Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, September 10, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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prodigality
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| Article of the Day | |
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 The Roman LimitesA limes—plural limites—was a fortified military road of the Roman Empire. Over time, the term came to be associated with continuous barriers punctuated by watchtowers and forts. In Germany and Raetia, one such limes stretched 345 miles (555 km) along the Roman border. Though not impenetrable, limites deterred raiding parties and allowed the Romans to control communications along frontiers. In some places, they were used to guard caravan routes. What two famous limites were built across Britain? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Empress Elizabeth of Austria Is Assassinated (1898)Renowned for her beauty, Elizabeth of Bavaria married her cousin, Emperor Francis Joseph of Austria, but disliked the rigid etiquette of the Viennese court. She therefore spent much of her life wandering abroad. In 1898, an Italian anarchist stabbed the 60-year-old empress in the chest with a sharpened file while she was travelling in Geneva, killing her. Her domestic life is said to been an unhappy one, marred by family tragedies like the death of her only son in what sensational incident? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Hilda Doolittle, AKA H.D. (1886)Born in Pennsylvania, Doolittle traveled to Europe in 1911 and stayed there the rest of her life. In England, under the influence of Ezra Pound, she became associated with the imagists and developed into one of the most original poets of the group. She combined classical themes with modernist techniques to create clear, impersonal, sensuous verse. Doolittle, who became an icon of the gay-rights and feminist movements after her death, was once involved in a love triangle with what other writers? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 In many ways doth the full heart revealThe presence of the love it would conceal. Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Fiesta de Santa Fe (2020)The Fiesta de Santa Fe is a religious and secular festival said to be the oldest such event in the country. It dates to 1712 and recalls the early history of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The festivities start the Thursday night after Labor Day with the burning of Zozobra, or Old Man Gloom, a 50-foot-high effigy. Thousands watch and shout "Burn him!" when the effigy groans and asks for mercy. Fireworks announce the end of Gloom. Afterwards, spectators make their way to the plaza for the start of three days of dancing, street fairs, a grand ball, a parade, and a mass of thanksgiving. More... | |