On This Day ... in 1174 & Others
The Battle of Alnwick marked a failed attempt by King William the Lion of Scotland to invade England to support barons rebelling against Henry II. William was captured and forced to recognise Henry as his liege lord.
1857: Private Shaw won the Victoria Cross during an Indian Mutiny skirmish for a hand-to-hand struggle with a rebel, whom he eventually killed, despite suffering a severe sword wound himself.
1941: A sharp action was fought at Jezzine in the Lebanon as Commonwealth and Free French troops moved against Vichy French forces.
1942: Heavy fighting raged around the "Knightsbridge" positions in the Western Desert near Gazala, as Rommel's Axis forces successfully counter-attacked following successive British assaults.
1944: The first V-1 jet-propelled flying bombs, or "doodlebugs", were fired by the Luftwaffe against London, although their impact was lessened thanks to a major air effort previously by the RAF and USAAF against launching sites as they were constructed along the French coast.
1945: Australian troops of the 9th Division liberated Brunei.
1982: British forces attacked Argentinean positions on Mount Tumbledown.