On This Day in History

0314 St Militiades ends his reign as Catholic Pope
0532 Nika-revolt against Justianus & Theodora in Hippodrome Constantinople
0705 John VI ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1158 Vladislav II of Bohemia becomes king
1558 Westmunster Church in Middelburg destroyed by heavy storm
1569 1st recorded lottery in England is drawn at St Paul's Cathedral
1571 Emperor Maximilian II grants Austrian adel freedom of religion
1599 Jacob van Necks fleet leaves Bantam Java with pepper, clove & muskaat
1672 Isaac Newton is elected a member of Royal Society
1693 Mt Etna erupts, Sicily
1709 Colley Cibber's "Rival Fools" premieres in London
1753 Ferdinand VI of Spain & Pope Benedictus XIV sign concord
1758 Russian troops occupy Königsberg, East-Prussia
1759 1st American life insurance company incorporated, Philadelphia
1765 Frisia bans Voltaires "Traité sur la tolérance"
1774 Messier adds M51 (spiral galaxy in Canes Venatici) to his catalog
1775 Francis Salvador becomes 1st Jew elected to office in America (SC)
1785 Continental Congress convenes in New York City NY
1787 Titania & Oberon, moons of Uranus, discovered by William Herschel
1790 Statisten & Vonckisten unite as Belgium
1803 Monroe & Livingston sail for Paris to buy New Orleans; they buy Louisiana
1805 Michigan Territory is organized
1813 1st pineapples planted in Hawaii
1839 Earthquake at Martinique destroys half of Port Royal-700 die
1861 Alabama becomes 4th state to secede
1861 Mexico City captured by Juárez (Liberal) in War of the Reform
1863 Naval engagement near Galveston between CSS Alabama & USS Hatteras
1863 Union forces capture Arkansas Post, or Fort Hindman AR
1864 Charing Cross Station opens in London
1865 Battle of Beverly WV
1866 Steamship London sinks in storm off Land's End England, kills 220
1873 1st livestock market newspaper published, Drover's Journal, Chicago
1879 Zulu war against British colonial rule in South Africa begins
1885 Henrik Ibsen's "Vildauden" premieres in Oslo
1892 Hawaiian Historical Society founded
1892 William D McCoy of Indiana appointed US minister to Liberia
1892 Paul Gauguin marries a 13-year-old Tahitian girl
1893 Jaap Eden skates world record 1500m (2 35)
1897 M H Cannon becomes 1st woman state senator in US (Utah)
1904 Herero people of South West Africa, now Namibia, begin uprising
1913 1st sedan-type car (Hudson) goes on display at 13th Auto Show (New York City NY)
1913 Bread & Roses Strike begins
1915 Colonel Jacob Ruppert & Colonel Tillinghast Huston purchase Yankees for $460,000
1916 French troops capture/Serbian army flees to Corfu
1917 Guy Bolton & PG Wodehouse's "Have a Heart" premieres in New York City NY
1919 3 year old German communist party (Spartacus) crushed
1919 Romania annexes Transylvania
1920 French passenger ship Afrique sinks near La Rochelle; 553 die
1922 Insulin 1st used to treat diabetes (Leonard Thompson, 14, of Canada)
1923 French & Belgian troops occupy Ruhr to collect reparations
1923 1st Dutch Dada-evening (Theo Van Doesburg & Kurt Schwitters)
1925 Franc B Kellogg replaces Charles Hughes on as US Secretary of State
1927 Royale Theater (Golden, CBS Radio Playhouse) opens at 242 W 45th New York City NY
1935 Amelia Earhart flies from Honolulu HI to Oakland CA (non-stop, of course)
1936 Charles Anderson enters Kentucky House of Representatives
1938 Frances Moulton elected 1st woman president of a US national bank
1938 Bradman scores a second inning 113 vs Queensland after a ton in the 1st
1940 Sergei Prokofiev's ballet Romeo & Juliet premieres in Leningrad
1941 Princess Irene Brigade established in Congleton
1942 -23ºF (-31ºC), Kingston RI (state record)
1942 Japan conquers Kuala Lumpur, Malaya
1943 US & Britain relinquish extraterritorial rights in China
1944 Crakow-Plaszow Concentration Camp established
1946 Bert Bell becomes 2nd NFL commissioner, moves Chicago IL headquarters to Philadelphia PA
1946 People's Republic of Albania established
1946 Enver Hoxha declares People's Republic of Albania with himself dictator
1949 Snowfall 1st recorded in Los Angeles
1952 Bollingen Prize for poetry awarded to Marianne Moore
1953 J Edgar Hoover declines 6 figure offer to become president of the International Boxing Club
1954 2 ton locomotive swept into ravine by avalanche - 10 die (Austria)
1959 Bollingen Prize for poetry awarded to Theodore Roethke
1959 Hanif Mohammad completes 499 for Karachi, then 1st class world record
1959 Marlene Hagge wins LPGA Mayfair Golf Open
1959 NFL Pro Bowl East beats West 28-21
1960 Chad declares independence from France
1960 Lamar Clark sets pro boxing record of 44 consecutive knockouts
1961 Racial riot at University of Georgia
1962 Mandela leaves South Africa, travels to Ethiopia, Algeria & England
1962 Volcano Huascaran in Peru, erupts; 4,000 die
1963 Beatles release "Please Please Me" & "Ask Me Why"
1963 1st discotheque opens, The Whiskey-a-go-go in Los Angeles CA
1964 Beatles "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is #80 in US (Cashbox)
1964 US Surgeon General Luther Terry reports that smoking may be hazardous
1964 "She Loves Me" closes at Eugene O'Neill Theater New York City NY after 302 performances
1964 Panamá ends diplomatic relations with US
1966 "Daktari" African adventure series premieres on CBS TV
1966 550 die in landslides in mountains behind Rio de Janeiro after rain
1967 Romeinse Curie installs Council for Pontifical Study commission
1968 Explorer 36 (GEOS- launched into earth orbit (1080/1570 km)
1969 Jethro Tull's This Was Jethro Tull album debuts
1969 "Hooked on a Feeling" by BJ Thomas peaks at #5
1970 Super Bowl IV Kansas City Chiefs beat Minnesota Vikings, 23-7 in New Orleans; Super Bowl MVP Len Dawson, Kansas City, Quarterback
1971 Tigers ace reliever John Hiller, 27, suffers a heart attack, misses the 1971 season, but later makes a remarkable comeback to record 38 saves
1971 1st "Quickie" Divorce granted in UK
1972 Abu Sayeed Chudhury becomes president & sheik Mujib ur-Rahman premier
1972 East-Pakistan becomes independent state of Bangladesh
1973 American League adopts designated hitter rule
1973 Trial of the Watergate burglars begins in Washington DC
1973 Famous victory at the SCG Pakistan chasing 158 all out 106
1974 ABC airs final episode of "Love, American Style"
1975 Soyuz 17 carries 2 cosmonauts to space station Salyut 4
1976 Dorothy Hamill wins her 3rd consecutive national figure skating championship
1976 "Pacific Overtures" opens at Winter Garden Theater New York City NY for 193 performances
1976 Military coup in Ecuador, President Guillermo Lara leaves
1976 Stephen Sondheim's musical "Pacific Overtures" premieres in New York City NY
1976 US female Figure Skating championship won by Dorothy Hamill
1976 US male Figure Skating championship won by Terry Kubicka
1977 France releases Abu Daoud, a Palestinian suspected of involvement in the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics
1977 Bollingen Prize awarded to David Ignatow
1977 Cubs trade outfielder Rick Monday to Dodgers for Bill Buckner
1978 Governor Askew dedicates the RCUC solar office building
1978 Soyuz 27 links with Salyut 6 & Soyuz 26 (1st time 3 spacecraft link)
1979 "Grand Tour" opens at Palace Theater New York City NY for 61 performances
1980 Debut of the Pretenders
1981 "Tintypes" closes at John Golden Theater New York City NY after 93 performances
1981 British team led by Ranulph Fiennes completes longest & fastest crossing of Antarctica, reaching Scott base after 75 days (2,500 miles)
1981 Palau adopts constitution
1982 Atlanta GA's temperature goes below zeroº F
1982 Honduras adopts constitution
1983 Billy Martin named New York Yankee manager for 3rd time
1984 Denver Nuggets 163, San Antonio Spurs 155-highest-scoring NBA game
1984 STS 41-B vehicle moves to launch pad
1984 Supreme Court reinstated $10M award to Karen Silkwood's family
1986 1st black Lieutenant-Governor since reconstruction sworn in (Douglas Wilder of Virginia)
1987 Largest crowd (76,633) at NFL New York Giant Stadium (beat Washington 17-0)
1988 USSR announces it will participate in the Seoul Summer Olympics
1988 Test debut of Phil Simmons, West Indies vs India, Madras
1989 140 nations agree to ban chemical weapons (poison gas, etc)
1989 Kindergarten student caught with loaded handgun at Bronx school
1989 Denver Nuggets' rookie Jerome Lane misses 7 free throws in a game against Milwaukee, one missed by 2 feet
1990 Actor Joseph Cotten undergoes vocal-chord cancer operation at 84
1990 Bobby Knight becomes basketball's Big 10 winningest coach (229)
1990 Pat Lafontaine sets New York Islander record of scoring goals in 11 straight
1990 200,000 demand return of Lithuania's independence
1991 Congress empowers Bush to order attack on Iraq
1991 Ben Johnson 1st race after being stripped of his 1988 Olympic Gold medal for steroid use, he finished 2nd
1991 Ric Flair wins NWA/WCW wrestling title
1991 Soviets storm buildings in Vilnius to block Lithuania independence
1992 Paul Simon opens a tour in South Africa
1992 Algeria's President Chadli announces his resignation
1992 US female Figure Skating championship won by Kristi Yamaguchi
1993 Howard Stern's radio show begins transmitting to Buffalo NY (WKBW)
1993 Independent presidential candidate Ross Perot publicly returns to politics
1994 Hyderabad score 6 for 944 against Andhra Pradesh in Ranji Trophy
1994 Irish government announces end of a 20-year broadcasting ban on IRA
1995 5th TV network (WB) Warner Brothers begins (WPIX-TV in New York City NY)
1995 Birmingham Barracudas granted CFL franchise
1995 DC-9 crashes near Maria La Baya, Colombia 51 die, 9 yr old girl lives
1995 NHLPA & owners agree to end NHL strike
1996 Space Shuttle STS 72 (Endeavour 10), launches into space
1997 23rd People's Choice Awards Bill Cosby wins
1997 Martina Hingis beats Jennifer Capriati at Sydney Tennis International
1997 Telstar 401 Satellite Fails
1998 "Proposals" closes at Broadhurst Theater New York City NY after 76 performances
1998 24th Annual People's Choice Awards - Seinfeld, Tim Allen win
1998 AFC Championship Denver Broncos beat Pitt Steelers 24-21
1998 NFC Championship Green Bay Packers beat San Francisco 49'ers 23-10
1998 US female Figure Skating championship won by Michelle Kwan
1998 US male Figure Skating championship won by Todd Eldredge
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Missing in Action

1966 GODFREY JOHNNY HOWARD PHOENIX AZ
1968 ANDERSON DENIS L. HOPE KS CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 BUCK ARTHUR C. SANDUSKY OH CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 MANCINI RICHARD M. AMSTERDAM NY CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 OLSON DELBERT A. CASSELTON ND CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 ROBERTS MICHAEL L. PURVIS MS CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 SIOW GALE R. HUNTINGTON PARK CA CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 STEVENS PHILLIP P. TWIN LAKE MI CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 THORESEN DONALD N. DETROIT MI CRASH NO SEARCH
1968 WIDON KENNETH H. DETROIT MI CRASH NO SEARCH
1970 CHORLINS RICHARD DAVID UNIVERSITY CITY MO

Births which occurred on January 11:

1403 Jan IV Duke of Brabant/Limburg
1449 Domenico Ghirlandajo Italy, renaissance painter
1503 Francesco Parmigianino Italian artist (Madonna with the Long Neck)
1703 Columban Praelisauer composer
1720 Gijsbert John van Hardenbroeck Utrechts regent
1727 Franz Sebastian Haindl composer
1732 Pehr Forskåhl Finish botanist
1746 Frantisek Adam Mica composer
1746 William Curtis English botanist/publisher (Botanical Magazine)
1750 Johann Jakob Walder composer
1757 Alexander Hamilton West Indies, 1st US Secretary of Treasury ($10 face)
1801 John Lodge Ellerton composer
1807 Ezra Cornell founder (Western Union Telegraph, Cornell University)
1807 Alfred Eugene "Mudwall" Jackson Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1808 Antoine GB Schayes Belgian historian/archaeologist
1814 James Paget English surgeon (disease of Paget)
1814 Richard Griffith Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1862
1815 Sir John A MacDonald © 1st PM of Canada (1867-73)
1816 Fitz-Henry Warren Brevet Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1878
1818 John Reese Kenly Brevet Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1891
1831 James Ronald Chalmers Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1898
1839 Eugenio Maria de Hostos Puerto Rico, patriot/scholar
1842 William James US, psychologist/philosopher
1849 Oskar Lassar German dermatologist (bath house)
1850 J C Arthur Lowville NY, botanist (studied rusts)
1850 Philipp la Renotiere von Ferrary famous philatelist
1852 Konstantin Fehrenbach German chancellor (1920-21)
1853 Gustav Falke German author/poet (Der Mann im Nebel)
1856 Christian August Sinding Kongsberg Norway, composer
1857 Fred[erick J] Archer English jockey (won 5 Derbys)
1859 [Gerard] Jan Ligthart Dutch educator (Nog bij mother, Ot & Sien)
1860 Marie Bashkirtseff Russian/French painter/author (Journal)
1864 Thomas Dixon US attorney/playwright (Flaming Sword)
1872 Paul Graener composer
1873 Joaquín Alvarez Quintéro Spanish dramatist/playwright (Los Galeotes)
1875 Reinhold Gliere Kiev Ukraine, composer
1878 Theodorus Pangalos Greek General /dictator (1926)
1879 Antonio Beltramelli writer
1880 Rudolf T Palm Curaçao, pianist/composer
1885 Alice Paul ERA advocate/founder (National Woman's Party)
1886 George Zucco England, actor (Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Captain Fury)
1887 Aldo Leopold founder (Wilderness Society)
1888 Chester Conklin Oskaloosa IA, actor (Every Day's a Holiday, Greed)
1890 Monte Blue Indianapolis IN, silent film actor (Montana, Oh Boy)
1894 Jaroslav Vogel composer
1896 Paddy Driscoll NFL QB/coach (Chicago Cardinals, Bears)
1898 Hans Rudolf Krik Danish writer/critic (Fiskerne, Slaven)
1899 Eva LeGallienne actress/director (Resurrection)
19-- Christian Jacobs Rexburg ID, actor (Maggie, Gloria, Exile)
19-- Stan Ivar Brooklyn NY, actor (Daniel Scott-Days of Our Lives, John-Little House on the Prairie)
1901 Andries D Copier Dutch glass manufacturer (Gildeglass)
1902 Maurice Durufle French organist/composer
1903 Alan Paton South Africa, writer (Cry, the Beloved Country)
1904 Frederick Boland Irish diplomat/President (UN General Assembly)
1905 John Henry Jacques co-operative retailer
1905 Manfred Bonnington Lee detective writer (½ of Ellery Queen)
1905 Pierre Mendes-France French Premier (1954-55)
1906 Albert Hofmann Switzerland, chemist (discovered LSD)
1906 Johannes Paul Thilman composer
1906 Robert Nesbitt impresario
1908 Lionel Stander New York City NY, actor (Max-Hart to Hart, Unfaithfully Yours)
1909 Gunnar Johnsen Berg composer
1909 Marguerite Kelsey English model/painter (Haunting)
1910 Izler Solomon St Paul MN, conductor
1910 Trygve Martin Bratteli Norwegian PM (Labour) (1971-72, 1973-76)
1912 Donald Barry Houston TX, actor (Mr Gallo-Mr Novak)
1912 Roger Lewis aviation exec (Lockheed, Curtiss Wright, Pan Am)
1912 Thomas "Schoolboy" Rowe Waco TX, pitcher (Detroit Tigers)
1914 Dorothy Jeakins costume designer
1916 Bernard Blier Buenos Aires Argentina, actor (Les Miserables)
1916 James H [Jimmy] Quillen (Representative-R-TN, 1963- )
1918 Albert Weisser composer
1919 Veda Ann Borg Boston MA, actress (Avalanche, Accomplice)
1920 John Powell campaigner
1922 Tony Charmoli Minnesota, choreographer (Cher, Julie Andrew)
1922 Kathleen Byron London England, actress (Abdication, Profile, 4 Days)
1922 Neville Duke English test pilot
1924 Don Cherry Wichita Texas, singer (Dean Martin Summer Show)
1924 Slim Harpo musician
1926 Grant Tinker broadcasting executive (NBC-TV)
1926 Alexander Gibson conductor
1926 Elisabeth M J "Elly" Bakker Dutch actress (The Miser)
1926 Lev Stepanovich Demin Russia, cosmonaut (Soyuz 15)
1926 Phil Sidey broadcaster
1927 John Hayes cricketer (New Zealand fast bowler in 15 Tests 1951-58)
1927 Wilton "Bogey" Gaynair saxophonist
1928 David L Wolper producer (Devil's Brigade)
1928 Mitchell Ryan Cincinnati OH, actor (Chase, Executive Suite)
1929 Rod Taylor Sydney Australia, actor (Bearcats, Time Machine)
1929 Wanda Wilkomirska Warsaw, Poland, violinist
1929 Nicoletta Orsomando
1931 Ed Hall Roxbury MA, actor (Dr Bicker-Medical Center)
1933 Goldie Hill Karnes County TX, country singer (Grand Ole Opry)
1934 Jean Chrétien Canada PM (Liberal, 1993- )
1935 Chuck Barksdale US singer (Dells-I Can Sing a Rainbow)
1936 Linda Lawson Ann Arbor MI, actress (Don't Call Me Charlie)
1936 Meindert Leerling Dutch TV director/MP (RPF)
1938 Fischer S Black Jr financial theorist
1938 Michael Fenn docker/socialist
1938 Narvel Felts country singer
1939 Anne Heggtveigt Canada, slalom (Olympics-gold-1960)
1940 Mark DeVoto composer
1942 Clarence Clemons rock saxophonist (Bruce Springsteen's E St Band)
1943 William Albert Penn composer
1944 Henry Cecil British organizer
1944 York Georg Holler composer
1945 Christine Kaufmann Austria, actress (Town Without Pity, Red Lips)
1946 Ludmila Poradnik USSR, team handball (Olympics-gold-1976, 80)
1946 Naomi Judd [Diana Ellen], Ashland KY, singer (Judds-Why Not Me)
1946 Tony Kaye rocker (Yes)
1947 Anna Calder-Marshall Kensington England, actress (Zulu Dawn)
1948 Madeline Manning-Jackson-Mimms US 800m runner (Olympics-gold-1968)
1949 Caskey Swaim Lexington NC, actor (Sergeant Fitz-Project UFO, Friday the 13th Part V)
1949 Tom Netherton Munich Germany, singer (Lawrence Welk Show)
1949 [Frederick] Dennis Greene rocker (Sha Na Na-Shannon)
1952 Ben Daniel Crenshaw Austin TX, PGA golfer (1974 Rookie of Year, 1976 Bing Crosby)
1952 Lee Ritenour Los Angeles CA, jazz musician
1952 Massimo Lopez Italian comedian
1953 Anna Marchesini Italian entertainer
1954 Saskia ten Batenburg Dutch actress (Factory, Hunk)
1956 Kuniaki Kobayashi wrestler (WAR/NJPW)
1957 Bryan Robson English international soccer star
1957 Darryl Dawkins NBA center (Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets)
1958 Lourdes Ann Kananimanu Estores Honolulu HI, playmate (June 1982)
1958 Vicki Peterson Los Angeles CA, rock guitarist/vocalist (Bangles)
1959 Brett Bodine auto racer
1960 Vicki Peterson Los Angeles CA, rocker (Bangles-Walk Like an Egyptian)
1961 Paul Skansi NFL wide receiver (Seattle Seahawks)
1962 Donn Pall Evergreen Park IL, pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies, Florida Marlins)
1962 Julie Moran TV hostess (Entertainment Tonight, Independence Day)
1962 Kim Coles Brooklyn NY, actress (Synclaire-Living Single)
1963 Jason Connery London England, actor (Robin Hood)
1963 Kate Gompert Ames IA, tennis star
1963 Petra Schneider E German swimming star (world record 400m)
1963 Tracy Caulkins Winona MN, swimmer (Olympics-3 gold-1984)
1965 Olivia Barash Miami FL, actress (Laura-Out of the Blue)
1965 Barbara Belding San Diego CA, WPVA volleyballer (US Open-17th-1994)
1965 Joely Richardson London England, actress (Body Contact, Wetherby)
1965 Karl Van Calcar Torrance CA, 3k steeplechase
1965 Loredana Romito Benevento Italy, model/actress (Fatal Temptation)
1965 Steve Vancil Oregon City Ore, golfer (1989 City of Portland)
1966 Christian Pouget hockey forward (Team France 1998)
1967 Jeff Bankett Pittsburgh PA, actor (Tyler-1 Life to Live)
1967 Richmond Webb NFL tackle (Miami Dolphins)
1967 Ronnie Stern St-Agathe, NHL right wing (Calgary Flames)
1968 Sharon Brown New York City NY, actress (Chantal-Generations)
1968 Ben Rivera Dominican/US baseball pitcher (Philadelphia Phillies)
1969 Darren Anderson NFL cornerback (Kansas City Chiefs)
1969 Dave Cruikshank Northbrook IL, speed skater (Olympics-1994)
1969 Frank Robinson WLAF defensive back (Scottish Claymores)
1969 Reemt Pyka hockey forward (Team Germany 1998)
1970 Franco Davin Argentina, tennis star
1971 Alexander Delgado Palmerejo Venezuela, catcher (Boston Red Sox)
1971 Karmeeleyah McGill WLAF linebacker (Scottish Claymores)
1971 Mary J Blige singer
1971 Noah Cantor CFL defensive tackle (Toronto Argonauts)
1971 Stephen Smith Indianapolis IN, high jumper
1972 Amber Medlin Virginia Beach VA, Miss Virginia-America (1995)
1972 Dexter Seigler NFL cornerback (Seattle Seahawks)
1972 Huub Loeffen Dutch soccer player (Vitesse)
1972 Rey Ordonez Havana Cuba, infielder (New York Mets)
1972 Yang Wenyi Chinese swim star (WR/OR 50m freestyle)
1973 Dave Dickenson CFL quarterback (Calgary Stampeders)
1973 Rahul Dravid cricket batter (prolific Karnataka, Tests for India 96)
1974 Rosenkowitz sextuplets Cape Town South Africa (1st known to survive infancy)
1974 Echo Leta Johnson Austin TX, playmate (Jan, 1993)
1974 Goran Lozanovski Australian soccer midfielder (Olyroos, Olympics-96)
1974 Rod Jones NFL guard (Cincinnati Bengals)
1974 Toderick Malone WLAF wide receiver (London Monarchs)
1974 Warren Morris Alexandria LA, baseball infielder (Olympics-bronze-96)
1975 Brad Badger guard (Washington Redskins)
1975 Jacky Verbeek Dutch soccer player (RKC)
1975 Rory Fitzpatrick Rochester, NHL defenseman (Montréal Canadiens)
1988 Alexandria L'Esperance quintuplet
1988 Danielle L'Esperance quintuplet
1988 Erica L'Esperance quintuplet
1988 Raymond L'Esperance quintuplet
1988 Veronica L'Esperance quintuplet
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Deaths which occurred on January 11:

0705 John VI Catholic Pope (701-05), dies
1055 Constantine IX Monomachos emperor of Byzantium, dies
1552 Johannes Cochlaeus [Dobeneck], German humanist/theologist, dies
1641 Franciscus Gomarus [François Gomaer], French theologist, dies
1650 Paul Hallman composer, dies at 49
1674 Jan Zoet actor/playwright/poet (Brutal-Roffel), dies at 58
1753 Hans Sloane English physician (British Museum), dies at 92
1771 Jean-Baptiste de Boyer marquis d'Argens, French author, dies at 66
1775 Yemelyan Pugachov Don Cossack rebel, executed by tsarist Russia
1784 Ferdinand Philipp Joseph Lobkowitz composer, dies at 59
1797 Francis Lightfoot Lee US farmer (signer Declaration of Independence), dies at 62
1801 Domenico Cimarosa Italian composer (Matrimonio segreto), dies at 51
1837 François Gérard French baron/painter, dies at 66
1837 John Field Irish pianist/composer (Nocturnes), dies at 54
1843 Francis Scott Key composer (Star Spangled Banner), dies at 63
1847 Caroline von Wolzogen [von Lengefeld] German author, dies at 83
1856 Nikolai I Nadezjdin Russian archaeologist, dies
1870 Adolf Ganz composer, dies at 73
1877 Pietro Romani composer, dies at 85
1891 Georges-Eugène Haussmann French senator/baron, dies at 81
1893 Benjamin F Butler US General /presidential candidate (anti-monopoly), dies at 74
1898 Gaetano Capocci composer, dies at 86
1901 Vasily Sergeyevich Kalinnikov composer, dies at 34
1902 Johnny Briggs cricketer (118 wickets for England), dies in an asylum
1914 Ambrose Bierce writer, dies at 71
1923 Constantine I king of Greece (1913-17, 20-22), dies at 54
1928 Thomas Hardy novelist (Maddening Crowd), dies at his home near Dorchester at 87
1929 Julio Antonio Mella Cuban revolutionary, murdered at about 28
1931 Oscar Fetras composer, dies at 76
1943 Carlo Tresca NY's Italian newspaper editor/anti-fascist, murdered
1944 Galeazzo count of Cortellazzo Ciano Italian politician, dies
1945 Ada Negri Italian poet/author (Fatalità), dies at 74
1950 Karin Michaelis writer, dies at 77
1952 Jean de Lattre de Tassigny General (North-Africa/Indo-China), dies at 61
1953 Ernst H Ridder Rappard Dutch Nazi founder (NSNAP), dies at 53
1953 Marcel Canneel Flemish painter, dies at 58
1953 Noach Zjordanija Georgian Premier (1918-21), dies at 84
1954 Edgar Tytgat Flemish painter/etcher/drawer, dies at 77
1954 Emmy Arbous Dutch actress/cabaret performer (Boefje), dies at 56
1954 Oscar Straus Austrian composer (Brave Soldier), dies at 83
1955 Rodolfo Graziani Italian East-Africa Minister of Defense, dies at 72
1958 Alec Rowley composer, dies at 65
1959 Dr Mohammed Zakaria Ghonein discoverer of 6,000 year old pyramid, dies
1960 Johan E Elias Dutch historian (Elias Family), dies at 84
1963 Arthur D Nock English/Americans historian (St Paul), dies at 60
1966 Albert Giacometti Swiss/French painter/sculptor, dies at 64
1966 Lal Bahadur Shastri Indian premier (1964-66), dies at 61
1973 Isabel Randolph actress (Missing Corpse), dies at 83
1973 Rudolf Kubin composer, dies a day after 64th birthday
1976 Mervyn Grell cricketer (Test West Indies vs England 1930, 21 & 13, 0-17), dies
1978 Michael Bates actor (Clockwork Orange, Salt & Pepper), dies at 57
1979 Jack Soo actor (Nick Yemana-Barney Miller, Green Berets), dies at 63
1981 Beulah Bondi actress (It's a Wonderful Life), dies at 91
1983 Nikolaj V Podgorny president USSR, dies at 79
1984 Jack La Rue TV narrator (Lights Out), dies at 84
1984 Fritz Geissler composer, dies at 62
1988 Gregory (Pappy) Boyington ace WWII pilot, dies at 75 of cancer
1988 Isidor Isaac Rabi nuclear physicist (Nobel Prize-1944), dies at 89
1990 Mary Jane Carr actress (Forbidden Trail, Second Wife), dies
1991 Jason Christmas dies of gunshot wound during robbery in New York at 49
1993 Lacey Fosburgh author (Closing Time), dies of breast cancer at 50
1994 John Bradley raised US flag at Iwo Jima, dies at 70
1994 Roger "Ram" Ramirez jazz piano player/composer, dies at 80
1995 Adrian J "Ad" Kaland Dutch MP (CDA 1977-93), dies at 72
1995 John AG Gere English art historian (Raphael & his Circle), dies at 73
1995 Onat Kutlar Turkish screenplay/producer (Hazal), murdered at 59
1995 Willem N "Pim" Koot pianist (Concert Building), dies at 76
1996 Eric Hebborn artist/faker, dies at 61
1996 Harold Walter Bailey philologist, dies at 96>>
1996 Hubert Nicholson poet/novelist, dies at 87
1996 Ike Isaacs guitarist, dies at 76
1997 Cavan O'Connor singer, dies at 97
1997 Duncan Wood television director/producer, dies at 71
1997 Helen Foster Snow writer, dies at 89
1997 Joshua William Steward polymath, dies at 83
1997 Sheldon Leonard producer/director (Dick Van Dyke), dies at 89
1998 Klaus Tennstedt conductor, dies at 71

1863 Battle of Arkansas Post

Union General John McClernand and Admiral David Porter capture Arkansas Post, a Confederate stronghold on the Arkansas River. The victory secured central Arkansas for the Union and lifted northern morale just three weeks after the disastrous Battle of Fredericksburg.

Arkansas Post was a massive fort 25 miles from the confluence of the Arkansas and Mississippi rivers. It was designed to insure Confederate control of the White and Arkansas rivers, and to keep pressure off Vicksburg, the last major Rebel city on the Mississippi River. The sides of the square fort were each nearly 200 feet long and the structure was protected by a moat. It sat on a bluff 25 feet above the river. The post was a major impediment to Yankee commerce on the Arkansas.

McClernand gathered his Army of the Mississippi at Milliken's Bend, just north of Vicksburg. He had 32,000 men in two corps commanded by Generals George Morgan and William T. Sherman. McClernand's main objective was Vicksburg, but he decided to capture Arkansas Post first to secure Yankee commerce on the rivers north of Vicksburg. McClernand was accompanied by Porter's flotilla. The plan was to steam up the Arkansas River and land the troops below the post, then have Sherman's men swing around behind the fort while Morgan approached from downriver.

Porter began bombing the fort on the night of January 10. The bombardment continued the following afternoon. Through the afternoon, Union infantry moved towards the fort while the ships passed in front and began firing from the other side of the fort. The Confederate garrison was surrounded, and offered a white flag before the day was out. The Yankees lost 134 men and suffered 898 wounded, but they captured 5,000 Confederates and preserved Union commerce on the Arkansas and White rivers.
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1861 Alabama secedes

Alabama becomes the fourth state to secede from the Union when a convention votes 61 to 39 in favor of the measure. Alabama had a much closer vote than other states, due to strong Unionist sentiment in the northern part of the state.
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1916 French forces occupy Corfu

To provide a safe and stable haven for the growing number of refugees pouring out of the devastated Balkan state of Serbia, French forces take formal military control of the Greek island of Corfu on this day in 1916.

The northernmost of a string of islands in the Ionian Sea, Corfu was a British protectorate in the 18th century before passing into the possession of Greece in 1864. Over the course of 1915, as German and Austro-Hungarian forces battered Serbia—whose ambitions of self-determination had ostensibly sparked the entire Great War with the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in June 1914—thousands of the country’s soldiers and civilians alike fled into the mountains of Albania. Near the end of 1915, in a massive rescue operation involving more than 1,000 trips made by Italian, French and British steamers, 260,000 Serb soldiers were transported to Corfu, where they waited for the chance to reclaim their country.

Corfu became the seat of the Serbian government-in-exile as well as an important base for supplying relief to the front in Salonika, on mainland Greece. In mid-April 1916, the first of 125,000 Serbian troops, escorted by French and British warships, traveled from Corfu to Salonika, where they would relieve a much smaller army and fight alongside their French and British allies.

In the summer of 1917, negotiations took place on Corfu between the representatives of various Slav countries over the creation of a new Balkan state, based on the assumption that Austria-Hungary would be dissolved in defeat and Serbia would be independent once more. The Pact of Corfu, signed on July 20, 1917, was a vision of a new nation made up of the three main ethnic groups—Serbs, Croats and Slovenes—and ruled by the Serbian royal family. This vision appealed to many—particularly the United States and its idealistic leader, Woodrow Wilson—but would require a decisive victory in the war to become reality. At the time of the Pact of Corfu, that victory remained far in the future.
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1945 Truce signed in Greek Civil War

On this day, fighting in the civil war stops when a political truce is signed between the British-backed Democratic National Army and the communist rebel National Liberation Front.

Upon the occupation of Greece by Germany (which invaded to bail out Italy after its failed invasion threatened to leave Greece open to Allied occupation), various resistance forces gave battle. Two stood out as particularly important: a communist-backed resistance movement called the National Liberation Front and a liberal, democratic movement called the Democratic National Army. While the factions operated within different ideological frameworks, they nevertheless occasionally cooperated in fighting the common German enemy. By early 1944, however, the National Liberation Front took to the hills to create a provisional government, rejecting the legitimacy of both the Greek king and his government-in-exile. It also disregarded its one remaining rival for ultimate political supremacy in Greece-the Democratic National Army.

When Germany withdrew from Greece in October 1944, victorious British forces brought together the communist and democratic factions in order to establish a coalition government. This government collapsed after the communist National Liberation Front refused to disband its guerrilla forces. On December 3, war broke out between the communists and the democrats. The National Liberation Front took control of most of Greece, with the exception of the capital and Salonika.

The British fought against the communists alongside the Democratic National Army, which began to move more and more to the right politically as it struggled for survival and support. On January 11, the National Liberation Front accepted the British terms for a truce; a month later, the rebels surrendered and disbanded their guerilla army altogether. The peace was short-lived, however, as civil war broke out again in the postwar environment and the tumultuous struggle for control over Greece continued.
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1956 Diem issues Ordinance No. 6

South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem issues Ordinance No. 6, allowing the internment of former Viet Minh members and others "considered as dangerous to national defense and common security."

The Viet Minh was a largely communist organization that overthrew French colonial rule in Vietnam and assumed control of the government in North Vietnam in October 1954. Diem's internment of former Viet Minh members was an attempt to consolidate his control of South Vietnam. He had already subdued opposition from various religious sects and had launched a drive against Viet Minh who remained in the South.

Although by the end of 1956, Diem had smashed 90 percent of the former Viet Minh insurgent agents in the Mekong Delta, his ruthless drive against all dissidents did little to enhance his popularity, and he lost many potential allies. He managed to stay in power until November 1963, when he was assassinated during a coup by South Vietnamese army generals.
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1965 Demonstrations erupt in Saigon and Hue

Major cities--especially Saigon and Hue--and much of central Vietnam are disrupted by demonstrations and strikes led by Buddhists.

Refusing to accept any government headed by Tran Van Huong, who they saw as a puppet of the United States, the Buddhists turned against U.S. institutions and their demonstrations took on an increasingly anti-American tone. Thich Tri Quang, the Buddhist leader, and other monks went on a hunger strike. A Buddhist girl in Nha Trang burned herself to death (the first such self-immolation since 1963). Although Huong tried to appease the Buddhists by rearranging his government, they were not satisfied.

In the end, Huong was unable to put together a viable government and, on January 27, the Armed Forces Council overthrew him in a bloodless coup and installed Gen. Nguyen Khanh in power. Khanh was ousted by yet another coup on February 18, led by Air Commodore Nguyen Cao Ky and Maj. Gen. Nguyen Van Thieu. A short-lived civilian government under Dr. Phan Huy Quat was installed, but it lasted only until June 12, 1965. At that time, Thieu and Ky formed a new government with Thieu as the chief of state and Ky as the prime minister. Thieu and Ky would be elected as president and vice-president in general elections held in 1967.