Ethelred of Wessex defeated the Danes in the Battle of Ashdown in 871. Monaco received its independence in 1297. The
Battle of New Orleans was fought in 1815. Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud became king of Hejaz in 1926 and changed the name of the kingdom to Saudi Arabia. Ninety-three people were killed when two trains collided near Harmelen, the Netherlands, in 1962 and a British Midlands plane crashed on the M1 near Kegworth, Leicestershire in 1989, killing 47.
Born today: Wilkie Collins (1824-1889), William Hartnell (1908-1975), Elvis Presley (1935-1977), Shirley Bassey (1937), Graham Chapman (1941), Stephen Hawking (1942) and David Bowie (1947).
Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Prompt Succour in the Roman Catholic Church.
