1327. EDWARD II, 10th king of England, barbarously murdered at Berkley
castle. Less wise and firm than his father, he forfeited the confidence
of his people, and his wife Isabella joined the rebellion against him.
1520. SELIM I, sultan of Turkey, died. He came to the throne by causing
the death of his father and two brothers. He conquered Egypt and crushed
the power of the Mamelukes, which for 260 years had governed that
country.
1534. ALCAZABA sailed from Cadiz on a voyage of discovery. He was
murdered in the straits of Magellan by his crew, and the ship was
wrecked at Brazil.
1558. CHARLES V, emperor of Germany, died. He ascended the throne of
Spain 1518, and two years afterwards was elected to the empire. After a
reign of 38 years he resigned and retired to a cloister. His death was
caused by taking cold on getting out of his coffin after having gone
through with a mock funeral, to gratify an idle whim.
1576. JEROME CARDAN died; an Italian physician, and one of the most
extraordinary men of the age. His works were printed at Lyons in 10
vols. folio.
1609. HUDSON arrived in the vicinity of Albany, and having satisfied
himself by despatching a boat seven or eight miles farther up, that he
had gained the head of ship navigation, he prepared to retrace his
course.
1659. First Esopus war began.
1704. BEAT DE ZURLAUBEN (_the younger_), a Swiss general in the French
army, died at Ulm, in consequence of seven wounds which he had received
at the battle of Hochstadt.
1723. The Irish house of commons addressed king George I on the evils of
Wood's halfpence. For some time this subject was a theme for lampoons
and Dean Swift's wit.
1733. NOEL STEPHEN SANADON, a learned French Jesuit, died; professor of
rhetoric at Paris, and author of several much admired orations and
poems.
1735. PETER ARTEDI drowned; a Swedish naturalist, so intimate with
Linnæus that they made each other heirs of their manuscripts and other
literary property.
1745. Battle of Prestonpans, in England, between the forces of the young
pretender and those of the king. The former gained a complete victory
with the loss of only 50; while 500 of the king's troops were killed on
the field of battle, and lost their artillery, colors, tents, baggage
and military chest.
1748. JOHN BALGUY died; an eminent English prelate, and controversial
and metaphysical writer. He committed 200 of his sermons to the flames
in presence of his son, afterwards prebendary of Winchester, whom he
wished to excite to the same laudable application.
1757. ROBERT PARR died at Brignorth, England, aged 124. He was a great
grandson of Thomas Parr who attained the age of 152. One of the sons of
the latter attained the age of 109, and a grandson died at the age of
113. Their mode of living was simple and temperate.
1761. GABRIEL MALAGRIDA, an Italian Jesuit, burnt in Portugal as a false
prophet. His zeal and eloquence rendered him popular, but he became
obnoxious to the inquisition after the abolition of his order.
1776. Great fire in New York, then in possession of the British; 1,000
houses were burnt.
1777. British under general Grey, surprised the Americans under general
Wayne in the night, killed about 300, and took a few prisoners and some
baggage. The prudent dispositions of Wayne prevented their further
success.
1780. Americans under colonel Davie surprised a party of British at
Wahab's house, killed and wounded 60, and took 96 horses and equipments,
and 120 stand of arms, with the loss of only 1.
1780. Major ANDRE, an adjutant-general in the British army, landed in
the night from the British sloop of war Vulture, and proceeded to West
Point to confer with Arnold.
1792. Royalty abolished, and France declared a republic, by acclamation,
in the national assembly.
1795. The _Peep of day boys_, in Ireland, changed their name to _Orange
men_, and opened their first lodge.
1802. Mons. GARNERIN ascended at London in a balloon about 4,000 feet,
and descended in a parachute safely at St. Pancras. His balloon fell the
next day near Farnham, in Surrey.
1803. ROBERT EMMET hanged in Dublin for high treason in conspiring the
death of George III, and providing arms, &c., for the rebels. His
speech in his defence is a masterly piece of eloquence.
1812. The Americans under captain Forsyth attacked and carried the
village of Gananoque, in Canada.
1814. Action between the United States sloop of war Wasp, captain
Blakely, and the British brig Atalanta, formerly the Siro of Baltimore.
The Atalanta was captured, and made the 13th and last prize of the Wasp
during that cruise; for nothing is known of her fate afterwards.
1814. The British under lieut. Drummond retreated from before fort Erie
to Niagara.
1832. WALTER SCOTT, the most popular writer of his age, and the most
distinguished novelist in English literature, died at Abbotsford, in
Scotland. His fictitious prose works comprise 75 volumes, and his
complete works about 100 volumes.
1842. JEREMIAH SMITH, for many years a member of congress from and ex
governor of New Hampshire, died at Dover, aged 62, highly respected as a
statesman and a jurist, as well as a scholar.
1842. JAMES IVORY, a distinguished Scottish mathematician, died near
London. At the solicitation of lord Brougham, king William IV conferred
on him the order of knighthood, with a pension of £300.
1846. First day's battle of Monterey.
1851. The stores of Spanish residents at Key West, Florida, were
attacked and their contents destroyed, in consequence of the excitement
about the Cuban expedition of Lopez.
1852. WILLIAM BADGER, a New Hampshire jurist, died, aged 73. He had long
filled various offices of state with creditable ability.
1852. JOHN CHAMBERS, a pioneer Kentucky emigrant, died, aged 73. He was
born in New Jersey, and went to Kentucky at the age of 13. He practiced
law with success; was a volunteer aid-de-camp to Harrison at the battle
of the Thames, and was one of the foremost in the pursuit of Proctor. He
was the first governor of Iowa, and held other public offices.
1853. General PINEDA, sometime president of Nicaragua, died at Rivas.
1854. JONATHAN MAYHEW WAINWRIGHT, a New York episcopal bishop, died,
aged 63; esteemed a learned theologian and a ripe scholar.