Category: Articles

July 31 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

30 BC Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves minor victory over Octavian, but most of his army subsequently deserts, leading to Octavian’s invasion of Egypt

1620 Pilgrim Fathers depart Leiden, Netherlands for England on their way to America

1917 World War I: Battle of Passchendaele (Third Battle of Ypres) begins, goes on to cause approximately 500,000 casualties

1961 Israel welcomes its one millionth immigrant

2007 Operation Banner, the presence of the British Army in Northern Ireland, and longest-running British Army operation ever, comes to an end

Today’s Historical Events

30 BC Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves minor victory over Octavian, but most of his army subsequently deserts, leading to Octavian’s invasion of Egypt

432 St Sixtus III begins his reign as Catholic Pope

768 [Philip] begins and ends his reign as Catholic Pope

781 The oldest recorded eruption of Mt. Fuji (Traditional Japanese date: July 6, 781)

1291 Egyptian Mamelukken occupies Akko, crusaders driven out of Palestine

1415 The Southampton plot to assassinate English king Henry V and put Edmund Mortimer on the throne is uncovered

1423 Hundred Years’ War: Battle of Cravant – the French army is defeated by the English on the banks of the river Yonne in Burgundy

  • 1451 Jacques Cœur is arrested by order of Charles VII of France

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1912 US government prohibits movies and photos of prize fights (censorship)

1955 KRNT (now KCCI) TV channel 8 in Des Moines, Iowa (CBS) 1st broadcast

1955 WHIS (now WVVA) TV channel 6 in Bluefield, West Virginia (NBC) 1st broadcast

1960 KSOO (now KSFY) TV channel 13 in Sioux Falls, SD (NBC) 1st broadcast

1969 KWIH TV channel 44 in Winona, MN (IND) begins broadcasting

1970 Chet Huntley retires from NBC, ends “Huntley-Brinkley Report”

1974 6th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel

1984 Leeza Gibbon’s 1st appearance on Entertainment Tonight

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1786 “Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish dialect” by Robert Burns is published by John Wilson in Kilmarnock, Scotland

1948 “Brigadoon” closes at Ziegfeld Theater NYC after 581 performances

1959 Cliff Richard and the Shadows have their 1st British No. 1 single with “Living’ Doll” (biggest British single of 1959)

1966 Alabamans burn Beatle products due to John Lennon‘s anti-Jesus remark

1967 Rolling Stone Mick Jagger and Keith Richards end 1 month jail sentence

1968 The Beatles close Apple Boutique in London, giving clothes away for free

1979 “But Never Jam Today” opens at Longacre Theater NYC for 7 performances

1980 John Phillips of Mamas and Papas is arrested on drug charges

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1910 Tour de France: Octave Lapize of France wins by just 4 points from Team Alcyon teammate François Faber of Luxembourg

1928 Halina Konopacka of Poland hurls discus world record 39.62m to win first gold medal in women’s Olympic athletics at the Amsterdam Games; American Lillian Copeland and Ruth Sveberg of Sweden take minor medals

1928 In the first women’s Olympic track event, American sprinter Elizabeth Robinson equals her own world record 12.2s to win 100m gold medal in Amsterdam; Canadians Fanny Rosenfeld & Ethel Smith dead-heat (12.3s)

1930 NY Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig drives in 8 runs with a grand slam and 2 doubles in a 14-13 win over the rival Boston Red Sox

1932 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Paris, France: Home team wins 6th straight title as Jean Borotra beats American Wilmer Allison 1-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 for unassailable 3-1 lead; ends 3-2

1932 Cleveland Indians christen their new home, Municipal Stadium before more than 76,000 fans; lose opener, 1-0 to the Philadelphia A’s

1932 26th Tour de France: French cyclist André Leducq wins after tallying 6 stage victories; his second Tour triumph (1930)

1934 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Wimbledon: Fred Perry beats American Frank Shields 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 15-13 to give Great Britain unassailable 3-1 lead to retain title; ends 4-1

1.2 billion-year-old groundwater is some of the oldest on Earth

Groundwater that was recently discovered deep underground in a mine in South Africa is estimated to be 1.2 billion years old. Researchers suspect that the groundwater is some of the oldest on the planet, and its chemical interactions with the surrounding rock could offer new insights about energy production and storage in Earth’s crust.

In fact, Oliver Warr, a research associate in the department of Earth sciences at the University of Toronto in Canada and lead author of a new study about the groundwater discovery, described the location in a statement as a “Pandora’s box of helium-and-hydrogen-producing power.”

 

The South African groundwater was also enriched in the highest concentration of radiogenic products — elements produced by radioactivity — yet discovered in fluids, according to the study, demonstrating that ancient groundwater sites may one day potentially serve as energy sources.

The gold and uranium mine, known as Moab Khotsong, sits about 100 miles (161 kilometers) southwest of Johannesburg and is home to one of the world’s deepest mine shafts, plunging to depths of 1.86 miles (3 km) below the surface at its deepest, according to the mine (opens in new tab).

The new find follows the prior discovery of approximately 1.8 billion-year-old groundwater made during a 2013 research expedition (also led by Warr). That finding occurred at Kidd Creek Mine in Ontario, which lies beneath the Canadian Shield, a geologic structure comprised of igneous 

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July 30 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1178 Frederick I (Barbarossa), Holy Roman Emperor, crowned King of Burgundy

1419 First defenestration of Prague: anti-Catholic Hussites, followers of executed reformer Jan Hus, storm Prague town hall and throw the judge, mayor and several city council members out the windows. They die in the fall or killed by crowd outside.

1619 House of Burgesses Virginia forms, 1st elective American governing body

1863 Indian Wars: Chief Pocatello of the Shoshone tribe signs the Treaty of Box Elder, promising to stop harassing the emigrant trails in southern Idaho and northern Utah

1869 The Charles, considered the world’s first “oil tanker”, departs from the United States headed for Europe with a bulk capacity of 7,000 barrels of oil

1935 1st Penguin book is published, starting the paperback revolution

1937 Russian Politburo issues NKVD Order no. 00447, to repress former kulak and anti-soviets, 269,100 to be arrested, 76,000 to be shot. Part of the Great Purge.

Today’s Historical Events

101 BC Battle of Vercellae: Roman army under Gaius Marius defeats the Cimbri in Cisalpine Gaul, ending the Celto-Germanic threat on Italy’s border with over 100,000 Cimbri killed

579 Benedict I ends his reign as Catholic Pope

657 St Vitalian begins his reign as Catholic Pope succeeding Eugene I

762 City of Baghdad founded by abbasid caliph Al-Mansur, just north of ancient Baghdad

1178 Frederick I (Barbarossa), Holy Roman Emperor, crowned King of Burgundy

1419 First defenestration of Prague: anti-Catholic Hussites, followers of executed reformer Jan Hus, storm Prague town hall and throw the judge, mayor and several city council members out the windows. They die in the fall or killed by crowd outside.

1537 Resistant of Bomy: French Dutch cease fire

1601 Spanish garrison of Rhine birch surrenders to Earl Mauritius

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1930 1st broadcast of “Death Valley Days” on NBC-radio

1948 Professional wrestling premieres on prime-time network TV (DuMont)

1953 Rikidōzan holds a ceremony announcing the establishment of the Japan Pro Wrestling Alliance

1969 Barbra Streisand opens for Liberace at International Hotel, Las Vegas

1969 KAEC TV channel 19 in Lufkin, Texas (ABC) begins broadcasting

1975 7th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel

1976 Future TV personality (‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’) and transgender figure, Bruce Jenner (now Caitlin Jenner) sets WR 8,618 points to win decathlon gold at Montreal Olympics

1977 “I Just Want to Be Your Everything” by Andy Gibb reaches number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1792 500 Marseillaisian men sing France’s national anthem for 1st time

1824 Gioachino Rossini becomes manager of Theatre Italian, Paris

1954 Elvis Presley joins the Memphis Federation of Musicians, Local 71

1965 Charles Ives‘ “From the Steeples & the Mountains” premieres

1965 Duke Ellington‘s “Golden Brown & the Green Apple” premieres

1966 Beatles’ “Yesterday… & Today” album goes #1 & stays #1 for 5 weeks

1971 George Harrison releases single “Bangladesh”

1972 “Ain’t Supposed to Die Death” closes at Barrymore NYC after 325 performances

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1844 1st US yacht club – NY Yacht Club organized by John Cox Stevens and 8 friends aboard the Gimcrack

1874 1st baseball teams to play outside US, Boston-Philadelphia in British Isles

1884 Nonpareil Dempsey [John Edward Kelly] fights George Fulljames, possibly the 1st middleweight fight with boxing gloves

1905 3rd Tour de France won by Louis Trousselier of France

1908 Around the World Automobile Race ends in Paris

1909 John Heyder becomes president of baseball’s National League

1911 9th Tour de France won by Gustave Garrigou of France

1930 1st FIFA World Cup Final, Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay: Uruguay beats Argentina, 4-2 in the inaugural event

The Earth is Rotating Faster

On June 29, 2022, something extraordinary happened to the rate of spin of planet Earth. However, it probably had such a minuscule impact on your life that you can be forgiven for not even noticing.

Believe it or not, but you actually gained an extra 1.59 milliseconds to your day. We hope you spent it wisely!

According to TimeAndDate.com, on that day, our planet, as far as scientists can tell, set a new record for the quickest time to complete one rotation.

But what? Isn’t the Earth’s day exactly 24 hours? Actually, no, well, not quite.

The first thing to note is that there are actually “kinds” of days, depending on your definition.

The first, a solar day, is a period of 24 hours during which the Earth rotates so that the Sun appears at the same location in the sky. However, a sidereal day, which is defined as 23 hours, 56 minutes, and …

 Earth is suddenly rotating faster and the shortest day just recorded

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Ankh

From moonlitpriestess.com

An ancient Egyptian symbol resembling a cross with a loop at the top. It symbolizes life and cosmic knowledge. Most Egyptian Gods and Goddess are shown carrying one. Also known as the crux ansata, the Ankh is used in modern craft for fertility and health.

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Solitaire or Solitary

From moonlitpriestess.com

A witch who practices alone and is not or no longer associated with a specific Tradition, coven, or group.

July 29 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1588 The Battle of Gravelines – Spanish Armada damaged and scattered by the English fleet

1609 Samuel de Champlain shoots and kills two Iroquois chiefs at Ticonderoga, New York setting the stage for French-Iroquois conflicts for the next 150 years

1848 Irish Potato Famine: Tipperary Revolt – an unsuccessful nationalist revolt against British rule put down by police

1905 US Secretary of War William Howard Taft makes secret agreement with Japanese Prime Minister Katsura agreeing to Japanese free rein in Korea in return for non-interference with the US in the Philippines

1921 Adolf Hitler becomes leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party

1949 Moscow ends the blockade of West Berlin

Today’s Historical Events

362 Emperor Julianus of Constantinople’s “School Edict” prohibited Christian teachers from using pagan literature which were standard texts for classical education at the time

626 Avars under khagan Bajan begin siege of Constantinople (fails, preserving the eastern Roman empire)

904 Thessalonica is sacked by Saracen pirates led by renegade Leo of Tripoli

1014 Battle of Strumitsa-valley: Byzantine destroys Bulgarian armies

1030 Battle of Stiklestad – Norwegian King Olaf II killed trying to reclaim the throne. One of the most famous Norwegian battles

1179 Lando Sittino proclaimed (anti-)pope Innocent III

1221 Emperor Go-Horikawa aged only 10 years old ascends to the Chrysanthemum Throne of Japan

1279 Five emissaries dispatched by Kublai Khan from the Mongol Yuan dynasty are beheaded by Japan

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1928 Test footage first created for Walt Disney‘s “Steamboat Willie” with Mickey Mouse

1954 Publication of “Fellowship of the Ring” 1st volume of “Lord of the Rings” by J. R. R. Tolkien by George Allen and Unwin in London

1956 WCKT (now WSVN) TV channel 7 in Miami, Florida (IND) begins broadcasting

1957 Jack Paar‘s “The Tonight show” premieres on NBC

1965 Beatles movie “Help” premieres, Queen Elizabeth attends

1983 “Friday Night Videos” premieres on NBC TV

1988 South African government bans anti-apartheid film “Cry Freedom”

1992 Ray Sharkey, actor (Wiseguys), arrested for narcotic possession

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1961 Bob Dylan is injured in car accident

1966 Bob Dylan hurt in motorcycle accident near Woodstock, New York

1973 Led Zeppelin has more than $200,000 in cash stolen from a safety-deposit box at the New York Hilton

1980 David Bowie stars in dramatic stage play “The Elephant Man” at the Auditorium Theater in Denver, Colorado

1987 Ben & Jerry’s and Jerry Garcia agree on new flavor: Cherry Garcia

1992 “Chinese Coffee” closes at Circle in the Square Theater, NYC, after 18 performances

1994 American minister and anti-abortionist Paul Jennings Hill murders Dr. John Britton and Britton’s bodyguard, retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel James Barrett, outside of an abortion clinic in Pensacola, Florida

2019 Record for longest run at the top of US singles chart made by country rap single “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X remixed with Billy Ray Cyrus, No. 1 for 17 weeks

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1751 1st international world title prize fight: Jack Stack of England, beats challenger M. Petit of France in 29 mins in England

1874 Major Walter Copton Wingfield patents a portable tennis court

1899 Southern California Golf Association forms

1906 4th Tour de France won by René Pottier of France

1908 St Louis Browns’ future Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Rube Waddell strikes out 16 Philadelphia A’s in 5-4 win against his previous team at Sportsman’s Park II, St. Louis

1911 Boston Red Sox Joe Wood no-hits St Louis Browns, 5-0

1915 Pirate Honus Wagner at 41, hits a grand slam HR

1921 Cleveland’s 125th anniversary celebration: Cy Young, 54, pitches 2 inn

Living Liminally: Discerning Good Source Material

One thing that’s important for anyone who relies, to any degree, on sources outside themselves for spirituality – or anything else – is being able to judge a good source from a bad one. So today I want to just run down a quick list of ways to vett sources of any type to decide how much weight you should give to something. Even if a source isn’t perfect it may have value – or it may be immediately tossed out. It depends on how it measures up.


  1. What sources does this source use? – One of the first things I do with any new source, be it written, video, in person, or what-have-you, is to try to look at what sources that source is using. Are they talking purely from personal gnosis? Are they using academic texts? Are they using other authors based in personal gnosis? Are they using well known and respected sources? Are they referencing conspiracy theorists or known white supremacists? Do they have no sources at all that they admit to? All of these things need to be taken into account. Something that’s entirely personal gnoses isn’t necessarily bad but needs to be understood in that context, while something from a deeply flawed or problematic source will be eliminated. 
  2. Never once the Wikipedia – Okay this is  bit ranty right here, but as soon as I see wikipedia listed as a source for anything I’m done with that source. There’s a very good reason that wikipedia can’t be used in college, university, or even high school classes: its notoriously unreliable and oddly biased. Anyone can and does edit wikipedia and while its true that wikipedia cites sources and includes references pretty much any print or online source can be used and there is no quality control. Let me repeat; there is no quality control. The entry on Baobhan Sithe was sourced mainly from modern vampire guides, themselves largely repeating modern urban legends, and from RPG guidebooks. No really. The entry on Finnbheara contained an assertion straight from a fiction novel (I removed it, because remember anyone can edit wikipedia). Please don’t trust anything on wikipedia or any article using wiki as a source. Just don’t. 
  3. What is the author’s bias? – Every author or teacher has biases, that’s just human nature. Figuring out what to think of a source means understanding what that source’s biases are and …

Click here to read the rest of this article

July 28 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1794 French Revolutionary figure Maximilien robespierre and 22 other leaders of “the Terror” guillotined to thunderous cheers in Paris

1914 Austria-Hungary decides against mediation and declares war on Serbia – first declaration of war of WWI

1917 Silent Parade organised by James Weldon Johnson of 10,000 African-Americans who march on 5th Ave in NYC to protest against lynching

1943 Operation Gomorrah: RAF bombing over Hamburg causes a firestorm that kills 42,600 German civilians

1976 Tangshan Earthquake, 8.2 in magnitude kills over 240,000 Northern China in the largest loss of life from an earthquake in the 20th century

2005 The Provisional Irish Republican Army call an end to their thirty year long armed campaign in Northern Ireland

Today’s Historical Events

388 Battle at Aquileja: Emperor Theodosius beats emperor Magnus Maximis

754 Pope Stephen II, [III] makes Pippin de Korte, King of France

1148 Second Crusade: Crusaders abandon their siege of Damascus

1330 Battle of Velbuzd: Serbian forces defeats Bulgarian army

1434 Navigator Gil Eanes leaves Cape Bojador for Lisbon

1579 Cardinal Granvelle returns to Madrid

1586 Sir Thomas Harriot introduces potatoes to Europe on return to England

1609 Admiral George Somers settles in Bermuda

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1932 “White Zombie” – 1st feature length zombie film directed by Victor Halperin and starring Bela Lugosi is released in the US

1951 Walt Disney‘s animated musical film “Alice In Wonderland” released

1954 “On the Waterfront”, directed by Elia Kazan starring Marlon Brando and Eva Marie Saint, is released (Academy Awards Best Picture 1955)

1957 Jerry Lee Lewis makes his 1st TV appearance (Steve Allen Show)

1971 Dutch ends censorship of “Blue Movie”

2014 Linda Ronstadt receives the National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama in a White House ceremony. [1]

2019 Meghan Duchess of Sussex, revealed as the first guest editor for UK Vogue in 103 years for its September 2019 issue

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1914 Foxtrot 1st danced at New Amsterdam Roof Garden, in NYC, by Harry Fox

1933 1st singing telegram delivered (to Rudy Vallee), NYC

1951 Cole Porter‘s musical “Kiss Me, Kate”, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s ” The Taming of the Shrew”, closes at New Century Theater NYC after 1077 performances

1954 Ernest Bloch’s 4th string quartet premieres

1978 600,000 attend the “Summer Jam” rock festival at Watkins Glen, New York, at the time the largest ever audience at a pop festival

1989 Gloria Estefan releases her debut solo album “Cuts Both Ways”

1991 “Gypsy” closes at Marquis Theater NYC after 105 performances

1992 R&B singer Mary J. Blige releases her debut album “What’s the 411?”, with production by Puff Daddy

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1906 Yankees turn triple-play, beat Cleveland 6-4

1912 10th Tour de France won by Odile Defraye of Belgium

1928 IX Summer Olympic Games open in Amsterdam, Netherlands

1929 Chicago Cardinals become 1st NFL team to train out of state (Michigan)

1929 24th Davis Cup: France beats USA in Paris (3-2)

1929 23rd Tour de France won by Maurice De Waele of Belgium

1929 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Paris, France: Home team wins 3 straight titles as Henri Cochet beats American George Lott 6-1, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 for a 3-2 victory

1931 White Sox score 11 in 8th to beat Yankees 14-12

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Projective Hand

From moonlitpriestess.com

Dominant hand; generally used to send energy from the body in magick.

July 27 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1586 Walter Raleigh brings the 1st tobacco to England from Virginia

1689 Battle of Killicrankie: Jacobite Scottish Highlanders under Viscount Dundee defeat royalist force under General MacKay

1789 US Congress establishes Department of Foreign Affairs now referred to as the State Department

1866 transatlantic telegraph cable successfully in second attempt comes ashore at Heart’s Content, Newfoundland laid out by Isambard Kingdom Brunel‘s Great Eastern steamship (1,686 miles long)

1921 Frederick Banting and Charles Best isolate insulin at the University of Toronto

Today’s Historical Events

432 St Celestine I ends his reign as Catholic Pope

1214 1st battle of Bouvines – King Philip II of France vs Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV and King John of England; as a result John lost Normandy and his other possessions in France (hence his nickname John “Lackland”)

1230 Treaty of San Germano between Emperor Frederik II & Pope Gregory IX

1280 Sogen Mugaku, founder of Engakuji temple, arrives in Japan from China

1298 Albert (Albrecht) I, son of Rudolf of Habsburg, crowned King of the Germans

1360 Danish King Waldemar IV destroys Visby, Gotland

1377 First example of quarantine in Rugusa (now Dubroknik); city council passes law saying newcomers from plague areas must isolation for 30 days (later 40 days, quaranta in Italian)

1501 Nicolaus Copernicus formally installed as a canon of Frauenberg Cathedral

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1940 Bugs Bunny, Warner Bros. cartoon character created by Tex Avery, Bob Givens (Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series), first debuts in “Wild Hare”

1990 Zsa Zsa Gabor begins a 3 day jail sentence for slapping a police officer in Beverly Hills

1993 NBC TV awarded 1996 Olympic coverage for $456 million

1995 28th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at San Diego Convention Center

2007 Two News helicopters from Phoenix, Arizona television stations KNXV and KTVK collide over Steele Indian School Park in central Phoenix while covering a police chase; there were no survivors. Worst civil aviation incident in Phoenix history.

2018 CBS Chairman Leslie Moonves is accused of sexual misconduct in the “New Yorker” by journalist Ronan Farrow

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1940 Billboard magazine starts publishing bestseller charts

1957 St James’ Theatre in London closes

1977 John Lennon is granted a green card for permanent residence in US

1979 “Broadway Opry ’79” opens at St James Theater NYC for 6 performances

1982 Alan Menken and Howard Ashman’s musical “Little Shop of Horrors” opens Off-Broadway at the Orpheum Theatre in NYC

1997 “Candide” closes at Gershwin Theater NYC after 103 performances

1997 “Victor/Victoria” closes at Marquis Theater NYC after 738 performances

2018 American singer-songwriter Neil Diamond gives a small thank-you concert to firefighters near his home in Colorado

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1913 11th Tour de France won by Philippe Thys of Belgium

1913 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Wimbledon, England: Maurice McLoughlin beats Charles Dixon 8-6, 6-3, 6-2 to give US an unassailable 3-1 lead over the British Isles; US wins, 3-2

1914 Roda JC soccer team forms in Kerkrade

1919 13th Tour de France won by Firmin Lambot of Belgium

1920 Resolute beats Shamrock IV (England) in 14th running of America’s Cup

1920 14th Tour de France: Belgian rider Philippe Thys becomes first to win the race 3 times

1924 VIII Summer Olympic Games close in Paris, France

1927 Mel Ott, 18, hits his 1st league home run (inside the park)

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Receptive Hand

From moonlitpriestess.com

Opposite of the projective hand; generally used to receive energy or sense information in the body in magick.

July 26 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

657 Battle of Siffin during the first Muslim civil war between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiyah I beside Euphrates River

1519 Francisco Pizarro receives royal charter for the west coast of South America

1533 Francisco Pizarro orders the death of the last Sapa Inca Emperor, Atahualpa

1803 The Surrey Iron Railway, arguably the world’s first public railway, opens in south London

1908 United States Attorney General Charles Joseph Bonaparte issues an order to immediately staff the Office of the Chief Examiner (later renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation)

1945 Declaration of Potsdam: US, Britain and China demand the unconditional surrender of Japan during WWII

1953 Fidel Castro leads a failed attack on the Moncada Barracks, intended to spark a revolution in Cuba

Today’s Historical Events

657 Battle of Siffin during the first Muslim civil war between Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muawiyah I beside Euphrates River

811 Battle of Pliska: Bulgarians under Krum beat Byzantines

920 Rout of an alliance of Christian troops from Navarre and Léon against the Muslims at Pamplona

1267 Inquisition forms in Rome under Pope Clement IV

1309 Henry VII is recognized King of the Romans by Pope Clement V

1469 Wars of the Roses: Battle of Edgecote Moor – Pitting the forces of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick against those of King Edward IV

1497 “Edward IV‘s son” Perkin Warbeck’s army lands in Cork

1499 Spanish conquistador Alonso de Ojeda discovers Curacao Island

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1896 Vitascope Hall, 1st permanent for-profit movie theatre, opens in New Orleans

1938 1st radio broadcast of “Young Widder Brown” on NBC

1948 1st black host of a network show-CBS’ Bob Howard Show

1949 WCPO TV channel 9 in Cincinnati, OH (CBS) begins broadcasting

1954 WCET TV channel 48 in Cincinnati, OH (PBS) begins broadcasting

1966 WRLH TV channel 31 in Lebanon, NH (NBC) begins broadcasting

1978 11th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel

1982 Karen Dianne Baldwin, 18, of Canada, crowned 31st Miss Universe

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1882 Richard Wagner‘s opera “Parsifal” premieres in Bayreuth, Germany

1973 Peter Shaffer‘s musical “Equus” premieres in London

1992 “Man of La Mancha” closes at Marquis Theater NYC after 108 performances

2018 Sir Paul McCartney performs a “secret” gig at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, where the Beatles began

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1914 12th Tour de France won by Philippe Thys of Belgium

1928 In only his second and final defence of his world heavyweight boxing title, Gene Tunney scores an 11-round TKO win over Tom Heeney at Yankee Stadium, NYC

1928 Yanks score 11 runs in 12th beating Tigers 12-1

1931 LPGA Western Open Women’s Golf, Midlothian CC: June Beebe beats Mrs. Melvin Jones, 3 & 2 for golf’s only major title

1931 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Paris, France: Henri Cochet beats Fred Perry 6-4, 1-6, 9-7, 6-3 to give France 3-2 win over Great Britain and 5th straight title

1931 25th Tour de France won by Antonin Magne of France

1933 Joe DiMaggio ends 61 game hitting streak in Pacific Coast League

1939 Yankee catcher Bill Dickey hits 3 consecutive HRs

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Natural Magick

From moonlitpriestess.com

Another term for Earth Magick, magick that is drawn from the energies of the Earth, natural objects, the Elements, etc.

July 25 Today in HIstory

Today’s Important Historical Events

306 Constantine I is proclaimed Roman Emperor by his troops

1814 English engineer George Stephenson introduces his first steam locomotive, a travelling engine designed for hauling coal on the Killingworth wagonway named Blücher

1943 Benito Mussolini dismissed as Italian Premier and arrested on the authority of King Victor Emmanuel III

1944 World War II: Operation Spring – one of Canada’s bloodiest days, 18,444 casualties and 5,021 killed

1997 Scientists announce the first human stem cells to be cultured in a laboratory using tissue taken from aborted human embryos

Today’s Historical Events

306 Constantine I is proclaimed Roman Emperor by his troops

864 The Edict of Pistres of Charles the Bald orders defensive measures against the Vikings

1120 Large fire in church of Saint Madeleine of Vézelay, France, kills a thousand pilgrims and seriously damages the church

1139 Count Alfonso I of Portugal proclaimed King

1261 Constantinople recaptured by Nicaean forces under Alexios Strategopoulos for Emperor Michael VIII, re-establishing Byzantine Empire

1360 Jews are expelled from Breslau, Silesia

1446 Foundation stone laid for King’s College Chapel in Cambridge by King Henry VI, one of England’s finest medieval buildings (main structure complete 1515) [1]

1510 Spanish conquest of Tripoli by Pedro Navarro for Aragon crown; over 3,000 killed and more than 5,000 inhabitants enslaved

 

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1922 AT&T begins broadcasting on WBAY (NYC-later WEAF, WNBC, WRCA & WFAN)

1946 At Club 500 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis stage their first show as a comedy team

1966 The Supremes release single “You Can’t Hurry Love”

1985 Spokeswoman for Rock Hudson confirms he has AIDS

1987 Sherri Martel beats Fabulous Moolah for WWF Woman’s Championship Belt

1988 Mindy Duncan, 16, of Oregon, crowned 6th Miss Teen USA

1989 Brandi Sherwood of Idaho crowned 7th Miss Teen USA

1990 Roseanne Barr sings the National Anthem at Cincinnati Reds-San Diego Padres MLB game

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1933 1st Dutch live radio concert: Duke Ellington

1936 Jazz saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker marries his childhood sweetheart Rebecca Ruffin

1964 “Here’s Love” closes at Shubert Theater NYC after 338 performances

1964 Beatles’ album “A Hard Day’s Night” goes #1, stays #1 for 14 weeks

1965 Bob Dylan is booed by sections of the crowd at the Newport Folk Festival for performing with an electric guitar, beginning of folk-rock

1966 Brian Jones’ final performance as a Rolling Stone

1969 70,000 attend Seattle Pop Festival (across 3 days); performers included: Bo Diddley, Flying Burrito Brothers, Ten Years After, Guess Who, Santana, Tim Buckley, Byrds, Ike & Tina Turner Revue, Chicago Transit Authority, Chuck Berry, Led Zeppelin, and The Doors

1970 “(They Long to Be) Close to You” sung by the Carpenters reaches #1

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1900 Gloucestershire captain Gilbert Jessop hits his second century (139 in 95 minutes) before lunch in same County Cricket match (104 previous day); Yorkshire wins by 40 runs

1902 3 years after winning the title from English boxer Bob Fitzsimmons, American champion James J. Jeffries repeats the dose with an 8th round KO in San Francisco for the heavyweight crown

1913 Pittsburgh Pirates future Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder Max Carey scores 5 runs without a hit, reaching first base on an error and 4 walks, as the Bucs beat Philadelphia Phillies, 12-2

1914 Last day of club cricket for English legend W. G. Grace at age 66: makes unbeaten 69 runs for Eltham against Grove Park

1937 31st Tour de France won by Roger Lapebie of France

1939 New York Yankees starting pitcher Atley Donald sets American League rookie record for consecutive wins; beats St. Louis Browns 5-1 for his 12th straight victory

1940 American John Sigmund begins swimming for 89 hours, 46 minutes from St. Louis to Caruthersville, Missouri in the Mississippi River; 292 miles, longest solo swim of all time

1941 41-year-old Lefty Grove wins his 300th and final MLB career game as the Boston Red Sox defeat Cleveland Indians, 10-6 at Fenway Park

 

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Words are

Hagstone

and

Holey Stones

From moonlitpriestess.com

Another name for holey stones.

and

Rocks with naturally occurring hole through their centers; known for protection and luck; believed that peering through the hole provides the ability to see creatures of other realms.

July 24 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1534 Jacques Cartier lands in Canada, claims it for France

1567 Mary Queen of Scots is forced to abdicate; her 1-year-old son becomes King James VI of Scots

1832 Benjamin Bonneville leads the first wagon train across the Rocky Mountains by Wyoming’s South Pass

1911 American explorer Hiram Bingham discovers Machu Picchu, the Lost City of the Incas

1943 Operation Gomorrah: RAF begins bombing Hamburg (till 3rd August), creating a firestorm and killing 42,600 people

1982 Single “Eye Of The Tiger” by Survivor from “Rocky III” soundtrack starts 6-week run at No. 1 on US charts (Grammy for Best Rock Performance)

2019 Global warming is the fastest in 2,000 years and scientific consensus that humans are the cause is at 99%, according to three major reports published in journals “Nature” and “Nature Geoscience”

Today’s Historical Events

1132 Battle of Nocera between Ranulf II of Alife and Roger II of Sicily

1148 Louis VII of France lays siege to Damascus during the Second Crusade

1411 Battle of Harlaw, one of the bloodiest battles in Scotland, takes place

1487 Citizens of Leeuwarden, Netherlands, rebel against ban on foreign beer

1525 Second attempt to circumnavigate the globe as seven ships departs Corunna headed by García Jofre de Loaísa on orders of King Charles I of Spain for the Spice Islands (only one will make it)

1534 Jacques Cartier lands in Canada, claims it for France

1567 Mary Queen of Scots is forced to abdicate; her 1-year-old son becomes King James VI of Scots

1577 Spanish army/German mercenaries conquer Namur

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1952 “High Noon”, American Western film directed by Fred Zinnemann, starring Gary Cooper and Thomas Mitchell, is released

1953 KEYT TV channel 3 in Santa Barbara, CA (ABC) begins broadcasting

1957 KTVC TV channel 6 in Ensign, KS (CBS) begins broadcasting

1959 500,000th Dutch TV set registered

1971 WUHQ TV channel 41 in Battle Creek, MI (ABC) begins broadcasting

1974 “Death Wish”, based on the novel by Brian Garfield, directed by Michael Winner and starring Charles Bronson is released in the US

1978 Margaret Gardiner, of South Africa, crowned 27th Miss Universe

1998 “Saving Private Ryan“, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Tom Hanks, Edward Burns and Matt Damon, is released (Academy Awards Best Director 1999)

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1917 Trial of Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari begins in Paris for allegedly spying for Germany and thus causing the deaths of 50,000 soldiers

1942 Irving Berlin‘s musical “This Is The Army” premieres in NYC

1965 “Flora, the Red Menace” closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 87 performances

1965 Bob Dylan release “Like a Rolling Stone”

1965 Rock group “The Animals” 1st time in British charts

1967 The Beatles sign a petition in Times to legalize marijuana

1982 “Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” closes at E O’Neill NYC after 63 performances

1983 “Mame” opens at Gershwin Theater NYC for 41 performances

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1860 Olympics beat St. George, 25-17 at St. Georges Cricket Grounds, Philadelphia in first baseball game played in enclosed field

1893 For only time in history of US Tennis championships, an event is held off the Eastern seaboard. Men’s double championship in Chicago

1902 Victor Trumper scores a century for Australia before lunch 4th Test Cricket v England

1904 2nd Tour de France won by Henri Cornet of France

1905 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Wimbledon: Laurence Doherty & Reggie Doherty beat Holcombe Ward & Beals Wright 8-10, 6-2, 6-2, 4-6, 8-6 to give British Isles an unassailable 3-0 lead over US (ends 5-0)

1908 American Johnny Hayes wins London Olympic marathon in Games record 2:55:18.4 after Dorando Pietri of Italy disqualified for receiving assistance before the finish line

1909 Brooklyn Superbas pitcher Nap Rucker strikes out 16 Pittsburgh Pirates in a 1-0 victory at Washington Park, Brooklyn

1921 15th Tour de France won by Leon Scieur of Belgium

July 23 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1215 Frederick II crowned King of the Romans (King of the Germans) in Aachen

1829 William Austin Burt patents America’s first “typographer” (typewriter)

1840 Union Act passed by British Parliament, uniting Upper & Lower Canada

1944 Conference of Bretton Woods signed; IMF operations begin

1995 Comet Hale-Bopp is discovered and becomes visible to the naked eye nearly a year later

Today’s Historical Events

636 Arabs gain control of most of Palestine from the Byzantine Empire

685 John V begins his reign as Catholic Pope

1148 Crusaders begin siege of Damascus during Second Crusade (abandoned 28 July)

1215 Frederick II crowned King of the Romans (King of the Germans) in Aachen

1253 Jews are expelled from Vienne, France by order of Pope Innocent IV

1298 Rindfleisch (“Beef”) Persecutions – Jewish community in Wurzburg, Germany massacred

1453 Battle at Gavere: Philip the Good beats Gentse rebellion

1532 Emperor Charles V and the Schmalkaldic League sign Peace of Nuremberg

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1966 Frank Sinatra‘s album “Strangers In The Night” hits #1 on the US charts, (Grammy for Record Of The Year and Best Male Vocal Performance)

1975 Alan Ayckbourn’s “Absent Friends” premieres in London

1981 14th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel

1984 Suzette Charles (NJ), 21, replaces Williams as 57th Miss America 1984

1984 Vanessa Williams, 1st African American Miss America, resigns after Penthouse publishes unauthorized nude photos of her

1989 FOX-TV tops ABC, NBC & CBS for 1st time (America’s Most Wanted)

1989 Ringo Starr‘s first All-Starr Band debuts in concert; members include Joe Walsh, Nils Lofgren, Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Clarence Clemons, Dr. John, Billy Preston, and Jim Keltner

1994 American dancer, actor, and director Gene Kelly suffers a mild stroke

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1961 American opera singer Grace Bumbry becomes the first black singer to perform at the Bayreuth Festival, Germany, she earns 42 curtain calls

1965 The Beatles’ single “Help” is released in the UK

1976 Wings release single “Let ’em In”

1992 Bruce Springsteen begins a world tour, his first with musicians other than the E Street band

1995 “Hamlet” closes at Belasco Theater NYC after 121 performances

2010 One Direction is formed during the X Factor show as Niall Horan, Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson join together

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1827 1st US swimming school opens (Boston, Massachusetts)

1866 Cincinnati Baseball club (Red Stockings) forms

1868 All England Lawn Tennis Club is founded as The All England Croquet Club; 1877 name changed to The All England Croquet & Lawn Tennis Club

1902 Dutch Excelsior soccer club is established in Rotterdam (Eerste Divisie winners 1973-4, 78-79, 2005-06)

1907 International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Wimbledon: Norman Brookes beats Herbert Roper Barrett 6-2, 6-0, 6-3 to give Australasia a 3-2 win over British Isles

1921 Edward Gourdin of US sets long jump record at 25′ 2 3/4″

1922 16th Tour de France won by Firmin Lambot of Belgium

1925 NY Yankee Lou Gehrig hits his 1st of 23 career grand slammers

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Dabbler

From moonlitpriestess.com

Refers to a person who, without proper training and/or education, decides to practice any form of magick; generally considered as harmless in most cases, but can cause ill effects (typically in the dabbler’s own life) due to the lack of required knowledge, awareness, and/or skill depending upon the specifics dabbled in.

Ancient sanctuary used by Roman soldiers nearly 2,000 years ago found in the Netherlands

One of the most extensive ancient Roman temple complexes in northern Europe, which includes sacrificial altars used by soldiers on a far frontier of the Roman Empire, has been unearthed in the Netherlands.

The first century A.D. site — known as a temple sanctuary — was located near the fork of the Rhine and Waal rivers and a short walk from Roman forts along the Lower German Limes, which was then the northernmost border of the empire. It now lies near the Dutch city of Zevenaar in the eastern Gelderland region, near the border with Germany.

The sanctuary consisted of at least three large temples and many smaller altars dedicated to particular Roman gods and goddesses, and would mainly have been used for sacred vows by Roman soldiers stationed at the nearby forts, project leader Eric Norde, an archaeologist at the Dutch archaeology agency RAAP, told Live Science.

Hundreds of artifacts have been found at the site, including coins and jewelry; while the tips of spears and lances, and the remains of armor and horse harnesses, emphasize its military nature, he said.

The discoveries give a glimpse of the lives of soldiers stationed on the frontiers of the empire, far from the Roman heartlands.

“It’s the best-preserved Roman sanctuary in the Netherlands, and perhaps in a much larger area,” Norde said. “It’s quite extraordinary.”

The central government of the Netherlands and the provincial Gelderland government have contracted RAAP to excavate the site, which was first unearthed during commercial clay extraction works in 2021, according to a statement by the Dutch cultural ministry (opens in new tab). The clay extraction has been stopped for the excavations but is continuing nearby, and so the archaeological site is closed to the public for now.

Votive altars …

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