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Today January 26th 2009 this day in history Read more below to view events, deaths, births, Holidays observances and video clips. Last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1340 – King Edward III of England is declared King of France.
1500 – Vicente Yáñez Pinzón becomes the first European to set foot on Brazil.
1531 – Lisbon, Portugal hit by an earthquake–thousands die.
1564 – The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.
1565 – Battle of Talikota, fought between the Vijayanagara Empire and the Islamic sultanates of the Deccan, leads to the subjugation, and eventual destruction of the last Hindu kingdom in India, and the consolidation of Islamic rule over much of the Indian subcontinent.
1589 – Job is elected as Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.
1699 – Treaty of Carlowitz signed.
1700 – The magnitude 9 Cascadia Earthquake took place off the west coast of the North America, as evidenced by Japanese records.
1736 – Stanislaus I of Poland abdicates his throne.
1788 – The British First Fleet, led by Arthur Phillip, sails into Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour) to establish Sydney, the first permanent European settlement on the continent. Commemorated as Australia Day
1808 – Rum Rebellion, the only successful (albeit short-lived) armed takeover of the government in Australia.
1837 – Michigan is admitted as the 26th U.S. state.
1838 – Tennessee enacts the first prohibition law in the United States
1841 – The United Kingdom formally occupies Hong Kong, which China later formally ceded.
1855 – Point No Point Treaty signed in Washington Territory.
1856 – First Battle of Seattle (1856). Marines from the USS Decatur drive off American Indian attackers after all day battle with settlers.
1861 – American Civil War: The state of Louisiana secedes from the Union.
1863 – American Civil War: General Ambrose Burnside is relieved of command of the Army of the Potomac after the disastrous Fredericksburg campaign. He is replaced by Joseph Hooker.
1863 – American Civil War: Massachusetts Governor receives permission from Secretary of War to raise a militia organization for men of African descent.
1870 – American Civil War: Virginia rejoins the Union.
1885 – Troops loyal to The Mahdi conquer Khartoum.
1905 – The Cullinan Diamond is found near Pretoria, South Africa at the Premier Mine.
1907 – The Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk III is officially introduced into British Military Service, and remains the oldest military rifle still in official use.
1911 – Glenn H. Curtiss flies the first successful seaplane.
1911 – Richard Strauss opera Der Rosenkavalier receives its debut performance at the Dresden State Opera.
1920 – Former Ford Motor Co. executive Henry Leland launches the Lincoln Motor Company which he later sold to his former employer.
1930 – The Indian National Congress declares 26 January as Independence Day or as the day for Poorna Swaraj (Complete Independence) which occurred 20 years later.
1934 – The Apollo Theater reopens in Harlem, New York City.
1934 – German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact is signed.
1939 – Spanish Civil War: Troops loyal to nationalist General Francisco Franco and aided by Italy take Barcelona.
1942 – World War II: The first United States forces arrive in Europe landing in Northern Ireland.
1950 – India promulgates its constitution forming a republic and Rajendra Prasad is sworn in as its first president. Republic Day.
1952 – Black Saturday in Egypt: riots burn Cairo s central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses.
1958 – Japanese ferry Nankai Maru capsized off southern Awaji Island, Japan, 167 killed.
1961 – John F. Kennedy appoints Janet G. Travell to be his physician. This is the first time a woman holds this appointment.
1962 – Ranger program: Ranger 3 is launched to study the moon. The space probe later missed the moon by 22,000 miles (35,400 km).
1965 – Hindi becomes the official language of India.
1966 – The Beaumont Children go missing from Glenelg Beach near Adelaide, South Australia.
1980 – Israel and Egypt establish diplomatic relations.
1988 – Andrew Lloyd Webber s The Phantom of the Opera has its first performance on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre in New York.
1991 – Mohamed Siad Barre is removed in Somalia, ending centralized government
1992 – Boris Yeltsin announces that Russia is going to stop targeting United States cities with nuclear weapons.
1998 – Lewinsky scandal: On American television, U.S. President Bill Clinton denies having had sexual relations with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky.
2001 – An earthquake hits Gujarat, India, causing more than 20,000 deaths.
2004 – President Hamid Karzai signs the new constitution of Afghanistan.
2004 – A whale explodes in the town of Tainan, Taiwan. A build-up of gas in the decomposing Sperm whale is suspected of causing the explosion.
2005 – Glendale train crash: Two trains derail killing 11 and injuring 200 in Glendale, California, near Los Angeles.
2006 – Western Union discontinues use of its telegram service.
Births
1497 – Emperor Go-Nara of Japan (d. 1557)
1541 – Florent Chrestien, French writer (d. 1596)
1714 – Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, French sculptor (d. 1785)
1716 – George Germain, 1st Viscount Sackville, British soldier and politician (d. 1785)
1722 – Alexander Carlyle, Scottish church leader (d. 1805)
1763 – Charles XIV John of Sweden, Napoleonic general (d. 1844)
1781 – Achim von Arnim, German poet (d. 1831)
1813 – Juan Pablo Duarte, Dominican founding father (d. 1876)
1826 – Julia Dent Grant, First Lady of the United States (d. 1902)
1832 – George Shiras Jr., U.S. Supreme Court justice (d. 1924)
1842 – François Coppée, French poet and novelist (d. 1908)
1852 – Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza (Pietro Paolo Savorgnan di Brazzà), explorer (d. 1905)
1857 – the 12th Dalai Lama (d. 1875)
1868 – Juventino Rosas, Mexican composer (d. 1894)
1880 – Douglas MacArthur, American general and Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1964)
1887 – François Faber, Luxembourgian cyclist (d. 1915)
1887 – Marc Mitscher, American Navy Admiral (d. 1947)
1891 – Frank Costello, Italian-born gangster (d. 1973)
1891 – Wilder Penfield, American-born Canadian neurosurgeon (d. 1976)
1892 – Zara Cully, American actress (d. 1978)
1892 – Bessie Coleman, American pioneer aviator (d. 1926)
1893 – Giuseppe Genco Russo, Sicilian mafioso (d. 1976)
1900 – Karl Ristenpart, German conductor (d. 1967)
1901 – Stuart Symington, American politician (d. 1988)
1902 – Menno ter Braak, Dutch author and polemicist (d. 1940)
1904 – Ancel Keys, American scientist (d. 2004)
1904 – Seán MacBride, Irish statesman, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1988)
1905 – Charles Lane, American actor (d. 2007)
1905 – Maria von Trapp, Austrian-born singer (d. 1987)
1908 – Stéphane Grappelli, French jazz violinist (d. 1997)
1908 – Jill Esmond, English actress (d. 1990)
1910 – Jean Image, Hungarian-born French animator (d. 1989)
1911 – Polykarp Kusch, German-born physicist, Nobel Prize Laureate (d. 1993)
1911 – Norbert Schultze, German composer and songwriter (d. 2002)
1913 – Jimmy Van Heusen, American songwriter (d. 1990)
1914 – Princess Hadice Hayriye Ayshe Dürrühsehvar (d. 2006)
1915 – William Hopper, American actor (d. 1970)
1918 – Nicolae Ceausescu, Romanian dictator (d. 1989)
1918 – Philip José Farmer, American writer
1919 – Bill Nicholson, English footballer and manager for Tottenham Hotspur. (d. 2004)
1919 – Valentino Mazzola, Italian footballer (d. 1949)
1921 – Akio Morita, Japanese businessman (d. 1999)
1921 – Eddie Barclay, French producer (Barclay Records) (d. 2005)
1922 – Michael Bentine, British comedian (d. 1996)
1923 – Anne Jeffreys, American actress
1924 – Rauf Denktas, Cypriot politician
1924 – Annette Strauss, American philanthropist and politician (d. 1998)
1924 – Alice Babs, Swedish singer
1925 – Joan Leslie, American actress
1925 – Paul Newman, American actor, philanthropist, race car driver and race team owner (d. 2008)
1925 – Claude Ryan, Quebec newspaper editor (d. 2004)
1926 – Farman Fatehpuri, Pakistani scholar
1927 – José Azcona del Hoyo, President of Honduras (d. 2005)
1927 – Bob Nieman, American baseball player (d. 1985)
1928 – Roger Vadim, French film director and actor (d. 2000)
1929 – Jules Feiffer, American cartoonist and writer
1929 – Gordon Solie, American wrestling commentator (d. 2000)
1931 – Mary Murphy, American film actress
1932 – Coxsone Dodd, Jamaican record producer
1933 – Ercole Baldini, Italian cyclist
1934 – Roger Landry, Quebec businessman and newspaper publisher
1935 – Bob Uecker, American baseball player and broadcaster
1936 – Sal Buscema, American comic book artist
1937 – Joseph Saidu Momoh, Sierra Leone political leader (d. 2003)
1941 – Scott Glenn, American actor
1941 – Henry Jaglom, English director
1942 – Souad Hosni, Egyptian actress (d. 2001)
1943 – César Gutiérrez, Venezuelan baseball player (d. 2005)
1943 – Jean Knight, American singer
1943 – Austin Jack Warner,Trinidadian FIFA Vice-President and CONCACAF President
1944 – Angela Davis, American feminist and activist
1945 – Jacqueline du Pré, English cellist (d. 1987)
1946 – Gene Siskel, American film critic (d. 1999)
1947 – Michel Sardou, French singer
1947 – Patrick Dewaere, French actor (d. 1982)
1949 – Jonathan Carroll, American author
1949 – David Strathairn, American actor
1950 – Jörg Haider, Austrian far-right politician (d. 2008)
1950 – Janet Lupo, American model
1953 – Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Prime Minister of Denmark
1953 – Lucinda Williams, American singer
1954 – Kim Hughes, Australian cricketer
1955 – Eddie Van Halen, Dutch musician
1958 – Anita Baker, American singer
1958 – Ellen DeGeneres, American actress and comedian
1958 – Salvador Sánchez, Mexican boxer
1960 – Road Warrior Animal, American professional wrestler
1960 – Charlie Gillingham, American musician (Counting Crows)
1961 – Wayne Gretzky, Canadian ice hockey player
1962 – Oscar Ruggeri, Argentine footballer
1963 – José Mourinho, Portuguese football manager
1963 – Andrew Ridgeley, English musician
1963 – Riddell Akua, Nauruan politician
1964 – Paul Johansson, American actor
1965 – Natalia Yurchenko, Soviet gymnast
1965 – Thomas Östros, Swedish politician
1967 – Pradip Somasundaran, Indian playback singer
1968 – Ravi Teja, Tollywood film actor
1969 – Michael O Hearn, American bodybuilder
1970 – Kirk Franklin, American singer
1970 – Tracy Middendorf, American actress
1971 – Bryan Callen, American actor
1971 – Dorian Gregory, American actor
1973 – Mayu Shinjo, Japanese mangaka
1974 – Shannon Hale, American author
1976 – Frankie Rayder, American model
1976 – Willie Adler, American guitar player
1977 – Vince Carter, American basketball player
1977 – Justin Gimelstob, American tennis player
1978 – Estéban Germán, Dominican baseball player
1978 – Corina Morariu, American tennis player
1978 – Kelly Stables, American actress
1979 – Sara Rue, American actress
1981 – Juan Jose Haedo, Argentinian Cyclist
1984 – Layla Kayleigh, British television personality
1984 – Iain Turner, Scottish footballer
1984 – Luo Xuejuan, Chinese swimmer
1986 – Gerald Green, American basketball player
1986 – Matt Heafy, American musician (Trivium)
1986 – Shantelle Taylor, Canadian professional wrestler
1987 – Vladimir Garin, Russian actor (d. 2003)
1988 – Mia Rose, British-Portuguese singer
1989 – Emily Hughes, American figure skater
1990 – Christopher Massey, American actor
1993 – Cameron Bright, Canadian actor
Deaths
946 – Eadgyth, German Queen
1567 – Nicholas Wotton, English diplomat
1630 – Henry Briggs, English mathematician (b. 1556)
1636 – Jean Hotman, Marquis de Villers-St-Paul, French diplomat (b. 1552)
1697 – Georg Mohr, Danish mathematician (b. 1640)
1744 – Ludwig Andreas Graf Khevenhüller, Austrian field marshal (b. 1683)
1750 – Albert Schultens, Dutch philologist (b. 1686)
1795 – Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, German composer (b. 1732)
1799 – Gabriel Christie, British general (b. 1722)
1823 – Edward Jenner, English physician (b. 1749)
1824 – Théodore Géricault, French painter (b. 1791)
1855 – Gérard de Nerval, French writer (b. 1808)
1869 – Duncan Gordon Boyes, English recipient of the Victoria Cross (b. 1846)
1870 – Victor, 3rd duc de Broglie, French statesman and diplomat (b. 1785)
1885 – Edward Davy, English inventor (b. 1806)
1885 – Charles George Gordon, British general (b. 1833)
1886 – David Rice Atchison, American politician (b. 1807)
1891 – Nikolaus August Otto, German inventor (b. 1833)
1893 – Abner Doubleday, credited inventor of baseball (b. 1819)
1904 – Whitaker Wright, English mining tycoon (b. 1846)
1926 – John Flannagan, 2nd president of St. Ambrose University
1932 – William Wrigley Jr., American industrialist (b. 1861)
1933 – Alva Belmont, American socialite (b. 1853)
1942 – Felix Hausdorff, German mathematician (b. 1868)
1943 – Harry H. Laughlin, American eugenicist (b. 1880)
1943 – Nikolai Vavilov, Russian botanist (b. 1887)
1946 – Adriaan van Maanen, Dutch-American astronomer (b. 1884)
1947 – Grace Moore, American soprano (b. 1898)
1947 – Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, (b. 1906)
1952 – Khorloogiin Choibalsan, leader of Mongolia (b. 1895)
1953 – Athanase David, French Canadian politician and businessman (b. 1882)
1961 – Stan Nichols, English cricketer (b. 1900)
1962 – Lucky Luciano, American mobster (b. 1897)
1968 – Merrill C. Meigs, American newspaper publisher (b. 1883)
1968 – Yvor Winters, American poet (b. 1900)
1973 – Edward G. Robinson, American actor (b. 1893)
1973 – Jay C. Higginbotham, American musician (b. 1906)
1976 – João Branco Núncio, Portuguese Bullfighter (b. 1901)
1979 – Nelson Rockefeller, 41st Vice President of the United States (b. 1908)
1983 – Paul Bear Bryant, American football coach (b. 1913)
1990 – Lewis Mumford, American historian (b. 1895)
1990 – Bob Gerard, British racing driver (b. 1914)
1992 – José Ferrer, Puerto Rican actor (b. 1912)
1993 – Jan Gies, Dutch resistance leader (b. 1905)
1993 – Jeanne Sauvé, Governor-General of Canada (b. 1922)
1993 – Robert Jacobsen, Danish artist (b. 1912)
1996 – Georg Alexander, Duke of Mecklenburg, head of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (b. 1921)
1996 – Harold Brodkey, American author (b. 1930)
1996 – Henry Lewis, American musician and conductor (b. 1932)
1996 – Stevie Plunder, Australian musician (b. 1963)
1996 – Dave Schultz, American wrestler (b. 1959)
1997 – Jeane Dixon, American astrologer (b. 1904)
1998 – Shinichi Suzuki, Japanese music teacher (b. 1898)
2000 – Don Budge, American tennis player (b. 1915)
2000 – Kathleen Hale, British author (b. 1898)
2000 – A. E. van Vogt, Canadian-born author (b. 1912)
2001 – Al McGuire, American basketball coach (b. 1928)
2003 – Valeriy Brumel, Soviet Olympic athlete (b. 1942)
2003 – Hugh Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton, English historian (b. 1917)
2003 – George Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, British politician (b. 1931)
2004 – Fred Haas, American golfer (b. 1916)
2006 – Khan Abdul Wali Khan, Pakistani opposition leader and Pashtun nationalist (b. 1917)
2006 – Len Carlson, Canadian actor (b. 1937)
2006 – Carol Lambrino, son of Carol II of Romania and Zizi Lambrino (b. 1920)
2007 – Hans J. Wegner, Danish furniture designer (b. 1914)
2007 – Gump Worsley, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1929)
2008 – Christian Brando, actor and son of Marlon Brando (b. 1958)
Holidays and observances
Australia – Australia Day.
Roman Empire – third day of the Sementivae in honor of Ceres and Terra.
Feast day of the following saints in the Roman Catholic Church:
Timothy and Titus
Saint Paula
Saint Alberic
Saint Margaret of Hungary
India – Republic Day – One of only three national holidays in India, celebrated with pomp and a military parade in New Delhi & across Nation.
Uganda – Liberation Day.
January 26 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
World Social Forum marks a Global Call for Action.
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