This Day In European History
12th August
Events1332: The Battle of Dupplin Moor; David Balliol defeats the forces of his rival to the Scottish throne, King David II.
1339: The Battle of Vorskla River; The Golden Horde defeats Lithuania, ending their claims in Southern Russia.
1792: The French royal family is imprisoned by the Legislative Assembly.
1883: The quagga becomes extinct. The European connection? The last one was in Amsterdam when it died.
1914: The first shot fired by a British soldier during WW1, in Togoland.
1944: The PLUTO (Pipe Line Under The Ocean) begins sending fuel from Britain, across the English Channel, to France and Allied forces.
Births
1762: King George IV of Britain.
1887: Erwin Schrödinger, Austrian physicist.
Deaths
875: Frankish Emperor Louis II.
1684: Niccolo Amati, Italian violin maker.
1689: Pope Innocent XI.
1822: Lord Castlereagh, British foreign secretary (suicide).
1827: William Blake, English poet and painter.
1848: George Stephenson, English engineer.
1900: Wilhelm Steinitz, Austrian chess master.
1964: Ian Fleming, English novelist responsible for James Bond.
