February 4
Events
Pre–1600
- 211 - Following the death of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus at Eboracum while preparing to lead a campaign against the Caledonians, the empire is left in the control of his two quarrelling sons, Caracalla and Geta, whom he had instructed to make peace.
- 960 - Zhao Kuangyin declares himself Emperor Taizu of Song, ending the Later Zhou and beginning the Song dynasty.
- 1169 - A strong earthquake strikes the Ionian coast of Sicily, causing tens of thousands of injuries and deaths, especially in Catania.
- 1454 - Thirteen Years' War: The Secret Council of the Prussian Confederation sends a formal act of disobedience to the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, sparking the Thirteen Years' War.
- 1555 - John Rogers is burned at the stake, becoming the first English Protestant martyr under Mary I of England.
1601–1900
- 1703 - In Edo, all but one of the Forty-seven Ronin commit seppuku as recompense for avenging their master's death.
- 1758 - The city of Macapá in Brazil is founded by Sebastião Veiga Cabral.
- 1789 - George Washington is unanimously elected as the first President of the United States by the U.S. Electoral College.
- 1794 - The French legislature abolishes slavery throughout all territories of the French First Republic. It would be reestablished in the French West Indies in 1802.
- 1797 - The Riobamba earthquake strikes Ecuador, causing up to 40,000 casualties.
- 1801 - John Marshall is sworn in as Chief Justice of the United States.
- 1810 - Napoleonic Wars: Britain seizes Guadeloupe.
- 1820 - The Chilean Navy under the command of Lord Cochrane completes the two-day long Capture of Valdivia with just 300 men and two ships.
- 1825 - The Ohio Legislature authorizes the construction of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the Miami and Erie Canal.
- 1846 - The first Mormon pioneers make their exodus from Nauvoo, Illinois, westward towards Salt Lake Valley.
- 1859 - The Codex Sinaiticus is discovered in Egypt.
- 1861 - American Civil War: In Montgomery, Alabama, delegates from six breakaway U.S. states meet and initiate the process that would form the Confederate States of America on February 8.
- 1899 - The Philippine–American War begins when four Filipino soldiers enter the "American Zone" in Manila, igniting the Battle of Manila.
1901–present
- 1932 - Second Sino-Japanese War: Harbin, Manchuria, falls to Japan.
- 1938 - Adolf Hitler appoints himself as head of the Armed Forces High Command.
- 1941 - The United Service Organization is created to entertain American troops.
- 1945 - World War II: Santo Tomas Internment Camp is liberated from Japanese authority.
- 1945 - World War II: The Yalta Conference between the "Big Three" opens at the Livadia Palace in the Crimea.
- 1945 - World War II: The British Indian Army and Imperial Japanese Army begin a series of battles known as the Battle of Pokoku and Irrawaddy River operations.
- 1948 - Ceylon becomes independent within the British Commonwealth.
- 1961 - The Angolan War of Independence and the greater Portuguese Colonial War begin.
- 1966 - All Nippon Airways Flight 60 plunges into Tokyo Bay, killing 133.
- 1967 - Lunar Orbiter program: Lunar Orbiter 3 lifts off from Cape Canaveral's Launch Complex 13 on its mission to identify possible landing sites for the Surveyor and Apollo spacecraft.
- 1974 - The Symbionese Liberation Army kidnaps Patty Hearst in Berkeley, California.
- 1974 - M62 coach bombing: The Provisional Irish Republican Army explodes a bomb on a bus carrying off-duty British Armed Forces personnel in Yorkshire, England. Nine soldiers and three civilians are killed.
- 1975 - Haicheng earthquake occurs in Haicheng, Liaoning, China.
- 1976 - In Guatemala and Honduras an earthquake kills more than 22,000.
- 1977 - A Chicago Transit Authority elevated train rear-ends another and derails, killing 11 and injuring 180, the worst accident in the agency's history.
- 1992 - A coup d'état is led by Hugo Chávez against Venezuelan President Carlos Andrés Pérez.
- 1997 - En route to Lebanon, two Israeli Sikorsky CH-53 troop-transport helicopters collide in mid-air over northern Galilee, Israel, killing 73.
- 1997 - The Bojnurd earthquake measuring 6.5 strikes Iran. With a Mercalli intensity of VIII, it kills at least 88 and damages 173 villages.
- 1998 - The 5.9 Afghanistan earthquake shakes the Takhar Province with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII. With 2,323 killed, and 818 injured, damage is considered extreme.
- 1999 - Unarmed West African immigrant Amadou Diallo is shot 41 times by four plainclothes New York City police officers on an unrelated stake-out, inflaming race relations in the city.
- 2000 - The World Summit Against Cancer for the New Millennium, Charter of Paris is signed by the President of France, Jacques Chirac and the Director General of UNESCO, Koichiro Matsuura, initiating World Cancer Day which is held on February 4 every year.
- 2003 - The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia adopts a new constitution, becoming a loose confederacy between Montenegro and Serbia.
- 2004 - Facebook, a mainstream online social networking site, is founded by Mark Zuckerberg and Eduardo Saverin.
- 2008 - Civic mobilizations in Colombia against FARC, under the name A million voices against the FARC.
- 2015 - TransAsia Airways Flight 235, with 58 people on board, en route from the Taiwanese capital Taipei to Kinmen, crashes into the Keelung River just after takeoff, killing 43 people.
- 2020 - The COVID-19 pandemic causes all casinos in Macau to be closed down for 15 days.
- 2025 - Ten people are killed in a mass shooting at an adult education centre in Örebro, Sweden.
Births
Pre–1600
- 1447 - Lodovico Lazzarelli, Italian poet
- 1495 - Francesco II Sforza, Duke of Milan
- 1495 - Jean Parisot de Valette, Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller
- 1505 - Mikołaj Rej, Polish poet and author
- 1575 - Pierre de Bérulle, French cardinal and theologian, founded the French school of spirituality
1601–1900
- 1646 - Hans Erasmus Aßmann, German poet and politician
- 1677 - Johann Ludwig Bach, German violinist and composer
- 1688 - Pierre de Marivaux, French author and playwright
- 1725 - Dru Drury, English entomologist and author
- 1740 - Carl Michael Bellman, Swedish poet and composer
- 1778 - Augustin Pyramus de Candolle, Swiss botanist, mycologist, and academic
- 1799 - Almeida Garrett, Portuguese journalist and author
- 1803 - Antonija Höffern, Slovenian noblewoman
- 1818 - Emperor Norton, San Francisco eccentric and visionary
- 1831 - Oliver Ames, American financier and politician, 35th Governor of Massachusetts
- 1848 - Jean Aicard, French poet, author, and playwright
- 1849 - Jean Richepin, French poet, author, and playwright
- 1862 - Édouard Estaunié, French novelist
- 1865 - Abe Isoo, Japanese minister and politician
- 1868 - Constance Markievicz, Irish revolutionary and first woman elected to the UK House of Commons
- 1869 - Bill Haywood, American labor organizer
- 1871 - Friedrich Ebert, German lawyer and politician, first President of Germany
- 1872 - Gotse Delchev, Bulgarian and Macedonian revolutionary activist
- 1873 - Étienne Desmarteau, Canadian shot putter and discus thrower
- 1875 - Ludwig Prandtl, German physicist and engineer
- 1877 - Eddie Cochems, American football player and coach
- 1879 - Varia Kipiani, Georgian scientist
- 1881 - Eulalio Gutiérrez, Mexican general and politician, President of Mexico
- 1881 - Fernand Léger, French painter and sculptor
- 1881 - Kliment Voroshilov, Soviet politician and Marshal of the Soviet Union, People's Commissar for Defence
- 1883 - Reinhold Rudenberg, German-American inventor and a pioneer of electron microscopy
- 1891 - M. A. Ayyangar, Indian lawyer and politician, second Speaker of the Lok Sabha
- 1892 - E. J. Pratt, Canadian poet and academic
- 1893 - Raymond Dart, Australian paleoanthropologist
- 1895 - Nigel Bruce, English actor
- 1896 - Friedrich Glauser, Austrian-Swiss author
- 1896 - Friedrich Hund, German physicist and academic
- 1897 - Ludwig Erhard, German soldier and politician, second Chancellor of West Germany
- 1899 - Virginia M. Alexander, American physician and founder of the Aspiranto Health Home
- 1900 - Jacques Prévert, French poet and screenwriter
1901–present
- 1902 - Charles Lindbergh, American pilot and explorer
- 1902 - Hartley Shawcross, Baron Shawcross, German-English lawyer and politician, Attorney General for England and Wales
- 1903 - Alexander Imich, Polish-American chemist, parapsychologist, and academic
- 1904 - MacKinlay Kantor, American author and screenwriter
- 1904 - Deng Yingchao, Chinese politician, Chairwoman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
- 1905 - Hylda Baker, English comedian, actress and music hall performer
- 1906 - Dietrich Bonhoeffer, German pastor and theologian
- 1906 - Letitia Dunbar-Harrison, Irish librarian
- 1906 - Clyde Tombaugh, American astronomer and academic, discovered Pluto
- 1908 - Julian Bell, English poet and academic
- 1912 - Ola Skjåk Bræk, Norwegian banker and politician, Norwegian Minister of Industry
- 1912 - Erich Leinsdorf, Austrian-American conductor
- 1912 - Byron Nelson, American golfer and sportscaster
- 1913 - Rosa Parks, American civil rights activist
- 1914 - Alfred Andersch, German-Swiss author and publisher
- 1915 - William Talman, American actor and screenwriter
- 1915 - Norman Wisdom, English comedian, actor and singer-songwriter
- 1917 - Yahya Khan, Pakistan general and politician, third President of Pakistan
- 1918 - Ida Lupino, English-American actress and director
- 1918 - Luigi Pareyson, Italian philosopher and author
- 1920 - Janet Waldo, American actress and voice artist
- 1921 - Betty Friedan, American author and feminist
- 1921 - Lotfi Zadeh, Iranian-American mathematician and computer scientist and founder of fuzzy logic
- 1922 - Bhimsen Joshi, Indian vocalist of the Hindustani classical music tradition
- 1923 - Conrad Bain, Canadian-American actor
- 1925 - Russell Hoban, American author and illustrator
- 1925 - Stanley Karnow, American journalist and historian
- 1925 - Christopher Zeeman, English mathematician and academic
- 1926 - Gyula Grosics, Hungarian footballer and manager
- 1927 - Rolf Landauer, German-American physicist and academic
- 1928 - Oscar Cabalén, Argentinian racing driver
- 1928 - Osmo Antero Wiio, Finnish journalist, academic, and politician
- 1929 - Jerry Adler, American actor, director, and producer
- 1929 - Paul Burlison, American musician
- 1929 - Neil Johnston, American basketball player
- 1930 - Tibor Antalpéter, Hungarian volleyball player and diplomat, Hungarian Ambassador to the United Kingdom
- 1930 - Arthur E. Chase, American businessman and politician
- 1930 - Jim Loscutoff, American basketball player and coach
- 1931 - Isabel Perón, Argentinian dancer and politician, 41st President of Argentina
- 1932 - Robert Coover, American novelist
- 1935 - Wallis Mathias, Pakistani cricketer
- 1935 - Martti Talvela, Finnish opera singer
- 1935 - Collin Wilcox, American actress
- 1936 - David Brenner, American comedian, actor, and author
- 1936 - Gary Conway, American actor
- 1936 - Claude Nobs, Swiss businessman, founded the Montreux Jazz Festival
- 1937 - Birju Maharaj, Indian dancer, composer, singer and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance
- 1937 - David Newman, American director and screenwriter
- 1938 - Frank J. Dodd, American businessman and politician, president of the New Jersey Senate
- 1939 - Stan Lundine, American lawyer and politician, Lieutenant Governor of New York
- 1940 - George A. Romero, American director and producer
- 1940 - John Schuck, American actor
- 1941 - Russell Cooper, Australian politician, 33rd Premier of Queensland
- 1941 - Ron Rangi, New Zealand rugby player
- 1941 - Jiří Raška, Czech skier and coach
- 1941 - John Steel, English musician and songwriter
- 1943 - Alberto João Jardim, Portuguese journalist and politician, second President of the Regional Government of Madeira
- 1943 - Wanda Rutkiewicz, Lithuanian-Polish mountaineer
- 1943 - Ken Thompson, American computer scientist and programmer, co-developed the B programming language
- 1944 - Florence LaRue, American singer and actress
- 1944 - Alan Shields, American artist and ship captain
- 1947 - Dennis C. Blair, American admiral and politician, third Director of National Intelligence
- 1947 - Dan Quayle, American sergeant, lawyer, and politician, 44th Vice President of the United States
- 1948 - Alice Cooper, American singer-songwriter
- 1948 - Mienoumi Tsuyoshi, Japanese sumo wrestler
- 1949 - Michael Beck, American actor
- 1949 - Rasim Delić, Bosnian general
- 1951 - Patrick Bergin, Irish actor
- 1952 - Lisa Eichhorn, American actress, writer, and producer
- 1952 - Jenny Shipley, New Zealand politician, Prime Minister of New Zealand
- 1952 - Thomas Silverstein, American criminal and prisoner
- 1955 - Mikuláš Dzurinda, Slovak politician, Prime Minister of Slovakia
- 1957 - Matthew Cobb, British zoologist and author
- 1958 - Tomasz Pacyński, Polish journalist and author
- 1959 - Christian Schreier, German footballer and manager
- 1959 - Lawrence Taylor, American football player
- 1960 - Siobhan Dowd, English author and activist
- 1960 - Jonathan Larson, American lyricist, composer, and playwright
- 1961 - Denis Savard, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1962 - Clint Black, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1962 - Vern Fleming, American basketball player
- 1963 - Noodles, American musician and songwriter
- 1963 - Pirmin Zurbriggen, Swiss skier
- 1964 - Elke Philipp, German Paralympic equestrian
- 1965 - Jerome Brown, American football player
- 1966 - Viatcheslav Ekimov, Russian cyclist
- 1967 - Sergei Grinkov, Russian figure skater
- 1970 - Gabrielle Anwar, English-American actress
- 1970 - Hunter Biden, American attorney and lobbyist
- 1971 - Rob Corddry, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
- 1971 - Michael A. Goorjian, American actor, director, and writer
- 1972 - Giovanni, Brazilian footballer and manager
- 1972 - Dara Ó Briain, Irish comedian and television host
- 1973 - Oscar De La Hoya, American boxer
- 1975 - Natalie Imbruglia, Australian singer-songwriter and actress
- 1976 - Cam'ron, American rapper and actor
- 1977 - Gavin DeGraw, American singer-songwriter
- 1979 - Giorgio Pantano, Italian racing driver
- 1980 - Raimonds Vaikulis, Latvian basketball player
- 1981 - Jason Kapono, American basketball player
- 1981 - Johan Vansummeren, Belgian cyclist
- 1982 - Ivars Timermanis, Latvian basketball player
- 1983 - Hannibal Buress, American comedian and actor
- 1983 - Rebecca White, Australian politician
- 1984 - Doug Fister, American baseball player
- 1984 - Mauricio Pinilla, Chilean footballer
- 1986 - Maximilian Götz, German racing driver
- 1986 - Mahmudullah Riyad, Bangladeshi cricketer
- 1987 - Darren O'Dea, Irish footballer
- 1987 - Lucie Šafářová, Czech tennis player
- 1988 - Charlie Barnett, American actor
- 1988 - Carly Patterson, American gymnast and singer
- 1989 - Lavoy Allen, American basketball player
- 1996 - Mohamed Sherif, Egyptian footballer
- 1998 - Malik Monk, American basketball player
- 1998 - Maximilian Wöber, Austrian footballer
- 1999 - MJ Lenderman, American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist
- 2003 - Kyla Kenedy, American actress
- 2003 - Rasmus Højlund, Danish footballer