Wikipedia:Main Page history/2021 October 25

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From today's featured article

The vicinity of the battlefield in 2012

The Battle of Marais des Cygnes took place on October 25, 1864, in Linn County, Kansas, during Price's Missouri Raid in the American Civil War. A large Confederate cavalry incursion into Missouri in late 1864 attempted to draw Union troops away from the fighting further east. After several victories the Confederates were defeated at the Battle of Westport and withdrew into Kansas. They camped along the banks of the Marais des Cygnes River on the night of October 24 while Union cavalry pursuers skirmished with their rear guard. The battle began early the next morning as 3,500 Union troops drove this force from its position, capturing cannons, prisoners, and wagons. An attempted stand at the river crossing was outflanked by a Union cavalry regiment, forcing the Confederates to abandon it. A rear guard action by a 1,200-man Confederate brigade bought time to disengage and retreat. After two further defeats on the same day and another on October 28, the Confederates retreated to Texas. (Full article...)

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German cavalry with steel lances

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In the news

Sandra Mason

Ahead of Barbados becoming a republic, Sandra Mason (pictured) is elected as the country's first president.
Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny is awarded the Sakharov Prize.
PAICV candidate José Maria Neves is elected President of Cape Verde.
British Member of Parliament Sir David Amess dies after being stabbed during a constituency meeting.

On this day

October 25: Labour Day in New Zealand (2021)

Afonso I of Portugal

1147 – Reconquista: Forces under Afonso I of Portugal (pictured) captured Lisbon from the Moors after a four-month siege in one of the few Christian victories during the Second Crusade.
1854 – Crimean War: Lord Cardigan led his cavalry on a disastrous assault in the Battle of Balaclava.
1927 – The Italian cruise liner SS Principessa Mafalda sank when a propeller shaft broke and fractured the hull, resulting in 314 deaths.
1944 – Heinrich Himmler ordered a crackdown on the Edelweiss Pirates, a nonconformist youth group that assisted army deserters and others hiding from the Nazis.
2001 – Windows XP, one of the most popular and widely used versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system, was released for retail sale.

Évariste Galois (b. 1811)
Larry Itliong (b. 1913)
Kara Hultgreen (d. 1994)

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Willie Mays

The Roberto Clemente Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It is named for Hall of Fame outfielder Roberto Clemente. Originally known as the Commissioner's Award, it has been presented by MLB since 1971. In 1973, the award was renamed after Clemente following his death in a plane crash while he was delivering supplies to victims of the Nicaragua earthquake. The first recipient of the award was Willie Mays (pictured), and the most recent honoree is Adam Wainwright. The first pitcher to receive the award was Phil Niekro in 1980, and the first catcher to receive it was Gary Carter in 1989. The team to have the most winners representing their club is the St. Louis Cardinals. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

The 5th Dragoon Guards was a British army cavalry regiment, officially formed in January 1686 as Shrewsbury's Regiment of Horse. The unit was redesignated as heavy cavalry and was sent to the Crimean War in 1853, taking part in the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854. This photograph shows Private Michael McNamara, of the 5th Dragoon Guards, and was part of a commissioned set of photographs taken at Aldershot for Queen Victoria in 1856.

Photograph credit: Hughes & Mullins after Cundall & Howlett; restored by Adam Cuerden

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