After Napoleon was exiled to Elba in April 1814, Louis XVIII returned to Paris and became king.
Louis fled France during the Revolution and, when Louis XVII (his nephew) was guillotined, Louis proclaimed himself to be the ‘King in Exile’.
While in exile, Louis actually wrote to Napoleon to ask him to restore the monarchy. Napoleon replied: ‘You must not expect to return to France. It would mean marching over a hundred thousand corpses.’
Here’s a newspaper article from May 1814 that reports on the restoration of the Bourbons.
York Herald – Saturday 21 May 1814
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000498/18140521/013/0004
On the 2nd and 3rd of May 1923, John Arthur MacReady and Oakley G. Kelly flew non-stop from New York to San Diego in California, thus becoming the first people to fly across the USA without stopping en route.
In the 27-hour flight, they covered 2,800 miles at an average speed of just over 100 mph.
To mark their historic achievement, here are two newspaper reports about their pioneering flight.
Aberdeen Journal – Saturday 05 May 1923
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000577/19230505/097/0007
Tamworth Herald – Saturday 12 May 1923
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000484/19230512/013/0002
The inauguration speech given to both Houses in Congress by George Washington on 30 April 1789
On the balcony of Federal Hall in New York City on 30 April 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States.
Congress had voted to pay Washington $25,000 a year to be the president, but he initially declined a salary as he believed in the idea of selfless public servants.
However, he did eventually accept the wage, as Congress did not wish to create the idea that only wealthy people could become predient.
To mark this historic day, here is the speech that Washington made to the Senate and the House of Representatives on 30 April 1789.
Chester Chronicle – Friday 26 June 1789
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000341/17890626/008/0004
Alfred Hitchcock, ‘The Master of Suspense’, died in Bel Air, California, on 29 April 1980.
As Hitchcock was born in Leytonstone and lived in London till 1939, the Archive contains scores of stories about his life in the UK – indeed, it’s very interesting to follow his life and career via newspaper reports contained in the BNA.
Included below are two reports from the 1920s that offer a snapshot of Hitchcock’s life as a film director when he lived in England.
Western Morning News – Saturday 29 May 1926
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000329/19260529/024/0006
Hull Daily Mail – Tuesday 14 May 1929
Image © Northcliffe Media Limited. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000324/19290514/018/0004
On 28 April 1789, Fletcher Christian and his mutineers seized control of Captain William Bligh’s ship, HMS Bounty.
We found this fascinating account of the mutiny in ‘The Oxford Journal’ of 20 March 1790, and thought we’d post this historic newspaper report on the blog.
Oxford Journal – Saturday 20 March 1790
Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000073/17900320/006/0002
