Events
1453 - Mehmed II begins his siege of Constantinople (Istanbul), which falls on May 29.
1513 - Juan Ponce de Leon sets foot on Florida becoming the first European known to do so.
1755 - Commodore William James captures the pirate fortress of Suvarnadurg on west coast of India.
1792 - The Coinage Act is passed establishing the United States Mint.
1801 - Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Copenhagen – The British destroy the Danish fleet.
1804 - Forty merchantmen are wrecked when a convoy led by HMS;Apollo runs aground off Portugal.
1810 - Napoleon Bonaparte marries Archduchess Marie Louise of Austria.
1863 - Richmond Bread Riot: Food shortages incite hundreds of angry women to riot in Richmond, Virginia and demand that the Confederate government release emergency supplies.
1865 - American Civil War: The Siege of Petersburg is broken – Union troops capture the trenches around Petersburg, Virginia, forcing Confederate General Robert E. Lee to retreat.
1865 - American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis and most of his Cabinet flee the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia.
1874 - Club Alpin Français founded.
1900 - The Congress passes the Foraker Act, giving Puerto Rico limited self-rule.
1902 - Dmitry Sipyagin, Minister of Interior of the Russian Empire, is assassinated in the Marie Palace, St Petersburg.
1902 - "Electric Theatre", the first full-time movie theater in the United States, opens in Los Angeles, California.
1917 - World War I: President Woodrow Wilson asks the U.S. Congress for a declaration of war on Germany.
1917 - The first woman ever elected to the U.S. Congress, Jeannette Rankin, takes her seat as a representative from Montana.
1930 - Haile Selassie is proclaimed emperor of Ethiopia.
1945 - Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Brazil are established.
1956 - As the World Turns and The Edge of Night premiere on CBS-TV. The two soaps become the first daytime dramas to debut in the 30-minute format.
1962 - The first official Panda crossing is opened outside Waterloo station, London.
1972 - Actor Charlie Chaplin returns to the United States for the first time since being labeled a communist during the Red Scare in the early 1950s.
1972 - Vietnam War: The Easter Offensive begins – North Vietnamese soldiers of the 304th Division take the northern half of Quang Tri Province.
1973 - Launch of the LexisNexis computerized legal research service.
1975 - Vietnam War: Thousands of civilian refugees flee from the Quang Ngai Province in front of advancing North Vietnamese troops.
1975 - Construction of the CN Tower is completed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It reaches 553.33;metres (1,815.4;ft) in height, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure.
1980 - President Jimmy Carter signs the Crude Oil Windfall Profits Tax Act in an effort to help the U.S. economy rebound.
1982 - Falklands War: Argentina invades the Falkland Islands.
1984 - Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma is launched aboard Soyuz T-11, and becomes the first Indian in space.
1989 - Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrives in Havana, Cuba to meet with Fidel Castro in an attempt to mend strained relations.
1991 - Rita Johnston becomes the first female Premier of a Canadian province when she succeeds William Vander Zalm (who had resigned) as Premier of British Columbia.
1992 - In New York, Mafia boss John Gotti is convicted of murder and racketeering and is later sentenced to life in prison.
2002 - Israeli forces surround the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem into which armed Palestinians had retreated. A siege ensues.
2004 - Islamist terrorists involved in the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks attempt to bomb the Spanish high-speed train AVE near Madrid. Their attack is thwarted.
2006 - Over 60 tornadoes break out, hardest hit is Tennessee with 29 people killed.