January 16

Events

*27 BC - The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate.
*550 - Gothic War (535–552): The Ostrogoths, under King Totila, conquer Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison.
*1120 - The Council of Nablus is held, establishing the earliest surviving written laws of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
*1362 - A great storm tide in the North Sea destroys the German island of Strand and the city of Rungholt.
*1412 - The Medici family is appointed official banker of the Papacy.
*1492 - The first grammar of a modern language, in the Spanish language, is presented to Queen Isabella.
*1547 - Ivan IV of Russia aka Ivan the Terrible becomes Tsar of Russia.
*1556 - Philip II becomes King of Spain.
*1572 - Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England.
*1581 - The English Parliament outlaws Roman Catholicism.
*1605 - The first edition of "El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha" (Book One of "Don Quixote") by Miguel de Cervantes is published in Madrid.
*1707 - The Scottish Parliament ratifies the Act of Union, paving the way for the creation of Great Britain.
*1761 - The British capture Pondicherry, India from the French.
*1777 - Vermont declares its independence from New York.
*1780 - American Revolution: Battle of Cape St. Vincent.
*1809 - Peninsular War: The British defeat the French at the Battle of La Coruña.
*1847 - John C. Fremont is appointed Governor of the new California Territory.
*1864 - Second Schleswig War: King Christian IX of Denmark declares war on the German Confederation in order to occupy Schleswig.
*1878 - Captain Burago with a squadron of Russian Imperial army dragoons liberates Plovdiv from Ottoman rule.
*1883 - The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, establishing the United States Civil Service, is passed.
*1896 - Defeat of Cymru Fydd at South Wales Liberal Federation AGM, Newport, Monmouthshire.
*1900 - The United States Senate accepts the Anglo-German treaty of 1899 in which the United Kingdom renounces its claims to the Samoan islands.
*1909 - Ernest Shackleton's expedition finds the magnetic South Pole.
*1919 - Temperance movement: The United States ratifies the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, authorizing Prohibition in the United States one year after ratification.
*1920 - Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. is founded on the campus of Howard University.
*1938 - The famous jazz concert by the Benny Goodman Orchestra and special guests takes place at Carnegie Hall in New York City, the first jazz performance in that venue.
*1945 - Adolf Hitler moves into his underground bunker, the so-called Führerbunker.
*1956 - President Gamal Abdal Nasser of Egypt vows to reconquer Palestine.
*1968 - The Youth International Party is founded.
*1969 - Czech student Jan Palach commits suicide by self-immolation in Prague, in protest against the Soviets' crushing of the Prague Spring the year before.
*1970 - Buckminster Fuller receives the Gold Medal award from the American Institute of Architects.
*1979 - The Shah of Iran flees Iran with his family and relocates to Egypt.
*1986 - First meeting of the Internet Engineering Task Force.
*1991 - The United States goes to war with Iraq, beginning the Gulf War (U.S. Time).
*1992 - El Salvador officials and rebel leaders sign the Chapultepec Peace Accords in Mexico City ending a 12-year civil war that claimed at least 75,000.
*2001 - Congolese President Laurent-Désiré Kabila is assassinated by one of his own bodyguards.
* 2001 - US President Bill Clinton awards former President Theodore Roosevelt a posthumous Medal of Honor for his service in the Spanish-American War.
*2002 - The UN Security Council unanimously establishes an arms embargo and the freezing of assets of Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaida, and the remaining members of the Taliban.
*2003 - The Space Shuttle "Columbia" takes off for mission STS-107 which would be its final one. Columbia disintegrated 16 days later on re-entry.
*2006 - Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is sworn in as Liberia's new president. She becomes Africa's first female elected head of state.

Births

*1245 - Edmund Crouchback, son of Henry III of England (d. 1296)
*1409 - René I of Naples (d. 1480)
*1477 - Johannes Schöner, German astronomer and cartographer (d. 1547)
*1501 - Anthony Denny, confidant of King Henry VIII of England (d. 1559)
*1616 - François de Vendôme, duc de Beaufort, French soldier (d. 1669)
*1626 - Lucas Achtschellinck, Flemish painter (d. 1699)
*1634 - Dorthe Engelbrechtsdatter, Norwegian poet (d. 1716)
*1675 - Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon, French writer (d. 1755)
*1728 - Niccolò Piccinni, Italian composer (d. 1800)
*1807 - Charles Henry Davis, American Civil War Admiral (d 1877)
*1815 - Henry W. Halleck, American Civil War general (d. 1872)
*1821 - John C. Breckinridge, U.S. Vice-President and Confederate general (d. 1875)
*1834 - Robert R. Hitt, American politician (d. 1906)
*1836 - King Francis II of the Two Sicilies (d. 1894)
*1838 - Franz Brentano, German philosopher and psychologist (d. 1917)
*1844 - Ismail Qemali, Albanian nationalist (d. 1919)
*1853 - Andre Michelin, French industrialist (d. 1931)
* 1853 - Sir Johnston Forbes-Robertson, English actor and theatre manager (d. 1937)
* 1853 - Gen Sir Ian Hamilton, British military commander (d. 1947)
* 1853 - Vladimir Sergeyevich Solovyov, Russian philosopher (d. 1900)
*1872 - Edward Gordon Craig, English actor, producer, director and scenic designer (d. 1966)
* 1872 - Henri Busser, French composer (d. 1973)
*1874 - Robert W. Service, Canadian poet (d. 1958)
*1875 - Leonor Michaelis, German enzyme kinetic theorist (d. 1947)
*1878 - Harry Carey, American silent film actor (d. 1947)
*1885 - Zhou Zuoren, Chinese writer (d. 1967)
*1886 - John Hamilton, American actor (d. 1958)
*1888 - Osip Brik, Russian writer (d. 1945)
*1893 - Daisy Kennedy, Australian violinist (d. 1981)
*1894 - Irving Mills, American jazz music publisher (d. 1985)
*1895 - Nat Schachner, American author (d. 1955)
*1896 - Ruth Rose, American screenwriter (d. 1978)
*1897 - Carlos Pellicer, Mexican poet (d. 1977)
*1898 - Margaret Booth, American film editor (d. 2002)
* 1898 - Irving Rapper, UK-US film director (d. 1999)
*1901 - Fulgencio Batista, Cuban leader (d. 1973)
* 1901 - Frank Zamboni, American inventor (d. 1988)
*1902 - Eric Liddell, Scottish runner (d. 1945)
*1903 - William Grover-Williams, English-French racing driver and WWII resistance fighter (d. 1945, by execution)
*1905 - Ernesto Halffter, Spanish composer and conductor (d. 1989)
*1906 - Diana Wynyard, British actress (d. 1964)
*1907 - Alexander Knox, Canadian actor (d. 1995)
* 1907 - Paul Nitze, American government official (d. 2004)
*1908 - Ethel Merman, American actress and singer (d. 1984)
* 1908 - Günther Prien, German World War II submarine captain (d. 1941)
*1910 - Dizzy Dean, American baseball player (d. 1974)
*1911 - Roger Lapébie, French cyclist (d. 1996)
* 1911 - Eduardo Frei Montalva, Chilean politician (d.1982)
*1914 - Roger Wagner, American choral musician (d. 1992)
*1916 - Philip Lucock, Australian politician and Presbyterian minister (d. 1996)
*1917 - Carl Karcher, founded the Carl's Jr. hamburger chain (d. 2008)
*1918 - Nel Benschop, Dutch poet (d. 2005)
* 1918 - Clem Jones, Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Australia (d. 2007)
* 1918 - Stirling Silliphant, American writer (d. 1996)
*1920 - Alberto Crespo, Argentine racing driver (d. 1991)
*1921 - Francesco Scavullo, American photographer (d. 2004)
*1922 - Ernesto Bonino, Italian singer (d. 2008)
*1923 - Gene Feist, American stage actor and producer
* 1923 - Anthony Hecht, American poet (d. 2004)
*1924 - Katy Jurado, Mexican actress (d. 2002)
*1928 - Pilar Lorengar, Spanish soprano (d. 1996)
* 1928 - William Kennedy, American author
*1930 - Clarence Ray Allen, American murderer (d. 2006)
* 1930 - Norman Podhoretz, US writer, foreign policy adviser
*1931 - Johannes Rau, German politician (d. 2006)
*1932 - Dian Fossey, American zoologist (d. 1985)
*1933 - Susan Sontag, American writer (d. 2004)
*1934 - Marilyn Horne, American opera singer
*1935 - A.J. Foyt, American race car driver and team owner
*1937 - Lorraine Bayly, Australian actress
* 1937 - Luiz Bueno, Brazilian racing driver
*1938 - Jô Soares, Brazilian author, musician and TV personality
*1942 - René Angélil, Canadian music executive
* 1942 - Barbara Lynn, American singer
*1943 - Gavin Bryars, English composer and double bassist
* 1943 - Brian Ferneyhough, British composer
*1944 - Jim Stafford, American singer and songwriter
*1946 - Kabir Bedi, Indian actor
* 1946 - Ronnie Milsap, American singer and songwriter
* 1946 - Katia Ricciarelli, Italian soprano
*1947 - Magdalen Nabb, British author (d. 2007)
* 1947 - Harvey Proctor, British politician
* 1947 - Laura Schlessinger, American radio talk show host
*1948 - John Carpenter, American film director
* 1948 - Dalvanius Prime, New Zealand entertainer (d. 2002)
* 1948 - Ruth Reichl, American magazine editor
* 1948 - Cliff Thorburn, Canadian snooker player
*1949 - Andrew Refshauge, Australian politician, Deputy Premier of New South Wales
*1950 - Debbie Allen, American dancer and choreographer
* 1950 - Brian Castro, Australian author
* 1950 - Damo Suzuki, Japanese singer (Can)
*1951 - Glenn Ordway, American radio talk show host
*1952 - King Fuad II of Egypt
*1953 - Robert Jay Mathews, American neo-Nazi (d. 1984)
*1956 - Jennifer Dale, Canadian actress
* 1956 - Martin Jol, Dutch football manager
* 1956 - Ivan Safronov, Russian journalist (d. 2007)
*1958 - Anatoli Boukreev, Russian climber (d. 1997)
* 1958 - Lena Ek, Swedish politician
*1959 - Juanita Bynum, American televangelist
* 1959 - Sade, Nigerian-born singer
*1961 - Paul Raven, English musician (Killing Joke) (d. 2007)
* 1961 - Jill Sobule, American singer-songwriter
*1962 - Joel Fitzgibbon, Australian Labor Party politician
* 1962 - Paul Webb, British musician (Talk Talk, .O.rang)
*1963 - James May, English television presenter
*1965 - Maxine Jones, American singer (En Vogue)
*1968 - David Chokachi, American actor
*1969 - Dead, Swedish black metal vocalist (Mayhem) (d. 1991)
* 1969 - Roy Jones Jr., American boxer
*1970 - Garth Ennis, Irish comic book author
* 1970 - Brendan O'Hare, Scottish drummer (Teenage Fanclub, Telstar Ponies)
* 1970 - Ron Villone, American baseball player
*1971 - Sergi Bruguera, Spanish tennis player
*1972 - Ruben Bagger, Danish soccer player
* 1972 - Ang Christou, Australian football player
* 1972 - Dameon Clarke, Canadian actor
* 1972 - Yuri Drozdov, Russian soccer player
* 1972 - Ezra Hendrickson, Vincentian soccer player
* 1972 - Salah Hissou, Moroccan long-distance runner
* 1972 - Joe Horn, American football player
* 1972 - Richard T. Jones, American actor
* 1972 - Greg Page, Australian musician and actor
* 1972 - Alen Peternac, Croatian soccer player
*1973 - Josie Davis, American actress
*1974 - Marlon Anderson, American baseball player
* 1974 - Kate Moss, English model
*1975 - Greg Strause, American visual effects creator
* 1975 - Gillian Iliana Waters, American actress
*1976 - Viktor Maslov, Russian racing driver
* 1976 - Martina Moravcová, Slovak female swimmer
*1977 - Jeff Foster, American basketball player
*1978 - Alfredo Amézaga, Mexican baseball player
*1979 - Aaliyah, American singer (d. 2001)
* 1979 - Brenden Morrow, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1979 - Jason Ward, Canadian ice hockey player
*1980 - Seydou Keita, Malian footballer
* 1980 - Lin Manuel Miranda, American actor, composer, lyricist (In The Heights)
* 1980 - Albert Pujols, Dominican-born baseball player
* 1980 - Michelle Wild, Hungarian model
*1981 - Nick Valensi, American guitarist (The Strokes)
* 1981 - Bobby Zamora, English footballer
*1982 - Samuel Preston, British singer (The Ordinary Boys)
* 1982 - Tuncay Şanlı, Turkish footballer
*1983 - Emanuel Pogatetz, Austrian footballer
*1984 - Jared Slingerland, Canadian musician
*1985 - Jonathan Richter, Danish professional football midfielder
*1987 - Lauren McAvoy, British fashion model
*1988 - Nicklas Bendtner, Danish footballer

Deaths

* 960 - Polyeuctus, Patriarch of Constantinople
*1400 - John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter, English politician (executed) (b. 1352)
*1545 - George Spalatin, German reformer (b. 1484)
*1547 - Johannes Schöner, German astronomer and cartographer (b. 1477)
*1554 - Christiern Pedersen, Danish humanist (b. 1480)
*1585 - Edward Clinton, 1st Earl of Lincoln, English admiral (b. 1512)
*1659 - Charles Annibal Fabrot, French lawyer (b. 1580)
*1710 - Emperor Higashiyama of Japan (b. 1675)
*1711 - Joseph Vaz, Apostle of Ceylon (b. 1651)
*1747 - Barthold Heinrich Brockes, German poet (b. 1680)
*1748 - Arnold Drakenborch, Dutch classical scholar (b. 1684)
*1750 - Ivan Trubetskoy, Russian field marshall (b. 1667)
*1752 - Francis Blomefield, English topographer (b. 1705)
*1794 - Edward Gibbon, English historian (b. 1737)
*1809 - John Moore, British general (b. 1761)
*1817 - Alexander J. Dallas, American statesman (b. 1759)
*1834 - Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette, French mathematician (b. 1769)
*1856 - Thaddeus William Harris, American naturalist (b. 1795)
*1864 - Anton Schindler, Austrian biographer of Beethoven (b. 1795)
*1865 - Edmond François Valentin About, French writer (b. 1828)
*1879 - Octave Crémazie, French Canadian poet (b. 1827)
*1886 - Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian opera composer (b. 1834)
*1891 - Léo Delibes, French composer (b. 1836)
*1898 - Charles Pelham Villiers, longest-serving MP in the British House of Commons (b. 1802)
*1901 - Hiram Revels, U.S. Senator, first African-American to serve in the United States Congress (b. 1822)
* 1901 - Jules Barbier, French opera librettist (b. 1825)
* 1901 - Arnold Böcklin, Swiss painter (b. 1827)
*1906 - Marshall Field, founder of Marshall Field and Company (b. 1834)
*1917 - George Dewey, U.S. admiral (b. 1837)
*1919 - Francisco de Paula Rodrigues Alves, President of Brazil (b. 1848)
*1920 - Reginald De Koven, American music critic and composer of operettas (b. 1859)
*1924 - Winifred Cochrane, Countess of Dundonald, philanthropist (b. 1859)
*1935 - Ma Barker, American criminal (b. 1871)
*1936 - Albert Fish, American serial killer (b. 1870)
*1942 - Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, son of Queen Victoria, Governor General of Canada (b. 1850)
* 1942 - Carole Lombard, American actress (b. 1908)
*1957 - Arturo Toscanini, Italian conductor (b. 1867)
* 1957 - 1st Earl of Athlone, British royal, Governor-General of South Africa and Canada (b. 1874)
*1962 - Ivan Meštrović, Croatian sculptor (b. 1883)
* 1962 - Frank Hurley, Australian photographer (b. 1885)
*1963 - Ike Quebec, American tenor-saxophone player (b. 1918)
*1967 - Robert J. Van de Graaff, American nuclear physicist (b. 1901)
*1969 - Vernon Duke, American composer and songwriter (b. 1903)
* 1969 - Jan Palach, Czech protester against the Soviet led invasion.(b. 1948)
*1971 - Philippe Thys, Belgian cyclist (b. 1890)
*1972 - Teller Ammons, American politician (b. 1895)
* 1972 - Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., American actor and creator of The Chipmunks (b. 1919)
*1979 - Ted Cassidy, American actor (b. 1932)
* 1979 - August Heissmeyer, German SS officer (b. 1897)
*1981 - Bernard Lee, English actor (b. 1908)
*1982 - Red Smith, American sports columnist (b. 1905)
*1985 - Robert Fitzgerald, U.S. poet and translator (b. 1910)
*1986 - Herbert W. Armstrong, American evangelist, author, and publisher (b. 1892)
*1987 - Bertram Wainer, Australian pro-abortion campaigner (b. 1928)
*1988 - Andrija Artuković, Croatian war criminal (b. 1899)
* 1988 - Ballard Berkeley, English actor (b. 1904)
*1993 - Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Icelandic strength athlete (b. 1960)
*1995 - Eric Mottram, English poet, teacher, critic, and editor (b. 1924)
*1996 - Marcia Davenport, American author and music critic (b. 1903)
*1997 - Ennis Cosby, son of entertainer Bill Cosby (b. 1969)
*1998 - Dimitris Horn, Greek actor (b. 1921)
*1999 - Jim McClelland, Australian solicitor, politician, Minister, Royal Commissioner, judge (b. 1915)
*2000 - Will "Dub" Jones, American singer (The Coasters) (b. 1928)
* 2000 - John Morris Rankin, musical entertainer (b. 1959)
*2001 - Laurent-Désiré Kabila, President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (b. 1939)
* 2001 - Auberon Waugh, British author and journalist (b. 1939)
*2002 - Robert Hanbury Brown, British-Australian astronomer and physicist (b. 1916)
* 2002 - Michael Bilandic, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1923)
* 2002 - Bobo Olson, American boxer (b. 1928)
* 2002 - Eddie Meduza, Swedish composer (b. 1948)
* 2002 - Ron Taylor, American actor (b. 1952)
*2003 - Richard Wainwright, English politician (b. 1918)
*2004 - Kalevi Sorsa, Prime Minister of Finland (b. 1930)
*2005 - Marjorie Williams, American journalist (b. 1958)
*2006 - Stanley Biber, American physician, pioneer of transgender surgery, (b. 1923)
*2007 - Ron Carey, American actor (b. 1935)
* 2007 - Benny Parsons, American racecar driver and commentator (b. 1941)

Holidays and observances

* Teacher's Day in Thailand
* Thai Pongal in Tamil nadu, India
* National Religious Freedom Day in the United States, to commemorate the adoption of Thomas Jefferson's landmark Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1786
* Berard of Carbio
* Saint Fursey
* Honoratus of Arles
* January 16 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/16 BBC: On This Day]
*
* [http://www1.sympatico.ca/cgi-bin/on_this_day?mth=Jan&day=16 On this day in Canada] ----