ON THIS DAY
1157: King Richard I was born in Oxford, third son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. He was later known as Richard the Lionheart. Although he reigned for nearly 10 years, he was only in England twice – a grand total of 160 days. He was away mostly on crusades.
1504: Michelangelo unveiled his statue of David in Florence. 1664: The Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam was seized by the English and re-named New York, in honour of James, Duke of York, the future King James II. 1886: Siegfried Sassoon, First World War poet, was born in Brenchley, Kent. 1888: The first English Football League matches were played.
1944: The first German V2 flying bombs fell in Britain.
1966: The Severn Bridge was officially opened by the Queen. ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: The Royal Albert Hall called for donations totalling £20 million to help it weather the impact of Covid-19.