On This Day

• The Cold War

  April 24, 1948
  

  After the Soviets cut off the Allied controlled zones of the city of Berlin from the West, the Berlin Airlift begins, bringing food and other supplies to the West Berliners.

• Military History

  April 25, 1980
  

  President Jimmy Carter announces the disaster of Operation Eagle Claw, the failed mission to rescue the American hostages held in Iran.

• Spanish Civil War

  April 26, 1937
  

  During the Spanish Civil War, Germany tests out its powerful new air force – The Luftwaffe – by bombing the Spanish town of Guernica.

• Military History

  April 27, 1822
  

  Ulysses S. Grant, general and 18th President of the United States, is born in Point Pleasant, OH

• World War II European Theater

  April 28, 1945
  

  Benito Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci are shot by Italian partisans and their bodies are hung up in a square in Milan.

• World War II European Theater

  April 29, 1945
  

  U.S. forces liberate Dachau, the first concentration camp established by Nazi Germany.

• U.S. Military History

  April 30, 1789
  

  George Washington – the great General of the War for Independence – is inaugurated as the first President of the United States.

• World War II European Theater

  May 1, 1945
  

  Hamburg Radio announced that Adolf Hitler is dead. Admiral Doenitz is named the new Fuhrer of the Third Reich.

• World War II European Theater

  May 2, 1945
  

  Soviet General Georgy Zhukov accepts the surrender of the German Capitol.

• The Civil War

  May 3, 1863
  

  Confederate President Stonewall Jackson’s arm is amputated and buried. He was severely wounded when mistakenly shot by his own troops.

• Military History

  May 4, 1626
  

  Dutch explorer Peter Minuit lands on Manhattan Island in the New World. The island is later bought from the Indians and Minuit becomes the Director General of the New-Netherlands.

• U.S. Military History

  May 5, 1866
  

  The village of Waterloo, NY holds the first Memorial Day commemoration in the United States.

• Military History

  May 6, 1937
  

  In Lakehurst, New Jersey, the German airship the Hindenburg – the pride of Nazi Germany - burst into flames upon landing killing 36 passengers and crew.

• World War II European Theater

  May 7, 1945
  

  German General Alfred Jodl signs the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allied forces.

• The Iraq War

  May 8, 2005
  

  In Western Iraq, Operation Matador rages in the city of Al Qaim and the nearby towns to clear the area of insurgents and interdict the ‘ratlines’ bringing weapons in from Syria.

• U.S. Military History

  May 9, 1916
  

  General John Pershing leads an Army expedition into Mexico to try and capture or kill the Mexican bandit Pancho Villa.

• The Civil War

  May 10, 1865
  

  Jefferson Davis, fallen president of the Confederate States, is captured with his wife in Georgia.

• U.S. Military History

  May 11, 1846
  

  The United States congress declares war on Mexico at the request of President James Polk.

• The Cold War

  May 12, 1949
  

  The Soviet Union lifts its 11 month blockade of West Berlin ending one of the first serious crises of the Cold War.

• The Civil War

  May 13, 1865
  

  The last battle of the Civil War, fought in Texas, ends in a Confederate victory. Soon after they hear the confederates surrendered.

• The Cold War

  May 14, 1955
  

  The Soviet Union and seven of its European satellite states meet in Warsaw Poland and sign the Warsaw Pact, giving the Soviet Army control over member states armies.

• U.S. Military History

  May 15, 1756
  

  The Seven Years War, also known as the French and Indian War, officially begins when England declares war on France.

• Vietnam War

  May 16, 1965
  

  First US gunfire support in Vietnam War from the USS Tucker.

• U.S. Military History

  May 17, 1885
  

  For the second time in two years, the Apache Chief Geronimo breaks out of an Arizona reservation spreading panic among Arizona settlers.

• U.S. Military History

  May 18, 1942
  

  New York ended all night baseball games until the end of World War II.

• Afghanistan War

  May 19, 2002
  

  In Afghanistan, Operation Mountain Lion began in an attempt to seal off the border.

• Afghanistan War

  May 19, 2002
  

  In Afghanistan, Operation Mountain Lion began in an attempt to seal off the border.

• The Civil War

  May 20, 1864
  

  The Civil War campaign of Spotsylvania, Virginia end with over 10,000 dead or wounded.

• World War II European Theater

  May 21, 1940
  

  Hitler’s Nazi Forces surround the British at Dunkirk, prompting their retreat across the English Channel.

• World War II European Theater

  May 22, 1930
  

  Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini sign the ‘Pact of Steel’, forming the Axis Powers in Europe.

• U.S. Military History

  May 23, 1988
  

  The V-22 Osprey – the world’s first tilt rotor aircraft – makes its debut during a ceremony in Arlington, Texas.