John Newton's "Old Style" Birthday

"I was born in London the 24th of July, 1725, old style."

John Newton was born 289 years ago today. Well not really. As we see, John Newton refers to July 24th as his birthday dated in the "old style".

What is the "Old Style"? The old style refers to the Julian calendar, which was the system used at the time of Newton's birth. However Britain implemented the Gregorian calendar in 1752. To adjust for this new calendar 11 days were essentially removed in September. From 1752 on, Newton always considered his birthday to be August 4th.

But even though today is not technically Newton's real birthday, don't let that stop you from celebrating! I say we start partying today and finish up on August 4th.