On This Day - What Happened On May 27 | Britannica

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1703 Founding of St. Petersburg Founded this day in 1703 by Peter the Great, St. Petersburg has played a vital role in Russian history and is especially known as the scene of the 1917 revolutions and as a fiercely defended city during World War II. Test your knowledge of Russian history © Mikhail Khromov/Shutterstock.com

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Vincent Price American actor bornMay 27, 1911Saint Louis, MissouridiedOctober 25, 1993 (aged 82)Los Angeles, California© 1964 Alta Vista Productions 1975 Jamie Oliver British chef 1923 Henry Kissinger United States statesman 1922 Christopher Lee English actor 1912 Sam Snead American golfer 1911 Vincent Price American actor See All Biographies On This Day

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2020 American writer and gay rights activist Larry Kramer—whose confrontational style of advocacy, while divisive, was credited by many with catalyzing the response to the HIV/AIDS crisis in the United States—died at age 84. Watch an overview of the early AIDS epidemic in the United StatesMagnolia Pictures/Album/Alamy 2000 Canadian ice hockey player Maurice (“Rocket”) Richard, who helped the Montreal Canadiens win eight Stanley Cups while becoming the first NHL player to score 500 goals, died at age 78. See where Maurice Richard ranks on our list of the 10 greatest hockey players of all timeUPI/Bettmann/Detroit Times 1994 Exiled from the Soviet Union since February 13, 1974, for writing The Gulag Archipelago, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who won the 1970 Nobel Prize for Literature, returned to his Russian homeland. Take our quiz about literary NobelistsGilbert Uzan/Gamma Liaison 1993 A terrorist bomb went off in Florence, damaging a wing of the famous Uffizi Gallery. Test your knowledge of museums of the Western worldThe J. Allan Cash Photolibrary, London 1977 The British punk band the Sex Pistols released their second single, God Save the Queen, and it was quickly banned by the BBC and other outlets in England. Take our quiz about musical groups© Richard E. Aaron—Redferns/Getty Images 1964 Former Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, a leader of the Indian independence movement of the 1930s and '40s, died in New Delhi. Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about IndiaKarsh—Rapho/Photo Researchers 1941 In World War II the British navy sank the German battleship Bismarck. How much do you know about World War II?Courtesy of the Marineschule Murwik, Flensburg, Ger. 1933 Walt Disney released the animated short film The Three Little Pigs, which featured the song Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?; highlighting fortitude in the face of adversity, both the cartoon and the song proved highly popular with Depression-era moviegoers. Test your knowledge of DisneyThe Three Little Pigs, © 1933, The Walt Disney Company; photograph from the Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive, New York City 1912 American short-story writer and novelist John Cheever, known as “the Chekhov of the suburbs,” was born. Take our quiz about famous novelsEverett Collection/age fotostock 1911 American Democratic politician Hubert Humphrey—who was the 38th U.S. vice president (1965–69), a presidential candidate (1968), and a liberal Senate leader (1949–65; 1971–78)—was born in Wallace, South Dakota. Read about 10 Democrats who made history© Archive Photos 1907 American biologist Rachel Carson, who was known for her writings on environmental pollution and the natural history of the sea, was born in Springdale, Pennsylvania. Test your knowledge of pollutionPhoto Researchers, Inc./Alamy 1889 The American petrochemical corporation South Penn Oil Co., later Pennzoil Company, was founded in Pennsylvania. Sort fact from fiction in our petroleum quiz 1819 American author and lecturer Julia Ward Howe, who was best known for Battle Hymn of the Republic, was born. Take our quiz about composers and songwritersCourtesy of the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 1660 The Treaty of Copenhagen between Sweden and Denmark-Norway was signed, concluding a generation of warfare between the two powers as well as helping to establish the modern boundaries of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. How much do you know about European history? SIGN UP FOR History's Biggest Headlines Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors. SIGN UP Thanks for signing up for Today in History. Your first newsletter will arrive soon! SIGN UP By clicking "Sign Up" you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.