Today in History

1417 – Sir John Oldcastle, a leader of the Lollards religious sect, is hanged and burned in Britain; he was considered to be the model for Shakespeare’s character Falstaff. 1542 – James V of Scotland dies; his daughter Mary accedes to the throne at the age of one week. 1799 – Death of George Washington, first president of the United States.

1843 – The first Auckland A&P show, forerunner of the Royal Easter Show.

1861 – Prince Albert, consort and husband of Queen Victoria, dies of typhoid at Windsor Castle. 1911 – Norwegian explorer Roald

Amundsen, left, becomes first person to reach South Pole.

1918 – Women in Britain vote for the first time in a general election and can stand as candidates.

1987 – Allan Border becomes highest run-scorer in Australian cricket with double century against New Zealand.

1999 – US and German negotiators agree to establish a fund of US$5.2 billion for Nazi-era slave and forced labourers.

2003 – Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf escapes assassination attempt when a bomb explodes in Rawalpindi less than a minute after his motorcade passes.

2005 – European officials propose an inquiry to establish whether US intelligence agents held terror suspects in secret prisons in Europe.

2012 – Gunman Adam Lanza, having killed his mother, shoots dead 20 children, six staff and himself at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Connecticut.

Birthdays

Nostradamus, French astrologer and prophet (1503-66); James Bruce, Scottish explorer (1730-94); King George VI (1895-1952); Kim Beazley, Australian politician (1948-); Rebecca Gibney, NZ-born actress (1964-); Michael Owen, English footballer (1979-); Lauren Boyle, NZ swimmer (1987-).