- 1558 Andrew of Austria, Austrian nobleman (Margrave of Burgau), clergyman (Catholic cardinal and bishop), and Governor-General of the Habsburg Netherlands (1598-1599), born in Bresnitz Castle, Březnice, Bohemia (now Czech Republic) (d. 1600)
- 1565 Henrick de Keyser, Dutch architect and sculptor (master builder of Amsterdam, Zuiderkerk church), born in Utrecht (d. 1621)
- 1608 René Goupil, French Catholic missionary (Canadian Martyrs) (d. 1642)
- 1689 Mary Wortley Montagu, English poet and writer (wrote about life in Istanbul, advocated for smallpox inoculation), born at Holme Pierrepont Hall, England (d. 1762) (baptism 26 May)
- 1720 Maximilian Hell [Höll], Slovakian astronomer, Jesuit priest, and namesake of a lunar crater, born in Selmecbánya, Kingdom of Hungary (d. 1792)
- 1749 Levi Lincoln, Sr., American revolutionary, statesman, politician, and acting Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1820)
Klemens von Metternich (1773-1859)
Austrian statesman, Minister of Foreign Affairs (1809-48) and host of the Congress of Vienna (1814-15), born in Koblenz, Electorate of Trier, Holy Roman Empire
- 1786 General Dimitris Plapoutas, a Revolutionary in the Greek War of Independence (d. 1864)
- 1791 Baron Floris van Hall, Dutch nobleman and politician (Prime Minister 1853-56, and 1860-61), born in Amsterdam, Dutch Republic (now Netherlands) (d. 1866)
- 1802 Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, Major General (Confederate Army), (d. 1888)
- 1810 Jacob Thompson, (Confederacy), (d. 1885)
- 1817 Debendranath Tagore, Indian philosopher of the Bengal Renaissance, religious reformer and founder of the Brahmo religion, born in Calcutta, British India (d. 1905)
- 1819 Thomas Leonidas Crittenden, American lawyer, politician, and Major General (Union Army), born in Russellville, Kentucky (d. 1893)
- 1830 Laurence Simmons Baker, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1907)
- 1845 Ilya Mechnikov, Russian zoologist and bacteriologist known as the "father of natural immunity" (Nobel 1908), born in Ivanovka, Kharkov Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1916)
- 1848 Viktor Vasnetsov, Russian painter (d. 1926)
- 1855 Eduard von Keyserling, Baltic German writer (Dritte Stiege), born in Schloss Tels-Paddern, Courland Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1918)
- 1856 (Lyman) L. Frank Baum, American children's book author (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz), born in Chittenango, New York (d. 1919)
- 1857 Williamina Fleming, Scottish-born astronomer (d. 1911)
- 1859 Pierre Curie, French physicist (Nobel 1903) and husband of Marie Curie, born in Paris, France (d. 1906)
- 1860 Ellen Axson Wilson (née Ellen Louise Axson), American artist and First Lady (US, 1913-14; New Jersey, 1911-13), 1st wife of US President Woodrow Wilson, born in Savannah, Georgia (d. 1914)
- 1862 Arthur Schnitzler, Austrian playwright (La Ronde - Reigen), and novelist (Fräulein Else), born in Leopoldstadt, Vienna, Austrian Empire (d. 1931)
- 1862 John Reeves Ellerman, British accountant, businessman, and shipping magnate, born in Kingston upon Hull, England (d. 1933)
- 1865 Albert Verwey, Dutch poet and literary historian (Motion), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1937)
- 1880 Otto Dibelius, German theologist and bishop (Confessional Church), born in Berlin, Germany (d. 1967)
- 1888 Jean Wahl, French philosopher (Sorbonne professor), born in Marseille, France (d. 1974)
- 1889 Bessie Abramowitz Hillman, Russian-American labor leader and founder of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, born in Linoveh, Russia (d. 1970)
- 1890 Katherine Anne Porter, American writer (Ship of Fools), born in Indian Creek, Texas (d. 1980)
- 1891 David Vogel, Russian-Hebrew poet, writer (Married Life; Before the Dark Gate; In the Sanatorium), and Holocaust victim, born in Sataniv, Russian Empire (d. 1944)
- 1891 Fritz Feigl, Austrian Brazilian chemist (spot tests), born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary (d. 1971)
- 1891 Mikhail Bulgakov, Russian playwright and novelist (The Master and Margarita, Black Snow), born in Kiev, Russian Empire (d. 1940)
- 1893 Stanley Lupino, English comic (Cheer Up; Over She Goes), born in London (d. 1942)
- 1895 William D. Byron, U.S. Congressman (d. 1941)
- 1899 Jean-Etienne Valluy, French general (d. 1970)
- 1901 Xavier Herbert, Australian author (d. 1984)
- 1902 Richard J Daley, American politician (38th Mayor-Chicago-D:1955-76), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1976)
- 1903 Maria Reiche, German-born mathematician and archaeologist (d. 1998)
- 1907 Phillip Piratin, British communist MP (d. 1995)
- 1907 Sukhdev Thapar, Indian freedom fighter (d. 1931)
- 1911 Herta Oberheuser, Nazi doctor (d. 1978)
- 1911 Max Frisch, Swiss writer and playwright (I’m Not Stiller, Firebugs), born in Zürich, Switzerland (d. 1991)
- 1912 Alexis Kagame, Rwandan philosopher, historian, poet and Tutsi intellectual and cultural leader, born in Kiyanza, Rwanda, German East Africa (d. 1981)
- 1914 Jack Pepys, South African British immunologist (allergy and allergic diseases), born in Johannesburg, South Africa (d. 1996)
- 1915 Paul A. Samuelson, American economist (1970 Nobel Prize for Economics, 1947 John Bates Clark Medal), born in Gary, Indiana (d. 2009) [1]
- 1920 Hugh Henry Home Popham, British aviator, writer and poet, born in Beer, England (d. 1996)
- 1922 Enrico Berlinguer, Italian communist, Secretary-General (CPI), born in Sassari, Italy (d. 1984) [or May 25]
- 1922 Jakucho Setouchi, Japanese writer and Buddhist nun (The Tale of Genji), born in Tukushima, Japan (d. 2021)
- 1922 Selma Engel [Saartje Wijnberg], Dutch born Jew, the first to tell of Nazi Sobibor extermination camp, born in Groningen, the Netherlands (d. 2018)
- 1923 Richard Avedon, American photographer (Harper's Bazaar, The New Yorker), born in New York City (d. 2004) [1]
- 1924 Jaime Garcia Terrés, Mexican poet and essayist, born in Mexico City (d. 1996)
- 1924 Maria Koepcke, German ornithologist (d. 1971)
- 1925 Jos Jacobs, Belgian director (Madonna of Nedermunster), born in Antwerp, Belgium (d. 1995)
- 1925 Mary Lyon, English geneticist (X-chromosome inactivation), born in Norwich, Norfolk (d. 2014)
- 1926 Anthony Shaffer, Engish playwright (Sleuth), twin brother to Peter, born in Liverpool (d. 2001)
Peter Shaffer (1926-2016)
English playwright (Equus, Amadeus), twin brother to Anthony, born in Liverpool
- 1929 Frank Evans Heart, American computer engineer (worked on first routing computer for ARPANET, the Internet's predecessor), born in the Bronx, New York (d. 2018)
- 1930 Jasper Johns, American painter and sculptor (Green Target), born in Augusta, Georgia
- 1931 F Korthals Altes, Dutch minister of Justice (VVD)
- 1934 David Greville, 8th Earl of Warwick who sold his castle to Madame Tussauds, born in Warwick Castle, Warwick, England (d. 1996) [1]
- 1936 Paul Zindel, playwright (Effects of Gamma Rays on Marigolds)
- 1936 Ralph Steadman, British cartoonist
- 1936 Wavy Gravy, American clown and activist
Madeleine Albright (1937-2022)
American diplomat (UN Delegate, 1993-97), and 1st female US Secretary of State (1997-2001), born in Prague, Czechoslovakia
- 1939 Brian Hartley, British mathematician (group theory) (d. 1994)
- 1942 Anthony Wayne England, PhD/astronaut (STS 51-F), born in Indianapolis, Indiana
- 1942 Doug Lowe, 35th Premier of Tasmania
- 1944 Bill Alter, Missouri State Senator
- 1945 Duarte Pio, Duke of Braganza, heir to the Portuguese crown
- 1949 Frank L Culbertson Jr, American US Navy officer and NASA astronaut (STS-38), born in Charleston, South Carolina
- 1951 Frank Wilczek, American Physicist (2004 Nobel Prize), born in Mineola, New York
- 1952 David Brandon, American businessman (Toys "R" Us, Domino's Pizza), born in Dearborn, Michigan
- 1954 Robert P. Harrison, American thinker
- 1957 Juan José Ibarretxe, Basque Lehendakari (Prime Minister)
- 1963 George Heidweiler, Suriname, Dutch painter
- 1968 Cecilia Malmström, Swedish politician
Zara Phillips (43 years old)
1981 English daughter of Princess Anne, born in London
- 1998 Mohammed El Kurd, Palestinian poet and activist, born in Jerusalem
- 1998 Muna El Kurd, Palestinian activist, born in Jerusalem
Authors
Civil Rights Activists
Inventors
Kings
Revolutionaries
Scientists