Clements Markham (1830–1916) was a British geographer, explorer and
writer. He was secretary of the Royal Geographical Society (RGS)
between 1863 and 1888, and later served as the Society's president for
a further 12 years. In the latter capacity he was mainly responsible
for organising the National Antarctic Expedition of 1901–04, and for
launching the polar career of Robert Falcon Scott. The main achievement
of Markham's RGS presidency was the revival at the end of the 19th
century of British interest in Antarctic exploration, after a 50-year
interval. All his life Markham was a constant traveller and a prolific
writer, his works including histories, travel accounts and biographies.
He authored many papers and reports for the RGS, and did much editing
and translation work for the Hakluyt Society, of which he also became
president. He received public and academic honours, and was recognised
as a major influence on the discipline of geography, although it was
acknowledged that much of his work was based on enthusiasm rather than
scholarship. Among the geographical features bearing his name is
Antarctica's Mount Markham, named for him by Scott in 1902.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clements_Markham>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1656:
Led by King Charles X Gustav, the armies of Sweden and Brandenburg
defeated the forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth near Warsaw.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Warsaw_%281656%29>
1927:
Five-year-old Michael became King of Romania upon the death of his
grandfather Ferdinand.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_of_Romania>
1944:
Adolf Hitler survived an assassination attempt by German Resistance
member Claus von Stauffenberg, who hid a bomb inside a briefcase during
a conference at the Wolfsschanze military headquarters in East Prussia.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20_July_plot>
1951:
Abdullah I of Jordan was assassinated while visiting Al-Aqsa Mosque in
Jerusalem.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdullah_I_of_Jordan>
1969:
The Apollo 11 lunar module landed on the Sea of Tranquillity, where
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men to walk on the
moon six-and-a-half hours later.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_11>
2005:
The Civil Marriage Act received its Royal Assent, legalizing same-sex
marriage in Canada.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Marriage_Act>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
vitiate (v):
1. To spoil, make faulty; to reduce the value, quality, or
effectiveness of something.
2. To debase or morally corrupt.
3. (archaic) To violate, to rape
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/vitiate>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Houston: Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.
--Neil Armstrong
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong>
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