1 Jan 1868
- Haipeng Zhang was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1874
- Frank Knox was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1876
- Domenico Cavagnari was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1878
- Ioannis Rallis was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1880
- Hajime Sugiyama was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1881
- Koichi Shiozawa was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1882
- Kimon Georgiev was born.
» In-depth article - Mikio Furusho was born.
» In-depth article - Philip Kerr was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1883
- Jinwei Wang was born.
» In-depth article - Bogdan Filov was born.
» In-depth article - Akira Muto was born.
» In-depth article - Tingfang Bie was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1884
- Rikichi Ando was born.
» In-depth article - Jun Ushiroku was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1885
- Constantin Sănătescu was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1887
- Wilhelm Canaris was born.
» In-depth article - Shizuichi Tanaka was born.
» In-depth article - Henry Pownall was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1888
- Donald Nelson was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1889
- Shoji Nishimura was born.
» In-depth article - Masao Maruyama was born.
» In-depth article - Jun Shun Pan was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1890
- Matome Ugaki was born.
» In-depth article - Tomitaro Horii was born.
» In-depth article - Fuju Han was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1891
- Tadamichi Kuribayashi was born.
» In-depth article - Shigeru Fukudome was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1892
- Tamon Yamaguchi was born in Shimane, Japan.
» In-depth article - Hjalmar Siilasvuo was born.
» In-depth article - Manuel Roxas was born.
» In-depth article - Kiyono Ichiki was born.
» In-depth article - Tingkai Cai was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1893
- Konstantin Muraviev was born.
» In-depth article - Mingzhang Wang was born.
» In-depth article - Lianzhong Sun was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1896
- Toshihira Inoguchi was born.
» In-depth article - Hanmou Yu was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1897
- Nymphe was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1898
- Leslie Gehres was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1899
- Filip Oktyabrsky was born.
» In-depth article - Sybil Kathigasu was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1900
- Tameichi Hara was born.
» In-depth article - Jacob Vouza was born.
» In-depth article - Chiune Sugihara was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1902
- Hans von Dohnanyi was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1906
- Petr Novikov was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1907
- Mihai Antonescu was born.
» In-depth article - Yahachi Tanabe was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1912
- Woo Yi was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1913
- Robert Capa was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1914
- Takeo Yoshikawa was born.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1915
- Giulio Cesare was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article - Conte di Cavour was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1916
- Denise Bloch was born.
» In-depth article - Lieutenant R. B. Davis of the British Royal Naval Air Service was awarded the Victoria Cross for valour whilst flying a Nieuport fighter.
1 Jan 1918
- The British Cabinet, hearing false rumours of Bolshevik atrocities at Irkutsk, Russia, sent a telegram to US President Wilson asking that he reconsider the proposal to land an Allied force in the Far East to safeguard the 600,000 tons of supplies and other interests at Vladivostok.
- The Allies decided to supply the Ukraine and Romania through Persia and Siberia in the event of a renewed German offensive in the east. It was further decided that, for this purpose, the Trans-Siberian railway must be brought under Allied control. This would naturally involve the commitment of ground troops to the region.
1 Jan 1919
- Tunku Osman was born.
» In-depth article - Robert Saundby was awarded the Air Force Cross.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1920
- The Byelorussian Communist Organization was founded as a separate party.
- Photos dated 1 Jan 1920
1 Jan 1922
- Quintin Brand was promoted to the rank of squadron leader.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1924
- Centurion was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1927
- The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) was founded by Royal Charter, replacing the British Broadcasting Company Limited.
1 Jan 1928
- Trieste was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1929
- Ira Eaker served as the chief pilot aboard the aircraft "Question Mark" on a quest to break the endurance flight record.
» In-depth article - Trento was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1930
- Köln was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1933
- Battle of the Great Wall: Japanese troops attacked Hebei Province, China.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1934
- Germany passed the "Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring".
- Georg von Bismarck was promoted to the rank of Major.
» In-depth article - Italo Balbo was named the Governor-General of Italian Libya.
- Brummer was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1935
- Werner Mölders began receiving fighter pilot instructions at the flying school in Tutow, Germany and the Jagdfliegerschule near Munich, Germany.
» In-depth article - Admiral Canaris was appointed head of the German Abwehr (Military Intelligence Department).
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1936
- Wilhelm Keitel was promoted to the rank of Generalleutnant.
» In-depth article - Hobart was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1937
- The United States began withholding taxes from payrolls per the Social Security Act legistration.
- François Darlan was made the chief of staff of the French Navy.
» In-depth article - Battleship King George V was laid down.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1938
- Lord Gort was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.
» In-depth article - Japanese Army General Iwane Matsui reportedly told a Japanese diplomat "[m]y men have done something very wrong and extremely regrettable" regarding the atrocities committed in Nanjing, China.
» In-depth article - Cruiser Köln began two months of repairs at Kiel, Germany.
» In-depth article - Photos dated 1 Jan 1938
1 Jan 1939
- Friedrich Christiansen was promoted to the rank of General der Flieger.
» In-depth article - Strasbourg was commissioned into service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1940
- Age of conscription increased to 27 in the United Kingdom, thus adding two million potential conscripts for military service.
- British authorities detained several American ships at Gibraltar to search for contraband.
- German submarine U-58 sank neutral Swedish steamer Lars Magnus Trozelli with one torpedo 50 miles northeast of Aberdeen at 1100 hours, killing 7. The survivors were picked up Norwegian merchant ship Ask.
- German aircraft bomb RAF Coastal Command at Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands, Scotland, damaging light cruiser HMS Coventry and ground facilities with the loss of one Ju 88 bomber.
- 1,000 men from the Finnish 9th Division under the command of Captain Eino Lassila skied into their attacking position; when they arrived at 2300, they were looking down a large Russian tank and artillery concentration on the Raate Road.
» In-depth article - Between the start of the European War on 1 Sep 1939 and this date, 15,600 British men registered themselves as conscientious objectors.
- 10,000 Japanese troops launched a counter-attack in eastern Shanxi Province in China in an attempt to relieve the nearly-surrounded Japanese 36th Division. It would be driven back by stiff Chinese resistance within the next two days.
» In-depth article - Tingfang Bie passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1941
- Negotiations began between Germany and Bulgaria to use Bulgarian territory as a staging area for Operation Marita, the German invasion of Greece.
» In-depth article - In Hitler's New Year's Order of the Day, he promised the Wehrmacht the completion of the "greatest victory in our history" on the Western Front.
» In-depth article - The United Kingdom suppressed the Daily Worker, a Communist publication.
- British General O'Connor's Western Desert Force in Egypt was reorganized as the British 13th Corps. Meanwhile, in Libya, RAF aircraft continued to bomb the port of Bardia and the airfields at Tobruk, Derna, and Benina.
» In-depth article - In the Gibraltar Strait, British destroyers HMS Duncan, HMS Firedrake, HMS Foxhound, HMS Jaguar, and HMS Hero stopped a French convoy from Casablanca, French Morocco. The convoy was consisted of French ship Chantilly, French tankers Octane and Suroit, and Danish ship Sally Maersk. HMS Jaguar attacked Chantilly, causing 2 killed and 4 wounded, leading to the convoy's capture.
- The BBC aired the Brains Trust for the first time. This radio programme which had five men discussing such diverse subjects as philosophy, art and science was surprisingly a great success, frequently having a regular audience of ten million listeners.
1 Jan 1942
- The United States introduced a ban on the purchase of new private cars and trucks in order to conserve steel.
- Jean Moulin, the former mayor of Chartes, parachuted into France in an effort to coordinate and unify resistance groups.
» In-depth article - British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, US President Franklin Roosevelt, Soviet Ambassador Maxim Litvinov, and Chinese Ambassador Song Ziwen (also known as T. V. Soong) signed the Declaration by United Nations during the Arcadia Conference in Washington DC, United States.
» In-depth article - Allied powers announced preliminary plans for punishing enemy war criminals after the war.
- Oberstgeneral Ernst Udet, head of the Luftwaffe's Production and Development, committed suicide over his perceived inability to properly perform his mission.
- Russian cruiser Molotov arrived at Sevastopol with 700 men of the Russian 386th Infantry Division.
» In-depth article - Douglas MacArthur accepted a payment of US$500,000 from Philippine President Manuel Quezon for his pre-war service.
» In-depth article - General der Artillerie Robert Martinek succeeded Wilhelm Weiß as the commanding officer of the German 7th Mountain Division.
- American and Filipino forces south of Manila, Luzon, Philippine Islands abandoned their positions and joined the defenses north of the city, which would fall back across the Calumpit bridges by the end of the day. Meanwhile, the Japanese sent a message to the mayor of Manila announcing that the Japanese forces would arrive on the following day.
» In-depth article - Japanese troops continued the assault on Kampar, British Malaya; both sides incurred heavy casualties in the morning. Meanwhile, Japanese 11th Regiment landed in the Bernam River 35 miles to the southwest. In London, England, United Kingdom, Winston Churchill complained of the British Royal Navy's inability to disrupt Japanese shipping in Malayan waters.
» In-depth article - Chinese troops launched a counterattack at Changsha, Hunan Province, China.
» In-depth article - Historical document written: US Navy Report of Japanese Raid on Pearl Harbor, Enclosure E, Commander Patrol Wing ONE
» In-depth article - Historical document written: US Navy Report of Japanese Raid on Pearl Harbor, Enclosure E, Commander Patrol Squadron Eleven
» In-depth article - Historical document written: US Navy Report of Japanese Raid on Pearl Harbor, Enclosure E, Reports by Survivors
» In-depth article - Photos dated 1 Jan 1942
1 Jan 1943
- German 1st Panzer Division withdrew from Terek area in southern Russia to prevent encirclement by the Soviet Salsk-Rostov and Mozdok-Stavropol Offensive Operations.
» In-depth article - In a letter to Chester Nimitz, Bill Halsey described Miles Browning as someone who "has an uncanny knack of sizing up a situation and coming out with an answer" in an attempt to save Browning's career as the temperamental Browning had made many political enemies.
» In-depth article - The US 2nd Marine Aviation Engineer Battalion and the US Army 27th Division arrived at Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands.
» In-depth article - Frustrated with the poor performance of the German Navy, Adolf Hitler angrily ordered the decommissioning of the entire German high seas fleet.
» In-depth article - Claus von Stauffenberg was promoted to lieutenant colonel.
» In-depth article - A new marine railway for handling destroyers and submarines began construction at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, US Territory of Hawaii.
- Wolfgang Falck was promoted to the rank of Oberstleutnant.
» In-depth article - Lord Gort was promoted to the rank of field marshal.
» In-depth article - Archibald Wavell was promoted to the rank of field marshal.
» In-depth article - Tatsuta Maru arrived at Makassar, Celebes.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - I-168 arrived at Guadalcanal with 15 tons of cargo; she was chased away by two patrol boats after only 60% of her cargo had been unloaded.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - USS Gar reported firing four torpedoes against two Japanese ships on this date, hitting one of them with one torpedo and causing damage.
» In-depth article - HMS Activity began hosting deck landing training.
» In-depth article - Photos dated 1 Jan 1943
1 Jan 1944
- Petr Novikov passed away.
» In-depth article - General Mark Clark became the commander of US Fifth and Seventh Armies.
» In-depth article - 421 RAF Lancaster bombers attacked Berlin, Germany; 28 aircraft were lost. 15 Mosquito aircraft attacked Hamburg in diversion.
» In-depth article - Soviet forces closed to within 30 miles of the old Polish frontier.
- Robert Saundby was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
» In-depth article - The Japanese Navy 11th Air Fleet was reorganized to contain two air flotillas, one air group, one seaplane tender, and two destroyers. The 13th Air Fleet was assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet with two air flotillas and one air group.
- Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein was named the commanding officer of Nachtjagdgeschwader 2.
» In-depth article - USS Pintado was commissioned into service, Lieutenant Commander Bernard A. Clarey in command.
» In-depth article - USS Finback sank a Japanese tanker in the East China Sea, hitting her with 5 of 6 torpedoes fired.
» In-depth article - USS Puffer sank Japanese freighter Ryuyo Maru and damaged another ship south of the Philippine Islands; she expended 7 torpedoes and observed 4 hits.
» In-depth article - Light carrier Hosho was assigned to Training Force of the 5th Force.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Photos dated 1 Jan 1944
1 Jan 1945
- Air Vice Marshal J. W. Baker became the commanding officer of the No. 12 Group RAF.
- German troops began a withdrawal from Ardennes in the Belgian-German border region. Meanwhile, in retaliation for the Malmedy massacre, US troops massacred 30 SS prisoners at Chenogne, Belgium. In the air, the German Luftwaffe launched Unternehmen Bodenplatte, which consisted of 800 aircraft conducting low-level strikes against snow-bound Allied airfields in the Netherlands and Belgium. They destroyed 220 aircraft, mainly on the ground, but lost 188 aircraft of their own, as well as many experienced pilots who could not be replaced. This operation failed to achieve its goal of wiping out Allied air power based in the region.
» In-depth article - When his 9 Squadron Lancaster bomber from Bardney was hit and set on fire in a raid on the Dortmund-Ems canal, wireless operator RAF Flight Sergeant George Thompson gallantly braved the flames to save his mid-upper and rear gunners who were trapped in the inferno. The rear gunner later recovered but Thompson's burns were so severe that three weeks later he developed pneumonia and died in a hospital. He was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.
- US Army troops landed on Fais Island in the Caroline Islands to capture and destroy a Japanese radio station.
- American aircraft attacked Japanese airfields at Negros Island and Luzon (Clark Field) in the Philippine Islands.
» In-depth article - 19 American B-24 bombers based in Saipan, Mariana Islands struck Japanese positions at Iwo Jima.
» In-depth article - 100 male and 100 female Polish prisoners of the Gestapo from block 11 in Auschwitz I camp were transferred by SS doctor Fritz Klein to the chief of Auschwitz II-Birkenau Crematorium V Erich Muhsfeldt. Muhsfeldt's men executed these police prisoners by firing squad.
- Otto Skorzeny departed Cologne, Germany to return to the field headquarters of German Armored Brigade 150.
» In-depth article - Captain Chuzaburo Yamazumi was named the chief of staff of the Japanese Navy 3rd Air Fleet.
- Heinz Guderian requested Adolf Hitler to allow reinforcements to be sent to German units in Hungary and Poland.
» In-depth article - Some time during this month, Oberleutnant Otto Wermuth took command of German submarine U-530.
» In-depth article - Fregattenkapitän Frotz-Henning Brandes took command of cruiser Köln.
» In-depth article - USS Kete began lifeguard duty off Ryukyu Islands, Japan.
» In-depth article - Five Japanese submarines departed Inland Sea, Japan with Kaiten submarines aboard. I-36 sailed for Ulithi in the Caroline Islands, I-48 for Hollandia in New Guinea, I-53 for Palau Islands, I-56 for the Admiralty Islands, and I-58 for Guam in the Mariana Islands.
» In-depth article - USS Wake Island arrived at Kossol Roads, Palau Islands, loaded ammunition and other supplies, and departed for the Philippine Islands.
» In-depth article - USS Pintado arrived in Brisbane, Australia, ending her third war patrol.
» In-depth article - German submarine control requested a position report from U-869, which did not respond.
» In-depth article - Historical document written: Hints on Diet During Recuperative Leave for Liberated Prisoners of War
» In-depth article - Photos dated 1 Jan 1945
1 Jan 1946
- Emperor Showa of Japan renounced his divinity.
» In-depth article - The rationing of tires in the United States ended.
- Ioannis Rallis passed away.
» In-depth article - Rikichi Ando passed away.
» In-depth article - Arthur Harrison Graubart of the US Navy was named the commanding officer of the captured German cruiser USS IX-300 (formerly Prinz Eugen).
» In-depth article - Waller was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1947
- The American and British occupation zones in Germany merged to form the Bizone, which later became the Federal Republic of Germany.
- Hjalmar Siilasvuo passed away.
» In-depth article - Miles Browning retired from the US Navy.
» In-depth article - The Atomic Energy Act of 1946, signed into American law by US President Harry Truman on 1 Aug 1946, came into effect. Manhattan Project was thus turned over to the newly established civilian United States Atomic Energy Commission.
» In-depth article - USS Mingo was decommissioned at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California, United States and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet.
» In-depth article - Escort carrier Makin Island was sold for scrap.
» In-depth article - Kashima was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
» Tabular Record of Movement - Formidable was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article - Smalley was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article - Philip was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article - Shad was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1948
- The nationalised British Rail came into existence.
- Nymphe was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1954
- Rodney Keller passed away.
» In-depth article - Alfredo Oriani was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1955
- Australia was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1956
- Oregon was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article - Richelieu was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1957
- Napoleon Zervas passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1958
- Newcastle was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article - Fuciliere was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1961
- Henry Pownall passed away.
» In-depth article - Jean Bart was decommissioned from service.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1965
- Konstantin Muraviev passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1966
- Domenico Cavagnari passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1968
- Tingkai Cai passed away.
» In-depth article - Remy Van Lierde retired from the Belgian Air Force.
» In-depth article - USS Tunny was reclassified LPSS-282.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1969
- Kimon Georgiev passed away.
» In-depth article - Filip Oktyabrsky passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1971
- Shigeru Fukudome passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1972
- Submarine Guitarro was struck from the US Naval Register as she was sold to Turkey, with which country she had been operating since 1954.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1973
- Jun Ushiroku passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1974
- Jun Shun Pan passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1981
- Gunichi Mikawa passed away.
» In-depth article - Hanmou Yu passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1990
- Mamoru Shinozaki passed away.
» In-depth article
1 Jan 1996
- Arleigh Burke passed away.
» In-depth article - Submarine Becuna became part of Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.
» In-depth article
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
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