Historical Events on April 15, Facts & Special Events On This Day

769

The Lateran Council condemned the Council of Hieria and anathematized its iconoclastic rulings.

1071

Bari, the last Byzantine possession in southern Italy, is surrendered to Robert Guiscard.

1395

Timur defeats Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde at the Battle of the Terek River. The Golden Horde capital city, Sarai, is razed to the ground and Timur installs a puppet ruler on the throne.

1450

Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years' War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English forces, ending English domination in Northern France.

1632

Battle of Rain: Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus defeat the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years' War.

1642

Irish Confederate Wars: A Confederate Irish militia is routed in the Battle of Kilrush when it attempts to halt the progress of a Royalist Army.

1715

The Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.

1736

Foundation of the Kingdom of Corsica

1738

Serse, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel receives its premiere performance in London, England.

1755

Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London.

1783

Preliminary articles of peace ending the American Revolutionary War (or American War of Independence) are ratified.

1817

Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc founded the American School for the Deaf, the first American school for deaf students, in Hartford, Connecticut.

1861

President Abraham Lincoln calls for 75,000 Volunteers to quell the insurrection that soon became the American Civil War.

1865

President Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot the previous evening by actor John Wilkes Booth. Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes President upon Lincoln's death.

1892

The General Electric Company is formed.

1896

Closing ceremony of the Games of the I Olympiad in Athens, Greece.

1900

Philippine-American War: Filipino guerrillas launch a surprise attack on U.S. infantry and begin a four-day siege of Catubig, Philippines.

1907

Triangle Fraternity is founded at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

1912

The British passenger liner RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic at 2:20 a.m., two hours and forty minutes after hitting an iceberg. Only 710 of 2,227 passengers and crew on board survive.

1920

Two security guards are murdered during a robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts. Anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti would be convicted of and executed for the crime, amid much controversy.

1922

U.S. Senator John B. Kendrick of Wyoming introduces a resolution calling for an investigation of a secret land deal, which leads to the discovery of the Teapot Dome scandal.

1923

In the Belfast Blitz, two-hundred bombers of the German Luftwaffe attack Belfast, killing around one thousand people.

1942

The George Cross is awarded "to the island fortress of Malta: Its people and defenders" by King George VI.

1945

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp is liberated.

1947

Jackie Robinson debuts for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking baseball's color line.

1955

McDonald's restaurant dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois

1960

At Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Ella Baker leads a conference that results in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, one of the principal organizations of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.

1969

The EC-121 shootdown incident: North Korea shoots down a United States Navy aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing all 31 on board.

1970

During the Cambodian Civil War, massacres of the Vietnamese minority results in 800 bodies flowing down the Mekong river into South Vietnam.

1986

The United States launches Operation El Dorado Canyon, its bombing raids against Libyan targets in response to a bombing in West Germany that killed two U.S. servicemen.

1989

Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 96 Liverpool fans.

1989

Upon Hu Yaobang's death, the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 begin in China.

2013

Two bombs explode near the finish line at the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, killing three people and injuring 264 others.

2014

In the worst massacre of the South Sudanese Civil War, at least 200 civilians were gunned down after seeking refuge in houses of worship as well as hospitals.

April 15 in History

Historical Events on April 15

The Lateran Council condemned the Council of Hieria and anathematized its iconoclastic rulings.

Bari, the last Byzantine possession in southern Italy, is surrendered to Robert Guiscard.

Timur defeats Tokhtamysh of the Golden Horde at the Battle of the Terek River. The Golden Horde capital city, Sarai, is razed to the ground and Timur installs a puppet ruler on the throne.

Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years' War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English forces, ending English domination in Northern France.

Battle of Rain: Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus defeat the Holy Roman Empire during the Thirty Years' War.

Irish Confederate Wars: A Confederate Irish militia is routed in the Battle of Kilrush when it attempts to halt the progress of a Royalist Army.

The Pocotaligo Massacre triggers the start of the Yamasee War in colonial South Carolina.

Foundation of the Kingdom of Corsica

Serse, an Italian opera by George Frideric Handel receives its premiere performance in London, England.

Samuel Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language is published in London.

Preliminary articles of peace ending the American Revolutionary War (or American War of Independence) are ratified.

Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc founded the American School for the Deaf, the first American school for deaf students, in Hartford, Connecticut.

President Abraham Lincoln calls for 75,000 Volunteers to quell the insurrection that soon became the American Civil War.

President Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot the previous evening by actor John Wilkes Booth. Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes President upon Lincoln's death.

The General Electric Company is formed.

Closing ceremony of the Games of the I Olympiad in Athens, Greece.

Philippine-American War: Filipino guerrillas launch a surprise attack on U.S. infantry and begin a four-day siege of Catubig, Philippines.

Triangle Fraternity is founded at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The British passenger liner RMS Titanic sinks in the North Atlantic at 2:20 a.m., two hours and forty minutes after hitting an iceberg. Only 710 of 2,227 passengers and crew on board survive.

Two security guards are murdered during a robbery in South Braintree, Massachusetts. Anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti would be convicted of and executed for the crime, amid much controversy.

U.S. Senator John B. Kendrick of Wyoming introduces a resolution calling for an investigation of a secret land deal, which leads to the discovery of the Teapot Dome scandal.

Insulin becomes generally available for use by people with diabetes.

Rand McNally publishes its first road atlas.

First day of the Arab revolt in Mandatory Palestine.

In the Belfast Blitz, two-hundred bombers of the German Luftwaffe attack Belfast, killing around one thousand people.

The George Cross is awarded "to the island fortress of Malta: Its people and defenders" by King George VI.

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp is liberated.

Jackie Robinson debuts for the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking baseball's color line.

McDonald's restaurant dates its founding to the opening of a franchised restaurant by Ray Kroc, in Des Plaines, Illinois

At Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, Ella Baker leads a conference that results in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, one of the principal organizations of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.

The EC-121 shootdown incident: North Korea shoots down a United States Navy aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing all 31 on board.

During the Cambodian Civil War, massacres of the Vietnamese minority results in 800 bodies flowing down the Mekong river into South Vietnam.

The United States launches Operation El Dorado Canyon, its bombing raids against Libyan targets in response to a bombing in West Germany that killed two U.S. servicemen.

Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 96 Liverpool fans.

Upon Hu Yaobang's death, the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 begin in China.

Two bombs explode near the finish line at the Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts, killing three people and injuring 264 others.

In the worst massacre of the South Sudanese Civil War, at least 200 civilians were gunned down after seeking refuge in houses of worship as well as hospitals.

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