Events
in 1241
Mongol forces defeat the Polish and German armies.
The Battle of Legnica, also known as the Battle of Liegnitz or Battle of Wahlstatt, was a battle between the Mongol Empire and the combined defending forces of European fighters that took place at Legnickie Pole (Wahlstatt) near the city of Legnica in Silesia on 9 April 1241. A combined force of Poles, Czechs and Germans under the command of the Polish duke Henry II the Pious of Silesia, supported by feudal nobility and a few knights from military orders sent by the Pope, attempted to halt the Mongol invasion of Europe. The battle came two days before the Mongol victory over the Hungarians at the much larger Battle of Mohi.
battle,
Legnica
in 1682
Robert Cavelier de La Salle discovers the mouth of the Mississippi River, claims it for France and names it Louisiana.
In 1682 La Salle departed from present-day Fort Wayne with 18 Indians and canoed down the Mississippi River. He named the Mississippi basin La Louisiane in honor of Louis XIV and claimed it for France. At what later became the site of Memphis, Tennessee, La Salle built the small Fort Prudhomme. On April 9, 1682, at the mouth of the Mississippi River near modern Venice, Louisiana, La Salle buried an engraved plate and a cross, claiming the territory for France.
Louisiana,
Mississippi River
in 1967
The first Boeing 737 (a 100 series) makes its maiden flight.
The first of six -100 prototypes rolled out in December 1966, and made its maiden flight on 9 April 1967 piloted by Brien Wygle and Lew Wallick. On December 15, 1967 the Federal Aviation Administration certified the -100 for commercial flight, issuing Type Certificate A16WE. The 737 was the first aircraft to have, as part of its initial certification, approval for Category II approaches.Lufthansa received their first aircraft on December 28, 1967 and on February 10, 1968 became the first non-American airline to launch a new Boeing aircraft. Lufthansa was the only significant customer to purchase the 737-100. Only 30 aircraft were ever produced.
Boeing 737,
first flight
Births
in 1872
André Léon Blum was a French politician, usually identified with the moderate left, and three times Prime Minister of France.

in 1933
Jean-Paul Belmondo is a French actor initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s.
Deaths
in 1553
François Rabelais was a major French Renaissance writer, doctor, Renaissance humanist, monk and Greek scholar. He has historically been regarded as a writer of fantasy, satire, the grotesque, bawdy jokes and songs. His best known work is
Gargantua and Pantagruel.

in 2011
Sidney Lumet was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his credit. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for
12 Angry Men (1957),
Dog Day Afternoon (1975),
Network (1976) and
The Verdict (1982). He did not win an individual Academy Award, but he did receive an Academy Honorary Award and 14 of his films were nominated for various Oscars, such as
Network, which was nominated for 10, winning 4.