1831. GeneralDiebitsch, commander of the Russian forces in Poland, died, by the official accounts of cholera; it is supposed by poison.
1836.Jean Marie Ampere, famed as a mathematician and natural philosopher, died. Near the close of his life he busied himself with a classification of the sciences, a work from which great minds before him had shrunk.
1837. The plague at Smyrna committed great ravages; about 300 died daily for some time.
1839.John Ridge, a Cherokee, murdered. He was educated at the Cornwall school in Connecticut, where he married a respectable white woman. He was a practicing attorney among the Cherokees, and a man of talents.
1851.Robert Dundas, viscount Melville, British statesman, died, aged 80. He was for many years in the ministry, especially as first lord of the admiralty.
1854. The Crystal palace at Sydenham, England, was opened by the queen, Victoria; 40,000 persons being present.
1656A. M.The tops of the mountains were seen, 73 days after the waters of the deluge began to subside, 1st of 10th month, answering to this day.
1184B. C.The destruction of Troy is placed commonly by English chronologists in the night of this day; an event which Homer has invested with unrivaled importance, and a gorgeous immortality. (SeeApril 24.)
534B. C.Servius Tullius, sixth king of Rome, assassinated. He is celebrated for his laws on the subjects of rank and property. He was murdered by his son-in-law, the second Tarquin.
90B. C.The consulRutilius Lupuswas destroyed with his forces, by an ambuscade, near the river Livis, during the social war.
816.Leo III, pope, died. A conspiracy was formed against him in 799, and it was only through the power of Charlemagne that he was enabled to keep the pontifical chair. He was an able pontiff.
1183. PrinceHenry, son of Henry II of England, died, aged 27. He is sometimes called Henry III, on account of his rebellion against his father.
1258. The great council of reform, called the mad parliament, assembled at Oxford. Every member was sworn to allow no consideration, "neither of gift nor promise, profit nor loss, love nor hatred, nor fear," to influence him in the discharge of his duty.
1289. Battle of Campaldino, in Italy, in which the Florentines defeated the people of Arezzo. The poet Dante, then in his 24th year, was present, and served in the foremost troop of cavalry. He says, "the Uberti, Lamberti and Abati, with all the ex-citizens of Florence who adhered to the Ghibelline interest, were with Aretini; while those inhabitants of Arezzo, who, owing to their attachment to the Guelph party, had been banished from their own city, were ranged on the side of the Florentines."
1294.Roger Bacon, an eminently learned monk of the Franciscan order, died, aged 80. He was a miracle of the age in which he lived, and the greatest genius, perhaps, for mechanical knowledge, that ever appeared in the world since Archimedes. (1292 by some authorities.)
1381.Wat Tylerassembled hisfollowers at Blackheath, amounting to 100,000 men.
1520. A grand tournament between Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France, at Guines. "At the houre assigned," says Holinshed, "the two kings, armed at all peeces, mounted on horssebacke, and with their companies, entered the field; the French king on a courser barbed, covered with purple sattin, broched with gold, and embroidered with corbin's feathers. All the parteners of the French king's chalenge were in like apparell, everie thing correspondent in cloath of silke embrodered. On his person were attendant on horssebacke noble persons, and on foot foure persons, all apparelled in purple sattin."
1526. Holy league against the emperor Charles V.
1543.Nicholas Copernicus, the astronomer, died on this day, according to Lalande, who says, in hisHistory of Astronomy for 1798, "The death of the great Copernicus was, till lately, a problem. I resolved it in my tour. Copernicus died on the 11th of June, 1543, although Gassendi and Weidler date this circumstance on the 24th May, and Planche the 11th of July." (SeeMay 24.)
1567. Flight ofMary, queen of Scots, and her husband, Bothwell, from Borthwick castle to Dunbar.
1576.Anthony Cooke, preceptor of Edward VI, died. He also educated his own daughters, who were "learned above their sex in Greek and Latin."
1576.Martin Frobisherwas despatched with three pinnaces to discover a northwest passage, but compelled by the ice to return. He was the first navigator who attempted to find a northwest passage to China.
1578. QueenElizabethgranted letters patent to Humphrey Gilbert for the discovery and settlement of "barbarous lands in America, undiscovered by any Christian prince or people." This was the first charter granted by the crown of England to a colony.
1665.Kenelm Digby, an eminent English philosopher, died. He was also in the employ of the government as a soldier and a statesman. He was brave, learned and eloquent, but somewhat visionary.
1685. The duke ofMonmouthlanded at Lyme, Dorsetshire with men and arms in opposition to James II.
1693. An expedition fitted out in England against Canada and Martinique, arrived in Boston. During the voyage, 1,300 out of 2,100 sailors, and 1,800 out of 2,400 soldiers, had died of a malignant disease. On the arrival of the fleet the disease spread into the town, and proved more malignant than any other epidemic which had ever been known in the country.
1695.Andrew Felibien, counselor and historiographer to the king of France, died. He was also celebrated for his taste and judgment in the fine arts, and hisDialogues upon the Lives of the Paintershas done him great honor.
1698.Balthazar Bekker, a Dutch divine, died. His writings got him into trouble with the church, which was alarmed at some very harmless notions he entertained about spirits and devils.
1712.Lewis Joseph, duke de Vendome, died. He was a descendant of Henry IV of France, and distinguished himself under Philip V of Spain, whom he succeeded in raising to the throne, in opposition to the claims of Charles III, archduke of Austria.
1719. A terrible earthquake happened at Pekin, in China, throwing down houses and burying more than 1,000 inhabitants in the ruins.
1727.George I, king of England, died in his carriage near Osnabruck, in Germany, aged 68. He was the first king of England of the house of Brunswick, and had reigned 13 years.
1756.Cæsar Chesneau du Marsais, a French grammarian, died. He was engaged in theEncyclopedie, and his articles on grammar are drawn up with great precision, correctness and judgment.
1776. Congress appointed Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin and Robert R. Livingston, a committee to prepare a Declaration of Independence.
1783. Great eruption of the Scaptar Jokul, in Iceland, commenced, and continued several days (see18th).
1792. The first bank in New Hampshire commenced discounting at Portsmouth.
1792. Battle of Mire; the Polish general Judycki, surrounded by the Russians, defeated, and compelled to retreat.
1793.N. Gouvion, a French officer, killed at Maubeuge, on the Sambre. He served in America in the war of the revolution, and at the time of his death was a general in the army of the north.
1793.William Robertson, the Scottish historian, died. His works are popular, and theHistory of Charles Vwill be long read with admiration.
1796. St. Vincent, Grenada, and St. Lucia islands in the West Indies were taken by the British.
1798.Bonaparteseized Malta, the key of the Mediterranean, which he garrisoned, and proceeded with the fleet, carrying 20,000 regular troops, to the Egyptian coast.
1800.Samuel Ireland, an ingenious English mechanic, died. He distinguishedhimself by his skill in drawing and engraving. He was unjustly accused of an attempt to impose upon the world a spurious volume of letters and papers in the name of Shakspeare. (SeeApril 17th, 1835.)
1812. A great skirmish of cavalry in Estremadura, Spain, between the English under general Slade, and the French under general Lallemand.
1825.Daniel D. Tompkins, a distinguished New York statesman, died, aged 51. He was vice-president of the United States under Mr. Monroe, and governor of the state of New York.
1828.Dugald Stewart, an eminent Scottish philosopher and writer, died. His philosophical works are well known.
1829. Battle of Schoumla; the Turks under the grand vizier defeated by the Russians under general Diebitsch, with the loss of 6,000 killed, 1,500 prisoners, and 60 pieces of cannon. Russian loss, 1,400 killed, 600 wounded.
1842.Alexander Crombiedied at London. As a scholar and a critic, a metaphysician and a theologian, his name stands high among the first writers of the age.
1845.Theodore Dwight, secretary of the Hartford convention, died, aged 81. He was editor of theConnecticut Mirror, published at Hartford, and in 1815 established theAlbany Daily Advertiser, the first daily paper in that city. In 1817 he became editor of theNew York Daily Advertiser.
1849. Great excitement at Paris, and a proposition to impeach the president for his aiding the cause of the pope, signed by Ledru Rollin and 141 others.
1849. Ancona capitulated to the Austrians after a very destructive bombardment.
1853.Guerazzi, ex-minister of Tuscany, tried for high treason at Florence, and found guilty, was sentenced to fifteen years' imprisonment, which was subsequently commuted to perpetual exile.
1854.Thomas H. Bottsdied at Fredericksburg, Va., aged 54; a lawyer, and one of the leading men of his profession.
456B. C.Herodotusrecited his celebratedHistoryat Athens, during the Olympic games, in his 29th year, on the 12 Hecatombæon. He had traveled with his work from Caria. Thucydides was then a boy; Æschylus died in that year; Cimon was recalled from exile, and the Athenians completed their long walls.
455.Marcus Clodius Pupienus Maximus, emperor of Rome, murdered by the soldiery, after a reign of 15 months. He was of humble birth, but rose by his merits to the most eminent posts of the state, and was raised to the imperial dignity on the death of Gordian. He made salutary laws and reformed abuses.
1099. The army of crusaders who had encamped before Jerusalem, made a furious attack on this city, and amid a storm of arrows and fire balls, burst the first barrier, and strove to surmount the walls by escalade. The want of proper instruments rendered the assault abortive, and the followers of the cross were driven back with shame and slaughter to their camp. This defeat was followed by suffering and privations, from the scarcity of provisions and water.
1211. Battle of Tolosa, in Spain, between the Christians and Moors. Mohammed Abu Abdallah, at the head of a powerful army, one of the five divisions of which, according to the Arabic and Spanish historians, amounted to 160,000 men, made a descent from Africa, with the design of conquering the whole Spanish peninsula. Such was the terror which this vast armament inspired among the Christians, that Innocent III, proclaimed a crusade, and several bishops went from town to town to rouse the Christian princes. The kings of Castile, Arragon and Navarre, with a numerous body of foreign volunteers, advanced to stop the progress of the Moslems. The two armies met in Las Navas de Tolosa, between Castile and Andalusia. The result of the engagement was so complete a victory over the Africans, that Mohammed had a narrow escape, and left no less than 170,000 men in the field; the rest fled for safety.
1268.Bilbars, the sultan of Syria, took possession of Antioch. The Latin principality was extinguished, and the whole existence of the Franks was now confined to the city of Ptolemais.
1402. Battle of Melienydd, in Radnorshire, Wales, in which Owen Glendour, the last of the native Welsh princes, defeated and captured sir Edmund Mortimer.
1418. Massacre at Paris, at night, by the direction, if not under the eye of John, duke of Burgundy, called the fearless. In the course of three days, 3500 persons were sacrificed.
1488.James III, king of Scotland, killed. He put his brother John to death, and attempted the life of his other brother, Alexander; he escaped, however, and levied war against the tyrant, who had rendered himself odious by his cruelties. James was defeated in battle, and put to death in a mill, by the daggers of his own subjects.
1565.Adrian Turnebus, a French critic, died. Great encomiums have been passed upon his genius and learning, as well as the amiability of his private character.
1630.John Winthrop, the first governor of Massachusetts, arrived at Salem, with the charter of the colony. He settled at Shawmut, which was finally determined upon for the metropolis, and named Boston.
1647.Thomas Farnaby, an English grammarian, died. His works display great erudition.
1660.William Oughtred, an English divine and mathematician, died. He was disturbed in his retirement by the partisans of Cromwell, and escaped sequestration only by the interference of influential friends. His works were small, but of great value to subsequent mathematicians.
1665. The city of New York incorporated by governor Nichols; a mayor, 5 aldermen and a sheriff were appointed. Prior to this, it had been governed by a schout, burgomasters and schepens.
1672. The French under Louis XIV, crossed the Rhine. The prince de Conde was wounded for the first and only time during all his campaigns; but the young duke de Longueville was killed.
1672. The government of England issued a proclamation to restrain the spread of false news and licentious talking of matters of state and government.
1676. Attack on Hadley by the Indians, to the number of 700, who were resolved on a grand effort to carry this post. The attack was commenced at day-light, with great spirit; they gained possession of a house, and fired a barn; but were in a short time driven back with loss. The attack was renewed on other points, the enemy appearing to be determined on carrying the place; but the discharge of a piece of ordnance cooled their ardor, and they drew off; and on assistance coming from Northampton, the foe was driven into the woods, with a loss of two or three of the English. It is supposed to have been on this occasion that general Goffe, one of the judges of Charles I, who was at that time concealed with the minister at Hadley, made his appearance in so mysterious a manner. At a moment when the people were in the greatest consternation, there appeared a man of venerable aspect, differing from them in his apparel, who assumed the command, put them in order for defence, and by advice and example animated them throughout the attack. When the scene was over, on looking about for the stranger, he had disappeared, and was seen no more—leaving the inhabitants to form the strangest conjectures.
1683. The Rye house plot discovered. It was headed by Monmouth, Essex, and lord John Russell, and their object seems to have been to oppose the succession of the duke of York. Russell and many others suffered on the scaffold, Essex was found with his throat cut in prison, and Monmouth was in a short time reconciled to the king.
1734.James, duke of Berwick, killed by a cannon shot at the siege of Phillipsburgh, in Germany, while standing between his two sons. No general of his time excelled him in the art of war, except his uncle, the duke of Marlboro'.
1759.William Collins, an English poet, died. He was entirely neglected, and hisOdes, which possessed great merit, failed to attract any attention during his life time.
1775. GeneralGage, issued a proclamation at Boston, offering the king's pardon to all who would lay down their arms and return to their peaceable occupations, excepting Samuel Adams and John Hancock, and at the same time he proclaimed martial law.
1778.Philip Livingston, a signer and a strenuous advocate for the declaration of independence, died. He was a New York merchant, and became a prominent character in that city before the revolution.
1788. Settlement made at Sierra Leone by blacks from England. The town lots were drawn for and apportioned this day.
1794. Couthon reported, and the French convention decreed, the organization of the revolutionary tribunal, consisting of a president, 3 vice-presidents, a public accuser, 4 deputies, 12 judges and 50 jurors.
1796. Battle between the Chinese and Eleuths, in a desert which the Chinese had attempted to penetrate in pursuit of the retreating army. The Tartars under Kaldan, taking advantage of the exhausted state of their enemy, gave them battle; but were defeated and totally routed, with the loss of 2000 killed, and all their women, children, baggage and cattle, taken by the Chinese.
1798. The French troops took possession of the fortifications of Malta, and the fleet anchored in the ports. They found two line of battle ships belonging to the Maltese, a frigate, three galleys, two galliots, and several guard boats; 1500 pieces of artillery, 35,000 stand of small arms, 12,000 barrels of powder, and a large quantity of shot and shell. The order of knights from this day became virtually extinct; from a position of political importance it fell to the level of an obscure association, and such, as far as human foresight goes, it is destined to remain.
1798. The Irish rebels defeated with great slaughter at Ballynahinch by generalNugent. This quelled the insurrection in the north.
1799. A division of the French army, under Olivier, took Modena, and drove the Austrians beyond the river Po.
1805. American ship Atahualpa, captain Porter, treacherously attacked by the Indians while bartering for skins in Sturgis's cove. Captain Porter and 8 of the crew were killed, and 11 wounded.
1812. Putnam county in New York erected.
1813. MajorChapinand other American prisoners taken at the head of the lake, and sent in boats for Kingston, when arrived near York rose upon the guard, and after a short struggle took the boats and returned to Niagara.
1816.Pierre Francois Charles Augereau, duke of Castiglione and marshal of France, died. He was the son of a fruit merchant, and served as a carabineer in the French army. He first distinguished himself in 1794, after which his career for a number of years was brilliant, and full of honor and glory.
1829. A large body of Turkish cavalry and infantry defeated near Kuganoff, and 600 killed.
1843.Henry R. Cleveland, aged 34, died at St. Louis, Mo. He was an elegant and graceful writer, and the author of the well written life of Henry Hudson, in Sparks' Biography.
1843.Samuel Kidd, professor of oriental and Chinese literature in University college, London, died, aged 42.
1846. More than 6000 persons driven from their houses by a disastrous fire in St. Johns, Newfoundland.
1848.George Pozer, a wealthy merchant of Quebec, died, aged 95.
1848. Insurrection at Prague; the princess of Windichgratz shot by the insurgents.
1483.Anthony Widville, earl Rivers, beheaded at Pontefract.
1502.Oliver Maillard, a French divine of the order of Cordeliers, died. He was an eminent preacher, and published several volumes of Latin sermons.
1584.John Sambucus, a learned German physician, died. His learning attracted the attention of the emperor Maximilian II, and he was appointed counselor of state and historiographer of the German empire. He wrote several learned and useful works.
1605. Riot at Moscow, when Fedor Godonoff, the reigning czar, who had been but two months on the throne, was dragged with his family from the palace, and shut up in one of his own private houses, where he was murdered a few days after.
1633. Lord Baltimore obtained a grant for a tract of land in America, now the state of Maryland, which was first settled by a colony of catholics.
1666. Second charter granted to South Carolina by Charles II. It was an enlargement of the previous charter, making the colony independent of any other province.
1678.Henry Scougal, an eminent Scottish divine, died, aged 28. His great exertions to sustain himself as a professor of theology at St. Andrews, and as a preacher, threw him into a consumption, and he died greatly lamented.
1710. Second great immigration of Palatines.
1721. A treaty concluded at Madrid with Great Britain. The ships employed for the traffic of negroes by the Royal company of Great Britain, were to be admitted, without hindrance, to trade freely.
1757. Decree of pope Benedict XIV, prohibiting the use of any version of the Bible in the common language.
1767.James Worsdaledied; an English painter and dramatic writer.
1769. Corsica seized by the French. General Paoli fled, and embarked at Corsica for England, where he remained until 1790.
1770.Woodfall, the publisher of theLetters of Junius, was prosecuted and found by the jury guilty of printing and publishing only, which was tantamount to an acquittal.
1777.William Battiedied; an eminent English physician and medical writer.
1780. Major-general Gates ordered by congress to take command of the southern department.
1780. A society formed in Philadelphia, under the name of the American daughters of liberty, for the purpose of supplying the soldiery with clothing. The city was divided into 10 districts, and four appointed to each district to solicit subscriptions. Their donations amounted to 2030 shirts, and they obtained 77 shirts and 380 pairs of stockings from New Jersey.
1788.George Lukinsdispossessed of seven devils by the same number of clergymen, in the Temple church, Bristol, England.
1794. Battle of Ghent; the Austrians defeated by the French.
1794. Violent earthquake and eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, which did much damage.
1796. Action between British ship Dryad, lord Beauclerc, and French frigate La Proserpine, 45 guns; which last was captured in 44 minutes, with the loss of 30 killed, 45 wounded. British loss 2 killed, 7 wounded.
1797.Simon Andrew Tissot, a celebrated Swiss physician, died. He was the advocate of experimental rather than theoretical systems of medicine, and early adopted the practice of inoculation. His fame was not confined to his own country.
1810.Bonaparteprohibited the exportation of grain.
1813. Battle of Carcagenta, in Valencia; the Spaniards under general Elio attacked the French, and were defeated with the loss of 1500 men, of whom 700 were taken prisoners.
1817.Richard Lovell Edgeworth, an English philanthropist and practical philosopher, died. He invented the telegraph, which was generally adopted during his lifetime. He spent a great part of his life in improving and experimenting on various instruments used in agriculture and the arts.
1833.James Andrewdied; principal of the East India company's seminary at Addiscombe, and author of a Hebrew grammar and dictionary.
1843.Charles Sterns Wheeler, of Massachusetts, a good scholar, died at Leipsic, Germany, aged 23.
1848.Pierre Van Cortlanddied, aged 86; a gentleman who filled many important public stations, civil and military, in the state of New York.
1848.Gamaliel S. Olds, a distinguished American scholar, died at Circleville, Ohio, aged 71.
1855. The anti-slavery branch of the American party, called the Know-somethings, assembled in convention at Cincinnati.
1857. Whirlwinds occurred in several parts of the state of New York, and in other states. This was the day in which the astrologers of Europe had predicted the destruction of the earth by a comet, and much alarm existed even in this country, insomuch that deaths actually occurred from fear. The village of Pania, Ill., was wholly destroyed.
510B. C.The Roman republic established and the first consuls elected, according to the Capitoline marbles. This noble political fabric subsisted for a period of 462 years, until the battle of Pharsalia.
1631.Francis Garasse, a French Jesuit, died. As a preacher he was eloquent and popular, but his writings were gross, and kindled a violent feud between his order and the Jansenists. He lost his life by attending the sick during the pestilence at Poictiers.
1636.Humphrey Lynde, an English author, died. He wrote various books against popery, one of which was translated into several languages, and often reprinted.
1636.John Caylard de St. Bonet, marquis de Toiras, a French general, killed before the fortress of Fontanette, in Italy. His services were important to his country, but he was nevertheless disgraced by Richelieu, and found in Italy a just respect for his abilities and merits.
1637.Burton, a clergyman,Bastwick, a physician, andPrynne, yet a prisoner in the Tower, ordered to be pilloried, lose their ears, and be fined £5,000 each, for a libel on the government of Charles I of England.
1645. Battle of Naseby, in which the forces of Cromwell obtained a bloody victory over the army of Charles I, under prince Rupert, and obliged him to retire into Wales.
1654. Battle of Dunes; the French defeated the Spaniards under prince de Conde and don John of Austria.
1662.Henry Vane, an English statesman, beheaded. He was vascilating in his politics, and characterized as a dangerous man.
1683. The Rye house plot to assassinate king Charles II of England, discovered by Joseph Keeling.
1704.Ralph Bathurst, an English physician, divine and Latin poet, died. He was a man of great erudition.
1710. Gen.Hunterarrived at New York from England in the capacity of governor of the province, bringing with him 3000 Palatines, who formed a Lutheran church in New York.
1723.Claude Fleury, a French advocate, died, aged 82, greatly respected for his learning and virtues. His works are numerous and valuable.
1743.James Villotte, a French Jesuit, died. He traveled in Armenia, and published commentaries on the gospels.
1746.Colin Maclaurin, an eminent Scottish mathematician and philosopher, died. His writings are very numerous, and highly valuable for the purposes of navigation and geography.
1754. A convention was held at Albany, for the purpose of concluding a treaty with the Six Nations. It was attended by about 150 Indians.
1756.Prosper Marchand, a French author, died in Holland, at a great age. He left France on account of religious views, and published aJournal Litéraire. He also wrote a history of printing, and published a new edition of Bayle'sDictionnaire.
1769. The general court of Massachusetts having remonstrated to governor Hutchinson against their place of meetingbeing surrounded with an armed force, and Boston being invested by sea and land, he adjourned the court to Cambridge.
1776. Americans evacuated Sorel, in Canada, and the British under Gen. Burgoyne entered it.
1776. The Americans cannonaded the British fleet from Moon and Long islands, and compelled it to leave the bay and open the intercourse with Boston.
1777. Congress resolved that their flag should consist of 13 stripes alternate red and white; that the union be 13 stars, white on a blue field, representing a new constellation.
1787.Abdulwahlab, an Arabian reformer, and founder of the Wahabbites, died, aged 95. He founded a temporal empire, which ceasedA. D.1818, but his religious doctrines are still cherished.
1792. Battle of Lubar on the river Sluez, in which the Polish cavalry under Joseph Poniatowski defeated the Russians.
1792. A plot was discovered in London to blow up the King's bench prison.
1792. The stockholders of the Hartford bank held their first meeting for the choice of directors. John Caldwell was the first president. This was the first bank in Connecticut.
1799. The French, commanded by Gen. Macdonald, on the Trebia, were defeated with immense loss by Suwarrow.
1800.Jean Baptist Kleber, commander in chief of the French army in Egypt, assassinated while walking in his garden, by a Turk named Souliman. He had conquered the country and was forming plans for its peaceful government and improvement.
1800. Battle of Marengo, in Italy; Bonaparte defeated the Austrians, who lost 1700 killed and prisoners. The French acknowledged the loss of 500 killed and wounded.
1800.Lewis Charles Anthony Dessaix, a distinguished French general, killed at the battle of Marengo. He arrived on the field of battle with a fresh battalion at a moment that decided the victory for the French, but received a shot in the breast, of which he instantly died.
1801.Benedict Arnold, the traitor, died in England. He was a brave officer in the American service, from the commencement of the war of the revolution; but some imprudent conduct subjected him to a reprimand from the commander-in-chief, after which he sought an opportunity to desert. He joined the British army, and committed great cruelties upon his countrymen during the remainder of the war.
1807. Battle of Friedland, in ancient Prussia; the Russians and Prussians were defeated, with the loss of 17,500 men and 80 cannon, by the French under Bonaparte. The battle commenced at 10 in the morning, and the Russians withstood the superior force of the French till nearly 5 in the afternoon; when Bonaparte, putting himself at the head of the army, commanded a general assault, which was executed with overpowering effect. Benningsen was compelled to retreat, destroying the bridge behind him.
1829. Battle of the defile of Pozzoy; the Turkish troops, 15,000, entirely defeated, and their camp taken by storm by the Russians.
1833.Abraham Bogarddied in the poor-house, Maury county, Tennessee, aged 118; a native of the state of Delaware.
1846. Nearly 50 persons killed by the burning of the theatre at Quebec.
1848. A revolt at Hayti, and a tumult at Berlin.
1851.Thomas Mouledied in London, aged 67; a well known writer to the extent of many volumes on topographic and heraldic antiquities.
1854. A great fire occurred at Worcester, Mass., destroying property valued at half a million of dollars, and throwing a thousand mechanics out of work.
1856. Mr.Marcy, secretary of state, formally notified the Danish minister that the United States would not make forcible resistance to the collection of the Sound dues for a year from this day.
1381.Wat Tylertreacherously killed at Blackheath, where he had assembled the malcontents in great numbers, and the insurrection was suppressed.
1467.Philip(the good), duke of Burgundy, died. His life was spent in war; and the title which he acquired seems to have been forfeited by his last act, the burning of the town of Dinan, which he was carried on his bed to witness, at the age of 72.
1520.Martin Lutherexcommunicated by Leo X.
1530.Charles Vmade a public entry into Augsburg, where the members of the diet had assembled. The famous decree, called theConfession of Augsburg, drawn up by Melancthon, was then read.
1560. The massy spire of St. Paul's church, London, was burned down by lightning.
1568.Giles Corrozetdied at Paris; a French bookseller, and author of several works of merit.
1643.Abel Jansen Tasman, the Dutchnavigator, arrived at Batavia, after having sailed round the southern side of the globe. He started in September, 1642, and discovered Van Dieman's land and the island of New Zealand, which he called Staten island.
1735.Rene Aubert de Vertot d'Aubœuf, an elegant French historical writer, died, aged 80. He united the virtues of private life to great intelligence, deep penetration, and an elegant taste.
1744.Ansonarrived at Spithead, after a voyage of three years and nine months round the world. The treasures of the famous Acapulco galleon were conveyed to London in 32 wagons, and the booty divided among those brave men who had shared his glory and toils.
1746. Battle of Placentia, between the allies and Spaniards.
1749. The fleet of sir Edward Cornwallis, having on board over 3000 British colonists, dropped anchor in the spacious harbor of Halifax, Nova Scotia.
1756. The nabob ofSurajah Dowlainvested Calcutta at the head of 70,000 horse and foot, and 400 elephants.
1768.James Short, a celebrated Scottish optician, died. He was of humble origin, but became a noted and wealthy man. His telescopes were long surpassed only by those of Herschel.
1768. The commissioners of the customs at Boston requested Gen. Gage to support them in the execution of their office with a military force.
1775.Washingtonappointed commander in chief of the American army.
1776. The legislature of New Hampshire voted unanimously that their delegates in congress should join with the other delegates in declaring the 13 united colonies a free and independent state.
1776. The British under sir Henry Clinton attacked Sullivan's island, and were repulsed by Gen. Lee.
1785.Pilatre de Rosier, a French æronaut, killed. He was attempting to cross the English channel from Boulogne; but the balloon took fire soon after its ascent, and he was precipitated to the earth.
1794. A memorable eruption of mount Vesuvius.
1811. A marine volcano burst through the sea in 40 fathoms of water, at the west end of St. Michaels, one of the Azores, about three miles from land.
1815. Battle of Fleury, in which Bonaparte with 150,000 men, attacked the Prussians and English of 200,000, and drove them back, and the next day defeated them at Ligny.
1826. The sultan of Turkey defeated and abolished the ancient corps of Janizaries. This military body, consisting of trained captives, was first instituted by the third Amurath, in 1362.
1836. Arkansas admitted into the Union.
1840.Francis Beauguarddied at Grey Nun's hospital, Montreal, aged nearly 108.
1841. The town of Praia, in the island of Terceira, completely destroyed by an earthquake. Much damage was also done to other places in the island by a series of earthquakes.
1844.Thomas Campbell, a distinguished British poet, author of thePleasures of Hope, died at Boulogne, in a state of imbecility, aged 67.
1852. QueenVictoriaissued a proclamation against "Roman catholic ecclesiastics wearing the habits of their order, exercising the rites and ceremonies of the Roman catholic religion in highways and places of public resort."
1852.Roger Jones, an American military officer of distinction, died at Washington. He commenced his military career in 1809, and as a lieutenant of marines, and served in the war of 1812. His zeal and activity in the arduous campaigns on the Niagara frontier, and his distinguished gallantry as a major of the staff in the memorable conflicts of Chippewa, Lundy's Lane, and the sortie of fort Erie, won for him universal respect and admiration, and the marked approbation of the government.
1854.James Kendle Brownedied in Mark lane, London, aged 82; the father of the corn exchange.
1856.John Dicks Eccles, an eminent North Carolina lawyer and orator, died at Fayetteville, aged 64.
1857. The citizens of Halifax, Nova Scotia, celebrated the 108th anniversary of the settlement of that place.
632. The Persian era began, recording the fall of the Sassanian dynasty, and the religion of Zoroaster. This famous era, as amended by the sultan Geluleddin, is now in use by the parsees of India.
1381.John Ball, in order to be chancellor under Wat Tyler, gave his followers a sermon.
1487. Battle of Stoke, England. Lambert Simnel, who had been crowned in Ireland, received the king's pardon, and was made a scullion in the royal kitchen.
1575.Adrian Junius, a learned Dutch author, died; he is quoted by the people of Harlem to establish the right of Lawrence Coster to the honor of being the inventor of printing in that city, about 1430.
1658.Edward Capellus, a learned French protestant divine, died. He wasengaged in a long and learned controversy concerning the antiquity of the Hebrew points, his adversary maintaining that they were coeval with the language, while he showed that they were unknown before the dispersion of the Jews, and were invented about 600 years after Christ. He was engaged 36 years on theCritica Sacra, a work of prodigious labor and great merit.
1666.Richard Fanshawe, an English statesman, died. He was actively engaged in political affairs, yet found time to produce several works of much credit.
1719.Lewis Ellis Dupin, a learned French critic, died. He devoted himself to a biographical dictionary of ecclesiastical authors, which was brought down to the end of the 16th century, and has been translated into English. His works are numerous.
1722.John Churchill, the renowned duke of Marlborough, died. He stands unrivaled among the British generals, and during several years gained a series of the most splendid victories. It has been said that he gained every battle which he fought, and took every town which he besieged.
1743. Battle of Dettingen, in which the French suffered a severe defeat, losing 6000 men; the allies, under George II, 1000.
1752.Joseph Butler, an eminent prelate and theological writer, died. He is celebrated as the author of theAnalogy of Religion.
1755. Fort Beausejour, in Nova Scotia, surrendered to the British, the French garrison being permitted to march out with the honors of war.
1760. At Glen, in Leicestershire, England, the populace threw two old women into the water to try by their sinking or swimming whether or not they were witches.
1772. The banking house of Neal and Fordyce, in London, failed, and it was counted an extraordinary feat to carry the intelligence to Edinburgh, a distance of 425 miles, in 43 hours.
1777.John Baptist Louis Gresset, a celebrated French poet, died. His poems were elegant, lively and interesting, and obtained for him, among other honors, letters of nobility.
1779. Manifesto presented to the British court, announcing that Spain had taken decided part with France and America against Great Britain.
1789. The states general of France formed themselves into the national assembly.
1793. Unsuccessful attack of the British on Martinique.
1794. Battle of Josselies; the hereditary prince of Orange attacked and defeated the French, who lost 7000 men and 22 cannon, and were compelled to retreat across the Sambre.
1806. Total eclipse of the sun at Philadelphia and other cities in the United States.
1808.Joseph Bonaparteproclaimed king of Spain. "Your princes," said Napoleon, "have ceded to me their rights to the crown of Spain. Your nation is old; my mission is to restore its youth."
1810.Lewis Augustus Philip Affray, first magistrate of Switzerland under Napoleon, died. He was in early life an officer in the Swiss army; and when elevated to civil office, he conducted with the ability, the intelligence and the experience of a thorough statesman.
1812.Bonapartejoined his great army on the Vistula, destined to invade Moscow.
1813. Action off Presque isle, between the United States schooner, Lady of the Lake, lieut. Chauncey, and the British schooner, Lady Murray, laden with provisions and ammunition, for York, Canada, which was captured.
1814. The editors of theGazette Universalhaving said something about the constitution of the Cortes, were condemned by their monarch, Ferdinand VII, to the galleys.
1815.Bonaparteattacked the Prussian posts of Sombref, St. Amand and Ligny, under prince Blucher. The contest was very severe, and the Prussian loss very great; they notwithstanding kept their position until after night, when they retreated upon Wavre. Blucher had a horse killed under him, and narrowly escaped with his life. Ligny was taken and retaken several times. At the same time Bonaparte attacked the British troops under Wellington, at Quartre Bras, and compelled him to fall back upon Gemappe. The loss of the allies was very severe.
1818. The village of Bagnes, in Switzerland, overwhelmed by the giving away of an ice barrier.
1818. Irruption of lake Mauvoisin, in the Alps, occasioned by the bursting of its icy mound, by which six hundred millions cubic feet of water were in an instant let loose upon the beautiful valley of the Drana, carrying before its overwhelming torrent every vestige of civilized life which stood within its reach.
1819. An earthquake near Poonah, in the East Indies, swallowed up a large district and more than 2000 persons.
1821.John Ballantyne, the confidential printer of sir Walter Scott's Waverly novels, died at Edinburgh. He also established theKelso Mail, a respectable provincial paper, yet in existence.
1830. An eruption of mount Etna, which destroyed eight villages, and buriedmany of the inhabitants under the ruins of their houses.
1831. The president of Hayti ordered all the French white inhabitants to leave the island before the 15th July.
1843. Died at Boston, whither he had accompanied president Tyler to attend the Bunker Hill celebration,Hugh S. Legare, a distinguished American statesman.
1843. CountWittgenstein, the Russian field marshal, who distinguished himself in the wars with Napoleon, died at St. Petersburg, aged 87.
1851.Tom Johnson, a Norwegian, died at the Naval asylum, Philadelphia, aged 100; the last survivor of the gallant crew who fought with Paul Jones, in the desperate conflict with the Serapis in 1799.
1852. The sultan of Turkey issued a firman granting new rights and privileges to his Christian subjects.
1854. The siege of Silistria raised; the Turks made a sortie, causing a complete defeat of the Russians, forcing them to recross the Danube in all haste, took several standards and a great quantity of baggage, and killed or severely wounded five Russian generals.
1857. A riot took place in the city of New York, occasioned by a dispute about the public offices, there having been two sets appointed by different authorities. Mayor Wood was arrested for assault and battery.
431B. C.The dictatorTubertus Posthumusgained a victory over the Æqui and Volsci, inconsiderable but noxious enemies of the commonwealth.
1081.Robert Guiscardopened the famous siege of Durazzo, now in European Turkey, on the gulf of Venice.
1272. An attempt made to assassinate Edward I of England in his tent at Acre, by a messenger of the emir of Joppa. He received the blow on his arm, grappled with the assassin, and throwing him on the ground despatched him with his own dagger. The life of the prince was saved by his wife, who sucked the poison from the wound.
1458.Alfonso V, of Arragon (the magnanimous), died. He made himself master of Naples and Sicily; aside from his exploits as a warrior, he was a learned man and the patron of learning, and the father of his people.
1614.William Bathe, an Irish Jesuit, died. He was rector of an Irish school at Salamanca, and a writer on music and divinity.
1639. The king and his Scottish subjects met at Dunse, in Scotland, and agreed that matters ecclesiastical should be decided by an assembly, civil matters by parliament.
1658. Dunkirk surrendered to the French, and by them put into the hands of the English.
1673. FatherMarquette, andJolieta citizen of Quebec, employed by M. Talon for the discovery of the Mississippi, entered that noble river. They descended to within three days' journey of the gulf of Mexico.
1685. The unfortunate duke of Argyle taken in a morass.
1696.John Sobieski, king of Poland, died. He distinguished himself on many occasions in the Polish wars but the greatest of his exploits was the raising of the siege of Vienna, by which Europe was saved from the calamities consequent upon an irruption of the Turks.
1719.Joseph Addison, editor of theSpectator, died. He was the ornament of his age and country, and his writings will long continue to be read and admired.
1734.Louis Hector Villars, peer of France, died, aged 82. He early adopted the profession of arms, and distinguished himself through a long life as a brave and efficient officer.
1740.William Wyndham, an eminent English statesman, died. His abilities led to his promotion to the highest offices in the state.
1745. Louisbourg, cape Breton, taken from the French by the British and Massachusetts forces, under governor Shirley and admiral sir Peter Warren.
1761. The first English "navigation canal" opened, extending from Worsley to Manchester, 18 miles. It originated with Scroope, duke of Bridgewater.
1775. Battle of Bunker's hill, and burning of Charlestown by the British. The Americans were defeated with the loss of 453 killed, wounded and missing. The killed, and those who died of their wounds were 139, including general Warren. British loss, 1,054, of whom 226 were killed, and among them colonel Abercromby and major Pitcairn, who occasioned the first shedding of blood at Lexington.
1776. British transports, George and Arabella, captured in Boston bay by six American privateers. Among the prisoners taken was the honorable Archibald Campbell, and 271 Highlanders.
1780. Bank opened in Philadelphia for supplying the army with provisions, and £189,000 subscribed, payable in gold and silver.
1788. Convention at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., to consider the federal constitution.
1789. The tiers etat, of France, were joined by the whole body of inferior clergy with some nobles. They constitutedthemselves into a legislative body, and took the name of national assembly.
1791.Selina, countess of Huntington, died. From habits of gaiety and dissipation, she became suddenly grave and pious, and was distinguished by very extensive charities.
1792. Battle of Zielime, in which the Polish army was defeated by a superior force of Russians. The action lasted from 7 in the morning till 5 in the evening. Loss of the Russians 4,000; that of the Poles 1,100.
1794. Ypres, in Belgium, surrendered to the French under Moreau. Four battalions of Austrians, 6 of Hessians, 2 of Baden, 200 horse chasseurs, 150 Austrian cannoniers, were taken prisoners, with 140 cannon.
1799. First day's battle of the Trebia, between the French under Macdonald, and the Russians and Austrians under Suwarrow. The French were compelled to fall back.
1807. Konigsberg, the capital of Prussia proper, taken by the French under Soult. Immense stores, with nearly 300 loaded vessels, 160,000 stand of arms, &c., were taken.
1810.James Chalmers, printer to the city and university of Aberdeen, and proprietor of theAberdeen Journal, died.
1812. TheDecameronof Boccacio, a single volume small folio, printed in 1471, sold at the sale of the duke of Roxburgh's library to the marquis of Blandford, for £2,260.
1814.Henry Treshamdied; an Irish poet and painter of merit.
1815. The allied army under Wellington fell back on Waterloo, and Blucher to Wavre. The earl of Uxbridge made a brilliant charge of cavalry at Gemappe.
1815. British order in council, forbidding the Americans to use the British territories for purposes connected with the Newfoundland fisheries.
1825. Corner stone of Bunker hill monument laid with great and enthusiastic ceremonies; Lafayette being present.
1839.William Bentinck, an English statesman, died. He had sustained many high public offices, was a general in the army, and ten years governor-general of India.
1850. The steamer Griffith on lake Erie was burnt and 300 lives lost.
1852.Thomas Buffumdied, aged 75; an active man in the political history of Rhode Island, who had filled with credit many offices of honor and trust.
1852.John Trimble, a Kentucky judge, died, aged 69; having sustained the character of an able and upright man.
1852.William King, first governor of Maine, died, aged 84. He removed to Bath early in the present century, and his name is identified most intimately with all that relates to the separation from Massachusetts, and the adoption of the state constitution. He held various civil offices with ability and fidelity.
1852. The city of Sonora, in California, was nearly destroyed by fire.
1854.Seward Barculo, a New York jurist of distinction, died, aged 50. He was chosen justice of the supreme court at the first judicial election held under the new state constitution.
1854.Josiah Holbrook, a distinguished advocate of popular education, died, aged 65. He was a native of Derby, Ct., and graduated at Yale college in 1810. He was very successful in diffusing among the young a love for the study of mineralogy and geology. He lost his life by accidently falling into Blackrock creek, near Lynchburg, Va., while on a geological excursion.
64. The conflagration of Rome, attributed by Nero to the Christians, which was the ostensible cause of the first persecution. (See24th June.)
741.Leo III(Isaurian), emperor of Constantinople, died. He was the son of a cobbler, and disgraced the imperial dignity by acts of barbarity and tyranny. He was the enemy of learning and learned men, and set fire to the valuable library of his capital, by which 30,000 volumes were destroyed, besides many of the choicest paintings and medals.
1053. Battle of Civitella; the forces of the pope, Leo IX, routed by Robert Guiscard, the Norman.
1314.Edward IImarched upon Scotland from Berwick, with his vast army.
1429. Battle of Patray, in France; the English under Talbot defeated by Joan of Arc, with the loss of 1,500 slain, and 1,000 taken. It was in this conflict that the notable sir John Falstaff, considering discretion to be the better part of valor, dropped histhirsty lance, and ran away.
1538. Truce for 10 years between Charles V of Germany, and Francis I of France. Hostilities were renewed three years after.
1580. The colony of Virginia discouraged with their losses and various misfortunes embarked for England.
1588.Robert Crowley, a scholar, preacher and printer, died. One of his principal works was in metre, entitled: