What Happened in May 1740

Famous Birthdays

  • May 2 Elias Boudinot, American lawyer and patriot, President of the Continental Congress, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1821)
  • May 7 Nikolai Arkharov, Russian general (d. 1814)
  • May 9 Giovanni Paisiello, Italian composer (Barber of Seville), born in Roccaforzata, Taranto, Italy (d. 1816)
  • May 19 Joseph Franz Weigl, German cellist and early proponent of the 'thumb technique', born in Bavaria (d. 1820)

Famous Deaths

  • May 15 Ephraim Chambers, English encyclopaedist (b. 1680)
  • May 17 Jean Cavalier, French Huguenot chief of the Camisards, dies at 58
  • May 31 Frederik Willem I, King of Prussia (1713-1740), dies at 51