Wikipedia:Main Page history/2019 July 20

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

The Siege of Berwick lasted four months in 1333, and resulted in the Scottish-held town of Berwick-upon-Tweed being captured by an English army commanded by King Edward III (r. 1327–1377). The year before, Edward Balliol had seized the Scottish Crown, surreptitiously supported by Edward III. After Balliol was expelled from the kingdom by a popular uprising, Edward III invaded Scotland. An advance force laid siege to the strategically important border town of Berwick in March; Edward III and the main English army joined it in May and pressed the attack. A large Scottish army advanced to relieve the town. After unsuccessfully manoeuvring for position and knowing that Berwick was on the verge of surrender, the Scots felt compelled to attack the English at Halidon Hill. They suffered a crushing defeat and Berwick surrendered the next day, 20 July. Balliol was reinstalled as King of Scotland after ceding a large part of his territory to Edward III and agreeing to do homage for the balance. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know...

Stapenhill Gardens swan sculpture

... that a swan sculpture (pictured) in Stapenhill Gardens, described by the park superintendent as a "monstrosity" after its construction in 1953, is now a town landmark?
... that Binod Chaudhary is the first Nepali to be listed on Forbes's billionaire list?
... that four of the fourteen astronauts in NASA Astronaut Group 3 were killed in training accidents before they had a chance to fly in space?
... that the oboist and composer Rolf Riehm taught music theory in Frankfurt from 1974 to 2000 and wrote an opera, Sirenen, for a 2014 premiere at the Oper Frankfurt?
... that during the 1924–25 season, Cardiff City F.C. became the first Welsh team to reach an FA Cup final?
... that Captain Henry Meintjes, a South African World War I flying ace, was shot in the wrist when far over enemy lines but still managed to bring his airplane back and land it safely?
... that the extinction of the Bramble Cay melomys was described as the first for a mammal species due to anthropogenic climate change?
... that when he graduated in medicine at the age of 24, James Fraser was already Sir James Fraser?

In the news

Kyoto Animation Studio 1 in 2015

An arson attack at an animation studio (building pictured) in Kyoto, Japan, kills at least 34 people.
The World Health Organization declares the Ebola outbreak in Congo an international public health emergency.
The European Parliament elects Ursula von der Leyen as president of the European Commission.
The Cricket World Cup concludes with England defeating New Zealand in the final.

On this day

July 20

Documentary clip recounting the Viking 1 landing

1779 – Tekle Giyorgis I began the first of his six reigns as Emperor of Ethiopia.
1976 – The Viking 1 lander became the first spacecraft to successfully land on Mars and perform its mission (documentary clip shown).
1982 – Members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army detonated two bombs in Hyde Park and Regent's Park in London, killing 11 people, 7 horses, and wounding over 50 other people.
1999 – The Chinese government began a persecution campaign against Falun Gong, arresting thousands nationwide.
2012 – A gunman opened fire at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and injuring 58 others.

Alexander the Great (b. 356 BC) · Tom Crean (b. 1877) · Heather Chasen (b. 1927)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

The Parkes Observatory is a radio telescope observatory in New South Wales, Australia, located 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of the town of Parkes. It was one of several radio antennae used to receive live television images of the Apollo 11 Moon landing on 20–21 July 1969. Its scientific contributions over the decades has led the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to describe it as "the most successful scientific instrument ever built in Australia" after 50 years of operation. The observatory, which opened in 1961, is run by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), an independent Australian federal government agency, as part of the Australia Telescope National Facility network of radio telescopes. It is frequently operated together with other CSIRO radio telescopes to form a very-long-baseline interferometry array.

This picture, taken in 1969, shows the Parkes Observatory's main 64-metre (210 ft) diameter radio telescope dish, around the time that it received transmissions from Apollo 11, with a crescent moon visible in the background. The photograph is part of CSIRO's ScienceImage archive.

Photograph credit: CSIRO

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.