David Bowie (born 1947) is an English musician. After "Space Oddity"
reached the top five of the UK Singles Chart in 1969, he re-emerged
during the glam rock era with "Starman" and the album The Rise and Fall
of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. In 1975, Bowie achieved his
first major American crossover success with the number-one single "Fame"
and the album Young Americans. The soul-inspired sound was a radical
shift in style that initially alienated many of his UK devotees. He then
recorded the critically acclaimed "Berlin Trilogy" of albums with Brian
Eno, all of which reached the UK top five. After uneven commercial
success in the late 1970s, Bowie had UK number ones in the early 1980s
with "Ashes to Ashes", its parent album Scary Monsters (and Super
Creeps), "Under Pressure" (a collaboration with Queen) and Let's Dance,
which yielded several hit singles. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Bowie
continued to experiment with musical styles. He has not toured since the
2003–04 Reality Tour and has not performed live since 2006. Throughout
his career, he has sold an estimated 140 million albums. In 2004,
Rolling Stone ranked him 23rd on their list of the best singers of all
time.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bowie>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
222:
Disgusted with Roman emperor Elagabalus's disregard for Roman
religious traditions and sexual taboos, the Praetorian Guard
assassinated him and his mother Julia Soaemias, mutilated their bodies,
and threw them in the Tiber River.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elagabalus>
1848:
Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine and Robert Baldwin become the first
Prime Ministers of the Province of Canada to be democratically elected
under a system of responsible government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Baldwin>
1888:
The Great Blizzard of 1888 struck the northeastern United
States, producing snowdrifts in excess of 50 ft (15 m) and confining
some people to their houses for up to a week.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Blizzard_of_1888>
1941:
World War II: The Lend-Lease Act was signed into law, allowing
the United States to supply the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China,
France and other Allied nations with vast amounts of war material.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lend-Lease>
2011 - A massive earthquake struck the northeastern coast of Japan
(tsunami damage pictured) and triggered a nuclear disaster at the
Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_T%C5%8Dhoku_earthquake_and_tsunami>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
quibble:
(intransitive) To complain or argue in a trivial or petty manner.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/quibble>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly
what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear
and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There
is another theory which states that this has already happened.
--Douglas Adams
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Douglas_Adams>
United States v. Lara was a 2004 United States Supreme Court case which
held that both the United States and a Native American (Indian) tribe
could prosecute an Indian for the same acts that constituted crimes in
both jurisdictions. In the 1880s, Congress passed the Major Crimes Act,
divesting tribes of criminal jurisdiction in regards to several felony
crimes. In 1990, the Supreme Court ruled in Duro v. Reina that an Indian
tribe did not have the authority to criminally try an Indian who was not
a member of that tribe. The following year, Congress passed a law that
stated that Indian tribes, due to their inherent sovereignty, had the
authority to try non-member Indians for crimes committed within the
tribe's territorial jurisdiction. The defendant, Billy Jo Lara, was
charged for acts that were criminal offenses under both the Spirit Lake
Sioux Tribe's laws and the federal United States Code. Lara pleaded
guilty to the tribal charges, but claimed double jeopardy against the
federal charges. The Court (majority opinion writer Stephen Breyer
pictured) held that the United States and the tribe were separate
sovereigns, and therefore separate tribal and federal prosecutions did
not violate the Double Jeopardy Clause.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Lara>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1830:
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army, the military force
maintained by the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies,
was established by royal decree.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Netherlands_East_Indies_Army>
1876:
Alexander Graham Bell made his first successful bi-directional
telephone call, saying, "Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you."
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invention_of_the_telephone>
1959:
An anti-Chinese uprising erupted in Lhasa, the capital of
Tibet, as about 300,000 Tibetans surrounded the Potala Palace to prevent
the 14th Dalai Lama from leaving or being removed by the Chinese
People's Liberation Army.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1959_Tibetan_uprising>
1968:
Vietnam War/Laotian Civil War: North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao
forces overwhelmed the American, Laotian, Thai, and Hmong defenders of
Lima Site 85.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lima_Site_85>
2006:
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter attained orbit around Mars.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Reconnaissance_Orbiter>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
normothermic:
(medicine) Having a normal body temperature.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/normothermic>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Let justice be done, though the world perish.
--Ferdinand I
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ferdinand_I,_Holy_Roman_Emperor>
Dobroslav Jevđević (1895–1962) was a Bosnian Serb politician and
self-appointed Chetnik commander in the Herzegovina region of Yugoslavia
during the Second World War. He was a member of the inter–war Chetnik
Association and the Organisation of Yugoslav Nationalists party in the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a Yugoslav National Party member of the National
Assembly, and a leader of the opposition during King Alexander's
dictatorship. Following the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis in April
1941, he became a Chetnik leader in Herzegovina and joined the Chetnik
movement of Draža Mihailović, although he often operated independently
from Mihailović. Jevđević collaborated with the Italians and later
the Germans in actions against the Yugoslav Partisans. During a joint
Italian-Chetnik Operation Alfa, Jevđević's Chetniks, along with other
Chetnik forces, were responsible for killing between 500 and
1,700 Bosnian Muslim and Catholic civilians in the Prozor region in
October 1942. His force also participated in one of the largest Axis
anti-Partisan operations of the war, Case White, in the winter of 1943.
In the spring of 1945, he fled to Italy where he resided until his
death.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dobroslav_Jev%C4%91evi%C4%87>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1842:
Nabucco, an opera by Italian Romantic composer Giuseppe Verdi
that established his reputation as a composer, premiered at the Teatro
alla Scala in Milan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabucco>
1910:
A massive seventeen-month-long strike action, which at its peak
involved 15,000 coal miners represented by the United Mine Workers
across 65 mines, began in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westmoreland_County_coal_strike_of_1910%E2%80…>
1915 - The Panama–California Exposition (guide book pictured) opened
in San Diego's Balboa Park, celebrating the opening of the Panama Canal.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama%E2%80%93California_Exposition>
1925:
The Royal Air Force began a bombardment and strafing campaign
against the mountain strongholds of Mahsud tribesmen in South
Waziristan.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink%27s_War>
1956:
In Tbilisi, Georgia, Soviet military troops suppressed mass
demonstrations against Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev's de-
Stalinization policy.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1956_Georgian_demonstrations>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
win-win:
Of a situation or outcome that benefits two parties, or that has two
distinct benefits.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/win-win>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I have come to the conclusion, after many years of sometimes sad
experience, that you cannot come to any conclusion at all.
--Vita Sackville-West
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Vita_Sackville-West>
The SR West Country and Battle of Britain classes, collectively known as
Light Pacifics or informally as "Spam Cans", are classes of air-smoothed
4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive designed for the Southern Railway by its
Chief Mechanical Engineer Oliver Bulleid. A total of 110 locomotives
were constructed between 1945 and 1950, named after West Country resorts
or Royal Air Force and other subjects associated with the Battle of
Britain. Incorporating new developments in British steam locomotive
technology, both classes were amongst the first British designs to
utilise welding in the construction process, and to use steel fireboxes,
which meant that components could be more easily constructed during the
wartime austerity and post-war economy. They were designed to be lighter
in weight than their sister locomotives, the Merchant Navy class, to
permit use on a wider variety of routes. They were a mixed-traffic
design, equally adept at hauling passenger and freight trains. The
classes operated until July 1967, when the last steam locomotives on the
Southern Region were withdrawn from service. Although most were
subsequently scrapped, 20 locomotives found new homes on British
heritage railways.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SR_West_Country_and_Battle_of_Britain_classes>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1010:
Persian poet Ferdowsi completed his masterpiece, the Shahnameh,
the national epic of Iran and related societies.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdowsi>
1618:
German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler discovered
the third law of planetary motion.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johannes_Kepler>
1702:
Princess Anne of Denmark and Norway became the Queen of
England, Scotland and Ireland, succeeding William III.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne,_Queen_of_Great_Britain>
1910:
French aviatrix Raymonde de Laroche became the first woman to
receive a pilot's licence.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymonde_de_Laroche>
1983:
The Cold War: During a speech to the National Association of
Evangelicals in Orlando, Florida, U.S. President Ronald Reagan described
the Soviet Union as an "evil empire".
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evil_empire>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
triduan:
1. Lasting three days.
2. Happening every third day.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/triduan>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Eloquence may set fire to reason.
--Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Oliver_Wendell_Holmes,_Jr.>
James G. Blaine (1830–93) was an American Republican politician who
served as U.S. Representative, Speaker of the House of Representatives,
U.S. Senator from Maine, and twice as Secretary of State. Blaine was
born in western Pennsylvania and moved to Maine where he became a
newspaper editor. Nicknamed "the Magnetic Man", he was a charismatic
speaker in an era that prized oratory. He began his political career as
an early supporter of Abraham Lincoln and the Union in the American
Civil War. In Reconstruction, Blaine was a supporter of black suffrage,
but opposed some of the more coercive measures of the Radical
Republicans. Initially a protectionist, he later worked for a reduction
in the tariff and an expansion of overseas trade. His efforts at
expanding US trade and influence began the shift to a more active
American foreign policy. Blaine was a pioneer of tariff reciprocity and
urged greater involvement in Latin American affairs. He was nominated
for President in 1884, but was narrowly defeated by Democrat Grover
Cleveland. Blaine was one of the late 19th century's leading Republicans
and champion of the moderate reformist faction of the party known as the
"Half-Breeds".
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_G._Blaine>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
321:
Emperor Constantine I decreed that Sunday, the day honoring the
sun god Sol Invictus (disc pictured), would be the Roman day of rest.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sol_Invictus>
1862:
American Civil War: Union forces engaged Confederate troops in
Pea Ridge, Arkansas, fighting to a victory one day later that
essentially cemented their control in Missouri.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Pea_Ridge>
1871:
José Paranhos, Viscount of Rio Branco, became Prime Minister
of the Empire of Brazil, starting a four-year rule, the longest in the
state's history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Paranhos,_Viscount_of_Rio_Branco>
1968:
Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam began
Operation Truong Cong Dinh to sweep the area surrounding the Mekong
Delta town of My Tho to root out Viet Cong forces in the area.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Truong_Cong_Dinh>
2009:
The Kepler space observatory, designed to discover Earth-like
planets orbiting other stars, was launched.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_(spacecraft)>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
phillumenist:
A person who collects match-related items, like matchbox labels,
matchboxes, matchbooks, or matchbook covers.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/phillumenist>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Reason in man is rather like God in the world.
--Thomas Aquinas
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Aquinas>
The giant anteater is a large insectivorous mammal native to Central and
South America. It is one of four living species of anteater and is
classified with the sloths in the order Pilosa. This species is the most
terrestrial of the living anteaters, unlike its arboreal or semi-
arboreal cousins, and is the largest of its family, stretching
182–217 cm (5.97–7.12 ft) and weighing 33–41 kg (73–90 lb)
for males and 27–39 kg (60–86 lb) for females. It is recognizable
by its elongated snout, bushy tail, long foreclaws and distinctively
colored pelage. The anteater can be found in multiple habitats including
grassland and rainforest and feeds primarily on ants and termites, using
its foreclaws to dig them up and its long, sticky tongue to collect
them. The giant anteater is listed as Vulnerable by the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It has been extirpated from
some parts of its former range. Threats to its survival include habitat
destruction and hunting, though some anteaters inhabit protected areas.
Because of its distinctive appearance, the anteater has been featured in
pre-Columbian myths and folktales as well as modern popular culture.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_anteater>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
961:
The Muslim Emirate of Crete was conquered by the Byzantine
Empire.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emirate_of_Crete>
1447:
Tomaso Parentucelli became Pope Nicholas V.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Nicholas_V>
1836:
Texas Revolution: Mexican forces captured the Alamo in San
Antonio from the Texans after a 13-day siege.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Alamo>
1913:
First Balkan War: The Greek army captured Bizani Fortress, near
Ioannina, from the Ottomans.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Bizani>
1930:
Organized by the Communist International, hundreds of thousands
of people in major cities around the world marched to protest mass
unemployment associated with the Great Depression.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Unemployment_Day>
1975:
The Zapruder film of the assassination of John F. Kennedy was
broadcast on television for the first time.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zapruder_film>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
begorra:
(Ireland) A mild minced oath; a euphemism for "by God".
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/begorra>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
A famous writer who wants to continue writing has to be constantly
defending himself against fame. I don't really like to say this because
it never sounds sincere, but I would really have liked for my books to
have been published after my death, so I wouldn't have to go through all
this business of fame and being a great writer. In my case, the only
advantage to fame is that I have been able to give it a political use.
Otherwise, it is quite uncomfortable. The problem is that you're famous
for twenty-four hours a day, and you can't say, "Okay, I won't be famous
until tomorrow," or press a button and say, "I won't be famous here or
now."
--Gabriel García Márquez
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gabriel_Garc%C3%ADa_M%C3%A1rquez>
The 1995 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on
October 29, 1995 at the Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka. It was the sixteenth
and penultimate round of the 1995 Formula One season. The race,
contested over 53 laps, was won by Michael Schumacher for the Benetton
team (pictured) after he started from pole position. Mika Häkkinen
finished second in a McLaren, and Johnny Herbert third in the other
Benetton car. Jean Alesi, driving for Ferrari, started second alongside
Schumacher. However, Alesi was forced to serve a 10-second stop-and-go
penalty because his car moved forward before the start. Alesi climbed
back up to second, before retiring on lap 25. Schumacher's rival in the
Drivers' Championship, Damon Hill, started fourth amidst pressure from
the British media after poor performances at previous races. Hill moved
up to second because of Alesi's retirement, but spun off the circuit on
lap 40. Schumacher's win was his ninth of the season, matching Nigel
Mansell's record for victories in a season that was set in 1992.
Benetton were confirmed Constructors' Champions as Williams could not
pass Benetton's points total in the one remaining race.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1995_Japanese_Grand_Prix>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1279:
The Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order suffered a great loss
when 71 knights died in the Battle of Aizkraukle.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Aizkraukle>
1811:
Peninsular War: In the Battle of Barrosa, an Anglo-Spanish-
Portuguese force trying to lift the Siege of Cádiz was able to defeat a
French attack, although they were ultimately unable to break the siege
itself.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Barrosa>
1960:
British marine biologist Alister Hardy introduced his aquatic
ape hypothesis, theorizing that swimming and diving for food exerted a
strong evolutionary effect that was partly responsible for the
divergence between the common ancestors of humans and other great apes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquatic_ape_hypothesis>
1966:
BOAC Flight 911 disintegrated and crashed near Mount Fuji
shortly after departure from Tokyo International Airport, killing all
113 passengers and 11 crew members on board.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BOAC_Flight_911>
1999:
Paul Okalik was elected as the first Premier of the Canadian
territory of Nunavut.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Okalik>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Tinker to Evers to Chance:
(US, idiomatic) A task accomplished quickly by well-executed teamwork;
those involved in the teamwork.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Tinker_to_Evers_to_Chance>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The object of government in peace and in war is not the glory of rulers
or of races, but the happiness of the common man.
--William Beveridge
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Beveridge>
The nickel is a five-cent coin issued since 1866 by the United States
Mint, composed of 75% copper and 25% nickel. The silver half dime,
also equal to five cents, was first issued in the 1790s. The economic
upset of the American Civil War drove gold and silver from circulation,
and the government at first issued paper currency in place of low-value
coins. As two-cent (in 1864) and three-cent pieces (1865) without
precious metal content had been successfully introduced, Congress
authorized a five-cent piece of base metal; the Mint began striking this
in 1866. The Shield nickel, the initial design, was struck until 1883,
when it was replaced by the Liberty Head nickel. As part of a drive to
increase the beauty of American coinage, the Buffalo nickel (shown) was
introduced in 1913; it was followed by the Jefferson nickel in 1938.
After using special designs for the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark
Expedition in 2004 and 2005, the Mint reverted to using Jefferson nickel
designer Felix Schlag's original reverse (or "tails" side), although
substituting a new obverse. As of 2013, it costs more than eleven cents
to produce a nickel; the Mint is investigating using less expensive
metals.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel_(United_States_coin)>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1789:
As per the U.S. Constitution, the bicameral U.S. Congress
officially replaced the unicameral Congress of the Confederation as the
legislative body of the federal government.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_States_Congress>
1899:
Cyclone Mahina struck Bathurst Bay, Queensland, killing over
400 people, the deadliest natural disaster in Australian history.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Mahina>
1933:
Frances Perkins was appointed United States Secretary of Labor,
making her the first female member of the Cabinet.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frances_Perkins>
1980:
Robert Mugabe of the Zimbabwe African National Union was
elected to head the first government in Zimbabwe.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mugabe>
2007:
Fourteen-year-old English schoolgirl Charlotte Shaw drowned on
Dartmoor, becoming the first person to die in connection with the annual
Ten Tors challenge.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Charlotte_Shaw>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
philtrum:
The shallow groove running down the center of the outer surface of the
upper lip.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/philtrum>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We know that with the very first awakening of knowledge, man is
confronted with two obvious facts: The existence of the world in which
he lives; and the existence of psychic life in himself. Neither of these
can he prove or disprove, but they are facts: they constitute reality
for him.
--P. D. Ouspensky
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/P._D._Ouspensky>
In the Battle of the Bismarck Sea during World War II, American and
Australian aircraft attacked a Japanese convoy, causing heavy troop
losses. In December 1942, the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters
decided to reinforce their position in the South West Pacific. The plan
was to move some 6,900 troops from Rabaul directly to Lae, New Guinea.
Strong Allied air power made it risky, but the alternative was for
troops to march through inhospitable terrain. The convoy (eight
destroyers and eight troop transports escorted by fighters) set out on
28 February 1943. The Allies had detected preparations for the convoy,
and codebreakers had decrypted messages indicating its intended
destination and arrival date. The convoy came under sustained air attack
on 2–3 March 1943. Follow-up attacks by PT boats and aircraft were
made on 4 March. All eight transports and four of the escorting
destroyers were sunk, and only about 1,200 troops made it to Lae.
Another 2,700 were saved by destroyers and submarines and returned to
Rabaul. The Japanese made no further attempts to reinforce Lae by ship,
greatly hindering their ultimately unsuccessful efforts to stop Allied
offensives in New Guinea.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bismarck_Sea>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1820:
The U.S. Congress passed the Missouri Compromise, which
balanced the addition of Missouri as a slave state with the admittance
of Maine as a free state.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri_Compromise>
1875:
French composer Georges Bizet's opera Carmen, based on the
novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, premiered at the Opéra
Comique in Paris.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmen>
1913:
Thousands of women marched in Washington, D.C. (program
pictured) "in a spirit of protest" against the exclusion of women from
American society.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_Suffrage_Parade_of_1913>
1943:
Second World War: During a German aerial attack on London, 173
people were killed in a stampede while trying to enter Bethnal Green
tube station, which was being used as an air raid shelter.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethnal_Green_tube_station>
1997:
The Sky Tower in Auckland, the tallest free-standing structure
in the Southern Hemisphere at 328 m (1,076 ft), opened.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sky_Tower_(Auckland)>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
beey:
(informal, rare) Reminiscent of or containing bees.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/beey>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Parliamentary government is simply a mild and disguised form of
compulsion. We agree to try strength by counting heads instead of
breaking heads, but the principle is exactly the same. … The minority
gives way not because it is convinced that it is wrong, but because it
is convinced that it is a minority.
--James Fitzjames Stephen
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Fitzjames_Stephen>
Rhys ap Gruffydd (1132–97) ruled the kingdom of Deheubarth in south
Wales and was one of the most successful and powerful Welsh princes. His
grandfather, Rhys ap Tewdwr, was king of Deheubarth, but most of
Deheubarth was taken over by the Normans after he was killed in 1093.
Rhys's father, Gruffydd ap Rhys, became ruler of a small portion, and
Rhys's brothers won back more territory. He became ruler of Deheubarth
in 1155, but was forced to submit to King Henry II of England in 1158.
Henry invaded in 1163 and took Rhys prisoner for a few weeks, leaving
him only a small part of his holdings. Rhys made an alliance with Owain
Gwynedd and after Henry's failed invasion of Wales in 1165 Rhys was able
to win back most of his lands. In 1171 he made peace with Henry, but
following Henry's death he revolted against Richard I and attacked the
Norman lordships surrounding his territory. In his later years Rhys had
trouble keeping control of his sons, particularly Maelgwn and Gruffydd,
who maintained a feud with each other. Rhys launched his last campaign
against the Normans in 1196 and captured a number of castles. The
following year he died unexpectedly and was buried in St David's
Cathedral.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhys_ap_Gruffydd>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1565:
Rio de Janeiro was founded by the Portuguese as São Sebastião
do Rio de Janeiro.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro>
1781:
The Articles of Confederation, the first governing constitution
of the United States, was ratified, legally uniting what were originally
several independent states into a new sovereign federation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Articles_of_Confederation>
1811:
Muhammad Ali Pasha (pictured), Wāli of the Ottoman province of
Egypt, killed the leaders of the Mamluk Sultanate to seize power,
founding a dynasty that would last until 1952.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali_of_Egypt>
1896:
Ethiopia defeated Italy at the Battle of Adwa, ending the First
Italo-Ethiopian War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Adwa>
1947:
The International Monetary Fund began its financial operations.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Monetary_Fund>
1962:
American Airlines Flight 1 crashed shortly after takeoff from
New York International (Idlewild) Airport, killing all 95 people aboard.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Airlines_Flight_1>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
fons honorum:
A person who, by virtue of sovereignty, holds the exclusive right to
create and confer legitimate titles of nobility and orders of chivalry.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fons_honorum>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
A =POPE= is someone who is not under the authority of the authorities.
--Principia Discordia
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Principia_Discordia>