March 4 in History

Historical Events on March 4

1461 Wars of the Roses in England: Lancastrian King Henry VI is deposed by his House of York cousin, who then becomes King Edward IV.

1493 Explorer Christopher Columbus arrives back in Lisbon, Portugal, aboard his ship Niña from his voyage to what is now The Bahamas and other islands in the Caribbean.

1776 American Revolutionary War: The Continental Army fortifies Dorchester Heights with cannon, leading the British troops to abandon the Siege of Boston.

1791 Vermont is admitted to the United States as the fourteenth state.

1837 The city of Chicago is incorporated.

1941 World War II: The United Kingdom launches Operation Claymore on the Lofoten Islands; the first large scale British Commando raid.

1986 The Soviet Vega 1 begins returning images of Halley's Comet and the first images of its nucleus.

1998 Gay rights: Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, Inc.: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that federal laws banning on-the-job sexual harassment also apply when both parties are the same sex.

2002 Afghanistan: Seven American Special Operations Forces soldiers and 200 Al-Qaeda Fighters are killed as American forces attempt to infiltrate the Shah-i-Kot Valley on a low-flying helicopter reconnaissance mission.

All Events

Famous Birthdays on March 4

1883 Sam Langford

1932 Ryszard Kapuściński

1950 Rick Perry

1968 Graham Westley

All Births

Famous Deaths on March 4

1193 Saladin

1811 Mariano Moreno

1832 Jean-François Champollion

2008 Gary Gygax

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