Historical Events on January 26.

1.   Republic Day (India)

2.  1565, 26th Jan: Battle between the Vijayanagara Empire and the Deccan Sultan at Talikota. Rama Raya was defeated in this battle and unrestricted Muslim rule began in South India.

3.  1837, 26th Jan: Michigan became the 26th state of the United States.

4.  1876, 26th Jan: Railway service between Mumbai and Calcutta began.

5.  1924, 26th Jan: St. Petersburg renamed Leningrad in Russia.

6.  1931, 26th Jan: Mahatma Gandhi was released for talks with the British government during the ‘Civil Disobedience Movement’.

7.  1933, 26th Jan: The Indian National Congress began celebrating Independence Day on January 26, demanding complete independence instead of colonial independence.

8.  1949, 26th Jan: The first draft of the Constitution of India was approved.

9.  1950, 26th Jan: With the enactment of the Constitution of India, India became a sovereign republic. Dr. Rajendra Prasad was sworn in as the first President of India. H. J. Kaniya became the first Chief Justice of India.

10.  1950, 26th Jan: “Jan Gan Man” was recognized as the national anthem of India.

11.  1963, 26th Jan: Due to the amazing beauty of the peacock, the Government of India declared it a national bird on 26 January.

12.  1972, 26th Jan: The National Memorial Amar Jawan Jyoti was established at India Gate in Delhi.

13.  1981, 26th Jan: Keeping in mind the ease of air traffic in Northeast India, the air service Vayudoot started.

14.  2001, 26th Jan: A massive earthquake in the Kuchh region of Gujarat kills at least 20,000 people.

15.  2008, 26th Jan: NR Narayanamurthy was awarded ‘The Officer of the Legion of Ours’, the highest civilian honor of the Government of France.

Famous Birthdays & Birth Anniversaries on January 26.

1.   1874: Kalapi, an Indian-Gujarati poet and the Thakor of Lathi state in Gujarat.

2.  1915: K. S. Narasimhaswamy, an Indian poet in the Kannada language.

3.  1921: Akio Morita, a Japanese businessman and co-founder of Sony along with Masaru Ibuka.

4.  1956: P. C. Sreeram, an Indian cinematographer and film director.

5.  1958: Ellen Lee DeGeneres, an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer.

6.  1968: Ravi Teja, an Indian film actor who predominantly works in Telugu cinema.

7.  1980: Varun Grover, an Indian stand-up comic and poet. 

8.  1982: Mamta Kharab, the former captain of the Indian women’s hockey team.

Death Anniversaries of famous people on January 26.

1.   1823: Edward Jenner, an English physician, and scientist who pioneered the concept of vaccines including creating the smallpox vaccine, the world’s first vaccine.

2.  1875: George Finlay, a Scottish historian.

3.  1895: Arthur Cayley, a prolific British mathematician who worked mostly on algebra.

4.  2000: Alfred Elton van Vogt, a Canadian-born science fiction author.

5.  2015: R. K. Laxman, an Indian cartoonist, illustrator, and humorist.