January 18
January 18 is the 18th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 348 days remain until the year's end. It falls in winter (northern hemisphere) and under the astrological sign of Capricorn.
External references
Curated jump-off points to the major almanacs, encyclopaedias and primary sources for this date.
Astronomy
On January 18 the Sun's declination is approximately -20.7°. At this latitude the Sun is south of the celestial equator, giving the Northern Hemisphere shorter days than nights.
For specific rise/set times at your location, see the U.S. Naval Observatory, or the NASA APOD archive for any imagery published on a January 18.
Position in the year
Holidays & observances
No widely-observed holidays catalogued for this day in our base set. See the external almanacs above for region-specific observances.
Events
A selection of widely-documented historical events that took place on this date. Years marked BCE follow standard astronomical convention.
1486 — Henry VII of England married Elizabeth of York, ending the Wars of the Roses. ↗(540 years ago)more
The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, and also the Cousins' War, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought for control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487.
1778 — Captain James Cook became the first European to discover the Hawaiian Islands. ↗(248 years ago)more
Captain James Cook was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer who led three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans between 1768 and 1779. He completed the first recorded circumnavigation of the main islands of New Zealand, and led the first recorded visit by Europeans to the east coast of Australia and the Hawaiian Isl...
1871 — Wilhelm I was proclaimed German Emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. ↗(155 years ago)more
Wilhelm I was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the first head of state of a united Germany. He was regent of Prussia from 1858 to 1861 for his elder brother, King Frederick William IV.
1919 — The Paris Peace Conference opened in Versailles, France. ↗(107 years ago)more
The Paris Peace Conference was a set of formal and informal diplomatic meetings in 1919 and 1920 after the end of World War I, in which the victorious Allies set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers.
Notable births
1689 — Montesquieu, French political philosopher. ↗(337 years ago)more
Charles Louis de Secondat, baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, intellectual, historian, and political philosopher.
1882 — A. A. Milne, English author (Winnie-the-Pooh). ↗(144 years ago)more
Alan Alexander Milne was an English writer best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh, as well as children's poetry. Milne was primarily a playwright before the huge success of Winnie-the-Pooh overshadowed his previous work.
1904 — Cary Grant, English-American actor. ↗(122 years ago)more
Cary Grant was an English-American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he was one of classic Hollywood's definitive leading men.
Notable deaths
1936 — Rudyard Kipling, English author and Nobel laureate. ↗(90 years ago)more
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English journalist, novelist, poet and short-story writer. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
Numerical & calendrical curiosities
| Day-of-year (18) | 2 × 3^2 · composite (no) |
|---|---|
| Days remaining (348) | 2^2 × 3 × 29 |
| Date code DDMMYYYY | 18012026 · no palindrome in next 200 years |
| Sun declination | -20.72° (Cooper approximation) |
| Distance from solstice | 29 days |