1296An English army, led by Edward I, defeated the Scots at the Battle of Dunbar, the only significant field action in the campaign of 1296. The English routed the disorganised Scots in a single charge, in action that was brief and probably not very bloody, since the only casualty of any note was a minor Lothian knight.

1667The blind, impoverished John Milton sold the copyright of Paradise Lost for £10.

1749The first official performance of Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks in Green Park, London. It finished early due to the outbreak of fire, but Handel stuck to his conducting, whilst the audience ran for their lives!

1828The opening of the London Zoological Gardens in Regent's Park, London. Lady visitors were politely requested to refrain from poking the beasts through the bars of the cages.

1840Edward Whymper, English mountaineer who was the first to climb the Matterhorn, was born.

1840The foundation stone for the new Palace of Westminster (also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace) was laid by the wife of the architect Sir Charles Barry.

1927The birth of Sheila (Christine) Scott, English aviator who broke 104 light aircraft records and was the first to fly solo over the North Pole. Despite this, she failed her driving test three times. Her flying endeavours were always under-financed and when funds ran out, she was left to a sad and lonely retirement.

1937King George VI officially opened the National Maritime Museum.

1939Conscription for men aged 20 - 21 was announced in Britain.

1943Judy Johnson rode Lone Gallant in a steeplechase in Baltimore to become the first woman jockey to ride as a professional.

1944The birth of Michael Fish, British meteorologist. He became infamous in the wake of the Great Storm of 1987 when it was rumoured that there a hurricane on the way to which he commented 'Well, if you're watching, don't worry, there isn't!' That evening, the worst storm to hit South East England since 1703 caused record damage and killed 18 people.

1945World War II: The Völkischer Beobachter, the newspaper of the Nazi Party, ceased publication.

1968The Abortion Act legalised abortion in Britain when pregnancy could endanger the physical or mental health of a woman or child.

1971Police were forced to physically remove demonstrators from the entrance of a courtroom after they disrupted proceedings inside. Eight people were accused of conspiring to damage, remove or destroy English language road signs in Wales during a rally in December 1970. It was regarded as a major event in the struggle for greater recognition of the Welsh Language.

1992The House of Commons elected a woman to the post of Speaker for the first time. She was Betty Boothroyd, the 62-year-old Labour MP for West Bromwich.

2014TV Springwatch presenters Chris Packham and Bill Oddie blamed a risk-averse culture for 'killing childhood'. "Children should be allowed to get up to mischief in the countryside by starting fires, trespassing and scrumping. Parents should let their children roam the countryside unsupervised." Oddie also questioned a current campaign by the National Trust - 50 things to do before you’re 11¾ - in which adults and children take part in activities together, saying it does not encouraging children to get away from older generations.

2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson returned to work after being hospitalised (5th April) and then placed in intensive care with coronavirus. At the time of his return, more than 21,000 had died in hospital from coronavirus, with another reported 4,300 coronavirus deaths in care homes in just two weeks.

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