TODAY IN HISTORY

On Jan. 30, 1649, England’s King Charles I was executed for high treason.

In 1945, during World War II, a Soviet submarine torpedoed the German ship MV Wilhelm Gustloff

in the Baltic Sea with the loss of more than 9,000 lives, most of them war refugees; roughly 1,000 people survived.

In 1948, Indian political and spiritual leader Mohandas K. Gandhi, 78, was shot and killed in New Delhi by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu extremist.

In 1968, the Tet Offensive began during the Vietnam

War as Communist forces launched surprise attacks against South Vietnamese towns and cities.

In 1969, the Beatles staged an impromptu concert atop Apple headquarters in London; it was the group’s last public performance.

In 2020, the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a global emergency.