ON THIS DAY
490BC: The Greeks defeated the Persians under Darius at the Battle of Marathon. Philippides had run 150 miles in two days in a futile attempt to ask the Spartans to assist the Greek army, but in the end their help was not required. 1321: Italian poet Dante Alighieri died in Ravenna. 1759: The British under General Wolfe won the Battle of Quebec – but Wolfe was shot and died in the fighting. 1788: New York became federal capital of the new United States of America. 1874: Composer Arnold Schoenberg was born in Vienna. As a triskaidekaphobe (someone afraid of the number 13), he predicted he would die on the 13th at the age of 76 (7+6=13). He did, on July 13, 1951 at 13 minutes to midnight. His last word was “harmony”. 1909: The first performance took place of Oscar Strauss’ The Chocolate Soldier, the operetta based on Shaw’s Arms And The Man. It introduced the famous song My Hero. 1915: The process for making breakfast cereal flakes was patented by Frank Martin, as previously the combination of corn, oats and grain had proved indigestible for the public. 1944: William Heath Robinson, the English artist known for his drawings of complex machinery which performed simple tasks, died. 1957: The Mousetrap, a murdermystery, became Britain’s longest running play, reaching its 1,998th performance. 1985: The World Health Organisation declared Aids a worldwide epidemic. 2008: Hurricane Ike ravaged parts of Texas and Louisiana, battering the US coast with 110mph gusts of wind and torrential rain. ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: A landmark experiment opened a window to a sci-fi future in which babies are conceived from skin cells. BIRTHDAYS: Jacqueline Bisset, actress, 73; Don Was, music producer, 65; Bobby Davro, comedian, 59; Zak Starkey, rock musician, 52; Michael Johnson, former athlete, 50; Shane Warne, cricketer, 48; Goran Ivanisevic, former tennis player, 46; Stella McCartney, fashion designer, 46; Niall Horan, singer (One Direction), 24.