On this day in 1087, the first Norman King of England, William the Conqueror, also known as William the Bastard, William I of England, William II of Normandy and Duke of Normandy, died at age 59 at the Convent of St. Gervais in Rouen, Normandy. Born in 1027 or 1028 in Chateau de Falaise in Falaise, Normandy, France, the only son of Robert I, Duke of Normandy. Crowned William I on Christmas Day 1066 in Westminster Abbey. The descendant of Viking raiders, he had been Duke of Normandy since 1035 under the style William II. After a long struggle to establish his hold on Normandy, he launched the Norman conquest of England in 1066. The rest of his life was marked by struggles to consolidate his hold over England and his continental lands and by difficulties with his eldest son. William and his wife Matilda of Flanders had at least nine children.
The Final Footprint – Disorder followed William’s death; everyone who had been at his deathbed left the body at Rouen and hurried off to attend to their own affairs. Eventually, the clergy of Rouen arranged to have the body sent to Caen, where William had desired to be entombed in the foundation of the Abbaye-aux-Hommes. William’s grave is currently marked by a marble slab with a Latin inscription dating from the early 19th century. The tomb has been disturbed several times since 1087. The first time in 1522 when the grave was opened on orders from the papacy. The intact body was restored to the tomb at that time, but in 1562, during the French Wars of Religion, the grave was reopened and the bones scattered and lost, with the exception of one thigh bone. This lone relic was reburied in 1642 with a new marker, which was replaced 100 years later with a more elaborate monument. This tomb was again destroyed during the French Revolution, but was eventually replaced with the current marker. The impact on England of William’s conquest was profound; changes in the Church, aristocracy, culture, and language of the country have persisted into modern times. William is seen by some historians either as one of the creators of England’s greatness or as inflicting one of the greatest defeats in English history. Others have viewed William as an enemy of the English constitution, or alternatively as its creator.
#RIP #OTD in 1898 major French symbolist poet, several revolutionary artistic schools of the early 20th century, such as Cubism, Futurism, Dadaism, and Surrealism, Stéphane Mallarmé died Vulaines-sur-Seine, France aged 56.
On this day in 1901, painter, printmaker, draughtsman and illustrator Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec died, most likely, from complications of alcoholism and syphilis at his family’s estate, Chateau Malromé, in Saint-André-du-Bois, Gironde, France, at the age of 36. Born Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa at the Hotel du Bosc in Albi, Tarn in the Midi-Pyrénées region of France, on 24 November 1864. His immersion in the colourful life of Paris in the late 1800s inspired a collection of exciting, elegant and provocative images of the modern and sometimes decadent life of those times. In my opinion, Toulouse-Lautrec is among the most well-known painters of the Post-Impressionist period. He never married.
The Final Footprint – Toulouse-Lautrec’s last words reportedly were: “Le vieux con!” (perhaps translated as “The old fool!”). Apparently, his goodbye to his father. Another version has him saying; “I knew, papa, that you wouldn’t miss the death.” (“Je savais, papa, que vous ne manqueriez pas l’hallali”). “Hallali” being a term used by huntsmen for the moment the hounds kill their prey. Toulouse-Lautrec is entombed in Verdelais, Gironde.
Paintings Gallery
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Portrait of Vincent van Gogh (1887), Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
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Equestrienne (At the Circus Fernando) (1888)
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The Laundress (1889)
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Ball at the Moulin de la Galette (1889)
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Portrait of Gabrielle (1891)
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La Goulue arriving at the Moulin Rouge (1892)
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At the Moulin Rouge: Two Women Waltzing (1892)
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Quadrille at the Moulin Rouge (1892)
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Woman with a Black Feather Boa (c. 1892)
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Jane Avril (1892)
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Jane Avril Dancing (1892)
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In Bed (1893)
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The Medical Inspection at the Rue des Moulins Brothel (1894)
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The clownesse Cha-U-Kao at the Moulin Rouge (1895)
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Le Coucher (1899)
Posters
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Moulin Rouge: La Goulue (1891)
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Aristide Bruant in his cabaret (1892)
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Ambassadeurs – Aristide Bruant (1892)
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Reine de Joie (1892)
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Divan Japonais (1892-1893)
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Avril (Jane Avril) (1893)
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The Photographer Sescau (1894)
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The German Babylon (1894)
On this day in 1997, actor, director, producer, and writer, Burgess Meredith died from complications of Alzheimer’s disease and melanoma, aged 89, at his Malibu home. Born Oliver Burgess Meredith on November 16, 1907 in Cleveland, Ohio. Active for more than six decades, Meredith, in my opinion, was one of the most accomplished actors of his generation. A lifetime member of the Actors Studio by invitation, he won several Emmys, was the first male actor to win the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor twice, and was nominated for two Academy Awards. He established himself as a leading man in Hollywood with critically acclaimed performances as George Milton in Of Mice and Men (1939), Ernie Pyle in The Story of G.I. Joe (1945), and the narrator of A Walk in the Sun (1945). Meredith was known later in his career for his appearances on The Twilight Zone and for portraying arch-villain The Penguin on the 1960s TV series Batman and boxing trainer Mickey Goldmill in the Rocky film series. For his performances in The Day of the Locust (1975) and Rocky (1976), he received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He later starred in the comedy Foul Play (1978) and the fantasy film Clash of the Titans (1981). He narrated numerous films and documentaries during his long career, including Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983).
Meredith was married four times. His first wife, Helen Derby Merrien Burgess, was the daughter of Harry L. Derby, president of the American Cyanamid and Chemical Corporation; she took her life after their divorce. His next two wives were actresses, Margaret Perry and Paulette Goddard. Goddard had a miscarriage in 1944. His last marriage, to Kaja Sundsten, lasted 46 years.
The Final Footprint
Burgess was cremated.
#RIP #OTD in 2003 theoretical physicist, Manhattan Project member, known colloquially as “the father of the hydrogen bomb” and one of the creators of the Teller–Ulam design, Edward Teller died in Stanford, California aged 95.
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