Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on May 7th?

The Peloponnesian War begins between Athens and Sparta, marking the start of a decades-long conflict in Ancient Greece.

Playwright Christopher Marlowe is killed in a dispute, possibly over a bill, at a tavern in Deptford, London.

Nakahama Manjirō, a 14-year old fisherman arrives to the United States on May 7 1843 by way of a whaling ship. and is considered the U.S first Japanese immigrant, He was called by some, the "U.S.'s first ambassador to Japan", as he went on to become influential in ending Japan’s centuries of isolation. More

The passenger liner RMS Lusitania was sunk by a German submarine during World War I, killing 1,198 people. More

Germany WWII surrender - A German delegation, including General Alfred Jodl, Chief of Staff of the German Army, signed the unconditional surrender document at General Dwight D. Eisenhower's headquarters in Reims, France. This act marked the end of the European phase of World War II.  At the insistence of the The Soviet Union that the act of surrender should take place at the seat of government of Nazi Germany, a new document was signed in Berlin on May 8 by representatives of the Allied Expeditionary Force represented by the British, and the Supreme High Command of the Soviet Red Army, with further French and American representatives signing as witnesses. This time, Field-Marshal Wilhelm Keitel was the highest ranking representative for Germany. It was signed on May 8, 1945 and took effect at 23:01 on the same day. More

Germany surrenders unconditionally to the Allied forces, bringing an end to World War II in Europe. More

French defeated at Dien Bien Phu bringing an end to French colonial efforts in Indochina. Vietnam was partitioned by the Geneva Accords of 1954 into Communist North Vietnam and non-Communist South Vietnam. President Eisenhower sent some 700 military personnel as well as military and economic aid to the government of South Vietnam. In 1961, JFK authorized sending additional Special Forces troops and military advisors to South Vietnam. By the end of 1962, there were approximately 11,000 military personnel in South Vietnam and 16,000 by the end of 1963.