JUNE 29.
65. Peter, the apostle, crucified at Rome, in the reign of Nero. On the evening of this day, St. Peter's church at Rome is splendidly illuminated.
455. The sack of Rome under Genseric, the Vandal, terminated. It had continued 14 days. The spoils of Jerusalem were removed to Carthage.
794. Offa, a powerful English king, died. He corresponded on flattering terms with Charlemagne, and fixed a seal to his charters.
1033. A great eclipse of the sun was observed. In France it caused almost midnight darkness at noon.
1215. King John signed magna charta,
or the great charter of liberties, which is esteemed the basis and palladium of British freedom, on this day, at Runemede, a meadow on the banks of the Thames, between Staines and Windsor, now occupied as a race course. Of 26 barons who subscribed this document, only 3 could write their own names. (This event is attributed to various days.)
1450. William Ascough, bishop of Sarum, murdered at the altar by Jack Cade and his followers.
1502. Columbus arrived at Hispaniola on his fourth voyage.
1509. Margaret of Lancaster, mother of Henry VII, died. She was a munificent patron of learning, and the founder of St. John's and Christ's colleges at Cambridge. She sustained an excellent character.
1519. Charles V declared emperor by the electoral voices.
1559. Henry II of France wounded in the eye with a spear, at a famous tournament, by the English count de Montgomery, of which he died. (See [July 10].)
1573. Gaspard Sanly de Tavannes, a distinguished French general, died. He was an honor to the military profession, and by his exertions the king of Navarre and the prince of Conde escaped the massacre of St. Bartholomews.
1586. Primus Truber, a Lutheran minister, who gave the first edition of the Vandalie scriptures, died.
1612. A lottery drawn in London for the benefit of the Virginia plantations, the profits of which amounted to nearly £30,000.
1644. Battle of Cropredy bridge; the parliament forces under Waller, defeated by the royalists.
1667. The French, Dutch and Danes concluded a peace with England at Breda.
1674. Charles II granted to his brother, the duke of York, the territory of the state of Delaware, then a part of New Netherland.
1678. Grenadiers introduced into England.
1716. Ernestus Augustus, duke of Brunswick, Lunenburg, and bishop of Osnabruck, brother to George I, created duke of York and Albany, in Great Britain, and earl of Ulster in Ireland.
1734. Battle of Parma, in Italy; the imperialists defeated by the French, and their general and 5,000 men killed.
1754. Lieutenant-governor Delancey opened at Albany a treaty with the Indians, who had been tardy in assembling at the convention of the provinces. A preconcerted speech was delivered, and the presents were distributed in the name of all the colonies.
1779. Anthony Raphael Mengs, an eminent Bohemian painter and author, died at Rome.
1793. Francis Charles Vivot de Sombreuil, a French general, guillotined at Paris, together with his eldest son, for their attachment to the king.
1794. Moreau entered Bruges—British quitted Ostend—French defeated at Guadaloupe.
1810. British ships Amphion, Cerberus and Active, burnt 26 vessels in the harbor of Grao, Spain, and brought off 26 with their cargos.
1811. French took fort Olivo by stratagem, and captured 900 Spaniards without firing a gun.
1813. British sloop of war Persian, wrecked on the Silver keys, in chasing the American privateer Saucy Jack.
1813. Valentine Green, an English mezzotinto engraver, died. Besides his great merit as an artist, he is also known as the author of a valuable work on antiquities.
1816. Pope Pius VII issued his bull against Bible societies, and prohibited the circulation of Bibles published by heretics, as eminently dangerous to souls.
1816. David Williams, an English miscellaneous writer, died. He founded the literary fund.
1836. Edward Smedley, prebendary of Lincoln, died; author of several poems, a history of the reformed religion in France, and editor of the Encyclopedia Metropolitana.
1837. Hofrath Aloysius Hirt died at Berlin, Prussia, aged 78; an eminent archæologist, distinguished for his attainments in literature and the fine arts, one of whose chief works was on the architecture of the ancients.
1840. Thomas Simpson, companion of Mr. Dean in the discovery of the north-west passage, died by his own hand at Turtle river, aged 32. He was a native of Scotland, and for four years had been actively engaged in the prosecution of the discoveries which will immortalize his name, and for which he is represented to have possessed uncommon qualifications.
1848. Croton aqueduct bridge over the Harlem completed; 1,400 feet long, resting on 15 arches, 8 of them 80 feet span; a work of surpassing skill and magnitude.
1850. Part of the Table rock at Niagara falls gave way.
1852. Henry Clay, an eminent American statesman, died, aged 75. Having received a common school education, he commenced the study of the law at the age of 19, and became one of the most distinguished orators of his day. He was an earnest supporter of the colonization society, and twice an unsuccessful candidate for the office of president of the United States.