December 26 is the 360th day of the year (361st in leap years ) in the Gregorian calendar . There are five days remaining until the end of the year. This date is slightly more likely to fall on a Monday, Wednesday or Saturday (58 in 400 years each) than on Thursday or Friday (57), and slightly less likely to occur on a Tuesday or Sunday (56).
Events
887 – Berengar I is elected as king of Italy by the lords of Lombardy . He is crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy at Pavia .[1] 1481 – Battle of Westbroek : Holland defeats troops of Utrecht .1489 – The forces of the Catholic Monarchs , Ferdinand and Isabella , take control of Almería from the Nasrid ruler of Granada , Muhammad XIII .1776 – American Revolutionary War : In the Battle of Trenton , the Continental Army attacks and successfully defeats a garrison of Hessian forces .1790 – Louis XVI of France gives his public assent to Civil Constitution of the Clergy during the French Revolution .1793 – Second Battle of Wissembourg : France defeat Austria.1799 – Four thousand people attend George Washington 's funeral where Henry Lee III declares him as "first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen".1805 – Austria and France sign the Treaty of Pressburg .1806 – Battles of Pultusk and Golymin : Russian forces hold French forces under Napoleon .1811 – A theater fire in Richmond, Virginia kills the Governor of Virginia George William Smith and the president of the First National Bank of Virginia Abraham B. Venable .1825 – Advocates of liberalism in Russia rise up against Czar Nicholas I but are suppressed in the Decembrist revolt in Saint Petersburg .1846 – Trapped in snow in the Sierra Nevadas and without food, members of the Donner Party resort to cannibalism .1860 – The first ever inter-club English association football match takes place between Hallam and Sheffield football clubs in Sheffield .1861 – American Civil War : The Trent Affair Confederate diplomatic envoys James Murray Mason and John Slidell are freed by the United States government, thus heading off a possible war between the United States and the United Kingdom.1862 – American Civil War: The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou begins.1862 – Four nuns serving as volunteer nurses on board USS Red Rover are the first female nurses on a U.S. Navy hospital ship.
1862 – The largest mass-hanging in U.S. history took place in Mankato, Minnesota , 38 Native Americans died.
1871 – Gilbert and Sullivan collaborate for the first time, on their lost opera, Thespis 1898 – Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium .1919 – Babe Ruth of the Boston Red Sox is sold to the New York Yankees by owner Harry Frazee , allegedly establishing the Curse of the Bambino superstition.1925 – Turkey adopts the Gregorian calendar .1941 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs a bill establishing the fourth Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day in the United States.1943 – World War II : German warship Scharnhorst North Cape after a battle against major Royal Navy forces .1944 – World War II: George S. Patton 's Third Army breaks the encirclement of surrounded U.S. forces at Bastogne , Belgium.1948 – Cardinal József Mindszenty is arrested in Hungary and accused of treason and conspiracy.1963 – The Beatles ' "I Want to Hold Your Hand " and "I Saw Her Standing There " are released in the United States, marking the beginning of Beatlemania on an international level.1966 – The first Kwanzaa is celebrated by Maulana Karenga , the chair of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach .1972 – Vietnam War : As part of Operation Linebacker II , 120 American B-52 Stratofortress bombers attacked Hanoi , including 78 launched from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam , the largest single combat launch in Strategic Air Command history.1975 – Tu-144 , the world's first commercial supersonic aircraft , surpassing Mach 2 , went into service.1976 – The Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist–Leninist) is founded.1991 – The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union meets and formally dissolves the Soviet Union .1994 – Four Armed Islamic Group hijackers seize control of Air France Flight 8969 . When the plane lands at Marseille , a French Gendarmerie assault team boards the aircraft and kills the hijackers.1998 – Iraq announces its intention to fire upon U.S. and British warplanes that patrol the northern and southern no-fly zones .1999 – The storm Lothar sweeps across Central Europe, killing 137 and causing US$1.3 billion in damage.2003 – The 6.6 Mw Bam earthquake shakes southeastern Iran with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent ), leaving more than 26,000 dead and 30,000 injured.2004 – The 9.1–9.3 Mw Indian Ocean earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent ). One of the largest observed tsunamis follows, affecting the coastal areas of Thailand , India, Sri Lanka , the Maldives , Malaysia , Myanmar , Bangladesh , and Indonesia ; death toll is between 230,000–280,000.2004 – Orange Revolution : The final run-off election in Ukraine is held under heavy international scrutiny.
2006 – An oil pipeline in Lagos, Nigeria explodes , killing at least 260 people.2009 – China opens the world's longest high-speed rail route , which links Beijing and Guangzhou .
Births
1194 – Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1250)1532 – Wilhelm Xylander , German scholar and academic (d. 1576)1536 – Yi I , Korean philosopher and scholar (d. 1584)1581 – Philip III, Landgrave of Hesse-Butzbach (d. 1643)1646 – Robert Bolling , English-American merchant and planter (d. 1709)1687 – Johann Georg Pisendel , German violinist and composer (d. 1755)1716 – Jean François de Saint-Lambert , French soldier and philosopher (d. 1803)1716 – Thomas Gray , English poet and scholar (d. 1771)
1723 – Friedrich Melchior, Baron von Grimm , German-French author and playwright (d. 1807)1737 – Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (d. 1815)1751 – Lord George Gordon , English lieutenant and politician (d. 1793)1751 – Clemens Maria Hofbauer , Austrian priest, missionary, and saint (d. 1820)
1780 – Mary Somerville , Scottish mathematician, astronomer, and author (d. 1872)1785 – Étienne Constantin de Gerlache , Belgian lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Belgium (d. 1871)1782 – Philaret Drozdov , Russian metropolitan and saint (d. 1867)1791 – Charles Babbage , English mathematician and engineer, invented the Difference engine (d. 1871)1803 – Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald , Estonian physician and author (d. 1882)1819 – E. D. E. N. Southworth , American author and educator (d. 1899)1820 – Dion Boucicault , Irish actor and playwright (d. 1890)1837 – Morgan Bulkeley , American soldier and politician, 54th Governor of Connecticut (d. 1922)1837 – George Dewey , American admiral (d. 1917)
1852 – Johannes François Snelleman , Dutch zoologist, orientalist, and ethnographer (d. 1938)1853 – René Bazin , French author and academic (d. 1932)1854 – José Yves Limantour , Mexican financier and politician, Mexican Secretary of Finance (d. 1935)1859 – William Stephens , American lawyer and politician, 24th Governor of California (d. 1944)1863 – Charles Pathé , French record producer, co-founded Pathé Records (d. 1957)1864 – Yun Chi-ho , Korean activist and politician (d. 1945)1867 – Phan Bội Châu , Vietnamese activist (d. 1940)1869 – Mathieu Cordang , Dutch cyclist (d. 1942)1872 – Norman Angell , English journalist, academic, and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1967)1873 – Thomas Wass , English cricketer (d. 1953)1874 – Khan Bahadur Ahsanullah , Bangladeshi theologian and academic (d. 1965)1883 – Maurice Utrillo , French painter (d. 1955)1887 – Arthur Percival , English general (d. 1966)1888 – Marius Canard , French orientalist and historian (d. 1982)1890 – Percy Hodge , English runner (d. 1967)1890 – Uncle Charlie Osborne , American fiddler (d. 1992)
1891 – Henry Miller , American author and painter (d. 1980)1892 – Don Barclay , American actor and illustrator (d. 1975)1893 – Mao Zedong , Chinese politician, Chairman of the Communist Party of China (d. 1976)1894 – Jean Toomer , American author and poet (d. 1967)1901 – Elmar Muuk , Estonian linguist and author (d. 1941)1902 – Anatoli Lvovich Kaplan , Russian painter and sculptor (d. 1980)1903 – Elisha Cook, Jr. , American actor (d. 1995)1904 – Alejo Carpentier , Swiss-Cuban musicologist and author (d. 1980)1905 – William Loeb III , American publisher (d. 1981)1907 – Albert Gore, Sr. , American lawyer and politician (d. 1998)1908 – Ralph Hill , American runner (d. 1994)1909 – Matt Gordy , American pole vaulter (d. 1989)1910 – Imperio Argentina , Argentine-Spanish actress and singer (d. 2003)1910 – Marguerite Churchill , American actress (d. 2000)
1912 – Arsenio Lacson , Filipino journalist and politician, Mayor of Manila (d. 1962)1913 – Frank Swift , English footballer and journalist (d. 1958)1914 – Richard Widmark , American actor (d. 2008)1915 – Rolf Botvid , Swedish actor and screenwriter (d. 1998)1918 – Olga Lopes-Seale , Guyanese-Barbadian singer and radio host (d. 2011)1918 – Georgios Rallis , Greek lieutenant and politician, 173rd Prime Minister of Greece (d. 2006)
1921 – John Severin , American illustrator (d. 2012)1921 – Steve Allen , American actor, singer, talk show host, and screenwriter (d. 2000)
1922 – Richard Mayes , English actor (d. 2006)1923 – Richard Artschwager , American painter, illustrator, and sculptor (d. 2013)1924 – Frank Broyles , American football player, coach, and sportscaster1926 – Earle Brown , American composer (d. 2002)1926 – Gina Pellón , Cuban-French painter and poet (d. 2014)
1927 – Denis Gifford , English journalist and historian (d. 2000)1927 – Alan King , American actor, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
1927 – Stu Miller , American baseball player (d. 2015)
1927 – Denis Quilley , English actor (d. 2003)
1929 – Kathleen Crowley , American actress1929 – Régine Zylberberg , Belgian-French singer and actress
1930 – Jean Ferrat , French singer-songwriter and poet (d. 2010)1930 – Harry Gamble , American football player, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
1930 – Donald Moffat , English-American actor
1933 – Ugly Dave Gray , English-Australian actor and singer1933 – Olavi Salsola , Finnish runner (d. 1995)
1933 – Caroll Spinney , American puppeteer and voice actor
1935 – Norm Ullman , Canadian ice hockey player1936 – Peep Jänes , Estonian architect1936 – Trevor Taylor , English race car driver (d. 2010)
1937 – John Horton Conway , English-American mathematician and academic1937 – Jay Heimowitz , American poker player
1938 – Bahram Beyzai , Iranian director, producer, and screenwriter1938 – Robert Hamerton-Kelly , South African-American pastor, scholar, and author (d. 2013)
1938 – Alamgir Kabir , Bangladeshi director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1989)
1938 – Mirko Kovač , Yugoslav-Croatian author, playwright, and screenwriter (d. 2013)
1939 – Fred Schepisi , Australian director and screenwriter1939 – Phil Spector , American singer-songwriter and producer
1940 – Edward C. Prescott , American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate1940 – Ray Sadecki , American baseball player (d. 2014)
1941 – Daniel Schmid , Swiss actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2006)1942 – Vinicio Cerezo , Guatemalan politician, 28th President of Guatemala 1942 – Catherine Coulter , American author
1942 – Gray Davis , American captain, lawyer, and politician, 37th Governor of California
1944 – William Ayers , American academic and activist1945 – John Walsh , American television host, producer, and activist, created America's Most Wanted 1946 – Alan Frumin , American lawyer and politician1946 – Tiit Rosenberg , Estonian historian and academic
1946 – Rini Wagtmans , Dutch cyclist and businessman
1947 – James T. Conway , American general1947 – Jean Echenoz , French author
1947 – Carlton Fisk , American baseball player
1947 – Josef Janíček , Czech singer-songwriter, guitarist, and keyboard player
1947 – Richard Levis McCormick , American historian and academic
1948 – Candy Crowley , American journalist1949 – Bob Hartman , American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer1949 – José Ramos-Horta , East Timorese lawyer and politician, 2nd President of East Timor , Nobel Prize laureate
1950 – Raja Pervaiz Ashraf , Pakistani businessman and politician, 17th Prime Minister of Pakistan 1950 – Mario Mendoza , Mexican baseball player and manager
1951 – C. J. Henderson , American author and critic (d. 2014)1951 – John Scofield , American guitarist and composer
1953 – Leonel Fernández , Dominican lawyer and politician, 51st President of the Dominican Republic 1953 – Toomas Hendrik Ilves , Swedish-Estonian journalist and politician, 4th President of Estonia
1953 – Makis Katsavakis , Greek footballer and manager
1953 – Henning Schmitz , German drummer
1954 – Peter Hillary , New Zealand mountaineer and philanthropist1954 – Ozzie Smith , American baseball player and sportscaster
1954 – Steve Steen , English actor and screenwriter
1955 – Evan Bayh , American lawyer and politician, 46th Governor of Indiana 1956 – David Sedaris , American comedian, author, and radio host1957 – Dermot Murnaghan , English-Northern Irish journalist and game show host1958 – Adrian Newey , English aerodynamicist and engineer1959 – Wang Lijun , Chinese police officer and politician1959 – Kōji Morimoto , Japanese animator and director
1959 – Hans Nielsen , Danish motorcycle racer
1960 – Keith Martin Ball , American mathematician and academic1960 – Ruud Kaiser , Dutch footballer and manager
1960 – Jim Toomey , American cartoonist
1960 – Cem Uzan , Turkish businessman and politician
1961 – Andrew Lock , Australian mountaineer1961 – John Lynch , Northern Irish actor
1962 – Mark Starr , English wrestler (d. 2013)1963 – Lars Ulrich , Danish-American drummer, songwriter, and producer1963 – Bill Wennington , Canadian basketball player and sportscaster
1964 – Elizabeth Kostova , American author1966 – Jay Farrar , American singer-songwriter and guitarist1966 – Tim Legler , American basketball player and sportscaster
1966 – Jay Yuenger , American guitarist and producer
1969 – Isaac Viciosa , Spanish runner1970 – James Mercer , American singer-songwriter and guitarist1971 – Jared Leto , American actor and musician1971 – Mika Nurmela , Finnish footballer
1971 – Tatiana Sorokko , Russian-American model and journalist
1972 – Esteban Fuertes , Argentinian footballer1972 – Robert Muchamore , English author
1973 – Paulo Frederico Benevenute , Brazilian footballer1973 – Zach Blair , American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1973 – Gianluca Faliva , Italian rugby player
1973 – Nobuhiko Matsunaka , Japanese baseball player
1973 – Steve Prescott , English rugby player (d. 2013)
1974 – Joshua John Miller , American actor, director, and screenwriter1975 – Chris Calaguio , Filipino basketball player1975 – Marcelo Ríos , Chilean tennis player
1975 – María Vasco , Spanish race walker
1976 – Simon Goodwin , Australian footballer and coach1977 – Fatih Akyel , Turkish footballer and manager1977 – Adrienn Hegedűs , Hungarian tennis player
1978 – Karel Rüütli , Estonian lawyer and politician1978 – Kaoru Sugayama , Japanese volleyball player
1979 – Fabián Carini , Uruguayan footballer1979 – Chris Daughtry , American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1979 – Dimitry Vassiliev , Russian ski jumper
1979 – Craig Wing , Australian rugby player
1980 – Todd Dunivant , American soccer player1981 – Pablo Canavosio , Argentinian-Italian rugby player1982 – Kenneth Darby , American football player1982 – Noel Hunt , Irish footballer
1982 – Shun Oguri , Japanese actor and director
1982 – Roxanne Pallett , English actress and singer
1982 – Aksel Lund Svindal , Norwegian skier
1983 – Yu Takahashi , Japanese singer-songwriter1984 – Ahmed Barusso , Ghanaian footballer1984 – Leonardo Ghiraldini , Italian rugby player
1984 – Alex Schwazer , Italian race walker
1985 – Beth Behrs , American actress1986 – Hugo Lloris , French footballer1986 – Kit Harington , English actor
1987 – Adam Walker , English flute player1988 – Kayo Satoh , Japanese model1989 – Yohan Blake , Jamaican sprinter1990 – Andy Biersack , American singer-songwriter1990 – Denis Cheryshev , Russian footballer
1990 – Aaron Ramsey , Welsh footballer
1991 – Eden Sher , American actress1992 – Cecilia Costa Melgar , Chilean tennis player1994 – Souleymane Coulibaly , Ivorian footballer
Deaths
268 – Pope Dionysius 831 – Euthymius of Sardis , Byzantine bishop and saint (b. 754)1350 – Jean de Marigny , French archbishop1352 – John, 3rd Earl of Kent , English politician (b. 1330)1360 – Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent , English commander (b. 1314)1458 – Arthur III, Duke of Brittany (b. 1393)1530 – Babur , Mongolian emperor (b. 1483)1574 – Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine (b. 1524)1731 – Antoine Houdar de la Motte , French author (b. 1672)1771 – Claude Adrien Helvétius , French philosopher and activist (b. 1715)1780 – John Fothergill , English physician and botanist (b. 1712)1784 – Seth Warner , American colonel (b. 1743)1786 – Gasparo Gozzi , Italian playwright and critic (b. 1713)1863 – Francis Caulfeild, 2nd Earl of Charlemont , Irish politician, Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone (b. 1775)1869 – Jean Léonard Marie Poiseuille , French physician and physiologist (b. 1797)1890 – Heinrich Schliemann , German-Italian archaeologist and author (b. 1822)1909 – Frederic Remington , American painter and illustrator (b. 1861)1923 – Dietrich Eckart , German journalist, poet, and politician (b. 1868)1925 – Jan Letzel , Czech architect, designed the Hiroshima Peace Memorial (b. 1880)1929 – Albert Giraud , Belgian poet (b. 1860)1931 – Melvil Dewey , American librarian and educator, created the Dewey Decimal Classification (b. 1851)1933 – Anatoly Lunacharsky , Russian journalist and politician (b. 1875)1933 – Henry Watson Fowler , English lexicographer and educator (b. 1858)
1933 – Eduard Vilde , Estonian author and diplomat (b. 1865)
1959 – Jack Tresadern , English footballer and manager (b. 1890)1960 – Tetsuro Watsuji , Japanese historian and philosopher (b. 1889)1963 – Gorgeous George , American wrestler (b. 1915)1966 – Ina Boudier-Bakker , Dutch author (b. 1875)1966 – Herbert Otto Gille , German general (b. 1897)
1966 – Guillermo Stábile , Argentinian footballer and manager (b. 1905)
1968 – Weegee , Ukrainian-American photographer and journalist (b. 1898)1970 – Lillian Board , South African-English runner (b. 1948)1972 – Harry S. Truman , American colonel and politician, 33rd President of the United States (b. 1884)1973 – Harold B. Lee , American religious leader, 11th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (b. 1899)1974 – Farid al-Atrash , Syrian-Egyptian singer-songwriter, oud player, and actor (b. 1915)1974 – Jack Benny , American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, and violinist (b. 1894)
1974 – Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton , Scottish admiral (b. 1890)
1977 – Howard Hawks , American director and screenwriter (b. 1896)1980 – Tony Smith , American sculptor and educator (b. 1912)1981 – Amber Reeves , New Zealand-English author and scholar (b. 1887)1981 – Suat Hayri Ürgüplü , Turkish politician, Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1903)
1984 – Sheila Andrews , American singer-songwriter (b. 1953)1986 – Elsa Lanchester , English-American actress (b. 1902)1988 – Glenn McCarthy , American businessman, founded the Shamrock Hotel (b. 1907)1988 – Pablo Sorozábal , German-Spanish composer and conductor (b. 1897)
1989 – Doug Harvey , Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1924)1990 – Gene Callahan , American art director and production designer (b. 1923)1992 – Nikita Magaloff , Georgian-Russian pianist (b. 1912)1994 – Sylva Koscina , Italian actress (b. 1933)1996 – JonBenét Ramsey , American child beauty queen and prominent unsolved murder victim (b. 1990)1997 – Cahit Arf , Turkish mathematician and academic (b. 1910)1997 – Cornelius Castoriadis , Greek economist and philosopher (b. 1922)
1999 – Curtis Mayfield , American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1942)1999 – Shankar Dayal Sharma , Indian academic and politician, 9th President of India (b. 1918)
2000 – Jason Robards , American actor (b. 1922)2001 – Nigel Hawthorne , English actor (b. 1929)2002 – Herb Ritts , American photographer and director (b. 1952)2002 – Armand Zildjian , American businessman, founded the Avedis Zildjian Company (b. 1921)
2004 – Troy Broadbridge , Australian footballer (b. 1980)2004 – Jonathan Drummond-Webb , South African surgeon and academic (b. 1959)
2004 – Sigurd Køhn , Norwegian saxophonist and composer (b. 1959)
2004 – Angus Ogilvy , English businessman (b. 1928)
2004 – Mieszko Talarczyk , Polish-Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1974)
2004 – Reggie White , American football player and wrestler (b. 1961)
2005 – Muriel Costa-Greenspon , American soprano (b. 1937)2005 – Ted Ditchburn , English footballer and manager (b. 1921)
2005 – Kerry Packer , Australian publisher and businessman (b. 1937)
2005 – Viacheslav Platonov , Russian volleyball player and coach (b. 1939)
2005 – Vincent Schiavelli , American actor (b. 1948)
2005 – Erich Topp , German commander (b. 1914)
2006 – Gerald Ford , American commander, lawyer, and politician, 38th President of the United States (b. 1913)2006 – Ivar Formo , Norwegian skier and engineer (b. 1951)
2006 – Munir Niazi , Indian-Pakistani poet (b. 1928)
2009 – Felix Wurman , American cellist and composer (b. 1958)2010 – Edward Bhengu , South African activist (b. 1934)2010 – Teena Marie , American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1956)
2011 – Houston Antwine , American football player (b. 1939)2011 – Pedro Armendáriz, Jr. , Mexican-American actor and producer (b. 1940)
2011 – Sarekoppa Bangarappa , Indian politician, 15th Chief Minister of Karnataka (b. 1932)
2011 – Joe Bodolai , American screenwriter and producer (b. 1948)
2011 – James Rizzi , American painter and illustrator (b. 1950)
2012 – Gerry Anderson , English director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1929)2012 – Fontella Bass , American singer-songwriter (b. 1940)
2012 – Gerald McDermott , American author and illustrator (b. 1941)
2012 – Ibrahim Tannous , Lebanese general (b. 1929)
2013 – Paul Blair , American baseball player and coach (b. 1944)2013 – Marta Eggerth , Hungarian-American actress and singer (b. 1912)
2014 – Stanisław Barańczak , Polish-American poet, critic, and scholar (b. 1946)2014 – James B. Edwards , American dentist, soldier, and politician, 3rd United States Secretary of Energy (b. 1927)
2014 – Leo Tindemans , Belgian politician, 43rd Prime Minister of Belgium (b. 1922)
2015 – Sidney Mintz , American anthropologist and academic (b. 1922)2015 – Jim O'Toole , American baseball player (b. 1937)
Holidays and observances
Boxing Day , except when December 26 is a Sunday. If it is a Sunday, Boxing Day is transferred to December 27 by Royal Proclamation. (Commonwealth of Nations ), and its related observances:
Christian feast day :
Independence and Unity Day (Slovenia) Mauro Hamza Day (Houston, Texas )Mummer's Day (Padstow , Cornwall )St. Stephen's Day (public holiday in Alsace , Austria, Catalonia , Croatia , the Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Ireland , Luxembourg , Poland, Slovakia and Switzerland), and its related observances:
The first day of Kwanzaa , celebrated until January 1 (United States)
The first day of Junkanoo street parade, the second day is on the New Year's Day (The Bahamas )
The second day of the Twelve Days of Christmas (Western Christianity)
Wren Day (Ireland and the Isle of Man )Zartosht No-Diso (Zoroastrianism )
External links References
Months and days of the year
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
