✦ DateLore

On This Day · The 105th day of the year

April 15

A look at April 15 through the almanac — historic events, famous birthdays including Leonardo da Vinci and Richard von Weizsäcker, and the day's notable deaths and observances.

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Events

10 notable moments
  1. 2002

    Air China Flight 129

    Air China Flight 129 crashes on approach to Gimhae International Airport in Busan, South Korea, killing 129 people.

    2002 aviation accident in
  2. 1989

    Hillsborough disaster

    Hillsborough disaster: A human crush occurs at Hillsborough Stadium, home of Sheffield Wednesday, in the FA Cup Semi-final, resulting in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans.

    Fatal crowd crush during
  3. 1952

    Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

    First flight of the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.

    American strategic bomber aircraft
  4. 1947

    Jackie Robinson

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

    American baseball player (1919–1972)
  5. 1936

    1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine

    First day of the Arab revolt in Mandatory Palestine.

    Popular uprising by Palestinian
  6. 1922

    John B. Kendrick

    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.

    American politician (1857–1933)
  7. 1912

    Titanic

    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 2,224 passengers and crew on board survive.

    British passenger liner that
  8. 1738

    Serse

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

    1738 opera seria by
  9. 1191

    Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor

    Henry VI, King of Germany, is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by pope Celestine III.

    Holy Roman Emperor from
  10. 769

    Lateran Council (769)

    The Lateran Council ends by condemning the Council of Hieria and anathematizing its iconoclastic rulings.

    Synod held in Rome
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Famous birthday twins

Born on April 15

Leonardo da Vinci

b. 1452

Italian painter, sculptor, and architect

Richard von Weizsäcker

b. 1920

German soldier and politician, 6th President of Germany

Leonhard Euler

b. 1707

Swiss mathematician and physicist

Gaius Maecenas

b. -68

Roman politician (died 8 BC)

Catherine I of Russia

b. 1684

Empress of Russia from 1725 to 1727

Émile Durkheim

b. 1858

French sociologist, psychologist, and philosopher

Stanley Bruce

b. 1883

Australian captain and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Australia

Carol W. Greider

b. 1961

American molecular biologist

Deaths

  • 1998Pol Pot, Cambodian general and politician, 29th Prime Minister of Cambodia
  • 1990Greta Garbo, Swedish-American actress
  • 1980Jean-Paul Sartre, French philosopher and author, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1967Totò, Italian comedian
  • 1865Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States
  • 1765Mikhail Lomonosov, Russian chemist and physicist

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Abbo II of Metz
  • —Christian feast day: Blessed César de Bus
  • —Christian feast day: Father Damien (Catholic and Episcopal Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Hunna
  • —Christian feast day: Paternus of Avranches
  • —Christian feast day: April 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • —Day of the Sun (North Korea)
  • —Father Damien Day (Hawaii)

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