Today in History, January 14th
On January 14, 1784, Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris, ending the American Revolution. Plus the Dolphins' perfect season.
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January 14 is best known as the day in 1784 when the Continental Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris, formally ending the American Revolution. The date also saw the Miami Dolphins finish the NFL’s only perfect season in 1973 and the Huygens probe land on Saturn’s moon Titan in 2005.
The big story: Congress Ratifies the Treaty of Paris (1784)
The shooting had mostly stopped after Yorktown, but a war isn’t over until the paperwork says so. On January 14, 1784, the Continental Congress ratified the peace treaty that American diplomats had worked out with Britain in Paris. It is sometimes called the Second Treaty of Paris, since an earlier treaty signed in that city had ended the Seven Years’ War in 1763. The terms were generous to the new nation. Britain recognized the independence of the 13 former colonies and agreed on borders with what remained of British North America. American fishermen kept access to the rich Grand Banks off Newfoundland, and both countries claimed lasting rights to use the Mississippi River. Each side promised to free prisoners of war and let creditors collect old debts. Many promises proved hard to keep. British troops lingered in forts on the western frontier, and debt collection mostly went nowhere. Still, the United States was now officially a country.
More events on January 14
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1526 | Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and King Francis I of France signed the Treaty of Madrid, freeing Francis after his capture at the Battle of Pavia. |
| 1639 | Hartford, Windsor and Wethersfield adopted the Fundamental Orders, the first constitution in the American colonies. (Old Style date) |
| 1900 | Giacomo Puccini’s opera Tosca premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. |
| 1942 | President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a proclamation requiring noncitizens from Germany, Italy and Japan living in the U.S. to register with the Justice Department. |
| 1954 | Baseball star Joe DiMaggio married actress Marilyn Monroe at San Francisco City Hall. The marriage was short and stormy. |
| 1963 | George Wallace was inaugurated as governor of Alabama with a speech vowing to keep segregation. |
| 1967 | More than 20,000 people gathered in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park for the “Human Be-In,” a curtain-raiser for the Summer of Love. |
| 1970 | Diana Ross gave her final concert with the Supremes before going solo. |
| 1973 | The Miami Dolphins beat Washington 14-7 in Super Bowl VII, finishing a 17-0 season, the only perfect season in NFL history. |
| 2005 | The Huygens probe, carried to Saturn by NASA’s Cassini orbiter, landed on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. |
| 2011 | Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali stepped down amid mass protests, a turning point in the uprising known as the Jasmine Revolution. |
| 2024 | Queen Margrethe II of Denmark abdicated after 52 years on the throne, and her son became King Frederik X. |
Born on January 14
- 1741: Benedict Arnold, Revolutionary War general whose switch to the British side made his name a byword for treason.
- 1875: Albert Schweitzer, theologian, organist and mission doctor who won the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize.
- 1941: Faye Dunaway, actress known for Chinatown and Network.
Sources
- Continental Congress Ratifies the Treaty of Paris, History.com
- What Happened on January 14, History.com
- On This Day: January 14, Britannica
- Benedict Arnold, Britannica
- Albert Schweitzer, Britannica
- Faye Dunaway, Britannica
