May 17th, 1808

Born on May 17th, 1808

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 78,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 123 days, exactly on September 1st, 2024, people who were born on May 17th, 1808 will be 79,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on May 17th?

May 17th, 2004

Massachusetts became the first U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.

May 17th, 2000

Following the killing of two English football fans by Galatasaray supporters in the previous month, British and Turkish hooligans rioted on the day of the UEFA Cup Final in Copenhagen, Denmark.

May 17th, 1995

Six-year-old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama selected by the 14th Dalai Lama, was kidnapped by the Chinese government, who advocated a proxy.

May 17th, 1987

An Iraqi jet aircraft fired two Exocet missiles at the American frigate USS Stark leaving 37 personnel of the warship dead and 21 others injured.

May 17th, 1974

The Troubles: The Ulster Volunteer Force detonated a series of car bombs in Dublin and Monaghan, Ireland, killing 34 people and injuring almost 300 more.

May 17th, 1954

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education, outlawing racial segregation in public schools because "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal" and therefore unconstitutional.

May 17th, 1947

After renegotiating a contract with the makers of her signature perfume Chanel No. 5, Coco Chanel (pictured) received a share of wartime profits from its sale, making her one of the richest women in the world.

May 17th, 1914

Under the Protocol of Corfu, the Principality of Albania officially recognized Northern Epirus as an autonomous self-governing region.

May 17th, 1902

The Antikythera mechanism, the oldest known surviving geared mechanism, was discovered among artifacts retrieved from a shipwreck off the Greek island of Antikythera.

May 17th, 1900

The first copies of the children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum were printed.

May 17th, 1865

The International Telecommunication Union, which standardizes and regulates international radio and telecommunications, was founded as the International Telegraph Union in Paris.

May 17th, 1863

American Civil War: at the Battle of Big Black River Bridge in Mississippi, Union forces under John McClernand defeated a Confederate rearguard, capturing around 1,700 men.

May 17th, 1590

Anne of Denmark (pictured) was crowned queen consort of Scotland in a ceremony at Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh.

May 17th, 1521

English nobleman Edward Stafford, whose father had been beheaded for rebelling against King Richard III, was himself executed for treason against King Henry VIII.

May 17th, 1395

An outnumbered Wallachian army repulsed invading Ottoman forces at the Battle of Rovine.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on May 17th

Same Day
Who's birthday is on May 17th?

61

Bill Paxton

American actor and filmmaker (1955–2017)

*May 17th, 1955, Fort Worth †February 25th, 2017, Los Angeles

35

Lyna bonasera

Belgian actress

*May 17th, 1988, West Los Angeles

67

Sugar Ray Leonard

American boxer

*May 17th, 1956, Wilmington

73

Edward Jenner

English physician, scientist and pioneer of vaccination (1749–1823)

*May 17th, 1749, Berkeley †January 26th, 1823, Berkeley

64

Wilhelm Steinitz

Austrian-American chess player

*May 17th, 1836, Prague †August 12th, 1900, New York City

61

Thomas Rachel

German politician (CDU)

*May 17th, 1962, Birkesdorf

59

Erik Satie

French composer and pianist (1866-1925)

*May 17th, 1866, Honfleur †July 1st, 1925, Paris

75

Winfried Kretschmann

German politician

*May 17th, 1948, Spaichingen

34

Tessa Virtue

Canadian ice dancer

*May 17th, 1989, London

72

Jean Gabin

French actor, recording artist (1904-1976)

*May 17th, 1904, 9th arrondissement of Paris †November 15th, 1976, Neuilly-sur-Seine

89

Ruhollah Khomeini

Iranian politician and religious leader (1900–1989)

*May 17th, 1900, Khomein †June 3rd, 1989, Tehran

62

Henri Barbusse

French author (1873-1935)

*May 17th, 1873, Asnières-sur-Seine †August 30th, 1935, Moscow

62

Enya

Irish singer

*May 17th, 1961, Gweedore

74

Dennis Hopper

American actor and director (1936–2010)

*May 17th, 1936, Dodge City †May 29th, 2010, Venice

90

John Patrick

American playwright and screenwriter (1905-1995)

*May 17th, 1905, Louisville †November 7th, 1995, Delray Beach

65

Bob Saget

American actor and comedian (1956–2022)

*May 17th, 1956, Philadelphia †January 9th, 2022, Orlando

87

Maureen O'Sullivan

Irish-American actress (1911-1998)

*May 17th, 1911, Boyle †June 23rd, 1998, Scottsdale

59

David Eigenberg

American actor

*May 17th, 1964, New York City

94

Bill Minor

American journalist

*May 17th, 1922, Hammond †March 28th, 2017, Ridgeland

64

Pascual Madoz

Spanish politician, statistician

*May 17th, 1806, Pamplona †December 11th, 1870, Genoa

Same year
Born in 1808

66

Andrew Johnson

President of the United States from 1865 to 1869

*December 29th, 1808, Raleigh †July 31st, 1875, Elizabethton

64

Napoleon III

President and Emperor of the French (1808–1873)

*April 20th, 1808, Paris †January 9th, 1873, Chislehurst

62

Michael William Balfe

Irish composer

*May 15th, 1808, Dublin †October 20th, 1870, Hertfordshire

79

Alexander William Doniphan

American politician and soldier (1808-1887)

*July 9th, 1808, Mason County †August 8th, 1887

46

Gérard de Nerval

French writer, poet, essayist and translator (1808–1855)

*May 22nd, 1808, Paris †January 26th, 1855, Paris

37

Henrik Wergeland

Norwegian writer (1808–1845)

*June 17th, 1808, Kristiansand Municipality †July 12th, 1845, Christiania

81

Jefferson Davis

President of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865

*June 3rd, 1808, Fairview †December 6th, 1889, New Orleans

74

Abdelkader El Djezairi

Algerian religious and military leader (1808–1883)

*September 6th, 1808, Guittena †May 26th, 1883, Damascus

68

Antoine Elwart

French composer (1808-1877)

*November 19th, 1808, Paris †October 14th, 1877, 18th arrondissement of Paris

85

Charles Merivale

English historian and churchman (1808-1893)

*March 8th, 1808, London †December 27th, 1893, Ely

57

Claude Paris

French composer

*September 19th, 1808, Lyon †July 25th, 1866, Paris

56

Hugh Falconer

Scottish scientist (1808–1865)

*February 29th, 1808, Forres †January 31st, 1865, London

85

Patrice de Mac-Mahon, Duke of Magenta

Third President of the French Republic (1808–1893)

*May 13th, 1808, Sully †October 16th, 1893, Montcresson

70

Honoré Daumier

French artist (1808–1879)

*February 26th, 1808, Marseille †February 10th, 1879, Valmondois

74

Philipp Christoph Zeller

German entomologist (1808–1883)

*April 8th, 1808, Steinheim an der Murr †March 27th, 1883, Szczecin

83

Thomas Cook

English founder of the travel agency Thomas Cook & Son

*November 22nd, 1808, Derbyshire †July 18th, 1892, Leicester

65

Salmon P. Chase

American politician and lawyer (1808–1873)

*January 13th, 1808, Cornish †May 7th, 1873, New York City

34

José de Esproncedo

Spanish poet (1808-1842)

*March 25th, 1808, Almendralejo †May 23rd, 1842, Madrid

63

Cristina Trivulzio Belgiojoso

Italian noblewoman, patriot, editor and philantropist

*June 28th, 1808, Milan †July 5th, 1871, Milan

28

Maria Malibran

Spanish opera singer (1808–1836)

*March 24th, 1808, Paris †September 23rd, 1836, Manchester

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on May 17th

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day) which are celebrated on May 17th.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

Yes: 1808 is a leap year, therefore has a 29th of February with an additional leap day and a total of 366 days (instead of the usual 365 days in a normal year).

Calendar
May 1808