1279 BCE

Today in History 05/31/18

Statue depicting the pharaoh Ramses II, Abu Simbel, Egypt (© Prisma/UIG/Getty Images)(1279 BCE) A great pharaoh takes the Egyptian throne
A reign that will last 66 years begins, as Ramesses II becomes Pharaoh of Egypt under the 19th Dynasty. He will go on a building spree of massive proportions, soundly defeat many enemies, bolster his kingdom’s economy and territory, and live an impressive 90 or so years.
Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty of Egypt. He is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire. His successors and later Egyptians called him the “Great Ancestor”. He is known as Ozymandias in the Greek sources, from a transliteration into Greek of a part of Ramesses’ throne name, Usermaatre Setepenre, “The justice of Rê is powerful—chosen of Rê”.
Lived: 1303 BC – 1213
Height: 5′ 7″ (1.70 m)
Spouse: Meritamen · Bintanath · Nefertari · Isetnofret · Nebettawy · Henutmire · Maathorneferure
Buried: Deir el-Bahari · KV7
Children: Bintanath (Daughter) · Merneptah (Son) · Ramesses (Son) · Meritamen (Daughter) · Khaemweset (Son) · Amun-her-khepeshef (Son) · Nebettawy (Daughter) · Pareherwenemef (Son) · Meryatum (Son) · Henuttawy (Daughter) · Setepenre (Son) · Isetnofret II (Daughter) · Ramesses-Meryamun-Nebweben (Son) · Simentu (Son) · Meryre (Son)
Parents: Seti I (Father) · Tuya (Mother)

View of Gerf Hussein, before flooding and reconstruction
Photo of the free standing part of Gerf Hussein temple, originally in Nubia
wiki/Ramesses_II
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(1279 BCE) A great pharaoh takes the Egyptian throne.
Also on this day,
1819 | Walt Whitman born
1859 | Big Ben debuts
1889 | Johnstown flood

Today in History 05/31/17

Statue depicting the pharaoh Ramses II, Abu Simbel, Egypt (© Prisma/UIG/Getty Images)(1279 BCE) A great pharaoh takes the Egyptian throne
A reign that will last 66 years begins, as Ramesses II becomes Pharaoh of Egypt under the 19th Dynasty. He will go on a building spree of massive proportions, soundly defeat many enemies, bolster his kingdom’s economy and territory, and live an impressive 90 or so years.
Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great and Ozymandias, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt. He often is regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire. His successors and later Egyptians called him the “Great Ancestor”. Ramesses II led several military expeditions into the Levant, reasserting Egyptian control over Canaan. He also led expeditions to the south, into Nubia, commemorated in inscriptions at Beit el-Wali and Gerf Hussein.
Lived: 1303 BC – 1213
Height: 5′ 7″ (1.70 m)
Spouse: Bintanath · Nefertari · Isetnofret · Nebettawy · Henutmire · Maathorneferure
Buried: KV7 · Deir el-Bahari
Children: Merneptah (Son) · Bintanath (Daughter) · Ramesses (Son) · Amun-her-khepeshef (Son) · Meryatum (Son) · Khaemweset (Son) · Pareherwenemef (Son) · Nebettawy (Daughter) · Meritamen (Daughter) · Sethi (Son) · Henuttawy (Daughter) · Isetnofret II (Daughter) · Ramesses-Meryamun-Nebweben (Son) · Simentu (Son) · Meryre (Son)
Parents: Seti I (Father) · Tuya (Mother)

wiki/Ramesses_II
The Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace on the Thames Embankment, London, circa 1865 (© Otto Herschan/Getty Images)(1859) London’s parliament building gets a really large timepiece
Set 316 feet above the Houses of Parliament, a new clock looks out over London, calibrated twice daily with Greenwich Observatory to ensure exact timekeeping. The booming chimes from its 13.5-ton ‘Big Ben’ bell, and its four 23-foot-diameter clock faces, will come to symbolize London.
Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London and is usually extended to refer to both the clock and the clock tower as well. The tower is officially known as Elizabeth Tower, renamed to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2012; previously, it was known simply as the Clock Tower.
Address: Bridge St, Westminster, London SW1A 0AA
Phone: 020 7219 4272
Opened: 1859
Height: 316 feet (96.30 m) (Architectural)
Architect: Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin
Architectural style: Gothic Revival architecture

wiki/Big_Ben
Survivors stand by homes destroyed when the South Fork Dam collapsed on May 31, 1889 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania (© AP Photo)(1889) 20 million tons of water wipes out Johnstown, Pennsylvania
A deluge of rainfall and a deteriorating dam lead to one of America’s worst disasters when the South Fork Dam breaks apart above Johnstown, Pennsylvania, releasing a torrent of destruction. A 60-foot-high wall of water and debris half a mile wide roars 14 miles downriver, killing 2,209.
The Johnstown Flood occurred on May 31, 1889, after the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam on the Little Conemaugh River 14 miles upstream of the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The dam broke after several days of extremely heavy rainfall, releasing 14.55 million cubic meters of water from the reservoir known as Lake Conemaugh. With a volumetric flow rate that temporarily equaled that of the Mississippi River, the flood killed 2,209 people and caused US$17 million of damage.
Fatalities: 2,200
Date: May 31, 1889

wiki/Johnstown_Flood
Soldiers digging trenches during the 2nd Boer War in South Africa circa 1900 (© SSPL/Getty Images)(1902) UK claims more of South Africa after bloody Boer War
The 20th century’s first large-scale international conflict ends when the British Empire claims victory over the South African Republic and the Orange Free State in South Africa. Tens of thousands of human lives were lost, and an astounding 300,000 horses perished, in the Second Boer War.
The Second Boer War, usually known as the Boer War and also at the time as the South African War, started on 11 October 1899 and ended on 31 May 1902. Great Britain defeated two Boer states in South Africa: the South African Republic and the Orange Free State. Britain was aided by its Cape Colony, the Colony of Natal and some native African allies. The British war effort was further supported by volunteers from the British Empire, including Southern Africa, the Australian colonies, Canada, India and New Zealand. All other nations were neutral, but public opinion in them was largely hostile to Britain. Inside Britain and its Empire there also was significant opposition to the Second Boer War.
Start date: Oct 11, 1899
End date: May 31, 1902

wiki/Second_Boer_War
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