December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 10 days remaining until the end of the year.
- 69 – The Roman Senate declares Vespasian as Roman emperor, the last in the Year of the Four Emperors.
- 1140 – Conrad III of Germany besieged Weinsberg.
- 1361 – The Battle of Linuesa is fought in the context of the Spanish Reconquista between the forces of the Emirate of Granada and the combined army of the Kingdom of Castile and of Jaén resulting in a Castilian victory.
- 1598 – Battle of Curalaba: The revolting Mapuche, led by cacique Pelentaru, inflict a major defeat on Spanish troops in southern Chile.
- 1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
- 1826 – American settlers in Nacogdoches, Mexican Texas, declare their independence, starting the Fredonian Rebellion.
- 1832 – Egyptian–Ottoman War: Egyptian forces decisively defeat Ottoman troops at the Battle of Konya.
- 1844 – The Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers commences business at its cooperative in Rochdale, England, United Kingdom starting the Cooperative movement.
- 1861 – Medal of Honor: Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln.
- 1872 – Challenger expedition: HMS Challenger, commanded by Captain George Nares, sails from Portsmouth, England.
- 1879 – World première of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark.
- 1883 – The Royal Canadian Dragoons and The Royal Canadian Regiment, the first Permanent Force cavalry and infantry regiments of the Canadian Army, are formed: .
- 1907 – The Chilean Army commits a massacre of at least 2,000 striking saltpeter miners in Iquique, Chile.
- 1910 – An underground explosion at the Hulton Bank Colliery No. 3 Pit in Over Hulton, Westhoughton, England, kills 344 miners.
- 1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.
- 1919 – American anarchist Emma Goldman is deported to Russia.
- 1937 – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre.
- 1941 – World War II: A formal treaty of alliance between Thailand and Japan is signed in the presence of the Emerald Buddha in Wat Phra Kaew, Thailand.
- 1946 – An 8.1 Mw earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Nankaidō, Japan, kill over 1,300 people and destroy over 38,000 homes.
- 1962 – Rondane National Park is established as Norway's first national park.
- 1967 – Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a heart transplant, dies in Cape Town, South Africa, having lived for 18 days after the transplant.
- 1968 – Apollo program: Apollo 8 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.
- 1969 – The United Nations adopts the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
- 1973 – The Geneva Conference on the Arab–Israeli conflict opens.
- 1979 – Lancaster House Agreement: An independence agreement for Rhodesia is signed in London, England, United Kingdom by Lord Peter Carrington, Sir Ian Gilmour, Robert Mugabe, Joshua Nkomo, Bishop Abel Muzorewa and S.C. Mundawarara.
- 1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270.
- 1992 – A Dutch DC-10, flight Martinair MP 495, crashes at Faro Airport, killing 56.
- 1994 – Mexican volcano Popocatépetl, dormant for 47 years, erupts gases and ash.
- 1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control.
- 1999 – The Spanish Civil Guard intercepts a van loaded with 950 kg of explosives that ETA intended to use to blow up Torre Picasso in Madrid, Spain.
- 2004 – Iraq War: A suicide bomber killed 22 at the forward operating base next to the main U.S. military airfield at Mosul, Iraq, the single deadliest suicide attack on American soldiers.
- 1118 – Thomas Becket, English archbishop (d. 1170)
- 1401 – Masaccio, Italian painter (d. 1428)
- 1596 – Peter Mogila, Moldovan bishop (d. 1646)
- 1603 – Roger Williams, English theologian and politician, founded the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (d. 1684)
- 1672 – Benjamin Schmolck, German composer (d. 1737)
- 1682 – Calico Jack, English pirate (d. 1720)
- 1714 – John Bradstreet, English army officer (d. 1774)
- 1728 – Hermann Raupach, German composer (d. 1778)
- 1778 – Anders Sandøe Ørsted, Danish politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1860)
- 1795 – John Russell, English hunter and dog breeder (d. 1883)
- 1795 – Leopold von Ranke, German historian (d. 1886)
- 1804 – Benjamin Disraeli, English politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1881)
- 1805 – Thomas Graham, Scottish chemist (d. 1869)
- 1811 – Archibald Tait, English archbishop (d. 1882)
- 1815 – Thomas Couture, French painter and educator (d. 1879)
- 1818 – Amalia of Oldenburg (d. 1875)
- 1832 – John H. Ketcham, American general and politician (d. 1906)
- 1840 – Namık Kemal, Turkish poet (d. 1888)
- 1843 – Thomas Bracken, Irish-New Zealand poet (d. 1898)
- 1850 – Zdeněk Fibich, Bohemian composer (d. 1900)
- 1850 – William Wallace Lincoln, American son of Abraham Lincoln (d. 1862)
- 1851 – Thomas Chipman McRae, American politician, 26th Governor of Arkansas (d. 1929)
- 1859 – Gustave Kahn, French poet (d. 1936)
- 1866 – Maud Gonne, English-Irish actress and activist (d. 1953)
- 1868 – George W. Fuller, American engineer (d. 1934)
- 1872 – Sidney Ainsworth, English actor (d. 1922)
- 1872 – Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (d. 1956)
- 1872 – Albert Payson Terhune, American author and journalist (d. 1942)
- 1873 – Blagoje Bersa, Croatian composer (d. 1934)
- 1876 – Jack Lang, Australian politician, 23rd Premier of New South Wales (d. 1975)
- 1878 – Jan Łukasiewicz, Polish philosopher and mathematician (d. 1956)
- 1885 – Frank Patrick, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1960)
- 1889 – Sewall Wright, American biologist (d. 1988)
- 1890 – Hermann Joseph Muller, American geneticist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1967)
- 1891 – John William McCormack, American politician, 53rd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (d. 1980)
- 1892 – Amy Clarke, English poet (d. 1980)
- 1892 – Walter Hagen, American golfer (d. 1969)
- 1892 – Rebecca West, English journalist and author (d. 1983)
- 1896 – Leroy Robertson, American composer (d. 1971)
- 1905 – Anthony Powell, English author (d. 2000)
- 1908 – Herbert Hutner, American banker and lawyer (d. 2008)
- 1909 – Seichō Matsumoto, Japanese author and journalist (d. 1992)
- 1911 – Josh Gibson, American baseball player (d. 1947)
- 1913 – Arnold Friberg, American illustrator and painter (d. 2010)
- 1914 – Frank Fenner, Australian microbiologist (d. 2010)
- 1914 – Ivan Generalić, Hungarian-Croatian painter (d. 1992)
- 1915 – Joe Mantell, American actor (d. 2010)
- 1915 – Werner von Trapp, Austrian-American singer (d. 2007)
- 1917 – Heinrich Böll, German author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1985)
- 1917 – Sophie Masloff, American politician, 55th Mayor of Pittsburgh
- 1918 – Donald Regan, American politician, 11th White House Chief of Staff (d. 2003)
- 1918 – Kurt Waldheim, Austrian politician, 9th President of Austria (d. 2007)
- 1920 – Bob Bindig, American illustrator (d. 2007)
- 1920 – Jean Gascon, Canadian actor (d. 1988)
- 1921 – Alicia Alonso, Cuban ballerina and choreographer
- 1921 – Robert Lipshutz, American lawyer (d. 2010)
- 1921 – John Severin, American illustrator (d. 2012)
- 1922 – Itubwa Amram, Nauruan pastor and politician (d. 1989)
- 1922 – Paul Winchell, American ventriloquist and voice actor (d. 2005)
- 1924 – Rita Reys, Dutch singer
- 1926 – Arnošt Lustig, Czech author (d. 2011)
- 1926 – Joe Paterno, American football player and coach (d. 2012)
- 1928 – Ed Nelson, American actor
- 1931 – David Baker, American composer
- 1932 – Edward Hoagland, American author
- 1933 – Denis E. Dillon, American politician (d. 2010)
- 1934 – Claudio Scimone, Italian conductor
- 1935 – John G. Avildsen, American director
- 1935 – Lorenzo Bandini, Italian race car driver (d. 1967)
- 1935 – Yusuf Bey, American activist (d. 2003)
- 1935 – Phil Donahue, American talk show host and producer
- 1935 – Edward Schreyer, Canadian politician, 22nd Governor General of Canada
- 1937 – Jane Fonda, American actress
- 1937 – Donald F. Munson, American politician
- 1938 – Larry Bryggman, American actor
- 1938 – Frank Moorhouse, Australian author
- 1939 – Lloyd Axworthy, Canadian politician
- 1940 – Arvi Lind, Finnish journalist
- 1940 – Ray Hildebrand, American singer-songwriter (Paul & Paula)
- 1940 – Frank Zappa, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (The Mothers of Invention) (d. 1993)
- 1942 – Hu Jintao, Chinese politician, 6th President of the People's Republic of China
- 1942 – Reinhard Mey, German singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1942 – Carla Thomas, American singer
- 1943 – André Arthur. Canadian radio host and politician
- 1943 – Albert Lee, English guitarist and songwriter (Heads Hands & Feet and Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings)
- 1943 – Jack Nance, American actor (d. 1996)
- 1944 – Bill Atkinson, English footballer
- 1944 – Michael Tilson Thomas, American pianist, conductor, and composer
- 1944 – Zheng Xiaoyu, Chinese diplomat (d. 2007)
- 1946 – Christopher Keene, American conductor (d. 1995)
- 1946 – Kevin Peek, Australian guitarist and songwriter (Sky) (d. 2013)
- 1946 – Carl Wilson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (The Beach Boys) (d. 1998)
- 1947 – Paco de Lucía, Spanish guitarist and songwriter
- 1947 – Bryan Hamilton, Irish footballer
- 1948 – Samuel L. Jackson, American actor and producer
- 1948 – Dave Kingman, American baseball player
- 1948 – Willi Resetarits, Austrian singer and activist
- 1949 – Thomas Sankara, Burkinabé military leader and politician, 5th President of Burkina Faso (d. 1987)
- 1949 – Nikolaos Sifounakis, Greek politician
- 1950 – Jeffrey Katzenberg, American film producer, co-founded DreamWorks Animation
- 1950 – Lillebjørn Nilsen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Gitarkameratene)
- 1951 – Nick Gilder, English-Canadian singer-songwriter (Sweeney Todd)
- 1952 – Joaquín Andújar, Dominican baseball player
- 1953 – Betty Wright, American singer-songwriter
- 1954 – Chris Evert, American tennis player
- 1955 – Jane Kaczmarek, American actress
- 1955 – Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, Japanese singer-songwriter and bass player (Southern All Stars)
- 1956 – Phil Harris, American fisherman (d. 2010)
- 1957 – Tom Henke, American baseball player
- 1957 – Rolf Kanies, German actor
- 1957 – Ray Romano, Italian-American comedian and actor
- 1959 – Florence Griffith-Joyner, American sprinter (d. 1998)
- 1960 – Roger McDowell, American baseball player
- 1960 – Sherry Rehman, Pakistani journalist, politician, and diplomat, 25th Pakistan Ambassador to the United States
- 1960 – Andy Van Slyke, American baseball player
- 1961 – Henry Ford Kamel, Ghanaian banker and politician (d. 2012)
- 1961 – Francis Ng, Hong Kong actor
- 1961 – Ryuji Sasai, Japanese composer
- 1961 – Del Wilkes, American wrestler
- 1963 – Govinda, Indian actor and politician
- 1964 – Rob Kelly, English footballer and manager
- 1964 – Joe Kocur, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1964 – Fabiana Udenio, Argentine actress
- 1965 – Andy Dick, American actor and comedian
- 1965 – Anke Engelke, Canadian-German comedian and actress
- 1965 – Stuart Mitchell, Scottish composer
- 1966 – Adam Schefter, American journalist
- 1966 – Kiefer Sutherland, English-Canadian actor, director, and producer
- 1966 – Karri Turner, American actress
- 1967 – Ervin Johnson, American basketball player
- 1967 – Fritz Karl, Austrian actor
- 1967 – Terry Mills, American basketball player
- 1967 – Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgian politician, 3rd President of Georgia
- 1969 – Julie Delpy, French-American actress, model, director, and screenwriter
- 1969 – Jack Noseworthy, American actor
- 1969 – Mihails Zemļinskis, Latvian footballer
- 1971 – Matthieu Chedid, French singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1971 – Fenton Keogh, Australian chef
- 1971 – Brett Scallions, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (Fuel, Manzarek–Krieger, and Circus Diablo)
- 1972 – Gloria De Piero, English journalist
- 1972 – LaTroy Hawkins, American baseball player
- 1972 – Dustin Hermanson, American baseball player
- 1972 – Claudia Poll, Costa Rican swimmer
- 1972 – Y. S. Jaganmohan Reddy, Indian politician
- 1972 – Erwin Schrott, Uruguayan opera singer
- 1973 – Irakli Alasania, Georgian politician and diplomat
- 1973 – Mike Alstott, American football player
- 1973 – Karmen Stavec, German-Slovenian singer
- 1974 – Karrie Webb, Australian golfer
- 1975 – Paloma Herrera, Argentine ballet dancer
- 1976 – Mirela Manjani, Greek javelin thrower
- 1976 – Lukas Rossi, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist (Rock Star Supernova and Daylight Division)
- 1977 – A. J. Bowen, American actor
- 1977 – Toby Rand, Australian singer-songwriter (Juke Kartel)
- 1978 – Emiliano Brembilla, Italian swimmer
- 1978 – Mike Vitar, American actor
- 1979 – Tuva Novotny, Swedish actress and singer
- 1980 – Royce Ring, American baseball player
- 1980 – Michele Di Piedi, Italian footballer
- 1981 – Frankie Abernathy, American purse designer, castmember on The Real World: San Diego (d. 2007)
- 1981 – Mohammed Jabarah, Kuwaiti terrorist
- 1981 – Sanita Pušpure, Latvian-Irish rower
- 1981 – Lynda Thomas, Mexican singer-songwriter and producer
- 1981 – Cristian Zaccardo, Italian footballer
- 1982 – Eddie Colón, Puerto Rican wrestler
- 1982 – Mike Gansey, American basketball player
- 1982 – Erica Hayden, American psychotherapist
- 1982 – Philip Humber, American baseball player
- 1982 – Iljo Keisse, Belgian cyclist
- 1982 – Tom Payne, English actor
- 1983 – Steven Yeun, American actor
- 1984 – Darren Potter, Irish footballer
- 1985 – James Stewart, Jr., American motorcycle racer
- 1985 – Tom Sturridge, English actor
- 1987 – Ryza Cenon, Filipino actress, dancer and model
- 1987 – Valerie Concepcion, Filipino actress
- 1987 – Brad Howard, Australian footballer
- 1988 – Yasmin, English-Scottish singer-songwriter and DJ
- 1990 – Alexa Goddard, English singer
- 1989 – Tamannaah, Indian actress
- 1989 – Mark Ingram, Jr., American football player
- 1994 – Eva Paalma, Estonian tennis player
- 72 – Thomas the Apostle (b. 1 AD)
- 882 – Hincmar, French archbishop (b. 806)
- 1295 – Margaret of Provence (b. 1221)
- 1308 – Henry I, Landgrave of Hesse (b. 1244)
- 1375 – Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian author and poet (b. 1313)
- 1504 – Bertold von Henneberg-Römhild, German archbishop (b. 1442)
- 1549 – Marguerite de Navarre, French wife of Henry II of Navarre (b. 1492)
- 1597 – Peter Canisius, Dutch priest (b. 1521)
- 1799 – Philip Affleck, English admiral (b. 1726)
- 1807 – John Newton, English soldier and clergyman (b. 1725)
- 1824 – James Parkinson, English physician and paleontologist (b. 1755)
- 1869 – Friedrich Ernst Scheller, German jurist and politician (b. 1791)
- 1873 – Francis Garnier, French explorer (b. 1839)
- 1889 – Friedrich August von Quenstedt, German geologist (b. 1809)
- 1900 – Roger Wolcott, American politician, 39th Governor of Massachusetts (b. 1847)
- 1920 – Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, Somalian military leader, founded the Dervish state (b. 1856)
- 1933 – Knud Rasmussen, Greenlandic explorer and anthropologist (b. 1879)
- 1935 – Kurt Tucholsky, German journalist (b. 1890)
- 1937 – Frank B. Kellogg, American politician, 45th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1856)
- 1940 – F. Scott Fitzgerald, American author (b. 1896)
- 1945 – George S. Patton, American military commander (b. 1885)
- 1952 – Kenneth Edwards, American golfer (b. 1886)
- 1957 – Eric Coates, English-American composer (b. 1886)
- 1958 – Lion Feuchtwanger, German author (b. 1884)
- 1959 – Rosanjin, Japanese calligrapher and ceramicist (b. 1883)
- 1964 – Carl Van Vechten, American author and photographer (b. 1880)
- 1963 – Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (b. 1882)
- 1965 – Claude Champagne, Canadian composer (b. 1891)
- 1967 – Stuart Erwin, American actor (b. 1903)
- 1968 – Vittorio Pozzo, Italian football coach (b. 1886)
- 1974 – James Henry Govier, English painter (b. 1910)
- 1974 – Richard Long, American actor (b. 1927)
- 1982 – Abu Al-Asar Hafeez Jullundhri, Pakistani poet and composer (b. 1900)
- 1983 – Paul de Man, Belgian critic (b. 1919)
- 1986 – Bill Simpson, Scottish actor (b. 1931)
- 1987 – John Spence, American singer (No Doubt) (b. 1969)
- 1988 – Nikolaas Tinbergen, Dutch ornithologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1907)
- 1989 – Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Nigerian-English photographer (b. 1955)
- 1990 – Clarence Johnson, American engineer, designed the Lockheed U-2 and Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (b. 1910)
- 1991 – Sheldon Mayer, American comics writer, artist and editor (b. 1917)
- 1992 – Albert King, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1924)
- 1992 – Nathan Milstein, Russian-American violinist (b. 1903)
- 1997 – Amie Comeaux, American singer (b. 1976)
- 1998 – Roger Avon, Durham actor (b. 1914)
- 1998 – Karl Denver, Scottish singer (b. 1931)
- 1998 – Ernst-Günther Schenck, German physician (b. 1904)
- 2001 – Dick Schaap, American sports journalist (b. 1934)
- 2003 – Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (b. 1924)
- 2004 – Autar Singh Paintal, Indian scientist (b. 1925)
- 2005 – Elrod Hendricks, American baseball player and coach (b. 1940)
- 2006 – Scobie Breasley, Australian jockey (b. 1914)
- 2006 – Saparmurat Niyazov, Turkmen politician, 1st President of Turkmenistan (b. 1940)
- 2007 – Ken Hendricks, American businessman, founded ABC Supply (b. 1941)
- 2009 – Christos Lambrakis, Greek businessman (b. 1934)
- 2009 – Edwin G. Krebs, American biochemist (b. 1918)
- 2010 – Enzo Bearzot, Italian footballer and manager (b. 1927)
- 2012 – Boyd Bartley, American baseball player (b. 1920)
- 2012 – Curtis Crider, American race car driver (b. 1930)
- 2012 – Jishu Dasgupta, Indian actor and director (b. 1956)
- 2012 – Lee Dorman, American bass player (Iron Butterfly and Captain Beyond) (b. 1942)
- 2012 – David Lomon, English soldier (b. 1918)
- 2012 – Shane McEntee, Irish politician (b. 1956)
- 2012 – Thomas W. McGee, American politician (b. 1924)
Holidays and observances[edit]
External links[edit]
|
Months and days of the year
|
|
| January |
|
|
| February |
|
|
| March |
|
|
| April |
|
|
| May |
|
|
| June |
|
|
| July |
|
|
| August |
|
|
| September |
|
|
| October |
|
|
| November |
|
|
| December |
|
|
| Related dates |
|
|
