On This Day
395 – Later Yan is defeated by its former vassal Northern Wei at the Battle of Canhe Slope.[1]
Yan, known in historiography as the Later Yan (simplified Chinese: 后燕; traditional Chinese: 後燕; pinyin: Hòu Yān; 384 – 407 or 409), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xianbei people, located in modern-day northeast China, during the era of Sixteen Kingdoms.[10]
All rulers of the Later Yan declared themselves “emperors”.
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730 – Battle of Marj Ardabil: The Khazars annihilate an Umayyad army and kill its commander, al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah al-Hakami.[2]
The Battle of Marj Ardabil or the Battle of Ardabil was a battle fought on the plains surrounding the city of Ardabil in northwestern Iran in AD 730. A Khazar army led by Barjik, the son of the Khazar khagan, invaded the Umayyad provinces of Jibal and Iranian Azerbaijan in retaliation for Caliphate attacks on Khazaria during the course of the decades-long Khazar-Arab War of the early 8th century.
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1896 – Alfred Jarry’s Ubu Roi premieres in Paris. A riot breaks out at the end of the performance.
Ubu Roi ([yby ʁwa]; “Ubu the King” or “King Ubu”) is a play by French writer Alfred Jarry, then 23 years old. It was first performed in Paris in 1896, by Aurélien Lugné-Poe’s Théâtre de l’Œuvre at the Nouveau-Théâtre (today, the Théâtre de Paris). The production’s single public performance baffled and offended audiences with its unruliness and obscenity. Considered to be a wild, bizarre and comic play, significant for the way it overturns cultural rules, norms and conventions, it is seen by 20th- and 21st-century scholars to have opened the door for what became known as modernism in the 20th century, and as a precursor to Dadaism, Surrealism and the Theatre of the Absurd.
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220 – Emperor Xian of Han is forced to abdicate the throne by Cao Cao’s son Cao Pi, ending the Han dynasty.[1]
The end of the Han dynasty was the period of Chinese history from 189 to 220 CE, roughly coinciding with the tumultuous reign of the Han dynasty’s last ruler, Emperor Xian. During this period, the country was thrown into turmoil by the Yellow Turban Rebellion (184–205). Meanwhile, the Han Empire’s institutions were destroyed by the warlord Dong Zhuo and fractured into regional regimes ruled by various warlords, some of whom were nobles and officials of the Han imperial court. One of those warlords, Cao Cao, was gradually reunifying the empire, ostensibly under Emperor Xian’s rule; the Emperor and his court were actually controlled by Cao Cao himself, who was opposed by other warlords.
1388 – Maria of Enghien sells the lordship of Argos and Nauplia to the Republic of Venice.[2]
During the late Middle Ages, the two cities of Argos (Greek: Άργος, French: Argues) and Nauplia (modern Nafplio, Ναύπλιο; in the Middle Ages Ἀνάπλι, in French Naples de Romanie) formed a lordship within the Frankish-ruled Morea in southern Greece.[2]
1545 – The Council of Trent begins as the embodiment of the Counter-Reformation.[2]
The Counter-Reformation (Latin: Contrareformatio), also sometimes called the Catholic Revival,[1] was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to, and as an alternative to, the Protestant Reformations at the time. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) and largely ended with the conclusion of the European wars of religion in 1648.[2] The similar term Catholic Reformation (Latin: Reformatio Catholica) may also encompass reforms and movements within the Church in the periods immediately before Protestantism or Trent.
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Born On This Day
1412 – Astorre II Manfredi, Italian lord (d. 1468)
Astorre II Manfredi (8 December 1412 – 12 March 1468) was lord of Imola from 1439 and of Faenza from 1443.
He was born in Faenza, the son of Gian Galeazzo I Manfredi. Apart Faenza and Imola, he was Papal vicar at Fusignano and other lands in Romagna together with his brother Gian Galeazzo II. He also fought as captain for several local rulers.
In 1431 he married Giovanna da Barbiano, daughter of the famous condottiero Alberico da Barbiano. His sons Carlo and Galeotto were both lords of Faenza after Astorre’s death.
1392 – Peter, Duke of Coimbra (d. 1449)
Dom Peter, Duke of Coimbra, KG (Portuguese: Pedro Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpeðɾu]), (9 December 1392 – 20 May 1449) was a Portuguese infante (prince) of the House of Aviz, son of King Dom John I of Portugal and his wife, Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt. In Portugal, he is known as Infante Dom Pedro das Sete Partidas [do Mundo], “of the Seven Parts [of the World]” because of his travels. Possibly the best-travelled prince of his time, he was regent between 1439 and 1448. He was also 1st Lord of Montemor-o-Velho, Aveiro, Tentúgal, Cernache, Pereira, Condeixa and Lousã.
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1376 – Edmund Mortimer, English nobleman and rebel (d. 1409)[20]
Sir Edmund Mortimer IV (10 December 1376 – January 1409) was an English nobleman and landowner who played a part in the rebellions of the Welsh leader Owain Glyndŵr and of the Percy family against King Henry IV, at the beginning of the 15th century.[3] He perished at the siege of Harlech as part of these conflicts. He was related to many members of the English royal family through his mother, Princess Philippa, Countess of Ulster, who was a granddaughter of King Edward of Windsor.
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1445 – Eberhard I, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1496)
Eberhard I of Württemberg (11 December 1445 – 24 February 1496) was known as Count Eberhard V from 1459 to 1495, and from July 1495 he was the first Duke of Württemberg. He is also known as Eberhard im Bart (Eberhard the Bearded).
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1526 – Álvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz, Spanish admiral (d. 1588)[32]
Álvaro de Bazán y Guzmán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz (12 December 1526 – 9 February 1588), was a Spanish admiral and landlord.
He took part in the seizure of the rock of Vélez de la Gomera (1564), the relief to the besieged during the Great Siege of Malta (1565), the quelling of the Alpujarras Rebellion (1569), the Battle of Lepanto (1571), the conquest of Tunis (1573), the incorporation of Portugal to the Hispanic monarchy (1580), and the conquest of Terceira (1582).[1]
He was never defeated, a remarkable achievement in a fifty-year-long career.[2] His personal galley was known as La Loba (‘The She-Wolf’), after her golden figurehead. He was a grandee of Spain.
1363 – Jean Gerson, chancellor of the University of Paris (d. 1429)[20]
Jean Charlier de Gerson (13 December 1363[1] – 12 July 1429) was a French scholar, educator, reformer, and poet, Chancellor of the University of Paris, a guiding light of the conciliar movement and one of the most prominent theologians at the Council of Constance. He was one of the first thinkers to develop what would later come to be called natural rights theory, and was also one of the first individuals to defend Joan of Arc and proclaim her supernatural vocation as authentic.[2][3]
Aged fourteen, he left Gerson-lès-Barby to study at the college of Navarre in Paris under Gilles Deschamps, (Aegidius Campensis) and Pierre d’Ailly (Petrus de Alliaco), who became his life-long friend.[4]
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FYI
NASA: Astronomy Picture of the Day
EarthSky News
This Day in Tech History
This Day In History
Interesting Facts
Word Genius: Word of the Day
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: 101 Hidden Gems: The Greatest Films You’ve Never Seen
By Open Culture: The Beatles Versus the Stones: An Animated Battle of the Bands
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Ideas
By meub: Snow Sled Made From a TV Satellite Dish
Recipes
By TLeeCreations: Simple Christmas Pudding Cookies
By Kimi Goffee, Pocket Collections: 15 Perfect Pie Recipes for Cozy Weather
Just the Recipe: Paste the URL to any recipe, click submit, and it’ll return literally JUST the recipe- no ads, no life story of the writer, no nothing EXCEPT the recipe.
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- Introducing Jaffle! June 10, 2026Meet Jaffle! Future Chief Taste Tester. Son of a Dozer friend. A little bundle of golden, fluffy joy! 48 hours of instant happiness I didn’t expect to get a new puppy so soon after saying goodbye to Dozer. To be honest, I wasn’t sure when I’d be ready. And I had it in my head... […]Nagi
- Vegetable Tian June 5, 2026Meet Vegetable Tian – a colourful Provençal vegetable bake that I absolutely love! It’s full of beautiful colours, Mediterranean vibes, and looks as good as it tastes. Serve it as a side dish or enjoy it as a vegetarian main. Let’s go! Vegetable Tian I’ve been a ratatouille guy for as long as I can... […]Chef JB (RecipeTin)
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- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 10 June 10, 2026Picture of the day Hills of České Středohoří (Central Bohemian Highlands): Malý Křižák, Křižák, Brník, Srdov, Milá
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 9 June 9, 2026Picture of the day Ringed kingfisher flying with freshly caught fish in Mato Grosso, Brazil
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Stump the Bookseller is a service offered by Loganberry Books to reconnect people to the books they love but can’t quite remember. In brief (for more detailed information see our About page), people can post their memories here, and the hivemind goes to work. After all, the collective mind of bibliophiles, readers, parents and librarians around the world is much better than just a few of us thinking. Together with these wonderful Stumper Magicians, we have a nearly 50% success rate in finding these long lost but treasured books. The more concrete the book description, the better the success rate, of course. It is a labor of love to keep it going, and there is a modest fee. Please see the How To page to find price information and details on how to submit your Book Stumper and payment.
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