1387 Geoffrey Chaucer, who was a Knight of the shire for Kent and a representative to Parliament, started work on his Canterbury Tales in 1386. A collection of tales written in English prose and verse told by different pilgrims (including Chaucer himself), the pilgrims met at Tabard Inn, Southwark then told their stories on their way to Thomas Becket's tomb in Canterbury. April 17, 1387 is thought to be the date of the start of the pilgrimage to Canterbury recounted in the work.
1397 Geoffrey Chaucer recited his Canterbury Tales for the first time at the court of Richard II on April 17, 1397. Chaucer died in 1400 having failed to complete his 14 year old project having written 17,000 lines. By the time of his death twenty-four tales had been told.
1521 Having denied the infallibility of the pope, rejecting the Papal claim to be the sole authority of scriptures, and the infallibility of the general council, Martin Luther was summoned by the powerful Charles V, of Spain due to his alleged heresies. He refused to go into hiding despite his friends' caution. Luther's trial over his teachings begins on April 17, 1521 during the assembly of the Diet of Worms.
1552 On April 17, 1552 the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier set sail on the Santa Cruz for China. He reached the Chinese island of Shangchuan off the shore, near Canton and whilst waiting for a junk to take him to the mainland, he fell ill with a fever. A poor man, George Alvarez, found him lying on the shore and carried him to his hut. He died on the island seven and a half months later.
1555 13 months after she was imprisoned in the Tower of London, Princess Elizabeth was recalled to court on April 17, 1555 to attend the final stages of her half sister Mary 1st's apparent pregnancy. Once Elizabeth was recalled to court, her future hinged on If Mary was going to give birth to a healthy child. When it became clear that Mary was not pregnant, no one believed any longer that she could have a child and Elizabeth's succession as Queen Elizabeth I seemed assured.
1790 For the last year of his life, Benjamin Franklin was bedridden, escaping severe pain only by the use of opium. He died from pleurisy at his home in Philadelphia on April 17, 1790. Franklin was interred in the Christ Church Burial Ground beside his wife in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His funeral in Philadelphia attracted the largest crowd of mourners ever known at that time. Around 20,000 people attended the burial.
 |
| Opening prologue of The Wife of Bath's Tale from the Ellesmere Manuscript. |
1397 Geoffrey Chaucer recited his Canterbury Tales for the first time at the court of Richard II on April 17, 1397. Chaucer died in 1400 having failed to complete his 14 year old project having written 17,000 lines. By the time of his death twenty-four tales had been told.
1521 Having denied the infallibility of the pope, rejecting the Papal claim to be the sole authority of scriptures, and the infallibility of the general council, Martin Luther was summoned by the powerful Charles V, of Spain due to his alleged heresies. He refused to go into hiding despite his friends' caution. Luther's trial over his teachings begins on April 17, 1521 during the assembly of the Diet of Worms.
 |
| Luther before the Diet of Worms by Anton von Werner (1843-1915) |
1552 On April 17, 1552 the Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier set sail on the Santa Cruz for China. He reached the Chinese island of Shangchuan off the shore, near Canton and whilst waiting for a junk to take him to the mainland, he fell ill with a fever. A poor man, George Alvarez, found him lying on the shore and carried him to his hut. He died on the island seven and a half months later.
1555 13 months after she was imprisoned in the Tower of London, Princess Elizabeth was recalled to court on April 17, 1555 to attend the final stages of her half sister Mary 1st's apparent pregnancy. Once Elizabeth was recalled to court, her future hinged on If Mary was going to give birth to a healthy child. When it became clear that Mary was not pregnant, no one believed any longer that she could have a child and Elizabeth's succession as Queen Elizabeth I seemed assured.
 |
| The Lady Elizabeth in about 1546, by an unknown artist |
1783 Chess-playing machines were a popular novelty in the 18th century, but the most famous one, The Turk, wasn't unveiled until 1770. The Turk's inventor and operator was Wolfgang von Kempelen, an ingenious engineer from Austria. It began its European tour in April 1783, including a stop at Versailles on April 17, challenging and defeating notable figures. The Turk turned out to be a cleverly designed automaton concealing a skilled human chess player inside who operated the machine.
1837 John Pierpont Morgan, better known as J. P. Morgan, was born on April 17, 1837, in Hartford, Connecticut, United States. He was one of the most influential bankers and financiers of his time and played a significant role in shaping the economic and financial landscape of the United States. Morgan was the founder of the banking firm J. P. Morgan & Co., which eventually became one of the largest and most powerful financial institutions in the world and U.S. Steel, the first billion-dollar corporation.
1860 The boxing match between Tom Sayers and John C. Heenan on April 17, 1860 is widely considered to be a significant contender for the title of the first ever "world title" international boxing match. It pitted champions from two different countries, England (Sayers) and the United States (Heenan).The grueling 42-round bout ended in a draw, further blurring the lines of a clear champion.
1888 The Football League, the oldest such competition in world football, was formed at a meeting on April 17, 1888 at the Royal Hotel, Manchester. The first season of the Football League began a few months later on September 8th with 12 member clubs from the Midlands and North of England: Accrington, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley, Derby County, Everton, Notts County, Preston North End, Stoke, West Bromwich Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
 |
| Preston North End were the first champions in 1888 |
1895 Taiwan was ceded to Japan from Qing China under the terms of the April 17, 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki, following the Sino-Japanese war. Tang Ching-sung was its first president. The island was not regained by China until the Japanese surrender in August 1945.
1896 Spanish ventriloquist Señor Wences was born on April 17, 1896. His popularity grew with his frequent appearances on CBS-TV's The Ed Sullivan Show in the 1950s and 1960s. He was still working in his 90s and in 1986, Wences made a guest appearance on The Garry Shandling Show.
1905 The Tennessee flag was designed by Colonel LeRoy Reeves of the Tennessee National Guard. He was a Johnson City attorney who was serving in the Tennessee National Guard when he created the new flag design. The Tennessee State Legislature officially adopted the flag on April 17, 1905.
1907 The Ellis Island immigration center processed 11,747 people on April 17, 1907, more than on any other day. The immigration station on Ellis Island in New York Harbor opened on January 1, 1892. 14-year-old Irish girl Annie Moore was the first passenger registered. It shut 61 years later on November 12, 1954, after processing more than 12 million immigrants.
 |
| East side of the main building. By Ingfbruno; Wikipedia Commons |
1941 The Egyptian passenger steamship Zamzam was sailing from New York with 202 passengers including 140 missionaries of 20 different denominations bound for various mission fields in Africa during World War II. On April 17, 1941 the German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis, mistaking the Zamzam for a British Q-ship or troop transport was mistakenly attacked and sunk it in the South Atlantic. However, all the missionary passengers managed to abandon ship and were miraculously delivered.
1949 Ireland's link with the Commonwealth was terminated with the passage of the Republic of Ireland Act 1948. At midnight on April 17, 1949 the 26 Irish counties officially left the British Empire. A 21-gun salute on O'Connell Bridge, Dublin, ushered in the Republic of Ireland.
1951 England has 10 National Parks, which together cover more than 9% of the country's total land area. The Peak District, located in central England, was the first National Park to be established in the UK, on April 17, 1951. The creation of National Parks was intended to protect some of the UK's most beautiful and important natural landscapes, while also providing opportunities for people to enjoy and experience them.
1964 Jerrie Mock was the first woman to fly solo around the world on April 17, 1964, when she landed in Columbus, Ohio. She flew a single engine Cessna 180 christened the "Spirit of Columbus" and nicknamed "Charlie." The flight had began March 19, 1964, in Columbus, Ohio, and took 29 days, 21 stopovers and almost 22,860 miles (36,790 km).
1968 Princess Anne passed her driving test at the first attempt on April 17, 1968 at Isleworth, Middlesex. The 17-year-old Princess Anne drove a red Rover 2000. She began driving at Balmoral, Windsor and Sandringham, and her first instructors were the Queen and Prince Philip.
1975 The Khmer Rouge were a Stalinist, Maoist militant group who took over Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, on April 17, 1975. Led by Pol Pot, they immediately forced everyone out of the cities, effectively turning the whole country into a giant labor camp. Over the next four years between 1.7 million and 2 million people were killed (20–30% of the population) in genocide comparable to the Holocaust.
1975 Each April 17 is celebrated as "Queen Day" in Japan, to mark the band's first visit to the country back in 1975. On Queen Day, Japanese fans celebrate the band's music and legacy in a variety of ways. Some fans attend concerts or watch movies and documentaries about the band. Others dress up as their favorite Queen members or host parties with Queen-themed food and drinks. Still others simply listen to Queen's music and reminisce about their favorite songs.
1986 The Metromover is a free mass transit automated people mover train system operated by Miami-Dade Transit in Miami. It originally began service to the Downtown/Inner Loop on April 17, 1986, and was later expanded with the Omni and Brickell Loop extensions on May 26, 1994.
The Metromover is the largest and most used public people mover in the United States.
1986 The longest war in recorded history lasted 335 years and 19 days. It was between the Netherlands and the Isles of Scilly, an archipelago located off the southwest coast of England. The war began in 1651 but the warring parties quickly recalled their troops, though without a treaty declaring its end. The conflict was forgotten until a Scilly historian contacted the Dutch about it in 1985 and a treaty was officially declared on April 17, 1986.
2006 On April 17, 2006, Mark Curry (star of Hangin' With Mr. Cooper) was doing laundry when an aerosol can that had fallen behind a water heater exploded. 18% of his body, including his arm, back and side, was burnt. Curry contemplated suicide, but after talking to his friends Sinbad and Bill Cosby, he changed his mind.
2013 In line with Margaret Thatcher's wishes she received a ceremonial funeral, including full military honors, with a church service at St Paul's Cathedral on April 17, 2013. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip attended the ceremony, the second time in the Queen's reign that she had attended the funeral of a former prime minister. The picture below shows Thatcher's coffin being carried up the steps of St Paul's Cathedral
1986 The Metromover is a free mass transit automated people mover train system operated by Miami-Dade Transit in Miami. It originally began service to the Downtown/Inner Loop on April 17, 1986, and was later expanded with the Omni and Brickell Loop extensions on May 26, 1994.
The Metromover is the largest and most used public people mover in the United States.
1986 The longest war in recorded history lasted 335 years and 19 days. It was between the Netherlands and the Isles of Scilly, an archipelago located off the southwest coast of England. The war began in 1651 but the warring parties quickly recalled their troops, though without a treaty declaring its end. The conflict was forgotten until a Scilly historian contacted the Dutch about it in 1985 and a treaty was officially declared on April 17, 1986.
2006 On April 17, 2006, Mark Curry (star of Hangin' With Mr. Cooper) was doing laundry when an aerosol can that had fallen behind a water heater exploded. 18% of his body, including his arm, back and side, was burnt. Curry contemplated suicide, but after talking to his friends Sinbad and Bill Cosby, he changed his mind.
2013 In line with Margaret Thatcher's wishes she received a ceremonial funeral, including full military honors, with a church service at St Paul's Cathedral on April 17, 2013. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip attended the ceremony, the second time in the Queen's reign that she had attended the funeral of a former prime minister. The picture below shows Thatcher's coffin being carried up the steps of St Paul's Cathedral
 |
| By Österreichische Außenministerium - Flickr: |
2014 The fastest time to eat a jam doughnut with no hands and without licking the lips is a lightning-fast 11.41 seconds. The record was achieved by Philip Joseph Santoro in San Francisco, California on April 17, 2014. Imagine the technique required to achieve such a feat – a true mastery of doughnut consumption without the use of utensils!
Bats do good work, they keep pests away and they’re also pollinators, which is why they get their own day. April 17th is National Bat Appreciation Day.
Comments
Post a Comment