Hodge, Lord Hodge, Scottish lawyer and judge
1953 – Shavarsh Karapetyan, Armenian finswimmer
1953 – Florin Marin, Romanian footballer and manager
1953 – Victoria Wood, English actress, singer, director, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
1954 – Rick Cerone, American baseball player and sportscaster
1954 – Hōchū Ōtsuka, Japanese voice actor
1954 – Phil Rudd, Australian-New Zealand drummer
1955 – James Gosling, Canadian-American computer scientist, created Java
1956 – Oliver Letwin, English philosopher and politician, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
1956 – Martyn Ware, English keyboard player, songwriter, and producer
1957 – Bill Laimbeer, American basketball player and coach
1957 – James Reyne, Nigerian-Australian singer-songwriter
1961 – Vadim Cojocaru, Moldovan politician
1961 – Gregory Poirier, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1961 – Wayne Van Dorp, Canadian ice hockey player
1963 – Filippo Galli, Italian footballer and manager
1964 – Peter Jackson, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster (d. 1997)
1964 – John Lee, South Korean-American football player
1964 – Miloslav Mečíř, Slovak tennis player
1965 – Maile Flanagan, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
1966 – Marc Bureau, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1966 – Jodi Picoult, American author and educator
1966 – Polly Walker, English actress
1967 – Alexia, Italian singer
1967 – Geraldine Somerville, Irish-born English actress
1968 – Kyle Eastwood, American actor and bass player
1970 – Stuart Cable, Welsh drummer (d. 2010)
1970 – K. J. Choi, South Korean golfer
1970 – Regina Narva, Estonian chess player
1970 – Nia Zulkarnaen, Indonesian actress, singer and producer
1971 – Ross Katz, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1971 – Andres Salumets, Estonian biologist, biochemist, and educator
1972 – Jenny Berggren, Swedish singer-songwriter
1972 – Claudia Karvan, Australian actress, producer, and screenwriter
1973 – Dario Franchitti, Scottish race car driver
1974 – Andrew Johns, Australian rugby league player, coach, and sportscaster
1974 – Emma Shapplin, French soprano
1974 – Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Indian actor
1975 – Pretinha, Brazilian footballer
1975 – London Fletcher, American football player
1975 – Josh Paul, American baseball player and manager
1975 – Jonas Renkse, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1976 – Ed Cota, American basketball player
1976 – Kevin Garnett, American basketball player
1977 – Manuel Almunia, Spanish footballer
1977 – Wouter Hamel, Dutch singer and guitarist
1977 – Brandon Inge, American baseball player
1977 – Natalia Oreiro, Uruguayan singer-songwriter and actress
1978 – Marcus Bent, English footballer
1978 – Dave Bus, Dutch footballer
1979 – Andrea Pirlo, Italian footballer
1979 – Diego Forlan, Uruguayan footballer
1980 – Tony Hackworth, English footballer
1981 – Luciano Figueroa, Argentinian footballer
1981 – Yo Gotti, American rapper
1981 – Michael Leighton, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Sina Schielke, German sprinter
1981 – Klaas-Erik Zwering, Dutch swimmer
1982 – Kevin Amankwaah, English footballer
1982 – Pål Steffen Andresen, Norwegian footballer
1982 – Klaas Vantornout, Belgian cyclist
1983 – Michael Che, American comedian
1983 – Jessica Fox, English actress
1984 – Marcedes Lewis, American football player
1985 – Aleister Black, Dutch professional wrestler
1986 – Mario Chalmers, American basketball player
1987 – Michael Angelakos, American singer-songwriter and producer
1987 – David Edgar, Canadian soccer player
1987 – Mariano Torres, Argentinian footballer
1987 – Jayne Wisener, Northern Irish actress
1991 – Jordan Pruitt, American singer-songwriter
1992 – Marshmello, American electronic music producer and DJ
1992 – Michele Camporese, Italian footballer
1992 – Ola John, Dutch footballer
1992 – Felise Kaufusi, New Zealand-Tongan rugby league player
1992 – Evgeny Kuznetsov, Russian ice hockey player
1992 – Sam Smith, English singer-songwriter
1994 – Carlos Guzmán, Mexican footballer
1995 – Taane Milne, New Zealand rugby league player
Deaths on May 19
804 – Alcuin, English monk and scholar (b. 735)
956 – Robert, archbishop of Trier
988 – Dunstan, English archbishop and saint (b. 909)
1102 – Stephen, Count of Blois (b. 1045)
1125 – Vladimir II Monomakh, Grand Duke of Kiev
1164 – Saint Bashnouna, Egyptian saint and martyr
1218 – Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor
1296 – Pope Celestine V (b. 1215)
1303 – Saint Ivo of Kermartin, French canon lawyer (b. 1253)
1319 – Louis, Count of Évreux (b. 1276)
1389 – Dmitry Donskoy, Grand Prince of Muscovy (b. 1350)
1396 – John I of Aragon (b. 1350)
1526 – Emperor Go-Kashiwabara of Japan (b. 1464)
1531 – Jan Łaski, Polish archbishop and diplomat (b. 1456)
1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England (1533–1536); second wife of Henry VIII of England (b. c. 1501)
1601 – Costanzo Porta, Italian composer (b. 1528)
1609 – García Hurtado de Mendoza, 5th Marquis of Cañete (b. 1535)
1610 – Thomas Sanchez, Spanish priest and theologian (b. 1550)
1623 – Mariam-uz-Zamani, Empress of the Mughal Empire (b. 1542)
1637 – Isaac Beeckman, Dutch scientist and philosopher (b. 1588)
1715 – Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax, English poet and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1661)
1786 – John Stanley, English organist and composer (b. 1712)
1795 – Josiah Bartlett, American physician and politician, 4th Governor of New Hampshire (b. 1729)
1795 – James Boswell, Scottish biographer (b. 1740)
1798 – William Byron, 5th Baron Byron, English lieutenant and politician (b. 1722)
1821 – Camille Jordan, French lawyer and politician (b. 1771)
1825 – Claude Henri de Rouvroy, comte de Saint-Simon, French philosopher and theorist (b. 1760)
1831 – Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz, Estonian-German physician, botanist, and entomologist (b. 1793)
1864 – Nathaniel Hawthorne, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1804)
1865 – Sengge Rinchen, Mongolian general (b. 1811)
1872 – John Baker, English-Australian politician, 2nd Premier of South Australia (b. 1813)
1876 – Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer, Dutch historian and politician (b. 1801)
1885 – Peter W. Barlow, English engineer (b. 1809)
1895 – José Martí, Cuban journalist, poet, and philosopher (b. 1853)
1898 – William Ewart Gladstone, English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1809)
1901 – Marthinus Wessel Pretorius, South African general and politician, 1st President of the South African Republic (b. 1819)
1903 – Arthur Shrewsbury, English cricketer (b. 1856)
1904 – Auguste Molinier, French librarian and historian (b. 1851)
1904 – Jamsetji Tata, Indian businessman, founded Tata Group (b. 1839)
1906 – Gabriel Dumont, Canadian Métis leader (b. 1837)
1907 – Benjamin Baker, English engineer, designed the Forth Bridge (b. 1840)
1912 – Bolesław Prus, Polish journalist and author (b. 1847)
1915 – John Simpson Kirkpatrick, English-Australian soldier (b. 1892)
1918 – Gervais Raoul Lufbery, French-American soldier and pilot (b. 1885)
1935 – T. E. Lawrence, British colonel and archaeologist (b. 1888)
1936 – Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall, British Islamic scholar (b. 1875)
1939 – Ahmet Ağaoğlu, Azerbaijani-Turkish journalist and publicist (b. 1869)
1943 – Kristjan Raud, Estonian painter and illustrator (b. 1865)
1945 – Philipp Bouhler, German soldier and politician (b. 1889)
1946 – Booth Tarkington, American novelist and dramatist (b. 1869)
1950 – Daniel Ciugureanu, Romanian physician and politician, Prime Minister of Moldova (b. 1884)
1954 – Charles Ives, American composer and educator (b. 1874)
1958 – Jadunath Sarkar, Indian historian (b. 1870)
1958 – Archie Scott Brown, Scottish race car driver (b. 1927)
1958 – Ronald Colman, English actor (b. 1891)
1963 – Walter Russell, American painter, sculptor, and author (b. 1871)
1969 – Coleman Hawkins, American saxophonist and clarinet player (b. 1901)
1971 – Ogden Nash, American poet (b. 1902)
1978 – Albert Kivikas, Estonian-Swedish journalist and author (b. 1898)
1980 – Joseph Schull, Canadian playwright and historian (b. 1906)
1983 – Jean Rey, Belgian lawyer and politician, 2nd President of the European Commission (b. 1902)
1984 – John Betjeman, English poet and academic (b. 1906)
1986 – Jimmy Lyons, American saxophonist (b. 1931)
1987 – James Tiptree, Jr., American psychologist and author (b. 1915)
1989 – Yiannis Papaioannou, Greek composer and educator (b. 1910)
1994 – Jacques Ellul, French sociologist, philosopher, and academic (b. 1912)
1994 – Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, American journalist, 37th First Lady of the United States (b. 1929)
1994 – Luis Ocaña, Spanish cyclist (b. 1945)
1996 – John Beradino, American baseball player and actor (b. 1917)
1998 – Sōsuke Uno, Japanese soldier and politician, 75th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1922)
2001 – Alexey Maresyev, Russian soldier and pilot (b. 1916)
2001 – Susannah McCorkle, American singer (b. 1946)
2002 – John Gorton, Australian lieutenant and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1911)
2002 – Walter Lord, American historian and author (b. 1917)
2004 – Mary Dresselhuys, Dutch actress and screenwriter (b. 1907)
2007 – Bernard Blaut, Polish footballer and coach (b. 1940)
2007 – Dean Eyre, New Zealand politician (b. 1914)
2008 – Vijay Tendulkar, Indian playwright and screenwriter (b. 1928)
2009 – Robert F. Furchgott, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
2009 – Nicholas Maw, English composer and academic (b. 1935)
2009 – Clint Smith, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1913)
2011 – Garret FitzGerald, Irish lawyer and politician, 8th Taoiseach of Ireland (b. 1926)
2011 – Jeffrey Catherine Jones, American artist (b.1944)
2012 – Bob Boozer, American basketball player (b. 1937)
2012 – Tamara Brooks, American conductor and educator (b. 1941)
2012 – Ian Burgess, English race car driver (b. 1930)
2012 – Gerhard Hetz, German-Mexican swimmer (b. 1942)
2012 – Phil Lamason, New Zealand soldier and pilot (b. 1918)
2013 – G. Sarsfield Ford, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1933)
2013 – Robin Harrison, English-Canadian pianist and composer (b. 1932)
2013 – Neil Reynolds, Canadian journalist and politician (b. 1940)
2014 – Simon Andrews, English motorcycle racer (b. 1982)
2014 – Jack Brabham, Australian race car driver (b. 1926)
2014 – Terry W. Gee, American businessman and politician (b. 1940)
2014 – Sam Greenlee, American author and poet (b. 1930)
2014 – Vincent Harding, American historian and scholar (b. 1931)
2014 – Gabriel Kolko, American historian and author (b. 1932)
2014 – Zbigniew Pietrzykowski, Polish boxer (b. 1934)
2015 – Bruce Lundvall, American businessman (b. 1935)
2015 – Ted McWhinney, Australian-Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1924)
2015 – Happy Rockefeller, American philanthropist, socialite; 31st Second Lady of the United States (b. 1926)
2015 – Robert S. Wistrich, English historian, author, and academic (b. 1945)
2016 – Alan Young, English-born Canadian-American actor (b. 1919)
2016 – Morley Safer, Canadian-born American journalist (b. 1931)
2017 – Nawshirwan Mustafa, General coordinator of the Movement for Change (Gorran) (b. 1944)
2018 – Zhengzhang Shangfang, Chinese linguist (b. 1933)
215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene.
599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in southern Mexico, defeating queen Yohl Ik’nal and sacking the city.
711 – Dagobert III succeeds his father King Childebert III as King of the Franks.
1014 – Battle of Clontarf: High King of Ireland Brian Boru defeats Viking invaders, but is killed in battle.
1016 – Edmund Ironside succeeds his father Æthelred the Unready as King of England.
1343 – St. George’s Night Uprising commences in the Duchy of Estonia.
1348 – The founding of the Order of the Garter by King Edward III is announced on St. George’s Day.
1516 – The Munich Reinheitsgebot (regarding the ingredients of beer) takes effect in all of Bavaria.
1521 – Battle of Villalar: King Charles I of Spain defeats the Comuneros.
1635 – The first public school in the United States, Boston Latin School, is founded in Boston.
1655 – The Siege of Santo Domingo begins during the Anglo-Spanish War, and fails seven days later.
1660 – Treaty of Oliva is established between Sweden and Poland.
1661 – King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland is crowned in Westminster Abbey.
1815 – The Second Serbian Uprising: A second phase of the national revolution of the Serbs against the Ottoman Empire, erupts shortly after the annexation of the country to the Ottoman Empire.
1879 – Fire burns down the second main building and dome of the University of Notre Dame, which prompts the construction of the third, and current, Main Building with its golden dome.
1914 – First baseball game at Wrigley Field, then known as Weeghman Park, in Chicago.
1918 – World War I: The British Royal Navy makes a raid in an attempt to neutralise the Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge.
1920 – The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) is founded in Ankara. The assembly denounces the government of Sultan Mehmed VI and announces the preparation of a temporary constitution.
1927 – Cardiff City defeat Arsenal in the FA Cup Final, the only time it has been won by a team not based in England.
1935 – The Polish Constitution of 1935 is adopted.
1940 – The Rhythm Club fire at a dance hall in Natchez, Mississippi, kills 198 people.
1941 – World War II: The Greek government and King George II evacuate Athens before the invading Wehrmacht.
1942 – World War II: Baedeker Blitz: German bombers hit Exeter, Bath and York in retaliation for the British raid on Lübeck.
1945 – World War II: Adolf Hitler’s designated successor, Hermann Göring, sends him a telegram asking permission to take leadership of the Third Reich. Martin Bormann and Joseph Goebbels advise Hitler that the telegram is treasonous.
1946 – Manuel Roxas is elected the last President of the Commonwealth of the Philippines.
1949 – Chinese Civil War: Establishment of the People’s Liberation Army Navy.
1951 – Cold War: American journalist William N. Oatis is arrested for espionage by the Communist government of Czechoslovakia.
1961 – Algiers putsch by French generals.
1967 – Soviet space program: Soyuz 1 (Russian: Союз 1, Union 1) a manned spaceflight carrying cosmonaut Colonel Vladimir Komarov is launched into orbit.
1968 – Vietnam War: Student protesters at Columbia University in New York City take over administration buildings and shut down the university.
1971 – Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army and Razakars massacre approximately 3,000 Hindu emigrants in the Jathibhanga area of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).
1985 – Coca-Cola changes its formula and releases New Coke. The response is overwhelmingly negative, and the original formula is back on the market in less than three months.
1990 – Namibia becomes the 160th member of the United Nations and the 50th member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
1993 – Eritreans vote overwhelmingly for independence from Ethiopia in a United Nations-monitored referendum.
1993 – Sri Lankan politician Lalith Athulathmudali is assassinated while addressing a gathering, approximately four weeks ahead of the Provincial Council elections for the Western Province.
1999 – NATO bombs the headquarters of Radio Television of Serbia, as part of their aerial campaign against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
2005 – The first ever YouTube video, titled “Me at the zoo”, was published by co-founder Jawed Karim.
2013 – At least 28 people are killed and more than 70 are injured as violence breaks out in Hawija, Iraq.
2018 – A vehicle-ramming attack kills 10 people and injures 16 in Toronto. A 25-year-old suspect, Alek Minassian, is arrested.
2019 – The 2019 Hpakant jade mine collapse in Myanmar kills four miners and two rescuers.
Births on April 23
1141 (probable) – Malcolm IV of Scotland (d. 1165)
1185 – Afonso II of Portugal (d. 1223)
1408 – John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford (d. 1462)
1420 – George of Poděbrady, King of Bohemia (d. 1471)
1464 – Joan of France, Duchess of Berry (d. 1505)
1464 – Robert Fayrfax, English Renaissance composer (d. 1521)
1484 – Julius Caesar Scaliger, Italian physician and scholar (d. 1558)
1500 – Alexander Ales, Scottish theologian and academic (d. 1565)
1500 – Johann Stumpf, Swiss writer (d. 1576)
1512 – Henry FitzAlan, 19th Earl of Arundel, Chancellor of the University of Oxford (d. 1580)
1516 – Georg Fabricius, German poet, historian, and archaeologist (d. 1571)
1598 – Maarten Tromp, Dutch admiral (d. 1653)
1621 – William Penn, English admiral and politician (d. 1670)
1628 – Johannes Hudde, Dutch mathematician and politician (d. 1704)
1661 – Issachar Berend Lehmann, German-Jewish banker, merchant and diplomat (d. 1730)
1715 – Johann Friedrich Doles, German composer and conductor (d. 1797)
1720 – Vilna Gaon, Lithuanian rabbi and author (d. 1797)
1744 – Princess Charlotte Amalie Wilhelmine of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Plön (d. 1770)
1748 – Félix Vicq-d’Azyr, French physician and anatomist (d. 1794)
1791 – James Buchanan, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 15th President of the United States (d. 1868)
1792 – Thomas Romney Robinson, Irish astronomer and physicist (d. 1882)
1794 – Wei Yuan, Chinese scholar and author (d. 1856)
1805 – Johann Karl Friedrich Rosenkranz, German philosopher and academic (d. 1879)
1812 – Frederick Whitaker, English-New Zealand lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1891)
1813 – Stephen A. Douglas, American educator and politician, 7th Illinois Secretary of State (d. 1861)
1813 – Frédéric Ozanam, Italian-French historian and scholar (d. 1853)
1818 – James Anthony Froude, English historian, novelist, biographer and editor (d. 1894)
1819 – Edward Stafford, Scottish-New Zealand educator and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1901)
1853 – Winthrop M. Crane, American businessman and politician, 40th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1920)
1856 – Granville Woods, American inventor and engineer (d. 1910)
1857 – Ruggero Leoncavallo, Italian composer (d. 1919)
1858 – Max Planck, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1947)
1860 – Justinian Oxenham, Australian public servant (d. 1932)
1861 – Edmund Allenby, 1st Viscount Allenby, English field marshal and diplomat, British High Commissioner in Egypt (d. 1936)
1861 – John Peltz, American baseball player and manager (d. 1906)
1865 – Ali-Agha Shikhlinski, Russian-Azerbaijani general (d. 1943)
1867 – Johannes Fibiger, Danish physician and pathologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1928)
1876 – Arthur Moeller van den Bruck, German historian and author (d. 1925)
1880 – Michel Fokine, Russian dancer and choreographer (d. 1942)
1882 – Albert Coates, English composer and conductor (d. 1953)
1888 – Georges Vanier, Canadian general and politician, 19th Governor General of Canada (d. 1967)
1889 – Karel Doorman, Dutch admiral (d. 1942)
1893 – Frank Borzage, American actor and director (d. 1952)
1895 – Ngaio Marsh, New Zealand author and director (d. 1982)
1897 – Folke Jansson, American general (d. 1965)
1897 – Lester B. Pearson, Canadian historian and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Canada, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1972)
1898 – Lucius D. Clay, American general (d. 1978)
1899 – Bertil Ohlin, Swedish economist and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1979)
1899 – Minoru Shirota, Japanese physician and microbiologist, invented Yakult (d. 1982)
1900 – Jim Bottomley, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1959)
1900 – Joseph Green, Polish-American actor and director (d. 1996)
1901 – E. B. Ford, English biologist and geneticist (d. 1988)
1902 – Halldór Laxness, Icelandic author and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
1903 – Guy Simonds, English-Canadian general (d. 1974)
1904 – Clifford Bricker, Canadian long-distance runner (d. 1980)
1904 – Louis Muhlstock, Polish-Canadian painter (d. 2001)
1904 – Duncan Renaldo, American actor (d. 1985)
1907 – Lee Miller, American model and photographer (d. 1977)
1907 – Fritz Wotruba, Austrian sculptor, designed the Wotruba Church (d. 1975)
1908 – Myron Waldman, American animator and director (d. 2006)
1910 – Sheila Scott Macintyre, Scottish mathematician (d. 1960)
1910 – Simone Simon, French actress (d. 2005)
1911 – Ronald Neame, English-American director, cinematographer, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2010)
1913 – Diosa Costello, Puerto Rican-American entertainer, producer and club owner (d. 2013)
1915 – Arnold Alexander Hall, English engineer, academic, and businessman (d. 2000)
1916 – Yiannis Moralis, Greek painter and educator (d. 2009)
1916 – Sinah Estelle Kelley, American chemist (d. 1982)
1917 – Dorian Leigh, American model (d. 2008)
1917 – Tony Lupien, American baseball player and coach (d. 2004)
1918 – Maurice Druon, French author and screenwriter (d. 2009)
1919 – Oleg Penkovsky, Russian colonel (d. 1963)
1920 – Eric Grant Yarrow, 3rd Baronet, English businessman (d. 2018)
1921 – Judy Agnew, Second Lady of the United States (d. 2012)
1921 – Cleto Bellucci, Italian archbishop (d. 2013)
1921 – Janet Blair, American actress and singer (d. 2007)
1921 – Warren Spahn, American baseball player and coach (d. 2003)
1923 – Dolph Briscoe, American lieutenant and politician, 41st Governor of Texas (d. 2010)
1923 – Avram Davidson, American soldier and author (d. 1993)
1924 – Chuck Harmon, American baseball player and scout (d. 2019)
1924 – Bobby Rosengarden, American drummer and bandleader (d. 2007)
1926 – J.P. Donleavy, American-Irish novelist and playwright (d. 2017)
1926 – Rifaat el-Mahgoub, Egyptian politician (d. 1990)
1928 – Shirley Temple, American actress, singer, dancer, and diplomat (d. 2014)
1929 – George Steiner, French-American philosopher, author, and critic (d. 2020)
1932 – Halston, American fashion designer (d. 1990)
1932 – Jim Fixx, American runner and author (d. 1984)
1933 – Annie Easley, American computer scientist, mathematician, and engineer (d. 2011)
1934 – George Canseco, Filipino composer and producer (d. 2004)
1936 – Roy Orbison, American singer-songwriter (d. 1988)
1937 – Victoria Glendinning, English author and critic
1937 – David Mills, English cricketer (d. 2013)
1937 – Barry Shepherd, Australian cricketer (d. 2001)
1939 – Jorge Fons, Mexican director and screenwriter
1939 – Bill Hagerty, English journalist
1939 – Lee Majors, American actor
1939 – Ray Peterson, American pop singer (d. 2005)
1940 – Michael Copps, American academic and politician
1940 – Dale Houston, American singer-songwriter (d. 2007)
1940 – Michael Kadosh, Israeli footballer and manager (d. 2014)
1941 – Jacqueline Boyer, French singer and actress
1941 – Arie den Hartog, Dutch road bicycle racer (d. 2018)
1941 – Paavo Lipponen, Finnish journalist and politician, 38th Prime Minister of Finland
1941 – Michael Lynne, American film producer, co-founded New Line Cinema
1941 – Ed Stewart, English radio and television host (d. 2016)
1941 – Ray Tomlinson, American computer programmer and engineer (d. 2016)
1942 – Sandra Dee, American model and actress (d. 2005)
1943 – Gail Goodrich, American basketball player and coach
1943 – Tony Esposito, Canadian-American ice hockey player, coach, and manager
1943 – Frans Koppelaar, Dutch painter
1943 – Hervé Villechaize, French actor (d. 1993)
1944 – Jean-François Stévenin, French actor and director
1946 – Blair Brown, American actress
1946 – Carlton Sherwood, American soldier and journalist (d. 2014)
1947 – Robert Burgess, English sociologist and academic
1947 – Glenn Cornick, English bass player (d. 2014)
1947 – Bernadette Devlin McAliskey, Irish civil rights leader and politician
1948 – Pascal Quignard, French author and screenwriter
1948 – Serge Thériault, Canadian actor
1949 – Paul Collier, English economist and academic
1949 – David Cross, English violinist
1949 – John Miles, British rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist
1950 – Rowley Leigh, English chef and journalist
1950 – Barbara McIlvaine Smith, Sac and Fox Nation Native American politician
1951 – Martin Bayerle, American treasure hunter
1952 – Narada Michael Walden, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer
1953 – James Russo, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1954 – Stephen Dalton, English air marshal
1954 – Michael Moore, American director, producer, and activist
1955 – Judy Davis, Australian actress
1955 – Tony Miles, English chess player (d. 2001)
1955 – Urmas Ott, Estonian journalist and author (d. 2008)
1957 – Neville Brody, English graphic designer, typographer, and art director
1957 – Jan Hooks, American actress and comedian (d. 2014)
1958 – Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, Icelandic composer and producer
1958 – Ryan Walter, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1959 – Unity Dow, Botswanan judge, author, and rights activist
1960 – Valerie Bertinelli, American actress
1960 – Steve Clark, English guitarist and songwriter (d. 1991)
1960 – Barry Douglas, Irish pianist and conductor
1960 – Léo Jaime, Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1960 – Claude Julien, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1961 – George Lopez, American comedian, actor, and talk show host
1961 – Pierluigi Martini, Italian race car driver
1962 – John Hannah, Scottish actor and producer
1962 – Shaun Spiers, English businessman and politician
1963 – Paul Belmondo, French race car driver
1963 – Robby Naish, American windsurfer
1964 – Gianandrea Noseda, Italian pianist and conductor
1965 – Leni Robredo, Filipina human rights lawyer, 14th Vice President of the Philippines
1966 – Jörg Deisinger, German bass player
1966 – Matt Freeman, American bass player
1966 – Lembit Oll, Estonian chess Grandmaster (d. 1999)
1967 – Rheal Cormier, Canadian baseball player
1967 – Melina Kanakaredes, American actress
1968 – Bas Haring, Dutch philosopher, writer, television presenter and professor.
1968 – Ken McRae, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1968 – Timothy McVeigh, American terrorist, Oklahoma City bombing co-perpetrator (d. 2001)
1969 – Martín López-Zubero, American-Spanish swimmer and coach
1969 – Yelena Shushunova, Russian gymnast
1970 – Egemen Bağış, Turkish politician, 1st Minister of European Union Affairs
1970 – Dennis Culp, American singer-songwriter and trombonist
1970 – Andrew Gee, Australian rugby league player and manager
1970 – Hans Välimäki, Finnish chef and author
1970 – Tayfur Havutçu, Turkish international footballer and manager
769 – The Lateran Council condemned the Council of Hieria and anathematized its iconoclastic rulings.
1071 – Bari, the last Byzantine possession in southern Italy, is surrendered to Robert Guiscard.
1395 – Timur defeats Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde at the Battle of the Terek River. The Golden Horde capital city, Sarai, is razed to the ground and Timur installs a puppet ruler on the throne.
1450 – Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years’ War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English forces, ending English domination in Northern France.
1632 – Battle of Rain: Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus defeat the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years’ War.
1642 – Irish Confederate Wars: A Confederate Irish militia is routed in the Battle of Kilrush when it attempts to halt the progress of a Royalist Army.
1715 – The Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.
1736 – Foundation of the Kingdom of Corsica.
1738 – Serse, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel receives its premiere performance in London, England.
1755 – Samuel Johnson’s A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London.
1783 – Preliminary articles of peace ending the American Revolutionary War (or American War of Independence) are ratified.
1817 – Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc founded the American School for the Deaf, the first American school for deaf students, in Hartford, Connecticut.
1861 – President Abraham Lincoln calls for 75,000 Volunteers to quell the insurrection that soon became the American Civil War.
1865 – President Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot the previous evening by actor John Wilkes Booth. Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes President upon Lincoln’s death.
1892 – The General Electric Company is formed.
1896 – Closing ceremony of the Games of the I Olympiad in Athens, Greece.
1900 – Philippine–American War: Filipino guerrillas launch a surprise attack on U.S. infantry and begin a four-day siege of Catubig, Philippines.
1907 – Triangle Fraternity is founded at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
1912 – The British passenger liner RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic at 2:20 a.m., two hours and forty minutes after hitting an iceberg. Only 710 of 2,227 passengers and crew on board survive.
1920 – Two security guards are murdered during a robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts. Anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti would be convicted of and executed for the crime, amid much controversy.
1922 – U.S. Senator John B. Kendrick of Wyoming introduces a resolution calling for an investigation of a secret land deal, which leads to the discovery of the Teapot Dome scandal.
1923 – Insulin becomes generally available for use by people with diabetes.
1924 – Rand McNally publishes its first road atlas.
1936 – First day of the Arab revolt in Mandatory Palestine.
1941 – In the Belfast Blitz, two-hundred bombers of the German Luftwaffe attack Belfast, killing around one thousand people.
1942 – The George Cross is awarded “to the island fortress of Malta” by King George VI.
1945 – Bergen-Belsen concentration camp is liberated.
1947 – Jackie Robinson debuts for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking baseball’s color line.
1952 – First flight of the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.
1955 – McDonald’s restaurant dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois.
1960 – At Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Ella Baker leads a conference that results in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, one of the principal organizations of the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
1969 – The EC-121 shootdown incident: North Korea shoots down a United States Navy aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing all 31 onboard.
1970 – During the Cambodian Civil War, massacre of the Vietnamese minority results in 800 bodies flowing down the Mekong river into South Vietnam.
1986 – The United States launches Operation El Dorado Canyon, its bombing raids against Libyan targets in response to a discotheque bombing in West Germany that killed two U.S. servicemen.
1989 – Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 96 Liverpool fans.
1989 – Upon Hu Yaobang’s death, the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 begin in China.
1994 – Marrakesh Agreement relating to foundation of World Trade Organization is adopted.
2013 – Two bombs explode near the finish line at the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, killing three people and injuring 264 others.
2013 – A wave of bombings across Iraq kills at least 75 people.
2014 – In the worst massacre of the South Sudanese Civil War, at least 200 civilians were gunned down after seeking refuge in houses of worship as well as hospitals.
2019 – The cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris in France is seriously damaged by a large fire.
Births on April 15
68 BC – Gaius Maecenas, Roman politician (d. 8 BC)
1282 – Frederick IV, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1329)
1367 – Henry IV of England (d. 1413)
1442 – John Paston, English noble (d. 1479)
1452 – Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, and architect (d. 1519)
1469 – Guru Nanak, the first Sikh guru (d. 1539)
1552 – Pietro Cataldi, Italian mathematician and astronomer (d. 1626)
1563 – Guru Arjan Dev, fifth Sikh leader (d. 1606)
1588 – Claudius Salmasius, French author and scholar (d. 1653)
1592 – Francesco Maria Brancaccio, Catholic cardinal (d. 1675)
1641 – Robert Sibbald, Scottish physician and geographer (d. 1722)
1642 – Suleiman II, Ottoman sultan (d. 1691)
1646 – Christian V of Denmark (d. 1699)
1684 – Catherine I of Russia (d. 1727)
1688 – Johann Friedrich Fasch, German violinist and composer (d. 1758)
1707 – Leonhard Euler, Swiss mathematician and physicist (d. 1783)
1710 – William Cullen, Scottish physician and chemist (d. 1790)
1741 – Charles Willson Peale, American painter and soldier (d. 1827)
1771 – Nicolas Chopin, French-Polish educator (d. 1844)
1772 – Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, French biologist and zoologist (d. 1844)
1793 – Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve, German astronomer and academic (d. 1864)
1795 – Maria Schicklgruber, mother of Alois Hitler and the paternal grandmother of Adolf Hitler (d.1847)
1800 – James Clark Ross, English captain and explorer (d. 1862)
1808 – William Champ, English-Australian politician, 1st Premier of Tasmania (d. 1892)
1809 – Hermann Grassmann, German linguist and mathematician (d. 1877)
1817 – William Crowther, Dutch-Australian politician, 14th Premier of Tasmania (d. 1885)
1828 – Jean Danjou, French captain (d. 1863)
1832 – Wilhelm Busch, German poet, painter, and illustrator (d. 1908)
1841 – Mary Grant Roberts, Australian zoo owner (d. 1921)
1841 – Joseph E. Seagram, Canadian businessman and politician, founded the Seagram Company Ltd (d. 1919)
1843 – Henry James, American novelist, short story writer, and critic (d. 1916)
1856 – Jean Moréas, Greek poet and critic (d. 1910)
1858 – Émile Durkheim, French sociologist, psychologist, and philosopher (d. 1917)
1861 – Bliss Carman, Canadian-British poet and playwright (d. 1929)
1863 – Ida Freund, Austrian-born chemist and educator (d. 1914)
1874 – George Harrison Shull, American botanist and geneticist (d. 1954)
1874 – Johannes Stark, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
1875 – James J. Jeffries, American boxer and promoter (d. 1953)
1877 – Georg Kolbe, German sculptor (d. 1947)
1878 – Robert Walser, Swiss author and playwright (d. 1956)
1879 – Melville Henry Cane, American lawyer and poet (d. 1980)
1883 – Stanley Bruce, Australian captain and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1967)
1885 – Tadeusz Kutrzeba, Polish general (d. 1947)
1886 – Nikolay Gumilyov, Russian poet and critic (d. 1921)
1887 – William Forgan Smith, Scottish-Australian politician, 24th Premier of Queensland (d. 1953)
1888 – Maximilian Kronberger, German poet and author (d. 1904)
1889 – Thomas Hart Benton, American painter and educator (d. 1975)
1889 – A. Philip Randolph, American activist (d. 1979)
1890 – Percy Shaw, English businessman, invented the cat’s eye (d. 1976)
1892 – Theo Osterkamp, German general and pilot (d. 1975)
1892 – Corrie ten Boom, Dutch-American clocksmith, Nazi resister, and author (d. 1983)
1894 – Nikita Khrushchev, Russian general and politician, 7th Premier of the Soviet Union (d. 1971)
1894 – Bessie Smith, African-American singer and actress (d. 1937)
1895 – Clark McConachy, New Zealand snooker player (d. 1980)
1895 – Abigail Mejia, Dominican feminist activist, nationalist, literary critic and educator (d. 1941)
1896 – Nikolay Semyonov, Russian physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1986)
1898 – Harry Edward, Guyanese-English sprinter (d. 1973)
1901 – Joe Davis, English snooker player (d. 1978)
1901 – Ajoy Mukherjee, Indian politician, Chief Minister of West Bengal (d. 1986)
1901 – René Pleven, French businessman and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1993)
1902 – Fernando Pessa, Portuguese journalist (d. 2002)
1903 – John Williams, English-American actor (d. 1983)
1904 – Arshile Gorky, Armenian-American painter and illustrator (d. 1948)
1907 – Nikolaas Tinbergen, Dutch-English ethologist and ornithologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1988)
1908 – eden ahbez, Scottish-American songwriter and recording artist (d. 1995)
1908 – Lita Grey, American actress (d. 1995)
1910 – Sulo Bärlund, Finnish shot putter (d. 1986)
1910 – Miguel Najdorf, Polish-Argentinian chess player and theoretician (d. 1997)
1912 – William Congdon, American-Italian painter and sculptor (d. 1998)
1912 – Kim Il-sung, North Korean general and politician, 1st Supreme Leader of North Korea (d. 1994)
1915 – Elizabeth Catlett, African-American sculptor and illustrator (d. 2012)
1916 – Alfred S. Bloomingdale, American businessman (d. 1982)
1916 – Helene Hanff, American author and screenwriter (d. 1997)
1917 – Hans Conried, American actor (d. 1982)
1917 – Elmer Gedeon, American baseball player and bomber pilot (d. 1944)
1917 – James Kee, American lawyer and politician (d. 1989)
1918 – Hans Billian, German film director, screenwriter, and actor (d. 2007)
1919 – Alberto Breccia, Uruguayan-Argentinian author and illustrator (d. 1993)
1920 – Godfrey Stafford, English-South African physicist and academic (d. 2013)
1920 – Thomas Szasz, Hungarian-American psychiatrist and academic (d. 2012)
1920 – Richard von Weizsäcker, German soldier and politician, 6th President of Germany (d. 2015)
1921 – Georgy Beregovoy, Ukrainian-Russian general, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1995)
1921 – Angelo DiGeorge, American physician and endocrinologist (d. 2009)
1922 – Michael Ansara, Syrian-American actor (d. 2013)
1922 – Hasrat Jaipuri, Indian poet and songwriter (d. 1999)
1922 – Harold Washington, American lawyer and politician, 51st Mayor of Chicago (d. 1987)
1922 – Graham Whitehead, English racing driver (d. 1981)
1923 – Artur Alliksaar, Estonian poet and author (d. 1966)
1923 – Robert DePugh, American activist, founded the Minutemen (an anti-Communist organization) (d. 2009)
1924 – M. Canagaratnam, Sri Lankan politician (d. 1980)
1924 – Rikki Fulton, Scottish comedian (d. 2004)
1924 – Neville Marriner, English violinist and conductor (d. 2016)
1927 – Robert Mills, American physicist and academic (d. 1999)
1929 – Gérald Beaudoin, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2008)
1929 – Adrian Cadbury, English rower and businessman (d. 2015)
1930 – Georges Descrières, French actor (d. 2013)
1930 – Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Icelandic educator and politician, 4th President of Iceland
217 – Roman Emperor Caracalla is assassinated. He is succeeded by his Praetorian Guard prefect, Marcus Opellius Macrinus.
632 – King Charibert II is assassinated at Blaye (Gironde), along with his infant son Chilperic.
876 – The Battle of Dayr al-‘Aqul saves Baghdad from the Saffarids.
1093 – The new Winchester Cathedral is dedicated by Walkelin.
1139 – Roger II of Sicily is excommunicated.
1149 – Pope Eugene III takes refuge in the castle of Ptolemy II of Tusculum.
1232 – Mongol–Jin War: The Mongols begin their siege on Kaifeng, the capital of the Jin dynasty.
1271 – In Syria, sultan Baibars conquers the Krak des Chevaliers.
1665 – English colonial patents are granted for the establishment of the Monmouth Tract, for what would eventually become Monmouth County in northeastern New Jersey.
1730 – Shearith Israel, the first synagogue in New York City, is dedicated.
1740 – War of Jenkins’ Ear: Three British ships capture the Spanish third-rate Princesa, taken into service as HMS Princess.
1808 – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Baltimore is promoted to an archdiocese, with the founding of the dioceses of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Bardstown (now Louisville) by Pope Pius VII.
1820 – The Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Milos.
1832 – Black Hawk War: Around three-hundred United States 6th Infantry troops leave St. Louis, Missouri to fight the Sauk Native Americans.
1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Mansfield: Union forces are thwarted by the Confederate army at Mansfield, Louisiana.
1866 – Italy and Prussia ally against the Austrian Empire.
1886 – William Ewart Gladstone introduces the first Irish Home Rule Bill into the British House of Commons.
1895 – In Pollock v. Farmers’ Loan & Trust Co. the Supreme Court of the United States declares unapportioned income tax to be unconstitutional.
1904 – The French Third Republic and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland sign the Entente cordiale.
1904 – Longacre Square in Midtown Manhattan is renamed Times Square after The New York Times.
1906 – Auguste Deter, the first person to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, dies.
1908 – H. H. Asquith of the Liberal Party takes office as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, succeeding Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman.
1908 – Harvard University votes to establish the Harvard Business School.
1913 – The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution, requiring direct election of Senators, becomes law.
1916 – In Corona, California, race car driver Bob Burman crashes, killing three (including himself), and badly injuring five spectators.
1918 – World War I: Actors Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin sell war bonds on the streets of New York City’s financial district.
1924 – Sharia courts are abolished in Turkey, as part of Atatürk’s Reforms.
1929 – Indian independence movement: At the Delhi Central Assembly, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt throw handouts and bombs to court arrest.
1935 – The Works Progress Administration is formed when the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 becomes law.
1942 – World War II: Siege of Leningrad: Soviet forces open a much-needed railway link to Leningrad.
1942 – World War II: The Japanese take Bataan in the Philippines.
1943 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in an attempt to check inflation, freezes wages and prices, prohibits workers from changing jobs unless the war effort would be aided thereby, and bars rate increases by common carriers and public utilities.
1943 – Otto and Elise Hampel are executed in Berlin for their anti-Nazi activities.
1945 – World War II: After an air raid accidentally destroys a train carrying about 4,000 Nazi concentration camp internees in Prussian Hanover, the survivors are massacred by Nazis.
1946 – Électricité de France, the world’s largest utility company, is formed as a result of the nationalisation of a number of electricity producers, transporters and distributors.
1950 – India and Pakistan sign the Liaquat–Nehru Pact.
1952 – U.S. President Harry Truman calls for the seizure of all domestic steel mills in an attempt to prevent the 1952 steel strike.
1953 – Mau Mau leader Jomo Kenyatta is convicted by British Kenya’s rulers.
1954 – A Royal Canadian Air Force Canadair Harvard collides with a Trans-Canada Airlines Canadair North Star over Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, killing 37 people.
1954 – South African Airways Flight 201 A de Havilland DH.106 Comet 1 crashes into the sea during night killing 21 people.
1959 – A team of computer manufacturers, users, and university people led by Grace Hopper meets to discuss the creation of a new programming language that would be called COBOL.
1959 – The Organization of American States drafts an agreement to create the Inter-American Development Bank.
1960 – The Netherlands and West Germany sign an agreement to negotiate the return of German land annexed by the Dutch in return for 280 million German marks as Wiedergutmachung.
1961 – A large explosion on board the MV Dara in the Persian Gulf kills 238.
1964 – The Gemini 1 test flight is conducted.
1968 – BOAC Flight 712 catches fire shortly after takeoff. As a result of her actions in the accident, Barbara Jane Harrison is awarded a posthumous George Cross, the only GC awarded to a woman in peacetime.
1970 – Bahr El-Baqar primary school bombing: Israeli bombers strike an Egyptian school. Forty-six children are killed.
1974 – At Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Hank Aaron hits his 715th career home run to surpass Babe Ruth’s 39-year-old record.
1975 – Frank Robinson manages the Cleveland Indians in his first game as major league baseball’s first African American manager.
1987 – Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis resigns amid controversy over racially charged remarks he had made while on Nightline.
1992 – Retired tennis great Arthur Ashe announces that he has AIDS, acquired from blood transfusions during one of his two heart surgeries.
1993 – The Republic of North Macedonia joins the United Nations.
1999 – Haryana Gana Parishad, a political party in the Indian state of Haryana, merges with the Indian National Congress.
2004 – War in Darfur: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups.
2006 – Shedden massacre: The bodies of eight men, all shot to death, are found in a field in Shedden, Elgin County, Ontario. The murders are soon linked to the Bandidos Motorcycle Club.
2008 – The construction of the world’s first skyscraper to integrate wind turbines is completed in Bahrain.
2013 – The Islamic State of Iraq enters the Syrian Civil War and begins by declaring a merger with the Al-Nusra Front under the name Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham.
Births on April 8
1320 – Peter I of Portugal (d. 1367)
1408 – Jadwiga of Lithuania, Polish princess (d. 1431)
1435 – John Clifford, 9th Baron de Clifford, English noble (d. 1461)
1533 – Claudio Merulo, Italian organist and composer (d. 1604)
1536 – Barbara of Hesse (d. 1597)
1541 – Michele Mercati, Italian physician and archaeologist (d. 1593)
1580 – William Herbert, 3rd Earl of Pembroke, English noble, courtier and patron of the arts (d. 1630)
1596 – Juan van der Hamen, Spanish artist (d. 1631)
1605 – Philip IV of Spain (d. 1665)
1605 – Mary Stuart, English-Scottish princess (d. 1607)
1641 – Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney, English general and politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (d. 1704)
1692 – Giuseppe Tartini, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1770)
1726 – Lewis Morris, American judge and politician (d. 1798)
1732 – David Rittenhouse, American astronomer and mathematician (d. 1796)
1761 – William Joseph Chaminade, French priest, founded the Society of Mary (d. 1850)
1770 – John Thomas Campbell, Irish-Australian banker and politician (d. 1830)
1798 – Dionysios Solomos, Greek poet and author (d. 1857)
1818 – Christian IX of Denmark (d. 1906)
1818 – August Wilhelm von Hofmann, German chemist and academic (d. 1892)
1826 – Pancha Carrasco, Costa Rican soldier (d. 1890)
1827 – Ramón Emeterio Betances, Puerto Rican ophthalmologist, journalist, and politician (d. 1898)
1842 – Elizabeth Bacon Custer, American author and educator (d. 1933)
1859 – Edmund Husserl, German Jewish-Austrian mathematician and philosopher (d. 1938)
1864 – Carlos Deltour, French rower and rugby player (d. 1920)
1867 – Allen Butler Talcott, American painter and educator (d. 1908)
1869 – Harvey Cushing, American surgeon and academic (d. 1939)
1871 – Clarence Hudson White, American photographer and educator (d. 1925)
1874 – Manuel Díaz, Cuban fencer (d. 1929)
1874 – Stanisław Taczak, Polish general (d. 1960)
1875 – Albert I of Belgium (d. 1934)
1882 (O.S. 27 March) – Dmytro Doroshenko, Lithuanian-Ukrainian historian and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Prime Minister of Ukraine (d. 1951)
1883 – R. P. Keigwin, English cricketer and academic (d. 1972)
1883 – Julius Seljamaa, Estonian journalist and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia (d. 1936)
1885 – Dimitrios Levidis, Greek-French soldier, composer, and educator (d. 1951)
1886 – Margaret Ayer Barnes, American author and playwright (d. 1967)
1888 – Dennis Chávez, American journalist and politician (d. 1962)
1889 – Adrian Boult, English conductor (d. 1983)
1892 – Richard Neutra, Austrian-American architect, designed the Los Angeles County Hall of Records (d. 1970)
1892 – Mary Pickford, Canadian-American actress, producer, and screenwriter, co-founded United Artists (d. 1979)
1896 – Yip Harburg, American composer (d. 1981)
1900 – Marie Byles, Australian solicitor (d. 1979)
1902 – Andrew Irvine, English mountaineer and explorer (d. 1924)
1902 – Maria Maksakova Sr., Russian soprano (d. 1974)
1904 – John Hicks, English economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1989)
1904 – Hirsch Jacobs, American horse trainer (d. 1970)
1905 – Joachim Büchner, German sprinter and graphic designer (d. 1978)
1905 – Helen Joseph, English-South African activist (d. 1992)
1905 – Erwin Keller, German field hockey player (d. 1971)
1906 – Raoul Jobin, Canadian tenor and educator (d. 1974)
1908 – Hugo Fregonese, Argentinian director and screenwriter (d. 1987)
1909 – John Fante, American author and screenwriter (d. 1983)
1910 – George Musso, American football player and police officer (d. 2000)
1911 – Melvin Calvin, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1997)
1911 – Emil Cioran, Romanian-French philosopher and academic (d. 1995)
1912 – Alois Brunner, Austrian-German SS officer (d. 2001 or 2010)
1912 – Sonja Henie, Norwegian-American figure skater and actress (d. 1969)
1914 – María Félix, Yaqui/Basque-Mexican actress (d. 2002)
1915 – Ivan Supek, Croatian physicist, philosopher and writer (d. 2007)
1917 – Winifred Asprey, American mathematician and computer scientist (d. 2007)
1917 – Lloyd Bott, Australian public servant (d. 2004)
1917 – Hubertus Ernst, Dutch bishop (d. 2017)
1917 – Grigori Kuzmin, Russian-Estonian astronomer (d. 1988)
1918 – Betty Ford, American wife of Gerald Ford, 40th First Lady of the United States (d. 2011)
1918 – Glendon Swarthout, American author and academic (d. 1992)
1919 – Ian Smith, Zimbabwean lieutenant and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Rhodesia (d. 2007)
1921 – Franco Corelli, Italian tenor and actor (d. 2003)
1921 – Jan Novák, Czech composer (d. 1984)
1921 – Herman van Raalte, Dutch footballer (d. 2013)
1922 – Carmen McRae, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress (d. 1994)
1923 – George Fisher, American cartoonist (d. 2003)
1923 – Edward Mulhare, Irish-American actor (d. 1997)
1924 – Frédéric Back, German-Canadian animator, director, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
1924 – Anthony Farrar-Hockley, English general and historian (d. 2006)
1924 – Kumar Gandharva, Hindustani classical singer (d. 1992)
1924 – Sara Northrup Hollister, American occultist (d. 1997)
1926 – Henry N. Cobb, American architect and academic, co-founded Pei Cobb Freed & Partners (d. 2020)
1926 – Shecky Greene, American actor
1926 – Jürgen Moltmann, German theologian and academic
1927 – Tilly Armstrong, English author (d. 2010)
1927 – Ollie Mitchell, American trumpet player and bandleader (d. 2013)
1928 – Fred Ebb, American lyricist (d. 2004)
1929 – Jacques Brel, Belgian singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1978)
1929 – Renzo De Felice, Italian historian and author (d. 1996)
1930 – Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma (d. 2010)
1931 – John Gavin, American actor and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Mexico (d. 2018)
1932 – Iskandar of Johor (d. 2010)
1933 – James Lockhart, American scholar of colonial Latin America, especially Nahua peoples (d. 2014)
1934 – Kisho Kurokawa, Japanese architect, designed the Nakagin Capsule Tower and Singapore Flyer (d. 2007)
1935 – Oscar Zeta Acosta, American lawyer and politician (d. 1974)
1935 – Albert Bustamante, American soldier, educator, and politician
1937 – Tony Barton, English footballer, outside right and manager (d. 1993)
1937 – Seymour Hersh, American journalist and author
1937 – Momo Kapor, Serbian author and painter (d. 2010)
1938 – Kofi Annan, Ghanaian economist and diplomat, 7th Secretary-General of the United Nations (d. 2018)
1938 – John Hamm, Canadian physician and politician, 25th Premier of Nova Scotia
1938 – Mary W. Gray, American mathematician, statistician, and lawyer
1939 – John Arbuthnott, Scottish microbiologist and academic
1939 – Trina Schart Hyman, American author and illustrator (d. 2004)
1940 – John Havlicek, American basketball player (d. 2019)
1941 – J. J. Jackson, American soul/R&B singer, songwriter, and arranger
1941 – Vivienne Westwood, English fashion designer
1942 – Tony Banks, Baron Stratford, Northern Irish politician, Minister for Sport and the Olympics (d. 2006)
1942 – Roger Chapman, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1942 – Douglas Trumbull, American director, producer, and special effects artist
1943 – Michael Bennett, American dancer, choreographer, and director (d. 1987)
1943 – Miller Farr, American football player
1943 – James Herbert, English author and illustrator (d. 2013)
1943 – Chris Orr, English painter and illustrator
1944 – Hywel Bennett, Welsh actor (d. 2017)
1944 – Odd Nerdrum, Swedish-Norwegian painter and illustrator
1945 – Derrick Walker, Scottish businessman
1945 – Jang Yong, South Korean actor
1946 – Catfish Hunter, American baseball player (d. 1999)
1946 – Tim Thomerson, American actor and producer
1947 – Tom DeLay, American lawyer and politician
1947 – Steve Howe, English guitarist, songwriter, and producer
1947 – Robert Kiyosaki, American businessman, co-founded Cashflow Technologies
1947 – Pascal Lamy, French businessman and politician, European Commissioner for Trade
1947 – Larry Norman, American singer-songwriter, and producer (d. 2008)
1948 – Barbara Young, Baroness Young of Old Scone, Scottish academic and politician
1949 – K. C. Kamalasabayson, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 39th Attorney General of Sri Lanka (d. 2007)
1949 – John Madden, English director and producer
1949 – Brenda Russell, African-American-Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboard player
1949 – John Scott, English sociologist and academic
1950 – Grzegorz Lato, Polish footballer and coach
1951 – Gerd Andres, German politician
1951 – Geir Haarde, Icelandic economist, journalist, and politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Iceland
1951 – Mel Schacher, American bass player
1951 – Joan Sebastian, Mexican singer-songwriter and actor (d. 2015)
1952 – Ahmet Piriştina, Turkish politician (d. 2004)
1954 – Gary Carter, American baseball player and coach (d. 2012)
1954 – Princess Lalla Amina of Morocco (d. 2012)
1954 – G.V. Loganathan, Indian-American engineer and academic (d. 2007)
1955 – Ricky Bell, American football player (d. 1984)
1955 – Gerrie Coetzee, South African boxer
1955 – Ron Johnson, American businessman and politician
1955 – Barbara Kingsolver, American novelist, essayist and poet
1955 – David Wu, Taiwanese-American lawyer and politician
1956 – Michael Benton, Scottish-English paleontologist and academic
1956 – Christine Boisson, French actress
1956 – Roman Dragoun, Czech singer-songwriter and keyboard player
1956 – Jim Piddock, English actor, producer, and screenwriter
1957 – Fred Smerlas, American football player and radio host
1958 – Detlef Bruckhoff, German footballer
1958 – Tom Petranoff, American javelin thrower and coach
1959 – Alain Bondue, French cyclist
1960 – John Schneider, American actor and country singer
1961 – Richard Hatch, American reality contestant
1961 – Brian McDermott, English footballer and manager
1962 – Paddy Lowe, English engineer
1962 – Izzy Stradlin, American guitarist and songwriter
1963 – Tine Asmundsen, Norwegian bassist
1963 – Julian Lennon, English singer-songwriter
1963 – Terry Porter, American basketball player and coach
1963 – Donita Sparks, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1963 – Alec Stewart, English cricketer
1963 – Seth Tobias, American businessman (d. 2007)
1964 – Biz Markie, American rapper, producer, and actor
1964 – John McGinlay, Scottish footballer and manager
1965 – Steven Blaney, Canadian businessman and politician, 5th Canadian Minister of Public Safety
1965 – Michael Jones, New Zealand rugby player and coach
1966 – Iveta Bartošová, Czech singer and actress (d. 2014)
1966 – Mark Blundell, English race car driver
1966 – Andy Currier, English rugby league player
1966 – Charlotte Dawson, New Zealand-Australian television host (d. 2014)
1966 – Dalton Grant, English high jumper
1966 – Mazinho, Brazilian footballer, coach, and manager
1966 – Harri Rovanperä, Finnish race car driver
1966 – Evripidis Stylianidis, Greek lawyer and politician, Greek Minister for the Interior
1966 – Robin Wright, American actress, director, producer
1967 – Kenny Benjamin, Antiguan cricketer
1968 – Patricia Arquette, French-Canadian Russian/Polish Jewish-American actress and director
1968 – Patricia Girard, French runner and hurdler
1968 – Tracy Grammer, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1971 – Darren Jessee, American singer-songwriter and drummer
1972 – Paul Gray, American bass player and songwriter (d. 2010)
1972 – Sergei Magnitsky, Russian lawyer and accountant (d. 2009)
1973 – Khaled Badra, Tunisian footballer
1973 – Emma Caulfield, American actress
1974 – Toutai Kefu, Tongan-Australian rugby player
1974 – Nnedi Okorafor, Nigerian-American author and educator
1975 – Anouk, Dutch singer
1975 – Francesco Flachi, Italian footballer
1975 – Timo Pérez, Dominican-American baseball player
1975 – Funda Arar, Turkish singer
1977 – Ana de la Reguera, Mexican actress
1977 – Mehran Ghassemi, Iranian journalist and author (d. 2008)
1977 – Mark Spencer, American computer programmer and engineer
1978 – Daigo, Japanese singer-songwriter, actor, and voice actor
1978 – Bernt Haas, Austrian-Swiss footballer
1978 – Rachel Roberts, Canadian model and actress
1978 – Jocelyn Robichaud, Canadian tennis player and coach
1978 – Evans Rutto, Kenyan runner
1979 – Alexi Laiho, Finnish singer-songwriter and guitarist
1979 – Amit Trivedi, Indian singer-songwriter
1980 – Manuel Ortega, Austrian singer
1980 – Katee Sackhoff, American actress
1980 – Mariko Seyama, Japanese announcer, photographer, and model
1981 – Frédérick Bousquet, French swimmer
1981 – Ofer Shechter, Israeli model, actor, and screenwriter
1982 – Gennady Golovkin, Kazakhstani boxer
1982 – Brett White, Australian rugby league player
1983 – Tatyana Petrova Arkhipova, Russian runner
1984 – Michelle Donelan, British politician
1984 – Ezra Koenig, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1984 – Pablo Portillo, Mexican singer and actor
1984 – Taran Noah Smith, American actor
1985 – Patrick Schliwa, German rugby player
1985 – Yemane Tsegay, Ethiopian runner
1986 – Igor Akinfeev, Russian footballer
1986 – Félix Hernández, Venezuelan-American baseball player
1987 – Royston Drenthe, Dutch footballer
1987 – Jeremy Hellickson, American baseball player
1987 – Sam Rapira, New Zealand rugby league player
1988 – Jenni Asserholt, Swedish ice hockey player
1988 – Kim Myung-sung, South Korean baseball player
1990 – Kim Jong-hyun, South Korean singer (d. 2017)
1993 – Viktor Arvidsson, Swedish ice hockey player
1993 – Zac Santo, Australian rugby league player
1994 – Josh Chudleigh, Australian rugby league player
1995 – Cedi Osman, Turkish professional basketball player
1997 – Saygrace, Australian singer and songwriter
1997 – Arno Verschueren, Belgian professional football player
Deaths on April 8
217 – Caracalla, Roman emperor (b. 188)
622 – Shōtoku, Japanese prince (b. 572)
632 – Charibert II, Frankish king (b. 607)
894 – Adalelm, Frankish nobleman
944 – Wang Yanxi, Chinese emperor
956 – Gilbert, Frankish nobleman
967 – Mu’izz al-Dawla, Buyid emir (b. 915)
1143 – John II Komnenos, Byzantine emperor (b. 1087)
1150 – Gertrude of Babenberg , duchess of Bohemia (b. 1118)
1321 – Thomas of Tolentino, Italian-Franciscan missionary (b. c. 1255)
1338 – Stephen Gravesend, bishop of London
1364 – John II, French king (b. 1319)
1450 – Sejong the Great, Korean king (b. 1397)
1461 – Georg von Peuerbach, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1423)
1492 – Lorenzo de’ Medici, Italian ruler (b. 1449)
1551 – Oda Nobuhide, Japanese warlord (b. 1510)
1586 – Martin Chemnitz, Lutheran theologian and reformer (b. 1522)
1608 – Magdalen Dacre, English noble (b. 1538)
1612 – Anne Catherine of Brandenburg (b. 1575)
1691 – Carlo Rainaldi, Italian architect, designed the Santa Maria dei Miracoli and Santa Maria in Montesanto (b. 1611)
380 – Edict of Thessalonica: Emperor Theodosius I and his co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to Nicene Christianity.
425 – The University of Constantinople is founded by Emperor Theodosius II at the urging of his wife Aelia Eudocia.
907 – Abaoji, a Khitan chieftain, is enthroned as Emperor Taizu, establishing the Liao dynasty in northern China.
1560 – The Treaty of Berwick, which would expel the French from Scotland, is signed by England and the Lords of the Congregation of Scotland.
1594 – Henry IV is crowned King of France.
1617 – Sweden and Russia sign the Treaty of Stolbovo, ending the Ingrian War and shutting Russia out of the Baltic Sea.
1626 – Yuan Chonghuan is appointed Governor of Liaodong, after leading the Chinese into a great victory against the Manchurians under Nurhaci.
1700 – The island of New Britain is discovered by Europeans.
1776 – American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge in North Carolina breaks up a Loyalist militia.
1782 – American Revolutionary War: The House of Commons of Great Britain votes against further war in America.
1801 – Pursuant to the District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801, Washington, D.C. is placed under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Congress.
1809 – Action of 27 February 1809: Captain Bernard Dubourdieu captures HMS Proserpine.
1812 – Argentine War of Independence: Manuel Belgrano raises the Flag of Argentina in the city of Rosario for the first time.
1812 – Poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against Industrialism in his home county of Nottinghamshire.
1844 – The Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti.
1860 – Abraham Lincoln makes a speech at Cooper Union in the city of New York that is largely responsible for his election to the Presidency.
1864 – American Civil War: The first Northern prisoners arrive at the Confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia.
1870 – The current flag of Japan is first adopted as the national flag for Japanese merchant ships.
1881 – First Boer War: The Battle of Majuba Hill takes place.
1898 – King George I of Greece survives an assassination attempt.
1900 – Second Boer War: In South Africa, British military leaders receive an unconditional notice of surrender from Boer General Piet Cronjé at the Battle of Paardeberg.
1900 – The British Labour Party is founded.
1900 – Fußball-Club Bayern München is founded.
1902 – Second Boer War: Australian soldiers Harry “Breaker” Morant and Peter Handcock are executed in Pretoria after being convicted of war crimes.
1916 – Ocean liner SS Maloja strikes a mine near Dover and sinks with the loss of 155 lives.
1921 – The International Working Union of Socialist Parties is founded in Vienna.
1922 – A challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote, is rebuffed by the Supreme Court of the United States in Leser v. Garnett.
1933 – Reichstag fire: Germany’s parliament building in Berlin, the Reichstag, is set on fire; Marinus van der Lubbe, a young Dutch Communist claims responsibility.
1939 – United States labor law: The U.S. Supreme Court rules in NLRB v. Fansteel Metallurgical Corp. that the National Labor Relations Board has no authority to force an employer to rehire workers who engage in sit-down strikes.
1940 – Martin Kamen and Sam Ruben discover carbon-14.
1942 – World War II: During the Battle of the Java Sea, an Allied strike force is defeated by a Japanese task force in the Java Sea in the Dutch East Indies.
1943 – The Smith Mine #3 in Bearcreek, Montana, explodes, killing 74 men.
1943 – In Berlin, the Gestapo arrest 1,800 Jewish men with German wives, leading to the Rosenstrasse protest.
1951 – The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, limiting Presidents to two terms, is ratified.
1961 – The first congress of the Spanish Trade Union Organisation is inaugurated.
1962 – Two dissident Republic of Vietnam Air Force pilots bomb the Independence Palace in Saigon in a failed attempt to assassinate South Vietnam President Ngô Đình Diệm.
1963 – The Dominican Republic receives its first democratically elected president, Juan Bosch, since the end of the dictatorship led by Rafael Trujillo.
1964 – The Government of Italy asks for help to keep the Leaning Tower of Pisa from toppling over.
1971 – Doctors in the first Dutch abortion clinic (the Mildredhuis in Arnhem) start performing artificially-induced abortions.
1973 – The American Indian Movement occupies Wounded Knee in protest of the federal government.
1976 – The formerly Spanish territory of Western Sahara, under the auspices of the Polisario Front declares independence as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
1988 – Sumgait pogrom: The Armenian community in Sumgait, Azerbaijan is targeted in a violent pogrom.
1991 – Gulf War: U.S. President George H. W. Bush announces that “Kuwait is liberated”.
2002 – Ryanair Flight 296 catches fire at London Stansted Airport. Subsequent investigations criticize Ryanair’s handling of the evacuation.
2002 – Godhra train burning: A Muslim mob torches a train returning from Ayodhya, killing 59 Hindu pilgrims.
2004 – A bombing of a Superferry by Abu Sayyaf in the Philippines’ worst terrorist attack kills 116.
2004 – Shoko Asahara, the leader of the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo, is sentenced to death for masterminding the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin attack.
2007 – The Chinese Correction: The Shanghai Stock Exchange falls 9%, the largest drop in ten years.
2010 – An earthquake measuring 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale strikes central parts of Chile leaving over 500 victims, and thousands injured. The quake triggers a tsunami which strikes Hawaii shortly after.
2013 – A shooting takes place at a factory in Menznau, Switzerland, in which five people (including the perpetrator) are killed and five others injured.
2015 – Russian politician Boris Nemtsov is assassinated.
Births on February 27
272 – Constantine the Great, Roman emperor (d. 337)
1343 – Alberto d’Este, Marquis of Ferrara (d. 1393)
1427 – Ruprecht, Archbishop of Cologne (d. 1480)
1500 – João de Castro, Portuguese nobleman and fourth viceroy of Portuguese India (d. 1548)
1535 – Min Phalaung, Burmese monarch (d. 1593)
1567 – William Alabaster, English poet (d. 1640)
1572 – Francis II, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1632)
1575 – John Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp (d. 1616)
1622 – Carel Fabritius, Dutch painter (d. 1654)
1630 – Roche Braziliano, Dutch pirate (d. 1671)
1659 – William Sherard, English botanist (d. 1728)
1667 – Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł, Prussian-Lithuanian wife of Charles III Philip, Elector Palatine (d. 1695)
1689 – Pietro Gnocchi, Italian composer, director, historian, and geographer (d. 1775)
1703 – Lord Sidney Beauclerk, English politician (d. 1744)
1711 – Constantine Mavrocordatos, Ottoman ruler (d. 1769)
1724 – Frederick Michael, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken (d. 1767)
1732 – Jean de Dieu-Raymond de Cucé de Boisgelin, French cardinal (d. 1804)
1746 – Louis-Jérôme Gohier, French politician, French Minister of Justice (d. 1830)
1748 – Anders Sparrman, Swedish physician and activist (d. 1820)
1767 – Jacques-Charles Dupont de l’Eure, French lawyer and politician, 24th Prime Minister of France (d. 1855)
1779 – Thomas Hazlehurst, English businessman, founded Hazlehurst & Sons (d. 1842)
1789 – Manuel Rodríguez Erdoíza, Chilean lawyer and politician, Chilean Minister of National Defense (d. 1818)
1795 – José Antonio Navarro, American merchant and politician (d. 1871)
1799 – Edward Belcher, British naval officer, hydrographer, and explorer (d. 1877)
1799 – Frederick Catherwood, British artist, architect and explorer (d. 1854)
1807 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet and educator (d. 1882)
1809 – Jean-Charles Cornay, French missionary and saint (d. 1837)
1816 – William Nicholson, English-Australian politician, 3rd Premier of Victoria (d. 1865)
1847 – Ellen Terry, English actress (d. 1928)
1848 – Hubert Parry, English composer and historian (d. 1918)
1859 – Bertha Pappenheim, Austrian-German activist and author (d. 1936)
1863 – Joaquín Sorolla, Spanish painter (d. 1923)
1863 – George Herbert Mead, American sociologist and philosopher (d. 1930)
1864 – Eemil Nestor Setälä, Finnish linguist and politician, Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 1935)
1867 – Irving Fisher, American economist and statistician (d. 1947)
1867 – Wilhelm Peterson-Berger, Swedish composer and critic (d. 1942)
1869 – Alice Hamilton, American physician and academic (d. 1970)
1872 – Alexandru Vaida-Voevod, Romanian politician, Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1950)
1875 – Vladimir Filatov, Russian-Ukrainian ophthalmologist and surgeon (d. 1956)
1877 – Adela Verne, English pianist and composer (d. 1952)
1877 – Joseph Grinnell, American zoologist and biologist (d. 1939)
1878 – Alvan T. Fuller, American businessman and politician, 50th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1958)
1880 – Xenophon Kasdaglis, Greek-Egyptian tennis player (d. 1943)
1881 – Sveinn Björnsson, Danish-Icelandic lawyer and politician, 1st President of Iceland (d. 1952)
1881 – L. E. J. Brouwer, Dutch mathematician, philosopher, and academic (d. 1966)
1886 – Hugo Black, American captain, jurist, and politician (d. 1971)
1887 – Pyotr Nesterov, Russian captain, pilot, and engineer (d. 1914)
1888 – Roberto Assagioli, Italian psychiatrist and psychologist (d. 1974)
1888 – Lotte Lehmann, German-American soprano and actress (d. 1976)
1890 – Mabel Keaton Staupers, American nurse and advocate (d. 1989)
1891 – David Sarnoff, American businessman, founded RCA (d. 1971)
1892 – William Demarest, American actor (d. 1983)
1895 – Miyagiyama Fukumatsu, Japanese sumo wrestler (d. 1943)
1897 – Marian Anderson, American singer (d. 1993)
1899 – Charles Herbert Best, American-Canadian physiologist and biochemist, co-discovered Insulin (d. 1978)
1901 – Marino Marini, Italian sculptor and academic (d. 1980)
1901 – Kotama Okada, Japanese religious leader (d. 1974)
1902 – Lúcio Costa, French-Brazilian architect and engineer, designed Gustavo Capanema Palace (d. 1998)
1902 – Gene Sarazen, American golfer and sportscaster (d. 1999)
1902 – John Steinbeck, American journalist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1968)
1903 – Reginald Gardiner, English-American actor and singer (d. 1980)
1903 – Hans Rohrbach, German mathematician (d. 1993)
1903 – Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Belorussian-American rabbi and philosopher (d. 1993)
1904 – James T. Farrell, American author and poet (d. 1979)
1904 – André Leducq, French cyclist (d. 1980)
1904 – Yulii Borisovich Khariton, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1996)
1905 – Franchot Tone, American actor, singer, and producer (d. 1968)
1907 – Mildred Bailey, American singer (d. 1951)
1907 – Momčilo Đujić, Serbian-American priest and commander (d. 1999)
1910 – Joan Bennett, American actress (d. 1990)
1910 – Peter De Vries, American journalist and author (d. 1993)
1910 – Genrikh Kasparyan, Armenian chess player and composer (d. 1995)
1910 – Kelly Johnson, American engineer, co-founded Skunk Works (d. 1990)
1911 – Oscar Heidenstam, English bodybuilder (d. 1991)
1912 – Kusumagraj, Indian author, poet, and playwright (d. 1999)
1912 – Lawrence Durrell, Indian-French author, poet, and playwright (d. 1990)
1913 – Paul Ricœur, French philosopher and academic (d. 2005)
1913 – Kazimierz Sabbat, Polish soldier and politician, President of Poland (d. 1989)
1913 – Irwin Shaw, American author and screenwriter (d. 1984)
1915 – Denis Whitaker, Canadian general, football player, and businessman (d. 2001)
1917 – John Connally, American lieutenant and politician, 61st United States Secretary of Treasury (d. 1993)
1920 – Reg Simpson, English cricketer (d. 2013)
1921 – Theodore Van Kirk, American soldier, pilot, and navigator (d. 2014)
1922 – Hans Rookmaaker, Dutch historian, author, and scholar (d. 1977)
1923 – Dexter Gordon, American saxophonist, composer, and actor (d. 1990)
1925 – Pia Sebastiani, Argentine pianist and composer (d. 2015)
1925 – Kenneth Koch, American poet, playwright and professor (d. 2002)
1926 – David H. Hubel, Canadian-American neurophysiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
1927 – Peter Whittle, English-New Zealand mathematician and theorist
1928 – René Clemencic, Austrian composer, recorder player, harpsichordist, conductor and clavichord player
1929 – Jack Gibson, Australian rugby league player, coach, and sportscaster (d. 2008)
1929 – Djalma Santos, Brazilian footballer (d. 2013)
1929 – Patricia Ward Hales, British tennis player (d. 1985)
1930 – Jovan Krkobabić, Serbian politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia (d. 2014)
1930 – Peter Stone, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2003)
1930 – Paul von Ragué Schleyer, American chemist and academic (d. 2014)
1930 – Joanne Woodward, American actress
1932 – Dame Elizabeth Taylor, English-American actress and humanitarian (d. 2011)
1932 – David Young, Baron Young of Graffham, English businessman and politician, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills
1933 – Raymond Berry, American football player and coach
1933 – Malcolm Wallop, American politician (d. 2011)
1934 – Vincent Fourcade, French interior designer (d. 1992)
1934 – Ralph Nader, American lawyer, politician, and activist
1935 – Mirella Freni, Italian soprano and actress (d. 2020)
1935 – Uri Shulevitz, American author and illustrator
1936 – Sonia Johnson, American feminist activist and author
1936 – Ron Barassi, Australian footballer and coach
1936 – Roger Mahony, American cardinal
1937 – Barbara Babcock, American actress
1938 – Jake Thackray, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and journalist (d. 2002)
1939 – Don McKinnon, English-New Zealand farmer and politician, 12th Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand
1939 – Peter Revson, American race car driver (d. 1974)
1940 – Pierre Duchesne, Canadian lawyer and politician, 28th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
1940 – Howard Hesseman, American actor
1940 – Bill Hunter, Australian actor (d. 2011)
1941 – Paddy Ashdown, British captain and politician (d. 2018)
1942 – Jimmy Burns, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1942 – Robert H. Grubbs, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1942 – Charlayne Hunter-Gault, American journalist
1942 – Klaus-Dieter Sieloff, German footballer (d. 2011)
1943 – Mary Frann, American actress (d. 1998)
1943 – Morten Lauridsen, American composer and conductor
1943 – Carlos Alberto Parreira, Brazilian footballer and manager
1944 – Ken Grimwood, American author (d. 2003)
1944 – Graeme Pollock, South African cricketer and coach
1944 – Sir Roger Scruton, English philosopher and writer (d. 2020)
1947 – Alan Guth, American physicist and cosmologist
1947 – Gidon Kremer, Latvian violinist and conductor
1950 – Annabel Goldie, Scottish lawyer and politician
1950 – Julia Neuberger, Baroness Neuberger, English rabbi and politician
1951 – Carl A. Anderson, 13th Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus
1951 – Lee Atwater, American journalist, activist and political strategist (d. 1991)
1951 – Walter de Silva, Italian car designer
1951 – Steve Harley, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1953 – Gavin Esler, Scottish journalist and author
1953 – Ian Khama, English-Botswanan lieutenant and politician, 4th President of Botswana
1953 – Stelios Kouloglou, Greek journalist, author, director and politician
1954 – Neal Schon, American rock guitarist and singer-songwriter
1956 – Belus Prajoux, Chilean tennis player
1957 – Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, producer, and screenwriter
1957 – Kevin Curran, American screenwriter and television producer (d. 2016)
1957 – Robert de Castella, Australian runner
1957 – Adrian Smith, English guitarist and songwriter
1957 – Timothy Spall, English actor
1958 – Naas Botha, South African rugby player and sportscaster
1958 – Maggie Hassan, American politician, 81st Governor and United States Senator of New Hampshire
1960 – Andrés Gómez, Ecuadorian tennis player
1960 – Johnny Van Zant, American singer-songwriter
1961 – James Worthy, American basketball player and sportscaster
1962 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
1963 – Nasty Suicide, Finnish musician and pharmacist
1964 – Jeffrey Pasley, American educator and academic
1965 – Noah Emmerich, American actor
1965 – Pedro Chaves, Portuguese race car driver
1966 – Donal Logue, Canadian actor and director
1966 – Oliver Reck, German footballer and manager
1966 – Baltasar Kormákur, Icelandic actor, director, and producer
1967 – Dănuț Lupu, Romanian footballer
1967 – Jony Ive, English industrial designer, former chief design officer (CDO) of Apple
1968 – Matt Stairs, Canadian baseball player and sportscaster
1969 – Gareth Llewellyn, Welsh rugby union player
1969 – Juan E. Gilbert, American computer scientist, inventor, and academic
1970 – Kent Desormeaux, American jockey
1970 – Patricia Petibon, French soprano and actress
1971 – Sara Blakely, American businesswoman, founded Spanx
1971 – Derren Brown, English magician and painter
1971 – David Rikl, Czech-English tennis player
1971 – Roman Giertych, Polish lawyer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland
1971 – Rozonda Thomas, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress (TLC)
1973 – Peter Andre, English-Australian singer-songwriter and actor
1973 – Mark Taylor, Welsh rugby player and manager
1974 – Carte Goodwin, American lawyer and politician
1975 – Aitor González, Spanish racing driver
1975 – Prodromos Korkizoglou, Greek decathlete
1976 – Sergei Semak, Ukrainian-Russian footballer and manager
1976 – Ludovic Capelle, Belgian cyclist
1978 – James Beattie, English footballer and manager
1978 – Kakha Kaladze, Georgian footballer and politician
1978 – Emelie Öhrstig, Swedish skier and cyclist
1978 – Simone Di Pasquale, Italian ballet dancer
1980 – Chelsea Clinton, American journalist and academic
1980 – Scott Prince, Australian rugby league player
1981 – Josh Groban, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
1981 – Natalie Grandin, English-South African tennis player
1981 – Élodie Ouédraogo, Belgian sprinter
1982 – Ali Bastian, English actress
1982 – Pat Richards, Australian rugby league player
2003 – John Lanchbery, English-Australian composer and conductor (b. 1923)
2003 – Fred Rogers, American minister and television host (b. 1928)
2004 – Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historian and academic (b. 1928)
2004 – Paul Sweezy, American economist and journalist (b. 1910)
2006 – Otis Chandler, American publisher (b. 1927)
2006 – Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American general and author (b. 1908)
2006 – Linda Smith, English comedian and author (b. 1958)
2007 – Bernd Freytag von Loringhoven, German general (b. 1914)
2008 – William F. Buckley, Jr., American author and journalist, founded the National Review (b. 1925)
2008 – Myron Cope, American journalist and sportscaster (b. 1929)
2008 – Ivan Rebroff, German vocalist of Russian descent with four and a half octave range (b. 1931)
2010 – Nanaji Deshmukh, Indian educator and activist (b. 1916)
2011 – Frank Buckles, American soldier (b. 1901)
2011 – Necmettin Erbakan, Turkish engineer and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1926)
2011 – Duke Snider, American baseball player, manager, and sportscaster (b. 1926)
2011 – Gary Winick, American director and producer (b. 1961)
2012 – Ma Jiyuan, Chinese general (b. 1921)
2012 – Tina Strobos, Dutch physician and psychiatrist (b. 1920)
2012 – Helga Vlahović, Croatian journalist and producer (b. 1945)
2013 – Van Cliburn, American pianist (b. 1934)
2013 – Ramon Dekkers, Dutch mixed martial artist and kick-boxer (b. 1969)
2013 – Dale Robertson, American actor (b. 1923)
2013 – Adolfo Zaldívar, Chilean lawyer and politician (b. 1943)
2014 – Aaron Allston, American game designer and author (b. 1960)
2014 – Terry Rand, American basketball player (b. 1934)
2015 – Boris Nemtsov, Russian academic and politician, First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (b. 1959)
2015 – Leonard Nimoy, American actor (b. 1931)
2015 – Julio César Strassera, Argentinian lawyer and jurist (b. 1933)
2016 – Yi Cheol-seung, South Korean lawyer and politician (b. 1922)
2016 – James Z. Davis, American lawyer and judge (b. 1943)
2018 – Steve Folkes, Australian rugby league player and coach (b. 1959)
2019 – France-Albert René, Seychellois politician, 2nd President of Seychelles (b. 1935)
Holidays and observances on February 27
Christian feast day:
Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
George Herbert (Anglicanism)
Honorina
Leander
February 27 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
The second day of Ayyám-i-Há (Bahá’í Faith) (Note: this observance is only on this date in the Gregorian calendar if Bahá’í Naw-Rúz takes place on March 21, which it does not in all years)
Doctors’ Day (Vietnam)
Independence Day (Dominican Republic), celebrates the first independence of Dominican Republic from Haiti in 1844.
706 – Byzantine emperor Justinian II has his predecessors Leontios and Tiberios III publicly executed in the Hippodrome of Constantinople.
1002 – At an assembly at Pavia of Lombard nobles, Arduin of Ivrea is restored to his domains and crowned King of Italy.
1113 – Pope Paschal II issues Pie Postulatio Voluntatis, recognizing the Order of Hospitallers.
1214 – During the Anglo-French War (1213–1214), an English invasion force led by John, King of England, lands at La Rochelle in France.
1493 – While on board the Niña, Christopher Columbus writes an open letter (widely distributed upon his return to Portugal) describing his discoveries and the unexpected items he came across in the New World.
1637 – Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
1690 – Constantin Cantemir, Prince of Moldavia, and the Holy Roman Empire sign a secret treaty in Sibiu, stipulating that Moldavia would support the actions led by the House of Habsburg against the Ottoman Empire.
1764 – The city of St. Louis is established in Spanish Louisiana (now in Missouri, USA).
1798 – The Roman Republic is proclaimed after Louis-Alexandre Berthier, a general of Napoleon, had invaded the city of Rome five days earlier.
1835 – Serbia’s Sretenje Constitution briefly comes into effect.
1862 – American Civil War: Confederates commanded by Brig. Gen. John B. Floyd attack General Ulysses S. Grant’s Union forces Fort Donelson, Tennessee. Unable to break the fort’s encirclement, Lloyd surrenders the following day.
1870 – Stevens Institute of Technology is founded in New Jersey, USA and offers the first Bachelor of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering.
1879 – Women’s rights: US President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court of the United States.
1891 – Allmänna Idrottsklubben (AIK) (Swedish Sports Club) is founded.
1898 – The battleship USS Maine explodes and sinks in Havana harbor in Cuba, killing 274. This event leads the United States to declare war on Spain.
1901 – The association football club Alianza Lima is founded in Lima, Peru, under the name Sport Alianza.
1909 – The Flores Theater fire in Acapulco, Mexico kills 250.
1921 – Kingdom of Romania establishes its legation in Helsinki.
1923 – Greece becomes the last European country to adopt the Gregorian calendar.
1925 – The 1925 serum run to Nome: The second delivery of serum arrives in Nome, Alaska.
1933 – In Miami, Giuseppe Zangara attempts to assassinate US President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt, but instead shoots Chicago mayor Anton J. Cermak, who dies of his wounds on March 6, 1933.
1942 – World War II: Fall of Singapore. Following an assault by Japanese forces, the British General Arthur Percival surrenders. About 80,000 Indian, United Kingdom and Australian soldiers become prisoners of war, the largest surrender of British-led military personnel in history.
1944 – World War II: The assault on Monte Cassino, Italy begins.
1944 – World War II: The Narva Offensive begins.
1945 – World War II: Third day of bombing in Dresden.
1946 – ENIAC, the first electronic general-purpose computer, is formally dedicated at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
1949 – Gerald Lankester Harding and Roland de Vaux begin excavations at Cave 1 of the Qumran Caves, where they will eventually discover the first seven Dead Sea Scrolls.
1952 – King George VI of the United Kingdom is buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
1954 – Canada and the United States agree to construct the Distant Early Warning Line, a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic regions of Canada and Alaska.
1961 – Sabena Flight 548 crashes in Belgium, killing 73, including the entire United States figure skating team along with several of their coaches and family members.
1965 – A new red-and-white maple leaf design is adopted as the flag of Canada, replacing the old Canadian Red Ensign banner.
1971 – The decimalisation of British coinage is completed on Decimal Day.
1972 – Sound recordings are granted U.S. federal copyright protection for the first time.
1972 – José María Velasco Ibarra, serving as President of Ecuador for the fifth time, is overthrown by the military for the fourth time.
1982 – The drilling rig Ocean Ranger sinks during a storm off the coast of Newfoundland, killing 84 workers.
1989 – Soviet–Afghan War: The Soviet Union officially announces that all of its troops have left Afghanistan.
1991 – The Visegrád Agreement, establishing cooperation to move toward free-market systems, is signed by the leaders of Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland.
1992 – Serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is sentenced in Milwaukee to life in prison.
1992 – Air Transport International Flight 805 crashes near Toledo Express Airport in Ohio, killing all four people on board.
1996 – At the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in China, a Long March 3 rocket, carrying an Intelsat 708, crashes into a rural village after liftoff, killing many people.
2001 – The first draft of the complete human genome is published in Nature.
2003 – Protests against the Iraq war take place in over 600 cities worldwide. It is estimated that between eight million to 30 million people participate, making this the largest peace demonstration in history.
2010 – Two trains collide in the Halle train collision in Halle, Belgium, killing 19 and injuring 171 people.
2012 – Three hundred sixty people die in a fire at a Honduran prison in the city of Comayagua.
2013 – A meteor explodes over Russia, injuring 1,500 people as a shock wave blows out windows and rocks buildings. This happens unexpectedly only hours before the expected closest ever approach of the larger and unrelated asteroid 2012 DA14.
Births on February 15
1377 – Ladislaus of Naples (d. 1414)
1458 – Ivan the Young, son of Ivan III of Russia (d. 1490)
1471 – Piero the Unfortunate, Italian ruler (d. 1503)
1506 – Juliana of Stolberg, German countess (d. 1580)
1519 – Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, first Spanish Governor of Florida (d. 1574)
1557 – Alfonso Fontanelli, Italian composer (d. 1622)
1564 – Galileo Galilei, Italian astronomer, physicist, and mathematician (d. 1642)
1571 – Michael Praetorius, German organist and composer (probable; d. 1621)
1612 – Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, French soldier, founded Montreal (d. 1676)
1627 – Charles Morton, Cornish nonconformist minister (d. 1698)
1638 – Zeb-un-Nissa, Mughal princess and poet (d. 1702)
1705 – Charles-André van Loo, French painter (d. 1765)
1710 – Louis XV of France (d. 1774)
1725 – Abraham Clark, American surveyor, lawyer, and politician (d. 1794)
1734 – William Stacy, American colonel (d. 1802)
1739 – Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, French architect, designed the Paris Bourse (d. 1813)
1748 – Jeremy Bentham, English jurist and philosopher (d. 1832)
1759 – Friedrich August Wolf, German philologist and critic (d. 1824)
1760 – Jean-François Le Sueur, French composer and educator (d. 1837)
1797 – Henry E. Steinway, German-American businessman, founded Steinway & Sons (d. 1871)
1809 – André Dumont, Belgian geologist and academic (d. 1857)
1809 – Cyrus McCormick, American journalist and businessman, co-founded International Harvester (d. 1884)
1810 – Mary S. B. Shindler, American poet, writer, and editor (d. 1883)
1811 – Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, Argentinian journalist and politician, 7th President of Argentina (d. 1888)
1812 – Charles Lewis Tiffany, American businessman, founded Tiffany & Co. (d. 1902)
1820 – Susan B. Anthony, American suffragist and activist (d. 1906)
1825 – Carter Harrison, Sr., American lawyer and politician, 29th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1893)
1834 – V. A. Urechia, Moldavian-Romanian historian, author, and playwright (d. 1901)
1835 – Demetrius Vikelas, Greek businessman and philanthropist (d. 1908)
1840 – Titu Maiorescu, Romanian philosopher, academic, and politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1917)
1841 – Manuel Ferraz de Campos Sales, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 4th President of Brazil (d. 1913)
1845 – Elihu Root, American lawyer and politician, 38th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1937)
1847 – Robert Fuchs, Austrian composer and educator (d. 1927)
1849 – Rickman Godlee, English surgeon and academic (d. 1925)
1850 – Sophie Bryant, Irish mathematician, academic and activist (d. 1922)
1851 – Spiru Haret, Romanian mathematician, astronomer, and politician, 55th Romanian Minister of Internal Affairs (d. 1912)
1856 – Emil Kraepelin, German psychiatrist and academic (d. 1926)
1861 – Martin Burns, American wrestler and coach (d. 1937)
1861 – Charles Édouard Guillaume, Swiss-French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1938)
1861 – Alfred North Whitehead, English mathematician and philosopher (d. 1947)
1873 – Hans von Euler-Chelpin, German-Swedish biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1964)
1874 – Ernest Shackleton, Anglo-Irish captain and explorer (d. 1922)
1883 – Sax Rohmer, English-American author (d. 1959)
1890 – Robert Ley, German politician (d. 1945)
1892 – James Forrestal, American lieutenant and politician, 1st United States Secretary of Defense (d. 1949)
1892 – Roy Rene, Australian comedian (d. 1954)
1893 – Roman Najuch, Polish professional tennis player (d. 1967)
1896 – Arthur Shields, Irish republican and actor (d. 1970)
1897 – Gerrit Kleerekoper, Jewish-Dutch gymnast and coach (d. 1943)
1898 – Totò, Italian actor, singer, and screenwriter (d. 1967)
1899 – Georges Auric, French composer (d. 1983)
1899 – Gale Sondergaard, Danish-American actress (d. 1985)
1904 – Mary Adshead, English painter (d. 1995)
1904 – Antonin Magne, French cyclist and manager (d. 1983)
1905 – Harold Arlen, Jewish-American composer (d. 1986)
1907 – Jean Langlais, French organist and composer (d. 1991)
1907 – Cesar Romero, American actor (d. 1994)
1908 – Sarto Fournier, Canadian lawyer and politician, 38th Mayor of Montreal (d. 1980)
1909 – Miep Gies, Austrian-Dutch humanitarian, helped hide Anne Frank and her family (d. 2010)
1910 – Irena Sendler, Polish nurse and humanitarian, Righteous Gentile (d. 2008)
1912 – George Mikes, Jewish Hungarian-English journalist and author (d. 1987)
1913 – Erich Eliskases, Austrian chess player (d. 1997)
1914 – Hale Boggs, American lawyer and politician (d. 1972)
1914 – Kevin McCarthy, Jewish-Irish American actor (d. 2010)
1916 – Mary Jane Croft, American actress (d. 1999)
1918 – Allan Arbus, Jewish-American actor and photographer (d. 2013)
1918 – Hank Locklin, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2009)
1919 – Ducky Detweiler, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
1920 – Endicott Peabody, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 62nd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1997)
1920 – Eio Sakata, Japanese Go player (d. 2010)
1922 – John B. Anderson, Swedish-American lawyer and politician (d. 2017)
1923 – Yelena Bonner, Jewish Soviet-Russian activist (d. 2011)
1924 – Robert Drew, American director and producer (d. 2014)
1925 – Angella D. Ferguson, American pediatrician
1927 – Frank Dunlop, English actor and director
1927 – Harvey Korman, American actor and comedian (d. 2008)
1927 – Yehoshua Neuwirth, Israeli rabbi and scholar (d. 2013)
1928 – Norman Bridwell, American author and illustrator, created Clifford the Big Red Dog (d. 2014)
1928 – Joseph Willcox Jenkins, American composer, conductor, and educator (d. 2014)
1929 – Graham Hill, English race car driver and businessman (d. 1975)
1929 – James R. Schlesinger, American economist and politician, 12th United States Secretary of Defense (d. 2014)
1930 – Bruce Dawe, Australian poet and academic
1931 – Claire Bloom, English actress
1931 – Jonathan Steele, English journalist and author
1934 – Jimmy Bloomfield, English footballer and manager (d. 1983)
1934 – Graham Kennedy, Australian television host and actor (d. 2005)
1934 – Niklaus Wirth, Swiss computer scientist, created the Pascal programming language
1934 – Abe Woodson, American football player and minister (d. 2014)
1935 – Susan Brownmiller, American journalist and author
1935 – Roger B. Chaffee, American lieutenant, engineer, and astronaut (d. 1967)
1935 – Gene Hickerson, American football player (d. 2008)
1937 – Gregory Mcdonald, American author (d. 2008)
1937 – Coen Moulijn, Dutch footballer (d. 2011)
1940 – İsmail Cem İpekçi, Turkish journalist and politician, 45th Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2007)
1940 – John Hadl, American football player and coach
1940 – Hamzah Haz, Indonesian journalist and politician, 9th Vice President of Indonesia
1940 – Vaino Vahing, Estonian psychiatrist, author, and playwright (d. 2008)
1941 – Florinda Bolkan, Brazilian actress
1941 – Brian Holland, American songwriter and producer
1944 – Mick Avory, English drummer
1945 – Jack Dann, American-Australian author and poet
1945 – John Helliwell, English saxophonist and keyboard player
1945 – Douglas Hofstadter, American author and academic
1946 – Clare Short, English civil servant and politician, Secretary of State for International Development
1947 – John Adams, American composer
1947 – Marisa Berenson, American model and actress
1948 – Art Spiegelman, Swedish-American cartoonist and critic
1949 – Ken Anderson, American football quarterback and coach
1951 – Markku Alén, Finnish race car driver
1951 – Melissa Manchester, American singer-songwriter and actress
1951 – Jane Seymour, English-American actress, producer, and jewelry designer
1952 – Tomislav Nikolić, Serbian politician, 4th President of Serbia
1952 – Nikolai Sorokin, Russian actor and director (d. 2013)
1953 – Tony Adams, Irish-American screenwriter and producer (d. 2005)
1953 – Ernie Howe, English footballer, defender and manager
1954 – Matt Groening, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
1955 – Janice Dickinson, American model, agent, and author
1955 – Christopher McDonald, American actor
1956 – Desmond Haynes, Barbadian cricketer and coach
1956 – Ann Westin, Swedish comedian
1957 – Jake E. Lee, American guitarist and songwriter
1957 – Jimmy Spencer, American race car driver and sportscaster
1958 – Chrystine Brouillet, Canadian author
1958 – Tony McKegney, Canadian ice hockey player
1958 – Matthew Ward, American singer-songwriter
1959 – Adam Boulton, English journalist
1959 – Ali Campbell, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1959 – Brian Propp, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1959 – Martin Rowson, English author and illustrator
1959 – Hugo Savinovich, Ecuadorian wrestler and sportscaster
1960 – Darrell Green, American football player
1960 – Jock Hobbs, New Zealand rugby player (d. 2012)
1962 – Milo Đukanović, Montenegrin politician, 29th Prime Minister of Montenegro
1964 – Chris Farley, American comedian and actor (d. 1997)
1964 – Leland D. Melvin, American engineer and astronaut
1964 – Mark Price, American basketball player and coach
1965 – Craig Matthews, South African cricketer
1967 – Jane Child, Canadian singer-songwriter and producer
1967 – Syed Kamall, English academic and politician
1967 – Craig Simpson, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1969 – Birdman, American rapper and producer
1970 – Shepard Fairey, American artist and activist
1971 – Alex Borstein, American actress, voice artist, producer, and screenwriter
1971 – Renee O’Connor, American actress, director, and producer
1972 – Jaromír Jágr, Czech ice hockey player
1973 – Kateřina Neumannová, Czech skier
1973 – Amy van Dyken, American swimmer
1974 – Miranda July, American actress, director, and screenwriter
1974 – Ugueth Urbina, Venezuelan baseball player
1974 – Alexander Wurz, Austrian race car driver and businessman
1975 – Serge Aubin, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1975 – Annemarie Kramer, Dutch sprinter
1975 – Brendon Small, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and actor
1976 – Brandon Boyd, American singer-songwriter
1976 – Óscar Freire, Spanish cyclist
1979 – Josh Low, English footballer
1979 – Hamish Marshall, New Zealand cricketer
1979 – James Marshall, New Zealand cricketer
1979 – Scott Severin, Scottish footballer
1979 – Gordon Shedden, Scottish race car driver
1980 – Conor Oberst, American singer-songwriter
1981 – Heurelho Gomes, Brazilian international footballer, goalkeeper
1981 – Matt Hoopes, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1981 – Rita Jeptoo, Kenyan runner
1981 – Diego Martínez, Mexican footballer
1981 – Vivek Shraya, Canadian singer and songwriter
1982 – Shameka Christon, American basketball player
1982 – James Yap, Filipino basketball player
1983 – Don Cowie, Scottish footballer
1983 – David Degen, Swiss footballer
1983 – Philipp Degen, Swiss footballer
1983 – Alan Didak, Australian footballer
1983 – Russell Martin, Canadian baseball player
1985 – Serkan Kırıntılı, Turkish footballer
1986 – Valeri Bojinov, Bulgarian footballer
1986 – Johnny Cueto, Dominican baseball player
1986 – Laura Sallés, Andorran judoka
1987 – Jarrod Sammut, Australian rugby league player
1988 – Jarryd Hayne, Australian rugby league player and football player
1988 – Hironori Kusano, Japanese singer and actor
1988 – Tim Mannah, Australian-born Lebanese rugby league player
1988 – Rui Patrício, Portuguese footballer
1990 – Charles Pic, French race car driver
1991 – Ángel Sepúlveda, Mexican footballer
1993 – Ravi, South Korean rapper
Deaths on February 15
670 – Oswiu, king of Northumbria (b. c. 612)
706 – Leontios, Byzantine emperor
706 – Tiberios III, Byzantine emperor
956 – Su Yugui, Chinese chancellor (b. 895)
1043 – Gisela of Swabia, Holy Roman Empress (b. 990)
1145 – Lucius II, pope of the Catholic Church
1152 – Conrad III, king of Germany (b. 1093)
1382 – William de Ufford, 2nd Earl of Suffolk (b. c. 1339)
1417 – Richard de Vere, 11th Earl of Oxford, English commander (b. 1385)
1508 – Giovanni II Bentivoglio, tyrant of Bologna (b. 1443)
1600 – José de Acosta, Spanish Jesuit missionary and naturalist (b. 1540)
1621 – Michael Praetorius, German organist and composer (b. 1571)
1637 – Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1578)
1738 – Matthias Braun, Czech sculptor (b. 1684)
1781 – Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German philosopher, author, and critic (b. 1729)
1818 – Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen (b. 1746)
1835 – Henry Hunt, English farmer and politician (b. 1773)
1839 – François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier, Canadian rebel (b. 1803)
1842 – Archibald Menzies, Scottish surgeon and botanist (b. 1754)
1844 – Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1757)
1847 – Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician and engineer (b. 1794)
1848 – Hermann von Boyen, Prussian general and politician, Prussian Minister of War (b. 1771)
1849 – Pierre François Verhulst, Belgian mathematician and theorist (b. 1804)
1857 – Mikhail Glinka, Russian composer (b. 1804)
1869 – Ghalib, Indian poet and educator (b. 1796)
1885 – Gregor von Helmersen, Estonian-Russian geologist and engineer (b. 1803)
1897 – Dimitrie Ghica, Romanian lawyer and politician, 10th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1816)
1905 – Lew Wallace, American author, general, and politician, 11th Governor of New Mexico Territory (b. 1827)
1911 – Theodor Escherich, German-Austrian pediatrician and academic (b. 1859)
1924 – Lionel Monckton, English composer (b. 1861)
1928 – H. H. Asquith, English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1852)
1932 – Minnie Maddern Fiske, American actress and playwright (b. 1865)
1933 – Pat Sullivan, Australian animator and producer, co-created Felix the Cat (b. 1887)
1935 – Basil Hall Chamberlain, English-Swiss historian, author, and academic (b. 1850)
1939 – Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin, Russian painter and author (b. 1878)
1956 – Vincent de Moro-Giafferi, French lawyer and politician (b. 1878)
1959 – Owen Willans Richardson, English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
1961 – Laurence Owen, American figure skater (b. 1944)
1965 – Nat King Cole, American singer and pianist (b. 1919)
1966 – Gerard Antoni Ciołek, Polish architect and historian (b. 1909)
27 BCE – Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus is granted the title Augustus by the Roman Senate, marking the beginning of the Roman Empire.
378 – General Siyaj K’ak’ conquers Tikal, enlarging the domain of King Spearthrower Owl of Teotihuacán.
550 – Gothic War: The Ostrogoths, under King Totila, conquer Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison.
929 – Emir Abd-ar-Rahman III established the Caliphate of Córdoba.
1120 – The Council of Nablus is held, establishing the earliest surviving written laws of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
1362 – Saint Marcellus’s flood kills at least 25,000 people on the shores of the North Sea.
1412 – The Medici family is appointed official banker of the Papacy.
1492 – The first grammar of the Spanish language (Gramática de la lengua castellana) is presented to Queen Isabella I.
1547 – Grand Duke Ivan IV of Muscovy becomes the first Tsar of Russia, replacing the 264-year-old Grand Duchy of Moscow with the Tsardom of Russia.
1556 – Philip II becomes King of Spain.
1572 – Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England.
1605 – The first edition of El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha (Book One of Don Quixote) by Miguel de Cervantes is published in Madrid, Spain.
1707 – The Scottish Parliament ratifies the Act of Union, paving the way for the creation of Great Britain.
1757 – Forces of the Maratha Empire defeat a 5,000-strong army of the Durrani Empire in the Battle of Narela.
1780 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Cape St. Vincent.
1786 – Virginia enacts the Statute for Religious Freedom authored by Thomas Jefferson.
1809 – Peninsular War: The British defeat the French at the Battle of La Coruña.
1847 – John C. Frémont is appointed Governor of the new California Territory.
1862 – Hartley Colliery disaster: Two hundred and four men and boys killed in a mining disaster, prompting a change in UK law which henceforth required all collieries to have at least two independent means of escape.
1878 – Russo-Turkish War (1877–78): Battle of Philippopolis: Captain Aleksandr Burago with a squadron of Russian Imperial army dragoons liberates Plovdiv from Ottoman rule.
1883 – The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, establishing the United States Civil Service, is enacted by Congress.
1900 – The United States Senate accepts the Anglo-German treaty of 1899 in which the United Kingdom renounces its claims to the Samoan islands.
1909 – Ernest Shackleton’s expedition finds the magnetic South Pole.
1919 – Nebraska becomes the 36th state to approve the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. With the necessary three-quarters of the states approving the amendment, Prohibition is constitutionally mandated in the United States one year later.
1920 – Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated was founded on the campus of Howard University.
1920 – The League of Nations holds its first council meeting in Paris, France.
1921 – The Marxist Left in Slovakia and the Transcarpathian Ukraine holds its founding congress in Ľubochňa.
1942 – Crash of TWA Flight 3, killing all 22 aboard, including film star Carole Lombard.
1945 – Adolf Hitler moves into his underground bunker, the so-called Führerbunker.
1964 – Hello, Dolly! opened on Broadway, beginning a run of 2,844 performances.
1969 – Czech student Jan Palach commits suicide by self-immolation in Prague, Czechoslovakia, in protest against the Soviets’ crushing of the Prague Spring the year before.
1969 – Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 4 and Soyuz 5 perform the first-ever docking of manned spacecraft in orbit, the first-ever transfer of crew from one space vehicle to another, and the only time such a transfer was accomplished with a space walk.
1979 – The last Iranian Shah flees Iran with his family for good and relocates to Egypt.
1991 – Coalition Forces go to war with Iraq, beginning the Gulf War.
1992 – El Salvador officials and rebel leaders sign the Chapultepec Peace Accords in Mexico City, Mexico ending the 12-year Salvadoran Civil War that claimed at least 75,000 lives.
2001 – Congolese President Laurent-Désiré Kabila is assassinated by one of his own bodyguards.
2001 – US President Bill Clinton awards former President Theodore Roosevelt a posthumous Medal of Honor for his service in the Spanish–American War.
2002 – The UN Security Council unanimously establishes an arms embargo and the freezing of assets of Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the remaining members of the Taliban.
2003 – The Space Shuttle Columbia takes off for mission STS-107 which would be its final one. Columbia disintegrated 16 days later on re-entry.
2006 – Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is sworn in as Liberia’s new president. She becomes Africa’s first female elected head of state.
2016 – Thirty-three out of 126 freed hostages are injured and 23 killed in terrorist attacks in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso on a hotel and a nearby restaurant.
2018 – Myanmar police open fire on a group of ethnic Rakhine protesters, killing seven and wounding twelve.
2020 – The impeachment of Donald John Trump formally moves into its trial phase in the United States Senate.
Births on January 16
972 – Sheng Zong, emperor of the Liao Dynasty (d. 1031)
1093 – Isaac Komnenos, son of Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos (d. 1152)
1245 – Edmund Crouchback, English politician, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (d. 1296)
1362 – Robert de Vere, duke of Ireland (d. 1392)
1409 – René of Anjou, king of Naples (d. 1480)
1477 – Johannes Schöner, German astronomer and cartographer (d. 1547)
1501 – Anthony Denny, confidant of Henry VIII of England (d. 1559)
1516 – Bayinnaung, king of Burma (d. 1581)
1558 – Jakobea of Baden, Margravine of Baden by birth, Duchess of Jülich-Cleves-Berg by marriage (d. 1597)
1616 – François de Vendôme, duke of Beaufort (d. 1669)
1626 – Lucas Achtschellinck, Belgian painter and educator (d. 1699)
1630 – Guru Har Rai, Sikh Guru (d. 1661)
1634 – Dorothe Engelbretsdatter, Norwegian author and poet (d. 1716)
1675 – Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon, French soldier and diplomat (d. 1755)
1691 – Peter Scheemakers, Belgian sculptor and educator (d. 1781)
1728 – Niccolò Piccinni, Italian composer and educator (d. 1800)
1749 – Vittorio Alfieri, Italian poet and playwright (d. 1803)
1757 – Richard Goodwin Keats, English admiral and politician, 3rd Commodore-Governor of Newfoundland (d. 1834)
1807 – Charles Henry Davis, American admiral (d. 1877)
1815 – Henry Halleck, American lawyer, general, and scholar (d. 1872)
1821 – John C. Breckinridge, American general and politician, 14th Vice President of the United States (d. 1875)
1834 – Robert R. Hitt, American lawyer and politician, 13th United States Assistant Secretary of State (d. 1906)
1836 – Francis II of the Two Sicilies (d. 1894)
1838 – Franz Brentano, German philosopher and psychologist (d. 1917)
1851 – William Hall-Jones, English-New Zealand politician, 16th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1936)
1853 – Johnston Forbes-Robertson, English actor and manager (d. 1937)
1853 – Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton, Greek-English general (d. 1947)
1853 – André Michelin, French businessman, co-founded the Michelin Tyre Company (d. 1931)
1870 – Jüri Jaakson, Estonian businessman and politician, State Elder of Estonia (d. 1942)
1872 – Henri Büsser, French organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1973)
1874 – Robert W. Service, English-Canadian poet and author (d. 1958)
1875 – Leonor Michaelis, German biochemist and physician (d. 1949)
1876 – Claude Buckenham, English cricketer and footballer (d. 1937)
1878 – Harry Carey, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1947)
1880 – Samuel Jones, American high jumper (d. 1954)
1882 – Margaret Wilson, American author (d. 1973)
1885 – Zhou Zuoren, Chinese author and translator (d. 1967)
1888 – Osip Brik, Russian avant garde writer and literary critic (d. 1945)
1892 – Homer Burton Adkins, American chemist (d. 1949)
1893 – Daisy Kennedy, Australian-English violinist (d. 1981)
1894 – Irving Mills, American publisher (d. 1985)
1895 – Evripidis Bakirtzis, Greek soldier and politician (d. 1947)
1895 – T. M. Sabaratnam, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (d. 1966)
1895 – Nat Schachner, American lawyer, chemist, and author (d. 1955)
1897 – Carlos Pellicer, Mexican poet and academic (d. 1977)
1898 – Margaret Booth, American producer and editor (d. 2002)
1898 – Irving Rapper, American film director and producer (d. 1999)
1900 – Kiku Amino, Japanese author and translator (d. 1978)
1900 – Edith Frank, German-Dutch mother of Anne Frank (d. 1945)
1901 – Fulgencio Batista, Cuban colonel and politician, 9th President of Cuba (d. 1973)
1902 – Eric Liddell, Scottish runner, rugby player, and missionary (d. 1945)
1903 – William Grover-Williams, English-French race car driver (d. 1945)
1905 – Ernesto Halffter, Spanish composer and conductor (d. 1989)
1906 – Johannes Brenner, Estonian footballer and pilot (d. 1975)
1906 – Diana Wynyard, English actress (d. 1964)
1907 – Alexander Knox, Canadian-English actor and screenwriter (d. 1995)
1907 – Paul Nitze, American banker and politician, 10th United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 2004)
1908 – Sammy Crooks, English footballer (d. 1981)
1908 – Ethel Merman, American actress and singer (d. 1984)
1908 – Günther Prien, German captain (d. 1941)
1909 – Clement Greenberg, American art critic (d. 1994)
1910 – Dizzy Dean, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 1974)
1911 – Ivan Barrow, Jamaican cricketer (d. 1979)
1911 – Eduardo Frei Montalva, Chilean lawyer and politician, 28th President of Chile (d. 1982)
1911 – Roger Lapébie, French cyclist (d. 1996)
1914 – Roger Wagner, French-American conductor and educator (d. 1992)
1915 – Leslie H. Martinson, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2016)
1916 – Eddie Burns, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 2004)
1916 – Philip Lucock, English-Australian minister and politician (d. 1996)
1917 – Carl Karcher, American businessman, founded Carl’s Jr. (d. 2008)
1918 – Nel Benschop, Dutch poet and educator (d. 2005)
1918 – Allan Ekelund, Swedish director, producer, and production manager (d. 2009)
1918 – Clem Jones, Australian surveyor and politician, 8th Lord Mayor of Brisbane (d. 2007)
1918 – Stirling Silliphant, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1996)
1919 – Jerome Horwitz, American chemist and academic (d. 2012)
1920 – Alberto Crespo, Argentinian race car driver (d. 1991)
1920 – Elliott Reid, American actor and screenwriter (d. 2013)
1921 – Francesco Scavullo, American photographer (d. 2004)
1923 – Gene Feist, American director and playwright, co-founded the Roundabout Theatre Company (d. 2014)
1923 – Anthony Hecht, American poet (d. 2004)
1924 – Katy Jurado, Mexican actress (d. 2002)
1925 – Peter Hirsch, German-English metallurgist and academic
1925 – James Robinson Risner, American general and pilot (d. 2013)
1928 – William Kennedy, American novelist and journalist
1928 – Pilar Lorengar, Spanish soprano and actress (d. 1996)
1929 – Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah, Sri Lankan anthropologist and academic (d. 2014)
1930 – Mary Ann McMorrow, American lawyer and judge (d. 2013)
1930 – Norman Podhoretz, American journalist and author
1931 – John Enderby, English physicist and academic
1931 – Robert L. Park, American physicist and academic
1931 – Johannes Rau, German journalist and politician, 8th Federal President of Germany (d. 2006)
1932 – Victor Ciocâltea, Romanian chess player (d. 1983)
1932 – Dian Fossey, American zoologist and anthropologist (d. 1985)
1933 – Susan Sontag, American novelist, essayist, and critic (d. 2004)
1934 – Bob Bogle, American rock guitarist and bass player (d. 2009)
1934 – Marilyn Horne, American soprano and actress
1935 – A. J. Foyt, American race car driver
1935 – Udo Lattek, German footballer, manager, and sportscaster (d. 2015)
1936 – Michael White, Scottish actor and producer (d. 2016)
1937 – Luiz Bueno, Brazilian race car driver (d. 2011)
1937 – Francis George, American cardinal (d. 2015)
1938 – Marina Vaizey, American journalist and critic
1939 – Ralph Gibson, American photographer
1941 – Christine Truman, English tennis player and sportscaster
1942 – René Angélil, Canadian singer and manager (d. 2016)
1942 – Barbara Lynn, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1943 – Gavin Bryars, English bassist and composer
1943 – Ronnie Milsap, American singer and pianist
1944 – Dieter Moebius, Swiss-German keyboard player and producer (d. 2015)
1944 – Jim Stafford, American singer-songwriter and actor
1944 – Jill Tarter, American astronomer and biologist
1944 – Judy Baar Topinka, American journalist and politician (d. 2014)
1945 – Wim Suurbier, Dutch footballer and manager
1946 – Kabir Bedi, Indian actor
1946 – Katia Ricciarelli, Italian soprano and actress
1947 – Elaine Murphy, Baroness Murphy, English academic and politician
1947 – Harvey Proctor, English politician
1947 – Laura Schlessinger, American physiologist, talk show host, and author
1948 – John Carpenter, American director, producer, screenwriter, and composer
1948 – Ants Laaneots, Estonian general
1948 – Cliff Thorburn, Canadian snooker player
1948 – Ruth Reichl, American journalist and critic
1949 – Anne F. Beiler, American businesswoman, founded Auntie Anne’s
1949 – R. F. Foster, Irish historian and academic
1949 – Andrew Refshauge, Australian physician and politician, 13th Deputy Premier of New South Wales
1950 – Debbie Allen, American actress, dancer, and choreographer
1950 – Robert Schimmel, American comedian, actor, and producer (d. 2010)
1952 – Fuad II, King of Egypt
1952 – Piercarlo Ghinzani, Italian race car driver and manager
1952 – L. Blaine Hammond, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut
1952 – Julie Anne Peters, American engineer and author
1953 – Robert Jay Mathews, American militant, founded The Order (d. 1984)
1954 – Wolfgang Schmidt, German discus thrower
1954 – Vasili Zhupikov, Russian footballer and coach (d. 2015)
1955 – Jerry M. Linenger, American captain, physician, and astronaut
1956 – Wayne Daniel, Barbadian cricketer
1956 – Martin Jol, Dutch footballer and manager
1956 – Greedy Smith, Australian singer-songwriter and keyboardist (d. 2019)
1957 – Jurijs Andrejevs, Latvian footballer and manager
1957 – Ricardo Darín, Argentinian actor, director, and screenwriter
1957 – Mark Pawsey, English businessman and politician
1958 – Anatoli Boukreev, Russian mountaineer and explorer (d. 1997)
1958 – Lena Ek, Swedish lawyer and politician, 9th Swedish Minister for the Environment
1958 – Andris Šķēle, Latvian businessman and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Latvia
1959 – Lisa Milroy, Canadian painter and educator
1959 – Sade, Nigerian-English singer-songwriter and producer
1961 – Kenneth Sivertsen, Norwegian guitarist and composer (d. 2006)
1962 – Joel Fitzgibbon, Australian electrician and politician, 51st Australian Minister of Defence
1962 – Maxine Jones, American R&B singer–songwriter and actress
1963 – James May, British journalist/co-host of Top Gear
1964 – Gail Graham, Canadian golfer
1966 – Jack McDowell, American baseball player
1968 – Rebecca Stead, American author
1969 – Neil Back, English rugby player and coach
1969 – Marinus Bester, German footballer
1969 – Stevie Jackson, Scottish guitarist and songwriter
1969 – Roy Jones Jr., American boxer
1970 – Ron Villone, American baseball player and coach
1971 – Sergi Bruguera, Spanish tennis player and coach
1971 – Josh Evans, American film producer, screenwriter and actor
1971 – Jonathan Mangum, American actor
1972 – Ruben Bagger, Danish footballer
1972 – Ang Christou, Australian footballer
1972 – Yuri Alekseevich Drozdov, Russian footballer and manager
1972 – Ezra Hendrickson, Vincentian footballer and manager
1972 – Joe Horn, American football player and coach
1974 – Marlon Anderson, American baseball player and sportscaster
1974 – John Hopoate, Tongan-Australian rugby league player and boxer
1974 – Kate Moss, English model and fashion designer
1976 – Viktor Maslov, Russian race car driver
1976 – Martina Moravcová, Slovak swimmer
1977 – Jeff Foster, American basketball player
1978 – Alfredo Amézaga, Mexican baseball player
1979 – Aaliyah, American singer and actress (d. 2001)
1979 – Brenden Morrow, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Jason Ward, Canadian ice hockey player
1980 – Lin-Manuel Miranda, American actor, playwright, and composer
1980 – Albert Pujols, Dominican-American baseball player
1981 – Jamie Lundmark, Canadian ice hockey player
1981 – Paul Rofe, Australian cricketer
1981 – Bobby Zamora, English footballer, striker
1982 – Preston, English singer-songwriter
1982 – Tuncay, Turkish footballer
1983 – Emanuel Pogatetz, Austrian footballer
1983 – Andriy Rusol, Ukrainian footballer
1984 – Stephan Lichtsteiner, Swiss footballer
1984 – Miroslav Radović, Serbian footballer
1985 – Joe Flacco, American football player
1985 – Jayde Herrick, Australian cricketer
1985 – Gintaras Januševičius, Russian-Lithuanian pianist
1985 – Twins Jonathan and Simon Richter, Danish-Gambian footballers
1985 – Sidharth Malhotra, Indian actor
1986 – Johannes Rahn, German footballer
1986 – Mark Trumbo, American baseball player
1986 – Reto Ziegler, Swiss footballer, left back
1987 – Jake Epstein, Canadian actor
1987 – Charlotte Henshaw, English swimmer
1988 – Nicklas Bendtner, Danish footballer
1988 – Jorge Torres Nilo, Mexican footballer
1991 – Matt Duchene, Canadian ice hockey player
1993 – Hannes Anier, Estonian footballer
1993 – Amandine Hesse, French tennis player
1994 – Chris Smith, Australian rugby league player
1354 – Joanna of Châtillon, duchess of Athens (b. c.1285)
1373 – Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford (b. 1342)
1391 – Muhammed V of Granada, Nasrid emir (b. 1338)
1400 – John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter, English politician, Lord Great Chamberlain (b. 1352)
1443 – Erasmo of Narni, Italian mercenary (b. 1370)
1545 – George Spalatin, German priest and reformer (b. 1484)
1547 – Johannes Schöner, German astronomer and cartographer (b. 1477)
1554 – Christiern Pedersen, Danish publisher and scholar (b. 1480)
1585 – Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln, English admiral and politician (b. 1512)
1595 – Murad III, Ottoman sultan (b. 1546)
1659 – Charles Annibal Fabrot, French lawyer (b. 1580)
1710 – Higashiyama, Japanese emperor (b. 1675)
1711 – Joseph Vaz, Indian-Sri Lankan priest and saint (b. 1651)
1747 – Barthold Heinrich Brockes, German poet and playwright (b. 1680)
1748 – Arnold Drakenborch, Dutch lawyer and scholar (b. 1684)
1750 – Ivan Trubetskoy, Russian field marshal and politician (b. 1667)
1752 – Francis Blomefield, English historian and author (b. 1705)
1794 – Edward Gibbon, English historian and politician (b. 1737)
1809 – John Moore, Scottish general and politician (b. 1761)
1817 – Alexander J. Dallas, Jamaican-American lawyer and politician, 6th United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1759)
1834 – Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette, French mathematician and academic (b. 1769)
1856 – Thaddeus William Harris, American entomologist and botanist (b. 1795)
1864 – Anton Schindler, Austrian secretary and author (b. 1795)
1865 – Edmond François Valentin About, French journalist and author (b. 1828)
1879 – Octave Crémazie, Canadian-French poet and bookseller (b. 1827)
1886 – Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian composer and academic (b. 1834)
1891 – Léo Delibes, French pianist and composer (b. 1836)
1898 – Charles Pelham Villiers, English lawyer and politician (b. 1802)
1901 – Jules Barbier, French poet and playwright (b. 1825)
1901 – Arnold Böcklin, Swiss painter and academic (b. 1827)
1901 – Hiram Rhodes Revels, American soldier, minister, and politician (b. 1822)
1906 – Marshall Field, American businessman and philanthropist, founded Marshall Field’s (b. 1834)
1917 – George Dewey, American admiral (b. 1837)
1919 – Francisco de Paula Rodrigues Alves, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 5th President of Brazil (b. 1848)
1933 – Bekir Sami Kunduh, Turkish politician (b. 1867)
1936 – Albert Fish, American serial killer, rapist and cannibal (b. 1870)
1938 – Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Indian author and playwright (b. 1876)
1942 – Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (b. 1850)
1942 – Villem Grünthal-Ridala, Estonian poet and linguist (b. 1885)
1942 – Carole Lombard, American actress and comedian (b. 1908)
1942 – Ernst Scheller, German lawyer and politician, Mayor of Marburg (b. 1899)
1957 – Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone, English general and politician, 16th Governor General of Canada (b. 1874)
1957 – Arturo Toscanini, Italian cellist and conductor (b. 1867)
1959 – Phan Khôi, Vietnamese journalist and author (b. 1887)
1960 – Arthur Darby, English rugby player (b. 1876)
1961 – Max Schöne, German swimmer (b. 1880)
1962 – Frank Hurley, Australian photographer, director, producer, and cinematographer (b. 1885)
1962 – Ivan Meštrović, Croatian sculptor and architect, designed the Monument to the Unknown Hero (b. 1883)
1967 – Robert J. Van de Graaff, American physicist and academic (b. 1901)
1968 – Bob Jones Sr., American evangelist, founded Bob Jones University (b. 1883)
1968 – Panagiotis Poulitsas, Greek archaeologist and judge (b. 1881)
1969 – Vernon Duke, Russian-American composer and songwriter (b. 1903)
1971 – Philippe Thys, Belgian cyclist (b. 1890)
1972 – Teller Ammons, American soldier and politician, 28th Governor of Colorado (b. 1895)
1972 – Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., American singer-songwriter, pianist, producer, and actor, created Alvin and the Chipmunks (b. 1919)
1973 – Edgar Sampson, American musician and composer (b. 1907)
1975 – Israel Abramofsky, Russian-American painter (b. 1888)
1978 – A. V. Kulasingham, Sri Lankan journalist, lawyer, and politician (b. 1890)
1981 – Bernard Lee, English actor (b. 1908)
1983 – Virginia Mauret, American musician and dancer
1986 – Herbert W. Armstrong, American evangelist, author, and publisher (b. 1892)
1987 – Bertram Wainer, Australian physician and activist (b. 1928)
1988 – Andrija Artuković, Croatian politician, war criminal, and Porajmos perpetrator, 1st Minister of Interior of the Independent State of Croatia (b. 1899)
1995 – Eric Mottram, English poet and critic (b. 1924)
1996 – Marcia Davenport, American author and critic (b. 1903)
1996 – Kaye Webb, English journalist and publisher (b. 1914)
1999 – Jim McClelland, Australian lawyer, jurist, and politician, 12th Minister for Industry and Science (b. 1915)
2000 – Robert R. Wilson, American physicist and academic (b. 1914)
2001 – Auberon Waugh, English author and journalist (b. 1939)
2002 – Robert Hanbury Brown, English astronomer and physicist (b. 1916)
2003 – Richard Wainwright, English politician (b. 1918)
2004 – Kalevi Sorsa, Finnish politician 34th Prime Minister of Finland (b. 1930)
2005 – Marjorie Williams, American journalist and author (b. 1958)
2006 – Stanley Biber, American soldier and physician (b. 1923)
2007 – Benny Parsons, American race car driver and sportscaster (b. 1941)
2009 – Joe Erskine, American boxer and runner (b. 1930)
2009 – John Mortimer, English lawyer and author (b. 1923)
2009 – Andrew Wyeth, American painter (b. 1917)
2010 – Glen Bell, American businessman, founded Taco Bell (b. 1923)
2010 – Jyoti Basu, Indian lawyer and politician, 9th Chief Minister of West Bengal (b. 1914)
2010 – Takumi Shibano, Japanese author and translator (b. 1926)
2012 – Joe Bygraves, Jamaican-English boxer (b. 1931)
2012 – Jimmy Castor, American singer-songwriter and saxophonist (b. 1940)
2012 – Sigursteinn Gíslason, Icelandic footballer and manager (b. 1968)
2012 – Lorna Kesterson, American journalist and politician (b. 1925)
2012 – Gustav Leonhardt, Dutch pianist, conductor, and musicologist (b. 1928)
2013 – Wayne D. Anderson, American baseball player and coach (b. 1930)
2013 – André Cassagnes, French technician and toy maker, created the Etch A Sketch (b. 1926)
2013 – Gussie Moran, American tennis player and sportscaster (b. 1923)
2013 – Pauline Phillips, American journalist and radio host, created Dear Abby (b. 1918)
2013 – Glen P. Robinson, American businessman, founded Scientific Atlanta (b. 1923)
2014 – Gary Arlington, American author and illustrator (b. 1938)
2014 – Ruth Duccini, American actress (b. 1918)
2014 – Dave Madden, Canadian-American actor (b. 1931)
2014 – Hiroo Onoda, Japanese lieutenant (b. 1922)
2015 – Miriam Akavia, Polish-Israeli author and translator (b. 1927)
