On This Day in History

• British longbowmen under Henry V defeat French knights at the Battle of Agincourt (1415)
• George III ascends to the British throne (1760)
• War of 1812: the USS United States under the command of Stephen Decatur captures HMS Macedonian (1812)
• Charge of the Light Brigade: In a miscommunication during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War, a sabre-armed cavalry unit is ordered to assault a Russian artillery battery, and is repulsed after heavy casualties (1854)
• Traditional (Julian) date of the Вели́кая Октя́брьская социалисти́ческая револю́ция (Great October Socialist Revolution), which results in a Bolshevik victory and the creation of Soviet Russia (1917 — Gregorian date is November 7)
• The forged Zinoviev Letter, allegedly ordering increasing Communist agitation in Great Britain, is published in the British press, helping to trigger a Conservative landslide in the general election four days later (1924)
• The Archbishop of Dubuque (Iowa) denounces swing music as a “primrose path to hell” (1938)
• Benjamin O. Davis Sr. becomes the first African-American general in the US Army (1940)
• The 中華民國 (Republic of China) takes control of 臺灣 (Taiwan) from the Japanese at the end of World War II (1945)
• Nelson Mandela is sentenced to five years in prison, which turns into 18 (1962)
• The United Nations replaces 中華民國 (Republic of China) with the 中华人民共和国 (People’s Republic of China) in the General Assembly and on the Security Council (1971)
• The United States and allies in the Caribbean invade Grenada in Operation Urgent Fury (1983)

Birthdays

• Thomas B. Macaulay, poet (1800)
• Johann Strauss II, waltz king (1825)
• Georges Bizet, composer (1838)
• John Francis Dodge, carmaker (1864)
• Pablo Picasso, painter and sculptor (1881)
• Leo G. Carroll, actor (1886)
• Richard E. Byrd, explorer (1888)
• Able Gance, director (1889)
• Smoky Joe Wood, baseball player (1889)
• Father Charles Coughlin, radio priest (1891)
• Henry Steel Commager, historian (1902)
• Eddie Lang, jazz guitarist (1902)
• Minnie Pearl, comedienne (1912)
• Jack Kent Cooke, sports team owner (1912)
• Klaus Barbie, SS officer known as the “Butcher of Lyon” (1913)
• John Berryman, poet (1914)
• Bobby Thompson, baseball player who hit the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” (1923)
• Billy Barty, actor (1924)
• Earl Palmer, R&B drummer (1924)
• Clancy Lyall, US soldier featured in the book and miniseries Band of Brothers (1925)
• Jeanne Cooper, soap opera star (1928)
• Anthony Franciosa, actor (1928)
• Marion Ross, Happy Days mom (1928)
• Eugene Gordon Lee, “Porky” in Our Gang (Little Rascals) (1933)
• Rusty Schweickart, astronaut (1935)
• Bob Knight, basketball coach (1940)
• Helen Reddy, singer (1941)
• Anne Tyler, author (1941)
• James Carville, political consultant (1944)
• Dave Cowens, basketball coach (1948)
• Nancy Cartwright, voice of Bart Simpson (1957)
• Tracy Nelson, actress (1963)
• Michael Boatman, actor (1964)
• Chely Wright, country singer (1970)
• Katy Perry, singer-songwriter (1984)

Deaths

• Geoffrey Chaucer, poet (1400)
• George II, British monarch (1760)
• Frank Norris, novelist (1902)
• Willie Anderson, golfer (1910)
• Bat Masterson, sheriff (1921)
• Lord Dunsany, fantasy writer (1957)
• Cleo Moore, actress and pin-up girl (1973)
• Virgil Fox, organist (1980)
• Forrest Tucker, actor (1986)
• Mary McCarthy, author (1989)
• Bill Graham, rock impressario (1991)
• Roger Miller, singer-songwriter (1992)
• Vincent Price, actor (1993)
• Mildred Natwick, actress (1994)
• Bobby Riggs, tennis player (1995)
• Viveca Lindfors, actress (1995)
• Payne Stewart, golfer (1999)
• Richard Harris, actor and singer (2002)
• Paul Wellstone, politician (2002)
• Jacques Barzun, historian and author (2012)

Holidays

• Armed Forces Day (Romania)
• Cartoonists Against Crime Day (US)
• Constitution Day (Lithuania)
• Day of the Basque Country (Basque Country)
• Gospel Day (Cook Islands)
• Make a Difference Day (US)
• Republic Day (Kazakhstan)
• Retrocession Day (Taiwan)
• St. Crispin’s Day (Christianity)
• Thanksgiving Day (Grenada)
• Ugly Pickup Truck Day (Chadron, Nebraska)
• World Pasta Day (International)

Painting: The Charge of the Light Brigade, by Caton Woodville

October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years). There are 67 days remaining until the end of the year.