May 13Birthdays & History

On this day: May 13 in history

Oldest first. Tap a year to see it on the World Chronicle timeline.

1. 535Election of pope Agapetus I following the death of pope John II earlier that month.Europe
2. 1110Baldwin I of Jerusalem captures the city of Beirut from the Fatimid Caliphate with the help of a Genoese fleet.Middle East
3. 1344A Latin Christian fleet defeats a Turkish fleet in the battle of Pallene during the Smyrniote crusades.Middle East
4. 1373Julian of Norwich has visions of Jesus while suffering from a life-threatening illness, visions which are later described and interpreted in her book Revelations of Divine Love.Europe
5. 1501Amerigo Vespucci, this time under Portuguese flag, sets sail for western lands.Europe
6. 1568Mary, Queen of Scots, is defeated at the Battle of Langside, part of the civil war between Queen Mary and the supporters of her son, James VI.Europe
7. 1612Sword duel between Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kojiro on the shores of Ganryū Island. Kojiro dies at the end.Asia
8. 1619Dutch statesman Johan van Oldenbarnevelt is executed in The Hague after being convicted of treason.Europe
9. 1654A Venetian fleet under Admiral Cort Adeler breaks through a line of galleys and defeats the Turkish navy.EuropeMiddle East
10. 1779War of the Bavarian Succession: Russian and French mediators at the Congress of Teschen negotiate an end to the war. In the agreement Austria acquires the Innviertel.EuropeNorth America
11. 1780The Cumberland Compact is signed by leaders of the settlers in the Cumberland River area of what would become the U.S. state of Tennessee, providing for democratic government and a formal system of justice.North America
12. 1791The British under Charles Cornwallis defeat a Mysorean army under Tipu Sultan in the battle of Arakere.Europe
13. 1804Forces sent by Yusuf Karamanli of Tripoli to retake Derna from the Americans attack the city.Africa
14. 1830Ecuador gains its independence from Gran Colombia.Latin America
15. 1846Mexican–American War: The United States declares war on the Federal Republic of Mexico following a dispute over the American annexation of the Republic of Texas and a Mexican military incursion.Latin AmericaNorth America
16. 1858Montenegrin forces under Grand Duke Mirko Petrović-Njegoš defeat an Ottoman army under Hussein Pasha in the battle of Grahovac. The battle is a significant step towards formal independence and quickly becomes a part of national folklore.Middle East
17. 1861The Great Comet of 1861 is discovered by John Tebbutt of Windsor, New South Wales, Australia.EuropeOceania
18. 1861American Civil War: Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom issues a "proclamation of neutrality" which recognizes the Confederacy as having belligerent rights.North AmericaEurope
19. 1861Pakistan's (then a part of British India) first railway line opens, from Karachi to Kotri.AsiaEurope
20. 1862Southern slave Robert Smalls steals the steamboat Planter, spirits it through Confederate lines and hands it to the United States Navy, who quickly commission it as the gunboat USS Planter and appoint Smalls as captain, thus making him the first black man to command a United States ship.North America
21. 1888With the passage of the Lei Áurea ("Golden Law"), the Empire of Brazil abolishes slavery.Latin America
22. 1909The first edition of the Giro d'Italia, a long-distance multiple-stage bicycle race, begins in Milan; the Italian cyclist Luigi Ganna was the eventual winner.Europe
23. 1912The Royal Flying Corps, the forerunner of the Royal Air Force, is established in the United Kingdom.Europe
24. 1917Three children report the first apparition of Our Lady of Fátima in Fátima, Portugal.Europe
25. 1940World War II: Germany's conquest of France begins, as the German army crosses the Meuse. Winston Churchill makes his "blood, toil, tears, and sweat" speech to the House of Commons.Europe
26. 1943World War II: Operations Vulcan and Strike force the surrender of the last Axis troops in Tunisia.Africa
27. 1945World War II: Yevgeny Khaldei's photograph Raising a Flag over the Reichstag is published in Ogonyok magazine.Europe
28. 1948Arab–Israeli War: The Kfar Etzion massacre occurs, a day prior to the Israeli Declaration of Independence.Middle East
29. 1949Aeroflot Flight 17 crashes on approach to Severny Airport in Novosibirsk, killing 25.Europe
30. 1950The inaugural Formula One World Championship race takes place at Silverstone Circuit. The race was won by Giuseppe Farina, who would go on to become the inaugural champion that year.Europe
31. 1951The 400th anniversary of the founding of the National University of San Marcos is commemorated by the opening of the first large-capacity stadium in Peru.Latin America
32. 1952The Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India, holds its first sitting.Asia
33. 1954The anti-National Service Riots, by Chinese middle school students in Singapore, take place.Asia
34. 1958Ben Carlin becomes the first (and only) person to circumnavigate the world by amphibious vehicle, having travelled over 17,000 kilometres (11,000 mi) by sea and 62,000 kilometres (39,000 mi) by land during a ten-year journey.World
35. 1958May 1958 crisis: A group of French military officers lead a coup in Algiers demanding that a government of national unity be formed with Charles de Gaulle at its head in order to defend French control of Algeria.EuropeAfrica
36. 1958During a visit to Caracas, Venezuela, the US Vice President Richard Nixon's car is attacked by anti-American demonstrators.Latin AmericaNorth America
37. 1960Hundreds of University of California, Berkeley students congregate for the first day of protest against a visit by the House Committee on Un-American Activities.North America
38. 1967Dr. Zakir Husain becomes the third President of India. He is the first Muslim President of the Indian Union. He holds this position until August 24, 1969.Asia
39. 1969In the aftermath of the 1969 Malaysian general election, Sino-Malay sectarian violence erupts in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Asia
40. 1972The Troubles: A car bombing outside a crowded pub in Belfast sparks a two-day gun battle involving the Provisional IRA, Ulster Volunteer Force and British Army. Seven people are killed and over 66 injured.Europe
41. 1972A fire occurs in the Sennichi Department Store in Osaka, Japan. Blocked exits and non-functional elevators result in 118 fatalities (many victims leaping to their deaths).Asia
42. 1980An F3 tornado hits Kalamazoo County, Michigan. President Jimmy Carter declares it a federal disaster area.North America
43. 1981Mehmet Ali Ağca attempts to assassinate Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square in Rome. The Pope is rushed to the Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic to undergo emergency surgery and survives.Europe
44. 1985Police bomb MOVE headquarters in Philadelphia, killing six adults and five children, and destroying the homes of 250 city residents.North America
45. 1989Large groups of students occupy Tiananmen Square and begin a hunger strike.Asia
46. 1990The Dinamo–Red Star riot takes place at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb, Croatia, between the Bad Blue Boys (fans of Dinamo Zagreb) and the Delije (fans of Red Star Belgrade).Europe
47. 1992Li Hongzhi gives the first public lecture on Falun Gong in Changchun, People's Republic of China.Asia
48. 1995Alison Hargreaves, a 33-year-old British mother, becomes the first woman to ascend Everest without oxygen or the help of sherpas.Europe
49. 1996Severe thunderstorms and a tornado in Bangladesh kill 600 people.Asia
50. 1998Race riots break out in Jakarta, Indonesia, where shops owned by Indonesians of Chinese descent are looted and women raped.Asia
51. 1998India carries out two nuclear weapon tests at Pokhran, following the three conducted on May 11. The United States and Japan impose economic sanctions on India.AsiaNorth AmericaAsia
52. 1999Kosovo War: NATO bombs the village of Koriša, killing at least 87 people.Europe
53. 2000A fireworks storage depot explodes in a residential neighborhood in Enschede, Netherlands, killing 23 people and injuring 950 others.Europe
54. 2005Andijan uprising, Uzbekistan: Troops open fire on crowds of protestors after a prison break; at least 187 people were killed according to official estimates.Asia
55. 2006São Paulo violence: Rebellions occur in several prisons in Brazil.Latin America
56. 2011Two bombs explode in the Charsadda District of Pakistan killing 98 people and wounding 140 others.Asia
57. 2012Forty-nine dismembered bodies are discovered by Mexican authorities on Mexican Federal Highway 40.Latin America
58. 2013American physician Kermit Gosnell is found guilty in Pennsylvania of murdering three infants born alive during attempted abortions, involuntary manslaughter of a woman during an abortion procedure, and other charges.North America
59. 2014An explosion at an underground coal mine in southwest Turkey kills 301 miners.Middle East

Source: Wikipedia "May 13" / CC BY-SA 4.0