30 May

Events

• 1416 - The Catholic Church burns Jerome of Prague as a heretic.
• 1431 - In Rouen, France, 19-year old Joan of Arc is burned at the stake.
• 1539 - In Florida, Hernando de Soto lands at Tampa Bay with 600 soldiers with the goal of finding gold
• 1574 - Henry III becomes King of France
• 1588 - The last ship of the Spanish Armada sets sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel.
• 1806 - Andrew Jackson kills a man in a duel after the man had accused Jackson's wife of bigamy
• 1814 - The First Treaty of Paris is signed returning French borders to their 1792 extent. Napoleon I of France is exiled to Elba on the same day.
• 1854 - The Kansas-Nebraska Act becomes law establishing the US territories of Nebraska and Kansas.
• 1868 - Memorial Day (then known as "Decoration Day") is observed in the United States for the first time (it was proclaimed on May 5 by General John Logan).
• 1876 - Ottoman sultan Abd-ul-Aziz is deposed and succeeded by his nephew Murat V.
• 1879 - New York City's Gilmores Garden is renamed Madison Square Garden by William Vanderbilt and is opened to the public at 26th Street and Madison Avenue.
• 1883 - In New York City, a rumor that the Brooklyn Bridge is going to collapse causes a stampede which crushes twelve people.
• 1911 - At the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the first Indianapolis 500 ends with Ray Harroun becoming the first winner of the 500-mile auto race.
• 1913 - First Balkan War: A peace treaty is signed in London ending the war. Albania becomes an independent nation.
• 1922 - In Washington, D.C., the Lincoln Memorial is dedicated
• 1935 - Babe Ruth plays in his last baseball game, in the uniform of the Boston Braves
• 1941 - World War II: Germany captures Crete
• 1942 - World War II: 1000 British bombers launch a 90-minute attack on Cologne, Germany
• 1958 - The bodies of several unidentified soldiers killed in action during World War II and the Korean War are buried at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery.
• 1967 - At the Ascot Speedway in Gardena, California, daredevil Evel Knievel jumps his motorcycle over 16 cars lined-up in a row.
• 1967 - The Nigerian state of Biafra secedes, sparking a civil war.
• 1971 - Mariner program: Mariner 9 is launched toward Mars.
• 1972 - The Angry Brigade goes on trial.
• 1972 - Members of the Japanese Red Army carry out the Lod Airport Massacre
• 1982 - Baseball player Cal Ripken, Jr plays the first of 2,632 consecutive games. His streak will end on September 20, 2000.
• 1982 - Spain becomes the 16th member of NATO and the first nation to enter the alliance since West Germany's admission in 1955.
• 1989 - Tiananmen Square protests of 1989: The 33-foot high "Goddess of Democracy" statue is unveiled in Tiananmen Square by student demonstrators.
• 1998 - A 6.6 magnitude earthquake hits northern Afghanistan, killing up to 5,000.

Births

• 1672 - Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia
• 1814 - Michael Bakunin, anarchist (+ 1876)
• 1896 - Howard Hawks, director (+ 1977)
• 1899 - Irving Thalberg, producer (+ 1936)
• 1901 - Cornelia Otis Skinner, Broadway producer, writer, director, actress (+ 1979)
• 1902 - Stepin Fetchit, dancer, actor (+ 1985)
• 1907 - Elly Beinhorn, pilot
• 1908 - Mel Blanc, voice for Barney Rubble, Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, others (+ 1989)
• 1909 - Benny Goodman, clarinetist, bandleader (+ 1986)
• 1910 - Inge Meysel, actress
• 1912 - Joseph Stein, playwright
• 1912 - Hugh Griffith, actor (+ 1980)
• 1920 - Franklin Schaffner, film director (+ 1989)
• 1920 - Ralph Metcalfe, athlete (+ 1978)
• 1922 - Hal Clement, science fiction writer
• 1926 - Christine Jorgensen, transsexual (+ 1989)
• 1927 - Clint Walker, actor
• 1934 - Aleksei Leonov, cosmonaut and first person to walk in space
• 1936 - Keir Dullea, actor
• 1939 - Michael J. Pollard, actor
• 1943 - Gale Sayers, American football star
• 1951 - Stephen Tobolowsky, actor
• 1953 - Colm Meaney, actor
• 1955 - Topper Headon, musician ("The Clash")
• 1964 - Wynonna Judd, singer
• 1972 - Trey Parker, animator, comedian (South Park)

Deaths

• 1416 - Jerome of Prague, Czech theologian
• 1431 - Joan of Arc, burned at the stake
• 1593 - Christopher Marlowe, playwright
• 1778 - Voltaire, philosopher, author
• 1953 - Dooley Wilson, musician, actor
• 1960 - Boris Pasternak, author
• 1961 - Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, dictator of the Dominican Republic
• 1964 - Leo Szilard, nuclear physicist
• 1967 - Claude Rains, actor
• 1986 - Perry Ellis, fashion designer
• 1993 - Sun Ra, musician
• 2000 - Tex Beneke, bandleader, singer, saxophone player
• 2003 - Mickie Most, musician
• 2003 - Hans Peter Willberg, literature critic

Holidays and observances

• United States - Memorial Day, currently fourth Monday in May; originally May 30)

May 29 - May 31 - April 30 - June 30 -- listing of all days

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Referenced By