In 1958 Mohandas Karamchand Ghandi (known as mahatma meaning great soul), the political leader of Indian Independence is assassinated on this day in 1958. His killer, Nathuram Godse, was a Hindu fanatic who shot him dead in New Delhi for his tolerance to Muslims.
In 1972 Pakistan withdrew their membership of the Commonwealth of Nations on the 30th of January 1972 and rejoined on the 1st of October 1989.
In 1647 The Scottish sold King Charles I to the English Parliament. Charles surrendered to the Scottish in the hope he would get a better deal with them than with the English parliament.
In 1661 The corpse of Oliver Cromwell is exhumed and decapitated. His head is placed on a spike outside Westminster until 1685 as a warning.
In 1660 Charles II is proclaimed King of England.
In 1649 King Charles I was executed for high treason after the defeat of his armies in the English Civil War. Sub sequentially on the 6th of February the Monarchy of England was abolished until Charles II reclaimed the throne in 1660.
