5 things that happened On This Day: 17 May
What happened on this day in history? We round up five famous events, births, battles and deaths...
17 May
1768: Birth of Henry William Paget, later the first Marquess of Anglesey. During his life he eloped with the Duke of Wellington’s sister-in-law, lost a leg at Waterloo, and became Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland.
1521: Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, was executed for treason on Tower Hill. His bid to rebuild the power of his family and his royal blood had attracted the suspicion of King Henry VIII.
1943: The Dambusters raid. Flying specially adapted Lancaster bombers, members of 617 Squadron RAF, led by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, attacked key dams in the Ruhr and Weser valleys in Germany.
1749: Birth of Edward Jenner, pioneer of smallpox vaccination and the father of immunology, in Berkeley, Gloucestershire.
1510: Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli died in Florence. One of his most celebrated works, The Birth of Venus, is now on display in Florence’s Uffizi Gallery.
Compiled by Julian Humphrys – You can follow Julian on Twitter @GeneralJules
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