{"id":17619,"date":"2022-09-03T09:00:56","date_gmt":"2022-09-03T07:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=215063"},"modified":"2022-09-06T17:11:22","modified_gmt":"2022-09-06T15:11:22","slug":"3-september-on-this-day-in-history","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/3-september-on-this-day-in-history\/","title":{"rendered":"3 September: On this day in history"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Elinor Evans\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 03 September 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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3 September AD 301<\/h3>\n

After escaping from persecution for his faith, the former stonemason Marinus establishes a Christian hermitage on the summit of Mount\u00a0Titano\u00a0\u2013 the foundation of the future republic of San Marino.<\/p>\n

3 September 863<\/h3>\n

In Paphlagonia, in the north of present-day Turkey, the Byzantine emperor\u2019s uncle Petronas smashes a raiding Arab army under the emir Umar al-Aqta.<\/p>\n

3 September 1651<\/h3>\n

In the last major battle of the Civil Wars, Oliver Cromwell destroyed Charles II\u2019s largely Scottish royalist army at the battle of Worcester. Most of the 13,000 royalist troops were killed or taken prisoner but Charles himself avoided capture. \u201cA crowning mercy\u201d cemented Cromwell\u2019s position as the dominant military and political figure in republican England and contributed to his appointment as lord protector following the expulsion of the Rump Parliament in 1653.<\/p>\n

3 September 1658<\/h3>\n

After the death of his father Oliver, Richard Cromwell becomes lord protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland.<\/p>\n

3 September 1812<\/h3>\n

The Pigeon Roost Massacre. A Native American war party made a surprise attack on Pigeon Roost village, Indiana.\u00a0Twenty four\u00a0settlers, including 15 children, were killed.<\/p>\n

3 September 1878: Tragedy unfolds on the Thames<\/h3>\n

Hundreds are killed as a paddle steamer sinks<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

On the evening of 3 September 1878, a paddle steamer ploughed back up the Thames from Sheerness to London. It had been a lovely warm day, and the Princess Alice was packed with families who had enjoyed a day out at the seaside. On the main deck, a band was playing. But with so many children sleepy, many parents had chosen to take them inside \u2013 a decision that would have terrible consequences.<\/p>\n

Some time\u00a0around 7.30pm, as the ship entered\u00a0Gallions\u00a0Reach, its captain suddenly realised that they were on a collision course with a much larger ship coming the other way, the collier Bywell Castle. The captain yelled out: \u201cWhere are you coming to! Good God! Where are you coming to?\u201d \u2013 but it was already too late. With an enormous crunch, the Bywell Castle ploughed through the side of the paddle steamer, effectively slicing it into two. Within just five minutes, it had sunk beneath the waves.<\/p>\n

Even by London\u2019s standards, the stretch of the Thames where the Princess Alice sank was especially foul, with so much sewage that boatmen gagged as they passed through. Now, hundreds of men, women and children floundered desperately in the fetid waters, weighed down by their clothes. Aboard the Bywell Castle, crewmen tried to throw them ropes, lifebuoys, even chicken coops to cling on to. But it was no good. It was a horrific scene.<\/p>\n

After 10 minutes, the screams died down. The disaster was over, and perhaps 640 people were dead.<\/p>\n

Browse more\u00a0On this day in history<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n