On This Day
1783 – American Revolutionary War: French and Spanish forces lift the Great Siege of Gibraltar.
The Great Siege of Gibraltar was an unsuccessful attempt by Spain and France to capture Gibraltar from the British during the War of the American Revolution.[20] The American war had ended with the British defeat at Yorktown in October 1781, but the Bourbon defeat in their great final assault on Gibraltar would not come until September 1782. The siege was suspended in February 1783 at the beginning of peace talks with the British.[21]
On June 16, 1779 Spain entered the war on the side of France and as co-belligerents of the rebellious American colonies—the British base at Gibraltar was Spain’s primary war aim.[22] The vulnerable Gibraltar garrison under George Augustus Eliott was blockaded from June 1779 to February 1783.,[23] initially by the Spanish alone, led by Martín Álvarez de Sotomayor. The blockade proved to be a failure because two relief convoys entered unmolested—the first under Admiral George Rodney in 1780 and the second under Admiral George Darby in 1781—despite the presence of the Spanish fleets. The same year, a major assault was planned by the Spanish, but the Gibraltar garrison sortied in November and destroyed much of the forward batteries. With the siege going nowhere and constant Spanish failures, the besiegers were reinforced by French forces under de Crillon, who took over command in early 1782. After a lull in the siege, during which the Franco-Spanish besiegers gathered more guns, ships and troops, a “Grand Assault” was launched on 18 September 1782. This involved huge numbers—60,000 men, 49 ships of the line and ten specially designed, newly invented floating batteries—against the 5,000 defenders. The assault proved to be a disastrous and humiliating failure, resulting in heavy losses for the Bourbon attackers. This was the largest action fought during the war in terms of numbers.
The final sign of defeat for the allies came when a crucial British relief convoy under Admiral Richard Howe slipped through the blockading fleet and arrived at the garrison in October 1782. The siege was finally lifted on 7 February 1783 and resulted in a decisive victory for the British. The siege was a factor in ending the American revolutionary war[24][25][26][27]—the Peace of Paris negotiations were reliant of news from the siege, particularly at its climax.[28][29]
At three years and seven months and twelve days, it is not only the longest siege endured by the British Armed Forces but also the longest continuous siege in history.[30][31]
Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart[3] or Mary I of Scotland, reigned over Scotland from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567.
Mary, the only surviving legitimate child of King James V of Scotland, was six days old when her father died and she acceded to the throne. She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents, and in 1558, she married the Dauphin of France, Francis. Mary was queen consort of France from his accession in 1559 until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561. Four years later, she married her half-cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, and in June 1566 they had a son, James.
In February 1567, Darnley’s residence was destroyed by an explosion, and he was found murdered in the garden. James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley’s death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567, and the following month he married Mary. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle. On 24 July 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favour of her one-year-old son. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southward seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed, Queen Elizabeth I of England.
Mary had once claimed Elizabeth’s throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North. Perceiving Mary as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586, and was beheaded the following year at Fotheringhay Castle. Mary’s life, marriages, lineage, alleged involvement in plots against Elizabeth, and subsequent execution established her as a divisive and highly romanticised character in British and European history, and she has been the subject of artistic and cultural depictions for centuries.
Born On This Day
1802 – Louisa Jane Hall, American poet, essayist, and literary critic (d. 1892)[26]
Louisa Jane Hall (February 7, 1802 – 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and literary critic. None of her poems appeared in print until after she was twenty; they were then published anonymously in the Literary Gazette, and other periodicals. Dr. Park removed to Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1831, accompanied by his daughter, who lived with him until October 1840, when she married the Rev. E. B. Hall, of Providence, Rhode Island. Miriam, a Dramatic Sketch, her most notable work, was begun in the summer of 1826, finished the following summer, and published ten years later. Her other principal work is in prose, Joanna of Naples, an Historical Tale, published in 1838. Hannah, the Mother of Samuel the Prophet and Judge of Israel (1839) was, like Miriam, a verse play.[1]
1850 – Kate Chopin, American author (d. 1904)
Kate Chopin (/ˈʃoʊpæn/,[1][2] also US: /ʃoʊˈpæn, ˈʃoʊpən/;[3] born Katherine O’Flaherty; February 8, 1850 – August 22, 1904)[4] was an American author of short stories and novels based in Louisiana. She is considered by scholars[5] to have been a forerunner of American 20th-century feminist authors of Southern or Catholic background, such as Zelda Fitzgerald, and is one of the most frequently read and recognized writers of Louisiana Creole heritage.
Of maternal French and paternal Irish descent, Chopin was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She married and moved with her husband to New Orleans. They later lived in the country in Cloutierville, Louisiana. From 1892 to 1895, Chopin wrote short stories for both children and adults that were published in such national magazines as Atlantic Monthly, Vogue, The Century Magazine, and The Youth’s Companion. Her stories aroused controversy because of her subjects and her approach; they were condemned as immoral by some critics.
Her major works were two short story collections: Bayou Folk (1894) and A Night in Acadie (1897). Her important short stories included “Désirée’s Baby” (1893), a tale of miscegenation in antebellum Louisiana,[6] “The Story of an Hour” (1894),[7] and “The Storm” (1898).[6] “The Storm” is a sequel to “At the Cadian Ball,” which appeared in her first collection of short stories, Bayou Folk.[6]
Chopin also wrote two novels: At Fault (1890) and The Awakening (1899), which are set in New Orleans and Grand Isle, respectively. The characters in her stories are usually residents of Louisiana, and many are Creoles of various ethnic or racial backgrounds. Many of her works are set in Natchitoches in north-central Louisiana, a region where she lived.
Within a decade of her death, Chopin was widely recognized as one of the leading writers of her time.[8] In 1915, Fred Lewis Pattee wrote, “some of [Chopin’s] work is equal to the best that has been produced in France or even in America. [She displayed] what may be described as a native aptitude for narration amounting almost to genius.”[8]
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FYI
Just A Car Guy: have you heard of Wham Bam Tesla Cam? It’s the American version of Russian dash cam vids from what I can tell, showing just what a mess it is out there past your front door. They post a weekly episode compilation of the most interesting car security cam footage
Just A Car Guy: Vancouver, 1907 video that has been fixed up
Just A Car Guy: great way to utilize the old message with a new commercial
Just A Car Guy: car guy humor of one-upsmanship, I love it
Just A Car Guy: Haley Bridges knew her friend and fellow Chick-fil-A employee, Hokule’a Taniguchi, was commuting to work in the Wisconsin winter by bicycle. So when she won a car at a company Christmas party raffle, she knew exactly who she wanted to gift it to.
Matt Goff: Sitka Nature Show #222 – Seri Robinson
STORIES FROM NORTHERN CANADA AND ALASKA: Thousands Worked Incredibly Hard
By Robert D. Cunningham, The Old Motor: Vetmobiles Brought Independence to Wounded Warriors
Open Culture: Little Kid Merrily Grooves to ZZ Top While Waiting for the Bus
Brain Pickings by Maria Popova: The decades-old classic is suddenly the ultimate pandemic poem, Jeanette WInterson on how storytelling transforms us, a love story of science
By MessyNessy 13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DXLI): In southern Japan, there’ a train station in the middle of nowhere, with no entrance or exit..; This Ridiculously Charming French Cottage on Airbnb; A forest noise amplifier; The Invention of the Ski Chairlift; Danny DeVito’s Story about how he got Matilda to Dance and more ->
By Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian Magazine: The 1927 Bombing That Remains America’s Deadliest School Massacre Almost 100 years ago, a school in Bath, Michigan was rigged with explosives in a brutal act that stunned the town.
Maria Popova’s Brain Pickings: The Evolutionary Mystery of Left-Handedness From Medieval sword-fighters to Broca’s brains, or why the hand may hold the key to the link between creativity and mental illness.
I’d hate to see the worst…
By Randall Colburn, AV Club: Here’s the best of the 2021 Super Bowl commercials
Quotes from Super Bowl Personalities
When you’re good at something, you’ll tell everyone. When you’re great at something, they’ll tell you.
Walter Payton, Chicago Bears
If football taught me anything about business, it’s that you win the game one play at a time.
Fran Tarkenton, Minnesota Vikings
Winning isn’t getting ahead of others. It’s getting ahead of yourself.
Roger Staubach, Dallas Cowboys
It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up.
We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.
Vince Lombardi
Your talent determines what you can do. Your motivation determines how much you are willing to do. Your attitude determines how well you do it.
Lou Holtz
A champion is simply someone who did not give up when they wanted to.
Tom Landry, Dallas Cowboys
Ideas
By paperplateandplane: Warm Llama Balaclava With Scarf
By MadeByBarb: Crazy-Wool No Knit Rose Scarf
By scott.grove.587: How to Inlay Opal in a Pre-Channeled Ring Using UV Resin
By ThomasJ1: Grow Your Own Giant Sequoia Tree
Recipes
Taste of Home: 3-Ingredient Recipes You Can’t Mess Up
By Betty Crocker Kitchens: Classic Chicken Dinners That Don’t Go Out of Style
SANDRA’S CHOCOLATE BROWNIES with PEANUT BUTTER FROSTING
By Stephanefalies: Cake Mix Biscotti
By Chocolate Covered Katie: Chocolate Truffle Pie
RecipeTinEats
- 5 Minute Fall-apart Massaman Lamb Shoulder October 11, 2024This is a recipe for a succulent fall-apart tender lamb shoulder that is slow cooked in a rich massaman curry sauce, presented in a grand roast lamb centrepiece form. My current most-made lamb shoulder recipe. Got 5 minutes to make it? 🙂 5 Minute Fall-apart Massaman Lamb Shoulder This recipe is going to save you... […]Nagi
- Irene’s Cretan biscuits (Greek almond cookies) October 4, 2024These traditional Greek Cretan biscuits are here courtesy of Irene, the very Greek mother of my very Greek hairdresser. Does it surprise anybody that I spend most of the time at the salon discussing food with everybody and anybody? 😂 Meet Irene, beloved local Greek grandmother and baker If you love buttery shortbread biscuits and... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for October 13 October 13, 2024Picture of the day In 1909, US Navy engineer Robert Peary completed an expedition that he claimed was to the North Pole. Although this is heavily disputed by modern historians, he was credited for the achievement at the time.
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for October 12 October 12, 2024Picture of the day View of the Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida with the walkway called "Passarela da Fé", connecting the old and the new church, in the foreground. Today is the feast of Our Lady of Aparecida and public holiday in Brazil.
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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.
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