1430day.year
Joan of Arc is captured at the Siege of Compiègne by troops from the Burgundian faction.
Joan of Arc was captured by Burgundian forces during the Siege of Compiègne in 1430.
On May 23, 1430, during the Hundred Years' War, Joan of Arc led French forces attempting to lift the siege of Compiègne.
She was ambushed and captured by troops of the pro-English Burgundian faction.
Seen as a turning point, her imprisonment led to a politically motivated trial for heresy.
Joan was later condemned and burned at the stake in 1431, becoming a martyr.
Her capture marked the decline of her military influence but the rise of her legend in French national identity.
1430
Joan of Arc
Siege of Compiègne
Burgundian faction
1568day.year
Dutch rebels led by Louis of Nassau, defeat Jean de Ligne, Duke of Arenberg, and his loyalist troops in the Battle of Heiligerlee, opening the Eighty Years' War.
Dutch rebels won the Battle of Heiligerlee in 1568, beginning the Eighty Years’ War.
On May 23, 1568, Dutch forces led by Louis of Nassau defeated the Duke of Arenberg’s Spanish-allied troops at Heiligerlee.
This victory marked the first major battle of the Eighty Years’ War for Dutch independence from Spanish rule.
Although subsequent campaigns faltered, Heiligerlee galvanized support for the rebellion.
The conflict persisted for decades and culminated in the establishment of the Dutch Republic.
The battle is celebrated as the spark that ignited the Netherlands’ struggle for freedom.
1568
Louis of Nassau
Jean de Ligne, Duke of Arenberg
Battle of Heiligerlee
Eighty Years' War
1618day.year
The Third Defenestration of Prague precipitates the Thirty Years' War.
The Third Defenestration of Prague in 1618 sparked the Thirty Years’ War.
On May 23, 1618, Protestant nobles in Bohemia threw two imperial governors and their secretary out of a castle window in Prague.
This act of defiance against Catholic Habsburg rule escalated religious tensions across the Holy Roman Empire.
The incident triggered the Thirty Years’ War, one of Europe’s most devastating conflicts.
Over the next three decades, the war devastated vast regions and redrew political boundaries.
Its conclusion reshaped the balance of power and marked a turning point in European history.
1618
Third Defenestration of Prague
Thirty Years' War
1706day.year
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, defeats a French army under Marshal François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy at the Battle of Ramillies.
The Duke of Marlborough won a decisive victory at the Battle of Ramillies in 1706.
On May 23, 1706, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, led Allied forces to victory against the French at Ramillies in modern-day Belgium.
This battle was a pivotal engagement in the War of the Spanish Succession, weakening France’s position in the Low Countries.
Marlborough’s tactics and coordination of infantry and cavalry secured a crushing defeat for Marshal Villeroy.
The victory opened the road to Brussels and shifted the war’s momentum in favor of the Grand Alliance.
Ramillies cemented Marlborough’s reputation as one of Britain’s greatest military commanders.
1706
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough
Marshal
François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy
Battle of Ramillies
1793day.year
Battle of Famars during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
The Battle of Famars took place during the Flanders Campaign in 1793.
On May 23, 1793, Allied forces under the Duke of York engaged French Revolutionary troops at Famars in northern France.
This battle was part of the Flanders Campaign during the War of the First Coalition.
The Allies succeeded in capturing key heights, forcing the French to abandon Valenciennes.
Although tactically significant, the battle did not end the revolutionary tide in France.
Famars exemplifies the shifting fortunes of early coalition efforts against Revolutionary France.
1793
Battle of Famars
Flanders Campaign
War of the First Coalition
1846day.year
Mexican–American War: President Mariano Paredes of Mexico unofficially declares war on the United States.
On May 23, 1846, President Mariano Paredes of Mexico unofficially declared war on the United States, signaling the start of open hostilities.
Long-standing territorial disputes over Texas and border boundaries had strained relations between Mexico and the United States.
By issuing an unofficial declaration, President Paredes committed Mexico to defending its northern frontier.
Skirmishes along the Rio Grande soon escalated into full-scale battles.
In response, U.S. President James K. Polk ordered the mobilization of American forces.
The ensuing Mexican–American War would reshape North America's political map and influence future diplomatic relations.
1846
Mexican–American War
Mariano Paredes
1900day.year
American Civil War: Sergeant William Harvey Carney is awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism in the Assault on the Battery Wagner in 1863.
On May 23, 1900, Sergeant William Harvey Carney received the Medal of Honor for his extraordinary valor during the 1863 assault on Battery Wagner.
Carney served in the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, one of the first African American units in the Civil War.
During the attack on Battery Wagner, he crawled under heavy fire carrying the American flag, planting it on the parapet.
Despite suffering severe wounds, he never let the flag touch the ground as he retreated.
Racial prejudice delayed his recognition, making him the first African American awarded the Medal of Honor.
His bravery stands as a powerful symbol of courage and progress in U.S. military history.
1900
American Civil War
William Harvey Carney
Medal of Honor
Assault on the Battery Wagner
1915day.year
World War I: Italy joins the Allies, fulfilling its part of the Treaty of London.
On May 23, 1915, Italy entered World War I by joining the Allies, honoring its commitments under the Treaty of London.
Although originally allied with Germany and Austria-Hungary, Italy declared neutrality in 1914.
After secret negotiations, the Treaty of London promised Italy territorial gains for entering the war.
Prime Minister Antonio Salandra announced war on Austria-Hungary, mobilizing Italian forces along the Isonzo River.
The Italian Front saw grueling mountain warfare and high casualties.
Italy's entry expanded the conflict and influenced postwar boundaries in Central Europe.
1915
World War I
Allies
Treaty of London
1919day.year
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji, a Kurdish sheikh and at-the-time governor of the Slêmanî Province of British Iraq, initiates the first Mahmud Barzanji revolt.
On May 23, 1919, Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji launched his first revolt against British rule in Iraq, marking the start of Kurdish uprisings.
Serving as governor of the Sulaymaniyah Province, Barzanji declared himself King of Kurdistan and rejected British authority.
He rallied tribal leaders and mobilized local forces in a bid for Kurdish autonomy.
Early successes led to a brief period of self-rule before British troops suppressed the uprising.
This revolt ignited Kurdish nationalist aspirations and set a precedent for future resistance movements.
Barzanji remains a key figure in the history of Kurdish self-determination.
1919
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji
Kurdish
Mahmud Barzanji revolt
1941day.year
World War II: German paratroopers start a series of mass executions of Greek civilians in Missiria for their participation in the ongoing Battle of Crete.
German paratroopers carried out mass executions of Greek civilians in Missiria during the Battle of Crete.
On May 23, 1941, German Fallschirmjäger units occupied the village of Missiria on Crete and began executing local civilians accused of supporting Allied forces. The reprisals came as German troops faced fierce resistance from British, Commonwealth, and Greek defenders during the airborne invasion of Crete. Dozens of unarmed villagers were rounded up and shot without trial, an atrocity that shocked both local populations and international observers. The killings were intended to deter further civilian support for the Allied defense. In the aftermath, survivors recounted harrowing scenes of violence and loss, fueling Greek resentment and strengthening the island’s resistance movement. This event became one of the many documented war crimes of the Nazi occupation.
1941
World War II
mass executions
Battle of Crete
1945day.year
World War II: Heinrich Himmler, head of the Schutzstaffel, commits suicide while in Allied custody.
Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, committed suicide while under Allied custody.
On May 23, 1945, Heinrich Himmler, the Reichsführer-SS and one of Nazi Germany’s most powerful figures, took his own life in British custody. Captured while attempting to flee under an assumed name, he ingested a cyanide capsule during an interrogation. Despite efforts by Allied medical personnel, Himmler died before detailed questioning could commence. His suicide prevented him from facing charges at the Nuremberg Trials and denied victims a public reckoning with one of the Holocaust’s chief architects. Himmler’s death marked the demise of the highest surviving Nazi leadership and closed one of the final chapters of World War II.
1945
Heinrich Himmler
Schutzstaffel
Allied
2016day.year
Two suicide bombings, conducted by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, kill at least 45 potential army recruits in Aden, Yemen.
Two ISIS suicide bombers attack army recruitment posts in Aden, Yemen, killing dozens of recruits.
On May 23, 2016, two coordinated suicide bombings by the Islamic State targeted military recruitment centers in Aden, Yemen's southern port city. The blasts killed at least 45 would-be soldiers and wounded dozens more lining up to enlist. Hospitals overflowed with casualties, and rescue teams worked into the night amidst chaotic scenes of grief and destruction. The double strike represented one of ISIS's deadliest attacks in Yemen, complicating a civil war that had already wrought a humanitarian crisis. International observers condemned the bombings as a stark reminder of extremist groups exploiting conflict zones to sow terror.
2016
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
Aden