Today in History for 6th May 2024

[CoM Moderators]

Historical Events

878 - Battle of Edington: Alfred the Great and his West Saxon army defeat Viking army of Guthrum the Old [earliest possible date]
1541 - King Henry VIII orders a bible in English be placed in every church in England
1907 - 33rd Kentucky Derby: In muddy conditions and against a reduced field Andy Minder aboard Pink Star wins in a slow 2:12.6
1935 - British King George V and Queen Mary celebrate silver jubilee
1967 - 400 students seize administration building at Cheyney State College, Pennsylvania
1975 - Bundy victim Lynette Culver disappears from Pocatello, Idaho

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Famous Birthdays

1638 - Henry Capell, 1st Baron Capell, English politician and First Lord of the British Admiralty, born in Hadham Parva, Hertfordshire (d. 1696)
1926 - Johnny Bragg, American doo-wop singer-songwriter (The Prisonaires - "Just Walkin' in the Rain"), born in Nashville, Tennessee (d. 2004)
1951 - Samuel Doe, President of Liberia (d. 1990)
1956 - Tim Simpson, American golfer (4 PGA Tour titles, born in Atlanta, Georgia
1970 - Emerson Martin, NFL guard (Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers, Packers)
1977 - Christophe Brandt, Belgian cyclist

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Famous Deaths

1836 - Christian Ignatius Latrobe, English clergyman and composer (Selection of Sacred Music), dies at 78
1840 - Francisco de Paula Santander, Colombian president and independence leader (b. 1792)
1890 - Hubert Léonard, Belgian violinist, and pedagogue (Brussels Conservatoire, 1848-67), dies at 71
1995 - Hilda Toledano [Maria Pia de Braganca], Portuguese journalist and writer who claimed to be the bastard daughter of King Carlos I of Portugal, dies at 88
2004 - Philip Kapleau, American Zen teacher and founder (Rochester Zen Center in New Haven), dies at 91
2013 - Giulio Andreotti, Italian Prime Minister, dies at 94

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