12 History Lessons + 6 Births & 6 Deaths for May 9, 2025
Today’s History:
- 1671 – Thomas Blood attempts to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London.
- 1865 – U.S. President Andrew Johnson declares the armed resistance in the South is virtually over, marking a symbolic end of the Civil War.
- 1926 – Richard Byrd and Floyd Bennett claim to be the first to fly over the North Pole.
- 1945 – World War II: The Soviet Union marks “Victory Day” as Nazi Germany officially surrenders in Berlin.
- 1950 – French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman presents his proposal for the creation of a European Coal and Steel Community, starting point for the European Union.
- 1960 – The U.S. FDA approves the first commercially produced birth control pill.
- 1974 – The U.S. House Judiciary Committee begins formal impeachment hearings against President Richard Nixon.
- 1994 – Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa’s first Black president.
- 2001 – In Ghana, 126 football fans die in a stadium stampede, the worst sports-related disaster in African history.
- 2012 – The Washington Post publishes a story about Mitt Romney’s high school bullying, affecting his presidential campaign narrative.
- 2017 – South Korea elects Moon Jae-in president following the impeachment of Park Geun-hye.
- 2023 – King Charles III delivers his first King’s Speech to the British Parliament following his coronation.
Today’s Birthdays:
- 1949 – Billy Joel, singer-songwriter and pianist (“Piano Man”) (76)
- 1962 – Dave Gahan, lead singer of Depeche Mode (63)
- 1964 – Doug Glanville, former MLB outfielder and ESPN analyst (61)
- 1969 – Rosario Dawson, actress and activist (56)
- 1979 – Pierre Thomas, ABC News correspondent (46)
- 1989 – Billy Guerin, NHL executive and former player (36)
Today’s Deaths:
- 1805 – Friedrich Schiller, German poet and playwright (“Ode to Joy”) (45)
- 1880 – Gustave Flaubert, French novelist (“Madame Bovary”) (58)
- 1978 – Aldo Moro, former Prime Minister of Italy, assassinated by the Red Brigades (61)
- 1994 – John Smith, British Labour Party leader (55)
- 2010 – Lena Horne, legendary American singer and civil rights activist (92)
- 2020 – Little Richard, pioneer of rock and roll (87)
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