FALLEN HEROES AND LEGENDS

At the west end of the Nave of Westminster Abbey is the grave of the Unknown Warrior, whose body was brought from France to be buried here on 11 November 1920. The grave, which contains soil from France, is covered by a slab of black Belgian marble from a quarry near Namur. On it is the following inscription, composed by Herbert Ryle, Dean of Westminster:   BENEATH THIS STONE RESTS THE BODY OF A BRITISH WARRIOR UNKNOWN BY NAME OR RANK BROUGHT FROM FRANCE TO LIE AMONG THE MOST ILLUSTRIOUS OF THE LAND AND BURIED HERE ON ARMISTICE DAY 11 NOV: 1920, IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS MAJESTY KING GEORGE V HIS MINISTERS OF STATE THE CHIEFS OF HIS FORCES AND A VAST CONCOURSE OF THE NATION THUS ARE COMMEMORATED THE MANY MULTITUDES WHO DURING THE GREAT WAR OF 1914-1918 GAVE THE MOST THAT MAN CAN GIVE LIFE ITSELF FOR GOD FOR KING AND COUNTRY FOR LOVED ONES HOME AND EMPIRE FOR THE SACRED CAUSE OF JUSTICE AND THE FREEDOM OF THE WORLD THEY BURIED HIM AMONG THE KINGS BECAUSE HE HAD DONE GOOD TOWARD GOD AND TOW

Saturday 15th June 1918 Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Edward Hudson, VC, CB, DSO & Bar, MC, 11th (Service) Battalion,  Sherwood Foresters (The Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) Charles Edward Hudson was born on the 29th May 1892 in Derby, Derbyshire the second son and third child of Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Edward Hudson of the Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) and Mrs. Hudson. He was educated at a preparatory school in East Grinstead, Surrey, and later at Sherborne School, Dorset, which he attended from September 1905 to July 1910.  Hudson did not stand out during his time at Sherborne School, and later recounted in his journal that he was morbidly afraid of physical pain and that it was not until he had been at Sherborne for some years that he was able to overcome his fears. After leaving Sherborne School, Hudson went to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, but did not finish the one-year course owing to the death of his father. Instead he went

Thomas Fuller the African maths genius also known as "Negro Tom" and the "Virginia Calculator", was an enslaved African born in today Benin 🇧🇯 1710 and died in 1790 USA renowned for his mathematical abilities. Also known as a mental calculator.  shipped to America as a slave in 1724. He had remarkable powers of calculation, and late in his life was discovered by antislavery campaigners who used him as a demonstration that blacks were superior not inferior to whites in academics. In this report, Rush stressed the credibility of Hartshorne and Coates. Rush retold how Hartshorne and Coates tested Fuller's mathematical abilities as follows: First. Upon being asked, how many seconds there are in a year and a half, he answered in about two minutes, 47,304,000. Second. On being asked how many seconds a man has lived, who is seventy years, seven- teen days and twelve hours old, he answered, in a minute and a half, 2,210,500,800. One of the gentlemen, who employed hims

On this day November 29th, in African Ourstory In 1781, the Zong massacre began.  This was a mass killing (at sea) of more than 130 enslaved Black Africans by the crew of the British slave ship Zong during the Middle Passage.  Owned by England, when the Zong sailed from Accra with 442 slaves on August 18, 1781, it had taken on more than twice the number of people that it could safely transport.  In the 1780s, British-built ships typically carried 1.75 slaves per ton of the ship's capacity; on the Zong, the ratio was 4.0 per ton. A British slave ship of the period would carry around 193 slaves and it was unusual for a ship of the Zong's small size to carry so many.  After taking on drinking water at São Tomé, the Zong began its voyage across the Atlantic Ocean to Jamaica on September 6th. On November 18, the ship neared Tobago in the Caribbean without stopping for water supplies.    It is unclear who, if anyone, was in charge of the ship at the time, Luke Collingwood, James Kels

In 1993, a mummy was discovered in the Republic of Altai, Russia, and earned the moniker of the Siberian Ice maiden.  Believed to have been a Siberian and specifically a member of the Pazyryk people, this woman was estimated to be between 20 and 30 years old at the time of her death. Her remains were found within a chamber located in a burial mound. It is speculated that she passed away due to breast cancer and injuries sustained from a fall. During her burial, the Ice maiden was interred alongside two food trays, which underwent analysis. The residue found on these trays provided insight into the ceremonial items left behind, including a beverage, various types of meat, and yogurt. Additionally, the burial included the presence of three horses. Notably, a pot containing cannabis and opium was discovered, suggesting their potential use as painkillers. There are indications that the Ice maiden may have held a significant role, possibly that of a high priestess. Although the grave had be

Kiwi Legend: The tennis player The world’s first tennis superstar was a Kiwi and a soldier whose life and career was cut short by war. Anthony Frederick Wilding - Tony - was born on October 31, 1883 to Frederick and Julia Wilding.  They had come to New Zealand from Herefordshire, England to Christchurch. Frederick was a lawyer and a tennis player himself, who won several national championships. At their farm they had two tennis courts and Tony began playing at age 6. After schooling he went to England to go to Trinity College to study law, where he was a member of their lawn tennis team.  He did manage to get a law degree but it was the tennis that defined him. He was 17 when he won his first singles title in Canterbury then while at Trinity he entered an English public tournament reaching the semifinals where he defeated a top 10 English player. He continued to win, partnering too with Dorothea Douglas - the reigning Wimbledon champion. Tony’s first Wimbledon appearance was in 1904, w

On this day lost, but not forgotten. John R. Rankin was born on July 22, 1948.  His home of record is Blackwood, NJ.  He served in the US Army and attained the rank of Specialist 4 (SP4). Rankin was killed in action on November 15, 1969. Johnny July 22, 1948-November 15, 1969 SP4, Army        Blackwood Terrace, NJ Johnny Rankin always wanted to fly.  Photos of him as a two-year old show him surrounded by model airplanes his father had built.  He liked to watch his dad fly the wire-controlled gasoline powered planes.  Before he went into the service, a neighbor took him along on a small plane ride over Gloucester and Camden counties.  When he came home that day, his life had changed.  His interest in planes had become a passion.  Throughout his youth, he was fascinated with flight and in the end, he was fulfilling his dream as much as a duty to his country. "He loved airplanes," his mother, Pat Hayes of Westville, NJ, says.  "He had all the models.  And when he wrote and