# What happened on April 30 in history?

**Date:** April 30  
**Events recorded:** 54  
**Years spanned:** 311 – 2021  
**Full page:** https://thisday.info/events/april/30/

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## Featured Event

**2021** — Forty-five men and boys are killed in the Meron stampede in Israel.

[Read more on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_Meron_crowd_crush)

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## Events on this date

- **311** — The Diocletianic Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire ends. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AD_311))
- **1305** — Roger de Flor, leader of the mercenary Catalan Company, is murdered, leading to widespread pillaging by the mercenaries in Thrace. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_de_Flor))
- **1315** — Enguerrand de Marigny is hanged at the instigation of Charles, Count of Valois. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enguerrand_de_Marigny))
- **1492** — Spain gives Christopher Columbus his commission of exploration. He is named admiral of the ocean sea, viceroy and governor of any territory he discovers. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus))
- **1513** — Edmund de la Pole, Yorkist pretender to the English throne, is executed on the orders of Henry VIII. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_de_la_Pole%2C_3rd_Duke_of_Suffolk))
- **1598** — Juan de Oñate begins the conquest of Santa Fe de Nuevo México. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_de_O%C3%B1ate))
- **1598** — Henry IV of France issues the Edict of Nantes, allowing freedom of religion to the Huguenots. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_IV_of_France))
- **1636** — Eighty Years' War: Dutch Republic forces recapture a strategically important fort from Spain after a nine-month siege. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eighty_Years'_War))
- **1789** — On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office to become the first President of the United States. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Hall))
- **1803** — Louisiana Purchase: The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory from France for $15 million, more than doubling the size of the young nation. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase))
- **1812** — The Territory of Orleans becomes the 18th U.S. state under the name Louisiana. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territory_of_Orleans))
- **1838** — Nicaragua declares independence from the Central American Federation. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicaragua))
- **1859** — Charles Dickens publishes the first edition of his literary magazine, All the Year Round, containing the first installment of his best-selling classic, A Tale of Two Cities. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Dickens))
- **1863** — A 65-man French Foreign Legion infantry patrol fights a force of nearly 2,000 Mexican soldiers to nearly the last man in Hacienda Camarón, Mexico. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Foreign_Legion))
- **1864** — American Civil War: Confederate forces led by General E. Kirby Smith attack federal troops retreating across the Saline at Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War))
- **1871** — The Camp Grant massacre takes place in Arizona Territory. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Grant_massacre))
- **1885** — Governor of New York David B. Hill signs legislation creating the Niagara Reservation, New York's first state park, ensuring that Niagara Falls will not be devoted solely to industrial and commercial use. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Governor_of_New_York))
- **1897** — J. J. Thomson of the Cavendish Laboratory announces his discovery of the electron as a subatomic particle, over 1,800 times smaller than a proton (in the atomic nucleus), at a lecture at the Royal Institution in London. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._J._Thomson))
- **1900** — Hawaii becomes a territory of the United States, with Sanford B. Dole as governor. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaii))
- **1905** — Albert Einstein completes his doctoral thesis at the University of Zurich. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Einstein))
- **1925** — Automaker Dodge Brothers, Inc, is sold to Dillon, Read & Co. for US$146 million plus $50 million for charity. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dodge))
- **1927** — The Federal Industrial Institute for Women opens in Alderson, West Virginia, as the first women's federal prison in the United States. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Prison_Camp%2C_Alderson))
- **1937** — The Commonwealth of the Philippines holds a plebiscite for Filipino women on whether they should be extended the right to suffrage; over 90% would vote in the affirmative. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_the_Philippines))
- **1939** — The 1939–40 New York World's Fair opens. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939_New_York_World's_Fair))
- **1939** — NBC inaugurates its regularly scheduled television service in New York City, broadcasting President Franklin D. Roosevelt's N.Y. World's Fair opening day ceremonial address. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBC))
- **1943** — World War II: The British submarine HMS Seraph surfaces near Huelva to cast adrift a dead man dressed as a courier and carrying false invasion plans. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II))
- **1945** — World War II: Führerbunker: Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun commit suicide after being married for less than 40 hours. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%BChrerbunker))
- **1945** — World War II:  Soviet soldiers raise the first Soviet flag over the Reichstag.  The Victory Banner will be raised the next day. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Union))
- **1945** — World War II: Stalag Luft I prisoner-of-war camp near Barth, Germany is liberated by Soviet soldiers, freeing nearly 9,000 American and British airmen. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stalag_Luft_I))
- **1947** — In Nevada, Boulder Dam is renamed Hoover Dam. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada))
- **1948** — In Bogotá, Colombia, the Organization of American States is established. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bogot%C3%A1))
- **1956** — Former Vice President and Democratic Senator Alben Barkley dies during a speech in Virginia. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alben_W._Barkley))
- **1957** — Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery enters into force. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supplementary_Convention_on_the_Abolition_of_Slavery))
- **1961** — K-19, the first Soviet nuclear submarine equipped with nuclear missiles, is commissioned. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_submarine_K-19))
- **1963** — The Bristol Bus Boycott is held in Bristol to protest the Bristol Omnibus Company's refusal to employ Black or Asian bus crews, drawing national attention to racial discrimination in the United Kingdom. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Bus_Boycott))
- **1973** — Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon fires White House Counsel John Dean; other top aides, most notably H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, resign. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal))
- **1975** — Fall of Saigon: Communist forces gain control of Saigon. The Vietnam War formally ends with the unconditional surrender of South Vietnamese president Dương Văn Minh. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_Saigon))
- **1979** — Eruption of Mount Marapi: Mount Marapi, a complex volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, erupts. Between 80 and 100 people are killed. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_eruption_of_Mount_Marapi))
- **1980** — Beatrix is inaugurated as Queen of the Netherlands following the abdication of Juliana. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatrix_of_the_Netherlands))
- **1980** — The Iranian Embassy siege begins in London. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Embassy_siege))
- **1982** — The Bijon Setu massacre occurs in Calcutta, India. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bijon_Setu_massacre))
- **1989** — The Monkseaton shootings occur in Tyne and Wear, England. One is killed and 16 are injured. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkseaton_shootings))
- **1993** — CERN announces World Wide Web protocols will be free. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CERN))
- **1994** — Formula One racing driver Roland Ratzenberger is killed in a crash during the qualifying session of the San Marino Grand Prix run at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari outside Imola, Italy. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_One))
- **1999** — Neo-Nazi David Copeland carries out the last of his three nail bombings in London at the Admiral Duncan gay pub, killing three people and injuring 79 others. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_London_nail_bombings))
- **2000** — Canonization of Faustina Kowalska in the presence of 200,000 people and the first Divine Mercy Sunday celebrated worldwide. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canonization))
- **2004** — U.S. media release graphic photos of American soldiers committing war crimes against Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abu_Ghraib_torture_and_prisoner_abuse))
- **2008** — Two skeletal remains found near Yekaterinburg are confirmed by Russian scientists to be the remains of Alexei and Anastasia, two of the children of the last Tsar of Russia, whose entire family was executed at Yekaterinburg by the Bolsheviks. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yekaterinburg))
- **2009** — Chrysler files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler))
- **2009** — Seven civilians and the perpetrator are killed and another ten injured at a Queen's Day parade in Apeldoorn, Netherlands in an attempted assassination on Queen Beatrix. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_attack_on_the_Dutch_royal_family))
- **2012** — An overloaded ferry capsizes on the Brahmaputra River in India killing at least 108 people. At least 150 more are missing and presumed dead. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assam_ferry_sinking))
- **2013** — Willem-Alexander is inaugurated as King of the Netherlands following the abdication of Beatrix. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willem-Alexander_of_the_Netherlands))
- **2014** — A bomb blast in Ürümqi, China kills three people and injures 79 others. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_2014_%C3%9Cr%C3%BCmqi_attack))
- **2021** — Forty-five men and boys are killed in the Meron stampede in Israel. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021_Meron_crowd_crush))

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## Notable births on April 30

- **2003** — **Emily Carey** — British actress ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Carey))
- **2003** — **Jung Yun-seok** — South Korean actor ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jung_Yoon-seok))
- **2002** — **Anna Cramling** — Spanish-Swedish chess player ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Cramling))
- **2002** — **Teden Mengi** — English footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teden_Mengi))
- **2000** — **Yui Hiwatashi** — Japanese singer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yui_Hiwatashi))
- **2000** — **Dean James** — Indonesian footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_James_(footballer)))
- **1999** — **Jorden van Foreest** — Dutch chess grandmaster ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorden_van_Foreest))
- **1999** — **Krit Amnuaydechkorn** — Thai actor and singer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krit_Amnuaydechkorn))
- **1998** — **Georgina Amorós** — Spanish actress ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgina_Amor%C3%B3s))
- **1997** — **Adam Ryczkowski** — Polish footballer ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Ryczkowski))

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## Notable deaths on April 30

- **2024** — **Paul Auster** — American writer and film director (born 1947) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Auster))
- **2023** — **Jock Zonfrillo** — Scottish television presenter and chef (born 1976) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jock_Zonfrillo))
- **2022** — **Naomi Judd** — American singer-songwriter and actress (born 1946) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naomi_Judd))
- **2022** — **Mino Raiola** — Italian football agent (born 1967) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mino_Raiola))
- **2021** — **Anthony Payne** — English composer (born 1936) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Payne))
- **2020** — **Tony Allen** — Nigerian drummer and composer (born 1940) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Allen_(musician)))
- **2020** — **Rishi Kapoor** — Indian actor, film director and producer (born 1952) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rishi_Kapoor))
- **2019** — **Peter Mayhew** — English-American actor (born 1944) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Mayhew))
- **2017** — **Belchior** — Brazilian singer and composer (born 1946) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belchior_(singer)))
- **2016** — **Daniel Berrigan** — American priest and activist (born 1921) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Berrigan))

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## About this page

This is a machine-readable Markdown summary of [thisday.info/events/april/30/](https://thisday.info/events/april/30/).  
Historical data is sourced from [Wikipedia/Wikimedia](https://www.wikipedia.org) under [CC BY-SA](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/).  
Editorial framing and site content © thisday.info.