April 18 in History

Historical Events on April 18

1521 Trial of Martin Luther begins its second day during the assembly of the Diet of Worms. He refuses to recant his teachings despite the risk of excommunication.

1689 Bostonians rise up in rebellion against Sir Edmund Andros.

1775 American Revolution: The British advancement by sea begins; Paul Revere and other riders warn the countryside of the troop movements.

1909 Joan of Arc is beatified in Rome.

1942 World War II: The Doolittle Raid on Japan: Tokyo, Yokohama, Kobe and Nagoya are bombed.

1949 Ireland leaves the British Commonwealth and becomes the Republic of Ireland.

1954 Gamal Abdel Nasser seizes power in Egypt.

1980 The Republic of Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) comes into being, with Canaan Banana as the country's first President. The Zimbabwean dollar replaces the Rhodesian dollar as the official currency.

1983 A suicide bomber in Lebanon destroys the United States embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people.

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Famous Birthdays on April 18

1797 Adolphe Thiers

1949 Geoff Bodine

1964 Niall Ferguson

1983 Miguel Cabrera

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Famous Deaths on April 18

1955 Albert Einstein

1964 Ben Hecht

1995 Arturo Frondizi

1998 Terry Sanford

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