May 2

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May 2 is the 122nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (123rd in leap years). There are 243 days remaining.

1 Events
2 Births
3 Deaths
4 Holidays and observances
5 External links

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Events

1194 - King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first Royal Charter.
1335 - Otto the Merry, Duke of Austria, becomes Duke of Carinthia.
1568 - Mary I of Scotland escapes from Loch Leven Castle.
1670 - King Charles II of England grants a permanent charter to the Hudson's Bay Company to open up the fur trade in North America.
1672 - John Maitland becomes Duke of Lauderdale and Earl of March.
1808 - Peninsular War: The people of Madrid rise up in rebellion against French occupation.
1816 - Léopold of Saxe-Coburg and Charlotte Augusta are wed.
1829 - After anchoring nearby, Captain Charles Fremantle of HMS Challenger, declares the Swan River Colony in Australia.
1866 - Peruvian defenders fight off Spanish fleet at the Battle of Callao.
1885 - Good Housekeeping magazine goes on sale for the first time.
1885 - Cree and Assiniboine warriors won the Battle of Cut Knife, their largest victory over Canadian forces during the North-West Rebellion.
1885 - The Congo Free State is established by King Léopold II of Belgium.
1889 - Menelik II, Emperor of Ethiopia, signs a treaty of amity with Italy, which gives Ethiopia control over Eritrea.
1900 - Oscar II, King of Sweden, declares support for Britain at the time of the Boer War.
1918 - General Motors acquires the Chevrolet Motor Company of Delaware.
1920 - The first game of the Negro National League baseball is played in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States.
1932 - Comedian Jack Benny's radio show airs for the first time.
1933 - The first modern sighting of the Loch Ness monster is reported.
1933 - Gleichschaltung: Adolf Hitler bans trade unions.
1939 - Lou Gehrig's streak of 2130 consecutive Major League Baseball games played comes to an end. The record will stand for 56 years before Cal Ripken, Jr. breaks it.
1945 - World War II: Fall of Berlin – The Soviet Union announces the capture of Berlin and Soviet soldiers hoist their red flag over the Reichstag building. German forces surrender in Italy.
1945 - The last postage stamp utilized by Manzhouguo is issued.
1953 - Hussein is crowned King of Jordan.
1955 - Tennessee Williams wins the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
1963 - Berthold Seliger launches near Cuxhaven a rocket with three stages with a maximum flight altitude of more than 100 kilometres. It is the only sounding rocket developed in Germany.
1964 - Vietnam War: An explosion sinks the USS Card while docked at Saigon. Viet Cong forces are suspected of placing a bomb on the ship.
1969 - The British ocean liner Queen Elizabeth 2 departs on her maiden voyage to New York City.
1972 - Buddy Baker became the first stock car driver to finish a 500-mile race in less than three hours en route to winning the Winston Select 500 at the Alabama International Motor Speedway in Talladega, Alabama.
1982 - Falklands War: The British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror sinks the Argentine cruiser ARA General Belgrano.
1986 - The 1986 World Exposition in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, opens.
1988 - The last B-1 Lancer is delivered to the United States by Rockwell International.
1997 - The Labour Party's Tony Blair becomes Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, ending 18 years of Conservative Party rule. At 44, he is the youngest prime minister for 185 years.
1998 - The European Central Bank is founded in Brussels in order to define and execute the EU's monetary policy.
1999 - Panamanian election: Mireya Moscoso became the first woman to be elected President of Panama.
2000 - Bill Clinton announces that GPS access equivalent to the U.S. military would be available for regular citizens.
2005 - First day of Cream reunion shows at the Royal Albert Hall. It is the first time Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, and Ginger Baker have played together since their 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

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Births

1360 - Yongle, Emperor of China (d. 1424)
1451 - René II, Duke of Lorraine (d. 1508)
1551 - William Camden, English historian (d. 1623)
1601 - Athanasius Kircher, German Jesuit scholar (d. 1680)
1660 - Alessandro Scarlatti, Italian composer (d. 1725)
1695 - Jean-Nicolas Servan, French architect and painter (d. 1766)
1702 - Friedrich Christoph Oetinger, German theologian (d. 1782)
1729 - Empress Catherine II of Russia (d. 1796)
1740 - Elias Boudinot, American president of the Continental Congress (d. 1821)
1772 - Novalis, German writer (d. 1801)
1773 - Henrik Steffens, Norwegian-German philosopher (d. 1845)
1802 - Heinrich Gustav Magnus, German chemist and physicist (d. 1870)
1828 - Désiré Charnay, French archaeologist (d. 1915)
1860 - Theodor Herzl, Austrian journalist and Zionist leader (d. 1904)
1865 - Clyde Fitch, American playwright (d. 1909)
1881 - Alexander Kerensky, Russian politician (d. 1970)
1884 - Elijah McCoy, Canadian-born inventor (d. 1929)
1885 - Hedda Hopper, American actress and gossip columnist (d. 1966)
1886 - Gottfried Benn, German author (d. 1956)
1887 - Vernon Castle, English dancer (d. 1918)
1887 - Eddie Collins, baseball player (d. 1951)
1890 - E. E. Smith, American writer (d. 1965)
1892 - Manfred von Richthofen, German World War I pilot (d. 1918)
1895 - Lorenz Hart, American lyricist (d. 1943)
1903 - Dr. Benjamin Spock, American pediatrician and author (d. 1998)
1907 - Pinky Lee, American vaudeville performer and television host (d. 1993)
1910 - Alexander Bonnyman, US Marine, noted for his bravery during the Pacific War
1912 - Axel Cäsar Springer, German publisher (d. 1985)
1913 - Nigel Patrick, English actor (d. 1981)
1915 - Doris Fisher, American singer and songwriter (d. 2003)
1920 - Jean-Marie Auberson, Swiss conductor (d. 2004)
1921 - Satyajit Ray, Indian director (d. 1992)
1922 - A.M. Rosenthal, Canadian-born newspaper editor
1924 - Theodore Bikel, Austrian-born actor and singer
1925 - Roscoe Lee Browne, American actor
1929 - Link Wray, American guitarist
1935 - King Faisal II of Iraq (d. 1958)
1935 - Lance LeGault, American actor
1936 - Engelbert Humperdinck, British singer
1936 - Michael Rabin, American violinist (d. 1972)
1937 - Lorenzo Music, American writer and producer (d. 2001)
1938 - Paramount Chief Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho (d. 1996)
1941 - Stephen J. Cannell, American producer
1942 - Jacques Rogge, Belgian International Olympics Committee president
1945 - Sarah Weddington, American attorney
1945 - Bianca Jagger, Nicaraguan activist
1946 - Lesley Gore, American singer
1946 - David Suchet, English actor
1948 - Larry Gatlin, American musician and songwriter
1949 - Alan Titchmarsh, English gardener, television presenter, and writer
1952 - Christine Baranski, American actress
1952 - Campbell McComas, Australian impersonator
1955 - Donatella Versace, Italian fashion designer
1961 - Steve James, English snooker player
1962 - Jimmy White, English snooker player
1969 - Brian Lara, West Indian cricketer
1972 - The Rock, American professional wrestler and actor
1975 - David Beckham, English footballer
1979 - Roman Lyashenko, Russian hockey player (d. 2003)
1980 - Troy Murphy, American basketball player
1980 - Zat Knight, English footballer
1985 - Sarah Hughes, American figure skater
1986 - Kyle Busch, American race car driver
1987 - Nana Kitade, J-Rock singer
1988 - Brooke Hogan, American singer
1990 - Kay Panabaker, American actress