William the Conqueror (c. 1028 – 1087) was the first Norman king of England. He became Duke of Normandy in 1035, although his illegitimate status and youth caused him difficulties until he secured the duchy in about 1060. In the 1050s and early 1060s, William was a contender for the English throne, then held by Edward the Confessor. Another claimant was Harold Godwinson, whom Edward named as the next king on his deathbed in January 1066. William invaded England in September 1066, defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings, and was crowned on Christmas Day 1066. Unsuccessful rebellions followed, but by 1075 William's hold on England was mostly secure. William's final years were marked by difficulties in his continental domains, troubles with his eldest son, and threatened invasions of England by the Danes. In 1085 he ordered the compilation of the Domesday Book, listing all landholders in England and their holdings. He died in September 1087 on a campaign in northern France.

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

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1320:

Byzantine forces defeated Achaean troops at the Battle of Saint George, taking control of the Arcadia region of Greece. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Saint_George

1892:

At the Lick Observatory in California, Edward Emerson Barnard discovered Amalthea, a moon of Jupiter and the last natural satellite to be discovered by visual observation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalthea_%28moon%29

1999:

The first banknotes of the Portrait Series of the Singapore dollar were introduced by the Board of Commissioners of Currency. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_Portrait_Series_currency_notes

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

Elizabethan: 1. Pertaining to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, monarch of England and Ireland, from 1558 to 1603. 2. Often preceded by new or second: pertaining to the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, monarch of the United Kingdom, from 1952 to 2022. 3. A person (especially a writer) who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, monarch of England and Ireland, from 1558 to 1603. 4. A person who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, monarch of the United Kingdom, from 1952 to 2022. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Elizabethan

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

We continue to be inspired by the kindness of strangers and draw comfort that — even on the darkest nights — there is hope in the new dawn.   --Elizabeth II https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Elizabeth_II