May 23rd, 1897

Born on May 23rd, 1897

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 46,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 638 days, exactly on January 27th, 2026, people who were born on May 23rd, 1897 will be 47,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on May 23rd?

May 23rd, 2008

The International Court of Justice awarded the Middle Rocks to Malaysia and Pedra Branca to Singapore, resolving a 29-year-old territorial dispute in the Singapore Strait.

May 23rd, 1999

Professional wrestler Owen Hart died immediately before a match after dropping 70 feet (21 m) onto the ring during a botched entrance.

May 23rd, 1974

The Airbus A300, the first twin-engined wide-body airliner, went into service with Air France.

May 23rd, 1939

The U.S. Navy submarine Squalus sank off Portsmouth, New Hampshire, during tests, causing 26 men to drown.

May 23rd, 1895

Backed by Samuel J. Tilden, the Astor Library and the Lenox Library agreed to merge and form the New York Public Library.

May 23rd, 1873

The North-West Mounted Police, the forerunner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, was established to bring law and order to and assert Canadian sovereignty over the Northwest Territories.

May 23rd, 1862

American Civil War: Confederate troops under Stonewall Jackson defeated a Union force at the Battle of Front Royal in Virginia, taking around 700 prisoners.

May 23rd, 1706

War of the Spanish Succession: The Grand Alliance armies routed the Franco-Spanish-Bavarian army in Ramillies, present-day Belgium.

May 23rd, 1555

Gian Pietro Carafa became Pope Paul IV, beginning a tumultuous four-year papacy during which the Papal States suffered a serious military defeat.

May 23rd, 1533

Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, annulled Henry VIII's marriage to his first wife Catherine of Aragon (pictured), beginning events that would culminate in the English Reformation.

May 23rd, 1430

Hundred Years' War: Joan of Arc (pictured) was captured by Burgundian forces at the Siege of Compiègne.

May 23rd, 1949

Cold War: The Western occupying powers approve the Basic Law and establish a new German state, the Federal Republic of Germany.

May 23rd, 1948

Thomas C. Wasson, the US Consul-General, is assassinated in Jerusalem, Israel.

May 23rd, 1945

World War II: Germany's Flensburg Government under Karl Dönitz is dissolved when its members are arrested by British forces.

May 23rd, 1939

The U.S. Navy submarine USS Squalus sinks off the coast of New Hampshire during a test dive, causing the death of 24 sailors and two civilian technicians. The remaining 32 sailors and one civilian naval architect are rescued the following day.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on May 23rd

Born on May 23rd, 1897

70

Alberto Hidalgo

Peruvian writer

*May 23rd, 1897, Arequipa †November 12th, 1967, Buenos Aires

70

Wilhelm Johann Peter Schwinn

German politician (1897-1967)

*May 23rd, 1897, Ober-Kainsbach †October 18th, 1967, Ober-Kainsbach

40

Jimmie Guthrie

Scottish motorcycle racer

*May 23rd, 1897, Hawick †August 8th, 1937, Chemnitz

Same Day
Who's birthday is on May 23rd?

90

Gayatri Devi

Maharani of Jaipur and Indian politician (1919–2009)

*May 23rd, 1919, London †July 29th, 2009, Jaipur

31

Jordan Rakei

New Zealander-Australian musician, singer, songwriter and record producer

*May 23rd, 1992, Hamilton

35

Sara Hjort Ditlevsen

Danish actress

*May 23rd, 1988, Copenhagen

66

Martin McGuinness

Sinn Féin politician and deputy First Minister (1950-2017)

*May 23rd, 1950, Derry †March 21st, 2017, Altnagelvin Area Hospital

32

Lena Meyer-Landrut

German singer

*May 23rd, 1991, Hanover

46

Hans Frank

German lawyer, Nazi politician, General Governor of Nazi occupied Poland and convicted war criminal (1900-1946)

*May 23rd, 1900, Karlsruhe †October 16th, 1946, Nuremberg

70

Carl Linnaeus

Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist (1707–1778)

*May 23rd, 1707, Råshult †January 10th, 1778, Linnaeus Hammarby

90

Joan Collins

English actress, author and columnist

*May 23rd, 1933, London

77

John Payne

American actor 1912-1989

*May 23rd, 1912, Roanoke †December 6th, 1989, Malibu

69

Felix Steiner

German SS commander ; affiant in Pohl Trial (NMT 4)

*May 23rd, 1896, Nesterov †May 12th, 1966, Munich

82

John Bardeen

American physicist and engineer

*May 23rd, 1908, Madison †January 30th, 1991, Boston

83

Pär Lagerkvist

Swedish writer (1891–1974)

*May 23rd, 1891, Växjö †July 11th, 1974, Danderyd

75

Herbert Marshall

Actor (1890-1966)

*May 23rd, 1890, London †January 22nd, 1966, Beverly Hills

56

Wotan Wilke Möhring

German actor

*May 23rd, 1967, Detmold

65

Lea DeLaria

American actor, comedian and singer

*May 23rd, 1958, Belleville

72

Anatoly Karpov

Russian chess player

*May 23rd, 1951, Zlatoust

65

Thomas Bestvater

Swiss actor

*May 23rd, 1958, Herrliberg

85

Jean Françaix

French composer and pianist

*May 23rd, 1912, Le Mans †September 25th, 1997, Paris

34

Annemarie Schwarzenbach

Swiss writer, journalist and photographer

*May 23rd, 1908, Zürich †November 15th, 1942, Sils im Engadin/Segl

46

Josef Terboven

German politician (1898–1945)

*May 23rd, 1898, Essen †May 8th, 1945, Skaugum

Same year
Born in 1897

82

Dirk Stikker

Politician and badminton player (1897-1979)

*February 5th, 1897, Winschoten †December 23rd, 1979, Wassenaar

64

William Faulkner

American writer (1897–1962)

*September 25th, 1897, New Albany †July 6th, 1962, Byhalia

66

Pierre Loeb

French Jewish galerist and art dealer persecuted by Nazis (1897-1964)

*September 24th, 1897, Paris †May 4th, 1964

41

Amelia Earhart

American aviation pioneer and author

*July 24th, 1897, Atchison †January 5th, 1939, Howland Island

80

Ludwig Erhard

Chancellor of West Germany (1963–1966)

*February 4th, 1897, Fürth †May 5th, 1977, Bonn

76

Paavo Nurmi

Finnish middle and long distance runner (1897-1973)

*June 13th, 1897, Turku †October 2nd, 1973, Helsinki

80

Paul VI

Head of the Catholic Church from 1963 to 1978

*September 26th, 1897, Concesio †August 6th, 1978, Castel Gandolfo

58

Irène Joliot-Curie

French scientist (1897-1956)

*September 12th, 1897, 13th arrondissement of Paris †March 17th, 1956, Paris

64

Georges Bataille

French intellectual and literary figure

*September 10th, 1897, Billom †July 9th, 1962, Paris

47

Joseph Goebbels

Nazi politician and Propaganda Minister (1897–1945)

*October 29th, 1897, Rheydt †May 1st, 1945, Berlin

96

Marian Anderson

African-American contralto (1897–1993)

*February 21st, 1897, Philadelphia †April 8th, 1993, Portland

94

Judith Anderson

Australian stage and screen actress (1897–1992)

*February 10th, 1897, Adelaide †January 3rd, 1992, Santa Barbara

76

Kate O'Brien

Irish novelist, playwright and activist

*December 3rd, 1897, Limerick †August 13th, 1974, Canterbury

90

Viola Dana

Actress (1897-1987)

*June 26th, 1897, Brooklyn †July 3rd, 1987, Woodland Hills

78

Thornton Wilder

American playwright and novelist (1897–1975)

*April 17th, 1897, Madison †December 7th, 1975, Hamden

78

Alfredo Bracchi

Italian writer and actor (1897-1976)

*December 30th, 1897, Milan †October 11th, 1976, Milan

94

Frank Capra

Italian-born American film director (1897–1991)

*May 18th, 1897, Bisacquino †September 3rd, 1991, La Quinta

75

Lester B. Pearson

14th Prime Minister of Canada, from 1963 to 1968

*April 23rd, 1897, Toronto †December 27th, 1972, Ottawa

72

Everett Bradley

American pentathlete

*May 19th, 1897, Cedar Rapids †July 25th, 1969, Wichita

105

Mary Ellis

American opera singer (1897–2003)

*June 15th, 1897, New York City †January 30th, 2003, London

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on May 23rd

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day) which are celebrated on May 23rd.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

No: With 365 days 1897 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
May 1897