Historical Events
- Mauthausen Concentration camp in Austria liberated by US forces from 41st Reconnaissance Squadron
- Netherlands and Denmark liberated from Nazi control
- Premier Gerbrandy on Radio Orange tells Dutch they are liberated
- Uprising against occupying SS troops in Prague
Dönitz Orders Ceasefire
World War II: Admiral Karl Dönitz, leader of Germany after Hitler's death, orders all U-boats to cease offensive operations and return to their bases
Famous Birthdays
- Jiří Svoboda, Czech director and politician (2nd Chairman of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia), born in Kladno, Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
- Kurtis "Kurt" Loder, American film critic, TV personality and columnist (Rolling Stone, New York, Time), born in Ocean City, New Jersey
- Rodney H. Pardey, American poker player (2 x World Series of Poker C'ships; World Series of Poker Bracelets 1991, 94), born in Seattle, Washington (d. 2020)
Famous Deaths
- Elsie Mitchell and five Sunday school students become the only people to die during World War II on US soil when they are killed by a Japanese fire balloon that lands in the forest of Gearhart Mountain, near Bly, Southern Oregon
- Peter Van Pels, Jewish Refugee (b. 1926)
Died in 1945 1945 Highlights
About May 5, 1945
Day of the Week: Saturday
How Long Ago? 78 years, 11 months and 27 days
Leap Year: No
Generation: Silent Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Rooster
Star Sign: Taurus
