1801: First Barbary War: The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declare war on the United States of America (1st US foreign war)
1840: The exhibition of English painter J.M.W. Turner’s masterpiece Slave Ship sparks debate at London’s Royal Academy of Arts. The large canvas recounts the voyage of the slave ship Zong when the captain ordered 132 enslaved Africans thrown alive into the sea to save drinking water and to collect insurance for their deaths.
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1869: Transcontinental railroad completed, unifying the United States. the presidents of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads meet in Promontory, Utah, and drive a ceremonial last spike into a rail line that connects their railroads. This made transcontinental railroad travel possible for the first time in U.S. history. No longer would western-bound travelers need to take the long and dangerous journey by wagon train.
1908: Mother’s Day was officially celebrated for the first time in Grafton, West Virginia. Anna Jarvis established this maternal holiday in honor of her mother, who died in 1905. While the first official Mother’s Day celebrations happened in 1908, Anna held a small service the year before in Grafton, in the same church where her mother used to teach.
1933: Nazis ceremonially burn about 25,000 allegedly “un-German” books
The book burnings were part of the right-wing German Student Union’s Action against the Un-German Spirit. Among the burnt books were works by Albert Einstein, Bertolt Brecht, Sigmund Freud, and Franz Kafka.
1940: Winston Churchill becomes prime minister of Britain. Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, is called to replace Neville Chamberlain as British prime minister following the latter’s resignation after losing a confidence vote in the House of Commons.
1941: Adolf Hitler’s deputy, Rudolf Hess, parachutes into Scotland to broker a peace agreement
Hess was captured and interrogated. He was the last in a long line of prominent figures to be incarcerated in the Tower of London. Hitler characterized his peace mission four years before the end of World War II as treason.
1954: Bill Haley releases “Rock Around the Clock”
It was the first rock song to top the Billboard charts and has become a classic of the early rock era.
1994: Nelson Mandela becomes South Africa’s first black president
Mandela’s inauguration came after more than 300 years of white rule. Before becoming president, he was a pivotal figure in the fight against the racist apartheid regime and was incarcerated for 27 years.
1996: The porter who accompanied the first Europeans to the top of Mt Kilimanjaro in 1889, Tanzanian Yohani Kinyala Lauwo, dies at age 107. In 1989, his role in the historic Meyer and Purtscheller climb was established in pictures and documents. He told interviewers he was barefoot when he made the climb and climbed the mountain at least two times afterward.
2002: American FBI agent Robert Hanssen was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to spying for Moscow; he was one of the Soviet Union’s and Russia’s most valuable double agents and the most damaging spy ever to penetrate the FBI.
2005: An assassination attempt was made on President George W. Bush.
While giving a speech in Tbilisi, Georgia, a man threw a grenade that landed just 65 feet away from the President. It malfunctioned and did not explode, and the attacker was arrested.
2017: Apple became the first company to achieve worth more than $800 billion.
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY: May 10
Ọba Sikiru Olukayọde Adetọna, 90 years
Ọba Sikiru Olukayọde Adetọna, Ọgbagba Agbotewole II was born on the 10th of May, 1934 in Imupa, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun state. He is the grandchild of Oba Adeleke, the Awujale of Ijebuland (1895-1906), the legendary, who was said to have been a descendant of Olu-Iwa, the legendary first Awujalẹ. He was installed as the king on 2 April 1960, which makes him one of the longest-reigning monarchs in Nigeria.
Bono, 64 years
Paul David Hewson was born on 10 May 1960, known by the nickname Bono, is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band.
Nick Heidfeld, 47 years
Nick Lars Heidfeld is a German professional racing driver. Despite scoring regular podium finishes in 2005 with Williams, and in 2007 and 2008 with BMW Sauber, Heidfeld never won a race after debuting in Formula One in 2000.
Suzanna Owiyo, 49 years
Kenyan singer and social activist, in Kisumu, Kenya was born on May 10, 1975. After gaining international fame with her commanding singing voice, her contributions to the Afro-fusion and Benga music genres are outstanding. She advocated for girls’ education and was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the UN Environment Programme. She was awarded the Grand Warrior of Kenya in 2011.
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