6th May

[chenrezig]

1536 King Henry VIII ordered that English language Bibles be placed in every church.

1659 English Restoration: A faction of the British Army removed Richard Cromwell as Lord Protector of the Commonwealth.

1801 Captain Thomas Cochrane (born at Annsfield, near Hamilton, Lanarkshire) captured the 32-gun Spanish frigate El Gamo in his 14 gun ship HMS Speedy.

1840 The first postage stamps, the ‘Penny Black’ and two-penny ‘blues’, which were the brainchild of Roland Hill, officially went on sale in Britain.

1910 Following the death of King Edward VII, George V acceded to the throne. He celebrated his Silver Jubilee with Queen Mary in 1935.

1954 Roger Bannister, a 25 year old British medical student, became the first man to run a mile in less than four minute (at the Iffley Road Sports Ground, Oxford). His time was 3 minute 59.4 seconds.

1959 Icelandic gunboats fire lived ammunition at British trawlers during a Cod War between Britain and Iceland over fishing rights in the North Sea.

1960 Princess Margaret, sister of Queen Elizabeth II, married Anthony Armstrong-Jones at Westminster Abbey in London. It was the first televised royal wedding and was watched by more than 20 million viewers.

1961 The first football team to achieve the double (FA Cup and League champions), was Tottenham Hotspur led by Danny Blanchflower when they beat Leicester City 2-0 to win the Cup at Wembley.

1966 At Chester Crown Court, 'Moors murderers' Ian Brady and Myra Hindley were found guilty of torturing and killing several children before burying their bodies on the moors north of Manchester.

1988 Graeme Hick, Worcestershire's 21 year year old cricketer, scored 405 runs, not out, in a county championship match. It was the biggest innings in England in 93 years.

1990 London telephone codes changed to 071 and 081 (replacing 01).

1994 The Queen and France's President Francois Mitterrand formally opened the Channel Tunnel during two elaborate ceremonies in France and Britain.

1995 The Queen Mother opened (in Hyde Park) three days of VE Day celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of the ending of World War Two.

1997 The Bank of England was given independence from political control. It was the most significant change in its 300 year history.

1999 In an historic vote, electors in Scotland and Wales went to the polls to chose their representatives for the newly-devolved Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly.

[annie]

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[Rosalind]

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