Osun Defender History Corner: January 5 In Focus

Today, on the history corner, we take a trip in the realm of flashback and recall some events that marked this day.

January 5, 1066

Edward the Confessor, the King of England, passed away, leading to the events that culminated in the Norman Conquest later that year.

January 5, 1781

A British naval expedition led by Benedict Arnold burned Richmond, Virginia, during the American Revolutionary War.

January 5, 1895

French army officer Alfred Dreyfus was publicly stripped of his rank and sentenced to life in prison on charges of treason, in a controversial case known as the Dreyfus Affair.

January 5, 1925

Nellie Tayloe Ross became the first female governor in the United States, serving as the Governor of Wyoming.

January 5, 1949

The United Kingdom recognized the People’s Republic of China.

January 5, 1957

President Eisenhower announced the Eisenhower Doctrine, outlining U.S. policy in the Middle East.

January 5, 1969

The Soviet Union launched Venera 5, a spacecraft that would later successfully enter the atmosphere of Venus.

January 5, 1972

President Richard Nixon ordered the development of the Space Shuttle program.

January 5, 1993

The oil tanker MV Braer ran aground off the Shetland Islands, causing a major oil spill.

January 5, 1998

Sonny Bono, singer and politician, died in a skiing accident.

January 5, 2005

Eris, the largest known dwarf planet in our solar system, was discovered by astronomers.

January 5, 2010

A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti, causing widespread devastation and loss of life.

January 5, 2014

NASA’s spacecraft, Messenger, entered orbit around the planet Mercury.

January 5, 2015

Charlie Hebdo shooting in Paris, a terrorist attack targeting the satirical magazine’s offices.

January 5, 2019

The New Horizons spacecraft conducted a flyby of the Kuiper Belt object, Ultima Thule.

Please note that these are just a few historical events that happened on January 5. History is full of numerous other significant events on this day, ranging from politics and warfare to cultural and scientific milestones.