January 17 in History

Historical Events on January 17

1781 American Revolutionary War: Battle of Cowpens: Continental troops under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan defeat British forces under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton at the battle in South Carolina.

1799 Maltese patriot Dun Mikiel Xerri, along with a number of other patriots, is executed.

1915 Russia defeats Ottoman Turkey in the Battle of Sarikamish during the Caucasus Campaign of World War I.

1918 Finnish Civil War: The first serious battles take place between the Red Guards and the White Guard.

1944 World War II: Allied forces launch the first of four assaults on Monte Cassino with the intention of breaking through the Winter Line and seizing Rome, an effort that would ultimately take four months and cost 105,000 Allied casualties.

1961 U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers a televised farewell address to the nation three days before leaving office, in which he warns against the accumulation of power by the "military-industrial complex" as well as the dangers of massive spending, especially deficit spending.

1977 Capital punishment in the United States resumes after a ten-year hiatus, as convicted murderer Gary Gilmore is executed by firing squad in Utah.

1991 Gulf War: Operation Desert Storm begins early in the morning. Iraq fires eight Scud missiles into Israel in an unsuccessful bid to provoke Israeli retaliation.

1996 The Czech Republic applies for membership of the European Union.

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Famous Birthdays on January 17

1706 Benjamin Franklin

1863 David Lloyd George

1871 Nicolae Iorga

1942 Muhammad Ali

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Famous Deaths on January 17

1468 Skanderbeg

1961 Patrice Lumumba

2008 Bobby Fischer

2010 Jyoti Basu

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