11 April 1861
A Thursday in history
Weekday
Thursday
Season
Spring (N. Hemisphere)
Century
19th century
Records
404

2017The tour bus of the German football team Borussia Dortmund was attacked with roadside bombs in Dortmund, killing a police officer and injuring one of the team's players.
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2011A bomb exploded at Oktyabrskaya station on the Minsk Metro in Belarus, killing 15 people and injuring more than 200.
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2002In a coup attempt, members of the Venezuelan military detained President Hugo Chávez and demanded his resignation.
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In a FIFA World Cup qualifying match, Australia defeated American Samoa 31–0, the largest margin of victory recorded in international football.
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1996While attempting to set a record as the youngest person to pilot an airplane across the United States, the aircraft flown by seven-year-old Jessica Dubroff crashed in Cheyenne, Wyoming, killing her and two others.
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1993Prisoners at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility near Lucasville, Ohio, rioted and took over the prison for 11 days, resulting in the deaths of one officer and nine inmates.
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1979Uganda–Tanzania War: The allied forces of Tanzania and the Uganda National Liberation Front captured the capital Kampala, deposing Ugandan president Idi Amin.
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1973On the Art of the Cinema, a treatise on film propaganda in support of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea written by the future North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, was published.
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1968Rudi Dutschke, the most prominent leader of the German student movement, survived an assassination attempt, which led to the largest protests to that date in Germany.
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1965Almost 50 confirmed tornadoes struck six states in the Midwestern United States during the Palm Sunday tornado outbreak, killing over 270 people and injuring 1,500 others.
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1963Pope John XXIII issued Pacem in terris, the first papal encyclical addressed to "all men of good will" rather than only to Catholics.
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1951U.S. president Harry S. Truman relieved General of the Army Douglas MacArthur of his commands for making public statements about the Korean War that contradicted the administration's policies.
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1951The Stone of Scone, removed months earlier by Scottish students, was found on the altar of Arbroath Abbey.
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1921Emir Abdullah established the first centralised government in the recently created British protectorate of Transjordan.
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1919Paris Peace Conference: Woodrow Wilson overturns Japan's Racial Equality Proposal, stating that unanimous support was required.
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1913The cricket pavilion at the Nevill Ground was destroyed in an arson attack (damage pictured) that was attributed to militant suffragettes as part of a country-wide campaign co-ordinated by the Women's Social and Political Union.
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1888The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, considered one of the world's finest concert halls, was inaugurated.
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1814The Treaty of Fontainebleau was signed, ending the War of the Sixth Coalition and forcing Napoleon to abdicate as ruler of France and sending him into exile on Elba.
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1809Napoleonic Wars: A hastily assembled Royal Navy fleet launched an assault against the main strength of the French Atlantic Fleet; an incomplete victory led to political turmoil in Britain.
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1713The main treaties of the Peace of Utrecht were signed in Utrecht in the Dutch Republic, helping to end the War of the Spanish Succession.
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1689William III and Mary II (both pictured) were crowned joint sovereigns of England in a ceremony at Westminster Abbey.
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1544Italian War of 1542–1546: French and Spanish forces fought a massive pitched battle in the Piedmont region of Italy.
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Photo archive
24 historic images from this day — tap to open the gallery.
What was life like?
Prices, jobs, food, music and everyday routine — the world as it felt to live in.
Sources & fact check
Every claim is traced to primary sources, archives, universities and the press — with an explicit confidence rating. Dossiers are generated once and cached permanently.