January 13 in History: From Bacteria That Could Wrap the Milky Way to Wars, Tragedies and World-Changing Events

Did you know?

It is estimated that if all the world’s bacteria were stacked on top of each other, there would be so many that they would stretch for 10 billion light-years. Together, Earth’s 0.001mm-long microbes could wrap around the Milky Way over 20 000 times.

On this day, January 13

1653 The first wheat planted at the Cape is harvested.1662 Joanna van Riebeeck, daughter of Jan and Maria van Riebeeck, is born at the Cape.

1772 French explorer Marion du Fresne discovers Marion and Prince Edward islands – part of South Africa, in the Southern Ocean.

1797 A battle between a French ship of the line and two British frigates off a, France, ends with the French vessel running aground, resulting in over 900 deaths.

1842 Assistant surgeon William Brydon reaches the safety of a garrison in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He is the sole survivor of the slaughter by Afghan tribesmen of a British army of 4 500 men and 12 000 camp followers.

1849 British forces retreat in defeat at the Battle of Tooele, in the Second Anglo-Sikh War.

1911 Roald Amundsen anchors at Walvis Bay, south-west Africa, while on his way to leading the first expedition to reach the South Pole.

1915 South African troops occupy Swakopmund, in German South-West Africa (Namibia) in support of Britain against Germany in World War I.

1942 Henry Ford patents a plastic car, which is 30% lighter than a regular one.1951 A De Havilland Dove of United Airways crashes near Ixopo, killing 12 occupants.

1991 At least 40 soccer fans die in fighting at a stadium near Orkney.

1992 US serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer says he did rape and butcher 17 men and boys.

2004 British doctor Harold Shipman, thought to have killed more than 200 of his patients in Manchester, is found hanged in a prison cell.

2012 The cruise ship Costa Concordia capsizes off Italy after purposely sailing too close to an island. There are 32 deaths. The captain, who was later disgraced and jailed, is one of the first to leave the ship.

2018 A false alert about a missile strike causes panic in Hawaii.

2022 Britain’s Prince Andrew is stripped of his military titles and royal patronages by Buckingham Palace, amid continuing sexual assault allegations and repeat controversy.2025 China announces a record trade surplus of $990 billion, with the country now producing a third of the world’s manufactured goods.

2025 The world’s largest religious festival, the Mahakumbh Mela for 400 million people begins beside the Ganges River in Prayagraj, India. Held every 12 years, 2025 is the grand Kumbh Mela, held every 144 years.

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