This event followed the outbreak of the Spanish-American War and the defeat of Spain at the Battle of Manila Bay. Aguinaldo’s declaration was a bold assertion of Filipino sovereignty and self-determination.
Though the Philippines soon fell under American control following the Treaty of Paris in December 1898, this declaration remains a foundational moment in Philippine history and is commemorated annually.
The Birth of Karl Marx (May 5, 1818)
May is also the birth month of one of the most influential thinkers in modern history: Karl Marx. Born on May 5, 1818, in Trier, Prussia (now Germany), Marx's ideas about capitalism, class struggle, and socialism have profoundly shaped political thought and movements worldwide.
His collaboration with Friedrich Engels resulted in seminal works like The Communist Manifesto (1848) and Das Kapital (1867). Marx’s theories inspired revolutions, shaped governments, and continue to be discussed and debated in political, economic, and academic circles today.
The Opening of the Panama Canal (May 15, 1914)
The opening of the Panama Canal on May 15, 1914, represented a major engineering achievement and revolutionized global trade and naval strategy. The canal, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through the Isthmus of Panama, drastically reduced maritime travel time and costs.
The project was initially started by the French but was completed under U.S. leadership after the establishment of the Panama Canal Zone. Its opening cemented American influence in the region and became a vital artery for international commerce, which remains so over a century later. shutdown123