April 20

Events

• 1303 - The Sapienza University of Rome is instituted by a bull of Pope Boniface VIII.
• 1453 - Three Genoese galleys and a Byzantine blockade runner fight their way through an Ottoman blockading fleet a few weeks before the fall of Constantinople.
• 1534 - Jacques Cartier begins his first voyage to what is today the east coast of Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador.
• 1535 - The sun dog phenomenon is observed over Stockholm, as later depicted in the famous painting Vädersolstavlan.
• 1653 - Oliver Cromwell dissolves the Rump Parliament.
• 1657 - Admiral Robert Blake destroys a Spanish silver fleet under heavy fire at the Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
• 1657 - Freedom of religion is granted to the Jews of New Amsterdam.
• 1689 - Deposed monarch James II of England lays siege to Derry.
• 1752 - Start of Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War, a new phase in the Burmese Civil War.
• 1770 - The Georgian king, Erekle II, abandoned by his Russian ally Count Totleben, wins a victory over Ottoman forces at Aspindza.
• 1775 - American Revolutionary War: The Siege of Boston begins, following the battles at Lexington and Concord.
• 1789 - George Washington arrives at Grays Ferry, Philadelphia while en route to Manhattan for his inauguration.
• 1792 - France declares war against the "King of Hungary and Bohemia", the beginning of French Revolutionary Wars.
• 1800 - The Septinsular Republic is established.
• 1809 - Two Austrian army corps in Bavaria are defeated by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon at the Battle of Abensberg on the second day of a four-day campaign that ended in a French victory.
• 1810 - The governor of Caracas, Venezuela declares independence from Spain.
• 1818 - The case of Ashford v Thornton ends, with Abraham Thornton allowed to go free rather than face a retrial for murder, after his demand for trial by battle is upheld.
• 1828 - René Caillié becomes the second non-Muslim to enter Timbuktu, following Major Gordon Laing.
• 1836 - U.S. Congress passes an act creating the Wisconsin Territory.
• 1861 - American Civil War: Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army in order to command the forces of the state of Virginia.
• 1862 - Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard complete the experiment disproving the theory of spontaneous generation.
• 1865 - Astronomer Angelo Secchi demonstrates the Secchi disk, which measures water clarity, aboard Pope Pius IX's yacht, the L'Immaculata Concezion.
• 1876 - The April Uprising begins. Its suppression shocks European opinion, and Bulgarian independence becomes a condition for ending the Russo-Turkish War.
• 1884 - Pope Leo XIII publishes the encyclical Humanum genus.
• 1898 - U.S. President William McKinley signed a joint resolution to Congress for declaration of war against Spain, beginning the Spanish–American War.
• 1902 - Pierre and Marie Curie refine radium chloride.
• 1908 - Opening day of competition in the New South Wales Rugby League.
• 1912 - Opening day for baseball's Tiger Stadium in Detroit, and Fenway Park in Boston.
• 1914 - Nineteen men, women, and children die in the Ludlow Massacre during a Colorado coal-miners' strike.
• 1916 - The Chicago Cubs play their first game at Weeghman Park, defeating the Cincinnati Reds 7–6 in 11 innings.
• 1918 - Manfred von Richthofen, a.k.a. The Red Baron, shoots down his 79th and 80th victims, his final victories before his death the following day.
• 1922 - The Soviet government creates South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within Georgian SSR.
• 1939 - Adolf Hitler's 50th birthday's celebrations in Germany
• 1945 - World War II: U.S. troops capture Leipzig, Germany, only to later cede the city to the Soviet Union.
• 1945 - World War II: Führerbunker: On his 56th birthday Adolf Hitler makes his last trip to the surface to award Iron Crosses to boy soldiers of the Hitler Youth.
• 1945 - Twenty Jewish children used in medical experiments at Neuengamme are killed in the basement of the Bullenhuser Damm school.
• 1946 - The League of Nations officially dissolves, giving most of its power to the United Nations.
• 1961 - Cold War: Failure of the Bay of Pigs Invasion of US-backed Cuban exiles against Cuba.
• 1968 - English politician Enoch Powell makes his controversial "Rivers of Blood" speech.
• 1972 - Apollo program: Apollo 16 lunar module, commanded by John Young and piloted by Charles Duke, lands on the moon.
• 1998 - Air France Flight 422 crashes after taking off from El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá, Colombia, killing all 53 people on board.
• 1999 - Columbine High School massacre: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold kill 13 people and injure 24 others before committing suicide at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado.
• 2007 - Johnson Space Center shooting: William Phillips with a handgun barricades himself in NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas before killing a male hostage and himself.
• 2008 - Danica Patrick wins the Indy Japan 300 becoming the first female driver in history to win an Indy car race.
• 2010 - The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explodes in the Gulf of Mexico, killing eleven workers and beginning an oil spill that would last six months.
• 2012 - One hundred twenty-seven people are killed when a plane crashes in a residential area near the Benazir Bhutto International Airport near Islamabad, Pakistan.
• 2013 - A 6.6-magnitude earthquake strikes Lushan County, Ya'an, in China's Sichuan province, killing more than 150 people and injuring thousands.
• 2015 - Ten people are killed in a bomb attack on a convoy carrying food supplies to a United Nations compound in Garowe in the Somali region of Puntland.

  Births

• 1494 - Johannes Agricola, German theologian and reformer
• 1544 - Renata of Lorraine, Duchess consort of Bavaria
• 1586 - Rose of Lima, Peruvian mystic and saint
• 1633 - Emperor Go-Kōmyō of Japan
• 1646 - Charles Plumier, French botanist and author
• 1650 - William Bedloe, English spy
• 1718 - David Brainerd, American missionary
• 1723 - Cornelius Harnett, American merchant, farmer, and politician
• 1727 - Florimond Claude, Comte de Mercy-Argenteau, Belgian-Austrian minister and diplomat
• 1745 - Philippe Pinel, French physician and psychiatrist
• 1748 - Georg Michael Telemann, German composer and theologian
• 1772 - William Lawless, Irish revolutionary and French general
• 1808 - Napoleon III, French politician, 1st President of France
• 1816 - Bogoslav Šulek, Croatian philologist, historian, and lexicographer
• 1818 - Heinrich Göbel, German-American mechanic and engineer
• 1826 - Dinah Craik, English author and poet
• 1836 - Eli Whitney Blake, Jr., American scientist and academic
• 1839 - Carol I of Romania, King of Romania
• 1840 - Odilon Redon, French painter and illustrator
• 1850 - Daniel Chester French, American sculptor, designed the Lincoln statue
• 1851 - Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist
• 1851 - Siegmund Lubin, Polish-American businessman, founded the Lubin Manufacturing Company
• 1860 - Justinien de Clary, French target shooter
• 1871 - Sydney Chapman, English economist and civil servant
• 1873 - James Harcourt, English character actor
• 1875 - Vladimir Vidrić, Croatian poet and lawyer
• 1879 - Paul Poiret, French fashion designer
• 1882 - Holland Smith, American general
• 1884 - Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
• 1884 - Oliver Kirk, American boxer
• 1884 - Daniel Varoujan, Armenian poet and educator
• 1889 - Albert Jean Amateau, Turkish rabbi, lawyer, and activist
• 1889 - Prince Erik, Duke of Västmanland
• 1889 - Marie-Antoinette de Geuser, French mystic
• 1889 - Adolf Hitler, Austrian born German politician, Führer of Nazi Germany
• 1889 - Tonny Kessler, Dutch footballer
• 1890 - Maurice Duplessis, Canadian lawyer and politician, 16th Premier of Quebec
• 1890 - Adolf Schärf, Austrian soldier and politician, 6th President of Austria
• 1891 - Dave Bancroft, American baseball player and manager
• 1893 - Harold Lloyd, American actor, comedian, and producer
• 1893 - Joan Miró, Spanish painter and sculptor
• 1895 - Emile Christian, American trombonist and composer
• 1895 - Henry de Montherlant, French essayist, novelist, and dramatist
• 1896 - Wop May, Canadian captain and pilot
• 1899 - Alan Arnett McLeod, Canadian lieutenant, Victoria Cross recipient
• 1904 - Bruce Cabot, American actor
• 1907 - Miran Bux, Pakistani cricketer
• 1907 - Augoustinos Kantiotes, Greek bishop
• 1908 - Lionel Hampton, American vibraphone player, pianist, bandleader, and actor
• 1910 - Fatin Rüştü Zorlu, Turkish diplomat and politician
• 1913 - Mimis Fotopoulos, Greek actor and poet
• 1913 - Willi Hennig, German biologist and entomologist
• 1913 - Roger Rochard, French runner
• 1914 - Betty Lou Gerson, American actress
• 1915 - Joseph Wolpe, South African psychotherapist and physician
• 1916 - Nasiba Zeynalova, Azerbaijani actress
• 1918 - Kai Siegbahn, Swedish physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1919 - Richard Hillary, Australian lieutenant and pilot
• 1920 - Frances Ames, South African neurologist, psychiatrist, and human rights activist
• 1920 - Clement Isong, Nigerian banker and politician, Governor of Cross River State
• 1920 - Ronald Speirs, American colonel
• 1920 - John Paul Stevens, American lawyer and jurist, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
• 1923 - Mother Angelica, American nun and broadcaster, founded Eternal Word Television Network
• 1923 - Irene Lieblich, Polish-American painter and illustrator
• 1923 - Tito Puente, American drummer and producer
• 1924 - Nina Foch, Dutch-American actress
• 1924 - Leslie Phillips, English actor and producer
• 1924 - Guy Rocher, Canadian sociologist and academic
• 1925 - Ernie Stautner, German-American football player and coach
• 1925 - Elena Verdugo, American actress
• 1927 - Bud Cullen, Canadian judge and politician, 1st Canadian Minister of Employment and Immigration
• 1927 - Phil Hill, American race car driver
• 1927 - K. Alex Müller, Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1928 - Robert Byrne, American chess player and author
• 1928 - Johnny Gavin, Irish international footballer
• 1929 - Harry Agganis, American baseball and football player
• 1929 - Bobby Hollander, American film director, actor, and magazine publisher
• 1930 - Dwight Gustafson, American composer and conductor
• 1930 - Antony Jay, English director and screenwriter
• 1931 - Michael Allenby, 3rd Viscount Allenby, English lieutenant and politician
• 1931 - John Eccles, 2nd Viscount Eccles, English businessman and politician
• 1932 - Myriam Bru, French actress
• 1933 - Kristaq Dhamo, Albanian actor and film director
• 1936 - Lisa Davis, English and American former child and adult actress
• 1936 - Pauli Ellefsen, Faroese technician, surveyor, and politician, 6th Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands
• 1936 - Pat Roberts, American captain, journalist, and politician
• 1936 - Christopher Robinson, English organist and conductor
• 1937 - Jiří Dienstbier, Czech journalist and politician, Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs
• 1937 - Antonios Kounadis, Greek discus thrower
• 1937 - Harvey Quaytman, American painter and educator
• 1937 - George Takei, American actor
• 1938 - Betty Cuthbert, Australian sprinter
• 1938 - Manfred Kinder, German runner
• 1938 - Peter Snow, British historian and journalist
• 1938 - Eszter Tamási, Hungarian actress
• 1939 - Elspeth Ballantyne, Australian actress
• 1939 - Peter S. Beagle, American author and screenwriter
• 1939 - Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norwegian physician and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Norway
• 1939 - Johnny Tillotson, American singer-songwriter
• 1940 - James Gammon, American actor
• 1941 - Ryan O'Neal, American actor
• 1942 - Giles Henderson, English lawyer and academic
• 1942 - Arto Paasilinna, Finnish journalist and author
• 1943 - Alan Beith, English academic and politician
• 1943 - John Eliot Gardiner, English conductor and director
• 1943 - Edie Sedgwick, American model and actress
• 1944 - Toivo Aare, Estonian journalist and author
• 1945 - Michael Brandon, American actor and director
• 1945 - Olga Karlatos, Greek actress and Bermudian lawyer
• 1945 - Thein Sein, Burmese general and politician, 8th President of Burma
• 1945 - Naftali Temu, Kenyan runner
• 1945 - Steve Spurrier, American football player and head coach, 1966 Heisman Trophy winner
• 1946 - Sandro Chia, Italian painter and sculptor
• 1946 - Julien Poulin, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1946 - Gordon Smiley, American race car driver
• 1947 - Rita Dionne-Marsolais, Canadian economist and politician
• 1947 - David Leland, English actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1947 - Viktor Suvorov, Russian intelligence officer, historian, and author
• 1948 - Gregory Itzin, American actor
• 1948 - Matthias Kuhle, German geographer and academic
• 1949 - Veronica Cartwright, English-American actress
• 1949 - Toller Cranston, Canadian-Mexican figure skater and painter
• 1949 - Massimo D'Alema, Italian journalist and politician, 76th Prime Minister of Italy
• 1949 - Jessica Lange, American actress
• 1950 - Steve Erickson, American author and critic
• 1950 - Alexander Lebed, Russian general and politician
• 1950 - N. Chandrababu Naidu, Indian politician, 13th Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh
• 1951 - Louise Jameson, English actress
• 1951 - Luther Vandross, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1952 - Louka Katseli, Greek economist and politician
• 1952 - Božidar Maljković, Serbian basketball player and coach
• 1952 - Eric Pickles, English politician, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
• 1953 - Sebastian Faulks, English journalist and author
• 1955 - Donald Pettit, American engineer and astronaut
• 1956 - Beatrice Ask, Swedish politician, Swedish Minister for Justice
• 1956 - Peter Chelsom, English film director, writer, and actor
• 1956 - Kakha Bendukidze, Georgian economist and politician
• 1956 - Georgie Glen, Scottish actress
• 1958 - Viacheslav Fetisov, Russian ice hockey player and coach
• 1959 - Perry Haddock, Australian rugby league player
• 1960 - Debbie Flintoff-King, Australian hurdler and coach
• 1961 - Don Mattingly, American baseball player, coach, and manager
• 1961 - Konstantin Lavronenko, Russian actor
• 1961 - Nicholas Lyndhurst, English actor
• 1961 - Paul Usher, English actor
• 1963 - Maurício Gugelmin, Brazilian race car driver
• 1963 - Rachel Whiteread, English sculptor
• 1964 - Crispin Glover, American actor
• 1964 - Andy Serkis, English actor and director
• 1964 - Rosalynn Sumners, American figure skater
• 1965 - Kostis Chatzidakis, Greek politician, Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism
• 1965 - Léa Fazer, Swiss film director, screenwriter and actress
• 1965 - Adrián Fernández, Mexican race car driver
• 1965 - Rebecca Lacey, English actress
• 1966 - David Chalmers, Australian philosopher and academic
• 1966 - David Filo, American businessman, co-founded Yahoo!
• 1966 - Vincent Riendeau, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1967 - Mike Portnoy, American drummer and songwriter
• 1967 - Raymond van Barneveld, Dutch darts player
• 1968 - Julia Morris, Australian entertainer
• 1968 - Yelena Välbe, Russian skier and manager
• 1968 - Roman Virastyuk, Ukrainian shot putter
• 1969 - Felix Baumgartner, Austrian skydiver and BASE jumper
• 1969 - Will Hodgman, Australian politician, 45th Premier of Tasmania
• 1970 - Sarantuya, Mongolian soprano
• 1970 - Avishai Cohen, Israeli singer-songwriter and bassist
• 1970 - Shemar Moore, American actor
• 1971 - Carla Geurts, Dutch swimmer, physiologist, and academic
• 1971 - Allan Houston, American basketball player and manager
• 1971 - Nikos Kyzeridis, Greek footballer
• 1972 - Lê Huỳnh Đức, Vietnamese footballer, coach, and manager
• 1972 - Carmen Electra, American model and actress
• 1972 - Željko Joksimović, Serbian singer-songwriter and producer
• 1972 - Stephen Marley, American singer, guitarist, and producer
• 1972 - Julia Peng, Taiwanese singer
• 1973 - Isabel dos Santos, Angolan businesswoman and first African woman billionaire
• 1973 - Lamond Murray, American basketball player
• 1974 - Adrian Ilie, Romanian footballer
• 1974 - Julie Fernandez, English actress and model
• 1974 - Urmas Paet, Estonian journalist and politician, 26th Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs
• 1975 - Killer Mike, American rapper and activist
• 1976 - Aldo Bobadilla, Paraguayan footballer
• 1976 - Shay Given, Irish footballer and manager
• 1976 - Chris Mason, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1976 - Ismail Rasheed, Maldivian actor
• 1976 - Georgina Rylance, English actress
• 1979 - Stian Barsnes-Simonsen, Norwegian actor and television host
• 1979 - Ludovic Magnin, Swiss footballer and coach
• 1979 - Nate Marquardt, American mixed martial artist
• 1980 - Gunta Baško, Latvian basketball player
• 1980 - Sunaina Sunaina, Indian weightlifter
• 1980 - Jasmin Wagner, German singer and actress
• 1982 - Jacqueline Govaert, Dutch singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1982 - Dario Knežević, Croatian footballer
• 1983 - Danny Granger, American basketball player
• 1983 - Miranda Kerr, Australian model
• 1983 - Joanne King, Irish actress
• 1984 - Nelson Évora, Ivorian-Portuguese triple jumper
• 1984 - Bárbara Lennie, Spanish actress
• 1984 - Edixon Perea, Colombian footballer
• 1984 - Jenna Shoemaker, American triathlete
• 1985 - Curt Hawkins, American wrestler
• 1985 - Brent Seabrook, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1987 - Chun Woo-hee, South Korean actress
• 1988 - Brandon Belt, American baseball player
• 1989 - Cally-Jo, English fine artist and tattoo artist
• 1989 - Nina Davuluri, Miss America 2014
• 1989 - Carlos Valdes, Colombian-American actor and singer
• 1990 - Luhan, Chinese singer and actor
• 1990 - Abby Mavers, English actress
• 1992 - Kristian Álvarez, Mexican footballer
• 1992 - Marko Meerits, Estonian footballer
• 1995 - Damian McKenzie, New Zealand rugby union player
• 1995 - Jean Marie Dongou, Cameroonian footballer
• 1997 - Alexander "Sascha" Zverev, German tennis player
• 1998 - Zachary Claman DeMelo, Canadian racing driver

  Deaths

• 689 - Cædwalla, king of Wessex
• 767 - Taichō, Japanese monk
• 888 - Xi Zong, Chinese emperor
• 1099 - Peter Bartholomew
• 1164 - Antipope Victor IV
• 1176 - Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke, English-Irish politician, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland
• 1248 - Güyük Khan, Mongol ruler, 3rd Great Khan of the Mongol Empire
• 1284 - Hōjō Tokimune, regent of Japan
• 1314 - Pope Clement V
• 1322 - Simon Rinalducci, Italian Augustinian friar
• 1521 - Zhengde, Chinese emperor
• 1534 - Elizabeth Barton, English nun and martyr
• 1558 - Johannes Bugenhagen, German priest and theologian
• 1643 - Christoph Demantius, German composer and poet
• 1703 - Lancelot Addison, English clergyman and educator
• 1769 - Chief Pontiac, American tribal leader
• 1831 - John Abernethy, English surgeon and anatomist
• 1873 - William Tite, English architect, designed the Royal Exchange
• 1874 - Alexander H. Bailey, American lawyer, judge, and politician
• 1881 - William Burges, English architect and designer
• 1886 - Charles-François-Frédéric, marquis de Montholon-Sémonville, French general and diplomat, French ambassador to the United States
• 1887 - Muhammad Sharif Pasha, Greek-Egyptian politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Egypt
• 1899 - Joseph Wolf, German ornithologist and illustrator
• 1902 - Joaquim de Sousa Andrade, Brazilian poet and educator
• 1912 - Bram Stoker, Anglo-Irish novelist and critic, created Count Dracula
• 1918 - Karl Ferdinand Braun, German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1927 - Enrique Simonet, Spanish painter and educator
• 1929 - Prince Henry of Prussia
• 1931 - Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon, 5th Baronet, Scottish-English fencer and businessman
• 1932 - Giuseppe Peano, Italian mathematician and philosopher
• 1935 - John Cameron, Scottish footballer and manager
• 1935 - Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon, English fashion designer
• 1942 - Jüri Jaakson, Estonian businessman and politician, 6th State Elder of Estonia
• 1944 - Elmer Gedeon, American baseball player and pilot
• 1945 - Erwin Bumke, Polish-German jurist and politician
• 1946 - Mae Busch, Australian actress
• 1947 - Christian X of Denmark
• 1951 - Ivanoe Bonomi, Italian politician, 25th Prime Minister of Italy
• 1961 - Ado Vabbe, Estonian painter
• 1967 - Léo-Paul Desrosiers, Canadian journalist and author
• 1968 - Rudolph Dirks, German-American illustrator
• 1969 - Vjekoslav Luburić, Croatian Ustaše official and concentration camp administrator
• 1980 - M. Canagaratnam, Sri Lankan politician
• 1982 - Archibald MacLeish, American poet, playwright, and lawyer
• 1986 - Sibte Hassan, Pakistani journalist, scholar, and activist
• 1991 - Steve Marriott, English singer-songwriter and producer
• 1991 - Don Siegel, American director and producer
• 1992 - Marjorie Gestring, American springboard diver
• 1992 - Benny Hill, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
• 1993 - Cantinflas, Mexican actor, producer, and screenwriter
• 1995 - Milovan Đilas, Yugoslav communist, politician, theorist and author
• 1996 - Trần Văn Trà, Vietnamese general and politician
• 1999 - Casualties of the Columbine High School massacre:
• * Cassie Bernall, American student
• * Eric Harris, American student and murderer
• * Dylan Klebold, American student and murderer
• * Rachel Scott, American student, inspired the Rachel's Challenge
• 1999 - Rick Rude, American wrestler
• 2001 - Giuseppe Sinopoli, Italian conductor and composer
• 2002 - Alan Dale, American singer
• 2003 - Daijiro Kato, Japanese motorcycle racer
• 2003 - Bernard Katz, German-English biophysicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
• 2004 - Lizzy Mercier Descloux, French musician, singer-songwriter, composer, actress, writer and painter
• 2005 - Fumio Niwa, Japanese journalist and author
• 2007 - Andrew Hill, American pianist, composer, and bandleader
• 2007 - Michael Fu Tieshan, Chinese bishop
• 2008 - Monica Lovinescu, Romanian journalist and author
• 2010 - Dorothy Height, American educator and activist
• 2011 - Tim Hetherington, English photographer and journalist
• 2012 - Bert Weedon, English guitarist and songwriter
• 2014 - Mithat Bayrak, Turkish wrestler and trainer
• 2014 - Rubin Carter, American-Canadian boxer
• 2014 - Neville Wran, Australian lawyer and politician, 35th Premier of New South Wales
• 2016 - Victoria Wood, British comedian, actress and writer
• 2017 - Cuba Gooding Sr., American singer and actor
• 2018 - Avicii, Swedish DJ and musician
• 2019 - Jacqueline Saburido, Venezuelan activist

  Holidays and observances

• 420
• Christian feast day:
• *Agnes of Montepulciano
• *Beuno
• *Hugh of Anzy le Duc
• *Johannes Bugenhagen
• *Marcellinus of Gaul
• *Blessed Oda of Brabant
• *Pope Anicetus
• *Theotimos
• *April 20
• UN Chinese Language Day