507 B. C. The dedication of the Roman capital fell upon this day, about
the full moon of the Greek month Matagitnion. Horatius Pulvillus, as
supreme prætor, drove the first annual _nail_ in the wall of the temple,
near the fane of Minerva.
44. CÆSAR executed his last testament at his seat near Lavicanum. He
left the people his gardens near the Tiber, and 300 sesterces to each
man.
81. TITUS FLAVIUS VESPASIANUS, emperor of Rome, died. He was an obscure
native of Riti, who by his merits and virtues rose to consequence in the
Roman armies, and headed the expedition against Jerusalem.
335. CONSTANTINE dedicated his great church of the Resurrection at
Jerusalem, Saturday; and on Sunday exalted the relic of the cross.
1435. JOHN PLANTAGENET, duke of Bedford, regent of France, died. He was
the brother of Henry V of England, and the most accomplished prince of
Europe. He purchased and transported to London the Royal library of
Paris.
1515. Battle of Marignano, in Italy, which lasted with great fierceness
two days. The French commander, who had been in eighteen pitched
battles, exclaimed that all other fights compared with this were but
children's sports, that this was the war of giants. The French were
victorious.
1529. Vienna besieged by the Turks.
1557. JOHN CHEKE, a learned Englishman, died. He was professor of Greek
in the university, and held important state offices. On the accession of
Mary, he preferred popery to the fagot, and abjured his faith.
1565. WILLIAM FAREL, a successful French reformer, died. He labored with
great zeal against the Catholic church, and made many proselytes.
1592. MICHAEL DE MONTAIGNE died; a celebrated French writer, whose works
are still quoted.
1598. PHILIP II, of Spain, died. He was made king of Sicily and Naples,
1554; became king of England by marriage with Mary, and two years after
ascended the Spanish throne by the abdication of his father, Charles V.
(See Sept. 4.)
1629. Nine sachems came to Plymouth and voluntarily subscribed an
instrument of submission to the English, acknowledging themselves the
loyal subjects of James, king of Great Britain, France and Ireland,
defender of the faith, &c.
1629. JOHN BUXTORF, a German linguist, died. He was professor of Hebrew,
at Basil, and is placed in the first rank of men who have been eminent
for rabbinical learning.
1645. Battle of Philiphaugh near Selkirk, where the earl of Montrose was
defeated.
1694. JOHN BARBIER D'ANCOUR, a French advocate and critic, died.
1748. The scaffolding used in Westminster Hall for the trial of the
prisoners adhering to the pretender, Charles Edward Stewart, was pulled
down and sold to the builder for £400.
1759. Quebec stormed and taken by the British under Wolfe, who was
wounded and died in the arms of victory. The French lost 500 killed, and
1,000 taken; British loss 50 killed, 500 wounded.
1771. JOHN GAMBOLD, a noted Moravian preacher in London, died; a great
enthusiast, but respected for his learning and abilities, and
inoffensive manners.
1781. Combined attack on Gibraltar by 10 Spanish floating batteries, and
about 300 cannon, mortars and howitzers from the isthmus. Two of their
largest ships were burnt and 2 feluccas taken. The British saved from
one of the ships about 350 men; 8 other ships blew up or were burnt.
1787. MOSES BROWN, an English poet and divine, died.
1794. JOHN PETER CLARIS DE FLORIAN, an eminent French author, died. His
dramas, pastorals, novels and fables, gave him great popularity as a
sentimental writer.
1795. Captain VANCOUVER returned from his voyage of discovery after an
absence of four years.
1797. JOHN FELL, an English dissenting minister, died. He is known as
the author of several respectable works.
1806. CHARLES JAMES FOX, an eminent English statesman, died.
1808. XAVIER BETTINELLI, an elegant Italian writer, died. His works are
published in 24 vols., two of which are tragedies, and two poems.
1814. British approached within 700 yards of fort Bowyer, Mobile, and
opened their fire on it.
1819. Completion of the Mahmudie or Alexandria canal, in Egypt. This
vast undertaking was commenced in January of the same year by Mehemet
Ali, pasha of Egypt, under the superintendence of six European
engineers, with about 100,000 laborers, and their number, though more
than 7,000 died of contagious diseases, was gradually increased to more
than 290,000, each of whom received about 17 cents per diem. It extends
from below Soane, on the Nile, to Pompey's pillar, is 47½ miles long,
90 feet wide, and 18 feet deep.
1831. Albany and Schenectady rail road opened; the first in the state of
New York.
1839. JAMES MAITLAND, earl of Lauderdale, died, aged 80. He was the
author of various publications on finance and political economy.
1842. An Affghan army under Akbar Khan, numbering 13,000, defeated by
the British under Gen. Pollock, at Tetzeen. Three days after the city of
Cabul occupied by British forces.
1843. The town of Port Leon in Florida, was almost entirely destroyed by
an inundation and hurricane. The inhabitants selected a new site upon
which to rebuild, a few miles higher up the St. Marks, which was called
Newport.
1847. LEVI TWIGGS killed at Chapultepec, Mexico; a distinguished officer
of the United States army.
1848. ALEXANDER SLIDELL MACKENZIE, an American naval commander, died at
Tarrytown, N. Y., aged 45. In 1842 he made a cruise in the Somers, in
which he felt constrained to hang several mutineers to the yard arm. He
published several works, and was a man of integrity and devotional
feelings.
1850. The Advance and Rescue, American vessels in search of sir John
Franklin, were completely fastened in the ice.
1855. The expedition in search of Dr. Kane, who was in search of sir
John Franklin, arrived at Lievely, isle of Disco, Greenland, where they
found Dr. Kane and his companions, who had left their ship in the ice,
and traveled 83 days to a Danish settlement.