5th July

[chenrezig]

1100 Henry I was crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.

1305 Sir William Wallace, Scottish hero and champion of Scottish independence who beat Edward I at the battle of Stirling Bridge, was captured by the English and later executed as a traitor. The National Wallace Monument is on the outskirts of Stirling.

1583 English soldier and navigator Sir Humphrey Gilbert (half-brother of Sir Walter Raleigh) established the first English colony in North America, at what is now St John's, Newfoundland and claimed it for Elizabeth I.

1620 The Mayflower departed from Southampton on its first attempt to reach North America but the sister ship, the Speedwell developed a leak. It had to be refitted at Dartmouth and, after further leaks (or possibly sabotage) the Mayflower made the 60 day crossing alone.

1729 The death of Thomas Newcomen. Newcomen created the first practical steam engine for pumping water from tin mines. Prior to his invention flooding was a major problem, thus limiting the depth at which the mineral could be mined.

1792 The death of Lord Frederick North, British Prime Minister whose indecisive leadership led to the loss of the American colonies.

1858 The first transatlantic cable was officially opened, with Queen Victoria sending a telegraphic message to US President James Buchanan.

1901 Britain's first cinema, the Mohawk, opened in Islington, north London. Films were accompanied by the 16-piece Fonobian Orchestra. At the height of their popularity in the 1940s, cinemas in Britain had average weekly attendances of 30 million.

1925 The political party Plaid Cymru was formed with the aim of disseminating knowledge of the Welsh language which was, at the time, in danger of dying out.

1963 A Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed in Moscow by Russia, the United States and Britain. Under the treaty, nuclear tests in the Earth's atmosphere, in space or under the sea were outlawed.

1975 Forestry Commission officials announced that Dutch elm disease, which had attacked more than three million trees in Britain, was spreading.

1976 The clock overlooking the Houses of Parliament stopped for the first time in 117 years.

1983 Twenty two members of the IRA were jailed for a total of more than 4,000 years following Northern Ireland's biggest-ever terrorist trial.

1984 Richard Burton, Welsh actor died. He was aged 58.

1986 Princess Anne rode Gulfland to win the 3.45 at Redcar; her first victory as a jockey.

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