Did you know
In 1657, The Flushing Remonstrance articulates for the first time in North American history that freedom of religion is a fundamental right. This featured entry focuses on the immediate decision and its direct historical impact.
December 27 in History
1657 — The Flushing Remonstrance articulates for the first time in North American history that freedom of religion is a fundamental right
December 27 spans 42 recorded events across recorded history, from 537 to 2025. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
Historical Events
42 events
537 – 2025
Today in history
More major events on December 27
The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.
- 2007 Riots erupt in Mombasa, Kenya, after Mwai Kibaki is declared the winner of the presidential election, triggering a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis. Source
- 1968 Apollo program: Apollo 8 splashes down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first orbital crewed mission to the Moon. Source
- 1966 The Cave of Swallows, the largest known cave shaft in the world, is discovered in Aquismón, San Luis Potosí, Mexico. Source
Did you know
The Flushing Remonstrance was a 1657 petition to Director-General of New Netherland Peter Stuyvesant, in which some thirty residents of the small settlement at Flushing requested an exemption to his ban on Quaker worship. This helps explain why the event mattered beyond the initial announcement.
Did you know
It is considered a precursor to the United States Constitution's provision on freedom of religion in the Bill of Rights. This clarifies the institutional and public response around the event.
Did you know
In 1657, The Flushing Remonstrance articulates for the first time in North American history that freedom of religion is a fundamental right had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.
Did you know
In 1657, The Flushing Remonstrance articulates for the first time in North American history that freedom of religion is a fundamental right had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.
537
The second Hagia Sophia in Constantinople is consecrated.
Mosque and former church in Istanbul, Turkey
1512
The Spanish Crown issues the Laws of Burgos, governing the conduct of settlers with regard to native Indians in the New World.
First codified set of laws governing Spaniards in the Americas (1512–42)
1521
The Zwickau prophets arrive in Wittenberg, disturbing the peace and preaching the Apocalypse.
Saxon Radical Reformers active in 1522
1655
Second Northern War/the Deluge: Monks at the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa are successful in fending off a month-long siege.
Conflict in Europe
1703
Portugal and England sign the Methuen Treaty which allows Portugal to export wines to England on favorable trade terms.
1703 treaty between England and Portugal
1814
War of 1812: The destruction of the schooner USS Carolina brings to an end Commodore Daniel Patterson's makeshift fleet, which fought a series of delaying actions that contributed to Andrew Jackson's victory at the Battle of New Orleans.
1812–1815 conflict in North America
1831
Charles Darwin embarks on his journey aboard HMS Beagle, during which he will begin to formulate his theory of evolution.
English naturalist and biologist (1809–1882)
1836
The worst ever avalanche in England occurs at Lewes, Sussex, killing eight people.
Deadliest known avalanche in the United Kingdom
1845
Ether anesthetic is used for childbirth for the first time by Dr.
Crawford Long in Jefferson, Georgia.
1845
Having coined the phrase "manifest destiny" the previous July, journalist John L.
O'Sullivan argued in his newspaper New York Morning News that the United States had the right to claim the entire Oregon Country.
1911
"Jana Gana Mana", the national anthem of India, is first sung in the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress.
National anthem of India
1918
The Great Poland Uprising against the Germans begins.
Military insurrection in German-occupied Greater Poland
1918
Ukrainian War of Independence: The Revolutionary Insurgent Army of Ukraine occupies Yekaterinoslav and seizes seven airplanes from the UPRAF, establishing an Insurgent Air Fleet.
Eastern European military conflict (1917–1921)
1922
Japanese aircraft carrier Hōshō becomes the first purpose-built aircraft carrier to be commissioned in the world.
Aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy
1927
Kern and Hammerstein's musical play Show Boat, considered to be the first true American musical play, opens at the Ziegfeld Theatre on Broadway.
Musical by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II
1929
Soviet General Secretary Joseph Stalin orders the "liquidation of the kulaks as a class".
Highest political position in the Soviet Union
1932
Radio City Music Hall, "Showplace of the Nation", opens in New York City.
Venue and theater in New York City
1935
Regina Jonas is ordained as the first female rabbi in the history of Judaism.
First woman to be ordained as a rabbi (1902–1944)
1939
The 7.8 Mw Erzincan earthquake shakes eastern Turkey with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme).
At least 32,700 people were killed.
1939
Winter War: Finland holds off a Soviet attack in the Battle of Kelja.
1939–1940 war between the Soviet Union and Finland
1945
The International Monetary Fund is created with the signing of an agreement by 29 nations.
Financial institution and UN specialized agency
1949
Indonesian National Revolution: The Netherlands officially recognizes Indonesian independence.
End of the Dutch East Indies.
1966
The Cave of Swallows, the largest known cave shaft in the world, is discovered in Aquismón, San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
Pit cave in Aquismón, San Luis Potosí, Mexico
1968
Apollo program: Apollo 8 splashes down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first orbital crewed mission to the Moon.
1961–1972 American crewed lunar exploration program
1968
North Central Airlines Flight 458 crashes at O'Hare International Airport, killing 28.
1968 aviation accident
1978
Spain becomes a democracy after 40 years of fascist dictatorship.
Period of Spanish history (1975–1982)
1983
Pope John Paul II visits Mehmet Ali Ağca in Rebibbia's prison and personally forgives him for the 1981 attack on him in St.
Peter's Square.
1985
Palestinian guerrillas kill eighteen people inside the airports of Rome, Italy, and Vienna, Austria.
Arab national group of the Levant
1989
The Romanian Revolution concludes, as the last minor street confrontations and stray shootings abruptly end in the country's capital, Bucharest.
1989 popular uprising in Romania
1991
Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 751 crashes in Gottröra in the Norrtälje Municipality in Sweden, injuring 92.
1991 aviation accident in Sweden
1996
Taliban forces retake the strategic Bagram Airfield which solidifies their buffer zone around Kabul, Afghanistan.
Afghan Islamist militant organization
1997
Protestant paramilitary leader Billy Wright is assassinated in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.
Northern Irish loyalist (1960–1997)
1999
Burger King and the U.S.
Consumer Product Safety Commission order a recall of plastic Poké Ball containers after they are determined to be a choking hazard.
2002
Two truck bombs kill 72 and wound 200 at the pro-Moscow headquarters of the Chechen government in Grozny, Chechnya, Russia.
2002 incident in Grozny, Chechnya
2004
Radiation from an explosion on the magnetar SGR 1806-20 reaches Earth.
It is the brightest extrasolar event known to have been witnessed on the planet.
2007
Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto is assassinated in a shooting incident.
Top minister of cabinet and government
2007
Riots erupt in Mombasa, Kenya, after Mwai Kibaki is declared the winner of the presidential election, triggering a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis.
City in Mombasa County, Kenya
2008
Operation Cast Lead: Israel launches three-week operation on Gaza.
Armed conflict in the Gaza Strip
2009
Iranian election protests: On the Day of Ashura in Tehran, Iran, government security forces fire upon demonstrators.
Protests against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared
2019
Bek Air Flight 2100 crashes during takeoff from Almaty International Airport in Almaty, Kazakhstan, killing 13.
2019 aviation accident in Kazakhstan
2025
An estimated €30 million were stolen from a Sparkasse bank in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
Bank burglary in Buer, Germany