May 26 has produced turning points in politics, science, culture, war, law, and technology. This timeline collects notable events recorded for this calendar day.
The list below is generated from public historical datasets and refreshed automatically by date.
Timeline for May 26
20252025 Liverpool parade attack
65 people are injured when a car rams into a crowd on Water Street, near Liverpool F.C.'s Premier League trophy parade.
20212021 San Jose shooting
Ten people are killed in a shooting at a VTA rail yard in San Jose, California, United States.
2020George Floyd protests
Protests triggered by the murder of George Floyd erupt in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, later becoming widespread across the United States and around the world.
2014Narendra Modi
Narendra Modi takes oath as the 15th Prime Minister of India.
20082008 South China floods
Severe flooding begins in eastern and southern China that will ultimately cause 148 deaths and force the evacuation of 1.3 million.
2003Ukrainian-Mediterranean Airlines Flight 4230
Ukrainian-Mediterranean Airlines Flight 4230 crashes in the Turkish town of Maçka, killing 75.
2002I-40 bridge disaster
The tugboat Robert Y. Love collides with a support pier of Interstate 40 on the Arkansas River near Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, resulting in 14 deaths and 11 others injured.
1998Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States rules in New Jersey v. New York that Ellis Island, the historic gateway for millions of immigrants, is mainly in the state of New Jersey, not New York.
1998National Sorry Day
The first "National Sorry Day" is held in Australia. Reconciliation events are held nationally, and attended by over a million people.
1998MIAT Mongolian Airlines
A MIAT Mongolian Airlines Harbin Y-12 crashes near Erdenet, Orkhon Province, Mongolia, resulting in 28 deaths.
1991Zviad Gamsakhurdia
Zviad Gamsakhurdia becomes the first elected President of the Republic of Georgia in the post-Soviet era.
1991Lauda Air Flight 004
Lauda Air Flight 004 breaks apart in mid-air and crashes in the Phu Toei National Park in the Suphan Buri province of Thailand, killing all 223 people on board.
1986European Economic Community
The European Community adopts the European flag.
19831983 Sea of Japan earthquake
The 7.8 Mw Sea of Japan earthquake shakes northern Honshu with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). A destructive tsunami is generated that leaves about 100 people dead.
1981Prime Minister of Italy
Italian Prime Minister Arnaldo Forlani and his coalition cabinet resign following a scandal over membership of the pseudo-masonic lodge P2 (Propaganda Due).
1981Grumman EA-6B Prowler
An EA-6B Prowler crashes on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, killing 14 crewmen and injuring 45 others.
1972Cold War
Cold War: The United States and the Soviet Union sign the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
1971Bangladesh Liberation War
Bangladesh Liberation War: The Pakistan Army slaughters at least 71 Hindus in Burunga, Sylhet, Bangladesh.
1970Soviet Union
The Soviet Tupolev Tu-144 becomes the first commercial transport to exceed Mach 2.
1969Apollo program
Apollo program: Apollo 10 returns to Earth after a successful eight-day test of all the components needed for the forthcoming first crewed Moon landing.
1968H-dagurinn
H-dagurinn in Iceland: Traffic changes from driving on the left to driving on the right overnight.
1967The Beatles
The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is released.
1966British Guiana
British Guiana gains independence, becoming Guyana.
1948Civil Air Patrol
The U.S. Congress passes Public Law 80-557, which permanently establishes the Civil Air Patrol as an auxiliary of the United States Air Force.
1942Battle of Gazala
World War II: The Battle of Gazala begins, in present-day Libya.
1940World War II
World War II: Operation Dynamo: In northern France, Allied forces begin a massive evacuation from Dunkirk, France. The Battle of Dunkirk begins simultaneously as Allied defenders fight to slow down the German offensive.
1940Siege of Calais (1940)
World War II: The Siege of Calais ends with the surrender of the British and French garrison.
1938House Un-American Activities Committee
In the United States, the House Un-American Activities Committee begins its first session.
1937Walter Reuther
Walter Reuther and members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) clash with Ford Motor Company security guards at the River Rouge Complex in Dearborn, Michigan, during the Battle of the Overpass.
1936House of Commons of Northern Ireland
In the House of Commons of Northern Ireland, Tommy Henderson begins speaking on the Appropriation bill. By the time he sits down in the early hours of the following morning, he had spoken for ten hours.
1927Ford Model T
The last Ford Model T rolls off the assembly line after a production run of 15,007,003 vehicles.
1926Abd el-Krim
Abd el-Krim ends surrenders to the French, bringing an end to the Rif War.
192324 Hours of Le Mans
The first 24 Hours of Le Mans is held in France. Run annually in June thereafter, it became the oldest endurance racing event in the world.
1918Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia is established.
1908Masjed Soleyman
The first major commercial oil strike in the Middle East is made at Masjed Soleyman in southwest Persia. The rights to the resource were quickly acquired by the Anglo-Persian Oil Company.
1903Românul de la Pind
Românul de la Pind, the longest-running newspaper by and about Aromanians until World War II, is founded.
1900Thousand Days' War
Thousand Days' War: The Colombian Conservative Party turns the tide of war in their favor with victory against the Colombian Liberal Party in the Battle of Palonegro.
1896Nicholas II
Nicholas II is crowned as the last Tsar of Imperial Russia.
1896Charles Dow
Charles Dow publishes the first edition of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
1879Russian Empire
Russia and the United Kingdom sign the Treaty of Gandamak establishing an Afghan state.
1869Boston University
Boston University is chartered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
1868Impeachment of Andrew Johnson
Impeachment of Andrew Johnson: President Andrew Johnson is acquitted by one vote in the United States Senate.
1865Conclusion of the American Civil War
Conclusion of the American Civil War: The Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith, commander of the Trans-Mississippi division, is the last full general of the Confederate Army to surrender, at Galveston, Texas.
1864Montana
Montana is organized as a United States territory.
1822Grue Church fire
At least 113 people die in the Grue Church fire, the biggest fire disaster in Norway's history.
1821Peloponnesian Senate
Establishment of the Peloponnesian Senate by the Greek rebels.
1805Napoleon
Napoléon Bonaparte assumes the title of King of Italy and is crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy in Milan Cathedral, the gothic cathedral in Milan.
1783A Great Jubilee Day
A Great Jubilee Day held at North Stratford, Connecticut, celebrates the end of fighting in the American Revolutionary War.
1736Chickasaw Campaign of 1736
The Battle of Ackia is fought near the present site of Tupelo, Mississippi. British and Chickasaw soldiers repel a French and Choctaw attack on the then-Chickasaw village of Ackia.
1644Portuguese Restoration War
Portuguese Restoration War: Portuguese and Spanish forces both claim victory in the Battle of Montijo.
1637Pequot War
Pequot War: A combined English and Mohegan force under John Mason attacks a village in Connecticut, massacring approximately 500 Pequots.
1573Battle of Haarlemmermeer
The Battle of Haarlemmermeer, a naval engagement in the Eighty Years' War.
1538Geneva
Geneva expels John Calvin and his followers from the city. Calvin lives in exile in Strasbourg for the next three years.
1328William of Ockham
William of Ockham, the Franciscan Minister-General Michael of Cesena, and two other Franciscan leaders secretly leave Avignon, fearing a death sentence from Pope John XXII.
12931293 Kamakura earthquake
An earthquake strikes Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, killing about 23,000.
1135Alfonso VII of León and Castile
Alfonso VII of León and Castile is crowned in León Cathedral as Imperator totius Hispaniae (Emperor of all of Spain).
961Otto the Great
King Otto I elects his six-year-old son Otto II as heir apparent and co-ruler of the East Frankish Kingdom. He is crowned at Aachen, and placed under the tutelage of his grandmother Matilda.
946Kingdom of England
England is left temporarily without a monarch after the death of King Edmund I in a street fight, resulting in Edmund's brother Eadred assuming the throne for the minority of Edmund's two sons.
866Basil I
Basil I is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire by Michael III.
451Battle of Avarayr
Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sasanian Empire takes place. The Sasanids defeat the Armenians militarily but guarantee them freedom to openly practice Christianity.
17AD 17
Germanicus celebrates a triumph in Rome for his victories over the Cherusci, Chatti, and other German tribes west of the Elbe.
