On this day ...

OCTOBER 23

4004 BC: According to Archbishop James Usher, this is the day God created the world.

1642: The Royalists narrowly beat the Roundheads at Edgehill in the first major battle of the Civil War. Both sides claimed victory.

1707: The first Parliament of Great Britain met.

1844: The ‘Divine Sarah’, actress Sarah Bernhardt, was born in Paris.

1915: Legendary cricketer W G Grace died.

1942: The Second Battle of El Alamein began with a thousand tanks aimed on Italian and German troops.

1950: Al Jolson, US singer who billed himself “the world’s greatest entertainer”, died. He starred in the first talking picture, The Jazz Singer.

1956: The Hungarian uprising against Soviet leadership began in Budapest.

1987: Lester Piggott, above, former British champion jockey, was jailed for three years for tax evasion.

1991: The House of Lords ruled that husbands could legally be convicted of raping their wives.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: Two people were taken to hospital after they were attacked by a brown bear in central Romania. BIRTHDAYS: Pele, football legend, above, 78; Ang Lee, film director, 64; Graham Rix, former footballer and coach, 61; Sam Raimi, film director, 59; Cat Deeley, TV presenter, 42; Ryan Reynolds, actor, 42; Alex Tudor, cricketer, 41; Jessica Stroup, actress, 32.