- May 8 William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, 5th Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1756-57), born in Hardwicke, England (d. 1764)
- May 11 Karl Friedrich Hieronymus Freiherr von Münchhausen, German adventurer (d. 1797)
- May 15 Maximilian Hell, Slovakian astronomer (d. 1792)
- May 21 Antonio Corbisiero, Italian composer (d. 1790)