Interesting Facts

2nd June 455 – The Vandals entered Rome, and plundered the city for two weeks. 1692 – Bridget Bishop was the first person to go to trial in the Salem witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts. 1793 – Jean-Paul Marat recited the names of 29 people to the French National Convention. Almost all of these people were guillotined, followed by 17,000 more over the course of the next year during the Reign of Terror. 1924 – U.S. President Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act into law, granting citizenship to all Native Americans born within the territorial limits of the United States. 1946 – Italians voted to turn Italy from a monarchy into a Republic. After the referendum the king of Italy Umberto II di Savoia was exiled. 1953 - Queen Elizabeth II was crowned. 1966 - The United States landed a spacecraft on the Moon on its first try (four months behind the Soviet Union). 1985 - English clubs were banned from playing in Europe indefinitely, after the riot at Brussels...

21st April Queen Elizabeth turns 90. This is her "real" birthday. She was born at 2.40am on 21 April 1926 at 17 Bruton Street in Mayfair, London.   Happy Birthday

King Willem-Alexander has become the first Dutch male monarch in more than a century after his mother Beatrix abdicated today. He is the first Dutch king since Willem III died in 1890.

Chelmsford in England, Perth in Scotland and St Asaph in Wales are to gain 'city status' to mark this year's Diamond Jubilee (which marks The Queen's 60 years on the throne). (City status is rarely granted in the UK and only 14 new cities were created during the 20th century. In the last contest - held in 2002 for the Queen's Golden Jubilee - Preston, Newry, Lisburn and Newport were among the winners. In 2000, Brighton and Hove, Inverness and Wolverhampton were given the status to mark the new millennium. The unsuccessful towns which entered a contest to "win" city status were: Bolton, Bournemouth, Colchester, Coleraine, Corby, Craigavon, Croydon, Doncaster, Dorchester, Dudley, Dumfries, Gateshead, Goole, Luton, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Reading, Southend, St Austell, Stockport, Tower Hamlets and Wrexham.   Never mind guys, you can always try in another 60 years.)

There are currently 70 commissioned ships in the Royal Navy. (Of these only 40 are warships, and there are only 41 admirals (In 1805 there were 144 Admirals). That said, the 41 admirals will draw an estimated salary of £6.7 million. Which is probably why there are only 41 of them. Funnily enough, in 2011 the Queen conferred the title and office of Lord High Admiral to His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, on the occasion of his 90th birthday (I wonder if she wrapped it). Nice to see they are leading the way on delayed retirement though.)

When the Queen travels to Sandringham in Norfolk for her Christmas break, she travels by scheduled train. (Appropriately, the train starts at King’s Cross, and it takes the Queen all the way to King’s Lynn.)

A healthy queen bee can lay about 2,000 eggs a day during the spring. (This is more than her own bodyweight in eggs every day. Women always have to work hard.) Source - Wikipedia

The Queen has a Facebook page and a Twitter feed. (Yes, the British Monarchy have launched themselves onto the internet-based social networking site, and you will be able to find out what royal events are happening, but you won't be able to add The Queen as a "friend" or "poke" her.)

The Queen is the first British monarch to have celebrated a diamond wedding anniversary. (I think with the current state of affairs that record could stand for quite some time.)

The Royal Family cost British tax payers £36.7m last year, equivalent to 61p per taxpayer, figures show. (At least the Queen pays a bit back every year. But, I am soooo glad I pay my taxes in Germany.)