Today in History

Births On This Day, May 7th 🎂

1892 Josip Broz Tito
Yugoslav marshal, politician, 1st President of Yugoslavia

1861 Rabindranath Tagore
Indian author, poet, Nobel Prize laureate

1840 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Russian composer

1812 Robert Browning
English poet

1711 David Hume
Scottish economist, historian, philosopher

Deaths On This Day, May 7th 🪦

2011 Seve Ballesteros
Spanish golfer

1940 George Lansbury
English politician

1840 Caspar David Friedrich
German painter

1825 Antonio Salieri
Italian composer

973 Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
 

On This Day In History, May 9th

1984 Moscow announces that the USSR will not take part in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles
Several other countries, such as Cuba, Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Vietnam joined the boycott. 4 years earlier, the United States had not sent any athletes to the Summer Olympics in Moscow.

1978 Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler climb Mount Everest without an oxygen supply
Prior to the Italian and Austrian mountaineers' ascent, it was thought to be impossible to conquer the world's highest mountain without supplemental oxygen.

1970 The Beatles release the album Let It Be
The recording was the last studio album ever released by the legendary English rock band.

1927 The White Bird and its crew mysteriously disappear
French aviators, Charles Nungesser and François Coli, had taken off from Paris in their Levasseur PL.8 biplane in an attempt to make the first non-stop transatlantic flight. Their disappearance remains a mystery. Charles Lindbergh succeeded two weeks later.

1886 Coca-Cola is invented
According to legend, Dr. John Styth Pemberton, an Atlanta pharmacist, produced the syrup in a brass pot in his backyard. It was first intended as a patent medicine. Today, Coca-Cola is one of the world's most popular soft drinks and one of the most recognized trademarks.
 

Births On This Day, May 8th 🎂

1970 Naomi Klein
Canadian author, activist

1945 Keith Jarrett
American pianist, composer

1926 David Attenborough
English television host

1911 Robert Johnson
American singer-songwriter, guitarist

1884 Harry S. Truman
American colonel, politician, 33rd President of the United States

Deaths On This Day, May 8th 🪦

1990 Luigi Nono
Italian composer

1988 Robert A. Heinlein
American writer

1903 Paul Gauguin
French painter

1891 Helena Blavatsky
Russian scholar, theosophist

1873 John Stuart Mill
English economist, civil servant, philosopher
 

May 8th

1429 The French warrior maiden, Joan of Arc, led the Dauphin's troops to victory over the English laying siege to Orleans.

1450 Jack Cade's rebellion occurred when Kentishmen, led by Jack Cade, revolted against King Henry VI with his 'Complaint of the Poor Commons of Kent' manifesto. His army of as many as 5,000 marched on London, causing the King to flee to Warwickshire. After taking and looting London, the rebels were defeated in a battle at London Bridge and scattered. They were promised pardons and reforms, but many of the rebels were instead declared traitors, and Cade was killed in a small skirmish on 12th July 1450.

1660 The Convention Parliament proclaimed that King Charles II had been the lawful monarch since the execution of Charles I in January 1649. This was the restoration of the monarchy after the English Civil War and the reign of Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector.

1933 Mahatma Gandhi, the pre-eminent leader of Indian nationalism in British ruled India began a 21 day fast in protest against the British rule. Employing non-violent civil disobedience, Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for non-violence, civil rights and freedom across the world.

1945 VE Day in Europe. After five years, eight months, and five days of massive devastation, the end of the European phase of World War II was celebrated. Victory in Europe was commemorated with celebrations all around the world in recognition of the unconditional surrender of all German forces, which was signed in Reims, France, the previous day.

1961 Former British diplomat George Blake, was jailed for 42 years after being found guilty of spying for Russia. In 1966 he successfully escaped from London's Wormwood Scrubs and fled to the Soviet Union.

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Today In History, May 9th

2012 The brand-new Sukhoi Superjet 100 plane crashes
The regional jet was the first airliner produced in Russia since the end of the USSR in 1991. The doomed flight was a demonstration tour carrying potential customers. All 45 people on board perished in the crash, which was caused by pilot error.

1997 Pete Peterson becomes the first U.S. ambassador to visit Vietnam after the end of the war
Peterson, a Vietnam veteran, devoted himself to promoting reconciliation between the two countries. About 2.5 million Vietnamese, most of them civilians, were killed during the war.

1979 Iranian Jewish businessman Habib Elghanian is executed
An Islamic revolutionary tribunal had convicted him of “contacts with Israel and Zionism” and “friendship with the enemies of God”. His execution triggered a Jewish mass exodus from Iran.

1969 Carlos Lamarca begins his fight against Brazil's military dictatorship
Lamarca was a member of the communist organization Vanguardia Popular Revolucionária (VPR) and is well known for his urban guerilla actions. Brazilian forces killed him in 1971.

1960 The first birth control pill is approved
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that it would add birth control as a new indication for the drug “Enovid”.
 
Births On This Day, May 9th 🎂

1949 Billy Joel
American singer-songwriter, pianist

1934 Alan Bennett
English actor, screenwriter, author

1921 Sophie Scholl
German student, activist

1837 Adam Opel
German engineer founded the Opel Company

1800 John Brown
American activist

Deaths On This Day, May 9th 🪦

2012 Vidal Sassoon
English/American hairdresser

1986 Tenzing Norgay
Nepalese mountaineer

1976 Ulrike Meinhof
German journalist, activist

1805 Friedrich Schiller
German poet, playwright, historian

1707 Dieterich Buxtehude
German/Danish organist, composer
 
9th May

1386 The Treaty of Windsor was ratified between England (succeeded by the United Kingdom) and Portugal. It is the oldest diplomatic alliance in the world that is still in force.

1662 The first recorded Punch & Judy Show in Britain took place at Covent Garden in London. A puppet play that would have featured a version of Punch was first recorded in England by the diarist Samuel Pepys. He noted seeing it in Covent Garden, London, performed by the Italian puppet showman Pietro Gimonde from Bologna, otherwise known as Signor Bologna.

1887 Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show opened in London. His cowboy themed shows also toured Europe as well as the United States.Cody was an American soldier, bison hunter and showman and was one of the most colourful figures of the American Old West.

1896 The first 'Horseless Carriage' Show opened at the Imperial Institute in London, when ten engine-powered models went on show to the public.

1955 West Germany accepted into Nato. West Germany formally joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation at a special ceremony in Paris.

1972 Twelve Israeli soldiers disguised as maintenance staff stormed a hijacked Sabena Boeing at Lod airport in Tel Aviv and released the 100 people on board.
 
On This Day In History, May 10th

1994 Nelson Mandela becomes South Africa's first black president
Mandela's inauguration came after more than 300 years of white rule. Before becoming president, he was a pivotal figure in the fight against the racist apartheid regime and was incarcerated for 27 years.

1954 Bill Haley releases “Rock Around the Clock”
It was the first rock song to top the Billboard charts and has become a classic of the early rock era.

1941 Adolf Hitler's deputy, Rudolf Hess, parachutes into Scotland to broker a peace agreement
Hess was captured and interrogated. He was the last in a long line of prominent figures to be incarcerated in the Tower of London. Hitler characterized his peace mission four years before the end of World War II as treason.

1933 Nazis ceremonially burn about 25,000 allegedly “un-German” books
The book burnings were part of the right-wing German Student Union's Action against the Un-German Spirit. Among the burnt books were works by Albert Einstein, Bertolt Brecht, Sigmund Freud, and Franz Kafka.

1869 In the United States, the first coast-to-coast railroad was completed
The Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroad systems were joined at Promontory Summit in Utah, using a “Golden Spike”. This last spike is now housed in the Cantor Arts Museum at Stanford University.
 
Births On This Day, May 10th 🎂

1977 Nick Heidfeld
German race car driver

1960 Bono
Irish singer-songwriter, actor, activist

1957 Sid Vicious
English singer, bass player

1946 Donovan
Scottish/English singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, actor

1899 Fred Astaire
American actor, singer, dancer

Deaths On This Day, May 10th 🪦

1977 Joan Crawford
American actress

1897 Andrés Bonifacio
Filipino activist

1863 Stonewall Jackson
American general

1818 Paul Revere
American military officer

1774 Louis XV of France
 
10th May

1768 John Wilkes (English radical, journalist, and politician) was imprisoned for writing an article for the North Briton newspaper severely criticizing King George III. This action provoked rioting in London.

1773 The British Parliament passed the Tea Act, designed to save the British East India Company by granting it a monopoly on the North American tea trade.

1941 Rudolf Hess, deputy leader of Nazi Germany, flew a small plane to Scotland and parachuted to the ground in a bizarre attempt to negotiate a peace settlement with Britain. After interrogation he was jailed for life.

1941 The most devastating raid on London took place on the night of 10/11 May 1941. The moon was full and the Thames had a very low ebb tide. 550 German bombers dropped 700 tons of bombs on London. More than 1500 people were killed and many thousands more were injured and 11,000 homes were destroyed.

1978 Italy mourned murdered statesman. The murdered Italian politician Aldo Moro was buried after a private funeral service. Mr Moro was kidnapped on 16 March after left-wing Red Brigade gunmen ambushed his car killing his chauffeur and five policemen. For eight weeks, they held him at a secret location in Rome.

1998 Sinn Fein backed peace deal. Members of Sinn Fein, the political wing of the republican IRA, voted to accept the Good Friday peace agreement effectively acknowledging the north-south border.
 
12th May 1951
The number one record on America's R&B chart was a song called "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston And His Delta Cats.
Many Rock historians say that this was the first true Rock and Roll record. Although Brenston sang, played sax, and is credited as composer, 'His Delta Cats' were actually Ike Turner And His Kings of Rhythm.
 
12th May 1967
The English Rock band Procol Harum release their debut single, A Whiter Shade Of Pale.
The song will top the UK singles chart and reach #5 in America.
It is one of the most commercially successful singles in history, having sold more than ten million copies worldwide.
In 1998, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
In 2004, the performing rights group Phonographic Performance Limited recognized it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past seventy years.
 
1777
The 1st ice cream advertisement by Philip Lenzi appears in NY Gazette
1926
airship,Norge is 1st vessel to fly over the North Pole lead by explorer, Roald Amundsen,piloted by Umberto Nobile
1938
Sandoz Labs begins manufacturing LSD{ Lysergic Acid Diethylamide}
1942
a Nazi Uboat sinks a American merchant cargo ship, Afoundria at the mouth of the Mississippi River
1963
singer/ songwriter, Bob Dylan walks out of The Ed Sullivan show over a dispute of a song he had wanted to sing. It was a satirical song' Talkin John Birch Paranoid Blues'
2002
Jimmy Carter arrives in Cuba for a 5 day visit with Fidel Castro. Carter became the 1st Pres in/ out of office
to visit Cuba since Castro's 1959 revolution began
 
13th May1955
Elvis Presley's performance in Jacksonville, Florida is the first Presley show at which a riot ensues.
After Elvis tells the audience, "Girls, I'll see you backstage," the crowd rushes toward him and an uproar spilled into the streets.
A group cornered the singer in his dressing room and tore some of his clothes in an attempt to grab a souvenir.
 
13th May

1660 Diarist Samuel Pepys witnessed the removal of the Irish Harp from the Union Flag, on the Restoration of Charles II. The cross of St Patrick was not added until 1801.

1787 The first fleet of ships carrying convicts to the new penal colony of Australia left England and arrived at Botany Bay eight months later, on 18 January 1788.

1868 A team of Aboriginal cricketers arrived in England to play 47 matches. They preceded a white Australian team by more than ten years.

1968 French workers joined student protests in Paris for the first time with a one-day general strike.

1981 The Pope was shot four times as he blessed the crowds in St Peter's Square in Rome.

1995 A British mother (Alison Hargreaves, aged 33) became the first woman to conquer Everest without oxygen or the help of sherpas.
 
On This Day In History, May 15th

1948 Egypt, Syria, Transjordan and Iraq invade Israel
The First Arab-Israeli War was initiated by Israel's proclamation of independence on the day before the invasion. It lasted nearly 10 months and caused thousands of casualties on both sides.

1940 The first McDonald's fast food restaurant opens
Maurice “Mac” and Richard “Dick” McDonald opened McDonald's Bar-B-Q in San Bernardino. Today, McDonald's is the world's largest fast-food chain.

1930 The first airline stewardess goes on duty
Ellen Church and her team served snacks on a United Airlines flight from Oakland to Chicago. The flight attendants were also responsible for refuelling the aircraft, handling luggage, and checking tickets.

1928 The first Mickey Mouse film is screened
The 6-minute film “Plane Crazy” directed by Walt Disney shows Mickey trying to fly an aeroplane in reference to Charles Lindbergh. Today, Mickey Mouse is one of the world's most recognized cartoon characters and the official mascot of the Walt Disney Company.

1718 The world's first machine gun is patented
British lawyer, James Puckle, invented the 25.4 mm caliber “Puckle Gun” for use on ships. It was designed for two bullet types: round bullets for Christians and (more damaging) square bullets for Turks.
 
Births On This Day, May 15th 🎂

1987 Andy Murray
Scottish tennis player

1981 Patrice Evra
French footballer

1948 Brian Eno
English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, producer

1856 L. Frank Baum
American author

1773 Klemens von Metternich
German/Austrian politician, 1st State Chancellor of the Austrian Empire

Deaths On This Day, May 15th 🪦

2012 Carlos Fuentes
Mexican author

1978 Robert Menzies
Australian politician, 12th Prime Minister of Australia

1967 Edward Hopper
American painter

1956 Austin Osman Spare
English painter, magician

1886 Emily Dickinson
American poet
 
moviequeen1 said:
I'd thought it would be interesting/fun to start an on going thread'Today in History'.The events can be from years ago,or present day
I'll start with today,Feb 22nd:
1935-airplanes no longer were permitted to fly over the White House- I did not know this
1956-Elvis Presley 1st hit on music charts was'Heartbreak Hotel'
1980-the Winter Olympics at Lake PLacid,the'Miracle on Ice' men's hockey team,beat heavily favored Russians in semi final,4-3.Its one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history.The team went on to win the gold medal
1997- 'Dolly the Sheep',the 1st cloned mammal was announced to the world
feel free to post here whenever you like Sue
Click to expand...
Today in history is a healthy exercise. What is the saying? If we fail to recall lessons in history we are doomed to repeat them.
 
15th May

1464 The Battle of Hexham (Northumberland). It marked the end of significant Lancastrian resistance in the north of England during the early part of the reign of Edward IV.

1536 The trial of Anne Boleyn. Accusations of adultery and even plotting against the King's life were levelled against her.

1800 George III survived two assassination attempts in one day.

1957 Britain exploded its first hydrogen bomb as part of a series of tests in the Pacific. After just two years of development, Britain tested its first hydrogen bomb over Christmas Island, as the arms race began to escalate.

1974 Sixteen teenagers died along with three Palestinians holding them hostage at an Israeli school.

1993 Masked police commandos freed six girls with their nursery teacher and shot dead an armed man, ending a two-day hostage crisis at a nursery school in Paris.

1995 The British Police Federation voted against the routine arming of police officers.
 
1869
National Woman Suffrage Assn is formed in NYC founded by Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton
1940
Richard&Maurice McDonald open 1st McDonald's restaurant in San Bernadino, Calif
1951
AT&T become 1st U.S. corporation to have 1 million stockholders
1972
island, Okinawa which was under U.S. military control since 1945 reverts to Japanese control
2010
16 yr old, Jessica Walton becomes the youngest person to sail solo,non-stop around the world unassisted
2023
TV personality, Martha Stewart become Sports Illustrated oldest cover model age 81,part of the magazine's swim suit issue
 
On This Day In History, May 16th

1975 Junko Tabei becomes the first woman to conquer Mount Everest
The ascent by the Japanese adventurer came 22 years after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first to reach the summit.

1966 In China, the Cultural Revolution begins
The publication of the May 16 notification marks the beginning of the political campaign, which was initiated by Mao Zedong and lasted ten years. Its objective was to strengthen communism by removing capitalist, traditional and cultural elements from Chinese society.

1960 Theodore Maiman fires the first functional laser
The American physicist's invention, an advancement of earlier research by scientists in the U.S. and the Soviet Union, was patented in 1967.

1929 The Oscars are awarded for the first time
The first Academy Awards were presented at a private dinner with about 270 attendees. Today, it is the world's most important entertainment awards ceremony.

1919 Albert Cushing Read takes off on the first transatlantic flight in history
The crossing from New York State, USA to Lisbon, Portugal on a Curtiss NC-4 flying boat took 19 days.
 
Births On This Day, May 16th 🎂

1966 Janet Jackson
American singer-songwriter, producer, dancer, actress

1953 Pierce Brosnan
Irish/American actor, singer, producer

1919 Liberace
American singer, pianist, actor

1905 Henry Fonda
American actor, singer, producer

1831 David Edward Hughes
Welsh/American scientist, co-invented the microphone


Deaths On This Day, May 16th 🪦

2012 Maria Bieşu
Moldovan opera singer

1990 Jim Henson
American puppeteer, director, producer, founded The Company

1990 Sammy Davis, Jr.
American actor, singer, dancer

1977 Modibo Keïta
Malian politician, 1st President of Mali

1953 Django Reinhardt
Belgian guitarist, composer
 
On This Day In History, May 17th

1999 Ehud Barak becomes Prime Minister of Israel
During his tenure, Barak attempted to revive the peace negotiations with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). However, his efforts were unsuccessful.

1990 The WHO deletes homosexuality from its list of mental diseases
Precisely 14 years later, the first same-sex marriages in the United States were performed as Massachusetts became the first state to legalize them.

1972 Germany ratifies the Treaty of Warsaw
Chancellor Willy Brandt signed the treaty, by which Germany gave up any territorial claims and guaranteed the Oder-Neisse line as the valid border to Poland.

1954 The U.S. Supreme Court declares racially segregated public schools unconstitutional
Despite this landmark decision, de facto racial segregation was upheld for years in some areas of the United States.

1943 The Royal Air Force Dambusters wreck three German dams
The RAF squadron used revolutionary bouncing bombs to avoid the torpedo nets protecting the dams. The audacious air raid was depicted in a 1954 war film.
 
Births On This Day, May 17th 🎂

1956 Sugar Ray Leonard
American boxer, actor

1946 Udo Lindenberg
German singer-songwriter, drummer

1936 Dennis Hopper
American actor, director

1866 Erik Satie
French pianist, composer

1836 Wilhelm Steinitz
Austrian/American chess player

Deaths On This Day, May 17th 🪦

2011 Harmon Killebrew
American baseball player

1996 Johnny "Guitar" Watson
American singer, guitarist

1875 John C. Breckinridge
American general, politician, 14th Vice President of the United States

1829 John Jay
American jurist, politician, 1st Chief Justice of the United States

1510 Sandro Botticelli
Italian painter
 


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