May 2008 in History

Events in History

Event of Interest

May 7 Dmitry Medvedev is sworn in as the 3rd President of the Russian Federation

Event of Interest

May 8 Dmitry Medvedev appoints Vladimir Putin as Russian Prime Minister

Event of Interest

May 10 Philippine court acquits Imelda Marcos in a 17-year-old case of 32 counts of illegal transfer of wealth totaling $863 million in Swiss bank accounts

May 12 Wenchuan earthquake, measuring 7.8 in magnitude occurs in Sichuan, China, killing over 87,000, injuring 374,643 and leaving homeless between 4.8 million and 11 million people
May 15 California becomes the second U.S. state after Massachusetts in 2004 to legalize same-sex marriage after the state's own Supreme Court rules a previous ban unconstitutional.
May 23 The International Court of Justice (ICJ) awards Middle Rocks to Malaysia and Pedra Branca (Pulau Batu Puteh) to Singapore, ending a 29-year territorial dispute between the two countries.
May 28 The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly of Nepal formally declares Nepal a republic, ending the 240-year reign of the Shah dynasty.

Weddings in History

May 10 President George W. Bush's daughter Jenna Bush (26) weds Henry Hager (30) at the Bush family ranch in Crawford, Texas
May 17 Eldest grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II, Peter Phillips (30) weds management consultant Autumn Kelly (30) at St. George’s chapel in Windsor Castle
May 24 Prince Joachim of Denmark (38) weds second wife Marie Cavallier (32) at Møgeltønder Church in Denmark

Divorces in History

May 9 "The View" former co-host Star Jones (46) divorces investment banker Al Reynolds (39) after three-and-a-half years of marriage

Deaths in History

May 1 Anthony Mamo, Malta's first President (b. 1909)
May 1 Deborah Jeane Palfrey, American escort owner, commits suicide at 52
May 3 Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo, Spanish former Primer Minister (b. 1926)
May 3 Michael Kaye, British arts director (LSO, South Bank), dies at 83
May 5 Irv Robbins, Canadian-American entrepreneur (co-founded the Baskin-Robbins ice cream parlor chain), dies at 90
May 9 Nuala O'Faolain, Irish journalist, dies at 68
May 12 Irena Sendler [née Krzyżanowska], Polish nurse, social worker, and WWII heroine who helped smuggle Jewish ghetto children to safety, dies at 98 [1]
May 12 Robert Rauschenberg, American artist (b. 1925)
May 13 John Phillip Law, American actor (Death Rides a Horse), dies at 70
May 13 Ron Stone, American television reporter (b. 1936)
May 13 Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah, Sheikh of Kuwait (b. 1930)
May 15 Willis Lamb, American physicist (Nobel 1955), dies at 94
May 18 Joseph Pevney, American television director, dies at 96
May 19 George Huntington Hartford II, American heir (A&P), dies at 97
May 19 Vijay Tendulkar, Indian playwright, (b. 1928)
May 20 Ali Sadikin, Indonesian politician and governor of Jakarta (1966-77), dies at 79

May 20 Hamilton Jordan, former Carter White House Chief of Staff (b. 1944)
May 21 Brian Keenan, Irish Provisional IRA member who played a key role in Northern Ireland's peace process (1998), dies of cancer at 66
May 22 Robert Asprin, American author (b. 1946)
May 23 David Mitton, British television director (b. 1939)
May 25 Georgette Amowitz, French choreographer and educator, dies at 78
May 25 J. R. Simplot, American potato farmer (b. 1909)
May 27 Franz Künstler, Last remaining Austro-Hungarian Empire World War I veteran (b. 1900)
May 28 Beryl Cook, British painter, dies at 81
May 28 David Mitton, Scottish-born director (b. 1938)
May 29 Dianne Odell, American medical figure (b. 1947)
May 30 Lorenzo Odone, American medical figure (b. 1978)