Columbus Selects an Heir
1506 Christopher Columbus selects his son Diego Columbus as sole heir
Assumption of the Virgin
1518 Public unveiling of Titian's masterpiece "Assumption of the Virgin" a painted altarpiece in the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, Venice
Event of Interest
1535 French explorer Jacques Cartier leaves France on his second voyage of discovery to Newfoundland for Francis I, with three ships [1]
Execution of Anne Boleyn
1536 Anne Boleyn, second wife of English King Henry VIII, is beheaded at the Tower of London on charges of adultery, incest and treason
- 1547 Monarch Johan Frederik surrenders to Karel
Elizabeth I Arrests Mary
1568 English Queen Elizabeth I arrests Mary, Queen of Scots
- 1571 Miguel Lopez de Lagazpi founds Manilla in the Philippines
- 1585 Spain confiscates English ships
- 1608 Matthias von Habsburgs army reaches Lieben, at Prague
- 1635 France's First Minister, Cardinal Richelieu declares war on Spain (Franco-Spanish War 1635–59)
- 1643 Battle at Rocroi/Allersheim: French army destroys Spanish army
- 1643 Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Harbor form the United Colonies of New England
- 1649 England is declared a Commonwealth by an act of the Rump Parliament making England a republic for the next 11 years
- 1652 Spanish troops occupy Grevelingen
- 1662 Uniformity Act of England goes into effect
- 1780 About midday, near-total darkness descends on New England, now known to be caused by forest fires in Canada
- 1792 Russian army enters Poland
- 1793 Netherlands captures French island of St Maarten (held until 1795)
- 1796 Game protection law restricts encroachment on Indian hunting grounds
- 1802 French Order of Legion d'Honneur forms
Tariff of Abominations
1828 U.S. President John Quincy Adams signs the Tariff of 1828/Tariff of Abominations into law to protect industry in the North
- 1856 Senator Charles Sumner of Massachesetts speaks out against slavery
- 1857 Americans William Francis Channing and Moses G Farmer patent the electric fire alarm
- 1863 Siege of Vicksburg, investment of city complete
- 1864 Battle of Port Walthall Junction, Virginia (Bermuda Hundred)
- 1864 Last engagement in series of battles known as Spotsylvania
- 1864 Skirmish at Cassville, Georgia
- 1878 Blanche Kelso Bruce appointed register of treasury by President Garfield
- 1883 William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody opened Buffalo Bill's Wild West show in Omaha, Nebraska
- 1884 Ringling Brothers circus premieres
- 1885 1st mass production of shoes (Jan Matzeliger's Consolidated Lasting Machine Company in Lynn, Massachusetts)
Germany Colonizes Cameroon and Togoland
1885 German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland
- 1886 Camille Saint-Saëns' 3rd Symphony in C premieres at St. James Hall, London, with the composer conducting
- 1891 Rice Institute, which became Rice University in Houston, Texas, is chartered
- 1892 Charles Brady King invents pneumatic hammer
- 1892 National Society of Colonial Dames of America founded
- 1893 Heavy rain washes "quick clay" into a deep valley killing 111 in Norway
Oscar Wilde Released
1897 Oscar Wilde is released from Reading Gaol
- 1898 US Congress passes the Private Mailing Card Act, allowing private publishers and printers to produce postcards, had to be labelled "Private Mailing Cards" until 1901, known as "souvenir cards"
- 1900 World's longest railroad tunnel (Simplon) linking Italy and Switzerland opens
- 1902 Great Britain and Boers resume peace talks in Pretoria
- 1905 Tom Jenkins beats Frank Gotcha for heavyweight wrestling champ
- 1906 Federated Boys' Club (Boys' Club of America) organizes
- 1906 Portugal's King Carlos I names Joao Franco premier
Johnson vs O'Brien
1909 In his first title defense Jack Johnson fights 'Philadelphia' Jack O'Brien to a no decision in 6 rounds in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to retain his world heavyweight crown
- 1910 Passage of Earth through tail of Halley's Comet causes near-panic
L'heure espagnole
1911 Maurice Ravel's opera "L'heure espagnole" premieres at the Opéra-Comique in Paris
Baseball History
1912 AL President Ban Johnson tells Tigers if they continue protest of Ty Cobb's suspension, they will be banned from baseball
Atatürk Lands at Samsun
1919 Mustafa Kemal Atatürk lands at Samsun on the Black Sea coast, beginning the Turkish War of Independence
- 1921 Congress sharply curbs immigration, setting a national quota system
49th Kentucky Derby
1923 49th Kentucky Derby: Earl Sande wins aboard Zev for his first Derby success
- 1923 KPD (communist revolts) in German Ruhr cities occupied by Allies
- 1926 French air force bombs Damascus Syria
- 1928 "Firedamp" explodes in Mather coal mine, Pennsylvania, killing 195 of 273 miners
- 1928 51 frogs enter 1st annual "Frog Jumping Jubilee" (Angel's Camp, California)
- 1928 54th Kentucky Derby: Chick Lang aboard Reigh Count wins in 2:10.4
Feng Yuxiang Declares War
1929 Chinese warlord Feng Yuxiang declares war on Chiang Kai-shek's nationalist government
- 1929 Cloudburst causes stampede in Yankee Stadium, crushes 2 people to death
- 1930 White women win voting rights in South Africa
- 1931 Cruiser Deutschland launched in Kiel
- 1934 Military coup by Colonel Damian Veltsjev in Bulgaria
- 1934 Sherlock Holmes crossword puzzle in "Saturday Review of Literature"; males who solved puzzle became members of Baker Street Irregulars [1]
Canonization of John Fisher and Thomas More
1935 English Cardinal John Fisher and statesman Thomas More, executed by Henry VIII, canonized as saints by Pope Pius XI
- 1935 NFL adopts an annual college draft to begin in 1936
Room Service
1937 John Murray and Allen Boretz's stage comedy "Room Service", starring Sam Levene, Eddie Albert, and Phillip Loeb, opens at the Cort Theatre, NYC; runs for 500 performances
- 1940 Amsterdam time becomes MET (Middle European Time)
French Counter Attack
1940 WWII: French counter attack at Péronne under General Charles de Gaulle
Preakness Stakes
1951 76th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Bold wins in 1:56.4
- 1953 Nuclear explosion in Nevada (fall-out in St George, Utah)
- 1954 Postmaster General Summerfield approves CIA mail-opening project
- 1955 Atkinson & Depeiaza make 347 stand for 7th wkt WI v Australia
- 1956 81st Preakness: Bill Hartack aboard Fabius wins in 1:58.4
- 1956 Pittsburgh Pirates Dale Long hits 9th-inning HR, 1st HR in 8 straight games
- 1957 Adone Zoli forms Italian government
- 1958 "South Pacific" soundtrack album goes #1 & stays #1 for 31 weeks
Birthday Party
1958 Premiere of Harold Pinter's play "Birthday Party" in London
Baseball History
1960 SF Giants rookie Juan Marichal beats Philadelphia Phillies, 2-0 on debut at Candlestick Park; first National League hurler since 1900 to debut with a one-hitter
- 1960 USAF Maj Robert M White takes X-15 to 33,222 m
- 1961 New pier opens in Scheveningen, the Netherlands
- 1961 Soviet dancer Rudolf Nureyev makes his Paris stage debut with the Kirov Ballet
- 1962 "Bravo, Giovanni" opens at Broadhurst Theater NYC for 76 performances
- 1962 "John Birch Society" by Chad Mitchell Trio hits #99
- 1962 87th Preakness: John Rotz aboard Greek Money wins in 1:56.2
- 1962 Indonesian paratroopers land in New Guinea
Happy Birthday, Mr. President
1962 Marilyn Monroe sings "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to JFK before 15,000 attendees, accompanied by jazz pianist Hank Jones, at Madison Square Garden, NYC
Baseball Record
1962 Stan Musial breaks Honus Wagner's NL hit record with 3,431
- 1962 US performs nuclear test at Christmas Island (atmospheric)
- 1964 US diplomats find at least 40 secret microphones in Moscow embassy
- 1965 Patricia R. Harris named 1st US black female ambassador (Luxembourg)
- 1965 West Ham United of England win 5th European Cup Winner's Cup against 1860 München of West Germany 2-0 in London
- 1967 USSR ratifies treaty with Britain & US banning nuclear weapons in space
- 1968 20th Emmy Awards: "Get Smart", "Mission Impossible" & Barbara Bain win
- 1968 Frank Howard fails to homer, after hitting 10 in 6 consecutive games
- 1968 Pirate Radio Brumble of Northern England 1st heard
- 1971 USSR launches Mars 2, becomes the 1st spacecraft to crash land on Mars
- 1972 25th Cannes Film Festival: "The Working Class Goes to Heaven" directed by Elio Petri and "The Mattei Affair" directed by Francesco Rosi jointly awarded the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film
- 1972 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
- 1972 WMAV TV channel 18 in Oxford, MS (PBS) begins broadcasting
- 1973 "Daisy A Day" by Jud Strunk hits #14
- 1973 "Smith" opens at Eden Theater, NYC: runs for 17 performances
Preakness Stakes
1973 98th Preakness: Ron Turcotte aboard Secretariat wins in 1:54 - fastest Preakness race ever (recognized 2012)
- 1974 Stanley Cup Final, The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA: Goaltender Bernie Parent and the Flyers shut out the Boston Bruins, 1-0, to win series 4-2, become 1st "expansion" team to win Stanley Cup; Parent named playoff MVP
- 1974 Valeri Giscard d'Estaing wins French presidential election
27th Emmy Awards
1975 27th Emmy Awards: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", Robert Blake & Jean Marsh win
- 1975 Farm truck packed with wedding party struck by a train, killing 66 in truck, 40 miles south of Poona, India
Turnstiles
1976 Columbia Records releases "Turnstiles", singer-songwriter Billy Joel's fourth studio album
- 1976 Gold ownership legalized in Australia
- 1976 Senate establishes permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
- 1976 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
Smokey and the Bandit
1977 Caper comedy film "Smokey and the Bandit" starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field and Jackie Gleason premieres at Radio City Music Hall in NYC
Film & TV History
1980 Ringo & Barbara Bach are involved in a car crash
- 1981 5 British Army soldiers are killed when their armoured vehicle is ripped apart by a Provisional Irish Republican Army roadside bomb near Bessbrook, County Armagh
- 1981 Pirate Jim Bibby gives up a leadoff single to Brave Terry Harper, then retires next 27 batters
Film & TV History
1982 Sophia Loren jailed in Naples, Italy for tax evasion
- 1983 36th Cannes Film Festival: "Narayama Bushiko" directed by Shohei Imamura wins the Palme d'Or
- 1983 NASA launches Intelsat V satellite, no. 506
Music History
1983 Weird Al Yankovic gives live performance at Wax Museum in Washington, D.C.
- 1984 "King Of Suede" by Weird Al Yankovic hits #62
Preakness Stakes
1984 109th Preakness: Puerto Rican jockey Ángel Cordero Jr., aboard Gate Dancer wins his second Pimlico classic
Sports History
1984 Pat LaFontaine scores 2 goals within 22 sec in an NHL playoff game
Stanley Cup
1984 Stanley Cup Final, Northlands Coliseum, Edmonton, AL: Wayne Gretzky scores twice as Edmonton Oilers beat NY Islanders, 5-2 for a 4-1 series win; Oilers first SC title
- 1984 STS 41-D vehicle moves to launch pad
- 1986 39th Cannes Film Festival: "The Mission" directed by Roland Joffe wins the Palme d'Or
- 1986 Anti-apartheid activist Hélène Pastoors sentenced to 10 yrs in South Africa
Film & TV History
1987 1st American Comedy Award: Johnny Carson & Betty White
- 1987 40th Cannes Film Festival: "Sous le soleil de Satan" directed by Maurice Pialat wins the Palme d'Or
- 1988 Carlos Lehder Rivas, of Colombia's Medellin drug cartel, is convicted in Florida for smuggling more than 3 tons of cocaine into US
Sports History
1988 Red Sox retire Bobby Doerr's #1
- 1989 Dow Jones Avg passes 2,500 mark for 1st time, closes at 2,501.1
TV Show Appearance
1989 Sue Ellen's (Linda Gray) last appearance on TV show "Dallas"
Television Finale
1990 "Elvis" TV Drama about early life of Elvis Presley last airs on ABC
Preakness Stakes
1990 115th Preakness: Pat Day aboard Summer Squall wins in 1:53.6
- 1991 Alan Janes' jukebox musical "Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story", starring Paul Hipp, closes at Shubert Theatre, NYC, after 225 performances
- 1991 Willy T. Ribbs overcomes numerous mechanical problems in qualifying to become first African-American driver to make Indianapolis 500 starting grid
Some Gave All
1992 "Some Gave All" debut album by Billy Ray Cyrus is released (Billboard Album of the Year 1993)
- 1992 27th Amendment ratified, prohibits Congress from raising its salary
Event of Interest
1992 Amy Fisher shoots Mary Jo Buttafuoco in the face in an altercation over an affair with her husband, in Massapequa, New York
- 1992 Englishman Dave Gauder, 224 lbs, pulls 196 ton jumbo jet, 3 inches
- 1992 US VP Dan Quayle attacks Murphy Brown for being a single mother and as a poor example of family values
- 1993 Boeing 727 crashes into mountain at Medellin Colombia, kills 132
- 1993 Dow Jones closes above 3,500 for 1st time (3,500.03)
Sports History
1994 American tennis star Jennifer Capriati (18), checks into a drug rehab center
- 1994 Egyptian actor Omar Sharif suffers a mild heart attack
- 1994 Final episode of American TV drama "LA Law" after 8 year run
Daytime Emmy Awards
1995 Emmy 22nd Daytime Award presentation - Susan Lucci loses for 15th time
- 1995 World's youngest doctor, Balamurali Ambati, 17, graduates Mount Sinai
- 1996 STS 77 (Endeavour 11), launches into orbit
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
1997 "The Lost World: Jurassic Park", directed by Steven Spielberg, and starring Jeff Goldblum and Julianne Moore, premieres in the US
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
1999 "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace", directed by George Lucas, starring Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman and Liam Neeson, is released in cinemas
- 1999 Andrew Motion is appointed British Poet Laureate for 10 years, the first to request a definite term
- 1999 Lazio of Italy win 39th European Cup Winner's Cup against Mallorca of Spain 2-1 in Birmingham
- 2001 126th Preakness: Gary Stevens aboard Point Given wins in 1:55.40
- 2001 Manchester United lose 3-1 to Tottenham at White Hart Lane but win English Premier League title for the 3rd consecutive season
- 2004 NHL Western Conference Final: Calgary Flames beat San Jose Sharks, 4 games to 2
- 2005 TV political comedy "The Thick of It" created by Armando Iannucci, starring Peter Capaldi and Chris Langham premieres on BBC 4
- 2006 Rock for the Rainforest benefit concert held at Carnegie Hall, NYC; performers include: Sting, James Taylor, Billy Joel, Sheryl Crow, and Lenny Kravitz
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
2007 "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End", directed by Gore Verbinksi, starring Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom premieres in Anaheim - most expensive film ($300 million) made at the time
Sicko
2007 "Sicko" a documentary on the US health care system, directed by Michael Moore has its premiere at the Cannes Film festival.
- 2007 132nd Preakness: Robby Albarado aboard Curlin wins in 1:53.46
No Country for Old Men
2007 Coen brothers film "No Country for Old Men", based on the Cormac McCarthy novel, starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin premieres at the Cannes Film Festival (Best Picture 2008)
FA Cup Final
2007 English FA Cup Final, Wembley Stadium, London (89,826): Chelsea beats Manchester United, 1 – 0 (a.e.t.); Didier Drogba scores 116' winner for Blues' 4th title
- 2007 In an all South African final the Bulls (Pretoria) edge the home team Sharks, 20-19 in Durban for their first Super 14 Rugby title; Bulls flyhalf Derick Hougaard boots 2 penalties & 2 conversions
- 2007 NHL Eastern Conference Final: Ottawa Senators beat Buffalo Sabres, 4 games to 1
- 2008 NHL Western Conference Final: Detroit Red Wings beat Dallas Stars, 4 games to 2
- 2009 Sri Lanka announces victory in its 25-year war against the terrorist organization, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Glee Premieres
2009 TV musical show "Glee" starring Jane Lynch, Michael Morrison, Lea Michele and an ensemble cast premieres on Fox
Event of Interest
2011 Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, project to search for dark matter, led by Samuel C. C. Ting, installed on the International Space Station
- 2012 137th Preakness: Mario Gutierrez aboard Ill Have Another wins in 1:55.94
UEFA Champions League Final
2012 UEFA Champions League Final, Munich: Chelsea beats Bayern Munich, 4-3 on penalties after a 1–1 draw at the end of extra time; Blues' first title
Billboard Music Awards
2013 20th Billboard Music Awards: Taylor Swift, Red win
- 2013 Sweden defeats Switzerland to win the 2013 World Ice Hockey Championship
- 2014 Decorated Dutch coach Louis van Gaal confirmed as manager of Manchester United; Ryan Giggs named assistant, confirms retirement as a player at age 40 after 963 games and English record 22 major trophies
