In 1252 Henry III was given a polar bear by King Haakon of Norway. He kept it in the Tower of London on a long chain so it could swim in the Thames.
Fact of the Day
Quote of the Day
"When they tell me I'm too old to do something, I attempt it immediately.
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~ Pablo Picasso
On This Day
1536 Anne Boleyn was executed for adultery, incest and treason.
1649 A little over three months after the execution of Charles I, the Rump Parliament adopted the Act Declaring and Constituting the People of England to be a Commonwealth and Free-State, making 'England, and of all the Dominions and Territories thereunto belonging' a republic, 'without any King or House of Lords'.
1849 Irish labourer William Hamilton aimed some gunpowder (but no shot) at Queen Victoria. He was sentenced to 7 years transportation.
1898 William Gladstone, one of the defining politicians of the Victorian age and four-time prime minister, died aged 88.
1935 T.E. Lawrence - the famous Lawrence of Arabia - died of injuries he had sustained on his motorbike after he swerved to avoid two boys in the road.
1962 Marilyn Monroe famously sang 'Happy Birthday' to US President JFK - 10 days early.