A Daily Dose of History: Events on this Day in History

A Daily Dose of History (23 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Odoacer, chieftain of the Germanic tribes (Herulic - Scirian foederati), is proclaimed rex Italiae ("King of Italy") by his troops. Siege of Jerusalem: The city's citadel, the Tower of David, surrenders to Khwarezmian Empire. The Battle of Tagliacozzo marks the fall of the Hohenstaufen family from the Imperial and Sicilian thrones, a...

A Daily Dose of History (22 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Battle of the Standard between Scotland and England. The Battle of Bosworth Field, the death of Richard III and the end of the House of Plantagenet. Bartolomé Carranza, Spanish archbishop, is arrested for heresy. Madras (now Chennai), India, is founded by the British East India Company on a sliver of land bought from local Nayak rule...

A Daily Dose of History (21 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Eraclus becomes the 25th bishop of Liège. Battle of the Blacks: Uprising by the black African forces of the Fatimid army, along with a number of Egyptian emirs and commoners, against Saladin. The uprising is defeated after two days, consolidating Saladin's position as master of Egypt. King Stefan Uroš III, after months of anarchy, su...

A Daily Dose of History (19 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Baldwin III of Jerusalem takes control of the Kingdom of Jerusalem from his mother Melisende, and also captures Ascalon. Pope Pius II is elected the 211th Pope. Mary, Queen of Scots, aged 18, returns to Scotland after spending 13 years in France. Eighty Years War: a besieging Dutch and English army led by Maurice of Orange forces the...

A Daily Dose of History (18 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: The Siege of Málaga ends with the taking of the city by Castilian and Aragonese forces. The first grammar of the Spanish language (Gramática de la lengua castellana) is presented to Queen Isabella I. Marriage in Paris, France, of the Huguenot King Henry III of Navarre to Margaret of Valois, in a supposed attempt to reconcile Protesta...

A Daily Dose of History (17 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Pope Leo II begins his pontificate. Byzantine-Bulgarian wars: Battle of the Gates of Trajan: The Bulgarians under the Comitopuli Samuel and Aron defeat the Byzantine forces at the Gate of Trajan, with Byzantine Emperor Basil II barely escaping. Hundred Years' War: Battle of Verneuil: An English force under John, Duke of Bedford defea...

A Daily Dose of History (16 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Start of the four-day Battle of al-Mada'in, between the Hamdanids of Mosul and the Baridis of Basra over control of the Abbasid capital, Baghdad. Nikephoros II Phokas is crowned emperor of the Byzantine Empire. Battle of the Spurs (Battle of Guinegate): King Henry VIII of England and his Imperial allies defeat French Forces who are t...

A Daily Dose of History (15 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Arab-Byzantine wars: The Battle of Yarmouk between Byzantine Empire and Rashidun Caliphate begins. The Battle of Roncevaux Pass takes place between the army of Charlemagne and a Basque army. Noble Erchana of Dahauua grants the Bavarian town of Dachau to the Diocese of Freising The Saracens conquer and destroy Taranto. Holy Roman Empe...

A Daily Dose of History (14 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: King Duncan I is killed in battle against his first cousin and rival Macbeth. The latter succeeds him as King of Scotland. Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, grants city privileges to Karlovy Vary. Portuguese Crisis of 1383-85: Battle of Aljubarrota: Portuguese forces commanded by John I of Portugal defeat the Castilian army of John I o...

A Daily Dose of History (13 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: John I becomes the new Pope after the death of Pope Hormisdas. Count Reginar I of Hainault rises against Zwentibold of Lotharingia and slays him near present-day Susteren. Raniero is elected as Pope Paschal II. After an extended siege, forces led by Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés capture Tlatoani Cuauhtémoc and conquer the Aztec...

A Daily Dose of History (12 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid forces led by Al-Afdal Shahanshah. This is considered the last engagement of the First Crusade. Battle of Didgori: The Georgian army under King David IV wins a decisive victory over the famous Seljuk commander Ilghazi. Battle of Harim:...

A Daily Dose of History (11 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Battle of Adda: The Goths under Theodoric the Great and his ally Alaric II defeat the forces of Odoacer on the Adda River, near Milan. Wars of Scottish Independence: Battle of Dupplin Moor: Scots under Domhnall II, Earl of Mar are routed by Edward Balliol. The Battle of Otlukbeli: Mehmed the Conqueror of the Ottoman Empire decisively...

A Daily Dose of History (10 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Pope Eugene I elected to succeed Martinus I. Battle of Lechfeld: Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor defeats the Magyars, ending 50 years of Magyar invasion of the West. Battle of Maldon: The English, led by Byrhtnoth, Ealdorman of Essex, are defeated by a band of inland-raiding Vikings near Maldon, Essex. The Battle of Azaz ends with a humil...

A Daily Dose of History (09 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Construction of the campanile of the Cathedral of Pisa (now known as the Leaning Tower of Pisa) begins; it will take two centuries to complete. Quilon, the first Indian Christian Diocese, is erected by Pope John XXII; the French-born Jordanus is appointed the first Bishop. The First Anglo-Powhatan War begins in colonial Virginia. Nap...

A Daily Dose of History (08 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Sweden is defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula. King James IV of Scotland marries Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England at Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh, Scotland. Krishnadeva Raya is crowned Emperor of Vijayanagara at Chittoor. The cornerstone for Tycho Brahe's Uraniborg observatory is laid on the island...

A Daily Dose of History (07 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Roman Emperor Majorian is beheaded near the river Iria in north-west Italy following his arrest and deposition by the magister militum Ricimer. Pope Stephen III is elected to office, and quickly seeks Frankish protection against the Lombard threat, since the Byzantine Empire is no longer able to help. Coronation of King Otto I of Ger...

A Daily Dose of History (06 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: The Republic of Pisa is defeated in the Battle of Meloria by the Republic of Genoa, thus losing its naval dominance in the Mediterranean. Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. American Revolutionary War: The bloody Battle of Oriskany prevents American relief of the Siege of Fort Stanwix. Sixty proof sheets of th...

A Daily Dose of History (05 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Roman armies enter Betar, slaughtering thousands and ending the Bar Kokhba revolt. Battle of Maserfield: Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Northumbria. The Battle of Alhandic is fought between Ramiro II of León and Abd-ar-Rahman III at Zamora in the context of the Spanish Reconquista. The battle resulted in a victory for th...

A Daily Dose of History (04 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Second Barons' War: Battle of Evesham: The army of Prince Edward (the future king Edward I of England) defeats the forces of rebellious barons led by Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, killing de Montfort and many of his allies. Battle of Al Kasr al Kebir: The Moroccans defeat the Portuguese. King Sebastian of Portugal is kill...

A Daily Dose of History (03 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Deposed Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Nestorius, considered the originator of Nestorianism, is exiled by Roman Emperor Theodosius II to a monastery in Egypt. Olaf II of Norway is canonized as Saint Olaf by Grimketel, the English Bishop of Selsey. The Siege of Algeciras commences during the Spanish Reconquista. Christopher Co...

A Daily Dose of History (02 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Majorian is arrested near Tortona (northern Italy) and deposed by the Suebian general Ricimer as puppet emperor. After a two-years siege, the city of Toledo, in Spain, surrenders to the forces of the Caliph of Córdoba Abd al-Rahman III, assuming an important victory in his campaign to subjugate the Central March. Edward I of England...

A Daily Dose of History (01 Aug 2023) Today's historical events: Taormina, the last Byzantine stronghold in Sicily, is captured by the Aghlabid army, concluding the Muslim conquest of Sicily. Isaac II Angelos, restored Byzantine Emperor, declares his son Alexios IV Angelos co-emperor after pressure from the forces of the Fourth Crusade. The Old Swiss Confederacy is formed with the signature of the...

A Daily Dose of History (31 Jul 2023) Today's historical events: Hundred Years' War: Battle of Cravant: The French army is defeated by the English at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne. Jacques Cœur is arrested by order of Charles VII of France. All remaining Jews are expelled from Spain when the Alhambra Decree takes effect. On his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus...

A Daily Dose of History (30 Jul 2023) Today's historical events: First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council. Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras during his fourth voyage. Beaver Wars: At Ticonderoga (now Crown Point, New York), Samuel de Champlain shoots and kills two Iroquois chiefs on be...

A Daily Dose of History (29 Jul 2023) Today's historical events: The Praetorian Guard storm the palace and capture Pupienus and Balbinus. They are dragged through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day, Gordian III, age 13, is proclaimed emperor, the sixth emperor of the year. Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo of Tripoli sack Thessaloniki, the Byzantine Empire's second-lar...