On the 27th October 312 AD the battle of Milvian Bridge was fought near Rome. The two men contending for control of Rome and the Empire were Constantine, who controlled Gaul, England and parts of Germany and Maxentius, who controlled Italy, Spain and Africa.
It happens the two were brothers in law.
The day before the monumental and pivotal battle, Constantine saw a flaming cross in the sky, taking I as an omen, he had his men put a cross on their shields and banners.
Full of strength at what their commander had seen, Constantine’s men won the battle. Maxentius drowned crossing a bridge over the Tiber.
Rome would soon be unified under one ruler (only Licentius remained in Constantine’s way.)
Constantine would spend the ret of his reign Christianising his subjects.
He converted on his deathbed, becoming the first Christian Emperor, in 337 AD.
Today: what made the Royal Navy great.
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On March 14th 1757 the English executed their first and only Admiral for dereliction of duty.
It was the during the French and Indian Wars. The year before, 1756, Admiral John Byng had been ordered to the English base of Menorca with a small fleet, as it was suspected the French were after it. Unfortunately, Byng moved slowly and the French did capture the island. He made a weak and poorly planned attack, which he called off stating he was facing insuperable odds, then proceeded to Gibraltar.
The Prime Minister, the Duke of Newcastle, was so angry he resolved to have Byng immediately punished.
The Court Martial was at Portsmouth aboard his own ship, Monarch. The outcome already established, Byng was duly shot today in 1757 by a squad of Marines.
The rest of Europe was amazed by the event.
Writing in Candide, Voltaire said: in England it is good to kill an Admiral from time to time, to encourage the others! -
@wittmann:
Writing in Candide, Voltaire said: in England it is good to kill an Admiral from time to time, to encourage the others!
I’ve heard a French expression which says the same thing about French generals.
People interested in further reading on the subject of what made the Royal Navy great may want to have a look at Arthur Herman’s book “To Rule The Waves: How the British Navy Shaped the Modern World”.
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Very interesting. Thanks again Wittmann.
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