Attalus I ruled Pergamon, a Greek city-state in present-day Turkey, from 241 BCE to 197 BCE. He was the second cousin and the adoptive son of Eumenes I, whom he succeeded, and was the first of the Attalid dynasty to assume the title of king. He won an important victory over the Galatians, newly arrived Celtic tribes from Thrace, who had been, for more than a generation, plundering and exacting tribute throughout most of Asia Minor without any serious check. This victory, celebrated by the triumphal monument at Pergamon, famous for its Dying Gaul, and the liberation from the Gallic "terror" which it represented, earned for Attalus the name of "Soter," and the title of "king." A courageous and capable general and loyal ally of Rome, he played a significant role in the first and second Macedonian Wars, waged against Philip V of Macedon. He conducted numerous naval operations, harassing Macedonian interests throughout the Aegean, winning honors, collecting spoils, and gaining for Pergamon possession of the Greek islands of Aegina during the first war, and Andros during the second, twice narrowly escaping capture at the hands of Philip. He died in 197 BCE, shortly before the end of the second war, at the age of 72, having suffered an apparent stroke while addressing a Boeotian war council some months before.

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_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1719: Robinson Crusoe, a novel by Daniel Defoe, was first published. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson_Crusoe)

1792: Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle composed La Marseillaise, now the national anthem of France. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Marseillaise)

1953: Molecular structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid by James Watson and Francis Crick was published in the scientific journal Nature. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molecular_structure_of_Nucleic_Acids)

1974: The song Grândola Vila Morena by Zeca Afonso was broadcast on radio, signalling the start of the Carnation Revolution, a bloodless coup against the Estado Novo regime in Portugal. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnation_Revolution)

1986: Mswati III was crowned King of Swaziland, succeeding his father Sobhuza II. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mswati_III_of_Swaziland)

_____________________ Wikiquote of the day:

"The speed of communications is wondrous to behold. It is also true that speed can multiply the distribution of information that we know to be untrue." -- Edward R. Murrow (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edward_R._Murrow)