It turns out that the fall of Constantinople is not the only notable historic event with an anniversary today, for May 29 was also the birthday of G.K. Chesterton. I know this only on the authority of others, but, then again, so did he:
Bowing down in blind credulity, as is my custom, before mere authority and the tradition of the elders, superstitiously swallowing a story I could not test at the time by experiment or private judgment, I am firmly of opinion that I was born on the 29th of May, 1874, on Campden Hill, Kensington; and baptised according to the formularies of the Church of England in the little church of St. George opposite the large Waterworks Tower that dominated that ridge. I do not allege any significance in the relation of the two buildings; and I indignantly deny that the church was chosen because it needed the whole water-power of West London to turn me into a Christian.
– Autobiography (1936)
Over at the Chesterton and Friends blog they are having a Chesterton celebration, with one special post for every day between now and June 14, the date of Chesterton’s death. It looks excellent, and I’ll certainly be making regular visits over the next few weeks.
June 14, 2007 at 7:49 am
[...] on architecture June 14th, 2007 As I remarked a few weeks ago on the anniversary of Chesterton’s birth, today, June 14, is the anniversary [...]