- 379 Saint Basil the Great, Bishop of Caesare and theologian (Moralia), dies
- 404 Telemachus, Roman monk, murdered
- 874 Hasan al-Askari, 11th Imam of Twelver Shia Islam, dies at 27
- 898 Odo, earl of Paris/king of France (888-98), dies at about 39
- 962 Boudouin III, count of Flanders, dies
- 1204 King Haakon III of Norway (c. 1170)
- 1387 Charles, The Bad, King of Navarra (1349-87) dies burnt alive
- 1515 Louis XII, the Just, King of France (1498-1515), dies at 52
- 1517 Hermann Vischer, the Younger, German bronze merchant, dies
- 1554 Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador (b. 1500)
- 1559 Christian III, King of Denmark and Norway (1534-59), dies at 55
- 1560 Guillaume du Bellay, Sieur de Langey, French soldier, dies
- 1617 Hendrick Goltzius, Dutch painter/cartoonist/engraver, dies
- 1626 Cornelis Pieterse Hoft, Amsterdam merchant/regent, dies at 68
- 1630 Tetsugen, Zen teacher (Jodo sect converted to Obaku Zen), dies
- 1631 Thomas Hobson, the "Cambridge Carrier", eponym of Hobson's Choice (b. 1544)
- 1661 Pieter Claesz, Dutch still life painter, dies at about 64
- 1697 Filippo Baldinucci, Florentine biographer/historian (b. 1624)
- 1716 William Wycherley, dramatist (The Country Wife), dies at about 75
- 1730 Daniel Finch, 2nd earl of Nottingham, dies at 82
- 1730 Samuel Sewall, English-American judge and businessman, dies at 77
- 1742 Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, English statesman, dies at 55
- 1748 Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (b. 1667)
- 1758 Johann F von Cronegk, German playwright (Codrus), dies at 26
- 1759 Jacques-Joachim Trotti, marquis de La Chétardie, French adventurer (b. 1705)
- 1766 James III Edward, Old Pretender/king of Gt Britain/Ireland, dies at 77
- 1784 Patrice F earl de Neney, South Neth Secret Council chairman, dies at 67
- 1787 Arthur Middleton, American signer (Declaration of Independence), dies at 44
- 1789 Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron Grantley, English politician (b. 1716)
- 1793 Francesco Guardi, Italian painter, dies at 80
- 1796 Alexandre-Théophile Vandermonde, French mathematician (b. 1735)
- 1800 Louis-Jean-Marie Daubenton, French zoologist, dies at 83
- 1817 Martin H Klaproth, German chemist (uranium), dies at 73
- 1853 Gregory Blaxland, Australian explorer (b. 1778)
- 1862 Mikhail Ostrogradsky, Russian physicist and mathematician, dies at 60
- 1869 Martin W. Bates, American politician (b. 1786)
- 1881 Louis Auguste Blanqui, French political activist (b. 1805)
- 1887 Johan Hendrik Koelman, portrait painter, dies at 66
- 1892 Roswell B. Mason, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1805)
- 1894 Heinrich Rudolf Hertz, German physicist (b. 1857)
- 1896 Alfred Ely Beach, American inventor (b. 1826)
- 1901 Ignatius Donnelly, US attorney/lt-governor (Minnesota), dies at 69
- 1906 Sir Hugh Nelson, Premier of Queensland (b. 1835)
- 1919 William W Campbell, Canadian poet (Ian of the Orcades), dies at 60
- 1919 Mikhail Drozdovsky, Russian general (b. 1881)
- 1920 Paul Adam, French writer (L'enfant d'Austerlitz), dies at 57
- 1931 Martinus Beijerinck, Dutch microbiologist and botanist (b. 1851)
- 1932 C P Scott, British journalist, publisher and politician (b. 1846)
- 1934 Jakob Wassermann, writer, dies at 60
- 1940 Panuganti Lakshminarasimha Rao, Indian writer and essayist (b. 1865)
- 1943 Colonel Andrew Summers Rowan, U.S. military officer who gave "a message to Garcia" (b. 1857)
- 1944 Edwin Lutyens, English architect (Viceroy's House, New Delhi), dies at 74
- 1954 Duff Cooper, British diplomat and writer (b. 1890)
- 1957 Ruth Draper, US elocutionist, dies at 67 or 72
- 1957 Seán South and Fergal O'Hanlon are killed in the Brookeborough Raid.
- 1958 Edward Weston, American photographer (b. 1886)
- 1962 Diego Martínez Barrio, Spanish president (1939), dies at 76
- 1964 Bechara El Khoury, President of Lebanon (b. 1890)
- 1966 Vincent Auriol, President of France (1947-53), dies at 82
- 1971 Saint Amphilochius of Pochayiv, Ukrainian Orthodox Christian Saint (b. 1894)
- 1980 Pietro Nenni, Italian politician (Socialists), dies at 88
- 1982 Paul Belmondo, French sculptor (Bathing Woman, Orleans), dies at 83
- 1988 Leo Steiner, NY Carnegie Deli's owner, dies
- 1990 Suzuki Sochu, Zen teacher (Rinzai line)/abbot of Ryutakuji, dies
- 1990 James W. Wood, American astronaut (Dynasoar), dies at 65
- 1991 Charles B Timmer, Dutch writer (Russia Black on White), dies at 83
- 1991 Yvonne Waegemans, Flemish author (Gnome Patjoepelke), dies at 81
Grace Hopper
1992 Grace Hopper, American computer scientist and US Navy admiral who invented the first compiler for a universal computer programming language and is credited with coining the phrase 'debugging’, dies at 85
Grace Hopper
- 1992 Called Abma [Hetter Gerrit Abma], Dutch politician (SGP), dies at 74
- 1992 Mike Frankovich, US producer (Guess Who's Coming to Dinner), dies
- 1994 Werner Schwab, Austrian playwright (Female Presidents) and artist, dies at 35
- 1995 Eugene Wigner, physicist (Nobel prize for physics-1963), dies at 92
- 1995 Frederick "Fred" West, British contractor and serial killer (12 charges of murder), commits suicide in his prison cell at 53
- 1996 Arleigh Albert Burke, US Admiral, dies at 94
- 1996 Arthur Rudolph, German rocket engineer, dies at 89
- 1996 Orapin Chaiyakan, first Thai woman elected to the Parliament of Thailand, dies at 92
- 1997 James B. Pritchard, American theologist and archaeologist, dies at 87
- 2000 Colin Vaughan, Australian political journalist (b. 1931)
- 2003 Joe Foss, American fighter ace (Medal of Honor-1943) and politician, dies at 87
- 2003 F. William Free, American advertising executive (I'm Cheryl – Fly Me.), dies at 74
Shirley Chisholm
2005 Shirley Chisholm, 1st African American Congresswoman (Rep-D-NY) and presidential candidate, dies of a stroke at 80
Shirley Chisholm
- 2005 Hugh Lawson, 6th Baron Burnham, British newspaperman (b. 1931)
- 2005 Eugene J. Martin, American painter, artist (b. 1938)
- 2005 Bob Matsui, American politician (b. 1941)
- 2006 Harry Magdoff, American magazine editor (b. 1913)
- 2006 Hugh McLaughlin, Irish publisher and inventor (b. 1918)
- 2006 Dawn Lake, Australian TV comedienne (b. 1927)
- 2007 Tillie Olsen, American writer (b. 1912)
- 2007 Leon Davidson, American scientist known for studying UFOs (b. 1922)
- 2007 Roland Levinsky, South African medical scientist (b. 1943)
- 2007 Leonard Fraser, Australian serial killer (b. 1951)
- 2008 Salvatore Bonanno, son of Joseph Bonnano (b. 1932)
- 2008 Pratap Chandra Chunder, union minister of India (b. 1919)
- 2008 Harold Corsini, American photographer, dies from a stroke at 88
- 2009 Claiborne Pell, U.S. senator (b. 1918)
- 2009 Nizar Rayan, Hamas leader (b. 1962)
- 2011 Reynaldo Dagsa, Filipino politician
- 2012 Elizabeth Brumfiel, American feminist archaeologist, dies of cancer at 66
- 2012 Kiro Gligorov, 1st President of the Republic of Macedonia (1991-99), dies at 94
- 2012 Hermann Guggiari, Paraguayan engineer and sculptor, dies at 88
- 2012 Ed Jenkins, American Congressman (Democratic-Georgia), dies at 78
- 2012 Carlos Soria, Argentine lawyer and politician, dies from gunshot to the head at 62
- 2012 Marcelle Narbonne, French super-centenarian and oldest person in Europe, dies at 113
- 2012 Nay Win Maung, Burmese physician, and pro-democracy activist, dies from a heart attack at 50
- 2015 Mario Cuomo, American Democratic Party politician and the 52nd Governor of New York (1983-95), dies of a heart condition at 82
- 2015 Boris Morukov, Russian cosmonaut, dies at 64
- 2015 Ninón Sevilla, Cuban-Mexican actress (Aventurera, Víctimas del Pecado), dies at 85
- 2015 Omar Karami, Lebanese Prime Minister (1992-94, 2004-05), dies at 80
- 2016 Fazu Aliyeva, Russian poet, novelist and journalist who helped develop Dagestani in Russian literature, dies from heart failure at 83
- 2016 Michael G. Oxley, American politician (Rep-R-OH, 1981-2007), dies at 71
- 2016 Dale Bumpers, American politician (Sen-D Arkansas, 1975-99), dies at 90
- 2017 Derek Parfit, British philosopher who specialized in problems of personal identity, rationality and ethics, dies at 74
- 2018 John V Tunney, American politician (Rep/Sen-D-California), dies of prostate cancer at 83
- 2019 George, the last Hawaiian tree snail of his kind (Achatinella apexfulva species), dies at the University of Hawaii aged 14 years
January in History
![The Beatles? 'They have no future in show business']()
The Beatles? 'They have no future in show business'
In 1962, an unknown group called the Beatles travelled to London for a recording contract audition with one of the major record labels. They were rejected.
January 1, 1962!['The Most Famous of All Streaks']()
'The Most Famous of All Streaks'
Erika Roe bounced into the history books on this day when, topless, she skipped onto the pitch at a rugby game to the roar of 60,000 cheering spectators.
January 2, 1982![A Crackdown on Lovers in New York]()
A Crackdown on Lovers in New York
New York wasn't always a free and easy city. Time was when not only adultery was a crime, but even looking at a lady in the wrong way could land a guy in trouble.
January 8, 1902![The Man Who Saved Elton John's Life]()
The Man Who Saved Elton John's Life
Long John Baldry was born on this day - a friend of stars from Rod Stewart to The Beatles and who, in 1969, famously took Elton John aside and saved the life.
January 12, 1941
