- 1430 – Joan of Arc is captured by the Burgundians while leading an army to raise the Siege of Compiègne.
- 1498 – Girolamo Savonarola is burned at the stake in Florence, Italy.
- 1533 – The marriage of King Henry VIII to Catherine of Aragon is declared null and void.
- 1568 – Dutch rebels led by Louis of Nassau, defeat Jean de Ligne, Duke of Arenberg, and his loyalist troops in the Battle of Heiligerlee, opening the Eighty Years’ War.
- 1609 – Official ratification of the Second Virginia Charter takes place.
- 1618 – The Second Defenestration of Prague precipitates the Thirty Years’ War.
- 1701 – After being convicted of piracy and of murdering William Moore, Captain William Kidd is hanged in London.
- 1706 – John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, defeats a French army under Marshal François de Neufville, duc de Villeroy at the Battle of Ramillies.
- 1788 – South Carolina ratifies the United States Constitution as the eighth American state.
- 1793 – Battle of Famars during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
- 1829 – Accordion patent granted to Cyrill Demian in Vienna, Austrian Empire.
- 1844 – Declaration of the Báb the evening before the 23rd: A merchant of Shiraz announces that he is a Prophet and founds a religious movement that would later be brutally crushed by the Persian government. He is considered to be a forerunner of the Bahá’í Faith; Bahá’ís celebrate the day as a holy day.
- 1846 – Mexican–American War: President Mariano Paredes of Mexico unofficially declares war on the United States.
- 1863 – The General German Workers’ Association, a precursor of the modern Social Democratic Party of Germany, is founded in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony.
- 1873 – The Canadian Parliament establishes the North-West Mounted Police, the forerunner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
- 1900 – American Civil War: Sergeant William Harvey Carney is awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism in the Assault on the Battery Wagner in 1863.
- 1907 – The unicameral Parliament of Finland gathers for its first plenary session.
- 1911 – The New York Public Library is dedicated.
- 1915 – World War I: Italy joins the Allies, fulfilling its part of the Treaty of London.
- 1932 – In Brazil, four students are shot and killed during a manifestation against the Brazilian dictator Getúlio Vargas, which resulted in the outbreak of the Constitutionalist Revolution several weeks later.
- 1934 – Infamous American bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde are ambushed by police and killed in Bienville Parish, Louisiana.
- 1934 – The Auto-Lite strike culminates in the “Battle of Toledo”, a five-day melée between 1,300 troops of the Ohio National Guard and 6,000 picketers.
- 1939 – The U.S. Navy submarine USS Squalus sinks off the coast of New Hampshire during a test dive, causing the death of 24 sailors and two civilian technicians. The remaining 32 sailors and one civilian naval architect are rescued the following day.
- 1945 – World War II: Heinrich Himmler, head of the Schutzstaffel, commits suicide while in Allied custody.
- 1945 – World War II: Germany’s Flensburg Government under Karl Dönitz is dissolved when its members are arrested by British forces.
- 1948 – Thomas C. Wasson, the US Consul-General, is assassinated in Jerusalem, Israel.
- 1949 – Cold War: The Western occupying powers approve the Basic Law and establish a new German state, the Federal Republic of Germany.
- 1951 – Tibetans sign the Seventeen Point Agreement with China.
- 1960 – A tsunami caused by an earthquake in Chile the previous day kills 61 people in Hilo, Hawaii.
- 1992 – Italy’s most prominent anti-mafia judge Giovanni Falcone, his wife and three body guards are killed by the Corleonesi clan with a half-ton bomb near Capaci, Sicily. His friend and colleague Paolo Borsellino will be assassinated less than two months later, making 1992 a turning point in the history of Italian Mafia prosecutions.
- 1995 – The first version of the Java programming language is released.
- 1998 – The Good Friday Agreement is accepted in a referendum in Northern Ireland with roughly 75% voting yes.
- 2002 – The “55 parties” clause of the Kyoto Protocol is reached after its ratification by Iceland.
- 2006 – Alaskan stratovolcano Mount Cleveland erupts.
- 2008 – The International Court of Justice (ICJ) awards Middle Rocks to Malaysia and Pedra Branca (Pulau Batu Puteh) to Singapore, ending a 29-year territorial dispute between the two countries.
- 2013 – A freeway bridge carrying Interstate 5 over the Skagit River collapses in Mount Vernon, Washington.
- 2014 – Seven people, including the perpetrator, are killed and another 14 injured in a killing spree near the campus of University of California, Santa Barbara.
- 2015 – At least 46 people are killed as a result of floods caused by a tornado in Texas and Oklahoma.
- 2016 – Two suicide bombings, conducted by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, killed at least 45 potential army recruits in Aden, Yemen.
- 2016 – Eight bombings were carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in Jableh and Tartus, coastline cities in Syria. One hundred eighty-four people were killed and at least 200 people injured.
- 2017 – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao, following the Maute’s attack in Marawi.
Births on May 23
- 635 – K’inich Kan Bahlam II, Mayan king (d. 702)
- 675 – Perumbidugu Mutharaiyar II, King of Mutharaiyar dynasty, Tamil Nadu, India
- 1052 – Philip I of France (d. 1108)
- 1100 – Emperor Qinzong of Song (d. 1161)
- 1127 – Uijong of Goryeo, Korean monarch of the Goryeo dynasty (d. 1173)
- 1330 – Gongmin of Goryeo, Korean ruler (d. 1374)
- 1586 – Paul Siefert, German composer and organist (d. 1666)
- 1606 – Juan Caramuel y Lobkowitz, Spanish mathematician and philosopher (d. 1682)
- 1614 – Bertholet Flemalle, Flemish Baroque painter (d. 1675)
- 1617 – Elias Ashmole, English astrologer and politician (d. 1692)
- 1629 – William VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel, noble of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1663)
- 1707 – Carl Linnaeus, Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist (d. 1778)
- 1718 – William Hunter, Scottish-English anatomist and physician (d. 1783)
- 1729 – Giuseppe Parini, Italian poet and educator (d. 1799)
- 1730 – Prince Augustus Ferdinand of Prussia, Prussian prince and general (d. 1813)
- 1734 – Franz Mesmer, German physician and astrologer (d. 1815)
- 1741 – Andrea Luchesi, Italian organist and composer (d. 1801)
- 1789 – Franz Schlik, Austrian earl and general (d. 1862)
- 1790 – Jules Dumont d’Urville, French admiral and explorer (d. 1842)
- 1790 – James Pradier, French neoclassical sculptor (d. 1852)
- 1794 – Ignaz Moscheles, Czech pianist and composer (d. 1870)
- 1795 – Charles Barry, English architect, designed the Upper Brook Street Chapel and Halifax Town Hall (d. 1860)
- 1800 – Rómulo Díaz de la Vega, Mexican general and president (1855) (d. 1877)
- 1810 – Margaret Fuller, American journalist and critic (d. 1850)
- 1817 – Manuel Robles Pezuela, Unconstitutional Mexican interim president (d. 1862)
- 1820 – James Buchanan Eads, American engineer, designed the Eads Bridge (d. 1887)
- 1820 – Lorenzo Sawyer, American lawyer and judge (d. 1891)
- 1824 – Ambrose Burnside, American general and politician, 30th Governor of Rhode Island (d. 1881)
- 1834 – Jānis Frīdrihs Baumanis, Latvian architect (d. 1891)
- 1834 – Carl Bloch, Danish painter and academic (d. 1890)
- 1837 – Anatole Mallet, Swiss mechanical engineer and inventor (d. 1919)
- 1837 – Józef Wieniawski, Polish pianist and composer (d. 1912)
- 1838 – Amaldus Nielsen, Norwegian painter (d. 1932)
- 1840 – George Throssell, Irish-Australian politician, 2nd Premier of Western Australia (d. 1910)
- 1844 – `Abdu’l-Bahá, Iranian religious leader (d. 1921)
- 1848 – Otto Lilienthal, German pilot and engineer (d. 1896)
- 1855 – Isabella Ford, English author and activist (d. 1924)
- 1861 – József Rippl-Rónai, Hungarian painter (d. 1927)
- 1863 – Władysław Horodecki, Polish architect (d. 1930)
- 1864 – William O’Connor, American fencer (d. 1939)
- 1865 – Epitácio Pessoa, Brazilian jurist and politician, 11th President of Brazil (d. 1942)
- 1875 – Alfred P. Sloan, American businessman and philanthropist (d. 1966)
- 1882 – William Halpenny, Canadian pole vaulter (d. 1960)
- 1883 – Douglas Fairbanks, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1939)
- 1884 – Corrado Gini, Italian sociologist and demographer (d. 1965)
- 1887 – Thoralf Skolem, Norwegian mathematician and theorist (d. 1963)
- 1887 – Nikolai Vekšin, Estonian-Russian sailor and captain (d. 1951)
- 1888 – Adriaan Roland Holst, Dutch writer (d. 1976)
- 1888 – Zack Wheat, American baseball player and police officer (d. 1972)
- 1889 – Ernst Niekisch, German educator and politician (d. 1967)
- 1890 – Herbert Marshall, English-American actor and singer (d. 1966)
- 1891 – Pär Lagerkvist, Swedish novelist, playwright, and poet, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1974)
- 1892 – Albert Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer, British peer and grandfather of Diana Spencer (d. 1975)
- 1896 – Felix Steiner, Russian-German SS officer (d. 1966)
- 1897 – Jimmie Guthrie, Scottish motorcycle racer (d. 1937)
- 1898 – Scott O’Dell, American soldier, journalist, and author (d. 1989)
- 1898 – Josef Terboven, German soldier and politician (d. 1945)
- 1899 – Jeralean Talley, American super-centenarian (d. 2015)
- 1900 – Hans Frank, German lawyer and politician (d. 1946)
- 1900 – Franz Leopold Neumann, German lawyer and theorist (d. 1954)
- 1908 – John Bardeen, American physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1991)
- 1908 – Hélène Boucher, French pilot (d. 1934)
- 1910 – Margaret Wise Brown, American author and educator (d. 1952)
- 1910 – Hugh Casson, English architect and academic (d. 1999)
- 1910 – Scatman Crothers, American actor and comedian (d. 1986)
- 1910 – Franz Kline, American painter and academic (d. 1962)
- 1910 – Artie Shaw, American clarinet player, composer, and bandleader (d. 2004)
- 1911 – Lou Brouillard, Canadian boxer (d. 1984)
- 1911 – Paul Augustin Mayer, German cardinal (d. 2010)
- 1911 – Betty Nuthall, English tennis player (d. 1983)
- 1912 – Jean Françaix, French pianist and composer (d. 1997)
- 1912 – John Payne, American actor (d. 1989)
- 1914 – Harold Hitchcock, English visionary landscape artist (d. 2009)
- 1914 – Celestine Sibley, American journalist and author (d. 1999)
- 1914 – Barbara Ward, Baroness Jackson of Lodsworth, English economist, journalist, and prominent Catholic layperson (d. 1981)
- 1915 – S. Donald Stookey, American physicist and chemist, invented CorningWare (d. 2014)
- 1917 – Edward Norton Lorenz, American mathematician and meteorologist (d. 2008)
- 1918 – Denis Compton, English cricketer and sportscaster (d. 1997)
- 1919 – Robert Bernstein, American author and playwright (d. 1988)
- 1919 – Ruth Fernández, Puerto Rican contralto and a member of the Puerto Rican Senate (d. 2012)
- 1919 – Betty Garrett, American actress, singer, and dancer (d. 2011)
- 1920 – Helen O’Connell, American singer (d. 1993)
- 1923 – Alicia de Larrocha, Catalan-Spanish pianist (d. 2009)
- 1923 – Irving Millman, American virologist and microbiologist (d. 2012)
- 1924 – Karlheinz Deschner, German author and activist (d. 2014)
- 1925 – Joshua Lederberg, American biologist and geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2008)
- 1926 – Basil Salvadore D’Souza, Indian bishop (d. 1996)
- 1926 – Joe Slovo, Lithuanian-South African activist and politician (d. 1995)
- 1928 – Rosemary Clooney, American singer and actress (d. 2002)
- 1928 – Nigel Davenport, English actor (d. 2013)
- 1928 – Nina Otkalenko, Russian runner (d. 2015)
- 1929 – Ulla Jacobsson, Swedish-Austrian actress (d. 1982)
- 1930 – Friedrich Achleitner, German poet and critic (d. 2019)
- 1931 – Barbara Barrie, American actress
- 1932 – Kevork Ajemian, Syrian-French journalist and author (d. 1998)
- 1933 – Joan Collins, English actress
- 1933 – Ove Fundin, Swedish motorcycle racer
- 1934 – Robert Moog, electronic engineer and inventor of the Moog synthesizer (d. 2005)
- 1935 – Lasse Strömstedt, Swedish author (d. 2009)
- 1936 – Ingeborg Hallstein, German soprano and actress
- 1936 – Charles Kimbrough, American actor
- 1939 – Michel Colombier, French-American composer and conductor (d. 2004)
- 1939 – Reinhard Hauff, German director and screenwriter
- 1940 – Bjorn Johansen, Norwegian saxophonist (d. 2002)
- 1940 – Gérard Larrousse, French race car driver
- 1940 – Cora Sadosky, Argentinian mathematician and academic (d. 2010)
- 1941 – Zalman King, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
- 1941 – Rod Thorn, American basketball player, coach, and executive
- 1942 – Gabriel Liiceanu, Romanian philosopher, author, and academic
- 1942 – Kovelamudi Raghavendra Rao, Indian director, screenwriter, and choreographer
- 1943 – Peter Kenilorea, Solomon Islands politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands (d. 2016)
- 1944 – John Newcombe, Australian tennis player and sportscaster
- 1945 – Padmarajan, Indian director, screenwriter, and author (d. 1991)
- 1946 – David Graham, Australian golfer
- 1947 – Jane Kenyon, American poet and translator (d. 1995)
- 1948 – Myriam Boyer, French actress, director, and producer
- 1949 – Daniel DiNardo, American cardinal
- 1949 – Alan García, Peruvian lawyer and politician, 61st and 64th President of Peru (d. 2019)
- 1950 – Martin McGuinness, Irish republican and Sinn Féin politician, Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland (d. 2017)
- 1951 – Anatoly Karpov, Russian chess player
- 1951 – Antonis Samaras, Greek economist and politician, 185th Prime Minister of Greece
- 1952 – Martin Parr, English photographer and journalist
- 1954 – Gerry Armstrong, Northern Irish international footballer, striker
- 1954 – Marvelous Marvin Hagler, American boxer and actor
- 1955 – Luka Bloom, Irish singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1956 – Andrea Pazienza, Italian illustrator and painter (d. 1988)
- 1956 – Ursula Plassnik, Austrian politician and diplomat, Foreign Minister of Austria
- 1956 – Buck Showalter, American baseball player, coach, and manager
- 1958 – Mitch Albom, American journalist, author, and screenwriter
- 1958 – Drew Carey, American actor, game show host, and entrepreneur
- 1958 – Lea DeLaria, American actress and singer
- 1959 – Marcella Mesker, Dutch tennis player and sportscaster
- 1960 – Linden Ashby, American actor
- 1961 – Daniele Massaro, Italian footballer and manager
- 1961 – Norrie May-Welby, Scottish Australian gender activist
- 1962 – Karen Duffy, American actress
- 1963 – Viviane Baladi, Swiss mathematician
- 1964 – Ruth Metzler, Swiss lawyer and politician
- 1965 – Manuel Sanchís Hontiyuelo, Spanish footballer
- 1965 – Tom Tykwer, German director, producer, screenwriter, and composer
- 1965 – Melissa McBride, American actress
- 1965 – Paul Sironen, Australian rugby league player
- 1966 – Graeme Hick, Zimbabwean-English cricketer and coach
- 1966 – Gary Roberts, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1967 – Luís Roberto Alves, Mexican footballer
- 1967 – Anna Ibrisagic, Swedish politician
- 1968 – Guinevere Turner, American actress and screenwriter
- 1970 – Bryan Herta, American race car driver and businessman, co-founded Bryan Herta Autosport
- 1971 – George Osborne, English journalist and politician, former Chancellor of the Exchequer
- 1972 – Rubens Barrichello, Brazilian race car driver
- 1972 – Martin Saggers, English cricketer and umpire
- 1973 – Maxwell, American singer-songwriter and producer
- 1974 – Jewel, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actress, and poet
- 1974 – Manuela Schwesig, German politician, German Federal Minister of Family Affairs
- 1976 – Ricardinho, Brazilian footballer and manager
- 1977 – Ilia Kulik, Russian figure skater
- 1978 – Scott Raynor, American drummer
- 1979 – Rasual Butler, American basketball player (d. 2018)
- 1979 – Brian Campbell, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1980 – Theofanis Gekas, Greek footballer
- 1980 – Ben Ross, Australian rugby league player
- 1983 – Silvio Proto, Belgian-Italian footballer
- 1984 – Hugo Almeida, Portuguese footballer
- 1985 – Sebastián Fernández, Uruguayan footballer
- 1985 – Teymuraz Gabashvili, Russian tennis player
- 1985 – Wim Stroetinga, Dutch cyclist
- 1985 – Ross Wallace, Scottish footballer
- 1986 – Ryan Coogler, American film director and screenwriter
- 1986 – Alexei Sitnikov, Russian-Azerbaijani figure skater
- 1986 – Alice Tait, Australian swimmer
- 1986 – Ruben Zadkovich, Australian footballer
- 1987 – Gracie Otto, Australian actress, director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1987 – Bray Wyatt, American wrestler
- 1988 – Rosanna Crawford, Canadian biathlete
- 1988 – Angelo Ogbonna, Italian footballer
- 1988 – Morgan Pressel, American golfer
- 1989 – Ezequiel Schelotto, Italian footballer
- 1990 – Dan Evans, British tennis player
- 1990 – Kristina Kucova, Slovakian tennis player
- 1990 – Oliver Venno, Estonian volleyball player
- 1991 – Aaron Donald, American football player
- 1991 – Lena Meyer-Landrut, German singer-songwriter
- 1991 – César Pinares, Chilean footballer
- 1996 – Katharina Althaus, German ski jumper
- 1996 – Emmanuel Boateng, Ghanaian footballer
- 1996 – Razvan Marin, Romanian footballer
- 1997 – Pedro Chirivella, Spanish footballer
- 1997 – Coy Craft, American footballer
- 1997 – Joe Gomez, English footballer
- 1997 – Gustaf Nilsson, Swedish footballer
- 1997 – Sam Timmins, New Zealand basketball player
- 1998 – Sérgio Sette Câmara, Brazilian race car driver
- 1998 – Ross Cunningham, Scottish footballer
- 1998 – Salwa Eid Naser, Bahraini track and field sprinter
- 1998 – Luca De La Torre, American footballer
- 1998 – Steve Lacy, American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer
- 2000 – Felipe Drugovich, Brazilian race car driver
- 2000 – Jaxson Hayes, American basketball player
Deaths on May 23
- 230 – Urban I, pope of the Catholic Church
- 922 – Li Sizhao, Chinese general and governor
- 962 – Guibert of Gembloux, Frankish abbot (b. 892)
- 1125 – Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1081)
- 1304 – Jehan de Lescurel, French poet and composer
- 1338 – Alice de Warenne, Countess of Arundel, English noble (b. 1287)
- 1370 – Toghon Temür, Mongol emperor (b. 1320)
- 1423 – Antipope Benedict XIII (b. 1328)
- 1498 – Girolamo Savonarola, Italian friar and preacher (b. 1452)
- 1523 – Ashikaga Yoshitane, Japanese shōgun (b. 1466)
- 1524 – Ismail I, First Emperor of Safavid Empire (b. 1487)
- 1591 – John Blitheman, English organist and composer (b. 1525)
- 1662 – John Gauden, English bishop (b. 1605)
- 1670 – Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1610)
- 1691 – Adrien Auzout, French astronomer and instrument maker (b. 1622)
- 1701 – William Kidd, Scottish pirate (b. 1645)
- 1749 – Abraham ben Abraham, Polish martyr (b. 1700)
- 1752 – William Bradford, English-American printer (b. 1663)
- 1754 – John Wood, the Elder, English architect, designed The Circus and Queen Square (b. 1704)
- 1783 – James Otis, Jr., American lawyer and politician (b. 1725)
- 1813 – Géraud Duroc, French general and diplomat (b. 1772)
- 1815 – Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg, American clergyman and botanist (b. 1753)
- 1841 – Franz Xaver von Baader, German philosopher and theologian (b. 1765)
- 1855 – Charles Robert Malden, English lieutenant and explorer (b. 1797)
- 1857 – Augustin-Louis Cauchy, French mathematician and academic (b. 1789)
- 1868 – Kit Carson, American general (b. 1809)
- 1886 – Leopold von Ranke, German historian and academic (b. 1795)
- 1893 – Anton von Schmerling, Austrian politician (b. 1805)
- 1895 – Franz Ernst Neumann, German mineralogist, physicist, and mathematician (b. 1798)
- 1906 – Henrik Ibsen, Norwegian director, playwright, and poet (b. 1828)
- 1908 – François Coppée, French poet and author (b. 1842)
- 1920 – Svetozar Boroević, Croatian-Austrian field marshal (b. 1856)
- 1921 – August Nilsson, Swedish shot putter and tug of war competitor (b. 1872)
- 1934 – Clyde Barrow, American criminal (b. 1909)
- 1934 – Mihkel Martna, Estonian journalist and politician (b. 1860)
- 1934 – Bonnie Parker, American criminal (b. 1910)
- 1937 – John D. Rockefeller, American businessman and philanthropist, founded the Standard Oil Company and Rockefeller University (b. 1839)
- 1938 – Frederick Ruple, Swiss-American painter (b. 1871)
- 1942 – Panagiotis Toundas, Greek composer and conductor (b. 1886)
- 1945 – Heinrich Himmler, German commander and politician, Reich Minister of the Interior (b. 1900)
- 1947 – Charles-Ferdinand Ramuz, Swiss author and poet (b. 1878)
- 1949 – Jan Frans De Boever, Belgian painter and illustrator (b. 1872)
- 1956 – Gustav Suits, Latvian-Estonian poet and politician (b. 1883)
- 1960 – Georges Claude, French engineer and inventor, created Neon lighting (b. 1870)
- 1962 – Louis Coatalen, French engineer (b. 1879)
- 1963 – August Jakobson, Estonian author and politician (b. 1904)
- 1965 – David Smith, American sculptor (b. 1906)
- 1975 – Moms Mabley, American comedian and actor (b. 1894)
- 1979 – S. Selvanayagam, Sri Lankan geographer and academic (b. 1932)
- 1981 – Gene Green, American baseball player (b. 1933)
- 1981 – Rayner Heppenstall, English author and poet (b. 1911)
- 1981 – George Jessel, American actor, singer, and producer (b. 1898)
- 1981 – David Lewis, Belarusian-Canadian lawyer and politician (b. 1909)
- 1986 – Sterling Hayden, American actor (b. 1916)
- 1989 – Georgy Tovstonogov, Russian director and producer (b. 1915)
- 1989 – Karl Koch, German computer hacker (b. 1965)
- 1991 – Wilhelm Kempff, German pianist and composer (b. 1895)
- 1991 – Jean Van Houtte, Belgian academic and politician, 50th Prime Minister of Belgium (b. 1907)
- 1991 – Fletcher Markle, Canadian director, screenwriter, and producer (b. 1921)
- 1992 – Kostas Davourlis, Greek footballer (b. 1948)
- 1992 – Giovanni Falcone, Italian lawyer and judge (b. 1939)
- 1994 – Olav Hauge, Norwegian poet (b. 1908)
- 1996 – Kronid Lyubarsky, Russian journalist and activist (b. 1934)
- 1998 – Telford Taylor, American general and lawyer (b. 1908)
- 1999 – Owen Hart, Canadian-American wrestler (b. 1965)
- 2002 – Sam Snead, American golfer and journalist (b. 1912)
- 2006 – Lloyd Bentsen, American colonel and politician, 69th United States Secretary of the Treasury (b. 1921)
- 2006 – Kazimierz Górski, Polish footballer and manager (b. 1921)
- 2008 – Iñaki Ochoa de Olza, Spanish mountaineer (b. 1967)
- 2008 – Utah Phillips, American singer-songwriter and poet (b. 1935)
- 2009 – Roh Moo-hyun, South Korean soldier and politician, 9th President of South Korea (b. 1946)
- 2010 – José Lima, Dominican-American baseball player (b. 1972)
- 2010 – Simon Monjack, English director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1970)
- 2011 – Xavier Tondo, Spanish cyclist (b. 1978)
- 2012 – Paul Fussell, American historian, author, and academic (b. 1924)
- 2013 – Epy Guerrero, Dominican baseball player, coach, and scout (b. 1942)
- 2013 – Hayri Kozakçıoğlu, Turkish police officer and politician, 15th Governor of Istanbul Province (b. 1938)
- 2013 – Georges Moustaki, Egyptian-French singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1934)
- 2013 – Flynn Robinson, American basketball player (b. 1941)
- 2014 – Mikhail Egorovich Alekseev, Russian linguist and academic (b. 1949)
- 2014 – Madhav Mantri, Indian cricketer (b. 1921)
- 2015 – Anne Meara, American actress, comedian and playwright (b. 1929)
- 2015 – Aleksey Mozgovoy, Ukrainian sergeant (b. 1975)
- 2015 – Alicia Nash, Salvadoran-American physicist and engineer (b. 1933)
- 2015 – John Forbes Nash, Jr., American mathematician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1928)
- 2017 – Roger Moore, English actor (b. 1927)
- 2020 – Hana Kimura, Japanese professional wrestler (b. 1997)
Holidays and observances on May 23
- Christian feast day:
- Aaron the Illustrious (Syriac Orthodox Church)
- Desiderius of Vienne
- Giovanni Battista de’ Rossi
- Julia of Corsica
- Nicolaus Copernicus and Johannes Kepler (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Quintian, Lucius and Julian
- William of Perth
- May 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Constitution Day (Germany)
- Earliest day on which Declaration of the Báb can fall, while May 24 is the latest; observed on ‘Aẓamat 8 (Bahá’í Faith)
- Earliest day on which National Heroes’ Day can fall, while May 31 is the latest; celebrated on last Monday of May. (Turks and Caicos Islands)
- Labour Day (Jamaica)
- Students’ Day (Mexico)
- World Turtle Day