A Day in the Past · history worksheet
On this day: 2 January
Name: Class: Date:
1. What happened on 2 January?
- 1492 Granada surrenders, ending Muslim rule in Spain
The Emirate of Granada, the last part of Spain under Muslim rule, surrendered to the Catholic Monarchs of Spain. - 1818 Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers
A group of six engineers founded the Institution of Civil Engineers in Britain. - 1860 Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of planet Vulcan
French mathematician Urbain Le Verrier told the French Academy of Sciences in Paris about the discovery of a new planet. - 1886 Born: Apsley Cherry-Garrard
Apsley Cherry-Garrard was an English explorer of Antarctica, the frozen continent around the South Pole. - 1900 The Chicago canal opens and makes a river flow backwards
The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal opened in Illinois, in the United States. - 1921 R.U.R., the play that introduced the word 'robot', is first performed
The science fiction play R.U.R. by the Czech writer Karel Čapek had its first performance, in a theatre in Hradec Králové. - 1959 The Soviet Union launches Luna 1 towards the Moon
The Soviet Union launched the spacecraft Luna 1 on a Vostok rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. - 2004 The Stardust probe collects dust from Comet Wild 2
NASA's Stardust space probe flew past Comet Wild 2 and collected tiny specks of dust from its coma, the cloudy envelope around a comet.
2. How long ago?
This year is 2026. Work out how many years ago each thing happened.
| Year | What happened | Sum | Years ago |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1492 | Granada surrenders, ending Muslim rule in Spain | 2026 − 1492 = | |
| 1860 | Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of planet Vulcan | 2026 − 1860 = | |
| 1900 | The Chicago canal opens and makes a river flow backwards | 2026 − 1900 = | |
| 1959 | The Soviet Union launches Luna 1 towards the Moon | 2026 − 1959 = |
3. Put them in order
Write 1 next to the oldest event, then 2, 3 and so on up to the newest. Use list 1 to help you!
- Granada surrenders, ending Muslim rule in Spain
- Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of planet Vulcan
- The Chicago canal opens and makes a river flow backwards
- Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers
4. Quick quiz
In which year did this happen: “Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers”?
- A. 1818
- B. 2004
- C. 1727
In which year was Apsley Cherry-Garrard born?
- A. 1860
- B. 1900
- C. 1886
Which of these happened first?
- A. Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers
- B. The Soviet Union launches Luna 1 towards the Moon
- C. Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of planet Vulcan
5. Draw it!
Draw your favourite event from 2 January. Then write a sentence about why you chose it.
Answers for teachers
How long ago: 1492 → 534 years; 1860 → 166 years; 1900 → 126 years; 1959 → 67 years.
Order: 1 = Granada surrenders, ending Muslim rule in Spain (1492), 2 = Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers (1818), 3 = Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of planet Vulcan (1860), 4 = The Chicago canal opens and makes a river flow backwards (1900).
Quiz: 1. A (1818); 2. C (1886); 3. A (Six engineers found the Institution of Civil Engineers).