EVENTS
- 1814 – The Treaty of Ghent between America and Britain was signed, officially ending the War of 1812.
- 1818 – The classic Christmas song, Silent Night, is composed by Franz Xaver Gruber.
- 1826 – Eggnog riots begin at the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York. Also known as the Grog Mutiny, these riots began on Christmas Eve after cadets consumed copious amounts of eggnog made with smuggled whiskey. The riots lasted until December 25.
- 1865 – Ku Klux Klan created. The extremist white supremacist organization, also known as the Klan, was created in Pulaski, Tennessee by Confederate Army veterans.
- 1871 – Giusseppi Verdi’s famous opera, ‘Aida’, premieres in Cairo, Egypt.
- 1893 – Henry Ford completes the first productive gas motor
- 1914 – The first-ever German air raid against Britain took place when a German monoplane dropped a single bomb on Dover, England, during World War I.
- 1942 – The first surface-to-surface guided missile, later known as the V-1 Flying Bomb, was launched by German rocket engineer Wernher von Braun. Called “Buzz Bombs” for the loud buzzing sound of their motor, they were used by Nazi Germany against Britain beginning in September 1944.
- 1943 – General Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force preparing for D-Day.
- 1951 – Libya gains independence from Italy. The North African country had been ruled by Italy since 1912. After independence, it became a constitutional monarchy under King Idris. King Idris was overthrown in a military coup led by Muammar Gaddafi in 1969.
- 1955 – NORAD’s Santa tracking service began. The event is now a Christmas tradition where the North American Aerospace Defense Command tracks Santa Claus as he travels around the world delivering presents to children. The event began after a printing error in a Sears catalog asking children to call Santa Claus. The number that was printed was the number of Colorado Springs’ Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Center.
- 1990 – On Christmas Eve, the bells of St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow rang for the first time since the death of Lenin.
- 1992 – Caspar Weinberger and five other Reagan aides involved in the Iran-Contra scandal were pardoned by President George Bush.
BIRTHDAYS
- 1166 – John, King of England.
- 1745 – American patriot Benjamin Rush (1745-1813) was born on a plantation in Byberry, Pennsylvania. He was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, a doctor and humanitarian, whose writings on mental illness earned him the title “Father of Psychiatry.” He also countered the prevailing notion that alcohol was gener
- 1809 – American frontiersman Christopher “Kit” Carson (1809-1868) was born in Madison County, Kentucky. He was a soldier, trapper, guide and Indian agent in the Old West.
- 1868 – Emanuel Lasker (German chess player)
- 1905 – Howard Hughes (Aviation Pioneer)
- 1922 – Ava Gardner (Actress)
- 1927 – Mary Higgins Clark (Mystery writer)
- 1957 – Hamid Karzai (Afghan politician, 12th President of Afghanistan)
- 1971 – Ricky Martin (Singer)
- 1973 – Stephanie Meyer (Author of Twilight Series)
- 1974 – Ryan Seacrest (TV Host)
DEATHS
- 1524 – Vasco da Gama (Portuguese explorer)
- 1914 – John Muir (Scottish/American environmentalist, author)
- 1965 – William M. Branham (American minister)
- 1977 – Samael Aun Weor (Colombian author)
- 2008 – Harold Pinter (English playwright, screenwriter, director, actor, Nobel Prize laureate)