April 24 is the 114th day of the year (115th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 251 days remaining until the end of the year. [edit] Events - 1479 BC – Thutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to the Low Chronology of the 18th Dynasty).
- 1184 BC – The Greeks enter Troy using the Trojan Horse (traditional date).
- 1558 – Mary Queen of Scots marries the Dauphin of France, François, at Notre Dame de Paris.
- 1704 – The first regular newspaper in the United States, the News-Letter, is published in Boston, Massachusetts.
- 1800 – The United States Library of Congress is established when President John Adams signs legislation to appropriate $5,000 USD to purchase "such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress".
- 1862 – American Civil War: A flotilla commanded by Union Admiral David Farragut passes two Confederate forts on the Mississippi River on its way to capture New Orleans, Louisiana.
- 1877 – Russo-Turkish War: Russia declares war on Ottoman Empire.
- 1898 – The Spanish-American War: The United States declares war on Spain.
- 1904 – The Lithuanian press ban is lifted after almost 40 years.
- 1907 – Hersheypark, founded by Milton S. Hershey for the exclusive use of his employees, is opened.
- 1913 – The Woolworth Building skyscraper in New York City is opened.
- 1915 – The Armenian Genocide:
- 1916 – Easter Rising: The Irish Republican Brotherhood led by nationalists Patrick Pearse, James Connolly, and Joseph Plunkett starts a rebellion in Ireland.
- 1916 – Ernest Shackleton and five men of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition launch a lifeboat from uninhabited Elephant Island in the Southern Ocean to organise a rescue for the ice-trapped ship Endurance.
- 1918 – First tank-to-tank combat, at Villers-Bretonneux, France, when three British Mark IVs met three German A7Vs.
- 1926 – The Treaty of Berlin is signed. Germany and the Soviet Union each pledge neutrality in the event of an attack on the other by a third party for the next five years.
- 1953 – Winston Churchill is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.
- 1955 – The Bandung Conference ends: Twenty-nine non-aligned nations of Asia and Africa finish a meeting that condemns colonialism, racism, and the Cold War.
- 1957 – Suez Crisis: The Suez Canal is reopened following the introduction of UNEF peacekeepers to the region.
- 1961 – The 17th century Swedish ship Vasa is salvaged.
- 1963 – Marriage of Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra of Kent to Angus Ogilvy at Westminster Abbey in London.
- 1964 – Mexico becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
- 1965 – Civil war breaks out in the Dominican Republic when Colonel Francisco Caamaño, overthrows the triumvirate that had been in power since the coup d'état against Juan Bosch.
- 1967 – Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov dies in Soyuz 1 when its parachute fails to open. He is the first human to die during a space mission.
- 1967 – Vietnam War: American General William Westmoreland says in a news conference that the enemy had "gained support in the United States that gives him hope that he can win politically that which he cannot win militarily."
- 1968 – Mauritius becomes a member state of the United Nations.
- 1970 – The first Chinese satellite, Dong Fang Hong I, is launched.
- 1970 – The Gambia becomes a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations, with Dawda Jawara as the first President.
- 1971 – Soyuz 10 docks with Salyut 1.
- 1975 – The Baader-Meinhof Gang takes 13 hostages at the West German embassy in Stockholm.
- 1980 – Eight U.S. servicemen die in Operation Eagle Claw as they attempt to end the Iran hostage crisis.
- 1990 – STS-31: The Hubble Space Telescope is launched by the Space Shuttle Discovery.
 Shuttle mission STS-31 lifts off, carrying Hubble into orbit. [edit] Births - 1533 – William I of Orange (d. 1584)
- 1581 – Vincent de Paul, French saint (d. 1660)
- 1620 – John Graunt, English statistician and founder of the science of demography (d. 1674)
- 1706 – Giovanni Battista Martini, Italian musician (d. 1780)
- 1718 – Nathaniel Hone, Irish-born painter (d. 1784)
- 1743 – Edmund Cartwright, British inventor (d. 1823)
- 1784 – Peter Vivian Daniel, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1860)
- 1815 – Anthony Trollope, English novelist (d. 1882)
- 1845 – Carl Spitteler, Nobel laureate (d. 1924)
- 1856 – Henri Philippe Pétain, French soldier and statesman (d. 1951)
- 1876 – Erich Raeder, German naval commander (d. 1960)
- 1876 – Ioannis Georgiadis, Greek fencer (d. 1960)
- 1878 – Jean Crotti, Swiss artist (d. 1958)
- 1882 – Hugh Dowding, commander of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain (d. 1970)
- 1887 – Denys Finch Hatton, English big-game hunter (d. 1931)
- 1889 – Stafford Cripps, British politician (d. 1952)
- 1889 – Lyubov Popova, Russian painter (d. 1924)
- 1896 – Benjamin Whorf, American linguist (d. 1941)
- 1897 – Manuel Ávila Camacho, President of Mexico (d. 1955)
- 1899 – Oscar Zariski, Russian-born mathematician (d. 1986)
- 1903 – José Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of the Falange (d. 1936)
- 1904 – Willem de Kooning, Dutch painter (d. 1997)
- 1905 – Robert Penn Warren, American poet (d. 1989)
- 1906 – William Joyce, Irish fascist (d. 1946)
- 1907 – William Sargant, British psychiatrist (d. 1988)
- 1908 – Marceline Day, American actor (d. 2000)
- 1914 – William Castle, American film director and producer (d. 1977)
- 1914 – Justin Wilson, American Cajun chef and humorist (d. 2001)
- 1916 – Lou Thesz, American professional wrestler (d. 2002)
- 1922 – J.D. Cannon, American actor (d. 2005)
- 1923 – Doris Burn, American children's books author and illustrator
- 1924 – Sir Clement Freud, British writer, radio personality, and politician (d. 2009)
- 1924 – Ruth Kobart, American actor and singer (d. 2002)
- 1926 – Thorbjörn Fälldin, Prime Minister of Sweden
- 1929 – Dr.Rajkumar, Kannada actor
- 1930 – Jerome Callet, American musician
- 1930 – Richard Donner, American film director and producer
- 1933 – Patricia Bosworth, American actor, journalist, writer and biographer
- 1933 – Claire Davenport, British actress (d. 2002)
- 1933 – Alan Eagleson, Canadian ice hockey agent and promoter
- 1933 – Helmuth Lohner, Austrian actor
- 1933 – Freddie Scott, American singer (d. 2007)
- 1934 – Shirley MacLaine, American actor and author
- 1936 – Jill Ireland, British actress (d. 1990)
- 1937 – Joe Henderson, American jazz saxophonist (d. 2001)
- 1940 – Sue Grafton, American author
- 1941 – Richard Holbrook, American diplomat
- 1941 – John Williams, Australian guitarist
- 1942 – Richard M. Daley, American politician
- 1942 – Barbra Streisand, American singer and actor
- 1943 – Richard Sterban, American singer
- 1945 – Doug Clifford, American drummer
- 1945 – Robert Knight, American singer
- 1945 – Doug Riley, Canadian musician (d. 2007)
- 1945 – Dick Rivers, French singer and actor
- 1947 – Claude Dubois, Quebec singer and songwriter
- 1947 – Josep Borrell Fontelles, Former President of the European Parliament
- 1947 – Roger D. Kornberg, American chemist, Nobel-prized
- 1948 – Paul Cellucci, 69th Governor of Massachusetts and former United States Ambassador to Canada
- 1949 – Véronique Sanson, French singer and songwriter
- 1952 – Jean-Paul Gaultier, French fashion designer
- 1953 – Eric Bogosian, American actor and writer
- 1954 – Mumia Abu-Jamal, American death-row inmate
- 1954 – Captain Sensible, British guitarist (The Damned)
- 1955 – John de Mol, Dutch media businessman
- 1955 – Michael O'Keefe, American actor
- 1957 – David J, British musician
- 1957 – Boris Williams, British musician (The Cure)
- 1958 – Valery Lantratov, Russian ballet dancer
- 1958 – Brian Paddick, British former deputy assistant commissioner and most senior openly gay police officer
- 1959 – Malcolm Oastler, Australian engineer
- 1959 – Dave Ridgway, Canadian football player
- 1959 – Paula Yates, British television presenter (d. 2000)
- 1962 – Stuart Pearce, English footballer and manager
- 1962 – Steve Roach, Australian rugby league footballer
- 1963 – Paula Frazer, American singer/songwriter
- 1963 – Billy Gould, American musician (Faith No More)
- 1963 – Mano Solo, French singer
- 1963 – Tõnu Trubetsky, Estonian musician
- 1964 – Witold Smorawiński, Polish musician, composer
- 1964 – Cedric the Entertainer, American comedian and actor
- 1964 – Djimon Hounsou, Beninese actor
- 1965 – Son Chang Min, South Korean actor
- 1966 – Pierre Brassard, Quebec humorist and actor
- 1966 – Alessandro Costacurta, Italian footballer
- 1967 – Omar Vizquel, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1968 – Stacy Haiduk, American actress
- 1968 – Todd Jones, American baseball player
- 1968 – Yuji Nagata, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1968 – Hashim Thaci, Kosovan politician
- 1968 – Aidan Gillen, Irish actor
- 1969 – Elias Atmatsidis, Greek footballer
- 1969 – Melinda Clarke, American actress
- 1969 – Viveca Paulin, Swedish actress
- 1970 – Damien Fleming, Australian cricketer
- 1971 – Mauro Pawlowski, Belgian guitarist and singer
- 1972 – Rab Douglas, Scottish footballer
- 1972 – Nicolas Gill, Canadian judoka
- 1972 – Chipper Jones, American baseball player
- 1972 – Jure Košir, Slovenian skier
- 1973 – Eric Snow, American basketball player
- 1973 – Sachin Tendulkar, Indian cricketer
- 1973 – Gabby Logan, British television presenter
- 1974 – Kristie Krabe, American stage actress
- 1974 – Eric Kripke, American television writer, director and producer
- 1974 – Derek Luke, American actor
- 1974 – Brian Marshall, American bassist (Creed, Alter Bridge)
- 1974 – Dave Vitty, British radio personality
- 1975 – Sam Doumit, American actress
- 1975 – Thad Luckinbill, American actor
- 1976 – Steve Finnan, Irish footballer
- 1977 – Siarhey Balakhonau, Belarusian writer
- 1977 – Carlos Beltrán, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1978 – Eric Balfour, American actor
- 1978 – Kim Hyun-ju, Korean actress
- 1978 – Stella Damasus Aboderin, Nigerian actress
- 1979 – Laurentia Tan, Singaporean Paralympic equestrienne
- 1980 – Fernando Arce, Mexican footballer
- 1980 – Austin Nichols, American actor
- 1980 – Danny Gokey, American singer
- 1981 – Taylor Dent, American tennis player
- 1982 – Kelly Clarkson, American singer
- 1983 – Princess Iman bint Al Hussein of Jordan
- 1984 – Tyson Ritter, American musician
- 1985 – Travis Clark, American Musician from We The Kings
- 1986 – Aaron Cunningham, American baseball player
- 1987 – Kristopher Letang, Canadian hockey player
- 1987 – Jan Vertonghen, Belgian footballer
- 1994 – Austin Rogers, American actor
- 1998 – Ryan Newman, American actress
[edit] Deaths - 624 – Mellitus, third Archbishop of Canterbury
- 709 – Wilfrid, English archbishop and saint
- 1338 – Marquis Theodore I of Montferrat (b. 1291)
- 1342 – Pope Benedict XII (b. 1285)
- 1622 – Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Swiss friar and saint (b. 1577)
- 1656 – Thomas Fincke, Danish mathematician and physicist (b. 1561)
- 1731 – Daniel Defoe, English writer (b. 1660)
- 1736 – Prince Eugene of Savoy, French-born Austrian general (b. 1663)
- 1779 – Eleazar Wheelock, American founder of Dartmouth College (b. 1711)
- 1794 – Axel von Fersen the Elder, Swedish statesman and soldier; father of Axel von Fersen the Younger (b. 1719)
- 1852 – Vasily Zhukovsky, Russian poet (b. 1783)
- 1891 – Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, Prussian field marshal (b. 1800)
- 1924 – G. Stanley Hall, American psychologist (b. 1844)
- 1938 – George Grey Barnard, American sculptor (b. 1863)
- 1939 – Louis Trousselier, French cyclist (b. 1881)
- 1942 – Karin Boye, Swedish author (b. 1900)
- 1942 – Lucy Maud Montgomery, Canadian author (b. 1874)
- 1944 – William Stephens, American U.S. House of Representative, 24th Governor of California (b. 1859)
- 1945 – Ernst-Robert Grawitz, German physician (b. 1899)
- 1947 – Willa Cather, American writer (b. 1873)
- 1947 – Hans Biebow, German WWII figure (b. 1902)
- 1957 – Harry McClintock, American country singer and hobo (b. 1882)
- 1960 – Max von Laue, German physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1879)
- 1964 – Gerhard Domagk, German bacteriologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (declined) (b. 1895)
- 1965 – Louise Dresser, American actress (b. 1878)
- 1967 – Vladimir Komarov, cosmonaut (b. 1927)
- 1974 – Bud Abbott, American actor and comedian (b. 1895)
- 1975 – Pete Ham, Welsh musician (Badfinger) (b. 1947)
- 1980 – Alejo Carpentier, Cuban writer (b. 1904)
- 1982 – Ville Ritola, Finnish athlete (b. 1896)
- 1983 – Rolf Stommelen, German race car driver (b. 1943)
- 1986 – Wallis Simpson, American wife of Edward, Duke of Windsor (b. 1896)
- 1993 – Oliver Tambo, South African activist and politician (b. 1917)
- 1997 – Pat Paulsen, American comedian and politician (b. 1927)
- 1997 – Eugene Stoner, American engineer and weapons designer (b. 1922)
- 2000 – William Moore, English actor (b. 1916)
- 2001 – Al Hibbler, American singer (b. 1915)
- 2001 – Leon Sullivan, African-American civil rights leader and pastor (b. 1922)
- 2002 – Lucien Wercollier, Luxembourgish sculptor (b. 1908)
- 2004 – Estée Lauder, American cosmetics entrepreneur (b. 1906)
- 2005 – Ezer Weizman, President of Israel (b. 1924)
- 2005 – Fei Xiaotong, Chinese sociologist (b. 1910)
- 2006 – Steve Stavro, Canadian businessman and sports team owner (b. 1927)
- 2006 – Moshe Teitelbaum, Hassidic rabbi (b. 1914)
- 2006 – Brian Labone, English footballer (b. 1940)
- 2007 – Roy Jenson, American actor (b. 1927)
- 2009 – John Michell, British writer (b. 1933)
[edit] Holidays and observances in the Roman Catholic Church: In the Anglican Communion: [edit] External links
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