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Hector Waller (4 April 1900 – 1 March 1942) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy. Born in Benalla, Victoria, Waller entered the Royal Australian Naval College in 1913 and served in the First World War. He gained his first command in 1937, as captain of the destroyer HMS Brazen. In September 1939, he took command of HMAS Stuart and four other obsolete destroyers that together became known as the "Scrap Iron Flotilla". Waller was awarded the Distinguished Service Order and Bar, and twice mentioned in despatches, for his achievements in the Mediterranean. He then transferred to the South West Pacific as captain of the light cruiser HMAS Perth, and went down with his ship against heavy odds during the Battle of Sunda Strait in early 1942. He received a third mention in despatches posthumously, and in 2011 came under formal consideration for the award of the Victoria Cross for his performance as Perth's captain. The submarine HMAS Waller is named in his honour. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Contemporary depiction of the parade

... that after the 1871 German victory parade in Paris (pictured) 151 years ago today, the French symbolically scrubbed the streets on which the Germans had marched?
... that Santa Maria, California, radio station KSBQ is named for the style of barbecue that originated in that city?
... that a Cossack detachment led by Imperial Russian Lazar Bicherakhov joined forces with British general Lionel Dunsterville's expeditionary corps to prevent Ottoman advance?
... that the Lake Street Transfer was a double-decked transfer station accommodating two different elevated lines?
... that the College of William & Mary's Lake Matoaka is named for Pocahontas?
... that DBTel once took up 30 percent of the original equipment manufacturer market share for cordless phones in the United States?
... that the concept of hyperspace, primarily known through its use in science fiction, originated from and is still occasionally used in scholarly works?
... that before being restored as a Broadway theater, the Ritz Theatre was used as a television studio, pornographic theater, vaudeville house, children's theater, and poster warehouse?

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On this day

March 1: Disability Day of Mourning; Shrove Tuesday / Mardi Gras (Western Christianity, 2022); Independence Day in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992); Saint David's Day in Wales; Yap Day in Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia

Bison in Yellowstone

1562 – An attempt by Francis, Duke of Guise, to disperse a church service by Huguenots in Wassy, France, turned into a massacre, resulting in 50 dead, and starting the French Wars of Religion.
1872 – Yellowstone National Park (bison pictured), located mostly in the present-day U.S. state of Wyoming, was established as the world's first national park.
1944 – World War II: American and Australian troops won the Battle of Sio in New Guinea.
2008 – The Armenian military and national police attacked a crowd of people protesting the results of the recent election in Yerevan, leading to 10 deaths and over 100 arrests.

George Wishart (d. 1546)
Théophile Delcassé (b. 1852)
Robert Bork (b. 1927)

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Today's featured picture

Blackness Castle is a fortress located on the south shore of the Firth of Forth near Blackness, Scotland. Built by Sir George Crichton in the 1440s, the castle passed to King James II of Scotland in 1453. During its more than 500 years as Crown property, the castle has served as a prison, artillery fortification, and ammunition depot. The castle is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument, in the care of Historic Environment Scotland.

Photograph credit: Andrew Shiva

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