/year

December 31 in history

203 sourced entries recorded on December 31, from 45 BCE to 2023 CE. Every line is quoted from the revision it came from.

Events

  • 192Emperor Commodus alarms the Senate, by appearing dressed as a gladiator for his new consulship on January 1. His mistress Marcia finds her name on the imperial execution list, and hires champion wrestler Narcissus to assassinate Commodus; the Antonines Dynasty ends.source
  • 406Vandals, Alans and Suebians cross the Rhine at Mogontiacum (modern Mainz), beginning an invasion of Gaul (traditional date, this may have occurred in 405).source
  • 535Belisarius completes the conquest of Sicily, defeating the Gothic garrison of Palermo (Panormos), and ending his consulship for the year.source
  • 870Battle of Englefield: The Vikings clash with ealdorman Æthelwulf of Berkshire. The invaders are driven back to Reading; many of the Danes (including one of the earls named Sidrac) are killed.source
  • 1097Battle of Harenc: The Crusaders under the command of Bohemond I and Robert II defeat Seljuk forces from Aleppo, which try to relieve besieged Antioch.source
  • 1105Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, is deposed by his son Henry V (who is king of Germany). Henry is forced to resign his crown and is imprisoned in the castle of Böckelheim.source
  • 1225Lý Chiêu Hoàng, the only empress regnant in the history of Vietnam, marries Trần Thái Tông, making him the first ruler of the Trần dynasty.source
  • 1302Theobald II of the House of Metz becomes the new Duke of Lorraine within the Holy Roman Empire after the death of his father, Frederick III.source
  • 1321The Duke of Mantua completes the siege of Mirandola, taking control of the Duchy, and then orders the castle of Duke Francesco I Pico to be destroyed.source
  • 1385King Carlo III, ruler of the Kingdom of Naples, is crowned as King Károly II of Hungary by the Archbishop Demeter of Esztergom at Székesfehérvár after a group of Hungarian nobles helps him overthrow Queen Maria.source
  • 1397The Peace of Breno is signed in Val Camonica to temporarily halt the fighting between the Guelphs (who favor the Republic of Venice) and the Ghibellines (who favor the Duchy of Milan) in the fighting between the two nations.source
  • 1435The Peace of Brześć Kujawski is signed by representatives of the State of the Teutonic Order to make peace with the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to end the Polish–Teutonic War, with the Teutonic Order agreeing to end its support of the former Grand Duke Svitrigaila and to not interfere further with Polish and Lithuanian affairs.source
  • 1472The city council of Amsterdam prohibits snowball fights: "Neymant en moet met sneecluyten werpen nocht maecht noch wijf noch manspersoon." ("No one shall throw with snowballs, neither men nor (unmarried) women.")source
  • 1487Pope Innocent VIII establishes the office of the Secretary of State of the Vatican by approving the apostolic constitution Non Debet Reprehensibile, with 24 apostolic secretaries, the most important being the Secretarius Domesticus.source
  • 1494King Charles VIII of France and the French Army peacefully march into Rome after being granted free passage by Pope Alexander VI.source
  • 1494December 31 – January 6: peaceful French entry into Rome with Pope Alexander VI's permission, but some French looting takes place.source
  • 1500The last incunable is printed in Venice.source
  • 1501First Battle of Cannanore: João da Nova fleet engaged the fleet of the Zamorin in a battle outside of the Cannanore harbor, the first Portuguese naval battle in the Indian Ocean.source
  • 1502Cesare Borgia (son of Pope Alexander VI) occupies Urbino, where he imprisons two potentially treacherous allies, Vitellozzo and Oliveretto; he executes them the next morning.source
  • 1525The deadline for Spanish Muslims to convert to Christianity in the Valencia is reached, after which remaining Muslims, or those who harbor them as fugitives, becomes punishable by forced exile, imprisonment or death.source
  • 1540Estêvão da Gama, Governor of Portuguese India, departs from Goa with a plan to sail into the Red Sea, and destroy the Ottoman Empire's access to the Indian Ocean by plundering Suez. The planned attack fails.source
  • 1543King Henry VIII of England signs an agreement with Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor to invade France by June 20, 1544 with at least 35,000 infantry and 7,000 cavalry.source
  • 1556All military authorities in the Holy Roman Empire are ordered to submit to the decisions of the Imperial War Council.source
  • 1565The Burmese Army conquers Vientiane, the main city of the kingdom of Lan Xang (now Laos).source
  • 1580James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton, formerly the regent for King James VI of Scotland, is arrested during a meeting of Scotland's Privy Council at Holyrood on the accusation of James Stewart, Earl of Arran that the Earl of Morton had participated in the 1567 murder of Lord Darnley, husband of Mary, Queen of Scots and father of King James. Morton is taken to Dumbarton Castle and convicted of conspiracy to murder, and executed on June 2.source
  • 1584The Treaty of Joinville is signed secretly between the French Catholic League and the Spanish citizens .source
  • 1596King Henry IV of France (who was originally King Henry III of the Kingdom of Navarre) declares Navarre to be permanently separate of France.source
  • 1600The East India Company is granted a Royal charter in the Kingdom of England for trade with Asia.source
  • 1615King Christian IV marries Kirsten Munk.source
  • 1621Thirty Years' War: The Peace of Nikolsburg is signed between Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor and Gabor Bethlen, Prince of Transylvania. Bethlen agrees to renounce his claims to Hungary. In return Bethlen receives several counties and lands along the eastern border of the Holy Roman Empire, and Moravia is granted religious freedom.source
  • 1624the title of Baron Herbert of Castle Island is created in the Peerage of Ireland in favour of Anglo-Welsh soldier, diplomat and poet Edward Herbert.source
  • 1670The expedition of John Narborough leaves Corral Bay having surveyed the coast and lost four hostages to the Spanish.source
  • 1677Christian V establishes the County of Samsø for mistress Sophie Amalie Moth from the manors of Brattingsborg and Bisgård.source
  • 1687In response to the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, a group of Huguenots set sail from France, and settle in the recently established Dutch colony at the Cape of Good Hope, where, using their native skills, they establish the first South African vineyards.source
  • 1695the window tax is imposed.source
  • 1695A window tax is imposed in England. Some windows are bricked up to avoid it.source
  • 1703The 1703 Genroku earthquake occurred on 2:00 local time, killing 2,300.source
  • 1706François Martin, the first Governor General of French India (now part of India's union territory of Puducherry), retires after seven years and is replaced by Pierre Dulivier.source
  • 1711John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough is replaced by James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde as the Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.source
  • 1744The town of Holmestrand was founded.source
  • 1757the title of Viscount Ligonier of Enniskillen is created in the Peerage of Ireland in favour of Field Marshal John Ligonier.source
  • 1759Arthur Guinness leases the St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin.source
  • 1759The Guinness Brewery is leased by Arthur Guinness in St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, for the brewing of Guinness.source
  • 1771Men, women and children of the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes begin a 23-day encampment at Mobile, part of the British colony of West Florida, at the invitation of British Southern Indian superintendent John Stuart, as their leaders negotiate a treaty.source
  • 1775At the Battle of Quebec, British forces repulsed an attack by the Continental Army to capture Quebec City and enlist French Canadian support.source
  • 1779Affair of Fielding and Bylandt: Following a brief naval engagement between the British and Dutch off the Isle of Wight, the Dutch merchantmen and naval vessels are captured and taken to Portsmouth, England.source
  • 1779Affair of Fielding and Bylandt, a brief naval engagement with the Dutch off the Isle of Wight.source
  • 1783Louis-Sébastien Lenormand makes the first ever recorded public demonstration of a parachute descent, by jumping from the tower of the Montpellier Observatory in France, using his rigid-framed model, which he intends as a form of fire escape.source
  • 1791Schoolboys from Hólavallarskóli celebrate the first known New Year's Eve bonfire in Iceland.source
  • 1799The Dutch East India Company's charter is allowed to expire by the Batavian Republic.source
  • 1805The French Republican Calendar (which featured a 10-day week until 1802) is used for the last time, 8 days after being annulled by Napoleon, with the final official date being "9 Nivôse in Year XIV of the Revolution".source
  • 1805The French Republican calendar is used for the last time, 8 days after being annulled by Napoleon with effect from 1 January 1806, the final official date being "9 Nivôse in Year XIV of the Revolution". This year also he has ordered his soldiers to be vaccinated.source
  • 1808The Saksebøl Slaughter.source
  • 1813Blücher's Army of Silesia crosses the Rhinesource
  • 1813Westminster Bridge in London is illuminated by gas lighting provided by the Gas Light and Coke Company from the world's first public gasworks nearby.source
  • 1828President Blanco is arrested by anti-Peruvian rebels.source
  • 1829Last British hanging for forgery, Thomas Maynard at Newgate Prison, London.source
  • 1831Gramercy Park is deeded to New York City.source
  • 1844This date is omitted from the calendar in the Philippines in order to align it with the calendar elsewhere in East Asia, essentially moving the International Date Line to the east of the archipelago.source
  • 18511851 Chilean Revolution: At the Battle of Loncomilla, Chilean rebels are defeated, ending the revolution.source
  • 1855Population Census: 1,490,047 inhabitants in Norway.source
  • 1856Lord Brougham's Act requires at least one party to a marriage contracted after this date to have been resident in Scotland for 21 days, putting a curb on Gretna Green marriage.source
  • 1857Queen Victoria chooses Ottawa as the capital of Canada.source
  • 1857Queen Victoria names Ottawa as capital of the Province of Canada.source
  • 1869Paraguayan War: Triple Alliance forces take Asunción.source
  • 1870The 12.8 km Fréjus Rail Tunnel through the Alps is completed.source
  • 1870Sir Henry Barkly is appointed Governor of the Cape of Good Hope and High Commissioner for Southern Africa.source
  • 1875Population Census: 1,813,424 inhabitants in Norway.source
  • 1879Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time, in Menlo Park, New Jersey.source
  • 1879Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Pirates of Penzance opens at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City (following a token performance the day before for U.K. copyright reasons in Paignton, Devon).source
  • 1903The National Association for Women's Suffrage (Sweden) is founded.source
  • 1904In New York City, the first New Year's Eve celebration is held in Times Square.source
  • 1910Census returns give total population of Belgium as 7,423,784.source
  • 1916The Hampton Terrace Hotel in North Augusta, South Carolina, one of the largest and most luxurious hotels in the United States at the time, burns to the ground.source
  • 1917World War I: British government imposes rationing of sugar (8 oz per person per week).source
  • 1926Hadow report on The Education of the Adolescent published.source
  • 1929Glen Cinema Disaster in Paisley: 69 children die trying to escape smoke.source
  • 1930The Papal encyclical Casti connubii, issued by Pope Pius XI, stresses the sanctity of marriage, prohibits Roman Catholics from using any form of artificial birth control, and reaffirms the Catholic prohibition on abortion.source
  • 1935The cane toad is introduced to Queensland.source
  • 1942The Times Square Ball in Times Square, New York City is not dropped for the first time. Instead, there is a moment of silence at midnight, followed by the sound of bells playing from sound trucks at the base of One Times Square.source
  • 1943The Times Square Ball in Times Square, New York City, is not dropped a second time. Instead, there is a moment of silence at midnight, followed by the sound of bells playing from sound trucks at the base of One Times Square.source
  • 1948Arab-Israeli War: Israeli troops drive Egyptians from the Negev.source
  • 1949An armed group of Communist Party of India activists killed four Police officers in Travancore–Cochin.source
  • 1950The inaugural 12 Hours of Sebring automobile endurance race is held in Florida.source
  • 1951The Marshall Plan expires, after distributing more than $13.3 billion US in foreign aid to rebuild Europe.source
  • 1955Austria becomes independent, under terms of the May 15 Austrian State Treaty.source
  • 1955General Motors becomes the first American corporation to make a profit of over 1 billion dollars in 1 year.source
  • 1958After the fall of Santa Clara, Cuban President Fulgencio Batista flees the country.source
  • 1961Ireland's first national television station, Telefís Éireann (later Raidió Teilifís Éireann), begins broadcasting.source
  • 1963Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland dissolves.source
  • 1964The Central Bank of Brazil and the National Monetary Council are established.source
  • 1965Bokassa takes power in the Central African Republic.source
  • 1966East German Premier Walter Ulbricht discusses negotiations about German reunification.source
  • 1966Eight paintings worth millions of pounds are stolen from Dulwich Picture Gallery in London, but are recovered locally within a week.source
  • 1967Motorcycle daredevil Evel Knievel attempts to jump 141 feet over the Caesars Palace Fountains on the Las Vegas Strip in the United States. Knievel crashes on landing and the accident is caught on film.source
  • 1968MacRobertson Miller Airlines Flight 1750 crashes south of Port Hedland, Western Australia, killing all 26 people on board.source
  • 1970Paul McCartney sues in Britain to dissolve The Beatles' legal partnership.source
  • 1972For the first and last time, a 2nd leap second is added (23:59:60) to a year, making 1972 366 days and two seconds long, the longest year ever within the context of UTC.source
  • 1974Sverre Petterssen, meteorologist (b.1898)source
  • 1980B. P. Mandal, chairman of the Backward Classes Commission, submitted his report to the government.source
  • 1981A coup d'état in Ghana removes President Hilla Limann's PNP government and replaces it with the PNDC led by Flight Lieutenant Jerry Rawlings.source
  • 1981Camille Polfer steps down as Mayor of Luxembourg City after only two years, due to ill health, and is succeeded by his daughter, Lydie the following day.source
  • 1983Two bombs explode in France: one on a Paris train kills three and injures 19; the other at Marseille station kills two and injures 34.source
  • 1983The 7.2 Mb Hindu Kush earthquake affects northern Afghanistan and Pakistan with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong), killing 12–26 and injuring 60–483.source
  • 1985The inauguration of Taipei World Trade Center in Xinyi District, Taipei.source
  • 1986Soviet submarine Krasnoyarsk (K-173) is commissioned.source
  • 1986Dupont Plaza Hotel arson: A hotel fire in San Juan, Puerto Rico, kills 97 and injures 140.source
  • 1988The National Historic Archives of Cape Verde establishedsource
  • 1989Poland's president signs the Balcerowicz Plan, ending the Communist system in Poland in favor of a capitalist system, leading to abandonment of the Warsaw Pact.source
  • 1989Singapore Indoor Stadium was officially opened in an inaugural ceremony by the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew.source
  • 1992Ministry of Justice announces large-scale amnesty for political prisoners and criminals.source
  • 1994This date is skipped by the Phoenix Islands to switch from the UTC−11 time zone to UTC+13, and by the Line Islands to switch from UTC−10 to UTC+14. The latter becomes the earliest time zone in the world, one full day ahead of Hawaii.source
  • 1995Final Calvin and Hobbes comic published by Bill Watterson.source
  • 1998In the Eurozone, the currency rates of this day are fixed permanently.source
  • 1998The exchange rate between the Luxembourgian franc and the ECU at close of trading is 40.3399. This rate is then fixed as the level at which Luxembourg would join the Euro.source
  • 1998The first leap second since June 30, 1997, occurs.source
  • 1999With the Torrijos–Carter Treaties being put into effect on this day, Panama gains full control of the Canal.source
  • 1999Boris Yeltsin resigns as President of Russia, leaving Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as the acting president until a new election can be held.source
  • 1999Millennium celebrations: A series of worldwide celebrations mark the end of 1999 and the beginning of the year 2000, popularly regarded as the start of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, with fireworks displays, concerts, and public festivities held across the globe.source
  • 2002The United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina ends.source
  • 2002The establishment of Mega International Commercial Bank after the merging of International Commercial Bank of China and Chiao T’ung Bank.source
  • 2005Another second is added, 23:59:60, to end the year 2005, the first time since 1998.source
  • 20052005 Palu market bombing.source
  • 2008An extra leap second (23:59:60) is added to end of the year. The last time this occurred was in 2005.source
  • 2014A stampede occurred on New Year's Eve in Shanghai, China, resulting in the deaths of 36 people and leaving 49 injured.source
  • 2016Withdrawal of the majority of U.S. troops from Afghanistan after 15 years of war.source
  • 2016An extra leap second (23:59:60) is added to end of the year. The last time this occurred was in June 2015.source
  • 20182018 Magnitogorsk building collapse: An apartment block in Magnitogorsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia, partially collapses, killing 39 people and injuring 17 more. According to the official investigation the collapse was caused by a gas explosion.source
  • 2019COVID-19 pandemic: First official reports of "viral pneumonia" from the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission.source
  • 2023Queen Margrethe II of Denmark announces her abdication effective January 14, 2024, after 52 years on the throne.source

Births

  • 1096Al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah, Fatimid caliph (died 1130)source
  • 1378Pope Callixtus III (died 1458)source
  • 1491Jacques Cartier, French explorer (died 1557)source
  • 1491Jacques Cartier, explorer (died September 1 1557)source
  • 1504Beatrice of Portugal, Duchess of Savoy (died 1538)source
  • 1514Andreas Vesalius, Flemish anatomist (died 1564)source
  • 1539John Radcliffe, English politician (died 1568)source
  • 1571Emperor Go-Yōzei of Japan (died 1617)source
  • 1614Mechtilde of the Blessed Sacrament, French nun (died 1698)source
  • 1632Abbas II of Persia, Shah of Iran (died 1666)source
  • 1668Herman Boerhaave, Dutch humanist and physician (died 1738)source
  • 1720Charles Edward Stuart, pretender to the British throne (died 1788)source
  • 1720Charles Edward Stuart, pretender to the British throne (died 1788)source
  • 1735Jean de Crévecoeur, French-American writer (died 1813)source
  • 1738Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British general (died 1805)source
  • 1747Gottfried August Bürger, German poet (died 1794)source
  • 1815George Meade, American general (died 1872)source
  • 1869Henri Matisse, French painter (died 1954)source
  • 1870December 31 (alleged) – Mbah Gotho, Indonesian man, alleged oldest human (died 2017)source
  • 1880George C. Marshall, United States Secretary of State, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (died 1959)source
  • 1941Sir Alex Ferguson, Scottish football manager (Manchester United)source
  • 1963Azalina Othman Said – Politician.source
  • 1979Josh Hawley, American politician, U.S. Senator (R-MO) from 2019source
  • 1991Oleksandr Piskunov, Ukrainian actorsource

Deaths

  • 45 BCEQuintus Fabius Maximus, Roman general and politiciansource
  • 192Commodus, Roman emperor (born 161)source
  • 335Pope Sylvester I dies at Rome after a 21-year reign. He is succeeded by Mark as the 34th pope.source
  • 335Sylvester I, pope of the Catholic Church (born 285)source
  • 669Li Shiji, general and chancellor of the Tang dynasty (born 594)source
  • 914Ibn Hawshab, founder of the Isma'ili community in Yemensource
  • 1164Ottokar III, margrave of Styria (born 1124)source
  • 1194Leopold V, duke of Austria (born 1157)source
  • 1232Patrick I, Earl of Dunbar, Scottish nobleman and knight (born 1152)source
  • 1298Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford, English nobleman (born 1249)source
  • 1299Margaret of Anjou, French noblewoman (born 1272)source
  • 1384John Wycliffe, English theologian, Bible translator and Catholic reform campaignersource
  • 1386Johanna of Bavaria, Queen of Bohemia (born c. 1362)source
  • 1389U of Goryeo, Korean king (born 1365) — assassinationsource
  • 1389Chang of Goryeo, deposed Korean king (born 1381) — assassinationsource
  • 1389In the Goryeo Revolution in Korea, 9-year-old King Wang Chang of Goryeo, and his father, the former King Wang U are assassinated by Prince Gongyang. The ten-year-old Chang and his predecessor, U, are both assassinated later in the year.source
  • 1426Thomas Beaufort, Duke of Exeter, English nobleman and military leader (born c. 1377)source
  • 1460Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury, English politician (executed) (born 1400)source
  • 1469King Yejong of Joseon (born 1450)source
  • 1502Oliverotto Euffreducci, Italian politician (born 1475)source
  • 1510Bianca Maria Sforza, Holy Roman Empress (born 1472)source
  • 1536Margareta Eriksdotter Vasa, the sister of the king (born 1497)source
  • 1583Thomas Erastus, Swiss theologian (born 1524)source
  • 1637Christian, Count of Waldeck-Wildungen (1588–1637) (born 1585)source
  • 1650Dorgon, Manchu prince (born 1612)source
  • 1673Oliver St John, English statesman and judge (born c. 1598)source
  • 1679Giovanni Alfonso Borelli, Italian physiologist and physicist (born 1608)source
  • 1684Hans Rostgaard, administrator (born 1625)source
  • 1691Robert Boyle, Anglo-Irish natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, and inventor (born 1627)source
  • 1697Lucas Faydherbe, Belgian sculptor and architect (born 1617)source
  • 1705Catherine of Braganza, widowed queen consort of Charles II of England and regent of Portugal (born 1638)source
  • 1714John Wynne, industrialist, 64source
  • 1719John Flamsteed, English astronomer and the first Astronomer Royal (born 1646)source
  • 1775American Revolution: Battle of Quebec – British forces repulse an attack by Continental Army generals Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold at Quebec; Montgomery is killed.source
  • 1775Richard Montgomery, American general (killed in battle) (born 1738)source
  • 1802Francis Lewis, signer of the United States Declaration of Independence (born 1713)source
  • 1855Sir Charles Hotham, 1st Governor of Victoria (born in the United Kingdom) (born 1806)source
  • 1864George M. Dallas, U.S. Senator, 11th Vice President of the United States (born 1792)source
  • 1877Gustave Courbet, French painter (born 1819)source
  • 1877Gustave Courbet, French painter (born 1819 in France)source
  • 1882Léon Gambetta, French statesman (born 1838)source
  • 1889Ion Creangă, Romanian writer (born 1837 or 1839)source
  • 1898French serial killer Joseph Vacher is executed at Bourg-en-Bresse.source
  • 1944WWII: Battle of Leyte – Tens of thousands of Imperial Japanese Army soldiers are killed in action, in a significant Filipino/Allied military victory.source
  • 1951Maxim Litvinov, Russian revolutionary and Soviet diplomat (born 1876)source
  • 1966Nipo T. Strongheart, Native American filmmaker (born 1891)source
  • 1993Zviad Gamsakhurdia, 54, Soviet and Georgian politician, dissident, and writer, shot.source
  • 2022Former Pope Benedict XVI dies at the age of 95, with his funeral being held in St. Peter's Square, presided over by Pope Francis and Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.source
  • 2022Pope Benedict XVI, 95, German Roman Catholic prelate and theologian (Introduction to Christianity), pope (2005–2013), archbishop of Munich and Freising (1977–1982), cardiogenic shock from respiratory failure.source