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Coat of arms of de Ros

William de Ros, 6th Baron Ros (c. 1370 – 1 November 1414), was an English nobleman, politician and soldier. He inherited his father's feudal barony and extensive estates centred on Lincolnshire in 1394. Shortly afterwards he married Margaret, daughter of Baron Fitzalan, whose family, like that of de Ros, was well-connected and implacably opposed to King Richard II. In 1399 Richard confiscated the estates of his cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, Duke of Lancaster, and exiled him. When Henry invaded England several months later, de Ros took his side almost immediately. After Henry declared himself King Henry IV, de Ros voted in the House of Lords for the former king's imprisonment. He became an important aide and counsellor to King Henry, and regularly spoke for him in parliament. He also supported Henry in his military campaigns, participating in the invasion of Scotland in 1400 and assisting in the suppression of Richard le Scrope's rebellion five years later. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Chili Williams in a polka-dot bikini

... that a photograph of Chili Williams, known as the "Polka Dot Girl" (pictured), was one of the "two most famous pin-up pictures" of World War II?
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... that a German court's decision involving football stadiums may preclude Facebook from arbitrarily banning users?
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... that despite being commonly found off the coast of Argentina, Diplodus argenteus is not named after the country?
... that the music video for John Lennon's "You Are Here", issued half a century after the song was released, shows previously unseen footage of Lennon?
... that politician Teleke Lauti unseated a former prime minister, was himself unseated by a future prime minister, and later ran again to replace a former prime minister?

In the news

Freddie Freeman

In baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the New York Yankees to win the World Series (MVP Freddie Freeman pictured).
Flooding in Spain kills more than 160 people.
The Social Democrats, led by Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, win the Lithuanian parliamentary election after the second voting round.
In the Japanese general election, the LDP-led ruling coalition loses its majority in the House of Representatives.

On this day

November 1: Samhain and Beltane in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, respectively; Rajyotsava (Formation Day) in Karnataka, India (1956)

Ansel Adams

1214 – Byzantine–Seljuk wars: Seljuq Turks captured the important port city of Sinope.
1921 – Frances Kyle was called to the Bar of Ireland, becoming the first female barrister in Ireland or Great Britain.
1941 – American photographer Ansel Adams (pictured) shot Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, one of his most famous photographs.
1944 – World War II: An American F-13 Superfortress made the first flight by an Allied aircraft over Tokyo since the Doolittle Raid in April 1942.
1963 – Lê Quang Tung, loyalist head of the South Vietnam Special Forces, was executed in a U.S.-backed coup against president Ngô Đình Diệm following a period of religious unrest.

Józef Zajączek (b. 1752)
Caroline Still Anderson (b. 1848)
Umberto Agnelli (b. 1934)
Livia Gouverneur (d. 1961)

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9th-century manuscript of the Nihon Shoki

In Japan, seventy-one Japanese books are designated as National Treasures. The term has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties since 1897, although the definition and criteria of National Treasures have changed over time. Writing was introduced from Korea to Japan around 400 AD in the form of Chinese books, with work done in Chinese by immigrant scribes from the mainland. The earliest extant large-scale works compiled in Japan are the 8th-century historical chronicles the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki (manuscript pictured). Other early Japanese works from the Nara period include biographies of Prince Shōtoku, cultural and geographical records (fudoki) and the Man'yōshū, the first anthology of Japanese poetry. More than half of the 71 designated treasures are works of poetry and prose. Another large segment consists of historical works such as manuscripts of the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

Diwali is a five-day Hindu festival of lights which symbolises the spiritual victory of light over darkness and good over evil. It commemorates the day when Hindu god Rama, along with his wife-consort Sita and brother Lakshmana, returned to his kingdom of Ayodhya after defeating demon-king Ravana and following 14 years of exile. Celebrations peak on the night of the third day of the festival—the main day of Diwali, which is today—marking the darkest night of the Hindu lunisolar calendar. People celebrate on this day by lighting traditional lamps (diyas) and candles. Pictured here is a woman lighting candles on Diwali.

Photograph credit: AjoyDutta1997; edited by Aristeas

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