Events
- 565 - Eutychius is deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus.
- 1506 - The first contingent of 150 Swiss Guards arrived at the Vatican.
- 1521 - Emperor Charles V opens the Diet of Worms.
- 1771 - Spain cedes Port Egmont in the Falkland Islands to England.
- 1824 - Ashantis defeat British forces in the Gold Coast.
- 1840 - British colonists reach New Zealand.
- 1863 - The January Uprising breaks out in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. The aim of the national movement is to regain Polish-Lithuanian-Ruthenian Commonwealth from occupation of Russia.
- 1877 - Arthur Tooth, an Anglican clergyman is taken into custody after being prosecuted for using ritualist practices
- 1879 - Anglo-Zulu War: Battle of Isandlwana - Zulu troops defeat British troops.
- 1879 - Anglo-Zulu War: Battle of Rorke's Drift - 139 British soldiers successfully defended their garrison against an intense assault by four to five thousand Zulu warriors.
- 1889 - Columbia Phonograph is formed in Washington, DC.
- 1890 - The United Mine Workers of America is founded in Columbus, Ohio.
- 1899 - Leaders of six Australian colonies meet in Melbourne to discuss confederation.
- 1901 - Edward VII becomes King after his mother, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, dies.
- 1905 - Bloody Sunday in St. Petersburg, beginning of the 1905 revolution.
- 1906 - SS Valencia runs aground on rocks on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, killing more than 130.
- 1917 - World War I: President Woodrow Wilson calls for "peace without victory" in Europe.
- 1919 - Act Zluky was signed, unifying the Ukrainian People's Republic and the West Ukrainian National Republic.
- 1924 - Ramsay MacDonald becomes the first Labour Prime Minister.
- 1927 - First live radio commentary of a football (soccer) match anywhere in the world - Arsenal vs. Sheffield United at Highbury. The match ended in a 1-1 draw.
- 1931 - Sir Isaac Isaacs sworn in as the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia.
- 1941 - World War II: The United Kingdom captures Tobruk from Nazi forces.
- 1944 - World War II: Allies begin Operation Shingle (an assault on Anzio, Italy).
- 1946 - Iran: Qazi Muhammad declares the independent people's Republic of Mahabad at the Chuwarchira Square in the kurdish city of Mahabad. He is the new president; Hadschi Baba Scheich is the prime minister.
- 1946 - Creation of the Central Intelligence Group, forerunner of the Central Intelligence Agency.
- 1947 - KTLA, the first commercial television station west of the Mississippi River, begins operation in Hollywood, California.
- 1952 - The first Jet airliner, the de Havilland Comet, enters service for BOAC.
- 1957 - Israel withdraws from the Sinai Peninsula.
- 1957 - The New York City "Mad Bomber," George P. Metesky, is arrested in Waterbury, Connecticut and is charged with planting more than 30 bombs.
- 1962 - The Organization of American States (OAS) suspends Cuba's membership.
- 1963 - Elysée treaty of cooperation between France and Germany is signed by Charles de Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer.
- 1968 - The TV sketch comedy Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In debuts on NBC.
- 1973 - The Supreme Court of the United States delivers its decision in Roe v. Wade striking down state laws restricting abortion during the first six months of pregnancy.
- 1973 - A chartered Boeing 707 exploded in flames upon landing at Kano Airport, Nigeria killing 176.
- 1973 - George Foreman breaks Joe Frazier's professional career undefeated heavyweight world boxing champion status.
- 1980 - Andrei Sakharov is arrested in Moscow.
- 1983 - Björn Borg retires from tennis after winning five consecutive Wimbledon championships.
- 1984 - The Apple Macintosh, the first consumer computer to popularize the computer mouse and the graphical user interface, is introduced during Super Bowl XVIII with its famous "1984" television commercial.
- 1987 - Pennsylvania politician R. Budd Dwyer shoots and kills himself at a press conference on live national television, leading to debates on boundaries in journalism.
- 1987 - Glen Tremml, 27, pedaled the ultralight aircraft Eagle over Edwards Air Force Base, California, for a human-powered flight record of 37.2 miles.
- 1990 - Robert Tappan Morris, Jr. is convicted of releasing the 1988 Internet worm.
- 1992 - Rebel forces occupy Zaire's national radio station in Kinshasa and broadcast a demand for the government's resignation.
- 1992 - Space Shuttle program: STS-42 Mission - Dr. Roberta Bondar becomes the first Canadian woman in space.
- 1995 - Israeli-Palestinian conflict: In central Israel, two suicide bombers from the Gaza Strip blow themselves-up at a military transit point killing 19 Israelis.
- 1997 - Madeleine Albright becomes the first female secretary of state after confirmation by the United States Senate.
- 1999 - Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons are burned alive by radical Hindus while sleeping in their car in Eastern India.
- 2002 - Kmart Corp becomes the largest retailer in American history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
- 2003 - The Netherlands vote for a new parliament after the previous had only been into power for 86 days.
- 2003 - Last successful contact with the spacecraft Pioneer 10, one of the most distant man-made objects.
- 2006 - Evo Morales is inaugurated as President of Bolivia, becoming the country's first indigenous president.
- 2007 - The jury portion of the trial against Robert Pickton, accused of being Canada's worst serial killer, opens in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Births
- 1263 - Ibn Taymiya, Islamic scholar (d. 1328)
- 1440 - Ivan III of Russia (d. 1505)
- 1553 - Mori Terumoto, Japanese warrior (d. 1625)
- 1561 - Sir Francis Bacon, English philosopher (d. 1626)
- 1570 - Sir Robert Bruce Cotton, English politician (d. 1631)
- 1592 - Pierre Gassendi, French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist (d. 1655)
- 1654 - Richard Blackmore, English physician and writer (d. 1729)
- 1690 - Nicolas Lancret, French painter (d. 1743)
- 1729 - Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German author and philosopher (d. 1781)
- 1781 - François Antoine Habeneck, French violinist (d. 1849)
- 1788 - George Gordon, Lord Byron, English poet (d. 1824)
- 1796 - Karl Claus, Russian chemist (d. 1864)
- 1797 - Maria Leopoldina of Austria, Empress of Brazil (d. 1826)
- 1799 - Ludger Duvernay, Quebec printer and publisher (d. 1852)
- 1820 - Joseph Wolf, German artist (d. 1899)
- 1840 - Ernest Roland Wilberforce, English bishop (d. 1907)
- 1849 - August Strindberg, Swedish writer (d. 1912)
- 1858 - Beatrice Webb, British economist (d. 1943)
- 1869 - Grigori Rasputin, Russian monk (d. 1916)
- 1874 - Edward Harkness, American philanthropist (d. 1940)
- 1875 - D. W. Griffith, American film director (d. 1948)
- 1882 - Theodore Kosloff, Russian-born actor, ballet dancer and choreographer (d. 1956)
- 1886 - Roman Ungern von Sternberg, Russian counter-revolutionary (d. 1921)
- 1887 - Helen Hoyt, American poet (d. 1972)
- 1889 - Henri Pélissier, French cyclist (d. 1935)
- 1890 - Fred M. Vinson, 13th Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1953)
- 1890 - Vinko Zganec, Croatian ethnomusicologist (d. 1976)
- 1891 - Antonio Gramsci, Italian Communist writer and politician (d. 1937)
- 1892 - Marcel Dassault, French industrialist (d. 1986)
- 1893 - Conrad Veidt, German actor (d. 1943)
- 1897 - Rosa Ponselle, American soprano (d. 1981)
- 1900 - Ernst Busch, German singer and actor (d. 1980)
- 1902 - Daniel Kinsey, American hurdler (d. 1970)
- 1903 - Fritz Houtermans, Polish physicist (d. 1966)
- 1904 - George Balanchine, Russian choreographer (d. 1983)
- 1904 - Arkady Gaidar, Russian children's writer (d. 1941)
- 1906 - Joe Gladwin, English actor (d. 1987)
- 1906 - Robert E. Howard, American author (d. 1936)
- 1907 - Douglas Corrigan, American pilot (d. 1995)
- 1907 - Dixie Dean, English footballer (d. 1980)
- 1907 - Mary Dresselhuys, Dutch actress (d. 2004)
- 1908 - Lev Davidovich Landau, Russian physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1968)
- 1909 - Porfirio Rubirosa, Dominican diplomat and international playboy (d. 1965)
- 1909 - Ann Sothern, American actress (d. 2001)
- 1909 - U Thant, Burmese 3rd United Nations Secretary General (d. 1974)
- 1911 - Bruno Kreisky, Chancellor of Austria (d. 1990)
- 1913 - William Cardinal Conway, Northern Irish clergyman (d. 1977)
- 1913 - Carl F. H. Henry, American theologian and publisher (d. 2003)
- 1914 - Dimitris Dragatakis, Greek composer (d. 2001)
- 1915 - Heinrich Albertz, German theologian and politician (d. 1993)
- 1916 - Bill Durnan, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1972)
- 1916 - Henri Dutilleux, French composer
- 1918 - Elmer Lach, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1920 - Sir Alf Ramsey, English football manager (d. 1999)
- 1922 - Howard Moss, American poet, dramatist, and critic (d. 1987)
- 1924 - J. J. Johnson, American jazz trombonist and composer (d. 2001)
- 1927 - Lou Creekmur, American football player
- 1928 - Yoshihiko Amino, Japanese historian (d. 2004)
- 1931 - Sam Cooke, American singer (d. 1964)
- 1932 - Berthold Grünfeld, Norwegian psychiatrist and former sexologist
- 1932 - Piper Laurie, American actress
- 1934 - Bill Bixby, American actor (d. 1993)
- 1934 - Graham Kerr, British-born chef
- 1935 - Seymour Cassel, American actor
- 1936 - Alan J. Heeger, American chemist, Nobel laureate
- 1937 - Edén Pastora, Nicaraguan rebel leader
- 1937 - Joseph Wambaugh, American author
- 1938 - Altair, Brazilian footballer
- 1939 - Jeff Smith, American chef (d. 2004)
- 1939 - Jean-Claude Tremblay, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1994)
- 1940 - Addie "Micki" Harris, singer (Shirelles) (d. 1982)
- 1940 - John Hurt, English actor
- 1940 - George Seifert, American football coach
- 1942 - Mimis Domazos, Greek footballer
- 1945 - Arthur Beetson, Australian rugby league footballer and coach
- 1946 - Malcolm McLaren, English impresario, musician and self-publicist
- 1946 - Serge Savard, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1948 - Gilbert Levine, American conductor
- 1949 - Mike Caldwell, American baseball player
- 1949 - Phil Miller, English guitarist (National Health, In Cahoots, Matching Mole)
- 1949 - Steve Perry, American singer and musician (Journey)
- 1951 - Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater (d. 1989)
- 1952 - Ace Vergel, Filipino actor, cardiac arrest. (d. 2007)
- 1952 - Teddy Gentry, vocals and bass for Alabama
- 1953 - Jim Jarmusch, American director
- 1954 - Tully Blanchard, American wrestler
- 1954 - Chris Lemmon, American actor
- 1954 - Peter Pilz, Austrian politician
- 1955 - Timothy R. Ferguson, American politician
- 1956 - John Wesley Shipp, American actor
- 1957 - Mike Bossy, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1957 - Francis Wheen, English writer and journalist
- 1958 - Nikos Anastopoulos, Greek football player and manager
- 1959 - Linda Blair, American actress
- 1960 - Michael Hutchence, Australian singer (INXS) (d. 1997)
- 1961 - Daniel Johnston, American singer-songwriter and artist
- 1962 - Mizan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia's Ruler
- 1962 - Choi Min-sik, South Korean actor
- 1963 - Andrei Tchmil, Ukrainian-Belgian cyclist
- 1965 - Steven Adler, American drummer (Guns N' Roses)
- 1965 - DJ Jazzy Jeff, American rapper and actor
- 1965 - Diane Lane, American actress
- 1965 - Brian McCardie, Scottish actor
- 1965 - Andrew Roachford, English singer and songwriter
- 1965 - Chintara Sukapatana, Thai actress
- 1966 - Ecaterina Szabo, Romanian gymnast
- 1967 - Manabu Nakanishi, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1968 - Frank Lebœuf, French footballer
- 1968 - Hiroshi Morie, Japanese musician
- 1968 - Mauricio Serna, Colombian footballer
- 1969 - Olivia d'Abo, English actress
- 1969 - John Linton Roberson, American cartoonist
- 1970 - Abraham Olano, Spanish cyclist
- 1970 - Alex Ross, American comic book painter (Marvels, Kingdom Come)
- 1971 - Stan Collymore, English footballer
- 1972 - Gabriel Macht, American actor
- 1972 - Romi Paku, Japanese seiyu (voice actress)
- 1972 - Gonzalo Rodriguez, Uruguayan racing driver (d. 1999)
- 1973 - Rogerio Ceni, Brazilian footballer
- 1974 - Cameron McConville, Australian racing driver
- 1975 - Balthazar Getty, American actor
- 1975 - Felipe Giaffone, Brazilian racing driver
- 1975 - ZP Theart, South African singer
- 1975 - David Výborný, Czech ice hockey player
- 1976 - Mikko Luoma, Finnish ice hockey player
- 1976 - James Dearth, American football player
- 1977 - Jono Gibbes, New Zealand rugby union footballer
- 1977 - Hidetoshi Nakata, Japanese footballer
- 1978 - Chone Figgins, American baseball player
- 1980 - Christopher Masterson, American actor
- 1980 - Ben Moody, American guitarist (Evanescence)
- 1980 - Jonathan Woodgate, English footballer
- 1980 - Jake Grove, American football player
- 1981 - Willa Ford, American singer
- 1981 - Beverley Mitchell, American actress
- 1981 - Ibrahima Sonko, French footballer
- 1982 - Fabricio Coloccini, Argentine footballer
- 1982 - Jason Peters, American football player
- 1983 - Shaun Cody, American football player
- 1983 - Robert Steinhäuser, German perpetrator of the Erfurt massacre (d. 2002)
- 1984 - Ben Eager,Canadian ice hockey player
- 1984 - Raica Oliveira, Brazilian supermodel
- 1984 - Leon Powe, American basketball player
- 1984 - Maceo Rigters, Dutch footballer
- 1985 - Mohamed Sissoko, Malian footballer
- 1986 - Robert O'Connor, Irish singer-songwriter, actor and model
- 1986 - Lee Pa-ni, South Korean model
- 1987 - Astrid Jacobsen, Norwegian cross-country skier
- 1988 - Greg Oden, American collegiate basketball player
Deaths
- 1536 - Bernhard Knipperdolling, German religious leader (b. 1495)
- 1599 - Cristofano Malvezzi, Italian composer (b. 1547)
- 1666 - Shah Jahan, Mughal Emperor of India (b. 1592)
- 1750 - Franz Xaver Josef von Unertl, Bavarian politician (b. 1675)
- 1763 - John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, English statesman (b. 1690)
- 1767 - Johann Gottlob Lehmann, German minterologist and geologist (b. 1719)
- 1779 - Jeremiah Dixon, English surveyor and astronomer (b. 1733)
- 1779 - Claudius Smith, American Revolutionary War loyalist (b. 1736)
- 1840 - Johann Friedrich Blumenbach, German anthropologist (b. 1752)
- 1892 - Joseph Philo Bradley, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (b. 1813)
- 1900 - David E. Hughes, American musician (b. 1831)
- 1901 - Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom (b. 1819)
- 1921 - Captain George Streeter, American riverboat captain and circus owner (b. 1837)
- 1922 - Fredrik Bajer, Danish politician and pacifist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1837)
- 1922 - Pope Benedict XV (b. 1854)
- 1922 - Camille Jordan, French mathematician (b. 1838)
- 1931 - Alma Rubens, American actress (b. 1897)
- 1945 - Else Lasker-Schuler, German-born poet (b. 1869)
- 1949 - William Thomas Walsh, American author (b. 1891)
- 1950 - Alan Hale, Sr., American actor (b. 1892)
- 1951 - Karl Nessler, inventor of the perm (b. 1872)
- 1959 - Mike Hawthorn, English race car driver and one-time F1 world champion (b. 1929)
- 1966 - Herbert Marshall, English actor (b. 1890)
- 1967 - Robert Henriques, British writer (b. 1905)
- 1968 - Duke Kahanamoku, American swimmer (b. 1890)
- 1973 - Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th President of the United States (b. 1908)
- 1975 - Andrew George Burry, Swiss-born manufacturer and businessman (b. 1873)
- 1978 - Oliver Leese, British World War II general (b. 1894)
- 1978 - Herbert Sutcliffe, English cricketer (b. 1894)
- 1981 - Ishtiaq Hussain Qureshi, Pakistani historian and educationist (b. 1903)
- 1982 - Tommy Tucker, American singer and pianist (b. 1933)
- 1987 - Budd Dwyer, American politician (b. 1939)
- 1987 - Wally Whyton - British musician/songwriter and radio/TV personality (b. 1929)
- 1988 - Parker Fennelly, American comedian and actor (b. 1891)
- 1991 - Robert Choquette, French Canadian novelist, poet and diplomat (b. 1905)
- 1993 - Abe Kobo, Japanese writer (b. 1924)
- 1994 - Jean-Louis Barrault, French actor and director (b. 1910)
- 1994 - Rhett Forrester, American singer, Second Riot frontman (b. 1956)
- 1994 - Telly Savalas, Greek-American actor (b. 1922)
- 1995 - Jerry Blackwell, American wrestler (b. 1949)
- 1995 - Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy (b. 1890)
- 1997 - Ron Holden, American singer (b. 1939)
- 1997 - Billy Mackenzie, Scottish musician (Associates) (b. 1957)
- 1997 - Wally Whyton, English musician (b. 1929)
- 1999 - Graham Staines, Australian missionary (b. 1941)
- 2000 - Craig Claiborne, American writer and editor (b. 1920)
- 2000 - Anne Hébert, French Canadian author and poet (Kamouraska) (b. 1916)
- 2001 - Tommie Agee, American baseball player (b. 1942)
- 2001 - Roy Brown, American clown (b. 1932)
- 2002 - Stanley Marcus, American business executive (b. 1905)
- 2003 - Bill Mauldin, American World War II cartoonist (b. 1921)
- 2004 - Billy May, American composer and musician (b. 1916)
- 2004 - Thomas Mead, Australian politician and journalist (b. 1918)
- 2004 - Ann Miller, American actress and dancer (b. 1923)
- 2005 - César Gutiérrez, Venezuelan baseball player (b. 1943)
- 2005 - Carlo Orelli, Italian veteran of World War I (b. 1894)
- 2005 - Consuelo Velázquez, Mexican songwriter (b. 1924)
- 2005 - Rose Mary Woods, American Watergate scandal figure (b. 1917)
- 2007 - Bam Bam Bigelow, American wrestler (b. 1961)
- 2007 - Doug Blasdell, American personal trainer
- 2007 - Disco D, American music producer (b. 1980)
- 2007 - Carlos Olivier, Venizuelan actor and physician (b. 1952)
- 2007 - Liz Renay, American actress (b. 1926)
- 2007 - Ngo Quang Truong, South Vietnamese general (b. 1929)
- 2007 - Abbe Pierre, French priest who helped the poor (b. 1912)
Holidays and Observances
- Christianity - Feast day of St. Vincent, Anastasius of Persia.
- New Zealand - Wellington Anniversary.
- January 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
-
British Snarkiness
- John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman (from the Bugle) Day