On This Day In History
January 19th
379 Theodosius installed as co-emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire by Emperor Gratian
1812 Peninsular War: After a ten day siege, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, orders British soldiers of the Light and third divisions to storm Ciudad Rodrigo
1883 The first electric lighting system employing overhead wires, built by Thomas Edison, begins service at Roselle, New Jersey
1966 Indira Gandhi elected India’s 4th Prime Minister
2013 Calcium deposits are discovered on Mars by NASA’s Curiosity Rover
Did You Know?
Coopers Inc. sells the world’s first men’s briefs in Chicago, calls it the “Jockey”
Today in History in 1935
Would You Believe?
World’s largest crowd gathering – the Hindu Kumbh Mela in India attracts a then record 15 million people
Today in History in 1977
January 20th
1265 First English Parliament summoned other than by royal command (in this instance by Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester) mets in Westminster Hall
1841 China cedes Hong Kong to the British during the 1st Opium War
1921 Republic of Turkey declared out of remnants of Ottoman Empire
1942 Nazi officials hold the notorious Wannsee Conference in Berlin to organize the “final solution”, the extermination of Europe’s Jews
1945 Franklin D. Roosevelt sworn-in for an unprecedented (and never to be repeated) 4th term as US President
1981 Ronald Reagan inaugurated as the 40th President of the United States of America
2009 Barack Obama, inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States of America, becomes the United States’ first African-American president
Did You Know?
Houston Cougars defeat the UCLA Bruins 71-69 to win basketball’s Game of the Century and end UCLA’s 47 game winning streak
Today in History in 1968
Would You Believe?
Heavy metal musician Ozzy Osbourne allegedly bites the head off a bat on stage in Des Moines, Iowa
Today in History in 1982
January 21st
1525 Swiss Anabaptist Movement is born when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and a dozen others baptize each other in the home of Manz’s mother in Zürich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union
1789 The 1st American novel, William Hill Brown’s “The Power of Sympathy” is published by Isaiah Thomas
1793 Louis XVI of France is executed by guillotine in Paris, following his conviction for “high treason” by the newly created French Parliament (Convention nationale), during the French Revolution
1952 Jawaharlal Nehru‘s Congress party wins general election in India
1968 The Battle of Khe Sanh – one of the most publicized and controversial battles of the Vietnam War – begins at the Khe Sanh Air Base
2008 Black Monday in worldwide stock markets. FTSE 100 had its biggest ever one-day points fall, European stocks closed with their worst result since 9/11, and Asian stocks drop as much as 15%.
Did You Know?
Parisian baker and “student of medieval life” Henri Littière appears in court charged with forcing his adulterous wife Juliette to wear a chastity belt. Having committed the same offence in 1932, he was sentenced to three months in prison and fined 50 francs for cruelty to his wife
Today in History in 1934
Would You Believe?
“Sullivan Ordinance” is passed in NYC, making it illegal for a woman to smoke in public places. It was vetoed 2 weeks later by mayor George B. McClellan Jr.
Today in History in 1908
January 22nd
1689 Prince William of Orange (future King William III of Britain), summons Convention Parliament to discuss ruling jointly with his wife Mary (daughter of exiled King James II)
1879 Battle of Rorke’s Drift: British garrison of 150 holds off 3,000-4,000 Zulu warriors. Eleven Victoria Crosses and a number of other decorations were awarded to the defenders.
1905 In St Petersburg, Russia, a large demonstration of workers led by Father Gapon, march to the Winter Palace with a petition to the Tsar; troops fire on protesters in what becomes known as ‘Bloody Sunday’
1973 Roe vs Wade: US Supreme Court legalizes most abortions
Did You Know?
The first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrive at the Vatican
Today in History in 1506
Would You Believe?
Katie Mulcahey is arrested for lighting a cigarette, violating the 1-day old “Sullivan Ordinance” banning women from smoking in public, and is fined $5. Appearing before the judge she stated “I’ve got as much right to smoke as you have. I never heard of this new law, and I don’t want to hear about it. No man shall dictate to me.”
Today in History in 1908
January 23rd
971 War elephant corps of the Southern Han defeated at Shao by crossbow fire from Song Dynasty troops; Southern Han state forced to submit to the Song Dynasty. 1st regular war elephant corps in Chinese army
1368 In a coronation ceremony, Zhu Yuanzhang ascends to the throne of China as the Hongwu Emperor, initiating Ming Dynasty rule over China that would last for three centuries.
1556 Shaanxi Earthquake, the deadliest ever recorded, kills 830,000 in Shaanxi Province, China
1950 Israeli Knesset resolves Jerusalem is capital of Israel
1973 US President Richard Nixon announces an accord has been reached to end the Vietnam War
1978 Sweden becomes the first nation in the world to ban aerosol sprays, believed to be damaging to earth’s ozone layer.
2020 China locks down the city of Wuhan and its 9 million people, in a belated but ultimately successful effort to control the city’s COVID-19 epidemic
Did You Know?
Agoston Haraszthy, 1st vintner in Sonoma Valley, California imports 10,000 grape vine cuttings
Today in History in 1862
Would You Believe?
Elva Zona Heaster is found dead in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Resulting murder trial of her husband perhaps only case in US history where the alleged testimony of a ghost helped secure a conviction.
Today in History in 1897
January 24th
41 Claudius succeeds his nephew Caligula as Roman Emperor after the latter’s assassination by officers of the Praetorian Guard
1848 James Marshall finds gold in Sutter’s Mill in Coloma, California
1857 University of Calcutta founded as the first full-fledged university in South Asia
1899 Rubber heel for boots or shoes patented by American Humphrey O’Sullivan
1908 Lieutenant General Robert Baden-Powell publishes “Scouting for Boys” as a manual for self-instruction in outdoor skills and self-improvement. The book becomes the inspiration for the Scout Movement.
1984 Apple Computer Inc unveils its revolutionary Macintosh personal computer
Did You Know?
1st canned beer, “Krueger’s Cream Ale,” is sold by American company Krueger Brewing Co.
Today in History in 1935
Would You Believe?
Japanese Sgt. Shoichi Yokoi is found hiding in a Guam jungle, where he had been since the end of World War II.
Today in History in 1972
January 25th
1554 Founding of the city of São Paulo in Brazil
1565 Battle at Talikota India: Deccan sultanate destroy Vijayanagar’s army and the last Hindu kingdom of Southern India
1840 American naval expedition under Charles Wilkes is first to identify Antarctica as a new continent
1949 1st Israeli election won by David Ben-Gurion‘s Mapai party
1971 Military coup in Uganda under Major General Idi Amin
2011 Egyptian Revolution of 2011 begins with a series of street demonstrations, rallies, acts of civil disobedience, labor strikes and violent clashes in Cairo, Alexandria and other major cities