Famous Birthdays
William Petty
May 2 William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, Prime Minister of Great Britain (1782-83), born in Dublin, Kingdom of Ireland (d. 1805)
- May 3 Friedrich Schwindl, Dutch composer, born in Amsterdam (d. 1786)
Edward Gibbon
May 8 Edward Gibbon, English historian (The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire), born in Putney, England (d. 1794)
Famous Deaths
- May 3 Abraham Patras, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (1735-37), dies at 65
- May 4 Eustace Budgell, English writer (The Spectator, writing 37 numbers signed X), dies at 50
- May 10 Nakamikado Emperor of Japan (b. 1702)
- May 12 Cornelis van Alkemade, Dutch historian, author and collector of antiquities, dies at 83
- May 17 Claude Buffier, French philosopher and historian, dies at 75
