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October 24

Present-day view of the Schliengen battlefield

The Battle of Schliengen took place on 24 October 1796 between the French Army of the Rhine and Moselle and the Austrian army near the village of Schliengen during the War of the First Coalition. Control of the area gave either combatant access to southwestern German states and Rhine crossings. On 20 October, the French army under Jean-Victor Moreau retreated from Freiburg im Breisgau and established his army along a ridge of hills. The Austrian army led by Archduke Charles attacked the French flanks directly, and in force, which increased casualties for both sides. The French withdrew from the battlefield in good order and several days later crossed the Rhine at Huningue. Confusion in Vienna wasted any strategic advantage that Charles might have obtained and locked the Habsburg force into two sieges on the Rhine, when the troops were badly needed in northern Italy. The battle is commemorated on a monument in Vienna and on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. (Full article...)

October 24

George Washington Bridge

• 1789 – The Brabant Revolution, sometimes considered to be the first expression of Belgian nationalism, began with the invasion of the Austrian Netherlands by an émigré army from the Dutch Republic.
• 1851 – Umbriel and Ariel, the third- and fourth-largest moons of Uranus, were discovered by William Lassell.
• 1931 – The George Washington Bridge (pictured), connecting Manhattan, New York City, to Fort Lee, New Jersey, and today the world's busiest motor-vehicle bridge, was dedicated.
• 1964 – Charges in a military court against generals Dương Văn Đức and Lâm Văn Phát of leading a coup attempt against South Vietnamese leader Nguyễn Khánh were dropped.

October 24

Thomson's gazelle (Eudorcas thomsonii) is a species of antelope native to the grasslands and savannas of Kenya and Tanzania. It is named after Scottish explorer Joseph Thomson. It stands 60–70 centimetres tall at the shoulder and has a sandy-brown coat, a black stripe along each flank, and a white rump. Thomson's gazelles feed primarily on grasses, supplementing their diet with leaves and seeds during dry periods. They can reach speeds of 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph), evading predators such as cheetahs through rapid changes of direction. Although classified as a least-concern species, their populations have declined substantially because of habitat modification and other threats. This male Thomson's gazelle was photographed in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. Photograph credit: Diego Delso Recently featured: Man with a Movie Camera 12P/Pons–Brooks Upland goose Archive More featured pictures

October 25

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Their original line-up comprised brothers Ray Davies and Dave Davies, Pete Quaife and Mick Avory. Emerging during the height of British rhythm and blues and Merseybeat, "You Really Got Me" (1964), their breakthrough third single written by Ray Davies, became an international hit, topping the charts in the United Kingdom and reaching the top 10 in the United States. They were part of the British Invasion until their 1965 American tour led to them being banned from touring there for a number of years. The Kinks are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. They had seventeen top-20 singles and five top-10 albums in the UK, and five singles reached the top 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The band has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. In 1990, the original four members of the Kinks were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. (Full article...)

October 25

Students dancing around Statue of Industry after tarring and feathering it

• 1616 – Dutch explorer Dirk Hartog left a plate on an island in Shark Bay, the oldest-known artefact of European exploration in Australia still in existence.
• 1864 – American Civil War: During Price's Missouri Expedition, Union troops defeated Sterling Price's Confederate army in three successive battles: Marais des Cygnes, Mine Creek, and Marmiton River.
• 1929 – Hundreds of students at Armstrong College in Newcastle, England, tarred and feathered Statue of Industry (pictured), a sculpture by Herbert Maryon.
• 2001 – Windows XP, one of the most popular and widely used versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system, was released for retail sale.

October 25

Khao Phing Kan is an island in Phang Nga Bay, Thailand, part of the Ao Phang Nga National Park. Together with the nearby limestone islet Ko Ta Pu, it is popularly known as James Bond Island, following its appearance in the 1974 film The Man with the Golden Gun. This photograph, taken in Phang Nga Bay in 2013, shows Ko Ta Pu in the centre, with its distinctive shape formed by erosion. Part of Khao Phing Kan is visible on the right of the photograph, and the neighbouring island of Ko Raya Ring on the left. Photograph credit: Diego Delso Recently featured: Thomson's gazelle Man with a Movie Camera 12P/Pons–Brooks Archive More featured pictures

October 26

Cover of the first issue, 1914

Eyebrow Talk was a Chinese monthly literary magazine published in 18 issues from 1914 to 1916. Among the first Chinese literary magazines marketed towards women, and the first to be edited mainly by women, it was founded by Gao Jianhua and Xu Xiaotian, her husband and cousin. The magazine often ran romance stories aimed at women, but contained sexually explicit depictions of women in its advertising, covers, and pictures, some sourced from European erotic postcards. Unlike its contemporaries, Eyebrow Talk's romances often centered on the desires of their female protagonists, frequently including love triangles between the protagonists and multiple men. Its libertine content ran afoul of a government advisory committee, who unanimously voted to ban it in 1916, making it the first Chinese magazine to be banned under charges of obscenity. Its association with lowbrow "Mandarin Duck and Butterfly" fiction prevented scholarly research for much of the 20th century. (Full article...)

October 26

Edward Roye

• 1341 – The Byzantine army proclaimed chief minister John VI Kantakouzenos as emperor, triggering a civil war between his supporters and those of John V Palaiologos, the heir to the throne.
• 1871 – Liberian president Edward James Roye (pictured) was overthrown in modern Africa's first coup d'état.
• 1906 – The Illinois Memorial, honoring Union army soldiers from Illinois who fought at the Siege of Vicksburg, was dedicated at Vicksburg National Military Park.
• 1994 – Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty, settling relations between the two countries and pledging that neither would allow its territory to become a staging ground for military strikes by a third country.

October 26

The Vancouver Canadians play at Nat Bailey Stadium.

The Vancouver Canadians have played seasons since 2000. The Canadians are a Minor League Baseball team based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that plays in the Northwest League (NWL). The team was founded after the original Vancouver Canadians relocated to Sacramento, California, days after winning the Triple-A World Series in 1999, and the Southern Oregon Timberjacks relocated to Vancouver, assuming the Canadians' identity, for the 2000 Northwest League season. The Canadians' best regular-season record occurred three times: in 2005, 2012 and 2014 with a record of 46–30 (.605). Conversely, their worst record was 29–45 (.392), which they recorded in 2016. The Canadians have won five Northwest League championships (2011, 2012, 2013, 2017 and 2023). They have also claimed seven division titles, including four consecutive division championships from 2011 to 2014. (Full list...)

October 26

The Babylonian captivity, or Babylonian exile, was a period in Jewish history during the 6th century BCE when thousands of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were deported to Babylonia. A major deportation occurred in 597 BCE, following the conquest of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar II, with further expulsions after the destruction of the city and Solomon's Temple in 587 BCE. In the aftermath of the Persian conquest of Babylon in 539 BCE, Cyrus the Great permitted the exiles to return to Judah, although many remained in Mesopotamia. The exile had a significant influence on the development of Judaism and is recounted in detail in the Hebrew Bible. This 1896 James Tissot painting The Flight of the Prisoners depicts the exile of the Jews from Judea to Babylon. Painting credit: James Tissot Recently featured: Khao Phing Kan Thomson's gazelle Man with a Movie Camera Archive More featured pictures

October 27

Mookie Wilson's two-run at-bat in the tenth inning won Game 6 of the 1986 World Series for the Mets.

The 1986 New York Mets season began on April 8, 1986. It concluded on October 27 with a Mets victory in Game 7 of the 1986 World Series, for their second and most recent World Series title. The Mets had narrowly missed winning the NL East in 1985, but in 1986 were not seriously challenged, winning the division by 21½ games. They defeated the Houston Astros in six games in the NLCS, with the Mets erasing a three run ninth-inning deficit and winning Game 6 in sixteen innings. They played the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, and in Game 6 of that series, trailing three games to two, the rallied from two runs down with two outs and none on base in the tenth inning. They won that game on an error by Bill Buckner, winning Game 7 two days later. The 1986 Mets have been described as one of the best teams in MLB history, but their failure to sustain their success has marred the team's legacy. Many team members drank heavily and the 1986 Mets became known for their lifestyle off the field. (Full article...)

October 27

Michael D. Higgins

• 1726 – J. S. Bach led the first performance of Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, BWV 56, one of few works he called a cantata.
• 1904 – The first underground segment of the New York City Subway opened, connecting New York City Hall with Harlem.
• 1946 – Inter-religious riots in which Hindu mobs targeted Muslim families began in the Indian state of Bihar, resulting in thousands of deaths.
• 2011 – Michael D. Higgins (pictured) was elected President of Ireland with far more votes than any politician in the country's history.

October 27

The golden-crowned kinglet (Regulus satrapa) is a small songbird in the kinglet family, Regulidae. It is found in forests throughout much of North America. Measuring 8–11 centimetres (3.1–4.3 in) in length, it is among the smallest North American passerines. Its plumage is olive-gray above and white below, with white wing bars and a yellow crown surrounded by black. The adult male has an additional orange patch on the crown. The species feeds on insects, their eggs and spiders, and makes its nest in a concealed hanging cup suspended from a conifer branch. This golden-crowned kinglet was photographed at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in New Jersey, United States. Photograph credit: Chuck Homler Recently featured: Babylonian captivity Khao Phing Kan Thomson's gazelle Archive More featured pictures

October 28

1865 drawing of Price's Raid

The Second Battle of Newtonia was fought on October 28, 1864, near Newtonia, Missouri, between cavalry of the Union Army and the rear guard of the Confederate Army of Missouri. In September 1864, the Confederates launched Price's Raid, an attempt to create a popular uprising against Union control of Missouri. After being forced to retreat, the Confederates halted to rest near Newtonia. On the afternoon of the 28th, Union pursuers caught up and surprised the Confederates. The main Confederate army withdrew, leaving a rear guard under Brigadier General Joseph O. Shelby. Shelby initially had a numerical advantage, and used it to outflank Blunt's shorter line. Blunt was considering a retreat shortly before sundown when reinforcements arrived in the form of Brigadier General John B. Sanborn and his brigade. Sanborn joined Blunt's line, and the Union troops counterattacked. Shelby ordered a retreat and was not pursued until October 30. Modern historians credit the Union with a victory at Newtonia. (Full article...)

October 28

Statue of Liberty

• 312 – Civil wars of the Tetrarchy: Constantine the Great defeated Maxentius at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge in Rome.
• 1453 – Ladislaus the Posthumous was crowned King of Bohemia, although George of Poděbrady remained in control of the government.
• 1664 – The Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot, the forerunner to the Royal Marines, was established at the grounds of the Honourable Artillery Company in London.
• 1886 – In New York Harbor, U.S. president Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty (pictured), a gift from France commemorating the Declaration of Independence.
• 2013 – The first terrorist attack in Beijing's recent history took place when members of the Turkistan Islamic Party drove a vehicle into a crowd, killing five people and injuring thirty-eight others.

October 28

Dinah Washington collaborated on two 1960 chart-toppers

In 1960, Billboard published the Hot R&B Sides chart ranking the top-performing songs in the United States in rhythm and blues (R&B) and related African American-oriented music genres; the chart has undergone various name changes over the decades to reflect the evolution of such genres and since 2005 has been published as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. During 1960, 15 different singles topped the chart, based on playlists submitted by radio stations and surveys of retail sales outlets. Brook Benton spent the highest total number of weeks at number one in 1960. The singer spent nine consecutive weeks at number one with "Kiddio" between August and October and a total of 14 weeks in the top spot with two duets with Dinah Washington (pictured), "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)" and "A Rockin' Good Way (to Mess Around and Fall in Love)" for a cumulative total of 23 weeks atop the listing. Two of 1960's R&B number ones also topped Billboard's all-genre Hot 100 chart: "Cathy's Clown" by the Everly Brothers and "Save the Last Dance for Me" by the Drifters. (Full list...)

October 28

The rupiah is the official currency of Indonesia. Introduced in 1946 during the Indonesian National Revolution, it was intended to replace Japanese-issued currency and competed with Dutch-issued money in the country. The rupiah is issued by Bank Indonesia and its banknotes and coins feature national heroes, traditional dances and natural scenery. This 1-rupiah banknote is from the rupiah's first issue, with national leader Sukarno depicted on the face and a smoking volcano on the back. Although dated October 1945, the notes were not actually issued until late 1946. The banknote is unevenly cut, and the legal tender obligation is arched across the front of the note. Banknote credit: Republic of Indonesia; part of the United States National Numismatic Collection; photographed by Godot13 Recently featured: Golden-crowned kinglet Babylonian captivity Khao Phing Kan Archive More featured pictures

October 29

Chimacum Creek is a stream in Jefferson County, Washington, United States. Located on the base of the Quimper Peninsula, the main stem originates from springs and ponds in the forested hills south of Discovery Bay. It flows south from its source, then turns east, then north, taking in tributaries before entering Chimacum Valley. It enters a ravine where it meets the sea in Port Hadlock-Irondale, creating a small estuary and an area of intertidal wetland as it enters Port Townsend Bay. The topography of the watershed was shaped by the Cordilleran ice sheet during the Last Glacial Maximum, which deposited large amounts of glacial outwash and sedimentary material. The area was the traditional lands of the Chemakum people, who were devastated by disease and massacres before the 1850s. The watershed was dredged and channelized during the early 20th century, turning the creek into a relatively straight channel. Environmental restoration projects help protect the spawning runs of coho salmon. (Full article...)

October 29: Republic Day in Turkey (1923)

Kalākaua dime

• 1883 – The San Francisco Mint signed a contract to produce the Kalākaua coinage (coin pictured) for the Hawaiian Kingdom.
• 1948 – Arab–Israeli War: The Israel Defense Forces massacred at least 52 villagers while capturing the Palestinian Arab village of Safsaf.
• 1955 – An explosion, likely caused by a World War II–era naval mine, capsized the Soviet ship Novorossiysk in the harbor of Sevastopol, with the loss of 608 men.
• 1999 – About 10,000 people died when the most intense tropical cyclone ever recorded in the North Indian Ocean made landfall in the Indian state of Odisha near Bhubaneswar.
• 2007 – Somali pirates hijacked a North Korean ship in the Indian Ocean northeast of Mogadishu.

October 29

Mosquitoes (Culicidae) are a family of more than 3,700 species of flies found throughout most of the world. Both sexes feed on nectar, but females of many species also drink blood, using specialised mouthparts to pierce their hosts' skin. Mosquitoes undergo four life stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult, with the first three largely aquatic. Some species transmit diseases including malaria, yellow fever and dengue fever, causing over a million human deaths annually. Mosquitoes also serve as pollinators and as food for other animals. This illustration shows the major body parts of a female mosquito. Its slender body is divided into three sections: the head, thorax and abdomen, with a pair of narrow wings and six long, jointed legs. The head bears two compound eyes, a pair of antennae, and an elongated proboscis adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood. Illustration credit: LadyofHats Recently featured: Indonesian rupiah Golden-crowned kinglet Babylonian captivity Archive More featured pictures

October 30

John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Father of the United States, a leader of the American Revolution, and the second U.S. president. He was a Province of Massachusetts Bay delegate to the Second Continental Congress and the leading advocate for American independence from Britain. After seconding the Lee Resolution, Adams served on the Committee of Five which drafted the United States Declaration of Independence. A dedicated diarist, Adams corresponded with his wife Abigail during this time, recording historical information on the era. In 1783 Adams was part of the American delegation that negotiated the Treaty of Paris, which formally ended the American Revolutionary War. Adams was the primary author of the 1780 Massachusetts Constitution, which influenced the 1789 United States Constitution, and he became the new nation's first vice president and second president. After his presidency, Adams returned to Peacefield, his Massachusetts home and farm. (Full article...)

October 30

Rudd Concession

• 1888 – Lobengula, King of Matabeleland, granted the Rudd Concession (pictured) to agents of Cecil Rhodes, leading to the creation of the British South Africa Company.
• 1960 – At the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Michael Woodruff performed the first successful kidney transplantation in the United Kingdom.
• 1965 – English model Jean Shrimpton wore a controversially short minidress to Derby Day at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Australia – a pivotal moment of the introduction of the miniskirt to women's fashion.
• 2010 – American comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert hosted the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear in Washington, D.C.
• 2020 – A magnitude-7.0 earthquake occurred in the Aegean Sea between Greece and Turkey, triggering a tsunami and causing 119 deaths.

October 30

Rohini Hattangadi

The National Film Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the National Film Development Corporation of India (NFDC), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Since 1984, the award is given by a national panel appointed annually by the NFDC to an actress for the best performance in a supporting role within Indian cinema. Including ties and repeat winners, the NFDC has presented a total of 41 Best Supporting Actress awards to 35 different actresses. The first recipient was Rohini Hattangadi (pictured), who was honoured at the 32nd National Film Awards for her performance in the Hindi film Party (1984). Surekha Sikri has been honoured three times for her Hindi films – Tamas (1987), Mammo (1994) and Badhaai Ho (2018). Ties between two actresses have occurred in the years 1999, 2012, 2013 and 2023. (Full list...)

October 30

Danell Leyva (born October 30, 1991) is a Cuban-American former artistic gymnast who represented the United States. He achieved particular success on the parallel bars and horizontal bar, winning the parallel bars title at the 2011 World Championships, as well as a team bronze medal. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Leyva won bronze in the individual all-around competition. Four years later, at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he won silver medals in both the parallel bars and horizontal bar. With eight medals across the Olympic Games and World Championships, he is the second-most decorated American male gymnast, after Paul Hamm. After ending his career in gymnastics, Leyva pursued an acting and media career. This head shot of Leyva was taken in 2017. Photograph credit: Giulipino Recently featured: Mosquito Indonesian rupiah Golden-crowned kinglet Archive More featured pictures

October 31

Adam West

Zombie Nightmare is a zombie film starring Adam West (pictured), Jon Mikl Thor, and Tia Carrere. The film centres around a baseball player killed by a group of teenagers, then resurrected as a zombie by a Haitian Vodou priestess. The zombie kills the teens, whose deaths are investigated by the police. The film was written to star mostly black actors but, at the request of investors, the characters' names were changed to more typically white names. While Jack Bravman was credited as director, John Fasano directed most of the film, causing problems with the production crew, who believed Fasano was the assistant director and ignored his directions. Zombie Nightmare was released direct-to-video by New World Video. It grossed C$1.5 million against a budget of $180,000. It received negative reviews from critics, but was praised for its heavy metal soundtrack featuring Motörhead, Girlschool, and Thor. Zombie Nightmare was shown in a 1994 episode of the television series Mystery Science Theater 3000. (Full article...)

October 31: Halloween

Martin Luther

• 475 – Romulus Augustulus took the throne as the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
• 1517 – Martin Luther (pictured) posted his Ninety-five Theses onto the door of All Saints' Church in Wittenberg, marking the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
• 1999 – Australian sailor Jesse Martin arrived in Melbourne, becoming the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo, non-stop, and unassisted.
• 2000 – Singapore Airlines Flight 006 collided with construction equipment while attempting to take off from Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taiwan during heavy rain, killing 83 people aboard.
• 2017 – An Uzbek immigrant drove a rented truck into cyclists and runners in Lower Manhattan, New York City, killing eight people.

October 31

White Zombie was a 1932 pre-Code horror film independently produced by Edward Halperin and directed by Victor Halperin. The screenplay by Garnett Weston, based on The Magic Island by William Seabrook, is about a young woman's transformation into a zombie at the hands of an evil voodoo master. Bela Lugosi stars as the zombie master "Murder" Legendre, with Madge Bellamy appearing as his victim. This is a poster for the film, printed in the U.S.; the original artist is not known. Poster: United Artists, restored by Crisco 1492 Recently featured: Danell Leyva Mosquito Indonesian rupiah Archive More featured pictures