Historical Events on May 19

  • 1536: The 2nd wife of King Henry VIII of England, Anne Boleyn, is beheaded for crimes which include treason, incest and adultery.
  • 1568: The order for the arrest of Mary Queen of Scots is given by Queen Elizabeth I of England.
  • 1655: During the Anglo-Spanish War, Jamaica is invaded by British forces.
  • 1743: The Centigrade temperature scale is created by Jean-Pierre Christin on this day.
  • 1749: The Ohio Company is granted a land grant around the forks of the Ohio River by King George II of Great Britain.
  • 1776: At the Battle of the Cedars during the American Revolutionary War, the Continental Army surrenders a garrison.
  • 1802: The Legion of Honor is founded by Napoleon Bonaparte on this day.
  • 1828: The Tariff of 1828 is signed into law by United States’ President John Quincy Adams. Among other things, this act protects U.S wool manufacturers.
  • 1848: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is ratified by Mexico. This treaty ends the Mexican American War and gives Utah, California and Nevada to the U.S. It also gives portions of 4 other modern U.S states to the U.S for $15 million dollars.
  • 1942: After the Battle of the Coral Sea during World War 2, Task Force 16 returns to Pearl Harbor.
  • 1962: At Madison Square Garden, A birthday salute is held for United States’ President John F. Kennedy. During this event, actress Marilyn Monroe will sing Happy Birthday to the President.

Famous Birthdays on May 19

  • American Lieutenant, pilot and Medal of Honor recipient, Frank Luke is born in 1897.
  • American scientist Ruth Ella Moore is born in 1903.
  • Austrian-English biologist and Nobel Prize laureate, Max Perutz is born in 1914.
  • American minister and activist, Malcolm X is born in 1925.
  • English singer-songwriter Pete Townshend is born in 1945.
  • English actress Victoria Wood is born in 1953.
  • Canadian-American computer scientist and creator of JAVA, James Gosling is born in 1955.