Wikipedia:Main Page history/2014 July 31

The royal baccarat scandal was a British gambling scandal of the late 19th century involving the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII). In September 1890 he was invited to a house party at Tranby Croft, Yorkshire, the home of Arthur Wilson and his family. During Edward's stay, lieutenant colonel Sir William Gordon-Cumming (pictured) was accused of cheating at baccarat and pressured into signing a document that stated he would never play cards again, in exchange for the silence of the guests. The secret was not kept for long, and Gordon-Cumming demanded a retraction from the Wilson family, who he considered to blame for divulging the news. They refused and he sued for slander. The atmosphere at trial in June 1891 was described as being like a theatre. Edward was called as a witness, the first time the heir to the throne had been compelled to appear in court since 1411. Despite discrepancies in the evidence and a strong closing speech by Gordon-Cumming's barrister, the jury found against him after a summing-up from the judge that was described by some as biased. Gordon-Cumming was dismissed from the army and ostracised from society for life, though public opinion was on his side. (Full article...)

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• The Permanent Court of Arbitration orders Russia to repay US$50 billion to shareholders of the Yukos Oil Company for breaching the Energy Charter Treaty.
• Fuad Masum is elected President of Iraq by the Iraqi parliament.
• The Séléka and anti-balaka militias agree to a ceasefire in the Central African Republic civil war.
• Air Algérie Flight 5017 (aircraft pictured), en route from Ouagadougou to Algiers, crashes in Mali, killing all 116 people on board.
• TransAsia Airways Flight 222 crashes in the Penghu Islands of Taiwan, killing 48 people on board.
• Joko Widodo is elected President of Indonesia.

Ongoing:

Commonwealth Games –

Gaza conflict –

Ebola outbreak –

Ukrainian unrest

July 31: Ka Hae Hawai'i Day (Flag Day) in Hawaii

• 1201 – John Komnenos the Fat briefly seized the throne of the Byzantine Empire from Alexios III Angelos, but he was soon caught and executed.
• 1423 – Hundred Years' War: The English and their Burgundian allies were victorious over the French at the Battle of Cravant near Auxerre, France.
• 1948 – New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport was dedicated as New York International Airport.
• 1954 – A team of Italian climbers led by Ardito Desio became the first to reach the summit of K2 (pictured), the world's second-highest mountain.
• 2006 – Following intestinal surgery, Fidel Castro provisionally transferred the duties of the Cuban presidency to his brother Raúl.

More anniversaries: July 30 – July 31 – August 1

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Orchis mascula is a herbaceous plant of the orchid family. Found in much of Europe as well as the Middle East and northwest Africa, it blooms from April to June.

Photograph: Tuxyso