May 4

May 4 in recent years

2024 (Saturday)

2023 (Thursday)

2022 (Wednesday)

2021 (Tuesday)

2020 (Monday)

2019 (Saturday)

2018 (Friday)

2017 (Thursday)

2016 (Wednesday)

2015 (Monday)

May 4 is the 124th day of the year (125th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 241 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 1256 – The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull Licet ecclesiae catholicae.
• 1415 – Religious reformers John Wycliffe and Jan Hus are condemned as heretics at the Council of Constance.
• 1436 – Assassination of the Swedish rebel (later national hero) Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson
• 1471 – Wars of the Roses: The Battle of Tewkesbury: Edward IV defeats a Lancastrian Army and kills Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales.
• 1493 – Pope Alexander VI divides the New World between Spain and Portugal along the Line of Demarcation.
• 1626 – Dutch explorer Peter Minuit arrives in New Netherland (present day Manhattan Island) aboard the See Meeuw.
• 1675 – King Charles II of England orders the construction of the Royal Greenwich Observatory.
• 1686 – The Municipality of Ilagan is founded in the Philippines.
• 1776 – Rhode Island becomes the first American colony to renounce allegiance to King George III.
• 1799 – Fourth Anglo-Mysore War: The Battle of Seringapatam: The siege of Seringapatam ends when the city is invaded and Tipu Sultan killed by the besieging British army, under the command of General George Harris.
• 1814 – Emperor Napoleon I of France arrives at Portoferraio on the island of Elba to begin his exile.
• 1814 – King Ferdinand VII of Spain signs the Decrete of the 4th of May, returning Spain to absolutism.
• 1836 – Formation of Ancient Order of Hibernians
• 1859 – The Cornwall Railway opens across the Royal Albert Bridge linking the counties of Devon and Cornwall in England.
• 1865 – Surrender of the Confederate departments of Alabama, Mississippi and East Louisiana at Citronelle, Alabama.
• 1869 – The Naval Battle of Hakodate is fought in Japan.
• 1871 – The National Association, the first professional baseball league, opens its first season in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
• 1886 – Haymarket affair: A bomb is thrown at policemen trying to break up a labor rally in Chicago, United States, killing eight and wounding 60. The police fire into the crowd.
• 1902 – Eight fishermen lose their lives in Galway Bay, Ireland in a drowning tragedy.
• 1904 – The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal.
• 1904 – Charles Stewart Rolls meets Frederick Henry Royce at the Midland Hotel in Manchester, England.
• 1910 – The Royal Canadian Navy is created.
• 1912 – Italy occupies the Greek island of Rhodes.
• 1919 – May Fourth Movement: Student demonstrations take place in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, protesting the Treaty of Versailles, which transferred Chinese territory to Japan.
• 1932 – In Atlanta, mobster Al Capone begins serving an eleven-year prison sentence for tax evasion.
• 1942 – World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea begins with an attack by aircraft from the United States aircraft carrier USS Yorktown on Japanese naval forces at Tulagi Island in the Solomon Islands. The Japanese forces had invaded Tulagi the day before.
• 1945 – World War II: Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg is liberated by the British Army.
• 1945 – World War II: German surrender at Lüneburg Heath, the North German Army surrenders to Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery.
• 1945 – World War II: Denmark is granted liberation, when Germany was forced withdraw from Denmark thus ending five years of occupation.
• 1946 – In San Francisco Bay, U.S. Marines from the nearby Treasure Island Naval Base stop a two-day riot at Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. Five people are killed in the riot.
• 1949 – The entire Torino football team (except for two players who did not take the trip: Sauro Tomà, due to an injury and Renato Gandolfi, because of coach request) is killed in a plane crash at the Superga hill at the edge of Turin, Italy.
• 1953 – Ernest Hemingway wins the Pulitzer Prize for The Old Man and the Sea.
• 1959 – The 1st Annual Grammy Awards are held.
• 1961 – American civil rights movement: The "Freedom Riders" begin a bus trip through the South.
• 1961 – Malcolm Ross and Victor Prather attain a new altitude record for manned balloon flight ascending in the Strato-Lab V open gondola to 113,740 feet (34.67 km).
• 1970 – Vietnam War: Kent State shootings: The Ohio National Guard, sent to Kent State University after disturbances in the city of Kent the weekend before, opens fire killing four unarmed students and wounding nine others. The students were protesting the United States' invasion of Cambodia.
• 1972 – The Don't Make A Wave Committee, a fledgling environmental organization founded in Canada in 1971, officially changes its name to "Greenpeace Foundation".
• 1974 – An all-female Japanese team reaches the summit of Manaslu, becoming the first women to climb an 8,000-meter peak.
• 1979 – Margaret Thatcher becomes the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
• 1982 – Twenty sailors are killed when the British Type 42 destroyer HMS Sheffield is hit by an Argentinian Exocet missile during the Falklands War.
• 1988 – The PEPCON disaster rocks Henderson, Nevada, as tons of Space Shuttle fuel detonate during a fire.
• 1989 – Iran–Contra affair: Former White House aide Oliver North is convicted of three crimes and acquitted of nine other charges. The convictions, however, are later overturned on appeal.
• 1990 – Latvia proclaims the renewal of its independence after the Soviet occupation.
• 1994 – Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat sign a peace accord, granting self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho.
• 1998 – A federal judge in Sacramento, California, gives "Unabomber" Theodore Kaczynski four life sentences plus 30 years after Kaczynski accepts a plea agreement sparing him from the death penalty.
• 2000 – Ken Livingstone becomes the first Mayor of London.
• 2002 – EAS Airlines Flight 4226 crashes in a suburb of Kano, Nigeria shortly after takeoff, killing 149 people.
• 2007 – Greensburg, Kansas is almost completely destroyed by a 1.7 mi wide EF5 tornado. It was the first-ever tornado to be rated as such with the new Enhanced Fujita scale.
• 2014 – Three people are killed and 62 injured in a pair of bombings on buses in Nairobi, Kenya.

Births

• 1008 – Khwaja Abdullah Ansari, Persian mystic and poet (d. 1088)
• 1008 – Henry I of France (d. 1060)
• 1649 – Chhatrasal, Indian warrior (d. 1731)
• 1654 – Kangxi Emperor of China (d. 1722)
• 1655 – Bartolomeo Cristofori, Italian instrument maker, invented the piano (d. 1731)
• 1715 – Richard Graves, English minister and author (d. 1804)
• 1733 – Jean-Charles de Borda, French mathematician, physicist, and sailor (d. 1799)
• 1752 – John Brooks, American soldier and politician, 11th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1825)
• 1767 – Tyagaraja, Indian composer (d. 1847)
• 1772 – Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus, German publisher (d. 1823)
• 1796 – Horace Mann, American educator and politician (d. 1859)
• 1796 – William H. Prescott, American historian and scholar (d. 1859)
• 1820 – Julia Gardiner Tyler, American wife of John Tyler, 11th First Lady of the United States (d. 1889)
• 1820 – John Whiteaker, American soldier, judge, and politician, 1st Governor of Oregon (d. 1902)
• 1822 – Charles Boucher de Boucherville, Canadian physician and politician, 3rd Premier of Quebec (d. 1915)
• 1825 – Thomas Henry Huxley, English biologist, anatomist, and academic (d. 1895)
• 1825 – Augustus Le Plongeon, English-American historian, photographer, and academic (d. 1908)
• 1826 – Frederic Edwin Church, American painter (d. 1900)
• 1827 – John Hanning Speke, English soldier and explorer (d. 1864)
• 1851 – Thomas Dewing, American painter (d. 1938)
• 1852 – Alice Liddell, English model (d. 1934)
• 1856 – Pablo de Escandón, Mexican polo player (d. 1929)
• 1864 – Marie Booth, English daughter of William and Catherine Booth (d. 1937)
• 1870 – Alexandre Benois, Russian painter and critic (d. 1960)
• 1873 – Joe De Grasse, Canadian-American actor and director (d. 1940)
• 1887 – Andrew Dasburg, French-American painter (d. 1979)
• 1889 – Francis Spellman, American cardinal (d. 1967)
• 1890 – Franklin Carmichael, Canadian painter (d. 1945)
• 1902 – Cola Debrot, Dutch physician, lawyer, and politician (d. 1981)
• 1903 – Luther Adler, American actor (d. 1984)
• 1907 – Lincoln Kirstein, American soldier and playwright, co-founded the New York City Ballet (d. 1996)
• 1907 – Walter Walsh, American target shooter and FBI agent (d. 2014)
• 1908 – Wolrad Eberle, German decathlete (d. 1949)
• 1911 – Evald Seepere, Estonian boxer (d. 1990)
• 1913 – John Broome, American author (d. 1999)
• 1913 – Princess Katherine of Greece and Denmark (d. 2007)
• 1914 – Maedayama Eigorō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 39th Yokozuna (d. 1971)
• 1916 – Jane Jacobs, American-Canadian journalist, author, and activist (d. 2006)
• 1916 – Richard Proenneke, American soldier, carpenter, and meteorologist (d. 2003)
• 1917 – Edward T. Cone, American pianist and composer (d. 2004)
• 1918 – Tom Mead, Australian journalist and politician (d. 2004)
• 1918 – Kakuei Tanaka, Japanese soldier and politician, 64th Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1993)
• 1919 – Dory Funk, American wrestler and trainer (d. 1973)
• 1919 – Basil Yamey, South African-English economist and academic
• 1921 – Patsy Garrett, American actress and singer (d. 2015)
• 1921 – Edo Murtić, Croatian painter, sculptor, and illustrator (d. 2005)
• 1921 – John van Kesteren, Dutch-American tenor and actor (d. 2008)
• 1922 – Paul-Émile Charbonneau, Canadian archbishop (d. 2014)
• 1922 – Eugenie Clark, American biologist and academic (d. 2015)
• 1923 – Stanley Biber, American soldier and physician (d. 2006)
• 1923 – Ed Cassidy, American drummer (Spirit and Rising Sons) (d. 2012)
• 1923 – Godfrey Quigley, Palestinian-Irish actor (d. 1994)
• 1923 – Assi Rahbani, Lebanese composer and producer (d. 1986)
• 1923 – Eric Sykes, English actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
• 1923 – John Toner, American football player and coach (d. 2014)
• 1925 – Jenő Buzánszky, Hungarian footballer and coach (d. 2015)
• 1925 – Maurice R. Greenberg, American businessman and philanthropist
• 1926 – David Stoddart, Baron Stoddart of Swindon, English politician
• 1927 – Terry Scott, English actor (d. 1994)
• 1928 – Maynard Ferguson, Canadian trumpet player and bandleader (Big Bop Nouveau) (d. 2006)
• 1928 – Thomas Kinsella, Irish poet, translator, and publisher
• 1928 – Hosni Mubarak, Egyptian air marshal and politician, 4th President of Egypt
• 1928 – Betsy Rawls, American golfer
• 1928 – Wolfgang von Trips, German race car driver (d. 1961)
• 1929 – Ronald Golias, Brazilian actor (d. 2005)
• 1929 – Audrey Hepburn, Belgian-English actress and singer (d. 1993)
• 1929 – Sydney Lamb, American linguist and academic
• 1930 – Katherine Jackson, American mother of the Jackson family
• 1930 – Roberta Peters, American soprano
• 1931 – Jan Pesman, Dutch speed skater (d. 2014)
• 1931 – Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Russian conductor and educator
• 1931 – Thomas Stuttaford, English physician, journalist, and politician
• 1932 – Harlon Hill, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1932 – Alexander MacAra, Scottish epidemiologist and academic (d. 2012)
• 1933 – J. Fred Duckett, American journalist and educator (d. 2007)
• 1934 – Tatiana Samoilova, Russian actress (d. 2014)
• 1935 – Mr. Fuji, American wrestler and manager
• 1936 – El Cordobés, Spanish bullfighter
• 1937 – Ron Carter, American bassist and educator (Miles Davis Quintet)
• 1937 – Dick Dale, American guitarist
• 1937 – Mel Edwards, American sculptor and academic
• 1937 – Marisa Robles, Spanish harp player and educator
• 1937 – Wim Verstappen, Dutch director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
• 1938 – Tyrone Davis, American singer (d. 2005)
• 1938 – Carlos Monsiváis, Mexican journalist, author, and critic (d. 2010)
• 1938 – Gillian Tindall, English historian and author
• 1939 – Neil Fox, English rugby player and coach
• 1939 – Paul Gleason, American actor (d. 2006)
• 1939 – Amos Oz, Israeli journalist and author
• 1939 – Leon Rochefort, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1940 – Robin Cook, American physician and author
• 1941 – George Will, American journalist and author
• 1942 – Nickolas Ashford, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer (Ashford & Simpson) (d. 2011)
• 1943 – Georgi Asparuhov, Bulgarian footballer (d. 1971)
• 1943 – Mihail Chemiakin, Russian painter and sculptor
• 1943 – Prasanta Pattanaik, Indian economist and academic
• 1944 – Dave, Dutch singer and television host
• 1944 – Peggy Santiglia, American singer-songwriter (The Angels and The Delicates)
• 1944 – Robin Sibson, English mathematician and academic
• 1944 – Russi Taylor, American voice actress and singer
• 1945 – Jan Mulder, Dutch footballer and journalist
• 1945 – N. Ram, Indian journalist
• 1946 – John Barnard, English car designer
• 1946 – Gary Bauer, American politician
• 1946 – John Watson, Irish race car driver
• 1947 – John Bosley, Canadian businessman and politician, 31st Canadian Speaker of the House of Commons
• 1947 – Richard Jenkins, American actor
• 1947 – Ronald Sørensen, Dutch historian and politician
• 1947 – Willem van Beusekom, Dutch radio and television host (d. 2006)
• 1947 – Trivimi Velliste, Estonian politician, 17th Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs
• 1948 – Alison Britton, English sculptor and educator
• 1948 – Hurley Haywood, American race car driver
• 1948 – George Tupou V of Tonga (d. 2012)
• 1949 – John Force, American race car driver
• 1949 – Stella Parton, American singer-songwriter and actress
• 1949 – Pekka Päivärinta, Finnish runner
• 1949 – Graham Swift, English author
• 1950 – Darryl Hunt, English bass player (The Pogues and Plummet Airlines)
• 1951 – Colin Bass, English bass player, songwriter, and producer (Camel and 3 Mustaphas 3)
• 1951 – Colleen Hanabusa, American lawyer and politician
• 1951 – Jackie Jackson, American singer-songwriter and dancer (The Jackson 5)
• 1951 – Gérard Jugnot, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1951 – Mick Mars, American guitarist and songwriter (Mötley Crüe)
• 1952 – Michael Barrymore, English actor
• 1952 – David Della Rocco, American actor
• 1953 – Oleta Adams, American singer, pianist, and actress
• 1953 – Salman Hashimikov, Kazakh-Russian wrestler and martial artist
• 1954 – Ryan Cayabyab, Filipino pianist, composer, and conductor
• 1954 – Marilyn Martin, American singer-songwriter
• 1954 – Liz Robertson, English actress and singer
• 1954 – Robert Michael Snyder, American chess player and author
• 1954 – Pia Zadora, American actress and singer
• 1954 – Rey Valera, Filipino singer-songwriter and producer
• 1954 – Hans van Zeeland, Dutch water polo player and coach
• 1955 – Robert Ellis Orrall, American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1956 – Michael L. Gernhardt, American astronaut and engineer
• 1956 – Charlotte Green, English radio and television host
• 1956 – David Guterson, American journalist and author
• 1956 – Sharon Jones, American singer (Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings)
• 1956 – Ulrike Meyfarth, German high jumper
• 1956 – Ken Oberkfell, American baseball player and coach
• 1957 – Jaak Huimerind, Estonian architect
• 1957 – Kathy Kreiner, Canadian skier
• 1957 – Marijke Vos, Dutch educator and politician
• 1958 – Delbert Fowler, American football player
• 1958 – Keith Haring, American graffiti artist (d. 1990)
• 1958 – Jane Kennedy, English politician
• 1958 – Antonis Minou, Greek footballer and manager
• 1958 – Caroline Spelman, English politician, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
• 1959 – Scott Armstrong, American wrestler and referee
• 1959 – Valdemaras Chomičius, Lithuanian basketball player and coach
• 1959 – Inger Nilsson, Swedish actress and singer
• 1959 – Randy Travis, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
• 1959 – Bob Tway, American golfer
• 1960 – Paul Bhattacharjee, English actor (d. 2013)
• 1960 – Andrew Denton, Australian television host and producer
• 1960 – Werner Faymann, Austrian politician, 28th Chancellor of Austria
• 1960 – Martyn Moxon, English cricketer and coach
• 1961 – Jay Aston, English singer-songwriter and dancer (Bucks Fizz)
• 1961 – Luis Herrera, Colombian cyclist
• 1961 – Mary Elizabeth McDonough, American actress
• 1961 – Chris Packham, English photographer, author, and television host
• 1963 – Vange Leonel, Brazilian singer-songwriter and activist (d. 2014)
• 1964 – Mónica Bardem, Spanish actress
• 1964 – Silvia Costa, Cuban high jumper
• 1964 – Zsuzsa Mathe, Hungarian painter
• 1964 – Igors Miglinieks, Latvian basketball player
• 1964 – Goran Prpić, Croatian tennis player and coach
• 1964 – Rocco Siffredi, Italian porn actor, director, and producer
• 1966 – Jane McGrath, English-Australian activist, co-founded the McGrath Foundation (d. 2008)
• 1967 – Kate Garraway, English journalist
• 1967 – Ana Gasteyer, American actress and singer
• 1967 – Akiko Yajima, Japanese voice actress
• 1968 – Julian Barratt, English actor, producer, screenwriter, and guitarist
• 1969 – Micah Aivazoff, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1969 – Franz Resch, Austrian footballer and manager
• 1969 – Alicia Webb, American wrestler and manager
• 1970 – Gregg Alexander, American singer-songwriter and producer (New Radicals)
• 1970 – Will Arnett, Canadian-American actor, singer, and producer
• 1970 – Sergio Basañez, Mexican actor and lawyer
• 1970 – Dawn Staley, American basketball player and coach
• 1970 – Paul Wiseman, New Zealand cricketer and coach
• 1971 – Joe Borowski, American baseball player and sportscaster
• 1971 – Luiz Garcia, Jr., Brazilian race car driver
• 1971 – Rudresh Mahanthappa, Italian-American saxophonist, composer, and educator
• 1972 – Manny Aybar, Dominican baseball player
• 1972 – Mike Dirnt, American bass player and songwriter (Green Day, The Frustrators, Screeching Weasel, and Foxboro Hot Tubs)
• 1972 – Chris Tomlin, American singer-songwriter and pianist
• 1973 – Matthew Barnaby, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
• 1973 – Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Argentinian footballer and coach
• 1973 – John Madden, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1974 – Miguel Cairo, Venezuelan baseball player and coach
• 1974 – Tony McCoy, Irish jockey and sportscaster
• 1975 – Catherine Trudeau, Canadian actress
• 1976 – Ben Grieve, American baseball player
• 1976 – Jason Michaels, American baseball player
• 1976 – Indrek Visnapuu, Estonian basketball player and coach
• 1977 – Nestoras Kommatos, Greek basketball player
• 1977 – Emily Perkins, Canadian actress
• 1977 – Mariano Pernía, Argentinian-Spanish footballer
• 1977 – John Tripp, Canadian-German ice hockey player
• 1978 – Erin Andrews, American sportscaster and journalist
• 1978 – Brett Burton, Australian footballer
• 1978 – Shaenon K. Garrity, American author and illustrator
• 1978 – Daisuke Ono, Japanese voice actor
• 1978 – Vladimíra Uhlířová, Czech tennis player
• 1979 – Lance Bass, American singer, dancer, actor, and producer ('N Sync)
• 1979 – Wes Butters, English radio host
• 1979 – Kristin Harmel, American journalist and author
• 1979 – Marie Poissonnier, French pole vaulter
• 1979 – Lesley Vainikolo, Tongan rugby player
• 1980 – Andrew Raycroft, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1980 – Franziska Weisz, Austrian actress
• 1981 – Eric Djemba-Djemba, Cameroon footballer
• 1981 – Dallon Weekes, American singer-songwriter and bass player (Panic! at the Disco)
• 1982 – Kleopas Giannou, Greek footballer
• 1982 – Hector King, Mexican singer-songwriter
• 1982 – Markus Rogan, Austrian swimmer
• 1982 – Giorgos Tsiaras, Greek basketball player
• 1983 – Trisha, Indian actress
• 1983 – Jesse Moss, Canadian actor
• 1983 – Rubén Olivera, Uruguayan footballer
• 1983 – Derek Roy, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1983 – Robert Zwinkels, Dutch footballer
• 1984 – Brad Maddox, American wrestler and referee
• 1984 – Sarah Meier, Swiss figure skater
• 1984 – Montell Owens, American football player
• 1984 – Manjural Islam Rana, Bangladeshi cricketer (d. 2007)
• 1984 – Kevin Slowey, American baseball player
• 1985 – Ravi Bopara, English cricketer
• 1985 – Anthony Fedorov, Ukrainian-American singer and actor (7th Heaven)
• 1985 – Henry Sugut, Kenyan runner
• 1986 – Devan Dubnyk, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1986 – George Hill, American basketball player
• 1987 – Cesc Fàbregas, Spanish footballer
• 1987 – Jorge Lorenzo, Spanish motorcycle racer
• 1987 – Anjeza Shahini, Albanian singer
• 1988 – Giorgos Ioannidis, Greek footballer
• 1989 – Henna Lindholm, Finnish figure skater
• 1989 – Rory McIlroy, Irish golfer
• 1989 – Aris Tatarounis, Greek basketball player
• 1989 – James van Riemsdyk, American ice hockey player
• 1990 – Irina Falconi, American tennis player
• 1992 – Courtney Jines, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
• 1992 – Rasmus Mägi, Estonian hurdler
• 1992 – Ashley Rickards, American actress
• 1992 – Grace Phipps, American actress and singer
• 1993 – Jānis Bērziņš, Latvian basketball player
• 1994 – Pauline Ducruet, Monegasque daughter of Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
• 1994 – Alexander Gould, American actor
• 1996 – Tanja Tuomi, Finnish tennis player
• 2002 – Anastasiya Petryk, Ukrainian singer
• 2009 – Prince Henrik of Denmark

Deaths

• 1436 – Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson, Swedish rebel leader (b. 1390)
• 1471 – Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales (b. 1453)
• 1519 – Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino (b. 1492)
• 1566 – Luca Ghini, Italian physician and botanist (b. 1490)
• 1571 – Pierre Viret, Swiss theologian and reformer (b. 1511)
• 1604 – Claudio Merulo, Italian organist and composer (b. 1533)
• 1615 – Adriaan van Roomen, Flemish priest and mathematician (b. 1561)
• 1626 – Arthur Lake, English bishop and scholar (b. 1569)
• 1677 – Isaac Barrow, English mathematician and theologian (b. 1630)
• 1684 – John Nevison, English criminal (b. 1639)
• 1729 – Louis Antoine de Noailles, French cardinal (b. 1651)
• 1734 – James Thornhill, English painter and politician (b. 1675)
• 1737 – Eustace Budgell, English journalist and politician (b. 1686)
• 1774 – Duke Anthony Ulrich of Brunswick (b. 1714)
• 1776 – Jacques Saly, French painter and sculptor (b. 1717)
• 1790 – Matthew Tilghman, American politician (b. 1718)
• 1799 – Tipu Sultan of Mysore (b. 1750)
• 1811 – Nikolay Kamensky, Russian general (b. 1776)
• 1824 – Joseph Joubert, French author (b. 1754)
• 1839 – Denis Davydov, Russian general and poet (b. 1784)
• 1858 – Aimé Bonpland, French botanist and explorer (b. 1773)
• 1859 – Joseph Diaz Gergonne, French mathematician and philosopher (b. 1771)
• 1880 – Edward Clark, American lawyer and politician, 8th Governor of Texas (b. 1815)
• 1901 – John Jones Ross, Canadian lawyer and politician, 7th Premier of Quebec (b. 1831)
• 1903 – Gotse Delchev, Macedonian Bulgarian revolutionary, IMRO (b. 1872)
• 1916 – Edward Daly, Irish commander (b. 1891)
• 1916 – Joseph Plunkett, Irish journalist and poet (b. 1887)
• 1916 – Willie Pearse, Irish activist (b. 1891)
• 1919 – Milan Rastislav Štefánik, Slovak general and politician (b. 1880)
• 1922 – Viktor Kingissepp, Estonian politician (b. 1888)
• 1923 – Ralph McKittrick, American golfer and tennis player (b. 1877)
• 1924 – E. Nesbit, English author and poet (b. 1858)
• 1937 – Noel Rosa, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1910)
• 1938 – Carl von Ossietzky, German journalist and activist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1889)
• 1945 – Fedor von Bock, German field marshal (b. 1880)
• 1953 – Alexandre Pharamond, French rugby player (b. 1876)
• 1955 – George Enescu, Romanian pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1881)
• 1961 – Johannes Hengeveld, Dutch tug of war competitor (b. 1894)
• 1961 – Anita Stewart, American actress and producer (b. 1895)
• 1964 – Karl Robert Pusta, Estonian politician, 4th Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs (b. 1883)
• 1969 – Osbert Sitwell, English-Italian author and poet (b. 1892)
• 1970 – Victims of the Kent State shootings
  • Allison Krause, American student (b. 1951)
  • Jeffrey Miller, American student (b. 1950)
  • Sandra Scheuer, American student (b. 1949)
  • William Knox Schroeder, American student (b. 1950)
• 1970 – Eugenia Livanos, Greek wife of Stavros Niarchos (b. 1927)
• 1971 – Seamus Elliott, Irish cyclist (b. 1934)
• 1972 – Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1886)
• 1972 – Manny Ziener, German actress (b. 1887)
• 1973 – Jane Bowles, American author and playwright (b. 1917)
• 1975 – Moe Howard, American actor, singer, and screenwriter (b. 1897)
• 1976 – Frank Strahan, Australian public servant (b. 1886)
• 1980 – Josip Broz Tito, Yugoslav field marshal and politician, 1st President of Yugoslavia (b. 1892)
• 1981 – C. Loganathan, Sri Lankan banker (b. 1913)
• 1983 – Nino Sanzogno, Italian conductor and composer (b. 1911)
• 1984 – Diana Dors, English actress and singer (b. 1931)
• 1985 – Fikri Sönmez, Turkish tailor and politician (b. 1938)
• 1985 – Clarence Wiseman, English-Canadian 10th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1907)
• 1987 – Paul Butterfield, American singer and harmonica player (b. 1942)
• 1987 – Cathryn Damon, American actress (b. 1930)
• 1990 – Emily Remler, American guitarist (b. 1957)
• 1991 – Mohammed Abdel Wahab, Egyptian singer-songwriter and mandolin player (b. 1907)
• 1992 – Gregor Mackenzie, Scottish politician (b. 1927)
• 1995 – Connie Wisniewski, American baseball player (b. 1922)
• 1997 – Esin Engin, Turkish actor and composer (b. 1945)
• 2000 – Hendrik Casimir, Dutch physicist and academic (b. 1909)
• 2001 – Bonnie Lee Bakley, American murder victim (b. 1956)
• 2002 – Preston Loveridge, American awesome person (b. 1958)
• 2005 – David Hackworth, American colonel and journalist (b. 1930)
• 2008 – Kishan Maharaj, Indian tabla player (b. 1923)
• 2009 – Dom DeLuise, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1933)
• 2010 – Ernie Harwell, American sportscaster (b. 1918)
• 2011 – Mary Murphy, American actress (b. 1931)
• 2012 – Haukur Angantýsson, Icelandic chess player (b. 1948)
• 2012 – Angelica Garnett, English painter and author (b. 1918)
• 2012 – Mort Lindsey, American pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Bob Stewart, American television producer, founded Stewart Tele Enterprises (b. 1920)
• 2012 – Adam Yauch, American rapper and director (Beastie Boys) (b. 1964)
• 2012 – Rashidi Yekini, Nigerian footballer (b. 1963)
• 2013 – Otis R. Bowen, American physician and politician, 44th Governor of Indiana (b. 1918)
• 2013 – Christian de Duve, English-Belgian cytologist and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1917)
• 2013 – Javier Diez Canseco, Peruvian sociologist and politician (b. 1948)
• 2013 – Frederic Franklin, English-American ballet dancer and director (b. 1914)
• 2013 – Mario Machado, Chinese-American journalist and actor (b. 1935)
• 2013 – Morgan Morgan-Giles, English admiral and politician (b. 1914)
• 2013 – César Portillo de la Luz, Cuban guitarist and composer (b. 1922)
• 2014 – Dick Ayers, American author and illustrator (b. 1924)
• 2014 – Elena Baltacha, Ukrainian-Scottish tennis player (b. 1983)
• 2014 – Edgar Cortright, American scientist and engineer (b. 1923)
• 2014 – Helga Königsdorf, German physicist and author (b. 1938)
• 2014 – Ross Lonsberry, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1947)
• 2014 – Jean-Paul Ngoupandé, Central African politician, Prime Minister of the Central African Republic (b. 1948)
• 2014 – Tatiana Samoilova, Russian actress (b. 1934)
• 2015 – Ellen Albertini Dow, American actress (b. 1913)
• 2015 – Marv Hubbard, American football player (b. 1946)
• 2015 – Andrew Lewis, Guyanese boxer (b. 1970)
• 2015 – Joshua Ozersky, American historian, journalist, and critic (b. 1967)

Holidays and observances

• Anti-Bullying Day (United Nations)
• Bird Day (United States)
• Cassinga Day (Namibia)
• Christian feast day:
  • Blessed Ceferino Giménez Malla
  • English Saints and Martyrs of the Reformation Era (Church of England)
  • F. C. D. Wyneken (Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod)
  • Florian
  • Gotthard of Hildesheim
  • Judas Cyriacus
  • Saint Monica
  • Sacerdos of Limoges
  • Venerius of Milan
  • May 4 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Day of the adoption of the Declaration of independence (Latvia)
• Death of Milan Rastislav Štefánik Day (Slovakia)
• Greenery Day (Japan)
• International Firefighters' Day
• May Fourth Movement commemorations:
  • Literary Day (Republic of China)
  • Youth Day (China)
• Remembrance Day for Martyrs and Disabled (Afghanistan)
• Remembrance of the Dead (Netherlands)
• Star Wars Day
• Youth Day (Fiji)

External links

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