April 2

April 2 in recent years

2024 (Tuesday)

2023 (Sunday)

2022 (Saturday)

2021 (Friday)

2020 (Thursday)

2019 (Tuesday)

2018 (Monday)

2017 (Sunday)

2016 (Saturday)

2015 (Thursday)

April 2 is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 273 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

• 1513 – Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León first sights land in what is now Florida.
• 1755 – Commodore William James captures the pirate fortress of Suvarnadurg on west coast of India.
• 1792 – The Coinage Act is passed establishing the United States Mint.
• 1800 – Ludwig van Beethoven leads the premiere of his First Symphony in Vienna.
• 1801 – Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Copenhagen – The British capture the Danish fleet.
• 1851 – Rama IV is crowned King of Thailand.
• 1863 – Richmond Bread Riot: Food shortages incite hundreds of angry women to riot in Richmond, Virginia and demand that the Confederate government release emergency supplies.
• 1865 – American Civil War: The Siege of Petersburg is broken – Union troops capture the trenches around Petersburg, Virginia, forcing Confederate General Robert E. Lee to retreat.
• 1865 – American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis and most of his Cabinet flee the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia.
• 1885 – Cree warriors attacked the village of Frog Lake, North-West Territories, Canada, killing 9.
• 1900 – The Congress passes the Foraker Act, giving Puerto Rico limited self-rule.
• 1902 – Dmitry Sipyagin, Minister of Interior of the Russian Empire, is assassinated in the Marie Palace, St Petersburg.
• 1902 – "Electric Theatre", the first full-time movie theater in the United States, opens in Los Angeles, California.
• 1911 – The Australian Bureau of Statistics conducts the country's first national census.
• 1912 – The ill fated RMS Titanic begins sea trials.
• 1917 – World War I: President Woodrow Wilson asks the U.S. Congress for a declaration of war on Germany.
• 1921 – The Autonomous Government of Khorasan, a military government encompassing the modern state of Iran, is established.
• 1930 – After the mysterious death of Empress Zewditu, Haile Selassie is proclaimed emperor of Ethiopia.
• 1945 – Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Brazil are established.
• 1956 – As the World Turns and The Edge of Night premiere on CBS-TV. The two soaps become the first daytime dramas to debut in the 30-minute format.
• 1962 – The first official Panda crossing is opened outside Waterloo station, London.
• 1972 – Actor Charlie Chaplin returns to the United States for the first time since being labeled a communist during the Red Scare in the early 1950s.
• 1973 – Launch of the LexisNexis computerized legal research service.
• 1973 – The Liberal Movement breaks away from the Liberal and Country League in South Australia.
• 1975 – Vietnam War: Thousands of civilian refugees flee from the Quang Ngai Province in front of advancing North Vietnamese troops.
• 1975 – Construction of the CN Tower is completed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It reaches 553.33 metres (1,815.4 ft) in height, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure.
• 1980 – President Jimmy Carter signs the Crude Oil Windfall Profits Tax Act in an effort to help the U.S. economy rebound.
• 1982 – Falklands War: Argentina invades the Falkland Islands.
• 1984 – Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma is launched aboard Soyuz T-11, and becomes the first Indian in space.
• 1989 – Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Havana, Cuba to meet with Fidel Castro in an attempt to mend strained relations.
• 1991 – Rita Johnston becomes the first female Premier of a Canadian province when she succeeds William Vander Zalm (who had resigned) as Premier of British Columbia.
• 1992 – In New York, Mafia boss John Gotti is convicted of murder and racketeering and is later sentenced to life in prison.
• 2002 – Israeli forces surround the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem into which armed Palestinians had retreated. A siege ensues.
• 2004 – Islamist terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks attempt to bomb the Spanish high-speed train AVE near Madrid. Their attack is thwarted.
• 2006 – Over 60 tornadoes break out in the United States; hardest hit is in Tennessee with 29 people killed.
• 2011 – India won the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on 2 April 2011.

Births

• 742 – Charlemagne, French King (d. 814)
• 1527 – Abraham Ortelius, Flemish cartographer and geographer (d. 1598)
• 1545 – Elisabeth of Valois, third wife of Philip II of Spain (d. 1568)
• 1565 – Cornelis de Houtman, Dutch explorer (d. 1599)
• 1614 – Jahanara Begum Sahib, Imperial Princess, daughter of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal (d. 1681)
• 1618 – Francesco Maria Grimaldi, Italian mathematician and physicist (d. 1663)
• 1647 – Maria Sibylla Merian, German botanist (d. 1717)
• 1653 – Prince George of Denmark, prince consort of Anne of England (d. 1708)
• 1719 – Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim, German poet (d. 1803)
• 1725 – Giacomo Casanova, Italian adventurer and writer (d. 1798)
• 1781 – Bhagwan Swaminarayan, Indian religious leader (d. 1830)
• 1788 – Francisco Balagtas, Filipino poet (d. 1862)
• 1788 – Wilhelmine Reichard, German balloonist (d. 1848)
• 1798 – August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, German poet (d. 1874)
• 1805 – Hans Christian Andersen, Danish writer (d. 1875)
• 1814 – Erastus Brigham Bigelow, American inventor (d. 1879)
• 1827 – William Holman Hunt, English painter (d. 1910)
• 1838 – Léon Gambetta, French statesman (d. 1882)
• 1840 – Émile Zola, French novelist and critic (d. 1902)
• 1841 – Clément Ader, French aviation pioneer (d. 1926)
• 1861 – Iván Persa, Hungarian-Slovene writer and catholic priest (d. 1935)
• 1862 – Nicholas Murray Butler, American philosopher, diplomat, and educator, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1947)
• 1867 – Eugen Sandow, German bodybuilder and circus performer (d. 1925)
• 1869 – Hughie Jennings, American baseball player and manager (d. 1928)
• 1875 – Walter Chrysler, American automobile pioneer (d. 1940)
• 1884 – Sir John Squire, British poet, writer, and historian (d. 1958)
• 1891 – Jack Buchanan, Scottish actor, singer, producer and director (d. 1957)
• 1891 – Max Ernst, German painter (d. 1976)
• 1900 – Roberto Arlt, Argentine writer (d. 1942)
• 1902 – Jan Tschichold, German typographer (d. 1974)
• 1903 – Lionel Chevrier, Canadian politician (d. 1987)
• 1906 – Alphonse-Marie Parent, Canadian priest, educator and academic administrator (d. 1970)
• 1907 – Luke Appling, American baseball player (d. 1991)
• 1908 – Buddy Ebsen, American actor and dancer (d. 2003)
• 1910 – Paul Triquet, Canadian military officer (d. 1980)
• 1910 – Francisco Cândido Xavier, Brazilian medium (d. 2002)
• 1912 – Herbert Mills, American singer (The Mills Brothers) (d. 1989)
• 1914 – Sir Alec Guinness, English actor (d. 2000)
• 1917 – Dabbs Greer, American actor (d. 2007)
• 1917 – Lou Monte, American singer (d. 1989)
• 1920 – Gerald Bouey, Canadian civil servant, Governor of the Bank of Canada (d. 2004)
• 1920 – Jack Webb, American actor, director, and producer (d. 1982)
• 1923 – Clifford Scott Green, American Federal Judge (d. 2007)
• 1923 – Gloria Henry, American actress
• 1923 – G. Spencer-Brown, English mathematician
• 1924 – Bobby Avila, Mexican baseball player (d. 2004)
• 1925 – George MacDonald Fraser, English author (d. 2008)
• 1926 – Sir Jack Brabham, Australian race car driver
• 1927 – Ferenc Puskás, Hungarian footballer (d. 2006)
• 1927 – Kenneth Tynan, English critic and writer (d. 1980)
• 1928 – Joseph Bernardin, American cardinal (d. 1996)
• 1928 – Serge Gainsbourg, French singer, songwriter, actor and director (d. 1991)
• 1928 – Prof David Robinson, Irish horticulturist (d. 2004)
• 1930 – Roddy Maude-Roxby, English actor
• 1932 – Edward Egan, American Cardinal-Archbishop Emeritus of New York
• 1933 – György Konrád, Hungarian author, sociologist, essayist
• 1934 – Paul Joseph Cohen, American mathematician (d. 2007)
• 1934 – Brian Glover, British actor and wrestler (d. 1997)
• 1934 – Carl Kasell, American newscaster
• 1935 – Sharon Acker, Canadian film, stage and television actress
• 1937 – Dick Radatz, American baseball player (d. 2005)
• 1938 – John Larsson, Swedish 17th General of The Salvation Army
• 1938 – Booker Little, American jazz trumpeter (d. 1961)
• 1939 – Marvin Gaye, American singer (The Moonglows) (d. 1984)
• 1939 – Anthony Lake, American political figure
• 1939 – Lise Thibault, Canadian civil servant, 27th Lieutenant Governor of Quebec
• 1940 – Donald Jackson, Canadian figure skater
• 1940 – Penelope Keith, English actress
• 1941 – Dr. Demento, American radio personality
• 1942 – Leon Russell, American pianist and guitarist
• 1942 – Hiroyuki Sakai, Japanese chef
• 1942 – Roshan Seth, Indian actor
• 1943 – Caterina Bueno, Italian singer (d. 2007)
• 1943 – Larry Coryell, American jazz guitarist (The Free Spirits and The Eleventh House)
• 1945 – Linda Hunt, American actress
• 1945 – Reggie Smith, American baseball player
• 1945 – Don Sutton, American baseball player
• 1945 – Anne Waldman, American poet
• 1946 – Judith A. Lanzinger, American jurist, Justice of the Supreme Court of Ohio
• 1946 – Kurt Winter, Canadian guitarist (The Guess Who) (d. 1997)
• 1947 – Sam Anderson, American actor
• 1947 – Emmylou Harris, American singer
• 1947 – Camille Paglia, American writer
• 1948 – Dimitris Mitropanos, Greek singer
• 1948 – Joan D. Vinge, American author
• 1949 – Paul Gambaccini, British radio and television presenter
• 1949 – Bernd Müller, German footballer
• 1949 – Ron Palillo, American actor
• 1949 – Pamela Reed, American actress
• 1949 – David Robinson, American drummer (The Modern Lovers, DMZ, and The Cars)
• 1951 – Ayako Okamoto, Japanese golfer
• 1951 – Moriteru Ueshiba, Japanese martial artist
• 1952 – Pat Drummond, Australian singer-songwriter (The Bushwackers)
• 1952 – Thierry Le Luron, French humorist (d. 1986)
• 1952 – Leon Wilkeson, American bass player (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (d. 2001)
• 1953 – Jim Allister, Irish politician
• 1953 – Debralee Scott, American actress (d. 2005)
• 1954 – Gregory Abbott, American singer, musician and composer
• 1954 – Susumu Hirasawa, Japanese musician (P-Model)
• 1954 – Donald Petrie, American director
• 1955 – Michael Stone, Irish loyalist
• 1957 – Giuliana De Sio, Italian actress
• 1958 – Stefano Bettarello, Italian rugby player
• 1958 – Larry Drew, American basketball player
• 1959 – Juha Kankkunen, Finnish race car driver
• 1959 – Yves Lavandier, French director
• 1959 – Badou Zaki, Moroccan footballer and manager
• 1960 – Linford Christie, English athlete
• 1960 – Brad Jones, Australian race car driver
• 1960 – Pascale Nadeau, Canadian news anchor
• 1961 – Christopher Meloni, American actor
• 1961 – Keren Woodward, English singer (Bananarama)
• 1962 – Pierre Carles, French documentarist
• 1962 – Clark Gregg, American actor
• 1962 – Mark Shulman, American author
• 1963 – Karl Beattie, English director and producer
• 1963 – Mike Gascoyne, British engineer
• 1964 – Pete Incaviglia, American baseball player
• 1965 – Rodney King, American victim of police brutality
• 1966 – Bill Romanowski, American football player
• 1966 – Teddy Sheringham, English footballer
• 1966 – Garnett Silk, Jamaican singer (d. 1994)
• 1967 – Greg Camp, American singer, songwriter, and guitarist (Smash Mouth)
• 1967 – Helen Chamberlain, British television presenter
• 1969 – Ajay Devgan, Indian actor
• 1971 – Elton, German comedian
• 1971 – Todd Woodbridge, Australian tennis player
• 1971 – ZEEBRA, Japanese hip hop artist (King Giddra)
• 1972 – Chico Slimani, Moroccan-British singer and actor
• 1973 – Roselyn Sánchez, Puerto Rican singer, model and actress
• 1973 – Tine Wittler, German actress and writer
• 1974 – Håkan Hellström, Swedish musician (Broder Daniel)
• 1975 – Randy Livingston, American basketball player
• 1975 – Adam Rodriguez, American actor
• 1975 – Katrin Rutschow-Stomporowski, German rower
• 1976 – Andreas Anastasopoulos, Greek athlete
• 1976 – Rory Sabbatini, South African golfer
• 1976 – Geneva Cruz, Filipino singer (Smokey Mountain)
• 1977 – Jelena Abbou, Serbian model
• 1977 – Per Elofsson, Swedish cross-country skier
• 1977 – Michael Fassbender, Irish-German actor
• 1977 – Aiden Turner, British actor
• 1978 – John Gall, American baseball player
• 1979 – Lindy Booth, Canadian actress
• 1979 – Jesse Carmichael, American musician (Maroon 5)
• 1980 – Adam Fleming, Scottish reporter
• 1980 – Ricky Hendrick, American race car driver (d. 2004)
• 1980 – Cristian Lizzori, Italian footballer
• 1980 – Carlos Salcido, Mexican footballer
• 1981 – Michael Clarke, Australian cricketer
• 1981 – Bethany Joy Lenz-Galeotti, American actress
• 1982 – Marco Amelia, Italian footballer
• 1982 – Jeremy Bloom, American skier and football player
• 1982 – Bianca Chatfield, Australian netball player
• 1982 – Jack Evans, American wrestler
• 1982 – Leyla Milani, Canadian actress and model
• 1983 – Felix Borja, Ecuadorian footballer
• 1983 – Paul Capdeville, Chilean tennis player
• 1983 – Owen Fussey, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1983 – Yung Joc, American rapper
• 1984 – Nóra Barta, Hungarian diver
• 1984 – Meryl Cassie, New Zealand actress
• 1984 – Jérémy Morel, French footballer
• 1984 – Ashley Peldon, American actress
• 1985 – Stéphane Lambiel, Swiss figure skater
• 1986 – Ibrahim Afellay, Dutch footballer
• 1986 – Lee DeWyze, American singer
• 1990 – Amy Castle, American actress
• 1990 – Felipe Chalegre, Brazilian footballer
• 1990 – Roscoe Dash, American rapper
• 1990 – Miralem Pjanić, Bosnian footballer
• 1993 – Aaron Kelly, American singer

Deaths

• 1118 – Baldwin I of Jerusalem (b. c. 1058)
• 1272 – Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall (b. 1209)
• 1335 – Henry of Carinthia (b. c. 1265)
• 1412 – Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo, Spanish traveler and writer
• 1502 – Prince Arthur Tudor, son of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York (b. 1486)
• 1507 – Francis of Paola, Italian mendicant friar and founder of the Order of the Minims (b. 1416)
• 1640 – Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, Polish author and poet (b. 1595)
• 1657 – Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1608)
• 1657 – Jean-Jacques Olier, French priest, founder of the Society of Saint-Sulpice (b. 1608)
• 1720 – Joseph Dudley, English colonial administrator and Governor of Massachusetts (b. 1647)
• 1742 – James Douglas, Scottish physician and anatomist (b. 1675)
• 1747 – Johann Jacob Dillenius, German botanist (b. 1684)
• 1754 – Thomas Carte, English historian (b. 1686)
• 1787 – Thomas Gage, British general (b. 1719)
• 1791 – Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, French statesman (b. 1749)
• 1801 – Thomas Dadford Junior, British engineer (b. c. 1761)
• 1803 – Sir James Montgomery, 1st Baronet, Scottish politician and judge (b. 1721)
• 1817 – Johann Heinrich Jung, German author (b. 1740)
• 1827 – Ludwig Heinrich Bojanus, German physician and naturalist (b. 1776)
• 1845 – Philip Charles Durham, English Navy Officer and Admiral (b. 1763)
• 1865 – A. P. Hill, American Confederate general (b. 1825)
• 1872 – Samuel F. B. Morse, American painter and inventor of the telegraph (b. 1791)
• 1891 – Albert Pike, American Confederate Brigadier General, envoy, author, attorney, and Freemason (b. 1809)
• 1902 – Esther Morris, American Justice of the Peace (b. 1814)
• 1914 – Paul von Heyse, German writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1830)
• 1922 – Hermann Rorschach, Swiss psychologist (b. 1884)
• 1928 – Theodore William Richards, American chemist, Nobel laureate (b. 1868)
• 1930 – Zauditu of Ethiopia (b. 1876)
• 1933 – K. S. Ranjitsinhji, Indian king and Test cricketer (b. 1872)
• 1936 – Jean Baptiste Eugène Estienne, French general (b. 1860)
• 1953 – Hugo Sperrle, German field marshal (b. 1885)
• 1958 – Tudor Davies, Welsh operatic tenor (b. 1892)
• 1958 – Josei Toda, Japanese educator and peace activist, second president of Soka Gakkai (b. 1900)
• 1966 – C. S. Forester, English author (b. 1899)
• 1972 – Franz Halder, German general (b. 1884)
• 1972 – Toshitsugu Takamatsu, Japanese Martial Arts Grandmaster (b. 1887)
• 1972 – Gil Hodges, American baseball player and manager (b. 1924)
• 1974 – Georges Pompidou, French politician, President of France (b. 1911)
• 1977 – Walter Wolf, German politician (b. 1907)
• 1987 – Buddy Rich, American jazz drummer and bandleader (b. 1917)
• 1992 – Tomisaburo Wakayama, Japanese actor (b. 1929)
• 1992 – Juan Gómez González, Spanish football player (b. 1954)
• 1994 – Betty Furness, American actress (b. 1916)
• 1995 – Harvey Penick, American golf instructor (b. 1904)
• 1995 – Hannes Alfvén, Swedish physicist (b. 1908)
• 1998 – Rob Pilatus, American model, dancer, and singer (Empire Bizarre, Milli Vanilli, The Real Milli Vanilli, and Rob & Fab) (b. 1965)
• 2000 – Tommaso Buscetta, Sicilian mafioso (b. 1928)
• 2001 – Charles Daudelin, Canadian artist (b. 1920)
• 2001 – Jennifer Syme, American actress (b. 1972)
• 2002 – Levi Celerio, Filipino composer (b. 1910)
• 2003 – Edwin Starr, American singer (b. 1942)
• 2004 – John Argyris, Greek aeronautical engineer (b. 1913)
• 2005 – Pope John Paul II (b. 1920)
• 2006 – Nina Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg, German widow of Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (b. 1913)
• 2007 – Paul Reed, American actor (b. 1909)
• 2009 – Albert Sanschagrin, Canadian Roman Catholic bishop (b. 1911)
• 2010 – Mike Cuellar, Cuban baseball player (b. 1937)
• 2010 – Chris Kanyon, American wrestler (b. 1970)
• 2010 – Thomas J. Moyer, American jurist, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Ohio (b. 1939)

Holidays and observances

• Christian Feast Day:
  • Abundius of Como
  • Amphianus of Lycia
  • Æbbe the Younger
  • Blessed Pedro Calungsod
  • Bronach of Glen-Seichis (Irish martyrology)
  • Franciscus of Paola
  • Nicetius of Lyon
  • Urban of Langres
  • April 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• International Children's Book Day
• Malvinas Day (Argentina)
• Unity of Peoples of Russia and Belarus Day (Belarus)
• Thai Heritage Conservation Day (Thailand)
• World Autism Awareness Day

External links

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

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