April 4th in History

1147 - First historical record of Moscow.


1581 - Francis Drake is knighted for completing a circumnavigation of the world.

1660 - Declaration of Breda by King Charles II of England.

1721 - Sir Robert Walpole takes office as the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom under King George I.


1814 - Napoleon abdicates for the first time.

1818 - The United States Congress adopts the flag of the United States with 13 red and white stripes and one star for each state (then 20)

1850 - Los Angeles, California is incorporated as a city.

1865 - American Civil War: A day after Union forces capture Richmond, Virginia, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln visits the Confederate capital.

1887 - Argonia, Kansas elects Susanna M. Salter as the first female mayor in the United States.

1930 - The Communist Party of Panama is founded.


1939 - Faisal II becomes King of Iraq.

1944 - World War II: First bombardment of Bucharest by Anglo-American forces kills 3000 civilians.

1945 - World War II: American troops liberate Ohrdruf forced labor camp in Germany.

1960 - France agrees to grant independence to the Mali Federation, a union of Senegal and French Sudan.

1968 - Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at a motel in Memphis, Tennessee.

1973 - The World Trade Center in New York is officially dedicated.

1975 - Microsoft is founded as a partnership between Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico

1976 - Prince Norodom Sihanouk resigns as leader of Cambodia and is placed under house arrest.

2002 - The Angolan government and UNITA rebels sign a peace treaty ending the Angolan Civil War.

2007 - 15 British Royal Navy personnel held in Iran are released by the Iranian President.

Famous Birthdays

188 - Caracalla, Roman Emperor

1752 - Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli, composer

1853 - Tad Lincoln, son of president Abraham Lincoln

1920 - Ignatius IV of Antioch, patriarch

1944 - Craig T. Nelson, actor

1946 – Dave Hill, guitarist

1963 - A. Michael Baldwin, actor, producer, and screenwriter

1966 - Nancy McKeon, actor

1976 - James Roday, actor

1987 - Devon Anderson, actor

1992 - Alexa Nikolas, actress