May 1
:
Beltane
and
Samhain
in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, respectively;
Maharashtra Day
in
Maharashtra
, India (
1960
);
Loyalty Day
in the United States
![Empire State Building](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/10/Empire_State_Building_%28aerial_view%29.jpg/114px-Empire_State_Building_%28aerial_view%29.jpg)
Empire State Building
May 2
:
National Day of Prayer
in the United States (2024);
Flag Day
in Poland
![Mireya Moscoso in 2012](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Mireya_Moscoso_in_2012.jpg/122px-Mireya_Moscoso_in_2012.jpg)
Mireya Moscoso in 2012
May 3
:
World Press Freedom Day
;
Constitution Memorial Day
in Japan (
1947
);
Constitution Day
in Poland (
1791
)
![Benty Grange helmet](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/Benty_grange_helm_crop.png/146px-Benty_grange_helm_crop.png)
Benty Grange helmet
- 1481
?
The largest of a series of earthquakes
struck the island of
Rhodes
, causing an estimated 30,000 casualties.
- 1848
? The
Benty Grange helmet
(pictured)
, a boar-crested
Anglo-Saxon
helmet similar to those mentioned in the contemporary epic poem
Beowulf
, was discovered in
Derbyshire
, England.
- 1939
?
Subhas Chandra Bose
formed the
All India Forward Bloc
, a faction within the
Indian National Congress
, in opposition to
Gandhi
's tactics of
nonviolence
.
- 1999
? A
Doppler on Wheels
team measured the fastest winds recorded on Earth, at 135?m/s (302?mph; 486?km/h), in
a tornado
near
Bridge Creek, Oklahoma
.
May 4
:
Youth Day
in China;
Literary Day
in Taiwan;
Star Wars
Day
![Pope Alexander VI](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/Pope_Alexander_Vi.jpg/122px-Pope_Alexander_Vi.jpg)
Pope Alexander VI
May 5
:
Easter
(Eastern Christianity, 2024);
Lixia
begins in China (2024);
Children's Day
in Japan;
Cinco de Mayo
in Mexico and the United States
![Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Carnegie-hall-isaac-stern.jpg/162px-Carnegie-hall-isaac-stern.jpg)
Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall
May 6
![The Grand Palace in the 1860s](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3a/Grand_Palace_of_Bangkok_1860s.jpg/186px-Grand_Palace_of_Bangkok_1860s.jpg)
The Grand Palace in the 1860s
May 7
![Maximilien Robespierre](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Robespierre.jpg/126px-Robespierre.jpg)
Maximilien Robespierre
May 8
:
Anniversary of the birth of Miguel Hidalgo
in Mexico (1753);
Victory in Europe Day
(1945)
![Lady Blanche Arundell](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/Blanche_Arundell.JPG/123px-Blanche_Arundell.JPG)
Lady Blanche Arundell
May 9
:
Europe Day
in the European Union;
Liberation Day
in the
Channel Islands
(
1945
)
![Hotel Polen fire](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Amsterdam_Hotel_Polen_na_de_brand_op_9_mei_1977.jpg/171px-Amsterdam_Hotel_Polen_na_de_brand_op_9_mei_1977.jpg)
Hotel Polen fire
May 10
![One World Trade Center](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/One_World_Trade_Center_Tower.jpg/97px-One_World_Trade_Center_Tower.jpg)
One World Trade Center
May 11
![Frontispiece of the Diamond Sutra](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Jingangjing.jpg/167px-Jingangjing.jpg)
Frontispiece of the
Diamond Sutra
May 12
![B-17 bombers intercepting the Rex](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/B-17s_flyby_Rex.jpg/172px-B-17s_flyby_Rex.jpg)
B-17 bombers intercepting the
Rex
May 13
:
Yom HaZikaron
in Israel (2024)
![Aftermath of the Enschede explosion](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f1/Ramp_enschede.jpg/170px-Ramp_enschede.jpg)
Aftermath of the Enschede explosion
May 14
:
Feast day
of
Saint Matthias
(
Catholicism
);
Independence Day
in Israel (2024)
![Monument to the Battle of Lewes](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/LewesBattle_Big.jpg/162px-LewesBattle_Big.jpg)
Monument to the Battle of Lewes
May 15
:
Feast day
of
Saint Carthage
(
Catholicism
);
Nakba Day
in
Palestinian communities
![Statue of Valentinian II](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/eb/Statue_of_emperor_Valentinian_II_detail.JPG/121px-Statue_of_emperor_Valentinian_II_detail.JPG)
Statue of Valentinian II
May 16
:
Global Accessibility Awareness Day
(2024)
![Junko Tabei](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Junko_Tabei_85_%283to4%29.jpg/121px-Junko_Tabei_85_%283to4%29.jpg)
Junko Tabei
May 17
:
International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia
![Anne of Denmark](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d1/Anne_of_Denmark_1605.jpg/122px-Anne_of_Denmark_1605.jpg)
Anne of Denmark
May 18
:
Haitian Flag Day
in Haiti (
1803
);
Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Crimean Tatar Genocide
in Ukraine
![The Bath School after the explosions](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/75/Bath_School_disaster_showing_front_of_school.png/179px-Bath_School_disaster_showing_front_of_school.png)
The Bath School after the explosions
May 19
:
Commemoration of Ataturk, Youth and Sports Day
in Turkey (
1919
)
![Prince Harry and Meghan Markle](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/Prince_Harry_and_Meghan%E2%80%99s_carriage_procession_through_streets_of_Windsor_05.jpg/168px-Prince_Harry_and_Meghan%E2%80%99s_carriage_procession_through_streets_of_Windsor_05.jpg)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle
May 20
:
National Day of Remembrance
in Cambodia (
1975
);
National Awakening Day
in Indonesia (
1908
);
Victoria Day
in Canada (2024)
![Schlosskirche Weimar](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Schlosskirche_Weimar_1660.jpg/119px-Schlosskirche_Weimar_1660.jpg)
Schlosskirche Weimar
May 21
:
World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development
![Richard Loeb (left) and Nathan Leopold (right)](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Bundesarchiv_Bild_102-00652%2C_Richard_Loeb_und_Nathan_Leopold.jpg/165px-Bundesarchiv_Bild_102-00652%2C_Richard_Loeb_und_Nathan_Leopold.jpg)
Richard Loeb
(left)
and Nathan Leopold
(right)
May 22
![Prayut Chan-o-cha](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Prayuth_2018_cropped.jpg/119px-Prayuth_2018_cropped.jpg)
Prayut Chan-o-cha
May 23
:
Aromanian National Day
![Louis of Nassau](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/After_Antonio_Moro_-_Louis%2C_Count_of_Nassau_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg/120px-After_Antonio_Moro_-_Louis%2C_Count_of_Nassau_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
Louis of Nassau
May 24
:
Aldersgate Day
(
Methodism
)
![Eric XIV of Sweden](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Erik_XIV_king_of_Sweden_1533-1577_%28Domenicus_Verwilt%29_-_Nationalmuseum_-_21667.tif/lossy-page1-115px-Erik_XIV_king_of_Sweden_1533-1577_%28Domenicus_Verwilt%29_-_Nationalmuseum_-_21667.tif.jpg)
Eric XIV of Sweden
May 25
:
Africa Day
(
1963
);
Independence Day
in
Jordan
(
1946
)
![Samuel Taylor Coleridge](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/SamuelTaylorColeridge.jpg/126px-SamuelTaylorColeridge.jpg)
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
May 26
:
National Sorry Day
in Australia;
Independence Day
in Georgia (
1918
),
Lag BaOmer
(Judaism, 2024)
May 27
:
Memorial Day
in the United States
![Manchu Prince Dorgon](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/Dorgon%2C_the_Prince_Rui_%2817th_century%29.jpg/120px-Dorgon%2C_the_Prince_Rui_%2817th_century%29.jpg)
Manchu Prince Dorgon
May 28
:
Republic Day
in Armenia (
1918
);
Independence Day
in Azerbaijan (
1918
)
![Mozaffar ad-Din](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/Mozaffar_ad-Din_Shah_Qajar_portrait.jpg/126px-Mozaffar_ad-Din_Shah_Qajar_portrait.jpg)
Mozaffar ad-Din
May 29
:
Feast day
of
Saint Paul?VI
(
Catholicism
)
![Hawthorne Bridge](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Hawthorne_Bridge_%28Portland%2C_Oregon%29_from_southwest%2C_2012.jpg/171px-Hawthorne_Bridge_%28Portland%2C_Oregon%29_from_southwest%2C_2012.jpg)
Hawthorne Bridge
May 30
:
Statehood Day
in Croatia (
1990
)
![Johann Sebastian Bach](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6a/Johann_Sebastian_Bach.jpg/126px-Johann_Sebastian_Bach.jpg)
Johann Sebastian Bach
- 1431
?
Hundred Years' War
: After being convicted of heresy,
Joan of Arc
was
burned at the stake
in
Rouen
, France.
- 1723
?
Johann Sebastian Bach
(pictured)
assumed the office of
Thomaskantor
in Leipzig, presenting the cantata
Die Elenden sollen essen
in
St.?Nicholas Church
.
- 1922
? The
Lincoln Memorial
in
Washington, D.C.
, featuring
a sculpture
of the sixteenth U.S. president
Abraham Lincoln
by
Daniel Chester French
, opened.
- 1963
?
Buddhist crisis
: A protest against pro-Catholic discrimination was held outside the National Assembly of
South Vietnam
in
Saigon
, the first open demonstration against President
Ngo đinh Di?m
.
- 2008
? The
Convention on Cluster Munitions
, prohibiting the use, transfer, and stockpiling of
cluster bombs
, was adopted.
May 31
:
World No Tobacco Day
![Bessarion](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Bessarion_1476.JPG/96px-Bessarion_1476.JPG)
Bessarion