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Annus horribilis is a Latin phrase meaning 'horrible year'. It is a pun on annus mirabilis meaning 'year of wonders'. It has been suggested that History of the Latin language be merged into this article or section. ...
A pun (also known as paronomasia) is a figure of speech which consists of a deliberate confusion of similar words or phrases for rhetorical effect, whether humorous or serious. ...
This page lists direct English translations of common Latin phrases, such as veni vidi vici and et cetera. ...
The Year of Wonders (1666)
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first known written usage of the latin phrase "Annus Mirabilis" is as the title of a poem composed by English poet John Dryden about the events of 1666 C.E. The phrase "annus mirabilis" translates as "wonderful year" or "year of miracles". In fact, the year was beset by great calamity for England (including the Great Fire of London), but Dryden chose to interpret the absence of greater disaster as miraculous intervention by God. The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP). ...
Annus Mirabilis is a poem written by John Dryden and published in 1667. ...
John Dryden John Dryden (August 9, 1631 – May 12, 1700) was an influential English poet, literary critic, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known as the Age of Dryden. ...
Events September 2 - Great Fire of London: A large fire breaks out in London in the house of Charles IIs baker on Pudding Lane near London Bridge. ...
Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the United Kingdom (light green), with the Republic of Ireland (blue) to its west Languages None official English de facto Capital None official London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked...
London, as it appeared from Bankside, Southwark, During the Great Fire — Derived from a Print of the Period by Visscher The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the City of London from September 2 to September 5, 1666, and resulted more or less in the...
Queen Elizabeth II Although cited by the OED as being in use as early as 1985, Queen Elizabeth II, in a speech to the Guildhall on 24 November 1992, to mark the 40th anniversary of her Accession referred to the closing year as an "annus horribilis", presumably in allusion to Dryden's poem: The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP). ...
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor) (born 21 April 1926) is Queen of sixteen independent nations known as the Commonwealth Realms. ...
1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ...
- "1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure. In the words of one of my more sympathetic correspondents, it has turned out to be an Annus Horribilis."
Her most immediate reference was to a fire in Windsor Castle just four days before, (20 November 1992) but this occurred after the publicity of several negative events damaged the reputation of the Royal Family: In March of that year, it was announced that the Queen's second son, the Duke of York, would separate from his wife Sarah. Later in the year, scandalous pictures of a topless Sarah being kissed by her friend, John Bryan, were published in the tabloids. In April, the Queen's daughter, the Princess Royal, divorced her husband Captain Mark Philips. Still another painful event occurred in November when one of the Queen's homes, Windsor Castle, caught fire. The Castle was seriously damaged, and several priceless artifacts were lost. Originally, it was planned that the Government would pay the forty million pound bill for repairs, but there was much public outcry against having the Government pay. Later, the Queen agreed to open up several royal residences to tourists, and used the funds raised thereby to pay for the repairs. Finally, in December, the Royal Family faced further difficulties when the separation of the Prince of Wales and his wife Diana was announced. The Queen's 'sympathetic correspondent' was later revealed to be her former Assistant Private Secretary, Sir Edward Ford. Windsor Castle: The Round Tower or keep dominating the castle, as seen from the River Thames. ...
Members of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony The British Royal Family is a group of people closely related to the British monarch. ...
The Duke of York The Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward Mountbatten-Windsor), styled HRH The Duke of York, (born February 19, 1960), is a member of the British Royal Family, the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II. He has held the title of...
Sarah, Duchess of York (born 15 October 1959) is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York. ...
Princess Anne visits the USNS Comfort on July 11, 2002 while the ship was docked in Southampton, England The Princess Anne, Princess Royal, (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise Laurence, formerly Phillips, née Windsor, later Mountbatten-Windsor, (born August 15, 1950)), is a member of the British Royal Family and the...
Mark Antony Peter Phillips (born September 22, 1948), former Olympic gold-medal-winning horseman, was the first husband of Anne, Princess Royal. ...
Windsor Castle: The Round Tower or keep dominating the castle, as seen from the River Thames. ...
The Prince of Wales The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (Charles Philip Arthur George Mountbatten-Windsor) (born 14 November 1948), is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ...
The Lady Diana Frances Spencer (Diana Frances Mountbatten-Windsor, née Spencer) (July 1, 1961–August 31, 1997) was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. ...
Sir Edward Ford,GCVO, KCB, ERD, DL. (b 24 July 1910). ...
Anti Monarchist Crusties the Pop Will Eat Itself released a track called "Familius Horribilis" several years later lampooning the royals over a sample borrowed from Black Sabbath's "Sweet Leaf."
Kofi Annan Kofi Annan used the phrase in his speech on 21st December 2004. "There's no doubt that this has been a particularly difficult year, and I am relieved that this annus horribilis is coming to an end," he said. His remarks were widely interpreted (see for instance [1] from the Associated Press) to have been regarding allegations of corruption in the UN's Iraq Oil-for-Food programme. Kofi Atta Annan (born April 8, 1938) is a Ghanaian diplomat and the seventh and current Secretary-General of the United Nations. ...
In a hugely unfortunate twist of irony, it was in fact during the remaining ten days of 2004 when the year truly did become an annus horribilis; the Indian Ocean tsunami struck on December 26, cancelling out over 100,000 lives. Animation of the tsunami caused by the earthquake (see also the full-length version) From NOAA/PMEL. The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake, was an undersea earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC (07:58:53 local time) on December...
December 26 is the 360th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, 361st in leap years. ...
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