Iran Hostages Released: 444 Days of Captivity End as Reagan Is Sworn In
Iranian students seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran to demand the Shah's return for trial, trapping sixty-six Americans for 444 days and shattering diplomatic norms. The failed rescue attempt known as Operation Eagle Claw cost eight lives and forced a humiliating retreat that cemented deep mistrust between the two nations. This prolonged standoff ended only when the hostages walked free on January 20, 1981, immediately after Ronald Reagan's inauguration.
January 20, 1981
45 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on January 20
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Pope Fabian died under the sword during Emperor Decius’s systematic purge of Christians, becoming one of the first high-profile casualties of the Roman state’s …
en Europa, el rey visigodo Chindasvinto, instaura la monarquía hereditaria en Hispania al asociar al trono a su hijo Recesvinto.
King Chindasuinth crowned his son Recceswinth as co-ruler of the Visigothic Kingdom at the urging of Bishop Braulio of Zaragoza, securing a smooth dynastic succ…
le comte d'Anjou et du Maine Geoffroy Plantagenêt est intronisé comme le duc de Normandie Geoffroy V à Rouen.
Lalli, a Finnish peasant, struck down Bishop Henry on the frozen surface of Lake Köyliö after a dispute over food and hospitality. This act of violence transfor…
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