989 – Battle at Abydos: Byzantine emperor Basilius II beats Bardas Phocas
1640 – English Short Parliament forms (till May 5)
1911 – The US House of Representatives votes to institute direct elections of senators to Congress, a step towards direct democracy
1934 – 4.7 million US families report receiving welfare payments
1957 – Musical “Shinbone Alley”, starring Eartha Kitt, opens at Broadway Theater NYC; runs for 49 performances
1958 – Van Cliburn is the first American to win the Chaikovsky Compettion in Moscow.
1963 – Pete Rose triples for his 1st major league base hit
1981 – Pulitzer prize awarded to Beth Henley for “Crimes of the Heart”
2013 – 20 civilians are killed by the government bombing of Saraqib, Idlib
2015 – Migrant ship carrying around 550 sinks off the Libyan coast, about 400 drown