December 16
December 16 is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 15 days remain until the end of the year.
Events
- 755 - An Lushan revolts against Chancellor Yang Guozhong at Fanyang, initiating the An Shi Rebellion during the Tang Dynasty of China.
- 1392 - Nanboku-chō - Emperor Go-Kameyama abdicates in favor of rival claimant Go-Komatsu.
- 1431 - Henry VI of England is crowned King of France at Notre Dame in Paris.
- 1497 - Vasco da Gama rounds the Cape of Good Hope, the point where Bartolomeu Dias had previously turned back to Portugal.
- 1575 - The 1575 Valdivia earthquake takes place.
- 1598 - Seven Year War: Battle of Noryang Point - The final battle of the Seven Year War is fought between the Korean and Japanese navies, resulting in a decisive Korean victory.
- 1653 - English Interregnum: The Protectorate - Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland.
- 1689 - Convention Parliament: The Declaration of Right is embodied in the Bill of Rights.
- 1707 - Last recorded eruption of Mount Fuji in Japan.
- 1761 - Seven Years' War: After four-month siege, the Russians under Pyotr Rumyantsev take the Prussian fortress of Kolobrzeg.
- 1773 - American Revolution: Boston Tea Party - Members of the Sons of Liberty disguised as Mohawks dump crates of tea into Boston harbor as a protest against the Tea Act.
- 1811 - The first two in a series of severe earthquakes occurs, in the vicinity of New Madrid, Missouri.
- 1826 - Benjamin W. Edwards rides into Mexican controlled Nacogdoches, Texas and declares himself ruler of the Republic of Fredonia.
- 1838 - Battle of Blood River: Voortrekkers led by Andries Pretorius combat Zulu impis, led by Dambuza (Nzobo) and Ndlela kaSompisi in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
- 1850 - History of New Zealand: The Charlotte-Jane and the Randolph bring the first of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton.
- 1863 - American Civil War: Joseph E. Johnston replaces Braxton Bragg as commander of the Army of Tennessee.
- 1864 - American Civil War: Franklin-Nashville Campaign - Battle of Nashville - Major General George H. Thomas's Union forces defeat Lieutenant General John Bell Hood's Confederate Army of Tennessee.
- 1893 - Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, "From The New World" was given its world premiere at Carnegie Hall.
- 1907 - Great White Fleet started its circumnavigation of the world
- 1910 - During a ground test of his Coandă-1910 plane, Henri Coandă, caught unaware by the power of the engine, finds himself briefly airborne and loses control of the machine which crashes to the ground.
- 1914 - World War I: German battleships under Franz Von Hipper bombard the English ports of Hartlepool and Scarborough.
- 1920 - The Haiyuan earthquake, magnitude 8.5, rocks the Gansu province in China, killing an estimated 200,000.
- 1922 - President of Poland Gabriel Narutowicz is assassinated by Eligiusz Niewiadomski at the Zachęta Gallery in Warsaw.
- 1925 - Alpha Phi Omega national service fraternity is founded at Lafayette College.
- 1937 - Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe attempt to escape from the American federal prison on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay; neither is ever seen again.
- 1938 - Adolf Hitler institutes the Cross of Honor of the German Mother
- 1941 - World War II: Japanese occupy Miri, Sarawak
- 1942 - Holocaust: Porajmos - Heinrich Himmler orders that Roma candidates for extermination be deported to Auschwitz.
- 1944 - World War II: Battle of the Bulge - General Dwight D. Eisenhower's allied forces and Field Marshall Gerd von Rundstedt's German army engage in the Belgian Ardennes.
- 1946 - Léon Blum becomes Prime Minister of France.
- 1947 - William Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain build the first practical point-contact transistor.
- 1949 - Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget, later knows as SAAB, is founded in Sweden.
- 1950 - President Harry S. Truman declares a state of emergency, after Chinese troops enter the fight with communist North Korea in the Korean War.
- 1957 - Sir Feroz Khan Noon replaces Ibrahim Ismail Chundrigar as Prime Minister of Pakistan.
- 1960 - 1960 New York air disaster: While approaching New York's Idlewild Airport, a United Airlines Douglas DC-8 collides with a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation in a blinding snowstorm over Staten Island, killing 134.
- 1965 - Vietnam War: General William Westmoreland sends U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara a request for 243,000 more men by the end of 1966.
- 1971 - Bangladesh War of Independence and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan army brings an end to both conflicts.
- 1971 - Independence Day of the State of Bahrain from British Protectorate Status
- 1972 - Vietnam War: Henry Kissinger announces that North Vietnam has left private peace negotiations, in Paris.
- 1978 - Cleveland, Ohio becomes the first post-Depression era city to default on its loans, owing $14,000,000 to local banks.
- 1979 - Libya joins four other OPEC nations in raising crude oil prices, having an immediate dramatic effect on the United States.
- 1982 - The Federal Reserve announces that the operating capacity of factories has gone down to 67.8%.
- 1985 - Mafia: In New York City, Paul Castellano and Thomas Bilotti are shot dead on the orders of John Gotti, who assumes leadership of the Gambino family.
- 1986 - Revolt in Kazakhstan against Communist party, known as Zheltoksan, which becomes the first sign of ethnic strife during Gorbachev's tenure
- 1989 - Protest breaks out in Timişoara in response to an attempt by the government to evict dissident Hungarian pastor, László Tőkés.
- 1989 - Walter LeRoy Moody begins his terrorist bombing streak when he sends Judge Robert Smith Vance a bomb in the mail, instantly killing him near his house in Birmingham, Alabama.
- 1991 - United Nations General Assembly: UN General Assembly Resolution 4686 revokes UN General Assembly Resolution 3379 after Israel makes revocation of resolution 3379 a condition of its participation in the Madrid Peace Conference of 1991.
- 1991 - Independence of The Republic of Kazakhstan.
- 1998 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Operation Desert Fox - The United States and United Kingdom bomb targets in Iraq.
Births
- 1485 - Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England (d. 1536)
- 1584 - John Selden, English jurist and oriental scholar (d. 1654)
- 1614 - Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1674)
- 1714 - George Whitefield, English-born Methodist leader (d. 1770)
- 1716 - Louis-Jules Mancini-Mazarini, Duc de Nivernais, French diplomat and writer (d. 1798)
- 1717 - Elizabeth Carter, English writer (d. 1806)
- 1742 - Gebhard Fürst Blücher von Wahlstatt, German Field Marshal (d. 1819)
- 1770 - Ludwig van Beethoven, German composer (d. 1827)
- 1775 - Jane Austen, English writer (d. 1817)
- 1775 - François-Adrien Boïeldieu, French composer (d. 1834)
- 1776 - Johann Wilhelm Ritter, German physicist (d. 1810)
- 1787 - Mary Russell Mitford, English writer (d. 1855)
- 1790 - King Léopold I of Belgium (d. 1865)
- 1804 - Viktor Bunyakovsky, Russian mathematician (d. 1889)
- 1834 - Léon Walras, French economist (d. 1910)
- 1861 - Antonio de La Gandara, French painter (d. 1917)
- 1863 - George Santayana, Spanish philosopher and writer (d. 1952)
- 1865 - Olavo Bilac, Brazilian poet (d. 1918)
- 1866 (N.S.) - Wassily Kandinsky, Russian-born French abstract painter (d. 1944)
- 1867 - Amy Carmichael, missionary in Dohnavur, India (d. 1951)
- 1869 - Hristo Tatarchev, Bulgarian revolutionary (d. 1952)
- 1872 - Anton Ivanovich Denikin, Russian general (d. 1947)
- 1882 - Sir Jack Hobbs, English cricketer (d. 1963)
- 1882 - Zoltán Kodály, Hungarian composer (d. 1967)
- 1882 - Walther Meissner, German physicist (d. 1974)
- 1883 - Max Linder, French pioneer of silent film (d. 1925)
- 1888 - King Alexander I of Yugoslavia (d. 1934)
- 1888 - Alphonse Juin, marshall of France (d. 1967)
- 1899 - Sir Noel Coward, English playwright, actor and composer (d. 1973)
- 1900 - V. S. Pritchett, English author and critic (d. 1997)
- 1901 - Margaret Mead, American anthropologist (d. 1978)
- 1902 - Rafael Alberti, Spanish poet (d. 1999)
- 1905 - Piet Hein, Danish mathematician and inventor (d. 1996)
- 1906 - Barbara Kent, Canadian actress
- 1915 - Turk Murphy, American trombonist (d. 1987)
- 1917 - Nabi Bux Khan Baloch, Sindhi scholar
- 1917 - Sir Arthur C. Clarke, English writer (d. 2008)
- 1918 - Pierre Delanoë, French songwriter and lyricist (d. 2006)
- 1922 - Cy Leslie, American music and video executive (d. 2008)
- 1926 - James McCracken, American tenor (d. 1988)
- 1927 - Randall Garrett, American writer (d. 1987)
- 1928 - Philip K. Dick, American writer (d. 1982)
- 1929 - Nicholas Courtney, English actor
- 1932 - Rodion Shchedrin, Soviet/Russian composer
- 1934 - Elgin Gay Baylor, NBA Hall of Famer
- 1936 - Morris Dees, founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center
- 1937 - Joyce Bulifant, American actress
- 1938 - Frank Deford, American sportswriter
- 1938 - Liv Ullmann, Norwegian actress
- 1941 - Lesley Stahl, American journalist
- 1942 - Donald Carcieri, American politician, governor of Rhode Island
- 1943 - Steven Bochco, American television producer and writer
- 1943 - Tony Hicks, English guitarist (The Hollies)
- 1945 - Patti Deutsch, American actress and Match Game panelist
- 1945 - Bobby George, English professional darts player
- 1945 - Yukio Hattori, Japanese Iron Chef commentator
- 1946 - Benny Andersson, Swedish musician, singer and songwriter (ABBA)
- 1946 - Trevor Pinnock, English conductor and harpsichordist
- 1947 - Ben Cross, English actor
- 1947 - Vincent Matthews, American sprinter
- 1948 - Christopher Biggins, English actor
- 1949 - Billy Gibbons, American guitarist (ZZ Top)
- 1950 - Claudia Cohen, American gossip columnist and socialite (d. 2007)
- 1950 - Roy Schuiten, Dutch cyclist (d. 2006)
- 1951 - Robben Ford, American guitarist
- 1952 - Joel Garner, Barbadian West Indies cricketer
- 1952 - Francesco Graziani, Italian footballer
- 1955 - Xander Berkeley, American actor
- 1955 - Prince Lorenz of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este
- 1960 - Pat Van Den Hauwe, Belgian footballer
- 1961 - Bill Hicks, American comedian (d. 1994)
- 1961 - Jon Tenney, American actor
- 1962 - Maruschka Detmers, Dutch actress
- 1962 - William "The Refrigerator" Perry, American football player
- 1963 - Benjamin Bratt, American actor
- 1963 - Jeff Carson, American singer
- 1963 - James Mangold, American film director and screenwriter
- 1964 - Heike Drechsler, East German-born sprinter
- 1964 - Georgie Parker, Australian actress
- 1964 - Billy Ripken, American baseball player
- 1965 - Chris Jones, American baseball player
- 1965 - Melanie Sloan, American attorney
- 1965 - Nancy Valen, American actress
- 1966 - Clifford Robinson, American basketball player
- 1966 - Dennis Wise, English footballer
- 1967 - Donovan Bailey, Jamaican-born Canadian sprinter
- 1967 - Miranda Otto, Australian actress
- 1971 - Michael McCary, American singer (Boyz II Men)
- 1971 - Paul van Dyk, German DJ
- 1972 - Angela Bloomfield, New Zealand actress
- 1972 - Charles Gipson, American baseball player
- 1972 - Željko Kalac, Australian soccer player
- 1973 - Themba Mnguni, South African footballer
- 1973 - Scott Storch, Canadian-American hip-hop producer
- 1974 - Frida Hallgren, Swedish actress
- 1975 - Valentin Bădoi, Romanian footballer
- 1975 - Nawo Kawakita, Japanese drummer (Maximum the Hormone)
- 1975 - Benjamin Kowalewicz, Canadian musician (Billy Talent)
- 1975 - Jonathan Scarfe, Canadian actor
- 1977 - Éric Bélanger, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1977 - Sylvain Distin, French footballer
- 1978 - Gunter Van Handenhoven, Belgian footballer
- 1978 - Kaine, American rapper (Ying Yang Twins)
- 1979 - Mihai Trăistariu, Romanian singer
- 1979 - Jessie Ward, American professional wrestler
- 1979 - Trevor Immelman, South African golfer
- 1981 - Flo Rida, American rapper
- 1981 - Anna Sedokova, Ukrainian singer
- 1981 - Took Leng How, Malaysian criminal (d. 2006)
- 1981 - Gareth Williams, Scottish footballer
- 1982 - Garnon Davies, Welsh actor
- 1982 - Antrel Rolle, National Football League defensive back
- 1983 - Kelenna Azubuike, English basketball player
- 1983 - Danielle Lloyd, English model
- 1985 - Keita Tachibana, member of Japanese boy band w-inds.
- 1987 - Hallee Hirsh, American actress
- 1988 - Anna Popplewell, English actress
Deaths
- 705 - Empress Wu of Zhou (b. 625)
- 714 - Pippin of Herstal, Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia
- 867 - Eberhard of Friuli
- 999 - Saint Adelaide of Italy (b. 931)
- 1325 - Charles of Valois, son of Philip III of France (b. 1270)
- 1378 - Otto III of Montferrat
- 1379 - John Fitzalan, Marshal of England
- 1470 - John II, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1425)
- 1515 - Afonso de Albuquerque Portuguese naval general (b. 1453)
- 1598 - Yi Sun-sin, Korean admiral (b. 1545)
- 1669 - Nathaniel Fiennes, English politician (b. circa 1608)
- 1687 - William Petty, English scientist and philosopher (b. 1623)
- 1751 - Leopold II of Anhalt-Dessau, Prussian general (b. 1700)
- 1765 - Peter Frederick Haldimand, Swiss military officer and surveyor
- 1774 - François Quesnay, French economist (b. 1694)
- 1783 - Johann A. Hasse, German composer (b. 1699)
- 1783 - Sir William James, British naval commander (b. 1720)
- 1809 - Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist (b. 1755)
- 1859 - Wilhelm Grimm, German writer and folklorist (b. 1786)
- 1897 - Alphonse Daudet, French novelist and short story writer (b. 1840)
- 1898 - Pavel Tretyakov, Russian businessman and art collector (b. 1832)
- 1914 - Ivan Zajc, Croatian composer (b. 1832)
- 1921 - Camille Saint-Saëns, French composer (b. 1835)
- 1922 - Gabriel Narutowicz, first President of Poland (b. 1865)
- 1928 - Elinor Wylie, American poet and writer (b. 1885)
- 1935 - Thelma Todd, American actress (b. 1905)
- 1940 - Billy Hamilton, American baseball player (b. 1866)
- 1945 - Giovanni Agnelli, Italian automobile manufacturer (b. 1866)
- 1945 - Fumimaro Konoye, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1891)
- 1949 - Sidney Olcott, Canadian film director (b. 1873)
- 1956 - Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist (b. 1890)
- 1965 - W. Somerset Maugham, English writer (b. 1874)
- 1976 - Réal Caouette, French Canadian politician (Social Credit Party of Canada) (b. 1917)
- 1977 - Risto Jarva, Finnish filmmaker (b. 1934)
- 1980 - Colonel Sanders, American fast food entrepreneur (b. 1890)
- 1980 - Hellmuth Walter, German engineer and inventor (b. 1900)
- 1982 - Colin Chapman, English engineer and automobile manufacturer, founder of Lotus Cars (b. 1928)
- 1984 - Debs Garms, American baseball player (b. 1907)
- 1985 - Thomas Bilotti, American mafioso (b. 1940)
- 1985 - Paul Castellano, American mafioso (b. 1915)
- 1988 - Sylvester, American singer (b. 1948)
- 1989 - Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Argentine racing driver (b. 1913)
- 1989 - Silvana Mangano, Italian actress (b. 1930)
- 1989 - Aileen Pringle, American actress (b. 1895)
- 1989 - Lee Van Cleef, American actor (b. 1925)
- 1990 - Douglas Campbell, American pilot (b. 1896)
- 1993 - Moses Gunn, American actor (b. 1929)
- 1993 - Tanaka Kakuei, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1918)
- 1993 - Charizma, American Hip-Hop MC (b. 1973)
- 1995 - Johnny Moss, American poker player (b. 1907)
- 1995 - Mariele Ventre, Italian choir director (b. 1939)
- 1996 - Quentin Bell, English art historian (b. 1910)
- 1997 - Nicolette Larson, American singer (b. 1952)
- 1998 - William Gaddis, American writer (b. 1922)
- 2001 - Stuart Adamson, English-born Scottish musician (The Skids, Big Country) (b. 1958)
- 2001 - Stefan Heym, German author (b. 1913)
- 2003 - Robert Stanfield, Premier of Nova Scotia (b. 1914)
- 2003 - Gary Stewart, American musician and songwriter (b. 1945)
- 2004 - Ted Abernathy, American baseball player (b. 1933)
- 2005 - Kenneth Bulmer, English author (b. 1921)
- 2005 - Ed Hansen, American film director and editor (b. 1937)
- 2005 - John Spencer, American actor (b. 1946)
- 2006 - Don Jardine, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1940)
- 2006 - Taliep Petersen, South African singer and composer (b. 1950)
- 2006 - Pnina Salzman, Israeli pianist (b. 1922)
- 2007 - Dan Fogelberg, American singer/songwriter (b. 1951)
Holidays and observances
- Bahrain - National Day
- Bangladesh - Victory Day
- India - Vijay Diwas (Victory Day)
- Kazakhstan - Independence Day
- South Africa - Day of Reconciliation
- Afrikaners (South Africa) - Day of the Vow
- Mexico - First day of Las Posadas
- Philippines - First day of Misa de Gallo
- St. Adelaide