NOW & THEN
FEBRUARY 23
1310: Declaration of the clergy and people in favour of King Robert Bruce from the Church of the Friars Minor in Dundee.
1573: Pacification of Perth ended fighting in Scotland between Regent and supporters of Mary Queen of Scots.
1820: The Cato Street conspiracy, an attempt to murder British Cabinet ministers, was uncovered in London.
1854: Britain agreed to leave territory north of Orange River in South Africa, allowing establishment of constitution for Orange Free State.
1863: Captain JH Speke discovered source of the Nile.
1874: Lawn tennis was patented by an Englishman, Major Walter Wingfield.
1898: Emile Zola was imprisoned in France for writing J’accuse.
1905: The first Rotary Club was formed, in Chicago.
1915: The French actress Sarah Bernhardt had her right leg amputated, but she was back on stage by November.
1919: Benito Mussolini founded the Fascist Party in Italy.
1920: The first regular broadcasting service in Britain started from Marconi’s studio in Chelmsford. The 30-minute programme was transmitted twice daily.
1934: Clark Gable exposed his bare chest in the film It Happened One Night, and millions of men stopped wearing vests.
1950: The first televised general election results. The Labour Party held on with the closest contest for 100 years – and Clement Attlee remained prime minister.
1953: An amnesty offered by the government to Second World War deserters brought in applications from more than 3,000 servicemen and 14 servicewomen.
1970: Republic of Guyana, formerly British Guiana, formally ended association with Britain but remained within Commonwealth.
1996: Armed troops returned to the streets of Northern Ireland and royal security was stepped up as fears grew that the IRA was planning a series of terrorist attacks.
1997: A small fire occurred in the Russian Space station, Mir.
1998: Osama bin Laden published a fatwa declaring jihad against all Jews and “Crusaders”; the latter term commonly interpreted to refer to the people of Europe and the United States.
1999: An avalanche destroyed the Austrian village of Galtür, killing 31.
2007: A train derailed on an evening express service near Grayrigg, Cumbria, killing one person and injuring 22. This resulted in hundreds of points being checked over the country after similar accidents.
2008: The Suffolk Strangler, Steve Wright, 49, who murdered five Ipswich prostitutes in a sixweek killing spree, was told by a judge that he would spend the rest of his life in prison.
2009: Hit British film Slumdog Millionaire won the top prize at the Academy Awards, winning eight Oscars including best director and best picture. In a good night for Britain, Kate Winslet won the best actress Oscar for The Reader.
2013: The United Kingdom lost its AAA credit rating, the first such downgrade since 1978.