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Contents

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

External links

Events

★ 648 BC - Earliest solar eclipse recorded by the Ancient Greeks.

★ 402 - Stilicho stymies the Visigoths under Alaric in the Battle of Pollentia.

★ 1320 - The Scots reaffirm their independence by signing the Declaration of Arbroath.

★ 1327 - The poet Petrarch first sees his idealized love, Laura, in the church of Saint Clare in Avignon.

★ 1385 - John, Master of the Order of Aviz, is made king John I of Portugal by the ''Cortes'' gathered in Coimbra.

★ 1652 - Dutch sailor Jan van Riebeeck establishes a resupply camp at the Cape of Good Hope, which eventually becomes Cape Town.

★ 1667 - An earthquake devastates Dubrovnik, then independent city-state.

★ 1782 - Rama I succeeds King Taksin of Thailand, who was overthrown in a coup d'état.

★ 1793 - During the French Revolution, the Committee of Public Safety becomes the executive organ of the republic, and the period known as the Reign of Terror begins

★ 1808 - John Jacob Astor incorporates the American Fur Company.

★ 1814 - Napoleon abdicates. He is then exiled to Elba.

★ 1830 - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is organized by Joseph Smith, Jr. and others at Fayette, New York.

★ 1832 - Indian Wars: Black Hawk War begins - The Sauk warrior Black Hawk enters into war with the United States.

★ 1860 - Joseph Smith III, creates the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints by reorganizing the previous church organized by his father, Joseph Smith, Jr.

★ 1862 - American Civil War: Battle of Shiloh begins - In Tennessee, forces under Union General Ulysses S. Grant meet Confederate troops led by General Albert Sidney Johnston at Shiloh.

★ 1865 - American Civil War: Battle of Sayler's Creek - Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia fights its last major battle while in retreat from Richmond, Virginia.

★ 1866 - The Grand Army of the Republic , an American patriotic organization composed of Union veterans of the American Civil War , is founded. It lasts until 1956.

★ 1869 - Celluloid is patented.

★ 1893 - Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints dedicated by Wilford Woodruff.

★ 1895 - Oscar Wilde is arrested after losing a libel case against the John Sholto Douglas, 9th Marquess of Queensberry.

★ 1896 - In Athens, the opening of the first modern Olympic Games 1,500 years after being banned by Roman Emperor Theodosius I.

★ 1903 - The Kishinev pogrom in Kishinev (Bessarabia) begins, forcing tens of thousands of Jews to later seek refuge in Israel and the Western world.

★ 1909 - Robert Peary allegedly reaches the North Pole.

★ 1911 - Dedë Gjon Luli Dedvukaj, Leader of the Malësori Albanians, raises the Albanian flag in the town of Tuzi, Montenegro, for the first time after Gjergj Kastrioti (Skenderbeg).

★ 1917 - World War I: United States declares war on Germany (see Wilson's address to Congress).

★ 1923 - The first Prefects Board in Southeast Asia is formed in Victoria Institution, Malaysia.

★ 1924 - The first successful flight (with stops) completely around the world begins

★ 1926 - Walter Varney Airlines makes first commercial flight (Varney is the root company of United Airlines).

★ 1930 - Gandhi raises a lump of mud and salt and declares, "With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire." Thus he starts Salt Satyagraha.

★ 1936 - Tupelo-Gainesville Outbreak: Another tornado from the same storm system as the Tupelo tornado hits Gainesville, Georgia, killing 203.

★ 1941 - World War II: Operation Castigo begins; Germany invades Kingdom of Yugoslavia and Greece.

★ 1947 - The first Tony Awards are presented for theatrical achievements.

★ 1957 - Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis buys the Hellenic National Airlines (TAE) and founds Olympic Airlines.

★ 1965 - Launch of Early Bird, the first communications satellite to be placed in synchronous orbit.

★ 1968 - In Richmond, Indiana's downtown district, a double explosion kills 41 and injures 150.

★ 1970 - Newhall Incident: Four California Highway Patrol officers are killed.

★ 1972 - Vietnam War: Easter Offensive - American forces begin sustained air strikes and naval bombardments.

★ 1973 - Launch of ''Pioneer 11'' spacecraft.

★ 1984 - Members of Cameroon's Republican Guard attack government buildings in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the government headed by Paul Biya.

★ 1992 - A general strike is declared by communist groups in Nepal

★ 1994 - The Rwandan Genocide begins when the aircraft carrying Rwandan president Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian president Cyprien Ntaryamira is shot down.

★ 1996 - Panathinaikos becomes the first Greek team to win the basketball European Championships (now Euroleague) in Paris, beating FC Barcelona by 67-66.

★ 1998 - Pakistan tests medium-range missiles capable of hitting India.

★ 2004 - Rolandas Paksas becomes the first president of Lithuania to be peacefully removed from the post by impeachment.

★ 2005 - Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani becomes the Iraqi president; Shiite Arab Ibrahim al-Jaafari is named premier the next day.

Births

★ 1483 - Raphael, Italian painter and architect (d. 1520)

★ 1613 - Stjepan Gradić, Croatian philosopher and scientist (d. 1683)

★ 1630 - Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire (d. 1680)

★ 1651 - André Dacier, French classical scholar (d. 1722)

★ 1664 - Arvid Horn, Swedish statesman (d. 1742)

★ 1671 - Jean-Baptiste Rousseau, French poet (d. 1741)

★ 1725 - Pasquale Paoli, Corsican patriot and military leader (d. 1807)

★ 1812 - Alexander Herzen, Russian writer (d. 1870)

★ 1815 - Robert Volkmann, German composer (d. 1883)

★ 1818 - Aasmund Olavsson Vinje, Norwegian poet (d. 1870)

★ 1820 - Nadar, French photographer (d. 1910)

★ 1823 - Joseph Medill, Mayor of Chicago (d. 1899)

★ 1826 - Gustave Moreau, French painter (d. 1898)

★ 1841 - Karl Binding, German jurist (d. 1920)

★ 1849 - John William Waterhouse, British painter (d. 1917)

★ 1851 - Guillaume Bigourdan, French astronomer (d. 1932)

★ 1878 - Erich Mühsam, German author (d. 1934)

★ 1884 - Walter Huston, Canadian-born actor (d. 1950)

★ 1890 - Anthony Fokker, Dutch designer of aircraft (d. 1939)

★ 1892 - Donald Wills Douglas, Sr., American industrialist (d. 1981)

★ 1892 - Lowell Thomas, American travel writer (d. 1981)

★ 1901 - Pier Giorgio Frassati, Italian Catholic (d. 1925)

★ 1902 - Veniamin Kaverin, Russian writer (d. 1989)

★ 1903 - Mickey Cochrane, American baseball player (d. 1962)

★ 1903 - Harold Edgerton, American electrical engineer (d. 1990)

★ 1909 - Hermann Lang, German race car driver (d. 1987)

★ 1911 - Feodor Felix Konrad Lynen, German biochemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1979)

★ 1918 - Alfredo Ovando Candía, Bolivian president (d. 1982)

★ 1920 - Edmond H. Fischer, Swiss-American biochemist, Nobel laureate

★ 1926 - Sergio Franchi, Italian-born singer and actor (d. 1990)

★ 1926 - Gil Kane, Latvian-born cartoonist (d. 2000)

★ 1926 - Ian Paisley, Northern Irish politician

★ 1927 - Gerry Mulligan, American musician (d. 1996)

★ 1928 - James D. Watson, American geneticist, Nobel laureate

★ 1929 - André Previn, German-born composer and conductor

★ 1929 - Joi Lansing, American model and actress (d. 1972)

★ 1931 - Ivan Dixon, American actor and director

★ 1933 - Roy Goode, British lawyer

★ 1934 - Anton Geesink, Dutch judoka

★ 1937 - Merle Haggard, American musician

★ 1937 - Billy Dee Williams, American actor

★ 1938 - Paul Daniels, English magician

★ 1938 - Roy Thinnes, American actor

★ 1939 - André Ouellet, French Canadian politician

★ 1940 - Pedro Armendáriz Jr., Mexican actor

★ 1941 - Phil Austin, American comedian

★ 1941 - Don Prudhomme, American drag racer

★ 1941 - Zamfir, Romanian musician

★ 1942 - Barry Levinson, American film producer/director

★ 1944 - Felicity Palmer, English soprano

★ 1947 - John Ratzenberger, American actor

★ 1949 - Horst Ludwig Störmer, German-born physicist, Nobel laureate

★ 1951 - Bert Blyleven, Dutch-born baseball player

★ 1952 - Udo Dirkschneider, German singer (Accept and U.D.O.)

★ 1952 - Marilu Henner, American actress

★ 1952 - Michel Larocque, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1992)

★ 1955 - Keith Hunter Jesperson, Canadian-born serial killer

★ 1955 - Michael Rooker, American actor

★ 1956 - Dilip Vengsarkar, Indian cricketer and administrator

★ 1964 - Phil Gayle, English news presenter

★ 1965 - Frank Black, American singer/songwriter (Pixies)

★ 1968 - Affonso Giaffone, Brazilian racing driver

★ 1969 - Bison Dele, American basketball player (disappeared 2002)

★ 1969 - Ari Meyers, Puerto Rican-born American actress

★ 1969 - Paul Rudd, American actor

★ 1969 - Philipp Peter, Austrian racing driver

★ 1970 - Huang Xiaomin, Chinese swimmer

★ 1970 - Olaf Kölzig, South African-born ice hockey player

★ 1971 - Lou Merloni, American baseball player

★ 1973 - Donnie Edwards, American football player

★ 1973 - Rie Miyazawa, Japanese actress/singer

★ 1973 - Prashanth, Indian actor

★ 1973 - Sun Wen, Chinese footballer

★ 1974 - Adithya, Indian actor

★ 1974 - Robert Kovač, Croatian footballer

★ 1975 - Zach Braff, American actor

★ 1976 - Candace Cameron, American actress

★ 1976 - Georg Hólm, Icelandic musician

★ 1978 - Myleene Klass, British singer (Hear'Say)

★ 1978 - Blaine Neal, American baseball player

★ 1981 - Robert Earnshaw, Zambian born, Welsh international footballer

★ 1982 - Ilan Hall, Israeli-American chef

★ 1982 - Michael Guy Chislett, American/Australian musician (The Academy Is...)

★ 1983 - Diora Baird, American actress

★ 1983 - Jade Seah, Singapore mediacorp artiste, miss Singapore 1st runner-up

★ 1985 - Garrett Zablocki, (Senses Fail)

★ 1987 - Levi Porter, English footballer

★ 1987 - Hilary Rhoda, American supermodel

★ 1988 - Fabrice Muamba, Anglo-Congolese footballer

★ 1988 - Mike Bailey, English actor

Deaths

★ 1147 - Frederick II, Duke of Swabia (b. 1090)

★ 1199 - King Richard I of England (b. 1157)

★ 1199 - Pierre Basile, French soldier

★ 1362 - James I, Count of La Marche, French soldier (b. 1319)

★ 1490 - King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary

★ 1520 - Raphael, Italian painter and architect (b. 1483)

★ 1528 - Albrecht Dürer, German artist (b. 1471)

★ 1551 - Joachim Vadian, Swiss humanist (b. 1484)

★ 1571 - John Hamilton, Scottish prelate and politician

★ 1590 - Francis Walsingham, English spymaster

★ 1605 - John Stow, English historian

★ 1655 - David Blondel, French Protestant clergyman (b. 1591)

★ 1686 - Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey, English royalist statesman (b. 1614)

★ 1707 - Willem van de Velde, the younger, Dutch painter (b. 1633)

★ 1755 - Richard Rawlinson, English minister and antiquarian (b. 1690)

★ 1825 - Vladimir Borovikovsky, Russian painter (b. 1757)

★ 1829 - Niels Henrik Abel, Norwegian mathematician (b. 1802)

★ 1838 - José Bonifácio de Andrade e Silva, Brazilian statesman and geologist (b. 1763)

★ 1862 - Albert Sidney Johnston, American Confederate general (b. 1803)

★ 1883 - Benjamin Wright Raymond, American politician (b. 1801)

★ 1906 - Alexander Kielland, Norwegian author (b. 1849)

★ 1933 - Elizabeth Bacon Custer, wife of George Armstrong Custer (b. 1842)

★ 1935 - Edwin Arlington Robinson, American poet (b. 1869)

★ 1953 - Idris Davies, Welsh poet (b. 1905)

★ 1961 - Jules Bordet, Belgian immunologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1870)

★ 1963 - Otto Struve, Russian-born astronomer (b. 1897)

★ 1970 - Sam Sheppard, American accused murderer (b. 1923)

★ 1971 - Igor Stravinsky, Russian composer (b. 1882)

★ 1974 - Willem Marinus Dudok, Dutch architect (b. 1884)

★ 1976 - Sidney Franklin, American bullfighter (b. 1903)

★ 1992 - Isaac Asimov, Russian-born author (b. 1920)

★ 1994 - Juvénal Habyarimana, Rwandan politician (b. 1937)

★ 1994 - Cyprien Ntaryamira, Burundian politician (b. 1956)

★ 1996 - Greer Garson, Irish actress (b. 1904)

★ 1998 - Wendy O. Williams, American singer (Plasmatics) (b. 1949)

★ 1998 - Tammy Wynette, American singer (b. 1942)

★ 1999 - Red Norvo, American jazz vibraphonist (b. 1908)

★ 2000 - Habib Bourguiba, Tunisian politician (b. 1903)

★ 2003 - David Bloom, American reporter (b. 1963)

★ 2003 - Babatunde Olatunji, Nigerian drummer (b. 1927)

★ 2003 - Gerald Emmett Cardinal Carter, Canadian religious figure (b. 1912)

★ 2004 - Larisa Bogoraz, Soviet dissident (b. 1929)

★ 2004 - Niki Sullivan, American guitarist (The Crickets) (b. 1937)

★ 2005 - Rainier III, Prince of Monaco (b. 1923)

★ 2006 - Maggie Dixon, American college basketball coach (b. 1977)

Holidays and observances

★ Tartan Day, the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320, a day set aside for the celebration of Scottish influence

★ The date of organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Joseph Smith, Jr.. Also the date on which The Church teaches that Jesus was born.

★ Chakri Day in Thailand, commemorating the reign of the Chakri Dynasty.
===Liturgical Feast days===
in the Roman Catholic Church

★ Saint Balderik

★ Saint Marcellinus of Carthage (d. 413)

★ St. Sixtus

★ Saint Wineboud

★ Blessed Notker

★ Saint Isolde

★ Feast day of Saint Brychan, King of Brycheiniog, South Wales

External links

★ BBC: On This Day

★

★ On This Day in Canada
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