May 29
is the
149th day of the year in the
Gregorian calendar (150th in
leap years). There are 216 days remaining.
*
363 -
Roman Emperor Julian defeats the
Sassanid army in the
Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the
Sassanid capital, but is unable to take the city.
*
757 -
Paul I succeeds
Stephen II as
pope.
*
1167 -
Battle of Legnano, in which
The Lombard League defeats
Emperor Frederick I.
*
1414 -
Council of Constance.
*
1453 -
Ottoman armies under
Sultan Mehmed II Fatih capture
Constantinople after a
siege, ending the
Byzantine Empire and with it the
Roman Empire.
*
1660 -
English Restoration:
Charles II (on his birthday - see below) is restored to the throne of Great Britain.
*
1677 -
Treaty of Middle Plantation establishes peace between the
Virginia colonists and the local
Indians.
*
1727 -
Peter II becomes
Tsar of
Russia.
*
1733 - Right of
Canadians to keep
Indian slaves upheld at
Quebec City.
*
1765 -
Patrick Henry in a speech denouncing the
Stamp Act is said to have said, "If this be treason, make the most of it!"
*
1790 -
Rhode Island becomes the last of the original
United States colonies to ratify the
Constitution and is admitted as the 13th
U.S. state.
*
1848 -
Wisconsin is admitted as the 30th
U.S. state.
*
1864 -
Emperor Maximilian of Mexico arrives in
Mexico for the first time.
*
1867 -
Austro-
Hungarian agreement called
Ausgleich ("the Compromise") is born through
Act 12, which established the
Austro-Hungarian Empire; on
June 8 Emperor Francis Joseph was crowned
King of Hungary.
*
1868 - The assassination of
Michael Obrenovich III, Prince of Serbia, in Belgrade.
*
1886 -
Chemist John Pemberton places his first
advertisement for
Coca-Cola, the ad appearing in the
Atlanta Journal.
*1886 -
Putney Bridge opens in west
London.
*
1903 -
May coup d'etat:
Alexander Obrenovich, King of
Serbia, and Queen Draga, are
assassinated in
Belgrade by the
Black Hand (
Crna Ruka) organization.
*
1913 -
Igor Stravinsky's
ballet score
The Rite of Spring is premiered in
Paris.
*
1914 -
Ocean liner RMS Empress of Ireland sinks in the
Gulf of St. Lawrence; 1,024 lives lost.
*
1919 -
Arthur Eddington takes measurements of shifted star positions during a
solar eclipse in an attempt to
test Einstein's theory of relativity.
*
1932 -
WW I Veterans begin to assemble in
Washington, DC in the
Bonus Army to request cash bonuses promised to them to be paid in
1945.
*
1935 - Construction of
Hoover Dam is completed.
*
1950 -
St. Roch, first ship to
circumnavigate North America, arrives in
Halifax, Nova Scotia.
*
1953 -
Sir Edmund Hillary and
Sherpa Tenzing Norgay are the first people to reach the summit of
Mount Everest.
*
1968 -
Manchester United wins the
European Cup, the first
English Club to do so.
*
1985 -
Heysel Stadium disaster: In
Brussels,
Belgium, 39
football fans die and hundreds are injured during a riot at a
European Cup match.
*1985 -
Amputee Steve Fonyo completes
cross-Canada marathon at
Victoria, British Columbia, after 14 months.
*
1990 -
Boris Yeltsin elected
President of
Russia.
*
1994 -
Herbert Shughart refuses to shake hands with
U.S. President Bill Clinton following a presentation of posthumous
Medals of Honor to the widows of two soldiers for valor at the
Battle of Mogadishu.
*
1999 -
Olusegun Obasanjo takes office as
President of Nigeria, the first elected and civilian
head of state in
Nigeria after 16 years of military rule.
*
2004 - The
World War II Memorial is dedicated in
Washington, D.C.*2004 - The
Al-Khobar massacres in
Saudi Arabia kill 22.
*
2005 -
France, one of the founders of a united
Europe, resoundingly rejects the
European Constitution, throwing the idea of a
European Union into question and leaving the continent in a state of anxiety and uncertainty (see
French referendum on the European Constitution).
*
2006 -
Charles Gibson takes over as anchor of
ABC World News Tonight.
*
1265 -
Dante Alighieri, Florentine poet (d.
1321)
*
1594 -
Gottfried Heinrich Graf zu Pappenheim, Bavarian general (d.
1632)
*
1627 -
Anne, Duchess of Montpensier, French writer (d.
1693)
*
1630 - King
Charles II of England (d.
1685)
*
1660 -
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, English friend of
Queen Anne of England (d.
1744)
*
1675 -
Humphry Ditton, English mathematician (d.
1715)
*
1716 -
Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton, French naturalist (d.
1800)
*
1722 -
James FitzGerald, 1st Duke of Leinster, Irish politician (d.
1773)
*
1736 -
Patrick Henry, American patriot (d.
1799)
*
1823 -
John H. Balsley, American carpenter (d.
1895)
*
1860 -
Isaac Albéniz, Spanish composer (d.
1909)
*
1863 -
Arthur Mold, English cricketer (d.
1921)
*
1874 -
G. K. Chesterton, English novelist (d.
1936)
*
1880 -
Oswald Spengler, German philosopher (d.
1936)
*
1892 -
Alfonsina Storni, Argentine writer (d.
1938)
*
1893 -
Max Brand, American author and war correspondent (d.
1944)
*
1894 -
Beatrice Lillie, Canadian actress (d.
1989)
* 1894 -
Josef von Sternberg, Austrian-born writer and film director (d.
1969)
*
1897 -
Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Austrian composer (d.
1957)
*
1903 -
Bob Hope, British-born comedian and actor (d.
2003)
*
1906 -
T.H. White, British author (d.
1964)
*
1907 -
Hartland Molson, Canadian businessman (
Molson) and senator (d.
2002)
*
1913 -
Tony Zale, American boxer (d.
1997)
*
1914 -
Tenzing Norgay, Nepalese sherpa (d.
1986)
* 1914 -
Stacy Keach, Sr., American actor (d.
2003)
*
1915 -
Karl Münchinger, German conductor (d.
1990)
*
1917 -
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th
President of the United States (d.
1963)
*
1920 -
John Harsanyi, Hungarian-born economist,
Nobel Prize laureate (d.
2000)
*
1922 -
Iannis Xenakis, Greek composer (d.
2001)
*
1927 -
Jean Coutu (pharmacist), Quebec businessman (
Jean Coutu Group)
*
1932 -
Richie Guerin, former basketball player and coach
*
1933 -
Helmuth Rilling, German conductor
* 1933 -
Edward Whittemore, American writer (d.
1995)
*
1937 -
Charles W. Pickering, American judge
*
1938 -
Fay Vincent, baseball commissioner
*
1939 -
Al Unser, American race car driver
*
1940 -
Farooq Leghari,
President of Pakistan*
1942 -
Pierre Bourque (politician), Former mayor of
Montreal* 1942 -
Kevin Conway, American actor
*
1945 -
Gary Brooker, Singer, pianist and songwriter (
Procol Harum)
*
1946 -
Fernando Buesa, Basque politician (d.
2000)
*
1947 -
Gene Robinson, American ecclesiastic
*
1948 -
Anthony Geary, American actor
*
1949 -
Brian Kidd, English footballer
*
1951 -
Peter Chernin, President of
News Corporation*
1953 -
Danny Elfman, American composer and musician (
Oingo Boingo)
*
1955 -
John Hinckley, Jr., American attempted assassin
*
1956 -
LaToya Jackson, American musician
*
1957 -
Jeb Hensarling, American politician
*
1958 -
Annette Bening, American actress
*
1958 -
Willem Holleeder, Dutch criminal
*
1959 -
Rupert Everett, English actor
* 1959 -
Adrian Paul, English actor
*
1961 -
Melissa Etheridge, American musician
* 1961 -
Gregory Williams, American educator and designer
*
1962 -
Eric Davis, baseball player
* 1962 -
John D. LeMay, American actor
*
1963 -
Blaze Bayley, British singer (ex-
Iron Maiden)
* 1963 -
Lisa Whelchel, American actress
*
1967 -
Noel Gallagher, English musician (
Oasis)
* 1967 -
Mike Keane, Professional ice hockey player
*
1969 -
Chan Kinchla, Canadian musician (
Blues Traveler)
*
1971 -
Craig McCracken, American animator
*
1973 -
Alpay Ozalan, Turkish footballer
*
1975 -
Melanie Brown, English musician and actress
*
1976 -
David Buckner, American musician (
Papa Roach)
*
1977 -
Antonio Lebo-Lebo, Angolan footballer
*
1978 -
Lorenzo Odone, born with
A.L.D*
1979 -
Brian Kendrick, American professional wrestler
* 1979 -
Arne Friedrich, German footballer
*
1982 -
Ana Beatriz Barros, Brazilian supermodel
*
1984 -
Carmelo Anthony, American basketball player
*
1986 -
Dylan Postl, American professional wrestler
*
1259 - King
Christopher I of Denmark (b.
1219)
*
1379 - King
Henry II of Castile (b.
1334)
*
1405 -
Philippe de Mézières, advisor to
Charles V of France*
1425 -
Hongxi Emperor of China (b.
1378)
*
1453 -
Constantine XI Palaeologus, last
Byzantine Emperor (killed in battle) (b.
1404)
*
1500 -
Bartolomeu Dias, Portuguese explorer
*
1546 -
David Beaton, Scottish Catholic cardinal
*
1593 -
John Penry, Welsh protestant leader (b.
1559)
*
1660 -
Frans van Schooten, Dutch mathematician (b.
1615)
*
1691 -
Cornelis Tromp, Dutch admiral (b.
1629)
*
1790 -
Israel Putnam, American Revolutionary War general (b.
1718)
*
1796 -
Carl Fredrik Pechlin, Swedish politician (b.
1720)
*
1814 -
Joséphine de Beauharnais, Empress of France (b.
1763)
*
1829 â€"
Humphry Davy, English chemist (b.
1778)
*
1847 -
Emmanuel, marquis de Grouchy, French marshal (b.
1766)
*
1866 -
Winfield Scott, American general and presidential candidate (b.
1786)
*
1868 -
Michael Obrenovich III, Prince of Serbia (b.
1823)
*
1882 -
Vasily Perov, Russian painter (b.
1833)
*
1892 -
Bahá'u'lláh, Persian founder of the Bahá'à Faith (b.
1817)
*
1896 -
Gabriel Auguste Daubrée, French geologist (b.
1814)
*
1903 -
Alexander Obrenovich,
King of Serbia (b.
1876)
*
1903 -
Draga Mašin, Queen of Serbia (b.
1864)
*1903 -
Bruce Price, American architect (b.
1845)
*
1910 -
Mily Balakirev, Russian composer (b.
1837)
*
1911 -
William S. Gilbert, English dramatist (b.
1836)
*
1935 -
Josef Suk, Czech composer and violinist (b.
1874)
*
1942 -
John Barrymore, American actor (b.
1882)
*
1948 - Dame
May Whitty, English actress (b.
1865)
*
1951 -
Fanny Brice, American singer, comedian, and actress (b.
1891)
*
1953 -
Man Mountain Dean, American professional wrestler (b.
1891)
*
1958 -
Juan Ramón Jiménez, Spanish writer,
Nobel Prize laureate (b.
1881)
*
1972 -
Stephen Timoshenko, Ukrainian-born mechanical engineer (b.
1878)
*
1977 -
Ba Maw, Burmese politician (b.
1893)
*
1979 -
Mary Pickford,
Canadian-born American actress and studio founder (b.
1892)
* 1979 -
John H. Wood, Jr., American federal judge (b.
1916)
*
1982 -
Romy Schneider, Austrian actress (cardiac arrest) (b.
1938)
*
1989 -
John Cipollina, American musician (
Quicksilver Messenger Service) (b.
1943)
*
1993 -
Billy Conn, American boxer (b.
1917)
*
1994 -
Erich Honecker, leader of East Germany (b.
1912)
*
1996 -
Tamara Toumanova, Ballet star and actress (b.
1919)
*
1997 -
Jeff Buckley, American musician (drowned) (b.
1966)
*
1998 -
Barry M. Goldwater, U.S. Senator from Arizona and presidential candidate (b.
1909)
*
2003 -
David Jefferies, British motorcycle racer (b.
1972)
*
2004 -
Archibald Cox, Jr., American Watergate special prosecutor (b.
1912)
* 2004 -
Samuel Dash, American Congressional counsel (b.
1925)
*
2005 -
George Rochberg, American composer (b.
1918)
*
2006 -
Steve Mizerak, American pool player (b.
1944)
*
Bahá'à Faith:
Ascension of Bahá'u'llah.
*
United Kingdom:
Oak Apple Day.
*
Nigeria:
Democracy Day.
*
Venezuela:
Tree Day.
*
Argentina:
Army Day.
Liturgical feasts
*
Saint Erwin*
Saint Maximinus of Trier*
Blessed Adhemar*
Saint Theodosia*
BBC: On This Day*
The New York Times: On This Day*
On this day in CanadaMay 28 -
May 30 -
April 29 -
June 29 -
listing of all days
