December 27

December 27 is the 361st day of the year (362nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are four days remaining until the end of the year.

Events

• 537 – The Hagia Sophia is completed.
• 1512 – The Spanish Crown issues the Laws of Burgos, governing the conduct of settlers with regards to native Indians in the New World.
• 1657 – The Flushing Remonstrance is signed.
• 1703 – Portugal and England sign the Methuen Treaty which gives preference to Portuguese imported wines into England.
• 1814 – Destruction of schooner Carolina, the last of Commodore Daniel Patterson's make-shift fleet that fought a series of delaying actions that contributed to Andrew Jackson's victory at the Battle of New Orleans.
• 1831 – Charles Darwin embarks on his journey aboard the HMS Beagle, during which he will begin to formulate the theory of evolution.
• 1836 – The worst ever avalanche in England occurs at Lewes, Sussex, killing 8 people.
• 1845 – Ether anesthetic is used for childbirth for the first time by Dr. Crawford Williamson Long in Jefferson, Georgia.
• 1918 – The Great Poland Uprising against the Germans begins.
• 1922 – Japanese aircraft carrier Hōshō becomes the first purpose built aircraft carrier to be commissioned in the world.
• 1923 – Namba Daisuke, a Japanese student, tries to assassinate the Prince Regent Hirohito.
• 1932 – Radio City Music Hall opened in New York City.
• 1939 – Erzincan, Turkey was hit by an earthquake.
• 1942 – The Union of Pioneers of Yugoslavia is founded.
• 1945 – The World Bank was created with the signing of an agreement by 28 nations.
• 1949 – Indonesian National Revolution: The Netherlands officially recognizes Indonesian independence.
• 1968 – Apollo Program: Apollo 8 splashes down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first orbital manned mission to the Moon.
• 1978 – Spain becomes a democracy after 40 years of dictatorship.
• 1985 – Palestinian guerrillas kill eighteen people inside Rome and Vienna airports.
• 1996 – Taliban forces retake the strategic Bagram air base which solidifies their buffer zone around Kabul.
• 1997 – Protestant paramilitary leader Billy Wright is assassinated in Northern Ireland.
• 2001 – The People's Republic of China is granted permanent normal trade relations with the United States.
• 2002 – Two truck bombs kill 72 and wound 200 at the pro-Moscow headquarters of the Chechen government in Grozny, Chechnya.
• 2004 – Radiation from an explosion on the magnetar SGR 1806-20 reaches Earth. It is the brightest extrasolar event known to have been witnessed on the planet.
• 2007 – Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto is assassinated by a suicide bomber.
• 2008 – Israel launches 3-week operation on Gaza - Operation Cast Lead

Births

• 1390 – Anne de Mortimer, claimant to the English throne (d. 1411)
• 1571 – Johannes Kepler, German astronomer (d. 1630)
• 1654 – Jacob Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician (d. 1705)
• 1683 – Conyers Middleton, English minister (d. 1750)
• 1715 – Philippe de Noailles, duc de Mouchy, French soldier (d. 1794)
• 1717 – Pope Pius VI (d. 1799)
• 1721 – François Hemsterhuis, Dutch philosopher (d. 1790)
• 1761 – Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly, Russian military commander (d. 1818)
• 1773 – George Cayley, English scientist, inventor, and politician (d. 1857)
• 1776 – Nikolay Kamensky, Russian general (d. 1811)
• 1796 – Mirza Ghalib, Indian poet (d. 1869)
• 1803 – François-Marie-Thomas Chevalier de Lorimier, French Canadian Patriote (d. 1839)
• 1822 – Louis Pasteur, French scientist (d. 1895)
• 1823 – Sir Mackenzie Bowell, fifth Prime Minister of Canada (d. 1917)
• 1832 – Pavel Tretyakov, Russian businessman and patron of art (d. 1897)
• 1864 – René Georges Hermann-Paul, French artist (d. 1940)
• 1879 – Sydney Greenstreet, English actor (d. 1954)
• 1883 – Cyrus S. Eaton, Canadian-American financier, industrialist and philanthropist (d. 1979)
• 1888 – Thea von Harbou, German author and actress (d. 1954)
• 1892 – Alfred Edwin McKay, Canadian World War One flying ace (d. 1917)
• 1896 – Carl Zuckmayer, German author and dramatist (d. 1977)
• 1896 – Louis Bromfield, American writer (d. 1956)
• 1896 – Maurice De Waele, Belgian cyclist (d. 1952)
• 1900 – Hans Stuck, German race car driver (d. 1978)
• 1901 – Marlene Dietrich, German actress and singer (d. 1992)
• 1901 – Irene Handl, English actress (d. 1987)
• 1906 – Oscar Levant, American pianist, composer, and actor (d. 1972)
• 1907 – Sebastian Haffner, German journalist and writer (d. 1999)
• 1907 – Conrad L. Raiford, Goodwill Ambassador (d. 2002)
• 1907 – Willem van Otterloo, Dutch conductor and composer (d. 1978)
• 1909 – James Riddell, British champion skier and author (d. 2000)
• 1910 – Charles Olson, American poet (d. 1970)
• 1911 – Anna Russell, English-born Canadian singer and comedian (d. 2006)
• 1915 – Mary Kornman, American actress (d. 1973)
• 1915 – William Masters, American gynecologist (d. 2001)
• 1915 – Gyula Zsengellér, Hungarian footballer (d. 1999)
• 1916 – Werner Baumbach, German bomber pilot (d. 1953)
• 1917 – Onni Palaste, Finnish writer (d. 2009)
• 1918 – John Celardo, American comic strip artist
• 1920 – Bruce Hobbs, American jockey (d. 2005)
• 1925 – Michel Piccoli, French actor
• 1926 – Jerome Courtland, American actor, director and producer
• 1927 – Antony Gardner, British politician
• 1927 – Agnes Nixon, American television producer, director, and writer
• 1930 – Wilfrid Sheed, English-born American writer
• 1931 – Scotty Moore, American guitarist
• 1934 – Larissa Latynina, Russian gymnast
• 1939 – John Amos, American actor
• 1941 – Michael Pinder, British musician (Moody Blues)
• 1941 – Nolan Richardson, American basketball coach
• 1942 – Byron Browne, baseball player
• 1942 – Thomas Menino, American politician
• 1942 – Charmian Carr, American actress
• 1942 – Ron Rothstein, American basketball coach
• 1943 – Cokie Roberts, American journalist
• 1943 – Joan Manuel Serrat, Spanish musician
• 1943 – Peter Sinfield, British lyricist and producer
• 1944 – Barry Elliot British actor
• 1944 – Mick Jones, British musician (Foreigner)
• 1946 – Lenny Kaye, American guitarist
• 1946 – Janet Street-Porter, British journalist, producer and presenter
• 1947 – Bill Eadie, professional wrestler known as "Ax" of Demolition
• 1947 – Tracy Nelson, American blues singer
• 1947 – Mickey Redmond, National Hockey League player
• 1947 – Janet Perry, American soprano
• 1947 – Willy Polleunis, Belgian athlete
• 1948 – Gérard Depardieu, French actor
• 1950 – Roberto Bettega, Italian footballer
• 1950 – Terry Bozzio, American drummer (Missing Persons)
• 1950 – Morgan Chu, lawyer and intellectual property expert
• 1951 – Ernesto Zedillo, President of Mexico
• 1952 – Karla Bonoff, American singer and songwriter
• 1952 – Tovah Feldshuh, American actress
• 1952 – Jay Hill, Canadian politician
• 1952 – David Knopfler, British musician (Dire Straits)
• 1955 – Barbara Olson, American political commentator (d. 2001)
• 1955 – Brad Murphey, Australian racing driver
• 1959 – Gerina Dunwich, American author
• 1959 – Andre Tippett, American football player
• 1960 – Maryam d'Abo, British actress
• 1960 – Victoria Paige Meyerink, American actress and producer
• 1960 – Donald Nally, American choral conductor
• 1962 – Barbara Crampton, American actress
• 1962 – Mark Few, American basketball coach
• 1962 – Bill Self, American basketball coach
• 1962 – Sherri Steinhauer, American golfer
• 1963 – Gaspar Noé, Argentinian-born director
• 1964 – Ian Gomez, American actor
• 1964 – Theresa Randle, American actress
• 1965 – Salman Khan, Indian actor
• 1965 – Chris Mainwaring, Australian rules footballer (d. 2007)
• 1966 – Wendy Coakley-Thompson, American writer
• 1966 – Eva LaRue, American actress
• 1966 – Bill Goldberg, American football player and professional wrestler
• 1966 – Fabian Núñez, American politician
• 1969 – Jean-Christophe Boullion, French race car driver
• 1969 – Chyna, American professional wrestler
• 1969 – Sarah Vowell, American author and journalist
• 1970 – Brendon Cook, Australian racing driver
• 1970 – Lorenzo Neal, American football player
• 1971 – Duncan Ferguson, Scottish footballer
• 1971 – Bryan Smolinski, American ice hockey player
• 1972 – Thomas Wilson Brown, American actor
• 1972 – Colin Charvis, Welsh rugby union player
• 1972 – Matt Slocum, American musician (Sixpence None the Richer)
• 1973 – Kristoffer Zegers, Dutch composer
• 1973 – Wilson Cruz, Puerto Rican actor
• 1973 – Dee Ferris, British painter
• 1974 – Masi Oka, Japanese-American actor
• 1974 – Jay Pandolfo, American ice hockey player
• 1974 – Fumiko Orikasa, Japanese seiyū and singer
• 1974 – Edgar Ponce, Mexican actor and dancer (d. 2005)
• 1975 – Heather O'Rourke, American actress (d. 1988)
• 1976 – Fernando Pisani, Canadian/Italian ice hockey player
• 1976 – Aaron Stanford, American actor
• 1977 – Jacqueline Pillon, Canadian actress
• 1978 – Nikolaos Georgeas, Greek footballer
• 1979 – David Dunn, English footballer
• 1979 – Carson Palmer, American football player
• 1980 – Claudio Castagnoli, Swiss wrestler
• 1980 – Cas Haley, American singer and guitarist
• 1980 – Dahntay Jones, American basketball player
• 1981 – David Aardsma, American baseball player
• 1981 – Emilie de Ravin, Australian actress
• 1981 – Javine, British singer
• 1982 – James Mead, American guitarist (Kutless)
• 1982 – Terji Skibenæs, Faroese guitarist, (Týr)
• 1983 – Cole Hamels, American baseball player
• 1984 – Gilles Simon, French tennis player
• 1984 – Pleasure P, American R&B Singer. Former member of Pretty Ricky
• 1985 – Logan Bailly, Belgian football goalkeeper
• 1985 – Paul Stastny, Canadian-American ice hockey player
• 1988 – Rick Porcello, American baseball player
• 1988 – Hayley Williams, American singer for Paramore

Deaths

• 418 – Pope Zosimus
• 1076 – Prince Svyatoslav II of Kiev (b. 1027)
• 1381 – Edmund Mortimer, 3rd Earl of March, English politician
• 1548 – Francesco Spiera, Italian Protestant jurist (b. 1502)
• 1603 – Thomas Cartwright, English Puritan clergyman
• 1707 – Jean Mabillon, French palaeograopher and diplomat (b. 1632)
• 1737 – William Bowyer, English printer (b. 1663)
• 1743 – Hyacinthe Rigaud, French painter (b. 1659)
• 1771 – Henri Pitot, French engineer (b. 1695)
• 1782 – Henry Home, Lord Kames, Scottish philosopher (b. 1697)
• 1800 – Hugh Blair, Scottish preacher and man of letters (b. 1718)
• 1812 – Shneur Zalman of Liadi, Lithuanian rabbi and founder of Chabad Hasidism (b. 1745)
• 1812 – Joanna Southcott, an English self-described religious prophetess (b. 1750)
• 1834 – Charles Lamb, English essayist (b. 1775)
• 1836 – Stephen F. Austin, American pioneer (b. 1793)
• 1858 – Alexandre Pierre François Boëly, French composer (b. 1785)
• 1896 – John Brown, British manufacturer (b. 1816)
• 1900 – William George Armstrong, English inventor, industrialist, and engineer (b. 1810)
• 1914 – Charles Martin Hall, American chemist and inventor (b. 1863)
• 1923 – Gustave Eiffel, French engineer and architect (b. 1832)
• 1925 – Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet (b. 1895)
• 1938 – Calvin Bridges, American geneticist (b. 1889)
• 1938 – Osip Mandelstam, Russian poet (b. 1891)
• 1950 – Max Beckmann, German painter (b. 1884)
• 1952 – Patrick Joseph Hartigan, Australian Roman Catholic priest (b. 1878)
• 1953 – Julian Tuwim, Polish poet (b. 1894)
• 1955 – Alfred Francis Blakeney Carpenter, English soldier (b. 1881)
• 1956 – Lambert McKenna, Irish editor and lexicographer. (b. 1870)
• 1965 – Edgar Ende, German painter (b. 1901)
• 1966 – Guillermo Stábile, Argentine footballer (b. 1906)
• 1972 – Lester B. Pearson, fourteenth Prime Minister of Canada, recipient of the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1897)
• 1974 – Vladimir Aleksandrovich Fock, Russian physicist (b. 1898)
• 1978 – Bob Luman, American country and rockabilly singer (b. 1937)
• 1978 – Houari Boumédienne, President of Algeria (b. 1932)
• 1978 – Chris Bell American musician (b. 1951)
• 1979 – Hafizullah Amin, second President of Afghanistan (b. 1929)
• 1981 – Hoagy Carmichael, American composer and singer (b. 1899)
• 1982 – John Swigert, American astronaut (b. 1931)
• 1987 – Geoffrey D Lloyd, Chairman of the guild of British Newspaper editors (b. 1933)
• 1988 – Hal Ashby, American film director (b. 1929)
• 1992 – Kay Boyle, American writer (b. 1902)
• 1993 – André Pilette, Belgian racing driver (b. 1918)
• 1994 – Fanny Cradock, English food writer and broadcaster (b. 1909)
• 1994 – J. B. L. Reyes, Filipino jurist (b. 1902)
• 1995 – Shura Cherkassky, Ukrainian classical pianist (b. 1909)
• 1997 – Brendan Gill, American columnist and humorist (b. 1914)
• 1997 – Billy Wright, Irish Protestant paramilitary leader (b. 1960)
• 2002 – George Roy Hill, American film director (b. 1922)
• 2003 – Vestal Goodman, American Gospel singer
• 2003 – Alan Bates, English actor (b. 1934)
• 2003 – Iván Calderón, Puerto Rican baseball player (b. 1962)
• 2004 – Hank Garland, American musician (b. 1930)
• 2005 – William Doody, Canadian politician (b. 1931)
• 2007 – Benazir Bhutto, former Prime Minister of Pakistan (assassinated) (b. 1953)
• 2007 – Jerzy Kawalerowicz, Polish film director (b. 1922)
• 2007 – Jaan Kross, Estonian writer (b. 1920)
• 2008 – Delaney Bramlett, American musician (b. 1939)

Holidays and observances

• R.C. Saints – John the Apostle and Evangelist; Nicarete, an early Byzantine female physician.
• St. Stephen's Day among Orthodox Churches; a public holiday in Romania.
• The second day of Christmas in Western Christianity.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: December 27

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• On This Day in Canada