The Battle of Cape Ecnomus was a naval battle fought off the coast of Sicily in 256 BC between the fleets of Carthage and the Roman Republic during the First Punic War (264–241 BC). The Carthaginian fleet was commanded by Hanno the Great and Hamilcar; the Roman fleet was led by the consuls for the year, Marcus Atilius Regulus and Lucius Manlius Vulso Longus. The Roman fleet of 330 warships sailed with approximately 140,000 men on board. The Romans' plan was to cross to Africa and invade the Carthaginian homeland, in what is now Tunisia. The Carthaginians were apparently aware of the Romans' intentions and mustered 350 warships off the south coast of Sicily to intercept them. With a combined total of about 680 warships carrying up to 290,000 crew and marines, the battle was possibly the largest naval battle in history by the number of combatants involved. After a prolonged and confused day of fighting the Carthaginians were decisively defeated.

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

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1846:

English astronomer William Lassell discovered Triton, the largest moon of Neptune. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triton_%28moon%29

1911:

The Xinhai Revolution began with the Wuchang Uprising, marking the beginning of the collapse of the Qing dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuchang_Uprising

1963:

The Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which prohibits all test detonations of nuclear weapons except for those conducted underground, came into effect. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partial_Nuclear_Test_Ban_Treaty

1973:

U.S. vice president Spiro Agnew resigned after being charged with tax evasion. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiro_Agnew

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

nide: (archaic) A nest of pheasants. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/nide

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

The need for international solidarity and multilateral cooperation is more conspicuous than ever. The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2020 to the World Food Programme for its efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict.   --Norwegian Nobel Committee https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Norwegian_Nobel_Committee