In 1976 King Faisal of Saudi Arabia was assassinated by his nephew during a royal audience. Prince Musaed shot his uncle three times at point blank range for reasons unknown, as the king lent down to kiss him. King Faisal was rushed to hospital but, after doctors did all they could, he died of his injuries. Prince Musaed was tried and found guilty regicide. He was beheaded (which is the traditional method in Saudi Arabia, as per Islamic law) in the public square in Riyadh.
In 1957 the European Economic Community (EEC) was founded. France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and West Germany met in Rome to sign an economic treaty which founded the EEC. The EEC would begin in January of the following year and was a way for the European community to regain the economies lost from two World Wars. This ‘Common Market’ would later grow in members and become the European Union. The EEC became the European Union after the signing of the Maastricht Treaty which came into force on the 1st of November 1993. The continued economic growth of the European Community has made it the largest economy in the world (EU $17.3 trillion (2013 est.) US $16.72 trillion (2013 est.) based on the official exchange rates (source: CIA World Fact Book)). The official currency of the European Union, the Euro, is the world’s third strongest currency after the Kuwaiti Dinar (strongest) and the British Pound.
In1807 Britain’s ‘Abolition of the Slave Trade Act’ became law on this day in 1807 putting an end to the slave trade in Britain (but not Slavery itself). The law meant it was now illegal for any British subject to capture and transport slaves. It would not be until 1833 that the ownership of slaves would be made illegal throughout the British Empire. The Abolition of the Slave Trade Act was originally passed by the House of Commons in 1805 but was blocked by the House of Lords. It was after a campaign led by Lord Grenville and his associates that the House of Lords passed the bill in 1806. When the bill returned to the House of Commons again it was passed by a vote of 114 for and only 15 against.
In 1655 Dutch astronomer, Christiaan Huygens, discovers Saturn’s largest moon Titan. Huygens was the second astronomer to find a moon and the first to find one of Saturn’s. Galileo was the first astronomer to find a moon (other than our own) when he found four of Jupiter’s known as the Galilean moons. Titan is the second largest moon in our solar system (Jupiter’s Ganymede) and is so large by volume it is larger than the planet Mercury (but much less massive).
She was executed on the 8th of February 1587. A year later King Phillip of Spain also wanted a catholic on the throne and had amassed a naval fleet called the ‘Spanish Armada’ which he sent to defeat the English. Elizabeth was a great public speaker and addressed her people about the impending battle, ‘I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king - and of a King of England too’ she proclaimed. A fleet led by Sir Francis Drake defeated the Spanish Armada. Elizabeth never married and never gave birth to an heir. When she died on this day in 1603 the son of Mary Queen of Scots became King James VI of England, Ireland and Scotland uniting the realm.
