History Trivia

January 31, 314 Silvester I began his reign as Pope of the Catholic Church, succeeding Pope Miltiades. During his pontificate, the Basilica of St. John Lateran, Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, St. Peter's Basilica, and several cemeterial churches over the graves of martyrs were founded. 1606 Gunpowder Plot: Guy Fawkes was executed for his plotting against Parliament and James I of England. Guy Fawkes and fellow surviving Gunpowder Plotters were hanged, drawn and quartered at Westminster.

History Trivia

January 30, 1077 Pope Gregory VII pardoned German emperor Henry IV. 1487 Bell chimes were invented. 1522 Duke of Albany took captured French back to Scotland. 1648 Eighty Years' War: The Treaty of Münster and Osnabrück was signed, which ended the conflict between the Netherlands and Spain. 1649 King Charles I of England was beheaded. 1661 Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England was ritually executed two years after his death, on the anniversary of the execution of the monarch he himself deposed.

History Trivia

January 29, 904 Pope Sergius III came out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed antipope Christopher. 1119 Pope Gelasius II died. The brief reign of Gelasius II was plagued by the lingering investiture controversy and the aggressive actions of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor. Henry took possession of Rome and twice drove the pope from the city, installing in his place the antipope Gregory VIII.1595 William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet was performed for the first time on this day. 1613 Galileo observed Neptune but failed to understand the significance of his find.

History Trivia

January 28, 814 Charlemagne, King of the Franks and creator of the Holy Roman Empire, died in Aachen. 1077 the excommunication of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor was lifted by Pope Gregory VII. 1099 First Crusaders began the siege of Hosn-el-Akrad Syria. 1262 Flemish/Dutch coast was ravaged by a north western storm. 1495 Pope Alexander VI gave his son Cesare Borgia as a hostage to Charles VIII of France to ensure the Pope's good behavior as Charles left Rome to conquer Naples. However, Cesare did escape and returned to Rome. 1547 Henry VIII died. His nine year old son, Edward VI became King, and the first Protestant ruler of England.

History Trivia

January 27, 484 BC, the temple of Castor and Pollux, the Heavenly Twins, was dedicated. 98 Trajan became Roman Emperor after the death of Nerva. 1186 Henry VI, the son and heir of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I, married Constance of Sicily. 1302 Dante became a Florentine political exile because of his political activities that included the banishment of several rivals. 1606 Gunpowder Plot: The trial of Guy Fawkes and other conspirators began, ending with their execution on January 31.

The Briton and the Dane: Legacy

The Briton and the Dane: Legacy is available on Amazon Kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/Briton-Dane-Legacy-ebook/dp/B00724WK6E/ref=sr_1_6?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1327628816&sr=1-6

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Briton-Dane-Legacy-ebook/dp/B00724WK6E/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1327630082&sr=8-6

Print version available soon.

History Trivia

January 26,66: 5th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. 1316 Revolt in Wales against the authority of Edward II began. 1340 King Edward III of England was declared King of France. 1531 An earthquake killed thousands in Lisbon, Portugal.1564The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, which established a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.

History Trivia

January 25, 41 Tiberius Claudius Drusus was proclaimed as emperor by the Praetorian Guard. After a night of negotiation, Claudius was accepted as Roman Emperor by the Senate. 98 The Emperor Nerva died of natural causes. 1327 Edward III became King of England. 1348 An earthquake destroyed Villach (Austria) that killed thousands. 1494 Alfonso II became King of Naples. 1533 Henry VIII of England secretly married his second wife Anne Boleyn.

History Trivia

January 24, 41 Caligula was murdered along with his wife and infant child by a Praetorian tribune while attending the Palatine games. Claudius succeeded his nephew. 76 the Emperor Hadrian was born. 1328 King Edward III of England married Philippa of Henegouwen.

History Trivia

January 23, 27 BC, Augustus Caesar (Octavian) founded the Roman Empire that would last until A.D. 476. Octavian was granted the title 'Augustus', meaning lofty or serene, by the Roman senate. 393 Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaimed his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor. 1265 First English Parliament formally convened. 1510 18 year old Henry VIII of England appeared incognito in the lists at Richmond, and was applauded for his jousting before he revealed his identity. 1533 Anne Boleyn, second wife of Henry VIII of England, discovered she was pregnant. 1570 The assassination of Regent James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray threw Scotland into civil war. 1571 The Royal Exchange opened in London. 1579 The Union of Utrecht formed a Protestant republic in the Netherlands.

History Trivia

January 22, 565 Eutychius was deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus. 871 Battle at Basing: Danish invasion army vanquished Ethelred of Wessex. 1371 King Robert II Stuart of Scotland was crowned. 1506 The first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrived at the Vatican. 1521 Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, opened the Diet of Worms. 1552 Sir Edward Seymour, uncle to King Edward VI of England, was executed.

History Trivia

January 21 1189 King Philip Augustus of France, King Henry II of England, King Richard I, and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa initiated the Third Crusade in response to the victory of Saladin in 1187. 1276 Pierre de Tarantaise, the first Dominican pope, was elected, choosing the name Pope Innocence V.

History Trivia

January 20, 250 AD, Fabian who was created pope in 236, was martyred under the persecution of Decius. 1265 The first English parliament was held by Simon de Montfortin the Palace of Westminister (Houses of Parliament)and was attended by elected burgesses and knights. 1327 Edward II of England was deposed by his eldest son, Edward III. 1356 Edward Balliol abdicated as King of Scotland. 1523 Christian II was forced to abdicate as King of Denmark and Norway. 1649 Charles I of England went on trial for treason and other high crimes.

History Trivia

January 19, 1419 The French city of Rouen surrendered to Henry V in Hundred Years War
1520 Sten Sture the Younger, the Regent of Sweden, was mortally wounded at the Battle of Bogesund, an important conflict in the campaign of Christian II to gain power over Sweden. 1523 Ulrich Zwingli, founder of the reformation in Switzerland, published his 67 Articles, the first manifesto of the Zurich Reformation which attacks the authority of the Pope. 1783 William Pitt became the youngest Prime Minister of England at age 24.

LitU's first anthology

LitU: Unearthed is an anthology that celebrates and brings to the surface some of the best up-and-coming authors in the literary world. This collection of short stories features new and self published authors. Enjoy


http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/124502

History Trivia

January 18, 350 Flavius Julius Constans was assassinated. 1486 King Henry VII of England married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV. 1520 King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeated the Swedes at Lake Åsunden. 1562 Pope Pius IV reopened the Council of Trent for its third and final session, which defined the mass as a true sacrifice and issued statements on several other doctrinal issues. By the end of the 16th century, many of the abuses that had motivated the Protestant Reformation had disappeared, and the church had reclaimed many of its European followers.

History Trivia

January 17, 38 BC Octavian married Livia Drusilla. 69 Etruscan Roman Emperor Otho committed suicide after a night of meditation in his tent. A companion of Nero, it is believed that he died to prevent civil war. 395 the Roman Empire was split into eastern and western parts upon the death of Emperor Theodosius I, whose will provided that his two sons would inherit the two parts. 1377 Pope Gregory XI moved the Papacy back to Rome from Avignon. 1501 Cesare Borgia returned in triumph to Rome from Romagna. 1648 England's Long Parliament passed the Vote of No Addresses, which broke off negotiations with King Charles I, setting the scene for the second phase of the English Civil War.

History Trivia

January 16, 27 BC – The title Augustus was bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate. 550 during the Gothic War (535–552), the Ostrogoths conquered Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison. 1120 The Council of Nablus was held, establishing the earliest surviving written laws of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. 1219 Floods in Northern Netherlands after a storm, killing thousands. 1245 Edmund Lancaster was born. Edmund was the founder of the House of Lancaster and son of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence. 1362a storm tide in the North Sea destroyed the German city of Rungholt on the island of Strand (North Frisian Islands). 1412 the Medici family was appointed official banker of the Papacy. 1572 Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk was tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England. 1581 The English Parliament outlawed Roman Catholicism. 1605 The first edition of El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha (Book One of Don Quixote) by Miguel de Cervantes was published in Madrid.

History Trivia

January 15, 69 the Emperor Galba was murdered in the streets of Rome. Otho (Marcus Salvius Otho Caesar Augustus) seized power and proclaimed himself Emperor of Rome, but ruled for only three months before he committed suicide. 1535 Henry VIII declared himself head of English Church.1559 Elizabeth I was crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey, London by Owen Oglethorpe, Bishop of Carlisle. 1759 British Museum opened in Montague House, London.

History Trivia

January 14, 1131 King Valdemar I of Denmark was born. In addition to winning independence from the Holy Roman Empire, he also gained the approval of the church for the dynastic rule of his family, the Valdemars. 1236 Henry III of England married Eleonora of Provence. 1501 Martin Luther (age 17) entered the University of Erfurt (founded in 1379, it was the first university in modern day Germany, and for some time was the largest university in the country). 1514 Pope Leo X issued a papal bull against slavery.

History Trivia

January 13, 888 Odo, Count of Paris became King of the Franks. 1099 Crusaders set Mara Syria ablaze. 1128 Knights Templar (warrior monks) received the rules of their order, which was to police the Pilgrimage route to the Holy Land and provide services to the patriarch of Jerusalem. 1328 Edward III of England married Philippa of Hainault (northern France). 1547 Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey was sentenced to death. He was imprisoned with his father by Henry VIII and executed for treason on January 19. 1605 The controversial Jacobean era stage play Eastward Hoe by Ben Jonson, George Chapman, and John Marston was performed. The satire offended King James I with its anti-Scottish comedy, which caused Jonson and Chapman to be arrested for a time, which made their play one of the famous dramatic scandals of its era. 1607 The Bank of Genoa failed after the announcement of a national bankruptcy in Spain.

History Trivia

January 12, On some calendars, it was on this day that Jesus returned from Egypt when He was a child. 475 Basiliscus became Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople. 532 the second Cathedral of Santa Sophia in Constantinople was destroyed by fire in the Nika insurrection. 1539 the Treaty of Toledo was signed by King Francis I of France and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V whereby both parties agreed to make no further alliances with England. The treaty came after Henry VIII of England split with Rome and Pope Paul III.

History Trivia

January 11, 802 St. Paulinus of Aquileia died. He was royal master of grammar to Charlemagne at the Palace School and was appointed Patriarch of Aquileia (Italy) in 787 after Charlemagne conquered the duchy. 1569 The first official lottery was held in England, with 10 shilling lots sold at old St Paul's Cathedral. 1558 Westmunster Church in Middelburg (The Netherlands) was destroyed by a heavy storm. 1571 the Austrian nobility were granted freedom of religion. 1693 Mt. Etna erupted in Sicily. The powerful earthquake destroyed parts of Sicily and Malta.

History Trivia

January 10, 49 BC Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon without disbanding his army, which signaled the start of civil war in Rome. Pompey and his supporters fled to Greece. 69 Lucius Calpurnius Piso Licinianus was appointed by Galba to deputy Roman Emperor. 236 Pope Fabian succeeded Anterus as the twentieth pope of Rome. 1072 Robert Guiscard conquered Palermo. 1642 King Charles I & family fled London for Oxford. 1645 Archbishop William Laud was beheaded at the Tower of London because he opposed the radical forms of Puritanism and supported King Charles I during the British civil war.

History Trivia

January 9, 475 Byzantine Emperor Zeno was forced to flee his capital at Constantinople. 1349 The Jewish population of Basel, Switzerland, believed by the residents to be the cause of the ongoing Black Death, were rounded up and incinerated. 1431 Judges' investigations for the trial of Joan of Arc began in Rouen, France, the seat of the English occupation government.

History Trivia

January 8,794 Vikings attacked Lindisfarne Island (northeast coast of England). 871 King Ethelred of Wessex and his brother Alfred (the Great) defeated the Danish Vikings at the Battle of Ashdown. 1081 Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor was born. The last of the Salic or Frankish family of rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Henry was crowned in 1111.

HistoryTrivia

January 7 49 BC, Julius Caesar was ordered to disband his army. He refused and crossed the Rubicon three days later, invaded Italy, which began a civil war. 1327 King Edward II of England was deposed. 1451 the University of Glasgow Founded at the request of King James II of Scotland. Pope Nicholas V issued a bull of foundation for a studium generale. At first underfunded and lacking a place to hold lectures, the University nonetheless grew into a distinguished center of learning, its progress only briefly interrupted by the troubles of the Reformation. 1558 French nobleman Francis, Duke of Guise, captured Calais, the last English possession in mainland France. 1601 Robert, Earl of Essex led revolt in London against Queen Elizabeth. 1610 Galileo Galilei observed three of the four largest moons of Jupiter for the first time. He named them, and in turn the four are called the Galilean moons.

History Trivia

January 6, 1017 Canute I crowned King of England. He was also King Canute II of Denmark and King Canute of Norway, and because of the empire he built in Britain and Scandinavia, he is sometimes known as Canute the Great. 1066 Harold Godwinson (last Anglo-Saxon King of England) was crowned, most likely in Westminster Abbey. 1540 King Henry VIII of England married Anne of Cleves. The marriage lasted six months after which time Henry obtained a divorce and married Catherine Howard. 1649 English Civil War: The Rump Parliament voted to put Charles I on trial. 1661 English Restoration: The Fifth Monarchists unsuccessfully tried to seize control of London.

Literary Underground Blog Post

Check out the story behind The Briton and the Dane trilogy at:


http://litunderground.wordpress.com/2012/01/03/the-story-behind-the-briton-and-the-dane-trilogy/

History Trivia

January 5, 1066, Edward the Confessor, King of England, died. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, and ruled from 1042 to 1066. 1477 Charles the Bold was killed at the Battle of Nancy at which time Burgundy became part of France. 1500 Duke Ludovico Sforza conquered Milan. 1554 A great fire occurred in Eindhoven, Netherlands. 1531 Pope Clemens VII forbade English king Henry VIII to re-marry.

Literary Underground Book of the Month

The Briton and the Dane (The Special Edition) is the featured release for the book of the month at Literary Underground.

http://litunderground.com/BookoftheMonth.html

History Trivia

January 4, 46 BC Julius Caesar defeated Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina. 48 BC, Julius Caesar arrived in Greece in pursuit of his rival, Pompey, whom he later defeated at Pharsalus. 871, at the Battle of Reading Ethelred of Wessex fought and was badly defeated by a Danish invasion army. 1642 King Charles I of England sent soldiers to arrest members of Parliament. 1698 most of the Palace of Whitehall in London, the main residence of the English monarchs, was destroyed by fire.

History Trivia

January 3, 106 BC Marcus Tullius Cicero was born. 1431 Joan of Arc was handed over to Bishop Pierre Cauchon. Legal proceedings began on 9 January 1431 at Rouen, the seat of the English occupation government where Joan was found guilty of heresy, and was burned at the stake on May 30. 1496 Leonardo da Vinci unsuccessfully tested a flying machine. 1521 Pope Leo X excommunicated Martin Luther, German theologian and Protestant reformer for heresy, in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem.

History Trivia

January 2, 69 Vitellius was named emperor. 366 The Alamanni crossed the frozen Rhine River in large numbers and invaded the Roman Empire. 533 Mercurius became Pope John II, the first pope to adopt a new name upon elevation to the papacy. 1492 Moorish Granada fell, completing the reconquest of Spain by Christian monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. 1602 Battle at Kinsale, Ireland: English army defeated Spanish forces.

History Trivia

January 1 45 BC Julius Caesar's calendar reform: 365 days in 12 months with leap years every four years was introduced. 43 BC Cicero delivered his Fifth Philippic (fifth of a series of speeches condemning Mark Antony) in the Roman Senate. 27 BC Octavian became the first emperor of Rome and took the name Caesar Augustus. 404 Last gladiator competition in Rome. 1431 Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) was born. 1600 Scotland began its numbered year on January 1 instead of March 25. 1651 Charles II was crowned King of Scotland.1801 The Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland created the United Kingdom.