218 - 7th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet

1620 - 1st merry-go-round seen at a fair (Philippapolis, Turkey)

1630 - Italian Jesuit Niccolo Zucchi, 1st to see 2 belts on Jupiter surface

1969 - Russian probe Venera 6 landed on Venus

May 17
 

1940 - Germany occupied Brussels, Belgium and began the invasion of France.

1973 - The US Senate Watergate Committee began its hearings.

2006 - The U.S. aircraft carrier Oriskany was sunk about 24 miles off Pensacola Beach. It was the first vessel sunk under a Navy program to dispose of old warships by turning them into diving attractions. It was the largest man-made reef at the time of the sinking

Indeed, there is a pretty cool video of her contained in the link below:

http://www.floridapanhandledivetrail.com/oriskany.html

The Memphis Belle: American Icon!
 

1943: The Memphis Belle is the first American bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe!

1619 - Hugo the Great sentenced to life in prison

1804 - Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed Emperor of France

1860 - Republican Party nominates Abraham Lincoln for president

1970 - Beatles' last released LP, "Let It Be" released in US

May 18
 

1942 - New York ended night baseball games for the duration of World War II.

1944 - Monte Cassino, Europe's oldest Monastic house, was finally captured by the Allies in Italy.

I once knew a guy who led a section of the Poles on the second and final Polish assault...he became a dentist in my area after the war :salute:

Rebuilt again and looking good!
 

May 19
 

1643 - The French army defeated a Spanish army at Rocroi, France.

1856 - US Senator Charles Sumner spoke out against slavery.

1926 - Benito Mussolini announced that democracy was deceased. Rome became a fascist state.

1943 - Winston Churchill told the US Congress that his country was pledging their full support in the war against Japan.

2005 - "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith" brought in 50.0 million in its opening day.

Numero uno: not always the last man standing!
 

1506 - Columbus selects his son Diego as sole heir

1568 - English Queen Elizabeth I arrests Scottish queen Mary

1865 - President Jefferson Davis is captured by Union Cavalry in Georgia

1967 - USSR ratifies treaty with Britain & US banning nuclear weapons in space

May 20
 

1690 - England passed the Act of Grace, forgiving followers of James II.

1830 - The fountain pen was patented by H.D. Hyde.

1941 - Germany invaded Crete by air.

1942 - Japan completed the conquest of Burma.

1993 - The final episode of "Cheers" was aired on NBC-TV.

1293 - Earthquake strikes Kamakura Japan, 30,000 killed

1498 - Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrives at Calcutta, India

1927 - Saudi Arabia becomes independent of Great Britain (Treaty of Jedda)

1990 - Hubble Space Telescope sends 1st photograph's from space

One of her better days
 

Be it ever so Hubble, I'm awed!