APRIL 12

Contents

Events

Births

Deaths

Holidays and observances

Liturgical Feast Days

External links

Events

★ 467 - Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire

★ 1606 - The Union Flag is adopted as the flag of Great Britain.

★ 1633 - The formal inquest of Galileo Galilei by the Inquisition begins.

★ 1776 - North Carolina's Provincial Congress authorized its delegates to the Second Continental Congress to vote for independence by issuing the Halifax Resolves.

★ 1820 - Alexander Ypsilantis is declared leader of Filiki Eteria, a secret organisation 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: Fort Pillow massacre -- Confederate forces under General Nathan Bedford Forrest kill most of the African American soldiers who had 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. It is also considered a major event in Canadian history for the primary role Canadian forces played in the attack.

★ 1927 - April 12 Incident: Chiang Kai-shek orders the CPC members executed in Shanghai, ending the First United Front (China).

★ 1934 - The strongest surface wind gust in the world, 231 mph, was measured by the staff of the Mount Washington Observatory on the summit of Mount Washington

★ 1934 - The Auto-Lite Strike, which culminated in a five-day melee between Ohio National Guard troops and 6,000 strikers and picketers, began.

★ 1935 - First flight of the Bristol Blenheim.

★ 1937 - Sir Frank Whittle ground-tests the first jet engine designed to power an aircraft, at the British Thomson-Houston factory in Rugby, England.

★ 1945 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies while in office; vice-president Harry S. Truman is sworn in as the 33rd President of the United States.

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

★ 1961 - Human spaceflight: Yuri Gagarin became the first human to travel into 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. Although both vessels are severely damaged both can make it to port.

★ 1968 - Nerve gas accident at Skull Valley, Utah.


★ 1980 - Samuel Doe takes control of Liberia in a ''coup d'etat'', ending over 130 years of democratic presidential succession in that country.

★ 1980 - Terry Fox begins his "Marathon of Hope" by dipping his artificial leg into the Atlantic at St. John's, Newfoundland.

★ 1981 - Human spaceflight: The first launch of a Space Shuttle: ''Columbia'' launches on the STS-1 mission.

★ 1990 - opening of Jim Gary's Twentieth Century Dinosaurs exhibition, the work of the only living sculptor ever invited to present a solo exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

★ 1994 - Canter & Siegel post the first commercial mass Usenet spam.

★ 1998 - An earthquake in Slovenia, measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale near the town of Bovec.

★ 1999 - American President Bill Clinton was cited for contempt of court for giving "intentionally false statements" in the Paula Jones sexual harassment civil lawsuit.

★ 2002 - Pedro Carmona becomes interim President of Venezuela during the Venezuelan coup attempt of 2002, a military coup against Hugo Chávez.

★ 2007 - The Kremlin vetos an investigation into the death of Yuri Gagarin, who was the first man in space.

Births

★ 599 BC - Mahavira, founder 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)

★ 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)

★ 1726 - Charles Burney, English music historian (d. 1814)

★ 1748 - Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, French botanist (d. 1836)

★ 1777 - Henry Clay, American statesman (d. 1852)

★ 1794 - Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician (d. 1847)

★ 1799 - Henri Druey, Swiss Federal Councilor (d. 1855)

★ 1823 - Alexandr Ostrovsky, Russian dramatist (d. 1886)

★ 1839 - Nikolai Przhevalsky, Russian explorer (d. 1888)

★ 1848 - José Gautier Benítez, Puerto Rican poet (d. 1880)

★ 1852 - Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician (d. 1939)

★ 1856 - William Martin Conway, English art critic and mountaineer (d. 1937)

★ 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 player (d. 1959)

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

★ 1887 - Harold Lockwood, American silent film actor (d. 1918)

★ 1888 - Heinrich Neuhaus, Soviet pianist (d. 1964)

★ 1892 - Johnny Dodds, American jazz clarinetist (d. 1940)

★ 1893 - Robert Harron, American actor (d. 1920)

★ 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)

★ 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 pioneering scientist in the field of human consciousness (d. 2007)

★ 1917 - Helen Forrest, American singer (d. 1999)

★ 1919 - Billy Vaughn, American musician and bandleader (d. 1991)

★ 1923 - Ann Miller, American actress and dancer (d. 2004)

★ 1924 - Raymond Barre, French politician and Prime Minister (d. 2007)

★ 1924 - Peter Safar, Austrian physician (d. 2003)

★ 1928 - Hardy Krüger, German actor

★ 1928 - Jean-François Paillard, French conductor

★ 1930 - Michał Życzkowski, Polish technician (d. 2006)

★ 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

★ 1939 - Alan Ayckbourn, English writer

★ 1940 - Herbie Hancock, American pianist and composer

★ 1941 - Bobby Moore, English footballer (d. 1993)

★ 1942 - Carlos Reutemann, Argentine racing driver and politician

★ 1944 - John Kay, German-born musician (Steppenwolf)

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

★ 1946 - Ed O'Neill, American actor

★ 1947 - Tom Clancy, American author

★ 1947 - David Letterman, American talk show host

★ 1947 - Woody Johnson, owner of the New York Jets

★ 1948 - Jeremy Beadle, British television presenter

★ 1948 - Joschka Fischer, Foreign Minister of Germany

★ 1948 - Sandra "Lois" Reeves, American singer (Martha & the Vandellas)

★ 1949 - Scott Turow, American writer

★ 1950 - David Cassidy, American singer and actor

★ 1950 - Kari Palaste, Finnish architect

★ 1952 - Ralph Wiley, American sports journalist (d. 2004)

★ 1954 - Pat Travers, Canadian musician

★ 1956 - Andy Garcia, Cuban-born actor

★ 1956 - Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer

★ 1957 - Vince Gill, American musician

★ 1958 - Will Sergeant, English musician (Echo & the Bunnymen)

★ 1960 - Ron MacLean, Canadian sportscaster

★ 1961 - Lisa Gerrard, Australian singer

★ 1962 - Art Alexakis, American musician (Everclear)

★ 1962 - Takada Nobuhiko, Japanese wrestler

★ 1964 - Amy Ray, American musician (Indigo Girls)

★ 1965 - Tom O'Brien, American actor-producer

★ 1967 - Mellow Man Ace, Afro-Cuban rapper

★ 1970 - Nick Hexum, American musician (311)

★ 1971 - Nicholas Brendon, American actor

★ 1971 - Shannen Doherty, American actress

★ 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 - Marley Shelton, American actress

★ 1974 - Sylvinho, Brazilian footballer

★ 1975 - Paul Murphy, American writer

★ 1976 - Brad Miller, American basketball player

★ 1977 - Giovanny Espinoza, Ecuadorian footballer

★ 1977 - Sarah Jane Morris, American actress

★ 1978 - Guy Berryman, British musician (Coldplay)

★ 1978 - Riley Smith, American actor

★ 1979 - Claire Danes, American actress

★ 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 (former Westlife member).

★ 1981 - Nicolás Burdisso, Argentine footballer

★ 1981 - Jaspreet Singh, CEO, GlassBox Inc.

★ 1981 - Brian Vandborg, Danish cyclist

★ 1982 - Deen, Bosnian singer

★ 1985 - Hitomi Yoshizawa, Japanese singer (Morning Musume)

★ 1985 - Jeisa Chiminazzo, Brazilian supermodel

★ 1985 - Olga Seryabkina, Russian singer

★ 1986 - Blerim Džemaili, Swiss footballer

★ 1987 - Brendon Urie, American musician (Panic! at the Disco)

★ 1994 - Moises Arias, American actor

★ 1994 - Airi Suzuki, Japanese singer (°C-ute)

Deaths

★ 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

★ 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)

★ 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)

★ 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)

★ 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)

★ 1968 - Heinrich Nordhoff, German automobile engineer, first managing director of Volkswagen (b. 1899)

★ 1971 - Igor Tamm, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1895)

★ 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 Major League 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

★ 1988 - Alan Paton, South African novelist (b. 1903)

★ 1989 - Gerald Flood, British actor (b. 1927)

★ 1989 - Abbie Hoffman, American radical leader (b. 1936)

★ 1989 - Sugar Ray Robinson, American boxer (b. 1921)

★ 1997 - George Wald, American scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1903)

★ 1999 - Boxcar Willie, American singer (b. 1931)

★ 2001 - Harvey Ball, American inventor of the Smiley (b. 1921)

★ 2003 - Cecil H. Green, American manufacturer (b. 1900)

★ 2006 - Dr. Rajkumar, Kannada language film actor/singer (b. 1929)

★ 2006 - Puggy Pearson, American professional poker player (b. 1929)

★ 2007 - Kevin Crease, Longtime Anchor for National Nine News, in Adelaide, Australia (b. 1936)

Holidays and observances

★ 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.

Liturgical Feast Days

The Feast of St. Basil the Confessor in the Greek Orthodox Church.
In the Roman Catholic Church:

★ Saint Damian

★ Saint Erkembode

★ Saint Julius I

★ Saint Zeno of Verona

★ Saint Alferius

★ Blessed Angelo Carletti di Chivasso

★ Saint Constantine

★ Saint Sabas

★ Saint Tetricus

★ Saint Victor

★ Saint Vissia

★ Saint Wigbert

★ Saint William Ward

External links

★ BBC: On This Day

★

★ On This Day in Canada
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