On This Day in History......

0535 John II ends his reign as Catholic Pope
0615 St Boniface IV ends his reign as Catholic Pope
0685 St Benedict II ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1360 Treaty of Brétigny signed by English & French
1429 French troops under Joan of Arc rescues Orléans
1450 Jack Cade's Rebellion-Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI
1521 Parliament of Worms installs edict against Marten Luther
1541 Hernando de Soto discovers Mississippi River
1624 Hung king Bethlen Gábor & emperor Ferdinand II sign Treaty of Vienna
1639 William Coddington founds Newport RI
1660 English parliament asks King Charles II to resigns
1721 Michelangiolo dei Conti replaces Pope Clement XI, as Innocent XIII
1741 France & Bavaria sign Covenant of Nymphenburg
1784 Only known deaths by hailstones in US (Winnsborough SC)
1792 British Captain George Vancouver sights, names Mount Rainier WA
1792 US establishes military draft
1794 US Post Office established
1823 "Home Sweet Home" 1st sung (London)
1834 Charles Darwin's expedition returns to the Beagle
1834 Prussia, Austria & Russia sign classified accord about Belgium
1840 Alexander Wolcott patents Photographic Process
1842 Versailles to Paris train catches fire; 50 die
1846 1st major battle of Mexican War fought at Palo Alto TX
1847 Robert Thompson patents rubber tire
1858 John Brown holds antislavery convention
1861 Richmond VA, is named the capital of the Confederacy
1862 Valley Campaign: Federals repulsed at Battle of McDowell VA
1863 Confederación Granadina becomes Estados Unidos de Colombia
1864 Actions at Stony Creek/Nottoway Bridge VA (Drewry's Bluff)
1864 Atlanta Campaign: Severe fighting near Dalton
1864 Battle of Antietam VA (Spotslyvania Court House, Laurel Hill)
1866 Australian Rules Football is created
1871 English-US treaty ends Alabama dispute
1877 1st Westminster Dog Show held
1878 Paul Hines makes baseball's 1st unassisted triple play
1879 George Selden files for 1st patent for a gasoline-driven automobile
1881 Henry Morton Stanley signs contract with Congolian monarch
1882 David Belasco's "La Belle Russe" premieres in NYC
1885 Sarah Ann Henley survives 76-meter jump from Clifton Bridge, Avon, England
1886 Atlanta pharmacist (Jacob's Pharmacy) Dr John Styth Pemberton invents Coca Cola (contained cocaine)
1895 China cedes Taiwan to Japan under Treaty of Shimonoseki
1896 Yorkshire Cricket all out for 887 against Warwickshire
1897 22nd Preakness: T Thorpe aboard Paul Kauvar wins in 1:51¼
1900 250 grave robbers shot to death
1900 John McGraw & Wilbert Robinson sign with Cardinals
1901 In their long-delayed American League home opener, Boston defeats Philadelphia 12-4
1902 Mount Pelée erupts, wipes out St Pierre, Martinique, kills 30,000
1906 Philadelphia A's pitcher Chief Benders plays outfield & hits 2 homeruns
1907 Boston's Big Jeff Pfeffer no-hits Cincinnati Reds, 6-0
1907 Tommy Burns beats Jack O'Brien in 20 for heavyweight boxing title
1909 Albert Raines runs world record marathon (2:46:04.6)
1915 41st Kentucky Derby: Joe Notter aboard Regret wins in 2:05.4
1916 German munitions bunker in Fort Douaumont explodes
1919 1st transatlantic flight take-off by a navy seaplane
1919 Appingedam soccer team forms
1920 46th Kentucky Derby: Ted Rice aboard Paul Jones wins in 2:09
1921 Sweden abolished capital punishment
1923 Hobbs scores his 100th 100, 116 vs Somerset at Bath
1924 Arthur Honegger's "Pacifica 231" premieres
1924 Memel territories given to Lithuania
1924 Workers at Werkspoor in Amsterdam strike against 3rd wage cut
1925 51st Preakness: Clarence Kummer aboard Coventry wins in 1:59
1925 French colonial army beats Rifkabylen in Morocco
1926 1st flight over North Pole (Bennett & Byrd)
1926 A Philip Randolph organizes Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
1926 Fire breaks out in Fenway Park
1929 Jan Mayen island, 500 km NNE of Iceland, incorporated into Norway
1929 New York Giant Carl Hubbell no-hits Pirates, 11-0
1931 Operette "Land of Smiles" premieres in London
1935 Cincinnati Red Ernie Lombardi doubles in 6th, 7th, 8th & 9th beat Phils 15-4
1936 Jockey Ralph Neves unexpectedly revived after being declared dead after a fall; His wife fainted when he returned to the track
1937 63rd Kentucky Derby: Charley Kurtsinger on War Admiral wins 2:03.2
1938 Stravinsky's "Dumbarton Oaks" premieres in Washington DC
1941 German Q-ship Pinguin sinks in Indian Ocean
1942 1st twilight game in 24 years, the Dodgers top Giants 7-6 raising $60,000 for Navy Relief Fund
1942 Battle of Coral Sea ends; Aircraft carrier Lexington sunk by Japanese air attack
1942 German summer offensive opens in Crimea
1943 69th Preakness: Johnny Longden aboard Count Fleet wins in 1:57.4
1943 Admiral Cunningham of British fleet: "Sink, burn & destroy; let nothing pass"
1944 1st eye bank opens (NYC)
1944 33 communist resistance fighter sentenced to death
1944 U-575 sinks Asphodel
1945 Canadian troops move into Amsterdam
1945 Chinese counter attack at Tsjangte, supports by 14th air fleet
1945 General Von Keitel surrenders to Marshal Zhukov near Berlin
1945 V-E Day; Germany signs unconditional surrender, WWII ends in Europe
1946 Red Sox Johnny Pesky scores 6 runs in 1 game
1947 A movement among Card players to protest its 1st meeting with Jackie Robinson & the Dodgers is aborted by a talk from owner Sam Breadon
1948 Bradman scores 146 Australia vs Surrey, 174 minutes, 15 fours
1949 West German constitution approved
1950 Chiang Kai-shek asks US for weapons
1951 Dacron men's suits introduced
1951 US performs atmospheric nuclear test at Enwetak
1952 "Of Thee I Sing" opens at Ziegfeld Theater NYC for 72 performances
1952 "Shuffle Along" opens at Broadway Theater NYC for 4 performances
1952 Mad Magazine debuts
1953 WIPB TV channel 49 in Muncie IN (PBS) begins broadcasting
1954 1st shot-put over 60' (18.29 meter)-Parry O'Brien, Los Angeles CA
1956 John Osbornes "Look Back in Anger" premieres in London
1958 President Eisenhower orders National Guard out of Central HS, Little Rock
1958 Vice President Nixon is shoved, stoned, booed & spat upon by protesters in Peru
1959 3-deck Nile excursion steamer springs a leak panicking passengers who capsized ship; 200 drown just yards from shore
1960 USSR & Cuba resume diplomatic relations
1960 Wiffi Smith wins LPGA Betsy Rawls Peach Blossom Golf Open
1961 1st practical sea water conversion plant-Freeport TX
1961 Alan Shepard receives NASA Distinguished Service Medal, Washington
1962 "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 965 performances
1962 1st Atlas Centaur Launch
1962 London trolley buses go out of service
1963 "Dr No" premieres in US
1963 JFK offers Israel assistance against aggression
1965 1st shut put over 70' (Randy Matson 70' 7")
1966 Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA Tall City Golf Open
1966 Last game at old Busch Stadium, St Louis Card lose 10-5 to San Fransisco
1966 Only homerun ever hit out of Baltimore's Memorial Stadium (Frank Robinson)
1967 Muhammad Ali is indicted for refusing induction in US Army
1968 Jim (Catfish) Hunter of Oakland pitches perfect game vs Twins (4-0)
1968 Pulitzer prize awarded to William Styron (Confessions of Nat Turner)
1969 Cambodia recognizes German Democratic Republic
1969 Pope Paul VI publishes constitution Sacra Ritum Congregation
1970 Beatles release "Let it Be" album
1970 Construction workers break up an anti-war rally in NYC's Wall Street
1970 NBA championship: Knicks beat Lakers, 113-99
1971 "Earl of Ruston" closes at Billy Rose Theater NYC after 5 performances
1971 Joe Frazier beats Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden
1972 Sabena aircraft at Lod International, Tel Aviv, captured by Palestinians
1973 Ernie Banks fills in for Cubs manager Whitey Lockman who is ejected during the game, thus technically becoming baseball's 1st black manager
1973 Indians holding South Dakota hamlet of Wounded Knee for 10 weeks surrender
1974 50 MPH speed limit in Britain lifted
1974 Canadian Government of Trudeau falls
1974 FC Magdenburg wins 14th Europe Cup II
1976 "1600 Pennsylvania Avenue" closes at Mark Hellinger NYC after 7 performances
1977 David Berkowitz pleads guilty in "Son of Sam" 44-caliber shootings
1977 Hollis Stacy wins LPGA Lady Tara Golf Classic
1978 ABC TV airs "The Stars Salute Israel at 30"
1978 Jan Stephenson wins LPGA Women's International Golf Tournament
1979 Radio Shack releases TRSDOS 2.3
1980 Sabres take only 15 shots, Islanders 22, in a playoff game
1980 World Health Organization announced smallpox had been eradicated
1981 Ron Davis pitches 10th consecutive strike out, 1 short of record
1983 Janet Coles wins LPGA Lady Michelob Golf Tournament
1984 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1984 Minnesota Twins Kirby Puckett debuts with 4 singles
1984 Thames Barrier to stop flooding in London officially completed
1984 USSR announces it will not participate in Los Angeles Summer Olympics
1985 20th Academy of Country Music Awards: Alabama & Judds win
1985 France performs nuclear test at Muruora Island
1987 Gary Hart quits democratic presidential race (Donna Rice affair)
1988 "Oba Oba" closes at Ambassador Theater NYC after 46 performances
1988 Amateur referees work New Jersey Devil-Boston Bruin playoff games, as NHL referees walk-off, due to a restraining order brought by the Devils
1988 François Mitterrand elected President of France
1988 Juli Inkster wins LPGA Crestar Golf Classic
1988 Mike Tyson crashes his $183,000 Bently on Varick St in NYC
1989 Paul McCartney releases "My Brave Face" & "Ferry Cross the Mersey"
1989 US space shuttle STS-30 lands
1990 Cuyahoga County voters approve sin tax to build Cleveland Gateway
1991 CIA director William H Webster resigns
1993 16 year old Keron Thomas disguises himself as a motorman & takes NYC subway train & 2,000 passengers on a 3 hour ride
1993 ABC Masters Bowling Tournament won by Phil Ware
1993 Lennox Lewis beats Tony Tucker in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1994 "Rise & Fall of Little Voice" closes at Neil Simon NYC after 9 performances
1994 500th commentary by Andy Rooney on 60 Minutes
1994 Colorado Silver Bullets (all-female pro baseball team) 1st game
1994 Ernesto Pérez Balladares elected President of Panamá
1994 José Maria Figueres becomes President of Costa Rica
1994 Laura Davies wins LPGA Sara Lee Golf Classic
1994 President Clinton announces US will no longer repatriate boat people
1996 New York Yankee Dwight Gooden wins his 1st American League game beating Tigers 10-3
1996 South Africa's Const Assembly adopts permanent post-apartheid constitution
1997 Tea Leoni & David Duchovny wed in Greenwich Village
=======================================================

Missing In Action.......

1965 LA HAYE JAMES D. GREEN BAY WI GROUNDFIRE CRASH AT SEA NO PARA
1966 RAY JAMES E. LONGVIEW TX 02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV
1967 MC CUISTION MICHAEL K. LINCOLN NE 03/08/73 RELEASED BY DRV ALIVE AND WELL 98
1967 STEIMER THOMAS JACK PIEDMONT CA
1968 CONDREY GEORGE T. III ATLANTA GA EXPLODE NO SIGN SUBJ NEAR CRASH
1968 DAYTON JAMES L. GRANITE CITY IL EXPLODE NO SIGN SUBJ NEAR CRASH
1968 JENNE ROBERT E. SALT LAKE CITY UT EXPLODE NO SIGNS SUBJ NEAR CRASH
1968 JURECKO DANIEL E. CORPUS CHRISTI TX EXPLODE NO SIGN SUBJ NEAR CRASH
1969 BRASHEAR WILLIAM J. CHULA VISTA CA
1969 MUNDT HENRY G. ABILENE TX
1972 LEAVER JOHN M. JR. ARLINGTON MA
1972 TAYLOR EDMUND B. JR. LIMA OH

Births which occurred on May 08:

1492 Andreas Alciatus [Giovanni Andrea-Alciato], Italian lawyer
1521 Peter Canisius [Pieter de Hondt/Kanijs], jesuit/saint
1527 Johann Walter composer
1592 Francis Quarles English poet (Argalus & Parthenia, Emblems)
1629 Niels Juel Danish Admiral (Oland, Moen, Kjögebocht)
1641 Nicolaas Witsen etcher/mayor (Amsterdam)
1668 Alain R Lesage French author (Turcaret ou le Financier)
1673 Johann Valentin Eckelt composer
1703 Gottlob Harrer composer
1737 Edward Gibbon England, historian (Decline & Fall of Roman Empire)
1742 Johann Baptist Krumpholtz composer
1745 Carl Philipp Stamitz composer
1750 Elias Mann composer
1753 Miguel Hidalgo y Castilla father of Mexican independence
1763 John Goldberg Dutch patriot/statesman
1778 Johann Gansbacher composer
1786 Thomas Hancock founded British rubber industry
1803 Joseph Napoleon Ney Moskova composer
1806 Jan Bedrich Kittl composer
1810 James Cooper Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1863
1814 Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin anarchist
1824 William Walker filibuster/President of Nicaragua (1856-57)
1828 Jean Henri Dunant Switzerland, writer/founder (Red Cross (Nobel Peace Prize 1901))
1829 Louis Moreau Gottschalk 1st internationally recognized US pianist
1833 Frank Wheaton Brevet Major General (Union Army), died in 1903
1836 Bryan Morel Thomas Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1905
1839 Francis W Warre-Cornish English vice-provost of Eton/writer
1842 Emil C Hansen Danish physiologist
1844 Hermann Gradener composer
1846 Oscar Hammerstein Germany, opera/playwright (Kohinoor)
1853 Charles Lee Williams composer
1857 Frits [Frederik H] Tartaud Dutch actor/husband of Alida Klein
1858 John Meade Falkner novelist (Moonfleet)
1871 [Émile M] Louis Madelin French historian (French revolutionary)
1873 Henry Leveson-Gower cricketer (England captain 1909-10 later official)
1882 Philips C Visser Dutch explorer/diplomat
1884 Harry S Truman Lamar MO, 33rd US President (D) (1945-1953)
1886 Jef van Hoof composer
1891 Chet "Red" Hoff pitcher (New York Yankees 1911-15), lived to 103+
1892 Ezio Pinza Rome Italy, bass singer (South Pacific, RCA Victor Show)
1893 Francis Quimet Massachusetts shop assistant who won golf's US Open (1913)
1895 Edmund Wilson American critic/writer (Patriotic Gore)
1895 Fulton J Sheen El Paso IL, bishop (Life is Worth Living)
1895 José Gómez [Joselito el Gallo], bullfighter
1899 Friedrich August von Hayek Vienna Austria, author (The Road to Serfdom)/co-recipient of Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences (1974)
1899 Jan F van Hall Dutch sculptor/resistance fighter
19-- Reid Smith Burbank CA, actor (Chase, Chisholms)
1902 Andre Michel Lwoff physiologist
1902 Milford "Curly" Page cricketer (New Zealand bat early 1930's, All Black half)
1903 Fernandel [Fernand Joseph Desire Contandin] French actor (Paris Holiday)
1904 John Derrick Mordaunt Snagge BBC news announcer/commentator
1905 Inglis Gundry composer
1906 David Van Vactor Plymouth IN, composer (Chaconne)
1906 Roberto Rossellini Rome Italy, director (Open City)
1908 Arturo De Cordova [Rodriguez], Merida México, actor (Medal for Benny)
1910 Mary Lou Williams US jazz pianist/composer (Zodiac Suite)
1910 Ronald Russell actor/manager (We are Angels, Little Dorrit)
1911 Robert Johnson blues singer (King of the Delta Blues Singer)
1911 Wilhelm F de Gaay Fortman Dutch lawyer/foreign minister
1912 George Woodcock author
1912 Gertrud Fussenegger [Dorn] Austrian writer (Mohrenlegende)
1913 Sidney James [Cohen] Johannesburg, actor (Carry On)
1914 Lord Murton of Lindisfrarne, deputy chairman (Comm House of Lords)
1915 John Archer Osceola NE, actor (Destination Moon)
1916 Gordon Scarrott engineer
1919 Sultan Ismail Hajibeyov composer
1920 Maurice Cranston political scientist
1920 Sloan Wilson Norwalk CT, novelist (Man in the Gray Flannel Suit)
1921 Graham Leonard bishop of London
1921 Saul Bass designer
1922 Brian Kellett CEO (Port of London Authority)
1922 Friedrich Döppe writer
1924 Tristan Jones sailor
1925 Ali Hassan Mwinyi President of Tanzania (1985- )
1925 Lord Jauncey of Tullichettle lord of appeal in ordinary
1926 Don Rickles Queens NY, comedian (Don Rickles Show, CPO Sharkey)
1926 Erico Menczer Fiume Italy, cinematographer (Chosen, Miranda)
1926 Ronald Waterhouse high court judge
1926 Sir David [Frederick] Attenborough London England, environmentalist/zoologist/TV host (BBC)
1927 Ian Denholm CEO (Murray Investment Trust)
1927 Philip Wilkinson deputy chairman (National Westminster Bank)
1928 Theodore Sorensen presidential advisor (JFK)/author (1000 Days)
1928 William Jay Sydeman composer
1929 V N M Korte-van Hemel Dutch Secretary of Justice (CDA)
1930 Doug Atkins Humbolt TN, NFL hall of famer (Browns, Bears, Saints)
1930 Gary Snyder [Japhy Ryder] beat poet (Rip Rap & Cold Mountain Poems)
1930 Heather Harper soprano
1931 Charles M Wilson composer
1933 Alistair Service writer/publisher
1934 Leonard Hoffmann high court judge
1934 Roger Kendrick governor (Dartmoor Prison)
1934 Sonny Liston US heavyweight boxing chmap (1962-64)
1935 Jack Charlton soccer manager (Republic of Ireland)
1935 Salome Jens Milwaukee WI, actress (From Here to Eternity)
1935 Viscount Falkland British peer (Liberal-Democrat)
1936 James Darren actor (Time Tunnel)
1936 Neville Purvis British Vice Admiral (Chief of Fleet Support)
1937 Daniël Robberechts Belgian writer (Labia Majora)
1937 Dennis DeConcini (Senator-D-AZ, 1977- )
1937 Michael Simmons Air Marshal (British Ministry of Defense)
1937 Thomas Pynchon novelist (V)
1938 Javed Burki cricketer (Pakistan batsman in 25 Tests 1960-69)
1938 Pierre Lucien Claverie bishop of Oran
1939 Otis Paul Drayton Glen Cove NY, 4x100 meter runner (Olympics-gold-1964)
1940 James Blyth CEO (Boots)
1940 Peter Benchley New York NY, novelist (Jaws, The Deep)
1940 Rick [Eric Hilliard] Nelson Teaneck NJ, rock star (Hello Mary Lou, It's Late, Garden Party)
1941 James A Traficant Jr (Representative-D-OH, 1985- )
1941 Jim Mitchum Bridgeport CT, actor (Blackout, Invincible 6)
1941 John Fred rocker
1942 Euclid "Motorhead" Sherwood rocker (Mothers Of Invention)
1942 Norman Lamont MP/Chancellor of Exchequer
1942 Robin Hobbs cricketer (England leg-spinner 1967-71)
1942 Ruth Holland journalist
1943 Paul Samwell-Smith London England, rocker (The Yardbirds-For Your Love)
1943 Toni Tennille Montgomery AL, female Beachboy (Captain & Tennille)
1944 Gary Glitter [Paul Gadd] Banbury Oxfordshire England, rocker (Rock & Roll Part II)
1945 Arthur Docters van Leeuwen jurist (Holland's secret service)
1945 Keith Jarrett jazz musician/film composer (Nachtfahrer)
1947 Felicity Lott English soprano (We come to the river)
1947 Phil Sawyer rocker (Spencer Davis Group)
1947 Rick Zehringer Celina OH, rocker (McCoys)
1948 John Reid MP
1948 Maurizio Nichetti actor (Icicle Thief, Volcano)
1950 Mark Blankfield Pasadena TX, comedian (Fridays, Good & Evil)
1951 Chris Frantz Fort Campbell KY, rock drummer (Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club)
1951 Deborah Harmon actress (Ted Knight Show, MASH, Just the 10 of Us)
1951 Philip Bailey rocker (Earth Wind & Fire-Shining Star, Easy Lover)
1952 Beth Henley Jackson MS, actress/playwright (Miss Firecracker)
1952 Charles J Camarda New York NY, PhD/astronaut
1954 David Keith Knoxville TN, actor (Back Roads, Firestarter)
1954 Pat Meyers LPGA golfer
1955 Alex Van Halen Nijmegen Netherlands, rock drummer (Van Halen-1984, Jump)
1955 Stephen Furst Norfolk VA, actor (Animal House, Elliot-St Elsewhere)
1956 Gary Wilmot British? entertainer
1956 Jeff Madrigali Walnut Creek CA, soling yachter (Olympics-bronze-96)
1957 Deana Deardruff US, 4 X 100 meter swimmer (Olympics-gold-1972)
1957 Jeff Wincott Toronto Ontario Canada, actor (Night Heat)
1959 Ronnie Lott Albuquerque NM, NFL defensive back (San Fransisco 49er)
1961 Riaz Poonawalla cricketer (Indian 12th man/UAE bat 1994 ICC Trophy)
1962 Terry Baker CFL kicker (Montréal Alouettes)
1963 Clemens Lothaller Austria, cosmonaut (Soyuz TM-13 backup)
1964 Cheryl Richardson Palo Alto CA, actress (Jennie-General Hospital)
1964 Eric Brittingham rocker (Cinderella-Heartbreak Station)
1964 Melissa Gilbert [Boxleitner/Brinkman] Los Angeles CA, actress (Little House on the Prairie)
1964 Peter Gill rocker (Frankie Goes to Hollywood-Relax) [or Mar/Jan 8]
1966 Eddie Brown CFL slot back (Edmonton Eskimos)
1968 Franklin Langham Augusta GA, Nike golfer (1993 Permian Basin Open)
1968 John Johnson NFL linebacker (New Orleans Saints)
1968 Omar Camporese Italy, tennis star
1969 Brad Culpepper NFL defensive tackle (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
1969 Duane Forde CFL fullback (Calgary Stampeders)
1969 Swift Burch CFL defensive end (Montréal Alouettes)
1970 Christine Stark Winnipeg Manitoba, volleyballer (Olympics-96)
1970 Marco Heering soccer player (Go Ahead Eagles)
1970 Michael Bevan cricketer (dashing New South Wales & Australian lefty bat)
1971 Carlos Brooks NFL cornerback (Arizona Cardinals)
1971 Chris Wolf actor/musician (Guys Next Door)
1971 Stephen Ingram NFL tackle/guard (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
1972 Chris Sanders NFL wide receiver (Tennessee/Houston Oilers)
1972 Keelin Curnuck Miss New York USA (1996)/Ms Venus Swimwear (1994)
1973 Wolf Wigo Abington PA, water polo driver (Olympics-96)
1974 Calvin Branch cornerback (Oakland Raiders)
1974 Colin Daynes Windsor Ontario, 68 kg Greco Roman wrestler (Olympics-96)
1974 Korey Stringer NFL tackle (Minnesota Vikings)
1976 Oleg Tverdovsky Donetsk Ukr, NHL defenseman (Winnipeg Jets)
1978 Cindy Parlow Memphis TN, soccer forward (Olympics-96)
1978 Sandra Kleinova Prague Czechoslovakia, tennis star (1995 Futures-Turku-Finland)
1979 Jayna Cronin Geneva NY, dance skater (& Dreger-1997 National-13th)
====================================================

Deaths which occurred on May 08:

0535 John [Mercurius] Italian Pope (533-35), dies
0685 Benedict II Italian Pope (683-85), dies
1319 Haakon V King of Norway (1299-1319), dies
1577 Viglius ab Aytta Zuichemus lawyer/President (Raad van State), dies
1684 Henri Dumont composer, dies
1725 John Lovewell US Indian fighter, dies in battle
1773 Ali Bey Egyptian Mameluk head, dies
1785 Pietro Longhi painter, dies
1794 Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier chemist (identified oxygen), guillotined
1809 Augustin Pajou French sculptor (Bachante), dies at 78
1818 Franz Ignaz Kaa composer, dies at 78
1829 Mauro Giuseppe Sergio Pantaleo Giuliani composer, dies at 47
1844 Charles XIV Johan [Jean B Bernadotte] King of Sweden/Norway, dies
1846 Giacomo Cordella composer, dies at 59
1853 Joannes P Roothaan 1st Dutch Lieutenant Colonel-General of Jesuits, dies at 67
1861 Láseló Teleki Hungarian earl/revolutionary, commits suicide
1864 James Samuel Wadsworth General-Major (Union), dies in battle at 56
1873 John Stuart Mill great Empiricist philosopher, dies at 66
1876 Truganini last originating Tasmanian, dies
1880 Gustave Flaubert French writer (Salammbô), dies
1885 Pavel Krizkovsky composer, dies at 65
1887 Alexander Ulyanov brother of Lenin/hanged for assassination of tsar
1891 Helena Petrovina Blavatsky Russian theosophist, dies
1894 Klara Fey German orchestra leaser (Die Kleinen Betrachtungen), dies at 79
1903 Eugène-Henri-Paul Gauguin French painter (Tahiti), dies
1904 Eadweard Muybridge English photographer (horse trot), dies
1909 Friedrich von Holstein German diplomat, dies
1915 Henry McNeal Turner 1 US black army chaplain, dies at 82
1924 Lev N Lunts Russian writer (Outside the Law), dies at 23
1930 Lvar Henning Mankell composer, dies at 61
1932 Albert Thomas French socialist politician
1936 Oswald Spengler German philosopher (Underworld of Abendlandes), dies
1941 Heinrich Zollner composer, dies at 86
1943 Mordicai Anielewicz commander of Warsaw ghetto uprising, killed
1948 Alfred Holy composer, dies at 81
1950 Franklin Dyall dies at 76
1957 Johannes C B "Jan" Sluyters Dutch painter, dies at 75
1958 Nasni Matni Lebanese journalist, murdered
1959 Renato Caccioppoli Italian mathematician/pianist, suicide at 55
1960 Hugo Alfven Swedish composer (Midsommarvaka), dies at 88
1961 James Fairfax actor (Gale Storm Show), dies at 63
1965 H T W Hardinge cricketer (scored 25 & 5 in only Test for England), dies
1967 Barbara Payton actress (Dallas, Trapped, Bad Blonde), dies at 39
1967 Elmer Rice New York playwright/director/novelist, dies at 74
1967 Laverne Andrews singer (Andrews Sisters), dies at 51
1973 Ralph Miller last 19th century baseball player, dies
1974 Graham Bond rocker, dies jumping under a train
1975 Avery Brundage CEO (International Olympic Committee, 1952-72), dies at 87
1976 Alan Baxter dies at 67
1976 Ulrike Meinhof lead Germany Red Army Faction, dies
1979 Talcott Parsons US sociologist, dies at 76
1981 Daniel Gillès Belgian writer, dies at 64
1981 Margaret Lindsay actress (G Men, Lady Killer, Jezebel), dies from emphysema at 40
1981 Maurice Fernandes cricket captain (West Indies in 1st Test win, 1930 vs England), dies
1982 Gilles Villeneuve Canadian auto racer, dies in an accident
1985 Dolph Sweet actor (Gimme a Break, Gil McGowan-Another World), dies of cancer at 64
1985 Edmond O'Brien actor (Sam Benedict), dies at 69 of Alzheimer's disease
1985 Karl Marx German composer/conductor, dies at 87
1987 Pam Ewing (Victoria Principal) character on Dallas, is killed off
1988 Robert A Heinlein sci-fi writer (Friday), dies of heart failure at 80
1990 Tomas O'Fiach [Tomas Seamus Fee], Irish cardinal-archbishop, dies
1991 Jean Langlais composer, dies at 84
1991 Lloyd Ford stuntman, dies at 79
1991 Ronnie Brody British actor (Superman 3, What's Up Nurse), dies at 72
1992 Addeke H Boerma director-general (FAO), dies at 80
1992 Brian Moore writer (Catholics), dies of heart failure at 59
1992 Gul Mahomed cricketer (8 Tests for India & one for Pakistan), dies
1992 Margaretha D Ferguson-Wigerink author (Fear on Java), dies
1992 Richard Derr actor (When Worlds Collide), dies at 74 of cancer
1993 Kees Deenik singer/conductor
1994 Cobina W "Coby" Molenaar peace activist, dies at 88
1994 George Peppard actor (Breakfast at Tiffanys, A-Team), dies at 65
1994 Rupert Haselden journalist/screenwriter, dies at 36
1994 Steven Keats actor (Death Wish), dies of apparent suicide at 48
1995 Carroll Best bluegrass banjo, dies at 63
1995 Jerry Zipkin socialite, dies at 80
1995 Prem Bhatia journalist, dies at 83
1995 Teresa Teng singer, dies at 41
1996 Jane Cowan cello teacher, dies at 80
1996 Luis Miguel Domiguin bullfighter, dies at 69
1996 Serge Chermayeff architect/designer, dies at 95
1997 Kai-Uwe Von Hassel German President of Bundestag (CDU 1969-72), dies

1792 Militia Act establishes conscription under federal law

On this day in 1792, Congress passes the second portion of the Militia Act, requiring that “every free able-bodied white male citizen of the respective States, resident therein, who is or shall be of age eighteen years, and under the age of forty-five years… be enrolled in the militia.”

Six days before, Congress had established the president’s right to call out the militia. The outbreak of Shay’s Rebellion, a protest against taxation and debt prosecution in western Massachusetts in 1786-87, had first convinced many Americans that the federal government should be given the power to put down rebellions within the states. The inability of the Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation to respond to the crisis was a major motivation for the peaceful overthrow of the government and the drafting of a new federal Constitution.

The Militia Act was tested shortly after its passage, when farmers in western Pennsylvania, angered by a federal excise tax on whiskey, attacked the home of a tax collector and then, with their ranks swollen to 6,000 camped outside Pittsburgh, threatened to march on the town. In response, President Washington, under the auspices of the Militia Act, assembled 15,000 men from the surrounding states and eastern Pennsylvania as a federal militia commanded by Virginia’s Henry Lee to march upon the Pittsburgh encampment. Upon its arrival, the federal militia found none of the rebels willing to fight. The mere threat of federal force had quelled the rebellion and established the supremacy of the federal government.
======================================================

1864 Lee beats Grant to Spotsylvania

On this day, Yankee troops arrive at Spotsylvania Court House to find the Rebels already there. After the Battle of the Wilderness (May 5-6), Ulysses S. Grant's Army of the Potomac marched south in the drive to take Richmond. Grant hoped to control the strategic crossroads at Spotsylvania Court House, so he could draw Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia into open ground.

Spotsylvania was important for a number of reasons. The crossroads were situated between the Wilderness and Hanover Junction, where the two railroads that supplied Lee's army met. The area also lay past Lee's left flank, so if Grant beat him there he would not only have a head start toward Richmond, but also the clearest path. Lee would then be forced to attack Grant or race him to Richmond along poor roads.

Unbeknownst to Grant, Lee had received reports of Union cavalry movements to the south of the Wilderness battle lines. On the evening of May 7, Lee ordered James Longstreet's corps, which were under the direction of Richard Anderson after Longstreet had been shot the previous day, to march at night to Spotsylvania. Anderson's men marched the 11 miles entirely in the dark, and won the race to the crossroads, where they took refuge behind hastily constructed breastworks and waited. Now it would be up to Grant to force the Confederates from their position. The stage was set for one of the bloodiest engagements of the war.
====================================================

1919 New celebration of Armistice Day proposed

On May 8, 1919, Edward George Honey, a journalist from Melbourne, Australia, living in London at the time, writes a letter to the London Evening News proposing that the first anniversary of the armistice ending World War I—concluded on November 11, 1918—be commemorated by several moments of silence.

Honey, who briefly served in the British army during World War I before being discharged with a leg injury, had been concerned by the way people in London had celebrated on the streets on the actual day of the armistice. In his letter to the newspaper the following May, he wrote that a silent commemoration of the sacrifices made and the lives lost during the war would be a far more appropriate way to mark the first anniversary of its end.

“Five little minutes only,” Honey wrote. “Five silent minutes of national remembrance. A very sacred intercession. Communion with the Glorious Dead who won us peace, and from the communion new strength, hope and faith in the morrow. Church services, too, if you will, but in the street, the home, the theatre, anywhere, indeed, where Englishmen and their women chance to be, surely in this five minutes of bitter-sweet silence there will be service enough."

Though Honey’s letter did not immediately bring about a change, a similar suggestion was made to Sir Percy Fitzpatrick that October and reached King George V, who on November 17, 1919, made an official proclamation that “at the hour when the Armistice came into force, the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, there may be for the brief space of two minutes a complete suspension of all our normal activities … so that in perfect stillness, the thoughts of everyone may be concentrated on reverent remembrance of the glorious dead." Though it is not officially recorded that the king read and was influenced by Honey’s letter, the journalist was invited by the king to a palace rehearsal of the two minutes of silence, a tradition which is still honored in much of the former British empire.
=====================================================

1945 V-E Day is celebrated in American and Britain

On this day in 1945, both Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Day. Cities in both nations, as well as formerly occupied cities in Western Europe, put out flags and banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi war machine.

The eighth of May spelled the day when German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms: In Prague, Germans surrendered to their Soviet antagonists, after the latter had lost more than 8,000 soldiers, and the Germans considerably more; in Copenhagen and Oslo; at Karlshorst, near Berlin; in northern Latvia; on the Channel Island of Sark--the German surrender was realized in a final cease-fire. More surrender documents were signed in Berlin and in eastern Germany.

The main concern of many German soldiers was to elude the grasp of Soviet forces, to keep from being taken prisoner. About 1 million Germans attempted a mass exodus to the West when the fighting in Czechoslovakia ended, but were stopped by the Russians and taken captive. The Russians took approximately 2 million prisoners in the period just before and after the German surrender.

Meanwhile, more than 13,000 British POWs were released and sent back to Great Britain.

Pockets of German-Soviet confrontation would continue into the next day. On May 9, the Soviets would lose 600 more soldiers in Silesia before the Germans finally surrendered. Consequently, V-E Day was not celebrated until the ninth in Moscow, with a radio broadcast salute from Stalin himself: "The age-long struggle of the Slav nations...has ended in victory. Your courage has defeated the Nazis. The war is over."
=====================================================

1970 Nixon defends invasion of Cambodia

President Nixon, at a news conference, defends the U.S. troop movement into Cambodia, saying the operation would provide six to eight months of time for training South Vietnamese forces and thus would shorten the war for Americans. Nixon reaffirmed his promise to withdraw 150,000 American soldiers by the following spring.

The announcement that U.S. and South Vietnamese troops had invaded Cambodia resulted in a firestorm of protests and gave the antiwar movement a new rallying point. College students across the nation intensified their antiwar protests with marches, rallies, and scattered incidents of violence. About 400 schools were affected by strikes and more than 200 colleges and universities closed completely. The protests resulted in deaths at Kent State University and later at Jackson State in Mississippi.

Dissent was not limited to campus confrontations. More than 250 State Department and foreign aid employees signed a letter to Secretary of State William Rogers criticizing U.S. military involvement in Cambodia. In addition, there were a series of congressional resolutions and legislative initiatives that attempted to limit severely the executive war-making powers of the president. Senators John Sherman Cooper (R-Kentucky) and Frank Church (D-Idaho) proposed an amendment to the foreign military sales portion of a Defense Department appropriations bill that would have barred funds for future military operations in Cambodia. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 58 to 37, but was defeated 237 to 153 in the House. On December 29, 1970, Congress passed a modified version of the Cooper-Church Amendment barring the introduction of U.S. ground troops in Laos or Thailand.
=====================================================

1972 Mining of North Vietnamese harbors is announced

President Richard Nixon announces that he has ordered the mining of major North Vietnamese ports, as well as other measures, to prevent the flow of arms and material to the communist forces that had invaded South Vietnam in March. Nixon said that foreign ships in North Vietnamese ports would have three days to leave before the mines were activated; U.S. Navy ships would then search or seize ships, and Allied forces would bomb rail lines from China and take whatever other measures were necessary to stem the flow of material. Nixon warned that these actions would stop only when all U.S. prisoners of war were returned and an internationally supervised cease-fire was initiated. If these conditions were met, the United States would "stop all acts of force throughout Indochina and proceed with the complete withdrawal of all forces within four months."

Nixon's action was in response to the North Vietnamese Nguyen Hue Offensive. On March 30, the North Vietnamese had initiated a massive invasion of South Vietnam. Committing almost their entire army to the offensive, the North Vietnamese launched a three-pronged attack. In the initial attack, four North Vietnamese divisions attacked directly across the Demilitarized Zone into Quang Tri province. Following that assault, the North Vietnamese launched two more major attacks: at An Loc in Binh Long Province, 60 miles north of Saigon; and at Kontum in the Central Highlands. With the three attacks, the North Vietnamese committed 500 tanks and 150,000 regular troops (as well as thousands of Viet Cong) supported by heavy rocket and artillery fire. The North Vietnamese, enjoying much success on the battlefield, did not respond to Nixon's demands.

The announcement that North Vietnamese harbors would be mined led to a wave of antiwar demonstrations at home, which resulted in violent clashes with police and 1,800 arrests on college campuses and in cities from Boston to San Jose, California. Police used wooden bullets and tear gas in Berkeley; three police officers were shot in Madison, Wisconsin; and 715 National Guardsmen were activated to quell violence in Minneapolis.