April 5  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

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Art and culture

• 456 - St. Patrick returns to Ireland as a missionary bishop.
• 1242 - During a battle on the ice of Lake Peipus, Russian forces, led by Alexander Nevsky, rebuff an invasion attempt by the Teutonic Knights.
• 1566 - 200 Netherlands noblemen, led by Hendrik van Brederode, force themselves into the presence of Margaret of Parma and present the Petition of Compromise, denouncing the Inquisition in the Netherlands. The Inquisition is suspended and a delegation is sent to Spain to petition Philip II.
• 1609 - Daimyo (Lord) of the Satsuma clan in Southern Kyūshū, Japan, completes his successful invasion of the Ryūkyū Kingdom in Okinawa.
• 1614 - In Virginia, Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe.
• 1621 - The Mayflower sets sail from Plymouth, Massachusetts on a return trip to Great Britain.
• 1654 - The Treaty of Westminster, ending the First Anglo-Dutch War, is signed.
• 1792 - U.S. President George Washington exercises his authority to veto a bill, the first time this power is used in the United States.
• 1804 - The first recorded meteorite falls in Possil, Scotland (High Possil Meteorite).
• 1862 - American Civil War: The Battle of Yorktown begins.
• 1874 - Birkenhead Park, the first civic public park, was opened in Birkenhead.
• 1879 - Chile declared war on Bolivia and Peru, starting the War of the Pacific.
• 1897 - The Greco-Turkish War, also called "Thirty Days' War", is declared between Greece and the Ottoman Empire.
• 1923 - Firestone Tire and Rubber Company starts production of balloon-tires.
• 1930 - In an act of civil disobedience, Mohandas Gandhi breaks British law after marching to the sea and making salt.
• 1932 - Alcohol prohibition in Finland ended. Alcohol sales started in Alko liquor stores.
• 1932 - Dominion of Newfoundland: 10,000 rioters seized the Colonial Building leading to the end of self-government.
• 1936 - Tupelo-Gainesville Outbreak: An F5 tornado kills 233 in Tupelo, Mississippi, United States.
• 1942 - World War II: Japanese Navy attacks Colombo in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Royal Navy Cruisers HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire are sunk southwest of the island.
• 1944 - World War II: 270 inhabitants of the Greek town Kleisoura are executed by the Germans.
• 1945 - Cold War: Yugoslav leader Josip "Tito" Broz signs an agreement with the USSR to allow "temporary entry of Soviet troops into Yugoslav territory."
• 1946 - Soviet troops leave the island of Bornholm, Denmark after an 11 month occupation.
• 1949 - Fireside Theater debuts on television.
• 1949 - A fire in a hospital in Effingham, Illinois, United States, kills 77 people and leads to nationwide fire code improvements.
• 1951 - Ethel and Julius Rosenberg of the United States are sentenced to death for performing espionage for the Soviet Union.
• 1955 - Winston Churchill resigns as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom amid indications of failing health.
• 1956 - Fidel Castro declares himself at war with the President of Cuba.
• 1956 - In Sri Lanka, the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna won the general elections in a landslide and S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike sworn in as the Prime Minister.
• 1957 - In India, Communists won the first elections in united Kerala and E. M. S. Namboodiripad is sworn in as the first chief minister.
• 1969 - Vietnam War: Massive antiwar demonstrations occur in many United States cities.
• 1971 - In Sri Lanka, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna launches insurrection against the United Front government of Mrs Sirimavo Bandaranaike.
• 1972 - Vietnam War: North Vietnamese forces invade Binh Long Province, launching a second front of the Nguyen Hue Offensive.
• 1976 - In the People's Republic of China, the April Fifth Movement leads to the Tiananmen incident.
• 1986 - Three people are killed in the Bombing of the La Belle Discotheque in West Berlin, Germany.
• 1991 - ASA EMB 120 crashes in Brunswick, Georgia, United States, killing all 23 aboard.
• 1992 - Several hundred-thousand abortion rights demonstrators march in Washington, D.C. United States.
• 1992 - Alberto Fujimori, president of Peru, dissolved the Peruvian congress by military force.
• 1992 - Siege of Sarajevo begins when Serb paramilitaries murder peace protesters Suada Dilberovic and Olga Sucic on the Vrbanja Bridge.
• 1993 - The Child Support Act 1991, administered by the Child Support Agency, comes into effect in the United Kingdom.
• 1998 - In Japan, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge linking Shikoku with Honshū and costing about US$3.8 billion, opens to traffic, becoming the largest suspension bridge in the world.
• 1999 - Two Libyans suspected of bringing down Pan Am flight 103 in 1988 are handed over for eventual trial in the Netherlands.
• 2000 - Leeds United football fans clash with Galatasaray SK fans resulting in the death of Christopher Loftus and Kevin Speight from multiple stab wounds.
• 2007 -Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone named Camerlengo of Holy Roman Church

Births

• 1288 - Emperor Go-Fushimi of Japan (d. 1336)
• 1472 - Bianca Maria Sforza, wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1510)
• 1523 - Blaise de Vigenère, French cryptographer (d. 1596)
• 1588 - Thomas Hobbes, English philosopher (d. 1679)
• 1604 - Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1675)
• 1622 - Vincenzo Viviani, Italian mathematician (d. 1703)
• 1649 - Elihu Yale, American benefactor of Yale University (d. 1721)
• 1692 - Adrienne Lecouvreur, French actress (d. 1730)
• 1732 - Jean-Honoré Fragonard, French artist (d. 1806)
• 1752 - Sébastien Érard, French musical instruments maker (d. 1831)
• 1784 - Louis Spohr, German violinist (d. 1859)
• 1816 - Samuel Freeman Miller, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (d. 1890)
• 1827 - Joseph Lister, English surgeon (d. 1912)
• 1832 - Jules Ferry, French statesman (d. 1893)
• 1837 - Algernon Charles Swinburne, English poet (d. 1909)
• 1856 - Booker T. Washington, American educator (d. 1915)
• 1869 - Sergei Chaplygin, Russian physicist and engineer (d. 1942)
• 1869 - Albert Roussel, French composer (d. 1937)
• 1871 - Mirko Seljan, Croatian explorer (d. 1913?)
• 1872 - Samuel Cate Prescott, American food scientist and microbiologist (d. 1962)
• 1875 - Mistinguett, French vaudeville performer (d. 1956)
• 1893 - Clas Thunberg, Finnish speed skater (d. 1973)
• 1900 - Spencer Tracy, American actor (d. 1967)
• 1901 - Melvyn Douglas, American actor (d. 1981)
• 1906 - Lord Buckley, American monologist (d. 1960)
• 1908 - Bette Davis, American actress (d. 1989)
• 1908 - Herbert von Karajan, Austrian conductor (d. 1989)
• 1908 - Jagjivan Ram, Indian politician (d. 1986)
• 1909 - Albert R. Broccoli, American film producer (d. 1996)
• 1912 - John Le Mesurier, British actor (d. 1983)
• 1916 - Gregory Peck, American actor (d. 2003)
• 1917 - Robert Bloch, American author (d. 1994)
• 1920 - Arthur Hailey, American writer (d. 2004)
• 1920 - Rafique Zakaria, Indian author (d. 2005)
• 1922 - Tom Finney, English footballer
• 1922 - Christopher Hewett, British actor (d. 2001)
• 1922 - Gale Storm, American singer
• 1923 - Michael V. Gazzo, American actor (d. 1995)
• 1923 - Nguyen Van Thieu, President of South Vietnam (d. 2001)
• 1926 - Roger Corman, American film director
• 1928 - Tony Williams, American singer (The Platters) (d. 1992)
• 1929 - Hugo Claus, Belgian writer (d. 2008)
• 1929 - Ivar Giaever, Norwegian physicist, Nobel laureate
• 1929 - Nigel Hawthorne, British actor (d. 2001)
• 1929 - Joe Meek, English record producer
• 1932 - Billy Bland, American singer and songwriter
• 1933 - Larry Felser, American sports columnist
• 1933 - Frank Gorshin, American actor (d. 2005)
• 1934 - Roman Herzog, German politician
• 1934 - Stanley Turrentine, American jazz saxophonist (d. 2000)
• 1935 - Peter Grant, British music manager (d. 1995)
• 1936 - John Kelly, Irish republican politician (d. 2007)
• 1937 - Colin Powell, U.S. Secretary of State
• 1937 - Allan R. Thieme, American inventor
• 1939 - Ronald White, American singer and songwriter (d. 1995)
• 1939 - Crispian St. Peters, British singer
• 1941 - Michael Moriarty, American actor
• 1941 - Dave Swarbrick, British folk musician
• 1942 - Peter Greenaway, Welsh film director
• 1943 - Max Gail, American actor
• 1944 - Pedro Rossello, Puerto Rican politician
• 1945 - Tommy Smith, English footballer
• 1946 - Jane Asher, British actress
• 1947 - Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 14th President of the Philippines
• 1948 - Les Binks, British musician, former drummer for Judas Priest
• 1948 - Dave Holland, British musician (Judas Priest)
• 1949 - John Berg (actor), American actor (d. 2007)
• 1949 - Judith Resnik, American astronaut (d. 1986)
• 1950 - Agnetha Fältskog, Swedish singer (ABBA)
• 1951 - Dean Kamen, inventor
• 1952 - Mitch Pileggi, American actor
• 1954 - Stan Ridgway, American musician (Wall of Voodoo)
• 1955 - Janice Long, English broadcaster
• 1955 - Akira Toriyama, Japanese manga artist
• 1955 - Charlotte de Turckheim, French actress
• 1956 - Diamond Dallas Page, American professional wrestler
• 1961 - Lisa Zane, American actress
• 1962 - Lana Clarkson, American actress (d. 2003)
• 1964 - Steve Beaton, English darts player
• 1964 - Christopher "Kid" Reid, American rapper (Kid 'n Play)
• 1965 - Cris Carpenter, baseball player
• 1966 - Mike McCready, American musician (Pearl Jam)
• 1967 - Gary Gait, Canadian lacrosse player
• 1968 - Paula Cole, American musician
• 1970 - Miho Hatori, Japanese singer and songwriter (Cibo Matto)
• 1971 - Dong Abay, Filipino musician, singer-songwriter
• 1972 - Krista Allen, American actress
• 1972 - Tom Coronel, Dutch racing driver
• 1972 - Pat Green, American singer and songwriter
• 1972 - Paul Okon, Australian former footballer
• 1973 - Tony Banks, American football player
• 1973 - Élodie Bouchez, French actress
• 1973 - Pharrell Williams, American music producer (The Neptunes)
• 1974 - Sahaj Ticotin, musician/producer (Ra)
• 1974 - Uhm Tae Woong, South Korean actor
• 1975 - John Hartson, Welsh footballer
• 1976 - Kim Collins, Nevisian sprinter
• 1976 - Ryan Drese, American baseball player
• 1976 - Ross Gload, American baseball player
• 1976 - Simone Inzaghi, Italian footballer
• 1976 - Fernando Morientes, Spanish footballer
• 1978 - Franziska van Almsick, German swimmer
• 1978 - Stephen Jackson, American basketball player
• 1979 - Timo Hildebrand, German footballer
• 1980 - Matt Bonner, American basketball player
• 1980 - Lee Jae Won, South Korean actor, singer, and rapper
• 1980 - John McLaughlin, American television reporter
• 1981 - Jorge de la Rosa, Mexican baseball player
• 1982 - Thomas Hitzlsperger, German footballer
• 1982 - Matt Pickens, American soccer player
• 1982 - Alexandre Prémat, French racing driver
• 1984 - Shin Min-a, South Korean model and actress

Deaths

• 582 - Eutychius, Patriarch of Constantinople
• 1168 - Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester (b. 1104)
• 1419 - Vincent Ferrer, Spanish missionary and saint (b. 1350)
• 1605 - Adam Loftus, English Protestant archbishop in Ireland
• 1617 - Alonso Lobo, Spanish composer
• 1673 - François Caron, French explorer (b. 1600)
• 1676 - John Winthrop, the Younger, American politician (b. 1606)
• 1693 - Anne, Duchess of Montpensier, French writer (b. 1627)
• 1695 - George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax, English writer (b. 1633)
• 1697 - King Charles XI of Sweden (b. 1655)
• 1717 - Jean Jouvenet, French painter (b. 1647)
• 1735 - William Derham, English minister and writer (b. 1657)
• 1735 - Samuel Wesley, English poet (b. 1662)
• 1765 - Edward Young, English poet (b. 1683)
• 1794 - Georges Danton, French Revolutionary leader (b. 1759)
• 1794 - Camille Desmoulins, French journalist and politician (b. 1760)
• 1900 - Joseph Louis François Bertrand, French mathematician (b. 1822)
• 1923 - George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon, English financier (b. 1866)
• 1928 - Roy Kilner, English cricketer (b. 1890)
• 1945 - Karl Otto Koch, German SS-officer (b. 1897)
• 1946 - Vincent Youmans, American songwriter (b. 1898)
• 1952 - Charles Collett, GWR Chief mechanical engineer (b. 1871)
• 1964 - General Douglas MacArthur, American general (b. 1880)
• 1967 - Hermann Joseph Muller, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (b. 1890)
• 1967 - Mischa Elman, Ukrainian violinist (b. 1891)
• 1969 - Ain-Ervin Mere, Estonian Nazi (b. 1903)
• 1969 - Shelby Storck, American television producer (b. 1917)
• 1970 - Alfred Henry Sturtevant, American geneticist (b. 1891)
• 1972 - Brian Donlevy, American actor (b. 1901)
• 1973 - John Coleman, Australian rules footballer (b. 1928)
• 1974 - A. Y. Jackson, Canadian painter (b. 1882)
• 1975 - Chiang Kai-shek, 1st President of the Republic of China (b. 1887)
• 1976 - Howard Hughes, American aviator (b. 1905)
• 1976 - Wilder Penfield, Canadian surgeon (b. 1891)
• 1979 - Eugène Gabritschevsky, Russian biologist and artist (b. 1893)
• 1981 - Bob Hite, American singer (Canned Heat) (b. 1945)
• 1982 - Abe Fortas, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (b. 1910)
• 1983 - Danny Rapp, American musician (Danny & the Juniors) (b. 1941)
• 1991 - John Tower, American politician (b. 1925)
• 1991 - Sonny Carter, American astronaut (b. 1947)
• 1992 - Molly Picon, French actress (b. 1898)
• 1992 - Sam Walton, American retailer (b. 1918)
• 1994 - Kurt Cobain, American musician (Nirvana (band)) (b. 1967)
• 1997 - Allen Ginsberg, American poet (b. 1926)
• 1998 - Cozy Powell, British musician (b. 1947)
• 1999 - Paul David, French Canadian cardiologist (b. 1919)
• 2000 - Lee Petty, American race car driver (b. 1914)
• 2001 - Brother Theodore, German comedian (b. 1906)
• 2002 - Layne Staley, American musician (Alice in Chains) (b. 1967)
• 2004 - Heiner Zieschang, German mathematician (b. 1936)
• 2004 - Sławomir Rawicz, Polish soldier (b. 1915)
• 2005 - Saul Bellow, Canadian-born writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1915)
• 2005 - Dale Messick, American comic strip artist (b. 1906)
• 2005 - Debralee Scott, American actress (b. 1953)
• 2005 - John Sichel, British film and television director
• 2006 - Gene Pitney, American singer (b. 1941)
• 2007 - Mark St. John, American musician (Kiss)(b. 1956)
• 2007 - Darryl Stingley, American football player (b. 1951)
• 2007 - Maria Gripe, Swedish writer (b. 1923)
• 2007 - Leela Majumdar, Bengali writer (b. 1908)
• 2007 - Poornachandra Tejaswi, Kannada writer (b. 1938)

Roger Corman Allen Ginsberg Hugo Claus Allan Kaprow Arthur Cravan Algernon Charles Swinburne Peter Greenaway Edward Young Jean-Honoré Fragonard Geuzen Bette Davis Saul Bellow David Goodis Karel Zeman Michael Moriarty George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon Melvyn Douglas Jan Luyken Vincenzo Gioberti Pharrell Williams Jane Ellen Harrison Tod Robbins Rita Cadillac Dennis Potter Howard Hughes Thomas Hobbes