charles perrault

  • May 16 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 946 – Emperor Suzaku abdicates the throne in favor of his brother Murakami who becomes the 62nd emperor of Japan.
    • 1204 – Having been elected on May 9, Baldwin IX, Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire.
    • 1426 – Gov. Thado of Mohnyin becomes king of Ava.
    • 1527 – The Florentines drive out the Medici for a second time and Florence re-establishes itself as a republic.
    • 1532 – Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England.
    • 1568 – Mary, Queen of Scots, flees to England.
    • 1584 – Santiago de Vera becomes sixth Governor-General of the Spanish colony of the Philippines.
    • 1739 – The Battle of Vasai concludes as the Marathas defeat the Portuguese army.
    • 1770 – The 14-year-old Marie Antoinette marries 15-year-old Louis-Auguste, who later becomes king of France.
    • 1771 – The Battle of Alamance, a pre-American Revolutionary War battle between local militia and a group of rebels called The “Regulators”, occurs in present-day Alamance County, North Carolina.
    • 1811 – Peninsular War: The allies Spain, Portugal and United Kingdom, defeat the French at the Battle of Albuera.
    • 1812 – Imperial Russia signs the Treaty of Bucharest, ending the Russo-Turkish War. The Ottoman Empire cedes Bessarabia to Russia.
    • 1822 – Greek War of Independence: The Turks capture the Greek town of Souli.
    • 1832 – Juan Godoy discovers the rich silver outcrops of Chañarcillo sparking the Chilean silver rush.
    • 1834 – The Battle of Asseiceira is fought, the last and decisive engagement of the Liberal Wars in Portugal.
    • 1842 – The first major wagon train heading for the Pacific Northwest sets out on the Oregon Trail from Elm Grove, Missouri, with 100 pioneers.
    • 1866 – The United States Congress establishes the nickel.
    • 1868 – The United States Senate fails to convict President Andrew Johnson by one vote.
    • 1874 – A flood on the Mill River in Massachusetts destroys much of four villages and kills 139 people.
    • 1877 – The 16 May 1877 crisis occurs in France, ending with the dissolution of the National Assembly 22 June and affirming the interpretation of the Constitution of 1875 as a parliamentary rather than presidential system. The elections held in October 1877 led to the defeat of the royalists as a formal political movement in France.
    • 1888 – Nikola Tesla delivers a lecture describing the equipment which will allow efficient generation and use of alternating currents to transmit electric power over long distances.
    • 1891 – The International Electrotechnical Exhibition opens in Frankfurt, Germany, and will feature the world’s first long-distance transmission of high-power, three-phase electric current (the most common form today).
    • 1916 – The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the French Third Republic sign the secret wartime Sykes-Picot Agreement partitioning former Ottoman territories such as Iraq and Syria.
    • 1918 – The Sedition Act of 1918 is passed by the U.S. Congress, making criticism of the government during wartime an imprisonable offense. It will be repealed less than two years later.
    • 1919 – A naval Curtiss NC-4 aircraft commanded by Albert Cushing Read leaves Trepassey, Newfoundland, for Lisbon via the Azores on the first transatlantic flight.
    • 1920 – In Rome, Pope Benedict XV canonizes Joan of Arc.
    • 1929 – In Hollywood, the first Academy Awards ceremony takes place.
    • 1943 – The Holocaust: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ends.
    • 1951 – The first regularly scheduled transatlantic flights begin between Idlewild Airport (now John F Kennedy International Airport) in New York City and Heathrow Airport in London, operated by El Al Israel Airlines.
    • 1959 – The Triton Fountain in Valletta, Malta is turned on for the first time.
    • 1960 – Theodore Maiman operates the first optical laser (a ruby laser), at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California.
    • 1961 – Park Chung-hee leads a coup d’état to overthrow the Second Republic of South Korea.
    • 1966 – The Communist Party of China issues the “May 16 Notice”, marking the beginning of the Cultural Revolution.
    • 1969 – Venera program: Venera 5, a Soviet space probe, lands on Venus.
    • 1974 – Josip Broz Tito is elected president for life of Yugoslavia.
    • 1988 – A report by the Surgeon General of the United States C. Everett Koop states that the addictive properties of nicotine are similar to those of heroin and cocaine.
    • 1991 – Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom addresses a joint session of the United States Congress. She is the first British monarch to address the U.S. Congress.
    • 1997 – Mobutu Sese Seko, the President of Zaire, flees the country.
    • 2003 – In Morocco, 33 civilians are killed and more than 100 people are injured in the Casablanca terrorist attacks.
    • 2005 – Kuwait permits women’s suffrage in a 35–23 National Assembly vote.
    • 2011 – STS-134 (ISS assembly flight ULF6), launched from the Kennedy Space Center on the 25th and final flight for Space Shuttle Endeavour.
    • 2014 – Twelve people are killed in two explosions in the Gikomba market area of Nairobi, Kenya.

    Births on May 16

    • 1418 – John II of Cyprus, King of Cyprus and Armenia and also titular King of Jerusalem from 1432 to 1458 (probable; d. 1458)
    • 1455 – Wolfgang I of Oettingen, German count (d. 1522)
    • 1542 – Anna Sibylle of Hanau-Lichtenberg, German noblewoman (d. 1580)
    • 1606 – John Bulwer, British doctor (d. 1656)
    • 1611 – Pope Innocent XI (d. 1689)
    • 1641 – Dudley North, English economist and politician (d. 1691)
    • 1710 – William Talbot, 1st Earl Talbot, English politician, Lord Steward of the Household (d. 1782)
    • 1718 – Maria Gaetana Agnesi, Italian mathematician and philosopher (d. 1799)
    • 1763 – Louis Nicolas Vauquelin, French pharmacist and chemist (d. 1829)
    • 1788 – Friedrich Rückert, German poet and translator (d. 1866)
    • 1801 – William H. Seward, American lawyer and politician, 24th United States Secretary of State (d. 1872)
    • 1804 – Elizabeth Palmer Peabody, American educator who founded the first U.S. kindergarten (d. 1894)
    • 1819 – Johann Voldemar Jannsen, Estonian journalist and poet (d. 1890)
    • 1821 – Pafnuty Chebyshev, Russian mathematician and statistician (d. 1894)
    • 1824 – Levi P. Morton, American banker and politician, 22nd United States Vice President (d. 1920)
    • 1824 – Edmund Kirby Smith, American general (d. 1893)
    • 1827 – Pierre Cuypers, Dutch architect, designed the Amsterdam Centraal railway station and Rijksmuseum (d. 1921)
    • 1831 – David Edward Hughes, Welsh-American physicist, co-invented the microphone (d. 1900)
    • 1862 – Margaret Fountaine, English lepidopterist and diarist (d.1940)
    • 1876 – Fred Conrad Koch, American biochemist and endocrinologist (d. 1948)
    • 1879 – Pierre Gilliard, Swiss author and academic (d. 1962)
    • 1882 – Simeon Price, American golfer (d. 1945)
    • 1883 – Celâl Bayar, Turkish politician, 3rd President of Turkey (d. 1986)
    • 1888 – Royal Rife, American microbiologist and instrument maker (d. 1971)
    • 1890 – Edith Grace White, American ichthyologist (d. 1975)
    • 1892 – Osgood Perkins, American actor (d. 1937)
    • 1894 – Walter Yust, American journalist and writer (d. 1960)
    • 1897 – Zvi Sliternik, Israeli entomologist and academic (d. 1994)
    • 1898 – Tamara de Lempicka, Polish-American painter (d. 1980)
    • 1898 – Desanka Maksimović, Serbian poet and academic (d. 1993)
    • 1898 – Kenji Mizoguchi, Japanese director and screenwriter (d. 1956)
    • 1903 – Charles F. Brannock, American inventor and manufacturer (d. 1992)
    • 1905 – Henry Fonda, American actor (d. 1982)
    • 1906 – Ernie McCormick, Australian cricketer (d. 1991)
    • 1906 – Alfred Pellan, Canadian painter and educator (d. 1988)
    • 1906 – Arturo Uslar Pietri, Venezuelan lawyer, journalist, and author (d. 2001)
    • 1906 – Margret Rey, German author and illustrator (d. 1996)
    • 1907 – Bob Tisdall, Irish hurdler (d. 2004)
    • 1909 – Margaret Sullavan, American actress and singer (d. 1960)
    • 1909 – Luigi Villoresi, Italian race car driver (d. 1997)
    • 1910 – Olga Bergholz, Russian poet and author (d. 1975)
    • 1910 – Higashifushimi Kunihide, Japanese monk and educator (d. 2014)
    • 1910 – Aleksandr Ivanovich Laktionov, Russian painter and educator (d. 1972)
    • 1912 – Studs Terkel, American historian and author (d. 2008)
    • 1913 – Gordon Chalk, Australian politician, 30th Premier of Queensland (d. 1991)
    • 1913 – Woody Herman, American singer, saxophonist, and clarinet player (d. 1987)
    • 1914 – Edward T. Hall, American anthropologist and author (d. 2009)
    • 1915 – Mario Monicelli, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2010)
    • 1916 – Ephraim Katzir, Israeli biophysicist and politician, 4th President of Israel (d. 2009)
    • 1917 – Ben Kuroki, American sergeant and pilot (d. 2015)
    • 1917 – James C. Murray, American lawyer and politician (d. 1999)
    • 1917 – Juan Rulfo, Mexican author and photographer (d. 1986)
    • 1918 – Wilf Mannion, English footballer and manager (d. 2000)
    • 1919 – Liberace, American pianist and entertainer (d. 1987)
    • 1919 – Ramon Margalef, Spanish ecologist and biologist (d. 2004)
    • 1920 – Martine Carol, French actress (d. 1967)
    • 1921 – Harry Carey, Jr., American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2012)
    • 1923 – Victoria Fromkin, American linguist and academic (d. 2000)
    • 1923 – Merton Miller, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2000)
    • 1923 – Peter Underwood, English parapsychologist and author (d. 2014)
    • 1924 – Dawda Jawara, 1st President of the Gambia (d. 2019)
    • 1925 – Nancy Roman, American astronomer (d. 2018)
    • 1925 – Ola Vincent, Nigerian banker and economist (d. 2012)
    • 1925 – Nílton Santos, Brazilian footballer (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Billy Martin, American baseball player and coach (d. 1989)
    • 1929 – Betty Carter, American singer-songwriter (d. 1998)
    • 1929 – John Conyers, American lawyer and politician (d. 2019)
    • 1929 – Claude Morin, Canadian academic and politician
    • 1929 – Adrienne Rich, American poet, essayist, and feminist (d. 2012)
    • 1930 – Friedrich Gulda, Austrian pianist and composer (d. 2000)
    • 1931 – Vujadin Boškov, Serbian footballer, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
    • 1931 – Hana Brady, Jewish-Czech Holocaust victim (d.1944)
    • 1931 – K. Natwar Singh, Indian scholar and politician, Indian Minister of External Affairs
    • 1931 – Lowell P. Weicker, Jr., American soldier and politician, 85th Governor of Connecticut
    • 1934 – Kenneth O. Morgan, Welsh historian and author
    • 1934 – Antony Walker, English general
    • 1935 – Floyd Smith, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1936 – Karl Lehmann, German cardinal (d. 2018)
    • 1937 – Yvonne Craig, American ballet dancer and actress (d. 2015)
    • 1938 – Stuart Bell, English lawyer and politician (d. 2012)
    • 1938 – Ivan Sutherland, American computer scientist and academic
    • 1938 – Marco Aurelio Denegri, Peruvian television host and sexologist (d. 2018)
    • 1941 – Denis Hart, Australian archbishop
    • 1942 – David Penry-Davey, English lawyer and judge (d. 2015)
    • 1943 – Kay Andrews, Baroness Andrews, English politician
    • 1943 – Dan Coats, American politician and diplomat, 29th United States Ambassador to Germany
    • 1943 – Wieteke van Dort, Dutch actress, comedian, singer, writer and artist
    • 1944 – Billy Cobham, Panamanian-American drummer, composer, and bandleader
    • 1944 – Antal Nagy, Hungarian footballer
    • 1944 – Danny Trejo, American actor
    • 1946 – John Law, English sociologist and academic
    • 1946 – Robert Fripp, English guitarist, songwriter and producer
    • 1947 – Cheryl Clarke, American writer
    • 1947 – Darrell Sweet, Scottish drummer (d. 1999)
    • 1947 – Roch Thériault, Canadian religious leader (d. 2011)
    • 1948 – Jesper Christensen, Danish actor, director, and producer
    • 1948 – Judy Finnigan, English talk show host and author
    • 1948 – Enrico Fumia, Italian automobile and product designer
    • 1948 – Emma Georgina Rothschild, English historian and academic
    • 1948 – Staf Van Roosbroeck, Belgian cyclist
    • 1949 – Rick Reuschel, American baseball player
    • 1950 – Georg Bednorz, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
    • 1950 – Ray Condo, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2004)
    • 1950 – Bruce Coville, American author
    • 1951 – Christian Lacroix, French fashion designer
    • 1951 – Jonathan Richman, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1951 – Janet Soskice, Canadian philosopher and theologian
    • 1952 – James Herndon, American psychologist and academic
    • 1953 – Pierce Brosnan, Irish-American actor and producer
    • 1953 – Peter Onorati, American actor
    • 1953 – Richard Page, American singer-songwriter and bass player
    • 1953 – Kitanoumi Toshimitsu, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 55th Yokozuna (d. 2015)
    • 1953 – David Maclean, Scottish politician
    • 1953 – Stephen Woolman, Lord Woolman, Scottish judge and academic
    • 1954 – Dafydd Williams, Canadian physician and astronaut
    • 1955 – Olga Korbut, Soviet gymnast
    • 1955 – Jack Morris, American baseball player and sportscaster
    • 1955 – Hazel O’Connor, English-born Irish singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1955 – Páidí Ó Sé, Irish footballer and manager (d. 2012)
    • 1955 – Debra Winger, American actress
    • 1956 – Loretta Schrijver, Dutch television host, news anchor
    • 1957 – Joan Benoit, American runner
    • 1957 – Benjamin Mancroft, 3rd Baron Mancroft, English politician
    • 1957 – Yuri Shevchuk, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1957 – Anthony St John, 22nd Baron St John of Bletso, English lawyer and businessman
    • 1957 – Bob Suter, American ice hockey player and coach (d. 2014)
    • 1959 – Mitch Webster, American baseball player
    • 1959 – Mare Winningham, American actress and singer-songwriter
    • 1960 – Landon Deireragea, Nauruan politician, Nauruan Speaker of Parliament
    • 1960 – S. Shanmuganathan, Sri Lankan commander and politician (d. 1998)
    • 1961 – Kevin McDonald, Canadian actor and screenwriter
    • 1961 – Charles Wright, American wrestler
    • 1962 – Jimmy Hood, Scottish engineer and politician (d. 2017)
    • 1962 – Helga Radtke, German long jumper
    • 1963 – Rachel Griffith, Anglo-American economist
    • 1963 – David Wilkinson, English theologian and academic
    • 1964 – John Salley, American basketball player and actor
    • 1964 – Boyd Tinsley, American singer-songwriter and violinist
    • 1964 – Milton Jones, English comedian, actor, and screenwriter
    • 1965 – Krist Novoselic, American bass player, songwriter, author, and activist
    • 1965 – Tanel Tammet, Estonian computer scientist, engineer, and academic
    • 1966 – Janet Jackson, American singer-songwriter, producer, dancer, and actress
    • 1966 – Scott Reeves, American singer-songwriter and actor
    • 1966 – Thurman Thomas, American football player
    • 1967 – Doug Brocail, American baseball player and coach
    • 1967 – Susan Williams, Baroness Williams of Trafford, British politician
    • 1968 – Ralph Tresvant, American singer and producer
    • 1969 – David Boreanaz, American actor
    • 1969 – Tucker Carlson, American journalist, co-founded The Daily Caller
    • 1969 – Steve Lewis, American sprinter
    • 1970 – Gabriela Sabatini, Argentinian tennis player
    • 1970 – Danielle Spencer, Australian singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1971 – Phil Clarke, English rugby league player and sportscaster
    • 1971 – Rachel Goswell, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1972 – Christian Califano, French rugby player
    • 1972 – Matthew Hart, New Zealand cricketer
    • 1973 – Tori Spelling, American actress, reality television personality, and author
    • 1974 – Laura Pausini, Italian singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1974 – Sonny Sandoval, American singer-songwriter and rapper
    • 1975 – Tony Kakko, Finnish musician, composer, and vocalist
    • 1975 – Simon Whitfield, Canadian triathlete
    • 1976 – Dirk Nannes, Australian-Dutch cricketer
    • 1977 – Melanie Lynskey, New Zealand actress
    • 1977 – Emilíana Torrini, Icelandic singer-songwriter
    • 1978 – Scott Nicholls, English motorcycle racer
    • 1978 – Lionel Scaloni, Argentinian footballer
    • 1980 – Nuria Llagostera Vives, Spanish tennis player
    • 1981 – Ricardo Costa, Portuguese footballer
    • 1982 – Łukasz Kubot, Polish tennis player
    • 1983 – Daniel Kerr, Australian footballer
    • 1983 – Kyle Wellwood, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Darío Cvitanich, Argentinian footballer
    • 1984 – Tomáš Fleischmann, Czech ice hockey player
    • 1984 – Jensen Lewis, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Rick Rypien, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2011)
    • 1985 – Anja Mittag, German footballer
    • 1985 – Rodrigo Peters Marques, Brazilian footballer
    • 1985 – Corey Perry, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1986 – Megan Fox, American actress
    • 1986 – Andy Keogh, Irish footballer
    • 1986 – Shamcey Supsup, Filipino model and architect
    • 1987 – Tom Onslow-Cole, English race car driver
    • 1988 – Jesús Castillo, Mexican footballer
    • 1988 – Martynas Gecevičius, Lithuanian basketball player
    • 1988 – Jaak Põldma, Estonian tennis player
    • 1989 – Behati Prinsloo, Namibian model
    • 1990 – Amanda Carreras, Gibraltarian tennis player
    • 1990 – Thomas Brodie-Sangster, English actor
    • 1990 – Darko Šarović, Serbian sprinter
    • 1990 – Omar Strong, American basketball player
    • 1991 – Grigor Dimitrov, Bulgarian tennis player
    • 1991 – Joey Graceffa, American internet celebrity
    • 1991 – Ashley Wagner, American figure skater
    • 1992 – Jeff Skinner, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1992 – Kirstin Maldonado, American singer and songwriter
    • 1993 – Johannes Thingnes Bø, Norwegian biathlete
    • 1993 – Karol Mets, Estonian footballer
    • 1993 – IU, Korean singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1995 – Elizabeth Ralston, Australian footballer
    • 1996 – Louisa Chirico, an American tennis player

    Deaths on May 16

    • 290 – Emperor Wu of Jin, Chinese emperor (b. 236)
    • 895 – Qian Kuan, Chinese nobleman
    • 934 – Meng Hanqiong, eunuch official of Later Tang
    • 995 – Fujiwara no Michitaka, Japanese nobleman (b. 953)
    • 1182 – John Komnenos Vatatzes, Byzantine general (b. 1132)
    • 1265 – Simon Stock, English-French saint (b. 1165)
    • 1375 – Liu Bowen, Chinese military strategist, officer, statesman and poet (b. 1311)
    • 1412 – Gian Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (b. 1388)
    • 1561 – Jan Tarnowski, Polish noble and statesman (b. 1488)
    • 1620 – William Adams, English sailor and navigator (b. 1564)
    • 1657 – Andrew Bobola, Polish missionary and martyr (b. 1591)
    • 1667 – Thomas Wriothesley, 4th Earl of Southampton, English politician, Lord High Treasurer (b. 1607)
    • 1669 – Pietro da Cortona, Italian painter and architect, designed the Santi Luca e Martina (b. 1596)
    • 1691 – Jacob Leisler, German-American politician, 8th Colonial Governor of New York (b. 1640)
    • 1696 – Mariana of Austria, Queen consort of Spain (b. 1634)
    • 1703 – Charles Perrault, French author and academic (b. 1628)
    • 1778 – Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness, English politician, Secretary of State for the Southern Department (b. 1718)
    • 1790 – Philip Yorke, 2nd Earl of Hardwicke, English politician, Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire (b. 1720)
    • 1818 – Matthew Lewis, English author and playwright (b. 1775)
    • 1823 – Grace Elliott, Scottish courtesan and spy (b. c.1754)
    • 1830 – Joseph Fourier, French mathematician and physicist (b. 1768)
    • 1862 – Edward Gibbon Wakefield, English politician (b. 1796)
    • 1882 – Reuben Chapman, American lawyer and politician, 13th Governor of Alabama (b. 1799)
    • 1890 – Mihkel Veske, Estonian poet, linguist and theologist (b. 1843)
    • 1891 – Ion C. Brătianu, Romanian politician, 14th Prime Minister of Romania (b. 1821)
    • 1910 – Henri-Edmond Cross, French Neo-Impressionist painter (b. 1856)
    • 1913 – Louis Perrier, Swiss architect and politician (b. 1849)
    • 1920 – Levi P. Morton, American politician, 22nd United States Vice President (b. 1824)
    • 1926 – Mehmed VI, Ottoman sultan (b. 1861)
    • 1936 – Leonidas Paraskevopoulos, Greek general and politician (b. 1860)
    • 1938 – Joseph Strauss, American engineer, co designed The Golden Gate Bridge (b. 1870)
    • 1943 – Alfred Hoche, German psychiatrist and academic (b. 1865)
    • 1944 – George Ade, American journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1866)
    • 1946 – Bruno Tesch, German chemist and businessman (b. 1890)
    • 1947 – Frederick Gowland Hopkins, English biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1861)
    • 1947 – Zhang Lingfu, Chinese general (b. 1903)
    • 1953 – Django Reinhardt, Belgian guitarist and composer (b. 1910)
    • 1954 – Clemens Krauss, Austrian conductor and manager (b. 1893)
    • 1955 – James Agee, American novelist, screenwriter, and critic(b. 1909)
    • 1955 – Manny Ayulo, American race car driver (b. 1921)
    • 1956 – H. B. Reese, American candy-maker and businessman, created Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (b. 1876)
    • 1957 – Eliot Ness, American federal agent (b. 1903)
    • 1961 – George A. Malcolm, American lawyer and jurist (b. 1881)
    • 1973 – Jacques Lipchitz, Lithuanian-American sculptor (b. 1891)
    • 1977 – Modibo Keïta, Malian politician, 1st President of Mali (b. 1915)
    • 1979 – A. Philip Randolph, American union leader and activist (b. 1889)
    • 1981 – Ernie Freeman, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1922)
    • 1981 – Willy Hartner, German physician and academic (b. 1905)
    • 1984 – Andy Kaufman, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter (b. 1949)
    • 1984 – Irwin Shaw, American playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and short story writer (b. 1913)
    • 1985 – Margaret Hamilton, American actress (b. 1902)
    • 1989 – Leila Kasra, Iranian poet and songwriter (b. 1939)
    • 1990 – Sammy Davis Jr., American singer, dancer, and actor (b. 1925)
    • 1990 – Jim Henson, American puppeteer, director, producer, and screenwriter, created The Muppets (b. 1936)
    • 1993 – Marv Johnson, American singer-songwriter and pianist (b. 1938)
    • 1994 – Alain Cuny, French actor (b. 1908)
    • 1996 – Jeremy Michael Boorda, American admiral (b. 1939)
    • 1997 – Elbridge Durbrow, American diplomat (b. 1903)
    • 2002 – Alec Campbell, Australian soldier (b. 1899)
    • 2003 – Mark McCormack, American lawyer and sports agent, founded IMG (b. 1930)
    • 2005 – Andrew Goodpaster, American general (b. 1915)
    • 2008 – Robert Mondavi, American winemaker, co-founded the Opus One Winery (b. 1913)
    • 2010 – Ronnie James Dio, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1942)
    • 2010 – Hank Jones, American pianist, composer, and bandleader (b. 1918)
    • 2011 – Ralph Barker, English author (b. 1917)
    • 2011 – Bob Davis, Australian footballer and coach (b. 1928)
    • 2011 – Edward Hardwicke, English actor (b. 1932)
    • 2011 – Kiyoshi Kodama, Japanese actor (b. 1934)
    • 2012 – Patricia Aakhus, American author and academic (b. 1952)
    • 2012 – James Abdnor, American soldier and politician, 30th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota (b. 1923)
    • 2012 – Chuck Brown, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1936)
    • 2012 – Ernie Chan, Filipino-American illustrator (b. 1940)
    • 2012 – Kevin Hickey, American baseball player (b. 1956)
    • 2013 – Angelo Errichetti, American politician (b. 1928)
    • 2013 – Bryan Illerbrun, Canadian football player (b. 1957)
    • 2013 – Frankie Librán, Puerto Rican-American baseball player (b. 1948)
    • 2013 – Heinrich Rohrer, Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1933)
    • 2013 – Dick Trickle, American race car driver (b. 1941)
    • 2013 – Bernard Waber, American author and illustrator (b. 1921)
    • 2014 – Chris Duckworth, Zimbabwean-South African cricketer (b. 1933)
    • 2014 – Vito Favero, Italian cyclist (b. 1932)
    • 2014 – Bud Hollowell, American baseball player and manager (b. 1943)
    • 2014 – Clyde Snow, American anthropologist and author (b. 1928)
    • 2015 – Prashant Bhargava, American director and producer (b. 1973)
    • 2015 – Moshe Levinger, Israeli rabbi and author (b. 1935)
    • 2015 – Flora MacNeil, Scottish Gaelic singer (b. 1928)
    • 2019 – Piet Blauw, Dutch politician (b. 1937)
    • 2019 – Bob Hawke, Australian politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1929)
    • 2019 – I. M. Pei, Chinese-American architect (b. 1917)

    Holidays and observances on May 16

    • Christian feast day:
      • Aaron (Coptic Church)
      • Abda and Abdjesus, and companions:
        • Abdas of Susa
      • Andrew Bobola
      • Brendan the Navigator (Roman Catholic Church, Anglican Communion, Eastern Orthodox Church)
      • Caroline Chisholm (Church of England)
      • Gemma Galgani (Passionists Calendar)
      • Germerius
      • Honoratus of Amiens
      • John of Nepomuk
      • Margaret of Cortona
      • Peregrine of Auxerre
      • Simon Stock
      • Ubald (see Saint Ubaldo Day)
    • Martyrs of Sudan (Episcopal Church (USA))
    • Mass Graves Day (Iraq)
    • National Day, declared by Salva Kiir Mayardit (South Sudan)
    • Teachers’ Day (Malaysia)

  • January 12 – History, Events, Births, Deaths, Holidays and Observances On This Day

    • 1528 – Gustav I of Sweden is crowned King of Sweden, having already reigned since his election in June 1523.
    • 1554 – Bayinnaung, who would go on to assemble the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia, is crowned King of Burma.
    • 1616 – The city of Belém, Brazil is founded on the Amazon River delta, by Portuguese captain Francisco Caldeira Castelo Branco.
    • 1808 – John Rennie’s scheme to defend St Mary’s Church, Reculver, founded in 669, from coastal erosion is abandoned in favour of demolition, despite the church being an exemplar of Anglo-Saxon architecture and sculpture.
    • 1808 – The organizational meeting leading to the creation of the Wernerian Natural History Society, a former Scottish learned society, is held in Edinburgh.
    • 1848 – The Palermo rising takes place in Sicily against the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
    • 1866 – The Royal Aeronautical Society is formed in London.
    • 1872 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first imperial coronation in that city in over 200 years.
    • 1895 – The National Trust is founded in the United Kingdom.
    • 1911 – The University of the Philippines College of Law is formally established; three future Philippine presidents are among the first enrollees.
    • 1915 – The United States House of Representatives rejects a proposal to require states to give women the right to vote.
    • 1916 – Both Oswald Boelcke and Max Immelmann, for achieving eight aerial victories each over Allied aircraft, receive the German Empire’s highest military award, the Pour le Mérite as the first German aviators to earn it.
    • 1918 – The Minnie Pit Disaster coal mining accident occurs in Halmer End, Staffordshire, in which 155 men and boys die.
    • 1921 – Acting to restore confidence in baseball after the Black Sox Scandal, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis is elected as Major League Baseball’s first commissioner.
    • 1932 – Hattie Caraway becomes the first woman elected to the United States Senate.
    • 1942 – World War II: United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt creates the National War Labor Board.
    • 1945 – World War II: The Red Army begins the Vistula–Oder Offensive.
    • 1962 – Vietnam War: Operation Chopper, the first American combat mission in the war, takes place.
    • 1964 – Rebels in Zanzibar begin a revolt known as the Zanzibar Revolution and proclaim a republic.
    • 1966 – Lyndon B. Johnson states that the United States should stay in South Vietnam until Communist aggression there is ended.
    • 1967 – Dr. James Bedford becomes the first person to be cryonically preserved with intent of future resuscitation.
    • 1969 – The New York Jets of the American Football League defeat the Baltimore Colts of the National Football League to win Super Bowl III in what is considered to be one of the greatest upsets in sports history.
    • 1970 – Biafra capitulates, ending the Nigerian Civil War.
    • 1971 – The Harrisburg Seven: Rev. Philip Berrigan and five other activists are indicted on charges of conspiring to kidnap Henry Kissinger and of plotting to blow up the heating tunnels of federal buildings in Washington, D.C.
    • 1976 – The United Nations Security Council votes 11–1 to allow the Palestine Liberation Organization to participate in a Security Council debate (without voting rights).
    • 1986 – Space Shuttle program: Congressman Bill Nelson lifts off from Kennedy Space Center aboard Columbia on mission STS-61-C as a payload specialist.
    • 1990 – A seven-day pogrom breaks out against the Armenian civilian population of Baku, Azerbaijan, during which Armenians were beaten, tortured, murdered, and expelled from the city.
    • 1991 – Persian Gulf War: An act of the U.S. Congress authorizes the use of American military force to drive Iraq out of Kuwait.
    • 1998 – Nineteen European nations agree to forbid human cloning.
    • 2001 – Downtown Disney opens to the public as part of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.
    • 2004 – The world’s largest ocean liner, RMS Queen Mary 2, makes its maiden voyage.
    • 2005 – Deep Impact launches from Cape Canaveral on a Delta II rocket.
    • 2006 – A stampede during the Stoning of the Devil ritual on the last day at the Hajj in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills at least 362 Muslim pilgrims.
    • 2010 – An earthquake in Haiti occurs, killing between 220,000 and 300,000 people and destroying much of the capital Port-au-Prince.
    • 2012 – Violent protests occur in Bucharest, Romania, as two-day-old demonstrations continue against President Traian Băsescu’s economic austerity measures. Clashes are reported in numerous Romanian cities between protesters and law enforcement officers.
    • 2015 – Government raids kill 143 Boko Haram fighters in Kolofata, Cameroon.
    • 2016 – Ten people are killed and 15 wounded in a bombing near the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.
    • 2020 – Taal Volcano in the Philippines erupts, and kills 39 people.

    Births on January 12

    • 1483 – Henry III of Nassau-Breda (d. 1538)
    • 1562 – Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1630)
    • 1576 – Petrus Scriverius, Dutch historian and scholar (d. 1660)
    • 1577 – Jan Baptist van Helmont, Flemish chemist and physician (d. 1644)
    • 1588 – John Winthrop, English lawyer and politician, 2nd Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (d. 1649)
    • 1591 – Jusepe de Ribera, Spanish painter (d. 1652)
    • 1597 – François Duquesnoy, Flemish sculptor and educator (d. 1643)
    • 1598 – Jijabai Shahaji Bhosale, venerated mother of Indian king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (d. 1674)
    • 1628 – Charles Perrault, French author and academic (d. 1703)
    • 1673 – Rosalba Carriera, Italian painter (d. 1757)
    • 1711 – Gaetano Latilla, Italian composer (d. 1788)
    • 1715 – Jacques Duphly, French organist and composer (d. 1789)
    • 1716 – Antonio de Ulloa, Spanish general and politician, 1st Spanish Governor of Louisiana (d. 1795)
    • 1721 – Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Prussian field marshal (d. 1792)
    • 1723 – Samuel Langdon, American minister, theologian, and academic (d. 1797)
    • 1724 – Frances Brooke, English author and playwright (d. 1789)
    • 1729 – Edmund Burke, Irish philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1797)
    • 1746 – Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, Swiss philosopher and educator (d. 1827)
    • 1751 – Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (d. 1825)
    • 1772 – Mikhail Speransky, Russian academic and politician (d. 1839)
    • 1786 – Sir Robert Inglis, 2nd Baronet, English politician (d. 1855)
    • 1792 – Johan August Arfwedson, Swedish chemist and academic (d. 1841)
    • 1797 – Gideon Brecher, Austrian physician and author (d. 1873)
    • 1799 – Priscilla Susan Bury, British botanist (d. 1872)
    • 1822 – Étienne Lenoir, Belgian engineer, designed the internal combustion engine (d. 1900)
    • 1837 – Adolf Jensen, German pianist and composer (d. 1879)
    • 1849 – Jean Béraud, Russian-French painter and academic (d. 1935)
    • 1853 – Gregorio Ricci-Curbastro, Italian mathematician (d. 1925)
    • 1856 – John Singer Sargent, American painter and academic (d. 1925)
    • 1863 – Swami Vivekananda, Indian monk and philosopher (d. 1902)
    • 1869 – Bhagwan Das, Indian philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1958)
    • 1873 – Spyridon Louis, Greek runner (d. 1940)
    • 1874 – Laura Adams Armer, American author and photographer (d. 1963)
    • 1876 – Fevzi Çakmak, Turkish field marshal and politician, Prime Minister of the Turkish Provisional Government (d. 1950)
    • 1876 – Jack London, American novelist and journalist (d. 1916)
    • 1876 – Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer and educator (d. 1948)
    • 1877 – Frank J. Corr, American lawyer and politician, 45th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1934)
    • 1878 – Ferenc Molnár, Hungarian-American author and playwright (d. 1952)
    • 1879 – Ray Harroun, American race car driver and engineer (d. 1968)
    • 1879 – Anton Uesson, Estonian engineer and politician, 17th Mayor of Tallinn (d. 1942)
    • 1882 – Milton Sills, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1930)
    • 1884 – Texas Guinan, American entertainer and bootlegger (d. 1933)
    • 1889 – Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad, Indian-Pakistani spiritual leader (d. 1965)
    • 1890 – Johannes Vares, Estonian poet, physician, and politician (d. 1946)
    • 1892 – Mikhail Gurevich, Russian engineer and businessman, co-founded the Russian Aircraft Corporation (d. 1976)
    • 1893 – Hermann Göring, German commander, pilot, and politician, Minister President of Prussia (d. 1946)
    • 1893 – Alfred Rosenberg, Estonian-German architect and politician, Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories (d. 1946)
    • 1894 – Georges Carpentier, French boxer and actor (d. 1975)
    • 1895 – Leo Aryeh Mayer, Polish-Israeli scholar and academic (d. 1959)
    • 1896 – David Wechsler, Romanian-American psychologist and author (d. 1981)
    • 1899 – Pierre Bernac, French opera singer and educator (d. 1979)
    • 1899 – Paul Hermann Müller, Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1965)
    • 1901 – Karl Künstler, German SS officer (d. 1945)
    • 1903 – Igor Kurchatov, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1960)
    • 1903 – Andrew J. Transue, American politician and attorney (Morissette v. United States) (d. 1995)
    • 1904 – Mississippi Fred McDowell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1972)
    • 1905 – Nihal Atsız, Turkish author, poet, and philosopher (d. 1975)
    • 1905 – James Bennett Griffin, American archaeologist and academic (d. 1997)
    • 1905 – Tex Ritter, American actor and singer (d. 1974)
    • 1906 – Emmanuel Levinas, Lithuanian-French historian, philosopher, and academic (d. 1995)
    • 1907 – Sergei Korolev, Russian colonel and engineer (d. 1966)
    • 1908 – Jean Delannoy, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
    • 1908 – Clement Hurd, American illustrator (d. 1988)
    • 1910 – Patsy Kelly, American actress and comedian (d. 1981)
    • 1910 – Luise Rainer, German-English actress (d. 2014)
    • 1912 – Richard Kuremaa, Estonian footballer (d. 1991)
    • 1914 – Mieko Kamiya, Japanese psychiatrist and psychologist (d. 1979)
    • 1915 – Paul Jarrico, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1997)
    • 1915 – Joseph-Aurèle Plourde, Canadian archbishop and academic (d. 2013)
    • 1916 – Ruth R. Benerito, American chemist and inventor (d. 2013)
    • 1916 – Mary Wilson, Baroness Wilson of Rievaulx, British poet and Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2018)
    • 1916 – P. W. Botha, South African politician, 8th Prime Minister of South Africa (d. 2006)
    • 1917 – Walter Hendl, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2007)
    • 1917 – Jimmy Skinner, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2007)
    • 1920 – James Farmer, American activist, and politician, co-founded Congress of Racial Equality (d. 1999)
    • 1920 – Jerzy Zubrzycki, Polish-Australian sociologist and academic (d. 2009)
    • 1922 – Tadeusz Żychiewicz, Polish journalist and historian (d. 1994)
    • 1923 – Ira Hayes, American marine who raised the U.S. flag on Iwo Jima (d. 1955)
    • 1924 – Olivier Gendebien, Belgian racing driver and businessman (d. 1998)
    • 1925 – Bill Burrud, American television host, producer, and actor (d. 1990)
    • 1926 – Morton Feldman, American composer and academic (d. 1987)
    • 1926 – Ray Price, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
    • 1928 – Ruth Brown, American R&B singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2006)
    • 1929 – Alasdair MacIntyre, Scottish-American philosopher and academic
    • 1929 – Jaakko Hintikka, Finnish philosopher and logician (d. 2015)
    • 1930 – Tim Horton, Canadian ice hockey player and businessman, founded Tim Hortons (d. 1974)
    • 1930 – Jennifer Johnston, Irish author and playwright
    • 1930 – Glenn Yarbrough, American singer and actor (d. 2016)
    • 1933 – Pavlos Matesis, Greek author and playwright (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Alan Sharp, Scottish-American author and screenwriter (d. 2013)
    • 1934 – Mick Sullivan, English rugby player and coach (d. 2016)
    • 1935 – Teresa del Conde, Mexican historian and critic (d. 2017)
    • 1935 – Kreskin, American mentalist
    • 1936 – Jennifer Hilton, Baroness Hilton of Eggardon, English police officer and politician
    • 1936 – Raimonds Pauls, Latvian pianist and composer
    • 1936 – Brajanath Ratha, Indian poet and activist (d. 2014)
    • 1936 – Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Home Affairs (d. 2016)
    • 1937 – Shirley Eaton, English actress
    • 1938 – Qazi Hussain Ahmad, Pakistani scholar and politician (d. 2013)
    • 1940 – Bob Hewitt, Australian-South African tennis player
    • 1940 – Ronald Shannon Jackson, American drummer and composer (d. 2013)
    • 1940 – Dick Motz, New Zealand cricketer (d. 2007)
    • 1941 – Long John Baldry, English-Canadian singer-songwriter and voice actor (d. 2005)
    • 1941 – Fiona Caldicott, English psychiatrist and psychotherapist
    • 1941 – Chet Jastremski, American swimmer and physician (d. 2014)
    • 1942 – Bernardine Dohrn, American domestic terrorist, political activist and academic
    • 1944 – Hans Henning Atrott, German author and theorist
    • 1944 – Joe Frazier, American boxer (d. 2011)
    • 1944 – Cynthia Robinson, American R&B trumpet player and singer (d 2015)
    • 1945 – Maggie Bell, Scottish singer-songwriter
    • 1946 – Hazel Cosgrove, Lady Cosgrove, Scottish lawyer and judge
    • 1946 – George Duke, American keyboard player, composer, and educator (d. 2013)
    • 1947 – Richard Carwardine, English historian and academic
    • 1947 – Tom Dempsey, American football player and educator
    • 1947 – Sally Hamwee, Baroness Hamwee, English politician
    • 1948 – Kenny Allen, English footballer
    • 1948 – Anthony Andrews, English actor and producer
    • 1948 – Gordon Campbell, Canadian educator and politician, 34th Premier of British Columbia
    • 1948 – Brendan Foster, English runner and sportscaster
    • 1948 – William Nicholson, English author and screenwriter
    • 1949 – Kentarō Haneda, Japanese pianist and composer (d. 2007)
    • 1949 – Ottmar Hitzfeld, German footballer and manager
    • 1949 – Hamadi Jebali, Tunisian engineer, journalist, and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Tunisia
    • 1949 – Haruki Murakami, Japanese novelist, short-story writer, and essayist
    • 1950 – Sheila Jackson Lee, American lawyer, judge, and politician
    • 1950 – Göran Lindblad, Swedish dentist and politician
    • 1950 – Bob McEwen, American businessman and politician
    • 1950 – Dorrit Moussaieff, Israeli-Icelandic jewelry designer and businesswoman, 5th First Lady of Iceland
    • 1951 – Kirstie Alley, American actress and producer
    • 1951 – Chris Bell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1978)
    • 1951 – Rush Limbaugh, American talk show host and author
    • 1951 – Drew Pearson, American football player and sportscaster
    • 1952 – Phil Perry, American singer-songwriter and producer
    • 1952 – Ricky Van Shelton, American country singer-songwriter and guitarist
    • 1952 – John Walker, New Zealand runner and politician
    • 1952 – Walter Mosley, American novelist
    • 1953 – Mary Harron, Canadian director and screenwriter
    • 1954 – Howard Stern, American radio host, actor, and author
    • 1954 – Martin Kylhammar, Swedish professor of culture and society
    • 1955 – Tom Ardolino, American rock drummer (NRBQ) (d. 2012)
    • 1956 – Nikolai Noskov, Russian rock singer and singer-songwriter
    • 1957 – John Lasseter, American animator, director, and producer
    • 1957 – Jeremy Sams, English director, playwright, and composer
    • 1958 – Christiane Amanpour, English-born Iranian-American journalist
    • 1958 – Curt Fraser, American-Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1959 – B. Brian Blair, American wrestler and politician
    • 1959 – Per Gessle, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1960 – Oliver Platt, Canadian-American actor
    • 1960 – Dominique Wilkins, French-American basketball player and manager
    • 1961 – Simon Russell Beale, Malaysia-born English actor and historian
    • 1962 – Joe Quesada, American author and illustrator
    • 1962 – Richie Richardson, Antiguan cricketer
    • 1962 – Luna Vachon, American-Canadian wrestler and manager (d. 2010)
    • 1963 – François Girard, Canadian director and screenwriter
    • 1963 – Nando Reis, Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
    • 1964 – Jeff Bezos, American computer scientist and businessman, founded Amazon.com
    • 1965 – Raekwon, American rapper
    • 1965 – Rob Zombie, American singer-songwriter, producer, actor, and director
    • 1966 – Olivier Martinez, French actor
    • 1966 – Craig Parry, Australian golfer
    • 1967 – Vendela Kirsebom, Norwegian-Swedish model and actress
    • 1968 – Junichi Masuda, Japanese director, producer, and composer
    • 1968 – Heather Mills, English businesswoman, activist and model
    • 1968 – Mauro Silva, Brazilian footballer
    • 1969 – David Mitchell, English novelist
    • 1969 – Margaret Nagle, American screenwriter and producer
    • 1970 – Zack de la Rocha, American singer-songwriter
    • 1971 – Scott Burrell, American basketball player and coach
    • 1972 – Priyanka Gandhi, Indian politician
    • 1972 – Espen Knutsen, Norwegian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1972 – Paul Wilson, Australian cricketer and umpire
    • 1973 – Brian Culbertson, American pianist and producer
    • 1973 – Hande Yener, Turkish singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1974 – Melanie C, English singer-songwriter and actress
    • 1974 – Tor Arne Hetland, Norwegian skier
    • 1975 – Jason Freese, American saxophonist, songwriter, and producer
    • 1975 – Jocelyn Thibault, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
    • 1977 – Yoandy Garlobo, Cuban baseball player
    • 1978 – Luis Ayala, Mexican baseball player
    • 1978 – Maurizio Zaffiri, Italian rugby player
    • 1979 – Marián Hossa, Slovak ice hockey player
    • 1979 – Lee Bo-young, South Korean actress and model
    • 1979 – Grzegorz Rasiak, Polish footballer
    • 1979 – David Zabriskie, American cyclist
    • 1980 – Bobby Crosby, American baseball player
    • 1981 – Amerie, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
    • 1981 – João Paulo Daniel, Brazilian footballer
    • 1981 – Dan Klecko, American football player
    • 1981 – Angus Macdonald, New Zealand rugby player
    • 1981 – Luis Ernesto Pérez, Mexican footballer
    • 1982 – Paul-Henri Mathieu, French tennis player
    • 1982 – Hans Van Alphen, Belgian decathlete
    • 1982 – Dean Whitehead, English footballer
    • 1982 – Dontrelle Willis, American baseball player
    • 1984 – Daniel Sepulveda, American football player
    • 1984 – Jonathan Zydko, French footballer
    • 1985 – Artem Milevskiy, Ukrainian footballer
    • 1985 – Issa Rae, American actress, writer, director, producer and web series creator
    • 1985 – Borja Valero, Spanish footballer
    • 1986 – Kehoma Brenner, German rugby player
    • 1986 – Miguel Ángel Nieto, Spanish footballer
    • 1987 – Naya Rivera, American actress and singer
    • 1987 – Salvatore Sirigu, Italian footballer
    • 1988 – Claude Giroux, Canadian ice hockey player
    • 1989 – Thiemo-Jérôme Kialka, German footballer
    • 1989 – Axel Witsel, Belgian footballer
    • 1991 – Pixie Lott, English singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
    • 1991 – Matt Srama, Australian rugby league player
    • 1992 – Ishak Belfodil, Algerian footballer
    • 1992 – Samuele Longo, Italian footballer
    • 1993 – Zayn Malik, English singer-songwriter
    • 1993 – Simone Pecorini, Italian footballer
    • 1993 – Do Kyungsoo, South Korean singer and member of boy band EXO
    • 1995 – Sarah Mehain, Canadian Paralympic swimmer
    • 1995 – Alessio Romagnoli, Italian footballer

    Deaths of January 12

    • 690 – Benedict Biscop, English scholar and saint, founded the Monkwearmouth–Jarrow Abbey (b. 628)
    • 914 – Ahmad Samani, Samanid emir
    • 947 – Sang Weihan, Chinese chief of staff (b. 898)
    • 1140 – Louis I, Landgrave of Thuringia
    • 1167 – Aelred of Rievaulx, English monk and saint (b. 1110)
    • 1320 – John Dalderby, bishop of Lincoln
    • 1321 – Marie of Brabant, Queen of France (b. 1256)
    • 1405 – Eleanor Maltravers, English noblewoman (b. 1345)
    • 1519 – Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1459)
    • 1665 – Pierre de Fermat, French mathematician and lawyer (b. 1601)
    • 1674 – Giacomo Carissimi, Italian priest and composer (b. 1605)
    • 1700 – Marguerite Bourgeoys, French-Canadian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal (b. 1620)
    • 1720 – William Ashhurst, English banker and politician, Lord Mayor of London (b. 1647)
    • 1732 – John Horsley, English-Scottish historian and author (b. 1685)
    • 1735 – John Eccles, English composer (b. 1668)
    • 1759 – Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange (b. 1709)
    • 1765 – Johann Melchior Molter, German violinist and composer (b. 1696)
    • 1777 – Hugh Mercer, Scottish-American general and physician (b. 1726)
    • 1778 – François Bigot, French politician (b. 1703)
    • 1781 – Richard Challoner, English bishop (b. 1691)
    • 1829 – Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel, German philosopher, poet, and critic (b. 1772)
    • 1833 – Marie-Antoine Carême, French chef (b. 1784)
    • 1834 – William Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, English academic and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1759)
    • 1856 – Ľudovít Štúr, Slovak philologist and politician (b. 1815)
    • 1861 – Václav Hanka, Czech philologist and author (b. 1791)
    • 1892 – James Caulfeild, 3rd Earl of Charlemont, Irish politician, Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone (b. 1820)
    • 1892 – William Reeves, Irish bishop and historian (b. 1815)
    • 1899 – Hiram Walker, American businessman, founded Canadian Club (b. 1816)
    • 1909 – Hermann Minkowski, Lithuanian-German mathematician and academic (b. 1864)
    • 1911 – Andreas Papagiannakopoulos, Greek journalist, judge, and politician (b. 1845)
    • 1916 – Georgios Theotokis, Greek lawyer and politician, 80th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1844)
    • 1921 – Gervase Elwes, English tenor and actor (b. 1866)
    • 1926 – Austin Chapman, Australian businessman and politician, 4th Australian Minister for Defence (b. 1864)
    • 1934 – Paul Kochanski, Polish violinist and composer (b. 1887)
    • 1938 – Oscar Florianus Bluemner, German-American painter and illustrator (b. 1867)
    • 1940 – Ralph Hitz, Austrian-American hotelier (b. 1891)
    • 1940 – Edward Smith, English lieutenant, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1898)
    • 1943 – Jan Campert, Dutch journalist and critic (b. 1902)
    • 1944 – Lance C. Wade, American commander and pilot (b. 1915)
    • 1958 – Charles Hatfield, American meteorologist (b. 1875)
    • 1960 – Nevil Shute, English engineer and author (b. 1899)
    • 1962 – Ariadna Tyrkova-Williams, Russian journalist and activist (b. 1869)
    • 1965 – Lorraine Hansberry, American author, playwright, and director (b. 1936)
    • 1967 – Burhan Asaf Belge, Turkish diplomat (b. 1887)
    • 1971 – John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey, English admiral (b. 1885)
    • 1973 – Roy Franklin Nichols, American historian and academic (b. 1896)
    • 1974 – Princess Patricia of Connaught (b. 1886)
    • 1976 – Agatha Christie, English crime novelist, short story writer, and playwright (b. 1890)
    • 1977 – Henri-Georges Clouzot, French director and screenwriter (b. 1907)
    • 1983 – Nikolai Podgorny, Ukrainian engineer and politician (b. 1903)
    • 1988 – Connie Mulder, South African politician (b. 1925)
    • 1988 – Piero Taruffi, Italian racing driver and motorcycle racer (b. 1906)
    • 1990 – Laurence J. Peter, Canadian-American author and educator (b. 1919)
    • 1991 – Robert Jackson, Australian public servant and diplomat (b. 1911)
    • 1992 – Kumar Gandharva, a Hindustani classical singer (b. 1924)
    • 1994 – Gustav Naan, Estonian physicist and philosopher (b. 1919)
    • 1996 – Joachim Nitsche, German mathematician and academic (b. 1926)
    • 1997 – Jean-Edern Hallier, French author (b. 1936)
    • 1997 – Charles Brenton Huggins, Canadian-American physician and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901)
    • 1998 – Roger Clark, English racing driver (b. 1939)
    • 1999 – Doug Wickenheiser, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1961)
    • 2000 – Marc Davis, American animator and screenwriter (b. 1913)
    • 2000 – Bobby Phills, American basketball player (b. 1969)
    • 2001 – Luiz Bonfá, Brazilian guitarist and composer (b. 1922)
    • 2001 – William Redington Hewlett, American engineer and businessman, co-founded Hewlett-Packard (b. 1913)
    • 2002 – Cyrus Vance, American lawyer and politician, 57th U.S. Secretary of State (b. 1917)
    • 2003 – Dean Amadon, American ornithologist and author (b. 1912)
    • 2003 – Kinji Fukasaku, Japanese actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1930)
    • 2003 – Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine general and politician, 44th President of Argentina (b. 1926)
    • 2003 – Maurice Gibb, Manx-Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1949)
    • 2003 – Alan Nunn May, English physicist and spy (b. 1911)
    • 2004 – Olga Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1921)
    • 2005 – Amrish Puri, Indian actor (b. 1932)
    • 2006 – Pablita Velarde, Santa Clara Pueblo (Native American) painter (b. 1918)
    • 2007 – Alice Coltrane, American pianist and composer (b. 1937)
    • 2007 – James Killen, Australian soldier, lawyer, and politician, 38th Australian Minister for Defence (b. 1925)
    • 2008 – Max Beck, American intersex advocate (b. 1966)
    • 2009 – Claude Berri, French actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1934)
    • 2010 – Daniel Bensaïd, French philosopher and author (b. 1946)
    • 2010 – Hasib Sabbagh, Palestinian businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Consolidated Contractors Company (b. 1920)
    • 2012 – Bjørn G. Andersen, Norwegian geologist and academic (b. 1924)
    • 2012 – Glenda Dickerson, American director, choreographer, and educator (b. 1945)
    • 2012 – Bill Janklow, American lawyer and politician, 27th Governor of South Dakota (b. 1939)
    • 2012 – Charles H. Price II, American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (b. 1931)
    • 2012 – Jim Stanley, American football player and coach (b. 1935)
    • 2013 – Precious Bryant, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
    • 2013 – Eugene Patterson, American journalist and activist (b. 1923)
    • 2014 – Alexandra Bastedo, English actress (b. 1946)
    • 2014 – Connie Binsfeld, American educator and politician, 58th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (b. 1924)
    • 2014 – George Dement, American soldier, businessman, and politician (b. 1922)
    • 2015 – Trevor Colbourn, American historian and academic (b. 1927)
    • 2015 – Robert Gover, American journalist and author (b. 1929)
    • 2015 – Carl Long, American baseball player (b. 1935)
    • 2015 – Elena Obraztsova, Russian soprano and actress (b. 1939)
    • 2015 – Inge Vermeulen, Brazilian-Dutch field hockey player (b. 1985)
    • 2017 – William Peter Blatty, American writer and filmmaker (b. 1928)
    • 2017 – Graham Taylor, former Grimsby Town player and former manager of the England football team. (b. 1944)
    • 2018 – Keith Jackson, American sports commentator and journalist (b. 1928)
    • 2020 – Sir Roger Scruton, English philosopher, and writer (b. 1944)

    Holidays and observances on January 12

    • Christian feast day:
      • Aelred of Rievaulx
      • Benedict Biscop
      • Bernard of Corleone
      • Marguerite Bourgeoys
      • Tatiana
      • January 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
    • Earliest day on which Lee–Jackson Day can fall while January 18 is the latest, celebrated on the Friday before Martin Luther King Day. (Commonwealth of Virginia)
    • Memorial Day (Turkmenistan)
    • National Youth Day (India)
    • Prosecutor General’s Day (Russia)
    • Zanzibar Revolution Day (Tanzania)