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Alexis Bachelot (1796–1837) was a Roman Catholic priest and first Prefect Apostolic of the Sandwich Islands who led the first permanent Catholic mission to the Kingdom of Hawaii. He arrived in Hawaii in 1827, expecting the approval of King Kamehameha II. He learned upon arrival that the king had died and that the new government was hostile towards Catholic missionaries. Bachelot converted and then quietly ministered to a small group of Hawaiians for four years before being deported on the orders of Kaʻahumanu, the Kuhina Nui of Hawaii. Bachelot traveled to California, where he served as an assistant minister. In 1837, having learned of Kaʻahumanu's death and King Kamehameha III's willingness to allow Catholic priests, Bachelot returned to Hawaii, but found that Kamehameha III had changed his mind. Bachelot was removed from the island and confined to a ship for several months. He was freed after the French and British navies imposed a blockade on Honolulu harbor. He later secured passage on a ship to Micronesia, but died en route. His treatment prompted the government of France to dispatch a frigate to Hawaii, an intervention that led to the emancipation of Catholics there. (Full article...)

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Did you know...

From Wikipedia's newest content:

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In the news

NASA announces the discovery of Kepler-37b, the smallest exoplanet detected to date.

Armed robbers steal US$50 million in diamonds from an aircraft at Brussels Airport in Belgium.

Serzh Sargsyan is re-elected President of Armenia.

The Women's Cricket World Cup concludes with Australia defeating the West Indies in the final.

Rafael Correa is re-elected President of Ecuador.

A bomb blast at a market in Hazara Town in Quetta, Pakistan, kills more than 80 people and injures 190 others.

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On this day...

February 22: Feast of Cathedra Petri (Catholicism)

1371 – Robert II (pictured) became King of Scots as the first monarch of the House of Stewart.

1819 – Under the terms of the Adams–Onís Treaty, Spain sold Florida and other North American territory to the United States for about US$5 million.

1958 – Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Syrian President Shukri al-Quwatli signed a union pact to form the United Arab Republic.

1995 – The photos taken by the Corona spy satellite program were declassified under an executive order signed by U.S. President Bill Clinton.

2011 – New Zealand suffered one of its worst peacetime disasters when a 6.5 M_L earthquake struck Christchurch.

More anniversaries: February 21 – February 22 – February 23

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It is now February 22, 2013 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

Sonia Sotomayor is an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court. She was nominated in 2009 by President Barack Obama to replace retiring Justice David Souter. Sotomayor is the first Hispanic and the third woman to be appointed to the Court.

Photograph: Steve Petteway

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