Somerset is a county in South West England. The county town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county. The ceremonial county of Somerset borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the coast of the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the River Severn. Somerset is a rural county of rolling hills such as the Mendip Hills, Quantock Hills and Exmoor National Park, and large flat expanses of land including the Somerset Levels. There is evidence of human occupation from Paleolithic times, and subsequent settlement in the Roman and Saxon periods. Farming of sheep and cattle, including for wool and the county's famous cheeses (most notably Cheddar), are traditional and contemporary, as is the more unusual cultivation of willow for basketry. Apple orchards were once plentiful, and to this day Somerset is known for the production of strong cider.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somerset

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1260:

The Livonian Order suffered its greatest defeat in the 13th century in the Battle of Durbe against the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Durbe

1793:

Charlotte Corday assassinated Jean-Paul Marat, a leader in both the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror, in his bathtub. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Corday

1863:

Three days of rioting began in New York City by opponents of new laws passed by the United States Congress to draft men to fight in the ongoing American Civil War. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_draft_riots

1923:

The Hollywoodland Sign was officially dedicated in the hills above Hollywood, California. The last four letters of the sign were removed in 1949. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Sign

2008:

War in Afghanistan: Taliban guerrillas attacked NATO troops near the village of Wanat in the Waygal district in Afghanistan's far eastern province of Nuristan. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wanat

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

bicameral (adj): (politics) Having two legislative chambers http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bicameral

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

It is lack of confidence, more than anything else, that kills a civilisation. We can destroy ourselves by cynicism and disillusion, just as effectively as by bombs. --Kenneth Clark http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Kenneth_Clark