April 26

April 26 is the 116th day of the year (117th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 249 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 1336 – Francesco Petrarca's (aka Petrarch) ascent of Mt. Ventoux.
• 1478 – The Pazzi attack Lorenzo de' Medici and kill his brother Giuliano during High Mass in the Duomo of Florence.
• 1607 – English colonists of the Jamestown settlement make landfall at Cape Henry, Virginia.
• 1802 – Napoleon Bonaparte signs a general amnesty to allow all but about one thousand of the most notorious émigrés of the French Revolution to return to France, as part of a reconciliary gesture with the factions of the Ancien Regime and to eventually consolidate his own rule.
• 1805 – United States Marines captured Derne, Tripoli under the command of First Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon.
• 1865 – American Civil War: Confederate General Joseph Johnston surrenders his army to General William Tecumseh Sherman at the Bennett Place near Durham, North Carolina.
• 1865 – Union cavalry troopers corner and shoot dead John Wilkes Booth, President Lincoln's assassin, in Virginia.
• 1925 – Paul von Hindenburg defeats Wilhelm Marx in the second round of the German presidential election to become the first directly elected head of state of the Weimar Republic.
• 1933 – The Gestapo, the official secret police force of Nazi Germany, is established.
• 1937 – Spanish Civil War: Guernica, Spain is bombed by German Luftwaffe.
• 1945 – World War II: Battle of Bautzen – last successful German tank-offensive of the war and last noteworthy victory of the Wehrmacht.
• 1946 – Father Divine, a controversial religious leader who claims to be God, marries the much-younger Edna Rose Ritchings, a celebrated anniversary in the International Peace Mission movement.
• 1954 – The Geneva Conference, an effort to restore peace in Indochina and Korea, begins.
• 1956 – First container ship left Port Newark, New Jersey for Houston, Texas
• 1962 – NASA's Ranger 4 spacecraft crashes into the Moon.
• 1963 – In Libya, amendments to the constitution transform Libya (United Kingdom of Libya) into one national unity (Kingdom of Libya) and allows for female participation in elections.
• 1964 – Tanganyika and Zanzibar merge to form Tanzania.
• 1965 – A Rolling Stones concert in London, Ontario is shut down by police after 15 minutes due to rioting.
• 1966 – An earthquake of magnitude 7.5 destroys Tashkent.
• 1970 – The Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization enters into force
• 1982 – 57 people are killed by former police officer Woo Bum-kon in a shooting spree in Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea.
• 1986 – A nuclear reactor accident occurs at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Soviet Union (now Ukraine), creating the world's worst nuclear disaster.
• 1991 – Seventy tornadoes break out in the central United States. Before the outbreak's end, Andover, Kansas, would record the year's only F5 tornado (see Andover, Kansas Tornado Outbreak).
• 1994 – A China Airlines Airbus A300-600R crashes at Nagoya Airport, Japan killing everyone on board, with a death toll amounting to 264. See also China Airlines flight 140.
• 1994 – Physicists announce first evidence of the top quark subatomic particle.
• 2002 – Robert Steinhäuser infiltrates and kills 17 at Gutenberg-Gymnasium in Erfurt,Germany before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot.
• 2005 – Under international pressure, Syria withdraws the last of its 14,000 troop military garrison in Lebanon, ending its 29-year military domination of that country.
• 2007 – Queen's Pier is officially closed by the Hong Kong Government, after a bitter struggle by conservationists, in order to facilitate land reclamation in Hong Kong's Central district
• 2007 – Bronze Night in Tallinn

Births

• 121 – Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor (d. 180)
• 570 – Muhammed, founder of Islam, according to the Shi'a sect. Other sources suggest April 20. (d. 632)
• 1538 – Gian Paolo Lomazzo, Italian painter (d. 1600)
• 1564 – William Shakespeare, English poet and playwright (baptism) (d. 1616)
• 1573 – Marie de' Medici, wife of Henry IV of France (d. 1642)
• 1648 – King Peter II of Portugal (d. 1706)
• 1662 – Maria Luisa of Orleans, queen consort of Spain (d. 1689)
• 1710 – Thomas Reid, Scottish philosopher (d. 1796)
• 1718 – Esek Hopkins, American Revolutionary War admiral (d. 1802)
• 1774 – Christian Leopold von Buch, German geologist (d. 1853)
• 1782 – Maria Amalia of the Two Sicilies, queen of France (d. 1866)
• 1785 – John James Audubon, French-American naturalist and illustrator (d. 1851)
• 1787 – Ludwig Uhland, German poet (d. 1862)
• 1798 – James Beckwourth, American explorer (d. 1867)
• 1798 – Eugène Delacroix, French painter (d. 1863)
• 1801 – Ambrose Dudley Mann, American diplomat (d. 1889)
• 1804 – Charles Goodyear, American politician (d. 1876)
• 1812 – Alfred Krupp, German industrialist (d. 1887)
• 1822 – Frederick Law Olmsted, American landscape architect (d. 1903)
• 1826 – George Hull Ward, American general (d. 1863)
• 1826 – Ambrose R. Wright, American Civil War General (d. 1872)
• 1856 – Sir Joseph Ward, 17th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1930)
• 1878 – Saint Rafael Guízar Valencia, Mexican Catholic bishop (d. 1938)
• 1879 – Owen Willans Richardson, British physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1959)
• 1886 – Ma Rainey, American singer (d. 1939)
• 1886 – Ğabdulla Tuqay, Tatar poet (d. 1913)
• 1888 – Anita Loos, American writer (d. 1981)
• 1889 – Ludwig Wittgenstein, Austrian-born philosopher (d. 1951)
• 1893 – Draza Mihajlovic, Serbian WWII hero and war criminal (d. 1946)
• 1894 – Rudolf Hess, Nazi official (d. 1987)
• 1896 – Ernst Udet, WWI pilot and film actor, Luftwaffe officer (d. 1941)
• 1897 – Eddie Eagan, American sportsman (d. 1967)
• 1897 – Douglas Sirk, German-born film director (d. 1987)
• 1898 – Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish writer, Nobel laureate (d. 1984)
• 1898 – John Grierson, Scottish filmmaker (d. 1972)
• 1900 – Charles Richter, American geophysicist (d. 1985)
• 1900 – Hack Wilson, American baseball player (d. 1948)
• 1904 – Paul-Émile Léger, Quebec cardinal and archbishop (d. 1991)
• 1910 – Tomoyuki Tanaka, Japanese movie producer and creator of Godzilla (d. 1997)
• 1911 – Marianne Hoppe, German actress (d. 2002)
• 1912 – A. E. van Vogt, Canadian writer (d. 2000)
• 1914 – Bernard Malamud, American author (d. 1986)
• 1914 – James W. Rouse, American investor (d. 1996)
• 1916 – Morris West, Australian writer (d. 1999)
• 1916 – Vic Perrin, American actor (d. 1989)
• 1916 – George Tuska, American comic book illustrator (d. 2009)
• 1917 – Sal Maglie, American baseball player (d. 1992)
• 1917 – I.M. Pei, Chinese-born architect
• 1918 – Fanny Blankers-Koen, Dutch athlete (d. 2004)
• 1918 – Stafford Repp, American actor (d. 1974)
• 1922 – Jeanne Sauvé, French Canadian politician (d. 1993)
• 1924 – H. Browning Ross, American long-distance running Olympian (d. 1998)
• 1925 – Jørgen Ingmann, Danish musician
• 1926 – David Coleman, British TV sports broadcaster
• 1926 – Michael Mathias Prechtl, German illustrator (d. 2003)
• 1927 – Jack Douglas, English actor (d. 2008)
• 1929 – Richard Mitchell, American author and professor (d. 2002)
• 1930 – Roger Moens, Belgian athlete
• 1932 – Francis Lai, French film music composer
• 1932 – Michael Smith, English-born chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2000)
• 1933 – Carol Burnett, American comedian
• 1933 – Arno Allan Penzias, German-born physicist, Nobel laureate
• 1933 – Filiberto Ojeda Ríos, Puerto Rican activist (d. 2005)
• 1938 – Duane Eddy, American musician
• 1940 – Giorgio Moroder, Italian composer
• 1940 – Cliff Watson, English rugby league footballer
• 1941 – Claudine Clark, American R&B singer-composer
• 1941 – John Mitchell, American composer
• 1942 – Claudine Auger, French actress
• 1942 – Michael Kergin, Canadian diplomat
• 1942 – Bobby Rydell, American singer
• 1943 – Gary Wright, American singer
• 1943 – Peter Zumthor, Swiss architect
• 1944 – Amien Rais, Indonesian politician
• 1945 – Sylvain Simard, Quebec politician
• 1946 – Wolf Kahler, German actor
• 1947 – Warren Clarke, English actor
• 1949 – Carlos Bianchi, Argentinian footballer
• 1949 – Jerry Blackwell, American wrestler (d. 1995)
• 1949 – Dominic Sena, American film director
• 1954 – Alan Hinkes, British mountaineer
• 1955 – Mike Scott, American baseball player
• 1956 – Koo Stark, American actress
• 1958 – John Crichton-Stuart, 7th Marquess of Bute
• 1958 – Giancarlo Esposito, American actor
• 1958 – Jeffrey Guterman, American mental health counselor
• 1959 – John Corabi, American musician
• 1959 – Thanassis Papakonstantinou, Greek singer and songwriter
• 1960 – Roger Taylor, English musician (Duran Duran)
• 1960 – Steve Lombardozzi, American baseball player
• 1961 – Joan Chen, Chinese-born actress
• 1961 – Anthony Cumia, American radio personality (The Opie and Anthony Show)
• 1961 – Chris Mars, American rock drummer (The Replacements)
• 1962 – Colin Anderson, English footballer
• 1962 – Michael Damian, American actor, singer and producer
• 1962 – Debra Wilson, American actress and comedian
• 1963 – Li Lianjie/Jet Li, Chinese martial artist and actor
• 1963 – Colin Scotts, Australian-born American football player
• 1965 – Kevin James, American comedian
• 1966 – Yoshihiro Togashi, Mangaka who created YuYu Hakusho
• 1967 – Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Academy Award nominated British actress
• 1967 – Glenn Jacobs, American professional wrestler
• 1970 – Melania Trump, Slovenian model
• 1970 – Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, American singer (TLC)
• 1971 – Shondrella Avery, American actress
• 1971 – Jay DeMarcus, American bassist (Rascal Flatts)
• 1972 – Jason Bargwanna, Australian racing driver
• 1972 – Kiko Narváez, Spanish footballer
• 1972 – Avi Nimni, Israeli Footballer
• 1973 – Chris Perry, English footballer
• 1974 – Ivana Milicevic, Croatian-American actress
• 1974 – Adil Ray, English radio presenter (BBC Asian Network)
• 1975 – Nathan "Joey" Jordison, American musician (Slipknot)
• 1975 – Nerina Pallot, British singer
• 1976 – Vaclav Varada, Czech ice hockey player
• 1977 – Kosuke Fukudome, Japanese baseball player
• 1977 – Chris Johnston, Irish rugby player
• 1977 – Tom Welling, American actor
• 1978 – Avant, American singer
• 1978 – Joe Crede, American baseball player
• 1978 – Peter Madsen, Danish footballer
• 1978 – Tyler Labine, Canadian actor
• 1978 – Stana Katic, Canadian actress
• 1979 – Ariane Moffatt, Quebec singer and songwriter
• 1979 – Janne Wirman, Finnish musician (Children of Bodom)
• 1980 – Jordana Brewster, American actress
• 1980 – Marlon King, Jamaican footballer
• 1980 – Anna Mucha, Polish actress
• 1980 – Channing Tatum, American actor
• 1980 – Marnette Patterson, American actress, famous YouTube star LG15: The Resistance
• 1981 – Matthieu Delpierre, French footballer
• 1981 – Ms. Dynamite, English musician
• 1982 – Joanne Gobure, Nauruan poet
• 1982 – Brock Gillespie, American basketball player
• 1982 – Jon Lee, British singer (S Club)
• 1982 – Cooper Wallace, American football player
• 1983 – José María López, Argentine racing driver
• 1983 – Jessica Lynch, American P.O.W.
• 1984 – Mija Martina, Bosnian singer
• 1985 – John Isner, American Tennis player
• 1985 – Nam Gyu-Ri, Korean singer (See Ya)
• 1987 – Jessica Lee Rose, American-born New Zealand actress, YouTube star lonelygirl15

Deaths

• 1192 – Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan (b. 1127)
• 1444 – Robert Campin, Flemish painter (b. 1378)
• 1476 – Simonetta Vespucci, inspiration of Botticelli (b. 1453)
• 1478 – Giuliano di Piero de' Medici, ruler of Florence (assassinated) (b. 1453)
• 1489 – Ashikaga Yoshihisa, Japanese shogun (b. 1465)
• 1716 – John Somers, 1st Baron Somers, Lord Chancellor of England (b. 1651)
• 1784 – Nano Nagle, Irish convent founder (b. 1718)
• 1789 – Count Petr Ivanovich Panin, Russian soldier (b. 1721)
• 1852 – Charles Athanase Walckenaer, French naturalist (b. 25 December 1771)
• 1865 – John Wilkes Booth, American actor and assassin (shot) (b. 1838)
• 1881 – Ludwig Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen, German general (b. 1815)
• 1892 – Sir Provo Wallis, British Admiral and naval hero (b. 1791)
• 1910 – Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Norwegian author, Nobel laureate (b. 1832)
• 1915 – John Bunny, silent film comedian (b. 1863)
• 1920 – Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician (b. 1887)
• 1932 – William Lockwood, English cricketer (b. 1868)
• 1936 – Tammany Young, American actor (b. 1886)
• 1938 – Edmund Husserl, Austrian philosopher (b. 1859)
• 1940 – Carl Bosch, German chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1874)
• 1944 – Violette Morris, French athlete (b. 1893)
• 1945 – Pavlo Skoropadsky, Ukrainian politician and general (b. 1871)
• 1945 – Sigmund Rascher, Nazi doctor (b. 1909)
• 1946 – Jim White, discoverer of Carlsbad Caverns (b. 1882)
• 1950 – G. Murray Hulbert, American politician (b. 1881)
• 1951 – Arnold Sommerfeld, German physicist (b. 1868)
• 1956 – Edward Arnold, American actor (b. 1890)
• 1957 – Gichin Funakoshi, Father of Japanese Shotokan Karatedo (b. 1868)
• 1964 – E. J. Pratt, Canadian poet born Newfoundland (b. 1882)
• 1969 – Morihei Ueshiba, Japanese martial artist and founder of aikido (b. 1883)
• 1970 – Erik Bergman, Lutheran pastor (b. 1886)
• 1970 – Gypsy Rose Lee, American actress (b. 1911)
• 1972 – Fernando Amorsolo, Filipino painter (b. 1892)
• 1973 – Irene Ryan, American actress (b. 1902)
• 1976 – Sid James, South African–born British comedian (b. 1913)
• 1980 – Cicely Courtneidge, English actress and comedian (b. 1893)
• 1981 – Jim Davis, American actor (b. 1909)
• 1984 – Count Basie, American musician and composer (b. 1904)
• 1986 – Broderick Crawford, American actor (stroke) (b. 1911)
• 1986 – Dechko Uzunov, Bulgarian painter (b. 1899)
• 1986 – Bessie Love, American actress (b. 1898)
• 1987 – John Ernest Silkin, British politician (b. 1923)
• 1987 – Shankar, Of Noted Bollywood Music Director Duo Shankar-Jaikishan (b. 1922)
• 1989 – Lucille Ball, American actress and comedian (b. 1911)
• 1991 – Leo Arnaud, French-American composer (b. 1904)
• 1991 – Carmine Coppola, American composer and conductor (b. 1910)
• 1991 – Emily McLaughlin, American actress (b. 1928)
• 1991 – Richard Hatfield, Canadian politician (b. 1931)
• 1994 – Masutatsu Oyama, Founder of Japanese Kyokushin Karate (b. 1927)
• 1996 – Stirling Silliphant, American writer and producer (b. 1918)
• 1999 – Adrian Borland, English musician (The Sound) (b. 1957)
• 1999 – Jill Dando, British television presenter (b. 1961)
• 2002 – Robert Steinhäuser German spree killer (b. 1983)
• 2003 – Rosemary Brown, Canadian politician (b. 1930)
• 2003 – Max Nicholson, Irish environmentalist (b. 1904)
• 2003 – Peter Stone, American writer (b. 1930)
• 2004 – Hubert Selby Jr., American author (b. 1928)
• 2005 – Mason Adams, American actor (b. 1919)
• 2005 – Maria Schell, Swiss-Austrian actress (b. 1926)
• 2005 – Augusto Roa Bastos, Paraguayan author (b. 1917)
• 2007 – Jack Valenti, American political advisor and film executive (b. 1921)

Holidays and observances

• Tanzania – Union Day.
• Florida and Georgia, USA – Confederate Memorial Day.
• World Intellectual Property Day (since 2001).

In the Roman Catholic Church:

• Our Lady of Good Counsel
• Saint Alda (d. 1309)
• Franca Visalta (d. 1218)
• Richarius or Riquier (d. 643)
• Paschasius (d. 865)
• Saint Cletus (Pope Anacletus) and Marcellinus (Popes and martyrs)
• Lucidius (4th century)
• Trudpert (Irish monk martyred in Germany in 607).

In the Russian Orthodox Church:

• Stephen of Perm – also Old Permic Alphabet Day

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: April 26

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