Events on May 16
- 1165Ramjbam and his family reach Acre Palestine
- 1527Florence becomes a Republic
- 1532Sir Thomas More resigns as English Lord Chancellor
- 1547Protestant German monarch surrenders to Karel in Wittenberg
- 1568Mary Queen of Scotland flees to England
- 1571Johannes Kepler, by his own calculations, is conceived at 4:37 AM
- 15847 Westfriese towns divide monasteries of Egmond / Blokker / St-Pietersdal
- 1605Camillo Borghese elected to succeed Pope Leo XI becomes Paul V
- 16062,000 foreigners murdered in Russia
- 1747Prince Willem V sworn in as admiral-general of Neth
- 1763Samuel Johnson meets his future biographer James Boswell in London
- 1770Marie Antoinette (14) marries future King Louis XVI (15) of France
- 1792Denmark abolishes slave trade
- 1795Hedges Treaty: Bataafse Republic becomes French vassel state
- 1796Lombardije Republic forms
- 1803Peace of Amiens ends
- 1804Senate and Tribune declare Napolean leader of France
- 1811Peninsular War-Allies defeat French at Albuera
- 1817Mississippi River steamboat service begins
- 1861Confederate government offers war volunteers $10 premium
- 1861Kentucky proclaims its neutrality
- 1862Jean Joseph Etienne Lenoir builds 1st automobile
- 1864Atlanta Campaign-battle of Resaca, ends (since May 13)
- 1864Battle of Bermuda Hundred, Virginia
- 1866Charles Elmer Hires invents root beer
- 1866Congress authorizes nickel 5 cent piece (replaces silver half-dime)
- 1866US Treasury Department authorizes nickel
- 1868By one vote, Senate fails to impeach President Andrew Johnson
- 1869Cincinnati Reds play their 1st baseball game, win 41-7
- 1872Metropolitan Gas Company lamps lit for 1st time
Born on May 16
- 1558Andreas of Austria: Bohemia Cardinal / gov of the Netherlands (1598-1600)
- 1609Ferdinand: Austria -- Cardinal of Spain / Governor of the Netherlands
- 1641Dudley North: Financier / economist
- 1659Campegius Vitringa: Dutch theologist
- 1748Antonius van Alphen: Apostolic vicar of De Bosch
- 1761John Opie: Artist
- 1763Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin: Chemist (discovered chromium, beryllium)
- 1782John Sell Cotman: Water color artist
- 1801William Henry Seward: Secretary of State (1861-69, buys Alaska at 2 cents / acre)
- 1804Elizabeth Palmer Peabody: Educator / founder (US kindergarten)
- 1806George C Cadwalader: Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1879
- 1816Henry Hopkins Sibley: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1886
- 1819Daniel Ammen: Captain (Union Navy), died in 1898
- 1822Eduard Hille: Dutch composer / conductor
- 1824Edmund Kirby Smith: Florida, United States -- General (Confederate Army), died in 1893
- 1824Levi Parsons Morton: (R) 22nd US VP (1889-93)
- 1827Petrus J H Cuypers: Architect (Amsterdam Museum, Central station)
- 1831David Edward Hughes: Inventor (microphone, teleprinter)
- 1832Philip Danforth Armour: Founder (Armour Foods)
- 1850Arthur Henry Mann: Organist / composer
- 1857Juan Morel Campos: Composer
- 1858Frank Lynes: Composer
- 1858Hanus Trnecek: Composer
- 1866Ernest Watson Burgess: US sociologist (ecological school)
- 1878Taylor Holmes: Newark, New Jersey -- Actor (Tobor the Great, Beware My Lovely)
- 1880Julian Tannen: New York, United States -- Comedian (Great Moment)
- 1887Bull Montana: Vogliera, Italy -- Actor (Brass Buttons, Victory)
- 1887J van Hoddis: Writer
- 1889Joan Collette: Dutch (male) painter (New Church, Delft)
- 1892Coenraad B van Haeringen: Linguist / etymologist (Dutch Dictionary)
Died on May 16
- 0942Saadiah Gaon: Head of Talmudic Academy of Sura
- 1434Pieter Appelmans: Flemish Architect / master builder, dies at about 60
- 1669Pietro da Cortona [Berrettini]: Painter / architect
- 1669Reyer Anslo: Writer / poet, dies at about 42
- 1691Jacob Leisler: Becomes 1st American colonist hanged for treason
- 1703Charles Perrault: Author / fairy tale writer
- 1754Giovanni Carlo Maria Clari: Composer, dies at 76
- 1762Ernst Chreistian Hesse: Composer, dies at 86
- 1768Cornelis Writer: Fleet supervisor, dies at about 81
- 1777Button Gwinnet: US revolutionary leader, dies from wounds
- 1782Daniuel Charles Solander: Botanist
- 1805Christian Brunings: Hydraulic engineer, dies at 68
- 1819Alexander van Bylandt: Military, dies at 75
- 1830Jean Baptiste Joseph Fourier: Mathematician
- 1835Felicia Dorothea Hemans: Poet / hymn writer
- 1847Kaspar Ett: German Organist / composer, dies at 59
- 1863Lloyd Tilghman: Confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at 47
- 1864Lean Bear: Cheyenne chief, murdered
- 1880Karl August Krebs: Composer, dies at 76
- 1892John Banvard: Painted worlds largest painting (3 mile canvas)
- 1892Theodoor J Canneel: Flemish painter, dies at 74
- 1903Eduard Rappoldi: Composer, dies at 72
- 1904N I Bobrikov: Russian Governor-General in Finland
- 1910Henri E Cross [Delacroix]: French painter, dies at 53
- 1918Eusapia Palladino: Napolitan, dies at 64
- 1926Mehmed VI Vahideddin (Mohammed Osman): Last Sultan of Turkey
- 1928Edmund William Grosse: Poet / author
- 1929Lilli Lehmann: Soprano
- 1932Ki Imukai: Premier of Japan (1931-32), murdered
- 1932William Pember Reeves: Politician / poet
Historical events on May 17
- 0352Liberius begins his reign as Catholic Pope replacing Julius I
- 0884St. Adrian III begins his reign as Catholic Pope
- 1525Battle at Zabern: Duke of Lutherans beats rebels
- 1536Anne Boleyns 4 "lovers" executed
- 1544Scot Earl Matthew van Lennox signs secret treaty with Henry VIII
- 1579Artois / Henegouwen / French-Flanders sign Treaty / Peace of Parma recognizing Spanish Duke van Parma as land guardian
- 16201st merry-go-round seen at a fair (Philippapolis, Turkey)
- 1630Italian Jesuit Niccolo Zucchi, 1st to see 2 belts on Jupiter surface
- 1631Earl Johann Tilly attacks Maagdenburg
- 1648Emperor Ferdinand III defeats Maximilian I of Bavaria
- 1672Frontenac becomes Governor of New France (Canada)
- 1673Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette begin exploring Mississippi
- 1678King Charles II and Louis XIV sign secret treaty
- 1712Maximilian Emanuel of Bavaria honored as "sovereign of the Netherlands"
- 1733England passes Molasses Act, putting high tariffs on rum and molasses imported to the colonies from a country other than British possessions
- 1742Frederick great (Emperor of Prussia) beats Austrians
- 1744French army takes Austrian Netherlands
- 1787English slave ship Sisters, from Africa to Cuba, capsizes
- 179224 merchants form New York Stock Exchange at 70 Wall Street
- 1794Hard frost in southern New England
- 1803John Hawkins and Richard French patent the Reaping Machine
- 1804Lewis and Clark begin exploration of Louisiana Purchase
- 1809Papal States annexed by France
- 1814Denmark cedes Norway to Sweden (National Day)
- 1814Norwegian constitution passed by constitutent assembly at Eidsvoll
- 1837Royal Decides installs the Weapon of Belgium firm (ly)
- 1845Rubber band patents
- 1846Saxophone is patents by Antoine Joseph Sax
- 1848Premier Earl Schimmelpenninck resigns
- 1849Fire destroy Centrum in St. Louis, Missouri
Born on May 17
- 1444Sandro Botticelli: Italian painter (Birth of Venus)
- 1451Engelbert II: Earl of Nassau-Dillenburg-Dietz / Viceroy of Luxembourg
- 1490Albrecht von Hohenzollern: 1st Duke of Prussia
- 1551Martinus A del Rio: Spanish / South Netherlands lawyer / historian / theologist
- 1568Christoph Thomas Walliser: Composer
- 1576Ferdinand van Apshoven [the Older]: Flemish painter
- 1691Antoine Court: French reformed theologist
- 1732Francesco Pasquale Ricci: Composer
- 1749Edward Jenner: England, United Kingdom -- Physician (discovered vaccination)
- 1768Caroline Brunswick: Queen Consort of King George IV
- 1794Anna Brownell Jameson: Dublin, Ireland -- Writer
- 1796Martinus J Niewindt: Bishop of Curacao (christen slaves)
- 1800Carl Friedrich Zollner: Composer
- 1803Robert Smith Surtees: Novelist
- 1804Ottho G Heldring: Dutch vicar / Reformer (Heldring Institutions)
- 1808Charles-Louis-Adolphe Vogel: Composer
- 1812Joseph Warren Revere: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1880
- 1819Johann Nepomuk Kafka: Composer
- 1823Charlotte Helen Sainton-Dolby: Contralto / composer
- 1836Joseph Norman Lockyer: Discoverer (Helium) / founder (Nature magazine)
- 1846Edmund Bishop: English Secretary of Thomas Carlyle
- 1850Antonio Scontrino: Composer
- 1867Gerrit Mannoury: Dutch mathematician / philosopher
- 1871Henricus P Bremmer: Art historian (Modern Kunstwerken)
- 1873Dorothy Miller Richardson: Abingdon Berkshire, United Kingdom -- Novelist
- 1873Henri Barbusse: Asnieres, France -- Novelist (Le Feu)
- 1876Alban Collignon: Belgian sport journalist
- 1878Conway Tearle: US actor (Klondike Annie, Should Ladies Behave?)
- 1888Selmer Jackson: Iowa, United States -- Actor (Life & Legend of Wyatt Earp)
- 1889Alfonso Reyes: Mexican poet / historian / diplomat (Higenia Cruel)
Died on May 17
- 1050Guido van Arezzo: Italian music theorist
- 1510Alessandro di Botticelli: Painter (Birth of Venus), dies at about 65
- 1510Sandro Botticelli [Alessandro di Mariano del Filpepi]: Painter
- 1575Matthew Parker: Archbishop of Canterbury (1559-75), dies at 68
- 1591Jost / Jobst / Jodocus Amman: Swiss cartoonist / graphic artist, dies at 51
- 1606Forges Dimitri #1: Czar of Russia (1605-06), murdered
- 1695Cornelis de Heem: Painter
- 1727Catherine I: Empress of Russia (1725-27)
- 1729Samuel Clarke: Theologian
- 1796Jacob Wilhelm Lustig: Composer, dies at 89
- 1809Leopold Auenbrugger von Auenbrugg: Physician
- 1840Niccolo Paganini: Composer, dies at 57
- 1851Jean E "Adrian" van Bevervoorde: Journalist (Treason), dies at 31
- 1864N Hawthorne: Writer, dies at 59
- 1866Adolf Bernhard Marx: Composer, dies at 70
- 1872Fryderyk Edward Sobolewski: Composer, dies at 63
- 1883Lydia Estes Pinklham: Patent-medicine manufacturer
- 1884Louis Brassin: Composer, dies at 43
- 1889William Roxby Beverly: Artist
- 1914Peter Leyten: Bishop of Breda (1885-1914), dies at 79
- 1916Gervais Bernard Gaston Salvayre: Composer, dies at 68
- 1919Bohumil Pazdirek: Composer, dies at 80
- 1926Lucien Herr: French leader (Correspondance entre Schiller)
- 1930Herbert David Croly: US founder (New Republic), dies at 61
- 1931Johan [Eliza J] de Master: Art critic / writer
- 1931Timothy Cole: Wood engraver
- 1943Montagu Love: Actor (Wind), dies at 65
- 1945Jan van Geenen: Resistance fighter
- 1945Sasaki Shigetsu Sokei-an: Founder 1st Zen Institute of America
- 1950Eduardo Fabini: Composer, dies at 67
Events on May 18
- 1096Crusaders massacre Jews of Worm
- 1291Sultan of Egypt and his son take last Christian stronghold of Acre
- 1302Trades people assault on French garrison (Brugse Metten)
- 1385Peace of Doornik: Gent and Louis van Thoughts
- 1596Willem Barents leaves Amsterdam for Novaya Zemlya
- 1619Hugo the Great sentenced to life in prison
- 1631English colony Massachusetts Bay grants puritarian voting right
- 1631John Winthrop is elected 1st Governor of Massachusetts
- 1642Montreal Canada founded
- 1652Rhode Island enacts 1st law declaring slavery illegal
- 1703Dutch and English troops occupy Cologne
- 1756England declares war on France
- 17942nd battle of Bouvines (France-Austria)
- 1803Britain declares war on France after Napoleon Bonaparte continues interfering in Italy and Switzerland
- 1804Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed Emperor of France
- 1828Battle of Las Piedras, ends conflict between Uruguay and Brazil
- 1830Edwin Budding of England signs an agreement for manufacture of his invention, lawn mower. Saturdays are destroyed forever
- 1843United Free Church of Scotland forms
- 1846US troops attack Rio Grande occupying Matamoros
- 1851Amsterdam-Nieuwediep telegraph connection linked
- 1852Massachusetts rules all school-age children must attend school
- 1860Republican Party nominates Abraham Lincoln for President
- 1861Friedrich Hebbels "Kriemhildes Rache, " premieres in Weimar
- 1863Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi
- 1864Battle of Yellow Bayou, LA (Bayou de Glaize, Old Oaks)
- 1866French Government of De Putte resigns
- 1889Jules Massenets opera "Esclarmonde, " premieres in Paris
- 1896US Supreme court affirms race separation (Plessy vs. Ferguson)
- 1897Irish Music Festival 1st held (Dublin)
- 1897New York Giant William Joyce sets record of 4 triples in 1 game
Born on May 18
- 1692Joseph Butler: Wantage Berkshire, United Kingdom -- Theologian
- 1711Ruggiero G Boscovich [Rudzer J Boskovic]: Italian astronomer
- 1744Joseph Beer: Bohemia clarinetist / composer (5th clarinet flap)
- 1759Charles Duquesnoy: Composer
- 1788Hugh Clapperton: Annan, Scotland -- African explorer
- 1797Frederik Augustus II: King of Saxon (1836-54)
- 1798Ethan Allen Hitchcock: Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1870
- 1815Thomas Stanhope Bocock: Rep (Confederacy), died in 1891
- 1817James William Denver: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1892
- 1819Julius Hopp: Composer
- 1830Karl Goldmark: Keszthely, Hungary -- Composer (Sakuhtala)
- 1836Isidor Vorobchievici: Composer
- 1836Wilhelm Steinitz: Austria -- World chess champion (1866-94)
- 1850Oliver Heaviside: London, England -- Physicist (predicted ionosphere)
- 1854Bernard Zweers: Dutch composer (To my Fatherland)
- 1862Freiherr Albert von Schrenk-Notzing: German para-psychologist
- 1864Jan P Veth: Bayern -- Dutch painter / etcher / lithographer / art historian
- 1865William Heinemann: England, United Kingdom -- Publisher (Chemical Instrumental)
- 1868Nicholas II Aleksandrovitsj: Last tsar of Russia (1894-1917)
- 1869Ruprecht: Crown Prince of Bavaria / General-Field Marshal
- 1871Franiska zu Reventlow: Writer
- 1872Bertrand Russell: England, United Kingdom -- Mathematician / philosopher (Nobel 1950)
- 1875Guido Alberto Fano: Composer
- 1881Georgi Atanasov: Composer
- 1882Eduardo Fabini: Composer
- 1883Walter Gropius: Berlin, Germany -- Architect (Bauhaus school of design)
- 1885Eurico Gaspar Dutra: President of Brazil (1945-50)
- 1886Ole Windingstad: Composer
- 1887Ernst Wiechert: Writer
- 1889G Gunnarson: Writer
Died on May 18
- 0323Alexander III the Great: King of Macedonia / conqueror, dies at 32
- 0526John I: Pope (523-26)
- 1160Erik IX Helgi [The Saint]: King of Sweden
- 1410Ruprecht: Roman Catholics German King
- 1587Felix van Cantalice: Italian saint
- 1675Jacques Marquette: Jesuit / missionaries (Chicago), dies at 37
- 1692Elias Ashmole: Antiquary
- 1724Johann K Amman: Swiss / Dutch doctor for deaf-mutes, dies at 54
- 1733Georg Bohm: German Organist / composer, dies at 71
- 1767Thaddaus Ferdinand Lipowsky: Composer, dies at 28
- 1799Pierre de Beaumarchais: Dramatist
- 1808Jacob Albright [Albrecht]: German / US preacher, dies at 49
- 1829Bernardo Bittoni: Composer, dies at 72
- 1832Bonafacio Asioli: Composer, dies at 62
- 1839Carolina [Maria A] Bonaparte: Countess Lipona, dies at 57
- 1848William A Leidesdorf: Black, dies at 38 in San Francisco
- 1862William H Keim: US Union Brigadier General, dies in battle at 48
- 1864James Byron Gordon: Confederate Brigadier General, dies at 41
- 1909George Meredith: English Poet / writer (Diana of Crossways), dies at 81
- 1910Flor van Duyse: Composer, dies at 66
- 1913Otto Reubke: Composer, dies at 70
- 1918Toivo Kuula: Composer, dies at 34
- 1930Joao Marcellino Arroyo: Composer, dies at 68
- 1936Alick Maclean: Composer, dies at 63
- 1949James T Adams: US Historian (Pulitzer 1921)
- 1952Rossetter Gleason Cole: Composer, dies at 86
- 1955Mary McLeod Bethune: Educator and civil rights leader, dies at 79
- 1965Eduard J Dijksterhuis: Mathematician (Archimedes), dies at 72
- 1966Paul Althaus: German Theologist (That Christian Wahrheit), dies at 78
- 1967Richard Ainley: Actor (I Dood It, Above Suspicion), dies at 56