Stephen, King of England (c. 1094 – 1154), ruled from 1135 until
his death. Born in the County of Blois in central France, he was brought
up by his mother, Adela, daughter of William the Conqueror. Placed into
the court of his uncle, Henry I of England, Stephen rose in prominence
and was granted extensive lands. When Henry died in 1135, Stephen
crossed the English Channel and took the throne in spite of his earlier
oaths to support the claim of Henry's daughter, the Empress Matilda. In
1138 the Empress's half-brother Robert of Gloucester rebelled against
Stephen, and in 1139 the Empress and Robert invaded England. The revolt
took hold in the south-west, and Stephen was captured at the battle of
Lincoln in 1141. He was abandoned by many of his followers and lost
control of Normandy. He was freed after Robert was captured at the Rout
of Winchester, but the civil war dragged on for many years. Upon his
death, he was succeeded by the Empress's son, Henry II, the first of
the Angevin kings.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen,_King_of_England>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1689:
Beaver Wars: Aggravated by increased French incursions into
their territory, a large force of Mohawk warriors substantially
destroyed the settlement of Lachine, New France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lachine_massacre>
1772:
Russia, Prussia and Habsburg Austria began the First Partition
of Poland to help restore the regional balance of power in Eastern
Europe among those three countries.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Partition_of_Poland>
1864:
American Civil War: Rear Admiral David Farragut successfully
led the Union fleet through a mine field to victory in the Battle of
Mobile Bay.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mobile_Bay>
1949:
A magnitude 6.8 ML earthquake struck near Ambato, Ecuador,
killing 5,050 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1949_Ambato_earthquake>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
side-eye:
(transitive) To look at out of the corner of one's eye, particularly
with animosity, or in a judgmental or suspicious manner.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/side-eye>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
I am the one who passed unnoticed before you, Invisible, in a
cloud of secret pain.
--Conrad Aiken
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Conrad_Aiken>