Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on April 21st?

The traditional date for the founding of Rome. The city and surrounding region of Latium has continued to be inhabited with little interruption since around that time. According to tradition, Rome was founded by Romulus and Remus in 753 BC. They were twin brothers, sons of a human mother and the god of war, Mars. After their birth, the king ordered them killed. They were placed in a basket and put into the Tiber River - left to die from exposure in the outdoors. Instead of drowning, the twins' basket washed ashore, where they were found and nursed by a she-wolf (lupa). Later, they were discovered and raised by a shepherd, Faustulus, and his wife. More

Battle of Bremule: Henry I of England defeats Louis VI of France. More

Henry VIII becomes King of England after the death of his father, Henry VII.

The First Battle of Panipat was a decisive victory for Babur's forces against Ibrahim Lodi, the Sultan of Delhi, in North India. This battle is significant as it marked the end of the Delhi Sultanate and the beginning of Mughal rule. Babur's smaller, yet well-organized army, utilized gunpowder firearms and cannons, a tactic that was relatively new to the Indian subcontinent. More

The Battle of San Jacinto takes place, leading to the Texan victory over Mexico and the capture of General Santa Anna.

Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen, the German flying ace known as the "Red Baron" is killed in action near Vaux-sur-Sommeon. He is considered the ace-of-aces of the war, being officially credited with 80 air combat victories. Richthofen was regarded as a national hero in Germany, and respected by his enemies. Who shot down and killed Richtofen is still today a subject of debate. More

The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, was the most destructive flood in United States history. It extended across Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. The flood was caused by persistent, multi - month, heavy rainfall across the Central U.S. The unprecedented amounts of run-off from the different tributaries overwhelmed the levees. For Mississippi, the most significant flooding occurred on April 21st when the Mounds Landing levee, broke. In only ten days, one million acres across the Mississippi Delta Region were immersed under water at least 10 feet deep. The impact across several States was tremendous, causing 246 flood-related deaths, over 700,000 homeless, in several states and 27,000 square miles inundated. The monetary cost was over $400 million dollars, equivalent to over $5 billion dollars today. More