The Christian Festival of Epiphany

871 Alfred defeated the Danes at the Battle of Ashdown.

1066 Harold was crowned King of England in succession to Edward the Confessor. Ten months later he died at the Battle of Hastings.

1412 St Joan of Arc, known as the Maid of Orleans, was born. She believed she had a divine mission to expel the English from France.

1540 Henry VIII married the "Flanders Mare, Anne of Cleves, his fourth wife.

1838 US inventor Samuel Morse gave the first demonstration of his electric telegraphic system.

1880 Tom Mix, US actor who made his name in early westerns, was born. He was one of the silent screen's most popular cowboys, appearing in more than 100 films before retiring in 1934.

1928 Four people drowned when the River Thames flooded parts of London.

1931 The new Sadler's Wells Theatre in London opened.

1945 The Battle of the Bulge ended.

1964 Pope Paul VI finished a three-day tour of the Holy Land, the first Pope to visit there since Christianity began.

1997 John Major's majority in the House of Commons ended as Conservative MP Sir John Gorst withdrew his support for the Government.

ON THIS DAY LAST YEAR: Home Secretary David Blunkett confirmed plans for a five-year minimum sentence for illegal possession and use of a firearm.