Abraham Lincoln’s Patent
I have written about Lincoln’s beard, and his Gettysburg Address, but did you know he was an inventor? On the 22nd of May, 1849, Lincoln was issued a patent for his invention to lift boats. This makes him the only US president to hold a patent. Don’t tell Trump or...
Syracuse
On the 21st of May, 878, Syracuse on Sicily was captured by the Muslim Aghlabids after a nine month siege. Amongst other events I could have chosen to write about, Charles Lindburgh landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris on the same day in 1927 having crossed the...
First Council of Nicaea
The first calling of the Council of Nicaea was on the 20th of May 325. The First Council of Nicaea was a landmark assembly of Christian bishops convened in 325 AD in the city of Nicaea (modern İznik in Turkey). Called by the Roman Emperor Constantine I, it was the...
Anne of Kiev
On the 19th of May, 1051, King Henry I of France married Anne of Kiev. Anne of Kiev (c. 1024–c. 1075), also known as Anna Yaroslavna, was a princess of Kievan Rus who became Queen of France through her marriage to Henry I of France. Her life forms a remarkable bridge...
Omar Khayyám
The Persian poet, mathematician and astronomer, Omar Khayyám, was born on the 18th of May 1048. Omar Khayyám (c. 1048–1131) was one of the most remarkable intellectual figures of the medieval Islamic world: a mathematician of the first rank, a serious astronomer, and...
Edward Stafford
On the 17th of May, 1521, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham was executed for treason. He was one of the many victims of Henry VIII’s suspicions, although it was before his marriage to Anne Boleyn, and before his jousting injury. Having looked at it myself, I...
Medici
On the 16th of May, 1527, the people of Florence drove out the Medici family for the seconnd time, and re-established Florence as a republic. Both Catherine de Medici and Marie de Medici have featured in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. Let us take a closer look at...
Johannes Kepler
On the 15th of May, 1618, Johannes Kepler confirmed his previously rejected third law of planetary motion. He first formulated it on the 8th of March but rejected it after initial calculations. I find it extraordinary that in 1633 Galileo was tried for defending...
Battle of Lewes
The Battle of Lewes, fought on 14th of May, 1264, was one of the most dramatic confrontations of the Second Barons’ War and a turning point in the long struggle between the English Crown and its leading nobles. The clash pitted the forces of King Henry III against a...
Abraham Lincoln’s Patent
I have written about Lincoln’s beard, and his Gettysburg Address, but did you know he was an inventor? On the 22nd of May, 1849, Lincoln was issued a patent for his invention to lift boats. This makes him the only US president to hold a patent. Don’t tell Trump or...
Syracuse
On the 21st of May, 878, Syracuse on Sicily was captured by the Muslim Aghlabids after a nine month siege. Amongst other events I could have chosen to write about, Charles Lindburgh landed at Le Bourget Field in Paris on the same day in 1927 having crossed the...
First Council of Nicaea
The first calling of the Council of Nicaea was on the 20th of May 325. The First Council of Nicaea was a landmark assembly of Christian bishops convened in 325 AD in the city of Nicaea (modern İznik in Turkey). Called by the Roman Emperor Constantine I, it was the...
Anne of Kiev
On the 19th of May, 1051, King Henry I of France married Anne of Kiev. Anne of Kiev (c. 1024–c. 1075), also known as Anna Yaroslavna, was a princess of Kievan Rus who became Queen of France through her marriage to Henry I of France. Her life forms a remarkable bridge...
Omar Khayyám
The Persian poet, mathematician and astronomer, Omar Khayyám, was born on the 18th of May 1048. Omar Khayyám (c. 1048–1131) was one of the most remarkable intellectual figures of the medieval Islamic world: a mathematician of the first rank, a serious astronomer, and...
Edward Stafford
On the 17th of May, 1521, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham was executed for treason. He was one of the many victims of Henry VIII’s suspicions, although it was before his marriage to Anne Boleyn, and before his jousting injury. Having looked at it myself, I...
Medici
On the 16th of May, 1527, the people of Florence drove out the Medici family for the seconnd time, and re-established Florence as a republic. Both Catherine de Medici and Marie de Medici have featured in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. Let us take a closer look at...
Johannes Kepler
On the 15th of May, 1618, Johannes Kepler confirmed his previously rejected third law of planetary motion. He first formulated it on the 8th of March but rejected it after initial calculations. I find it extraordinary that in 1633 Galileo was tried for defending...
Battle of Lewes
The Battle of Lewes, fought on 14th of May, 1264, was one of the most dramatic confrontations of the Second Barons’ War and a turning point in the long struggle between the English Crown and its leading nobles. The clash pitted the forces of King Henry III against a...