Events

Pre-1600

• 240 Shapur I becomes co-emperor of the Sasanian Empire with his father Ardashir I.

• 467 Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.

• 627 King Edwin of Northumbria is converted to Christianity by Paulinus, Bishop of York.

• 806 Nikephoros I of Constantinople is consecrated as patriarch of Constantinople.

• 1159 Having received the submission of the prince of Antioch, Raynald of Châtillon, Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos enters triumphantly the city of Antioch.

• 1204 The Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade breach the walls of Constantinople and enter the city, which they completely occupy the following day.

• 1588 The Instruction of 12 April 1588 was enacted, which is widely regarded as the formal establishment of the Dutch Republic.

1601–1900

• 1606 The Union Flag is adopted as the flag of English and Scottish ships.

• 1776 American Revolution: With the Halifax Resolves, the North Carolina Provincial Congress authorizes its Congressional delegation to vote for independence from Britain.

• 1782 American Revolution: A Royal Navy fleet led by Admiral George Rodney defeats a French fleet led by the Comte de Grasse at the Battle of the Saintes off Dominica in the Caribbean Sea.

• 1796 War of the First Coalition: Napoleon Bonaparte wins his first victory as an army commander at the Battle of Montenotte, splitting the Austrian and Piedmontese armies away from each other, and marking the beginning of the Piedmontese surrender in the war.

• 1807 The Froberg mutiny on Malta ends when the remaining mutineers blow up the magazine of Fort Ricasoli.

• 1820 Alexander Ypsilantis is declared leader of Filiki Eteria, a secret organization to overthrow Ottoman rule over Greece.

• 1831 Soldiers marching on the Broughton Suspension Bridge in Manchester, England, cause it to collapse.

• 1861 American Civil War: Battle of Fort Sumter. The war begins with Confederate forces firing on Fort Sumter, in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina.

• 1862 American Civil War: The Andrews Raid (the Great Locomotive Chase) occurs, starting from Big Shanty, Georgia (now Kennesaw).

• 1864 American Civil War: The Battle of Fort Pillow: Confederate forces kill most of the African American soldiers that surrendered at Fort Pillow, Tennessee.

• 1865 American Civil War: Mobile, Alabama, falls to the Union Army.

• 1877 The United Kingdom annexes the Transvaal.

• 1900 One day after its enactment by the Congress, President William McKinley signs the Foraker Act into law, giving Puerto Rico limited self-rule.

1901–present

• 1910 , one of the last pre-dreadnought battleships built by the Austro-Hungarian Navy, is launched.

• 1917 World War I: Canadian forces successfully complete the taking of Vimy Ridge from the Germans.

• 1927 Shanghai massacre of 1927: Chiang Kai-shek orders the Chinese Communist Party members executed in Shanghai, ending the First United Front.

• 1927 Rocksprings, Texas is hit by an F5 tornado that destroys 235 of the 247 buildings in the town, kills 72 townspeople, and injures 205; third deadliest tornado in Texas history.

• 1928 The Bremen, a German Junkers W 33 type aircraft, takes off for the first successful transatlantic aeroplane flight from east to west.

• 1934 The strongest surface wind gust in the world at the time of 231mph, is measured on the summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire. It has since been surpassed.

• 1934 The U.S. Auto-Lite strike begins, culminating in a five-day melee between Ohio National Guard troops and 6,000 strikers and picketers.

• 1937 Sir Frank Whittle ground-tests the first jet engine designed to power an aircraft, at Rugby, England.

• 1945 U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies in office; Vice President Harry S. Truman succeeds him.

• 1945 World War II: The U.S. Ninth Army under General William H. Simpson crosses the Elbe River astride Magdeburg, and reaches Tangermünde—only from Berlin.

• 1955 The polio vaccine, developed by Dr. Jonas Salk, is declared safe and effective.

• 1961 Space Race: The Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human to travel into outer space and perform the first crewed orbital flight, Vostok 1.

• 1963 The Soviet nuclear-powered submarine K-33 collides with the Finnish merchant vessel M/S Finnclipper in the Danish straits.

• 1970 Soviet submarine K-8, carrying four nuclear torpedoes, sinks in the Bay of Biscay four days after a fire on board.

• 1980 The Americo-Liberian government of Liberia is violently deposed.

• 1980 Transbrasil Flight 303, a Boeing 727, crashes on approach to Hercílio Luz International Airport in Florianópolis, Brazil. Fifty-five out of the 58 people on board are killed.

• 1980 Canadian runner and athlete, Terry Fox begins his Marathon of Hope Run in St. John's, NF

• 1981 The first launch of a Space Shuttle (Columbia) takes place: The STS-1 mission.

• 1983 Harold Washington is elected as the first black mayor of Chicago.

• 1985 Space Shuttle Discovery launches on STS-51D to deploy two communications satellites.

• 1990 Jim Gary's "Twentieth Century Dinosaurs" exhibition opens at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. He is the only sculptor ever invited to present a solo exhibition there.

• 1990 Widerøe Flight 839 crashes after takeoff from Værøy Airport in Norway, killing five people.

• 1992 The Euro Disney Resort officially opens with its theme park Euro Disneyland; the resort and its park's name are subsequently changed to Disneyland Resort Paris.

• 1999 United States President Bill Clinton is cited for contempt of court for giving "intentionally false statements" in a civil lawsuit; he is later fined and disbarred.

• 1999 During the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, an American McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle shoots a passenger train, killing between 20 and 60 people.

• 2002 A suicide bomber blows herself up at the entrance to Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda Market, killing seven people and wounding 104.

• 2007 A suicide bomber penetrates the Green Zone and detonates in a cafeteria within a parliament building, killing Iraqi MP Mohammed Awad and wounding more than twenty other people.

• 2009 Zimbabwe officially abandons the Zimbabwean dollar as its official currency.

• 2010 Merano derailment: A rail accident in South Tyrol kills nine people and injures a further 28.

• 2013 Two suicide bombers kill three Chadian soldiers and injure dozens of civilians at a market in Kidal, Mali.

• 2014 The Great Fire of Valparaíso ravages the Chilean city of Valparaíso, killing 16 people, displacing nearly 10,000, and destroying more than 2,500 homes.

• 2026 The Tisza Party, led by Péter Magyar wins the 2026 Hungarian parliamentary election, defeating Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party, which had ruled the country for 16 years, marking the first change in government in Hungary for over a decade.

Births

Pre-1600

• 811 Muhammad al-Jawad, the ninth Imam of Shia Islam (died 835)

• 959 En'yū, emperor of Japan (died 991)

• 1116 Richeza of Poland, queen of Sweden and Grand Princess of Minsk (died 1156)

• 1432 Anne of Austria, Landgravine of Thuringia (died 1462)

• 1484 Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Italian architect, designed the Apostolic Palace and St. Peter's Basilica (died 1546)

• 1484 Maharana Sangram Singh, Rana of Mewar (died 1527)

• 1500 Joachim Camerarius, German scholar and translator (died 1574)

• 1526 Muretus, French philosopher and author (died 1585)

• 1550 Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, English courtier and politician, Lord Great Chamberlain (died 1604)

• 1577 Christian IV of Denmark (died 1648)

1601–1900

• 1612 Simone Cantarini, Italian painter and engraver (died 1648)

• 1639 Martin Lister, English naturalist and physician (died 1712)

• 1656 Benoît de Maillet, French diplomat and natural historian (died 1738)

• 1705 William Cookworthy, English minister and pharmacist (died 1780)

• 1710 Caffarelli, Italian actor and singer (died 1783)

• 1713 Guillaume Thomas François Raynal, French historian and author (died 1796)

• 1716 Felice Giardini, Italian violinist and composer (died 1796)

• 1722 Pietro Nardini, Italian violinist and composer (died 1793)

• 1724 Lyman Hall, American physician, clergyman, and politician, 16th Governor of Georgia (died 1790)

• 1748 Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, French botanist and author (died 1836)

• 1777 Henry Clay, American lawyer and politician, 9th United States Secretary of State (died 1852)

• 1792 John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, English soldier and politician, Lord Privy Seal (died 1840)

• 1794 Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician and engineer (died 1847)

• 1796 George N. Briggs, American lawyer and politician, 19th Governor of Massachusetts (died 1861)

• 1799 Henri Druey, Swiss lawyer and politician, 2nd President of the Swiss Confederation (died 1855)

• 1801 Joseph Lanner, Austrian composer and conductor (died 1843)

• 1816 Charles Gavan Duffy, Irish-Australian politician, 8th Premier of Victoria (died 1903)

• 1823 Alexander Ostrovsky, Russian playwright and translator (died 1886)

• 1839 Nikolay Przhevalsky, Russian geographer and explorer (died 1888)

• 1845 Gustaf Cederström, Swedish painter (died 1933)

• 1851 José Gautier Benítez, Puerto Rican soldier and poet (died 1880)

• 1851 Edward Walter Maunder, English astronomer and author (died 1928)

• 1852 Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician and academic (died 1939)

• 1856 Martin Conway, 1st Baron Conway of Allington, English mountaineer, cartographer, and politician (died 1937)

• 1863 Raul Pompeia, Brazilian writer (died 1895)

• 1868 Akiyama Saneyuki, Japanese admiral (died 1918)

• 1869 Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (died 1922)

• 1871 Ioannis Metaxas, Greek general and politician, 130th Prime Minister of Greece (died 1941)

• 1874 William B. Bankhead, American lawyer and politician, 47th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (died 1940)

• 1880 Addie Joss, American baseball player and journalist (died 1911)

• 1883 Imogen Cunningham, American photographer and educator (died 1976)

• 1883 Dally Messenger, Australian rugby player, cricketer, and sailor (died 1959)

• 1884 Tenby Davies, Welsh runner (died 1932)

• 1884 Otto Meyerhof, German physician and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1951)

• 1885 Robert Delaunay, French painter (died 1941)

• 1887 Harold Lockwood, American actor and director (died 1918)

• 1888 Dan Ahearn, Irish-American long jumper and police officer (died 1942)

• 1888 Cecil Kimber, English automobile engineer (died 1945)

• 1892 Henry Darger, American writer and artist (died 1973)

• 1894 Dorothy Cumming, Australian-American actress (died 1983)

• 1894 Francisco Craveiro Lopes, Portuguese field marshal and politician, 13th President of Portugal (died 1964)

• 1898 Lily Pons, French-American soprano and actress (died 1976)

1901–present

• 1901 Lowell Stockman, American farmer and politician (died 1962)

• 1902 Louis Beel, Dutch academic and politician, 36th Prime Minister of the Netherlands (died 1977)

• 1903 Jan Tinbergen, Dutch economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1994)

• 1907 Felix de Weldon, Austrian-American sculptor, designed the Marine Corps War Memorial (died 2003)

• 1907 Zawgyi, Burmese poet, author, literary historian, critic, scholar and academic (died 1990)

• 1908 Ida Pollock, English author and painter (died 2013)

• 1908 Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American pilot and general (died 2006)

• 1910 Gillo Dorfles, Italian art critic, painter and philosopher (died 2018)

• 1910 Irma Rapuzzi, French politician (died 2018)

• 1911 Mahmoud Younis, Egyptian engineer (died 1976)

• 1912 Frank Dilio, Canadian businessman (died 1997)

• 1912 Hamengkubuwono IX, Indonesian politician, 2nd Vice President of Indonesia (died 1988)

• 1912 Hound Dog Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1975)

• 1913 Keiko Fukuda, Japanese-American martial artist (died 2013)

• 1914 Armen Alchian, American economist and academic (died 2013)

• 1916 Beverly Cleary, American author (died 2021)

• 1916 Russell Garcia, American-New Zealand composer and conductor (died 2011)

• 1916 Benjamin Libet, American neuropsychologist and academic (died 2007)

• 1917 Helen Forrest, American singer and actress (died 1999)

• 1917 Vinoo Mankad, Indian cricketer (died 1978)

• 1917 Robert Manzon, French racing driver (died 2015)

• 1919 István Anhalt, Hungarian-Canadian composer and educator (died 2012)

• 1919 Billy Vaughn, American musician and bandleader (died 1991)

• 1921 Robert Cliche, Canadian lawyer, judge, and politician (died 1978)

• 1922 Simon Kapwepwe, Zambian politician, 2nd Vice President of Zambia (died 1980)

• 1923 Ann Miller, American actress, singer, and dancer (died 2004)

• 1924 Raymond Barre, French economist and politician, Prime Minister of France (died 2007)

• 1924 Peter Safar, Austrian physician and academic (died 2003)

• 1924 Curtis Turner, American race car driver (died 1970)

• 1925 Evelyn Berezin, American computer scientist and engineer (died 2018)

• 1925 Ned Miller, American country music singer and songwriter (died 2016)

• 1925 Oliver Postgate, English animator, puppeteer, and screenwriter (died 2008)

• 1926 Jane Withers, American actress (died 2021)

• 1927 Thomas Hemsley, English baritone (died 2013)

• 1927 Alvin Sargent, American screenwriter (died 2019)

• 1928 Hardy Krüger, German actor (died 2022)

• 1928 Jean-François Paillard, French conductor (died 2013)

• 1929 Elspet Gray, Scottish actress (died 2013)

• 1929 Mukhran Machavariani, Georgian poet and educator (died 2010)

• 1930 John Landy, Australian runner and politician, 26th Governor of Victoria (died 2022)

• 1930 Bryan Magee, English philosopher and politician (died 2019)

• 1930 Manuel Neri, American sculptor and painter (died 2021)

• 1930 Pythagoras Papastamatiou, Greek lyricist and playwright (died 1979)

• 1930 Michał Życzkowski, Polish technician and educator (died 2006)

• 1931 Leonid Derbenyov, Russian poet and songwriter (died 1995)

• 1932 Lakshman Kadirgamar, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 5th Sri Lankan Minister of Foreign Affairs (died 2005)

• 1932 Herbert Butros Khaury, American singer and ukulele player (died 1996)

• 1932 Jean-Pierre Marielle, French actor (died 2019)

• 1933 Montserrat Caballé, Spanish soprano and actress (died 2018)

• 1934 Heinz Schneiter, Swiss footballer and manager (died 2017)

• 1935 Jimmy Makulis, Greek singer (died 2007)

• 1936 Tony Earl, American politician, 40th Governor of Wisconsin (died 2023)

• 1936 Charles Napier, American actor (died 2011)

• 1936 Kennedy Simmonds, Kittitian politician, 4th Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis

• 1937 Dennis Banks, American author and activist (died 2017)

• 1937 Igor Volk, Ukrainian-Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut (died 2017)

• 1939 Alan Ayckbourn, English director and playwright

• 1939 Johnny Raper, Australian rugby league player and coach (died 2022)

• 1940 Woodie Fryman, American baseball player (died 2011)

• 1940 Herbie Hancock, American pianist, composer, and bandleader

• 1941 Bobby Moore, English footballer and manager (died 1993)

• 1942 Bill Bryden, Scottish actor, director, and screenwriter (died 2022)

• 1942 Carlos Reutemann, Argentinian race car driver and politician (died 2021)

• 1942 Jacob Zuma, South African politician, 4th President of South Africa

• 1943 Sumitra Mahajan, Indian politician, 16th Speaker of the Lok Sabha

• 1944 Lisa Jardine, English historian, author, and academic (died 2015)

• 1944 John Kay, German-Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer

• 1945 Lee Jong-wook, South Korean physician and diplomat (died 2006)

• 1946 John Dunsworth, Canadian actor and comedian (died 2017)

• 1946 Ed O'Neill, American actor and comedian

• 1946 George Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen, Scottish politician and diplomat, 10th Secretary General of NATO

• 1947 Roy M. Anderson, English epidemiologist, zoologist, and academic

• 1947 Martin Brasier, English palaeontologist, biologist, and academic (died 2014)

• 1947 Tom Clancy, American historian and author (died 2013)

• 1947 David Letterman, American comedian and talk show host

• 1947 Wayne Northrop, American actor (died 2024)

• 1948 Jeremy Beadle, English television host and producer (died 2008)

• 1948 Joschka Fischer, German academic and politician

• 1948 Christos Iakovou, Greek weightlifter

• 1948 Marcello Lippi, Italian footballer, manager, and coach

• 1949 Scott Turow, American lawyer and author

• 1949 Pravin Gordhan, South African politician (died 2024)

• 1950 Joyce Banda, Malawian politician, 4th president of Malawi

• 1950 Flavio Briatore, Italian businessman

• 1950 David Cassidy, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2017)

• 1950 Nicholas Sackman, English composer and educator

• 1951 Tom Noonan, American actor (died 2026)

• 1952 Reuben Gant, American football player

• 1952 Leicester Rutledge, New Zealand rugby player

• 1952 Gary Soto, American poet, novelist, and memoirist

• 1952 Ralph Wiley, American journalist (died 2004)

• 1953 Tanino Liberatore, Italian author and illustrator

• 1954 John Faulkner, Australian educator and politician, 52nd Australian Minister for Defence

• 1954 Steve Stevaert, Belgian businessman and politician (died 2015)

• 1954 Pat Travers, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist

• 1955 Fabian Hamilton, English graphic designer, engineer, and politician

• 1956 Andy Garcia, Cuban-American actor, director, and producer

• 1956 Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer-songwriter and actor

• 1957 Greg Child, Australian mountaineer and author

• 1957 Vince Gill, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

• 1957 Tama Janowitz, American novelist and short story writer

• 1958 Will Sergeant, English guitarist

• 1958 Klaus Tafelmeier, German javelin thrower

• 1958 Ginka Zagorcheva, Bulgarian hurdler

• 1960 David Thirdkill, American basketball player

• 1961 Corrado Fabi, Italian racing driver

• 1961 Charles Mann, American football player and sportscaster

• 1961 Magda Szubanski, English-Australian actress, comedian and writer

• 1962 Art Alexakis, American singer-songwriter and musician

• 1962 Carlos Sainz, Spanish racing driver

• 1962 Nobuhiko Takada, Japanese mixed martial artist and wrestler, founded Hustle

• 1963 Lydia Cacho, Mexican journalist and author

• 1964 Chris Fairclough, English footballer and coach

• 1964 Amy Ray, American folk-rock singer-songwriter, musician, and music producer

• 1965 Kim Bodnia, Danish actor and director

• 1965 Chi Onwurah, English politician

• 1965 Gervais Rufyikiri, Burundian politician

• 1965 Mihai Stoica, Romanian footballer and manager

• 1966 Nils-Olav Johansen, Norwegian guitarist and singer

• 1966 Lorenzo White, American football player

• 1967 Sarah Cracknell, English singer-songwriter

• 1968 Alicia Coppola, American actress

• 1968 Toby Gad, German songwriter and producer

• 1968 Adam Graves, Canadian ice hockey player

• 1969 Michael Jackson, American football player and politician (died 2017)

• 1969 Jörn Lenz, German footballer and manager

• 1969 Lucas Radebe, South African footballer and sportscaster

• 1970 Sylvain Bouchard, Canadian speed skater

• 1971 Nicholas Brendon, American actor (died 2026)

• 1971 Shannen Doherty, American actress, director, and producer (died 2024)

• 1972 Paul Lo Duca, American baseball player and sportscaster

• 1973 J. Scott Campbell, American author and illustrator

• 1973 Ryan Kisor, American trumpet player and composer

• 1973 Antonio Osuna, Mexican-American baseball player

• 1973 Christian Panucci, Italian footballer and manager

• 1974 Belinda Emmett, Australian actress (died 2006)

• 1974 Bryan Fletcher, Australian rugby league player and sportscaster

• 1974 Roman Hamrlík, Czech ice hockey player

• 1974 Marley Shelton, American actress

• 1974 Sylvinho, Brazilian footballer and manager

• 1976 Olga Kotlyarova, Russian runner

• 1976 Brad Miller, American basketball player

• 1977 Giovanny Espinoza, Ecuadorian footballer

• 1977 Sarah Monahan, Australian actress

• 1977 Jason Price, Welsh footballer

• 1977 Glenn Rogers, Australian-Scottish cricketer

• 1978 Guy Berryman, Scottish bassist (Coldplay)

• 1978 Scott Crary, American director, producer, and screenwriter

• 1978 Svetlana Lapina, Russian high jumper

• 1978 Robin Walker, English businessman and politician

• 1979 Claire Danes, American actress

• 1979 Elena Grosheva, Russian gymnast

• 1979 Mateja Kežman, Serbian footballer

• 1979 Jennifer Morrison, American actress

• 1979 Sergio Pellissier, Italian footballer

• 1979 Cristian Ranalli, Italian footballer

• 1979 Lee Soo-young, South Korean singer

• 1980 Sara Head, Welsh Paralympic table tennis champion

• 1980 Brian McFadden, Irish singer-songwriter

• 1981 Yuriy Borzakovskiy, Russian runner

• 1981 Nicolás Burdisso, Argentinian footballer

• 1981 Tulsi Gabbard, American politician

• 1981 Grant Holt, English footballer and professional wrestler

• 1981 Hisashi Iwakuma, Japanese baseball pitcher

• 1983 Jelena Dokic, Serbian-Australian tennis player

• 1983 Luke Kibet, Kenyan runner

• 1984 Aleksey Dmitrik, Russian high jumper

• 1985 Brennan Boesch, American baseball player

• 1985 Hitomi Yoshizawa, Japanese singer

• 1986 Blerim Džemaili, Swiss footballer

• 1986 Marcel Granollers, Spanish tennis player

• 1986 Jonathan Pitroipa, Burkinabé footballer

• 1987 Luiz Adriano, Brazilian professional footballer

• 1987 Brooklyn Decker, American model and actress

• 1987 Shawn Gore, Canadian football player

• 1987 Brendon Urie, American singer, songwriter, musician and multi-instrumentalist

• 1988 Ricky Álvarez, Argentinian footballer

• 1988 Stephen Brogan, English footballer

• 1988 Amedeo Calliari, Italian footballer

• 1988 Jessie James Decker, American singer-songwriter

• 1988 Moamen Zakaria, Egyptian footballer

• 1989 Bethan Dainton, Welsh rugby union player

• 1989 Ádám Hanga, Hungarian basketball player

• 1989 Miguel Ángel Ponce, American-Mexican footballer

• 1989 Valentin Stocker, Swiss footballer

• 1989 Kaitlyn Weaver, Canadian-American ice dancer

• 1990 Hiroki Sakai, Japanese footballer

• 1991 Lionel Carole, French professional footballer

• 1991 Oliver Norwood, English-born Northern Irish international footballer

• 1991 Magnus Pääjärvi, Swedish ice hockey player

• 1991 Jazz Richards, Welsh international footballer

• 1992 Chad le Clos, South African swimmer

• 1992 The Vivienne, Welsh drag queen (died 2025)

• 1993 Robin Anderson, American tennis player

• 1993 Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Canadian ice hockey player

• 1994 Eric Bailly, Ivorian professional footballer

• 1994 Isabelle Drummond, Brazilian actress and singer

• 1994 Guido Rodríguez, Argentine footballer

• 1994 Saoirse Ronan, American-born Irish actress

• 1994 Sehun, South Korean musician

• 1995 Pedro Cachin, Argentine tennis player

• 1996 Jan Bednarek, Polish footballer

• 1996 Matteo Berrettini, Italian tennis player

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 45 BC Gnaeus Pompeius, Roman general and politician (born 75 BC)

• 352 Julius I, pope of the Catholic Church

• 434 Maximianus, archbishop of Constantinople

• 901 Eudokia Baïana, Byzantine empress and wife of Leo VI

• 1125 Vladislaus I, Duke of Bohemia (born 1065)

• 1167 Charles VII, king of Sweden (born c. 1130)

• 1256 Margaret of Bourbon, Queen of Navarre, regent of Navarre (born c. 1217)

• 1443 Henry Chichele, English archbishop (born 1364)

• 1500 Leonhard of Gorizia, Count of Gorz (born 1440)

• 1530 Joanna La Beltraneja, Princess of Castile (born 1462)

• 1550 Claude, Duke of Guise (born 1496)

• 1555 Joanna, Queen of Castile and Aragon (born 1479)

1601–1900

• 1675 Richard Bennett, English politician, colonial Governor of Virginia (born 1609)

• 1684 Nicola Amati, Italian instrument maker (born 1596)

• 1687 Ambrose Dixon, English-American soldier (born 1619)

• 1704 Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, French bishop and theologian (born 1627)

• 1748 William Kent, English architect, designed Holkham Hall and Chiswick House (born 1685)

• 1782 Metastasio, Italian-Austrian poet and composer (born 1698)

• 1788 Carlo Antonio Campioni, French-Italian composer (born 1719)

• 1795 Johann Kaspar Basselet von La Rosée, Bavarian general (born 1710)

• 1814 Charles Burney, English composer and historian (born 1726)

• 1817 Charles Messier, French astronomer and academic (born 1730)

• 1850 Adoniram Judson, American lexicographer and missionary (born 1788)

• 1866 Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood, English politician, founded Fleetwood (born 1801)

• 1872 Nikolaos Mantzaros, Greek composer and theorist (born 1795)

• 1878 William M. Tweed, American lawyer and politician (born 1823)

• 1879 Richard Taylor, Confederate general (born 1826)

• 1885 William Crowther, Dutch-Australian politician, 14th Premier of Tasmania (born 1817)

• 1898 Elzéar-Alexandre Taschereau, Canadian cardinal (born 1820)

1901–present

• 1902 Marie Alfred Cornu, French physicist and academic (born 1842)

• 1906 Mahesh Chandra Nyayratna Bhattacharyya, Indian scholar, academic, and philanthropist (born 1836)

• 1912 Clara Barton, American nurse and humanitarian, founded the American Red Cross (born 1821)

• 1920 Vlasis Gavriilidis, Greek jourtnalist (born 1848)

• 1933 Adelbert Ames, American general and politician, 30th Governor of Mississippi (born 1835)

• 1937 Abdülhak Hâmid Tarhan, Turkish playwright and poet (born 1852)

• 1938 Feodor Chaliapin, Russian opera singer (born 1873)

• 1943 Viktor Puskar, Estonian colonel (born 1889)

• 1945 Franklin D. Roosevelt, American lawyer and politician, 32nd President of the United States (born 1882)

• 1953 Lionel Logue, Australian actor and therapist (born 1880)

• 1962 Ron Flockhart, Scottish racing driver (born 1923)

• 1966 Sydney Allard, English racing driver and founder of the Allard car company (born 1910)

• 1968 Heinrich Nordhoff, German engineer (born 1899)

• 1971 Ed Lafitte, American baseball player and dentist (born 1886)

• 1973 Arthur Freed, American songwriter and producer (born 1894)

• 1975 Josephine Baker, French actress, activist, and humanitarian (born 1906)

• 1976 Christos Kakkalos, Greek mountain guide (born 1882)

• 1977 Philip K. Wrigley, American businessman, co-founded Lincoln Park Gun Club (born 1894)

• 1980 William R. Tolbert, Jr., Liberian politician, 20th President of Liberia (born 1913)

• 1981 Prince Yasuhiko Asaka of Japan (born 1887)

• 1981 Joe Louis, American boxer and wrestler (born 1914)

• 1983 Jørgen Juve, Norwegian football player and journalist (born 1906)

• 1983 Carl Morton, American baseball player (born 1944)

• 1984 Edwin T. Layton, American admiral and cryptanalyst (born 1903)

• 1986 Valentin Kataev, Russian author and playwright (born 1897)

• 1988 Colette Deréal, French singer and actress (born 1927)

• 1988 Alan Paton, South African historian and author (born 1903)

• 1989 Abbie Hoffman, American activist, co-founded Youth International Party (born 1936)

• 1989 Sugar Ray Robinson, American boxer (born 1921)

• 1992 Ilario Bandini, Italian racing driver and businessman (born 1911)

• 1997 George Wald, American neurologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1906)

• 1998 Robert Ford, Canadian poet and diplomat (born 1915)

• 1999 Boxcar Willie, American singer-songwriter (born 1931)

• 2001 Harvey Ball, American illustrator, created the smiley (born 1921)

• 2002 George Shevelov, Ukrainian-American linguist and philologist (born 1908)

• 2004 Moran Campbell, Canadian physician and academic, invented the venturi mask (born 1925)

• 2006 William Sloane Coffin, American minister and activist (born 1924)

• 2007 Kevin Crease, Australian journalist (born 1936)

• 2008 Cecilia Colledge, English-American figure skater and coach (born 1920)

• 2008 Patrick Hillery, Irish physician and politician, 6th President of Ireland (born 1923)

• 2008 Jerry Zucker, Israeli-American businessman and philanthropist (born 1949)

• 2009 Marilyn Chambers, American actress

• 2010 Michel Chartrand, Canadian trade union leader (born 1916)

• 2010 Werner Schroeter, German director and screenwriter (born 1945)

• 2011 Karim Fakhrawi, Bahraini journalist, co-founded Al-Wasat (born 1962)

• 2012 Mohit Chattopadhyay, Indian poet and playwright (born 1934)

• 2012 Rodgers Grant, American pianist and composer (born 1935)

• 2013 Robert Byrne, American chess player and author (born 1928)

• 2013 Johnny du Plooy, South African boxer (born 1964)

• 2013 Michael France, American screenwriter (born 1962)

• 2013 Brennan Manning, American priest and author (born 1934)

• 2013 Annamária Szalai, Hungarian journalist and politician (born 1961)

• 2013 Ya'akov Yosef, Israeli rabbi and politician (born 1946)

• 2014 Pierre Autin-Grenier, French author and poet (born 1947)

• 2014 Pierre-Henri Menthéour, French cyclist (born 1960)

• 2014 Maurício Alves Peruchi, Brazilian footballer (born 1990)

• 2014 Hal Smith, American baseball player and coach (born 1931)

• 2014 Billy Standridge, American race car driver (born 1953)

• 2015 Paulo Brossard, Brazilian jurist and politician (born 1924)

• 2015 Patrice Dominguez, Algerian-French tennis player and trainer (born 1950)

• 2015 Alfred Eick, German commander (born 1916)

• 2015 André Mba Obame, Gabonese politician (born 1957)

• 2016 Mohammad Al Gaz, Emirati politician & diplomat (born 1930)

• 2016 Anne Jackson, American actress (born 1925)

• 2017 Charlie Murphy, American actor and comedian (born 1959)

• 2020 Tarvaris Jackson, American football player (born 1983)

• 2021 Joseph Siravo, American actor and producer (born 1955)

• 2022 Gilbert Gottfried, American comedian, actor, and singer (born 1955)

• 2024 Roberto Cavalli, Italian fashion designer and inventor (born 1940)

• 2024 Eleanor Coppola, American filmmaker (born 1936)

• 2024 Robert MacNeil, Canadian-American journalist and author (born 1931)

• 2025 Pilita Corrales, Filipino singer-songwriter and actress (born 1939)

• 2026 Asha Bhosle, Indian playback singer, businesswoman, actress and television personality (born 1933)

• 2026 Chris Payton-Jones American football player (born 1995)

Holidays and observances

• Children's Day (Bolivia)

Christian feast day:

• Adoniram Judson (Episcopal Church)

• Alferius

• Blessed Angelo Carletti di Chivasso

• Erkembode

• Pope Julius I

• Sabbas the Goth

• Teresa of the Andes

• Zeno of Verona

• April 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Commemoration of first human in space by Yuri Gagarin:

• Cosmonautics Day (Russia)

• International Day of Human Space Flight

• Yuri's Night (International observance)

• Halifax Day (North Carolina)

• National Redemption Day (Liberia)

References

External links

• BBC: On This Day

• Historical Events on April 12