Wikipedia:Main Page history/2013 January 13

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From today's featured article
The New Forest pony is one of the recognised mountain and moorland or native pony breeds of the British Isles. Height varies from around 12 hands (48 inches, 122 cm) to 14.2 hands (58 inches, 147 cm). The ponies are valued for hardiness, strength, and surefootedness. The breed is indigenous to the New Forest in Hampshire in southern England, where equines have lived since before the last Ice Age. The New Forest pony can be ridden by children and adults, can be driven in harness, and competes successfully against larger horses in horse show competition. The population of ponies on the Forest has fluctuated in response to varying demand for youngstock. Numbers fell to fewer than six hundred in 1945 but have since risen steadily, and thousands now run loose in semi-feral conditions. The welfare of ponies grazing on the Forest is monitored by five Agisters, employees of the Verderers of the New Forest. The ponies are gathered annually in a series of drifts, to be checked for health, wormed, and tail-marked; each pony's tail is trimmed to the pattern of the Agister responsible for that pony. Many of the foals bred on the Forest are sold through the Beaulieu Road pony sales, which are held several times each year. (Full article...) Recently featured: Little Moreton Hall – Cracker Barrel – Metropolitan Railway Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that the frog Paedophryne swiftorum (pictured) was discovered by a student on a 2008 Cornell University expedition to Papua New Guinea? ... that because of the 1963 coup d'état the government of Togo was not invited to the conference which created the Organisation of African Unity? ... that soprano Rachel Nicholls, a performer of Wagner's Brünnhilde, sang in Bach's dialogue cantata Liebster Jesu, mein Verlangen (Dearest Jesus, my desire) "a clear Lutheran analogy to a love duet"? ... that The Sesame Street Dictionary contains around 1,300 illustrations of Muppets? ... that English cricketer Graham Gooch is the only centurion in Test cricket history to have been dismissed by handling the ball? ... that the 2012 film Django Unchained received eight award nominations from the St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association, the most of any film? ... that in Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit the prince of Hell is a rubber duck-loving rabbit? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
In the Central African Republic, the government signs a ceasefire agreement with rebels, ending a month of conflict and establishing a new coalition government. France commits troops to aid government forces in the current Northern Mali conflict. Sakine Cansız, one of the co-founders of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, and two other Kurdish activists are shot dead in Paris. More than 100 people are killed and 270 injured in several bomb blasts in Pakistan. In association football, Lionel Messi wins the FIFA Ballon d'Or. In ice hockey, the National Hockey League's owners reach an agreement with the National Hockey League Players' Association to end the 2012–13 NHL lockout. Recent deaths: Aaron Swartz Syrian civil war – Wikinews – More current events...
On this day...
January 13: St. Knut's Day in Finland and Sweden 1815 – War of 1812: British troops captured Fort Peter in St. Marys, Georgia, the only battle of the war to take place in the state. 1898 – The Paris newspaper L'Aurore published "J'accuse...!", an open letter by French writer Émile Zola (pictured) to Félix Faure, the President of the Republic, exposing the Dreyfus affair. 1915 – About 30,000 people in Avezzano, Italy—96% of its population—were killed when an earthquake struck the region. 1953 – An article published in Pravda accused some of the most prestigious physicians in the Soviet Union, mostly Jews, of taking part in a vast plot to poison members of the top Soviet political and military leadership. 1986 – The month-long South Yemen Civil War began in Aden between supporters of President Ali Nasir Muhammad and his predecessor Abdul Fattah Ismail, resulting in thousands of casualties. More anniversaries: January 12 – January 13 – January 14 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now January 13, 2013 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) is an endangered sea turtle found in tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The common name derives from the usually green fat found beneath its carapace.

Photo: Mbz1

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