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
Historical events on February 1
- 0772Adrian I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
- 1539Emperor Karel and King Francois I sign anti-English treaty
- 1587English Queen Elizabeth I signs Mary Stuarts death sentence
- 1662Dutch garrison on Formosa surrenders for Chinese pirates
- 1669French King Louis XIV limits freedom of religion
- 1709Alexander Selkirk [Robinson Crusoe] rescued from Juan Fernandez
- 1720Sweden and Prussia sign peace treaty
- 1732Parliament of Ratisborn accept Pragmatic Sanctions
- 1742Sardinia and Austria sign alliance
- 1783William Herschel announces star Lambda Herculis as apex
- 17881st US steamboat patent issued, by Georgia to Briggs and Longstreet
- 1789Chinese troops driven out of Vietnam capital Thang Long
- 1790Supreme Court convenes for 1st time (NYC)
- 1793France declares war on England and Netherlands
- 1793Patent granted Ralph Hodgson, NY, for oiled silk and linen
- 1809Dutch King Louis Napoleon accepts metric system
- 18101st insurance co managed by blacks (American Insurance Co of Philadelphia)
- 1810Seville, Spain surrenders to French
- 1810US Population: 7,239,881, Black population: 1,377,808 (19%)
- 1814Volcano Mayon on Luzon Philippines erupts killing 1,200
- 1840Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, 1st in US, incorporated
- 18601st rabbi to open House of Representatives, Morris Raphall of New York City
- 1861Dike breaks in Gelderland Netherlands
- 1861Texas becomes 7th state to secede
- 1862Julia Howe publishes "Battle Hymn of the Republic"
- 18642nd German-Danish war begins
- 1864Austrian / Prussian troops occupy Sleeswijk / Holstein
- 186513th amendment approved (National Freedom Day)
- 1865JS Rock, 1st black lawyer to practice in Supreme Ct, admitted to bar
- 1867Bricklayers start working 8-hour days
Born on February 1
- 1552Edward Coke: Mileham Norfolk, England -- Jurist / politician (defended common law)
- 1603Michael Trumper: Composer
- 1605Isaac Aboab de Fonseca: Portuguese / Neth rabbi / mystic
- 1633Gabriel Schutz: Composer
- 1659Jacob Roggeveen: Dutch Swiss lawyer / navigator (Easter Island)
- 1669Miguel Lopez: Composer
- 1690Francesco Maria Veracini: Italian opera composer
- 1710Konrad E Ackermann: German actor (Die Oberpfalz)
- 1757John P Kemble: England, United Kingdom -- Actor / director (Drury Lane, Covent Garden)
- 1763Thomas Campbell: Founder (Church of Disciples in America)
- 1791Charles J Sax: Belgian music instrument builder
- 1801Adolf Fredrik Lindblad: Composer
- 1801Thomas Cole: United States -- Romantic landscape painter (Hudson River School)
- 1807William Bowen Campbell: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1867
- 1810Charles Lenox Remond: Salem, Massachusetts -- Famous black
- 1819Henry Lawrence Eustis: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1885
- 1821Charles Samvei Bovy-Lysberg: Composer
- 1827Alphonse de Rothschild: French banker
- 1829John Potts Slough: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1867
- 1833Henry McNeal Turner: Black Methodist Bishop
- 1839James A Herne [J Aherne]: US playwright (Hearts of Oak)
- 1841William H H Davenport: Buffalo, New York -- Stage medium
- 1844Eduard Adolf Strasburger: German Botanist (Angiospermen)
- 1844Granville Stanley Hall: United States -- Psychologist
- 1859Victor August Herbert: Dublin, Ireland -- Composer (Babes in Toyland)
- 1869Johannes F "Frits" Bakker, Sr.: Actor (Holland Tooneelgezelschap)
- 1872Paul Fort: French poet / founder of Vers et Prose
- 1873Clara Butt: Southwick, Sussex -- Contralto (Country of Hope & Glory)
- 1874Hugo von Hofmannsthal: Austria -- Poet / dramatist / essayist
- 1875Eddie Pola: Composer (Lullabye of Broadway)
Died on February 1
- 0656Sigebert III: King of Austrasia, dies at about 25
- 1204Alexius IV Angelus: Regent of Byzantium (1203-04), murdered
- 1248Hendrik II: Duke of Brabant (1235-48)
- 1294Louis II [the Stern]: Ruler of Upper-Bayern
- 1328Charles IV [the Handsome]: King of France (1322-28)
- 1502Olivier de la Marche: Flemish writer / Poet / governor
- 1666Sjihab al-Din Sultan C Shah Djahan: Mogol of India (Taj-Mahal)
- 1669Abandoned child: Huygens friend Poet Catharina Questiers, buried at 31
- 1691Alexander VIII [Pietro Ottoboni]: Italian Pope (1689-91), dies at 80
- 1691George Etherege: English stage writer (Love in a Tub), dies at 56
- 1694John L baron van Elderen: 63rd Bishop of Liege (1688-94), dies at 73
- 1733August II [the Strong]: King of Poland (355 children), dies at 62
- 1743Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni: Italian composer, dies at 85
- 1747Jacobus E J Capitein: Dutch slave / vicar / merchant
- 1795Giacomo Insanguine: Composer, dies at 66
- 1818Giuseppi Gazzaniga: Composer, dies at 74
- 1824Maria Theresia von Paradis: Composer, dies at 64
- 1832Ecco Epkema: Dutch classic linguist (Frisian / Old Frisian), dies at 71
- 1838Abraham de Veer: Dutch Governor-General of Suriname (1822-28), dies at 71
- 1839Giuseppe Valadier: Italian Architect / archaeologist, dies at 76
- 1851Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley: Novelist (Frankenstein), dies at 53
- 1869Frederik W Conrad: Hydraulic engineer / railway pioneer, dies at 68
- 1871Alexander Nikoleyevich Serov: Composer, dies at 51
- 1873Matthew Maury: Hydrographer
- 1875William Sterndale Bennett: Composer, dies at 58
- 1877Joseph-Leon Gatayes: Composer, dies at 71
- 1878George Cruikshank: English illustrator (Grimm), dies at 85
- 1889Joseph Gungl: Composer, dies at 78
- 1902Salomon Jaoassohn: Composer, dies at 70
- 1903George G Stokes: British physicist / President Royal Society, dies at 83
Events on Feb 2
- 0506King Alarik II of Visigoten delegates Lex Romania Visigothorum out
- 0962Pope John XII crowns German King Otto I the Great Emperor
- 1032Koenraad II succeeds Rudolf III as King of Bourgundy
- 1119Guido di Borgogna elected Pope Callistus II
- 1141Battle at Lincoln: King Stephen captured
- 1536Pedro de Mendoza finds Argentine city of Buenos Aires
- 1550English Edward Seymour Duke of Somerset, freed
- 1653New Amsterdam becomes a city (later NYC)
- 1709British sailor Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being marooned on a desert island for 5 years, his story inspires "Robinson Crusoe"
- 1732King Frederik Willem I moves Lutherans towards East-Prussia
- 1742British Walpole government resigns
- 1762Thomas Arnes opera "Artaxerxes, " premieres in London
- 1795Joseph Haydns 102nd Symphony in B, premieres
- 1798Federal St. Theater, Boston, becomes 1st in US destroyed by fire
- 18021st leopard exhibited in US, Boston (admission 25 cents)
- 1811Russian settlers establish Ft Ross trading post, north of San Francisco
- 1843US and British settlers in Oregon Country choose government committee
- 18481st ship load of Chinese arrive in San Francisco
- 1848Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends Mexican War; US acquires Texas California, New Mexico and Arizona for $15 million
- 1854Pope Pius IX encyclical "On persecution of Armenians"
- 1863Samuel Clemens becomes Mark Twain for 1st time
- 1869James Oliver invents removable tempered steel plow blade
- 1870Cardiff Giant (supposed petrified human) proved to be gypsum
- 1870Mark Twain, 34, marries Olivia Langdon in Elmira, New York
- 1878Greece declares war on Turkey
- 1880SS Strathleven arrives in London with 1st Australian frozen mutton
- 1882Knights of Columbus forms in New Haven, Conn
- 1892Bottle cap with cork seal patented by William Painter (Baltimore)
- 1892Johnny Briggs takes a hat-trick, England vs. Aust SCG
- 1892Longest boxing match under modern rules; 77 rounds in Nameoki, Illinois between Harry Sharpe and Frank Crosby
Born on Feb 2
- 1583Anna Roemers Visscher: Dutch poetess
- 1595Jacob van Campen: Painter / architect (New Church, Amsterdam)
- 1649Benedict XIII [Pierfrancesco Orsini]: Italy -- 245th Pope (1724-30)
- 1650Nell [Eleanor] Gwyn: English actress / mistress (King Charles II)
- 1669Louis Marchand: Composer
- 1714Gottfried August Homilius: Composer
- 1748Christian Gottfried Thomas: Composer
- 1773Vincenc Tomas Vaclav Tucek: Composer
- 1780Johannes van den Bosch: Governor-General (Netherlands East Indies)
- 1802Jean-Baptiste JD Boussingault: French chemist
- 1803Albert Sidney Johnston: Gen (Confederate Army), died in 1862
- 1804Leopold Eugen Mechura: Composer
- 1815Nathaniel Collins McLean: Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1905
- 1817John Glover: English chemist (sulfuric acid)
- 1817Jose Maria de la Purificacion Ventura: Composer
- 1820Hans E Schack: Danish politician / writer (Phantasterne)
- 1827Abner Monroe Perrin: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1864
- 1827Oswald Aschenbach: German painter
- 1835Luigi Manzotti: Milano, Italy -- Ballet choreographer
- 1840Louis Bourgault-Ducoudray: Composer
- 1844Leander Schlegel: Composer
- 1847Jules Francois Blasini: Curacaos pianist / composer
- 1850Carel V Gerritsen: Dutch free thinker
- 1852Teunis Stoel: Actor / director (Small Theater, Rotterdam)
- 1856Makar Grigori Ekmalyan: Composer
- 1857Jan Six: Dutch art historian / art collector
- 1859Havelock Ellis: US Physician / sexologist (Psychology of Sex)
- 1861Mehmed VI: Last Sultan of Ottoman Empire (1918-22)
- 1861Mohammed VI Vahideddin: Last Sultan of Turkey (1918-22)
- 1861Solomon R Guggenheim: Philanthropist (Guggenheim Museum NYC)
Died on Feb 2
- 1032Rudolf III: Last independent King of Bourgundy
- 1435Johanna II: Lawless Queen of Naples (1414-35), dies at 61
- 1491Martin Schongauer: German painter, dies at 40
- 1540George Schenck van Toutenburg: Gov / Viceroy of Frisia / Groningen
- 1563Hans Neusiedler: Hungarian / German luitist / author
- 1594Giovanni Perluigi da Palestrina: Italian composer, dies at 68
- 1597Lucas van Valckenborch: Flemish painter, buried at about 61
- 1660Govert Flinck: Dutch Painter (Isaac blesses Jacob), dies at 45
- 1673Kaspar Forster: Composer, dies at 56
- 1723Antonio M Valsalva: Italian anatomist, dies at 66
- 1750Johann Graf: Composer, dies at 65
- 1769Clement XIII [Carlo Rezzonico]: Pope (1758-69), dies at 75
- 1779Georg Philipp Kress: Composer, dies at 59
- 1789Armand-Louis Couperin: French Composer / Organist (Notre Dame), dies at 63
- 1793William Aiton: English Botanist (Kew Gardens), dies at 61
- 1822Jean-Baptiste Davaux: Composer, dies at 79
- 1827Johann Nepomuk Kalcher: Composer, dies at 62
- 1828Frederik Sigismund Earl of Bylandt: Vice-admiral, dies at 78
- 1852Francois MP Liberman: French founder (Congr of H Heart), dies at 49
- 1881Aleksej F Pisemski: Russian writer (Clodhopper), dies at 59
- 1882Fabio Campana: Composer, dies at 63
- 1902Emanuil Mandlov: Composer, dies at 42
- 1907Dmitri I Mendelejev: Russian chemist (Periodic Table), dies at 72
- 1909Adolf Stoecker: German anti-semite / Prime Minister, dies at 73
- 1918John L Sullivan: Mass, heavyweight boxing champ, dies at 59
- 1919Xavier Henry Napoleon Leroux: Composer, dies at 55
- 1921Luigi Mancinelli: Composer, dies at 72
- 1925Antti Aarne: Finnish sociologist, dies at 57
- 1931Theodor Batthynyi: Hungarian contra-revolutionary, dies at 71
- 1934Ernesto Nazareth: Composer, dies at 70