May 18
May 18 is the 138th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (139th in leap years). There are 227 days remaining.
Cliff Arnall, lecturer in the Department of Lifelong Learning at Cardiff University, Wales, announced in 2005 that May 18 was the best date in the year on which to make a resolution. He calculated this using a formula which took into account the factors of motivation, opportunity, proximity to a Bank Holiday, increasing hours of daylight, reflection time and success.
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Events
- 1268 - The Principality of Antioch, a crusader state, falls to the Mamluk Sultan Baibars in the Battle of Antioch; Baibars' destruction of the city of Antioch was so great as to permanently negate the city's importance.
- 1593 - Playwright Thomas Kyd's accusations of heresy lead to an arrest warrant for Christopher Marlowe.
- 1631 - In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
- 1652 - Rhode Island passes the first law in North America making slavery illegal.
- 1765 - Fire destroys a large part of Montreal, Quebec.
- 1783 - First United Empire Loyalists reach Parrtown, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada after leaving the United States.
- 1803 - Napoleonic Wars: The United Kingdom revokes the Treaty of Amiens and declares war on France.
- 1804 - Napoleon Bonaparte is proclaimed Emperor of France by the French Senate.
- 1848 - Opening of the first German National Assembly (Nationalversammlung) in Frankfurt, Germany.
- 1863 - American Civil War: The Siege of Vicksburg begins, ending on July 4).
- 1869 - Surrender and dissolution of the Ezo Republic to Japan.
- 1876 - Wyatt Earp starts work in Dodge City, Kansas under Marshall Larry Deger.
- 1896 - The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that separate but equal is constitutional.
- 1900 - The United Kingdom proclaims a protectorate over Tonga.
- 1910 - The Earth passes through the tail of Comet Halley.
- 1917 - World War I: The Selective Service Act passes the U.S. Congress giving the President the power of conscription.
- 1926 - Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears while visiting a Venice, California, beach.
- 1927 - The Bath School Disaster: Forty-five people are killed by bombs planted by a disgruntled school-board member in Michigan.
- 1933 - New Deal: President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
- 1944 - World War II: Battle of Monte Cassino - Germans evacuate Monte Cassino and Allied forces take the stronghold after a struggle that claimed 20,000 lives.
- 1944 - Deportation of Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union government.
- 1944 - World War II: SS troops burn down six villages in the Brkini hills in south western Slovenia.
- 1948 - The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
- 1953 - Jackie Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier (she flew in a F-86 Sabrejet at an average speed of 652.337 miles per hour (1049.835 km/h) at Rogers Dry Lake, California).
- 1958 - An F-104 Starfighter sets a world speed record of 1,404.19 mph (2,259.82 km/h).
- 1969 - Apollo program: Apollo 10 launches.
- 1974 - Nuclear test: Under project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon becoming the sixth nation to do so.
- 1974 - Completion of the Warsaw radio mast, the tallest construction ever built at the time. It later collapses on August 8, 1991.
- 1980 - 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption: Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, killing 57 people and causing $3 billion in damage.
- 1980 - Gwangju Massacre: Students in Gwangju, South Korea begin demonstrations, calling for democratic reforms.
- 1980 - Peru: Terrorist group Shining Path attacked a voting poll in the town of Chuschi, Ayacucho starting their activities.
- 1992 - The Archivist of the United States issues a proclamation to officially announce that the 27th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution has been ratified, despite more than 200 years for completion of the ratification process by the state legislatures.
- 1995 - Alain Juppé becomes Prime Minister of France.
- 1998 - United States v. Microsoft: The United States Department of Justice and 20 U.S. states file an antitrust case against Microsoft.
- 2004 - Randy Johnson pitches a perfect game for the Arizona Diamondbacks vs. the Atlanta Braves.
Births
- 1048 - Omar Khayyam, Persian poet (d. 1123)
- 1616 - Johann Jakob Froberger, German composer (d. 1667)
- 1711 - Ruđer Josip Bošković, Croatian atomic theorist (d. 1787)
- 1778 - Charles William Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry
- 1785 - John Wilson, Scottish writer (d. 1854)
- 1797 - Frederick Augustus II of Saxony (d. 1854)
- 1850 - Oliver Heaviside, physicist (d. 1925)
- 1872 - Lord Bertrand Russell, mathematician and philosopher, recipient of the Nobel Prize in literature (d. 1970)
- 1883 - Walter Gropius, German architect (d. 1969)
- 1889 - Thomas Midgley, chemist and inventor (d. 1944)
- 1891 - Rudolf Carnap, German philosopher (d. 1970)
- 1892 - Ezio Pinza, Italian-born bass (d. 1957)
- 1897 - Frank Capra, American producer, director, and writer (d. 1991)
- 1902 - Meredith Willson, American composer (d. 1984)
- 1911 - Big Joe Turner, American blues singer (d. 1985)
- 1912 - Walter Sisulu, South African anti-apartheid activist (d. 2003)
- 1912 - Perry Como, American singer (d. 2001)
- 1918 - George Welch, pilot and war hero (d. 1954)
- 1919 - Dame Margot Fonteyn, ballet dancer (d. 1991)
- 1920 - Pope John Paul II (d. 2005)
- 1920 - Lucia Mannucci, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
- 1922 - Kai Winding, jazz musician (d. 1983)
- 1928 - Pernell Roberts, actor
- 1929 - Jack Sanford, baseball player
- 1931 - Don Martin, cartoonist (d. 2000)
- 1931 - Robert Morse, actor
- 1937 - Brooks Robinson, Baseball Hall of Famer
- 1937 - Jacques Santer, Luxembourg statesman
- 1939 - Hark Bohm, film director
- 1942 - Albert Hammond, musician and composer
- 1944 - Justus Frantz, pianist
- 1946 - Reggie Jackson, Baseball Hall of Famer
- 1947 - John Bruton, former Irish premier
- 1949 - Rick Wakeman, musician (Yes), composer
- 1949 - Bill Wallace, musician (The Guess Who)
- 1950 - Thomas Gottschalk, German TV show host
- 1950 - Rodney Milburn, American athlete (d. 1997)
- 1950 - Mark Mothersbaugh, lead singer of Devo, composer, musician
- 1952 - George Strait, country musician
- 1955 - Chow Yun-Fat, actor
- 1960 - Jari Kurri, hockey player
- 1960 - Yannick Noah, tennis player
- 1969 - Martika, Cuban-American singer
- 1970 - Tina Fey, writer, comedienne, actress
- 1975 - John Higgins, Scottish snooker player
- 1975 - Jack Johnson, musician
- 1978 - Ricardo Carvalho, footballer
- 1978 - John McNamara, baseball player & footballer
- 1982 - Eric West, singer and actor
Deaths
- 1799 - Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, French playwright (b. 1732)
- 1807 - John Douglas, Anglican bishop (b. 1721)
- 1808 - Elijah Craig, important to the invention of bourbon (b. 1738?)
- 1900 - Jean Gaspard Felix Ravaisson-Mollien, French philosopher (b. 1813)
- 1909 - George Meredith, English novelist and poet (b. 1828)
- 1910 - Pauline Garcia-Viardot, singer, composer (b. 1821)
- 1911 - Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer (b. 1860)
- 1956 - Maurice Tate, English cricketer (b. 1895)
- 1973 - Jeannette Rankin, first woman elected to the United States House of Representatives (b. 1880)
- 1975 - Leroy Anderson, American composer (b. 1908)
- 1980 - Ian Curtis, British musician, singer/lyricist with Joy Division (b. July 15, 1956)
- 1981 - William Saroyan, American author (b. 1908)
- 1988 - Daws Butler, voice actor (b. 1916)
- 1995 - Elizabeth Montgomery, actress (b. 1933)
- 1995 - Alexander Godunov, ballet dancer and actor (b. 1949)
- 1995 - Elisha Cook Jr., actor (b. 1903)
- 1999 - Augustus Pablo, Jamaican singer (b. 1954)
- 1999 - Betty Robinson, Olympic runner (b. 1911)
- 2000 - Stephen M. Wolownik, Russian musician and arranger (b. 1946)
- 2003 - Anna Santisteban, organizer of the Miss Universe contest (b. 1914)
- 2003 - Barb Tarbox, anti-smoking crusader (b. 1961)
- 2004 - Elvin Jones, jazz drummer (b. 1927)
Holidays and observances
- International day of museums
- International day of the internet
- Feast day of the following saints in the Roman Catholic Church:
- Saint Eric of Sweden
- Dioscorus
- Felix of Cantalica
- Pope John I
External links
May 17 - May 19 - April 18 - June 18 -- listing of all days
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