ON THIS DAY
1792:
Sir John Herschel, astronomer who first mapped the stars of the southern hemisphere, was born in Slough.
1802:
Sculptor and animals painter Sir Edwin Landseer was born in London. He designed the bronze lions at the base of Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square.
1875:
Maurice Ravel, French composer (Bolero), was born.
1876:
Alexander Graham Bell patented the first telephone.
1917:
The Dixie Jazz Band One-Step was the world’s first jazz record to be released - ironically by the all-white Original Dixieland Jazz Band.
1941:
British troops invaded Italian-held Ethiopia.
1965:
State troopers and local law enforcement assault 600 civil rights marchers in Selma, Alabama. The event was dubbed Bloody Sunday.
1975:
The body of kidnapped heiress Lesley Whittle was found in a 60ft drain shaft. She had been held for 52 days then strangled by Donald Neilson, The Black Panther, who was later given five life sentences.
1989:
China declares martial law in Lhasa, Tibet. Reports claim Chinese troops fired on Tibetan monks and civilians demanding independence, killing hundreds.