Events on Apr 1
- 0374Comet 1P / 374 E1 (Halley) approaches within 0.0884 AUs of Earth
- 0527Justinianus becomes compassionate Emperor of Byzantium
- 0705Greek Pope John VII chosen as successor to John VI
- 1064Body of Bishop Eleutherius of Blandain moved to Doornik
- 1504English guilds / corp goes under state control
- 1572Bloys van Treslong conquers Brielle
- 1578William Harvey of England discovers blood circulation
- 1581Portugese Cortes subjects himself on Philip II
- 1663Gemert fines unwed motherhood (50 guilder penalty)
- 1724Henry Pelham becomes English Minister of War
- 1748Ruins of Pompeii found
- 1778Oliver Pollock, a New Orleans businessman, creates "$" symbol
- 1789House of Reps 1st full meeting, NYC, F Muhlenberg 1st speaker
- 1793Volcano Unsen on Japan erupts killing about 53,000
- 1803French law rules the use of intention
- 1826Samuel Mory patents internal combustion engine
- 1836Charles Darwin aboard HMS Beagle reaches Cocos Islands
- 1850San Francisco County Government established
- 1853Cincinnati became 1st US city to pay fire fighters a regular salary
- 18631st wartime conscription law in US goes into effect
- 1866US Congress rejects presidential veto gives all equal rights in US
- 1867Blacks vote in municipal election in Tuscumbia, Alabama
- 1867International Exhibition opens in Paris
- 1867Singapore, Penang and Malakka become British crown colonies
- 1868Hampton Institute opens
- 18721st edition of The Standard
- 1873British White Star steamship Atlantic sinks off Nova Scotia, 547 die
- 1873Mehmed Kemals play "Vatan" premeres in Constantinople
- 18761st official NL baseball game (Boston-6, Phila-5)
- 1881Anti-Jewish riots in Jerusalem
Born on Apr 1
- 1283Ludwig IV of Baveria: Roman Catholic Bavarian Emperor (1314-47)
- 1578William Harvey: England, United Kingdom -- Physician (discovered blood circulation)
- 1582Gaspar de Crayer: Flemish painter
- 1582Thomas Simpson: Composer
- 1643Christian Demelius: Composer
- 1721Pieter Hellendaal: Dutch violinist / Organist / composer (Glees)
- 1725Francois Bainville: Composer
- 1755Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin: French lawyer (Fisiologia del Gusto)
- 1772Ignaz Franz von Mosel: Composer
- 1785J H Ferdinand Olivier: German painter
- 1802Hubert Reis: Composer
- 1807Fredrik Cygnaeus: Finnish poet / literature critic
- 1809Willem Ruys J Dz: Dutch ship owner
- 1815Otto Von Bismarck: Germany -- Chancellor (1866-90)
- 1817Johannes J van Oosterzee: Dutch theologist
- 1823Simon Bolivar Buckner: Lieutenant General (Confederate Army), died in 1914
- 1834Isidore Edouard Legouix: Composer
- 1843Ludwig Enneccerus: German jurist
- 1847Gavriil Musicescu: Composer
- 1847Jules-Nicolas Crevaux: French explorer (South America)
- 1852Edward Austin Abbey: United States -- Painter (Quest of the Holy Grail)
- 1858Arnold Aletrino: Dutch physician-criminologist / author (From Life)
- 1858Gaetano Mosca: Italian sociologist (Circulation of Elite)
- 1864Marie Jungius: Dutch fairy tale writer
- 1865Richard Zsigmondy: Germany -- Chemist (Nobel-1925)
- 1866Ferruccio D M B Busoni: Italy -- Pianist / composer / conductor (Arlecchino)
- 1866Sophonisba Breckenridge: Scholar / teacher / social activist
- 1868Edmond Rostand: France -- Poet / playwright (Cyrano de Bergerac)
- 1869Peter A Egge: Norwegian writer (De Droom)
- 1871F Melius Christiansen: Composer
Died on Apr 1
- 1204Eleanor of Aquitaine: Wife of Louis VII and Henry II, dies at 81
- 1205Amalrik II: King of Cyprus / Jerusalem
- 1548Sigismund I [the Elder]: King of Poland, dies at 81
- 1611Gillis van Valkenborch: Flemish painter, buried at about 72
- 1734Louis Lully: Composer, dies at 69
- 1799Narciso Casanovas: Composer, dies at 52
- 1807Louis Francois Chambray: Composer, dies at 69
- 1807Vaclav Josef Bartolomej Praupner: Composer, dies at 61
- 1814Jozef de Ferraris: French / Austrian General / cartographer, dies at 87
- 1830Carl Borromaus Neuner: Composer, dies at 51
- 1832Robert the Hermit: US ex-slave / hermit in Massachusetts
- 1866Aime Ambroise Simon Leborne: Composer, dies at 98
- 1866Johannes C H de Meijere: Dutch zoologist
- 1869Anthony G O Ridder van Rappard: Min of Reformed Worship, dies at 69
- 1870Patrick Gass: Sgt of Lewis & Clark Expedition, dies at 98
- 1878Eugene Gautier: Composer, dies at 56
- 1901Francois M Raoult: French physicist / chemist (Law of Raoult), dies at 70
- 1910Andreas Aschenbach: German Painter / engraver, dies at 94
- 1914Rube Waddell: Baseballer, dies at 37 of tuberculosis
- 1915Johann Joseph Abert: Composer, dies at 82
- 1916Gabrielle Petit: Belgian resistance fighter, executed
- 1917Scott Joplin: Ragtime Composer (Sting), dies at 48
- 1918Karl Fritjof Valentin: Composer, dies at 64
- 1922Charles I: Emperor (Austria) / King of Hungary (Charles IV)
- 1925Francis William Davenport: Composer, dies at 77
- 1930Cosima Liszt: Wife of Austrian Composer Richard Wagner, dies at 92
- 1930Zawditu: 1st reigning female Monarch of Ethiopia
- 1933Frederick Lord Chelmsford: Viceroy of Britain - Ind (1916-21), dies at 64
- 1936Mikhail Vladimirovich Ivanov-Boretsky: Composer, dies at 61
- 1941Hippolyte Delehaye: Flemish historian, dies at 81
Historical events on April 2
- 0999Gerbert of Aurillac elected as 1st French Pope
- 1550Jews are expelled from Genoa Italy
- 1559Genoa Italy, expels Jews
- 1590States-General appoints Earl Mauritius, Viceroy of Utrecht
- 1645Robert Devereux resigns as parliament Supreme Commander
- 1745Austria and Bavaria sign peace
- 1792Congress establishes Philadelphia mint
- 18191st successful agricultural journal ("American Farmer") begins
- 1827Joseph Dixon begins manufacturing lead pencils
- 1845H L Fizeau and J Leon Foucault take 1st photo of Sun
- 18601st Italian Parliament met at Turin
- 1863Bread revolt in Richmond Virginia
- 1864Skirmish at Spoonville / Antoine, Arkansas
- 1865Battle of Ft Blakely AL and Selma, Alabama
- 1865CSA President Jefferson Davis flees Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia
- 1866President Johnson ends war in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virgina
- 1870Victoria Woodhull is 1st woman to be nominated for US President
- 1872George B Brayton patents gasoline powered engine
- 1876Philadelphia Athletics and Boston Red Caps play 1st NL game, in Philadelphia
- 18771st Easter egg roll held on White House lawn
- 1883Battle at Bamako: French assault on Fabous arm forces attack
- 1884London prison for debtors closed
- 19001st edition of The Volk published (Amsterdam)
- 19021st motion picture theater opens (LA)
- 1905Cairo to Cape Town railway opens
- 1906South Africa complete a 4-1 series drubbing of England
- 1908Mills Committee declares baseball was invented by Abner Doubleday
- 1912Sun Yet Sen forms Guomindang-Party in China
- 1912Titanic undergoes sea trials under its own power
- 1916German troops overtake Bois de Caillette
Born on April 2
- 0742Charlemagne: 1st Holy Roman Emperor (800-14)
- 1602Maria de Jesus de Agreda [Maria Coronel]: Spanish Franciscan
- 1618Francesco M Grimaldi: Mathematician / physicist (light defraction)
- 1628Constantin Christian Dedekind: Composer
- 1632Georg Caspar Weckler: Composer
- 1711Jan Punt: Dutch engraver / illustrator / actor (Gideonschool)
- 1713Onno Zwier van Haren: Frisian poet (Fatherland)
- 1725Casanova: Writer
- 1728Franz Asplmayr: Composer
- 1733Giacomo Tritto: Composer
- 1735Christian Gotthilf Tag: Composer
- 1735Franz Volrath Buttstett: Composer
- 1740Armand-Gaston Camus: French CEO (Council of 500)
- 1763Giacomo Gotifredo Ferrari: Composer
- 1798H v Fallersleben: Writer
- 1803Franz Paul Lachner: Composer
- 1806Giacomo Antonelli: Italian Cardinal / Assistant Secretary of State for Pius IX
- 1814Henry Lewis "Old Rock" Benning: Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
- 1817Teodulo Mabellini: Composer
- 1826Philip Dale Roddey: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1897
- 1827William Holdman Hunt: English painter (Light of the World)
- 1833Thomas Howard Ruger: Bvt Major General (Union volunteers)
- 1862Nicholas Murray Butler: United States -- Columbia University President / pacifist (Nobel 1931)
- 1863Henry C Van de Velde: Flemish painter / architect (Art Nouveau)
- 1868Eduard Jacobs: Singer / pianist (Dutch cabaret)
- 1875Walter Chrysler: Founded car company (Chrysler)
- 1877Arnold Schering: German musicologist (Humor, Heldentum, Tragik)
- 1891Max Ernst: Germany -- Painter / sculptor (founded surrealism)
- 1894Rudolph P Cleveringa: Dutch anti-Nazi lawyer
- 1894Walter Mittelholzer: Switzerland -- Aviation pioneer (Swiss Air)
Died on April 2
- 1118Boudouin I: Of Bologne / Edessa, 1st crusader / King of Jerusalem
- 1416Ferdinand I [the Justified]: King of Aragon / Sicily, dies at 52
- 1640Matthias C Sarbiewski [Sarbievius]: Polish Jesuit / poet, dies at 45
- 1657Ferdinand III: King of Hungarian / Bohemia / German Emperor, dies at 48
- 1705Johann Lohner: Composer, dies at 59
- 1747Johann J Dillenius: German botanist, dies at 63
- 1758Johann Balthasar Konig: Composer, dies at 67
- 1784Pierre Leclair: Composer, dies at 74
- 1803Hieronymus van Alphen: Dutch attorney / Poet (church hymns), dies at 56
- 1831Charles Felix: Blind King of Sardina (1821-31), dies at 74
- 1852Theodor Althaus: Writer
- 1865Ambrose Powell Hill: Confederate General, killed in action at 39
- 1865Richard Cobden: Founder Anti-Corn-Law League, dies at 60
- 1872Samuel F B Morse: Developer of electric telegraph, dies at 80
- 1876Paul van Vlissingen: Dutch ship owner, dies at 78
- 1890Marinus FAG Campbell: Bibliographer, dies at 70
- 1910Boyd Alexander: English explorer (Niger to the Nile), murdered at 37
- 1910Friedrich von Bodelschwingh: German theologist, dies at 79
- 1928Theodore Richards: US chemist (atomic weight, Nobel 1914)
- 1932Hugo Kaun: Composer, dies at 69
- 1937Nathan Birnbaum: Austria philosopher (Zionism), dies at about 72
- 1938Alice Berend: Writer
- 1941Paul Teleki: Premier Hungary
- 1944Mikulas Moyzes: Composer, dies at 71
- 1951Simon Barere: Pianist, dies while perfoming at Carnegie Hall
- 1952Bernard F Lyot: French astronomer (chronograph, Lyot-filter), dies at 55
- 1953Jean Epstein: French director (Vive la Vie), dies at 56
- 1956Albert MLA de Bassompierre: Belgium ambassador to Tokyo, dies at 82
- 1956Chester Clute: Actor (Niagara Falls), dies at 65
- 1956Philippo de Pisis: Italian painter, dies at 59
Events on Apr 3
- 0419[Etalius] ends his reign as Catholic Pope
- 1043Edward the Confessor crowned King of England
- 13122nd council of Vienna
- 1376Battle of Navarrete (Najera), English beat France
- 1582French van Valois honored as Duke of Gelre / Earl of Zutphen
- 1645English parliament accept Self-Denying Ordinance
- 1657English Lord Protector Cromwell refuses crown
- 1679Edmund Halley meets Johannes Hevelius in Danzig
- 1764Austrian Archduke Jozef crowned himself Roman Catholic King
- 1776Washington receives honorary Ll.D. degree from Harvard College
- 1783Sweden & US sign a treaty of Amity & Commerce
- 1790Revenue Marine Service (US Coast Guard), created
- 1848Thomas Douglas becomes 1st SF public teacher
- 1856Gunpowder in church explodes killing 4,000 in Rhodos
- 1860Pony Express began between St. Joseph, Missouri and Sacramento, California
- 1864Skirmish at Okolona, Arkansas
- 1865Battle at Namozine Church, Virginia (Appomattox Campaign)
- 1865Union forces occupy Confederate capital of Richmond Va and Petersberg
- 1882Wood block alarm invented, when alarm rang, it dropped 20 wood blocks
- 1889Savings Bank of Order of True Reformers opens in Richmond, Virginia
- 18931st NSW vs. Queensland F-C game, at Brisbane Exhibition Ground
- 1908Frank Gotch wins world heavyweight wrestling championship in 2 hours
- 1913British suffragette Emily Pankhurst sentenced to 3 years in jail
- 1917Lenin leaves Switzerland for Petrograd
- 1918House of Reps accepts American Creed written by William Tyler
- 1919Austria expels all Habsburgers
- 1922Stalin appointed General Secretary of Communist Party
- 19232 "Black Sox" sue White Sox (unsuccessfully) for back salary
- 1925Great Britain goes back to gold standard
- 1925Netherlands and Belgium sign accord of Westerschelde
Born on Apr 3
- 1245Philips III [the Stout]: King of France (1270-85)
- 1367Henry IV: Bolingbroke Lincolnshire, United Kingdom -- King of England (1399-1413)
- 1438John III van Egmont [Manke John]: Viceroy of Holland
- 1485Lieven van der Maude [Ammonius]: Netherlands -- Poet
- 1569Giovanni Battista Massarengo: Composer
- 1593George Herbert: English metaphysical poet (5 Mystical Songs)
- 1603William Smith: Composer
- 1617Antimo Liberati: Composer
- 1627Johann Caspar Kerll: Composer
- 1649Joseph-Francois Salomon: Composer
- 1682Johann Valentin Rathgeber: German benedictine / composer
- 1720Elia van Vilnius [Elijahu ben Salomo Zalman]: Latvian rabbi
- 1727Philippe-Lambert-Joseph Spruyt: Flemish painter / engraver
- 1751Jean-Baptiste Lamoyne: Composer
- 1757Ferenc Verseghy: Composer
- 1764John Abernethy: London, England -- Surgeon
- 1783Washington Irving: US writer (Legend of Sleepy Hollow)
- 1798Charles D Wilkes: Commander (Union Navy), died in 1877
- 1812Louisa Maria: Queen of the Belgians (1832-50 / Wife of Leopold I)
- 1822Edward Everett Hale: United States -- Clergyman / author (Man without a Country)
- 1823William Macy "Boss" Tweed: Corrupt political boss (NYC)
- 1825Adolf Rzepko: Composer
- 1837John Burroughs: Writer / nature enthusiast (Burroughs Medal namesake)
- 1842Ulric Dahlgren: Colonel (Union volunteers), died in 1864
- 1858Matthew Ricketts: 1st Black man elected to Neb State Legislature
- 1859Reginald De Koven: Composer
- 1860Frederik W van Eeden: Dutch utopian writer (Walden)
- 1866James B Hertzog: South African General / Premier (1914-39)
- 1871Jose Juan Tablada: Mexican poet (El Florilegio)
- 1874Eduardo Sanchez de Fuentes: Composer
Died on Apr 3
- 0033Christ: Crucified (according to astronomer Humphreys & Waddington)
- 0628Chosroes II: Emperor of Persia (579..628), murdered by his son
- 1287Honorius IV [Giacomo Savelli]: Italian Pope (1285-87)
- 1512Richard Pafraet: Dutch printer
- 1525Giovanni Rucellai: Italian Poet (Le Api), dies at 49
- 1581Huibert Duifhuis: Roman Catholic pastor (Rotterdam / Utrecht)
- 1694Ferdinand van Apshoven de Jongere: Flemish painter, buried at 64
- 1695Melchior de Hondecoeter: Dutch still life painter, dies at about 58
- 1769Gerhard Tersteegen: German evangelist / Poet (in blood), dies at 71
- 1797Nonnosus Madlseder: Composer, dies at 66
- 1811Pieter-Jozef Verhaghen: Flemish (court)painter, dies at 83
- 1822Friedrich Bertuch: Writer
- 1826Reginald Heber: Bishop and hymn writer
- 1849Juliusz Slowacki: Pol Poet (Father of the Plague-Patient), dies at 39
- 1850Vaclav Jan Krtitel Tomasek: Organist / pianist / composer, dies at 75
- 1858Sigismund Ritter von Neukomm: Austrian composer, dies at 79
- 1862James Clark Ross: Arctic explorer
- 1868Franz Adolf Berwald: Swedish composer, dies at 71
- 1876Henriette Davidis: Writer
- 1882Friedrich Wilhelm Kucken: Composer, dies at 71
- 1882Jesse James: Outlaw, shot dead at 34, in St Joseph Mo by Robert Ford
- 1884Carel JCH van Nispen tot Sevenaer: Dutch Cath politician, dies at 59
- 1897Johannes Brahms: German Composer / conductor (Hung Dances), dies at 63
- 1909Benjamin Johnson Lang: Composer, dies at 71
- 1919Paul Geisler: Composer, dies at 62
- 1920Homer Newton Bartlett: Composer, dies at 74
- 1936Bruno Hauptmann: Convicted Lindbergh baby killer, executed
- 1941Pal Teleki-von Szek: Prime Minister Hungary (1920-21, 39-41), suicide at 61
- 1942Albert Siklos: Composer, dies at 63
- 1942Paul Gilson: Composer, dies at 76