May 8 in recent years
2009 (Friday)
2008 (Thursday)
2007 (Tuesday)
2006 (Monday)
2005 (Sunday)
2004 (Saturday)
2003 (Thursday)
2002 (Wednesday)
2001 (Tuesday)
2000 (Monday)
May 8 is the 129th day of the year (130th in leap years ) in the Gregorian calendar . There are 236 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events [ ]
589 - Reccared summons the Third Council of Toledo
1429 - Joan of Arc raises siege of Orleans.
1450 - Jack Cade's Rebellion : Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI .
1541 - Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River and names it Río de Espíritu Santo .
1794 - Branded a traitor during the Reign of Terror by revolutionists , French chemist Antoine Lavoisier , who was also a tax collector with the Ferme Générale , was tried, convicted, and guillotined all on one day in Paris .
1821 - Greek War of Independence : The Greeks defeat the Turks in Gravia .
1846 - Mexican-American War : The Battle of Palo Alto – Zachary Taylor defeats a Mexican force north of the Rio Grande in the first major battle of the war.
1861 - American Civil War : Richmond , is named the capital of the Confederate States of America .
1877 - At Gilmore's Gardens in New York City , the first Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show opens (ends May 11 ).
1886 - Pharmacist Dr. John Styth Pemberton invents a carbonated beverage that would later be named "Coca-Cola ".
1898 - The first games of the Italian Football League are played.
1899 - The Irish Literary Theatre in Dublin opens.
1902 - In Martinique , Mount Pelée erupts, destroying the town of Saint-Pierre and killing over 30,000 people. Only a handful of residents survive the blast.
1914 - Paramount Pictures is formed.
1919 - Edward George Honey first proposed the idea of a moment of silence to commemorate The Armistice of World War I , which later resulted in the creation of Remembrance Day .
1933 - Mohandas Gandhi begins a 21-day fast in protest of British oppression in India .
1942 - World War II : The Battle of the Coral Sea comes to an end. This is the first time in the naval history where two enemy fleets fight without visual contact between warring ships.
1942 - World War II : Gunners of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery on Horsburgh Island in the Cocos Islands rebelled in the Cocos Islands Mutiny . Their mutiny was crushed and three of them were executed, the only British Commonwealth soldiers to be executed for mutiny during the Second World War .
1945 - Hundreds of Algerian civilians are killed by French Army soldiers in the Sétif massacre .
1945 - Combat in Europe ends in World War II : VE Day . German forces agree to an unconditional surrender .
1945 - End of the Prague uprising , today still celebrated as national holiday in the Czech Republic
1946 - The Estonian school girls Aili Jõgi and Ageeda Paavel blow up the Soviet memorial that preceded the Bronze Soldier in Tallinn .
1965 - Theta Chi Fraternity was established at California State University , Zeta Epsilon Chapter.
1967 - The Philippine province of Davao is split into three: Davao del Norte , Davao del Sur , and Davao Oriental .
1970 - The Hard Hat riot occurs in the Wall Street area of New York City as blue-collar construction workers clash with anti-war demonstrators protesting the Vietnam War .
1972 - Vietnam War – U.S. President Richard M. Nixon announces his order to place mines in major North Vietnamese ports in order to stem the flow of weapons and other goods to that nation.
1973 - A 71-day standoff, between federal authorities and the American Indian Movement members occupying the Pine Ridge Reservation at Wounded Knee , ends with the surrender of the militants.
1982 - Formula One pilot Gilles Villeneuve dies in a crash during practice for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder .
1984 - The Soviet Union announces that it will boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles .
1984 - Cpl. Denis Lortie enters the Quebec National Assembly and opens fire, killing three and wounding 13. René Jalbert , sergeant-at-arms of the assembly , succeeds in calming him, for which he will later receive the Cross of Valour .
1987 - The SAS carries out the Loughgall ambush .
1996 - The Constitutional Assembly of South Africa ratifies the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996. Considered one of the most liberal Constitutions in the world regarding Human Rights .
1997 - A China Southern Airlines Boeing 737 crashes on approach into Shenzhen's Huangtian Airport , killing 35 people.
1999 - Nancy Mace becomes the first female cadet to graduate from The Citadel military college.
2005 - The new Canadian War Museum opens, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of V-E Day .
2007 - A new Northern Ireland Executive is formed under the leadership of Ian Paisley of the Democratic Unionist Party as First Minister and Martin McGuinness of Sinn Féin as Deputy First Minister.
Births [ ]
1326 - Joanna I of Auvergne , queen of France (d. 1360 )
1460 - Frederick I (d. 1536 )
1521 - Petrus Canisius , Dutch Jesuit (d. 1597 )
1587 - Victor Amadeus I (d. 1637 )
1622 - Claes Rålamb , Swedish statesman (d. 1698 )
1629 - Niels Juel , Danish admiral (d. 1697 )
1632 - Heino Heinrich Graf von Flemming , German marshal (d. 1706 )
1653 - Claude-Louis-Hector de Villars , Marshall of France (d. 1734 )
1668 - Alain-René Lesage , French writer (d. 1747 )
1670 - Charles Beauclerk , English soldier (d. 1726 )
1735 - Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland , English painter (d. 1811 )
1738 - Mikhail Kamensky , Russian general (d. 1809 )
1753 - Miguel Hidalgo Mexican revolutionary (d. 1811 )
1786 - Jean Vianney , French Catholic priest (d. 1859 )
1821 - William Henry Vanderbilt , member of the Vanderbilt family (d. 1885 )
1825 - George Bruce Malleson , Indian officer (d. 1898 )
1828 - Jean Henri Dunant , Founder of the Red Cross ; Nobel laureate (d. 1910 )
1828 - Sharbel Makhluf , Lebanese monk (d. 1898 )
1829 - Louis Moreau Gottschalk , American musician (d. 1869 )
1839 - Adolphe-Basile Routhier , French Canadian lyricist (O Canada ) (d. 1920 )
1842 - Emil Christian Hansen , Danish physiologist (d. 1909 )
1850 - Ross Barnes , baseball player (d. 1915 )
1853 - Dan Brouthers , baseball player (d. 1932 )
1859 - Johan Jensen , Danish mathematician (d. 1925 )
1884 - Harry S. Truman , President of the United States (d. 1972 )
1893 - Edd Roush , baseball player (d. 1988 )
1893 - Teddy Wakelam , English sports broadcaster and rugby union player (d. 1963 )
1895 - Fulton J. Sheen , American bishop (d. 1979 )
1895 - Edmund Wilson , American writer (d. 1972 )
1899 - Arthur Q. Bryan , American voice actor (d. 1959 )
1899 - Friedrich Hayek , Nobel laureate (d. 1992 )
1901 - Turkey Stearnes , baseball player (d. 1979 )
1902 - Andre Michael Lwoff , Nobel laureate (d. 1994 )
1903 - Fernandel , French actor (d. 1971 )
1904 - John Snagge , British radio personality (d. 1996 )
1905 - Red Nichols , American musician (d. 1965 )
1906 - Roberto Rossellini , Italian director (d. 1977 )
1911 - Robert Johnson , American musician (d. 1938 )
1913 - Bob Clampett , American animator (d. 1984 )
1914 - Romain Gary , Polish writer (d. 1980 )
1916 - João Havelange , Brazilian industrialist
1916 - Swami Chinmayananda , Indian spiritualist (d. 1993 )
1919 - Lex Barker , American actor (d. 1973 )
1920 - Saul Bass , American graphic designer (d. 1996 )
1920 - Tom of Finland , Finnish fetish artist (d. 1991 )
1920 - Sloan Wilson , American author (d. 2003 )
1925 - Ali Hassan Mwinyi , President of Tanzania
1926 - David Attenborough , British producer
1926 - Don Rickles , American comedian
1927 - Chumy Chúmez , Spanish film director (d. 2003 )
1928 - Theodore Sorenson , American writer
1929 - Claude Castonguay , Quebec politician
1929 - Miyoshi Umeki , Japanese-born Academy Award -winning actress (d. 2007 )
1930 - Heather Harper , Irish singer
1930 - Gary Snyder , American poet
1932 - Julieta Campos , Cuban-Mexican writer (d. 2007 )
1932 - Phyllida Law , Scottish actress
1932 - Sonny Liston , American boxer (d. 1970 )
1935 - Princess Elisabeth of Denmark , 7th in the Line of succession to the Danish Throne
1935 - Jack Charlton , English footballer
1937 - Carlos Gaviria Díaz , Colombian politician
1937 - Thomas Pynchon , American novelist
1937 - Mike Cuellar , baseball player
1940 - Peter Benchley , American author (d. 2006 )
1940 - Ricky Nelson , American singer (d. 1985 )
1940 - Irwin Cotler , Canadian politician
1940 - Toni Tennille , American singer
1941 - Mahmoud Ahmed , Ethiopian singer
1941 - John Fred , American singer (d. 2005 )
1941 - Bill Lockyer , American politician
1942 - Terry Neill , Northern Irish footballer
1943 - Paul Samwell-Smith , British bassist (The Yardbirds )
1944 - Captain Dale Dye , American actor
1944 - Gary Glitter , English singer
1945 - Keith Jarrett , American musician
1946 - André Boulerice , Quebec politician
1947 - H. Robert Horvitz , Nobel laureate
1948 - Felicity Lott , English singer
1948 - Steve Braun , baseball player
1948 - Stephen Stohn , Canadian television producer (Degrassi )
1950 - Robert Mugge , American music documentary film maker
1951 - Philip Bailey , American singer (Earth )
1951 - Chris Frantz , American musician (Talking Heads )
1953 - Alex Van Halen , Dutch drummer (Van Halen )
1953 - Billy Burnette , American singer and guitarist (Fleetwood Mac )
1954 - David Keith , American actor
1957 - Bill Cowher , American football coach
1957 - Marie Myriam , French singer
1960 - Franco Baresi , Italian footballer
1960 - Eric Brittingham , American bassist
1961 - Janet McTeer , British actress
1961 - David Winning , Canadian film director
1963 - Robin Jarvis , British writer
1963 - Izabela Kloc , Polish politician
1963 - Sylvain Cossette , Quebec singer and songwriter
1963 - Anthony Field , Australian musician and actor
1964 - Melissa Gilbert , American actress
1964 - Bobby Labonte , American race car driver
1964 - Dave Rowntree , British musician (Blur )
1966 - Claudio Taffarel , Brazilian footballer
1966 - Marta Sánchez , Spanish singer
1968 - Jamie Summers , American porn star
1968 - Johan Pehrson , Swedish politician
1968 - Nathalie Normandeau , Quebec politician
1969 - Akebono Taro , sumo wrestler
1970 - Luis Enrique , Spanish football player
1972 - Darren Hayes , Australian singer
1972 - Ray Whitney , Canadian ice hockey player
1973 - Hiromu Arakawa , Japanese artist
1974 - Jon Tickle , English entertainer
1974 - Korey Stringer , American football player (d. 2001 )
1975 - Enrique Iglesias , Spanish singer
1975 - Jussi Markkanen , Finnish ice hockey player
1975 - Gastón Mazzacane , Argentine racing driver
1976 - Martha Wainwright , Canadian musician and songwriter
1976 - Ian "H" Watkins , pop singer (Steps )
1976 - Jeff Simmons , IRL racing driver
1978 - Jang Woo Hyuk , Korean singer
1978 - Lúcio , Brazilian footballer
1978 - Josie Maran , American model
1980 - Michelle McManus , Scottish singer
1980 - Benny Yau , Canadian entertainer
1981 - Andrea Barzagli , Italian footballer
1981 - Björn Dixgård , Swedish guitarist
1981 - Yasuko Tajima , Japanese swimmer
1982 - Adrian Gonzalez , American baseball player
1983 - Matt Willis , British singer
1984 - Nadine Chandrawinata , 2006 Miss Universe Pageant (Indonesia)
1985 - Mashio Miyazaki , Japanese actress
Deaths [ ]
1192 - Duke Ottokar IV of Styria (b. 1163 )
1278 - Emperor Duanzong of China (b. 1268 )
1319 - King Haakon V of Norway (b. 1270 )
1473 - John Stafford , English politician (b. 1420 )
1538 - Edward Fox , English bishop
1672 - Jean-Armand du Peyrer , Comte de Tréville and French Officer (b. 1598 )
1766 - Samuel Chandler , English non-conformist minister (b. 1693 )
1773 - Ali Bey Al-Kabir , Mamluk Sultan of Egypt (b. 1728 )
1781 - Richard Jago , English poet (b. 1715 )
1785 - Étienne François , French statesman (b. 1719 )
1785 - Pietro Longhi , Venetian painter (b. 1701 )
1788 - Giovanni Antonio Scopoli , Italian-born physician and naturalist (b. 1723 )
1794 - Antoine Lavoisier , French chemist (executed) (b. 1743 )
1819 - Kamehameha I , King of Hawaii
1828 - Mauro Giuliani , Italian composer (b. 1781 )
1837 - Alexander Balashov , Russian general and statesman (b. 1770 )
1842 - Jules Dumont d'Urville , French explorer (b. 1790 )
1853 - Jan Roothaan , Dutch priest (b. 1785 )
1873 - John Stuart Mill , English philosopher (b. 1806 )
1880 - Gustave Flaubert , French novelist (b. 1821 )
1891 - Helena Blavatsky , Russian-born author (b. 1831 )
1903 - Paul Gauguin , French painter (b. 1848 )
1936 - Oswald Spengler , German historian and philosopher (b. 1880 )
1943 - Mordechaj Anielewicz , Polish Resistance Fighter (b. 1919 )
1947 - Harry Gordon Selfridge , American-born department store founder (b. 1858 )
1948 - U Saw , Burmese politician (b. 1900 )
1950 - Vital Brazil , Brazilian physician (b. 1865 )
1952 - William Fox , Austrian-born film producer (b. 1879 )
1960 - J. H. C. Whitehead , British mathematician (b. 1904 )
1967 - LaVerne Andrews , American singer (The Andrews Sisters ) (b. 1911 )
1969 - Remington Kellogg , American naturalist (b. 1892 )
1975 - Avery Brundage , President of the International Olympic Committee (b. 1887 )
1982 - Neil Bogart , American record executive (b. 1943 )
1982 - Gilles Villeneuve , Canadian race car driver (b. 1950 )
1984 - Lila Bell Wallace , American magazine publisher (Reader's Digest ) (b. 1890 )
1984 - Gino Bianco , Brazilian racing driver (b. 1916 )
1985 - Theodore Sturgeon , American science fiction writer (b. 1918 )
1985 - Dolph Sweet , American actor (b. 1920 )
1987 - Doris Stokes , British psychic medium (b. 1920 )
1988 - Robert A. Heinlein , American science fiction writer (b. 1907 )
1990 - Luigi Nono , Italian composer (b. 1924 )
1991 - Jean Langlais , French composer and pianist (b. 1907 )
1991 - Rudolf Serkin , Austrian pianist (b. 1903 )
1993 - Avram Davidson , American writer (b. 1923 )
1994 - George Peppard , American actor (b. 1928 )
1995 - Teresa Teng , Asian superstar (b. 1953 )
1996 - Beryl Burton , English cyclist (b. 1937 )
1996 - Dominguín , Spanish bullfighter (b. 1926 )
1996 - Garth Williams , American illustrator (b. 1912 )
1998 - Bebe Rebozo , American banker and Watergate figure (b. 1912 )
1999 - Dirk Bogarde , British actor (b. 1921 )
1999 - Ed Gilbert , American actor (b. 1931 )
1999 - Dana Plato , American actress (b. 1964 )
2000 - Guadalupe "Pita" Amor , Mexican poet (b. 1918 )
2000 - Alexander Chislenko , Russian-American transhumanist (b. 1959 )
2000 - Henry Nicols , AIDS activist (b. 1973 )
2005 - Nicolás Vuyovich , Argentine racing driver (b. 1981 )
2006 - Iain MacMillan , Abbey Road photographer (b. 1938 )
Holidays and observances [ ]
Liturgical feasts [ ]
External links [ ]
This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia . The original content was at May 8 . The list of authors can be seen in the page history . As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License .
150 Familypedia people were born on May 8
168 Familypedia people died on May 8
81 Familypedia people were first married on May 8