Reginald II, King of Isle of Mann, Assassinated.

May 30th, 1249. Reginald II, son of Olave II, King of Man, was killed by Ivar, a knight, in a meadow south of the Church of the Holy Trinity in Rushen, and was buried in Mary?s Church (the Abbey), Rushen.

During the mid-thirteenth to early fifteenth centuries, Sovereignty passed frequently between Scotland and England, with occasional incursions from Ireland.

The culture of the Isle of Man is strongly influenced by its Celtic and Norse origins. It is currently enjoying a revival of the Gaelic Manx language (Gaelg). Although the last original native speaker died in 1974, small children are once again being brought up speaking Manx.

Isle of Mann lies in the Irish Sea, between England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, less than 60 miles west of the Lancashire coastline. It is 33 miles long, 13 miles wide and covers an area of 227 square miles. More than 40% of the Island is uninhabited. The Island is a unique self-governing kingdom - a Crown dependency which belongs to neither the UK nor the European Union. It has its own parliament (called Tynwald), laws, traditions, culture, cuisine and postage stamps.

The Three Legs of Man is the islands symbol of Independence. While there is much local argument about which way the legs run (officially it is clockwise), the symbols meaning is undisputed: Quocunque Jeceris Stabit - Whichever way you throw me I stand.