- 1055 Theodora crowned Empress of the Byzantine Empire
- 1158 Vladislav II of Bohemia becomes king
- 1378 Earliest record in Durham, England of 'Plough Monday', the first Monday after the Feast of Epiphany (Jan 6) when agricultural work could restart
- 1558 Westmunster Church in Middelburg destroyed by heavy storm
World’s First National State Lottery
1569 First recorded lottery in England is drawn in St Paul's Cathedral in London. First prize was £5,000, other prizes included silver plate, tapestries and high quality linen cloth.
Freedom of Religion
1571 Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II grants Austrian nobility freedom of religion
- 1599 Jacob van Neck's fleet leaves Bantam, Java in modern day Indonesia with 1 million pounds of pepper and cloves and a further half a ship full of nutmeg, mace and cinnamon
- 1693 Most powerful earthquake in Italian recorded history strikes Sicily and Southern Italy with an estimated magnitude of 7.4. Tsunamis followed and devastated coastal villages on the Ionian Sea and the Straits of Messina.
Theater Premiere
1709 Colley Cibber's play "Rival Fools" premieres in London
Messier Adds to Catalog
1774 French astronomer Charles Messier adds M51 (spiral galaxy in Canes Venatici) to his catalog
Titania and Oberon Discovered
1787 Titania and Oberon, moons of Uranus, discovered by William Herschel
Morse Code Demonstrated
1838 First public demonstration of telegraph messages sent using dots and dashes at Speedwell Ironworks in Morristown, New Jersey by Samuel Morse and Alfred Vail
- 1839 Earthquake at Martinique destroys half of Port Royal - 700 die
- 1861 Alabama secedes from the Union (US Civil War)
- 1861 Mexico City captured by Juarez (Lib) in War of Reform
- 1863 Naval engagement near Galveston between CSS Alabama and USS Hatteras
- 1863 Union forces capture Arkansas Post, or Ft Hindman, Arkansas
- 1864 Charing Cross Station opens in London
- 1865 Battle of Beverly, West Virginia, Confederate forces attack Union post
- 1866 Steamship London sinks in storm off Land's End, England and kills 220
- 1867 Benito Juárez becomes Mexican president again
- 1873 1st livestock market newspaper published, Drover's Journal, Chicago
Anglo-Zulu War
1879 Anglo-Zulu War begins as British Lieutenant-General Lord Chelmsford invades Zululand in South Africa
Vildauden
1885 Henrik Ibsen's play "Vildauden," (The Wild Duck) premieres in Oslo
- 1892 Hawaiian Historical Society is founded
- 1892 William D. McCoy of Indiana appointed US minister to Liberia
- 1894 Donghak Peasant Rebellion begins in Mujiang, Korea over local corruption, sparking the 1st Sino-Japanese War
- 1897 Martha Hughes Cannon takes office as the 1st woman state senator in US, in Utah, after defeating her own husband
- 1912 Bread & Roses Strike begins in Lawrence, Massachusetts following a pay cut
- 1913 1st sedan-type car (Hudson) goes on display at 13th Auto Show (NYC)
- 1915 Jacob Ruppert and Colonel Tillinghast Huston purchase the New York Yankees for $460,000, Ruppert pays his portion in cash
- 1916 Austrian forces capture Mount Lovćen, Serbia. Serbian army retreats, evacuating to Greek island of Corfu
- 1917 Guy Bolton & PG Wodehouse's musical "Have a Heart" premieres in New York
- 1919 3-year-old German communist party (Spartacus) crushed
- 1919 Romania annexes Transylvania
- 1920 French passenger ship Afrique sinks near La Rochelle; 553 die
1st Insulin Injection
1922 Insulin first used on humans to treat diabetes, Frederick Banting injects fellow Canadian Leonard Thompson, aged 14
Secretary of State Kellogg
1925 Frank Kellogg replaces Charles Hughes as US Secretary of State
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
1927 Louis B. Mayer head of film studio MGM announces creation of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
- 1927 Royale Theater (Golden, CBS Radio Playhouse) opens at 242 W 45th NYC
Earhardt Flies Honolulu to Oakland
1935 Amelia Earhart flies from Honolulu to Oakland, California (non-stop, of course)
- 1936 Charles Anderson enters Kentucky House of Representatives
- 1938 Don Bradman scores a second innings 113 vs Qld after a ton in the 1st innings
- 1938 Frances Moulton elected 1st woman president of a US national bank
Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet
1940 Sergei Prokofiev's ballet "Romeo & Juliet" premieres in Leningrad
- 1941 Princess Irene Brigade established in Congleton
- 1942 -23°F (-31°C), Kingston, Rhode Island (state record)
- 1942 Japan conquers Kuala Lumpur, Malaya
- 1943 US & Britain relinquish extraterritorial rights in China
- 1944 Crakow-Plaszow Concentration Camp established
- 1946 Bert Bell becomes second NFL commissioner, moves Chicago headquarters to Philadelphia
People's Republic of Albania
1946 Enver Hoxha declares People's Republic of Albania with himself dictator
- 1952 Bollingen Prize for poetry awarded to Marianne Moore
Hoover Declines Offer
1953 J. Edgar Hoover declines 6 figure offer to become president of International Boxing Club
Mohammad Smashes 499
1959 Pakistani cricket batsman Hanif Mohammad smashes 499 for Karachi v Bahawalpur, then 1st class world record
Chamberlain Scores 67
1963 SF Warriors center Wilt Chamberlain scores 67 points in 134-129 defeat to LA Lakers at Cow Palace
- 1964 First government report by US Surgeon General Luther Terry warning that smoking may be hazardous
- 1964 Panama ends diplomatic relations with US
- 1964 The Beatles single "I Want to Hold Your Hand" reaches #80 in US (Cashbox)
- 1966 "Daktari" African adventure series premieres on CBS TV
- 1966 550 die in landslides in mountains behind Rio de Janeiro after rain
- 1967 Romeinse Curie installs Council for Pontifical Study commission
- 1967 San Diego is granted an NBA franchise to be called the Rockets; franchise moves to Houston for the 1971-72 season
- 1968 Explorer 36 (GEOS-B) launched into earth orbit (1080/1570 km)
- 1969 "Hooked on a Feeling" by BJ Thomas peaks at #5
- 1969 Jethro Tull's "This Was Jethro Tull" album debuts
- 1970 Irish republican political party Sinn Féin party splits between those in favor of abstentionism (of not taking any seats won in the parliaments) and those where against
- 1970 Super Bowl IV, Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, LA: KC Chiefs beat Minnesota Vikings, 23-7; MVP: Len Dawson, Kansas City, QB
- 1971 Tigers ace reliever John Hiller, 27, sufferes a heart attack, but later makes a remarkable comeback to record 38 saves
- 1973 American League adopts designated hitter rule
- 1973 Famous Australian cricket victory at the SCG - Pakistan chasing 158 is all out for 106
- 1974 ABC airs final episode of "Love, American Style"
- 1975 Soviet Soyuz 17 carries 2 cosmonauts to space station Salyut 4
- 1976 Military coup in Ecuador, President Guillermo Lara leaves
- 1977 France releases Abu Daoud, a Palestinian suspected of involvement in massacre of Israeli athletes at 1972 Munich Olympics
- 1977 MLB Chicago Cubs trade outfielder Rick Monday to Los Angeles Dodgers for Bill Buckner
- 1977 Poetry's Bollingen Prize awarded to David Ignatow
- 1978 Soyuz 27 links with Salyut 6 & Soyuz 26 (1st time 3 spacecraft link)
- 1981 British team led by Ranulph Fiennes completes longest & fastest crossing of Antarctica, reaching Scott base after 75 days (2,500 miles)
- 1981 Palau adopts constitution
- 1982 Atlanta, Georgia's temperature goes below zero F
- 1982 Honduras adopts constitution
Martin Yankee Manager
1983 Billy Martin named NY Yankee manager for 3rd time
- 1983 Edmonton’s Pat Hughes sets NHL record for the fastest 2 shorthanded goals by one player at just 25 seconds apart in a 7-5 win at St. Louis; first player to break a Wayne Gretzky record
Dione Scores Hat-trick
1983 LA Kings' center Marcel Dionne picks up his 24th NHL career hat-trick and adds 3 assists for 6 points in a 9-7 win at Washington; Kings' first road win after 8 straight losses
- 1984 Denver Nuggets 163, San Antonio Spurs 155-highest-scoring NBA game
- 1984 NASA space shuttle STS 41-B moves to launch pad
- 1984 Supreme Court reinstated $10M award to Karen Silkwood's family
- 1985 CDC MMWR publishes guidelines for screening U.S. blood supply for AIDS antibodies with ELISA test that would be available later that year
- 1986 Douglas Wilder of Virginia, 1st African American Lieutenant Governor since reconstruction sworn in
- 1987 Largest crowd (76,633) at NFL NY Giant Stadium (beat Wash 17-0)
- 1988 ABC premiere of fact-based "Evil in Clear River"
- 1988 USSR announces it will participate in Seoul Summer Olympics
- 1989 140 nations agree to ban chemical weapons (poison gas, etc)
- 1989 Denver Nuggets' rookie Jerome Lane misses 7 free throws in a game against Milwaukee, one missed by 2 feet
- 1989 Kindergarten student caught with loaded handgun at Bronx school
- 1990 200,000 demand return of Lithuania's independence
- 1990 Actor Joseph Cotton (84) undergoes cancer operation to remove his larynx
- 1990 Bob Knight becomes college basketball's Big 10 winningest coach with his 229th victory
Lafontaine's Sets Record
1990 NHL New York Islander Pat Lafontaine sets team record by scoring goals in 11 straight games
Born at the Right Time
1992 American singer-songwriter Paul Simon brings his “Born at the Right Time” tour to South Africa, at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg
- 1993 British Airways ends one of the longest libel actions in its history
- 1993 Howard Stern's radio show begins transmitting to Buffalo NY (WKBW)
Perot Returns to Politics
1993 Independent presidential candidate Ross Perot publicly returns to politics
- 1994 Hyderabad score 6 for 944 against Andhra Pradesh in Ranji Trophy
- 1994 Irish government announces end of a 20-year broadcasting ban on IRA
- 1995 5th TV network (WB) Warner Brothers begins (WPIX-TV in NYC)
- 1995 Birmingham Barracudas (based in Alabama) granted CFL franchise, experiment only lasts one season
- 1995 DC-9 crashes near Maria La Baya, Colombia: 51 die, 9 yr old girl lives
- 1995 NHLPA & owners agree to end NHL strike
- 1996 Haiti becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty
- 1996 Space Shuttle STS 72 (Endeavour 10), launches into space
- 1997 Telstar 401 Satellite Fails
- 1998 Sidi-Hamed massacre takes place in Algeria, over 100 people are killed.
Jon Stewart Starts at "The Daily Show"
1999 American comedian Jon Stewart succeeds Craig Kilborn as host of late-night talk and satirical news program "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central in US
Ecevit's 4th Term
1999 Bülent Ecevit becomes Prime Minister of Turkey for the 4th time
Schottenheimer Resigns
1999 Marty Schottenheimer resigns as head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs
- 2001 New York Knicks hold an opponent under 100 points for NBA-record 29th straight game in a 76-75 loss to the Houston Rockets; streak snaps 46-year-old NBA record of 28 straight set by the Fort Wayne Pistons in 1954-55
1,200 Points for Jágr
2003 Washington right wing Jaromír Jágr scores his 10th career hat-trick and adds 4 assists for 7 points and his 1,200th NHL point in a 12-2 win against Florida; Jágr has 20+ goals in each of his 13 NHL seasons
- 2004 "4th and 26", trailing Green Bay Packers by 3 in NFC Divisional Playoff Game, Philadelphia Eagles face 4th and 26 on their final drive, Donovan McNabb hits Freddie Mitchell for 29 yards. Eagles tie the game and go on to win in overtime
- 2004 Washington Capitals' German goaltender Olaf Kölzig records his 32nd NHL career shutout in a 1-0 win against the visiting Edmonton Oilers
Rowling Finishes Harry Potter
2007 Author J. K. Rowling finishes the 7th and last Harry Potter novel in room 552 of the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh
Musical Finale
2009 John Du Prez and Eric Idle's musical "Spamalot", based on the film "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," and starring Tim Curry and Davis Hyde Pierce, closes at the Shubert Theatre, NYC, after 1,575 and 3 Tony Award wins
Cowell Leaves "Idol"
2010 Simon Cowell leaves "American Idol"
- 2013 29 people are killed and 12 are injured after a bus veers off a mountain road in Doti, Nepal
- 2013 46 people are killed and 12 are missing after a landslide buries a village in the Yunnan province, China
Christine McVie Rejoins Fleetwood Mac
2014 During a concert in Maui, Mick Fleetwood announces that Christine McVie would be rejoining Fleetwood Mac
- 2014 Pianist Menahem Presser (90) makes his Berlin Philharmonic debut as soloist in Mozart's 17th Piano Concerto; he had fled Nazi persecution in Germany as a teenager
- 2015 Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović is elected as the first female President of Croatia
Messi Wins 5th Ballon d'Or
2016 FIFA Ballon d'Or: Barcelona forward Lionel Messi wins his record 5th award with 41.33% of the votes; American midfielder Carli Lloyd is Women's World Player of the Year
- 2018 In China's first significant #MeToo moment Beihang University in Beijing fires a professor for sexual misconduct
- 2018 US President Donald Trump causes worldwide controversy when it is reported he called African countries "shitholes" during immigration meeting
YouTube Sanctions Logan Paul
2018 YouTube issues sanctions against vlogger Logan Paul after he posted footage of suicide victim's body in Japan in December
- 2020 Diego the giant 100-year-old tortoise retires to the Galapagos islands after his high libido is credited with saving his species
Tsai Ing-wen Re-Elected
2020 Taiwan re-elects Tsai Ing-wen for a second term as president in a landslide result
- 2021 Ireland becomes the country with the world's highest COVID-19 infection rate after a dramatic surge results in seven-day rolling average of 1,394 cases per million
- 2021 The king of Malaysia, Al-Sultan Abdullah declares a state of emergency over COVID-19 till 1 August, suspending parliament and giving the government new powers
Trump's Second Impeachment
2021 US House Democrats introduce one article of impeachment against President Donald Trump for "incitement of insurrection" for encouraging his supporters to riot at the Capitol
Bill Belichick Leaves Patriots
2024 After 24 seasons and 6 Super Bowl titles, coach Bill Belichick and the NFL New England Patriots part ways; Patriots finished season in last place in AFC East at 4-13
- 2024 Death toll from Zambia's cholera outbreak reaches 300 as the president urges people to move away from dense urban areas [1]
- 2024 Huge ancient city discovered in the Amazon, in Upano area of eastern Ecuador, capable of supporting 10,000 people with sophisticated roads and canals [1]
- 2024 Largest dam removal in US history enters crucial phase as reservoir on Iron Gate Dam lowered in Klamath River through California and Oregon [1]
- 2024 More than 300 people have died in flooding caused by the highest levels of River Congo in 60 years, especially in Kinshasa, DR Congo [1]
- 2024 New study finds largest great ape, Gigantopithecus blacki at 10 feet tall (3 meters), from southern China, went extinct because of climate change between 215,000 and 295,000 years ago [1]
- 2024 Rare copy of 'mint' first issue of "The Amazing Spider-Man" sells for $1.38 million and "Superman #1", goes for $2.34m at auction [1]
- 2024 South Africa begins its case accusing Israel of genocidal acts against Palestinians in Gaza and violating the 1948 genocide convention at the International Court of Justice in The Hague [1]
- 2024 The US and UK launch multiple air-strikes against Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen in retaliation for attacks on vessels in the Red Sea [1]
