1194 King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.
1335 Otto the Merry, Duke of Austria, becomes Duke of Carinthia.
1519 Leonardo da Vinci (died), Italian painter, sculptor, and architect (born 1452)
1536 Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, is arrested and imprisoned on charges of adultery, incest, treason and witchcraft.
1559 John Knox returns from exile to Scotland to become the leader of the nascent Scottish Reformation.
1568 Mary, Queen of Scots, escapes from Loch Leven Castle.
1611 The King James Bible is published for the first time in London, England, by printer Robert Barker.
1660 Alessandro Scarlatti (born), Italian composer (died 1725)
1670 King Charles II of England grants a permanent charter to the Hudson’s Bay Company to open up the fur trade in North America.
1695 Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni (born), Italian-French decorator and architect (died 1766)
1729 Catherine the Great (born), Russian wife of Peter III of Russia (died 1796)
1750 John André (born), English soldier and spy (died 1780)
1752 Ludwig August Lebrun (born), German oboe player and composer (died 1790)
1797 Abraham Pineo Gesner (born), Canadian physician and geologist (died 1864)
1802 Heinrich Gustav Magnus (born), German chemist and physicist (died 1870)
1808 Emma Darwin (born), English wife of Charles Darwin (died 1896)
1808 Outbreak of the Peninsular War: The people of Madrid rise up in rebellion against French occupation. Francisco de Goya later memorializes this event in his painting The Second of May 1808.
1828 Désiré Charnay (born), French archaeologist (died 1915)
1829 After anchoring nearby, Captain Charles Fremantle of HMS Challenger, declares the Swan River Colony in Australia.
1860 John Scott Haldane (born), Scottish physiologist (died 1936)
1863 American Civil War: Stonewall Jackson is wounded by friendly fire while returning to camp after reconnoitering during the Battle of Chancellorsville. He succumbs to pneumonia eight days later.
1867 Giuseppe Morello (born), Italian-American mob boss (died 1930)
1880 Eberhard Anheuser (died), German-American businessman, co-founded Anheuser-Busch (born 1805)
1885 Cree and Assiniboine warriors win the Battle of Cut Knife, their largest victory over Canadian forces during the North-West Rebellion.
1885 Good Housekeeping magazine goes on sale for the first time.
1885 Hedda Hopper (born), American actress and columnist (died 1966)
1885 The Congo Free State is established by King Léopold II of Belgium.
1892 Manfred von Richthofen (born), German pilot and captain (died 1918)
1894 Joseph Henry Woodger (born), English biologist (died 1981)
1895 Lorenz Hart (born), American playwright and composer (died 1943)
1898 Henry Hall (born), English bandleader, composer, and actor (died 1989)
1903 Benjamin Spock (born), American rower, pediatrician, and author (died 1998)
1907 Pinky Lee (born), American comedian and television host (died 1993)
1912 Axel Springer (born), German journalist and publisher, founded Axel Springer AG (died 1985)
1918 General Motors acquires the Chevrolet Motor Company of Delaware.
1920 The first game of the Negro National League baseball is played in Indianapolis.
1924 Theodore Bikel (born), Austrian-American actor and singer
1927 Ernest Starling (died), English physiologist (born 1866)
1929 Link Wray (born), American singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2005)
1932 Comedian Jack Benny’s radio show airs for the first time.
1936 Engelbert Humperdinck (born), Indian-English singer
1936 Michael Rabin (born), American violinist (died 1972)
1941 Tony Adamowicz (born), American race car driver
1944 Bob Henrit (born), English drummer (Argent, The Roulettes, The Kinks, and Unit 4 + 2)
1945 Bianca Jagger (born), Nicaraguan-English actress, model, and activist
1945 Goldy McJohn (born), Canadian keyboard player (Steppenwolf, The Mynah Birds, and The Sparrows)
1945 Judge Dread (born), English singer-songwriter (died 1998)
1945 World War II: Fall of Berlin: The Soviet Union announces the capture of Berlin and Soviet soldiers hoist their red flag over the Reichstagbuilding.
1946 Lesley Gore (born), American singer
1946 Peter L. Benson (born), American psychologist (died 2011)
1946 The “Battle of Alcatraz” takes place; two guards and three inmates are killed.
1948 Larry Gatlin (born) American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (The Imperials)
1949 Alan Titchmarsh (born), English gardener and author
1950 Lou Gramm (born), American singer-songwriter (Foreigner and Shadow King)
1951 John Glascock (born), English singer and bass player (Jethro Tull, Carmen, The Gods, and Chicken Shack) (died 1979)
1952 The world’s first ever jet airliner, the De Havilland Comet 1 makes its maiden flight, from London to Johannesburg.
1954 Stephen Venables (born), English mountaineer
1955 Donatella Versace (born), Italian fashion designer
1955 Tennessee Williams wins the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
1957 Joseph McCarthy (died), American politician (born 1908)
1960 Caryl Chessman (died), American criminal (born 1921)
1961 Phil Vickery (born), English chef and author
1964 First ascent of Shishapangma the fourteenth highest mountain in the world and the lowest of the Eight-thousanders.
1964 Nancy Astor (died), Viscountess Astor, American-English politician (born 1879)
1964 Vietnam War: An explosion sinks the USS Card while it is docked at Saigon. Viet Cong forces are suspected of placing a bomb on the ship. She is raised and returned to service less than 7 months later.
1967 Mika Brzezinski (born), American journalist
1968 Harri Moora (died), Estonian archeologist (born 1900)
1969 The British ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 departs on her maiden voyage to New York City.
1972 Dwayne Johnson (born), American actor, professional wrestler and producer
1972 J. Edgar Hoover (died), American 1st director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (born 1895)
1975 David Beckham (born), English footballer, coach, and model
1982 Falklands War: The British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror sinks the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano.
1983 Norm Van Brocklin (died), American football player and coach (born 1926)
1997 John Eccles (died), Australian neurophysiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1903)
1997 Paulo Freire (died), Brazilian philosopher and educator (born 1921)
1998 The European Central Bank is founded in Brussels in order to define and execute the European Union’s monetary policy.
1999 Panamanian election, 1999: Mireya Moscoso becomes the first woman to be elected President of Panama.
2000 President Bill Clinton announces that accurate GPS access would no longer be restricted to the United States military.
2004 Yelwa massacre: more than 630 nomad Muslims are killed by Christians in Nigeria.
2008 Chaitén Volcano begins erupting in Chile, forcing the evacuation of more than 4,500 people.
2008 Cyclone Nargis makes landfall in Burma killing over 138,000 people and leaving millions of people homeless.
2010 Lynn Redgrave (died), English-American actress (born 1943)
2011 Osama bin Laden (died), Saudi Arabian terrorist, founded Al-Qaeda (born 1957)
2012 A pastel version of The Scream, by Norwegian painter Edvard Munch, sells for $120 million in a New York City auction, setting a new world record for a work of art at auction.
2012 Junior Seau (died), American football player (born 1969)
EO Smith
Latest posts by EO Smith (see all)
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