Events on Apr 23
- 1014King Brian Boru of Ireland beats Danes at Battle of Clontarf
- 1154Damascus surrenders to Sultan Nur ad-Din van Aleppo
- 13481st English order of knighthood founded (Order of Garter)
- 1500Pedro Cabral lands and annexes Brazil (Terra da Vera Cruz)
- 1501Portuguese navigator Pedro Cabral and 6 ships return to Lisbon
- 1504King Maximilian I routes troops to Bavaria
- 1616Netherlands buys De Briel / Vlissingen / Fort Rammekens from England
- 1633Sweden and Protestant German monarchy form Union of Heilbronn
- 1661English King Charles II crowned in London
- 1662Connecticut chartered as an English colony
- 1723Cornelis Steenoven elected Archbishop of Utrecht
- 1789President-elect George Washington moves into Franklin House, New York
- 1795William Hastings acquitted in England of high treason
- 1798Dutch Emperor accepts new Constitution
- 1826Missolonghi captured by Turks
- 1838English steamship "Great Western" crossing Atlantic docks in New York City
- 1851Canada issues its 1st postage stamps
- 1860Democratic Convention in Charleston SC divided over slavery
- 1861Arkansas troops seize Ft Smith
- 1861Battle of San Antonio, Texas
- 1867Queen Victoria and Napoleon III turn down plans for a channel tunnel
- 1871Blossom Rock in SF Bay blown up
- 18781st Dutch test drive of steam tram
- 1883John Heemskerk Azn forms Dutch government
- 1891Jews are expelled from Moscow Russia
- 1896Vitascope system of movie projection 1st demonstrated (NYC)
- 19001st know occurrence of word "hillbillie" (NY Journal)
- 1903New York Highlanders (Yankees) win their 1st game beating Washingston Senators 7-2
- 1904American Academy of Arts and Letters forms
- 1908Denmark, Germany, Engld, France, Netherlands and Sweden signs North Sea accord
Born on Apr 23
- 1464Johanna van Valois: Queen of France
- 1464Robert Fayrfax: Composer
- 1500Alexander Alesius [Aless / Alane]: System theologist / Physician
- 1598Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp: Naval commander
- 1623Jan Adam Reincken: Composer
- 1629John Commelin: Director (Hortus Botanicus, Amsterdam)
- 1649Andreas Kneller: Composer
- 1697George Baron Anson: British Admiral / explorer
- 1708Friedrich von Hagedorn: German poet (Versuch einiger Poem)
- 1715Johann Friedrich Doles: Composer
- 1728Samuel Wallis: Explorer (Wallis Island)
- 1735Ildephons Haas: Composer
- 1747Alexandre-Auguste Robineau: Composer
- 1756Alexander Reinagle: Composer
- 1775Joseph Mallord Turner: England, United Kingdom -- Landscape painter (Shipwreck)
- 1791James Buchanan: Cove Gap, Pennsylvania -- (Fed / Dem), 15th US President (1857-61)
- 1791W Friedrich Olivier: German landscape painter / cartoonist
- 1804Guillaume Nerenburger: Belgian General (Triangulatie of Belgium)
- 1809Eugene-Prosper Prevost: Composer
- 1810Thomas Wright: Historian
- 1812Louis-Antoine Julien: Conductor
- 1813Stephen Arnold Douglas [Little giant]: US senator (Lincoln debates)
- 1818James Anthony Froude: Historian
- 1818John Gill Shorter: Gov (Confederacy), died in 1872
- 1821Pierre Dupont: Song writer
- 1827Johann F Ritter von Schulte: German Catholic lawyer
- 1828Albert FA: King of Saxon (1873-1902)
- 1838Alfred J Verwee: Flemish painter
- 1852Edwin Markham: United States -- Poet (1st winner of the American Academy of poets Award 1937)
- 1861Edmund Henry Hynman: 1st viscount Allenby of Megiddo / Field Marshal
Died on Apr 23
- 0034Christ: Crucified, according to Isaac Newton
- 0303George: Knight / Saint / Patron of England, beheaded
- 0871Ethelred I: King of Wessex / Brother of Alfred the Great
- 0990Ekkehart II [Palatinus]: Monk to St-Gallen / poet
- 0997Vojtech "Adalbert" of Prague: 2nd Bishop of Prague / apostle, dies at 40
- 1014Brian Boru: King of Ireland, dies in battle at 87
- 1014Sweyn Forkbeard: Viking King of England (1013-14)
- 1016Aethelbred II "the Unready": King of England (979-1016)
- 1416Blaise / Blasius of Parma: Ital astrologist / philosopher / algebra
- 1616Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra: Spanish writer (Don Quixote), dies at 69
- 1616William Shakesphere: Engl Author (Hamlet), dies on his 52nd birthday
- 1625Maurice of Nassau: Prince of Orange, dies at 57
- 1670Loreto Vittori: Composer, dies at 69
- 1695Henry Vaughan: Poet (Silex Scintillans), dies at 72
- 1728Tomas de Torrejon y Velasco: Composer, dies at 83
- 1732Cajetan Kolberer: Composer, dies at 63
- 1740Thomas Tickell: Poet
- 1742Mihael Omerza: Composer, dies at 62
- 1762Johann Samuel Endler: Composer, dies at 67
- 1774Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich: Painter
- 1786Alexander Cozens: English water colors painter, dies at about 68
- 1812Franz Sebastian Haindl: Composer, dies at 85
- 1827Johanna C Wattier-Ziesenis: Actress (Phaedra / Lady MacBeth), dies at 65
- 1847Erik Gustaf Geijer: Composer, dies at 64
- 1850William Wordsworth: Poet, dies at 80
- 1853Auguste Laurent: Chemist
- 1865James Dearing: US Confederate Brigadier General, dies at 24
- 1878Friedrich Preller: Landscape painter
- 1880Guess Saleh [Sarief Bastaman]: Javanese painter
- 1885William Henry Holmes: Composer, dies at 73
Historical events on April 24
- 0858Nicolaas I succeeds Benedict III as pope
- 1288Jews of Yroyes France are accused of ritual murder
- 1311Gen Malik Kafur returns to Delhi after campaign in South India
- 1364Pope Urbabus V names John V van Virneburg as Bishop of Utrecht
- 1524Duke of Bourbon drives Admiral Bonnivet out of Milan
- 1558Queen Mary Stuart of Scotland marries French crown Prince Francois
- 1570Battles between Spanish troops and followers of Sultan Suleiman
- 1596Pacificatie of Ireland drawn
- 1704"Boston News-Letter, " 1st successful newspaper in US, forms
- 1792"La Marseillaise" composed by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle
- 1800Library of Congress establishes with $5,000 allocation
- 1833Jacob Evert and George Dulty patent soda fountain
- 1833Patent granted for 1st soda fountain
- 1865Fire alarm and police telegraph system put into operation (San Francisco)
- 1867Black demonstrators stage ride-ins on Richmond Va streetcars
- 1871Opera "Aida" is produced (Cairo)
- 1872Volcano Vesuvius erupts
- 1877Last federal occupying troops withdraw from south (New Orleans)
- 1877Russia declares war on Turkey through Romania
- 1884National Medical Association of Black physicians organizes (Atlanta)
- 1888Eastman Kodak forms
- 1891Start of Sherlock Holmes adventure "Final Problem"
- 1894French cyclist Henri Desgrange rides 100km in world record 2:39:18
- 1894Phillies Lave Cross hits for cycle vs. Brooklyn Dodgers
- 1895Joshua Slocum completes around-the-world voyage in 11-m boat
- 18971st reporter, William Price (Washington Star), assigned to White House
- 1898Spain declares war on US rejecting ultimatum to withdraw from Cuba
- 1898US fleet under commodore Dewey sails from Hong Kong to Philippines
- 1899Transvaal British Uitlanders ask Queen Victoria for aid
- 1900Passing of Andrew Halliday, cable car pioneer
Born on April 24
- 1538Gugliemo Gonzaga: Composer
- 1594Benedikt Lechler: Composer
- 1620John Graunt: Statistician, founder of science of demography
- 1660Cornelis Dusart: Dutch painter / engraver
- 1670Christian Ludwig Boxberg: Composer
- 1706Giovanni Battista Martini: Composer
- 1721Johann Philipp Kirnberger: German composer, baptised
- 1742Roman Hoffstetter: Composer
- 1743Edmund Cartwright: England, United Kingdom -- Cleric, inventor (power loom)
- 1750Simon-Antoine-Jean Lhuillier: Switzerland -- Mathematician
- 1773Harman W Muntinghe: Lawyer / Dutch colonial director
- 1791Nikolaj A Bestuzhev: Russia -- Writer / painter (Account about Holland)
- 1796K L Immermann: Writer
- 1804Thomas Oliver Selfridge: Comm (Union Navy)
- 1807Charles Ferguson Smith: Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1862
- 1814Angela Burdett-Coutts: Philanthropist extrordinaire
- 1815Anthony Trollope: England, United Kingdom -- Novelist / poet (Barchester Towers)
- 1815James Edward Harrison: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1875
- 1822Erastus Barnard Tyler: Bvt Major General (Union volunteers)
- 1824Fournier: Swiss / French postage stamp forger
- 1828Robert Brank Vance: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1899
- 1829George Peabody Estey: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1881
- 1836Jeltje de Bosch Kemper: Dutch feminist
- 1837Friedrich von Holstein: German diplomat (die graue Eminenz)
- 1845Carl Spitteler: Switzerland -- Poet (Prometheus & Epimetheus; Nobel 1919)
- 1864George AA Alting van Geusau: Director-General (PTT) / Dutch Minister of War (1918-20)
- 1867Fannie Thomas: Became oldest known American (113 y 273 d at death)
- 1874John Russell Pope: United States -- Architect (Jefferson Memorial)
- 1874Willem E Roelofs: Dutch painter / cartoonist
- 1875Jeno Huszka: Composer
Died on April 24
- 0709Wilfried: Bishop of York, dies at about 76
- 0729Egbert[us]: English Bishop / saint, dies in Iona at 89
- 1077Geza I: King of Hungary (1074-7)
- 1185Antoku Taira: Emperor of Japan (1180-85), drowns
- 1530Jacopo Sannazaro: Italian Poet (De partu Virginis)
- 1617Carlo Concino: French Marquis of Ancre / state advisor, murdered
- 1731Daniel Defoe: English Novelist (Robinson Crusoe)
- 1758Florian Wrastill: Composer, dies at 41
- 1776Carolus van de Abeele: Flemish Jesuit, dies at 84
- 1776Giuseppi Paolucci: Composer, dies at 49
- 1824Herman Muntinghe: Theologist (History of Mankind), dies at 71
- 1827Pierre Joseph Candielle: Composer, dies at 82
- 1850Louis Alexandre Piccinni: Composer, dies at 70
- 1855Walenty Karol Kratzer: Composer, dies at 75
- 1875Jose Maria de la Purificacion Ventura: Composer, dies at 58
- 1891Count Helmuth K B von Moltke: Prussian General / Field Marshal
- 1900George J D Campbell: British Minister of Indies (1868-74, 80-85), dies at 76
- 1904Friedrich Siemens: German industrial, dies at 77
- 1917Oskar Blumenthal: Writer
- 1922Richard Batka: Composer, dies at 53
- 1928Ferdinand B Hummel: Composer, dies at 72
- 1935Paul Klengel: Composer, dies at 80
- 1936Alphons Diepenbrock: Composer, dies at 73
- 1936Bernard van Dieren: Composer, dies at 51
- 1939John Foulds: Composer, dies at 58
- 1943Gerardus H de Hare: Socialist vicar, dies at 63
- 1945Anton de Kom: Suriname resistance fighter, dies at 47
- 1945Hubert Bath: Composer, dies at 61
- 1948Joseph Wihtol: Composer, dies at 84
- 1948Manuel Marua Ponce: Mexican Composer (Ferial), dies at 65
Events on Apr 25
- 1185Sea battle at Dan-no-ura: Minamoto Yoritomo beats Taira-family
- 1449Anti-pope Felix V resigns
- 1507Geographer Martin Waldseemuller 1st used name America
- 1607Battle at Gibraltar: Dutch fleet beats Spanish / Portuguese fleet
- 1614Amsterdam Bank of Loan forms
- 1626Battle at the Dessauer bridge: Monarch Albrecht von Wallenstein beats Earl of Mansfeld
- 1660London Convention Parliament begins
- 1660Parliament meets and votes to restore Charles II
- 1678French troops conquer Ypres
- 1684Patent granted for thimble
- 1707Battle of Almansa-Franco-Spanish forces defeat Anglo-Portuguese
- 1719Daniel Defoes publishes "Robinson Crusoe"
- 1747Prince Willem V appointed Viceroy of Zealand
- 1792Guillotine 1st used, executes highwayman Nicolas J Pelletier
- 1850Paul Julius Reuter, use 40 pigeons to carry stock market prices
- 1859Ground broken for Suez Canal
- 18617th New York arrives to reinforce Washington, DC
- 1861Battle of Lavaca, Texas
- 1862Battle of New Orleans LA - US Admiral Farragut occupies New Orleans
- 1867Tokyo opens for foreign trade
- 1875Latest date for measurable snow in NYC (3")
- 1876Chicago Cubs 1st NL game, beats Louisville 4-0 (1st NL shutout)
- 1881250,000 Germans petition to bar foreign Jews from entering Germany
- 1881French troops occupy Algeria and Tunisia
- 1886Sigmund Freud opens practice at Rathausstrasse 7, Vienna
- 1891President Benjamin Harrison visits San Francisco
- 1896Fight in Central Dance Hall starts fire (Cripple Creek Colorado)
- 1896Sidney Jones and Harry Greenbacks musical premieres in London
- 1898US declares war on Spain over Cuba
- 1901In last of 9th, Detroit Tigers, trailing by 13-4, score 10 runs to win one of greatest comebacks in baseball (1st game in Detroit)
Born on Apr 25
- 1214Louis IX: King of France (1226-70)
- 1228Koenraad IV: Roman Catholic German King (1237-54)
- 1284Edward II: King of England (1307-27)
- 1567Aurelio Signoretti: Composer
- 1599Oliver Cromwell: Puritan lord protector of England (1653-58)
- 1614Hieronymus van Beverningk: Chief Dutch treasurer / maecenas
- 1666Johann Heinrich Buttstett: Composer
- 1677Guillaume Coustou, Sr.: French sculptor (Chevaux the Marly)
- 1690Gottlieb Theophil Muffat: Composer
- 1710James Ferguson: Astronomer
- 1723Giovanni Marco Rutini: Composer
- 1730Fedele Fenaroli: Composer
- 1769Mark Isambard Brunel: Engineer / inventor
- 1792John Keble: Anglican priest / founder (Oxford Movement)
- 1818Marek Konrad Sokolowski: Composer
- 1824Gustave-Rodolphe-Clarence Boulanger: Painter
- 1825Charles Ferdinand Dowd: United States -- Standardized time zones
- 1837William Charles Levey: Composer
- 1840James Dearing: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1865
- 1841Pauline Lucca: Soprano
- 1842Antonio Fogazzarro: Italian writer / poet (Il santo / Leila)
- 1849Felix Klein: German mathematician (Evanston Colloquium)
- 1862Edward Grey: English Viscount of Fallodon / Minister of Foreign Affairs
- 1867Jean Demoor: Belgian Physician / physiologist
- 1869Karl Prohaska: Composer
- 1871Sara Amsel: Indonesian / Dutch actress
- 1876Ruben Marcos Campos: Composer
- 1881Hans Windisch: German new testament expert
- 1883Elsa Maxwell: Keokuk, Iowa -- Writer (Jack Paar Show)
- 1895Stanley Rous: British soccer official
Died on Apr 25
- 0974Ratherius of Verona / Liege: Bishop / abbot, dies at about 84
- 1342Benedict XII [Jacques Fournier]: Pope (1334-42)
- 1472Leon Battista degli Alberti: Scupltor / musician (Dinner Pieces)
- 1482Margaret of Anjou: Queen (Henry VI)
- 1566Diane de Poitiers: Lover of French King Henry II
- 1595Torquato Tasso: Italian Poet / playwright, dies at 51
- 1607Don Juan Alvarez: Spanish Admiral (Gibraltar), dies in battle
- 1607Jacob van Heemskerck: Dutch Admiral (Nova Zambia), dies in battle
- 1635Alessandro Tassoni: Ital political writer (Rape of Bucket), dies at 69
- 1647Matthias Gallas: Austrian Earl of Campo / Duke of Lucerna, dies at 62
- 1663Heinrich Pape: Composer, dies at 53
- 1690David Teniers the Younger: Flemish Painter (Pictorium), dies at 79
- 1728John Woodward: Geologist / physician
- 1744Anders Celsius: Swed astronomer (Centegrade Thermometer), dies at 42
- 1792Johann Friedrich Gottlieb Beckmann: Composer, dies at 54
- 1792Nicolas J Pelletier: Frenchman, 1st guillotined
- 1800William Cowper: English lawyer / Poet (Olney Hymns), dies at 68
- 1808Alois Luigi Tomasini: Composer, dies at 66
- 1822Frederick "William" Herschel: German / British astronomer, dies at 83
- 1828John Goldberg: Dutch patriot / statesman, dies at 64
- 1845Thomas Duncan: Painter
- 1853William Beaumont: Physiologist
- 1862Charles Ferguson Smith: US Union General Major, dies of infection at 55
- 1873Walter de la Mare: Engl Poet / Author (Behold the Dreamer), dies at 43
- 1905Jacob Olie: Dutch photographer, dies at about 70
- 1906John Knowles Paine: US composer, dies at 67
- 1925George Stephanescu: Composer, dies at 81
- 1926Ellen K S Key: Swed Author / feminist (Century of the Child), dies at 76
- 1928Pjotr N Wrangel: Russian Baron General, dies at 49
- 1937Clem Sohn: Air show performer dies at 26 when his chute fails to open