Friday, September 4, 2020

Wikipedia article of the day for September 5, 2020

The Wikipedia article of the day for September 5, 2020 is Battle of the Bagradas River (255 BC).
The Battle of the Bagradas River was a victory by a Carthaginian army led by Xanthippus over a Roman army led by Marcus Atilius Regulus in early 255 BC, nine years into the First Punic War. The previous year Roman forces had advanced on the city of Carthage in North Africa and defeated the Carthaginian army at the Battle of Adys. In despair, the Carthaginians sued for peace, but the proposed terms were so harsh they decided to fight on. They gave charge of their army to the Spartan mercenary general Xanthippus, who led 12,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry and 100 war elephants (statuette pictured) against the Romans' 15,000 infantry and 500 cavalry. The Romans had no effective answer to the elephants, their outnumbered cavalry were chased from the field, and most of their infantry were surrounded and wiped out. The Romans subsequently evacuated Africa. The war ended in 241 BC with a Roman victory; the terms agreed were more generous than those proposed 14 years earlier.

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Thursday, September 3, 2020

Wikipedia article of the day for September 4, 2020

The Wikipedia article of the day for September 4, 2020 is Ismail I of Granada.
Ismail I (1279–1325) was the fifth Nasrid ruler of the Emirate of Granada (map pictured) on the Iberian Peninsula, from 1314 to 1325. He claimed the throne during the reign of his uncle, Sultan Nasr, after a rebellion started by his father Abu Said Faraj. Ismail was proclaimed sultan in February 1314. He spent the early years of his reign fighting Nasr, who attempted to regain the throne after enlisting the help of Castile. The war reached its climax in the Battle of the Vega in 1319, a complete victory for Ismail's forces over Castile. The deaths in the battle of Infante Peter and Infante John, the two regents for the infant King Alfonso XI, left Castile leaderless. Ismail followed up his victory with the capture of castles on the Castilian border in 1324 and 1325. He was murdered by his relative Muhammad ibn Ismail. Historians characterise Ismail as an effective ruler who improved the emirate's position with military victories.

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