Events

Pre-1600

• 138 Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor.

• 628 Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (Iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II.

1601–1900

• 1705 George Frideric Handel's opera Nero premieres in Hamburg.

• 1836 Samuel Colt is granted a United States patent for his revolver firearm.

• 1843 Lord George Paulet occupies the Kingdom of Hawaii in the name of Great Britain in the Paulet affair.

• 1870 Hiram Rhodes Revels, a Republican from Mississippi, is sworn into the United States Senate, becoming the first African American ever to sit in Congress.

• 1875 Guangxu Emperor of Qing dynasty China begins his reign, under Empress Dowager Cixi's regency.

1901–present

• 1912 Marie-Adélaïde, the eldest of six daughters of Guillaume IV, becomes the first reigning Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.

• 1916 World War I: In the Battle of Verdun, a German unit captures Fort Douaumont, keystone of the French defences, without a fight.

• 1918 World War I: German forces capture Tallinn to virtually complete the occupation of Estonia.

• 1921 Georgian capital Tbilisi falls to the invading Russian forces after heavy fighting and the Russians declare the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic.

• 1932 Adolf Hitler, having been stateless for seven years, obtains German citizenship when he is appointed a Brunswick state official by Dietrich Klagges, a fellow Nazi. As a result, Hitler is able to run for Reichspräsident in the 1932 election.

• 1933 Launch of the at Newport News, Virginia. It is the first purpose-built aircraft carrier to be commissioned by the US Navy.

• 1939 As part of British air raid precautions, the first of 2.5 million Anderson shelters is constructed in a garden in Islington, north London.

• 1941 The outlawed Communist Party of the Netherlands organises a general strike in German-occupied Amsterdam to protest against Nazi persecution of Dutch Jews.

• 1947 The formal abolition of Prussia is proclaimed by the Allied Control Council, the Prussian government having already been abolished by the Preußenschlag of 1932.

• 1947 Soviet NKVD forces in Hungary abduct Béla Kovács—secretary-general of the majority Independent Smallholders' Party—and deport him to the USSR in defiance of Parliament. His arrest is an important turning point in the Communist takeover of Hungary.

• 1948 In a coup d'état led by Klement Gottwald, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia takes control of government in Prague to end the Third Czechoslovak Republic.

• 1951 The first Pan American Games are officially opened in Buenos Aires by Argentine President Juan Perón.

• 1956 In his speech On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences, Nikita Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union, denounces Stalin.

• 1980 The government of Suriname is overthrown by a military coup led by Dési Bouterse.

• 1986 People Power Revolution: President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos flees the nation after 20 years of rule; Corazon Aquino becomes the Philippines' first female president.

• 1991 Disbandment of the Warsaw Pact at a meeting of its members in Budapest.

• 1994 American-Israeli extremist Baruch Goldstein commits a mass shooting at the Cave of the Patriarchs mausoleum, leaving 29 dead and over 100 injured before he is disarmed and beaten to death by survivors.

• 1999 Alitalia Flight 1553 crashes at Genoa Cristoforo Colombo Airport in Genoa, Italy, killing four.

• 2009 Soldiers of the Bangladesh Rifles mutiny at their headquarters in Pilkhana, Dhaka, Bangladesh, resulting in 74 deaths, including 57 army officials.

• 2009 Turkish Airlines Flight 1951 crashes during landing at the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Netherlands, primarily due to a faulty radio altimeter, resulting in the death of nine passengers and crew including all three pilots.

• 2015 At least 310 people are killed in avalanches in northeastern Afghanistan.

• 2016 Three people are killed and fourteen others injured in a series of shootings in the small Kansas cities of Newton and Hesston.

• 2026 Four people are killed and several more are injured when Cuban Border Guard Troops confront and open fire on a US-registered speedboat violating Cuban waters.

Births

Pre-1600

• 1259 Infanta Branca of Portugal, daughter of King Afonso III of Portugal and Urraca of Castile (died 1321)

• 1337 Wenceslaus I, Duke of Luxembourg (died 1383)

• 1475 Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, last male member of the House of York (died 1499)

• 1540 Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton, English aristocrat and courtier (died 1614)

• 1543 Sharaf Khan Bidlisi, Emir of Bitlis (died 1603)

• 1591 Friedrich Spee, German poet and author (died 1635)

1601–1900

• 1643 Ahmed II, Ottoman sultan (died 1695)

• 1663 Peter Anthony Motteux, French-English author, playwright and translator (died 1718)

• 1670 Maria Margarethe Kirch, German astronomer and mathematician (died 1720)

• 1682 Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist and pathologist (died 1771)

• 1707 Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright and composer (died 1793)

• 1714 René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou, French lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of France (died 1792)

• 1728 John Wood, the Younger, English architect, designed the Royal Crescent (died 1782)

• 1752 John Graves Simcoe, English-Canadian general and politician, 1st Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada (died 1806)

• 1755 François René Mallarmé, French lawyer and politician (died 1835)

• 1778 José de San Martín, Argentinian general and politician, 1st President of Peru (died 1850)

• 1806 Emma Catherine Embury, American author and poet (died 1863)

• 1809 John Hart, English-Australian politician, 10th Premier of South Australia (died 1873)

• 1812 Carl Christian Hall, Danish lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Denmark (died 1888)

• 1816 Giovanni Morelli, Italian historian and critic (died 1891)

• 1833 John St. John, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Kansas (died 1916)

• 1841 Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French painter and sculptor (died 1919)

• 1842 Karl May, German author, poet, and playwright (died 1912)

• 1845 George Reid, Scottish-Australian lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Australia (died 1918)

• 1855 Cesário Verde, Portuguese poet and author (died 1886)

• 1856 Karl Gotthard Lamprecht, German historian and academic (died 1915)

• 1856 Mathias Zdarsky, Czech-Austrian skier, painter, and sculptor (died 1940)

• 1857 Robert Bond, Canadian politician; first Prime Minister of Newfoundland (died 1927)

• 1860 William Ashley, English historian and academic (died 1927)

• 1865 Andranik, Armenian general (died 1927)

• 1866 Benedetto Croce, Italian philosopher and politician (died 1952)

• 1869 Phoebus Levene, Russian-American biochemist and physician (died 1940)

• 1871 Lesya Ukrainka, Ukrainian poet and playwright (died1913)

• 1873 Enrico Caruso, Italian-American tenor; the most popular operatic tenor of the early 20th century and the first great recording star. (died 1921)

• 1877 Erich von Hornbostel, Austrian musicologist and scholar (died 1935)

• 1881 William Z. Foster, American union leader and politician (died 1961)

• 1881 Alexei Rykov, Russian politician, Premier of Russia (died 1938)

• 1883 Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone (died 1981)

• 1885 Princess Alice of Battenberg, mother of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (died 1969)

• 1888 John Foster Dulles, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 52nd United States Secretary of State (died 1959)

• 1890 Myra Hess, English pianist and educator (died 1965)

• 1894 Meher Baba, Indian spiritual master (died 1969)

• 1896 Ida Noddack, German chemist and physicist (died 1978)

• 1898 William Astbury, physicist and molecular biologist (died 1961)

1901–present

• 1901 Vince Gair, Australian politician, 27th Premier of Queensland (died 1980)

• 1901 Zeppo Marx, American comedian and theatrical agent (died 1979)

• 1903 King Clancy, Canadian ice hockey player, referee, and coach (died 1986)

• 1905 Perry Miller, American historian, author, and academic (died 1963)

• 1906 Mary Coyle Chase, American journalist and playwright (died 1981)

• 1907 Sabahattin Ali, Turkish journalist, author, and poet (died 1948)

• 1908 Mary Locke Petermann, American cellular biochemist (died 1975)

• 1908 Frank G. Slaughter, American physician and author (died 2001)

• 1910 Millicent Fenwick, American journalist and politician (died 1992)

• 1913 Jim Backus, American actor and screenwriter (died 1989)

• 1913 Gert Fröbe, German actor (died 1988)

• 1915 S. Rajaratnam, Singaporean politician, 1st Senior Minister of Singapore (died 2006)

• 1917 Anthony Burgess, English author, playwright, and critic (died 1993)

• 1918 Bobby Riggs, American tennis player (died 1995)

• 1919 Monte Irvin, American baseball player and executive (died 2016)

• 1920 Philip Habib, American academic and diplomat, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (died 1992)

• 1921 Pierre Laporte, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician, Deputy Premier of Quebec (died 1970)

• 1921 Andy Pafko, American baseball player and manager (died 2013)

• 1922 Molly Reilly, Canadian aviator (died 1980)

• 1924 Hugh Huxley, English-American biologist and academic (died 2013)

• 1925 Lisa Kirk, American actress and singer (died 1990)

• 1925 Shehu Shagari, Nigerian politician, 6th President of Nigeria (died 2018)

• 1926 Masatoshi Gündüz Ikeda, Japanese-Turkish mathematician and academic (died 2003)

• 1927 Ralph Stanley, American singer and banjo player (died 2016)

• 1928 Paul Elvstrøm, Danish yachtsman (died 2016)

• 1928 Larry Gelbart, American author and screenwriter (died 2009)

• 1928 A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., American civil rights advocate, historian, and judge (died 1998)

• 1928 Richard G. Stern, American author and academic (died 2013)

• 1930 Wendy Beckett, British nun and art critic (died 2018)

• 1932 Tony Brooks, English racing driver (died 2022)

• 1932 Faron Young, American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 1996)

• 1934 Tony Lema, American golfer (died 1966)

• 1935 Tony Campolo, American sociologist and pastor (died 2024)

• 1935 Oktay Sinanoglu, Turkish physical chemist and molecular biophysicist (died 2015)

• 1937 Tom Courtenay, English actor

• 1937 Bob Schieffer, American political author, journalist and TV interviewer

• 1938 Diane Baker, American actress and producer

• 1938 Herb Elliott, Australian athlete

• 1938 Farokh Engineer, Indian cricketer

• 1940 Ron Santo, American baseball player and sportscaster (died 2010)

• 1941 David Puttnam, English film producer and academic

• 1942 Karen Grassle, American actress

• 1943 George Harrison, English singer-songwriter, guitarist and film producer (died 2001)

• 1944 François Cevert, French racing driver (died 1973)

• 1946 Jean Todt, French racing driver and team manager

• 1947 Lee Evans, American sprinter and athletics coach (died 2021)

• 1949 Ric Flair, American professional wrestler

• 1949 Amin Maalouf, Lebanese-French journalist and author

• 1950 Francisco Fernández Ochoa, Spanish skier (died 2006)

• 1950 Neil Jordan, Irish film director, screenwriter and author

• 1950 Néstor Kirchner, Argentine politician; 51st President of Argentina (died 2010)

• 1951 Don Quarrie, Jamaican sprinter and coach

• 1952 Joey Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcyclist (died 2000)

• 1953 José María Aznar, Spanish politician; Prime Minister of Spain, 1996–2004

• 1953 John Doe, American musician, singer-songwriter, actor, and poet

• 1957 Raymond McCreesh, Irish Republican died on hunger strike (died 1981)

• 1957 Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singaporean economist and politician; 5th Senior Minister and 9th President of Singapore

• 1958 Kurt Rambis, Greek-American basketball player, coach, and executive

• 1962 Birgit Fischer, German kayaker

• 1963 Paul O'Neill, American baseball player and sportscaster

• 1965 Carrot Top, American comedian

• 1965 Veronica Webb, American model, actress, and writer

• 1966 Alexis Denisof, American actor

• 1966 Téa Leoni, American actress

• 1967 Ed Balls, English politician; Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer

• 1968 Lesley Boone, American actress and producer

• 1968 Danny Crnkovich, Australian rugby league player

• 1968 Oumou Sangaré, Malian musician

• 1970 Chris Barnes, American bowler and sportscaster

• 1971 Sean Astin, American actor, director and producer

• 1971 Stuart MacGill, Australian cricketer

• 1971 Daniel Powter, Canadian singer-songwriter and musician

• 1973 Anson Mount, American actor

• 1974 Dominic Raab, English politician; First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

• 1975 Chelsea Handler, American comedian, actress, author, and television host

• 1976 Rashida Jones, American actress and writer

• 1976 Samaki Walker, American basketball player

• 1979 Napoleon Harris, American football player and politician

• 1980 Kash Patel, American lawyer, former federal prosecutor and official

• 1981 Park Ji-sung, South Korean footballer

• 1982 Maria Kanellis, American professional wrestler, actress, and model

• 1982 Flavia Pennetta, Italian tennis player

• 1982 Anton Volchenkov, Russian ice hockey player

• 1985 Joakim Noah, French-American basketball player

• 1986 Justin Berfield, American actor, writer, and producer

• 1986 Jameela Jamil, English actress and presenter

• 1986 James Phelps, English actor

• 1986 Oliver Phelps, English actor

• 1987 Justin Abdelkader, American ice hockey player

• 1988 Tom Marshall, English photo colouriser and artist

• 1988 Gerald McCoy, American football player

• 1989 Jimmer Fredette, American basketball player

• 1989 Kana Hanazawa, Japanese voice actress and singer

• 1989 E'Twaun Moore, American basketball player

• 1990 Félix Peña, Dominican baseball player

• 1992 Joakim Nordström, Swedish ice hockey player

• 1992 Jorge Soler, Cuban baseball player

• 1993 Erick Fedde, American baseball player

• 1993 Lukáš Sedlák, Czech ice hockey player

• 1994 Fred VanVleet, American basketball player

• 1995 Mario Hezonja, Croatian basketball player

• 1995 Viktoriya Tomova, Bulgarian tennis player

• 1997 Isabelle Fuhrman, American actress

• 1997 Thon Maker, South Sudanese-Australian basketball player

• 1997 Brock Boeser, American ice hockey player

• 1999 Gianluigi Donnarumma, Italian footballer

• 1999 Matvey Safonov, Russian footballer

• 1999 Rocky, South Korean singer, dancer and songwriter

• 2000 Bo Nix, American football player

• 2001 Vernon Carey Jr., American basketball player

• 2003 Brandin Podziemski, American basketball player

• 2004 Tyler Sanders, American actor (died 2022)

• 2005 Noah Jupe, English actor

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 806 Tarasios, patriarch of Constantinople

• 891 Fujiwara no Mototsune, Japanese regent (born 836)

• 1099 Anselm of Ribemont, Frankish nobleman and participant of the First Crusade

• 1522 William Lily, English scholar and educator (born 1468)

• 1536 Berchtold Haller, German-Swiss theologian and reformer (born 1492)

• 1547 Vittoria Colonna, marchioness of Pescara (born 1490)

1601–1900

• 1601 Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (born 1566)

• 1634 Albrecht von Wallenstein, Austrian general and politician (born 1583)

• 1636 Santorio Santorio, Italian biologist (born 1561)

• 1655 Daniël Heinsius, Flemish poet and scholar (born 1580)

• 1682 Alessandro Stradella, Italian composer (born 1639)

• 1710 Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, French soldier and explorer (born 1639)

• 1713 Frederick I of Prussia (born 1657)

• 1723 Christopher Wren, English architect, designed St Paul's Cathedral (born 1632)

• 1756 Eliza Haywood, English actress and poet (born 1693)

• 1796 Samuel Seabury, American bishop (born 1729)

• 1805 Thomas Pownall, English politician, Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay (born 1722)

• 1819 Francisco Manoel de Nascimento, Portuguese-French poet and educator (born 1734)

• 1822 William Pinkney, American politician and diplomat, 7th United States Attorney General (born 1764)

• 1841 Philip P. Barbour, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 12th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (born 1783)

• 1850 Daoguang Emperor of China (born 1782)

• 1852 Thomas Moore, Irish poet and lyricist (born 1779)

• 1865 Otto Ludwig, German author, playwright, and critic (born 1813)

• 1870 Henrik Hertz, Danish poet and playwright (born 1797)

• 1877 Jung Bahadur Rana, Nepalese ruler (born 1816)

• 1878 Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (born 1804)

• 1899 Paul Reuter, German-English journalist and businessman, founded Reuters (born 1816)

1901–present

• 1906 Anton Arensky, Russian pianist and composer (born 1861)

• 1910 Worthington Whittredge, American painter and educator (born 1820)

• 1911 Friedrich Spielhagen, German author, theorist, and translator (born 1829)

• 1912 William IV, Grand Duke of Luxembourg (born 1852)

• 1914 John Tenniel, English illustrator (born 1820)

• 1915 Charles Edwin Bessey, American botanist, author, and academic (born 1845)

• 1920 Marcel-Auguste Dieulafoy, French archaeologist and engineer (born 1844)

• 1928 William O'Brien, Irish journalist and politician (born 1852)

• 1934 Elizabeth Gertrude Britton, American botanist and academic (born 1857)

• 1934 John McGraw, American baseball player and manager (born 1873)

• 1945 Mário de Andrade, Brazilian author, poet, and photographer (born 1893)

• 1950 George Minot, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1885)

• 1953 Sergei Winogradsky, Ukrainian-Russian microbiologist and ecologist (born 1856)

• 1954 Joseph Beech, American Methodist missionary and educator (born 1867)

• 1957 Mark Aldanov, Russian author and critic (born 1888)

• 1957 Bugs Moran, American mob boss (born 1893)

• 1963 Melville J. Herskovits, American anthropologist and academic (born 1895)

• 1964 Alexander Archipenko, Ukrainian sculptor and illustrator (born 1887)

• 1964 Grace Metalious, American author (born 1924)

• 1970 Mark Rothko, Latvian-American painter and academic (born 1903)

• 1971 Theodor Svedberg, Swedish chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1884)

• 1972 Gottfried Fuchs, German-Canadian Olympic soccer player (born 1889)

• 1975 Elijah Muhammad, American religious leader (born 1897)

• 1978 Daniel James, Jr., American general and pilot (born 1920)

• 1980 Robert Hayden, American poet and academic (born 1913)

• 1983 Tennessee Williams, American playwright, and poet (born 1911)

• 1996 Haing S. Ngor, Cambodian-American physician and author (born 1940)

• 1997 Andrei Sinyavsky, Russian journalist and publisher (born 1925)

• 1998 W. O. Mitchell, Canadian author and playwright (born 1914)

• 1999 Glenn T. Seaborg, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1912)

• 2001 A. R. Ammons, American poet and critic (born 1926)

• 2001 Don Bradman, Australian international cricketer; holder of world record batting average (born 1908)

• 2005 Peter Benenson, English lawyer, founded Amnesty International (born 1921)

• 2008 Hans Raj Khanna, Indian judge and advocate; upholder of civil liberties (born 1912)

• 2010 Ihsan Dogramaci, Turkish pediatrician and academic (born 1915)

• 2012 Louisiana Red, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1932)

• 2015 Harve Bennett, American screenwriter and producer (born 1930)

• 2015 Ariel Camacho, Mexican musician and singer-songwriter; (born 1992)

• 2015 Eugenie Clark, American biologist and academic; noted ichthyologist (born 1922)

• 2017 Bill Paxton, American actor and filmmaker (born 1955)

• 2020 Dmitry Yazov, last Marshal of the Soviet Union (born 1924)

• 2022 Farrah Forke, American actress (born 1968)

• 2022 Shirley Hughes, English author and illustrator (born 1927)

• 2023 Gordon Pinsent, Canadian actor, director and screenwriter (born 1930)

• 2025 Henry Kelly, Irish radio and television broadcaster, actor and journalist (born 1947)

• 2025 Roberto Orci, Mexican-American screenwriter and producer (born 1973)

• 2025 Jane Reed, UK Magazine editor and media executive (born 1940)

Holidays and observances

Christian feast days:

• Æthelberht of Kent

• Blessed Ciriaco María Sancha y Hervás

• Gerland of Agrigento

• John Roberts, writer and missionary (Anglican Communion)

• Hamburg Matthiae-mahl, feast of Hanseatic League cities on the mediaeval first day of spring

• Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani

• Blessed Robert of Arbrissel, founder of Fontevraud Abbey

• Saint Walpurga (she was canonised on 1 May c. 870 and Walpurgis Night is celebrated 30 April)

• February 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

• Kitano Baika-sai or "Plum Blossom Festival" (Kitano Tenman-gu Shrine, Kyoto, Japan)

• Memorial Day for the Victims of the Communist Dictatorships (Hungary)

• National Day (Kuwait)

• People Power Day (Philippines)

• Revolution Day in Suriname

• Soviet Occupation Day (Georgia)

References

External links