MONDAY, Jan. 5, 2026

1477-Battle of Nancy: Swiss Confederacy led by René II decisively defeats the Duchy of Burgundy, 7,000+ killed including the Duke of Burgundy Charles the Bold

1781-British naval expedition led by Benedict Arnold burns Richmond, Virginia

1919-German Workers' Party forms, precursor to the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi)

1930-Mao Zedong writes the essay "A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire" to criticize cadres not creating rural revolutionary base areas

1949-U.S. President Harry Truman labels his administration the "Fair Deal"

1972-U.S. President Nixon signs a bill for NASA to begin research on a manned space shuttle

1985-Operation Moses, covert airlifting of about 8000 Ethiopian Jews from war-torn Sudan to Israel via Belgium ends

1987-Surrogate Baby M case begins in Hackensack, New Jersey