Born on May 6

English playwright, poet, and actor (1564–1616), Shakespeare is the author of the greatest plays in world literature. He revolutionized theatre by exploring human psychology and creating unforgettable characters who grapple with love, power, and death.

French lawyer and politician (1758–1794), Robespierre was a central figure of the French Revolution. Leader of the Montagnards, he dominated the Committee of Public Safety and became the embodiment of the Reign of Terror before being executed in 1794.

German mathematician (1792–1872), brother of Georg Simon Ohm. He contributed to the formal rigor of mathematical analysis and to mathematics education in 19th-century Germany.

An American Arctic explorer, Robert Peary is famous for claiming the first expedition to reach the geographic North Pole in April 1909. A United States Navy officer, he devoted two decades to exploring polar regions.

Austrian neurologist and psychoanalyst (1856-1939), founder of psychoanalysis. Freud developed a revolutionary theory of the unconscious and the psychological mechanisms governing human behavior, profoundly influencing modern psychology, psychiatry, and philosophy.

Indian (Bengali) poet, novelist, composer, and philosopher, a leading figure of the Bengal Renaissance. The first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1913, for his collection Gitanjali. A humanist thinker and educator, he founded the university at Santiniketan.

Lyubov Popova (1889-1924) was a Russian painter and designer, a major figure of the avant-garde. A pioneer of Constructivism and Suprematism, she put her art at the service of the revolution before her premature death from scarlet fever.

Max Ophüls (1902-1957) was a German-French filmmaker renowned for his virtuoso visual style, marked by long tracking shots and a fluid camera. He directed major works such as *La Ronde*, *Lola Montès*, and *Madame de…*, which explore love and melancholy.

Max Mallowan (1904-1978) was a British archaeologist specializing in the ancient Near East. He directed major excavations in Iraq and Syria, notably at Nimrud. He was the husband of the novelist Agatha Christie.

American director, actor, and screenwriter (1915–1985), Orson Welles revolutionized cinema with Citizen Kane (1941), widely regarded as one of the greatest films ever made. A towering figure in filmmaking, he also left a lasting mark on radio and theater.

American philosopher born in 1947, professor of law and ethics at the University of Chicago. Together with the economist Amartya Sen, she developed the capabilities approach, which measures human development by the real freedoms available to individuals. She is one of the leading voices in contemporary moral and political philosophy.