April 8

From Encyclopedia Jr, free information reference for Kids

April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). There are 267 days remaining.

[edit] Events

• 217 - Roman Emperor Caracalla is assassinated (and succeeded) by his Praetorian Guard prefect, Marcus Opellius Macrinus.
• 1093 - The new Winchester Cathedral is dedicated by Walkelin.
• 1139 - Roger II of Sicily is excommunicated.
• 1149 - Pope Eugene III takes refuge in the castle of Ptolemy II of Tusculum.
• 1271 - In Syria, sultan Baybars conquers the Krak of Chevaliers.
• 1492 - Death of Lorenzo de' Medici, dubbed "The Magnificent", ruler of Florence and patron of arts.
• 1730 - Shearith Israel, the first synagogue in New York City, is dedicated.
• 1767 - Ayutthaya kingdom falls to Burmese invaders.
• 1820 - The Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Melos.
• 1832 - Black Hawk War: Around 300 United States 6th Infantry troops leave Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, Missouri to fight the Sauk Native Americans.
• 1848 - Battle of Goito, part of the Italian Wars of Independence
• 1864 - American Civil War: Battle of Mansfield - Union General Nathaniel Banks' Red River Campaign is thwarted by Confederate General Richard Taylor's forces at Mansfield, Louisiana.
• 1866 - Italy and Prussia ally against Austria-Hungary.
• 1867 - The first World's Fair is inaugurated in Paris.
• 1886 - William Ewart Gladstone introduces the first Home Rule bill into the British House of Commons.
• 1893 - First recorded college basketball game occurs in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania when the Geneva College Covenanters defeat the New Brighton YMCA.
• 1895 - The United States Supreme Court declares income tax to be unconstitutional in Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co.
• 1899 - Martha Place becomes the first woman to be executed in an electric chair.
• 1904 - The French Third Republic and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland sign the Entente cordiale.
• 1904 - British mystic Aleister Crowley transcribes the first chapter of the Book of the Law.
• 1904 - Longacre Square in Midtown Manhattan is renamed Times Square after The New York Times.
• 1913 - The 17th Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified requiring direct election of Senators.
• 1916 - In Corona, California, car racer Bob Burman crashes through a crowd barrier at the last Boulevard Race, killing himself, his mechanic and a track policeman, and badly injuring five spectators.
• 1918 - World War I: Actors Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin sell war bonds on the streets of New York, New York's financial district.
• 1929 - Indian Independence Movement: At Delhi Central Assembly, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt throw handouts, and bombs in a corridor not to cause injury and courted arrest.
• 1935 - The Works Progress Administration is formed when the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 becomes law.
• 1942 - World War II: Siege of Leningrad - Soviet Union forces open a much-needed railway link to Leningrad.
• 1945 - At the POW camp at Flossenbürg, pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is hanged.
• 1950 - India and Pakistan sign the Pact of Delhi
• 1952 - In a radio address to the nation from the White House, President Harry S. Truman calls for the seizure of all steel mills in the United States in order to prevent a nationwide strike.
• 1953 - Mau Mau leader Jomo Kenyatta is convicted by Kenya's British rulers.
• 1957 - Egypt: the Suez Canal is reopened.
• 1967 - In Vienna, Austria, Sandie Shaw wins the twelfth Eurovision Song Contest for the United Kingdom singing "Puppet on a String".
• 1973 - 32 terrosist bombings in Cyprus
• 1974 - At the Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, Hank Aaron breaks baseball great's Babe Ruth's record by hitting his 715th home run.
• 1975 - Frank Robinson of the Cleveland Indians manages his first game as major league baseball's first African American manager.
• 1985 - Bhopal disaster: India files suit against Union Carbide for the disaster which killed an estimated 2,000 and injured another 200,000.
• 1987 - Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis resigns amid great controversy over racially-charged remarks he had made while on Nightline.
• 1989 - South Africa: In Johannesburg, the Progressive Federal Party, Independent Party, National Democratic Movement and the force of "Ontevrede Afrikaners" or dissatisfied Afrikaners merge to form the Democratic Party.
• 1992 - Retired tennis great Arthur Ashe announces to the world that he has AIDS, acquired from blood transfusions during one of his two heart surgeries.
• 1999 - Haryana Gana Parishad, a political party in the Indian state of Haryana, merges with the Indian National Congress.
• 1994 - Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain is found dead in his greenhouse by an electrician who stopped by to do some work.
• 2004 - Abdelaziz Bouteflika is confirmed president of Algeria.
• 2004 - Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups.
• 2005 - Funeral of Pope John Paul II.
• 2006 - Shedden massacre: A farmer near Shedden, Ontario, Canada finds the bodies of eight men, all shot to death, in a field. The murders are soon linked to the Bandidos motorcycle gang.

[edit] Births

• 563 BC - Gautama Buddha, Indian religious leader (d. 483 BC)
• 1320 - King Peter I of Portugal (d. 1367)
• 1533 - Claudio Merulo, Italian composer (d. 1604)
• 1541 - Michele Mercati, Italian physician (d. 1593)
• 1605 - King Philip IV of Spain, (d. 1665)
• 1641 - Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney, English statesman (d. 1704)
• 1692 - Giuseppe Tartini, Italian composer (d. 1770)
• 1859 - Edmund Husserl, Austrian philosopher (d. 1938)
• 1865 - Charles W. Woodworth, American entomologist (d. 1940)
• 1868 - King Christian IX of Denmark (d. 1906)
• 1869 - Harvey Cushing, American neuorosurgeon (d. 1939)
• 1874 - Stanisław Taczak, Polish general (d. 1960)
• 1875 - King Albert I of Belgium (d. 1934)
• 1889 - Sir Adrian Boult, British conductor (d. 1983)
• 1892 - Mary Pickford, Canadian actress (d. 1979)
• 1904 - John Hicks, British economist, Bank of Sweden Prize winner (d. 1989)
• 1905 - Helen Joseph, South African anti-apartheid activist (d. 1992)
• 1905 - Erwin Keller, German field hockey player (d. 1971)
• 1908 - Hugo Fregonese, Argentine film director (d. 1987)
• 1911 - Melvin Calvin, American chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1997)
• 1911 - Emil Cioran, Romanian philosopher and essayist (d. 1995)
• 1912 - Alois Brunner, Austrian Nazi
• 1912 - Sonja Henie, Norwegian figure skater (d. 1969)
• 1914 - María Félix, Mexican actress (d. 2002)
• 1918 - Betty Ford, First Lady of the United States
• 1918 - Glendon Swarthout, Award-winning American author (d. 1992)
• 1919 - Ian Smith, Prime Minister of Rhodesia
• 1921 - Franco Corelli, Italian tenor (d. 2003)
• 1923 - George Fisher, American cartoonist (d. 2003)
• 1923 - Edward Mulhare, Irish actor (d. 1997)
• 1926 - Jürgen Moltmann, German theologian
• 1928 - John Gavin, American actor
• 1928 - Leah Rabin, wife of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (d. 2000)
• 1929 - Walter Berry, Austrian bass-baritone (d. 2000)
• 1929 - Jacques Brel, Belgian singer/composer (d. 1978)
• 1930 - Carlos Hugo of Bourbon-Parma, Duke of Parma
• 1933 - Fred Ebb, American composer (d. 2004)
• 1934 - Kisho Kurokawa, Japanese architect
• 1937 - Seymour Hersh, American journalist
• 1938 - Kofi Annan, Ghanian United Nations Secretary General
• 1940 - John Havlicek, American basketball player
• 1941 - Vivienne Westwood, British fashion designer
• 1942 - Roger Chapman, British rock singer (Family, Streetwalkers)
• 1943 - Tony Banks, British Politician (d. 2006)
• 1943 - Michael Bennett, American dancer/choreographer (d. 1987)
• 1943 - Miller Farr, American football player
• 1946 - Catfish Hunter, Hall of Fame player (d. 1999)
• 1946 - Tim Thomerson, American actor
• 1947 - Tom DeLay, American politician
• 1947 - Steve Howe, British rock guitarist (Yes, Asia, GTR)
• 1947 - Robert Kiyosaki, American investor
• 1947 - Larry Norman, American singer/songwriter
• 1949 - John Madden, British director
• 1949 - Brenda Russell, American singer/songwriter
• 1954 - Gary Carter, baseball player
• 1955 - Joolz Denby, English poet and novelist
• 1955 - Barbara Kingsolver, American novelist
• 1955 - Kane Hodder, American actor and stuntman
• 1957 - Fred Smerlas, American football player
• 1960 - John Schneider, American actor
• 1962 - Izzy Stradlin, American musician (Guns N' Roses)
• 1963 - Julian Lennon, British musician and singer
• 1963 - Alec Stewart, British cricketer
• 1964 - Biz Markie, American rapper/disc jockey
• 1966 - Robin Wright Penn, American actress
• 1966 - Mazinho, Brazilian football player
• 1966 - Bobby Ologun, Nigerian television personality
• 1966 - Mark Blundell, British racing driver
• 1968 - Patricia Arquette, American actress
• 1971 - Chino XL, American rapper
• 1972 - Paul Gray, American bassist (Slipknot)
• 1973 - Alex S. Gonzalez, American Major League Baseball player
• 1974 - Holger Hott Johansen, Norwegian orienteerist
• 1975 - Timo Pérez, Dominican baseball player
• 1977 - Ana de la Reguera, Mexican actress
• 1977 - Mark Spencer, computer programmer
• 1979 - Alexi Laiho, Finnish guitarist and singer (Children of Bodom)
• 1980 - Manuel Ortega, Austrian singer
• 1980 - Grace Park, American actress
• 1980 - Katee Sackhoff, American actress
• 1982 - Judy Star, Canadian porn star
• 1983 - Adrian Bellani, American actor
• 1984 - Júlia Liptáková, Slovakian model
• 1984 - Kirsten Storms, American actress
• 1986 - Igor Akinfeev, Russian football player
• 1986 - Felix Hernandez, Venezuelan baseball player
• 1986 - Erika Sawajiri, Japanese actress and model
• 2005 - Leah Isadora Behn, member of Norway's Royal Family

[edit] Deaths

• 217 - Caracalla, Roman Emperor (b. 186)
• 956 - Gilbert of Chalon, Duke of Burgundy
• 1143 - John II Comnenus, Byzantine Emperor (b. 1087)
• 1364 - King John II of France (b. 1319)
• 1461 - Georg Purbach, German mathematician and astronomer (b. 1423)
• 1492 - Lorenzo de Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1449)
• 1586 - Martin Chemnitz, Lutheran reformer and theologian (b. 1522)
• 1587 - John Foxe, English writer (b. 1516)
• 1691 - Carlo Rainaldi, Italian architect (b. 1611)
• 1697 - Niels Juel, Danish admiral (b. 1629)
• 1704 - Hiob Ludolf, German orientalist (b. 1624)
• 1704 - Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney, English statesman (b. 1641)
• 1725 - John Wise, English clergyman (b. 1652)
• 1735 - Francis II Rákóczi, leader of the Hungarian uprising against the Habsburg (b. March 27, 1676)
• 1848 - Gaetano Donizetti, Italian composer (b. 1797)
• 1857 - Mangal Pandey, Indian soldier
• 1861 - Elisha Otis, US elevator builder (b. 1811)
• 1870 - Charles de Bériot, Belgian composer (b. 1802)
• 1919 - Loránd Eötvös, Hungarian physicist (b. 1848)
• 1920 - Charles Tomlinson Griffes, American composer (b. 1884)
• 1931 - Erik Axel Karlfeldt, Swedish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1864)
• 1936 - Robert Bárány, Austrian physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1876)
• 1938 - Joe "King" Oliver, American musician (b. 1885)
• 1950 - Vaslav Nijinsky, Polish-born ballet dancer (b. 1890)
• 1965 - Lars Hanson, Swedish actor (b. 1886)
• 1973 - Pablo Picasso, Spanish artist (b. 1881)
• 1978 - Ford Frick, baseball commissioner (b. 1894)
• 1981 - Omar Bradley, U.S. general (b. 1893)
• 1984 - Pyotr Leonidovich Kapitsa, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1894)
• 1985 - J. Fred Coots, American songwriter (b. 1897)
• 1986 - Yukiko Okada, Japanese idol singer (b. 1967)
• 1990 - Ryan White, American activist (AIDS) (b. 1971)
• 1991 - Per Yngve "Dead" Ohlin, Norwegian musician (black metal)
• 1992 - Daniel Bovet, Swiss-born pharmacologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1907)
• 1993 - Marian Anderson, American contralto (b. 1897)
• 1996 - Ben Johnson, American actor (b. 1918)
• 1997 - Laura Nyro, American singer and composer (b. 1947)
• 2000 - Claire Trevor, American actress (b. 1910)
• 2002 - Maria Felix, Mexican actress (b. 1914)
• 2003 - Anita Borg, American computer scientist (b. 1949)
• 2004 - Bruce Edwards, golf caddy (b. 1954)
• 2005 - Eddie Miksis, baseball player (b. 1926)
• 2006 - Gerard Reve, Dutch writer (b. 1923)

[edit] Holidays and observances

• Buddha's Birthday in Japan
• Saint Walter of Pontoise (died 1099)
• Saint Constance
• Saint Julie Billiart of Namur (died 1816).
• Feast for Three Days - First Day (Thelema)

[edit] External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada

April 7 - April 9 - March 8 - May 8 -- listing of all days