202 things happened on 1 January, from 153 BC to 2026. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1877 · 149 years ago
Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India. The British Parliament had voted in 1876 to give her this extra title, to show that she ruled over the British Indian Empire. Her picture appeared on Indian money and in government buildings and railway stations…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
Scotland decided that each new year would begin on 1 January instead of 25 March. Until then, the year number had changed in late March, in the spring. England kept 25 March as the start of the year for much longer. It only switched to 1 January after a law called the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750.
UK story
Charles II was crowned King of Scotland at Scone Palace, near Perth. He had arrived in Scotland in June 1650, where there was support for his rule. Special medals called 'coronation pieces' were ordered from the Scottish mint for the occasion. In 1660, when the monarchy was restored, Charles also became King of England and Ireland, and he reigned until 1685.
UK story
The Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland joined to become one country: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Laws called the Acts of Union 1800 made this happen, and the new UK Parliament first met on 22 January 1801. The Union Flag got a new design, adding the red diagonal cross of Saint Patrick. This design is still the UK's flag.
UK story
The Gothic novel Frankenstein was published in London, without the author's name on it. It tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a thinking creature in a strange experiment. The author, Mary Shelley, began writing it when she was 18 and was 20 when it came out. Frankenstein is seen as one of the earliest science fiction stories.
UK story
Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India. The British Parliament had voted in 1876 to give her this extra title, to show that she ruled over the British Indian Empire. Her picture appeared on Indian money and in government buildings and railway stations. Victoria reigned for 63 years, and her time on the throne is known as the Victorian era.
UK story
Britain's 'Big Four' railway companies were nationalised, which means the government took them over. Together they became British Railways, a single state-owned company running trains across Great Britain. From 1965 it was known as British Rail. It ran the railways until they were privatised, or sold to private companies, in the 1990s.
UK story
The United Kingdom, Denmark and Ireland joined the European Economic Community, or EEC. The EEC was a group of countries set up in 1957 to bring their economies closer together. It later became part of the European Union. The UK was a member for 47 years, until it left the European Union on 31 January 2020, which is known as Brexit.
UK story
The first British mobile phone call was made by Michael Harrison to his father, Sir Ernest Harrison. Sir Ernest was the first chairman of Vodafone, which began as the mobile phone part of the electronics company Racal. Mobile phones send calls using radio signals, so people can talk while they move around. Vodafone is now a big British telecommunications company.
UK story
Grand Prince Stephen I of Hungary is named the first King of Hungary by Pope Sylvester II (probable).
UK story
The Masque of Indian and China Knights is performed by courtiers of James VI and I at Hampton Court.
UK story
The hymn "Amazing Grace" was probably first used in a prayer meeting in Olney, England, without the music familiar to modern listeners.
UK story
American Revolutionary War: The town of Norfolk, Virginia, was burned and destroyed by the combined actions of British and Whig forces.
UK story
The Times began publication in London as The Daily Universal Register.
UK story
The first edition of The Times of London, previously The Daily Universal Register, is published.
UK story
The world's first "Mercy" Hospital is founded in Pittsburgh, United States, by a group of Sisters of Mercy from Ireland; the name will go on to grace over 30 major hospitals throughout the world.
UK story
Twenty-five nations adopt Sandford Fleming's proposal for standard time (and also, time zones).
UK story
Nigeria becomes a British protectorate with Frederick Lugard as high commissioner.
UK story
The Southern Nigeria Protectorate is established within the British Empire.
UK story
The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton is appointed the first Prime Minister.
UK story
Captain David Beatty is promoted to rear admiral, and becomes the youngest admiral in the Royal Navy (except for royal family members) since Horatio Nelson.
UK story
Britain's Railways are grouped into the Big Four: LNER, GWR, SR, and LMS.
UK story
Cold War: The American and British occupation zones in Allied-occupied Germany, after World War II, merge to form the Bizone, which later (with the French zone) became part of West Germany.
UK story
The Canadian Citizenship Act 1946 comes into effect, converting British subjects into Canadian citizens. Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King becomes the first Canadian citizen.
UK story
Sudan achieves independence from Egypt and the United Kingdom.
UK story
George Town, Penang, is made a city by a royal charter of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
UK story
Cameroon achieves independence from France and the United Kingdom.
UK story
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is divided into the independent republics of Zambia and Malawi, and the British-controlled Rhodesia.
UK story
The Euro currency is introduced in 11 member nations of the European Union (with the exception of the United Kingdom, Denmark, Greece and Sweden).
Italian astronomer Giuseppe Piazzi spotted Ceres from his observatory in Palermo, Sicily. It was announced as a new planet and named after the Roman goddess of farming. Ceres was the first object found in the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter. It is now called a dwarf planet, and it is the only confirmed one in the asteroid belt.
The ARPANET, an early American computer network, switched to using a set of rules called TCP/IP. These rules let different computer networks connect and pass information between them. Because of this, the switch is said to have created the Internet. The Internet is a worldwide 'network of networks' that carries websites, email and much more.
For the first time, Roman consuls begin their year in office on January 1.
The Julian calendar takes effect as the civil calendar of the Roman Republic, establishing January 1 as the new date of the new year.
The Roman Senate posthumously deifies Julius Caesar.
The Senate chooses Pertinax against his will to succeed Commodus as Roman emperor.
Galla Placidia was forced by her brother Honorius into marriage with Constantius III, his magister militum.
Emperor Taizong of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty captures Daliang, ending the dynasty and empire of the Later Jin.
Having been pardoned by Eudokia Makrembolitissa, the regent of the Byzantine Empire, for attempting to usurp the throne, Romanos IV Diogenes married her to become Byzantine emperor.
Michael VIII Palaiologos is proclaimed co-emperor of the Empire of Nicaea with his ward John IV Laskaris.
Albert II of Habsburg is crowned King of Hungary.
The present-day location of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is first explored by the Portuguese under their commissioned Florentine explorer, Amerigo Vespucci. Vespucci begins his suspicion that there is a whole continent between Europe and Asia.
Croatian nobles elect Ferdinand I, Archduke of Austria as King of Croatia in the 1527 election in Cetin.
Russia begins using the Anno Domini era instead of the Anno Mundi era of the Byzantine Empire.
John V is proclaimed King of Portugal and the Algarves in Lisbon.
J. S. Bach led the first performance of his chorale cantata Jesu, nun sei gepreiset, which features trumpet fanfares at the start and end.
J. S. Bach led the first performance of Herr Gott, dich loben wir, BWV 16, his church cantata for New Year's Day to a libretto by Georg Christian Lehms (pictured).
Bouvet Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, the most remote island in the world, was discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier.
The first traveler's cheques, which could be used in 90 European cities, are issued by the London Credit Exchange Company.
General George Washington hoists the first United States flag, the Continental Union Flag, at Prospect Hill.
Quasi-War: An American convoy of four merchant vessels escorted by a schooner was attacked by a squadron of armed barges manned by Haitians.
French rule ends in Haiti. Haiti becomes the first black-majority republic and second independent country in North America after the United States.
The French Republican Calendar is abolished.
As a result of the lobbying efforts by the abolitionist movement (emblem pictured), the importation of slaves into the United States was officially banned, although slavery itself remained permitted.
Lachlan Macquarie (pictured) became Governor of New South Wales, eventually playing a major role in the social, economic and architectural development of the colony in Australia.
The Greek Constitution of 1822 is adopted by the First National Assembly at Epidaurus.
Most of Germany forms the Zollverein customs union, the first such union between sovereign states.
The Philippines moves its national calendar to align with other Asian countries' calendars by skipping Tuesday, December 31, 1844. The change has been ordered by Governor–General Narciso Claveria to reform the country's calendar so that it aligns with the rest of Asia. Its territory has been one day behind the rest of Asia for 323 years since the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in the Philippines on March 16, 1521.
The first Polish postage stamp is issued, replacing the Russian stamps previously in use.
Liberal forces supporting Benito Juárez enter Mexico City.
American Civil War: The Emancipation Proclamation takes effect in Confederate territory.
Eritrea is consolidated into a colony by the Italian government as Italian Eritrea.
The immigration station on Ellis Island (pictured) in New York Harbor opened, and would process almost 12 million immigrants to the United States over the course of its existence.
New York, New York annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York. The four initial boroughs, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx, are joined on January 25 by Staten Island to create the modern city of five boroughs.
Spanish rule ends in Cuba.
The first American college football bowl game, the Rose Bowl between Michigan and Stanford, is held in Pasadena, California.
The Republic of China is established.
The St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line in the U.S. state of Florida became the first scheduled airline using a winged aircraft.
Ireland's first broadcaster, 2RN, began broadcasting.
New Mexican oil legislation goes into effect, leading to the formal outbreak of the Cristero War.
Joseph Stalin's personal secretary, Boris Bazhanov, crossed the Iranian border and defected from the Soviet Union.
The former municipalities of Point Grey, British Columbia and South Vancouver, British Columbia are amalgamated into Vancouver.
The United States Post Office Department issues a set of 12 stamps commemorating the 200th anniversary of George Washington's birth.
Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay becomes a United States federal prison.
The Declaration by United Nations is signed by twenty-six nations.
United Nations cease-fire takes effect in Kashmir from one minute before midnight. War between India and Pakistan stops accordingly.
The revised Thai criminal code came into force, strengthening the law on lèse-majesté in Thailand to include insult and treating it as a crime against national security.
The European Economic Community is established.
Western Samoa achieves independence from New Zealand; its name is changed to the Independent State of Western Samoa.
The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, which later helped the country become a republic, was founded.
The defined beginning of Unix time, at 00:00:00.
Cigarette advertisements are banned on American television.
the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations and Taiwan Relations Act enter into force. Through the Communiqué, the United States establishes normal diplomatic relations with China. Through the Act, the United States guarantees military support for Taiwan.
Greece is admitted into the European Community.
Peruvian Javier Pérez de Cuéllar becomes the first Latin American to hold the title of Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The original American Telephone & Telegraph Company is divested of its 22 Bell System companies as a result of the settlement of the 1974 United States Department of Justice antitrust suit against AT&T.
The Isleta Pueblo tribe elect Verna Williamson to be their first female governor.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America comes into existence, creating the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States.
The Montreal Protocol comes into force, stopping the use of chemicals contributing to ozone depletion.
David Dinkins is sworn in as New York City's first black mayor.
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia: Czechoslovakia is divided into the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic.
The revolutionary leftist Zapatista Army of National Liberation initiated twelve days of armed conflict in the Mexican state of Chiapas.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) comes into effect.
The World Trade Organization, the international organization designed to supervise and liberalize international trade, came into being, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
The Draupner wave in the North Sea in Norway is detected, confirming the existence of freak waves.
Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU.
Argentinian physicist Juan Maldacena published a landmark paper initiating the study of AdS/CFT correspondence, which links string theory and quantum gravity.
Following a currency reform, Russia begins to circulate new rubles to stem inflation and promote confidence.
Greece adopts the Euro, becoming the 12th Eurozone country.
In a vote of confidence, General Pervez Musharraf wins 658 out of 1,170 votes in the Electoral College of Pakistan, and according to Article 41(8) of the Constitution of Pakistan, is "deemed to be elected" to the office of President until October 2007.
Jeanna Giese, the first known rabies survivor who did not receive the vaccine, was discharged from Children's Wisconsin.
Bulgaria and Romania join the EU.
Estonia officially adopts the Euro currency and becomes the 17th Eurozone country.
The Eurasian Economic Union comes into effect, creating a political and economic union between Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
The NASA space probe New Horizons flew by the trans-Neptunian object Arrokoth, making it the farthest object visited by a spacecraft.
Croatia officially adopts the Euro, becoming the 20th Eurozone country, and becomes the 27th member of the Schengen Area.
Artsakh ceases to exist.
Disney's copyright protection on Steamboat Willie and the original Mickey Mouse expires as they enter the public domain.
Bulgaria officially adopts the Euro, becoming the 21st Eurozone country.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India”?
A: 1877. 1877 — that’s 149 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “The first mobile phone call is made in Britain”?
A: 1985. 1985 — that’s 41 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
C: Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India. 1948: British Railways is created as the railways are nationalised · 1985: The first mobile phone call is made in Britain · 1877: Queen Victoria is proclaimed Empress of India Find it on the page
“British Railways is created as the railways are nationalised” happened in 1948. How many years ago was that?
C: 78 years. 2026 − 1948 = 78. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 1 January.
Pierre de Coubertin was a French educator and historian who is known as the father of the modern Olympic Games. In 1894 he helped to found the International Olympic Committee, which organises the Summer, Winter and Youth Olympics. He later became its second president. He also worked hard to bring more sport into French schools.
Well-known people who died on 1 January.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 1 January somewhere in the world.
New Year's Day is the first day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. It is one of the most celebrated public holidays in the world, often welcomed with fireworks at midnight and New Year's resolutions. The month of January is named after Janus, the Roman god of gateways and beginnings. In Japan, the New Year festival has been held on 1 January since 1873.
Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.
Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “January 1” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.