Who are famous people born on May 25?

Famous people born on May 25 include: Cam Ward, Chloé Lukasiak, Claire Liu.

What famous people died on May 25?

Notable historical figures who died on May 25 include: Sonny Rollins, Grayson Murray, Albert S. Ruddy.

May 25 in History

Q: What happened on May 25 in history?

On May 25, 2018: Ireland votes to repeal the Eighth Amendment of their constitution that prohibits abortion in all but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland.

2018 — Ireland votes to repeal the Eighth Amendment of their constitution that prohibits abortion in all but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland

May 25 spans 60 recorded events across recorded history — from 567 BC – 2018. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.

By thisDay.info Editorial Team · May 25 — Wikipedia

Historical Events 60 events 567 BC – 2018

Did you know

The Eighth Amendment was added to the Constitution of Ireland in 1983, following a national referendum in which it was approved by 67% of voters.

Did you know

The Thirty-sixth Amendment was approved by 66.4% of voters in the 25 May 2018 referendum.

Did you know

The Oireachtas is the national parliament of Ireland, composed of the President and the two Houses of the Oireachtas, which are the Dáil Éireann and the Seanad Éireann.

Did you know

Simon Harris, the Minister for Health, played a key role in the passage of the Thirty-sixth Amendment and the subsequent legislation regulating abortion in Ireland.

Did you know

The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 was signed into law by President Michael D. Higgins on 20 December 2018, implementing the provisions of the Thirty-sixth Amendment.

Servius Tullius, the king of Rome, celebrates a triumph for his victory over the Etruscans.

King of Rome from c. 578 to 535 BC

Servius Tullius was the legendary sixth king of Rome, and the second of its Etruscan dynasty. He reigned from 578 to 535 BC. Roman and Greek sources describe his servile origins and later marriage to a daughter of Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, Rome's first Etruscan king, who was assassinated in 579 BC. The constitutional basis for his accession is unclear; he is variously described as the first Roman king to accede without election by the Senate, having gained the throne by popular and royal support; and as the first to be elected by the Senate alone, with support of the reigning queen but without recourse to a popular vote.

-567

First recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet.

Either of two extreme points in a celestial object's orbit

An apsis is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. The line of apsides is the line connecting the two extreme values.

-240

Alfonso VI of Castile takes Toledo, Spain, back from the Moors after a siege.

Iberian King (c. 1040 – 1109)

Alfonso VI, nicknamed the Brave or the Valiant, was king of León (1065–1109), Galicia (1071–1109), and Castile (1072–1109).

1085

Henry the Navigator is appointed governor of the Order of Christ.

Portuguese prince and governor (1394–1460)

Prince Henry of Portugal, Duke of Viseu, better known in English as Prince Henry the Navigator, was a Portuguese prince, a central figure in the early days of the Portuguese Empire and 15th-century European maritime exploration. He is regarded as the main initiator of what would be known as the Age of Discovery. Henry was the third child of King John I of Portugal, who founded the House of Aviz.

1420

The Diet of Worms ends when Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, issues the Edict of Worms, declaring Martin Luther an outlaw.

Imperial assembly of the Holy Roman Empire (1521)

The Diet of Worms of 1521 was an imperial diet of the Holy Roman Empire called by Emperor Charles V and conducted in the Imperial Free City of Worms. Martin Luther was summoned to the diet in order to renounce or reaffirm his views in response to a Papal bull of Pope Leo X. In answer to questioning, he defended the views that had been criticized and refused to recant them. At the end of the diet, the Emperor issued the Edict of Worms, a decree which condemned Luther as "a notorious heretic" and banned citizens of the Empire from propagating his ideas. Although the Reformation is usually considered to have begun in 1517, this edict is the first overt schism associated with it.

1521

Ming general Wu Sangui forms an alliance with the invading Manchus and opens the gates of the Great Wall of China at Shanhaiguan pass, letting the Manchus through towards the capital Beijing.

Imperial dynasty of China (1368–1644)

The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of China ruled by the Han people, the majority ethnic group in China. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng, numerous rump regimes ruled by remnants of the Ming imperial family, collectively called the Southern Ming, survived until 1662.

1644

Richard Cromwell resigns as Lord Protector of England following the restoration of the Long Parliament, beginning a second brief period of the republican government called the Commonwealth of England.

English statesman (1626–1712)

Richard Cromwell was an English statesman who served as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1658 to 1659. He was the son of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell.

1659

Charles II lands at Dover at the invitation of the Convention Parliament, which marks the end of the Cromwell-proclaimed Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland and begins the Restoration of the British monarchy.

King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1660 to 1685

Charles II was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651 and King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685.

1660

A treaty between Pennsylvania and Maryland ends the Conojocular War with settlement of a boundary dispute and exchange of prisoners.

U.S. state

Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state located in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryland to its south, forming the Mason-Dixon Line, West Virginia to its southwest, Ohio to its west, the Canadian province of Ontario to its northwest via Lake Erie, New York to its north, and the Delaware River and New Jersey to its east. Pennsylvania's most populous city is Philadelphia, and the state capital is Harrisburg. Pennsylvania is the fifth-most populous state in the country, with over 13 million residents as of the 2020 United States census. Pennsylvania has the ninth-highest by population density, and is the 33rd-largest by land area. The largest metropolitan statistical area is the Philadelphia metropolitan area, also known as the Delaware Valley and centered on Philadelphia, the sixth-most populous U.S. city. Pennsylvania's second-largest metropolitan area, Greater Pittsburgh, is centered in and around Pittsburgh, the commonwealth's second-largest city.

1738

First issue of Norske Intelligenz-Seddeler, the first regular Norwegian newspaper (1763–1920).

Norwegian newspaper (1763–1920)

Norske Intelligenz-Seddeler is a former Norwegian newspaper issued in Oslo from 1763 to 1920. It was the first newspaper in Norway, and its first issue came out on 25 May 1763.

1763

After a delay of 11 days, the United States Constitutional Convention formally convenes in Philadelphia after a quorum of seven states is secured.

1787 meeting of U.S. state delegates

The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787. While the convention was initially intended to revise the league of states and the first system of federal government under the Articles of Confederation, leading proponents of the Constitutional Convention, including James Madison of Virginia and Alexander Hamilton of New York, sought to create a new frame of government rather than revise the existing one. Delegates elected George Washington of Virginia, former commanding general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War and a proponent of a stronger national government, to serve as president of the convention. While the Constitutional Convention has been the only Federal one, the fifty states have held 233 constitutional conventions. The 1787 convention ultimately debated and ratified the Constitution of the United States, making the convention one of the most significant events in American history.

1787

United Irishmen Rebellion: Battle of Carlow begins; executions of suspected rebels at Carnew and at Dunlavin Green take place.

Part of the French Revolutionary Wars

The Irish Rebellion of 1798 was a popular insurrection against the British Crown in what was then the separate, but subordinate, Kingdom of Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen. First formed in Belfast by Presbyterians opposed to the landed Anglican establishment, the Society, despairing of reform, sought to secure a republic through a revolutionary union with the country's Catholic majority. The grievances of a rack-rented tenantry drove recruitment.

1798

Outbreak of the Kabakçı Mustafa rebellion in response to intentions of sultan Selim III to reform the Ottoman army.

Rebel leader in the Ottoman Empire

Kabakçı Mustafa was a rebel leader who caused the delay of Ottoman reformation in the early 19th century.

1807

Chuquisaca Revolution: Patriot revolt in Chuquisaca (modern-day Sucre) against the Spanish Empire, sparking the Latin American wars of independence.

1809 popular uprising against Spanish colonial rule in Chuquisaca (now Sucre, Bolivia)

The Chuquisaca Revolution was a popular uprising on 25 May 1809 against Ramón García de León y Pizarro, Governor-intendant of the Intendancy of Chuquisaca. The Real Audiencia of Charcas, with support from the faculty of University of Saint Francis Xavier, deposed the governor and formed a junta. The revolution is known in Bolivia as the "First Cry of Freedom", meaning the first phase in the Spanish American Wars of Independence. The level of hostility against the Spanish Crown and news from both the American Revolution and the French Revolution has made historians dispute whether such a description is accurate. However, accounts depict it as the first step towards liberty in Latin America against the Spanish Crown.

1809

May Revolution: Citizens of Buenos Aires expel Viceroy Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros during the "May Week", starting the Argentine War of Independence.

1810 revolution in Buenos Aires

The May Revolution was a week-long series of events that took place from 18 to 25 May 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the territories of present-day Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and parts of Brazil. The result was the removal of Viceroy Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros and the establishment of a local government, the Primera Junta, on 25 May.

1810

The Argentine Constitution of 1819 is promulgated.

Proposed constitution of Argentina shortly after its independence from Spain

The Argentine Constitution of 1819 was a Constitution drafted by the Congress of Tucumán in 1819, shortly after the Argentine War of Independence. It was promoted by Buenos Aires but rejected by the other provinces and did not come into force.

1819

The Chilean Constitution of 1833 is promulgated.

Fundamental law of Chile from 1833 to 1925

The Constitution of 1833 was the constitution used in Chile from 1833 to 1925 when it was replaced by the Constitution of 1925. One of the most long-lived constitutions of Latin America, it was used to endorse both an authoritarian, presidential system and from 1891 onwards an oligarchic, parliamentary system.

1833

In Mobile, Alabama, around 300 people are killed when an ordnance depot explodes.

City in Alabama, United States

Mobile is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 census and estimated at 204,689 following an annexation in 2023, making it the second-most populous city in Alabama. The Mobile metropolitan area, with an estimated 412,000 people, is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the state.

1865

Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera H.M.S.

Pinafore opens at the Opera Comique in London.

Gilbert and Sullivan were a Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert and composer Arthur Sullivan. The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado are among the best known. The producer Richard D'Oyly Carte brought Gilbert and Sullivan together and nurtured their collaboration. He built the Savoy Theatre in 1881 to present their joint works and founded the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, which performed and promoted Gilbert and Sullivan's works for more than a century.

1878

Playwright, poet and novelist Oscar Wilde is convicted of "committing acts of gross indecency with other male persons" and sentenced to serve two years in prison.

Irish writer (1854–1900)

Oscar Fingal O'Fflahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish author, poet and playwright. After writing in different literary styles throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular and influential dramatists in London in the early 1890s. He was a key figure in the emerging Aestheticism movement of the late 19th century and is widely regarded the greatest playwright of the Victorian era. Wilde is best known for his Gothic novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890), his epigrams, plays and bedtime stories for children, as well as his criminal conviction in 1895 for gross indecency and for practicing homosexual acts.

1895

The Republic of Formosa is formed, with Tang Jingsong as its president.

1895 unrecognized state in Taiwan

The Republic of Formosa was a short-lived unrecognized state that existed on the island of Taiwan in 1895 during the interregnum between the formal cession of Taiwan by the Qing dynasty of China to the Empire of Japan after the Treaty of Shimonoseki. The Republic lasted for 151 days; it was proclaimed on 23 May 1895 and extinguished on 21 October, when its capital of Tainan was taken over by the Japanese and they established control on the island.

1895

The House of Commons of the United Kingdom passes the Home Rule Bill for devolution in Ireland.

Lower house of the UK Parliament

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 members known as members of Parliament (MPs), who are elected to represent constituencies by the first-past-the-post system and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved.

1914

Scopes Trial: John T.

Scopes is indicted for teaching human evolution in Tennessee.

The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes, commonly known as the Scopes trial or Scopes Monkey Trial, was an American legal case from July 10 to July 21, 1925, in which a high school teacher, John T. Scopes, was accused of violating the Butler Act, a Tennessee state law which outlawed the teaching of human evolution in public schools. The trial was deliberately staged in order to attract publicity to the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, where it was held. Scopes was unsure whether he had ever actually taught evolution, but he incriminated himself deliberately so the case could have a defendant. Scopes was represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, which had offered to defend anyone accused of violating the Butler Act in an effort to challenge the constitutionality of the law.

1925

Sholom Schwartzbard assassinates Symon Petliura, the head of the government of the Ukrainian People's Republic, which is in government-in-exile in Paris.

Russo-French anarchist poet and assassin (1886–1938)

Samuel "Sholem" Schwarzbard was a Bessarabian-born Russian-French Yiddish poet. He served in the French and Soviet military, was a communist and anarchist, and is known for organising Jewish community defense against pogroms in the pre-First World War era and the Russian Civil War era in Ukraine, and for the assassination of Ukrainian nationalist leader Symon Petliura in 1926. He wrote poetry in Yiddish under the pen name of Baal-Khaloymes.

1926

The Walt Disney Company cartoon Three Little Pigs premieres at Radio City Music Hall, featuring the hit song "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?"

American media and entertainment conglomerate

The Walt Disney Company, commonly and globally known as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Founded on October 16, 1923, as an animation studio by brothers Walt Disney and Roy Oliver Disney as Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Disney operated under the names Walt Disney Studio and Walt Disney Productions before adopting its current name in 1986. In 1928, Disney established itself as a leader in the animation industry with the short film Steamboat Willie. The film used synchronized sound to become the first post-produced sound cartoon, and popularized Mickey Mouse, who became Disney's mascot and corporate icon.

1933

Jesse Owens of Ohio State University breaks three world records and ties a fourth at the Big Ten Conference Track and Field Championships in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

American track and field athlete (1913–1980)

James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens was an American track and field athlete who made history at the 1936 Olympic Games by winning four gold medals, setting Olympic records in each event. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes in track and field history.

1935

Spanish Civil War: The bombing of Alicante kills 313 people.

1936–1939 civil war in Spain

The Spanish Civil War was fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republicans and the Nationalist rebels. Republicans loyal to the left-leaning Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic included socialists, anarchists, communists, and separatists, supported by the Soviet Union. The opposing Nationalists were an alliance of fascist Falangists, monarchists, conservatives, and traditionalists, supported by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Initially led by a military junta, until General Francisco Franco was appointed supreme leader on 1 October 1936 of what he called the Spanish State. Due to the international political climate at the time, the war was variously viewed as class struggle, religious struggle, or struggle between republican democracy and dictatorship, revolution and counterrevolution, or between fascism and communism. The Nationalists won the war in early 1939, and ruled Spain until Franco's death in November 1975.

1938

World War II: The German 2nd Panzer Division captures the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer; the surrender of the last French and British troops marks the end of the Battle of Boulogne.

1939–1945 global conflict

World War II, or the Second World War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, the latter enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the only nuclear weapons used in war. World War II was the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 60 to 75 million people. Millions died as a result of massacres, starvation, disease, and genocides, including the Holocaust. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.

1940

The Emirate of Transjordan becomes independent from the United Kingdom as the Hashemite Kingdom of Transjordan after ratifying the Treaty of London and making their Amir, Abdullah I, their King.

British protectorate from 1921 to 1946

The Emirate of Transjordan, officially the Amirate of Trans-Jordan, was a British protectorate under the League of Nations mandate established on 11 April 1921, which remained as such until achieving formal independence as the Kingdom of Transjordan in 1946.

1946

Nuclear weapons testing: At the Nevada Test Site, the United States conducts its first and only nuclear artillery test.

Controlled detonation of nuclear weapons for scientific or political purposes

Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the performance of nuclear weapons and the effects of their explosion. Over 2,000 nuclear weapons tests have been carried out since 1945. Nuclear testing is a sensitive political issue. Governments have often performed tests to signal strength. Because of their destruction and fallout, testing has seen opposition by civilians as well as governments, with international bans having been agreed on. Thousands of tests have been performed, with most in the second half of the 20th century.

1953

The first public television station in the United States officially begins broadcasting as KUHT from the campus of the University of Houston.

Electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service

Public broadcasting is radio, television, and other electronic media whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive funding from public financing, license fees, individual contributions and donations, commercial advertising and corporate underwriting.

1953

In the United States, a night-time F5 tornado strikes the small city of Udall, Kansas as part of a larger outbreak across the Great Plains, killing 80 and injuring 273.

It is the deadliest tornado ever to occur in the state and the 23rd deadliest in the U.S.

The Fujita scale, or Fujita–Pearson scale, is a retired scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation. The official Fujita scale category is determined by meteorologists and engineers after a ground or aerial damage survey, or both; and depending on the circumstances, ground-swirl patterns, weather radar data, witness testimonies, media reports and damage imagery, as well as photogrammetry or videogrammetry if motion picture recording is available. The Fujita scale, named for the meteorologist Ted Fujita, was replaced with the Enhanced Fujita scale (EF-Scale) in the United States in February 2007. In April 2013, Canada adopted the EF-Scale over the Fujita scale along with 31 "Specific Damage Indicators" used by Environment Canada (EC) in their ratings.

1955

First ascent of Mount Kangchenjunga: On the British Kangchenjunga expedition led by Charles Evans, Joe Brown and George Band reach the summit of the third-highest mountain in the world (8,586 meters); Norman Hardie and Tony Streather join them the following day.

3rd-highest mountain on Earth

Kangchenjunga is the third-highest mountain in the world. Its summit lies at 8,586 m (28,169 ft) in a section of the Himalayas, the Kangchenjunga Himal, which is bounded in the west by the Tamur River, in the north by the Lhonak River and Jongsang La, and in the east by the Teesta River. It lies in the border region between Koshi Province of Nepal and Sikkim state of India, with the West and Kangbachen peaks located in Nepal's Taplejung District and the Main, Central and South peaks directly on the border.

1955

Apollo program: U.S.

President John F. Kennedy announces, before a special joint session of the U.S. Congress, that the United States "should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth."

The Apollo program, also known as Project Apollo, was the United States human spaceflight program led by NASA, which landed the first humans on the Moon in 1969. Apollo was conceived in 1960 in the Dwight D. Eisenhower presidency during Project Mercury and executed after Project Gemini. Apollo was later dedicated to President John F. Kennedy's national goal, "before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" in his address to the U.S. Congress on May 25, 1961.

1961

The Organisation of African Unity is established in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

African international body (1963–2002)

The Organisation of African Unity was an African intergovernmental organisation established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 33 signatory governments. Some of the key aims of the OAU were to encourage political and economic integration among member states, and to eradicate colonialism and neo-colonialism from the African continent.

1963

Explorer program: Explorer 32 launches.

Ongoing NASA space exploration program

The Explorers Program is a NASA exploration program that provides flight opportunities for physics, geophysics, heliophysics, and astrophysics investigations from space. Launched in 1958, Explorer 1 was the first spacecraft of the United States to achieve orbit. Over 90 space missions have been launched since. Starting with Explorer 6, it has been operated by NASA, with regular collaboration with a variety of other institutions, including many international partners.

1966

The Gateway Arch in St.

Louis, Missouri, is dedicated.

The Gateway Arch is a 630-foot-tall (192 m) monument in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a weighted catenary arch, it is the world's tallest arch, Missouri's tallest accessible structure, and no building can be taller than the arch in the St. Louis area. Some sources consider it the tallest human-made monument in the Western Hemisphere. Built as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States and officially dedicated to "the American people", the Arch, commonly referred to as "The Gateway to the West", is a National Historic Landmark in Gateway Arch National Park and has become a popular tourist destination, as well as an internationally recognized symbol of St. Louis.

1968

Joetha Collier, a recent high school graduate, is killed in a shooting in Drew, Mississippi, attracting extensive attention from the media and civil rights activists.

1971 homicide in the United States

Joetha Collier was an American high school student who was shot and killed on the night of her graduation in Drew, Mississippi, United States. The killing, which was committed by a White American against an African American, drew widespread media attention and the attention of several civil rights activists.

1971

In protest against the dictatorship in Greece, the captain and crew on Greek naval destroyer Velos mutiny and refuse to return to Greece, instead anchoring at Fiumicino, Italy.

Military rulers of Greece, 1967–1974

The Greek junta or Regime of the Colonels was a right-wing military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. On 21 April 1967, a group of colonels overthrew a caretaker government a month before scheduled elections which Georgios Papandreou's Centre Union was favoured to win.

1973

Star Wars (retroactively titled Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope) is released in US theaters.

1977 film by George Lucas

Star Wars is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. Produced by Lucasfilm Ltd. and distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox, it is the first film in the Star Wars franchise and the fourth chronological chapter of the "Skywalker Saga". Set in a fictional galaxy under the rule of the tyrannical Galactic Empire, the film follows a resistance movement, called the Rebel Alliance, that aims to destroy the Empire's ultimate weapon, the Death Star. When the rebel leader Princess Leia is captured by the Galactic Empire, Luke Skywalker acquires stolen architectural plans for the Death Star and sets out to rescue her while learning the ways of a metaphysical power known as "the Force" from the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi. The film stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Alec Guinness, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, and James Earl Jones.

1977

The Chinese government removes a decade-old ban on William Shakespeare's work, effectively ending the Cultural Revolution started in 1966.

English playwright and poet (1564–1616)

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" or simply "the Bard". His extant works, including collaborations, consist of some 39 plays, 154 sonnets, three long narrative poems and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Shakespeare remains arguably the most influential writer in the English language, and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted.

1977

The first of a series of bombings orchestrated by the Unabomber detonates at Northwestern University resulting in minor injuries.

American domestic terrorist (1942–2023)

Theodore John Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, was an American mathematician and domestic terrorist. A mathematics prodigy, he abandoned his academic career in 1969 to pursue a reclusive primitive lifestyle and lone wolf terrorism campaign.

1978

John Spenkelink, a convicted murderer, is executed in Florida; he is the first person to be executed in the state after the reintroduction of capital punishment in 1976.

American murderer (1949–1979)

John Arthur Spenkelink was an American convicted murderer. He was executed in 1979, the first convicted criminal to be executed in Florida after capital punishment was reinstated in 1976, and the second in the United States as well as the first involuntarily executed in about 14 years.

1979

American Airlines Flight 191: A McDonnell Douglas DC-10 crashes during takeoff at O'Hare International Airport, Chicago, killing all 271 on board and two people on the ground.

1979 aviation accident in Chicago, Illinois

American Airlines Flight 191 was a regularly scheduled domestic passenger flight from O'Hare International Airport in Chicago to Los Angeles International Airport. On the afternoon of May 25, 1979, the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 operating this flight was taking off from then-existing runway 32R at O'Hare International when its left engine detached from the wing, causing a loss of control. The aircraft crashed about 4,600 feet (1,400 m) from the end of runway 32R. All 271 occupants on board were killed on impact, along with two people on the ground, making it the deadliest aviation accident to have occurred in the United States.

1979

In Riyadh, the Gulf Cooperation Council is created between Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia

Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in the 1950s as an expansion of the 18th-century walled town, following the dismantling of its defensive fortifications.

1981

Falklands War: HMS Coventry is sunk by Argentine Air Force A-4 Skyhawks.

1982 undeclared Argentina–United Kingdom war

The Falklands War was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial dependency, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The conflict began on 2 April 1982, when Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands, followed by the invasion of South Georgia the next day. On 5 April the British government dispatched a naval task force to engage the Argentine Navy and Air Force before making an amphibious assault on the islands. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended with an Argentine surrender on 14 June, returning the islands to British control. In total, 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British military personnel, and 3 Falkland Islanders were killed during the hostilities.

1982

Bangladesh is hit by a tropical cyclone and storm surge, which kills approximately 10,000 people.

Country in South Asia

Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world and among the most densely populated with a population of almost 176 million within an area of 148,460 square kilometres (57,320 sq mi). Bangladesh shares land borders with India to the north, west, and east, and Myanmar to the southeast. It has a coastline along the Bay of Bengal to its south and is separated from Bhutan and Nepal by the Siliguri Corridor, and from China by the Indian state of Sikkim to its north. Dhaka, the capital and largest city, is the nation's political, financial, and cultural centre. Chittagong is the second-largest city and the busiest port of the country.

1985

The Hands Across America event takes place.

1986 American public fundraising event

Hands Across America was a public fundraising event held on Sunday, May 25, 1986, Memorial Day weekend, which attempted to create a continuous human chain of people holding hands across the contiguous United States. While approximately 5 million people participated, the chain was broken in many places, particularly in the Southwestern desert. The number of participants would have been roughly sufficient to create an unbroken chain if they had been spread out evenly along the planned route, but most joined the chain in major cities and few traveled to more remote areas. The various gaps in the line between participants were filled using ribbons, ropes, or banners.

1986

A military coup in Sierra Leone replaces President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah with Major Johnny Paul Koroma.

Illegal attempt to unseat an incumbent

A coup d'état, or simply a coup, is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent person or leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to power through legal means, tries to stay in power through illegal means.

1997

The United States House of Representatives releases the Cox Report which details China's nuclear espionage against the U.S.

over the prior two decades.

The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of the U.S. Constitution in enumerated matters to pass or defeat federal legislation, known as bills. Those that are also passed by the Senate are sent to the president for signature or veto. The House's exclusive powers include initiating all revenue bills, impeaching federal officers, and electing the president if no candidate receives a majority of votes in the Electoral College.

1999

Liberation Day of Lebanon: Israel withdraws its army from Lebanese territory (with the exception of the disputed Shebaa farms zone) 18 years after the invasion of 1982.

National holiday in Lebanon on 25 May

Resistance and Liberation Day is a Lebanese holiday celebrated on May 25.

2000

Erik Weihenmayer becomes the first blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, in the Himalayas, with Dr.

Sherman Bull.

Erik Weihenmayer is an American athlete, adventurer, author, activist and motivational speaker. He was the first blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, on May 25, 2001. Due to this accomplishment he was featured on the cover of Time magazine. He completed the Seven Summits in September 2002, one of only 150 mountaineers at the time to do so, but the only blind climber to achieve this feat. In 2008, he also added the Carstensz Pyramid thus completing the Eight Summits. Weihenmayer has also made noteworthy climbs up the Nose of El Capitan in Yosemite in 1996, and ascended Losar, a 2,700-foot (820 m) vertical ice face in the Himalayas in 2008.

2001

China Airlines Flight 611 disintegrates in mid-air and crashes into the Taiwan Strait, with the loss of all 225 people on board.

2002 aviation accident in the Taiwan Strait

China Airlines Flight 611 was a regularly scheduled international passenger flight from Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan to Hong Kong International Airport that disintegrated midair and crashed into the Taiwan Strait, 23 nautical miles northeast of the Penghu Islands, 20 minutes after takeoff, killing all 225 people on board. The in-flight breakup was caused by metal fatigue cracks from a tail strike at Kai Tak Airport on 7 of February 1980 after which the aircraft was not properly repaired according to Boeing policies and manuals. Metal fatigue from over 22 years of service and repeated depressurizations caused tiny cracks that led to the aircraft's breakup.

2002

NASA's Phoenix lander touches down in the Green Valley region of Mars to search for environments suitable for water and microbial life.

American space and aeronautics agency

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the United States' civil space program and for research in aeronautics and space. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., NASA operates ten field centers across the U.S. and is organized into three mission directorates: Human Spaceflight, Research and Technology, and Science. Established in 1958 amid the Space Race, NASA succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to give the U.S. space program a distinct civilian orientation focused on peaceful applications. Since then, it has led most American spaceflight programs, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the Apollo program, Skylab, the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station (ISS) and the ongoing multi-national Artemis program.

2008

North Korea allegedly tests its second nuclear device, after which Pyongyang also conducts several missile tests, building tensions in the international community.

Country in East Asia

North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu (Amnok) and Tumen rivers, and South Korea to the south at the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The country's western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eastern border is defined by the Sea of Japan. Pyongyang is the capital and largest city.

2009

Oprah Winfrey airs her last show, ending her 25-year run of The Oprah Winfrey Show.

American media personality and proprietor (born 1954)

Oprah Gail Winfrey is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, broadcast from Chicago, which ran in national syndication for 25 years, from 1986 to 2011. Globally, she is the richest Black woman and the wealthiest female celebrity. Dubbed the "Queen of All Media", she was the richest African-American of the 20th century and was once the world's only Black billionaire. By 2007, she was often ranked as the most influential woman in the world and in 2026 was named the greatest living self-made American.

2011

The SpaceX Dragon 1 becomes the first commercial spacecraft to successfully rendezvous and berth with the International Space Station.

Partially reusable cargo space capsule

SpaceX Dragon 1 is a class of fourteen partially reusable cargo spacecraft developed by SpaceX, an American private space transportation company. The spacecraft flew 23 missions between 2010 and 2020. Dragon was launched into orbit by the company's Falcon 9 launch vehicle to resupply the International Space Station (ISS). It was succeeded by the Dragon 2 spacecraft which has both crewed and cargo versions.

2012

Suspected Maoist rebels kill at least 28 people and injure 32 others in an attack on a convoy of Indian National Congress politicians in Chhattisgarh, India.

Communist ideology

Naxalism is the communist ideology of the Naxalites or Naxals, a grouping of political and insurgent groups from India. It is influenced by Maoist political sentiment and ideology.

2013

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) becomes enforceable in the European Union.

EU regulation on information privacy

The General Data Protection Regulation, abbreviated GDPR, is a European Union regulation on information privacy in the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). The GDPR is an important component of EU privacy law and human rights law, in particular Article 8(1) of the Charter of Fundapean Union. It also governs the transfer of personal data outside the EU and EEA. The GDPR's goals are to enhance individuals' control and rights over their personal information and to simplify the regulations for international business. It supersedes the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC and, among other things, simplifies the terminology.

2018

Born on May 25

20 people 1986 – 2002

Cam Ward

American football player

Cameron Anthony Ward is an American professional football quarterback for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Incarnate Word Cardinals, Washington State…

2002

Chloé Lukasiak

American actress and dancer

Chloe Elizabeth Lukasiak is an American actress, dancer, author, and media personality. She earned recognition as a child, appearing on Lifetime's reality show Dance Moms and becoming a fan favorite. After departing…

2001

Claire Liu

American tennis player

Claire Liu is an American professional tennis player. On 30 January 2023, she reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 52.

2000

Brec Bassinger

American actress

Brec Bassinger is an American actress. She began her career as a teenager and received recognition for her leading role in the Nickelodeon comedy series Bella and the Bulldogs (2015–2016). She then starred in the horror…

1999

Ibrahima Konaté

French footballer

Ibrahima Konaté is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Liverpool and the France national team.

1999

David Pastrňák

Czech ice hockey player

David Pastrňák is a Czech professional ice hockey player who is a right winger and alternate captain for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Pasta", Pastrňák was selected by the Bruins in…

1996

Kagiso Rabada

South African cricketer

Kagiso Rabada is a South African international cricketer who plays all formats of the game. He is a right arm fast bowler. He made his international debut in November 2014 in limited-overs cricket before going on to…

1995

Matt Murray

Canadian ice hockey player

Matthew Murray is a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is a goaltender for the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL). Murray was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third round of the 2012…

1994

Aly Raisman

American gymnast

Alexandra Rose Raisman is an American retired artistic gymnast and two-time Olympian. She was captain of both the 2012 "Fierce Five" and 2016 "Final Five" U.S. women's Olympic gymnastics teams, which won their…

1994

James Porter

English cricketer

James Alexander Porter is an English cricketer who has played for Essex since 2014. A right arm medium-fast bowler, he is the leading wicket taker in the club's first class record.

1993

Norman Powell

American basketball player

Norman WC Powell is an American and Jamaican professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Powell played college basketball with the UCLA Bruins, where he was an…

1993

Bo Dallas

American wrestler

Taylor Michael Rotunda is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenures in WWE from 2008 to 2021 and again from 2022 to 2026, where he performed under the ring names Bo Dallas and his alter ego…

1990

Nikita Filatov

Russian ice hockey player

Nikita Vasilyevich Filatov is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who was a left winger in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Prior to 2012, Filatov played in North America for the Ottawa Senators and…

1990

Dávid Škutka

Slovak footballer

Dávid Škutka is a Slovak football striker.

1988

Cameron van der Burgh

South African swimmer

Cameron van der Burgh OIS is a retired South African competitive swimmer and hedge fund analyst. He is Africa's first home-trained world record holder and individual male Olympic champion. He is married to longtime…

1988

Timothy Derijck

Belgian footballer

Timothy Derijck is a Belgian football coach and former professional footballer who played as a centre-back and current assistant coach of KAA Gent.

1987

Yves De Winter

Belgian footballer

Yves De Winter is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

1987

Moritz Stehling

German footballer

Moritz Frederick Stehling is a German professional footballer, who plays in the RFCU Kelmis.

1987

Kamil Stoch

Polish ski jumper

Kamil Wiktor Stoch is a Polish former ski jumper. He is one of the most successful ski jumpers in the history of the sport, having won two World Cup titles, three Four Hills Tournaments, three individual gold medals at…

1987

Edewin Fanini

Brazilian footballer

Edewin Fanini Maria is an Italian Brazilian footballer for CENE. His maternal ancestor was from Veneto. He had a younger brother, Endrew Fanini Maria.

1986

See all birthdays on May 25

Died on May 25

20 people 2014 – 2026

Sonny Rollins

American jazz musician (born 1930)

Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians.

2026

Grayson Murray

American professional golfer (born 1993)

Grayson Colby Murray was an American professional golfer. He won two PGA Tour events: the 2017 Barbasol Championship and the 2024 Sony Open in Hawaii.

2024

Albert S. Ruddy

Canadian film producer (born 1930)

Albert Stotland Ruddy was a Canadian-born American producer and screenwriter of film and television. He was known for producing the films The Godfather (1972) and Million Dollar Baby (2004), both of which won him the…

2024

Richard M. Sherman

American songwriter (born 1928)

Richard Morton Sherman was an American songwriter who specialized in musical films with his brother Robert B. Sherman. According to the official Walt Disney Company website and independent fact checkers, "The Sherman…

2024

Johnny Wactor

American actor (born 1986)

John William Wactor III was an American actor known for playing Brando Corbin on the series General Hospital and Johnny on the NBC series Siberia. He also had roles in the series Army Wives and the films USS…

2024

Joy McKean

Australian country music singer-songwriter (born 1930)

Mildred Geraldine Joy Kirkpatrick, was an Australian country music singer-songwriter and wife and manager of Slim Dusty. Her daughter is country singer and musician Anne Kirkpatrick.

2023

Morton L. Janklow

American literary agent (born 1930)

Morton Lloyd Janklow was an American literary agent, the primary partner in Janklow & Nesbit Associates, a New York–based literary agency. His clients included Barbara Taylor Bradford, Thomas Harris, Judith Krantz, Pope…

2022

John Warner

American attorney and politician (born 1927)

John William Warner III was an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States senator from Virginia from 1979 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the U.S. secretary of the…

2021

Lois Ehlert

American author and illustrator (born 1934)

Lois Jane Ehlert was an American author and illustrator of children's books, most having to do with nature. Ehlert won the Caldecott Honor for Color Zoo in 1990. Some of her other popular works included Chicka Chicka…

2021

George Floyd

African American man murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin (born 1973)

George Perry Floyd Jr. was an African American man who was murdered by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during an arrest made after a store clerk suspected Floyd had used a counterfeit twenty-dollar…

2020

Claus von Bülow

Danish-British socialite (born 1926)

Claus von Bülow was a British lawyer, consultant and socialite. In 1982, he was convicted of attempting to murder his wife Sunny von Bülow in 1979, which had left her in a temporary coma, and in 1980, when an alleged…

2019

Kaduvetti Guru

Indian politician and Veera Vanniyar caste leader (born 1961)

J. Guru, also known as Kaduvetti Guru, was an Indian politician who was twice elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly in Tamil Nadu. He was the president of the Vanniyar Sangam, a caste-based organization that…

2018

George Braden

Canadian lawyer and politician, 2nd Premier of the Northwest Territories (born 1949)

George Braden was a Canadian politician from the Northwest Territories, Canada. Elected as "Government Leader", Braden would retroactively become the second premier of the Northwest Territories, after a motion was…

2015

Robert Lebel

Canadian bishop (born 1924)

Robert Lebel was a Canadian Catholic bishop.

2015

David Allen

English cricketer (born 1935)

David Arthur Allen was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Gloucestershire between 1953 and 1972. He also played 39 Test matches for England between 1960 and 1966.

2014

Marcel Côté

Canadian economist and politician (born 1942)

Marcel Côté was a Canadian economist and politician. He was a founding partner of SECOR, a strategic management consulting firm. On July 3, 2013, he announced his candidacy for Mayor of Montreal in the 2013 Montreal…

2014

Wojciech Jaruzelski

Polish general and politician, 1st President of Poland (born 1923)

Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski was a Polish military general, politician and de facto leader of the Polish People's Republic from 1981 until 1989, and a military dictator from 13 December 1981 until 22 July 1983. He was the…

2014

Herb Jeffries

American singer and actor (born 1913)

Herb Jeffries was an American actor of film and television and popular music and jazz singer-songwriter, known for his baritone voice.

2014

Toaripi Lauti

Tuvaluan educator and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Tuvalu (born 1928)

Sir Toaripi Lauti was a Tuvaluan politician who served as chief minister of the Colony of Tuvalu (1975–78), as the first prime minister following Tuvalu's independence (1978–1981) and governor-general of Tuvalu…

2014

Matthew Saad Muhammad

American boxer and trainer (born 1954)

Matthew Saad Muhammad was an American professional boxer who was the WBC Light Heavyweight Champion of the World for two-and-a-half years.

2014

See all deaths on May 25

What happened on May 25 in history?

On May 25, one notable event in history was 2018: Ireland votes to repeal the Eighth Amendment of their constitution that prohibits abortion in all but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland..

This date currently highlights 60 recorded events on thisDay.info, spanning 567 BC – 2018.

DateMay 25

Featured year2018

Locationall but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland

Events listed60

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May 25 in History

2018 — Ireland votes to repeal the Eighth Amendment of their constitution that prohibits abortion in all but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland

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May 25 in History

2018 — Ireland votes to repeal the Eighth Amendment of their constitution that prohibits abortion in all but a few cases, choosing to replace it with the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland

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Died on May 25

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