Australians Battling Nazis in African Desert

23 October 1942 marks the start of the 13-day long, decisive 2nd Battle of El Alamein (Northwestern Egypt), in which Allied Forces under the command of General Montgomery and including the 9th Australian Division drove back the Axis Powers under "Desert Fox" Erwin Rommel. The resounding victory was a turning point in the WW II North Africa campaign, allowing the Allies to take control of the Suez Canal and the Middle Eastern and Persian oil fields.

The "El Alamein Fountain" in Sydney's Kings Cross commemorates Australian participation in the North African campaign in general and the two battles of El Alamein in particular and is the neighbourhood's main landmark and meeting place.

Earlier in Australia, NSW Surveyor-General John Oxley sailed North from Sydney on this day in 1823 in order to find a suitable settlement for continously re-offending convicts. He finally found a spot by a river which he named in honour of the NSW Governor of the time Brisbane River.

Elsewhere in the world, this day marks the first appearance of The Smurfs (1953), the number one UK Chart Hit "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me" by Culture Club (1982) and the first release of Apple's iPod (2001).

German explorer Ludwig Leichhardt, after whom the suburb of Leichhardt in Sydney's Inner West is named, was born in Trebatsch/Prussia, now Brandenburg (1813). Other birthday boys and girls include Isabella of Portugal, Holy Roman Empress, Queen of Germany, Spain, Naples and Sicily, Duchess of Burgundy and spouse of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (Lisbon/Portugal, 1503), Pyotr Alekseyevich Romanov, who became Russian Tsar Peter II at age 11 and then died only 3 years later (St. Petersburg/Russia, 1715), Brazilian football idol Edison Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pele, (Três Corações, 1940), as well as Metallica's bassist Robert Trujillo (Santa Monica/California, 1964). Fashion designer Christian Dior died on this day in Montecatini Terme/Italy (1957).

23 October is furthermore the Feast Day of Saint Severin, 3rd bishop of Cologne in the latter half of the 4th century and patron saint against bad luck and drought!