A Daily Dose of History (26 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: The Asturian queen Adosinda is held at a monastery to prevent her king from retaking the throne from Mauregatus. Battle of Caishi: A Song dynasty fleet fights a naval engagement with Jin dynasty ships on the Yangtze river during the Jin-Song Wars. Vlad the Impaler defeats Basarab Laiota with the help of Stephen the Great and Stephen V Báthory and becomes the ruler of Wallachia for the third time. In the Hawaiian Islands,...

A Daily Dose of History (25 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots, dies. His grandson, Donnchad, son of Bethóc and Crínán of Dunkeld, inherits the throne. The White Ship sinks in the English Channel, drowning William Adelin, son and heir of Henry I of England. Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and Raynald of Châtillon defeat Saladin at the Battle of Montgisard. A tsunami, caused by an earthquake in the Tyrrhenian Sea, devastates Naples and the Maritime...

A Daily Dose of History (24 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Theodosius I makes his adventus, or formal entry, into Constantinople. Conrad of Montferrat becomes King of Jerusalem upon his marriage to Isabella I of Jerusalem. Gąsawa massacre: At an assembly of Piast dukes at Gąsawa, Polish Prince Leszek the White, Duke Henry the Bearded and others are attacked by assassins while bathing. An overnight landslide on the north side of Mont Granier, one of the largest historical...

A Daily Dose of History (23 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Conquest of Seville by Christian troops under King Ferdinand III of Castile. Pretender to the throne Perkin Warbeck is hanged for reportedly attempting to escape from the Tower of London. He had invaded England in 1497, claiming to be the lost son of King Edward IV of England. The Second War of Kappel results in the dissolution of the Protestant alliance in Switzerland. John Milton publishes Areopagitica, a pamphlet...

A Daily Dose of History (22 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: After the death of Anastasius II, Symmachus is elected Pope in the Lateran Palace, while Laurentius is elected Pope in Santa Maria Maggiore. The first duke of Brittany, Nominoe, defeats the Frankish king Charles the Bald at the Battle of Ballon near Redon. Pope Clement V issues the papal bull Pastoralis Praeeminentiae which instructed all Christian monarchs in Europe to arrest all Templars and seize their assets. Spanish...

A Daily Dose of History (21 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Pope Anterus succeeds Pontian as the nineteenth pope. During the persecutions of emperor Maximinus Thrax he is martyred. Lý Công Uẩn is enthroned as emperor of Đại Cồ Việt, founding the Lý dynasty. Timur of Samarkand captures and sacks the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, taking King Bagrat V of Georgia captive. The Danish astronomer Ole Rømer presents the first quantitative measurements of the speed of light. In Paris,...

A Daily Dose of History (20 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Diocletian is chosen as Roman emperor. During the An Shi Rebellion, the Tang dynasty, with the help of Huihe tribe, recaptures Luoyang from the rebels. Palermo is conquered by Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor. John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy, and Louis of Valois, Duke of Orléans, agree to a truce, but Burgundy would kill Orléans three days later. The Peace of Cremona ends the war between the Republic of Venice and the...

A Daily Dose of History (19 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Libius Severus is declared emperor of the Western Roman Empire. The real power is in the hands of the magister militum Ricimer. The Rashidun Caliphate defeats the Sasanian Empire at the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah in Iraq. Christopher Columbus goes ashore on an island called Borinquen he first saw the day before. He names it San Juan Bautista (later renamed again Puerto Rico). The United States and the Kingdom of Great Britain...

A Daily Dose of History (18 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: The old St. Peter's Basilica is consecrated by Pope Sylvester I. The Visigoths, led by king Alaric I, cross the Alps and invade northern Italy. The Council of Clermont begins: called by Pope Urban II, it led to the First Crusade to the Holy Land. Maginulfo is elected the Antipope as Sylvester IV. Pope Innocent III excommunicates Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV. Pope Martin IV excommunicates King Peter III of Aragon. Pope...

A Daily Dose of History (17 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Emperor Charles the Fat is deposed by the Frankish magnates in an assembly at Frankfurt, leading his nephew, Arnulf of Carinthia, to declare himself king of the East Frankish Kingdom in late November. Genpei War: The Battle of Mizushima takes place off the Japanese coast, where Minamoto no Yoshinaka's invasion force is intercepted and defeated by the Taira clan. John Balliol becomes King of Scotland. Sharif ul-Hāshim...

A Daily Dose of History (16 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Emperor Li Jing sends a Southern Tang expeditionary force of 10,000 men under Bian Hao to conquer Chu. Li Jing removes the ruling family to his own capital in Nanjing, ending the Chu Kingdom. While travelling during the Ninth Crusade, Prince Edward becomes King of England upon Henry III of England's death, but he will not return to England for nearly two years to assume the throne. An auto-da-fé, held in the Brasero de la...

A Daily Dose of History (15 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Battle of the Winwaed: Penda of Mercia is defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria. Growth of the Old Swiss Confederacy: The Schweizer Eidgenossenschaft ambushes the army of Leopold I in the Battle of Morgarten. Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire: Commanded by Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conquistadors under Hernando de Soto meet Incan Emperor Atahualpa for the first time outside Cajamarca, arranging for a meeting in the city plaza...

A Daily Dose of History (14 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: German astronomer Gottfried Kirch discovers the Great Comet of 1680, the first comet to be discovered by telescope. James Bruce discovers what he believes to be the source of the Nile. Napoleonic Wars: At the Battle of Smoliani, French Marshals Victor and Oudinot are defeated by the Russians under General Peter Wittgenstein. Moby-Dick, a novel by Herman Melville, is published in the USA. Pioneering female journalist...

A Daily Dose of History (13 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: English king Æthelred II orders the killing of all Danes in England, known today as the St. Brice's Day massacre. Battle of Alnwick: in an English victory over the Scots, Malcolm III of Scotland, and his son Edward, are killed. Louis VII of France marries Adela of Champagne. First English Civil War: Battle of Turnham Green: The Royalist forces withdraw in the face of the Parliamentarian army and fail to take London. ...

A Daily Dose of History (12 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: The 13-year-old Lothair III is crowned at the Abbey of Saint-Remi as king of the West Frankish Kingdom. Future Byzantine empress Zoe takes the throne as empress consort to Romanos III Argyros. Battle of Posada ends: Wallachian Voievode Basarab I defeats the Hungarian army by ambush. Construction is completed on the Wilberforce Monument in Kingston Upon Hull. Pudge Heffelfinger becomes the first professional American...

A Daily Dose of History (11 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Constantine VIII died, ending his uninterrupted reign as emperor or co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire of 66 years. The Fourth Council of the Lateran meets, defining the doctrine of transubstantiation, the process by which bread and wine are, by that doctrine, said to transform into the body and blood of Christ. Treaty of Granada: Louis XII of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon agree to divide the Kingdom of Naples between...

A Daily Dose of History (10 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Emperor Leo II dies after a reign of ten months. He is succeeded by his father Zeno, who becomes sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire. Ten Kingdoms: Li Bian usurps the throne and deposes Emperor Yang Pu. The Wu State is replaced by Li (now called "Xu Zhigao"), who becomes the first ruler of Southern Tang. Fourth Crusade: Despite letters from Pope Innocent III forbidding it and threatening excommunication, Catholic crusaders...

A Daily Dose of History (09 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: At the Seventeenth Council of Toledo, Egica, a king of the Visigoths of Hispania, accuses Jews of aiding Muslims, sentencing all Jews to slavery. The Treaty of Aberconwy, a humiliating settlement forced on Llywelyn ap Gruffudd by King Edward I of England, brings a temporary end to the Welsh Wars. Louis the Bavarian defeats his cousin Frederick I of Austria at the Battle of Gammelsdorf. At the Battle of Posada, Basarab I of...

A Daily Dose of History (08 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Battle of Andrassos: Byzantines under Leo Phokas the Younger score a crushing victory over the Hamdanid Emir of Aleppo, Sayf al-Dawla. Trần Thánh Tông, the second emperor of the Trần dynasty, decides to pass the throne to his crown prince Trần Khâm and take up the post of Retired Emperor. The Republic of Venice enacts a law confining most of Venice's glassmaking industry to the "island of Murano". Hernán Cortés enters...

A Daily Dose of History (07 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Athanasius is banished to Trier, on the charge that he prevented a grain fleet from sailing to Constantinople. The Sixth Ecumenical Council commences in Constantinople. Treaty of Bonn: The Frankish kings Charles the Simple and Henry the Fowler sign a peace treaty or 'pact of friendship' (amicitia) to recognize their borders along the Rhine. Lam Sơn uprising: Lam Sơn rebels emerge victorious against the Ming army in the...

A Daily Dose of History (06 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: A powerful earthquake destroys large portions of the Walls of Constantinople, including 57 towers. Synod of Rome: Emperor Otto I calls a council at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Pope John XII is deposed on charges of an armed rebellion against Otto. The Charter of the Forest is sealed at St Paul's Cathedral, London by King Henry III, acting under the regency of William Marshall, 1st Earl of Pembroke which re-establishes for...

A Daily Dose of History (05 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Lý Anh Tông is enthroned as emperor of Vietnam at the age of two, beginning a 37-year reign. Second Battle of Panipat: Fighting begins between the forces of Hem Chandra Vikramaditya, the Hindu king at Delhi and the forces of the Muslim emperor Akbar. Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes is arrested. William III of England lands with a Dutch fleet at Brixham. Seven Years' War: Frederick the Great defeats the allied armies of France...

A Daily Dose of History (04 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Armagnac-Burgundian Civil War: Joan of Arc liberates Saint-Pierre-le-Moûtier. Christopher Columbus reaches Leeward Island and Puerto Rico. Catherine of Aragon (later Henry VIII's first wife) meets Arthur Tudor, Henry VIII's older brother - they would later marry. Eighty Years' War: In Flanders, Spain captures Antwerp (which is nearly destroyed after three days). The Teatro di San Carlo, the oldest working opera house in...

A Daily Dose of History (03 Nov 2024) Today's historical events: Emperor Constantius II dies of a fever at Mopsuestia in Cilicia; on his deathbed he is baptised and declares his cousin Julian rightful successor. Umar ibn al-Khattab, the second Muslim caliph, is assassinated by a Persian slave in Medina. The River Arno floods causing massive damage in Florence as recorded by the Florentine chronicler Giovanni Villani. Liège is sacked by Charles I of Burgundy's troops. Christopher...