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

On This Day / admin

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

Births on May 10

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

Deaths on May 10

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

Holidays and observances on May 10

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

May 10 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

May 8 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day / admin

453 BC – Spring and Autumn period: The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin.
413 – Emperor Honorius signs an edict providing tax relief for the Italian provinces Tuscia, Campania, Picenum, Samnium, Apulia, Lucania and Calabria, which were plundered by the Visigoths.
589 – Reccared I opens the Third Council of Toledo, marking the entry of Visigothic Spain into the Catholic Church.
1429 – Joan of Arc lifts the Siege of Orléans, turning the tide of the Hundred Years’ War.
1450 – Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI.
1516 – A group of imperial guards, led by Trịnh Duy Sản, murdered Emperor Lê Tương Dực and fled, leaving the capital Thăng Long undefended.
1541 – Hernando de Soto stops near present-day Walls, Mississippi, and sees the Mississippi River(then known by the Spanish as Río de Espíritu Santo, the name given to it by Alonso Álvarez de Pineda in 1519).
1788 – King Louis XVI of France attempts to impose the reforms of Étienne Charles de Loménie de Brienne by abolishing the parlements.
1794 – Branded a traitor during the Reign of Terror, French chemist Antoine Lavoisier, who was also a tax collector with the Ferme générale, is tried, convicted and guillotined in one day in Paris.
1821 – Greek War of Independence: The Greeks defeat the Turks at the Battle of Gravia Inn.
1842 – A train derails and catches fire in Paris, killing between 52 and 200 people.
1846 – Mexican–American War: American forces led by Zachary Taylor defeat a Mexican force north of the Rio Grande in the first major battle of the war.
1877 – At Gilmore’s Gardens in New York City, the first Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show opens.
1886 – Pharmacist John Pemberton first sells a carbonated beverage named “Coca-Cola” as a patent medicine.
1898 – The first games of the Italian football league system are played.
1899 – The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin produced its first play.
1902 – In Martinique, Mount Pelée erupts, destroying the town of Saint-Pierre and killing over 30,000 people. Only a handful of residents survive the blast.
1912 – Paramount Pictures is founded.
1919 – Edward George Honey proposes the idea of a moment of silence to commemorate the Armistice of 11 November 1918 which ended World War I.
1921 – The creation of the Communist Party of Romania.
1924 – The Klaipėda Convention is signed formally incorporating Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory) into Lithuania.
1927 – Attempting to make the first non-stop transatlantic flight from Paris to New York, French war heroes Charles Nungesser and François Coli disappear after taking off aboard The White Bird biplane.
1933 – Mohandas Gandhi begins a 21-day fast of self-purification and launched a one-year campaign to help the Harijan movement.
1941 – World War II: The German Luftwaffe launches a bombing raid on Nottingham and Derby.
1942 – World War II: The German 11th Army begins Operation Trappenjagd (Bustard Hunt) and destroys the bridgehead of the three Soviet armies defending the Kerch Peninsula.
1942 – World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea comes to an end with Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attacking and sinking the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Lexington.
1942 – World War II: Gunners of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery on Horsburgh Island in the Cocos Islands rebel in the Cocos Islands Mutiny. Their mutiny is crushed and three of them are executed, the only British Commonwealth soldiers to be executed for mutiny during the Second World War.
1945 – World War II: The German Instrument of Surrender signed at Reims comes into effect.
1945 – End of the Prague uprising, celebrated now as a national holiday in the Czech Republic.
1945 – Hundreds of Algerian civilians are killed by French Army soldiers in the Sétif massacre.
1945 – The Halifax riot starts when thousands of civilians and servicemen rampage through Halifax, Nova Scotia.
1946 – Estonian schoolgirls Aili Jõgi and Ageeda Paavel blow up the Soviet memorial which preceded the Bronze Soldier of Tallinn.
1963 – South Vietnamese soldiers under the Roman Catholic President Ngo Dinh Diem open fire on Buddhists defying a ban on the flying of the Buddhist flag on Vesak, killing nine and sparking the Buddhist crisis.
1967 – The Philippine province of Davao is split into three: Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental.
1972 – Vietnam War: U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his order to place naval mines in major North Vietnamese ports in order to stem the flow of weapons and other goods to that nation.
1973 – A 71-day standoff between federal authorities and the American Indian Movement members occupying the Pine Ridge Reservation at Wounded Knee, South Dakota ends with the surrender of the militants.
1976 – The rollercoaster The New Revolution, the first steel coaster with a vertical loop, opens at Six Flags Magic Mountain.
1978 – The first ascent of Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler.
1980 – The World Health Organization confirms the eradication of smallpox.
1984 – Corporal Denis Lortie enters the Quebec National Assembly and opens fire, killing three people and wounding 13. René Jalbert, Sergeant-at-Arms of the Assembly, succeeds in calming him, for which he will later receive the Cross of Valour.
1984 – The Thames Barrier is officially opened, preventing the floodplain of most of Greater London from being flooded except under extreme circumstances.
1987 – The SAS kills eight Provisional Irish Republican Army volunteers and a civilian during an ambush in Loughgall, Northern Ireland.
1988 – A fire at Illinois Bell’s Hinsdale Central Office triggers an extended 1AESS network outage once considered to be the “worst telecommunications disaster in US telephone industry history”.
1997 – China Southern Airlines Flight 3456 crashes on approach into Bao’an International Airport, killing 35 people.
2019 – British 17-year-old Isabelle Holdaway is reported to be the first patient ever to receive a genetically modified phage therapy to treat a drug-resistant infection.

Births on May 8

1326 – Joan I, Countess of Auvergne (d. 1360)
1427 – John Tiptoft, 1st Earl of Worcester, Lord High Treasurer (d. 1470)
1460 – Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (d. 1536)
1492 – Andrea Alciato, Italian jurist and writer (d. 1550)
1508 – Charles Wriothesley, English Officer of Arms (d. 1562)
1521 – Peter Canisius, Dutch-Swiss priest and saint (d. 1597)
1551 – Thomas Drury, English government informer and swindler (d. 1603)
1587 – Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1637)
1622 – Claes Rålamb, Swedish politician (d. 1698)
1628 – Angelo Italia, Sicilian Jesuit and architect (d. 1700)
1629 – Niels Juel, Norwegian-Danish admiral (d. 1697)
1632 – Heino Heinrich Graf von Flemming, German field marshal and politician (d. 1706)
1639 – Giovanni Battista Gaulli, Italian artist (d. 1709)
1641 – Nicolaes Witsen, Mayor of Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1717)
1653 – Claude Louis Hector de Villars, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (d. 1734)
1670 – Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire (d. 1726)
1698 – Henry Baker, English naturalist (d. 1774)
1720 – William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1764)
1735 – Nathaniel Dance-Holland, English painter and politician (d. 1811)
1737 – Edward Gibbon, English historian and politician (d. 1794)
1745 – Carl Stamitz, German violinist and composer (d. 1801)
1753 – Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, Mexican priest and rebel leader (d. 1811)
1786 – John Vianney, French priest and saint (d. 1859)
1815 – Edward Tompkins, American lawyer and politician (d. 1872)
1818 – Samuel Leonard Tilley, Canadian pharmacist and politician, 3rd Premier of New Brunswick (d. 1896)
1821 – William Henry Vanderbilt, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1885)
1824 – William Walker, American physician, lawyer, journalist and mercenary (d. 1860)
1825 – George Bruce Malleson, English-Indian colonel and author (d. 1898)
1828 – Henry Dunant, Swiss businessman and activist, co-founded the Red Cross, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1910)
1828 – Charbel Makhluf, Lebanese monk and saint (d. 1898)
1829 – Louis Moreau Gottschalk, American pianist and composer (d. 1869)
1835 – Bertalan Székely, Hungarian painter and academic (d. 1910)
1839 – Adolphe-Basile Routhier, Canadian judge, author, and songwriter (d. 1920)
1842 – Emil Christian Hansen, Danish physiologist and mycologist (d. 1909)
1846 – Oscar Hammerstein I, American businessman and composer (d. 1919)
1850 – Ross Barnes, American baseball player and manager (d. 1915)
1853 – Dan Brouthers, American baseball player and manager (d. 1932)
1856 – Pedro Lascuráin, Mexican politician, president for 45 minutes on February 13, 1913. (d. 1952)
1858 – Heinrich Berté, Slovak-Austrian composer (d. 1924)
1858 – J. Meade Falkner, English author and poet (d. 1932)
1859 – Johan Jensen, Danish mathematician and engineer (d. 1925)
1867 – Margarete Böhme, German novelist (d. 1939)
1879 – Wesley Coe, American shot putter, discus thrower, and tug of war competitor (d. 1926)
1884 – Harry S. Truman, American colonel and politician, 33rd President of the United States (d. 1972)
1885 – Thomas B. Costain, Canadian journalist and author (d. 1965)
1892 – Adriaan Pelt, Dutch journalist and diplomat (d. 1981)
1893 – Francis Ouimet, American golfer (d. 1967)
1893 – Edd Roush, American baseball player and coach (d. 1988)
1893 – Teddy Wakelam, English rugby player and sportscaster (d. 1963)
1895 – James H. Kindelberger, American businessman (d. 1962)
1895 – Fulton J. Sheen, American archbishop (d. 1979)
1895 – Edmund Wilson, American critic, essayist, and editor (d. 1972)
1898 – Aloysius Stepinac, Croatian cardinal (d. 1960)
1899 – Arthur Q. Bryan, American actor, voice actor, comedian and radio personality (d. 1959)
1899 – Friedrich Hayek, Austrian economist and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1992)
1899 – Jacques Heim, French fashion designer (d. 1967)
1901 – Turkey Stearnes, American baseball player (d. 1979)
1902 – André Michel Lwoff, French microbiologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
1903 – Fernandel, French actor and singer (d. 1971)
1903 – Mary Stewart, Baroness Stewart of Alvechurch, British politician and educator (d. 1984)
1904 – John Snagge, English journalist (d. 1996)
1905 – Red Nichols, American cornet player, composer, and bandleader (d. 1965)
1906 – Roberto Rossellini, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 1977)
1910 – George Male, English footballer (d. 1998)
1910 – Andrew E. Svenson, American author and publisher (d. 1975)
1910 – Mary Lou Williams, American pianist and composer (d. 1981)
1911 – Wilhelm Friedrich de Gaay Fortman, Dutch jurist and politician, Dutch Minister of The Interior (d. 1997)
1911 – Robert Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1938)
1912 – George Woodcock, Canadian author and poet (d. 1995)
1913 – Bob Clampett, American animator, director, and producer (d. 1984)
1913 – Sid James, South African-English actor and singer (d. 1976)
1915 – Milton Meltzer, American historian and author (d. 2009)
1916 – João Havelange, Brazilian water polo player, lawyer, and businessman (d. 2016)
1916 – Chinmayananda Saraswati, Indian spiritual leader and educator (d. 1993)
1916 – Ramananda Sengupta, Indian cinematographer (d. 2017)
1917 – John Anderson, Jr., American lawyer and politician, 36th Governor of Kansas (d. 2014)
1919 – Lex Barker, American actor (d. 1973)
1920 – Saul Bass, American graphic designer and director (d. 1996)
1920 – Tom of Finland, Finnish illustrator (d. 1991)
1920 – Sloan Wilson, American author and poet (d. 2003)
1920 – Gordon McClymont, Australian ecologist and academic (d. 2000)
1922 – Mary Q. Steele, American naturalist and author (d. 1992)
1924 – S. Vithiananthan, Sri Lankan author and academic (d. 1989)
1925 – Ali Hassan Mwinyi, Tanzanian politician, 2nd President of Tanzania
1926 – David Attenborough, English environmentalist and television host
1926 – David Hurst, German actor (d. 2019)
1926 – Don Rickles, American comedian and actor (d. 2017)
1927 – Chumy Chúmez, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2003)
1927 – László Paskai, Hungarian cardinal (d. 2015)
1928 – Robert Conley, American journalist (d. 2013)
1928 – Ted Sorensen, American lawyer, 8th White House Counsel (d. 2010)
1929 – Ethel D. Allen, American physician and politician (d. 1981)
1929 – Girija Devi, Indian classical singer (d. 2017)
1929 – Claude Castonguay, Canadian banker and politician
1929 – Miyoshi Umeki, Japanese-American actress and singer (d. 2007)
1930 – Heather Harper, Northern Irish soprano (d. 2019)
1930 – Doug Atkins, American football player (d. 2015)
1930 – René Maltête, French photographer and poet (d. 2000)
1930 – Gary Snyder, American poet, essayist, and translator
1932 – Julieta Campos, Cuban-Mexican author and translator (d. 2007)
1932 – Phyllida Law, Scottish actress
1932 – Harry Wells, Australian rugby league player
1934 – Leonard Hoffmann, Baron Hoffmann, South African-English lawyer and judge
1934 – Maurice Norman, English footballer
1934 – David Williamson, Baron Williamson of Horton, English soldier and politician (d. 2015)
1935 – Lucius Cary, 15th Viscount Falkland, Scottish politician
1935 – Princess Elisabeth of Denmark (d. 2018)
1935 – Jack Charlton, English footballer and manager
1936 – Kazuo Koike, Japanese author
1936 – Haljand Udam, Estonian orientalist and academic (d. 2005)
1937 – Bernard Cleary, Canadian journalist, academic, and politician
1937 – Mike Cuellar, Cuban-American baseball player (d. 2010)
1937 – Carlos Gaviria Díaz, Colombian lawyer and politician (d. 2015)
1937 – Thomas Pynchon, American novelist
1938 – Javed Burki, Indian-Pakistani cricketer
1938 – Jean Giraud, French author and illustrator (d. 2012)
1939 – Paul Drayton, American sprinter (d. 2010)
1940 – Peter Benchley, American author and screenwriter (d. 2006)
1940 – James Blyth, Baron Blyth of Rowington, English businessman and academic
1940 – Irwin Cotler, Canadian lawyer and politician, 47th Canadian Minister of Justice
1940 – Emilio Delgado, Mexican-American actor, “Sesame Street”
1940 – Ricky Nelson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 1985)
1940 – Toni Tennille, American singer-songwriter and keyboard player
1941 – John Fred, American singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
1941 – Bill Lockyer, American academic and politician, 30th Attorney General of California
1941 – James Traficant, American lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
1942 – Martin Dobkin, Canadian doctor and politician, 2nd Mayor of Mississauga
1942 – Robin Hobbs, English cricketer
1942 – Norman Lamont, Scottish banker and politician, Chancellor of the Exchequer
1942 – Pierre Morency, Canadian poet and playwright
1942 – Terry Neill, Irish footballer and manager
1943 – Pat Barker, English author
1943 – Johnny Greaves, Australian rugby league player
1943 – Jon Mark, English-New Zealand singer-songwriter and guitarist
1943 – Paul Samwell-Smith, English bass player and producer
1943 – Danny Whitten, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1972)
1944 – Gary Glitter, English singer-songwriter
1944 – Bill Legend, English drummer
1945 – Arthur Docters van Leeuwen, Dutch jurist and politician
1945 – Mike German, Baron German, Welsh educator and politician, Deputy First Minister for Wales
1945 – Janine Haines, Australian politician (d. 2004)
1945 – Keith Jarrett, American pianist and composer
1946 – André Boulerice, Canadian politician
1946 – Jonathan Dancy, English philosopher, author, and academic
1947 – H. Robert Horvitz, American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1947 – Felicity Lott, English soprano
1947 – John Reid, Baron Reid of Cardowan, Scottish historian and politician, Secretary of State for Defence
1948 – Steve Braun, American baseball player and coach
1948 – Stephen Stohn, American-Canadian lawyer and producer
1949 – David Vines, Australian economist and academic
1950 – Robert Mugge, American director and producer
1950 – Lepo Sumera, Estonian composer and educator (d. 2000)
1951 – Philip Bailey, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and actor
1951 – Mike D’Antoni, American basketball player and coach
1951 – Chris Frantz, American drummer and producer
1952 – Peter McNab, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
1953 – Billy Burnette, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1953 – Alex Van Halen, Dutch-American drummer
1954 – Pam Arciero, American puppeteer and voice actress
1954 – David Keith, American actor and director
1954 – John Michael Talbot, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1955 – Stephen Furst, American actor and director (d. 2017)
1955 – Mladen Markač, Croatian general
1955 – Keith Osgood, English footballer
1956 – Jeff Wincott, Canadian actor and martial artist
1957 – Bill Cowher, American football player and coach
1957 – Rino Katase, Japanese actress
1957 – Gary Lunn, Canadian lawyer and politician, 6th Canadian Minister of Natural Resources
1958 – Roddy Doyle, Irish novelist, playwright, and screenwriter
1958 – Simone Kleinsma, Dutch actress and singer
1958 – Brooks Newmark, American-English businessman and politician, Lord of the Treasury
1958 – Lovie Smith, American football player and coach
1959 – Ronnie Lott, American football player and sportscaster
1959 – David Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland, English politician
1959 – Ikue Sakakibara, Japanese actress and singer
1960 – Franco Baresi, Italian footballer and coach
1960 – Eric Brittingham, American bass player
1961 – Bill de Blasio, American politician, 109th Mayor of New York City
1961 – Gert Kruys, Dutch footballer and manager
1961 – Vallo Reimaa, Estonian academic and politician
1961 – David Winning, Canadian-American director, producer, and screenwriter
1962 – Natalia Molchanova, Russian diver (d. 2015)
1962 – David Sole, Scottish rugby player
1963 – Sylvain Cossette, Canadian singer-songwriter
1963 – Anthony Field, Australian guitarist, songwriter, producer, and actor
1963 – Michel Gondry, French director and screenwriter
1963 – Izabela Kloc, Polish politician
1963 – Aleksandr Kovalenko, Belarusian triple jumper
1963 – Rick Zombo, American ice hockey player and coach
1964 – Päivi Alafrantti, Finnish javelin thrower
1964 – Melissa Gilbert, American actress and director
1964 – Bobby Labonte, American race car driver
1964 – Nathalie Roy, Canadian lawyer and politician
1964 – Dave Rowntree, English drummer and animator
1964 – Metin Tekin, Turkish footballer, manager, and journalist
1966 – Cláudio Taffarel, Brazilian footballer and coach
1967 – Viviana Durante, Italian ballerina and actress
1967 – Angus Scott, British sports television presenter
1968 – Teet Kask, Estonian ballet dancer and choreographer
1968 – Nathalie Normandeau, Canadian politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec
1968 – Johan Pehrson, Swedish lawyer and politician
1969 – Jonny Searle, English rower
1969 – Akebono Tarō, American-Japanese sumo wrestler, the 64th Yokozuna
1969 – John Timu, New Zealand rugby player
1970 – Michael Bevan, Australian cricketer and coach
1970 – Naomi Klein, Canadian author and activist
1970 – Luis Enrique, Spanish footballer and manager
1971 – Chuck Huber, American voice actor, director, and screenwriter
1971 – Candice Night, American singer-songwriter
1972 – Darren Hayes, Australian singer-songwriter
1972 – Ray Whitney, Canadian ice hockey player
1973 – Hiromu Arakawa, Japanese author and illustrator
1973 – Jesús Arellano, Mexican footballer
1973 – Marcus Brigstocke, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
1974 – Marge Kõrkjas, Estonian swimmer
1974 – Korey Stringer, American football player (d. 2001)
1974 – Christian XXX, American pornographic star
1975 – Enrique Iglesias, Spanish-American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
1975 – Jussi Markkanen, Finnish ice hockey player
1975 – Gastón Mazzacane, Argentinian race car driver
1975 – Dmitri Ustritski, Estonian footballer
1976 – Gonçalo Abecasis, Portuguese-American biochemist and academic
1976 – Martha Wainwright, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1977 – Joe Bonamassa, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1977 – Bad News Brown, Canadian rapper, harmonica player, and actor (d. 2011)
1977 – Theodoros Papaloukas, Greek basketball player
1977 – Kathrin Bringmann, German mathematician and academic
1978 – Lúcio, Brazilian footballer
1978 – Jang Woo-hyuk, South Korean rapper and dancer
1979 – Ole Morten Vågan, Norwegian bassist
1980 – Keyon Dooling, American basketball player
1980 – Panagiotis Kafkis, Greek basketball player
1980 – Evgeny Lebedev, Russian-English publisher and philanthropist
1980 – Michelle McManus, Scottish singer-songwriter and actress
1980 – Benny Yau, Hong Kong-Canadian actor and singer
1981 – Stephen Amell, Canadian actor
1981 – Andrea Barzagli, Italian footballer
1981 – Tatyana Dektyareva, Russian hurdler
1981 – Björn Dixgård, Swedish singer-songwriter and guitarist
1981 – Manny Gamburyan, Armenian-American mixed martial artist
1981 – John Maine, American baseball player
1982 – Buakaw Banchamek, Thai kick-boxer
1982 – Christina Cole, English actress
1982 – Adrián González, American baseball player
1982 – Uğur Yıldırım, Turkish-Dutch footballer
1983 – Juan Martin Goity, Argentinian-German rugby player
1983 – Bershawn Jackson, American hurdler
1983 – Lawrence Vickers, American football player
1983 – Vicky McClure, English actress
1984 – David King, English figure skater
1985 – Tommaso Ciampa, American wrestler
1985 – Silvia Stroescu, Romanian gymnast
1985 – Sarah Vaillancourt, Canadian ice hockey player
1985 – Usama Young, American football player
1986 – Pemra Özgen, Turkish tennis player
1986 – Galen Rupp, American runner
1986 – Marvell Wynne, American soccer player
1987 – Felix Jones, American football player
1987 – Aarne Nirk, Estonian hurdler
1987 – Mark Noble, English footballer
1987 – Kurt Tippett, Australian footballer
1988 – Tanel Kurbas, Estonian basketball player
1988 – Maicon Pereira de Oliveira, Brazilian footballer (d. 2014)
1989 – Liam Bridcutt, English footballer
1989 – Lars Eller, Danish ice hockey player
1989 – Dinesh Patel, Indian baseball player
1990 – Kemba Walker, American basketball player
1991 – Ethan Gage, Canadian soccer player
1991 – Valentijn Lietmeijer, Dutch basketball player
1991 – Anamaria Tămârjan, Romanian gymnast
1992 – Kevin Hayes, American ice hockey player
1993 – Pat Cummins, Australian cricketer
1996 – 6ix9ine, American rapper
2001 – Jordyn Huitema, Canadian soccer player
2003 – Moulay Hassan, Crown Prince of Morocco

Deaths on May 8

535 – Pope John II
615 – Pope Boniface IV (b. 550)
685 – Pope Benedict II
997 – Tai Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 939)
1157 – Ahmed Sanjar, Seljuk sultan (b. 1086)
1192 – Ottokar IV, duke of Styria (b. 1163)
1220 – Richeza of Denmark, queen of Sweden
1278 – Duan Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 1269)
1319 – Haakon V, king of Norway (b. 1270)
1473 – John Stafford, 1st Earl of Wiltshire, English politician (b. 1420)
1538 – Edward Foxe, English bishop and academic (b. 1496)
1551 – Barbara Radziwiłł, queen of Poland (b. 1520)
1668 – Catherine of St. Augustine, French-Canadian nun and saint (b. 1632)
1766 – Samuel Chandler, English minister and author (b. 1693)
1773 – Ali Bey al-Kabir, Egyptian sultan (b. 1728)
1781 – Richard Jago, English priest and poet (b. 1715)
1782 – Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal, Portuguese politician, Prime Minister of Portugal (b. 1699)
1785 – Étienne François, duc de Choiseul, French general and politician, Prime Minister of France (b. 1719)
1785 – Pietro Longhi, Italian painter (b. 1701)
1788 – Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, Italian physician and botanist (b. 1723)
1794 – Antoine Lavoisier, French chemist and biologist (b. 1743)
1819 – Kamehameha I, king of the Hawaiian Islands
1822 – John Stark, American general (b. 1728)
1828 – Mauro Giuliani, Italian guitarist, cellist, and composer (b. 1781)
1837 – Alexander Balashov, Russian general and politician, Russian Minister of Police (b. 1770)
1842 – Jules Dumont d’Urville, French admiral and explorer (b. 1790)
1853 – Jan Roothaan, Dutch priest, 21st Superior General of the Society of Jesus (b. 1785)
1880 – Gustave Flaubert, French novelist (b. 1821)
1891 – Helena Blavatsky, Russian-English mystic and author (b. 1831)
1891 – John Robertson, English-Australian politician, 5th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1816)
1893 – Manuel González Flores, Mexican general and president, 1880–1884 (b. 1833)
1903 – Paul Gauguin, French painter and sculptor (b. 1848)
1907 – Edmund G. Ross, American soldier and politician, 13th Governor of New Mexico Territory (b. 1826)
1925 – John Beresford, Irish polo player (b. 1847)
1936 – Oswald Spengler, German historian and philosopher (b. 1880)
1941 – Natalie, queen consort of Serbia (b. 1859)
1941 – Tore Svennberg, Swedish actor and director (b. 1858)
1942 – Nikolai Reek, Estonian general and politician, 11th Estonian Minister of War (b. 1890)
1943 – Mordechai Anielewicz, Polish commander (b. 1919)
1944 – Themistoklis Diakidis, Greek high jumper (b. 1882)
1945 – Frank Bourne, British soldier, last survivor of the Battle of Rorke’s Drift (b. 1854)
1945 – Wilhelm Rediess, German SS officer (b. 1900)
1945 – Bernhard Rust, German lieutenant and politician (b. 1883)
1945 – Josef Terboven, German lieutenant and politician (b. 1898)
1947 – Harry Gordon Selfridge, American-English businessman, founded Selfridges (b. 1858)
1948 – U Saw, Burmese politician, Prime Minister of Burma (b. 1900)
1950 – Vital Brazil, Brazilian physician and immunologist (b. 1865)
1952 – William Fox, Austrian businessman, founded Fox Theatres (b. 1879)
1959 – John Fraser, Canadian soccer player (b. 1881)
1960 – J. H. C. Whitehead, Indian-English mathematician and academic (b. 1904)
1965 – Wally Hardinge, English cricketer and footballer (b. 1886)
1969 – Remington Kellogg, American zoologist and paleontologist (b. 1892)
1972 – Pandurang Vaman Kane, Indologist and Sanskrit scholar, Bharat Ratna awardee (b. 1880)
1972 – Beatrice Helen Worsley, Mexican-Canadian computer scientist (b. 1921)
1975 – Avery Brundage, American businessman and art collector (b. 1887)
1980 – Geoffrey Baker, English Field Marshal and Chief of the General Staff of the British Army (b. 1920)
1981 – Uri Zvi Greenberg, Israeli poet and journalist (b. 1896)
1982 – Neil Bogart, American record producer, co-founded Casablanca Records (b. 1943)
1982 – Gilles Villeneuve, Canadian race car driver (b. 1950)
1983 – John Fante, American author and screenwriter (b. 1909)
1984 – Lila Bell Wallace, American publisher, co-founded Reader’s Digest (b. 1890)
1984 – Gino Bianco, Italian-Brazilian race car driver (b. 1916)
1985 – Karl Marx, German conductor and composer (b. 1897)
1985 – Theodore Sturgeon, American author and critic (b. 1918)
1985 – Dolph Sweet, American actor (b. 1920)
1986 – Ernle Bradford, English historian and author (b. 1922)
1987 – Doris Stokes, English psychic and author (b. 1920)
1988 – Robert A. Heinlein, American science fiction writer and screenwriter (b. 1907)
1990 – Luigi Nono, Italian composer and educator (b. 1924)
1991 – Jean Langlais, French pianist and composer (b. 1907)
1991 – Rudolf Serkin, Czech-Austrian pianist and educator (b. 1903)
1992 – Joyce Ricketts, American baseball player (b. 1933)
1993 – Avram Davidson, American soldier and author (b. 1923)
1994 – George Peppard, American actor and producer (b. 1928)
1995 – Teresa Teng, Taiwanese singer (b. 1953)
1996 – Beryl Burton, English cyclist (b. 1937)
1996 – Luis Miguel Dominguín, Spanish bullfighter (b. 1926)
1996 – Larry Levis, American poet, author, and critic (b. 1946)
1996 – Garth Williams, American illustrator (b. 1912)
1998 – Johannes Kotkas, Estonian wrestler (b. 1915)
1998 – Charles Rebozo, American banker and businessman (b. 1912)
1999 – Dirk Bogarde, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1921)
1999 – Ed Gilbert, American actor (b. 1931)
1999 – Dana Plato, American actress (b. 1964)
1999 – Soeman Hs, Indonesian author and educator (b. 1904)
2000 – Pita Amor, Mexican poet and author (b. 1918)
2000 – Dédé Fortin, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1962)
2000 – Henry Nicols, American activist (b. 1973)
2003 – Elvira Pagã, Brazilian vedette, singer, and artist (b. 1920)
2005 – Jean Carrière, French author (b. 1928)
2005 – Nicolás Vuyovich, Argentinian race car driver (b. 1981)
2006 – Iain Macmillan, Scottish photographer and author (b. 1938)
2007 – Philip R. Craig, American author and poet (b. 1933)
2007 – Carson Whitsett, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer (b. 1945)
2008 – Eddy Arnold, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (b. 1918)
2008 – François Sterchele, Belgian footballer (b. 1982)
2009 – Dom DiMaggio, American baseball player (b. 1917)
2009 – Bud Shrake, American journalist and author (b. 1931)
2011 – Lionel Rose, Australian boxer (b. 1948)
2012 – Everett Lilly, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1924)
2012 – Jerry McMorris, American businessman (b. 1941)
2012 – Stacy Robinson, American football player (b. 1962)
2012 – Maurice Sendak, American author and illustrator (b. 1928)
2012 – Ampon Tangnoppakul, Thai criminal (b. 1948)
2012 – Roman Totenberg, Polish-American violinist and educator (b. 1911)
2013 – Jeanne Cooper, American actress (b. 1928)
2013 – Bryan Forbes, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1926)
2013 – Juan José Muñoz, Argentinian businessman (b. 1950)
2013 – Hugh J. Silverman, American philosopher and theorist (b. 1945)
2013 – Ken Whaley, Austrian-English bass player (b. 1946)
2014 – Roger L. Easton, American scientist, co-invented the GPS (b. 1921)
2014 – Nancy Malone, American actress, director, and producer (b. 1935)
2014 – Yago Lamela, Spanish long jumper (b. 1977)
2014 – Jair Rodrigues, Brazilian singer (b. 1939)
2014 – R. Douglas Stuart Jr., American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Norway (b. 1916)
2014 – Joseph P. Teasdale, American lawyer and politician, 48th Governor of Missouri (b. 1936)
2015 – Zeki Alasya, Turkish actor and director (b. 1943)
2015 – Mwepu Ilunga, Congolese footballer (b. 1949)
2015 – Menashe Kadishman, Israeli sculptor and painter (b. 1932)
2015 – Juan Schwanner, Hungarian-Chilean footballer and manager (b. 1921)
2015 – Atanas Semerdzhiev, Bulgarian soldier and politician, 1st Vice President of Bulgaria (b. 1924)
2016 – Tom M. Apostol, American analytic number theorist (b. 1923)
2016 – William Schallert, American actor; president (1979–81) of the Screen Actors Guild (b. 1922)
2018 – Big Bully Busick, American professional wrestler (b. 1954)
2018 – Anne V. Coates, British film editor (Lawrence of Arabia, The Elephant Man, Erin Brockovich), Oscar winner (1963) (b. 1925)
2019 – Sprent Dabwido, President of Nauru from 2011 to 2013 (b. 1972)

Holidays and observances on May 8

Christian feast day:
- Amato Ronconi
- Apparition of Saint Michael
- Arsenius the Great
- Desideratus
- Blessed Catherine of St. Augustine
- Julian of Norwich (Anglican, Lutheran)
- Magdalene of Canossa
- Our Lady of Luján
- Peter of Tarentaise
- Blessed Teresa Demjanovich (Ruthenian Catholic Church)
- May 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Earliest day on which Father’s Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (Romania)
Earliest day on which Mother’s Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (United States and others)
Earliest day on which State Flag and State Emblem Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Sunday of May. (Belarus)
Earliest day on which World Fair Trade Day can fall, while May 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Saturday of May (site of the WFTO) (International)
Emancipation Day (Columbus, Mississippi)
Furry Dance (Helston, UK)
Liberation Day (Czech Republic)
Miguel Hidalgo’s birthday (Mexico)
Parents’ Day (South Korea)
Truman Day (Missouri)
Veterans Day (Norway)
Victory in Europe Day, and its related observances (Europe):
- Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War, continues to May 9
White Lotus Day (Theosophy)
World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day (International)

May 8 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

On This Day / admin

351 – The Jewish revolt against Constantius Gallus breaks out after his arrival at Antioch.
558 – In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses, twenty years after its construction. Justinian I immediately orders that the dome be rebuilt.
1274 – In France, the Second Council of Lyon opens to regulate the election of the Pope.
1487 – The Siege of Málaga commences during the Spanish Reconquista.
1544 – The Burning of Edinburgh by an English army is the first action of the Rough Wooing.
1664 – Louis XIV of France begins construction of the Palace of Versailles.
1685 – Battle of Vrtijeljka between rebels and Ottoman forces.
1697 – Stockholm’s royal castle (dating back to medieval times) is destroyed by fire. It is replaced in the 18th century by the current Royal Palace.
1718 – The city of New Orleans is founded by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville.
1763 – Pontiac’s War begins with Pontiac’s attempt to seize Fort Detroit from the British.
1794 – French Revolution: Robespierre introduces the Cult of the Supreme Being in the National Convention as the new state religion of the French First Republic.
1824 – World premiere of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in Vienna, Austria. The performance is conducted by Michael Umlauf under the composer’s supervision.
1832 – Greece’s independence is recognized by the Treaty of London.
1840 – The Great Natchez Tornado strikes Natchez, Mississippi killing 317 people. It is the second deadliest tornado in United States history.
1846 – The Cambridge Chronicle, America’s oldest surviving weekly newspaper, is published for the first time in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
1864 – American Civil War: The Army of the Potomac, under General Ulysses S. Grant, breaks off from the Battle of the Wilderness and moves southwards.
1864 – The world’s oldest surviving clipper ship, the City of Adelaide is launched by William Pile, Hay and Co. in Sunderland, England, for transporting passengers and goods between Britain and Australia.
1895 – In Saint Petersburg, Russian scientist Alexander Stepanovich Popov demonstrates to the Russian Physical and Chemical Society his invention, the Popov lightning detector—a primitive radio receiver. In some parts of the former Soviet Union the anniversary of this day is celebrated as Radio Day.
1915 – World War I: German submarine U-20 sinks RMS Lusitania, killing 1,198 people, including 128 Americans. Public reaction to the sinking turns many former pro-Germans in the United States against the German Empire.
1915 – The Republic of China accedes to 13 of the 21 Demands, extending the Empire of Japan‘s control over Manchuria and the Chinese economy.
1920 – Kiev Offensive: Polish troops led by Józef Piłsudski and Edward Rydz-Śmigły and assisted by a symbolic Ukrainian force capture Kiev only to be driven out by the Red Army counter-offensive a month later.
1920 – Treaty of Moscow: Soviet Russia recognizes the independence of the Democratic Republic of Georgia only to invade the country six months later.
1920 – Morecambe Football Club was founded during a meeting at the West View Hotel on the town’s promenade.
1930 – The 7.1 M_w  Salmas earthquake shakes northwestern Iran and southeastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Up to three-thousand people were killed.
1931 – The stand-off between criminal Francis Crowley and 300 members of the New York Police Department takes place in his fifth-floor apartment on West 91st Street, New York City.
1937 – Spanish Civil War: The German Condor Legion, equipped with Heinkel He 51 biplanes, arrives in Spain to assist Francisco Franco’s forces.
1940 – World War II: The Norway Debate in the British House of Commons begins, and leads to the replacement of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain with Winston Churchill three days later.
1942 – World War II: During the Battle of the Coral Sea, United States Navy aircraft carrier aircraft attack and sink the Imperial Japanese Navy light aircraft carrier Shōhō; the battle marks the first time in naval history that two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
1945 – World War II: Last German U boat attack of the war, two freighters are sunk off the Firth of Forth, Scotland.
1945 – World War II: General Alfred Jodl signs unconditional surrender terms at Reims, France, ending Germany’s participation in the war. The document takes effect the next day.
1946 – Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering (later renamed Sony) is founded
1948 – The Council of Europe is founded during the Hague Congress.
1952 – The concept of the integrated circuit, the basis for all modern computers, is first published by Geoffrey Dummer.
1954 – Indochina War: The Battle of Dien Bien Phu ends in a French defeat and a Viet Minh victory (the battle began on March 13).
1960 – Cold War: U-2 Crisis of 1960: Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev announces that his nation is holding American U-2 pilot Gary Powers.
1976 – The Honda Accord is officially launched.
1986 – Canadian Patrick Morrow becomes the first person to climb each of the Seven Summits.
1992 – Michigan ratifies a 203-year-old proposed amendment to the United States Constitution making the 27th Amendment law. This amendment bars the U.S. Congress from giving itself a mid-term pay raise.
1992 – Space Shuttle program: The Space Shuttle Endeavour is launched on its first mission, STS-49.
1992 – Three employees at a McDonald’s Restaurant in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, are brutally murdered and a fourth permanently disabled after a botched robbery. It is the first “fast-food murder” in Canada.
1994 – Edvard Munch’s painting The Scream is recovered undamaged after being stolen from the National Gallery of Norway in February.
1998 – Mercedes-Benz buys Chrysler for US$40 billion and forms DaimlerChrysler in the largest industrial merger in history.
1999 – Pope John Paul II travels to Romania, becoming the first pope to visit a predominantly Eastern Orthodox country since the Great Schism in 1054.
1999 – Kosovo War: Three Chinese citizens are killed and 20 wounded when a NATO aircraft apparently inadvertently bombs the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Serbia.
1999 – In Guinea-Bissau, President João Bernardo Vieira is ousted in a military coup.
2000 – Vladimir Putin is inaugurated as president of Russia.
2002 – An EgyptAir Boeing 737-500 crashes on approach to Tunis–Carthage International Airport, killing 14 people.
2002 – A China Northern Airlines MD-82 plunges into the Yellow Sea, killing 112 people.
2004 – American businessman Nick Berg is beheaded by Islamic militants. The act is recorded on videotape and released on the Internet.

Births on May 7

Before 160 – Julia Maesa, Roman noblewoman (d. 224)
1488 – John III of the Palatinate, archbishop of Regensburg (d. 1538)
1530 – Louis, Prince of Condé (d. 1569)
1553 – Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia (d. 1618)
1605 – Patriarch Nikon of Moscow (d. 1681)
1643 – Stephanus Van Cortlandt, American politician, 10th Mayor of New York City (d. 1700)
1700 – Gerard van Swieten, Dutch-Austrian physician (d. 1772)
1701 – Carl Heinrich Graun, German tenor and composer (d. 1759)
1711 – David Hume, Scottish economist, historian, and philosopher (d. 1776)
1724 – Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser, French-Austrian field marshal (d. 1797)
1740 – Nikolai Arkharov, Russian police officer and general (d. 1814)
1748 – Olympe de Gouges, French playwright and philosopher (d. 1793)
1763 – Józef Poniatowski, Polish general (d. 1813)
1767 – Princess Frederica Charlotte of Prussia (d. 1820)
1774 – William Bainbridge, American commodore (d. 1833)
1787 – Jacques Viger, Canadian archaeologist and politician, 1st mayor of Montreal (d. 1858)
1812 – Robert Browning, English poet and playwright (d. 1889)
1833 – Johannes Brahms, German pianist and composer (d. 1897)
1836 – Joseph Gurney Cannon, American lawyer and politician, 40th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1926)
1837 – Karl Mauch, German geographer and explorer (d. 1875)
1840 – Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russian composer and educator (d. 1893)
1845 – Mary Eliza Mahoney, American nurse and activist (d. 1926)
1847 – Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1929)
1857 – William A. MacCorkle, American lawyer and politician, 9th Governor of West Virginia (d. 1930)
1860 – Tom Norman, English businessman (d. 1930)
1861 – Rabindranath Tagore, Indian author and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1941)
1867 – Władysław Reymont, Polish novelist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1925)
1875 – Bill Hoyt, American pole vaulter (d. 1951)
1880 – Pandurang Vaman Kane, Indologist and Sanskrit scholar, Bharat Ratna awardee (d. 1972)
1881 – George E. Wiley, American cyclist (d. 1954)
1882 – Willem Elsschot, Belgian author and poet (d. 1960)
1885 – George “Gabby” Hayes, American actor (d. 1969)
1889 – Viktor Puskar, Estonian colonel (d. 1943)
1891 – Harry McShane, Scottish engineer and activist (d. 1988)
1892 – Archibald MacLeish, American poet, playwright, and lawyer (d. 1982)
1892 – Josip Broz Tito, Yugoslav field marshal and politician, 1st President of Yugoslavia (d. 1980)
1893 – Frank J. Selke, Canadian ice hockey coach and manager (d. 1985)
1896 – Kathleen McKane Godfree, English tennis and badminton player (d. 1992)
1899 – Alfred Gerrard, English sculptor and academic (d. 1998)
1901 – Gary Cooper, American actor (d. 1961)
1903 – Jimmy Ball, Canadian sprinter (d. 1988)
1904 – Kurt Weitzmann, German-American historian and author (d. 1993)
1906 – Eric Krenz, American discus thrower and shot putter (d. 1931)
1909 – Edwin H. Land, American scientist and inventor, co-founded the Polaroid Corporation (d. 1991)
1909 – Dorothy Sunrise Lorentino, Native American teacher (d. 2005)
1911 – Ishirō Honda, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1993)
1911 – Rıfat Ilgaz, Turkish author, poet, and educator (d. 1993)
1912 – Pannalal Patel, Indian author (d. 1989)
1913 – John Spencer Hardy, American general (d. 2012)
1913 – Simon Ramo, American physicist and engineer (d. 2016)
1914 – Arthur Snelling, English civil servant and diplomat. British Ambassador to South Africa (d. 1996)
1916 – Huw Wheldon, Welsh-English broadcaster (d. 1986)
1916 – W. B. Young, Scottish rugby player and physician (d. 2013)
1917 – Domenico Bartolucci, Italian cardinal and composer (d. 2013)
1917 – Lenox Hewitt, Australian public servant (d. 2020)
1917 – David Tomlinson, English actor (d. 2000)
1919 – Eva Perón, Argentinian actress, 25th First Lady of Argentina (d. 1952)
1920 – Rendra Karno, Indonesian actor (d. 1985)
1921 – Asa Briggs, Baron Briggs, English historian and academic (d. 2016)
1921 – Gaston Rébuffat, French mountaineer and author (d. 1985)
1922 – Darren McGavin, American actor and director (d. 2006)
1922 – Joe O’Donnell, American photographer and journalist (d. 2007)
1923 – Anne Baxter, American actress (d. 1985)
1923 – Jim Lowe, American singer-songwriter, disc jockey, and radio host (d. 2016)
1923 – Bülent Ulusu, Turkish admiral and politician, 18th Prime Minister of Turkey (d. 2015)
1924 – Albert Band, French-American director and producer (d. 2002)
1925 – Lauri Vaska, Estonian-American chemist and academic (d. 2015)
1927 – Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, German-American author and screenwriter (d. 2013)
1929 – Dick Williams, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2011)
1930 – Totie Fields, American comedian and author (d. 1978)
1930 – Babe Parilli, American football player and coach (d. 2017)
1930 – John Smith, Baron Kirkhill, English politician
1931 – Teresa Brewer, American singer (d. 2007)
1931 – Gene Wolfe, American author (d. 2019)
1932 – Jordi Bonet, Spanish-Canadian painter and sculptor (d. 1979)
1932 – Alan Cuthbert, English pharmacologist and academic (d. 2016)
1932 – Pete Domenici, American lawyer and politician, 37th Mayor of Albuquerque (d. 2017)
1932 – Derek Taylor, English journalist and author (d. 1997)
1933 – Johnny Unitas, American football player and sportscaster (d. 2002)
1935 – Avraham Heffner, Israeli actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
1935 – Michael Hopkins, English architect
1936 – Robin Hanbury-Tenison, English explorer and author
1936 – Tony O’Reilly, Irish rugby player and businessman
1936 – Jimmy Ruffin, American soul singer (d. 2014)
1937 – Eddie Clayton, English footballer
1937 – Claude Raymond, Canadian baseball player and coach
1939 – Sidney Altman, Canadian-American biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1939 – Ruggero Deodato, Italian actor, director, and screenwriter
1939 – Ruud Lubbers, Dutch economist and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 2018)
1939 – Johnny Maestro, American pop/doo-wop singer (d. 2010)
1939 – Clive Soley, Baron Soley, English politician
1940 – Angela Carter, English novelist and short story writer (d. 1992)
1940 – Dave Chambers, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1941 – Lawrence Collins, Baron Collins of Mapesbury, English lawyer and judge
1943 – Terry Allen, American singer and painter
1943 – Harvey Andrews, English singer-songwriter and poet
1943 – John Bannon, Australian academic and politician, 39th Premier of South Australia (d. 2015)
1943 – Peter Carey, Australian novelist and short story writer
1945 – Christy Moore, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist
1945 – Robin Strasser, American actress
1946 – Thelma Houston, American R&B/disco singer and actress
1946 – Marv Hubbard, American football player (d. 2015)
1946 – Bill Kreutzmann, American drummer
1946 – Michael Rosen, English author and poet
1946 – Brian Turner, English chef and television host
1949 – Kathy Ahern, American golfer (d. 1996)
1949 – Deborah Butterfield, American sculptor
1950 – John Dowling Coates, Australian lawyer, sports administrator and businessman
1950 – Randall “Tex” Cobb, American boxer and actor
1950 – Tim Russert, American television journalist and lawyer (d. 2008)
1953 – Pat McInally, American football player and coach
1953 – Ian McKay, English sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1982)
1954 – Philippe Geluck, Belgian cartoonist
1954 – Joanna Haigh, English meteorologist and physicist
1954 – Amy Heckerling, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1955 – Clément Gignac, Canadian politician
1955 – Ben Poquette, American basketball player
1955 – Axel Zwingenberger, German pianist and songwriter
1956 – Jan Peter Balkenende, Dutch jurist and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
1956 – Anne Dudley, English pianist and composer
1956 – Nicholas Hytner, English director and producer
1956 – Jean Lapierre, Canadian talk show host and politician
1956 – Calum MacDonald, Scottish journalist and politician
1957 – Kristina M. Johnson, American business executive, engineer, academic and government official
1958 – Mikhail Biryukov, Russian footballer and manager
1958 – Mark G. Kuzyk, American physicist and academic
1958 – Anne Marie Rafferty, English nurse and academic
1959 – Michael E. Knight, American actor
1959 – Tony Sealy, English footballer, forward and manager
1959 – Heiki Valk, Estonian archeologist and academic
1960 – Adam Bernstein, American director and screenwriter
1960 – Ara Darzi, Baron Darzi of Denham, Iraqi-English surgeon and academic
1960 – Almudena Grandes, Spanish author
1961 – Hans-Peter Bartels, German politician
1961 – Sue Black, Scottish anthropologist and academic
1961 – Ivar Must, Estonian composer and producer
1962 – Tony Campbell, American basketball player and coach
1962 – Judith Donath, American computer scientist and academic
1963 – Johnny Lee Middleton, American bass player and songwriter
1964 – Ronnie Harmon, American football player
1964 – Denis Mandarino, Brazilian guitarist, composer, and painter
1964 – Leslie O’Neal, American football player
1965 – Reuben Davis, American football player
1965 – Owen Hart, Canadian wrestler (d. 1999)
1965 – Norman Whiteside, Northern Irish footballer and manager
1965 – Huang Zhihong, Chinese shot putter
1967 – Martin Bryant, Australian mass murderer
1967 – Adam Price, Danish chef and screenwriter
1967 – Joe Rice, American colonel and politician
1968 – Traci Lords, American actress and singer
1968 – Lisa Raitt, Canadian lawyer and politician, 30th Canadian Minister of Transport
1969 – Eagle-Eye Cherry, Swedish singer-songwriter
1969 – Jun Falkenstein, American director, producer, and screenwriter
1969 – Katerina Maleeva, Bulgarian tennis player
1971 – Reidar Horghagen, Norwegian drummer
1971 – Dave Karpa, Canadian ice hockey player
1971 – Thomas Piketty, French economist
1972 – Peter Dubovský, Czech-Slovak footballer (d. 2000)
1972 – Frank Trigg, American mixed martial artist and wrestler
1973 – Kristian Lundin, Swedish songwriter and producer
1973 – Paolo Savoldelli, Italian cyclist
1974 – Ian Pearce, English footballer and assistant manager
1973 – Lawrence Johnson, American pole vaulter
1975 – Ashley Cowan, English cricketer
1976 – Calvin Booth, American basketball player
1976 – Berke Hatipoğlu, Turkish guitarist and songwriter
1976 – Stacey Jones, New Zealand rugby league player
1976 – Andrea Lo Cicero, Italian rugby player
1976 – Michael P. Murphy, American lieutenant, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2005)
1976 – Ayelet Shaked, Israeli Minister of Justice (2015-2019)
1977 – Elton Flatley, Australian rugby player
1978 – Stian Arnesen, Norwegian guitarist, drummer, and songwriter
1978 – James Carter, American hurdler
1978 – Shawn Marion, American basketball player
1979 – Katie Douglas, American basketball player
1983 – Phionah Atuhebwe, Ugandan vaccinologist and immunization expert
1984 – James Loney, American baseball player
1984 – Alex Smith, American football player
1984 – Kevin Owens, Canadian wrestler
1985 – Jarrad Hickey, Australian rugby league player
1985 – Drew Neitzel, American basketball player
1986 – Matt Helders, English drummer
1987 – Asami Konno, Japanese singer
1987 – Michael Maidens, English footballer (d. 2007)
1987 – Mark Reynolds, Scottish footballer
1987 – David Schlemko, Canadian ice hockey player
1988 – Eino Puri, Estonian footballer
1988 – Sander Puri, Estonian footballer
1989 – Earl Thomas, American football player
1995 – Seko Fofana, French born Ivorian international footballer
1997 – Daria Kasatkina, Russian tennis player
1998 – Jesse Puljujärvi, Finnish ice hockey player

Deaths on May 7

721 – John of Beverley, bishop of York
833 – Ibn Hisham, Egyptian Muslim historian
973 – Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 912)
1014 – Bagrat III, 1st King of Georgia (b. 960)
1092 – Remigius de Fécamp, English monk and bishop
1166 – William I of Sicily
1202 – Hamelin de Warenne, Earl of Surrey
1205 – Ladislaus III of Hungary (b. 1201)
1234 – Otto I, Duke of Merania (b. c. 1180)
1243 – Hugh d’Aubigny, 5th Earl of Arundel
1427 – Thomas la Warr, 5th Baron De La Warr, English priest (b. 1352)
1494 – Eskender, Emperor of Ethiopia (b. 1471)
1523 – Franz von Sickingen, German knight (b. 1481)
1539 – Ottaviano Petrucci, Italian printer (b. 1466)
1617 – David Fabricius, German astronomer and theologian (b. 1564)
1667 – Johann Jakob Froberger, German organist and composer (b. 1616)
1682 – Feodor III of Russia (b. 1661)
1685 – Bajo Pivljanin (b. 1630)
1718 – Mary of Modena (b. 1658)
1793 – Pietro Nardini, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1722)
1800 – Niccolò Piccinni, Italian composer (b. 1728)
1805 – William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, Irish-English general and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1737)
1815 – Jabez Bowen, American colonel and politician, 45th Deputy Governor of Rhode Island (b. 1739)
1825 – Antonio Salieri, Italian composer and conductor (b. 1750)
1840 – Caspar David Friedrich, German painter and educator (b. 1774)
1868 – Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux, Scottish lawyer and politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1778)
1872 – Alexander Loyd, American carpenter and politician, 4th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1805)
1876 – William Buell Sprague, American clergyman, historian, and author (b. 1795)
1887 – C. F. W. Walther, German-American religious leader and theologian (b. 1811)
1896 – H. H. Holmes, American serial killer (b. 1861)
1902 – Agostino Roscelli, Italian priest and saint (b. 1818)
1917 – Albert Ball, English fighter pilot (b. 1896)
1922 – Max Wagenknecht, German pianist and composer (b. 1857)
1924 – Alluri Sitarama Raju, Indian activist (b. 1897/1898)
1925 – William Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme, English businessman and politician (b. 1851)
1937 – Ernst A. Lehmann, German captain and author (b. 1886)
1938 – Octavian Goga, Romanian politician, former Prime Minister (b. 1881)
1940 – George Lansbury, English journalist and politician (b. 1859)
1941 – James George Frazer, Scottish-English anthropologist and academic (b. 1854)
1942 – Felix Weingartner, Croatian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1863)
1943 – Fethi Okyar, Turkish colonel and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1880)
1946 – Herbert Macaulay, Nigerian journalist and politician (b. 1864)
1951 – Warner Baxter, American actor (b. 1889)
1967 – Margaret Larkin, American writer and poet (b. 1899)
1958 – Mihkel Lüdig, Estonian organist, composer, and conductor (b. 1880)
1976 – Alison Uttley, English children’s book writer (b. 1884)
1978 – Mort Weisinger, American journalist and author (b. 1915)
1986 – Haldun Taner, Turkish playwright and author (b. 1915)
1987 – Colin Blakely, Northern Irish actor (b. 1930)
1987 – Paul Popham, American soldier and activist, co-founded Gay Men’s Health Crisis (b. 1941)
1990 – Sam Tambimuttu, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (b. 1932)
1994 – Clement Greenberg, American art critic (b. 1909)
1995 – Ray McKinley, American drummer, singer, and bandleader (Glenn Miller Orchestra) (b. 1910)
1998 – Allan McLeod Cormack, South African-English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1924)
1998 – Eddie Rabbitt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1941)
2000 – Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., American captain, actor, and producer (b. 1909)
2001 – Jacques de Bourbon-Busset, French author and politician (b. 1912)
2004 – Waldemar Milewicz, Polish journalist (b. 1956)
2005 – Tristan Egolf, American author and activist (b. 1971)
2005 – Peter Rodino, American captain and politician (b. 1909)
2005 – Otilino Tenorio, Ecuadorian footballer (b. 1980)
2006 – Richard Carleton, Australian journalist (b. 1943)
2006 – Joan C. Edwards, American singer and philanthropist (b. 1918)
2007 – Isabella Blow, English magazine editor (b. 1958)
2007 – Diego Corrales, American boxer (b. 1977)
2007 – Octavian Paler, Romanian journalist and politician (b. 1926)
2007 – Yahweh ben Yahweh, American cult leader, founded the Nation of Yahweh (b. 1935)
2009 – David Mellor, English designer (b. 1930)
2009 – Danny Ozark, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1923)
2011 – Seve Ballesteros, Spanish golfer (b. 1957)
2011 – Willard Boyle, Canadian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1924)
2011 – Big George, English songwriter, producer, and radio host (b. 1957)
2012 – Sammy Barr, Scottish trade union leader (b. 1931)
2012 – Ferenc Bartha, Hungarian economist and politician (b. 1943)
2012 – Dennis E. Fitch, American captain and pilot (b. 1942)
2013 – Ferruccio Mazzola, Italian footballer and manager (b. 1948)
2013 – George Sauer, Jr., American football player (b. 1943)
2014 – Neville McNamara, Australian air marshal (b. 1923)
2014 – Colin Pillinger, English astronomer, chemist, and academic (b. 1943)
2014 – Dick Welteroth, American baseball player (b. 1927)
2015 – Frank DiPascali, American businessman (b. 1956)
2015 – John Dixon, Australian-American author, and illustrator (b. 1929)

Holidays and observances on May 7

Christian feast day:
- Agathius of Byzantium
- Agostino Roscelli
- Pope Benedict II
- Flavia Domitilla
- Gisela of Hungary
- Harriet Starr Cannon (Episcopal Church (USA))
- John of Beverley
- Rose Venerini
- Stanislaus (Roman Martyrology)
- May 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Defender of the Fatherland Day (Kazakhstan)
Dien Bien Phu Victory Day (Vietnam)
Radio Day, commemorating the work of Alexander Popov (Russia, Bulgaria)

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

On This Day

May 2 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day / admin

May 2 in History

1194 – King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter
1230 – William de Braose is hanged by Prince Llywelyn the Great.
1335 – Otto the Merry, Duke of Austria, becomes Duke of Carinthia.
1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, is arrested and imprisoned on charges of adultery, incest, treason and witchcraft.
1559 – John Knox returns from exile to Scotland to become the leader of the nascent Scottish Reformation.
1568 – Mary, Queen of Scots, escapes from Loch Leven Castle.
1611 – The King James Version of the Bible is published for the first time in London, England, by printer Robert Barker.
1625 – Afonso Mendes, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Latin Patriarch of Ethiopia, arrives at Beilul from Goa.
1670 – King Charles II of England grants a permanent charter to the Hudson’s Bay Company to open up the fur trade in North America.
1672 – John Maitland becomes Duke of Lauderdale and Earl of March.
1808 – Outbreak of the Peninsular War: The people of Madrid rise up in rebellion against French occupation. Francisco de Goya later memorializes this event in his painting The Second of May 1808.
1812 – The Siege of Cuautla during the Mexican War of Independence ends with both sides claiming victory after Mexican rebels under José María Morelos y Pavón abandon the city after 72 days under siege by royalist Spanish troops under Félix María Calleja.
1816 – Marriage of Léopold of Saxe-Coburg and Princess Charlotte of Wales.
1829 – After anchoring nearby, Captain Charles Fremantle of HMS Challenger, declares the Swan River Colony in Australia.
1863 – American Civil War: Stonewall Jackson is wounded by friendly fire while returning to camp after reconnoitering during the Battle of Chancellorsville. He succumbs to pneumonia eight days later.
1866 – Peruvian defenders fight off the Spanish fleet at the Battle of Callao.
1876 – The April Uprising breaks out in Ottoman Bulgaria.
1879 – The Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party is founded in Madrid by Pablo Iglesias.
1885 – Cree and Assiniboine warriors win the Battle of Cut Knife, their largest victory over Canadian forces during the North-West Rebellion.
1889 – Menelik II, Emperor of Ethiopia, signs the Treaty of Wuchale, giving Italy control over Eritrea.
1906 – Closing ceremony of the Intercalated Games in Athens, Greece.
1918 – General Motors acquires the Chevrolet Motor Company of Delaware.
1920 – The first game of the Negro National League baseball is played in Indianapolis.
1933 – Germany’s independent labor unions are replaced by the German Labour Front.
1941 – Following the coup d’état against Iraq Crown Prince ‘Abd al-Ilah earlier that year, the United Kingdom launches the Anglo-Iraqi War to restore him to power.
1945 – World War II: The Soviet Union announces the fall of Berlin.
1945 – World War II: The surrender of Caserta comes into effect, by which German troops in Italy cease fighting.
1945 – World War II: The US 82nd Airborne Division liberates Wöbbelin concentration camp finding 1000 dead prisoners, most of whom starved to death.
1945 – World War II: A death march from Dachau to the Austrian border is halted by the segregated, all-Nisei 522nd Field Artillery Battalion of the U.S. Army in southern Bavaria, saving several hundred prisoners.
1952 – A De Havilland Comet makes the first jetliner flight with fare-paying passengers, from London to Johannesburg.
1955 – Tennessee Williams wins the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
1963 – Berthold Seliger launches a rocket with three stages and a maximum flight altitude of more than 100 kilometres near Cuxhaven. It is the only sounding rocket developed in Germany.
1964 – Vietnam War: An explosion sinks the American aircraft carrier USNS Card while it is docked at Saigon. Two Viet Cong combat swimmers had placed explosives on the ship’s hull. She is raised and returned to service less than seven months later.
1964 – First ascent of Shishapangma, the fourteenth highest mountain in the world and the lowest of the Eight-thousanders.
1969 – The British ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 departs on her maiden voyage to New York City.
1972 – In the early morning hours a fire breaks out at the Sunshine Mine located between Kellogg and Wallace, Idaho, killing 91 workers.
1982 – Falklands War: The British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror sinks the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano.
1986 – Chernobyl disaster: The City of Chernobyl is evacuated six days after the disaster.
1989 – Cold War: Hungary begins dismantling its border fence with Austria, which allows a number of East Germans to defect.
1994 – A bus crashes in Gdańsk, Poland killing 32 people.
1995 – During the Croatian War of Independence, the Army of the Republic of Serb Krajina fires cluster bombs at Zagreb, killing seven and wounding over 175 civilians.
1998 – The European Central Bank is founded in Brussels in order to define and execute the European Union’s monetary policy.
1999 – Panamanian general election, 1999: Mireya Moscoso becomes the first woman to be elected President of Panama.
2000 – President Bill Clinton announces that accurate GPS access would no longer be restricted to the United States military.
2004 – The Yelwa massacre concludes. It began on 4 February 2004 when armed Muslims killed 78 Christians at Yelwa. In response, about 630 Muslims were killed by Christians on May 2nd.
2008 – Cyclone Nargis makes landfall in Burma killing over 138,000 people and leaving millions of people homeless.
2008 – Chaitén Volcano begins erupting in Chile, forcing the evacuation of more than 4,500 people.
2011 – Osama bin Laden, the suspected mastermind behind the September 11 attacks and the FBI’s most wanted man, is killed by the United States special forces in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
2011 – An E. coli outbreak strikes Europe, mostly in Germany, leaving more than 30 people dead and many others sick from the bacteria outbreak.
2012 – A pastel version of The Scream, by Norwegian painter Edvard Munch, sells for $120 million in a New York City auction, setting a new world record for a work of art at auction.
2014 – Two mudslides in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, leave up to 2,500 people missing.

Births on May 2

1360 – Yongle Emperor of China (d. 1424)
1402 – Eleanor of Aragon, Queen of Portugal (d. 1445)
1451 – René II, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1508)
1458 – Eleanor of Viseu (d. 1525)
1476 – Charles I, Duke of Münsterberg-Oels, Count of Kladsko, Governor of Bohemia and Silesia (d. 1536)
1533 – Philip II, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen (d. 1596)
1551 – William Camden, English historian and topographer (d. 1623)
1567 – Sebald de Weert, Dutch captain, vice-admiral of the Dutch East India Company (d. 1603)
1579 – Tokugawa Hidetada, Japanese shōgun (d. 1632)
1601 – Athanasius Kircher, German priest and scholar (d. 1680)
1660 – Alessandro Scarlatti, Italian composer (d. 1725)
1695 – Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, Italian-French painter and architect (d. 1766)
1702 – Friedrich Christoph Oetinger, German theologian and theosopher (d. 1782)
1707 – Jean-Baptiste Barrière, French cellist and composer (d. 1747)
1729 – Catherine the Great of Russia (d. 1796)
1737 – William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, Irish-English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1805)
1740 – Elias Boudinot, American lawyer and politician, 10th President of the Continental Congress (d. 1821)
1750 – John André, English soldier and spy (d. 1780)
1752 – Ludwig August Lebrun, German oboe player and composer (d. 1790)
1754 – Vicente Martín y Soler, Spanish composer (d. 1806)
1772 – Novalis, German author and poet (d. 1801)
1773 – Henrik Steffens, Norwegian philosopher and poet (d. 1845)
1797 – Abraham Pineo Gesner, Canadian physician and geologist (d. 1864)
1802 – Heinrich Gustav Magnus, German chemist and physicist (d. 1870)
1806 – Catherine Labouré, French nun and saint (d. 1876)
1810 – Hans Christian Lumbye, Danish composer and conductor (d. 1874)
1813 – Caroline Leigh Gascoigne, English novelist and poet (d. 1883)
1815 – William Buell Richards, Canadian lawyer and judge, 1st Chief Justice of Canada (d. 1889)
1822 – Jane Miller Thengberg, Scottish-Swedish governess and educator (d. 1902)
1828 – Désiré Charnay, French archaeologist and photographer (d. 1915)
1830 – Otto Staudinger, German entomologist and author (d. 1900)
1843 – Elijah McCoy, Canadian-American engineer (d. 1929)
1859 – Jerome K. Jerome, English author and playwright (d. 1927)
1860 – John Scott Haldane, Scottish physiologist, physician, and academic (d. 1936)
1860 – Theodor Herzl, Austro-Hungarian Zionist philosopher, journalist and author (d. 1904)
1865 – Clyde Fitch, American playwright (d. 1909)
1867 – Giuseppe Morello, Italian-American mobster (d. 1930)
1873 – Jurgis Baltrušaitis, Lithuanian poet, critic, and translator (d. 1944)
1879 – James F. Byrnes, American stenographer and politician, 49th United States Secretary of State (d. 1972)
1880 – Bill Horr, American football player, discus thrower, and coach (d. 1955)
1882 – Isabel González, Puerto Rican activist who helped pave the way for Puerto Ricans’ American citizenship (d. 1971)
1885 – Hedda Hopper, American actress and gossip columnist (d. 1966)
1886 – Gottfried Benn, German author and poet (d. 1956)
1887 – Vernon Castle, English-American dancer (d. 1918)
1887 – Eddie Collins, American baseball player and manager (d. 1951)
1889 – Ki Hajar Dewantara, Indonesian philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1959)
1890 – E. E. Smith, American engineer and author (d. 1965)
1892 – Manfred von Richthofen, German captain and pilot (d. 1918)
1894 – Norma Talmadge, leading US actress of the silent era (d. 1957)
1894 – Joseph Henry Woodger, English biologist, philosopher, and academic (d. 1981)
1895 – Lorenz Hart, American playwright and lyricist (d. 1943)
1897 – John Frederick Coots, American songwriter (d. 1985)
1898 – Henry Hall, English bandleader, composer, and actor (d. 1989)
1901 – Bob Wyatt, English cricketer (d. 1995)
1901 – Edouard Zeckendorf, Belgian doctor, army officer and mathematician (d. 1983)
1901 – Willi Bredel, German writer (d. 1964)
1902 – Brian Aherne, English actor (d. 1986)
1902 – Werner Finck, German Kabarett comedian, actor and author (d. 1978)
1903 – Benjamin Spock, American rower, pediatrician, and author (d. 1998)
1904 – Bill Brandt, German-English photographer and journalist (d. 1983)
1905 – Alan Rawsthorne, British composer (d. 1971)
1905 – Charlotte Armstrong, American author (d. 1969)
1906 – Philippe Halsman, Latvian-American photographer (d. 1979)
1907 – Pinky Lee, American comedian and television host (d. 1993)
1908 – Frank Rowlett, American cryptologist (d. 1998)
1909 – Teddy Stauffer, Swiss bandleader, musician, and actor (d. 1991)
1910 – Alexander Bonnyman, Jr., American lieutenant, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1943)
1910 – Edmund Bacon, American urban planner, architect, educator, and author (d. 2005)
1912 – Axel Springer, German journalist and publisher, founded Axel Springer AG (d. 1985)
1912 – Karl Adam, German rowing coaches (d. 1976)
1912 – Marten Toonder, Dutch comic strip creator (d. 2005)
1912 – Nigel Patrick, English actor and director (d. 1981)
1913 – Pietro Frua, Italian coachbuilder and car designer (d. 1983)
1913 – Aydın Sayılı, Turkish historian and academic (d. 1993)
1915 – Doris Fisher, American singer-songwriter (d. 2003)
1915 – Peggy Mount, English actress (d. 2001)
1917 – Albert Castelyns, Belgian water polo player and bobsledder
1917 – Văn Tiến Dũng, Vietnamese general and politician, 6th Minister of Defence for Vietnam (d. 2002)
1920 – Jean-Marie Auberson, Swiss violinist and conductor (d. 2004)
1920 – Otto Buchsbaum, Austrian-Brazilian journalist and activist (d. 2000)
1920 – Vasantrao Deshpande, Indian singer and sitar player (d. 1983)
1920 – Guinn Smith, American pole vaulter, soldier, and pilot (d. 2004)
1920 – Jacob Gilboa, Israeli composer (d. 2007)
1921 – B. B. Lal, Indian archaeologist
1921 – Satyajit Ray, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1992)
1922 – Roscoe Lee Browne, American actor and director (d. 2007)
1922 – A. M. Rosenthal, Canadian-born American journalist and author (d. 2006)
1922 – Serge Reggiani, Italian-born French singer and actor (d. 2004)
1923 – Patrick Hillery, Irish physician and politician, 6th President of Ireland (d. 2008)
1923 – Albert Nordengen, Norwegian banker and politician (d. 2004)
1924 – Jamal Abro, Pakistani lawyer and author (d. 2004)
1924 – Theodore Bikel, Austrian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 2015)
1924 – Arthur Clues, Australian rugby league player (d. 1998)
1924 – Hugh Cortazzi, English soldier, historian, and diplomat, British Ambassador to Japan (d. 2018)
1925 – John Neville, English-Canadian actor (d. 2011)
1926 – Gérard D. Levesque, Canadian lawyer and politician, 5th Deputy Premier of Quebec (d. 1993)
1927 – Ray Barrett, Australian actor and singer (d. 2009)
1927 – Amos Kenan, Israeli columnist, painter, sculptor, playwright and novelist (d. 2009)
1927 – Michael Broadbent, British wine critic and writer (d. 2020)
1928 – Hans Trass, Estonian ecologist and botanist (d. 2017)
1928 – Georges-Arthur Goldschmidt, French writer and translator of German origin
1928 – Horst Stein, German conductor (d. 2008)
1929 – Édouard Balladur, Turkish-French economist and politician, 162nd Prime Minister of France
1929 – James Dillion, American discus thrower (d. 2010)
1929 – Link Wray, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2005)
1929 – Jigme Dorji Wangchuck, Druk Gyalpo of Bhutan (d. 1972)
1930 – Yoram Kaniuk, Israeli painter and critic (d. 2013)
1930 – Marco Pannella, Italian journalist and politician (d. 2016)
1931 – Phil Bruns, American actor and stuntman (d. 2012)
1931 – Martha Grimes, American author and poet
1932 – Maury Allen, American journalist, actor, and author (d. 2010)
1933 – Bunk Gardner, American musician
1933 – Harry Woolf, Baron Woolf, English lawyer and judge, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
1934 – Manfred Durniok, German film producer, director and screenwriter (d. 2003)
1935 – Luis Suárez Miramontes, Spanish footballer and manager
1935 – Faisal II of Iraq, the last King of Iraq (d.1958)
1936 – Norma Aleandro, Argentinian actress, director, and screenwriter
1936 – Engelbert Humperdinck, English singer and pianist
1936 – Michael Rabin, American violinist (d. 1972)
1937 – Klaus Enders, German motorcycle sidecar racer (d. 2019)
1937 – Lorenzo Music, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2001)
1937 – Gisela Elsner, German writer (d. 1992)
1938 – Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho (d. 1996)
1939 – Sumio Iijima, Japanese physicist and engineer
1939 – Ernesto Castano, Italian football player
1940 – Jules Albert Wijdenbosch, Surinamese politician
1941 – Tony Adamowicz, American race car driver (d. 2016)
1941 – Bruce Cameron, Scottish bishop
1941 – Clay Carroll, American baseball player
1941 – Eddy Louiss, French jazz musician (d. 2015)
1942 – Jacques Rogge, Belgian businessman
1942 – Wojciech Pszoniak, Polish film and theater actor
1944 – Robert G. W. Anderson, English chemist, historian, and curator
1945 – Randy Cain, American soul singer (d. 2009)
1945 – Judge Dread, English singer-songwriter (d. 1998)
1945 – Bianca Jagger, Nicaraguan-American model, actress, and activist
1945 – Goldy McJohn, Canadian keyboard player (d. 2017)
1946 – Peter L. Benson, American psychologist and academic (d. 2011)
1946 – Lesley Gore, American singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
1946 – David Suchet, English actor
1947 – James Dyson, English businessman, founded the Dyson Company
1947 – Lynda Myles, English screenwriter and producer
1947 – Philippe Herreweghe, Belgian conductor
1948 – Larry Gatlin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1949 – Alan Titchmarsh, English gardener and author
1949 – Alfons Schuhbeck, German celebrity chef, author and businessman
1950 – Simon Gaskell, English chemist and academic
1950 – Duncan Gay, Australian businessman and politician
1950 – Lou Gramm, American singer-songwriter
1950 – Richard Ground, English lawyer and judge (d. 2014)
1950 – Fausto Silva, Brazilian television presenter
1951 – John Glascock, English singer and bass player (d. 1979)
1952 – Chris Anderson, Australian rugby league player and coach
1952 – Christine Baranski, American actress and singer
1952 – Isla St Clair, Scottish singer and actress
1953 – Valery Gergiev, Russian conductor and director
1953 – Jamaal Wilkes, American basketball player
1954 – Elliot Goldenthal, American composer and conductor
1954 – Dawn Primarolo, English politician
1954 – Stephen Venables, English mountaineer and author
1955 – Willie Miller, Scottish footballer
1955 – Donatella Versace, Italian fashion designer
1956 – Régis Labeaume, Canadian businessman and politician, 41st Mayor of Quebec City
1958 – Yasushi Akimoto, Japanese songwriter and producer
1958 – Stanislav Levý, Czech footballer and manager
1958 – David O’Leary, English-Irish footballer and manager
1959 – Alan Best, Canadian animator, director, and producer
1959 – Tony Wakeford, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1960 – Stephen Daldry, English director and producer
1961 – Steve James, English snooker player
1961 – Sophie Thibault, Canadian journalist
1961 – Phil Vickery, English chef and author
1962 – Elizabeth Berridge, American actress
1962 – Michael Grandage, English director and producer
1962 – Jimmy White, English snooker player
1965 – Félix José, Dominican-American baseball player
1966 – Uwe Freiler, German footballer
1966 – Margus Kolga, Estonian diplomat
1966 – Belinda Stronach, Canadian businesswoman, philanthropist, and politician
1967 – Bengt Åkerblom, Swedish ice hockey player (d. 1995)
1967 – Mika Brzezinski, American journalist and author
1967 – David Rocastle, English footballer (d. 2001)
1968 – Jeff Agoos, Swiss-American soccer player, manager, and sportscaster
1968 – Julia Hartley-Brewer, English broadcaster and columnist
1968 – Ziana Zain, Malaysian singer-songwriter and actress
1969 – Brian Lara, Trinidadian cricketer
1970 – Marco Walker, Swiss footballer and coach
1971 – Musashimaru Kōyō, Samoan-American sumo wrestler, the 67th Yokozuna
1971 – Fatima Yusuf, Nigerian sprinter
1972 – Paul Adcock, English footballer
1972 – Ahti Heinla, Estonian programmer and businessman, co-developed Skype
1972 – Dwayne Johnson, American-Canadian wrestler, actor, and producer
1973 – Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, German director and screenwriter
1974 – Horacio Carbonari, Argentinian footballer and manager
1974 – Andy Johnson, English-Welsh footballer
1974 – Janek Meet, Estonian footballer
1975 – David Beckham, English footballer, coach, and model
1975 – Joe Wilkinson, English comedian, actor and writer
1976 – Jeff Gutt, American singer-songwriter
1977 – Brian Cardinal, American basketball player
1977 – Jan Fitschen, German runner
1977 – Luke Hudson, American baseball player
1977 – Fredrik Malm, Swedish journalist and politician
1977 – Jenna von Oÿ, American actress and singer
1977 – Kalle Palander, Finnish skier
1978 – Melvin Ely, American basketball player
1978 – Mike Weaver, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Jason Chimera, Canadian ice hockey player
1979 – Ioannis Kanotidis, Greek footballer
1979 – Defne Joy Foster, Turkish-American actress, presenter and VJ (d. 2011)
1980 – Tim Borowski, German footballer
1980 – Pierre-Luc Gagnon, Canadian skateboarder
1980 – Ellie Kemper, American actress, comedian and writer
1980 – Zat Knight, English footballer
1980 – Artūras Masiulis, Lithuanian basketball player
1980 – Troy Murphy, American basketball player
1980 – Lassaâd Ouertani, Tunisian footballer (d. 2013)
1980 – Brad Richards, Canadian ice hockey player
1980 – Vincent Tong, Canadian actor, singer, voice actor and director
1981 – Robert Buckley, American actor
1981 – Chris Kirkland, English footballer
1981 – Tiago Mendes, Portuguese footballer
1981 – Matt Murray, English footballer
1981 – Rina Satō, Japanese voice actress and singer
1982 – Timothy Benjamin, Welsh sprinter
1982 – Johan Botha, South African cricketer
1983 – Alessandro Diamanti, Italian footballer
1983 – Maynor Figueroa, Honduran footballer
1983 – Tina Maze, Slovenian skier
1983 – Daniel Sordo, Spanish race car driver
1983 – Ove Vanebo, Norwegian politician
1984 – Saulius Mikoliūnas, Lithuanian footballer
1984 – Thabo Sefolosha, Swiss basketball player
1985 – Lily Allen, English singer-songwriter and actress
1985 – Kyle Busch, American race car driver
1985 – Ashley Harkleroad, American tennis player
1985 – Sarah Hughes, American figure skater
1987 – Saara Aalto, Finnish singer and actress
1987 – Nana Kitade, Japanese singer-songwriter and actress
1987 – Pat McAfee, American football player
1987 – Kris Russell, Canadian ice hockey player
1987 – Justin Young, English singer and songwriter
1988 – Neftalí Feliz, Dominican baseball player
1988 – Stephen Henderson, Irish footballer
1989 – Jeanette Pohlen, American basketball player
1990 – Kay Panabaker, American actress
1990 – Paul George, American basketball player
1991 – Jeong Jinwoon, South Korean actor and singer
1992 – Sunmi, South Korean singer
1992 – María Teresa Torró Flor, Spanish tennis player
1993 – Owain Doull, Welsh track cyclist
1993 – Isyana Sarasvati, Indonesian singer
1993 – Huang Zitao, Chinese singer and rapper
1996 – Cherprang Areekul, Thai singer
1996 – Julian Brandt, German footballer
1996 – Schuyler Bailar, American swimmer
2015 – Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, British royal, and fourth in line to the British throne

Deaths on May 2

373 – Athanasius of Alexandria, Egyptian bishop and saint (b. 298)
649 – Marutha of Tikrit, Persian theologian of the Syriac Orthodox Church (b. 565)
821 – Liu Zong, general of the Tang Dynasty
907 – Boris I of Bulgaria
1219 – Leo I, King of Armenia (b. 1150)
1230 – William de Braose, English son of Reginald de Braose (b. 1197)
1293 – Meir of Rothenburg, German rabbi (b. c.1215)
1300 – Blanche of Artois (b. 1248)
1450 – William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk, English admiral (b. 1396)
1519 – Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, and architect (b. 1452)
1564 – Rodolfo Pio da Carpi, Italian cardinal (b. 1500)
1627 – Lodovico Grossi da Viadana, Italian composer and educator (b. 1560)
1667 – George Wither, English poet and author (b. 1588)
1683 – Stjepan Gradić, Croatian philosopher and mathematician (b. 1613)
1711 – Laurence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester, English politician, First Lord of the Treasury (b. 1641)
1799 – Juan Vicente de Güemes, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo (b. 1740)
1802 – Herman Willem Daendels, Dutch general and politician, Governor-General of the Dutch Gold Coast (b. 1762)
1810 – Henry Jerome de Salis, English priest (b. 1740)
1819 – Mary Moser, English painter and academic (b. 1744)
1857 – Alfred de Musset, French dramatist, poet, and novelist (b. 1810)
1864 – Giacomo Meyerbeer, German composer and educator (b. 1791)
1880 – Eberhard Anheuser, German-American businessman, co-founded Anheuser-Busch (b. 1805)
1880 – Tom Wills, Australian cricketer, co-created Australian rules football (b. 1835)
1885 – Terézia Zakoucs, Hungarian-Slovene author (b. 1817)
1915 – Clara Immerwahr, German chemist (b. 1870)
1918 – Jüri Vilms, Estonian lawyer and politician (b. 1889)
1925 – Antun Branko Šimić, Croatian and Bosnian-Herzegovinian poet (b. 1898)
1927 – Ernest Starling, English physiologist and academic (b. 1866)
1929 – Charalambos Tseroulis, Greek general and politician, Greek Minister for Military Affairs (b. 1879)
1941 – Penelope Delta, Greek author (b. 1874)
1945 – Martin Bormann, German politician (b. 1900)
1945 – Joe Corbett, American baseball player and journalist (b. 1875)
1947 – Dorothea Binz, German SS officer (b. 1920)
1953 – Wallace Bryant, American archer (b. 1863)
1957 – Joseph McCarthy, American captain, lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1908)
1963 – Ronald Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell, English cricketer, peer, politician, poet, author and newspaper editor (b. 1884)
1964 – Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, American-English politician (b. 1879)
1969 – Franz von Papen, German general and politician, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1879)
1972 – J. Edgar Hoover, American 1st director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (b. 1895)
1974 – James O. Richardson, American admiral (b. 1878)
1977 – Nicholas Magallanes, American principal dancer and charter member of the New York City Ballet (b. 1922)
1979 – Giulio Natta, Italian chemist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1903)
1980 – Clarrie Grimmett, New Zealand-Australian cricketer (b. 1891)
1980 – George Pal, Hungarian-American animator and producer (b. 1908)
1983 – Norm Van Brocklin, American football player and coach (b. 1926)
1984 – Jack Barry, American game show host and producer, co-founded Barry & Enright Productions (b. 1918)
1984 – Bob Clampett, American animator, director, and producer (b. 1913)
1985 – Attilio Bettega, Italian race car driver (b. 1951)
1985 – Larry Clinton, American trumpet player and bandleader (b. 1909)
1986 – Sergio Cresto, American race car driver (b. 1956)
1986 – Henri Toivonen, Finnish race car driver (b. 1956)
1989 – Veniamin Kaverin, Russian author (b. 1902)
1989 – Giuseppe Siri, Italian cardinal (b. 1906)
1990 – David Rappaport, English-American actor (b. 1951)
1991 – Gauri Shankar Rai, Indian Politician(b.1924)
1991 – Ronald McKie, Australian journalist and author (b. 1909)
1992 – Wilbur Mills, American lawyer and politician (b. 1909)
1993 – André Moynet, French race car driver, pilot, and politician (b. 1921)
1994 – Dorothy Marie Donnelly, American poet and author (b. 1903)
1995 – John Bunting, Australian public servant and diplomat, (b. 1918)
1995 – Michael Hordern, English actor (b. 1911)
1997 – John Eccles, Australian neurophysiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1903)
1997 – Paulo Freire, Brazilian philosopher and academic (b. 1921)
1998 – hide, Japanese singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1964)
1998 – Justin Fashanu, English footballer (b. 1961)
1998 – Gene Raymond, American actor (b. 1908)
1998 – Lord Voldemort, English wizard and terrorist (b. 1926)
1999 – Douglas Harkness, Canadian colonel and politician (b. 1903)
1999 – Oliver Reed, English actor (b. 1938)
2000 – Sundar Popo, Indo-Trinidadian musician (b. 1943)
2002 – W. T. Tutte, English-Canadian mathematician and academic (b. 1917)
2005 – Wee Kim Wee, Singaporean journalist and politician, 4th President of Singapore (b. 1915)
2006 – Louis Rukeyser, American journalist and author (b. 1933)
2007 – Brad McGann, New Zealand director and screenwriter (b. 1964)
2008 – Beverlee McKinsey, American actress (b. 1940)
2008 – Izold Pustõlnik, Ukrainian-Estonian astronomer and academic (b. 1938)
2009 – Marilyn French, American author and academic (b. 1929)
2009 – Kiyoshiro Imawano, Japanese singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (b. 1951)
2009 – Jack Kemp, American football player and politician, 9th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (b. 1935)
2010 – Lynn Redgrave, English-American actress and singer (b. 1943)
2011 – Osama bin Laden, Saudi Arabian terrorist, founder of Al-Qaeda (b. 1957)
2012 – Fernando Lopes, Portuguese director and screenwriter (b. 1935)
2012 – Zenaida Manfugás, Cuban-born American-naturalized pianist (b. 1932)
2012 – Tufan Miñnullin, Russian playwright and politician (b. 1936)
2012 – Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih, Indonesian physician and politician, Indonesian Minister of Health (b. 1955)
2012 – Akira Tonomura, Japanese physicist, author, and academic (b. 1942)
2013 – Ernie Field, English boxer (b. 1943)
2013 – Jeff Hanneman, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1964)
2013 – Joseph P. McFadden, American bishop (b. 1947)
2013 – Dvora Omer, Israeli author and educator (b. 1932)
2013 – Ivan Turina, Croatian footballer (b. 1980)
2013 – Charles Banks Wilson, American painter and illustrator (b. 1918)
2014 – Tomás Balduino, Brazilian bishop (b. 1922)
2014 – Žarko Petan, Slovenian director, playwright, and screenwriter (b. 1929)
2014 – Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., American actor (b. 1918)
2015 – Stuart Archer, English colonel and architect (b. 1915)
2015 – Michael Blake, American author and screenwriter (b. 1945)
2015 – Guy Carawan, American singer and musicologist (b. 1927)
2015 – Maya Plisetskaya, Russian-Lithuanian ballerina, choreographer, actress, and director (b. 1925)
2015 – Ruth Rendell, English author (b. 1930)
2016 – Afeni Shakur, American music businesswoman, activist, and Black Panther (b. 1947)
2020 – Arif Wazir, Pakistani politician, leader of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (b. 1982)

Holidays and observances on May 2

Christian feast day:
- Athanasius of Alexandria (Western Christianity)
- Boris I of Bulgaria (Bulgarian Orthodox Church)
- Germanus of Normandy
- May 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
International Harry Potter Day
The last day of the Festival of Ridván (Bahá’í Faith) (Note that this date is non-Gregorian and may change according to the March equinox, see List of observances set by the Baháʼí calendar)
Anniversary of the Dos de Mayo Uprising (Community of Madrid, Spain)
Birth Anniversary of Third Druk Gyalpo (Bhutan)
Flag Day (Poland)
Indonesia National Education Day
Teachers’ Day (Iran) (Note that this date is non-Gregorian and may change according to the March Equinox, see List of observances set by the Solar Hijri calendar)

May 2 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

On This Day / admin

311 – The Diocletianic Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire ends.
313 – Battle of Tzirallum: Emperor Licinius defeats Maximinus II and unifies the Eastern Roman Empire.
642 – Chindasuinth is proclaimed king by the Visigothic nobility and bishops.
1315 – Enguerrand de Marigny is hanged at the instigation of Charles, Count of Valois.
1492 – Spain gives Christopher Columbus his commission of exploration.
1513 – Edmund de la Pole, Yorkist pretender to the English throne, is executed on the orders of Henry VIII.
1557 – Mapuche leader Lautaro is killed by Spanish forces at the Battle of Mataquito in Chile.
1598 – Juan de Oñate begins the conquest of Santa Fe de Nuevo México.
1598 – Henry IV of France issues the Edict of Nantes, allowing freedom of religion to the Huguenots.
1636 – Eighty Years’ War: Dutch Republic forces recapture a strategically important fort from Spain after a nine-month siege.
1671 – Petar Zrinski, the Croatian Ban from the Zrinski family, is executed.
1789 – On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office to become the first elected President of the United States.
1803 – Louisiana Purchase: The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million, more than doubling the size of the young nation.
1812 – The Territory of Orleans becomes the 18th U.S. state under the name Louisiana.
1838 – Nicaragua declares independence from the Central American Federation.
1863 – A 65-man French Foreign Legion infantry patrol fights a force of nearly 2,000 Mexican soldiers to nearly the last man in Hacienda Camarón, Mexico.
1871 – The Camp Grant massacre takes place in Arizona Territory.
1885 – Governor of New York David B. Hill signs legislation creating the Niagara Reservation, New York’s first state park, ensuring that Niagara Falls will not be devoted solely to industrial and commercial use.
1897 – J. J. Thomson of the Cavendish Laboratory announces his discovery of the electron as a subatomic particle, over 1,800 times smaller than a proton (in the atomic nucleus), at a lecture at the Royal Institution in London.
1900 – Hawaii becomes a territory of the United States, with Sanford B. Dole as governor.
1904 – The Louisiana Purchase Exposition World’s Fair opens in St. Louis, Missouri.
1905 – Albert Einstein completes his doctoral thesis at the University of Zurich.
1925 – Automaker Dodge Brothers, Inc is sold to Dillon, Read & Co. for US$146 million plus $50 million for charity.
1927 – The Federal Industrial Institute for Women opens in Alderson, West Virginia, as the first women’s federal prison in the United States.
1927 – Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford become the first celebrities to leave their footprints in concrete at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
1937 – The Commonwealth of the Philippines holds a plebiscite for Filipino women on whether they should be extended the right to suffrage; over 90% would vote in the affirmative.
1938 – The animated cartoon short Porky’s Hare Hunt debuts in movie theaters, introducing Happy Rabbit, an early version of Bugs Bunny.
1939 – The 1939–40 New York World’s Fair opens.
1939 – NBC inaugurates its regularly scheduled television service in New York City, broadcasting President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s N.Y. World’s Fair opening day ceremonial address.
1943 – World War II: The British submarine HMS Seraph surfaces near Huelva to cast adrift a dead man dressed as a courier and carrying false invasion plans.
1945 – World War II: Führerbunker: Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun commit suicide after being married for less than 40 hours. Soviet soldiers raise the Victory Banner over the Reichstag building.
1945 – World War II: Stalag Luft I prisoner-of-war camp near Barth, Germany is liberated by Soviet soldiers, freeing nearly 9000 American and British airmen.
1947 – In Nevada, Boulder Dam is renamed Hoover Dam.
1948 – In Bogotá, Colombia, the Organization of American States is established.
1956 – Former Vice President and Democratic Senator Alben Barkley dies during a speech in Virginia.
1957 – Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery entered into force.
1961 – K-19, the first Soviet nuclear submarine equipped with nuclear missiles, is commissioned.
1963 – The Bristol Bus Boycott is held in Bristol to protest the Bristol Omnibus Company’s refusal to employ Black or Asian bus crews, drawing national attention to racial discrimination in the United Kingdom.
1966 – The Church of Satan is formed in The Black House, San Francisco.
1973 – Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon announces that White House Counsel John Dean has been fired and that other top aides, most notably H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, have resigned.
1975 – Fall of Saigon: Communist forces gain control of Saigon. The Vietnam War formally ends with the unconditional surrender of South Vietnamese president Dương Văn Minh.
1980 – Beatrix is inaugurated as Queen of the Netherlands following the abdication of Juliana.
1980 – The Iranian Embassy siege begins in London.
1982 – The Bijon Setu massacre occurs in Calcutta, India.
1993 – CERN announces World Wide Web protocols will be free.
1994 – Formula One racing driver Roland Ratzenberger is killed in a crash during the qualifying session of the San Marino Grand Prix run at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari outside Imola, Italy.
2000 – Canonization of Faustina Kowalska in the presence of 200,000 people and the first Divine Mercy Sunday celebrated worldwide.
2004 – U.S. media release graphic photos of American soldiers abusing and sexually humiliating Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison.
2008 – Two skeletal remains found near Yekaterinburg, Russia are confirmed by Russian scientists to be the remains of Alexei and Anastasia, two of the children of the last Tsar of Russia, whose entire family was executed at Yekaterinburg by the Bolsheviks.
2009 – Chrysler files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
2009 – Seven civilians and the perpetrator are killed and another ten injured at a Queen’s Day parade in Apeldoorn, Netherlands in an attempted assassination on Queen Beatrix.
2012 – An overloaded ferry capsizes on the Brahmaputra River in India killing at least 103 people.
2013 – Willem-Alexander is inaugurated as King of the Netherlands following the abdication of Beatrix.
2014 – A bomb blast in Ürümqi, China kills three people and injures 79 others.

Births on April 30

1245 – Philip III of France (d. 1285)
1310 – King Casimir III of Poland (d. 1368)
1331 – Gaston III, Count of Foix (d. 1391)
1383 – Anne of Gloucester, English countess, granddaughter of King Edward III of England (d. 1438)
1425 – William III, Landgrave of Thuringia (d. 1482)
1504 – Francesco Primaticcio, Italian painter (d. 1570)
1553 – Louise of Lorraine (d. 1601)
1623 – François de Laval, French-Canadian bishop and saint (d. 1708)
1651 – Jean-Baptiste de La Salle, French priest and saint (d. 1719)
1662 – Mary II of England (d. 1694)
1664 – François Louis, Prince of Conti (d. 1709)
1710 – Johann Kaspar Basselet von La Rosée, Bavarian general (d. 1795)
1723 – Mathurin Jacques Brisson, French zoologist and philosopher (d. 1806)
1758 – Emmanuel Vitale, Maltese commander and politician (d. 1802)
1770 – David Thompson, English-Canadian cartographer and explorer (d. 1857)
1777 – Carl Friedrich Gauss, German mathematician and physicist (d. 1855)
1803 – Albrecht von Roon, Prussian soldier and politician, 10th Minister President of Prussia (d. 1879)
1829 – Ferdinand von Hochstetter, Austrian geologist and academic (d. 1884)
1857 – Eugen Bleuler, Swiss psychiatrist and eugenicist (d. 1940)
1857 – Walter Simon, German banker and philanthropist (d. 1920)
1865 – Max Nettlau, German historian and academic (d. 1944)
1866 – Mary Haviland Stilwell Kuesel, American pioneer dentist (d. 1936)
1869 – Hans Poelzig, German architect, designed the IG Farben Building and Großes Schauspielhaus (d. 1936)
1870 – Franz Lehár, Hungarian composer (d. 1948)
1870 – Dadasaheb Phalke, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1944)
1874 – Cyriel Verschaeve, Flemish priest and author (d. 1949)
1876 – Orso Mario Corbino, Italian physicist and politician (d. 1937)
1877 – Léon Flameng, French cyclist (d. 1917)
1877 – Alice B. Toklas, American memoirist (d. 1967)
1878 – Władysław Witwicki, Polish psychologist, philosopher, translator, historian (of philosophy and art) and artist (d. 1948)
1880 – Charles Exeter Devereux Crombie, Scottish cartoonist (d. 1967)
1883 – Jaroslav Hašek, Czech soldier and author (d. 1923)
1883 – Luigi Russolo, Italian painter and composer (d. 1947)
1884 – Olof Sandborg, Swedish actor (d. 1965)
1888 – John Crowe Ransom, American poet, critic, and academic (d. 1974)
1893 – Harold Breen, Australian public servant (d. 1966)
1893 – Joachim von Ribbentrop, German soldier and politician, 14th German Reich Minister for Foreign Affairs (d. 1946)
1895 – Philippe Panneton, Canadian physician, academic, and diplomat (d. 1960)
1896 – Reverend Gary Davis, American singer and guitarist (d. 1972)
1896 – Hans List, Austrian scientist and businessman, founded the AVL Engineering Company (d. 1996)
1897 – Humberto Mauro, Brazilian director and screenwriter (d. 1983)
1900 – Erni Krusten, Estonian author and poet (d. 1984)
1901 – Simon Kuznets, Belarusian-American economist, statistician, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1985)
1902 – Theodore Schultz, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
1905 – Sergey Nikolsky, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 2012)
1908 – Eve Arden, American actress (d. 1990)
1908 – Bjarni Benediktsson, Icelandic professor of law and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Iceland (d. 1970)
1908 – Frank Robert Miller, Canadian air marshal and politician (d. 1997)
1909 – F. E. McWilliam, Irish sculptor and educator (d. 1992)
1909 – Juliana of the Netherlands (d. 2004)
1910 – Levi Celerio, Filipino pianist, violinist, and composer (d. 2002)
1914 – Charles Beetham, American middle-distance runner (d. 1997)
1914 – Dorival Caymmi, Brazilian singer-songwriter, actor, and painter (d. 2008)
1916 – Paul Kuusberg, Estonian journalist and author (d. 2003)
1916 – Claude Shannon, American mathematician and engineer (d. 2001)
1916 – Robert Shaw, American conductor (d. 1999)
1917 – Bea Wain, American singer (d. 2017)
1920 – Duncan Hamilton, Irish-English race car driver and pilot (d. 1994)
1920 – Tom Moore, British army officer and fundraiser
1921 – Roger L. Easton, American scientist, co-invented the GPS (d. 2014)
1922 – Anton Murray, South African cricketer (d. 1995)
1923 – Percy Heath, American bassist (d. 2005)
1923 – Kagamisato Kiyoji, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 42nd Yokozuna (d. 2004)
1924 – Uno Laht, Estonian KGB officer and author (d. 2008)
1925 – Corinne Calvet, French actress (d. 2001)
1925 – Johnny Horton, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1960)
1926 – Shrinivas Khale, Indian composer (d. 2011)
1926 – Cloris Leachman, American actress and comedian
1928 – Hugh Hood, Canadian author and academic (d. 2000)
1928 – Orlando Sirola, Italian tennis player (d. 1995)
1930 – Félix Guattari, French psychotherapist and philosopher (d. 1992)
1933 – Charles Sanderson, Baron Sanderson of Bowden, English politician
1934 – Jerry Lordan, English singer-songwriter (d. 1995)
1934 – Don McKenney, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1937 – Tony Harrison, English poet and playwright
1938 – Gary Collins, American actor and talk show host (d. 2012)
1938 – Juraj Jakubisko, Slovak director and screenwriter
1938 – Larry Niven, American author and screenwriter
1940 – Jeroen Brouwers, Dutch journalist and writer
1940 – Michael Cleary, Australian rugby player and politician
1941 – Stavros Dimas, Greek lawyer and politician, Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs
1941 – Max Merritt, New Zealand-Australian singer-songwriter
1942 – Sallehuddin of Kedah, Sultan of Kedah
1943 – Frederick Chiluba, Zambian politician, 2nd President of Zambia (d. 2011)
1943 – Bobby Vee, American pop singer-songwriter (d. 2016)
1944 – Jon Bing, Norwegian author, scholar, and academic (d. 2014)
1944 – Jill Clayburgh, American actress (d. 2010)
1945 – J. Michael Brady, British radiologist
1945 – Annie Dillard, American novelist, essayist, and poet
1945 – Mimi Fariña, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and activist (d. 2001)
1945 – Michael J. Smith, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1986)
1946 – King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
1946 – Bill Plympton, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
1946 – Don Schollander, American swimmer
1947 – Paul Fiddes, English theologian and academic
1947 – Finn Kalvik, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1947 – Tom Køhlert, Danish footballer and manager
1947 – Mats Odell, Swedish economist and politician, Swedish Minister for Financial Markets
1948 – Wayne Kramer, American guitarist and singer-songwriter
1948 – Pierre Pagé, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1948 – Margit Papp, Hungarian athlete
1949 – Phil Garner, American baseball player and manager
1949 – António Guterres, Portuguese academic and politician, 114th Prime Minister of Portugal and 9th Secretary-General of the United Nations
1949 – Karl Meiler, German tennis player (d. 2014)
1952 – Jacques Audiard, French director and screenwriter
1952 – Jack Middelburg, Dutch motorcycle racer (d. 1984)
1953 – Merrill Osmond, American singer and bass player
1954 – Jane Campion, New Zealand director, producer, and screenwriter
1954 – Kim Darroch, English diplomat, UK Permanent Representative to the European Union
1954 – Frank-Michael Marczewski, German footballer
1955 – Nicolas Hulot, French journalist and environmentalist
1955 – David Kitchin, English lawyer and judge
1955 – Zlatko Topčić, Bosnian writer and screenwriter
1956 – Lars von Trier, Danish director and screenwriter
1957 – Wonder Mike, American rapper and songwriter
1958 – Charles Berling, French actor, director, and screenwriter
1959 – Stephen Harper, Canadian economist and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Canada
1960 – Geoffrey Cox, English lawyer and politician
1960 – Kerry Healey, American academic and politician, 70th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
1961 – Arnór Guðjohnsen, Icelandic footballer
1961 – Isiah Thomas, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
1963 – Andrew Carwood, English tenor and conductor
1963 – Michael Waltrip, American race car driver and sportscaster
1964 – Tony Fernandes, Malaysian-Indian businessman, co-founded Tune Group
1964 – Ian Healy, Australian cricketer, coach, and sportscaster
1964 – Lorenzo Staelens, Belgian footballer and manager
1964 – Abhishek Chatterjee, Indian actor
1965 – Daniela Costian, Romanian-Australian discus thrower
1965 – Adrian Pasdar, American actor
1966 – Jeff Brown, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1966 – Dave Meggett, American football player and coach
1967 – Phil Chang, Taiwanese singer-songwriter and actor
1969 – Warren Defever, American bass player and producer
1969 – Justine Greening, English accountant and politician, Secretary of State for International Development
1969 – Paulo Jr., Brazilian bass player
1972 – Takako Tokiwa, Japanese actress
1973 – Leigh Francis, English comedian and actor
1974 – Christian Tamminga, Dutch athlete
1975 – Johnny Galecki, American actor
1976 – Davian Clarke, Jamaican sprinter
1976 – Amanda Palmer, American singer-songwriter and pianist
1976 – Daniel Wagon, Australian rugby league player
1977 – Jeannie Haddaway, American politician
1977 – Meredith L. Patterson, American technologist, journalist, and author
1978 – Liljay, Taiwanese singer
1979 – Gerardo Torrado, Mexican footballer
1980 – Luis Scola, Argentinian basketball player
1980 – Jeroen Verhoeven, Dutch footballer
1981 – Nicole Kaczmarski, American basketball player
1981 – John O’Shea, Irish footballer
1981 – Kunal Nayyar, British-Indian actor
1981 – Justin Vernon, American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer
1982 – Kirsten Dunst, American actress
1982 – Drew Seeley, Canadian-American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor
1983 – Chris Carr, American football player
1983 – Tatjana Hüfner, German luger
1983 – Marina Tomić, Slovenian hurdler
1983 – Troy Williamson, American football player
1984 – Seimone Augustus, American basketball player
1984 – Shawn Daivari, American wrestler and manager
1984 – Risto Mätas, Estonian javelin thrower
1984 – Lee Roache, English footballer
1985 – Brandon Bass, American basketball player
1985 – Gal Gadot, Israeli actress and model
1985 – Ashley Alexandra Dupré, American journalist, singer, and prostitute
1986 – Dianna Agron, American actress and singer
1986 – Martten Kaldvee, Estonian biathlete
1987 – Alipate Carlile, Australian footballer
1987 – Chris Morris, South African cricketer
1987 – Rohit Sharma, Indian cricketer
1988 – Andy Allen, Australian chef
1988 – Sander Baart, Dutch field hockey player
1988 – Liu Xijun, Chinese singer
1988 – Oh Hye-ri, South Korean taekwondo athlete
1989 – Jang Wooyoung, South Korean singer and actor
1990 – Jonny Brownlee, English triathlete
1990 – Mac DeMarco, Canadian singer-songwriter
1990 – Kaarel Kiidron, Estonian footballer
1991 – Chris Kreider, American ice hockey player
1992 – Travis Scott, American rapper and producer
1992 – Marc-André ter Stegen, German footballer
1993 – Dion Dreesens, Dutch swimmer
1993 – Martin Fuksa, Czech canoeist
1994 – Chae Seo-jin, South Korean actress
1994 – Wang Yafan, Chinese tennis player
1996 – Luke Friend, English singer
1997 – Adam Ryczkowski, Polish footballer
1999 – Jorden van Foreest, Dutch chess grandmaster
2000 – Yui Hiwatashi, Japanese singer
2003 – Jung Yun-Seok, South Korean actor

Deaths on April 30

AD 65 – Lucan, Roman poet (b. 39)
125 – An, Chinese emperor (b. 94)
535 – Amalasuntha, Ostrogothic queen and regent
783 – Hildegard of the Vinzgau, Frankish queen
1002 – Eckard I, German nobleman
1030 – Mahmud of Ghazni, Ghaznavid emir (b. 971)
1063 – Ren Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 1010)
1131 – Adjutor, French knight and saint
1305 – Roger de Flor, Italian military adventurer (b. 1267)
1341 – John III, duke of Brittany (b. 1286)
1439 – Richard de Beauchamp, 13th Earl of Warwick, English commander (b. 1382)
1524 – Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard, French soldier (b. 1473)
1544 – Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden, English lawyer and judge, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1488)
1550 – Tabinshwehti, Burmese king (b. 1516)
1632 – Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly, Bavarian general (b. 1559)
1632 – Sigismund III Vasa, Swedish-Polish son of John III of Sweden (b. 1566)
1637 – Niwa Nagashige, Japanese daimyō (b. 1571)
1655 – Eustache Le Sueur, French painter (b. 1617)
1660 – Petrus Scriverius, Dutch historian and scholar (b. 1576)
1672 – Marie of the Incarnation, French-Canadian nun and saint, founded the Ursulines of Quebec (b. 1599)
1696 – Robert Plot, English chemist and academic (b. 1640)
1712 – Philipp van Limborch, Dutch theologian and author (b. 1633)
1736 – Johann Albert Fabricius, German scholar and author (b. 1668)
1758 – François d’Agincourt, French organist and composer (b. 1684)
1792 – John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, English politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (b. 1718)
1795 – Jean-Jacques Barthélemy, French archaeologist and author (b. 1716)
1806 – Onogawa Kisaburō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 5th Yokozuna (b. 1758)
1841 – Peter Andreas Heiberg, Danish philologist and author (b. 1758)
1847 – Charles, Austrian commander and duke of Teschen (b. 1771)
1863 – Jean Danjou, French captain (b. 1828)
1865 – Robert FitzRoy, English admiral, meteorologist, and politician, 2nd Governor of New Zealand (b. 1805)
1870 – Thomas Cooke, Canadian bishop and missionary (b. 1792)
1875 – Jean-Frédéric Waldeck, French explorer, lithographer, and cartographer (b. 1766)
1879 – Emma Smith, American religious leader (b. 1804)
1883 – Édouard Manet, French painter (b. 1832)
1891 – Joseph Leidy, American paleontologist and author (b. 1823)
1900 – Casey Jones, American engineer (b. 1863)
1903 – Emily Stowe, Canadian physician and activist (b. 1831)
1910 – Jean Moréas, Greek poet and critic (b. 1856)
1936 – A. E. Housman, English poet and scholar (b. 1859)
1939 – Frank Haller, American boxer (b. 1883)
1943 – Otto Jespersen, Danish linguist and academic (b. 1860)
1943 – Beatrice Webb, English sociologist and economist (b. 1858)
1953 – Jacob Linzbach, Estonian linguist and author (b. 1874)
1956 – Alben W. Barkley, American lawyer and politician, 35th Vice President of the United States (b. 1877)
1970 – Jacques Presser, Dutch historian, writer and poet (b. 1899)
1970 – Inger Stevens, Swedish-American actress (b. 1934)
1972 – Gia Scala, English-American model and actress (b. 1934)
1973 – Václav Renč, Czech poet and playwright (b. 1911)
1974 – Agnes Moorehead, American actress (b. 1900)
1980 – Luis Muñoz Marín, Puerto Rican journalist and politician, 1st Governor of Puerto Rico (b. 1898)
1982 – Lester Bangs, American journalist and author (b. 1949)
1983 – George Balanchine, Russian dancer and choreographer (b. 1904)
1983 – Muddy Waters, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and bandleader (b. 1913)
1983 – Edouard Wyss-Dunant, Swiss physician and mountaineer (b. 1897)
1986 – Robert Stevenson, English director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1905)
1989 – Sergio Leone, Italian director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1929)
1993 – Tommy Caton, English footballer (b. 1962)
1994 – Roland Ratzenberger, Austrian race car driver (b. 1960)
1994 – Richard Scarry, American author and illustrator (b. 1919)
1995 – Maung Maung Kha, Burmese colonel and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Burma (b. 1920)
1998 – Nizar Qabbani, Syrian-English poet, publisher, and diplomat (b. 1926)
2000 – Poul Hartling, Danish politician, 36th Prime Minister of Denmark (b. 1914)
2002 – Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, German philanthropist, founded the Gründerzeit Museum (b. 1928)
2003 – Mark Berger, American economist and academic (b. 1955)
2003 – Possum Bourne, New Zealand race car driver (b. 1956)
2005 – Phil Rasmussen, American lieutenant and pilot (b. 1918)
2006 – Jean-François Revel, French philosopher (b. 1924)
2006 – Pramoedya Ananta Toer, Indonesian author and academic (b. 1925)
2007 – Kevin Mitchell, American football player (b. 1971)
2007 – Tom Poston, American actor, comedian, and game show panelist (b. 1921)
2007 – Gordon Scott, American film and television actor (b. 1926)
2008 – John Cargher, English-Australian journalist and author (b. 1919)
2008 – Juancho Evertsz, Dutch Antillean politician (b. 1923)
2009 – Henk Nijdam, Dutch cyclist (b. 1935)
2011 – Dorjee Khandu, Indian politician, 6th Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh (b. 1955)
2011 – Evald Okas, Estonian painter (b. 1915)
2011 – Ernesto Sabato, Argentinian physicist, author, and painter (b. 1911)
2012 – Tomás Borge, Nicaraguan poet and politician, co-founded the Sandinista National Liberation Front (b. 1930)
2012 – Alexander Dale Oen, Norwegian swimmer (b. 1985)
2012 – Giannis Gravanis, Greek footballer (b. 1958)
2012 – Benzion Netanyahu, Russian-Israeli historian and academic (b. 1910)
2012 – Sicelo Shiceka, South African politician (b. 1966)
2013 – Roberto Chabet, Filipino painter and sculptor (b. 1937)
2013 – Shirley Firth, Canadian skier (b. 1953)
2013 – Viviane Forrester, French author and critic (b. 1925)
2013 – Mike Gray, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1935)
2014 – Khaled Choudhury, Indian painter and set designer (b. 1919)
2014 – Julian Lewis, English biologist and academic (b. 1946)
2014 – Carl E. Moses, American businessman and politician (b. 1929)
2014 – Ian Ross, Australian journalist (b. 1940)
2015 – Lennart Bodström, Swedish politician (b. 1928)
2015 – Ben E. King, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1938)
2015 – Steven Goldmann, Canadian director and producer (b. 1961)
2016 – Daniel Berrigan, American priest and activist (b. 1921)
2016 – Harry Kroto, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1939)
2019 – Peter Mayhew, English-American actor (b. 1944)
2020 – Tony Allen, Nigerian drummer and composer (b. 1940)

Holidays and observances on April 30

Armed Forces Day (Georgia)
Birthday of the King Carl XVI Gustaf, one of the official flag days of Sweden.
Camarón Day (French Foreign Legion)
Children’s Day (Mexico)
Christian feast day:
- Adjutor
- Aimo
- Amator, Peter and Louis
- Donatus of Evorea
- Eutropius of Saintes
- Marie Guyart (Anglican Church of Canada)
- Marie of the Incarnation (Ursuline)
- Maximus of Rome
- Blessed Miles Gerard
- Pomponius of Naples
- Pope Pius V
- Quirinus of Neuss
- Sarah Josepha Hale (Episcopal Church)
- Suitbert the Younger
- April 30 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Consumer Protection Day (Thailand)
Earliest day on which Ascension Day can fall, while June 3 is the latest; celebrated 40 days after Easter (Christianity), and its related observances:
- Festa della Sensa (Venice)
- Global Day of Prayer (Western Christianity)
- Sheep Festival (Cameroon)
Honesty Day (United States)
International Jazz Day (UNESCO)
Martyrs’ Day (Pakistan)
May Eve, the eve of the first day of summer in the Northern hemisphere (see May 1):
- Beltane begins at sunset in the Northern hemisphere, Samhain begins at sunset in the Southern hemisphere. (Neo-Druidic Wheel of the Year)
- Carodejnice (Czech Republic and Slovakia)
- Walpurgis Night (Central and Northern Europe)
National Persian Gulf Day (Iran)
Reunification Day (Vietnam)
Russian State Fire Service Day (Russia)
Teachers’ Day (Paraguay)

April 30 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 26 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day / admin

1336 – Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) ascends Mont Ventoux.
1478 – The Pazzi family attack Lorenzo de’ Medici and kill his brother Giuliano during High Mass in Florence Cathedral.
1564 – Playwright William Shakespeare is baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England (date of actual birth is unknown).
1607 – English colonists make landfall at Cape Henry, Virginia.
1721 – A massive earthquake devastates the Iranian city of Tabriz.
1777 – Sybil Ludington, aged 16, rode 40 miles (64 km) to alert American colonial forces to the approach of the British regular forces
1794 – Battle of Beaumont during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
1802 – Napoleon Bonaparte signs a general amnesty to allow all but about one thousand of the most notorious émigrés of the French Revolution to return to France.
1803 – Thousands of meteor fragments fall from the skies of L’Aigle, France; the event convinces European scientists that meteors exist.
1805 – First Barbary War: United States Marines captured Derne under the command of First Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon.
1865 – American Civil War: Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston surrenders his army to General William Tecumseh Sherman at the Bennett Place near Durham, North Carolina. Also the date of Confederate Memorial Day for two states.
1865 – Union cavalry troopers corner and shoot dead John Wilkes Booth, assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, in Virginia.
1903 – Atlético Madrid Association football club is founded
1923 – The Duke of York weds Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon at Westminster Abbey.
1925 – Paul von Hindenburg defeats Wilhelm Marx in the second round of the German presidential election to become the first directly elected head of state of the Weimar Republic.
1933 – The Gestapo, the official secret police force of Nazi Germany, is established.
1937 – Spanish Civil War: Guernica, Spain, is bombed by German Luftwaffe.
1942 – Benxihu Colliery accident in Manchukuo leaves 1549 Chinese miners dead.
1943 – The Easter Riots break out in Uppsala, Sweden.
1944 – Georgios Papandreou becomes head of the Greek government-in-exile based in Egypt.
1944 – Heinrich Kreipe is captured by Allied commandos in occupied Crete.
1945 – World War II: Battle of Bautzen: Last successful German tank-offensive of the war and last noteworthy victory of the Wehrmacht.
1945 – World War II: Filipino troops of the 66th Infantry Regiment, Philippine Commonwealth Army, USAFIP-NL and the American troops of the 33rd and 37th Infantry Division, United States Army are liberated in Baguio City and they fight against the Japanese forces under General Tomoyuki Yamashita.
1954 – The Geneva Conference, an effort to restore peace in Indochina and Korea, begins.
1956 – SS Ideal X, the world’s first successful container ship, leaves Port Newark, New Jersey, for Houston, Texas.
1958 – Final run of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad’s Royal Blue from Washington, D.C., to New York City after 68 years, the first U.S. passenger train to use electric locomotives.
1960 – Forced out by the April Revolution, President of South Korea Syngman Rhee resigns after 12 years of dictatorial rule.
1962 – NASA’s Ranger 4 spacecraft crashes into the Moon.
1963 – In Libya, amendments to the constitution transform Libya (United Kingdom of Libya) into one national unity (Kingdom of Libya) and allows for female participation in elections.
1964 – Tanganyika and Zanzibar merge to form Tanzania.
1966 – The magnitude 5.1 Tashkent earthquake affects the largest city in Soviet Central Asia with a maximum MSK intensity of VII (Very strong). Tashkent is mostly destroyed and 15–200 are killed.
1966 – A new government is formed in the Republic of the Congo, led by Ambroise Noumazalaye.
1970 – The Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization enters into force.
1981 – Dr. Michael R. Harrison of the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center performs the world’s first human open fetal surgery.
1982 – Fifty-seven people are killed by former police officer Woo Bum-kon in a shooting spree in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea.
1986 – A nuclear reactor accident occurs at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in the Soviet Union, creating the world’s worst nuclear disaster.
1989 – The deadliest known tornado strikes Central Bangladesh, killing upwards of 1,300, injuring 12,000, and leaving as many as 80,000 homeless.
1989 – People’s Daily publishes the April 26 Editorial which inflames the nascent Tiananmen Square protests.
1991 – Seventy tornadoes break out in the central United States. Before the outbreak’s end, Andover, Kansas, would record the year’s only F5 tornado.
1994 – China Airlines Flight 140 crashes at Nagoya Airport in Japan, killing 264 of the 271 people on board.
2002 – Robert Steinhäuser kills 16 at Gutenberg-Gymnasium in Erfurt, Germany before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot.
2005 – Under international pressure, Syria withdraws the last of its 14,000 troop military garrison in Lebanon, ending its 29-year military domination of that country (Syrian occupation of Lebanon).
2018 – American comedian Bill Cosby is found guilty of sexual assault.

Births on April 26

121 – Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor (d. 180)
757 – Hisham I of Córdoba (d. 796)
764 – Al-Hadi, Iranian caliph (d. 786)
1284 – Alice de Toeni, Countess of Warwick (d. 1324)
1319 – King John II of France (d. 1364)
1538 – Gian Paolo Lomazzo, Italian painter and academic (d. 1600)
1575 – Marie de’ Medici, queen of Henry IV of France (d. 1642)
1647 – William Ashhurst, English banker, Sheriff of London, Lord Mayor of London and politician (d. 1720)
1648 – Peter II of Portugal (d. 1706)
1697 – Adam Falckenhagen, German lute player and composer (d. 1754)
1710 – Thomas Reid, Scottish philosopher and academic (d. 1796)
1718 – Esek Hopkins, American commander (d. 1802)
1774 – Christian Leopold von Buch, German geologist and paleontologist (d. 1853)
1782 – Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily (d. 1866)
1785 – John James Audubon, French-American ornithologist and painter (d. 1851)
1787 – Ludwig Uhland, German poet, philologist, and historian (d. 1862)
1798 – Eugène Delacroix, French painter and lithographer (d. 1863)
1801 – Ambrose Dudley Mann, American politician and diplomat, 1st United States Assistant Secretary of State (d. 1889)
1804 – Charles Goodyear, American banker, lawyer, and politician (d. 1876)
1822 – Frederick Law Olmsted, American journalist and designer, co-designed Central Park (d. 1903)
1834 – Charles Farrar Browne, American author (d. 1867)
1856 – Joseph Ward, Australian-New Zealand businessman and politician, 17th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1930)
1862 – Edmund C. Tarbell, American painter and educator (d. 1938)
1876 – Ernst Felle, German rower (d. 1959)
1877 – James Dooley, Irish-Australian politician, 21st Premier of New South Wales (d. 1950)
1878 – Rafael Guízar y Valencia, Mexican bishop and saint (d. 1938)
1879 – Eric Campbell, British actor (d. 1917)
1879 – Owen Willans Richardson, English physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1959)
1886 – Ma Rainey, American singer (d. 1939)
1886 – Ğabdulla Tuqay, Russian poet and publicist (d. 1913)
1889 – Anita Loos, American author, playwright, and screenwriter (d. 1981)
1889 – Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian-English philosopher and academic (d. 1951)
1894 – Rudolf Hess, Egyptian-German politician (d. 1987)
1896 – Ruut Tarmo, Estonian actor and director (d. 1967)
1896 – Ernst Udet, German colonel and pilot (d. 1941)
1897 – Eddie Eagan, American boxer and bobsledder (d. 1967)
1897 – Douglas Sirk, German-American director and screenwriter (d. 1987)
1898 – Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish poet and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1984)
1898 – John Grierson, Scottish director and producer (d. 1972)
1899 – Oscar Rabin, Latvian-English saxophonist and bandleader (d. 1958)
1900 – Eva Aschoff, German bookbinder and calligrapher (d. 1969)
1900 – Charles Francis Richter, American seismologist and physicist (d. 1985)
1900 – Hack Wilson, American baseball player (d. 1948)
1904 – Paul-Émile Léger, Canadian cardinal (d. 1991)
1904 – Xenophon Zolotas, Greek economist and politician, 177th Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2004)
1905 – Jean Vigo, French director and screenwriter (d. 1934)
1907 – Ilias Tsirimokos, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1968)
1909 – Marianne Hoppe, German actress (d. 2002)
1910 – Tomoyuki Tanaka, Japanese screenwriter and producer (d. 1997)
1911 – Paul Verner, German soldier and politician (d. 1986)
1912 – A. E. van Vogt, Canadian-American author (d. 2000)
1914 – Bernard Malamud, Jewish American novelist and short story writer (d. 1986)
1914 – James Rouse, American real estate developer (d. 1996)
1916 – Eyvind Earle, American artist, author, and illustrator (d. 2000)
1916 – Ken Wallis, English commander, engineer, and pilot (d. 2013)
1916 – Morris West, Australian author and playwright (d. 1999)
1917 – Sal Maglie, American baseball player and coach (d. 1992)
1917 – I. M. Pei, Chinese-American architect, designed the National Gallery of Art and Bank of China Tower (d. 2019)
1917 – Virgil Trucks, American baseball player and coach (d. 2013)
1918 – Fanny Blankers-Koen, Dutch sprinter and long jumper (d. 2004)
1921 – Jimmy Giuffre, American clarinet player, saxophonist, and composer (d. 2008)
1922 – J. C. Holt, English historian and academic (d. 2014)
1922 – Jeanne Sauvé, Canadian journalist and politician, 23rd Governor General of Canada (d. 1993)
1922 – Margaret Scott, South African-Australian ballerina and choreographer (d. 2019)
1924 – Browning Ross, American runner and soldier (d. 1998)
1925 – Vladimir Boltyansky, Russian mathematician, educator and author (d. 2019)
1925 – Gerard Cafesjian, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2013)
1925 – Michele Ferrero, Italian entrepreneur (d. 2015)
1925 – Frank Hahn, British economist (d. 2013)
1926 – Michael Mathias Prechtl, German soldier and illustrator (d. 2003)
1927 – Jack Douglas, English actor (d. 2008)
1927 – Harry Gallatin, American basketball player and coach (d. 2015)
1927 – Granny Hamner, American baseball player (d. 1993)
1929 – Richard Mitchell, American author and educator (d. 2002)
1930 – Roger Moens, Belgian runner and sportscaster
1931 – Paul Almond, Canadian director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2015)
1931 – Bernie Brillstein, American talent agent and producer (d. 2008)
1931 – John Cain Jr., Australian politician, 41st Premier of Victoria (d. 2019)
1932 – Israr Ahmed, Indian-Pakistani theologian, philosopher, and scholar (d. 2010)
1932 – Shirley Cawley, English long jumper
1932 – Frank D’Rone, American singer and guitarist (d. 2013)
1932 – Francis Lai, French accordion player and composer (d. 2018)
1932 – Michael Smith, English-Canadian biochemist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2000)
1933 – Carol Burnett, American actress, singer, and producer
1933 – Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, Puerto Rican-American general (d. 2005)
1933 – Arno Allan Penzias, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
1935 – Patricia Reilly Giff, American author and educator
1937 – Jean-Pierre Beltoise, French race car driver and motorcycle racer (d. 2015)
1938 – Duane Eddy, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1938 – Maurice Williams, American doo-wop/R&B singer-songwriter
1940 – Molvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari, Indian cleric and politician (d. 2014)
1940 – Giorgio Moroder, Italian singer-songwriter and producer
1940 – Cliff Watson, English rugby league player (d. 2018)
1941 – Claudine Auger, French model and actress (d. 2019)
1942 – Svyatoslav Belza, Russian journalist, author, and critic (d. 2014)
1942 – Sharon Carstairs, Canadian lawyer and politician, Leader of the Government in the Senate
1942 – Michael Kergin, Canadian diplomat, Canadian Ambassador to the United States
1942 – Bobby Rydell, American singer and actor
1942 – Jadwiga Staniszkis, Polish sociologist, political scientist, and academic
1943 – Gary Wright, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
1943 – Peter Zumthor, Swiss architect and academic, designed the Therme Vals
1944 – Richard Bradshaw, English conductor (d. 2007)
1945 – Howard Davies, English director and producer (d. 2016)
1945 – Dick Johnson, Australian race car driver
1945 – Sylvain Simard, Canadian academic and politician
1946 – Ralph Coates, English international footballer (d. 2010)
1946 – Marilyn Nelson, American poet and author
1946 – Alberto Quintano, Chilean footballer
1949 – Carlos Bianchi, Argentinian footballer and manager
1949 – Jerry Blackwell, American wrestler (d. 1995)
1951 – John Battle, English politician
1954 – Tatyana Fomina, Estonian chess player
1954 – Alan Hinkes, English mountaineer and explorer
1955 – Kurt Bodewig, German politician
1956 – Koo Stark, American actress and photographer
1958 – John Crichton-Stuart, 7th Marquess of Bute, Scottish race car driver
1958 – Giancarlo Esposito, American actor, director, and producer
1958 – Georgios Kostikos, Greek footballer, coach, and manager
1959 – John Corabi, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1960 – Steve Lombardozzi, American baseball player and coach
1960 – Roger Taylor, English drummer
1961 – Joan Chen, Chinese-American actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
1961 – Chris Mars, American artist
1962 – Colin Anderson, English footballer
1962 – Debra Wilson, American actress and comedian
1963 – Jet Li, Chinese-Singaporean martial artist, actor, and producer
1963 – Colin Scotts, Australian-American football player
1963 – Cornelia Ullrich, German hurdler
1963 – Bill Wennington, Canadian basketball player
1965 – Susannah Harker, English actress
1965 – Kevin James, American actor and comedian
1967 – Glenn Thomas Jacobs, American professional wrestler, actor, businessman and politician
1967 – Marianne Jean-Baptiste, English actress and singer-songwriter
1967 – Toomas Tõniste, Estonian sailor and politician
1970 – Dean Austin, English footballer and manager
1970 – Melania Trump, Slovene-American model; 47th First Lady of the United States
1970 – Kristen R. Ghodsee, American ethnographer and academic
1970 – Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
1971 – Jay DeMarcus, American bass player, songwriter, and producer
1972 – Jason Bargwanna, Australian race car driver
1972 – Kiko, Spanish footballer
1972 – Natrone Means, American football player and coach
1972 – Avi Nimni, Israeli footballer and manager
1973 – Geoff Blum, American baseball player and sportscaster
1973 – Jules Naudet, French-American director and producer
1973 – Chris Perry, English footballer
1973 – Óscar García Junyent, Spanish footballer and coach
1975 – Joey Jordison, American musician, songwriter, record producer
1975 – Rahul Verma, Indian social worker and activist
1976 – Luigi Panarelli, Italian footballer
1976 – Václav Varaďa, Czech ice hockey player
1977 – Samantha Cristoforetti, Italian astronaut
1977 – Kosuke Fukudome, Japanese baseball player
1977 – Roxana Saberi, American journalist and author
1977 – Tom Welling, American actor
1978 – Joe Crede, American baseball player
1978 – Stana Katic, Canadian actress
1978 – Peter Madsen, Danish footballer
1980 – Jordana Brewster, Panamanian-American actress
1980 – Marlon King, English footballer
1980 – Anna Mucha, Polish actress and journalist
1980 – Channing Tatum, American actor and producer
1981 – Caro Emerald, Dutch pop and jazz singer
1981 – Ms. Dynamite, English rapper and producer
1981 – Sandra Schmitt, German skier (d. 2000)
1982 – Novlene Williams-Mills, Jamaican sprinter
1983 – José María López, Argentinian race car driver
1983 – Jessica Lynch, American soldier
1984 – Emily Wickersham, American actress
1985 – John Isner, American tennis player
1985 – Andrea Koch Benvenuto, Chilean tennis player
1986 – Lior Refaelov, Israeli footballer
1986 – Sean Evans, American YouTuber and producer
1986 – Yuliya Zaripova, Russian runner
1987 – Jorge Andújar Moreno, Spanish footballer
1988 – Ben Spina, Australian rugby league player
1988 – Manuel Viniegra, Mexican footballer
1988 – Gareth Evans, English footballer
1989 – Melvin Ingram, American football player
1990 – Mitch Rein, Australian rugby league player
1990 – Nevin Spence, Northern Irish rugby player (d. 2012)
1991 – Lazaros Fotias, Greek footballer
1991 – Peter Handscomb, Australian cricketer
1991 – Will Heard, British singer and songwriter
1991 – Isaac Liu, New Zealand rugby league player
1991 – Ignacio Lores Varela, Uruguayan footballer
1991 – Srdjan Pejicic, Canadian/Bosnian basketball player
1991 – Wojciech Pszczolarski, Polish bicycle racer
1992 – Aaron Judge, American baseball player
1994 – Daniil Kvyat, Russian race car driver

Deaths on April 26

499 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei (b. 467)
645 – Richarius, Frankish monk and saint (b. 560)
680 – Muawiyah I, Umayyad caliph (b. 602)
757 – Pope Stephen II (b. 715)
893 – Chen Jingxuan, general of the Tang Dynasty
962 – Adalbero I, bishop of Metz
1192 – Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan (b. 1127)
1366 – Simon Islip, Archbishop of Canterbury
1392 – Jeong Mong-ju, Korean civil minister, diplomat and scholar (b. 1338)
1444 – Robert Campin, Flemish painter (b. 1378)
1478 – Giuliano de’ Medici, Italian ruler (b. 1453)
1489 – Ashikaga Yoshihisa, Japanese shōgun (b. 1465)
1558 – Jean Fernel, French physician (b. 1497)
1686 – Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie, Swedish statesman and military man (b. 1622)
1716 – John Somers, 1st Baron Somers, English jurist and politician, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1651)
1784 – Nano Nagle, Irish nun and educator, founded the Presentation Sisters (b. 1718)
1789 – Petr Ivanovich Panin, Russian general (b. 1721)
1809 – Bernhard Schott, German music publisher (b. 1748)
1865 – John Wilkes Booth, American actor, assassin of Abraham Lincoln (b. 1838)
1881 – Ludwig Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen, German general (b. 1815)
1895 – Eric Stenbock, Estonian-English author and poet (b. 1860)
1910 – Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Norwegian-French author, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1832)
1915 – John Bunny, American actor (b. 1863)
1920 – Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician and theorist (b. 1887)
1932 – William Lockwood, English cricketer (b. 1868)
1934 – Arturs Alberings, Latvian politician, former Prime Minister of Latvia (b. 1876)
1940 – Carl Bosch, German chemist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1874)
1944 – Violette Morris, French footballer, shot putter, and discus thrower (b. 1893)
1945 – Sigmund Rascher, German physician (b. 1909)
1945 – Pavlo Skoropadskyi, German-Ukrainian general and politician, Hetman of Ukraine (b. 1871)
1946 – James Larkin White, American miner, explorer, and park ranger (b. 1882)
1950 – George Murray Hulbert, American lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1881)
1951 – Arnold Sommerfeld, German physicist and academic (b. 1868)
1956 – Edward Arnold, American actor (b. 1890)
1957 – Gichin Funakoshi, Japanese martial artist, founded Shotokan (b. 1868)
1964 – E. J. Pratt, Canadian poet and author (b. 1882)
1968 – John Heartfield, German illustrator and photographer (b. 1891)
1969 – Morihei Ueshiba, Japanese martial artist, founded aikido (b. 1883)
1970 – Erik Bergman, Swedish minister and author (b. 1886)
1970 – Gypsy Rose Lee, American actress, striptease dancer, and writer (b. 1911)
1973 – Irene Ryan, American actress and philanthropist (b. 1902)
1976 – Sidney Franklin, American bullfighter (b. 1903)
1976 – Sid James, South African-English actor (b. 1913)
1976 – Armstrong Sperry, American author and illustrator (b. 1897)
1980 – Cicely Courtneidge, Australian-born British actress, comedian and singer (b. 1893)
1981 – Jim Davis, American actor (b. 1909)
1984 – Count Basie, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1904)
1986 – Broderick Crawford, American actor (b. 1911)
1986 – Bessie Love, American actress (b. 1898)
1986 – Dechko Uzunov, Bulgarian painter (b. 1899)
1987 – Shankar, Indian composer and conductor (b. 1922)
1987 – John Silkin, English lawyer and politician, Shadow Leader of the House of Commons (b. 1923)
1989 – Lucille Ball, American model, actress, comedian, and producer (b. 1911)
1991 – Leo Arnaud, French-American composer and conductor (b. 1904)
1991 – Carmine Coppola, American composer and conductor (b. 1910)
1991 – A. B. Guthrie, Jr., American novelist and historian, (b. 1901)
1991 – Richard Hatfield, Canadian lawyer and politician, 26th Premier of New Brunswick (b. 1931)
1994 – Masutatsu Ōyama, Japanese martial artist, founded Kyokushin kaikan (b. 1923)
1996 – Stirling Silliphant, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1918)
1999 – Adrian Borland, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1957)
1999 – Jill Dando, English journalist and television personality (b. 1961)
2003 – Rosemary Brown, Jamaican-Canadian academic and politician (b. 1930)
2003 – Yun Hyon-seok, South Korean poet and author (b. 1984)
2003 – Edward Max Nicholson, Irish environmentalist, co-founded the World Wide Fund for Nature (b. 1904)
2004 – Hubert Selby, Jr., American author, poet, and screenwriter (b. 1928)
2005 – Mason Adams, American actor (b. 1919)
2005 – Elisabeth Domitien, Prime Minister of the Central African Republic (b. 1925)
2005 – Maria Schell, Austrian-Swiss actress (b. 1926)
2005 – Augusto Roa Bastos, Paraguayan journalist, author, and academic (b. 1917)
2007 – Jack Valenti, American businessman, created the MPAA film rating system (b. 1921)
2009 – Hans Holzer, Austrian-American paranormal investigator and author (b. 1920)
2010 – Mariam A. Aleem, Egyptian graphic designer and academic (b. 1930)
2010 – Urs Felber, Swiss engineer and businessman (b. 1942)
2011 – Phoebe Snow, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1950)
2012 – Terence Spinks, English boxer and trainer (b. 1938)
2013 – Jacqueline Brookes, American actress and educator (b. 1930)
2013 – George Jones, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1931)
2014 – Gerald Guralnik, American physicist and academic (b. 1936)
2014 – Paul Robeson, Jr., American historian and author (b. 1927)
2014 – DJ Rashad, American electronic musician, producer and DJ (b. 1979)
2015 – Jayne Meadows, American actress (b. 1919)
2015 – Marcel Pronovost, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1930)
2016 – Harry Wu, Chinese human rights activist (b. 1937)
2017 – Jonathan Demme, American filmmaker, producer and screenwriter (b. 1944)

Holidays and observances on April 26

Chernobyl disaster related observances:
- Day of Remembrance of the Chernobyl tragedy (Belarus)
- Memorial Day of Radiation Accidents and Catastrophes (Russia)
Christian feast day:
- Aldobrandesca (or Alda)
- Franca Visalta
- Lucidius of Verona
- Our Lady of Good Counsel
- Pope Anacletus and Marcellinus
- Riquier
- Paschasius Radbertus
- Peter of Rates (or of Braga)
- Robert Hunt (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Stephen of Perm, see also Old Permic Alphabet Day
- Trudpert
- April 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Confederate Memorial Day (Florida, United States)
Union Day (Tanzania)
World Intellectual Property Day

April 26 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 25 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day / admin

404 BC – Admiral Lysander and King Pausanias of Sparta blockade Athens and bring the Peloponnesian War to a successful conclusion.
775 – The Battle of Bagrevand puts an end to an Armenian rebellion against the Abbasid Caliphate. Muslim control over Transcaucasia is solidified and its Islamization begins, while several major Armenian nakharar families lose power and their remnants flee to the Byzantine Empire.
799 – After mistreatment and disfigurement by the citizens of Rome, pope Leo III flees to the Frankish court of king Charlemagne at Paderborn for protection.
1134 – The name Zagreb was mentioned for the first time in the Felician Charter relating to the establishment of the Zagreb Bishopric around 1094.
1607 – Eighty Years’ War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar.
1644 – The Chongzhen Emperor, the last Emperor of Ming dynasty China, commits suicide during a peasant rebellion led by Li Zicheng.
1707 – A coalition of Britain, the Netherlands and Portugal is defeated by a Franco-Spanish army at Almansa (Spain) in the War of the Spanish Succession.
1792 – Highwayman Nicolas J. Pelletier becomes the first person executed by guillotine.
1792 – “La Marseillaise” (the French national anthem) is composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle.
1804 – The western Georgian kingdom of Imereti accepts the suzerainty of the Russian Empire.
1829 – Charles Fremantle arrives in HMS Challenger off the coast of modern-day Western Australia prior to declaring the Swan River Colony for the United Kingdom.
1846 – Thornton Affair: Open conflict begins over the disputed border of Texas, triggering the Mexican–American War.
1849 – The Governor General of Canada, Lord Elgin, signs the Rebellion Losses Bill, outraging Montreal’s English population and triggering the Montreal Riots.
1859 – British and French engineers break ground for the Suez Canal.
1862 – American Civil War: Forces under U.S. Admiral David Farragut demand the surrender of the Confederate city of New Orleans, Louisiana.
1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Marks’ Mills.
1882 – French and Vietnamese troops clashed in Tonkin, when Commandant Henri Rivière seized the citadel of Hanoi with a small force of marine infantry.
1898 – Spanish–American War: The United States declares war on Spain.
1901 – New York becomes the first U.S. state to require automobile license plates.
1915 – World War I: The Battle of Gallipoli begins: The invasion of the Turkish Gallipoli Peninsula by British, French, Indian, Newfoundland, Australian and New Zealand troops, begins with landings at Anzac Cove and Cape Helles.
1916 – Anzac Day is commemorated for the first time on the first anniversary of the landing at ANZAC Cove.
1920 – At the San Remo conference, the principal Allied Powers of World War I adopt a resolution to determine the allocation of Class “A” League of Nations mandates for administration of the former Ottoman-ruled lands of the Middle East.
1938 – U.S. Supreme Court delivers its opinion in Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins and overturns a century of federal common law.
1940 – Merkið, the flag of the Faroe Islands is approved by the British occupation government.
1944 – The United Negro College Fund is incorporated.
1945 – Elbe Day: United States and Soviet troops meet in Torgau along the River Elbe, cutting the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in two.
1945 – Liberation Day (Italy): The Nazi occupation army surrenders and leaves Northern Italy after a general partisan insurrection by the Italian resistance movement; the puppet fascist regime dissolves and Benito Mussolini is captured after trying to escape. This day was set as a public holiday to celebrate the Liberation of Italy.
1945 – United Nations Conference on International Organization: Founding negotiations for the United Nations begin in San Francisco.
1945 – The last German troops retreat from Finland’s soil in Lapland, ending the Lapland War. Military acts of Second World War end in Finland.
1951 – Korean War: Assaulting Chinese forces are forced to withdraw after heavy fighting with UN forces, primarily made up of Australian and Canadian troops, at the Battle of Kapyong.
1953 – Francis Crick and James Watson publish “Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid” describing the double helix structure of DNA.
1954 – The first practical solar cell is publicly demonstrated by Bell Telephone Laboratories.
1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway, linking the North American Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, officially opens to shipping.
1960 – The United States Navy submarine USS Triton completes the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
1961 – Robert Noyce is granted a patent for an integrated circuit.
1972 – Vietnam War: Nguyen Hue Offensive: The North Vietnamese 320th Division forces 5,000 South Vietnamese troops to retreat and traps about 2,500 others northwest of Kontum.
1974 – Carnation Revolution: A leftist military coup in Portugal overthrows the authoritarian-conservative Estado Novo regime and establishes a democratic government.
1975 – As North Vietnamese forces close in on the South Vietnamese capital Saigon, the Australian Embassy is closed and evacuated, almost ten years to the day since the first Australian troop commitment to South Vietnam.
1981 – More than 100 workers are exposed to radiation during repairs of at the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant in Japan.
1982 – Israel completes its withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula per the Camp David Accords.
1983 – Cold War: American schoolgirl Samantha Smith is invited to visit the Soviet Union by its leader Yuri Andropov after he read her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war.
1983 – Pioneer 10 travels beyond Pluto’s orbit.
1986 – Mswati III is crowned King of Swaziland, succeeding his father Sobhuza II.
1988 – In Israel, John Demjanjuk is sentenced to death for war crimes committed in World War II.
1990 – Violeta Chamorro takes office as the President of Nicaragua, the first woman to hold the position.
2001 – Michele Alboreto is killed while testing an Audi R8 at the Lausitzring in Germany.
2004 – The March for Women’s Lives brings between 500,000 and 800,000 protesters, mostly pro-choice, to Washington D.C. to protest the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, and other restrictions on abortion.
2005 – The final piece of the Obelisk of Axum is returned to Ethiopia after being stolen by the invading Italian army in 1937.
2005 – Bulgaria and Romania sign accession treaties to join the European Union.
2007 – Boris Yeltsin’s funeral: The first to be sanctioned by the Russian Orthodox Church for a head of state since the funeral of Emperor Alexander III in 1894.
2015 – Nearly 9,100 are killed after a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Nepal.

Births on April 25

1214 – Louis IX of France (d. 1270)
1228 – Conrad IV of Germany (d. 1254)
1284 – Edward II of England (d. 1327)
1287 – Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1330)
1502 – Georg Major, German theologian and academic (d. 1574)
1529 – Francesco Patrizi, Italian philosopher and scientist (d. 1597)
1599 – Oliver Cromwell, English general and politician, Lord Protector of Great Britain (d. 1658)
1621 – Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery, English soldier and politician (d. 1679)
1666 – Johann Heinrich Buttstett, German organist and composer (d. 1727)
1694 – Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, English architect and politician, Lord High Treasurer of Ireland (d. 1753)
1710 – James Ferguson, Scottish astronomer and author (d. 1776)
1723 – Giovanni Marco Rutini, Italian composer (d. 1797)
1725 – Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel, English admiral and politician (d. 1786)
1767 – Nicolas Oudinot, French general (d. 1847)
1770 – Georg Sverdrup, Norwegian philologist and academic (d. 1850)
1776 – Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh (d. 1857)
1843 – Princess Alice of the United Kingdom (d. 1878)
1849 – Felix Klein, German mathematician and academic (d. 1925)
1850 – Luise Adolpha Le Beau, German composer and educator (d. 1927)
1851 – Leopoldo Alas, Spanish author, critic, and academic (d. 1901)
1854 – Charles Sumner Tainter, American engineer and inventor (d. 1940)
1862 – Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon, English ornithologist and politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (d. 1933)
1868 – John Moisant, American pilot and engineer (d. 1910)
1871 – Lorne Currie, French-English sailor (d. 1926)
1872 – C. B. Fry, English cricketer, footballer, educator, and politician (d. 1956)
1873 – Walter de la Mare, English poet, short story writer, and novelist (d. 1956)
1873 – Howard Garis, American author, creator of the Uncle Wiggily series of children’s stories (d. 1962)
1874 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian businessman and inventor, developed Marconi’s law, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1937)
1874 – Ernest Webb, English-Canadian race walker (d. 1937)
1876 – Jacob Nicol, Canadian publisher, lawyer, and politician (d. 1958)
1878 – William Merz, American gymnast and triathlete (d. 1946)
1882 – Fred McLeod, Scottish golfer (d. 1976)
1887 – Kojo Tovalou Houénou, Beninese lawyer and critic (d. 1936)
1892 – Maud Hart Lovelace, American author (d. 1980)
1896 – Fred Haney, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1977)
1897 – Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood (d. 1965)
1900 – Gladwyn Jebb, English politician and diplomat, Secretary-General of the United Nations (d. 1996)
1900 – Wolfgang Pauli, Austrian-Swiss-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
1902 – Werner Heyde, German psychiatrist and academic (d. 1964)
1902 – Mary Miles Minter, American actress (d. 1984)
1903 – Andrey Kolmogorov, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1987)
1905 – George Nepia, New Zealand rugby player and referee (d. 1986)
1906 – William J. Brennan Jr., American colonel and Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court (d. 1997)
1908 – Edward R. Murrow, American journalist (d. 1965)
1909 – William Pereira, American architect, designed the Transamerica Pyramid (d. 1985)
1910 – Arapeta Awatere, New Zealand interpreter, military leader, politician, and murderer (d. 1976)
1911 – Connie Marrero, Cuban baseball player and coach (d. 2014)
1912 – Earl Bostic, African-American saxophonist (d. 1965)
1913 – Nikolaos Roussen, Greek captain (d. 1944)
1914 – Ross Lockridge Jr., American author and academic (d. 1948)
1915 – Mort Weisinger, American journalist and author (d. 1978)
1916 – Jerry Barber, American golfer (d. 1994)
1917 – Ella Fitzgerald, American singer (d. 1996)
1917 – Jean Lucas, French racing driver (d. 2003)
1918 – Graham Payn, South African-born English actor and singer (d. 2005)
1918 – Gérard de Vaucouleurs, French-American astronomer and academic (d. 1995)
1918 – Astrid Varnay, Swedish-American soprano and actress (d. 2006)
1919 – Finn Helgesen, Norwegian speed skater (d. 2011)
1921 – Karel Appel, Dutch painter and sculptor (d. 2006)
1923 – Francis Graham-Smith, English astronomer and academic
1923 – Melissa Hayden, Canadian ballerina (d. 2006)
1923 – Albert King, African-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1992)
1924 – Ingemar Johansson, Swedish race walker (d. 2009)
1924 – Franco Mannino, Italian pianist, composer, director, and playwright (d. 2005)
1924 – Paulo Vanzolini, Brazilian singer-songwriter and zoologist (d. 2013)
1925 – Tony Christopher, Baron Christopher, English trade union leader and businessman
1925 – Sammy Drechsel, German comedian and journalist (d. 1986)
1925 – Louis O’Neil, Canadian academic and politician (d. 2018)
1926 – Johnny Craig, American author and illustrator (d. 2001)
1926 – Gertrude Fröhlich-Sandner, Austrian politician (d. 2008)
1926 – Patricia Castell, Argentine actress (d. 2013)
1927 – Corín Tellado, Spanish author (d. 2009)
1927 – Albert Uderzo, French author and illustrator (d. 2020)
1928 – Cy Twombly, American-Italian painter and sculptor (d. 2011)
1929 – Yvette Williams, New Zealand long jumper, shot putter, and discus thrower (d. 2019)
1930 – Paul Mazursky, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
1930 – Godfrey Milton-Thompson, English admiral and surgeon (d. 2012)
1930 – Peter Schulz, German lawyer and politician, Mayor of Hamburg (d. 2013)
1931 – Felix Berezin, Russian mathematician and physicist (d. 1980)
1931 – David Shepherd, English painter and author (d. 2017)
1932 – Nikolai Kardashev, Russian astrophysicist (d. 2019)
1932 – Meadowlark Lemon, African-American basketball player and minister (d. 2015)
1932 – Lia Manoliu, Romanian discus thrower and politician (d. 1998)
1933 – Jerry Leiber, American songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
1933 – Joyce Ricketts, American baseball player (d. 1992)
1934 – Peter McParland, Northern Irish footballer and manager
1935 – Bob Gutowski, American pole vaulter (d. 1960)
1935 – Reinier Kreijermaat, Dutch footballer (d. 2018)
1936 – Henck Arron, Surinamese banker and politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Republic of Suriname (d. 2000)
1938 – Roger Boisjoly, American aerodynamicist and engineer (d. 2012)
1938 – Ton Schulten, Dutch painter and graphic designer
1939 – Tarcisio Burgnich, Italian footballer and manager
1939 – Michael Llewellyn-Smith, English academic and diplomat
1939 – Robert Skidelsky, Baron Skidelsky, English historian and academic
1939 – Veronica Sutherland, English academic and British diplomat
1940 – Al Pacino, American actor and director
1941 – Bertrand Tavernier, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1942 – Jon Kyl, American lawyer and politician
1943 – Tony Christie, English singer-songwriter and actor
1944 – Len Goodman, English dancer
1944 – Mike Kogel, German singer-songwriter
1944 – Stephen Nickell, English economist and academic
1944 – Bruce Ponder, English geneticist and cancer researcher
1945 – Stu Cook, American bass player, songwriter, and producer
1945 – Richard C. Hoagland, American theorist and author
1945 – Björn Ulvaeus, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
1946 – Talia Shire, American actress
1946 – Peter Sutherland, Irish lawyer and politician, Attorney General of Ireland
1946 – Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Russian colonel, lawyer, and politician
1947 – Johan Cruyff, Dutch footballer and manager (d. 2016)
1947 – Jeffrey DeMunn, American actor
1948 – Mike Selvey, English cricketer and sportscaster
1948 – Yu Shyi-kun, Taiwanese politician, 39th Premier of the Republic of China
1949 – Vicente Pernía, Argentinian footballer and race car driver
1949 – Dominique Strauss-Kahn, French economist, lawyer, and politician, French Minister of Finance
1949 – James Fenton, English poet, journalist and literary critic
1950 – Donnell Deeny, Northern Irish lawyer and judge
1950 – Steve Ferrone, English drummer
1950 – Peter Hintze, German politician (d. 2016)
1950 – Valentyna Kozyr, Ukrainian high jumper
1951 – Ian McCartney, Scottish politician, Minister of State for Trade
1952 – Ketil Bjørnstad, Norwegian pianist and composer
1952 – Vladislav Tretiak, Russian ice hockey player and coach
1952 – Jacques Santini, French footballer and coach
1953 – Ron Clements, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
1953 – Gary Cosier, Australian cricketer
1953 – Anthony Venables, English economist, author, and academic
1954 – Melvin Burgess, English author
1954 – Randy Cross, American football player and sportscaster
1954 – Róisín Shortall, Irish educator and politician
1955 – Américo Gallego, Argentinian footballer and coach
1955 – Parviz Parastui, Iranian actor and singer
1955 – Zev Siegl, American businessman, co-founded Starbucks
1956 – Dominique Blanc, French actress, director, and screenwriter
1956 – Abdalla Uba Adamu, Nigerian professor, media scholar
1957 – Theo de Rooij, Dutch cyclist and manager
1958 – Fish, Scottish singer-songwriter
1958 – Misha Glenny, British journalist
1959 – Paul Madden, English diplomat, British High Commissioner to Australia
1959 – Daniel Kash, Canadian actor and director
1959 – Tony Phillips, American baseball player (d. 2016)
1960 – Paul Baloff, American singer (d. 2002)
1960 – Robert Peston, English journalist
1960 – Bruce Redman, Australian director, producer, and critic
1961 – Dinesh D’Souza, Indian-American journalist and author
1961 – Miran Tepeš, Slovenian ski jumper
1962 – Foeke Booy, Dutch footballer and manager
1963 – Joy Covey, American businesswoman (d. 2013)
1963 – Dave Martin, English footballer
1963 – David Moyes, Scottish footballer and manager
1963 – Bernd Müller, German footballer and manager
1963 – Paul Wassif, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1964 – Hank Azaria, American actor, voice artist, comedian and producer
1964 – Andy Bell, English singer-songwriter
1965 – Eric Avery, American bass player and songwriter
1965 – Mark Bryant, American basketball player and coach
1965 – John Henson, American puppeteer and voice actor (d. 2014)
1966 – Diego Domínguez, Argentinian-Italian rugby player
1966 – Femke Halsema, Dutch sociologist, academic, and politician
1966 – Darren Holmes, American baseball player and coach
1966 – Erik Pappas, American baseball player and coach
1967 – Angel Martino, American swimmer
1968 – Vitaliy Kyrylenko, Ukrainian long jumper
1968 – Thomas Strunz, German footballer
1969 – Joe Buck, American sportscaster
1969 – Martin Koolhoven, Dutch director and screenwriter
1969 – Jon Olsen, American swimmer
1969 – Darren Woodson, American football player and sportscaster
1969 – Renée Zellweger, American actress and producer
1970 – Jason Lee, American skateboarder, actor, comedian and producer
1971 – Sara Baras, Spanish dancer
1971 – Brad Clontz, American baseball player
1973 – Carlota Castrejana, Spanish triple jumper
1973 – Fredrik Larzon, Swedish drummer
1973 – Barbara Rittner, German tennis player
1975 – Jacque Jones, American baseball player and coach
1976 – Gilberto da Silva Melo, Brazilian footballer
1976 – Tim Duncan, American basketball player
1976 – Breyton Paulse, South African rugby player
1976 – Rainer Schüttler, German tennis player and coach
1977 – Constantinos Christoforou, Cypriot singer-songwriter
1977 – Ilias Kotsios, Greek footballer
1977 – Marguerite Moreau, American actress and producer
1977 – Matthew West, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
1978 – Matt Walker, English swimmer
1980 – Ben Johnston, Scottish drummer and songwriter
1980 – James Johnston, Scottish bass player and songwriter
1980 – Daniel MacPherson, Australian actor and television host
1980 – Bruce Martin, New Zealand cricketer
1980 – Kazuhito Tadano, Japanese baseball player
1980 – Alejandro Valverde, Spanish cyclist
1981 – Dwone Hicks, American football player
1981 – Felipe Massa, Brazilian racing driver
1981 – John McFall, English sprinter
1981 – Anja Pärson, Swedish skier
1982 – Brian Barton, American baseball player
1982 – Monty Panesar, English cricketer
1982 – Marco Russo, Italian footballer
1983 – Johnathan Thurston, Australian rugby league player
1983 – DeAngelo Williams, American football player
1984 – Robert Andino, American baseball player
1984 – Isaac Kiprono Songok, Kenyan runner
1985 – Giedo van der Garde, Dutch racing driver
1986 – Alexei Emelin, Russian ice hockey player
1986 – Thin Seng Hon, Cambodian Paralympic athlete
1986 – Gwen Jorgensen, American triathlete
1986 – Claudia Rath, German heptathlete
1987 – Razak Boukari, Togolese footballer
1987 – Jay Park, American-South Korean singer-songwriter and dancer
1987 – Johann Smith, American soccer player
1988 – James Sheppard, Canadian ice hockey player
1989 – Marie-Michèle Gagnon, Canadian skier
1989 – Michael van Gerwen, Dutch darts player
1989 – Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama, one of the highest-ranking spiritual leaders in Tibet
1990 – Jean-Éric Vergne, French racing driver
1990 – Taylor Walker, Australian footballer
1991 – Alex Shibutani, American ice dancer
1993 – Alex Bowman, American race car driver
1993 – Daniel Norris, American baseball player
1994 – Omar McLeod, Jamaican hurdler
1995 – Lewis Baker, English footballer
1996 – Mack Horton, Australian swimmer
1997 – Julius Ertlthaler, Austrian footballer

Deaths on April 25

501 – Rusticus, saint and archbishop of Lyon (b. 455)
775 – Smbat VII Bagratuni, Armenian prince
775 – Mushegh VI Mamikonian, Armenian prince
908 – Zhang Wenwei, Chinese chancellor
1074 – Herman I, Margrave of Baden
1077 – Géza I of Hungary (b. 1040)
1185 – Emperor Antoku of Japan (b. 1178)
1217 – Hermann I, Landgrave of Thuringia
1228 – Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem (b. 1212)
1243 – Boniface of Valperga, Bishop of Aosta
1264 – Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester, medieval English nobleman; Earl of Winchester (b. 1195)
1295 – Sancho IV of Castile (b. 1258)
1342 – Pope Benedict XII (b. 1285)
1397 – Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, English nobleman
1472 – Leon Battista Alberti, Italian author, poet, and philosopher (b. 1404)
1516 – John Yonge, English diplomat (b. 1467)
1566 – Louise Labé, French poet and author (b. 1520)
1566 – Diane de Poitiers, mistress of King Henry II of France (b. 1499)
1595 – Torquato Tasso, Italian poet and songwriter (b. 1544)
1605 – Naresuan, Siamese King of Ayutthaya Kingdom (b. c. 1555)
1644 – Chongzhen Emperor of China (b. 1611)
1660 – Henry Hammond, English cleric and theologian (b. 1605)
1690 – David Teniers the Younger, Flemish painter and educator (b. 1610)
1744 – Anders Celsius, Swedish astronomer, physicist, and mathematician (b. 1701)
1770 – Jean-Antoine Nollet, French minister, physicist, and academic (b. 1700)
1800 – William Cowper, English poet (b. 1731)
1840 – Siméon Denis Poisson, French mathematician and physicist (b. 1781)
1873 – Fyodor Petrovich Tolstoy, Russian painter and sculptor (b. 1783)
1875 – 12th Dalai Lama (b. 1857)
1878 – Anna Sewell, English author (b. 1820)
1890 – Crowfoot, Canadian tribal chief (b. 1830)
1891 – Nathaniel Woodard, English priest and educator (b. 1811)
1892 – Henri Duveyrier, French explorer (b. 1840)
1892 – Karl von Ditmar, Estonian-German geologist and explorer (b. 1822)
1906 – John Knowles Paine, American composer and educator (b. 1839)
1911 – Emilio Salgari, Italian journalist and author (b. 1862)
1913 – Joseph-Alfred Archambeault, Canadian bishop (b. 1859)
1915 – Frederick W. Seward, American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 6th United States Assistant Secretary of State (b. 1830)
1919 – Augustus D. Juilliard, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1836)
1923 – Louis-Olivier Taillon, Canadian lawyer and politician, 8th Premier of Quebec (b. 1840)
1928 – Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Russian general (b. 1878)
1941 – Salih Bozok, Turkish commander and politician (b. 1881)
1943 – Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, Russian director, producer, and playwright (b. 1858)
1944 – George Herriman, American cartoonist (b. 1880)
1944 – Tony Mullane, Irish-American baseball player (b. 1859)
1944 – William Stephens, American engineer and politician, 24th Governor of California (b. 1859)
1945 – Huldreich Georg Früh, Swiss composer (b. 1903)
1961 – Robert Garrett, American discus thrower and shot putter (b. 1875)
1970 – Anita Louise, American actress (b. 1915)
1972 – George Sanders, English actor (b. 1906)
1973 – Olga Grey, Hungarian-American actress (b. 1896)
1974 – Gustavo R. Vincenti, Maltese architect and developer (b. 1888)
1975 – Mike Brant, Israeli singer and songwriter (b.1947)
1976 – Carol Reed, English director and producer (b. 1906)
1976 – Markus Reiner, Israeli engineer and educator (b. 1886)
1982 – John Cody, American cardinal (b. 1907)
1983 – William S. Bowdern, American priest and author (b. 1897)
1988 – Carolyn Franklin, American singer-songwriter (b. 1944)
1988 – Clifford D. Simak, American journalist and author (b. 1904)
1990 – Dexter Gordon, American saxophonist, composer, and actor (b. 1923)
1992 – Yutaka Ozaki, Japanese singer-songwriter (b. 1965)
1995 – Art Fleming, American game show host (b. 1925)
1995 – Ginger Rogers, American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1911)
1995 – Lev Shankovsky, Ukrainian military historian (b. 1903)
1996 – Saul Bass, American graphic designer and director (b. 1920)
1998 – Wright Morris, American author and photographer (b. 1910)
1999 – Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin, Irish journalist and author (b. 1914)
1999 – Roger Troutman, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1951)
2000 – Lucien Le Cam, French mathematician and statistician (b. 1924)
2000 – David Merrick, American director and producer (b. 1911)
2001 – Michele Alboreto, Italian racing driver (b. 1956)
2002 – Lisa Lopes, American rapper and dancer (b. 1971)
2003 – Samson Kitur, Kenyan runner (b. 1966)
2004 – Thom Gunn, English-American poet and academic (b. 1929)
2005 – Jim Barker, American politician (b. 1935)
2005 – Swami Ranganathananda, Indian monk and educator (b. 1908)
2006 – Jane Jacobs, American-Canadian journalist, author, and activist (b. 1916)
2006 – Peter Law, Welsh politician and independent member of parliament (b. 1948)
2007 – Alan Ball Jr., English footballer and manager (b. 1945)
2007 – Arthur Milton, English footballer and cricketer (b. 1928)
2007 – Bobby Pickett, American singer-songwriter (b. 1938)
2008 – Humphrey Lyttelton, English trumpet player, composer, and radio host (b. 1921)
2009 – Bea Arthur, American actress and singer (b. 1922)
2010 – Dorothy Provine, American actress and singer (b. 1935)
2010 – Alan Sillitoe, English novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet (b. 1928)
2011 – Poly Styrene, British musician (b. 1957)
2012 – Gerry Bahen, Australian footballer (b. 1929)
2012 – Denny Jones, American rancher and politician (b. 1910)
2012 – Moscelyne Larkin, American ballerina and educator (b. 1925)
2012 – Louis le Brocquy, Irish painter and illustrator (b. 1916)
2013 – Brian Adam, Scottish biochemist and politician (b. 1948)
2013 – Jacob Avshalomov, American composer and conductor (b. 1919)
2013 – György Berencsi, Hungarian virologist and academic (b. 1941)
2013 – Rick Camp, American baseball player (b. 1953)
2014 – Dan Heap, Canadian priest and politician (b. 1925)
2014 – William Judson Holloway Jr., American soldier, lawyer, and judge (b. 1923)
2014 – Earl Morrall, American football player and coach (b. 1934)
2014 – Tito Vilanova, Spanish footballer and manager (b. 1968)
2014 – Stefanie Zweig, German journalist and author (b. 1932)
2015 – Jim Fanning, American-Canadian baseball player and manager (b. 1927)
2015 – Matthias Kuhle, German geographer and academic (b. 1948)
2015 – Don Mankiewicz, American screenwriter and novelist (b. 1922)
2015 – Mike Phillips, American basketball player (b. 1956)
2016 – Tom Lewis, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of New South Wales (b. 1922)
2018 – Madeeha Gauhar, Pakistani actress, playwright and director of social theater, and women’s rights activist (b. 1956)
2019 – John Havlicek, American basketball player (b. 1940)

Holidays and observances on April 25

Anniversary of the First Cabinet of Kurdish Government (Iraqi Kurdistan)
Anzac Day (Australia, New Zealand)
Arbor Day (Germany)
Christian feast day:
- Giovanni Battista Piamarta
- Major Rogation (Western Christianity)
- Mark the Evangelist
- Maughold
- Philo and Agathopodes
- Anianus of Alexandria
- April 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
DNA Day
Flag Day (Faroe Islands)
Freedom Day (Portugal)
Liberation Day (Italy)
Liberation Day (South Georgia)
Military Foundation Day (North Korea)
Parental Alienation Awareness Day
Red Hat Society Day
Sinai Liberation Day (Egypt)
World Malaria Day

April 25 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 22 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

On This Day / admin

238 – Year of the Six Emperors: The Roman Senate outlaws emperor Maximinus Thrax for his bloodthirsty proscriptions in Rome and nominates two of its members, Pupienus and Balbinus, to the throne.
1500 – Portuguese navigator Pedro Álvares Cabral lands in Brazil.
1519 – Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés establishes a settlement at Veracruz, Mexico.
1529 – Treaty of Zaragoza divides the eastern hemisphere between Spain and Portugal along a line 297.5 leagues (1,250 kilometres (780 mi)) east of the Moluccas.
1622 – The Capture of Ormuz by the East India Company ends Portuguese control of Hormuz Island.
1809 – The second day of the Battle of Eckmühl: The Austrian army is defeated by the First French Empire army led by Napoleon and driven over the Danube in Regensburg.
1836 – Texas Revolution: A day after the Battle of San Jacinto, forces under Texas General Sam Houston identify Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna among the captives of the battle when some of his fellow soldiers mistakenly give away his identity.
1864 – The U.S. Congress passes the Coinage Act of 1864 that mandates that the inscription In God We Trust be placed on all coins minted as United States currency.
1876 – The first game in the history of the National League was played at the Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia. This game is often pointed to as the beginning of Major League Baseball.
1889 – At noon, thousands rush to claim land in the Land Rush of 1889. Within hours the cities of Oklahoma City and Guthrie are formed with populations of at least 10,000.
1898 – Spanish–American War: The USS Nashville captures a Spanish merchant ship.
1906 – The 1906 Intercalated Games, now recognized as part of the official Olympic Games, open in Athens.
1915 – The use of poison gas in World War I escalates when chlorine gas is released as a chemical weapon in the Second Battle of Ypres.
1930 – The United Kingdom, Japan and the United States sign the London Naval Treaty regulating submarine warfare and limiting shipbuilding.
1944 – The 1st Air Commando Group using Sikorsky R-4 helicopters stage the first use of helicopters in combat with combat search and rescue operations in the China Burma India Theater.
1944 – World War II: Operation Persecution is initiated: Allied forces land in the Hollandia (currently known as Jayapura) area of New Guinea.
1944 – World War II: In Greenland, the Allied Sledge Patrol attack the German Bassgeiger weather station.
1945 – World War II: Prisoners at the Jasenovac concentration camp revolt. Five hundred twenty are killed and around eighty escape.
1948 – Arab–Israeli War: The port city of Haifa is captured by Jewish forces.
1951 – Korean War: The Chinese People’s Volunteer Army begin assaulting positions defended by the Royal Australian Regiment and the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry at the Battle of Kapyong.
1954 – Red Scare: Witnesses begin testifying and live television coverage of the Army–McCarthy hearings begins.
1969 – British yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston wins the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race and completes the first solo non-stop circumnavigation of the world.
1969 – The formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) is announced at a mass rally in Calcutta.
1970 – The first Earth Day is celebrated.
1972 – Increased American bombing in Vietnam prompts anti-war protests in Los Angeles, New York City, and San Francisco.
1977 – Optical fiber is first used to carry live telephone traffic.
1983 – The German magazine Stern claims the “Hitler Diaries” had been found in wreckage in East Germany; the diaries are subsequently revealed to be forgeries.
1992 – In a series of explosions in Guadalajara, Mexico, 206 people are killed, nearly 500 injured and 15,000 left homeless.
1993 – Eighteen-year-old Stephen Lawrence is murdered in a racially motivated attack while waiting for a bus in Well Hall, Eltham.
1997 – Haouch Khemisti massacre in Algeria where 93 villagers are killed.
2000 – In a pre-dawn raid, federal agents seize six-year-old Elián González from his relatives’ home in Miami.
2004 – Two fuel trains collide in Ryongchon, North Korea, killing up to 150 people.
2005 – Japan’s Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi apologizes for Japan’s war record.
2008 – The United States Air Force retires the remaining F-117 Nighthawk aircraft in service.
2013 – The Royal Canadian Mounted Police arrest and charge two men with plotting to disrupt a Toronto area train service in a plot claimed to be backed by Al-Qaeda elements.
2014 – More than 60 people are killed and 80 are seriously injured in a train crash in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Katanga Province.
2016 – The Paris Agreement is signed, an agreement to help fight global warming.
2019 – The 2019 Luzon earthquake kills at least 18 people in the Philippines.

Births on April 22

1412 – Reinhard III, Count of Hanau (1451–1452) (d. 1452)
1444 – Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk (d. 1503)
1451 – Isabella I of Castile (d. 1504)
1518 – Antoine of Navarre (d. 1562)
1592 – Wilhelm Schickard, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1635)
1610 – Pope Alexander VIII (d. 1691)
1658 – Giuseppe Torelli, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1709)
1690 – John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, English politician, Lord President of the Council (d. 1763)
1707 – Henry Fielding, English novelist and playwright (d. 1754)
1711 – Paul II Anton, Prince Esterházy, Austrian soldier (d. 1762)
1724 – Immanuel Kant, German anthropologist, philosopher, and academic (d. 1804)
1732 – John Johnson, English architect and surveyor (d. 1814)
1744 – James Sullivan, American lawyer and politician, 7th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1808)
1757 – Alessandro Rolla, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1841)
1766 – Germaine de Staël, French author and political philosopher (d. 1817)
1812 – Solomon Caesar Malan, Swiss-English orientalist (d. 1894)
1816 – Charles-Denis Bourbaki, French general (d. 1897)
1830 – Emily Davies, British suffragist and educator, co-founder and an early Mistress of Girton College, Cambridge University
1832 – Julius Sterling Morton, American journalist and politician, 3rd United States Secretary of Agriculture (d. 1902)
1844 – Lewis Powell, American soldier, attempted assassin of William H. Seward (d. 1865)
1852 – William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (d. 1912)
1858 – Ethel Smyth, English composer (d. 1944)
1854 – Henri La Fontaine, Belgian lawyer and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1943)
1860 – Ada Rehan, Irish-American actress (d. 1916)
1870 – Vladimir Lenin, Russian revolutionary and founder of Soviet Russia (d. 1924)
1872 – Princess Margaret of Prussia (d. 1954)
1873 – Ellen Glasgow, American author (d. 1945)
1876 – Róbert Bárány, Austrian-Swedish otologist and physician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1936)
1876 – Georg Lurich, Estonian wrestler and strongman (d. 1920)
1879 – Bernhard Gregory, Estonian-German chess player (d. 1939)
1884 – Otto Rank, Austrian-American psychologist and academic (d. 1939)
1886 – Izidor Cankar, Slovenian historian, author, and diplomat (d. 1958)
1889 – Richard Glücks, German SS officer (d. 1945)
1891 – Laura Gilpin, American photographer (d. 1979)
1891 – Vittorio Jano, Italian engineer (d. 1965)
1891 – Harold Jeffreys, English mathematician, geophysicist, and astronomer (d. 1989)
1891 – Nicola Sacco, Italian-American anarchist (d. 1927)
1892 – Vernon Johns, African-American minister and activist (d. 1965)
1899 – Vladimir Nabokov, Russian-born novelist and critic (d. 1977)
1900 – Nellie Beer, British politician, Lord Mayor of Manchester from 1966–67 (d. 1988)
1904 – J. Robert Oppenheimer, American physicist and academic (d. 1967)
1905 – Robert Choquette, American-Canadian author, poet, and diplomat (d. 1991)
1906 – Eric Fenby, English composer and educator (d. 1997)
1906 – Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten (d. 1947)
1908 – Ivan Yefremov, Russian paleontologist and author (d. 1972)
1909 – Rita Levi-Montalcini, Sephardic Jewish-Italian neurologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2012)
1909 – Indro Montanelli, Italian journalist and historian (d. 2001)
1909 – Spyros Markezinis, Greek politician, Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2000)
1910 – Norman Steenrod, American mathematician and academic (d. 1971)
1912 – Kathleen Ferrier, English operatic singer (d. 1953)
1912 – Kaneto Shindo, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
1914 – Baldev Raj Chopra, Indian director and producer (d. 2008)
1914 – Jan de Hartog, Dutch-American author and playwright (d. 2002)
1914 – José Quiñones Gonzales, Peruvian soldier and pilot (d. 1941)
1914 – Michael Wittmann, German SS officer (d. 1944)
1916 – Hanfried Lenz, German mathematician and academic (d. 2013)
1916 – Yehudi Menuhin, American-Swiss violinist and conductor (d. 1999)
1917 – Yvette Chauviré, French ballerina (d. 2016)
1917 – Sidney Nolan, Australian painter (d. 1992)
1918 – William Jay Smith, American poet and academic (d. 2015)
1918 – Mickey Vernon, American baseball player and coach (d. 2008)
1919 – Donald J. Cram, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)
1919 – Carl Lindner, Jr., American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2011)
1922 – Richard Diebenkorn, American soldier and painter (d. 1993)
1922 – Charles Mingus, American bassist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1979)
1922 – Wolf V. Vishniac, American microbiologist and academic (d. 1973)
1923 – Peter Kane Dufault, American soldier, pilot, and poet (d. 2013)
1923 – Bettie Page, American model and actress (d. 2008)
1923 – Aaron Spelling, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2006)
1924 – Nam Duck-woo, South Korean politician, 12th Prime Minister of South Korea (d. 2013)
1926 – Charlotte Rae, American actress and singer (d. 2018)
1926 – James Stirling, Scottish architect, designed the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart and Seeley Historical Library (d. 1992)
1927 – Laurel Aitken, Cuban-Jamaican singer (d. 2005)
1929 – Michael Atiyah, English-Lebanese mathematician and academic (d. 2019)
1929 – Robert Wade-Gery, English diplomat, British High Commissioner to India (d. 2015)
1930 – Enno Penno, Estonian politician, Prime Minister of Estonia in exile (d. 2016)
1931 – John Buchanan, Canadian lawyer and politician, 20th Premier of Nova Scotia (d. 2019)
1931 – Ronald Hynd, English dancer and choreographer
1933 – Anthony Llewellyn, Welsh-American chemist and astronaut (d. 2013)
1935 – Christopher Ball, English linguist and academic
1935 – Paul Chambers, African-American bassist and composer (d. 1969)
1935 – Bhama Srinivasan, Indian-American mathematician and academic
1936 – Glen Campbell, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 2017)
1936 – Pierre Hétu, Canadian pianist and conductor (d. 1998)
1937 – Jack Nicholson, American actor and producer
1937 – Jack Nitzsche, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and conductor (d. 2000)
1938 – Alan Bond, English-Australian businessman (d. 2015)
1938 – Gani Fawehinmi, Nigerian lawyer and activist (d. 2009)
1938 – Issey Miyake, Japanese fashion designer
1938 – Adam Raphael, English journalist and author
1939 – Mel Carter, American singer and actor
1939 – John Foley, English general and politician, Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey
1939 – Ray Guy, Canadian journalist and author (d. 2013)
1939 – Jason Miller, American actor and playwright (d. 2001)
1939 – Theodor Waigel, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of Finance
1941 – Greville Howard, Baron Howard of Rising, English politician
1942 – Giorgio Agamben, Italian philosopher and academic
1942 – Mary Prior, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Bristol
1943 – Keith Crisco, American businessman and politician (d. 2014)
1943 – Janet Evanovich, American author
1943 – Louise Glück, American poet
1943 – John Maples, Baron Maples, English lawyer and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Defence (d. 2012)
1943 – Scott W. Williams, American mathematician and professor
1944 – Steve Fossett, American businessman, pilot, and sailor (d. 2007)
1944 – Doug Jarrett, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2014)
1944 – Joshua Rifkin, American conductor and musicologist
1945 – Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Indian civil servant and politician, 22nd Governor of West Bengal
1945 – Demetrio Stratos, Egyptian-Italian singer-songwriter (d. 1979)
1946 – Steven L. Bennett, American captain and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1972)
1946 – Paul Davies, English physicist and author
1946 – Louise Harel, Canadian lawyer and politician
1946 – Archy Kirkwood, Baron Kirkwood of Kirkhope, Scottish lawyer and politician
1946 – Nicholas Stern, Baron Stern of Brentford, English economist and academic
1946 – John Waters, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1948 – John Pritchard, English bishop
1949 – Spencer Haywood, American basketball player
1950 – Peter Frampton, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1950 – Jancis Robinson, English journalist and critic
1951 – Paul Carrack, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
1951 – Aivars Kalējs, Latvian organist, composer, and pianist
1951 – Ana María Shua, Argentinian author and poet
1952 – François Berléand, French actor
1952 – Dave Loveridge, New Zealand rugby player
1952 – Phil Smith, American basketball player (d. 2002)
1953 – Valeri Bondarenko, Estonian footballer and coach
1953 – Richard Broadbent, English businessman
1955 – David Collier, English businessman
1957 – Donald Tusk, Polish journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Poland
1959 – Keith Boanas, English footballer and manager
1959 – Terry Francona, American baseball player, coach, and manager
1959 – Catherine Mary Stewart, Canadian actress
1959 – Ryan Stiles, American-Canadian actor and producer
1960 – Lloyd Honeyghan, Jamaican-English boxer
1960 – Mart Laar, Estonian historian and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Estonia
1960 – Randall L. Stephenson, American businessman
1961 – Alo Mattiisen, Estonian composer (d. 1996)
1961 – Ann McKechin, Scottish lawyer and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
1961 – Dewey Nicks, American photographer and director
1962 – Danièle Sauvageau, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1963 – Rosalind Gill, English sociologist and academic
1963 – Magnús Ver Magnússon, Icelandic weightlifter and strongman
1964 – Paul Baxter, English footballer
1965 – Miguel Leal, Portuguese footballer and manager
1965 – Peter Zezel, Canadian ice hockey and soccer player (d. 2009)
1966 – Mickey Morandini, American baseball player and manager
1966 – Jeffrey Dean Morgan, American actor
1967 – David J. C. MacKay, English physicist, engineer, and academic
1967 – Sherri Shepherd, American actress and talk show panelist
1967 – Harvey Williams, American football player
1968 – Jo Angel, Australian cricketer
1968 – Bimbo Coles, American basketball player and coach
1968 – Zarley Zalapski, Canadian ice hockey player
1969 – Dion Dublin, English footballer and sportscaster
1970 – Erkki Bahovski, Estonian journalist
1971 – Eric Mabius, American actor
1971 – Spencer Prior, English footballer
1972 – Sabine Appelmans, Belgian tennis player
1972 – Owen Finegan, Australian rugby player and coach
1972 – Milka Duno, Venezuelan race car driver and engineer
1972 – Sergei Hohlov-Simson, Estonian footballer and manager
1972 – Willie Robertson, American hunter and businessman
1973 – Adem Poric, English-Australian footballer
1973 – Ofer Talker, Israeli footballer and manager
1974 – Shavo Odadjian, Armenian-American bass player, songwriter, and producer
1975 – Greg Moore, Canadian race car driver (d. 1999)
1975 – Carlos Sastre, Spanish cyclist
1975 – Anders Nyström, Swedish guitarist and songwriter
1976 – Dan Cloutier, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
1976 – Paul Henderson, Australian footballer
1976 – Michał Żewłakow, Polish footballer
1977 – Mark van Bommel, Dutch footballer
1978 – Paul Malakwen Kosgei, Kenyan runner and coach
1978 – David Masters, English cricketer
1978 – Matt Orford, Australian rugby league player
1978 – Jason Stollsteimer, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1978 – Esteban Tuero, Argentinian race car driver
1979 – Zoltán Gera, Hungarian international footballer and manager
1979 – Daniel Johns, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
1980 – Igor Budan, Croatian footballer
1980 – Clarke Dermody, New Zealand rugby player
1980 – Nicolas Douchez, French footballer
1980 – Courtney Friel, American journalist
1980 – Carlos Hernández, Venezuelan baseball player
1980 – Quincy Timberlake, Kenyan-Australian activist, engineer, and politician
1980 – Rutledge Wood, American racing analyst and television personality
1981 – Madis Kallas, Estonian decathlete and activist
1981 – Rafael Sperafico, Brazilian race car driver (d. 2007)
1981 – Jonathan Trott, South African-English cricketer
1982 – Kaká, Brazilian footballer
1982 – Cassidy Freeman, American actress and musician
1982 – Joel Monaghan, Australian rugby league player
1982 – David Purcey, American baseball player
1982 – Aidas Reklys, Lithuanian figure skater
1982 – Aleksander Saharov, Estonian footballer
1982 – Noriko Shitaya, Japanese voice actress
1983 – Remi Ayodele, American football player
1983 – Sam W. Heads, English-American entomologist and palaeontologist
1983 – Jos Hooiveld, Dutch footballer
1983 – Matt Jones, American football player
1983 – Vangelis Mantzios, Greek footballer
1984 – Amelle Berrabah, English singer-songwriter
1985 – Kristin Fairlie, Canadian actress
1986 – Amber Heard, American actress and producer
1986 – Marshawn Lynch, American football player
1986 – Dušan Šakota, Serbian-Greek basketball player
1987 – David Luiz, Brazilian footballer
1987 – David Mateos, Spanish footballer
1988 – Dee Gordon, American baseball player
1989 – DeJuan Blair, American basketball player
1989 – Jasper Cillessen, Dutch footballer
1989 – Aron Gunnarsson, Icelandic footballer
1990 – Óscar González, Mexican boxer (d. 2014)
1990 – Machine Gun Kelly, American rapper and actor
1991 – Jordi Murphy, Irish international rugby player
1991 – Braydon Smith, Australian boxer (d. 2015)
1992 – Kenny Stills, American football player
1992 – Joonas Vaino, Estonian basketball player
1993 – Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti, Australian footballer
1993 – Ngani Laumape, New Zealand rugby player
1993 – Marcel Ritzmaier, Austrian footballer

Deaths on April 22

296 – Pope Caius
536 – Pope Agapetus I
591 – Peter III of Raqqa
613 – Saint Theodore of Sykeon
846 – Wuzong, Chinese emperor (b. 814)
1208 – Philip of Poitou, Prince-Bishop of Durham
1322 – Francis of Fabriano, Italian writer (b. 1251)
1355 – Eleanor of Woodstock, countess regent of Guelders, eldest daughter of King Edward II of England (b. 1318)
1585 – Henry of Saxe-Lauenburg, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen, Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück and Paderborn (b. 1550)
1616 – Miguel de Cervantes, Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright (b. 1547)
1672 – Georg Stiernhielm, Swedish linguist and poet (b. 1598)
1699 – Hans Erasmus Aßmann, German poet (b. 1646)
1758 – Antoine de Jussieu, French botanist and physician (b. 1686)
1778 – James Hargreaves, British inventor (b. 1720)
1806 – Pierre-Charles Villeneuve, French admiral (b. 1763)
1821 – Gregory V of Constantinople, Greek patriarch and saint (b. 1746)
1833 – Richard Trevithick, English engineer and explorer (b. 1771)
1850 – Friedrich Robert Faehlmann, Estonian philologist and physician (b. 1798)
1854 – Nicolás Bravo, Mexican general and politician, 11th President of Mexico (b. 1786)
1871 – Martín Carrera, Mexican general and president (1855) (b. 1806)
1877 – James P. Kirkwood, Scottish-American engineer (b. 1807)
1892 – Édouard Lalo, French violinist and composer (b. 1823)
1893 – Chaim Aronson, Lithuanian businessman and author (b. 1825)
1894 – Kostas Krystallis, Greek author and poet (b. 1868)
1896 – Thomas Meik, English engineer, founded Halcrow Group (b. 1812)
1908 – Henry Campbell-Bannerman, Scottish-English merchant and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1836)
1925 – André Caplet, French composer and conductor (b. 1878)
1929 – Henry Lerolle, French painter and art collector (b. 1848)
1932 – Ferenc Oslay, Hungarian-Slovene historian and author (b. 1883)
1933 – Henry Royce, English engineer and businessman, co-founded Rolls-Royce Limited (b. 1863)
1944 – Nikolaos Roussen, Greek captain (b. 1913)
1945 – Wilhelm Cauer, German mathematician and academic (b. 1900)
1945 – Käthe Kollwitz, German painter and sculptor (b. 1867)
1946 – Lionel Atwill, English-American actor (b. 1885)
1946 – Harlan F. Stone, American lawyer and jurist, 12th Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1872)
1949 – Charles Middleton, American actor (b. 1874)
1950 – Charles Hamilton Houston, American lawyer and academic (b. 1895)
1951 – Horace Donisthorpe, English myrmecologist and coleopterist (b. 1870)
1956 – Walt Faulkner, American race car driver (b. 1918)
1968 – Stephen H. Sholes, American record producer (b. 1911)
1978 – Will Geer, American actor (b. 1902)
1980 – Jane Froman, American actress and singer (b. 1907)
1980 – Fritz Strassmann, German chemist and physicist (b. 1902)
1983 – Earl Hines, American pianist and bandleader (b. 1903)
1984 – Ansel Adams, American photographer and environmentalist (b. 1902)
1985 – Paul Hugh Emmett, American chemist and academic (b. 1900)
1985 – Jacques Ferron, Canadian physician and author (b. 1921)
1986 – Mircea Eliade, Romanian historian and author (b. 1907)
1987 – Erika Nõva, Estonian architect (b. 1905)
1988 – Grigori Kuzmin, Russian-Estonian astronomer and academic (b. 1917)
1988 – Irene Rich, American actress (b. 1891)
1989 – Emilio G. Segrè, Italian-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1905)
1990 – Albert Salmi, American actor (b. 1928)
1994 – Richard Nixon, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 37th President of the United States (b. 1913)
1995 – Jane Kenyon, American poet and author (b. 1947)
1996 – Erma Bombeck, American journalist and author (b. 1927)
1996 – Jug McSpaden, American golfer and architect (b. 1908)
1998 – Kitch Christie, South African rugby player and coach (b. 1940)
1999 – Chan Canasta, Polish-English magician (b. 1920)
1999 – Munir Ahmad Khan, Pakistani nuclear engineer (b. 1926)
2002 – Linda Lovelace, American porn actress and activist (b. 1949)
2003 – Felice Bryant, American songwriter (b. 1925)
2003 – James H. Critchfield, American CIA officer (b. 1917)
2003 – Martha Griffiths, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 58th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (b. 1912)
2003 – Mike Larrabee, American runner (b. 1933)
2004 – Jason Dunham, American soldier, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1981)
2004 – Pat Tillman, American football player and soldier (b. 1976)
2005 – Erika Fuchs, German translator (b. 1906)
2005 – Philip Morrison, American physicist and academic (b. 1915)
2005 – Eduardo Paolozzi, Scottish sculptor and artist (b. 1924)
2006 – Henriette Avram, American computer scientist and academic (b. 1919)
2006 – D’Iberville Fortier, Canadian diplomat (b. 1926)
2006 – Alida Valli, Italian actress (b. 1921)
2007 – Juanita Millender-McDonald, American educator and politician (b. 1938)
2008 – Cameron Argetsinger, American race car driver and lawyer (b. 1921)
2008 – Ed Chynoweth, Canadian businessman (b. 1941)
2009 – Jack Cardiff, British cinematographer, director and photographer (b. 1914)
2010 – Richard Barrett, American lawyer and activist (b. 1943)
2011 – Hazel Dickens, American singer-songwriter, bassist and guitarist (b. 1935)
2012 – John Amabile, American football player and coach (b. 1939)
2012 – Bill Granger, American author (b. 1941)
2012 – Buzz Potamkin, American director and producer (b. 1945)
2012 – George Rathmann, American chemist, biologist, and businessman (b. 1927)
2013 – Dave Gold, American businessman, founded 99 Cents Only Stores (b. 1932)
2013 – George Stanley Gordon, American businessman (b. 1926)
2013 – Richie Havens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1941)
2013 – Lalgudi Jayaraman, Indian violinist and composer (b. 1930)
2013 – Mike Smith, English footballer (b. 1935)
2013 – Robert Suderburg, American pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1936)
2013 – J. S. Verma, Indian judge, 27th Chief Justice of India (b. 1933)
2014 – Allen Jacobs, American football player and coach (b. 1941)
2014 – Jovan Krkobabić, Serbian politician, Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia (b. 1930)
2014 – Mohammad Naseem, Pakistani-English activist (b. 1924)
2014 – Werner Potzernheim, German cyclist (b. 1927)
2014 – Oswaldo Vigas, Venezuelan painter (b. 1926)
2015 – Dick Balharry, Scottish environmentalist and photographer (b. 1937)
2015 – Gennadi Vengerov, Belarusian-Russian actor (b. 1959)
2017 – Erin Moran, American actress (b. 1960)
2017 – Donna Leanne Williams, Australian writer, artist, activist (b. 1963)

Holidays and observances on April 22

Christian feast day:
- Acepsimas of Hnaita and companions (Catholic Church)
- Arwald
- Epipodius and Alexander
- Hudson Stuck (Episcopal Church)
- John Muir (Episcopal Church)
- Opportuna of Montreuil
- Pope Caius
- Pope Soter
- St Senorina
- April 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Discovery Day (Brazil)
Earth Day (International observance) and its related observance:
- International Mother Earth Day
Holocaust Remembrance Day (Serbia)
From 2018 onwards, a national day of commemoration for the murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence (United Kingdom)

April 22 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

On This Day / admin

April 20 in History

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

Births on April 20

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

Deaths on April 20

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

Holidays and observances on April 20

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

April 20 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

On This Day / admin

AD 73 – Masada, a Jewish fortress, falls to the Romans after several months of siege, ending the First Jewish–Roman War.
1346 – Stefan Dušan, “the Mighty”, is crowned Emperor of the Serbs at Skopje, his empire occupying much of the Balkans.
1520 – The Revolt of the Comuneros begins in Spain against the rule of Charles V.
1582 – Spanish conquistador Hernando de Lerma founds the settlement of Salta, Argentina.
1746 – The Battle of Culloden is fought between the French-supported Jacobites and the British Hanoverian forces commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, in Scotland.After the battle many highland traditions were banned and the Highlands of Scotland were cleared of inhabitants.
1780 – Franz Friedrich Wilhelm von Fürstenberg founds the University of Münster.
1799 – French Revolutionary Wars: The Battle of Mount Tabor: Napoleon drives Ottoman Turks across the River Jordan near Acre.
1818 – The United States Senate ratifies the Rush–Bagot Treaty, limiting naval armaments on the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain.
1847 – Shooting of a Māori by an English sailor results in the opening of the Wanganui Campaign of the New Zealand Wars.
1853 – The Great Indian Peninsula Railway opens the first passenger rail in India, from Bori Bunder to Thane.
1858 – The Wernerian Natural History Society, a former Scottish learned society, is wound up.
1862 – American Civil War: Battle at Lee’s Mills in Virginia.
1862 – American Civil War: The District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act, a bill ending slavery in the District of Columbia, becomes law.
1863 – American Civil War: During the Vicksburg Campaign, gunboats commanded by acting Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter run downriver past Confederate artillery batteries at Vicksburg.
1881 – In Dodge City, Kansas, Bat Masterson fights his last gun battle.
1908 – Natural Bridges National Monument is established in Utah.
1910 – The oldest existing indoor ice hockey arena still used for the sport in the 21st century, Boston Arena, opens for the first time.
1912 – Harriet Quimby becomes the first woman to fly an airplane across the English Channel.
1917 – Vladimir Lenin returns to Petrograd, Russia, from exile in Switzerland.
1919 – Mohandas Gandhi organizes a day of “prayer and fasting” in response to the killing of Indian protesters in the Jallianwala Bagh massacre by the British colonial troops three days earlier.
1919 – Polish–Soviet War: The Polish army launches the Vilna offensive to capture Vilnius in modern Lithuania.
1922 – The Treaty of Rapallo, pursuant to which Germany and the Soviet Union re-establish diplomatic relations, is signed.
1925 – During the Communist St Nedelya Church assault in Sofia, Bulgaria, 150 are killed and 500 are wounded.
1941 – World War II: The Italian-German Tarigo convoy is attacked and destroyed by British ships.
1941 – World War II: The Nazi-affiliated Ustaše is put in charge of the Independent State of Croatia by the Axis powers after Operation 25 is effected.
1943 – Albert Hofmann accidentally discovers the hallucinogenic effects of the research drug LSD. He intentionally takes the drug three days later on April 19.
1944 – World War II: Allied forces start bombing Belgrade, killing about 1,100 people. This bombing fell on the Orthodox Christian Easter.
1945 – World War II: The Red Army begins the final assault on German forces around Berlin, with nearly one million troops fighting in the Battle of the Seelow Heights.
1945 – The United States Army liberates Nazi Sonderlager (high security) prisoner-of-war camp Oflag IV-C (better known as Colditz).
1945 – More than 7,000 die when the German refugee ship Goya is sunk by a Soviet submarine.
1947 – An explosion on board a freighter in port causes the city of Texas City, Texas, to catch fire, killing almost 600.
1947 – Bernard Baruch first applies the term “Cold War” to describe the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union.
1961 – In a nationally broadcast speech, Cuban leader Fidel Castro declares that he is a Marxist–Leninist and that Cuba is going to adopt Communism.
1963 – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. pens his Letter from Birmingham Jail while incarcerated in Birmingham, Alabama for protesting against segregation.
1972 – Apollo program: The launch of Apollo 16 from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
1990 – “Doctor Death”, Jack Kevorkian, participates in his first assisted suicide.
2001 – India and Bangladesh begin a five-day border conflict, but are unable to resolve the disputes about their border.
2003 – The Treaty of Accession is signed in Athens admitting ten new member states to the European Union.
2007 – Virginia Tech shooting: Seung-Hui Cho guns down 32 people and injures 17 before committing suicide.
2012 – The trial for Anders Behring Breivik, the perpetrator of the 2011 Norway attacks, begins in Oslo, Norway.
2012 – The Pulitzer Prize winners were announced, it was the first time since 1977 that no book won the Fiction Prize.
2013 – A 7.8-magnitude earthquake strikes Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran, killing at least 35 people and injuring 117 others.
2013 – The 2013 Baga massacre is started when Boko Haram militants engage government soldiers in Baga.
2014 – The South Korean ferry MV Sewol capsizes and sinks near Jindo Island, killing 304 passengers and crew and leading to widespread criticism of the South Korean government, media, and shipping authorities.

Births on April 16

1435 – Jan II the Mad, Duke of Żagań (1439–1449 and 1461–1468 and again in 1472) (d. 1504)
1488 – Jungjong of Joseon (d. 1544)
1495 – Petrus Apianus, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1557)
1516 – Tabinshwehti, Burmese king (d. 1550)
1569 – John Davies, English poet and lawyer (d. 1626)
1635 – Frans van Mieris the Elder, Dutch painter (d. 1681)
1646 – Jules Hardouin-Mansart, French architect, designed the Château de Dampierre and Grand Trianon (d. 1708)
1660 – Hans Sloane, Irish-English physician and academic (d. 1753)
1661 – Charles Montagu, 1st Earl of Halifax, English poet and politician, First Lord of the Treasury (d. 1715)
1682 – John Hadley, English mathematician, invented the octant (d. 1744)
1697 – Johann Gottlieb Görner, German organist and composer (d. 1778)
1728 – Joseph Black, French-Scottish physician and chemist (d. 1799)
1730 – Henry Clinton, English general and politician (d. 1795)
1755 – Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, French painter (d. 1842)
1786 – John Franklin, English admiral and politician, 4th Lieutenant Governor of Van Diemen’s Land (d. 1847)
1800 – George Bingham, 3rd Earl of Lucan, English field marshal and politician (d. 1888)
1808 – Caleb Blood Smith, American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 6th United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1864)
1821 – Ford Madox Brown, French-English soldier and painter (d. 1893)
1823 – Gotthold Eisenstein, German mathematician and academic (d. 1852)
1826 – Sir James Corry, 1st Baronet, British politician (d. 1891)
1827 – Octave Crémazie, Canadian poet and bookseller (d. 1879)
1839 – Antonio Starabba, Marchese di Rudinì, Italian politician, 12th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1908)
1834 – Charles Lennox Richardson, English merchant (d. 1862)
1844 – Anatole France, French journalist, novelist, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1924)
1847 – Hans Auer, Swiss-Austrian architect, designed the Federal Palace of Switzerland (d. 1906)
1848 – Kandukuri Veeresalingam, Indian author and activist (d. 1919)
1851 – Ponnambalam Ramanathan, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 3rd Solicitor General of Sri Lanka (d. 1930)
1864 – Rose Talbot Bullard, American medical doctor and professor (d. 1915)
1865 – Harry Chauvel, Australian general (d. 1945)
1866 – José de Diego, Puerto Rican journalist, lawyer, and politician (d. 1918)
1867 – Wilbur Wright, American inventor (d. 1912)
1871 – John Millington Synge, Irish author, poet, and playwright (d. 1909)
1874 – Jōtarō Watanabe, Japanese general (d. 1936)
1878 – R. E. Foster, English cricketer and footballer (d. 1914)
1882 – Seth Bingham, American organist and composer (d. 1972)
1884 – Ronald Barnes, 3rd Baron Gorell, English cricketer, journalist, and politician (d. 1963)
1885 – Leó Weiner, Hungarian composer and educator (d. 1960)
1886 – Michalis Dorizas, Greek-American football player and javelin thrower (d. 1957)
1886 – Ernst Thälmann, German politician (d. 1944)
1888 – Billy Minter, English footballer and manager (d. 1940)
1889 – Charlie Chaplin, English actor, director, producer, screenwriter, and composer (d. 1977)
1890 – Fred Root, English cricketer and umpire (d. 1954)
1890 – Gertrude Chandler Warner, American author and educator (d. 1979)
1891 – Dorothy P. Lathrop, American author and illustrator (d. 1980)
1892 – Howard Mumford Jones, American author, critic, and academic (d. 1980)
1893 – Germaine Guèvremont, Canadian journalist and author (d. 1968)
1893 – John Norton, American hurdler (d. 1979)
1895 – Ove Arup, English-Danish engineer and businessman, founded Arup (d. 1988)
1896 – Robert Henry Best, American journalist (d. 1952)
1896 – Árpád Weisz, Hungarian footballer (d. 1944)
1899 – Osman Achmatowicz, Polish chemist and academic (d. 1988)
1900 – Polly Adler, Russian-American madam and author (d. 1962)
1903 – Paul Waner, American baseball player and manager (d. 1965)
1904 – Fifi D’Orsay, Canadian-American vaudevillian, actress, and singer (d. 1983)
1905 – Frits Philips, Dutch businessman (d. 2005)
1907 – Joseph-Armand Bombardier, Canadian inventor and businessman, founded Bombardier Inc. (d. 1964)
1907 – August Eigruber, Austrian-German politician (d. 1947)
1908 – Ellis Marsalis, Sr., American businessman and activist (d. 2004)
1908 – Ray Ventura, French jazz bandleader (d. 1979)
1910 – Berton Roueché, American journalist and author (d. 1994)
1911 – Guy Burgess, English-Russian spy (d. 1963)
1913 – Les Tremayne, English actor (d. 2003)
1914 – John Hodiak, American actor (d. 1955)
1915 – Robert Speck, Canadian politician, 1st Mayor of Mississauga (d. 1972)
1916 – Behçet Necatigil, Turkish author, poet, and translator (d. 1979)
1917 – Victoria Eugenia Fernández de Córdoba, 18th Duchess of Medinaceli (d. 2013)
1917 – Barry Nelson, American actor (d. 2007)
1918 – Dick Gibson, English racing driver (d. 2010)
1918 – Hsuan Hua, Chinese-American monk and author (d. 1995)
1918 – Juozas Kazickas, Lithuanian-American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2014)
1918 – Spike Milligan, Irish actor, comedian, and writer (d. 2002)
1919 – Merce Cunningham, American dancer and choreographer (d. 2009)
1919 – Nilla Pizzi, Italian singer (d. 2011)
1919 – Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Mexican architect, designed the Tijuana Cultural Center and National Museum of Anthropology (d. 2013)
1919 – Thomas Willmore, English geometer and academic (d. 2005)
1920 – Ananda Dassanayake, Sri Lankan politician (d. 2012)
1920 – Prince George Valdemar of Denmark (d. 1986)
1921 – Arlin M. Adams, American lawyer and judge (d. 2015)
1921 – Wolfgang Leonhard, German historian and author (d. 2014)
1921 – Peter Ustinov, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
1922 – Kingsley Amis, English novelist, poet, and critic (d. 1995)
1922 – John Christopher, English author (d. 2012)
1922 – Lawrence N. Guarino, American colonel (d. 2014)
1922 – Leo Tindemans, Belgian politician, 43rd Prime Minister of Belgium (d. 2014)
1923 – Warren Barker, American composer (d. 2006)
1923 – Arch A. Moore Jr., American sergeant, lawyer, and politician, 28th Governor of West Virginia (d. 2015)
1924 – John Harvey-Jones, English academic and businessman (d. 2008)
1924 – Henry Mancini, American composer and conductor (d. 1994)
1924 – Rudy Pompilli, American saxophonist (d. 1976)
1924 – Madanjeet Singh, Indian diplomat, author, and philanthropist (d. 2013)
1926 – Pierre Fabre, French pharmacist, founded Laboratoires Pierre Fabre (d. 2013)
1927 – Edie Adams, American actress and singer (d. 2008)
1927 – Pope Benedict XVI
1927 – Rolf Schult, German actor (d. 2013)
1928 – Dick Lane, American football player and soldier (d. 2002)
1929 – Roy Hamilton, American singer (d. 1969)
1929 – Ralph Slatyer, Australian biologist and ecologist (d. 2012)
1929 – Ed Townsend, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2003)
1930 – Doug Beasy, Australian footballer and educator (d. 2013)
1930 – Herbie Mann, American flute player and composer (d. 2003)
1932 – Maury Meyers, American lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
1933 – Marcos Alonso Imaz, Spanish footballer (d. 2012)
1933 – Joan Bakewell, English journalist and author
1933 – Perry Botkin Jr., American composer, arranger and musician
1933 – Vera Krepkina, Russian long jumper
1933 – Ike Pappas, American journalist and actor (d. 2008)
1934 – Vince Hill, English singer-songwriter
1934 – Robert Stigwood, Australian producer and manager (d. 2016)
1934 – Barrie Unsworth, Australian politician, 36th Premier of New South Wales
1934 – Vicar, Chilean cartoonist (d. 2012)
1935 – Marcel Carrière, Canadian director and screenwriter
1935 – Sarah Kirsch, German poet and author (d. 2013)
1935 – Lennart Risberg, Swedish boxer (d. 2013)
1935 – Dominique Venner, French journalist and historian (d. 2013)
1935 – Bobby Vinton, American singer
1936 – Vadim Kuzmin, Russian physicist and academic (d. 2015)
1937 – Gert Potgieter, South African hurdler and coach
1938 – Rich Rollins, American baseball player
1938 – Gordon Wilson, Scottish lawyer and politician (d. 2017)
1939 – John Amabile, American football player and coach (d. 2012)
1939 – Dusty Springfield, English singer and record producer (d. 1999)
1940 – Benoît Bouchard, Canadian academic and politician, 18th Canadian Minister of Transport
1940 – David Holford, Barbadian cricketer
1940 – Queen Margrethe II of Denmark
1940 – Joan Snyder, American painter
1940 – Thomas Stonor, 7th Baron Camoys, English banker and politician, Lord Chamberlain of the United Kingdom
1941 – Allan Segal, American director and producer (d. 2012)
1942 – Jim Lonborg, American baseball pitcher
1942 – Sir Frank Williams, English businessman, founded the Williams F1 Racing Team
1943 – Lonesome Dave Peverett, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2000)
1943 – Petro Tyschtschenko, Austrian-German businessman
1943 – John Watkins, Australian cricketer
1945 – Tom Allen, American lawyer and politician
1946 – Margot Adler, American journalist and author (d. 2014)
1946 – Ernst Bakker, Dutch politician (d. 2014)
1946 – Johnnie Lewis, Liberian lawyer and politician, 18th Chief Justice of Liberia (d. 2015)
1946 – R. Carlos Nakai, American flute player
1947 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, American basketball player and coach
1947 – Gerry Rafferty, Scottish singer-songwriter (d. 2011)
1948 – Reg Alcock, Canadian businessman and politician, 17th Canadian President of the Treasury Board (d. 2011)
1950 – David Graf, American actor (d. 2001)
1950 – Colleen Hewett, Australian singer and actress
1951 – Ioan Mihai Cochinescu, Romanian author and photographer
1951 – David Nutt, English psychiatrist and academic
1952 – Bill Belichick, American football player and coach
1952 – Michel Blanc, French actor and director
1952 – Esther Roth-Shahamorov, Israeli sprinter and hurdler
1952 – Billy West, American voice actor, singer-songwriter, and comedian
1953 – Peter Garrett, Australian singer-songwriter and politician
1953 – Jay O. Sanders, American actor
1954 – Ellen Barkin, American actress
1954 – John Bowe, Australian racing driver
1954 – Mike Zuke, Canadian ice hockey player
1955 – Bruce Bochy, American baseball player and manager
1955 – Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
1956 – David M. Brown, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2003)
1956 – T Lavitz, American keyboard player, composer, and producer (d. 2010)
1956 – Lise-Marie Morerod, Swiss skier
1957 – Patricia De Martelaere, Belgian philosopher, author, and academic (d. 2009)
1958 – Tim Flach, English photographer and director
1958 – Ulf Wakenius, Swedish guitarist
1959 – Alison Ramsay, English-Scottish field hockey player and lawyer
1960 – Wahab Akbar, Filipino politician (d. 2007)
1960 – Rafael Benítez, Spanish footballer and manager
1960 – Pierre Littbarski, German footballer and manager
1961 – Jarbom Gamlin, Indian lawyer and politician, 7th Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh (d. 2014)
1961 – Linda Ruth Williams, British film studies academic
1962 – Anna Dello Russo, Italian journalist
1962 – Douglas Elmendorf, American economist and politician
1962 – Ian MacKaye, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
1963 – Saleem Malik, Pakistani cricketer
1963 – Jimmy Osmond, American singer
1964 – David Kohan, American screenwriter and producer
1964 – Dave Pirner, American singer, songwriter and producer
1964 – Esbjörn Svensson, Swedish pianist (d. 2008)
1965 – Yves-François Blanchet, Canadian politician
1965 – Jon Cryer, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1965 – Martin Lawrence, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
1966 – Jarle Vespestad, Norwegian drummer
1966 – Jeff Varner, American newscaster and reality television personality
1968 – Vickie Guerrero, American wrestler and manager
1968 – Rüdiger Stenzel, German runner
1969 – Patrik Järbyn, Swedish skier
1969 – Fernando Viña, American baseball player and sportscaster
1970 – Dero Goi, German singer-songwriter and drummer
1970 – Walt Williams, American basketball player
1971 – Cameron Blades, Australian rugby player
1971 – Selena, American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer (d. 1995)
1971 – Seigo Yamamoto, Japanese racing driver
1971 – Natasha Zvereva, Belarusian tennis player
1972 – Conchita Martínez, Spanish-American tennis player
1972 – Tracy K. Smith, American poet and educator
1973 – Akon, Senegalese-American singer, rapper and songwriter
1973 – Charlotta Sörenstam, Swedish golfer
1973 – Teddy Cobeña, Spanish-Ecuadorian expressionist and representational sculptor
1975 – Keon Clark, American basketball player
1976 – Lukas Haas, American actor and musician
1976 – Kelli O’Hara, American actress and singer
1977 – Freddie Ljungberg, Swedish footballer
1979 – Christijan Albers, Dutch racing driver
1979 – Lars Börgeling, German pole vaulter
1979 – Daniel Browne, New Zealand rugby player
1981 – Anestis Agritis, Greek footballer
1981 – Maya Dunietz, Israeli singer-songwriter and pianist
1981 – Matthieu Proulx, Canadian football player
1982 – Gina Carano, American mixed martial artist and actress
1982 – Boris Diaw, French basketball player
1982 – Jonathan Vilma, American football player
1983 – Marié Digby, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
1983 – Cat Osterman, American softball player
1984 – Teddy Blass, American composer and producer
1984 – Claire Foy, English actress
1984 – Tucker Fredricks, American speed skater
1984 – Paweł Kieszek, Polish footballer
1984 – Kerron Stewart, Jamaican sprinter
1985 – Luol Deng, Sudanese-English basketball player
1985 – Brendon Leonard, New Zealand rugby player
1985 – Benjamín Rojas, Argentinian singer-songwriter and actor
1985 – Taye Taiwo, Nigerian footballer
1986 – Paul di Resta, Scottish racing driver
1986 – Shinji Okazaki, Japanese footballer
1986 – Peter Regin, Danish ice hockey player
1986 – Epke Zonderland, Dutch gymnast
1987 – Cenk Akyol, Turkish basketball player
1987 – Aaron Lennon, English international footballer
1988 – Kyle Okposo, American ice hockey player
1990 – Reggie Jackson, American basketball player
1990 – Vangelis Mantzaris, Greek basketball player
1990 – Tony McQuay, American sprinter
1990 – Travis Shaw, American baseball player
1991 – Nolan Arenado, American baseball player
1991 – Kim Kyung-jung, South Korean footballer
1993 – Mirai Nagasu, American figure skater
1993 – Chance the Rapper, American rapper
1994 – Albert Almora, American baseball player
1994 – Will Fuller, American football player
2002 – Sadie Sink, American actress

Deaths on April 16

AD 69 – Otho, Roman emperor (b. AD 32)
665 – Fructuosus of Braga, French archbishop and saint
1090 – Sikelgaita, duchess of Apulia (b. c. 1040)
1113 – Sviatopolk II of Kiev (b. 1050)
1118 – Adelaide del Vasto, regent of Sicily, mother of Roger II of Sicily, queen of Baldwin I of Jerusalem
1198 – Frederick I, Duke of Austria (b. 1175)
1234 – Richard Marshal, 3rd Earl of Pembroke (b. 1191)
1375 – John Hastings, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, English nobleman and soldier (b. 1347)
1496 – Charles II, Duke of Savoy (b. 1489)
1587 – Anne Seymour, Duchess of Somerset (b. 1497)
1640 – Countess Charlotte Flandrina of Nassau (b. 1579)
1645 – Tobias Hume, Scottish soldier, viol player, and composer (b. 1569)
1687 – George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, English poet and politician, Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire (b. 1628)
1689 – Aphra Behn, English author and playwright (b. 1640)
1742 – Stefano Benedetto Pallavicino, Italian poet and translator (b. 1672)
1756 – Jacques Cassini, French astronomer (b. 1677)
1783 – Christian Mayer, Czech astronomer and educator (b. 1719)
1788 – Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon, French mathematician, cosmologist, and author (b. 1707)
1828 – Francisco Goya, Spanish-French painter and illustrator (b. 1746)
1846 – Domenico Dragonetti, Italian bassist and composer (b. 1763)
1850 – Marie Tussaud, French-English sculptor, founded the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum (b. 1761)
1859 – Alexis de Tocqueville, French historian and philosopher, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1805)
1879 – Bernadette Soubirous, French nun and saint (b. 1844)
1888 – Zygmunt Florenty Wróblewski, Polish physicist and chemist (b. 1845)
1899 – Emilio Jacinto, Filipino journalist and activist (b. 1875)
1904 – Maximilian Kronberger, German poet and author (b. 1888)
1904 – Samuel Smiles, Scottish-English author (b. 1812)
1914 – George William Hill, American astronomer and mathematician (b. 1838)
1915 – Nelson W. Aldrich, American businessman and politician (b. 1841)
1925 – Stefan Nerezov, Bulgarian general (b. 1867)
1928 – Henry Birks, Canadian businessman, founded Henry Birks and Sons (b. 1840)
1928 – Roman Steinberg, Estonian wrestler (b. 1900)
1930 – José Carlos Mariátegui, Peruvian journalist, philosopher, and activist (b. 1894)
1935 – Panait Istrati, Romanian journalist and author (b. 1884)
1937 – Jay Johnson Morrow, American military engineer and politician, 3rd Governor of the Panama Canal Zone (b. 1870)
1938 – Steve Bloomer, English footballer and manager (b. 1874)
1941 – Josiah Stamp, 1st Baron Stamp, English economist and civil servant (b. 1880)
1942 – Princess Alexandra of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (b. 1878)
1942 – Denis St. George Daly, Irish polo player (b. 1862)
1946 – Arthur Chevrolet, Swiss-American race car driver and engineer (b. 1884)
1947 – Rudolf Höss, German SS officer (b. 1900)
1950 – Eduard Oja, Estonian composer, conductor, and critic (b. 1905)
1950 – Anders Peter Nielsen, Danish target shooter (b. 1867)
1955 – David Kirkwood, Scottish engineer and politician (b. 1872)
1958 – Rosalind Franklin, English biophysicist and academic (b. 1920)
1960 – Mihály Fekete, Hungarian actor, screenwriter and film director (b. 1884)
1961 – Carl Hovland, American psychologist and academic (b. 1912)
1965 – Francis Balfour, English soldier and colonial administrator (b. 1884)
1965 – Sydney Chaplin, English actor, comedian, brother of Charlie Chaplin (b. 1885)
1966 – Eric Lambert, Australian author (b. 1918)
1968 – Fay Bainter, American actress (b. 1893)
1968 – Edna Ferber, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (b. 1885)
1969 – Hem Vejakorn, Thai illustrator and painter (b. 1904)
1970 – Richard Neutra, Austrian-American architect, designed the Los Angeles County Hall of Records (b. 1892)
1970 – Péter Veres, Hungarian politician, Hungarian Minister of Defence (b. 1897)
1972 – Yasunari Kawabata, Japanese novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1899)
1972 – Frank O’Connor, Australian public servant (b. 1894)
1973 – István Kertész, Hungarian conductor and educator (b. 1929)
1978 – Lucius D. Clay, American officer and military governor in occupied Germany (b. 1898)
1980 – Morris Stoloff, American composer (b. 1898)
1985 – Scott Brady, American actor (b. 1924)
1988 – Khalil al-Wazir, Palestinian commander, founded Fatah (b. 1935)
1988 – Youri Egorov, Russian pianist (b. 1954)
1989 – Jocko Conlan, American baseball player and umpire (b. 1899)
1989 – Kaoru Ishikawa Japanese author and educator (b. 1915)
1989 – Miles Lawrence, English cricketer (b. 1940)
1989 – Hakkı Yeten, Turkish footballer and manager (b. 1910)
1991 – David Lean, English director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1908)
1992 – Neville Brand, American actor (b. 1920)
1992 – Alexandru Nicolschi, Romanian spy and activist (b. 1915)
1992 – Andy Russell, American singer and actor (b. 1919)
1994 – Paul-Émilien Dalpé, Canadian labor unionist (b. 1919)
1994 – Ralph Ellison, American novelist and critic (b. 1913)
1996 – Lucille Bremer, American actress and dancer (b. 1917)
1996 – Stavros Niarchos, Greek-Swiss businessman (b. 1909)
1997 – Esmeralda Arboleda Cadavid, Colombian politician (b. 1921)
1997 – Roland Topor, French actor, director, and painter (b. 1938)
1998 – Alberto Calderón, Argentinian-American mathematician and academic (b. 1920)
1998 – Fred Davis, English snooker player (b. 1913)
1998 – Marie-Louise Meilleur, Canadian super-centenarian (b. 1880)
1999 – Skip Spence, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1946)
2001 – Robert Osterloh, American actor (b. 1918)
2001 – Michael Ritchie, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1938)
2001 – Alec Stock, English footballer and manager (b. 1917)
2002 – Billy Ayre, English footballer and manager (b. 1952)
2002 – Ruth Fertel, American businesswoman, founded Ruth’s Chris Steak House (b. 1927)
2002 – Robert Urich, American actor (b. 1946)
2003 – Graham Jarvis, Canadian actor (b. 1930)
2003 – Graham Stuart Thomas, English horticulturalist and author (b. 1909)
2005 – Kay Walsh, English actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1911)
2007 – Frank Bateson, New Zealand astronomer (b. 1909)
2007 – Gaétan Duchesne, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1962)
2007 – Maria Lenk, Brazilian swimmer (b. 1915)
2007 – Chandrabose Suthaharan, Sri Lankan journalist
2008 – Edward Norton Lorenz, American mathematician and meteorologist (b. 1917)
2010 – Rasim Delić, Bosnian general and convicted war criminal (b. 1949)
2010 – Daryl Gates, American police officer, created the D.A.R.E. Program (b. 1926)
2011 – Gerry Alexander, Jamaican cricketer and veterinarian (b. 1928)
2011 – Allan Blakeney, Canadian scholar and politician, 10th Premier of Saskatchewan (b. 1925)
2011 – Sol Saks, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1910)
2012 – Sári Barabás, Hungarian soprano (b. 1914)
2012 – Marian Biskup, Polish author and academic (b. 1922)
2012 – Alan Hacker, English clarinet player and conductor (b. 1938)
2012 – George Kunda, Zambian lawyer and politician, 11th Vice-President of Zambia (b. 1956)
2012 – Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller, Danish businessman (b. 1913)
2012 – Carlo Petrini, Italian footballer and coach (b. 1948)
2013 – Charles Bruzon, Gibraltarian politician (b. 1938)
2013 – Ali Kafi, Algerian colonel and politician (b. 1928)
2013 – Siegfried Ludwig, Austrian politician, 18th Governor of Lower Austria (b. 1926)
2013 – Pentti Lund, Finnish-Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1925)
2013 – George Beverly Shea, Canadian-American singer-songwriter (b. 1909)
2013 – Pat Summerall, American football player and sportscaster (b. 1930)
2013 – Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Mexican architect, designed the Tijuana Cultural Center and National Museum of Anthropology (b. 1919)
2014 – Gyude Bryant, Liberian businessman and politician (b. 1949)
2014 – Aulis Rytkönen, Finnish footballer and manager (b. 1929)
2014 – Ernst Florian Winter, Austrian-American historian and political scientist (b. 1923)
2015 – Valery Belousov, Russian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1948)
2015 – Attaphol Buspakom, Thai footballer and manager (b. 1962)
2015 – Oles Buzina, Ukrainian journalist and author (b. 1969)
2015 – Stanislav Gross, Czech lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (b. 1969)
2016 – Charlie Hodge, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1933)
2018 – Harry Anderson, American actor and magician (b. 1952)
2018 – Jim Caine, British jazz pianist (b. 1926)

Holidays and observances on April 16

Christian feast day:
- Benedict Joseph Labre
- Bernadette Soubirous
- Drogo
- Fructuosus of Braga
- Isabella Gilmore (Church of England)
- Martyrs of Zaragoza
- Molly Brant (Konwatsijayenni) (Anglican Church of Canada, Episcopal Church)
- Turibius of Astorga
- April 16 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Birthday of José de Diego (Puerto Rico, United States)
Birthday of Queen Margrethe II (Denmark)
Emancipation Day (Washington, D.C., United States)
Foursquare Day (International observance)
Memorial Day for the Victims of the Holocaust (Hungary)
National Healthcare Decisions Day (United States)
Remembrance of Chemical Attack on Balisan and Sheikh Wasan (Iraqi Kurdistan)
World Voice Day

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