The Coterel gang was an armed group in the English North Midlands that roamed across the countryside in the late 1320s and early 1330s, a period of political upheaval and lawlessness. Despite repeated attempts by the crown to suppress James Coterel and his band, they committed murder, extortion and kidnapping across the Peak District. Basing themselves in Sherwood Forest (pictured), other wooded areas of north Nottinghamshire and the peaks of Derbyshire, the Coterels frequently cooperated with other groups, including the Folville gang. As members of the gentry, Coterel and his immediate supporters were expected to assist the crown in the maintenance of law and order, rather than encourage its collapse, but most of the band received royal pardons following service abroad or in Scotland. Groups such as the Coterels may have inspired many of the stories woven around Robin Hood in the 15th century.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coterel_gang

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1587:

Filipino sailors disembarked from the Manila galleon Nuestra Señora de Buena Esperanza in what is now Morro Bay, California, the first documented instance of Asians in the Americas. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_of_the_first_Filipinos

1851:

Moby-Dick (illustration shown), a novel by American writer Herman Melville, was first published as The Whale in London. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moby-Dick

1929:

In the Persons Case, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council decided that women were eligible to sit in the Canadian Senate. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwards_v_Canada_%28AG%29

1963:

Aboard the French Véronique AGI 47 sounding rocket, a bicolor cat designated C 341, later known as Félicette, became the first cat in space. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%A9licette

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

brae: 1. (Northern England, Scotland) The sloping bank of a river valley. 2. (Northern England, Scotland) Any hillside or slope. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/brae

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

When the history books are written about this tumultuous era, I want them to show that I was among those in the House of Representatives who stood up to lawlessness and tyranny.   --Elijah Cummings https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Elijah_Cummings