Historical Events on 4 Jan

Historical Events on 4 Jan

1490 - Anna of Brittany announces that all those who would ally with the king of France will be considered guilty of the crime of lese-majesty.
1493 - Christopher Columbus leaves the New World, ending his first journey.
1642 - King Charles I of England sends soldiers to arrest members of Parliament, commencing England's slide into civil war.
1698 - Most of the Palace of Whitehall in London, the main residence of the English monarchs, is destroyed by fire.
1717 - The Netherlands, England, and France sign the Triple Alliance.
1762 - England declares war on Spain and Naples.
1847 - Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government.
1854 - The McDonald Islands are discovered by Captain William McDonald aboard the Samarang.
1865 - The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at 10-12 Broad near Wall Street in New York City.
1878 - Sofia is emancipated from Ottoman rule.
1884 - The Fabian Society is founded in London.
1885 - The first successful appendectomy is performed by William W. Grant on Mary Gartside.
1896 - Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state.
1903 - Topsy, an elephant, was electrocuted by Thomas Edison during the War of Currents campaign.
1912 - The Scout Association is incorporated throughout the British Commonwealth by Royal Charter.
1944 - World War II: Operation Carpetbagger, involving the dropping of arms and supplies to resistance fighters in Europe, begins.
1944 - World War II: The Battle of Monte Cassino begins.
1948 - Burma regains its independence from the United Kingdom.
1951 - Korean War: Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul.
1958 - Sputnik 1 falls to Earth from its orbit (it was launched on October 4, 1957).
1959 - Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon.
1962 - New York City introduces a train that operates without a crew on-board.
1965 - United States President Lyndon B. Johnson proclaims his "Great Society" during his State of the Union address.
1972 - Rose Heilbron becomes the first female judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London.
1974 - United States President Richard Nixon refuses to hand over materials subpoenaed by the Senate Watergate Committee.
1975 - Elizabeth Ann Seton becomes the first American-born saint.
1987 - The Chase, Maryland rail wreck: An Amtrak train en route to Boston, Massachusetts from Washington, D.C., collides with Conrail engines in Chase, Maryland, killing 16 people.
1989 - Second 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.
1998 - A massive ice storm hits eastern Canada and the northeastern United States, continuing through January 10 and causing widespread destruction.
1998 - Wilaya of Relizane massacres in Algeria: over 170 are killed in three remote villages.
1999 - Former professional wrestler Jesse Ventura is sworn in as governor of Minnesota.
1999 - Gunmen open fire on Shiite Muslims worshipping in an Islamabad mosque, killing 16 people and injuring 25.
2004 - Spirit, a NASA Mars Rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC.
2006 - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel suffers a second, apparently more serious stroke. His authority is transferred to acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
2007 - The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history.
46 BC - Titus Labienus defeats Julius Caesar in the Battle of Ruspina.
871 - Battle of Reading: Ethelred of Wessex fights, and is defeated by, a Danish invasion army.