1125
Science
Death of Henry V, leaving Matilda a widowed Empress
Emperor Henry V died on 23 May 1125, leaving Matilda a childless widow and freeing her for recall to England.
View detailsThis Day
23May
20 indexed achievements across recorded history.
1430
Politics
Captured at Compiègne
Joan of Arc is captured by Burgundian forces outside Compiègne.
View details1533
Politics
Annulment of marriage to Henry VIII
Archbishop Cranmer declares Catherine's marriage to Henry VIII null and void.
View details1810
Literature
Birth of Margaret Fuller
Margaret Fuller was born on May 23, 1810, in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts.
View details1846
Science
Birth of Arabella "Belle" Aurelia Babb
Arabella Mansfield was born near Burlington, Des Moines County, Iowa.
View details1883
Science
Brooklyn Bridge dedication honors Emily Roebling as a builder
At the Brooklyn Bridge's formal dedication on May 23, 1883, Emily Warren Roebling was honored on the dedication plaque for her decade of supervisory engineering work.
View details1914
1933
Activism
Birth of Ceija Stojka
Ceija Stojka was born on May 23, 1933, in Kraubath, Austria.
View details1934
Politics
Death in law-enforcement ambush near Gibsland, Louisiana
Bonnie Parker is killed in an ambush along with Clyde Barrow.
View details1974
Politics
First Asian American woman to run for U.S. president
Mink was the first Asian American woman to run for U.S. president.
View details1975
Arts
Death of Jackie "Moms" Mabley
Moms Mabley passed away on May 23, 1975, in White Plains, New York.
View details1976
Science
B.A. in Mathematics from UCLA
Jill Pipher earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics from the University of California, Los Angeles.
View details1983
Arts
Kennedy Center Honor awarded
Katherine Dunham received a Kennedy Center Honor on May 23, 1983, recognizing her lifetime contributions to American dance and culture.
View details2001
Exploration
First eight‑thousander summit: Everest
Summited Mount Everest on May 23, 2001, her first eight‑thousander climb.
View details2013
2013
Sports
First American woman to earn the GM title
Krush became the first American woman awarded the Grandmaster title.
View details2017
Science
Death of Phyllis Fox
Phyllis Ann Fox died in Berkeley, California, after a storied career in computer science.
View details2018
Science
Featured in Nobel "Women Who Changed Science" series
Elizabeth Blackburn featured in a series highlighting transformative women in science.
View details2018
Literature
Receives ALA Melville Dewey Medal
Carla Hayden received the 2018 Melville Dewey Medal for creative leadership in library management and classification.
View details2022
Arts
Named to TIME100 Most Influential People list
TIME named Maya Lin among the 100 most influential people of 2022.
View details