May 13

Events

1373 – Julian of Norwich has visions which are later transcribed in her Revelations of Divine Love.

1515 – Mary Tudor, Queen of France and Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk are officially married at Greenwich.

1568 – Battle of Langside: The forces of Mary, Queen of Scots, are defeated by a confederacy of Scottish Protestants under James Stewart, Earl of Moray, her half-brother.

1619 – Dutch statesman Johan van Oldenbarnevelt is executed in The Hague after being convicted of treason.

1779 – War of the Bavarian Succession: Russian and French mediators at the Congress of Teschen negotiate an end to the war. In the agreement Austria receives the part of its territory that was taken from it (the Innviertel).

1780 – The Cumberland Compact is signed by leaders of the settlers in early Tennessee.

1787 – Captain Arthur Phillip leaves Portsmouth, England, with eleven ships full of convicts (the "First Fleet") to establish a penal colony in Australia.

1804 – Forces sent by Yusuf Karamanli of Tripoli to retake Derna from the Americans attack the city.

1830 – Ecuador gains its independence from Gran Colombia.

1846 – Mexican–American War: The United States declares war on Mexico.

1861 – American Civil War: Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom issues a "proclamation of neutrality" which recognizes the breakaway states as having belligerent rights.

1861 – The Great Comet of 1861 is discovered by John Tebbutt of Windsor, New South Wales, Australia.

1861 – Pakistan's (then a part of British India) first railway line opens, from Karachi to Kotri.

1862 – The USS Planter, a steamer and gunship, steals through Confederate lines and is passed to the Union, by a southern slave, Robert Smalls, who later was officially appointed as captain, becoming the first black man to command a United States ship.

1864 – American Civil War: Battle of Resaca: The battle begins with Union General Sherman fighting toward Atlanta.

1865 – American Civil War: Battle of Palmito Ranch: In far south Texas, the last land battle of the Civil War ends with a Confederate victory.

1880 – In Menlo Park, New Jersey, Thomas Edison performs the first test of his electric railway.

1888 – With the passage of the Lei Áurea ("Golden Law"), Empire of Brazil abolishes slavery.

1909 – The first Giro d'Italia starts from Milan. Italian cyclist Luigi Ganna will be the winner.

1912 – The Royal Flying Corps, the forerunner of the Royal Air Force, is established in the United Kingdom.

1917 – Three children report the first apparition of Our Lady of Fátima in Fátima, Portugal.

1939 – The first commercial FM radio station in the United States is launched in Bloomfield, Connecticut. The station later becomes WDRC-FM.

1940 – World War II: Germany's conquest of France begins as the German army crosses the Meuse. Winston Churchill makes his "blood, toil, tears, and sweat" speech to the House of Commons.

1940 – Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands flees her country to Great Britain after the German invasion. Princess Juliana takes her children to Canada for their safety.

1941 – World War II: Yugoslav royal colonel Dragoljub Mihailović starts fighting with German occupation troops, beginning the Serbian resistance.

1943 – World War II: German Afrika Korps and Italian troops in North Africa surrender to Allied forces.

1948 – Arab–Israeli War: The Kfar Etzion massacre is committed by Arab irregulars, the day before the declaration of independence of the state of Israel on May 14.

1950 – The first round of the Formula One World Championship is held at Silverstone.

1951 – The 400th anniversary of the founding of the National University of San Marcos is commemorated by the opening of the first large-capacity stadium in Peru.

1952 – The Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India, holds its first sitting.

1954 – The anti-National Service Riots, by Chinese middle school students in Singapore, take place.

1954 – The original Broadway production of The Pajama Game opens and runs for another 1,063 performances. Later received three Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical, and Best Choreography.

1958 – During a visit to Caracas, Venezuela, Vice President Richard Nixon's car is attacked by anti-American demonstrators.

1958 – May 1958 crisis: A group of French military officers lead a coup in Algiers demanding that a government of national unity be formed with Charles de Gaulle at its head in order to defend French control of Algeria.

1958 – Ben Carlin becomes the first (and only) person to circumnavigate the world by amphibious vehicle, having travelled over 17,000 kilometres (11,000 mi) by sea and 62,000 kilometres (39,000 mi) by land during a ten-year journey.

1960 – Hundreds of University of California, Berkeley students congregate for the first day of protest against a visit by the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

1967 – Dr. Zakir Husain becomes the third President of India. He is the first Muslim President of the Indian Union. He holds this position until August 24, 1969.

1972 – Faulty electrical wiring ignites a fire underneath the Playtown Cabaret in Osaka, Japan. Blocked exits and non-functional elevators lead to 118 fatalities, with many victims leaping to their deaths.

1972 – The Troubles: A car bombing outside a crowded pub in Belfast sparks a two-day gun battle involving the Provisional IRA, Ulster Volunteer Force and British Army. Seven people are killed and over 66 injured.

1980 – An F3 tornado hits Kalamazoo County, Michigan. President Jimmy Carter declares it a federal disaster area.

1981 – Mehmet Ali Ağca attempts to assassinate Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square in Rome. The Pope is rushed to the Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic to undergo emergency surgery and survives.

1985 – Police release a bomb on MOVE headquarters in Philadelphia to end a stand-off, killing 11 MOVE members and destroying the homes of 250 city residents.

1989 – Large groups of students occupy Tiananmen Square and begin a hunger strike.

1990 – The Dinamo–Red Star riot took place at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb, Croatia between the Bad Blue Boys (fans of Dinamo Zagreb) and the Delije (fans of Red Star Belgrade).

1992 – Li Hongzhi gives the first public lecture on Falun Gong in Changchun, People's Republic of China.

1995 – Alison Hargreaves, a 33-year-old British mother, becomes the first woman to conquer Everest without oxygen or the help of sherpas.

1996 – Severe thunderstorms and a tornado in Bangladesh kill 600 people.

1998 – Race riots break out in Jakarta, Indonesia, where shops owned by Indonesians of Chinese descent are looted and women raped.

1998 – India carries out two nuclear tests at Pokhran, following the three conducted on May 11. The United States and Japan impose economic sanctions on India.

2005 – Andijan massacre: Troops open fire on peaceful protesters in Andijan, Uzbekistan; at least 187 protesters were killed according to official estimates.

2006 – São Paulo violence: Rebellions occurs in several prisons in Brazil.

2011 – Two bombs explode in the Charsadda District of Pakistan killing 98 people and wounding 140 others.

2012 – Forty-nine dismembered bodies are discovered by Mexican authorities on Mexican Federal Highway 40.

2014 – An explosion at an underground coal mine in south-western Turkey kills 301 miners.

Births

120 – Vettius Valens, Greek astrologer (d. 175)

1024 – Hugh of Cluny, French abbot and saint (d. 1109)

1179 – Theobald III, Count of Champagne (d. 1201)

1221 – Alexander Nevsky, Russian prince and saint (d. 1263)

1254 – Marie of Brabant, Queen of France (d. 1321)

1453 – Mary Stewart, Countess of Arran, Scottish princess (d. 1488)

1588 – Ole Worm, Danish physician and historian (d. 1654)

1638 – Richard Simon, French priest and scholar (d. 1712)

1655 – Pope Innocent XIII (d. 1724)

1699 – Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal, Portuguese politician, Prime Minister of Portugal (d. 1782)

1712 – Count Johann Hartwig Ernst von Bernstorff, Danish politician and diplomat (d. 1772)

1713 – Alexis Clairaut, French mathematician, astronomer, and geophysicist (d. 1765)

1717 – Maria Theresa, Austrian wife of Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1780)

1730 – Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1782)

1735 – Horace Coignet, French violinist and composer (d. 1821)

1742 – Maria Christina, Duchess of Teschen (d. 1798)

1753 – Lazare Carnot, French general, mathematician, and politician, French Minister of the Interior (d. 1823)

1792 – Pope Pius IX (d. 1878)

1794 – Louis Léopold Robert, French painter (d. 1835)

1795 – Gérard Paul Deshayes, French geologist and chronologist (d. 1875)

1822 – Francis, Duke of Cádiz (d. 1902)

1830 – Zebulon Baird Vance, American colonel, lawyer, and politician, 37th Governor of North Carolina (d. 1894)

1832 – Juris Alunāns, Latvian philologist and author (d. 1864)

1840 – Alphonse Daudet, French author, poet, and playwright (d. 1897)

1842 – Arthur Sullivan, English composer (d. 1900)

1856 – Tom O'Rourke, American boxer and manager (d. 1938)

1857 – Ronald Ross, Indian-English physician and mathematician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1932)

1868 – Sumner Paine, American target shooter (d. 1904)

1869 – Mehmet Emin Yurdakul, Turkish writer (d. 1944)

1881 – Lima Barreto, Brazilian journalist and author (d. 1922)

1881 – Joe Forshaw, American runner (d. 1964)

1882 – Georges Braque, French painter and sculptor (d. 1963)

1883 – Georgios Papanikolaou, Greek-American pathologist, invented the pap smear (d. 1962)

1885 – Mikiel Gonzi, Maltese archbishop (d. 1984)

1888 – Inge Lehmann, Danish seismologist and geophysicist (d. 1993)

1894 – Ásgeir Ásgeirsson, Icelandic politician, 2nd President of Iceland (d. 1972)

1895 – Nandor Fodor, Hungarian-American psychologist, parapsychologist, and author (d. 1964)

1898 – Justin Tuveri, Italian-French soldier (d. 2007)

1901 – Murilo Mendes, Brazilian poet and telegrapher (d. 1975)

1904 – Louis Duffus, Australian-South African cricketer and journalist (d. 1984)

1905 – Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Indian lawyer and politician, 5th President of India (d. 1977)

1907 – Daphne du Maurier, English novelist and playwright (d. 1989)

1908 – Eugen Kapp, Estonian composer and educator (d. 1996)

1909 – Ken Darby, American composer and conductor (d. 1992)

1911 – Robert Middleton, American actor (d. 1977)

1911 – Maxine Sullivan, American singer and actress (d. 1987)

1912 – Gil Evans, Canadian-American pianist, composer, and bandleader (d. 1988)

1912 – Judah Nadich, American colonel and rabbi (d. 2007)

1913 – Robert Dorning, English actor, singer, and dancer (d. 1989)

1913 – Theo Helfrich, German racing driver (d. 1978)

1913 – William R. Tolbert, Jr., Liberian politician, 20th President of Liberia (d. 1980)

1914 – Joe Louis, American boxer, wrestler, and actor (d. 1981)

1914 – Johnnie Wright, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2011)

1916 – Sachidananda Routray, Indian Oriya-language poet (d. 2004)

1918 – Balasaraswati, Indian dancer and instructor (d. 1984)

1918 – Gwyn Howells, Australian public servant (d. 1997)

1920 – Gareth Morris, English flute player (d. 2007)

1922 – Michael Ainsworth, English cricketer (d. 1978)

1922 – Otl Aicher, German graphic designer and typographer (d. 1991)

1922 – Bea Arthur, American actress and singer (d. 2009)

1924 – Theodore Mann, American director and producer (d. 2012)

1924 – Harry Schwarz, German-South African lawyer, politician, and diplomat, 13th South African Ambassador to the United States (d. 2010)

1927 – Archie Scott Brown, Scottish race car driver (d. 1958)

1927 – Herbert Ross, American actor, director, and producer (d. 2001)

1928 – Enrique Bolaños, Nicaraguan politician, President of Nicaragua

1928 – Édouard Molinaro, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2013)

1929 – John Galvin, American general (d. 2015)

1930 – Mike Gravel, American lieutenant and politician

1930 – José Jiménez Lozano, Spanish journalist and author

1930 – Vernon Shaw, Dominican politician, 5th President of Dominica (d. 2013)

1931 – Jim Jones, American cult leader, founder of the Peoples Temple (d. 1978)

1931 – Sydney Lipworth, South African-English lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist

1933 – John Roseboro, American baseball player and coach (d. 2002)

1934 – Ehud Netzer, Israeli archaeologist, architect, and academic (d. 2010)

1934 – Leon Wagner, American baseball player and actor (d. 2004)

1935 – Dominic Cossa, American opera singer

1935 – Teddy Randazzo, American singer-songwriter and accordion player (d. 2003)

1935 – Jan Saudek, Czech photographer and painter

1935 – Kája Saudek, Czech author and illustrator (d. 2015)

1936 – Bill Rompkey, Canadian educator and politician

1937 – Trevor Baylis, English inventor, invented the wind-up radio

1937 – Roch Carrier, Canadian librarian and author

1937 – John Cope, Baron Cope of Berkeley, English accountant and politician, Treasurer of the Household

1937 – Zohra Lampert, American actress

1937 – Roger Zelazny, American author and poet (d. 1995)

1938 – Giuliano Amato, Italian academic and politician, 48th Prime Minister of Italy

1938 – Laurent Beaudoin, Canadian businessman

1938 – Francine Pascal, American author and playwright

1939 – Hildrun Claus, German long jumper

1939 – Peter Frenkel, German race walker and coach

1939 – Harvey Keitel, American actor

1940 – Bruce Chatwin, English author (d. 1989)

1940 – Kōkichi Tsuburaya, Japanese runner (d. 1968)

1941 – Jody Conradt, American basketball player and coach

1941 – Ritchie Valens, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1959)

1942 – Leighton Gage, American author (d. 2013)

1942 – Roger Young, American director, producer, and screenwriter

1943 – Anthony Clarke, Baron Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony, English lawyer and judge

1943 – Kurt Trampedach, Danish painter and sculptor

1943 – Mary Wells, American singer-songwriter (d. 1992)

1944 – Sir Crispin Agnew, 11th Baronet, Scottish explorer, lawyer, and judge

1944 – Armistead Maupin, American author, screenwriter, and actor

1945 – Lasse Berghagen, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor

1945 – Lou Marini, American saxophonist and composer

1946 – Tim Pigott-Smith, English actor and author

1946 – Jean Rondeau, French race car driver and constructor (d. 1985)

1946 – Marv Wolfman, American author

1947 – Charles Baxter, American novelist, essayist, and poet

1947 – Edgar Burcksen, Dutch-American film editor

1948 – Sheila Jeffreys, English-Australian political scientist, author, and academic

1948 – Dean Meminger, American basketball player and coach (d. 2013)

1949 – Jane Glover, English conductor and scholar

1949 – Zoë Wanamaker, American-British actress

1949 – Philip Kruse, Norwegian trumpeter and orchestra leader

1950 – Danny Kirwan, English singer-songwriter and guitarist

1950 – Manning Marable, American author and academic (d. 2011)

1950 – Bobby Valentine, American baseball player and manager

1950 – Stevie Wonder, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer

1951 – Rosie Boycott, English journalist and author

1951 – Sharon Sayles Belton, American politician, 45th Mayor of Minneapolis

1951 – Anand Modak, Indian composer and director (d. 2014)

1951 – Herman Philipse, Dutch philosopher and academic

1951 – Selina Scott, English journalist, producer, and author

1951 – Paul Thompson, English drummer

1952 – John Kasich, American politician, 69th Governor of Ohio

1952 – Mary Walsh, Canadian actress, producer, and screenwriter

1952 – Londa Schiebinger, American academic and author

1953 – Gerry Sutcliffe, English politician, Vice-Chamberlain of the Household

1953 – David Voelker, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 2013)

1953 – Harm Wiersma, Dutch draughts player and politician

1953 – Ruth A. David, American electrical engineer

1954 – Johnny Logan, Australian-Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist

1956 – Richard Madeley, English journalist and author

1956 – Kailash Vijayvargiya, National General Secretary of Bhartiya Janta Party

1957 – Alan Ball, American director, producer, and screenwriter

1957 – David Hill, English organist and conductor

1957 – Mar Roxas, Filipino economist and politician, 24th Filipino Secretary of the Interior

1957 – Koji Suzuki, Japanese author and screenwriter

1961 – Dennis Rodman, American basketball player, wrestler, and actor

1962 – Paul Burstow, English politician

1962 – Nick Hurd, English businessman and politician, Minister for Civil Society

1962 – Paul McDermott, Australian comedian, actor, and singer

1963 – Andrea Leadsom, English politician

1963 – Wally Masur, Australian tennis player, coach, and sportscaster

1964 – Stephen Colbert, American comedian, actor, and talk show host

1964 – Chris Maitland, English drummer

1965 – José Antonio Delgado, Venezuelan mountaineer (d. 2006)

1965 – Tasmin Little, English violinist and educator

1965 – János Marozsán, Hungarian footballer

1965 – Hikari Ōta, Japanese comedian and actor

1965 – José Rijo, Dominican baseball player

1965 – Lari White, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress

1966 – Alison Goldfrapp, English singer-songwriter and producer

1966 – Darius Rucker, American singer-songwriter and guitarist

1967 – Chuck Schuldiner, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2001)

1967 – Melanie Thornton, American-German singer (d. 2001)

1968 – PMD, American rapper

1968 – Miguel Ángel Blanco, Spanish politician (d. 1997)

1968 – Dmitriy Shevchenko, Russian discus thrower and coach

1969 – Buckethead, American guitarist and songwriter

1969 – Nikos Aliagas, French-Greek journalist and television host

1970 – Doug Evans, American football player

1970 – Robert Maćkowiak, Polish sprinter

1971 – Imogen Boorman, English actress and martial artist

1971 – Rob Fredrickson, American football player

1971 – Espen Lind, Norwegian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer

1971 – Tom Nalen, American football player and sportscaster

1972 – Stefaan Maene, Belgian swimmer

1972 – Darryl Sydor, Canadian ice hockey player and coach

1972 – Pieta van Dishoeck, Dutch rower

1973 – Eric Lewis, American pianist

1973 – Bridgett Riley, American boxer and stuntwoman

1975 – Jamie Allison, Canadian ice hockey player

1975 – Cristian Bezzi, Italian rugby player and coach

1976 – Mark Delaney, Welsh footballer and manager

1976 – Trajan Langdon, American basketball player and scout

1976 – Ana Popović, Serbian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist

1976 – Magdalena Walach, Polish actress

1977 – Ilse DeLange, Dutch singer-songwriter

1977 – Anthony Q. Farrell, Canadian-American actor and screenwriter

1977 – Robby Hammock, American baseball player and coach

1977 – Neil Hopkins, American actor, producer, and screenwriter

1977 – James Middlebrook, English cricketer

1977 – Samantha Morton, English actress and director

1977 – Brian Thomas Smith, American actor and producer

1977 – Pusha T, American rapper

1978 – Brooke Anderson, American journalist

1978 – Mike Bibby, American basketball player and coach

1978 – Ryan Bukvich, American baseball player

1978 – Germán Magariños, Argentinian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

1978 – Dilshan Vitharana, Sri Lankan cricketer

1978 – Barry Zito, American baseball player

1979 – Prince Carl Philip, Duke of Värmland

1979 – Mickey Madden, American bass player

1979 – Steve Mildenhall, English footballer

1979 – Sid Ahmed Rezala, Algerian-French serial killer

1979 – Vyacheslav Shevchuk, Ukrainian footballer

1979 – Jenny Winkler, German actress

1980 – Waka Inoue, Japanese model and actress

1980 – L. J. Smith, American football player

1981 – Luciana Berger, English politician

1981 – Nicolas Jeanjean, French rugby player

1981 – Rebecka Liljeberg, Swedish actress

1981 – Shaun Phillips, American football player

1982 – Albert Crusat, Spanish footballer

1982 – Larry Fonacier, Filipino basketball player

1982 – Yoko Kumada, Japanese model and singer

1982 – Oguchi Onyewu, American soccer player

1983 – Natalie Cassidy, English actress and singer

1983 – Anita Görbicz, Hungarian handball player

1983 – Johnny Hoogerland, Dutch cyclist

1983 – Grégory Lemarchal, French singer (d. 2007)

1983 – Jacob Reynolds, American actor, producer, and screenwriter

1983 – Yaya Touré, Ivorian footballer

1984 – J. B. Cox, American baseball player

1984 – Benny Dayal, Indian singer

1984 – Dawn Harper, American hurdler

1984 – Caroline Rotich, Kenyan runner

1985 – Javier Balboa, Spanish-Equatoguinean footballer

1985 – Jaroslav Halák, Slovak ice hockey player

1985 – David Hernandez, American baseball player

1985 – Iwan Rheon, Welsh actor and singer

1985 – Travis Zajac, Canadian ice hockey player

1986 – Lena Dunham, American actress, director, and screenwriter

1986 – Eun-Hee Ji, South Korean golfer

1986 – Robert Pattinson, English actor

1986 – Alexander Rybak, Belarusian-Norwegian singer-songwriter, violinist, and actor

1986 – Scott Sutter, English footballer

1986 – Nino Schurter, Swiss cyclist

1986 – Kris Versteeg, Canadian ice hockey player

1987 – Candice Accola, American singer-songwriter and actress

1987 – Antonio Adán, Spanish footballer

1987 – Matt Doyle, American actor and singer

1987 – Laura Izibor, Irish singer-songwriter, pianist, and producer

1987 – Mei Kurokawa, Japanese actress and singer

1987 – Hunter Parrish, American actor and singer

1987 – Carrie Prejean, American model and author, Miss California USA 2009

1987 – Marianne Vos, Dutch cyclist

1987 – Charlotte Wessels, Dutch singer-songwriter

1987 – Bobby Shuttleworth, American soccer player

1988 – Paulo Avelino, Filipino actor and singer

1988 – Casey Donovan, Australian singer-songwriter

1989 – Hiromi Hosoi, Japanese entertainer and model

1989 – P. K. Subban, Canadian ice hockey player

1990 – Mychal Givens, American baseball player

1991 – Francisco Lachowski, Brazilian model

1992 – Bill Arnold, American ice hockey player

1992 – Josh Papalii, New Zealand-Australian rugby league player

1992 – Georgina García Pérez, Spanish tennis player

1993 – Romelu Lukaku, Belgian footballer

1993 – Bang Min-ah, South Korean singer and actress

1993 – Siim-Tanel Sammelselg, Estonian ski jumper

1994 – Łukasz Moneta, Polish footballer

Deaths

189 – Emperor Ling of Han, Chinese emperor (b. 156)

558 – John the Silent, bishop and saint

1112 – Ulric II, Margrave of Carniola

1176 – Matthias I, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1119)

1285 – Robert de Ros, 1st Baron de Ros

1312 – Theobald II, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1263)

1573 – Takeda Shingen, Japanese daimyo (b. 1521)

1619 – Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, Dutch politician (b. 1547)

1704 – Louis Bourdaloue, French preacher and author (b. 1632)

1726 – Francesco Antonio Pistocchi, Italian singer (b. 1659)

1782 – Daniel Solander, Swedish-English botanist and phycologist (b. 1736)

1807 – Eliphalet Dyer, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (b. 1721)

1809 – Beilby Porteus, English bishop (b. 1731)

1832 – Georges Cuvier, French zoologist and academic (b. 1769)

1835 – John Nash, English architect, designed the Royal Pavilion (b. 1752)

1866 – Nikolai Brashman, Czech-Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1796)

1878 – Joseph Henry, American physicist and academic (b. 1797)

1884 – Cyrus McCormick, American businessman, co-founded the International Harvester Company (b. 1809)

1885 – Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle, German physician, pathologist, and anatomist (b. 1809)

1903 – Apolinario Mabini, Filipino lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Philippines (b. 1864)

1916 – Sholem Aleichem, Ukrainian-American author and playwright (b. 1859)

1921 – Jean Aicard, French author, poet, and playwright (b. 1848)

1926 – Libert H. Boeynaems, Belgian-American bishop (b. 1857)

1930 – Fridtjof Nansen, Norwegian scientist, explorer, and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1861)

1938 – Charles Édouard Guillaume, Swiss-French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1861)

1941 – Frederick Christian, English cricketer (b. 1877)

1941 – Ōnishiki Uichirō, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 26th Yokozuna (b. 1891)

1945 – Tubby Hall, American drummer (b. 1895)

1947 – Sukanta Bhattacharya, Indian poet and playwright (b. 1926)

1948 – Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington (b. 1920)

1957 – Michael Fekete, Hungarian-Israeli mathematician and academic (b. 1886)

1961 – Gary Cooper, American actor (b. 1901)

1962 – Henry Trendley Dean, American dentist (b. 1893)

1962 – Franz Kline, American painter and academic (b. 1910)

1963 – Alois Hudal, Austrian-Italian bishop (b. 1885)

1972 – Dan Blocker, American actor (b. 1928)

1974 – Jaime Torres Bodet, Mexican poet and diplomat (b. 1902)

1974 – Arthur J. Burks, American colonel and author (b. 1898)

1975 – Bob Wills, American singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1905)

1977 – Mickey Spillane, American mobster (b. 1934)

1985 – Leatrice Joy, American actress (b. 1893)

1985 – Richard Ellmann American literary critic and biographer (b. 1918)

1988 – Chet Baker, American singer and trumpet player (b. 1929)

1992 – F. E. McWilliam, Irish sculptor (b. 1909)

1994 – Duncan Hamilton, Irish-English race car driver (b. 1920)

1995 – Hao Wang, Chinese-American logician, philosopher, and mathematician (b. 1921)

1999 – Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, Saudi Arabian scholar and academic (b. 1910)

1999 – Gene Sarazen, American golfer and journalist (b. 1902)

2000 – Paul Bartel, American actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1938)

2000 – Jumbo Tsuruta, Japanese wrestler (b. 1951)

2001 – Jason Miller, American actor and playwright (b. 1939)

2002 – Valeriy Lobanovskyi, Ukrainian footballer and manager (b. 1939)

2005 – Eddie Barclay, French record producer, founded Barclay Records (b. 1921)

2005 – George Dantzig, American mathematician and academic (b. 1914)

2006 – Jaroslav Pelikan, American historian and scholar (b. 1923)

2006 – Johnnie Wilder, Jr., American singer (b. 1949)

2008 – Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah, Kuwaiti ruler, Emir of Kuwait (b. 1930)

2008 – Ron Stone, American journalist and author (b. 1936)

2009 – Frank Aletter, American actor (b. 1926)

2009 – Meir Brandsdorfer, Belgian rabbi (b. 1934)

2009 – Achille Compagnoni, Italian skier and mountaineer (b. 1914)

2011 – Derek Boogaard, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1982)

2011 – Stephen De Staebler, American sculptor and educator (b. 1933)

2011 – Wallace McCain, Canadian businessman, co-founded McCain Foods (b. 1930)

2011 – Bruce Ricker, American director and producer (b. 1942)

2012 – Arsala Rahmani Daulat, Afghan politician (b. 1937)

2012 – Donald "Duck" Dunn, American bass player, songwriter, and producer (b. 1941)

2012 – Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, Cuban-American theologian, author, and academic (b. 1943)

2012 – Lee Richardson, English speedway rider (b. 1979)

2012 – Don Ritchie, Australian humanitarian (b. 1925)

2012 – Nguyễn Văn Thiện, Vietnamese bishop (b. 1906)

2013 – Joyce Brothers, American psychologist, author, and actress (b. 1927)

2013 – Otto Herrigel, Namibian lawyer and politician (b. 1937)

2013 – Jagdish Mali, Indian photographer (b. 1954)

2013 – Chuck Muncie, American football player (b. 1953)

2013 – Fyodor Tuvin, Russian footballer (b. 1973)

2013 – Lynne Woolstencroft, Canadian politician (b. 1943)

2014 – David Malet Armstrong, Australian philosopher and author (b. 1926)

2014 – Malik Bendjelloul, Swedish director and producer (b. 1977)

2014 – J. F. Coleman, American soldier and pilot (b. 1918)

2014 – Ron Stevens, Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1949)

2014 – Morning Glory Zell-Ravenheart, American occultist and author (b. 1948)

2015 – Earl Averill, Jr., American baseball player (b. 1931)

2015 – Robert Drasnin, American clarinet player and composer (b. 1927)

2015 – Nina Otkalenko, Russian runner (b. 1928)

2015 – David Sackett, American-Canadian physician and academic (b. 1934)

2015 – Gainan Saidkhuzhin, Russian cyclist (b. 1937)

Holidays and observances

Abbotsbury Garland Day (Dorset, England)

Christian feast day:

Our Lady of Fátima

Gerard of Villamagna

Glyceria

John the Silent (Roman Catholic)

Julian of Norwich (Roman Catholic)

Frances Perkins (Episcopal Church (USA))

Servatius

May 13 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Rotuma Day (Rotuma)