Urse d'Abetot (c. 1040 – 1108) was a Sheriff of Worcestershire and
royal official under Kings William I, William II and Henry I. Urse's
lord in Normandy was present at the Battle of Hastings, and Urse moved
to England shortly after the Norman Conquest, where he was appointed
sheriff around 1069. His castle in the town of Worcester encroached on
the cathedral cemetery there, angering the Archbishop of York. He helped
to put down a rebellion against King William I in 1075, and quarrelled
with the Church in his county over the jurisdiction of the sheriffs. He
continued in the service of William's sons after the king's death, and
was appointed constable under William II and marshal under Henry I. He
earned a reputation for extortion, and during the reign of William II,
he was considered second only to the king's minister Ranulf Flambard in
his greediness. Through his daughter, Urse is an ancestor of the
Beauchamp family, who eventually became Earls of Warwick.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urse_d%27Abetot>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1561:
In Nuremberg, a mass sighting of celestial phenomena
(illustration pictured) took place of an "aerial battle" between odd-
shaped objects.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1561_celestial_phenomenon_over_Nuremberg>
1908:
The first Hauser Dam in the U.S. state of Montana failed and
caused severe flooding and damage downstream.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hauser_Dam>
1945:
The 4th Canadian (Armoured) Division deliberately destroyed the
German town of Friesoythe on the orders of Major General Christopher
Vokes.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Razing_of_Friesoythe>
2014:
Boko Haram kidnapped 276 female students from the Government
Secondary School in the town of Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chibok_schoolgirls_kidnapping>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
consistent:
1. Of a regularly occurring, dependable nature.
2. Compatible, accordant.
3. (logic) Of a set of statements: such that no contradiction logically
follows from them.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/consistent>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
While it is well enough to leave footprints on the sands of time,
it is even more important to make sure they point in a commendable
direction.
--James Branch Cabell
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_Branch_Cabell>