December 29 is the 363rd day of the year (364th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are two remaining until the end of the year.
Events
- 1170 – Thomas Becket: Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, is assassinated inside Canterbury Cathedral by followers of King Henry II; he subsequently becomes a saint and martyr in the Anglican Church and the Roman Catholic Church.
- 1778 – American Revolutionary War: 3,500 British soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Campbell capture Savannah, Georgia without firing a shot.
- 1786 – French Revolution: The Assembly of Notables is convened.
- 1812 – The USS Constitution under the command of Captain William Bainbridge, captures the HMS Java off the coast of Brazil after a three hour battle.
- 1813 – British soldiers burn Buffalo, New York during the War of 1812.
- 1835 – The Treaty of New Echota is signed, ceding all the lands of the Cherokee east of the Mississippi River to the United States.
- 1845 – Texas is admitted as the 28th U.S. state.
- 1851 – The first American YMCA opens in Boston, Massachusetts.
- 1860 – The first British seagoing iron-clad warship, HMS Warrior is launched.
- 1876 – The Ashtabula River Railroad bridge disaster occurs, leaving 64 injured and 92 dead at Ashtabula, Ohio.
- 1890 – United States soldiers kill more than 200 Oglala Lakota men, women, and children with 4 Hotchkiss guns in the Wounded Knee Massacre.
- 1911 – Sun Yat-sen becomes the provisional President of the Republic of China; he formally takes office on January 1, 1912.
- 1911 – Mongolia gains independence from the Qing dynasty.
- 1930 – Sir Muhammad Iqbal's presidential address in Allahabad introduces the Two-Nation Theory and outlines a vision for the creation of Pakistan.
- 1934 – Japan renounces the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 and the London Naval Treaty of 1930.
- 1937 – The Irish Free State is replaced by a new state called Ireland with the adoption of a new constitution.
- 1939 – First flight of the Consolidated B-24.
- 1940 – World War II: In The Second Great Fire of London, the Luftwaffe firebombs London, killing almost 200 civilians.
- 1949 – KC2XAK of Bridgeport, Connecticut becomes the first Ultra high frequency (UHF) television station to operate a daily schedule.
- 1972 – An Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (a Lockheed Tristar) crashes on approach to Miami International Airport, Florida, killing 101.
- 1975 – A bomb explodes at La Guardia Airport in New York City, killing 11 people and injuring 74.
- 1989 – Riots break-out after Hong Kong decides to forcibly repatriate Vietnamese refugees.
- 1989 – Václav Havel is elected president of Czechoslovakia. He becomes the first non-Communist to attain the post in more than four decades.
- 1992 – Fernando Collor de Mello, president of Brazil, tries to resign amidst corruption charges, but is then impeached.
- 1996 – Guatemala and leaders of Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union sign a peace accord ending a 36-year civil war.
- 1997 – Hong Kong begins to kill all the nation's 1.25 million chickens to stop the spread of a potentially deadly influenza strain.
- 1998 – Leaders of the Khmer Rouge apologize for the 1970s genocide in Cambodia that claimed over 1 million.
- 2001 – A fire at the Mesa Redonda shopping center in Lima, Peru, kills at least 291.
Births
- 1709 – Empress Elizabeth of Russia (d. 1762)
- 1721 – Madame de Pompadour, mistress of King Louis XV of France (d. 1764)
- 1796 – Johann Christian Poggendorff, German physicist (d. 1877)
- 1800 – Charles Goodyear, American inventor (d. 1860)
- 1808 – Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States (d. 1875)
- 1809 – William Ewart Gladstone, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1898)
- 1816 – Carl Ludwig, German physician (d. 1895)
- 1843 – Elisabeth of Wied (pen name was Carmen Sylva), queen of Romania and writer (d. 1916)
- 1856 – Thomas Joannes Stieltjes, Dutch mathematician (d. 1894)
- 1859 – Venustiano Carranza, 54th President of Mexico (d. 1920)
- 1876 – Pablo Casals, Catalan musician (d. 1973)
- 1881 – Jess Willard, American boxer (d. 1968)
- 1896 – David Alfaro Siqueiros, Mexican painter (d. 1974)
- 1899 – Nie Rongzhen, People's Liberation Army Chief of General Staff (d. 1992)
- 1902 – Nels Stewart, National Hockey League player (d. 1957)
- 1908 – Helmut Gollwitzer, German theologian (d. 1993)
- 1910 – Ronald Coase, British economist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1914 – Billy Tipton, American musician (d. 1989)
- 1914 – Albert Tucker, Australian artist (d. 1999)
- 1915 – Bill Osmanski, American football player (d. 1996)
- 1917 – Tom Bradley, American politician (d. 1998)
- 1917 – Ramanand Sagar, Indian film director (d. 2005)
- 1920 – Viveca Lindfors, Swedish-American actress (d. 1995)
- 1921 – Robert C. Baker, Inventor of the chicken nugget (d. 2006)
- 1922 – William Gaddis, American writer (d. 1998)
- 1925 – Pete Dye, American golf course architect
- 1927 – Andy Stanfield, American athlete (d. 1985)
- 1928 – Bernard Cribbins, British actor
- 1931 – Prince Gu of Korea, Korean royalty (d. 2005)
- 1932 – Inga Swenson, American actress
- 1934 – Ed Flanders, American actor (d. 1995)
- 1936 – Mary Tyler Moore, American actress
- 1936 – Ray Nitschke, American football player (d. 1998)
- 1937 – Wayne Huizenga, American football team owner
- 1937 – Barbara Steele, British actress
- 1938 – Harvey Smith, English showjumper
- 1938 – Jon Voight, American actor
- 1941 – Ray Thomas, British musician (The Moody Blues)
- 1942 – Rick Danko, Canadian musician (The Band) (d. 1999)
- 1942 – Rajesh Khanna, Indian actor
- 1946 – Marianne Faithfull, British singer
- 1947 – Ted Danson, American actor
- 1947 – Cozy Powell, English rock drummer (d. 1998)
- 1947 – Vincent Winter, British actor (d. 1998)
- 1948 – Peter Robinson, first minister of Northern Ireland
- 1949 – Syed Kirmani, Indian cricket player
- 1949 – David Topliss, rugby league player
- 1950 – Jon Polito, American actor
- 1951 – Yvonne Elliman, American disco singer
- 1951 – Georges Thurston, Canadian singer (d. 2007)
- 1952 – Gelsey Kirkland, American dancer
- 1953 – Gali Atari, Israeli singer and actress
- 1953 – Alan Rusbridger, editor of The Guardian
- 1953 – Stanley Tookie Williams, American author/murderer (d. 2005)
- 1954 – Roger Voudouris, American singer (d. 2003)
- 1954 – Prince Takamado of Japan (d. 2002)
- 1956 – Fred MacAulay, Scottish comedian
- 1957 – Brad Grey, American film producer
- 1957 – Paul Rudnick, American screenwriter/playwright
- 1958 – Nancy J. Currie, American astronaut
- 1959 – Patricia Clarkson, American actress
- 1959 – Paula Poundstone, American comedian
- 1960 – David Boon, Australian Cricketer
- 1960 – Thomas Lubanga, founder and leader of Union of Congolese Patriots
- 1960 – Matthew Kandegas, American Painter
- 1961 – Kevin Granata, American associate professor at Virginia Tech, victim of the Virginia Tech massacre (d. 2007)
- 1961 – Jim Reid, Scottish singer (The Jesus and Mary Chain, Freeheat)
- 1962 – Blake Mitchell, American adult actress
- 1962 – Devon White, Jamaican baseball player
- 1963 – Francisco Bustamante, Filipino billiard player
- 1963 – Des Foy, British rugby league player
- 1963 – Dave McKean, British artist and filmmaker
- 1963 – Sean Payton, American football coach
- 1965 – Dexter Holland, American musician (The Offspring)
- 1966 – Stefano Eranio, Italian footballer
- 1966 – Martin Offiah, former rugby league footballer
- 1967 – Ashleigh Banfield, Canadian journalist
- 1967 – Chris Barnes, American singer
- 1967 – Andy Wachowski, American director
- 1967 – Evan Seinfeld, American musician (Biohazard) and actor
- 1969 – Jennifer Ehle, American actress
- 1969 – Allan McNish, Scottish race car driver
- 1970 – Aled Jones, Welsh singer
- 1970 – Hidetoshi Mitsusada, Japanese racing driver
- 1970 – Glen Phillips, American musician (Toad The Wet Sprocket)
- 1970 – Kevin Weisman, American actor
- 1971 – Margot Thien, American synchronized swimmer
- 1972 – Asheru, American rapper
- 1972 – Jason Kreis, American soccer player
- 1972 – Jude Law, British actor
- 1973 – Pimp C, American rapper (UGK) (d. 2007)
- 1973 – Theo Epstein, American baseball general manager
- 1974 – Mekhi Phifer, American actor
- 1974 – Richie Sexson, American baseball player
- 1975 – Jaret Wright, American baseball player
- 1976 – Danny R. McBride, American actor, writer, and producer
- 1976 – Filip Kuba, Czech hockey player, defenseman for the Ottawa Senators
- 1977 – Katherine Moennig, American actress
- 1977 – Jimmy Journell, American baseball player
- 1978 – Matthew Carr, Australian rules footballer
- 1978 – Alexis Amore, Peruvian pornographic actress
- 1978 – Kieron Dyer, English footballer
- 1978 – LaToya London, American singer
- 1978 – Steve Kemp, British musician (Hard-Fi)
- 1979 – Diego Luna, Mexican actor
- 1979 – Mitsuhiro Ishida, Japanese mixed-martial arts fighter
- 1979 – Ariel Schrag, American Cartoonist
- 1981 – Shizuka Arakawa, Japanese figure skater
- 1982 – Dale Morris, Australian rules footballer
- 1982 – Gabrielle Destroismaisons, Quebec singer
- 1983 – James Kelly, Australian rules footballer
- 1983 – Jessica Andrews, American country/pop singer
- 1985 – Cho Cho Cheng, Chinese American fashion designer
- 1986 – Kim Ok-bin, South Korean actress and model
- 1987 – Yuhi Sekiguchi, Japanese racing driver
- 1988 – Ágnes Szávay, Hungarian tennis player
- 1989 – Nathan Forbes, British footballer
- 1994 – Princess Kako of Akishino of Japan
Deaths
- 721 – Empress Gemmei of Japan (b. 661)
- 1170 – Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury (assassinated) (b. 1118)
- 1563 – Sebastian Castellio, French theologian (b. 1515)
- 1634 – John Albert Vasa, Polish bishop (b. 1612)
- 1661 – Antoine Gérard de Saint-Amant, French poet (b. 1594)
- 1689 – Thomas Sydenham, English physician (b. 1624)
- 1731 – Brook Taylor, English mathematician (b. 1685)
- 1737 – Joseph Saurin, French mathematician (b. 1659)
- 1785 – Johan Herman Wessel, Norwegian poet (b. 1742)
- 1825 – Jacques-Louis David, French painter (b. 1748)
- 1891 – Leopold Kronecker, German mathematician (b. 1823)
- 1894 – Christina Rossetti, English poet (b. 1830)
- 1897 – William James Linton, American wood engraver and political reformer. (b. 1812)
- 1916 – Grigori Rasputin, Russian monk (b. 1869)
- 1924 – Carl Spitteler, Swiss writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1845)
- 1926 – Rainer Maria Rilke, Austrian writer (b. 1875)
- 1929 – Wilhelm Maybach, German automobile designer (b. 1846)
- 1937 – Don Marquis, American author (b. 1878)
- 1953 – Violet MacMillan, American Broadway theatre actress(b. 1887)
- 1959 – Robin Milford, British composer (b. 1903)
- 1960 – Eden Phillpotts, British writer (b. 1862)
- 1960 – Philippe Panneton, Quebec physician, diplomat and writer (b. 1895)
- 1967 – Paul Whiteman, American musician and conductor (b. 1890)
- 1968 – Austin Farrer, English theologian and philosopher (b. 1904)
- 1970 – Marie Menken, American experimental filmmaker and socialite (b. 1909)
- 1976 – Ivo Van Damme, Belgian athlete (b. 1954)
- 1980 – Tim Hardin, American musician (b. 1941)
- 1980 – Nadezhda Mandelstam, Russian writer (b. 1899)
- 1981 – Miroslav Krleža, Croatian writer (b. 1893)
- 1986 – Harold Macmillan, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1894)
- 1986 – Andrei Tarkovsky, Russian director (b. 1932)
- 1988 – Mike Beuttler, British racing driver (b. 1940)
- 1993 – Frunzik Mkrtchyan, Soviet Armenian actor (b. 1930)
- 1995 – Lita Grey, American actress (b. 1908)
- 1996 – Mireille Hartuch, French singer and actress (b. 1906)
- 1998 – Jean-Claude Forest, writer and illustrator of comics (Barbarella) (b. 1930)
- 1999 – Leon Radzinowicz, British criminologist (b. 1906)
- 2001 – Takashi Asahina, Japanese conductor (b. 1908)
- 2003 – Earl Hindman, American actor (b. 1942)
- 2003 – Dinsdale Landen, English actor (b. 1932)
- 2003 – Bob Monkhouse, English comedian and game show host (b. 1928)
- 2004 – Julius Axelrod, American biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1912)
- 2004 – Liddy Holloway, New Zealand actress (b. 1947)
- 2004 – Ken Burkhart, American baseball player (b. 1915)
- 2005 – Gerda Boyesen, Norwegian-born body psychotherapist (b. 1922)
- 2007 – Phil O'Donnell, Scottish footballer (b. 1972)
- 2007 – Kevin Greening, British radio presenter (b. 1962)
- 2008 – Freddie Hubbard, American jazz trumpet player (b. 1938)
Holidays and observances
External links
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