April 25 is the 115th day of the year (116th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 250 days remain until the end of the year.

Events

Pre-1600

• 404 BC – Admiral Lysander and King Pausanias of Sparta blockade Athens and bring the Peloponnesian War to a successful conclusion.
• 775 – The Battle of Bagrevand puts an end to an Armenian rebellion against the Abbasid Caliphate. Muslim control over the South Caucasus is solidified and its Islamization begins, while several major Armenian nakharar families lose power and their remnants flee to the Byzantine Empire.
• 799 – After mistreatment and disfigurement by the citizens of Rome, Pope Leo III flees to the Frankish court of king Charlemagne at Paderborn for protection.
• 1134 – The name Zagreb was mentioned for the first time in the Felician Charter relating to the establishment of the Zagreb Bishopric around 1094.

1601–1900

• 1607 – Eighty Years' War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar.
• 1644 – Transition from Ming to Qing: The Chongzhen Emperor, the last Emperor of Ming China, commits suicide during a peasant rebellion led by Li Zicheng.
• 1707 – A coalition of Britain, the Netherlands and Portugal is defeated by a Franco-Spanish army at Almansa (Spain) in the War of the Spanish Succession.
• 1792 – Highwayman Nicolas J. Pelletier becomes the first person executed by guillotine.
• 1792 – "La Marseillaise" (the French national anthem) is composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle.
• 1808 – Dano-Swedish War of 1808–1809: The Battle of Trangen took place at Trangen in Flisa, Hedemarkens Amt, between Swedish and Norwegian troops.
• 1829 – Charles Fremantle arrives in HMS Challenger off the coast of modern-day Western Australia prior to declaring the Swan River Colony for the British Empire.
• 1846 – Thornton Affair: Open conflict begins over the disputed border of Texas, triggering the Mexican–American War.
• 1849 – The Governor General of Canada, Lord Elgin, signs the Rebellion Losses Bill, outraging Montreal's English population and triggering the Montreal Riots.
• 1859 – British and French engineers break ground for the Suez Canal.
• 1862 – American Civil War: Forces under U.S. Admiral David Farragut demand the surrender of the Confederate city of New Orleans, Louisiana.
• 1864 – American Civil War: In the Battle of Marks' Mills, a force of 8,000 Confederate soldiers attacks 1,800 Union soldiers and a large number of wagon teamsters, killing or wounding 1,500 Union combatants.
• 1882 – French and Vietnamese troops clashed in Tonkin, when Commandant Henri Rivière seized the citadel of Hanoi with a small force of marine infantry.
• 1898 – Spanish–American War: The United States Congress declares that a state of war between the U.S. and Spain has existed since April 21, when an American naval blockade of the Spanish colony of Cuba began.

1901–present

• 1901 – New York becomes the first U.S. state to require automobile license plates.
• 1915 – World War I: The Battle of Gallipoli begins: The invasion of the Turkish Gallipoli Peninsula by British, French, Indian, Newfoundland, Australian and New Zealand troops, begins with landings at Anzac Cove and Cape Helles.
• 1916 – Anzac Day is commemorated for the first time on the first anniversary of the landing at ANZAC Cove.
• 1920 – At the San Remo conference, the principal Allied Powers of World War I adopt a resolution to determine the allocation of Class "A" League of Nations mandates for administration of the former Ottoman-ruled lands of the Middle East.
• 1933 – Nazi Germany issues the Law Against Overcrowding in Schools and Universities limiting the number of Jewish students able to attend public schools and universities.
• 1938 – U.S. Supreme Court delivers its opinion in Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins and overturns a century of federal common law.
• 1944 – The United Negro College Fund is incorporated.
• 1945 – World War II: United States and Soviet reconnaissance troops meet in Torgau and Strehla along the River Elbe, cutting the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in two. This would be later known as Elbe Day.
• 1945 – World War II: Liberation Day (Italy): The National Liberation Committee for Northern Italy calls for a general uprising against the German occupation and the Italian Social Republic.
• 1945 – United Nations Conference on International Organization: Founding negotiations for the United Nations begin in San Francisco.
• 1945 – World War II: The last German troops retreat from Finnish soil in Lapland, ending the Lapland War. Military actions of the Second World War end in Finland.
• 1951 – Korean War: Assaulting Chinese forces are forced to withdraw after heavy fighting with UN forces, primarily made up of Australian and Canadian troops, at the Battle of Kapyong.
• 1953 – Francis Crick and James Watson publish "Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid" describing the double helix structure of DNA.
• 1954 – The first practical solar cell is publicly demonstrated by Bell Telephone Laboratories.
• 1959 – The Saint Lawrence Seaway, linking the North American Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean, officially opens to shipping.
• 1960 – The United States Navy submarine USS Triton completes the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe.
• 1961 – Robert Noyce is granted a patent for an integrated circuit.
• 1972 – Vietnam War: Nguyen Hue Offensive: The North Vietnamese 320th Division forces 5,000 South Vietnamese troops to retreat and traps about 2,500 others northwest of Kontum.
• 1974 – Carnation Revolution: A leftist military coup in Portugal overthrows the authoritarian-conservative Estado Novo regime.
• 1980 – One hundred forty-six people are killed when Dan-Air Flight 1008 crashes near Los Rodeos Airport in Tenerife, Canary Islands.
• 1981 – More than 100 workers are exposed to radiation during repairs of at the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Plant in Japan.
• 1982 – Israel completes its withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula per the Camp David Accords.
• 1983 – Cold War: American schoolgirl Samantha Smith is invited to visit the Soviet Union by its leader Yuri Andropov after he read her letter in which she expressed fears about nuclear war.
• 1983 – Pioneer 10 travels beyond Pluto's orbit.
• 1990 – Violeta Chamorro takes office as the President of Nicaragua, the first woman to hold the position.
• 2001 – President George W. Bush pledges U.S. military support in the event of a Chinese attack on Taiwan.
• 2004 – The March for Women's Lives brings over 1 million protesters, mostly pro-choice, to Washington D.C. to protest the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003, and other restrictions on abortion.
• 2005 – The final piece of the Obelisk of Axum is returned to Ethiopia after being stolen by the invading Italian army in 1937.
• 2005 – A seven-car commuter train derails and crashes into an apartment building near Amagasaki Station in Japan, killing 107, including the driver.
• 2005 – Bulgaria and Romania sign the Treaty of Accession 2005 to join the European Union.
• 2007 – Boris Yeltsin's funeral: The first to be sanctioned by the Russian Orthodox Church for a head of state since the funeral of Emperor Alexander III in 1894.
• 2014 – The Flint water crisis begins when officials at Flint, Michigan switch the city's water supply to the Flint River, leading to lead and bacteria contamination.
• 2015 – At least 8,962 are killed in Nepal after a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake strikes Nepal.

Births

Pre-1600

• 1214 – Louis IX of France (d. 1270)
• 1228 – Conrad IV of Germany (d. 1254)
• 1284 – Edward II of England (d. 1327)
• 1287 – Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1330)
• 1502 – Georg Major, German theologian and academic (d. 1574)
• 1529 – Francesco Patrizi, Italian philosopher and scientist (d. 1597)
• 1599 – Oliver Cromwell, English general and politician, Lord Protector of Great Britain (d. 1658)

1601–1900

• 1621 – Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery, English soldier and politician (d. 1679)
• 1666 – Johann Heinrich Buttstett, German organist and composer (d. 1727)
• 1694 – Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, English architect and politician, Lord High Treasurer of Ireland (d. 1753)
• 1710 – James Ferguson, Scottish astronomer and author (d. 1776)
• 1723 – Giovanni Marco Rutini, Italian composer (d. 1797)
• 1725 – Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel, English admiral and politician (d. 1786)
• 1767 – Nicolas Oudinot, French general (d. 1847)
• 1770 – Georg Sverdrup, Norwegian philologist and academic (d. 1850)
• 1776 – Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh (d. 1857)
• 1843 – Princess Alice of the United Kingdom (d. 1878)
• 1849 – Felix Klein, German mathematician and academic (d. 1925)
• 1850 – Luise Adolpha Le Beau, German composer and educator (d. 1927)
• 1851 – Leopoldo Alas, Spanish author, critic, and academic (d. 1901)
• 1854 – Charles Sumner Tainter, American engineer and inventor (d. 1940)
• 1862 – Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon, English ornithologist and politician, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (d. 1933)
• 1868 – John Moisant, American pilot and engineer (d. 1910)
• 1871 – Lorne Currie, French-English sailor (d. 1926)
• 1872 – C. B. Fry, English cricketer, footballer, educator, and politician (d. 1956)
• 1873 – Walter de la Mare, English poet, short story writer, and novelist (d. 1956)
• 1873 – Howard Garis, American author, creator of the Uncle Wiggily series of children's stories (d. 1962)
• 1874 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian businessman and inventor, developed Marconi's law, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1937)
• 1874 – Ernest Webb, English-Canadian race walker (d. 1937)
• 1876 – Jacob Nicol, Canadian publisher, lawyer, and politician (d. 1958)
• 1878 – William Merz, American gymnast and triathlete (d. 1946)
• 1882 – Fred McLeod, Scottish golfer (d. 1976)
• 1887 – Kojo Tovalou Houénou, Beninese lawyer and critic (d. 1936)
• 1892 – Maud Hart Lovelace, American author (d. 1980)
• 1896 – Fred Haney, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1977)
• 1897 – Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood (d. 1965)
• 1900 – Gladwyn Jebb, English politician and diplomat, Secretary-General of the United Nations (d. 1996)
• 1900 – Wolfgang Pauli, Austrian-Swiss-American physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)

1901–present

• 1902 – Werner Heyde, German psychiatrist and academic (d. 1964)
• 1902 – Mary Miles Minter, American actress (d. 1984)
• 1903 – Andrey Kolmogorov, Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1987)
• 1905 – George Nēpia, New Zealand rugby player and referee (d. 1986)
• 1906 – Joel Brand, member of the Budapest Aid and Rescue Committee (d. 1964)
• 1906 – William J. Brennan Jr., American colonel and Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court (d. 1997)
• 1908 – Edward R. Murrow, American journalist (d. 1965)
• 1909 – William Pereira, American architect, designed the Transamerica Pyramid (d. 1985)
• 1910 – Arapeta Awatere, New Zealand interpreter, military leader, politician, and murderer (d. 1976)
• 1911 – Connie Marrero, Cuban baseball player and coach (d. 2014)
• 1911 – George Roth, American gymnast (d. 1997)
• 1912 – Earl Bostic, American saxophonist (d. 1965)
• 1913 – Nikolaos Roussen, Greek captain (d. 1944)
• 1914 – Ross Lockridge Jr., American author and academic (d. 1948)
• 1915 – Mort Weisinger, American journalist and author (d. 1978)
• 1916 – Jerry Barber, American golfer (d. 1994)
• 1917 – Ella Fitzgerald, American singer (d. 1996)
• 1917 – Jean Lucas, French racing driver (d. 2003)
• 1918 – Graham Payn, South African-born English actor and singer (d. 2005)
• 1918 – Gérard de Vaucouleurs, French-American astronomer and academic (d. 1995)
• 1918 – Astrid Varnay, Swedish-American soprano and actress (d. 2006)
• 1919 – Finn Helgesen, Norwegian speed skater (d. 2011)
• 1921 – Karel Appel, Dutch painter and sculptor (d. 2006)
• 1923 – Francis Graham-Smith, English astronomer and academic
• 1923 – Melissa Hayden, Canadian ballerina (d. 2006)
• 1923 – Albert King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1992)
• 1924 – Ingemar Johansson, Swedish race walker (d. 2009)
• 1924 – Franco Mannino, Italian pianist, composer, director, and playwright (d. 2005)
• 1924 – Paulo Vanzolini, Brazilian singer-songwriter and zoologist (d. 2013)
• 1925 – Tony Christopher, Baron Christopher, English trade union leader and businessman
• 1925 – Sammy Drechsel, German comedian and journalist (d. 1986)
• 1925 – Louis O'Neil, Canadian academic and politician (d. 2018)
• 1926 – Johnny Craig, American author and illustrator (d. 2001)
• 1926 – Gertrude Fröhlich-Sandner, Austrian politician (d. 2008)
• 1926 – Patricia Castell, Argentine actress (d. 2013)
• 1927 – Corín Tellado, Spanish author (d. 2009)
• 1927 – Albert Uderzo, French author and illustrator (d. 2020)
• 1928 – Cy Twombly, American-Italian painter and sculptor (d. 2011)
• 1929 – Yvette Williams, New Zealand long jumper, shot putter, and discus thrower (d. 2019)
• 1930 – Paul Mazursky, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2014)
• 1930 – Godfrey Milton-Thompson, English admiral and surgeon (d. 2012)
• 1930 – Peter Schulz, German lawyer and politician, Mayor of Hamburg (d. 2013)
• 1931 – Felix Berezin, Russian mathematician and physicist (d. 1980)
• 1931 – David Shepherd, English painter and author (d. 2017)
• 1932 – Nikolai Kardashev, Russian astrophysicist (d. 2019)
• 1932 – Meadowlark Lemon, African-American basketball player and minister (d. 2015)
• 1932 – Lia Manoliu, Romanian discus thrower and politician (d. 1998)
• 1933 – Jerry Leiber, American songwriter and producer (d. 2011)
• 1933 – Joyce Ricketts, American baseball player (d. 1992)
• 1934 – Peter McParland, Northern Irish footballer and manager
• 1935 – Bob Gutowski, American pole vaulter (d. 1960)
• 1935 – Reinier Kreijermaat, Dutch footballer (d. 2018)
• 1936 – Henck Arron, Surinamese banker and politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Republic of Suriname (d. 2000)
• 1938 – Roger Boisjoly, American aerodynamicist and engineer (d. 2012)
• 1938 – Ton Schulten, Dutch painter and graphic designer
• 1939 – Tarcisio Burgnich, Italian footballer and manager (d. 2021)
• 1939 – Michael Llewellyn-Smith, English academic and diplomat
• 1939 – Robert Skidelsky, Baron Skidelsky, English historian and academic
• 1939 – Veronica Sutherland, English academic and British diplomat
• 1940 – Al Pacino, American actor and director
• 1941 – Bertrand Tavernier, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2021)
• 1942 – Jon Kyl, American lawyer and politician
• 1943 – Tony Christie, English singer-songwriter and actor
• 1944 – Len Goodman, English dancer (d. 2023)
• 1944 – Mike Kogel, German singer-songwriter
• 1944 – Stephen Nickell, English economist and academic
• 1944 – Bruce Ponder, English geneticist and cancer researcher
• 1945 – Stu Cook, American bass player Creedence Clearwater Revival, songwriter, and producer
• 1945 – Richard C. Hoagland, American theorist and author
• 1945 – Björn Ulvaeus, Swedish singer-songwriter and producer
• 1946 – Talia Shire, American actress
• 1946 – Peter Sutherland, Irish lawyer and politician, Attorney General of Ireland (d. 2018)
• 1946 – Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Russian colonel, lawyer, and politician (d. 2022)
• 1947 – Johan Cruyff, Dutch footballer and manager (d. 2016)
• 1947 – Jeffrey DeMunn, American actor
• 1947 – Cathy Smith, Canadian singer and drug dealer (d. 2020)
• 1948 – Mike Selvey, English cricketer and sportscaster
• 1948 – Yu Shyi-kun, Taiwanese politician, 39th Premier of the Republic of China
• 1949 – Vicente Pernía, Argentinian footballer and race car driver
• 1949 – Dominique Strauss-Kahn, French economist, lawyer, and politician, French Minister of Finance
• 1949 – James Fenton, English poet, journalist and literary critic
• 1950 – Donnell Deeny, Northern Irish lawyer and judge
• 1950 – Steve Ferrone, English drummer
• 1950 – Peter Hintze, German politician (d. 2016)
• 1950 – Valentyna Kozyr, Ukrainian high jumper
• 1951 – Ian McCartney, Scottish politician, Minister of State for Trade
• 1952 – Ketil Bjørnstad, Norwegian pianist and composer
• 1952 – Vladislav Tretiak, Russian ice hockey player and coach
• 1952 – Jacques Santini, French footballer and coach
• 1953 – Ron Clements, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
• 1953 – Gary Cosier, Australian cricketer
• 1953 – Anthony Venables, English economist, author, and academic
• 1954 – Melvin Burgess, English author
• 1954 – Randy Cross, American football player and sportscaster
• 1954 – Róisín Shortall, Irish educator and politician
• 1955 – Américo Gallego, Argentinian footballer and coach
• 1955 – Parviz Parastui, Iranian actor and singer
• 1955 – Zev Siegl, American businessman, co-founded Starbucks
• 1956 – Dominique Blanc, French actress, director, and screenwriter
• 1956 – Abdalla Uba Adamu, Nigerian professor, media scholar
• 1957 – Theo de Rooij, Dutch cyclist and manager
• 1958 – Fish, Scottish singer-songwriter
• 1958 – Misha Glenny, British journalist
• 1959 – Paul Madden, English diplomat, British High Commissioner to Australia
• 1959 – Daniel Kash, Canadian actor and director
• 1959 – Tony Phillips, American baseball player (d. 2016)
• 1960 – Paul Baloff, American singer (d. 2002)
• 1960 – Robert Peston, English journalist
• 1961 – Dinesh D'Souza, Indian-American journalist and author
• 1961 – Miran Tepeš, Slovenian ski jumper
• 1962 – Foeke Booy, Dutch footballer and manager
• 1963 – Joy Covey, American businesswoman (d. 2013)
• 1963 – David Moyes, Scottish footballer and manager
• 1963 – Paul Wassif, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1964 – Hank Azaria, American actor, voice artist, comedian and producer
• 1964 – Andy Bell, English singer-songwriter
• 1965 – Eric Avery, American bass player and songwriter
• 1965 – Mark Bryant, American basketball player and coach
• 1965 – John Henson, American puppeteer and voice actor (d. 2014)
• 1966 – Diego Domínguez, Argentinian-Italian rugby player
• 1966 – Femke Halsema, Dutch sociologist, academic, and politician
• 1966 – Darren Holmes, American baseball player and coach
• 1967 – Angel Martino, American swimmer
• 1968 – Thomas Strunz, German footballer
• 1969 – Joe Buck, American sportscaster
• 1969 – Martin Koolhoven, Dutch director and screenwriter
• 1969 – Jon Olsen, American swimmer
• 1969 – Darren Woodson, American football player and sportscaster
• 1969 – Renée Zellweger, American actress and producer
• 1970 – Jason Lee, American skateboarder, actor, comedian and producer
• 1971 – Sara Baras, Spanish dancer
• 1973 – Carlota Castrejana, Spanish triple jumper
• 1973 – Barbara Rittner, German tennis player
• 1975 – Jacque Jones, American baseball player and coach
• 1976 – Gilberto da Silva Melo, Brazilian footballer
• 1976 – Tim Duncan, American basketball player
• 1976 – Breyton Paulse, South African rugby player
• 1976 – Rainer Schüttler, German tennis player and coach
• 1977 – Constantinos Christoforou, Cypriot singer-songwriter
• 1977 – Marguerite Moreau, American actress and producer
• 1977 – Matthew West, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
• 1978 – Matt Walker, English swimmer
• 1980 – Daniel MacPherson, Australian actor and television host
• 1980 – Alejandro Valverde, Spanish cyclist
• 1981 – Felipe Massa, Brazilian racing driver
• 1981 – John McFall, English sprinter
• 1981 – Anja Pärson, Swedish skier
• 1982 – Monty Panesar, English cricketer
• 1983 – Johnathan Thurston, Australian rugby league player
• 1983 – DeAngelo Williams, American football player
• 1985 – Giedo van der Garde, Dutch racing driver
• 1986 – Alexei Emelin, Russian ice hockey player
• 1986 – Gwen Jorgensen, American triathlete
• 1986 – Claudia Rath, German heptathlete
• 1987 – Razak Boukari, Togolese footballer
• 1987 – Jay Park, American-South Korean singer-songwriter and dancer
• 1988 – Jonathan Bailey, English actor
• 1988 – Sara Paxton, American actress
• 1988 – James Sheppard, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1989 – Marie-Michèle Gagnon, Canadian skier
• 1989 – Michael van Gerwen, Dutch darts player
• 1989 – Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama
• 1990 – Jean-Éric Vergne, French racing driver
• 1990 – Taylor Walker, Australian footballer
• 1991 – Jordan Poyer, American football player
• 1991 – Alex Shibutani, American ice dancer
• 1993 – Alex Bowman, American race car driver
• 1993 – Daniel Norris, American baseball player
• 1993 – Raphaël Varane, French footballer
• 1994 – Omar McLeod, Jamaican hurdler
• 1994 – Maggie Rogers, American musician
• 1995 – Lewis Baker, English footballer
• 1996 – Mack Horton, Australian swimmer
• 1998 – Satou Sabally, German-American basketball player
• 2000 – Dejan Kulusevski, Swedish footballer

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 501 – Rusticus, saint and archbishop of Lyon (b. 455)
• 775 – Smbat VII Bagratuni, Armenian prince
• 775 – Mushegh VI Mamikonian, Armenian prince
• 908 – Zhang Wenwei, Chinese chancellor
• 1074 – Herman I, Margrave of Baden
• 1077 – Géza I of Hungary (b. 1040)
• 1185 – Emperor Antoku of Japan (b. 1178)
• 1217 – Hermann I, Landgrave of Thuringia
• 1228 – Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem (b. 1212)
• 1243 – Boniface of Valperga, Bishop of Aosta
• 1264 – Roger de Quincy, 2nd Earl of Winchester, medieval English nobleman; Earl of Winchester (b. 1195)
• 1295 – Sancho IV of Castile (b. 1258)
• 1342 – Pope Benedict XII (b. 1285)
• 1397 – Thomas Holland, 2nd Earl of Kent, English nobleman
• 1472 – Leon Battista Alberti, Italian author, poet, and philosopher (b. 1404)
• 1516 – John Yonge, English diplomat (b. 1467)
• 1566 – Louise Labé, French poet and author (b. 1520)
• 1566 – Diane de Poitiers, mistress of King Henry II of France (b. 1499)
• 1595 – Torquato Tasso, Italian poet and songwriter (b. 1544)

1601–1900

• 1605 – Naresuan, Siamese King of Ayutthaya Kingdom (b. c. 1555)
• 1644 – Chongzhen Emperor of China (b. 1611)
• 1660 – Henry Hammond, English cleric and theologian (b. 1605)
• 1690 – David Teniers the Younger, Flemish painter and educator (b. 1610)
• 1744 – Anders Celsius, Swedish astronomer, physicist, and mathematician (b. 1701)
• 1770 – Jean-Antoine Nollet, French minister, physicist, and academic (b. 1700)
• 1800 – William Cowper, English poet (b. 1731)
• 1840 – Siméon Denis Poisson, French mathematician and physicist (b. 1781)
• 1873 – Fyodor Petrovich Tolstoy, Russian painter and sculptor (b. 1783)
• 1875 – 12th Dalai Lama (b. 1857)
• 1878 – Anna Sewell, English author (b. 1820)
• 1890 – Crowfoot, Canadian tribal chief (b. 1830)
• 1891 – Nathaniel Woodard, English priest and educator (b. 1811)
• 1892 – Henri Duveyrier, French explorer (b. 1840)
• 1892 – Karl von Ditmar, Estonian-German geologist and explorer (b. 1822)

1901–present

• 1906 – John Knowles Paine, American composer and educator (b. 1839)
• 1911 – Emilio Salgari, Italian journalist and author (b. 1862)
• 1913 – Joseph-Alfred Archambeault, Canadian bishop (b. 1859)
• 1915 – Frederick W. Seward, American journalist, lawyer, and politician, 6th United States Assistant Secretary of State (b. 1830)
• 1919 – Augustus D. Juilliard, American businessman and philanthropist (b. 1836)
• 1921 – Emmeline B. Wells, American journalist and women's rights advocate (b. 1828)
• 1923 – Louis-Olivier Taillon, Canadian lawyer and politician, 8th Premier of Quebec (b. 1840)
• 1928 – Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Russian general (b. 1878)
• 1936 – Wajed Ali Khan Panni, Bengali aristocrat and philanthropist (b. 1871)
• 1941 – Salih Bozok, Turkish commander and politician (b. 1881)
• 1943 – Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, Russian director, producer, and playwright (b. 1858)
• 1944 – George Herriman, American cartoonist (b. 1880)
• 1944 – Tony Mullane, Irish-American baseball player (b. 1859)
• 1944 – William Stephens, American engineer and politician, 24th Governor of California (b. 1859)
• 1945 – Huldreich Georg Früh, Swiss composer (b. 1903)
• 1961 – Robert Garrett, American discus thrower and shot putter (b. 1875)
• 1970 – Anita Louise, American actress (b. 1915)
• 1972 – George Sanders, English actor (b. 1906)
• 1973 – Olga Grey, Hungarian-American actress (b. 1896)
• 1974 – Gustavo R. Vincenti, Maltese architect and developer (b. 1888)
• 1975 – Mike Brant, Israeli singer and songwriter (b. 1947)
• 1976 – Carol Reed, English director and producer (b. 1906)
• 1976 – Markus Reiner, Israeli engineer and educator (b. 1886)
• 1982 – John Cody, American cardinal (b. 1907)
• 1983 – William S. Bowdern, American priest and author (b. 1897)
• 1988 – Carolyn Franklin, American singer-songwriter (b. 1944)
• 1988 – Clifford D. Simak, American journalist and author (b. 1904)
• 1990 – Dexter Gordon, American saxophonist, composer, and actor (b. 1923)
• 1992 – Yutaka Ozaki, Japanese singer-songwriter (b. 1965)
• 1995 – Art Fleming, American game show host (b. 1925)
• 1995 – Ginger Rogers, American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1911)
• 1995 – Lev Shankovsky, Ukrainian military historian (b. 1903)
• 1996 – Saul Bass, American graphic designer and director (b. 1920)
• 1998 – Wright Morris, American author and photographer (b. 1910)
• 1999 – Michael Morris, 3rd Baron Killanin, Irish journalist and author (b. 1914)
• 1999 – Roger Troutman, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1951)
• 2000 – Lucien Le Cam, French mathematician and statistician (b. 1924)
• 2000 – David Merrick, American director and producer (b. 1911)
• 2001 – Michele Alboreto, Italian racing driver (b. 1956)
• 2002 – Lisa Lopes, American rapper and dancer (b. 1971)
• 2003 – Samson Kitur, Kenyan runner (b. 1966)
• 2004 – Thom Gunn, English-American poet and academic (b. 1929)
• 2005 – Jim Barker, American politician (b. 1935)
• 2005 – Swami Ranganathananda, Indian monk and educator (b. 1908)
• 2006 – Jane Jacobs, American-Canadian journalist, author, and activist (b. 1916)
• 2006 – Peter Law, Welsh politician and independent member of parliament (b. 1948)
• 2007 – Alan Ball Jr., English footballer and manager (b. 1945)
• 2007 – Arthur Milton, English footballer and cricketer (b. 1928)
• 2007 – Bobby Pickett, American singer-songwriter (b. 1938)
• 2008 – Humphrey Lyttelton, English trumpet player, composer, and radio host (b. 1921)
• 2009 – Bea Arthur, American actress and singer (b. 1922)
• 2010 – Dorothy Provine, American actress and singer (b. 1935)
• 2010 – Alan Sillitoe, English novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet (b. 1928)
• 2011 – Poly Styrene, British musician (b. 1957)
• 2012 – Gerry Bahen, Australian footballer (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Denny Jones, American rancher and politician (b. 1910)
• 2012 – Moscelyne Larkin, American ballerina and educator (b. 1925)
• 2012 – Louis le Brocquy, Irish painter and illustrator (b. 1916)
• 2013 – Brian Adam, Scottish biochemist and politician (b. 1948)
• 2013 – Jacob Avshalomov, American composer and conductor (b. 1919)
• 2013 – György Berencsi, Hungarian virologist and academic (b. 1941)
• 2013 – Rick Camp, American baseball player (b. 1953)
• 2014 – Dan Heap, Canadian priest and politician (b. 1925)
• 2014 – William Judson Holloway Jr., American soldier, lawyer, and judge (b. 1923)
• 2014 – Earl Morrall, American football player and coach (b. 1934)
• 2014 – Tito Vilanova, Spanish footballer and manager (b. 1968)
• 2014 – Stefanie Zweig, German journalist and author (b. 1932)
• 2015 – Jim Fanning, American-Canadian baseball player and manager (b. 1927)
• 2015 – Matthias Kuhle, German geographer and academic (b. 1948)
• 2015 – Don Mankiewicz, American screenwriter and novelist (b. 1922)
• 2015 – Mike Phillips, American basketball player (b. 1956)
• 2016 – Tom Lewis, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of New South Wales (b. 1922)
• 2018 – Madeeha Gauhar, Pakistani actress, playwright and director of social theater, and women's rights activist (b. 1956)
• 2019 – John Havlicek, American basketball player (b. 1940)
• 2023 – Harry Belafonte, American singer, activist, and actor (b. 1927)
• 2024 – Marla Adams, American television actress (b. 1938)
• 2024 – Laurent Cantet, French director, cinematographer and screenwriter (b. 1961)

Holidays and observances

• Anzac Day (Australia, New Zealand, Tonga)
• Christian feast day:
  • Giovanni Battista Piamarta
  • Major Rogation (Western Christianity)
  • Mark the Evangelist
  • Maughold
  • Peter of Saint Joseph de Betancur
  • Philo and Agathopodes
  • Anianus of Alexandria
  • April 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Freedom Day (Portugal)
• Liberation Day (Italy)
• Military Foundation Day (North Korea)
• World Malaria Day