May 1945 in History

Events in History

Raising a Flag over the Reichstag

May 2 World War II: Battle of Berlin ends as Soviet army takes Berlin and General Weidling surrenders
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*Soldiers Raqymzhan Qoshqarbaev and Georgij Bulatov raise the Soviet Union flag on the roof of the Reichstag building in Berlin*

May 2 Yugoslav troops occupy Trieste
May 3 1st Polish Armoured Division of the Polish Armed Forces in the West occupies Wilhelmshafen in Germany
May 3 Allies arrest German physicist Werner Heisenberg
May 3 British troop join in Rangoon
May 3 World War II: German ship "Cap Arcona" laden with prisoners sunk by Royal Air Force in East Sea, 5,800 killed - one of largest maritime losses of life

Event of Interest

May 4 German forces in Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands surrender unconditionally to British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery at Luneburg Heath

British WWII Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery — British WWII Field Marshal
Bernard Montgomery

May 4 German forces in Bavaria surrender unconditionally to American commander Jacob L. Devers
May 5 Mauthausen Concentration camp in Austria liberated by US forces from 41st Reconnaissance Squadron
May 5 Netherlands & Denmark liberated from Nazi control
May 5 Uprising against occupying SS troops in Prague
May 5 Premier Gerbrandy on Radio Orange tells Dutch they are liberated

Battle of Interest

May 5 World War II: Admiral Karl Dönitz, leader of Germany after Hitler's death, orders all U-boats to cease offensive operations and return to their bases

Naval commander and Nazi leader Karl Dönitz — Naval commander and Nazi leader
Karl Dönitz

May 6 General Johannes Blaskowitz surrenders German troops in Netherlands
May 6 World War II: Axis Sally delivers her last propaganda broadcast to Allied troops (first was on December 11, 1941).
May 7 World War II: British troops enter Utrecht, Netherlands

Event of Interest

May 7 World War II: Unconditional German surrender to the Allies signed by General Alfred Jodl at Rheims

Nazi Leader Alfred Jodl — Nazi Leader
Alfred Jodl

May 7 Princess Irene Brigade moves into The Hague, Netherlands
May 7 Pulitzer prize awarded to John Hersey (Bell for Adano)
May 7 SS open fire on crowd in Amsterdam, killing 22
May 8 Canadian troops move into Amsterdam
May 8 Chinese counter attack at Tsjangte, supports by 14th air fleet

Nazi Germany Surrenders

May 8 German General Wilhelm Keitel formally surrenders to the Allies represented by the United States, the UK, France and the Soviet Union in Berlin
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*German commander Wilhelm Keitel signs the final unconditional surrender of Germany in the ruins of Berlin*

May 8 V-E Day: WWII ends in Europe after Germany signs an unconditional surrender
May 9 Czechoslovakia liberated from Nazi occupation (National Day)
May 9 Nazi propagandist Max Blokzijl arrested
May 9 Norwegian nazi collaborators Vidkun Quisling arrested
May 9 Victory celebration at Red Square
May 9 World War II: Partisans liberate Ljubljana.

Event of Interest

May 9 World War II: Hermann Goering is captured by the United States Army

Nazi Politician Hermann Goering — Nazi Politician
Hermann Goering

May 9 World War II: The Soviet Union marks Victory Day

May 9 World War II: The Channel Islands are formally liberated by the British
May 10 Allies capture Rangoon from the Japanese
May 10 Soviet troops occupied Prague
May 11 US Marines conquer Awatsha Draw, Okinawa
May 13 US troops conquer Dakeshi Okinawa
May 14 Kamikaze Zero strikes US aircraft carrier Enterprise
May 14 US offensive on Okinawa, Sugar Loaf conquered

Event of Interest

May 14 Physician Joseph G. Hamilton injects misdiagnosed cancer patient Albert Stevens (CAL-1) with 131 kBq (3.55 µCi) of plutonium without his knowledge. Stevens lives another 20 years, surviving the highest known accumulated radiation dose in any human

Human Medical Subject Albert Stevens — Human Medical Subject
Albert Stevens

Physician Joseph Gilbert Hamilton — Physician
Joseph Gilbert Hamilton

May 15 World War II: The final skirmish in Europe is fought near Prevalje, Slovenia
May 16 Violent battles around Sugar Loaf and Half Moon, Okinawa
May 17 2 US P-47 Thunderbolts bomb Kiushu
May 18 Tigers & A's both have 7 straight games postponed due to rain

Event of Interest

May 21 Nazi SS-Reichsfuehrer Heinrich Himmler captured

Leading Nazi and Reichsführer of the SS Heinrich Himmler — Leading Nazi and Reichsführer of the SS
Heinrich Himmler

May 22 6th US Marine division reaches suburbs of Naha Okinawa
May 22 NSB-Fuhrer Rost van Tonningen makes failed suicide attempt
May 23 The Allies arrest the members of the Nazi Flensburg government, including Admiral Karl Donitz, formally dissolving Nazi Germany
May 23 German island of Helgoland in the North Sea surrenders to British
May 23 Lord Haw-Haw (William Joyce) arrested at Danish boundary
May 25 Arthur C Clark proposes relay satellites in geosynchronous orbit
May 26 US drop fire bombs on Tokyo
May 29 US 1st Marine division conquers Shuri Castle, Okinawa

Birthdays in History

May 3 Jeffrey C. Hall, American geneticist (Nobel Prize 2017 behavioral rhythms of the fly), born in New York City
May 4 Monika van Paemel, Belgian writer (Accursed Fathers), born in Poesele, Belgium
May 4 Narasimhan Ram, Indian journalist (The Hindu), born in Madras, British India
May 5 Kurt Loder, Entertainment reporter
May 7 Wim A. Mateman, Dutch politician (CDA), born in Aalten, Netherlands
May 8 Arthur Docters van Leeuwen, jurist (Holland's secret service)
May 10 John Laws, Lord Justice of Appeal (1999- )
May 12 Patrick Ricard, French businessman and CEO of Pernod Ricard, born in Marseille, France (d. 2012)
May 15 Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza, heir to the Portuguese crown
May 16 Brewster H Shaw Jr, Mich, Col USAF/astro (STS-9, STS 61B, STS-28)
May 16 James Moran, (Rep-D-Virginia)
May 17 D A S Pennefather, Maj-General/Commandant (General Royal Marines)
May 17 George Miller, (Rep-D-CA, 1975- )
May 18 John Richard Patterson, businessman
May 18 Maarten van Traa, Dutch politician (PvdA)
May 20 Harold E Ford, (Rep-D-TN, 1975- )
May 20 Lord Hollick, CEO (MAI)
May 20 Nikolai Nikolayevich Fefelov, Russian colonel and cosmonaut
May 20 Wally Herger, (Rep-R-California)
May 20 Vladimiro Montesinos, Peruvian politician
May 21 Ernst Willi Messerschmid, Reutlingen Germany, astronaut (STS 22)
May 23 Elliott Bernerd, English broker/multi-millionaire
May 24 Richard Ottaway, British politician (C), born in Sonning, Berkshire
May 24 Steven Norris, British MP
May 25 Dave Lee Travis [David Griffin], British DJ and presenter (Top of the Pops], convicted of indecent assault, born in Buxton, Derbyshire
May 28 Hunter "Patch" Adams, American doctor
May 28 John N. Bambacus, American politician
May 29 Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, Minister of State (Scotland)
May 31 Linda Davies, British Judge
May 31 Bernard Goldberg‎, American journalist

Weddings in History

Wedding of Interest

May 22 Paranormal investigator Lorraine Warren (18) weds partner Ed Warren (18)

Paranormal Investigator Ed Warren — Paranormal Investigator
Ed Warren

Deaths in History

Joseph Goebbels

May 1 Joseph Goebbels, German Nazi Minister of Propaganda, commits suicide aged 47 with his wife (43) and arranges the death of their 6 children, Heidrun (4), Hedwig (6), Holdine (8), Helmut (9), Hildegard (11), and Helga (12)

Martin Bormann

May 2 Martin Bormann, German Nazi leader (Hitler's secretary, chief of the Party Chancellery), most likely commits suicide age 44 [remains identified in 1972]

May 2 Ludwig Stumpfegger, German SS doctor and Hitler's personal surgeon commits suicide at 34
May 5 Peter Van Pels, Jewish Refugee (b. 1926)
May 5 Elsie Mitchell and five Sunday school students become the only people to die during World War II on US soil when they are killed by a Japanese fire balloon that lands in the forest of Gearhart Mountain, near Bly, Southern Oregon
May 8 Bernhard Rust, Nazi education minister (b. 1883)
May 10 Richard Glücks, German SS officer (b. 1889)
May 14 Heber J. Grant, seventh president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1856)
May 15 Major Courtney, US medal of honor marine, dies in battle of Sugar Loaf
May 15 Charles Williams, British poet and writer, dies at 58
May 17 Jan van Geenen, resistance fighter, dies
May 17 Sasaki Shigetsu Sokei-an, founder 1st Zen Institute of America, dies
May 19 Philipp Bouhler, German nazi leader (b. 1889)
May 22 Carel A Lion Cachet, lithographer/wood carver, dies

Heinrich Himmler

May 23 Heinrich Himmler, German Nazi leader (head of the SS), commits suicide while in Allied custody at 44

May 25 Demjan Bednyi, Russian writer and satirist, dies at 62
May 30 Irma Laplasse, Flemish farmer/nazi collaborator, executed

1944
On This Day in History
1946