Today In History

[Jay Byrd]

April 3

628         In Persia, Kavadh sues for peace with the Byzantines.
1367         John of Gaunt and Edward the Black Prince win the Battle of Najara, in Spain.
1559         Philip II of Spain and Henry II of France sign the peace of Cateau-Cambresis, ending a long series of wars between the Hapsburg and Valois dynasties.

[Rowan MacD]

1043: Edward the Confessor crowned.

Elected by popular acclamation, Edward (known as "the Confessor" for his piety) had Norman sympathies and had supposedly named William the Conqueror his successor, before choosing Harold Godwinson on his death-bed.
   His actions resulted in the Battle of Hastings, the death of the last Anglo-Saxon King, and the the Norman Conquest of England.

[Jay Byrd]

April 6
1199         English King Richard I is killed by an arrow at the siege of the castle of Chaluz in France.

1814         Granted sovereignty in the island of Elba and a pension from the French government, Napoleon Bonaparte abdicates at Fountainebleau. He is allowed to keep the title of emperor.

[Jay Byrd]

Born on April 8

563 BC         Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism.
1605         Philip IV, king of Spain and Portugal (1621-65).

[Jay Byrd]

April 9


193         In the Balkans, the distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum.
715         Constantine ends his reign as Catholic Pope.
1241         In the Battle of Liegnitz, Mongol armies defeat Poles and Germans.
1454         The city states of Venice, Milan and Florence sign a peace agreement at Lodi, Italy.
1682         Robert La Salle claims lower Mississippi River and all lands that touch it for France.
1731         British Captain Robert Jenkins loses an ear to a band of Spanish brigands, starting a war between Britain and Spain: The War of Jenkins' Ear.
1770         Captain James Cook discovers Botany Bay on the Australian continent.
1859         Realizing that France has encouraged the Piedmontese forces to mobilize for invading Italy, Austria begins mobilizing its army.

Born on April 9

1649         James Scott, Duke of Monmouth.
1821         Charles Baudelaire, French poet.
1926         Hugh Hefner, founder and publisher of Playboy magazine.

[Rowan MacD]

 On this date in 1493-Edward IV of England died.

He was known for his his popularity, good looks and charm.
Edward's military skill has been somewhat overlooked through the centuries, but he won the throne through victorious battles in the Wars of the Roses and was crowned when he was not yet 20.

[Rowan MacD]

on this day in 1514,  Donato Bramante died.

Bramante is considered to have introduced the "High Renaissance" style into architecture. His works include the Sant'Ambrogio, the Santa Maria Delle Grazie, and the Tempietto of San Pietro.

on this day in 1586, Pietro della Valle was born.
On an extended pilgrimage to the Holy Land, della Valle wrote letters describing his journey that are still valuable today for their detailed descriptions.

[Jay Byrd]

April 14


1471         The Earl of Warwick, who fought on both sides in the War of the Roses, is killed at the Battle of Barnet with the defeat of the Lancastrians.
1543         Bartoleme Ferrelo returns to Spain after discovering a large bay in the New World (San Francisco).
1775         The first abolitionist society in United States is organized in Philadelphia.
1793         A royalist rebellion in Santo Domingo is crushed by French republican troops.

[Jay Byrd]

 Born on April 15


1452         Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, scientist and visionary
1684         Catherine I, empress of Russia
1741         Charles Wilson Peale, portrait painter and inventor
1800         Sir James Clark Ross, Scottish explorer who located the Magnetic North Pole.

[Rowan MacD]

 Filippo Brunelleschi died on this date in 1446:

A pioneer of Italian Renaissance architecture and a talented sculptor, Brunelleschi is also credited with the rediscovery of the principles of linear perspective, which he demonstrated in an experiment involving a mirror and a painting of a street scene. His Duomo of the Florence Cathedral and the Pazzi Chapel are among his significant works.

[Jay Byrd]

April 16


  69           Defeated by Vitellius' troops at Bedriacum, Otho commits suicide.
556         Pelagius I begins his reign as Catholic Pope.
1065         The Norman Robert Guiscard takes Bari, ending five centuries of Byzantine rule in southern Italy.
1705         Queen Anne of England knights Isaac Newton.
1746         Prince Charles is defeated at the battle of Culloden, the last pitched battle fought in Britain.
- See more at: http://www.historynet.com/today-in-history#sthash.G37lTmAu.dpuf

[Jay Byrd]

April 17

858         Benedict III ends his reign as Catholic Pope.
1492         Christopher Columbus signs a contract with Spain to find a western route to the Indies.
1521         Martin Luther is excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church.
1524         Present-day New York Harbor is discovered by Giovanni Verrazano.
1535         Antonio Mendoza is appointed first viceroy of New Spain.
- See more at: http://www.historynet.com/today-in-history#sthash.0ckW55dF.dpuf

[Rowan MacD]

1521:   Martin Luther appears before the Diet of Worms.

   Luther had been excommunicated, but Prince Frederick the Wise had refused to take any action against him. Instead he negotioated with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who gave Luther safe-conduct to appear before the assembly in Worms, Germany.
   When Luther appeared, he took a day to consider the charges against him, then refused to repudiate  his works unless convinced of error by Scripture or reason.
   Tradition has it he told the assembly: "Here I stand; I can do no other.

[Jay Byrd]

April 21

753 BC         Traditional date of the foundation of Rome.
43 BC         Marcus Antonius is defeated by Octavian near Modena, Italy.
1526         Mongol Emperor Babur annihilates the Indian Army of Ibrahim Lodi.
1649         The Maryland Toleration Act is passed, allowing all people freedom of worship.
1689         William III and Mary II are crowned joint king and queen of England, Scotland and Ireland.
- See more at: http://www.historynet.com/today-in-history#sthash.nhAhWDHN.dpuf

[Jay Byrd]

April 22

  296         St. Gaius ends his reign as Catholic Pope.
536         St. Agapitus I ends his reign as Catholic Pope.
1500         Pedro Alvarez Cabral discovers Brazil.
1509         Henry VIII ascends to the throne of England upon the death of his father, Henry VII.
1529         Spain and Portugal divide the eastern hemisphere in the Treaty of Saragosa.
1745         The Peace of Fussen is signed.

Born on April 22

1451         Isabella I of Castile, Queen of Spain, patron of Christopher Columbus.
1707         Henry Fielding, English novelist (Tom Jones).
1724         Immanuel Kant, German philosopher.