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

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

  • 1091 – Battle of Levounion: The Pechenegs are defeated by Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos.
  • 1386 – Battle of the Vikhra River: The Principality of Smolensk is defeated by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and becomes its vassal.
  • 1429 – Joan of Arc arrives to relieve the Siege of Orléans.
  • 1483 – Gran Canaria, the main island of the Canary Islands, is conquered by the Kingdom of Castile.
  • 1521 – Swedish War of Liberation: Swedish troops defeat a Danish force in the Battle of Västerås.
  • 1770 – James Cook arrives in Australia at Botany Bay, which he names.
  • 1781 – American Revolutionary War: British and French ships clash in the Battle of Fort Royal off the coast of Martinique.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: Maryland’s House of Delegates votes not to secede from the Union.
  • 1862 – American Civil War: The Capture of New Orleans by Union forces under David Farragut.
  • 1864 – Theta Xi fraternity is founded at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the only fraternity to be founded during the American Civil War.
  • 1903 – A landslide kills 70 people in Frank, in the District of Alberta, Canada.
  • 1910 – The Parliament of the United Kingdom passes the People’s Budget, the first budget in British history with the expressed intent of redistributing wealth among the British public.
  • 1911 – Tsinghua University, one of mainland China’s leading universities, is founded.
  • 1916 – World War I: The UK’s 6th Indian Division surrenders to Ottoman Forces at the Siege of Kut in one of the largest surrenders of British forces up to that point.
  • 1916 – Easter Rising: After six days of fighting, Irish rebel leaders surrender to British forces in Dublin, bringing the Easter Rising to an end.
  • 1944 – World War II: British agent Nancy Wake, a leading figure in the French Resistance and the Gestapo’s most wanted person, parachutes back into France to be a liaison between London and the local maquis group.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Surrender of Caserta is signed by the commander of German forces in Italy.
  • 1945 – World War II: Airdrops of food begin over German-occupied regions of the Netherlands.
  • 1945 – World War II: The Captain-class frigate HMS Goodall (K479) is torpedoed by U-286 outside the Kola Inlet becoming the last Royal Navy ship to be sunk in the European theatre of World War II.
  • 1945 – World War II: Führerbunker: Adolf Hitler marries his longtime partner Eva Braun in a Berlin bunker and designates Admiral Karl Dönitz as his successor; Hitler and Braun both commit suicide the following day.
  • 1945 – Dachau concentration camp is liberated by United States troops.
  • 1945 – The Italian commune of Fornovo di Taro is liberated from German forces by Brazilian forces.
  • 1946 – The International Military Tribunal for the Far East convenes and indicts former Prime Minister of Japan Hideki Tojo and 28 former Japanese leaders for war crimes.
  • 1951 – Tibetan delegates to the Central People’s Government arrive in Beijing and draft a Seventeen Point Agreement for Chinese sovereignty and Tibetan autonomy.
  • 1953 – The first U.S. experimental 3D television broadcast showed an episode of Space Patrol on Los Angeles ABC affiliate KECA-TV.
  • 1965 – Pakistan’s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) successfully launches its seventh rocket in its Rehber series.
  • 1967 – After refusing induction into the United States Army the previous day, Muhammad Ali is stripped of his boxing title.
  • 1968 – The controversial musical Hair, a product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, opens at the Biltmore Theatre on Broadway, with some of its songs becoming anthems of the anti-Vietnam War movement.
  • 1970 – Vietnam War: United States and South Vietnamese forces invade Cambodia to hunt Viet Cong.
  • 1974 – Watergate scandal: United States President Richard Nixon announces the release of edited transcripts of White House tape recordings relating to the scandal.
  • 1975 – Vietnam War: Operation Frequent Wind: The U.S. begins to evacuate U.S. citizens from Saigon before an expected North Vietnamese takeover. U.S. involvement in the war comes to an end.
  • 1975 – Vietnam War: The North Vietnamese army completes its capture of all parts of South Vietnamese-held Trường Sa Islands.
  • 1986 – A fire at the Central library of the City of Los Angeles Public Library damages or destroys 400,000 books and other items.
  • 1986 – Chernobyl disaster: American and European spy satellites capture the ruins of the 4th Reactor at the Chernobyl Power Plant.
  • 1991 – A cyclone strikes the Chittagong district of southeastern Bangladesh with winds of around 155 miles per hour (249 km/h), killing at least 138,000 people and leaving as many as ten million homeless.
  • 1991 – The 7.0 Mw  Racha earthquake affects Georgia with a maximum MSK intensity of IX (Destructive), killing 270 people.
  • 1992 – Riots in Los Angeles, following the acquittal of police officers charged with excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. Over the next three days 63 people are killed and hundreds of buildings are destroyed.
  • 1997 – The Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 enters into force, outlawing the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons by its signatories.
  • 2011 – The Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton takes place at Westminster Abbey in London.
  • 2013 – A powerful explosion occurs in an office building in Prague, believed to have been caused by natural gas, injures 43 people.
  • 2013 – National Airlines Flight 102, a Boeing 747-400 freighter aircraft, crashes during takeoff from Bagram Airfield in Parwan Province, Afghanistan, killing seven people.
  • 2015 – A baseball game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Chicago White Sox sets the all-time low attendance mark for Major League Baseball. Zero fans were in attendance for the game, as the stadium was officially closed to the public due to the 2015 Baltimore protests.

Births on April 29

  • 912 – Minamoto no Mitsunaka, Japanese samurai (d. 997)
  • 1469 – William II, Landgrave of Hesse (d. 1509)
  • 1587 – Sophie of Saxony, Duchess of Pomerania (d. 1635)
  • 1636 – Esaias Reusner, German lute player and composer (d. 1679)
  • 1665 – James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde, Irish general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1745)
  • 1667 – John Arbuthnot, Scottish-English physician and polymath (d. 1735)
  • 1686 – Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English politician, Lord Great Chamberlain (d. 1742)
  • 1727 – Jean-Georges Noverre, French actor and dancer (d. 1810)
  • 1745 – Oliver Ellsworth, American lawyer and politician, 3rd Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1807)
  • 1758 – Georg Carl von Döbeln, Swedish general (d. 1820)
  • 1762 – Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, French general and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1833)
  • 1780 – Charles Nodier, French librarian and author (d. 1844)
  • 1783 – David Cox, English landscape painter (d. 1859)
  • 1784 – Samuel Turell Armstrong, American publisher and politician, 14th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1850)
  • 1810 – Thomas Adolphus Trollope, English journalist and author (d. 1892)
  • 1814 – Sadok Barącz, Galician religious leader, historian, folklorist, archivist (d. 1892)
  • 1818 – Alexander II of Russia (d. 1881)
  • 1837 – Georges Ernest Boulanger, French general and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1891)
  • 1842 – Carl Millöcker, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1899)
  • 1847 – Joachim Andersen, Danish flautist, composer, conductor, and co-founder of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (d. 1907)
  • 1848 – Raja Ravi Varma, Indian painter and academic (d. 1906)
  • 1854 – Henri Poincaré, French mathematician, physicist, and engineer (d. 1912)
  • 1858 – Georgia Hopley, American journalist, temperance advocate, and the first woman prohibition agent (d. 1944)
  • 1863 – Constantine P. Cavafy, Egyptian-Greek journalist and poet (d. 1933)
  • 1863 – William Randolph Hearst, American publisher and politician, founded the Hearst Corporation (d. 1951)
  • 1863 – Maria Teresia Ledóchowska, Austrian nun and missionary (d. 1922)
  • 1872 – Harry Payne Whitney, American businessman and lawyer (d. 1930)
  • 1872 – Forest Ray Moulton, American astronomer and academic (d. 1952)
  • 1875 – Rafael Sabatini, Italian-English novelist and short story writer (d. 1950)
  • 1878 – Friedrich Adler, Jewish-German academic, artist and designer (d.1945)
  • 1879 – Thomas Beecham, English conductor (d. 1961, March 8)
  • 1880 – Fethi Okyar, Turkish military officer, diplomat and politician (d. 1943)
  • 1882 – Auguste Herbin, French painter (d. 1960)
  • 1882 – Hendrik Nicolaas Werkman, Dutch printer, typographer, and Nazi resister (d. 1945)
  • 1891 – Bharathidasan, Indian poet and activist (d. 1964)
  • 1894 – Marietta Blau, Austrian physicist and academic (d. 1970)
  • 1885 – Egon Erwin Kisch, Czech journalist and author (d. 1948)
  • 1887 – Raymond Thorne, American swimmer (d. 1921)
  • 1893 – Harold Urey, American chemist and astronomer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1981)
  • 1895 – Vladimir Propp, Russian scholar and critic (d. 1970)
  • 1895 – Malcolm Sargent, English organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1967)
  • 1899 – Duke Ellington, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1974)
  • 1899 – Mary Petty, American illustrator (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Concha de Albornoz, Spanish feminist and intellectual, exiled during the Spanish Civil War (d. 1972)
  • 1900 – Amelia Best, Australian politician, one of the first women elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly (d. 1979)
  • 1901 – Hirohito, Japanese emperor (d. 1989)
  • 1907 – Fred Zinnemann, Austrian-American director and producer (d. 1997)
  • 1908 – Jack Williamson, American author and academic (d. 2006)
  • 1909 – Tom Ewell, American actor (d. 1994)
  • 1912 – Richard Carlson, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1977)
  • 1915 – Henry H. Barschall, German-American physicist and academic (d. 1997)
  • 1917 – Maya Deren, Ukrainian-American director, poet, and photographer (d. 1961)
  • 1917 – Celeste Holm, American actress and singer (d. 2012)
  • 1918 – George Allen, American football player and coach (d. 1990)
  • 1919 – Gérard Oury, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2006)
  • 1920 – Edward Blishen, English author and radio host (d. 1996)
  • 1920 – Harold Shapero, American composer (d. 2013)
  • 1922 – Helmut Krackowizer, Austrian motorcycle racer and journalist (d. 2001)
  • 1922 – Toots Thielemans, Belgian guitarist and harmonica player (d. 2016)
  • 1923 – Irvin Kershner, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2010)
  • 1924 – Al Balding, Canadian golfer (d. 2006)
  • 1924 – Zizi Jeanmaire, French ballerina and actress
  • 1925 – John Compton, Saint Lucian lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Saint Lucia (d. 2007)
  • 1925 – Iwao Takamoto, American animator, director, and producer (d. 2007)
  • 1926 – Elmer Kelton, American journalist and author (d. 2009)
  • 1927 – Dorothy Manley, English sprinter
  • 1927 – Bill Slater, English footballer (d. 2018)
  • 1928 – Carl Gardner, American singer (d. 2011)
  • 1928 – Heinz Wolff, German-English physiologist, engineer, and academic (d. 2017)
  • 1929 – Walter Kempowski, German author and academic (d. 2007)
  • 1929 – Mickey McDermott, American baseball player and coach (d. 2003)
  • 1929 – Peter Sculthorpe, Australian composer and conductor (d. 2014)
  • 1929 – Maurice Strong, Canadian businessman and diplomat (d. 2015)
  • 1929 – Jeremy Thorpe, English lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
  • 1930 – Jean Rochefort, French actor and director (d. 2017)
  • 1931 – Frank Auerbach, British-German painter
  • 1931 – Lonnie Donegan, Scottish-English singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2002)
  • 1931 – Chris Pearson, Canadian politician, 1st Premier of Yukon (d. 2014)
  • 1932 – Joy Clements, American soprano and actress (d. 2005)
  • 1932 – David Tindle, English painter and educator
  • 1933 – Ed Charles, American baseball player and coach (d. 2018)
  • 1933 – Mark Eyskens, Belgian economist and politician, 61st Prime Minister of Belgium
  • 1933 – Rod McKuen, American singer-songwriter and poet (d. 2015)
  • 1933 – Willie Nelson, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor
  • 1934 – Luis Aparicio, Venezuelan-American baseball player
  • 1934 – Peter de la Billière, English general
  • 1934 – Erika Fisch, German sprinter and hurdler
  • 1934 – Pedro Pires, Cape Verdean politician, 3rd President of Cape Verde
  • 1935 – Otis Rush, American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
  • 1936 – Zubin Mehta, Indian bassist and conductor
  • 1936 – Adolfo Nicolás, Spanish priest, 13th Superior General of the Society of Jesus
  • 1936 – Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, English banker and philanthropist
  • 1936 – April Stevens, American pop singer
  • 1937 – Arvo Mets, Estonian-Russian poet and translator (d. 1997)
  • 1937 – Jill Paton Walsh, English author
  • 1938 – Bernard Madoff, American businessman, financier and convicted felon
  • 1938 – Klaus Voormann, German artist, bass player, and producer
  • 1940 – Stephanos of Tallinn, Estonian metropolitan
  • 1940 – Brian Taber, Australian cricketer
  • 1941 – Jonah Barrington, English-Irish squash player
  • 1941 – Dorothy Edgington, British philosopher
  • 1941 – Hanne Darboven, German painter (d. 2009)
  • 1942 – Lynda Chalker, Baroness Chalker of Wallasey, English politician, Minister of State for Europe
  • 1942 – Rennie Fritchie, Baroness Fritchie, English civil servant and academic
  • 1942 – Galina Kulakova, Russian skier
  • 1943 – Duane Allen, American country singer
  • 1943 – Brenda Dean, Baroness Dean of Thornton-le-Fylde, English union leader and politician (d. 2018)
  • 1943 – Ruth Deech, Baroness Deech, English lawyer and academic
  • 1944 – Francis Lee, English footballer and businessman
  • 1945 – Brian Charlesworth, English biologist, geneticist, and academic
  • 1945 – Hugh Hopper, English bass guitarist (d. 2009)
  • 1945 – Catherine Lara, French singer-songwriter and violinist
  • 1945 – Tammi Terrell, American soul singer-songwriter (d. 1970)
  • 1946 – Aleksander Wolszczan, Polish astronomer
  • 1947 – Serge Bernier, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1947 – Tommy James, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1947 – Johnny Miller, American golfer and sportscaster
  • 1947 – Jim Ryun, American runner and politician
  • 1948 – Bruce Cutler, American lawyer
  • 1950 – Paul Holmes, New Zealand journalist (d. 2013)
  • 1950 – Phillip Noyce, Australian director and producer
  • 1950 – Debbie Stabenow, American social worker and politician
  • 1951 – Rick Burleson, American baseball player
  • 1951 – Dale Earnhardt, American race car driver (d. 2001)
  • 1951 – John Holmes, English diplomat, British Ambassador to France
  • 1952 – Nora Dunn, American actress and comedian
  • 1952 – David Icke, English footballer and sportscaster
  • 1952 – Bob McClure, American baseball player and coach
  • 1952 – Rob Nicholson, Canadian lawyer and politician, 11th Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1952 – Ron Washington, American baseball player and manager
  • 1954 – Jake Burton Carpenter, American snowboarder and businessman, founded Burton Snowboards
  • 1954 – Jerry Seinfeld, American comedian, actor, and producer
  • 1955 – Don McKinnon, Australian rugby league player
  • 1955 – Kate Mulgrew, American actress
  • 1956 – Karen Barad, American physicist and philosopher
  • 1957 – Daniel Day-Lewis, British-Irish actor
  • 1957 – Mark Kendall, American guitarist and songwriter
  • 1958 – Michelle Pfeiffer, American actress
  • 1958 – Eve Plumb, American actress
  • 1958 – Gary Cohen, American baseball play-by-play announcer
  • 1958 – Kevin Moore, English footballer (d. 2013)
  • 1960 – Bill Glasson, American golfer
  • 1960 – Robert J. Sawyer, Canadian author and academic
  • 1962 – Bruce Driver, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1962 – Rob Druppers, Dutch runner
  • 1962 – Stephan Burger, German Catholic archbishop
  • 1963 – Mike Babcock, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1964 – Federico Castelluccio, Italian-American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1964 – Radek Jaroš, Czech mountaineer and author
  • 1965 – Michel Bussi, French geographer, author, and academic
  • 1965 – Peter Rauhofer, Austrian-American disc jockey and producer (d. 2013)
  • 1965 – Larisa Turchinskaya, Russian-Australian heptathlete and coach
  • 1965 – Brendon Tuuta, New Zealand rugby league player
  • 1966 – Christian Tetzlaff, German violinist
  • 1966 – Phil Tufnell, English cricketer and radio host
  • 1967 – Marcel Albers, Dutch race car driver (d. 1992)
  • 1967 – Curtis Joseph, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1968 – Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, 4th President of Croatia
  • 1968 – Carnie Wilson, American singer-songwriter
  • 1969 – Jack Mackenroth, American swimmer, model, and fashion designer
  • 1970 – Andre Agassi, American tennis player
  • 1970 – Uma Thurman, American actress
  • 1972 – Dustin McDaniel, American lawyer and politician, 55th Arkansas Attorney General
  • 1974 – Jasper Wood, Canadian violinist and educator
  • 1974 – Anggun, Diva Indonesia
  • 1975 – Rafael Betancourt, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1975 – Artem Yashkin, Ukrainian footballer
  • 1976 – Fabio Liverani, Italian footballer and manager
  • 1976 – Chiyotaikai Ryūji, Japanese sumo wrestler
  • 1977 – Zuzana Hejdová, Czech tennis player
  • 1977 – Claus Jensen, Danish international footballer and manager
  • 1977 – Titus O’Neil, American football player and wrestler
  • 1977 – Attila Zsivoczky, Hungarian decathlete and high jumper
  • 1978 – Tony Armas, Jr., Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1978 – Bob Bryan, American tennis player
  • 1978 – Mike Bryan, American tennis player
  • 1978 – Javier Colon, American singer-songwriter and musician
  • 1978 – Craig Gower, Australian rugby player
  • 1978 – Tyler Labine, Canadian actor and comedian
  • 1979 – Lee Dong-gook, South Korean footballer
  • 1979 – Ryan Sharp, Scottish race car driver and manager
  • 1980 – Mathieu Biron, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1980 – Kelly Shoppach, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Lisa Allen, English chef
  • 1981 – George McCartney, Northern Irish footballer
  • 1981 – Émilie Mondor, Canadian runner (d. 2006)
  • 1983 – Jay Cutler, American football player
  • 1983 – Tommie Harris, American football player
  • 1983 – David Lee, American basketball player
  • 1984 – Kirby Cote, Canadian swimmer
  • 1984 – Paulius Jankūnas, Lithuanian basketball player
  • 1984 – Lina Krasnoroutskaya, Russian tennis player
  • 1984 – Vassilis Xanthopoulos, Greek basketball player
  • 1985 – Jean-François Jacques, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1986 – Byun Yo-han, South Korean actor
  • 1986 – Lee Chae-young, South Korean actress
  • 1986 – Viljar Veski, Estonian basketball player
  • 1986 – Sisa Waqa, Fijian rugby league player
  • 1986 – Monique Alfradique, Brazilian actress
  • 1987 – Knut Børsheim, Norwegian golfer
  • 1987 – Sara Errani, Italian tennis player
  • 1988 – Elías Hernández, Mexican footballer
  • 1988 – Alfred Hui, Hong Kong singer
  • 1988 – Jovan Leacock, American football player
  • 1988 – Taoufik Makhloufi, Algerian athlete
  • 1988 – Jonathan Toews, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1988 – Younha, South Korean singer-songwriter and record producer
  • 1991 – Adam Smith, English footballer
  • 1991 – Jung Hye-sung, South Korean actress
  • 1992 – Emilio Orozco, American soccer player
  • 1992 – Alina Rosenberg, German Paralympic equestrian
  • 1994 – Christina Shakovets, German tennis player
  • 1995 – Victoria Sinitsina, Russian ice dancer
  • 1996 – Katherine Langford, Australian actress
  • 1998 – Kimberly Birrell, Australian tennis player
  • 2007 – Infanta Sofía of Spain, Spanish princess

Deaths on April 29

  • 643 – Hou Junji, Chinese general and politician, Chancellor of the Tang dynasty
  • 926 – Burchard II, Duke of Swabia (b. 883)
  • 1380 – Catherine of Siena, Italian mystic, philosopher, and saint (b. 1347)
  • 1417 – Louis II of Anjou (b. 1377)
  • 1594 – Thomas Cooper, English bishop, lexicographer, and theologian (b. 1517)
  • 1630 – Agrippa d’Aubigné, French soldier and poet (b. 1552)
  • 1658 – John Cleveland, English poet and author (b. 1613)
  • 1676 – Michiel de Ruyter, Dutch admiral (b. 1607)
  • 1688 – Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg (b. 1620)
  • 1698 – Charles Cornwallis, 3rd Baron Cornwallis, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk (b. 1655)
  • 1707 – George Farquhar, Irish-English actor and playwright (b. 1678)
  • 1743 – Charles-Irénée Castel de Saint-Pierre, French theorist and author (b. 1658)
  • 1768 – Georg Brandt, Swedish chemist and mineralogist (b. 1694)
  • 1771 – Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli, French-Italian architect, designed Winter Palace and Catherine Palace (b. 1700)
  • 1776 – Edward Wortley Montagu, English explorer and author (b. 1713)
  • 1793 – John Michell, English geologist and astronomer (b. 1724)
  • 1798 – Nikolaus Poda von Neuhaus, Austrian entomologist and author (b. 1723)
  • 1833 – William Babington, Anglo-Irish physician and mineralogist (b. 1756)
  • 1854 – Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey, English field marshal and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1768)
  • 1903 – Paul Du Chaillu, French-American anthropologist and zoologist (b. 1835)
  • 1905 – Ignacio Cervantes, Cuban pianist and composer (b. 1847)
  • 1916 – Jørgen Pedersen Gram, Danish mathematician and academic (b. 1850)
  • 1920 – William H. Seward Jr., American general and banker (b. 1839)
  • 1921 – Arthur Mold, English cricketer (b. 1863)
  • 1933 – Constantine P. Cavafy, Greek poet and journalist (b. 1863)
  • 1937 – William Gillette, American actor and playwright (b. 1853)
  • 1944 – Bernardino Machado, Portuguese academic and politician, 3rd President of Portugal (b. 1851)
  • 1945 – Matthias Kleinheisterkamp, German SS officer (b. 1893)
  • 1947 – Irving Fisher, American economist and statistician (b. 1867)
  • 1951 – Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian-English philosopher and academic (b. 1889)
  • 1954 – Kathleen Clarice Groom, Australian-English author and screenwriter (b. 1872)
  • 1956 – Harold Bride, English soldier and operator (b. 1890)
  • 1956 – Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb, German field marshal (b. 1876)
  • 1959 – Kenneth Arthur Noel Anderson, India-born English soldier and Governor of Gibraltar (b. 1891)
  • 1964 – Rae Johnstone, Australian jockey (b. 1905)
  • 1966 – William Eccles, English physicist and engineer (b. 1875)
  • 1966 – Paula Strasberg, American actress, acting coach, and member of the Communist Party (b. 1909)
  • 1967 – J. B. Lenoir, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1929)
  • 1968 – Lin Zhao, Chinese dissident and Christian executed during the Cultural Revolution (b. 1932)
  • 1976 – Edvard Drabløs, Norwegian actor and director (b. 1883)
  • 1978 – Theo Helfrich, German race car driver (b. 1913)
  • 1979 – Muhsin Ertuğrul, Turkish actor and director (b. 1892)
  • 1979 – Hardie Gramatky, American author and illustrator (b. 1907)
  • 1980 – Alfred Hitchcock, English-American director and producer (b. 1899)
  • 1982 – Raymond Bussières, French actor, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1907)
  • 1992 – Mae Clarke, American actress (b. 1910)
  • 1993 – Michael Gordon, American actor and director (b. 1909)
  • 1993 – Mick Ronson, English guitarist, songwriter, and producer (b. 1946)
  • 1997 – Mike Royko, American journalist and author (b. 1932)
  • 1998 – Hal Laycoe, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1922)
  • 2000 – Phạm Văn Đồng, Vietnamese lieutenant and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Vietnam (b. 1906)
  • 2001 – Arthur B. C. Walker, Jr., American physicist and academic (b. 1936)
  • 2002 – Bob Akin, American race car driver and journalist (b. 1936)
  • 2003 – Janko Bobetko, Croatian Army general and Chief of the General Staff (b. 1919)
  • 2004 – Sid Smith, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1925)
  • 2005 – William J. Bell, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1927)
  • 2005 – Louis Leithold, American mathematician and academic (b. 1924)
  • 2006 – John Kenneth Galbraith, Canadian-American economist and diplomat, United States Ambassador to India (b. 1908)
  • 2007 – Milt Bocek, American baseball player and soldier (b. 1912)
  • 2007 – Josh Hancock, American baseball player (b. 1978)
  • 2007 – Dick Motz, New Zealand cricketer and rugby player (b. 1940)
  • 2007 – Ivica Račan, Croatian politician, 7th Prime Minister of Croatia (b. 1944)
  • 2008 – Chuck Daigh, American race car driver (b. 1923)
  • 2008 – Albert Hofmann, Swiss chemist and academic (b. 1906)
  • 2010 – Sandy Douglas, English computer scientist and academic, designed OXO (b. 1921)
  • 2011 – Siamak Pourzand, Iranian journalist and critic (b. 1931)
  • 2011 – Joanna Russ, American writer, academic and radical feminist (b. 1937)
  • 2012 – Shukri Ghanem, Libyan politician, Prime Minister of Libya (b. 1942)
  • 2012 – Joel Goldsmith, American composer and conductor (b. 1957)
  • 2012 – Roland Moreno. French engineer, invented the smart card (b. 1945)
  • 2012 – Kenny Roberts, American singer-songwriter (b. 1926)
  • 2013 – Alex Elisala, New Zealand-Australian rugby player (b. 1992)
  • 2013 – Pesah Grupper, Israeli politician, 13th Israel Minister of Agriculture (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Parekura Horomia, New Zealand politician, 40th Minister of Māori Affairs (b. 1950)
  • 2013 – John La Montaine, American pianist and composer (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – Ernest Michael, American mathematician and scholar (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Kevin Moore, English footballer (b. 1958)
  • 2013 – Marianna Zachariadi, Greek pole vaulter (b. 1990)
  • 2014 – Iveta Bartošová, Czech singer and actress (b. 1966)
  • 2014 – Al Feldstein, American author and illustrator (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Bob Hoskins, English actor (b. 1942)
  • 2014 – Michael Kadosh, Israeli footballer and manager (b. 1940)
  • 2015 – François Michelin, French businessman (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Jean Nidetch, American businesswoman, co-founded Weight Watchers (b. 1923)
  • 2015 – Calvin Peete, American golfer (b. 1943)
  • 2015 – Dan Walker, American lawyer and politician, 36th Governor of Illinois (b. 1922)
  • 2016 – Renato Corona, Filipino lawyer and jurist, 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines (b. 1948)
  • 2019 – Josef Šural, Czech footballer (b. 1990)
  • 2020 – Irrfan Khan, Indian film actor (b. 1967)

Holidays and observances on April 29

  • Christian feast day:
    • Catherine of Siena (Catholic, Lutheran and Anglican Church)
    • Endelienta
    • Hugh of Cluny
    • Robert of Molesme
    • Torpes of Pisa
    • April 29 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Day of Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare (United Nations)
  • International Dance Day (UNESCO)
  • Shōwa Day, traditionally the start of the Golden Week holiday period, which is April 29 and May 3–5. (Japan)

April 29 – 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

  • 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

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

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

Births on April 21

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

Deaths on April 21

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

Holidays and observances April 21

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

April 21 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 19 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • AD 65 – The freedman Milichus betrays Piso’s plot to kill Emperor Nero and all the conspirators are arrested.
  • 531 – Battle of Callinicum: A Byzantine army under Belisarius is defeated by the Persians at Raqqa (northern Syria).
  • 797 – Empress Irene organizes a conspiracy against her son, the Byzantine emperor Constantine VI. He is deposed and blinded. Shortly after, Constantine dies of his wounds; Irene proclaims herself basileus.
  • 1506 – The Lisbon Massacre begins, in which accused Jews are being slaughtered by Portuguese Catholics.
  • 1529 – Beginning of the Protestant Reformation: After the Second Diet of Speyer bans Lutheranism, a group of rulers (German: Fürst) and independent cities protests the reinstatement of the Edict of Worms.
  • 1539 – The Treaty of Frankfurt between Protestants and the Holy Roman Emperor is signed.
  • 1608 – In Ireland: O’Doherty’s Rebellion is launched by the Burning of Derry.
  • 1677 – The French army captures the town of Cambrai held by Spanish troops.
  • 1713 – With no living male heirs, Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, issues the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 to ensure that Habsburg lands and the Austrian throne would be inheritable by a female; his daughter and successor, Maria Theresa was not born until 1717.
  • 1770 – Captain James Cook, still holding the rank of lieutenant, sights the eastern coast of what is now Australia.
  • 1770 – Marie Antoinette marries Louis XVI of France in a proxy wedding.
  • 1775 – American Revolutionary War: The war begins with an American victory in Concord during the battles of Lexington and Concord.
  • 1782 – John Adams secures the Dutch Republic’s recognition of the United States as an independent government. The house which he had purchased in The Hague, Netherlands becomes the first American embassy.
  • 1809 – An Austrian corps is defeated by the forces of the Duchy of Warsaw in the Battle of Raszyn, part of the struggles of the Fifth Coalition. On the same day the Austrian main army is defeated by a First French Empire Corps led by Louis-Nicolas Davout at the Battle of Teugen-Hausen in Bavaria, part of a four-day campaign that ended in a French victory.
  • 1810 – Venezuela achieves home rule: Vicente Emparán, Governor of the Captaincy General is removed by the people of Caracas and a junta is installed.
  • 1818 – French physicist Augustin Fresnel signs his preliminary “Note on the Theory of Diffraction” (deposited on the following day). The document ends with what we now call the Fresnel integrals.
  • 1839 – The Treaty of London establishes Belgium as a kingdom and guarantees its neutrality.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: Baltimore riot of 1861: A pro-Secession mob in Baltimore attacks United States Army troops marching through the city.
  • 1903 – The Kishinev pogrom in Kishinev (Bessarabia) begins, forcing tens of thousands of Jews to later seek refuge in Palestine and the Western world.
  • 1927 – Mae West is sentenced to ten days in jail for obscenity for her play Sex.
  • 1942 – World War II: In Poland, the Majdan-Tatarski ghetto is established, situated between the Lublin Ghetto and a Majdanek subcamp.
  • 1943 – World War II: In Poland, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising begins, after German troops enter the Warsaw Ghetto to round up the remaining Jews.
  • 1943 – Albert Hofmann deliberately doses himself with LSD for the first time, three days after having discovered its effects on April 16.
  • 1956 – Actress Grace Kelly marries Prince Rainier of Monaco.
  • 1960 – Students in South Korea hold a nationwide pro-democracy protest against president Syngman Rhee, eventually forcing him to resign.
  • 1971 – Sierra Leone becomes a republic, and Siaka Stevens the president.
  • 1971 – Launch of Salyut 1, the first space station.
  • 1971 – Charles Manson is sentenced to death (later commuted to life imprisonment) for conspiracy in the Tate–LaBianca murders.
  • 1973 – The Portuguese Socialist Party is founded in the German town of Bad Münstereifel.
  • 1975 – India’s first satellite Aryabhata launched in orbit from Kapustin Yar, Russia.
  • 1984 – Advance Australia Fair is proclaimed as Australia’s national anthem, and green and gold as the national colours.
  • 1985 – Two hundred ATF and FBI agents lay siege to the compound of the white supremacist survivalist group The Covenant, The Sword, and the Arm of the Lord in Arkansas; the CSA surrenders two days later.
  • 1987 – The Simpsons first appear as a series of shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show, first starting with Good Night.
  • 1989 – A gun turret explodes on the USS Iowa, killing 47 sailors.
  • 1993 – The 51-day FBI siege of the Branch Davidian building in Waco, Texas, USA, ends when a fire breaks out. 76 Davidians, including eighteen children under the age of ten, died in the fire.
  • 1995 – Oklahoma City bombing: The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, USA, is bombed, killing 168 people including 19 children under the age of six.
  • 1999 – The German Bundestag returns to Berlin.
  • 2000 – Air Philippines Flight 541 crashes in Samal, Davao del Norte, killing all 131 people on board.
  • 2005 – Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger is elected to the papacy and becomes Pope Benedict XVI.
  • 2011 – Fidel Castro resigns as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba after holding the title since July 1961.
  • 2013 – Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev is killed in a shootout with police. His brother Dzhokhar is later captured hiding in a boat inside a backyard in the suburb of Watertown.
  • 2020 – A killing spree in Nova Scotia, Canada, leaves 22 people and the perpetrator dead, making it the deadliest rampage in the country’s history.

Births on April 19

  • 1452 – Frederick IV, King of Naples (d. 1504)
  • 1593 – Sir John Hobart, 2nd Baronet, English politician (d. 1647)
  • 1603 – Michel Le Tellier, French politician, French Minister of Defence (d. 1685)
  • 1613 – Christoph Bach, German musician (d. 1661)
  • 1633 – Willem Drost, Dutch painter (d. 1659)
  • 1655 – George St Lo(e), Royal Navy officer and administrator (d. 1718)
  • 1658 – Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine, German husband of Archduchess Maria Anna Josepha of Austria (d. 1716)
  • 1665 – Jacques Lelong, French author (d. 1721)
  • 1686 – Vasily Tatishchev, Russian ethnographer and politician (d. 1750)
  • 1715 – James Nares, English organist and composer (d. 1783)
  • 1721 – Roger Sherman, American lawyer and politician (d. 1793)
  • 1734 – Karl von Ordóñez, Austrian violinist and composer (d. 1786)
  • 1757 – Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, English admiral and politician (d. 1833)
  • 1758 – William Carnegie, 7th Earl of Northesk, Scottish admiral (d. 1831)
  • 1785 – Alexandre Pierre François Boëly, French pianist and composer (d. 1858)
  • 1787 – Deaf Smith, American soldier (d. 1837)
  • 1793 – Ferdinand I of Austria (d. 1875)
  • 1806 – Sarah Bagley, American labor organizer (d. 1889)
  • 1814 – Louis Amédée Achard, French journalist and author (d. 1875)
  • 1832 – José Echegaray, Spanish poet and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1916)
  • 1835 – Julius Krohn, Finnish poet and journalist (d. 1888)
  • 1863 – Hemmo Kallio, Finnish actor (d. 1940)
  • 1872 – Alice Salomon, German social reformer (d. 1948)
  • 1873 – Sydney Barnes, English cricketer (d. 1967)
  • 1874 – Ernst Rüdin, Swiss psychiatrist, geneticist, and eugenicist (d. 1952)
  • 1877 – Ole Evinrude, Norwegian-American engineer, invented the outboard motor (d. 1934)
  • 1879 – Arthur Robertson, Scottish runner (d. 1957)
  • 1882 – Getúlio Vargas, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 14th President of Brazil (d. 1954)
  • 1883 – Henry Jameson, American soccer player (d. 1938)
  • 1883 – Richard von Mises, Austrian-American mathematician and physicist (d. 1953)
  • 1885 – Karl Tarvas, Estonian architect (d. 1975)
  • 1889 – Otto Georg Thierack, German jurist and politician (d. 1946)
  • 1891 – Françoise Rosay, French actress (d. 1974)
  • 1892 – Germaine Tailleferre, French composer and educator (d. 1983)
  • 1894 – Elizabeth Dilling, American author and activist (d. 1966)
  • 1897 – Peter de Noronha, Indian businessman and philanthropist (d. 1970)
  • 1897 – Jiroemon Kimura, Japanese super-centenarian, oldest verified man ever (d. 2013)
  • 1898 – Constance Talmadge, American actress and producer (d. 1973)
  • 1899 – George O’Brien, American actor (d. 1985)
  • 1899 – Cemal Tollu, Turkish lieutenant and painter (d. 1968)
  • 1900 – Iracema de Alencar, Brazilian film actress (d. 1978)
  • 1900 – Richard Hughes, English author, poet, and playwright (d. 1976)
  • 1900 – Roland Michener, Canadian lawyer and politician, 20th Governor General of Canada (d. 1991)
  • 1900 – Rhea Silberta, Yiddish songwriter and singing teacher (d. 1959)
  • 1902 – Veniamin Kaverin, Russian author and screenwriter (d. 1989)
  • 1903 – Eliot Ness, American law enforcement agent (d. 1957)
  • 1907 – Alan Wheatley, English actor (d. 1991)
  • 1908 – Irena Eichlerówna, Polish actress (d. 1990)
  • 1912 – Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1999)
  • 1913 – Ken Carpenter, American discus thrower and coach (d. 1984)
  • 1917 – Sven Hassel, Danish-German soldier and author (d. 2012)
  • 1919 – Sol Kaplan, American pianist and composer (d. 1990)
  • 1920 – Gene Leis, American guitarist, composer, and producer (d. 1993)
  • 1920 – Marvin Mandel, American lawyer and politician, 56th Governor of Maryland (d. 2015)
  • 1920 – John O’Neil, American baseball player and manager (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Julien Ries, Belgian cardinal (d. 2013)
  • 1920 – Marian Winters, American actress (d. 1978)
  • 1921 – Anna Lee Aldred, American jockey (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Leon Henkin, American logician (d. 2006)
  • 1921 – Roberto Tucci, Italian Jesuit leader, cardinal, and theologian (d. 2015)
  • 1922 – Erich Hartmann, German colonel and pilot (d. 1993)
  • 1922 – David Smith, politician in Rhodesia and Zimbabwe (d. 1996)
  • 1925 – John Kraaijkamp, Sr., Dutch actor (d. 2011)
  • 1925 – Hugh O’Brian, American actor (d. 2016)
  • 1926 – Rawya Ateya, Egyptian captain and politician (d. 1997)
  • 1928 – John Horlock, English engineer and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Azlan Shah of Perak, Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia (d. 2014)
  • 1931 – Walter Stewart, Canadian journalist and author (d. 2004)
  • 1932 – Fernando Botero, Colombian painter and sculptor
  • 1933 – Dickie Bird, English cricketer and umpire
  • 1933 – Jayne Mansfield, American model and actress (d. 1967)
  • 1933 – Philip Lavallin Wroughton, English captain and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire
  • 1934 – Dickie Goodman, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 1989)
  • 1935 – Dudley Moore, English actor, comedian, and pianist (d. 2002)
  • 1935 – Justin Francis Rigali, American cardinal
  • 1936 – Wilfried Martens, Belgian politician, 60th Prime Minister of Belgium (d. 2013)
  • 1936 – Jack Pardee, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1937 – Antonio Carluccio, Italian-English chef and author (d. 2017)
  • 1937 – Elinor Donahue, American actress
  • 1937 – Joseph Estrada, Filipino politician, 13th President of the Philippines
  • 1938 – Stanley Fish, American theorist, author, and scholar
  • 1939 – E. Clay Shaw, Jr., American accountant, judge, and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1941 – Roberto Carlos, Brazilian singer-songwriter
  • 1941 – Clark Dimond, American musician and author
  • 1941 – Michel Roux, French-English chef and author (d. 2020)
  • 1941 – Bobby Russell, American singer-songwriter (d. 1992)
  • 1942 – Bas Jan Ader, Dutch-American photographer and director (d. 1975)
  • 1942 – Alan Price, English keyboard player, singer, and composer
  • 1942 – Jack Roush, American businessman, founded Roush Fenway Racing
  • 1942 – Maarten van den Bergh, American-Dutch businessman
  • 1943 – Margo MacDonald, Scottish journalist and politician (d. 2014)[28]
  • 1943 – Lorenzo Sanz, Spanish businessman
  • 1944 – Keith Erickson, American basketball player and sportscaster
  • 1944 – James Heckman, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1944 – Bernie Worrell, American keyboard player and songwriter (d. 2016)[29]
  • 1946 – Duygu Asena, Turkish journalist, author, and activist (d. 2006)
  • 1946 – Tim Curry, English actor[30]
  • 1947 – Murray Perahia, American pianist and conductor
  • 1947 – Wilfrid Stevenson, Baron Stevenson of Balmacara, English civil servant
  • 1947 – Yan Pascal Tortelier, French violinist and conductor
  • 1947 – Mark Volman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1948 – Stuart McLean, Canadian radio host and author (d. 2017)
  • 1948 – Rick Miller, American baseball player and manager
  • 1949 – Paloma Picasso, French-Spanish fashion designer
  • 1949 – Larry Walters, American truck driver and pilot (d. 1993)
  • 1950 – Julia Cleverdon, English businesswoman and philanthropist
  • 1951 – Barry Brown, American actor and playwright (d. 1978)
  • 1951 – Jóannes Eidesgaard, Faroese educator and politician, Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands
  • 1952 – Alexis Argüello, Nicaraguan boxer and politician (d. 2009)
  • 1952 – Tony Plana, Cuban-American actor and director
  • 1952 – Michael Trend, English journalist and politician
  • 1953 – Rod Morgenstein, American drummer
  • 1953 – Sara Simeoni, Italian high jumper
  • 1953 – Ruby Wax, British-based American comedian, actress, and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Trevor Francis, English footballer and manager
  • 1954 – Bob Rock, Canadian guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1956 – Sue Barker, English tennis player and journalist
  • 1956 – Randy Carlyle, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
  • 1956 – Anne Glover, Scottish biologist and academic
  • 1957 – Tony Martin, English singer-songwriter
  • 1957 – Mukesh Ambani, Indian businessman, chairman of Reliance Industries and currently the richest man in Asia[31][32]
  • 1958 – Steve Antin, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1958 – Stevie B, American singer-songwriter and record producer
  • 1958 – Denis O’Brien, Irish businessman, founded BT Ireland
  • 1958 – Vytautas Šapranauskas, Lithuanian actor (d. 2013)
  • 1958 – Keith Shine, British academic and educator
  • 1959 – Jane Campbell, Baroness Campbell of Surbiton, English activist
  • 1959 – Teofisto Guingona III, Filipino lawyer and politician
  • 1959 – Donald Markwell, Australian sociologist and academic
  • 1960 – Nicoletta Braschi, Italian actress and producer
  • 1960 – Ara Gevorgyan, Armenian pianist, composer, and producer
  • 1960 – Roger Merrett, Australian footballer and coach
  • 1960 – John Schweitz, American basketball player and coach
  • 1960 – Frank Viola, American baseball player and coach[33]
  • 1961 – Alan Kirschenbaum, American producer and writer (d. 2012)
  • 1961 – Albert Martinez, Filipino actor, director, and producer
  • 1961 – Spike Owen, American baseball player and coach
  • 1962 – Al Unser Jr., American race car driver
  • 1964 – Gordon Marshall, Scottish footballer and coach
  • 1964 – Kim Weaver, American astrophysicist, astronomer, and academic
  • 1965 – Natalie Dessay, French soprano and actress
  • 1965 – Suge Knight, American record producer, co-founded Death Row Records
  • 1966 – Véronique Gens, French soprano and actress
  • 1966 – David La Haye, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Paul Reiffel, Australian cricketer and umpire
  • 1966 – El Samurai, Japanese wrestler
  • 1967 – Philippe Saint-André, French rugby player and coach
  • 1968 – Ashley Judd, American actress and activist
  • 1968 – Arshad Warsi, Indian film actor and producer
  • 1969 – Andrew Carnie, Canadian-American linguist, author, and academic
  • 1969 – Susan Polgar, Hungarian-American chess player
  • 1970 – Luis Miguel, Mexican singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1970 – Kelly Holmes, English runner
  • 1970 – Abelardo Fernández, Spanish footballer and manager
  • 1971 – Brendon Burns, Australian comedian, podcaster, writer and author
  • 1971 – Scott McCord, Canadian voice actor
  • 1972 – Rivaldo, Brazilian footballer
  • 1972 – Jeff Wilkins, American football player
  • 1973 – George Gregan, Zambian-Australian rugby player and coach
  • 1973 – Alessio Scarpi, Italian footballer
  • 1975 – Jason Gillespie, Australian cricketer and coach
  • 1975 – Jussi Jääskeläinen, Finnish footballer
  • 1976 – Ruud Jolie, Dutch guitarist
  • 1976 – Scott Padgett, American basketball player, coach, and radio host
  • 1976 – Kim Young-oh, South Korean author and illustrator
  • 1977 – Joe Beimel, American baseball player
  • 1977 – Anju Bobby George, Indian long jumper
  • 1977 – Lucien Mettomo, Cameroonian footballer
  • 1977 – Dennys Reyes, Mexican baseball player
  • 1977 – Jonny Storm, English wrestler and trainer
  • 1978 – James Franco, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1978 – Gabriel Heinze, Argentinian footballer
  • 1978 – Amanda Sage, American-Austrian painter and educator
  • 1979 – Rocky Bernard, American football player
  • 1979 – Kate Hudson, American actress
  • 1979 – Zhao Junzhe, Chinese footballer
  • 1980 – Jason Blaine, Canadian singer-songwriter
  • 1980 – Robyn Regehr, Brazilian-Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1981 – Hayden Christensen, Canadian actor and producer
  • 1981 – Ryuta Hara, Japanese footballer
  • 1981 – Martin Havlát, Czech ice hockey player
  • 1981 – James Hibberd, English cricketer
  • 1981 – Troy Polamalu, American football player
  • 1981 – Catalina Sandino Moreno, Colombian actress
  • 1982 – Joseph Hagerty, American gymnast
  • 1982 – Filip Jícha, Czech handball player
  • 1982 – Samuel C. Morrison, Jr., Liberian-American journalist, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1982 – Rocco Sabato, Italian footballer
  • 1982 – Ignacio Serricchio, Argentinian-American actor
  • 1982 – Sitiveni Sivivatu, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1983 – Alberto Callaspo, Venezuelan-American baseball player
  • 1983 – Zach Duke, American baseball player
  • 1983 – Joe Mauer, American baseball player
  • 1983 – Patrick Platins, German footballer
  • 1983 – Curtis Thigpen, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Christopher Pearce, English cricketer
  • 1985 – Valon Behrami, Swiss footballer
  • 1985 – David Cavazos, Mexican singer-songwriter
  • 1985 – Sabrina Jalees, Canadian comedian, dancer, actress, presenter, and writer
  • 1985 – Jan Zimmermann, German footballer
  • 1986 – Pascal Angan, Beninese footballer
  • 1986 – Candace Parker, American basketball player
  • 1986 – Gabe Pruitt, American basketball player
  • 1986 – Will Thursfield, English-Australian footballer
  • 1987 – Luigi Giorgi, Italian footballer
  • 1987 – Joe Hart, English footballer
  • 1987 – Daniel Schuhmacher, German singer-songwriter
  • 1987 – Maria Sharapova, Russian tennis player
  • 1987 – Lauren Wilson, Canadian figure skater
  • 1988 – Enrique Esqueda, Mexican footballer
  • 1989 – Dominik Mader, German footballer
  • 1989 – Daisuke Watabe, Japanese footballer
  • 1989 – Genoveva Añonma, Equatoguinean footballer
  • 1990 – Jackie Bradley, Jr., American baseball player
  • 1990 – Kim Chiu, Filipino actress, singer, and dancer[34]
  • 1990 – Héctor Herrera, Mexican footballer
  • 1990 – Ayaka Takahashi, Japanese badminton player
  • 1991 – Steve Cook, English footballer

Deaths April 19

  • 843 – Judith of Bavaria, Frankish empress
  • 1012 – Ælfheah of Canterbury, English archbishop and saint (b. 954)
  • 1013 – Hisham II, Umayyad caliph of Córdoba (b. 966)
  • 1044 – Gothelo I, duke of Lorraine
  • 1054 – Leo IX, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1002)
  • 1321 – Gerasimus I, patriarch of Constantinople
  • 1390 – Robert II, king of Scotland (b. 1316)
  • 1405 – Thomas West, 1st Baron West, English nobleman (b. 1335)[35]
  • 1431 – Adolph III, count of Waldeck (b. 1362)
  • 1560 – Philip Melanchthon, German theologian and reformer (b. 1497)
  • 1567 – Michael Stifel, German monk and mathematician (b. 1487)
  • 1578 – Uesugi Kenshin, Japanese samurai and warlord (b. 1530)
  • 1588 – Paolo Veronese, Italian painter (b. 1528)
  • 1608 – Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset, English poet, playwright, and politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1536)
  • 1618 – Thomas Bastard, English priest and author (b. 1566)
  • 1619 – Jagat Gosain, Mughal empress (b. 1573)[36]
  • 1629 – Sigismondo d’India, Italian composer (b. 1582)
  • 1632 – Sigismund III Vasa, king of Sweden and Poland (b. 1566)
  • 1686 – Antonio de Solís y Ribadeneyra, Spanish historian and playwright (b. 1610)
  • 1689 – Christina, queen of Sweden (b. 1626)
  • 1733 – Elizabeth Hamilton, countess of Orkney (b. 1657)
  • 1739 – Nicholas Saunderson, English mathematician and academic (b. 1682)
  • 1768 – Canaletto, Italian painter and etcher (b. 1697)
  • 1776 – Jacob Emden, German rabbi and author (b. 1697)
  • 1791 – Richard Price, Welsh-English preacher and philosopher (b. 1723)
  • 1813 – Benjamin Rush, American physician and educator (b. 1745)
  • 1824 – Lord Byron, English-Scottish poet and playwright (b. 1788)
  • 1831 – Johann Gottlieb Friedrich von Bohnenberger, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1765)
  • 1833 – James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier, Bahamian-English admiral and politician, 36th Commodore Governor of Newfoundland (b. 1756)
  • 1840 – Jean-Jacques Lartigue, Canadian bishop (b. 1777)
  • 1854 – Robert Jameson, Scottish mineralogist and academic (b. 1774)
  • 1881 – Benjamin Disraeli, English journalist and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1804)
  • 1882 – Charles Darwin, English biologist and theorist (b. 1809)
  • 1893 – Martin Körber, Estonian-German pastor, composer, and conductor (b. 1817)
  • 1901 – Alfred Horatio Belo, American publisher, founded The Dallas Morning News (b. 1839)
  • 1906 – Pierre Curie, French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1859)
  • 1906 – Spencer Gore, English tennis player and cricketer (b. 1850)
  • 1909 – Signe Rink, Greenland-born Danish writer and ethnologist (b. 1836)
  • 1914 – Charles Sanders Peirce, American mathematician and philosopher (b. 1839)
  • 1915 – Thomas Playford II, English-Australian politician, 17th Premier of South Australia (b. 1837)
  • 1916 – Ephraim Shay, American engineer, designed the Shay locomotive (b. 1839)
  • 1926 – Alexander Alexandrovich Chuprov, Russian-Swiss statistician and theorist (b. 1874)
  • 1930 – Georges-Casimir Dessaulles, Canadian businessman and politician (b. 1827)
  • 1937 – Martin Conway, 1st Baron Conway of Allington, English cartographer and politician (b. 1856)
  • 1937 – William Morton Wheeler, American entomologist and zoologist (b. 1865)
  • 1941 – Johanna Müller-Hermann, Austrian composer (b. 1878)
  • 1949 – Ulrich Salchow, Danish-Swedish figure skater (b. 1877)
  • 1950 – Ernst Robert Curtius, French-German philologist and scholar (b. 1886)
  • 1955 – Jim Corbett, British-Indian colonel, hunter, and author (b. 1875)
  • 1960 – Beardsley Ruml, American economist and statistician (b. 1894)
  • 1961 – Max Hainle, German swimmer (b. 1882)
  • 1967 – Konrad Adenauer, German politician, 1st Chancellor of Germany (b. 1876)
  • 1971 – Luigi Piotti, Italian race car driver (b. 1913)
  • 1975 – Percy Lavon Julian, American chemist and academic (b. 1899)
  • 1987 – Hugh Brannum, American vocalist, arranger, and composer (b. 1910)
  • 1989 – Daphne du Maurier, English novelist and playwright (b. 1907)
  • 1991 – Stanley Hawes, English-Australian director and producer (b. 1905)
  • 1992 – Frankie Howerd, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1917)
  • 1993 – David Koresh, American religious leader (b. 1959)
  • 1993 – George S. Mickelson, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 28th Governor of South Dakota (b. 1941)
  • 1998 – Octavio Paz, Mexican poet, philosopher, and academic Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1914)
  • 1999 – Hermine Braunsteiner, Austrian-German SS officer (b. 1919)
  • 2000 – Louis Applebaum, Canadian composer and conductor (b. 1918)
  • 2001 – Meldrim Thomson, Jr.. American publisher and politician, 73rd Governor of New Hampshire (b. 1912)
  • 2002 – Reginald Rose, American writer (b. 1920)
  • 2003 – Mirza Tahir Ahmad, Indian-English caliph (b. 1928)
  • 2004 – Norris McWhirter, English author and activist co-founded the Guinness World Records (b. 1925)
  • 2004 – John Maynard Smith, English biologist and geneticist (b. 1920)
  • 2004 – Jenny Pike, Canadian WWII servicewoman and photographer (b. 1922)[37]
  • 2005 – George P. Cosmatos, Italian-Greek director and screenwriter (b. 1941)
  • 2005 – Ruth Hussey, American actress (b. 1911)
  • 2005 – Clement Meadmore, Australian-American sculptor and author (b. 1929)
  • 2005 – Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Danish bassist and composer (b. 1946)
  • 2006 – Albert Scott Crossfield, American engineer, pilot, and astronaut (b. 1921)
  • 2007 – Jean-Pierre Cassel, French actor (b. 1932)
  • 2008 – John Marzano, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1963)
  • 2008 – Alfonso López Trujillo, Colombian cardinal (b. 1935)
  • 2009 – J. G. Ballard, English novelist, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1930)
  • 2011 – Elisabeth Sladen, English actress (b. 1946)[38]
  • 2012 – Leopold David de Rothschild, English financier and philanthropist (b. 1927)
  • 2012 – Greg Ham, Australian saxophonist, songwriter, and actor (b. 1953)
  • 2012 – Levon Helm, American singer-songwriter, drummer, guitarist, instrumentalist, and actor (b. 1940)
  • 2012 – Valeri Vasiliev, Russian ice hockey player (b. 1949)
  • 2013 – Sivanthi Adithan, Indian businessman (b. 1936)
  • 2013 – Allan Arbus, American actor and photographer (b. 1918)
  • 2013 – Mike Denness, Scottish-English cricketer and referee (b. 1940)
  • 2013 – François Jacob, French biologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1920)
  • 2013 – E. L. Konigsburg, American author and illustrator (b. 1930)
  • 2013 – Al Neuharth, American journalist, author, and publisher, founded USA Today (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Lindy Berry, American football player (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Ian McIntyre, Scottish journalist and producer (b. 1930)
  • 2014 – Frits Thors, Dutch journalist (b. 1909)
  • 2015 – Raymond Carr, English historian and academic (b. 1919)
  • 2015 – William Price Fox, American journalist and author (b. 1926)
  • 2015 – Roy Mason, English miner and politician, Secretary of State for Defence (b. 1924)[39]
  • 2015 – Tom McCabe, Scottish social worker and politician (b. 1954)[40]
  • 2015 – Oktay Sinanoğlu, Italian-Turkish chemist and academic (b. 1935)
  • 2016 – Patricio Aylwin, Chilean politician (b. 1918)[41]
  • 2016 – Milt Pappas, American baseball player (b. 1939)[42]
  • 2017 – Aaron Hernandez, American football player (b. 1989)[43]

Holidays and observances on April 19

  • Christian feast day:
    • Ælfheah of Canterbury (Anglican, Catholic)
    • Conrad of Ascoli
    • Emma of Lesum
    • Expeditus
    • George of Antioch
    • Olaus and Laurentius Petri (Lutheran)
    • Pope Leo IX
    • Ursmar
    • April 19 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Earliest day on which First Day of Summer or Sumardagurinn fyrsti can fall, while April 25 is the latest; celebrated on the first Thursday after April 18. (Iceland)
  • Army Day (Brazil)
  • Beginning of the Independence Movement (Venezuela)
  • Bicycle Day[44]
  • Dutch-American Friendship Day (United States)
  • Holocaust Remembrance Day (Poland)
  • Indian Day (Brazil)
  • King Mswati III’s birthday (Eswatini)
  • Landing of the 33 Patriots Day (Uruguay)
  • Patriots’ Day (Massachusetts, Maine and Wisconsin, United States)

April 19 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 18 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 796 – King Æthelred I of Northumbria is murdered in Corbridge by a group led by his ealdormen, Ealdred and Wada. The patrician Osbald is crowned, but abdicates within 27 days.
  • 1506 – The cornerstone of the current St. Peter’s Basilica is laid.
  • 1518 – Bona Sforza is crowned as queen consort of Poland.
  • 1521 – Trial of Martin Luther begins its second day during the assembly of the Diet of Worms. He refuses to recant his teachings despite the risk of excommunication.
  • 1689 – Bostonians rise up in rebellion against Sir Edmund Andros.
  • 1738 – Real Academia de la Historia (“Royal Academy of History”) is founded in Madrid.
  • 1775 – American Revolution: The British advancement by sea begins; Paul Revere and other riders warn the countryside of the troop movements.
  • 1783 – Three-Fifths Compromise: the first instance of black slaves in the United States of America being counted as three fifths of persons (for the purpose of taxation), in a resolution of the Congress of the Confederation. This was later adopted in the 1787 Constitution.
  • 1831 – The University of Alabama is founded in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
  • 1847 – American victory at the battle of Cerro Gordo opens the way for invasion of Mexico.
  • 1857 – “The Spirits Book” by Allan Kardec is published, marking the birth of Spiritualism in France.
  • 1864 – Battle of Dybbøl: A Prussian-Austrian army defeats Denmark and gains control of Schleswig. Denmark surrenders the province in the following peace settlement.
  • 1897 – The Greco-Turkish War is declared between Greece and the Ottoman Empire.
  • 1899 – The St. Andrew’s Ambulance Association is granted a royal charter by Queen Victoria.
  • 1902 – The 7.5 Mw  Guatemala earthquake shakes Guatemala with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), killing between 800–2,000.
  • 1906 – An earthquake and fire destroy much of San Francisco, California.
  • 1909 – Joan of Arc is beatified in Rome.
  • 1912 – The Cunard liner RMS Carpathia brings 705 survivors from the RMS Titanic to New York City.
  • 1915 – French pilot Roland Garros is shot down and glides to a landing on the German side of the lines during World War I.
  • 1923 – Yankee Stadium: “The House that Ruth Built” opens.
  • 1925 – The International Amateur Radio Union is formed in Paris.
  • 1930 – The British Broadcasting Corporation announced that “there is no news” in their evening report.
  • 1939 – Robert Menzies, who became Australia’s longest-serving prime minister, is elected as leader of the United Australia Party after the death of Prime Minister Joseph Lyons.
  • 1942 – World War II: The Doolittle Raid on Japan: Tokyo, Yokohama, Kobe and Nagoya are bombed.
  • 1942 – Pierre Laval becomes Prime Minister of Vichy France.
  • 1943 – World War II: Operation Vengeance, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto is killed when his aircraft is shot down by U.S. fighters over Bougainville Island.
  • 1945 – Over 1,000 bombers attack the small island of Heligoland, Germany.
  • 1946 – The International Court of Justice holds its inaugural meeting in The Hague, Netherlands.
  • 1949 – The Republic of Ireland Act comes into effect.
  • 1949 – The keel for the aircraft carrier USS United States is laid down at Newport News Drydock and Shipbuilding. However, construction is canceled five days later, resulting in the Revolt of the Admirals.
  • 1954 – Gamal Abdel Nasser seizes power in Egypt.
  • 1955 – Twenty-nine nations meet at Bandung, Indonesia, for the first Asian-African Conference.
  • 1980 – The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) comes into being, with Canaan Banana as the country’s first President. The Zimbabwean dollar replaces the Rhodesian dollar as the official currency.
  • 1983 – A suicide bomber in Lebanon destroys the United States embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people.
  • 1987 – The New York Islanders defeat the Washington Capitals 3–2 in Game 7 of their Patrick Division Semifinal series.
  • 1988 – The United States launches Operation Praying Mantis against Iranian naval forces in the largest naval battle since World War II.
  • 1996 – In Lebanon, at least 106 civilians are killed when the Israel Defense Forces shell the United Nations compound at Qana where more than 800 civilians had taken refuge.
  • 1997 – The Red River flood begins and soon overwhelms the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Fire breaks out and spreads in downtown Grand Forks, but high water levels hamper efforts to reach the fire, leading to the destruction of 11 buildings.
  • 1999 – Wayne Gretzky, the National Hockey League’s all-time points scorer, plays his final game at Madison Square Garden as a teammate of the New York Rangers in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Gretzky recorded his final career point, an assist, bringing his career point total to 2,857.
  • 2007 – A series of bombings, two of them being suicides, occur in Baghdad, killing 198 and injuring 251.
  • 2013 – A suicide bombing in a Baghdad cafe kills 27 people and injures another 65.
  • 2018 – King Mswati III of Swaziland announces that his country’s name will change to Eswatini.
  • 2019 – A redacted version of the Mueller Report is released to the United States Congress and the public.
  • 2020 – Coronavirus Pandemic: Europe surpasses 100,000 COVID-19 deaths.

Births on April 18

  • 359 – Gratian, Roman emperor (d. 383)
  • 588 – K’an II, Mayan ruler (d. 658)
  • 812 – Al-Wathiq, Abbasid caliph (d. 847)
  • 1446 – Ippolita Maria Sforza, Italian noble (d. 1484)
  • 1480 – Lucrezia Borgia, daughter of Pope Alexander VI
  • 1503 – Henry II of Navarre, (d. 1555)
  • 1534 – William Harrison, English clergyman (d. 1593)
  • 1580 – Thomas Middleton, English Jacobean playwright and poet (d. 1627)
  • 1590 – Ahmed I, Ottoman Emperor (d. 1617)
  • 1605 – Giacomo Carissimi, Italian priest and composer (d. 1674)
  • 1666 – Jean-Féry Rebel, French violinist and composer (d. 1747)
  • 1740 – Sir Francis Baring, 1st Baronet, English banker and politician (d. 1810)
  • 1759 – Jacques Widerkehr, French cellist and composer (d. 1823)
  • 1771 – Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg (d. 1820)
  • 1772 – David Ricardo, British economist and politician (d. 1823)
  • 1794 – William Debenham, English founder of Debenhams (d. 1863)
  • 1797 – Adolphe Thiers, French historian and politician, 2nd President of France (d. 1877)
  • 1813 – James McCune Smith, African-American physician, apothecary, abolitionist, and author (d. 1865)
  • 1819 – Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Cuban lawyer and activist (d. 1874)
  • 1819 – Franz von Suppé, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1895)
  • 1838 – Paul-Émile Lecoq de Boisbaudran, French chemist and academic (d. 1912)
  • 1854 – Ludwig Levy, German architect (d. 1907)
  • 1857 – Clarence Darrow, American lawyer (d. 1938)
  • 1858 – Dhondo Keshav Karve, Indian educator and activist, Bharat Ratna Awardee (d. 1962)
  • 1858 – Alexander Shirvanzade, Armenian playwright and author (d. 1935)
  • 1863 – Count Leopold Berchtold, Austrian-Hungarian politician and diplomat, Joint Foreign Minister of Austria-Hungary (d. 1942)
  • 1863 – Linton Hope, English sailor and architect (d. 1920)
  • 1864 – Richard Harding Davis, American journalist and author (d. 1916)
  • 1874 – Ivana Brlić-Mažuranić, Croatian author and poet (d. 1938)
  • 1877 – Vicente Sotto, Filipino lawyer and politician (d. 1950)
  • 1879 – Korneli Kekelidze, Georgian philologist and scholar (d. 1962)
  • 1880 – Sam Crawford, American baseball player, coach, and umpire (d. 1968)
  • 1882 – Isaac Babalola Akinyele, Nigerian ruler (d. 1964)
  • 1882 – Leopold Stokowski, English conductor (d. 1977)
  • 1884 – Jaan Anvelt, Estonian educator and politician (d. 1937)
  • 1888 – Duffy Lewis, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1979)
  • 1889 – Jessie Street, Australian activist (d. 1970)
  • 1892 – Eugene Houdry, French-American mechanical engineer and inventor (d. 1962)
  • 1893 – Violette Morris, French shot putter and discus thrower (d. 1944)
  • 1897 – Ardito Desio, Italian geologist and cartographer (d. 2001)
  • 1897 – Per-Erik Hedlund, Swedish skier (d. 1975)
  • 1898 – Patrick Hennessy, Irish soldier and businessman (d. 1981)
  • 1900 – Bertha Isaacs, Bahamian teacher, tennis player, politician and women’s rights activist (d. 1997)
  • 1901 – Al Lewis, American songwriter (d. 1967)
  • 1901 – László Németh, Hungarian dentist, author, and playwright (d. 1975)
  • 1902 – Waldemar Hammenhög, Swedish author (d. 1972)
  • 1902 – Giuseppe Pella, Italian politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1981)
  • 1904 – Pigmeat Markham, African-American comedian, singer, and dancer (d. 1981)
  • 1905 – Sydney Halter, Canadian lawyer and businessman (d. 1990)
  • 1905 – George H. Hitchings, American physician and pharmacologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1998)
  • 1907 – Miklós Rózsa, Hungarian-American composer and conductor (d. 1995)
  • 1911 – Ilario Bandini, Italian businessman and racing driver (d. 1992)
  • 1911 – Maurice Goldhaber, Ukrainian Jewish-American physicist and academic (d. 2011)
  • 1914 – Claire Martin, Canadian author (d. 2014)
  • 1915 – Joy Davidman, Polish-Ukrainian Jewish American poet and author (d. 1960)
  • 1916 – Carl Burgos, American illustrator (d. 1984)
  • 1916 – Doug Peden, Canadian basketball player (d. 2005)
  • 1917 – Ty LaForest, Canadian-American baseball player (d. 1947)
  • 1918 – Gabriel Axel, Danish-French actor, director, and producer (d. 2014)
  • 1918 – André Bazin, French critic and theorist (d. 1958)
  • 1918 – Shinobu Hashimoto, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2018)
  • 1918 – Clifton Hillegass, American publisher, founded CliffsNotes (d. 2001)
  • 1918 – Tony Mottola, American guitarist and composer (d. 2004)
  • 1919 – Virginia O’Brien, American actress and singer (d. 2001)
  • 1919 – Esther Afua Ocloo, Ghanaian entrepreneur and pioneer of microlending (d. 2002)
  • 1920 – John F. Wiley, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Jean Richard, French actor and singer (d. 2001)
  • 1922 – Barbara Hale, American actress (d. 2017)
  • 1922 – Lord Kitchener, Trinidadian singer (d. 2000)
  • 1923 – Alfred Bieler, Swiss ice hockey player (d. 2013)
  • 1923 – Beryl Platt, Baroness Platt of Writtle, English engineer and politician (d. 2015)
  • 1924 – Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2005)
  • 1924 – Henry Hyde, American commander, lawyer, and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1924 – Roy Mason, English miner and politician, Secretary of State for Defence (d. 2015)
  • 1925 – Marcus Schmuck, Austrian mountaineer and author (d. 2005)
  • 1926 – Doug Insole, English cricketer (d. 2017)
  • 1927 – Samuel P. Huntington, American political scientist, author, and academic (d. 2008)
  • 1927 – Tadeusz Mazowiecki, Polish journalist and politician, Prime Minister of Poland (d. 2013)
  • 1927 – Charles Pasqua, French businessman and politician, French Minister of the Interior (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Karl Josef Becker, German cardinal and theologian (d. 2015)
  • 1928 – Otto Piene, German sculptor and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1929 – Peter Hordern, English soldier and politician
  • 1930 – Clive Revill, New Zealand actor and singer
  • 1931 – Bill Miles, American director and producer (d. 2013)
  • 1934 – James Drury, American actor (d. 2020)
  • 1934 – George Shirley, African-American tenor and educator
  • 1935 – Brian Clay, Australian rugby league player (d. 1987)
  • 1935 – Costas Ferris, Egyptian-Greek actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1936 – Roger Graef, American-English criminologist, director, and producer
  • 1936 – Vladimir Hütt, Estonian physicist and philosopher (d. 1997)
  • 1936 – “TV” Tommy Ivo, American actor and drag racer
  • 1937 – Jan Kaplický, Czech architect, designed the Selfridges Building (d. 2009)
  • 1937 – Tatyana Shchelkanova, Russian long jumper and heptathlete (d. 2011)
  • 1937 – Teddy Taylor, Scottish journalist and politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland
  • 1939 – Glen Hardin, American pianist and arranger
  • 1939 – Thomas J. Moyer, American lawyer and judge (d. 2010)
  • 1940 – Joseph L. Goldstein, American biochemist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1940 – Mike Vickers, English guitarist, saxophonist, and songwriter
  • 1941 – Michael D. Higgins, Irish sociologist and politician, 9th President of Ireland
  • 1942 – Michael Beloff, English lawyer and academic
  • 1942 – Steve Blass, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1942 – Robert Christgau, American journalist and critic
  • 1942 – Jochen Rindt, German-Austrian racing driver (d. 1970)
  • 1944 – Kathy Acker, American author and poet (d. 1997)
  • 1944 – Frances D’Souza, Baroness D’Souza, English academic and politician
  • 1944 – Robert Hanssen, American FBI agent and double agent
  • 1944 – Philip Jackson, Scottish sculptor and photographer
  • 1945 – Bernard Arcand, Canadian anthropologist and author (d. 2009)
  • 1945 – Richard Bausch, American novelist and short story writer
  • 1945 – Robert Bausch, American novelist and short story writer
  • 1946 – Hayley Mills, English actress
  • 1946 – Tommy Shannon, American bass guitarist
  • 1947 – Moses Blah, Liberian general and politician, 23rd President of Liberia (d. 2013)
  • 1947 – Dorothy Lyman, American actress
  • 1947 – Cindy Pickett, American actress
  • 1947 – Jerzy Stuhr, Polish actor, director, and screenwriter
  • 1947 – James Woods, American actor and producer
  • 1948 – Régis Wargnier, French director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1949 – Geoff Bodine, American race car driver
  • 1950 – Paul Callery, Australian footballer
  • 1950 – Tina Chow, American model and jewelry designer (d. 1992)
  • 1950 – Kenny Ortega, American director, producer, and choreographer
  • 1950 – Grigory Sokolov, Russian pianist and composer
  • 1951 – Ricardo Fortaleza, Australian-Filipino boxer and coach
  • 1951 – Pierre Pettigrew, Canadian businessman and politician, 5th Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs
  • 1953 – Rick Moranis, Canadian-American actor, comedian, singer and screenwriter
  • 1954 – Robert Greenberg, American pianist and composer
  • 1956 – Chris Jones, English footballer
  • 1956 – Eric Roberts, American actor
  • 1957 – Ian Campbell, Australian jumper
  • 1958 – Gabi Delgado-López, Spanish-German singer, co-founder of D.A.F.
  • 1958 – Malcolm Marshall, Barbadian cricketer and coach (d. 1999)
  • 1959 – Susan Faludi, American journalist and author
  • 1959 – Frank Mulholland, Lord Mulholland, Scottish judge, former Solicitor General for Scotland and Lord Advocate
  • 1960 – John Chiedozie, Nigerian international footballer
  • 1960 – Yelena Zhupiyeva-Vyazova, Ukrainian runner
  • 1961 – Kelly Hansen, American singer-songwriter
  • 1961 – Jane Leeves, English actress and dancer
  • 1961 – John Podhoretz, American journalist and author
  • 1962 – Jeff Dunham, American comedian and ventriloquist
  • 1962 – Nick Farr-Jones, Australian rugby player and sportscaster
  • 1963 – Eric McCormack, Canadian-American actor and producer
  • 1963 – Conan O’Brien, American actor, producer, screenwriter, and talk show host
  • 1963 – Phil Simmons, Trinidadian cricketer
  • 1963 – Peter Van Loan, Canadian lawyer and politician, 16th Canadian Minister of International Trade
  • 1964 – Niall Ferguson, Scottish historian and academic
  • 1964 – Rithy Panh, Cambodian director and screenwriter
  • 1966 – Valeri Kamensky, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1967 – Maria Bello, American actress and writer
  • 1969 – Keith DeCandido, American author
  • 1969 – Stefan Schwarz, Swedish footballer and manager
  • 1969 – Robert Změlík, Czech decathlete
  • 1970 – Rico Brogna, American baseball player and coach
  • 1970 – Greg Eklund, American drummer and guitarist
  • 1970 – Saad Hariri, Saudi Arabian-Lebanese businessman and politician, 33rd Prime Minister of Lebanon
  • 1970 – François Leroux, Canadian ice hockey player and radio host
  • 1970 – Tatiana Stefanidou, Greek journalist and talk show host
  • 1971 – Oleg Petrov, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1971 – Graham Rowntree, English rugby player
  • 1971 – David Tennant, Scottish actor
  • 1972 – Rosa Clemente, American journalist and activist
  • 1972 – Eli Roth, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1972 – Michael Rutter, English motorcycle racer
  • 1973 – Derrick Brooks, American football player
  • 1973 – Brady Clark, American baseball player
  • 1973 – Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopian runner
  • 1974 – Millie Corretjer, Puerto Rican-American actress and singer
  • 1974 – Mark Tremonti, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1976 – Gavin Creel, American actor and singer
  • 1976 – Melissa Joan Hart, American actress, director, and producer
  • 1976 – Andrew Ilie, Romanian-Australian tennis player
  • 1976 – Justin Ross, American politician
  • 1976 – Staffan Strand, Swedish high jumper
  • 1977 – Dan LaCouture, American ice hockey player
  • 1977 – Cindy Taylor, Paraguayan model and actress
  • 1979 – Michael Bradley, American basketball player and coach
  • 1979 – Ethan Cohn, American actor
  • 1979 – Matt Cooper, Australian rugby league player
  • 1979 – Anthony Davidson, English racing driver
  • 1979 – Kourtney Kardashian, American model and businesswoman
  • 1980 – Rabiu Afolabi, Nigerian footballer and manager
  • 1980 – Justin Levens, American mixed martial artist (d. 2008)
  • 1981 – Brian Buscher, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Milan Jovanović, Serbian footballer
  • 1981 – Aldo Ramírez, Colombian footballer
  • 1981 – Audrey Tang, Taiwanese computer scientist and academic
  • 1982 – Ibrahim al-Asiri, Saudi Arabian terrorist
  • 1982 – Greg Camarillo, American football player
  • 1982 – Ricardo Colclough, Canadian-American football player
  • 1982 – Simone Farina, Italian footballer
  • 1982 – Scott Hartnell, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1982 – Blair Late, American singer-songwriter and journalist
  • 1982 – Darren Sutherland, Irish boxer (d. 2009)
  • 1982 – Marie-Élaine Thibert, Canadian singer
  • 1983 – Miguel Cabrera, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1983 – Reeve Carney, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
  • 1984 – Red Bryant, American football player
  • 1984 – America Ferrera, American actress and producer
  • 1985 – Łukasz Fabiański, Polish footballer
  • 1986 – Billy Butler, American baseball player
  • 1986 – Maurice Edu, American soccer player
  • 1986 – Taylor Griffin, American basketball player
  • 1986 – Conrad Logan, Irish footballer
  • 1986 – Efraín Velarde, Mexican footballer
  • 1987 – Brett Deledio, Australian footballer
  • 1987 – Danny Guthrie, English footballer
  • 1987 – Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, English model and actress
  • 1987 – Samantha Jade, Australian singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1987 – Ivan Tričkovski, Macedonian footballer
  • 1988 – Andre Frolov, Estonian footballer
  • 1988 – Alexander Hauck, South African-German rugby player
  • 1989 – Jessica Jung, Korean American singer, songwriter, actress, and fashion designer
  • 1990 – Henderson Álvarez, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1990 – Anna van der Breggen, Dutch cyclist
  • 1990 – Jake Howells, English footballer
  • 1990 – Wojciech Szczęsny, Polish footballer
  • 1990 – Junior Torunarigha, Nigerian footballer
  • 1993 – Matt Salisbury, English cricketer
  • 1993 – Nathan Sykes, English singer-songwriter
  • 1995 – Divock Origi, Belgian footballer
  • 1996 – Mariah Bell, American figure skater
  • 1996 – Ioana Ducu, Romanian tennis player
  • 1997 – Matthias Blübaum, German chess grandmaster
  • 1997 – Donny van de Beek, Dutch footballer

Deaths on April 18

  • 727 – Agallianos Kontoskeles, Byzantine commander and rebel leader
  • 850 – Perfectus, Spanish monk and martyr
  • 909 – Dionysius II, Syriac Orthodox patriarch of Antioch
  • 943 – Fujiwara no Atsutada, Japanese nobleman and poet (b. 906)
  • 963 – Stephen Lekapenos, co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire
  • 1161 – Theobald of Bec, French-English archbishop (b. 1090)
  • 1176 – Galdino della Sala, Italian archdeacon and saint
  • 1552 – John Leland, English poet and historian (b. 1502)
  • 1555 – Polydore Vergil, English historian (b. 1470)
  • 1556 – Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet and politician (b. 1495)
  • 1567 – Wilhelm von Grumbach, German adventurer (b. 1503)
  • 1587 – John Foxe, English historian and author (b. 1516)
  • 1636 – Julius Caesar, English judge and politician (b. 1557)
  • 1650 – Simonds d’Ewes, English lawyer and politician (b. 1602)
  • 1674 – John Graunt, English demographer and statistician (b. 1620)
  • 1689 – George Jeffreys, 1st Baron Jeffreys, Welsh judge and politician, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1648)
  • 1732 – Louis Feuillée, French astronomer, geographer, and botanist (b. 1660)
  • 1742 – Arvid Horn, Swedish general and politician (b. 1664)
  • 1763 – Marie-Josephte Corriveau, Canadian murderer (b. 1733)
  • 1794 – Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden, English lawyer, judge, and politician, Lord Chancellor of Great Britain (b. 1714)
  • 1796 – Johan Wilcke, Swedish physicist and academic (b. 1732)
  • 1802 – Erasmus Darwin, English physician and botanist (b. 1731)
  • 1832 – Jeanne-Elisabeth Chaudet, French painter (b. 1761)
  • 1859 – Tatya Tope, Indian general (b. 1814)
  • 1864 – Juris Alunāns, Latvian philologist and linguist (b. 1832)
  • 1873 – Justus von Liebig, German chemist and academic (b. 1803)
  • 1898 – Gustave Moreau, French painter and academic (b. 1826)
  • 1906 – Luis Martín, Spanish religious leader, 24th Superior-General of the Society of Jesus (b. 1846)
  • 1912 – Martha Ripley, American physician (b. 1843)
  • 1917 – Vladimir Serbsky, Russian psychiatrist and academic (b. 1858)
  • 1923 – Savina Petrilli, Italian religious leader (b. 1851)
  • 1936 – Milton Brown, American singer and bandleader (b. 1903)
  • 1936 – Ottorino Respighi, Italian composer and conductor (b. 1879)
  • 1938 – George Bryant, American archer (b. 1878)
  • 1942 – Aleksander Mitt, Estonian speed skater (b. 1903)
  • 1942 – Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, American heiress, sculptor and art collector, founded the Whitney Museum of American Art (b. 1875)
  • 1943 – Isoroku Yamamoto, Japanese admiral (b. 1884)
  • 1945 – John Ambrose Fleming, English physicist and engineer, invented the vacuum tube (b. 1849)
  • 1945 – Ernie Pyle, American journalist and soldier (b. 1900)
  • 1947 – Jozef Tiso, Slovak priest and politician, President of Slovakia (b. 1887)
  • 1951 – Óscar Carmona, Portuguese field marshal and politician, 11th President of Portugal (b. 1869)
  • 1955 – Albert Einstein, German-American physicist, engineer, and academic (b. 1879)
  • 1958 – Maurice Gamelin, Belgian-French general (b. 1872)
  • 1959 – Irving Cummings, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1888)
  • 1959 – Percy Smith, English footballer and manager (b. 1880)
  • 1963 – Meyer Jacobstein, American academic and politician (b. 1880)
  • 1964 – Ben Hecht, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1894)
  • 1965 – Guillermo González Camarena, Mexican engineer (b. 1917)
  • 1967 – Karl Miller, German footballer (b. 1913)
  • 1974 – Marcel Pagnol, French author, playwright, and director (b. 1895)
  • 1986 – Marcel Dassault, French businessman, founded Dassault Aviation (b. 1892)
  • 1988 – Pierre Desproges, French journalist and actor (b. 1939)
  • 1988 – Oktay Rıfat Horozcu, Turkish poet and playwright (b. 1914)
  • 1995 – Arturo Frondizi, Argentinian lawyer and politician, 32nd President of Argentina (b. 1908)
  • 1996 – Brook Berringer, American football player (b. 1973)
  • 1996 – Bernard Edwards, American bass player and producer (b. 1952)
  • 1997 – Edward Barker, English cartoonist (b. 1950)
  • 1998 – Terry Sanford, American lieutenant and politician, 65th Governor of North Carolina (b. 1917)
  • 2002 – Thor Heyerdahl, Norwegian ethnographer and explorer (b. 1914)
  • 2002 – Wahoo McDaniel, American football player and wrestler (b. 1938)
  • 2003 – Edgar F. Codd, English-American soldier, pilot, and computer scientist (b. 1923)
  • 2004 – Kamisese Mara, Fijian politician, 2nd President of Fiji (b. 1920)
  • 2005 – Sam Mills, American football player and coach (b. 1959)
  • 2006 – Mercedes Palomino, Spanish-born Quebec actor and theatre director (b. 1913)
  • 2007 – Iccho Itoh, Japanese politician (b. 1945)
  • 2008 – Germaine Tillion, French ethnologist and anthropologist (b. 1907)
  • 2012 – Dick Clark, American television host and producer, founded Dick Clark Productions (b. 1929)
  • 2012 – René Lépine, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1929)
  • 2012 – K. D. Wentworth, American author (b. 1951)
  • 2013 – Cordell Mosson, American bass player (b. 1952)
  • 2013 – Steuart Pringle, English general (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Goran Švob, Croatian philosopher and author (b. 1947)
  • 2013 – Anne Williams, English activist (b. 1951)
  • 2014 – Guru Dhanapal, Indian director and producer (b. 1959)
  • 2014 – Sanford Jay Frank, American screenwriter and producer (b. 1954)
  • 2014 – Eduard Kosolapov, Russian footballer (b. 1976)
  • 2014 – David McClarty, Northern Irish politician (b. 1951)
  • 2014 – Brian Priestman, English conductor and academic (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Dylan Tombides, Australian footballer (b. 1994)
  • 2015 – Roger Lobo, Macanese-Hong Kong businessman and politician (b. 1923)
  • 2015 – Erwin Waldner, German footballer (b. 1933)
  • 2016 – Aleah Stanbridge, Swedish singer (b. 1977)
  • 2017 – Vic Albury, Major League pitcher (b. 1947)
  • 2018 – Bruno Sammartino, Italian professional wrestler (b. 1935)
  • 2018 – Dale Winton, British television presenter (b. 1955)
  • 2019 – Lorraine Warren, American paranormal investigator. (b. 1927)

Holidays and observances on  April 18

  • Christian feast day:
    • Apollonius the Apologist
    • Corebus
    • Cyril VI of Constantinople (Eastern Orthodox Church)
    • Eleutherius and Antia
    • Galdino della Sala
    • Molaise of Leighlin
    • Perfectus
    • Plato of Sakkoudion
    • April 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Army Day (Iran)
  • Coma Patients’ Day (Poland)
  • Friend’s Day (Brazil)
  • Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Zimbabwe from the United Kingdom in 1980.
  • International Day For Monuments and Sites
  • Invention Day (Japan)
  • Victory over the Teutonic Knights in the Battle of the Ice (Russia)

April 18 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 13 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 1111 – Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
  • 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.
  • 1612 – Miyamoto Musashi defeats Sasaki Kojirō at Funajima island.
  • 1613 – Samuel Argall, having captured Native American princess Pocahontas in Passapatanzy, Virginia, sets off with her to Jamestown with the intention of exchanging her for English prisoners held by her father.
  • 1742 – George Frideric Handel’s oratorio Messiah makes its world-premiere in Dublin, Ireland.
  • 1777 – American Revolutionary War: American forces are ambushed and defeated in the Battle of Bound Brook, New Jersey.
  • 1829 – The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 gives Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom the right to vote and to sit in Parliament.
  • 1849 – Lajos Kossuth presents the Hungarian Declaration of Independence in a closed session of the National Assembly.
  • 1861 – American Civil War: Fort Sumter surrenders to Confederate forces.
  • 1865 – American Civil War: Raleigh, North Carolina is occupied by Union Forces.
  • 1870 – The New York City Metropolitan Museum of Art is founded.
  • 1873 – The Colfax massacre, in which more than 60 black men are murdered, takes place.
  • 1909 – The military of the Ottoman Empire reverses the Ottoman countercoup of 1909 to force the overthrow of Sultan Abdul Hamid II.
  • 1919 – Jallianwala Bagh massacre: British Indian Army troops lead by Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer killed approx 379-1000 unarmed demonstrators including men and women in Amritsar, India; and approximately 1,500 injured.
  • 1941 – A pact of neutrality between the USSR and Japan is signed.
  • 1943 – World War II: The discovery of mass graves of Polish prisoners of war killed by Soviet forces in the Katyń Forest Massacre is announced, causing a diplomatic rift between the Polish government-in-exile in London and the Soviet Union, which denies responsibility.
  • 1943 – The Jefferson Memorial is dedicated in Washington, D.C., on the 200th anniversary of President Thomas Jefferson’s birth.
  • 1944 – Relations between New Zealand and the Soviet Union are established.
  • 1945 – World War II: German troops kill more than 1,000 political and military prisoners in Gardelegen, Germany.
  • 1945 – World War II: Soviet and Bulgarian forces capture Vienna.
  • 1948 – In an ambush, 78 Jewish doctors, nurses and medical students from Hadassah Hospital, and a British soldier, are massacred by Arabs in Sheikh Jarrah. This event came to be known as the Hadassah medical convoy massacre.
  • 1953 – CIA director Allen Dulles launches the mind-control program Project MKUltra.
  • 1958 – American pianist Van Cliburn is awarded first prize at the inaugural International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow.
  • 1960 – The United States launches Transit 1-B, the world’s first satellite navigation system.
  • 1964 – At the Academy Awards, Sidney Poitier becomes the first African-American male to win the Best Actor award for the 1963 film Lilies of the Field.
  • 1970 – An oxygen tank aboard the Apollo 13 Service Module explodes, putting the crew in great danger and causing major damage to the Apollo command and service module (codenamed “Odyssey“) while en route to the Moon.
  • 1972 – The Universal Postal Union decides to recognize the People’s Republic of China as the only legitimate Chinese representative, effectively expelling the Republic of China administering Taiwan.
  • 1972 – Vietnam War: The Battle of An Lộc begins.
  • 1975 – An attack by the Phalangist resistance kills 26 militia members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, marking the start of the 15-year Lebanese Civil War.
  • 1976 – The United States Treasury Department reintroduces the two-dollar bill as a Federal Reserve Note on Thomas Jefferson’s 233rd birthday as part of the United States Bicentennial celebration.
  • 1976 – Forty workers die in an explosion at the Lapua ammunition factory, the deadliest accidental disaster in modern history in Finland.
  • 1992 – Basements throughout the Chicago Loop are flooded, forcing the Chicago Board of Trade Building and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to close.
  • 1997 – Tiger Woods becomes the youngest golfer to win the Masters Tournament.
  • 2003 – A bus near the Vale of Tempe, Greece was involved in a major vehicle accident with a truck and multiple cars, leaving 21 students in the tenth grade of Makrochori, Imathia High School dead and nine injured during their return to their homes from a trip to Athens.
  • 2017 – The US drops the largest ever non-nuclear weapon on Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan.

Births on April 13

  • 1229 – Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (d. 1294)
  • 1350 – Margaret III, Countess of Flanders (d. 1405)
  • 1506 – Peter Faber, French priest and theologian, co-founded the Society of Jesus (d. 1546)
  • 1519 – Catherine de’ Medici, Italian-French wife of Henry II of France (d. 1589)
  • 1570 – Guy Fawkes, English soldier, planned the Gunpowder Plot (probable; d. 1606)
  • 1573 – Christina of Holstein-Gottorp (d. 1625)
  • 1593 – Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1641)
  • 1618 – Roger de Rabutin, Comte de Bussy, French author (d. 1693)
  • 1636 – Hendrik van Rheede, Dutch botanist (d. 1691)
  • 1648 – Jeanne Marie Bouvier de la Motte Guyon, French mystic (d. 1717)
  • 1713 – Pierre Jélyotte, French tenor (d. 1797)
  • 1729 – Thomas Percy, Irish bishop and poet (d. 1811)
  • 1732 – Frederick North, Lord North, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1792)
  • 1735 – Isaac Low, American merchant and politician, founded the New York Chamber of Commerce (d. 1791)
  • 1743 – Thomas Jefferson, American lawyer and politician, 3rd President of the United States (d. 1826)
  • 1747 – Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans (d. 1793)
  • 1764 – Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, French general and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1830)
  • 1769 – Thomas Lawrence, English painter and educator (d. 1830)
  • 1771 – Richard Trevithick, Cornish-English engineer and explorer (d. 1833)
  • 1780 – Alexander Mitchell, Irish engineer, invented the Screw-pile lighthouse (d. 1868)
  • 1784 – Friedrich Graf von Wrangel, Prussian field marshal (d. 1877)
  • 1787 – John Robertson, American lawyer and politician (d. 1873)
  • 1794 – Jean Pierre Flourens, French physiologist and academic (d. 1867)
  • 1802 – Leopold Fitzinger, Austrian zoologist and herpetologist (d. 1884)
  • 1808 – Antonio Meucci, Italian-American engineer (d. 1889)
  • 1810 – Félicien David, French composer (d. 1876)
  • 1824 – William Alexander, Irish archbishop, poet, and theologian (d. 1911)
  • 1825 – Thomas D’Arcy McGee, Irish-Canadian journalist and politician (d. 1868)
  • 1828 – Josephine Butler, English feminist and social reformer (d. 1906)
  • 1828 – Joseph Lightfoot, English bishop and theologian (d. 1889)
  • 1832 – Juan Montalvo, Ecuadorian author and diplomat (d. 1889)
  • 1841 – Louis-Ernest Barrias, French sculptor and academic (d. 1905)
  • 1850 – Arthur Matthew Weld Downing, Irish astronomer (d. 1917)
  • 1851 – Robert Abbe, American surgeon and radiologist (d. 1928)
  • 1851 – William Quan Judge, Irish occultist and theosophist (d. 1896)
  • 1852 – Frank Winfield Woolworth, American businessman, founded the F. W. Woolworth Company (d. 1919)
  • 1854 – Lucy Craft Laney, Founder of the Haines Normal and Industrial School, Augusta, Georgia (d. 1933)
  • 1860 – James Ensor, English-Belgian painter (d. 1949)
  • 1866 – Butch Cassidy, American criminal (d. 1908)
  • 1872 – John Cameron, Scottish international footballer and manager (d. 1935)
  • 1872 – Alexander Roda Roda, Austrian-Croatian journalist and author (d. 1945)
  • 1873 – John W. Davis, American lawyer and politician, 14th United States Solicitor General (d. 1955)
  • 1875 – Ray Lyman Wilbur, American physician, academic, and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1949)
  • 1879 – Edward Bruce, American lawyer and painter (d. 1943)
  • 1879 – Oswald Bruce Cooper, American type designer, lettering artist, graphic designer, and educator (d. 1940)
  • 1880 – Charles Christie, Canadian-American businessman, co-founded the Christie Film Company (d. 1955)
  • 1885 – Vean Gregg, American baseball player (d. 1964)
  • 1885 – Juhan Kukk, Estonian politician, Head of State of Estonia (d. 1942)
  • 1885 – György Lukács, Hungarian philosopher and critic (d. 1971)
  • 1885 – Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy, Dutch politician (d. 1961)
  • 1887 – Gordon S. Fahrni, Canadian physician and golfer (d. 1995)
  • 1889 – Herbert Yardley, American cryptologist and author (d. 1958)
  • 1890 – Frank Murphy, American jurist and politician, 56th United States Attorney General (d. 1949)
  • 1890 – Dadasaheb Torne, Indian director and producer (d. 1960)
  • 1891 – Maurice Buckley, Australian sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1921)
  • 1891 – Nella Larsen, Danish/African-American nurse, librarian, and author (d. 1964)
  • 1891 – Robert Scholl, German accountant and politician (d. 1973)
  • 1892 – Sir Arthur Harris, 1st Baronet, English air marshal (d. 1984)
  • 1892 – Robert Watson-Watt, Scottish engineer, invented Radar (d. 1973)
  • 1894 – Arthur Fadden, Australian accountant and politician, 13th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1973)
  • 1894 – Joie Ray, American runner (d. 1978)
  • 1896 – Fred Barnett, English footballer (d. 1982)
  • 1897 – Werner Voss, German lieutenant and pilot (d. 1917)
  • 1899 – Alfred Mosher Butts, American architect and game designer, created Scrabble (d. 1993)
  • 1899 – Harold Osborn, American high jumper and decathlete (d. 1975)
  • 1900 – Sorcha Boru, American potter and ceramic sculptor (d. 2006)
  • 1900 – Pierre Molinier, French painter and photographer (d. 1976)
  • 1901 – Jacques Lacan, French psychiatrist and psychoanalyst (d. 1981)
  • 1901 – Alan Watt, Australian public servant and diplomat, Australian Ambassador to Japan (d. 1988)
  • 1902 – Philippe de Rothschild, French Grand Prix driver, playwright, and producer (d. 1988)
  • 1902 – Marguerite Henry, American author (d. 1997)
  • 1904 – David Robinson, English businessman and philanthropist (d. 1987)
  • 1905 – Rae Johnstone, Australian jockey (d. 1964)
  • 1906 – Samuel Beckett, Irish novelist, poet, and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1989)
  • 1906 – Bud Freeman, American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1991)
  • 1907 – Harold Stassen, American lawyer and politician, 25th Governor of Minnesota (d. 2001)
  • 1909 – Eudora Welty, American short story writer and novelist (d. 2001)
  • 1911 – Ico Hitrec, Croatian footballer and manager (d. 1946)
  • 1911 – Jean-Louis Lévesque, Canadian businessman and philanthropist (d. 1994)
  • 1911 – Nino Sanzogno, Italian conductor and composer (d. 1983)
  • 1913 – Dave Albritton, American high jumper and coach (d. 1994)
  • 1913 – Kermit Tyler, American lieutenant and pilot (d. 2010)
  • 1914 – Orhan Veli Kanık, Turkish poet and author (d. 1950)
  • 1916 – Phyllis Fraser, Welsh-American actress, journalist, and publisher, co-founded Beginner Books (d. 2006)
  • 1917 – Robert Orville Anderson, American businessman, founded Atlantic Richfield Oil Co. (d. 2007)
  • 1917 – Bill Clements, American soldier, engineer, and politician, 15th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense (d. 2011)
  • 1919 – Roland Gaucher, French journalist and politician (d. 2007)
  • 1919 – Howard Keel, American actor and singer (d. 2004)
  • 1919 – Madalyn Murray O’Hair, American activist, founded American Atheists (d. 1995)
  • 1920 – Roberto Calvi, Italian banker (d. 1982)
  • 1920 – Claude Cheysson, French lieutenant and politician, French Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2012)
  • 1920 – Liam Cosgrave, Irish lawyer and politician, 6th Taoiseach of Ireland (d. 2017)
  • 1920 – Theodore L. Thomas, American chemical engineer, Patent attorney and writer (d. 2005)
  • 1922 – Heinz Baas, German footballer and manager (d. 1994)
  • 1922 – John Braine, English librarian and author (d. 1986)
  • 1922 – Julius Nyerere, Tanzanian politician and teacher, 1st President of Tanzania (d. 1999)
  • 1922 – Valve Pormeister, Estonian architect (d. 2002)
  • 1923 – Don Adams, American actor and director (d. 2005)
  • 1923 – A. H. Halsey, English sociologist and academic (d. 2014)
  • 1923 – Stanley Tanger, American businessman and philanthropist, founded the Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (d. 2010)
  • 1924 – John T. Biggers, American painter (d. 2001)
  • 1924 – Jack T. Chick, American author, illustrator, and publisher (d. 2016)
  • 1924 – Stanley Donen, American film director and choreographer (d. 2019)
  • 1926 – Ellie Lambeti, Greek actress (d. 1983)
  • 1926 – John Spencer-Churchill, 11th Duke of Marlborough, English businessman (d. 2014)
  • 1927 – Rosemary Haughton, English philosopher, theologian, and author
  • 1927 – Antonino Rocca, Italian-American wrestler (d. 1977)
  • 1927 – Maurice Ronet, French actor and director (d. 1983)
  • 1928 – Alan Clark, English historian and politician, Minister of State for Trade (d. 1999)
  • 1928 – Gianni Marzotto, Italian racing driver and businessman (d. 2012)
  • 1929 – Marilynn Smith, American golfer (d. 2019)
  • 1931 – Anita Cerquetti, Italian soprano (d. 2014)
  • 1931 – Robert Enrico, French director and screenwriter (d. 2001)
  • 1931 – Dan Gurney, American race car driver and engineer (d. 2018)
  • 1931 – Jon Stone, American composer, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1932 – Orlando Letelier, Chilean-American economist and politician, Chilean Minister of National Defense (d. 1976)
  • 1933 – Ben Nighthorse Campbell, American soldier and politician
  • 1934 – John Muckler, Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager
  • 1936 – Pierre Rosenberg, French historian and academic
  • 1937 – Col Joye, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1937 – Edward Fox, English actor
  • 1937 – Lanford Wilson, American playwright, co-founded the Circle Repertory Company (d. 2011)
  • 1938 – Klaus Lehnertz, German pole vaulter
  • 1938 – John Weston, English poet and diplomat
  • 1939 – Seamus Heaney, Irish poet and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
  • 1939 – Paul Sorvino, American actor and singer
  • 1940 – Mike Beuttler, Egyptian-English racing driver (d. 1988)
  • 1940 – Lester Chambers, American singer and musician
  • 1940 – J. M. G. Le Clézio, Breton French-Mauritian author and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1940 – Vladimir Cosma, French composer, conductor and violinist
  • 1940 – Jim McNab, Scottish footballer (d. 2006)
  • 1940 – Max Mosley, English racing driver and engineer, co-founded March Engineering, former president of the FIA
  • 1940 – Ruby Puryear Hearn, African-American biophysicist
  • 1941 – Michael Stuart Brown, American geneticist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1941 – Jean-Marc Reiser, French author and illustrator (d. 1983)
  • 1942 – Bill Conti, American composer and conductor
  • 1943 – Alan Jones, Australian rugby coach, radio host, and educator
  • 1943 – Billy Kidd, American skier
  • 1943 – Tim Krabbé, Dutch journalist and author
  • 1943 – Philip Norman, English journalist, author, and playwright
  • 1944 – Franco Arese, Italian runner
  • 1944 – Charles Burnett, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1944 – Jack Casady, American bass guitarist
  • 1944 – Susan Davis, Russian-American social worker and politician
  • 1945 – Ed Caruthers, American high jumper
  • 1945 – Tony Dow, American actor
  • 1945 – Lowell George, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1979)
  • 1945 – Bob Kalsu, American football player and lieutenant (d. 1970)
  • 1945 – Judy Nunn, Australian actress and author
  • 1946 – Al Green, American singer-songwriter, producer, and pastor
  • 1947 – Rae Armantrout, American poet and academic
  • 1947 – Mike Chapman, Australian-English songwriter and producer
  • 1947 – Jean-Jacques Laffont, French economist and academic (d. 2004)
  • 1947 – Yves Landry, Canadian cyclist
  • 1948 – Nam Hae-il, South Korean admiral
  • 1948 – Drago Jančar, Slovenian author and playwright
  • 1948 – Mikhail Shufutinsky, Soviet and Russian singer, actor, TV presenter
  • 1949 – Len Cook, New Zealand-English mathematician and statistician
  • 1949 – Frank Doran, Scottish lawyer and politician (d. 2017)
  • 1949 – Christopher Hitchens, English-American essayist, literary critic, and journalist (d. 2011)
  • 1949 – Ricardo Zunino, Argentinian racing driver
  • 1950 – Ron Perlman, American actor
  • 1950 – Tommy Raudonikis, Australian rugby league player and coach
  • 1951 – Leszek Borysiewicz, Welsh immunologist and academic
  • 1951 – Peabo Bryson, American singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1951 – Peter Davison, English actor
  • 1951 – Joachim Streich, German footballer and manager
  • 1951 – Max Weinberg, American drummer
  • 1952 – Sam Bush, American mandolin player
  • 1952 – David Drew, English lawyer and politician
  • 1952 – Gabrielle Gourdeau, Canadian writer (d. 2006)
  • 1952 – Jonjo O’Neill, Irish jockey and trainer
  • 1953 – Stephen Byers, English politician
  • 1953 – Dany Laferrière, Haitian-Canadian journalist and author
  • 1954 – Jimmy Destri, American keyboard player and songwriter
  • 1954 – Niels Olsen, Danish singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1954 – Barbara Roche, English lawyer and politician
  • 1955 – Steve Camp, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1955 – Muwenda Mutebi II, current King of Buganda Kingdom
  • 1955 – Louis Johnson, American bass player and producer (d. 2015)
  • 1955 – Lupe Pintor, Mexican boxer
  • 1955 – Ole von Beust, German lawyer and politician, 1st Mayor of Hamburg
  • 1956 – Possum Bourne, New Zealand racing driver (d. 2003)
  • 1956 – Alan Devonshire, English footballer and manager
  • 1956 – Edward Forbes Smiley III, American art thief and map dealer
  • 1957 – Amy Goodman, American journalist and author
  • 1957 – Saundra Santiago, American actress
  • 1960 – Lyn Brown, English social worker and politician
  • 1960 – Bob Casey, Jr., American lawyer and politician, senior senator of Pennsylvania
  • 1960 – Olaf Ludwig, German cyclist and manager
  • 1960 – Rudi Völler, German footballer and manager
  • 1961 – Hiro Yamamoto, American bass player and songwriter
  • 1962 – Hillel Slovak, Israeli-American guitarist (d. 1988)
  • 1963 – Garry Kasparov, Russian chess player and author
  • 1964 – Davis Love III, American golfer and sportscaster
  • 1964 – Caroline Rhea, Canadian actress and comedian
  • 1964 – John Swinney, Scottish businessman and politician, Deputy First Minister of Scotland
  • 1965 – Patricio Pouchulu, Argentinian architect and educator
  • 1966 – Ali Boumnijel, Tunisian footballer
  • 1966 – Marc Ford, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
  • 1967 – Dana Barros, American basketball player, coach, and sportscaster
  • 1967 – Michael Eisen, American biologist and academic
  • 1967 – Olga Tañón, Puerto Rican-American singer-songwriter
  • 1968 – Ted Washington, American football player
  • 1969 – Dirk Muschiol, German footballer
  • 1970 – Monty Brown, American football player and wrestler
  • 1970 – Gerry Creaney, Scottish footballer and manager
  • 1970 – Nick Garrett, English singer
  • 1970 – Szilveszter Csollány, Hungarian gymnast
  • 1970 – Ricardo Rincón, Mexican-American baseball player
  • 1970 – Ricky Schroder, American actor
  • 1971 – Franck Esposito, French swimmer
  • 1971 – Danie Mellor, Australian painter and sculptor
  • 1971 – Bo Outlaw, American basketball player
  • 1971 – Valensia, Dutch singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1972 – Mariusz Czerkawski, Polish ice hockey player and golfer
  • 1972 – Aaron Lewis, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1974 – Valentina Cervi, Italian actress
  • 1974 – Sergei Gonchar, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1974 – Darren Turner, English racing driver
  • 1974 – David Zdrilic, Australian footballer and manager
  • 1975 – Jasey-Jay Anderson, Canadian snowboarder
  • 1975 – Lou Bega, German singer-songwriter
  • 1975 – Bruce Dyer, English footballer
  • 1975 – Tatiana Navka, Russian ice dancer
  • 1976 – Jonathan Brandis, American actor (d. 2003)
  • 1976 – Patrik Eliáš, Czech-American ice hockey player
  • 1976 – Glenn Howerton, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1977 – Margus Tsahkna, Estonian lawyer and politician
  • 1978 – Arron Asham, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1978 – Carles Puyol, Spanish footballer
  • 1978 – Raemon Sluiter, Dutch tennis player
  • 1978 – Keydrick Vincent, American football player
  • 1979 – Gréta Arn, Hungarian tennis player
  • 1979 – Baron Davis, American basketball player
  • 1979 – Tony Lundon, Irish singer-songwriter, producer, and dancer
  • 1979 – Meghann Shaughnessy, American tennis player
  • 1980 – Colleen Clinkenbeard, American voice actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1980 – Jason Maguire, Irish jockey
  • 1980 – Alan Melikdjanian, American independent filmmaker and YouTuber
  • 1980 – Quentin Richardson, American basketball player
  • 1981 – Nat Borchers, American soccer player
  • 1981 – Gemma Doyle, Scottish politician
  • 1982 – Nellie McKay, British-American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress
  • 1983 – Claudio Bravo, Chilean footballer
  • 1983 – Schalk Burger, South African rugby player
  • 1983 – Nicole Cooke, Welsh cyclist
  • 1983 – Hunter Pence, American baseball player
  • 1984 – Jarmo Ahjupera, Estonian footballer
  • 1984 – Anders Lindegaard, Danish footballer
  • 1985 – Anna Jennings-Edquist, Australian actress, director, and playwright
  • 1985 – Algo Kärp, Estonian skier
  • 1985 – Cody Nickson, American reality television personality
  • 1986 – Michael Bingham, American-English sprinter
  • 1986 – Lorenzo Cain, American baseball player
  • 1987 – Brandon Hardesty, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1987 – Massimiliano Pesenti, Italian footballer
  • 1987 – Allison Weiss, American singer-songwriter
  • 1988 – Anderson, Brazilian footballer
  • 1988 – Petteri Koponen, Finnish basketball player
  • 1988 – Allison Williams, American actress and singer
  • 1989 – Ryan Bailey, American sprinter
  • 1989 – Dong Dong, Chinese trampolinist
  • 1989 – Nastassia Mironchyk-Ivanova, Belarusian long jumper
  • 1989 – Josh Reynolds, Australian rugby league player
  • 1989 – Vladislav Yegin, Russian ice hockey player
  • 1990 – Anastasija Sevastova, a professional tennis player from Latvia
  • 1991 – Akeem Adams, Trinidadian footballer (d. 2013)
  • 1991 – Ulises Dávila, Mexican footballer
  • 1991 – Josh Gordon, American football player
  • 1992 – Denis Kudryavtsev, Russian hurdler
  • 1992 – Jordan Silk, Australian cricketer
  • 1993 – Tony Wroten, American basketball player
  • 1994 – Ángelo Henríquez, Chilean footballer
  • 1994 – Elvis Merzļikins, Latvian ice hockey player
  • 1997 – Kyle Walker-Peters, English footballer

Deaths on April 13

  • 548 – Lý Nam Đế, Vietnamese emperor (b. 503)
  • 585 – Hermenegild, Visigothic prince and saint
  • 799 – Paul the Deacon, Italian monk and historian (b. 720)
  • 814 – Krum, khan of the Bulgarian Khanate
  • 862 – Donald I, king of the Picts (b. 812)
  • 989 – Bardas Phokas, Byzantine general
  • 1035 – Herbert I, Count of Maine
  • 1093 – Vsevolod I of Kiev (b. 1030)
  • 1113 – Ida of Lorraine, saint and noblewoman (b. c. 1040)
  • 1138 – Simon I, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1076)
  • 1213 – Guy of Thouars, regent of Brittany
  • 1275 – Eleanor of England (b. 1215)
  • 1367 – John Tiptoft, 2nd Baron Tibetot (b. 1313)
  • 1592 – Bartolomeo Ammannati, Italian architect and sculptor (b. 1511)
  • 1605 – Boris Godunov, Tsar of Russia (b. 1551)
  • 1612 – Sasaki Kojirō, Japanese samurai (b. 1585)
  • 1635 – Fakhr-al-Din II, Ottoman prince (b. 1572)
  • 1638 – Henri, Duke of Rohan (b. 1579)
  • 1641 – Richard Montagu, English bishop (b. 1577)
  • 1695 – Jean de La Fontaine, French author and poet (b. 1621)
  • 1716 – Arthur Herbert, 1st Earl of Torrington, English admiral and politician (b. 1648)
  • 1722 – Charles Leslie, Irish priest and theologian (b. 1650)
  • 1793 – Pierre Gaspard Chaumette, French botanist, lawyer, and politician (b. 1763)
  • 1794 – Nicolas Chamfort, French playwright and poet (b. 1741)
  • 1826 – Franz Danzi, German cellist, composer, and conductor (b. 1763)
  • 1853 – Leopold Gmelin, German chemist and academic (b. 1788)
  • 1853 – James Iredell, Jr., American lawyer and politician, 23rd Governor of North Carolina (b. 1788)
  • 1855 – Henry De la Beche, English geologist and palaeontologist (b. 1796)
  • 1868 – Tewodros II of Ethiopia (b. 1818)
  • 1880 – Robert Fortune, Scottish botanist and author (b. 1813)
  • 1882 – Bruno Bauer, German historian and philosopher (b. 1809)
  • 1886 – John Humphrey Noyes, American religious leader, founded the Oneida Community (b. 1811)
  • 1890 – Samuel J. Randall, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 33rd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (b. 1828)
  • 1899 – James Service, Scottish-Australian politician, 12th Premier of Victoria (b. 1823)
  • 1909 – Whitley Stokes, Anglo-Irish lawyer and scholar (b. 1830)
  • 1910 – William Quiller Orchardson, Scottish-English painter and educator (b. 1835)
  • 1911 – John McLane, Scottish-American politician, 50th Governor of New Hampshire (b. 1852)
  • 1911 – George Washington Glick, American lawyer and politician, 9th Governor of Kansas (b. 1827)
  • 1912 – Takuboku Ishikawa, Japanese poet and author (b. 1886)
  • 1917 – Diamond Jim Brady, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1856)
  • 1918 – Lavr Kornilov, Russian general (b. 1870)
  • 1927 – Georg Voigt, German politician, Mayor of Frankfurt (b. 1866)
  • 1936 – Konstantinos Demertzis, Greek politician 129th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1876)
  • 1938 – Grey Owl, English-Canadian environmentalist and author (b. 1888)
  • 1941 – Annie Jump Cannon, American astronomer and academic (b. 1863)
  • 1941 – William Twaits, Canadian soccer player (b. 1879)
  • 1942 – Henk Sneevliet, Dutch politician (b. 1883)
  • 1942 – Anton Uesson, Estonian engineer and politician, 17th Mayor of Tallinn (b. 1879)
  • 1944 – Cécile Chaminade, French pianist and composer (b. 1857)
  • 1945 – Ernst Cassirer, Polish-American philosopher and academic (b. 1874)
  • 1954 – Samuel Jones, American high jumper (b. 1880)
  • 1954 – Angus Lewis Macdonald, Canadian lawyer and politician, 12th Premier of Nova Scotia (b. 1890)
  • 1956 – Emil Nolde, Danish-German painter and educator (b. 1867)
  • 1959 – Eduard van Beinum, Dutch pianist, violinist, and conductor (b. 1901)
  • 1961 – John A. Bennett, American soldier (b. 1935)
  • 1962 – Culbert Olson, American lawyer and politician, 29th Governor of California (b. 1876)
  • 1966 – Abdul Salam Arif, Iraqi colonel and politician, 2nd President of Iraq (b. 1921)
  • 1966 – Carlo Carrà, Italian painter (b. 1881)
  • 1966 – Georges Duhamel, French soldier and author (b. 1884)
  • 1967 – Nicole Berger, French actress (b. 1934)
  • 1969 – Alfred Karindi, Estonian pianist and composer (b. 1901)
  • 1971 – Michel Brière, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1949)
  • 1971 – Juhan Smuul, Estonian author, poet, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
  • 1975 – Larry Parks, American actor and singer (b. 1914)
  • 1975 – François Tombalbaye, Chadian soldier, academic, and politician, 1st President of Chad (b. 1918)
  • 1978 – Jack Chambers, Canadian painter and director (b. 1931)
  • 1978 – Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Nigerian educator and women’s rights activist (b. 1900)
  • 1980 – Markus Höttinger, Austrian racing driver (b. 1956)
  • 1983 – Gerry Hitchens, English footballer (b. 1934)
  • 1983 – Theodore Stephanides, Greek physician, author, and poet (b. 1896)
  • 1984 – Ralph Kirkpatrick, American harp player and musicologist (b. 1911)
  • 1988 – Jean Gascon, Canadian actor and director (b. 1920)
  • 1992 – Maurice Sauvé, Canadian economist and politician (b. 1923)
  • 1992 – Feza Gürsey, Turkish mathematician and physicist (b. 1921)
  • 1992 – Daniel Pollock, Australian actor (b. 1968)
  • 1993 – Wallace Stegner, American novelist, short story writer, and essayist (b. 1909)
  • 1996 – Leila Mackinlay, English author and educator (b. 1910)
  • 1997 – Bryant Bowles, American soldier and activist, founded the National Association for the Advancement of White People (b. 1920)
  • 1997 – Alan Cooley, Australian public servant (b. 1920)
  • 1997 – Dorothy Frooks, American author and actress (b. 1896)
  • 1997 – Voldemar Väli, Estonian wrestler (b. 1903)
  • 1998 – Patrick de Gayardon, French skydiver and base jumper (b. 1960)
  • 1999 – Ortvin Sarapu, Estonian-New Zealand chess player and author (b. 1924)
  • 1999 – Willi Stoph, German engineer and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of East Germany (b. 1914)
  • 2000 – Giorgio Bassani, Italian author and poet (b. 1916)
  • 2000 – Frenchy Bordagaray, American baseball player and manager (b. 1910)
  • 2004 – Caron Keating, Northern Irish television host (b. 1962)
  • 2005 – Don Blasingame, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1932)
  • 2005 – Johnnie Johnson, American pianist and songwriter (b. 1924)
  • 2005 – Phillip Pavia, American painter and sculptor (b. 1912)
  • 2005 – Philippe Volter, Belgian actor and director (b. 1959)
  • 2006 – Bill Baker, American baseball player, coach, and umpire (b. 1911)
  • 2006 – Muriel Spark, Scottish novelist, poet, and critic (b. 1918)
  • 2008 – John Archibald Wheeler, American physicist and academic (b. 1911)
  • 2009 – Mark Fidrych, American baseball player (b. 1954)
  • 2009 – Bruce Snyder, American football player and coach (b. 1940)
  • 2009 – George Feigley, American sex cult leader, convicted rapist and two-time prison escapee (b. 1940)
  • 2012 – William B. Buffum, American soldier and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Lebanon (b. 1921)
  • 2012 – Cecil Chaudhry, Pakistani pilot, academic, and activist (b. 1941)
  • 2012 – Shūichi Higurashi, Japanese illustrator (b. 1936)
  • 2012 – David S. Smith, American diplomat, United States Ambassador to Sweden (b. 1918)
  • 2012 – Robert Wigmore, Cook Islander politician, 14th Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands (b. 1949)
  • 2013 – Chi Cheng, American bass player (b. 1970)
  • 2013 – Stephen Dodgson, English composer and educator (b. 1924)
  • 2013 – Dean Drummond, American composer and conductor (b. 1949)
  • 2013 – Vincent Montana, Jr., American drummer and composer (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Lin Yang-kang, Taiwanese politician, 29th Vice Premier of the Republic of China (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Fred Enke, American football player (b. 1924)
  • 2014 – Ernesto Laclau, Argentinian-Spanish philosopher and theorist (b. 1935)
  • 2014 – Michael Ruppert, American journalist and author (b. 1951)
  • 2014 – Rafał Sznajder, Polish fencer (b. 1972)
  • 2015 – Gerald Calabrese, American basketball player and politician (b. 1925)
  • 2015 – Ronnie Carroll, Irish singer and politician (b. 1934)
  • 2015 – Thelma Coyne Long, Australian tennis player and captain (b. 1918)
  • 2015 – Eduardo Galeano, Uruguayan journalist and author (b. 1940)
  • 2015 – Günter Grass, German novelist, poet, playwright, and illustrator, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1927)
  • 2015 – Herb Trimpe, American author and illustrator (b. 1939)
  • 2016 – Nera White, American basketball player (b. 1935)
  • 2017 – Dan Rooney, American football executive and former United States Ambassador to Ireland (b. 1932)
  • 2018 – Art Bell, American broadcaster and author (b. 1945)
  • 2019 – Neus Català, Anti-fascist activist (b. 1915)
  • 2019 – Yvette Williams, New Zealand athlete (b. 1929)

Holidays and observances on April 13

  • Christian feast day:
    • Hermenegild
    • Blessed Ida of Louvain
    • Pope Martin I
    • April 13 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Jefferson’s Birthday (United States)
  • Katyn Memorial Day (Poland)
  • South and Southeast Asian New Year. (see April 14)
  • Teacher’s Day (Ecuador)
  • Unfairly Prosecuted Persons Day (Slovakia)

April 13 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

April 11 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

  • 491 – Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine emperor, with the name of Anastasius I.
  • 1241 – Batu Khan defeats Béla IV of Hungary at the Battle of Mohi.
  • 1512 – War of the League of Cambrai: French forces led by Gaston de Foix win the Battle of Ravenna.
  • 1544 – Italian War of 1542–46: A French army defeats Habsburg forces at the Battle of Ceresole, but fails to exploit its victory.
  • 1689 – William III and Mary II are crowned as joint sovereigns of Great Britain.
  • 1713 – War of the Spanish Succession (Queen Anne’s War): Treaty of Utrecht.
  • 1727 – Premiere of Johann Sebastian Bach’s St Matthew Passion BWV 244b at the St. Thomas Church, Leipzig
  • 1809 – An incomplete British victory over the French fleet at the Battle of the Basque Roads results in the court-martial of James, Lord Gambier.
  • 1814 – The Treaty of Fontainebleau ends the War of the Sixth Coalition against Napoleon Bonaparte, and forces him to abdicate unconditionally for the first time.
  • 1856 – Second Battle of Rivas: Juan Santamaría burns down the hostel where William Walker’s filibusters are holed up.
  • 1868 – Former shōgun Tokugawa Yoshinobu surrenders Edo Castle to Imperial forces, marking the end of the Tokugawa shogunate.
  • 1876 – The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks is organized.
  • 1881 – Spelman College is founded in Atlanta, Georgia as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, an institute of higher education for African-American women.
  • 1908 – SMS Blücher, the last armored cruiser to be built by the Imperial German Navy, is launched.
  • 1909 – The city of Tel Aviv is founded.
  • 1921 – Emir Abdullah establishes the first centralised government in the newly created British protectorate of Transjordan.
  • 1945 – World War II: American forces liberate the Buchenwald concentration camp.
  • 1951 – Korean War: President Harry Truman relieves General of the Army Douglas MacArthur of overall command in Korea.
  • 1951 – The Stone of Scone, the stone upon which Scottish monarchs were traditionally crowned, is found on the site of the altar of Arbroath Abbey. It had been taken by Scottish nationalist students from its place in Westminster Abbey.
  • 1955 – The Air India Kashmir Princess is bombed and crashes in a failed assassination attempt on Zhou Enlai by the Kuomintang.
  • 1957 – United Kingdom agrees to Singaporean self-rule.
  • 1961 – The trial of Adolf Eichmann begins in Jerusalem.
  • 1963 – Pope John XXIII issues Pacem in terris, the first encyclical addressed to all Christians instead of only Catholics, and which described the conditions for world peace in human terms.
  • 1964 – Brazilian Marshal Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco is elected President by the National Congress.
  • 1965 – The Palm Sunday tornado outbreak of 1965: Fifty-one tornadoes hit in six Midwestern states, killing 256 people.
  • 1968 – President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1968, prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing.
  • 1968 – Assassination attempt on Rudi Dutschke, leader of the German student movement.
  • 1970 – Apollo 13 is launched.
  • 1976 – The Apple I is created.
  • 1977 – London Transport’s Silver Jubilee AEC Routemaster buses are launched.
  • 1979 – Ugandan dictator Idi Amin is deposed.
  • 1981 – A massive riot in Brixton, south London results in almost 300 police injuries and 65 serious civilian injuries.
  • 1986 – FBI Miami Shootout: A gun battle in broad daylight in Dade County, Florida between two bank/armored car robbers and pursuing FBI agents. During the firefight, FBI agents Jerry L. Dove and Benjamin P. Grogan were killed, while five other agents were wounded. As a result, the popular .40 S&W cartridge was developed.
  • 1987 – The London Agreement is secretly signed between Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister Shimon Peres and King Hussein of Jordan.
  • 1990 – Customs officers in Middlesbrough, England, seize what they believe to be the barrel of a massive gun on a ship bound for Iraq.
  • 1993 – Four hundred fifty prisoners rioted at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville, Ohio, and continued to do so for ten days, citing grievances related to prison conditions, as well as the forced vaccination of Nation of Islam prisoners (for tuberculosis) against their religious beliefs.
  • 2001 – The detained crew of a United States EP-3E aircraft that landed in Hainan, China after a collision with a J-8 fighter, is released.
  • 2002 – The Ghriba synagogue bombing by al-Qaeda kills 21 in Tunisia.
  • 2002 – Over two hundred thousand people march in Caracas towards the Presidential palace to demand the resignation of President Hugo Chávez. Nineteen protesters are killed.
  • 2006 – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announces Iran’s claim to have successfully enriched uranium.
  • 2007 – Algiers bombings: Two bombings in Algiers kill 33 people and wound a further 222 others.
  • 2011 – An explosion in the Minsk Metro, Belarus kills 15 people and injures 204 others.
  • 2012 – A pair of great earthquakes occur in the Wharton Basin west of Sumatra in Indonesia. The maximum Mercalli intensity of this strike-slip doublet earthquake was VII (Very strong). Ten were killed, twelve were injured, and a non-destructive tsunami was observed on the island of Nias.
  • 2018 – An Ilyushin Il-76 which was owned and operated by the Algerian Air Force crashes near Boufarik, Algeria, killing 257.

Births on April 11

  • 145 – Septimius Severus, Roman emperor (probable; d. 211)
  • 1184 – William of Winchester, Lord of Lüneburg (d. 1213)
  • 1348 – Andronikos IV Palaiologos, Byzantine Emperor (d. 1385)
  • 1357 – John I of Portugal (d. 1433)
  • 1370 – Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (d. 1428)
  • 1374 – Roger Mortimer, 4th Earl of March, heir to the throne of England (d. 1398)
  • 1493 – George I, Duke of Pomerania (d. 1531)
  • 1591 – Bartholomeus Strobel, Silezian painter (d. 1650)
  • 1592 – John Eliot, English lawyer and politician (d. 1632)
  • 1644 – Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy-Nemours, Duchess of Savoy (d. 1724)
  • 1658 – James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton, Scottish peer (d. 1712)
  • 1683 – Jean-Joseph Mouret, French composer and conductor (d. 1738)
  • 1715 – John Alcock, English organist and composer (d. 1806)
  • 1721 – David Zeisberger, Czech-American clergyman and missionary (d. 1808)
  • 1722 – Christopher Smart, English actor, playwright, and poet (d. 1771)
  • 1749 – Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, French miniaturist and portrait painter (d. 1803)
  • 1755 – James Parkinson, English surgeon, geologist, and paleontologist (d. 1824)
  • 1770 – George Canning, Irish-English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1827)
  • 1794 – Edward Everett, English-American educator and politician, 15th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1865)
  • 1798 – Macedonio Melloni, Italian physicist and academic (d. 1854)
  • 1819 – Charles Hallé, German-English pianist and conductor (d. 1895)
  • 1825 – Ferdinand Lassalle, German philosopher and jurist (d. 1864)
  • 1827 – Jyotirao Phule, Indian scholar, philosopher, and activist (d. 1890)
  • 1854 – Hugh Massie, Australian cricketer (d. 1938)
  • 1856 – Arthur Shrewsbury, English cricketer and rugby player (d. 1903)
  • 1859 – Stefanos Thomopoulos, Greek historian and author (d. 1939)
  • 1862 – William Wallace Campbell, American astronomer and academic (d. 1938)
  • 1862 – Charles Evans Hughes, American lawyer and politician, 44th United States Secretary of State (d. 1948)
  • 1864 – Johanna Elberskirchen, German author and activist (d. 1943)
  • 1866 – Bernard O’Dowd, Australian journalist, author, and poet (d. 1953)
  • 1867 – Mark Keppel, American educator (d. 1928)
  • 1869 – Gustav Vigeland, Norwegian sculptor, designed the Nobel Peace Prize medal (d. 1943)
  • 1871 – Gyula Kellner, Hungarian runner (d. 1940)
  • 1873 – Edward Lawson, English soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1955)
  • 1876 – Paul Henry, Irish painter (d. 1958)
  • 1876 – Ivane Javakhishvili, Georgian historian and academic (d. 1940)
  • 1879 – Bernhard Schmidt, Estonian-German astronomer and optician (d. 1935)
  • 1887 – Jamini Roy, Indian painter (d. 1972)
  • 1893 – Dean Acheson, American lawyer and politician, 51st United States Secretary of State (d. 1971)
  • 1896 – Léo-Paul Desrosiers, Canadian journalist and author (d. 1967)
  • 1899 – Percy Lavon Julian, African-American chemist and academic (d. 1975)
  • 1900 – Sándor Márai, Hungarian journalist and author (d. 1989)
  • 1903 – Misuzu Kaneko, Japanese poet (d. 1930)
  • 1904 – K. L. Saigal, Indian singer and actor (d. 1947)
  • 1905 – Attila József, Hungarian poet and educator (d. 1937)
  • 1906 – Dale Messick, American author and illustrator (d. 2005)
  • 1907 – Paul Douglas, American actor (d. 1959)
  • 1908 – Jane Bolin, American lawyer and judge (d. 2007)
  • 1908 – Masaru Ibuka, Japanese businessman, co-founded Sony (d. 1997)
  • 1908 – Dan Maskell, English tennis player and sportscaster (d. 1992)
  • 1908 – Leo Rosten, Polish-American author and academic (d. 1997)
  • 1910 – António de Spínola, Portuguese general and politician, 14th President of Portugal (d. 1996)
  • 1912 – John Levy, American bassist and businessman (d. 2012)
  • 1913 – Oleg Cassini, French-American fashion designer (d. 2006)
  • 1914 – Norman McLaren, Scottish-Canadian animator, director, and producer (d. 1987)
  • 1914 – Robert Stanfield, Canadian economist, lawyer, and politician, 17th Premier of Nova Scotia (d. 2003)
  • 1914 – Dorothy Lewis Bernstein, American mathematician (d. 1988)
  • 1916 – Alberto Ginastera, Argentinian-Swiss pianist and composer (d. 1983)
  • 1916 – Howard W. Koch, American director and producer (d. 2001)
  • 1917 – David Westheimer, American soldier, journalist, and author (d. 2005)
  • 1918 – Richard Wainwright, English soldier and politician (d. 2003)
  • 1919 – Raymond Carr, English historian and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1920 – Emilio Colombo, Italian lawyer and politician, 40th Prime Minister of Italy (d. 2013)
  • 1920 – William Royer, American soldier and politician (d. 2013)
  • 1921 – Jim Hearn, American baseball player (d. 1998)
  • 1921 – Jack Rayner, Australian rugby league player and coach (d. 2008)
  • 1922 – Arved Viirlaid, Estonian-Canadian soldier and author (d. 2015)
  • 1923 – George J. Maloof, Sr., American businessman (d. 1980)
  • 1924 – Mohammad Naseem, Pakistani-English activist and politician (d. 2014)
  • 1925 – Yuriy Lituyev, Russian hurdler and commander (d. 2000)
  • 1925 – Viola Liuzzo, American civil rights activist (d. 1965)
  • 1925 – Viktor Masing, Estonian botanist and ecologist (d. 2001)
  • 1925 – Pierre Péladeau, Canadian businessman, founded Quebecor (d. 1997)
  • 1926 – David Manker Abshire, American commander and diplomat, United States Permanent Representative to NATO (d. 2014)
  • 1926 – Victor Bouchard, Canadian pianist and composer (d. 2011)
  • 1926 – Karl Rebane, Estonian physicist and academic (d. 2007)
  • 1927 – Lokesh Chandra, Indian historian
  • 1928 – Ethel Kennedy, American philanthropist
  • 1928 – Edwin Pope, American journalist and author (d. 2017)
  • 1928 – Tommy Tycho, Hungarian-Australian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2013)
  • 1930 – Nicholas F. Brady, American businessman and politician, 68th United States Secretary of the Treasury
  • 1930 – Walter Krüger, German javelin thrower (d. 2018)
  • 1930 – Anton LaVey, American occultist, founded the Church of Satan (d. 1997)
  • 1931 – Lewis Jones, Welsh rugby player and coach
  • 1932 – Joel Grey, American actor, singer, and dancer
  • 1933 – Tony Brown, American journalist and academic
  • 1934 – Mark Strand, Canadian-born American poet, essayist, and translator (d. 2014)
  • 1934 – Ron Pember, English actor, director and playwright
  • 1935 – Richard Berry, American singer-songwriter (d. 1997)
  • 1936 – Brian Noble, English bishop (d. 2019)
  • 1937 – Jill Gascoine, English actress and author
  • 1938 – Gerry Baker, American soccer player and manager (d. 2013)
  • 1938 – Michael Deaver, American politician, Deputy White House Chief of Staff (d. 2007)
  • 1938 – Reatha King, American chemist and businesswoman
  • 1939 – Luther Johnson, American singer and guitarist
  • 1939 – Louise Lasser, American actress
  • 1940 – Col Firmin, Australian politician (d. 2013)
  • 1940 – Thomas Harris, American author and screenwriter
  • 1940 – Władysław Komar, Polish shot putter and actor (d. 1998)
  • 1941 – Ellen Goodman, American journalist and author
  • 1941 – Shirley Stelfox, English actress (d. 2015)
  • 1942 – Anatoly Berezovoy, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 2014)
  • 1942 – Hattie Gossett, American writer
  • 1942 – James Underwood, English pathologist and academic
  • 1943 – John Montagu, 11th Earl of Sandwich, English businessman and politician
  • 1943 – Harley Race, American wrestler and trainer (d. 2019)
  • 1944 – Peter Barfuß, German footballer
  • 1944 – John Milius, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1945 – John Krebs, Baron Krebs, English zoologist and academic
  • 1946 – Chris Burden, American sculptor, illustrator, and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1946 – Bob Harris, English journalist and radio host
  • 1947 – Lev Bulat, Ukrainian-Russian physicist and academic (d. 2016)
  • 1947 – Uli Edel, German director and screenwriter
  • 1947 – Frank Mantooth, American pianist and composer (d. 2004)
  • 1947 – Peter Riegert, American actor, screenwriter and film director
  • 1947 – Michael T. Wright, English engineer and academic (d. 2015)
  • 1949 – Bernd Eichinger, German director and producer (d. 2011)
  • 1950 – Bill Irwin, American actor and clown
  • 1951 – Paul Fox, English singer and guitarist (d. 2007)
  • 1952 – Nancy Honeytree, American singer and guitarist
  • 1952 – Indira Samarasekera, Sri Lankan engineer and academic
  • 1952 – Peter Windsor, English-Australian journalist and sportscaster
  • 1953 – Guy Verhofstadt, Belgian politician, 47th Prime Minister of Belgium
  • 1953 – Andrew Wiles, English mathematician and academic
  • 1954 – Abdullah Atalar, Turkish engineer and academic
  • 1954 – Aleksandr Averin, Azerbaijani cyclist and coach
  • 1954 – Francis Lickerish, English guitarist and composer
  • 1954 – David Perrett, Scottish psychologist and academic
  • 1954 – Ian Redmond, English biologist and conservationist
  • 1954 – Willie Royster, American baseball player (d. 2015)
  • 1955 – Kevin Brady, American lawyer and politician
  • 1955 – Michael Callen, American singer-songwriter and AIDS activist (d. 1993)
  • 1955 – Micheal Ray Richardson, American basketball player and coach
  • 1958 – Stuart Adamson, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2001)
  • 1958 – Lyudmila Kondratyeva, Russian sprinter
  • 1959 – Pierre Lacroix, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1959 – Ana María Polo, Cuban-American lawyer and judge
  • 1959 – Zahid Maleque, Bangladeshi politician
  • 1960 – Jeremy Clarkson, English journalist and television presenter
  • 1961 – Vincent Gallo, American actor, director, producer, and musician
  • 1961 – Doug Hopkins, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1993)
  • 1961 – Nobuaki Kakuda, Japanese martial artist
  • 1962 – Franck Ducheix, French fencer
  • 1962 – Mark Lawson, English journalist and author
  • 1963 – Billy Bowden, New Zealand cricketer and umpire
  • 1963 – Waldemar Fornalik, Polish footballer and manager
  • 1963 – Elizabeth Smylie, Australian tennis player
  • 1964 – Steve Azar, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1964 – John Cryer, English journalist and politician
  • 1964 – Johann Sebastian Paetsch, American cellist
  • 1964 – Bret Saberhagen, American baseball player and coach
  • 1964 – Patrick Sang, Kenyan runner
  • 1966 – Steve Scarsone, American baseball player and manager
  • 1966 – Shin Seung-hun, South Korean singer-songwriter
  • 1966 – Lisa Stansfield, English singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1968 – Sergei Lukyanenko, Kazakh-Russian journalist and author
  • 1969 – Cerys Matthews, Welsh singer-songwriter
  • 1969 – Michael von Grünigen, Swiss skier
  • 1970 – Trevor Linden, Canadian ice hockey player and manager
  • 1970 – Delroy Pearson, English singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1971 – John Leech, English politician
  • 1971 – Oliver Riedel, German bass player
  • 1972 – Balls Mahoney, American wrestler (d. 2016)
  • 1972 – Allan Théo, French singer
  • 1972 – Jason Varitek, American baseball player and manager
  • 1973 – Jennifer Esposito, American actress
  • 1973 – Olivier Magne, French rugby player
  • 1974 – Àlex Corretja, Spanish tennis player and coach
  • 1974 – Ashot Danielyan, Armenian weightlifter
  • 1974 – David Jassy, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
  • 1974 – Zöe Lucker, English actress
  • 1974 – Tom Thacker, Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
  • 1974 – Trot Nixon, American baseball player and sportscaster
  • 1975 – Olga Hostáková, Czech tennis player
  • 1975 – Walid Soliman, Tunisian author and translator
  • 1976 – Kelvim Escobar, Venezuelan baseball player
  • 1977 – Ivonne Teichmann, German runner
  • 1978 – Josh Hancock, American baseball player (d. 2007)
  • 1979 – Malcolm Christie, English footballer
  • 1979 – Sebastien Grainger, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
  • 1979 – Michel Riesen, Swiss ice hockey player
  • 1979 – Josh Server, American actor
  • 1980 – Keiji Tamada, Japanese footballer
  • 1980 – Mark Teixeira, American baseball player
  • 1981 – Alessandra Ambrosio, Brazilian model
  • 1981 – Alexandre Burrows, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1981 – Veronica Pyke, Australian cricketer
  • 1982 – Ian Bell, English cricketer
  • 1982 – Peeter Kümmel, Estonian skier
  • 1983 – Jennifer Heil, Canadian skier
  • 1983 – Rubén Palazuelos, Spanish footballer
  • 1983 – Nicky Pastorelli, Dutch race car driver
  • 1984 – Kelli Garner, American actress
  • 1984 – Nikola Karabatić, French handball player
  • 1985 – Pablo Hernández Domínguez, Spanish footballer
  • 1985 – Will Minson, Australian footballer
  • 1986 – Sarodj Bertin, Haitian model and human rights lawyer
  • 1986 – Dai Greene, Welsh hurdler
  • 1986 – Lena Schöneborn, German pentathlete
  • 1987 – Joss Stone, English singer-songwriter and actress
  • 1987 – Lights, Canadian singer-songwriter
  • 1988 – Leland Irving, Canadian ice hockey player
  • 1989 – Torrin Lawrence, American sprinter (d. 2014)
  • 1989 – Zola Jesus, American singer
  • 1990 – Dimitrios Anastasopoulos, Greek footballer
  • 1990 – Thulani Serero, South African footballer
  • 1991 – Thiago Alcântara, Spanish footballer
  • 1991 – Brennan Poole, American racing driver
  • 1996 – Dele Alli, English international footballer
  • 1997 – Georgia Bohl, Australian swimmer
  • 1997 – Miriam Kolodziejová, a Czech tennis player

Deaths on April 11

  • 618 – Yang Guang, Chinese emperor of the Sui Dynasty (b. 569)
  • 678 – Donus, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 610)
  • 924 – Herman I, chancellor and archbishop of Cologne
  • 1034 – Romanos III Argyros, Byzantine emperor (b. 968)
  • 1077 – Anawrahta, king of Burma and founder of the Pagan Empire (b. 1014)
  • 1079 – Stanislaus of Szczepanów, bishop of Kraków (b. 1030)
  • 1165 – Stephen IV, king of Hungary and Croatia
  • 1240 – Llywelyn the Great, Welsh prince (b. 1172)
  • 1447 – Henry Beaufort, Cardinal, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1377)
  • 1512 – Gaston de Foix, French military commander (b. 1489)
  • 1554 – Thomas Wyatt the Younger, English rebel leader (b. 1521)
  • 1587 – Thomas Bromley, English lord chancellor (b. 1530)
  • 1609 – John Lumley, 1st Baron Lumley, English noble (b. 1533)
  • 1612 – Emanuel van Meteren, Flemish historian and author (b. 1535)
  • 1612 – Edward Wightman, English minister and martyr (b. 1566)
  • 1626 – Marino Ghetaldi, Ragusan mathematician and physicist (b. 1568)
  • 1712 – Richard Simon, French priest and critic (b. 1638)
  • 1723 – John Robinson, English bishop and diplomat (b. 1650)
  • 1783 – Nikita Ivanovich Panin, Polish-Russian politician, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1718)
  • 1798 – Karl Wilhelm Ramler, German poet and academic (b. 1725)
  • 1856 – Juan Santamaría, Costa Rican soldier (b. 1831)
  • 1861 – Francisco González Bocanegra, Mexican poet and composer (b. 1824)
  • 1873 – Edward Canby, American general (b. 1817)
  • 1890 – David de Jahacob Lopez Cardozo, Dutch Talmudist (b. 1808)
  • 1890 – Joseph Merrick, English man with severe deformities (b. 1862)
  • 1894 – Constantin Lipsius, German architect and theorist (b. 1832)
  • 1895 – Julius Lothar Meyer, German chemist (b. 1830)
  • 1902 – Wade Hampton III, American general and politician, 77th Governor of South Carolina (b. 1818)
  • 1903 – Gemma Galgani, Italian mystic and saint (b. 1878)
  • 1906 – James Anthony Bailey, American businessman, co-founded Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (b. 1847)
  • 1906 – Francis Pharcellus Church, American journalist and publisher, co-founded Armed Forces Journal and The Galaxy Magazine (b. 1839)
  • 1908 – Henry Bird, English chess player and author (b. 1829)
  • 1916 – Richard Harding Davis, American journalist and author (b. 1864)
  • 1918 – Otto Wagner, Austrian architect and urban planner (b. 1841)
  • 1926 – Luther Burbank, American botanist and academic (b. 1849)
  • 1939 – Kurtdereli Mehmet, Turkish wrestler (b. 1864)
  • 1953 – Kid Nichols, American baseball player and manager (b. 1869)
  • 1954 – Paul Specht, American violinist and bandleader (b. 1895)
  • 1958 – Konstantin Yuon, Russian painter and educator (b. 1875)
  • 1960 – Rosa Grünberg, Swedish actress (b. 1878)
  • 1962 – Ukichiro Nakaya, Japanese physicist and academic (b. 1900)
  • 1962 – George Poage, American hurdler and educator (b. 1880)
  • 1967 – Thomas Farrell, American general (b. 1891)
  • 1967 – Donald Sangster, Jamaican lawyer and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Jamaica (b. 1911)
  • 1970 – Cathy O’Donnell, American actress (b. 1923)
  • 1970 – John O’Hara, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1905)
  • 1974 – Ernst Ziegler, German actor (b. 1894)
  • 1977 – Jacques Prévert, French poet and screenwriter (b. 1900)
  • 1977 – Phanishwar Nath ‘Renu’, Indian author and activist (b. 1921)
  • 1980 – Ümit Kaftancıoğlu, Turkish journalist and producer (b. 1935)
  • 1981 – Caroline Gordon, American author and critic (b. 1895)
  • 1983 – Dolores del Río, Mexican actress (b. 1904)
  • 1984 – Edgar V. Saks, Estonian historian and politician, Estonian Minister of Education (b. 1910)
  • 1985 – Bunny Ahearne, Irish-born English businessman (b. 1900)
  • 1985 – John Gilroy, English artist and illustrator (b. 1898)
  • 1985 – Enver Hoxha, Albanian educator and politician, 21st Prime Minister of Albania (b. 1908)
  • 1987 – Erskine Caldwell, American novelist and short story writer (b. 1903)
  • 1987 – Primo Levi, Italian chemist and author (b. 1919)
  • 1990 – Harold Ballard, Canadian businessman (b. 1903)
  • 1991 – Walker Cooper, American baseball player and manager (b. 1915)
  • 1991 – Bruno Hoffmann. German glass harp player (b. 1913)
  • 1992 – James Brown, American actor and singer (b. 1920)
  • 1992 – Eve Merriam, American author and poet (b. 1916)
  • 1992 – Alejandro Obregón, Colombian painter, sculptor, and engraver (b. 1920)
  • 1996 – Jessica Dubroff, American pilot (b. 1988)
  • 1997 – Muriel McQueen Fergusson, Canadian lawyer and politician, Canadian Speaker of the Senate (b. 1899)
  • 1997 – Wang Xiaobo, contemporary Chinese novelist and essayist (b. 1952)
  • 1999 – William H. Armstrong, American author and educator (b. 1911)
  • 2000 – Diana Darvey, English actress, singer and dancer (b. 1945)
  • 2001 – Harry Secombe, Welsh-English actor (b. 1921)
  • 2003 – Cecil Howard Green, English-American geophysicist and businessman, founded Texas Instruments (b. 1900)
  • 2005 – André François, Romanian-French cartoonist, painter, and sculptor (b. 1915)
  • 2005 – Lucien Laurent, French footballer and coach (b. 1907)
  • 2006 – June Pointer, American singer (b. 1953)
  • 2006 – DeShaun Holton, American rapper and actor (b. 1973)
  • 2007 – Roscoe Lee Browne, American actor and director (b. 1922)
  • 2007 – Loïc Leferme, French diver (b. 1970)
  • 2007 – Janet McDonald, American lawyer and author (b. 1954)
  • 2007 – Ronald Speirs, Scottish-American colonel (b. 1920)
  • 2007 – Kurt Vonnegut, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (b. 1922)
  • 2008 – Merlin German, American sergeant (b. 1985)
  • 2009 – Gerda Gilboe, Danish actress and singer (b. 1914)
  • 2009 – Vishnu Prabhakar, Indian author and playwright (b. 1912)
  • 2009 – Corín Tellado, Spanish author (b. 1927)
  • 2010 – Julia Tsenova, Bulgarian pianist and composer (b. 1948)
  • 2011 – Larry Sweeney, American wrestler and manager (b. 1981)
  • 2012 – Ahmed Ben Bella, Algerian soldier and politician, 1st President of Algeria (b. 1916)
  • 2012 – Roger Caron, Canadian criminal and author (b. 1938)
  • 2012 – Tippy Dye, American basketball player and coach (b. 1915)
  • 2012 – Hal McKusick, American saxophonist, clarinet player, and flute player (b. 1924)
  • 2012 – Agustin Roman, American bishop (b. 1928)
  • 2013 – Don Blackman, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (b. 1953)
  • 2013 – Grady Hatton, American baseball player, coach, and manager (b. 1922)
  • 2013 – Thomas Hemsley, English actor and singer (b. 1927)
  • 2013 – Hilary Koprowski, Polish-American virologist and immunologist (b. 1916)
  • 2013 – Gilles Marchal, French singer-songwriter (b. 1944)
  • 2013 – Maria Tallchief, American ballerina (b. 1925)
  • 2013 – Clorindo Testa, Italian-Argentinian architect (b. 1923)
  • 2013 – Jonathan Winters, American comedian, actor and screenwriter (b. 1925)
  • 2014 – Rolf Brem, Swiss sculptor and illustrator (b. 1926)
  • 2014 – Edna Doré, English actress (b. 1921)
  • 2014 – Bill Henry, American baseball player (b. 1927)
  • 2014 – Lou Hudson, American basketball player and sportscaster (b. 1944)
  • 2014 – Myer S. Kripke, American rabbi and scholar (b. 1914)
  • 2014 – Sergey Nepobedimy, Russian engineer (b. 1921)
  • 2014 – Jesse Winchester, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1944)
  • 2015 – Jimmy Gunn, American football player (b. 1948)
  • 2015 – Muhammad Kamaruzzaman, Bangladeshi journalist and politician (b. 1952)
  • 2015 – François Maspero, French journalist and author (b. 1932)
  • 2015 – Hanut Singh, Indian general (b. 1933)
  • 2015 – Tekena Tamuno, Nigerian historian and academic (b. 1932)
  • 2017 – J. Geils, American singer and guitarist (b. 1946)
  • 2017 – Mark Wainberg, Canadian researcher and HIV/AIDS activist (b. 1945)
  • 2020 – John Horton Conway, English mathematician (b. 1937)

Holidays and observances on April 11

  • Christian feast day:
    • Antipas of Pergamum (Greek Orthodox Church)
    • Gemma Galgani
    • Godeberta
    • Guthlac of Crowland
    • George Selwyn (Anglicanism)
    • Stanislaus of Szczepanów
    • April 11 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • Juan Santamaría Day, anniversary of his death in the Second Battle of Rivas. (Costa Rica)
  • International Louie Louie Day
  • World Parkinson’s Day

April 11 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day Read More »

On This Day

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

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

Births on April 7

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

Deaths on April 7

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

Holidays and observances on April 7

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

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