◆ On this day

May 12

4 sourced moments from May 12 in history: San Marcos in Lima claims the Americas' oldest university (1551); Florence Nightingale, born 1820, was a statistics pioneer; George VI's 1937 coronation was a run of small mishaps, plus 1 more.

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4 things happened on May 12

newest first ↓

1949 History · Modern

The Soviet Union lifts the Berlin Blockade

After eleven months of trying to starve West Berlin into surrender, Moscow blinked—and an airlift had already won.

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1937 History · Modern

George VI's 1937 coronation was a run of small mishaps

George VI was crowned on 12 May 1937, the date booked for his abdicated brother, in a service with a doubtful crown, a trodden train and a covered oath.

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1820 Human Body & Mind · Medicine & Disease

Florence Nightingale, born 1820, was a statistics pioneer

Born in Florence on 12 May 1820, Nightingale used Crimean War death data to prove hygiene saved soldiers, and later critics got her numbers wrong.

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1551 History · Modern

San Marcos in Lima claims the Americas' oldest university

A royal decree of 12 May 1551 underpins Lima's claim, four months ahead of Mexico's charter, though the San Marcos name came 23 years later.

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