Wikipedia:Main Page history/2013 April 21

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Reginald Heber (1783–1826) was an English clergyman, traveller, man of letters and hymn-writer, who served as the Anglican Bishop of Calcutta. After graduating from Oxford University, where he gained a reputation as a poet, he undertook an extended tour of Scandinavia, Russia and central Europe at the height of the Napoleonic Wars. After ordination in 1807 he took over his father's old parish of Hodnet in Shropshire, where he combined his pastoral duties with other church offices and literary work. He was consecrated Bishop of Calcutta in October 1823. During his short episcopate he worked hard to improve the spiritual and general living conditions of his flock, before a combination of arduous duties, hostile climate and indifferent health brought about his collapse and death at the age of 42. Monuments were erected to his memory in India and in St Paul's Cathedral, London. Several of his hymns have survived into the 21st century; one of these, "Holy, Holy, Holy", is a popular and widely known hymn for Trinity Sunday. Some recent commentators have asserted that the paternalism and imperial assumptions expressed in his hymns are outdated and generally unacceptable in the modern world. (Full article...)

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From Wikipedia's newest content:

... that Gresley Parish Church (pictured) was originally an Augustinian priory, founded in the 12th century?

... that London-based engraver Peter Mazell bungled an image of the Common Tailorbird?

... that the Mérens horse was saved from extinction by hippies in the 1970s?

... that when Lieutenant Commander Hugh Haggard returned the Truant to Britain in late 1942, the submarine flew a Jolly Roger with 4 stars and 16 bars?

... that although the species name of the tree Alloxylon brachycarpum means "short fruit", it has the largest fruit of its genus?

... that former Israeli Ambassador to Russia Anna Azari is married to a rabbi who leads a congregation in Tel Aviv?

... that the video game Star Trek: Hidden Evil was described by one critic as "2,891 phaser shots connected by some irrelevant puzzles"?

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Today's articles for improvement

George M. Dallas – Micronesia – Recorded history

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In the news

Giorgio Napolitano (pictured) is re-elected President of Italy.

A 6.6-magnitude earthquake strikes Lushan County, Ya'an, in China's Sichuan province, killing more than 150 people and injuring thousands.

Serbia and Kosovo reach an EU-brokered deal towards normalising bilateral relations.

A manhunt across the Boston area results in the death of one suspect and the capture of a second in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf is arrested on charges relating to his dismissal of judges in 2007.

Recent deaths: Storm Thorgerson

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On this day...

April 21

753 BC – Romulus and Remus founded Rome, according to the calculations by Roman scholar Varro Reatinus.

900 – A debt was pardoned by the Datu of Tondo on the island of Luzon, as inscribed on the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, the earliest known written document found in the Philippines.

1509 – Henry VIII (pictured) became King of England, following the death of his father Henry VII, eventually becoming a significant figure in the history of the English monarchy.

1836 – Texan forces led by Sam Houston defeated General Antonio López de Santa Anna and his Mexican troops in the Battle of San Jacinto near La Porte, the decisive battle in the Texas Revolution.

1863 – After the Ottoman Empire exiled him from Baghdad, Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, began his twelve-day stay in the Garden of Ridván where he declared his mission as "He whom God shall make manifest".

1970 – In response to a long-running dispute over wheat production quotas, the Principality of Hutt River proclaimed its secession from Western Australia.

More anniversaries: April 20 – April 21 – April 22

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Today's featured picture

The SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library is the national library of Bulgaria. Founded on 4 April 1878, it was named after Saints Cyril and Methodius, the creators of the Glagolitic alphabet that was used in early Cyrillic scripts. The building pictured was finished in 1953.

Photo: Plamen Agov

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