What Happened in April?

According to tradition, Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus on April, 21, 753 BCE. The city and surrounding region of Latium has continued to be inhabited with little interruption since around that time. Expand +

Japan celebrates Buddha’s (Siddhartha Gautama) birthday, known as Hana Matsuri (Flower Festival) on April 8th. Japan uses the Gregorian calendar for this celebration. Other East Asian countries t follow the lunar calendar. Some smaller local may vary, with some holding celebrations on May 8th.

The Battle of Marathon occurs between the Greeks and the Persians, resulting in a Greek victory.

The Battle of Thermopylae takes place where King Leonidas and the Spartans valiantly resist the Persian invasion.

Socrates, the Greek philosopher, is sentenced to death in Athens.

Hannibal of Carthage crosses the Alps with his army during the Second Punic War.

Scipio Africanus defeats Hasdrubal at the Battle of Baecula during the Second Punic War, c. April, 208 BCE. It was another victory of Scipio Africanus over the Carthaginian armies in Spain, undermining Carthaginian's status on the Peninsula and improving Rome's authority. More

The Battle of Actium takes place, marking the end of the Roman Republic and the rise of Augustus Caesar.

Cleopatra VII dies, marking the end of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt.

The Jewish fort of Masada falls to the Romans after a lengthy siege.

The Roman Emperor Philip the Arab celebrates the 1,000th anniversary of Rome, known as the Saeculum Novum.

Emperor Theodosius II is born on April 10, 401 CE. His father Arcadius, Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, proclaims him co-Augustus, a title for co-emperor, when he was 9 months old on January 10, 402 AD. He became Emperor when he was seven, after his father death and went on to become one of the longest-reigning emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Muslim commander, Tariq ibn Ziyad, crosses the Strait of Gibraltar, c. April 30, 711 CE, with a force of about 7,000–12,000 troops, mainly Berbers, beginning the Muslim conquest of Hispania and eventually placing most of the Iberian Peninsula (except for small areas in the north-west such as Asturias and the Basque territory) under Islamic rule and creating the entity known as al-Andalus. More

The Viking invasion of England under the leadership of Ivar the Boneless and his ally Olaf the White on c. April 23, 870, results in the capture of Dumbarton after a four- month siege and the defenders ran out of water. Following the surrender, the Vikings plundered the fortress and reportedly used a fleet of 200 ships to transport prisoners and treasure back to Dublin.

King Æthelred I of Wessex dies, c. April 15, 871, likely from injuries sustained at the Battle of Marton against the Danes. and his brother Alfred the Great becomes King of Wessex since Æthelred’s sons were too young to rule.

Pope Formosus dies, on April 4, 896. He was Pope and ruler of the Papal States from October 6, 891 until his death. His pontificate was marked by interventions in power struggles and left a controversial legacy leading to a period of scandals and chaos in the papacy. Months after his death his remains were exhumed and put on trial it what is known as the Cadaver Synod. He was convicted and all his ordinations declared invalid. More

The city of Toledo in Spain falls to the forces of the Emir Abd-ar-Rahman III, establishing Umayyad control.

The Saxon king Henry the Fowler is elected King of the Germans.

King Edward the Elder of England dies, succeeded by his son Athelstan.

Battle of Riade: Henry I of Germany defeats a Hungarian invasion.