TODAY IN HISTORY

Today is Tuesday, May 1, the 121st day of 2018. There are 244 days left in the year.

Today’s Highlight in History:

On May 1, 1898, Commodore George Dewey gave the command, “You may fire when you are ready, Gridley,” as an American naval force destroyed a Spanish squadron in Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War.

On this date:

■ In 1707, the Kingdom of Great Britain was created as a treaty merging England and Scotland took effect.

■ In 1786, Mozart’s opera “The Marriage of Figaro” premiered in Vienna.

Ten years ago: A military jury at Fort Hood, Texas, acquitted Army Sgt. Leonard Trevino of premeditated murder in the death of an unarmed Iraqi insurgent.

Five years ago: Chris Kelly, 34, half of the 1990s kid rap duo Kris Kross, died in Atlanta.

One year ago: An attacker with a machete-like knife fatally stabbed one person and wounded three others on the University of Texas campus; a suspect was arrested.

Today’s Birthdays: Singer Judy Collins is 79. Actor Dann Florek is 67. Singer Ray Parker Jr. is 64. Singer Tim McGraw is 51. Actor Darius McCrary is 42. Actor Jamie Dornan is 36.

Thought for Today: “By indignities men come to dignities.”—Francis Bacon, English philosopher (1561-1626).