Chapter XVII: Part 17

1664. The English conventicle act was passed forbidding more than five persons meeting for religious purposes except those regulated by the book of common prayer.

1690. A party of French and Indians under the sieur Hertel, returning from a marauding excursion among the English settlements, attacked and destroyed the fort at Casco, Me.

1723. JOSEPH BINGHAM, an English ecclesiastic, died; author of _Antiquities of the Christian Church_, a learned and laborious work, in 10 vols.

1727. CATHARINE ALEXIEVNA, empress of Russia, died. She was the daughter of a peasant of Livonia, married a Swedish dragoon, who was killed on the same day in battle. The Russian general Bauer made her his mistress, after which she lived a short time with prince Mentschicoff. In her 17th year she became the mistress of Peter the Great, who afterwards married her and presented her with the diadem and the sceptre. After his death she was proclaimed sovereign empress of all the Russias, and showed herself worthy of her high fortune.

1729. SAMUEL CLARKE, a famous English divine, died; celebrated also for his writings on mathematics, &c.

1732. WILLIAM LOWTH died; a celebrated English theological writer and commentator.

1738 O. S. BELL, the Scottish traveler, returned to St. Petersburg from his embassy to Constantinople, whither he went at the earnest solicitation of the Russian cabinet, and the British minister. This was the last of his expeditions, and was undertaken in the midst of winter, through a country exposed to all the horrors of a barbarous warfare, attended by only one servant, who understood the Turkish language.

1740. PETER JULIAN ROUILLE, a French Jesuit, died; professor of theology and philosophy to his order, and co-editor of the _Roman History_, 21 vols. quarto.

1742. Battle of Czaslau, or Chatusitz, in Bohemia; the Prussians defeated the Austrians, who lost 7,000; Prussian loss, 3,000.

1749. SAMUEL BOYSE, an Irish poet, died. His talents were amply rewarded, but he unfortunately had a disposition to practice the meanest deceptions to procure benefactions, which brought him to wretchedness and contempt.

1767. ROGER WOLCOTT, governor of Connecticut, died. He never attended school a single day of his life, yet gradually rose by his own efforts to the highest military and civil honors.

1772. The theatre at Amsterdam, in Holland, took fire and burned to death 31 persons.

1774. At a town meeting of the inhabitants of Providence, R. I., the subject of a general congress was acted upon, being the first act of the kind by a public assemblage.

1776. Captain MUGFORD in a vessel of 4 guns captured British ship Hope, 4 guns, with 1,500 barrels powder and military stores, and brought her into the port of Boston.

1794. Battle of Surcoign; British defeated by the French after a sanguinary conflict.

1797. Revolution in Venice, and a democratic government formed under the direction of the French general Angereau.

1797. Louis XVIII compelled to quit the Venetian territory.

1797. MICHEL JEAN SEDAINE, a French dramatic writer, died, aged 78. Bred to the occupation of a stone mason, by application to study he won a place in the French academy.

1801. A French convoy of 560 men with 1 cannon and 550 camels, in Egypt, captured by the British.

1801. WILLIAM HEBERDEN died; an English physician and medical writer.

1809. BONAPARTE issued from Vienna a decree declaring the temporal sovereignty of the pope to be wholly at an end, and incorporating Rome with the French empire. The "holy father" instantly fulminated a bull of excommunication against the daring emperor, but it did not avail; his holiness was taken in his palace and conveyed away at midnight, under pretence that a life so sacred in the eyes of all Christians, might be endangered!

1817. SAMUEL JESSUP died; an opulent English grazier, of pilltaking notoriety. An apothecary's bill, which was given in evidence on a trial a short time previous to his death, affords a table of statistics which will not be exceeded by the memorabilia of the life of any man. In 21 years he took 226,934 pills. He began with a moderate appetite, which increased as he proceeded, so that in the last five years he took them at the rate of 78 a day, and in the year 1814 swallowed not less than 51,590. Notwithstanding this, and an addition of 40,000 bottles of mixtures, he attained the advanced age of 65 years.

1829. JOHN JAY, a distinguished American statesman, died, aged 84. His public services commenced in 1774, and continued till 1801, when he retired to private life; distinguished as a man of great discernment, extensive information, and fine talents as a writer.

1829. Battle between the Russians under general Diebitsch, and the Turks; the latter of whom, 5,000 in number, were defeated and driven into Silistria, with heavy losses on both sides.

1829. Battle of Pravadia, between the Russian army under general Roth, and the Turks under the grand vizier. The Turks are said to have lost 2,000, and the Russians 1,000. The latter maintained their ground, but no important advantage was gained by either party.

1831. NATHANIEL ROCHESTER, an officer in the revolution, died at Rochester, New York, from whom the town took its name.

1838. CHARLES MAURICE DE TALLEYRAND PERIGORD, one of the most distinguished statesmen and diplomatists of modern times, died at Paris, aged 84. His namdee was intimately associated with French politics, from the commencement of the revolution in 1789.

1841. About 250 feet of the cliff on which the defences of the city of Quebec stand, fell away, causing the ruin of several buildings, and the death of about 30 persons.

1843. PETER W. GALLAUDET died at Washington, D. C., aged 88. The Washington manual laborer school and the Howard institution can bear testimony to his industry and patriotism.

1848. Massacre in Naples, justified by the king, on the ground of necessity; 1777 bodies were found, 400 troops killed, and the city given up to pillage.

1849. A severe and very destructive fire at St. Louis, Missouri.

1850. Gallinas, the noted slave factory on the west of Africa, purchased by the Liberian republic.

1856. REDWOOD FISHER, an American author, died, aged 73. He began business as a merchant in Philadelphia; subsequently edited a daily paper in New York, and took an active part in public affairs. He published several volumes on political economy, and was much interested in statistics.

MAY 18.

975. EDWARD (the martyr), murdered by his step-mother. He was the son of king Edgar who enacted laws against excessive drinking, ordaining a size with pins in the cup with penalties on any who should presume to drink _deeper_ than the mark. Hence the phrase _drinking deep_.

1291. The city of Acre, in Palestine, taken by the Turks; after a siege of 30 days the double wall was forced by the Moslems, the principal tower yielded to their engines, the Mamelukes made a general assault, the city was stormed, and death or slavery was the lot of 60,000 Christians, and the Holy Land was again in the hands of the Turks.

1410. ROBERT, emperor of Germany, died, just as a powerful combination had been formed to deprive him of the crown.

1539. FERDINAND DE SOTO, governor of Cuba, sailed for the conquest of Florida with nine vessels, 900 men besides sailors, 213 horses and a herd of swine. He landed on the west coast of the peninsula, with 300 men, and pitched his camp; but about day break the next morning they were attacked by the natives, and obliged to retire.

1565. The Turks under Mustapha, pasha, to the number of 30,000 choice troops, landed on the island of Malta, with a view to extirpate the knights. But the desperate resistance they encountered compelled them to abandon the island with the loss of 25,000 men. Loss of the knights 7,000.

1596. HEEMSKERK, accompanied by Jan Cornelissen Ryp, with two vessels again attempted the discovery of a northern passage to India. In this voyage he became embayed in ice, and passed the winter in the arctic regions, exposed to the rigors of the climate, and other perils. The ill success of this expedition destroyed all hope with the Dutch of finding a northern passage to China.

1652. Naval action near Dover, England; admiral Van Tromp refusing to pay honor to the British flag by lowering his own, brought on a furious battle between him and admiral Blake. One of the Dutch ships taken, and one sunk.

1663. SAMUEL DES MARETS, a French protestant divine, died; celebrated for his controversies, in which he was diligently engaged 18 years, and displayed astonishing knowledge and erudition.

1664. "His sacred majesty," Charles II, advertised that he would attend to healing his people of the king's evil, by _touching_, during the month of May.

1675. STANISLAUS LUBIENIETSKI, a celebrated Polish Socinian, died in exile at Hamburg. His theological works are numerous, but he is better known by a work on comets, entitled _Theatrum Cometicum_, which was written to show that comets portend both good and evil, in opposition to the prevailing notion that they were the harbingers of misfortune only! It contained an elaborate account of all the comets recorded in history (415), down to the year 1665.

1676. Indian battle at Turner's falls, on Connecticut river above Greenfield. The Indians having planted nothing, were unwilling to lose the fishing season also, and had encamped here in great security; when three of the towns below hearing of their position mustered about 150 men, mounted on horses, and set out for their camp. Arriving towards morning, they tied their horses, and proceeding about a quarter of a mile farther, found them sleeping in their huts, without any sentinels or guard. The attack was so sudden and unexpected that they fled, many into the river where they perished, and others were killed under the banks where they had concealed themselves. The Indians at first supposed they had received a visit from their _friends_ the Mohawks, but the daylight disclosing the error, and the fewness of their assailants, they rallied and turned upon their pursuers. The English retreated in turn, unable to resist the superiority of numbers, and not managing their retreat well, thirty-eight were cut off and lost. The Indians acknowledged a loss of 300.

1692. ELIAS ASHMOLE, a noted English antiquary, died. His valuable collection of coins, to the number of 9,000 besides books and other curiosities, were destroyed by fire; but his most valuable gold coins and manuscripts escaped. He was an indefatigable laborer in the cause of science.

1701. FREDERICK SPANHEIM died; a noted divinity professor at Leyden, and a voluminous writer.

1724. Cardinal VINCENT MARIA ORSINI elected pope and took the name of Benedict XIII.

1733. EDMUND CHISHULL, an English traveler, died; author of a book of travels in Turkey.

1742. RICHARD JOY (_the English Samson_), died; a man of wonderful strength.

1769. Virginia entered into the non-importation agreement.

1773. Boundary line between New York and Massachusetts agreed upon.

1787. First attempt made to engrave on glass by M. de Puymaurin, at Toulouse.

1794. Battle of Bullion; French under Jourdan defeated by the Austrians under Beaulieu with the loss of 1,200 killed.

1794. Battle of Tournay; British defeated by the French.

1794. Battle of Lannoy, in France, between the French under Pichegru, and the British under the duke of York; the latter defeated with the loss of sixty pieces of cannon.

1800. PETER ALEXIS WASILIOWITSCH, count Suwaroff-Rimnitskoy, died; a Russian general, known in the wars of Europe as Gen. Suwarrow; distinguished for his bravery and abilities, and equally so for his inhumanities.

1803. War was again declared between France and England. Who, asked Bonaparte, is responsible for the consequences. Ah! who indeed.

1804. The conservative senate of France declared Bonaparte emperor.

1805. Battle of Derne, in Barbary, which was attacked by the Tripolitan army, and defended by the American general Eaton, who repulsed the assailants with great slaughter.

1807. JOHN DOUGLAS, bishop of Salisbury, died. He was one of the first literary characters of the age, and the last surviving member but one of the _beef steak club_, celebrated by Goldsmith in his poem of _Retaliation_.

1821. TIMOTHY BIGELOW, an eminent lawyer of Massachusetts, died. He was 11 years speaker of the assembly, and during a practice of thirty-two years, argued 15,000 causes.

1822. ITURBIDE declared emperor of Mexico by the army under the title of Augustin I.

1832. CASSIMIR PERRIER, prime minister of France, died. He left the army in 1800 to become a banker, in which capacity he acquired an immense fortune, with the advantages of which he combined great mental capacity, talent for business and habits of public speaking. He was one of the few victims of cholera in the higher ranks of life.

1843. CHARLES BAGOT, governor-general of the British North American provinces, died at Kingston, in Canada.

1848. Commander HENRY PINCKNEY, of the United States navy, was drowned by the swamping of a boat.

1850. Great fire at the village of Corning, Chemung county, New York.

1855. JOHN C. SPENCER, an American statesman, died at Albany, aged 67. He was a man of intellect and energy, and was in public life from an early age. He achieved his highest fame from his connection with the revision of the statutes of New York.

MAY 19.

804. FLACCUS ALCUINUS, an English ecclesiastic, died in France. He may be considered as one of the learned few whose genius dissipated the gloom of the 8th century. His writings, most of which are extant, were published 1617. (See Dec. 1.)

1122. Lincoln in England destroyed by fire.

1217. Battle of Lincoln; the French defeated, and England effectually secured from the dominion of Lewis the Dauphin, who was then holding his court within the walls of London.

1218. OTHO IV (_the proud_), emperor of Germany, died. He laid claim to some of the territories of the pope, by whom he was excommunicated and deposed.

1242. HENRY III of England embarked for France, taking with him 30 hhds of silver.

1494. COLUMBUS, proceeding towards Cuba, named the headland Cabo de Cruz on this day. He now ascertained from the natives that Cuba was an island, but after coasting it 335 leagues from the eastern point, renounced the idea; and but for the scarcity of provisions, would have attempted to return to Europe by way of the Red sea, under the impression that he was on the coast of India.

1536. ANNE BOLEYN, queen of England, executed. She was crowned at Westminster 1533 with unparalleled splendor, and in a few weeks after became the mother of the famous Elizabeth.

1610. THOMAS SANCHEZ, a Spanish Jesuit, died, and was buried with extraordinary magnificence. His works are ingenious.

1613. King JAMES issued _farthing tokens_ by proclamation.

1622. OSMAN I, sultan of Turkey, strangled by his soldiery. He undertook an expedition against Poland, in which he lost 80,000 men and 100,000 horses: these misfortunes were attributed to the Janizaries, who thereupon hurled him from the throne.

1643. Battle of Rocroy, between the French and Spaniards, in which the French under the duke d'Enghien gained a signal victory.

1651. PETER WRIGHT, chaplain to the marquis of Winchester, executed. Romanist priests were viewed in the same light as highway robbers.

1656. JOHN HALES died; an English author, so much admired for his wit and learning, that he is called the _ever memorable_.

1670. FERDINANDO UGHELI, a Florentine monk, died; distinguished for his learning and his virtues.

1676. JOHN GREENHILL died; an eminent English painter.

1692. Battle of La Hogue; the combined English and Dutch fleets defeated the French of 50 sail, who lost 20 of their largest men of war, and were prevented from making a descent on England.

1715. CHARLES MONTAGUE, earl Halifax, died; an eminent English statesman, orator and poet.

1769. Cardinal GANGANELLI proclaimed pope under the title of Clement XIV.

1776. Captain MUGFORD having secured his prize (see May 17) and put to sea again, was attacked by 13 British boats, whom he beat off; but was himself killed, being the only person injured.

1780. Dark day in New England, occasioned by a thin cloud or vapor. The people dined by candlelight, and the darkness of the night is represented as _Egyptian_.

1788. SAMUEL BADCOCK, an English divine and writer, died; admired as a pulpit orator and a man of literary talent.

1788. Congress ordered two cannon to be named, one John Hancock, and the other Adams; being one moiety of four cannon which constituted the whole train of artillery possessed by the colonies at the commencement of the war. The other two were taken by the British.

1795. JAMES BOSWELL, died, aged 55; a Scottish lawyer, rendered famous as the friend and biographer of Dr. Johnson, with whom he lived in the closest intimacy.

1795. JOSIAH BARTLETT, one of the signers, died. He was a delegate from New Hampshire in the first congress, and his was the first name called on the vote of the declaration of independence.

1798. BONAPARTE with an immense armament sailed from Toulon for the conquest of Egypt. The sunrise was splendid and similar phenomena were called the suns of Napoleon.

1798. Intelligence having been received by the British that a number of transports fitted out at Flushing were intended to be sent round by the canals to Ostend and Dunkirk, for the purpose of invading England, an expedition was despatched to destroy the sluices and basin of the Bruges canal at Ostend. The direction of the enterprise was entrusted to general Coote and captain Home Popham, who on this day disembarked their troops, and in a few hours the sluices were blown up, and several vessels in the canals destroyed; but on returning to the beach, the wind and surf were so high, that it was impossible to re-embark; meanwhile the country being alarmed, the enemy advanced upon them with a superior force, and the British, after a spirited resistance, were compelled to capitulate. Of 1000 forces landed more than 100 were killed or wounded, among whom was general Coote.

1808. Action in the night between British ship Virginia, and Dutch frigate Gelderland; the latter captured.

1810. Explosion of a powder magazine at New Haswell in Hungary, which destroyed 300 houses, killed 80 persons, and 300 were dug out of the ruins alive.

1831. FRANCIS MASERES, an English mathematician, died, aged 93. He was not only an author, but devoted a part of his income to reprinting such works as he thought useful either in illustration of mathematical history or of that of his country. Penny Cyclopedia says 1824, which agrees with the 93 years from the date of his birth.

1838. THOMAS T. BIDDULPH, an eminent English clergyman, died. He was the author of various publications, one of which, _Sixteen Short Sermons_, has been translated into 15 languages.

1850. A body of Americans under gen. Paredez landed on the island of Cuba, with a view to revolutionize it, and took the town of Cardenas.

1853. The Chinese rebels captured the city of Amoy.

1854. WILLIAM HULME COOPER, a lieutenant in the British navy, died, aged 26, from the effects of exposure and privation during four years arctic service in search of sir John Franklin. He commanded a cutter in an expedition from Icy cape to the Mackenzie; for three days he was lost in a snow storm, and for two winters he and his boat's crew were isolated near the northern shores of America. The hardships he endured caused the pulmonary disease of which he died.

1856. JOHN KEATING died at Philadelphia, aged 96. He was a native of France and in early life was an officer in the service of Louis XVI. He came to the United States after the death of that monarch, with about thirty families of the French noblesse and military, and founded the colony of The Asylum, near Towanda, in Pennsylvania.

MAY 20.

526. Earthquake at Antioch, by which 250,000 persons are said to have perished.

1499. ALONZO DE OJEDA sailed from Cadiz on a western voyage of discovery, accompanied by Amerigo Vespucci. It is uncertain in what station Amerigo sailed, but he appears to have had a chief share in directing the voyage, and on his return published an amusing account of the country they visited; which having a rapid circulation, he was supposed to be the discoverer, and it came gradually to be called by his name.

1506. CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, the discoverer of the new world, died at Valladolid in Spain, aged about 70. He had devoted his whole life to the study and accomplishment of his grand enterprise, and its complete success embittered the remainder of his days by exciting the perfidy and ingratitude of a base and treacherous nation.

1521. CORTEZ mustered his army in the great market place of Tezcuco, to make a division of it, appoint commanders, assign to each the station where they were to form their camps, in order to invest the city of Mexico. (See May 30.)

1610. NICHOLAS SERARIUS, a French Jesuit, died. His works, 16 vols. folio, display great labor and extensive erudition.

1618. King JAMES publicly declared his pleasure, "that after the end of divine service, the people should not be letted from any lawful recreation on Sundays, such as dancing, archery, vaulting, May-games, Whitsun-ales, morris-dances, and the setting up of May-poles, and other sports therewith used."

1690. JOHN ELIOT, the apostle of the Indians, died, aged 86. He was the first protestant clergyman who preached the gospel to the North American Indians.

1713. THOMAS SPRAT, an English prelate and poet, died; he was distinguished as a writer, and rewarded with preferments.

1726. NICHOLAS BRADY died; an Irish divine of good ability and learning, translated Virgil and wrote a new version of the Psalms in conjunction with Tate.

1728. JAMES LE QUIEN DE LA NEUFVILLE, a French historian, died; author of an excellent history of Portugal, &c.

1732. THOMAS BOSTON, a Scottish divine, died; author of the well known book, _Human Nature in its Fourfold State_.

1735. The Turks defeated by the Prussians, and more than 60,000 killed and wounded.

1736. The body of one Samuel Baldwin, of England, in compliance with his will, immersed in the sea at Lymington. His motive for this extraordinary mode of interment was to prevent his wife from dancing over his grave, which she had threatened to do in case she survived him.

1756. Naval action at Fort Philip, Minorca, between the French fleet, 12 ships 5 frigates, and the British, 13 ships 5 frigates. Admiral Byng was afterwards shot in England, on an unjust charge of cowardice in this affair.

1758. The scenery and wardrobe of the Bath theatre burned by the wagons taking fire on which it was being transported over Salisbury plain.

1774. British parliament passed an act for transporting Americans to England for trial.

1775. Articles of confederation and union agreed on by the American colonies.

1776. Major SHERBURNE, with 140 Americans, marching to relieve the post at the Cedars, in Canada, was attacked by 500 Indians, and after an obstinate battle, the party surrendered. The Indians having lost a chief and 21 warriors, massacred as many prisoners.

1778. Gen. GRANT with 7000 British, made an attempt to surprise La Fayette, then posted at Barren-hill, Pa., with 2500 men. The latter escaped by a masterly retreat.

1783. WILLIAM ROBERTSON, the Scottish divine, died.

1789. The French clergy renounced their privileges.

1793. CHARLES BONNET, a noted Swiss naturalist, died at Geneva.

1796. BONAPARTE passed the river Po; MARCEAU and CHAMPIONNET drove the Austrians from Hunsruch; they were also defeated on the Sieg, with the loss of 2400.

1799. BONAPARTE raised the siege of St. Jean d'Acre; it had lasted 60 days.

1799. JOSEPH TOWERS died; a printer, bookseller, and afterwards a preacher with the title of LL. D. He wrote _British Biography_, 7 vols. and other works of merit.

1800. BONAPARTE passed mount St. Bernard, among the Alps, after astonishing efforts.

1813. Battle of Bautzen, between Russians and Prussians under Barclay de Tolly, and French under Bonaparte.

1813. American frigate Congress, capt. Smith, captured British brig Jean, 10 guns, took out 40 tons copper and sunk her.

1815. MURAT, king of Naples, left the city in disguise, while his queen sought the security which had been promised her on board a British man of war.

1820. CHARLES LOUIS SAND executed; the murderer of Kotzebue.

1840. JOSEPH BLANCO WHITE, an English preacher and controversial writer, died, aged 67. He was the author of various works, and distinguished himself by the zeal and ability with which he opposed the catholic religion.

1841. WILLIAM P. DEWEES, a distinguished medical writer, died at Philadelphia.

1848. A treaty of peace made with the Navajo Indians and the United States.

1855. The king of Hanover issued an ordinance annulling the constitution settled in 1848, and the provincial electoral law of 1850.

1856. JAMES KING, editor of the _Evening Mirror_, at San Francisco, California, died of a pistol wound inflicted in the street a few days before by Casey, editor of the _Sunday Times_. Casey was arrested and conveyed to jail under great popular excitement. Subsequently the vigilance committee, numbering 3000 men, proceeded to the jail, and took Casey and another murderer to the committee rooms, where they were tried, and soon after hung.

MAY 21.

216 B. C. Battle of Cannæ, in Italy, in which the Roman consuls were vanquished by Hannibal, with a loss of 40,000 men, including Paulus Æmylius, and 5,630 knights. The Carthaginians seemed not to know the use of victory.

987. LOUIS V (_the lazy_), king of France, poisoned by his wife, Blanche.

1342. JOHN CANTACUZENUS, the historian of his own times, and a defender of the faith, inaugurated emperor of Constantinople.

1420. Treaty of Troyes, by which Henry V of England was to marry Kate, daughter of Charles VII of France, and the two kingdoms to be united under Henry on the death of Charles.

1502. The island of St. Helena discovered.

1542. FERDINAND DE SOTO, a Spanish adventurer, died at the confluence of the Guacoya and Mississippi. He was a companion of Pizarro in his Peruvian expedition, and amassed great wealth; after which he became governor of Cuba. He fitted out an expedition to search Florida for more gold, and lost his life.

1643. Battle of Wakefield; the forces of Charles I defeated by the parliamentary troops.

1647. PETER CORNELIUS HOOFT, one of the most eminent poets and prose writers of Holland, died.

1649. The commonwealth of England proclaimed.

1650. JAMES GRAHAM, marquis of Montrose, executed. He fought with great bravery in the royal cause; but being at length captured he was hung on a gallows 30 feet high at Edinburgh, and his quartered remains exposed over the city gates.

1682. MICHAEL ANGELO RICCI, an Italian cardinal, died; celebrated as a mathematician.

1718. GASPARD ABEILLE, a French poet and wit, died. His writings are not much esteemed.

1723. JAMES MABOUL, an eloquent French preacher, died; author of _Orationes Funebres_.

1724. ROBERT HARLEY, earl of Oxford, died; an English statesman and literary character.

1745. British squadron captured French ship Vigilant, 64 guns, and 560 men, with a cargo valued at £60,000.

1762. British ships Active and Favorite captured the Spanish ship Hermione from Lima, with a cargo of $2,308,700. The four highest British officers shared $288,000 each.

1780. Village of Johnstown, New York, burnt by the tories.

1781. British fort Dreadnought surrendered to the Americans under Gen. Lee.

1782. American general Wayne defeated a considerable body of British under Col. Brown, near Savannah.

1789. JOHN HAWKINS, an English writer, died; author of a _History of Music_ in 5 vols. quarto.

1790. THOMAS WARTON, an English poet died; author of a _History of Poetry_, 3 vols.

1794. French under Dumas scaled mount Cenis.

1794. Bastia, in Corsica, surrendered to lord Hood.

1796. Battles of Tombio and Codogno; the French defeated the Austrians; the gallant French gen. La Harpe killed.

1799. Archduke CHARLES crossed the Rhine into Switzerland.

1804. The first interment in the cemetery of Pere la Chaise; it was laid out and prepared by order of Bonaparte.

1807. Dantzic surrendered to the French after a siege of 51 days. Its garrison at first consisted of 16,000; 4000 deserted; only 9000 were taken; 800 cannon and immense stores fell into the hands of the French.

1809. Battle of Essling, in Austria. It began by a furious attack upon the village of Asperne, which was taken and retaken several times. Essling sustained three attacks also. Night interrupted the action; the Austrians exulting in their partial success, Napoleon surprised that he should not have been wholly successful. On either side the carnage had been terrible, and the pathways of the village were literally choked with the dead.

1813. British attacked Sacketts Harbor.

1813. Battle of Bautzen, which had continued two days; the Prussians were driven from their position, and Napoleon advanced to Breslaw, leaving 12,000 Frenchmen in the searching claws of their _executors_--the crows.

1826. GEORGE REICHENBACH, a distinguished mechanical artist, died at Munich, where he had a noted manufactory of astronomical instruments, unsurpassed in the world.

1830. LEOPOLD of Saxe Coburg declined the throne of Greece, except on terms which the allied sovereigns would not accede to.

1832. GEORGE W. ROGERS, an American commodore, died on board ship Warren, off Buenos Ayres.

1849. MARIA EDGWORTH, the popular and distinguished authoress, died at her residence in Edgworthstown, Ireland.

1855. The ship canal round the falls of St. Mary's river, Michigan, was completed and accepted.

1855. The allied fleet of the French and English entered the Russian port of Petropaulowski, and found it deserted.

MAY 22.

334 B. C. Battle of the Granicus, in Bythinia, in which Alexander of Macedon defeated the Persians.

337. CONSTANTINE (_the great_), emperor of Rome, died. He was an able general and a sagacious politician; celebrated as the builder of Constantinople on the site of Byzantium, and as the first emperor who embraced Christianity.

1424. JAMES I, of Scotland, crowned 18 years after his accession, since which he had been in captivity.

1498. VASCO DE GAMA landed at Calicut, the first Indian port visited by a European vessel.

1542. PAUL III, summoned the council of Trent; but was compelled to prorogue it, his own ecclesiastics only attending.

1555. JOHN PETER CARAFFA elected pope, and assumed the title of Paul IV.

1604. The first settlement made on the coast of Guiana, by captain Charles and sir Oliver Leigh.

1611. JAMES I, instituted the order of Baronets, and elevated 75 families to that dignity.

1659. RICHARD CROMWELL'S parliament dissolved by commission under the great seal, at the instance of Desborough.

1661. The solemn league and covenant burned by the common hangman at London, and afterwards throughout the country.

1667. ALEXANDER VII (Fabio Chigi), pope, died; characterized as little in great things, and great in little ones. He was liberal towards men of letters, and embellished Rome with some splendid edifices.

1680. A vast luminous meteor appeared at Leipsic.

1688. JOHN ANDREW QUENSTEDT died; a German divine, author of a Latin account of learned men down to 1600.

1690. Naval action at Cherbourg; British admiral Ashby destroyed 3 French ships of the line and several frigates, being part of Tourville's squadron.

1692. Action off La Hogue, commenced the night previous, between the combined English and Dutch fleets, admiral Russell, and the French fleet, which lost 16 sail.

1707. Battle of Stolhoffen, on the Rhine; French under Villars forced the lines of the allies.

1722. SEBASTIAN VAILLANT, a French botanist, died. He was originally organist to a convent.

1725. ROBERT MOLESWORTH, an able English statesman, died. He rendered himself obnoxious to the clergy by insinuating that "religion is a pious craft, a useful state engine, but far inferior to the principles which in the school of Athens and Rome, incited their attentive youth to the love of their country, and to the practice of the moral virtues."

1734. KOULI KHAN, defeated the Turkish army in Persia.

1745. Battle Jagernsdorf; Prussians defeated the imperialists.

1773. JOHN ENTICK, an English clergyman and schoolmaster, died; author of the _Spelling Dictionary_, and other works.

1775. Meeting of provincial congress at New York.

1780. Sir JOHN JOHNSON, with a party of British and tories, burnt a mill and 33 houses at Johnson Hall, killed about a dozen persons, destroyed all the sheep and cattle, and having dug up his silver plate decamped.

1781. JOHN BAPTIST BECCARIA, a learned Italian monk, died.

1782. Formosa, a large island in the Chinese sea, almost wholly inundated by volcanic agency, during a storm.

1794. Battle of Esperes; French defeated by the British, who took 500 prisoners and 700 cannon.

1795. MUNGO PARK, sailed from England on his first expedition to Africa, for the purpose of tracing the course of the Niger, and procuring information relative to the city of Timbuctoo, of which little more than the name was known.

1798. BONAPARTE and the French fleet sailed from Toulon; at the same time lord Nelson's fleet was in a storm in the gulf of Lyons, not many leagues distant.

1809. Second battle of Essling; French recrossed the Danube.

1810. CHARLOTTE GENEVIEVE LOUISA AUGUSTA ANDREA TIMOTHEE DU BEAUMONT D'EON, a French diplomatist, died, aged 82; memorable as a politician, but more so for having been discovered to be a female while on an embassy to England, in the year 1777.

1812. Action off the coast of France, between 2 British ships and 2 French 44 gun frigates, and a brig of 18 guns; the latter were destroyed.

1813. Battle of Reichenbach; 1500 French cavalry charged and overthrew the allied cavalry; but many divisions coming to their aid, the French were reinforced by 14,000 horse and cuirassiers and the allies compelled to retreat.

1813. MICHAEL DUROC, a distinguished French general, killed by a cannon ball, which struck him as he stood conversing with Mortier and Kirgener, the latter of whom was also killed instantly.

1813. United States frigate Congress, Capt. Smith, captured the British brig Diana 10 guns.

1814. JOSEPH WHITE, an eminent English divine, and oriental scholar, died. He was a weaver in humble life till his self-acquired attainments attracted patronage.

1819. The steamship Savannah, started from Savannah, Ga., for Liverpool, being the first passage of the Atlantic attempted by steam. She arrived in Liverpool on the 22d June, having consumed her fuel in ten days. She visited Stockholm and St. Petersburg before her return, which was in December following.

1819. HUGH WILLIAMSON, an American physician, scholar and statesman, died, aged 83. He assisted in framing the federal constitution, and made himself useful to his country in various ways.

1854. Rail road inaugurated in Sardinia, running between Turin and Susa; the king and queen, the government officials, and a great concourse of people participating.

1855. The convent suppression bill passed the Sardinian senate.

1856. PRESTON S. BROOKS, a South Carolina member of congress, wickedly and cowardly assaulted Charles Summer, senator from Massachusetts, while seated at his desk in the senate chamber, and felled him to the floor with a cane, in retaliation for abusive language in debate.

MAY 23.

1270 B. C. LARCHER places the chronology of the fall of Troy upon this day.

63 B. C. Jerusalem taken by Pompey on the 23d day of the Hebrew month Sivan, in the consulate of Cicero, a day that was then observed as a fast, in remembrance of the defection and idolatry of Jeroboam, _who made Israel to sin_.

37 B. C. Jerusalem fell into the hands of Herod, in the consulate of Agrippa; it being one of those septenniary periods called sabbatic years.

683. LEO II, pope, died; an able and resolute pontiff; established the kiss of peace at the mass, and the use of holy water.

1125. HENRY V of Germany died; leaving an odious character.

1430. The town of Compiegne in France was besieged by the combined forces of England and Burgundy, and defended by Joan of Arc.

1455. Battle of St. Albans (first of the roses), between the Lancastrians under Henry VI, and the Yorkists. The former were defeated with the loss of 3 earls, 49 barons and about 5,000 men killed, and the king himself was wounded in the neck and taken prisoner. Loss of the other party 500.

1498. GERONIMO SAVANAROLA, an Italian monk, burnt. His influence was so great at Florence, that for several years he guided the state as its sovereign; but when he attacked the corruptions of the church of Rome and the infamous conduct of pope Alexander VI, neither his purity nor his popularity could save him from destruction.

1533. CRANMER pronounced sentence of divorce between Henry VIII and Catharine of Arragon.

1609. The company of South Virginia not realizing the expected profit from its colony, obtained from king James a new charter, with more ample privileges. Their territory extended 400 miles on the Atlantic coast, and "from the Atlantic westward to the South sea."

1610. The English wrecked on the island of Bermudas (see July 24), having built two small vessels and paid the seams with lime and tortoise oil, arrived in them at the settlement of Jamestown; they found the inhabitants reduced from 500 to 60, by famine; and seeing no other means of preserving them than by abandoning the country, they took them all on board, with the intention of returning to England. At this juncture lord Delaware arrived with three ships, 150 men, and plenty of provisions, and settled the colony.

1679. It was discovered that 27 members of the English parliament had been pensioners on the government.

1692. Third action off La Hogue, between the British and French fleets; 6 ships of the latter burnt.

1701. WILLIAM KIDD with others executed at Execution dock, London, for piracy. In America every reminiscence of Kidd has yet an air of romance.

1706. Battle of Ramilles, in Belgium, between the French under Villeroy, and the allies under the duke of Marlborough, in which the latter were signally victorious. The armies contained about 60,000 men each; the loss of the French was 15,000, that of the allies 4,000.

1720. The French Mississippi scheme, projected by John Law, dissolved, like those bright floating circles which amuse and vex the hopes of children of a lesser growth.

1752. WM. BRADFORD, a noted American printer, died, aged 94. He established the first printing office in Philadelphia, and also in New York. He was government printer more than fifty years, and is said to have walked over a great part of the city of New York on the day he died.

1764. FRANCIS ALGAROTTI died; an Italian, eminent as a connoisseur and critic in every branch of belles-lettres, and an author of repute.

1783. JAMES OTIS, an American patriot and statesman, killed by lightning. He was one of the most zealous and active promoters of the revolution.

1785. WILLIAM WOOLLET, a celebrated English historical and landscape engraver, died. The death of general Wolfe from West's painting is probably his best.

1786. MAURITIUS AUGUSTUS BENYOWSKY, an extraordinary Hungarian adventurer, killed on the island of Madagascar in an action with the French.

1783. South Carolina adopted the federal constitution, recommending amendments, being the 8th state in succession; votes 149 to 73.

1793. Battle of Famars; the French defeated by the allies, consisting of Austrians, Prussians, British, Hanoverians, Hessians and Dutch.

1794. CECILE REGNAULT attempted to assassinate Robespierre and Collot d'Herbois.

1798. The rebellion of the united Irishmen commenced.

1798. Lady EDWARD FITZGERALD, the celebrated Pamela, daughter of the duke of Orleans, ordered to quit the kingdom.

1808. Riots among the English weavers on account of wages.

1812. LOUIS DUTENS, a French miscellaneous writer, died.

1815. G. HENRY ERNEST MUEHLENBURGH, an American Lutheran divine, died. He was a man of extensive science, particularly eminent as a botanist.

1816. Massacre of the Christians by the Turks at Bona in Algiers.

1836. EDWARD LIVINGSTON, an eminent American jurist, died. He was a native of New York, and after holding various offices, removed to New Orleans, where on the invasion of Louisiana by the British, he offered his services to general Jackson, and acted as aid. He was afterwards secretary of state at Washington and minister to France, in which offices he manifested distinguished ability.

1841. SAMUEL DALE, an eminent pioneer in the settlement of the southwest, died in Lauderdale county, Mississippi. He was remarkable for his courage and bodily strength, and distinguished for his contests with the Indians, and as an officer in the last war with England.

1848. Freedom of the negroes proclaimed at St. Pierre, Martinique; an insurrection followed, and several houses and 32 persons were burnt.

1850. GRINNELL'S ships of discovery sailed from New York in search of sir John Franklin.

1851. RICHARD LALOR SHEIL, a British statesman and dramatist, died at Florence, aged 59. He was minister of queen Victoria at the court of Tuscany.

1855. The state of siege and blockade of the island of Cuba was withdrawn.

MAY 24.

1085. GREGORY VII (Hildebrand), pope, died. He was the son of a carpenter, and when raised to the papal throne embroiled himself in disputes and dissensions till he was compelled to retire.

1153. DAVID I, king of Scotland, died. He married Maud, daughter of William the conqueror, and is characterized as a mild and popular king.

1276. A capitation tax of three pennies laid on every Jew in England above the age of 12 years, and all above the age of 7 to wear a yellow badge.

1357. EDWARD the _black prince_, conducted his captive, John, king of France, through the city of London, in triumph.

1430. JOAN OF ARC, after performing prodigies of valor, deserted and alone, was taken prisoner by the English, after her horse was slain, in a sally from Compiegne.

1543. NICHOLAS COPERNICUS, the great astronomer, died, aged 70. After a constant devotion of 43 years to the study, he produced his immortal work, _De Orbium Cœlestium Revolutionibus_. The work was excommunicated by the pope, and although the planets continued their revolutions, it was not till 278 years after, namely, in 1821, that the papal court annulled the sentence!

1551. VON PANNIS, an eminent surgeon of England, burnt to death for denying the divinity of Christ.

1572. DRAKE sailed from England on his voyage of reprisal to the West-Indies, against the Spanish.

1612. ROBERT CECIL, earl of Salisbury, died; an English statesman, the ablest minister of his time.

1651. LOUIS XIV of France purchased of the West-India company, for the benefit of the knights of Malta, the islands of St. Christopher, St. Bartholomew, St. Martin and San Cruz, for the sum of 120,000 livres turnois. (See August 10, 1665.)

1663. South Carolina erected into a separate province. First permanent settlement began in 1669; original charter included North Carolina and Georgia.

1686. An eruption of mount Ætna, which extended its ravages four leagues around, and buried several persons alive.

1689. Passage of the well known toleration act of England, which so greatly relieved the dissenters.

1692. Four days' action off La Hogue; the remainder of the French ships, seven in number, and a great many transports and ammunition ships burnt.

1698. Pere GERBILLON, a Jesuit missionary, set out on his eighth and last journey to Tartary, in the train of the Chinese grandees, sent by the emperor to hold an assembly of the Kalka Tartars, who had been several years in rebellion, and to regulate the affairs of the country. (See April 1, Oct. 13.)

1715. WILLIAM READ died; originally a cobbler, became a mountebank, and practiced medicine by the light of nature! Queen Anne and George I honored him with the care of their eyes! He could neither write nor read, but such was the success of his practice, that he rode in his own chariot, and "dispensed good punch from golden bowls."

1775. JOHN HANCOCK elected president of congress; he succeeded Peyton Randolph in that office.

1777. Colonel MEIGS made a successful attack on the British stores at Sag harbor, destroyed 12 British brigs and schooners, and great quantities of stores, and brought away 90 British prisoners, without sustaining any loss.

1786. CHARLES WILLIAM SCHEELE, an eminent Swedish chemist, died. His discoveries were numerous, though his experiments were made under great disadvantages.

1792. GEORGE BRYDGES, lord Rodney, a celebrated British admiral, died, aged 74.

1794. Battle of the Sambre, in the Netherlands, in which general Kaunitz defeated the French, who lost 3,000 taken prisoners, and 50 cannon.

1798. Several battles were fought at different places between the English troops and United Irishmen, in which the latter were generally defeated.

1811. The Seringapatam, prize to the United States frigate Essex, capt. Gamble, captured by the British sloop of war Cherub, at the Sandwich islands.

1814. Pope PIUS VII, whose powers had been abridged by Napoleon, made his grand public entry into Rome, to resume the throne.

1822. Battle of Pichinca, fought near the volcano of that name. The Columbians under Sucre succeeded in gaining the vicinity of Quito by marching over the frozen mountains of Cotopaxi, by which, and several other daring movements, the Spaniards were compelled to hazard a battle, and sustained a total defeat. The patriots thus became possessed of the entire province, with all the Spanish magazines and stores, and the road to Peru was left open to Bolivar.

1833. JOHN RANDOLPH, of Roanoke, an American statesman, died, aged 60. He was a descendant in the 7th generation, from Pocahontas, the Indian woman who saved the life of capt. Smith, and was distinguished for genius, eloquence and eccentricity.

1839. WILLIAM LEGGET, an American poet, and miscellaneous writer, died. He was a man of talent, and employed by government as charge d'affaire to Central America.

1844. JAMES THATCHER, a surgeon of the revolutionary army and author of the _Military Journal_ and _History of Plymouth_, died at Plymouth, Mass.

1845. WILLIAM RAMSAY died in Boone county, Mo., aged 104. Early a pioneer and Indian fighter in Kentucky.

MAY 25.

535 B. C. The foundations of the second temple at Jerusalem, laid by the _children of the captivity_, by permission of Cyrus, on the twenty-fifth of Sivan.

67 B. C. TITUS VESPASIAN took the city of Joppa, in Galilee, by assault, on the 25th of the month Dæsius.

337. CONSTANTINE the Great died, having divided the empire among his children and nephews.

709. ALDHEM, an English divine, died; said to have been the first Englishman who cultivated poetry.

1261. ALEXANDER IV, pope, died. He bestowed the crown of Sicily on Edmund, son of the king of England, and attempted to unite the Greek and Latin churches.

1315. EDWARD BRUCE invaded Ireland with 6000 men. "He fought many battles and gained them all," and was for a brief period king of the country.

1427. ALEXANDER, lord of the isles, performed penance of submission to king James in his shirt and drawers, before the congregation of Holyrood church.

1510. GEORGES D'AMBOISE a French cardinal and statesman, died; a great benefactor to France.

1622. PETRUS PLANCIUS, who with others contributed so much to the discovery of New Netherland and other countries, died at Amsterdam.

1625. WILLIAM BARLOWE, died; celebrated as the discoverer of the nature and properties of the loadstone.

1630. Eight Englishmen left by mischance in Greenland by their ship, were found on this day by their countrymen, having by good economy and wise expedients, succeeded in passing the winter without loss of life. (See Jan. 14, 1634, and Ap. 16, 1634.)

1681. DON PEDRO DE LA BARCA, a noble Spanish dramatist, died; who together with Lope de Vega, gave law to and polished the Spanish theatre. His works comprise 10 vols. quarto.

1743. JAMES ANTONY ARLAUD, a celebrated Swiss painter, died.

1760. Insurrection of the negroes in Jamaica. The loss to the island, in human flesh and blood, was $500,000.

1775. Sir GUY JOHNSON, called an Indian council at Guy Park, where the Mohawks alone attended; his object being to provide against a rumored attack upon his person by the revolutionists.

1775. Generals Howe, Clinton and Burgoyne, arrived at Boston.

1776. Congress resolved to engage the services of the Indians.

1778. About 500 British and Hessians from Rhode Island destroyed at Kickmut river, 70 boats and other property; burnt the church and several dwellings at Warren, and a church and 22 houses at Bristol.

1780. Two regiments of Washington's troops mutinied; but were persuaded to return to their duty.

1798. CHARLES JAMES FOX, had his name stricken by the king from the list of privy councillors, for giving as a toast at the meeting of the Whig club, "The sovereignty of the people."

1798. ASMUS JACOB CARSTENS, a distinguished German artist, died. He was the son of a miller, and raised himself to eminence by his great talent and genius as a painter.

1798. A party of United Irishmen defeated near Dublin with great slaughter; many of those taken were executed.

1802. GEORGE FORDYCE, died; an eminent Scottish physician and writer on medicine and chemistry.

1803. BONAPARTE constituted all Englishmen between 18 and 60 years of age, found in the French territory, prisoners of war, and ordered the capture of British vessels.

1805. WILLIAM PALEY died; a learned English divine and writer on ethics. His _Evidences of Christianity_ is one of the ablest defences of the Christian religion that has ever appeared.

1812. EDMUND MALONE, an Irish attorney, died. He is celebrated as the editor of Shakspeare, and published several biographies.

1818. DAVID MITCHELL, a major-general in the war of the American revolution, died, aged 77. He was the friend of Logan, the Indian, and had fought the Indians in 27 battles.

1830. The French expedition against Algiers sailed from Toulon, consisting of 34,160 men, under the command of General Bourmont, and succeeded in reducing that barbarous kingdom to a French province.

1840. Singular phenomenon in lake Erie, at Toledo; the water rising to the height of four feet above its ordinary level in the space of a few hours, without any apparent cause. The water and the weather were calm and still, and no unusual commotion was observable, as the bay gradually rose nearly a foot higher than ever before known.

1843. One hundredth anniversary of the Am. Philosophical Society, founded by Franklin at Philadelphia. It is the oldest scientific association this side of the Atlantic.

MAY 26.

604. AUGUSTINE (_alias Austin_), first archbishop of Canterbury, died. He was originally a monk, and was sent into Britain with 40 others to convert the English Saxons to Christianity.

735. BEDE (_the venerable_), a learned English monk, died. He passed his life in severe study, and wrote an ecclesiastical history from Julius Cæsar to his own age.

946. EDMUND I, king of the Anglo Saxons, killed by an outlaw named Liof, at the age of 23. He was distinguished for personal courage, as well as taste for elegance and splendor, whence he was called _the munificent_.

1416. JEROME of Prague made the fearless declaration that he was a supporter of the doctrines of Wickliffe and Huss, for which he suffered martyrdom.

1512. BAYAZID II, sultan of Turkey, died on the journey to Denitoka, his birth place, whither he was retiring, having resigned the government to his son, Selim, who had rebelled against him.

1536. FRANCISCO BERNI, a Tuscan poet, died. He is the principal writer of Italian jocose poetry, which has ever since retained the name of poesia Bernesca.

1568. An _estoddfod_ of the Welsh bards and minstrels held at Cayroes by commission of queen Elizabeth, when the great prize of the silver harp was adjudged to Simon ap Williams ap Sion.

1595. PHILIP NERI, founder of the oratorians, died. He was noted for his benevolence, and established a _hospice_ for the accommodation of pilgrims, which has become one of the finest in Rome.

1608. Sir THOMAS SACKVILLE, that great servant of Apollo and the state, interred with pomp at Westminster. "There never was a better treasurer," observes sir Richard Baker, "both for the king's profit and the good of the subject."

1623. FRANCIS ANTHONY, an English chemist, died; who took advantage of his knowledge to impose upon the credulous and unwary, by selling his panacea of potable gold.

1637. Fort Mistic, garrisoned by a large body of Indians under their grand sachem Sassacus, taken by assault, and about 70 wigwams burnt.

1689. Battle at the pass of Killicrankie, remarkable for the defeat of king William's troops by the Highlanders under lord Dundee.

1685. JOHN MARSHAM died; a learned English chronologist.

1703. SAMUEL PEPYS, a learned Englishman, died; celebrated for his collection of valuable documents, &c.

1746. THOMAS SOUTHERN, an English dramatist, died.

1766. JOHN LAURENCE BERTI, a learned monk of Tuscany, died; author of about 20 quarto volumes of divinity.

1781. Congress resolved to establish the bank of North America, being the first regularly established bank in the country.

1782. WILLIAM EMERSON, an eminent English mathematician, died. His knowledge was very extensive, and his works accurate.

1784. Musical festival in Westminster abbey, in commemoration of the birthday of Handel. This was the greatest concert ever known; the number of performers was 525; 275 vocal, 250 instrumental. The sum produced was over $12,000.

1794. The French convention decreed that no quarters be given to British and Hanoverian soldiers. But the French troops refused to execute the decree.

1795. The Ottoman Porte acknowledged the French republic.

1798. Battle of Tarah and defeat of the United Irishmen.

1799. JAMES BURNETT, lord Monboddo, died. He was one of the lords of session in Scotland, and a philosophical writer of considerable learning, but of peculiar notions.

1809. FRANCIS JOSEPH HAYDN, the celebrated musical composer, died. His works are numerous and highly valued.

1811. JAMES PULTENEY, a wealthy English baron, died; whose income was $250,000 per annum.

1813. Cannonade between forts George and Niagara, and bombardment from all the batteries.