On January 31, 1865, Congress passed the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, abolishing slavery in the United States.
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On January 31, 1946 the Constitution of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was adopted, creating six internal republics. The constitution, modeled on that of the Soviet Union, would serve at the supreme law of Yugoslavia throughout the Cold War, before the union dissolved in 1990.
On January 30, 2003, British-born Richard Reid was sentenced to life in a U.S. prison for attempting to destroy an American passenger plane using a bomb hidden in his shoe. Reid attempted to ignite an explosive device hidden in his shoe on a flight leaving Miami International Airport bound for Paris on December 21, 2001. [...]
On January 30, 1973, former Nixon aides G. Gordon Liddy and James W. McCord Jr. were convicted of conspiracy, burglary and wiretapping in connection with a politically-motivated break-in at the Watergate hotel. Read more about Liddy and McCord from the Washington Post.
On January 29, 1978, Sweden became the first country to outlaw aerosol sprays. The ban was enacted to address the harmful effects of aerosol on the Earth’s ozone layer. Read about aerosol sprays and the ozone layer of Earth’s atmosphere from NASA.
On January 29, 1979, kidnapped heiress Patty Hearst’s seven-year prison sentence for bank robbery as a member of the Symbianese Liberation Army was commuted by President Jimmy Carter. Hearst was later pardoned by President Bill Clinton.
On January 28, 1925, US Attorney General Harlan Fiske Stone became the first US Supreme Court nominee to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee, testifying for five hours.
On January 28, 1573, the Articles of the Warsaw Confederation were signed, opening religious freedom in Lithuania and Poland. The Confederation document statutized the Polish practice of tolerating different religions. Read the Articles of the Warsaw Confederation in the original Polish.
On January 27, 1973, representatives of the United States, North Vietnam, and South Vietnam signed the Paris Peace Accords, ending the Vietnam War. The United States’s chief negotiator, Dr. Henry Kissinger, was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for his role in concluding the treaty and ending hostilities. Read important excerpts from the Paris Peace [...]
On January 27, 1967, representatives of over 60 nations signed the “Outer Space Treaty” banning the orbiting of nuclear weapons. Review the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, Including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies.
