May Day - originally a Roman festival which began on 28th April and lasted several days to mark the commencement of summer. In England, middle and lower classes would gather flowers - ‘go a maying’ - and the prettiest village maid was crowned Queen of the May, celebrated with dancing around the maypole.

1118The death (aged 38) of Matilda of Scotland, Queen of England and the first wife of Henry I. She acted as regent of England during her husband's frequent absences for military campaigns and she was known for her generosity towards the church where she founded and supported cloisters and hospitals for leprosy sufferers.

1328The Wars of Scottish Independence ended. England recognized the Kingdom of Scotland as an independent state.

1517In 'Evil May Day' riots in London, London apprentices attacked foreign residents. Wolsey suppressed the rioters, of whom 60 were hanged.

1707The Act of Union joined the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain.

1759Josiah Wedgwood founded the Wedgwood pottery company in Burslem, Staffordshire. Wedgewood was a prominent abolitionist of slavery. He mass produced cameos depicting the seal for the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade and had them widely distributed. He was also the grandfather of Charles Darwin and Emma Darwin. See picture of a traditional Wedgwood plate.

1769The birth, in Ireland, of Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington. Known as the Iron Duke, he defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. He was Tory Prime Minister from 1828-30, becoming unpopular when he conceded Roman Catholic emancipation. His London house had its windows smashed by an angry mob on the anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo.

1840The first British Penny Black stamp went on sale. Invented by Rowland Hill, it was the world’s first adhesive postage stamp and it became valid for postage on 6th May. The Penny Black public house in Northwich, Cheshire - (see picture) is a Grade II listed, Tudor style building that was formerly the district's post office.

1851Queen Victoria opened the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, London. Over 10,000 exhibitors set up eight miles of tables. Although technological wonders from around the world were on display, the exposition was dominated by Britain, which was the premier industrialized nation and workshop of the world. This statue of Father Thames (see picture), once at Thames Head in Gloucestershire is now at St John's Lock, Lechlade, on the River Thames. It was commissioned in 1854 for The Crystal Palace's grounds.

1873The death, in Zambia, of the missionary, doctor and explorer David Livingstone. This copy (see picture) of the inscription that covers his grave at Westminster Abbey is at Blantyre's David Livingstone Centre. He was from humble beginnings and was born in Blantyre, eight miles south east of Glasgow. His mother, father and four brothers and sisters lived in this single room (see picture) in a tenement known as Shuttle Row, which they shared with 23 other families. Shuttle Row (see picture) is now part of the David Livingstone Centre.

1875Alexandra Palace reopened after a fire in 1873 burnt it down. It was designed to be 'The People’s Palace' and was later nicknamed 'Ally Pally'. In 1936 it became the headquarters of the world's first regular public television service, operated by the BBC.

1916The end of the Easter Rising in Ireland, following a week of bitter fighting in Dublin after Irish Nationalists rose against British rule on Easter Monday, 24th April. More than 400 lost their lives.

1955Stirling Moss and co-driver Dennis Jenkinson became the first British drivers to win the Mille Miglia. His Mercedes Benz finished 30 minutes ahead of the second car, driven by the legendary Argentinian, Fangio.

1973More than a million workers joined a one day strike in protest at the pay restraint policy and price rises by the Conservative government under Edward Heath.

1982British planes attacked two airstrips near Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands to rid the islands of Argentine forces.

1997A landslide victory for the Labour Party in the General election brought an end to the Conservative Party's 18 years in power. The new Prime Minister was Tony Blair.

2014It was revealed that OCR (optical character recognition) scanners would confuse arms and anus in old text, leading to some unusual romantic translations such as - Mrs. Tipton went over to him and put her anus around his neck. She said, rapturously. 'I have been hoping for years that you would talk that way to me.' Also, from Matisse on the Loose - ‘Oh boy!’ she said. She grabbed my anus and positioned my body in the direction of the east gallery and we started walking.

2015 The death of Geoff Duke, aged 92. He spent 10 years at the highest level of motorcycle racing, winning six World Championships and six Isle of Man TT races during the 1950s.

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