Birthday Paper › What happened on …? › May 1

Events on May 1

• 1776 The Order of the Illuminati is founded as a secret society by Adam Weishaupt together with two students at the University of Ingolstadt, in order to counteract the dominance of the Jesuits in science and education.
• 1840 The sale of the One Penny Black, the world's first postage stamp designed by Rowland Hill, begins in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Its period of validity begins on 6 May.
• 1890 May Day is celebrated internationally for the first time in commemoration of the Haymarket Riot as the “Day of Action of the Labour Movement”. The commemorative day was proclaimed by the Second International.
• 1931 The Empire State Building in New York City is opened by US President Herbert Hoover. It overtakes the Chrysler Building as the world's tallest building, a status it does not lose until 1972, when the original World Trade Center (1973–2001) overtakes it.
• 1933 Under the law of 10 April 1933, the Reich government designates 1 May a statutory holiday (“National Day of Labour”) at the instigation of the NSDAP.
• 1950 There are no more food stamps in the Federal Republic of Germany; the rationing of food has been abolished.
• 1960 During the Cold War, a US U-2 spy aircraft is shot down over the Soviet Union. The pilot Francis Gary Powers is taken into Soviet custody.
• 1974 In the Federal Republic of Germany, the world's first points system is introduced in driving licence law, with points awarded for entries in the Central Motor Vehicle Register of the Federal Motor Transport Authority in Flensburg-Mürwik. If the points limit is exceeded, the theoretical driving test must now be retaken.
• 1988 The InterCityExperimental test train of the German Federal Railways sets a new world speed record for rail vehicles at 406.9 km/h as part of the ICE world-record run. Among the guests on board the train are Federal Transport Minister Jürgen Warnke and Federal Research Minister Heinz Riesenhuber.
• 1997 In the British House of Commons elections, the Labour Party, led by Tony Blair, wins, bringing about a change of government after 18 years. He succeeds John Major of the Conservative Party; the party loses half its seats in the election, including all the seats in Scotland and Wales.
• 2003 Aboard the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, US President George W. Bush officially declares the Iraq War over with the words “Mission Accomplished”. The Lockheed S-3, on which Bush lands on the aircraft carrier, receives the radio call sign Navy One, making it the only aircraft of the United States Navy to date to bear that call sign.
• 2011 John Paul II is beatified by Pope Benedict XVI.

Born on May 1

• 1864 Anna Jarvis, US-American founder of Mother's Day
• 1868 Hugo Asbach, German brandy manufacturer
• 1881 Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, French Jesuit, theologian and philosopher
• 1900 Ignazio Silone, Italian writer
• 1953 Pierre Franckh, German actor
• 1980 Zaz, French chanson singer
• 1981 Alyaksandr Hleb, Belarusian footballer
• 1990 Reem Alabali Radovan, German politician
• 1990 Diego Contento, Italian-German footballer
• 1991 Levina, German singer, songwriter and presenter

Is your birthday on May 1?

Then there is a newspaper that tells only the story of your day: what was going on in the world on May 1 of your birth year, which song was at the top, what the weather was like at your birthplace, plus birthday twins and a personal greeting.

• For every birth year from 1946
• 4 to 10 pages, always €14.90, as a PDF to print
• With a greeting page for voice and video messages

Create the paper for May 1 · €14.90

Day and month are already filled in, you only choose the birth year.

Source of events and birthdays: German Wikipedia article „1. Mai“, licence CC BY-SA 4.0, selected, shortened and translated by Birthday Paper.

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