Today in history...
June 4, 2009
* 781 BC – The first historic solar eclipse is recorded in China.
* 1039 – Henry III becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
* 1584 – Sir Walter Raleigh establishes the first English colony on Roanoke Island, old Virginia (now North Carolina).
* 1615 – Siege of Osaka: Forces under the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu take Osaka Castle in Japan.
* 1760 – Great Upheaval: New England planters arrive to claim land in Nova Scotia, Canada taken from the Acadians.
* 1769 – A transit of Venus is followed five hours later by a total solar eclipse, the shortest such interval in history.
* 1783 – The Montgolfier brothers publicly demonstrate their montgolfière (hot air balloon).
* 1792 – Captain George Vancouver claims Puget Sound for the Kingdom of Great Britain.
* 1794 – British troops capture Port-au-Prince in Haiti.
* 1802 – Grieving over the death of his wife, Marie Clotilde of France, King Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia abdicates his throne in favor of his brother, Victor Emmanuel.
* 1812 – Following Louisiana's admittance as a U.S. state, the Louisiana Territory is renamed the Missouri Territory.
* 1859 – Italian Independence wars: In the Battle of Magenta, the French army, under Louis-Napoleon, defeat the Austrian army.
* 1862 – American Civil War: Confederate troops evacuate Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River, leaving the way clear for Union troops to take Memphis, Tennessee.
* 1876 – An express train called the Transcontinental Express arrives in San Francisco, California, via the First Transcontinental Railroad only 83 hours and 39 minutes after leaving New York City.
* 1878 – Cyprus Convention: The Ottoman Empire cedes Cyprus to the United Kingdom but retains nominal title.
* 1912 – Massachusetts becomes the first state of the United States to set a minimum wage.
* 1913 – Emily Davison, a suffragette, runs out in front of King George V's horse, Anmer, at the Epsom Derby. She is trampled, never regains consciousness and dies a few days later.
* 1917 – The first Pulitzer Prizes are awarded: Laura E. Richards, Maude H. Elliott, and Florence Hall receive the first Pulitzer for biography (for Julia Ward Howe). Jean Jules Jusserand receives the first Pulitzer for history for his work With Americans of Past and Present Days. Herbert B. Swope receives the first Pulitzer for journalism for his work for the New York World.
* 1919 – Women's rights: The U.S. Congress approves the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees suffrage to women, and sends it to the U.S. states for ratification.
* 1920 – Hungary loses 71% of its territory and 63% of its population when the Treaty of Trianon is signed in Paris.
* 1928 – President of the Republic of China Zhang Zuolin is assassinated by Japanese agents.
* 1939 – Holocaust: The MS St. Louis, a ship carrying 963 Jewish refugees, is denied permission to land in Florida, United States, after already being turned away from Cuba. Forced to return to Europe, many of its passengers later die in Nazi concentration camps.
* 1940 – World War II: The Dunkirk evacuation ends – British forces complete evacuation of 300,000 troops from Dunkirk in France.
* 1940 – World War II: Nazi forces enter the city of Paris, they finish taking control of the city 10 days later. (June 14, 1940)
* 1942 – World War II: The Battle of Midway begins. Japanese Admiral Chuichi Nagumo orders a strike on Midway Island by much of the Imperial Japanese navy.
* 1943 – A military coup in Argentina ousts Ramón Castillo.
* 1944 – World War II: A hunter-killer group of the United States Navy captures the German submarine U-505 – the first time a U.S. Navy vessel had captured an enemy vessel at sea since the 19th century.
* 1944 – World War II: Rome falls to the Allies, the first Axis capital to fall.
* 1967 – Stockport Air Disaster: British Midland flight G-ALHG crashes in Hopes Carr, Stockport, killing 72 passengers and crew.
* 1970 – Tonga gains independence from the United Kingdom.
* 1973 – A patent for the ATM is granted to Don Wetzel, Tom Barnes and George Chastain.
* 1979 – Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings takes power in Ghana after a military coup in which General Fred Akuffo is overthrown.
* 1986 – Jonathan Pollard pleads guilty to espionage for selling top secret United States military intelligence to Israel.
* 1989 – Ali Khamenei is elected the new Supreme Leader of Islamic republic of Iran by the Assembly of Experts after the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
* 1989 – The Tiananmen Square protests are violently ended in Beijing by the People's Liberation Army.
* 1989 – Solidarity's victory in the first (somewhat) free parliamentary elections in post-war Poland sparks off a succession of peaceful anti-communist revolutions in Eastern Europe, leads to the creation of the so-called Contract Sejm and begins the Autumn of Nations.
* 1989 – Ufa train disaster: A natural gas explosion near Ufa, Russia, kills 575 as two trains passing each other throw sparks near a leaky pipeline.
* 1989 – The victims of murderer Oba Chandler are found floating in Tampa Bay, Florida. Chandler would not be arrested until 1992.
* 1991 – The United Kingdom's Conservative government announces that some British regiments would disappear or be merged into others — the largest armed forces cuts in almost twenty years.
* 1996 – The first flight of Ariane 5 explodes after roughly 20 seconds. It was a Cluster mission.
* 1998 – Terry Nichols is sentenced to life in prison for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing.
* 2001 – Gyanendra, the last King of Nepal, ascends to the throne after the massacre in the Royal Palace.
Birthdays today...
* 1394 – Philippa of England, queen of Denmark, Norway and Sweden (d. 1430)
* 1489 – Antoine, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1544)
* 1604 – Claudia de' Medici, Grand Duchess of Tuscany (d. 1648)
* 1665 – Zacharie Robutel de La Noue, Canadian soldier (d. 1733)
* 1694 – François Quesnay, French economist (d. 1774)
* 1704 – Benjamin Huntsman, English inventor and manufacturer (d. 1776)
* 1738 – King George III of Great Britain (d. 1820)
* 1744 – Patrick Ferguson, Scots army officer and rifle designer (d. 1780)
* 1754 – Franz Xaver, Baron Von Zach, Austrian editor and astronomer (d. 1832)
* 1787 – Constant Prévost, French geologist (d. 1856)
* 1801 – James Pennethorne, English architect (d. 1871)
* 1821 – Apollon Maykov, Russian poet (d. 1897)
* 1866 – Miina Sillanpää, Finnish politician (d. 1952)
* 1867 – C.G.E. Mannerheim, Marshal, Supreme Commander and later President of Finland (d. 1951)
* 1877 – Heinrich Wieland, German biochemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1957)
* 1879 – Mabel Lucie Attwell, English children's author and illustrator (d. 1964)
* 1880 – Clara Blandick, American actress (d. 1962)
* 1881 – Natalia Goncharova, Russian painter (d. 1962)
* 1887 – Tom Longboat, marathon runner (d. 1949)
* 1894 – Madame Bolduc, French Canadian singer (d. 1941)
* 1899 – Hassan Fathy, Egyptian architect (d. 1989)
* 1907 – Rosalind Russell, American actress (d. 1976)
* 1907 – Jacques Roumain, Haitian writer (d. 1944)
* 1907 – Patience Strong, English poet and journalist (d. 1990)
* 1910 – Christopher Sydney Cockerell, British engineer and inventor (d. 1999)
* 1912 – Robert Jacobsen, Danish artist (d. 1993)
* 1916 – Robert F. Furchgott, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 2009)
* 1916 – Fernand Leduc, Canadian painter (The Automatistes)
* 1917 – Robert Merrill, American baritone (d. 2004)
* 1921 – Emilio Komar, Slovenian-born Argentine philosopher (d. 2006)
* 1921 – Bobby Wanzer, American professional basketball player and coach
* 1923 – Elizabeth Jolley, Australian writer (d. 2007)
* 1924 – Dennis Weaver, American actor (d. 2006)
* 1924 – Tofilau Eti Alesana, former Prime Minister of Samoa (d. 1999)
* 1926 – Robert Earl Hughes, American man who became the heaviest known human (d. 1958)
* 1927 – Geoffrey Palmer, English actor
* 1928 – Ruth Westheimer, German-born American sex therapist and author
* 1929 – Karolos Papoulias, Greek politician
* 1930 – Morgana King, American actress
* 1930 – Viktor Tikhonov, Russian hockey player and coach
* 1932 – Oliver Nelson, American jazz composer and arranger (d. 1975)
* 1932 – Maurice Shadbolt, New Zealand writer
* 1932 – John Drew Barrymore, American actor (d. 2004)
* 1934 – Seamus Elliott, Irish cyclist (d. 1971)
* 1935 – Colette Boky, Quebec operatic soprano
* 1936 – Bruce Dern, American actor
* 1937 – Freddy Fender, American musician (d. 2006)
* 1937 – Robert Fulghum, American author
* 1937 – Gorilla Monsoon, American professional wrestler (d. 1999)
* 1937 – Mortimer Zuckerman, American publisher
* 1938 – Art Mahaffey, American baseball player
* 1940 – Cliff Bennett, British singer with the Rebel Rousers
* 1940 – Ludwig Schwarz, Austrian bishop
* 1943 – Joyce Meyer, American religious leader
* 1944 – Michelle Phillips, American singer (The Mamas & the Papas) and actress
* 1945 – Anthony Braxton, American composer and instrumentalist
* 1945 – Gordon Waller, Scottish musician (Peter and Gordon)
* 1947 – Viktor Klima, Chancellor of Austria
* 1948 – Bob Champion, English Jump Jockey
* 1949 – Gabriel Arcand, French Canadian actor
* 1950 – Dagmar Krause, German singer (Slapp Happy, Henry Cow, Art Bears)
* 1950 – George Noory, American radio personality
* 1950 – Kevin Woodford, English celebrity chef
* 1951 – Charles Dickinson, American author
* 1951 – Wendy Pini, American comic book writer and artist
* 1952 – Parker Stevenson, American actor and director
* 1953 – Jimmy McCulloch, Scottish musician (d. 1979)
* 1953 – Susumu Ojima, Japanese entrepreneur (Huser)
* 1953 – Paul Samson, British guitarist (Samson) (d. 2002)
* 1955 – Paul Stewart, English writer
* 1955 – Mary Testa, American stage actress
* 1956 – Martin Adams, English darts player
* 1956 – Keith David, American actor
* 1956 – Gerry Ryan, Irish radio talkshow host
* 1956 – John Hockenberry, American journalist
* 1956 – Terry Kennedy, American baseball player
* 1957 – John Treacy, Irish athlete
* 1957 – Yoon Suk-ho, South Korean director
* 1960 – Bradley Walsh, British actor
* 1961 – Ferenc Gyurcsány, Prime Minister of Hungary
* 1961 – El DeBarge, American singer (DeBarge)
* 1962 – Zenon Jaskuła, Polish cyclist
* 1962 – John P. Kee, American Gospel singer
* 1963 – Xavier McDaniel, American basketball player
* 1964 – Eva Fampas, Greek guitarist
* 1964 – Sean Pertwee, English actor
* 1965 – Mick Doohan, Australian motorcycle racer
* 1965 – Andrea Jaeger, American tennis player
* 1966 – Cecilia Bartoli, Italian mezzo-soprano
* 1966 – Vladimir Voevodsky, Russian mathematician
* 1967 – Robert Shane Kimbrough, American astronaut
* 1968 – Scott Wolf, American actor
* 1968 – Al B. Sure, American R&B singer
* 1969 – Horatio Sanz, Chilean-born comedian
* 1970 – Richie Hawtin, Canadian musician
* 1970 – David Pybus, British musician
* 1971 – Joseph Kabila, Congolese politician
* 1971 – James Callis, British actor
* 1971 – Shoji Meguro, Japanese composer
* 1971 – Noah Wyle, American actor
* 1972 – Nikka Costa, American singer
* 1972 – Derian Hatcher, American ice hockey player
* 1972 – Rob Huebel, American comedian
* 1973 – Mikey Whipwreck, American professional wrestler
* 1974 – Darin Erstad, American baseball player
* 1974 – Andrew Gwynne, British politician
* 1974 – Stefan Lessard, American musician
* 1974 – Buddy Wakefield, American poet
* 1975 – Russell Brand, British comedian and television personality
* 1975 – Henry Burris, American Football Quarterback
* 1975 – Angelina Jolie, American actress
* 1977 – Dionisis Chiotis, Greek footballer
* 1977 – Berglind Icey, Icelandic actor
* 1977 – Quinten Hann, Australian former snooker player
* 1977 – Alex Manninger, Austrian footballer
* 1979 – Naohiro Takahara, Japanese footballer
* 1979 – Daniel Vickerman, Australian rugby union player
* 1980 – Alicja Janosz, Polish singer
* 1980 – François Beauchemin, French Canadian ice hockey player
* 1981 – T. J. Miller, American actor and comedian
* 1981 – Giourkas Seitaridis, Greek footballer
* 1982 – Ronnie Prude, National Football League player
* 1982 – Jin, Chinese-American rapper
* 1982 – Jamie Dornan, Irish model and actor
* 1983 – Emmanuel Eboué, Ivorian footballer
* 1984 – Ian White, Canadian hockey player
* 1984 – Rainie Yang, Taiwanese singer and actress
* 1984 – Jenaveve Jolie, Mexican-American pornographic actress
* 1985 – Lukas Podolski, German footballer
* 1985 – Oddvar Reiakvam, Norwegian politician
* 1985 – Bar Refaeli, Israeli model
* 1985 – Evan Lysacek, American figure skater
* 1985 – Ana Carolina Reston, Brazilian fashion model (d. 2006)
* 1986 – Shane Kippel, Canadian actor
* 1986 – Micky Yoochun Park, member of South Korean cross-cultural boyband TVXQ
* 1987 – Mollie King, British singer (The Saturdays)
* 1988 – Leigh Adams, Australian Footballer
* 1992 – Dino Jelusić, Croatian singer
Famous deaths...
* 1039 – Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
* 1135 – Emperor Huizong of China (b. 1082)
* 1206 – Adèle of Champagne, wife of Louis VII of France
* 1257 – Duke Przemysl I of Poland
* 1394 – Mary de Bohun, wife of Henry IV of England (b. c 1369)
* 1463 – Flavio Biondo, Italian humanist (b. 1392)
* 1585 – Muretus, French humanist (b. 1526)
* 1663 – William Juxon, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1582)
* 1798 – Giacomo Casanova, Italian womanizer and writer (b. 1725)
* 1801 – Frederick Muhlenberg, American statesman (b. 1750)
* 1830 – Antonio José de Sucre, Great Marshall of Ayacucho (b. 1795)
* 1872 – Johan Rudolf Thorbecke, Dutch politician (b. 1798)
* 1875 – Eduard Mörike, German poet (b. 1804)
* 1922 – William Halse Rivers Rivers, English doctor (b. 1864)
* 1926 – Fred Spofforth, Australian cricketer (b. 1853)
* 1928 – Zhang Zuolin, Chinese warlord (b. 1873)
* 1929 – Harry Frazee, Boston Red Sox owner from 1916-1923 (b. 1881)
* 1939 – Tommy Ladnier, American musician (b. 1900)
* 1941 – Wilhelm II of Germany, German emperor (b. 1859)
* 1942 – Reinhard Heydrich, German SS senior officer and Nazi official, by assassination (b. 1904)
* 1951 – Serge Koussevitsky, Russian conductor (b. 1874)
* 1956 – Katherine MacDonald, American actress (b. 1881)
* 1962 – Clem McCarthy, American sportscaster (b. 1882)
* 1964 – Samuil Marshak, Russian poet (b. 1887)
* 1968 – Dorothy Gish, American actress (b. 1898)
* 1970 – Sonny Tufts, American actor (b. 1911)
* 1971 – Georg Lukács, Hungarian philosopher (b. 1885)
* 1973 – Maurice René Fréchet, French mathematician (b. 1878)
* 1973 – Murry Wilson, father of Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson and Carl Wilson (b. 1917)
* 1989 – Dik Browne, American cartoonist (b. 1917)
* 1992 – Carl Stotz, American Little League Founder (b. 1910)
* 1994 – Derek Leckenby, British guitarist (Herman's Hermits) (b. 1943)
* 1994 – Massimo Troisi, Italian actor (b. 1953)
* 1997 – Ronnie Lane, British bass player (b. 1946)
* 2001 – Dipendra of Nepal (b. 1971)
* 2001 – John Hartford, American musician (b. 1937)
* 2002 – Fernando Belaúnde Terry, Peruvian politician (b. 1912)
* 2004 – Steve Lacy, American saxophonist (b. 1934)
* 2004 – Nino Manfredi, Italian actor (b. 1921)
* 2004 – Marvin Heemeyer, American muffler owner (b. 1952)
* 2007 – Clete Boyer, American baseball player (b. 1937)
* 2007 – Jim Clark, American sheriff and segregationist (b. 1922)
* 2007 – Bill France Jr., NASCAR pioneer (b. 1933)
* 2007 – Sotiris Moustakas, Greek actor (b. 1940)
* 2007 – Freddie Scott, American singer and songwriter (b. 1933)
* 2007 – Craig L. Thomas, United States Senator (b. 1933)
* 2008 – Nikos Sergianopoulos, Greek actor (b. 1952)
* 2009 – David Carradine, American actor, (b. 1936)
Holidays and observances...
* International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression
* Sikhism: Bhagat Puran Singh's Birthday
* Finland: Flag Day of the Finnish Defence Forces
* Tonga: Emancipation Day (its National Day/Independence Day)
Have a good Thursday.
~Brian
