May 26
is the 146th day of the year in the
Gregorian calendar (147th in
leap years). There are 219 days remaining.
*
1328 -
William of Ockham,
Franciscan Minister-General
Michael of Cesena, and two other Franciscan leaders secretly leave
Avignon, fearing a sentence of death from
Pope John XXII.
*
1538 -
Geneva expels
John Calvin and his followers from the city. Calvin lives in exile in
Strasbourg for the next three years.
*
1637 -
Pequot War: A combined
Puritan and
Mohegan force under English Captain John Mason attacks a
Pequot village in
Connecticut, massacring approximately 500 Native Americans.
*
1670 - In
Dover,
King Charles II of
England and
King Louis XIV of
France sign the
Secret Treaty of Dover.
*
1736 -
Battle of Ackia:
British and
Chickasaw soldiers repel a
French and
Choctaw attack on the Chickasaw village of Ackia, near present-day
Tupelo,
Mississippi. The French, under
Louisiana governor Jean Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville, had sought to link Louisiana with
Acadia and the other northern colonies of
New France.
*
1805 -
Napoléon Bonaparte (Napoleon I) assumes the title of
King of Italy and is crowned with the
Iron Crown of Lombardy in the
Duomo di Milano gothic cathedral in
Milan.
*
1828 - Mysterious
feral child Kaspar Hauser is discovered wandering the streets of
Nuremberg.
*
1830 - The
Indian Removal Act is passed by the
U.S. Congress; it is signed into law by
President Andrew Jackson two days later.
*
1864 -
Montana is organized as a
United States territory.
*
1865 -
American Civil War:
Confederate General
Edmund Kirby Smith, commander of the Confederate Trans-Mississippi division, is the last general of the Confederate Army to surrender, at
Galveston, Texas.
*
1868 - The
impeachment trial of
President Andrew Johnson ends, with Johnson being found not guilty by one vote.
*
1869 -
Boston University is chartered by the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts*
1879 -
Russia and the
United Kingdom sign the
Treaty of Gandamak establishing an
Afghan state.
*
1889 - Opening of the first
Eiffel Tower elevator to the public.
*
1896 -
Nicholas II becomes
Tsar of
Russia.
* 1896 -
Charles Dow publishes the first edition of the
Dow Jones Industrial Average.
* 1896 -
James Dunham murders six people in
Campbell, California.
*
1906 -
Vauxhall Bridge is opened in
London.
*
1908 - At
Masjid-al-Salaman in southwest
Persia, the first major commercial oil strike in the
Middle East is made. The rights to the resource are quickly acquired by the
United Kingdom.
*
1917 - A powerful F4
tornado rips
Mattoon, Illinois apart, killing 101 persons and injuring 689. It was the world´s longest-lasting tornado, lasting for over 7 hours and traveling 293 miles, spreading death and destruction along its path.
*
1918 - The
Democratic Republic of Georgia is established.
*
1936 - In the
House of Commons of Northern Ireland,
Tommy Henderson begins speaking on the Appropriation Bill. By the time he sat down in the early hours of the following morning, he had spoken for 10 hours.
*
1938 - The
House Un-American Activities Committee begins its first session.
*
1940 -
World War II:
Battle of Dunkirk – In
France,
Allied forces begin a massive evacuation from
Dunkirk.
*
1948 - The
U.S. Congress passes
Public Law 557 which permanently establishes the
Civil Air Patrol as an auxiliary of the
United States Air Force.
*
1960 - Born in Santa Maria (Brazil) Ivan F D da Costa
*
1963 - The
Organisation of African Unity is formed.
*
1966 -
British Guiana gains independence, becoming
Guyana.
*
1969 -
Apollo program:
Apollo 10 returns to
earth after a successful eight-day test of all the components needed for the forthcoming first manned
moon landing.
* 1969 -
John Lennon and
Yoko Ono begin their second
Bed-In for Peace at the
Queen Elizabeth Hotel in
Montreal.
*
1970 - The
Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 becomes the first commercial transport to exceed
Mach 2.
*
1972 -
Willandra National Park is established in
Australia.
* 1972 - The
United States and the
Soviet Union sign the
Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
*
1977 -
George Willig climbs the South Tower of
New York City's
World Trade Center.
*
1978 - In
Atlantic City, New Jersey,
Resorts International, the first legal
casino in the eastern
United States, opens.
*
1982 -
Aston Villa Football Club win the
European Cup, beating
Bayern Munich 1-0 in
Rotterdam.
*
1983 - Strong 7.7 magnitude
earthquake strikes
Japan, triggers a
tsunami that kills at least 104 people, injures thousands. Many missing people and thousands of buildings destroyed.
*
1986 - The
European Community adopts the
European flag.
*
1991 -
Zviad Gamsakhurdia becomes the first democratically elected
President of the
Republic of Georgia in the post-
Soviet era.
* 1991 -
Lauda Air Flight 004 explodes over rural
Thailand, killing 223.
*
1992 -
Charles Geschke, co-founder of
Adobe Systems, Inc. was kidnapped at gunpoint from the Adobe parking lot in
Mountain View, California for $650,000 and is held hostage in a rented house in
Hollister, California. The FBI rescues him four days later.
*
1995 -
Teresa Heinz marries
U.S. Senator John Kerry in
Nantucket, Massachusetts.
*
1999 -
Manchester United win the
UEFA Champions League to complete an unprecedented
treble.
*
2002 - The
Mars Odyssey finds signs of huge water ice deposits on the planet
Mars.
* 2002 -
Álvaro Uribe becomes
President of Colombia.
*
2003 - Only three days after a previous record,
Sherpa Lakpa Gelu climbs
Mount Everest in 10 hours 56 minutes. The tourism ministry of
Nepal confirms this record in July that year.
*
2004 -
The New York Times publishes an admission of journalistic failings, claiming that its flawed reporting and lack of skeptism towards sources during the buildup to the
2003 war in Iraq helped promote the belief that Iraq possessed large stockpiles of
weapons of mass destruction.
*
2004 -
FC Porto wins the
Champions League, defeating
AS Monaco by 3-0 in
AufSchalke Arena in
Gelsenkirchen.
*
2006 - The
Java Earthquake strikes at 10:54pm GMT devastating
Bantul and the city of
Yogyakarta killing over 6,600 people.
*
1264 -
Prince Koreyasu, Japanese shogun (d.
1326)
*
1478 -
Pope Clement VII (d.
1534)
*
1566 -
Mehmed III,
Ottoman Emperor (d.
1603)
*
1602 -
Philippe de Champaigne, French painter (d.
1674)
*
1650 -
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, British general (d.
1722)
*
1667 -
Abraham de Moivre, French mathematician (d.
1754)
*
1669 -
Sébastien Vaillant, French botanist (d.
1722)
*
1689 -
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, English writer (d.
1762)
*
1700 -
Nicolaus Ludwig Zinzendorf, German religious and social reformer (d.
1760)
*
1764 -
Edward Livingston, American jurist and statesman (d.
1836)
*
1799 -
Aleksandr Pushkin, Russian author (d.
1837)
*
1822 -
Edmond de Goncourt, French writer (d.
1896)
*
1863 -
Robert Fitzsimmons, Boxing champion (d.
1917)
*
1865 -
Robert W. Chambers, American artist (d.
1933)
*
1867 -
Mary of Teck, wife of
George V of the United Kingdom (d.
1953)
*
1873 -
Olaf Gulbransson,
Norwegian artist
*
1878 -
Isadora Duncan, American dancer (d.
1927)
*
1886 -
Al Jolson, American singer (d.
1950)
*
1887 -
Paul Lukas, Hungarian actor (d.
1971)
*
1893 -
Norma Talmadge, American actress (d.
1957)
*
1895 -
Dorothea Lange, American photographer (d.
1965)
*
1899 -
Antonio Barrette,
Quebec politician (d.
1968)
*
1904 -
Vlado Perlemuter, Polish pianist (d.
2002)
*
1907 -
John Wayne, American actor (d.
1979)
* 1907 -
Jean Bernard, French physician (d.
2006)
*
1908 -
Robert Morley, English actor (d.
1992)
*
1909 -
Sir Matt Busby, Scottish footballer and manager (d.
1994)
* 1909 -
Adolfo López Mateos, President of
Mexico (d.
1969)
*
1911 -
Ben Alexander, American actor (d.
1969)
*
1912 -
Jay Silverheels, American actor (d.
1980)
* 1912 -
János Kádár, Prime minister of
Hungary (d.
1989)
*
1913 -
Peter Cushing, English actor (d.
1994)
*
1914 -
Frankie Manning, American
Lindy Hop dancer
*
1915 -
Sam Edwards, American actor (d.
2004)
* 1915 -
Antonia Forest, British children's author (d.
2003)
*
1916 -
Henriette Roosenburg, Dutch journalist (d.
1972)
*
1920 -
Peggy Lee, American singer (d.
2002)
*
1923 -
James Arness, American actor
* 1923 -
Roy Dotrice, British actor
*
1926 -
Miles Davis, American Jazz musician
*
1928 -
Jack Kevorkian, American physician
*
1938 -
William Bolcom, American composer
* 1938 -
Teresa Stratas, Canadian soprano
*
1939 -
Merab Kostava, one of the leaders of
Georgian anti-soviet movement,
national hero of Georgia
* 1939 -
Brent Musburger, American sports broadcaster
*
1940 -
Monique Gagnon-Tremblay,
Quebec politician
* 1940 -
Levon Helm, American musician (
The Band)
*
1941 -
Cliff Drysdale, South African-born tennis player
*
1943 -
Erica Terpstra, Dutch swimmer, politician and president of the Dutch Olympic Committee
*
1944 -
Sam Posey, American racing driver
*
1946 -
Mick Ronson, English guitarist (d.
1993)
*
1948 -
Stevie Nicks, American songwriter and actress
*
1949 -
Ward Cunningham, American inventor
* 1949 -
Philip Michael Thomas, American actor
* 1949 -
Hank Williams Jr., American singer
* 1949 -
Pam Grier, American actress
*
1951 -
Madeleine Taylor-Quinn, Irish politician
*
1951 -
Sally Ride, astronaut
*
1953 -
Michael Portillo, British politician
*
1954 -
Alan Hollinghurst, British novelist
*
1955 -
Masaharu Morimoto, Japanese chef
* 1955 -
Wesley Walker, American football player
*
1957 -
Margaret Colin, American actress
* 1957 -
Kristina Olsen, American musician
* 1957 -
Roberto Ravaglia, Italian racing driver
*
1960 -
Rob Murphy, baseball player
*
1962 -
Bobcat Goldthwait, American actor and comedian
* 1962 -
Genie Francis, American TV actress
*
1964 -
Lenny Kravitz, American guitarist and singer
*
1965 -
Hazel Irvine, British television presenter
*
1966 -
Helena Bonham Carter, English actress
*
1968 -
Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark*
1968 -
Simon Diamond, American professional wrestler
*
1970 -
Nobuhiro Watsuki, Japanese cartoonist
*
1971 -
Ivan O. Godfroid, Belgian writer
*
1971 -
Matt Stone, American television producer
*
1974 -
Lars Frölander, Swedish swimmer
*
1975 -
Travis Lee, Baseball player
*
1977 -
Misaki Ito, Japanese actress
* 1977 -
Luca Toni, Italian soccer player
*
1979 -
Ashley Massaro, American professional wrestler
*
1982 -
Yoko Matsugane, Japanese model
*
604 -
Augustine of Canterbury,
Archbishop of Canterbury*
818 -
Ali ar-Rida, Shia Imam (b.
766)
*
946 - King
Edmund I of England (b.
921)
*
1055 - Margrave
Adalbert of Austria*
1421 -
Mehmed I,
Ottoman Sultan (b.
1389)
*
1512 -
Bayezid II,
Ottoman Sultan*
1536 -
Francesco Berni, Italian poet
*
1595 -
Philip Neri, Italian churchman (b.
1515)
*
1648 -
Vincent Voiture, French poet (b.
1597)
*
1653 -
Robert Filmer, English writer (b.
1588)
*
1679 -
Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria (b.
1636)
*
1685 -
Karl II, Elector Palatine (b.
1651)
*
1703 -
Samuel Pepys, English civil servant and diarist (b.
1633)
*
1762 -
Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, German philosopher (b.
1714)
*
1799 -
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo, Scottish judge (b.
1714)
*
1824 -
Capel Lofft, English writer (b.
1751)
*
1840 -
Sidney Smith, British admiral (b.
1764)
*
1881 -
Jakob Bernays, German philologist (b.
1824)
*
1883 -
Edward Sabine, Irish astronomer (b.
1788)
* 1883 -
Abd al-Qadir, Algerian political and military leader (b.
1808)
*
1902 -
Almon Strowger, American inventor (b.
1839)
*
1904 -
Georges Gilles de la Tourette, French neurologist (b.
1857)
*
1907 -
Ida McKinley,
First Lady of the United States (b.
1847)
*
1908 -
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Punjabi founder of the
Qadianism (b.
1839)
*
1924 -
Victor Herbert, Irish composer (b.
1859)
*
1926 -
Simon Petlyura, Ukrainian independence fighter (b.
1879)
*
1933 -
Horatio Bottomley, British financier and politician (b.
1860)
* 1933 -
Jimmie Rodgers, American singer (b.
1897)
*
1939 -
Charles Horace Mayo, American medical practitioner (
Mayo Clinic) (b.
1865)
*
1943 -
Edsel Ford, American automobile executive (b.
1893)
*
1948 -
Theodore Morell, Hitler's personal physician (b.
1886)
*
1951 -
Lincoln Ellsworth, American scientist and polar explorer (b.
1880)
*
1954 -
Lionel Conacher, Canadian athlete (b.
1900)
*
1955 -
Alberto Ascari, Italian race car driver (b.
1918)
*
1968 -
Little Willie John, American
R&B singer (b.
1937)
*
1969 -
Paul Hawkins, Australian racing driver (b.
1937)
*
1974 -
Silvio Moser, Swiss racing driver (b.
1941)
*
1976 -
Martin Heidegger, German philosopher (b.
1889)
*
1979 -
George Brent, British actor (b.
1899)
*
1995 -
Friz Freleng, American animator (b.
1905)
*
1999 -
Paul Sacher, Swiss conductor (b.
1906)
* 1999 -
Waldo Semon, American inventor (b.
1898)
*
2001 -
Vittorio Brambilla, Italian racing driver (b.
1937)
*
2002 -
Mamo Wolde, Ethiopian runner (b.
1932)
*
2003 -
Kathleen Winsor, American writer (b.
1919)
*
2004 -
Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh, Russian astronomer (b.
1931)
* 2004 -
Dullah Omar, South African lawyer and politician (b.
1934)
*
2005 -
Eddie Albert, American actor (b.
1906)
* 2005 -
Chico Carrasquel, Venezuelan
Major League Baseball player (b.
1928)
*
2006 -
Édouard Michelin , CEO of
Michelin (b.
1963)
*
2006 -
C. H. Patterson, American Psychologist (b.
1912)
*
Australia -
National Sorry Day*
Poland -
Mother's Day*
Georgia -
National Dayin the
Roman Catholic Church:
*
Saint Berenger (died 1093)
*
Saint Lambert (d.1154)
*
Saint Philip Neri (died 1595)
*
Saint Simitrius*
Saint William of Aquitaine*Blessed
Pieter of Ter Duinen*
Saint Germain of Paris*
BBC: On This Day*
The New York Times: On This Day*
On this day in CanadaMay 25 -
May 27 -
April 26 -
June 26 –
listing of all days
