1910 – The British House of Commons resolved that the maximum lifetime of Parliament be reduced from seven to five years.

1915 – The birth of Sir Denis Thatcher, British businessman and husband of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

1916 – Explorer Ernest Shackleton and companions reached the Falkland island of South Georgia after sailing 800 miles in 16 days in an open boat. They were looking for help for the remaining members of their party marooned on Elephant island, Antarctica.

1919 – The first scheduled commercial air service in Britain began. The flight from Manchester to Southport cost 4 guineas one way and was run by A.V.Roe.

1940 – German forces invaded Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg by air and land. The invasion began at dawn with large numbers of aeroplanes attacking the main aerodromes and landing troops. Winston Churchill formed a coalition wartime Government. When he first met his cabinet on 13th May he told them – “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears & sweat”.

1941 – Rudolf Hess, deputy leader of Nazi Germany, flew a small plane to Scotland and parachuted to the ground in a bizarre attempt to negotiate a peace settlement with Britain. After interrogation he was later jailed for life.

1941 – World War II – The worst night of the Blitz in Britain. 550 German bombers dropped 100,000 bombs on London. More than 1500 people were killed and many thousands more were injured.

1998 – The political wing of the republican IRA backed the Good Friday peace agreement heralding a major shift in modern republicanism.

2013 – Andrew “Bart” Simpson, a double Olympic medallist from Sherbourne in Dorset died after a Swedish catamaran capsized during a training session for the America’s Cup in San Francisco Bay. Before the 2012 Olympics, Mr. Simpson had said that winning the America’s Cup, the oldest trophy in the sport, was his biggest goal.

2014 – Sixth formers at Hampton Court House, a private school in Surrey, are to begin their lessons in the afternoons to allow them to sleep later in the mornings. Headmaster Guy Holloway said that the change to 1:30 pm from the usual time of 9:00 am would be more productive and less stressful for students.