17th January 1912

Robert Falcon Scott

Trying to be the first to reach the South Pole, the explorer Robert Falcon Scott and his five man team arrived to find that the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen and his team had beaten them to it.

Scott missed out on being first by 33 days. He and his team died on the return journey of hunger, exhaustion and the cold.

17th January 1773

Captain James Cook and the crew of the Resolution became the first people in recorded history to cross into the Antarctic circle.

They were searching for a great southern continent – Terra Australis. It’s thought that they got to within 100 miles of finding what we now call Antarctica but had to turn back because of the sea ice.

18th January 1871

Germany became a nation for the first time. It had previously been a collection of German-speaking states. The states were brought together through a mixture of diplomacy and wars. 

This was largely the work of the first chancellor of the German Empire Otto Von Bismarck also known as the ‘Iron Chancellor’. 

17th January 1973

ndira Gandhi became India’s third prime minister. She is the first and only female prime minister India has had. 

Gandhi was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru. He was the first prime minister of the Republic of India after it gained independence in 1947.

20th January

Many US presidents were inaugurated on this date. These include Donald Trump in 2017, Barack Obama in 2009 and John F. Kennedy in 1961. 

The inauguration is a ceremony that commences the four-year term of the president.

Each of their inaugurations took place at the Capitol Building in Washington DC.

21st January 1793

The French king Louis XVI was executed by guillotine on this day. 

The French revolution which started in 1789 had gradually reduced the king’s powers.

After the monarchy was abolished in 1792, Louis tried to plot to overthrow the government that had replaced him. When the plot was discovered he was put on trial, found guilty and then executed on what is now called Place de la Concorde.

21st January 1976

The Concorde plane took its first commercial flight. 

Concordes were able to fly at 1350 miles per hour – faster than the speed of sound!

The Concorde was able to fly from London to New York in just under three hours!

22nd January 1901

Queen Victoria died after reigning for nearly 64 years. At the time, she was the longest-reigning monarch in British history. Her son, Edward VII, succeeded her to become king.

23rd January 1849

Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive a medical degree in the US. Blackwell received her medical degree from the Geneva Medical College in New York.

Later in 1857, she founded the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. This was with the help of her sister who later received a medical degree.