/year

December 14 in history

198 sourced entries recorded on December 14, from 557 CE to 2025 CE. Every line is quoted from the revision it came from.

Events

  • 557The 557 Constantinople earthquake occurs.source
  • 835Sweet Dew Incident: Emperor Wenzong of Tang plots to free the court from the influence of his palace eunuchs. In the northeast sector of the capital, Chang'an, after the failure of the emperor's chancellor Li Zhongyan to subdue the eunuchs' influence, troops under the eunuchs' command slaughter many officials and other associates.source
  • 1287A huge storm and associated storm tide in the North Sea and English Channel, known as St. Lucia's flood in the Netherlands, kills thousands and reshapes the coastline of the Netherlands and England. In the Netherlands, a fringing barrier between the North Sea and a shallow lake collapses, causing the fifth-largest flood in recorded history – which creates the Zuider Zee inlet, and kills over 50,000 people. It also gives sea access to Amsterdam, allowing its development as an important port city.source
  • 1370Moscow and Lithuania reach a truce to end the Lithuanian siege and Grand Duke Algirdas and his Lithuanian forces withdraw.source
  • 1384The second assembly in 1384 of the English Parliament is adjourned.source
  • 1395By agreement with the Ottoman turks, Radič Crnojević, Lord of Zeta and Budva and his brother Dobrivoje Crnojević occupy the region of Grbalj in what is now Montenegro.source
  • 1417In punishment for his conviction for high treason against the Crown of England, Sir John Oldcastle, Baron Cobham, is hanged outside the church of St Giles in the Fields and then (carrying out the sentence for a prior conviction of heresy) burned, "gallows and all".source
  • 1431The first full meeting of the Roman Catholic council at Basel is convened, but Pope Eugene IV and the council members are not able to agree on principles.source
  • 1446King Henry VI summons the English Parliament to assemble at Cambridge on February 10.source
  • 1474Pietro Mocenigo is elected as the new Doge of the Republic of Venice 13 days after the death of the Doge Nicolò Marcello.source
  • 1481Ayas Pasha, the Ottoman Empire's sanjak of Bosnia, captures the city of Herceg Novi after a month-long siege when the Duke Vlatko Hercegović agrees to surrender.source
  • 1542Mary, Queen of Scots, aged six days, becomes queen regnant on the death of her father, James V of Scotland.source
  • 1585Nicholas Walsh, Church of Ireland Bishop of Ossory, is stabbed to death in his house in Kilkenny by a disaffected member of his flock.source
  • 1595Sultan Murad, 4th son of Emperor Akbar of the Mughal Empire invades Ahmednagar Sultanate which is defended by Chand Bibi.source
  • 1650Anne Greene is hanged at Oxford Castle in England for infanticide, having concealed an illegitimate stillbirth. The following day she revives in the dissection room and, being pardoned, lives until 1659.source
  • 1650domestic servant Anne Greene is hanged at Oxford Castle for infanticide, having concealed an illegitimate stillbirth. The following day she revives in the dissection room and, being pardoned, lives until 1665.source
  • 1654Jerónimo de Ataíde, Count of Atouguia, becomes Portugal's new Governor-General of Brazil, succeeding João Rodrigues de Vasconcelos e Sousa.source
  • 1683Dominic Maguire, O.P., is elected as Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland by the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith.source
  • 1692Maratha Empire General Santaji Ghorpade defeats Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's General Alimardan Khan, captures him and brings him back to fort Jinjee near Madras.source
  • 1697The coronation ceremony takes place for King Charles XII of Sweden.source
  • 1702John Churchill is created duke of Marlborough.source
  • 1706Spanish General Alexandre Maître, Marquis de Bay leads the successful capture of Alcántara from Portugalsource
  • 1708The première of Electre by Prosper Jolyot de Crébillon takes place in Paris.source
  • 1723Bernard O'Gara is selected to succeed Francis Burke as Roman Catholic Archbishop of Tuam.source
  • 1724The Viceroyalty of Zhili (modern-day Hebei province) is recreated in the Chinese Empire by the Emperor Yongzheng for the first time in 55 years, with Li Weijun as the first Viceory. Zhili exists as a viceroyalty until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912.source
  • 1751The Theresian Military Academy is founded in Wiener Neustadt, Austria.source
  • 1756Rev. John Home's tragedy Douglas is performed for the first time in Edinburgh, with overwhelming success, in spite of the opposition of the local church presbytery, who summon Alexander Carlyle to answer for having attended its representation. However, it fails in its early promise to set up a new Scottish dramatic tradition.source
  • 1756Rev. John Home's blank verse tragedy Douglas is performed for the first time, in Edinburgh, with considerable success, in spite of the opposition of the local church presbytery, who summon Rev. Alexander Carlyle to answer for having attended its representation; however, it fails in its early promise to set up a new Scottish dramatic tradition.source
  • 1757Battle of Khresili: King Solomon I of Imereti defeats the Ottoman army and an allied faction of nobles, in what becomes western Georgia.source
  • 1763The Paxton Boys massacre six Conestoga Indians in their homes in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. When the 16 survivors are sheltered in the Lancaster workhouse (jail), the Paxton Boys ride into town and kill them as well, on December 27.source
  • 1772Second voyage of James Cook: The crew of HMS Resolution finds that the ice floes encountered on their journey south are a source of fresh water, a "discovery... of utmost importance to the success of the voyage."source
  • 1772Russian government offices reopen at Moscow and Saint Petersburg after being closed for 15 months because of an epidemic of bubonic plague.source
  • 1780Alexander Hamilton marries Elizabeth Schuyler Hamiltonsource
  • 1782The Montgolfier brothers first test fly a hot air balloon in France; it floats nearly 2 km.source
  • 1782The Montgolfier brothers first test fly a hot air balloon in France; it floats nearly 2 kmsource
  • 1792the Society of United Irishmen circulates a pamphlet Address to the Volunteers, written by physician and poet William Drennan, which the authorities consider to be seditious.source
  • 1799The office of Lord High Chancellor of Sweden is abolished for the final time.source
  • 1810The UK's strongest ever recorded tornado strikes Portsmouth with a top wind speed of 213 to 240 mph (T8 (F4) rating).source
  • 1812The French invasion of Russia comes to an end as the remnants of the Grande Armée are expelled from Russia.source
  • 1816December 9–21 – The American Colonization Society is established, to support the emigration of free African Americans to Africa.source
  • 1819Alabama is admitted as the 22nd U.S. state.source
  • 1822The Congress of Verona ends having endorsed French Intervention in Spainsource
  • 1833Kaspar Hauser, the well known and mysterious German youth, is fatally stabbed. He dies three days later on December 17.source
  • 1833Kaspar Hauser, a mysterious German youth, is stabbed, dying three days later on 17 December.source
  • 1847Emily Brontë and Anne Brontë publish Wuthering Heights and Agnes Grey, respectively, in a 3-volume set under the pen names of Ellis Bell and Acton Bell in England.source
  • 1853Compagnie Générale des Eaux, predecessor of Vivendi and Veolia, a global media conglomerate, is founded in Paris, France.source
  • 1854Signing of a decree requiring the registration of all slaves in Overseas Provinces as libertos ("freed slave", but not with equal rights to a free born individual).source
  • 1855The Chilean Civil Code is passed into law by the Chilean Congress.source
  • 1872President Ulysses S. Grant establishes the San Carlos Apache Reservation, in southeastern Arizona.source
  • 1886Yoho National Park establishedsource
  • 1889In U.S. college football, Wofford and Furman play the first intercollegiate football game in the state of South Carolina, starting the Furman–Wofford football rivalry.source
  • 1896The Glasgow Subway, the third-oldest underground metro system in the world, opens.source
  • 1897Pact of Biak-na-Bato: The Philippine Revolution is settled, with Spanish promises to reform.source
  • 1897The Pact of Biak-na-Bato is signed between Governor-General Fernando Primo de Rivera and Emilio Aguinaldo, aiming to end the Philippine Revolution.source
  • 1899Walther Hauser is elected president by the Swiss Federal Assembly.source
  • 1900History of quantum mechanics: Max Planck presents his groundbreaking paper on quantum theory to the German Physical Society in Berlin.source
  • 1900On a date now considered to be the birthday of quantum mechanics, Max Planck presents his paper Zur Theorie des Gesetzes der Energieverteilung in Normalspektrum (On the Theory of the Law of Energy Distribution in Normal Spectrum) at a meeting of the German Physical Society in Berlin.source
  • 1901An earthquake estimated of magnitude 7.8 shakes Lucena, Tayabas (now Quezon province when re-established in 1946).source
  • 1903Cape Eastern – King William's Town to Middledrift, 33 mi.source
  • 1904The National Congress of Brazil approves a large naval acquisition programme.source
  • 1905December 7–18 – Moscow Uprising: A Bolshevik-led revolt is suppressed by the army.source
  • 1907The largest sailing ship ever built, the 7-masted U.S.-owned Thomas W. Lawson, is wrecked in the Isles of Scilly.source
  • 1909New South Wales Premier Charles Wade signs the Seat of Government Surrender Act 1909, formally completing the transfer of State land to the Commonwealth, to create the Australian Capital Territory.source
  • 1911Amundsen and Scott expeditions: Roald Amundsen's Norwegian expedition reaches the geographical South Pole, 34 days ahead of Capt. Scott. News of Amundsen's success will not reach the outside world until next March.source
  • 1911Roald Amundsen's Norwegian expedition becomes the first to reach the South Pole.source
  • 1915December 4–18 – The 'Peace Ship' Oscar II chartered by industrialist Henry Ford sails from Hoboken, New Jersey to Oslo on an independent and eventually unsuccessful mission to broker a peace conference.source
  • 1915December 9–14 – Sankebetsu brown bear incident: was the worst bear attack in Japanese history, killing seven settlers in Rokusensawa, Sankebetsu, Tomamae, Rumoi, Hokkaidō, Japan.source
  • 1918Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse renounces the Finnish throne.source
  • 1918Giacomo Puccini's comic opera Gianni Schicchi premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.source
  • 1918Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse renounces the Finnish throne, without setting foot in the country.source
  • 1924Earthquake centred on Corwen.source
  • 1925Wozzeck, Alban Berg's first opera, is premiered at the Berlin State Opera conducted by Erich Kleiber.source
  • 1927Iraq gains independence from the United Kingdom.source
  • 1937Many documents from the National Archives of Denmark, the Royal Danish Library and Copenhagen University Library relating to Norwegian conditions are transferred to Norway.source
  • 1939WWII: Winter War – The League of Nations expels the USSR for attacking Finland.source
  • 1940Plutonium is first synthesized in the laboratory, by a team led by Glenn T. Seaborg and Edwin McMillan, at the University of California, Berkeley.source
  • 1940British destroyers HMS Hereward and HMS Hyperion sink an Italian submarine off Bardia.source
  • 1944The Soviet government changes Turkish place names to Russian in Crimea.source
  • 1944The film National Velvet is released in the United States, bringing a young Elizabeth Taylor to stardom.source
  • 1946The International Labour Organization becomes a specialized agency of the United Nations.source
  • 1946Proposed United States purchase of Greenland from Denmark: An offer is made through diplomatic channels.source
  • 1946All-Malaya Council of Joint Action (AMCJA) was founded (dissolved in 1948).source
  • 1946Aspen Skiing Company opens Aspen Mountain (ski area) in Colorado with Ski Lift No. 1, at 7,980 ft the world's longest chairlift at this time.source
  • 1947Santiago Bernabeu Stadium is officially inaugurated in Madrid, and hosts its first Association football match.source
  • 1949Traicho Kostov, who until March was acting president of the Council of Ministers of Bulgaria, is sentenced to death for anti-Communist Party activity.source
  • 1952The first successful surgical separation of conjoined twins is conducted in Mount Sinai Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio.source
  • 1955Laos is admitted to the United Nations under United Nations Security Council Resolution 109.source
  • 1955The Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River, in New York State, opens to traffic.source
  • 1958The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first ever to reach the Southern Pole of Inaccessibility.source
  • 1959Makarios III is selected as the first president of Cyprus.source
  • 1960Antoine Gizenga proclaims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that he has taken over as the country's premier.source
  • 1961Walt Disney's first live-action Technicolor musical, Babes in Toyland, a remake of the famous Victor Herbert operetta, is released, but flops at the box office.source
  • 1962U.S. spacecraft Mariner 2 passes by Venus, becoming the first spacecraft to transmit data from another planet.source
  • 1962Leonardo da Vinci's early 16th-century painting the Mona Lisa is assessed for insurance purposes at US$100 million before touring the United States for several months, the highest insurance value for a painting in history. However, the Louvre, its owner, chooses to spend the money that would have been spent on the insurance premium on security instead.source
  • 1964Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States (379 US 241 1964): The U.S. Supreme Court rules that, in accordance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, establishments providing public accommodation must refrain from racial discrimination.source
  • 1968Yotam Ottolenghi, chefsource
  • 1972Apollo program: Eugene Cernan becomes the last person to walk on the Moon until 2028 at the earliest, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of Apollo 17.source
  • 1973Rhodesia executes two Blacks at Salisbury Central Prison for murder.source
  • 1976The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) was incorporated.source
  • 1981December 14–15. Rallies at Warsaw University, Wrocław University of Technology and Warsaw University of Technology.source
  • 1984U.N. Security Council resolution 559 was adopted unanimously.source
  • 1984The Netherlands men's national field hockey team end 4th at the Champions Trophy tournament in Karachi, Pakistan.source
  • 1986Rutan Voyager, an experimental aircraft designed by Burt Rutan and piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, begins its flight around the world from Edwards Air Force Base in the United States.source
  • 1989Chile holds its first free election in sixteen years, electing Patricio Aylwin as president. This marks the first time that all Ibero-American nations, except Cuba, have elected constitutional governments simultaneously.source
  • 1994Construction commences on the Three Gorges Dam, at Sandouping, China.source
  • 1995The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris, officially ending the Bosnian War.source
  • 1998The Yugoslav Army ambushes a column of 140 Kosovo Liberation Army militants attempting to smuggle arms from Albania into Kosovo, killing 36.source
  • 2004The world's tallest bridge, the Millau Viaduct over the Tarn in the Massif Central mountains, France, is inaugurated.source
  • 2006Uzbekistan nearly doubles the price of natural gas it sells to Kyrgyzstan from US$55 to US$100 (£51) per 1,000 cubic meters of gas amid growing tension between the two nations over alleged spying.source
  • 2009December 7–18 – The UNFCCC's 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference is held in Copenhagen, Denmark.source
  • 2012Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting: Adam Lanza kills his mother before driving to Sandy Hook Elementary School, shooting dead twenty students and six teachers before killing himself in Newtown, Connecticut. It becomes the deadliest school shooting at a K-12 school in U.S. history.source
  • 2012December 6–16 – The 2012 FIFA Club World Cup is held in Japan and won by Sport Club Corinthians Paulista.source
  • 2013A suicide car bomb by Katibat Salahadin in Kidal kills two Senegalese peacekeepers, injures several more, and destroys the Malian Solidarity Bank.source
  • 2013Chinese uncrewed spacecraft Chang'e 3, carrying the Yutu rover, becomes the first spacecraft to "soft"-land on the Moon since 1976 and the third ever robotic rover to do so.source
  • 2014Laurent Lamothe resigns as Prime Minister of Haiti along with several ministers following violent protests and a commission's call for him to step down. The protesters have been demanding the holding of early elections.source
  • 2017The Walt Disney Company announces that it will acquire most of 21st Century Fox, including the 20th Century Fox film studio, for $66 billion.source
  • 2017Soldiers fire indiscriminately at civilians in Bodam, execute an elderly man, and burn several houses.source
  • 2020Turkey–United States relations: The United States places sanctions on Turkey in retaliation for their purchase of a S-400 missile system from Russia, marking the first time they have sanctioned a NATO ally.source
  • 2020A total solar eclipse is visible from parts of the South Pacific Ocean, southern South America, and the South Atlantic Ocean.source
  • 2024South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's powers and duties are suspended after MPs vote to impeach him, following his martial law declaration the previous week.source
  • 2024Cyclone Chido makes landfall in Mayotte, causing at least 172 deaths and bringing devastating damage to the island.source
  • 20252025 Chilean general election: José Antonio Kast is elected President of Chile. Right-wing coalitions gain control of the Chamber of Deputies and tie in the Senate.source

Births

  • 1009Atsunaga, future Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (died 1045)source
  • 1503Michel de Nostredame, called Nostradamus, French physician and writer of Les Propheties (1555) (died 1566)source
  • 1503Michel de Nostredame, called Nostradamus, French physician, astrologer and writer of Les Propheties (1555) (died 1566)source
  • 1546Tycho Brahe, Danish astronomer (died 1601)source
  • 1578Joan Apsley, first wife of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork (died 1599)source
  • 1616William Hamilton, 2nd Duke of Hamilton, Scottish nobleman (died 1651)source
  • 1631Anne Conway, English philosopher (died 1679)source
  • 1640December 14 (probable date) – Aphra Behn, English author (died 1689)source
  • 1640Aphra Behn, née Amis, Johnson or Cooper?, author (died 1689)source
  • 1657Edmund Dunch, English Whig politician (died 1719)source
  • 1657Edmund Dunch, Member of Parliament (died 1719)source
  • 1704Jacob von Eggers, Military engineer (died 1773)source
  • 1709Charles Lawrence, British military officer who (died 1760)source
  • 1713Martin Knutzen, German philosopher (died 1751)source
  • 1730James Bruce, Scottish explorer (died 1794)source
  • 1739Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours, French politician (died 1817)source
  • 1775Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, British Royal Navy admiral (died 1860)source
  • 1801Joseph Lane, American politician and general, 1st Governor of Oregon (died 1881)source
  • 1812Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning, British Viceroy of India (died 1862)source
  • 1895King George VI of the United Kingdom (died 1952)source
  • 1896Jimmy Doolittle, American aviation pioneer, World War II United States Army Air Forces general (died 1993)source
  • 1910Óscar Osorio, politician (died 1969)source
  • 1947Dilma Rousseff, 36th President of Brazilsource

Deaths

  • 618Xue Rengao, emperor of Qinsource
  • 704Aldfrith, king of Northumbria (or 705)source
  • 704King Aldfrith of Northumbria dies after a 20-year reign. His throne is seized by Eadwulf I, of unknown descent. Wilfrid travels to Driffield to support Eadwulf, but his advances are rejected (approximate date).source
  • 872Pope Adrian II dies (at age 80), after a 5-year reign. He is succeeded by John VIII, as the 107th pope of Rome.source
  • 872Adrian II, pope of Rome (born 792)source
  • 1005Adalbero II, bishop of Verdun and Metzsource
  • 1015Arduin of Ivrea, king of Italy (born 955)source
  • 1052Aaron Scotus, Irish abbot and musiciansource
  • 1077Agnes of Poitou, Holy Roman Empresssource
  • 1123Henry IV, duke of Carinthia (House of Sponheim)source
  • 1136Harald IV (Servant of Christ), king of Norwaysource
  • 1136King Harald IV of Norway is murdered by Sigurd Slembe, an illegitimate son of the late King Magnus Barefoot. He is succeeded by his sons Inge I ("the Hunchback) and his 3-year-old half-brother Sigurd II.source
  • 1188Berthold I, margrave of Istria and Carniolasource
  • 1200Han (or Gongshu), Chinese empress (born 1165)source
  • 1210Soffredo, Italian cardinal and patriarchsource
  • 1211Shōshi, Japanese empress (born 1195)source
  • 1212Matilda de Bailleul, Flemish abbesssource
  • 1293Al-Ashraf Khalil, Mamluk sultan of Egypt (assassinated)source
  • 1311Margaret of Brabant, German queen consort (born 1276)source
  • 1359Cangrande II della Scala, Lord of Verona (born 1332)source
  • 1417John Oldcastle, English Lollard leader (executed)source
  • 1460Guarino da Verona, Italian humanist (born 1370)source
  • 1480Niccolò Perotti, Italian humanist scholar (born 1429)source
  • 1503Sten Sture the Elder, regent of Sweden (1470–1497 and 1501–1503) (born 1440)source
  • 1542King James V of Scotland (born 1512)source
  • 154214 December 1542 - James V at Falkland Palace.source
  • 1566René, Marquis of Elbeuf (born 1536)source
  • 1571Lorenzo Strozzi, Italian Catholic cardinal (born 1513)source
  • 1591Saint John of the Cross, Spanish Carmelite friar and poet (born 1542)source
  • 1599Joan Boyle, English noble, first spouse of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork (born 1578)source
  • 1618Anna of Tyrol, Holy Roman Empress (born 1585)source
  • 1624Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, English statesman (born 1536)source
  • 1661Prince Murad Bakhsh, younger brother of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, is executed at Gwailor Fort on order of his brother.source
  • 1707Humphrey Edwin, London merchant and owner of the Llanmihangel estate, 65source
  • 1713Thomas Rymer, English Historiographer royal (born 1641)source
  • 1735Thomas Tanner, English bishop, antiquarian (born 1674)source
  • 1788King Charles III of Spain (born 1716)source
  • 1788Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (born 1714)source
  • 1788King Charles III of Spain dies, and is succeeded by his son Charles IV.source
  • 1792Ole Nilsen Weierholt, wood carver (born 1718)source
  • 1799George Washington, first President of the United States, dies at Mount Vernon, Virginia, aged 67.source
  • 1799George Washington, military leader of the American Revolution, president of the Constitutional Convention (1787) and 1st President of the United States (born 1732)source
  • 1799George Washington, first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797 (born 1732)source
  • 1847Dorothy Ann Thrupp, British psalmist (born 1779)source
  • 1860George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (born 1784)source
  • 1861Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria (born 1819)source
  • 1873Louis Agassiz, Swiss-born geologist, naturalist (born 1807)source
  • 1878Princess Alice of the United Kingdom (born 1843)source
  • 1920Gen. Benjamín Hill, Secretary of War, dies in suspicious circumstances. (born 1877)source
  • 1943John Harvey Kellogg, American physician, nutritionist (born 1852)source
  • 1947Stanley Baldwin, British Conservative politician, 3-time Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (born 1867)source
  • 1980Four people are murdered and four others are injured by two armed robbers at Bob's Big Boy on La Cienega Boulevard in Los Angeles, United States, in what is one of the city's most brutal crimes ever.source
  • 2025At least 16 people are killed and 43 injured in a mass shooting, classified as a terrorist attack, by two gunmen at Bondi Beach in Sydney during a celebration for the start of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.source