What happened on January 4? There are more than 337 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About January 4
January 4 is the 4th day of the year 2024. There are 362 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Thursday. This day falls under the 1st week of the year 2024.
On this day in Levels, West Virginia 25431 sunrise occured at 07:33 AM and sunset occured at 05:04 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Capricorn. The modern birthstone for this month is Garnet while the mystical birthstone is Emerald.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 37 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (February 10, 2024).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 21 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For January 4
- 46 BCJulius Caesar defeats Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina.
- 871Battle of Reading: Ethelred of Wessex fights, and is defeated by, a Danish invasion army.
- 1490Anne of Brittany announces that all those who would ally with the king of France will be considered guilty of the crime of Lese-majesty.
- 1642King Charles I of England sends soldiers to arrest members of Parliament, commencing England’s slide into civil war.
- 1649English Civil War: The Rump Parliament votes to put Charles I on trial.
- 1717The Netherlands, Great Britain, and France sign the Triple Alliance.
- 1762Great Britain declares war on Spain and Naples.
- 1847Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government.
- 1854The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the Samarang.
- 1863The New Apostolic Church, a Christian and chiliastic church, is established in Hamburg, Germany.
- 1865The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at 10-12 Broad near Wall Street in New York, New York.
- 1878Sofia is emancipated from Ottoman rule.
- 1884The Fabian Society is founded in London.
- 1885The first successful appendectomy is performed by William W. Grant on Mary Gartside.
- 1896Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state.
- 1903Topsy, an elephant, is electrocuted by Thomas Edison during the War of Currents campaign.
- 1912The Scout Association is incorporated throughout the British Commonwealth by Royal charter.
- 1944World War II: Operation Carpetbagger, involving the dropping of arms and supplies to resistance fighters in Europe, begins.
- 1948Burma gains its independence from the United Kingdom.
- 1951Korean War: Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul.
- 1955The Greek National Radical Union is formed by Konstantinos Karamanlis.
- 1958Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from its orbit.
- 1959Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon.
- 1965United States President Lyndon B. Johnson proclaims his “Great Society” during his State of the Union address.
- 1966A military coup takes place in Upper Volta (later Burkina Faso), dissolving the National Parliament and leading to a new national constitution.
- 1972Rose Heilbron becomes the first female judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London, England, United Kingdom.
- 1974United States President Richard Nixon refuses to hand over materials subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee.
- 1976The Reavey and O'Dowd killings take place (part of The Troubles in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom)
- 1987The 1987 Maryland train collision: An Amtrak train en route to Boston, Massachusetts from Washington, D.C., collides with Conrail engines in Chase, Maryland, killing 16 people.
- 1989Second Gulf of Sidra incident: a pair of Libyan MiG-23 “Floggers” are shot down by a pair of US Navy F-14 Tomcats during an air-to-air confrontation.
- 1998A massive ice storm hits eastern Canada and the northeastern United States, continuing through January 10 and causing widespread destruction.
- 1998Wilaya of Relizane massacres in Algeria: over 170 are killed in three remote villages.
- 1999Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura is sworn in as governor of Minnesota.
- 1999Gunmen open fire on Shiite Muslims worshiping in an Islamabad, Pakistan mosque, killing 16 people and injuring 25.
- 2004Spirit, a NASA Mars rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC.
- 2004Mikheil Saakashvili is elected President of Georgia following the November 2003 Rose Revolution.
- 2006Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel suffers a second, apparently more serious stroke. His authority is transferred to acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
- 2007The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history.
- 2010The Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building is officially opened.
Who Were Born On January 4?
- 1077Emperor Zhezong of Song Dynasty in China (d. 1100)
- 1334Amadeus VI of Savoy (d. 1383)
- 1341Wat Tyler leader of the English Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 (d. 1381)
- 1581James Ussher, Irish Anglican archbishop (d. 1656)
- 1664Lars Roberg, Swedish physician (d. 1742)
- 1672Hugh Boulter, Irish Archbishop of Armagh (d. 1742)
- 1710Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Italian composer (d. 1736)
- 1720Johann Friedrich Agricola, German composer (d. 1774)
- 1735Claude Martin, French then British General (d. 1800)
- 1785Jacob Grimm, German philologist and folklorist (one of the Brothers Grimm) (d. 1863)
- 1809Louis Braille, French teacher of the blind and inventor of braille (d. 1852)
- 1813Isaac Pitman, English inventor (d. 1897)
- 1832George Tryon, British admiral (d. 1893)
- 1838Charles Sherwood Stratton, American circus performer (d. 1883)
- 1839Carl Humann, German engineer (d. 1896)
- 1842Frederic T. Greenhalge, American politician and 38th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1896)
- 1848Katsura Taro, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1913)
- 1858Carter Glass, American politician (d. 1946)
- 1869Tommy Corcoran, American baseball player (d. 1960)
- 1870Percy Pitt, English organist and conductor (d. 1932)
- 1872Ottilie Sutro, American duo-pianist with her sister Rose Sutro (d. 1970)
- 1874Josef Suk, Czech composer (d. 1935)
- 1878A. E. Coppard, English poet and short story writer (d. 1957)
- 1878Augustus John, Welsh painter (d. 1961)
- 1881Wilhelm Lehmbruck, German sculptor (d. 1919)
- 1882Aristarkh Lentulov, Russian artist (d. 1943)
- 1883Max Eastman, American writer (d. 1969)
- 1891Edward Brooker, Premier of Tasmania (d. 1948)
- 1892Maria Diaz Cortes, Spanish supercentarian (d. 2009)
- 1893Yone Minagawa, Japanese supercentarian (d. 2007)
- 1894Manuel de Abreu, Brazilian physician (d. 1962)
- 1895Leroy Grumman, American industrialist (d. 1982)
- 1896André Masson, French artist (d. 1987)
- 1896Everett Dirksen, American politician (d. 1969)
- 1900James Bond, American ornithologist (d. 1989)
- 1901C. L. R. James, Trinidadian writer and journalist (d. 1989)
- 1902John McCone, American businessman, civil servant, and 6th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1991)
- 1905Sterling Holloway, American Character Actor (d. 1992)
- 1910Arthur Villeneuve, Quebec painter (d. 1990)
- 1913Malietoa Tanumafili II, Sovereign Ruler of Samoa (d. 2007)
- 1914Herman Franks, American baseball player (d. 2009)
- 1915Meg Mundy, American actress
- 1916Lionel Newman, American film music composer (d. 1989)
- 1916Robert Parrish, American film editor and director (d. 1995)
- 1920William Colby, American intelligence officer and 10th Director of Central Intelligence (d. 1996)
- 1922Rosalie Crutchley, English actress (d. 1997)
- 1923Don Butterfield, American jazz and classical tuba player (d. 2006)
- 1924Sebastian Kappen, Indian theologian (d. 1993)
- 1925Veikko Hakulinen, Finnish cross-country skier (d. 2003)
- 1927Barbara Rush, American actress
- 1927Paul Desmarais, Canadian businessman
- 1930Don Shula, American football coach
- 1930Sorrell Booke, American actor (d. 1994)
- 1931Adi Lady Lala Mara, First Lady of Fiji (d. 2004)
- 1931Sir William Deane, Governor-General of Australia
- 1932Carlos Saura, Spanish director
- 1932Jorge Russek, Mexican actor (d. 1998)
- 1933Ilia II, Catholicos-Patriarch of all Georgia
- 1933Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, American author
- 1934Rudolf Schuster, President of Slovakia
- 1935Floyd Patterson, American boxer (d. 2006)
- 1937Dyan Cannon, American actress
- 1937Grace Bumbry, American singer
- 1937Mick O'Connell, Gaelic footballer
- 1940Brian David Josephson, Welsh physicist, Nobel laureate
- 1940Gao Xingjian, Chinese-born novelist and dramatist, Nobel laureate
- 1940Helmut Jahn, German architect
- 1941George Pan Cosmatos, Greek film director (d. 2005)
- 1941Joe Renzetti, American film composer
- 1941John Bennett Perry, American actor
- 1941Kalpnath Rai, Indian politician (d. 1999)
- 1941Maureen Reagan, American political activist (d. 2001)
- 1942John McLaughlin, English jazz guitarist
- 1943Doris Kearns Goodwin, American writer
- 1943Hwang Sok-yong, Korean writer
- 1944Charlie Manuel, American baseball player and manager
- 1945Richard R. Schrock, American chemist, Nobel laureate
- 1945Vesa-Matti Loiri, Finnish entertainer
- 1946Arthur Conley, American singer (d. 2003)
- 1946Dr.S.Rajasekharan, Indian poet and critic
- 1947Chris Cutler, English musician and composer (Henry Cow, Art Bears)
- 1947Rick Stein, English chef and television presenter
- 1948Eugeniusz Wycisło, Polish politician
- 1948Kostas Davourlis, Greek footballer (d. 1992)
- 1948Wolfgang Mulack, German footballer
- 1950John Louis Evans, American convicted murderer (d. 1983)
- 1951Barbara Cochran, American alpine skier
- 1951Bob Black, American author, anarchist
- 1953Andreas Vgenopoulos, Greek businessman
- 1953Dirk Heun, German footballer
- 1953James Warren, American journalist
- 1953Norberto Alonso, Argentine footballer
- 1954Eugene Chadbourne, American composer and musician
- 1954Tina Knowles, American fashion designer, mother of Beyoncé
- 1955Mark Hollis, English musician and composer (Talk Talk)
- 1956Bernard Sumner, English musician (Joy Division, New Order, Electronic)
- 1956Nels Cline, American guitarist and composer
- 1957Gurdas Maan, Punjabi singer, actor, lyricist
- 1957Patty Loveless, American singer
- 1958Andy Borowitz, American comedian and satirist
- 1958Gary Jones, Welsh-born actor
- 1958Julian Sands, English actor
- 1958Matt Frewer, American actor
- 1959Yoshitomo Nara, Japanese pop artist
- 1960April Winchell, American actress
- 1960Art Paul Schlosser, American comedian,singer and song writer
- 1960Michael Stipe, American singer (R.E.M.)
- 1961Lee Curreri, American actor
- 1961Sidney Green, American basketball player
- 1962André Rouvoet, Dutch politician
- 1962Harlan Coben, American author
- 1962Joe Kleine, American basketball player
- 1962Laila Eloui, Egyptian actress
- 1962Peter Steele, American musician (Type O Negative) (d. 2010)
- 1962Robin Guthrie, Scottish guitarist (Cocteau Twins)
- 1963Dave Foley, Canadian comedian and actor
- 1963Till Lindemann, German singer (Rammstein)
- 1964Nikos Thanopoulos, Greek businessman
- 1964Tom Westman, American reality-show contestant
- 1965Beth Gibbons, English singer (Portishead)
- 1965Cait O'Riordan, British musician (The Pogues)
- 1965Guy Forget, French tennis player
- 1965Julia Ormond, English actress
- 1965Rick Hearst, American actor
- 1965Yvan Attal, French actor and director
- 1966Deana Carter, American singer
- 1967David Berman, American poet and singer/songwriter (Silver Jews)
- 1967David Toms, American golfer
- 1967Johnny Nelson, English boxer
- 1967Marina Orsini, Canadian actress
- 1968Mike Wilpolt, American arena football head coach
- 1969Corie Blount, American basketball player
- 1969Kees van Wonderen, Dutch footballer
- 1970Chris Kanyon, American professional wrestler (d. 2010)
- 1971Junichi Kakizaki, Japanese artist, sculptor
- 1972Charlotte Hudson, British television presenter
- 1972James Longley, American documentary filmmaker
- 1973Frank Høj, Danish cyclist
- 1973Greg de Vries, Canadian hockey player
- 1973Harmony Korine, American film director and artist
- 1974Armin Zöggeler, Italian luger
- 1974Danilo Hondo, German cyclist
- 1974Ian Moor, English singer
- 1975Jill Marie Jones, American actress
- 1975Shane Carwin, American mixed martial artist
- 1976Benoît Joachim, Luxembourgish cyclist
- 1976Ted Lilly, American baseball player
- 1977Dan Shanahan, Irish hurler
- 1977David Millar, British cyclist
- 1977Irán Castillo, Mexican actress
- 1977Tim Wheeler, Irish singer (Ash)
- 1978Dominik Hrbatý, Slovakian tennis player
- 1978Mai Meneses, Spanish singer
- 1979Charity Rahmer, American actress
- 1979Jeph Howard, American musician (The Used)
- 1979Shergo Biran, German footballer
- 1979Tristan Gommendy, French racing driver
- 1980Alexandra Jiménez, Spanish actress
- 1980Bobbi Eden, Dutch pornographic actress
- 1980Greg Cipes, American actor
- 1980Miguel Monteiro, Portuguese footballer
- 1980Yaroslav Popovych, Ukrainian cyclist
- 1981Silvy De Bie, Belgian singer
- 1982Kang Hye-jeong, South Korean actress
- 1982Lucie Škrobáková, Czech athlete
- 1982Paulo Ferrari, Argentinian footballer
- 1982Richard Logan, English footballer
- 1983Spencer Chamberlain, American musician (Underoath)
- 1985Fernando Rees, Brazilian race car driver
- 1986Hsieh Su-wei, Taiwanese tennis player
- 1986James Milner, English footballer
- 1986Steve Slaton, American football player
- 1988Anestis Argyriou, Greek footballer
- 1988Nabila Jamshed, Indian writer
- 1989Graham Rahal, American race car driver
- 1990Alberto Paloschi, Italian footballer
- 1990Iago Falqué Silva, Spanish footballer
- 1990Melissa Long, American journalist
- 1990Toni Kroos, German footballer
- 1991Olivia Tennet, New Zealand actress
- 1991Stefan Nenadović, Montenegrin footballer
- 2000Rhiannon Leigh Wryn, American actress
Who Died On January 4?
- 1248King Sancho II of Portugal (b. 1207)
- 1428Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (b. 1370)
- 1564Hosokawa Ujitsuna, Japanese military commander (b. 1514)
- 1584Tobias Stimmer, Swiss painter and drawer (b. 1539)
- 1695François Henri de Montmorency-Bouteville, duc de Luxembourg, French general (b. 1628)
- 1752Gabriel Cramer, Swiss mathematician (b. 1704)
- 1761Stephen Hales, English physiologist (b. 1677)
- 1773Anton Losenko, Russian painter (b. 1737)
- 1782Ange-Jacques Gabriel, French architect (b. 1698)
- 1786Moses Mendelssohn, German philosopher (b. 1729)
- 1804Charlotte Lennox, English author and poet (b. c.1730)
- 1821Elizabeth Ann Seton, American saint (b. 1774)
- 1825King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (b. 1751)
- 1863Roger Hanson, American Confederate general (b. 1827)
- 1874Thomas Gregson, Premier of Tasmania (b. 1798)
- 1877Cornelius Vanderbilt, American entrepreneur (b. 1794)
- 1882John William Draper, English scientist, photographer (b. 1811)
- 1883Antoine Eugène Alfred Chanzy, French general (b. 1823)
- 1891Antoine Labelle, Quebec catholic priest (b. 1833)
- 1896Joseph Hubert Reinkens, German Old Catholic bishop (b. 1821)
- 1901Nikolaos Gyzis, Greek painter (b. 1842)
- 1903Gulstan Ropert, Roman Catholic prelate (b. 1839)
- 1903Topsy the elephant (b. c. 1875)
- 1910Léon Delagrange, French aviator and sculptor (b. 1873)
- 1919Georg von Hertling, Chancellor of Germany (b. 1843)
- 1920Benito Pérez Galdós, Spanish novelist (b. 1843)
- 1924Alfred Grünfeld, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1852)
- 1931Art Acord, American actor (b. 1890)
- 1931Louise, Princess Royal and Duchess of Fife (b. 1867)
- 1931Maulana Mohammad Ali, Indian Muslim leader, activist, scholar, journalist and poet (b. December 1878)
- 1940Flora Finch, British-American silent-film comedienne (b. 1867)
- 1941Henri Bergson, French philosopher, Nobel laureate (b. 1859)
- 1944Kai Munk, Danish playwright and pastor (b. 1898)
- 1947Julian Ashby Burruss, American academic (b. 1876)
- 1960Albert Camus, Algerian-born philosopher and Nobel laureate (b. 1913)
- 1961Erwin Schrödinger, Austrian physicist and Nobel laureate (b. 1887)
- 1962Hans Lammers, German SS officer (b. 1879)
- 1965T. S. Eliot, American-born British Nobel laureate (b. 1888)
- 1967Donald Campbell, English motorboat racer (b. 1921)
- 1969Daisy and Violet Hilton, British conjoined twins (b. 1908)
- 1970Jean-Étienne Valluy, French general (b. 1899)
- 1971Arthur Ford, American clairaudient (b. 1896)
- 1974Epameinondas Thomopoulos, Greek artist (b. 1878)
- 1975Carlo Levi, Italian painter, writer and activist (b. 1902)
- 1981Ruth Lowe, Canadian pianist and composer (b. 1914)
- 1985Brian Horrocks, British general (b. 1895)
- 1985Lovro von Matacic, Croatian conductor (b. 1899)
- 1986Christopher Isherwood, English writer (b. 1904)
- 1986Phil Lynott, Irish musician (Thin Lizzy) (b. 1949)
- 1988Lily Laskine, French harpist (b. 1893)
- 1990Harold Edgerton, American electrical engineer (b. 1903)
- 1990Henry Bolte, Australian politician (b. 1908)
- 1993Charles Bridgford, Australian politician (b. 1910)
- 1994Rahul Dev Burman, Indian musician (b. 1939)
- 1995Eduardo Mata, Mexican conductor and composer (b. 1942)
- 1995Sol Tax, American anthropologist (b. 1907)
- 1996Ramón Vinay, Chilean operatic tenor (b. 1911)
- 1997Harry Helmsley, American real estate mogul (b. 1909)
- 1998John Gary, American singer (b. 1932)
- 1998Mae Questel, American actress (b. 1908)
- 1999Iron Eyes Cody, American actor (b. 1904)
- 2000Spyros Markezinis, Greek politician (b. 1909)
- 2000Tom Fears, American football player (b. 1922)
- 2001Les Brown, American bandleader (b. 1912)
- 2001Yoshika, Japanese fashion model (b. 1983)
- 2003Conrad Hall, American cinematographer (b. 1927)
- 2003Hanno Drechsler, German politician (b. 1931)
- 2003Sabine Ulibarri, American writer (b. 1919)
- 2003Yfrah Neaman, Lebanese-born violinist (b. 1923)
- 2004Brian Gibson, English film director (b. 1944)
- 2004Jake Hess, American singer (b. 1927)
- 2004Jeff Nuttall, English writer (b. 1933)
- 2004Joan Aiken, English author (b. 1924)
- 2004John Toland, American historian (b. 1912)
- 2005Ali al-Haidri, Iraqi governor of Baghdad
- 2005Alton Tobey, American artist (b. 1914)
- 2005Bud Poile, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1924)
- 2005Frank Harary, American mathematician (b. 1921)
- 2005Guy Davenport, American author and scholar (b. 1927)
- 2005Humphrey Carpenter, English author (b. 1946)
- 2005Robert Heilbroner, American economist (b. 1919)
- 2006Irving Layton, Romanian born Canadian poet (b. 1912)
- 2006John Hahn-Petersen, Danish actor (b. 1930)
- 2006Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubaian politician and statesman (b. 1946)
- 2006Milton Himmelfarb, American sociographer (b. 1918)
- 2006Robert Howard White, New Zealander politician (b. 1914)
- 2007Ben Gannon, Australian theatre producer (b. 1952)
- 2007Gáspár Nagy, Hungarian poet and writer (b. 1949)
- 2007Gren, Welsh newspaper cartoonist (b. 1934)
- 2007Helen Hill, American filmmaker (b. 1970)
- 2007Jan Schröder, Dutch cyclist (b. 1941)
- 2007Lewis Hodges, British Air Chief Marshal (b. 1918)
- 2007Marais Viljoen, South African politician (b. 1915)
- 2007Osman Waqialla, Sudanese artist and calligrapher (b. 1925)
- 2007Sandro Salvadore, Italian footballer (b. 1939)
- 2007Steve Krantz, American film and TV producer (b. 1923)
- 2008Jimmy Nah, Singaporan comedian and actor (b. 1968)
- 2008Joyce Carlson, American artist (b. 1923)
- 2008Xavier Chamorro Cardenal, Nicaraguan print editor (b. 1932)
- 2008Yannis Tamtakos, Greek political activist (b. 1908)
- 2009Gert Jonke, Austrian poet, playwright and novelist (b. 1946)
- 2009Giselle Salandy, Trinidadian female boxer (b. 1987)
- 2010Casey Johnson, American heiress and socialite (b. 1979)
- 2010Johan Ferrier, Surinamian politician (b. 1910)
- 2010Rory Markas, American sportscaster (b. 1955)
- 2010Sandro, Argentine songwriter (b. 1945)
- 2010Tsutomu Yamaguchi, Japanese Businessman, and Survivor of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Atomic Bombings (b. 1916)
- 2011Alireza Pahlavi, Iranian Prince and younger son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (b. 1966)
- 2011Coen Moulijn, Dutch footballer (b. 1937)
- 2011Dick King-Smith English Author (b. 1922)
- 2011Gerry Rafferty, British musician and songwriter (b. 1947)
- 2011Mick Karn, Cypriot-born British musician (Japan) (b. 1958)
- 2011Mohamed Bouazizi, Tunisian vegetable vendor and activist (b. 1984)
- 2011Salmaan Taseer, Governor of Punjab (b. 1944)
- 2012Carmen Naranjo, Costa Rican novelist, poet and essayist (b. 1928)
- 2012Harry Fowler, British actor (b. 1926)
- 2012Kerry McGregor, British singer and reality contestant (b. 1974)
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