Wikipedia:Main Page history/2014 May 31

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Jane Joseph (1894–1929) was an English composer, arranger and teacher of music, whose potential was noticed by the composer Gustav Holst when he taught her composition at St Paul's Girls' School. She acted as his amanuensis from 1914, when he was composing The Planets, and thereafter assisted him with transcriptions, arrangements and translations, and with the organisation of music festivals. Many of her works were composed for performance at these festivals, but most were not published and have been lost. Two early short orchestral pieces were published and critically praised, and two of her choral works were admired in her day but have rarely been performed since. Her carol "A Little Childe There is Ibore" was thought by Holst to be among the best of its kind. A respected teacher of music, one of her pupils was Holst's daughter Imogen. Joseph was also an active member of the Society of Women Musicians. Her early, unexpected death was judged by her contemporaries as a considerable loss to English music. As of 2014 there are no commercial recordings of her music, but there have been occasional broadcast performances. (Full article...)

Recently featured: Derfflinger-class battlecruiser – Sawtooth National Forest – Roy Dowling

Archive – By email – More featured articles...

Did you know...

From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

... that the Gothic Revival mansion Spring Hall, Halifax (pictured) has been a boarding house, a ballet studio, a hospital and a register office?
... that the roots of the cycad Macrozamia spiralis contain cyanobacteria, which assist their host by fixing nitrogen?
... that the fan-made Sonic the Hedgehog game Sonic: After the Sequel includes power-ups from the Kirby series?
... that Hungarian fencer Imre Gedővári won 10 national titles and 3 Olympic medals?
... that in 2003 Mourneview Park was removed as a potential Irish Cup semi-final ground because of fans rioting?
... that Meridian Dan has been a boxer, a waiter, a plasterer, an electrician, a steel erector, and a coded welder?
... that the selection shadow concept states that the effects of aging are the result of old age being non-adaptive?

Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news

Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is elected President of Egypt.
American author and civil rights activist Maya Angelou dies at the age of 86.
Petro Poroshenko (pictured) is elected President of Ukraine.
In motorsport, Ryan Hunter-Reay wins the Indianapolis 500.
In ice hockey, the World Championship concludes with Russia defeating Finland in the final.
The EU election concludes with the European People's Party group maintaining its plurality of seats in the European Parliament.
In badminton, Japan wins the Thomas Cup for the first time, while China wins the Uber Cup.

Ongoing: Ukrainian unrest – Balkan flooding
Recent deaths: Wojciech Jaruzelski

On this day...

May 31: World No Tobacco Day; Feast of the Visitation (Roman Catholicism and Anglicanism)

1279 BC – Ramesses II (statue pictured) became Pharaoh of Egypt.
1223 – Mongol invasions: Mongol forces defeated a combined army of Kiev, Galich, and the Cumans at the Kalchik River in present-day Ukraine.
1862 – American Civil War: Confederate forces under Joseph E. Johnston and G. W. Smith engaged Union forces under George B. McClellan at the Battle of Seven Pines outside Richmond, Virginia.
1941 – The United Kingdom completed its re-occupation of Iraq, returning 'Abd al-Ilah to power as regent for Faisal II.
2010 – During an attempt to break the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Navy engaged in armed conflict with the crew of the MV Mavi Marmara, resulting in nine civilian deaths.

More anniversaries: May 30 – May 31 – June 1

Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries

It is now May 31, 2014 (UTC) – Reload this page

Today's featured picture

The Australian white ibis (Threskiornis moluccus) is a wading bird of the ibis family, Threskiornithidae. Found in much of Australia, the species has become increasingly urban since the 1970s; this specimen was photographed in Perth.

Photograph: JJ Harrison

Recently featured: Map of Lorentz National Park – Gran Sabana – The Deserted House

Archive – More featured pictures...

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.