Today in history

On Jan. 20, 1942, Nazi officials held the notorious Wannsee conference, during which they arrived at their "final solution" that called for exterminating Europe's Jews.

In 1265, England's first representative Parliament met for the first time.

In 1649, King Charles I of England went on trial, accused of high treason (he was found guilty and executed by month's end).

In 1887, the U.S. Senate approved an agreement to lease Pearl Harbor in Hawaii as a naval base.

In 1936, Britain's King George V died after his physician injected the mortally ill monarch with morphine and cocaine to hasten his death; the king was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward VIII, who abdicated the throne 11 months later to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson.

In 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt became the first chief executive to be inaugurated on Jan. 20 instead of March 4.

In 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was sworn into office for an unprecedented fourth term.

In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Vice President Richard Nixon were sworn in for their second terms of office in a private Sunday ceremony (a public ceremony was held the next day).

In 1969, Richard M. Nixon was inaugurated as the 37th President of the United States.

In 1977, Jimmy Carter was inaugurated as the 39th President of the United States.

In 1981, Iran released 52 Americans it had held hostage for 444 days, minutes after the presidency had passed from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan.

“America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” — Alexis de Tocqueville, French author (1805-1859).