January 3: (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

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January 3 is the 3rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 362 days remaining until the end of the year (363 in leap years).

Events

* 1431 - Joan of Arc is handed over to the Bishop Pierre Cauchon.

* 1496 - Leonardo da Vinci unsuccessfully tests a flying machine.

* 1521 - Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther in the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem.

* 1749 - Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.

* 1777 - American general George Washington defeats British general Charles Cornwallis at the Battle of Princeton.

* 1815 - Austria, the United Kingdom, and France form a secret defensive alliance treaty against Prussia and Russia.

* 1823 - Stephen F. Austin receives a grant of land in Texas from the government of Mexico.

* 1825 - Rensselaer School, the first engineering college in the U.S. is opened in Troy, New York. It is now known as Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

* 1833 - The United Kingdom seizes control of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic.

* 1834 - The government of Mexico imprisons Stephen F. Austin in Mexico City.

* 1848 - Joseph Jenkins Roberts is sworn in as the first president of the independent African Republic of Liberia.

* 1861 - American Civil War: Delaware votes not to secede from the United States.

* 1868 - Meiji Restoration in Japan: The Tokugawa shogunate is abolished; agents of Satsuma and Chōshū seize power.

* 1870 - The construction of the Brooklyn Bridge begins.

* 1871 - Henry W. Bradley patents oleomargarine.

* 1888 - The 91 cm refracting telescope at Lick Observatory is used for the first time. It was the largest telescope in the world at the time.

* 1888 - Marvin C. Stone patents the drinking straw.

* 1899 - The first known use of the word automobile, in an editorial in The New York Times.

* 1921 - Turkey makes peace with Armenia.

* 1924 - English explorer Howard Carter discovers the sarcophagus of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings, near Luxor, Egypt.

* 1925 - Benito Mussolini announces he is taking dictatorial powers over Italy.

* 1932 - Martial law is declared in Honduras to stop revolt by banana workers fired by United Fruit.

* 1933 - Minnie D. Craig becomes the first woman to be elected Speaker of a legislative body in the USA.

* 1938 - The March of Dimes is established by Franklin D. Roosevelt.

* 1938 - Woman in White is first broadcast on the NBC Red network. The program remains on the radio for the next ten years.

* 1944 - World War II: Top Ace Major Greg "Pappy" Boyington is shot down in his Corsair by Captain Masajiro Kawato flying a Zero.

* 1945 - Admiral Chester W Nimitz is placed in command of all U.S. Naval forces in preparation for planned assaults against Iwo Jima, Okinawa and Japan itself.

* 1947 - Proceedings of the U.S. Congress are televised for the first time.

* 1951 - Dragnet is first broadcast on NBC-TV.

* 1953 - Frances Bolton and her son, Oliver from Ohio, become the first mother and son to serve simultaneously in the U.S. Congress.

* 1957 - Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch.

* 1958 - The West Indies Federation is formed.

* 1959 - Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state.

* 1961 - The United States severs diplomatic relations with Cuba.

* 1961 - The SL-1, a government-run reactor near Idaho Falls, Idaho, leaks radiation, killing three workers.

* 1962 - Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro.

* 1973 - George Steinbrenner buys the New York Yankees from CBS for 3.2 million dollars

* 1977 - Apple Computer is incorporated.

* 1983 - CiTV launches on ITV in the UK.

* 1987 - Aretha Franklin becomes the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

* 1988 - Margaret Thatcher becomes the longest-serving British Prime Minister in the 20th Century.

* 1990 - Former leader of Panama Manuel Noriega surrenders to American forces.

* 1993 - In Moscow, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).

* 1994 - An Aeroflot Tupolev TU-154 crashes and explodes after takeoff from Irkutsk, Russia, killing 125 people including one on the ground.

* 1997 - The People's Republic of China announces it will spend $27.7 billion to fight erosion and pollution in the Yangtze and Yellow river valleys.

* 1999 - The Mars Polar Lander launches.

* 1999 - Israel detains, and later expels, 14 members of Concerned Christians.

* 2004 - Flight 604, a Boeing 737 owned by Flash Airlines, an Egyptian airliner, plunges into the Red Sea, killing all 148 people on board.

* 2007 - National Express has its worst ever coach crash just outside Heathrow Airport.

Births

* 106 BC - Cicero, Roman statesman and philosopher (d. 43 BC)

* 1196 - Emperor Tsuchimikado of Japan (d. 1231)

* 1710 - Richard Gridley, American Revolutionary soldier (d. 1796)

* 1719 - Francisco JosÃ© Freire, Portuguese historian (d. 1773)

* 1722 - Fredric Hasselquist, Swedish naturalist (d. 1752)

* 1760 - John Storm, American Revolutionary soldier (d. 1835)

* 1778 - Antoni Melchior Fijałkowski, Polish bishop (d. 1861)

* 1793 - Lucretia Mott, American women's rights activist (d. 1880)

* 1802 - Charles Pelham Villiers, British House of Commons member (d. 1898)

* 1803 - Douglas William Jerrold, British playwright (d. 1857)

* 1810 - Antoine Thomson d'Abbadie, French geographer (d. 1897)

* 1836 - Sakamoto Ryoma, Japanese revolutionary (d. 1867)

* 1840 - Father Damien, Flemish missionary (d. 1889)

* 1855 - Hubert Bland, English socialist (d. 1914)

* 1865 - Henry Lytton, British actor and opera singer (d. 1936)

* 1870 - Henry Handel Richardson, Australian author (d. 1946)

* 1876 - Wilhelm Pieck, first President of East Germany (d. 1960)

* 1879 - Grace Coolidge, First Lady of the United States (d. 1957)

* 1883 - Clement Attlee, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1967)

* 1886 - Josephine Hull, American actress (d. 1957)

* 1887 - August Macke, German painter (d. 1914)

* 1892 - J. R. R. Tolkien, British writer (d. 1973)

* 1894 - ZaSu Pitts, American actress (d. 1963)

* 1895 - Hudson Fysh, Australian aviator and businessman (d. 1974)

* 1897 - Marion Davies, American actress (d. 1961)

* 1898 - Carlos Keller, Chilean fascist politician (d. 1974)

* 1901 - NgÃ´ ĐÃ¬nh Diệm, President of South Vietnam (d. 1963)

* 1905 - Ray Milland, Welsh actor (d. 1986)

* 1905 - Anna May Wong, American actress (d. 1961)

* 1909 - Victor Borge, Danish entertainer (d. 2000)

* 1910 - Frenchy Bordagaray, American baseball player (d. 2000)

* 1911 - John Sturges, American director (d. 1982)

* 1912 - Renaude Lapointe, Canadian journalist and senator (d. 2002)

* 1912 - Armand Lohikoski, Finnish director (d. 2005)

* 1916 - Maxene Andrews, American singer (The Andrews Sisters) (d. 1995)

* 1916 - Betty Furness, American actress (d. 1994)

* 1917 - Roger W. Straus, Jr., American publisher (d. 2004)

* 1920 - Renato Carosone, Italian musician (d. 2001)

* 1921 - John Russell, American actor (d. 1991)

* 1922 - Bill Travers, English actor and director (d. 1994)

* 1923 - Hank Stram, American football coach (d. 2005)

* 1924 - Doug Ellis, British entrepreneur

* 1924 - AndrÃ© Franquin, Belgian cartoonist (Gaston Lagaffe) (d. 1997)

* 1924 - Nell Rankin, American singer (d. 2005)

* 1926 - George Martin, British producer

* 1929 - Sergio Leone, Italian director (d. 1989)

* 1929 - Ernst Mahle, Brazilian composer

* 1930 - Marcel DubÃ©, Quebec playwright

* 1930 - Robert Loggia, American actor

* 1932 - Dabney Coleman, American actor

* 1932 - Coo Coo Marlin, American race car driver (d. 2005)

* 1935 - Raymond Garneau, French Canadian politician and businessman

* 1937 - Seri Wangnaitham, Thai dancer and choreographer (d. 2007)

* 1939 - Nikos Alefantos, Greek football manager

* 1939 - Bobby Hull, Canadian hockey player

* 1941 - Van Dyke Parks, American musician

* 1942 - John Thaw, British actor (d. 2002)

* 1944 - David Atherton, English conductor

* 1945 - Stephen Stills, American musician

* 1946 - John Paul Jones, British musician (Led Zeppelin)

* 1946 - Cissy King, American entertainer

* 1949 - Sylvia Likens, American torture victim (d. 1965)

* 1950 - Victoria Principal, American actress
* 1954 - Dean Hart, Canadian wrestler (d. 1990)

* 1954 - Ned Lamont, American businessman

* 1954 - Jim Ross, American wrestling announcer

* 1955 - Palmolive, English musician (The Slits, The Raincoats)

* 1956 - Mel Gibson, Australian actor

* 1956 - Willy T. Ribbs, American race car driver

* 1957 - Bojan KriÅ¾ај, Slovenian skier

* 1958 - Shim Hyung-rae, South Korean filmmaker

* 1959 - Rafael ArrÃ¡iz Lucca Venezuelan writer

* 1960 - Sandeep Marwah Founder of Film City, Noida, India

* 1962 - Francesca Lia Block, American author

* 1963 - Vic Grimes, American professional wrestler

* 1963 - Jerome Young, American professional wrestler

* 1964 - Bruce LaBruce, Canadian film-maker

* 1966 - Martin Galway, Northern Ireland composer

* 1969 - Michael Schumacher, German race car driver

* 1970 - Mahaya Petrosian, Iranian actress

* 1971 - Cory Cross, Canadian ice hockey player

* 1972 - Yoon Chan, South Korean actor

* 1972 - Nichole Nordeman, American singer

* 1974 - Alessandro Petacchi, Italian cyclist

* 1975 - Thomas Bangalter, French DJ (Daft Punk)

* 1975 - Jason Marsden, American actor

* 1975 - Danica McKellar, American actress

* 1976 - Angelos Basinas, Greek footballer

* 1976 - Dinara Drukarova, Russian actress

* 1976 - Nicholas Gonzalez, American actor

* 1977 - Lee Bowyer, English footballer

* 1977 - A.J. Burnett, American baseball player

* 1977 - Mayumi Iizuka, Japanese voice actress (seiyū)

* 1977 - Michelle Stephenson, English singer (The Spice Girls)

* 1978 - Kimberley Locke, American singer

* 1978 - Park Sol-mi, South Korean actress

* 1978 - Dominic Wood, English children's television presenter and magician

* 1978 - Mike York, American ice hockey player

* 1979 - Francesco Bellissimo, Italian mangaka

* 1980 - Rob Arnold, American guitarist (Chimaira)

* 1980 - Liya Kebede, Ethiopian model

* 1980 - Angela Ruggiero, American ice hockey player

* 1980 - David Tyree, American football player

* 1981 - Eli Manning, American football player

* 1985 - John David Booty, American football player

* 1986 - Jacob Timpano, Australian soccer player

* 1986 - Lloyd Polite, R&B Singer

* 1987 - Anchal Joseph, Indian-American fashion model and reality show contestant

* 1989 - Alex D. Linz, American actor

Deaths

* 1098 - Walkelin, first Norman bishop of Winchester (b. unknown)

* 1322 - King Philip V of France (b. 1293)

* 1437 - Catherine of Valois, wife of Henry V of England (b. 1401)

* 1543 - Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, Portuguese explorer (b. 1499)

* 1641 - Jeremiah Horrocks, English astronomer (b. 1618)

* 1656 - Mathieu MolÃ©, French statesman (b. 1584)

* 1670 - George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle, English soldier (b. 1608)

* 1690 - Hillel ben Naphtali Zevi, Lithuanian rabbi (b. 1615)

* 1743 - Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena, Italian architect and designer (b. 1657)

* 1779 - Claude Bourgelat, French veterinary surgeon (b. 1712)

* 1785 - Baldassare Galuppi, Italian composer (b. 1706)

* 1795 - Josiah Wedgwood, English potter (b. 1730)

* 1826 - Louis Gabriel Suchet, French marshal (b. 1770)

* 1875 - Pierre Larousse, French editor (b. 1817)

* 1882 - William Harrison Ainsworth, English novelist (b. 1805)

* 1903 - Alois Hitler, father of Adolf Hilter (b. 1837)

* 1911 - Alexandros Papadiamantis, Greek author (b. 1851)

* 1915 - James Elroy Flecker, English author (b. 1884)

* 1916 - Grenville M. Dodge, American Civil War Union Army Major General (b. 1831)

* 1923 - Jaroslav Hasek, Czech novelist (b. 1883)

* 1927 - Carle David TolmÃ© Runge, German physicist (b. 1856)

* 1931 - Joseph Joffre, French general (b. 1852)

* 1933 - Wilhelm Cuno, 6th Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Germany) (b. 1876)

* 1933 - Jack Pickford, Canadian actor (b. 1896)

* 1944 - Jurgis BaltruÅ¡aitis, Lithuanian poet (b. 1873)

* 1945 - Edgar Cayce, American psychic (b. 1877)

* 1945 - Ferdynand Antoni Ossendowski, Polish writer (b. 1879)

* 1946 - William Joyce, American Nazi propagandist (executed) (b. 1906)

* 1950 - Emil Jannings, Swiss actor (b. 1884)

* 1956 - Alexander Gretchaninov, Russian composer (b. 1864)

* 1956 - Joseph Wirth, 5th Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Germany) (b. 1876)

* 1967 - Mary Garden, Scottish singer (b. 1874)

* 1967 - Jack Ruby, American killer of Lee Harvey Oswald (b. 1911)

* 1969 - Jean Focas, Greco-French astronomer (b. 1909)

* 1969 - Howard McNear, American actor (b. 1905)

* 1974 - Gino Cervi, Italian actor (b. 1901)

* 1979 - Conrad Hilton, American hotelier (b. 1887)

* 1980 - Joy Adamson, Czech conservationist (b. 1910)

* 1980 - Lucien Buysse, Belgian cyclist (b. 1892)

* 1981 - Princess Alice of Albany (b. 1883)

* 1988 - Rose AuslÃ¤nder, German poet (b. 1901)

* 1988 - Joie Chitwood, American racedriver & Daredevil (b. 1912)

* 1989 - Sergei Lvovich Sobolev, Russian mathematician (b. 1909)

* 1992 - Dame Judith Anderson, Australian actress (b. 1897)

* 1993 - Johnny Most, American sports announcer (b. 1923)

* 2002 - Juan GarcÃa Esquivel, Mexican band leader (b. 1918)

* 2002 - Freddy Heineken, Dutch beer executive (b. 1923)

* 2003 - Sid Gillman, American football coach (b. 1911)

* 2004 - Leon Wagner, American baseball player (b. 1934)

* 2005 - Koo Chen-fu, Chinese negotiator (b. 1917)

* 2005 - JN Dixit, Indian government official (b. 1936)

* 2005 - Will Eisner, American comic book artist (b. 1917)

* 2006 - Steve Rogers, Australian rugby league footballer (b. 1954)

* 2006 - Bill Skate, Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea (b. 1954)

* 2007 - Janos Furst, Hungarian-born orchestral conductor (b. 1935)

* 2007 - Earl Reibel, Canadian ice hockey forward Detroit Red Wings (b. 1930)

* 2007 - William Verity Jr., United States Secretary of Commerce 1987-1989 (b. 1917)

* 2007 - Sir Cecil Walker, Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament for North Belfast 1983â€“2001 (b. 1924)

* 2007 - Michael Yeats, Irish Fianna FÃ¡il senator 1961â€“1981 and son of W.B. Yeats (b. 1921)

Holidays and Observances

* Feast day of St Genevieve

* Festival in honour of Pax, Roman Empire

* The tenth night and ninth day of Christmas in Western Christianity

* January 3 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)