December 14
December 14 is the 348th day of the year (349th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 17 days remain until the end of the year.
Events
- 1287 - St. Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses, killing over 50,000 people.
- 1542 - Princess Mary Stuart becomes Queen Mary I of Scotland.
- 1702 (according to the old calendar; January 30, 1703 by the new calendar) - The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Ōishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master.
- 1751 - The Theresian Military Academy is founded as the first Military Academy in the world.
- 1782 - The Montgolfier brothers first balloon lifts on its first test flight.
- 1819 - Alabama becomes the 22nd U.S. state.
- 1825 - Advocates of Liberalism in Russia rise up against Tsar Nicholas I and are put down in the Decembrist Revolt in St. Petersburg.
- 1836 - The Toledo War unofficially ends.
- 1896 - The Glasgow Underground Railway is opened by the Glasgow District Subway Company.
- 1900 - Quantum Mechanics: Max Planck presents a theoretical derivation of his black-body radiation law.
- 1902 - The Commercial Pacific Cable Company lays the first Pacific telegraph cable, from Ocean Beach, San Francisco to Honolulu, Hawaii.
- 1903 - The Wright Brothers make their first attempt to fly with the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
- 1907 - The schooner Thomas W. Lawson runs aground and founders near the Hellweather's Reef within the Scilly Isles in a gale. The pilot and 15 seamen die.
- 1911 - Roald Amundsen's team, comprising himself, Olav Bjaaland, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel, and Oscar Wisting, becomes the first to reach the South Pole.
- 1914 - Lisandro de la Torre and others found the Democratic Progressist Party (Partido Demócrata Progresista, PDP) at the Hotel Savoy, Buenos Aires.
- 1918 - Friedrich Karl von Hessen, a German prince elected by the Parliament of Finland to become King Väinö I, renounces the Finnish throne.
- 1939 - Winter War: The Soviet Union is expelled from the League of Nations.
- 1941 - German military commander of Kharkiv, Ukraine issues an order, under which the Jewish population was to move to the city periphery within 2 days, into the barracks of the works of a machine factory. In the next days 15,000 Jews are shot at Drobitsky Yar.
- 1941 - World War II: Japan signs treaty of alliance with Thailand.
- 1946 - The UN General Assembly votes to establish its headquarters in New York City.
- 1947 - The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) is founded in Daytona Beach, Florida.
- 1955 - Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Portugal, Romania and Spain join the United Nations.
- 1958 - The 3rd Soviet Antarctic Expedition becomes the first expedition to reach The Pole of Relative Inaccessibility in the Antarctic.
- 1962 - NASA's Mariner 2 becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus.
- 1964 - American Civil Rights Movement: Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States - The United States Supreme Court rules that the U.S. Congress can use its Commerce Clause power to fight discrimination.
- 1972 - Apollo program: Eugene Cernan is the last person to walk on the moon, after he and Harrison Schmitt complete the third and final Extra-vehicular activity (EVA) of Apollo 17. This was the last manned mission to the moon of the 20th century.
- 1981 - Arab-Israeli conflict: Israel's Knesset passes The Golan Heights Law, extending Israeli law to the area of the Golan Heights.
- 1995 - Yugoslav Wars: The Dayton Agreement is signed in Paris by leaders of various governments.
- 2003 - President of Pakistan Pervez Musharaf narrowly escapes an assassination attempt.
- 2003 - President George W. Bush announces the capture of Saddam Hussein.
- 2004 - The Millau viaduct, the highest bridge in the world, near Millau, France is officially opened.
Births
- 1009 - Emperor Go-Suzaku of Japan (d. 1045)
- 1503 - Nostradamus, French astrologer (d. 1566)
- 1546 - Tycho Brahe, Danish astronomer and alchemist (d. 1601)
- 1625 - Barthélemy d'Herbelot de Molainville, French orientalist (d. 1695)
- 1631 - Anne Conway, Viscountess Conway, English philosopher (d. 1679)
- 1640 - (baptism date) - Aphra Behn, English playwright and novelist (d. 1689)
- 1678 - Daniel Neal, English historian (d. 1743)
- 1720 - Justus Möser, German statesman (d. 1794)
- 1775 - Philander Chase, American founder of Kenyon College (d. 1852)
- 1775 - Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, British admiral (d. 1860)
- 1784 - Princess Maria Antonia of Naples and Sicily, Princess of Asturias (d. 1806)
- 1787 - Maria Ludovika of Austria-Este, Empress of Austria and queen of Hungary and Bohemia (d. 1816)
- 1791 - Charles Wolfe, Irish poet (d. 1823)
- 1794 - Erastus Corning, American businessman and politician (d. 1872)
- 1824 - Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, French painter (d. 1898)
- 1866 - Roger Fry, English artist and art critic (d. 1934)
- 1870 - Karl Renner, President of Austria (d. 1950)
- 1881 - Katherine MacDonald, American actress and film producer (d. 1956)
- 1884 - Jane Cowl, American actress and playwright (d. 1950)
- 1895 - Paul Eluard, French poet (d. 1952)
- 1895 - King George VI of the United Kingdom (d. 1952)
- 1896 - Jimmy Doolittle, American General (d. 1993)
- 1897 - Margaret Chase Smith, American politician (d. 1995)
- 1897 - Kurt Schuschnigg, Austrian politician (d. 1977)
- 1902 - Frances Bavier, American actress (d. 1989)
- 1908 - Morey Amsterdam, American comedian and actor (d. 1996)
- 1908 - Claude Davey, Welsh rugby union footballer
- 1908 - Mária Szepes, Hungarian authoress (d. 2007)
- 1909 - Edward Tatum, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (d. 1975)
- 1911 - Spike Jones, American comedian and musician (d. 1965)
- 1911 - Hans von Ohain, German/American aerospace engineer (d. 1998)
- 1913 - Dan Dailey, American actor (d. 1978)
- 1914 - Karl Carstens, President of Germany (d. 1992)
- 1914 - Attila Petschauer, Hungarian fencer (d. 1943)
- 1914 - Rosalyn Tureck, American pianist and harpsichordist (d. 2003)
- 1916 - Shirley Jackson, American writer (d. 1965)
- 1917 - C.-H. Hermansson, Swedish communist leader
- 1917 - June Taylor, American choreographer (d. 2004)
- 1917 - Elyse Knox, American actress
- 1918 - James T. Aubrey, American television executive (d. 1994)
- 1918 - B.K.S. Iyengar, Indian yoga advocate
- 1920 - Clark Terry, American trumpeter
- 1922 - Nikolay Basov, Soviet physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2001)
- 1922 - Don Hewitt, American creator of 60 Minutes
- 1923 - Gerard Reve, Dutch writer (d. 2006)
- 1924 - Raj Kapoor, Indian actor (d. 1988)
- 1925 - Sam Jones, American baseball player (d. 1971)
- 1927 - Richard Cassilly, American tenor (d.1998)
- 1931 - Jon Elia, Pakistani scholar, poet and philosopher (d. 2002)
- 1932 - Abbe Lane, American singer and actress
- 1932 - Charlie Rich, American musician (d. 1995)
- 1935 - Lewis Arquette, American film actor, writer and producer (d. 2001)
- 1935 - Lee Remick, American actress (d. 1991)
- 1938 - Leonardo Boff, Brazilian theologian
- 1939 - Ernie Davis, American football player (d. 1963)
- 1940 - Lex Gold, Scottish football administrator
- 1941 - Karan Armstrong, American soprano
- 1941 - Ellen Willis, American journalist (d. 2006)
- 1942 - Zoe Laskari, Greek actress
- 1943 - R. Emmett Tyrrell, American magazine publisher
- 1946 - Jane Birkin, English-born French actress and singer
- 1946 - Patty Duke, American actress
- 1946 - Ruth Fuchs, East German athlete
- 1946 - Michael Ovitz, American film producer
- 1946 - Stan Smith, American tennis player
- 1946 - Joyce Vincent Wilson, American singer (Tony Orlando and Dawn)
- 1947 - Christopher Parkening, American guitarist
- 1947 - Linda Sutton, English artist
- 1948 - Lester Bangs, American music journalist (d. 1982)
- 1948 - Kim Beazley, Australian politician
- 1948 - Dee Wallace-Stone, American actress
- 1949 - Bill Buckner, American baseball player
- 1949 - Cliff Williams, English bassist (AC/DC)
- 1951 - Jan Timman, Dutch chess grandmaster
- 1952 - Germain Houde, French Canadian actor
- 1953 - Vijay Amritraj, Indian tennis player
- 1953 - René Eespere, Soviet-born Estonian composer
- 1953 - Vangelis Meimarakis, Greek lawyer and politician
- 1953 - Mikael Odenberg, Swedish politician
- 1954 - James Horan, American actor
- 1954 - Alan Kulwicki, American NASCAR driver (d. 1993)
- 1954 - Steven MacLean, Canadian astronaut
- 1956 - Hanni Wenzel, Liechtenstein skier
- 1957 - Gary Ferris, American author
- 1958 - Mike Scott, Scottish singer-songwriter (The Waterboys)
- 1958 - Spider Stacy, English musician (The Pogues)
- 1959 - Jorge Vaca, Mexican boxer
- 1960 - Bob Paris, American bodybuilder and gay rights advocate
- 1960 - Chris Waddle, English footballer
- 1962 - Ginger Lynn (Ginger Lynn Allen), American adult film actress
- 1963 - Greg Abbott, English former football player
- 1963 - Cynthia Gibb, American actress
- 1965 - Craig Biggio, American baseball player
- 1965 - Ken Hill, American baseball player
- 1966 - Fabrizio Giovanardi, Italian racecar driver
- 1966 - Bill Ranford, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1966 - Tim Skold, Swedish/American musician
- 1967 - Ewa Białołęcka, Polish writer
- 1969 - Scott Hatteberg, American baseball player
- 1970 - Nadine Garner, Australian actress
- 1970 - Anna Maria Jopek, Polish singer
- 1970 - Beth Orton, English singer-songwriter
- 1971 - Natascha McElhone, English actress
- 1972 - Eric Anderson, American musical theatre actor
- 1972 - Marcus Jensen, American baseball player
- 1973 - Tomasz Radzinski, Polish-born Canadian soccer player
- 1973 - Tia Texada, American actress and singer
- 1973 - Thuy Trang, American actress (d. 2001)
- 1974 - Billy Koch, American baseball player
- 1975 - Justin Furstenfeld, American rock singer
- 1976 - Leland Chapman, American bounty hunter
- 1976 - André Couto, Portuguese racing driver
- 1976 - Santiago Ezquerro, Spanish footballer
- 1977 - KaDee Strickland, American actress
- 1978 - Kim St-Pierre, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1978 - Radu Sârbu, Moldovan singer (O-Zone)
- 1978 - Patty Schnyder, Swiss tennis player
- 1979 - Sophie Monk, Australian actress, singer, and model
- 1979 - Michael Owen, English footballer
- 1980 - Frankie J, American singer
- 1980 - Tata Young, Thai-American singer
- 1980 - Didier Zokora, Ivorian footballer
- 1981 - Amber Chia, Malaysian model and actress
- 1981 - Emilie Heymans, Canadian diver
- 1981 - Johnny Jeter, American professional wrestler
- 1981 - Shaun Marcum, American baseball player
- 1981 - Liam Lawrence, English footballer
- 1982 - Josh Fields, American baseball player
- 1982 - Steve Sidwell, English footballer
- 1982 - Anthony Way, English singer and actor
- 1984 - Chris Brunt, Northern Irish footballer
- 1984 - Edward Rainsford, Zimbabwean cricketer
- 1985 - Jakub Błaszczykowski, Polish footballer
- 1985 - Paul Rabil, professional lacrosse player
- 1985 - Julio Pimentel, Dominican baseball player
- 1985 - Tom Smith, Welsh rugby union footballer
- 1985 - Nonami Takizawa, Japanese actress
- 1988 - Nicolas Batum, French basketball player
- 1988 - Vanessa Hudgens, American singer and actress
- 1989 - Pedro Silva, Brazilian footballer
- 1992 - Tori Kelly, American singer
- 1995 - Princess Olimpia Preslavska of Bulgaria
Deaths
- 1460 - Guarino da Verona (b. 1370)
- 1476 - Vlad III the Impaler (b. 1431)
- 1510 - Friedrich of Saxony (b. 1473)
- 1542 - King James V of Scotland (b. 1512)
- 1553 - Hanibal Lucić, Croatian writer (b. 1485)
- 1591 - Saint John of the Cross, Spanish friar and poet (b. 1542)
- 1624 - Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, English statesman (b. 1536)
- 1651 - Pierre Dupuy, French scholar (b. 1582)
- 1713 - Thomas Rymer, English historian (b. 1641)
- 1715 - Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1636)
- 1735 - Thomas Tanner, English bishop and antiquarian (b. 1674)
- 1741 - Charles Rollin, French historian (b. 1661)
- 1788 - Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (b. 1714)
- 1788 - King Charles III of Spain (b. 1716)
- 1799 - George Washington, first President of the United States (b. 1732)
- 1838 - Jean-Olivier Chénier, French Canadian physician and Patriote (b. 1806)
- 1860 - George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1784)
- 1861 - Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, consort of Queen Victoria (b. 1819)
- 1865 - Johan Georg Forchhammer, Danish geologist (b. 1794)
- 1873 - Louis Agassiz, Swiss-born American zoologist and geologist (b. 1807)
- 1902 - Julia Grant, wife of President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant (b. 1826)
- 1912 - Belgrave Edward Sutton Ninnis, British Army lieutenant (b. 1887)
- 1920 - George Gipp, American football player (b. 1895)
- 1927 - Yulian Vasilievich Sokhotski, Russian mathematician (b. 1842)
- 1935 - Stanley G. Weinbaum, American science-fiction author (b. 1902)
- 1947 - Stanley Baldwin, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1867)
- 1947 - Edward Higgins, General of The Salvation Army (b. 1864)
- 1956 - Juho Kusti Paasikivi, president of Finland (b. 1870)
- 1963 - Dinah Washington, American singer (b. 1924)
- 1964 - William Bendix, American actor (b. 1906)
- 1970 - Franz Schlegelberger, German Nazi politician (b. 1876)
- 1971 - Dick Tiger, Nigerian-born boxer (b. 1929)
- 1974 - Walter Lippman, American writer, journalist, and political commentator (b. 1889)
- 1975 - Arthur Treacher, English actor (b. 1894)
- 1978 - Salvador de Madariaga, Spanish diplomat, writer, historian and pacifist (b. 1886)
- 1984 - Vicente Aleixandre, Spanish writer and Nobel laureate (b. 1898)
- 1985 - Catherine Doherty, social justice activist (b. 1896)
- 1985 - Roger Maris, American baseball player (b. 1934)
- 1989 - Jock Mahoney, American actor and stuntman (b. 1919)
- 1989 - Andrei D. Sakharov, Russian physicist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1921)
- 1990 - Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Swiss writer (b. 1921)
- 1993 - Jeff Alm, American football player (b. 1968)
- 1993 - Myrna Loy, American actress (b. 1905)
- 1994 - Orval Faubus, Governor of Arkansas (b. 1910)
- 1996 - Gaston Miron, French Canadian poet and editor (b. 1928)
- 1997 - Stubby Kaye, American actor (b. 1918)
- 1997 - Kurt Winter, Canadian musician (The Guess Who) (b. 1946)
- 1998 - Norman Fell, American actor (b. 1924)
- 1998 - Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr., American civil rights activist and author (b. 1928)
- 1998 - Annette Strauss, American philanthropist (b. 1924)
- 2001 - W. G. Sebald, German writer (b. 1944)
- 2003 - Jeanne Crain, American actress (b. 1925)
- 2003 - Blas Ople, foreign minister of the Philippines (b. 1927)
- 2004 - Rod Kanehl, American baseball player (b. 1934)
- 2004 - Fernando Poe, Jr., Filipino actor and presidential candidate (b. 1939)
- 2005 - Trevanian, American author (b. 1931)
- 2006 - Anton Balasingham, chief political strategist of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (b. 1938)
- 2006 - Ahmet Ertegün, co-founder of Atlantic Records (b. 1923)
- 2006 - Mike Evans, American actor (b. 1949)