May 5
May 5 is the 126th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 240 days remain until the year's end. It falls in spring (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Taurus.
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Astronomy
On May 5 the Sun's declination is approximately +16.4°. At this latitude the Sun is north of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere longer days than nights.
For specific rise/set times at your location, see the U.S. Naval Observatory, or the NASA APOD archive for any imagery published on a May 5.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
- Cinco de Mayo (Mexican commemoration of victory over France at Puebla, 1862)
- Children's Day (Japan, South Korea)
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
1821 — Napoleon Bonaparte died in exile on the island of Saint Helena. ↗(205 years ago)more
Napoleon Bonaparte, later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was Emperor of the French from 18 May 1804 until his first abdication in 1814, with a brief restoration during the Hundred Days in 1815. He rose to prominence as a general during the French Revolution and led a series of military campaigns across Europe and the Middle East during the French Re...
1862 — Battle of Puebla: Mexican forces defeated the French army. ↗(164 years ago)more
The Battle of Puebla, also known as the Battle of the Fifth of May took place on 5 May 1862, near Puebla de los Ángeles, during the second French intervention in Mexico. French troops under the command of Charles de Lorencez repeatedly failed to storm the forts of Loreto and Guadalupe situated on top of the hills overlooking the city of Puebla, and eventu...
1925 — American teacher John T. Scopes was arrested for teaching evolution in Tennessee. ↗(101 years ago)more
The State of Tennessee v. John Thomas Scopes, commonly known as the Scopes trial or Scopes Monkey Trial, was an American legal case from July 10 to July 21, 1925, in which a high school teacher, John T. Scopes, was accused of violating the Butler Act, a Tennessee state law which outlawed the teaching of human evolution in public schools.
1961 — Alan Shepard became the first American in space, aboard Mercury-Redstone 3. ↗(65 years ago)more
Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. was an American astronaut. In 1961, he became the second person and the first American to travel into space and, in 1971, he became the fifth and oldest person to walk on the Moon, at age 47.
Notable births
1813 — Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher. ↗(213 years ago)more
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish Lutheran theologian, philosopher, poet, social critic, and religious author who is widely considered to be the first existentialist philosopher. He wrote critical texts on organized religion, Christianity, morality, ethics, psychology, love, and the philosophy of religion, displaying a fondness for metaphor, irony, and...
1818 — Karl Marx, German philosopher. ↗(208 years ago)more
Karl Marx was a German philosopher, social and political theorist, economist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He developed the theory of historical materialism, analyzing class struggle under capitalism and predicting the system's overthrow by the proletariat in favor of communism.
Notable deaths
- 1821 — Napoleon Bonaparte. ↗(205 years ago)
more
Napoleon Bonaparte, later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was Emperor of the French from 18 May 1804 until his first abdication in 1814, with a brief restoration during the Hundred Days in 1815. He rose to prominence as a general during the French Revolution and led a series of military campaigns across Europe and the Middle East during the French Re...
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (126) | 2 × 3^2 × 7 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (240) | 2^4 × 3 × 5 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 05052026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | +16.40° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 46 days |