April 27

April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 248 days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 33 BC – Lucius Marcius Philippus, step-brother to the future emperor Augustus, celebrates a triumph for his victories while serving as governor in one of the provinces of Hispania.
• 395 – Emperor Arcadius marries Aelia Eudoxia, daughter of the Frankish general Flavius Bauto. She becomes one of the more powerful Roman empresses of Late Antiquity.
• 629 – Shahrbaraz is crowned as king of the Sasanian Empire.
• 711 – Islamic conquest of Hispania: Moorish troops led by Tariq ibn Ziyad land at Gibraltar to begin their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus).
• 1296 – First War of Scottish Independence: John Balliol's Scottish army is defeated by an English army commanded by John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey at the Battle of Dunbar.
• 1509 – Pope Julius II places the Italian state of Venice under interdict.
• 1521 – Battle of Mactan: Explorer Ferdinand Magellan is killed by natives in the Philippines led by chief Lapu-Lapu.
• 1522 – Combined forces of Spain and the Papal States defeat a French and Venetian army at the Battle of Bicocca.
• 1539 – Re-founding of the city of Bogotá, New Granada (now Colombia), by Nikolaus Federmann and Sebastián de Belalcázar.
• 1565 – Cebu is established becoming the first Spanish settlement in the Philippines.
• 1578 – Duel of the Mignons claims the lives of two favourites of Henry III of France and two favorites of Henry I, Duke of Guise.
• 1595 – The relics of Saint Sava are incinerated in Belgrade by the Ottomans, where today the largest Orthodox church building in the world stands
• 1650 – The Battle of Carbisdale: A Royalist army from Orkney invades mainland Scotland but is defeated by a Covenanter army.
• 1667 – The blind and impoverished John Milton sells the copyright of Paradise Lost for £10.
• 1749 – First performance of George Frideric Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks in Green Park, London.
• 1777 – American Revolutionary War: The Battle of Ridgefield: A British invasion force engages and defeats Continental Army regulars and militia irregulars at Ridgefield, Connecticut.
• 1805 – First Barbary War: United States Marines and Berbers attack the Tripolitan city of Derna (The "shores of Tripoli" part of the Marines' Hymn).
• 1810 – Beethoven composes Für Elise.
• 1813 – War of 1812: American troops capture the capital of Upper Canada in the Battle of York (present day Toronto, Canada).
• 1840 – Foundation stone for new Palace of Westminster, London, is laid by wife of Sir Charles Barry.
• 1861 – American President Abraham Lincoln suspends the writ of habeas corpus.
• 1865 – The New York State Senate creates Cornell University as the state's land grant institution.
• 1865 – The steamboat Sultana, carrying 2,400 passengers, explodes and sinks in the Mississippi River, killing 1,800, most of whom are Union survivors of the Andersonville and Cahaba Prisons.
• 1904 – The Australian Labor Party becomes the first such party to gain national government, under Chris Watson.
• 1909 – Sultan of Ottoman Empire Abdul Hamid II is overthrown, and is succeeded by his brother, Mehmed V.
• 1911 – Following the resignation and death of William P. Frye, a compromise is reached to rotate the office of President pro tempore of the United States Senate.
• 1914 – Honduras becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
• 1927 – Carabineros de Chile (Chilean national police force and gendarmerie) are created.
• 1936 – The United Auto Workers (UAW) gains autonomy from the American Federation of Labor.
• 1941 – World War II: German troops enter Athens.
• 1941 – World War II: The Communist Party of Slovenia, the Slovene Christian Socialists, the left-wing Slovene Sokols (also known as "National Democrats") and a group of progressive intellectuals establish the Liberation Front of the Slovene Nation.
• 1945 – World War II: German troops are finally expelled from Finnish Lapland.
• 1945 – World War II: Benito Mussolini is arrested by Italian partisans in Dongo, while attempting escape disguised as a German soldier.
• 1950 – Apartheid: In South Africa, the Group Areas Act is passed formally segregating races.
• 1953 – Operation Moolah offers $50,000 to any pilot who defected with a fully mission-capable Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 to South Korea. The first pilot was to receive $100,000.
• 1960 – Togo gains independence from French-administered UN trusteeship.
• 1961 – Sierra Leone is granted its independence from the United Kingdom, with Milton Margai as the first Prime Minister.
• 1967 – Expo 67 officially opens in Montreal, Canada with a large opening ceremony broadcast around the world. It opens to the public the next day.
• 1974 – Ten thousand march in Washington, D.C., calling for the impeachment of U.S. President Richard Nixon
• 1977 – Twenty-eight people are killed in the Guatemala City air disaster.
• 1978 – Former United States President Nixon aide John D. Ehrlichman is released from an Arizona prison after serving 18 months for Watergate-related crimes.
• 1981 – Xerox PARC introduces the computer mouse.
• 1986 – The city of Pripyat as well as the surrounding areas are evacuated due to Chernobyl disaster.
• 1987 – The U.S. Department of Justice bars Austrian President Kurt Waldheim from entering the United States, saying he had aided in the deportation and execution of thousands of Jews and others as a German Army officer during World War II.
• 1989 – The April 27 demonstrations, student-led protests responding to the April 26 Editorial, during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
• 1992 – The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, comprising Serbia and Montenegro, is proclaimed.
• 1992 – Betty Boothroyd becomes the first woman to be elected Speaker of the British House of Commons in its 700-year history.
• 1992 – The Russian Federation and 12 other former Soviet republics become members of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
• 1993 – All members of the Zambia national football team lose their lives in a plane crash off Libreville, Gabon en route to Dakar, Senegal to play a 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Senegal.
• 1994 – South African general election: The first democratic general election in South Africa, in which black citizens could vote. The Interim Constitution comes into force.
• 1996 – The 1996 Lebanon war ends.
• 2002 – The last successful telemetry from the NASA space probe Pioneer 10.
• 2005 – The superjumbo jet aircraft Airbus A380 makes its first flight from Toulouse, France. An accident involving a bus and a train occurs in Polgahawela, Sri Lanka.
• 2006 – Construction begins on the Freedom Tower (later renamed One World Trade Center) in New York City.
• 2007 – Estonian authorities remove the Bronze Soldier, a Soviet Red Army war memorial in Tallinn, amid political controversy with Russia.
• 2011 – The April 25–28 tornado outbreak devastates parts of the Southeastern United States, especially the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Tennessee. Two hundred five tornadoes touched down on April 27 alone, killing more than 300 and injuring hundreds more.
• 2012 – At least four explosions hit the Ukrainian city of Dnipropetrovsk with at least 27 people injured.
• 2014 – Popes John XXIII and John Paul II are declared saints in the first papal canonization since 1954.
• 2014 – A tornado outbreak over much of the eastern United States kills 35 people.

Births

• 1650 – Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1714)
• 1701 – Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia (d. 1773)
• 1718 – Thomas Lewis, Irish-American surveyor and lawyer (d. 1790)
• 1737 – Edward Gibbon, English historian and politician (d. 1794)
• 1748 – Adamantios Korais, Greek-French philosopher and scholar (d. 1833)
• 1755 – Marc-Antoine Parseval, French mathematician and theorist (d. 1836)
• 1759 – Mary Wollstonecraft, English philosopher, historian, and author (d. 1797)
• 1788 – Charles Robert Cockerell, English architect, archaeologist, and writer (d. 1863)
• 1791 – Samuel Morse, American painter and inventor, co-invented the Morse code (d. 1872)
• 1806 – Maria Christina of the Two Sicilies (d. 1878)
• 1812 – William W. Snow, American lawyer and politician (d. 1886)
• 1812 – Friedrich von Flotow, German composer (d. 1883)
• 1820 – Herbert Spencer, English biologist, anthropologist, sociologist, and philosopher (d. 1903)
• 1822 – Ulysses S. Grant, American general and politician, 18th President of the United States (d. 1885)
• 1840 – Edward Whymper, English-French mountaineer, explorer, author, and illustrator (d. 1911)
• 1848 – Otto of Bavaria (d. 1916)
• 1850 – Hans Hartwig von Beseler, German general and politician (d. 1921)
• 1853 – Jules Lemaître, French playwright and critic (d. 1914)
• 1857 – Theodor Kittelsen, Norwegian painter and illustrator (d. 1914)
• 1861 – William Arms Fisher, American composer and music historian (d. 1948)
• 1862 – Rudolph Schildkraut, Turkish-American actor (d. 1930)
• 1866 – Maurice Raoul-Duval, French polo player (d. 1916)
• 1875 – Frederick Fane, Irish-born, English cricketer (d. 1960)
• 1876 – Con Leahy, Irish athlete (d. 1921)
• 1878 – John Rimmer, English runner (d. 1962)
• 1880 – Mihkel Lüdig, Estonian organist, composer, and conductor (d. 1958)
• 1882 – Jessie Redmon Fauset, American author and poet (d. 1961)
• 1887 – Warren Wood, American golfer (d. 1926)
• 1888 – Florence La Badie, Canadian actress (d. 1917)
• 1893 – Draža Mihailović, Serbian general (d. 1946)
• 1893 – Allen Sothoron, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1939)
• 1894 – George Petty, American painter and illustrator (d. 1975)
• 1894 – Nicolas Slonimsky, Russian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1995)
• 1896 – Rogers Hornsby, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1963)
• 1896 – William Hudson, New Zealand-Australian engineer (d. 1978)
• 1898 – Ludwig Bemelmans, Italian-American author and illustrator (d. 1962)
• 1899 – Walter Lantz, American animator, producer, screenwriter, and actor (d. 1994)
• 1900 – August Koern, Estonian politician and diplomat, Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs in exile (d. 1989)
• 1902 – Tiemoko Garan Kouyaté, Malian educator and activist (d. 1942)
• 1903 – Horace Stoneham, American businessman (d. 1990)
• 1904 – Cecil Day-Lewis, Irish-English poet and author (d. 1972)
• 1904 – Nikos Zachariadis, Greek politician (d. 1973)
• 1905 – John Kuck, American javelin thrower and shot putter (d. 1986)
• 1906 – Yiorgos Theotokas, Greek author and playwright (d. 1966)
• 1910 – Chiang Ching-kuo, Chinese politician, 3rd President of the Republic of China (d. 1988)
• 1911 – Bruno Beger, German anthropologist and ethnologist (d. 2009)
• 1911 – Chris Berger, Dutch sprinter and footballer (d. 1965)
• 1912 – Jacques de Bourbon-Busset, French author and politician (d. 2001)
• 1912 – Zohra Sehgal, Indian actress, dancer, and choreographer (d. 2014)
• 1913 – Philip Abelson, American physicist and author (d. 2004)
• 1913 – Irving Adler, American mathematician, author, and academic (d. 2012)
• 1913 – Luz Long, German long jumper and soldier (d. 1943)
• 1916 – Robert Hugh McWilliams, Jr., American sergeant, lawyer, and judge (d. 2013)
• 1916 – Enos Slaughter, American baseball player and manager (d. 2002)
• 1917 – Roman Matsov, Estonian violinist, pianist, and conductor (d. 2001)
• 1918 – Sten Rudholm, Swedish lawyer and jurist (d. 2008)
• 1920 – Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (d. 1956)
• 1920 – Mark Krasnosel'skii, Ukrainian-Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1997)
• 1920 – James Robert Mann, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (d. 2010)
• 1920 – Edwin Morgan, Scottish poet and translator (d. 2010)
• 1921 – Robert Dhéry, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
• 1921 – John Stott, English clergyman and theologian (d. 2011)
• 1922 – Martin Gray, Polish-French holocaust survivor and author
• 1922 – Jack Klugman, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
• 1922 – Sheila Scott, English nurse and pilot (d. 1988)
• 1924 – Vernon B. Romney, American lawyer and politician, 14th Attorney General of Utah (d. 2013)
• 1925 – Derek Chinnery, English broadcaster (d. 2015)
• 1926 – Tim LaHaye, American minister and author
• 1926 – Basil A. Paterson, American lawyer and politician, 59th Secretary of State of New York (d. 2014)
• 1926 – Alan Reynolds, English painter and educator (d. 2014)
• 1927 – Tato Bores, Argentinian actor (d. 1996)
• 1927 – Charlie Fonville, American shot putter and lawyer (d. 1994)
• 1927 – Connie Kay, American drummer (Modern Jazz Quartet) (d. 1994)
• 1927 – Coretta Scott King, American activist and author (d. 2006)
• 1927 – Joe Moakley, American soldier, lawyer, and politician (d. 2001)
• 1929 – Nina Ponomaryova, Russian discus thrower and coach
• 1931 – Igor Oistrakh, Ukrainian violinist and educator
• 1932 – Anouk Aimée, French actress
• 1932 – Pik Botha, South African lawyer, politician, and diplomat, 8th South African Ambassador to the United States
• 1932 – Maxine Brown, American singer-songwriter (The Browns)
• 1932 – Casey Kasem, American radio host, producer, and actor, co-created American Top 40 (d. 2014)
• 1932 – Derek Minter, English motorcycle racer (d. 2015)
• 1932 – Gian-Carlo Rota, Italian-American mathematician and philosopher (d. 1999)
• 1933 – Peter Imbert, Baron Imbert, English police officer and politician, Lord Lieutenant for Greater London
• 1934 – Brennan Manning, American priest and author (d. 2013)
• 1934 – Jean Valentine, American poet and academic
• 1935 – Theodoros Angelopoulos, Greek director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
• 1935 – Ron Morris, American pole vaulter and coach
• 1936 – Geoffrey Shovelton, English singer and illustrator
• 1937 – Sandy Dennis, American actress (d. 1992)
• 1937 – Robin Eames, Irish archbishop
• 1937 – Richard Perham, English biologist and academic (d. 2015)
• 1938 – Earl Anthony, American bowler and sportscaster (d. 2001)
• 1938 – Alain Caron, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1986)
• 1939 – Judy Carne, English actress (d. 2015)
• 1939 – Stanisław Dziwisz, Polish cardinal
• 1939 – Jerry Mercer, Canadian drummer (Mashmakhan and April Wine)
• 1941 – Jennings Michael Burch, American author (d. 2013)
• 1941 – Pat Choate, American economist and academic
• 1941 – Fethullah Gülen, Turkish preacher and theologian
• 1941 – Lee Roy Jordan, American football player
• 1942 – Ruth Glick, American author
• 1942 – Jim Keltner, American drummer (Traveling Wilburys, Plastic Ono Band, and Delaney & Bonnie and Friends)
• 1943 – Helmut Marko, Austrian race car driver and manager
• 1944 – Stoker Cavendish, 12th Duke of Devonshire, English academic and politician
• 1944 – Michael Fish, English meteorologist and journalist
• 1944 – Cuba Gooding Sr., American singer and actor (The Main Ingredient)
• 1944 – Herb Pedersen, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Desert Rose Band and The Dillards)
• 1945 – Martin Chivers, English footballer and manager
• 1945 – Jack Deverell, English general
• 1945 – Helen Hodgman, Scottish-Australian author
• 1945 – August Wilson, American author and playwright (d. 2005)
• 1946 – Franz Roth, German footballer
• 1946 – Nicholas Serota, English historian and curator
• 1946 – Meeli Truu, Estonian architect (d. 2013)
• 1947 – G. K. Butterfield, American soldier, lawyer, and politician
• 1947 – Pete Ham, Welsh singer-songwriter and guitarist (Badfinger) (d. 1975)
• 1947 – Keith Magnuson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2003)
• 1947 – Ann Peebles, American singer-songwriter
• 1948 – Frank Abagnale, American businessman
• 1948 – Amrit Kumar Bohara, Nepalese politician
• 1948 – Josef Hickersberger, Austrian footballer, coach, and manager
• 1948 – Kate Pierson, American singer-songwriter and bass player (The B-52's and NiNa)
• 1948 – Si Robertson, American soldier and hunter
• 1949 – Grant Chapman, Australian businessman and politician
• 1950 – Paul Lockyer, Australian journalist (d. 2011)
• 1951 – Ace Frehley, American guitarist and songwriter (Kiss, Wicked Lester, and Frehley's Comet)
• 1952 – Larry Elder, American lawyer and talk show host
• 1952 – George Gervin, American basketball player
• 1952 – Ari Vatanen, Finnish race car driver and politician
• 1953 – Arielle Dombasle, French-American singer, actress, and director
• 1954 – Frank Bainimarama, Fijian commander and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Fiji
• 1954 – Herman Edwards, American football player, coach, and sportscaster
• 1955 – Gudrun Berend, German hurdler (d. 2011)
• 1955 – Eric Schmidt, American engineer and businessman
• 1956 – Bryan Harvey, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (House of Freaks) (d. 2006)
• 1956 – Bridget Kendall, English journalist and talk show host
• 1956 – Kevin McNally, English actor and screenwriter
• 1956 – Douglas P., English-Australian singer, producer, and actor (Death in June and Crisis)
• 1956 – Jeff Probyn, English rugby player, coach, and manager
• 1957 – Willie Upshaw, American baseball player and manager
• 1959 – Sheena Easton, Scottish-American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
• 1959 – Louis Lortie, Canadian-German pianist and educator
• 1959 – Neil Pearson, English actor
• 1959 – Marco Pirroni, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Adam and the Ants, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Wolfmen, Rema-Rema, and Spear of Destiny)
• 1960 – Mike Krushelnyski, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
• 1961 – Moana Pozzi, Italian porn actress and model (d. 1994)
• 1961 – Andrew Schlafly, American lawyer and activist, founded Conservapedia
• 1962 – Ángel Comizzo, Argentinian footballer and manager
• 1962 – James LeGros, American actor
• 1962 – Choi Min-sik, South Korean actor
• 1962 – Seppo Räty, Finnish javelin thrower and coach
• 1962 – Im Sang-soo, South Korean director and screenwriter
• 1962 – Andrew Selous, English soldier and politician
• 1963 – Russell T Davies, Welsh screenwriter and producer
• 1963 – Cali Timmins, Canadian actress
• 1964 – Alison Etheridge, Professor of Probability at the University of Oxford
• 1964 – Michael Mahonen, Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1964 – Lisa Wilcox, American actress
• 1965 – Anna Chancellor, English actress
• 1966 – Vyacheslav Oliynyk, Ukrainian wrestler
• 1966 – Matt Reeves, American director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1966 – Yoshihiro Togashi, Japanese illustrator
• 1967 – Aki Avni, Israeli actor
• 1967 – Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
• 1967 – Tommy Smith, Scottish saxophonist, composer, and educator
• 1967 – Erik Thomson, Scottish-New Zealand actor
• 1967 – Jason Whitlock, American football player and journalist
• 1968 – Dana Milbank, American journalist and author
• 1969 – Cory Booker, American lawyer and politician
• 1969 – Darcey Bussell, English ballerina
• 1969 – Grahame Cheney, Australian boxer
• 1969 – Tess Daly, English model and television host
• 1969 – Vladimir Kozlov, Ukrainian-American wrestler and actor
• 1969 – Mica Paris, English singer and actress
• 1970 – Kylie Travis, English-Australian actress
• 1971 – Olari Elts, Estonian conductor
• 1972 – Nigel Barker, English photographer and author
• 1972 – Almedin Civa, Bosnian footballer and coach
• 1972 – Mehmet Kurtuluş, Turkish-German actor
• 1972 – David Lascher, American actor and producer
• 1972 – Maura West, American actress
• 1973 – Duško Adamović, Serbian footballer
• 1973 – Sharlee D'Angelo, Swedish bass player and songwriter (Arch Enemy, Spiritual Beggars, King Diamond, Witchery, Sinergy, and Mercyful Fate)
• 1973 – Andre Gower, American actor
• 1973 – Sébastien Lareau, Canadian tennis player
• 1974 – Frank Catalanotto, American baseball player
• 1974 – Johnny Devine, Canadian wrestler
• 1974 – Richard Johnson, Australian footballer
• 1975 – Rabih Abdullah, American football player
• 1975 – Chris Carpenter, American baseball player and manager
• 1975 – Pedro Feliz, Dominican baseball player
• 1975 – Koopsta Knicca, American rapper (Three 6 Mafia) (d. 2015)
• 1976 – Isobel Campbell, Scottish singer-songwriter and cellist (Belle and Sebastian)
• 1976 – Sally Hawkins, English actress
• 1976 – Walter Pandiani, Uruguayan footballer
• 1976 – Faisal Saif, Indian director, screenwriter, and critic
• 1976 – Olaf Tufte, Norwegian rower
• 1977 – Khalid Zoubaa, French runner
• 1979 – Will Boyd, American bass player (Evanescence, American Princes, and The Visitors)
• 1979 – Natasha Chokljat, Australian netball player
• 1980 – Sybille Bammer, Austrian tennis player
• 1980 – Talitha Cummins, Australian journalist
• 1980 – Jason Gainza, Filipino actor
• 1980 – Christian Lara, Ecuadorian footballer
• 1980 – Ananda Mikola, Indonesian race car driver
• 1981 – Fabrizio Faniello, Maltese singer-songwriter
• 1981 – Joey Gathright, American baseball player
• 1981 – Patrik Gerrbrand, Swedish footballer
• 1982 – Katrina Johnson, American actress
• 1982 – François Parisien, Canadian cyclist
• 1982 – Alexander Widiker, German rugby player
• 1983 – Ari Graynor, American actress and producer
• 1983 – Martin Viiask, Estonian basketball player
• 1984 – Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1984 – Daniel Holdsworth, Australian rugby player
• 1984 – Patrick Stump, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (Fall Out Boy and Arma Angelus)
• 1985 – José António de Miranda da Silva Júnior, Brazilian footballer
• 1985 – Meselech Melkamu, Ethiopian runner
• 1986 – Jenna Coleman, English actress
• 1986 – Elena Risteska, Macedonian singer-songwriter
• 1986 – Dinara Safina, Russian tennis player
• 1987 – Taylor Chorney, American ice hockey player
• 1987 – William Moseley, English actor
• 1987 – Elliott Shriane, Australian speed skater
• 1987 – Emma Taylor-Isherwood, Canadian actress
• 1987 – Wang Feifei, Chinese singer, dancer, and actress (Miss A)
• 1988 – Joeri Dequevy, Belgian footballer
• 1988 – Kris Thackray, English footballer
• 1988 – Semyon Varlamov, Russian ice hockey player
• 1989 – Lars Bender, German footballer
• 1989 – Sven Bender, German footballer
• 1989 – Maksym Bilyi, Ukrainian footballer (d. 2013)
• 1989 – Martha Hunt, American model
• 1989 – Dmytro Kozban, Ukrainian footballer
• 1989 – Emily Rios, American actress
• 1989 – Milagros Schmoll, Argentinian model
• 1990 – Austin Dillon, American race car driver
• 1990 – Erik Keedus, Estonian basketball player
• 1990 – Martin Kelly, English footballer
• 1991 – Isaac Cuenca, Spanish footballer
• 1992 – Allison Iraheta, American singer-songwriter (Halo Circus)
• 1994 – Elmo Magalona, Filipino actor and singer

Deaths

• 630 – Ardashir III of Persia (b. 621)
• 1272 – Zita, Italian saint (b. 1212)
• 1404 – Philip the Bold, French son of John II of France (b. 1342)
• 1463 – Isidore of Kiev (b. 1385)
• 1521 – Ferdinand Magellan, Portuguese sailor and explorer (b. 1480)
• 1599 – Maeda Toshiie, Japanese general (b. 1538)
• 1605 – Pope Leo XI (b. 1535)
• 1613 – Robert Abercromby, Scottish priest and missionary (b. 1532)
• 1656 – Jan van Goyen, Dutch painter and illustrator (b. 1596)
• 1694 – John George IV, Elector of Saxony (b. 1668)
• 1695 – John Trenchard, English politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (b. 1640)
• 1702 – Jean Bart, French admiral (b. 1651)
• 1782 – William Talbot, 1st Earl Talbot, English politician, Lord Steward of the Household (b. 1710)
• 1813 – Zebulon Pike, American general and explorer (b. 1779)
• 1873 – William Macready, English actor and manager (b. 1793)
• 1882 – Ralph Waldo Emerson, American philosopher, poet, and academic (b. 1803)
• 1896 – Henry Parkes, English-Australian businessman and politician, 7th Premier of New South Wales (b. 1815)
• 1915 – John Labatt, Canadian businessman (b. 1838)
• 1915 – Alexander Scriabin, Russian pianist and composer (b. 1872)
• 1919 – Anton Irv, Estonian captain (b. 1886)
• 1932 – Hart Crane, American poet and author (b. 1899)
• 1936 – Karl Pearson, English mathematician and academic (b. 1857)
• 1937 – Antonio Gramsci, Italian sociologist, linguist, and politician (b. 1891)
• 1938 – Edmund Husserl, Czech mathematician and philosopher (b. 1859)
• 1952 – Guido Castelnuovo, Italian mathematician and statistician (b. 1865)
• 1957 – Paweł Owerłło, Polish actor (b. 1869)
• 1961 – Roy Del Ruth, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1893)
• 1962 – A. K. Fazlul Huq, Bangladeshi-Pakistani lawyer and politician, Pakistani Minister of the Interior (b. 1873)
• 1965 – Edward R. Murrow, American journalist (b. 1908)
• 1967 – William Douglas Cook, New Zealand farmer, founded the Eastwoodhill Arboretum (b. 1884)
• 1969 – René Barrientos, Bolivian soldier, pilot, and politician, 55th President of Bolivia (b. 1919)
• 1970 – Arthur Shields, Irish-American actor (b. 1896)
• 1972 – Kwame Nkrumah, Ghanaian politician, 1st President of Ghana (b. 1909)
• 1973 – Carlos Menditeguy, Argentinian race car driver and polo player (b. 1914)
• 1977 – Stanley Adams, American actor and screenwriter (b. 1915)
• 1977 – Scott Bradley, American pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1891)
• 1979 – Celal Atik, Turkish wrestler and trainer (b. 1918)
• 1981 – Münir Nurettin Selçuk, Turkish tenor and actor (b. 1900)
• 1988 – Fred Bear, American hunter and author (b. 1902)
• 1988 – David Scarboro, English actor (b. 1968)
• 1989 – Konosuke Matsushita, Japanese businessman, founded Panasonic (b. 1894)
• 1992 – Olivier Messiaen, French organist and composer (b. 1908)
• 1992 – Gerard K. O'Neill, American physicist and astronomer (b. 1927)
• 1995 – Willem Frederik Hermans, Dutch author, poet, and playwright (b. 1921)
• 1996 – William Colby, American diplomat, 10th Director of Central Intelligence (b. 1920)
• 1996 – Gilles Grangier, French director and screenwriter (b. 1911)
• 1998 – John Bassett, Canadian journalist and politician (b. 1915)
• 1998 – Carlos Castaneda, Peruvian-American anthropologist and author (b. 1925)
• 1998 – Anne Desclos, French journalist and author (b. 1907)
• 1998 – Browning Ross, American runner and soldier (b. 1924)
• 1999 – Al Hirt, American trumpet player and bandleader (b. 1922)
• 1999 – Dale C. Thomson, Canadian historian, author, and academic (b. 1923)
• 2000 – Vicki Sue Robinson, American actress and singer (b. 1954)
• 2002 – George Alec Effinger, American author (b. 1947)
• 2002 – Ruth Handler, American inventor and businesswoman, created the Barbie doll (b. 1916)
• 2005 – Red Horner, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1909)
• 2006 – Julia Thorne, American author (b. 1944)
• 2007 – Al Hunter Ashton, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1957)
• 2007 – Mstislav Rostropovich, Russian cellist and conductor (b. 1927)
• 2008 – Marios Tokas, Cypriot singer-songwriter (b. 1954)
• 2009 – Feroz Khan, Indian actor, director, and producer (b. 1939)
• 2009 – Frankie Manning, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1914)
• 2009 – Woo Seung-yeon, South Korean model and actress (b. 1983)
• 2011 – Marian Mercer, American actress and singer (b. 1935)
• 2012 – Daniel E. Boatwright, American soldier and politician (b. 1930)
• 2012 – Anatoly Lebed, Estonian-Russian colonel (b. 1963)
• 2012 – Harold Pupkewitz, Lithuanian-Namibian businessman (b. 1915)
• 2012 – Bill Skowron, American baseball player (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Aída Bortnik, Argentinian screenwriter (b. 1938)
• 2013 – Tony Byrne, Irish-Canadian boxer (b. 1930)
• 2013 – Antonio Díaz Jurado, Spanish footballer (b. 1969)
• 2013 – Jérôme Louis Heldring, Dutch journalist and author (b. 1917)
• 2013 – Aloysius Jin Luxian, Chinese bishop (b. 1916)
• 2013 – Mutula Kilonzo, Kenyan lawyer and politician, Kenyan Minister of Justice (b. 1948)
• 2014 – Yigal Arnon, Israeli lawyer, founded Yigal Arnon & Co. (b. 1929)
• 2014 – Vujadin Boškov, Serbian footballer, coach, and manager (b. 1931)
• 2014 – Daniel Colchico, American football player and coach (b. 1935)
• 2014 – Harry Firth, Australian race car driver and manager (b. 1918)
• 2014 – Andréa Parisy, French actress (b. 1935)
• 2015 – Suzanne Crough, American actress (b. 1963)
• 2015 – Gene Fullmer, American boxer (b. 1931)
• 2015 – Verne Gagne, American football player, wrestler, and trainer (b. 1926)
• 2015 – Guy LeBlanc, Canadian keyboard player and songwriter (Nathan Mahl and Camel) (b. 1960)
• 2015 – Alexander Rich, American biologist, biophysicist, and academic (b. 1924)

Holidays and observances

• Christian feast day:
  • Liberalis of Treviso
  • Rafael Arnáiz Barón
  • Virgin of Montserrat
  • Zita
  • April 27 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Day of the Uprising Against the Occupying Forces (Slovenia)
• Freedom Day, (South Africa)
• Independence Day (Sierra Leone), celebrates the independence of Sierra Leone from United Kingdom in 1961.
• Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Togo from France in 1960.
• King's Day (Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten) (celebrated on April 26 if April 27 falls on a Sunday)
• National War Veterans' Day (Finland)

External links

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada