January 15

588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah's reign. The siege lasts until July 18, 586 BC.
69 - Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor of Rome, but only survives for three months before committing suicide.
1559 - Elizabeth I of England is crowned in Westminster Abbey by Owen Oglethorpe, the Bishop of Carlisle, instead of the Archbishop of Canterbury.
1582 - Russia cedes Livonia and Estonia to Poland.
1759 - The British Museum opens.
1777 - American Revolutionary War: New Connecticut (present day Vermont) declares its independence.
1782 - Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris goes before the U.S. Congress to recommend establishment of a national mint and decimal coinage.
1844 - University of Notre Dame receives its charter from Indiana.
1870 - A political cartoon for the first time symbolizes the United States Democratic Party with a donkey ("A Live Jackass Kicking a Dead Lion" by Thomas Nast for Harper's Weekly).
1885 - Wilson Bentley takes the first photograph of a snowflake.
1892 - James Naismith publishes the rules for basketball.
1908 - Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the first Greek-letter organization by and for Black college women is established.
1919 - The Boston Molasses Disaster kills 21 people.
1919 - Ignace Paderewski becomes Premier of Poland.
1919 - Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, two of the most prominent socialists in Germany, were tortured and murdered by the Freikorps.
1936 - The first building to be completely covered in glass is completed in Toledo, Ohio (the building was for the Owens-Illinois Glass Company).
1943 - World War II: Japanese driven off Guadalcanal.
1943 - World War II: Soviet counter-offensive at Voronezh begun.
1943 - The world's largest office building, The Pentagon, is dedicated (Arlington, Virginia).
1947 - The brutalized corpse of Elizabeth Short ("The Black Dahlia") is found in Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California.
1951 - Ilse Koch, The "Bitch of Buchenwald", wife of the commandant of the Buchenwald concentration camp, is sentenced to life imprisonment in a court in West Germany.
1966 - First Military Coup in Nigeria, government of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa is overthrown.
1967 - In the first ever Super Bowl, the Green Bay Packers defeat the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10.
1969 - The Soviet Union launches Soyuz 5.
1970 - After a 32-month fight for independence from Nigeria, Biafra surrenders.
1970 - Muammar al-Qaddafi is proclaimed premier of Libya.
1973 - Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, President of the United States Richard Nixon announces the suspension of offensive action in North Vietnam.
1974 - Happy Days premieres on ABC.
1975 - Portugal grants independence to Angola.
1976 - Gerald Ford's would-be assassin, Sara Jane Moore, is sentenced to life in prison.
1977 - The Kälvesta air disaster kills 22 people, the worst air crash in Sweden's history.
1986 - The Living Seas opens at EPCOT Center in Walt Disney World, Florida.
1986 - The HBO and Cinemax pay cable television services initiate scrambling of their national satellite feeds on Galaxy 1 with the Videocipher II system.
1990 - AT&T's long distance telephone network suffers a cascade switching failure.
1991 - The United Nations deadline for the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from occupied Kuwait expires, preparing the way for the start of Operation Desert Storm.
1992 - The international community recognizes the independence of Slovenia and Croatia from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
1993 - Salvatore Riina, the Mafia boss known as 'The Beast', is arrested in Sicily after three decades as a fugitive
1995 - The first episode of Star Trek: Voyager airs.
1999 - The Racak incident: 45 Albanians in the Kosovo village of Racak were killed by Yugoslav security forces.
2001 - Wikipedia, a free Wiki content encyclopedia, goes online.
2005 - An intense solar flare blasted X rays across the solar system. ESA's SMART-1 lunar orbiter discovered elements such as calcium, aluminum, silicon, iron, and other surface elements on the moon.
2007 - Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti, former Iraqi intelligence chief and half-brother of Saddam Hussein, and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, former chief judge of the Revolutionary Court, are executed by hanging in Iraq.
2007 - The 2007 Australian Open commences in Melbourne.
2007 - Comet McNaught makes perigee after coming close to the sun.

[edit] Births

1342 - Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (d. 1404)
1412 - St. Joan of Arc (d. 1431)
1432 - King Afonso V of Portugal (d. 1481)
1481 - Ashikaga Yoshizumi, Japanese shogun (b. 1511)
1538 - Maeda Toshiie, Japanese general (d. 1599)
1622 - Molière, French playwright (d. 1673)
1671 - Abraham de la Pryme, English antiquarian (d. 1704)
1674 - Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon, French writer (d. 1762)
1716 - Philip Livingston, American founding father (d. 1778)
1747 - John Aikin, English doctor and writer (d. 1822)
1754 - Richard Martin, Irish founder of the SPCA (d. 1834)
1791 - Franz Grillparzer, Austrian writer (d. 1872)
1795 - Alexandr Griboyedov, Russian playwright (d. 1829)
1809 - Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, French anarchist (d. 1865)
1812 - Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, Norwegian writer (d. 1885)
1816 - Marie LaFarge, French murderer (d. 1852)
1841 - Frederick Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, Governor General of Canada (d. 1908)
1842 - Josef Breuer, Austrian psychologist (d. 1925)
1850 - Mihai Eminescu, Romanian poet (d. 1889)
1850 - Sofia Kovalevskaya, Russian mathematician (d. 1891)
1855 - Jacques Damala, Greek military officer and actor (d. 1889)
1863 - Wilhelm Marx, Chancellor of Germany (d. 1946)
1866 - Nathan Söderblom, Swedish archbishop, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1931)
1869 - Stanisław Wyspiański, Polish dramatist (d. 1907)
1872 - Arsen Kotsoyev, Russian writer (d. 1944)
1875 - Tom Burke, American runner (d. 1929)
1879 - Mazo de la Roche, Canadian author (d. 1961)
1885 - Huang Yuanyong, Chinese writer (d. 1915)
1885 - Lorenz Böhler, Austrian physician (d. 1973)
1885 - Grover Lowdermilk, American baseball player (d. 1968)
1891 - Ray Chapman, American baseball player (d. 1920)
1891 - Osip Mandelstam, Russian poet (d. 1938)
1892 - Rex Ingram, Irish director (d. 1950)
1893 - Ivor Novello, Welsh actor (d. 1951)
1895 - Artturi Ilmari Virtanen, Finnish chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1973)
1899 - Goodman Ace, American actor (d. 1982)
1901 - Luis Monti, Argentine-Italian footballer (d. 1983)
1906 - Aristotle Onassis, Greek businessman (d. 1975)
1908 - Edward Teller, Hungarian-born physicist (d. 2003)
1909 - Jean Bugatti, German-born automobile designer (d. 1939)
1909 - Gene Krupa, American drummer (d. 1973)
1912 - Michel Debré, French politician (d. 1996)
1913 - Lloyd Bridges, American actor (d. 1998)
1913 - Miriam Hyde, Australian composer (d. 2005)
1914 - Hugh Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton, English historian (d. 2003)
1918 - Gamal Abdal Nasser, President of Egypt (d. 1970)
1920 - John Cardinal O'Connor, American Catholic cardinal (d. 2000)
1920 - Steve Gromek, American baseball player (d. 2002)
1923 - Lee Teng-hui, Taiwanese politician
1923 - Ivor Cutler, Scottish poet (d. 2006)
1926 - Maria Schell, Swiss actress (d. 2005)
1926 - Florence Buchsbaum, theater director (d. 1996)
1927 - Phyllis Coates, American actress
1929 - Martin Luther King Jr, American civil rights leader, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1968)
1930 - Eddie Graham, American professional wrestler (d. 1985)
1933 - Ernest J. Gaines, American author
1937 - Margaret O'Brien, American actress
1938 - Chuni Goswami, Indian actor
1941 - Captain Beefheart, American singer
1945 - Vince Foster, American lawyer (d. 1993)
1947 - Andrea Martin, Canadian actress
1948 - Ronnie VanZant, American singer (Lynyrd Skynyrd) (d. 1977)
1949 - Luis Alvarado, Puerto Rican baseball player (d. 2001)
1949 - Panos Mihalopoulos, Greek actor
1950 - Marius Trésor, French footballer
1951 - Charo, Spanish-born singer
1953 - Kent Hovind, American evangelist and Young Earth creationist
1953 - Ta-Tanisha, American actress
1954 - Nikos Sarganis, Greek footballer
1955 - Nigel Benson, English author
1957 - Marty Lyons, American football player
1957 - Mario Van Peebles, American actor
1957 - Patrick Dixon, British entrepreneur
1958 - Boris Tadić, President of Serbia
1959 - Pete Trewavas, English bass guitarist (Marillion)
1960 - Aaron Jay Kernis, American composer
1960 - Kelly Asbury, American director and actor
1961 - Yves P. Pelletier, Quebec comedian (Rock et Belles Oreilles), actor and film director
1964 - Osmo Tapio Räihälä, Finnish composer
1965 - Bernard Hopkins, American boxer
1965 - Adam Jones, American musician (Tool)
1965 - James Nesbitt, Northern Irish actor
1965 - Maurizio Fondriest, Italian cyclist
1968 - Chad Lowe, American actor
1968 - Iñaki Urdangarín, Spanish royalty
1969 - Delino DeShields, American baseball player
1970 - Shane McMahon, American professional wrestler
1971 - Teanna Kai, American porn star
1971 - Max Beesley, English musician and actor
1971 - Regina King, American actress
1972 - Kobe Tai, American porn star
1972 - Claudia Winkleman, English television presenter
1974 - Ray King, American baseball player
1975 - Mary Pierce, French tennis player
1975 - Edith Bowman, Scottish television and radio presenter
1975 - Greg Strause, American artist
1976 - Corey Chavous, American football player
1978 - Franco Pellizotti, Italian cyclist
1978 - Eddie Cahill, American actor
1979 - Drew Brees, American football player
1980 - Matt Holliday, American baseball player
1981 - El Hadji Diouf, Senegalese footballer
1981 - Howie Day, American pop singer
1982 - Benjamin Agosto, American skater
1982 - Megan Quann, American swimmer
1982 - Philip and Alexander, American-born princes of the Yugoslav Royal Family
1983 - Jermaine Pennant, English footballer
1983 - Hugo Viana, Portuguese footballer
1984 - Victor Rasuk, American actor
1987 - Michael Seater, Canadian actor
1987 - Kelly Kelly, American WWE Diva
1988 - Sonny Moore, American musician
1991 - Jack Cooper, British Guitarist

[edit] Deaths

69 - Galba, Roman Emperor (b. 3 BC)
570 - Saint Ita, Irish nun
1595 - Murat III, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1546)
1672 - John Cosin, English clergyman (b. 1594)
1683 - Philip Warwick, English writer and politician (b. 1609)
1781 - Marianne Victoria of Borbón, queen regent of Portugal (b. 1718)
1790 - John Landen, English mathematician (b. 1719)
1804 - Dru Drury, English entomologist (b. 1725)
1909 - Arnold Janssen SVD missionary (b. 1837)
1915 - Mary Slessor, Scottish missionary (b. 1848)
1919 - Karl Liebknecht, German politician (b. 1871)
1919 - Rosa Luxemburg, German politician (b. 1870)
1945 - Wilhelm Wirtinger, Austrian mathematician (b. 1865)
1947 - Elizabeth Short, the Black Dahlia (b. 1924)
1955 - Yves Tanguy, French painter (b. 1900)
1964 - Jack Teagarden, American musician (b. 1905)
1967 - David Burliuk, Ukrainian artist (b. 1882)
1968 - Bill Masterton, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1938)
1973 - Ivan Petrovsky, Russian mathematician (b. 1901)
1973 - Coleman Francis, American film director (b. 1919)
1983 - Meyer Lansky, Russian-born gangster (b. 1902)
1987 - Ray Bolger, American actor, singer, and dancer (b. 1904)
1988 - Seán MacBride, Irish statesman, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1904)
1990 - Gordon Jackson, Scottish actor (b. 1923)
1992 - Dee Murray, English bassist (b. 1946)
1993 - Sammy Cahn, American songwriter (b. 1913)
1994 - Harry Nilsson, American musician (b. 1941)
1996 - Les Baxter, American musician and composer (b. 1922)
1996 - Paramount Chief Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho (b. 1938)
1998 - Junior Wells, American musician (b. 1934)
2000 - Željko Ražnatović, aka Arkan, Serbian paramilitary leader (b. 1952)
2000 - Fran Ryan, American actress (b. 1916)
2000 - Georges-Henri Lévesque, French Canadian Dominican priest and sociologist (b. 1903)
2001 - Ted Mann, American screenwriter (b. 1916)
2002 - Steve Gromek, American baseball player (b. 1920)
2003 - Doris Fisher, American singer and songwriter (b. 1915)
2005 - Deem Bristow, American video game voice actor (b. 1947)
2005 - Victoria de los Angeles, Catalan soprano (b. 1923)
2005 - Walter Ernsting, German author (b. 1920)
2005 - Elizabeth Janeway, American author (b. 1913)
2005 - Dan Lee, Canadian animator (b. 1969)
2005 - Ruth Warrick, American actress (b. 1915)
2006 - Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait (b. 1926)
2007 - Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti, former Iraqi intelligence chief and half-brother of Saddam Hussein (b. 1951) (executed)
2007 - Awad Hamed al-Bandar, former chief judge of the Iraqi Revolutionary Court (b. 1945) (executed)
2007 - Bo Yibo, Chinese politician (b. 1908)
2007 - David Vanole, American soccer player
2007 - James Hillier, Canadian inventor of electron microscope (b. 1915)

[edit] Holidays and observances

Roman Empire - Second day of the Carmentalia in honor of Carmenta.
Roman Catholic Church - Saint Ita, virgin, died January 15, 570.
Malawi - John Chilembwe Day.
North Korea - Korean Alphabet Day.
United States - Traditionally, Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Kerala in India - Makaravilakku or Makara Sankranthy at Sabarimala.
Jallikattu in South India.
Pongal in Tamil Nadu (2007).
January 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics).

[edit] External links


Months and Days of the Year
January	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
February	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 (29) (30)
March	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
April	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
May	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
June	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
July	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
August	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
September	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
October	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
November	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
December	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31