On This Day – 1912, A Bad Year for Sailing

Carry on, Constable

1837 The death of John Constable, English painter, best known for his paintings of the English countryside such as Dedham Vale and The Hay Wain. Although his paintings are now among the most popular and valuable in British art, he was never financially successful and did not become a member of the establishment until he was elected to the Royal Academy at the age of 52.

Double Tragedy

1855 Charlotte Bronte, Yorkshire novelist and author of Jane Eyre, died during her pregnancy, aged 38.

1912 A Bad Year for Sailing

1912 Both the Oxford and the Cambridge boats sank in the annual university boat race.

Fasten Your Seatbelts

1924 The first British national airline, Imperial Airways, was founded at Croydon Airport.

TV at No. 10

1930 Scottish engineer John Logie Baird installed a TV set at 10 Downing Street. Above is one of the first images seen on the TV screen.

Hands Off Poland

1939 Britain and France agreed to support Poland if Germany threatened to invade.

 March to Aldermaston

1972 More than 500 people attended a rally in London ahead of a four-day demonstration against nuclear arms.

Red Rum

1973 Racehorse Red Rum won the Grand National Steeplechase in a record time of 9 min 1.9 sec., a record that remained unbroken for 16 years. He is the only horse to have won the Grand National three times.

Black Smoke Over Trafalgar Square

1990 An anti-poll tax rally in London erupted into the worst riots in the city for a 100 years when 200,000 protestors took to the streets.

 

On This Day – A Lot of Warring and Some Rock

Hammer of the Scots

1296 Edward I captured Berwick-upon-Tweed, during armed conflict between Scotland and England. As many as 10,000 men, women and children were killed. Even a woman giving birth was hacked to pieces during her labour. When the garrison commander Lord of Douglas surrendered, his life and those of his garrison were spared.

The Man of War

1936 Britain announced the construction of 38 warships, the largest construction programme for 15 years.

Not Everyone Came Back

1944 saw the allied bombing raid on Nuremberg. 795 aircraft were despatched from along England’s east coast , including 572 Lancasters, 214 Halifaxes and 9 Mosquitos. The bombers met German fighter resistance at the coasts of Belgium and the Netherlands. In total, 95 bombers were lost, making it the largest Bomber Command loss of World War II.

Three Times Hall of Fame

1945 The birth of Eric Patrick Clapton, English guitarist and singer-songwriter. He has been referred to as one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time.

The Price of Sunflowers

1987 The picture ‘Sunflowers’, painted by Vincent van Gogh was sold at auction by Christie’s for £24,750,000.

Death of a Queen

2002 Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, (born August 4th 1900), died peacefully in her sleep, aged 101.

 

On This Day – From the Battle for Tudor Rose to James Hanratty’s DNA

War of the Roses

1461 Over 28,000 people were killed in the battle of Towton, North Yorkshire, during the War of the Roses (Lancaster against York). The Lancastrians, under Henry VI, were crushed and the throne was claimed by Edward IV.

Hark! the Herald Angels Sing

1788 The death of Charles Wesley, English evangelist and hymn-writer. In the course of his career, he published the words of over six thousand hymns, many of which are still popular today.

The Royal Albert Hall

1871 Queen Victoria opened the Royal Albert Hall in London. The hall was originally supposed to have been called The Central Hall of Arts and Sciences, but the name was changed by Queen Victoria to Royal Albert Hall of Arts and Sciences when laying the foundation stone, as a dedication to her deceased husband and consort Prince Albert.

Captain Scott’s Last Entry

1912 The last entry in British explorer Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s diary. He died in Antarctica, along with the rest of his party, whilst returning from the South Pole.

Heavy Metal

1940 The Bank of England introduced thin metal strips into banknotes as an anti-forgery device.

London Marathon

1981 The first London marathon took place, with around 7,000 entrants.

The World Champion

1988 Lloyd Honeyghan became the first British boxer to regain a world title since Ted ‘Kid’ Lewis, 71 years previously. Honeyghan knocked out Jorgé Vaca of Mexico in the third round at the Wembley Arena, London.

James Hanratty Was Innocent

1999 The case of James Hanratty was sent back to the Court of Appeal, 37 years after he was hanged for murder. New DNA evidence emerged and a police inquiry highlighted flaws in the original investigation.

No Smoke Without Fire

2004 The Republic of Ireland became the first country in the world to ban smoking in all work places, including bars and restaurants.

 

 

On This Day – Who’s Afraid for Virginia Woolf?

Slave Trade Revisited

1760 The birth of Thomas Clarkson, a leading campaigner against the slave trade in the British Empire. He helped found The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade and helped achieve passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, which ended British trade in slaves. In his later years Clarkson campaigned for the abolition of slavery worldwide.

Irish Act of Union

1800 The Irish Parliament passed the Act of Union with England. The Act included joining Ireland to Great Britain to form a single kingdom, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

The Sewer King

1819 The birth of Sir Joseph William Bazalgette, English civil engineer. As chief engineer of London’s Metropolitan Board of Works he created a sewer network for central London which was instrumental in relieving the city from cholera epidemics, whilst also beginning the cleansing of the River Thames.

The Little Demon

1866 The birth of Jimmy Ross, Scottish footballer nicknamed ‘The Little Demon’. When the Football League implemented a maximum wage of £4 per week for professional football players and full-time players like Ross could earn up to £10 a week, the prospect of a reduced wage was a serious threat to their livelihood. In order to curb this threat, Ross and other top players of the time formed the Association Footballers’ Union.

Happy Birthday, Morris

1913 The first Morris Oxford car left the converted Military Academy at Cowley, Oxfordshire. It was William Morris’s first factory.

The First Service Women

1917 The Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was founded. They were Britain’s first official service women.

Doctor in the House

1921 Dirk Bogarde, English actor and author was born.

Who’s Afraid for Virginia Woolf?

1941 English novelist Virginia Woolf, suffering from depression, filled her overcoat pocket with stones and walked into the River Ouse near her home in Sussex and drowned herself. Her body was not found until 18th April.

The Last of V2

1945 Germany dropped its last V2 bomb on Britain.

Peter the Great

2004 The death of Sir Peter Ustinov, English actor, writer, dramatist, filmmaker, theatre and opera director, stage designer, author, screenwriter, comedian, humorist, newspaper and magazine columnist, radio broadcaster and television presenter!

 

On This Day – Great Scot and the Glory of Pickles

Great Scot 

1306 Robert the Bruce (eighth Earl of Carrick) was crowned King of Scotland at Scone Palace, near Perth. Bruce secured Scottish independence from England, militarily, if not diplomatically, at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.

His statue is at the Bannockburn battlefield site,

his body is buried in Dunfermline Abbey,

while his heart is at Melrose Abbey.

The King is Dead, Long live the King (only, he didn’t)

1625 King James I of England (he was also James VI of Scotland), died. King Charles I ascended to the throne as king of England, Scotland and Ireland as well as claiming the title King of France. He later lost the English Civil War and was executed by parliament.

Waiting to Roll

1863 Henry Royce, co-founder of the Rolls-Royce auto & aerospace companies was born.

Ours is not to reason why. Ours is but to do and die

1854 Crimean War:- Britain declared war on Russia.

Onward Christian Soldiers

1880 The Salvation Army uniform was authorized, but the distinctive bonnets for women did not appear until June.

London Calling 

1899 Italian inventor Marconi achieved the first international radio transmission (a Morse Code message) between England and France.

Oh, Dr. Beeching

1963 The Beeching Report on Britain’s railways was published. The report concluded that only half the network’s routes carried enough traffic to cover the cost of operating them. Many lines and stations were subsequently closed.

The Great Train Robbery

1964 Six months after the ‘Great Train Robbery’ in Buckinghamshire, 20 of the gang were still at large, but the ten who were arrested were found guilty of stealing more than £2.6m from mailbags. They included Ronnie Biggs. Sentences totalled 307 years in jail.

Pickles’ Glory

1966 The stolen football world cup was found in south London by a dog called Pickles, whilst it was out for a walk with its owner.

 

On This Day – Mrs. Pickersgill’s Secret, the Gang of Four and the Diamond Geezer

William Caxton’s Printed Word

1484 William Caxton printed his translation of Aesop’s Fables. As far as is known, Caxton was the first English person to work as a printer and the first to introduce a printing press into England. He was also the first English retailer of printed books

Henley Regatta

1839 At a public meeting held in Henley Town Hall, the Henley Regatta was born. It was decided that the introduction of an annual regatta would attract visitors to the town and be a source of amusement to the locals. The regatta lasts for 5 days (Wednesday to Sunday) over the first weekend in July. The most prestigious event at the regatta is the Grand Challenge Cup for Men’s Eights, which has been awarded since the regatta was first staged.

Jeannette C. Pickersgill’s Secret

1885 ‘A lady well-known in literary and scientific circles’ was the only clue The Times gave to the identity of the woman who was cremated by the Cremation Society in Woking, Surrey. She was the first person to be officially cremated in Britain and was a Mrs. Pickersgill, the first of three cremations that year.

Death of the Diamond Geezer

1902 The British imperialist Cecil John Rhodes died in Cape Town aged 48. Rhodes who controlled 90% of the world’s diamond production, was influential in establishing the British crown in South Africa and Rhodesia.

Blacks and Tans

1920 The British special constables known as the Black and Tans arrived in Ireland. Their nickname came from the colours of their uniform.

Blustery Showers

1923 BBC Radio started regular weather forecasts.

Father of the Welfare State

1945 David Lloyd George, British statesman and Liberal Prime Minister, died. He was Prime Minister of a wartime coalition government between the years 1916–22, Leader of the Liberal Party from 1926–31 and a key figure in the introduction of many reforms which laid the foundations of the modern welfare state.

200 Years Later

1973 Women stockbroker were allowed on the floor of the London Stock Exchange for the first time in its 200 year history.

Blythe Spirit

1973 Noël Coward, English playwright and entertainer died.

The First Royal Email 

1976 Queen Elizabeth II sent the first royal e-mail, from the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment in Worcestershire.One of the Commonwealth recipients was 12-year old Katrina Barber in Australia.

The Gang of Four

1981 Four Labour defectors, known as the Gang of Four, launched the Social Democrats party. The four were Roy Jenkins, (former Labour cabinet minister), David Owen, William Rodgers and Shirley Williams. Their aim was to ‘reconcile the nation’ and ‘heal divisions between classes’.

 

 

On This Day – They Think It’s All Over

The Arrow and the Lionheart

1199 King Richard I was wounded by a crossbow bolt while fighting in France, leading to his death on 6th April. Richard spent very little time in England and lived in his Duchy of Aquitaine in the southwest of France, preferring to use his kingdom as a source of revenue to support his armies. He produced no legitimate heirs and acknowledged only one illegitimate son, Philip of Cognac. As a result, he was succeeded by his brother John as King of England.

Hudson Bay

1609 English navigator Henry Hudson (Hudson Bay in Canada was named after him) set off on his third voyage in an attempt to find the north west passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.

On the Road to Abolition

1807 The Slave Trade Act received the royal assent, eventually bringing an end to the slave trade. British merchants transported nearly three million black Africans across the Atlantic between 1700 and the early 19th century. The 1833 Slavery Abolition Act outlawed slavery itself throughout the British Empire but slaves did not gain their final freedom until 1838.

Football International

1876 The first football international between Wales and Scotland took place in Glasgow. Scotland won 4 0.

To Be or Not to Be

1949 The film Hamlet, starring Laurence Olivier, won five Oscars. It was the first British film to win an academy award.

The Treaty of Rome

1957 Six European nations signed the Treaty of Rome thus establishing the Common Market. They were Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Holland and Luxembourg.

Beds in Peace

1969 John Lennon and new wife Yoko Ono staged their ‘Beds in Peace’ at the Amsterdam Hilton. It lasted until 31st March and each day they invited the world’s press into their hotel room, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.  It was Yoko’s idea to get over their peace message while on honeymoon. Although the press were expecting them to be having sex, the couple were sitting in bed, in John’s words ‘like angels’, talking about peace, with signs over their bed reading ‘Hair Peace’ and ‘Bed Peace’.

Archbishop No. 102

1980 Robert Runcie was enthroned as the 102nd Archbishop of Canterbury.

Voice of an Angel

1999 The 13 year old singer Charlotte Church became the youngest artist to enter the American top 30 album chart.

They Think It’s All Over

2002 The death of Kenneth Wolstenholme, football commentator for BBC television in the 1950s and 1960s. He is perhaps most noted for his commentary during the 1966 FIFA World Cup which included the famous phrase ‘Some people are on the pitch…they think it’s all over….it is now!’, as Geoff Hurst scored England’s fourth goal.

 

On This Day – Crown Jewels and a Punch Too Far

The End of an Era

1603 After 44 years of rule, Queen Elizabeth I of England died. The English and Scottish crowns were united when James VI of Scotland became King James 1st of England.

The Start of an Era

Union with Scotland Act Parliament of England Long title An Act for an Union of the Two Kingdoms of England and Scotland Statute book chapter 6 Anne c. 11 Territorial extent England Status:

Union with England Act Parliament of Scotland Long title Act Ratifying and Approving the Treaty of Union of the Two Kingdoms of SCOTLAND and ENGLAND Statute book chapter Anne c. 7 Territorial extent Scotland Status:

1707 The Acts of Union 1707 was signed, officially uniting the Kingdoms of England and Scotland to create the Kingdom of Great Britain.

What a Relief

Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for the Relief of His Majesty’s Roman Catholic Subjects.
Statute book chapter	10 Geo. 4 c. 7
Dates
Royal Assent	13 April 1829
Status: Current legislation

1829 Parliament passed the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829, allowing Catholics to serve in Parliament.

Birth of a Designer

1834 William Morris, English craftsman, poet and socialist, was born. His designs for furniture, fabrics, stained glass, wallpaper, and other decorative products revolutionized Victorian taste.

Dead Heat

1877 The Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race on the River Thames ended in a dead heat. Legend in Oxford has it that the judge, ‘Honest John’ Phelps, was asleep under a bush when the race finished, leading him to announce the result as a ‘dead heat to Oxford by four feet’!

The Great Escape

1944 World War II: In an event later dramatized in the movie The Great Escape, 76 prisoners began breaking out of Stalag Luft III.

Letters from America

1946 Broadcaster Alastair Cooke read his first ‘Letter from America’ on BBC Radio. His weekly broadcasts continued for more than 50 years.

More Oxbridge Capers

1951 The Oxford boat sank during the University boat race. Cambridge won the rematch two days later.

No One Left to Call Me Mary

1953 Her Majesty, Queen Mary, (Queen Consort to King George V) died peacefully in her sleep after a long illness. According to a story, after King George died she said – ‘There’s no one left now to call me Mary.’

Full Monty

1976 The death of British Field Marshal Montgomery, one of the outstanding Allied commanders in World War II.

A Punch Too Far

1992 Punch, Britain’s oldest satirical magazine dating back almost 151 years, announced that it would cease publication because of financial losses.

Jewels in the Crown

1994 The new Jewel House, at the Tower of London, was opened by the Queen.

 

On this Day – A Slow News Day

Pirate of the Caribbean

1645 The birth of William Kidd (later known as Captain Kidd). He was tried and executed for piracy in 1701 after returning from a voyage to the Indian Ocean. Despite the legends and fiction surrounding Captain Kidd, his actual career was punctuated by only a handful of skirmishes followed by a desperate quest to clear his name.

Mr. Train’s Train

1831 London’s first tramcars began operating. They had been designed by a Mr. Train from New York!

Mr. Bottomley’s Bottom

1860 The birth of Horatio William Bottomley, English journalist and financier who wanted a life of luxury but whose grandiose business schemes kept leading to bankruptcy. When found guilty of fraud for a third time, he was sentenced to seven years in jail. He founded the patriotic journal John Bull, had been a Member of Parliament, and had gone through millions of pounds when he died in poverty in 1933.

Coventry Cathedral

1956 Queen Elizabeth II laid the foundation stone of the new Coventry cathedral. The new building was built next to the remains of the 14th-century cathedral that had been destroyed in the 2nd World War.

When in Rome

1966 The first official meeting between the Catholic and Anglican churches for 400 years took place when Pope Paul VI and Dr. Ramsey, the Archbishop of Canterbury met in Rome.

Major’s Charter

1991 Prime Minister John Major issued his Citizens’ Charter. Failing public service providers would be forced to offer customers cash refunds or face government budget cuts.

Good Bye, Liz

2011 Dame Elizabeth Taylor, one of the 20th century’s biggest film stars, died in Los Angeles at the age of 79.

 

On This Day – Ici Londres and the Gold Bullion

Baa Baa Black Sheep

1774 Mary Cooper published the first book of English nursery rhymes. Called Tommy Thumb’s Song Book, it included Baa Baa Black Sheep, whose ‘three bags full’ is thought to refer to a tax imposed on the wool trade in 1275.

National Gallery

1824 The British parliament purchased 38 paintings (cost £57,000) to establish a national collection now at the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, London.

The English Football League

1888 The English Football League was founded when 12 clubs met at a hotel in Fleet Street, London.

The First International

1906 The first rugby international between France and England in Paris ended with a 35-0 victory to England.

A Hard Day’s Night

1912 The birth of Wilfrid Brambell, Irish film and television actor best known for his role as Albert Steptoe in the television series Steptoe and Son. He also performed alongside The Beatles in their film A Hard Day’s Night, playing Paul McCartney’s fictional grandfather and played Ebenezer Scrooge in a musical version of A Christmas Carol.

Ici Londres! 

1942 The BBC began broadcasting in Morse code to the French Resistance.

The Phantom Lord

1948 Andrew Lloyd Webber, English composer of musicals, was born. Several of his 13 musicals have run for more than a decade, both in the West End and on Broadway. He was awarded a knighthood in 1992, followed by a peerage from the British Government.

Golden Bullion

1954 Closed since 1939, the London bullion market, a market for trading gold and silver, reopened.

The Minister and the Call Girl

1963 John Profumo (Secretary of State for War) denied any impropriety with the model Christine Keeler, or that he was in any way connected to her disappearance when she had been due to appear as a witness in a trial at the Old Bailey. On 5th June 1963 he resigned after admitting that he had lied about his relationship.

Close Enclounters

1997 Comet Hale-Bopp made its closest approach to Earth in the skies over the northern hemisphere. The comet’s next pass is predicted for the year 4397.