January 18
Contents
Events
- 532: The Nika riots are put down by General Belisarius. 30,000 rioters are slain in Constantinople.
- 1854: Greek guerrilas attack Turkish positions near Komboti, Arta, Epirus.
- 1913: The Naval Battle of Lemnos ends in Greek victory.
- 1916: The first evacuated Serb soldiers arrive in Kerkyra.
- 1936: Benjamin I is controversially elected Patriarch of Constantinople.
- 1957: EOKA guerilla fighter, Markos Drakos, is ambushed and slain by the British at Solea, Cyprus.
- 1982: A major earthquake (7.0 on the Richter scale) strikes off the coast of Thasos.
- 1996: Costas Simitis becomes leader of PASOK and Prime Minister of Greece
- 1997: A powerful earthquake (6.6 on the Richter scale) strikes Zakynthos.
- 2010: Greek-owned super-tanker, Maran Centaurus, was released by Somali pirates after a ransom was paid. Its crew of nine Greeks and 19 foreigners were unharmed.
Vasilis Tsitsanis was born this day
Sports
- 1899: The first football game in Patras is held as Panachaikos G.S. (ancestor of Panachaiki FC) defeat the team of British Ship «Boxier» 4-2.
Births
- 1913: Yiannis Papaioannou, rebetika songwriter.
- 1915: Vassilis Tsitsanis, composer.
Deaths
- 474: Leo I, Byzantine emperor
- 1957: Markos Drakos
- 1984: Vassilis Tsitsanis
- 1997: Paul Tsongas, Greek-American politician.
- 1998: Dan Georgiadis, football coach.
