Events
Pre-1600
*
AD 69
AD 69 ( LXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 822 ''Ab urbe condita ...
–
Antonius Primus enters
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
to claim the title of
Emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...
for
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...
's former general
Vespasian
Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Emp ...
.
*
1192
Year 1192 ( MCXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar, the 1192nd year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 192nd year of the 2nd millennium, the 92nd year ...
–
Richard I of England
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Aquitaine and Duchy of Gascony, Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Co ...
is captured and imprisoned by
Leopold V of Austria on his way home to England after the
Third Crusade
The Third Crusade (1189–1192) was an attempt by three European monarchs of Western Christianity ( Philip II of France, Richard I of England and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor) to reconquer the Holy Land following the capture of Jerusalem by ...
.
*
1334 –
Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to:
Animals
* Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae
**''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...
Jacques Fournier, a
Cistercian
The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint B ...
monk, is elected
Pope Benedict XII
Pope Benedict XII ( la, Benedictus XII, french: Benoît XII; 1285 – 25 April 1342), born Jacques Fournier, was head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1334 to his death in April 1342. He was the third Avignon pope. Benedict was a careful ...
.
1601–1900
*
1803
Events
* January 1 – The first edition of Alexandre Balthazar Laurent Grimod de La Reynière's ''Almanach des gourmands'', the first guide to restaurant cooking, is published in Paris.
* January 5 – William Symington demonstrates his ...
– The
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or ap ...
is completed at a ceremony in
.
*
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 ...
–
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spai ...
: The
Siege of Zaragoza begins.
*
1832
Events
January–March
* January 6 – Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison founds the New-England Anti-Slavery Society.
* January 13 – The Christmas Rebellion of slaves is brought to an end in Jamaica, after the island's white plant ...
–
HMS ''Clio'' under the command of Captain Onslow arrives at
Port Egmont under orders to
take possession of the
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
.
*
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, Massachusetts ...
–
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
becomes the first state to attempt to
secede
Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics l ...
from the United States with the
South Carolina Declaration of Secession
The South Carolina Declaration of Secession, formally known as the Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union, was a proclamation issued on December 24, 1860, by the governm ...
.
1901–present
*
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 ...
–
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
: The last Australian troops are evacuated from
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles s ...
.
*
1917
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Fo ...
–
Cheka
The All-Russian Extraordinary Commission ( rus, Всероссийская чрезвычайная комиссия, r=Vserossiyskaya chrezvychaynaya komissiya, p=fsʲɪrɐˈsʲijskəjə tɕrʲɪzvɨˈtɕæjnəjə kɐˈmʲisʲɪjə), abbreviated ...
, the first
Soviet
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, ...
secret police force, is founded.
*
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 hold ...
–
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...
is released from
Landsberg Prison.
*
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 ...
–
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 ...
: First battle of the
American Volunteer Group
The American Volunteer Groups were volunteer air units organized by the United States government to aid the Nationalist government of China against Japan in the Second Sino-Japanese War. The only unit to actually see combat was the 1st AVG, po ...
, better known as the "
Flying Tigers
The First American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Republic of China Air Force, nicknamed the Flying Tigers, was formed to help oppose the Japanese invasion of China. Operating in 1941–1942, it was composed of pilots from the United States ...
", in
Kunming
Kunming (; ), also known as Yunnan-Fu, is the capital and largest city of Yunnan province, China. It is the political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province as well as the seat of the provincial government. The headquar ...
, China.
*
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 w ...
– World War II:
Japanese air forces bomb
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), 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 and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
.
*
1946
Events January
* January 6 - The first general election ever in Vietnam is held.
* January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into four occupation zones.
* January 10
** The ...
– ''
It's a Wonderful Life
''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American Christmas fantasy drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story and booklet ''The Greatest Gift'', which Philip Van Doren Stern self-published in 1943 and is in turn loos ...
'' premieres at the
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend, and ...
in
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
to mixed reviews
[1
/nowiki>">">[1/nowiki>*__1946___–_1946_Nankai_earthquake.html" ;"title="
/nowiki>.html" ;"title="">
[1
/nowiki>">">[1
/nowiki>* 1946 – 1946 Nankai earthquake">An earthquake in Nankaidō, Japan causes a tsunami which kills at least one thousand people and destroys 36,000 homes.
*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 ...
– Indonesian National Revolution: The Dutch military Operation Kraai, captures Yogyakarta, the temporary capital of the newly formed Republic of Indonesia.
*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 United ...
– The Experimental Breeder Reactor I, EBR-1 in Arco, Idaho
Arco is a city in Butte County, Idaho, Butte County, Idaho, United States. The population was 879 as of the 2020 United States census, down from 995 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Arco is the county seat and largest city in Butte ...
becomes the first nuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a generator that produces ...
to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.
*1952
Events January–February
* January 26 – 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, becomes m ...
– A United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...
C-124
The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shaky", is an American heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California.
The C-124 was the primary heavy-lift transport for United States Air Force (USAF ...
crashes and burns in Moses Lake, Washington
Moses Lake is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 25,146 as of the 2020 census. Moses Lake is the largest city in Grant County. The city anchors the Moses Lake Micropolitan area, which includes all of Grant C ...
, killing 87 of the 115 people on board.
*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 Yijian ...
– Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
is proclaimed the capital city of Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, United Kingdom.
*1957
1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...
– The initial production version of the Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is an American, long-range, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype first flown in 1954, the initial first flew on December 2 ...
makes its first flight.
*1967
Events
January
* January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair.
* January 5
** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
– A Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...
Budd Metroliner
The Budd Metroliner was a class of American electric multiple unit (EMU) railcar designed for first-class, high-speed service between New York City and Washington, D.C. on the Northeast Corridor. They were designed for operation up to : what wou ...
exceeds on their New York Division, also present-day Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...
's Northeast Corridor.
*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: ...
– Assassination of Luis Carrero Blanco
The assassination of Prime Minister Luis Carrero Blanco, also known by its code name Operación Ogro ( en, Operation Ogre), had far-reaching consequences within the politics of Spain. Admiral Carrero Blanco was killed in Madrid by the Basque se ...
: A car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
planted by ETA
Eta (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἦτα ''ē̂ta'' or ell, ήτα ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative in most dialects, ...
in Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
kills three people, including the Prime Minister of Spain
The prime minister of Spain, officially president of the Government ( es, link=no, Presidente del Gobierno), is the head of government of Spain. The office was established in its current form by the Constitution of 1978 and it was first regul ...
, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco
Admiral-General Luis Carrero Blanco (4 March 1904 – 20 December 1973) was a Spanish Navy officer and politician. A long-time confidant and right-hand man of dictator Francisco Franco, Carrero served as the Prime Minister of Spain and i ...
.
*1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
– The Summit Tunnel fire, one of the largest transportation tunnel fires in history, burns after a freight train
Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers.
A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) haul ...
carrying over one million liters of gasoline
Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic c ...
derails near the town of Todmorden
Todmorden ( ; ) is a market town and civil parish in the Upper Calder Valley in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England. It is north-east of Manchester, south-east of Burnley and west of Halifax. In 2011 it had a population of 15,481.
Todm ...
, England, in the Pennines
The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands running between three regions of Northern England: North West England on the west, North East England and Yorkshire and the Humber on the east. Common ...
.
* 1984 – Disappearance of Jonelle Matthews from Greeley, Colorado
Greeley is the home rule municipality city that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Weld County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,795 at the 2020 United States Census, an increase of 17.12% since the 201 ...
. Her remains were discovered on July 23, 2019, located about southeast of Jonelle's home. The cause of death "was a gunshot wound to the head."
*1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
– Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
announces the institution of World Youth Day
World Youth Day (WYD) is an event for young people organized by the Catholic Church that was initiated by Pope John Paul II in 1985, sometimes nicknamed in later years as the "Catholic Woodstock". Its concept has been influenced by the Light-L ...
.
*1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
– In the worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry ''Doña Paz
Don (; ; pt, Dom, links=no ; all from Latin ', roughly 'Lord'), abbreviated as D., is an honorific prefix primarily used in Spain and Hispanic America, and with different connotations also in Italy, Portugal and its former colonies, and Croat ...
'' sinks after colliding with the oil tanker MT ''Vector'' in the Tablas Strait
Tablas Strait ( fil, Kipot ng Tablas), also Tabuas Strait, is a strait in the Philippines separating Mindoro Island from Panay and Romblon islands. The approximate depth of the strait is .
The strait is known for being the place where the Sul ...
of the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).
*1989
File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...
– The United States invasion of Panama
The United States invasion of Panama, codenamed Operation Just Cause, lasted over a month between mid-December 1989 and late January 1990. It occurred during the administration of President George H. W. Bush and ten years after the Torrijos� ...
deposes Manuel Noriega
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno (; February 11, 1934 – May 29, 2017) was a Panamanian dictator, politician and military officer who was the ''de facto'' ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. An authoritarian ruler who amassed a personal f ...
.
*1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...
– A Missouri court sentences the Palestinian militant Zein Isa and his wife Maria to death for the honor killing of their daughter Palestina.
*1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...
– NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
begins peacekeeping in Bosnia
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and Pars pro toto#Geography, often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of Southern Europe, south and southeast Euro ...
.
* 1995 – American Airlines Flight 965
American Airlines Flight 965 was a regularly scheduled flight from Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. On December 20, 1995, the Boeing 757-200 flying this route ( r ...
, a Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the 727 (a trijet), received its first orders in August 1978.
The prototype completed its maid ...
, crashes into a mountain 50 km north of Cali
Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the second ...
, Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...
, killing 159 of the 163 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 shoot ...
– Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
is handed over to China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
by Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of th ...
.
*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 ...
– A gang of thieves steal £26.5 million worth of currency from the Donegall Square
Donegall Square is a square in the centre of Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. In the centre is Belfast City Hall, the headquarters of Belfast City Council. Each side of the square is named according to its geographical location, i.e. Do ...
West headquarters of Northern Bank
Northern Bank Limited T/A Danske Bank is a retail bank in Northern Ireland. Northern Bank is one of the oldest banks in Ireland having been formed in 1809, and forms part of one of the Big Four banks in Ireland. Northern Bank took on the name ...
in Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is #Descriptions, variously described as ...
, United Kingdom, one of the largest bank robberies
Bank robbery is the criminal act of stealing from a bank, specifically while bank employees and customers are subjected to force, violence, or a threat of violence. This refers to robbery of a bank branch or teller, as opposed to other bank- ...
in British history.
*2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...
– Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...
becomes the oldest monarch in the history of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
, who lived for 81 years and 243 days.
* 2007 – The '' Portrait of Suzanne Bloch'' (1904), by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso
Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
, and ''O Lavrador de Café'' by Brazilian modernist painter Cândido Portinari, are stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art
The São Paulo Museum of Art ( pt, Museu de Arte de São Paulo, or ') is an art museum located on Paulista Avenue in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. It is well known for its headquarters, a 1968 concrete and glass structure designed by Lina Bo ...
in Brazil. Both will be recovered a few weeks later.
*2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
– The United States Space Force
The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and the world's only independent space force. Along with its sister branch, the U.S. Air Force, the Space ...
becomes the first new branch of the United States Armed Forces since 1947.
Births
Pre-1600
* 1494 – Oronce Finé
Oronce Finé (or Fine; Latin: ''Orontius Finnaeus'' or ''Finaeus''; it, Oronzio Fineo; 20 December 1494 – 8 August 1555) was a French mathematician, cartographer, editor and book illustrator.
Life
Born in Briançon, the son and grandson of p ...
, French mathematician and cartographer (d. 1555)
* 1496 – Joseph ha-Kohen, historian and physician (d. 1575)
*1537
__NOTOC__
Year 1537 ( MDXXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January
** Bigod's Rebellion, an uprising by Roman Catholics against Henry ...
– John III, king of Sweden (d. 1592)
*1576
Year 1576 ( MDLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January 20 – Viceroy Martín Enríquez de Almanza founds the settlement of León ...
– John Sarkander
Jan Sarkander (Czech language, Czech and Polish language, Polish: ''Jan Sarkander'') (20 December 1576 – 17 March 1620) was a Poles, Polish-Czechs, Czech Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic priest. Sarkander was married for a short period of ti ...
, Moravian priest and saint (d. 1620)
1601–1900
*1626
Events
January–March
* January 7 – Polish-Swedish War: Battle of Wallhof in Latvia – Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, defeats a Polish army.
* January 9 – Peter Minuit sails from Texel Island for America's Ne ...
– Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff, German scholar and politician (d. 1692)
* 1629 – Pieter de Hooch
Pieter de Hooch (, also spelled "Hoogh" or "Hooghe"; 20 December 1629 (baptized) – 24 March 1684 (buried)) was a Dutch Golden Age painter famous for his genre works of quiet domestic scenes with an open doorway. He was a contemporary of ...
, Dutch painter (d. 1684)
*1641
Events
January–March
* January 4 – The stratovolcano Mount Parker in the Philippines) has a major eruption.
* January 18 – Pau Claris proclaims the Catalan Republic.
* February 16 – King Charles I of England gi ...
– Urban Hjärne
Urban Hjärne (20 December 1641 – 10 March 1724) was a Swedish chemist, geologist, physician and writer.
Biography
He was born at Skworitz near Nyenschantz in Swedish Ingria. He was the son of vicar Erlandus Jonæ Hiærne (1596–1654 ...
, Swedish chemist, geologist, and physician (d. 1724)
*1740
Events
January–March
* January 8 – All 237 crewmen on the Dutch East India Company ship '' Rooswijk'' are drowned, when the vessel strikes the shoals of Goodwin Sands, off of the coast of England, as it is beginning its secon ...
– Arthur Lee, American physician and diplomat (d. 1792)
* 1786 – Pietro Raimondi
Pietro Raimondi (December 20, 1786, Rome – October 30, 1853) was an Italian composer, transitional between the Classical and Romantic eras. While he was famous at the time as a composer of operas and sacred music, he was also as an innovat ...
, Italian composer (d. 1853)
*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.
* February ...
– Nicolas Toussaint Charlet, French painter and educator (d. 1845)
*1806
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The French Republican Calendar is abolished.
** The Kingdom of Bavaria is established by Napoleon.
* January 5 – The body of Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, lies in state in the Painted Hall ...
– Martín Carrera
Martín Carrera Sabat (20 December 1806 – 22 April 1871) was a Mexican general, senator, and interim president of the country for about a month in 1855. He was a moderate Liberal.
Martin Carrera was a Mexican soldier and politician who brief ...
, Mexican general and president (1855) (d. 1871)
*1812
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The ''Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch'' (the Austrian civil code) enters into force in the Austrian Empire.
* January 19 – Peninsular War: The French-held fortress of Ciudad Rodrigo is st ...
– Laura M. Hawley Thurston
Laura M. Thurston (, Hawley; pen name, Viola; December 20, 1812 – July 21, 1842) was an American poet and educator. A prolific writer, most of her works were originally published in the ''Louisville Journal'', and in William D. Gallagher's ''He ...
, American poet and educator (d. 1842)
*1838
Events
January–March
* January 10 – A fire destroys Lloyd's Coffee House and the Royal Exchange in London.
* January 11 – At Morristown, New Jersey, Samuel Morse, Alfred Vail and Leonard Gale give the first public demonstration o ...
– Edwin Abbott Abbott
Edwin Abbott Abbott (20 December 1838 – 12 October 1926) was an English schoolmaster, theologian, and Anglican priest, best known as the author of the novella ''Flatland'' (1884).
Biography
Edwin Abbott Abbott was the eldest son of ...
, English theologian, author, and educator (d. 1926)
* 1841 – Ferdinand Buisson
Ferdinand Édouard Buisson (20 December 1841 – 16 February 1932) was a French academic, educational bureaucrat, pacifist and Radical-Socialist (left liberal) politician. He presided over the League of Education from 1902 to 1906 and the Human R ...
, French academic and politician, 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." Alfr ...
laureate (d. 1932)
*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 stea ...
– Ferdinand Bonn
Ferdinand Bonn (20 December 1861 – 24 September 1933) was a German stage and film actor.
Bonn was born in Donauwörth, Bavaria, Germany and died at age 71 in Berlin.
Selected filmography
* ''Svengali'' (1914)
* ''The Silent Mill'' (1914)
* ' ...
, German actor (d. 1933)
* 1861 – Ivana Kobilca
Ivana Kobilca (20 December 1861 – 4 December 1926) is the most prominent Slovene female painter and a key figure of Slovene cultural identity. She was a realist painter who studied and worked in Vienna, Munich, Paris, Sarajevo, Berlin, and Lj ...
, Slovenian painter (d. 1926)
*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 ...
– Elsie de Wolfe, American actress and interior decorator (d. 1950)
*1868
Events
January–March
* January 2 – British Expedition to Abyssinia: Robert Napier leads an expedition to free captive British officials and missionaries.
* January 3 – The 15-year-old Mutsuhito, Emperor Meiji of Jap ...
– Harvey Samuel Firestone
Harvey Samuel Firestone (December 20, 1868 – February 7, 1938) was an American businessman, and the founder of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, one of the first global makers of automobile tires.
Family background
Firestone was born ...
, American businessman, founded the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
Firestone Tire and Rubber Company is a tire company founded by Harvey Firestone (1868–1938) in 1900 initially to supply solid rubber side-wire tires for fire apparatus, and later, pneumatic tires for wagons, buggies, and other forms of wheele ...
(d. 1938)
*1869
Events
January–March
* January 3 – Abdur Rahman Khan is defeated at Tinah Khan, and exiled from Afghanistan.
* January 5 – Scotland's oldest professional Soccer, football team, Kilmarnock F.C., is founded.
* January 20 & ...
– Charley Grapewin
Charles Ellsworth Grapewin (December 20, 1869 – February 2, 1956) was an American vaudeville and circus performer, a writer, and a stage and film actor. He worked in over 100 motion pictures during the silent and sound eras, most notably port ...
, American actor (d. 1956)
*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 ...
– Henry Kimball Hadley
Henry Kimball Hadley (20 December 1871 – 6 September 1937) was an American composer and conductor.''Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'', 8th edition, p. 692
Early life
Hadley was born in Somerville, Massachusetts, to a musical ...
, American composer and conductor (d. 1937)
*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 defe ...
– Kan'ichi Asakawa
was a Japanese academic, author, historian, curator and peace advocate. Asakawa was Japanese by birth and citizenship, but he lived the majority of his life in the United States.
Early life and education
Asakawa was born in Nihonmatsu, Japan ...
, Japanese historian, author, and academic (d. 1948)
* 1873 – Mehmet Akif Ersoy
Mehmet Akif Ersoy (20 December 1873 – 27 December 1936) was a Turkish pan-Islamist poet, writer, academic, politician, and the author of the Turkish National Anthem. Widely regarded as one of the premiere literary minds of his time, Ersoy i ...
, Turkish poet, academic, and politician (d. 1936)
*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 ...
– Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey (December 20, 1881 – December 9, 1965) was an American baseball player and sports executive. Rickey was instrumental in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier by signing black player Jackie Robinson. He also creat ...
, American baseball player and manager (d. 1965)
*1886
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Upper Burma is formally annexed to British Burma, following its conquest in the Third Anglo-Burmese War of November 1885.
* January 5– 9 – Robert Louis Stevenson's novella ''Strange ...
– Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman
Hazel Virginia Hotchkiss Wightman, CBE (née Hotchkiss; December 20, 1886 – December 5, 1974) was an American tennis player and founder of the Wightman Cup, an annual team competition for British and American women. She dominated American wo ...
, American tennis player and businessman (d. 1974)
*1888
In Germany, 1888 is known as the Year of the Three Emperors. Currently, it is the year that, when written in Roman numerals, has the most digits (13). The next year that also has 13 digits is the year 2388. The record will be surpassed as late ...
– Yitzhak Baer
Yitzhak Baer ( he, יצחק בער; 20 December 1888 – 22 January 1980) was a German-Israeli historian and an expert on medieval Spanish Jewish history.
Early life
Baer was born in Halberstadt in the Prussian Province of Saxony, Germany, in 1 ...
, German-Israeli historian and academic (d. 1980)
* 1888 – Fred Merkle
Carl Frederick Rudolf Merkle (also sometimes documented as Frederick Charles Merkle; December 20, 1888 – March 2, 1956), nicknamed "Bonehead", was an American first baseman in Major League Baseball from 1907 to 1926. Although he had a lengthy c ...
, American baseball player and manager (d. 1956)
*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 '' ...
– Yvonne Arnaud, French pianist, actress and singer (d. 1958)
* 1890 – Jaroslav Heyrovský
Jaroslav Heyrovský () (December 20, 1890 – March 27, 1967) was a Czech chemist and inventor. Heyrovský was the inventor of the polarographic method, father of the electroanalytical method, and recipient of the Nobel Prize in 1959 for his ...
, Czech chemist 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." Alfr ...
laureate (d. 1967)
*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 Af ...
– Erik Almlöf, Swedish triple jumper (d. 1971)
*1894
Events January–March
* January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire.
* January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...
– Robert Menzies
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
, Australian lawyer and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Australia
The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the princip ...
(d. 1978)
*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 ...
– Konstantinos Dovas
Konstantinos Dovas ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Δόβας; 20 December 1898 – 1973) was a Greek general and interim List of Prime Ministers of Greece, Prime Minister.
Dovas was born in Konitsa, in the Janina Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire ( ...
, Greek general and politician, 156th Prime Minister of Greece
The prime minister of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρωθυπουργός της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Prothypourgós tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), colloquially referred to as the prime minister of Greece ( el, Πρωθυ� ...
(d. 1973)
* 1898 – Irene Dunne
Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...
, American actress and singer (d. 1990)
*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 ...
– Martyn Lloyd-Jones
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899–1981) was a Welsh Protestant minister and medical doctor who was influential in the Calvinist wing of the British evangelical movement in the 20th century. For almost 30 years, he was the minister of Westminste ...
, Welsh preacher and physician (d. 1981)
*1900
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), 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 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...
– Lissy Arna
Lissy Arna (born Elisabeth Arndt, 20 December 1900 – 22 January 1964) was a German film actress. She appeared in 63 films between 1918 and 1962. She starred in the 1931 film '' The Squeaker'', which was directed by Martin Frič and Karel ...
, German film actress (d. 1964)
1901–present
*1901
Events
January
* January 1 – The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton becomes the first Prime Minist ...
– Robert J. Van de Graaff, American physicist and academic, invented the Van de Graaff generator
A Van de Graaff generator is an electrostatic generator which uses a moving belt to accumulate electric charge on a hollow metal globe on the top of an insulated column, creating very high electric potentials. It produces very high voltage
...
(d. 1967)
*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' ...
– Prince George, Duke of Kent
Prince George, Duke of Kent, (George Edward Alexander Edmund; 20 December 1902 – 25 August 1942) was a member of the British royal family, the fourth son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was a younger brother of kings Edward VIII and Geo ...
(d. 1942)
* 1902 – Sidney Hook
Sidney Hook (December 20, 1902 – July 12, 1989) was an American philosopher of pragmatism known for his contributions to the philosophy of history, the philosophy of education, political theory, and ethics. After embracing communism in his you ...
, American philosopher and author (d. 1989)
*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 syst ...
– Spud Davis
Virgil Lawrence "Spud" Davis (December 20, 1904 – August 14, 1984) was an American professional baseball player, coach, scout and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Cinc ...
, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1984)
* 1904 – Yevgenia Ginzburg
Yevgenia Solomonovna Ginzburg (December 20, 1904 – May 25, 1977) (russian: Евге́ния Соломо́новна Ги́нзбург) was a Soviet writer who served an 18-year sentence in the Gulag. Her given name is often Latinized to Eugenia ...
, Russian author (d. 1977)
*1905
As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia ( Shostakovich's 11th Symphony ...
– Bill O'Reilly, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (d. 1992)
*1907
Events
January
* January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000.
February
* February 11 – The French warship ''Jean Bart'' sinks off the coast of Morocco ...
– Paul Francis Webster
Paul Francis Webster (December 20, 1907 – March 18, 1984) was an American lyricist who won three Academy Awards for Best Original Song, and was nominated sixteen times for the award.
Life and career
Webster was born in New York City, United St ...
, American soldier and songwriter (d. 1984)
* 1908 – Dennis Morgan
Dennis Morgan (born Earl Stanley Morner, December 20, 1908 – September 7, 1994) was an American actor-singer. He used the acting pseudonym Richard Stanley before adopting the name under which he gained his greatest fame.
According to one obi ...
, American actor and singer (d. 1994)
*1909
Events
January–February
* January 4 – Explorer Aeneas Mackintosh of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition escaped death by fleeing across ice floes.
* January 7 – Colombia recognizes the independence of Panama.
* Jan ...
– Vakkom Majeed
Vakkom Majeed (born S. Abdul Majeed; 20 December 1909 – 10 July 2000) was an Indian freedom fighter, politician and a former member of the Travancore-Cochin State Assembly.Pg 20, Who is who of freedom fighters in Kerala – K. Karunakaran Na ...
, Indian journalist and politician (d. 2000)
*1911
A notable ongoing event was the race for the South Pole.
Events January
* January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are added to the Commonwealth of Australia.
* ...
– Hortense Calisher
Hortense Calisher (December 20, 1911 – January 13, 2009) was an American writer of fiction and the second female president of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
Biography Personal life
Born in New York City, and a graduate of Hunter Co ...
, American author (d. 2009)
*1914
This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...
– Harry F. Byrd Jr., American lieutenant, publisher, and politician (d. 2013)
*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 ...
– Aziz Nesin
Aziz Nesin (; born Mehmet Nusret, 20 December 1915 – 6 July 1995) was a Turkish writer, humorist and the author of more than 100 books. Born in a time when Turks did not have official surnames, he had to adopt one after the Surname Law of ...
, Turkish author and poet (d. 1995)
*1916
Events
Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 1 – The British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that had been stored and cooled.
* J ...
– Michel Chartrand
Michel Chartrand (20 December 1916 – 12 April 2010) was a Canadian trade union leader from Quebec.
Born in Outremont and trained as a typography and print worker, Chartrand became involved in union activism in the 1940s. During the '' Grande ...
, Canadian trade union leader and activist (d. 2010)
*1917
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Fo ...
– David Bohm
David Joseph Bohm (; 20 December 1917 – 27 October 1992) was an American-Brazilian-British scientist who has been described as one of the most significant theoretical physicists of the 20th centuryPeat 1997, pp. 316-317 and who contributed ...
, American-English physicist, neuropsychologist, and philosopher (d. 1992)
* 1917 – Cahit Külebi
Cahit Külebi (20 December 1917, Tokat – 20 June 1997 Ankara) was a leading Turkish poet and author. He has an important place in contemporary Turkish poetry due to his attachment to folk poetry traditions. His poetry is enriched with simple ye ...
, Turkish poet and author (d. 1997)
* 1917 – Audrey Totter
Audrey Mary Totter (December 20, 1917 – December 12, 2013) was an American radio, film, and television actress and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player in the 1940s.
Early life
Audrey – some sources indicate "Audra" – Totter w ...
, American actress (d. 2013)
*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 even ...
– Jean Marchand, Canadian trade union leader and politician, 43rd Secretary of State for Canada
The Secretary of State for Canada, established in 1867 with a corresponding department, was a Canadian Cabinet position that served as the official channel of communication between the Dominion of Canada and the Imperial government in London. Scot ...
(d. 1988)
*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 ma ...
– Väinö Linna
Väinö Linna (; 20 December 1920 – 21 April 1992) was a Finnish author. He gained literary fame with his third novel, ''Tuntematon sotilas'' ( ''The Unknown Soldier'', published in 1954), and consolidated his position with the trilogy ''Tää ...
, Finnish author (d. 1992)
*1921
Events
January
* January 2
** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in Brazil.
** The Spanish liner ''Santa Isabel'' breaks ...
– George Roy Hill
George Roy Hill (December 20, 1921 – December 27, 2002) was an American film director. He is most noted for directing such films as ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' (1969) and ''The Sting'' (1973), both starring Paul Newman and Robert Re ...
, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
* 1922 – Beverly Pepper
Beverly Pepper (née Stoll; December 20, 1922 – February 5, 2020) was an American sculptor known for her monumental works, site specific and land art. She remained independent from any particular art movement. She lived in Italy, primarily in ...
, American sculptor and painter (d. 2020)
*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 hold ...
– Charlie Callas
Charlie Callas (born Charles Callias; December 20, 1924 – January 27, 2011) was an American actor and comedian. He was most commonly known for his work with Mel Brooks, Jerry Lewis, and Dean Martin, and his many stand-up appearances on tele ...
, American actor and comedian (d. 2011)
* 1924 – Judy LaMarsh
Julia Verlyn LaMarsh, (December 20, 1924 – October 27, 1980) was a Canadian politician, lawyer, author and broadcaster. In 1963, she was only the second woman to ever serve as a federal Cabinet Minister. Under Prime Minister Lester Pearson's ...
, Canadian soldier, lawyer, and politician, 42nd Secretary of State for Canada
The Secretary of State for Canada, established in 1867 with a corresponding department, was a Canadian Cabinet position that served as the official channel of communication between the Dominion of Canada and the Imperial government in London. Scot ...
(d. 1980)
*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 Itali ...
– Benito Lorenzi
Benito "Veleno" Lorenzi (; 20 December 1925 – 3 March 2007) was an Italian footballer born in Borgo a Buggiano, province of Pistoia. He played as a striker.
Club career
Throughout his career (1947–1960), Lorenzi played with Italian clubs I ...
, Italian footballer (d. 2007)
*1926
Events January
* January 3 – Theodoros Pangalos declares himself dictator in Greece.
* January 8
**Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz.
** Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuy ascends the throne, the last monarch of Viet ...
– Geoffrey Howe
Richard Edward Geoffrey Howe, Baron Howe of Aberavon, (20 December 1926 – 9 October 2015) was a British Conservative politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1989 to 1990.
Howe was Margaret Thatch ...
, Welsh lawyer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom is a minister of the Crown and a member of the British Cabinet. The office is not always in use, and prime ministers may use other offices, such as First Secretary of State, to indicate the se ...
(d. 2015)
* 1926 – Otto Graf Lambsdorff
Otto Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von der Wenge Graf Lambsdorff, known as Otto Graf Lambsdorff (20 December 1926 – 5 December 2009), was a German politician of the Free Democratic Party (FDP).
Early life and education
Lambsdorff was bo ...
, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of Economics (d. 2009)
*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
...
– Michael Beaumont, 22nd Seigneur of Sark
Seigneur John Michael Beaumont (20 December 1927 – 3 July 2016) was the twenty-second Seigneur of Sark in the Channel Islands. He worked as a civil engineer before succeeding his paternal grandmother, Sibyl Hathaway, the 21st Dame of Sar ...
, English engineer and politician (d. 2016)
* 1927 – Jim Simpson, American sportscaster (d. 2016)
* 1927 – Kim Young-sam
Kim Young-sam (; or ; 20 December 1927 – 22 November 2015) was a South Korean politician and activist who served as the seventh president of South Korea from 1993 to 1998.
From 1961, he spent almost 30 years as one of the leaders of t ...
, South Korean soldier and politician, 7th President of South Korea
The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (often abbreviated to POTROK or POSK; ), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Korea. The president leads the State Council, and ...
(d. 2015)
*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 ...
– Mala Powers
Mary Ellen "Mala" Powers (December 20, 1931 – June 11, 2007) was an American actress.
Early life
Powers was born in San Francisco, California, and raised in Los Angeles. Her father was a United Press executive, while her mother was a minister. ...
, American actress (d. 2007)
*1932
Events January
* January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel.
* January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hir ...
– John Hillerman
John Benedict Hillerman (December 20, 1932 – November 9, 2017) was an American actor best known for his starring role as Jonathan Quayle Higgins III on the television series '' Magnum, P.I.'' that aired from 1980 to 1988. For his role as ...
, American actor (d. 2017)
*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 ...
– Jean Carnahan
Jean Anne Carnahan (née Carpenter; born December 20, 1933) is an American politician and writer who was the First Lady of Missouri from 1993 to 2000, and served as the state's junior United States senator from 2001 to 2002. A Democrat, she was ...
, American author and politician
* 1933 – Olavi Salonen
Olavi Salonen (born 20 December 1933 in Noormarkku) is a Finnish athlete. He is a former world record holder of men's 1500-metre run.
Biography
Salonen participated the Summer Olympic Games in 1500 m. in 1960 and 1964. At the European Athleti ...
, Finnish runner
* 1933 – Rik Van Looy
Henri "Rik" Van Looy (born 20 December 1933 in Grobbendonk) is a Belgian former professional cyclist of the post- war period, nicknamed the ''King of the Classics'' or ''Emperor of Herentals'' (after the small Belgian city where he lived). He ...
, Belgian cyclist
*1935
Events
January
* January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims.
* January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...
– Khalid Ibadulla, Pakistani cricketer and sportscaster
*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 forbidden to ...
– Kathryn Joosten
Kathryn Joosten (born Kathryn Rausch; December 20, 1939 – June 2, 2012) was an American actress. Her best known roles include Dolores Landingham on NBC's '' The West Wing'' from 1999 to 2002 and Karen McCluskey on ABC's '' Desperate Housewives' ...
, American actress (d. 2012)
* 1939 – Kim Weston, American soul singer
*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 w ...
– Rana Bhagwandas
Rana Bhagwandas (20 December 1942 – 23 February 2015) was a Pakistani jurist who served as a senior judge and acting chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan (CJP). He enjoyed extremely high reputation as a judge. He remained the acting ...
, Pakistani lawyer and judge, Chief Justice of Pakistan
}
The Chief Justice of Pakistan (Urdu: ) ( initials as CJP) is head of the court system of Pakistan (the judicature branch of government) and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The officeholder is the senior most of 17 senior ...
(d. 2015)
* 1942 – Bob Hayes
Robert Lee Hayes (December 20, 1942 – September 18, 2002), nicknamed "Bullet Bob", was an Olympic gold medalist sprinter who then became an American football split end in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys (for 11 seasons). ...
, American sprinter and football player (d. 2002)
* 1942 – Jean-Claude Trichet
Jean-Claude Trichet (; born 20 December 1942) is a French economist who served as President of the European Central Bank from 2003 to 2011. Previous to his assumption of the presidency he served as Governor of the Bank of France from 1993 to 2003 ...
, French banker and economist
*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 ...
– Ray Martin, Australian television host and journalist
*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 weapon, nuclear weapons Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, have been used in combat.
Events
Below, ...
– Peter Criss
George Peter John Criscuola (born December 20, 1945), better known by his stage name Peter Criss, is a retired American musician, best known as a co-founder, original drummer, and vocalist of the hard rock band Kiss. Criss established The Ca ...
, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer
* 1945 – Sivakant Tiwari
Sivakant Tiwari, P.P.A.(E.), P.B.S., P.P.A.(E.)(L.), P.J.G. (20 December 1945 – 26 July 2010), known professionally as S. Tiwari, was a senior legal officer of the Singapore Legal Service. He was educated at the University of Singapore, gra ...
, Indian-Singaporean lawyer and author (d. 2010)
*1946
Events January
* January 6 - The first general election ever in Vietnam is held.
* January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into four occupation zones.
* January 10
** The ...
– Uri Geller
Uri Geller ( ; he, אורי גלר; born 20 December 1946) is an Israeli-British illusionist, magician, television personality, and self-proclaimed psychic. He is known for his trademark television performances of spoon bending and other i ...
, Israeli-English magician and psychic
* 1946 – Dick Wolf
Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American film and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. He is al ...
, American director, producer, and screenwriter
*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 country i ...
– Gigliola Cinquetti
Gigliola Cinquetti (; born Giliola Cinquetti on 20 December 1947) is an Italian singer, songwriter, and television presenter.
Life and career
Gigliola Cinquetti was born into a wealthy family in Verona. From the ages of 9 to 13, she studied and ...
, Italian singer-songwriter
*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 ...
– Alan Parsons
Alan Parsons (born 20 December 1948) is an English audio engineer, songwriter, musician and record producer.
Parsons was involved with the production of several notable albums, including the Beatles' ''Abbey Road'' (1969) and ''Let It Be'' ( ...
, English keyboard player and producer
* 1948 – Mitsuko Uchida, Japanese pianist
*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 – Luis ...
– Soumaïla Cissé
Soumaïla Cissé (20 December 1949 – 25 December 2020) was a Malian politician who served in the government of Mali as Minister of Finance from 1993 to 2000. He thrice stood unsuccessfully as a presidential candidate, in 2002, 2013 and 2018; on ...
, Malian engineer and politician
*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 ...
– Arturo Márquez
Arturo Márquez Navarro (born 20 December 1950) is a Mexican composer of orchestral music who uses musical forms and styles of his native Mexico and incorporates them into his compositions.
Life
Márquez was born in Álamos, Sonora, in 1950 wher ...
, Mexican-American composer
*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 United ...
– Nuala O'Loan, Baroness O'Loan
Nuala Patricia O'Loan, Baroness O'Loan, (born 20 December 1951), known between 2007 and 2009 as Dame Nuala O'Loan, is a noted public figure in Northern Ireland. She was the first Police Ombudsman from 1999 to 2007. In July 2009, it was announc ...
, Northern Irish academic and police ombudsman
* 1951 – Marta Russell, American author and activist (d. 2013)
*1952
Events January–February
* January 26 – 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, becomes m ...
– Jenny Agutter
Jennifer Ann Agutter (born 20 December 1952) is a British actress. She began her career as a child actress in 1964, appearing in '' East of Sudan'', ''Star!'', and two adaptations of '' The Railway Children''—the BBC's 1968 television seria ...
, English actress
*1954
Events
January
* January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany.
* January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting.
* January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...
– Michael Badalucco
Michael Badalucco (born December 20, 1954) is an American actor. He made his screen debut in the film ''Raging Bull'' (1980) and subsequently appeared in many films such as ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' (1985), '' Miller's Crossing'' (1990), ''Ju ...
, American actor
* 1954 – Sandra Cisneros
Sandra Cisneros (born December 20, 1954) is an American writer. She is best known for her first novel, ''The House on Mango Street'' (1983), and her subsequent short story collection, '' Woman Hollering Creek and Other Stories'' (1991). Her work e ...
, American author and poet
*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 Yijian ...
– David Breashears
David Finlay Breashears (born December 20, 1955) is an American mountaineer, filmmaker, author, and motivational speaker. In 1985, he reached the summit of Mount Everest a second time, becoming the first American to reach the summit of Mount Evere ...
, American mountaineer, director, and producer
* 1955 – Binali Yıldırım
Binali Yıldırım (; born 20 December 1955) is a Turkish politician who served as the 27th and last Prime Minister of Turkey from 2016 to 2018 and Speaker of the Grand National Assembly from 2018 to 2019. He was Leader of the Justice and Deve ...
, Turkish lawyer and politician, Turkish Minister of Transport
* 1955 – Martin Schulz
Martin Schulz (born 20 December 1955) is a German politician who served as Leader of the Social Democratic Party from 2017 to 2018, and was a Member of the Bundestag (MdB) from 2017 to 2021. Previously he was President of the European Parliam ...
, German politician
*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 ...
– Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, Mauritanian general and politician, President of Mauritania
This is a list of heads of state of Mauritania since the country gained independence from France in 1960 to the present day.
A total of nine people have served as head of state of Mauritania (not counting one Acting President). Additionally, o ...
* 1956 – Guy Babylon
Guy Babylon (December 20, 1956 – September 2, 2009) was an American keyboardist/composer, most noted for his work with Elton John.
Babylon was born in New Windsor, Maryland. He attended Francis Scott Key High School before moving on to the ...
, American keyboard player and songwriter (d. 2009)
* 1956 – Blanche Baker
Blanche Baker (born December 20, 1956) is an American actress and filmmaker. She won an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work in the television mini-series ''Holocaust''. Baker is known for her role as Ginny Baker in ''Sixteen Can ...
, American actress and screenwriter
* 1956 – Junji Hirata
(born December 20, 1956) is a retired Japanese professional wrestler currently working as a trainer for the New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) promotion, known primarily by his ring name .
Career
Hirata applied and was approved to the New Japan do ...
, Japanese wrestler
* 1956 – Andrew Mackenzie, Scottish geologist and businessman
* 1956 – Anita Ward
Anita Ward (born December 20, 1956 or 1957) (sources differ) is an American singer and musician from Memphis, Tennessee. Beginning her professional music career in the late 1970s, Ward is best known for her 1979 million-selling chart-topper R&B/ ...
, American disco/R&B singer
*1957
1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...
– Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg (born 20 December 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, with lyrics that mostly span political or romantic themes. His music i ...
, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1957 – Anna Vissi
Anna Vissi ( el, Άννα Βίσση, , ; born 20 December 1957), is a Greek Cypriot singer and songwriter. She studied music at conservatories and performed locally before moving to the professional scene in Athens, in 1973, where she signed ...
, Cypriot singer-songwriter and actress
* 1957 – Mike Watt
Michael David Watt (born December 20, 1957) is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter.
Watt co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo ...
, American singer-songwriter and bass player
*1958
Events
January
* January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being.
* January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
* January 4
** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...
– Doug Nordquist, American high jumper
* 1958 – James Thomson, American biologist and academic
*1959
Events January
* January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
– George Coupland, Scottish scientist
* 1959 – Hildegard Körner
Hildegard Körner, née Ullrich (born 20 December 1959 in Urnshausen) is a retired East German middle distance runner who specialized in the 800 metres
The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the short ...
, German runner
* 1959 – Jackie Fox
Jacqueline Louise Fuchs (born December 20, 1959) is an American attorney and former musician. Under her stage name Jackie Fox, she played bass guitar for the pioneering all-girl teenage rock band The Runaways. She is the sister of screenwrit ...
, American bass player
* 1959 – Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz
Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz (; born 20 December 1959) is a Polish conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of Poland from 31 October 2005 to 14 July 2006. He was a member of the Law and Justice party (''Prawo i Sprawiedliwość'', PiS).
...
, Polish physicist and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Poland
The President of the Council of Ministers ( pl, Prezes Rady Ministrów, lit=Chairman of the Council of Ministers), colloquially referred to as the prime minister (), is the head of the cabinet and the head of government of Poland. The responsibi ...
* 1959 – Trent Tucker
Kelvin Trent Tucker (born December 20, 1959) is an American retired professional basketball player who played eleven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
A shooting guard, Tucker attended the University of Minnesota from 1978 to ...
, American basketball player and sportscaster
*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
* Ja ...
– Nalo Hopkinson, Jamaican-Canadian author and educator
* 1960 – Kim Ki-duk
Kim Ki-duk ( ; 20 December 196011 December 2020) was a South Korean film director and screenwriter, noted for his idiosyncratic art-house cinematic works. His films have received many distinctions in the festival circuit, rendering him one of ...
, South Korean director, producer, and screenwriter
*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 (K ...
– Mohammad Fouad
Mohamed Fouad Abd El Hamid Hassan ( ar, محمد فؤاد عبد الحميد حسن; born December 20, 1961) is an Egyptian singer, actor and songwriter. He filmed his first television series "Agla Min Hayaty" in 2010, and hosted the television ...
, Egyptian singer-songwriter and actor
* 1961 – Mike Keneally
Michael Joseph Keneally (born December 20, 1961) is an American session guitarist, keyboardist, vocalist and composer.
Early years and musical influences
Keneally started playing music at the age of 7 when he received an electric organ for h ...
, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1961 – Freddie Spencer
Frederick Burdette Spencer (born December 20, 1961), sometimes known by the nickname Fast Freddie, is an American former world champion motorcycle racer. Spencer is regarded as one of the greatest motorcycle racers of the early 1980s.
Motorcycle ...
, American motorcycle racer
*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 ...
– Mark Coleman
Mark Daniel Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first UFC Heavyweight Champion, and the Pride Fig ...
, American mixed martial artist and wrestler
*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 sworn in for a full term ...
– Rich Gannon
Richard Joseph Gannon (born December 20, 1965) is an American former football quarterback who played 18 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Subsequently, he was a sports commentator with CBS Sports for 16 years.
Gannon was born in ...
, American football player and sportscaster
*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 ...
– Matt Neal
Matthew Neal (born 20 December 1966) is a British motor racing driver. Neal is a triple BTCC Champion having won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. Neal is also a record 6 time BTCC Independents Champion having won the ...
, English racing driver
* 1966 – Veronica Pershina, Russian-American figure skater and coach
* 1966 – Chris Robinson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
*1968
The year was highlighted by 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 Czechoslovakia.
* J ...
– Joe Cornish, English actor, director, and screenwriter
* 1968 – Karl Wendlinger
Karl Wendlinger (born 20 December 1968) is an Austrian professional racing and former Formula One driver.
Mercedes Juniors
Born in Kufstein, Wendlinger started his career in karting and in Formula Ford before entering the German Formula 3 C ...
, Austrian racing driver
*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 ...
– Alain de Botton
Alain de Botton (; born 20 December 1969) is a Swiss-born British author and philosopher. His books discuss various contemporary subjects and themes, emphasizing philosophy's relevance to everyday life. He published ''Essays in Love'' (1993) ...
, Swiss-English philosopher and author
* 1969 – Zahra Ouaziz
Zahra Ouaziz ( ar, زهرة واعزيز) (born December 20, 1969 in Oulmes) is a retired Moroccan long-distance runner. She was the African record holder at 3000 metres and 5000 metres.
Career
Ouaziz broke the 5000 metres African Record in 1 ...
, Moroccan runner
*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 ...
– Grant Flower
Grant William Flower (born 20 December 1970) is a Zimbabwean cricket coach and former cricketer. He is the current batting coach of Sri Lanka cricket team and Sussex.
He is rated among the best Zimbabwean cricketers in history for his consistent ...
, Zimbabwean cricketer and coach
* 1970 – Jörg Schmidt, German footballer
*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 mean solar tim ...
– Anders Odden, Norwegian guitarist, songwriter, and producer
* 1972 – Anja Rücker, German sprinter
*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: ...
– David Nedohin
David Nedohin (born December 20, 1973) is a Canadian curler. Nedohin was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and now plays out of Sherwood Park, Alberta. He is best known as the longtime fourth for Randy Ferbey.
Curling career
Nedohin joined the Randy F ...
, Canadian curler and sportscaster
*1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
– Die
Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life.
Die may also refer to:
Games
* Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers
Manufacturing
* Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...
, Japanese guitarist, songwriter, and producer
*1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
– Bartosz Bosacki
Bartosz Bosacki (born 20 December 1975) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.
International career
On 22 May 2006, Paweł Janas called up Bosacki for the 2006 World Cup as a replacement for Damian Gorawski, af ...
, Polish footballer
*1976
Events January
* January 3 – 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 11 – The 1976 ...
– Nenad Vučković, Croatian footballer
*1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government).
* January 6 ...
– Andrei Markov, Russian-Canadian ice hockey player
* 1978 – Geremi Njitap
Geremi Sorele Njitap Fotso (born 20 December 1978), known simply as Geremi, is a Cameroonian former footballer. He was a versatile player able to play at right back, right midfield or defensive midfielder, known for his power, pace, combative ...
, Cameroon footballer
* 1978 – Bouabdellah Tahri, French runner
* 1978 – Yoon Kye-sang, South Korean singer
*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 so ...
– Michael Rogers, Australian cyclist
*1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC.
* January 9 ...
– Israel Castro, Mexican footballer
* 1980 – Ashley Cole, English footballer
* 1980 – Anthony da Silva, French-Portuguese footballer
* 1980 – Martín Demichelis, Argentinian footballer
*1982 – Mohammad Asif (cricketer), Mohammad Asif, Pakistani cricketer
* 1982 – Kasper Klausen, Danish footballer
* 1982 – David Wright, American baseball player
*1983 – Jonah Hill, American actor, producer, and screenwriter
*1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
– Malcolm Jenkins, American football player
*1990 – JoJo (singer), JoJo, American singer and actress
*1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...
– Rachael Boyle, Scottish footballer
* 1991 – Jillian Rose Reed, American actress
* 1991 – Fabian Schär, Swiss footballer
* 1991 – Jorginho (footballer, born December 1991), Jorginho, Brazilian footballer
*1992 – Ksenia Makarova, Russian-American figure skater
*1993 – Robeisy Ramírez, Cuban boxer
*1997 – De'Aaron Fox, American basketball player
* 1997 – Suzuka Nakamoto, Japanese singer
* 1998 – Kylian Mbappé, French footballer
*2001 – Facundo Pellistri, Uruguayan footballer
Deaths
Pre-1600
* 217 – Pope Zephyrinus, Zephyrinus, pope of the Catholic Church
* 910 – Alfonso III of Asturias, Alfonso III, king of Asturias
* 977 – Fujiwara no Kanemichi, Japanese statesman (b. 925)
*1295 – Margaret of Provence, French queen (b. 1221)
*1326 – Saint Peter of Moscow, Peter of Moscow, Russian metropolitan bishop
*1340 – John I, Duke of Bavaria, John I, duke of Bavaria (b. 1329)
*1355 – Stefan Dušan, emperor of Serbia (b. 1308)
*1539 – Johannes Lupi, Flemish composer (b. 1506)
*1552 – Katharina von Bora, wife of Martin Luther (b. 1499)
*1590 – Ambroise Paré, French physician and surgeon (b. 1510)
1601–1900
*1658 – Jean Jannon, French designer and typefounder (b. 1580)
*1722 – Kangxi Emperor, Kangxi, emperor of the Qing Dynasty (b. 1654)
*1723 – Augustus Quirinus Rivinus, German physician and botanist (b. 1652)
*1740
Events
January–March
* January 8 – All 237 crewmen on the Dutch East India Company ship '' Rooswijk'' are drowned, when the vessel strikes the shoals of Goodwin Sands, off of the coast of England, as it is beginning its secon ...
– Richard Boyle, 2nd Viscount Shannon, English field marshal and politician, Governor of Portsmouth (b. 1675)
*1765 – Louis, Dauphin of France (son of Louis XV), Louis, dauphin of France (b. 1729)
*1768 – Carlo Innocenzo Frugoni, Italian poet and academic (b. 1692)
*1783 – Antonio Soler, Spanish priest and composer (b. 1729)
*1812
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The ''Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch'' (the Austrian civil code) enters into force in the Austrian Empire.
* January 19 – Peninsular War: The French-held fortress of Ciudad Rodrigo is st ...
– Sacagawea, American explorer (b. 1788)
*1820 – John Bell (farmer), John Bell, American farmer (b. 1750)
*1856 – Francesco Bentivegna, Italian activist (b. 1820)
*1862 – Robert Knox, Scottish surgeon and zoologist (b. 1791)
*1880 – Gaspar Tochman, Polish-American colonel and lawyer (b. 1797)
*1893 – George C. Magoun, American businessman (b. 1840)
1901–present
*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 ...
– Upendrakishore Ray, Indian painter and composer (b. 1863)
*1916
Events
Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 1 – The British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that had been stored and cooled.
* J ...
– Arthur Morgan (Queensland politician), Arthur Morgan, Australian politician, 16th Premier of Queensland (b. 1856)
*1917
Events
Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix.
January
* January 9 – WWI – Battle of Rafa: The last substantial Ottoman Army garrison on the Sinai Peninsula is captured by the Egyptian Expeditionary Fo ...
– Lucien Petit-Breton, French-Argentinian cyclist (b. 1882)
*1919 – Philip Fysh, English-Australian politician, 12th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1835)
*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 ma ...
– Linton Hope, English sailor and architect (b. 1863)
*1921
Events
January
* January 2
** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in Brazil.
** The Spanish liner ''Santa Isabel'' breaks ...
– Julius Richard Petri, German microbiologist (b. 1852)
*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
...
– Frederick Semple, American golfer and tennis player (b. 1872)
*1929 – Émile Loubet, French lawyer and politician, 8th President of France (b. 1838)
*1935
Events
January
* January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims.
* January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...
– Martin O'Meara, Irish-Australian sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1882)
*1937 – Erich Ludendorff, German general (b. 1865)
*1938 – Annie Armstrong, American missionary (b. 1850)
* 1938 – Matilda Howell, American archer (b. 1859)
*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 forbidden to ...
– Hans Langsdorff, German captain (b. 1894)
*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 ...
– Igor Severyanin, Russian-Estonian poet and author (b. 1887)
*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 ...
– Enrico Mizzi, Maltese lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Malta (b. 1885)
*1954
Events
January
* January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany.
* January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting.
* January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...
– James Hilton (novelist), James Hilton, English-American author and screenwriter (b. 1900)
*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 ...
– Ramón Carrillo, Argentinian neurologist and physician (b. 1906)
*1959
Events January
* January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
– Juhan Simm, Estonian composer and conductor (b. 1885)
*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 (K ...
– Moss Hart, American director and playwright (b. 1904)
* 1961 – Earle Page, Australian soldier and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Australia
The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the princip ...
(b. 1880)
*1968
The year was highlighted by 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 Czechoslovakia.
* J ...
– John Steinbeck, American novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
*1971 – Roy O. Disney, American banker and businessman, co-founded The Walt Disney Company (b. 1893)
*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 mean solar tim ...
– Adolfo Orsi, Italian businessman (b. 1888)
*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: ...
– Luis Carrero Blanco
Admiral-General Luis Carrero Blanco (4 March 1904 – 20 December 1973) was a Spanish Navy officer and politician. A long-time confidant and right-hand man of dictator Francisco Franco, Carrero served as the Prime Minister of Spain and i ...
, Spanish admiral and politician, 69th President of the Government of Spain (b. 1904; assassinated)
* 1973 – Bobby Darin, American singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1936)
*1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
– Rajani Palme Dutt, English journalist and politician (b. 1896)
* 1974 – André Jolivet, French composer and conductor (b. 1905)
*1976
Events January
* January 3 – 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 11 – The 1976 ...
– Richard J. Daley, American lawyer and politician, 48th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1902)
*1981 – Dimitris Rontiris, Greek actor and director (b. 1899)
*1982 – Arthur Rubinstein, Polish-American pianist and composer (b. 1887)
*1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
– Stanley Milgram, American psychologist and academic (b. 1933)
* 1984 – Dmitry Ustinov, Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union (1976-84) (b. 1908)
*1986 – Joe DeSa, American baseball player (b. 1959)
*1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...
– Simone Beck, French chef and author (b. 1904)
* 1991 – Samuel Rabin (artist), Sam Rabin, English wrestler, singer, and sculptor (b. 1903)
* 1991 – Albert Van Vlierberghe, Belgian cyclist (b. 1942)
*1993 – W. Edwards Deming, American statistician, author, and academic (b. 1900)
* 1993 – Nazife Güran, Turkish composer and educator (b. 1921)
*1994 – Dean Rusk, American lawyer, and politician, 54th United States Secretary of State (b. 1909)
*1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...
– Madge Sinclair, Jamaican-American actress (b. 1938)
*1996 – Carl Sagan, American astronomer, astrophysicist, and cosmologist (b. 1934)
*1997 – Denise Levertov, English-American poet and translator (b. 1923)
* 1997 – Dick Spooner, English cricketer (b. 1919)
* 1997 – Dawn Steel, American film producer (b. 1946)
*1998 – Alan Lloyd Hodgkin, English physiologist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
*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 shoot ...
– Riccardo Freda, Egyptian-Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1909)
* 1999 – Hank Snow, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1914)
*2001 – Léopold Sédar Senghor, Senegalese poet and politician, 1st President of Senegal (b. 1906)
*2005 – Raoul Bott, Hungarian-American mathematician and academic (b. 1923)
*2006 – Anne Rogers Clark, American dog breeder and trainer (b. 1929)
*2008 – Adrian Mitchell, English author, poet, and playwright (b. 1932)
* 2008 – Robert Mulligan, American director and producer (b. 1925)
* 2008 – Igor Troubetzkoy, Russian aristocrat and racing driver (b. 1912)
*2009 – Brittany Murphy, American actress and singer (b. 1977)
* 2009 – Arnold Stang, American actor (b. 1918)
*2010 – James Robert Mann (South Carolina), James Robert Mann, American colonel, lawyer, and politician (b. 1920)
* 2010 – K. P. Ratnam, Sri Lankan academic and politician (b. 1914)
*2011 – Barry Reckord, Jamaican playwright and screenwriter (b. 1926)
*2012 – Stan Charlton, English footballer and manager (b. 1929)
* 2012 – Robert Juniper, Australian painter and sculptor (b. 1929)
* 2012 – Victor Merzhanov, Russian pianist and educator (b. 1919)
*2013 – Pyotr Bolotnikov, Russian runner (b. 1930)
*2014 – Per-Ingvar Brånemark, Swedish surgeon and academic (b. 1929)
* 2014 – John Freeman (British politician), John Freeman, English lawyer, politician, and diplomat, List of Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to the United States, British Ambassador to the United States (b. 1915)
*2020 – Fanny Waterman, British pianist (b. 1920)
* 2020 – Ezra Vogel, American sociologist (b. 1930)
*2022 – Franco Harris, American football player (b. 1950)
Holidays and observances
*Abolition of Slavery Day, also known as ''Cafres, Fête des Cafres'' (Réunion, French Guiana)
*Bo Aung Kyaw Day (Myanmar)
*Christian Calendar of saints, feast day:
**Dominic of Silos
**O Clavis
**Ursicinus of Saint-Ursanne
**Katharina von Bora (Lutheran)
**December 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
*Earliest date for Winter solstice's eve (Northern Hemisphere), and its related observances:
**Yaldā (Iran)
*International Human Solidarity Day (International observance, International)
*Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day (Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
)
References
External links
BBC: On This Day
*
Historical Events on December 20
{{months
Days of the year
December