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reetings from Australia. 

Welcome to this Red-Letter Day. Below you will find today's global celebrations, birthdays and events.

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Pip Wilson

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Today is

What we think, we become. 
The Buddha

However many holy words you read,
However many you speak,
What good will they do you
If you do not act upon them?
The Buddha

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one getting burned. 
The Buddha

More Buddha quotations

Oh Great, compassionate Buddha,
It was you Who broke the caste system,
Who preached the doctrine Of conditional causation
And the equality of all beings,
Who opened all beings' minds
To the Buddha wisdom and views,
Who awakened all sentient beings Out of ignorance.
From 'A Prayer for Buddha's Birthday', by Venerable Master Hsing Yun

The little girl made me. I wasn't waiting for the little girl to kill me.
Mary Pickford, Canadian-born Hollywood actress, born on April 8, 1893

The day dawned bleak and chill, a moving wall of grey light out of the north-east which, instead of dissolving into moisture, seemed to disintegrate into minute and venomous particles, like dust that, when Dilsey opened the door of the cabin and emerged, needled laterally into her flesh, precipitating not so much a moisture as a substance partaking of the quality of thin, not quite congealed oil.
The final chapter of William Faulkner's tale of the Compson Family, The Sound and the Fury, begins on April 8, 1928

Do you have any other fictional dates from reasonably well-known works? I'd love you to let me know.

This is the end – for me the beginning.
Last recorded words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, spoken before being hanged by the Nazis on April 8, 1945

When the missionaries arrived, the Africans had the land and the missionaries had the Bible. They taught us to pray with our eyes closed. When we opened them, they had the land and we had the Bible.
Jomo Kenyatta, Kenyan revolutionary and leader, who was sentenced to jail on April 8, 1953

I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.
Pablo Picasso, Spanish artist, who died on April 8, 1973

And here the monks their maundies make with sundry solemn rites,
And signs of great humility, and wondrous pleasant sights.
Each one the other's feet doth wash, and wipe them clean and dry,
With hateful mind and secret fraud, that in their hearts doth lie;
As if that Christ with his examples did these things require,
And not to help our brethren here with zeal and free desire;
Each one supplying other's want, in all things that they may,
As he himself a servant made, to serve us every way.
Then straight the loaves do walk, and pots in every place they skink
Wherewith the holy fathers oft to pleasant damsels drink.
Naogeorgus (1511 - '63) on Maundy Thursday; The Popish Kingdom, (translated by Barnabe Googe, 1540 - '94); in Chambers, 1888

April 8 is the 98^th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (99^th in leap years), with 267 days remaining.
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Maundy, or Holy, (or, Green) Thursday (day before Good Friday), 2004

A note about the dating of items in Wilson's Almanac

[The term Holy Thursday is used by Catholics to refer to Maundy Thursday, ie, the day before Good Friday. But to the Church of England, Holy Thursday refers to the day of Ascension]

"The day before Good Friday is so called from the first words of the antiphon for that day being Mandatum novum do vobis, a new commandment I give unto you (St John xiii, 34), with which the ceremony of the washing of the feet begins. This is still carried out in Roman Catholic cathedrals and monasteries. It became the custom of popes, Catholic sovereigns, prelates, and priests to wash the feet of poor people. In England the sovereign did the same as late as the reign of James II. The word has been incorrectly derived from maund (a basket), because on the day before the great fast it was an ancient church custom to bring out food in maunds to distribute to the poor."
Ivor H Evans, Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, Cassell, London, 1988

Also called Chare, Sheer, or Shere Thursday

"It is generally supposed to be from ME schere, clean, ie free from guilt, from the custom of receiving absolution, or of cleansing the altars on this day. The Liber Festivalis, however, says:

Maundrel

"A foolish, vapouring gossip. The Scotch say, "Haud your tongue, maundrel." As a verb it means to babble, to prate. In some parts of Scotland the talk of persons in delirium, in sleep, and in intoxication is called maundrel. The term is from Sir John Mandeville, the traveller, who published an account of his travels, full of idle gossip and most improbable events.

"There is another verb, maunder (to mutter, to vapour, or wander in one's talk). This verb is from maund (to beg)."   Source

Maunds

"Gifts distributed to the poor on Maundy Thursday (q.v.). The number of doles corresponds to the number of years the monarch has been regnant, and the doles used to be distributed by the Lord High Almoner. Since 1883 the doles have been money payments distributed by the Clerk of the Almonry Office. The custom began in 1368, in the reign of Edward III. James I distributed the doles personally.

"Entries of 'al maner of things yerly yevin by my lorde of his Maundy, and my laidis, and his lordshippis children.'"—Household Book of the Earl of Northumberland, 1512."   Source

The Royal Maunds, or Maundy money

"Gifts in money given by the sovereign on Maundy Thursday to the number of aged poor men and women that corresponds with her (his) age. Broadcloth, fish, bread and wine were given in the reign of Elizabeth I, later clothing and provisions. The clothing was replaced by money in 1725 and the provisions in 1837. In due course the ceremony was transferred from the chapel at Whitehall to Westminster Abbey. Personal distribution of the doles ceased in 1688 until George V restarted it in 1932, as did Edward VIII in 1936. Queen Elizabeth II has made a personal distribution in most years since 1953 and the ceremony is no longer held at Westminster every year. Thus the 1979 service attended by the Queen and Prince Philip was held in Winchester Cathedral. The money is specially struck in silver pennies, twopennies, threepence, and fourpences and is unaffected by decimalisation."
Evans; ibid

According to the 19^th Century British folklorist, Robert Chambers, a maund was a basket and hence distribution of charity gifts in these. It has been a day for the washing of feet of paupers by ecclesiastics, sovereigns and princes through history. The Shere Thursday name comes from shearing hair which the priesthood used to observe at this time. The king of England traditionally washed the feet of as many poor men as he was old in years. James II was the last to perform this touching ritual "in which the mighty were brought low". William left the washing to his almoner, and so it remained. Since at least the time of Queen Victoria, the practice was given up; in her early reign there was the addition of maundy coins as well as provisions given to the needy.

In Austria, the practice was called Fusswaschung, and was done by the emperor.
Robert Chambers, (Ed.), The Book of Days: A miscellany of popular antiquities in connection with the calendar, etc, W & R Chambers, London, 1881 (1879 Edition is online and 1869 edition here with CD-ROM available; See also The English Year: A Personal Selection from Chambers' Book of Days)

Shakespeare says "a thousand favours from her maund she drew". Hone (Hone, William, The Every-Day Book, or a Guide to the Year, Vol., 1, William Tegg and Co., London, 1878) also writes of the different possible origins of the word. It has also been called, by corruption, 'Chare Thursday'.

Holy Thursday at Rome, 19^th Century

1) St Peter's, blessing of the oils: First is the oil of catechumens, used in blessing baptism, consecrating churches and altars, ordaining priests and blessing sovereigns. Second, for extreme unction. Third, the sacred chrism, composed of oil and balm of Gilead or the West Indies, used at consecration of bishops, patens and chalices, and the blessing of bells. A bishop and twelve priests, seven deacons and seven sub-deacons are all present.

2) Silencing of the bells: All bells from about 11.15 are mute until the same time on Saturday. Even hand bells in hotels are silent. Wooden clappers, or troccola, are used instead (boxes turned on handles).

3) Feet washing at St Peter's: The Pope officiates, washing the right foot of each of 13 bishops, who all sit on a bench along a wall. He wears an apron. The 13 represent 12 apostles and 1 angel who, according to legend, appeared to Pope Gregory the Great (590-604) when he performed an act of charity to poor persons. Each bishop receives a towel and a nosegay, plus a medal, which are presented by the treasurer. The Pope washes his hands, puts back on his red cope, and goes on to:

4) The Pope serving at Supper: The Pope serves food and wine to the 13 bishops. The bishops come from around the world, but the captain of the Swiss guard has the privilege of choosing one.

5) The Grand Penitentiary: A number of clergy hear confessions. The grand Cardinal Penitentiary gives absolution for mortal sins which are beyond the scope of ordinary confession. The altars of St Peter's are stripped and all the lights extinguished, for Easter mourning.

6) Washing the feet of pilgrims: This takes place at the Trinita de' Pellegrini, an establishment in Rome for the accommodation of pilgrims. Priests wash the feet of male pilgrims; women are attended to by ladies of distinction. Then they are served a meal.

Maundy Thursday evening at Rome, the shops of sausage makers, candle-makers and pork-dealers are decorated and illuminated in a fantastic way. They put up an altar with Virgin and Child, with candles and flowers.
Chambers; ibid

When the castle of Neuhaus, Bohemia, was being built, a lady in white appeared and promised the workmen sweet soup and a carp on the building's completion. Thus it became the custom to give these foods to the poor on Maundy Thursday.

Eckhardt, in German legends, appears on the evening of Maundy Thursday to warn everyone to go home as the night is filled with headless bodies and two-legged horses. Evans; ibid

The Last Supper, on Maundy Thursday

Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting on the wall of the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan, in 1494-1497. The refectory was reduced to ruins by Allied bombs in August 1943, but the painting remained almost completely intact.

Husband divination, Austria

Austrian girls traditionally whisk whole eggs at night, poured water on the top and in the morning (Good Friday) inspect the potions to see an augury of their future husbands.

The hare's red eggs, parts of Austria

Worldwide Roma (Gypsy) Nation Day

The Roma (singular Rom), commonly known as Gypsies, (or Gipsies), Tsigani, Tzigane, Cigano, Zigeunerare and other names, are a traditionally nomadic people who originated in northern India but currently live worldwide, chiefly in Europe. Most Roma speak some form of Romany, a language closely related to the modern Indo-European languages of northern India.  

The Roma have had a troubled history and still today suffer greatly in many countries. The Nazis murdered large numbers of Roma and is believed that 400,000 Roma were killed. They were one of the major groups to be automatically sentenced to imprisonment in a concentration camp or killed on sight. On November 18, 2001, according to Wikipedia, "scores of gypsies were killed in Kundar" during the US and British-led invasion of Afghanistan (October 7, 2001).

Irish Travellers

Romany & Traveller Family History Society

Gypsies and Travellers in North America

Romany language

Timeline of Roma history

Patrin: Journal of Romani Culture and History

A Brief History of the Roma 

Timeline of Romani History

The Gypsy Lore Society

See also Feast of the Three Marys, May 24 in the Book of Days

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Buddha's Birthday, for Mahayana Buddhists Although Theravada Buddhists celebrate the birth of the Buddha at the fifth full moon of the year, usually in May, many Mahayana Buddhists (mostly in East Asia) celebrate today because of the Westernization of their calendar, replacing lunar with solar dates. Buddha's Birthday (Cantonese: fātdáahn), the birthday of the Gautama Buddha, is traditionally celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth month in the Chinese calendar. It is a holiday in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and South Korea. The date varies from year to year in the Western (Gregorian) calendar. On Buddha's birthday, statues of Buddha are washed with a special sweet tea, often made from hydrangeas (following the tradition that Shakyamuni, the Buddha, was washed with warm and cool waters at birth), and offerings of flowers are made. Of the many Buddhist festivals, this is the most important, together with that of his Enlightenment and that of his death. All these are celebrated together in South-East Asia as the Festival of Vesak (see below). Since the late nineteenth century in Japan, this has been known as the Flower Festival (Hana Matsuri) in remembrance of the flower garden of Lumbini (almost on the India-Nepal border) where he was born.  From a document written by Justine Lee, sent to PW by Buddhist Library, Sydney, et al See also Hong Kong's Bun Festival, May 2 in the Book of Days   Hana Matsuri (Flower Festival; Buddha's Birthday), Japan On Buddha's birthday in Japan, Buddhist shrines and temples fill with joyful celebrants. Hana Matsuri or Doll's Festival is celebrated as a prayer for the well-being of the young girls. All families decorate their dolls with peach blossoms and rice crackers. People take turns pouring hydrangea tea over the head of the bronze statue of the infant Buddha. Originally it was a lunar holiday celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month but now, like many Japanese festivals, set in the Gregorian calendar (see A note about the dating of items in Wilson's Almanac). 'Hana' means flowers in Japanese, and, 'matsuri' means festival and Buddha's natal day conveniently coincides with the blooming of the cherry blossoms in Japan. The festival's origins have been estimated to have most likely been during the late Kamakura era or the early Muromachi era. An itinerant priest (yamabushi) of Kumano and a sage (hijiri) of Kaga Hakusan mountain introduced the festival into the upper basin of the few tributaries of the Tenryuu river. Processions take place in many places, with children dressed up in their finest kimonos, chanting their way to the temple alongside decorative floats. A highlight of the festival is, the Oni no mai, or dance of the demon. An Oni appears as a demon, but actually is an embodiment of the god. In olden times it was believed that the deity would appear as a demon to make their wishes come true. The climax of the festival is called Yubayashi. The dancers soak a bunch of Sakaki (holy branches) in boiling water in a huge iron pot, and splash the hot water over the others. People believe that if they are soaked with the hot water, they are assured of good health for the year.     Vesak Vesak (from the name of the second month in the Hindu calendar, Vaisakha) is the most holy time in the Buddhist calendar. The word Vesak itself is the Sinhalese language word for the Pali word 'Visakha'. Vesak is also known as Visakah Puja or Buddha Purnima in India, Visakha Bucha in Thailand, Waisak in Indonesia, Vesak (Wesak) in Sri Lanka and Malaysia, and Saga Dawa in Tibet. The equivalent festival in Laos is called Vixakha Bouxa. Vesak is a public holiday in many Asian countries like Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, and so on. Festival of Megalesia (Magna Mater) of Cybele (Apr 4 - 10), ancient Rome Egyptian day (dies egypticus, dies ægypticus or dies mala), unlucky day in Medieval Europe. ("But, notwithstanding, I will trust the Lord" was the associated saying.) Feast day of St Aedesius, martyr Feast day of B. Albert, patriarch of Jerusalem Feast day of St Amantius Feast day of St Concessa Feast day of St Dionysius, of Corinth (Ground ivy, Glecoma hederacea, is today's plant, dedicated to this saint.) Feast day of St Herodion Feast day of St Januarius Feast day of St Julia Billiart Feast day of St Julian of Saint Augustine Feast day of St Macaria Feast day of St Mary Assunta Feast day of St Maxima Feast day of St Perpetuus, bishop of Tours Feast day of St Redemptus Feast day of St Walter, abbot of St Martin's, near Pontoise Click for Eastern Orthodox liturgical days    Shop saints Katori-jingu Otauesai (Rice-planting Festival), Katori Shrine, Sawara-shi, Chiba Prefecture, Japan (Apr 7 - 8) Nagasaki Takoage, or Kite-Flying Event, Nagasaki, Japan (Apr 3 - 29) Tsurugaoka Hachiman (Shrine) Spring Festival, Japan (Apr 7 - 14)       563 BCE Gautama Buddha, religious leader (d. February 15, 483 BCE) (traditional dates). Born Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit, Siddhattha Gotama Pali – the 'wish-fulfiller'), he later became the Buddha (literally Enlightened One). He is also commonly known as Shakyamuni or Sakyamuni (lit. 'sage of the Shakya clan') and as the Tathagata (lit. 'thus-gone one'), emphasizing the nature of a Buddha to go about in the world without adding or subtracting anything from his experience. Gautama was a contemporary of Mahavira (whose notion of ahimsa would later inspire Mohandas Gandhi). Gautama is the key figure in Buddhism. Accounts of his life, discourses, and monastic rules, were summarized after his death and memorized by the sangha. Passed down by oral tradition, the Tipitaka was written about one hundred years later. Source: Wikipedia   "According to legend, Buddha was born in the garden of Lumbini in Nepal. It is said that when he was born the birds sang, the flowers bloomed and sweet rain fell from the heavens to welcome him - which explains all the flowers and sweet tea in today's ceremonies. Straight after he was born, Buddha took seven steps, with a lotus blossom appearing in every footprint. He pointed simultaneously upwards and downwards saying: "I am alone in heaven and on Earth", and nine dragons descended from heaven and baptised him with pure water."   Source See Ancient Gods and Saviours: How they are like Jesus, at the Scriptorium   "Shakayumni Buddha was born from Lady Maya's body under the Bodhi tree on Lumbini grove. As soon as he was born, the Buddha took seven steps in the four directions – north, east, south, west – and then, pointing one hand upwards towards the sky and the other pointing downwards towards the ground, he exclaimed: 'Whether above the sky or below the sky, I am most noble and high. I am here to bring peace to all the sentient beings in the world who are suffering.'"   Source "Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical founder of Buddhism, was born in India 3,000 years ago. There are various opinions concerning the exact dates of his birth and death, but according to Buddhist tradition, he is said to have been born April 8, 1029 BC and died on February 15, 949 BC, although other Buddhist scholars place his birth five hundred years later. No definite conclusion has been reached. "Shakyamuni Buddha was the son of Shuddhodana, the king of the Shakyas, a small tribe whose kingdom was located in the foothills of the Himalayas south of what is now central Nepal fifteen miles from Kapilavastu. Shakya of Shakyamuni is taken from the name of this tribe and muni means sage or saint. His family name was Gautama (Best Cow) and his given name was Siddhartha (Goal Achieved) though some scholars say this is a title bestowed on him by later Buddhists in honor of the enlightenment he attained." From Shakyamuni Buddha: Historical Founder of Buddhism    Source   Have you seen the extraordinary Buddhas in the fractals? The Buddhabrot Set    http://www.superliminal.com/fractals/bbrot/bbrot.htm http://www.buddhanet.net/albers.htm   Mandalas on the Web    Clip mandalas by Lisa Konrad   1320 King Peter I of Portugal (Pedro I; d. January 18, 1367), eighth king of Portugal 1859 Edmund Husserl (d. 1938), philosopher 1867 Sir Arthur Streeton (d. September 1, 1943), Australian artist and a member of the famous Heidelberg School of Australian artists; he is best known for his rural landscapes. Streeton was born in Mount Duneed, southwest of Geelong, and his family moved to Richmond in 1874. He commenced study at the National Gallery Schools in 1882. Streeton was influenced by French Impressionism and the works of Turner. During this time be began his association with fellow artists Frederick McCubbin and Tom Roberts – a group that would become the Heidelberg School – and began plein air painting of rural scenes around Melbourne including at Box Hill and Heidelberg. In 1885 Streeton presented his first exhibition at the Victorian Academy of Art. Streeton's paintings are amongst the most collectable of Australian artists and attracted high prices during his life time. Lawson & Co: associations with Henry and Louisa Lawson 1868 King Christian IX of Denmark (d. 1906) 1875 King Albert I of Belgium (d. 1934) 1892 Mary Pickford (b. Gladys Marie Smith; d. 1979), Canadian-born Hollywood actress, known as 'America's Sweetheart' 1889 Sir Adrian Boult, British conductor 1897 Jo Swerling (d. 1964), American theatre writer, lyricist and screenwriter 1898 John Christie (John Reginald Halliday Christie; d. July 15, 1953), English serial killer active in the 1940s and '50s. He was arrested, tried and hanged in 1953, having previously been involved in one of the most sensational murder trials in British legal history, in which his neighbour and tenant Timothy Evans was found guilty of a murder for which it is generally considered Christie was responsible. Evans was hanged on March 9, 1950. Crime Library article on Christie 1904 John Antill, Australian composer 1911 Emil Cioran (d. 1995), philosopher and essayist 1918 Betty Ford, former First Lady of the United States 1919 Ian Smith, former Prime Minister of Rhodesia (later called 'Zimbabwe') 1926 Jürgen Moltmann, theologian 1929 Jacques Brel (d. 1978), composer 1933 Fred Ebb, composer 1937 Seymour Hersh, American Pulitzer Prize winning investigative journalist and author who exposed the My Lai massacre and its cover-up during the Vietnam War. His 2004 reports on the US Military's treatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison gained much attention. In 2006 he reported on the US military's plans for Iran, which called for the use of nuclear weapons against that country. Iraq prison abuse scandals 1938 Kofi Annan (pictured), Ghanaian born diplomat who served as the 7th Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1997 to December 31, 2006, serving two five-year terms 1941 Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI, English fashion designer largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream. She is linked with the Sex Pistols via Malcolm McLaren and their SEX/Seditionaries boutique on King's Road, in London during the 1970s. 1949 John Madden, director 1963 Julian Lennon, musician and singer 1968 Patricia Arquette, actress 1977 Mark Spencer, computer programmer   Phew!! Have a rest before the big This day in history section Send a free e-card greeting for today's celebrations to a loved one Do you forget birthdays and anniversaries? Schedule your cards to be sent during the coming year. Buddha Day Tamil New Year [ Varies ] Birthdays Passover [ Varies ] Hana Matsuri (Japan) [ Apr 8 ] Varies Full Moon Day Varies Friday the 13th Varies Holi Varies Purim Varies Mothers' Day (UK) Varies Ugadi Varies Gudi Padwa Varies Daylight Saving Time Begins / Ends Varies Ram Navami Varies Palm Sunday Varies Mawlid al-Nabi Varies Passover Varies Orthodox Holy Friday Varies Good Friday Varies Orthodox Easter Varies Easter Varies Baisakhi Varies Mahavir Jayanti Varies Hanuman Jayanti Varies Tamil New Year Varies Bengali New Year Varies Malayalam New Year   April 6 Animated Cartoon Day 6 Tartan Day 6 International Special Librarians' Day 7 Coffee Cake Day 7 Lets Someone Else Clean Day 7 Ham Radio Day 7 World Health Day 8 Buddha Day (Japan) 8 Hana Matsuri 9 Astronauts Day 10 Siblings Day 10 Salvation Army Founder's Day 11 Cheese Fondue Day 11 Civil Rights Day 12 Look Up At The Sky Day 12 Big Wind Day 13 Thomas Jefferson Day 14 Pecan Day 15 Tax Day (USA) 15 Fast Food Day 16 Rubber Eraser Day 16 Freak-out Day 16 Leonardo da Vinci's Birthday 17 Stress Awareness Day 17 Eggs Benedict Day 17 Birthday Of The Queen (Denmark) 18 Cheeseball Day 17 Nosy Neighbour Appreciation Day 18 Time Out Day 19 Primrose Day 19 Cow Chip Day 20 Lima Bean Respect Day 21 Kindergarten Day 21 Birthday Of Charlotte Bronte 22 Earth Day 22 April Showers Day 22 Hot Dog Day 22 Jelly Bean Day 22 Oklahoma Day 22 Crawfish Festival (Florida, USA) 23 Cherry Cheesecake Day 23 St George's Day 23 Shakespeare's Birthday 24 Ambivalence Day   ... More Events Visit the Blogmanac, where today's Almanac is 'live' And I hope you will sign my GuestMap           If you are enjoying this page, click to receive similar items daily with a free subscription to Wilson's Almanac ezine Webmaster, webmasters free content, or else articles at very reasonable rates Pip Wilson's articles are available for your website or publication, on application. Further details   217 Roman emperor Caracalla (b. 186) was assassinated (and succeeded) by his Praetorian Guard prefect, Marcus Opellius Macrinus. 1492 Death of Lorenzo de Medici (b. 1449), Italian statesman and de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic. 1513 Ponce de León (Ponce de Leon), Spanish explorer, looking for the Fountain of Youth, became the first European to discover Florida (now the USA state). He named the land La Pascua Florida, having landed there during the Spanish Easter feast, Pascua Florida ('flowery festival' or 'feast of flowers' usually refers to the Easter season). 1663 The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane opened, London. 1712 New York City slave revolt was suppressed; 21 rebels were executed. 1817 Australia's first bank, the Bank of New South Wales (now Westpac), was established and opened by Governor Lachlan Macquarie. 1819 Sir Walter Scott, 47, began to dictate The Bride of Lammermoor, because gallstones had made the physical act of writing impossible. 1832 Black Hawk War: Around 300 United States 6th Infantry troops left Jefferson Barracks, St Louis to fight the Sauk Native Americans. 1864 The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was passed, abolishing slavery in the US. (Wage slavery not included.) 1864 American Civil War: Battle of Mansfield – Union General Nathaniel Banks's Red River Campaign was thwarted by Confederate General Richard Taylor's forces at Mansfield, Louisiana. 1871 Robert Louis Stevenson, 21, on a walk with his father, told him he was abandoning a career in engineering and becoming a full-time writer. Damn fool kid. 1899 USA: Martha Place became the first woman to be executed in an electric chair.   1904 (April 8, 9 and 10) Aleister Crowley (1875 - 1947) received, from a "preternatural" intelligence named Aiwass (or Aiwaz), who dictated to the self-styled "Great Beast" and "wickedest man in the world", as scribe and prophet, a three-chapter declamation called Liber Legis (The Book of the Law). The most famous instruction in that document is the sentence: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law". Crowley's life serves as an excellent and cautionary example of the limitations of such an injunction. His biographers (including the somewhat sympathetic Lawrence Sutin in the excellent Do What Thou Wilt: A Life of Aleister Crowley, St Martin's Griffin, NY, 2000) generally describe a selfish, cruel bully and braggart, apparently incapable of compassion or kindness, a manipulator and pathological liar. Crowley was repudiated by virtually every person who ever entered his life, with testimonies of his brutality and lunacy being a common theme.   1904 Cordiality: on this day was signed the imperialistic Entente cordiale by Great Britain and France, preserving the commercial interests of Britain and France in Africa. France allowed Britain to keep Egypt, and in return Britain let France have Morocco. 1907 Wireless communication was used for the first time in Australian waters: the German ship Bremen's message was picked up by HMS Encounter. 1909 USA: A Federal court in Buffalo, NY invalidated the citizenship of Jacob A Kersner, Emma Goldman's legal husband, threatening Goldman's claim to US citizenship and resulting in the cancellation of Goldman's trip to Australia. 1912 Two stationary, dark triangular patches on rapidly moving clouds, were observed for more than half hour, Chisbury, Wiltshire, England (Nature, 90-169) 1913 The Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified requiring direct election of Senators. 1918 World War I: Actors Douglas Fairbanks, Sr and Charlie Chaplin sold war bonds on the streets of New York, New York's financial district. 1925 A joint British-Australian governmental initiative was created to offer low-cost loans for Britons to emigrate to Australia. 1935 USA: The Works Progress Administration was formed by when the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 became law. 1942 World War II: Siege of Leningrad – the Soviet Union forced open a much-needed railway link to Leningrad. 1945 At the POW camp at Flossenburg, pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer (b. 1906) was hanged. 1945 The liberation of the Netherlands from Nazi occupation. 1947 The largest recorded sunspot was noted, with an area of 11,265 million sq km (7,000 million sq mi). 1950 The well-known short story, 'For Esme – With Love and Squalor', by JD Salinger, appeared in The New Yorker. 1952 In a radio address to the nation from the White House, President Harry S Truman called for the seizure of all steel mills in the United States in order to prevent a nationwide strike. 1953 Jomo Kenyatta was convicted by Kenya's British colonial administrators and sentenced to seven years' hard labour for his alleged association with Mau Mau terrorists, a charge he denied. 1965 The Sound of Music started its record 362 weeks on the British music charts. 1973 Pablo Picasso died at 91. At his death, four storage places kept large numbers of Pablo Picasso's works: 1,876 paintings, 1,355 sculptures, 2,880 ceramics, more than 11,000 drawings and sketches, and some 27,000 other works. He worked almost until his death; from 1968 to 1971 he produced a torrent of paintings and hundreds of copperplate etchings. The artist who once was so poor that he burnt some of his paintings to keep warm, left an estate valued at some US$250 million. "Picasso's final works were a mixture of styles, his means of expression in constant flux until the end of his life. Devoting his full energies to his work, Picasso became more daring, his works more colourful and expressive, and from 1968 through 1971 he produced a torrent of paintings and hundreds of copperplate etchings. At the time these works were dismissed by most as pornographic fantasies of an impotent old man or the slapdash works of an artist who was past his prime. Only later, after Picasso's death, when the rest of the art world had moved on from abstract expressionism, did the critical community come to see that Picasso had already discovered neo-expressionism and was, as so often before, ahead of his time."   Source Other late starters and late achievers, in the Wilson's Almanac Scriptorium 1975 Vietnam War: After spending a week in South Vietnam, US Army Chief of Staff Frederick Weyand gave a report to the United States Congress that South Vietnam would fall without additional military aid. 1977 The Damned became the first punk rock group to go on stage in USA, in New York. 1984 Fourteen-year-old Fiona Coote became Australia's youngest heart transplant patient. 1985 Bhopal disaster: India filed suit against Union Carbide for the disaster that killed an estimated 2,000 and injured another 200,000. 1986 Actor Clint Eastwood was elected mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, USA, receiving 72 per cent of the vote (voter turnout was also about twice that of the previous mayoral election). 1992 Punch magazine, which began in 1841, expired. 1993 The activist organisation Women in Black demonstrated in solidarity with their Serbian sisters, at Lund, Sweden. "Women in Black is an international peace network. Women in Black is not an organization, but a means of mobilization and a formula for action. Women in Black vigils were started in Israel in 1988 by women protesting against Israel's Occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Women in Black has developed in the United States, England, Italy, Spain, Azerbaijan and in FR Yugoslavia, where women in Belgrade have stood in weekly vigils since 1991 to protest war and the Serbian regime's policies of nationalist aggression. Women in Black New York have been standing in solidarity with the women of Belgrade since 1993."   Source   2000 A US Marine Corps V-22 Osprey crashed during landing at Marana, Arizona killing 19.   2003 The 'Coalition of the Willing' killed 14 civilians in Mansur, Iraq. Not to be confused with the 'Mosul Massacre' of April 15. "Now here's another question the Iraqis are asking – and to which I cannot provide an answer. On 8 April, three weeks into the invasion, the Americans dropped four 2,000lb bombs on the Baghdad residential area of Mansur. They claimed they thought Saddam was hiding there. They knew they would kill civilians because it was not, as one Centcom mandarin said, a 'risk free venture' (sic). So they dropped their bombs and killed 14 civilians in Mansur, most of them members of a Christian family. "The Americans said they couldn't be sure they had killed Saddam until they could carry out forensic tests at the site. But this turns out to have been a lie. I went there two days ago. Not a single US or British official had bothered to visit the bomb craters. Indeed, when I arrived, there was a putrefying smell and families pulled the remains of a baby from the rubble."   Source 2004 Condoleezza Rice, Assistant to the [USA] President for National Security Affairs, gave evidence before the 9/11 Commission. CLAIM: "The president returned to the White House and called me in and said, I've learned from George Tenet that there is no evidence of a link between Saddam Hussein and 9/11." – National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, 3/22/04 FACT: If this is true, then why did the President and Vice President repeatedly claim Saddam Hussein was directly connected to 9/11? President George W Bush sent a letter to Congress on 3/19/03 saying that the Iraq war was permitted specifically under legislation that authorized force against "nations, organizations, or persons who planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11." Similarly, Vice President Dick Cheney said on 9/14/03 that "It is not surprising that people make that connection" between Iraq and the 9/11 attacks, and said "we don't know" if there is a connection. [Source: BBC, 9/14/03] Source: Condoleezza Rice's Credibility Gap Condoleezza Rice at Information Clearinghouse Myths of the War on Terrorism and Iraq What CNN and Bush won't tell you! Text of President Bush's leaflet being dropped over Iraq A parody that might get me sent to Guantanamo hell-hole America's imperial eagle An essay in pictures: The US symbol says much about today President Bush announces his Global Peace Imaginatorium Is it satire, is it prophetic, or is it just maybe a good idea? Terror alerts! From our Department of Homeland Fascism Bush just sat there (9-11 video) Stunning: the truth on Bush's behaviour on September 11   2004 Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement was signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups. 2005 Funeral of Pope John Paul II.     Tomorrow: Did Francis Bacon write Shakespeare?    Main calendar | Yesterday | Tomorrow | Search       Arrest of suffragette, UK. Compare with Roma picture top of page Wikipedia and David Brown's prodigious Daily Bleed are both excellent resources that aid my research. I frequently make use of their generously liberal 'fair use', 'copyleft' and 'anti-copyright' policies, with much gratitude. © My own copyright policy is also liberal, but as this is my livelihood, conditions apply. Read more about today at Wilson's Blogmanac

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