January 31 facts for kids

January 31 is the 31st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 334 days remain until the end of the year (335 in leap years).

Every day in history is special, and January 31st is no different! Many important things have happened on this date throughout the years, from big battles and new inventions to the births of famous people and the end of major wars. Let's explore some of the most interesting events, notable births, and significant deaths that took place on January 31st.

Historical Events

Early History (Before 1600)

• 314 – Pope Sylvester I became the new leader of the Catholic Church.
• 1208 – A big fight called the Battle of Lena happened in Sweden. Prince Eric won against King Sverker II, and Eric became the new king, Eric X of Sweden.
• 1504 – The Italian War ended with the Treaty of Lyon. This agreement meant France controlled northern Italy, and Spain took over the Kingdom of Naples.
• 1578 – During the Eighty Years' War, Spanish forces won the Battle of Gembloux against a large rebel army from different countries.

Later History (1601–1900)

• 1606 – The famous Guy Fawkes and three other people were executed for trying to blow up the English Parliament and King James. This event is known as the Gunpowder Plot.
• 1609 – The Wisselbank of Amsterdam, an important bank, was started.
• 1814 – Gervasio Antonio de Posadas became the leader of what is now Argentina.
• 1846 – Two towns in the United States, Juneautown and Kilbourntown, joined together to form the city of Milwaukee.
• 1862 – Scientist Alvan Graham Clark discovered a tiny, super-dense star called Sirius B. It's a companion to the bright star Sirius.
• 1865 – During the American Civil War, the United States Congress passed the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This important law officially ended slavery in the United States.
• 1865 – Also in the American Civil War, Robert E. Lee became the main general for all the Confederate armies.
• 1891 – In Portugal, the first attempt at a republican revolution happened in the city of Porto. This was a try to change the country from a monarchy to a republic.

Modern History (1901–Present)

• 1901 – The famous play Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov was performed for the first time in Russia.
• 1915 – During World War I, Germany was the first country to use poison gas on a large scale in the Battle of Bolimów against Russia.
• 1917 – In World War I, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany ordered that submarines could attack any ships without warning.
• 1918 – On a very foggy night in Scotland, several British warships accidentally crashed into each other. Two submarines sank, and over a hundred lives were lost.
• 1919 – The Battle of George Square took place in Scotland. This was a protest for shorter working hours.
• 1928 – Political leader Leon Trotsky was sent away from Russia to live in Alma-Ata.
• 1942 – In World War II, Japanese forces defeated the Allies in the Battle of Malaya and pushed them back to Singapore.
• 1943 – Also in World War II, German Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrendered to the Soviet army at Stalingrad. This ended one of the war's toughest battles.
• 1944 – American forces landed on islands in the Japanese-held Marshall Islands during World War II.
• 1945 – US Army private Eddie Slovik was executed for leaving his post during World War II. He was the first American soldier to be executed for this since the Civil War.
• 1945 – About 3,000 prisoners from the Stutthof concentration camp were forced to march into the Baltic Sea and were killed.
• 1946 – The country of Yugoslavia created a new constitution, setting up six different republics.
• 1949 – These Are My Children, the very first daytime soap opera on television, was broadcast in Chicago.
• 1950 – President Truman ordered the development of powerful thermonuclear weapons.
• 1953 – A huge flood in the North Sea caused over 1,800 deaths in the Netherlands and over 300 in the United Kingdom.
• 1958 – During the Space Race, the first successful American satellite, Explorer 1, discovered the Van Allen radiation belt, a zone of charged particles around Earth.
• 1961 – Project Mercury: A chimpanzee named Ham became the first ape in outer space.
• 1966 – The Soviet Union launched the unmanned Luna 9 spacecraft to the Moon.
• 1968 – During the Vietnam War, Viet Cong soldiers attacked the United States embassy in Saigon and other places. These attacks were part of the Tet Offensive.
• 1968 – Nauru gained its independence from Australia.
• 1971 – Apollo program: Astronauts Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa, and Edgar Mitchell lifted off for a mission to the Moon on Apollo 14.
• 1978 – The Crown of St. Stephen was put on public display after being returned to Hungary from the United States.
• 1988 – Doug Williams became the first African American quarterback to play in a Super Bowl. He led the Washington Redskins to victory in Super Bowl XXII.
• 2000 – Alaska Airlines Flight 261 crashed into the Pacific Ocean, killing all 88 people on board.
• 2001 – A Scottish court found one person guilty and another innocent for their part in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988.
• 2001 – Two Japan Airlines planes almost crashed into each other over Suruga Bay in Japan.
• 2007 – In Boston, emergency officials thought some battery-powered signs were bombs, causing a panic.
• 2018 – A rare event happened: both a blue moon and a total lunar eclipse occurred on the same night.
• 2020 – The United Kingdom officially left the European Union after being a member for 47 years.
• 2023 – The very last Boeing 747, a famous large airplane, was delivered.

Famous Births

Born Before 1900

• 1543 – Tokugawa Ieyasu, a powerful Japanese leader who founded the Tokugawa shogunate.
• 1752 – Gouverneur Morris, an American politician and diplomat who helped write the U.S. Constitution.
• 1769 – André-Jacques Garnerin, a French inventor who created the frameless parachute.
• 1797 – Franz Schubert, a famous Austrian composer and pianist.
• 1835 – Lunalilo, who became the King of Hawaii.
• 1868 – Theodore William Richards, an American chemist who won the Nobel Prize.
• 1872 – Zane Grey, a popular American author, known for his Western novels.
• 1881 – Irving Langmuir, an American chemist and physicist who won the Nobel Prize.
• 1884 – Theodor Heuss, a German journalist and politician who became the first President of West Germany.
• 1892 – Eddie Cantor, a well-known American singer, actor, and dancer.
• 1900 – Betty Parsons, an American artist and art dealer.

Born After 1900

• 1902 – Alva Myrdal, a Swedish sociologist and politician who won the Nobel Peace Prize.
• 1919 – Jackie Robinson, a legendary American baseball player who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball.
• 1921 – Carol Channing, a beloved American actress, singer, and dancer.
• 1923 – Norman Mailer, a famous American journalist and author.
• 1929 – Jean Simmons, a talented English-American actress.
• 1931 – Ernie Banks, a beloved American baseball player, known as "Mr. Cub."
• 1937 – Philip Glass, a very famous American composer.
• 1938 – Beatrix of the Netherlands, who was the Queen of the Netherlands.
• 1947 – Nolan Ryan, one of the greatest American baseball pitchers of all time.
• 1956 – John Lydon, an English singer-songwriter, famous for being in the band Sex Pistols.
• 1956 – Guido van Rossum, a Dutch programmer who created the Python programming language.
• 1959 – Anthony LaPaglia, an Australian actor.
• 1970 – Minnie Driver, an English singer-songwriter and actress.
• 1973 – Portia de Rossi, an Australian-American actress.
• 1975 – Preity Zinta, a popular Indian actress.
• 1977 – Kerry Washington, an American actress.
• 1981 – Justin Timberlake, a famous American singer, dancer, and actor.
• 1984 – Jeremy Wariner, an American runner and Olympic gold medalist.
• 1990 – Julián Álvarez, an Argentine footballer.

Notable Deaths

Died Before 1900

• 1435 – Xuande, an emperor of China.
• 1561 – Menno Simons, a Dutch religious leader whose followers became known as Mennonites.
• 1606 – Guy Fawkes, the English conspirator from the Gunpowder Plot.
• 1729 – Jacob Roggeveen, a Dutch explorer.
• 1888 – John Bosco, an Italian priest and educator who founded the Salesian Society.

Died After 1900

• 1933 – John Galsworthy, an English novelist and playwright who won the Nobel Prize in Literature.
• 1954 – Edwin Howard Armstrong, an American engineer who invented FM radio.
• 1956 – A. A. Milne, the English author who created Winnie-the-Pooh.
• 1969 – Meher Baba, an Indian spiritual master.
• 1974 – Samuel Goldwyn, a Polish American film producer who helped create Goldwyn Pictures.
• 1995 – George Abbott, an American actor, director, and producer.
• 2007 – Molly Ivins, a well-known American journalist and author.
• 2015 – Richard von Weizsäcker, a German politician who served as the President of Germany.
• 2016 – Terry Wogan, a popular Irish radio and television host.

Holidays and Observances

• Christian feast day:
  • John Bosco
  • Máedóc (Mogue, Aiden)
• Amartithi (Meherabad, India, followers of Meher Baba)
• Independence Day (Nauru), celebrates independence from Australia in 1968.
• Street Children's Day (Austria)

See also

In Spanish: 31 de enero para niños