today.nukz.net: Almanac August 5

Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents.

A protégé of Flaubert, Maupassant's stories are characterized by their economy of style and efficient, effortless dénouement. Many of the stories are set during the Franco-Prussian War of the 1870s and several describe the futility of war and the innocent civilians who, caught in the conflict, emerge changed. He authored some 300 short stories, six novels, three travel books, and one volume of verse. The story "Boule de Suif" ("Ball of Fat", 1880) is often accounted his masterpiece. His most unsettling horror story, "Le Horla" (1887), was about madness and suicide.

Events

642 – Battle of Maserfield – Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Northumbria.
910 – The last major Danish army to raid England is defeated at the Battle of Tettenhall by the allied forces of Mercia and Wessex, led by King Edward the Elder and Earl Aethelred of Mercia.
1068 – Byzantine–Norman wars: Italo-Normans begin a nearly-three-year siege of Bari.
1100 – Henry I is crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey.
1305 – William Wallace, who led the Scottish resistance against England, is captured by the English near Glasgow and transported to London where he is put on trial and executed.
1388 – The Battle of Otterburn, a border skirmish between the Scottish and the English in Northern England, is fought near Otterburn.
1583 – Sir Humphrey Gilbert establishes the first English colony in North America, at what is now St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.
1600 – The Gowrie Conspiracy against King James VI of Scotland (later to become King James I of England) takes place.
1620 – The Mayflower departs from Southampton, England on its first attempt to reach North America.
1689 – 1,500 Iroquois attack the village of Lachine in New France.
1716 – The Battle of Petrovaradin takes place.
1735 – Freedom of the press: New York Weekly Journal writer John Peter Zenger is acquitted of seditious libel against the royal governor of New York, on the basis that what he had published was true.
1763 – Pontiac's War: Battle of Bushy Run – British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run.
1772 – The First Partition of Poland begins.
1781 – The Battle of Dogger Bank takes place.
1824 – Greek War of Independence: Constantine Kanaris leads a Greek fleet to victory against Ottoman and Egyptian ships in the Battle of Samos.
1858 – Cyrus West Field and others complete the first transatlantic telegraph cable after several unsuccessful attempts. It will operate for less than a month.
1860 – Charles XV of Sweden of Sweden-Norway is crowned king of Norway in Trondheim.
1861 – American Civil War: in order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government levies the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US $800; rescinded in 1872).
1861 – The United States Army abolishes flogging.
1862 – American Civil War: Battle of Baton Rouge – along the Mississippi River near Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Confederate troops attempt to take the city, but are driven back by fire from Union gunboats.
1864 – American Civil War: the Battle of Mobile Bay begins – at Mobile Bay near Mobile, Alabama, Admiral David Farragut leads a Union flotilla through Confederate defenses and seals one of the last major Southern ports.
1870 – Franco-Prussian War: the Battle of Spicheren is fought, resulting in a Prussian victory.
1874 – Japan launches its postal savings system, modeled after a similar system in the United Kingdom.
1882 – The Standard Oil of New Jersey is established.
1884 – The cornerstone for the Statue of Liberty is laid on Bedloe's Island (now Liberty Island) in New York Harbor.
1888 – Bertha Benz drives from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back in the first long distance automobile trip, commemorated as the Bertha Benz Memorial Route since 2008.
1901 – Peter O'Connor sets the first IAAF recognised long jump world record of 24 ft 11.75 in (7.6137 m) The record will stand for 20 years.
1906 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar, King of Iran, agrees to convert the government to a constitutional monarchy.
1914 – World War I: the German minelayer Königin Luise lays a minefield about 40 miles (64 km) off the Thames Estuary (Lowestoft). She is intercepted and sunk by the British light-cruiser HMS Amphion.
1914 – In Cleveland, Ohio, the first electric traffic light is installed.
1916 – World War I: Battle of Romani – Allied forces, under the command of Archibald Murray, defeat an attacking Ottoman army under the command of Friedrich Freiherr Kress von Kressenstein, securing the Suez Canal and beginning the Ottoman retreat from the Sinai Peninsula.
1925 – Plaid Cymru is formed with the aim of disseminating knowledge of the Welsh language that is at the time in danger of dying out.
1926 – Harry Houdini performs his greatest feat, spending 91 minutes underwater in a sealed tank before escaping.
1940 – World War II: the Soviet Union formally annexes Latvia.
1941 – World War II: The Battle of Smolensk concludes with Germany capturing about 300,000 Soviet Red Army prisoners.
1944 – World War II: possibly the biggest prison breakout in history occurs as 545 Japanese POWs attempt to escape outside the town of Cowra, New South Wales, Australia.
1944 – World War II: Polish insurgents liberate a German labor camp in Warsaw, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners.
1944 – World War II: The Nazis begin a week-long massacre of anywhere between 40,000 and 100,000 civilians and prisoners of war in Wola, Poland.
1949 – In Ecuador, an earthquake destroys 50 towns and kills more than 6,000.
1949 – The Mann Gulch fire kills 13 firefighters in Montana.
1957 – American Bandstand, a show dedicated to the teenage "baby-boomers" by playing the songs and showing popular dances of the time, debuts on the ABC television network.
1960 – Burkina Faso, then known as Upper Volta, becomes independent from France.
1962 – Nelson Mandela is jailed. He would not be released until 1990.
1963 – The United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union sign a nuclear test ban treaty.
1964 – Vietnam War: Operation Pierce Arrow – American aircraft from carriers USS Ticonderoga and USS Constellation bomb North Vietnam in retaliation for strikes against U.S. destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin.
1965 – The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 begins as Pakistani soldiers cross the Line of Control dressed as locals.
1969 – Mariner program: Mariner 7 makes its closest fly-by of Mars (3,524 kilometers).
1971 – The first Pacific Islands Forum (then known as the "South Pacific Forum") is held in Wellington, New Zealand, with the aim of enhancing cooperation between the independent countries of the Pacific Ocean.
1974 – Vietnam War: the U.S. Congress places a $1 billion dollar limit on military aid to South Vietnam.
1979 – In Afghanistan, Maoists undertake an attempted military uprising.
1981 – Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 striking air-traffic controllers who ignored his order for them to return to work.
1989 – General elections are held in Nicaragua with the Sandinista National Liberation Front winning a majority.
1995 – The city of Knin, a significant Serb stronghold, is captured by Croatian forces during Operation Storm. The date is celebrated in Croatia as Victory Day.
2003 – A car bomb explodes in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta outside the Marriott Hotel killing 12 and injuring 150.
2010 – 2010 Copiapó mining accident occurs, trapping 33 Chilean miners approximately 2,300 ft (700 m) below the ground.

Births

1301 – Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent, English politician (d. 1330)
1397 – Guillaume Dufay, Franco-Flemish composer and theorist (d. 1474)
1461 – King Alexander Jagiellon of Poland (d. 1506)
1540 – Joseph Justus Scaliger, French philologist and historian (d. 1609)
1565 – Paola Massarenghi, Italian composer (d. 1565)
1623 – Antonio Cesti, Italian composer (d. 1669)
1641 – John Hathorne, American magistrate (d. 1717)
1662 – James Anderson, Scottish historian (d. 1728)
1694 – Leonardo Leo, Italian composer (d. 1744)
1742 – Jean-Baptiste Krumpholz, Czech composer and harpist (d. 1790)
1749 – Thomas Lynch, Jr., American congressman (d. 1779)
1797 – Friedrich August Kummer, German composer (d. 1879)
1802 – Niels Henrik Abel, Norwegian mathematician (d. 1829)
1811 – Ambroise Thomas, French opera composer (d. 1896)
1813 – Ivar Aasen, Norwegian poet and linguist (d. 1896)
1815 – Edward John Eyre, English explorer (d. 1901)
1827 – Deodoro da Fonseca, Brazilian statesman (d. 1892)
1828 – Queen Louise of the Netherlands, Dutch consort of Charles XV of Sweden (d. 1871)
1833 – Queen Carola of Vasa, Austrian consort of Albert of Saxony (d. 1907)
1843 – James Scott Skinner, Scottish composer (d. 1927)
1844 – Ilya Repin, Russian painter and sculptor (d. 1930)
1850 – Guy de Maupassant, French writer (d. 1893)
1862 – Joseph Merrick, English sideshow performer (d. 1890)
1866 – Carl Harries, German chemist (d. 1923)
1866 – Harry Trott, Australian cricketer (d. 1917)
1868 – Oskar Merikanto, Finnish composer (d. 1924)
1872 – Oswaldo Cruz, Brazilian physician (d. 1917)
1874 – Wesley Clair Mitchell, American economist (d. 1948)
1876 – Mary Ritter Beard, American historian (d. 1958)
1877 – Tom Thomson, Canadian painter (d. 1917)
1879 – Wladimir Aïtoff, French rugby player (d. 1963)
1880 – Gertrude Rush, African-American lawyer (d. 1962)
1887 – Reginald Owen, English actor (d. 1972)
1888 – Victor Francen, Belgian-born French actor (d. 1977)
1889 – Conrad Aiken, American writer (d. 1973)
1890 – Erich Kleiber, Austrian conductor (d. 1956)
1890 – Naum Gabo, Russian sculptor (d. 1977)
1897 – Aksel Larsen, Danish politician (d. 1972)
1901 – Claude Autant-Lara, French film director (d. 2000)
1904 – Kenneth V. Thimann, English-born American botanist and microbiologist (d. 1997)
1906 – John Huston, American director (d. 1987)
1906 – Wassily Leontief, Russian economist, Nobel laureate (d. 1999)
1906 – Joan Hickson, English actress (d. 1998)
1908 – Harold Holt, 17th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1967)
1910 – Bruno Coquatrix, French songwriter and music impresario (d. 1979)
1911 – Robert Taylor, American actor (d. 1969)
1912 – Abbé Pierre, French Catholic priest (d. 2007)
1914 – Parley Baer, American actor (d. 2002)
1914 – David Brian, American actor (d. 1993)
1914 – Stjepan Šulek, Croatian composer and conductor (d. 1986)
1918 – Tom Drake, American actor (d. 1982)
1918 – Betty Oliphant, Canadian ballerina (d. 2004)
1920 – Selma Diamond, Canadian-born American actress (d. 1985)
1922 – L. Tom Perry, American religious figure
1923 – Devan Nair, Singaporean statesman (d. 2005)
1926 – Betsy Jolas, French composer
1927 – Gunnar Bucht, Swedish composer and musicologist
1929 – Ottó Boros, Hungarian water polo player (d. 1988)
1930 – Neil Armstrong, American astronaut
1930 – Michal Kovác, Slovakian politician
1932 – Vladimir Fedoseyev, Russian conductor
1932 – Tera de Marez Oyens, Dutch composer (d. 1996)
1934 – Wendell Berry, American poet, writer and farmer
1934 – Vern Gosdin, American country music singer (d. 2009)
1934 – Karl Johan Åström, Control engineer and theorist
1934 – Gay Byrne, Irish broadcaster
1935 – John Saxon, American actor
1935 – Michael Ballhaus, German cinematographer
1937 – Herb Brooks, American ice hockey coach (d. 2003)
1937 – Brian G. Marsden, British astronomer (d. 2010)
1939 – Princess Irene of the Netherlands
1940 – Roman Gabriel, American football player
1941 – Bob Clark, American film director (d. 2007)
1941 – Airto Moreira, Brazilian percussionist
1941 – Leonid Kizim, Soviet cosmonaut (d. 2010)
1943 – Nelson Briles, American baseball player (d. 2005)
1943 – Sammi Smith, American country singer and songwriter (d. 2005)
1945 – Csaba Giczy, Hungarian sprint canoer
1945 – Loni Anderson, American actress
1946 – Bruce Coslet, American football player and coach
1946 – Ron Silliman, American poet
1946 – Erika Slezak, American actress
1946 – Rick van der Linden, Dutch composer and keyboardist
1947 – Angry Anderson, Australian entertainer (Rose Tattoo)
1947 – Bernie Carbo, American baseball player
1947 – Rick Derringer, American guitarist and vocalist
1947 – Greg Leskiw, Canadian guitarist
1948 – Carole Laure, French-Canadian actress
1948 – Ray Clemence, English footballer
1950 – Goldie Rogers, Canadian wrestler (d. 2012)
1951 – John Jarratt, Australian actor
1952 – Louis Walsh, Irish music manager
1952 – Tamás Faragó, Hungarian water polo player
1953 – Rick Mahler, American baseball player (d. 2005)
1953 – Samantha Sang, Australian singer
1955 – Eddie Ojeda, guitarist for Twisted Sister
1956 – Jerry Ciccoritti, Canadian film director
1956 – Maureen McCormick, American actress
1957 – Greg Feith, former American Senior Air Safety Investigator
1957 – David Gill, chief executive of Manchester United
1957 – Faith Prince, American actress
1957 – Clayton Rohner, American actor
1959 – Pete Burns, English singer (Dead or Alive)
1959 – Pat Smear, American guitarist (Nirvana, Foo Fighters)
1960 – Seth Swirsky, American songwriter
1961 – Tawny Kitaen, American actress
1961 – Mark O'Connor, American violinist
1961 – Athula Samarasekera, Sri Lankan cricketer
1962 – Patrick Ewing, Jamacian-born American basketball player
1962 – Richard de Groen, New Zealand cricketer
1962 – Otis Thorpe, American basketball player
1963 – Steve Lee (singer), Swiss musician and vocalist Gotthard (band) (d. 2010)
1964 – Adam Yauch, American rapper (Beastie Boys) (d. 2012)
1965 – Motoi Sakuraba, Japanese composer
1965 – Jeff Coffin, American jazz and alternative rock musician
1965 – Scott William Winters, American actor
1966 – Jennifer Finch, American photographer and musician
1966 – Jonathan Silverman, American actor
1967 – Matthew Caws, American singer (Nada Surf)
1967 – Thomas Lang, Austrian drummer
1968 – Terri Clark, Canadian country singer
1968 – Funkmaster Flex, American hip hop DJ
1968 – Kendo Kashin, Japanese professional wrestler
1968 – Marine Le Pen, French politician
1968 – Oleh Luzhnyi, Ukrainian footballer
1968 – Colin McRae, Scottish rally driver (d. 2007)
1968 – John Olerud, American baseball player
1969 – Vasbert Drakes, Barbadian cricketer
1969 – Venkatesh Prasad, Indian cricketer
1969 – Paola Volpato, Chilean actress
1969 – Robert Scott, Australian rower
1970 – James Gunn, American filmmaker
1971 – Jared Hasselhoff, American bassist (Bloodhound Gang)
1972 – Christian Olde Wolbers, Belgian guitarist and bassist (Fear Factory)
1972 – Aaqib Javed, Pakistani cricketer
1972 – Ikuto Hidaka, Japanese professional wrestler
1972 – Theodore Whitmore, Jamaican footballer
1973 – Sean Sherk, American mixed martial artist
1973 – Sanwar Hossain, Bangladeshi cricketer
1974 – Alvin Ceccoli, Australian soccer player
1974 – Olle Kullinger, Swedish footballer
1974 – Antoine Sibierski, French footballer
1975 – Antony Cotton, English actor
1975 – Ami Foster, American actress
1975 – Haim Goldenberg, Israeli/Canadian mentalist (GoldMind)
1975 – Iddo Goldberg, Israeli/British actor
1975 – Kajol Mukherjee, Indian actress
1975 – Eicca Toppinen, Finnish cellist (Apocalyptica)
1975 – Dan Hipgrave, British musician, freelance journalist, and businessman
1976 – Jeff Friesen, Canadian ice hockey player
1976 – Kwon Sang-woo, South Korean actor
1976 – Marian Pahars, Latvian footballer
1977 – Eric Hinske, American baseball player
1977 – Michael Walsh, English footballer
1977 – Mark Mulder, American baseball player
1978 – Kim Gevaert, Belgian sprinter
1978 – Nektaria Karantzi, Greek singer
1978 – Rita Faltoyano, Hungarian pornographic actress
1979 – David Healy, Northern Irish footballer
1980 – Wayne Bridge, English footballer
1980 – Salvador Cabañas, Paraguayan footballer
1980 – Jason Culina, Australian footballer
1980 – Kaylani Lei, Singaporean/American pornographic actress
1980 – Vatsal Sheth, Indian actor
1980 – Ali Umar, Maldivian footballer
1980 – Sophie Winkleman, English actress
1981 – David Clarke, British ice hockey player
1981 – Carl Crawford, American baseball player
1981 – Tsimafei Dranchuk, Belarusian dissident
1981 – Maik Franz, German footballer
1981 – Erik Guay, Canadian alpine skier
1981 – Alester Maregwede, Zimbabwean cricketer
1981 – Rachel Scott, American murder victim (d. 1999)
1981 – Kou Shibasaki, Japanese singer
1981 – Cory Williams, American internet celebrity
1981 – Zion, Puerto Rican singer
1982 – Jamie Houston, English/German rugby player
1982 – Lolo Jones, American track and field athlete
1982 – Michele Pazienza, Italian footballer
1982 – Tobias Regner, German singer
1982 – Pete Sell, American mixed martial artist
1982 – Ryu Seung-Min, Korean table tennis player
1983 – Korey Hall, American football player
1983 – Dawn Richard, American singer (Danity Kane, Diddy – Dirty Money)
1985 – Laurent Ciman, Belgian footballer
1985 – Megan Joy Corkrey, American singer
1985 – Salomon Kalou, Ivorian footballer
1986 – Paula Creamer, American golfer
1986 – Cassie Davis, Australian singer
1987 – Lexi Belle, American pornographic actress
1987 – Genelia D'Souza, Indian actress
1987 – Xenia Tchoumitcheva, Swiss model
1988 – Federica Pellegrini, Italian swimmer
1988 – Kendra Spears, American model
1989 – Mathieu Manset, French footballer
1993 – Suzuka Ohgo, Japanese actress
1997 – Adam Irigoyen, American actor
1997 – Olivia Holt, American actress
1998 – Kanon Suzuki, Japanese singer (Morning Musume)
2000 – Maya Bond, Japanese/American singer-songwriter and drummer

Deaths

882 – King Louis III of France (b. 863)
1063 – Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, King of Gwynedd (b. 1007)
1364 – Emperor Kogon of Japan (b. 1313)
1572 – Isaac Luria, Palestinian Kabbalist (b. 1534)
1579 – Stanislaus Hosius, Polish Catholic cardinal (b. 1504)
1610 – Alonso García de Ramón, Spanish soldier and twice Royal Governor of Chile (b. 1552)
1633 – George Abbot, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1562)
1678 – Juan García de Zéspedes, Mexican viol player, tenor and composer (b. 1619)
1729 – Thomas Newcomen, English engineer (b. 1664)
1743 – John Hervey, 2nd Baron Hervey, English statesman and writer (b. 1696)
1778 – Charles Clémencet, French historian (b. 1703)
1792 – Frederick North, Lord North, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1732)
1799 – Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, Royal Navy admiral of the fleet (b. 1726)
1868 – Jacques Boucher de Crèvecœur de Perthes, French archaeologist (b. 1788)
1877 – Gustav, Prince of Vasa (b. 1799)
1880 – Ferdinand Ritter von Hebra, Austrian physician (b. 1816)
1888 – Anna Bates, known for giving the heaviest birth ever (b. 1846)
1895 – Friedrich Engels, German philosopher (b. 1820)
1901 – Victoria, Princess Royal of Great Britain and German Empress (b. 1840)
1911 – Bob Caruthers, American baseball player (b. 1864)
1921 – Dimitrios Rallis, Greek politician, five times Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1844)
1923 – Vatroslav Jagic, Croatian Slavist (b. 1835)
1925 – Jennie Lee, American actress (b. 1848)
1929 – Millicent Fawcett, British suffragist (b. 1847)
1935 – David Townsend, Art Director (b. 1891)
1939 – Béla Jankovich, Hungarian politician (b. 1865)
1944 – Maurice Turnbull, English cricketer (b. 1906)
1946 – Wilhelm Marx, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1863)
1948 – Montagu Toller, English cricket player (b. 1871)
1952 – Sameera Moussa, Egyptian nuclear scientist (b. 1917)
1955 – Carmen Miranda, Portuguese actress and singer (b. 1909)
1957 – Heinrich Otto Wieland, German chemist, Nobel Laureate (b. 1877)
1959 – Edgar Guest, English poet (b. 1881)
1960 – Arthur Meighen, 9th Prime Minister of Canada (b. 1874)
1962 – Marilyn Monroe, American actress (b. 1926)
1963 – Salvador Bacarisse, Spanish composer (b. 1898)
1964 – Art Ross, Canadian hockey player and executive (b. 1886)
1967 – György Bródy, Hungarian water polo player (b. 1908)
1968 – Luther Perkins American guitarist (b. 1928)
1972 – Harry Hylton-Foster, Speaker of the British House of Commons (b. 1905)
1978 – Jesse Haines, American baseball player (b. 1893)
1980 – Harold L. Runnels, American politician (b. 1924)
1983 – Judy Canova, American actress (b. 1913)
1983 – Joan Robinson, English economist (b. 1903)
1984 – Richard Burton, Welsh actor (b. 1925)
1987 – Georg Gaßmann, German politician (b. 1910)
1991 – Paul Brown, American football coach (b. 1908)
1991 – Soichiro Honda, Japanese automotive executive (b. 1906)
1992 – Jeff Porcaro, American drummer (Toto) (b. 1954)
1994 – Menachem Avidom, Israeli composer (b. 1908)
1994 – Alain de Changy, Belgian racing driver (b. 1922)
1998 – Otto Kretschmer, German U-boat commander (b. 1912)
1998 – Todor Zhivkov, Bulgarian dictator (b. 1911)
2000 – Otto Buchsbaum, Austrian-born Brazilian writer and ecological activist (b. 1920)
2000 – Tullio Crali, Italian artist associated with Futurism (b. 1910)
2000 – Alec Guinness, British actor (b. 1914)
2001 – Otema Allimadi, Prime Minister of Uganda (b. 1929)
2001 – Christopher Skase, Australian fugitive businessman (b. 1948)
2002 – Josh Ryan Evans, American actor (b. 1982)
2002 – Chick Hearn, American basketball announcer (b. 1916)
2002 – Franco Lucentini, Italian writer (b. 1920)
2002 – Matt Robinson, American actor (b. 1937)
2005 – Polina Astakhova, Russian gymnast (b. 1936)
2005 – Jim O'Hora, American football coach (b. 1915)
2005 – Raul Roco, Philippine senator (b. 1941)
2006 – Susan Butcher, American sled dog champion (b. 1954)
2007 – Jean-Marie Lustiger, French Catholic Cardinal (b. 1926)
2007 – Florian Pitti?, Romanian actor, singer and producer (b. 1943)
2008 – Neil Bartlett, English chemist, produced xenon hexafluoroplatinate (b. 1932)
2008 – Reg Lindsay, Australian country and western singer-songwriter (b. 1929)
2009 – Budd Schulberg, American screenwriter and novelist (b. 1914)
2011 – Andrzej Lepper, former Polish Deputy Prime Minister (b. 1954)
2011 – Aziz Shavershian, Australian bodybuilder (b. 1989)