2 October is the International Day of Non-Violence, building upon Mahatma Ghandi’s birth day in 1869. On the one hand, 2 October marks the birth of two military titans from the Great War, Marshall Foch and Field Marshal von Hindenburg. On the other, 2 October marks the birth of Cordell Hull, the US Secretary of… Continue reading #OTD 2 October
Category: The Calendar
#OTD 1 October
Cannabis arrived in Mexico from Spain, this much is agreed. Whence sprang the Mexican word marijuana / marihuana, is not. One narrative calls on mallihuan, the Nahuatl word for prisoner. This explanation, clearly enough, may be a useful piece of propaganda for opponents of the drug; the self-imprisonment afforded by misuse was widely publicised by Harry… Continue reading #OTD 1 October
#OTD 4 September
When we invent something, we go to the patent office. When we work out how to sell it, we go to the trademark office. We may even do the second, first. Not so George Eastman. On 4 September 1888, he made two applications. The first was to patent his camera. The second was to trademark… Continue reading #OTD 4 September
#OTD 3 September
3 September offers something for the republic and something for the realm. While Richard the Lionheart had been crowned on 3 September 1189, Oliver Cromwell had major victories at the Battles of Dunbar and Worcester, on, respectively, 3 September 1650 and 3 September 1651. Sic gloria; on 3 September 1658, Oliver died and son Richard… Continue reading #OTD 3 September
#OTD 26 August
Times change. Back in the day, a dictator was an entirely legitimate state of affairs; in an emergency the senate gave you full power for a limited term to get things done. It was Julius Caesar who upped the ante by wrangling the appointment dictator perpetuo. Not a great move; he was assassinated a month… Continue reading #OTD 26 August
#OTD 25 August
Law is to liberty as Sisyphus is to rock. So lawyer and slaveowner Francis Scott Key is largely left to history as author of the anthemic “land of the free”. A half century and civil war on, the law was tolerably clear; the US Constitution was amended to address slavery, citizenship and voting. Inevitably, white… Continue reading #OTD 25 August
#OTD 24 August
On 24 August 410 the barbarians reached the gates. It was the beginning of the end for the Roman Empire, the day Alaric the Visigoth sacked the Eternal City. Rome hadn’t been the capital of the Roman Empire for a century or so but it was still its spiritual centre. The biblical scholar Jerome wrote… Continue reading #OTD 24 August
#OTD 23 August
A hostage is a captive who is held by the captor as security for something. It’s a very old practice. Sometimes it’s patently criminal, a kidnapper kidnapping for ransom. Sometimes it’s a bargain, as when England gave over two aristocrats as security for returning Cape Breton to France upon the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748.… Continue reading #OTD 23 August
#OTD 22 August
The ruler’s time-honoured method for quelling revolt is bread and circuses. In a peaceful democracy, our leaders eschew such bluntness, preferring chatter about “raising the standard of living”. The idea that a ruler raises a standard in this way is fairly recent, much more recent than the act by which a ruler when going to… Continue reading #OTD 22 August
#OTD 21 August
Stability and freedom frequently clash. In 1772 Gustav III of Sweden opted for the former; he ran an autocoup, taking back control of the country from the parliament and sealing the deed on 21 August with a new constitution. Gustav’s family was edged out in the next century, with Napoleon’s Marshal Bernadotte moving from Prince… Continue reading #OTD 21 August