July 2, 2014

1,200 years ago
814

Born on this date
Wuzong. Emperor of China, 840-846. Wuzong, born Li Chan, acceded to the throne upon the death of his older brother Wenzong. He was a devout Taoist who was known for his persecution of Buddhists, and was also known for his successful reactions against incursions by remnants of the Uyghur Khanate. Wuzong died on April 22, 846 at the age of 31 after months of illness--perhaps caused by taking "immortality" pills designed by Taoist chemists--and was succeeded by his uncle Xuanzong.

525 years ago
1489

Born on this date
Thomas Cranmer. English clergyman. Dr. Cranmer was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1533-1555, during which period the Church of England, led by King Henry VIII, separated from the Roman Catholic Church. He wrote the first two editions of the Book of Common Prayer. Dr. Cranmer was convicted of treason after Queen Mary I, a Roman Catholic, came to the throne in 1553. He recanted his anti-Catholic writings under duress, but was sentenced to death, anyway. Dr. Cranmer recovered his courage on the last day of his life, saying, "And as for the pope, I refuse him, as Christ's enemy, and Antichrist with all his false doctrine." He was then burned at the stake on March 21, 1556, dying at the age of 66.

520 years ago
1494

Diplomacy
The Treaty of Tordesillas, signed on June 7, 1494, was ratified by Spain; it divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between the Portuguese Empire and the Crown of Castile, along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands, off the west coast of Africa. The treaty was ratified by Portugal on September 5, 1494.

370 years ago
1644

War
English Parliamentarians and Scottish Covenanters defeated English Royalists in the Battle of Marston Moor in North Yorkshire.

300 years ago
1714

Born on this date
Christoph Willibald Gluck. German composer. Mr. Gluck composed 35 full-length operas and several shorter operas. His works influenced the compositions of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mr. Gluck died on November 15, 1787 at the age of 73.

175 years ago
1839

Protest
20 miles off the coast of Cuba, 53 Mende slaves originally from Sierra Leone led by Joseph Cinqué took over the slave ship La Amistad, which was transporting them from Havana to a smaller port in Cuba.

100 years ago
1914

Born on this date
Frederick Fennell. U.S. orchestra conductor. Mr. Fennell founded and conducted the Eastman Wind Ensemble, based in Rochester, New York, from 1952-1961. He also conducted the Miami Philharmonic Orchestra (1974-1975) and Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra (1984-2000). Mr. Fennell died on December 7, 2004 at the age of 90.

Died on this date
Joseph Chamberlain, 77. U.K. politician. Mr. Chamberlain, a Liberal Unionist, was Secretary of State for the Colonies in the government of Prime Minister Arthur Balfour from 1895-1903, presiding over the expansion of the British Empire. The major event of Mr. Chamberlain's time in office was the Boer War (1899-1902). He died six days before his 78th birthday. Mr. Chamberlain was the father of future Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and cabinet minister Austen Chamberlain.

90 years ago
1924

Weather
The temperature in Edmonton reached 98 F. (36.7 C.).

80 years ago
1934

Died on this date
Ernst Röhm, 46. German Nazi leader. Mr. Röhm was co-founder and later, the leader, of the Nazi party militia Sturmabteilung ("Storm Battalion," SA). A sodomite, he and all other SA leaders were murdered as potential rivals to the leadership of German Fuehrer Adolf Hitler in the Night of the Long Knives from June 30-July 2.

70 years ago
1944

Died on this date
Norman H. Davis, 65. U.S. bureaucrat. Mr. Davis was chairman of the American Red Cross from 1938 until his death, and represented U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt as ambassador-at-large on many special missions.

War
U.S. troops in Italy captured Cecina, while three French columns closed in on Siena. Soviet troops captured Minsk and entered Polotsk, 122 miles to the north. U.S. soldiers invaded Numfor Island off the northwest coast of Dutch New Guinea, and within three hours were in control of the Kamiri airport.

Politics and government
In the Bolivian legislative election, the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement won 56 of 137 seats in the Constituent Assembly, followed by the Independent Socialist Party (16); and Liberal Party (14), with 29 independent candidates elected.

Economics and finance
25 United States Senators appealed to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to include silver as a medium of exchange in the postwar world monetary program.

60 years ago
1954

Hit parade
#1 single in the U.K. (New Musical Express): Cara Mia--David Whitfield with Mantovani and his Orchestra

50 years ago
1964

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand: Hello, Dolly!--Louis Armstrong

#1 single in the U.K. (Record Retailer): It's Over--Roy Orbison (2nd week at #1)

Died on this date
Fireball Roberts, 35. U.S. auto racing driver. Edward "Fireball" Roberts was a stock car driver on the NASCAR circuit and won the Daytona 500 in 1962. He died 39 days after suffering severe burns in a crash in the World 600 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Law
U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, meant to prohibit segregation in public places.

40 years ago
1974

Hit parade
#1 single in France: Pot pour rire Mr le Président--Patrick Green & Olivier Lejeune (5th week at #1)

Politics and government
Ralph Steinhauer was sworn in as Alberta's first aboriginal Lieutenant Governor.

Diplomacy
The Canadian Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration granted Kirov Ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov to stay in Canada for one year. Mr. Baryshnikov had defected to the West three days earlier while performing in Toronto as a guest star with the Bolshoi Ballet.

Football
CFL
Pre-season
Hamilton (0-1) 17 @ Montreal (1-0) 23
Edmonton (0-1) 18 @ British Columbia (1-0) 42

The Eskimos left all but five veteran players at home, using mostly rookies in their loss to the Lions, much to the displeasure of the fans at Empire Stadium in Vancouver.

30 years ago
1984

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (Kent Music Report): It's Just Not Cricket--The Twelfth Man (2nd week at #1)

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Lobo-Hombre en París--La Unión (4th week at #1)

Politics and government
Eden Pastora Gomez, one of the Contras opposing the Sandanista regime in Nicaragua, said that he and his allies would end their military fight against the government and participate in elections if the government would assure that the elections would be fair. The announcement followed reports of a split between Mr. Pastora’s faction and other Contras.

25 years ago
1989

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Pop Singer--John Cougar Mellencamp

#1 single in Switzerland: The Look--Roxette (6th week at #1)

Died on this date
Andrei Gromyko, 79. Soviet politician. Mr. Gromyko was Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Soviet Union from 1957-1985 and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet from 1987-1988. He died 16 days before his 80th birthday.

Franklin J. Schaffner, 69. Japanese-born U.S. film director. Mr. Schaffner won the Academy Award for Best Director for Patton (1970). His other movies included The Best Man (1964); Planet of the Apes (1968); Nicholas and Alexandra (1971); and Papillon (1973). Mr. Schaffner died of lung cancer.

Politics and government
In elections for the Tokyo metropolitan assembly, the Liberal Democratic Party, which had led Japan since 1955, won only 43 seats, a drop of 20.

20 years ago
1994

Hit parade
#1 single in Australia (ARIA): Love is All Around--Wet Wet Wet

#1 single in Italy: Sweet Dreams--La Bouche

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Baby, I Love Your Way--Big Mountain (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Denmark (Nielsen Music Control & IFPI): Come On You Reds--Manchester United F.C. with Status Quo (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in Flanders (VRT): I Like to Move It--Reel 2 Real featuring the Mad Stuntman (5th week at #1)

#1 single in France (SNEP): I Can See Clearly Now--Jimmy Cliff (3rd week at #1)

#1 single in the Netherlands (De Nederlandse Top 40): As Dick me hullep nodig heb--Johan & de Groothandel

#1 single in the U.K. (BMRB): Love is All Around--Wet Wet Wet (5th week at #1)

U.S.A. Top 10 (Billboard)
1 I Swear--All-4-One (7th week at #1)
2 Regulate--Warren G & Nate Dogg
3 Any Time, Any Place/And On and On--Janet Jackson
4 Don't Turn Around--Ace of Base
5 Back and Forth--Aaliyah
6 I'll Remember--Madonna
7 You Mean the World to Me--Toni Braxton
8 Stay (I Missed You)--Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories
9 Baby I Love Your Way--Big Mountain
10 If You Go--Jon Sedaca

Singles entering the chart were Sleeping in My Car by Roxette (#86); Old to the New by Nice & Smooth (#90); Funky Y-2-C by the Puppies (#91); Nappy Heads by the Fugees (#92); Thinkin' Problem by David Ball (#95); Warrior's Drum by King Just (#96); 90's Girl by Blackgirl (#98); Nuttin' But Love by Heavy D & the Boyz (#99); and The Right Kinda Lover by Patti LaBelle (#100).

U.S.A. Top 10 (Cash Box)
1 I Swear--All-4-One (6th week at #1)
2 Don't Turn Around--Ace of Base
3 Any Time, Any Place/And On and On--Janet Jackson
4 You Mean the World to Me--Toni Braxton
5 If You Go--Jon Secada
6 I'll Remember--Madonna
7 Anytime You Need a Friend--Mariah Carey
8 Baby, I Love Your Way--Big Mountain
9 Stay (I Missed You)--Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories
10 Back and Forth--Aaliyah

Singles entering the chart were The Way She Loves Me by Richard Marx (#73); Afternoons and Coffeespoons by Crash Test Dummies (#82); Maybe Love Will Change Your Mind by Stevie Nicks (#85); I'm Not Over You by Ce Ce Peniston (#87); Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden (#89); and It's Over Now (It’s Alright) by Cause & Effect (#90).

Died on this date
Andrés Escobar, 27. Colombian soccer player. Mr. Escobar, a defender with Atlético Nacional (1986-1989, 1990-1994) and the Colombian national team, was shot to death in the parking lot of a bar in Medellín. His murder was widely believed to be punishment for Mr. Escobar's own goal that had led to a 2-1 loss by Colombia to the U.S.A. and early elimination in the recent World Cup.

World events
Ramiz Alia, Albania's last Communist President (1982-1992), was convicted by a court in Tirana of abuse of power and the violation of citizens' rights, and sentenced to nine years in prison.

10 years ago
2004

Died on this date
Henry Hank, 69. U.S. boxer. Mr. Hank, born Joseph Harrison, was a leading middleweight and light heavyweight contender in the late 1950s and early '60s, and was known as one of boxing's hardest punchers, compiling a record of 62-30-4 in a professional career from 1953-1972. He never fought for a world title, but fought world champions Joey Giardello, Virgil Akins, Dick Tiger, Harold Johnson, Bob Foster, and Jimmy Ellis, defeating Messrs. Giardello and Ellis. Mr. Hank's 10-round loss to Mr. Giardello by majority decision on January 30, 1962 was selected as "Fight of the Year" by The Ring. Mr. Hank changed his name to Jusuf Salaam in 1971 after becoming a Muslim. He died from complications of Alzheimer's disease.

Economics and finance
The United States Labor Department reported gains of 112,000 jobs in June, as the unemployment rate remained at 5.6%.

Football
CFL
Edmonton (0-3) 15 @ Ottawa (3-0) 44
British Columbia (1-2) 29 @ Saskatchewan (1-2) 42

The Eskimos' embarrassing loss to the Renegades at Frank Clair Stadium gave the defending Grey Cup champions their worst start to a season since 1965. It was the only CFL game for rookie Canadian offensive lineman Amar Sanghera, whom the Eskimos had selected in the 1st round of the 2004 Canadian college draft.