Title: December 31 Content: It is the last day of the year. It is also the last day of the last quarter, and the last half of the year. == Events == === Up to 1900 === * 192 - Narcissus murders Roman Emperor Commodus. * 406 - Vandals, Alans and Suebians cross the Rhine, beginning the invasion of Gaul. * 1225 – The Ly Dynasty in Vietnam ends after 216 years, as Tran Thai Tong, still a boy, becomes Emperor. This is the beginning of the Tran Dynasty. * 1472 – The throwing of snowballs is banned in Amsterdam. * 1494 - First Italian War: Troops of King Charles VIII of France enter Rome. * 1600 – The British East India Company is created. * 1660 - James II of England is named Duke of Normandy by Louis XIV of France. * 1687 - The first Huguenots set sail from France for the Cape of Good Hope. * 1695 - Window tax is introduced in England. As a result, many people brick up their windows in order not to have to pay the tax. * 1703 – An earthquake and tsunami damage Tokyo, Odawara and several nearby towns, killing around 10,000 people. * 1720 – A storm flood ravages the North German coast, separating a dune on Heligoland from the main island. * 1775 – American Revolutionary War: In the Battle of Quebec, British forces repulse an attack by Continental Army General Richard Montgomery. * 1790 - Efimeris, the oldest Greek newspaper still in print, is published for the first time. * 1796 - Baltimore, Maryland, is incorporated as a city. * 1857 – Queen Victoria chooses Ottawa as the capital of Canada. * 1862 – Abraham Lincoln signs the Act creating the state of West Virginia and thus splitting Virginia in two. * 1862 - American Civil War: The Battle of Stones River in Tennessee begins. * 1862 - The battleship USS Monitor sinks in a storm in heavy seas off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. * 1878 - In Mannheim, Germany, Karl Benz files a patent on his reliable two- stroke gas engine. * 1879 – Thomas Edison publicly demonstrates incandescent light in Menlo Park, New Jersey. * 1891 – A new immigration depot is opened on Ellis Island, New York. === 1901 2000 === * 1904 – What is now Times Square, New York, holds its first New Year celebration. * 1909 – The Manhattan Bridge is opened. * 1917 - British troop transporter Osmanieh hits a mine laid by German U-boat UC 34 off Alexandria, Egypt, sinking with 99 deaths. * 1923 – The BBC broadcasts the chimes of Big Ben in London for the first time. * 1929 - The Glen Cinema Disaster in Paisley, Scotland, kills 70 children. * 1944 – World War II: Hungary declares war on Germany. * 1946 – President of the United States Harry S. Truman officially declares an end to hostilities in World War II. * 1948 - The 100,000th landing of the Berlin Airlift occurs. * 1951 - The Marshall Plan expires after giving over $ 13.3 billion to help war- torn parts of Europe. * 1955 - General Motors becomes the first US Corporation to make over a billion US Dollars in a year. * 1960 - The farthing coin stops being the legal tender in the United Kingdom. * 1963 – The Central African Federation officially breaks apart, and eventually becomes Zambia, Malawi and Rhodesia. * 1964 – A three-day census in East Germany ends, determining the population to be 17,003,632. * 1965 – Jean-Bedel Bokassa leads a coup against David Dacko in the Central African Republic. * 1968 – Marien Ngouabi becomes President of the Republic of the Congo. * 1973 - AC/DC is formed. * 1981 – In a military coup in Ghana, Jerry Rawlings takes control. * 1983 – A military coup in Nigeria is led by Muhammadu Buhari. * 1986 – In San Juan, Puerto Rico a fire at the Dupont Plaza Hotel kills 97 people. * 1987 – Robert Mugabe becomes President of Zimbabwe. * 1988 - Pittsburgh Penguins' Mario Lemieux becomes the only NHL player, to this date, to score goals in five different ways - even strength, shorthand, power play, penalty shot and empty net, in an 8-6 win over the New Jersey Devils. * 1989 – Arved Fuchs and Reinhold Messner reach the South Pole on their cross-Antarctica journey. * 1990 – Garry Kasparov successfully defends his world chess title against Anatoly Karpov. * 1991 – The Soviet Union officially comes to an end. * 1992 – Czechoslovakia peacefully dissolves, splitting into the Czech Republic and Slovakia the next day. * 1994 – This date is skipped altogether in Kiribati, as the International Date Line is shifted to the east of the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands. * 1999 – Boris Yeltsin resigns as President of Russia. * 1999 – The Panama Canal is transferred from US control to Panama's control. === From 2001 === * 2004 – The Taipei 101 tower is opened in Taipei, Taiwan. * 2006 - The total of US troops killed in the Iraq War reaches 3,000. * 2009 – In Espoo, Finland, Ibrahim Shkupolli shoots his former girlfriend dead, then shoots four people to death at a shopping mall before committing suicide. * 2009 – The Ignalina power station in Lithuania is shut down. * 2014 - The first same-sex marriages in Scotland take place. * 2014 - US and UK forces withdraw from Afghanistan. * 2014 - Beji Caid Essebsi becomes President of Tunisia. * 2014 - A crush at a New Year celebration in Shanghai kills 36 people. * 2015 - Fire breaks out at a hotel near the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. * 2016 - Bomb attacks in Baghdad kill at least 28 people. * 2017 - A bus crash near Migaa, Kenya, kills at least 36 people. == Births == === Up to 1900 === * 695 – Muhammad bin Qasim al-Thaqafi, founded Islam in South Asia (d. 715) * 1378 – Pope Callixtus III (d. 1458) * 1491 – Jacques Cartier, French explorer (d. 1557) * 1499 - Diane de Poitiers (d. 1566) * 1514 - Andreas Vesalius, Flemish anatomist (d. 1564) * 1572 – Emperor Go-Yozei of Japan (d. 1617) * 1585 - Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordoba, Spanish military leader and politician (d. 1645) * 1668 - Herman Boerhaave, Dutch humanist and physician (d. 1738) * 1720 – Charles Edward Stuart, pretender to the British throne (d. 1788) * 1738 – Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British general (d. 1805) * 1741 – Isabella Maria of Parma (d. 1763) * 1798 - Friedrich Robert Faehlmann, Estonian physician, philologist and academic (d. 1850) * 1815 - George G. Meade, American general and engineer (d. 1872) * 1830 – Isma'il Pasha, Governor of Egypt (d. 1895) * 1830 - Alexander Smith, Scottish poet (d. 1861) * 1838 - Emile Loubet, President of France (d. 1929) * 1842 – Giovanni Boldini, Italian painter (d. 1931) * 1844 - Ebe W. Tunnell, Governor of Delaware (d. 1917) * 1846 - Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis, Dutch politician (d. 1919) * 1855 – Giovanni Pascoli, Italian poet (d. 1912) * 1857 - King Kelly, American baseball player (d. 1894) * 1860 - Berthold Lasker, German chess player (d. 1928) * 1863 – Alfredo Panzini, Italian writer (d. 1939) * 1864 - Hans am Ende, German painter (d. 1918) * 1864 - Robert Grant Aitken, American astronomer (d. 1951) * 1869 – Henri Matisse, French painter (d. 1954) * 1874 - Julius Meier, German-American politician, 20th Governor of Oregon (d. 1937) * 1877 – Viktor Dyk, Czech poet, dramatist and politician (d. 1931) * 1878 – Elizabeth Arden, Canadian businesswoman (d. 1966) * 1878 – Horacio Quiroga, Argentine-Uruguayan writer (d. 1937) * 1880 – George Marshall, 50th United States Secretary of State (d. 1959) * 1880 - Fred Beebe, American baseball player (d. 1957) * 1881 – Max Pechstein, German painter (d. 1955) * 1884 – Bobby Byrne, American baseball player (d. 1964) * 1885 - Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig- Holstein (d. 1970) * 1899 – Silvestre Revueltas, Mexican composer (d. 1940) === 1901 1950 === * 1901 - Karl-August Fagerholm, Prime Minister of Finland (d. 1984) * 1903 - Nathan Milstein, Ukrainian-born violinist (d. 1992) * 1904 - Umm Kulthum, Egyptian singer (d. 1975) * 1905 - Jules Styne, American songwriter (d. 1994) * 1905 - Guido Mollet, Prime Minister of France (d. 1975) * 1908 – Simon Wiesenthal, Austrian Holocaust survivor (d. 2005) * 1909 - Jonah Jones, American jazz trumpeter (d. 2000) * 1910 - Archie M. Gubbrud, Governor of South Dakota (d. 1987) * 1914 - Yrjö Nikkanen, Finnish javelin thrower (d. 1985) * 1918 - Ray Graves, American football player and coach (d. 2015) * 1919 - Recy Taylor, American rape victim and civil rights activist (d. 2017) * 1924 - Kjell Arnljot Wig, Norwegian media personality (d. 2015) * 1924 – Taylor Mead, American actor (d. 2013) * 1928 - Hugh McElhenny, American football player * 1928 – Amarillo Slim, American professional poker player (d. 2012) * 1928 - Veijo Meri, Finnish writer (d. 2015) * 1928 - Siné, French cartoonist (d. 2016) * 1929 - Mies Bouwman, Dutch entertainer (d. 2018) * 1930 - Odetta, American singer (d. 2008) * 1931 - George Ardisson, Italian actor (d. 2014) * 1931 - Tom Rolf, Swedish-American film editor (d. 2014) * 1931 – Mildred Scheel, German physician, cancer campaigner and First Lady (d. 1985) * 1934 - Michael Bonallack, English golfer * 1935 – Peter Herbolzheimer, German musician (d. 2010) * 1935 - King Salman of Saudi Arabia * 1936 – Siw Malmkvist, Swedish singer * 1936 - Umaru Dikko, Nigerian politician (d. 2014) * 1937 – Avram Hershko, Israeli biologist * 1937 – Anthony Hopkins, Welsh actor * 1937 - Carl Emil Christiansen, Danish footballer (d. 2018) * 1938 – Rosalind Cash, American actress (d. 1995) * 1938 - Marien Ngouabi, Congolese politician (d. 1977) * 1939 - Peter Camejo, American politician (d. 2008) * 1940 - Tim Considine, American actor * 1941 – Alex Ferguson, Scottish football manager * 1941 - Sean S. Cunningham, American movie director and writer * 1941 - Sarah Miles, English actress * 1942 - Taufiq Kiemas, First Gentleman of Indonesia (d. 2013) * 1942 – Andy Summers, British guitarist * 1943 – Ben Kingsley, British actor * 1943 – John Denver, American singer-songwriter (d. 1997) * 1943 - Pete Quaife, British musician (d. 2010) * 1944 - Neil Ross, American voice actor * 1944 – Taylor Hackford, American director and producer * 1945 - Diane von Fürstenberg, Belgian-American fashion designer * 1946 - Lyudmila Pakhamova, Soviet ice dancer (d. 1986) * 1946 - Boris Dubin, Russian sociologist and translator (d. 2014) * 1947 - Burton Cummings, Canadian keyboardist * 1947 - Tim Matheson, American actor * 1948 – Donna Summer, American disco singer (d. 2012) * 1948 - Sandy Jardine, Scottish footballer (d. 2014) * 1948 - Joe Dallesandro, American actor * 1948 - Viktor Mikhailovich Afanasyev, Soviet-Russian cosmonaut === 1951 1975 === * 1951 – Tom Hamilton, American bassist (Aerosmith) * 1954 – Alex Salmond, Scottish politician, 4th First Minister of Scotland * 1954 – Hermann Tilke, German racing circuit designer * 1954 – Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, Icelandic politician * 1956 - Robert Goodwill, English politician * 1958 – Bebe Neuwirth, American actress * 1959 – Baron Waqa, Nauruan musician and politician, President of Nauru * 1959 – Val Kilmer, American actor * 1959 – Paul Westerberg, American musician * 1960 – Steve Bruce, English footballer * 1960 – John Allen Muhammad, American spree killer (d. 2009) * 1961 - Rick Aguilera, American baseball player * 1961 - Jeremy Heywood, English economist and civil servant * 1963 - Scott Ian, American guitarist * 1964 - Michael McDonald, American actor and comedian * 1965 – Gong Li, Chinese actress * 1965 – Nicholas Sparks, American writer * 1966 - Lisa Joyner, American journalist and actress * 1970 – Bryon Russell, American basketball player * 1972 – Grégory Coupet, French footballer * 1974 – Mario Aerts, Belgian cyclist === From 1976 === * 1976 - Matthew Hoggard, English cricketer * 1977 - Psy, South Korean rapper * 1977 - Donald Trump Jr., son of Donald Trump * 1979 – Bob Bryar, drummer in My Chemical Romance * 1980 – Richie McCaw, New Zealand rugby player * 1980 – Fumie Suguri, Japanese figure skater * 1981 – Margaret Simpson, Ghanaian athlete * 1981 - Nathan Robinson, Canadian ice hockey player * 1982 – Craig Gordon, Scottish footballer * 1984 – Corey Crawford, Canadian ice hockey goaltender * 1984 - Calvin Zola, Congolese footballer * 1986 - Bronson Pelletier, Canadian actor * 1987 - Javaris Crittenton, American basketball player * 1987 - Emilie Le Pennec, French gymnast * 1990 – Patrick Chan, Canadian figure skater * 1991 - Camila Giorgi, Italian tennis player * 1995 - Gabrielle Douglas, American gymnast == Deaths == === Up to 1900 === * 192 – Commodus, Roman Emperor (b. 161) * 335 – Saint Silvester, Pope and Saint whose day is marked on December 31 * 669 - Li Shiji, Chinese chancellor (b. 594) * 1164 – Margrave Ottokar III of Styria (b. 1124) * 1194 – Leopold V of Austria (killed at a tournament) (b. 1157) * 1302 - Frederick III, Duke of Lorraine (b. 1238) * 1384 – John Wyclif, English theologian (b. 1328) * 1460 - Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury (b. 1400) * 1510 – Bianca Maria Sforza, wife of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1472) * 1568 – Shimazu Tadayoshi, Japanese daimyo (b. 1493) * 1650 – Dorgon, Emperor of China (b. 1612) * 1679 - Giovanni Alfonso Borelli, Italian physiologist and physicist (b. 1608) * 1705 - Catherine of Braganza (b. 1638) * 1719 - John Flamsteed, English astronomer (b. 1646) * 1742 - Karl III Philip, Elector Palatine (b. 1661) * 1830 - Stéphanie Félicité, comtesse de Genlis, French writer (b. 1746) * 1857 - Edward Williams Clay, American artist (b. 1799) * 1865 - Fredrika Bremer, Swedish writer (b. 1801) * 1872 – Aleksis Kivi, Finnish writer (b. 1834) * 1876 - Catherine Labouré, French nun and saint (b. 1806) * 1877 – Gustave Courbet, French painter (b. 1819) * 1882 - Léon Gambetta, French politician (b. 1838) * 1888 – Samson Raphael Hirsch, rabbi (b. 1808) * 1894 - Thomas Joannes Stieltjes, Dutch mathematician (b. 1856) === 1901 2000 === * 1905 - Alexander Popov, Russian physicist (b. 1859) * 1936 – Miguel de Unamuno, Spanish writer, philosopher (b. 1864) * 1948 – Malcolm Campbell, English Grand Prix race car driver (b. 1885) * 1950 – Karl Renner, President of Austria (b. 1870) * 1964 – Olafur Thors, five-time Prime Minister of Iceland (b. 1892) * 1964 – Bobby Byrne, American baseball player (b. 1884) * 1969 – George Lewis, jazz musician (b. 1900) * 1972 – Roberto Clemente, Baseball Hall of Famer (b. 1934) * 1972 - Henry Gerber, German-American activist (b. 1892) * 1977 – Sabah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait (b. 1924) * 1980 – Marshall McLuhan, Canadian writer (b. 1911) * 1980 – Raoul Walsh, movie director (b. 1887) * 1985 – Ricky Nelson, American singer (b. 1940) * 1989 - Gerhard Schröder, German politician (b. 1910) * 1990 – Vasili Lazarev, Soviet cosmonaut (b. 1928) * 1993 – Zviad Gamsakhurdia, scientist and writer, first President of the Republic of Georgia (b. 1939) * 1993 – Brandon Teena, American murder victim (b. 1972) * 1994 – Bruno Pezzey, Austrian footballer (b. 1955) * 1997 – Floyd Cramer, musician (b. 1933) * 1997 – Michael Kennedy, son of Robert F. Kennedy, killed in a skiing accident on Aspen Mountain in Colorado (b. 1958). * 1999 – Elliot Richardson, American politician (b. 1920) * 2000 – Alan Cranston, American politician (b. 1914) * 2000 – José Greco, Spanish Flamenco dancer (b. 1918) === From 2001 === * 2003 – Arthur R. von Hippel, German-born American scientist and professor at MIT (b. 1898) * 2004 – Gérard Debreu, French economist (b. 1921) * 2006 – Liese Prokop, Austrian politician (b. 1941) * 2007 – Ettore Sottsass, Italian architect (b. 1917) * 2008 – Donald E. Westlake, American writer (b. 1933) * 2009 - Rashidi Kawawa, former Prime Minister of Tanzania (b. 1926) * 2009 - Cahal Daly, Irish cardinal and archbishop (b. 1917) * 2010 – Syd Ward, New Zealand cricketer (b. 1907) * 2013 - John Fortune, English comedian (b. 1939) * 2013 - Johnny Orr, American basketball player and coach (b. 1927) * 2013 - James Avery, American actor (b. 1945) * 2014 - Arthur Valerian Wellesley, 8th Duke of Wellington, English aristocrat and army officer (b. 1915) * 2014 - Edward Herrmann, American actor (b. 1943) * 2015 - Marvin Panch, American racing driver (b. 1926) * 2015 - Dal Richards, Canadian big band leader (b. 1918) * 2015 - Wayne Rogers, American actor (b. 1933) * 2015 - Natalie Cole, American singer (b. 1950) * 2015 - Beth Howland, American actress (b. 1941) * 2016 - William Christopher, American actor (b. 1932) * 2016 - Prince Dimitri Romanov, Russian prince (b. 1926) * 2016 - Henning Christophersen, Danish politician (b. 1939) * 2017 - Prince François, Count of Clermont, French nobleman, self-styled Dauphin of France (b. 1961) * 2021 - Betty White, American actress and comedian (b. 1922) == Holidays == * New Year's Eve, including Hogmanay (Scotland) and Calennig (Wales) * St. Sylvester's Day * Ōmisoka (Japan) Category:Days of the year