Anniversaries

Births: Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, historian and poet, 1581; Giuseppe Maria Crespi, painter and etcher, 1665; Caroline Lucretia Herschel, astronomer, 1750; James Madison, fourth US president, 1751; Antoine- Jean Gros, Baron, painter, 1771; Matthew Flinders, circumnavigator of Tasmania, 1774; Georg Simon Ohm, physicist, 1787; Enrico Tamberlik, tenor, 1820; Marie- Rosalie (Rosa) Bonheur, painter, 1822; Camilo Castelo Branco, novelist, 1825; John B. Calkin, pianist, organist and composer, 1827; Rene- Francois-Armand Sully Prudhomme, poet, 1839; Friedrich Karl Brugmann, Germany philologist, 1849; Sir John Lavery, painter, 1856; Emile Cammaerts, poet and writer, 1878; Elsie Janis (Elsie Jane Bierbower), actress and entertainer, 1889; Robert Rossen (Rosen), film director, 1908.

Deaths: Tiberius Claudius Nero, Roman emperor, 37; Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, composer, 1736; John Hoadly, poet and playwright, 1776; Robert Smith Surtees, novelist, 1864; William Banting, obese undertaker and slimming pioneer, 1878; Aubrey Vincent Beardsley, artist and illustrator, 1898; Sir Frederick William Burton, painter, 1900; Sir George Alexander (Samson), actor-manager, 1918; Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, Marques de Estella, general and dictator, 1930; John James Rickard Macleod, physiologist, 1935; Sir Joseph Austen Chamberlain, statesman, 1937; Selma Ottiliana Lovisa Lagerlof, novelist, 1940; Constantin Brancusi, sculptor, 1957; William Henry Beveridge, first Baron Beveridge, social security pioneer, 1963; Arthur Adamov, playwright, 1970; Thomas Edmund Dewey, politician, 1971; Leonide Massine, choreographer, 1979; Jean-Omer-Marie-Gabriel Monnet, political economist, 1979; The Rev John Marcus Harston Morris, founder of Eagle magazine, 1989.

On this day: Edward II defeated the Barons at Boroughbridge, 1322; the Fifth Lateran Council came to an end, 1517; the Long Parliament of England, which sat for 20 years, was dissolved, 1660; Jakob Johan Anckarstrom, an army officer, shot Gustavus III, King of Sweden, 1792; the US Military Academy was established at West Point, 1802; the first Football Association Cup Final was played at Kennington Oval, when the Wanderers beat the Royal Engineers one-nil, 1872; Massenet's opera Thais was first produced, Paris 1894; the first meeting of the Port of London Authority was held, 1909; Barney Eli Oldfield, auto racer, driving a Benz, set up a speed record of 133mph, 1910; Henriette Caillaux, wife of the French Finance Minister, shot dead Gaston Calmette, columnist of Figaro, 1914; the last issue of the Standard newspaper appeared, 1916; Britain recognised the Kingdom of Egypt under Fuad I, 1922; the German government ordered passive resistance to the French Occupation forces in the Ruhr, 1923; Dr Robert H. Goddard demonstrated the practicality of rockets, US 1926; Hitler renounced the Treaty of Versailles, and reintroduced compulsory military service, 1935; Slovakia was placed under German 'protection', while Hungary annexed Ruthenia, both part of Czechoslovakia, 1939; the 114-year- old Brooklyn Eagle newspaper ceased publication, 1955; the New English Bible (Old Testament) a new translation, was published in London, 1961; the first London performance of the musical comedy the Music Man was presented, 1961; the new London Bridge was opened, 1973; Soviet cosmonauts completed an orbit of 35 million miles, 1978.

Today is the Feast Day of St Abraham Kidunaia, St Eusebia of Hamage, St Finian Lobhair (The Leper), St Gregory Makar, St Heribert of Cologne and St Julian of Antioch.