May 15
May 15 is the 135th day of the year (136th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 230 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
- 392 – Emperor Valentinian II is assassinated while advancing into Gaul against the Frankish usurper Arbogast. He is found hanging in his residence at Vienne.
- 1252 – Pope Innocent IV issues the papal bull ad exstirpanda, which authorizes, but also limits, the torture of heretics in the Medieval Inquisition.
- 1525 – The battle of Frankenhausen ends the German Peasants' War.
- 1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, stands trial in London on charges of treason, adultery and incest. She is condemned to death by a specially-selected jury.
- 1567 – Mary, Queen of Scots, marries James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, her third husband.
- 1602 – Bartholomew Gosnold becomes the first European to see Cape Cod.
- 1618 – Johannes Kepler confirms his previously rejected discovery of the third law of planetary motion (he first discovered it on March 8 but soon rejected the idea after some initial calculations were made).
- 1648 – The Treaty of Westphalia signed.
- 1701 – The War of the Spanish Succession begins.
- 1718 – James Puckle, a London lawyer, patents the world's first machine gun.
- 1755 – Laredo, Texas is established by the Spaniards.
- 1776 – American Revolution: the Virginia Convention instructs its Continental Congress delegation to propose a resolution of independence from Great Britain, paving the way for the United States Declaration of Independence.
- 1791 – Maximilien Robespierre proposes the Self-denying Ordinance.
- 1792 – War of the First Coalition: France declares war on Kingdom of Sardinia.
- 1793 – Diego Marín Aguilera flies a glider for "about 360 meters", at a height of 5-6 meters, during one of the first attempted .
- 1796 – First Coalition: Napoleon enters Milan in triumph.
- 1800 – George III of the United Kingdom survives an assassination attempt by James Hadfield, who is later acquitted by reason of insanity.
- 1811 – Paraguay declares independence from Spain.
- 1817 – Opening of the first private mental health hospital in the United States, the Asylum for the Relief of Persons Deprived of the Use of Their Reason (now Friends Hospital) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
- 1829 – The Aaronic Priesthood is restored to Joseph Smith Jr. and Oliver Cowdery, prior to the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- 1836 – Francis Baily observes "Baily's beads" during an annular eclipse.
- 1849 – Troops of the Two Sicilies take Palermo and crush the republican government of Sicily
- 1850 – The Bloody Island Massacre takes place in Lake County, California, in which a large number of Pomo Indians in Lake County are slaughtered by a regiment of the United States Cavalry, led by Nathaniel Lyon.
- 1858 – Opening of the present Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London.
- 1862 – President Abraham Lincoln signs a bill into law creating the United States Bureau of Agriculture. It is later renamed the United States Department of Agriculture.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Resaca, Georgia ends.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Battle of New Market, Virginia – students from the Virginia Military Institute fight alongside the Confederate Army to force Union General Franz Sigel out of the Shenandoah Valley.
- 1869 – Woman's suffrage: in New York, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton form the National Woman Suffrage Association.
- 1891 – Pope Leo XIII defends workers' rights and property rights in the encyclical Rerum Novarum, the beginning of modern Catholic social teaching.
- 1904 – The Russian minelayer Amur laid a minefield about 15 miles off Port Arthur and sank Japan's battleships Hatsuse, 15,000 tons, with 496 crew and "Yashima".
- 1905 – Las Vegas, Nevada, is founded when 110 acres (0.45 km2), in what later would become downtown, are auctioned off.
- 1911 – In Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States, the United States Supreme Court declares Standard Oil to be an "unreasonable" monopoly under the Sherman Antitrust Act and orders the company to be broken up.
- 1919 – The Winnipeg General Strike begins. By 11:00 am, almost the whole working population of Winnipeg, Manitoba had walked off the job.
- 1919 – Greek invasion of İzmir. During the invasion, the Greek army kills or wounds 350 Turks. Those responsible are punished by the Greek Commander Aristides Stergiades.
- 1928 – Mickey Mouse premiered in his first cartoon, Plane Crazy
- 1929 – A fire at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio kills 123.
- 1932 – The May 15 Incident: in an attempted Coup d'état, the Prime Minister of Japan Inukai Tsuyoshi is killed.
- 1934 – Kārlis Ulmanis establishes an authoritarian government in Latvia.
- 1935 – The Moscow Metro is opened to public.
- 1936 – Amy Johnson arrives back in England after a record-breaking return flight to Cape Town
- 1940 – USS Sailfish (SS-192) recommissioned, originally the USS Squalus.
- 1940 – World War II: After fierce fighting, the poorly trained and equipped Dutch troops surrender to Germany, marking the beginning of five years of occupation.
- 1940 – McDonald's opens its first restaurant in San Bernardino, California.
- 1942 – World War II: in the United States, a bill creating the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) is signed into law.
- 1943 – Joseph Stalin dissolves the Comintern (or Third International).
- 1945 – World War II: The final skirmish in Europe is fought near Prevalje, Slovenia.
- 1948 – Following the demise of the British Mandate of Palestine, Egypt, Transjordan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia invade Israel thus starting the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
- 1951 – The Polish cultural attache in Paris, Czesław Miłosz, asks the French government for political asylum.
- 1957 – At Malden Island in the Pacific, Britain tests its first hydrogen bomb in Operation Grapple. The device fails to detonate properly.
- 1958 – The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 3.
- 1960 – The Soviet Union launches Sputnik 4.
- 1963 – Project Mercury: The launch of the final Mercury mission, Mercury-Atlas 9 with astronaut L. Gordon Cooper on board. He becomes the first American to spend more than a day in space.
- 1966 – After a policy dispute, Prime Minister Nguyen Cao Ky of South Vietnam's ruling junta launches a military attack on the forces of General Ton That Dinh, forcing him to abandon his command.
- 1969 – People's Park: California Governor Ronald Reagan has an impromptu student park owned by University of California at Berkeley fenced off from student anti-war protestors, sparking a riot called Bloody Thursday.
- 1970 – President Richard Nixon appoints Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington the first female United States Army Generals.
- 1970 – Philip Lafayette Gibbs and James Earl Green are killed at Jackson State University by police during student protests.
- 1972 – The island of Okinawa, under U.S. military governance since its conquest in 1945, reverts to Japanese control.
- 1972 – In Laurel, Maryland, Arthur Bremer shoots and paralyzes Alabama Governor George Wallace while he is campaigning to be become President.
- 1974 – Ma'alot massacre: In an Arab terrorist attack and hostage taking at an Israeli school, a total of 31 people are killed, including 22 schoolchildren.
- 1987 – The Soviet Union launches the Polyus prototype orbital weapons platform. It fails to reach orbit.
- 1988 – Soviet war in Afghanistan: After more than eight years of fighting, the Red Army begins its withdrawal from Afghanistan.
- 1990 – Portrait of Doctor Gachet by Vincent van Gogh is sold for a record $82.5 million, the most expensive painting at the time.
- 1991 – Edith Cresson becomes France's first female prime minister.
- 1997 – The United States government acknowledges the existence of the "Secret War" in Laos and dedicates the Laos Memorial in honor of Hmong and other "Secret War" veterans.
- 2008 – California becomes the second U.S. state after Massachusetts in 2004 to legalize same-sex marriage after the state's own Supreme Court rules a previous ban unconstitutional.
- 2010 – Jessica Watson becomes the youngest person to sail, non-stop and unassisted around the world solo.
Births
- 1567 – (baptism) Claudio Monteverdi, Italian composer (d. 1643)
- 1608 – René Goupil, French Catholic missionary (Canadian Martyrs) (d. 1642)
- 1720 – Maximilian Hell, Slovakian astronomer (d. 1792)
- 1749 – Levi Lincoln, Sr., American statesman (d. 1820)
- 1767 – Ezekiel Hart, Canadian entrepreneur and politician (d. 1843)
- 1773 – Prince Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, Austrian statesman (d. 1859)
- 1786 – General Dimitris Plapoutas, Greek War of Independence figure (d. 1864)
- 1808 – Michael William Balfe, Irish composer of the opera The Bohemian Girl (d. 1870)
- 1817 – Debendranath Tagore, Indian religious reformer (d. 1905)
- 1848 – Viktor Vasnetsov, Russian painter (d. 1926)
- 1854 – Ioannis Psycharis, Greek author and linguist (d. 1929)
- 1856 – L. Frank Baum, American author (d. 1919)
- 1856 – Matthias Zurbriggen, Swiss mountaineer and guide (d. 1917)
- 1857 – Williamina Fleming, British-born astronomer (d. 1911)
- 1859 – Pierre Curie, French physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1906)
- 1862 – Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian dramatist (d. 1931)
- 1890 – Katherine Anne Porter, American author (d. 1980)
- 1891 – Mikhail Bulgakov, Russian writer (d. 1940)
- 1891 – Fritz Feigl, Austria-born chemist (d. 1971)
- 1892 – Jimmy Wilde, Welsh boxer (d. 1969)
- 1895 – Prescott Bush, American banker, politician and member of the Bush family (d. 1972)
- 1895 – William D. Byron, American politician (d. 1941)
- 1895 – Astrid Zachrison, Swedish supercentenarian (d. 2008)
- 1898 – Arletty, French model and actress (d. 1992)
- 1899 – Jean-Étienne Valluy, French general (d. 1970)
- 1901 – Xavier Herbert, Australian author (d. 1984)
- 1901 – Luis Monti, Argentine-Italian footballer (d. 1983)
- 1902 – Richard J. Daley, American politician (d. 1976)
- 1903 – Maria Reiche, German mathematician and archaeologist (d. 1998)
- 1905 – Joseph Cotten, American actor (d. 1994)
- 1905 – Abraham Zapruder, American businessman and John F. Kennedy assassination figure (d. 1970)
- 1907 – Sukhdev Thapar, Indian revolutionary figure who fought for independence against the British colonialists (d. 1931)
- 1909 – James Mason, British actor (d. 1984)
- 1909 – Clara Solovera, Chilean folk musician (d. 1992)
- 1910 – Constance Cummings, British actress (d. 2005)
- 1911 – Max Frisch, Swiss author (d. 1991)
- 1911 – Herta Oberheuser, Nazi doctor (d. 1978)
- 1912 – Arthur Berger, American composer (d. 2003)
- 1914 – Turk Broda, Canadian hockey goaltender (d. 1972)
- 1914 – Norrie Paramor, British arranger, conductor (d. 1979)
- 1915 – Hilda Bernstein, British-born South African author (d. 2006)
- 1915 – Mario Monicelli, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2010)
- 1915 – Paul Samuelson, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2009)
- 1915 – Gus Viseur, French button accordionist (d. 1974)
- 1916 – Vera Gebuhr, Danish actress
- 1918 – Eddy Arnold, American country music singer (d. 2008)
- 1918 – Joseph Wiseman, Canadian actor (d. 2009)
- 1920 – Nasrallah Sfeir, Lebanese cardinal
- 1922 – Jakucho Setouchi, Japanese writer and Buddhist nun
- 1923 – Richard Avedon, American photographer (d. 2004)
- 1923 – John Lanchbery, British composer (d. 2003)
- 1923 – Johnny Walker, Indian actor (d. 2003)
- 1924 – Maria Koepcke, German ornithologist (d. 1971)
- 1925 – Roy Stewart, Jamacian-born British actor and fitness industry figure (d. 2008)
- 1926 – Anthony Shaffer, British playwright (d. 2001)
- 1926 – Peter Shaffer, British playwright
- 1930 – Jasper Johns, American painter
- 1931 – Ken Venturi, American golfer
- 1935 – Utah Phillips, American labor organizer and folk singer (d. 2008)
- 1936 – Anna Maria Alberghetti, Italian-born actress
- 1936 – Wavy Gravy, American clown and activist
- 1936 – Ralph Steadman, British cartoonist
- 1936 – Paul Zindel, American writer (d. 2003)
- 1937 – Madeleine Albright, American Secretary of State
- 1937 – Trini López, American musician
- 1937 – Joe Tait, American broadcaster
- 1938 – Mireille Darc, French actress
- 1938 – Diane Nash, American Civil Rights Movement figure
- 1938 – Lenny Welch, American singer
- 1939 – Dorothy Shirley, British athlete
- 1940 – Roger Ailes, American businessman
- 1940 – Lainie Kazan, American actress and singer
- 1940 – Don Nelson, American professional basketball coach
- 1941 – K.T. Oslin, American musician
- 1942 – Jusuf Kalla, Indonesian politician
- 1942 – Doug Lowe, Tasmanian politician
- 1943 – David Cronenberg, Canadian screenwriter and film director
- 1944 – Bill Alter, American politician
- 1944 – Ulrich Beck, German sociologist
- 1945 – Lasse Berghagen, Swedish singer
- 1945 – Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza, Portuguese noble
- 1946 – Aly Bain, Shetland fiddle player
- 1947 – Graeham Goble, Australian musician and record producer (Little River Band)
- 1948 – Yutaka Enatsu, Japanese professional baseball pitcher
- 1948 – Brian Eno, British musician and record producer
- 1948 – Kathleen Sebelius, American politician and Obama Administration figure
- 1949 – George Adams, American basketball player
- 1950 – Nicholas Hammond, American actor
- 1951 – Frank Wilczek, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1952 – Chazz Palminteri, American actor, writer and director
- 1953 – George Brett, American baseball player
- 1953 – Mike Oldfield, British composer
- 1954 – Robert P. Harrison, American thinker
- 1955 – Lee Horsley, American actor
- 1956 – Andreas Loverdos, Greek lawyer and politician
- 1956 – Dan Patrick, American sportscaster
- 1957 – Juan José Ibarretxe, Basque statesman
- 1957 – Kevin Von Erich, American professional wrestler
- 1958 – Ron Simmons, American professional wrestler
- 1959 – Andrew Eldritch, British singer and songwriter
- 1959 – Khaosai Galaxy, Thai boxer
- 1959 – Kaokor Galaxy, Thai boxer
- 1959 – Luis Perez-Sala, Spanish racing driver
- 1960 – Rob Bowman, American film director
- 1960 – Rhonda Burchmore, Australian Entertainer
- 1961 – Katrin Cartlidge, British actress (d. 2002)
- 1961 – Melle Mel, American musician
- 1962 – Lisa Curry-Kenny, Australian Ironwoman
- 1964 – Digna Ochoa, Mexican politician
- 1964 – Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Denmark
- 1965 – André Abujamra, Brazilian film score composer
- 1965 – Raí, Brazilian footballer
- 1966 – Pete Wiggs, British musician (Saint Etienne)
- 1967 – Madhuri Dixit, Indian actress
- 1967 – Laura Hillenbrand, American author
- 1967 – John Smoltz, baseball player
- 1968 – Cecilia Malmström, Swedish politician
- 1968 – Seth Putnam, American musician
- 1969 – Hideki Irabu, Japanese baseball player (d. 2011)
- 1969 – Asalah Nasri, Syrian singer
- 1969 – Emmitt Smith, American football player
- 1970 – Frank de Boer, Dutch football player
- 1970 – Ronald de Boer, Dutch football player
- 1970 – Desmond Howard, American football player
- 1970 – Martin Rossiter, British Musician
- 1970 – Rod Smith, American football player
- 1971 – Phil Pfister, American strength athlete
- 1972 – David Charvet, French actor
- 1973 – Emilia Tsoulfa, Greek sailing champion
- 1974 – Shiney Ahuja, Indian actor
- 1974 – Vassilis Kikilias, Greek basketball player
- 1974 – Ahmet Zappa, American musician
- 1975 – Peter Iwers, Swedish Musician
- 1975 – Ray Lewis, American football player
- 1976 – Adolfo Bautista, Mexican footballer
- 1976 – Torraye Braggs, American basketball player
- 1976 – Jacek Krzynówek, Polish footballer
- 1976 – Ryan Leaf, American football player
- 1976 – Tyler Walker, American baseball player
- 1978 – Amy Chow, American gymnast
- 1978 – Dwayne DeRosario, Canadian footballer
- 1978 – Caroline Dhavernas, Canadian actress
- 1978 – Edu, Brazilian footballer
- 1978 – David Krumholtz, American actor
- 1978 – Robert Royal, American football player
- 1978 – Krissy Taylor, American model (d. 1995)
- 1979 – Chris Masoe, New Zealander rugby player
- 1980 – Josh Beckett, American baseball player
- 1980 – Rocky Marquette, American actor
- 1981 – Patrice Evra, French footballer
- 1981 – Justin Morneau, Canadian baseball player
- 1981 – Zara Phillips, British royal and eventer
- 1981 – Jamie-Lynn Sigler, American actress
- 1982 – Alex Breckenridge, American actress
- 1982 – Veronica Campbell-Brown, Jamaican athlete
- 1982 – Segundo Castillo, Ecuadorian footballer
- 1982 – Tatsuya Fujiwara, Japanese actor
- 1982 – Jessica Sutta, American dancer, singer and actress (Pussycat Dolls)
- 1984 – Sérgio Jimenez, Brazilian racing driver
- 1985 – Tania Cagnotto, Italian diver
- 1985 – Cristiane, Brazilian footballer
- 1986 – Thomas Brown, American football player
- 1986 – Matías Fernández, Chilean footballer
- 1986 – Adam Moffat, British football player
- 1987 – Mark Fayne, American ice hockey player
- 1987 – Ersan İlyasova, Turkish basketball player
- 1987 – Jennylyn Mercado, Filipina actress and singer
- 1987 – Andy Murray, Scottish tennis player
- 1989 – Sunny (Lee Soon-kyu), South Korean singer (Girls' Generation)
- 1990 – Jordan Eberle, Canadian hockey player
- 1990 – Joe Mattock, English footballer
- 1995 – Ksenia Sitnik, Belarusian singer
Deaths
- 392 – Valentinian II, Roman Emperor (b. 371)
- 913 – Hatto I, Archbishop of Mainz
- 1036 – Emperor Go-Ichijō of Japan (b. 1008)
- 1157 – Yury Dolgoruky, Russian prince
- 1174 – Nur ad-Din Zangi, ruler of Syria (b. 1118)
- 1381 – Eppelein von Gailingen, German robber baron
- 1470 – Charles VIII of Sweden (b. 1409)
- 1585 – Niwa Nagahide, Japanese warlord (b. 1535)
- 1591 – Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsarevich (b. 1582)
- 1609 – Giovanni Croce, Italian composer (b. 1557)
- 1634 – Hendrick Avercamp, Dutch painter (b. 1585)
- 1698 – Marie Champmeslé, French actress (b. 1642)
- 1699 – Edward Petre, British Jesuit and privy councilor (b. 1631)
- 1700 – John Hale, pastor during the Salem witch hunt (b.1636)
- 1714 – Roger Elliott, British general and Governor of Gibraltar
- 1740 – Ephraim Chambers, British encyclopaedist (b. 1680)
- 1773 – Alban Butler, British Catholic priest and writer (b. 1710)
- 1782 – Marquis of Pombal, Prime Minister of Portugal (b. 1699)
- 1845 – Braulio Carrillo Colina, Costa Rican Head of State (b. 1800)
- 1879 – Gottfried Semper, German architect (b. 1803)
- 1886 – Emily Dickinson, American poet (b. 1830)
- 1924 – Paul-Henri-Benjamin d'Estournelles de Constant, French diplomat, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1852)
- 1928 – Umegatani Tōtarō I, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 15th Yokozuna (b. 1845)
- 1935 – Kazimir Malevich, Polish/Ukrainian artist (b. 1878)
- 1937 – Phillip Snowden, British politician (b. 1864)
- 1940 – Menno ter Braak, Dutch author and polemicist (b. 1902)
- 1945 – Charles Williams, British writer (b. 1886)
- 1948 – Edward Flanagan, American priest and founder of Boys Town (b. 1886)
- 1954 – William March, American writer (b. 1893)
- 1956 – Austin Osman Spare, British artist and magician (b. 1886)
- 1964 – Vladko Maček, Kingdom of Yugoslavia deputy prime minister (b. 1879)
- 1967 – Edward Hopper, American painter (b. 1882)
- 1971 – Tyrone Guthrie, British director, producer, and writer (b. 1900)
- 1978 – Sir Robert Menzies, twelfth Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1894)
- 1982 – Gordon Smiley, American race car driver (b. 1946)
- 1984 – Francis Schaeffer, American theologian, philosopher, and pastor (b. 1912)
- 1986 – Theodore White, American writer (b. 1915)
- 1986 – Elio de Angelis, Italian race car driver (b. 1958)
- 1989 – Johnny Green, American songwriter (b. 1908)
- 1991 – Andreas Floer, German mathematician (b. 1956)
- 1991 – Amadou Hampâté Bâ, Malian writer (b. c. 1900)
- 1991 – Ronald Lacey, British actor (b. 1935)
- 1992 – Jovy Marcelo, Filipino race car driver (b. 1965)
- 1993 – Salah Ahmed Ibrahim, Sudanese writer, poet, and diplomat (b. 1933)
- 1994 – Gilbert Roland, Mexican actor (b. 1905)
- 1995 – Eric Porter, British actor (b. 1928)
- 1996 – Charles B. Fulton, American jurist (b. 1910)
- 1998 – Earl "The Goat" Manigault, American basketball player (b. 1944)
- 2003 – June Carter Cash, American musician and singer (b. 1929)
- 2003 – George Francis, British gangster (b. 1940)
- 2005 – Alan B. Gold, Quebec Chief Justice (b. 1917)
- 2007 – Jerry Falwell, Pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church and Founder of Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA (b. 1933)
- 2007 – Yolanda King, American actress and activist, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr. (b. 1955)
- 2008 – Alexander Courage, composer of original Star Trek theme (b. 1919)
- 2008 – Tommy Burns, Scottish footballer (b. 1956)
- 2008 – Robert Dunlop, Northern Irish motorcycle racer, younger brother of Joey Dunlop (b. 1960)
- 2008 – Astrid Zachrison, Swedish supercentenarian (b. 1895)
- 2009 – Charles 'Bud' Tingwell, Australian actor (b. 1923)
- 2009 – Wayman Tisdale, American basketball player (b. 1964)
- 2010 – Besian Idrizaj, Austrian footballer (b. 1987)
- 2010 – Loris Kessel, Swiss racing driver (b. 1950)
Holidays and observances
External links