On This Day
The Battle of Qianshuiyuan (Chinese: 淺水原之戰), northwest of present-day Changwu, Shaanxi, was fought in 618 between the Tang Dynasty and the state of Qin. The battle ended in victory for the Tang, whose armed forces were led by the future emperor Li Shimin.
Background
In 618 AD, Xue Ju, who occupied Longxi and made Tianshui his capital, styled himself as the Qin emperor (秦帝). He possessed an army of 300,000 soldiers and intended to capture Chang’an.
The battle
In 618 AD, Emperor Gaozu of Tang appointed Li Shimin as the marshal to meet the Qin forces head-on. At first, they were defeated in Qianshuiyuan and were forced back to Chang’an. Gaozhi (高墌) was annexed. After Xue Ju’s death, his son Xue Rengao succeeded to the throne and continued to attack the Tang army. Li Yuan tried to get support from Li Gui, who occupied Liangzhou (in present-day Wuwei, Gansu), and he ordered Li Shimin to press on towards Gaozhi at the same time. Xue Rengao dispatched his elite general Zong Luohou (宗羅睺), leading more than 100,000 soldiers to resist. Li Shimin thought the Tang army was frustrated while the enemies were inspiring. So he switched from attacking to defending. The two sides were locked in a stalemate for about 60 days. When the Xue army were short of provisions, Li Shimin took great advantage of physical features of Qianshuiyuan and started attacking. Finally, the Xue army was badly defeated and surrendered. The Tang Dynasty suppressed Longxi and ensured the safety of Guanzhong.
977 – Franco-German war of 978–980: Holy Roman Emperor Otto II lifts the siege at Paris and withdraws. His rearguard is defeated while crossing the Aisne River by West Frankish forces under King Lothair III.
he Franco-German war of 978–980 was fought over possession of Lotharingia and over personal honour. In the summer of 978, King Lothair of West Francia (France) launched a surprise attack on Aachen, almost capturing the Emperor Otto II, king of East Francia (Germany) and Italy. By autumn Lothair had returned to West Francia, while Otto had convoked a diet and assembled an army. To avenge his honour, Otto invaded West Francia. Unable to take Paris after a brief siege, he returned to Lotharingia. During his retreat, after the bulk of his army had crossed the river Aisne, the West Franks caught up to his baggage train and slaughtered it. In 980, the kings made peace. Lothair renounced his claim to Lotharingia.
Born On This Day
826 – William of Septimania, Frankish nobleman (d. 850)[42]
William of Septimania (29 November 826 – 850) was the son of Bernard and Dhuoda. He was the count of Toulouse from 844 and count of Barcelona from 848.
The sources for his life are primarily the Annales Bertiniani and the Chronica Fontanellensis, while his mother wrote an educational instruction book called the Liber Manualis for him and his brother sometime before February 842.
William was initially sent to the court of his uncle, Theodoric of Autun, who died around 830, and left the child in the charge of Louis the Pious, then reigning emperor. When Louis died in June 840, custody of the youth passed to Charles the Bald of West Francia. Throughout most of this time, William lived in Uzès, with frequent stays with his father in Toulouse. On 25 June 841, the same day as the Battle of Fontenoy, William petitioned Charles the Bald for investiture of the benefices of his godfather Theodoric in Burgundy. This was granted and the young William was invited to live at the royal palace, being promised investiture with the county of Autun in the future. When, however, Guerin of Provence was installed in Autun, dissension ripped apart the court.
William’s father was dispossessed of his benefices, offices, and titles in July 842 and they were not passed to William. In May 844, his father was executed and he promptly joined the rebellion then under way in Aquitaine led by Pepin II. In June, he fought in the Battle of Angoumois. Pepin invested him with Toulouse, while Charles installed Fredelo there. It has been hypothesised that William was also the same person as the count of Bordeaux and possible duke of Gascony appointed by Pepin in 845. At that time, the Vikings invaded Aquitaine and ravaged as far as Limoges. As Ghilyam ibn Burbat ibn Ghilyam, he and several allies are said by chronicler Ibn Hayyan to have visited Córdoba in 846, seeking assistance from Abd al-Rahman II against Charles.[1] In 847, Vikings again besieged Bordeaux, and when William came to the city’s relief he was captured. Finally liberated in 848 through an accord signed by Pepin, William returned to Gothia to lead the ongoing revolt there.
In that year, William entered Barcelona and Empúries and assumed authority there, “more by cunning and lies than by force of arms,” according to the chroniclers. It has been supposed that Sunifred I of Barcelona died a natural death and Charles the Bald nominated Aleran to succeed him, but William, not recognising this, laid claim to the counties of Sunifred as the heir of Bernard. He asserted these rights and was recognised in the counties themselves. However, the sudden disappearance of Sunyer I of Empúries and Bera II of Conflent has led some scholars to posit an act of treachery (coup d’état) to secure his claimed inheritance. Following his successes, William wrote a letter of thanks to Abd al-Rahman, who in turn urged his lords on the Upper March to assist and support the Toulousain count, who again visited the Córdoban court.[1]
In summer 849, when Charles the Bald decided to attack Aquitaine, Fredelo welcomed him with open gates at Toulouse and the king reconfirmed Fredelo’s investiture. Pepin fled in haste and Charles marched to Narbonne, where he named Aleran as count in Barcelona, Empúries, and Roussillon and as Margrave of Septimania. He granted Wilfred the counties of Girona and Besalú, and Solomon those of Cerdanya, Urgell, and Conflent. Aleran, who was possibly also the count of Troyes and son of William I of Blois, appointed an adjunct, Isembard, son of Guerin of Provence, given that he had to guard against William’s territorial aspirations. In the end, Charles’ nominations had little trouble taking up their charges.
In February 850, when Charles the Bald marched into Aquitaine and the nobles en masse switched allegiance to Pepin II, Sancho II Sánchez of Gascony took control of Bordeaux, and William marched over Catalonia.[2] Charles sent reinforcements and William was defeated in battle. William fled to Barcelona, where he was caught and killed by the royal partisans.[2] William was reportedly still in possession of his mother’s Manual when he died.[3] In Barcelona, Sancho and his brother-in-law Emenon were captured by Musa ibn Musa of the Banu Qasi. In 851, the Moors occupied Barcelona, decimating the population. In September 852, Sancho was released by a treaty.
539 – Gregory of Tours, French bishop and saint (probable;[12] d. 594)
Gregory of Tours (30 November c. 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florentius and later added the name Gregorius in honour of his maternal great-grandfather.[2] He is the primary contemporary source for Merovingian history. His most notable work was his Decem Libri Historiarum (Ten Books of Histories), better known as the Historia Francorum (History of the Franks), a title that later chroniclers gave to it. He is also known for his accounts of the miracles of saints, especially four books of the miracles of Martin of Tours. St. Martin’s tomb was a major pilgrimage destination in the 6th century, and St. Gregory’s writings had the practical effect of promoting highly organized devotion.
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FYI
NASA: Astronomy Picture of the Day
BBC News: Christine McVie, Fleetwood Mac singer-songwriter, dies aged 79
Christine Anne McVie (née Perfect; 12 July 1943 – 30 November 2022)[1][2][3][4] was an English musician, and the vocalist[5] and keyboardist of Fleetwood Mac, which she joined in 1970.[6] She also released three solo albums. Her lyrics focused on love and relationships. AllMusic described her as an “Unabashedly easy-on-the-ears singer/songwriter, and the prime mover behind some of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest hits.”[7] Eight of her songs, including “Don’t Stop”, “Everywhere” and “Little Lies”, appeared on Fleetwood Mac’s 1988 Greatest Hits album.[8]
In 1998, McVie was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Fleetwood Mac, and received the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. The same year, after almost 30 years with the band, she opted to leave and lived in semi-retirement for nearly 15 years. She released a solo album in 2004. In September 2013 she appeared on stage with Fleetwood Mac at the O2 Arena in London, before rejoining the band in 2014 prior to their On with the Show tour.[9]
In 2006, McVie received a Gold Badge of Merit Award from Basca, now The Ivors Academy.[10] In 2014, she received the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and was honoured with the Trailblazer Award at the UK Americana Awards in 2021.[11][12] She was also the recipient of two Grammy Awards.[13]
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By Andrew Weil, 11 Alive: Country singer Jake Flint dies just hours after his wedding “We should be going through wedding photos but instead I have to pick out clothes to bury my husband in,” Jake Flint’s wife, Brenda, wrote in a heartbreaking post.
Arguably, no artist grows up: If he sheds the perceptions of childhood, he ceases being an artist.
Music is the sole art which evokes nostalgia for the future.
Ned Rorem,
composer, diarist, Pulitzer Prize winner
1923-2022
Ned Rorem (October 23, 1923 – November 18, 2022) was an American composer and writer of contemporary classical music. Best known for his art songs, which number over 500, Rorem was the leading American of his time writing in the genre. His other works include operas, concertante, piano music as well as choral, chamber and orchestral works. He won a Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1976 for his Air Music: Ten Etudes for Orchestra.
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Miriam Webster: Word of the Year 2022 ‘Gaslighting,’ plus ‘sentient,’ ‘omicron,’ ‘queen consort,’ and other top lookups of 2022
By Karin Brulliard, The Washington Post: What Makes Dogs So Special and Successful? Love. After searching for dogs’ intelligence, a top canine scientist concluded that their true gift is affection.
By Emma Specter, Vogue: The 20 Best Memes of 2022
Courtesy of Lara Joseph
Professional animal trainer, behavior consultant, and ABA practitioner at The Animal Behavior Center.
I went through one of my FB photo albums of cover photos used over the years looking for one of my favorite photos of Rocky with Christmas lights behind him. I started scrolling through the photos from years past. It started making me sad because I’ve lost so much over the years. I’m going to change that and I can start by how I view things and look at what and who I have now, including memories. And I know Freddie and Quincy are still with me. I know that for a fact and that makes me very happy.
This is my favorite time of year and this time last year, I found myself coming home from the Center and just sitting in a chair. I did that almost every night for weeks. One night it got pretty bad and I found myself a little concerned about my well-being. I’m a pretty happy person and if I’m not happy, I’ve always found ways to change that. This time last year, I didn’t want to change it, until I did. I thought “I spend my life empowering the beings around myself yet I’m not doing anything for myself. This can go really bad, or I can do something about it.” I chose to do something about it.
Freddie and I always went out. We were always with family or friends, and I mean every single night. I remember bitching about how much we would go out. “Can’t we just sit home for one night?” Ah, how you don’t know what you have until it’s gone, ripped right out from underneath you.
This time last year, when friends would call, instead of silencing their phone calls, I decided to pick up the phone. They would ask me out to dinner or holiday drinks. That one last bad night was my last because the next night, I answered the phone and I said, extremely reluctantly, “Yes, I want to go out.” I didn’t, but I did it anyway. The date with my chair was getting pretty predictable.
Well, I went out and I did it again, and again, and again. I ate, I had holiday cheer. I started having friends over. I ended up getting really fat and I didn’t give a shit because I was having so much fun and laughing again. I started laughing and seeing the big smiles of so many around me. Over the past year and through the summer, I found out that all of those asking me over or out had loved and lost as well and they found ways to pick themselves up and carry that love with them vs sitting in a chair and dwelling on it. Those times, which still continue, are the best gifts I’ve had in quite a while.
With the passing of Quincy and some other things on my plate, instead of sitting in a chair, I chose to spend that quality time with Quincy. I found the beautiful gift you can give a loved one by being there for them and comforting them in the end. What a gift to Quincy and to me, and you know what, my friends and family were right there with me through it, and those friends and family are with me right now through some other things. They pick me up, they make me laugh.
I’ve found the gift of life is in how we look at it. That was a really tough lesson for me over these past two years, but I think I needed that time to realize this.
I was dreading the day I put Quincy down, not only because I was losing her, but also because I was losing a love that was by my side that got me through the past, almost two years since Freddie passed. I felt Quincy was the only thing I had left of Freddie and our memories together. I felt this dread of feeling like there was nothing left for me at home now that they are both gone. That wasn’t so. I went to the Center and saw all of my beautiful birds that were so happy to see me in my recent absence. I saw all the smiling faces of the beautiful volunteers and employees that were there to keep the place running while I picked up my pieces. I saw all the keepers that sent me photos and videos while I was gone. They sent me photos and videos to make me laugh and let me know they are still there. My sister came over almost every day. I had friends and family that came to town to help me with some other difficulties I was going through at the same time I was taking time to be with Quincy. I thought how lucky I am to be me and to have all of this…all of this beautiful thing called life! It’s still staring me right in the face! And something happened when all of those friends came to visit me the night I put Quincy down. Something amazing that let me know Freddie and Quincy are still right here beside me.
So, as I sat and looked at these photos tonight, I did find myself starting to feel very sad looking through what I lost as the Christmas music that I love so much plays in the background. I thought, I could be sad looking at what I lost or I could be grateful for all of those beings being a part of what make me who I am today. And as I end this post, I’m finding myself happy again for having the honor of having that past love that I knew, because they are all still here with me in a different way that I wasn’t aware of before because I just didn’t know. And now I know better.
Instead of looking at these photos and being sad, I’m going to change my timeline photos to remember how I knew them then and how I know them now and be grateful for what I had and what I continue to have.
By Erika Hayasaki, Narratively: Daughters of the Bomb: A Story of Hiroshima, Racism and Human Rights On the 75th anniversary of the A-bomb, a Japanese-American writer spoke to one of the last living survivors—and traces connections from Malcolm X to the fight to end nuclear war.
Go Mike!
This is straight up child abuse… | EP. 092 | Mike Force Podcast
Watch this before 2023! | Buddy Brown
Recipes
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.
DamnDelicious
RecipeTinEats
- Spinach French Onion Cob Dip – Australia’s favourite dip! June 19, 2026Meet Australia’s favourite dip!!! This Spinach French Onion Cob Dip is made using a French Onion Soup mix and is served in a cob bread loaf. It is unapologetically retro, gloriously unfashionable, breaks every real-food rule I preach, and is completely addictive!! Spinach French Onion Cob Dip This dip has been a fixture at Australian... […]Nagi
- Easy Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef June 16, 2026Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef is what you make when you want a big batch of crowd-pleasing food with relatively little effort. The succulent pulled beef is smothered in an incredible homemade barbecue sauce, and there’s so many ways to serve it – pile into sliders, heap onto plates or stuff into baked potatoes! Easy... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 21 June 21, 2026Picture of the day Bags of organic fertiliser adorn newly-planted fields against a backdrop of the Western Catchment in the Nilgiri mountains. Tamil Nadu, India
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 20 June 20, 2026Picture of the day Flower of a Geranium sanguineum, bloody crane's-bill. Focus stack of 51 photos.
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Welcome to the Stump the Bookseller blog!
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.
Thanks to everyone involved to keep this forum going: our blogging team, the well-read Stumper Magicians, the many referrals, and of course to everyone who fondly remembers the wonder of books from their childhood and wants to share or revisit that wonder. Isn’t it amazing, the magic of a book?