On This Day for April 15 - Sinking of the Titanic, Leonardo da Vinci is featured, and more

This message contains graphics. If you do not see the graphics, click here to view. April 15 FEATURED BIOGRAPHY Leonardo da Vinci READ MORE   FEATURED EVENT 1912 Sinking of the Titanic READ MORE   Advertisement Advertisement   MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY 2019: The historic Notre-Dame de Paris caught fire during a restoration campaign, and the blaze destroyed most of the cathedral's roof, the 19th-century spire, and some of the rib vaulting. [ Test your knowledge of Paris.] 2013: Near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, two homemade bombs were detonated in the crowd of spectators; 3 people were killed and more than 260 were wounded in the terrorist attack. 2003: U.S. President George W. Bush declared that the government of Saddam Hussein in Iraq had fallen as a result of the Iraq War and the following day asked the United Nations to lift sanctions against Iraq. [ Sort fact from fiction in our wars throughout history quiz.] 2000: U.S. President Bill Clinton established the Giant Sequoia National Monument, a preserve near Sequoia National Park covering more than 500 square miles (1,300 square km) of Sequoia National Forest in the Sierra Nevada of California. [How much do you know about national parks and landmarks?] 1989: Tragedy occurred at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England, when a crush of football (soccer) fans resulted in 96 deaths and hundreds of injuries; police mistakes were later blamed for the incident. 1980: French novelist and playwright Jean-Paul Sartre, who was a leading exponent of existentialism, died. [Take our quiz about famous authors.] SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY ALSO BORN ON THIS DAY 1452 Leonardo da Vinci Italian artist, engineer, and scientist 1959 Emma Thompson British actress and writer 1982 Seth Rogen Canadian actor and screenwriter 1912 Kim Il-Sung president of North Korea 1960 Philippe, king of Belgium king of Belgium 1707 Leonhard Euler Swiss mathematician SEE ALL BIOS ON THIS DAY   Advertisement   FOLLOW: To unsubscribe from Britannica e-mails, click here. Encyclopædia Britannica 325 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 200 Chicago, Illinois 60654 United States © 2021 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. Privacy Policy • Help