Eleanor takes over

On August 3, 1189, Richard Lionheart landed at Portsmouth, England to claim the crown that was his upon his father’s death on July 6th. He’d been in no hurry to sail for England since he knew his new kingdom was in very capable hands, those of his mother Eleanor. The 12th century Annals of Roger de Hoveden described her activities upon regaining her freedom: “Queen Eleanor, the mother of the before-named duke, moved her royal court from city to city, and from castle to castle, just as she thought proper; and sending messengers throughout all the counties of England, ordered that all captives should be liberated from prison and confine-ment, for the good of the soul of Henry, her lord, inasmuch as , in her own person, she had learnt by experience that confinement is distasteful to mankind, and that it is a most delightful refreshment to the spirits to be liberated therefrom.” Making a royal progress, she issued edicts establishing uniform weights and measures, eliminated restrictions Henry had imposed upon monasteries, demanded oaths of fealty to her son (and to her!), and even found time to establish a hospital for the poor. As I have Richard tease her in Devil’s Brood, “I assume that upon the seventh day, you rested?”
Jumping ahead several centuries, on August 3, 1460, King James II of Scotland was killed while besieging Roxburgh Castle. James was enthusiastic about the potential of artillery, and he died when a cannon he’d imported from Flanders exploded as it was being loaded. He was only thirty and had been a successful and popular king, so it is interesting to speculate how Scottish history might have been changed had he not been so hands-on with this new technology.
As an American, I have to mention that on August 3, 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed from Spain for the New World.
And on August 3, 1553, Mary Tudor was welcomed warmly into London by the citizens. It is rather sad to consider the initial enthusiasm for her queenship in light of how badly it ended. She would be crowned in October, thus achieving what had been denied the Empress Maude, who was chased out of London before her own coronation.