On This Day In History - 12th June

On This Day In History - 12th June

 

12th June 1567 Richard Rich died. Nope, we're not talking about Richie Rich the character played by Macaulay Culkin, who, for some reason, kept being left home alone.

 

We're talking about the 1st Baron Rich who was Lord Chancellor of England during the reign of King Edward VI. Lord Rich was not a pleasant man, to say the least.

 

Rich tormented the future Queen Mary I, Henry VIII's daughter. And his hobbies included kicking hedgehogs and persecuting and torturing Protestants. No wonder his parents abandoned him at every opportunity.

 

12th June 1816 Charles Pierre Francois Augereau, 1st Duc de Castiglione died. He was a soldier, general, and Marshal of France, who knew how to duck. Duc De Castiglione served in the French Revolutionary Wars and found himself fighting in every major battle in 1796 with the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.

 

But, seeing the end was near for Bonaparte, Duc de Castiglione switched sides to King Louis XVIII. Then, decided to switch back to Bonaparte. Unfortunately, he also found himself on the loosing side again. So, he switched back to the king's side. 

 

However, when King Louis XVIII of France was restored to the throne, being a little bit miffed, amd slightly confused as to how many switches had taken place, he removed Duc de Castiglione's titles and pension.

 

12th June 1929 Anne Frank is born. Thirteen years later, in 1942, she received a book for her 13th birthday. It was bound with red and white checked cloth, with a small lock on the front. 

 

Anne began writing in the book the very same day, starting to chronicle her experiences growing up through the German occupation and her time in hiding with her family in secret rooms behind a shop.

 

Anne Frank died in 1944 of typhus in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Her diary was saved and found its way to her father, the only surviving member of the family. It was later published as The Diary of a Young Girl, and is now known as The Diary of Anne Frank.

 

12th June 1991 Boris Yeltsin was elected as President of Russia. As a child he lost a thumb and index finger on his left hand whilst playing with a hand grenade. Pretty sure there's a lesson to be learned there, kids. Probably shouldn't mess around with hand grenades. Later in life, he lost his marbles.

 

He is not only famed for being a leading figure in the downfall of the USSR, but also for being slightly intoxicated most of the time. Okay, who are we kidding? He enjoyed his drink. In fact, couldn't get enough of it. Many a time, on international visits, he was as drunk as a skunk.

 

There was an incident in 1992 in Kyrgyzstan when Yeltsin got smashed out of his skull then began playing the spoons on the President of Kyrgyzstan's baldy head.

 

Not as bad as when he was in Washington, staying at Blair House, the White House's official guest house. In 1995, he escaped his security and made it onto Pennsylvania Avenue. Yeah, not too bad, I suppose. But, he was only wearing his underwear.

 

The Secret Service caught him staggering around the street drunk trying to hail a taxi so he could grab some pizza.

 

Please leave a comment below. Question of the Day: What's the worst thing you've done when you've had a few to drink?