December 2011
33 posts
14 tags
December 31st 1904: The first New Year's Eve...
On this day in 1904, the first New Year’s Eve celebrations in Times Square (then Longacre Square) in New York City took place. It was organised by the owners of the New York Times newspaper to celebrate their move to the Square. The event was marked with a fireworks display, with almost 200,000 attending.
However, the organisers wanted bigger and better displays. Therefore in 1907, they...
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December 30th 2006: Saddam Hussein executed
On this day in 2006, the ex-Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was executed for war crimes. Hussein was a leading member of the Ba’ath Party, which advocated Arab nationalism and Arab socialism. He played a key role in the coup in 1968 which bought his party to power. He became President of Iraq in 1979 and served until 2003.
Saddam suppressed several movements, particularly Shi’a and...
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December 29th 1916: Rasputin murdered
On this day in 1916, the mystic Grigori Rasputin was murdered by nobles. Rasputin had come to fame in Russia for his influence on Tsar Nicholas II and his family. Rasputin had especially impressed the royal family with his attempts to heal their haemophiliac son Alexei. Whilst the royal family believed him to be a mystic and healer and “our friend” (as Tsarina Alexandra described...
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December 28th 1065: Westminster Abbey is...
On this day in 1065, Westminster Abbey in London is consecrated (dedicated to the religious and sacred purpose). The Abbey is the traditional place of coronation of British monarchs and the burial site for British monarchs. It is also used for royal weddings, the most recent of which was the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton on 29th April 2011.
A week after its consecration,...
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December 27th 1923: Gustave Eiffel dies
On this day in 1923, Gustave Eiffel, the French designer and architect, died. He died whilst listening to Beethoven’s 5th symphony. He is most acclaimed for designing the Eiffel Tower for the 1889 Universal Expositio in Paris, France. Eiffel gave his name to the now-world famous landmark, and also helped to design another famous structure: the Statue of Liberty in New York City.
After...
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December 26th 1966: The first Kwanzaa is...
(Karenga celebrating Kwanzaa in 2003)
On this day in 1966, the first Kwanzaa was celebrated by Maulana Karenga, chair of Black Studies at California State University. Kwanzaa has its roots in African culture, and celebrates African-American heritage around the world. It is observed from December 26th to January 1st. Observers will light a candle holder with 7 candles and celebrate with a feast...
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Merry Christmas everyone!
I hope you all have a lovely Christmas Day, and I want to say thank you for following! Have a great day everyone :) Many events happened on this day, but for now I will leave you with this:
On this day in 1818, the first performance of ‘Silent Night’ takes place in the church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria. Here is a version of the carol by King’s College Choir,...
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December 24th 1914: The World War One ‘Christmas...
On this day in 1914, the unofficial Christmas ceasefires began along the Western Front during World War One. This was when troops on all sides refused to fight, and instead exchanged seasonal greetings and songs between the trenches. Sometimes they would even walk across to talk to the other side’s soldiers, occasionally bearing gifts. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, many troops ventured...
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December 23rd 1823: 'The Night Before Christmas'...
On this day in 1823, the poem ‘A Visit from St. Nicholas’ or ‘The Night Before Christmas’ was first published. It was published in the Troy, New York, Sentinel, and was reprinted frequently with no name attached. It was published anonymously, but has been generally attributed to Clement Clarke Moore. Moore later acknowledged that he did indeed write the poem, and...
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December 22nd 1992: The Archives of Terror are...
(Poster of disappeared persons)
On this day in 1992, the lawyer Dr. Martín Almada and judge José Agustín Fernández, discovered the so-called ‘Archives of Terror’. They were looking for files on a former prisoner in a police station in a suburb of Asunción (Lambaré), capital of Paraguay when they stumbled upon the records.
The archives described the fates of thousands of Latin...
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December 21st 1620: Mayflower Pilgrims land at...
(The Mayflower in Plymouth harbour by William Halsall, 1882)
On this day in 1620, William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgirms landed at Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The Mayflower transported the first English Pilgrims to America, with 102 passengers. When the Pilgrims disembarked, they founded the Plymouth Colony. The Plymouth Colony, along with Jamestown, Virginia, was one of the...
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December 20th 1917: Vladimir Lenin creates the...
On this day in 1917, Russian leader Vladimir Lenin issued a decree that founded the Cheka (the first Soviet secret police). Lenin appointed the feared Felix Dzerzhinsky as head of the organisation, which soon became infamous for its brutality.
Since the Bolshevik seizure of power in the October Revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks, under Lenin, had sought to secure their position. Lenin issued...
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December 19th 1998: President Bill Clinton...
On this day in 1998, Democratic US President Bill Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. On December 19th, the House charged Clinton with perjury to a grand jury (228-206 vote) and obstruction of justice (221-212 vote). Two other articles of impeachment failed: a second count of perjury (205-229) and abuse of power (148-285). The...
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December 18th 1476: Vlad the Impaler dies
On this day in 1476, three-time Voivode (ruler) of Wallachia (a region of Romania), Vlad III, died. He ruled mainly from 1456 to 1462, the period of the start of Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. His father was a member of the Order of the Dragon (Dracul) which was founded to protect Christianity in Europe. Vlad became known as ‘Dracula’, which means ‘son of the ...
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December 17th 1903: The Wright Brothers make their...
On this day in 1903, the first powered aircraft made its first flight. It was designed and built by Orville and Wilbur Wright. They flew their plane four times on December 17th, 1903 near the Kill Devil Hills, about four miles south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, U.S.
On December 14th, 1903, they felt ready for their first attempt at powered flight. The brothers tossed a coin to decide who...
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December 16th 1653: Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord...
On this day in 1653, Oliver Cromwell became the ‘Lord Protector’ of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Cromwell was one of the commanders of the New Model Army which defeated the royalists in the English Civil War. After the execution of King Charles I in 1649, Cromwell dominated the short-lived Commonwealth of England, conquered Ireland and Scotland, and ruled as Lord Protector...
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December 15th 1966: Walt Disney dies
On this day in 1966 Walt Disney, the American film maker and founder of the Walt Disney Company, died from lung cancer in California. The company was founded on October 16th 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the ‘Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio’. Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry.
Disney was an innovator in animation and theme...
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December 14th 1503: Nostradamus born
On this day in 1503, Michel de Nostredame or ‘Nostradamus’ was born in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence in the south of France. Nostradamus is most known for his work as an apothecary and seer, and for his famous prophecies. He is best known for his book Les Propheties (The Prophecies), the first edition of which appeared in 1555. Nostradamus has attracted a following that credits him with...
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December 13th 2000: Al Gore concedes presidential...
On this day in 2000, Vice President Al Gore conceded defeat in the 2000 presidential election, thus ending one of the bitterest and most divisive political events in US history. Gore’s decision to concede resulted in Texas Governor George W. Bush becoming President of the United States.
Gore had won the popular vote by over 500,000 votes with 48.4% whereas Bush had 47.9% of the popular...
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December 12th 1941: Adolf Hitler announces...
On this day in 1941, at a Reich Chancellery meeting, German Chancellor Adolf Hitler declared the immiment destruction of the Jewish race. Hitler and all of the highest ranking officials of the Nazi Party were present. World War Two had recently escalated, with the entrance of the United States and Japan on 7th December and Germany’s declaration of war on the US on 11th December. The...
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December 11th 1936: Edward VIII abdicates
(A recently released portrait of Edward VIII in his coronation robes, which he never went through with)
On this day in 1936, Edward VIII’s abdication of the throne of Great Britain became effective. The King abdicated due to his intention to marry Wallis Simpson, a twice divorced American socialite. As British monarch, Edward was the head of the Church of England, which did not allow...
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December 10th 1948: The UN adopts the Universal...
(Eleanor Roosevelt with a copy of the Declaration)
On this day in 1948, the United Nations adopts the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It was accepted by a vote of 48 in favour, 0 against, with eight abstentions: the USSR, Ukranian SSR, Byelorussian SSR, Yugoslavia, Poland, South Africa and Saudi Arabia.
The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and...
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December 9th 1965: Kecksburg UFO Incident
(a model of the object, created for the show ‘Unsolved Mysteries’)
On this day in 1965, a large fireball was seen across 6 US states and Canada. It was widely assumed to be a meteor, but eyewitnesses in Kecksburg, near Pittsburgh, said something crashed in the woods. A variety of witnesses said to feel a ‘thump’ as it landed, and some said they saw an object in the shape...
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Rest in Peace: John Lennon 1940-1980
On this day in 1980, musician and peace activist John Winston Ono Lennon was shot outside the Dakota Building in New York City. He was killed by a deranged fan, Mark David Chapman, for whom Lennon had given an autograph just a few hours earlier.
John Lennon is of course known for being a founding member of one of, if not the most, successful act in the world: The Beatles. His first band The...
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December 8th 1991: The Soviet Union is dissolved
(Tanks in the Red Square during the 1991 coup d’etat attempt)
On this day in 1991, the leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine signed an agreement dissolving the Soviet Union and establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Soviet Union was established following the October Revolution of 1917 when the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, seized power from the Provisional...
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December 7th 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor
On this day in 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy conducted a surprise military strike against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack was intended as a preventive action in order to keep the US Pacific Fleet from interfering with military actions the Empire of Japan was planning in Southeast Asia.
The base was attacked by 353 Japanese fighters, bombers and torpedo planes...
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December 6th 343: Saint Nicholas dies
On this day in 343 AD, Nikolaos of Myra (better known as Saint Nicholas) died. Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, thieves, children, and students in various countries in the Balkans and Eastern Europe and in parts of Western Europe.
Nicholas was born a Greek in Asia Minor during the third century in the Greek city of Patara, which was a port on the Mediterranean...
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December 5th 771: Charlemagne becomes the sole...
On this day in 771, Charlemagne became the King of the Franks following the death of his brother Carloman. The son of King Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon (a Frankish queen) he succeeded his father in 768 and was initially co-ruler with his brother Carloman I. It has often been suggested that the relationship between Charlemagne and Carloman was not good, but further conflict was prevented...
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If anyone has any suggestions for upcoming events...
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December 4th 1872: The crewless Mary Celeste...
On this day in 1872, the American ship the Mary Celeste was found unmanned in the Atlanic Ocean by the British brig Dei Gratia. The ship was unmanned and seemed to be abandoned (one lifeboat was missing), despite the fact that the weather was fine and the ship was still seaworthy, with no sign of a struggle. She had been at sea for a month and had over six months’ worth of food and water...
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December 3rd 1894: Robert Louis Stevenson dies
On this day in 1894, the author Robert Louis Stevenson passed away aged 44. Stevenson was best known for his works ‘Treasure Island’, ‘Kidnapped’ and ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde’. He ranks among the 26 most translated authors of all time.
Stevenson died on the evening of 3rd December 1894. He was talking to his wife and trying to open a...
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December 2nd 1988: Benazir Bhutto sworn in as...
On this day in 1988, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to head the government of an Islam-dominated state. Bhutto was a democratic socialist and the 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan. In 1982, aged 29, Bhutto became the chairwoman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) - a democratic socialist, centre-left party, making her the first woman in...
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December 1st 1955: Rosa Parks refuses to give up...
On this day in 1955 Rosa Parks, a black seamstress from Alabama, refused to give up her seat on a bus for a white man. She was subsequently arrested for defying the state’s racial segregation laws. Segregation laws had been in place following the Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court ruling in 1896 which declared racial segregation constitutional, under the doctrine of “seperate but...