18 May - Today in History - Important historical events happened on this day in India and World History
According to Gregory calendar, on May 18, the day number in a year is 138 and if it is a leap year then the day number is 139. May 18 has a special significance in India and world history, because many such incidents have occurred on this day which have been recorded forever in the pages of history. Let's know some such important events which will increase your general knowledge. The facts collected will be as follows: People born on this day, demise of famous people, war treaty, freedom of any country, invention of new technologies, change of power, important National and International Day etc.
May 18 in History - Top Historical Events
| Year | Event / Incidence / Incident |
| 1388 | During the Battle of Buyur Lake, General Lan Yu led a Chinese army forward to crush the Mongol hordes of Toghus Temur, the Khan of Northern Yuan. |
| 1703 | The serial bombings in Iraq killed 90 people, injured 200. |
| 1756 | Britain declares war against France. |
| 1756 | Great Britain declared war against France. |
| 1769 | The East India Company imposed several restrictions on the weavers of Bengal. |
| 1794 | Battle of Trecoing: French troops defeated the British Army. |
| 1803 | Great Britain started a war on France, after which France was not allowed to withdraw from Dutch territory, which led to the war with Napoleon. |
| 1804 | Napoleon was proclaimed Emperor of France. |
| 1804 | Napoleon Bonaparte was declared Emperor of the French by the French Senate. |
| 1852 | Massachusetts rules that all school children must attend school. |
| 1860 | Abraham Lincoln was elected as the US presidential candidate for the Republican Party. |
| 1863 | American Civil War: General Ulysses S. Grant led his Army of the Tennessee across the Big Black River in preparation for the Siege of Vicksburg. |
| 1865 | Celebration of World Communication Day began. |
| 1869 | One day after surrendering at the Battle of Hakodate, EnomotoTakeaki turned over Goryokaku to Japanese forces, signaling thecollapse of the Republic of Ezo. |
| 1888 | The first gramophone record in the United States was played. |
| 1896 | The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case Plessy v.Ferguson, upholding the legality of racial segregation in publictran sportation under the 'Separate but equal' doctrine. |
| 1912 | The first Indian film, Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne, wasreleased. |
| 1912 | The first Indian feature length film Sri Pundalik was released. |
| 1917 | The Selective Service Act of 1917 was passed on 18th May, drafted by then –Captain Hugh S. Johnson to authorize the federal government to raise a national army through conscription. According to the draft all the men between the ages of 21-30 were required to register for military services for the American entry into World War I. |
| 1927 | Disgruntled school board treasurer Andrew Kehoe set off aseries of explosives in Bath Township, Michigan's elementary school,which had a final death toll of 45 and is the deadliest mass murder in aschool in United States history. |
| 1936 | In a crime that shocked Japan, Sada Abe strangled her loverKichizo Ishida, cut off his genitals, and carried them around with herfor several days until her arrest. |
| 1940 | The German army captured Brussels. |
| 1944 | The Battle of Monte Cassino was ended on May 18, 1944 after 123 days series of four assaults by the Allies against the Winter Line in Italy held by Axis forces during World War II. Operation Diadem, the fourth battle of Monte Cassino took place on 11th May 1944 and was supported by the air attacks named Operation Strangle; on 18th May German position collapsed. |
| 1944 | World War II-Polish forces under Lieutenant GeneralWladyslaw Anders captured Monte Cassino, Italy, after a four-monthbattle. |
| 1944 | The Soviet Union forcibly deported the entire population ofCrimean Tatars as special settlers to Uzbek SSR and elsewhere in thecountry. |
| 1950 | The 12 NATO member countries agreed to form a permanent organization to protect the US and Europe. |
| 1953 | American Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman pilot to go supersonic on May 18, 1953 when she flew Canadair F-86 Sabre jet aircraft and broke the sound barrier. |
| 1953 | At Rogers Dry Lake, California, in her Canadair Sabre, AmericanJackie Cochran became the first female pilot to break the sound barrier. |
| 1955 | Operation Passage to Freedom, the evacuation of 310,000Vietnamese civilians, soldiers and non-Vietnamese members of the FrenchArmy from communist North Vietnam to South Vietnam following the end ofthe First Indochina War, ended. |
| 1956 | The main summit of Lhotse was first climbed by a Swiss team of Ernst Reiss and Fritz Luchsinger on May 18, 1956. It is the fourth highest mountain in the world at 8,516 metres and located at the border between Tibet and Nepal. |
| 1965 | Eli Cohen, a spy who is credited with facilitating Israel'ssuccess in the Six-Day War against Syria, was publicly hanged afterhaving been captured four months earlier. |
| 1969 | The fourth manned mission of US Apollo Space program Apollo 10 was launched on May 18, 1969 by NASA with three crew members. Apollo 10 is registered in Guinness World Records for the highest speed attained by a manned vehicle at 39,897 km/h. |
| 1974 | India‘s first nuclear weapon explosion operation Smiling Buddha was performed on May 18, 1974 at Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan under the administration of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. India became the sixth nation to do so in the world after Russia, UK, France, China and US who are five permanent members of United Nations Security Council. |
| 1974 | India became the sixth nuclear power country in the world with its first underground nuclear bomb test at Pokhran in Rajasthan. The trial was named 'Smiling Buddha'. |
| 1980 | Stratovolcano Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980 in Skamania, Washington. It is count as the most economically destructive volcanic incident in US history, killing 57 people. It also destroyed 250 homes, 47 bridges, 24 km of railways, 298 km of highways. |
| 1980 | The stratovolcano Mount St. Helens erupted, killing57 people in southern Washington State, reducing hundreds of squaremiles to waste land, and causing over US$1 billion in damage. |
| 1991 | Somaliland proclaimed itself as independent state from May 18, 1991 that is internationally not recognized by any other country or organization. |
| 1991 | The Somali National Movement declared the independence of Somaliland, a de facto state that is internationally recognised as an autonomous region of Somalia, following the collapse of central government during the Somali Civil War. |
| 1991 | Helen Shrman, Britain's first astronaut, flew to space. 27-year-old Helen departed from Kazakhstan in a Soviet space called Soyuz. |
| 2004 | Israeli soldiers killed 19 Palestinians in Israel's Rafa displaced camp. |
| 2005 | A second photo by the Hubble Space Telescope confirmed thediscovery of two new moons of Pluto-Nix and Hydra. |
| 2006 | May 18 Act was passed by post-Jana Andolan government in 2006 that has been described as Nepalese Magna Carta. This bill reduced the power of king and established the nation as secular country. |
| 2006 | The Parliament of Nepal unanimously voted to strip King Gyanendra of many of his powers. |
| 2009 | The Sri Lankan military defeated the Tamil Tigers (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) on May 18, 2009 and thus Sri Lankan civil war came to an end after 26-years of military campaign. Government took the control of north and east part of the country which was earlier under control of LTTE. |
| 2012 | Social networking company Facebook Inc. began trading on Nasdaq. |
Famous Birthdays of May 18:
| Year | Name / Profession / Country |
| 1914 | Sarukkai Jagannathan / NA / India |
| 1990 | Yuya Osako / Footballer / Japan |
| 1930 | Warren Rudman / Lawyer / United States of America |
| 1933 | H. D. Deve Gowda / Politician / India |
| 1867 | Minakata Kumagusu / Author / Japan |
| 1971 | Nobuteru Taniguchi / Racing Car Driver / Japan |
| 1977 | Lee Hendrie / Footballer / United Kingdom |
| 1999 | Laura Omloop / Singer / Belgium |
| 1980 | Diego Pérez / Footballer / Uruguay |
| 1998 | Polina Edmunds / Skater / United States of America |
| 1975 | Jack Johnson / Writer / United States of America |
| 1974 | Nelson Figueroa / Baseball Player / United States of America |
| 1980 | Michaël Llodra / Tennis Player / France |
| 1927 | Richard Body / Politician / United Kingdom |
| 1924 | Jack Whitaker / Sportscaster / United States of America |
| 1969 | Christabelle Howie / Model / India |
| 1960 | Jari Kurri / Ice Hockey Player / Finland |
| 1981 | Ashley Harrison / Rugby Player / Australia |
| 1850 | Oliver Heaviside / Engineer / United Kingdom |
| 1968 | Ralf Kelleners / Racing Car Driver / Germany |
| 1960 | Brent Ashton / Ice Hockey Player / Canada |
| 1878 | Johannes Terwogt / Rower / Netherlands |
| 1960 | Yannick Noah / Tennis Player / France |
| 1921 | Michael A. Epstein / Academic / United Kingdom |
| 1958 | Rubén Omar Romano / Footballer / Mexico |
| 1970 | Billy Howerdel / Writer / United States of America |
| 1904 | Jacob K. Javits / Politician / United States of America |
| 1897 | Frank Capra / Producer / United States of America |
| 1777 | John George Children / Chemist / United Kingdom |
| 1963 | Marty McSorley / Ice Hockey Player / Canada |
The day in other months: January 18 | February 18 | March 18 | April 18 | May 18 | June 18 | July 18 | August 18 | September 18 | October 18 | November 18 | December 18
