December 16

December 16 is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 15 days remaining.

Events:

1653 - Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland.
1689 - The English Parliament adopts the Bill of Rights.
1773 - Boston Tea Party
1811 - Largest recorded earthquake in the United States, at New Madrid, Missouri
1838 - Boers defeat Zulu troops led by Dambuza and Nhlela, celebrated as the day of the vow.
1850 - The first four ships arrive at Lyttleton to settle Christchurch, New Zealand.
1864 - Union troops led by general George Thomas defeat Confederate troops in the Battle of Nashville.
1893 - World premiere of Anton Dvorak's "New World Symphony".
1910 - Henri Coanda makes first short flight in aircraft with jet engine
1915 - Albert Einstein publishes the general theory of relativity.
1922 - Poland's President Gabriel Narutowicz assassinated.
1944 - Battle of the Bulge begins
1960 - A United Airlines DC-8 and a TWA Super-Constellation collide over New York City killing 134
1969 - The British House of Commons votes to abolish the death penalty.
1971 - Bangladesh declares independence from Pakistan.
1973 - O.J. Simpson becomes the first player in NFL history to rush for 2000 yards in one season.
1985 - In New York City, mafia bosses Paul Castellano and Thomas Bilotti are shot dead when exiting from Sparks Steak House, making hit organizer, John Gotti the leader of the powerful Gambino organized crime family.
1990 - Jean-Bertrand Aristide elected president of Haiti
1991 - United Nations reverses ruling that Zionism is racism by 111-25, with 13 abstentions
1998 - American and British troops bomb Iraqi targets after Iraq obstructs UN weapons inspectors.
1999 - Mud streams kill thousands in Venezuela.
2000 - NASA announces that there is an ocean beneath Jupiter's moon Ganymede's icy surface.

Births:

1485 - Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England
1742 - Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, general field marshal (+ 1819)
1770 - Ludwig van Beethoven, composer (+ 1827)
1775 - Jane Austen, writer (+ 1817)
1776 - Johann Wilhelm Ritter, physicist (+ 1810)
1790 - King Leopold I of Belgium (+ 1865)
1861 - Antonio de La Gandara, painter (+ 1917)
1863 - George Santayana, philosopher, poet
1882 - Zoltán Kodály, composer (+ 1967)
1882 - Walther Meissner, physicist
1888 - King Alexander of Yugoslavia (+ 1934)
1899 - Noel Coward, playwright (+ 1973)
1901 - Margaret Mead, anthropologist (+ 1978)
1917 - Sir Arthur C. Clarke, science fiction writer
1928 - Philip K. Dick, science fiction writer (+ 1982)
1938 - Frank DeFord, sports journalist
1938 or 1939 - Liv Ullman, actress
1941 - Lesley Stahl, journalist
1943 - Steven Bochco, producer, writer
1946 - Benny Andersson, musician (ABBA)
1952 - Joel Garner, West Indian cricketer
1964 - Heike Drechsler, track and field athlete
1967 - Donovan Bailey, athlete

Deaths:

716 - Pippin of Herstal, Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia
999 - Saint Adelaide of Italy
1515 - Afonso de Albuquerque portuguese naval general (in sea)
1783 - Johann A. Hasse, composer
1859 - Wilhelm Grimm, folklorist
1916 - Grigori Rasputin, Russian monk
1921 - Camille Saint-Saens, composer
1922 - Gabriel Narutowicz, first President of Poland
1945 - Fumimaro Konoye, prince and prime minister of Japan
1949 - Sidney Olcott, pioneer motion picture director
1956 - Nina Hamnett, artist
1965 - W. Somerset Maugham, writer
1980 - Colonel Harland Sanders, fast food entrepreneur (Kentucky Fried Chicken)
1980 - Hellmuth Walter, engineer and inventor
1985 - Paul Castellano, mafia boss
1989 - Lee Van Cleef, actor
1993 - Tanaka Kakuei, Japanese political leader

Holidays and Observances:

Bahrain - National Day
Bangladesh - Victory Day
Kazakhstan - Independence Day
Nepal - Constitution Day
South Africa - Day of reconciliation

See Also:

December 15 - December 17 - November 16 - January 16 -- listing of all days

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December