December 16 is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 15 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
- 755 – An Lushan revolts against Chancellor Yang Guozhong at Fanyang, initiating the An Shi Rebellion during the Tang Dynasty of China.
- 1392 – Nanboku-chō – Emperor Go-Kameyama abdicates in favor of rival claimant Go-Komatsu.
- 1431 – Henry VI of England is crowned King of France at Notre Dame in Paris.
- 1497 – Vasco da Gama rounds the Cape of Good Hope, the point where Bartolomeu Dias had previously turned back to Portugal.
- 1575 – The 1575 Valdivia earthquake takes place.
- 1598 – Seven Year War: Battle of Noryang Point – The final battle of the Seven Year War is fought between the Korean and Japanese navies, resulting in a decisive Korean victory.
- 1653 – English Interregnum: The Protectorate – Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland.
- 1689 – Convention Parliament: The Declaration of Right is embodied in the Bill of Rights.
- 1707 – Last recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan.
- 1761 – Seven Years' War: After four-month siege, the Russians under Pyotr Rumyantsev take the Prussian fortress of Kolobrzeg.
- 1773 – American Revolution: Boston Tea Party – Members of the Sons of Liberty disguised as Mohawks dump crates of tea into Boston harbor as a protest against the Tea Act.
- 1811 – The first two in a series of severe earthquakes occur in the vicinity of New Madrid, Missouri. These three so-called Mega-quakes are believed to be an ongoing cataclysmic danger that could reprise the 1811-12 series of 2,000 quakes that affected the lands of what would be eight of today's heartland states of the United States.
- 1826 – Benjamin W. Edwards rides into Mexican controlled Nacogdoches, Texas and declares himself ruler of the Republic of Fredonia.
- 1838 – Battle of Blood River: Voortrekkers led by Andries Pretorius combat Zulu impis, led by Dambuza (Nzobo) and Ndlela kaSompisi in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
- 1850 – History of New Zealand: The Charlotte-Jane and the Randolph bring the first of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton, New Zealand.
- 1863 – American Civil War: Joseph E. Johnston replaces Braxton Bragg as commander of the Army of Tennessee.
- 1864 – American Civil War: Franklin-Nashville Campaign – Battle of Nashville – Major General George H. Thomas's Union forces defeat Lieutenant General John Bell Hood's Confederate Army of Tennessee.
- 1893 – Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, "From The New World" is given its world première at Carnegie Hall.
- 1907 – The Great White Fleet begins its circumnavigation of the world
- 1914 – World War I: German battleships under Franz von Hipper bombard the English ports of Hartlepool and Scarborough.
- 1920 – The Haiyuan earthquake, magnitude 8.5, rocks the Gansu province in China, killing an estimated 200,000.
- 1922 – President of Poland Gabriel Narutowicz is assassinated by Eligiusz Niewiadomski at the Zachęta Gallery in Warsaw.
- 1925 – Alpha Phi Omega national service fraternity is founded at Lafayette College.
- 1937 – Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe attempt to escape from the American federal prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay; neither is ever seen again.
- 1938 – Adolf Hitler institutes the Cross of Honor of the German Mother
- 1941 – World War II: Japanese occupy Miri, Sarawak
- 1942 – Holocaust: Porajmos – Heinrich Himmler orders that Roma candidates for extermination be deported to Auschwitz.
- 1944 – World War II: The Battle of the Bulge begins with the surprise offensive of three German armies through the Ardennes forest.
- 1946 – Léon Blum becomes Prime Minister of France.
- 1947 – William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain build the first practical point-contact transistor.
- 1949 – Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget, later knows as SAAB, is founded in Sweden.
- 1950 – President Harry S. Truman declares a state of emergency, after Chinese troops enter the fight with communist North Korea in the Korean War.
- 1957 – Sir Feroz Khan Noon replaces Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar as Prime Minister of Pakistan.
- 1960 – 1960 New York air disaster: While approaching New York's Idlewild Airport, a United Airlines Douglas DC-8 collides with a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation in a blinding snowstorm over Staten Island, killing 134.
- 1965 – Vietnam War: General William Westmoreland sends U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara a request for 243,000 more men by the end of 1966.
- 1971 – Bangladesh War of Independence and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan army brings an end to both conflicts.
- 1971 – Independence Day of the State of Bahrain from British Protectorate Status
- 1972 – Vietnam War: Henry Kissinger announces that North Vietnam has left private peace negotiations, in Paris.
- 1978 – Cleveland, Ohio becomes the first post-Depression era city to default on its loans, owing $14,000,000 to local banks.
- 1979 – Libya joins four other OPEC nations in raising crude oil prices, having an immediate dramatic effect on the United States.
- 1982 – The Federal Reserve announces that the operating capacity of factories has gone down to 67.8%.
- 1985 – Mafia: In New York City, Paul Castellano and Thomas Bilotti are shot dead on the orders of John Gotti, who assumes leadership of the Gambino family.
- 1986 – Revolt in Kazakhstan against Communist party, known as Zheltoksan, which becomes the first sign of ethnic strife during Gorbachev's tenure
- 1989 – Protests break out in Timişoara in response to an attempt by the government to evict dissident Hungarian pastor László Tőkés.
- 1989 – Walter LeRoy Moody begins his terrorist bombing streak when he sends Judge Robert Smith Vance a bomb in the mail, instantly killing him near his house in Birmingham, Alabama.
- 1991 – United Nations General Assembly: UN General Assembly Resolution 4686 revokes UN General Assembly Resolution 3379 after Israel makes revocation of resolution 3379 a condition of its participation in the Madrid Peace Conference of 1991.
- 1991 – Independence of The Republic of Kazakhstan.
- 1998 – Iraq disarmament crisis: Operation Desert Fox – The United States and United Kingdom bomb targets in Iraq.
- 2007 – Ron Paul raises a record amount of money online in a single day "money bomb": over six million dollars in 24 hours.
Births
- 1485 – Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England (d. 1536)
- 1584 – John Selden, English jurist and oriental scholar (d. 1654)
- 1614 – Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1674)
- 1714 – George Whitefield, English-born Methodist leader (d. 1770)
- 1716 – Louis-Jules Mancini-Mazarini, Duc de Nivernais, French diplomat and writer (d. 1798)
- 1717 – Elizabeth Carter, English writer (d. 1806)
- 1742 – Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, German Field Marshal (d. 1819)
- 1770 – Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (d. 1827)
- 1775 – Jane Austen, English writer (d. 1817)
- 1775 – François-Adrien Boïeldieu, French composer (d. 1834)
- 1776 – Johann Wilhelm Ritter, German physicist (d. 1810)
- 1778 – John Ordronaux, privateer of the War of 1812 (d. 1841)
- 1787 – Mary Russell Mitford, English writer (d. 1855)
- 1790 – King Léopold I of Belgium (d. 1865)
- 1804 – Viktor Bunyakovsky, Russian mathematician (d. 1889)
- 1834 – Léon Walras, French economist (d. 1910)
- 1861 – Antonio de La Gandara, French painter (d. 1917)
- 1863 – George Santayana, Spanish philosopher and writer (d. 1952)
- 1865 – Olavo Bilac, Brazilian poet (d. 1918)
- 1866 (N.S.) – Wassily Kandinsky, Russian-born French abstract painter (d. 1944)
- 1867 – Amy Carmichael, missionary in Dohnavur, India (d. 1951)
- 1869 – Hristo Tatarchev, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1952)
- 1872 – Anton Ivanovich Denikin, Russian general (d. 1947)
- 1882 – Sir Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (d. 1963)
- 1882 – Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer (d. 1967)
- 1882 – Walther Meissner, German physicist (d. 1974)
- 1883 – Max Linder, French pioneer of silent film (d. 1925)
- 1888 – King Alexander I of Yugoslavia (d. 1934)
- 1888 – Alphonse Juin, marshall of France (d. 1967)
- 1989 – Kim Jwa-jin, played an important role in the Korean Anarchist Movement
- 1899 – Sir Noel Coward, English playwright, actor and composer (d. 1973)
- 1900 – V. S. Pritchett, English author and critic (d. 1997)
- 1901 – Margaret Mead, American anthropologist (d. 1978)
- 1902 – Rafael Alberti, Spanish poet (d. 1999)
- 1905 – Piet Hein, Danish mathematician and inventor (d. 1996)
- 1906 – Barbara Kent, Canadian actress
- 1913 – George Ignatieff, Russian-born Canadian diplomat (d. 1989)
- 1915 – Turk Murphy, American trombonist (d. 1987)
- 1917 – Nabi Bux Khan Baloch, Sindhi scholar
- 1917 – Sir Arthur C. Clarke, English writer (d. 2008)
- 1918 – Pierre Delanoë, French songwriter and lyricist (d. 2006)
- 1922 – Cy Leslie, American music and video executive (d. 2008)
- 1923 – Menahem Pressler, German-Israeli pianist.
- 1926 – James McCracken, American tenor (d. 1988)
- 1927 – Randall Garrett, American writer (d. 1987)
- 1928 – Philip K. Dick, American writer (d. 1982)
- 1929 – Nicholas Courtney, English actor
- 1932 – Rodion Shchedrin, Soviet/Russian composer
- 1934 – Elgin Gay Baylor, NBA Hall of Famer
- 1936 – Morris Dees, founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center
- 1937 – Joyce Bulifant, American actress
- 1938 – Frank Deford, American sportswriter
- 1938 – Liv Ullmann, Norwegian actress
- 1941 – Lesley Stahl, American journalist
- 1942 – Donald Carcieri, American politician, governor of Rhode Island
- 1943 – Steven Bochco, American television producer and writer
- 1943 – Tony Hicks, English guitarist (The Hollies)
- 1944 – Don Meyer Basketball coach Northern State, Lipscomb, and Hamline
- 1945 – Patti Deutsch, American actress and Match Game panelist
- 1945 – Bobby George, English professional darts player
- 1945 – Yukio Hattori, Japanese Iron Chef commentator
- 1946 – Benny Andersson, Swedish musician, singer and songwriter (ABBA)
- 1946 – Trevor Pinnock, English conductor and harpsichordist
- 1947 – Ben Cross, English actor
- 1947 – Vincent Matthews, American sprinter
- 1948 – Christopher Biggins, English actor
- 1949 – Billy Gibbons, American guitarist (ZZ Top)
- 1950 – Claudia Cohen, American gossip columnist and socialite (d. 2007)
- 1950 – Roy Schuiten, Dutch cyclist (d. 2006)
- 1951 – Robben Ford, American guitarist
- 1952 – Joel Garner, Barbadian West Indies cricketer
- 1952 – Francesco Graziani, Italian footballer
- 1955 – Xander Berkeley, American actor
- 1955 – Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este
- 1957 – Antonio Vega, Spanish pop singer-songwriter (d. 2009)
- 1960 – Pat Van Den Hauwe, Belgian footballer
- 1961 – Bill Hicks, American comedian (d. 1994)
- 1961 – Jon Tenney, American actor
- 1962 – Maruschka Detmers, Dutch actress
- 1962 – William "The Refrigerator" Perry, American football player
- 1963 – Benjamin Bratt, American actor
- 1963 – Jeff Carson, American singer
- 1963 – James Mangold, American film director and screenwriter
- 1964 – Heike Drechsler, East German-born sprinter
- 1964 – Georgie Parker, Australian actress
- 1964 – Billy Ripken, American baseball player
- 1965 – Chris Jones, American baseball player
- 1965 – Melanie Sloan, American attorney
- 1965 – Nancy Valen, American actress
- 1966 – Clifford Robinson, American basketball player
- 1966 – Dennis Wise, English footballer
- 1967 – Donovan Bailey, Jamaican-born Canadian sprinter,
- 1967 – Mark Palmer, American-born Ambassador
- 1967 – Miranda Otto, Australian actress
- 1968 – Lalah Hathaway, American singer and daughter of (Donny Hathaway)
- 1971 – Michael McCary, American singer (Boyz II Men)
- 1971 – Seyhan Kurt, French-Turkish poet,writer
- 1971 – Paul van Dyk, German DJ
- 1972 – Angela Bloomfield, New Zealand actress
- 1972 – Charles Gipson, American baseball player
- 1972 – Željko Kalac, Australian soccer player
- 1973 – Themba Mnguni, South African footballer
- 1973 – Scott Storch, Canadian-American hip-hop producer
- 1974 – Frida Hallgren, Swedish actress
- 1975 – Valentin Bădoi, Romanian footballer
- 1975 – Nawo Kawakita, Japanese drummer (Maximum the Hormone)
- 1975 – Benjamin Kowalewicz, Canadian musician (Billy Talent)
- 1975 – Jonathan Scarfe, Canadian actor
- 1977 – Éric Bélanger, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1977 – Sylvain Distin, French footballer
- 1978 – Gunter Van Handenhoven, Belgian footballer
- 1978 – Kaine, American rapper (Ying Yang Twins)
- 1979 – Mihai Trăistariu, Romanian singer
- 1979 – Jessie Ward, American professional wrestler
- 1979 – Trevor Immelman, South African golfer
- 1979 – Flo Rida, American rapper
- 1981 – Anna Sedokova, Ukrainian singer
- 1981 – Took Leng How, Malaysian criminal (d. 2006)
- 1981 – Gareth Williams, Scottish footballer
- 1982 – Garnon Davies, Welsh actor
- 1982 – Antrel Rolle, National Football League defensive back
- 1983 – Kelenna Azubuike, English basketball player
- 1983 – Danielle Lloyd, English model
- 1985 – Keita Tachibana, member of Japanese boy band w-inds.
- 1987 – Beau Dowler, Australian rules footballer
- 1987 – Hallee Hirsh, American actress
- 1988 – Anna Popplewell, English actress
Deaths
- 705 – Empress Wu of Zhou (b. 625)
- 714 – Pippin of Herstal, Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia
- 867 – Eberhard of Friuli
- 999 – Saint Adelaide of Italy (b. 931)
- 1325 – Charles of Valois, son of Philip III of France (b. 1270)
- 1378 – Otto III of Montferrat
- 1379 – John Fitzalan, Marshal of England
- 1470 – John II, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1425)
- 1515 – Afonso de Albuquerque Portuguese naval general (b. 1453)
- 1598 – Yi Sun-sin, Korean admiral (b. 1545)
- 1669 – Nathaniel Fiennes, English politician (b. c. 1608)
- 1687 – William Petty, English scientist and philosopher (b. 1623)
- 1751 – Leopold II of Anhalt-Dessau, Prussian general (b. 1700)
- 1765 – Peter Frederick Haldimand, Swiss military officer and surveyor
- 1774 – François Quesnay, French economist (b. 1694)
- 1783 – Johann A. Hasse, German composer (b. 1699)
- 1783 – Sir William James, British naval commander (b. 1720)
- 1809 – Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist (b. 1755)
- 1859 – Wilhelm Grimm, German writer and folklorist (b. 1786)
- 1897 – Alphonse Daudet, French novelist and short story writer (b. 1840)
- 1898 – Pavel Tretyakov, Russian businessman and art collector (b. 1832)
- 1914 – Ivan Zajc, Croatian composer (b. 1832)
- 1921 – Camille Saint-Saëns, French composer (b. 1835)
- 1922 – Gabriel Narutowicz, first President of Poland (b. 1865)
- 1928 – Elinor Wylie, American poet and writer (b. 1885)
- 1935 – Thelma Todd, American actress (b. 1905)
- 1940 – Billy Hamilton, American baseball player (b. 1866)
- 1944 – Betsie ten Boom, sister of Corrie ten Boom and Holocaust victim.
- 1945 – Giovanni Agnelli, Italian automobile manufacturer (b. 1866)
- 1945 – Fumimaro Konoye, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1891)
- 1949 – Sidney Olcott, Canadian film director (b. 1873)
- 1956 – Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist (b. 1890)
- 1965 – W. Somerset Maugham, English writer (b. 1874)
- 1976 – Réal Caouette, French Canadian politician (Social Credit Party of Canada) (b. 1917)
- 1977 – Risto Jarva, Finnish filmmaker (b. 1934)
- 1980 – Colonel Sanders, American fast food entrepreneur (b. 1890)
- 1980 – Hellmuth Walter, German engineer and inventor (b. 1900)
- 1982 – Colin Chapman, English engineer and automobile manufacturer, founder of Lotus Cars (b. 1928)
- 1983 – Debs Garms, American baseball player (b. 1907)
- 1985 – Thomas Bilotti, American mafioso (b. 1940)
- 1985 – Paul Castellano, American mafioso (b. 1915)
- 1988 – Sylvester, American singer (b. 1948)
- 1989 – Óscar Alfredo Gálvez, Argentine racing driver (b. 1913)
- 1989 – Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (b. 1930)
- 1989 – Aileen Pringle, American actress (b. 1895)
- 1989 – Lee Van Cleef, American actor (b. 1925)
- 1990 – Douglas Campbell, American pilot (b. 1896)
- 1993 – Moses Gunn, American actor (b. 1929)
- 1993 – Tanaka Kakuei, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1918)
- 1993 – Charizma, American Hip-Hop MC (b. 1973)
- 1995 – Johnny Moss, American poker player (b. 1907)
- 1995 – Mariele Ventre, Italian choir director (b. 1939)
- 1996 – Quentin Bell, English art historian (b. 1910)
- 1997 – Lillian Disney, Wife of Walt Disney (b. 1899)
- 1997 – Nicolette Larson, American singer (b. 1952)
- 1998 – William Gaddis, American writer (b. 1922)
- 2001 – Stuart Adamson, English-born Scottish musician (The Skids, Big Country) (b. 1958)
- 2001 – Stefan Heym, German author (b. 1913)
- 2003 – Robert Stanfield, Premier of Nova Scotia (b. 1914)
- 2003 – Gary Stewart, American musician and songwriter (b. 1945)
- 2004 – Ted Abernathy, American baseball player (b. 1933)
- 2005 – Kenneth Bulmer, English author (b. 1921)
- 2005 – Ed Hansen, American film director and editor (b. 1937)
- 2005 – John Spencer, American actor (b. 1946)
- 2006 – Don Jardine, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1940)
- 2006 – Taliep Petersen, South African singer and composer (b. 1950)
- 2006 – Pnina Salzman, Israeli pianist (b. 1922)
- 2007 – Dan Fogelberg, American singer/songwriter (b. 1951)
Holidays and observances
External links
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