On This Day in History....

1274 2nd Council of Lyons (14th ecumenical council) opens
1355 1,200 Jews of Toledo Spain killed by Count Henry of Trastamara
1416 Monk Nicolaas Serrurier arrested because of heresy at Tournay
1429 English siege of Orléans broken by Joan of Arc
1579 Congress of Cologne forms in Netherlands
1624 Admiral Hermites conquering fleet reaches Callao the Lima, Peru
1638 Cornelis S Goyer takes possession of Mauritius (uninhabited)
1660 Isaack B Fubine of Savoy, in The Hague, patents macaroni
1663 Theatre Royal in Drury Lane London opens
1700 William Penn began monthly meetings for Blacks advocating emancipation
1727 Jews are expelled from Ukraine by Empress Catherine I of Russia
1748 French troops conquer Maastricht
1765 Admiral Nelson's sailboat HMS Victory runs aground
1771 Samuel Hearne explores the Copper Mine River of Canada
1775 Turkish state of Bukovina secedes from Austria
1789 1st inaugural ball (for George Washington in New York NY)
1792 Captain Robert Gray discovers Grays Harbor (Washington)
1800 Indiana Territory organized
1824 Beethoven's 9th (Chorale) Symphony, premieres in Vienna
1832 Greece becomes independent republic
1832 Otto of Bavaria is chosen king of Greece
1840 Tornado strikes Natchez MS, kills 317
1847 American Medical Association organizes (Philadelphia)
1848 Prussians stop insurrection in Varsovia
1856 Argentine & Brazilian sign a navigation pact
1861 Riot occurs between prosecessionist & Union supporters in Knoxville TN
1862 Battle of West Point VA (Eltham's Landing, Barnhamsville)
1862 Much of Enschede Netherlands destroyed by fire
1864 Battle of Wilderness ends (total losses: USA-17,666; CSA-7,500)
1864 Skirmish at Port Walthall Junction VA (Drewry's Bluff)
1866 German premier Otto von Bismarck seriously wounded in assassin attempt
1867 Blacks stage ride-in to protest segregation in New Orleans
1873 US marines attack Panamá
1875 German SS Schiller sinks near Scilly Islands, 312 killed
1877 Cincinnati Enquirer, 1st uses the term "Bullpen" to indicate foul territory
1885 John E W Thompson, named minister to Haiti
1888 Edouard Lalo's opera "Le roi d'Ys" premieres in Paris France
1888 George Eastman patents "Kodak box camera"
1891 Battle in Bunyoro: Captain F Lugard stops Moslem rebellion, 300 killed
1902 Soufriere volcano on St Vincent kills 2-5,000
1904 Flexible Flyer trademark registered
1907 Charles Collier wins 1st Isle of Man TT Race (38.22 mph)
1909 Construction begins on first 100 houses in Ahuzat Bayit (Tel Aviv)
1910 35th Preakness: R Estep aboard Layminster wins in 1:40.6
1912 Columbia University approves plans for awarding the Pulitzer Prize in several categories The award is established by Joseph Pulitzer
1913 British House of Commons rejects woman's right to vote
1914 US Congress establishes mother's day
1914 Woodrow Wilson's daughter Eleanor marries in the White House
1915 Lusitania sunk by German submarine; 1198 lives lost
1917 Red Sox Babe Ruth beats Washington Senator Walter Johnson, 1-0
1920 USSR recognizes independence of Georgia
1921 47th Kentucky Derby: Charles Thompson on Behave Yourself wins 2:04.2
1922 Belgian soccer team defeats Netherlands, 1-2
1922 New York Giant Jesse Barnes no-hits Phillies, 2-0
1923 Mine strike at Belgian Borinage railroad
1924 Peruvian Torre forms APRA, Alianza Popular Revolutionaria Americana
1925 Phillies have their 8th game postponed in a row
1925 Pirate shortstop Glenn Wright makes an unassisted triple play
1927 San Fransisco Municipal Airport (Mills Field) dedicated
1928 England lowers age of women voters from 30 to 21
1928 Pulitzer prize awarded to Thornton Wilder for (Bridge of San Luis Rey)
1930 Duleepsinhji scores 333 for Sussex vs Northants in 330 minutes
1932 58th Kentucky Derby: Eugene James aboard Burgoo King wins in 2:05.2
1934 Netherlands Princess Juliana opens Juliana Canal
1934 Part of Khabarovsk becomes a Jewish Autonomous Region
1934 Pulitzer prize awarded to Sidney Kingsley (Men in White)
1934 World's largest pearl (6.4 kg) found at Palawan, Philippines
1938 64th Kentucky Derby: Eddie Arcaro aboard Lawrin wins in 2:04.8
1938 Dutch Minister of Justice Goseling calls fugitives of Nazi-Germany "undesired strangers"
1939 Germany & Italy announced an alliance known as the Rome-Berlin Axis
1941 British House of Commons votes for Churchill (477-3)
1941 Cornerstone of Bank of America building at 300 Montgomery laid
1941 Glenn Miller records "Chattanooga Choo Choo" for RCA
1942 Battle of Coral Sea ends stopping Japanese expansion
1942 Nazi decree orders all Jewish pregnant women of Kovno Ghetto executed
1943 British 11th Huzaren occupies Tunis Tunisia
1943 Dutch men 18-35 obliged to report to labor camps
1943 Liberty Ship George Washington Carver, named after scientist, launched
1943 US 1st Armour division occupies Ferryville Tunisia
1943 US 9th Infantry division occupies Bizerta/Bensert Tunisia
1944 German assault on Tito's hideout in Drvar Bosnia
1945 Branch Rickey announces formation of the US Negro Baseball League
1945 Formal undertaking of complete German surrender
1945 German General Keitel repeats surrender signing in Berlin for the benefit of the Russians; WWII ends in Europe
1945 Mauthausen Concentration Camp liberated
1945 Nazi Generals Jodl & Von Friedenburg surrender
1945 Princess Irene Brigade moves into the Hague Netherlands
1945 Pulitzer prize awarded to John Hersey (Bell for Adano)
1945 SS open fire on crowd in Amsterdam, killing 22
1946 William H Hastie inaugurated as 1st black governor of Virgin Islands
1947 "Kraft Television Theater" premieres on NBC
1947 General MacArthur approves Japanese constitution
1947 Paraguayian Government unleashes contra revolt
1948 Nazi collaborator V-Mann Antonius van de Waals sentenced to death
1949 75th Kentucky Derby: Steve Brooks aboard Ponder wins in 2:04.2
1951 International Olympic committee allows Russia to participate in 1952 Olympics
1951 Pulitzer prize awarded to Conrad Richter (The Town)
1953 "Can Can" opens at Shubert Theater NYC for 892 performances
1953 Record 537-kg swordfish is caught by L E Marron, in Chile
1954 French surrender to Vietminh after 55-day siege at Dien Bien Phu
1954 US, Great-Britain & France reject Russian membership in NATO
1955 81st Kentucky Derby: Bill Shoemaker aboard Swaps wins in 2:01.8
1955 USSR signs peace treaty with France & Great-Britain
1955 West Europe Union established
1956 Battle at Oran, Algeria, kills 300
1956 New York Giant Bill White, homers in his 1st at bat
1956 Pulitzer prize awarded to Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett
1957 Indians' pitcher Herb Score is hit in the face by a line drive off Gil McDougald
1958 Major Howard Johnson, USAF, sets aircraft altitude record in F-104 (Lockheed Starfighter), 27,810 meters
1959 "Roy Campanella Night" Largest baseball crowd (93,103 in Los Angeles Coliseum) sees Dodgers' Sandy Koufax beat Yankees 6-2 in exhibition
1959 Largest baseball crowd (93,103 in Los Angeles Coliseum) sees Dodgers' Sandy Koufax beat Yankees 6-2 in exhibition
1960 "Christine" closes at 46th St Theater NYC after 12 performances
1960 "Flower Drum Song" closes at St James Theater NYC after 602 performances
1960 "From A to Z" closes at Plymouth Theater NYC after 21 performances
1960 86th Kentucky Derby: Bill Hartack on Venetian Way wins in 2:02.4
1960 Leonid Brezhnev replaces Kliment Voroshilov as President of USSR
1960 Los Angeles Dodger Norm Sherry's 11th homerun wins the game for brother Larry
1960 Michael Tal beats Botvinnik 12½-8½ for world chess championship
1960 USSR announces Francis Gary Powers confessed to being a CIA spy
1961 "Young Abe Lincoln" closes at Eugene O'Neill NYC after 27 performances
1961 Ruth Jessen wins LPGA Peach Blossom Golf Open
1962 Pulitzer prize awarded to Theodore H White (Making of President 1960)
1962 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Christmas Island
1963 Bruno Sammartino becomes WWF champion
1963 SETC Telstar 2 launched (apogee 6,700 miles (10,800 km))
1965 WAOW TV channel 9 in Wausau WI (ABC) begins broadcasting
1966 92nd Kentucky Derby: Donald Brumfield aboard Kauai King wins in 2:02
1966 Mamas & Papas "Monday Monday" hits #1
1966 Yankees fire manager Johnny Keene
1967 Carol Mann wins LPGA Tall City Golf Open
1969 2nd ABA championship: Oakland Oaks beat Indiana Pacers, 4 games to 1
1969 Lieutenant General Robert E Cushman, Jr, USMC, becomes deputy director of CIA
1970 "Long & Winding Road" becomes Beatles' last American release
1972 26th NBA Championship: Los Angeles Lakers beat New York Knicks, 4 games to 1
1972 Betty Burfeindt wins Sealy LPGA Golf Classic
1973 Pulitzer prize awarded to Eudora Welty (Optimist's Daughter)
1974 Pulitzer prize awarded to Robert Lowell (Dolphin)
1975 Flyers 3-Isles 4 (OT)-Semifinals-Flyers hold 3-1 lead
1975 President Ford declares an end to "Vietnam Era"
1975 Small Astronomy Satellite Explorer 53 launched to study X-rays
1977 "Happy End" opens at Martin Beck Theater NYC for 75 performances
1977 103rd Kentucky Derby: Jean Cruguet on Seattle Slew wins in 2:02.2
1979 5th UNCTAD-conference opens in Manila
1979 Gary Roenicke hits into Orioles 13th triple play (Oakland)
1980 Josip Tito, Yugoslav President, buried
1980 Samm-Art Williams' "Home" premieres in NYC
1982 "Is There Life after High School?" opens at Barrymore NYC for 12 performances
1982 Federal jury rules NFL violates antitrust laws in preventing Oakland Raiders from moving to Los Angeles
1982 IBM releases PC-DOS version 1.1
1982 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1983 109th Kentucky Derby: Ed Delahoussaye on Sunny's Halo wins in 2:02.2
1983 August Hoffman perform record 29,051 consecutive sit-ups
1983 August Hoffman performs record 29,051 consecutive sit-ups
1983 Bruins 4-Isles 8-Wales Conference Championship-Isles win series 4-2
1984 $180 million out-of-court settlement reached in Agent Orange suit
1984 Sharon Barrett wins LPGA Potamkin Cadillac Golf Classic
1986 Bucharest wins 31st Europe Cup I
1986 Phillies outfielder Garry Maddox, retires
1987 105º F in Sacramento CA
1987 Diane Chambers' (Shelley Long) final episode on Cheers
1988 114th Kentucky Derby: Gary Stevens on Winning Colors wins in 2:02.2
1988 USSR performs nuclear test at Novaya Zemlya USSR
1989 Juli Inkster wins LPGA Crestar Golf Classic
1989 Mark Merrony (Wales) cycles for 30 minutes in Nepal at 21,030 feet
1989 Panamanian voters reject dictator Manuel Noriega's bid for presidency
1991 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1991 Haryana beat Bombay in the Ranji Cricket Trophy final by 2 runs
1992 5 NYC cops arrested in Hauppauge Long Island for selling cocaine
1992 Constitutional amendment barring mid-term congressional raises passes
1992 Jockey Angel Cordero retires after winning over 7,000 horse races
1992 US space shuttle STS-49 launched (maiden voyage of Endeavour)
1993 South Africa agrees to multi-racial elections
1994 120th Kentucky Derby: Chris McCarron on Go For Gin wins in 2:03.6
1994 Denver Nuggets become NBA's 1st #8 seed to beat a #1 seed (Seattle)
1994 Edvard Munchs painting "The Scream" recovered 3 months after stolen
1994 Gary Hart's girlfriend Donna Rice (36) weds Jack Hughes (42)
1994 Matlock actor Daniel Roebuck (30) weds Kelly Durst (24)
1995 "On the Waterfront" closes at Atkinson Theater NYC after 8 performances
1995 Jacques Chirac wins French presidential election
1995 Michelle McGann wins LPGA Sara Lee Golf Classic
1995 Twins beat Indians 10-9 in 17 innings, 6 hours & 36 minutes
1996 Comedian Martin Lawrence suffers a nervous breakdown
1997 Expos scores 13 in 6th at Giants
1997 Galileo, 4th Ganymede Flyby (Orbit 8)
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Missing In Action....

1970 DUDMAN RICHARD 06/15/70 RELEASED REFNO 0614
1970 MORROW MICHAEL 06/15/70 RELEASED USG SPELLS MOROW
1970 POND ELIZABETH 06/70 RELEASED REFNO 1614
1972 CONSOLVO JOHN W. FORT BELVOIR VA
1972 KERNAN JOSEPH E. WASHINGTON DC 03/28/73 RELEASED BY DRV ALIVE IN 2000
1972 POLFER CLARENCE INDEPENDENCE MO 03/28/73 RELEASED BY DRV ALIVE AND WELL 98
1973 KAY EMMET J. HONOLULU HI 09/18/74 RELEASED BY PL DECEASED

Births which occurred on May 07:

1530 Louis I Condé French prince/leader of hugenots
1574 Innocent X [Giambattista Pamfili] 236th Roman Catholic pope (1644-55)
1700 Gerard van Swieten Dutch botanist
1704 Carl Heinrich Graun composer
1763 Josef Poniatovski Polish general/marshal of France
1769 Giuseppe Farinelli composer
1774 Sir Francis Beaufort naval officer; devised wind force scale
1776 Dániel Berzsenyi [Hungarian Horatius], Hungarian poet
1795 Gerhard M Roentgen industrialist (founder dockyard Fijenoord)
1803 Johan Peter Cronhamm composer
1812 Robert Browning London England, poet (The Pied Piper)
1826 Varina Howell Davis 1st lady (Confederacy), died in 1905
1827 Charles T H Coster Belgian literary (Légendes Flamandes) [or Aug 20]
1827 Francis Engle Patterson Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1862
1832 Carl G Neumann German mathematician/physicist (Neumann-functions)
1833 Johannes Brahms Hamburg Germany, composer, enjoys a good lullaby
1840 Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Votkinsk Russia, composer (The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, 1812 Overture)
1847 Archibald Primrose Earl of Rosebery (Liberal), British PM (1894-95)
1861 Rabindranath Tagore Hindu poet/mystic/composer (Nobel '13)
1866 Cornelis J K van Aalst president (Dutch Trading Company)
1867 Philippine "Pine" Belder [Mary de Klerk], actress (Hope of Blessing)
1873 Clarence Dickinson composer
1882 Willem Elsschot [Alfons J de Ridder] Flemish writer (Mend)
1883 Gino Roncaglia composer
1883 Martin Albertz German theologist (Church Jesus Christ)
1885 George "Gabby" Hayes Wellesvile NY, actor (In Old Santa Fe, El Paso)
1887 Henri Pourrat French writer (Gaspard of the Montagnes)
1888 Selmer Jackson Lake Mills IA, actor (Life & Legend of Wyatt Earp)
1890 Billy House Minnesota, actor (Imitation of Life, Bedlam, Egg & I)
1892 Archibald MacLeish Glencoe IL, political essayist/poet/dramatist (JB)
1892 Josip Broz Tito WWII partisan, leader of Yugoslavia (1943-80)
1897 Kitty McKane England, tennis (Olympics-gold/2 silver/2 bronze-1920, 24)
1898 Vera Chapman writer
19-- Phil Campbell rocker (Motorhead-No Remorse)
1900 Bauke Tuinstra Dutch/Frisian notary/author (Earste Keur)
1900 Ralph Truman London England, actor (Web of Evidence)
1901 Gary Cooper Helena MT, actor (2 Academy Awards-Sergeant York, High Noon)
1901 L T Coggeshall medical scientist/ US Secretary of HEW (1956-58)
1901 Marcel Poot Belgian baron/composer
1902 Sal Gliatto baseball player
1903 Basil Nield judge/politician
1907 Jef van Durme composer
1908 Ed MacDonald actor (Mysteries of Chinatown)
1908 Wouter Paap composer
1909 Edwin H Land inventor (instant photography (Polaroid))
1912 Paul H F Brenneker Netherlands/Antillian photographer/folklorist
1917 Daniel Gillès Belgian writer
1917 David Tomlinson Scotland, actor (Mary Poppins, Helter Skelter)
1917 William Geoffrey Biddle bomb disposal expert
1918 Argeliers Leon composer
1919 Eva (Evita) [Duarte] Perón Argentina, 1st lady/actress
1922 Darren McGavin Spokane WA, actor (Night Stalker, Tribes, Turk 182)
1922 Gale Robbins Chicago IL, actress/singer (Hollywood House, Fuller Brush Girl, Mr Hex)
1923 Anne Baxter Michigan City IN, actress (Myra-Marcus Welby, Victoria-Hotel)
1923 Pete V Domenici (Senator-R-NM, 1973- )
1926 Val Bisoglio New York NY, actor (Lieutenant Marsh-Police Woman, Danny-Quincy ME)
1927 Jim Lowe Springfield MA, DJ (WNEW) "King of Trivia"
1928 John Ingle actor (Edward Quartermaine-General Hospital)
1928 Marvin Mitchelson attorney
1929 Dick Williams baseball player, manager (including Seattle 1986-87)
1929 Sally L Smith educator/founder (Lab School of Washington)
1930 Aviard Gavrilovich Fastovets Russia, cosmonaut
1930 Horst Bienek German poet
1931 Gene [Rodman] Wolfe US, sci-fi author (Soldier of Arete)
1931 Nel J Ginjaar-Maas Dutch under-secretary of Education (VVD)
1931 Teresa Brewer Toledo OH, singer (Put Another Nickel In)
1932 Hans Boskamp [Johan HG Hoelscher] actor/producer (Oh My Papa)
1932 Pete Domeneci (Senator-R-NM)
1933 Johnny Unitas NFL QB (Baltimore Colts, San Diego); one of the greats
1934 Ben Smith Atlanta GA, PGA golfer (Ralphs Senior Classic-4th)
1934 Donald Russell Holler composer
1934 Heinz Marti composer
1934 Willard Scott weatherman (Today)
1936 Cornelius Cardew composer
1938 Johnny Caldwell Ireland, flyweight boxer (Olympics-bronze-1956)
1938 Kevin O'Connor Honolulu HI, actor (Bogie, Special Effects)
1939 Jimmy Ruffin soloist (What Becomes of the Broken Hearted)
1939 Johnny Maestro New York NY, rock vocalist (Crests-16 Candles, Brooklyn Bridge)
1939 Marco St John New Orleans LA, actor (Rayford-Ball Four)
1939 Rudolphus FM "Ruud" Lubbers director Dutch/CDA-premier (1982-94)
1939 Volker Braun writer
1940 Armando Krieger composer
1940 John Irvin actor (Moment in Time)
1941 Grahame Bilby cricketer (two Tests New Zealand vs England 1966)
1943 Christopher Taylor White rocker
1943 Peter Horak jetboat jumper
1943 Rick West [Richard Westwood] rocker (Brian Poole & Tremeloes)
1944 Alison Margaret Bauld composer
1944 John Heard actor (Pelican Brief, CHUD, Radio Flyer, Big)
1944 Sivi Aberg actress (Batman TV show)
1945 Robin Strasser New York NY, actress (Dorian-One Life to Live, Another World)
1945 Wim A Mateman Dutch MP (CDA)
1946 Bill Danoff Springfield MA, vocalist (Starland Vocal Band)
1946 Richard L Brodsky US lawyer/NY State Assemblyman (D) (1983- )
1948 Peter Wingfield Wales, rocker/actor (Methos-Highlander)
1949 Marilyn Cole Portsmouth England, playmate of the year (January 1972)
1949 Stuart Marshall director (Desire)
1950 Janis Ian [Janis Eddy Fink] New York NY, rock vocalist (At 17, Society's Child)
1950 Prairie Prince rocker (Tubes)
1951 David Whitton campaigner
1951 Robert Hegyes Metuchen NJ, actor (Underground Aces, Welcome Back Kotter)
1952 Amy Heckerling Bronx NY, director (Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Clueless)
1952 Derek Taylor rocker (Let it Be, Beatles Anthology)
1955 Peter Reckell Elkhart IN, actor (Days of our Lifes)
1957 [Christopher St John] "Sinjin" Smith Los Angeles CA, volleyballer (Olympics-96)
1957 Shauna McDonald Brown TV producer
1959 Michael E Knight Princeton NJ, actor (Date with Angel, All My Children)
1959 Robin L Freeman St Charles MO, PGA golfer (1993 Northern Telecom-3rd)
1959 Tamara E Jernigan Chattanooga, PhD/astronaut (STS 40, 52, 67, 80)
1960 Arnon Ohad co-pilot (El Al) plane that crashed on Bijlmer Amsterdam
1961 Linda Somers Bitburg Germany, US marathoner (Olympics-31st-96)
1962 Robbie Knievel daredevil, son of Evel (Chips Something Special)
1964 Leslie O'Neal NFL defensive end (San Diego Chargers, St Louis Rams)
1964 Mustapha Zerqti Moroccan/Netherlands writer (Ihtidaar hub fi el-mahd)
1964 Ronnie Harmon NFL running back (San Diego Chargers, Tennessee Oilers)
1965 Reuben Davis NFL defensive tackle (San Diego Chargers)
1966 Anderson Cummins cricketer (in Packer's Valley Barbados & West Indies quickie)
1968 Joe King NFL safety (Oakland Raiders)
1968 Traci Lords [Nora Louise Kuzma], Steubenville OH, porn actress (Cry Baby)
1969 Katerina Maleeva Bulgaria, tennis player (US Open Junior 1984)
1969 Melanie Valerio 400 meter freestyle swimmer (Olympics-96)
1970 Edwin Zoetebier Dutch soccer player (FC Volendam)
1970 Mark Smith Pasadena CA, outfielder (Baltimore Orioles)
1970 Sebastien Britten Brossard Québec Canada, figure skater (1995 Canadian Champion)
1971 Cameron McFadzean Melbourne Victoria Australia, canoeist (Olympics-96)
1971 Dave Karpa Regina, NHL defenseman (Anaheim Mighty Ducks)
1971 José Munoz WLAF offensive tackle (Rhein Fire)
1971 Rondell Jones NFL safety (Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens)
1972 Chris Hayes safety (New York Jets)
1972 John Holecek NFL linebacker (Buffalo Bills)
1972 Vince Stewart WLAF defensive tackle (Barcelona Dragons)
1973 Dameian Jeffries NFL defensive end (New Orleans Saints)
1973 Kristian Lundin record producer
1974 Scott Whittaker center/tackle (Oakland Raiders)
1975 Jason Tunks London Ontario, discus thrower (Olympics-96)
1976 Nicholas Butcher Los Angeles CA, field hockey midfielder/forward (Olympics-96)
1977 Marko Milic NBA guard (Phoenix Suns)
1987 Katie Danza daughter of Tony & Tracy Danza
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Deaths which occurred on May 07:

0685 Marwan I ibn al-Hakam 4th kalief of Omajjaden (684-85), dies
0973 Otto I the Great Holy Roman Emperor (962-973), dies at 60
1166 Willem I the Bad, king of Sicily (1154-66)
1205 Ladislaus III Arpad King of Hungary (1204-05), dies at 5 or 6
1523 Franz von Sickingen German knight/protect of poor, dies of wounds at 42
1617 David Fabricius German astronomer, dies at 53
1667 Johann Jakob Froberger German organist/singer/composer, dies at 50
1671 Edward Montagu English baron Kimbolton, dies at about 68
1671 Pieter Stockmans Flemish chairman of Opperkrijgshof, dies at 62
1673 Johannes Teellinck Dutch vicar, dies at about 58
1736 John Weldon composer, dies at 60
1792 Aert Schouman Dutch bird/portrait painter, dies at 82
1793 Johan A Zoutman Dutch Lieutenant Admiral (battle of Doggersbank), dies at 68
1793 Pietro Nardini composer, dies at 71
1800 Laurens P van Spiegel regent/pension advisor (1787-95), dies at 64
1800 Niccolò Piccinni Italian composer (Roland), dies at 72
1814 Franz Volrath Buttstett composer, dies at 79
1818 Leopold Jan Antonin Kozeluh composer, dies at 70
1825 Antonio Salieri Italian composer, dies in Vienna at 74
1836 Norbert Burgmuller composer, dies at 26
1863 Amiel Weeks Whipple US Union general-major, dies of injuries at 46
1871 Louis Papineau political reformer, dies
1876 Franz count of Pocci German artist/composer (Alchemist), dies at 69
1884 Judah P Benjamin confederate minister of War, dies at 72
1900 Richard Storrs Willis composer, dies at 81
1904 Peter Hille writer, dies
1914 Edward Mollenhauer composer, dies at 87
1915 Alfred G Vanderbilt US millionaire, dies aboard Lusitania
1915 Alfred Scott Witherbee Jr US Lusitania officer, dies
1915 Charles Frohman dies aboard Lusitania
1928 Alexander Afanasii Spendiaryan composer, dies at 56
1929 Albert Anselmi US gangster, murdered by Al Capone
1929 John Scalise US gangster, murdered by Al Capone
1929 Joseph "Top Toad" Giunta US gangster, murdered by Al Capone
1932 Albert Thomas French social minister of Weapon production, dies
1934 Edward Naylor composer, dies at 67
1941 David Wijnkoop revolutionary socialist, dies
1942 Felix Paul von Weingartner Austria conductor/composer, dies at 79
1946 Anton A Mussert engineer/NSB leader, executed
1946 Joe Humphries cricket wicket keeper (3 Tests for England 1907-08), dies
1951 Warner Baxter dies at 62
1953 Ormerod Pearse cricketer (55 runs & 3 wickets in 3 Tests for S Af), dies
1958 Nyogen Senzaki 1st Zen teacher to reside in USA, dies at 81
1962 Jimmy Conlin dies at 77
1967 Judith Evelyn dies of cancer at 54
1968 Lurleen Burns wife of George Wallace/Governor of Alabama, dies at 41
1970 Carlos Estrada composer, dies at 60
1971 Willem Banning Dutch theologist/sociologist (Karl Marx), dies at 83
1977 Irwin Fischer composer, dies at 73
1981 Mieczyslaw Kolinski composer, dies at 79
1982 Alfred Adam dies at 72
1983 Peter Edel writer, dies
1985 Dawn Addams actress (Alan Young Show, Star Maidens), dies at 54
1986 Gaston Deferre French politician, dies at 75
1987 Colin Blakely dies at 56
1988 Divine [Harris Glenn Milstead] dies of natural causes at 42
1989 Guy Williams actor (Zorro, Lost in Space), dies in Argentina at 65
1990 Jessica James actress (Spring Break), dies of breast cancer at 60
1993 Mary Philbin actress (Phantom of the Opera), dies at 89
1994 Clement Greenberg US art critic (Art & Culture), dies at 85
1994 Margaret Skeete oldest American, dies at 115
1995 Ernest H Martin impressario, dies at 75
1995 Lawrence Josset engraver, dies at 84
1995 Maria Luisa Bemberg fil maker, dies at 73
1995 Ray McKinley drummer, dies at 84
1996 Albert Meltzer anarchist, dies at 76
1996 Henry Diamond Irish Nationalist MP, dies at 87
1996 Howard Frank Trayton Smith diplomat/head of MI5, dies at 76

1763 Pontiac’s plot is foiled

On this day in 1763, Major Henry Gladwin, British commander of Fort Detroit, foils Ottawa Chief Pontiac’s attempt at a surprise attack. Romantic lore holds that Gladwin’s Seneca mistress informed him of the western Indians’ plans for an uprising.

When Pontiac arrived at the fort with his men, who were concealing weapons under their trading blankets, they discovered that Gladwin had assembled his men and prepared them for a defense of the fort. Knowing that, without the element of surprise, their efforts would not be successful, Pontiac withdrew and instead laid siege to the fort for the rest of the summer, while his allies successfully seized 10 of 13 British forts in the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley regions by June 20. The western Indians’ efforts to unite all Native Americans in an attempt to free themselves of addictions to European trade goods and alcohol, guided by their spiritual leader, a Delaware named Neolin, seemed to be succeeding. However, the French failed to come to the Indians’ aid in driving the British back to the Atlantic as hoped, dooming the rebellion.

British General Jeffrey Amherst, who first angered western Indians in 1760 by curtailing the tradition of gift exchange long practiced by both the French and English governments, unleashed one of the earliest uses of biological weaponry on the Indians in response to their uprising. He ordered Colonel Henry Bouquet of Fort Pitt to “Extirpate this Execrable Race,” by distributing smallpox-infected blankets among them. The plan succeeded in breeding a deadly smallpox epidemic among the Indians in 1763-64.

The Indians’ increased unity and success terrified western European settlers, already made nervous by the British king’s Proclamation Line of 1763, which denied their right to settle beyond the Appalachians. Colonists’ failure to find protection from the crown made them doubt the efficacy of their imperial governments. Meanwhile, officials in London believed backcountry settlers should share in the blame for the violence of the past 10 years and demanded their assistance in paying for the empire’s military expenses on American soil. In an effort to collect on this debt from the Americans, the British parliament passed, in rapid succession, the Sugar Act of 1764, the Stamp Act of 1765, the Townshend Acts of 1767, the Tea Act of 1773 and the Coercive Acts of 1774. By April 1775, the cycle of taxation and protest had escalated to the point that blood was spilled between colonists and Redcoats on Lexington Green in Massachusetts; the American Revolution had begun.
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1864 Grant leaves the Wilderness for Spotsylvania

Following two days of intense fighting in the Wilderness forest, the Army of the Potomac, under the command of Union General Ulysses S. Grant, moves south. Grant's forces had clashed with Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia in a pitched and confused two-day battle in which neither side gained a clear victory. Nonetheless, Lee could claim an advantage, since he inflicted more casualties and held off the Yankees, despite the fact that he was outnumbered.

When Lee halted Grant's advance, Grant proved that he was different than previous commanders of the Army of the Potomac by refusing to fall back. Many of his veteran soldiers expected to retreat back across the Rapidan River, but the order came down through the ranks to move the army south. The blue troops had just suffered terrible losses, and the move lifted their spirits. "We marched free. The men began to sing," recalled one Yankee.

In some ways, warfare would never be the same. Grant had promised President Abraham Lincoln that there would be no turning back on this campaign. He would aggressively pursue Lee without allowing the Confederates time to retool. But the cost was high: Weeks of fighting resulted in staggering casualties before the two armies dug in around Petersburg by the middle of June.

1862 Confederate forces attack Union forces at Eltham's Landing

1864 Sherman advances toward Atlanta
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1915 German submarine sinks Lusitania

The earlier German attacks on merchant ships off the south coast of Ireland prompted the British Admiralty to warn the Lusitania to avoid the area or take simple evasive action, such as zigzagging to confuse U-boats plotting the vessel's course. The captain of the Lusitania ignored these recommendations, and at 2:12 p.m. on May 7, in the waters of the Celtic Sea, the 32,000-ton ship was hit by an exploding torpedo on its starboard side. The torpedo blast was followed by a larger explosion, probably of the ship's boilers. The Lusitania sank within 20 minutes.

Germany justified the attack by stating, correctly, that the Lusitania was an enemy ship, and that it was carrying munitions. It was primarily a passenger ship, however, and among the 1,201 drowned in the attack were many women and children, including 128 Americans. Colonel Edward House, close associate of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, was in London for a diplomatic visit when he learned of the Lusitania’s demise. “America has come to the parting of the ways,” he wrote in a telegram to Wilson, “when she must determine whether she stands for civilized or uncivilized warfare. We can no longer remain neutral spectators.”

Wilson subsequently sent a strongly worded note to the German government—the first of three similar communications—demanding that it cease submarine warfare against unarmed merchant ships. Wilson’s actions On the afternoon of May 7, 1915, the British ocean liner Lusitania is torpedoed without warning by a German submarine off the south coast of Ireland.

Faced with the overpowering size and strength of the British Royal Navy at the outset of World War I, Germany realized its most effective weapon at sea was its deadly accurate U-boat submarine. Consequently, in February 1915, the German navy adopted a policy of unrestricted submarine warfare, declaring the area around the British Isles a war zone, in which all merchant ships, including those from neutral countries, would be subject to attack.

Though the United States was officially neutral at this point in the war, Britain was one of the nation’s closest trading partners, and tensions arose immediately over Germany’s new policy. In early May 1915, several New York newspapers published a warning by the German embassy in Washington that Americans traveling on British or Allied ships in war zones did so at their own risk. On the same page, an advertisement announced the imminent sailing of the British cruise liner Lusitania from New York back to Liverpool.

prompted his secretary of state, the pacifist William Jennings Bryan, to resign. His successor, Robert Lansing, took quite a different view of the situation: the sinking of the Lusitania had convinced him that the United States could not maintain its neutrality forever, and would eventually be forced to enter the war against Germany.

On the German side, fear of further antagonizing Wilson and his government led Kaiser Wilhelm and Chancellor Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg to issue an apology to the U.S. and enforce a curb on the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. By early 1917, however, under pressure from military leaders who advocated an aggressive naval policy as an integral component of German strategy in World War I, the government reversed its policy, and on February 1, 1917, Germany resumed its policy of unrestricted U-boat warfare. Two days later, Wilson announced that the U.S. was breaking diplomatic relations with Germany; the same day, the American liner Housatonic was sunk by a German U-boat. The United States formally entered World War I on April 6, 1917.
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1945 Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allies at Reims

On this day in 1945, the German High Command, in the person of General Alfred Jodl, signs the unconditional surrender of all German forces, East and West, at Reims, in northwestern France.

At first, General Jodl hoped to limit the terms of German surrender to only those forces still fighting the Western Allies. But General Dwight Eisenhower demanded complete surrender of all German forces, those fighting in the East as well as in the West. If this demand was not met, Eisenhower was prepared to seal off the Western front, preventing Germans from fleeing to the West in order to surrender, thereby leaving them in the hands of the enveloping Soviet forces. Jodl radioed Grand Admiral Karl Donitz, Hitler's successor, with the terms. Donitz ordered him to sign. So with Russian General Ivan Susloparov and French General Francois Sevez signing as witnesses, and General Walter Bedell Smith, Ike's chief of staff, signing for the Allied Expeditionary Force, Germany was-at least on paper-defeated. Fighting would still go on in the East for almost another day. But the war in the West was over.

Since General Susloparov did not have explicit permission from Soviet Premier Stalin to sign the surrender papers, even as a witness, he was quickly hustled back East-into the hands of the Soviet secret police, never to be heard from again. Alfred Jodl, who was wounded in the assassination attempt on Hitler on July 20, 1944, would be found guilty of war crimes (which included the shooting of hostages) at Nuremberg and hanged on October 16, 1946-then granted a pardon, posthumously, in 1953, after a German appeals court found Jodl not guilty of breaking international law.
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1954 French fall to Viet Minh at Dien Bien Phu

Dien Bien Phu falls to the Viet Minh. In March, a force of 40,000 Viet Minh troops with heavy artillery had surrounded 15,000 French soldiers, holding the French position under siege. The Viet Minh guerrillas had been fighting a long and bloody war with French colonial interests for control of Vietnam since 1946. In an attempt to score a decisive victory, French General Henri Navarre had positioned the large French force 200 miles behind enemy lines in a remote area adjacent to the Laotian border. He had planned to draw the communists into a set-piece battle in which he hoped superior French firepower would destroy the enemy, but he vastly underestimated his foe.

Viet Minh General Vo Nguyen Giap entrenched artillery in the surrounding mountains and massed five divisions around the French positions. The battle, which far exceeded the size and scope of anything to date in the war between the French and the Viet Minh, began with a massive Viet Minh artillery barrage and was followed by an infantry assault. The tide of the battle quickly turned against the French.

U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and other members of the Eisenhower administration were stunned at the turn of events and discussions were held to decide on a course of action. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Arthur Radford proposed the use of nuclear strikes against the Viet Minh. Other options included massive conventional air strikes, paratrooper drops, and the mining of Haiphong Harbor. In the end, President Eisenhower decided that the situation was too far gone and ordered no action to be taken to aid the French.

Fierce fighting continued to rage until this day, when the Viet Minh overran the last French positions. During the siege, 1,600 French troops were killed, 4,800 were wounded, and 1,600 missing. The Viet Minh captured 8,000 French and marched them off on foot on a 500-mile trek to prison camps; fewer than half survived the march. Viet Minh casualties were estimated at approximately 7,900 killed and 15,000 wounded.

The battle of Dien Bien Phu marked the end of the French involvement in Southeast Asia. France had lost more than 35,000 men and 48,000 had been wounded in a war that was considered financially and militarily humiliating. The shock of the defeat at Dien Bien Phu led the French government, already plagued by public opposition to the war, to agree to the independence of Vietnam at the Geneva Conference in 1954.