What Happened in April?

The French National Convention adopts the Law of 22 Prairial, accelerating the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution.

Beethoven debuts as a pianist in Vienna, showcasing his own compositions.

Napoleon Bonaparte wins a brilliant victory at the Battle of Montenotte, during his Italian campaign.

The Battle of Neuwied takes place during the French Revolutionary Wars, resulting in a French victory over the Austrians.

The United Irishmen Rebellion against British rule in Ireland begins with a failed uprising.

Napoleon Bonaparte, after returning from Egypt, stages a coup d'état and becomes the de facto ruler of France.

The Library of Congress is established in Washington, D.C., with an initial appropriation of $5,000 for books.

French Foreign Minister Charles Maurice de Talleyrand makes a surprising offer to Robert Livingston, the U.S. minister in France, to sell all of the Louisiana Territory to the United States. Livingston was trying to make a deal to purchase New Orleans, the gateway to the Mississippi River. The unexpected offer came at a time when Napoleon Bonaparte desperately needed funds to finance his ongoing wars in Europe particularly with England and plans for a French New World empire were failing.The transaction with France to purchase 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million was signed on April 30, 1803. As a result, the United States doubled its size, expanding the nation westward. More

The agreement for the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France is formally completed. this transaction with France, signed on April 30, 1803, the United States purchased 828,000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million. For roughly 4 cents an acre, the United States doubled its size, expanding the nation westward. More

Beethoven's Symphony No. 3, "Eroica," premieres in Vienna.

The Lewis and Clark expedition resumes its journey West, leaving its camp among the Mandan tribe after a harsh winter. More

Map is in the public domain - Wikimedia Commons

The Battle of Derna, a key event in the First Barbary War takes place. It involved U.S. Marines, under the command of Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon, and other forces, ultimately capturing the city of Derna, then part of Tripolitania, now Libya. It was the first land battle of the United States on foreign soil after the American Revolutionary War. More

The UK and Russia sign the Treaty of London, forming an alliance against Napoleon.

English poet William Wordsworth first publishes "Poems in Two Volumes."

Louisiana is admitted to the Union becoming the 18th State.
The State of Louisiana consisted of the Territory of Orleans, as well as the Florida Parishes east of the Mississippi River, which had been annexed by the U.S. from Spain in 1810.

Zebulon Pike, U.S. army officer and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado was named, is killed during the war of 1812. More

Napoleon abdicates and is exiled to Elba after the signing of the Treaty of Fontainebleau between Napoleon and representatives of Austria, Russia and Prussia. The agreement ended Napoleon's rule as emperor of the French and sent him into exile to the island of Elba, now an Italian island. More

Mount Tambora on the northern coast of Sumbawa island, Indonesia explodes in a violent blast which blew the mountain apart resulting in one of the most powerful eruptions in recorded human history. Tambora’s catastrophic activity began on April 5, 1815, with small tremors and pyroclastic flows, followed by Increased steaming and smaller eruptions for up to three years. The effects of the eruptions included major climate changes and a "volcanic winter" in the following year (1816) which is referred to as "the year without summer" The blast, pyroclastic flows, and tsunamis that followed killed at least 10,000 islanders and destroyed the homes of 35,000 more. Before its eruption Mount Tambora was about 4,300 meters (14,000 feet) high. After the eruption ended, a caldera spanning some 6 km (3.7 miles) across remained. The death toll estimate is that at least 71,000 people perished, of which 11,000 –12,000 were killed directly by the eruption. More 

The first performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, takes place in Vienna.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is officially organized in Fayette, New York. More