May 18

Nicholas II was the final Emperor of Russia, whose reign from 1894 to 1917 was marked by political repression, military defeats, and revolution. His refusal to share power and catastrophic leadership in World War I led to the collapse of the Romanov dynasty. He and his family were executed by the Bolsheviks in July 1918.

Omar Khayyám was a polymath of the Islamic Golden Age who made fundamental contributions to algebra, reforming the Persian calendar and composing the Rubaiyat — a collection of quatrains that became internationally famous through Edward FitzGerald's 19th-century translation.

Walter Gropius founded the Bauhaus school in 1919, revolutionising design education by uniting fine arts with crafts and industrial production. After fleeing Nazi Germany, he taught at Harvard and shaped modern American architecture. The Bauhaus movement's influence on art, design, and architecture remains profound.

Frank Capra was one of Hollywood's most beloved directors, known for optimistic films like It Happened One Night, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and It's a Wonderful Life. He won three Academy Awards for Best Director and helped shape the populist, idealistic vision of American cinema.

Bertrand Russell was one of the 20th century's most influential philosophers, making foundational contributions to mathematical logic, analytic philosophy, and the theory of knowledge. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1950 and was a lifelong activist for pacifism and nuclear disarmament.