March 12 in History 538 – Vitiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving the city in the hands of the victorious Byzantine general, Belisarius. 1622 – Ignatius of Loyola and Francis Xavier, founders of the Society of Jesus, are canonized by the Roman Catholic Church. 1689 – James II of England landed at Kinsale,…
February 23 in History 303 – Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution. 532 – Byzantine emperor Justinian I orders the building of a new Orthodox Christian basilica in Constantinople – the Hagia Sophia. 1455 – Traditional date for the publication of the Gutenberg Bible, the first Western book printed…
February 16 in History 1249 – Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire. 1270 – Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battle of Karuse. 1630 – Dutch forces led by Hendrick Lonck capture Olinda in what was to become part of Dutch Brazil.…