357. B. C. A transit of the moon over the planet mars observed by
Aristotle.
397. AMBROSE, archbishop of Milan, died. He was famous for the zeal
which he manifested in the cause of the church, and the severity with
which he censured the emperor Theodosius, who had barbarously ordered
several innocent persons to be put to death at Thessalonica. The _Te
Deum_ is attributed to him.
1284. ALPHONSO X, of Castile, died. He was elected emperor of Germany
1258, but neglecting to visit the empire, Rodolphus was chosen in his
place. He was dethroned by his own son, and compelled to seek protection
among the Saracens. His fame as an astronomer and a man of letters, is
greater than as a monarch. He is the first Castilian king who had the
public laws and the scriptures drawn in the vulgar tongue.
1581. DRAKE, the navigator, was knighted on board his famous ship, the
Pelican, at Deptford.
1588. FREDERICK II, of Denmark, died. He was a liberal and enlightened
ruler, who enlarged the happiness of his people and patronized learning.
The astronomer Tycho Brahe, particularly, was indebted to him for
munificent protection and advancement.
1589. Lady BURLEIGH, eldest daughter of Sir Anthony Cooke, and a highly
distinguished literary character, died, aged 63. This age was prolific
of literary women.
1593. Three Samuels of Warboys condemned for bewitching the children of
Mr. Throgmorton at Huntington, England.
1594. SYLVESTER WYET, of Bristol, England, made a voyage up the gulf of
St. Lawrence, for the barbs or fins of whales and train oil. He met with
60 sail of French, and 28 sail of Englishmen, engaged in fishing at this
early day.
1634. ROBERT NAUNTON, an English statesman, died. He was secretary of
state to James I, and published some curious anecdotes of the reign of
Elizabeth, under the title of _Fragmentia Regalia_.
1638. Massachusetts patent demanded. A quo warranto having been brought
by the attorney general of England against the governor and corporation
of Massachusetts, and judgment given that the liberties and franchises
should be seized into the king's hand, the council made an order
requiring that the charter should be returned by the next ship.
Arbitrary measures were pursued in reply to the petitions of the colony,
and 8 ships prepared to sail for New England were detained in the Thames
by order of the privy council. By this order, Oliver Cromwell, Arthur
Hazelrig, John Hambden and other malcontents, were forcibly prevented
from emigrating to America. How little did Charles anticipate that by
this high-handed measure he was detaining the very men who were destined
to overturn his throne, and terminate his career by a violent death.
1643. SIMON EPISCOPIUS, an able Dutch divine, died. He embraced the
doctrines of Arminius in relation to predestination, which exposed him
to much persecution and obloquy, and finally led to his banishment from
the commonwealth: he afterwards was permitted to return, and became
minister of the remonstrant church. His death happening at the moment of
an eclipse of the moon, was considered as an emblem of the departure of
the brightest ornament of the church.
1656. ANDREW RIVINUS, (alias Barchmann) a Saxon physician, died. He
became professor of poetry and philosophy at Leipsic, and published
several works of considerable merit.
1669. JOHANN MICHAEL MOSCHEROSCH, a German writer, died. His celebrity
consisted chiefly in some satirical pieces entitled _Wunderliche und
wahrhafte Geschichte Philanders von Sittewald_.
1704. The first newspaper printed in the United States, appeared at
Boston, called the _Boston News Letter_.
1706. JOHN BAYLES, an English buttonmaker, died, aged 130. He used to
walk to the neighboring markets with his buttons till he was 120 years
of age.
1720. KNIGHTLY CHETWODE, dean of Gloucester, died. He wrote several
poems, and a life of lord Roscommon.
1743. ROBERT AINSWORTH, an English teacher, died. In 1714 he was invited
by the English booksellers to undertake the compilation of an English
and Latin dictionary, on the plan of Faber's _Thesaurus_. The task
proved to be more difficult than had been anticipated, and was not
completed till 1736.
1747. Number Four (Charlestown, N. H.) attacked by a large body of
French and Indians under M. Debeline, and gallantly defended by 30 men,
under major Stevens. The enemy kept up a brisk assault night and day;
when, on the third day, being in a starving condition, and finding it
impracticable to force or persuade a surrender, they retired and were
seen no more. This was considered one of the most chivalrous feats of
the time.
1764. MICHAEL LOMONOZOF, a Russian poet, died. From the occupation of a
fishmonger he rose to be the "father of Russian poetry," and a
philosopher of no mean pretensions. He published a history of the
Russian sovereigns, and an ancient history of Russia, from the origin of
the nation. His odes are greatly admired for the originality of
invention, sublimity of sentiment, and energy of language.
1769. HYDER ALLY, the adventurous East India chief, compelled the
English to form a treaty with him.
1770. JAMES PARSONS, an eminent English physician, died. He was the
correspondent of Buffon and other learned characters on the continent,
and an able writer on physic, anatomy, natural history, antiquities,
language, and the fine arts.
1774. OLIVER GOLDSMITH died, aged 46. He received a partial education at
Dublin college, after which he strayed from home, and making a tour on
the continent, afoot and alone, with a flute in his hand, fixed himself,
on his return, in London, as a _builder of books_. The details of his
life are interesting, chequered as they are with vicissitudes. As a
bookseller's hack he was particularly successful; but the liberality of
his disposition and want of economy, contributed to keep him in want,
and sometimes brought him to starvation. He died about £2,000 in debt.
His works, though most of them were produced on the spur of the moment,
to procure the necessaries of life, are still found in almost every
library.
1777. JOHN SWINTON, an English antiquary, died. His literary
productions, which are numerous, appeared originally in the
Philosophical Transactions, and relate principally to antiquities.
1786. Columbia county, in the state of New York, erected.
1793. General DUMOURIEZ, accompanied by General Valance and young
Egalite (Louis Philip), afterwards king of France, narrowly escaped to
the Austrians.
1794. Battle of Raclawice, Poland, between the Russians and 4,000 Poles
under Kosciusko, mostly armed with scythes. The battle lasted five
hours, and ended in the defeat of the Russians, who left 3,000 killed on
the spot.
1795. BARRERE a lawyer, VARENNES a monk, COLLOT DE HERBOIS a comedian,
and VADIER a counsellor, members of the French convention, sentenced by
a decree of that body to be transported to Guiana. Barrere was president
of the convention, and as such passed sentence of death upon the king;
and they all voted for the king's death.
1799. Battle of Tauffers and St. Marie, in Germany. The French under
Jourdan lost upwards of 4,000 men, and fell back to the heights of
Villengen.
1802. LLOYD KENYON, an English judge, died. He filled the offices
entrusted to him with distinguished integrity, and to him England is
indebted for much of that reform which has been introduced into the
practice of the law.
1807. JOSEPH JEROME LA FRANCAIS DE LALANDE died at Paris, aged 70. He
received a minute religious education, and displayed his abilities while
quite young by his sermons and mystical romances. His attention was
first drawn to astronomy by the remarkable comet of 1744; and he pursued
the study with so great success that he was sent to Berlin by the
academy at the age of 19, to make some observations on the moon's
parallax, when Frederick the Great could not conceal his astonishment at
the phenomenon of so young an astronomer. He became editor of the
_Connaissance des Temps_, published several works on astronomy, and
wrote all the astronomical articles for the great _Encyclopedie_. In
1778 he published a folio volume on canals, containing a general
history of all the ancient canals which had been previously undertaken,
accomplished and even projected. Although a sceptic, he is said to have
been "religious, in his own way."
1809. The legislature of Pennsylvania passed a law directing the poor to
be sent to the most convenient school and their tuition paid.
1812. Congress passed an embargo law for 90 days.
1814. Bonaparte having received the opinions of his marshals abdicates
the imperial throne in favor of his son, only to be succeeded the next
day by a relinquishment in favor of his heirs also.
1815. Hostilities between France and the allied powers ceased. Alexander
I, in the name of the allies, recommended Bonaparte to choose a place of
retreat for himself and his family.
1817. ANDREW MASSENA, prince of Essling, one of the ablest of
Bonaparte's field marshals, died. He commanded in chief in the memorable
campaign in Switzerland; when at the battle of Zurich he had to contend
against the archduke Charles and prince Suwaroff; yet the fruits of this
campaign were 70,000 prisoners. He ended his military career in 1810, by
the command of the army of Portugal, where he was defeated by
Wellington.
1831. ISAIAH THOMAS, a distinguished American printer, died. He was born
in Boston, 1749, served an apprenticeship of 11 years, and commenced
business at a very early age at Newburyport. In 1770 he printed the
_Massachusetts Spy_ at Boston, where he annoyed the provincial officers
by the boldness and freedom of his articles on the difficulties that
agitated the country. He was also one of the most active and dexterous
of the skirmishers on the plains of Lexington. A few days after that
affair he removed his paper to Worcester; and gradually established
presses and book-stores in different parts of the Union, to the number
of twenty-four; so that he nearly supplied the entire country with
books. His Bibles, school books and almanacs, were in great repute for a
long time. He was the founder of the American antiquarian society, and
author of the _History of Printing in America_, a valuable work to the
profession and the antiquary.
1841. WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, president of the United States, died at
Washington, aged 69. He was a distinguished patriot of the revolution,
one of the signers of the declaration of independence, governor of
Virginia, and long a leader of the United States armies in the severe
contests with the British and Indians.
1855. The Baltic fleet, fitted out by the French and British governments
to act against the northern ports of Russia, sailed from Portsmouth.