Did you know
In 1814, King Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolutism. This featured entry focuses on the immediate decision and its direct historical impact.
May 4 in History
1814 — King Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolutism
May 4 spans 51 recorded events across recorded history, from 1256 to 2023. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Historical Events
51 events
1256 – 2023
Today in history
More major events on May 4
The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.
- 1738 The Imperial Theatrical School, the first ballet school in Russia, is founded. Source
- 1994 Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat sign a peace accord, granting self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho. Source
- 1961 American civil rights movement: The "Freedom Riders" begin a bus trip through the South. Source
Did you know
The Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy, also known as the Constitution of Cádiz and nicknamed La Pepa, was the first Constitution of Spain and one of the earliest codified constitutions in world history. This helps explain why the event mattered beyond the initial announcement.
Did you know
The Constitution was ratified on 19 March 1812 by the Cortes of Cádiz, the first Spanish legislature that included delegates from the entire nation and its possessions, including Spanish America and the Philippines. This clarifies the institutional and public response around the event.
Did you know
"It defined Spanish and Spanish American liberalism for the early 19th century." This shows how the event shaped policy and public communication in the same period.
Did you know
In 1814, King Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolutism had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.
1256
The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull Licet ecclesiae catholicae.
Members of religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine
1415
Religious reformer John Wycliffe is condemned as a heretic at the Council of Constance.
English theologian (1328–1384)
1436
Assassination of the Swedish rebel (later national hero) Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson (27 April O.S.).
Swedish nobleman and nationalist rebel leader (1390s – 1436)
1471
Wars of the Roses: The Battle of Tewkesbury: Edward IV defeats a Lancastrian Army and kills Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales.
Series of civil wars in England (1455–1487)
1493
In the papal bull Inter caetera, Pope Alexander VI divides the New World between Spain and Portugal along the Line of Demarcation.
Type of decree by the Catholic pope
1626
Having been appointed the director-general of New Netherland, Dutch explorer Peter Minuit arrives in present day Manhattan Island aboard the See Meeuw.
17th-century Dutch colony in North America
1738
The Imperial Theatrical School, the first ballet school in Russia, is founded.
Ballet school in Russia
1776
Rhode Island becomes the first American colony to renounce allegiance to King George III.
British colony in North America (1636–1776)
1799
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War: The Battle of Seringapatam: The siege of Seringapatam ends when the city is invaded and Tipu Sultan killed by the besieging British army, under the command of General George Harris.
1798–99 conflict in the Kingdom of Mysore
1814
Emperor Napoleon arrives at Portoferraio on the island of Elba to begin his exile.
French general and emperor (1769–1821)
1823
Brazilian War of Independence: A Brazilian squadron led by Lord Cochrane engages a Portuguese squadron under João de Campos off Salvador, Bahia.
1822–1825 war between Portugal and Brazil
1836
Formation of Ancient Order of Hibernians.
Irish Catholic fraternal organisation primarily active in the US
1859
The Cornwall Railway opens across the Royal Albert Bridge linking Devon and Cornwall in England.
Former railway company in South West England
1869
The four-day Naval Battle of Hakodate begins.
The newly formed Imperial Japanese Navy defeats the remnants of the Tokugawa shogunate navy in the Sea of Japan off the city of Hakodate, leading to the surrender of the Ezo Republic on May 17.
1871
The National Association, the first professional baseball league, opens its first season in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
American professional baseball league in the late 19th century
1886
Haymarket affair: In Chicago, United States, a homemade bomb is thrown at police officers trying to break up a labor rally, killing one officer.
Ensuing gunfire leads to the deaths of a further seven officers and four civilians.
1904
The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal.
Shipping route across Central America
1910
The Royal Canadian Navy is created.
Maritime component of the Canadian Armed Forces
1912
Italy begins the invasion and occupation of the Ottoman island of Rhodes.
1912 battle in the Italo-Turkish War
1919
May Fourth Movement: Student demonstrations take place in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, protesting the Treaty of Versailles, which transferred Chinese territory to Japan.
1919 Chinese cultural political movement
1927
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is incorporated.
Professional organization in the film industry
1932
Having been incarcerated at the Cook County Jail since his sentencing on October 24, 1931, mobster Al Capone is transferred to the federal penitentiary in Atlanta after the U.S.
Supreme Court denies his appeal for conviction of tax evasion.
1942
World War II: The Battle of the Coral Sea begins with an attack by aircraft from the United States aircraft carrier USS Yorktown on Japanese naval forces at Tulagi Island in the Solomon Islands.
The Japanese forces had invaded Tulagi the day before.
1945
World War II: Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg is liberated by the British Army.
Nazi concentration camp network in northern Germany
1945
World War II: The German surrender at Lüneburg Heath is signed, coming into effect the following day.
It encompasses all Wehrmacht units in the Netherlands, Denmark and northwest Germany.
1946
In San Francisco Bay, U.S.
Marines from the nearby Treasure Island Naval Base stop a two-day riot at Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. Five people are killed in the riot.
1949
The entire Torino football team (except for two players who did not take the trip: Sauro Tomà, due to an injury and Renato Gandolfi, because of coach request) is killed in a plane crash.
Association football club in Italy
1953
Ernest Hemingway wins the Pulitzer Prize for The Old Man and the Sea.
American author and journalist (1899–1961)
1961
American civil rights movement: The "Freedom Riders" begin a bus trip through the South.
1954–1968 U.S. social movement
1961
Malcolm Ross and Victor Prather attain a new altitude record for manned balloon flight ascending in the Strato-Lab V open gondola to 113,740 feet (34.67 km).
20th-century U.S. Navy Reserve captain, atmospheric scientist, and balloonist
1970
Vietnam War: Kent State shootings: The Ohio National Guard, sent to Kent State University after disturbances in the city of Kent the weekend before, opens fire killing four unarmed students and wounding nine others.
The students were protesting the Cambodian Campaign of the United States and South Vietnam.
1972
The Don't Make A Wave Committee, a fledgling environmental organization founded in Canada in 1971, officially changes its name to Greenpeace Foundation.
Anti-nuclear organization
1973
The 108-story Sears Tower in Chicago is topped out at 1,451 feet (442 m) as the world's tallest building.
Skyscraper in Chicago, Illinois
1978
The South African Defence Force attacks a SWAPO base at Cassinga in southern Angola, killing about 600 people.
Military of South Africa from 1957 to 1994
1979
Margaret Thatcher becomes the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990
1982
Twenty sailors are killed when the British Type 42 destroyer HMS Sheffield is hit by an Argentinian Exocet missile during the Falklands War.
British guided missile destroyer class
1988
The PEPCON disaster rocks Henderson, Nevada, as tons of Space Shuttle fuel detonate during a fire.
1988 explosions and fire in Nevada
1989
Iran–Contra affair: Former White House aide Oliver North is convicted of three crimes and acquitted of nine other charges; the convictions are later overturned on appeal.
1985–1987 political scandal in the U.S.
1989
Space Shuttle Atlantis launches on mission STS-30 to deploy the Venus-bound Magellan space probe.
Space Shuttle orbiter (1985–2011)
1990
1994
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat sign a peace accord, granting self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho.
Top minister of cabinet and government
1998
A federal judge in Sacramento, California, gives "Unabomber" Theodore Kaczynski four life sentences plus 30 years after Kaczynski accepts a plea agreement sparing him from the death penalty.
Capital city of California, United States
2000
Ken Livingstone becomes the first Mayor of London (an office separate from that of the Lord Mayor of London).
English politician (born 1945)
2002
One hundred three people are killed and 51 are injured in a plane crash near Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano, Nigeria.
2002 aviation accident
2007
Greensburg, Kansas is almost completely destroyed by the 2007 Greensburg tornado, a 1.7-mile wide EF5 tornado.
It was the first-ever tornado to be rated with the new Enhanced Fujita scale.
2014
Three people are killed and 62 injured in a pair of bombings on buses in Nairobi, Kenya.
2019
The inaugural all-female motorsport series, W Series, takes place at Hockenheimring.
The race was won by Jamie Chadwick, who would go on to become the inaugural series champion.
2023
Nine people are killed and thirteen injured in a spree shooting in Mladenovac and Smederevo, Serbia.
It is the second mass shooting in the country in two days.