February 16

Australian History Saturday, February 16, 1793. :   The first free settlers arrive in New South Wales. The first European settlers in Australia were primarily convicts from England, along with the officers and marines who guarded them. The only free settlers aboard the First Fleet were an estimated 46 wives and children of the marines. For the first […]

February 29

Born on this day Wednesday, February 29, 1792. :   Italian composer, Rossini, is born. Gioacchino Antonio Rossini was born on 29 February 1792 in Pesaro, a small town on the Adriatic coast of Italy. Rossini’s parents were both musicians, as his father was town trumpeter (and inspector of slaughterhouses), and his mother was a talented singer. Rossini […]

February 28

Australian History Sunday, February 28, 1790. :   John Irving becomes the first convict to be freed in the New South Wales colony. John Irving, sometimes written as Irwin or Irvine, was born around 1760, exact date unknown. He came to the penal colony of New South Wales with the First Fleet, after being sentenced in 1784 to […]

February 14

Australian Explorers Sunday, February 14, 1779. :   Captain James Cook is killed by natives in Hawaii. James Cook was born at Marton in North Yorkshire, on 27 October 1728. At age 17 he was taken on as a merchant navy apprentice. Here he was educated in algebra, trigonometry, navigation, and astronomy, which later set Cook up to […]

February 13

Born on this day Wednesday, February 13, 1743. :   Sir Joseph Banks, British naturalist and botanist on Cook’s first voyage, is born. Joseph Banks was born on 13 February 1743 in London, England. He developed his passion for botany whilst studying at Oxford University. After establishing his name through scientific publication, he was appointed to a joint […]

February 23

Born on this day Friday, February 23, 1685. :   The great Baroque composer, Georg Händel, is born. Georg Friedrich Händel was born on 23 February 1685, in Halle, Saxony. Already skilled on the harpsichord and organ at age 7, he began composing music when he was 9. His father wanted him to study law, but Händel abandoned […]

February 15

Born on this day Saturday, February 15, 1564. :   Italian scientist and astronomer Galileo Galilei is born. Galileo Galilei was an Italian astrologer, physicist and astronomer. He was born on 15 February 1564 in Pisa, Italy. He is best known for his improvements to the telescope, and his own subsequent celestial observations. He pioneered the use of […]

February 07

Born on this day Thursday, February 7, 1478. :   Sir Thomas More, the man executed after refusing to recognise King Henry VIII as Supreme Head of the Church in England, is born. Sir Thomas More, scholar, lawyer, diplomat and Christian humanist, was born in London on 7 February 1478. More initially served as personal secretary to King […]

February 27

Born on this day Tuesday, February 27, 0272. :   Constantine I, first Christian Emperor of Rome, is born. Gaius Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus was born on 27 February 272 at Naissus, today Niš, in Upper Moesia. His father was Greek general Constantius I Chlorus. Constantine served at the court of Diocletian in Nicomedia, after the appointment of […]