What are the important events that happened on May 6? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

May 6: Facts & Myths About This Day

May 6 is the 126^th day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 239 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Tuesday.

Under the Julian calendar, this day is April 23, 2025 – a Tuesday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?

When this day started, 485,136 hours has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.

Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘hectaicosahexagon’ day.

Taurus is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Emerald is the modern birthstone for this month. Sapphire is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.

According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 287 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.

The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,519 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.

May 6 Historical Events

• 1542 –
  Francis Xavier reaches Old Goa, the capital of Portuguese India at the time.
• 1757 –
  Battle of Prague – A Prussian army fights an Austrian army in Prague during the Seven Years’ War.
• 1801 –
  Captain Thomas Cochrane in the 14-gun HMS Speedy captures the 32-gun Spanish frigate El Gamo.
• 1863 –
  American Civil War: The Battle of Chancellorsville ends with the defeat of the Army of the Potomac by Confederate troops.
• 1941 –
  The first flight of the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt.
• 1942 –
  World War II: On Corregidor, the last American forces in the Philippines surrender to the Japanese.
• 1966 –
  Myra Hindley and Ian Brady are sentenced to life imprisonment for the Moors Murders in England.
• 1976 –
  An earthquake strikes Friuli, causing 989 deaths and the destruction of entire villages.
• 1989 –
  Cedar Point opens Magnum XL-200, the first roller coaster to break the 200 ft height barrier, therefore spawning what is considered to be the “coaster wars”.
• 2002 –
  Dutch politician Pim Fortuyn is assassinated by an animal rights activist.

Who were born on May 6?

• 1943 –
  Andreas Baader, member of the German terrorist organization Red Army Faction (d. 1977)
• 1951 –
  Samuel Doe, President of Liberia (d. 1990)
• 1953 –
  Graeme Souness, Scottish footballer/manager
• 1960 –
  Anne Parillaud, French actress
• 1960 –
  Phyllis Treigle, American soprano
• 1969 –
  Jim Magilton, Northern Irish footballer
• 1971 –
  Chris Shiflett, American guitarist (Foo Fighters)
• 1972 –
  Martin Brodeur, Canadian ice hockey player
• 1980 –
  Dimitris Diamantidis, Greek basketball player
• 1990 –
  Caitlin Yankowskas, American figure skater

Who died on May 6?

• 1475 –
  Dieric Bouts, Flemish painter (b. c. 1415)
• 1757 –
  Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton, British politician (b. 1683)
• 1877 –
  Johan Ludvig Runeberg, Finnish poet (b. 1804)
• 1919 –
  L. Frank Baum, American writer (b. 1856)
• 1939 –
  Konstantin Somov, Russian writer (b. 1869)
• 1975 –
  József Mindszenty, Hungarian Catholic Cardinal (b. 1892)
• 1992 –
  Gaston Reiff, Belgian athlete (b. 1921)
• 2002 –
  Otis Blackwell, American pianist, singer and songwriter (b. 1932)
• 2006 –
  Lillian Asplund, last American RMS Titanic survivor (b. 1906)
• 2006 –
  Lorne Saxberg, Canadian television journalist (b. 1958)