On This Day … in 1899 & Others

Off Samoa, HMS Calliope survived an appalling typhoon. The German and US navies were engaged in a stand-off over national interests on the island and their warships - three apiece - failed to leave the harbour. All six warships...

On This Day … in 1360 & Others

During the Hundred Years War, 3,000 French raiders sacked and burnt Winchelsea, one of the Cinque Ports. It was a mainstay of English naval strength in the period & the attack was an effort to divert Edward III from his...

On This Day … in 1757 & Others

Rear-Admiral John Byng was executed by firing squad aboard HMS Monarch. The son of the successful Admiral Sir John Byng, he had been made the scapegoat for the fall of the important harbour at Port Mahon on Minorca in...

On This Day … in 1858 & Others

As British troops slowly penetrated deeper into the defences at Lucknow, Mutineer artillery shells set fire to a British sandbagged position. Able Seaman Edward Robinson, a member of the Royal Naval brigade serving ashore at the siege, leapt onto the...

On This Day … in 1339 & Others

Despite the failure of their attempt almost exactly a year before (26 March 1338) to take Gorey Castle on Jersey, the French fleet, reinforced by Italian mercenary galleys, attacked the island again. The castle's garrison had been reinforced to some...