Wednesday, July 31, 2024

Jacques Clément

Jacques Clément was a Jacobin friar who assassinated Henry III of France in 1589 by stabbing him.  He did this in retaliation for Henry III's ordering the killing of Henri I, the Duke of Guise, by his bodyguard, the Forty-Five.

Tuesday, July 30, 2024

Henry Moore

Henry Moore was one of the most important sculptors of the 20th century.  He is best known for his reclining figures and his monumental works inspired by ancient Mexican carvings and African tribal masks.  His reclining figures, mother and child tableaux, and helmet head pieces remain his most recognizable works.

Monday, July 29, 2024

Highest percentage population of foreign-born residents

Vatican City has 100% foreign-born residents, but leaving that out, the countries with the highest percentage of foreign-born residents are UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait.  Immigrants account for 88% of UAE's population, as of 2017.

Sunday, July 28, 2024

Miguel Indurain

Miguel Induráin is a Spanish cyclist who has won the Tour de France five times, the fourth person to do so.  He is the only person to have won the titles consecutively, 1991-1995.  His nickname is the "Big Mig."

Saturday, July 27, 2024

Fanon

A fanon is a striped scarf or cape worn by Eastern bishops.  The Pope has his own Papal fanon, white with gold stripes.  It can also mean the tabs hanging down from a bishop's mitre.


Friday, July 26, 2024

The Rainbow

The Rainbow is a 1915 novel by D.H. Lawrence which tells the story of three generations of an English family in the Midlands.  It was banned in Britain for its frank treatment of sexuality.   Women in Love was a sequel to this novel.

Thursday, July 25, 2024

Battle Of Lundy's Lane

The Battle of Lundy's Lane was the bloodiest battle of the War of 1813.  It took place a mile west of Niagara Falls in 1814.  Neither side won a decisive victory, but the Americans' advance into Canada was and they had to retreat to Ft. Erie.  The American general Winfield Scott was wounded.  There is a memorial in Drummond Hill Cemetery, Ontario.