1572Thomas Howard, the Fourth Duke of Norfolk and second cousin of Queen Elizabeth I was tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to assassinate the Queen, replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots and restore Catholicism in England. The plot was hatched and planned by Roberto di Ridolfi, an international banker who was able to travel and gather support without attracting too much suspicion. Norfolk was later executed at the Tower of London for his involvement but Ridolfi lived out his life in Florence until his death in 1612.

1581The English Parliament outlawed Roman Catholicism.

1604At the Hampton Court Conference, John Rainolds presented to King James I the motion '...that there might bee a newe translation of the Bible.' Approved the next day, Rainolds' motion led to the 1611 publication of the King James Bible.

1707The Act of Union was passed, merging the English and Scottish parliaments and paving the way for the new country of Great Britain.

1769One of the worst riots in theatre history occurred at the Haymarket Theatre, London. Crowds had packed out the venue to see a conjuror who claimed he would get himself into a quart tavern bottle. The conjuror never arrived, and the crowd erupted.

1908The first issue of the magazine Scouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship; the first book on the Scout Movement. It was written and illustrated by Robert Baden-Powell, its founder. It is reputedly the fourth best selling book of the 20th century, estimated at 100 to 150 million copies, in 87 languages.

1909Ernest Shackleton’s British expedition reached the area of the South Magnetic Pole.

1924The BBC broadcast Danger by Richard Hughes, the first play written for radio.

1928The funeral of the English poet and novelist Thomas Hardy. His heart was buried in this church graveyard at St. Michael's Church - Stinsford, Dorset, (see picture) and his ashes are in Westminster Abbey.

1930 Frank Whittle submitted his first patent for a jet engine ( British Patent No. 347,206 - granted in 1932). He had his first engine running by April 1937. Whittle was born at Earlsdon, a suburb of Coventry This statue of Sir Frank Whittle (see picture) is outside Coventry's Transport Museum. and this replica - (see picture) of Britain's first jet propelled aircraft, the Gloster-Whittle E.28/39 stands on the Whittle Roundabout, at the junction of A426 and A4303 in .Lutterworth.

1939The Irish Republican Army (IRA) begins its bombing and sabotage campaign in England.

1945Adolf Hitler moved into his underground bunker, the so-called Führerbunker. It was located beneath Hitler's New Reich Chancellery in Berlin and was the last of the Führer Headquarters to be used by Hitler. It became the epicentre of the Nazi regime and it was here during the last week of April 1945 that Hitler married Eva Braun shortly before they committed suicide.

1950Listen With Mother began on radio with the words "Hello children. Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin". When the series ended in 1982 there was a national outcry

1957The Cavern Club opened in Liverpool. It provided a showcase for many young rock ‘n’ roll musicians, among them the Beatles.

1981The Northern Ireland civil rights campaigner and former Westminster MP, Bernadette McAliskey, and her husband, were shot by gunmen at their home in County Tyrone.

1982Britain and the Vatican resumed full diplomatic relations after a break of exactly 447 years.

1991Operation 'Desert Storm' began against Iraq, for its invasion of Kuwait.

2001Mitchell Quy, a former casino croupier from Southport, who made television appeals for his 'missing' wife Lynsey to get in touch admitted killing her, cutting up her body with DIY tools and then dumping her dismembered body on waste ground. She was missing for 18 months before police discovered her torso in a shallow grave near a roller-coaster at the seaside resort. Her arms and legs were found a day later, dumped in bushes next to a railway line but her head and hands were never located.

2015 US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed that 2014 had been the hottest globally since records began in 1880.

2015 Nursey and Son, who had been manufacturing sheepskin coats for 169 years, including sheepskin coats for David Jason ('Del Boy') in TV's Only Fools and Horses, closed its doors for the last time.

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