May 1 -May Day founded
1889: On this day May Day was celebrated as a labour holiday for the first time, designated as such by the International Socialist Congress. After World War II there was much pageantry during the May Day festivals of Soviet-bloc countries. Elsewhere in Europe, May Day remained an important holiday for workers. Since the Middle Ages, Europeans have also marked the return of spring on May Day, with celebrations that include the crowning of a May king and queen as well as dancing around a decorated Maypole.
1961: The first major airplane hijacking within the United States occurred when a man forced a commercial airliner en route from Miami to Key West, Florida, to detour to Cuba.
1898: The Battle of Manila Bay ended in the defeat of the Spanish Pacific fleet by the U.S. Navy, resulting in the fall of the Philippines and contributing to the final U.S. victory in the Spanish-American War.
Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st duke of Wellington, born in Dublin this day in 1769, was a British army commander during the Napoleonic Wars and later prime minister of Great Britain (1828–30). He first rose to military prominence in India, won successes in the Peninsular War in Spain (1808–14), and shared in the victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo (1815).
"Pray keep the English quiet if you can. Let them all prepare to move, but neither be in a flurry or a fright, as all will yet turn out well."
Duke of Wellington, letter to Sir Charles Stuart from the Battle of Waterloo, June 18, 1815
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