This Day in History – April 7

We can work to change our future, but there is one thing that no one can change, and that is our past as it remains unchanged. We can only learn from the past, not alter it. Every single day is important in its own way and has its unique history. In this blog, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most notable events that occurred on April 7 in history.

What Happened on April 7 in India?

1934: Mahatma Gandhi suspended his campaign
Mahatma Gandhi called a halt to his civil disobedience movement in India.

1935: Shankar Abaji Bhise, a famous Indian scientist, died
Shankar Abaji Bhise, an Indian scientist who established approximately 200 inventions, for which he received patents for about 40 of them. On April 7, 1935, he passed away.

What Happened Around the World on April 7? 

529: First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis
Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I published the first draft of Corpus Juris Civilis, regarded as the foundational work of jurisprudence.

1348: Charles University
Charles IV founded the University of Prague (also known as Charles University) on April 7, 1348, making it the first university in central Europe.

1521: Ferdinand Magellan
The fleet of Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan entered Cebu.

1625: Albrecht von Wallenstein
Albrecht von Wallenstein was appointed German supreme commander on April 7, 1625.

1795: France adopted the metre
France adopted the metre as the primary unit of measurement on April 7, 1795.

1805: Lewis and Clark Expedition left Fort Maden
The Lewis and Clark Expedition departed Fort Maden, to begin their journey to the Pacific Ocean.

1895: Fridtjof Nansen reaches record 86°13.6′N latitude north
Fridtjof Nansen, the polar explorer, hit record 86°13.6′N latitude north, expedition nearest to the North Pole.

1896: Teddy Flack, wins Gold
Teddy Flack, an Australian, won gold in the first Olympic 1500 metres final in Athens on April 7, 1896. Two days later, he won the 800 metres.

1921: Sun Yat-sen elected as the President of China
Sun Yat-sen, the revolutionary leader and father of modern China, was elected President of China at Canton, while China remains divided into north and south and subject to warlord rivalries.

1940: First postage stamp of African American
The United States Postal Service issued the first African American educator Booker T. Washington postage stamp. 

1943: Adolf Hitler & Benito Mussolini
Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini met in Salzburg for an Axis meeting.

1944: World War II
General Montgomery talked to generals at St. Paul’s School, about his plans for the forthcoming D-Day landings during World War II.

1948: World Health Organisation 
The United Nations founded the World Health Organization on April 7, 1948.

1954: Domino-effect of communism in Indo-China
In a news conference on April 7, 1954, US President Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first to express concern about a “domino-effect” of communism in Indo-China.

1968: Martin Luther King Assassination Riots
Following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., riots continued in over 100 US cities on April 7, 1968.

1996: Sanath Jayasuriya hits fastest ODI fifty
Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka hit the fastest ODI fifty off 17 balls against Pakistan in Singapore on April 7, 1996.

1999: WTO rules in favour of the United States
The World Trade Organization ruled in favour of the US in its long-running trade dispute with the European Union over bananas.

2003: US troops captured Baghdad
Baghdad was captured by US troops, and Saddam Hussein’s regime collapses two days later.

2009: Alberto Fujimori sentenced to 25 years in prison
Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori was sentenced to 25 years in prison on, for ordering security forces to kill and abduct civilians.

2017: Donald Trump orders missile strike on Syria
Following a chemical weapons attack in Khan Sheikhoun, US President Donald Trump ordered a missile strike on a Syrian airfield.

2020: China ends its lockdown of Wuhan
China lifts the 76-day lockdown on Wuhan, the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic after the nation registers no new deaths for the first time.

Famous Birthdays on April 7

1770: William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was an English poet laureate who was born in Cockermouth, Cumberland.

1915: Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday was an American jazz singer who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1920: Pandit Ravi Shankar
Pandit Ravi Shankar, one of post-independence India’s greatest sitar players and the country’s best-known classical musician in the West.

1939: Francis Ford Coppola
Francis Ford Coppola is a famous American Hollywood director who has directed gems of the Hollywood industry such as The Godfather, Apocalypse Now etc. 

1954: Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan, a Hong Kong martial artist, dancer, stuntman, filmmaker, action choreographer, and singer

We hope this blog helped you get familiarized with all the major events that happened on April 7. Stay connected with Leverage Edu for more such educational content. If you want to keep yourself updated with such interesting and intriguing reads, follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn,Instagram and Quora.