641. HERACLIUS, emperor of the East, died. He was the son of a governor
of Africa, conspired against Phocas, whom he beheaded, and ascended the
throne of Constantinople.
1225. HENRY III subscribed the great charter of English liberties, which
was witnessed by 13 bishops, 20 abbots, and 32 earls and barons.
1451. AMURATH II, emperor of the Ottomans, died. He was the first Turk
who used cannon in battle.
1502. ELIZABETH of York, queen of Henry VII, died in childbirth, in the
tower of London, on her birth day, aged 36. She married Henry in 1486,
by which the antagonist houses of York and Lancaster were united.
1503. JAMES TYRELL supposed to be one of the murderers of Edward V,
executed as a traitor. He is said to have confessed his agency in the
death of both the young princes.
1543. An alliance was formed between Henry VIII of England, and the
emperor Charles V.
1573. DRAKE the navigator was conducted by the Symerons to a tree
notched with steps, which served them for a watch tower, and from the
summit of which he had a view of the two oceans, one of which no English
vessel had ever yet navigated.
1650. RENE DESCARTES, a celebrated French philosopher and mathematician,
died, aged 54. His superior intellect early manifested itself. He
embraced the military profession, and served in various countries, the
better to make observations and form satisfactory conclusions on
scientific subjects. He finally settled in Holland, where during the
last 20 years of his life, the greater part of his works were written.
It is said of him that he extended the limits of geometry as far beyond
the place where he found them, as Sir Isaac Newton did after him.
1659. FRANCIS OSBORNE died; an English writer of great abilities.
1733. JOHN PERRY, a celebrated English engineer, died. He was patronized
by czar Peter of Russia, of which country he wrote a history.
1761. A usurer fined at Guildhall, London, £300 for having exacted six
guineas to discount £100 for six weeks.
1763. PETER CARLET DE MARIVEAUX, a French romancer, died. The great
characteristic of his works, is to convey a useful moral under the veil
of wit and sentiment.
1763. WILLIAM SHENSTONE died, aged 50. His father was a gentleman
farmer, who cultivated a moderate estate, called the _Leasowes_, which
were rendered celebrated by the taste of the son. Having finished his
studies, and come into possession of the paternal property, he gave
himself up to rural embellishments and the cultivation of poetry. He
wrote for fame, which was not awarded him by his cotemporaries and he
died broken hearted. "He was a lamp that spent its oil in blazing." His
principal poem is _The Schoolmistress_.
1771. JEAN DE BEAURAIN died; a French negotiator and geographer. He was
made geographer to Louis XV at the age of 25.
1771. JOHN BURTON, a learned English divine, died, leaving some
ingenious writings, collected under the title of _Opuscula Miscellanea_.
1780. The British under Sir Henry Clinton landed in St. John's Island,
about 30 miles from Charleston, S. C.
1793. Great Britain issued letters of marque and reprisal against
France.
1797. FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE, one of the signers of the declaration of
independence, and a brave officer in the American revolution, died at
Richmond, Va., aged 63.
1807. Revolution in St. Domingo, in which a profusion of blood was shed.
1810. The spire and part of the tower of St. Nicholas' church at
Liverpool, fell through the roof and killed several in the church.
1811. Battle of Laffesat, in which the Prussians defeated the Turks,
after a sanguinary contest.
1814. Battle of Montmirail between the French under Bonaparte, and the
Russians under D'Yorck.
1815. Fort Boyer, Mobile, with a garrison of 375, surrendered to 5,000
British under Lambert, with a fleet of 13 ships of the line and 25
smaller vessels. Col. Lawrence received a wound, and seeing that it was
useless to contend against such odds, struck his flag. British loss 31;
American 10.
1821. ADAM WALKER died. He was apprenticed to a weaver; but ultimately
became a lecturer on philosophy, which he adopted as a profession, and
traveled in England for the purpose of lecturing on that science.
1827. JOSE MARIA ABRANTES, a Portuguese nobleman died in exile. He was
the friend of Don Miguel, of infamous memory.
1828. DE WITT CLINTON died at his residence in Albany, aged 59. He was
born in the town of Little Britain, Orange county, N. Y., 1769, and
educated for the bar. He was at an early age elected to a seat in the
legislature, and continued to hold offices of honor and emolument until
the day of his death, at which time he was governor of the state of New
York. It is to his perseverance in a great measure, that we owe the
construction of the Erie canal. As a public character he is entitled to
durable renown, and no one was ever more ambitious of a reputation for
science and literature.
1837. JOHN LATHAM, an eminent English naturalist and ornithologist,
died, aged 97. He was one of the founders of the Linnean society, and
commenced the publication of his last work at the age of 82.
1844. HENRY KIFER, a soldier of the revolution, died at North Woodbury,
Pa., aged 110½ years.
1856. CAROLINE LEE HENTZ, a well known American novelist, died.