Events
753 BC – Romulus and Remus founded Rome (traditional date).
Faustulus (to the right of picture) discovers Romulus and Remus with the she-wolf and woodpecker. Their mother Rhea Silvia and the river-god Tiberinus witness the moment. Painting by Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1616 (Capitoline Museums).
900 AD – The Laguna Copperplate Inscription: the Honourable Namwaran and his children, Lady Angkatan and Bukah, are granted pardon from all their debts by the Commander and Chief of Tundun, as represented by the Honourable Jayadewa, Lord Minister of Pailah. Luzon, Philippines.
1509 – Henry VIII ascends the throne of England on the death of his father, Henry VII.
1519 – Hernán Cortés lands in Veracruz, Veracruz
1792 – Tiradentes, a revolutionary leading a movement for Brazil's independence, is hanged, drawn and quartered.
1809 – Two Austrian army corps are driven from Landshut by a First French Empire army led by Napoleon I of France as two French corps to the north hold off the main Austrian army on the first day of the Battle of Eckmühl.
1836 – Texas Revolution: The Battle of San Jacinto – Republic of Texas forces under Sam Houston defeat troops under Mexican General Antonio López de Santa Anna.
1863 – Bahá'u'lláh, considered the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, declares his mission as "He whom God shall make manifest".
1894 – Norway formally adopts the Krag-Jørgensen rifle as the main arm of its armed forces, a weapon that would remain in service for almost 50 years.
1898 – Spanish-American War: The U.S. Congress, on April 25, recognizes that a state of war exists between the United States and Spain as of this date.
1918 – World War I: German fighter ace Manfred von Richthofen, known as "The Red Baron", is shot down and killed over Vaux-sur-Somme in France.
Richthofen wears the Pour le Mérite, the "Blue Max", Prussia's highest military order in this official portrait, c. 1917
1922 – The first Aggie Muster is held as a remembrance for fellow Texas A&M graduates who had died in the previous year.
1941 – Emmanouil Tsouderos becomes the 132nd Prime Minister of Greece.
1942 – World War II: The most famous (and first international) Aggie Muster is held on the Philippine island of Corregidor, by Brigadier General George F. Moore (with 25 fellow Texas A&M graduates who are under his command), while 1.8 million pounds of shells pounded the island over a 5 hour attack.
1945 – World War II: Soviet Union forces south of Berlin at Zossen attack the German High Command headquarters.
Soldiers celebrate the fall of Berlin by hoisting the Red Flag over the ruined Reichstag
1952 – Secretary's Day (now Administrative Professionals' Day) is first celebrated.1960 – Brasília, Brazil's capital, is officially inaugurated. At 9:30 am the Three Powers of the Republic are simultaneously transferred from the old capital, Rio de Janeiro.
1960 – Founding of the Orthodox Bahá'í Faith in Washington, D.C.
1962 – The Seattle World's Fair (Century 21 Exposition) opens. It is the first World's Fair in the United States since World War II.
The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a World's Fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962 in Seattle, Washington, USA. Nearly ten million people
attended the fair. Unlike some other World's Fairs of its era, Century 21 ran a profit.
attended the fair. Unlike some other World's Fairs of its era, Century 21 ran a profit.
1964 – A Transit-5bn satellite fails to reach orbit after launch; as it re-enters the atmosphere, 2.1 pounds of radioactive plutonium in its SNAP RTG power source is widely dispersed.
1965 – The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair opens for its second and final season.
1966 – Rastafari movement: Haile Selassie of Ethiopia visits Jamaica, an event now celebrated as Grounation Day.
1967 – Greek military junta of 1967–1974: A few days before the general election in Greece, Colonel George Papadopoulos leads a coup d'état, establishing a military regime that lasts for seven years.
1970 – The Hutt River Province Principality secedes from Australia.
1975 – Vietnam War: President of South Vietnam Nguyen Van Thieu flees Saigon, as Xuan Loc, the last South Vietnamese outpost blocking a direct North Vietnamese assault on Saigon, falls.
1982 – Baseball: Rollie Fingers of the Milwaukee Brewers becomes the first pitcher to record 300 saves.
Roland Glen Fingers (born August 25, 1946) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher. During his 18-year baseball career, he pitched for the Oakland Athletics (1968–76), San Diego Padres (1977–80) and Milwaukee Brewers (1981–85). He became only the second reliever to be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992. Fingers is also one of only a few MLB players to have his number retired by more than one club (Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers).
1989 – Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989: In Beijing, around 100,000 students gather in Tiananmen Square to commemorate Chinese reform leader Hu Yaobang.
1993 – The Supreme Court in La Paz, Bolivia, sentences former dictator Luis Garcia Meza to 30 years in jail without parole for murder, theft, fraud and violating the constitution.
1994 – The first discoveries of extrasolar planets are announced by astronomer Alexander Wolszczan.
An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet outside the Solar System. There are 544 candidate extra-solar planets that have been identified as of April 19, 2011. Planet Fomalhaut b (inset against Fomalhaut's interplanetary dust cloud) imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope's coronagraph (NASA photo)
Births
1555 – Ludovico Carracci, Italian painter (d. 1619)
The Lamentation (ca. 1582), Oil on canvas, 95 x 173 cm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
1651 – Blessed Joseph Vaz, Apostle of Ceylon (d. 1711)
1652 – Michel Rolle, French mathematician (d. 1719)
1671 – John Law, Scottish economist (d. 1729)
1673 – Wilhelmina Amalia of Brunswick, Holy Roman Empire Empress (d. 1742)
Wilhelmine Amalia of Brunswick-Lüneburg (21 April 1673 – 10 April 1742) was a Holy Roman Empress as the wife of Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor.
1713 – Louis, 4th duc de Noailles, Marshal of France (d. 1793)
Louis de Noailles, 4ème duc de Noailles (21 April 1713 at Versailles – 22 August 1793 in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France) was a French noble.
1729 – Catherine II of Russia, known as 'Catherine the Great' (d. 1796)
Catherine II (Russian: Екатерина II Великая, Yekaterina II Velikaya), also known as Catherine the Great (German: Katharina die Große), was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on 2 May [O.S. 21 April] 1729 as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg. She reigned as Empress of Russia from 9 July [O.S. 28 June] 1762 after the assassination of her husband, Peter III, just after the end of the Seven Years' War until her death on 17 November [O.S. 6 November] 1796.
Under her direct auspices the Russian Empire expanded, improved its administration, and continued to modernize along Western European lines. Catherine's rule re-vitalized Russia, which grew stronger than ever and became recognized as one of the great powers of Europe. She had successes in foreign policy and oversaw sometimes brutal reprisals in the wake of rebellion (most notably Pugachev's Rebellion).
Under her direct auspices the Russian Empire expanded, improved its administration, and continued to modernize along Western European lines. Catherine's rule re-vitalized Russia, which grew stronger than ever and became recognized as one of the great powers of Europe. She had successes in foreign policy and oversaw sometimes brutal reprisals in the wake of rebellion (most notably Pugachev's Rebellion).
1767 – Elisabeth of Württemberg, Archduchess of Austria (d. 1790)
1774 – Jean-Baptiste Biot, French physicist (d. 1862)
1775 – Alexander Anderson, American illustrator (d. 1870)
1810 – John Putnam Chapin, American politician (d. 1864)
1811 – Alson Sherman, American politician (d. 1903)
1814 – Angela Georgina Burdett-Coutts, English philanthropist (d. 1906)
1816 – Charlotte Brontë, English author (d. 1855)
Charlotte Brontë 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855) was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë sisters, whose novels are English literature standards. She wrote Jane Eyre under the pen name Currer Bell.
1837 – Fredrik Bajer, Danish politician, Nobel laureate (d. 1922)
1838 – John Muir, Scottish environmentalist (d. 1914)
1851 – Charles Barrois, French geologist (d. 1939)
1854 – William Stang, Roman Catholic Bishop (d. 1907)
1864 – Max Weber, German economist and sociologist (d. 1920)
Karl Emil Maximilian "Max" Weber 21 April 1864 – 14 June 1920) was a German sociologist and political economist who profoundly influenced social theory, social research and the discipline of sociology itself. Weber's major works dealt with the rationalisation and "disenchantment" he associated with the rise of capitalism and modernity.Georg Simmel, a central figure in the establishment of methodological antipositivism, which presents sociology as a non-empiricist field which must study social action through interpretive means based upon understanding the meaning and purpose that individuals attach to their own actions. He is typically cited, with Émile Durkheim and Karl Marx, as one of the three principal architects of modern social science. Weber was, along with his associate
1870 – Edwin S. Porter, American film pioneer (d. 1941)
1879 – Kartini, Indonesian national figure (d. 1904)
1882 – Percy Williams Bridgman, American physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1961)
1887 – Joe McCarthy, American baseball manager (d. 1978)
1889 – Paul Karrer, Swiss chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1971)
1898 – Maurice Wilson, Everest climber, Yorkshire hero (d. 1934)
1904 – Odilo Globocnik, Austrian Nazi (d. 1945)
1905 – Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, Governor of California (d. 1996)
1907 – Wade Mainer, American singer and banjoist
1911 – Ivan Combe, American inventor (d. 2000)
1912 – Marcel Camus, French film director (d. 1982)
1914 – Norman Panama, American screenwriter (d. 2003)
1915 – Anthony Quinn, Mexican-born American actor (d. 2001)
Anthony Quinn (April 21, 1915 – June 3, 2001) was a Mexican-American actor, as well as a painter and writer. He starred in numerous critically acclaimed and commercially successful films, including Zorba the Greek, Lawrence of Arabia, The Guns of Navarone, The Message , " Lion of the Desert" and Federico Fellini's La strada. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor twice; for Viva Zapata! in 1952 and Lust for Life in 1956.
1915 – Garrett Hardin, American ecologist (d. 2003)
1918 – Eddy Christiani, Dutch singer and guitarist
1919 – Don Cornell, American singer (d. 2004)
1920 – Edmund Adamkiewicz, German footballer (d. 1991)
1920 – Ronald Magill, British actor (d. 2007)
1923 – John Mortimer, English barrister and writer (d. 2009)
1924 – Ira Louvin, Country music singer, songwriter, and musician (d. 1965)
1925 – Sir Anthony Mason, former Chief Justice of Australia
1926 – Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, born 21 April 1926) is the constitutional monarch of sixteen independent sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. In addition, as Head of the Commonwealth, she is the figurehead of the 54-member Commonwealth of Nations and, as the British monarch, she is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.
1926 – Arthur Rowley, English footballer (d. 2002)
1927 – Gerald Flood, British actor (d. 1989)
1930 – Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (d. 1989)
1932 – Elaine May, American comedian
1935 – Charles Grodin, American actor
Charles Grodin (born April 21, 1935) is an American actor, comedian, author and former cable talk show host.
1935 – Thomas Kean, American politician
1936 – James Dobson, American evangelist
1939 – Helen Prejean, American author and activist
1944 – Adrian Hurley, Australian basketball coach
1945 – Diana Darvey, British actress, singer and dancer (d. 2000)
1947 – Iggy Pop, American musician (The Stooges)
Iggy Pop (born James Newell "Jim" Osterberg, Jr.; April 21, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and occasional actor. He is considered an influential innovator of punk rock, hard rock, and other styles of rock music. Pop began calling himself "Iggy" after his first band in high school (for which he was drummer), The Iguanas. He was lead singer/songwriter of influential protopunk band The Stooges and became known for his outrageous and unpredictable stage antics.
1947 – John Weider, British rock musician (Eric Burdon and the Animals, Family)
1948 – Gary Condit, American politician
1948 – Paul Davis, American singer (d. 2008)
1949 – Patti LuPone, American singer and actress
1951 – Tony Danza, American actor and comedian
1951 – Michael Hartley Freedman, American mathematician
1951 – Steve Vickers, Canadian hockey player
1954 – James Morrison, American actor
1954 – Ebiet G. Ade, Indonesian singer
1956 – Phillip Longman, American demographer
1957 – Edward Leslie, American professional wrestler
Edward Harrison "Ed" Leslie (born April 21, 1957) is an American professional wrestler, best known for his work in the World Wrestling Federation under the ring name Brutus The Barber Beefcake. He later worked for World Championship Wrestling under a variety of names, mainly as "The Disciple" of real-life best friend Hulk Hogan. He is a former WWF World Tag Team Champion. He was part of the Hulkamania Let The Battle Begin Tour in late 2009 which toured throughout Australia, including Perth and Sydney.
1958 – Andie MacDowell, American actress
Rosalie Anderson "Andie" MacDowell (born April 21, 1958) is an American model and actress. She has received the Golden Camera and an Honorary César.
1958 – Yoshito Usui, Japanese manga artist
1958 – Michael Zarnock, American author and columnist
1959 – Jerry Only, American musician (The Misfits)
1959 – Robert Smith, British musician (The Cure)
1959 – Michael Timmins, Canadian musician (Cowboy Junkies)
1959 – Tim Jacobus, American artist (Goosebumps)
1960 – Michel Goulet, Canadian ice hockey player
1962 – Les Lancaster, American baseball player
1963 – Ken Caminiti, American baseball player (d. 2004)
1963 – Roy Dupuis, Canadian actor
1963 – John Cameron Mitchell, American film director
1964 – Alex Baumann, Canadian Olympic swimmer
1964 – Ludmila Engquist, Russian-born Swedish athlete
Ludmila Engquist (Lyudmila Viktorovna Narozhilenko, née Leonowa, Russian: Людмила Викторовна Нарожиленко-Леонова, born April 21, 1964 in Tambov Oblast, Russia) is a former Soviet/Russian/Swedish athlete who competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics (for the Soviet Union), in the 1992 Summer Olympics (for the Unified Team), and in the 1996 Summer Olympics (for Sweden).
1965 – Ed Belfour, Canadian ice hockey player
1965 – Karen Foster, American model (Playboy)
Karen Foster (born April 21, 1965 in Lufkin, Texas) is an American model and actress. She was chosen as Playboy's Playmate of the Month for October, 1989.
1965 – Fiona Kelleghan, American academic and critic
1966 – Michael Franti, American musician
1969 – Toby Stephens, British actor
1969 – Robin Meade, American news anchor
1970 – Glen Hansard, Irish songwriter and actor
1970 – Rob Riggle, American comedian
1970 – Nicole Sullivan, American actress
1971 – Alexander Kravchenko, Russian poker player
Alexander Kravchenko (Russian: Александр Кравченко, born April 21, 1971 in Arkhangelsk, Soviet Union) is a professional poker player based in Moscow, Russia. He started playing poker in 1997. In the 2007 World Series of Poker, he cashed six times, including finishing fourth at the Main Event and the $1,500 Limit Omaha Hi/Lo event where he won a WSOP bracelet. Kravchenko had some other notable cashes in 2007, including making the final table (finishing fifth) in the inaugural World Series of Poker Europe tournament, a £2,500 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. event, as well as finishing 3rd in the Moscow Millions, which featured the largest ever prizepool for a tournament held in Russia.
1971 – Michael Turner, American comic book artist (d. 2008)
1971 – Eric Mabius, American actor
1972 – Gwendal Peizerat, French ice dancer
1972 – Severina Vučković, Croatian singer
1973 – Jonathan Nsenga, Belgian athlete
1975 – Tha Trademarc, American hip hop artist
1976 – Rommel Adducul, Filipino basketball player
1977 – Doseone, American rapper
1977 – Jamie Salé, Canadian figure skater
1978 – Jacob Burns, Australian footballer
1978 – Jukka Nevalainen, Finnish drummer (Nightwish)
1978 – Branden Steineckert, American drummer (Rancid, The Used)
1979 – James McAvoy, Scottish actor
1979 – Tobias Linderoth, Swedish footballer
1980 – Jeff Keppinger, American baseball player
1980 – Vincent Lecavalier, Canadian hockey player
1980 – Tony Romo, American football player
1980 – Martin Rosete, Spanish film director and publicist
1981 – Stephanie Larimore, American model
1982 – Carnell Williams, American football player
1983 – Paweł Brożek, Polish footballer
1983 – Tarvaris Jackson, American football player
1984 – Shayna Fox, American voice actress
1986 – Audra Cohen, American tennis player
1986 – Alexander Edler, Swedish hockey player
1986 – Rodney Stuckey, American basketball player
1986 – Mirko Valdifiori, Italian footballer
1987 – Nadif Chowdhury, Bangladeshi cricketer
1987 – Eric Devendorf, American basketball player
1988 – Robbie Amell, Canadian actor
1988 – Pedro Mosquera Parada, Spanish footballer
2007 – Princess Isabella of Denmark
Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat (born 21 April 2007), is a member of the Danish Royal Family. She is the daughter of Crown Prince Frederik and his wife, the Australian-born Crown Princess Mary.
She is the fourth grandchild and oldest granddaughter of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and her husband, Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark. She is the first girl born into the Danish royal family since the birth of her grand-aunt, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, in 1946.
The Princess is third in line to the Danish throne, after her father and her older brother, Prince Christian. Until her name was announced at her christening, she was referred to as "Lillepigen" by her parents and the Danish media, an affectionate nickname meaning 'the little girl'.
She is the fourth grandchild and oldest granddaughter of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and her husband, Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark. She is the first girl born into the Danish royal family since the birth of her grand-aunt, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, in 1946.
The Princess is third in line to the Danish throne, after her father and her older brother, Prince Christian. Until her name was announced at her christening, she was referred to as "Lillepigen" by her parents and the Danish media, an affectionate nickname meaning 'the little girl'.
Deaths
866 – Bardas, Byzantine noble and minister (b. unknown)
The murder of Bardas before Michael III, from the Madrid Skylitzes
Bardas (Greek: Βάρδας; died 21 April 866) was a Byzantine noble and high-ranking minister. As the brother of Empress Theodora, he rose to high office under Theophilos (r. 829–842). Although sidelined after Theophilos' death by Theodora and Theoktistos, in 856 he engineered Theoktistos' fall and became the regent for his nephew, Michael III (r. 842–867). Rising to the rank of Caesar, he was the effective ruler of the Empire for ten years, a period which saw military success, renewed diplomatic and missionary activity and an intellectual revival that heralded the Macedonian Renaissance. He was assassinated in 866 at the instigation of Michael III's new favourite, Basil the Macedonian, who a year later would usurp the throne for himself and install his own dynasty on the Byzantine throne.
Alexander II (died April 21, 1073), born Anselmo da Baggio, was Pope from 1061 to 1073.
1109 – Anselm of Canterbury, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1033)
1142 – Pierre Abélard, French writer (b. 1079)
1329 – Frederick IV, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1282)
1509 – King Henry VII of England (b. 1457)
Henry VII (Welsh: Harri Tudur; 28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor.
Henry won the throne when he defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of England to win his throne on the field of battle. He was successful in restoring the power and stability of the English monarchy after the political upheavals of the Wars of the Roses. He founded a long-lasting dynasty and was peacefully succeeded by his son, Henry VIII, after a reign of 23 years.
Henry won the throne when he defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of England to win his throne on the field of battle. He was successful in restoring the power and stability of the English monarchy after the political upheavals of the Wars of the Roses. He founded a long-lasting dynasty and was peacefully succeeded by his son, Henry VIII, after a reign of 23 years.
1551 – Oda Nobuhide, Japanese warlord (b. 1510)
1557 – Petrus Apianus, German mathematician (b. 1495)
1574 – Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1519)
Cosimo I de' Medici (12 June 1519 – 21 April 1574) was Duke of Florence from 1537 to 1574, reigning as the first Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1569.
1699 – Jean Racine, French dramatist (b. 1639)
1701 – Asano Naganori, Japanese warlord (b. 1667)
1719 – Philippe de la Hire, French mathematician and historian (b. 1640)
1720 – Antoine Hamilton, French writer (b. 1646)
1722 – Robert Beverley, Jr., historian of Colonial Virginia (b. 1673)
1792 – Tiradentes, Brazilian revolutionary (b. 1746)
1815 – Joseph Winston, U.S. Congressman from North Carolina (b. 1746)
1825 – Johann Friedrich Pfaff, German mathematician (b. 1765)
1852 – Ivan Nabokov, Russian general (b. 1787)
Ivan Aleksandrovich Nabokov (Russian: Иван Александрович Набоков) (11 March 1787 – 21 April 1852) was a Russian Adjutant general and general of infantry prominent during the Napoleonic wars.
Nabokov came from an old noble family based in the Novgorod governorate, where his father general Alexander Nabokov was a landowner. In 1806 after leaving the Page Corps he joined the Leib-Guard Semyonovsky Regiment as lieutenant and participated in the foreign campaigns of the Russian Army against Napoleon. For the military valour shown in the Battle of Friedland, he was awarded with a gold sword with an inscription for bravery and obtained the rank of captain.
He distinguished himself at Borodino (for this battle he was awarded with Order of St. Anna of 2nd degree), Lützen (was awarded with Order of St. Vladimir of 3rd degree), Bautzen, Kulm, Leipzig and other engagements.
On 15 September 1814 he was elevated to Major General for the prowess in the Battle of Kulm and became the chief of Sevsky Infantry Regiment (September 28). With this regiment he took part in the battles of Bar-sur-Aube, Laon, Craonne, Arcis-sur-Aube, in which he was sustained a head wound. For the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube he received the Order of St. Anna of 1st degree.
Between 1816 and 1848 Nabokov commanded different military units. He was lieutenant-general from 22 September 1828 and Adjutant general from 1 February 1844.
After the dismissal on 20 December 1848, he was appointed a member of the Military Council. At the same time he administered the Chesma Hospital and commanded the Peter and Paul Fortress.
Ivan Nabokov died 21 April 1852 in Saint Petersburg and was buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress, near Peter and Paul Cathedral. His brother Nikolay was a progenitor of the novelist Vladimir Nabokov.
Nabokov came from an old noble family based in the Novgorod governorate, where his father general Alexander Nabokov was a landowner. In 1806 after leaving the Page Corps he joined the Leib-Guard Semyonovsky Regiment as lieutenant and participated in the foreign campaigns of the Russian Army against Napoleon. For the military valour shown in the Battle of Friedland, he was awarded with a gold sword with an inscription for bravery and obtained the rank of captain.
He distinguished himself at Borodino (for this battle he was awarded with Order of St. Anna of 2nd degree), Lützen (was awarded with Order of St. Vladimir of 3rd degree), Bautzen, Kulm, Leipzig and other engagements.
On 15 September 1814 he was elevated to Major General for the prowess in the Battle of Kulm and became the chief of Sevsky Infantry Regiment (September 28). With this regiment he took part in the battles of Bar-sur-Aube, Laon, Craonne, Arcis-sur-Aube, in which he was sustained a head wound. For the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube he received the Order of St. Anna of 1st degree.
Between 1816 and 1848 Nabokov commanded different military units. He was lieutenant-general from 22 September 1828 and Adjutant general from 1 February 1844.
After the dismissal on 20 December 1848, he was appointed a member of the Military Council. At the same time he administered the Chesma Hospital and commanded the Peter and Paul Fortress.
Ivan Nabokov died 21 April 1852 in Saint Petersburg and was buried in the Peter and Paul Fortress, near Peter and Paul Cathedral. His brother Nikolay was a progenitor of the novelist Vladimir Nabokov.
1863 – Sir Robert Bateson, 1st Baronet, Irish nobility (b. 1782)
1868 – Henry James O'Farrell, Australian would-be assassin of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh
1910 – Mark Twain, American author and humorist (b. 1835)
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist. He is most noted for his novels, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), the latter often called "the Great American Novel."
1918 – Manfred von Richthofen, German pilot (b. 1892)
Richthofen wears the Pour le Mérite, the "Blue Max", Prussia's highest military order in this official portrait, c. 1917
1922 – Alessandro Moreschi, Italian castrato (b. 1858)
1924 – Eleonora Duse, Italian actress (b. 1858)
1930 – Robert Bridges, English poet (b. 1844)
1938 – Allama Iqbal, Urdu philosopher and poet (b. 1877)
1945 – Walter Model, German field marshal (b. 1891)
1946 – John Maynard Keynes, English economist (b. 1883)
1948 – Aldo Leopold, American ecologist and author (b. 1887)
1956 – Charles MacArthur, American writer (b. 1895)
1965 – Edward Victor Appleton, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1892)
1971 – François "Papa Doc" Duvalier, Haitian dictator (b. 1907)
1973 – Arthur Fadden, 13th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1894)
1974 – Charles "Chic" Harley, American football player (b. 1895)
1977 – Gummo Marx, American actor and comedian (b. 1892)
1977 – Issy Bonn, British actor and musician (b. 1893)
1978 – Sandy Denny, British vocalist (b. 1947)
1978 – Thomas Wyatt Turner, American civil rights advocate and agricultural engineer (b. 1877)
1980 – Aleksandr Oparin, Russian biochemist (b. 1894)
Alexander Ivanovich Oparin (Russian: Алекса́ндр Ива́нович Опа́рин; in English, Aleksandr Ivanovich Oparin) (March 2 [O.S. February 18] 1894, Uglich, Russia – April 21, 1980, Moscow) was a Soviet biochemist notable for his contributions to the theory of the origin of life, and for his authorship of the book The Origin of Life. He also studied the biochemistry of material processing by plants, and enzyme reactions in plant cells. He showed that many food-production processes are based on biocatalysis and developed the foundations for industrial biochemistry in the USSR.
1980 – Sohrab Sepehri, Persian poet and painter (b. 1928)
1983 – Walter Slezak, Austrian actor (b. 1902)
1984 – Hristo Prodanov, Bulgarian mountaineer (b. 1943)
1985 – Rudi Gernreich, Austrian fashion designer (b. 1922)
1985 – Foster Hewitt, Canadian radio pioneer (b. 1902)
1985 – Tancredo de Almeida Neves, Brazil banker and elected president (b. 1910)
1986 – Salah Jaheen, Egyptian poet and cartoonist (b. 1930)
1989 – Princess Dukhye of Korea (b. 1912)
1990 – Erté, French artist (b. 1892)
1991 – Willi Boskovsky, Austrian violinist and conductor (b. 1909)
1996 – Dzhokhar Dudaev, Chechen leader (b. 1944)
Dzhokhar Musayevich Dudayev (Chechen: Dudin Musa-khant Dʒouxar/Дудин Муса-кIант Жовхар; Russian: Джохар Мусаевич Дудаев; February 15, 1944 – April 21, 1996) was a Soviet Air Force general and a Chechen leader, the first President of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, a breakaway state in the North Caucasus.
1996 – Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder, American bookie and sports broadcaster (b. 1919)
1998 – Jean-François Lyotard, French philosopher and sociologist (b. 1924)
1999 – Charles 'Buddy' Rogers, American actor and musician (b. 1904)
2000 – Neal Matthews, Jr., American singer (b. 1929)
2003 – Nina Simone, American singer and pianist (b. 1933)
2004 – Mary McGrory, American journalist (b. 1918)
2005 – Gerry Marshall, British racing driver (b. 1941)
2006 – T.K. Ramakrishnan, Indian politician (b. 1922)
2006 – Telê Santana, Brazilian football manager and former player (b. 1931)
2007 – Lobby Loyde, Australian guitarist and songwriter (b. 1941)
2008 – Al Wilson, American singer (b. 1939)
2010 – Gustav Lorentzen, Norwegian singer-songwriter (b. 1947)
2010 – Juan Antonio Samaranch, International Olympic Committee president (b. 1920)
Don Juan Antonio Samaranch y Torelló, 1st Marquis of Samaranch, Grandee of Spain (17 July 1920 – 21 April 2010) was a Spanish sports administrator who served as the seventh President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1980 to 2001. Samaranch served the second longest term as the head of the IOC, the longest being that of Pierre de Coubertin (29 years).
Holidays and observances
- Aggie Muster (Texas A&M University)
- Birthday of Rome (Rome)
The earlier legend of the founding of Rome (i.e., that it was founded personally by Aeneas), was supplanted over the centuries by the attribution of the founding to twin brothers, Romulus (c. 771 BC–c. 717 BC) and Remus (c. 771 BC–c. 753 BC). In Roman mythology, they are sons of the priestess Rhea Silvia and Mars, the god of war, abandoned at birth at Tiber by servants in charge of executing them. The twins were taken by a she-wolf. Later a shepherd named Faustulus came and took Remus and Romulus. Faustulus and his wife (Acca Larentia) raised the children. When Remus and Romulus became adults they decided to establish a city. They could not decide who would rule the city so they gave it to omens. Remus was the first to see six vultures flying in the sky. Soon after Romulus saw twelve vultures. Remus saw the birds first but Romulus saw more. Finally Romulus was the one who was designated. When Remus saw how weak Romulus was he laughed. In retaliation Romulus killed Remus.
- Christian Feast Day:
- Abdecalas
- Anastasius Sinaita
- Anselm of Canterbury
- Beuno
- Conrad of Parzham
- Holy Infant of Good Health
- Shemon Bar Sabbae
- Wolbodo
- April 21 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Grounation Day (Rastafari movement)
- Heroic Defense of Veracruz (Mexico)
- Inauguration of Brasília (Distrito Federal, Brazil)
- Kartini Day (Indonesia)
- National Tree Planting Day (Kenya)
- Parilia, in honor of the Pales. (Roman Empire)
- San Jacinto Day (Texas)
- The first day of the festival of Ridván. (Bahá'í Faith)
Riḍván (Arabic: رضوان Riḍwán; Persian transliteration: Riḍván) is a twelve-day festival in the Bahá'í Faith, commemorating the commencement of Bahá'u'lláh's prophethood. It begins at sunset on April 20 and continues until sunset, May 2. On the first (April 21), ninth (April 29) and twelfth days of Ridván (May 2), work and schooling may be suspended.
"Ridván" means paradise, and is named for the Garden of Ridván, outside Baghdad where Bahá'u'lláh stayed for twelve days after the Ottoman Empire exiled him from Baghdad and before commencing his journey to Constantinople.
It is the most holy Bahá'í festival, and is also referred to as the "Most Great Festival" and the "King of Festivals".
"Ridván" means paradise, and is named for the Garden of Ridván, outside Baghdad where Bahá'u'lláh stayed for twelve days after the Ottoman Empire exiled him from Baghdad and before commencing his journey to Constantinople.
It is the most holy Bahá'í festival, and is also referred to as the "Most Great Festival" and the "King of Festivals".
- Tiradentes (Brazil)
Joaquim José da Silva Xavier, known as Tiradentes (August 16, 1746–-April 21, 1792), was a leading member of the Brazilian revolutionary movement known as the Inconfidência Mineira whose aim was full independence from the Portuguese colonial power and to create a Brazilian republic. When the plan was discovered, Tiradentes was arrested, tried and publicly hanged. Since the 19th century he has been considered a national hero of Brazil and patron of the Polícia Militar de Minas Gerais (Minas Gerais Military Police).
With Respect & Love,
El Toro
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