| 455:
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Pope Leo decrees that this year Easter is to be observed on April 24th
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| 624:
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Death of St. Milletus
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| 709:
|
Death of St. Wilfrid
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| 858:
|
Election of Nicholas I, "the Great," as Pope
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| 1066:
|
Halley's Comet appeared over England. A monk spotted it and predicted the destruction of the country. The battle of Hastings followed and thousands of English were killed in it
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| 1505:
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Amerigo Vespucci, Italian mapmaker, becomes citizen of Spain
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| 1519:
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Envoys of Montezuma II attend the first Easter Mass in Central America
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| 1546:
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English Navy Board chartered by King Henry VIII
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| 1558:
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Mary Queen of Scots, aged 16, married the Dauphin of France, the future Francis II
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| 1567:
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Bothwell takes Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, to his castle of Dunbar
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| 1576:
|
St. Vincent de Paul born
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| 1585:
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Election of Pope Sixtus V
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| 1617:
|
Assassination of Concino Concini, the Marechal d'Ancre
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| 1620:
|
John Graunt, statistician, founded the science of demography born
|
| 1629:
|
Peace signed between England and France
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| 1704:
|
The Boston News Letter became the first American newspaper to be published on a regular basis
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| 1706:
|
Padre Martini born
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| 1766:
|
Publisher Robert Thomas Grafton, Massachusetts. He was founder and editor of "The Farmer's Almanac". The first issue came out in 1793. born
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| 1792:
|
The national anthem of France, "La Marseillaise", was composed by Captain Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, an officer stationed in Strasbourg
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| 1800:
|
Congress approved a bill establishing the Library of Congress in Washington DC, appropriating $5,000 "for the purchase of such books as may be necessary."
|
| 1815:
|
English novelist Anthony Trollope born
|
| 1833:
|
Jacob Ebert of Cadiz, Ohio, and George Dulty of Wheeling, West Virginia, patented the soda fountain
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| 1866:
|
Premiere of Max Bruch's Violin Concerto in G minor, No. 1, Opus 26
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| 1877:
|
Federal troops moved out of New Orleans, ending the North's military occupation of the South following the Civil War
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| 1893:
|
Actor Leslie Howard born
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| 1897:
|
William W. Price began work at the Washington Star where he became the first regular White House reporter
|
| 1898:
|
Spain declared war on the United States after rejecting America's ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba
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| 1904:
|
Artist Willem DeKooning born
|
| 1905:
|
U.S. poet laureate Robert Penn Warren born
|
| 1915:
|
The Ottoman Turkish Empire began the brutal mass deportation of Armenians during World War One
|
| 1916:
|
Critic Stanley Kauffmann born
|
| 1916:
|
Some 1600 Irish nationalists launched the Easter Rising by seizing several key sites in Dublin, including the General Post Office. (The rising was put down by British forces several days later.)
|
| 1923:
|
Actor J.D. Cannon born
|
| 1925:
|
Prokofiev's First Violin Concerto received its American premiere with the Boston Symphony. This is one of the greatest violin concertos ever written because it dramatically shows off the soloist without the use of any cadenzas
|
| 1934:
|
Actress Shirley MacLaine born
|
| 1934:
|
Laurens Hammond of Chicago, Illinois, announced the development of the pipeless organ
|
| 1940:
|
Author Sue Grafton born
|
| 1942:
|
Actress-singer-director Barbra Streisand born
|
| 1942:
|
Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley born
|
| 1943:
|
Country singer Richard Sterban (The Oak Ridge Boys) born
|
| 1945:
|
Rock musician Doug Clifford (Creedence Clearwater Revival) born
|
| 1945:
|
A new commissioner of baseball was named. He was Albert B. "Happy" Chandler
|
| 1947:
|
Rock musician Glenn Cornick (Wild Turkey) born
|
| 1950:
|
The state of Jordan was formed by the union of Jordanian-occupied Palestine and the Kingdom of Transjordan
|
| 1952:
|
Raymond Burr made his television acting debut on Gruen Guild Playhouse in an episode titled "The Tiger."
|
| 1953:
|
Actor-playwright Eric Bogosian born
|
| 1953:
|
British statesman Winston Churchill was knighted by Queen Elizabeth the Second at Buckingham Palace
|
| 1955:
|
Actor Michael O'Keefe born
|
| 1957:
|
Rock musician David J (Bauhaus) born
|
| 1961:
|
Bob Dylan made his recording debut (and $50) playing harmonica on the title track of Harry Belafonte's "Midnight Special" album
|
| 1962:
|
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology achieved the first satellite relay of a television signal, between Camp Parks, California, and Westford, Massachusetts
|
| 1963:
|
Rock musician Billy Gould (Faith No More) born
|
| 1964:
|
Rock musician Paul Ryder (Happy Mondays) born
|
| 1967:
|
Rock musician Patty Schemel (Hole) born
|
| 1968:
|
Rock musician Aaron Comess (Spin Doctors) born
|
| 1968:
|
Leftist students at Columbia University in New York began a week-long occupation of several campus buildings
|
| 1970:
|
The People's Republic of China launched its first satellite, which kept transmitting a song, "The East is Red."
|
| 1977:
|
Actor Eric Balfour born
|
| 1980:
|
The United States launched an abortive attempt to free the American hostages in Iran, a mission that resulted in the deaths of eight US servicemen
|
| 1983:
|
Austria's governing Socialists lost their absolute majority in Parliament during national elections, prompting Chancellor Bruno Kreisky to announce he would resign after 13 years in office
|
| 1984:
|
The government reported consumer prices had risen .2 percent in March 1984, leaving inflation for the year running at a moderate annual rate of five percent
|
| 1985:
|
The 69th annual Pulitzer Prizes were announced, with the fiction award going to Alison Lurie's "Foreign Affairs," the drama award to Stephen Sondheim and James Lupine's "Sunday in the Park with George."
|
| 1986:
|
Wallis, the Duchess of Windsor, for whom King Edward the Eighth gave up the British throne, died in Paris at age 89
|
| 1987:
|
Genetically altered bacteria, designed to prevent frost damage, was sprayed on a California strawberry field in the first test of such biotechnology in nature
|
| 1987:
|
18 people, including 12 U.S. military personnel, were injured when a roadside bomb exploded in the Greek port of Piraeus; the guerrilla group November 17 claimed responsibility
|
| 1988:
|
Three sailors were killed and 22 injured when fire broke out aboard the submarine USS Bonefish off the Florida coast
|
| 1988:
|
Greek cycling champion Kanellos Kanellopoulos pedaled the human-powered aircraft Daedalus over the Agean Sea for nearly four hours
|
| 1989:
|
President Bush led a memorial service at the Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia for the 47 sailors killed in a gun-turret explosion aboard the USS Iowa
|
| 1990:
|
The space shuttle "Discovery" blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying the $1.5 billion Hubble Space Telescope. The telescope is so powerful, it can see a dime, 25 miles away
|
| 1990:
|
Junk bond king, Michael Milken, pleaded guilty in what may have been one of the largest individual cases of fraud ever to rock Wall Street
|
| 1990:
|
East and West Germany agreed on July 2nd as the date for economic union, a prelude to full political unification
|
| 1991:
|
A Kurdish rebel leader announced the guerrillas had reached an agreement in principle with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to end the Kurd's two-week rebellion
|
| 1992:
|
President Bush and Democratic challenger Bill Clinton made long-distance back-to-back appearances via satellite hookups before the National Association of Hispanic Journalists meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico
|
| 1993:
|
The Irish Republican Army exploded a truck bomb in the City of London financial district, killing one man and causing millions of dollars' worth of damage
|
| 1993:
|
Former African National Congress president Oliver Tambo died in Johannesburg, South Africa, at age 75
|
| 1994:
|
Bosnian Serbs, threatened with NATO air strikes, grudgingly gave up their three-week assault on Gorazde, burning houses and blowing up a water treatment plant as they withdrew
|
| 1995:
|
A package bomb linked to the "Unabomber" exploded inside the Sacramento, California, offices of a lobbying group for the wood products industry, killing chief lobbyist Gilbert B. Murray
|
| 1995:
|
The U.N. tribunal for former Yugoslavia named Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and two of his senior aides as war crimes suspects
|
| 1996:
|
The main assembly of the Palestine Liberation Organization voted to revoke clauses in its charter that called for an armed struggle to destroy Israel.
|
| 1996:
|
Negotiators for Congress and the White House agreed on a permanent budget for fiscal year 1996
|
| 1997:
|
The prosecution and defense presented opening statements in the Oklahoma City bombing trial of Timothy McVeigh
|
| 1997:
|
The Senate voted 74-to-26 to approve the chemical weapons treaty, five days before the pact was to take effect
|
| 1997:
|
Comedian Pat Paulsen died in Mexico at age 69
|
| 1998:
|
After a month of confrontation, Russian lawmakers caved in to President Boris Yeltsin, approving acting prime minister Sergei Kiriyenko, 35, as premier despite doubts about his relative youth and inexperience. (Kiriyenko was fired just four months later.)
|
| 1999:
|
On the second day of a NATO summit, the alliance ran into objections from Russia and questions among its own members about enforcing an oil embargo against Yugoslavia by searching ships at sea
|
| 2000:
|
A teen-age gunman opened fire at Washington's National Zoo, wounding seven children
|
| 2000:
|
In a statement about the disappearance of a laptop computer with highly sensitive documents, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright announced a five-point plan to help guard against such lapses in the future
|
| 2005:
|
NYSE to merge with Archipelago; NASDAQ to buy Instinet
|
| 2005:
|
Romanian reporters call for release of hostages in Iraq
|
| 2005:
|
5-year-old girl arrested and handcuffed by Florida police
|
| 2005:
|
British government considering new nuclear power stations
|
| 2005:
|
Barry Prime changes mind about Swim Ireland
|
| 2005:
|
Bush nomination to UN post faces bi-partisan problems
|
| 2006:
|
By-elections fail to provide way out of Thai political crisis
|
| 2006:
|
Oil prices drive new investment in clean technology
|
| 2006:
|
Explosions rock Egyptian resort town of Dahab
|
| 2006:
|
Microsoft and EU face off in Luxembourg court
|
| 2006:
|
Tennis player Rafael Nadal crowned "King of Clay"
|
| 2006:
|
Linux distributors agree on standard for desktop software
|
| 2006:
|
112 year old joke fools political activists and the Associated Press
|
| 2006:
|
World leaders condemn deadly explosions in Egypt
|
| 2006:
|
Indian Supreme Court verdict:AMU to remain a minority institution
|
| 2007:
|
Entire fossilized forest found in Illinois, USA
|
| 2007:
|
20 tons of cocaine seized by US Coast Guard
|
| 2007:
|
Thailand orders Ample Rich directors to pay US$616 million taxes
|
| 2007:
|
Turkey's governing party names Abdullah Gül as presidential candidate
|
| 2007:
|
Cricket World Cup - 1st Semi-Final: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand
|
| 2007:
|
Inmates take over Indiana prison, two employees injured
|
| 2007:
|
Football: Manchester United defeat AC Milan in Champions League
|
| 2007:
|
Canada's Liberals put forward Afghanistan motion
|
| 2007:
|
9 US soldiers killed in Iraq bombing; 20 others wounded
|
| 2007:
|
Newly discovered extra-solar planet may be Earth-like
|
| 2008:
|
Republic of Molossia hosts state visit
|
| 2008:
|
Ukranian manufacturer preparing to sell Adolf Hitler dolls
|
| 2008:
|
UK teachers strike in first national teachers strike in 21 years
|
| 2008:
|
Earth Day marked in various ways
|
| 2008:
|
US claims North Korea helped Syria build reactor bombed by Israel
|
| 2008:
|
US Senate unanimously passes genetic nondiscrimination bill
|
| 2009:
|
Spain's unemployment rate surpasses 17 percent
|
| 2009:
|
Four bombings over two days leave more than 130 dead in Iraq
|
| 2009:
|
Outbreak of swine flu in Mexico kills at least twenty, infects 1,000
|
| 2010:
|
US state of Arizona signs into law controversial immigration bill
|
| 2010:
|
Iranian president Ahmadinejad in Zimbabwe for trade fair
|
| 2010:
|
Six policemen killed in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico
|
| 2010:
|
Illinois Fair Map Amendment could die before appearing on ballot
|
| 2010:
|
New York man pleads guilty in New York City subway bomb plot
|
| 2010:
|
Zeus botnet trojan horse is back
|
| 2010:
|
Two children killed in fire in Derbyshire, England; man arrested
|
| 2010:
|
Somali al-Shabaab group seizes three towns
|
| 2010:
|
US indicts eleven alleged pirates from Somalia
|
| 2011:
|
Sherpa mountaineer Nawang Gombu, first to summit Mount Everest twice, dies
|
| 2011:
|
Tornadoes damage hundreds of Missouri homes, force closure of airport
|
| 2011:
|
U.S. Coast Guard investigation finds 'poor safety culture' contributed to Deepwater Horizon disaster
|
| 2011:
|
California employees owe state US$13.3 million in unpaid loans
|
| 2011:
|
'Apple's data is dirtiest,' says Greenpeace
|
| 2011:
|
Massachusetts study finds links between bullying and family violence
|
| 2011:
|
Qur'an-burning pastor jailed after mosque protest barred
|
| 2012:
|
Noted magic dealer pleads guilty to US federal charges
|
History
Icons
Pulitzer Prizes for both poetry and fiction, poet laureate Robert Penn Warren born in Guthrie, Kentucky
Author, dancer, singer and Academy Award winning actress, Shirley MacLaine born in Richmond, Virginia
Mystery novelist Sue Grafton born in Louisville, Kentucky
Author, professor, Peace Corps official, investment banker and diplomat, Richard Holbrooke born in New York City
Academy, Golden Globe and Grammy Award winning actress and singer, Barbra Streisand born in Brooklyn, New York
Democratic leader and longest serving Mayor of Chicago, Richard M Daley born in Chicago, Illinois
Zen Buhddist priest, theater, television and Oscar nominated film actor, Michael O'Keefe born in Mount Vernon, New York
Architectural artist 