See what makes May 20 special at Famous Daily.
History, birthdays, holiday, and a quote!
What happened on May 20
- May 20, 0325 The First Council of Nicaea the first Ecumenical Council of the Christian Church is held.
- May 20, 0526 "An earthquake kills about 300,000 people in Syria and Antiochia."
- May 20, 0526 "Earthquake kills 250,000 in Antioch, Syria"
- May 20, 0685 "The Battle of Dunnichen or Nechtansmere is fought between a Pictish army under King Bridei III and the invading Northumbrians under King Ecgfrith, who are decisively defeated."
- May 20, 1217 "The Second Battle of Lincoln is fought near Lincoln, England, resulting in the defeat of Prince Louis of France by William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke."
- May 20, 1293 "Earthquake strikes Kamakura Japan, 30,000 killed"
- May 20, 1293 King Sancho IV of Castile creates the Study of General Schools of Alcal.
- May 20, 1303 Treaty of Paris restores Gascony to British in Hundred Years War
- May 20, 1310 Shoes were made for both right & left feet (and we thank you)
- May 20, 1347 Rienzo calls Rome for people's tribunal
- May 20, 1497 "John Cabot sets sail from Bristol, England, on his ship Matthew looking for a route to the west (other documents give a 2 May date)."
- May 20, 1498 Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrives at Calcutta India
- May 20, 1501 Joao da Nova Castell discovers Ascension Islands
- May 20, 1521 Battle of Pampeluna: Ignatius Loyola seriously wounded in the battle.
- May 20, 1521 Ignatius Loyola seriously wounded by a cannon ball
- May 20, 1524 Duke of Albany leaves Scotland
- May 20, 1570 Cartographer Abraham Ortelius issues the first modern atlas.
- May 20, 1570 "Egidius Coppens publishes Abraham Ortelius' ""Theatrum Orbis Terrarum"""
- May 20, 1571 "Venice, Spain & Pope Pius form anti-Turkish Saint League"
- May 20, 1591 Spanish troops in Zutphen surrenders to Willem Louis/Mauritius
- May 20, 1631 German army under earl Johann Tilly conquerors Maagdenburg
- May 20, 1631 "The city of Magdeburg in Germany is seized by forces of the Holy Roman Empire and most of its inhabitants massacred, in one of the bloodiest incidents of the Thirty Years' War."
- May 20, 1639 "Dorchester MA, forms first school funded by local taxes"
- May 20, 1639 "Dorchester, Massachusetts funds the first school in the US from local taxes"
- May 20, 1690 "England passes Act of Grace, forgiving followers of James II"
- May 20, 1690 "England passes the Act of Grace, forgiving followers of Roman Catholic James II."
- May 20, 1704 Elias Neau forms school for slaves in New York
- May 20, 1734 The first Jockey Club forms in South Carolina
- May 20, 1774 "Britain gives Québec, Labrador & territory north of the Ohio"
- May 20, 1775 "Citizens of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina declare independence of Britain"
- May 20, 1813 "Napoleon Bonaparte leads his French troops into the Battle of Bautzen in Saxony, Germany, against the combined armies of Russia and Prussia. The battle ends the next day with a French victory."
- May 20, 1825 Charles X becomes King of France
- May 20, 1830 The first railroad timetable published in newspaper (Baltimore American)
- May 20, 1835 Otto is named the first modern king of Greece.
- May 20, 1845 "HMS Erebus and HMS Terror with 134 men under John Franklin sail from the River Thames in England, beginning a disastrous expedition to find the Northwest Passage. All hands are lost."
- May 20, 1845 The first legislative assembly convenes in Hawaii
- May 20, 1861 Cornerstone of University of Washington laid in Seattle
- May 20, 1862 Homestead Act provides cheap land for settlement of the West
- May 20, 1864 "Battle at Ware Bottom Church VA, 1,400 killed or injured"
- May 20, 1864 "Spotsylvania-campaign ends after 10,920 killed/injured person"
- May 20, 1867 British parliament rejects John Stuart Mills law on women suffrage
- May 20, 1867 Royal Albert Hall foundation laid by Queen Victoria
- May 20, 1870 Second Chamber abolishes capital punishment
- May 20, 1873 Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis receive a U.S. patent for blue jeans with copper rivets.
- May 20, 1874 "Levi Strauss markets blue jeans with copper rivets, price $13.50 doz"
- May 20, 1875 International Bureau of Weights & Measures established by treaty
- May 20, 1879 The Department of Railways and Canals comes into effect with a Minister having jurisdiction over all railways pertaining to the Dominion Government. Previously this function had been covered by the Department of Public Works.
- May 20, 1882 St Gotthard-railroad tunnel between Switzerland & Italy opens
- May 20, 1882 "The Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy is formed."
- May 20, 1883 "The eruption of Krakatoa begins, leading ultimately to the volcano's destruction three months later."
- May 20, 1891 History of cinema: First public display of Thomas Alva Edison's prototype kinetoscope (shown at Edison's Laboratory for a convention of the National Federation of Women's Clubs).
- May 20, 1892 George Sampson patents clothes dryer
- May 20, 1892 "Triple Alliance between Germany, Italy & Austria-Hungary forms"
- May 20, 1895 "The first commercial movie performance (153 Broadway, NYC)"
- May 20, 1896 The six ton chandelier of the Palais Garnier falls on the crowd resulting in the death of one and the injury of many others.
- May 20, 1900 2nd modern Olympic games opens in Paris France (lasted 5 months)
- May 20, 1902 Cuba gains independence from Spain and establishes a republic
- May 20, 1902 "US military occupation of Cuba (since Jan 1, 1899) ends"
- May 20, 1910 Funeral for Britain's King Edward VII
- May 20, 1910 Krazy Kat and Ignatz first appear in 'The Dingbat Family' comic strip
- May 20, 1911 Edwin Boaler Alletson hits 189 in 90 minutes Notts vs Sussex
- May 20, 1915 Bataafsche Petroleum begins oil extraction of Maracaibo
- May 20, 1916 Codell KS hit by tornado (also on same date in 1917 & 1918)
- May 20, 1916 Saturday Evening Post cover features Norman Rockwell painting
- May 20, 1916 "The Saturday Evening Post publishes its first cover with a Norman Rockwell painting (""Boy with Baby Carriage"")."
- May 20, 1916 "The small town of Codell, Kansas is struck by a tornado. Incredibly, the same town was also hit in 1917 and 1918 on the exact same date"
- May 20, 1917 Turkish Government authorizes Jews to return to Tel Aviv & Jaffa
- May 20, 1918 The first electrically propelled warship (the New Mexico)
- May 20, 1919 "Volcano Keluit on Java, erupts killing 550"
- May 20, 1920 Montreal Quebec station XWA broadcasts the first regularly scheduled radio programming in North America.
- May 20, 1920 "The Weimarer Nationalversammlung, the national assembly of Germany's Weimar Republic, is permanently dissolved."
- May 20, 1922 """Egypt"" sinks off Ushant after colliding with ""Seine"" killing 90"
- May 20, 1923 "Stanley Baldwin, becomes PM of UK"
- May 20, 1926 "Congress passes Air Commerce Act, licensing of pilots & planes"
- May 20, 1926 Railway Labor Act became law
- May 20, 1926 Thomas Edison says Americans prefer silent movies over talkies
- May 20, 1927 "At 07:52 Charles Lindbergh takes off from Roosevelt Field in Long Island, New York, on the world's first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean, touching down at Le Bourget Field in Paris at 22:22 the next day."
- May 20, 1927 "At 7:40 AM, Lindbergh takes off from New York to cross Atlantic for Paris"
- May 20, 1927 "By the Treaty of Jedda, the United Kingdom recognizes the sovereignty of King Ibn Saud in the Kingdoms of Hejaz and Nejd, which later merged to become the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
- May 20, 1927 "Charles Lindbergh takes off from Roosevelt Field in Long Island, NY to begin his historic solo flight to Paris"
- May 20, 1927 Saudi Arabia becomes independent of Great Britain (Treaty of Jedda)
- May 20, 1930 "The first airplane catapulted from a dirigible, Charles Nicholson, pilot"
- May 20, 1932 Amelia Earhart takes off from Newfoundland to begin her historic solo flight to Ireland
- May 20, 1932 Engelbert Dollfuss becomes chancellor of Austria
- May 20, 1939 """3 Little Fishies"" by Kay Kyser hits #1"
- May 20, 1939 Pan Am begins regular transatlantic airmail and passenger service across the North Atlantic
- May 20, 1940 Concentration camp is established at Auschwitz.
- May 20, 1940 General Guderians tanks reach The Channel
- May 20, 1940 Holocaust: The first prisoners arrive at a new concentration camp at Auschwitz.
- May 20, 1940 Igor Sikorsky unveils his helicopter invention
- May 20, 1941 Former Dutch PM Colijn says Netherlands Indies not ready for independence
- May 20, 1941 German soldiers invade Crete
- May 20, 1941 Sgt. Alfred Clive HULME 23rd NZ Battalionwon the Victoria Cross for valor at various places in Greece
- May 20, 1942 US Navy first permitted black recruits to serve
- May 20, 1943 "French, British & US victory parade in Tunis Tunisia"
- May 20, 1944 US Communist Party dissolves
- May 20, 1945 Keith Miller scores 105 in the first Victory Test Cricket at Lord's
- May 20, 1948 "The first use of Israeli Air Force & first war victory, defeating Syrian army"
- May 20, 1949 "In the United States of America, the Armed Forces Security Agency (predecessor to the National Security Agency) is established."
- May 20, 1949 Kuomintang regime declare Taiwan is under the martial law.
- May 20, 1954 Chiang Kai-shek becomes president of Nationalist China
- May 20, 1954 Chiang Kai-shek is selected for another term as President of the Republic of China by the National Assembly
- May 20, 1955 Argentine parliament accepts separation of church & state
- May 20, 1956 Atomic fusion (thermonuclear) bomb dropped from plane-Bikini Atoll
- May 20, 1956 Jordan government of Samir resigns
- May 20, 1959 "Ford wins battle with Chrysler to call its new car ""Falcon"""
- May 20, 1959 Japanese-Americans regain their citizenship
- May 20, 1959 Shah of Persia visits Netherlands
- May 20, 1961 Mauritania adopts constitution
- May 20, 1961 "White mob attacks ""Freedom Riders"" in Montgomery AL"
- May 20, 1963 Sukarno appointed President of Indonesia
- May 20, 1964 Buster Mathis defeats Joe Frazier to qualify for US Olympic team
- May 20, 1965 Number one hit on UK music charts - Jackie Trent - Where Are You Now (My Love)
- May 20, 1965 "Pakistani Boeing 720-B crashes at Cairo Egypt, killing 121"
- May 20, 1965 "PIA Flight 705, a Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 720 - 040 B crashes while descending to land at Cairo International Airport, killing 119 of the 125 passengers and crew."
- May 20, 1965 Yorkshire all out for 23 vs Hampshire at Middlesbrough
- May 20, 1967 "10,000 demonstrate against war in Vietnam"
- May 20, 1967 "BBC bans Beatle's ""A Day in the Life"" (drug references)"
- May 20, 1969 The Battle of Hamburger Hill in Vietnam ends.
- May 20, 1969 US troop capture Hill 937/Hamburger Hill Vietnam
- May 20, 1970 "100,000 march in New York supporting US policies in Vietnam"
- May 20, 1970 "The Beatles' ""Let it Be"" movie premieres in UK"
- May 20, 1971 Pentagon reports blacks constitute 11% of US soldiers in SE Asia
- May 20, 1972 """Different Times"" closes at ANTA Theater NYC after 24 performances"
- May 20, 1972 """Hard Job Being God"" closes at Edison Theater NYC after 6 performances"
- May 20, 1972 Cameroon becomes a republic as their constitution is ratified
- May 20, 1972 Number one hit on UK music charts - T Rex - Metal Guru
- May 20, 1972 Republic of Cameroon declared as constitution is ratified
- May 20, 1973 "25th Emmy Awards: Waltons, All in the Family & Mary Tyler Moore win"
- May 20, 1974 Soyuz 14 returns to Earth
- May 20, 1978 "3 PFLP members kill a cop near El Al airlines in Orly Airport, Paris France"
- May 20, 1978 US launches Pioneer Venus 1; produces first global radar map of Venus
- May 20, 1980 710 families in Love Canal area (Niagara Falls NY) are evacuated
- May 20, 1980 Drummer Peter Criss quits Kiss
- May 20, 1980 "Fire in nursing home in Kingston Jamaica, kills 157"
- May 20, 1980 "In a Referendum in Quebec, the population rejects by a 60% vote the proposal from its government to move towards independence from Canada."
- May 20, 1980 "In a referendum, 59.5% of Qu‚bec voters reject separatism"
- May 20, 1980 Peter Criss quits as drummer for the rock band Kiss
- May 20, 1983 First publications of the discovery of the virus that causes AIDS in the journal Science by Luc Montagnier and Robert Gallo individually.
- May 20, 1983 Larry Holmes beats Tim Witherspoon in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
- May 20, 1983 Michael Dokes & Mike Weaver fight to a draw in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
- May 20, 1984 "The first line of the Miami Metrorail in Miami, Florida opens."
- May 20, 1985 Dow Jones industrial average closes above 1300 for first time
- May 20, 1985 "FBI arrests John A Walker Jr, convicted of spying for USSR"
- May 20, 1985 Israel exchanges 1150 Lebanese/Palestinian prisoners for 3 Israeli soldiers
- May 20, 1985 Larry Holmes beats Carl Williams in 15 for heavyweight boxing title
- May 20, 1985 "Radio Mart, part of the Voice of America service, begins broadcasting to Cuba."
- May 20, 1985 US began broadcasts to Cuba on Radio Marti
- May 20, 1986 "Christy Fichtner, 23, (Texas), crowned 35th Miss USA"
- May 20, 1986 Flintstones 25th Anniversary Celebration airs on CBS-tv
- May 20, 1987 G”tenborg wins 16th UEFA Cup at Dundee
- May 20, 1987 "Wrestler Jerry Lawler sues WWF & Harley Race for trademark name ""king"""
- May 20, 1989 China declares martial law in Beijing
- May 20, 1989 "Number one hit on UK music charts - Gerry Marsden, Paul McCartney, Holly Johnson & Christians - Ferry 'Cross The Mersey"
- May 20, 1989 "The Chinese authorities declare martial law in the face of pro-democracy demonstrations, setting the scene for the Tiananmen Square massacre."
- May 20, 1989 Toonces The Cat takes the wheel on Saturday Night Live
- May 20, 1989 "Walter McConnel, 57, is oldest to reach 27,000' Mount Everest top"
- May 20, 1990 The first post-Communist presidential and parliamentary elections are held in Romania.
- May 20, 1990 The Hubble Space Telescope sends its first photographs back to Earth
- May 20, 1991 "Chicago Bull Michael Jordan, named NBA's MVP"
- May 20, 1991 Soviet parliament approves law allowing citizens to travel abroad
- May 20, 1992 FC Barcelona wins 373 Europe Cup 1 at London
- May 20, 1992 India launches its first satellite independently
- May 20, 1992 Rap singer raps 597 syllables in 55.12 seconds
- May 20, 1993 "10 meter meteor comes within 150,000 km of Earth (1993KA)"
- May 20, 1993 "274th & final ""Cheers"" on NBC"
- May 20, 1993 Ukraine Premier Leonid Koetsjma resigns
- May 20, 1994 Bobcat Goldthwait charged with misdemeanors for fire on Tonight Show
- May 20, 1995 CBS News fires co-anchor Connie Chung
- May 20, 1995 "In a second Referendum in Quebec, the population rejects by a slight majority the proposal from its government to move towards independence from Canada."
- May 20, 1996 "Gay rights: The Supreme Court of the United States rules in Romer v. Evans against a law that would have prevented any city, town or county in the state of Colorado from taking any legislative, executive, or judicial action to protect the rights of gays and lesbians."
- May 20, 1999 TJ Solomon injures 6 people in Heritage High School shooting.
- May 20, 2002 "The independence of East Timor is recognized by Portugal, formally ending 23 years of Indonesian rule and 3 years of provisional UN administration (Portugal itself was the former colonizer of East Timor until 1976)."
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