Muslim forces capture Acre during the Crusades (1291)

Close to a 100 years after the Capture of Jerusalem by Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, the Crusader controlled city of Acre is captured by Muslim forces fighting under the Mamluk Sultanate in 1291, marking end to major fighting during the Third Crusade. Capture of the city effectively ended the third crusade because Acre acted as a major diplomatic, strategic and political centre of power for the crusaders.

While more Crusader expeditions were launched after the loss of Acre, none of them were able to achieve any decisive military victory as the centre of power in the region began to shift towards the Ottoman Empire which rapidly expanded into South-Eastern Europe.

Worms massacre (1096)

Over 800 Jews are massacred in the German town of Worms on May 18, 1096. The attack took place as troops marching towards Jerusalem during the First Crusade were influenced by a local anti-Semitic rumour and slaughtered all Jewish residents of the city.

Tamil Tigers admit defeat in Sri Lanka

After close to thirty years of civil war, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also known as the Tamil Tigers, admit defeat on May 18, 2009. Major military operations by the Sri Lankan Army succeeded in capturing most areas under LTTE control. More than 11,000 soldiers, including close to 600 child soldiers laid down their arms while others escaped to India.

Bertrand Russell is born

The British Philosopher, Mathematician, Historian, Political Activist and Nobel Laureate Bertrand Arthur William Russell is born on May 18, 1872.

“Of all forms of caution, caution in love is perhaps the most fatal to true happiness.”

Bertrand Russell would go on to become one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century and became an iconic character across the world with his efforts to popularise philosophy through a variety of books and lectures. His political activism, Pacifism, opposition of Cold War and Nuclear Weapons earned him widespread praise.

Russell remained active in his opposition to nuclear weapons even at the age of 89 when he was arrested for protesting against nuclear weapons. After his arrest, a judge promised to release him if he promised ‘good behaviour’ to which Russell replied “No, I wont.”

“Uncertainty, in the presence of vivid hopes and fears, is painful,
but must be endured if we wish to live without the support of comforting fairy tales. It is not good
either to forget the questions that philosophy asks, or to persuade ourselves that we have found
indubitable answers to them. To teach how to live without certainty, and yet without being
paralyzed by hesitation, is perhaps the chief thing that philosophy, in our age, can still do for those
who study it.”

Apollo 10 is launched

Apollo 10 is launched on May 18, 1969 by NASA as a ‘dress rehearsal’ for the successful landings on the moon close to two months later by Apollo 11.

Omar Khayyam is born

The Persian Mathematician, Poet and astronomer, Omar Khayyam is born on May 18, 1048 in Khorasan.

Israeli spy Eli Cohen is hanged by Syria

Israeli spy Eli Cohen is hanged to death in Damascus on May 18, 1965. Deployed by Mossad in Syria, Cohen was able to make contacts with important officials in the Syrian government, army and the civil services, thereby gaining valuable intelligence which he passed onto Israel over a number of years. He even became the primary adviser to the Syrian Minister of Defense. His cover was ultimately blown in January 1965 and was hanged in May by Syria despite major diplomatic efforts by Israel to recover him.

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