Today April 3rd in history click read more below to view detail events, deaths, births, Holidays and observances, and video clips in hisotry. Please comments, last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1043 – Edward the Confessor is crowned King of England.
1077 – The first Parliament of Friuli is created.
1559 – The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis treaty is signed, ending the Italian Wars.
1834 – The generals in the Greek War of Independence stand trial for treason.
1860 – The first successful United States Pony Express run from Saint Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California begins.
1865 – American Civil War: Union forces capture Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederate States of America.
1882 – American Old West: Outlaw Jesse James is killed by Robert Ford.
1885 – Gottlieb Daimler is granted a German patent for his engine design.
1895 – Trial of the libel case instigated by Oscar Wilde begins, eventually resulting in his imprisonment on charges of homosexuality.
1917 – Vladimir Lenin arrives in Russia from exile, marking the beginning of Bolshevik leadership in the Russian Revolution.
1922 – Joseph Stalin becomes the first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
1929 – RMS Queen Mary is ordered from John Brown & Company Shipbuilding and Engineering by Cunard Line.
1936 – Bruno Richard Hauptmann is executed for the kidnapping and death of Charles Augustus Lindbergh II, the baby son of pilot Charles Lindbergh.
1942 – World War II: Japanese forces begin an assault on the United States and Filipino troops on the Bataan Peninsula.
1946 – Japanese Lt. General Masaharu Homma is executed in the Philippines for leading the Bataan Death March.
1948 – President Harry S. Truman signs the Marshall Plan, authorizing $5 billion in aid for 16 countries.
1948 – In Jeju, South Korea, a civil-war-like period of violence and human rights abuses begins, known as the Jeju massacre.
1955 – The American Civil Liberties Union announces it will defend Allen Ginsberg s book Howl against obscenity charges.
1956 – Hudsonville-Standale Tornado: The western half of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan is struck by a deadly F5 tornado.
1968 – Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his I ve Been to the Mountaintop speech.
1969 – Vietnam War: U.S. Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird announces that the United States will start to Vietnamize the war effort.
1973 – The first portable cell phone call is made in New York City, United States.
1974 – The Super Outbreak occurs, the biggest tornado outbreak in recorded history. The death toll is 315, with nearly 5,500 injured.
1975 – Bobby Fischer refuses to play in a chess match against Anatoly Karpov, giving Karpov the title of World Champion by default.
1982 – The United Kingdom sends a naval task force to the south Atlantic to reclaim the disputed Falkland Islands from Argentina.
1996 – Suspected Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski is arrested at his Montana, United States cabin.
1996 – A United States Air Force airplane carrying United States Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown crashes in Croatia, killing all 35 on board.
1997 – Thalit massacre begins in Algeria; all but 1 of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas.
2000 – United States v. Microsoft: Microsoft is ruled to have violated United States antitrust laws by keeping an oppressive thumb on its competitors.
2004 – Islamic terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks are trapped by the police in their apartment and kill themselves.
2007 – Conventional-Train World Speed Record: a French TGV train on the LGV Est high speed line sets an official new world speed record.
2008 – ATA Airlines, once one of the 10 largest U.S. passenger airlines and largest charter airline, files for bankruptcy for the second time in 5 years and ceases all operations.
Births
1151 – Igor Svyatoslavich, Ukrainian prince (d. 1202)
1367 – King Henry IV of England (d. 1413)
1529 – Michael Neander, German mathematician and astronomer (d. 1581)
1593 – George Herbert, English poet and orator (d. 1633)
1643 – Charles V, Duke of Lorraine, general of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1690)
1683 – Mark Catesby, English naturalist (d. 1749)
1693 – George Edwards, English naturalist (d. 1773)
1715 – William Watson, English physician and scientist (d. 1787)
1764 – John Abernathy, English surgeon (d. 1831)
1769 – Christian Günther von Bernstorff, Danish and Prussian statesman and diplomat (d. 1835)
1770 – Theodoros Kolokotronis, Greek general (d. 1843)
1783 – Washington Irving, American author (d. 1859)
1806 – Ivan Kireevsky, Russian literary critic and philosopher (d. 1856)
1814 – Lorenzo Snow, 5th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the LDS or Mormon Church) (d. 1901)
1821 – T. Pelham Dale, Anglican clergyman prosecuted for Ritualist practices in the 1870s (d. 1892)
1822 – Edward Everett Hale, American writer (d. 1909)
1823 – William Marcy Tweed, American political boss (d. 1878)
1880 – Otto Weininger, Austrian philosopher (d. 1903)
1881 – Alcide De Gasperi, Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1954)
1885 – Allan Dwan, Canadian-born American film director (d. 1981)
1885 – Bud Fisher, American cartoonist (d. 1954)
1889 – Grigoras Dinicu, Romanian composer and violinist (d. 1949)
1893 – Leslie Howard, English actor (d. 1943)
1893 – Princess Maud of Fife (d. 1945)
1895 – Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Italian composer (d. 1968)
1898 – George Jessel, American comedian (d. 1981)
1898 – Henry Luce, American publisher (d. 1967)
1899 – David Jack, English footballer (d. 1958)
1904 – Iron Eyes Cody, American actor (d. 1999)
1904 – Russel Wright, American industrial designer (d. 1976)
1905 – Robert Frederick Sink, United States Army Officer (d. 1965)
1911 – Stella Walsh, Polish Olympic athelete (d. 1980)
1913 – Per Borten, Premier of Norway (d. 2005)
1916 – Herb Caen, American newspaper columnist (d. 1997)
1918 – Louis Applebaum, Canadian composer, conductor and administrator (d. 2000)
1920 – John Demjanjuk, Ukrainian-born American auto worker, alleged Nazi
1920 – Stan Freeman, American composer and lyricist (d. 2001)
1921 – Robert Karvelas, American actor (d. 1991)
1921 – Darío Moreno, Turkish-Jewish singer and songwriter (d. 1968)
1921 – Jan Sterling, American actress (d. 2004)
1924 – Marlon Brando, American actor (d. 2004)
1924 – Doris Day, American actress
1925 – Tony Benn, British politician
1926 – Alex Grammas, American baseball player
1926 – Gus Grissom, American astronaut (d. 1967)
1928 – Don Gibson, American country musician (d. 2003)
1928 – Kevin Hagen, American actor (d. 2005)
1928 – Jennifer Paterson, English chef and TV personality (d. 1999)
1929 – Lee Leonard, American television personality
1930 – Lawton Chiles, U.S. (Florida) Senator and Governor (d. 1998)
1930 – Helmut Kohl, Chancellor of Germany
1930 – Wally Moon, American baseball player
1933 – Bob Dornan, American politician
1934 – Jane Goodall, English zoologist
1936 – Scott LaFaro, American musician (d. 1961)
1936 – Jimmy McGriff, American jazz organist
1938 – Jeff Barry, American songwriter and record producer
1939 – François de Roubaix, French film score composer (d. 1975)
1941 – Jan Berry, American musician (d. 2004)
1941 – Carl Boenish, American father of BASE jumping (d. 1984)
1941 – Eric Braeden, German-born actor
1941 – Philippé Wynne, American musician (d. 1984)
1942 – Marsha Mason, American actress
1942 – Wayne Newton, American singer
1942 – Marek Perepeczko, Polish actor (d. 2005)
1942 – Billy Joe Royal, American singer
1943 – Mario Lavista, Mexican composer
1943 – Jonathan Lynn, British actor and comedy writer
1943 – Richard Manuel, Canadian musician and songwriter (d. 1986)
1943 – Doreen Tracey, English-born Mouseketeer
1944 – Tony Orlando, American musician
1945 – Bernard Parent, Quebec ice hockey player
1945 – Catherine Spaak, French actress
1946 – Marisa Paredes, Spanish actress
1946 – Hanna Suchocka, Poland s first female prime minister
1948 – Arlette Cousture, French-Canadian writer
1948 – Carlos Salinas, President of Mexico
1949 – Lyle Alzado, American football player (d. 1992)
1949 – Anthony Grayling, British philosopher
1949 – Richard Thompson, English musician and songwriter
1950 – Sally Thomsett, English actress
1951 – Mel Schacher, American musician
1952 – Mike Moore, American politician and attorney
1953 – Craig Taubman, Jewish singer
1954 – Elisabetta Brusa, Italian composer
1956 – Miguel Bosé, Spanish musician and actor
1956 – Ray Combs, American game show host and comedian (d. 1996)
1956 – Boris Miljkovic, Serbian director
1958 – Alec Baldwin, American actor
1958 – Jaya Prada, Indian Actress
1959 – David Hyde Pierce, American actor
1960 – Arjen Anthony Lucassen, Dutch musician
1960 – Marie Denise Pelletier, Quebec singer
1961 – Eddie Murphy, American actor and comedian
1962 – Mike Ness, American musician
1962 – Jennifer Rubin, American actress
1963 – Criss Oliva, American musician (d. 1993)
1963 – Jack Del Rio, American football coach
1963 – Tsuyoshi Sekito, Japanese composer
1964 – Bjarne Riis, Danish cyclist
1964 – Andy Robinson, English rugby player
1965 – Nazia Hassan, South Asian pop singer (d. 2000)
1966 – Mina Tominaga, Japanese seiyu (voice actress)
1966 – John de Vries, Australian racing driver
1967 – Pervis Ellison, American basketball player
1967 – Brent Gilchrist, Canadian ice hockey player
1967 – Mark Skaife, Australian racing driver
1968 – Sebastian Bach, Canadian musician
1968 – Charlotte Coleman, English actress (d. 2001)
1968 – Jamie Hewlett, English illustrator
1969 – Lance Storm, Canadian professional wrestler
1971 – Picabo Street, American alpine ski champion
1972 – Jennie Garth, American actress
1972 – Sandrine Testud, French Top-10 tennis player
1973 – Jamie Bamber, English actor
1973 – Matthew Ferguson, Canadian actor
1975 – Shawn Bates, American ice hockey player
1975 – Michael Olowokandi, Nigerian basketball player
1975 – Aries Spears, American comedian
1975 – Yoshinobu Takahashi, Japanese professional baseball player
1975 – Koji Uehara, Japanese professional baseball pitcher
1976 – Will Mellor, English actor
1976 – Drew Shirley, American musician
1978 – Matthew Goode, English actor
1978 – Tommy Haas, German tennis player
1978 – John Smit, South African rugby player
1981 – Aaron Bertram, American musician
1981 – Matthew Nash, Australian soccer player
1981 – Heath Ramsay, Australian Olympic swimmer
1981 – DeShawn Stevenson, American basketball player
1982 – Jared Allen, American football player
1982 – Fler, German rapper
1982 – Iain Fyfe, Australian soccer player
1982 – Kasumi Nakane, Japanese gravure idol
1982 – Cobie Smulders, Canadian actress
1983 – Errol Barnett, English reporter
1983 – Ben Foster, English footballer
1984 – Jonathan Blondel, Belgian footballer
1984 – Maxi López, Argentine footballer
1985 – Leona Lewis, English singer
1986 – Amanda Bynes, American actress
1986 – Sergio Sánchez, Spanish footballer
1987 – Jay Bruce, American baseball player
1987 – Julie Sokolow, American musician
1987 – Sal Zizzo, American soccer player
1988 – Peter Hartley, English footballer
1988 – Tim Krul, Dutch footballer
1989 – Israel Falou, Australian Rugby League player
1993 – Dakoda Dowd, American golfer
Deaths
963 – William III, Duke of Aquitaine (b. 915)
1287 – Pope Honorius IV, Pope for two years from 1285 to 1287 (b. c. 1210)
1350 – Eudes IV, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1295)
1606 – Charles Blount, 1st Earl of Devon, English politician (b. 1563)
1680 – Shivaji, founder of the Maratha Empire, India (b. 1630)
1682 – Bartolomé Estéban Murillo, Spanish painter (b. 1618)
1691 – Jean Petitot, Swiss enamel painter (b. 1608)
1695 – Melchior d Hondecoeter, Dutch painter (b. c. 1636)
1717 – Jacques Ozanam, French mathematician (b. 1640)
1728 – James Anderson, Scottish lawyer (b. 1662)
1792 – George Pocock, British admiral (b. 1706)
1804 – Jedrzej Kitowicz, Polish priest
1827 – Ernst Chladni, German physicist (b. 1756)
1849 – Juliusz Slowacki, Polish poet (b. 1809)
1868 – Franz Berwald, Swedish composer and inventor (b. 1796)
1882 – Jesse James, American outlaw (b. 1847)
1897 – Johannes Brahms, German composer (b. 1833)
1901 – Richard D Oyly Carte, British impresario (b. 1844)
1930 – Emma Albani, Canadian soprano (b. 1847)
1932 – Wilhelm Ostwald, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1853)
1936 – Bruno Hauptmann, German killer of Charles Lindbergh III (b. 1899)
1943 – Conrad Veidt, German actor (b. 1893)
1950 – Carter G. Woodson, African-American historian, author, journalist and founder of Black History Month (b. 1875)
1950 – Kurt Weill, German composer (b. 1900)
1952 – Miina Sillanpää, Finnish politician, first female Finnish minister (b. 1866)
1965 – Ernst Kirchweger, Austrian communist and resistance fighter
1971 – Joseph Valachi, American gangster (b. 1904)
1972 – Ferde Grofé, American composer (b. 1882)
1975 – Mary Ure, Scottish actress (b. 1933)
1978 – Ray Noble, English bandleader and composer (b. 1903)
1981 – Juan Trippe, Airline entrepreneur and pioneer, Pan Am founder (b. 1899)
1982 – Warren Oates, American character actor (b. 1928)
1986 – Peter Pears, English tenor (b. 1910)
1987 – Tom Sestak, American football player (b. 1936)
1988 – Milton Caniff, American cartoonist (Terry and the Pirates, Steve Canyon) (b. 1907)
1990 – Sarah Vaughan, American singer (b. 1924)
1991 – Charles Goren, American bridge player, writer, and columnist (b. 1901)
1991 – Graham Greene, English writer (b. 1904)
1993 – Pinky Lee, American comic and children s television host (b. 1907)
1994 – Frank Wells, American entertainment businessman (b. 1932)
1995 – Alfred J. Billes, Canadian businessman (Canadian Tire) (b. 1902)
1996 – Ron Brown, U.S. Secretary of Commerce (b. 1941)
1996 – Carl Stokes, Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio (b. 1927)
1998 – Mary Cartwright, English mathematician (b. 1900)
1999 – Lionel Bart, English composer (Oliver!) (b. 1930)
2000 – Terence McKenna, American writer and philosopher (b. 1946)
2002 – Fad Gadget, English singer and musician (b. 1956)
2003 – Michael Kelly, American journalist (b. 1957)
2005 – Tony Croatto, Italian singer (b. 1940)
2005 – Jef Eygel, Belgian basketball player (b. 1933)
2007 – Marion Eames, Welsh novelist (b. 1921)
2007 – Eddie Robinson, American football coach (b. 1919)
2007 – Nina Wang, Asia s richest woman (b. 1937)
2008 – Hrvoje Custic, Croatian football player (b. 1983)
Holidays and observances
Saint Richard (d. 1253)
Saint Sixtus I
Saint Mary of Egypt
