April 21 Birthday
April 21, 753 BCE is the traditional date of the founding of Rome. According to legend, twin brothers Romulus and Remus, sons of Mars and a Vestal Virgin, were abandoned as infants and suckled by a she-wolf. They were raised by a shepherd and grew up to found a city. They disagreed about which hill to build on, and Romulus killed Remus. The story is mythological, but it reveals something about how Romans understood themselves: their civilization was born in violence between brothers. The date was calculated by the Roman historian Varro in the 1st century BCE, working backward from the consul lists. Modern archaeology has found evidence of settlement on the Palatine Hill dating to approximately 1000 BCE, which does not match Varro's date. The Battle of San Jacinto was fought on April 21, 1836, near present-day Houston, Texas. General Sam Houston's army of 900 men surprised and defeated General Santa Anna's force of 1,400 in eighteen minutes. The Texans shouted "Remember the Alamo! Remember Goliad!" and killed 630 Mexican soldiers while losing nine of their own. Santa Anna was captured the next day, disguised as a private. Houston forced him to sign the Treaties of Velasco, which recognized Texas independence. The battle was so lopsided that its brevity became legendary — it is still the fastest decisive victory in military history. Texas was an independent nation for nine years before joining the United States in 1845. The Red Baron — Manfred von Richthofen — was shot down on April 21, 1918, over the Somme Valley in France. He was the greatest flying ace of World War I, with eighty confirmed kills. He painted his Fokker triplane red, which gave him his nickname. On April 21, he was pursuing a Sopwith Camel when a single bullet passed through his chest. He managed to land the plane before dying. The bullet is believed to have been fired from the ground by an Australian machine gunner, not by the pilot he was chasing. He was twenty-five. The Allies buried him with full military honors. Queen Elizabeth II was born on this day in 1926. She was not expected to be queen — her father was the second son of George V. When Edward VIII abdicated in 1936, her father became George VI and she became heir presumptive. She was twenty-five when she became queen. She reigned for seventy years and 214 days, the longest of any British monarch. She met thirteen US presidents, twelve British prime ministers, and fourteen popes. She never gave an interview. People born on April 21 fall under the zodiac sign of Taurus. The birthstone is Diamond and the birth flower is Daisy. Historical events on April 21 include 753 BCE: Traditional date of the founding of Rome by Romulus, 1836: Battle of San Jacinto — Texas wins independence from Mexico, 1918: Baron von Richthofen ("The Red Baron") shot down and killed over France. Famous people born on April 21 include Charlotte Brontë (1816), Queen Elizabeth II (1926), Iggy Pop (1947).