Wikipedia:Main Page history/2024 February 8b
From today's featured article
The Second War of Scottish Independence broke out in 1332 when Edward Balliol (seal pictured) led an English-backed invasion of Scotland. Balliol was crowned king but within three months was forced out of Scotland. He appealed to the English king, Edward III, who invaded Scotland in 1333 and heavily defeated a large Scottish army at the Battle of Halidon Hill. As allies of Scotland via the Auld Alliance, the French covertly supported the loyalists of David II, the Scottish king. Increasing friction caused the French king to start the Hundred Years' War. Forced to focus on the French theatre, the English lost ground in Scotland. In 1346, while Edward campaigned in France, David invaded England believing most of its previous defenders were in France. He was surprised by a sizable English force, which crushed the Scots at the Battle of Neville's Cross and captured David. After a decade of negotiation the Treaty of Berwick was signed in 1357, ending the war with the English dropping their claim of suzerainty. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that artist Tove Jansson (pictured) based the children's book character Snufkin on a political philosopher whom she had dated?
- ... that the church of St James the Less, Pockthorpe, now the home of the Norwich Puppet Theatre, once contained a rood screen with portraits of saints painted in 1479?
- ... that the Burmese Buddhist monk Sagyo Thu-Myat successfully lobbied for the recalibration of the Burmese calendar?
- ... that artificial islands were deployed in Hicklin Lake in an unsuccessful attempt to stop eutrophication?
- ... that a COVID-19 bout forced Beef creator Lee Sung Jin to direct the show's season finale remotely?
- ... that elementary school students named the Wooden Warrior roller coaster?
- ... that Olympic gold medalist Dean Crawford was introduced to rowing when he found a rowing shell outside the students' union building at the University of Victoria?
- ... that the patu clubs on the New Zealand threepence were compared to bottles of ginger beer?
In the news
- Former President of Chile Sebastián Piñera (pictured) dies in a helicopter crash at the age of 74.
- Wildfires in the Valparaíso Region of Chile leave at least 131 people dead.
- Nayib Bukele is re-elected President of El Salvador.
- Ibrahim Iskandar of Johor is sworn in as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.
- Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan is sentenced to ten years in prison for leaking state secrets, fourteen years for corruption, and seven years for illegal marriage.
On this day
- 1587 – Mary, Queen of Scots (pictured), was executed at Fotheringhay Castle for her involvement in the Babington Plot to murder her cousin, Elizabeth I of England.
- 1879 – Angered by a controversial umpiring decision, cricket spectators rioted and attacked the England team during a match in Sydney, Australia.
- 1924 – Gee Jon became the first person in the United States to be executed by lethal gas.
- 1948 – The closing ceremony of the first Olympics held after World War II was held in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
- 1968 – Local police in Orangeburg, South Carolina, fired into a crowd of people who were protesting segregation, killing three and injuring twenty-seven others.
- 1983 – The Irish-bred race horse Shergar was stolen by gunmen, who demanded a £2 million ransom.
- Daniele Barbaro (b. 1514)
- Marina de Escobar (b. 1554)
- Neila Sathyalingam (b. 1938)
- Walther Bothe (d. 1957)
Today's featured picture
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The flame robin (Petroica phoenicea) is a small passerine bird native to Australia. It is a moderately common resident of the coolest parts of south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. It was first described by the French naturalists Jean René Constant Quoy and Joseph Paul Gaimard in 1830 and, like many brightly coloured Australasian robins, it is sexually dimorphic. Measuring 12 to 14 cm (5 to 6 in) long, the flame robin has dark brown eyes and a small thin black bill. The male has a brilliant orange-red chest and throat, and a white patch on the forehead above the bill. Its upper parts are iron-grey with white bars, and its tail black with white tips. The female is a nondescript grey-brown. It mostly breeds in and around the Great Dividing Range, the Tasmanian highlands and islands in Bass Strait. With the coming of cooler autumn weather, most birds disperse to lower and warmer areas. This male flame robin was photographed in Jenolan Caves, New South Wales, Australia. Photograph credit: John Harrison
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