Fact of the Day

Between 1513 and 1972 every single Danish monarch was called Frederick or Christian.

Quote of the Day

"I have taken great care not to laugh at human actions, not to weep at them, nor to hate them, but to understand them. "
~ Baruch Spinoza

On This Day

30 BCE (or 10 August 30 BCE) Following her defeat at the hands of Octavian and the death of Mark Antony, Cleopatra committed suicide. It is commonly believed that she used an asp, although no venomous snake was found near her.
1099 What is generally thought to be the final battle of the First Crusade was fought at Ascalon. Despite being outnumbered, the crusaders under Godfrey of Bouillon easily won the day and scattered the unprepared and outclassed Fatamid army.
1469 Richard Woodville, Earl Rivers, was executed for treason on the orders of Warwick the Kingmaker, during the Wars of the Roses. His main crime seems to have been having the audacity to allow his commoner daughter, Elizabeth, to marry Edward IV (and for supporting his son-in-law). 
1765 The Treaty of Allahabad was signed, securing the British East India Company's rule in India.
1827 English poet and artist William Blake died, impoverished, largely unrecognised, and deemed 'eccentric' by most of his contemporaries.
1865 Joseph Lister became the first person to use disinfectant during surgery. The subject, who had a compound fracture, healed fully.
1939 The Wizard of Oz made its worldwide premiere at Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
1952 Thirteen Jewish intellectuals, including five poets, who had been falsely accused of spying were executed in a Moscow prison during the Night of the Murdered Poets. Despite being good Communists, they had fallen foul of Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign.
1964 Novelist and author of the James Bond series Ian Fleming died of a heart attack, aged 56. His last recorded words were an apology to the paramedics for having inconvenienced them, and an observation about how busy the roads had become.
1964 Charlie Wilson, one of the Great Train Robbers, escaped from Winson Green Prison in Birmingham. He was recaptured in Canada four years later.