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Map of the Iberian Peninsula in the 14th century

Nasr (1287–1322) was the son of Muhammad II al-Faqih and the fourth Nasrid ruler of the Emirate of Granada on the Iberian Peninsula. When he ascended the throne on 14 March 1309 after his brother Muhammad III was dethroned in a palace revolution, Granada faced a three-front war against Castile, Aragon and the Marinid Sultanate (map pictured). He made peace with all three over the following year with minimal losses. Despite this, Nasr was unpopular at court due to his excessive concentration on science and astronomy, and his perceived pro-Christian sympathies. A rebellion started by his brother-in-law Abu Said Faraj and nephew Ismail ended in Nasr's abdication in 1314 in favour of Ismail, now Ismail I. He was allowed to rule the eastern province of Guadix, and attempted – fruitlessly – to regain the throne with help from Castile. Nasr died without an heir in 1322. (Full article...)

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On this day

March 14: Mothering Sunday (Western Christianity, 2021); New Year's Day (Sikhism); White Day in parts of East Asia; Pi Day

John Byng

1593 – Japanese invasions of Korea: A force of 3,000 Korean soldiers successfully defended Haengju Fortress against 30,000 Japanese invaders.
1757 – Royal Navy Admiral John Byng (pictured) was executed by firing squad for failing to "do his utmost" during the Battle of Minorca at the start of the Seven Years' War.
1931 – Alam Ara, the first Indian sound film, premiered at the Majestic Cinema in Bombay.
1972 – Italian publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, known for his translation of Boris Pasternak's novel Doctor Zhivago after it had been smuggled out of the Soviet Union, died in a mysterious explosion.
1988 – China defeated Vietnam in a naval battle as the former attempted to establish oceanographic observation posts on the Spratly Islands.

John Sigismund Zápolya (d. 1571)
S. Truett Cathy (b. 1921)
Ieng Sary (d. 2013)

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Today's featured picture

Pope Pius VII (1742–1823) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 March 1800 to his death in 1823. In this 1819 portrait by Thomas Lawrence, he is shown seated on the papal throne, wearing a zucchetto on his head, a red mozzetta, a lace-trimmed rochet, a white cassock and red papal slippers. The painting is in the Royal Collection of the British royal family, and hangs in the Waterloo Chamber in Windsor Castle.

Painting credit: Thomas Lawrence

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