Calendar date · May

What happened on May 4

On May 4, 1256: The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull Licet ecclesiae catholicae.

Events

51

across history

Notable births

50

Notable deaths

50

Zodiac

Taurus

People

Born on May 4

Noah Beck 2001– American influencer (born 2001)
Joan García 2001– Spanish footballer (born 2001)
Rex Orange County 1998– English musician (born 1998)
Shameik Moore 1995– American actor and musician (born 1995)
Abi Masatora 1994– Japanese sumo wrestler
Joseph Tapine 1994– New Zealand and Maori international rugby league player
Victor Oladipo 1992– American basketball player (born 1992)
Brianne Jenner 1991– Canadian ice hockey player (born 1991)
Rory McIlroy 1989– Northern Irish golfer (born 1989)
Show 9 more — notable births on May 4
James van Riemsdyk 1989– American ice hockey player (born 1989)
Radja Nainggolan 1988– Belgian footballer (born 1988)
Cesc Fàbregas 1987– Spanish footballer (born 1987)
Jorge Lorenzo 1987– Spanish motorcycle racer (born 1987)
Devan Dubnyk 1986– Canadian ice hockey player (born 1986)
George Hill 1986– American basketball player (born 1986)
Ravi Bopara 1985– English cricketer (born 1985)
Fernandinho 1985– Brazilian footballer (born 1985)
Jamie Adenuga 1985– British grime MC (born 1985)

People

Died on May 4

Ron Kavana Musical artist
Frank Stella American artist (1936–2024)
Nick Kamen British singer-songwriter and model (1962–2021)
Don Shula American football player and coach (1930–2020)
Greg Zanis American carpenter (1950–2020)
Alia Abdulnoor Emirati convict (1977–2019)
Jean-Baptiste Bagaza President of Burundi from 1976 to 1987
William Bast American screenwriter and author (1931–2015)
Ellen Albertini Dow American actress (1913–2015)
Show 9 more — notable deaths on May 4
Marv Hubbard American football player (1946–2015)
Dick Ayers American cartoonist
Elena Baltacha British tennis player (1983–2014)
Edgar Cortright Senior NASA official-administrator (1923–2014)
Helga Königsdorf East German author and physicist
Ross Lonsberry Canadian ice hockey player (1947–2014)
Jean-Paul Ngoupandé Central African politician
Otis Bowen American politician (1918–2013)
Christian de Duve Belgian biochemist and cytologist (1917–2013)

Timeline

Every May 4 on record

  1. 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

    D. by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–13th centuries:Various congregations of Canons Regular follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, embracing the evangelical counsels and leading a semi-monastic life, while remaining committed to pastoral care appropriate to their primary vocation as priests.

  2. 1415 Religious reformer John Wycliffe is condemned as a heretic at the Council of Constance.

    English theologian (1328–1384)

    John Wycliffe was an English scholastic philosopher, Christian reformer, Catholic priest, and a theology professor at the University of Oxford. Wycliffe is traditionally believed to have advocated for or made a vernacular translation of the Vulgate Bible into Middle English, though more recent scholarship has minimised the extent of his advocacy or involvement for lack of direct contemporary evidence.

  3. 1436 Assassination of the Swedish rebel (later national hero) Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson (27 April O.S.).

    Swedish nobleman and nationalist rebel leader (1390s – 1436)

    Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson was a Swedish nobleman, rebel leader and military leader of German ancestry. He was the leader of the Engelbrekt rebellion in 1434 against Eric of Pomerania, king of the Kalmar Union.

  4. 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)

    The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, and also the Cousins' War, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought for control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fought between supporters of the House of Lancaster and House of York, two rival cadet branches of the royal House of Plantagenet. The conflict resulted in the end of Lancaster's male line in 1471, leaving the Tudor family to inherit, through the female line, the Lancaster claim to the throne.

  5. 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

    A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden seal (bulla) traditionally appended to authenticate it.

  6. 1626 Having been appointed the director-general of New Netherland, Dutch explorer Peter Minuit arrives in present day Manhattan Island aboard the See Meeuw.
  7. 1738 The Imperial Theatrical School, the first ballet school in Russia, is founded.
  8. 1776 Rhode Island becomes the first American colony to renounce allegiance to King George III.
  9. 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.
  10. 1814 Emperor Napoleon arrives at Portoferraio on the island of Elba to begin his exile.
  11. 1814 King Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolutism.
  12. 1823 Brazilian War of Independence: A Brazilian squadron led by Lord Cochrane engages a Portuguese squadron under João de Campos off Salvador, Bahia.
  13. 1836 Formation of Ancient Order of Hibernians.
  14. 1859 The Cornwall Railway opens across the Royal Albert Bridge linking Devon and Cornwall in England.
  15. 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.
Show 15 earlier entries from May 4
  1. 1871 The National Association, the first professional baseball league, opens its first season in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
  2. 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.
  3. 1904 The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal.
  4. 1910 The Royal Canadian Navy is created.
  5. 1912 Italy begins the invasion and occupation of the Ottoman island of Rhodes.
  6. 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.
  7. 1926 The United Kingdom general strike begins.
  8. 1927 The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is incorporated.
  9. 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.
  10. 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.
  11. 1945 World War II: Neuengamme concentration camp near Hamburg is liberated by the British Army.
  12. 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.
  13. 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.
  14. 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.
  15. 1953 Ernest Hemingway wins the Pulitzer Prize for The Old Man and the Sea.

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