Year 1559
Queen Elizabeth I was crowned Queen of England at Westminster Abbey.
JANUARY 15
Daily Historical Chronicle
UPSC CSE • State PSC • SSC CGL Matrix
15 January: What Happened On This Day in History
Curated historical timeline of momentous political pacts, freedom struggle uprisings, constitutional developments, scientific breakthroughs, and prominent birthdays recorded on 15 January.
Year 1656
Chhatrapati Shivaji conquered Javali state.
Year 1761
Third Battle of Panipat ended.
Year 1784
Sir William Jones, Judge and linguist, and Sir Warren Hastings established the Asiatic Society of Bengal at Calcutta. This was the first scholastic institution.
Year 1861
Elisha G. Otis, the inventor, received the world’s first patent for a safe lift.
Year 1889
The Pemberton Medicine Company started in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. This company is currently known as The Coca-Cola Company.
Year 1934
A massive earthquake in Bihar killed about 20 thousand people.
Year 1948
Gandhiji hails Indian Cabinet's decision to release Pakistan dues of Rs. 550 million. Fast continues for establishment of communal peace.
Year 1949
K. M. Cariappa became the first Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army. Since then, 15 January celebrates as Army Day. He was the first Indian to reach to this post in Indian Army. In 1956, he was designated as Chief of the Army Staff - General, later Field Marshal. This event is commemoratively observed as Army Day.
Year 1958
Tamil becomes the official language of Madras.
Year 1965
Establishment of Food Corporation of India in Madras.
Year 1966
The Indian Air Force achieved equal status with the Army and possessed in excess of 70,000 personnel and was nearing its 45-squadron goal. Its composition in the autumn of 1968 included 23 fighter category squadrons, three tactical bomber squadrons, a maritime patrol squadron (with ex-Air India L. 1049G Super Constellations), 11 transport squadrons, four AOP squadrons, a number of helicopter units and a few SAM squadrons.
Year 1970
Muammar Gaddafi was proclaimed the premier of Libya.
Year 1973
General Gopal Gurunath Bevur became the 9th Chief of Army Staff of India. He is the first Maharashtrian to become Army Chief.
Year 1988
Former India bowler Narendra Hirwani took 16 wickets in his first Test match against West Indies.
Year 1988
Kiran More stumps five West Indian batsman at Chidambaram Stadium in Madras thus creating a world Test record.
Year 1993
PM asks for judicial probe into Bombay riots, sanctions Rs. 1 crore aid for victims.
Year 1996
The Boribunder (Victoria Terminus) station was renamed Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST).
Year 1996
Restoration of the original name of the city as "Mumbai" for Bombay Vide Maharashtra Act No, XXV of 1996.
Year 2000
Baba Amte, a social artist, receives Gandhi Peace Prize 1999, from President K. R. Narayanan.
Year 2001
Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia, became available on the Internet for the first time.
Born 1592
Shahjahan, great mughal emperor of India, was born at Lahore.
Born 1887
Shri Tripuraneni Ramaswamy Chowdary, freedom fighter and a great native poet, was born in village Angaluru, Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh.
Born 1888
Saifuddin Kitchen, an Indian freedom fighter, barrister, politician, and later a leader of the peace movement.
Born 1898
Nanasaheb Ramji Tawde, educationist and scientist, was born at Taluq Malvan, Maharashtra.
Born 1899
Musaffir, Giani Gurmukh Singh, writer and politician, was born at Udhwal (Pakistan).
Born 1917
K. A. Thangavelu, Indian film actor and comedian (d. 1994)
Born 1918
K.C.D. Brahaspati, great poet, playwright and orientalist, was born at Rampur, UP.
Born 1919
Ahmed Mohammad Mamsa, cricket Test Umpire for 6 tests from 1963-73, was born at Mumbai.
Born 1921
Babasaheb Bhosale, Indian lawyer and politician, 8th Chief Minister of Maharashtra (d. 2007)
Born 1926
Khashaba Jadhav, an Indian wrestler.
Born 1929
Martin Luther King Jr., an American Christian minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement
Born 1934
V. S. Ramadevi, an Indian civil servant who was the 13th Governor of Karnataka and 9th Chief Election Commissioner of India.
Born 1934
V. S. Ramadevi, Indian civil servant and politician, 13th Governor of Karnataka (d. 2013)
Born 1938
Chuni Goswami, Indian footballer and cricketer
Born 1947
Pritish Nandi, famous journalist, was born. Abul Kalam Azad became Minister of Education in the Government of India.
Born 1956
Mayawati, Indian educator and politician, 23rd Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh
Born 1967
Bhanupriya, an Indian film actress, Kuchipudi dancer, and voice artist.
Born 1973
Suparno Satpathy, a socio-political leader from the state of Odisha in India.
Born 1981
Pitbull, an American rapper.
Born 1984
Benjamin Shapiro, an American conservative political commentator, media host, and attorney.
Died 1916
Dinanath Dalal, an Indian painter, and illustrator.
Died 1919
Rosa Luxemburg, a Polish Marxist, philosopher, economist, anti-war activist, and revolutionary socialist.
Died 1956
Erach Jahangir Sorabji Taraporewala, famous Indian language expert, passed away.
Died 1971
Dinanath Damodar Dalal, great artist, passed away.
Died 1977
Rashid Ahmed Siddiqui, modern Urdu writer, passed away.
Died 1994
Harilal Upadhyay, a Gujarati novelist, and poet.
Died 1996
Mohsin Naqvi, a Pakistani poet.
Died 1994
Harilal Upadhyay, Indian author, poet, and astrologist (b. 1916)
Died 1998
Gulzarilal Nanda, an Indian politician, economist, and the second Prime Minister of India.
Died 1998
Binda Prasad Kashyap, 73, CPI leader, passed away in Nagpur.
Died 1999
Mi. Pa. Somasundaram (79), writer, poet, litterateur and associate of Rajaji, died in Chennai.
Died 2007
James Hillier, a Canadian-American scientist and inventor, and co-designer of the first successful high-resolution electron microscope.
Died 2012
Homai Vyarawalla, India’s first woman photojournalist.
Died 2014
Namdeo Dhasal, a Marathi poet, writer, and Dalit activist from Maharashtra, India.