Editing May 15 (section)

== Events ==

=== Pre-1600 ===

* [[221]] &ndash; [[Liu Bei]], Chinese warlord, proclaims himself emperor of [[Shu Han]], the successor of the [[Han dynasty]].
* [[392]] &ndash; Emperor [[Valentinian II]] is assassinated while advancing into [[Gaul]] against the [[Franks|Frankish]] usurper [[Arbogast (magister militum)|Arbogast]]. He is found hanging in his residence at [[Vienne, Isère|Vienne]].
* [[589]] &ndash; King [[Authari]] marries [[Theodelinda]], daughter of the [[Bavaria]]n duke [[Garibald I of Bavaria|Garibald I]]. A [[Catholicism|Catholic]], she has great influence among the [[Lombards|Lombard]] nobility.
* [[756]] &ndash; [[Abd al-Rahman I]], the founder of the Arab dynasty that ruled the greater part of [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberia]] for nearly three centuries, becomes [[emir]] of [[Province of Córdoba (Spain)|Cordova]], Spain.<ref>Ahmed ibn Muhammad al-Maqqari. ''The History of the Mohammedan Dynasties in Spain'', 96. Al-Maqqari quotes from historian [[Ibn Hayyan]]'s ''Muktabis'' when detailing Abd al-Rahman's flight from Syria.</ref>
* [[1194]] &ndash; [[Michael the Syrian]] reconsecrates the [[Mor Bar Sauma Monastery]], which he reconstructed after its destruction by a fire. The monastery stays a center of the [[Syriac Orthodox Church]] until the end of the thirteenth century.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Micheau |first1=Francoise |editor1-last=Angold |editor1-first=Michael |title=The Cambridge History of Christianity: Volume 5, Eastern Christianity |date=17 August 2006 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-81113-2 |page=399 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1xUV-nMxNGsC |access-date=6 February 2025 |language=en |chapter=Copts, Melkites, Nestorians and Jacobites}}</ref>
* [[1252]] &ndash; [[Pope Innocent IV]] issues the [[papal bull]] ''[[ad extirpanda]]'', which authorizes, but also limits, the torture of [[Heresy in Christianity|heretics]] in the [[Medieval Inquisition]].
* [[1525]] &ndash; [[Insurgency|Insurgent]] peasants led by [[Anabaptist]] pastor [[Thomas Müntzer]] were defeated at the [[Battle of Frankenhausen]], ending the [[German Peasants' War]] in the [[Holy Roman Empire]].
* [[1536]] &ndash; [[Anne Boleyn]], Queen of England, stands trial in London on charges of treason, adultery and incest; she is condemned to death by a specially-selected [[jury]].

=== 1601–1900 ===

* [[1602]] &ndash; [[Cape Cod]] is sighted by English navigator [[Bartholomew Gosnold]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Brereton|first=John|title=A Brief and true Relation of the Discoverie of the North Part of Virginia …|location=London|publisher=Georg. Bishop|year=1602|pages=3–4}} reprinted in {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/forerunnersandc01ygoog|editor-last=Levermore|editor-first=Charles Herbert|title=Forerunners and Competitors of the Pilgrims and Puritans: or, Narratives of Voyages Made by Persons Other than the Pilgrims and Puritans of the Bay Colony to the Shores of New England during the First Quarter of the Seventeenth Century, 1601–1625, with Especial Reference to the Labors of Captain John Smith in Behalf of the Settlement of New England|location=Brooklyn, New York|publisher=The Society|year=1912|lccn=a17000511}}</ref>
* [[1618]] &ndash; [[Johannes Kepler]] confirms his previously rejected discovery of the [[Kepler's laws of planetary motion|third law of planetary motion]] (he first discovered it on [[March 8]] but soon rejected the idea after some initial calculations were made).
* [[1648]] &ndash; The [[Peace of Münster]] is ratified, by which Spain acknowledges Dutch sovereignty.
* [[1725]] &ndash; [[Johann Sebastian Bach|Bach]] leads the first performance of his cantata [[Ich bin ein guter Hirt, BWV 85|''Ich bin ein guter Hirt'', BWV 85]], about Jesus as the [[Good Shepherd]].<ref>{{cite web
  | url = http://www.bach-digital.de/receive/BachDigitalWork_work_00000109?lang=en
  | title = Ich bin ein guter Hirt BWV 85; BC A 66
  | work = [[Bach Digital]]
  | date = 2025
  | access-date = 2 May 2025}}</ref>
* [[1791]] &ndash; [[French Revolution]]: [[Maximilien Robespierre]] proposes the [[Self-denying Ordinance (French Revolution)|Self-denying Ordinance]].
* [[1817]] &ndash; Opening of the first private mental health hospital in the United States, the Asylum for the Relief of Persons Deprived of the Use of Their Reason (now [[Friends Hospital]], [[Philadelphia]], Pennsylvania).
* [[1836]] &ndash; [[Francis Baily]] observes "[[Baily's beads]]" during an [[annular eclipse]].
* [[1849]] &ndash; The [[Sicilian revolution of 1848]] is finally extinguished.
*   1850   &ndash; The [[Arana–Southern Treaty]] is ratified, ending "the existing differences" between [[Great Britain]] and [[Argentina]].
* [[1851]] &ndash; The first [[Australian gold rushes|Australian gold rush]] is proclaimed, although the discovery had been made three months earlier.
* [[1864]] &ndash; American Civil War: [[Battle of New Market]], [[Virginia]]: Students from the [[Virginia Military Institute]] fight alongside the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] army to force [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] General [[Franz Sigel]] out of the [[Shenandoah Valley]].
* [[1891]] &ndash; [[Pope Leo XIII]] defends [[Labor rights|workers' rights]] and property rights in the encyclical ''[[Rerum novarum]]'', the beginning of modern [[Catholic social teaching]].

=== 1901–present ===

* [[1905]] &ndash; The city of [[Las Vegas]] is founded in [[Nevada]], United States.<ref>{{cite book| url=http://dwgateway.library.unr.edu/keck/histtopoNV/Origin_of_Place_Names_Files/1941NevadaOriginofNames-pt1.pdf| title=Origin of Place Names: Nevada| publisher=[[Works Progress Administration]] | author=Federal Writers' Project| year=1941| page=16}}</ref>
* [[1911]] &ndash; In ''[[Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States]]'', the [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]] declares [[Standard Oil]] to be an "unreasonable" [[monopoly]] under the [[Sherman Antitrust Act]] and orders the company to be broken up.
*   1911   &ndash; More than 300 Chinese immigrants are killed in the [[Torreón massacre]] when the forces of the [[Mexican Revolution]] led by [[Emilio Madero]] take the city of [[Torreón]] from the [[Federales]].
* [[1916]] &ndash; A seventeen-year-old [[farmworker]], Jesse Washington, is infamously [[Lynching of Jesse Washington|lynched]] in [[Waco, Texas]], USA, after being [[convicted]] of [[rape]] and [[murder]].<ref>{{cite book |last=SoRelle |first=James M. |editor1=Bruce A. Glasrud |editor2=James Smallwood |title=The African American Experience in Texas: An Anthology |year=2007 |publisher=[[Texas Tech University Press]] |isbn=978-0-89672-609-3 |chapter=The "Waco Horror": The Lynching of Jesse Washington|pages=183–184}}</ref>
* [[1918]] &ndash; The [[Finnish Civil War]] ends when the [[White Guard (Finland)|Whites]] took over [[Fort Ino]], a Russian [[coastal artillery]] base on the [[Karelian Isthmus]], from Russian troops.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Keränen|first1=Jorma|last2=Tiainen|first2=Jorma|last3=Ahola|first3=Matti|last4=Ahola|first4=Veikko|last5=Frey|first5=Stina|last6=Lempinen| first6=Jorma|last7=Ojanen|first7=Eero|last8=Paakkonen| first8=Jari|last9=Talja|first9=Virpi|last10=Väänänen|first10=Juha|year=1992|title=Suomen itsenäistymisen kronikka|pages=123–137|place=Jyväskylä|publisher=Gummerus|isbn=951-20-3800-5|language=fi}}</ref>
* [[1919]] &ndash; The [[Winnipeg general strike]] begins. By 11:00, almost the whole working population of [[Winnipeg]] had walked off the job.
*   1919   &ndash; [[Occupation of Smyrna|Greek occupation of Smyrna]]. During the occupation, the Greek army kills or wounds 350 [[Turkish people|Turks]]; those responsible are punished by Greek commander Aristides Stergiades.
* [[1929]] &ndash; A [[Cleveland Clinic fire of 1929|fire]] at the [[Cleveland Clinic]] in [[Cleveland, Ohio]] kills 123.
* [[1932]] &ndash; In an attempted [[coup d'état]], the [[Prime Minister of Japan]] [[Inukai Tsuyoshi]] is [[May 15 Incident|assassinated]].
* [[1933]] &ndash; All military aviation organizations within or under the control of the [[Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany)|RLM]] of Germany were officially merged in a covert manner to form its [[Wehrmacht]] military's air arm, the [[Luftwaffe#Origins|Luftwaffe]].
* [[1934]] &ndash; A [[1934 Latvian coup d'état|self coup]] by [[Prime Minister of Latvia|prime minister]] [[Kārlis Ulmanis]] succeeded in [[Latvia]], suspending its constitution and dissolving its [[Saeima]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Emergence of an Authoritarian Regime in Latvia, 1932–1934 – Janis Rogainis |url=https://www.lituanus.org/1971/71_3_03.htm |access-date=2023-04-14 |website=www.lituanus.org}}</ref>
* [[1940]] &ndash; {{USS|Sailfish|SS-192|6}} is recommissioned. It was originally the USS ''Squalus''.
*   1940   &ndash; [[World War II]]: The [[Battle of the Netherlands]]: After fierce fighting, the poorly trained and equipped [[Netherlands|Dutch]] troops surrender to [[Nazi Germany|Germany]], marking the beginning of five years of occupation.
*   1940   &ndash; [[Richard and Maurice McDonald]] open the first [[McDonald's]] restaurant.
* [[1941]] &ndash; First flight of the [[Gloster E.28/39]] the first British and Allied [[jet aircraft]].
* [[1942]] &ndash; World War II: In the United States, a bill creating the [[Women's Army Corps|Women's Army Auxiliary Corps]] (WAAC) is signed into law.
* [[1943]] &ndash; [[Joseph Stalin]] dissolves the [[Comintern]] (or ''Third International'').
* [[1945]] &ndash; World War II: The [[Battle of Poljana]], the final skirmish in Europe is fought near [[Prevalje]], Slovenia.
* [[1948]] &ndash; Following the expiration of [[Mandatory Palestine|The British Mandate for Palestine]], the [[Kingdom of Egypt]], [[Jordan|Transjordan]], [[Lebanon]], [[Syria]], [[Iraq]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] invade [[Israel]] thus starting the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War]].
* [[1957]] &ndash; At [[Malden Island]] in the Pacific Ocean, Britain tests its first [[hydrogen bomb]] in [[Operation Grapple#Grapple|Operation Grapple]].
* [[1963]] &ndash; [[Project Mercury]]: The launch of the final Mercury mission, [[Mercury-Atlas 9]] with astronaut [[Gordon Cooper]] on board. He becomes the first American to spend more than a day in [[outer space|space]], and the last American to go into space alone.
* [[1970]] &ndash; President [[Richard Nixon]] appoints [[Anna Mae Hays]] and [[Elizabeth P. Hoisington]] the first female United States Army [[General (United States)|general]]s.
* [[1972]] &ndash; The [[Ryukyu Islands]], under [[United States Military Government of the Ryukyu Islands|U.S. military governance]] since its [[Battle of Okinawa|conquest]] in 1945, reverts to Japanese control.
* [[1974]] &ndash; [[Ma'alot massacre]]: Members of the [[Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine]] attack and take hostages at an [[Israel]]i school; a total of 31 people are killed, including 22 schoolchildren.
* [[1976]] &ndash; [[Aeroflot Flight 1802]] crashes near [[Viktorivka, Chernihiv Raion, Chernihiv Oblast]], killing 52.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Ranter |first=Harro |title=ASN Aircraft accident Antonov 24RV CCCP-46534 Chernigov |url=https://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19760515-0 |access-date=2017-03-20 |website=Aviation Safety Network}}</ref>
* [[1988]] &ndash; [[Soviet–Afghan War]]: After more than eight years of fighting, the [[Soviet Army]] [[Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan|begins to withdraw]] 115,000 troops from [[Afghanistan]].
* [[1991]] &ndash; [[Édith Cresson]] becomes France's first female [[Prime Minister of France|Prime Minister]].
* [[1997]] &ndash; The United States government acknowledges the existence of the [[Laotian Civil War|"Secret War" in Laos]] and dedicates the [[Laos Memorial]] in honor of [[Hmong people|Hmong]] and other "Secret War" veterans.
*   1997   &ndash; The [[Space Shuttle Atlantis|Space Shuttle ''Atlantis'']] launches on [[STS-84]] to dock with the Russian space station ''[[Mir]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts-84.html|title=STS-84|last=Warnock|first=Lynda|website=www.nasa.gov|publisher=NASA|access-date=2020-04-03}}</ref>
* [[2001]] &ndash; A [[CSX Transportation|CSX]] [[EMD SD40-2]] [[CSX 8888 incident|rolls out of a train yard]] in [[Walbridge, Ohio|Walbridge]], Ohio, with 47 freight cars, including some [[tank car]]s with flammable chemical, after its engineer fails to reboard it after setting a yard switch. It travels south driverless for 66 miles (106&nbsp;km) until it was brought to a halt near [[Kenton, Ohio|Kenton]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=CSX 8888-"Crazy Eights"|url=http://www.wvncrails.org/csx-8888-crazy-eights.html|access-date=2021-06-26|website=WVNC Rails|language=en}}</ref> The incident became the inspiration for the 2010 film ''[[Unstoppable (2010 film)|Unstoppable]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|first=Amy|last=Worden|title=Pennsylvania man lived the drama that inspired 'Unstoppable'|url=https://www.inquirer.com/philly/entertainment/20101112_Pennsylvania_man_lived_the_drama_that_inspired__Unstoppable_.html|access-date=2021-06-26|website=www.inquirer.com|date=12 November 2010 |language=en}}</ref>
* [[2004]] &ndash; [[Arsenal F.C.]] go an entire league campaign unbeaten in the English Premier League, joining [[Preston North End F.C.]] with the right to claim the title "[[The Invincibles (football)|The Invincibles]]".
* [[2008]] &ndash; [[Same-sex marriage in California|California]] becomes the second [[U.S. state]] after [[Same-sex marriage in Massachusetts|Massachusetts]] in [[2004]] to legalize [[same-sex marriage]] after the state's own Supreme Court [[In re Marriage Cases|rules a previous ban unconstitutional]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Liptak|first=Adam|date=2008-05-16|title=California Court Affirms Right to Gay Marriage|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/16/us/15cnd-marriage.html|access-date=2021-05-15|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* [[2010]] &ndash; [[Jessica Watson]] becomes the youngest person to sail, non-stop and unassisted around the world solo.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2010-05-15|title=Jessica Watson, the girl who sailed round the world, comes home to cheers|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/may/15/jessica-watson-sailed-world-home|access-date=2021-05-15|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref>
* [[2013]] &ndash; An [[May 2013 Iraq attacks|upsurge in violence]] in [[Iraq]] leaves more than 389 people dead over three days.
* [[2023]] &ndash; The [[United Nations|UN]] commemorates the Palestinian [[Nakba Day]] for the first time.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Syed |first=Armani |date=2023-05-15 |title=Why the U.N. Is Commemorating the Nakba This Year |url=https://time.com/6279800/united-nations-nakba-palestinians/ |access-date=2024-08-06 |magazine=TIME |language=en}}</ref>
* [[2024]] &ndash; [[Prime Minister of Slovakia]] [[Robert Fico]] is [[Attempted assassination of Robert Fico|shot]] and critically injured while meeting with supporters at an event in [[Handlová]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Robert Fico: Slovakia’s prime minister shot multiple times in ‘politically motivated’ attack |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/15/europe/slovakia-prime-minister-fico-shooting-intl |website=CNN |access-date=15 May 2025}}</ref>