Fact: The Koala bear is not really a bear, but is really related to the kangaroo and the wombat.
On this day: 10/01/-49
Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war.
On this day: 10/01/9
The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and the beginning of his own, the Xin dynasty.
On this day: 10/01/69
Lucius Calpurnius Piso Licinianus is appointed by Galba as deputy Roman Emperor.
On this day: 10/01/236
Pope Fabian succeeds Anterus to become the twentieth pope of Rome.
On this day: 10/01/1072
Robert Guiscard conquers Palermo in Sicily for the Normans.
On this day: 10/01/1430
Philip the Good, the Duke of Burgundy, establishes the Order of the Golden Fleece, the most prestigious, exclusive, and expensive order of chivalry in the world.
On this day: 10/01/1475
Stephen III of Moldavia defeats the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Vaslui.
On this day: 10/01/1645
Archbishop William Laud is beheaded for treason at the Tower of London.
On this day: 10/01/1776
American Revolution: Thomas Paine publishes his pamphlet Common Sense.
On this day: 10/01/1791
The Siege of Dunlap's Station begins near Cincinnati during the Northwest Indian War.
Fact: A monkey was once tried and convicted for smoking a cigarette in South Bend, Indiana
Fact: Before air conditioning was invented, white cotton slipcovers were put on furniture to keep the air cool.
Fact: In 1865, the U.S. Secret Service was first established for the specific purpose to combat the counterfeiting of money
Fact: The only South East Asian country that has never been colonized by a Western Power is Thailand
On this day: 09/01/681
Twelfth Council of Toledo: King Erwig of the Visigoths initiates a council in which he implements diverse measures against the Jews in Spain.
On this day: 09/01/1127
Jin-Song Wars: Invading Jurchen soldiers from the Jin dynasty besiege and sack Bianjing (Kaifeng), the capital of the Song dynasty of China, and abduct Emperor Qinzong of Song and others, ending the Northern Song dynasty.
On this day: 09/01/1349
The Jewish population of Basel, believed by the residents to be the cause of the ongoing Black Death, is rounded up and incinerated.
On this day: 09/01/1431
The trial of Joan of Arc begins in Rouen.
On this day: 09/01/1760
Ahmad Shah Durrani defeats the Marathas in the Battle of Barari Ghat.
On this day: 09/01/1787
The nationally known image of the Black Nazarene in the Philippines was transferred from what is now Rizal Park to its present shrine in the minor basilica of Quiapo Church. This is annually commemorated through its Traslación (solemn transfer) in the streets of Manila and is attended by millions of devotees.
On this day: 09/01/1788
Connecticut becomes the fifth state to ratify the United States Constitution.
On this day: 09/01/1792
Treaty of Jassy between Russian and Ottoman Empire is signed, ending the Russo-Turkish War of 1787-92.
On this day: 09/01/1793
Jean-Pierre Blanchard becomes the first person to fly in a balloon in the United States.
On this day: 09/01/1799
British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the Napoleonic Wars.
Fact: The sentence "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every letter in the english language
Fact: For more than 3,000 years, Carpenter ants have been used to close wounds in India, Asia and South America
Fact: In the U.S., over one million gallons of cosmetics, drinks, and lotions are sold that contain aloe in them per year
On this day: 08/01/307
Jin Huaidi becomes emperor of China in succession to his father, Jin Huidi, despite a challenge from his uncle, Sima Ying.
On this day: 08/01/871
Æthelred I and Alfred the Great lead a West Saxon army to repel an invasion by Danelaw Vikings.
On this day: 08/01/1297
François Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, leads his men to capture the fortress protecting the Rock of Monaco, establishing his family as the rulers of Monaco.
On this day: 08/01/1454
The papal bull Romanus Pontifex awards the Kingdom of Portugal exclusive trade and colonization rights to all of Africa south of Cape Bojador.
On this day: 08/01/1499
Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany in accordance with a law set by his predecessor, Charles VIII.
On this day: 08/01/1547
The first Lithuanian-language book, the Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas, is published in Königsberg.
On this day: 08/01/1735
The premiere of George Frideric Handel's Ariodante takes place at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
On this day: 08/01/1746
Second Jacobite rising: Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.
On this day: 08/01/1790
George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address in New York City.
On this day: 08/01/1806
The Dutch Cape Colony in southern Africa becomes the British Cape Colony as a result of the Battle of Blaauwberg.
Fact: In 1631, two London bible printers accidentally left the word "not" out of the seventh commandment, which then read, "Thou shalt commit adultery." This legendary book is now known as the "Wicked Bible."
Fact: Before air conditioning was invented, white cotton slipcovers were put on furniture to keep the air cool.
Fact: Humans are born with 300 bones in their body, however when a person reaches adulthood they only have 206 bones. This occurs because many of them join together to make a single bone