Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 August 16

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From today's featured article

Richard II (1367–1400) was King of England, the last of the main-line kings of the House of Plantagenet. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. A son of Edward, the Black Prince, he was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III. Richard was tall, good-looking and intelligent, but he may have suffered from a personality disorder, especially toward the end of his reign. Less warlike than his father or grandfather, he sought to bring an end to the Hundred Years' War started by Edward III. A firm believer in the royal prerogative, he restrained the power of the aristocracy and relied on a private retinue for military protection. He promoted an elevated image of himself, and art and culture were at the centre of his court, in contrast to the fraternal, martial court of his grandfather. Shakespeare's play Richard II portrays his misrule and deposition as responsible for the 15th-century Wars of the Roses, but modern historians disagree, attributing his downfall to practices that were unacceptable to the political establishment. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

Golden Tea Room

... that Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the Japanese regent from 1537 to 1598, ordered the construction of the Golden Tea Room (pictured), a chashitsu that was completely covered in gold?
... that the 2017–18 London & South East Premier season will be the first under that name, as the Rugby Football Union felt the previous "National League 3" name was misleading?
... that Henry Semon lost his seat in the Oregon legislature when he accepted a position on the state's agriculture board, but was reappointed to the legislature after resigning from the board?
... that the opera Alceste, composed by Anton Schweitzer with a libretto by Wieland, is regarded as a milestone of German opera?
... that the site of Kayak Point County Park was originally proposed as an oil refinery?
... that the Japanese pygmy woodpecker becomes smaller and darker from the north of its range to the south?
... that Bill McCann was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for "courage and fine leadership" during the capture of Crépey Wood?
... that a story about the state of American football in the year 17776 has been compared to the work of Don DeLillo, Italo Calvino, Thomas Pynchon, and robot trolls on Reddit?

In the news

Car driven into a crowd in Charlottesville, Virginia

At least three hundred people are killed by mudslides in and around Freetown, Sierra Leone.
In golf, Justin Thomas wins the PGA Championship.
In the United States, a car (pictured) is driven into a crowd of counter-protesters at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one and injuring nineteen others.
More than seventy children die at a hospital in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, India, allegedly due to lack of oxygen supply to the wards.
The Obelisk Gate wins the Hugo Award for Best Novel.
Uhuru Kenyatta is re-elected President of Kenya.

On this day...

August 16:

Skookum Jim Mason

1863 – After Spain had annexed the Dominican Republic, rebels raised the Dominican flag in Santiago de los Caballeros to begin the War of Restoration.
1896 – A group led by Skookum Jim Mason (pictured) discovered gold near Dawson City, Yukon, Canada, setting off the Klondike Gold Rush.
1977 – Elvis Presley, "The King of Rock and Roll", was officially pronounced dead at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, after he was found unresponsive on the floor of his Graceland bathroom.
1987 – Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed after takeoff in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., leaving a sole survivor.
2015 – Suicide bombers assassinated Pakistani politician Shuja Khanzada and killed at least 22 others at his home.

Marianos Argyros (d. 963) · Ranavalona I (d. 1861) · Georgette Heyer (b. 1902)

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Today's featured picture

Ursa Major is a constellation in the northern sky. Its Latin name means "greater (or larger) she-bear", standing as a reference to and in direct contrast with nearby Ursa Minor, the lesser bear. It was one of the original 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy in the 2nd century AD, and is now the third largest constellation of the 88 modern constellations. Ursa Major is visible throughout the year from most of the northern hemisphere, and appears circumpolar above the mid-northern latitudes. It includes the highly recognizable asterism known as the Big Dipper (US) or the Plough (UK).

Illustration: Sidney Hall; restoration: Adam Cuerden

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