117 things happened on 5 January, from 1066 to 2024. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1933 · 93 years ago
Construction began on the Golden Gate Bridge in California, United States. The suspension bridge crosses the Golden Gate, a strait about 1.6 kilometres wide where San Francisco Bay meets the Pacific Ocean. It has spanned the strait since 1937, linking San Fra…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
The oil tanker MV Braer ran aground during a storm off Shetland, the most northerly part of the United Kingdom. More than 80,000 tons of crude oil, along with heavy fuel oil, spilled into Quendale Bay. It is thought of as the worst oil spill at sea in Scottish history.
UK story
American Revolutionary War: Richmond, Virginia, is burned by British naval forces led by former American general Benedict Arnold.
UK story
Irish nationalist leader John Edward Redmond calls for revolt against British rule.
UK story
Second World War: Australian and British troops defeated Italian forces in Bardia, Libya, the first battle of the war in which an Australian Army formation took part.
UK story
The Daily Mail becomes the first major London newspaper to be published on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Palais Garnier, one of the most famous opera houses in the world, opened in Paris. It was built between 1861 and 1875 for the Paris Opera, on the orders of Emperor Napoleon III. It is named after its architect, Charles Garnier, and has 1,979 seats. It is now used mainly for ballet.
The Ford Motor Company announced that its workers would have an eight-hour working day and earn at least $5 a day, including bonuses. At the time, the eight-hour day movement was campaigning to stop people being made to work very long hours. Ford, the car maker founded by Henry Ford in 1903, is based in Dearborn, Michigan, in the United States.
Nellie Tayloe Ross became Governor of Wyoming, the first woman to serve as governor of a US state. A governor is the head of a state's government. She served until 1927 and is still the only woman to have been Wyoming's governor. Later, from 1933 to 1953, she was the first woman to be director of the United States Mint.
Construction began on the Golden Gate Bridge in California, United States. The suspension bridge crosses the Golden Gate, a strait about 1.6 kilometres wide where San Francisco Bay meets the Pacific Ocean. It has spanned the strait since 1937, linking San Francisco to Marin County. It is one of the best-known symbols of San Francisco and California.
US President Richard Nixon announced the Space Shuttle programme. NASA's Space Shuttle was a reusable spacecraft that carried astronauts and cargo between Earth and orbit. The shuttles flew from 1981 to 2011. They made 135 missions and carried 355 astronauts from 16 countries.
A team led by astronomer Mike Brown discovered Eris, using pictures from the Samuel Oschin telescope at Palomar Observatory in California. Eris is a dwarf planet that travels around the Sun far beyond Neptune. It has more mass than Pluto, although Pluto is slightly bigger. It was named after the Greek and Roman goddess of strife, which means quarrelling and conflict.
Franco-Dutch War: French troops defeated Austrian and Brandenburg forces at the Battle of Turckheim (pictured) in Alsace.
The government of Central America votes for total annexation to the First Mexican Empire.
Te Kooti's War: After surviving a five-day siege in the pā at Ngātapa, Māori leader Te Kooti escaped from New Zealand's Armed Constabulary.
Kappa Alpha Psi, the world's third-oldest and largest black fraternity, is founded at Indiana University.
The sixth All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (Prague Party Conference) opens. In the course of the conference, Vladimir Lenin and his supporters break from the rest of the party to form the Bolshevik movement.
First Balkan War: The Battle of Lemnos begins; Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it did not venture for the rest of the war.
The Soviet Union recognizes the new pro-Soviet Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland.
In his State of the Union speech, U.S. president Harry S. Truman (pictured) announced: "Every segment of our population, and every individual, has a right to expect from his government a fair deal."
The play Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett receives its première in Paris.
In a speech given to the United States Congress, United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces the establishment of what will later be called the Eisenhower Doctrine.
Cultural Revolution: The Shanghai People's Commune is established following the seizure of power from local city officials by revolutionaries.
Alexander Dubček comes to power in Czechoslovakia, effectively beginning the "Prague Spring".
The Venera 5 space probe is launched at 06:28:08 UTC from Baikonur.
The Khmer Rouge announce that the new Constitution of Democratic Kampuchea is ratified.
Georgian troops attacked Tskhinvali, the South Ossetian capital, beginning the First South Ossetia War.
The embassy of the United States to Somalia was evacuated by helicopter airlift days after violence enveloped Mogadishu during the Somali Civil War.
The Taiwan High Speed Rail opened, connecting Taipei and Kaohsiung.
Mikheil Saakashvili was decisively re-elected as President of Georgia in "the first genuinely competitive presidential election" in the history of the country.
In Eng Foong Ho v Attorney-General, the Court of Appeal of Singapore held that equality before the law was satisfied by a "reasonable nexus" between state action and the object of the law.
A launch of the communication satellite GSAT-14 aboard the GSLV MK.II D5 marks the first successful flight of an Indian cryogenic engine.
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev dismisses Prime Minister Asqar Mamin and declares state of emergency over the 2022 Kazakh unrest.
The 2023 Sinaloa unrest begins.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “The oil tanker Braer runs aground off Shetland”?
B: 1993. 1993 — that’s 33 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year was Kathleen Kenyon born?
B: 1906. 1906 — that’s 120 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
A: Building work starts on the Golden Gate Bridge. 1933: Building work starts on the Golden Gate Bridge · 1993: The oil tanker Braer runs aground off Shetland · 2005: Astronomers discover Eris, a dwarf planet beyond Neptune Find it on the page
“Astronomers discover Eris, a dwarf planet beyond Neptune” happened in 2005. How many years ago was that?
B: 21 years. 2026 − 2005 = 21. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 5 January.
Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, film-maker and manga artist who co-founded Studio Ghibli in 1985. His animated films include My Neighbour Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Spirited Away and Ponyo. Spirited Away became Japan's highest-earning film and won an Academy Award. He is widely seen as one of the greatest film-makers in the history of animation.
UK story
Kathleen Kenyon was a British archaeologist, someone who learns about the past by digging up and studying ancient remains. From 1952 to 1958 she led the digs at Tell es-Sultan, the site of the ancient city of Jericho. She has been called one of the most influential archaeologists of the 20th century. Later she became head of St Hugh's College at the University of Oxford.
Well-known people who died on 5 January.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 5 January somewhere in the world.
Twelfth Night is the last night of the Twelve Days of Christmas and marks the end of the Christmas season. Some traditions hold it on 5 January and others on 6 January, the feast of Epiphany. In English-speaking countries, an old superstition says it is unlucky to take down Christmas decorations before Twelfth Night, or to leave them up after it. Other customs include eating king cake and singing carols.
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 5” 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.