The Battle of Quebec was fought on December 31, 1775, early in the American Revolutionary War, between American Continental Army forces and the British defenders of the city of Quebec. The battle was the first major defeat of the war for the Americans, and it came at a high price: General Richard Montgomery (pictured) was killed, Benedict Arnold was wounded, and Daniel Morgan and more than 400 men were taken prisoner. The city's garrison, led by Quebec's provincial governor, General Guy Carleton, suffered few casualties. Montgomery's army had earlier captured Montreal, and then joined Arnold's forces. Carleton had escaped from Montreal to Quebec, and last-minute reinforcements arrived to bolster the city's limited defenses. Concerned that expiring enlistments would reduce his force, Montgomery made the end-of-year attack in a blinding snowstorm to conceal his army's movements. Montgomery's force turned back after he was killed by cannon fire; Arnold was injured early in the attack, and Morgan then led the assault until he became trapped and had to surrender. Arnold and the Americans maintained an ineffectual blockade of the city until spring, when British reinforcements arrived.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Quebec_(1775)

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

414:

Aelia Pulcheria proclaimed herself regent over her brother Theodosius II and made herself Augusta and Empress of the Eastern Roman Empire. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulcheria

1054:

Chinese astronomers recorded the sudden appearance of a "guest star", which was in actuality the supernova that created the Crab Nebula. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crab_Nebula

1610:

Polish–Muscovite War: The outnumbered forces of the Polish- Lithuanian Commonwealth defeated the Russians at the Battle of Klushino. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Klushino

1945:

The Brazilian cruiser Bahia was accidentally sunk by one of its own crewmen, killing more than 300 and stranding the survivors in shark-infested waters. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_cruiser_Bahia

1951:

William Shockley announced the invention of the junction transistor, for which he, John Bardeen, and Walter Houser Brattain won the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shockley

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

auteur: A creative artist, especially a film director, seen as having a specific, recognisable artistic vision, and who is seen as the single or preeminent ‘author’ of their works. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/auteur

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Well, if I eat it, and if it makes me grow larger, I can reach the key; and if makes me grow smaller, I can creep under the door: so either way I'll get into the garden, and I don't care which happens!   --Alice's Adventures in Wonderland https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Alice%27s_Adventures_in_Wonderland