From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
December 25 is the 359th day of the year (360th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 6 days remaining.
Events
- 274 - Roman Emperor Aurelian has a temple dedicated to Sol Invictus on the supposed day of the solstice and day of rebirth of the Sun.
- 800 - Coronation of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor, in Rome.
- 1000 - The foundation of the Kingdom of Hungary: Hungary is established as a Christian kingdom by Stephen I of Hungary.
- 1066 - Coronation of William the Conqueror as king of England, at Westminster Abbey, London.
- 1223 - St. Francis of Assisi assembles the first Nativity scene.
- 1261 - John IV Lascaris of the restored Eastern Roman Empire is deposed and blinded by orders of his co-ruler Michael VIII Palaeologus.
- 1599 - The city of Natal, Brazil is founded.
- 1643 - Christmas Island founded and named by Captain William Mynors of the East India Ship Company vessel, the Royal Mary.
- 1650 - Thomas Cooper, former Usher of Gresham's School, England, hanged as a Royalist rebel.
- 1776 - George Washington and his army cross the Delaware River to attack the Kingdom of Great Britain's Hessian mercenaries in Trenton, New Jersey.
- 1818 - The first performance of "Silent Night" takes place in the Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria.
- 1837 - Battle of Lake Okeechobee: United States forces defeat Seminole Indians.
- 1868 - U.S. President Andrew Johnson grants unconditional pardon to all Civil War Confederate soldiers.
- 1868 - Shogunate rebels found Ezo Republic in Hokkaidō.
- 1914 - World War I: Known as the Christmas truce, German and British troops on the Western Front temporarily cease fire.
- 1917 - Why Marry?, first dramatic play to win a Pulitzer Prize, opens at the Astor Theatre in New York City.
- 1926 - Emperor Taishō of Japan dies. His son, Prince Hirohito succeeds him as Emperor Shōwa.
- 1932 - A magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Gansu, China kills ~70,000 people.
- 1939 - Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is read on the radio for the first time (CBS radio).
- 1939 - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is introduced by Montgomery Ward stores.
- 1941 - Admiral Chester W Nimitz arrives at Pearl Harbor to assume command of the U.S. Pacific Fleet
- 1941 - World War II: Battle of Hong Kong ends, beginning the Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong.
- 1947 - The Constitution of the Republic of China goes into effect.
- 1950 - The Stone of Scone, traditional coronation stone of British monarchs, is taken from Westminster Abbey by Scottish nationalist students. It later turns up in Scotland on April 11, 1951.
- 1965 - The Yemeni Nasserite Unionist People's Organisation is founded in Taiz
- 1968 - Apollo program: Apollo 8 performs the very first successful Trans Earth Injection (TEI) maneuver, sending the crew and spacecraft on a trajectory back to Earth from Lunar orbit.
- 1971 - In the longest game in NFL history (82m40s of game time), the Miami Dolphins defeat the Kansas City Chiefs at Kansas City Municipal Stadium 27-24.
- 1973 - The ARPANET crashes when a programming bug causes all ARPANET traffic to be routed through the server at Harvard University, causing the server to freeze.
- 1974 - Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin, Northern Territory Australia.
- 1974 - Marshall Fields drives a vehicle through the gates of the White House, resulting in a four-hour standoff.
- 1977 - Prime Minister of Israel Menachem Begin meets in Egypt with President of Egypt Anwar Sadat.
- 1979 - The Soviet Union airlifts forces into Afghanistan to begin its costly occupation.
- 1981 - After 6 years of hosting the daytime version of Wheel of Fortune, Chuck Woolery leaves the show. Pat Sajak takes over the show the following Monday.
- 1987 - In one of the highest-rated episodes in Coronation Street history, Hilda Ogden leaves her home of 23 years to be a char to her doctor in the country.
- 1989 - Nicolae Ceauşescu, former communist dictator of Romania, and his wife Elena are condemned to death and executed under a wide range of charges.
- 1991 - Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as president of the Soviet Union (the union itself is dissolved the next day).
- 2003 - The ill-fated Beagle 2 probe which was released from the Mars Express Spacecraft on December 19, disappears shortly before its scheduled landing.
- 2004 - Cassini orbiter releases Huygens probe which successfully landed on Saturn's moon, Titan on January 14, 2005.
Births
For the birth of Jesus, see the Christmas holiday, below.
- 1250 - John IV Lascaris, Eastern Roman Emperor (d. circa 1305)
- 1583 - Orlando Gibbons, English composer (d. 1625)
- 1587 - Margarita of Austria, queen of Philip III of Spain (d. 1611)
- 1628 - Noël Coypel, French painter (d. 1707)
- 1642 (O.S.) - Sir Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician (d. 1727)
- 1652 - Archibald Pitcairne, Scottish physician (d. 1713)
- 1665 - Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish songwriter (d. 1746)
- 1667 - Ehrengard von der Schulenburg, English royal mistress (d. 1743)
- 1674 - Thomas Halyburton, Scottish theologian (d. 1712)
- 1700 - Leopold II of Anhalt-Dessau, Prussian general (d. 1758)
- 1711 - Jean Joseph de Mondonville, French composer (d. 1772)
- 1716 - Johann Jakob Reiske, German scholar and physician (d. 1774)
- 1742 - Charlotte von Stein, German friend of Goethe (d. 1827)
- 1757 - Benjamin Pierce, U.S. politician (d 1839)
- 1763 - Claude Chappe, French telecommunications pioneer (d. 1805)
- 1771 - Dorothy Wordsworth, English diarist and sister of William Wordsworth (d. 1855)
- 1810 - Alexandros Rhizos Rhankaves, Greek poet and statesman (d. 1892)
- 1821 - Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross (d. 1912)
- 1856 - Hans von Bartels, German painter (d. 1913)
- 1861 - Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Indian founder of Banaras Hindu University (d. 1946)
- 1863 - Charles Pathé, French pioneer of film and record industries (d. 1957)
- 1865 - Evangeline Booth, the 4th General of The Salvation Army (d. 1950)
- 1875 - Theodor Cardinal Innitzer, Austrian archbishop (d. 1955)
- 1876 - Muhammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan (d. 1948)
- 1876 - Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus, Nobel laureate (d. 1959)
- 1878 - Louis Chevrolet, Swiss-born race car driver (d. 1941)
- 1883 - Maurice Utrillo, French artist (d. 1955)
- 1884 - Evelyn Nesbit, American actress (d. 1967)
- 1886 - Kid Ory, American musician (d. 1973)
- 1887 - Conrad Nicholson Hilton, American hotelier (d. 1979)
- 1890 - Robert Ripley, collector of odd facts (d. 1949)
- 1891 - Clarrie Grimmett, Australian cricketer (d.1980)
- 1899 - Humphrey Bogart, American actor (d. 1957)
- 1901 - Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (d. 2004)
- 1902 - Barton MacLane, American actor (d. 1969)
- 1904 - Gerhard Herzberg, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1999)
- 1906 - Lew Grade, Ukrainian-born film producer (d. 1998)
- 1906 - Ernst Ruska, Nobel laureate (d. 1988)
- 1907 - Cab Calloway, American bandleader (d. 1994)
- 1907 - Glenn McCarthy, American oil tycoon and businessman (d. 1988)
- 1907 - Mike Mazurki, Ukrainian-born actor (d. 1990)
- 1908 - Quentin Crisp, English author (d. 1999)
- 1908 - Jo-Jo Moore, baseball player (d. 2001)
- 1908 - Zora Arkus-Duntov, Belgian-American automotive engineer (d. 1996)
- 1912 - Tony Martin, American singer and actor
- 1912 - Natalino Otto, Italian singer (d. 1969)
- 1913 - Henri Nannen, German journalist (d. 1966)
- 1915 - Pete Rugolo, Italian-born composer
- 1918 - Anwar Sadat, President of Egypt, Nobel laureate (d. 1981)
- 1918 - Ahmed Ben Bella, politician, first President of Algeria
- 1919 - Paul David, French Canadian cardiologist, founder of the Montreal Heart Institute (d. 1999)
- 1919 - Naushad Ali, Indian music director (d. 2006)
- 1921 - Zaib-un-Nissa Hamidullah, Pakistani journalist (d. 2000)
- 1924 - Rod Serling, American television writer (d. 1975)
- 1924 - Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former Prime Minister of India
- 1925 - Carlos Castaneda, Peruvian-born author (d. 1998)
- 1927 - Nellie Fox, baseball player (d. 1975)
- 1928 - Dick Miller, American actor
- 1929 - Stuart Hall, British radio and television presenter
- 1929 - Chris Kenner, American singer and songwriter (d. 1976)
- 1930 - Emmanuel Agassi, father of Andre Agassi
- 1930 - Salah Jaheen, Egyptian poet and cartoonist (d.1986)
- 1932 - Mabel King, American actress (d. 1999)
- 1935 - Al Jackson, baseball player
- 1936 - Princess Alexandra of Kent
- 1936 - Ismail Merchant, Indian-born film producer (d. 2005)
- 1937 - O'Kelly Isley, Jr., American singer (The Isley Brothers) (d. 1986)
- 1940 - Pete Brown, English poet and lyricist
- 1943 - Hanna Schygulla, German actress
- 1943 - Wilson Fittipaldi, Brazilian racing driver
- 1944 - Jairzinho, Brazilian footballer
- 1944 - Kenny Everett, British entertainer (d. 1995)
- 1944 - Henry Vestine, American musician (d. 1997)
- 1945 - Noel Redding, English musician (d. 2003)
- 1945 - Rick Berman, Star Trek producer
- 1945 - Gary Sandy, American actor
- 1945 - Mike Pringle, Scottish politician
- 1946 - Jimmy Buffett, American singer and songwriter
- 1946 - Larry Csonka, American football player
- 1946 - Gene Lamont, American baseball player and manager
- 1948 - Barbara Mandrell, American singer and actress
- 1948 - Alia al Hussein, of Jordan (d. 1977)
- 1949 - Nawaz Sharif, Prime Minister of Pakistan
- 1949 - Sissy Spacek, American actress
- 1949 - Joe Louis Walker, American musician
- 1950 - Manny Trillo, baseball player
- 1950 - Karl Rove, American presidential advisor
- 1952 - CCH Pounder, Guyana-born actress
- 1952 - Desireless, French singer
- 1954 - Annie Lennox, Scottish singer
- 1954 - Steve Wariner, American country music singer
- 1955 - Alannah Myles, Canadian singer
- 1957 - Chris Kamara, English footballer and commentator
- 1957 - Shane MacGowan, Irish musician
- 1958 - Hanford Dixon, American football player
- 1958 - Rickey Henderson, baseball player
- 1959 - Michael P. Anderson, astronaut (d. 2003)
- 1961 - Ingrid Betancourt, Colombian senator
- 1962 - Dean Cameron, American actor
- 1962 - Darren Wharton, British Keyboardist (Thin Lizzy and Dare)
- 1964 - Gary McAllister, Scottish footballer
- 1967 - Jason Thirsk, American bass player (d. 1996)
- 1968 - Helena Christensen, Danish model
- 1968 - Jim Down, American ice hockey player
- 1971 - Dido, English singer
- 1971 - Justin Trudeau, Canadian media personality
- 1971 - Noel Hogan, Irish musician
- 1972 - Josh Freese, American drummer
- 1973 - Alexandre Trudeau, Canadian journalist
- 1973 - Robbie Elliott, English footballer
- 1974 - Nagma, Indian actress
- 1975 - Marcus Trescothick, English cricketer
- 1975 - Hideki Okajima, Japanese baseball player
- 1976 - Tuomas Holopainen, Finnish keyboardist
- 1976 - Armin van Buuren, Dutch keyboardist
- 1977 - Jim Greco, American skateboarder
- 1978 - Joel Porter, Australian footballer
- 1978 - Simon Jones, English cricketer
- 1980 - Marcus Trufant, American football player
- 1980 - Reika Hashimoto, Japanese actress
- 1980 - Locó, Angolan footballer
- 1981 - Katie Wright, American actress
- 1981 - Willy Taveras, baseball player
- 1982 - Shawn Andrews, American football player
- 1982 - Rob Edwards, Welsh footballer
- 1984 - Jessica and Lisa Origliasso, Australian pop singers
- 1984 - Alastair Cook, English cricketer
- 1984 - Georgia Moffett, British actress
- 1985 - Leon Pisani, Welsh singer
- 1986 - Doug Loft, English footballer
Deaths
- 795 - Pope Adrian I
- 1156 - Peter the Venerable, Benedictine abbot of Cluny (b. c. 1092)
- 1635 - Samuel de Champlain, French explorer and founder of Quebec City (b. 1567)
- 1676 - Matthew Hale, Lord Chief Justice of England (b. 1609)
- 1676 - William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle, English soldier (b. 1592)
- 1683 - Kara Mustafa, Ottoman general (b. 1634)
- 1758 - James Hervey, English clergyman (b. 1714)
- 1765 - Václav Prokop Diviš, Czech theologian and natural scientist (b. 1698)
- 1784 - Yosa Buson, Japanese painter (b. 1716)
- 1824 - Barbara Juliana, Baroness von Krüdener, Russian writer (b. 1764)
- 1868 - Linus Yale, Jr., American mechanical engineer and inventor (b. 1821)
- 1880 - Fridolin Anderwert, Swiss Federal Councillor (b. 1828)
- 1916 - St. Albert Chmielowski, Polish Catholic saint (b. 1845)
- 1921 - Vladimir Korolenko, Russian writer (b. 1853)
- 1925 - Karl Abraham, German psychoanalyst (b. 1877)
- 1926 - Emperor Taishō of Japan (b. 1879)
- 1933 - Francesc Macià, Catalonian statesman (b. 1859)
- 1935 - Paul Bourget, French novelist and critic (b. 1852)
- 1938 - Karel Capek, Czech author (b. 1890)
- 1940 - Agnes Ayres, American actress (b. 1898)
- 1946 - W. C. Fields, American comedian (b. 1880)
- 1950 - Neil Francis Hawkins, British fascist (b. 1903)
- 1953 - Patsy Donovan, Irish-born American baseball player (b. 1865)
- 1961 - Otto Loewi, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1873)
- 1961 - Owen Brewster, U.S. Senator from Maine (b. 1888)
- 1963 - Tristan Tzara, Romanian-born writer (b. 1896)
- 1971 - Maria Koepcke, ornithologist (b. 1924)
- 1973 - İsmet İnönü, Turkish statesman (b. 1884)
- 1973 - Gabriel Voisin, French aviation pioneer (b. 1880)
- 1977 - Charlie Chaplin, English actor (b. 1889)
- 1979 - Joan Blondell, American actress (b. 1906)
- 1983 - Joan Miró, Catalan painter (b. 1893)
- 1988 - Ooka Shohei, Japanese novelist (b. 1909)
- 1988 - Edward Pelham-Clinton, 10th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne (b. 1920), after whose death the title became extinct.
- 1989 - Nicolae Ceauşescu, Romanian dictator (executed) (b. 1918)
- 1989 - Elena Ceauşescu, Romanian politician (executed) (b. 1916)
- 1989 - Billy Martin, American baseball manager (b. 1928)
- 1992 - Monica Dickens, British writer (b. 1915)
- 1993 - Pierre Victor Auger, French physicist (b. 1899)
- 1994 - Zail Singh, President of India (b. 1916)
- 1995 - Dean Martin, American singer (b. 1917)
- 1997 - Denver Pyle, American actor (b. 1920)
- 1998 - John Pulman, English snooker player (b. 1926)
- 1999 - Peter Jeffrey, English actor (b. 1929)
- 2000 - Willard Van Orman Quine, American philosopher (b. 1908)
- 2002 - Laci Peterson, American murder victim (b. 1975)
- 2003 - Nicholas Mavroules, American politician (b. 1929)
- 2005 - Derek Bailey, English guitar virtuoso (b. 1930)
- 2005 - Birgit Nilsson, Swedish singer (b. 1918)
- 2005 - Robert Barbers, Philippine senator (b. 1944)
- 2006 - James Brown, American singer (b. 1933)
Holidays and observances
- Christmas Day is a Christian holiday on this day celebrating the nativity of Jesus. It is a public holiday in many countries, including almost everywhere in the Americas, most European nations, the Philippines and most of Oceania, some African countries, the Commonwealth of Nations, and various other places. Many non-Christians, including non-theists, celebrate secular aspects of the holiday without involving Jesus. Both Christians and non-Christians participate in activities such as decorating Christmas trees and exchanging gifts with family and friends. Some Christians celebrate Christmas on January 6, January 7, January 18, or even not at all.
References
External links
