Читать книгу The Every Day Book of History and Chronology - Joel Munsell - Страница 64

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52 BC Pompey elected sole consul of Rome.

1030. Adalbero, a French ecclesiastic, died. He has left a character suited to bold and unscrupulous intrigue.

1464. The Lancasterians defeated by the Yorkists at Heagley Moor, the white rose triumphing over the red.

1523. William Lily, an English grammarian, died at London of the plague. He is highly praised by Erasmus, who revised the syntax of his grammar, for his uncommon erudition in the languages, and admirable skill in the instruction of youth.

1601. Robert Devereux, earl of Essex, executed. He obtained the favor of the queen, Elizabeth, and distinguished himself on many occasions. But having committed some indiscretions which required reprimanding, his pride was wounded, which led him to open rebellion. His fate has formed the subject of four tragedies.

1634. Albert, count Wallenstein, generalissimo of the Austrian army during the thirty years war, assassinated.

1643. A barbarous massacre in the night of the Indians who were encamped at Pavonia, opposite the Dutch fort of New Amsterdam, instigated by Gov. Kieft. About 80 Indians lost their lives, and many enormities were enacted by the Dutch.

1676. The Indiana assaulted the town of Weymouth, Mass., and burned several houses and barns. This was a disastrous year with the colonists. The Indians had risen in their utmost power, with the determination of utterly extirpating the English, and almost every day witnessed the smoke of town or cluster of dwellings on fire.

1703. Daniel de Foe prosecuted as the author of a book entitled, The shortest way with the dissenters, and his book burned by the hangman.

1712. Nicholas Catinat, an illustrious French general under Louis XIV, died.

1713. Frederick I, of Prussia, died. He was elector of Brandenburg, and ambitious of raising his duchy into a kingdom. To accomplish this object, he joined Leopold, emperor of Germany, in a war against several states.

1723. Christopher Wren, the English architect, died, aged 91. He built St. Paul's and fifty other churches and monuments, which had been destroyed by the great fire of 1666.

1724. Pope Innocent XIII died.

1754. Richard Mead, an eminent English physician and patron of learning, died, aged 81. His library sold for about $75,000. His income from his profession was about $25,000 a year.

1761. Joseph Francis Desmahis, a French author of great celebrity, died.

1768. Mangalore, a seaport belonging to Hyder Ally, taken by the British.

1776. Battle of Trenton. The American army under Washington crossed the Delaware in the night during a violent storm of snow and rain, and attacked the British on the north and west parts of the town. A detachment had been ordered to cross the river and secure a bridge to prevent the escape of the enemy; but owing to the extreme difficulty of crossing, this part of the plan failed, and about 500 escaped. British loss 20 killed, 1000 prisoners; American loss 2 killed, 2 frozen, 5 wounded.

1779. The splendid bridge at Puerto Santo, in Spain, fell and killed a great number of persons while the priests were in the act of consecrating it.

1781. Battle near Haw river in North Carolina, between the Americans under Pickens and Lee, and a considerable body of royalists under Col. Pyle. The latter were cut to pieces, without the loss of a man by the former.

1781. The French and Spanish fleets encountered a furious storm off cape Francois in the West-Indies. Several ships sunk or foundered, and about 2200 men perished.

1782. Denmark acknowledged the independence of the United States.

1798. The French under Brune entered the canton of Berne in Switzerland.

1799. El Arish in Egypt surrendered to the French under Bonaparte.

1805. William Buchan, an eminent Scottish physician, died near London. He was educated for the pulpit, but made choice of the medical profession, which he pursued during a long life. In 1771 he published his Domestic Medicine; it has been attended with a degree of success scarcely equaled by any other book in our language, and is translated into every European tongue.

1807. Battle of Peterswalde, between the French and Russians, in which the latter were defeated, with the loss of their general, Baron De Korff, his staff and 400 men prisoners.

1814. Action between the British frigate Erotas and French frigate Clorinde, 44 guns. The captain of the Erotas and 4 men were wounded and 22 killed. The Clorinde was captured the next day by the British ships Dryades and Achades, her loss supposed to have been 120 men.

1816. A number of sailors belonging to the American squadron in the Mediterranean, having been permitted to go on shore at Port Mahon, were attacked by the Spanish guard and several killed and wounded.

1816. Frederick William Bulow, count von Dennewitz, a Prussian general, died. He is famous for his victories in the last French and German war, the art of which he had learnt scientifically in early youth. He was also devoted to literature and the fine arts, and esteemed as a citizen and a man.

1817. Schooner Ocean of New York sunk at sea. Isaac Roget, a merchant of high standing in New York, was convicted in conjunction with others, of having loaded her at Havre de Grace with 97 boxes of stones, with a view to defraud the insurance officers of $58,000.

1819. Francesco Manuel, a Portuguese poet, died. His opinions being rather too liberal for the times, he was summoned to appear before the inquisition, but instead of obeying the mandate he resisted the officer sent to arrest him, and fled to Paris, where he resided till his death. It has been said of him that no poet or writer since the time of Camoens had done so much for the language.

1822. William Pinckney, a distinguished American statesman, died. It is said that he possessed almost unequaled legal science and eloquence.

1829. A violent hurricane in the island of Barbadoes, by which the whole of the eastern end of the island was devastated, and great damage done to the shipping.

1831. The Poles defeated near the walls of Warsaw by the Russians, with the loss of 5000 men. Russian loss 4,500.

1841. Philip P. Barbour, an eminent American statesman and judge, died at Washington, aged 60.

1841. The Bogue forts and the city of Canton captured by the British. The number of Chinese killed and wounded was very great; 1000 were captured. Canton was almost deserted by its inhabitants.

1850. Tau Kwang, emperor of China, died, aged 69.

1856. Peace congress met at Paris, and agreed upon an armistice till the 31st of March.