February 10th - 19th
Events
1306 –
Robert the Bruce murders John Cromyn in front of the high alter of Greyfriars
Church, in Dumfries. This would spark
the revolution in the Wars
of Scottish Independence
1840 –
Queen Victoria marries Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gortha
Births
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| Adelina Patti |
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| Harold Macmillan in 1959 |
Deaths
 |
| Ellen Wood |
Ellen Wood
was born 1814, Worcester as Ellen Price.
1836 she married Henry Wood.
Wood is best
known for her 1861 novel East Lynne.
East Lynne was the Victorian best-seller, and its plot is chiefly
for its elaborate and implausible, centring on infidelity and double
identifies.
Wood’s other
books became international bestsellers, having widely read in the United
States. Wood also surpassed the fame of
Charles Dickens in Australia.
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| Ellen Wood grave Highgate Cemetery, London |
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| Pope Pius XI |
Pius XI was
born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, Desion, in the province of Milan, 1857.
When the
Vatican City was created an independent state in February 1929, Pope Pius, who
had been elected Pope since 1922.
Pius took as
his papal motto “Pax Christi in Regno Christi” which translated “The
Peace of Christ in the Kingdom of Christ”. Pius was the head of the
Catholic Church until his death in 1939.
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| Pope Piux XI grave Papal Grotto, Saint Peter's Basilica |
11th February
Events
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| Pope Benedict XVI |
Births
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| Dennis Skinner in 2011 |
Deaths
 |
| Ernest Jones |
Jones born
1879 in Gowerton the outskirts of Swansea, was the eldest child of Thomas Jones
a self-taught colliery engineers and his wife Mary Ann Lewis. Jones was educated at Swansea Grammar School,
Llandovery College and Cardiff University. Jones obtained the Conjoint diplomas
LRCP and MRCS during 1900 at University College London. A year later Jones obtained an M.B. degree
and a Membership of the Royal College Physicians in 1903.
Jones took a
number of posts in London hospitals, specialising in neurology work.
1908, Jones
first met Sigmund Freud, they became lifelong friends and colleagues. Jones
became his official biographer; Jones was the first English-speaking
practitioner of psychoanalysis.
It is Jones’s
personal life that he is best remembered for during 1917, Jones married the
Welsh musician Morfydd Llwyn Owen. During
the following year, they were holidaying in South Wales, when Owen became ill
with acute appendicitis. William
Frederick Brook carried out emergency surgery, after the local surgeon, Wilfred
Trotter was not able to carry out the operation. Owen died from the effects of chloroform poisoning.
In later
life, Jones, who after the Second World War relinquished many of his official posts. Jones became a member of the Plaid Cymru, the
Welsh Nationalist Party. Jones also
instrumental in helping the Gower Peninsula in securing the status of Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty in 1956.
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| St. Cadoc's Church, Cheriton, Gower |
12th February
Events
Births
 |
| Louis Renault |
French engineer and
businessman and the co-founder of Renault, 1899
Deaths
 |
| Portrait of Langtry by Frank Miles |
1879, Lillie began and affair with the Earl of Shrewsbury also in the same year, there was a short affair with Prince Louis of Battenberg.
1881, in need of money, Lillie’s close friend Oscar Wilde suggested to her that she should try the stage. November 1881 saw Lillie in her first amateur production in a “A Fair Encounter”, at Twickenham Town Hall. The following month, Lillie made her debut for the London public in “She Stoops to Conquer” at the Haymarket Theatre. During her stage career, Lillie was friends with William Ewart Gladstone, the British prime minister.
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| Lillie Langtry grave St. Saviour Church, Jersey |
1899, Lillie married for the second time to Hugo Gerald de Bathe. During her final year, Lillie resided in Monaco. Lillie died of pneumonia, and her last request was to be buried in her parent’s tomb at St. Saviour Church, Jersey.
13th February
Events
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| Thomas Edison |
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| Dead Sea Scrolls |
Births
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| Randolph Churchill |
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| Margaretta Scott |
Deaths
 |
| Edward Berry |
Born 1768, was the son of a London merchant. His mother died, leaving his father to raise 5 daughters and 2 sons. Berry’s education was provided by his uncle Rev. Titus Berry, in Norwich. Berry first enter the Navy aged 10 as a volunteer on board the Burford.
Berry was promoted to Lieutenant in 1794, and May 1796 was appointed to HMS Agamemmon. That November, Berry received the rank of Commander.
During the Battle of Nile, August 1798, Berry was ranked flag captain on board Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson’s ship HMS Vanguard. After this action, Berry was knighted.
1814, Berry brought a house in Norwich, January 1815, he was awarded with the Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. During the Battle of Trafalgar, October 1815, Berry was to command the HMS Agamemmon. Berry who did not marry nor had children, died at Bath, where his is buried in nearby churchyard. The baronetcy became extinct at the time of his death.
14th February
Events
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| Portrait Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte by Jean-Pierre Franque John Paul Jones painting by Charles Wilson Peale, 1781 |
1778 – For the first time, the Untied States flag is recognised by foreign
naval vessel, when French Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume
Picquet de la Motte renders a nine-gun salute to USS Ranger, commanded by John Paul Jones
1946 – Bank of England is nationalised
Births
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| 1917 portrait of Nina Hamnett painted by Roger Fry (Courtauld Gallery, London) |
1890 – Dick Richards
– Welsh International footballer
Deaths
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| Lord Talbot by John Vanderbank |
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| James Cook, portrait by Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland, c. 1775, National Maritime Museum, Greenwich |
1779 – James Cook (50) – English captain, cartographer and explorer
Born 1728,
in the village of Marton, North Yorkshire.
Cook was the second of eight children, to James Cook, a Scottish farm
labourer and his wife Grace Pace. Cook’s
education lasted for five years, having been paid by Thomas Skottowe, his
father’s employer. After school, Cook
began to work with his father, who had been promoted as farm manager.
Aged 16, Cook
moved 20 miles to the fishing village of Starithes, where he was apprenticed as
a shop boy to grocer and haberdasher. It
was here, Starithes where Cook first felt the lure of the sea.
18 months later,
Cook, who provided not suited to shop work, travelled to Whitby, where Cook, was
introduced to Quakers John and Henry Walker.
They took Cook on as a merchant navy apprentice. In their small vessels around the English
coast.
Cook’s
apprenticeship having been complete, he
began working on trading ships in the Baltic Sea. After passing his examinations, in 1752, Cook
rose through the Merchant Navy ranks.
Cook, was posted
with HMS Eagle as able seaman and master’s mate. March 1756 Cook took temporary command of the
Cruizer. The following June 1757, Cook passed his master’s examination.
During the
Seven Years’ War, Cook took command of a fourth-rate Navy vessel HMS Pembroke
serving in North America. Thew Pembroke
took part in the major amphibious assault that captured the Fortress of Louisburg
from the French, 1758 and the Siege of Quebec City, 1758. During the war, Cook demonstrated a talent of
surveying and cartography. During the
1760s aboard the HMS Grenville the coast of Newfoundland was mapped
out.
1768, Cook
was commissioned by the Admiralty on a scientific voyage to the Pacific
Ocean. The purpose of the voyage was to
observe and record the 1769 transit of Venus across the Sun. The expedition ship was the HMS Endeavour,
departing England 1768. Travelling
around the Cape Horn and continued westward across the Pacific arriving at
Tahiti, 1769. Endeavour finally
arrived back in England 1771.
1771, Cook
was promoted to the rank of Commander, the following year, he commissioned on
behalf of the Royal Society on a scientific expedition to search the hypothetical
Terra Austalis. Cook took command of the
HME Resolution. Cook became the
first to cross the Antarctic Circle, January 1773. During 1774, on his return from New Zealand, Cook
landed at Friendly Islands, Easter Island, Norfolk Island, New Caledonia and Vanutau.
Cook arrived
back to England during 1775, where Cook was promoted to post-captain and given an
honorary retirement from the Royal Navy.
Cooks, third
and finally voyage during 1776, was the attempt to discover the famed Northwest
Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific around the top of North America. Cook was again in command of HMS Resolution.
15th February
Events
1923 – Greece was the last European country to adopt the Gregorian calendar
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| St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle |
Births
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| Rickman Godlee |
Deaths
 |
| Herbert Henry Asquith |
Born 1852,
Morley, West Riding of Yorkshire. The youngest
son of Joseph Dixon Asquith and his wife Emily Williams. Asquith and his brother were taught by their
parents, until his father’s death 1860.
After they were sent to live near their uncle, they were to spend a year
at Huddersfield College and then sent as borders to Fulneck School, Leeds.
The boys
were then sent to the City of London School.
Whilst a student here, Asquith visited the public gallery of the Houses
of Commons, where he honed on his own skills in schools’ debating society. 1869,
Asquith won a scholarship at Balliol College, Oxford.
After graduating
from Oxford, Asquith supplemented his income by writing regularly for the The
Spectator between 1874 and 1884.
1883, Asquith career as a barrister began, when he was invited to join the
chambers of R. S. Wright at the Inner Temple.
Asquith was to prepare a memorandum for the prime minister, W. F.
Gladstone.
1892,
Asquith who was 39 years old, and had not served as a junior minister accepted
the post of Home Secretary when Gladstone and the Liberals returned to office
after the July 1892 General Election.
Between 1895
and 1905, the Liberals were out of office after the July 1895 General Election,
after narrowing losing against the Conservatives. 1905, after the resignation
of the Prime Minister, Arthur Balfour, who did not seek a dissolution of
Parliament and general election. King
Edward VII invited Campbell-Bannerman to form a government. Asquith, who was a close friend, was appointed
Chancellor of Exchequer.
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| H. H. Asquith's grave All Saints Sutton Courtenay |
After the death of Campbell-Bannerman, 1908, Asquith succeeded the position of Prime Minister. A position, at the time of the outbreak of the Frist World War. 1915, Asquith’s government was blamed for the shortage of munitions and the failure of the Gallipoli Campaign. 1916, he formed a coalition government with other parties, but this failed to satisfy the critics, by the end o 1916, Asquith was forced to resign.
After retiring
Asquith filled his time reading, writing, playing a little golf and meeting
with friends. 1927, Asquith suffered a
number of strokes, and died February 1928.
In accordance with his wishes, he was buried at All Saints, at Sutton Courtenay.
16th February
Events
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| Spencer Wilmington by Godfrey Kneller c.1710 |
1742 – Spencer Crompton, Earl of Wilmington becomes the British Prime Minister.
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| Howard Carter |
Births
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| June Brown |
Deaths
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| Richard Mead |
17th February
Events
1867 –
The first ship passes through the Suez Canal
 |
| Original 1904 poster by Adolfo Hohenstein |
Births
1929 –
Patricia Routledge – English actress, comedian,
broadcaster and singer. Routledge’s career
in entertainment spans more than 70 years, but is best remembered for her role
as Hyacinth Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances
Deaths
 |
| William Bickerton |
Born 1815, Kyloe,
Northumberland. The seventh of eight
children, the son of Thomas Bickerton and his wife Isabella Hope. Thomas immigrated to the United States during
1830 to become a coal miner, finally settling at Pennsylvania.
Bickerton was
a Methodist, who covered to the faith of the Latter-Day Saints, by Sidney
Rigdon during 1845. Following the death
of the leader of the Latter-Day Saints, Joseph Smith, 1844 who founded Church
of Christ in 1830. Bickerton claimed the
leadership after the 1844 succession crisis.
Bickerton
remained the President until July 1880.
Bickerton died during 1905, and is buried at Fairview Cemetery, St. John,
Kansas.
18th February
Events
1900 –
Second Boer War – the Imperial forces suffer their
worst single-day loss of life on Bloody Sunday, at the first day of the Battle of Paardeberg, with 297 casualties 24 officers and
279 men killed with a further 906 wounded 59 officers and 847. The Battle lasted until 27th
February.
1911 –
The first official flight with airmail takes places from Allanhabad, British India (India) to Naini. 6 miles away.
The flight had 6,500 letters.
Births
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| Portrait of George Henschel by Lawrence Alama-Tadema, 1879 |
1871 – Harry Brearley
– English inventor. Best remembered for
his invention of “rustless stell”, later to be known as “stainless steel”
Deaths
 |
| Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim portrait by Johan Heinrich Ramberg, 1789 |
 |
| Charles Lewis Tiffany |
Tiffany was
born 1812, was the son of Comfort Tiffany and Chloe Draper. His father started a general store. When Tiffany finished his education aged 15,
he helped his father. His father also
owned a cotton-manufacturing company, where Tiffany worked in the office.
1837, Tiffany
along with a friend, John B. Young started a small stationery and gift shop,
after borrowing $1,000 off Tiffany’s father.
After two years, they were still in business and now selling glassware,
porcelain, cutlery, clocks and jewellery.
The business
expanded and changed name 1841, to Tiffany, Young and Ellis. The company was registered under the name of
Tiffany and Company, and further branches were opened overseas, Paris 1850 and
London 1868.
The company
firmly establishing its reputation in 1887, after acquiring and selling some of
the French Crown jewels.
Tiffany died
1902 at his home in Manhattan, New York and is buried at Green-Wood Cemetery,
Brooklyn, New York.
19th February
Events
1819 – The South Shetland Islands, Antarctic are discovered by British explorer William Smith and he claims them in the name of King George III.
1836 –
Province of South
Australia are
established after King
William IV signs
Letters Patent
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| Ezra Pound photographed in 1913 by Alvin Langdon Coburn |
Births
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| Portrait of David Garrick by Thomas Gainsborough |
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| Lydia Thompson in Bluebeard, 1872 |
Deaths
 |
| Elizabeth Carter as Minerva, godness of wisdom by John Fayram painted between 1735 and 1741), National Portrait Gallery |
Born 1717,
Deal Kent. The oldest child of Rev.
Nicholas Carter, the perpetual curate of Deal and his wife Margaret Swayne. Her mother died when Carter was 10.
Carter was
one of the Bluestocking Circle. This was
the movement of informal women’s social and education movement, having been
formed by Elizabeth Montagu. Carter earned
respect for translating the 2nd century Stoic philosopher work “Discourses
of Epictetus” into English. Carter
also published poems and translated from French and Italian.
Carter, befriended
Samuel Johnson, English writer. Carter
edited some of Johnson’s editions of the periodical “The Rambler”
1796, Carter
suffered from a dangerous illness, which she never fully recovered from,
however, Carter still exerted herself
and visited the poor. Carter also established
and maintained charitable institutions. Carter died at her lodgings in Clarges
Street, London.
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