What Happened on April 4
Historical Events
- 1581 Francis Drake knighted by Queen Elizabeth I aboard 'Golden Hind' at Deptford, England
- 1655 Battle at Postage Farina, Tunis: English fleet beats Barbary pirates
- 1789 1st US Congress begins regular sessions during George Washington's presidency at Federal Hall, NYC (ending 1791)
- 1949 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) treaty signed in Washington, D.C.
- 1968 US civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee
- 1973 World Trade Center, then the world's tallest building, opens in New York (110 stories). Later destroyed in 9/11 terrorist attacks.
- 1975 Microsoft is founded as a partnership between Bill Gates and Paul Allen to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800
- More Historical Events
Apr 4 in Film & TV
- 1914 Film serial "Perils of Pauline" shown for the first time in Los Angeles
Apr 4 in Music
- 1971 Stephen Sondheim's "Follies" opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 524 performances, then most expensive Broadway musical at the time
Apr 4 in Sport
- 1974 Hank Aaron ties Babe Ruth's home-run record by hitting his 714th in Cincinnati, facing Jack Billingham
Did You Know?
1st march against nuclear weapons from London to Aldermaston, England, home of the Defence Ministry's Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE)
On April 4, 1958
Caracalla
Muddy Waters
Maya Angelou
Anthony Perkins
Heath Ledger
Robert Downey JrWould You Believe?
Poecilotheria rajaei, a giant tarantula with a 20cm leg span, is discovered in Sri Lanka
On April 4, 2013
Famous Weddings
- 1625 Viceroy Frederick Henry marries Amalia countess von Solms-Braunfels
- 1750 Statesman George Mason (24) weds Ann Eilbeck (16)
- 1882 Actress Sarah Bernhardt marries diplomat Aristide Damala in London
Famous Divorces
- 2019 Amazon's Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Bezos agree record-breaking $35 billion divorce settlement
More Weddings & Divorces
William Henry Harrison
Ludwig Leichhardt
Karl Benz
André Michelin
Martin Luther King Jr.
Adam Clayton Powell Jr.Articles, Photos and Quiz
Martin Luther King Shot Dead
Martin Luther King Jr, the celebrated (‘I have a dream’) civil rights campaigner, was shot dead on this day as he stood on a motel balcony in Memphis Tennessee.
April 4, 1968
Martin Luther King Assassination Riots
Front page of The Washington Post on April 7, 1968, three days after the assassination of Martin Luther King
April 4, 1968
Founding of Microsoft
Paul Allen and Bill Gates, the founders of Microsoft
April 4, 1975
