This day in .....

24 December 1974 – Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin, Australia.

Cyclone Tracy

Category 4 Australian region cyclone in 1974

For the Australian miniseries, see Cyclone Tracy (miniseries).

Severe Tropical Cyclone Tracy was a small but destructive tropical cyclone that devastated the city of Darwin, in the Northern Territory of Australia, in December 1974. The small, developing, easterly storm was originally expected to pass clear of the city, but it turned towards it early on 24 December. After 10:00 p.m. ACST, damage became severe, with wind gusts reaching 217 km/h (117 kn; 135 mph) before instruments failed. The anemometer in Darwin Airport control tower had its needle bent in half by the strength of the gusts.^[1]

Residents of Darwin were celebrating Christmas, and they did not immediately acknowledge the emergency, partly because they had been alerted to an earlier cyclone (Selma) which passed west of the city, not affecting it in any way. Additionally, news outlets had only a skeleton crew on duty over the holiday.

Tracy killed 66 people and caused $837 million in damage (1974 AUD, about $7.69 billion in 2022, approximately US$5.2 billion). It destroyed more than 70 percent of Darwin's buildings, including 80 percent of houses.^[2][3] It left more than 25,000 out of the 47,000 inhabitants of the city homeless prior to landfall and required the evacuation of over 30,000 people,^[4] of whom many never returned. After the storm passed, the city was rebuilt using more stringent standards "to cyclone code". The storm is the second-smallest tropical cyclone on record (in terms of gale-force wind diameter), behind only the North Atlantic's Tropical Storm Marco in 2008.^[5]

1. ^ "National Museum of Australia - Cyclone Tracy". www.nma.gov.au. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
2. ^ "NT coroner hands down finding on Cyclone Tracy deaths". ABC News. 18 March 2005. Archived from the original on 5 April 2005. Retrieved 24 March 2006.
3. ^ "Tropical cyclone extremes". Bureau of Meteorology. Archived from the original on 21 July 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
4. ^ "Event – Cyclone Tracy". Attorney-General’s Department Disasters Database. Australian Emergency Management Institute. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2011.
5. ^ James L. Franklin (4 November 2008). "Tropical Cyclone Report: Tropical Storm Marco" (PDF). National Hurricane Center. Retrieved 23 January 2009.

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25 December 1996 – The body of American child beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey was found in her family's Boulder, Colorado, home. Her murder remains unsolved

Killing of JonBenét Ramsey

1996 unsolved murder in Boulder, Colorado, US

"JonBenét" redirects here. For the American noise rock band from Houston, Texas, see The Jonbenét.

JonBenét Patricia Ramsey (August 6, 1990 – December 26, 1996)^[1] was an American child beauty queen who was killed at age six in her family's home at 755 15th Street^[2][a] in Boulder, Colorado, on the night of December 25, 1996. Her body was found in the house's basement about seven hours after she had been reported missing. She had sustained a fractured skull, and a garrote was tied around her neck. The autopsy report stated that JonBenét's official cause of death was "asphyxia by strangulation associated with craniocerebral trauma".^[1][3] Her death was ruled a homicide.^[4] The case generated worldwide public and media interest, in part because her mother Patsy Ramsey, a former beauty queen, had entered JonBenét into a series of child beauty pageants.

The Boulder police initially suspected that a long handwritten ransom note that was reportedly found in the home had been written by Patsy, and that the note and the appearance of JonBenét's body had been staged by Patsy and her husband, John Bennett Ramsey, to cover up the killing. In 1999, the police and district attorney (DA) both said that JonBenét's brother Burke, who was nine years old at the time of her death, was not a suspect.^[5][6] JonBenét's parents gave several televised interviews but resisted police questioning except on their own terms. In 2013, unsealed court documents revealed that a 1999 grand jury recommended filing charges against the Ramseys for permitting the child to be in a threatening situation. John and Patsy were also accused of hindering the prosecution of an unidentified person who had "committed ... the crime of murder in the first degree and child abuse resulting in death".^[7] However, the DA determined that there was insufficient evidence to pursue a successful indictment.^[7]

In 2002, a new DA took over the investigation from the police and primarily pursued the theory that an intruder had committed the killing. In 2003, trace DNA taken from JonBenét's clothes was found to belong to an unknown male; each family member's DNA had been excluded from this match. The DA sent the Ramseys a letter of apology in 2008, declaring the family was "completely cleared" by the DNA results.^[8] In a 2015 interview former Boulder police chief Mark Beckner said that in his view the perpetrator was the source of the unidentified DNA found on JonBenét’s clothing.^[9] In 2009, the Boulder police took the case back from the DA and reopened the investigation.^[10]

National and international media coverage of the case focused on JonBenét's brief beauty pageant career, as well as her parents' wealth and the unusual evidence found in the case. Media reports questioned how the police had handled the investigation. Ramsey family members and friends have filed defamation suits against several media organizations. The crime is still considered a cold case and remains an open investigation with the Boulder Police Department.

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Cite error: The named reference AutopsyReport was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
2. ^ Bounds, Amy (March 2, 2023). "Boulder house where JonBenet Ramsey was found dead listed for sale for almost $7M". Daily Camera. Archived from the original on November 30, 2023.
3. ^ Klaver, Elizabeth (2012). Sites of Autopsy in Contemporary Culture. SUNY Press. p. 2. ISBN 978-0-791-48342-8. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Chan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
5. ^ Cite error: The named reference DC Not Burke was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
6. ^ Cite error: The named reference DC Burke gj was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
7. ^ ^{a b} Martinez, Michael; Karimi, Faith (October 25, 2013). "Papers: Grand jury in 1999 sought to indict JonBenét Ramsey's parents". CNN. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
8. ^ "JonBenét Ramsey's Parents Cleared". ABC News. July 10, 2008. Archived from the original on June 9, 2013. Retrieved September 5, 2015.
9. ^ Brennan, Charlie (February 24, 2015). "Mark Beckner opens up about JonBenet Ramsey case, then regrets it". Daily Camera. Archived from the original on February 4, 2024. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
10. ^ Miller, Vanessa (February 2, 2009). "Boulder police take back Ramsey case". Colorado Daily. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2015.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

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26 December 1898 – Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium

Radium

This article is about the chemical element. For other uses, see Radium (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Radon.

Chemical element with atomic number 88 (Ra)

Radium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, but it readily reacts with nitrogen (rather than oxygen) upon exposure to air, forming a black surface layer of radium nitride (Ra₃N₂). All isotopes of radium are radioactive, the most stable isotope being radium-226 with a half-life of 1,600 years. When radium decays, it emits ionizing radiation as a by-product, which can excite fluorescent chemicals and cause radioluminescence. For this property, it was widely used in self-luminous paints following its discovery. Of the radioactive elements that occur in quantity, radium is considered particularly toxic, and it is carcinogenic due to the radioactivity of both it and its immediate decay product radon as well as its tendency to accumulate in the bones.

Radium, in the form of radium chloride, was discovered by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898 from ore mined at Jáchymov. They extracted the radium compound from uraninite and published the discovery at the French Academy of Sciences five days later. Radium was isolated in its metallic state by Marie Curie and André-Louis Debierne through the electrolysis of radium chloride in 1910, and soon afterwards the metal started being produced on larger scales in Austria, the United States, and Belgium. However, the amount of radium produced globally has always been small in comparison to other elements, and by the 2010s, annual production of radium, mainly via extraction from spent nuclear fuel, was less than 100 grams.

In nature, radium is found in uranium ores in quantities as small as a seventh of a gram per ton of uraninite, and in thorium ores in trace amounts. Radium is not necessary for living organisms, and its radioactivity and chemical reactivity make adverse health effects likely when it is incorporated into biochemical processes because of its chemical mimicry of calcium. As of 2018, other than in nuclear medicine, radium has no commercial applications. Formerly, from the 1910s to the 1970s, it was used as a radioactive source for radioluminescent devices and also in radioactive quackery for its supposed curative power. In nearly all of its applications, radium has been replaced with less dangerous radioisotopes, with one of its few remaining non-medical uses being the production of actinium in nuclear reactors.

1. ^ Arblaster, John W. (2018). Selected Values of the Crystallographic Properties of Elements. Materials Park, Ohio: ASM International. ISBN 978-1-62708-155-9.
2. ^ Kondev, F. G.; Wang, M.; Huang, W. J.; Naimi, S.; Audi, G. (2021). "The NUBASE2020 evaluation of nuclear properties" (PDF). Chinese Physics C. 45 (3): 030001. doi:10.1088/1674-1137/abddae.
3. ^ Liang, C. F.; Paris, P.; Sheline, R. K. (19 September 2000). "α decay of ²²⁵Ra". Physical Review C. 62 (4). American Physical Society (APS): 047303. Bibcode:2000PhRvC..62d7303L. doi:10.1103/physrevc.62.047303. ISSN 0556-2813.

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27 December 1845 – Ether anesthetic is used for childbirth for the first time by Dr. Crawford Long in Jefferson, Georgia.

Diethyl ether

Organic chemical compound

Chemical compound

"^O^" redirects here. For the emoticon, see List of emoticons.

Diethyl ether, or simply ether, is an organic compound with the chemical formula (CH₃CH₂)₂O, sometimes abbreviated as Et₂O.^[a] It is a colourless, highly volatile, sweet-smelling ("ethereal odour"), extremely flammable liquid. It belongs to the ether class of organic compounds. It is a common solvent. It was formerly used as a general anesthetic.^[8]

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards. "#0277". National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
2. ^ Merck Index, 10th ed., Martha Windholz, editor, Merck & Co., Inc, Rahway, NJ, 1983, p. 551
3. ^ "Diethyl ether_msds".
4. ^ "Diethyl ether". ChemSpider. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
5. ^ Carl L. Yaws, Chemical Properties Handbook, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1999, p. 567
6. ^ ^{a b} "Ethyl ether". Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health Concentrations (IDLH). National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
7. ^ ^{a b} "Ethyl Ether MSDS". J.T. Baker. Archived from the original on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 2010-06-24.
8. ^ Sakuth, Michael; Mensing, Thomas; Schuler, Joachim; Heitmann, Wilhelm; Strehlke, Günther; Mayer, Dieter (2010). "Ethers, Aliphatic". Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. doi:10.1002/14356007.a10_023.pub2. ISBN 978-3-527-30385-4.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

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28 December 1879 – Tay Bridge disaster: The central part of the Tay Rail Bridge in Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom collapses as a train passes over it, killing 75.

Tay Bridge disaster

Bridge collapse and train wreck

For William McGonagall's poem on this subject, see The Tay Bridge Disaster.

The Tay Bridge disaster occurred during a violent European windstorm on Sunday 28 December 1879, when the first Tay Rail Bridge collapsed as a North British Railway (NBR) passenger train on the Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line from Burntisland bound for its final destination of Dundee passed over it, killing all aboard. The bridge—designed by Sir Thomas Bouch—used lattice girders supported by iron piers, with cast iron columns and wrought iron cross-bracing. The piers were narrower and their cross-bracing was less extensive and robust than on previous similar designs by Bouch.

Bouch had sought expert advice on wind loading when designing a proposed rail bridge over the Firth of Forth; as a result of that advice he had made no explicit allowance for wind loading in the design of the Tay Bridge. There were other flaws in detailed design, in maintenance, and in quality control of castings, all of which were, at least in part, Bouch's responsibility.

Bouch died less than a year after the disaster, his reputation ruined. Future British bridge designs had to allow for wind loadings of up to 56 pounds per square foot (2.7 kilopascals). Bouch's design for the Forth Bridge was not used.

As of 2024, it remains the fifth-deadliest railway accident in the history of the United Kingdom, as well as the second deadliest rail accident in Scottish history, being surpassed by the UK's deadliest: the Quintinshill rail disaster.

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29 December 2003 – The last known speaker of Akkala Sami dies, rendering the language extinct

Akkala Sámi

Extinct Uralic language from Russia

Akkala Sámi, also referred to, particularly in Russia, as Babin Sámi (Russian: Бабинский саа́мский), was a Sámi language spoken in the Sámi villages of Aʼkkel (Russian: Бабинский; Finnish: Akkala), Čuʼkksuâl (Russian: Экостровский) and Sââʼrvesjäuʼrr (Russian: Гирвасозеро; Finnish: Hirvasjärvi), in the inland parts of the Kola Peninsula in Russia. Formerly erroneously^{[according to whom?]} regarded as a dialect of Kildin Sámi, it has recently^[when?] become recognized as an independent Sámi language that is most closely related to its western neighbor Skolt Sámi, and the two are somewhat mutually intelligible.^[1]

Akkala Sámi was noted as extinct in the 2010 UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger. Previously, it had been considered the most endangered Eastern Sámi language. On December 29, 2003, Maria Sergina – the last fluent native speaker of Akkala Sámi – died.^[5][6] However, as of 2011 there were at least two people, both aged 70, with some knowledge of Akkala Sámi. Remaining ethnic Akkala Sámi live in the village Yona,^[1] where there is a cultural office.

Although there exists a description of Akkala Sámi phonology and morphology, a few published texts, and archived audio recordings,^[1] as well as a grammar of the language, the Akkala Sámi language remains among the most poorly documented Sámi languages.^[1] One of the few items in the language are chapters 23–28 of the Gospel of Matthew published in 1897. It was translated by A. Genetz, and printed at the expense of the British and Foreign Bible Society.^{[citation needed]}

In the Russian 2020 census, 1 person still claimed knowledge of Akkala.^[7]

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Scheller, Elizabeth (2011). "The Sámi Language Situation in Russia" (PDF). In Grünthal, Riho; Kovács, Magdolna (eds.). Ethnic and Linguistic Context of Identity: Finno-Ugric Minorities. Helsinki, Finland: University of Helsinki, Department of Finnish, Finno-Ugrian and Scandinavian Studies. pp. 90–91. ISBN 978-952-5667-28-8. OCLC 755168782.
2. ^ Akkala Sámi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
3. ^ "«Лингвистический оптимизм»: репортаж с конференции «Лингвистический форум 2019: Коренные языки России и мира»". Институт языкознания РАН. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
4. ^ Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger (Report) (3rd ed.). UNESCO. 2010. p. 7.
5. ^ "Nordisk samekonvensjon" (PDF) (in Swedish). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-04-11. Retrieved 2014-02-07.
6. ^ Rantala, Leif, Aleftina Sergina 2009. Áhkkila sápmelaččat. Oanehis muitalus sámejoavkku birra, man maŋimuš sámegielalaš olmmoš jámii 29.12.2003. Roavvenjárga.
7. ^ "Росстат — Всероссийская перепись населения 2020". rosstat.gov.ru. Archived from the original on July 1, 2023. Retrieved 2023-01-03.

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30 December 534 – The second and final edition of the Code of Justinian comes into effect in the Byzantine Empire

Code of Justinian

529 codification of Roman law by Justinian I of Byzantium

The Code of Justinian (Latin: Codex Justinianus, Justinianeus^[2] or Justiniani) is one part of the Corpus Juris Civilis, the codification of Roman law ordered early in the 6th century AD by Justinian I, who was Eastern Roman emperor in Constantinople. Two other units, the Digest and the Institutes, were created during his reign. The fourth part, the Novellae Constitutiones (New Constitutions, or Novels), was compiled unofficially after his death but is now also thought of as part of the Corpus Juris Civilis.^[3]

1. ^ "Codex Justiniani I-IX, cum glosa /Franciscus Accursius, Guido de Suzaria ... e.a.[manuscript]". lib.ugent.be. Retrieved 2020-08-26.
2. ^ Patrick, David; Geddie, William (1923). Chambers's Encyclopaedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge. p. 324.
3. ^ See generally, Honoré, 2003

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31 December 1879 – Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time, in Menlo Park, New Jersey.

Thomas Edison

American inventor and businessman (1847–1931)

"Edison" redirects here. For other uses, see Edison (disambiguation).

Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman.^[1][2][3] He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures.^[4] These inventions, which include the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and early versions of the electric light bulb, have had a widespread impact on the modern industrialized world.^[5] He was one of the first inventors to apply the principles of organized science and teamwork to the process of invention, working with many researchers and employees. He established the first industrial research laboratory.^[6]

Edison was raised in the American Midwest. Early in his career he worked as a telegraph operator, which inspired some of his earliest inventions.^[4] In 1876, he established his first laboratory facility in Menlo Park, New Jersey, where many of his early inventions were developed. He later established a botanical laboratory in Fort Myers, Florida, in collaboration with businessmen Henry Ford and Harvey S. Firestone, and a laboratory in West Orange, New Jersey, that featured the world's first film studio, the Black Maria. With 1,093 US patents in his name, as well as patents in other countries, Edison is regarded as the most prolific inventor in American history.^[7] Edison married twice and fathered six children. He died in 1931 due to complications from diabetes.

1. ^ Adrian Wooldridge (September 15, 2016). "The alphabet of success". The Economist. Archived from the original on September 16, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
2. ^ Sproule, Anna (2000). Thomas Alva Edison: The World's Greatest Inventor (1st U.S. ed.). Woodbridge, CT: Blackbirch Press. ISBN 978-1-56711-331-0.
3. ^ "Hangout – Thomas Edison". state.nj.us. State of New Jersey.
4. ^ ^{a b} "Con Edison: A Brief History of Con Edison – electricity". Coned.com. January 1, 1998. Archived from the original on October 30, 2012. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
5. ^ "The Wizard of Menlo Park". The Franklin Institute. Archived from the original on March 5, 2013. Retrieved February 24, 2013.
6. ^ Walsh, Bryan (July 15, 2009). "The Electrifying Edison". Time. Archived from the original on July 18, 2009. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
7. ^ Boyer, Paul S., ed. (2001). The Oxford Companion to United States History. Oxford University Press. p. 211. ISBN 978-0-19-989109-2. OCLC 57680178.

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1 January 1788 – The first edition of The Times of London, previously The Daily Universal Register, is published

The Times

British daily newspaper

This article is about the British newspaper based in London. For other uses, see The Times (disambiguation).

The Times is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register, adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times (founded in 1821), are published by Times Media, since 1981 a subsidiary of News UK, in turn wholly owned by News Corp. The Times and The Sunday Times were founded independently and have had common ownership only since 1966.^[2] It is considered a newspaper of record in the UK.^[3]

The Times was the first newspaper to bear that name, inspiring numerous other papers around the world, such as The Times of India and The New York Times. In countries where these other titles are popular, the newspaper is often referred to as The London Times^[4] or The Times of London,^[5] although the newspaper is of national scope and distribution.

The Times had an average daily circulation of 365,880 in March 2020; in the same period, The Sunday Times had an average weekly circulation of 647,622.^[1] The two newspapers also had 304,000 digital-only paid subscribers as of June 2019.^[6] An American edition of The Times has been published since 6 June 2006.^[7] A complete historical file of the digitised paper, up to 2019, is available online from Gale Cengage Learning.^[8][9] The political position of The Times is considered to be centre-right.^[10]

1. ^ ^{a b} Tobitt, Charlotte; Majid, Aisha (25 January 2023). "National press ABCs: December distribution dive for freesheets Standard and City AM". Press Gazette. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
2. ^ Cite error: The named reference newspaper-history was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
3. ^ "The UK's 'other paper of record'". BBC News. 19 January 2004. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024.
4. ^ Barbour, Lucy (4 July 2011). "London Times posts digital subs rise". AdNews. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
5. ^ Potter, Mitch (26 January 2008). "Times' editorial page calls for intervention to save Winehouse". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024. Retrieved 8 April 2014. LONDON–The weighty editorial page of The Times of London doesn't make a habit of devoting thought to the travails of pop singers, whose exploits now more than ever keep the red-top British tabloids afroth.
6. ^ "The Times & The Sunday Times surpass 300,000 digital-only subscribers". News UK. Archived from the original on 15 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
7. ^ Pfanner, Eric (27 May 2006). "Times of London to Print Daily U.S. Edition". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
8. ^ "The Times Digital Archive". Gale Cengage Learning. Archived from the original on 30 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
9. ^ Bingham, Adrian. "The Times Digital Archive, 1785–2006 (Gale Cengage)", English Historical Review (2013) 128#533 pp: 1037–1040. doi:10.1093/ehr/cet144
10. ^ Christina Schaeffner, ed. (2009). Political Discourse, Media and Translation. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 35. ISBN 9781443817936. With regard to political affiliation The Daily Telegraph is a right-wing paper, The Times centre-right, The Financial Times centre-right and liberal, and The Guardian centre-left.

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2 January 1975 – The Federal Rules of Evidence are approved by the United States Congress.

Federal Rules of Evidence

United States law

First adopted in 1975, the Federal Rules of Evidence codify the evidence law that applies in United States federal courts.^[1] In addition, many states in the United States have either adopted the Federal Rules of Evidence, with or without local variations, or have revised their own evidence rules or codes to at least partially follow the federal rules.

1. ^ "FRE Legislative History Overview Resource Page". Federal Evidence Review. Archived from the original on October 3, 2014. Retrieved September 19, 2014.

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3 January 1749 – The first issue of Berlingske, Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, is published.

Berlingske

Daily newspaper in Denmark

For the company producing the newspaper, see Berlingske Media.

Berlingske, previously known as Berlingske Tidende (Danish: [ˈpɛɐ̯le̝ŋskə ˈtsʰiːðn̩ə], 'Berling's Times'), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen.^[1] It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark.^[2] First published on 3 January 1749,^[3][4] Berlingske is Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper and among the oldest newspapers in the world.^[5][6]

1. ^ "Factsheet Denmark" (PDF). Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. January 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
2. ^ Morris, Kieran (28 February 2020). "What Noma did next: how the 'New Nordic' is reshaping the food world". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023. At the time, Camilla Plum, a Danish food writer and TV personality, was quoted in Denmark's newspaper of record, Berlingske, lambasting the manifesto's toothlessness.
3. ^ Julius Moritzen (February 1905). "What The People Read in Scandinavia". The American Monthly Review of Reviews. 31 (2): 206.
4. ^ Anna B. Holm. "Discontinuities in Business Model Innovation of the Danish Newspaper Industry" (PDF). Conferenga. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 December 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
5. ^ "Oldest newspapers still in circulation". World Association of Newspapers. Archived from the original on 7 January 2004. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
6. ^ "The Press in Denmark". BBC. 20 December 2005. Retrieved 17 December 2014.

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4 January 1717 – The Netherlands, Great Britain, and France sign the Triple Alliance

Triple Alliance (1717)

1717 treaty between the Netherlands, France, and Britain

For other uses of this term, see Triple Alliance (disambiguation).

The Triple Alliance was a defence pact signed on 4 January 1717 in The Hague between the Dutch Republic, France and Great Britain, against Bourbon Spain in an attempt to maintain the agreements of the 1713–15 Peace of Utrecht. The three states were concerned about Spain becoming a superpower in Europe. As a result, militarisation took place and caused great havoc to civilians. That enraged Spain and other states and led to brinkmanship. The alliance became the Quadruple Alliance the next year, after the accession of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI.

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5 January 1933 – Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge begins in San Francisco Bay.

Golden Gate Bridge

Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the one-mile-wide (1.6 km) strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States. The structure links San Francisco—the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula—to Marin County, carrying both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 across the strait. It also carries pedestrian and bicycle traffic, and is designated as part of U.S. Bicycle Route 95. Recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Wonders of the Modern World,^[7] the bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco and California.

The idea of a fixed link between San Francisco and Marin had gained increasing popularity during the late 19th century, but it was not until the early 20th century that such a link became feasible. Joseph Strauss served as chief engineer for the project, with Leon Moisseiff, Irving Morrow and Charles Ellis making significant contributions to its design. The bridge opened to the public on May 27, 1937,^[8] and has undergone various retrofits and other improvement projects in the decades since.

The Golden Gate Bridge is described in Frommer's travel guide as "possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world."^[9][10] At the time of its opening in 1937, it was both the longest and the tallest suspension bridge in the world, titles it held until 1964 and 1998 respectively. Its main span is 4,200 feet (1,280 m) and its total height is 746 feet (227 m).^[11]

1. ^ "About Us". goldengate.org. Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
2. ^ Golden Gate Bridge at Structurae
3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Denton was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
4. ^ "Annual Vehicle Crossings and Toll Revenues". Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
5. ^ "Golden Gate Bridge". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
6. ^ "City of San Francisco Designated Landmarks". City of San Francisco. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2012.
7. ^ "American Society of Civil Engineers Seven Wonders". Asce.org. July 19, 2010. Archived from the original on August 2, 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2010.
8. ^ "Key Dates - Moments & Events | Golden Gate". www.goldengate.org.
9. ^ Levine, Dan (1993). Frommer's comprehensive travel guide, California '93. New York: Prentice Hall Travel. p. 118. ISBN 0-671-84674-4.
10. ^ McGrath, Nancy (1985). Frommer's 1985-86 guide to San Francisco. New York: Frommer/Pasmantier Pub. p. 10. ISBN 0-671-52654-5.
11. ^ "Golden Gate Bridge". history.com. 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2020.

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6 January 1540 – King Henry VIII of England marries Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves

For other people named Anne of Cleves, see Anne of Cleves (disambiguation).

Queen of England in 1540

Anne of Cleves (German: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557)^[2] was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of Henry VIII.^[2] Little is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke of Bar, son and heir of Antoine, Duke of Lorraine, although their marriage did not proceed.

In March 1539, negotiations for Anne's marriage to Henry began. Henry believed he needed to form a political alliance with her brother, William, a leader of the Protestants of Western Germany, to strengthen his position against potential attacks from Catholic France and the Holy Roman Empire.^[3] Anne arrived in England in December 1539 and married Henry a week later, but the marriage was declared unconsummated after six months and Anne was not crowned queen consort.

Following the annulment, Henry gave her a generous settlement and Anne was thereafter known as the King's Beloved Sister. Remaining in England, she lived to see the reigns of Henry's children Edward VI and Mary I and attended Mary's coronation in 1553. Anne outlived the rest of Henry's wives.^[4]

1. ^ Weir 2007, p. 424.
2. ^ ^{a b} Weir 2002, p. 155.
3. ^ Sanders, Kevin (22 September 2017). "Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves: journey to a doomed marriage?". English Heritage Blog.
4. ^ Norton 2009, p. 161.

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7 January 1835 – HMS Beagle, with Charles Darwin on board, drops anchor off the Chonos Archipelago.

HMS Beagle

10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy; notably carried Charles Darwin

"The Beagle" redirects here. For other uses, see Beagle (disambiguation).

For other ships with the same name, see List of ships named HMS Beagle.

HMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy, one of more than 100 ships of this class. The vessel, constructed at a cost of £7,803, was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames. Later reports say the ship took part in celebrations of the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom, passing under the old London Bridge, and was the first rigged man-of-war afloat upriver of the bridge.^[2][3] There was no immediate need for Beagle, so she "lay in ordinary", moored afloat but without masts or rigging. She was then adapted as a survey barque and took part in three survey expeditions.

The second voyage of HMS Beagle is notable for carrying the recently graduated naturalist Charles Darwin around the world. While the survey work was carried out, Darwin travelled and researched geology, natural history and ethnology onshore. He gained fame by publishing his diary journal, best known as The Voyage of the Beagle, and his findings played a pivotal role in the formation of his scientific theories on evolution and natural selection.^[4][5]

1. ^ FitzRoy 1839, pp. 17–18.
2. ^ Taylor 2008, pp. 22–24, 36.
3. ^ Stokes 1846, p. 3.
4. ^ "HMS 'Beagle' (1820–70)". Royal Museums Greenwich. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
5. ^ Howitt, William (1865). "Voyages of Captains Wickham, Fitzroy, and Stokes, in the Beagle, round the Australian Coasts, from 1837 to 1843". The History of Discovery in Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand: From the Earliest Date to the Present Day. Vol. 1. London: Longman, Green, Longman, Roberts and Green. p. 332.

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8 January 1877 – Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their last battle against the United States Cavalry at Wolf Mountain, Montana Territory

Crazy Horse

Lakota war leader (c. 1840–1877)

For other uses, see Crazy Horse (disambiguation).

Crazy Horse (Lakota: Tȟašúŋke Witkó^[2] [tˣaˈʃʊ̃kɛ witˈkɔ], lit. 'His-Horse-Is-Crazy'; c. 1840 – September 5, 1877)^[3] was a Lakota war leader of the Oglala band in the 19th century. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by White American settlers on Native American territory and to preserve the traditional way of life of the Lakota people. His participation in several famous battles of the Black Hills War on the northern Great Plains, among them the Fetterman Fight in 1866, in which he acted as a decoy, and the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, in which he led a war party to victory, earned him great respect from both his enemies and his own people.

In September 1877, four months after surrendering to U.S. troops under General George Crook, Crazy Horse was fatally wounded by a bayonet-wielding military guard while allegedly^[4][5] resisting imprisonment at Camp Robinson in northwestern Nebraska. He was honored by the U.S. Postal Service in 1982 with a 13¢ Great Americans series postage stamp.

1. ^ Matson, William B. (2016). Crazy Horse: the Lakota warrior's life & legacy (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4236-4123-0.
2. ^ Lakota Language Consortium (2008). New Lakota Dictionary
3. ^ Bright, William (2004). Native American Place Names in the United States. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, p. 125
4. ^ Salter Reynolds, Susan (December 26, 2010). "Book review: 'The Killing of Crazy Horse' by Thomas Powers". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
5. ^ "George Kills in Sight Describes the Death of Indian Leader Crazy Horse". History Matters. George Mason University.

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9 January 1431 – The trial of Joan of Arc begins in Rouen.

Trial of Joan of Arc

1431 trial and execution of French saint Joan of Arc for heresy

For the film, see The Trial of Joan of Arc.

The Trial of Joan of Arc was a 15th century legal proceeding against Joan of Arc, a French military leader under Charles VII during the Hundred Years' War. During the siege of Compiègne in 1430, she was captured by Burgundian forces and subsequently sold to their English allies. She was prosecuted by a pro-English church court at Rouen, Normandy, in 1431. The court found her guilty of heresy and she was burned at the stake. The verdict was later nullified at Joan's rehabilitation trial, which was overseen by the Inquisitor-General, Jean Bréhal, in 1456. Considered a French national heroine, she was declared a saint by the Roman Catholic Church in 1920. The trial is one of the most famous in history, becoming the subject of many books and films.

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10 January 49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war.

Julius Caesar

Roman general and dictator (100–44 BC)

"Gaius Julius Caesar" and "Caesar" redirect here. For the name, see Gaius Julius Caesar (name). For other uses, see Gaius Julius Caesar (disambiguation), Caesar (disambiguation), and Julius Caesar (disambiguation).

Gaius Julius Caesar^[a] (12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and subsequently became dictator from 49 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire.

In 60 BC, Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey formed the First Triumvirate, an informal political alliance that dominated Roman politics for several years. Their attempts to amass political power were opposed by many in the Senate, among them Cato the Younger with the private support of Cicero. Caesar rose to become one of the most powerful politicians in the Roman Republic through a string of military victories in the Gallic Wars, completed by 51 BC, which greatly extended Roman territory. During this time he both invaded Britain and built a bridge across the river Rhine. These achievements and the support of his veteran army threatened to eclipse the standing of Pompey, who had realigned himself with the Senate after the death of Crassus in 53 BC. With the Gallic Wars concluded, the Senate ordered Caesar to step down from his military command and return to Rome. In 49 BC, Caesar openly defied the Senate's authority by crossing the Rubicon and marching towards Rome at the head of an army.^[3] This began Caesar's civil war, which he won, leaving him in a position of near-unchallenged power and influence in 45 BC.

After assuming control of government, Caesar began a programme of social and governmental reform, including the creation of the Julian calendar. He gave citizenship to many residents of far regions of the Roman Republic. He initiated land reforms to support his veterans and initiated an enormous building programme. In early 44 BC, he was proclaimed "dictator for life" (dictator perpetuo). Fearful of his power and domination of the state, a group of senators led by Brutus and Cassius assassinated Caesar on the Ides of March (15 March) 44 BC. A new series of civil wars broke out and the constitutional government of the Republic was never fully restored. Caesar's great-nephew and adopted heir Octavian, later known as Augustus, rose to sole power after defeating his opponents in the last civil war of the Roman Republic. Octavian set about solidifying his power, and the era of the Roman Empire began.

Caesar was an accomplished author and historian as well as a statesman; much of his life is known from his own accounts of his military campaigns. Other contemporary sources include the letters and speeches of Cicero and the historical writings of Sallust. Later biographies of Caesar by Suetonius and Plutarch are also important sources. Caesar is considered by many historians to be one of the greatest military commanders in history.^[4] His cognomen was subsequently adopted as a synonym for "Emperor"; the title "Caesar" was used throughout the Roman Empire, giving rise to modern descendants such as Kaiser and Tsar. He has frequently appeared in literary and artistic works.

1. ^ Badian 2009, p. 16. All ancient sources place his birth in 100 BC. Some historians have argued against this; the "consensus of opinion" places it in 100 BC. Goldsworthy 2006, p. 30.
2. ^ All offices and years thereof from Broughton 1952, p. 574.
3. ^ Keppie, Lawrence (1998). "The approach of civil war". The Making of the Roman Army: From Republic to Empire. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-8061-3014-9.
4. ^ Tucker, Spencer (2010). Battles That Changed History: An Encyclopedia of World Conflict. ABC-CLIO. p. 68. ISBN 978-1-59884-430-6.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

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11 January 1908 – Grand Canyon National Monument is created.

Grand Canyon National Park

National park in Arizona, United States

This article is about the national park in the southwestern United States. For the canyon itself, see Grand Canyon.

Grand Canyon National Park is a national park of the United States located in northwestern Arizona, the 15th site to have been named as a national park. The park's central feature is the Grand Canyon, a gorge of the Colorado River, which is often considered one of the Wonders of the World. The park, which covers 1,217,262 acres (1,901.972 sq mi; 4,926.08 km²) of unincorporated area in Coconino and Mohave counties, received more than 4.7 million recreational visitors in 2023.^[5] The Grand Canyon was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979. The park celebrated its 100th anniversary on February 26, 2019.^[6]

1. ^ Grand Canyon in United States of America Archived July 24, 2019, at the Wayback Machine. protectedplanet.net. United Nations Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre and the IUCN's World Commission on Protected Areas. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
2. ^ "Grand Canyon National Park Visitor Center". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved August 14, 2011.
3. ^ "Listing of acreage – December 31, 2011" (XLSX). Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved March 7, 2012. (National Park Service Acreage Reports)
4. ^ "Annual Park Ranking Report for Recreation Visits in: 2023". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
5. ^ "Top 10 most visited national parks". Travel. March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
6. ^ "Grand Canyon Centennial History". Time. Retrieved April 19, 2019.

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12 January 1962 – Vietnam War: Operation Chopper, the first American combat mission in the war, takes place.

Operation Chopper (Vietnam)

Part of the Vietnam War (1962)

Operation Chopper occurred on 12 January 1962 and was the first time U.S. forces participated in major combat in the Vietnam War.

1. ^ Battlefield Viet Nam Episode 5 "The Undeclared War" on YouTube PBS.

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13 January 1888 – The National Geographic Society is founded in Washington, D.C.

National Geographic Society

American nonprofit scientific and educational institution

The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.^[2]

Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the magazine, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations.

1. ^ ^{a b} "NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY | Open990". www.open990.org. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
2. ^ Yeadon, David (2004). National Geographic Guide to the World's Secret Places. National Geographic. ISBN 0792265645. Retrieved August 16, 2022.

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14 January 1967 – Counterculture of the 1960s: The Human Be-In takes place in San Francisco, California's Golden Gate Park, launching the Summer of Love.

Summer of Love

1967 social phenomenon in San Francisco

For the concurrent period of the 1967 race riots, see Long hot summer of 1967. For other uses, see Summer of Love (disambiguation).

The Summer of Love was a major social phenomenon that occurred in San Francisco during the summer of 1967. As many as 100,000 people, mostly young people, hippies, beatniks, and 1960s counterculture figures, converged in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district and Golden Gate Park.^[1][2]

More broadly, the Summer of Love encompassed hippie culture, spiritual awakening, hallucinogenic drugs, anti-war sentiment, and free love throughout the West Coast of the United States, and as far away as New York City.^[3][4] An episode of the PBS documentary series American Experience referred to the Summer of Love as "the largest migration of young people in the history of America".^[5]

Hippies, sometimes called flower children, were an eclectic group. Many opposed the Vietnam War, were suspicious of government, and rejected consumerist values. In the United States, counterculture groups rejected suburbia and the American way and instead opted for a communal lifestyle. Some hippies were active in political organization, whereas others were passive and more concerned with art (music, painting, poetry in particular) or spiritual and meditative practices.^[4] Many hippies took interest in ancient Indian religions, such as Hinduism and Buddhism.

1. ^ E. Vulliamy, "Love and Haight", Observer Music Monthly May 20, 2007
2. ^ P. Braunstein, and M.Doyle (eds), Imagine Nation: The American Counterculture of the 1960s and '70s, (New York, 2002), p. 7.
3. ^
   • Selvin, Joel (1999). Summer of Love The Inside Story of LSD, Rock & Roll, Free Love, and High Times in the Wild West. Cooper Square Press. ISBN 9780815410195.
   • Selvin, Joel; Young, Malcolm C. (June 11, 2017). "The Summer of Love". The Forum at Grace Cathedral. Grace Cathedral, San Francisco – via vimeo.
   • Selvin, Joel; Young, Malcolm C. (June 11, 2017). "The Summer of Love". The Forum at Grace Cathedral. Grace Cathedral, San Francisco – via YouTube. With the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love sparking celebrations and events throughout San Francisco, we invite the New York Times best-selling author of Summer of Love: The Inside Story of LSD, Rock & Roll, Free Love and High Times in the Wild West and former San Francisco Chronicle senior pop music critic Joel Selvin to offer his insights into the lasting impact of the 1967 cultural revolution that was born in the Haight-Ashbury.
   • Gene Anthony (1980). The Summer of Love: Haight-Ashbury at Its Highest (PDF). John Libbey Eurotext. ISBN 0867194219. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 6, 2007.
4. ^ ^{a b} Hinckley, David (October 15, 1998). "Groovy The Summer Of Love, 1967". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved September 28, 2012.
5. ^ Chapter 1 | Summer of Love | American Experience | PBS. Retrieved April 15, 2024 – via www.youtube.com.

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15 January 1759 – The British Museum opens to the public.

British Museum

National museum in London, England

For other uses, see British Museum (disambiguation).

The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world.^[3] It documents the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present.^[a] Established in 1753, the British Museum was the first public national museum.^[4]

In 2023, the museum received 5,820,860 visitors, an increase of 42% from 2022. It was the most popular attraction in the United Kingdom according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA).^[2]

At its beginning, the museum was largely based on the collections of the Anglo-Irish physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane.^[5] It opened to the public in 1759, in Montagu House, on the site of the current building. The museum's expansion over the following 250 years was largely a result of British colonisation and resulted in the creation of several branch institutions, or independent spin-offs, the first being the Natural History Museum in 1881. Some of its best-known acquisitions, such as the Greek Elgin Marbles and the Egyptian Rosetta Stone, are subject to long-term disputes and repatriation claims.^[6][7]

In 1973, the British Library Act 1972^[8] detached the library department from the British Museum, but it continued to host the now separated British Library in the same Reading Room and building as the museum until 1997. The museum is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Like all UK national museums, it charges no admission fee except for loan exhibitions.^[9]

1. ^ "Collection size". British Museum. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
2. ^ ^{a b} "British Museum is the most-visited UK attraction again". BBC News. 18 March 2024. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
3. ^ van Riel, Cees (30 October 2017). "Ranking The World's Most Admired Art Museums, And What Big Business Can Learn From Them". Forbes. Archived from the original on 18 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
4. ^ "History of the British Museum". The British Museum. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
5. ^ "The Life and Curiosity of Hans Sloane". The British Library. Archived from the original on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
6. ^ "The Big Question: What is the Rosetta Stone, and should Britain return". The Independent. 9 December 2009. Archived from the original on 11 March 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
7. ^ Tharoor, Kanishk (29 June 2015). "Museums and looted art: the ethical dilemma of preserving world cultures". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
8. ^ "British Library Act 1972". legislation.gov.uk. 1972. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
9. ^ "Admission and opening times". British Museum. 14 June 2010. Archived from the original on 8 July 2016. Retrieved 4 July 2010.

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16 January 1707 – The Scottish Parliament ratifies the Act of Union, paving the way for the creation of Great Britain.

Acts of Union 1707

Acts of Parliament creating the Kingdom of Great Britain

Not to be confused with Union of the Crowns.

"Union of England and Scotland" redirects here. Not to be confused with Union of England and Scotland Act 1603 or Treaty of Union.

United Kingdom legislation

United Kingdom legislation

The Acts of Union^[d] refer to two acts of Parliament, one by the Parliament of England in 1706, the other by the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. They put into effect the International Treaty of Union agreed on 22 July 1706, which politically joined the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into a single "political state" the self-styled Kingdom of Great Britain, with Queen Anne as sovereign of both Kingdoms. The English and Scots acts of ratification took effect on 1 May 1707, creating the "self-styled" political "UK Union" State Parliament of Great Britain, based in the Palace of Westminster.

The two countries shared a monarch since the "personal" Union of the Crowns in 1603, when James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne from his cousin Elizabeth I. Attempts had been made in 1606, 1667, and 1689 following the 5 November 1688 Dutch invasion by force of arms and overthrow of James II King of England (VII of Scots) by his son-in-law and daughter Mary to try to unite the two separate countries, but it was not until the early 18th century that both nations via separate groups of English and Scots Royal Commissioners and their respective political establishments, "though not the Scots people" came to support the idea of an international "Treaty of political, monitory and trade Union", albeit for different reasons.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

1. ^ Pickering, Danby, ed. (1794). "CAP. XIII An act to prevent acts of parliament from taking effect from a time prior to the passing thereof". The Statutes at Large : Anno tricesimo tertio George III Regis. Vol. XXXIX. Cambridge. pp. 32, 33. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2021. (33 Geo. 3. c. 13: "Acts of Parliament (Commencement) Act 1793")

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17 January 1773 – Captain James Cook leads the first expedition to sail south of the Antarctic Circle.

James Cook

British explorer and naval officer (1728–1779)

"Captain Cook" redirects here. For other uses, see Captain Cook (disambiguation) and James Cook (disambiguation).

Captain James Cook FRS (7 November [O.S. 27 October] 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, cartographer, and naval officer famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean and to New Zealand and Australia in particular. He made detailed maps of Newfoundland prior to making three voyages to the Pacific, during which he achieved the first recorded European contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands and the first recorded circumnavigation of New Zealand.

Cook joined the British merchant navy as a teenager and joined the Royal Navy in 1755. He served during the Seven Years' War and subsequently surveyed and mapped much of the entrance to the St. Lawrence River during the siege of Quebec, which brought him to the attention of the Admiralty and the Royal Society. This acclaim came at a crucial moment for the direction of British overseas exploration, and it led to his commission in 1768 as commander of HMS Endeavour for the first of three Pacific voyages.

In these voyages, Cook sailed thousands of miles across largely uncharted areas of the globe. He mapped lands from New Zealand to Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean in greater detail and on a scale not previously charted by Western explorers. He surveyed and named features, and recorded islands and coastlines on European maps for the first time. He displayed a combination of seamanship, superior surveying and cartographic skills, physical courage, and an ability to lead men in adverse conditions.

During his third voyage in the Pacific, Cook encountered the Hawaiian islands in 1779. He was killed while attempting to take hostage Kalaniʻōpuʻu, chief of the island of Hawaii, during a dispute. He left a legacy of scientific and geographical knowledge that influenced his successors well into the 20th century, and numerous memorials worldwide have been dedicated to him. He remains controversial for his occasionally violent encounters with indigenous peoples and there is debate on whether he can be held responsible for paving the way for British imperialism and colonialism.

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18 January 1976 – Lebanese Christian militias kill at least 1,000 in Karantina, Beirut.

Karantina massacre

Massacre during the Lebanese Civil War

The Karantina massacre (Arabic: مجزرة الكرنتينا; French: Massacre de La Quarantaine/Karantina) took place on January 18, 1976, early in the Lebanese Civil War. La Quarantine, known in Arabic as Karantina, was a Muslim-inhabited district in mostly Christian East Beirut controlled by forces of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO),^[4] and inhabited by Palestinians, Kurds, Syrians, Armenians and Lebanese Sunnis.^[5][6] The fighting and subsequent killings also involved an old Quarantine area near the port and nearby Maslakh quarter.^[7][8][9]

Karantina was overrun by militias of the right-wing and mostly Christian Lebanese Front, specifically the Kataeb Party (Phalangists),^[10][11] resulting in the deaths of approximately 600–1,500 people,^[2] mostly Lebanese Muslims.^[8] According to then-Washington Post-correspondent Jonathan Randal, "Many Lebanese Muslim men and boys were rounded up and separated from the women and children and massacred," while the women and young girls were violently raped and robbed.^[9]

The Damour massacre two days later was a reprisal for the Karantina massacre.^[8][12]

After Kataeb Regulatory Forces (KRF), Guardians of the Cedars (GoC), National Liberal Party's Tiger militia and Lebanese Youth Movement (LYM) forces took control of the Karantina district, the Tel al-Zaatar refugee camp was besieged for five months, ending in the Tel al-Zaatar massacre.^[3]

1. ^ "1976 – World Press Photo". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18. Retrieved 2008-03-29.
2. ^ ^{a b} ictj (2014-07-28). "Attack on Maslakh-Karantina camp". Civil Society Knowledge Centre. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
3. ^ ^{a b} Kazziha, Walid (1979) Palestine in the Arab dilemma Taylor & Francis, ISBN 0-85664-864-7 p 52
4. ^ Noam Chomsky (1989) Necessary Illusions: Thought Control in Democratic Societies South End Press, ISBN 0-89608-366-7 p 171
5. ^ Michael Johnson (2001) All Honourable Men: The Social Origins of War in Lebanon I.B.Tauris, ISBN 1-86064-715-4 p 62
6. ^ Jonathan C. Randal (1990). Many Lebanese Muslim men and boys were rounded up and separated from the women and children and massacred. Their families still search for their remains. Women and young girls were violently raped and robbed by the Christian warlords led by Bachir Gemayel, also Bashir Gemayel was a senior member of the right-wing Christian Phalange party and the founder and supreme commander of the Lebanese Forces militia during the early years of the Lebanese Civil War. The Tragedy of Lebanon: Christian Warlords, Israeli Adventurers and American Bunglers Hogarth, ISBN 0-7012-0909-7 pp 88–90
7. ^ Lokman I. Meho, Kelly L. Maglaughlin (2001) Kurdish culture and society: an annotated bibliography Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 0-313-31543-4 p 35
8. ^ ^{a b c} Harris (p. 162) notes "the massacre of 1,500 Palestinians, Shi'is, and others in Karantina and Maslakh, and the revenge killings of hundreds of Christians in Damur"[1]
9. ^ ^{a b} Jonathan C. Randal (1990) The Tragedy of Lebanon: Christian Warlords, Israeli Adventurers and American Bunglers Hogarth, ISBN 0-7012-0909-7 p 88
10. ^ William W. Harris (2006). The New Face of Lebanon: History's Revenge. Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 162. ISBN 978-1-55876-392-0. Retrieved July 27, 2013. the massacre of 1,500 Palestinians, Shi'is, and others in Karantina and Maslakh, and the revenge killings of hundreds of Christians in Damour
11. ^ Noam Chomsky, Edward W. Said (1999) Fateful Triangle: The United States, Israel, and the Palestinians South End Press, ISBN 0-89608-601-1 pp 184–185
12. ^ Noam Chomsky, Edward W. Said (1999) Fateful Triangle: The United States, Israel, and the Palestinians South End Press, ISBN 0-89608-601-1 pp 184–185

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19 January 1920 – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is founded.

American Civil Liberties Union

Legal advocacy organization in the United States

For the conservative legal aid group founded in the 1990s, see American Civil Rights Union.

"ACLU" redirects here. For the Australian organisation (1980–2004), see Australian Civil Liberties Union.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million.

The ACLU provides legal assistance in cases where it considers civil liberties at risk. Legal support from the ACLU can take the form of direct legal representation or preparation of amicus curiae briefs expressing legal arguments when another law firm is already providing representation. In addition to representing persons and organizations in lawsuits, the ACLU lobbies for policy positions established by its board of directors.

The ACLU's current positions include opposing the death penalty; supporting same-sex marriage and the right of LGBT people to adopt; supporting reproductive rights such as birth control and abortion rights; eliminating discrimination against women, minorities, and LGBT people; decarceration in the United States; protecting housing and employment rights of veterans; reforming sex offender registries and protecting housing and employment rights of convicted first-time offenders; supporting the rights of prisoners and opposing torture; upholding the separation of church and state by opposing government preference for religion over non-religion or for particular faiths over others; and supporting the legality of gender-affirming treatments, including those that are government funded, for trans youth.

The ACLU is often criticized when it represents an individual or organization that promotes offensive or unpopular viewpoints, such as the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis, the Nation of Islam, the North American Man/Boy Love Association, the Westboro Baptist Church or the Unite the Right rally. The ACLU has been criticized by liberals, such as when it excluded communists from its leadership ranks, when it defended Neo-Nazis, when it declined to defend Paul Robeson, or when it opposed the passage of the National Labor Relations Act. Conversely, it has been criticized by conservatives such as when it argued against official prayer in public schools or when it opposed the Patriot Act. The ACLU has supported conservative figures such as Rush Limbaugh, George Wallace, Henry Ford and Oliver North; as well as liberal figures such as Dick Gregory, Rockwell Kent and Benjamin Spock.

1. ^ Cite error: The named reference W47 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
2. ^ David Weigel (July 5, 2018). "The ACLU's Membership Has Surged and It's Putting Its New Resources to Use". Fortune.
3. ^ "ACLU Annual Report 2024".
4. ^ "ACLU History," first section, paragraph 3. American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
5. ^ "ACLU History," section: "And how we do it," paragraph 3. American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved March 3, 2017.

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20 January 1649 – The High Court of Justice for the trial of Charles I begins its proceedings.

Trial of Charles I

1649 trial that resulted in conviction of King Charles I

"High Court of Justice (1649)" redirects here. For other similarly named courts, see High Court of Justice (disambiguation).

The Trial of Charles I was a significant event in English history that took place in January 1649, marking the first time a reigning monarch was tried and executed by his own subjects. Following years of conflict during the English Civil War, which pitted the Royalists loyal to Charles I against the Parliamentarians seeking to limit his powers, the king was captured by Parliamentary forces in 1646.

In November 1648, after a series of failed negotiations and increasing tensions, the Rump Parliament established a high court to try Charles for treason. The court was presided over by John Bradshaw, and the proceedings were marked by controversy and legal disputes, as many questioned the legitimacy of trying a king. The charges against Charles included high treason, specifically waging war against the realm and betraying the trust of the people.

Despite his defense that he ruled by divine right and could not be subjected to the authority of Parliament, Charles maintained a defiant stance throughout the trial, refusing to recognize the court's legitimacy. He was ultimately found guilty and sentenced to death. On January 30, 1649, Charles I was executed outside the Banqueting House in Whitehall, London. His execution sent shockwaves across Europe and heralded a new era in English governance, leading to the establishment of the Commonwealth under Oliver Cromwell. The trial and execution of Charles I remain pivotal events that challenged the traditional notions of monarchy and laid the groundwork for the modern British constitutional system.

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