Wikipedia:Main Page history/2020 July 10

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From today's featured article

Historically, the British farthing was a continuation of the English farthing, a coin struck by English monarchs prior to the Act of Union 1707 that was worth a quarter of an old penny (¹⁄₉₆₀ of a pound sterling). Only pattern farthings were struck under Queen Anne. The coin was struck intermittently through much of the 18th century, but counterfeits became so prevalent the Royal Mint ceased striking them after 1775. The next farthings were the first ones struck by steam power, in 1799 by Matthew Boulton at his Soho Mint. The Royal Mint resumed production in 1821. The farthing was struck regularly under George IV, William IV and in most years of Queen Victoria's long reign. The coin continued to be issued in most years of the first half of the 20th century, and in 1937 it finally received its own design, a wren (pictured). By the 1950s, inflation had eroded its value. It ceased to be struck after 1956 and was demonetised in 1961. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

National anthem of the Bahamas

... that "God Save the Queen" was twice played by mistake at the 1982 Commonwealth Games instead of "March On, Bahamaland" (featured), before officials realized they did not have a recording of the latter?
... that the 7th-century drama Bhagavadajjukam is the earliest-surviving satirical play in Sanskrit literature?
... that after early professional success as a snooker player, Patsy Fagan developed a psychological block when using the rest and never won another major tournament?
... that the British government funded Crossroads, the first Kazakhstani soap opera, to promote the country's transition to a free-market economy after the collapse of the Soviet Union?
... that Leo Pacheco, a member of the Texas House of Representatives, used to drive buses for VIA Metropolitan Transit?
... that the Jamai Palace in Fez was originally the residence of a grand vizier, but was later seized by the state, sold, and converted into a hotel?
... that during World War II, Polish-Jewish economist Ludwik Maurycy Landau conducted undercover research into the economic conditions in occupied Poland?
... that the Asian freshwater leech Barbronia weberi has invaded North Carolina?

In the news

COVID-19 pandemic

Park Won-soon

In Seoul, South Korea, incumbent mayor Park Won-soon (pictured) is found dead at the age of 64.
Floods in Kyushu, Japan, kill more than 50 people.
The Russian electorate votes to amend the Russian constitution.
European police agencies infiltrate EncroChat, an alleged criminal chat system, leading to the arrests of more than 800 people.

On this day

July 10: Independence Day in The Bahamas (1973)

Zhengde Emperor

1519 – Zhu Chenhao declared Ming emperor Zhengde (portrait shown) to be a usurper, beginning the Prince of Ning rebellion.
1800 – Lord Wellesley, Governor-General of India, founded Fort William College in Fort William, India.
1921 – Irish War of Independence: One day after a truce between the Irish Republican Army and British forces was agreed, violence broke out between Catholics and Protestants in Belfast.
1940 – Second World War: The Battle of Britain, in which the Royal Air Force defended the UK from attacks by the German Luftwaffe, began.
1973 – John Paul Getty III, grandson of American oil magnate J. Paul Getty, was kidnapped in Rome.

Ladislaus IV of Hungary (d. 1290)
Eleonora di Garzia di Toledo (d. 1576)
Ed Lowe (b. 1920)

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From today's featured list

Bill Rodgers

Winners of the New York City Marathon include 35 men and 30 women who have won the open division, and 9 men and 7 women who have won the wheelchair division. The New York City Marathon, one of the six World Marathon Majors, is a 26.2-mile (42.2 km) race which has been held in New York City since 1970. It is the largest marathon in the world; since 2013, every race except one has had over 50,000 finishers. Gary Muhrcke won the first race in a time of 2:31:38. The following year, Beth Bonner became the first female finisher, winning the race in 2:55:22. Norwegian runner Grete Waitz dominated the women's marathon between 1978 and 1989, winning nine of the eleven races during that period; her nine wins are the most of any runner at the New York City Marathon. In the men's race, Bill Rodgers (pictured) has won the most times, doing so in four consecutive years, from 1976 to 1979. A wheelchair race has been held since 2000, when 72 people finished: Kamel Ayari won the men's race, and Anh Nguyen Thi Xuan won the women's. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

The Wyoming Territory was an organized incorporated territory in the western United States that existed from July 25, 1868, until July 10, 1890, when it was admitted to the Union as the state of Wyoming.

This picture is a historical depiction of the Wyoming Territory's coat of arms, as illustrated by American engraver Henry Mitchell in State Arms of the Union, published in 1876 by Louis Prang. The escutcheon depicts a railroad train in front of a mountainous landscape in the top half, agricultural tools in the bottom left, and an arm holding a sword in the bottom right. Under the shield is the Latin motto Cedant arma togae (misspelled in this depiction as Oedant arma toga), literally meaning "Let arms yield to the toga", but often translated as "Let military power be subject to civil authority".

Illustration credit: Henry Mitchell; restored by Andrew Shiva

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