IT HAPPENED TODAY
1694:
Queen Mary II died from smallpox, leaving William to reign alone.
1734:
Rob Roy (above), legendary Scottish clan chief immortalised in a novel by Sir Walter Scott, died.
1879:
The Tay railway bridge collapsed as an Edinburgh to Dundee train crossed over it. The engine and carriages plummeted into the icy river below, killing 75 people.
1903:
Jazz pianist Earl Hines, who developed the modern single-finger style, was born in Duquesne, Pennsylvania.
1918:
Lloyd George’s coalition government was re-elected.
2009:
At least 25 people were killed and dozens were injured in a suicide bombing on a Shia procession on the day of Ashura, in Karachi, Pakistan.
ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR:
Hollywood star Debbie Reynolds (above) died of a suspected stroke barely a day after the death of daughter Carrie Fisher.
BIRTHDAYS:
Lord (Roy) Hattersley, Labour politician, 85; Dame Maggie Smith, actress, 83; Denzel Washington, actor, 63; Nigel Kennedy, violinist, 61; Terry Butcher, manager and former footballer, 59; Ana Torroja, singer, 58; John Legend, musician, 39; Frank Turner, singer/songwriter, 36; Sienna Miller (below), actress, 36.