January 1 is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This date is slightly more likely to fall on a Friday, Sunday, or Tuesday (58 in 400 years each) than on Wednesday or Thursday (57), and slightly less likely to occur on a Saturday or Monday (56). This day is known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the year.
When the western world employed the Julian calendar, years began on March 25. Festivals marking the start of the New Year were celebrated on the first day of April because March 25 fell during Holy Week. Some, however, persisted in celebrating the New Year on April 1st. They became known as "April Fools", so the legend goes.
| 45 BC | The Julian calendar takes effect for the first time |
| 404 | Last gladiator competitions in Rome |
| 630 | The Prophet Muhammad sets out toward Mecca with the army that captures it bloodlessly |
| 1502 | Portuguese navigators discover Rio de Janeiro |
| 1772 | First traveler's cheques go on sale in London, can be used in 90 European cities |
| 1785 | "Daily Universal Register" (Times of London) publishes 1st issue |
| 1809 | Holland Brigade under Brigadier-General David Hendrik Chassé reaches Madrid (Napoleonic Wars) |
| 1814 | Field marshal Blucher's troops cross the Rhine at Kaub |
| 1818 | Official reopening of the White House (burned by the British in 1814) |
| 1833 | British government demands Falkland islands |
| 1848 | Britain takes Mosquito Coast from Nicaragua |
| 1863 | Emancipation Proclamation issued by Abraham Lincoln to free slaves in US confederate states |
| 1877 | Queen Victoria proclaimed Empress of India |
| 1880 | Building of Panama Canal begins |
| 1890 | Eritrea is consolidated into a colony by the Italian government |
| 1891 | French troops occupy Nioro, West-Sudan, 3000 killed |
| 1896 | German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen announces his discovery of x-rays |
| 1899 | Cuba liberated from Spanish rule by the US, American occupation continues till 1902 |
| 1923 | Union of Socialist Soviet Republics established |
| 1925 | Norway's capital Christiania changes name to Oslo |
| 1946 | Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces he is not a god |
| 1950 | Ho Chi Minh begins offensive against French troops in Indo-China |
| 1953 | The first TV detector van, used to track down users of unlicensed television sets, begins operation in the UK |
| 1958 | European Economic Community, better known as the European Common Market starts operation |
| 1965 | Palestinian al-Fatah organization forms |
| 1972 | China performs nuclear test at Lop Nor, PRC |
| 1985 | The Internet's Domain Name System is created |
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Kevin Burt (kjburt0311@gmail.com) |