December 24

### Up to 1900

- 563 – Second inauguration of the Hagia Sophia, then a cathedral.
- 640 – Pope John IV is elected.
- 759 – China: Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu leaves for Chengdu, where he is hosted by fellow poet Pei Di.
- 1294 – Pope Boniface VIII is elected, after the resignation of Pope Celestine V.
- 1717 – A North Sea Christmas flood kills 11,500 people.
- 1726 – Montevideo, the present–day capital city of Uruguay, is founded.
- 1777 – James Cook reaches the island of Kiritimati, in present–day Kiribati.
- 1811 – HMS _Defence_ and HMS _St. George_ sink in a storm off Denmark.
- 1814 – The Treaty of Ghent ends the War of 1812.
- 1818 – The famous Christmas carol _Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht_ (Silent Night, Holy Night), is performed for the first time in Austria.
- 1851 – The US Library of Congress burns.
- 1865 – The Ku Klux Klan is founded by Confederate veterans.
- 1871 – The Opera Aida is first performed in Cairo.

### 1901 – 2000

- 1906 – Reginald Fessenden transmits the first radio broadcast, consisting of a poetry reading, a violin solo, and a speech.
- 1912 – A mining explosion in Hokkaido, Japan, kills 245 miners.
- 1913 – In Calumet, Michigan, 73 Christmas party goers die in a stampede after "fire" was falsely yelled.
- 1914 – World War I: The Christmas Truce begins.
- 1924 – Albania becomes a Republic.
- 1929 – An assassination attempt is made on President of Argentina Hipolito Yrigoyen.
- 1939 – Pope Pius XII makes a Christmas appeal for peace, after the start of World War II.
- 1942 – World War II: French monarchist Fernand Bonnier de La Chapelle assassinates Vichy admiral Francois Darlan in Algiers, French Algeria.
- 1943 – World War II: Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes Supreme Allied Commander.
- 1951 – Libya becomes independent, with Idris I as king.
- 1953 – Tangiwai Disaster: After a volcanic eruption (of Mt. Ruapehu) on New Zealand's North Island, a train plunges into the Whangeahu river following a bridge collapse caused by the eruption, killing 153 people.
- 1954 – Laos is officially declared independent.
- 1964 – Flooding kills thousands of people in Southern India and Sri Lanka.
- 1968 – Apollo 8, with Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders on board, orbits the moon, and take a spectacular photograph of the Earth.
- 1971 – A Lockheed L–188 Electra crashes in the Peruvian rainforest, killing 91 people. The only survivor is then–17–year–old German Juliane Koepcke, who lost both her parents in the crash.
- 1972 – Japan Airlines Flight 472, a Douglas DC–8, lands at Juhu Aerodrome, overshooting the runway, instead of landing at nearby Bombay Santa Cruz Airport.
- 1973 – The District of Columbia Home Rule Act passes, allowing Washington, DC residents to elect their government.
- 1974 – Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, killing 71 people.
- 1979 – The first European–made rocket _Ariane_ is launched from French Guiana.
- 1994 – Air France Flight 8969 is hijacked by terrorists on the ground; Over the course of three days, three passengers and four terrorists are killed.
- 1997 – The Sid El–Antri massacre in Algeria kills between 50 and 100 people.
- 2000 – The Texas Seven hold up a sports store in Irving, Texas.

### From 2001

- 2003 – Spanish police stop an attempt by ETA to detonate 50 kilogrammes of explosives at Madrid's Chamartin Station.
- 2005 – Chad declares that it is in a state of war with Sudan, though denies that it has declared war.
- 2008 – The _Lord's Resistance Army_, a Ugandan rebel group, begins a series of attacks on the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
- 2013 – Queen Elizabeth II issues an official pardon to the mathematician Alan Turing (who had died in 1954). Turing was convicted of homosexuality at a time when it was illegal in the UK.
- 2017 – Alberto Fujimori, former President of Peru, is pardoned for reasons relating to his ill health.
- 2017 – Guatemala announces that, like the United States, it plans to move its Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

### Up to 1800

- 3 BC – Galba, Roman Emperor (d. 69)
- 1166 – King John of England (d. 1216)
- 1389 – John VI, Duke of Brittany (d. 1442)
- 1475 – Thomas Murner, German poet and translator (d. 1537)
- 1508 – Pietro Carnesecchi, Italian humanist (d. 1567)
- 1588 – Constance of Austria, Queen of Poland (d. 1631)
- 1597 – Honoré II, Prince of Monaco (d. 1662)
- 1625 – Johann Rudolf Ahle, German composer, organist and theorist (d. 1673)
- 1635 – Mariana of Austria (d. 1696)
- 1679 – Domenico Sarro, Italian composer (d. 1744)
- 1698 – William Warburton, English bishop (d. 1779)
- 1724 – Johann Conrad Ammann, Swiss physician (d. 1811)
- 1737 – Silas Deane, American politician (d. 1789)
- 1745 – Benjamin Rush, American physician and founding father (d. 1813)
- 1754 – George Crabbe, British poet and naturalist (d. 1832)
- 1761 – Jean-Louis Pons, French astronomer (d. 1831)
- 1762 – Selim III, Ottoman Sultan (d. 1808)
- 1784 – Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1803)
- 1786 – Gregor MacGregor, Scottish soldier, adventurer and trickster (d. 1845)
- 1787 – Prince William of Hesse-Kassel (d. 1867)
- 1796 – Fernan Caballero, Spanish writer (d. 1877)
- 1798 – Adam Mickiewicz, Polish poet (d. 1855)

### 1801 – 1900

- 1809 – Kit Carson, American frontiersman (d. 1868)
- 1810 – Wilhelm Marstrand, Danish painter (d. 1873)
- 1818 – James Prescott Joule, British physicist (d. 1889)
- 1819 – Antonio de Trueba, Spanish writer (d. 1889)
- 1821 – Gabriel Garcia Moreno, President of Ecuador (d. 1875)
- 1837 – Elisabeth of Bavaria, Empress of Austria (d. 1898)
- 1837 – Cosima Wagner, wife of Richard Wagner (d. 1930)
- 1843 – Lydia Koidula, Estonian poet (d. 1886)
- 1845 – King George I of Greece (d. 1913)
- 1854 – Jose Maria Reina Barrios, President of Guatemala (d. 1898)
- 1863 – Enrique Fernandez Arbos, Spanish composer (d. 1959)
- 1867 – Suzuki Kantaro, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1948)
- 1868 – Emanuel Lasker, German chess player (d. 1941)
- 1886 – Richard Teichmann, German chess player (d. 1925)
- 1869 – Henriette Roland-Holst, Dutch poet (d. 1952)
- 1872 – Adam Gunn, American athlete (d. 1935)
- 1872 – Frederick Semple, American golfer and tennis player (d. 1927)
- 1879 – Queen Alexandrine of Denmark (d. 1952)
- 1881 – Juan Ramon Jimenez, Spanish writer (d. 1958)
- 1882 – Hans Rebane, Estonian politician, diplomat and journalist (d. 1961)
- 1887 – Louis Jouvet, French actor and producer (d. 1951)
- 1888 – Michael Curtiz, Hungarian–American movie director (d. 1962)
- 1892 – Ruth Chatterton, American actress, novelist and writer (d. 1961)
- 1893 – Harry Warren, American composer and lyricist (d. 1981)
- 1894 – Georges Guynemer, French pilot (d. 1917)
- 1896 – Jens Oliver Lisberg, Faroese law student and designer of the flag of the Faroe Islands (d. 1920)
- 1897 – Koto Okubo, Japanese supercentenarian (d. 2013)
- 1898 – Héctor Scarone, Uruguayan footballer (d. 1967)
- 1900 – Joey Smallwood, 1st Premier of Newfoundland (d. 1991)

### 1901 – 1950

- 1903 – Joseph Cornell, American artist and filmmaker (d. 1972)
- 1904 – Joseph M. Juran, Romanian–born American engineer (d. 2008)
- 1905 – Howard Hughes, American movie producer and inventor (d. 1976)
- 1906 – Joseph Höffner, German cardinal (d. 1987)
- 1907 – I. F. Stone, American journalist (d. 1989)
- 1907 – John Cody, American cardinal and Archbishop of Chicago (d. 1983)
- 1910 – Max Miedinger, Swiss typeface designer (d. 1980)
- 1914 – Ralph Marterie, Italian–American trumpeter and bandleader (d. 1978)
- 1914 – Herbert Reinecker, German writer (d. 2007)
- 1917 – Kim Jong-suk, North Korean figure, mother of Kim Jong-Il (d. 1949)
- 1919 – Pierre Soulages, French artist
- 1920 – Franco Lucentini, Italian writer and screenwriter (d. 2002)
- 1922 – Ava Gardner, American actress (d. 1990)
- 1923 – George Patton IV, American general (d. 2004)
- 1924 – Mohammed Rafi, Indian playback singer (d. 1980)
- 1924 – Lee Dorsey, American singer (d. 1986)
- 1924 – Abdirizak Haji Hussein, 4th Prime Minister of Somalia (d. 2014)
- 1926 – Ronald Draper, South African cricketer
- 1927 – Mary Higgins Clark, American writer (d. 2020)
- 1928 – Manfred Rommel, German politician (d. 2013)
- 1929 – Lennart Skoglund, Swedish footballer (d. 1975)
- 1931 – Walter Abish, American writer
- 1931 – Lech Trzeciakowski, Polish historian (d. 2017)
- 1931 – Mauricio Kagel, Argentine composer (d. 2008)
- 1934 – Stjepan Mesic, former President of Croatia
- 1937 – Félix Miéli Venerando, Brazilian footballer (d. 2012)
- 1940 – Anthony Fauci, American Physician and Director of NIAID
- 1941 – Hans Eichel, German politician
- 1941 – Andrzej Suski, Polish Roman Catholic bishop
- 1943 – Tarja Halonen, former President of Finland
- 1944 – Woody Shaw, American jazz trumpeter (d. 1989)
- 1944 – Daniel Johnson, Jr., 25th Premier of Quebec
- 1945 – Lemmy, British singer and musician (Motorhead) (d. 2015)
- 1946 – Jeff Sessions, American politician, 84th United States Attorney General
- 1948 – Frank Oliver, New Zealand rugby player
- 1948 – Edwige Fenech, Italian actress
- 1949 – Randy Neugebauer, American politician

### 1951 – 1975

- 1954 – Gregory S. Paul, American writer, illustrator and paleontologist
- 1954 – Jose Maria Figueres, former President of Costa Rica
- 1955 – Grand L. Bush, American actor
- 1956 – Irene Khan, Bangladeshi lawyer (Amnesty International)
- 1957 – Hamid Karzai, former President of Afghanistan
- 1958 – Lyse Doucet, Canadian journalist and BBC News correspondent
- 1958 – Philippa Whitford, Scottish politician
- 1959 – Anil Kapoor, Indian actor
- 1959 – Keith Deller, English darts player
- 1960 – Glenn McQueen, Canadian–American animator (d. 2002)
- 1960 – Carol Vorderman, English television host
- 1961 – Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan
- 1961 – Wade Williams, American actor
- 1962 – David Cobb, American lawyer and politician
- 1962 – Darren Wharton, English musician
- 1963 – Caroline Aherne, English comedienne and actress (d. 2016)
- 1963 – Mary Ramsey, American singer-songwriter
- 1966 – Diedrich Bader, American actor
- 1967 – Mikhail Shchennikov, Russian race walker
- 1967 – Pernilla Wahlgren, Swedish singer and actress
- 1968 – Choi Jin-sil, South Korean actress (d. 2008)
- 1969 – Ed Miliband, British politician
- 1969 – Mark Millar, British historian
- 1970 – Amaury Nolasco, Puerto Rican actor
- 1971 – Ricky Martin, Puerto Rican singer
- 1972 – Richard Dutruel, French footballer
- 1973 – Matt Passmore, Australian actor
- 1973 – Stephenie Meyer, American writer
- 1973 – Eddie Pope, American footballer
- 1974 – Marcelo Salas, Chilean footballer
- 1974 – Ryan Seacrest, American television host
- 1974 – Thure Lindhardt, Danish actor

### From 1976

- 1978 – Yildiray Basturk, Turkish footballer
- 1978 – Souleymane Diawara, Senegalese footballer
- 1979 – Svetlana Pospelova, Russian athlete
- 1979 – Chris Hero, American professional wrestler
- 1980 – Stephen Appiah, Ghanaian footballer
- 1981 – Dima Bilan, Russian singer
- 1981 – Nneka, Nigerian singer
- 1982 – Aiba Masaki, Japanese singer and actor
- 1982 – Robert Schwartzman, American singer
- 1984 – Austin Stowell, American actor
- 1985 – Christina Schwanitz, German shot putter
- 1986 – Ana Brenda Contreras, Mexican–American actress and singer
- 1986 – Theodor Gebre Selassie, Czech footballer
- 1986 – Kyrylo Fesenko, Ukrainian basketball player
- 1986 – Riyo Mori, Japanese model
- 1986 – Satomi Ishihara, Japanese actress
- 1987 – Jane Summersett, American ice dancer
- 1988 – Simon Zenke, Nigerian footballer
- 1991 – Louis Tomlinson, English singer (One Direction)
- 1992 – Melissa Suffield, English actress
- 1993 – Mariya Nishiuchi, Japanese model, actress and singer
- 1993 – Yuya Kubo, Japanese footballer
- 2000 – Ethan Bortnick, American singer-songwriter, pianist and actor

### Up to 1900

- 1257 – John I, Count of Hainault (b. 1218)
- 1524 – Vasco da Gama, Portuguese explorer (b. 1469)
- 1660 – Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange (b. 1631)
- 1813 – Empress Go-Sakuramachi of Japan (b. 1740)
- 1863 – William Makepeace Thackeray, British writer (b. 1811)
- 1865 – Charles Lock Eastlake, English painter (b. 1793)
- 1868 – Adolphe d'Archiac, French paleontologist and geologist (b. 1802)
- 1869 – Edwin M. Stanton, American politician (b. 1815)
- 1872 – William John Macquorn Rankine, Scottish physician and engineer (b. 1820)
- 1873 – Johns Hopkins, American philanthropist and benefactor (b. 1795)
- 1889 – Jan Jakob Lodewijk ten Kate, Dutch clergyman and poet (b. 1819)
- 1893 – Robert Bentley, British botanist (b. 1821)
- 1898 – Charbel Makhluf, Lebanese monk and priest (b. 1828)

### 1901 – 2000

- 1914 – John Muir, Scottish–American naturalist and conservationist (b. 1838)
- 1920 – Stephen Mosher Wood, American politician (b. 1832)
- 1926 – Wesley Coe, American athlete (b. 1879)
- 1930 – Eduard David, German politician (b. 1863)
- 1934 – George W. P. Hunt, American politician, 1st Governor of Arizona (b. 1859)
- 1935 – Alban Berg, Austrian composer (b. 1885)
- 1938 – Bruno Taut, German architect (b. 1880)
- 1941 – Siegfried Alkan, German composer (b. 1858)
- 1942 – François Darlan, Prime Minister of France (b. 1881)
- 1947 – Charles Gondouin, French rugby player (b. 1875)
- 1957 – Norma Talmadge, American actress (b. 1894)
- 1962 – Wilhelm Ackermann, German mathematician (b. 1896)
- 1967 – Burt Baskin, American businessman (b. 1913)
- 1971 – Maria Koepcke, German–Peruvian ornithologist (b. 1924)
- 1973 – Periyar E. V. Ramasamy, Indian businessman, social activist, and politician (b. 1973)
- 1977 – Juan Velasco Alvarado, Peruvian politician and military (b. 1910)
- 1979 – Rudi Dutschke, German sociologist and student leader (b. 1940)
- 1980 – Karl Dönitz, German admiral (b. 1890)
- 1980 – Siggie Nordstrom, American actress and singer (b. 1893)
- 1982 – Louis Aragon, French writer (b. 1897)
- 1984 – Peter Lawford, British actor (b. 1923)
- 1985 – Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, American lawyer (b. 1904)
- 1987 – M. G. Ramachandran, Indian actor, producer and writer (b. 1917)
- 1987 – Joop den Uyl, Dutch politician (b. 1919)
- 1990 – Thorbjorn Egner, Norwegian writer (b. 1922)
- 1992 – Peyo, Belgian comic writer (b. 1928)
- 1994 – Rossano Brazzi, Italian actor, singer, director and screenwriter (b. 1916)
- 1997 – Toshiro Mifune, Japanese actor (b. 1920)
- 1999 – Maurice Couve de Murville, Prime Minister of France (b. 1907)
- 1999 – Joao Figueiredo, President of Brazil (b. 1918)
- 2000 – Nick Massi, American singer and musician (b. 1935)

### From 2001

- 2002 – Kjell Aukrust, Norwegian writer (b. 1920)
- 2008 – Harold Pinter, British playwright (b. 1930)
- 2008 – Samuel P. Huntington, American politician (b. 1927)
- 2009 – Rafael Caldera, President of Venezuela (b. 1916)
- 2010 – Elisabeth Beresford, British writer (b. 1926)
- 2010 – Roy Neuberger, American banker (b. 1903)
- 2010 – Eino Tamberg, Estonian composer (b. 1930)
- 2011 – Johannes Heesters, Dutch–born entertainer, actor and singer (b. 1903)
- 2012 – Richard Rodney Bennett, British composer (b. 1936)
- 2012 – Charles Durning, American actor (b. 1923)
- 2012 – Jack Klugman, American actor (b. 1922)
- 2013 – Allan McKeown, English–American screenwriter and producer (b. 1946)
- 2014 – Krzysztof Krauze, Polish movie director and screenwriter (b. 1953)
- 2014 – Buddy DeFranco, American jazz clarinetist (b. 1923)
- 2014 – Edward Greenspan, Canadian lawyer (b. 1944)
- 2015 – Ron Jacobs, American basketball coach (b. 1942)
- 2016 – Liz Smith, English actress (b. 1921)
- 2016 – Richard Adams, English writer (b. 1920)
- 2016 – Rick Parfitt, English musician (Status Quo) (b. 1948)
- 2016 – Edwin Reinecke, American politician (b. 1924)
- 2017 – Jerry Kindall, American baseball player (b. 1935)
- 2017 – Heather Menzies, Canadian–American actress and model (b. 1949)
- 2017 – Andrey Zaliznyak, Russian linguist (b. 1935)

## Observances

- Christmas Eve (Western Christianity)
- Independence Day (Libya)