Events on Jan 29
- 1523Sermon of Constanz: Zwingli defends 67 Schlussreden
- 1574Sea battle of Reimerswaal - Admiral Boisot beats Spanish fleet
- 1587Deventer andZutphen surrender to Spain
- 1613Galileo observes Neptune but fails to recognize what he sees
- 1676Fjodor Aleksejevitsj becomes Czar of Russia
- 1788Australia Day
- 1802John Beckley of Virginia appointed 1st Librarian of Congress
- 1834President Jackson orders 1st use of US troops to suppress a labor dispute
- 1839Charles Darwin marries Emma Wedgwood
- 1848Sicily accepts new Constitution (choose parliament / freedom of press)
- 1850Henry Clay introduces a comprise bill on slavery to US Senate
- 1856Victoria Cross established to acknowledge bravery
- 1860American College established in Rome by Pope Pius IX
- 1861Kansas becomes 34th state
- 1863Battle at Bear River, Washington: US army vs. Indians
- 1872Francis L Cardoza elected State Treasurer of South Carolina
- 1879Custer Battlefield National Monument, Mont established
- 18861st successful gasoline-driven car patented, Karl Benz, Karlsruhe
- 1896Emile Grubbe is 1st dr to use radiation treatment for breast cancer
- 1900American League organized in Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee and Minneapolis
- 1900Boers under Joubert beat English at Spionkop Natal, 2,000 killed
- 1903Dutch railroad workers strike
- 19041st athletic letters given (University of Chicago football team)
- 1906Coen de King skates world record time: 32,370 km
- 1908Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, at Cornell University, incorporates
- 1912Martial law declared in textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts
- 1913Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, at Howard University, incorporates
- 19161st bombings of Paris by German Zeppelins takes place
- 1917English submarine K13 leaves Gaire Loch
- 1919Secretary of State proclaims 18th amendment (prohibition)
Born on Jan 29
- 1584Frederik Hendrik: Count of Nassau / Prince of Orange
- 1688Emmanuel Swedenborg: Sweden -- Religious leader (Angelic Wisdom)
- 1689Hubert K Poot: Dutch poet
- 1700Daniel Bernoulli: Basel, Switzerland -- Mathematician (10 time French award)
- 1703Carlmann Kolb: Composer
- 1711Giuseppi Bonno: Composer
- 1715Georg Christoph Wagenseil: Austrian (court)composer / pianist
- 1717Jeffrey Amherst: English Governor-General of America / Field Marshal
- 1737Thomas Paine: Political essayist (Common Sense, Age of Reason)
- 1756Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee: (Rep / Gov-Virginia) / General
- 1761Abraham AA "Albert" Gallatin: Switzerland -- US Minister of Finance (1801-14)
- 1763J G Seume: Writer
- 1782Daniel-Francois-Esprit Auber: French opera composer (Fra Diavolo)
- 1782Frantiszek Tucek Scigalski: Composer
- 1783Vasili A Zjukovski: Russian folk poet / translator (Homerus)
- 1784Ferdinand Ries: Composer
- 1798Henry Neele: London, England -- Poet
- 1801Johannes Bernardus van Bree: Dutch violinist / composer (Felix Meritis)
- 1803James Outram: Butterley Hall, Derbyshire, England -- General
- 1810Earnest E Kummer: German mathematician
- 1821Isaac Ferdinand Quinby: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1891
- 1823Franklin Gardner: Major General (Confederate Army)
- 1824Karl von Perfall: Composer
- 1836Benjamin Franklin Potts: Bvt Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1887
- 1836James Meech Warner: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1897
- 1843William McKinley: Niles, Ohio -- (R) 25th President (1897-1901)
- 1850Ebenezer Howard: London, England -- Pioneer of garden cities
- 1850Lawrence Hargrave: Inventor (box kite)
- 1852Frederick Hymen Cowen: Composer
- 1852Ion Luca Caragiale: Romanian actor / playwright (O Noapte Furtunoasa)
Died on Jan 29
- 0969Peter: Tsar of Bulgaria (927-69)
- 1559Thomas Pope: English politician, benefactor, dies at about 52
- 1663Robert Sanderson: Bishop of Lincoln (1660-63)
- 1696Ivan V: Co-tsar of Russia (1682-89)
- 1814Johann G Fichte: German philosopher (Wissenschaftslehre), dies at 51
- 1820George III: King of Great-Britain (1760-1820), dies at 81
- 1824Louise MC Countess of Albany: Henegouws salon owner, dies at 71
- 1837Aleksandr Pushkin: Poet / Novelist (Golden Cockeral), killed in a duel
- 1879Antonia MB Antonucci: Italian Cardinal / diplomat, dies at 80
- 1888Edward Lear: Poet / author, dies at 75
- 1899Alfred Sisley: Painter
- 1899Robert J Fruin: Dutch Historian (80-year war), dies at 75
- 1906Christaan IX: King of Denmark (1893-1906)
- 1912Hermann Bang: Writer, dies at 54
- 1916Edward Hubertus Joannes Keurvils: Composer, dies at 62
- 1917Evelyn Baring Earl Cromer: English Consul-General in Egypt, dies at 75
- 1924Joseph Ludwig: Composer, dies at 79
- 1928Douglas Haig: 1st Earl Haig / field marshal (WWI), dies at 66
- 1934Fritz Haber: German chemist (Nobel 1918), dies at 65
- 1941Ioannis Metaxas: Greek General / Dictator (1936-41), commits suicide at 69
- 1942Ladislao Joseph Philip Paul Zavrtal: Composer, dies at 92
- 1944William Allen White: US journalist (Emporia Gazette), dies at 75
- 1946Harry L Hopkins: US Minister of Business (Loan & Lease law), dies at 55
- 1946Sidney James Jones: Composer, dies at 84
- 1955Hans Hedtoft: Premier of Denmark (1947.. 55), dies at 51
- 1956H[enry] L[ouis] Mencken: US essayist / critic (Smart Set), dies at 75
- 1960Louis Jean Heydt: Actor (Joe-Waterfront), dies at 54
- 1962Fritz Kreisler: Austria / US violinist / composer, dies at 86
- 1963Robert Lee Frost: US Poet (New Hampshire, 4 Pulitzers), dies at 88
- 1964Alan Ladd: Actor (Shane), dies at 50 in Palm Springs, California
Historical events on January 30
- 1077Pope Gregory VII pardons German Emperor Henry IV
- 1349Jews of Freilsburg Germany are massacred
- 1487Bell chimes invented
- 1522Duke of Albany takes captured French back to Scotland
- 1544Adrian van Goes becomes land advocate of Holland
- 1592Ippolito Aldobrandini elected Pope Clement VIII
- 1647King Charles I handed over to English parliament
- 1713England and Netherlands sign 2nd anti-French boundary treaty
- 1781Articles of Confederation ratified by 13th state, Maryland
- 1790Lifeboat 1st tested at sea, by Mr Greathead, the inventor
- 1797Congress refuses to accept 1st petitions from American blacks
- 1798Rep Matthew Lyon (Vt) spits in face of Rep Roger Griswold (Ct) in US House of Representatives, after an argument
- 1800US population: 5,308,483; Black population 1,002,037 (18.9%)
- 1804Mungo Park leaves England seeking source of Niger River
- 1806Prussia takes possession of Hanover
- 1818Keats composes his sonnet, "When I Have Fears"
- 1820Edward Bransfield aboard Williams discovers Antarctica (UK claim)
- 1835Richard Lawrence misfires at President Andrew Jackson in Washington DC
- 1847Yerba Buena renamed San Francisco
- 18541st election in Washington Territory; 1,682 votes cast
- 1858William Wells Brown published 1st Black drama, "Leap to Freedom"
- 1877Storm flood ravages Dutch coastal provinces
- 1879French President MacMahon resigns
- 1883England team presented with ashes of a bail after Sydney Test
- 1888Harry Moses 297 not out for NSW against Victoria
- 1889John Herschel uses camera obscura to photograph 48" (120cm) telescope
- 1889Victoria beat NSW after following on (New South Wales all out 63 needed 76)
- 1894Pneumatic hammer patented by Charles King of Detroit
- 1894US flag fired on in Rio; prompt satisfaction exacted by Admiral Benham
- 1895C J Eady (Tas) 1st Australian to score twin centuries (vs. Victoria)
Born on January 30
- 1563Franciscus Gomarus [Francois Gomaer]: Dutch theologist / opera singer
- 1616William Sancroft: Archbishop (Canterbury)
- 1624Arnold Geulincx: South Netherlands -- Philosopher (About Virtue)
- 1628George Villiers: 2nd Duke of Buckingham England
- 1647Konrad Hoffler: Composer
- 1687[Johann] Balthasar Neumann: German architect, baptized
- 1694Joseph Joachim Benedict Munster: Composer
- 1697Johann Joachim Quantz: German royal flautist / composer
- 1708Georg D Ehret: German / English cartoonist
- 1710Vigilio Blasio Faitello: Composer
- 1724Ignaz Franz Xaver Kurzinger: Composer
- 1752Joseph Matthias Kracher: Composer
- 1756Josef Preindl: Composer
- 1760Franz Xaver Partsch: Composer
- 1775Walter Savage Landor: Warwick, England -- Critic / writer (Imaginary Conversation)
- 1781A v Chamisso: Writer
- 1789George Augustus Kollmann: Composer
- 1797Edwin Vose Sumner: Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1863
- 1814Jean-Baptist Capronnier: French / Belgian glass painter
- 1816Nathaniel Prentiss Banks: Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1894
- 1822John Basil Turchin [Ivan Turchinoff]: Brigadier General (Union volunteers)
- 1829Alfred Cummings: Georgia, United States -- Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1910
- 1834Lord Avebury [John Lubbock]: British banker / politician
- 1835Oliver Edwards: Bvt Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1904
- 1841Alfred Townsend George: Civil War journalist, died in 1914
- 1844Moritz F Freiherr von Bissing: German General / Governor-General of Belgium (1914-17)
- 1846Francis H Bradley: British philosopher (neo-idealism)
- 1861Charles Martin Tornow Loeffler: Mulhouse, Alsace -- Composer
- 1862Walter Johannes Damrosch: Composer
- 1866Gelett Burgess: Author (Purple Cow)
Died on January 30
- 1156Herman van Horn: Bishop of Utrecht (1151 / 52-56)
- 1393Aimery Poitiers: French nobleman, burned at royal ball
- 1393Yvain: Son of Earl of Foix, burned at royal ball
- 1584Jonker Wigbold van Ewsum: Mister of Nienoord, dies in battle
- 1584Pieter Jansz Pourbus: Flemish painter
- 1644William Chillingworth: Engl theologian, Cambridge Platonist
- 1649Charles I: King of Great Britain (1625-49), beheaded for treason
- 1730Peter II Alekseyevitch: Emperor of Russia (1727-30), dies at 14
- 1774Frantisek Ignac Antonin Tuma: Composer, dies at 69
- 1774Jean-Pierre Guignon: Composer, dies at 71
- 1797Johann Abraham Sixt: Composer, dies at 40
- 1816Reinier Vinkeles: Dutch engraver / cartoonist / art collector, dies at 74
- 1827Johann Philipp Christian Schulz: Composer, dies at 53
- 1838Osceola: Chief of Seminole indians, dies in jail
- 1860Francesco Antonio Norberto Pinto: Composer, dies at 44
- 1881Jaak Nikolaas Lemmens: Flemish composer, dies at 58
- 1888Asa Gray: US Botanist (Flora of North America), dies at 77
- 1890Karl Merz: Composer, dies at 53
- 1900Vittorio Bersezio [Carlo Nugelli]: Italian playwright, dies at 71
- 1925Jakab Gyula Major: Composer, dies at 66
- 1925John F Mellaerts: Flemish social founder (Boerenbond), dies at 79
- 1927Friedrich Ernst Koch: Composer, dies at 64
- 1942Vasily Pavovlich Kalafati: Composer, dies at 72
- 1945Gottlieb J Haberlandt: Hungarian / German botanist, dies at 90
- 1945William Busch: Composer, dies at 43
- 1947Frederick F Blackman: English botanist, dies at 80
- 1948Herb Pennock: Pitcher (New York Yankees) / GM (Phillies)
- 1948Mahatma Ghandi: Murdered by Hindu extremists in India
- 1948Orville Wright: US aviation pioneer, dies at 76
- 1951Ferdinand Porsche: German car inventor (Porsche), dies at 75
Events on Jan 31
- 0314St. Silvester I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
- 0876Charles becomes King of Italy
- 1504By treaty of Lyons, French cede Naples to Ferdinand of Aragon
- 1560Spanish King Philip II marries Elisabeth van Valois
- 1578Battle of Gembloers
- 1596Catholic League disjoins
- 1609Wisselbank of Amsterdam established
- 1627Spanish government goes bankrupt
- 1675Cornelia / Dina Olfaarts found not guilty of witchcraft
- 1696Revolt of undertakers after funeral reforms (Amsterdam)
- 1779Charles Messier adds M57 (Ring Nebula in Lyra) to his catalog
- 1804British vice-admiral William Blighs fleet reaches Curacao
- 1849Corn Laws abolished in Britain
- 1851Gail Borden announces invention of evaporated milk
- 1854Dutch KNMI established (Royal Meteorological Institute)
- 1855Western railroads blocked by snow
- 1861State of Louisiana takes over US Mint at New Orleans
- 1862Telescope maker Alvin Clark discovers dwarf companion of Sirius
- 18631st black Civil War regiment, SC Volunteers, mustered into US army
- 1865Congress passes 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery in America (121-24)
- 1865Gen Robert E Lee named Commander-in-Chief of Confederate Armies
- 1871Millions of birds fly over western SF, darkens sky
- 1874Jesse James gang robs train at Gads Hill, Missouri
- 1893"Westminster Gazette" begins publishing
- 1901Boer general John Smuts and De la Rey Conqueror Mud river Transvaal
- 19051st auto to exceed 100 mph (161 km/h), A G MacDonald, Daytona Beach
- 1905Carroll Wright appointed 1st US Commissioner of Labor
- 1906Strongest instrumentally recorded earthquake, Colombia, 8.6 Richter
- 1911Congress names SF as Panama Canal opening celebration site
- 19151st (German) poison gas attack, against Russians
Born on Jan 31
- 1517Gioseffo Zarlino: Composer
- 1573Ambrosius Metzger: Composer
- 1573Giulio Cesare Monteverdi: Composer
- 1601Pieter de Bloot: Dutch landscape painter
- 1607James Stanley: 7th Earl of Derby
- 1612Hendrik Casimir I: Count of Nassau-Dietz / Mayor of Frisia
- 1614Nicolas Saboly: Composer
- 1620Georg F von Waldeck: German Commander-in-Chief
- 1623Francois-Xavier de Laval
- 1633Nathaniel Crew: English Bishop (Durham)
- 1734Julien-Amable Mathieu: Composer
- 1734Robert Morris: Merchant (signed Declaration of Independence)
- 1750Gerrit J Pijman: Dutch Minister of War (1798-1800, 1803-06)
- 1759Francois Devienne: Composer
- 1778Franz Anton graaf von Kolowrat: Austrian Premier of Bohemia (1848)
- 1784Carl Wilhelm Henning: Composer
- 1797Franz Peter Schubert: Lichtenthal, Australia -- Composer (Unfinished Symphony)
- 1798Karl Gottlieb Reissiger: Composer
- 1802Jan C J van Speijk: Dutch naval hero
- 1810Daniel Ruggles: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1897
- 1812John Randolph Tucker: Captain (Confederate Navy), died in 1883
- 1813Samuel Sarphati: Amsterdam, Holland -- Physician / pharmacist / social activist
- 1817Antony Winkler Prins: Dutch writer (Groiler Encyclopaedia)
- 1818William Raine Peck: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1871
- 1836Henryk Szulc: Composer
- 1863F Henri Berz: French existensialist philosopher (Revue the Synthesis)
- 1866Emil Strauss: Germany -- Writer (Naked Man)
- 1868Theodore William Richards: Chemist (atomic weights, Nobel-1914)
- 1869Henry graaf Carton de Wiart: Belgian literary / Premier (1920-21)
- 1872Zane Grey: American West Novelist (Riders of the Purple Sage)
Died on Jan 31
- 1561Menno Simonsz: Dutch priest / vicar (Foundation Book)
- 1580Hendrik: Portuguese Cardinal / epilepticus / regent (1578-80)
- 1606Guy Fawkes: Convicted in the "Gunpowder Plot", executed at 35
- 1788[Bonnie Prince] Charles E Stuart: English pretender, dies at 67
- 1788Charles E Stuart: English pretender to the throne, dies at 67
- 1788Francesco Zannetti: Composer, dies at 50
- 1828Alexandros Ypsilanti: Greek resistance fighter, dies at 35
- 1861Franciscus J van Vree: Dutch Catholic foreman, dies at 53
- 1864Hamilton Rowan Gamble: US judge / Governor of Missouri (1861-64)
- 1891Ernest Meissonier: French Painter / etcher / sculptor, dies at 75
- 1919Paul Lindau: German playwright / critic (Estimate), dies at 79
- 1922Heinrich Reinhardt: Composer, dies at 56
- 1933John Galsworthy: England, writer (Forsythe, Nobel 1932), dies at 65
- 1945Eddie Slovik: 1st US executed for desertion since Civil War at 25
- 1949Henri de Vries [Hendricus Walterop]: Actor (Cleopatra), dies at 84
- 1954Edwin H Armstrong: US radio inventor (FM), commits suicide at 63
- 1954Florence Bates: Actress (Kismet, I Remember Mama), dies at 65
- 1955John R Mott: US Theologist / founder (YMCA, Nobel 1946), dies at 89
- 1960Lowell Gilmore: Actor (Calcutta, Roadblock), dies at 53
- 1966Elizabeth Patterson: Actress (Tall Story), dies at 90
- 1967Chief Thundercloud: Actor (Ambush, Colt 45, Typhoon), dies at 100
- 1967Otto Dibelius: German Theologian / Bishop, dies at 86
- 1969Alexander Mikhaylovich Dzegelyonok: Composer, dies at 77
- 1970Slim Harpo [James Moore]: Rocker, dies at 28
- 1972Bir Bikram Shah Deva Mahendra: King of Nepal (1955-72), dies at 51
- 1972Howard Barlow: Conductor (Voice of Firestone), dies at 79
- 1972Istvan Szelenyi: Composer, dies at 67
- 1973Ragnar Frisch: Norwegian economist (Nobel 1969), dies at 77
- 1974Harry Baum: Actor (Crime & Punishment), dies at 58
- 1974Paul Haesaerts: Flemish Architect / Painter (Flandre), dies at 72