On This Day: 2 May

2 May in Indian history

• 2003Cyclone Manou formed in the Indian Ocean; over the next two weeks it struck Madagascar and left more than 100,000 people homeless.India
• 1625Afonso Mendes, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Latin Patriarch of Ethiopia, arrives at Beilul from Goa.India

2 May in world history

• 2014Russo-Ukrainian War: Forty-eight people were killed during a confrontation between pro-Russian protesters and pro-Ukrainian unity protesters in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa.
• 2011Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. Navy SEAL Team Six in his private residential compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan.
• 2008Cyclone Nargis makes landfall in Burma killing over 138,000 people and leaving millions of people homeless.
• 2004The Yelwa massacre concludes. It began on 4 February 2004 when armed Muslims killed 78 Christians at Yelwa, Nigeria. In response, about 630 Muslims were killed by Christians on May 2.
• 1989Cold War: Hungary begins dismantling its border fence with Austria, which allows a number of East Germans to defect.
• 1982Falklands War: HMS Conqueror sank the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano, the only ship ever to have been deliberately sunk by a nuclear submarine in battle.
• 1964Vietnam War: An explosion attributed to Viet Cong commandos caused the escort carrier USNS Card to sink in the port of Saigon.
• 1964First ascent of Shishapangma, the fourteenth highest mountain in the world and the lowest of the Eight-thousanders.
• 1963Berthold Seliger launches a rocket with three stages and a maximum flight altitude of more than 100 kilometres (62 mi) near Cuxhaven. It is the only sounding rocket developed in Germany.
• 1945World War II: General Helmuth Weidling, the German commander of Berlin, surrendered to Soviet forces led by Marshal Georgy Zhukov, ending the Battle of Berlin.
• 1945World War II: A death march from Dachau to the Austrian border is halted by the segregated, all-Nisei 522nd Field Artillery Battalion of the U.S. Army in southern Bavaria, saving several hundred prisoners.
• 1941World War II: Following the coup d'état against Iraq Crown Prince 'Abd al-Ilah earlier that year, the United Kingdom launches the Anglo-Iraqi War to restore him to power.
• 1889The Treaty of Wuchale was signed, ending the Italo-Ethiopian War, but differences in translation later led to another war.
• 1885Cree and Assiniboine warriors win the Battle of Cut Knife, their largest victory over Canadian forces during the North-West Rebellion.
• 1878A dust explosion (depicted) at the world's largest flour mill in Minneapolis resulted in 18 deaths.
• 1808Outbreak of the Peninsular War: The people of Madrid rise up in rebellion against French occupation. Francisco de Goya later memorializes this event in his painting The Second of May 1808.

Born on 2 May

• 1971Musashimaru Kōyō, Samoan-American sumo wrestler, the 67th Yokozuna
• 1937Lorenzo Music, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (died 2001)
• 1921Satyajit Ray, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1992)India
• 1921B. B. Lal, Indian archaeologist (died 2022)India
• 1882Isabel González, Puerto Rican activist who helped pave the way for Puerto Ricans' American citizenship (died 1971)
• 1567Sebald de Weert, Dutch captain, vice-admiral of the Dutch East India Company (died 1603)India

Died on 2 May

• 1991Gauri Shankar Rai, Indian Politician (born 1924)India
• 1984Bob Clampett, American animator, director, and producer (born 1913)
• 1918Jüri Vilms, Estonian lawyer and politician (born 1889)
• 1880Tom Wills, Australian cricketer, co-created Australian rules football (born 1835)

Frequently asked questions

What happened on 2 May in history?

2014: Russo-Ukrainian War: Forty-eight people were killed during a confrontation between pro-Russian protesters and pro-Ukrainian unity protesters in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa. 2011: Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. Navy SEAL Team Six in his private residential compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. 2008: Cyclone Nargis makes landfall in Burma killing over 138,000 people and leaving millions of people homeless. 2004: The Yelwa massacre concludes. It began on 4 February 2004 when armed Muslims killed 78 Christians at Yelwa, Nigeria. In response, about 630 Muslims were killed by Christians on May 2.

What happened on 2 May in Indian history?

2003: Cyclone Manou formed in the Indian Ocean; over the next two weeks it struck Madagascar and left more than 100,000 people homeless. 1625: Afonso Mendes, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Latin Patriarch of Ethiopia, arrives at Beilul from Goa.

Which famous people were born on 2 May?

Musashimaru Kōyō, Samoan-American sumo wrestler, the 67th Yokozuna (1971); Lorenzo Music, American actor, producer, and screenwriter (died 2001) (1937); Satyajit Ray, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1992) (1921); B. B. Lal, Indian archaeologist (died 2022) (1921).

Which day is observed on 2 May?

The last day of the Festival of Ridván (Baháʼí Faith) (this date is non-Gregorian and may change according to the March equinox, see List of; Anniversary of the Dos de Mayo Uprising (Community of Madrid, Spain); Birth Anniversary of Third Druk Gyalpo (Bhutan); Flag Day (Poland); Indonesia National Education Day.