Wikipedia:Main Page history/2014 July 24

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From today's featured article

Prince William, Duke of Gloucester (1689–1700), was the son of Princess Anne (later Queen of Great Britain) and her husband, Prince George, Duke of Cumberland. William was their only child to survive infancy. Styled Duke of Gloucester, he was viewed as a Protestant champion because his birth seemed to cement the Protestant succession established in the "Glorious Revolution" that had deposed his Catholic grandfather James II the previous year. Anne was estranged from her brother-in-law, William III, and her sister, Mary II, but supported the links that developed between them and her son. Prince William befriended his Welsh body-servant at his nursery in Campden House, Kensington; his memoir of the Duke is an important source for historians. William's precarious health was a constant source of worry to his mother. His death at the age of eleven precipitated a succession crisis as his mother was the only individual remaining in the Protestant line of succession established by the Bill of Rights 1689. To avoid the throne passing to a Catholic, the Act of Settlement 1701 settled the throne on Electress Sophia of Hanover, a cousin of King James, and her Protestant heirs. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

... that an x-ray of catcher Deacon McGuire's gnarled left hand (pictured) showed "36 breaks, twists or bumps all due to baseball accidents"?
... that the Brazilian singer Lourdinha Bittencourt, a member of the Trio de Ouro, had been a foundling?
... that the massacre in Józefów was committed by the men of Reserve Police Battalion 101, who were too old for the regular army?
... that over 500 comets, asteroids, and novae have been discovered by three members of the Astronomical Society of New South Wales?
... that the music video for Siti Nurhaliza's song "Lebih Indah" also serves as a commercial for her SimplySiti range of products?
... that Denmark's Kvinden & Samfundet (Woman & Society), published since 1885, claims to be the world's oldest women's magazine?
... that Arthur Harper was "the first man who ever came to the Yukon country seeking gold"‍?

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In the news

TransAsia Airways Flight 222 crashes in Taiwan, killing at least 48 people.
Joko Widodo is elected President of Indonesia.
In golf, Rory McIlroy (pictured) wins the Open Championship.
Militants attack a checkpoint in Egypt's western desert region, killing 22 soldiers.
The Cook Islands Party retains its majority in the Cook Islands general election.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, is shot down in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.
Israel launches a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip.
Militants attack two checkpoints in the Chaambi Mountains, Tunisia, killing fourteen soldiers.

Ongoing: Ukrainian unrest
Recent deaths: James Garner – Elaine Stritch – Karl Albrecht

On this day...

July 24: Pioneer Day in Utah (1847)

1701 – French explorer Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac established Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit, which later grew into the city of Detroit (pictured).
1783 – The Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti and the Russian Empire signed the Treaty of Georgievsk, establishing Georgia as a protectorate of Russia.
1923 – The Treaty of Lausanne was signed to settle the Anatolian part of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire, establishing the boundaries of modern Turkey.
1967 – During a speech in Montreal, French President Charles de Gaulle declared "Long live free Quebec!", a statement that was interpreted as support for Quebec independence from Canada.
2002 – Having been convicted of accepting bribes, income tax evasion, and racketeering, James Traficant was expelled from the United States House of Representatives.

More anniversaries: July 23 – July 24 – July 25

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It is now July 24, 2014 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

A map of the U.S. invasion of Tinian, one of the Northern Mariana Islands, during World War II. The 4th Marine Division landed first, on the northern end of the island on 24 July 1944, while the USS Colorado and USS Norman Scott led a diversion with a feint against Tinian Town. The 2nd Marine Division arrived the following day, and the Marines worked their way south as Japanese soldiers fought by night and retreated by day. On 31 July the Japanese led a final suicide charge, and some continued to hold out well after the Americans declared victory. The Americans suffered 1,899 casualties, including 328 killed, while the Japanese lost 8,010 men – more than 90% of their original strength.

Map: Grandiose

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