A brutal scorched earth policy that William I used to punish the people of the north for, and discourage them from further, rebellion.
Harrying of the North
Fact of the Day
'Druid' in Celtic means 'oak person', but in the Germanic languages means 'true knowledge'.
Quote of the Day
"Sick men are privileged to tell all their stories and grievances.
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~ John Chamberlain, letter writer, 1613
On This Day
193 Roman emperor Pertinax was stabbed to death by his Praetorian Guard.
845 Vikings sacked Paris, possibly led by Ragnar Lothbrok. They left after being paid 7000 livres of gold and silver.
1917 Women were recruited for service with the British army in a non-nursing capacity for the first time.
1941 Writer Virginia Woolf filled her pockets with stones and drowned herself in the River Ouse in Sussex.
1987 Maria von Trapp, who provided the inspiration for The Sound of Music, died of heart failure, aged 82.
1991 A jury returned a verdict of 'accidental death' at the inquest into the 1989 Hillsborough disaster.