* 1399 – Henry IV is proclaimed King of England.
* 1744 – France and Spain defeat the Kingdom of Sardinia at the Battle of Madonna dell’Olmo.
* 1791 – The Magic Flute, the last opera composed by Mozart, receives its premiere performance at Freihaus-Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna, Austria.
* 1791 – The National Constituent Assembly in Paris is dissolved; Parisians hail Maximilien Robespierre and Jérôme Pétion as “incorruptible patriots”.
* 1813 – Battle of Bárbula: Simón Bolívar defeats Santiago Bobadilla.
* 1860 – Britain’s first tram service begins in Birkenhead, Merseyside.
* 1882 – The world’s first commercial hydroelectric power plant (later known as Appleton Edison Light Company) begins operation on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States.
* 1888 – Jack the Ripper kills his third and fourth victims, Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes.
* 1895 – Madagascar becomes a French protectorate.
* 1901 – Hubert Cecil Booth patents the vacuum cleaner.
* 1903 – The new Gresham’s School is officially opened by Field Marshal Sir Evelyn Wood.
* 1906 – The Real Academia Galega, Galician language’s biggest linguistic authority, starts working in Havana.
* 1927 – Babe Ruth becomes the first baseball player to hit 60 home runs in a season.
* 1931 – Start of “Die Voortrekkers” youth movement for Afrikaners in Bloemfontein, South Africa.
* 1935 – The Hoover Dam, astride the border between the U.S. states of Arizona and Nevada, is dedicated.
* 1938 – At 2:00 am, Britain, France, Germany and Italy sign the Munich Agreement, allowing Germany to occupy the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia.
* 1938 – The League of Nations unanimously outlaws “intentional bombings of civilian populations”.
* 1939 – General W?adys?aw Sikorski becomes commander-in-chief of the Polish Government in exile.
* 1941 – World War II: Holocaust in Kiev, Ukraine: German Einsatzgruppe C complete Babi Yar massacre.
* 1945 – The Bourne End rail crash, in Hertfordshire, England, kills 43
* 1947 – The Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Yemen join the United Nations.
* 1947 – The World Series, featuring the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers, is televised for the first time.
* 1949 – The Berlin Airlift ends.
* 1954 – The U.S. Navy submarine USS Nautilus is commissioned as the world’s first nuclear reactor powered vessel.
* 1955 – Film star James Dean dies in a road accident aged 24.
* 1962 – Mexican-American labor leader César Chávez founds the United Farm Workers.
* 1962 – James Meredith enters the University of Mississippi, defying segregation.
* 1965 – General Suharto rises to power after an alleged coup by the Communist Party of Indonesia. In response, Suharto and his army massacre over a million Indonesians suspected of being communists.
* 1965 – The Lockheed L-100, the civilian version of the C-130 Hercules, is introduced.
* 1966 – The British protectorate of Bechuanaland declares its independence, and becomes the Republic of Botswana. Seretse Khama takes office as the first President.
* 1967 – BBC Radio 1 is launched and Tony Blackburn presents its first show; the BBC’s other national radio stations also adopt numeric names.
* 1968 – The Boeing 747 is rolled out and shown to the public for the first time at the Boeing Everett Factory.
* 1970 – Jordan makes a deal with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) for the release of the remaining hostages from the Dawson’s Field hijackings.
* 1972 – Roberto Clemente records the 3,000th and final hit of his career.
* 1975 – The Hughes (later McDonnell-Douglas, now Boeing) AH-64 Apache makes its first flight.
* 1977 – Because of US budget cuts and dwindling power reserves, the Apollo program’s ALSEP experiment packages left on the Moon are shut down.
* 1979 – The Hong Kong MTR commences service with the opening of its Modified Initial System (aka. Kwun Tong Line).
* 1980 – Ethernet specifications are published by Xerox working with Intel and Digital Equipment Corporation.
* 1982 – Cyanide-laced Tylenol kills six people in the Chicago area. Seven are killed in all.
* 1986 – Mordechai Vanunu, who revealed details of Israel’s covert nuclear program to British media, is kidnapped in Rome, Italy by the Israeli Mossad.
* 1990 – The Dalai Lama unveils the Canadian Tribute to Human Rights in Canada’s capital city of Ottawa.
* 1991 – President Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti is forced from office.
* 1993 – An earthquake hits India’s Latur and Osmanabad district of Marathwada (Aurangabad division) in Maharashtra state leaving tens of thousands of people dead and many more homeless.
* 1994 – Aldwych tube station (originally Strand Station) of the London Underground closes after eighty-eight years of service.
* 1999 – Japan’s worst nuclear accident at a uranium reprocessing facility in T?kai-mura, northeast of Tokyo.
* 2004 – The first images of a live giant squid in its natural habitat are taken 600 miles south of Tokyo.
* 2004 – The AIM-54 Phoenix, the primary missile for the F-14 Tomcat, is retired from service. Almost two years later, the Tomcat is retired.
* 2005 – The controversial drawings of Muhammad are printed in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten.
Histories of 30 September (Events)
Histories of 30 September (Deaths)
* 420 – Saint Jerome, translator of the Vulgate Bible
* 653 – Saint Honorius, Archbishop of Canterbury
* 1101 – Anselm IV, Archbishop of Milan
* 1246 – Yaroslav II of Russia (b. 1191)
* 1440 – Reginald Grey, 3rd Baron Grey de Ruthyn, English soldier and politician
* 1487 – John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (b. 1400)
* 1551 – ?uchi Yoshitaka, Japanese warlord (b. 1507)
* 1560 – Melchior Cano, Spanish theologian (b. 1525)
* 1572 – St. Francis Borgia, Jesuit priest (b. 1510)
* 1581 – Hubert Languet, French diplomat and reformer (b. 1518)
* 1626 – Nurhaci, Manchurian chief (b. 1559)
* 1628 – Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, English poet (b. 1554)
* 1770 – Thomas Robinson, 1st Baron Grantham, English politician and diplomat
* 1770 – George Whitefield, English-born Methodist leader (b. 1714)
* 1772 – James Brindley, English engineer (b. 1716)
* 1865 – Samuel David Luzzatto, Italian-Jewish scholar (b. 1800)
* 1888 – Elizabeth Stride, widely believed to be the third victim of Jack the Ripper (b. 1843)
* 1888 – Catherine Eddowes, widely believed to be the fourth victim of Jack the Ripper (b. 1842)
* 1891 – Georges Boulanger, French general and politician (b. 1837)
* 1897 – St Therese of Lisieux, Roman Catholic saint and mystic (b. 1873)
* 1910 – Maurice Lévy, French engineer (b. 1838)
* 1913 – Rudolf Diesel, German inventor (b. 1858)
* 1941 – Alice de Janzé, American heiress (b. 1899)
* 1942 – Hans-Joachim Marseille, German fighter pilot (b. 1919)
* 1943 – Franz Oppenheimer, German sociologist (b. 1864)
* 1955 – James Dean, American actor (automobile accident) (b. 1931)
* 1961 – Onésime Gagnon, French Canadian politician, lieutenant-governor of Quebec (b. 1888)
* 1973 – Peter Pitseolak, Inuit photographer and author (b. 1902)
* 1974 – Carlos Prats, Chilean Constitutionalist General, assassinated in the frame of Operation Condor (b. 1915)
* 1977 – Mary Ford, American singer (Les Paul and Mary Ford) (b. 1924)
* 1978 – Edgar Bergen, American actor and ventriloquist (b. 1903)
* 1985 – Simone Signoret, French actress (b. 1921)
* 1985 – Charles Richter, American seismologist (b. 1900)
* 1988 – Al Holbert, American race car driver and team owner (b. 1946)
* 1989 – Virgil Thomson, American composer (b. 1896)
* 1990 – Patrick White, Australian writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1912)
* 1990 – Alice Parizeau, Quebec writer and journalist (b. 1930)
* 1990 – Rob Moroso, American NASCAR driver (b. 1968)
* 1991 – Toma Zdravkovi?, Serbian folk singer (b. 1938)
* 1994 – Andre Michael Lwoff, French microbiologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1902)
* 1995 – Jean-Luc Pépin, Canadian academic and politician (b. 1924)
* 1998 – Dan Quisenberry, American baseball player (b. 1953)
* 2002 – Hans-Peter Tschudi, Swiss Federal Councilor (b. 1913)
* 2002 – Göran Kropp, Swedish adventurer and mountaineer (b. 1966)
* 2003 – Yusuf Bey, Black Muslim leader (b. 1935)
* 2003 – Robert Kardashian, Armenian-American lawyer (b. 1944)
* 2004 – Gamini Fonseka, Sri Lankan actor (b. 1936)
* 2004 – Michael Relph, British film producer and director (b. 1915)
* 2004 – Jacques Levy, Jewish American songwriter, theatre director, and clinical psychologist (b. 1935)
* 2008 – Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam, Singaporean politician, former Secretary-General of Workers’ Party of Singapore (b. 1926)
Histories of 30 September (Births)
* 1207 – Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, Persian mystic and poet (d. 1273)
* 1227 – Pope Nicholas IV (d. 1292)
* 1530 – Geronimo Mercuriali, Italian philologist and physician (d. 1606)
* 1550 – Michael Maestlin, German mathematician (d. 1631)
* 1631 – William Stoughton, American judge at the Salem witch trials (d. 1701)
* 1700 – Stanis?aw Konarski, Polish writer (d. 1773)
* 1710 – John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford, British statesman (d. 1771)
* 1715 – Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, French philosopher (d. 1780)
* 1732 – Jacques Necker, French finance minister of Louis XVI (d. 1804)
* 1765 – José María Morelos, Mexican revolutionary (d. 1815)
* 1800 – Decimus Burton, British architect (d. 1881)
* 1811 – Augusta of Saxe-Weimar, Queen of Prussia and German Empress (d. 1890)
* 1827 – Ellis H. Roberts, American politician (d. 1918)
* 1832 – Anna Maria Reeves Jarvis, American labor activist (d. 1905)
* 1852 – Charles Villiers Stanford, Irish composer, resident in England (d. 1924)
* 1861 – William Wrigley, Jr., American industrialist (Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company) (d. 1932)
* 1870 – Jean Baptiste Perrin, French physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1942)
* 1870 – Thomas W. Lamont, American banker; father of Corliss Lamont; great-grandfather of Ned Lamont (d. 1948)
* 1882 – Hans Geiger, German physicist (d. 1945)
* 1883 – Bernhard Rust, Nazi education minister (d. 1945)
* 1887 – Lil Dagover, Dutch-born German actress (d. 1980)
* 1893 – Lansdale Sasscer, American politician (d. 1964)
* 1895 – Lewis Milestone, Russian-born film director (d. 1980)
* 1897 – Alfred Wintle, British WW1 & WW2 soldier; author of “The Last Englishman” (d. 1966)
* 1898 – Renée Adorée, French actress (d. 1933)
* 1898 – Orestis Makris, Greek actor (d. 1975)
* 1898 – Princess Charlotte of Monaco (d. 1977)
* 1904 – Waldo Williams, Welsh poet (d. 1971)
* 1905 – Nevill Francis Mott, English physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1996)
* 1906 – Mireille Hartuch, French singer, composer and actress (d. 1996)
* 1908 – David Oistrakh, Ukrainian violinist (d. 1974)
* 1910 – Jussi Kekkonen, Finnish major (d. 1962)
* 1912 – Kenny Baker, American singer and actor (d. 1985)
* 1913 – Bill Walsh, American film producer and writer (d. 1975)
* 1915 – Lester Maddox, American businessman, one-time segregationist and Governor of Georgia (d. 2003)
* 1917 – Park Chunghee, President of South Korea (d. 1979)
* 1917 – Buddy Rich, American big band jazz drummer (d. 1987)
* 1918 – Lewis Nixon, WWII Veteran (d. 1995)
* 1918 – René Rémond, French historian and political economist (d. 2007)
* 1919 – Roberto Bonomi, Argentine racing driver (d. 1992)
* 1919 – Patricia Neway, American soprano
* 1920 – Aldo Parisot, Brazilian-American musician and cellist
* 1921 – Deborah Kerr, Scottish actress (d. 2007)
* 1922 – Alan Stretton, Australian general
* 1924 – Truman Capote, American author (d. 1984)
* 1926 – Robin Roberts, American baseball player (d. 2010)
* 1927 – W. S. Merwin, American poet
* 1928 – Elie Wiesel, Romanian Holocaust survivor, author, and lecturer, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize
* 1929 – Vassilis Papazachos, Greek seismologist
* 1931 – Angie Dickinson, American actress
* 1932 – Shintar? Ishihara, Japanese author and politician (Governor of Tokyo)
* 1932 – Johnny Podres, American baseball player (d. 2008)
* 1933 – Cissy Houston, American gospel/r&b singer
* 1933 – Barbara Knox, English actress
* 1934 – Alan A’Court, English footballer (d. 2009)
* 1934 – Udo Jürgens, Austrian singer
* 1934 – Anna Kashfi, Welsh actress
* 1935 – Johnny Mathis, American singer
* 1935 – Z. Z. Hill, American blues singer (d. 1984)
* 1937 – Valentin Silvestrov, Ukrainian composer
* 1937 – Jurek Becker, German author.
* 1939 – Jean-Marie Lehn, French chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
* 1939 – Len Cariou, Canadian actor
* 1940 – Dewey Martin, Canadian rock musician (Buffalo Springfield) (d. 2009)
* 1940 – Samuel F. Pickering, Jr., American author and professor
* 1942 – Frankie Lymon, American singer (d. 1968)
* 1943 – Johann Deisenhofer, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
* 1943 – Marilyn McCoo, American singer (The 5th Dimension)
* 1943 – Ian Ogilvy, British Actor
* 1944 – Diane Dufresne, French Canadian singer
* 1944 – Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish, Celtic footballer
* 1944 – Red Robbins, American basketball player (d. 2009)
* 1945 – Ehud Olmert, twelfth Prime Minister of Israel
* 1945 – Bob Lassiter, American radio personality
* 1946 – Paul Sheahan, Australian test cricketer 1967-1974
* 1946 – Héctor Lavoe, Puerto Rican singer (d. 1993)
* 1946 – Jochen Mass, German race car driver
* 1946 – Claude Vorilhon, founder of Raelism, a UFO religion
* 1946 – Fran Brill, American actress, voice actress and puppeteer
* 1947 – Marc Bolan, English musician (T. Rex) (d. 1977)
* 1947 – Rula Lenska, English actress
* 1948 – Craig Kusick, American baseball player
* 1950 – Renato Zero, Italian musician
* 1951 – Barry Marshall, Australian physician, Nobel laureate
* 1952 – Jack Wild, British actor (d. 2006)
* 1953 – Deborah Allen, American singer
* 1953 – S. M. Stirling, Canadian-born author
* 1954 – Basia Trzetrzelewska, Polish-born singer and songwriter
* 1954 – Barry Williams, American actor
* 1954 – Patrice Rushen, American musician
* 1957 – Fran Drescher, American actress
* 1958 – Marty Stuart, American musician
* 1959 – Ettore Messina, Italian basketball coach
* 1960 – Blanche Lincoln, American politician
* 1961 – Eric Stoltz, American actor
* 1961 – Crystal Bernard, American actress
* 1961 – Eric van de Poele, Belgian racing driver
* 1961 – Sally Yeh, Hong Kong singer and actress
* 1962 – Frank Rijkaard, Dutch football player and manager
* 1962 – Marley Marl, American rapper and record producer
* 1963 – David Barbe, American musician (Sugar)
* 1964 – Monica Bellucci, Italian actress
* 1964 – Trey Anastasio, American musician (Phish)
* 1964 – Robby Takac, American singer and bassist (Goo Goo Dolls)
* 1965 – Kathleen Madigan, American comedian
* 1965 – Omid Djalili, British stand-up comedian and actor
* 1966 – Kerry G. Johnson, African American graphic designer and caricaturist
* 1966 – Gary Armstrong, Scotland rugby player
* 1969 – Chris Von Erich, American professional wrestler (d. 1991)
* 1969 – Mark Smith, English body builder, former Gladiators player
* 1970 – Tony Hale, American actor
* 1970 – Eric Piatkowski, American basketball player
* 1971 – Jenna Elfman, American actress
* 1972 – Ari Behn, Norwegian author
* 1972 – Shaan, Indian singer
* 1972 – John Campbell, American musician (Lamb of God)
* 1972 – Jamal Anderson, American football player
* 1974 – Jeremy Giambi, American baseball player
* 1974 – Daniel Wu, American-born Chinese film actor, director, and producer
* 1975 – Marion Cotillard, French actress
* 1975 – Carlos Guillén, Venezuelan baseball player
* 1975 – Georges-Alain Jones, French singer
* 1977 – Maia Brewton, American actress
* 1977 – Roy Carroll, Northern Irish footballer
* 1977 – Sun Jihai, Chinese footballer
* 1978 – Candice Michelle, American female wrestler
* 1978 – Róbinson Zapata, Colombian footballer (goalkeeper)
* 1979 – Andy van der Meyde, Dutch footballer
* 1979 – Clio-Danae Othoneou, Greek actress, musician and pianist
* 1979 – Vince Chong, Malaysian singer-songwriter
* 1979 – Cameron Bruce, Australian footballer
* 1980 – Camilla D’Errico, Canadian comic book artist and painter
* 1980 – Martina Hingis, Swiss tennis player
* 1981 – Cecelia Ahern, Irish author
* 1981 – Dominique Moceanu, American gymnast
* 1981 – Brandon Watson, American baseball player
* 1982 – Seth Smith, American baseball player
* 1982 – Lacey Chabert, American actress
* 1982 – Kieran Culkin, American actor
* 1982 – Ola Jordan, Professional dancer
* 1982 – Tory Lane, American nude model, exotic dancer, and pornographic actress
* 1982 – Michelle Marsh, British model
* 1982 – Teal Redmann, American actress
* 1982 – Yan Stastny, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1982 – Ryan Stout, American comedian
* 1982 – Ryane Clowe Canadian ice hockey player
* 1983 – Andreea R?ducan, Romanian gymnast
* 1983 – Adam Jones, American football player
* 1985 – T-Pain, American musician
* 1985 – Adam Cooney, Australian footballer
* 1986 – Martin Guptill, New Zealand cricketer
* 1986 – Quinn Johnson, American football player
* 1986 – Cemil Mengi, Turkish footballer
* 1986 – Rene Ranger, New Zealand rugby player
* 1986 – Christian Zapata, Colombian footballer
* 1987 – Denise Laurel, Filipino actress and singer