Читать книгу The Every Day Book of History and Chronology - Joel Munsell - Страница 38

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107. St. Ignatius died, or was murdered.

1461. Battle of Mortimer's Cross, in which Edward, duke of York (afterwards Edward IV), revenged his father's death by a signal victory over the royalists, commanded by Jasper, earl of Pembroke.

1642. Edward Finch died. He was vicar of Christ church, London, from which he was expelled for preaching in a surplice and associating with women.

1681. John Edward Nidhard, an Austrian jesuit, died. He was appointed inquisitor-general and minister of Spain.

1684. Robert Leighton, a Scotch prelate, died. He for a number of years employed his talents and influence in a vain endeavor to bring about a reconciliation between the presbyterians and episcopalians. As a preacher he was admired beyond all his contemporaries, and his works have not yet lost their popularity.

1686. Francis Blondel died; eminent for his knowledge of geometry and belles-lettres; was professor of mathematics and architecture, and tutor to the dauphin of France.

1702. Marshal Villeroy, general of the French and Spanish armies in Italy, surprised in his bed at Cremona, and taken prisoner by the imperialists under Prince Eugene.

1708. Captain Rogers discovered Alexander Selkirk on the island of Juan Fernandez, where he had lived alone four years and four months.

1718. Daniel Francis Voisin, chancellor of France, died. He was eminent for his talents, integrity and virtue.

1733. Frederick Augustus, elector of Saxony and king of Poland, died. His court was one of the most splendid and polished in Europe, and he filled with dignity his station among the European powers. In his character generous ideas were united with despotic feelings; a taste for pleasure with the cares of ambition; and the restlessness of a warlike spirit with the effeminacy of a luxurious life. Instances of his prodigious strength are recorded, which appear almost incredible.

1775. The new congress of Massachusetts met at Cambridge and chose John Hancock their president.

1781. Lord Cornwallis with the British army, passed the Catawba at M'Cowan's ford. His passage was disputed by Wm. Davidson, lieut. col., commandant of the North Carolina line, and brigadier general of militia, with 300 militia. Davidson was overpowered, and killed by a ball in the breast. Cornwallis had his horse killed under him.

1789. The first president of the United States elected.

1793. War declared against England and Holland by the French.

1796. A stone was thrown at the carriage of George III, king of England, as he was returning from Drury lane theatre. It hit the queen in the face.

1800. Battle between the United States frigate Constellation, Capt. Truxton, and the French frigate La Vengeance of 54 guns. The action lasted from 8 o'clock in the morning until after noon, when the Vengeance was completely silenced; but taking advantage of a squall made her escape to Curacao, where she arrived in a shattered condition, having lost 160 men killed and wounded.

1801. Daniel Nicholas Chodowiecki, a German painter and engraver, died. He practiced miniature painting with great assiduity to support his mother. His first trials at engraving excited the astonishment of connoisseurs; and at length scarce a book appeared in Prussia for which he did not engrave at least a vignette. He was universally esteemed for his integrity.

1804. J. Packer died at Spinningfield, England, aged 33, weighing 29 stone.

1813. American privateer schooner Hazard, Capt. Le Chartier, of 3 guns and 38 men, captured the British merchant ship Albion of 12 guns and 15 men; on the 23d she was re-captured by the British cutter Caledonia of 8 guns and 38 men; on the 26th the Hazard fell in with and took both of them; but succeeded in bringing the Albion only into St. Mary's. The Hazard had her first lieutenant and 6 men wounded, but she was much shattered. Great part of the Caledonia's crew were killed or wounded.

1814. Bonaparte defeated by the allied army near Chaumenil.

1814. A destructive eruption of Albay in Luconia, one of the Phillipines.

1815. Eruption of the volcano of Albay, in the province of Camarines, on the southern part of one of the Phillipine islands, in the Indian ocean; by this awful catastrophe five populous towns were entirely destroyed and more than 1200 of the inhabitants perished.

1824. Henry Bate Dudley died. He was born in England 1745, educated for the pulpit, and succeeded to his father's benefice. He established the Morning Post, and subsequently several other papers, and manifested his literary abilities by the production of several successful comedies. He obtained a baronetcy, and at the time of his decease was a magistrate for eleven counties.

1824. John Lempriere died, author of the Biographical Dictionary. He was an English prelate, and an excellent classical scholar.

1833. Elizabeth Moore died, in Pitt county, North Carolina, aged 101.

1837. A memorial was presented to congress, signed by 56 authors of Great Britain, praying that body to secure to them the exclusive right to their respective writings in the United States.

1837. Edward Donovan died, near London, a celebrated author on natural history.

1837. Simpson, in the service of the Hudson Bay company, reached Athabasca, having completed since the first of December a journey of 1277 statute miles, the preliminary step of the expedition.

1845. Samuel McGwinn, known as the Caithness Veteran, died at Andover, New-Hampshire, aged 110.

1851. Mary Wolstonecraft, widow of Percy Bysshe Shelley, died, aged 53; known in authorship by her Travels and Frankenstein.

1852. Ohio state house burnt, and a large mass of valuable papers perished with it.

1854. Silvio Pellico died near Turin in Italy. In 1820 he was seized by the Austrians as a carbonaro, while employed as a tutor, and confined in the fortress of Spielberg ten years. On his release he was employed as librarian by the Marchesa Barolo until his death.

1854. The splendid Parliament house at Quebec, with the government library and philosophical apparatus, were destroyed by fire.

1855. The United States surveying steamer Water Witch, ascending the Paraguay in violation of the ordinance that no man of war should enter that river, was fired at from the fort, and one man killed. The Water Witch returned the fire and backed down the stream.

1856. Ivan Fedorowitch Paskiewitsch, vice-roy of Poland, died, aged 74. He distinguished himself in all the wars of the Russian empire, beginning with that of the invasion of 1812.