Did you know
The Basic Law was enacted on May 23, 1949, and came into effect on May 24, 1949.
May 23 in History
1949 — Cold War: The Western occupying powers approve the Basic Law and establish a new German state, the Federal Republic of Germany
May 23 spans 54 recorded events across recorded history, from 1040 to 2022. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Historical Events
54 events
1040 – 2022
Today in history
More major events on May 23
The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.
- 1915 World War I: Italy joins the Allies, fulfilling its part of the Treaty of London. Source
- 2022 Anthony Albanese of the Australian Labor Party is sworn in as the 31st Prime Minister of Australia after winning the 2022 Australian federal election, ending 9 years of conservative rule. Source
- 1793 Battle of Famars during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition. Source
Did you know
Konrad Adenauer became the first Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany after its establishment.
Did you know
The Federal Republic of Germany was established in the western zones occupied by the United States, Great Britain, and France.
Did you know
The Basic Law has been amended over 60 times since its enactment, with the first amendment made in 1951.
Did you know
The capital of the Federal Republic of Germany was established in Bonn, which remained the capital until the government moved to Berlin in 1999.
1040
The Seljuks defeat the Ghaznavids in the battle of Dandanaqan.
Oghuz Turkic dynasty
1308
Robert the Bruce, king of Scots, defeats John Comyn, earl of Buchan, decisively in the battle of Inverurie.
King of Scotland from 1306 to 1329
1430
Joan of Arc is captured at the Siege of Compiègne by troops from the Burgundian faction.
French folk heroine and saint (1412–1431)
1498
Girolamo Savonarola is burned at the stake in Florence, Italy.
De facto ruler of Florence from 1494 to 1498; Dominican friar and reformer
1533
The marriage of King Henry VIII to Catherine of Aragon is declared null and void.
King of England from 1509 to 1547
1568
Dutch rebels led by Louis of Nassau defeat Jean de Ligne and his loyalist troops in the Battle of Heiligerlee, opening the Eighty Years' War.
16th-century Dutch noble and leader in the Dutch Revolt against Spain
1609
Official ratification of the Second Virginia Charter takes place.
1609 legal document
1618
The Third Defenestration of Prague precipitates the Thirty Years' War.
Incidents of political violence (1419, 1483, 1618)
1706
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, defeats a French army under Marshal François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy at the Battle of Ramillies.
British army officer and statesman (1650–1722)
1788
South Carolina became the eighth state to ratify the United States Constitution.
U.S. state
1793
Battle of Famars during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
1793 battle of the Flanders Campaign, during the War of the First Coalition
1829
Accordion patent granted to Cyrill Demian in Vienna, Austrian Empire.
Bellows-driven free-reed aerophone musical instrument
1844
Báb: A merchant of Shiraz announces that he is a Prophet and founds a religious movement.
He is considered to be a forerunner of the Baháʼí Faith.
1846
Mexican–American War: President Mariano Paredes of Mexico unofficially declares war on the United States.
1846–1848 conflict between Mexico and the United States
1863
The General German Workers' Association, a precursor of the modern Social Democratic Party of Germany, is founded in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony.
1863–1875 left-wing political party in Germany
1873
The Canadian Parliament establishes the North-West Mounted Police, the forerunner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Former Canadian police force
1900
American Civil War: Sergeant William Harvey Carney is awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism in the Assault on the Battery Wagner in 1863.
1861–1865 conflict in the United States
1905
Abdul Hamid II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, publicly announces the creation of the Ullah millet for the Aromanians of the empire, which had been established one day earlier.
For this reason, the Aromanian National Day is usually celebrated on May 23, although some do so on May 22 instead.
1907
The unicameral Parliament of Finland gathers for its first plenary session.
Governmental practice of having a single legislative or parliamentary chamber
1911
1915
World War I: Italy joins the Allies, fulfilling its part of the Treaty of London.
Global conflict from 1914 to 1918
1919
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, a Kurdish sheikh and at-the-time governor of the Slêmanî Province of British Iraq, initiates the first Mahmud Barzanji revolt.
Kurdish leader (1878–1956)
1932
In Brazil, four students are shot and killed during a manifestation against the Brazilian dictator Getúlio Vargas, which resulted in the outbreak of the Constitutionalist Revolution several weeks later.
Country in South America
1934
American bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde are ambushed by police and killed in Bienville Parish, Louisiana.
Crime of stealing from a bank using violence or threat thereof
1934
The Auto-Lite strike culminates in the "Battle of Toledo", a five-day melée between 1,300 troops of the Ohio National Guard and 6,000 picketers.
Workers' strike in Toledo, Ohio
1939
The U.S.
Navy submarine USS Squalus sinks off the coast of New Hampshire during a test dive, causing the death of 24 sailors and two civilian technicians. The remaining 32 sailors and one civilian naval architect are rescued the following day.
1941
World War II: German paratroopers start a series of mass executions of Greek civilians in Missiria for their participation in the ongoing Battle of Crete.
Global conflict (1939–1945)
1945
World War II: Heinrich Himmler, head of the Schutzstaffel, commits suicide while in Allied custody.
German Nazi leader of the SS (1900–1945)
1945
World War II: Germany's Flensburg Government under Karl Dönitz is dissolved when its members are arrested by British forces.
Short-lived government of Nazi Germany
1946
The start of a two-day tornado outbreak across the Central United States that spawned at least 15 significant tornadoes.
U.S. tornado outbreak
1948
1951
Tibetans sign the Seventeen Point Agreement with China.
Ethno-cultural region in Asia
1960
A tsunami caused by an earthquake in Chile the previous day kills 61 people in Hilo, Hawaii.
Series of water waves
1971
Seventy-eight people are killed when Aviogenex Flight 130 crashes on approach to Rijeka Airport in present-day Rijeka, Croatia (then the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia).
1971 aviation accident
1971
The Intercontinental Hotel in Bucharest opens, becoming the second-tallest building in the city.
Hotel in Bucharest, Romania
1978
A Tupolev Tu-144 crashes near the Russian town of Yegoryevsk, killing two.
Soviet supersonic passenger airliner
1980
The Shining, the psychological horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick, is premiered on 10 screens in New York City and Los Angeles on the Memorial Day weekend.
1980 film by Stanley Kubrick
1991
Aeroflot Flight 8556 crashes at Pulkovo Airport, killing 13.
1991 aviation accident in the Soviet Union
1992
Italy's most prominent anti-mafia judge Giovanni Falcone, his wife and three body guards are killed by the Corleonesi clan with a half-ton bomb near Capaci, Sicily.
His friend and colleague Paolo Borsellino will be assassinated less than two months later, making 1992 a turning point in the history of Italian Mafia prosecutions.
1995
The first version of the Java programming language is released.
Object-oriented programming language
1998
The Good Friday Agreement is accepted in a referendum in Northern Ireland with roughly 75% voting yes.
1998 agreements between the UK and Ireland
2002
The "55 parties" clause of the Kyoto Protocol is reached after its ratification by Iceland.
1997 international treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
2006
Alaskan stratovolcano Mount Cleveland erupts.
Type of conical volcano composed of layers of lava and tephra
2008
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) awards Middle Rocks to Malaysia and Pedra Branca (Pulau Batu Puteh) to Singapore, ending a 29-year territorial dispute between the two countries.
Judicial organ of the United Nations
2013
A freeway bridge carrying Interstate 5 over the Skagit River collapses in Mount Vernon, Washington.
Interstate highway in Washington
2014
Seven people, including the perpetrator, are killed and another 14 injured in a killing spree near the campus of University of California, Santa Barbara.
Terrorist attacks in California, U.S.
2015
At least 30 people are killed as a result of floods and tornadoes in Texas, Oklahoma, and northern Mexico.
Wind and rainstorm in the south-central United States and Mexico
2016
Two suicide bombings, conducted by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, kill at least 45 potential army recruits in Aden, Yemen.
Salafi jihadist militant organisation
2016
Eight bombings are carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in Jableh and Tartus, coastline cities in Syria.
One hundred eighty-four people are killed and at least 200 people injured.
2017
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte declares martial law in Mindanao, following the Maute's attack in Marawi.
President of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022
2021
A cable car falls from a mountain near Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, killing 14 people.
2021 cable car disaster in Piedmont, Italy
2021
Ryanair Flight 4978 is forced to land by Belarusian authorities to detain dissident journalist Roman Protasevich.
2021 aviation incident in Belarus
2022
Anthony Albanese of the Australian Labor Party is sworn in as the 31st Prime Minister of Australia after winning the 2022 Australian federal election, ending 9 years of conservative rule.
Prime Minister of Australia since 2022