Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 March 19

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From today's featured article

The Seri Rambai is a 17th-century Dutch cannon displayed at Fort Cornwallis in George Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site city and capital of the Malaysian state of Penang. It is a fertility symbol, the subject of legends and prophecy, and the largest bronze gun in Malaysia. The cannon's history in the Malacca Straits began in the early 1600s when Dutch East India Company officers gave it to the Sultan of Johor in return for trading concessions. Less than a decade later, after Johor was destroyed and the sultan captured, the Seri Rambai was taken to Aceh. Near the end of the eighteenth century the cannon was sent to Selangor and mounted next to one of the town's hilltop forts. In 1871 pirates seized a Penang junk, murdered its passengers and crew, and took the stolen vessel to Selangor. The British colonial government responded by burning the town, destroying its forts and confiscating the Seri Rambai. Originally displayed on Penang's Esplanade, the gun was moved in the 1950s to the ramparts at Fort Cornwallis. (Full article...)

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In the news

Chuck Berry

American guitarist, singer, and rock and roll pioneer Chuck Berry (pictured) dies at the age of 90.
A colossal ancient Egyptian statue, discovered in Cairo, is preliminarily identified as depicting pharaoh Psamtik I.
The VVD, led by incumbent Prime Minister Mark Rutte, wins the most seats in the Dutch general election, but the governing coalition loses its majority.
Disputes over a Turkish constitutional referendum trigger a diplomatic incident between Turkey and the Netherlands.
South Korea's Constitutional Court removes President Park Geun-hye from office.

On this day...

March 19

Clara Zetkin

1279 – Emperor Bing, the last emperor of the Song dynasty, died during the Battle of Yamen, bringing the dynasty to an end after three centuries.
1911 – Socialist German politician Clara Zetkin (pictured) established the first International Women's Day.
1915 – Pluto was photographed for the first time, 15 years before it was officially discovered by Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory.
1962 – Highly influential American musician Bob Dylan released his eponymous debut album.
2011 – Libyan Civil War: The French Air Force launched Opération Harmattan, beginning foreign military intervention in Libya.

Wyatt Earp (b. 1848) · Albert Speer (b. 1905) · Bun Cook (d. 1988)

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Today's featured picture

Hermia and Lysander is a watercolour painting using gouache created in 1870 by the British illustrator John Simmons. Based on events in Act II, Scene II of William Shakespeare's comedy play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, it depicts Hermia and her lover Lysander lost in an enchanted wood and surrounded by fairies. Hermia and Lysander, which measures 89 by 74 centimetres (35 by 29 in), set a record sales price for a Simmons painting in 2012, when it was auctioned for £42,470 by Sotheby's.

Painting: John Simmons

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