Events

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

• 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire.

• 1557 – Cuenca is founded in Ecuador.

• 1606 – The Union Flag is adopted as the flag of Great Britain.

• 1633 – The formal inquest of Galileo Galilei by the Inquisition begins.

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

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

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

• 1864 – American Civil War: The Fort Pillow massacre: Confederate forces kill most 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.

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

• 1927 – April 12 Incident: Chiang Kai-shek orders the CPC members executed in Shanghai, ending the First United Front.

• 1934 – The strongest surface wind gust in the world at 231 mph, is measured on the summit of Mount Washington, US.

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

• 1935 – First flight of the Bristol Blenheim.

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

• 1945 – US President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies while in office; vice-president Harry Truman is sworn in as the 33rd President.

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

• 1961 – Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human to travel into outer space in Vostok 3KA-2 (Vostok 1).

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

• 1968 – Nerve gas accident at Skull Valley, Utah.

• 1980 – Samuel Doe takes control of Liberia in a coup d'état, ending over 130 years of national democratic presidential succession.

• 1980 – Terry Fox begins his "Marathon of Hope" at St. John's, Newfoundland.

• 1981 – The first launch of a Space Shuttle: Columbia launches on the STS-1 mission.

• 1990 – Jim Gary's Twentieth Century Dinosaurs exhibition opens at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

• 1992 – Disneyland Resort Paris opens in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France.

• 1994 – Canter & Siegel post the first commercial mass Usenet spam.

• 1998 – An earthquake in Slovenia, measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale occurs near the town of Bovec.

• 1999 – US President Bill Clinton is cited for contempt of court for giving "intentionally false statements" in a sexual harassment civil lawsuit.

• 2002 – Pedro Carmona becomes interim President of Venezuela during the military coup against Hugo Chávez.

• 2002 – Palestinian suicide bomber (female) kills 7 and injures 104 (among them 9 Arab people) at the Mahane Yehuda Market in Jerusalem.

• 2009 – U.S. Navy rescues captain Richard Phillips, killing three pirates and capturing a fourth.

Births

• 599 BC – Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism (d. 527 BC)

• 812 – Muhammad at-Taqi, Muslim Shia Imam (d. 835)

• 1484 – Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Italian architect (d. 1546)

• 1500 – Joachim Camerarius, German classical scholar (d. 1574)

• 1526 – Muretus, French humanist (d. 1585)

• 1550 – Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, English politician (d. 1604)

• 1577 – Christian IV of Denmark (d. 1648)

• 1705 – William Cookworthy, English chemist (d. 1780)

• 1713 – Guillaume Thomas François Raynal, French writer (d. 1796)

• 1722 – Pietro Nardini, Italian composer (d. 1793)

• 1724 – Lyman Hall, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (d. 1790)

• 1748 – Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, French botanist (d. 1836)

• 1777 – Henry Clay, American statesman (d. 1852)

• 1794 – Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician (d. 1847)

• 1796 – George N. Briggs, 19th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1861)

• 1799 – Henri Druey, Swiss Federal Councilor (d. 1855)

• 1823 – Aleksandr Ostrovsky, Russian dramatist (d. 1886)

• 1839 – Nikolai Przhevalsky, Russian explorer (d. 1888)

• 1848 – José Gautier Benítez, Puerto Rican poet (d. 1880)

• 1851 – Edward Walter Maunder, English astronomer (d. 1928)

• 1852 – Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician (d. 1939)

• 1856 – William Martin Conway, English art critic and mountaineer (d. 1937)

• 1866 – Princess Viktoria of Prussia (d. 1929)

• 1868 – Akiyama Saneyuki, Japanese naval commander (d. 1918)

• 1869 – Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (d. 1922)

• 1871 – Ioannis Metaxas, Greek general and dictator (d. 1941)

• 1883 – Dally Messenger, Australian rugby league footballer (d. 1959)

• 1884 – Otto Meyerhof, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate (d. 1951)

• 1884 – Tenby Davies, Welsh world champion runner (d. 1932)

• 1887 – Harold Lockwood, American actor (d. 1918)

• 1888 – Heinrich Neuhaus, Soviet musician (d. 1964)

• 1892 – Johnny Dodds, American musician (d. 1940)

• 1893 – Robert Harron, American actor (d. 1920)

• 1894 – Francisco Craveiro Lopes, 13^th President of Portugal (d. 1964)

• 1898 – Lily Pons, American soprano (d. 1976)

• 1901 – Lowell Stockman, American representative (d. 1962)

• 1902 – Louis Beel, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 1977)

• 1903 – Jan Tinbergen, Dutch economist, Nobel laureate (d. 1994)

• 1907 – Felix de Weldon, Austrian-born sculptor (d. 2003)

• 1907 – Hardie Gramatky, American author and animator (d. 1979)

• 1908 – Robert Lee Scott, Jr., American Air Force pilot (d. 2006)

• 1908 – Ida Crowe Pollock, English writer.

• 1911 – Mahmoud Younis, Suez Canal nationalization Engineer (d. 1976)

• 1912 – Walt Gorney, American actor (d. 2004)

• 1912 – Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, Second Vice President of Indonesia (d. 1988)

• 1914 – Armen Alchian, American economist

• 1916 – Beverly Cleary, American writer

• 1916 – Benjamin Libet, American scientist (d. 2007)

• 1917 – Helen Forrest, American singer (d. 1999)

• 1919 – Billy Vaughn, American musician and bandleader (d. 1991)

• 1921 – Robert Cliche, Quebec politician and magistrate (d. 1978)

• 1923 – Ann Miller, American actor and dancer (d. 2004)

• 1924 – Raymond Barre, French politician and Prime Minister (d. 2007)

• 1924 – Peter Safar, Austrian physician (d. 2003)

• 1925 – Joe Bowman (marksman), American sharpshooter, Hollywood consultant, famed bootmaker & master showman (d. 2009)

• 1928 – Hardy Krüger, German actor

• 1928 – Jean-François Paillard, French conductor

• 1930 – Manuel Neri, American artist

• 1930 – Michał Życzkowski, Polish technician (d. 2006)

• 1931 – Leonid Derbenyov, Russian poet-songwriter (d. 1995)

• 1932 – Dennis Banks, American activist

• 1932 – Lakshman Kadirgamar, Sri Lankan politician (d. 2005)

• 1932 – Tiny Tim, American musician (d. 1996)

• 1933 – Montserrat Caballé, Spanish soprano

• 1934 – Heinz Schneiter, Swiss footballer

• 1937 – Igor Volk, Soviet astronaut

• 1939 – Alan Ayckbourn, English writer

• 1939 – Johnny Raper, Australian rugby league footballer

• 1940 – Herbie Hancock, American musician and composer

• 1940 – John Hagee, American pastor and televangelist

• 1941 – Bobby Moore, English footballer (d. 1993)

• 1942 – Carlos Reutemann, Argentine racing driver and politician

• 1942 – Jacob Zuma, President of South Africa

• 1944 – John Kay, German-born musician

• 1945 – Lee Jong-wook, Korean Director-General of the WHO (d. 2006)

• 1946 – Ed O'Neill, American actor

• 1947 – Tom Clancy, American author

• 1947 – Woody Johnson, sports team owner

• 1947 – Antonin Kratochvil photographer

• 1947 – David Letterman, American talk show host

• 1947 – Dan Lauria, American actor

• 1948 – Jeremy Beadle, English television presenter (d. 2008)

• 1948 – Joschka Fischer, Foreign Minister of Germany 1998-2005

• 1948 – Sandra "Lois" Reeves, American singer

• 1949 – Scott Turow, American writer

• 1950 – Flavio Briatore, Italian businessman and F1 team principal (Renault F1)

• 1950 – David Cassidy, American singer and actor

• 1952 – Ralph Wiley, American sports journalist (d. 2004)

• 1952 – Reuben Gant, American professional football player

• 1954 – Pat Travers, Canadian musician

• 1954 – Jon Krakauer, American author

• 1956 – Andy Garcia, Cuban-born actor

• 1956 – Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer

• 1957 – Vince Gill, American musician

• 1958 – Will Sergeant, English musician

• 1958 – Howard Stableford, English actor and host

• 1960 – Ron MacLean, Canadian sportscaster

• 1961 – Lisa Gerrard, Australian musician

• 1961 – Magda Szubanski, Australian actress

• 1962 – Art Alexakis, American musician

• 1962 – Takada Nobuhiko, Japanese wrestler

• 1964 – Amy Ray, American musician

• 1965 – Tom O'Brien, American actor-producer

• 1965 – Kim Bodnia, Danish actor

• 1967 – Sarah Cracknell, English singer

• 1967 – Mellow Man Ace, Afro-Cuban rapper

• 1968 – Adam Graves, Canadian ice hockey player

• 1969 – Lucas Radebe, South African footballer

• 1970 – Nick Hexum, American musician

• 1971 – Nicholas Brendon, American actor

• 1971 – Shannen Doherty, American actor

• 1972 – Sebnem Ferah, Turkish singer

• 1972 – Paul Lo Duca, American baseball player

• 1972 – Dimitrios Kokotis, Greek high jumper

• 1973 – J. Scott Campbell, American comic book artist

• 1973 – Antonio Osuna, Mexican baseball player

• 1973 – Claudia Jordan, American model

• 1974 – Belinda Emmett, Australian actor(d. 2006)

• 1974 – Roman Hamrlik, Czech ice hockey player

• 1974 – Marley Shelton, American actor

• 1974 – Sylvinho, Brazilian footballer

• 1976 – Brad Miller, American basketball player

• 1977 – Giovanny Espinoza, Ecuadorian footballer

• 1977 – Glenn Rogers, Scottish cricketer

• 1977 – Sarah Jane Morris, American actor

• 1977 – Jason Price, Welsh footballer

• 1977 – Jordana Spiro, American actor

• 1978 – Guy Berryman, British musician (Coldplay)

• 1978 – Riley Smith, American actor

• 1979 – Claire Danes, American actor

• 1979 – Elena Grosheva, Olympic gymnast

• 1979 – Mateja Kežman, Serbian footballer

• 1979 – Jennifer Morrison, American actress and model

• 1979 – Paul Nicholls, English actor

• 1979 – Jordan De Jong, American baseball player

• 1980 – Brian McFadden, Irish Singer

• 1980 – Erik Mongrain, Canadian musician

• 1981 – Nicolás Burdisso, Argentine footballer

• 1981 – Brian Vandborg, Danish cyclist

• 1982 – Deen, Bosnian singer

• 1983 – Jelena Dokić, Yugoslav/Australian tennis player

• 1983 – Dwayne Smith, West Indian cricketer

• 1985 – Hitomi Yoshizawa, Japanese singer

• 1985 – Jeisa Chiminazzo, Brazilian supermodel

• 1985 – Ted Ginn, American football player

• 1985 – Paul Murphy, Irish footballer

• 1985 – Olga Seryabkina, Russian singer

• 1986 – Blerim Džemaili, Swiss footballer

• 1987 – Brendon Urie, American musician (Panic at the Disco)

• 1994 – Saoirse Ronan, Irish actress

• 1994 – Airi Suzuki, Japanese singer

Deaths

• 45 BC – Gnaeus Pompeius, the Younger, Roman general

• 65 – Seneca the Younger, Roman philosopher, statesman and dramatist

• 238 – Gordian I, Roman Emperor (suicide)

• 238 – Gordian II, heir to the Roman Empire (killed in battle)

• 352 – St. Julius I, 35th Pope

• 434 – Archbishop Maximianus of Constantinople

• 1125 – Vladislaus I of Bohemia (b. 1065)

• 1443 – Henry Chichele, Archbishop of Canterbury

• 1550 – Claude, Duke of Guise, French soldier (b. 1496)

• 1555 – Juana of Castile, wife of Philip I of Castile (b. 1479)

• 1675 – Richard Bennett, British Colonial Governor of Virginia (b. 1609)

• 1684 – Nicolò Amati, Italian luthier from Cremona, a member of the Amati family.

• 1687 – Ambrose Dixon, Virginia Colony pioneer

• 1704 – Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, French bishop and writer (b. 1627)

• 1748 – William Kent, English architect

• 1782 – Metastasio, Italian poet and librettist (b. 1698)

• 1788 – Carlo Antonio Campioni, French-born composer (b. 1719)

• 1795 – Johann Kaspar Basselet von La Rosée, Bavarian general (b. 1710)

• 1814 – Charles Burney, English music historian (b. 1726)

• 1817 – Charles Messier, French astronomer (b. 1730)

• 1850 – Adoniram Judson, American Baptist missionary (b. 1788)

• 1872 – Nikolaos Mantzaros, Greek composer (b. 1795)

• 1878 – William Marcy Tweed, aka Boss Tweed, American politician (b. 1823)

• 1898 – Elzéar-Alexandre Taschereau, Roman Catholic archbishop of Quebec (b. 1820)

• 1902 – Marie Alfred Cornu, French physicist (b. 1842)

• 1912 – Clara Barton, American nurse and Red Cross advocate (b. 1821)

• 1933 – Adelbert Ames, American general, 27th and 30th Governor of Mississippi (b. 1835)

• 1938 – Feodor Chaliapin, Russian bass (b. 1873)

• 1945 – Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States (b. 1882)

• 1962 – Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya, Indian politician and engineer (b. 1861)

• 1962 – Ron Flockhart, Scottish racing driver (b. 1923)

• 1968 – Heinrich Nordhoff, German automobile engineer and Volkswagen director (b. 1899)

• 1971 – Ed Lafitte, American baseball player (b. 1871)

• 1971 – Wynton Kelly, American jazz pianist (b. 1931)

• 1975 – Josephine Baker, American dancer (b. 1906)

• 1977 – Phil Wrigley, American manufacturer and baseball executive (b. 1894)

• 1980 – Clark McConachy, New Zealand billiards and snooker player (b. 1895)

• 1980 – William R. Tolbert, Jr., President of Liberia (b. 1913)

• 1981 – Joe Louis, American boxer (b. 1914)

• 1983 – Carl Morton, American baseball player (b. 1944)

• 1986 – Valentin Kataev, Russian writer (b. 1897)

• 1987 – Mike Von Erich, American wrestler (b. 1964)

• 1988 – Alan Paton, South African writer (b. 1903)

• 1989 – Gerald Flood, British actor (b. 1927)

• 1989 – Abbie Hoffman, American political leader (b. 1936)

• 1989 – Sugar Ray Robinson, American boxer (b. 1921)

• 1999 – Boxcar Willie, American singer (b. 1931)

• 2001 – Harvey Ball, American inventor (b. 1921)

• 2002 – George Shevelov, Ukrainian-American linguist, Harvard professor. (b. 1908)

• 2003 – Cecil H. Green, American manufacturer (b. 1900)

• 2003 – Sydney Lassick, American actor (b. 1922)

• 2006 – Dr. Rajkumar, Kannada language film actor/singer (India)(b. 1929)

• 2006 – Puggy Pearson, American poker player (b. 1929)

• 2007 – Kevin Crease, Australian TV anchor (b. 1936)

• 2008 – Paddy Hillery, 6th President of Ireland, EEC Commissioner and Irish Minister (b. 1923)

• 2008 – Cecilia Colledge, British ice skater and Olympian (b. 1920)

• 2008 – Jerry Zucker, Israeli-born American businessman (b. 1949)

• 2009 – Marilyn Chambers, American pornographic actress (b. 1952)

Holidays and observances

• Halifax Day in North Carolina.

• The Roman holiday of Cerealia begins.

• Yuri's Night, an international celebration of the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin; in Russia (and formerly in USSR), the Cosmonautics Day.

• Saint Damian

• Saint Erkembode

• Saint Julius I

• Saint Zeno of Verona

• Saint Alferius

• Blessed Angelo Carletti di Chivasso