What happened on December 24? There are more than 258 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 24

December 24 In HistoryDecember 24 is the 359th day of the year 2024. There are 7 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Tuesday. This day falls under the 52nd week of the year 2024.

On this day in Stuart, Oklahoma 74570 sunrise will occur at 07:28 AM and sunset will occur at 05:20 PM (local time).

The zodiac sign of a person born on this day is Capricorn. The modern birthstone for this month is Turquoise while the mystical birthstone is Onyx.

According to the Chinese calendar, there are 36 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year (January 29, 2025).

Birthday curiousity Is your birthday coming up in two days? Are you not curious to find out who is sharing your special day? Discover all the March 31 famous birthdays. There are fun facts about that day that you must know. (Sponsored link)

Historical Events For December 24

  • 563
    The Byzantine church Hagia Sophia in Constantinople is dedicated for the second time after being destroyed by earthquakes.
  • 1294
    Pope Boniface VIII is elected Pope, replacing St. Celestine V, who had resigned.
  • 1777
    Kiritimati, also called Christmas Island, is discovered by James Cook.
  • 1814
    The Treaty of Ghent is signed ending the War of 1812.
  • 1818
    The first performance of “Silent Night” takes place in the church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria.
  • 1826
    The Eggnog Riot at the United States Military Academy begins that night, wrapping up the following morning.
  • 1851
    Library of Congress burns.
  • 1865
    The Ku Klux Klan is formed.
  • 1871
    Aida opens in Cairo.
  • 1906
    Radio: Reginald Fessenden transmits the first radio broadcast; consisting of a poetry reading, a violin solo, and a speech.
  • 1911
    Lackawanna Cut-Off railway line opens in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
  • 1913
    The Italian Hall Disaster (“1913 Massacre”) in Calumet, Michigan, results in the death of 73 Christmas party goers held by striking mine workers, including 59 children.
  • 1914
    World War I: The “Christmas truce” begins.
  • 1924
    Albania becomes a republic.
  • 1929
    Assassination attempt on Argentine President Hipólito Yrigoyen.
  • 1939
    World War II: Pope Pius XII makes a Christmas Eve appeal for peace.
  • 1941
    World War II: Kuching is conquered by Japanese forces.
  • 1942
    World War II: French monarchist, Fernand Bonnier de La Chapelle, assassinates Vichy French Admiral François Darlan in Algiers.
  • 1943
    World War II: U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes the Supreme Allied Commander.
  • 1951
    Libya becomes independent from Italy. Idris I is proclaimed King of Libya.
  • 1953
    Tangiwai disaster: A railway bridge is destroyed by a lahar at Tangiwai, in the Central North Island of New Zealand, sending a fully loaded passenger train into the Whangaehu River, and killing 153 people.
  • 1955
    NORAD Tracks Santa for the first time in what will become an annual Christmas Eve tradition.
  • 1964
    Vietnam War: Viet Cong operatives bomb the Brinks Hotel in Saigon to demonstrate they can strike an American installation in the heavily guarded capital.
  • 1966
    A Canadair CL-44 chartered by the United States military crashes into a small village in South Vietnam, killing 129.
  • 1968
    Apollo Program: The crew of Apollo 8 enters into orbit around the Moon, becoming the first humans to do so. They performed 10 lunar orbits and broadcast live TV pictures that became the famous Christmas Eve Broadcast, one of the most watched programs in history.
  • 1973
    District of Columbia Home Rule Act is passed, allowing residents of Washington, D.C. to elect their own local government.
  • 1974
    Cyclone Tracy devastates Darwin, Australia.
  • 1979
    The first European Ariane rocket is launched.
  • 1980
    Witnesses report the first of several sightings of unexplained lights near RAF Woodbridge, in Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk, England, an incident called “Britain’s Roswell”.
  • 1997
    The Sid El-Antri massacre (or Sidi Lamri) in Algeria kills 50-100 people.
  • 2000
    The Texas 7 hold up a sports store in Irving, Texas. Police officer Aubrey Hawkins is murdered during the robbery.
  • 2003
    The Spanish police thwart an attempt by ETA to detonate 50 kg of explosives at 3:55 p.m. inside Madrid’s busy Chamartín Station.
  • 2005
    Chad–Sudan relations: Chad declares a state of war against Sudan following a December 18 attack on Adré, which left about 100 people dead.
  • 2008
    Lord’s Resistance Army, a Ugandan rebel group, begins a series of attacks on Democratic Republic of the Congo, massacring more than 400.

Who Were Born On December 24?

  • 3 BC
    Servius Sulpicius Galba, Roman Emperor (d. 69)
  • 1166
    King John of England (d. 1216)
  • 1389
    John VI, Duke of Brittany (d. 1442)
  • 1475
    Thomas Murner, German writer (d. c. 1537)
  • 1508
    Pietro Carnesecchi, Italian humanist (d. 1567)
  • 1588
    Constance of Austria, queen of Poland (d. 1631)
  • 1609
    Philip Warwick, English writer and politician (d. 1683)
  • 1635
    Mariana of Austria, second wife of king Philip IV of Spain (d. 1696)
  • 1698
    William Warburton, English Bishop of Gloucester (d. 1779)
  • 1724
    Johann Conrad Ammann, Swiss physician and naturalist (d. 1811)
  • 1745
    Benjamin Rush, doctor and Founding Father of the United States (d. 1813)
  • 1754
    George Crabbe, British poet and naturalist (d. 1832)
  • 1761
    Jean-Louis Pons, French astronomer (d. 1831)
  • 1784
    Grand Duchess Elena Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1803)
  • 1798
    Adam Mickiewicz, Polish poet (d. 1855)
  • 1809
    Kit Carson, American frontiersman (d. 1868)
  • 1810
    Wilhelm Marstrand, Danish painter (d. 1873)
  • 1812
    Karl Eduard Zachariae von Lingenthal, German jurist (d. 1894)
  • 1818
    James Prescott Joule, British physicist (d. 1889)
  • 1822
    Matthew Arnold, British poet (d. 1888)
  • 1837
    Elisabeth of Bavaria, also known as Sissi, Empress of Austria (d. 1898)
  • 1843
    Lydia Koidula, Estonian poet (d. 1886)
  • 1845
    King George I of Greece (d. 1913)
  • 1867
    Kantarō Suzuki, 42nd Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1948)
  • 1868
    Emanuel Lasker, German chess player (d. 1941)
  • 1877
    Sigrid Schauman, Finnish painter (d. 1979)
  • 1879
    Émile Nelligan, Quebec poet (d. 1941)
  • 1879
    Queen Alexandrine of Denmark, Queen Consort to Christian X (d. 1952)
  • 1880
    Johnny Gruelle, American cartoonist, children’s book writer and creator of Raggedy Ann (d. 1939)
  • 1881
    Juan Ramón Jiménez, Spanish writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
  • 1886
    Michael Curtiz, Hungarian-born director (d. 1962)
  • 1887
    Louis Jouvet, French actor and producer (d. 1951)
  • 1893
    Harry Warren, American composer and lyricist (Chattanooga Choo Choo – I Only Have Eyes for You) (d. 1981)
  • 1893
    Ruth Chatterton, American actress (d. 1961)
  • 1894
    Georges Guynemer, French aviator (d. 1917)
  • 1895
    E. Roland Harriman, American financier (d. 1978)
  • 1895
    Noel Streatfeild, English children’s writer (d. 1986)
  • 1896
    Jens Oliver Lisberg, Faroese law student, designer of the Flag of the Faroe Islands (d. 1920)
  • 1898
    Baby Dodds, American jazz drummer (d. 1959)
  • 1898
    Héctor Scarone, Uruguayan footballer (d. 1967)
  • 1900
    Joey Smallwood, Canadian politician, Premier of Newfoundland (d. 1991)
  • 1903
    Ava Helen Pauling, American human rights activist (d. 1981)
  • 1904
    Joseph Moses Juran, American industrial engineer and philanthropist (d. 2008)
  • 1905
    Howard Hughes, American film producer and inventor (d. 1976)
  • 1906
    Franz Waxman, German film composer (d. 1967)
  • 1907
    I. F. Stone, American journalist (d. 1989)
  • 1910
    Fritz Leiber, American writer (d. 1992)
  • 1910
    Max Miedinger, typeface designer, famous for creating Helvetica in 1957. (d. 1980)
  • 1914
    Herbert Reinecker, German writer (d. 2007)
  • 1914
    Ralph Marterie, American trumpet player and big band leader (d. 1978)
  • 1919
    Qateel Shifai, Pakistani Urdu poet, Lyricist (d. 11 July 2001)
  • 1920
    Yevgeniya Rudneva, Russian World War II heroine (d. 1944)
  • 1922
    Ava Gardner, American actress (d. 1990)
  • 1923
    George Patton IV, American general (d. 2004)
  • 1923
    Michael DiBiase, American wrestler (d. 1969)
  • 1924
    Lee Dorsey, American singer (d.1986)
  • 1924
    Mohammed Rafi, Indian actor and playback singer (d. 1980)
  • 1924
    Norman Rossington, British actor (d. 1999)
  • 1926
    Paul Buissonneau, French-born Quebec theatre director
  • 1927
    Mary Higgins Clark, American author
  • 1930
    Robert Joffrey, American choreographer (d. 1988)
  • 1931
    Mauricio Kagel, Argentine composer (d. 2008)
  • 1931
    Ray Bryant, American jazz pianist and composer
  • 1932
    On Kawara, Japanese conceptual artist
  • 1934
    Stjepan Mesić, president of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Secretary General of Non-Aligned Movement and president of Croatia
  • 1937
    Félix Miéli Venerando, Brazilian football player
  • 1938
    Bobby Henrich, American baseball player
  • 1938
    Valentim Loureiro, Portuguese politician, and former football chairman of Boavista F.C. and Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional
  • 1941
    John Levene, British actor
  • 1943
    Tarja Halonen, President of Finland
  • 1944
    Barry Chuckle, British comedian
  • 1944
    Daniel Johnson, Jr., Quebec politician, Premier of Quebec
  • 1944
    Mike Curb, American musician, record company executive and politician
  • 1944
    Oswald Gracias, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Bombay
  • 1945
    Lemmy, British singer, bassist (Motörhead)
  • 1945
    Nicholas Meyer, American author
  • 1945
    Steve Smith, Canadian Comedian, The New Red Green Show, Duct Tape Forever
  • 1946
    Brenda Howard, American bisexual activist (d. 2005)
  • 1946
    Jan Akkerman, Dutch guitarist, Focus
  • 1946
    Jeff Sessions, American politician
  • 1947
    Kevin Sheedy, coach of Australian Football League club Essendon FC
  • 1948
    Frank Oliver, New Zealand rugby player
  • 1949
    Randy Neugebauer, American politician
  • 1949
    Warwick Brown, Australian racing driver
  • 1950
    Dana Gioia, American poet
  • 1951
    John D'Acquisto, baseball player
  • 1952
    Christopher Buckley, American author and political commentator
  • 1953
    François Loos, French politician
  • 1953
    Timothy Carhart, American actor
  • 1954
    José María Figueres, Costa Rican politician
  • 1955
    Clarence Gilyard, American actor
  • 1955
    Grand L. Bush, American actor
  • 1957
    Diane Tell, Quebec singer
  • 1957
    Hamid Karzai, President of Afghanistan
  • 1958
    Gene Sperling, American economist and government official
  • 1958
    Munetaka Higuchi, Japanese drummer (d. 2008)
  • 1958
    Paul Pressey, American basketball player
  • 1959
    Anil Kapoor, Indian actor
  • 1959
    Keith Deller, British darts player
  • 1960
    Carol Vorderman, British television presenter
  • 1960
    Glenn McQueen, American animator (d. 2002)
  • 1961
    Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan
  • 1961
    Jay Wright, American basketball coach
  • 1963
    Caroline Aherne, British comedienne, writer and actress
  • 1963
    Jay Bilas, American basketball analyst
  • 1963
    Mary Ramsey, American singer (10,000 Maniacs)
  • 1964
    Mark Valley, American actor
  • 1965
    Millard Powers, American musician (Counting Crows)
  • 1966
    Diedrich Bader, American actor
  • 1967
    Mikhail Shchennikov, Russian race walker
  • 1968
    Choi Jin-sil, South Korean actress and model (d. 2008)
  • 1968
    Doyle Bramhall II, American guitarist
  • 1968
    Marleen Renders, Belgian athlete
  • 1969
    Brad Anderson, American professional wrestler
  • 1969
    Ed Miliband, British politician
  • 1969
    Mark Millar, Scottish comic book writer
  • 1969
    Sean Michael, South African actor
  • 1970
    Amaury Nolasco, American actor
  • 1970
    Will Oldham, American singer and songwriter
  • 1971
    Christopher Daniels, American professional wrestler
  • 1971
    Giorgos Alkaios, Greek singer
  • 1971
    Oro, Mexican professional wrestler (d. 1993)
  • 1971
    Ricky Martin, Puerto Rican singer
  • 1971
    Sascha Fischer, German rugby player
  • 1972
    Alvaro Mesen, Costa Rican footballer
  • 1972
    Klaus Schnellenkamp, German-Chilean author
  • 1973
    Eddie Pope, American soccer player
  • 1973
    Stephenie Meyer, American author
  • 1974
    Marcelo Salas, Chilean footballer
  • 1974
    Ryan Seacrest, American television host
  • 1974
    Thure Lindhardt, Danish actor
  • 1976
    Yuri, Korean singer
  • 1978
    Warren Tredrea, Australian rules footballer
  • 1978
    Yıldıray Baştürk, Turkish footballer
  • 1979
    Chris Hero, American professional wrestler
  • 1980
    Tomas Kalnoky, Czech musician (Streetlight Manifesto)
  • 1981
    Dima Bilan, Russian pop artist
  • 1981
    Shane Tuck, Australian rules footballer
  • 1982
    Aiba Masaki, Japanese singer and actor
  • 1982
    Robert Carmine, American singer
  • 1985
    Alexey Dmitriev, German ice hockey player
  • 1985
    David Ragan, American race car driver
  • 1986
    Kyrylo Fesenko, Ukrainian basketball player
  • 1986
    Riyo Mori, Japanese model
  • 1987
    Jane Summersett, American ice dancer
  • 1988
    Stefanos Athanasiadis, Greek footballer, striker at PAOK F.C.
  • 1991
    Louis Tomlinson, Member of British/Irish boy band One Direction
  • 1991
    Wasim Tareen, Pakistani footballer
  • 1992
    Melissa Suffield, English actress
  • 1995
    Anett Kontaveit, Estonian tennis player
  • 2000
    Ethan Bortnick, American musician

Who Died On December 24?

  • 427
    Archbishop Sisinnius I of Constantinople
  • 738
    Maslamah ibn Abd al-Malik, Umayyad prince and general
  • 1257
    John I, Count of Hainaut (b. 1218)
  • 1400
    Archibald the Grim, Scottish magnate (b. 1328)
  • 1453
    John Dunstaple, English composer (b. c.1390)
  • 1524
    Vasco da Gama, Portuguese explorer (b. c.1469)
  • 1660
    Mary, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange (b. 1631)
  • 1707
    Noël Coypel, French painter (b. 1628)
  • 1813
    Empress Go-Sakuramachi of Japan (b. 1740)
  • 1863
    William Makepeace Thackeray, British writer (b. 1811)
  • 1865
    Sir Charles Lock Eastlake, British painter and writer (b. 1793)
  • 1868
    Adolphe d'Archiac, French paleontologist and geologist (b. 1802)
  • 1872
    William John Macquorn Rankine, British physician and engenier (b. 1820)
  • 1873
    Johns Hopkins, Baltimore philanthropist and businessman (b. 1795)
  • 1889
    Jan Jakob Lodewijk ten Kate, Dutch poet and clergyman (b. 1819)
  • 1898
    Sharbel Makhluf, Lebanese monk canonized in 1977 by Pope Paul VI (b. 1828)
  • 1914
    John Muir, Scottish-American naturalist (b. 1838)
  • 1920
    Stephen Mosher Wood, American politician (b. 1832)
  • 1935
    Alban Berg, Austrian composer (b. 1885)
  • 1938
    Bruno Taut, German architect (b. 1880)
  • 1941
    Siegfried Alkan, German composer (b. 1858)
  • 1942
    François Darlan, vice-premier of Vichy France (b. 1881)
  • 1957
    Norma Talmadge, American actress (b. 1893)
  • 1965
    William M. Branham, Christian minister (b. 1906)
  • 1967
    Burt Baskin, American entrepreneur (b. 1913)
  • 1971
    Maria Koepcke, ornithologist (b. 1924)
  • 1972
    Gisela Richter, British art historian (b. 1882)
  • 1972
    Melville Ruick, American actor (b. 1898)
  • 1975
    Bernard Herrmann, American film composer (b. 1911)
  • 1976
    Duarte Nuno, Duke of Braganza, heir to the throne of Portugal (b. 1907)
  • 1977
    Samael Aun Weor, Columbian writer (b. 1917)
  • 1980
    Karl Dönitz, German naval admiral, and last leader of Nazi Germany (b. 1891)
  • 1980
    Siggie Nordstrom, model, actress, entertainer, socialite and lead singer of The Nordstrom Sisters (b. 1893)
  • 1982
    Louis Aragon, French writer (b. 1897)
  • 1984
    Peter Lawford, British actor (b. 1923)
  • 1985
    Camille Tourville, Professional wrestler (b. 1927)
  • 1985
    Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith, Last Lincoln descendant (b. 1904)
  • 1986
    Gardner Fox, American writer (b. 1911)
  • 1987
    Betty Noyes, singer who dubbed Debbie Reynold‘s singing voice in Singin’in the Rain
  • 1987
    Joop den Uyl, Dutch politician (b. 1919)
  • 1987
    M. G. Ramachandran, Chief Minister of the Tamil Nadu (b. 1917)
  • 1990
    Thorbjørn Egner, Norwegian author (b. 1922)
  • 1992
    Bobby LaKind, American musician and singer (The Doobie Brothers) (b. 1945)
  • 1992
    Peyo, Belgian comics artist, and creator of The Smurfs (b. 1928)
  • 1993
    Norman Vincent Peale, American writer (b. 1898)
  • 1994
    John Boswell, American historian (b. 1947)
  • 1994
    Rossano Brazzi, Italian actor and singer (b. 1916)
  • 1997
    Pierre Péladeau, Quebec businessman, founder of Quebecor (b. 1925)
  • 1997
    Toshirō Mifune, Japanese actor (b. 1920)
  • 1998
    Syl Apps, Canadian ice hockey player and pole vaulter (b. 1915)
  • 1999
    Bill Bowerman, American track and field coach (b. 1911)
  • 1999
    João Figueiredo, President of Brazil (b. 1918)
  • 1999
    Maurice Couve de Murville, French politician, Prime minister of France (b. 1907)
  • 2000
    John Cooper, English race car designer (b. 1923)
  • 2000
    Nick Massi, American singer (The Four Seasons) (b. 1935)
  • 2002
    Jake Thackray, English singer-songwriter (b. 1938)
  • 2002
    Kjell Aukrust, Norwegian author (b. 1920)
  • 2002
    Laci Peterson, American murder victim (b. 1975)
  • 2004
    Johnny Oates, baseball player and manager (b. 1946)
  • 2005
    Michael Vale, American commercial actor (b. 1922)
  • 2006
    “Braguinha”, Brazilian songwriter (b. 1907)
  • 2006
    Frank Stanton, American television executive (b. 1908)
  • 2006
    Kenneth Sivertsen, Norwegian singer, poet and comedian (b. 1961)
  • 2007
    Akbar Radi, Iranian dramatist and playwright (b. 1939)
  • 2007
    Nicholas Pumfrey, British judge (b. 1951)
  • 2008
    Harold Pinter, British playwright (b. 1930)
  • 2009
    George Michael, American sportscaster (The George Michael Sports Machine) (b. 1939)
  • 2009
    Marcus Bakker, Dutch politician (b. 1923)
  • 2009
    Rafael Caldera, lawyer, sociologist, writer, speaker, politician, and ex-president of Venezuela (b. 1916)
  • 2010
    Eino Tamberg, Estonian composer (b. 1930)
  • 2010
    Elisabeth Beresford, British author and creator of The Wombles (b. 1926)
  • 2010
    Frans de Munck, Dutch football goalkeeper (b. 1922)
  • 2010
    Orestes Quércia, Brazilian politician (b. 1938)
  • 2011
    Johannes Heesters, Dutch actor and singer (b. 1903)

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