Wikipedia:Main Page history/2012 July 14

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Today's featured article
The Bal des Ardents was a masquerade ball held on 28 January 1393 at which Charles VI of France performed in a dance with five members of the French nobility. Four of the dancers were killed in a fire caused by a torch brought in by a spectator, Charles' brother Louis, Duke of Orléans—Charles and another of the dancers survived. The ball was one of a number of events intended to entertain the young king, who the previous summer had suffered the first in a series of lifelong attacks of insanity. The event undermined confidence in Charles' capacity to rule; Parisians considered it proof of courtly decadence and threatened to rebel against the more powerful members of the nobility. The public's outrage forced the king and his brother Orléans—whom at least one contemporary chronicler accused of attempted regicide and sorcery—into offering penance for the event. Charles' wife Queen Isabeau held the ball to honor the remarriage of a lady-in-waiting; scholars believe it may have been a traditional charivari, with the dancers disguised as wild men. The myth of wild men, often associated with demonology, was common in medieval Europe and documented in revels of Tudor England. (more...) Recently featured: Santa Maria de Ovila – Andromeda – Mumia Abu-Jamal Archive – By email – More featured articles...
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From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that a female state legislator proposed making Dorothy's Rooms (bathroom pictured), the last brothel in Helena, Montana, a historical landmark? ... that "Did you know that Big 5 stopped selling handguns in March 1986?", regarded as the Perry Mason moment of the first Menendez brothers trial, resulted from a tip phoned in by a Court TV viewer? ... that Abraham Samad was the youngest ever head of the Corruption Eradication Commission when he was chosen in 2011? ... that Gene Sharp's book on the American Struggle for Independence supports President Adams' claim that the revolution was "substantially effected before hostilities commenced"? ... that in the 2010 season, in addition to playing football for Afturelding, John Andrews also coached the club's women's team, reserve team and feeder club at the same time? ... that Love's 1966 song "She Comes in Colors" has been cited as an influence on both The Rolling Stones' "She's a Rainbow" and Madonna's "Beautiful Stranger"? ... that pig-ear cups were reported from Iceland in 2007? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
Roger Federer Up to 250 people are killed in a massacre in a village in Hama, Syria. A road tanker explosion kills more than 100 people in Okobie, Nigeria. Tongan Crown Prince Tupouto'a 'Ulukalala marries Sinaitakala Fakafanua in Nukuʻalofa. Astronomers announce the discovery of S/2012 P 1, the fifth moon of Pluto. In tennis, Roger Federer (pictured) and Serena Williams win the men's singles and women's singles, respectively, at the Wimbledon Championships. At least 141 people are killed in a flash flood in the Krasnodar Krai region of Russia. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
July 14: Bastille Day in France (1789) 1798 – The Sedition Act became United States law, making it a federal crime to write, publish, or utter false or malicious statements about the U.S. government. 1933 – With the enactment of the Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Offspring, the Nazi Party began its eugenics program. 1957 – Rawya Ateya took her seat in the National Assembly of Egypt to become the first female parliamentarian in the Arab world. 1995 – The MP3 digital audio encoding format was named. 2002 – Orphaned killer whale Springer was released after a month of captivity to become the only whale in history to be successfully re-integrated into a wild pod after human intervention. 2003 – In an effort to discredit U.S. Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson, who had written an article critical of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Washington Post columnist Robert Novak revealed that Wilson's wife Valerie Plame (pictured) was a CIA "operative". More anniversaries: July 13 – July 14 – July 15 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now July 14, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

A hand-tinted glass slide of cold weapons and armor typically used by samurai, members of the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. On the left can be seen pole weapons, with a variety of swords in the middle, and longbows on the right. Flanking the weapons are two suits of armor, with a man using an abacus on the far left.

Photo: T. Enami

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