In Iran, a helicopter crash killed eight people, including President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
19 May 1921
A Thursday in history
Weekday
Thursday
Season
Spring (N. Hemisphere)
Century
20th century
Records
374
2024
2018The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (both pictured) took place at St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle, England.
2015A corroded pipeline near Refugio State Beach, California, spilled 142,800 gallons (3,400 barrels) of crude oil onto the Gaviota Coast.
2010In Bangkok, the Thai military concluded a week-long crackdown on widespread protests by forcing the surrender of opposition leaders.
- 1997
The Sierra Gorda Biosphere, which encompasses the most ecologically diverse region in Mexico, was established as a result of grassroots efforts.
1991Breakup of Yugoslavia: With the local Serb population boycotting the referendum, Croatians voted in favour of independence from Yugoslavia.
1962Actress Marilyn Monroe performed a sultry rendition of "Happy Birthday to You" during a televised celebration for U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
1915First World War: Australian and New Zealand troops repelled the third attack on Anzac Cove, inflicting heavy casualties on the attacking Ottoman forces.
1845Captain John Franklin (pictured) departed Greenhithe, England, on an expedition to the Canadian Arctic in search of the Northwest Passage; all 129 men were later lost when their ships became icebound in Victoria Strait.
1828The United States Congress passed the largest tariff in the nation's history, which resulted in severe economic hardship in the American South.
1780A combination of thick smoke, fog, and heavy cloud cover caused darkness to fall on parts of Canada and the New England area of the United States by noon.
1776American Revolutionary War: A Continental Army garrison west of Montreal surrendered to British troops at the Battle of the Cedars.
1743French physicist Jean-Pierre Christin published the design of a mercury thermometer using the centigrade scale, with 0 representing the melting point of water and 100 its boiling point.
1674John III Sobieski (pictured) was elected by the szlachta as the monarch of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
1655Anglo-Spanish War: English forces invaded Jamaica, then administered by Spain as the Colony of Santiago, and captured it a week later.
715Gregory II began his pontificate; his conflict with Byzantine emperor Leo III eventually led to the establishment of the temporal power of the pope.
Photo archive
24 historic images from this day — tap to open the gallery.
What was life like?
Prices, jobs, food, music and everyday routine — the world as it felt to live in.
Sources & fact check
Every claim is traced to primary sources, archives, universities and the press — with an explicit confidence rating. Dossiers are generated once and cached permanently.