On this day in History - May 24

• 1153 - Malcolm IV becomes King of Scotland.
• 1218 - The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
• 1487 - Imposter Lambert Simnel is crowned as "King Edward VI" at Dublin.
• 1543 - Nicolaus Copernicus dies (b. 19 Fev 1473). Astronomer (Heliocentric theory) and mathematicien.
• 1544 - William Gilbert was born (d. 1603). English natural philosopher
• 1595 - Nomenclator of Leiden University Library appears, the first printed catalog of an institutional library.
• 1616 - John Maitland, Duke of Lauderdale was born (d. 1682)
• 1619 - Philips Wouwerman was baptised (d. 1668). Dutch painter.
• 1626 - Peter Minuit buys Manhattan.
• 1668 - Glen Cove, New York is founded.
• 1671 - Gian Gastone de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany was born (d. 1737).
• 1686 - Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit was born in Gdansk (d. 16 Sept 1736, The Hague). German physicist and maker of scientific instruments.
• 1689 - The Act of Toleration passes the English Parliament protecting Protestants (Roman Catholics are intentionally excluded).
• 1738 - The Methodist Church is established.
• 1743 - Jean-Paul Marat was born (d. 1793). French revolutionary.
• 1759 - Alvará de criação da Real Fábrica de Chapéus de Pombal.
• 1762 - Marcos António Portugal was born. Portuguese composer.
• 1787 - The United States Constitutional Convention is convened after a quorum of delegates arrives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
• 1792 - Jacob Michael Reinhold Lenz dies (b. 1751). Russian-born German poet.
• 1794 - William Whewell was born (d. 1866). English scientist, philosopher, and historian of science.
• 1798 - Irish nationalists rebel against British occupation forces, believing that French troops were going to invade Ireland.
• 1810 - Abraham Geiger was born (d. 1874). German rabbi and scholar.
• 1811 - Charles Clark was born. Governor of Mississippi
• 1816 - Emanuel Leutze was born (d. 1868). German-born painter.
• 1819 - Queen Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) was born (d. 1901). Queen of Great Britain and Ireland (1837–1901) and empress of India (1876–1901).
• 1820 - William Chauvenet was born (d. 13 Sep 1870). French mathematicien.
• 1822 - Battle of Pichincha: Antonio José de Sucre secures the independence of Quito.
• 1830 - Mary had a little lamb by Sarah Hale is published.
• 1830 - Alexei Savrasov was born (d. 1897). Russian painter.
• 1831 - Richard Hoffman was born. Pianist.
• 1836 - Joseph Rowntree was born (d. 1925). British social reformer.
• 1844 - The first electric telegram is sent by Samuel F. B. Morse, from Baltimore, Maryland to Washington, D.C., saying "What hath God wrought?".
• 1846 - Mexican-American War: General Zachary Taylor captures Monterrey, Mexico.
• 1854 - John Riley Banister was born (d. 1918). Law officer. Cowboy and Texas Ranger.
• 1854 - A escravidão é abolida na Venezuela
• 1855 - Arthur Wing Pinero was born (d. 1934). English playwright.
• 1856 - John Brown and his men murder five slavery supporters at Pottawatomie Creek, Kansas
• 1858 - Johan C Braakensiek was born. Political cartoonist.
• 1861 - Portugal -Fundação da Associação 1.º de Dezembro de 1640, como reacção às concepções iberistas emergentes na época.
• 1861 - American Civil War: Union troops occupy Alexandria, Virginia.
• 1863 - George Grey Barnard was born (d. 1938). American sculptor.
• 1865 - Zo d'Axa was born. French anarchist, satirist, and traveller.
• 1866 - Armando Frid was born (d. 1990).
• 1868 - Charles E. Taylor was born (d. 1956). First aircraft maintenance professional
• 1870 - Jan Christian Smuts was born (d. 1950). Prime Minister of South Africa
• 1870 - Benjamin Cardozo was born (d. 1938). American jurist.
• 1878 - Lillian Moller Gilbreth was born (d. 1972). American engineer, mother of modern management.
• 1879 - H. B. Reese was born (d. 1956). American inventor of Reese's and founder.
• 1881 - Turkey cedes Thessaly and Arta back to Greece.
• 1883 - The Brooklyn Bridge in New York is opened to traffic after 14 years of construction.
• 1886 - Paul Paray was born (d. 1979). Conductor and composer.
• 1891 - William F. Albright was born (d. 1971). American archeologist and Biblical scholar.
• 1895 - Henry Irving becomes the first personage from the theatre to be knighted.
• 1898 - José Maria Ferreira de Castro was born. Portuguese writer.
• 1899 - The first public parking garage in the United States is opened in Boston, Massachusetts.
• 1899 - Suzanne Lenglen was born. French tennis player.
• 1899 - Henri Michaux was born. French poet.
• 1900 - Boer War: The United Kingdom annexes the Orange Free State.
• 1900 - Lionel Conacher was born (d. 1954). Canadian athlete and politician.
• 1900 - Eduardo De Filippo was born (d. 1984), Italian actor and screenwriter.
• 1901 - José Nasazzi was born (d. 1968). Uruguayan footballer.
• 1905 - Zdenek Blazek was born in Zarosice, Czechoslowakia († 19 Jun 1988 in Brno). Czech Composer.
• 1905 - Mikhail Aleksandrovich Sholokhov was born (d. 1984). Russian writer, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1905 - Júlio Verne dies. French writer
• 1909 - Wilbur Mills was born (d. 1992). American politician.
• 1910 - Nils-Eric Fougstedt was born (d. 1961)
• 1911 - The New York Public Library opened.
• 1911 - Barbara West was born. The oldest living survivor of the Titanic disaster
• 1914 - Lilli Palmer was born (d. 1986). German-born actress.
• 1912 - Joan Hammond was born in Christchurch, New Zealand (d. 1996). Soprano.
• 1913 - Royal marriage: Victoria Luise of Prussia (1892-1980), the only daughter of the German emperor William II, married Duke August of Brunswick-Luneburg in Berlin and thus became Duchess of Brunswick herself
• 1913 - Willi Daume was born (d. 1996). German Olympic organizer.
• 1914 - Lilli Palmer was born (d. 1986). Actress.
• 1915 - World War I: Italy declares war on Austria-Hungary.
• 1916 - Roden Cutler was born (d. 2002). Australian diplomat and war hero.
• 1917 - John Robert Russell was born (d. 2002). Duke of Bedford.
• 1921 - Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti opens.
• 1921 - Déodat de Séverac dies. French composer.
• 1923 - Siobhan McKenna was born (d. 1986). Irish actress.
• 1925 - Mai Zetterling was born (d. 1994). Entertainer.
• 1926 - Stanley Baxter was born. Actor.
• 1928 - William Trevor was born. Writer.
• 1929 - The Cocoanuts, the first film to star the Marx Brothers, opens.
• 1930 - Amy Johnson lands in Darwin, Northern Territory, becoming the first woman to fly from England to Australia (she left on May 5 for the 11,000 mile flight).
• 1930 - Hans-Martin Linde was born. Conductor.
• 1930 - Antonio Carbajal was born. Mexican footballer, goalkeeper who defended the Mexican team in 5 World Championships
• 1930 - Cristobal Halffter was born. Spanish composer.
• 1933 - Percy C. Mather dies. Pioneer missionary to Eastern Turkestan.
• 1934 - Jane Byrne was born. Mayor of Chicago
• 1935 - Joan Micklin Silver was born. Director, writer
• 1936 - Harold Budd was born. Musician
• 1937 - Edward Dunne dies (b. 1853). Mayor of Chicago.
• 1938 - Tommy Chong was born. Actor, comedian
• 1940 - Joseph Brodsky was born (d. 1996). Russian-born poet.
• 1940 - Igor Sikorsky performs the first successful single-rotor helicopter flight.
• 1941 - Bob Dylan was born. American singer and songwriter.
• 1941 - World War II: In the North Atlantic, the German Battleship Bismarck sinks the HMS Hood killing all but three crewmen on what was the pride of the Royal Navy.
• 1942 - Derek Quinn was born. Musician
• 1943 - Gary Burghoff was born. Actor.
• 1943 - Holocaust: Josef Mengele becomes chief medical officer in Auschwitz concentration camp.
• 1944 - Patti LaBelle was born. Singer.
• 1945 - Priscilla Presley was born. Actress.
• 1946 - Irena Kirszenstein-Szewinska was born. Russian-born Polish athlete.
• 1947 - Ferdinand Ramuz dies (b. 1878). Swiss writer.
• 1947 - Arthur Brown was born. Musician.
• 1949 - Jim Broadbent was born. Actor.
• 1950 - Archibald Wavell dies (b. 1883). General.
• 1953 - Alfred Molina was born. Actor.
• 1953 - Fundação do Clube Nacional de Montanhismo em Portugal
• 1955 - Rosanne Cash was born. Singer.
• 1956 - In Lugano, Switzerland, Lys Assia wins the first Eurovision Song Contest for Switzerland singing "Refrain".
• 1958 - United Press International is formed through a merger of the United Press and the International News Service.
• 1959 - John Foster Dulles dies (b. 1888). United States Secretary of State.
• 1960 - Kristin Scott Thomas was born. Actress
• 1961 - American civil rights movement: Freedom Riders are arrested in Jackson, Mississippi for "disturbing the peace" after disembarking from their bus.
• 1961 - MIT's Wes Clark begins work on LINC
• 1962 - American astronaut Scott Carpenter orbits the Earth three times in the Aurora 7 space capsule.
• 1962 - Bev Lidyoff was born. Volleyball player
• 1963 - Joe Dumars was born. Basketball star
• 1963 - Elmore James dies (b. 1918). Blues musician.
• 1963 - Ivan Capelli was born. Italian racing driver
• 1963 - Kathy Leander was born. Swiss singer
• 1963 - Rich Rodriguez was born. American football coach
• 1964 - Adrian Moorhouse was born. British swimmer
• 1964 - Pat Verbeek was born. Canadian ice hockey player.
• 1965 - John C. Reilly was born. American actor
• 1965 - Shinichiro Watanabe was born. Japanese anime director
• 1966 - Ricky Craven was born. American Nascar driver
• 1966 - Eric Cantona was born. French footballer
• 1967 - Carlos Hernández was born. Baseball player
• 1967 - Heavy D was born. American rapper and actor
• 1968 - Students set fire to the Paris bourse.
• 1968 - FLQ separatists bomb American consulate in Quebec City
• 1968 - The Gateway Arch, in St. Louis, Missouri, is dedicated.
• 1969 - Yasser Arafat was born. Palestinian leader
• 1969 - Willy Ley dies (b. 1906). Rocket scientist.
• 1972 - Greg Berlanti was born. American television writer and producer
• 1973 - Dermot O'Leary was born. TV presenter
• 1973 - Bartolo Colón was born. Baseball pitcher
• 1974 - Ruslana was born. Ukrainian singer and winner of the Eurovision Song Contest
• 1974 - After a nine-year run, the Dean Martin Show airs for the last time.
• 1974 - Duke Ellington dies (b. 1899). American composer and musician
• 1974 - Em Portugal foi fundado o Partido Popular Monárquico.
• 1975 - Ivajla Kirova was born. Bulgarian pianist.
• 1976 - London to Washington, DC Concorde service begins.
• 1979 - Tracy McGrady was born. Basketball player
• 1980 - The International Court of Justice calls for the release of United States embassy hostages in Tehran.
• 1981 - First International Women's Day for Disarmament
• 1981 - George Jessel dies (b. 1898). Vaudevillian.
• 1983 - Custódio was born in Guimarães. Portuguese footballer (Sporting Club de Portugal)
• 1985 - Em Portugal, realizou-se o I Encontro Nacional de Arqueologia Urbana
• 1987 - Hrmione Gingold dies. English actress.
• 1988 - Section 28 is passed as law by Parliament in the United Kingdom.
• 1988 - Billy Gilman was born. Singer
• 1989 - Sonia Sutcliffe, wife of the Yorkshire Ripper, is awarded a six-figure sum in damages after winning a libel action against Private Eye.
• 1990 - A car carrying American Earth First! activists Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney explodes in Oakland, California, critically injuring both.
• 1991 - Israel conducts Operation Solomon, evacuating Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
• 1991 - Gene Clark dies (b. 1944). American singer and songwriter (The Byrds).
• 1991 - Wilhelm Kempff dies (b. 1895). German conductor.
• 1992 - The last Thai dictator, General Suchinda Kraprayoon, resigns following pro-democracy protests.
• 1993 - Eritrea gains its independence from Ethiopia.
• 1993 - Microsoft unveils Windows NT.
• 1995 - Harold Wilson dies (b. 1916). British statesman and prime minister.
• 2000 - Israeli troops withdraw from southern Lebanon after 22 years of occupation.
• 2000 - Kurt Schork dies (b. 1947). American reporter and war correspondent.
• 2001 - Mountain climbing: 15-year-old Sherpa Temba Tsheri becomes the youngest person to climb to the top of Mount Everest.
• 2002 - Wallace Markfield dies (b. 1926). American writer.
  2003 - In Riga, Latvia, Sertab Erener wins the forty-eighth Eurovision Song Contest for Turkey singing "Everyway [sic] That I Can".
• 2003 - Roman Polanski ganha o Oscar de melhor realizador enquanto "Chicago" ganha o Oscar de melhor filme; Adrien Brody ganha o galardão de melhor actor enquanto o Oscar de melhor actriz vai para Nicole Kidman.
• 2003 - Rachel Kempson dies (b. 1910). English actress.
• 2004 - Henry Ries dies (b. 1917). American photographer.
• 2004 - Milton Shulman dies (b. 1913). Canadian author and drama critic.
• 2005 - Arthur Haulot dies (b. 1913). Belgian journalist and resistance fighter.
• 2005 - Vivian Liberto dies (b. 1934). First wife of Johnny Cash.
• 2006 - Michał Życzkowski dies (b. 1930). Polish technician.
• 2006 - Henry Bumstead dies (b. 1915). American art director.
• Canada: Victoria Day, on this date or the Monday before it. In Quebec, it is known as Patriotes Day (Journée nationale des patriotes).
• Bermuda: National Day
• Eritrea: National Day
• Bulgaria: Sts. Cyril and Methodius Day
• Saint Sarah is celebrated in Carmague, France by the Roma (gypsies).