12 History Lessons + 6 Births & 6 Deaths for May 11, 2025
Today’s History:
- 868 – The Diamond Sutra, the world’s oldest surviving printed book, is published in China.
- 1812 – British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated in the House of Commons.
- 1858 – Minnesota is admitted as the 32nd U.S. state.
- 1927 – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is founded in Los Angeles.
- 1949 – Israel is admitted to the United Nations as its 59th member.
- 1960 – Israeli Mossad agents capture Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann in Argentina.
- 1973 – Charges against Daniel Ellsberg for releasing the Pentagon Papers are dismissed.
- 1981 – Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Cats opens in London’s West End.
- 1995 – More than 170 countries agree to extend the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty indefinitely.
- 1997 – IBM’s Deep Blue defeats world chess champion Garry Kasparov in a six-game match.
- 2000 – India’s population officially crosses the 1 billion mark.
- 2010 – David Cameron becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, forming a coalition with the Liberal Democrats.
Today’s Birthdays:
- 1933 – Louis Farrakhan, American religious leader, Nation of Islam (92)
- 1956 – Theresa May, former UK Prime Minister (69)
- 1959 – Martha Quinn, original MTV VJ (66)
- 1983 – Holly Valance, Australian singer and actress (42)
- 1984 – Andrés Iniesta, Spanish soccer star and World Cup winner (41)
- 1989 – Cam Newton, NFL quarterback and 2015 MVP (36)
Today’s Deaths:
- 1720 – Baron de Lahontan, French soldier and early North American explorer (53)
- 1981 – Bob Marley, Jamaican reggae legend (Redemption Song, One Love) (36)
- 2001 – Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (49)
- 2006 – Floyd Patterson, former world heavyweight boxing champion (71)
- 2012 – Carroll Shelby, automotive designer and racing driver (89)
- 2022 – Shireen Abu Akleh, Palestinian-American journalist for Al Jazeera (51)
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