Did you know
The First Balkan War began on October 18, 1912, when Montenegro declared war on the Ottoman Empire.
December 16 in History
1912 — First Balkan War: The Royal Hellenic Navy defeats the Ottoman Navy at the Battle of Elli
December 16 spans 45 recorded events across recorded history, from 533 to 2024. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Historical Events
45 events
533 – 2024
Today in history
More major events on December 16
The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.
- 1880 Outbreak of the First Boer War between the Boer South African Republic and the British Empire. Source
- 1782 British East India Company: Muharram Rebellion: Hada and Mada Miah lead the first anti-British uprising in the subcontinent against Robert Lindsay and his contingents in Sylhet Shahi Eidgah. Source
- 1863 American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis appoints General Joseph E. Johnston to replace General Braxton Bragg as commander of the Army of Tennessee. Source
Did you know
The Balkan League was formed by Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, and Serbia in 1912 to counter Ottoman rule.
Did you know
The war ended with the Treaty of London, signed on May 30, 1913, which imposed significant territorial losses on the Ottoman Empire.
Did you know
The Ottoman Empire lost significant territory, including most of its European possessions, as a result of the war.
Did you know
The First Balkan War set the stage for the Second Balkan War, which broke out just a month after the Treaty of London was signed.
533
The Digest, the great collection of all Roman jurists' law, is issued together with a new official law textbook for legal schools, The Institutes.
Roman law digest
714
Pepin of Herstal, mayor of the Merovingian palace, dies at Jupille (modern Belgium).
He is succeeded by his infant grandson Theudoald, while his widow Plectrude holds actual power in the Frankish Kingdom.
755
An Lushan revolts against Chancellor Yang Guozhong at Yanjing, initiating the An Lushan Rebellion during the Tang dynasty of China.
Rebel general in Tang China (703–757)
1431
Hundred Years' War: Henry VI of England is crowned King of France at Notre Dame in Paris.
Medieval Anglo-French conflicts, 1337–1453
1497
Vasco da Gama passes the Great Fish River at the southern tip of Africa, where Bartolomeu Dias had previously turned back to Portugal.
Portuguese explorer (c. 1460s – 1524)
1575
An earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 8.5Mw strikes Valdivia, Chile.
1575 earthquake centered in Valdivia, colonial Chile
1598
Seven-Year War: Battle of Noryang: The final battle of the Seven-Year War is fought between the China and the Korean allied forces and Japanese navies, resulting in a decisive allied forces victory.
1592–1598 Japanese invasions of Korea
1653
English Interregnum: The Protectorate: Oliver Cromwell becomes Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Period in English history
1689
Convention Parliament: The Declaration of Right is embodied in the Bill of Rights.
Parliament of England held in 1689
1707
The most recent eruption of Mount Fuji.
Last major eruption of Mount Fuji (1707–08)
1761
Seven Years' War: After a four-month siege, the Russians under Pyotr Rumyantsev take the Prussian fortress of Kołobrzeg.
Global war among European powers (1756–1763)
1773
American Revolution: Boston Tea Party: Members of the Sons of Liberty disguised as Mohawk Indians dump hundreds of crates of tea into Boston harbor as a protest against the Tea Act.
Founding of the United States
1777
Virginia becomes the first state to ratify the Articles of Confederation.
First constitution of the United States from 1781 to 1789
1782
British East India Company: Muharram Rebellion: Hada and Mada Miah lead the first anti-British uprising in the subcontinent against Robert Lindsay and his contingents in Sylhet Shahi Eidgah.
British joint-stock company (1600–1858)
1811
The first two in a series of four severe earthquakes occur in the vicinity of New Madrid, Missouri.
Series of earthquakes during 1811–1812 impacting on Missouri, USA
1826
Benjamin W.
Edwards rides into Mexican-controlled Nacogdoches, Texas, and declares himself ruler of the Republic of Fredonia.
1838
Great Trek: Battle of Blood River: Voortrekkers led by Andries Pretorius and Sarel Cilliers defeat Zulu impis, led by Dambuza (Nzobo) and Ndlela kaSompisi in what is today KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
1836–1852 Boer migrations away from the British Cape Colony
1850
The Charlotte Jane and the Randolph bring the first of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton, New Zealand.
Ship of the Canterbury Association
1863
American Civil War: Confederate President Jefferson Davis appoints General Joseph E.
Johnston to replace General Braxton Bragg as commander of the Army of Tennessee.
1864
American Civil War: The Battle of Nashville ends as the Union Army of the Cumberland under General George H.
Thomas routs and destroys the Confederate Army of Tennessee under General John Bell Hood, ending its effectiveness as a combat unit.
1880
Outbreak of the First Boer War between the Boer South African Republic and the British Empire.
1880–1881 war in South Africa
1882
Wales and England contest the first Home Nations (now Six Nations) rugby union match.
National rugby team
1883
Tonkin Campaign: French forces capture the Sơn Tây citadel.
1883–86 French conquest of central and northern Vietnam
1905
In rugby union, the "Match of the Century" is played between Wales and New Zealand at Cardiff Arms Park.
Team sport, code of rugby football
1914
World War I: Admiral Franz von Hipper commands a raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby.
Global conflict from 1914 to 1918
1920
The Haiyuan earthquake of 8.5Mw rocks the Gansu province in China, killing an estimated 200,000.
1920 earthquake in central China
1942
The Holocaust: Schutzstaffel chief Heinrich Himmler orders that Roma candidates for extermination be deported to Auschwitz.
Genocide of European Jews by Nazi Germany
1944
World War II: The Battle of the Bulge begins with the surprise offensive of three German armies through the Ardennes forest.
Global conflict (1939–1945)
1951
A Miami Airlines Curtiss C-46 Commando crashes in Elizabeth, New Jersey, killing all 58 aboard including dancer Doris Ruby.
U.S. military transport aircraft with 2 piston engines, 1940
1960
A United Air Lines Douglas DC-8 and a TWA Lockheed Super Constellation collide over Staten Island, New York and crash, killing all 128 people aboard both aircraft and six more on the ground.
Airline of the United States
1968
Second Vatican Council: Official revocation of the Edict of Expulsion of Jews from Spain.
Most recent Catholic ecumenical council (1962–1965)
1971
Bangladesh Liberation War and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan Army brings an end to both conflicts.
This is commemorated annually as Victory Day in Bangladesh and Vijay Diwas in India respectively.
1971
The United Kingdom recognizes Bahrain's independence, which is commemorated annually as Bahrain's National Day.
Country in West Asia
1972
The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh is enacted.
Supreme law of Bangladesh
1973
Aeroflot Flight 2022 crashes in the Soviet Union's (now Russia) Volokolamsky District, killing all 51 aboard, including four Lithuanian doctors.
Tupolev Tu-124 crash in 1973
1986
The Jeltoqsan riots erupt in Alma-Ata, Kazakh SSR, in response to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's dismissal of ethnic Kazakh Dinmukhamed Kunaev, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan, and his replacement with Gennady Kolbin, an ethnic Russian from the Russian SFSR.
1986 Alma-Ata protests and riots against an ethnic Russian leader
1989
Romanian Revolution: Protests break out in Timișoara, Romania, in response to an attempt by the government to evict dissident Hungarian pastor László Tőkés.
1989 popular uprising in Romania
1992
Deportation of Hamas members: Israeli authorities began deporting hundreds of Palestinians suspected to be members of Hamas across the Lebanese border.
Deportation of Hamas members by Israel
1997
Dennō Senshi Porygon: Over 600 kids in Japan suffer photosensitive epileptic seizures after watching an episode of the Pokémon anime.
38th episode of the 1st season of Pokémon
2011
The Zhanaozen massacre occurs when violent protests by oil workers take place in Zhanaozen, Kazakhstan, resulting in security forces killing at least 14 and injuring 100 more.
2011 mass killing of protesters in western Kazakhstan
2013
A bus falls from an elevated highway in Manila, capital of the Philippines, killing at least 18 people with 20 injured.
2013 vehicle crash in Parañaque, Metro Manila, Philippines
2014
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan militants attack an Army Public School in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing 150 people, 132 of them schoolchildren.
Islamist militant organisation
2022
A landslide occurs at a camp at an organic farm near the town of Batang Kali in Selangor, Malaysia, trapping 92 people and killing 31.
Natural disaster in Selangor, Malaysia
2024
The Abundant Life Christian School shooting in Madison, Wisconsin, United States, takes place, resulting in the death of three people.
Mass shooting in Wisconsin, U.S.