Until 1976, what were London taxis required by law to have in their cab at all times?
Answer: A bale of hay. Harking back to the era of horse drawn-carriages, the London Hackney Carriage Act 1831 stipulated that such a bale was to be kept in the boot to feed the horses. The clause was only removed 145 years later.
Source: The Strange Laws of Old England by Nigel Cawthorne
1841 – William Henry Harrison dies of pneumonia, becoming the first US President to die in office and setting the record for the briefest administration.
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A short, sharp hit of history in video format. Acclaimed Irish playwright and novelist Oscar Wilde was the toast of London society in the 1890s until things came decidedly unstuck through an association with a young British aristocrat, Lord Alfred Douglas, known as ‘Bosie’.
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Last week’s answer:
Thomas Pinckney (1750-1828)
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“The magnitude of our city draws the produce of the world into our harbour, so that to the Athenian the fruits of other’s countries are as familiar a luxury as those of his own.”
Thucydides (460-395 BCE), Greek historian, on the ancient city of Athens.
Byzantine emperor. The Byzantine (East Roman) Empire was in a state of collapse when Heraclius became emperor in 610. He built up the military and in six years defeated many of his enemies, including the Persians, who had almost captured Byzantine. In the 630s he was unable to stop new invaders, the Arabs.
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