Famous Birthdays Jan 25 William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Devonshire, English polymath & aristocrat, born in Handsworth, England (d. 1707) Famous Deaths Jan 14 Thomas Coventry, 1st Baron Coventry, English lawyer and judge (b. 1578) Jan 22 Erasmus Quellinus I, Flemish wood carver, dies at about 55 Jan 25 Robert Burton, British writer and Anglican clergyman (The Anatomy of Melancholy), dies at 62 Share On Facebook Share On Twitter 1639 History by Year 1641