990 – Ekkehart II [Palatinus], Swiss monk at the Abbey of Saint Gall known for his poetry, dies
1616 – William Shakespeare, English poet and playwright (Romeo and Juliet; Macbeth: Hamlet), dies at about 52
1762 – Johann Samuel Endler, German composer, musician, and conductor, dies at 67
1774 – Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich, German painter, dies at 61
1827 – Johanna Cornelia Wattier-Ziesenis, Dutch actress (Phaedra, Lady Macbeth), dies at 65
1853 – Auguste Laurent, French chemist who laid the foundations of organic chemistry, dies of tuberculosis at 45
1960 – Toyohiko Kagawa, Japanese Christian social reformer and writer, dies at 71
1985 – Sam Ervin, American politician (U.S. Senator from North Carolina) and Watergate committee chairman, dies at 88
2012 – Tommy Marth, American rock saxophone player (the Killers, 2008-2010), dies of self-inflicted gunshot at 33
2019 – Johan Witteveen, Dutch economist, Minister of Finance (1963–65; 1967–71) and managing director of the IMF (1973-78), dies at 97