What happened on December 15? There are more than 245 events that were made this day in history. Here are the important historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
Interesting Facts & Myths About December 15
December 15 is the 350th day of the year 2024. There are 16 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday. This day falls under the 50th week of the year 2024.
On this day in Sewanee, Tennessee 37383 sunrise will occur at 06:43 AM and sunset will occur at 04:34 PM (local time).
The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Sagittarius. The modern birthstone for this month is Turquoise while the mystical birthstone is Onyx.
According to the Chinese calendar, there are 45 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).
Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the April 21 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)
Historical Events For December 15
- 533Byzantine general Belisarius defeats the Vandals, commanded by King Gelimer, at the Battle of Ticameron.
- 1167Sicilian chancellor Stephen du Perche moves the royal court to Messina to prevent a rebellion.
- 1256Hulagu Khan captures and destroys the Hashshashin stronghold at Alamut in present-day Iran as part of the Mongol offensive on Islamic southwest Asia.
- 1467Stephen III of Moldavia defeats Matthias Corvinus of Hungary, with the latter being injured thrice, at the Battle of Baia.
- 1778American Revolutionary War: British and French fleets clash in the Battle of St. Lucia.
- 1791The United States Bill of Rights becomes law when ratified by the Virginia General Assembly.
- 1864In the Battle of Nashville, Union forces under George H. Thomas almost completely destroy the Army of Tennessee under John B. Hood.
- 1868Shogunate rebels found Ezo Republic in Hokkaidō.
- 1905The Pushkin House is established in St. Petersburg to preserve the cultural heritage of Alexander Pushkin
- 1906The London Underground’s Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway opens.
- 1913Nicaragua becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires Convention.
- 1914A gas explosion at Mitsubishi Hojyo coal mine, Kyūshū, Japan, kills 687.
- 1914World War I: The Serbian Army recaptures Belgrade from the invading Austro-Hungarian Army.
- 1917World War I: An armistice is reached between the new Bolshevik government and the Central Powers.
- 1933The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution officially becomes effective, repealing the Eighteenth Amendment that prohibited the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol.
- 1939Gone with the Wind receives its première at Loew’s Grand Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
- 1941Holocaust: German troops murder over 15,000 Jews at Drobitsky Yar, a ravine southeast of the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine.
- 1942The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse begins during the Guadalcanal campaign.
- 1945Occupation of Japan: General Douglas MacArthur orders that Shinto be abolished as the state religion of Japan.
- 1946US-backed Iranian troops evict the leadership of the breakaway Republic of Mahabad, putting an end to the Iran crisis of 1946.
- 1954The Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands is signed.
- 1960King Mahendra of Nepal suspends the country’s constitution, dissolves parliament, dismisses the cabinet, and imposes direct rule.
- 1960Richard Paul Pavlick is arrested for attempting to blow up and assassinate the U.S. President-Elect, John F. Kennedy only four days earlier.
- 1961In Jerusalem, Adolph Eichmann is sentenced to death after being found guilty of 15 criminal charges, including charges of crimes against humanity, crimes against the Jewish people and membership of an outlawed organization.
- 1965Gemini program: Gemini 6A, crewed by Wally Schirra and Thomas Stafford, is launched from Cape Kennedy, Florida. Four orbits later, it achieves the first space rendezvous, with Gemini 7.
- 1967The Silver Bridge collapses, killing 46 people.
- 1970South Korean ferry Namyong Ho capsizes off Korean Strait killing 308.
- 1970Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 successfully land on Venus. It is the first successful soft landing on another planet
- 1973John Paul Getty III, grandson of American billionaire J. Paul Getty, is found alive near Naples, Italy, after being kidnapped by an Italian gang on July 10, 1973.
- 1973The American Psychiatric Association votes 13–0 to remove homosexuality from its official list of psychiatric disorders, the DSM-II.
- 1976Samoa becomes a member of the United Nations.
- 1976The oil tanker MV Argo Merchant runs aground near Nantucket, Massachusetts, causing one of the worst marine oil spills in history.
- 1978U.S. President Jimmy Carter announces that the United States will recognize the People’s Republic of China and cut off all relations with Taiwan
- 1993History of Northern Ireland: The Downing Street Declaration is issued by British Prime Minister John Major and Irish Taoiseach Albert Reynolds.
- 1994Palau becomes a member of the United Nations.
- 1997A chartered Tupolev TU-154 from Tajikistan crashes in the desert near Sharja, United Arab Emirates airport killing 85.
- 1997The Treaty of Bangkok is signed allowing the transformation of Southeast Asia into a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone.
- 2000The 3rd reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is shut down.
- 2001The Leaning Tower of Pisa reopens after 11 years and $27,000,000 to fortify it, without fixing its famous lean.
- 2005Introduction of the F-22 Raptor into USAF active service.
- 2005Latvia amends its constitution to eliminate possibility of same-sex couples being entitled to marry.
- 2006First flight of the F-35 Lightning II.
- 2009Boeing’s new Boeing 787 Dreamliner makes its maiden flight from Seattle, Washington.
- 2010A boat carrying 90 asylum seekers crashes into rocks off the coast of Christmas Island, Australia, killing at least 30 passengers.
- 2011American forces withdraw from Iraq after a 9-year long campaign.
Who Were Born On December 15?
- 37Nero, Roman emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty (d. 68)
- 130Lucius Verus, Roman co-emperor (d. 169)
- 1832Gustave Eiffel, French engineer and architect (Eiffel tower) (d. 1923)
- 1852Henri Becquerel, French physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 1908)
- 1859L. L. Zamenhof, Polish initiator of Esperanto (d. 1917)
- 1860Abner Powell, American baseball player (d. 1953)
- 1860Niels Ryberg Finsen, Danish physician, Nobel laureate (d. 1904)
- 1861Charles Duryea, American automobile pioneer (d. 1938)
- 1861Pehr Evind Svinhufvud, Finnish politician (d. 1944)
- 1863Arthur Dehon Little, American chemist and chemical engineer (d. 1935)
- 1869Leon Marchlewski, Polish chemist (d. 1946)
- 1875Emilio Jacinto, Filipino poet and revolutionary (d. 1899)
- 1878Hans Carossa, German writer (d. 1956)
- 1885Leonid Pitamic, Slovenian philosopher (d. 1971)
- 1888Maxwell Anderson, American writer (d. 1959)
- 1892J. Paul Getty, American oil tycoon (d. 1976)
- 1896Betty Smith, American author (d. 1972)
- 1899Harold Abrahams, English sprinter (d. 1978)
- 1902Robert F. Bradford, 57th Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1983)
- 1903Tamanishiki San'emon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 32nd Yokozuna (d. 1938)
- 1907Oscar Niemeyer, Brazilian architect
- 1910John H. Hammond, American musician (d. 1987)
- 1911Nicholas P. Dallis, American psychiatrist and comic strip writer (d. 1991)
- 1911Stan Kenton, American musician (d. 1979)
- 1912Ray Eames, American designer (d. 1988)
- 1913Muriel Rukeyser, American poet (d. 1980)
- 1913Roger Gaudry, French Canadian chemist, businessman and corporate director (d. 2001)
- 1916Buddy Cole, American pianist (d. 1964)
- 1916Maurice Wilkins, New Zealand-born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2004)
- 1917Shan-ul-Haq Haqqee, linguist and writer of Pakistan (d. 2005)
- 1918Jeff Chandler, American actor (d. 1961)
- 1919Max Yasgur, owner of the Woodstock Festival site (d. 1973)
- 1920Kurt Schaffenberger, American comics artist (d. 2002)
- 1921Alan Freed, American disc jockey (d. 1965)
- 1921Bob Todd, British comedian (d. 1992)
- 1923Freeman Dyson, English-born American physicist
- 1923Uziel Gal, Israeli firearm designer (d. 2002)
- 1923Valentin Varennikov, Russian general and statesman (d. 2009)
- 1925Kasey Rogers, American actress (d. 2006)
- 1925Sam Pollock, Canadian ice hockey general manager (d. 2007)
- 1926Nikos Koundouros, Greek film director
- 1928Ernie Ashworth, American country singer (d. 2009)
- 1928Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Austrian artist (d. 2000)
- 1928Jerry Wallace, American singer (d. 2008)
- 1929Barry Harris, American bebop jazz pianist
- 1930Edna O'Brien, Irish novelist and short story writer
- 1932Jesse Belvin, American musician (d. 1960)
- 1933Bapu, Indian cartoonist, designer and film director
- 1933Donald Woods, South African journalist and anti-apartheid activist (d. 2001)
- 1933Tim Conway, American actor and comedian
- 1936Joe D'Amato, Italian director (d. 1999)
- 1938Billy Shaw, American football player
- 1939Cindy Birdsong, American singer (The Supremes)
- 1940Nick Buoniconti, American football player
- 1942Dave Clark, English musician (The Dave Clark Five)
- 1943Kathleen Blanco, American politician
- 1943Lucien den Arend, Dutch artist
- 1944Chico Mendes, Brazilian campaigner (d. 1988)
- 1944Jim Leyland, American baseball manager
- 1945Thaao Penghlis, Australian actor
- 1946Art Howe, American baseball player and manager
- 1946Carmine Appice, American musician (Vanilla Fudge)
- 1947Rodney Bingenheimer, American radio personality
- 1948Cassandra Harris, Australian actress (d. 1991)
- 1948Melanie Chartoff, American actress
- 1949Don Johnson, American actor
- 1952Allan Simonsen, Danish footballer
- 1952Julie Taymor, American director
- 1952Rudi Protrudi, American musician (The Fuzztones)
- 1953J. M. DeMatteis, American comic book writer
- 1954Mark Warner, American politician, United States Senator from Virginia and 69th Governor of Virginia
- 1955Paul Simonon, English bassist (The Clash)
- 1956Tony Leon, South African politician and Ambassador to Argentina
- 1956William Orbit, English producer, mixer and musician
- 1957Laura Molina, American artist, musician and actress
- 1957Mario Marois, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1957Mike McAlary, American journalist (d. 1998)
- 1957Tim Reynolds, Musician (Dave Matthews Band,TR3)
- 1957Yuuichi Nagashima, Japanese voice actor
- 1958Eddy Annys, Belgian high jumper
- 1960Walter Werzowa, Austrian composer
- 1961Karin Resetarits, Austrian journalist
- 1963Andrew Luster, American rapist
- 1963David Wingate, American basketball player
- 1963Ellie Cornell, American actress
- 1963Helen Slater, American actress
- 1963Norman J. Grossfeld, American television producer and screenwriter
- 1966Carl Hooper, former West Indian cricket player and captain
- 1966Manos Papayiannis, Greek fashion model and actor
- 1966Molly Price, American actress
- 1967David Howells, English footballer
- 1967Elix Skipper, American professional wrestler
- 1967Mo Vaughn, American baseball player
- 1968Garrett Wang, American actor
- 1968Osama Ali Maher, Swedish politician
- 1969Chantal Petitclerc, Canadian wheelchair athlete
- 1970Frankie Dettori, Italian jockey
- 1970Lawrence Funderburke, American basketball player
- 1970Michael Shanks, Canadian actor
- 1971Arne Quinze, Belgian conceptual artist
- 1971Clint Lowery, American guitarist (Sevendust)
- 1972Rodney Harrison, American football player
- 1972Stuart Townsend, Irish actor
- 1973Ryu Seung-wan, South Korean actor and director
- 1973Surya Bonaly, French-born American figure skater
- 1976Aaron Miles, American baseball player
- 1976Baichung Bhutia, Indian footballer
- 1976Todd Tichenor, American baseball umpire
- 1977Dave Mackintosh, Scottish drummer (Dragonforce)
- 1977Eba, Mongolian entertainer
- 1977Geoff Stults, American actor
- 1978Jerome McDougle, American football player
- 1978Mark Jansen, Dutch guitarist (Epica)
- 1979Adam Brody, American actor
- 1979Eric Young, Canadian professional wrestler
- 1980Manuel Wilhelm, German rugby player
- 1980Sergio Pizzorno, English guitarist (Kasabian)
- 1981Andy González, Puerto Rican baseball player
- 1981Brendan Fletcher, Canadian actor
- 1981Creighton Lovelace, American Baptist minister
- 1981Firman Utina, Indonesian footballer
- 1981Michelle Dockery, British actress
- 1981Najoua Belyzel, French singer
- 1981Roman Pavlyuchenko, Russian footballer
- 1981Thomas Herrion, American football player (d. 2005)
- 1982Borja García, Spanish racing driver
- 1982Charlie Cox, English actor
- 1982George O. Gore II, American actor
- 1983Delon Armitage, Trindadian/English rugby player
- 1983René Goguen, Canadian professional wrestler
- 1983Wang Hao, Chinese table tennis player
- 1984Kirsty Lee Allan, Australian actress
- 1984Martin Škrtel, Slovak footballer
- 1985Diogo Fernandes, Brazilian footballer
- 1986Iveta Mazáčová, Czech athlete
- 1986Snejana Onopka, Ukrainian model
- 1986Xiah, South Korean singer (TVXQ)
- 1994Emma Lockhart, American actress
Who Died On December 15?
- 1025Basil II, Byzantine Emperor (b. 958)
- 1072Alp Arslan, Turkish sultan (b. 1029)
- 1230King Otakar I of Bohemia (b. 1155)
- 1263King Haakon IV of Norway (b. 1204)
- 1598Philips van Marnix, lord of Sint-Aldegonde, Dutch writer and statesman (b. 1538)
- 1621Charles d'Albert, Constable of France (b. 1578)
- 1673Margaret Cavendish, English writer (b. 1623)
- 1675Johannes Vermeer, Dutch painter (b. 1632)
- 1683Izaak Walton, English writer (b. 1593)
- 1688Gaspar Fagel, Dutch statesman (b. 1634)
- 1715George Hickes, English minister and scholar (b. 1642)
- 1753Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, English architect (b. 1694)
- 1792Joseph Martin Kraus, Swedish composer (b. 1756)
- 1855Jacques Charles François Sturm, French mathematician (b. 1803)
- 1878Alfred Bird, chemist (b. 1811)
- 1890Sitting Bull, American Indian tribal chief (b. c. 1831)
- 1943Fats Waller, American musician (b. 1904)
- 1944Glenn Miller, American musician (presumed date of death) (b. 1904)
- 1947Arthur Machen, Welsh author (b. 1863)
- 1950Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Indian politician (b. 1875)
- 1958Wolfgang Ernst Pauli, Austrian-born American physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1900)
- 1962Charles Laughton, English actor (b. 1899)
- 1966Walt Disney, American animator (b. 1901)
- 1968Antonio Barrette, Canadian politician (b. 1899)
- 1968Jess Willard, American boxer (b. 1881)
- 1969Karl Theodor Bleek, German politician (b. 1898)
- 1971Paul Pierre Lévy, French mathematician (b. 1886)
- 1974Anatole Litvak, Ukrainian screenwriter and film producer (b. 1902)
- 1977Wilfred Kitching, American General of The Salvation Army (b. 1893)
- 1978Chill Wills, American actor (b. 1903)
- 1980Dimitrios Partsalidis, Greek politician (b. 1905)
- 1980Komninos Pyromaglou, Greek educator and politician (b. 1899)
- 1980Kostas Biris, Greek architect, city planner and folklorist (b. 1899)
- 1984Jan Peerce, American tenor (b. 1904)
- 1984Lennard Pearce, English actor (b. 1915)
- 1985Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, Mauritian politician (b. 1900)
- 1989Arnold Moss, American actor (b. 1910)
- 1989Edward Underdown, English actor (b. 1908)
- 1991Vasily Grigoryevich Zaitsev, Soviet sniper (b. 1915)
- 1993William Dale Phillips, American chemist (b. 1925)
- 2000Haris Brkić, Bosnian basketball player (b. 1974)
- 2001Rufus Thomas, American musician (b. 1917)
- 2001Russ Haas, American professional wrestler (b. 1974)
- 2003George Fisher, American political cartoonist (b. 1923)
- 2003Keith Magnuson, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1947)
- 2004Pauline Gore, mother of Al Gore (b. 1912)
- 2004Vassal Gadoengin, Nauruan politician (b. 1943)
- 2005Darrell Russell, American football player (b. 1976)
- 2005Heinrich Gross, Austrian physician (b. 1914)
- 2005Stan Leonard, Canadian golfer (b. 1915)
- 2005William Proxmire, American politician (b. 1915)
- 2006Clay Regazzoni, Swiss Formula One driver (b. 1939)
- 2007John Berg, American actor (b. 1949)
- 2007Julia Carson, American politician (b. 1938)
- 2008León Febres Cordero, Ecuadorian politician (b. 1931)
- 2009Oral Roberts, American television evangelist and author (b. 1918)
- 2010Blake Edwards, American film director (b. 1922)
- 2010Bob Feller, American baseball player (b. 1918)
- 2010Eugene Victor Wolfenstein, American political scientist (b. 1940)
- 2011Bob Brookmeyer, American jazz musician (b.1929)
- 2011Christopher Hitchens, Prolific Columnist (b. 1949)
- 2011Francis “Frank” X. McDermott, American Republican Party politician (b.1924)
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