Happy Birthday mick54, g.thompson66 & Rabih meho



Hope you have a great day.

On this day 5th July

1817 The first gold coin sovereigns were issued in Britain.

1853 The birth of Cecil John Rhodes, English colonialist and financier. Rhodes was noted for his commercial exploitation of southern Africa, where he gained control of the world’s major diamond and gold mines. He took part in the notorious Jameson Raid, an attempt to overthrown the Boers in the gold-rich Transvaal, and the incident led to his resignation as Prime Minister. He expanded further north and formed the country of Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), which was named after him.

1865 The Locomotives and Highways Act in Britain introduced a speed limit for road vehicles of 4 mph in rural areas and 2 mph in urban areas.

1832 Charles Darwin ('Theory of Evolution') departed Rio de Janeiro in HMS Beagle.

1841 Thomas Cook, a Baptist cabinet maker, founded the first travel agency. The first official 'Cook's Tour' involved almost 600 teatotallers taking the train from Leicester to Loughborough to attend a temperance meeting.

1888 Three match girls were fired at the Bryant and May match factory in London for giving information about working conditions. The other 672 employees went on strike, a landmark for women workers in Britain that led to the formation of a Matchgirls' Union.

1945 Churchill lost the General Election after leading Britain throughout World War II. Attlee’s Labour Party won 393 seats to the Tories’ 213.

1948 Britain's National Health Service came into operation.

1954 The BBC broadcast its first daily television news programme.

1969 The Rolling Stones gave a free concert in Hyde Park, London, two days after the death of guitarist Brian Jones. It was attended by 250,000 people.

1979 The Queen presided over the 1000th annual open-air sitting of the Isle of Man's Parliament, Tynwald.

1991 The Bank of England closed down UK branches of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International over allegations of fraud.