Events
Pre-1600
*
69 – The
Roman legions in
Germania Superior
Germania Superior ("Upper Germania") was an imperial province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of today's western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany. Important cities were Besançon ('' Vesont ...
refuse to swear loyalty to
Galba. They rebel and proclaim
Vitellius as emperor.
*
366 – The
Alemanni cross the frozen
Rhine
The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
in large numbers, invading the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
.
*
533 – Mercurius becomes
Pope John II, the first
pope
The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
to adopt a new name upon elevation to the papacy.
*
1492 –
Reconquista: The
Emirate of Granada, the last
Moorish stronghold in
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, surrenders.
1601–1900
*
1680 –
Trunajaya rebellion:
Amangkurat II of Mataram and his bodyguards
execute the rebel leader Trunajaya.
*
1776 – Empress
Maria Theresa of Austria amends the
Constitutio Criminalis Theresiana to include the abolition of torture throughout the Habsburg-ruled countries of Austria and Bohemia.
*
1777 –
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 the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
: American forces under the command of General
George Washington
George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...
repulse a British attack led by General
Charles Cornwallis at the
Battle of the Assunpink Creek near
Trenton, New Jersey.
*
1788 –
Georgia becomes the fourth state to ratify the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...
.
*
1791 –
Northwest Indian War: The
Big Bottom massacre is committed by
Lenape and
Wyandot warriors in the
Ohio Country, North America.
*
1818 – The British
Institution of Civil Engineers is founded by a group of six engineers;
Thomas Telford would later become its first president.
*
1863 –
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
: The three-day
Battle of Stones River ends in a
Union victory when the
Confederate Army of Tennessee under General
Braxton Bragg are repulsed for the final time by the
Army of the Cumberland under General
William S. Rosecrans.
*
1865 –
Uruguayan War: The
Siege of Paysandú ends as the
Brazilians
Brazilians (, ) are the citizens of Brazil. A Brazilian can also be a person born abroad to a Brazilian parent or legal guardian as well as a person who acquired Brazilian nationality law, Brazilian citizenship. Brazil is a multiethnic society, ...
and
Coloradans capture
Paysandú, Uruguay.
*
1900 – American statesman and diplomat
John Hay announces the
Open Door Policy to promote trade with China.
*
1900 –
Chicago Canal opens.
1901–present
*
1920 – The second
Palmer Raid, ordered by the
US Department of Justice, results in 6,000 suspected communists and anarchists being arrested and held without trial.
*
1921 – World premiere of the science fiction play ''
R.U.R.'' by the
Czech writer
Karel Čapek in a theater in
Hradec Králové.
[Jarka M. Burien, "Čapek, Karel" in Gabrielle H. Cody, Evert Sprinchorn (eds.) ''The Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama'', Volume One. Columbia University Press, 2007. , (pp. 224–225).]
*
1941 –
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
: The
Cardiff Blitz severely damages the
cathedral
A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...
in
Cardiff, Wales.
*
1942 – The
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
(FBI) obtains the conviction of 33 members of a
German spy ring headed by
Fritz Joubert Duquesne in the largest espionage case in
United States history; Also known as the
Duquesne Spy Ring.
* 1942 – World War II:
Manila is captured by
Japanese forces, enabling them to control the
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
.
*
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 2025
* January 2 – Luis ...
–
Luis Muñoz Marín is inaugurated as the first democratically elected
Governor of Puerto Rico.
*
1954 –
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
establishes its highest
civilian awards, the
Bharat Ratna and the
Padma Vibhushan.
*
1955 – Following the assassination of the
Panamanian president
José Antonio Remón Cantera, his deputy,
José Ramón Guizado, takes power, but is quickly deposed after his involvement in Cantera's death is discovered.
*
1959 – ''
Luna 1'', the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...
and to orbit the
Sun, is launched by the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
.
*
1963 –
Vietnam War: The
Viet Cong wins its first major victory, at the
Battle of Ap Bac.
*
1967 –
Ronald Reagan, past
movie actor and future
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
, is sworn in as
Governor of California.
*
1971 – The second
Ibrox disaster kills 66 fans at a
Rangers-
Celtic association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
match.
*
1974 – United States President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
signs a
bill lowering the maximum U.S.
speed limit
Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed, express ...
to 55 mph in order to conserve
gasoline
Gasoline ( North American English) or petrol ( Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When for ...
during an
OPEC embargo.
*
1975 – At the opening of a new railway line, a bomb blast at
Samastipur, Bihar, India, fatally wounds
Lalit Narayan Mishra,
Minister of Railways.
* 1975 – The
Federal Rules of Evidence are approved by the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
.
*
1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
– The
Gale of January 1976 begins, resulting in
coastal flooding around the southern
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
coasts, affecting countries from
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
to
Yugoslavia
, common_name = Yugoslavia
, life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation
, p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia
, flag_p ...
and causing at least 82 deaths and US$1.3 billion in damage.
*
1978 – On the orders of the
President of Pakistan,
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, paramilitary forces opened fire on peaceful protesting workers in
Multan, Pakistan; it is known as
1978 massacre at Multan Colony Textile Mills.
*
1981 – One of the largest investigations by a
British police force ends when serial killer
Peter Sutcliffe, the "Yorkshire Ripper", is arrested in
Sheffield,
South Yorkshire.
*
1988 –
Condor Flugdienst Flight 3782 crashes near
Seferihisar, Turkey, killing 16 people.
*
1991 –
Sharon Pratt Dixon becomes the first
African American woman mayor of a major city and first woman
Mayor of the District of Columbia.
*
1993 –
Sri Lankan Civil War: The
Sri Lanka Navy kill 35–100 civilians on the
Jaffna Lagoon.
*
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
– ''
Stardust'' successfully flies past
Comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...
Wild 2, collecting samples that are returned to
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
.
*
2022 –
Massive nationwide protests and unrest break out in
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
over the sudden increase of
liquefied petroleum gas prices, leading to 238 people dead and thousands injured by January 11.
*
2024 – Two aircraft
collide on a runway at
Haneda Airport in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
, killing 5 and injuring 18.
Births
Pre-1600
*
869 –
Yōzei, Japanese emperor (died 949)
*
1462 –
Piero di Cosimo, Italian painter (died 1522)
*
1509 –
Henry of Stolberg, German nobleman (died 1572)
1601–1900
*
1642 –
Mehmed IV, Ottoman sultan (died 1693)
*
1647 –
Nathaniel Bacon, English-American rebel leader (died 1676)
*
1699 –
Osman III, Ottoman sultan (died 1757)
*
1713 –
Marie Dumesnil, French actress (died 1803)
*
1727 –
James Wolfe, English general (died 1759)
*
1732 –
František Brixi, Czech organist and composer (died 1771)
*
1777 –
Christian Daniel Rauch, German sculptor and educator (died 1857)
*
1803 –
Guglielmo Libri Carucci dalla Sommaja, Italian mathematician and academic (died 1869)
*
1822 –
Rudolf Clausius, Polish-German physicist and mathematician (died 1888)
*
1827 –
Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky, Russian geographer and statistician (died 1914)
*
1833 –
Frederick A. Johnson, American banker and politician (died 1893)
*
1836 –
Mendele Mocher Sforim, Russian author (died 1917)
* 1836 –
Queen Emma of Hawaii (died 1885)
*
1837 –
Mily Balakirev, Russian pianist and composer (died 1910)
*
1857 –
M. Carey Thomas, American educator and activist (died 1935)
*
1860 –
Dugald Campbell Patterson, Canadian engineer (died 1931)
* 1860 –
William Corless Mills, American historian and curator (died 1928)
*
1866 –
Gilbert Murray, Australian-English playwright and scholar (died 1957)
*
1870 –
Ernst Barlach, German sculptor and playwright (died 1938)
* 1870 –
Tex Rickard, American boxing promoter and businessman (died 1929)
*
1873 –
Antonie Pannekoek, Dutch astronomer and theorist (died 1960)
* 1873 –
Thérèse of Lisieux, French nun and saint (died 1897)
*
1878 –
Jaakko Mäki, Finnish politician (died 1938)
* 1878 –
Mannathu Padmanabha Pillai, Indian activist, founded the
Nair Service Society (died 1970)
*
1884 –
Ben-Zion Dinur, Russian-Israeli historian and politician, 4th
Israeli Minister of Education (died 1973)
*
1885 –
Gordon Flowerdew, Canadian lieutenant,
Victoria Cross recipient (died 1918)
*
1886 –
Apsley Cherry-Garrard, English explorer and author (died 1959)
*
1889 –
Bertram Stevens, Australian accountant and politician, 25th
Premier of New South Wales
The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster system, Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales actin ...
(died 1973)
*
1891 –
Giovanni Michelucci, Italian architect and urban planner, designed the
Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway station (died 1990)
*
1892 –
Seiichiro Kashio, Japanese tennis player (died 1962)
*
1895 –
Folke Bernadotte, Swedish diplomat (died 1948)
*
1896 –
Dziga Vertov, Polish-Russian director and screenwriter (died 1954)
* 1896 –
Lawrence Wackett, Australian commander and engineer (died 1982)
*
1897 –
Theodore Plucknett, English legal historian (died 1965)
*
1900 –
Una Ledingham, British physician, known for research on
diabetes in pregnancy (died 1965)
1901–present
*
1901 –
Bob Marshall, American activist, co-founded
The Wilderness Society (died 1939)
*
1902 –
Dan Keating,
Irish Republican Army volunteer (died 2007)
*
1903 –
Kane Tanaka, Japanese Supercentenarian, Oldest Japanese person ever, Second oldest verified person in world history (died 2022)
*
1904 –
Walter Heitler, German physicist and chemist (died 1981)
*
1905 –
Michael Tippett, English composer and conductor (died 1998)
* 1905 –
Luigi Zampa, Italian director and screenwriter (died 1991)
*
1909 –
Riccardo Cassin, Italian mountaineer and author (died 2009)
* 1909 –
Barry Goldwater, American politician, businessman, and author (died 1998)
*
1913 –
Juanita Jackson Mitchell, American lawyer and activist (died 1992)
* 1913 –
Anna Lee, English-American actress (died 2004)
*
1917 –
Vera Zorina, German-Norwegian actress and dancer (died 2003)
*
1918 –
Willi Graf, German physician and activist (died 1943)
*
1919 –
Ernest Bender, American Indologist (died 1996)
* 1919 –
Beatrice Hicks, American engineer (died 1979)
*
1920 (probable) –
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov ( ; – April 6, 1992) was an Russian-born American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. H ...
, American writer and professor of biochemistry (died 1992)
* 1920 –
Bob Feerick, American basketball player and coach (died 1976)
*
1921 –
Glen Harmon, Canadian ice hockey player (died 2007)
*
1926 –
Gino Marchetti, American football player (died 2019)
*
1928 –
Dan Rostenkowski, American politician (died 2010)
*
1929 –
Charles Beaumont, screenwriter and American author of speculative fiction (died 1967)
* 1929 –
Tellervo Koivisto, Finnish politician, former First Lady of Finland
*
1931 –
Toshiki Kaifu, Japanese lawyer and politician, 76th
Prime Minister of Japan (died 2022)
*
1934 –
John Hollowbread, English footballer, goalkeeper (died 2007)
*
1936 –
Roger Miller, American singer-songwriter, musician, and actor (died 1992)
*
1938
Events
January
* January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS).
* January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...
–
David Bailey, English photographer and painter
* 1938 –
Lynn Conway, American computer scientist and electrical engineer (died 2024)
* 1938 –
Robert Smithson, American sculptor and photographer (died 1973)
*
1940 –
Jim Bakker, American televangelist
* 1940 –
Saud bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Saudi Arabian economist and politician,
Saudi Arabian Minister of Foreign Affairs (died 2015)
*
1942 –
Thomas Hammarberg, Swedish lawyer and diplomat
* 1942 –
Dennis Hastert, American educator and politician, 59th
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
*
1943 –
Janet Akyüz Mattei, Turkish-American astronomer (died 2004)
*
1944 –
Charlie Davis, Trinidadian cricketer
* 1944 –
Péter Eötvös, Hungarian composer and conductor (died 2024)
* 1944 –
Norodom Ranariddh, Cambodian field marshal and politician, 1st
Prime Minister of Cambodia (died 2021)
* 1944 –
Mohamed Ali Yusuf, Somali politician (died 2024)
*
1947 –
Jack Hanna, American zoologist and author
* 1947 –
Calvin Hill, American football player
* 1947 –
David Shapiro, American poet, historian, and critic (died 2024)
*
1948 –
Judith Miller, American journalist
* 1948 –
Deborah Watling, English actress (died 2017)
*
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 2025
* January 2 – Luis ...
–
Christopher Durang, American playwright and screenwriter (died 2024)
* 1949 –
Iris Marion Young, American political scientist and academic (died 2006)
*
1952 –
Indulis Emsis, Latvian biologist and politician, 9th
Prime Minister of Latvia
* 1952 –
Wendy Phillips, American actress
*
1954 –
Henry Bonilla, American broadcaster and politician
* 1954 –
Évelyne Trouillot, Haitian playwright and author
*
1961 –
Gabrielle Carteris, American actress
* 1961 –
Paula Hamilton, English model
* 1961 –
Todd Haynes, American film director, screenwriter, and producer
* 1961 –
Craig James, American football player and sportscaster
* 1961 –
Robert Wexler, American lawyer and politician
*
1963 –
David Cone, American baseball player and sportscaster
* 1963 –
Edgar Martínez, American baseball player
*
1964 –
Chris Welp, German-American basketball player (died 2015)
* 1964 –
Pernell Whitaker, American boxer (died 2019)
*
1967 –
Francois Pienaar, South African rugby player
* 1967 –
Tia Carrere, American actress
* 1967 –
Jón Gnarr, Icelandic actor and politician; 20th
Mayor of Reykjavík
*
1968 –
Cuba Gooding, Jr., American actor and producer
* 1968 –
Anky van Grunsven, Dutch dressage champion
*
1969 –
István Bagyula, Hungarian pole vaulter
* 1969 –
William Fox-Pitt, English horse rider and journalist
* 1969 –
Róbert Švehla, Slovak ice hockey player
* 1969 –
Christy Turlington, American model
*
1970 –
Eric Whitacre, American composer and conductor
*
1971 –
Taye Diggs, American actor and singer
* 1971 –
Renée Elise Goldsberry, American actress
*
1972 –
Rodney MacDonald, Canadian educator and politician, 26th
Premier of Nova Scotia
* 1972 –
Shiraz Minwalla, Indian
theoretical physicist and
string theorist
* 1972 –
Mattias Norström, Swedish ice hockey player and manager
*
1974 –
Ludmila Formanová, Czech runner
* 1974 –
Juha Lind, Finnish ice hockey player
* 1974 –
Tomáš Řepka, Czech footballer
*
1975 –
Dax Shepard, American actor
* 1975 –
Jeff Suppan, American baseball player
* 1975 –
Reuben Thorne, New Zealand rugby player
*
1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
–
Paz Vega, Spanish actress
*
1977 –
Brian Boucher, American ice hockey player and sportscaster
* 1977 –
Stefan Koubek, Austrian tennis player
*
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
–
Jonathan Greening, English footballer
*
1980 –
David Gyasi, British actor
*
1981 –
Kirk Hinrich, American basketball player
* 1981 –
Maxi Rodríguez, Argentine footballer
*
1983 –
Kate Bosworth, American actress
* 1983 –
Anthony Carrigan, American actor
*
1987 –
Shelley Hennig, American actress and model
* 1987 –
Robert Milsom, English footballer
* 1987 –
Loïc Rémy, French footballer
*
1988 –
Germán Cano, Argentine footballer
* 1988 –
Luke Harangody, American basketball player
* 1988 –
Damien Tussac, French-German rugby player
*
1991 –
Ben Hardy, English actor
*
1992 –
Paulo Gazzaniga, Argentine footballer
* 1992 –
Alexey Marchenko, Russian ice hockey player
* 1992 –
Teemu Pulkkinen, Finnish ice hockey player
* 1992 –
Korbin Sims, Australian-Fijian rugby league player
*
1993 –
Bryson Tiller, American singer and rapper
*
1994 –
Ronald Darby, American football player
*
1996 –
Jonah Bolden, Australian-American basketball player
*
1997 –
Carlos Soler, Spanish footballer
*
1998 –
Tfue, American online streamer
* 1998 –
Timothy Fosu-Mensah, Dutch footballer
*
1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
–
Georgios Kalaitzakis, Greek basketball player
* 1999 –
Fernando Tatís Jr., Dominican baseball player
*
2000 –
Spencer Arrighetti, American baseball player
*
2001 –
Cole Caufield, American ice hockey player
* 2001 –
Luiz Henrique, Brazilian footballer
*
2006 –
Claudio Echeverri, Argentine footballer
Deaths
Pre-1600
*
951 –
Liu Chengyou, Emperor Yin of the
Later Han (born 931)
['' Old History of the Five Dynasties']
ch. 103.
/ref>
* 951 – Su Fengji, Chinese official and chancellor
* 1096 – William de St-Calais, Bishop of Durham and chief counsellor of William II of England
William II (; – 2 August 1100) was List of English monarchs, King of England from 26 September 1087 until his death in 1100, with powers over Duchy of Normandy, Normandy and influence in Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland. He was less successfu ...
* 1169 – Bertrand de Blanchefort, sixth Grand Master of the Knights Templar (born c. 1109)
* 1184 – Theodora Komnene, Duchess of Austria, daughter of Andronikos Komnenos
* 1298 – Lodomer, Hungarian prelate, Archbishop of Esztergom
* 1470 – Heinrich Reuß von Plauen, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order
*1512
Year 1512 (Roman numerals, MDXII) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 2 – Svante Nilsson (regent of Sweden), Svante Nilsson, regent of Sweden since 1504, dies at the a ...
– Svante Nilsson, Sweden politician (born 1460)
* 1514 – William Smyth, English bishop and academic (born 1460)
* 1543 – Francesco Canova da Milano, Italian composer (born 1497)
* 1557 – Pontormo, Italian painter and educator (born 1494)
* 1598 – Morris Kyffin, Welsh soldier and writer (born c.1555)
1601–1900
* 1613 – Salima Sultan Begum, Empress of the Mughal Empire (born 1539)
* 1614 – Luisa Carvajal y Mendoza, Spanish mystical poet and Catholic martyr (born 1566)
* 1726 – Domenico Zipoli, Italian organist and composer (born 1688)
* 1763 – John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, English statesman (born 1690)
* 1850 – Manuel de la Peña y Peña, Mexican lawyer and 20th President (1847) (born 1789)
* 1861 – Frederick William IV of Prussia (born 1795)
* 1892 – George Biddell Airy, English mathematician and astronomer (born 1801)
1901–present
* 1904 – James Longstreet, American general and diplomat (born 1821)
* 1913 – Léon Teisserenc de Bort, French meteorologist (born 1855)
* 1915 – Karl Goldmark, Hungarian violinist and composer (born 1830)
* 1917 – Léon Flameng, French cyclist (born 1877)
* 1920 – Paul Adam, French author (born 1862)
* 1924 – Sabine Baring-Gould, English author and scholar (born 1834)
* 1939 – Roman Dmowski, Polish politician, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs (born 1864)
* 1941 – Mischa Levitzki, Russian-American pianist and composer (born 1898)
*1946
1946 (Roman numerals, MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1946th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 946th year of the 2nd millennium, the 46th year of the 20th centur ...
– Joe Darling, Australian cricketer and politician (born 1870)
* 1950 – James Dooley, Irish-Australian politician, 21st Premier of New South Wales
The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster system, Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales actin ...
(born 1877)
* 1951 – William Campion, English colonel and politician, 21st Governor of Western Australia (born 1870)
* 1951 – Edith New, English militant suffragette (born 1877)
* 1953 – Guccio Gucci, Italian businessman and fashion designer, founder of Gucci (born 1881)
* 1960 – Paul Sauvé, Canadian lawyer and politician, 17th Premier of Quebec (born 1907)
* 1963 – Dick Powell, American actor, singer, and director (born 1904)
* 1963 – Jack Carson, Canadian-American actor (born 1910)
* 1974 – Tex Ritter, American actor (born 1905)
* 1975 – Siraj Sikder, Bangladesh revolutionary leader (born 1944)
* 1977 – Erroll Garner, American pianist and composer (born 1921)
* 1986 – Una Merkel, American actress (born 1903)
* 1987 – Harekrushna Mahatab, Indian journalist and politician, 1st Chief Minister of Odisha (born 1899)
* 1989 – Safdar Hashmi, Indian actor, director, and playwright (born 1954)
* 1990 – Alan Hale Jr., American film and television actor (born 1921)
* 1990 – Evangelos Averoff, Greek historian and politician, Greek Minister for National Defence (born 1910)
* 1994 – Dixy Lee Ray, American biologist and politician; 17th Governor of Washington (born 1914)
* 1994 – Pierre-Paul Schweitzer, French lawyer and businessman (born 1915)
* 1995 – Nancy Kelly, American actress (born 1921)
* 1995 – Siad Barre, Somalian general and politician; 3rd President of Somalia (born 1919)
*1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
– Rolf Liebermann, Swiss-French composer and manager (born 1910)
* 1999 – Sebastian Haffner, German journalist and author (born 1907)
* 1999 – Aaron Wiggins, American professional basketball player
* 2000 – Elmo Zumwalt, American admiral (born 1920)
* 2000 – Patrick O'Brian, English author and translator (born 1914)
* 2001 – William P. Rogers, American lieutenant, lawyer, and politician, 55th United States Secretary of State (born 1913)
* 2005 – Maclyn McCarty, American geneticist and physician (born 1911)
* 2006 – Cecilia Muñoz-Palma, Filipino lawyer and jurist (born 1913)
* 2006 – Osa Massen, Danish-American actress (born 1914)
* 2007 – A. Richard Newton, Australian-American engineer and academic (born 1951)
* 2007 – Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, American historian and author (born 1941)
* 2007 – Teddy Kollek, Hungarian-Israeli politician, Mayor of Jerusalem (born 1911)
* 2008 – George MacDonald Fraser, Scottish journalist and author (born 1925)
* 2008 – Lee S. Dreyfus, American politician, Governor of Wisconsin (born 1926)
*2009
2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
– Inger Christensen, Danish poet and author (born 1935)
* 2010 – David R. Ross, Scottish historian and author (born 1958)
*2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
– Anne Francis, American actress (born 1930)
* 2011 – Bali Ram Bhagat, Indian politician; 16th Governor of Rajasthan (born 1922)
* 2011 – Pete Postlethwaite, English actor (born 1946)
* 2012 – Gordon Hirabayashi, American-Canadian sociologist and academic (born 1918)
* 2012 – Silvana Gallardo, American actress and producer (born 1953)
* 2012 – William P. Carey, American businessman and philanthropist, founded W. P. Carey (born 1930)
* 2013 – Gerda Lerner, Austrian-American historian, author, and academic (born 1920)
* 2013 – Teresa Torańska, Polish journalist and author (born 1944)
* 2014 – Bernard Glasser, American director and producer (born 1924)
* 2014 – Elizabeth Jane Howard, English author and screenwriter (born 1923)
* 2015 – Tihomir Novakov, Serbian-American physicist and academic (born 1929)
* 2016 – Ardhendu Bhushan Bardhan, Indian lawyer and politician (born 1924)
* 2016 – Frances Cress Welsing, American psychiatrist and author (born 1935)
* 2016 – Nimr al-Nimr, Saudi Arabian religious leader (born 1959)
* 2016 – Gisela Mota Ocampo, mayor of Temixco, Morelos, Mexico, assassinated (born 1982)
* 2017 – Jean Vuarnet, French ski racer (born 1933)
* 2017 – John Berger
John Peter Berger ( ; 5 November 1926 – 2 January 2017) was an English art critic, novelist, painter and poet. His novel '' G.'' won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism '' Ways of Seeing'', written as an accompaniment to t ...
, English art critic, novelist and painter (born 1926)
* 2018 – Guida Maria, Portuguese actress (born 1950)
* 2018 – Thomas S. Monson, American religious leader, 16th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...
(born 1927)
* 2019 – Daryl Dragon, American musician (born 1942)
* 2019 – Bob Einstein, American actor and comedian (born 1942)
* 2019 – Gene Okerlund, American wrestling announcer (born 1942)
* 2025
So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...
– Ágnes Keleti, Hungarian Olympic gymnast (born 1921)
Holidays and observances
* Ancestry Day ( Haiti)
* Berchtold's Day (Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
)
*Christian feast day:
** Basil the Great (Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
and Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...
)
** Gregory of Nazianzus (Catholic Church)
** Macarius of Alexandria
** Seraphim of Sarov (Eastern Orthodox Church
The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...
)
** Vedanayagam Samuel Azariah ( Episcopal Church)
** January 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
*The Day after New Years Day is a Public Holiday in New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
* Kaapse Klopse (Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
, South Africa)
*The first day of Blacks and Whites' Carnival, celebrated until January 7 (Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
)
*The ninth of the Twelve Days of Christmas ( Western Christianity)
* The Second of January is a Bank Holiday in Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
References
External links
BBC: On This Day
*
Historical Events on January 2
{{months
Days of January