126 things happened on 3 January, from 106 BC to 2026. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1892 · 134 years ago
J. R. R. Tolkien was an English writer and a professor at the University of Oxford who studied the history of languages. He wrote the fantasy adventures The Hobbit, published in 1937, and The Lord of the Rings, published in 1954 and 1955. Both are set in an i…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
Captain James Onslow arrived at the Falkland Islands in the ship Clio to reassert British sovereignty, meaning Britain's right to rule them. The United Kingdom had sent two naval ships the month before. Britain had been in a dispute with the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata. They disagreed over who should govern the islands and over fishing rights.
UK story
American Revolutionary War: American forces commanded by George Washington defeated British troops at the Battle of Princeton (depicted).
UK story
Austria, the United Kingdom, and France form a secret defensive alliance against Prussia and Russia.
UK story
Second World War: As part of Operation Compass, Australian and United Kingdom forces attacked Italian forces at the Battle of Bardia in Egypt.
Pope Leo X issued an official document that excommunicated the German priest Martin Luther, cutting him off from the Catholic Church. Luther had refused to take back ideas from his Ninety-five Theses and other writings. A few weeks earlier, he had burned his copy of an earlier papal document that condemned his ideas. Luther's ideas launched the Protestant Reformation, which led to Protestant Christianity.
The Tokugawa shogunate, the military government that had ruled Japan since 1603, was abolished. This was part of the Meiji Restoration, which gave real power back to the Emperor of Japan, Emperor Meiji. It led to enormous changes in Japan. The country quickly built up its industries and took on Western ideas and technology.
Construction began on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City, United States. The bridge crosses the East River between Manhattan and Brooklyn. When it opened on 24 May 1883, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of about 486 metres. It was also the first fixed crossing of the East River.
The Hamilton Watch Company introduced the first electric watch. It was the first company to make and sell a wristwatch powered by a small battery. The battery powered the part that kept time, while tiny gears moved the hands. Electric watches were later replaced by quartz watches, which were more accurate and had fewer parts.
Several Caribbean islands that were part of the British Empire, including Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, joined together as the West Indies Federation. Its capital was Port of Spain, in Trinidad. The plan was for the federation to become independent from Britain as a single country. But disagreements about how it should be run led to its collapse in 1962.
Apple Computer was incorporated, which means it was officially set up as a company, by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. They had started the business the year before with a third partner, Ronald Wayne. The company changed its name to Apple Inc. in 2007, as it began making more electronic gadgets and not just computers. It is based in Cupertino, California.
China's Chang'e 4 spacecraft made the first ever soft, or gentle, landing on the far side of the Moon. It then sent out a small robot vehicle, the Yutu-2 rover, to explore. The far side always faces away from Earth, so we never see it from here. It is sometimes called the 'dark side', but it gets just as much sunlight as the side we see.
The Roman legions on the Rhine refuse to declare their allegiance to Galba, instead proclaiming their legate, Aulus Vitellius, as emperor.
By the Coonan Cross Oath, the Eastern Church in India cuts itself off from colonial Portuguese tutelage.
The first issue of Berlingske, Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, was published.
Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.
Joseph Jenkins Roberts is sworn in as the first president of Liberia.
American Civil War: Delaware votes not to secede from the United States.
In the Battle of Bapaume, an engagement in the Franco-Prussian War, General Louis Faidherbe's forces bring about a Prussian retreat.
Sino-French War: Beginning of the Battle of Núi Bop.
An earthquake registering 7.7 Mw destroyed Almaty in Russian Turkestan.
First Balkan War: Greece completes its capture of the eastern Aegean island of Chios, as the last Ottoman forces on the island surrender.
An Atlantic coast storm sets the lowest confirmed barometric pressure reading (955.0 mb (28.20 inHg)) for a non-tropical system in the continental United States.
Minnie D. Craig becomes the first woman elected as Speaker of the North Dakota House of Representatives, the first woman to hold a Speaker position anywhere in the United States.
The American health charity March of Dimes was founded as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis to help raise money for polio research.
Proceedings of the U.S. Congress are televised for the first time.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the central bank of the Philippines, is established.
Frances P. Bolton and her son, Oliver from Ohio, become the first mother and son to serve simultaneously in the U.S. Congress.
A fire damages the top part of the Eiffel Tower.
Alaska is admitted as the 49th U.S. state.
Cold War: After a series of economic retaliations against one another, the United States severs diplomatic relations with Cuba.
A protest by agricultural workers in Baixa de Cassanje, Portuguese Angola, turns into a revolt, opening the Angolan War of Independence, the first of the Portuguese Colonial Wars.
Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro.
CBS announced the sale of the New York Yankees professional baseball team to a group of investors headed by American businessman George Steinbrenner.
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, comes into force.
United States invasion of Panama: Manuel Noriega, the deposed strongman of Panama, surrendered to American forces outside the apostolic nunciature in Panama City.
In Moscow, Russia, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).
The Mars Polar Lander is launched by NASA.
Second Intifada: Israeli forces seized MV Karine A, which was carrying 50 tons of smuggled weapons on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.
The cryptocurrency network of bitcoin was created when Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first block of the chain.
For the first time in history, all five major storm surge gates in the Netherlands are closed simultaneously in the wake of a storm.
Singapore's Jurong Bird Park permanently closes.
The United States launches a military operation in Venezuela, capturing president Nicolás Maduro (pictured) and his wife.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year was J. R. R. Tolkien born?
A: 1892. 1892 — that’s 134 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year was Clement Attlee born?
A: 1883. 1883 — that’s 143 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
C: Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther. 1833: Britain reasserts its rule over the Falkland Islands · 1977: Apple Computer officially becomes a company · 1521: Pope Leo X excommunicates Martin Luther Find it on the page
“Britain reasserts its rule over the Falkland Islands” happened in 1833. How many years ago was that?
A: 193 years. 2026 − 1833 = 193. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 3 January.
UK story
J. R. R. Tolkien was an English writer and a professor at the University of Oxford who studied the history of languages. He wrote the fantasy adventures The Hobbit, published in 1937, and The Lord of the Rings, published in 1954 and 1955. Both are set in an imaginary land called Middle-earth. Tolkien is often called the 'father' of modern fantasy books.
UK story
Clement Attlee was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, just after the Second World War. During the war he served as deputy prime minister under Winston Churchill. Attlee's Labour government made big changes, including creating the National Health Service, or NHS, in 1948. He led the Labour Party for 20 years, longer than any other Labour leader.
Well-known people who died on 3 January.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 3 January somewhere in the world.
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 3” 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.