Historical Events
Johnson Meets Boswell
May 16 Samuel Johnson 1st meets his future biographer James Boswell in London
Famous Birthdays
- May 4 Franz Stanislaus Spindler, German composer, born in Steingaden, Germany (d. 1819)
- May 7 Józef Antoni Poniatowski, Polish general and marshal of France, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1813)
- May 8 Johannes Goldberg, Dutch politician and civil servant (undertook 1st economic survey of Batavian Republic) (d. 1828)
- May 11 János Batsányi, Hungarian poet (d. 1845)
- May 16 Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin, French chemist and pharmacist (discovered chromium, beryllium), born in t Saint-André-d'Hébertot, France (d. 1829)
- May 21 Joseph Fouché, French statesman (d. 1820)
Famous Weddings
Roger Sherman
May 12 Founding Father of the United States Roger Sherman (42) weds second wife Rebecca Prescott (20)
Marquis de Sade
May 17 Philosopher Marquis de Sade (22) weds Renee Pelagie de Montreuil in Paris
Famous Deaths
- May 3 George Psalmanazar, British impostor (b. 1679)
Authors
Dictators
Explorers
Outlaws
Queens
Spies