This Day In European History
6th April
Events648 BCE: A solar eclipse is noted by Greek poet Archilochus.
1327: According to some critics, the poet Petrarch first sees his muse Laura.
1453: The Siege of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire begins.
1812: British troops seize Badajoz on the Portuguese-Spanish border.
1793: The Committee of Public Safety is formed in France; headed by Georges Danton; it is the executive part of government.
1843: William Wordsworth is made Poet Laureate.
1896: Athens holds the first modern Olympics.
1928: Mussolini bans shaking hands in Italy.
Births
1483: Raphael, Italian artist.
1498: Giovanni de Medici, Italian soldier.
1773: James Mill, Scottish Utilitarian, historian and economist.
1812: Alexander Ivanovich Herzen, Russian political activist.
1826: Gustave Moreau, French painter.
1890: Anthony Fokker, Dutch aircraft innovator.
Deaths
1199: Richard I, king of England.
1252: St. Peter of Verona.
1520: Raphael, Italian artist.
1528: Albert Dürer, German painter.
1593: Henry Barrow, English Congregationalist.
1641: Domenichino, Italian painter.
