Reminisce: Today In World History

This day 26th January:

66 - 5th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet

King of England Edward III

1340 - English kingEdward III proclaimed king of France

1482 - "Pentateuch" (Jewish Bible) 1st printed as a book in Bologna, Italy

1500 - Vicente Yáñez Pinzón becomes the first European to set foot in Brazil.

1531 - Lisbon hit by Earthquake; about 30,000 die

1564 - The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.

1589 - Job is elected as Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia.

1654 - Portuguese troops conquer last Dutch base on Recife

1666 - France declares war on England & Munster

1689 - Jean Racine's "Esther" premieres in Saint-Cyr

1697 - Isaac Newton receives Jean Bernoulli's 6 month time-limit problem, solves problem before going to bed that same night

Physicist & Mathematician Isaac Newton

1699 - Venice, Poland & Austria sign Treaty of Carlowitz with Ottoman Empire

1700 - The magnitude 9 Cascadia Earthquake took place off the west coast of the North America, as evidenced by Japanese records.

1736 - Stanislaw I of Poland abdicates his throne.

1748 - Britain, Netherlands, Austria & Sardinia sign anti-French treaty

1784 - Benjamin Franklinexpresses unhappiness over eagle as America's symbol

1788 - Captain Arthur Phillip and British colonists hoist the Union Flag at Sydney Cove, New South Wales, now celebrated as Australia Day

1789 - John Odell signs contract for £336 to build St Peter's church (Bronx)

1790 - Mozart's opera "Cosi Fan Tutte" premieres in Vienna

1797 - Russia, Prussia & Austria sign treaty

1802 - Congress passes an act calling for a US Capitol library

1808 - Rum Rebellion, the only successful (albeit short-lived) armed takeover of the government in Australia.

Classical Musician and Composer Wolfang Amadeus Mozart

1833 - Gaetano Dinozetti's opera "Lucrezia Borgia" premieres in Milan

1837 - Michigan admitted as 26th US state

1838 - Tennessee enacts the first prohibition law in the United States

1841 - Hong Kong proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain

1850 - 1st German language daily newspaper in US published, NYC

1861 - Louisiana secedes from the Union (US Civil War)

1862 - Lincoln issues General War Order #1, calling for a Union offensive, General George McClellan ignores order

1863 - American Civil War: Massachusetts Governor receives permission from Secretary of War to raise a militia organization for men of African descent (54th Massachusetts Regiment)

1870 - Virginia rejoins US

1871 - British Rugby Union forms

1871 - US income tax repealed

Union General George McClellan

1875 - Electric dental drill is patented by George F Green

1881 - Union of Baptists Communities forms in Foxholl

1882 - France government of Gambetta falls

1884 - 1st Dutch Wagner version of Elizabeth aria

1885 - Muhammad Ahmed ("Mahdi") rebels conquer Khartoum

1886 - Karl Benz patents 1st auto with burning motor

1887 - Battle of Dogali: Abyssinian Emperor John IV defeats Italians

1891 - Oscar Wilde's "Duchess of Padua" premieres in NYC

1897 - Battle at Bida Gold Coast: British troops beat Nupe's army

1900 - Henrik Ibsen's "Naar vi Dode Vaaguer" premieres in Stuttgart

1905 - Arnold Schoenberg's "Pelleas und Melissande" premieres in Vienna

1905 - Han Yong-woon [Bongwan, Manhae] (1879-1944) ordained a monk in Korea

1905 - World's largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan, is found in South Africa

Composer and PainterArnold Schoenberg

1907 - 1st US federal corrupt election practices law passed

1907 - J M Synge's "Playboy of Western World" opens; police are called

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.

1907 - In Austria, universal and direct suffrage (limited to males over 24) is introduced, a reform long demanded by the socialists and others

1910 - Heavy rains cause floods in Paris

1911 - Glenn Curtiss pilots 1st successful hydroplane, San Diego

1911 - Richard Strauss's opera "Die Rosenkavalier" premieres, Dresden

1913 - Jim Thorpe relinquishes his 1912 Olympic medals for playing as a professional

1914 - 600 Dutch textile workers go on strike

1914 - Vatican puts Belgian Nobel winner Maeterlinck's works in their index

Versatile Athlete Jim Thorpe

1915 - Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, is established

1918 - Herbert Hoover, US Food Administrator, calls for "wheatless" & "meatless" days for war effort

1920 - Amadeo Modigliani's mistress jumps out of a window

1920 - Former Ford Motor Co. executive Henry Leland launches the Lincoln Motor Company which he later sold to his former employer.

1921 - Soccer team GVAV of Groningen Neth forms

1921 - Toronto St Pat Corb Denneny scores 6 goals vs Hamilton Tigers

1922 - Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Pastoral Symphony" premieres in London

1924 - Charles Jewtraw, US 500m skater, takes 1st Winter Olympics gold medal

1924 - 17th Women's Australasian Championships: Sylvia Lance Harper beats Esna Boyd Robertson (6-3, 3-6, 8-6)

1924 - 17th Men's Australasian Championships: James Anderson beats Richard Schlesinger (6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-3)

31st US PresidentHerbert Hoover

1926 - 1st public demonstration of television by John Logie Baird in his laboratory in London

1927 - Maxwell Anderson's "Saturday's Children" premieres in NYC

1929 - Indian National Congress proclaims goal for India's independence

1930 - Cleveland's Terminal Tower opens (52 stories)

1931 - Hungary-Austria sign peace treaty

1931 - Lynn Riggs' "Green Grow the Lilacs" premieres in NYC

1931 - "Cimarron" directed by Wesley Ruggles and starring Richard Dix and Irene Dunne premieres in New York. 1st western to win Best Outstanding Production/Picture (1931)

1932 - British submarine M-2 sinks in English Channel (60 dead)

1932 - KUT-AM in Austin Texas changes call letters to KNOW

1934 - Bradman scores 128 NSW v Victoria, 96 mins, 17 fours 4 sixes

1934 - Nazi Germany & Poland sign 10-year non-aggression treaty

Cricket Legend Donald Bradman

1934 - The Apollo Theater reopens in Harlem, New York City.

1939 - Federal Hall National Monument established

1939 - Filming begins on "Gone With the Wind"

1939 - Franco conquers Barcelona

1940 - Nazis forbid Polish Jews to travel on trains

1942 - 1st US force in Europe during WW II go ashore in Northern Ireland

1942 - Italian supreme command demands dismissal of German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

1942 - WW II Navy flier Don Mason sends message "Sighted sub sank same"

1945 - Soviet forces reach Auschwitz concentration camp

1947 - KLM Dakota crashes near Copenhagen, 22 die

1948 - Executive Order 9981 ending racial segregation in US Armed Forces signed

1948 - 36th Women's Australian Championships: Nancye Wynne Bolton beats Marie Toomey (6-3, 6-1)

German WWII Field Marshal Erwin Rommel

1948 - 36th Men's Australian Championships: Adrian Quist beats John Bromwich (6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3)

1949 - WHIO TV channel 7 in Dayton, OH (CBS) begins broadcasting

1950 - India becomes a republic, ceasing to be a British dominion

1950 - Constitution of India goes into effect

1951 - Mel Ott & Jimmie Foxx elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

1952 - At least 20 people have been killed and 100s injured during riots in Cairo against the British

1954 - Ground breaking begins on Disneyland

1956 - 7th Winter Olympic games open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy

1956 - Hank Greenberg & Joe Cronin are elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

1956 - Porkkala military base returned to Finland by USSR

1957 - Bernanos & Poulenc's opera "Dialogue des Carmelites" premieres.

1957 - Dutch Pacifist Socialist Party forms

1957 - India annexes Kashmir

1957 - Joseph F Cairnes succeeds Lou Perini as Pres of Milwaukee Braves

1958 - H Laskow replaces Moshe Dayan on as Israeli minister of Defense

1958 - Jack Smith takes over from Art Baker as TV host of "You Asked for It"

1958 - Marlene Hagge wins LPGA Lake Worth Open Golf Invitational

1958 - Japanese ferry Nankai Maru capsized off southern Awaji Island, Japan, 167 killed.

1959 - Italy government of Fanfani resigns

1959 - KOKH TV channel 25 in Oklahoma City, OK (IND/PBS) begins broadcasting

1959 - 47th Women's Australian Championships: Mary Carter Reitano beats Renee Schuurman Haygarth (6-2, 6-3)

1959 - 47th Men's Australian Championships: Alex Olmedo beats Neale Fraser (6-1, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3)

1960 - High-school basketball sensation Danny Heater scores 135 points

1960 - Oakland enters AFL

NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle

1960 - Pete Rozelleelected NFL commissioner on 23rd ballot

1961 - "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" byElvis Presley hits #1

1961 - 1st woman "personal physician to president"-JG Travell

1962 - Bishop Burke of Buffalo Catholic dioceses declares Chubby Checker's

1962 - Canadian Marine Service renamed Coast Guard

1962 - David Diamond's 7th Symphony, premieres in Philadelphia

1962 - US launches Ranger 3, misses Moon by 22,000-mi (37,000-km)

1962 - "Twist" is impure & bans it from all Catholic schools

1963 - "Milk & Honey" closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 543 performances

1963 - Major League Rules Committee votes to expand strike zone

1965 - South Vietnam military coup under general Nguyen Khanh

1966 - Ard Schenk skates world record 1500m (2:06.2)

1966 - The Beaumont Children go missing from Glenelg Beach near Adelaide, South Australia.

Singer & Cultural IconElvis Presley

1967 - USSR performs nuclear test at Sary Shagan USSR

1967 - Chicago Blizzard strikes with a record 23 inches of snow fall causing 800 buses and 50,000 automobiles to be abandoned

1968 - Israeli submarine Dakar sinks in Mediterranean Sea, 69 die

1969 - "Red, White, & Maddox" opens at Cort Theater NYC for 41 performances

1969 - Minister of Health and Social Services William Morgan resigns from the Northern Ireland government

1969 - Police break up a march by hundreds of demonstrators in central Prague

1970 - Pendleton, Ford & Cryer's "Last Sweet Days of Isaac," premieres in NYC

1971 - Dutch 2nd Chamber accepts law against limitation of war crimes

1972 - Air stewardess Vesna Vulovic survives 10,160m fall without parachute

1973 - Belgium government of Leburton forms

1974 - Bülent Ecevit becomes Prime Minister of Turkey for the 1st time

1974 - 31st Golden Globes: The Exorcist, Al Pacino, & Marsha Mason win

Playwright Edward Albee

1975 - Edward Albee's "Seascape" premieres in NYC

1976 - Belgium Catholic elite starts amnesty campaign for war criminals

1976 - David Mamet's "American Buffalo" premieres in NYC

1976 - Israel opens "Good Fence" to Lebanon

1976 - NFL Pro Bowl: NFC beats AFC 23-20

1977 - Soviet figure skaters Sergei Shakrai & Marine Tcherkasova are 1st to perform a quadruple twist lift, Helsinki

1978 - Frank Herbert completes his novel "Destination: Void"

1978 - International Ultraviolet Explorer placed in Earth orbit

1978 - Mario Soares forms Portuguese government

1978 - Strikers riot in Tunisia, killing about 40

1979 - "The Dukes of Hazzard" premieres on US TV network CBS

1979 - Music Center Vredenburg opens in Utrecht Neth

Singer/Actor Frank Sinatra

1980 - 175,000 pay to hear Frank Sinatra sing in Rio de Janeiro

1980 - Islanders & Whalers play a NHL penalty-free game

1980 - Israel & Egypt establish diplomatic relations

1980 - Mary Decker became 1st woman to run a mile in under 4½ minutes

1981 - Sandeep Patil scores memorable 174 v Australia at Adelaide Oval

1982 - Islanders score 4 goals within 1:38, 5 within 2:37 vs Penguins

1982 - Mauno Koivisto elected president of Finland

1982 - For the first time since the 1930s, the unemployed population in UK rises above three million

1983 - Dutch/British infrared satellite IRAS launched from Calif

1984 - Nordiques' Michel Goulet scored on 9th penalty shot against Islanders

1984 - US navy exhibits Piasecki helistat-4 helicopters & a blimp able to lift 26 tons-Lakehurst, NJ

1985 - 42nd Golden Globes: Amadeus, F. Murray Abraham, & Sally Field win

1985 - Edmonton Oiler Wayne Gretzky scores 50th goal in 49th game of season

1986 - Hein Vergeer becomes European skating champ

1986 - Val Skinner wins LPGA Mazda Golf Classic

1986 - Yoweri Museveni's rebel army conquerors Kampala Uganda

1986 - Super Bowl XX: Chicago Bears beat NE Patriots, 46-10 in New Orleans Super Bowl MVP: Richard Dent, Chicago, DE

Singer and actressWhitney Houston

1987 - 14th American Music Awards: Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie & Alabama

1987 - Hart Foundation beat British Bulldogs for WWF tag team title

1988 - "Phantom of the Opera" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 4,000+ performances

1988 - Australian 200th anniversary parade of tall ships in Sydney Harbour

1989 - "Black & Blue" opens at Minskoff Theater NYC for 829 performances

1989 - AT&T reports 1st loss in 103 years; $1.67 B in 1988

1989 - Allan Border takes 7-46 against the West Indies at the SCG

1989 - Madison Sq Garden announces 2-year $100 M renovation plan

1989 - Test debut of Mark Taylor, Australia v West Indies, Sydney

1989 - US computer security expert warns of catastrophic virus

1990 - Annular eclipse visible over Antarctica & South Atlantic

1990 - Boston Red Sox hires Elaine Weddington as asst GM (highest-ranking African American female in a major-league front office)

1991 - "Few Good Men" closes at Music Box Theater NYC after 497 performances

1991 - Alfaro Vive guerrilla group of Ecuador gives arms to Catholic church

1991 - Houston guard Vernon Maxwell is 4th NBAer to score 30 pts in a quarter

1991 - Jan Stenerud becomes 1st pure placekicker to make NFL Hall of Fame

1991 - NY Lotto pays $90 million to nine winner (#s are 5-15-30-35-46-50)

1992 - "Little Hotel on the Side" opens at Belasco Theater NYC for 41 performances

1992 - Americans with Disabilities Act went into effect

1992 - Super Bowl XXVI: Wash Red Skins beat Buffalo Bills, 37-24 in Minn Super Bowl MVP: Mark Rypien, Washington, QB

1992 - 80th Men's Australian Open: Jim Courier beats Stefan Edberg (6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2)

Tennis Player and Nine-Time Major ChampionMonica Seles

1992 - 80th Women's Australian Open: Monica Seles beats Mary Joe Fernandez (6-2, 6-3)

1992 - 8th Sundance Film Festival: "In the Soup" wins Grand Jury Prize Dramatic

1993 - West Indies defeat Australia by one run in 4th Test at Adelaide

1995 - NJ Governor Christine Whitman, dedicates a rest stop toHoward Stern

1996 - "Les Miserables" opens at Musichall Theatre, Duisburg

1997 - "Ideal Husband" closes at Barrymore Theater NYC after 308 performances

1997 - Brunswick World Bowling Tournament of Champions won by John Gant

1997 - Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers beat NE Patriots, 35-21 in New Orleans

1997 - 85th Men's Australian Open: Pete Sampras beats Carlos Moya (6-2, 6-3, 6-3)

1997 - 85th Women's Australian Open: Martina Hingisbeats Mary Pierce (6-2, 6-2)

1997 - 13th Sundance Film Festival: "Sunday" wins Grand Jury Prize Dramatic

Tennis Player Martina Hingis

1998 - 25th American Music Awards: Spice Girls & Babyface win.

1998 - Intel launches 333 MHz Pentium II chip

42nd US President Bill Clinton

1998 - President Bill Clinton says "I want to say one thing to the American people; I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky"

2001 - An earthquake hits Gujarat, India, causing more than 20,000 deaths.

2003 - Super Bowl XXXVII: Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat Oakland Raiders, 48-21 at the Qualcomm Stadium MVP: Dexter Jackson, Tampa Bay, S

2003 - 91st Men's Australian Open: Andre Agassi beats Rainer Schuttler (6-2, 6-2, 6-1)

2003 - 91st Women's Australian Open: Serena Williamsbeats Venus Williams (7-6, 3-6, 6-4)

2003 - 19th Sundance Film Festival: "American Splendor", directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, wins Grand Jury Prize Dramatic

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.

Tennis Player Serena Williams

2005 - Condoleezza Rice is sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State, becoming the first African American woman to hold the post.

2005 - Glendale train crash: Two trains derail killing 11 and injuring 200 in Glendale, California, near Los Angeles.

2006 - Western Union discontinues its telegram service.

2010 - After 6 consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, the UK economy officially finally comes out of recession with a GDP growth of 0.1%

2013 - 30 people are killed during a violent protest in Port Said, Egypt

2013 - 10 people are killed and 20 are injured by a suicide bombing in Kunduz, Afghanistan

2013 - The United States Sentencing Commission is hacked by Anonymous in response to the suicide of Aaron Swartz

2013 - Miloš Zeman wins the Czech Republic’s presidential election

2013 - 101st Women's Australian Open: Victoria Azarenka beats Li Na (4-6, 6-4, 6-3)

Singer Lorde

2014 - 56th Grammy Awards: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Lorde, and Daft Punk win

2014 - 21 people are killed after a tourist boat capsizes off the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

2014 - 102nd Men's Australian Open: Stanislas Wawrinka beatsRafael Nadal (6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3)

2014 - NFL Pro Bowl: Team Rice beats Team Sanders 22-21

2014 - 30th Sundance Film Festival: "Whiplash", directed by Damien Chazelle, wins Grand Jury Prize Dramatic

2015 - Libby Lane is ordained as the first female bishop of the Church of England

2016 - Cold snap across East Asia leads to more than 50 deaths and 60,000 travellers stranded in South Korea.