What happened this day in history: January 17


1827 - The Duke of Wellington was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the British Army.
1871 - The first cable car was patented.
1912 - English explorer Robert Falcon Scott reached the South Pole. Norwegian Roald Admundsen had beaten him there, by one month.
1929 - Popeye made his first appearance in a comic strip.
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Hide Ad1939 - In Germany, Jews were banned from working as dentists, vets or pharmacists. They were also banned from driving and going to cinemas, theatres or concerts.
1977 - Capital punishment in the USA resumed after a ten-year hiatus, as convicted murderer Gary Gilmore was executed by firing squad in Utah
1983 - Breakfast TV began in Britain, with BBC’s ‘Breakfast Time’.
1991 - Operation Desert Storm began as Gulf War Allies sent hundreds of planes on bombing raids into Iraq.
2001 - The Scouts uniform was revamped and the motto ‘Be Prepared’ was brought back.