30 January
January 30 is the 30th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 335 days remaining, (336 in leap years).
Events
- 1595 - William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is performed for the first time.
- 1649 - King Charles I of England is beheaded.
- 1781 - Articles of Confederation ratified by 13th state, Maryland.
- 1790 - The first boat specialized as a lifeboat is tested on the River Tyne.
- 1820 - Edward Bransfield discovers Antarctica.
- 1835 - Unsuccessful assassination attempt against President Andrew Jackson in the United States Capitol -- first assassination attempt against a President.
- 1847 - Yerba Buena, California is renamed San Francisco.
- 1862 - The first American ironclad warship, the USS Monitor is launched.
- 1900 - United Kingdom forces fighting Boers in South Africa ask for reinforcements.
- 1911 - The destroyer USS Terry makes the first airplane rescue at sea saving the life of James McCurdy 10 miles from Havana, Cuba.
- 1911 - The Canadian Naval Service becomes the Royal Canadian Navy.
- 1913 - House of Lords rejects Irish Home Rule Bill.
- 1925 - Government of Turkey throws Patriarch Constantine VI out of Istanbul.
- 1933 - Adolf Hitler sworn in as Chancellor of Germany.
- 1933 - The first of 2,956 episodes of The Lone Ranger airs on the radio for the first time.
- 1944 - United States troops invade Majuro, Marshall Islands.
- 1948 - Indian pacifist and leader Mahatma Gandhi is murdered by a Hindu extremist.
- 1948 - 1948 Winter Olympics open in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
- 1962 - Two of the high-wire "Flying Wallendas" are killed when their famous seven-person pyramid collapsed during a performance in Detroit, Michigan.
- 1964 - Ranger 6 is launched by NASA. Its mission is it to carry television cameras and to crash-land on the moon.
- 1968 - Vietnam War: The Tet Offensive begins when Viet Cong forces launch series of a surprise attacks in South Vietnam.
- 1969 - The Beatles' last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records. The impromptu concert was broken up by the police.
- 1972 - Bloody Sunday: United Kingdom forces kill thirteen Roman Catholic civil rights marchers in Northern Ireland.
- 1972 - Pakistan withdraws from the British Commonwealth.
- 1983 - Super Bowl XVII: The Washington Redskins defeat the Miami Dolphins, 27-17, thus winning their first NFL championship since 1942.
- 1989 - The American embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan closes.
- 1994 - Péter Lékó becomes the youngest grand master in chess.
- 1994 - The Dallas Cowboys win their fourth Super Bowl title, 30-13 over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVIII.
- 1995 - Workers from the National Institutes of Health announce the success of clinical trials testing the first preventative treatment for sickle cell anaemia.
- 1996 - Suspected leader of the Irish National Liberation Army Gino Gallagher is killed while in line for his unemployment benefit.
- 1999 - A 7-year old boy dies of choking on a Pokémon Power Bouncer ball toy.
- 2000 - In a dramatic finish to Super Bowl XXXIV, the St. Louis Rams defeat the Tennessee Titans, 23-16.
- 2002 - Slobodan Milosevic accuses the United Nations war crimes tribunal of an "evil and hostile attack" against him.
- 2003 - Belgium legally recognizes same-sex marriage.
Births
- 1616 - Thomas Rolfe
- 1687 - Johann Balthasar Neumann, master builder (d. 1753)
- 1781 - Adelbert von Chamisso, poet (d. 1838)
- 1882 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States (d. 1945)
- 1894 - King Boris III of Bulgaria (d. 1943)
- 1901 - Rudolf Caracciola, driver of racing cars (d. 1959)
- 1902 - Nikolaus Pevsner, art historian (d. 1983)
- 1911 - Roy Eldridge, jazz musician (d. 1989)
- 1912 - Barbara W. Tuchman, historian (d. 1989)
- 1914 - David Wayne, actor (d. 1995)
- 1914 - John Ireland, actor (d. 1992)
- 1920 - Delbert Mann, director
- 1922 - Dick Martin, comedian
- 1924 - Lloyd Alexander, writer
- 1925 - Dorothy Malone, actress
- 1927 - Olof Palme, Prime Minister of Sweden 1969-1976, 1982-1986 (d. 1986)
- 1928 - Hal Prince, stage producer, director
- 1930 - Gene Hackman, actor
- 1931 - Allan W. Eckert, historian, naturalist and author
- 1931 - Shirley Hazzard, Australian-American author
- 1932 - Knock Yokoyama, Japanese comedian and politician
- 1935 - Richard Brautigan, writer and poet (d. 1984)
- 1937 - Vanessa Redgrave, actress
- 1937 - Boris Spassky, chess grand master
- 1941 - Dick Cheney, politician
- 1943 - Marty Balin, musician
- 1945 - Michael Dorris, author (d. 1997)
- 1947 - Les Barker, English poet
- 1947 - Steve Marriott, musician ("The Small Faces") (d. 1991)
- 1951 - Phil Collins, musician
- 1962 - Mary Kay Letourneau, pedophile teacher
- 1972 - Tim Jones, Gonzo Journalist
- 1974 - Christian Bale, actor
- 1990 - Jake Thomas, actor (Lizzie McGuire)
Deaths
- 1030 - William V, Duke of Aquitaine
- 1649 - King Charles I of England (beheaded) (b. 1600)
- 1889 - Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria (b. 1858) and Baroness Mary Vetsera (b. 1871), at Mayerling
- 1948 - Mohandas Gandhi, Indian politician (b. 1869)
- 1948 - Orville Wright, aviation pioneer
- 1958 - Jean Crotti, Swiss artist (b. 1878)
- 1963 - Francis Poulenc, composer (b. 1899)
- 1980 - Professor Longhair, King of New Orleans music (b. 1918)
- 1982 - Lightning Hopkins, blues musician
- 1991 - John Bardeen, physicist, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics twice (b. 1908)
- 1991 - John McIntire, actor
- 1994 - Pierre Boulle, author (b. 1912)
- 1995 - Gerald Durrell, naturalist, zookeeper, author and television presenter (b. 1925)
- 1999 - Huntz Hall, actor (b. 1919)
- 2001 - Jean-Pierre Aumont, actor (b. 1911)
- 2002 - Daniel Pearl, journalist (one possible date) (b. 1963)
Holidays and observances
January 29 - January 31 - December 30 -- listing of all days
