<p>Discover what happened on May 3 with HISTORY's summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.</p>


May 3

Discover what happened on May 3 with HISTORY&#8217;s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.

What Happened on May 3 | HISTORY

Home

HISTORY

1469

1954

2007

1946

1947

1952

1965

1933

1810

1948

1962

1992

1951

1980

1942

<p>The continent of Asia, home to the majority of the world's population and countries as diverse as China, South Korea and India, has thousands of years of rich history.</p>


Asian History

<p>In the 15th century, Europeans began to sail west across the Atlantic Ocean in search of new routes to China and the East, but in the process they discovered what they labeled a "New World," although Indigenous people had lived there for centuries. Other explorers have pushed the limits of flight and seafaring, and traversed the frozen Continent of Antarctica.</p>


Exploration

<p>The Vietnam War pitted communist North Vietnam and the Viet Cong against South Vietnam and the United States. The war ended when U.S. forces withdrew in 1973 and Vietnam unified under Communist control two years later.</p>


Vietnam War

<p>Crime has been a dark and powerful undercurrent in human society throughout history. Uncover the facts behind some of the most daring robberies, brazen scams and brutal murders ever committed.</p>


Crime

Videos

<p><a href="http://history.com/">HISTORY.com</a> works with a wide range of writers and editors to create accurate and informative content. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Articles with the “HISTORY.com Editors” byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including <a href="https://www.history.com/author/amanda-onion">Amanda Onion</a>, <a href="https://www.history.com/author/missy-sullivan">Missy Sullivan</a>, <a href="https://www.history.com/author/matt-mullen">Matt Mullen</a> and Christian Zapata.</p>


History.com Editors

<p>Art history tells the complex story of human civilization through art, literature and design. It ranges from prehistoric art of the Neolithic period through Renaissance masterpieces, Impressionism, Modernism, the Bauhaus and contemporary art.</p>


Art, Literature and Film History

<p>World War II was the biggest and deadliest war in history, involving more than 30 countries. Sparked by the 1939 Nazi invasion of Poland, the war dragged on for six bloody years until the Allies defeated the Axis powers of Nazi Germany, Japan and Italy in 1945. Explore the battles, leaders and atrocities from the war and its impact on geopolitics and humankind.</p>


World War II

<p>Inventions from the telephone to the Model T and the computer have defined human history, and inventors like Leonardo da Vinci, Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, Eli Whitney and Alexander Graham Bell have transformed our society.</p>


Inventions & Science

<p>The Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union lasted for decades and resulted in anti-communist suspicions and international incidents that led two superpowers to the brink of nuclear disaster.</p>


Cold War

<div id="1680273445.167319" class="c-virtual_list__item c-virtual_list__item--initial-activeitem" role="listitem" data-qa="virtual-list-item" data-item-key="1680273445.167319">
<div class="c-message_kit__background p-message_pane_message__message c-message_kit__message" role="presentation" data-qa="message_container" data-qa-unprocessed="false" data-qa-placeholder="false">
<div class="c-message_kit__hover" role="document" data-qa-hover="true">
<div class="c-message_kit__actions c-message_kit__actions--default">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter__right" role="presentation" data-qa="message_content">
<div class="c-message_kit__blocks c-message_kit__blocks--rich_text">
<div class="c-message__message_blocks c-message__message_blocks--rich_text" data-qa="message-text">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer" data-qa="block-kit-renderer">
<div class="p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper p-block_kit_renderer__block_wrapper--first">
<div class="p-rich_text_block" dir="auto">
<div class="p-rich_text_section">African Americans have played a central role in shaping U.S. history. From slavery and its abolition to the Great Migration, the civil rights movement and military, scientific, cultural and political achievements, explore key moments, milestones and figures in Black History.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="1680273480.911289" class="c-virtual_list__item" role="listitem" data-qa="virtual-list-item" data-item-key="1680273480.911289">
<div class="c-message_kit__background p-message_pane_message__message c-message_kit__message" role="presentation" data-qa="message_container" data-qa-unprocessed="false" data-qa-placeholder="false">
<div class="c-message_kit__hover" role="document" data-qa-hover="true">
<div class="c-message_kit__actions c-message_kit__actions--default">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter">
<div class="c-message_kit__gutter__left" role="presentation" data-stringify-ignore="true"></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>


Black History

<p>Explore the wars, battles, leaders, civilizations, regimes, prominent figures and major events from the continent that encompasses 2 percent of the Earth’s surface. From Stonehenge to the Great Awakening to the French Revolution to the rise and fall of Communism in Russia, see how Europe’s often tumultuous history unfolded.</p>


European History

<p>During the 1980s, conservative politics and Reaganomics held sway as the Berlin Wall crumbled, new computer technologies emerged, AIDS ravaged the United States, especially the gay male community, and blockbuster movies and MTV reshaped pop culture.</p>


This Day In History: May 3

Italian philosopher and writer Niccolo Machiavelli born

Also on This Day in History May | 3

Supreme Court rules in Hernandez v. Texas, broadening civil rights laws

This Day in History Video: What Happened on May 3

Three-year-old Madeleine McCann goes missing in Portugal

Japanese war crimes trial begins

New Japanese constitution goes into effect

Joseph Fletcher lands aircraft on the North Pole

173rd Airborne Brigade deploys to South Vietnam

Funk master James Brown is born

Lord Byron swims across tumultuous Hellespont strait in Turkey

U.S. Supreme Court decides Paramount antitrust case

Trains collide near Tokyo, killing more than 160 people

Exxon executive is murdered

Congressional hearings on General MacArthur begin

MADD founder’s daughter killed by drunk driver

The Battle of the Coral Sea begins

Also on This Day in History May | 3

Wake Up to This Day in History