On This Day In History
Did You Know?
After using other pseudonyms over the years, Josef Dzhugashvili signs himself as Stalin (“man of steel”) in a letter to the newspaper Social Democrat
Today in History in 1913
Would You Believe?
Dr. James Bedford becomes the first person to be cryonically preserved with intent of future resuscitation; remains preserved at the Alcor Life Extension Foundation
Today in History in 1967
Today in History in 1967
January 13th
532 Nika riots begin in Constantinople, a revolt against Byzantine Emperor Justinian I that leaves half the city burned and thousands dead. The riots were prompted by the failed execution of chariot racing supporters and only stopped after Empress Theodora refused to flee, forcing her husband to act decisively.
1908 Henri Farman becomes the first person to fly an observed circuit of more than 1km, winning the Grand Prix d‘Aviation
1943 Adolf Hitler declares “Total War” against the Allies
1970 Colonel Odumegwu Ojukwu flees Biafra into exile, leaving his deputy Philip Effiong to surrender to the Nigerian army, unofficially ending the Nigerian Civil War
2000 Microsoft chairman Bill Gates steps aside as chief executive and promotes company president Steve Ballmer to the position
Did You Know?
“Mickey Mouse” comic strip 1st appears
Today in History in 1930
Would You Believe?
Dr. William Brydon, a surgeon in the British Army during the First Anglo-Afghan War, becomes famous for (reputedly) being the sole survivor of an army of 16,500 when he reaches the safety of a garrison in Jalalabad.
Today in History in 1842
January 14th
1526 Charles V and Francis I sign the Treaty of Madrid, forcing Francis to give up claims to Burgundy, Italy and Flanders
1641 Dutch East India Company conquers the city of Malacca, 7,000 killed
1724 Spanish King Philip V abdicates throne
1761 Third Battle of Panipat: In one of the largest battles of the century, the mostly Muslim Afghani Durrani Empire defeats the mostly Hindu Maratha Empire in Northern India. An estimated 60,000–70,000 were killed in the fighting and about 40,000 Maratha prisoners massacred afterwards.
1784 US Congress of the Confederation ratifies the Treaty of Paris, signed September 3, 1783, ending the Revolutionary War, and forwards it to Great Britain
2011 Tunisian president Ben Ali, flees to Saudi Arabia after popular protests known as the Jasmine Revolution
Did You Know?
Dr Jessee Bennet of Edom, Virginia, performs 1st successful Cesarean section operation in the US on his wife
Today in History in 1794
Would You Believe?
World War II: Franklin D. Roosevelt travels from Miami to Morocco to meet with Winston Churchill, becoming the first American president to travel overseas by airplane
Today in History in 1943
January 15th
588 BC Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah’s reign. The siege lasts until July 23, 586 BC.
1535 King Henry VIII declares himself head of the Church in England
1559 Elizabeth I crowned Queen of England in Westminster Abbey
1902 Abdulaziz Ibn Saud leads 40 men over the walls of Riyadh and takes the city, marking the beginning of the Third Saudi State
2001 Wikipedia a free Wiki or content encyclopedia is launched by Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger
Did You Know?
World’s largest office building, the Pentagon is completed to house the US military
Today in History in 1943
Would You Believe?
Two million gallons of molasses flood Boston Massachusetts in the “Great Molasses Flood” when a storage tank burst, drowning 21 and injuring 150
Today in History in 1919
January 16th
27 BC The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate
1412 The Medici family is appointed official banker of the Papacy
1547 Ivan IV the Terrible, aged 17, crowns himself the 1st tsar of Moscow
1605 The first edition of “El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha” (Book One of Don Quixote) by Miguel de Cervantes is published in Madrid
1793 French King Louis XVI sentenced to death by the National Convention during the French Revolution
1913 British House of Commons accepts Home Rule for Ireland (but the Great War gets in the way of it happening)
1919 The 18th Amendment to the US Constitution, authorizing the prohibition of alcohol, is ratified by a majority of US states
1920 1st assembly of the League of Nations is held in Paris
Did You Know?
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is sworn in as Liberia’s new president. She becomes Africa’s first female elected head of state.
Today in History in 2006
Would You Believe?
Hoax article advertising fictitious theatrical performer “The Bottle Conjuror” drew huge crowds to the Haymarket Theatre, London, whose inevitable non-appearance caused a riot. It’s alleged the Duke of Montagu perpetrated the fiasco to win a bet
Today in History in 1749
David Lynch, Visionary Director of ‘Twin Peaks’ and ‘Blue Velvet,’ Dies at 78 variety.com/2025/film/ne...
January 17th
1773 Captain James Cook becomes 1st to cross Antarctic Circle (66° 33′ S)
1873 A group of Modoc warriors defeats the United States Army in the First Battle of the Stronghold, a part of the Modoc War
1912 Captain Robert Scott‘s expedition arrives at the South Pole, one month after Roald Amundsen
1946 United Nations Security Council holds its 1st meeting
1991 Operation Desert Storm begins, with US-led coalition forces bombing Iraq, during the Gulf War
Did You Know?
First day of prohibition of alcohol comes into effect in the US as a result of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution
Today in History in 1920
Would You Believe?
Doomsday Clock set to five minutes to midnight in response to North Korea’s 1st nuclear test
Today in History in 2007
January 18th
532 Nika uprising against Emperor Justinian I in Constantinople fails, 30,000 killed by troops loyal to the Emperor in the Hippodrome
1591 King Naresuan of Siam kills Crown Prince Minchit Sra of Burma in single combat, date is now observed as Royal Thai Armed Forces day
1788 First elements of the First Fleet carrying 736 convicts from England to Australia arrives at Botany Bay to set up a penal colony
1817 José de San Martín leads a revolutionary army over the Andes to attack Spanish royalists in Chile
1871 Second German Empire proclaimed by Kaiser Wilhelm I and Otto von Bismarck
1943 Soviets announce they have broken the long Siege of Leningrad by Nazi Germany by opening a narrow land corridor, though the siege would not be fully lifted until a year later
Did You Know?
World’s 62 richest people are now as wealthy as half the world’s population according to a report published by Oxfam
Today in History in 2016
Would You Believe?
Perplexed Pilgrims in Boston reported America’s 1st UFO sighting
Today in History in 1644