December 15
Appearance
(Redirected from15 December)
December 15is the 349th day of the year (350th inleap years) in theGregorian calendar.There are 16 days remaining until the end of the year.
Events
[change|change source]Up to 1900
[change|change source]- 533– TheBattle of Ticameronbegins.
- 687–St. Sergius IbecomesPope.
- 1161-China:Militaryofficers conspire againstEmperor Hailingwang of Jin,of theJin Dynasty,and kill him in amilitarycoupnear theYangtze Riverfront.
- 1167-SicilianChancellorStephen du Perchemoves the royal court toMessinato prevent rebellion.
- 1256–Hulagu Khancaptures and destroys theHashshashinstronghold atAlamutin present-dayIran.
- 1467-Stephen III of MoldaviadefeatsMatthias CorvinusofHungary,with the latter being injured, at theBattle of Baia.
- 1640-John IV of PortugalbecomesKing.
- 1778-American Revolutionary War:BritishandFrenchfleets clash in theBattle of St. Lucia.
- 1791– TheUnited States Bill of Rightsis passed.
- 1864-American Civil War:Battle of Nashville- Union forces underGeorge Thomasalmost completely destroy theArmyofTennesseeunderJohn Hood.
- 1881- The El HabradaminAlgeriabreaks, resulting in afloodthat kills around 250 people.
- 1890–Native AmericanchiefSitting Bullis shot dead by Reservation police.
- 1891–James Naismithintroducesbasketball.
1901 – 2000
[change|change source]- 1905- The Pushkin House is founded inSt. Petersburg,Russia,to preserve the culturalheritageofAlexander Pushkin.
- 1913–Nicaraguabecomes a signatory to theBuenos Aires Convention.
- 1914– Agasexplosion at theMitsubishiHojyocoalmine,Kyushu,kills 687 people.
- 1914–World War I:TheBattle of Łódźends;Russiansretreat towardMoscow.
- 1914-World War I:TheSerbianarmyrecapturesBelgradefrom the invadingHungarianarmy.
- 1916–World War I:FrancedefeatsGermanyin theBattle of Verdun.
- 1917-World War I:Anarmisticeis reached betweenRussia's newBolshevikgovernmentand theCentral Powers.
- 1933- The 21st Amendment to theUnited StatesConstitutionbecomes effective, reversing the 18th Amendment, which had banned the sale, manufacture and transportation ofalcohol.
- 1939–Gone with the Windpremiers inAtlanta, Georgia.
- 1941–Holocaust:Nazitroops murder 15,000Jewsat Drobitsky Yar, nearKharkiv.
- 1943-World War II:TheBattle of Arawebegins during theNew Britaincampaign.
- 1945– GeneralDouglas MacArthurorders end ofShintoas state religion ofJapan.
- 1946- US-backedIraniantroops evict the leadership of the breakawayRepublic of Mahabad,putting an end to theIrancrisis of 1946.
- 1954– The Charter for theNetherlandsenters effect.
- 1957- The population ofMunichreaches one million.
- 1960–MahendraofNepalimposes direct rule.
- 1960-Richard Pavlikis arrested for plotting to kill US President-electJohn F. Kennedy.
- 1961– AnIsraeliwar crimestribunal sentencesAdolf Eichmannto die for his part in the JewishHolocaust
- 1965–Gemini program:Gemini 6Ais launched.
- 1967– The Silver Bridge over theOhioRiver collapses, killing 46 people.
- 1970–SovietspacecraftVenera 7successfully lands onVenus.
- 1970–South KoreanferryNamyong Ho capsizes inKorea Strait,killing 308 people.
- 1973–John Paul Getty IIIis found alive after being kidnapped inNaples,Italy,a few months earlier.
- 1973- TheAmerican Psychiatric Associationvotes 13-0 to removeHomosexualityfrom its list of psychiatricdisorders.
- 1976–Samoabecomes a member of theUN.
- 1976- Theoiltanker MVArgo Merchantruns aground offNantucket,Massachusetts,causing anoilspill.
- 1978- US PresidentJimmy Carterannounces that theUSis to start diplomatic relations with thePeople's Republic of Chinaand would therefore sever relations with theRepublic of China,exiledon the island ofTaiwan.
- 1979- The board gameTrivial Pursuitis created by Canadians Chris Haney and Scott Abbott.
- 1993-The Troubles:TheDowning StreetDeclaration is issued by British Prime MinisterJohn Majorand IrishTaoiseachAlbert Reynolds.
- 1994–Netscape Navigator1.0 is first released.
- 1994–Palaubecomes a member of theUN.
- 1995– TheEuropean Communities Court of Justicepasses theBosman ruling
- 1997– A charteredTupolevTU-154 fromTajikistancrashes in the desert near Sharja,United Arab Emiratesairport killing 85.
- 1997- TheTreaty of Bangkokis signed, makingSoutheast Asiaa nuclear weapon-free zone.
- 1999- After weeks of heavyrain,severallandslidesoccur in NorthernVenezuela,killing hundreds of people.
- 2000- The Third Reactor at theChernobylNuclear Pant in present-dayUkraineis shut down.
From 2001
[change|change source]- 2001– TheLeaning Tower of Pisais reopened to the public almost 12 years after it was closed for restoration.
- 2002–BBC 7,digital radio station,is launched inUK.
- 2004–David Blunkett,Home Secretary in the British Government, resigns over aVISAscandal.
- 2009– First flight of aBoeing 787
- 2010– A boat carrying about 90asylumseekers crashes on rocks offChristmas Island,killing around 30 people.
- 2011– American troops withdraw fromIraq.
- 2013- Thefuneraland burial ofNelson Mandelatake place in his home village ofQunu,Eastern Cape,South Africa.He had died onDecember 5at the age of 95 - SeeDeath and state funeral of Nelson Mandela.
- 2013-Michelle BacheletwinsChile'sPresidentialelection.She had previously served as president from2006until2010.
- 2014-2014 Sydney hostage crisis:Iranian refugee and known criminalMan Haron Monistakes several people hostage in a café inSydney,Australia.Thesiegeis ended early the next day in a gun battle in which the attacker and two hostages are killed.
- 2017-Star Wars: The Last Jediis released in theaters in theU.S.A.
Births
[change|change source]Up to 1900
[change|change source]- 37–Nero,Roman Emperor (d.68)
- 130-Lucius Verus,Roman Emperor {d.169}
- 1447–Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria(d.1508)
- 1567-Christoph Demantius,German composer (d.1643)
- 1588-Adolf Frederick I, Duke of Mecklenburg(d.1658)
- 1657-Michel Richard Delalande,Frenchcomposerandorganist(d.1726)
- 1686-Jean-Joseph Fiocco,Flemishcomposer(d.1746)
- 1719-Louis IX, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt(d.1790)
- 1760-David Heinrich Hoppe,Germanpharmacist,entomologistandphysician(d.1846)
- 1789-Carlos Soublette,11thPresidentofVenezuela(d.1870)
- 1796-Hiram Runnels,GovernorofMississippi(d.1857)
- 1810-Peter Andreas Munch,Norwegianhistorian(d.1863)
- 1832–Gustave Eiffel,Frencharchitect(d.1923)
- 1834-Charles Augustus Young,Americanastronomer(d.1908)
- 1852–Henri Becquerel,Frenchphysicist(d.1908)
- 1853-Francisco Silvela,Spanishhistorianandpolitician(d.1905)
- 1859–L. L. Zamenhof,creator ofEsperanto(d.1917)
- 1860–Niels Ryberg Finsen,Danishdoctor,won the 1903Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine(d.1904)
- 1861–Pehr Evind Svinhufvud,PresidentofFinland(d.1944)
- 1861-Charles Duryea,Americanengineer(d.1938)
- 1875-Emilio Jacinto,Filipinojournalistandrevolutionary(d.1899)
- 1878–Hans Carossa,German writer (d.1956)
- 1881–Eugen Bolz,German politician and Resistance activist (d.1945)
- 1885-Leonid Pitamic,Yugoslavianlegalphilosopheranddiplomat(d.1974)
- 1888-Maxwell Anderson,Americanjournalistandplaywright(d.1959)
- 1890-Harry Babcock,American pole vaulter (d.1965)
- 1892–J. Paul Getty,Americanoiltycoon (d.1976)
- 1894-Josef Imbach,Swiss sprinter (d.1964)
- 1896–Betty Smith,American writer (d.1972)
- 1899–Harold Abrahams,British sprinter (d.1978)
1901 – 1950
[change|change source]- 1902-Robert F. Bradford,57thGovernor of Massachusetts(d.1983)
- 1903-Tamanishiki San'emon,Japanesesumowrestler (d.1938)
- 1906-Edmond Debeaumarché,French resistance activist (d.1959)
- 1907–Oscar Niemeyer,Brazilian architect (d.2012)
- 1907-Gordon Douglas,American film director (d.1993)
- 1909-Sattar Bahlulzade,Azerbaijani painter (d.1974)
- 1910–John H. Hammond,American musician and record producer (d.1987)
- 1911–Stan Kenton,American musician (d.1979)
- 1916–Maurice Wilkins,New Zealand-bornphysicist(d.2004)
- 1916-Buddy Cole,Americanpianist(d.1964)
- 1917-Hilde Zadek,German operatic soprano (d.2019)
- 1918-Jeff Chandler,American actor, film producer and singer (d.1961)
- 1919-Max Yasgur,American farmer, owner of the site of the Woodstock festival (d.1973)
- 1920-Albert Memmi,Tunisian-French writer and essayist
- 1923–Freeman Dyson,English-American physicist
- 1923-Uziel Gal,German-Israeli firearms designer (d.2001)
- 1923-Inge Keller,German actress (d.2017)
- 1923-Valentin Varennikov,Sovietgeneralandpolitician(d.2009)
- 1928–Friedensreich Hundertwasser,Austrianartist(d.2000)
- 1928-Ida Haendel,Polish-Englishviolinist
- 1930-Edna O'Brien,Irish author
- 1931–Klaus Rifbjerg,Danish writer (d.2015)
- 1932-John Meurig Thomas,Welsh chemist
- 1933-Bapu,Indianmovie director(d.2014)
- 1933-Tim Conway,American comedian and actor (d.2019)
- 1933-Donald Woods,South Africanjournalistand Anti-Apartheidactivist(d.2001)
- 1934-Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed,PresidentofSomalia(d.2012)
- 1934-Mohamed Farrah Aidid,Somali leader (d.1996)
- 1934-Curtis Fuller,Americanjazzmusician
- 1936–Joe D'Amato,Italian movie maker (d.1999)
- 1938–Juan Carlos Wasmosy,formerPresidentofParaguay
- 1938-Bob Foster,American boxer (d.2015)
- 1939–Cindy Birdsong,American singer
- 1942–Kathleen Blanco,American politician, 54thGovernorofLouisiana(d.2019)
- 1942-Dave Clark,Englishdrummer,songwriterandproducer
- 1943-Lorenzo Piretto,Italianarchbishop
- 1944–Chico Mendes,Brazilian activist (d.1988)
- 1946-Carmine Appice,Americanrock musician
- 1948–Cassandra Harris,Australian actress (d.1991)
- 1949-Don Johnson,Americanactor,singerandproducer
- 1950-Melanie Chartoff,American actress and comedienne
1951 – 1975
[change|change source]- 1951-Joe Jordan,Scottishfootballerand manager
- 1952–Allan Simonsen,Danishfootballer
- 1952-Julie Taymor,Americandirector,producerandscreenwriter
- 1953-Robert Charles Wilson,American-Canadianscience fictionauthor
- 1954–Mark Warner,American politician
- 1955–Paul Simonon,English musician (The Clash)
- 1955–Renate Künast,German politician
- 1957-Laura Molina,Americansinger,guitarist,actressand painter
- 1957-Tim Reynolds,German-Americansinger-songwriterandmusician
- 1958-Alfredo Ormando,Italian writer (d.1998)
- 1958-Stephan Weil,German politician, Minister-President ofLower Saxonysince2013
- 1960-Irma Boom,Dutch graphic designer
- 1962–Gary Mason,British boxer (d.2011)
- 1963-Ellie Cornell,Americanactressandmovie producer
- 1963–Helen Slater,American actress
- 1964-Michael Le Vell,English actor
- 1964-Paul Kaye,Englishcomedian,actorandscreenwriter
- 1966-Carl Hooper,Guyanesecricketer
- 1966-Molly Price,American actress
- 1969–Chantal Petitclerc,Canadianwheelchairathlete
- 1970–Frankie Dettori,Italian jockey
- 1970-Lawrence Funderburke,Americanbasketballplayer
- 1970-Michael Shanks,Canadian actor
- 1971-Clint Lowery,Americansinger-songwriter,guitaristandproducer
- 1971-Arne Quinze,Belgian conceptualartist
- 1972-Kaye Wragg,English actress
- 1973-Ryoo Seung-wan,South Koreandirector,screenwriterandactor
From 1976
[change|change source]- 1976-Bhaichung Bhutia,Indianfootballer
- 1977–Dave Mackintosh,Scottish musician
- 1977-Mehmet Aurélio,Brazilian-Turkishfootballer
- 1978-Mark Jansen,Dutchguitarist
- 1979–Adam Brody,American actor
- 1980–Serge Pizzorno,English musician (Kasabian)
- 1981-Michelle Dockery,English actress
- 1981–Roman Pavlyuchenko,Russianfootballer
- 1981–Hossam Ghaly,Egyptianfootballer
- 1982-Charlie Cox,English actor
- 1983-Wang Hao,Chinesetable tennisplayer
- 1983–Delon Armitage,Englishrugbyplayer
- 1983–Ronnie Radke,American singer
- 1984-Kirsty Lee Allan,Australianactress
- 1984–Martin Skrtel,Slovakianfootballer
- 1986-Keylor Navas,Costa Ricanfootballer
- 1986-Kim Junsu,South Koreansinger-songwriterandactor
- 1986-Snejana Onopka,Ukrainianmodel
- 1988-Emily Head,English actress
- 1988-Steven Nzonzi,Frenchfootballer
- 1992-Jesse Lingard,Englishfootballer
- 1992-Sean Solia,Samoan cricketer
- 1993-Kyle Waddell,Scottishcurler
- 1994-Emma Lockhart,American actress
- 1998-Chandler Canterbury,American actor
Deaths
[change|change source]Up to 1950
[change|change source]- 1025–Basil II,Byzantine Emperor(b.958)
- 1072–Alp Arslan,Turkish sultan in Persia (b.1029)
- 1161-Emperor Hailingwang of JinofChina
- 1230-Ottokar I of Bohemia(b.1155)
- 1263– KingHaakon IV of Norway(b.1204)
- 1598–Philips van Marnix, lord of Sint-Aldegonde,Dutch writer and statesman (b.1538)
- 1621–Charles de Luynes,Constable of France (b.1578)
- 1673–Margaret Cavendish,English writer (b.1623)
- 1675–Johannes Vermeer,Dutch painter (b.1632)
- 1683–Izaak Walton,English writer (b.1593)
- 1715–George Hickes,English minister and scholar (b.1642)
- 1753–Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington,English architect (b.1694)
- 1792–Joseph Martin Kraus,Swedish composer (b.1756)
- 1855-Joseph Charles François Sturm,Frenchmathematician(b.1803)
- 1878-Alfred Bird,Englishchemistand manufacturer (b.1811)
- 1885-Ferdinand II of Portugal(b.1816)
- 1890–Sitting Bull,Sioux nation leader (b. c.1831)
- 1943–Fats Waller,American musician (b.1904)
- 1944–Glenn Miller,American musician (b.1904)
- 1950-Vallabhbhai Patel,Indian politician (b.1875)
From 1951
[change|change source]- 1953-Robert Stangland,American jumper (b.1881)
- 1958–Wolfgang Pauli,Austrian-born physicist,Nobel Prizelaureate (b.1900)
- 1962-Charles Laughton,English-Americanactor,directorandproducer(b.1899)
- 1966–Walt Disney,American animator (b.1901)
- 1968–Jess Willard,American boxer (b.1881)
- 1968-Antonio Barrette,18thPremierofQuebec(b.1899)
- 1974–Anatole Litvak,Ukrainian-born writer (b.1902)
- 1977-Wilfred Kitching,7thGeneralof theSalvation Army(b.1893)
- 1984–Jan Peerce,American tenor (b.1904)
- 1985–Seewoosagur Ramgoolam,Mauritianpolitician (b.1900)
- 1989–Arnold Moss,American character actor (b.1910)
- 1991–Vasily Zaytsev,Soviet World War II hero (b.1915)
- 2001–Rufus Thomas,American musician (b.1917)
- 2001 –Russ Haas,Pro Wrestler (b.1974)
- 2003–George Fisher,American political cartoonist (b.1923)
- 2006–Clay Regazzoni,Swiss racing driver (b.1939)
- 2007–Julia Carson,American politician (b.1938)
- 2008-León Febres Cordero,46thPresident of Ecuador(b.1931)
- 2009–Oral Roberts,Americantelevisionevangelist (b.1918)
- 2010–Blake Edwards,American movie director (b.1922)
- 2010 –Bob Feller,Americanbaseballplayer (b.1918)
- 2010 –Jean Rollin,French movie director and producer (b.1938)
- 2011–Christopher Hitchens,British-American writer, journalist and critic (b.1949)
- 2013-Joan Fontaine,British-American actress (b.1917)
- 2013 -Harold Camping,American evangelist andDoomsdaypredictor (b.1921)
- 2014-Chakri,Indianmoviecomposerandsinger(b.1974)
- 2014 -Mustapha Maarof,Malaysianactor(b.1935)
- 2015-Licio Gelli,Italian financier (b.1919)
- 2015 -Harry Zvi Tabor,British-Israeliphysicist(b.1917)
- 2016-Craig Sager,American sportscaster (b.1951)
- 2017-A. B. M. Mohiuddin Chowdhury,Bangladeshi politician (b.1944)
- 2017 -Reinhart Fuchs,Germanchessplayer (b.1934)
- 2017 -Ana María Vela Rubio,Spanishsupercentenarian(b.1901)
- 2017 -Heinz Wolff,German-British scientist and broadcaster (b.1928)
- 2018-Girma Wolde-Giorgis,President of Ethiopia(b.1924)
- 2018 -Philippe Moureaux,Belgian politician (b.1939)
- 2019-Nicky Henson,English actor (b.1945)
- 2019 -Chuck Peddle,American electrical engineer (b.1937)
Observances
[change|change source]- Homecoming Day (Alderney)
- Kingdom Day (Netherlands)
- Zamenhof Day (Esperanto)