April 12

## Events 
### Up to 1900 
* 238 &ndash; Gordian II loses the Battle of Carthage against Numidian forces loyal to Maximinus Thrax and is killed. His father, Gordian I, commits suicide.
* 240 &ndash; Shapur I is crowned as King of the Sasanian Empire.
* 467 &ndash; Anthemius becomes Emperor of the West Roman Empire.
* 627 &ndash; King Edwin of Northumbria is converted to Christianity by Bishop Paulinus of York.
* 1204 &ndash; Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade breach the walls of Constantinople (present–day Istanbul) and enter the city, which they completely occupy the following day.
* 1557 &ndash; The city of Cuenca, in Ecuador, is founded.
* 1606 &ndash; The Union Flag is adopted as the flag of the two united Kingdoms of Scotland and England.
* 1633 &ndash; Galileo Galilei's trial before the inquisition begins.
* 1831 &ndash; Soldiers marching on the Broughton Suspension Bridge in Manchester cause it to collapse.
* 1861 &ndash; The American Civil War begins when Fort Sumter, South Carolina, is attacked.
* 1865 &ndash; American Civil War: Mobile, Alabama falls to the Union Army.
* 1877 &ndash; The United Kingdom annexes Transvaal.

### 1901 &ndash; 2000 
* 1917 &ndash; World War I: Canadian forces successfully complete the taking of Vimy Ridge from the Germans.
* 1927 &ndash; Chiang Kai-shek orders Communist Party of China members to be executed in Shanghai, ending the First United Front.
* 1928 &ndash; The Bremen, a German Junkers W33 type aircraft, takes off for the first successful transatlantic aeroplane flight from east to west.
* 1934 &ndash; The strongest wind gust, outside of Antarctica or not within a tornado, is measured at Mt. Washington, New Hampshire, at 231 miles per hour (372 kilometres per hour).
* 1935 &ndash; First flight of the Bristol Blenheim aircraft.
* 1937 &ndash; Frank Whittle ground–tests the first jet engine to power an aircraft.
* 1945 &ndash; US President Franklin Roosevelt dies. Harry S. Truman is sworn in as his successor.
* 1946 &ndash; The last French troops leave Syria.
* 1954 &ndash; Bill Haley and His Comets record their hit song Rock Around the Clock.
* 1955 &ndash; The polio vaccine developed by Jonas Salk is declared safe and effective.
* 1961 &ndash; Yuri Gagarin is the first cosmonaut in space, sent by the U.S.S.R on Vostok 1.
* 1963 &ndash; Soviet nuclear–powered submarine K–33 collides with the Finnish merchant navy vessel M/S Finnclipper in the Danish straits.
* 1968 &ndash; A day after the attack on student activist Rudi Dutschke, protests and riots erupt across several cities in West Germany.
* 1970 &ndash; Soviet submarine K–8, carrying four nuclear torpedoes, sinks in the Bay of Biscay near France and Spain four days after a fire on board. 
* 1980 &ndash; Terry Fox starts his *Marathon of Hope* across Canada in St. John's, Newfoundland.
* 1980 &ndash; In Liberia, Samuel K. Doe takes power in a coup, in which President William Tolbert is killed.
* 1981 &ndash; Space Shuttle *Columbia* is launched.
* 1992 &ndash; Disneyland Paris opens, as Euro Disneyland.
* 1998 &ndash; A magnitude 5.6 earthquake hits Slovenia.

### From 2001 
* 2002 &ndash; In a US–backed military coup in Venezuela, President Hugo Chávez is replaced as Head of State by Pedro Carmona. After 36 hours, Chavez is reinstated as president.
* 2002 &ndash; A female suicide bomber detonates herself in Jerusalem, killing 7 people and injuring 104.
* 2007 &ndash; A suicide bomber attacks the Iraqi parliament.
* 2009 &ndash; Zimbabwe abandons the Zimbabwean dollar as its official currency, after a severe economic crisis in the country.
* 2010 &ndash; A train crash near Merano, Italy, kills 9 people, after running into a landslide.
* 2014 &ndash; A wildfire ravages the Chilean city of Valparaiso, killing 16 people, displacing nearly 10,000, and destroying over 2,000 homes.

## Births 
### Up to 1800 
* 599 BC &ndash; Mahavira, Indian founder of Jainism (d. 527 BC)
* 812 &ndash; Muhammad at-Taqi, Arabian Shia Imam (d. 835)
* 1116 &ndash; Richeza of Poland, Queen of Sweden (d. 1156 or after)
* 1432 &ndash; Anne of Austria, Landgravine of Thuringia (d. 1462)
* 1484 &ndash; Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, Italian architect (d. 1546)
* 1500 &ndash; Joachim Camerarius, German classical scholar (d. 1574)
* 1526 &ndash; Muretus, French humanist (d. 1585)
* 1550 &ndash; Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, English politician (d. 1604)
* 1577 &ndash; King Christian IV of Denmark (d. 1648)
* 1710 &ndash; Caffarelli, Italian opera singer (d. 1783)
* 1713 &ndash; Guillaume Thomas François Raynal, French writer (d. 1796)
* 1716 &ndash; Felice Giardini, Italian composer and violinist (d. 1796)
* 1722 &ndash; Pietro Nardini, Italian composer (d. 1793)
* 1724 &ndash; Lyman Hall, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (d. 1790)
* 1726 &ndash; Charles Burney, English music historian (d. 1814)
* 1748 &ndash; Antoine Laurent de Jussieu, French botanist (d. 1836)
* 1760 &ndash; Juan Manuel Olivares, Venezuelan composer (d. 1797)
* 1777 &ndash; Henry Clay, American statesman and five–time Presidential candidate (d. 1852)
* 1792 &ndash; John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, English statesman (d. 1840)
* 1794 &ndash; Germinal Pierre Dandelin, Belgian mathematician (d. 1847).
* 1796 &ndash; George N. Briggs, 19th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1861)
* 1799 &ndash; Henri Druey, Swiss Federal Councilor (d. 1855)

### 1801 &ndash; 1900 
* 1801 &ndash; Joseph Lanner, Austrian composer and conductor (d. 1843)
* 1823 &ndash; Alexandr Ostrovsky, Russian dramatist (d. 1886)
* 1828 &ndash; Charles Foster, Governor of Ohio and United States Secretary of the Treasury (d. 1904)
* 1839 &ndash; Nikolai Przhevalsky, Russian explorer (d. 1888)
* 1851 &ndash; Edward Walter Maunder, English astronomer (d. 1928)
* 1852 &ndash; Ferdinand von Lindemann, German mathematician (d. 1939)
* 1856 &ndash; William Martin Conway, English art critic and mountaineer (d. 1937)
* 1866 &ndash; Princess Viktoria of Prussia (d. 1929)
* 1869 &ndash; Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (d. 1922)
* 1871 &ndash; Ioannis Metaxas, Greek general and dictator (d. 1941)
* 1874 &ndash; William B. Bankhead, American politician (d. 1940)
* 1879 &ndash; Fred H. Brown, Governor of New Hampshire (d. 1955)
* 1883 &ndash; Imogen Cunningham, American photographer (d. 1976)
* 1883 &ndash; Dally Messenger, Australian rugby player (d. 1959)
* 1884 &ndash; Otto Fritz Meyerhof, German doctor, won the 1922 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1951)
* 1884 &ndash; Tenby Davies, Welsh runner (d. 1932)
* 1885 &ndash; Robert Delaunay, French artist (d. 1941)
* 1887 &ndash; Harold Lockwood, American silent movie actor (d. 1918)
* 1888 &ndash; Heinrich Neuhaus, Soviet pianist (d. 1964)
* 1892 &ndash; Johnny Dodds, American jazz clarinetist (d. 1940)
* 1893 &ndash; Robert Harron, American actor (d. 1920)
* 1894 &ndash; Francisco Craveiro Lopes, President of Portugal (d. 1964)
* 1898 &ndash; Lily Pons, American soprano (d. 1976)

### 1901 &ndash; 1925 
* 1902 &ndash; Louis Beel, Prime Minister of the Netherlands (d. 1977)
* 1903 &ndash; Jan Tinbergen, Dutch economist (d. 1994)
* 1907 &ndash; Zawgyi, Burmese poet, writer and academic (d. 1990)
* 1908 &ndash; Ida Pollock, British writer (d. 2013)
* 1910 &ndash; Gillo Dorfles, Italian art critic, painter and philosopher (d. 2018)
* 1911 &ndash; Mahmoud Younis, Egyptian engineer (d. 1976)
* 1912 &ndash; Hamengkubuwono IX, 2nd Vice president of Indonesia (d. 1988)
* 1912 &ndash; Hound Dog Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1975)
* 1913 &ndash; Keiko Fukuda, Japanese judoka (d. 2013)
* 1914 &ndash; Adriaan Blaauw, Dutch astronomer (d. 2010)
* 1914 &ndash; Armen Alchian, American economist (d. 2013)
* 1914 &ndash; Gretel Bergmann, German athlete (d. 2017)
* 1916 &ndash; Movita Castaneda, American actress and singer (d. 2015)
* 1916 &ndash; Beverly Cleary, American writer (d. 2021)
* 1917 &ndash; Robert Manzon, French racing driver (d. 2015)
* 1917 &ndash; Vinoo Mankad, Indian cricketer (d. 1978)
* 1919 &ndash; Billy Vaughn, American musician and bandleader (d. 1991)
* 1922 &ndash; Simon Kapwepwe, 2nd Vice president of Zambia (d. 1980)
* 1923 &ndash; Ann Miller, American actress and dancer (d. 2004)
* 1923 &ndash; Eddie Turnbull, Scottish footballer (d. 2011)
* 1924 &ndash; Raymond Barre, Prime Minister of France (d. 2007)
* 1925 &ndash; Oliver Postgate, British animator, puppetteer and writer (d. 2008)

### 1926 &ndash; 1950 
* 1926 &ndash; Jane Withers, American actress (d. 2021)
* 1927 &ndash; Alvin Sargent, American screenwriter (d. 2019)
* 1928 &ndash; Hardy Krüger, German actor
* 1928 &ndash; Elspet Gray, Scottish actress (d. 2013)
* 1929 &ndash; Luis Vigoreaux, Puerto Rican TV and radio personality (d. 1983)
* 1930 &ndash; John Landy, Australian athlete and politician, 26th Governor of Victoria (d. 2022)
* 1930 &ndash; Bryan Magee, British philosopher
* 1931 &ndash; Chico Anysio, Brazilian actor, comedian, writer and composer (d. 2012)
* 1932 &ndash; Tiny Tim, American musician (d. 1996)
* 1932 &ndash; Jean-Pierre Marielle, French actor (d. 2019)
* 1933 &ndash; Montserrat Caballé, Catalan–Spanish operatic soprano (d. 2018)
* 1934 &ndash; Michael Grzimek, German moviemaker and zoologist (d. 1959)
* 1936 &ndash; Charles Napier, American actor (d. 2011)
* 1936 &ndash; Tony Earl, 41st Governor of Wisconsin
* 1936 &ndash; Kennedy Simmonds, 1st Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis
* 1937 &ndash; Dennis Banks, American teacher, activist and writer (d. 2017)
* 1937 &ndash; Igor Volk, Soviet–Ukrainian cosmonaut (d. 2017)
* 1940 &ndash; Enayat Michael Ali, Trinidadian professional cricketer
* 1940 &ndash; John Hagee, American pastor and theologian
* 1940 &ndash; Herbie Hancock, American musician
* 1941 &ndash; Bobby Moore, English footballer (d. 1993)
* 1942 &ndash; Jacob Zuma, former President of South Africa
* 1942 &ndash; Carlos Reutemann, Argentine racing driver and politician (d. 2021)
* 1943 &ndash; Sumitra Mahajan, Indian politician
* 1944 &ndash; Lisa Jardine, English historian, writer and academic (d. 2015)
* 1944 &ndash; John Kay, German–Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer
* 1945 &ndash; Lee Jong-Wook, South Korean Director–General of the WHO (d. 2006)
* 1946 &ndash; George Robertson, Baron Robertson of Port Ellen, former Secretary–General of NATO
* 1946 &ndash; Ed O'Neill, American actor
* 1947 &ndash; Martin Brasier, English palaeobiologist and astrobiologist (d. 2014)
* 1947 &ndash; Alex Briley, American singer (Village People)
* 1947 &ndash; Woody Johnson, American businessman and philanthropist
* 1947 &ndash; Dan Lauria, American actor
* 1947 &ndash; David Letterman, American comedian and TV host
* 1947 &ndash; Tom Clancy, American writer (d. 2013)
* 1948 &ndash; Joschka Fischer, German politician
* 1948 &ndash; Marcello Lippi, Italian football manager
* 1948 &ndash; Jeremy Beadle, British television presenter (d. 2008)
* 1948 &ndash; Lois Reeves, American singer
* 1949 &ndash; Scott Turow, American writer
* 1950 &ndash; Joyce Banda, former President of Malawi
* 1950 &ndash; David Cassidy, American singer and actor (d. 2017)
* 1950 &ndash; Maia Danziger, American actress
* 1950 &ndash; Flavio Briatore, Italian businessman
* 1950 &ndash; Larry Kemp, Film editor

### 1951 &ndash; 1975 
* 1954 &ndash; John Faulkner, Australian politician
* 1954 &ndash; Jon Krakauer, American writer and mountaineer
* 1955 &ndash; Viktor Arnar Ingólfsson, Icelandic writer
* 1956 &ndash; Andy Garcia, American actor
* 1956 &ndash; Herbert Grönemeyer, German singer and actor
* 1956 &ndash; Walter Salles, Brazilian movie director
* 1957 &ndash; Vince Gill, American Country singer
* 1957 &ndash; Adam Parfrey, American novelist, editor and publisher (d. 2018)
* 1958 &ndash; Ginka Zagorcheva, Bulgarian hurdler
* 1958 &ndash; J. Alexander, American television personality
* 1959 &ndash; Jackson Carlaw, Scottish politician
* 1960 &ndash; Dennis Bateman, American voice actor
* 1961 &ndash; Lisa Gerrard, Australian musician
* 1965 &ndash; Kim Bodnia, Danish actor
* 1967 &ndash; Mellow Man Ace, American rapper
* 1968 &ndash; Adam Graves, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1968 &ndash; Alicia Coppola, American actress
* 1970 &ndash; Nick Hexum, singer and guitarist
* 1971 &ndash; Nicholas Brendon, actor
* 1971 &ndash; Shannen Doherty, American actress
* 1973 &ndash; Christian Panucci, Italian footballer
* 1974 &ndash; Sylvinho, Brazilian footballer
* 1974 &ndash; Marley Shelton, American actress

### From 1976 
* 1976 &ndash; Olga Kotlyarova, Russian runner
* 1977 &ndash; Giovanny Espinoza, Ecuadorean footballer
* 1978 &ndash; Guy Berryman, British musician (Coldplay)
* 1979 &ndash; Claire Danes, American actress
* 1979 &ndash; Mateja Kezman, Serbian footballer
* 1979 &ndash; Jennifer Morrison, American actress
* 1980 &ndash; Brian McFadden, Irish singer (Westlife)
* 1981 &ndash; Nicolas Burdisso, Argentine footballer
* 1981 &ndash; Grant Holt, English footballer
* 1982 &ndash; Gary Caldwell, Scottish footballer
* 1982 &ndash; Riley Smith, model and actor
* 1983 &ndash; Jelena Dokic, Serbian–Australian tennis player
* 1985 &ndash; James Alexandrou, British actor
* 1985 &ndash; Olga Seryabkina, Russian singer-songwriter
* 1986 &ndash; Lorena, Spanish singer
* 1986 &ndash; Marcel Granollers, Spanish tennis player
* 1987 &ndash; Brooklyn Decker, American model and actress
* 1987 &ndash; Brendon Urie, American singer of Panic! at the Disco
* 1988 &ndash; Ricardo Gabriel Alvarez, Argentine footballer
* 1989 &ndash; Miguel Angel Ponce, Mexican footballer
* 1989 &ndash; Travis Tatum Mill, American singer
* 1990 &ndash; Francesca Halsall, British swimmer
* 1994 &ndash; Saoirse Ronan, Irish actress
* 1994 &ndash; Airi Suzuki, Japanese actress and singer
* 1996 &ndash; Elizaveta Kulichkova, Russian tennis player
* 1997 &ndash; Katelyn Dhashi, American gymnast
* 2000 &ndash; Suzanna von Nathusius, Polish actress

## Deaths 
### Up to 1900 
* 45 BC &ndash; Gnaeus Pompeius, Roman general
* 65 &ndash; Seneca the Younger, Roman philosopher, statesman and dramatist
* 238 &ndash; Gordian I, Roman Emperor
* 238 &ndash; Gordian II, Roman heir
* 352 &ndash; Pope Julius I
* 434 &ndash; Archbishop Maximianus of Constantinople
* 1125 &ndash; Vladislaus I of Bohemia (b. 1065)
* 1550 &ndash; Claude, Duke of Guise (b. 1496)
* 1555 &ndash; Juana of Castile, wife of Philip I of Castile (b. 1479)
* 1675 &ndash; Richard Bennett, British Governor of Virginia (b. 1609)
* 1684 &ndash; Nicola Amati, Italian instrument maker (b. 1596)
* 1782 &ndash; Metastasio, Italian poet and librettist (b. 1698)
* 1788 &ndash; Carlo Antonio Campioni, French composer (b. 1719)
* 1817 &ndash; Charles Messier, French astronomer (b. 1730)
* 1872 &ndash; Nikolaos Mantzaros, Greek composer (b. 1795)
* 1878 &ndash; William H. Tweed, American politician (b. 1823)
* 1898 &ndash; Elzéar-Alexandre Taschereau, Canadian cardinal (b. 1820)

### 1901 &ndash; 2000 
* 1912 &ndash; Clara Barton, American nurse (b. 1821)
* 1933 &ndash; Adelbert Ames, American general and politician (b. 1835)
* 1938 &ndash; Feodor Chaliapin, Russian opera singer (b. 1873)
* 1945 &ndash; Franklin Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States (b. 1882)
* 1968 &ndash; Heinrich Nordhoff, German automobile engineer (b. 1899)
* 1971 &ndash; Igor Tamm, Russian physicist (b. 1895)
* 1975 &ndash; Josephine Baker, American dancer, singer and actress (b. 1906)
* 1980 &ndash; William Tolbert, President of Liberia (b. 1913)
* 1981 &ndash; Joe Louis, American boxer (b. 1914)
* 1981 &ndash; Prince Yasuhiko Asaka, of Japan (b. 1887)
* 1988 &ndash; Alan Paton, South African writer (b. 1903)
* 1989 &ndash; Abbie Hoffman, American activist (b. 1936)
* 1989 &ndash; Sugar Ray Robinson, American boxer (b. 1921)
* 1997 &ndash; George Wald, American neurologist (b. 1906)
* 1999 &ndash; Boxcar Willie, American musician (b. 1931)
* 1999 &ndash; Marion Pruett, American spree killer (b. 1949)

### From 2001 
* 2001 &ndash; Harvey Ball, American illustrator (b. 1921)
* 2006 &ndash; Rajkumar, Indian movie actor and singer (b. 1929)
* 2008 &ndash; Patrick Hillery, President of Ireland (b. 1923)
* 2008 &ndash; Jerry Zucker, Israeli–American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1949)
* 2009 &ndash; Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, American academic scholar (b. 1950)
* 2009 &ndash; Marilyn Chambers, American pornographic actress (b. 1952)
* 2010 &ndash; Werner Schroeter, German movie director (b. 1945)
* 2014 &ndash; Brita Koivunen, Finnish singer (b. 1931)
* 2014 &ndash; Fred Ho, American musician, composer, playwright, writer and activist (b. 1957)
* 2014 &ndash; Hal Smith, American baseball player (b. 1931)
* 2015 &ndash; André Mba Obame, Gabonese politician (b. 1957)
* 2015 &ndash; Patrice Dominguez, French tennis player (b. 1950) 
* 2015 &ndash; Alfred Eick, German U–boat commander (b. 1916)
* 2016 &ndash; Hector A. Cafferata, Jr., American soldier (b. 1929)
* 2016 &ndash; Paul Carey, American radio broadcaster (b. 1928)
* 2016 &ndash; Gianroberto Casaleggio, Italian entrepreneur (b. 1954)
* 2016 &ndash; Pedro de Felipe, Spanish footballer (b. 1944)
* 2016 &ndash; David Gest, American television personality (b. 1953)
* 2016 &ndash; Anne Jackson, American actress (b. 1925)
* 2016 &ndash; Balls Mahoney, American professional wrestler (b. 1972)
* 2016 &ndash; Arnold Wesker, English playwright (b. 1932)
* 2017 &ndash; Akhilesh Das, Indian politician, Mayor of Lucknow (b. 1961)
* 2017 &ndash; Michael Ballhaus, German cinematographer (b. 1935)
* 2017 &ndash; Charlie Murphy, American comedian (b. 1959)
* 2017 &ndash; Sheila Abdus-Salaam, American judge (b. 1952)
* 2017 &ndash; Tom Coyne, American music engineer (b. 1954)
* 2017 &ndash; Wayne Hardin, American football player (b. 1926)
* 2017 &ndash; Toby Smith, British keyboardist (b. 1970)
* 2018 &ndash; Brij Bhushan Kabra, Indian musician (b. 1937)
* 2018 &ndash; John Melcher, American politician (b. 1924)
* 2018 &ndash; Sergio Pitol, Mexican novelist and politician (b. 1933)
* 2018 &ndash; Deborah Coleman, American blues singer–songwriter (b. 1956)
* 2018 &ndash; Bob Pickens, American wrestler and football player (b. 1943)
* 2019 &ndash; Ivor Broadis, English footballer (b. 1922)
* 2019 &ndash; Dina, Portuguese singer (b. 1956)
* 2019 &ndash; Forrest Gregg, American football player (b. 1933)
* 2019 &ndash; Tommy Smith, English footballer (b. 1945)
* 2019 &ndash; Georgia Engel, American actress (b. 1948)

## Observances 
* Cosmonauts' Day (Russia), celebrating Yuri Gagarin's space flight in 1961