● January 29 in History

1918 — Ukrainian-Soviet War: The Bolshevik Red Army, on its way to besiege Kyiv, is met by a small group of military students at the Battle of Kruty. The Ukrainian People’s Republic scores a strategic victory, delaying the capture of Kyiv and enabling it to conclude the Peace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. 1940 — Three trains carrying factory workers crash and explode while approaching Ajikawaguchi Station on the Nishinari Line (present-day Sakurajima Line), Osaka, Japan, killing at least 181 people and injuring at least 92. 1945 — Tom Selleck, American actor (“Magnum, P.I.”, “Three Men and a Baby”) and businessman, is born in Detroit, Michigan.

1950 — Jody Scheckter, South African race car driver (1979 Formula One world champion for Ferrari) and business proprietor, is born in East London.

1959 — Walt Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty”, based on the 1697 Charles Perrault fairytale “La Belle au bois dormant”, is released.

1971 —“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison hits No 1 on the UK pop chart. In the US and Britain, it is the first No 1 single by an ex-Beatle (after their breakup in 1970).

1983 — Singapore cable car crash: The derrick of the Panamanian-registered oil rig Eniwetok, being towed away from Keppel Wharf, strikes the cables of the Singapore Cable Car system linking the mainland and Sentosa Island, causing two cabins to plunge 55m into the sea, killing seven people and leaving 13 others trapped for hours. 1984 — Natalie du Toit, (OIG, MBE), South African swimmer, is born in Cape Town. She begins competing internationally at 14. In February 2001 her left leg is amputated at the knee after she is hit by a car while riding her scooter. The multiple Paralympic and Commonwealth Games gold medallist becomes the third amputee ever to qualify for the Olympics, placing 16th in the 10km open-water race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. 1989 — Cold War: Hungary formally establishes full diplomatic relations with South Korea, as announced during the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, making it the first Eastern Bloc nation to do so. Many other countries soon do likewise.

2014 — Rojava conflict: The people of the Afrin, Jazira and Kobane regions declare the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, from the Syrian Arab Republic. The conflict, which started on July 19 2012, is ongoing.