Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/December 22

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This is a list of selected December 22 anniversaries that appear in the "On this day" section of the Main Page. To suggest a new item, in most cases, you can be bold and edit this page. Please read the selected anniversaries guidelines before making your edit. However, if your addition might be controversial or on a day that is or will soon be on the Main Page, please post your suggestion on the talk page instead.

Please note that the events listed on the Main Page are chosen based more on relative article quality and to maintain a mix of topics, not based solely on how important or significant their subjects are. Only four to five events are posted at a time and thus not everything that is "most important and significant" can be listed. In addition, an event is generally not posted this year if it is also the subject of the scheduled featured article or picture of the day.

To report an error when this appears on the Main Page, see Main Page errors. Please remember that this list defers to the supporting articles, so it is best to achieve consensus and make any necessary changes there first.

← December 21	December 23 →

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Images

Use only ONE image at a time

President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan
William Tecumseh Sherman
President Ion Iliescu of Romania
Brandenburg Gate
Deng Xiaoping, paramount leader of PR China
Ludwig van Beethoven
Prime Minister Ito Hirobumi of Japan
Aerial view of the Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill
Anthony McAuliffe
Chico Mendes
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird

Ineligible

Blurb	Reason
Midsummer festivities (Southern Hemisphere, 2011);	Brazil is the only Southern Hemisphere country listed in the article
Mother's Day in Indonesia	refimprove section
1808 – German composer Ludwig van Beethoven premiered his Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, Fourth Piano Concerto, and Choral Fantasy, at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna.	5th: refimprove section
1864 – American Civil War: Union General William Tecumseh Sherman's March to the Sea ended with the capture of Savannah, Georgia.	{{refimprove}}
1885 – Itō Hirobumi, a samurai from Chōshū, became the first Prime Minister of Japan.	refimprove section
1944 – Vietnamese revolutionary Hồ Chí Minh formed the Vietnam People's Army to drive French colonialists and Japanese occupiers out of Indochina.	{{refimprove}}
1963 – A total of 128 people died when the ocean liner TSMS Lakonia burned at sea 180 miles (290 km) north of Madeira.	{{refimprove}}
1978 – The Third Plenum of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China opened, where Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping and other party officials agreed to launch economic reforms and to open up China.	{{refimprove}}
1989 – Romanian Revolution: After a week of bloody demonstrations, Ion Iliescu took over as President of Romania, ending the Communist dictatorship of Nicolae Ceaușescu.	Tagged for expansion
1989 – Berlin's historic Brandenburg Gate re-opened after nearly 30 years, symbolizing the unity of East and West Germany.	refimprove section
1990 – The Parliament of Croatia adopted the country's current constitution.	refimprove section
2001 – CC the cat, the first cloned pet, was born.	stubby

Eligible

1807 – In an effort to avoid engaging in the Napoleonic Wars, the United States Congress passed the Embargo Act, forbidding American ships from engaging in trade with foreign nations.
1920 – The 8th Congress of Soviets approved the GOELRO plan, the first Soviet plan for national economic recovery and development.
1939 – Members of the All-India Muslim League observed a "Day of Deliverance" to celebrate the resignations of members of the Indian National Congress over the decision to enter the Second World War at the request of the United Kingdom.
1944 – World War II: US Army General Anthony McAuliffe responded to the German ultimatum of surrender during the Battle of the Bulge with a single word, "NUTS!"
1947 – The Constitution of the Italian Republic was enacted by the Constituent Assembly.
1964 – The Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the United States Air Force's long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft and the world's fastest air-breathing manned aircraft, made its first flight.
1974 – Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli voted to become the independent nation of the Comoros.
1984 – While riding a New York City Subway train, Bernhard Goetz shot four African American youths who attempted to rob him, sparking a nationwide debate on vigilantism, racism, and the legal limits of self-defense.
1987 – The Zimbabwe African National Union and Zimbabwe African People's Union agreed to merge, bringing an end to the Gukurahundi, the suppression of predominantly Ndebele civilians by the 5th Brigade.
1997 – Hussein Farrah Aidid relinquished the disputed title of President of Somalia.
2001 – Richard Reid unsuccessfully attempted to detonate a bomb in his shoe on a transatlantic flight from Paris, France, to Miami, Florida.
2008 – An ash dike ruptured at a solid waste containment area in Roane County, Tennessee, US, releasing 1.1 billion US gallons (4,200,000 m³) of coal fly ash slurry.
2010 – The United States repealed its controversial "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy on gays in the military.

Notes

Battle of the Bulge appears on December 16, so Anthony McAuliffe should not appear in the same year
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab/Northwest Airlines Flight 253 appears on December 25, so Richard Reid/2001 shoe bomb plot should not appear in the same year

December 22

President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan

1216 – Pope Honorius III issued the papal bull Religiosam vitam to establish the Dominican Order.
1769 – Having been soundly defeated in battle, the Qing dynasty agreed to terms of truce, ending the Sino-Burmese War.
1937 – The Lincoln Tunnel, connecting New York City to Weehawken, New Jersey, opened.
1988 – Brazilian unionist and environmental activist Chico Mendes was murdered at his Xapuri home.
2001 – Burhanuddin Rabbani of the Northern Alliance handed over power in Afghanistan to the interim government headed by Hamid Karzai (pictured).

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