430. AURELIUS AUGUSTINUS (or St. Augustin), one of the fathers of the
Christian church, died at Hippo, in Africa.
876. LOUIS I, of Germany, died. He acquired the title of the pious, at
the same time rendered himself powerful and formidable to his neighbors.
1443. JOHN V, duke of Britanny, died, and was succeeded by his son
Francis.
1595. DRAKE and HAWKINS sailed from England with six of the queen's
ships and twenty-one private ships and barks, on an expedition against
the Spanish settlements in the West Indies.
1608. FRANCIS VERE, died; an English general, who distinguished himself
in the expedition to Holland, 1585.
1609. HUDSON, having retreated his steps from Chesapeake bay, discovered
another great bay, which has since acquired the name of Delaware. He
anchored the Half Moon in eight fathom water, and took possession of the
country.
1645. HUGO GROTIUS, an eminent Dutch philosopher, died. He was a man of
great talent and laborious study, and notwithstanding he passed a stormy
life, his works are very numerous.
1654. AXEL OXENSTIERN, a Swedish statesman, died. He was placed at the
head of affairs on the death of Gustavus Adolphus, and owed his
elevation to his merit and abilities.
1686. CASSINI, an Italian astronomer, discovered the satellite of Venus.
1710. JOSEPH KEBLE, an English law writer, died. Besides his published
works, which were few, he left 100 large folio, and 50 thick quarto
volumes in manuscript.
1722. Port Royal in Jamaica, destroyed by a hurricane; 26 ships and many
lives lost.
1731. CHARLES BOYLE, earl of Orrery, died, aged 56. He made a figure
from the age of 19 up, in literary, military, and almost every other
kind of warfare.
1737. JOHN HUTCHINSON, an English author, died: founder of a well-known
philosophical sect, which opposed Newton's doctrine of gravitation. His
theories are curious, but no longer in repute.
1754. An irruption of the French and Indians upon Hoosick and
Schaghticoke, by which those settlements were broken up, two persons
scalped, and the houses fired.
1775. GEORGE FAULKNER, a celebrated Irish printer, died. He was the
first to carry the art to a high degree of perfection in that country,
and appears to have been a worthy and useful citizen.
1788. ELIZABETH CHUDLEIGH, duchess of Kingston, died at Paris;
celebrated for her matrimonial speculations.
1792. DUMOURIER took his post at the head of 20,000 men, undisciplined
and unorganized. Yet with these materials he arrested the progress of
80,000 Prussians and Hessians, and forced them to retreat with the loss
of half their army.
1794. Battle of Powassin, between the Prussians and the Poles, in which
the former lost their batteries and cannon, after a bloody engagement.
1798. JAMES WILSON died, one of the signers of the declaration of
independence. He was eminent for his talents and integrity, and
continued in the discharge of some public office till his death.
1804. MARGARET, widow of Benedict Arnold, died in London, aged 44. She
was the daughter of Edward Shippen, of Philadelphia. It was said of her,
that with a superiority and strength of mind seldom equaled, she
possessed such polished and fascinating manners, as to convert every
acquaintance into a friend.
1811. JOHN LEYDEN, a distinguished linguist, died on the island of Java,
in his 36th year. He was ordained as a minister, but never attained any
popularity as a preacher.
1814. Bombardment of fort Erie continued by the British; a shell entered
the roof of Gen. Gaines's quarters, and burst at his feet, by which he
was so severely wounded as to be obliged to resign the command of the
fort.
1816. Treaty signed between Algiers and England, by which Christian
slavery was to be abolished, and all slaves, of whatever nation, to be
delivered up. The number released was 1,033.
1839. WILLIAM SMITH, an eminent English geologist, died, aged 70. In his
employment as a land surveyor and engineer, he turned his attention to
the geology of England, and published upwards of 20 geological maps of
the counties. He is styled the _Father of English Geology_.
1839. A grand tournament appointed at Eglintoun castle in Ayrshire,
Scotland. The day was very stormy, and the multitude from all parts of
Great Britain who had assembled to witness the feats, estimated at
80,000, suffered greatly from the inclemency of the weather, and the
impossibility of procuring shelter, food, or vehicles. An immense sum
had been expended by the romantic nobleman in getting up the festival,
which proved a total failure.
1851. The yacht America beat the iron yacht Titania, on a race of forty
miles out and back, and left her eight miles astern.
1854. MARIA CHRISTINA, queen mother of Spain, left Madrid for Portugal,
under escort of a body of government troops, but against the will of the
people; she was indebted to the state 71,000,000 reals.
1855. SPENCER H. CONE, a Baptist minister, died in New York, aged 70. He
was an actor, and on the stage for the last time when the Richmond
theatre was burnt. He afterwards edited a newspaper, and finally became
one of the most distinguished of the Baptist ministers.
1855. The vessel engaged to lay the submarine cable between cape Ray in
Newfoundland and cape North in cape Breton, 55½ miles, began to pay
it out. The cable afterwards broke, and a gale coming on, it was found
necessary to let it go.
1856. The Dudley observatory was inaugurated at Albany.