January 6

Historic Events

2025

Justin Trudeau announces his resignation as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Prime Minister of Canada after nine years in office. ›

2021

Supporters of U.S. president Donald Trump storm the United States Capitol Building to disrupt certification of the 2020 presidential election, resulting in four deaths and evacuation of the U.S. Congress. ›

2019

Muhammad V of Kelantan resigns as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, becoming the first monarch to do so. ›

2017

Five people are killed and six others injured in a mass shooting at Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, Florida. ›

2012

Twenty-six people are killed and 63 wounded when a suicide bomber blows himself up at a police station in Damascus. ›

2005

Edgar Ray Killen is indicted for the 1964 murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner during the American Civil Rights Movement. ›

2005

A train collision in Graniteville, South Carolina, United States, releases about 60 tons of chlorine gas. ›

1995

A chemical fire in an apartment complex in Manila, Philippines, leads to the discovery of plans for Project Bojinka, a mass-terrorist attack. ›

1994

U.S. figure skater Nancy Kerrigan is attacked and injured by an assailant hired by her rival Tonya Harding's ex-husband during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. ›

1993

Indian Border Security Force units kill 55 Kashmiri civilians in Sopore, Jammu and Kashmir, in revenge after militants ambushed a BSF patrol. ›

1993

Four people are killed when Lufthansa CityLine Flight 5634 crashes on approach to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Roissy-en-France, France. ›

1992

President of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia flees the country as a result of the military coup. ›

1989

Satwant Singh and Kehar Singh are sentenced to death for conspiracy in the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi; the two men are executed the same day. ›

1974

In response to the 1973 oil crisis, the United States implements the Emergency Daylight Saving Time Energy Conservation Act, switching to permanent daylight saving time for a trial period. ›

1974

Aeroflot Flight H-75 crashes near Mukachevo, killing 24. ›

1969

Allegheny Airlines Flight 737 crashes in Lafayette Township, McKean County, Pennsylvania, United States, killing 11. ›

1968

Aeroflot Flight 1668 crashes near Olyokminsk, killing 45. ›

1967

Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and ARVN troops launch "Operation Deckhouse Five" in the Mekong River delta. ›

1960

National Airlines Flight 2511 is destroyed in mid-air by a bomb, while en route from New York City to Miami. ›

1960

The Associations Law comes into force in Iraq, allowing registration of political parties. ›

1951

Korean War: Beginning of the Ganghwa massacre, in the course of which an estimated 200–1,300 South Korean communist sympathizers are slaughtered. ›

1947

Pan American Airlines becomes the first commercial airline to offer a round-the-world ticket. ›

1946

The first general election ever in Vietnam is held. ›

1941

United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms speech in the State of the Union address. ›

1929

King Alexander of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes suspends his country's constitution, starting the January 6th Dictatorship. ›

1929

Mother Teresa arrives by sea in Calcutta, India, to begin her work among India's poorest and sick people. ›

1912

New Mexico is admitted to the Union as the 47th U.S. state. ›

1912

German geophysicist Alfred Wegener first presents his theory of continental drift. ›

1900

Second Boer War: Having already besieged the fortress at Ladysmith, Boer forces attack it, but are driven back by British defenders. ›

1839

The Night of the Big Wind, the most damaging storm in 300 years, sweeps across Ireland, damaging or destroying more than 20% of the houses in Dublin. ›

1838

Alfred Vail and colleagues demonstrate a telegraph system using dots and dashes (this is the forerunner of Morse code). ›

1809

Combined British, Portuguese and colonial Brazilian forces begin the Invasion of Cayenne during the Napoleonic Wars. ›

1781

In the Battle of Jersey, the British defeat the last attempt by France to invade Jersey in the Channel Islands. ›

1725

J. S. Bach leads the first performance of Liebster Immanuel, Herzog der Frommen, BWV 123, a chorale cantata for Epiphany. ›

1724

Sie werden aus Saba alle kommen, BWV 65, a Bach cantata, for Epiphany, is performed the first time. ›

1721

The Committee of Inquiry on the South Sea Bubble publishes its findings, revealing details of fraud among company directors and corrupt politicians. ›

1661

English Restoration: The Fifth Monarchists unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London, England. The revolt is suppressed after a few days. ›

1641

Arauco War: The first Parliament of Quillín is celebrated, putting a temporary hold on hostilities between Mapuches and Spanish in Chile. ›

1579

The Union of Arras unites the southern Netherlands under the Duke of Parma (Ottavio Farnese), governor in the name of King Philip II of Spain. ›

1540

King Henry VIII of England marries Anne of Cleves. ›

1536

The first European school of higher learning in the Americas, Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco, is founded by Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza and Bishop Juan de Zumárraga in Mexico City. ›

1492

The Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella enter Granada at the conclusion of the Granada War. ›

1449

Constantine XI is crowned Byzantine Emperor at Mystras. ›

1355

Charles IV of Bohemia is crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy as King of Italy in Milan. ›

1322

Stephen Uroš III is crowned King of Serbia, having defeated his half-brother Stefan Konstantin in battle. His son is crowned "young king" in the same ceremony. ›

1205

Philip of Swabia undergoes a second coronation as King of the Romans. ›

1066

Following the death of Edward the Confessor on the previous day, the Witan meets to confirm Harold Godwinson as the new King of England; Harold is crowned the same day, sparking a succession crisis that will eventually lead to the Norman conquest of England. ›