A closer look at key historic events that took place on April 30:
In 2013, Willem-Alexander becomes king of the Netherlands
His mother, Queen Beatrix, abdicated the throne after a 33 year reign.
King Willem-Alexander raises his right hand as he swears to uphold the Dutch constitution during his investiture ceremony next to Queen Maxima in the Nieuwe Kerk or New Church in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 30 April 2013. Royal Highness Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands in an official act on 30 April signed her abdication to leave the Dutch throne the same day. Dutch King Willem-Alexander becomes the first male monarch in the country in 123 years. EPA/LEX VAN LIESHOUT / POOL
North Vietnamese troops enter Saigon, ending the Vietnam War. (Photo by © Jacques Pavlovsky/Sygma/CORBIS/Sygma via Getty Images). Flickr
In 1945, Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun commit suicide
They were married less than 40 hours before shooting themselves in a bunker in Berlin, during the Russian invasion.
Original Caption: Adolf Hitler with Eva Braun. Undated Photo. Flickr
In 1900, Hawaii becomes a US territory
After the annexation of the island in 1898, US President William McKinley signed the Hawaiian Organic Act on April 30, transferring Hawaii’s sovereignty to the US and defining its territorial government.
Annexation of Hawaii. Raising the American flag at Iolani Palace, Annexation ceremony. Hawaii State Archives
In 1897, the electron is discovered
English physicist J.J. Thomson announced his discovery for which he was later awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
J. J. Thomson with his cathode-ray tube. Wikimedia Commons
George Washington by Rembrandt Peale (detail), 1795. Exhibited in the National Portrait Gallery, Washington, DC, USA. Wikimedia Commons
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