Timeline May 1919

Events in May 1919 6

• 1856 – 1919 L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) Died 6 May 1919, aged 62 Baum was an American author best known for writing "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" and its many sequels. His work became one of the most enduring and widely adapted children's fantasy series in American literature.
• 1919 – 2014 Pete Seeger (1919-2014) Died 27 January 2014, aged 94 Pete Seeger, the folk singer and activist behind songs including "If I Had a Hammer" and "We Shall Overcome," died in New York. He used his music for decades in support of civil rights, labor and environmental causes. He was blacklisted during the McCarthy era for his political views.
• 1919 May Fourth Movement erupts in China Student protests reject the Treaty of Versailles Thousands of students demonstrated in Beijing after the Paris Peace Conference awarded former German concessions in Shandong to Japan instead of returning them to China. The protests sparked a broader cultural and political movement that shaped modern Chinese nationalism.
• 1919 Third Anglo-Afghan War Afghanistan wins control of its foreign affairs Emir Amanullah Khan's forces fought British India in a brief border war after Afghanistan declared full independence from British influence. The resulting treaty recognized Afghanistan's right to conduct its own foreign policy for the first time.
• 1919 – 1987 Liberace (1919-1987) Died 4 February 1987, aged 67 Liberace was an American pianist and entertainer famed for his flamboyant stage shows who became one of the highest-paid performers in the world during the 1950s and 1970s. He died of complications from AIDS at his home in Palm Springs, California. His death brought renewed public attention to the AIDS epidemic.
• 1919 The Eddington eclipse expedition Starlight bent by the Sun, photographed from Principe and Brazil Arthur Eddington took his plates during the total eclipse of 29 May 1919 while a second team worked in Sobral. The measured deflection matched general relativity rather than Newton. Eddington, a Quaker pacifist, had pushed the expedition partly to heal British and German science.