Charles Carroll (1661–1720) was a wealthy lawyer and planter in colonial Maryland. Carroll, a Catholic, is best known because his efforts to hold office in the Protestant-dominated colony resulted in the disfranchisement of Maryland Catholics. The second son of Irish Catholic parents, Carroll was educated in France as a lawyer before returning to England, where he pursued the first steps in a legal career. Before that career developed, he secured a position as Attorney General of the young colony of Maryland. Its founder George Calvert and his descendants intended it as a refuge for Catholics. Carroll supported Charles Calvert, the colony's Catholic proprietor, in an unsuccessful effort to prevent the Protestant majority from gaining political control. Following the overthrow of the Calvert proprietorship and the subsequent exclusion of Catholics from colonial government, Carroll turned his attention to planting, law, business, and various offices in the proprietor's remnant organization. He was the wealthiest man in the colony by the time of his death.

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

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1341:

The Byzantine army proclaimed chief minister John VI Kantakouzenos emperor, triggering a civil war between his supporters and those of John V Palaiologos, the heir to the throne. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_civil_war_of_1341%E2%80%931347

1813:

War of 1812: A force consisting of about 1,630 French Canadian regulars and militia and Mohawk warriors under Charles de Salaberry repulsed an American force of about 4,000 attempting to invade Canada. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Chateauguay

1940:

The North American P-51 Mustang, one of the most effective fighter aircraft for the Allies during World War II, made its first flight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_P-51_Mustang

1955:

Ngo Dinh Diem proclaimed himself president of the newly created Republic of Vietnam after defeating former Emperor Bao Dai in a fraudulent referendum supervised by his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_Vietnam_referendum,_1955

2000:

Laurent Gbagbo became the first President of Côte d'Ivoire since Robert Guéï was thrown out of power during the 1999 Ivorian coup d'état. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurent_Gbagbo

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

antihero: (literature) A protagonist who proceeds in an unheroic manner, such as by criminal means, via cowardly actions, or for mercenary goals. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/antihero

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Have I been blind, have I been lost, inside myself and my own mind; hypnotized, mesmerized, by what my eyes have seen? --Natalie Merchant https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Natalie_Merchant