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Today November 4th 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1333 – Flood of the Arno River, causing massive damage in Florence as recorded by the Florentine chronicler Giovanni Villani.
1501 – Catherine of Aragon (later Henry VIII s wife) meets Arthur Tudor, Henry VIII s older brother – they would later marry.
1576 – Eighty Years War: In Flanders, Spain captures Antwerp (after three days the city was nearly destroyed).
1677 – The future Mary II of England marries William, Prince of Orange. They would later jointly reign as William and Mary.
1737 – The Teatro di San Carlo is inaugurated.
1783 – W.A. Mozart s Symphony No. 36 receives its première performance in Linz, Austria.
1791 – The Western Confederacy of American Indians win a major victory over the United States in the Battle of the Wabash.
1825 – The Erie Canal is completed with Governor DeWitt Clinton performing the Wedding of The Waters ceremony in New York Harbour.
1834 – The Delta Upsilon Fraternity is established at Williams College Massachusetts.
1839 – The Newport Rising is the last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
1852 – Count Camillo Benso di Cavour becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.
1861 – The University of Washington opens in Seattle, Washington as the Territorial University
1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Johnsonville – Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in material.
1889 – Menelek of Shoa obtains the allegiance of a large majority of the Ethiopian nobility, paving the way for him to be crowned emperor.
1890 – City & South London Railway: London s first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.
1918 – World War I: Austria-Hungary surrenders to Italy.
1918 – The German Revolution begins when 40,000 sailors take over the port in Kiel.
1921 – The Sturmabteilung or SA is formally formed by Adolf Hitler
1921 – Japanese Prime Minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.
1921 – The Italian unknown soldier is buried in the Altare della Patria (Fatherland Altar) in Rome.
1922 – In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to King Tutankhamun s tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
1924 – Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming is elected as the first female governor in the United States.
1939 – World War II: U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.
1942 – World War II: Second Battle of El Alamein – Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel leads his forces on a five-month retreat.
1944 – World War II: Bitola Liberation Day
1952 – The United States government establishes the National Security Agency.
1955 – After being totally destroyed in World War II, the rebuilt Vienna State Opera reopens with a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven s Fidelio.
1956 – Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
1962 – In a test of the Nike-Hercules air defense missile, Shot Dominic-Tightrope is successfully detonated 69,000 feet above Johnston Island. It would also be the last atmospheric nuclear test conducted by the United States.
1966 – Two-thirds of Florence, Italy is submerged as the Arno river floods; together with the contemporaneous flood of the Po River in northern Italy, this leads to 113 deaths, 30,000 made homeless, and the destruction of numerous Renaissance artworks and books.
1970 – Vietnam War: Vietnamization – The United States turns control of the Binh Thuy Air Base in the Mekong Delta over to South Vietnam.
1970 – Genie, a 13 year old feral child is found in Los Angeles, California having been locked in her bedroom for most of her life.
1973 – The Netherlands experiences the first Car Free Sunday caused by the 1973 oil crisis. Highways are deserted and are used only by cyclists and roller skaters.
1979 – Iran hostage crisis begins: a group of Iranians, mostly students, invades the United States embassy in Tehran and takes 90 hostages (53 of whom are American).
1984 – Dell Computers is founded as PC s Limited.
1986 – Chief Justice Rose Bird and two colleagues are removed by the electorate from the Supreme Court of California for their opposition to capital punishment.
1989 – The congress of the Solidarity Party is inaugurated in Sweden. The congress decides, contrary to the proposal of the central committee, not to disband the party.
1993 – Bolivia becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
1993 – A China Airlines Boeing 747 overruns Runway 13 at Hong Kong s Kai Tak International Airport while landing during a typhoon, injuring 22 people.
1994 – San Francisco: First conference that focuses exclusively on the subject of the commercial potential of the World Wide Web.
1995 – Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated by an extremist Orthodox Israeli.
2002 – Chinese authorities arrest cyber-dissident He Depu for signing pro-democracy letter to the 16th Communist Party Congress
2003 – The most powerful solar flare observed by satellite instrumentation is recorded.
2008 – Barack Obama becomes the first African-American to be elected President of the United States. Israel launches airstrike on Gaza thus breaking the ongoing peace deal. [1]
Births
1448 – King Alphonso II of Naples (d. 1495)
1470 – King Edward V of England, one of the two princes in the Tower (d. 1483)
1575 – Guido Reni, Italian painter (d. 1642)
1631 – Mary of Orange, eldest daughter of Charles I of England and mother of William III of England (d. 1660)
1661 – Karl III Philip, Elector Palatine (d. 1742)
1740 – Augustus Montague Toplady, English author of hymn Rock of Ages (d. 1778)
1765 – Pierre Girard, French mathematician (d. 1836)
1809 – Benjamin Robbins Curtis, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1874)
1816 – Stephen Johnson Field, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (d. 1899)
1836 – Henry J. Lutcher, American businessman (d. 1912)
1845 – Vasudeo Balwant Phadke, Indian revolutionary (d. 1883)
1868 – Carolina Otero, a.k.a La Belle Otero, Spanish actress, singer and courtesan (d. 1965)
1874 – Aleksandr Vasilevich Kolchak, Russian military commander (d. 1920)
1879 – Will Rogers, American humorist (d. 1935)
1883 – Nikolaos Plastiras, Greek general (d. 1953)
1884 – Harry Ferguson, Northern Irish aviator and inventor (d. 1960)
1890 – Alfred Henschke, ps. Klabund, German writer and poet (d. 1928)
1896 – Carlos P. Garcia, 8th President of the Philippines (d. 1971)
1899 – Nicolas Frantz, Luxembourgish cyclist (d. 1985)
1900 – Lucretiu Patrascanu, Romanian communist activist and sociologist (d. 1954)
1901 – Princess Bang-ja of Korea (d. 1989)
1901 – Spyridon Marinatos, Greek archaeologist (d. 1974)
1904 – Tadeusz Zylinski, Polish technician and textilist (d. 1967)
1908 – Józef Rotblat, Polish physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2005)
1908 – Stanley Cortez, American cinematographer (d. 1997)
1909 – Skeeter Webb, American baseball player (d. 1986)
1909 – Bert Patenaude, American soccer player (d. 1974)
1912 – Vadim Salmanov, Russian composer (d. 1978)
1913 – Gig Young, American actor (d. 1978)
1916 – Walter Cronkite, American news broadcaster
1918 – Art Carney, American actor (d. 2003)
1918 – Cameron Mitchell, American actor (d. 1994)
1919 – Martin Balsam, American actor (d. 1996)
1922 – Benno Besson, Swiss actor (d. 2006)
1923 – Freddy Heineken, Dutch businessman (d. 2002)
1924 – Howie Meeker, Canadian ice hockey player and politician
1928 – Hannah Weiner American experimental poet
1929 – Shaike Ophir, Israeli actor (d. 1987)
1930 – Doris Roberts, American actress
1930 – Dick Groat, American baseball player
1932 – Thomas Klestil, President of Austria (d. 2004)
1933 – Tito Francona, American baseball player
1936 – C. K. Williams, American poet
1937 – Loretta Swit, American actress
1937 – Michael Wilson, Canadian politician
1939 – Shakuntala Devi, Indian calculating prodigy
1940 – Delbert McClinton, American musician
1943 – Marlène Jobert, French actress
1943 – Clark Graebner, American tennis player
1943 – Bob Wollek, French race car driver (d. 2001)
1944 – Scherrie Payne, American singer (The Supremes)
1944 – Linda Gary, American voice actress (d. 1995)
1946 – Laura Bush, First Lady of the United States
1946 – Frederick Elmes, American cinematographer
1946 – Robert Mapplethorpe, American photographer (d. 1989)
1950 – Charles Frazier, American author
1950 – Markie Post, American actress
1951 – Traian Basescu, President of Romania
1951 – Cosey Fanni Tutti, English performance artist (Throbbing Gristle, Chris and Cosey)
1953 – Carlos Gutierrez, American politician
1953 – Jacques Villeneuve (elder), Canadian racing driver
1953 – Dr. Marvel Williamson, American educator
1954 – Chris Difford, English musician and songwriter (Squeeze)
1955 – Matti Vanhanen, Prime Minister of Finland
1956 – Jordan Rudess, American musician (Dream Theater)
1956 – James Honeyman-Scott, English guitarist (The Pretenders) (d. 1982)
1958 – Anne Sweeney, American television executive
1960 – Marc Awodey, American artist and writer
1960 – Frl. Menke, German pop singer of the Neue Deutsche Welle
1960 – Kathy Griffin, American comedian
1961 – Daron Hagen, American composer
1961 – Edward Knight, American composer
1961 – Ralph Macchio, American actor
1961 – Les Sampou, American musician
1961 – Nigel Worthington, Northern Irish footballer
1962 – Jeff Probst, American television host
1963 – Marc Déry, Canadian singer and guitarist (Zébulon)
1963 – Rosario Flores, Spanish singer and actress
1963 – Michel Therrien, Canadian ice hockey coach
1963 – Lena Zavaroni, Scottish artist and singer (d. 1999)
1965 – Malandra Burrows, English actress and singer
1965 – Tomoaki Ishizuka Pata, Japanese musician
1965 – Jeff Scott Soto, American musician (Yngwie Malmsteen Journey)
1965 – Wayne Static, American musician (Static-X)
1966 – H. John Heinz IV, American medieval armor craftsman; son of Teresa Heinz
1967 – Eric Karros, American baseball player
1968 – Carlos Baerga, Puerto Rican baseball player
1969 – Sean Diddy Combs, American rapper
1969 – Matthew McConaughey, American actor
1970 – Tim DeBoom, American triathlete
1972 – Luís Figo, Portuguese footballer
1972 – Tabassum Hashmi, Indian actress
1974 – Cedric Bixler-Zavala, American musician (At the Drive-In, The Mars Volta)
1975 – Éric Fichaud, Canadian ice hockey player
1975 – Eduard Kokcharov, Russian handball player
1975 – Curtis Stone, Australian chef and television personality
1975 – Heather Tom, American actress
1976 – Bruno Junqueira, Brazilian racing driver
1976 – Mario Melchiot, Dutch footballer
1977 – Larry Bigbie, American baseball player
1977 – So Ji-sub, South Korean swimmer, model and actor
1977 – Tonicha Jeronimo, British actress
1978 – Carmen Cali, American baseball player
1978 – John Grabow, American baseball player
1979 – Jesse Camp, American VJ
1979 – Trishelle Cannatella, American reality tv castmember and model
1979 – Audrey Hollander, American pornographic actress
1980 – Sabrina Colie, Jamaican actress
1980 – Jerry Collins, New Zealand rugby union footballer
1980 – Richard Owens, American football player
1980 – Marcy Rylan, American actress
1981 – Vince Wilfork, American football player
1982 – Devin Hester, American football player
1985 – Jeff Harding, The Sexiest Man Alive
1986 – Alexz Johnson, Canadian singer and actress
1986 – Adrian Zaugg, South African racing driver
1998 – Darcy Rose Byrnes, American actress
Deaths
1411 – Khalil Sultan, ruler of Transoxonia (b. 1384)
1652 – Jean-Charles de la Faille, Flemish mathematician (b. 1597)
1658 – Antoine Le Maistre, French Jansenist (b. 1608)
1669 – Johannes Cocceius, Dutch theologian (b. 1603)
1698 – Rasmus Bartholin, Danish physician and mathematician (b. 1625)
1702 – John Benbow, English admiral (b. 1653)
1704 – Andreas Acoluthus, German orientalist (b. 1654)
1781 – Johann Nikolaus Götz, German poet (b. 1721)
1801 – William Shippen, American physician and delegate to the Continental Congress (b. 1712)
1847 – Felix Mendelssohn, German composer (b. 1809)
1856 – Hippolyte Delaroche, French painter (b. 1797)
1893 – Pierre Tirard, French politician (b. 1827)
1906 – John H. Ketcham, American politician (b. 1832)
1918 – Wilfred Owen, English poet (b. 1893)
1924 – Gabriel Fauré, French composer (b. 1845)
1924 – Richard Conner, American Civil War Medal of Honor Recipient (b. 1843)
1928 – Arnold Rothstein, American gambler (b. 1882)
1930 – Buddy Bolden, American musician (b. 1877)
1950 – Grover Cleveland Alexander, American baseball player (b. 1887)
1955 – Cy Young, American baseball player (b. 1867)
1957 – Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Bahá í Faith (b. 1897)
1968 – Michel Kikoine, Belarusian painter (b. 1892)
1969 – Carlos Marighella, Brazilian politician (b. 1911)
1974 – Bert Patenaude, American soccer player (b. 1909)
1975 – Izzat Husrieh, Syrian Journalist, author, and publisher (b. 1914)
1980 – Elsie MacGill, Canadian aeronautical engineer (b. 1905)
1982 – Dominique Dunne, American actress (b. 1959)
1986 – Kurt Hirsch, German mathematician (b. 1906)
1992 – George Klein, Canadian inventor (b. 1904)
1994 – Fred Sonic Smith, American guitar player MC5 (b. 1949)
1995 – Yitzhak Rabin, Israeli prime minister; recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1922)
1995 – Eddie Egan, Actor in The French Connection, New York detective
1995 – Gilles Deleuze, French philosopher (b. 1925)
1997 – H. Richard Hornberger, American writer (b. 1924)
1999 – Malcolm Marshall, Barbadian West Indies cricketer (b. 1958)
2003 – Richard Wollheim, British philosopher (b. 1923)
2003 – Ken Gampu, South African actor (b. 1929)
2003 – Charles Causley, Cornish writer and poet (b. 1917)
2005 – Nadia Anjuman, Afghan poet and journalist (b. 1980)
2005 – Sheree North, American actress and singer (b. 1932)
2006 – Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, American memoirist (Cheaper by the Dozen) (b. 1908)
2006 – Frank Arthur Calder, Canadian politician (b. 1915)
2007 – Peter Viertel, German-American author and screenwriter (b. 1920)
2008 – Michael Crichton, American author (b. 1942)
2008 – Juan Camilo Mouriño, Mexican Secretary of the Interior (b. 1971)
Holidays and observances
Bahá í Faith – Feast of Qudrat (Power), first day of the 13th month of the Bahá í calendar
Egypt- Day of Love
Italy – Victory Day (celebration of victory in World War I), National Unity Day, Armed Forces Day
Panama – Flag Day
Roman Catholic Saints – Feast day of the following Roman Catholic saints:
St. Charles Borromeo
St. Emeric
St. Vitalis
Roman festivals – start of the Ludi Plebeii
Russia – Day of People s Unity (or National Unity Day)
Russian Orthodox Church – Feast of Our Lady of Kazan
Mischief Night in the UK, mainly in the north of England, Scotland and Ireland.
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