Wikipedia:Main Page history/2011 May 19

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Today's featured article
Netley Abbey is a ruined medieval monastery in the village of Netley near Southampton in Hampshire, England. The abbey was founded in 1239 as a house for monks of the austere Cistercian order. Despite being a royal abbey, Netley was never rich, produced no influential scholars or churchmen, and its nearly 300-year history was quiet. The monks were best known to their neighbours for the generous hospitality they offered to travellers on land and sea. In 1536, the abbey was closed by Henry VIII of England during the Dissolution of the Monasteries and the building was converted into a mansion by William Paulet, a wealthy Tudor politician. The abbey was used as a country house until the beginning of the eighteenth century, after which it was abandoned and partially demolished for building materials. Subsequently the ruins became a tourist attraction, and provided inspiration to poets and artists of the romantic movement. In the early twentieth century the site was given to the nation, and it is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument, cared for by English Heritage. The extensive remains consist of the church, cloister buildings, abbot's house, and fragments of the post-Dissolution mansion. (more...) Recently featured: Taare Zameen Par – CSI effect – USS President Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest articles: ... that Federico Fernández Cavada (pictured), Commander-in-Chief of Cuban forces during the Ten Years' War, and his brother Adolfo, were both former Union Army officers and US Consuls? ... that Carex riparia, a Eurasian plant up to 130 cm (51 in) tall, is Britain's largest sedge? ... that the Argentine philologist María Rosa Lida de Malkiel was an Arthurian-Hispanist pioneer? ... that in March 2011, Ghana's National Disaster Management Organization announced it would set up five refugee camps for Ivorians fleeing post-election violence in their country? ... that English footballer Walter Anderson died of pneumonia four days after collapsing at Craven Cottage, having ignored doctors' advice to rest? ... that the Battle of Bautzen in 1945 was the bloodiest battle of the Polish Army since the Battle of Bzura in 1939? ... that serial killer Richard Laurence Marquette was the first person to be an eleventh name on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
The Eurozone financial leaders approve a €78-billion bailout package for Portugal, making it the third country, after Ireland and Greece, to receive a bailout in the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis. Space Shuttle Endeavour launches on its final mission, delivering the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (artist's rendering pictured) for installation on the International Space Station. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, former head of the International Monetary Fund, is held without bail in New York City on charges of sexual assault. At least 12 Arab protesters are killed during Nakba Day protests and marches on Israel's borders. Kenyan long-distance runner Samuel Wanjiru, who won the men's marathon at the 2008 Summer Olympics, dies at the age of 24. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
May 19: Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day in Turkey; Ho Chi Minh's birthday in Vietnam 1828 – Congress passed the largest tariff in United States history, which resulted in severe economic hardship in the American South. 1845 – Captain Sir John Franklin and his ill-fated Arctic expedition departed from Greenhithe, England; the entire 129-man complement would be lost. 1911 – Parks Canada, the world's first national park service, was established as the Dominion Parks Branch under the Department of the Interior. 1997 – The Sierra Gorda Biosphere, which encompasses the most ecologically diverse region in Mexico, was established as a result of grassroots efforts. 2010 – In Bangkok, the Thai military concluded a week-long crackdown (soldiers pictured) on widespread protests by forcing the surrender of opposition leaders. More anniversaries: May 18 – May 19 – May 20 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now May 19, 2011 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

An illustration explaining how antigenic shift in the influenza virus may have produced the H1N1 strain. Antigenic shift occurs when two or more different strains of one or more viruses combine to form a new subtype having a mixture of each original virus's surface antigens. The process may occur in any number of viruses, but influenza is the best-known example. Antigenic shift is a specific case of reassortment or viral shift that confers a phenotypic change, and should not be confused with antigenic drift, which is the natural mutation over time of known viral strains.

Image: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

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