Did you know
When his father died, he was enthroned as Khagan in 1246.
Notable Deaths on April 20
1248 — Güyük Khan
Mongol ruler, 3rd Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (born 1206)
April 20 has 81 recorded notable deaths across history, from 689 to 2026. This focused page highlights 20 people with the strongest available profile context.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Notable Deaths
81 source records
689 – 2026
Today in history
Major events on April 20
See what else happened on this day in history.
- 1898 U.S. President William McKinley signs a joint resolution to Congress for declaration of war against Spain, beginning the Spanish–American War. Source
- 1876 The April Uprising begins. Its suppression shocks European opinion, and Bulgarian independence becomes a condition for ending the Russo-Turkish War. Source
- 1657 Freedom of religion is granted to the Jews of New Amsterdam (later New York City). Source
- 2020 For the first time in history, oil prices drop below zero, an effect of the 2020 Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war. Source
Did you know
Archibald MacLeish enlisted in and saw action during the First World War and lived in Paris in the 1920s.
Did you know
Height is credited as the first leader in the civil rights movement to recognize inequality for women and Foundational Black Americans as problems that should be considered as a whole.
Did you know
Historical accounts from the 19th century portrayed him as the mastermind and leader of the revolt, but some subsequent scholars argued that his role had been exaggerated.
Did you know
Cædwalla was the King of Wessex from approximately 685 until he abdicated in 688.
More major people who died on April 20
Notable people are ranked by substantive profile depth and public notability.
1982
Archibald MacLeish
American poet, playwright, and lawyer (born 1892)
Archibald MacLeish was an American poet and writer, who was associated with the modernist school of poetry. MacLeish studied English at Yale University and law at Harvard University.
2010
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.
1769
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…
689
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.
1284
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.
1932
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,…
1935
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.
1992
Marjorie Gestring
American springboard diver (born 1922)
Marjorie Gestring was a competitive springboard diver from the United States.
1945
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.
1978
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.
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.
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.
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.
2016
Victoria Wood
British comedian, actress and writer (born 1953)
Victoria Wood was an English comedian, actress, musician, screenwriter, and director.
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.
1991
Steve Marriott
English singer-songwriter and producer (born 1947)
Stephen Peter Marriott was an English musician, guitarist, singer, songwriter, and actor.
1558
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.
2012
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.