644 - Osman ibn Affan appointed 3rd kalief of islam
867 - Adrian II begins his reign as Catholic Pope
872 - John VIII elected as Catholic Pope
1124 - Theobald Buccapecus elected Pope Coelestinus II (he refuses)
1287 - Zuider Zee seawall collapses with loss of 50,000 lives
1490 - Anna van Bretagne marries a proxy Maximilian of Austria
1542 - Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen Mary I of Scotland.
1575 - Polish Parliament selects Istvan Bathory as king of Poland
1582 - Zealand/Brabant Neth adopt Gregorian calendar, tomorrow is 12/25
1600 - Olivier van Noort sinks Sp galleon San Diego at Bay of Manila, 350 die
1656 - Artificial pearls 1st manufactured by M Jacquin in Paris made of gypsum pellets covered with fish scales
1702 - The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Ōishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master.
1708 - Prosper Jolyot's "Electre," premieres in Paris
1774 - Mass militiamen successfully attacked arsenal of Ft William & Mary
1782 - Charleston, SC evacuated by British
1793 - 1st state road authorized, Frankfort, Ky to Cincinnati
1798 - David Wilkinson of Rhode Island patents a nut & bolt machine
1819 - Alabama admitted to Union as 22nd state
1825 - Decembrist uprising in Russia against Tsar Nicholas I begins
1836 - The Toledo War unofficially ends.
1849 - 1st chamber music group in US gives their 1st concert (Boston)
1863 - Battle of Bean's Station-Confederacy repulses Union in Tenn
1882 - Henry Morton Stanley returns to Brussels from the Congo
1889 - American Academy of Political & Social Science organized, Phila
1894 - Day One 1st Test Cricket Aus v Eng Aust 5-346 (Giffen 161, Gregory 85)
1894 - Test Cricket debut of Joe Darling, Ernie Jones, Archie MacLaren
1896 - The Glasgow Underground Railway is opened by the Glasgow District Subway Company.
1900 - Quantum Mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.
1901 - 1st table tennis tournament is held (London Royal Aquarium)
1903 - Reg Foster completes 287 England v Australia on Test Cricket debut
1907 - The schooner Thomas W. Lawson runs aground and founders near the Hellweather's Reef within the Scilly Isles in a gale. The pilot and 15 seamen die.
1911 - South Pole 1st reached, by Norwegian Roald Amundsen
1913 -Greece formally takes possession of Crete
1914 - Lisandro de la Torre and others found the Democratic Progressist Party (Partido Demócrata Progresista, PDP) at the Hotel Savoy,Buenos Aires
1915 - Jack Johnson is 1st black world heavyweight boxing champion
1917 - UFA, Universal Film AG, forms in Germany
1918 - Giacomo Puccini's opera "Il Trittico," premieres in NYC
1920 - Heavyweight Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in NYC
1920 - Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1923 - Gerard K "Simon" van het Reve, Dutch writer (Evenings)
1924 - Chiang Kai-shek occupies Hankou
1924 - Respighi's symphony "Pini di Roma," premieres in Paris
1926 - Danish Madsen govt, forms
1927 - Iraq gains independence from Britain, but British troops remain
1928 - 2nd Test Cricket Australia v England starts with Bradman 12th man
1929 - Alexander Zaimis elected pres of Greece
1930 - NY Giants defeat Notre Dame 22-0 in a charity game
1931 - 1st assembly of Anton Musserts NSB in Utrecht
1932 - French govt of Herriot falls
1933 - Josephine Baker performs in Amsterdam
1934 - 1st streamlined steam locomotive introduced (Albany NY)
1935 - Test Cricket debut of "Chuck" Fleetwood-Smith v S Africa, Durban
1937 - Japanese troops conquer/plunder Nanjing
1938 - AL permits Cleveland & Philadelphia to play night games
1938 - Major leagues agrees on standard ball
1938 - Major leagues disagree on increasing rosters from 23 to 25
1938 - Will Harridge is elected to a 10-year-term as AL president
1939 - Soviet Union attacks Finland-League of Nations drops Soviet Union
1941 - 1st NFL division playoff, Bears beat Packers 33-14
1941 - Premier Winston Churchill travels to US on board HMS Duke of York
1941 - U-557 torpedoes British cruiser Galatea
1944 - Begin(ning) Liese-Aktion: werving of labor force for Germany
1944 - Congress establshes rank of General of Army (5-star General)
1944 - German occupiers forbid use of electricity in parts of Holland
1945 - Elmer Rice' "Dream Girl," premieres in NYC
1946 - "Three to Make Ready" closes at Adelphi Theater NYC after 323 perfs
1946 - Togo made a trusteeship territory of UN
1946 - UN General Assembly votes to establish UN HQs in NYC
1947 - Cleve Browns beat NY Yankees 14-3 in AAFC championship game
1947 - The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is founded in Daytona Beach, Florida.
1950 - "Bless You All" opens at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC for 84 perfs
1950 - UN Gen Assembly establishes High Comm for Refugees (Nobel 1954)
1950 - Baseball owners choose Lou Perini (Braves), Phil Wrigley (Cubs), Del Webb (Yankees), & Ellis Ryan (Indians) to select new commissioner
1952 - KROD (now KDBC) TV channel 4 in El Paso, TX (CBS) begins broadcasting
1952 - R H Shodhan scores 110 on Test Cricket debut v Pakistan, Calcutta
1952 - Uprising of captives in Pongam South Korea, 82 die
1953 - Brooklyn Dodgers sign pitcher Sandy Koufax
1954 - WOAY TV channel 4 in Oak Hill-Beckley, WV (ABC) begins broadcasting
1955 - Dutch Reformed Church condemns woman/wife as vicar
1955 - Tappan Zee Bridge in NY opens to traffic
1956 - Paul-Henri Spaak appointed secretary-general of NATO
1957 - "Most Happy Fella" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 678 perfs
1957 - "Rumple" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 45 performances
1959 - Archbishop Makarios proclaimed president of Cyprus
1959 - J B Jordan in F-104C sets world altitude record, 31,513m
1960 - Australia v West Indies 1st Test Cricket at the Gabba ends in a tie
1960 - Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) forms
1960 - Washington Senators joins American League
1961 - Jimmy Dean's "Big Bad John" is 1st country song to get a gold record
1962 - Mariner 2 makes 1st US fly-by of another planet (Venus)
1962 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1963 - Verne Gagne beats The Crusher in Minneapolis, to become NWA champ
1964 - Michael Brown meets Rene Fladen, then writes "Walk Away Rene"
1965 - "La Grusse Valise" opens at 54th St Theater NYC for 7 performances
1967 - DNA created in a test tube
1969 - "La Strada" opens/closes at Lunt Fontanne NYC for 1 performance
1969 - Bishen Bedi takes 7-98 (career-best) v Australia at Calcutta
1969 - Jackson Five made their 1st appearance on "Ed Sullivan Show"
1971 - Golden Gate Bridge lights out all night due to power failure
1971 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
867 - Adrian II begins his reign as Catholic Pope
872 - John VIII elected as Catholic Pope
1124 - Theobald Buccapecus elected Pope Coelestinus II (he refuses)
1287 - Zuider Zee seawall collapses with loss of 50,000 lives
1490 - Anna van Bretagne marries a proxy Maximilian of Austria
1542 - Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen Mary I of Scotland.
1575 - Polish Parliament selects Istvan Bathory as king of Poland
1582 - Zealand/Brabant Neth adopt Gregorian calendar, tomorrow is 12/25
1600 - Olivier van Noort sinks Sp galleon San Diego at Bay of Manila, 350 die
1656 - Artificial pearls 1st manufactured by M Jacquin in Paris made of gypsum pellets covered with fish scales
1702 - The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Ōishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master.
1708 - Prosper Jolyot's "Electre," premieres in Paris
1774 - Mass militiamen successfully attacked arsenal of Ft William & Mary
1782 - Charleston, SC evacuated by British
1793 - 1st state road authorized, Frankfort, Ky to Cincinnati
1798 - David Wilkinson of Rhode Island patents a nut & bolt machine
1819 - Alabama admitted to Union as 22nd state
1825 - Decembrist uprising in Russia against Tsar Nicholas I begins
1836 - The Toledo War unofficially ends.
1849 - 1st chamber music group in US gives their 1st concert (Boston)
1863 - Battle of Bean's Station-Confederacy repulses Union in Tenn
1882 - Henry Morton Stanley returns to Brussels from the Congo
1889 - American Academy of Political & Social Science organized, Phila
1894 - Day One 1st Test Cricket Aus v Eng Aust 5-346 (Giffen 161, Gregory 85)
1894 - Test Cricket debut of Joe Darling, Ernie Jones, Archie MacLaren
1896 - The Glasgow Underground Railway is opened by the Glasgow District Subway Company.
1900 - Quantum Mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.
1901 - 1st table tennis tournament is held (London Royal Aquarium)
1903 - Reg Foster completes 287 England v Australia on Test Cricket debut
1907 - The schooner Thomas W. Lawson runs aground and founders near the Hellweather's Reef within the Scilly Isles in a gale. The pilot and 15 seamen die.
1911 - South Pole 1st reached, by Norwegian Roald Amundsen
1913 -
1914 - Lisandro de la Torre and others found the Democratic Progressist Party (Partido Demócrata Progresista, PDP) at the Hotel Savoy,
1915 - Jack Johnson is 1st black world heavyweight boxing champion
1917 - UFA, Universal Film AG, forms in Germany
1918 - Giacomo Puccini's opera "Il Trittico," premieres in NYC
1920 - Heavyweight Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in NYC
1920 - Jack Dempsey KOs Bill Brennan in 12 for heavyweight boxing title
1923 - Gerard K "Simon" van het Reve, Dutch writer (Evenings)
1924 - Chiang Kai-shek occupies Hankou
1924 - Respighi's symphony "Pini di Roma," premieres in Paris
1926 - Danish Madsen govt, forms
1927 - Iraq gains independence from Britain, but British troops remain
1928 - 2nd Test Cricket Australia v England starts with Bradman 12th man
1929 - Alexander Zaimis elected pres of Greece
1930 - NY Giants defeat Notre Dame 22-0 in a charity game
1931 - 1st assembly of Anton Musserts NSB in Utrecht
1932 - French govt of Herriot falls
1933 - Josephine Baker performs in Amsterdam
1934 - 1st streamlined steam locomotive introduced (Albany NY)
1935 - Test Cricket debut of "Chuck" Fleetwood-Smith v S Africa, Durban
1937 - Japanese troops conquer/plunder Nanjing
1938 - AL permits Cleveland & Philadelphia to play night games
1938 - Major leagues agrees on standard ball
1938 - Major leagues disagree on increasing rosters from 23 to 25
1938 - Will Harridge is elected to a 10-year-term as AL president
1939 - Soviet Union attacks Finland-League of Nations drops Soviet Union
1941 - 1st NFL division playoff, Bears beat Packers 33-14
1941 - Premier Winston Churchill travels to US on board HMS Duke of York
1941 - U-557 torpedoes British cruiser Galatea
1944 - Begin(ning) Liese-Aktion: werving of labor force for Germany
1944 - Congress establshes rank of General of Army (5-star General)
1944 - German occupiers forbid use of electricity in parts of Holland
1945 - Elmer Rice' "Dream Girl," premieres in NYC
1946 - "Three to Make Ready" closes at Adelphi Theater NYC after 323 perfs
1946 - Togo made a trusteeship territory of UN
1946 - UN General Assembly votes to establish UN HQs in NYC
1947 - Cleve Browns beat NY Yankees 14-3 in AAFC championship game
1947 - The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is founded in Daytona Beach, Florida.
1950 - "Bless You All" opens at Mark Hellinger Theater NYC for 84 perfs
1950 - UN Gen Assembly establishes High Comm for Refugees (Nobel 1954)
1950 - Baseball owners choose Lou Perini (Braves), Phil Wrigley (Cubs), Del Webb (Yankees), & Ellis Ryan (Indians) to select new commissioner
1952 - KROD (now KDBC) TV channel 4 in El Paso, TX (CBS) begins broadcasting
1952 - R H Shodhan scores 110 on Test Cricket debut v Pakistan, Calcutta
1952 - Uprising of captives in Pongam South Korea, 82 die
1953 - Brooklyn Dodgers sign pitcher Sandy Koufax
1954 - WOAY TV channel 4 in Oak Hill-Beckley, WV (ABC) begins broadcasting
1955 - Dutch Reformed Church condemns woman/wife as vicar
1955 - Tappan Zee Bridge in NY opens to traffic
1956 - Paul-Henri Spaak appointed secretary-general of NATO
1957 - "Most Happy Fella" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 678 perfs
1957 - "Rumple" closes at Alvin Theater NYC after 45 performances
1959 - Archbishop Makarios proclaimed president of Cyprus
1959 - J B Jordan in F-104C sets world altitude record, 31,513m
1960 - Australia v West Indies 1st Test Cricket at the Gabba ends in a tie
1960 - Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) forms
1960 - Washington Senators joins American League
1961 - Jimmy Dean's "Big Bad John" is 1st country song to get a gold record
1962 - Mariner 2 makes 1st US fly-by of another planet (Venus)
1962 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1963 - Verne Gagne beats The Crusher in Minneapolis, to become NWA champ
1964 - Michael Brown meets Rene Fladen, then writes "Walk Away Rene"
1965 - "La Grusse Valise" opens at 54th St Theater NYC for 7 performances
1967 - DNA created in a test tube
1969 - "La Strada" opens/closes at Lunt Fontanne NYC for 1 performance
1969 - Bishen Bedi takes 7-98 (career-best) v Australia at Calcutta
1969 - Jackson Five made their 1st appearance on "Ed Sullivan Show"
1971 - Golden Gate Bridge lights out all night due to power failure
1971 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1972 - Eugene Cernan & Harrison Schmitt leave the Moon
1972 - Willy Brandt re-elected West German chancellor
1974 - Islander Glenn Resch's 1st shut-out opponent-Kings 3-0
1974 - Viv Richards scores 1st Test Cricket ton 192 v India 20 fours 6 sixes
1975 - "Treemonisha" closes at Uris Theater NYC after 64 performances
1975 - 6 So Moluccan terrorists surrender, holding 23 hostages for 12 days
1975 - WCPR (Bkln NY pirate radio station) begins broadcasting on 1620 AM
1976 - Dutch 1st Chamber condemns Dutch Liberal/social dem abortion laws
1977 - "Saturday Night Fever,"starring John Travolta, premieres in NYC
1977 - Egypt & Israel reps gather in Cairo for 1st formal peace conference
1977 - Red Sox trade Fergie Jenkins to Rangers for John Poloni & cash
1977 - Test Cricket debut of Abdul Qadir, v England at Lahore
1977 - War criminal Pieter Menten sentenced in Amsterdam to 15 years
1978 - "Ballroom" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 116 performances
1978 - China PR performs nuclear test at Lop Nor PRC
1978 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1979 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1980 - "Onward Victoria" opens/closes at Martin Beck NYC for 1 performance
1980 - Anders Kailur scores on 6th Islander penalty shot
1980 - At 2 PM EST there is 10 minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon
1980 - Minn Vikings pass for 456 yards against Cleve Browns, winning 28-24
1980 - Nancy Lopez/Curtis Strange wins LPGA J C Penney Golf Classic
1980 - New Orleans Saints end 14 game losing streak, beat NY Jets 21-20
1980 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1981 - Israel annexes Golan Heights (seized from Syria in war of 1967)
1982 - Marcel Dionne, LA, becomes 9th NHLer to score 500 goals
1983 - "Peg" opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC for 5 performances
1984 - Howard Cosell retires from Monday Night Football
1985 - US Foreign Minister George Shultz arrives in West Berlin
1986 - Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan & Jeana Yeager, took off from Edwards AFB, Calif on 1st non-stop, non-refueled flight around world
1987 - Allan Border scores 205 v NZ to become Australia's top rungetter
1987 - Chrysler pleads no contest to selling driven vehicles as new
1988 - CBS' $1.1 B bid wins exclusive 1990-94 major-league baseball rights
1988 - NBA's Miami Heat wins 1st game ever, 89-88 (Clippers), after 17 loses
1988 - Spanish General strike to protest austerity measures
1988 - US agrees to talk to Palestine Liberation Org (1st time in 13 yrs)
1990 - Louis Jordan's revue "Five Guys Named Moe," premieres in London
1990 - Right to Die case permits Nancy Cruzan to have her feeding tube removed, she dies 12 days later
1991 - 57th Heisman Trophy Award: Desmond Howard, Michigan (WR)
1991 - Ferry boat Salem Express sinks in Red Sea, 476 killed
1992 - Lennox Lewis given WBC title, when Riddick Bowe refused to fight him
1993 - Moslem fundamentalists murder 12 Kroates/Bosnians in Algeria
1995 - "Les Miserables" opens at Cable Hall, Helsinki
1995 - AIDS patient Jeff Getty recieves baboon bone marrow transplant
1995 - Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
1996 - 12th Soap Opera Digest Awards
1996 - 62nd Heisman Trophy Award: Danny Wuerffel, Florida (QB)
1997 - "View From the Bridge," opens at Criterion Theater NYC
1997 - Diners Club Senior Golf Match
1997 - Juli Inkster & Dottie Pepper win LPGA Diners Club Matches
1997 - Phoenix Coyote Mike Gartner is 5th NHLer to score 700 goals
2003 - President of Pakistan Pervez Musharaf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.
2003 - President George W. Bush announces the capture of Saddam Hussein.
2004 - The Millau viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, nearMillau , France
2008 - President George W. Bush made his fourth and final (planned) trip toIraq as president and almost got struck by two shoes thrown at him by Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zaidi during a farewell conference in Baghdad
1972 - Willy Brandt re-elected West German chancellor
1974 - Islander Glenn Resch's 1st shut-out opponent-Kings 3-0
1974 - Viv Richards scores 1st Test Cricket ton 192 v India 20 fours 6 sixes
1975 - "Treemonisha" closes at Uris Theater NYC after 64 performances
1975 - 6 So Moluccan terrorists surrender, holding 23 hostages for 12 days
1975 - WCPR (Bkln NY pirate radio station) begins broadcasting on 1620 AM
1976 - Dutch 1st Chamber condemns Dutch Liberal/social dem abortion laws
1977 - "Saturday Night Fever,"starring John Travolta, premieres in NYC
1977 - Egypt & Israel reps gather in Cairo for 1st formal peace conference
1977 - Red Sox trade Fergie Jenkins to Rangers for John Poloni & cash
1977 - Test Cricket debut of Abdul Qadir, v England at Lahore
1977 - War criminal Pieter Menten sentenced in Amsterdam to 15 years
1978 - "Ballroom" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 116 performances
1978 - China PR performs nuclear test at Lop Nor PRC
1978 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1979 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1980 - "Onward Victoria" opens/closes at Martin Beck NYC for 1 performance
1980 - Anders Kailur scores on 6th Islander penalty shot
1980 - At 2 PM EST there is 10 minutes of silence in memory of John Lennon
1980 - Minn Vikings pass for 456 yards against Cleve Browns, winning 28-24
1980 - Nancy Lopez/Curtis Strange wins LPGA J C Penney Golf Classic
1980 - New Orleans Saints end 14 game losing streak, beat NY Jets 21-20
1980 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1981 - Israel annexes Golan Heights (seized from Syria in war of 1967)
1982 - Marcel Dionne, LA, becomes 9th NHLer to score 500 goals
1983 - "Peg" opens at Lunt-Fontanne Theater NYC for 5 performances
1984 - Howard Cosell retires from Monday Night Football
1985 - US Foreign Minister George Shultz arrives in West Berlin
1986 - Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan & Jeana Yeager, took off from Edwards AFB, Calif on 1st non-stop, non-refueled flight around world
1987 - Allan Border scores 205 v NZ to become Australia's top rungetter
1987 - Chrysler pleads no contest to selling driven vehicles as new
1988 - CBS' $1.1 B bid wins exclusive 1990-94 major-league baseball rights
1988 - NBA's Miami Heat wins 1st game ever, 89-88 (Clippers), after 17 loses
1988 - Spanish General strike to protest austerity measures
1988 - US agrees to talk to Palestine Liberation Org (1st time in 13 yrs)
1990 - Louis Jordan's revue "Five Guys Named Moe," premieres in London
1990 - Right to Die case permits Nancy Cruzan to have her feeding tube removed, she dies 12 days later
1991 - 57th Heisman Trophy Award: Desmond Howard, Michigan (WR)
1991 - Ferry boat Salem Express sinks in Red Sea, 476 killed
1992 - Lennox Lewis given WBC title, when Riddick Bowe refused to fight him
1993 - Moslem fundamentalists murder 12 Kroates/Bosnians in Algeria
1995 - "Les Miserables" opens at Cable Hall, Helsinki
1995 - AIDS patient Jeff Getty recieves baboon bone marrow transplant
1995 - Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
1996 - 12th Soap Opera Digest Awards
1996 - 62nd Heisman Trophy Award: Danny Wuerffel, Florida (QB)
1997 - "View From the Bridge," opens at Criterion Theater NYC
1997 - Diners Club Senior Golf Match
1997 - Juli Inkster & Dottie Pepper win LPGA Diners Club Matches
1997 - Phoenix Coyote Mike Gartner is 5th NHLer to score 700 goals
2003 - President of Pakistan Pervez Musharaf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.
2003 - President George W. Bush announces the capture of Saddam Hussein.
2004 - The Millau viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, near
2008 - President George W. Bush made his fourth and final (planned) trip to
