Events on Apr 6
- 0402Battle at Pollentia: Roman army under Stilicho beats Visigoten
- 0610Lailat-ul Qadar, night koran descended to Earth
- 0774Charles the Great affirms Pippins promise of Quiercy
- 1106Fire in Venice
- 1327Italian Poet Petrarch 1st sets eyes on his beloved Laura
- 1362Robber bastion Tard-Venus strikes at Brignais France
- 1634Heeren XIX asks "to secure Eylands Curacao"
- 1652Cape Colony, the 1st European settlement in South Africa, established
- 1652John of Riebeeck lands / establishes VOC-post in Cape Town
- 1663King Charles II signs Carolina Charter
- 1664France and Saksen sign alliance
- 1672France declares war on Netherlands
- 1722Peter the Great ends tax on men with beards
- 1724Duke of Newcastle becomes English Minister of Foreign Affairs
- 1727Denmark signs Covenant of Hannover
- 1757English King George II fires Minister William Pitt Sr
- 17891st US Congress begins regular sessions, Federal Hall, New York City
- 1830Joseph Smith and 5 others organizes Mormon church in Seneca Co, New York
- 1841Cornerstone laid for 2nd Mormon temple, Nauvoo, Missouri
- 1848Jews of Prussia granted equality
- 1862Battle of Shiloh, Union defeats Confederacy in SW Tennessee
- 1866G.A.R. forms
- 1868Brigham Young marries his 27th and final wife
- 18691st plastic, Celluloid, patented
- 1883Start of Sherlock Holmes "Adventure of Speckled Band" (BG)
- 1886City of Vancouver BC incorporated
- 1886Declaration of Berlin neutralizes Tonga
- 1889George Eastman places Kodak Camera on sale for 1st time
- 1890French troops under Captain Archinard occupy Segu, West-Sudan
- 1893Andy Bowen and Jack Burke box 7 hours 19 minutes to no decision (111 rounds)
Born on Apr 6
- 1483Raphael Sanzio: Italian painter / master builder (Madonna Sistina)
- 1631Vincenzo De Grandis: Composer
- 1660Johann Kuhnau: Composer
- 1671Jean-Baptiste Rousseau: French playwright / poet (Sacred Odes & Songs)
- 1672Andre Cardinal Destouches: Composer
- 1708George Reuter: Composer
- 1752Johann Friedrich Kranz: Composer
- 1757Alessandro Rolla: Composer
- 1773James Mill: Scotland, United Kingdom -- Philosopher / historian (Hist of British India)
- 1778Joseph Funk: Composer
- 1810Philip Gosse: Intentor of institutional aquarium, writer (Omphalos)
- 1812Aaron Bernstein: Writer
- 1812Gavril Yakimovich Lomakin: Composer
- 1815Friedrich Robert Volkmann: Composer
- 1818Francis Henry Brown: Composer
- 1819Johann A H Scheler: Belgian librarian
- 1823Joseph Medill: St. John, New Brunswick -- Newspaper editor (Chicago Tribune)
- 1826Gustave Moreau: French painter
- 1828Charles William Field: Major General (Confederate Army), died in 1892
- 1830James Augustine Healy: Macon, Georgia -- 1st black Roman Catholic Bishop
- 1833Johan H C Kern: Dutch linguist (Sanskrit, Old Javan)
- 1835Jose Marraco y Ferrer: Composer
- 1844Joseph Ludwig: Composer
- 1866Joseph Lincoln Steffens: Muckraker / journalist (Shame of the Cities)
- 1869Louis Raemakers: Dutch draftsman / painter
- 1878Carl Emil Theodor Ehrenberg: Composer
- 1883Mien Labberton: Dutch poetress
- 1884Walter Huston: Toronto, Ontario -- Actor (Maltese Falcon, Treasure of Sierra Madre)
- 1885Carlos Leon Salzedo: Composer
- 1888Daniel Andersson: Swedish poet / writer (Svarta Ballader)
Died on Apr 6
- 0885Methodius: Greek apostle of the slaves / Archbishop of Sirmium
- 0912Nottker "the Stamelaar": Benedictine Monk / poet, dies at about 71
- 1199Richard I [the Lion-hearted]: King of England (1189-99), dies at 41
- 1252Peter of Verona [Peter Martyr]: Italian inquisitor / st, dies at 45
- 1362Jacques de Bourbon: Count of Marche, killed in battle
- 1472Pieter Bladelin: Belgium -- Land owner (Middelburg castle)
- 1489Hans Waldmann: Swiss military / mayor (Zurich), beheaded
- 1490Matthias Corvinus: King of Hungary
- 1520Raphael [Sanzio]: Artist (Sistine Madonna), dies on his 37th birthday
- 1551Joachim Vadianus: Swiss Physician / Mayor of Sankt Gallen, dies at 66
- 1590Francis Walsingham: English Secretary of State, dies at about 57
- 1593Henry Barrow: English puritian / Congressionalist, hanged
- 1593John Greenwood: English Congressionalist, hanged
- 1605John Stow: British historian
- 1779Tommaso MFS Traetta: Italian opera Composer (Farnace), dies at 52
- 1782Rynoldus Popma van Oevering: Composer, dies at 90
- 1805Lorenz Justinian Ott: Composer, dies at 56
- 1817Bonaventura Furlanetto: Composer, dies at 78
- 1822Franz Xaver Partsch: Composer, dies at 62
- 1829Niels H Able: Norwegian Mathematician (infinite series), dies at 26
- 1838Jose B de Andrada e Silva: Premier of Brazil (1822-23), dies at 74
- 1854William Strickland: US architect
- 1862Adley Hogan Gladden: Confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at 51
- 1862Albert Sidney Johnston: US Confederate General, dies in battle at 59
- 1865John Austin Wharton: US Confederate General Major, dies at 36
- 1865Reuben B Boston: US Confederate cavalery Colonel, dies in battle
- 1884Emanuel Geibel: Writer, dies at 68
- 1906Alexander L Kielland: Norwegian writer (Working People), dies at 57
- 1913Jose Marraco y Ferrer: Composer, dies on 78th birthday
- 1919Stefan Surzynski: Composer, dies at 63
Historical events on April 7
- 1118Pope Gelasius II excommunicated Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor
- 1348Prague University, 1st university in central Europe, formed by Charles IV
- 1456Louis van Burbon becomes prince-bishop of Luik
- 1509France declares war on Venice
- 1521Inquisitor-General Adrian Boeyens bans Lutheran books
- 1584Ieper surrenders to Duke Van Parma
- 1625Albrecht von Wallenstein appointed German Supreme Commander
- 1645Michael Cardozo becomes 1st Jewish lawyer in Brazil
- 1652Dutch establish settlement at Cape Town, South Africa
- 1655Fabio Chigi replaces Pope Innocent X as Alexander VII
- 17881st settlement in Ohio, at Marietta
- 1798Mississippi Territory organized
- 1818Gen Andrew Jackson conquers St. Marks, Florida from Seminole indians
- 1827English chemist John Walker invents wooden matches
- 1831Dom Pedro abdicates to son, Dom Pedro II crowned Emperor of Brazil
- 1860Grand Duke Frederik I liberalizes laws in Bathe
- 1862Grant defeats Confederates at Battle of Shiloh, Tenn, Island #10 falls
- 1863Battle of Charleston SC, failed Federal fleet attack on Fort Sumter
- 1865Battle of Farmville, Virginia
- 1888Start of Sherlock Holmes adventure "Yellow Face" (BG)
- 1891Nebraska introduces 8 hour work day
- 1901SDAP demands general voting right / abolishing First Chamber
- 1902Texas Oil Company (Texaco) forms
- 1906Act of Algeciras drawn between Moroccan police and banking business
- 19191st parcel of land is purchased for Cleveland Metroparks
- 1922Naval Reserve #3, "Teapot Dome, " leased to Harry F Sinclair
- 19231st brain tumor operation under local anesthetic performed (Beth Israel Hospital in NYC) by Dr K Winfield Ney
- 1923Workers Party of America (NYC) becomes official communist party
- 1926Forest fire burns 900 acres and kills 2 (San Luis Obispo, California)
- 1927Using phone lines TV is sent from Washington DC to New York City
Born on April 7
- 1506Francis Xavier: Saint / Jesuit Missionary to India, Malaya and Japan
- 1534Jose de Anchieta: Spanish Jesuit / Missionary (Brazilian Tupi-Indians)
- 1613Gerard Dou: Dutch painter (Night School)
- 1622Louise Hollandine: Daughter of King Frederik V and Elizabeth Stuart
- 1648Ferdinand van Kessel: Flemish painter
- 1694Coelestin Praelisauer: Composer
- 1699Andreas Benedikt Praelisauer: Composer
- 1727Henri Hardouin: Composer
- 1745Georg Druschetzky: Composer
- 1748Georg Wenzel Ritter: Composer
- 1756Charles Felix: King of Sardina (1821-31)
- 1763Domenico Dragonetti: Composer
- 1768Karl Theodor Toeschi: Composer
- 1770William Wordsworth: England, United Kingdom -- Poet laureate (Prelude)
- 1772F M Charles Fourier: French socialist
- 1775Francis C Lowell: Founded 1st raw cotton-to-cloth textile mill
- 1780William Ellery Channing: United States -- Unitarian clergyman
- 1786William Rufus DeVane King: (D) 13th VP (1853)
- 1801Henry Eagle: Commander (Union Navy), died in 1882
- 1803Flora Tristan: Writer
- 1805Francis Wilkinson Pickens: Governor of South Carolina (Confederacy) died in 1869
- 1819Hubert Leonard: Composer
- 1822Gershom Mott: Major General (Union volunteers)
- 1826Johann Hermann Berens: Composer
- 1841Alfred Cogniaux: Belgian botanicus
- 1841Joseph H "Jozef" Neuhuys: Painter
- 1847J P Jacobsen: Writer
- 1851Otto Adolf Klauwell: Composer
- 1858Adrien H Gerhard: Dutch socialist politician (SDAP)
- 1859Walter Camp: Connecticut, United States -- Father of American football (Yale)
Died on April 7
- 0030Christ: Crucified, according to astronomer Schaefer
- 0924Berengarius I: Emperor of Italy, murdered
- 1444John Capreolus: French Theologist (Libri IV), dies at about 50
- 1524Philip of Burgundy: Bishop of Utrecht
- 1614El Greco: Spanish Painter (View of Toledo)
- 1719Jean-Baptiste de la Salle: French priest / theory / saint, dies at 67
- 1766Tiberius Hemsterhuis: Dutch classicist, dies at 81
- 1767Franz Sparry: Composer, dies at 51
- 1768Michel Mathieu: Composer, dies at 78
- 1778Johann Balthasar Kehl: Composer, dies at 52
- 1783Ignaz Jakob Holzbauer: Composer, dies at 71
- 1789Peter Camper: Anatomist / animal scholar, dies at 66
- 1810Pieter L van de Kasteele: Dutch politician / patriot, dies at 61
- 1833Antoni Henryk Radziwill: Lithuanian / Polish composer, dies at 57
- 1842Henrik A Bjerregaard: Norw writer / Poet (Fjeldeventyret), dies at 50
- 1850William Lisle Bowles: English Poet (14 Sonnets), dies at 87
- 1862Sydney Nelson: Composer, dies at 62
- 1871Alexander: Grandson of English Queen Victoria, dies at 1 day old
- 1871Wilhelm Freiherr von Tegetthoff: Aus Admiral (Helgoland / Lissa), dies at 43
- 1875Georg Herwegh: Writer, dies at 57
- 1877Errico Petrella: Composer, dies at 63
- 1880Diederich Krug: Composer, dies at 58
- 1881Pierre Napoleon Bonaparte: Corsican MP, dies at 65
- 1884Maria van Ackere-Doolaeghe: Flemish Poet (Avondlamp), dies at 80
- 1891Phineas T Barnum: US circus promoter (B & Bailey), dies at 88
- 1917Spyridon Filiskos Samaras: Composer, dies at 53
- 1932Erv A Kelley: US policeman, shot to death by Pretty Boy Floyd
- 1933Jan Erik / Eric Jan Hanussen: Berlin astrologist / illusionist, murdered
- 1934William Monroe Trotter: African, dies on 62nd birthday in Boston
- 1943Jovan Ducic: Serbian Poet (Blue Legends), dies at 72
Events on Apr 8
- 1341Francesco Petrarca crowned in Rome
- 1378Bartolomeo Prignano elected as Pope Urban VI
- 1455Alfonso de Borgia elected as Pope Callistus III
- 1500Battle at Novara: King Louis XII beats Duke Ludovico Sforza
- 1513Explorer Juan Ponce de Leon claimed Florida for Spain
- 17301st Jewish congregation in US forms synagogue, "Shearith Israel, NYC"
- 1759British troops chase French out of Masulipatam India
- 17661st fire escape patented, wicker basket on a pulley and chain
- 1783Catharina II of Russia annexes the Krim
- 1789House of Representives 1st meeting
- 1801Soldiers riot in Bucharest, kill 128 Jews
- 1802French Protestant church becomes state-supported and -controlled
- 1832Charles Darwin begins trip through Rio de Janeiro
- 1838Steamship "Great Western" maiden voyage (Bristol England to NYC)
- 18481st battle at Gioto: Sardinia-Piemonte beats Austrians
- 1848Battle at Xaquixaguana, Peru: Pedro de la Gasca beats Gonzalo Pizarro
- 1861US mint at Dahlonega, Georgia seized by confederacy
- 1862John D Lynde patents aerosol dispenser
- 1864Battle of Mansfield, La Federals routed by General Richard Taylor
- 1865General Robert E Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House in Virginia
- 1869American Museum of Natural History opens (NYC)
- 1879Khedive Ismael of Egypt fires French / British ministers
- 1879Milk was sold in glass bottles for 1st time
- 1893The Critic reports that ice cream soda is our national drink
- 1898Battle of Atbara River, Anglo-Egyptian forces crush 6,000 Sudanese
- 1904Great Britain and France sign Cordial Entente concerning colonial matter
- 1908Lord Asquith succeeds Henry Campbell-Bannerman as British Premier
- 1912Steamers collide in Nile, drowning 200
- 191317th amendment, requiring direct election of senators, ratified
- 1914US and Colombia sign a treaty concerning Panama Canal Zone
Born on Apr 8
- 1533Claudio Merulo: Organist / composer
- 1582Phienas Fletcher: Poet
- 1605Louis de Vadder: Flemish painter
- 1605Philip IV: King of Spain and Portugal (1621-65)
- 1631Cornelis de Heem: Painter
- 1642Gerard Callenbach: Dutch Admiral
- 1655Louis Willem I: Margrave (Baden-Baden)
- 1697Pierre Prowo: Composer
- 1708Georg Zarth: Composer
- 1726Lewis Morris: US farmer (signed Declaration of Independence)
- 1731William Williams: US Merchant (signed Declaration of Independence)
- 1741Jose B da Gama: Portuguese poet (O Uraguai)
- 1756Joseph Gehot: Composer
- 1776Thaddaus Weigl: Composer
- 1783John Claudius: London, England -- Horticulturist
- 1798Dionysios Solomos: Poet
- 1816Frederick William Burton: Painter
- 1818Christaan IX: King of Denmark (1863-1906)
- 1828George Baird Hodge: Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
- 1831Allard Pierson: Dutch theologiost / philosopher / art historian / poet
- 1832Alfred von Waldersee: Prussian Field Marshal
- 1843Asger Hamerik [Hammerich]: Composer
- 1850William Henry Welch: United States -- Pathologist (founded John Hopkins)
- 1859Edmund Husserl: Germany -- Philosopher (founded Phenomenology)
- 1869Harvey Cushing: United States -- Neurosurgeon (blood pressure studies)
- 1875Albert I LCMM von Saksen-Coburg: King of Belgium (1909-34)
- 1878Rudolf Nelson: Composer
- 1880Victor Schertzinger: Composer / director (Uptown NY)
- 1881Fernand Lamy: Composer
- 1885Dimitrios Levidis: Composer
Died on Apr 8
- 0217Caracalla [Marcus Antoniius]: Roman Emperor (198-217), murdered at 29
- 1143John II Comnenus: Emperor of Byzantium (1118-43), dies in an accident
- 1364Jan II [the Good]: King of France (1350-64), dies at 44
- 1537Willem Aerts: Flemish architect
- 1629Willem Teellinck: Dutch Theologist / vicar, dies at 50
- 1736Pedro Vaz Rego: Composer, dies at 63
- 1759Francois de La Croix: Composer, dies at 76
- 1778Pieter Teyler van der Hulst: Dutch founder (Teyler Museum), dies at 76
- 1794Marie-Jean-Antoine-Nicholas-Caritat: Mathematician dies
- 1844Ignaz Franz von Mosel: Composer, dies at 72
- 1848Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti: Italian composer, dies at 50
- 1848Gaetano Donizetti: Composer, dies at 50
- 1851John Parry: Composer, dies at 75
- 1853Jan W Pieneman: Historical Painter (Battle at Waterloo), dies at 73
- 1861Elisha G Otis: US elevator builder (Otis), dies at 50
- 1863Joseph Netherclift: Composer, dies at 70
- 1865John Park: Composer, dies at 61
- 1870Charles-Auguste de Beriot: Belgian violinist / composer, dies at 68
- 1871Charles-Louis Hanssens: Composer, dies at 68
- 1890Junius Morgan: Philanthropist, dies at 76
- 1894Bankim C Chattopadhyaya: Writer (Mrinalini, Anandamath), dies at 55
- 1897George Garrett: Composer, dies at 62
- 1897Heinrich von Stephan: UK politician
- 1902Sipyagain: Russian Minister of Interior / headed Secret Service, assassinated
- 1920Charles Tomlinson Griffes: US Composer (White Peacock), dies at 35
- 1921Earnest von Possart: German actor / stage manager
- 1931Eric Axel Karlfeldt: Poet
- 1935Edwin Cannan: Economist
- 1937Arthur William Foote: US Organist / composer, dies at 84
- 1937William Henry Hadow: Composer (Studies in Modern Music), dies at 77