Deaths on 5 April
2000s
C. J. Snare
2024
American rock singer (1959–2024)
Nehemiah Persoff
2022
American actor and painter (1919–2022)
Jimmy Wang Yu
2022
Taiwanese actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (1943–2022)
Paul Ritter
2021
English actor (1966–2021)
Sydney Brenner
2019
South African biologist and Nobel prize winner (1927–2019)
Isao Takahata
2018
Japanese film director, screenwriter and film producer (1935–2018)
Attilio Benfatto
2017
Italian cyclist (1943–2017)
Arthur Bisguier
2017
American chess grandmaster (1929–2017)
Paul G. Comba
2017
Italian-American computer scientist (1926–2017)
Makoto Ōoka
2017
Japanese poet and literary critic (1931–2017)
Paul O'Neill (producer)
2017
American composer, musician, and record producer (1956–2017)
Tim Parnell
2017
British racing driver (1932–2017)
Memè Perlini
2017
Italian actor
Atanase Sciotnic
2017
Romanian canoeist
Ilkka Sinisalo
2017
Finnish ice hockey player (1958–2017)
Koço Kasapoğlu
2016
Greek-Turkish footballer and manager
Fredric Brandt
2015
American physician (1949–2015)
Juan Carlos Cáceres
2015
Musical artist
Alan Davie
2014
Scottish painter and musician (1920–2014)
Mariano Díaz (cyclist)
2014
Spanish cyclist (1939–2014)
Peter Matthiessen
2014
American novelist
John Pinette
2014
American comedian and actor (1964–2014)
José Wilker
2014
Brazilian actor and director
Regina Bianchi
2013
Italian actress (1921–2013)
Piero de Palma
2013
Italian opera singer
Nikolaos Pappas
2013
Ferdinand Alexander Porsche
2012
German-Austrian industrial designer (1935–2012)
Pedro Bartolomé Benoit
2012
Dominican Republic politician and military officer
Jim Marshall (businessman)
2012
English businessman and pioneer of guitar amplification (1923–2012)
Barney McKenna
2012
Irish musician (1939–2012)
Bingu wa Mutharika
2012
President of Malawi from 2004 to 2012
Baruch Samuel Blumberg
2011
American doctor (1925–2011)
Ange-Félix Patassé
2011
Central African politician (1937–2011)
Vitaly Sevastyanov
2010
Soviet engineer, cosmonaut, chess federation head and presenter (1935–2010)
I. J. Good
2009
British statistician and cryptographer (1916–2009)
Charlton Heston
2008
American actor (1923–2008)
Maria Gripe
2007
Swedish children's writer (1923–2007)
Leela Majumdar
2007
Indian writer (1908–2007)
Werner Maser
2007
German historian (1922–2007)
Mark St. John
2007
American guitarist (1956–2007)
Thomas Stoltz Harvey
2007
American pathologist (1912–2007)
Allan Kaprow
2006
American performance artist, installation artist, painter (1927–2006)
Gene Pitney
2006
American singer and songwriter (1940–2006)
Yevgeny Seredin
2006
Pasquale Macchi
2006
Catholic archbishop (1923–2006)
Saul Bellow
2005
American writer (1915–2005)
Robert Borg
2005
American military officer and equestrian (1913–2005)
Chung Nam-sik
2005
South Korean footballer and manager
Fernand Goyvaerts
2004
Belgian footballer
Sławomir Rawicz
2004
Polish Army lieutenant (1915–2004)
Heiner Zieschang
2004
German mathematician
Keizo Morishita
2003
Japanese painter (1944–2003)
Layne Staley
2002
American rock musician (1967–2002)
Kim Won-gyun
2002
Composer of the North Korean anthem (1917–2002)
Aldo Olivieri
2001
Italian footballer (1910–2001)
Heinrich Müller (footballer, born 1909)
2000
Austrian footballer and coach
Lee Petty
2000
American racing driver (1914–2000)
1900s
Giulio Einaudi
1999
Italian book publisher (1912–1999)
Charles Frank (physicist)
1998
British physicist (1911–1998)
Cozy Powell
1998
British rock drummer (1947–1998)
Allen Ginsberg
1997
American poet and writer (1926–1997)
Charlene Holt
1996
American actress (1928–1996)
Nicolaas Cortlever
1995
Dutch chess player (1915–1995)
Emilio Greco
1995
Italian sculptor (1913–1995)
Christian Pineau
1995
French Resistance fighter
Kurt Cobain
1994
American rock musician (1967–1994)
Divya Bharti
1993
Indian actress (1974–1993)
Takeshi Inoue (footballer)
1992
Japanese footballer
Molly Picon
1992
American actress (1898–1992)
Sam Walton
1992
American business magnate (1918–1992)
Sonny Carter
1991
American astronaut, chemist, and U.S. Navy officer (1947–1991)
Jay Miller (basketball)
1991
American basketball player (1943–2001)
Jiří Mucha
1991
Czech writer (1915–1991)
William Sidney, 1st Viscount De L'Isle
1991
British Army officer and politician (1909-1991)
John Tower
1991
American politician and veteran (1925–1991)
Frank Foss (athlete)
1989
American pole vaulter (1895–1989)
Karel Zeman
1989
Czech filmmaker (1910–1989)
Alf Kjellin
1988
Swedish actor
Leabua Jonathan
1987
Prime Minister of Lesotho from 1965 to 1986
Manly Wade Wellman
1986
American novelist (1903–1986)
Hans Lunding
1984
Danish colonel (1899–1984)
Giuseppe Tucci
1984
Italian orientalist, Indologist and scholar
Abd al-Quddus al-Ansari
1983
Saudi Arabian historian, journalist and writer
Abe Fortas
1982
US Supreme Court justice from 1965 to 1969
Émile Hanse
1981
Belgian footballer
Bob Hite
1981
American musician (1943–1981)
Pinchus Kremegne
1981
Belarusian-French artist
Carlos Prío Socarrás
1977
President of Cuba from 1948–1952 (1903–1977)
Yuri Zavadsky
1977
Howard Hughes
1976
American aviator, aerospace engineer and business magnate (1905–1976)
Wilder Penfield
1976
Canadian neurosurgeon
Harry Wyld
1976
English cyclist
Tell Berna
1975
American athlete
Victor Marijnen
1975
Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1963 to 1965
Chiang Kai-shek
1975
Leader of the Republic of China from 1928 to 1975
Harold Osborn
1975
American athletics competitor
Bino Bini
1974
Italian fencer (1900–1974)
A. Y. Jackson
1974
Canadian painter (1882–1974)
David Murray (racing driver)
1973
British racing driver (1909–1973)
Alla Tarasova
1973
Soviet and Russian actress (1898–1973)
Isabel Jewell
1972
American actress (1907–1972)
José Cubiles
1971
Spanish pianist, conductor and teacher (1894–1971)
Louisa Bolus
1970
South African botanist (1877–1970)
Alfred Sturtevant
1970
American biologist (1891–1970)
Karl von Spreti
1970
German diplomat (1907–1970)
Alberto Bonucci
1969
Italian actor (1918–1969)
Rómulo Gallegos
1969
Venezuelan politician and writer (1884–1969)
Ain-Ervin Mere
1969
Estonian military personnel
Félix Couchoro
1968
Togolese writer and educator
Lajos Csordás
1968
Hungarian footballer (1932–1968)
Giuseppe Paris
1968
Italian artistic gymnast
Mischa Elman
1967
Russian-American violinist (1891–1967)
Johan Falkberget
1967
Norwegian politician and writer
Hermann Joseph Muller
1967
American biologist (1890–1967)
Herbert Johnston
1967
British long-distance runner (1902–1967)
Pedro Sernagiotto
1965
Italian-Brazilian footballer
Sándor Szalay (figure skater)
1965
Hungarian figure skater
James Chapin
1964
American ornithologist (1889–1964)
Aloïse Corbaz
1964
Swiss female artist (1886–1964)
Douglas MacArthur
1964
American general (1880–1964)
J. J. P. Oud
1963
Dutch architect (1890–1963)
Boo Kullberg
1962
Swedish artistic gymnast
Nikolai Kryukov (composer)
1961
Russian composer
Prince Ferdinand of Bavaria
1958
Bavarian prince (1884–1958)
Ásgrímur Jónsson
1958
Icelandic painter (1876–1958)
Isidora Sekulić
1958
Serbian writer (1877–1958)
William Titt
1956
Irish-born British gymnast (1881–1956)
Tibor Szele
1955
Hungarian mathematician
Princess Märtha of Sweden
1954
Crown Princess of Norway (1901–1954)
Claude Delvincourt
1954
French composer (1888–1954)
Agnes Morton
1952
English tennis player (1872–1952)
Hiroshi Yoshida
1950
Japanese artist (1876–1950)
Erich Zeigner
1949
Prime Minister of Saxony (1886–1949)
Abby Aldrich Rockefeller
1948
American socialite and philanthropist (1874–1948)
Bernhard Pankok
1947
German painter
Elis Strömgren
1947
Swedish–Danish astronomer
Vincent Youmans
1946
American composer (1898–1946)
Heinrich Borgmann
1945
German officer during World War II, injured by the 20 July plot bomb (1912–1945)
Karl-Otto Koch
1945
German SS officer (1897–1945)
Parvin E'tesami
1941
Iranian 20th-century Persian poet
Nigel Gresley
1941
British engineer (1876–1941)
Franciszek Kleeberg
1941
Polish general
Charles Freer Andrews
1940
Christian missionary and social reformer in India (1871–1940)
Robert Maillart
1940
Swiss civil engineer and bridge designer
Jay O'Brien (bobsleigh)
1940
American bobsledder (1883–1940)
Song Zheyuan
1940
20th-century Chinese army officer
Helena Westermarck
1938
Finnish artist and writer (1857–1938)
Verner Lehtimäki
1938
Finnish socialist, soldier, pilot, aerospace engineer and revolutionary
Gustav Adolf Deissmann
1937
German theologian (1866–1937)
José Benlliure y Gil
1937
Spanish painter (1858–1937)
Chandler Egan
1936
American amateur golfer
Achille Locatelli
1935
Emil Młynarski
1935
Polish conductor, violinist, composer, and pedagogue (1870–1935)
Franz von Vecsey
1935
Hungarian violinist and composer (1893-1935)
Salvatore Di Giacomo
1934
Italian poet
Jiro Sato
1934
Japanese tennis player (1908–1934)
Earl Derr Biggers
1933
American novelist and playwright
Hjalmar Mellin
1933
Finnish mathematician (1854–1933)
María Blanchard
1932
Spanish artist (1881–1932)
Francis Aidan Gasquet
1929
English cardinal
Ludwig von Sybel
1929
German archaeologist
Roy Kilner
1928
English cricketer
Viktor Oliva
1928
Czech painter and illustrator (1861–1928)
Victor Hensen
1924
German zoologist (1835–1924)
George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon
1923
British aristocrat (1866–1923)
Alphons Diepenbrock
1921
Dutch composer, essayist, and classicist
Sophie Elkan
1921
Swedish writer and translator (1853-1921)
Laurent Marqueste
1920
French sculptor (1848–1920)
George Tupou II
1918
King of Tonga from 1893 to 1918
Paul Vidal de La Blache
1918
French geographer
Maksim Kovalevsky
1916
Russian jurist (1851–1916)
Bernard Borggreve
1914
German forestry scientist (1836–1914)
Eastman Johnson
1906
American painter (1824–1906)
Ernst, Prince of Leiningen
1904
Prince of Leiningen
Frances Power Cobbe
1904
Philosopher and women's suffrage and animal welfare activist (1822–1904)
Hans Ernst August Buchner
1902
German bacteriologist
Angelo Messedaglia
1901
Italian politician
Joseph Bertrand
1900
French mathematician and historian (1822–1900)
Osman Nuri Pasha
1900
Ottoman field marshal (1832–1900)
1800s
Johann Hermann Bauer
1891
Czech-Austrian chess master
Vsevolod Garshin
1888
Russian author of short stories (1855–1888)
Pierre Guillaume Frédéric le Play
1882
French sociologist and engineer
Milivoje Blaznavac
1873
Serbian soldier and politician
Paul-Auguste-Ernest Laugier
1872
French astronomer (1812–1872)
Paolo Savi
1871
Italian geologist and ornithologist (1798–1871)
Karel Purkyně
1868
Thomas Hodgkin
1866
British pathologist (1798–1866)
Manfredo Fanti
1865
Italian general (1806–1865)
Barend Cornelis Koekkoek
1862
Dutch painter
Ferdinand Joachimsthal
1861
German mathematician
Prince Felix of Schwarzenberg
1852
Austrian prince
Shuja Shah Durrani
1842
Emir of the Durrani Empire
Pierre Léonard Vander Linden
1831
Belgian entomologist
Richard Chenevix (chemist)
1830
Irish chemist (1774–1830)
Johann Georg Wille
1808
German-born copper engraver and art dealer (1715–1808)
Jean-Charles Pichegru
1804
French Army officer (1761–1804)
Before 1800
Johann Christoph Gatterer
1799
German historian (1727–1799)
Georges Danton
1794
French revolutionary (1759–1794)
François Chabot
1794
French politician
Camille Desmoulins
1794
18th-century French journalist, politician, and revolutionary
Fabre d'Églantine
1794
French actor, dramatist, poet and politician
Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles
1794
French judge and politician (1759–1794)
Pierre Philippeaux
1794
French lawyer of the Revolutionary period
François Joseph Westermann
1794
French general and political figure
Marc-Antoine Laugier
1769
French architectural historian (1713–1769)
Egidio Forcellini
1768
Italian philologist (1688–1768)
Princess Charlotte Wilhelmine of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
1767
Countess of Hanau-Münzenberg
Edward Young
1765
English poet
Frederick I of Sweden
1751
King of Sweden from 1720 to 1751
William Derham
1735
English clergyman and scientist (1657–1735)
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach
1723
Austrian architect (1656–1723)
Jean Jouvenet
1717
French painter (1644–1717)
Jan Luyken
1712
Dutch engraver (1649–1712)
Roger de Piles
1709
French artist (1635–1709)
Christian Henry, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach
1708
German prince
Christian Ulrich I, Duke of Württemberg-Oels
1704
Charles XI of Sweden
1697
King of Sweden from 1660 to 1697
George Savile, 1st Marquess of Halifax
1695
English statesman and writer (1633–1695)
Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans, Duchess of Montpensier
1693
La Grande Mademoiselle (1627–1693)
Philip William August, Count Palatine of Neuburg
1693
William Brouncker, 2nd Viscount Brouncker
1684
Anglo-Irish peer and mathematician (1620–1684)
Karl Eusebius, Prince of Liechtenstein
1684
Prince of Liechtenstein from 1627 to 1684
Anne Geneviève de Bourbon
1679
Duchess of Longueville
François Caron
1673
French explorer (1600–1673)
Anna Koltovskaya
1626
Tsaritsa of Russia in 1572
Alonso Lobo
1617
Spanish composer
Diana Scultori
1612
Italian sculptor (1547–1612)
John Stow
1605
16th-century English historian and antiquarian (1524–1605)
Catherine of Palma
1594
Spanish religious (1531–1574)
Jan Matthys
1534
Dutch Anabaptist leader (c. 1500–1534)
Lazzaro Bastiani
1512
Italian painter (1429–1512)
Bernard I, Margrave of Baden-Baden
1431
Vincent Ferrer
1419
Valencian Dominican friar (1350–1419)
Ralph de Monthermer, 1st Baron Monthermer
1325
English nobleman (c. 1270–1325)
Ivan Kőszegi
1308
Lord in the Kingdom of Hungary at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries
Juliana of Liège
1258
Mystic and saint
Isabella I of Jerusalem
1205
Queen of Jerusalem (r. 1190/1192–1205)
Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Provence
1183
Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester
1168
English nobleman (1104-1168)
Al-Mu'tadid
902
16th Abbasid Caliph (r. 892–902)
Ruadhán of Lorrha
584
Irish abbot and saint
Eutychius of Constantinople
582
Patriarch of Constantinople from 552 to 565 and from 577 to 582
Timothy I of Constantinople
517
Patriarch of Constantinople from 511 to 518