Events
Pre-1600
*
1303 – The
Sapienza University of Rome
The Sapienza University of Rome ( it, Sapienza – Università di Roma), also called simply Sapienza or the University of Rome, and formally the Università degli Studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a public research university located in Rome, Ita ...
is instituted by a
bull
A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species '' Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions,
incl ...
of
Pope Boniface VIII
Pope Boniface VIII ( la, Bonifatius PP. VIII; born Benedetto Caetani, c. 1230 – 11 October 1303) was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 December 1294 to his death in 1303. The Caetani family was of baronial ...
.
1601–1900
*
1653
Events
January–March
* January 3 – By the Coonan Cross Oath, the Eastern Church in India cuts itself off from colonial Portuguese tutelage.
* January– The Swiss Peasant War begins after magistrates meeting at Lucerne ...
–
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...
dissolves England's
Rump Parliament
The Rump Parliament was the English Parliament after Colonel Thomas Pride commanded soldiers to purge the Long Parliament, on 6 December 1648, of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason.
"Rump" ...
.
*
1657
Events
January–March
* January 8 – Miles Sindercombe and his group of disaffected Levellers are betrayed, in their attempt to assassinate Oliver Cromwell, by blowing up the Palace of Whitehall in London, and arrested.
* F ...
– English Admiral
Robert Blake destroys a Spanish silver fleet, under heavy fire from the shore, at the
Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
* 1657 –
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedo ...
is granted to the Jews of
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...
(later New York City).
*
1752 – Start of
Konbaung–Hanthawaddy War, a new phase in the Burmese Civil War (1740–57).
*
1770
Events January– March
* January 1 – The foundation of Fort George, Bombay is laid by Colonel Keating, principal engineer, on the site of the former Dongri Fort.
* February 1 – Thomas Jefferson's home at Shadwell, V ...
– The
Georgian king,
Erekle II
Heraclius II ( ka, ერეკლე II), also known as Erekle II and The Little Kakhetian ( ka, პატარა კახი ) (7 November 1720 or 7 October 1721 C. ToumanoffHitchins, KeithHeraclius II. ''Encyclopædia Iranica Online edit ...
, abandoned by his
Russian ally
Count Totleben, wins a victory over
Ottoman forces at
Aspindza
Aspindza ( ka, ასპინძა) is a ''daba'' ("small town") in southern Georgia's region of Samtskhe-Javakheti with a population of 2,793 (2014 census), mostly ethnic Georgians. It is located at around .
History
The word "Aspindza" deriv ...
.
*
1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement being the April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's now-legendary ride. The Second Continental Congress t ...
–
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of ...
: The
Siege of Boston
The siege of Boston (April 19, 1775 – March 17, 1776) was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. New England militiamen prevented the movement by land of the British Army, which was garrisoned in what was then the peninsular tow ...
begins, following the battles at
Lexington and Concord.
*
1789
Events
January–March
* January – Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès publishes the pamphlet '' What Is the Third Estate?'' ('), influential on the French Revolution.
* January 7 – The 1788-89 United States presidential electio ...
–
George Washington arrives at
Grays Ferry, Philadelphia
Grays Ferry, also known as Gray's Ferry, is a neighborhood in South Philadelphia bounded (roughly) by 25th Street on the east, the Schuylkill River on the west, Vare Avenue on the south, and Grays Ferry Avenue on the north. The section of this n ...
, while en route to Manhattan for his
inauguration
In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaug ...
.
*
1792
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Treaty of Jassy ends the Russian Empire's war with the Ottoman Empire over Crimea.
* February 18 – Thomas Holcroft produces the comedy '' The Road to Ruin'' in London.
* Februar ...
– France declares war against the "
King of Hungary and Bohemia", the beginning of the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...
.
*
1800
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 18), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 12 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 16), ...
– The
Septinsular Republic
The Septinsular Republic ( el, Ἑπτάνησος Πολιτεία, Heptanēsos Politeia; it, Repubblica Settinsulare) was an oligarchic republic that existed from 1800 to 1807 under nominal Russian Empire, Russian and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman so ...
is established.
*
1809
Events
January–March
* January 5 – The Treaty of the Dardanelles, between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Ottoman Empire, is concluded.
* January 10 – Peninsular War – French Marshal Jean ...
– Two Austrian army corps in Bavaria are defeated by a
First French Empire
The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental ...
army led by
Napoleon at the
Battle of Abensberg
The Battle of Abensberg took place on 20 April 1809 between a Franco-German force under the command of Emperor Napoleon I of France and a reinforced Austrian corps led by Feldmarschall-Leutnant Archduke Louis of Austria. As the day wore on, Fe ...
on the second day of a four-day campaign that ended in a French victory.
*
1828
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac succeeds the Comte de Villèle, as Prime Minister of France.
* January 8 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized.
* January 22 – Arthu ...
–
René Caillié
Auguste René Caillié (; 19 November 1799 – 17 May 1838) was a French explorer and the first European to return alive from the town of Timbuktu. Caillié had been preceded at Timbuktu by a British officer, Major Gordon Laing, who was murdere ...
becomes the second non-Muslim to enter
Timbuktu
Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou;
Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label= Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrat ...
, following
Major Gordon Laing. He would also be the first to return alive.
*
1836
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Queen Maria II of Portugal marries Prince Ferdinand Augustus Francis Anthony of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.
* January 5 – Davy Crockett arrives in Texas.
* January 12
** , with Charles Darwin on board, re ...
–
U.S. Congress passes an act creating the
Wisconsin Territory
The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...
.
*
1861
Statistically, this year is considered the end of the whale oil industry and (in replacement) the beginning of the petroleum oil industry.
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Benito Juárez captures Mexico City.
** The first steam- ...
–
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...
:
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, towards the end of which he was appointed the overall commander of the Confederate States Army. He led the Army of Nort ...
resigns his commission in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
in order to command the forces of the state of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United States, Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography an ...
.
* 1861 –
Thaddeus S. C. Lowe, attempting to display the value of balloons, makes record journey, flying 900 miles from Cincinnati to South Carolina.
*
1862
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The United Kingdom annexes Lagos Island, in modern-day Nigeria.
* January 6 – French intervention in Mexico: French, Spanish and British forces arrive in Veracruz, Mexico.
* January ...
–
Louis Pasteur
Louis Pasteur (, ; 27 December 1822 – 28 September 1895) was a French chemist and microbiologist renowned for his discoveries of the principles of vaccination, microbial fermentation and pasteurization, the latter of which was named after ...
and
Claude Bernard
Claude Bernard (; 12 July 1813 – 10 February 1878) was a French physiologist. Historian I. Bernard Cohen of Harvard University called Bernard "one of the greatest of all men of science". He originated the term '' milieu intérieur'', and the a ...
complete the experiment disproving the theory of
spontaneous generation
Spontaneous generation is a superseded scientific theory that held that living creatures could arise from nonliving matter and that such processes were commonplace and regular. It was hypothesized that certain forms, such as fleas, could arise f ...
.
*
1865
Events
January–March
* January 4 – The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at 10-12 Broad near Wall Street, in New York City.
* January 13 – American Civil War : Second Battle of Fort Fisher ...
– Astronomer
Angelo Secchi
Angelo Secchi (; 28 June 1818 – 26 February 1878) was an Italian Catholic priest, astronomer from the Italian region of Emilia. He was director of the observatory at the Pontifical Gregorian University (then called the Roman College) for ...
demonstrates the
Secchi disk
The Secchi disk (or Secchi disc), as created in 1865 by Angelo Secchi, is a plain white, circular disk in diameter used to measure water transparency or turbidity in bodies of water. The disc is mounted on a pole or line, and lowered slowly down ...
, which measures water clarity, aboard
Pope Pius IX's yacht, the ''L'Immaculata Concezion''.
*
1876
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin.
** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol.
* February 2 – The National League, National League of Professional Ba ...
– The
April Uprising
The April Uprising ( bg, Априлско въстание, Aprilsko vastanie) was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876. The regular Ottoman Army and irregular bashi-bazouk units brutally ...
begins. Its suppression shocks European opinion, and Bulgarian independence becomes a condition for ending the
Russo-Turkish War
The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histor ...
.
*
1884 – Pope Leo XIII publishes the encyclical ''
Humanum genus
''Humanum genus'' is a papal encyclical promulgated on 20 April 1884 by Pope Leo XIII.
Released in the ascent of the industrial age, Marxism, and the aftermath of the September 20, 1870, Capture of Rome by the Kingdom of Italy military forces ...
'', condemning Freemasonry.
*
1898
Events
January–March
* January 1 – New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York as the world's second largest. The city is geographically divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, B ...
– U.S. President
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in t ...
signs a joint resolution to Congress for declaration of war against Spain, beginning the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (cl ...
.
1901–present
*
1902
Events
January
* January 1
** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world's f ...
–
Pierre
Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...
and
Marie Curie
Marie Salomea Skłodowska–Curie ( , , ; born Maria Salomea Skłodowska, ; 7 November 1867 – 4 July 1934) was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first ...
refine
radium chloride.
*
1914 – Nineteen men, women, and children participating in a strike are killed in the
Ludlow Massacre during the
Colorado Coalfield War
The Colorado Coalfield War was a major labor uprising in the Southern and Central Colorado Front Range between September 1913 and December 1914. Striking began in late summer 1913, organized by the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) again ...
.
*
1918
This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide.
Events
Below, the events ...
–
Manfred von Richthofen
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of t ...
, a.k.a. The Red Baron, shoots down his 79th and 80th victims, his final victories before his death the following day.
*
1922
Events
January
* January 7 – Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes.
* January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann, the day after Éamon de Valera ...
– The
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
government creates
South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast
The South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast (russian: Юго-Осетинская автономная область, ka, სამხრეთ ოსეთის ავტონომიური ოლქი, os, Хуссар Ирыстоны ав� ...
within
Georgian SSR
The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц� ...
.
*
1945
1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
Januar ...
–
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
: U.S. troops capture
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
, Germany, only to later cede the city to the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
.
* 1945 – World War II:
Führerbunker
The ''Führerbunker'' () was an air raid shelter located near the Reich Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. It was part of a subterranean bunker complex constructed in two phases in 1936 and 1944. It was the last of the Führer Headquarter ...
: On his 56th birthday
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
makes his last trip to the surface to award
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia e ...
es to boy soldiers of the
Hitler Youth
The Hitler Youth (german: Hitlerjugend , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth organisation of the Nazi Party in Germany. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. ...
.
* 1945 – Twenty Jewish children used in
medical experiments at
Neuengamme are killed in the basement of the
Bullenhuser Damm school.
*
1946 – The
League of Nations
The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide Intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by ...
officially
dissolves, giving most of its power to the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
.
*
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 ...
–
Cold War: Failure of the
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called ''Invasión de Playa Girón'' or ''Batalla de Playa Girón'' after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in 1961 by Cuban exiles, covertly f ...
of US-backed Cuban exiles against
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
.
*
1968
The year was highlighted by Protests of 1968, protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechos ...
– English politician
Enoch Powell
John Enoch Powell, (16 June 1912 – 8 February 1998) was a British politician, classical scholar, author, linguist, soldier, philologist, and poet. He served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (1950–1974) and was Minister of Health (1 ...
makes his controversial
"Rivers of Blood" speech.
* 1968 –
South African Airways Flight 228 crashes near the
Hosea Kutako International Airport in
South West Africa
South West Africa ( af, Suidwes-Afrika; german: Südwestafrika; nl, Zuidwest-Afrika) was a territory under South African administration from 1915 to 1990, after which it became modern-day Namibia. It bordered Angola ( Portuguese colony before ...
(now
Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and e ...
), killing 123 people.
*
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
–
Apollo program:
Apollo 16 lunar module, commanded by
John Young and piloted by
Charles Duke
Charles Moss Duke Jr. (born October 3, 1935) is an American former astronaut, United States Air Force (USAF) officer and test pilot. As Lunar Module pilot of Apollo 16 in 1972, he became the tenth and youngest person to walk on the Moon, at ...
, lands on the moon.
*
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
–
Air France Flight 422 crashes after taking off from
El Dorado International Airport
El Dorado International Airport is an international airport serving Bogotá, Colombia and its surrounding areas. The airport is located mostly in the Fontibón district of Bogotá, although it partially extends into the Engativá district ...
in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the largest ...
,
Colombia, killing all 53 people on board.
*
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school s ...
–
Columbine High School massacre
On April 20, 1999, a school shooting and attempted bombing occurred at Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado, United States. The perpetrators, twelfth grade, 12th grade students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, murdered 12 students and ...
:
Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold
Eric David Harris (April 9, 1981 – April 20, 1999) and Dylan Bennet Klebold (; September 11, 1981 – April 20, 1999) were an American mass murder duo who perpetrated the Columbine High School massacre on April 20, 1999. Harris and Klebold ...
kill 13 people and injure 24 others before committing suicide at
Columbine High School
Columbine High School (CHS) is a public high school in Columbine, Colorado, United States, in the Denver metropolitan area. It is part of the Jefferson County Public Schools district.
In 1999, it became the scene of an infamous mass shoo ...
in
Columbine, Colorado
Columbine is census-designated place (CDP) in and governed by Jefferson and Arapahoe counties in Colorado, United States. The CDP is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. Located primarily in Jefferson Co ...
.
*
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...
–
Johnson Space Center shooting: William Phillips with a
handgun
A handgun is a short- barrelled gun, typically a firearm, that is designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long gun (i.e. rifle, shotgun or machine gun, etc.), which needs to be held by both hands and also brac ...
barricades himself in
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...
's
Johnson Space Center
The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in honor of the late ...
in
Houston, Texas before killing a male hostage and himself.
*
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...
–
Danica Patrick
Danica Sue Patrick (; born March 25, 1982) is an American former professional racing driver. She is the most successful woman in the history of American open-wheel car racing—her victory in the 2008 Indy Japan 300 is the only win by a woman i ...
wins the
Indy Japan 300 becoming the first female driver in history to win an
Indy car
INDYCAR, LLC, is an American-based auto racing sanctioning body for Indy car racing and other disciplines of open wheel car racing. The organization sanctions five racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with its centerpiece the Indianapolis 5 ...
race.
*
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
– The ''
Deepwater Horizon
''Deepwater Horizon'' was an ultra-deepwater, Dynamic positioning, dynamically positioned, Semi-submersible platform, semi-submersible offshore drilling Oil platform, rig owned by Transocean and operated by BP. On 20 April 2010, while drilling ...
'' drilling rig
explodes in the Gulf of Mexico, killing eleven workers and beginning an
oil spill that would last six months.
*
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
– One hundred twenty-seven people are killed when a
plane crashes
An aviation accident is defined by the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft, which takes place from the time any person boards the aircraft with the ''intention of fl ...
in a residential area near the
Benazir Bhutto International Airport near
Islamabad
Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capita ...
, Pakistan.
*
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
– A 6.6-
magnitude earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
strikes
Lushan County,
Ya'an
Ya'an (, Tibetan: Yak-Nga ) is a prefecture-level city in the western part of Sichuan province, China, located just below the Tibetan Plateau. The city is home to Sichuan Agricultural University, the only 211 Project university and the largest ...
, in China's
Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of th ...
province, killing more than 150 people and injuring thousands.
*
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...
– Ten people are killed in a
bomb attack
The following is a list of terrorist incidents that have not been carried out by a state or its forces (see state terrorism and state-sponsored terrorism). Assassinations are listed at List of assassinated people.
Definitions of terroris ...
on a convoy carrying food supplies to a
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
compound in
Garowe
Garowe ( so, Garoowe, ar, غَاْرَّوْؤَيَ, in the Somali region of
Puntland
Puntland ( so, Puntland, ar, أرض البنط, it, Terra di Punt or ''Paese di Punt''), officially the Puntland State of Somalia ( so, Dowlad Goboleedka Puntland ee Soomaaliya, ar, ولاية أرض البنط الصومالية), is a F ...
.
*
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...
– For the first time in history,
oil prices
The price of oil, or the oil price, generally refers to the spot price of a barrel () of benchmark crude oil—a reference price for buyers and sellers of crude oil such as West Texas Intermediate (WTI), Brent Crude, Dubai Crude, OPEC Refe ...
drop
below zero.
*
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
–
State of Minnesota v. Derek Michael Chauvin
''State of Minnesota v. Derek Michael Chauvin'' is an American criminal case in the District Court of Minnesota in which former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was tried and convicted of the murder of George Floyd during an arrest o ...
:
Derek Chauvin
Derek Michael Chauvin ( ; born March 19, 1976) is an American former police officer who was convicted for the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Chauvin was a member of the Minneapolis Police ...
is found guilty of all charges in the
murder of George Floyd
On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's n ...
by the
Fourth Judicial District Court of Minnesota.
Births
Pre-1600
*
1494
Year 1494 ( MCDXCIV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–December
* January 4 – The Cetinje Octoechos (Цетињски октоих, an Eastern ...
–
Johannes Agricola
Johann or Johannes Agricola (originally Schneider, then Schnitter; 20 April 1494 – 22 September 1566)John Julian: Dictionary of Hymnology, Second Edition, page 19. London: John Murray, 1907. was a German Protestant Reformer during the Protest ...
, German theologian and reformer (d. 1566)
*
1544
__NOTOC__
Events
January–June
* January 13 – At Västerås, the estates of Sweden swear loyalty to King Gustav Vasa and to his heirs, ending the traditional electoral monarchy in Sweden. Gustav subsequently signs an allian ...
–
Renata of Lorraine, Duchess consort of Bavaria (d. 1602)
*
1586
Events
* January 18 – The 7.9 Tenshō earthquake strikes the Chubu region of Japan, triggering a tsunami and causing at least 8,000 deaths.
* June 16 – The deposed and imprisoned Mary, Queen of Scots, recognizes Philip II of ...
–
Rose of Lima
Rose of Lima (born Isabel Flores de Oliva; 20 April 1586 24 August 1617) was a member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic in Lima, Peru, who became known for both her life of severe penance and her care of the poverty stricken of the city thro ...
, Peruvian mystic and saint (d. 1617)
1601–1900
*
1633
Events
January–March
* January 20 – Galileo Galilei, having been summoned to Rome on orders of Pope Urban VIII, leaves for Florence for his journey. His carriage is halted at Ponte a Centino at the border of Tuscany, where ...
–
Emperor Go-Kōmyō of Japan (d. 1654)
*
1646
It is one of eight years (CE) to contain each Roman numeral once (1000(M)+500(D)+100(C)+(-10(X)+50(L))+5(V)+1(I) = 1646).
Events
January–March
* January 5 – The English House of Commons approves a bill to provide for Ireland ...
–
Charles Plumier
Charles Plumier (; 20 April 1646 – 20 November 1704) was a French botanist after whom the frangipani genus '' Plumeria'' is named. Plumier is considered one of the most important of the botanical explorers of his time. He made three botanizing ...
, French botanist and author (d. 1704)
*
1650
Events
January–March
* January 7 – Louis I, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, dies after a reign of more than 63 years. The area is now part of the northeastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
* January 18 – Cardinal Jules ...
–
William Bedloe
William Bedloe (20 April 165020 August 1680) was an English fraudster and Popish Plot informer.
Life
He was born at Chepstow in Monmouthshire. He was probably the son of Isaac Bedloe, himself the son of an Irish Army officer, and a cousin of W ...
, English spy (d. 1680)
*
1718
Events
January – March
* January 7 – In India, Sufi rebel leader Shah Inayat Shaheed from Sindh who had led attacks against the Mughal Empire, is beheaded days after being tricked into meeting with the Mughals to discuss ...
–
David Brainerd
David Brainerd (April 20, 1718October 9, 1747) was an American Presbyterian minister and missionary to the Native Americans among the Delaware Indians of New Jersey. Missionaries such as William Carey and Jim Elliot, and Brainerd's cousin, t ...
, American missionary (d. 1747)
*
1723 –
Cornelius Harnett
Cornelius Harnett (April 10, 1723 – April 28, 1781) was an American Founding Father, merchant, and politician from Wilmington, North Carolina. He was a leading American Revolutionary statesman in the Cape Fear region, and a delegate for North ...
, American merchant, farmer, and politician (d. 1781)
*
1727
Events
January–March
* January 1 – (December 21, 1726 O.S.) Spain's ambassador to Great Britain demands that the British return Gibraltar after accusing Britain of violating the terms of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. Britain ...
–
Florimond Claude, Comte de Mercy-Argenteau, Belgian-Austrian minister and diplomat (d. 1794)
*
1745
Events
January–March
* January 7 – War of the Austrian Succession: The Austrian Army, under the command of Field Marshal Károly József Batthyány, makes a surprise attack at Amberg and the winter quarters of the Bavar ...
–
Philippe Pinel
Philippe Pinel (; 20 April 1745 – 25 October 1826) was a French physician, precursor of psychiatry and incidentally a zoologist. He was instrumental in the development of a more humane psychological approach to the custody and care of ps ...
, French physician and psychiatrist (d. 1826)
*
1748
Events
January–March
* January 12 – Ahmad Shah Durrani captures Lahore.
* January 27 – A fire at the prison and barracks at Kinsale, in Ireland, kills 54 of the prisoners of war housed there. An estimated 500 prison ...
–
Georg Michael Telemann
Georg Michael Telemann (20 April 1748 – 4 March 1831) was a German composer and theologian.
Telemann was born in Plön, the son of the local pastor Andreas Telemann (1715–1755) and his wife Augusta Clara Catharina Capsius. After the deat ...
, German composer and theologian (d. 1831)
*
1808
Events January–March
* January 1
** The importation of slaves into the United States is banned, as the 1807 Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves takes effect; African slaves continue to be imported into Cuba, and until the island ab ...
–
Napoleon III
Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
, French politician, 1st
President of France
The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is ...
(d. 1873)
*
1816 –
Bogoslav Šulek
Bogoslav Šulek (born Bohuslav Šulek; April 20, 1816 – November 30, 1895) was a Croatian philologist, historian and lexicographer. He was very influential in creating Croatian terminology in the areas of social and natural sciences, technology a ...
, Croatian philologist, historian, and lexicographer (d. 1895)
*
1818
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Battle of Koregaon: Troops of the British East India Company score a decisive victory over the Maratha Empire.
** Mary Shelley's ''Frankenstein'' is published anonymously in London.
* January 2 – ...
–
Heinrich Göbel
Heinrich Göbel, or Henry Goebel (April 20, 1818 – December 4, 1893) was a German-born American precision mechanic and inventor. In 1848 he emigrated to New York City, where he resided until his death. He received American citizenship in 1865.
...
, German-American mechanic and engineer (d. 1893)
*
1826
Events January–March
* January 15 – The French newspaper '' Le Figaro'' begins publication in Paris, initially as a weekly.
* January 30 – The Menai Suspension Bridge, built by engineer Thomas Telford, is opened between the island ...
–
Dinah Craik, English author and poet (d. 1887)
*
1836
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Queen Maria II of Portugal marries Prince Ferdinand Augustus Francis Anthony of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.
* January 5 – Davy Crockett arrives in Texas.
* January 12
** , with Charles Darwin on board, re ...
–
Eli Whitney Blake, Jr., American scientist and academic (d. 1895)
*
1839
Events
January–March
* January 2 – The first photograph of the Moon is taken, by French photographer Louis Daguerre.
* January 6 – Night of the Big Wind: Ireland is struck by the most damaging cyclone in 300 years.
* January 9 � ...
–
Carol I of Romania
Carol I or Charles I of Romania (20 April 1839 – ), born Prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, was the monarch of Romania from 1866 to his death in 1914, ruling as Prince (''Domnitor'') from 1866 to 1881, and as King from 1881 to 1914. He w ...
, King of Romania (d. 1914)
*
1840
Events
January–March
* January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded.
* January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom.
* Jan ...
–
Odilon Redon
Odilon Redon (born Bertrand Redon; ; 20 April 18406 July 1916) was a French symbolist painter, printmaker, draughtsman and pastellist.
Early in his career, both before and after fighting in the Franco-Prussian War, he worked almost exclusivel ...
, French painter and illustrator (d. 1916)
*
1850
Events
January–June
* April
** Pope Pius IX returns from exile to Rome.
** Stephen Foster's parlor ballad " Ah! May the Red Rose Live Alway" is published in the United States.
* April 4 – Los Angeles is incorporated as a c ...
–
Daniel Chester French
Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, best known for his 1874 sculpture '' The Minute Man'' in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monu ...
, American sculptor, designed the
Lincoln statue (d. 1931)
*
1851
Events
January–March
* January 11 – Hong Xiuquan officially begins the Taiping Rebellion.
* January 15 – Christian Female College, modern-day Columbia College, receives its charter from the Missouri General Assembly.
...
–
Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist (d. 1918)
* 1851 –
Siegmund Lubin, Polish-American businessman, founded the
Lubin Manufacturing Company
The Lubin Manufacturing Company was an American motion picture production company that produced silent films from 1896 to 1916. Lubin films were distributed with a Liberty Bell trademark.
History
The Lubin Manufacturing Company was formed in 1 ...
(d. 1923)
*
1860
Events
January–March
* January 2 – The discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan is announced at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France.
* January 10 – The Pemberton Mill in Lawrence, Massachuset ...
–
Justinien de Clary, French target shooter (d. 1933)
*
1871
Events January–March
* January 3 – Franco-Prussian War – Battle of Bapaume: Prussians win a strategic victory.
* January 18 – Proclamation of the German Empire: The member states of the North German Confederation and the sout ...
–
Sydney Chapman Sydney Chapman may refer to:
*Sir Sydney Chapman (economist) (1871–1951), British economist and civil servant
* Sydney Chapman (mathematician) (1888–1970), FRS, British mathematician
*Sir Sydney Chapman (politician)
Sir Sydney Brookes Chapma ...
, English economist and civil servant (d. 1951)
*
1873
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar.
** The California Penal Code goes into effect.
* January 17 – American Indian Wars: Modoc War: First Battle of the Stronghold – Modoc Indians defeat ...
–
James Harcourt
James Harcourt (20 April 187318 February 1951) was an English character actor.
Harcourt was born in Headingley, Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire. He started work as a cabinet maker, and drifted into amateur dramatics. He appeared as a stage act ...
, English character actor (d. 1951)
*
1875
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of th ...
–
Vladimir Vidrić, Croatian poet and lawyer (d. 1909)
*
1879
Events January–March
* January 1 – The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War.
* January 11 – The Anglo-Zulu War begins.
* Janu ...
–
Paul Poiret
Paul Poiret (20 April 1879 – 30 April 1944, Paris, France) was a French fashion designer, a master couturier during the first two decades of the 20th century. He was the founder of his namesake haute couture house.
Early life and care ...
, French fashion designer (d. 1944)
*
1882 –
Holland Smith, American general (d. 1967)
*
1884 –
Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Princess Beatrice Leopoldine Victoria of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (20 April 1884 – 13 July 1966) was a member of the British royal family, a male-line granddaughter of Queen Victoria. She later married into the Spanish royal family, and was ...
(d. 1966)
* 1884 –
Oliver Kirk
Oliver Leonard Kirk (April 20, 1884 – March 14, 1960) was an American bantamweight and featherweight professional boxer who won two gold medals in Boxing at the 1904 Summer Olympics. He was born in Beatrice, Nebraska and died in St. Louis, ...
, American boxer (d. 1960)
* 1884 –
Daniel Varoujan, Armenian poet and educator (d. 1915)
*
1889
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada.
** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in th ...
–
Albert Jean Amateau
Albert Jean Amateau (April 20, 1889 – February 9, 1996) was a Turkish rabbi, businessman, lawyer, social activist, and denier of the Armenian genocide.
Early years
Born a Sephardic Jew in Milas, Ottoman Empire (now Turkey), Amateau attended ...
, Turkish rabbi, lawyer, and activist (d. 1996)
* 1889 –
Prince Erik, Duke of Västmanland (d. 1918)
* 1889 –
Marie-Antoinette de Geuser
Marie-Antoinette de Geuser (known as "''Consummata''"; 20 April 1889, in Le Havre – 22 June 1918, in Le Havre). Being in close contact with the Carmelites, her state of health and the events of World War I did not allow her to take her vows.
...
, French mystic (d. 1918)
* 1889 –
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
, Austrian-born German politician,
Führer
( ; , spelled or ''Fuhrer'' when the umlaut is not available) is a German word meaning " leader" or " guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.
Nazi Germany cultivated the ("leader princi ...
of
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
(d. 1945)
* 1889 –
Tonny Kessler, Dutch footballer (d. 1960)
*
1890
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The Kingdom of Italy establishes Eritrea as its colony, in the Horn of Africa.
** In Michigan, the wooden steamer ''Mackinaw'' burns in a fire on the Black River.
* January 2
** The steamship '' ...
–
Maurice Duplessis
Maurice Le Noblet Duplessis (; April 20, 1890 – September 7, 1959), was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 16th premier of Quebec. A conservative, nationalist, anti-Communist, anti-unionist and fervent Catholic, he and hi ...
, Canadian lawyer and politician, 16th
Premier of Quebec
The premier of Quebec (French: ''premier ministre du Québec'' (masculine) or ''première ministre du Québec'' (feminine)) is the head of government of the Canadian province of Quebec. The current premier of Quebec is François Legault of the ...
(d. 1959)
* 1890 –
Adolf Schärf
Adolf Schärf (; 20 April 1890 – 28 February 1965) was an Austrian politician of the Socialist Party of Austria (SPÖ). He served as Vice-Chancellor from 1945 to 1957 and as President of Austria from 1957 until his death.
Life
Schärf was bor ...
, Austrian soldier and politician, 6th
President of Austria
The president of Austria (german: Bundespräsident der Republik Österreich) is the head of state of the Republic of Austria. Though theoretically entrusted with great power by the Constitution, in practice the president is largely a ceremonial ...
(d. 1965)
*
1891
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Paying of old age pensions begins in Germany.
** A strike of 500 Hungarian steel workers occurs; 3,000 men are out of work as a consequence.
**Germany takes formal possession of its new Africa ...
–
Dave Bancroft
David James Bancroft (April 20, 1891 – October 9, 1972) was an American professional baseball shortstop and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Giants, Boston Braves and the Brooklyn Robin ...
, American baseball player and manager (d. 1972)
*
1893
Events
January–March
* January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America.
* Mark Twain started writing Puddn'head Wilson.
* January 6 – Th ...
–
Harold Lloyd
Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. (April 20, 1893 – March 8, 1971) was an American actor, comedian, and stunt performer who appeared in many silent comedy films.Obituary '' Variety'', March 10, 1971, page 55.
One of the most influential film c ...
, American actor, comedian, and producer (d. 1971)
* 1893 –
Joan Miró
Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , , ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan painter, sculptor and ceramicist born in Barcelona. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona i ...
, Spanish painter and sculptor (d. 1983)
*
1895
Events
January–March
* January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank, and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island.
* January 12 – The National Trust for Places of Histor ...
–
Emile Christian, American trombonist and composer (d. 1973)
* 1895 –
Henry de Montherlant
Henry Marie Joseph Frédéric Expedite Millon de Montherlant (; 20 April 1895 – 21 September 1972) was a French essayist, novelist, and dramatist. He was elected to the Académie française in 1960.
Biography
Born in Paris, a descendant of ...
, French essayist, novelist, and dramatist (d. 1972)
*
1896
Events
January–March
* January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end, as Jameson surrenders to the Boers.
* January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state.
* January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports that Wil ...
–
Wop May
Wilfrid Reid "Wop" May, (March 20, 1896 – June 21, 1952) was a Canadian flying ace in the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. B ...
, Canadian captain and pilot (d. 1952)
*
1899
Events January 1899
* January 1
** Spanish rule ends in Cuba, concluding 400 years of the Spanish Empire in the Americas.
** Queens and Staten Island become administratively part of New York City.
* January 2 –
**Bolivia sets up a c ...
–
Alan Arnett McLeod
Alan Arnett McLeod, VC (20 April 1899 – 6 November 1918) was a Canadian soldier, aviator, and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. M ...
, Canadian lieutenant,
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
recipient (d. 1918)
1901–present
*
1904
Events
January
* January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''.
* January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system.
* ...
–
Bruce Cabot
Bruce Cabot (born Étienne de Pelissier Bujac Jr.; April 20, 1904 – May 3, 1972) was an American film actor, best remembered as Jack Driscoll in ''King Kong'' (1933) and for his roles in films such as ''The Last of the Mohicans'' (1936), Fri ...
, American actor (d. 1972)
*
1907
Events
January
* January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Moment magnitude scale, Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000.
February
* February 11 – The French warship French cruiser Jean Bart ( ...
–
Augoustinos Kantiotes, Greek bishop (d. 2010)
*
1908
Events
January
* January 1 – The British ''Nimrod'' Expedition led by Ernest Shackleton sets sail from New Zealand on the ''Nimrod'' for Antarctica.
* January 3 – A total solar eclipse is visible in the Pacific Ocean, and is the 46 ...
–
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charle ...
, American vibraphone player, pianist, bandleader, and actor (d. 2002)
*
1910
Events
January
* January 13 – The first public radio broadcast takes place; live performances of the operas '' Cavalleria rusticana'' and ''Pagliacci'' are sent out over the airwaves, from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York C ...
–
Fatin Rüştü Zorlu, Turkish diplomat and politician (d. 1961)
*
1913
Events January
* January 5 – First Balkan War: Battle of Lemnos – Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it will not venture for the rest of the ...
–
Mimis Fotopoulos
Dimitris "Mimis" Fotopoulos ( el, Δημήτρης (Μίμης) Φωτόπουλος; 8 April 1913 – 29 October 1986) was a Greek actor, writer, poet, and artist.
He was born in Zatouna, Gortynia, Arcadia. He studied at the Dramatic School of ...
, Greek actor and poet (d. 1986)
* 1913 –
Willi Hennig
Emil Hans Willi Hennig (20 April 1913 – 5 November 1976) was a German biologist and zoologist who is considered the founder of phylogenetic systematics, otherwise known as cladistics. In 1945 as a prisoner of war, Hennig began work on his theo ...
, German biologist and entomologist (d. 1976)
*
1914 –
Betty Lou Gerson, American actress (d. 1999)
*
1915
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
*January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction".
*January 1
...
–
Joseph Wolpe
Joseph Wolpe (20 April 1915 in Johannesburg, South Africa – 4 December 1997 in Los Angeles) was a South African psychiatrist and one of the most influential figures in behavior therapy.
Wolpe grew up in South Africa, attending Parktown Boy ...
, South African psychotherapist and physician (d. 1997)
*
1916 –
Nasiba Zeynalova, Azerbaijani actress (d. 2004)
*
1918
This year is noted for the end of the First World War, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, as well as for the Spanish flu pandemic that killed 50–100 million people worldwide.
Events
Below, the events ...
–
Kai Siegbahn, Swedish physicist and academic,
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...
laureate (d. 2007)
*
1919
Events
January
* January 1
** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (now Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia.
** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off the ...
–
Richard Hillary, Australian lieutenant and pilot (d. 1943)
*
1920
Events January
* January 1
** Polish–Soviet War in 1920: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20.
** Kauniainen, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its own m ...
–
Frances Ames, South African
neurologist
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal ...
, psychiatrist, and human rights activist (d. 2002)
* 1920 –
Clement Isong, Nigerian banker and politician,
Governor of Cross River State (d. 2000)
* 1920 –
John Paul Stevens
John Paul Stevens (April 20, 1920 – July 16, 2019) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1975 to 2010. At the time of his retirement, he was the second-olde ...
, American lawyer and jurist,
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 2019)
*
1923
Events
January–February
* January 9 – Lithuania begins the Klaipėda Revolt to annex the Klaipėda Region (Memel Territory).
* January 11 – Despite strong British protests, troops from France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr area, t ...
–
Mother Angelica
Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation (born Rita Antoinette Rizzo; April 20, 1923 – March 27, 2016), also known as Mother Angelica, was an American Roman Catholic nun of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration. She was best known for the t ...
, American nun and broadcaster, founded
Eternal Word Television Network
The Eternal Word Television Network, more commonly known by its initials EWTN, is an American basic cable television network which presents around-the-clock Catholic-themed programming. It is not only the largest Catholic television network i ...
(d. 2016)
* 1923 –
Irene Lieblich, Polish-American painter and illustrator (d. 2008)
* 1923 –
Tito Puente
Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. (April 20, 1923 – June 1, 2000), commonly known as Tito Puente, was an American musician, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer of Puerto Rican descent. He is best known for dance-oriented mambo and Latin jazz ...
, American drummer and producer (d. 2000)
*
1924
Events
January
* January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after.
* January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China h ...
–
Nina Foch
Nina Foch ( ; born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock; April 20, 1924 – December 5, 2008) was a Dutch-born American actress who later became an instructor. Her career spanned six decades, consisting of over 50 feature films and over 100 television appea ...
, Dutch-American actress (d. 2008)
* 1924 –
Leslie Phillips
Leslie Samuel Phillips (20 April 1924 – 7 November 2022) was an English actor, director, producer and author. He achieved prominence in the 1950s, playing smooth, upper-class comic roles utilising his "Ding dong" and "Hello" catchphrases. ...
, English actor and producer (d. 2022)
* 1924 –
Guy Rocher, Canadian sociologist and academic
*
1925
Events January
* January 1
** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria.
* January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the It ...
–
Ernie Stautner, German-American football player and coach (d. 2006)
* 1925 –
Elena Verdugo, American actress (d. 2017)
*
1927
Events January
* January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General.
* January 7
* ...
–
Bud Cullen
Jack Sydney George "Bud" Cullen, (April 20, 1927 – July 5, 2005) was a Canadian Federal Court judge and politician.
Early years
Born in Creighton Mine, Ontario, Cullen was given the nickname of Bud by his mother when he was a young bo ...
, Canadian judge and politician, 1st
Canadian Minister of Employment and Immigration (d. 2005)
* 1927 –
Phil Hill
Philip Toll Hill Jr. (April 20, 1927 – August 28, 2008) was an American automobile racing driver. He was one of two American drivers to win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship, and the only one who was born in the United States ( ...
, American race car driver (d. 2008)
* 1927 –
K. Alex Müller
Karl Alexander Müller (20 April 1927 – 9 January 2023) was a Swiss physicist and Nobel laureate. He received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1987 with Georg Bednorz for their work in superconductivity in ceramic materials.
Biography
Mülle ...
, Swiss physicist and academic,
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfre ...
laureate
*
1928
Events January
* January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA.
* January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhano ...
–
Robert Byrne, American chess player and author (d. 2013)
* 1928 –
Johnny Gavin, Irish international footballer (d. 2007)
*
1929
This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholi ...
–
Harry Agganis
Aristotle George "Harry" Agganis (April 20, 1929 – June 27, 1955), nicknamed "The Golden Greek", was an American college football player and professional baseball player. After passing up a potential professional football career, he played in ...
, American baseball and football player (d. 1955)
* 1929 –
Bobby Hollander, American film director, actor, and magazine publisher (d. 2002)
*
1930
Events
January
* January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...
–
Dwight Gustafson
Dwight Leonard Gustafson (April 20, 1930 – January 28, 2014) was an American composer, conductor, and dean of the School of Fine Arts at Bob Jones University.
Biography
Gustafson was born in Seattle, Washington to Leonard Gustafson, a me ...
, American composer and conductor (d. 2014)
* 1930 –
Antony Jay
Sir Antony Rupert Jay, (20 April 1930 – 21 August 2016) was an English writer, broadcaster, producer and director. With Jonathan Lynn, he co-wrote the British political comedies '' Yes Minister'' and '' Yes, Prime Minister'' (1980–88). He ...
, English director and screenwriter (d. 2016)
*
1931
Events
January
* January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics.
* January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa.
* January 22 – Sir I ...
–
Michael Allenby, 3rd Viscount Allenby, English lieutenant and politician (d. 2014)
* 1931 –
John Eccles, 2nd Viscount Eccles, English businessman and politician
*
1932 –
Myriam Bru
Myriam Bru (born 20 April 1932, Paris)Some sources cite 1930 as Bru's year of birth. is a French retired actress and the wife of German actor Horst Buchholz, to whom she was married from 1958 until his death in 2003. She appeared in 16 films bet ...
, French actress
*
1933
Events
January
* January 11 – Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand.
* January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independence, against the wis ...
–
Kristaq Dhamo
Kristaq Dhamo (20 April 1933 – 14 August 2022) was an Albanian actor and film director. He was awarded the People's Artist of Albania medal. His 1958 film '' Tana'' was entered into the 1st Moscow International Film Festival.
Dhamo died on 1 ...
, Albanian actor and film director
*
1936
Events
January–February
* January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...
–
Lisa Davis, English-American actress
* 1936 –
Pauli Ellefsen, Faroese technician, surveyor, and politician, 6th
Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands
The prime minister of the Faroe Islands is the head of government of the Faroe Islands
The Faroese term (plural: ) literally means "lawman" and originally referred to the legal function of lawspeaker. This old title was brought back into use ...
(d. 2012)
* 1936 –
Pat Roberts
Charles Patrick Roberts (born April 20, 1936) is a retired American politician and journalist who served as a United States senator from Kansas from 1997 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Roberts served 8 terms in the U.S. House of Rep ...
, American captain, journalist, and politician
*
1937
Events
January
* January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua.
* January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Febr ...
–
Jiří Dienstbier, Czech journalist and politician,
Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 2011)
* 1937 –
Antonios Kounadis
Antonios or Anthony Kounadis (; born 20 April 1937 in Athens) is a discus thrower, civil engineer, scholar and academician from Greece. He was President of the Academy of Athens for the year 2018. He was named the 1959 Greek Athlete of the Year ...
, Greek discus thrower
* 1937 –
Harvey Quaytman, American painter and educator (d. 2002)
* 1937 –
George Takei
George Takei (; ja, ジョージ・タケイ; born Hosato Takei (武井 穂郷), April 20, 1937) is an American actor, author and activist known for his role as Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the fictional starship USS ''Enterprise'' in the telev ...
, American actor
*
1938 –
Betty Cuthbert
Elizabeth Alyse Cuthbert, (20 April 1938 – 6 August 2017) was an Australian athlete and a four-time Olympic champion. She was nicknamed Australia's "Golden Girl". During her career, she set world records for 60 metres, 100 yards, 200 metres ...
, Australian sprinter (d. 2017)
* 1938 –
Manfred Kinder, German runner
* 1938 –
Eszter Tamási
Eszter Tamási (20 April 1938 – 16 December 1991) was a Hungarian actress and TV announcer.
Early life
She was the child of a poor family and came to Budapest in 1955. She completed her acting studies at Kálmán Rózsahegyi's acting school, ...
, Hungarian actress (d. 1991)
*
1939
This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1
** Third Reich
*** Jews are forbidde ...
–
Elspeth Ballantyne, Australian actress
* 1939 –
Peter S. Beagle
Peter Soyer Beagle (born April 20, 1939) is an American novelist and screenwriter, especially of fantasy fiction. His best-known work is ''The Last Unicorn'' (1968), a fantasy novel he wrote in his twenties, which ''Locus'' subscribers voted the ...
, American author and screenwriter
* 1939 –
Gro Harlem Brundtland
Gro Brundtland (; born Gro Harlem, 20 April 1939) is a Norwegian politician ( Arbeiderpartiet), who served three terms as the 29th prime minister of Norway (1981, 1986–89, and 1990–96) and as the director-general of the World Health Organiza ...
, Norwegian physician and politician, 22nd
Prime Minister of Norway
The prime minister of Norway ( no, statsminister, which directly translates to "minister of state") is the head of government and chief executive of Norway. The prime minister and Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government department ...
* 1939 –
Johnny Tillotson
Johnny Tillotson (born April 20, 1938) is an American singer-songwriter. He enjoyed his greatest success in the early 1960s, when he scored nine top-ten hits on the pop, country, and adult contemporary ''Billboard'' charts, including " Poetry ...
, American singer-songwriter
*
1940
A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
*January ...
–
James Gammon, American actor (d. 2010)
*
1941
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January– August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar E ...
–
Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal (born April 20, 1941) is an American actor and former boxer. He trained as an amateur boxer before beginning his career in acting in 1960. In 1964, he landed the role of Rodney Harrington on the ABC nighttime soap opera '' Peyton Pla ...
, American actor
*
1942
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Declaration by United Nations is signed by China, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Soviet Union, and 22 other nations, in wh ...
–
Giles Henderson, English lawyer and academic
* 1942 –
Arto Paasilinna, Finnish journalist and author (d. 2018)
*
1943
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured.
* January 4 – ...
–
Alan Beith, English academic and politician
* 1943 –
John Eliot Gardiner
Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Life and career
Born in Fontmell Magna, Dorset, son of Rolf Gardiner and Marabel Hodgkin, Ga ...
, English conductor and director
* 1943 –
Edie Sedgwick
Edith Minturn Sedgwick Post (April 20, 1943 – November 16, 1971) was an American actress and fashion model, known for being one of Andy Warhol's superstars.Watson, Steven (2003), "Factory Made: Warhol and the Sixties" Pantheon Books, pp. 210& ...
, American model and actress (d. 1971)
*
1944
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 2 – WWII:
** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in No ...
–
Toivo Aare
Toivo Aare (20 April 1944 Nõva, Harju County – 9 April 1999 Tallinn) was an Estonian journalist.Eesti entsüklopeedia 14: Eesti elulood. Eesti Entsüklopeediakirjastus, 2000. Page 6
In 1970 he graduated from Tartu State University
T ...
, Estonian journalist and author (d. 1999)
*
1945
1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
Januar ...
–
Michael Brandon
Michael Brandon (born Michael Feldman; April 20, 1945) is an American actor. He is known for his role as James Dempsey in the British drama series '' Dempsey and Makepeace'' (1985–1986). His theatre credits include the original Broadway prod ...
, American actor and director
* 1945 –
Olga Karlatos, Greek actress and Bermudian lawyer
* 1945 –
Thein Sein
Thein Sein ( my, သိန်းစိန်; IPA: ; born 20 April 1944) is a Burmese politician and retired general in the Myanmar Army who served as the eighth President of Myanmar from 2011 to 2016. He previously served as Prime Minister ...
, Burmese general and politician, 8th
President of Burma
The president of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar () is the head of state and constitutional head of government of Myanmar. The president leads the Cabinet of Myanmar, the executive branch of the Burmese government. The current preside ...
* 1945 –
Naftali Temu
Nabiba Naftali Temu (20 April 1945 – 10 March 2003) was a Kenyan long-distance runner. He became Kenya's first gold medalist when he won the 10,000 metres race at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.
Biography
Temu started systematic traini ...
, Kenyan runner (d. 2003)
* 1945 –
Steve Spurrier
Stephen Orr Spurrier (born April 20, 1945) is an American former football quarterback and coach who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons before coaching for 38 years, primarily in college. He is often referred to by his ...
, American football player and head coach, 1966 Heisman Trophy winner
*
1946 –
Sandro Chia
Sandro Chia (born 20 April 1946) is an Italian painter and sculptor. In the late 1970s and early 1980s he was, with Francesco Clemente, Enzo Cucchi, Nicola De Maria, and Mimmo Paladino, a principal member of the Italian Neo-Expressionist mov ...
, Italian painter and sculptor
* 1946 –
Julien Poulin, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
* 1946 –
Gordon Smiley, American race car driver (d. 1982)
*
1947
It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Events
January
* January– February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the count ...
–
Rita Dionne-Marsolais, Canadian economist and politician
* 1947 –
David Leland
David Leland (born 20 April 1947) is an English film director, screenwriter and actor who came to international fame with his directorial debut '' Wish You Were Here'' in 1987.
Life
He initially trained as an actor at Central School of Speec ...
, English actor, director, and screenwriter
* 1947 –
Viktor Suvorov
Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun (russian: link=no, Владимир Богданович Резун; born 20 April 1947), known by his pseudonym of Viktor Suvorov () is a former Soviet GRU officer who is the author of non-fiction books about World ...
, Russian intelligence officer, historian, and author
*
1948
Events January
* January 1
** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated.
** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect.
** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...
–
Gregory Itzin
Gregory Martin Itzin (April 20, 1948 – July 8, 2022) was an American character actor of film and television best known for his role as U.S. President Charles Logan in the action thriller series '' 24''.
Early life
Itzin was born in Washin ...
, American actor (d. 2022)
* 1948 –
Matthias Kuhle
Matthias Kuhle (20 April 1948 – 25 April 2015) was a German geographer and professor at the University of Göttingen. He edited the book series ''Geography International'' published by Shaker Verlagbr>
Kuhle died on 25 April 2015 in a April 201 ...
, German geographer and academic (d. 2015)
*
1949
Events
January
* January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022.
* January 2 – ...
–
Veronica Cartwright
Veronica Cartwright (born April 20, 1949) is a British-American actress. She is known for appearing in science fiction and horror films, and has earned numerous accolades, including three Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
As a child actress, sh ...
, English-American actress
* 1949 –
Toller Cranston
Toller Shalitoe Montague Cranston, CM (April 20, 1949 – January 24, 2015) was a Canadian figure skater and painter. He won the 1971–1976 Canadian national championships, the 1974 World bronze medal and the 1976 Olympic bronze medal. ...
, Canadian-Mexican figure skater and painter (d. 2015)
* 1949 –
Massimo D'Alema
Massimo D'Alema (; born 20 April 1949) is an Italian politician and journalist who was the 53rd prime minister of Italy from 1998 to 2000. He was Deputy Prime Minister of Italy and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2008. D'Alema also ser ...
, Italian journalist and politician, 76th
Prime Minister of Italy
The Prime Minister of Italy, officially the President of the Council of Ministers ( it, link=no, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri), is the head of government of the Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is ...
* 1949 –
Jessica Lange
Jessica Phyllis Lange (; born April 20, 1949) is an American actress. She is the 13th actress to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting, having won two Academy Awards, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award, along with a Screen Actors G ...
, American actress
*
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...
–
Steve Erickson, American author and critic
* 1950 –
Alexander Lebed
Lieutenant General Alexander Ivanovich Lebed (russian: Алекса́ндр Ива́нович Ле́бедь, link=no; 20 April 1950 – 28 April 2002) was a Soviet and Russian military officer and politician who held senior positions in the Ai ...
, Russian general and politician (d. 2002)
* 1950 –
N. Chandrababu Naidu
Nara Chandrababu Naidu ( born 20 April 1950) is an Indian politician and current leader of opposition of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. He was also the leader of the opposition of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 2004 to ...
, Indian politician, 13th
Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh
The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh is the chief executive of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chi ...
*
1951
Events
January
* January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950).
* January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...
–
Luther Vandross
Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...
, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2005)
*
1952
Events January–February
* January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses.
* February 6
** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh ...
–
Louka Katseli, Greek economist and politician
*
1953 –
Sebastian Faulks
Sebastian Charles Faulks (born 20 April 1953) is a British novelist, journalist and broadcaster. He is best known for his historical novels set in France – ''The Girl at the Lion d'Or'', '' Birdsong'' and '' Charlotte Gray''. He has also pub ...
, English journalist and author
*
1955
Events January
* January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.
* January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut.
* January 18– 20 – Battle of Yiji ...
–
Donald Pettit
Donald Roy Pettit (born April 20, 1955) is an American astronaut and chemical engineer. He is a veteran of two long-duration stays aboard the International Space Station, one Space Shuttle mission and a six-week expedition to find meteorites in ...
, American engineer and astronaut
*
1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, are kille ...
–
Beatrice Ask
Eva Carin Beatrice Ask (born 20 April 1956) is a Swedish politician and a member of the Moderate Party. She has served as Governor of Södermanland County since 1 January 2020.
Ask served as member of the Swedish Riksdag for Stockholm Municip ...
, Swedish politician,
Swedish Minister for Justice
* 1956 –
Peter Chelsom, English film director, writer, and actor
* 1956 –
Kakha Bendukidze
Kakha Bendukidze ( ka, კახა ბენდუქიძე; 20 April 1956 – 13 November 2014) was a Georgian statesman, businessman and philanthropist, founder of the Knowledge Foundation and head of the supervisory board of Agricultura ...
, Georgian economist and politician (d. 2014)
*
1958 –
Viacheslav Fetisov
Viacheslav Alexandrovich "Slava" Fetisov (Russian: Вячеслав Александрович Фетисов, ''Vjačeslav Aleksandrovič Fetisov''; born 20 April 1958) is a Russian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for HC CS ...
, Russian ice hockey player and coach
*
1960
It is also known as the " Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events
January
* J ...
–
Debbie Flintoff-King, Australian hurdler and coach
*
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 ...
–
Don Mattingly
Donald Arthur Mattingly (born April 20, 1961) is an American former professional baseball first baseman, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is the bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknam ...
, American baseball player, coach, and manager
* 1961 –
Konstantin Lavronenko, Russian actor
*
1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...
–
Rachel Whiteread
Dame Rachel Whiteread (born 20 April 1963) is an English artist who primarily produces sculptures, which typically take the form of casts. She was the first woman to win the annual Turner Prize in 1993.
Whiteread was one of the Young British ...
, English sculptor
*
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...
–
John Carney, American football player
* 1964 –
Andy Serkis
Andrew Clement Serkis (born 20 April 1964) is an English actor, director, and producer. He is best known for his performance capture roles comprising motion capture acting, animation, and voice work for computer-generated characters such as Go ...
, English actor and director
* 1964 –
Rosalynn Sumners
Rosalynn Diane Sumners (born April 20, 1964) is an American former competitive figure skater. She was the World Junior champion in 1980, the U.S. National champion in 1982, 1983 and 1984, World champion in 1983, and won a silver medal at the ...
, American figure skater
*
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...
–
Kostis Chatzidakis
Konstantinos (Kostis) Hatzidakis ( el, Κωνσταντίνος (Κωστής) Χατζηδάκης; born 20 April 1965 in Rethymno) is a Greek politician of New Democracy who has been serving as the Minister for Labor and Social Affairs in the ...
, Greek politician,
Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism
Ministry may refer to:
Government
* Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister
* Ministry (government department), a department of a government
Religion
* Christian mi ...
* 1965 –
Léa Fazer, Swiss film director, screenwriter and actress
*
1966
Events January
* January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko.
* January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo is ...
–
David Chalmers
David John Chalmers (; born 20 April 1966) is an Australian philosopher and cognitive scientist specializing in the areas of philosophy of mind and philosophy of language. He is a professor of philosophy and neural science at New York Univer ...
, Australian philosopher and academic
* 1966 –
David Filo, American businessman, co-founded
Yahoo!
Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo! Inc. (2017–present), Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds ma ...
*
1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establ ...
–
Mike Portnoy, American drummer and songwriter
*
1968
The year was highlighted by Protests of 1968, protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechos ...
–
Julia Morris
Julia Carolyn Margaret Morris (born 20 April 1968) is an Australian comedian, television presenter and actress who has worked extensively in Australian television and radio, touring the country with her solo comedy shows. She relocated to the Un ...
, Australian entertainer
*
1969
This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon.
Events January
* January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco.
* January 5
** Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...
–
Will Hodgman, Australian politician, 45th
Premier of Tasmania
The premier of Tasmania is the head of the executive government in the Australian state of Tasmania. By convention, the leader of the party or political grouping which has majority support in the House of Assembly is invited by the governor of T ...
*
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and 1 ...
–
Shemar Moore
Shemar Franklin Moore (born April 20, 1970) is an American actor. His notable roles include Malcolm Winters on ''The Young and the Restless'' (1994–2005), Derek Morgan on ''Criminal Minds'' (2005–2016), and the lead role of Sergeant II Dani ...
, American actor
*
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
–
Carmen Electra
Tara Leigh Patrick (born April 20, 1972), known professionally as Carmen Electra, is an American actress, model, singer, and media personality. She began her career as a singer after moving to Minneapolis, where she met Prince, who produced h ...
, American model and actress
*
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
–
Julie Powell, American food writer and memoirist (d. 2022)
Deaths
Pre-1600
*
689 –
Cædwalla, king of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
(b. 659)
*
767
767 may refer to:
* Boeing 767, a jet airliner
* 767 (number)
* AD 767, a year in the 8th century.
* 767 BC, a year in the 8th century BC
* Area code 767
Area code 767 is the local telephone area code of the Commonwealth of Dominica, within the ...
–
Taichō
was a shugendō monk in Nara period Japan. He was raised in Echizen Province, which was in the southern portion of present-day Fukui Prefecture. He was the second son of Mikami Yasuzumi (三神安角). He is said to be the first person to rea ...
, Japanese monk (b. 682)
*
888 –
Xi Zong, Chinese emperor (b. 862)
*
1099
Year 1099 ( MXCIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
First Crusade
* January 16 – The Crusaders, under Raymond IV, count of Toulouse (Raymond of ...
–
Peter Bartholomew (b. 1061)
*
1164
Year 1164 ( MCLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Battle of Renfrew: A Norse-Gaelic army led by Lord Somerled, ruler of the Isles, invade ...
–
Antipope Victor IV
*
1176
Year 1176 ( MCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 1176th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 176th year of the 2nd millennium, the 76th ...
–
Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke
Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (of the first creation), Lord of Leinster, Justiciar of Ireland (113020 April 1176), also known as Richard FitzGilbert, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman notable for his leading role in the Anglo-Norman invasion ...
, English-Irish politician,
Lord Chief Justice of Ireland
The Court of King's Bench (or Court of Queen's Bench during the reign of a Queen) was one of the senior courts of common law in Ireland. It was a mirror of the Court of King's Bench in England. The Lord Chief Justice was the most senior judge ...
(b. 1130)
*
1248
Year 1248 ( MCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Seventh Crusade
* August 12 – King Louis IX (the Saint) leaves Paris together with his ...
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Güyük Khan
Güyük (also Güyug;; ''c''. March 19, 1206 – April 20, 1248) was the third Khagan-Emperor of the Mongol Empire, the eldest son of Ögedei Khan and a grandson of Genghis Khan. He reigned from 1246 to 1248.
Appearance
According to Giovann ...
, Mongol ruler, 3rd
Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (b. 1206)
*
1284 –
Hōjō Tokimune
of the Hōjō clan was the eighth '' shikken'' (officially regent of the shōgun, but ''de facto'' ruler of Japan) of the Kamakura shogunate (reigned 1268–84), known for leading the Japanese forces against the invasion of the Mongols and ...
, regent of Japan (b. 1251)
*
1314
Events
* March 18 – Jacques de Molay, the 23rd and last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, is burned at the stake in Paris, France.
* April 4 – Exeter College, Oxford is founded in England by Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Ex ...
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Pope Clement V
Pope Clement V ( la, Clemens Quintus; c. 1264 – 20 April 1314), born Raymond Bertrand de Got (also occasionally spelled ''de Guoth'' and ''de Goth''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 June 1305 to his de ...
(b. 1264)
*
1322
Year 1322 ( MCCCXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–December
* January 6 – Stephen Uroš III Dečanski is crowned King of Serbia, having defea ...
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Simon Rinalducci, Italian Augustinian friar
*
1502
Year 1502 ( MDII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 1 – Portuguese explorers, led by Gonçalo Coelho, sail into Guanabara B ...
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Mary of Looz-Heinsberg
Lady Mary of Looz-HeinsbergIn English and French the county her name originated from is called Looz, while in Dutch and German it is called Loon. (1424 – 20 April 1502), nl, Maria van Loon-Heinsberg, was a noble lady from the House of L ...
, Dutch noble (b. 1424)
*
1521
1521 ( MDXXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 1521st year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 521st year of the 2nd millennium, the 21st year ...
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Zhengde
Zhengde () (24 January 1506 – 27 January 1522) was the era name of the Zhengde Emperor, the 11th emperor of the Ming dynasty of China.
Comparison table
Other eras contemporaneous with Zhengde
* China
** ''Mingzheng'' (明正, 1511): Ming per ...
, Chinese emperor (b. 1491)
*
1534
__NOTOC__
Year 1534 ( MDXXXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 15 – The Parliament of England passes the '' Act Respecting t ...
–
Elizabeth Barton, English nun and martyr (b. 1506)
*
1558
__NOTOC__
Year 1558 ( MDLVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 7 – French troops, led by Francis, Duke of Guise, take Calais, ...
–
Johannes Bugenhagen
Johannes Bugenhagen (24 June 1485 – 20 April 1558), also called ''Doctor Pomeranus'' by Martin Luther, was a German theologian and Lutheran priest who introduced the Protestant Reformation in the Duchy of Pomerania and Denmark in the 16th ce ...
, German priest and theologian (b. 1485)
1601–1900
*
1643
Events
January–March
* January 21 – Abel Tasman sights the island of Tonga.
* February 6 – Abel Tasman sights the Fiji Islands.
* March 13 – First English Civil War: First Battle of Middlewich – Roundheads ...
–
Christoph Demantius, German composer and poet (b. 1567)
*
1703
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...
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Lancelot Addison
The Reverend Lancelot Addison (1632 – 20 April 1703) was an English writer and Church of England clergyman. He was born at Crosby RavensworthJohn Julian: ''Dictionary of Hymnology'', 2nd edition, p. 19. London: John Murray, 1907. in Westmorland ...
, English clergyman and educator (b. 1632)
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture in ...
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Chief Pontiac, American tribal leader (b. 1720)
*
1831
Events
January–March
* January 1 – William Lloyd Garrison begins publishing '' The Liberator'', an anti-slavery newspaper, in Boston, Massachusetts.
* January 10 – Japanese department store, Takashimaya in Kyoto establ ...
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John Abernethy, English surgeon and anatomist (b. 1764)
*
1873
Events
January–March
* January 1
** Japan adopts the Gregorian calendar.
** The California Penal Code goes into effect.
* January 17 – American Indian Wars: Modoc War: First Battle of the Stronghold – Modoc Indians defeat ...
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William Tite
Sir William Tite (7 February 179820 April 1873) was an English architect who twice served as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects. He was particularly associated with various London buildings, with railway stations and cemetery ...
, English architect, designed the
Royal Exchange (b. 1798)
*
1874
Events
January–March
* January 1 – New York City annexes The Bronx.
* January 2 – Ignacio María González becomes head of state of the Dominican Republic for the first time.
* January 3 – Third Carlist War &n ...
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Alexander H. Bailey, American lawyer, judge, and politician (b. 1817)
*
1881
Events
January–March
* January 1– 24 – Siege of Geok Tepe: Russian troops under General Mikhail Skobelev defeat the Turkomans.
* January 13 – War of the Pacific – Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos: The C ...
–
William Burges
William Burges (; 2 December 1827 – 20 April 1881) was an English architect and designer. Among the greatest of the Victorian art-architects, he sought in hi