Literally, 'nobles of the sword'. Noblemen of the oldest class of nobility in France dating from the Middle Ages and the Early Modern periods.
Noblesse d'épée
Fact of the Day
King John used the fat from 40 pigs to blow up the southern wall of Rochester Castle during a siege in 1215
Quote of the Day
"This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.
"
~ Winston Churchill on the Battle of Egypt
On This Day
1040 Duncan I of Scotland was killed by Macbeth (or Macbeth's men) near Elgin.
1941 The Atlantic Charter was signed by Churchill and Roosevelt, stating their post-war goals for a new world.
1947 Pakistan achieved independence from Britain.
1967 The Marine Broadcasting Offences Act became law, banning offshore 'pirate' radio stations from broadcasting.
1969 British troops arrived in Northern Ireland in what was planned to be a short-lived, 'limited operation'. They stayed there for the next thirty-eight years.