This Day in History
04 Apr 1541
Ignatius of Loyola becomes 1st superior-general of Jesuits
04 Apr 1552
Mauritius van Saksen begins alliance with Karel Anikita Stroganov
04 Apr 1558
Tsar Ivan IV gives parts of North-Russia to fur traders
04 Apr 1588
Christian IV succeeds Frederik II as king of Denmark
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Legendary movie critic Roger Ebert dies
On this day in 2013 one of Americas best-known and most influential movie critics Roger Ebert who reviewed movies for the Chicago Sun-Times for ...
Man who took NASCAR mainstream is born
Bill France Jr. the leading force behind the transformation of the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) from a regional sport into a multibil...
President Harrison dies after one month in office
Only 31 days after assuming office William Henry Harrison the ninth president of the United States dies at the White House. The cause of death was offic...
Second Battle of the Somme ends
During World War I the Second Battle of the Somme the first major German offensive in more than a year ends on the western front.On March 21 1918 a major o...
NATO established
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is established by 12 Western nations the United States Great Britain France Belgium the Netherlands Denmark...
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated
Just after 6 p.m. on April 4 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. is fatally shot while standing on the balcony outside his second-story room at the Lorraine Motel in ...
Germans and Allies step up operations near Somme
On this day in 1918 German forces in the throes of a major spring offensive on the Western Front launch a renewed attack on Allied positions between the Somme ...
Operation Baby Lift aircraft crashes, killing dozens of rescued orphans
A major U.S. airlift of South Vietnamese orphans begins with disaster when an Air Force cargo jet crashes shortly after departing from Tan Son Nhut airbase in S...
Martin Luther King, Jr., speaks out against the war
The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference delivers a speech entitled Beyond Vietnam in front of ...
Gretzky finishes season with 212 points
On this day in 1982 hockey sensation Wayne Gretzky of the Edmonton Oilers finishes the NHL season with 212 points the first player in NHL history to break the...
Lincoln dreams about a presidential assassination
According to the recollection of one of his friends Ward Hill Lamon President Abraham Lincoln dreams on this night in 1865 of the subdued sobs of mourn...
Harrison dies of pneumonia
President William Henry Harrison dies after serving only 32 days in office on this day in 1841. Harrison holds the unfortunate presidential record of shortest t...
Yellowstone photographer William Jackson is born
William Jackson is born in Keeseville New York. His powerful photographs of Yellowstone helped make it the first national park.Jackson received no formal train...
Muddy Waters is born
When Bob Dylan picked up an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 he permanently alienated a portion of his passionate fan base. When Muddy Wate...
Maya Angelou is born
Poet and novelist Maya Angelou-born Marguerite Johnson-is born in St. Louis Missouri. Her parents divorced when she was three and she and her brother went to ...
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