Notable Deaths on April 20

Q: Who died on April 20?

Notable people who died on April 20 include: Cædwalla, Xi Zong, Peter Bartholomew (born 1061), Antipope Victor IV, Richard de Clare.

Q: What is Archibald MacLeish known for?

Archibald MacLeish, American poet, playwright, and lawyer (born 1892)

1982 — Archibald MacLeish

American poet, playwright, and lawyer (born 1892)

April 20 has seen 81 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 689 – 2026. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.

By thisDay.info Editorial Team · April 20 — Wikipedia

Notable Deaths 81 people 689 – 2026

Did you know

He enlisted in and saw action during the First World War and lived in Paris in the 1920s

Did you know

On returning to the United States, he contributed to Henry Luce's magazine Fortune from 1929 to 1938

Did you know

From 1949 to 1962, he was Boylston Professor of Rhetoric and Oratory at Harvard

Did you know

Archibald MacLeish was an American poet and writer, who was associated with the modernist school of poetry

Did you know

MacLeish studied English at Yale University and law at Harvard University

Cædwalla

king of Wessex (born 659)

Cædwalla was the King of Wessex from approximately 685 until he abdicated in 688. His name is derived from the Welsh Cadwallon. He was exiled from Wessex as a youth and during this period gathered forces and attacked…

689

Xi Zong

Chinese emperor (born 862)

Year 888 (DCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.

888

Peter Bartholomew (born 1061)

Peter Bartholomew was a French soldier and mystic who was part of the First Crusade as part of the army of Raymond of Saint-Gilles. Peter was initially a servant to William, Lord of Cunhlat.

1099

Antipope Victor IV

Victor IV was elected as a Ghibelline antipope in 1159, following the death of Pope Adrian IV and the election of Alexander III. His election was supported by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. He took the name Victor IV,…

1164

Richard de Clare

2nd Earl of Pembroke, English-Irish politician, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland (born 1130)

Richard de Clare, the second Earl of Pembroke, also Lord of Leinster and Justiciar of Ireland, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman notable for his leading role in the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland. Like his father, Richard…

1176

Güyük Khan

Mongol ruler, 3rd Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (born 1206)

Güyük Khan or Güyüg Khagan, mononymously Güyüg, was the third Khagan of the Mongol Empire, the eldest son of Ögedei Khan and a grandson of Genghis Khan. He reigned from 1246 to 1248. He started his military career by…

1248

Hōjō Tokimune

regent of Japan (born 1251)

Hōjō Tokimune of the Hōjō clan was the eighth shikken of the Kamakura shogunate, known for leading the Japanese forces against the invasion of the Mongols and for spreading Zen Buddhism. He was the second son of…

1284

Pope Clement V (born 1264)

Pope Clement V was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1305 until his death. He is remembered for suppressing the order of the Knights Templar and allowing the execution of many of its…

1314

Simon Rinalducci

Italian Augustinian friar

Simon Rinalducci of Todi was a famous Italian Augustinian friar and preacher of the 13th century.

1322

Gersonides

French Jewish philosopher, Talmudist, mathematician, physician, and astronomer (born 1288)

Levi ben Gershon, better known by his Graecized name as Gersonides, or by his Latinized name Magister Leo Hebraeus, or in Hebrew by the abbreviation of first letters as RaLBaG, was a medieval French Jewish philosopher,…

1344

Mary of Looz-Heinsberg

Dutch noble (born 1424)

Lady Mary of Looz-Heinsberg, Dutch: Maria van Loon-Heinsberg, was a noble lady from the House of Looz and through marriage Countess of Nassau-Siegen.

1502

Zhengde

Chinese emperor (born 1491)

The Zhengde Emperor, personal name Zhu Houzhao, was the 11th emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1505 to 1521. He succeeded his father, the Hongzhi Emperor.

1521

Elizabeth Barton

English nun and martyr (born 1506)

Elizabeth Barton, known as "The Nun of Kent", "The Holy Maid of London", "The Holy Maid of Kent" and later "The Mad Maid of Kent", was an English Catholic nun. She was executed as a result of her prophecies against the…

1534

Johannes Bugenhagen

German priest and theologian (born 1485)

Johannes Bugenhagen, also called Doctor Pomeranus by Martin Luther, was a German theologian and Lutheran priest who introduced the Protestant Reformation in the Duchy of Pomerania and Denmark in the 16th century.…

1558

Christoph Demantius

German composer and poet (born 1567)

Johann Christoph Demantius was a German composer, music theorist, writer and poet. He was an exact contemporary of Monteverdi, and represented a transitional phase in German Lutheran music from the polyphonic…

1643

Lancelot Addison

English clergyman and educator (born 1632)

Lancelot Addison was an English writer and Church of England clergyman. He was born at Crosby Ravensworth in Westmorland. He was educated at the Queen's College, Oxford.

1703

Chief Pontiac

American tribal leader (born 1720)

Pontiac or Obwaandi'eyaag was an Odawa war chief known for his role in the war named for him, from 1763 to 1766 leading Native Americans in an armed struggle against the British in the Great Lakes region due to, among…

1769

John Abernethy

English surgeon and anatomist (born 1764)

John Abernethy was an English surgeon. He is popularly remembered for having given his name to the Abernethy biscuit, a coarse-meal baked good meant to aid digestion.

1831

William Tite

English architect, designed the Royal Exchange (born 1798)

Sir William Tite was an English architect who twice served as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He was particularly associated with various London buildings, with railway stations and cemetery…

1873

Alexander H. Bailey

American lawyer, judge, and politician (born 1817)

Alexander Hamilton Bailey was an American politician, a United States representative and judge from New York.

1874

William Burges

English architect and designer (born 1827)

William Burges was an English architect and designer. Among the greatest of the Victorian art-architects, he sought in his work to escape from both nineteenth-century industrialisation and the Neoclassical architectural…

1881

Charles-François-Frédéric

marquis de Montholon-Sémonville, French general and diplomat, French ambassador to the United States (born 1814)

Charles François Frédéric de Montholon-Sémonville was a French senator, diplomat, and French ambassador to the United States from 1864 to 1866.

1886

Muhammad Sharif Pasha

Greek-Egyptian politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Egypt (born 1826)

Mohamed Sherif Pasha GCSI was an Egyptian statesman. He served as Prime Minister of Egypt three times during his career. His first term was between 7 April 1879 and 18 August 1879. His second term was served from 14…

1887

Joseph Wolf

German ornithologist and illustrator (born 1820)

Joseph Wolf was a German artist who specialized in natural history illustration. He moved to the British Museum in 1848 and became the preferred illustrator for explorers and naturalists including David Livingstone,…

1899

Joaquim de Sousa Andrade

Brazilian poet and educator (born 1833)

Joaquim de Sousa Andrade, better known by his pseudonym Sousândrade, was a Brazilian poet, adept of the "Condorist" movement. His poetry, exceedingly innovative for the time it was published, is now considered an early…

1902

Bram Stoker

Anglo-Irish novelist and critic, created Count Dracula (born 1847)

Abraham Stoker was an Irish writer, barrister, and theatre manager. He was the author of Dracula (1897) and the creator of the fictional character Count Dracula. The novel and its antagonist are milestones in the fields…

1912

Jussi Merinen

Finnish politician (born 1873)

Juho Rikard Merinen was a Finnish trade unionist, politician and member of the Parliament of Finland, the national legislature of Finland. A member of the Social Democratic Party, he represented Turku Province North…

1918

Karl Ferdinand Braun

German-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1850)

Karl Ferdinand Braun was a German applied physicist who shared the 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics with Guglielmo Marconi for their contributions to the development of radio. With his two circuit system, long range radio…

1918

Enrique Simonet

Spanish painter and educator (born 1866)

Enrique Simonet Lombardo was a Spanish painter.

1927

Prince Henry of Prussia (born 1862)

Prince Heinrich of Prussia was a younger brother of German Emperor and King of Prussia Wilhelm II and a Prince of Prussia. Through his mother, he was also a grandson of Queen Victoria. A career naval officer, he held…

1929

Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon

5th Baronet, Scottish-English fencer and businessman (born 1862)

Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff-Gordon, 5th Baronet, DL was a prominent British aristocrat and sportsman who owned land in Scotland, best known for the controversy surrounding his escape from the sinking of the RMS Titanic.

1931

Giuseppe Peano

Italian mathematician and philosopher (born 1858)

Giuseppe Peano was an Italian mathematician and glottologist. The author of over 200 books and papers, he was a founder of mathematical logic and set theory, to which he contributed much notation, for instance,…

1932

John Cameron

Scottish footballer and manager (born 1872)

John Cameron was a Scottish footballer and manager. He played as a forward for Queen's Park, Everton and Scotland and was noted as an effective goal-maker and goalscorer. In 1899 he became player-manager at Tottenham…

1935

Lucy

Lady Duff-Gordon, English fashion designer (born 1863)

Lucy Christiana, Lady Duff-Gordon was a leading British fashion designer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries who worked under the professional name Lucile.

1935

Jüri Jaakson

Estonian businessman and politician, 6th State Elder of Estonia (born 1870)

Jüri Jaakson was an Estonian lawyer and statesman.

1942

Elmer Gedeon

American baseball player and pilot (born 1917)

Elmer John Gedeon was an American professional baseball player, appearing in several games for the Washington Senators in 1939. Gedeon and Harry O'Neill were the only two Major League Baseball players killed during…

1944

Erwin Bumke

Polish-German jurist and politician (born 1874)

Erwin Konrad Eduard Bumke was the last president of the Reichsgericht, the supreme civil and criminal court of the German Reich, serving from 1929 to 1945. As such, according to the Weimar Constitution, he should have…

1945

Mae Busch

Australian actress (born 1891)

Mae Busch was an Australian-born actress who worked in both silent and sound films in early Hollywood. In the latter part of her career she appeared in many Laurel and Hardy comedies, frequently playing Hardy's shrewish…

1946

Christian X

King of Denmark (born 1870)

Christian X was King of Denmark from 1912 until his death in 1947, and the only King of Iceland as Kristján X, holding the title as a result of the personal union between Denmark and independent Iceland between 1918 and…

1947

Ivanoe Bonomi

Italian politician, 25th Prime Minister of Italy (born 1873)

Ivanoe Bonomi was an Italian politician and journalist who served as Prime Minister of Italy from 1921 to 1922 and again from 1944 to 1945.

1951

Léo-Paul Desrosiers

Canadian journalist and author (born 1896)

Léo-Paul Desrosiers was a Quebec writer and journalist well known for his historical novels. He was influenced by the nationalism of Henri Bourassa and Lionel-Adolphe Groulx.

1967

Rudolph Dirks

German-American illustrator (born 1877)

Rudolph Dirks was one of the earliest and most noted comic strip artists, well known for The Katzenjammer Kids.

1968

Vjekoslav Luburić

Croatian Ustaše official and concentration camp administrator (born 1914)

Vjekoslav Luburić was a Croatian Ustaša official who headed the system of concentration camps in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) during much of World War II. Luburić also personally oversaw and spearheaded the…

1969

Lord Richard Cecil

British soldier and journalist in the Rhodesian Bush War (born 1948)

Lord Richard Valentine Gascoyne-Cecil was a British soldier, Conservative politician and freelance journalist who was killed in Rhodesia whilst covering the country's Bush War. The second son of the 6th Marquess of…

1978

M. Canagaratnam

Sri Lankan politician (born 1924)

Mylvaganam Canagaratnam was a Sri Lankan Tamil politician and Member of Parliament.

1980

Sibte Hassan

Pakistani journalist, scholar, and activist (born 1916)

Syed Sibt-e-Hasan was an eminent scholar, journalist and political activist of Pakistan. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of Socialism and Marxism in Pakistan, as well as the moving spirit behind the Progressive…

1986

Steve Marriott

English singer-songwriter and producer (born 1947)

Stephen Peter Marriott was an English musician, guitarist, singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a student at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London and appeared in the West End, before taking a role in…

1991

Don Siegel

American director and producer (born 1912)

Donald Siegel was an American film and television director, producer, and editor. He was described by The New York Times as "a director of tough, cynical and forthright action-adventure films whose taut plots centered…

1991

Marjorie Gestring

American springboard diver (born 1922)

Marjorie Gestring was a competitive springboard diver from the United States. At the age of 13 years and 268 days, she won the gold medal in 3-meter springboard diving at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, making her…

1992

Benny Hill

English comedian, actor, and screenwriter (born 1924)

Alfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill was an English comedian, actor, writer and musician. He is best remembered for his television programme The Benny Hill Show, a comedy variety show merging slapstick, burlesque, double…

1992

Cantinflas

Mexican actor, producer, and screenwriter (born 1911)

Mario Fortino Alfonso Moreno Reyes, known by the stage name Cantinflas, was a Mexican comedian, actor, and filmmaker. He is considered to have been the most widely accomplished Mexican comedian and is well known…

1993

Milovan Đilas

Yugoslav communist, politician, theorist and author (born 1911)

Milovan Djilas was a Yugoslav communist politician, theorist and author. He was a key figure in the Partisan movement during World War II, as well as in the post-war government. A self-identified democratic socialist,…

1995

Trần Văn Trà

Vietnamese general and politician (born 1918)

Nguyễn Chấn, known as Trần Văn Trà was a colonel-general in the People's Army of Vietnam. He was Commander of B2 Front during 1963 – 1967, Deputy Commander of Liberation Army of South Vietnam during 1968 – 1972; member…

1996

Rick Rude

American professional wrestler (born 1958)

Richard Erwin Rood, better known by his ring name "Ravishing" Rick Rude, was an American professional wrestler who performed for various promotions, including the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), World Championship…

1999

Rachel Scott

American victim of Columbine High School massacre (born 1981)

Rachel Joy Scott was an American student who was the first victim of the Columbine High School massacre, in which twelve other students and one teacher were killed by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, who then committed…

1999

Cassie Bernall

American victim of Columbine High School massacre (born 1981)

Cassie René Bernall was an American student who was killed in the Columbine High School massacre, where 12 more students and a teacher were killed by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, who then committed suicide. It was…

1999

Giuseppe Sinopoli

Italian conductor and composer (born 1946)

Giuseppe Sinopoli was an Italian conductor and composer.

2001

Alan Dale

American singer (born 1925)

Alan Dale was an American singer of traditional popular and rock and roll music.

2002

Bernard Katz

German-English biophysicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1911)

Sir Bernard Katz, FRS was a German-born British physician and biophysicist, noted for his work on nerve physiology; specifically, for his work on synaptic transmission at the nerve-muscle junction. He shared the Nobel…

2003

Lizzy Mercier Descloux

French musician, singer-songwriter, composer, actress, writer and painter (born 1956)

Martine-Elisabeth Mercier Descloux was a French musician, singer-songwriter, and composer associated with New York City's late 1970s no wave music scene. She recorded several albums on ZE Records beginning with her 1979…

2004

Fumio Niwa

Japanese journalist and author (born 1904)

Fumio Niwa was a Japanese novelist with a long list of works, the most famous in the West being his novel The Buddha Tree.

2005

Andrew Hill

American pianist, composer, and bandleader (born 1931)

Andrew Hill was an American jazz pianist and composer.

2007

Michael Fu Tieshan

Chinese bishop (born 1931)

Bishop Michael Fu Tieshan of Beijing was a top leader of the Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA).

2007

Monica Lovinescu

Romanian journalist and author (born 1923)

Monica Lovinescu was a Romanian essayist, short story writer, literary critic, translator, and journalist, noted for her activities as an opponent of the Romanian Communist regime. She published several works under the…

2008

Dorothy Height

American educator and activist (born 1912)

Dorothy Irene Height was an African-American civil rights and women's rights activist. She focused on the issues of Foundational Black American women, including unemployment, illiteracy, and voter awareness. Height is…

2010

Tim Hetherington

English photographer and journalist (born 1970)

Timothy Alistair Telemachus Hetherington was a British photojournalist. He produced books, films and other work that "ranged from multi-screen installations, to fly-poster exhibitions, to handheld device downloads" and…

2011

Bert Weedon

English guitarist and songwriter (born 1920)

Herbert Maurice William Weedon was an English guitarist whose style of playing was popular and influential during the 1950s and 1960s. He was the first British guitarist to have a hit record in the UK singles chart, in…

2012

Neville Wran

Australian politician, 35th Premier of New South Wales (born 1926)

Neville Kenneth Wran was an Australian politician who was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 to 1986. He was the national president of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1980 to 1986 and chairman of both the…

2014

Victoria Wood

British comedian, actress and writer (born 1953)

Victoria Wood was an English comedian, actress, musician, screenwriter, and director. Wood wrote and starred in dozens of sketches, plays, musicals, films and sitcoms over several decades, and her live comedy act was…

2016

Avicii

Swedish DJ and musician (born 1989)

Tim Bergling, known professionally as Avicii, was a Swedish DJ, remixer, and record producer. His musical style was primarily pop-oriented house music, and he is an influence on many artists. Several music publications…

2018

Idriss Déby

Chadian politician and military officer (born 1952)

Idriss Déby Itno was a Chadian politician and military officer who was the sixth president of Chad from 1991 until his death in 2021 during the Northern Chad offensive. His term of 30 years makes him Chad's…

2021

Monte Hellman

American film director (born 1929)

Monte Hellman was an American film director, producer, writer, and editor. Hellman began his career as an editor's apprentice at ABC TV, and made his directorial debut with the horror film Beast from Haunted Cave…

2021

Les McKeown

Scottish pop singer (born 1955)

Leslie Richard McKeown was a Scottish singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the pop rock band Bay City Rollers during their most successful period in the 1970s. The band's original lead singer, Gordon "Nobby"…

2021

Gavin Millar

Scottish film director (born 1938)

Gavin Millar was a Scottish film director, critic and television presenter.

2022

Antonio Cantafora

Italian film and television actor (born 1944)

Antonio Cantafora, also known professionally as Michael Coby, was an Italian film and television actor.

2024

Andrew Davis

English conductor (born 1944)

Sir Andrew Frank Davis was an English conductor. He was the long-time chief conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. He was music director at the…

2024

Roman Gabriel

Filipino-American NFL American footballer

Roman Ildonzo Gabriel Jr. was an American professional football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the NC State Wolfpack, earning first-team All-American honors twice.…

2024

Lourdes Portillo

Mexican film director, producer, and writer (born 1943)

Lourdes Portillo was a Mexican film director, producer, and writer. The political perspectives of Portillo's films have been described as "nuanced" and versed with a point of view balanced by her experience as a lesbian…

2024

Hugo Gatti

Argentine footballer (born 1944)

Hugo Orlando Gatti was an Argentine football goalkeeper who played in the Argentine Primera División for 26 seasons and set a record of 765 league and 52 international appearances, totaling 817 games played. Gatti is…

2025

Luis Brandoni

Argentine actor and politician (born 1940)

Adalberto Luis Brandoni was an Argentine actor and politician.

2026

April 20 in the Blog

HMS Beagle Voyage — April 20, 1834

27-year-old Charles Darwin joins HMS Beagle in 1831 Plymouth, England, for a 5-year voyage that would change science forever

Read the full story

Notable deaths

Who died on April 20?

Archibald MacLeish — American poet and 9th Librarian of Congress (1892–1982)

FeaturedArchibald MacLeish

Death year1982

Known forMacLeish studied English at Yale University and law at Harvard University

Deaths on this date81 (689 – 2026)

Explore April 20

Jump between the main pages for this date to compare events, people, and the daily quiz.

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Also on April 20 in History

2023

SpaceX's Starship rocket, the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, launches for the first time. It explodes four minutes into flight. Wikipedia →

2021

State of Minnesota v. Derek Michael Chauvin: Derek Chauvin is found guilty of all charges in the murder of George Floyd by the Fourth Judicial District Court of Minnesota. Wikipedia →

2020

For the first time in history, oil prices drop below zero, an effect of the 2020 Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war. Wikipedia →

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Notable Deaths on April 20

1982 — Archibald MacLeish

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