Historical Events on December 25

  • 1066: The Duke of Normandy – William the Conqueror – is at his coronation to be crowned the king of England at Westminster Abbey in London.
  • 1076: Bolelsaw II becomes Poland’s king.
  • 1100: In the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, Badlwin I becomes the first King of Jerusalem.
  • 1776: The Continental Army led by General George Washington crosses the Delaware River to prepare for an attack Hessian troops that are in Trenton, New Jersey and are in service to Great Britain.
  • 1809: Doctor Ephraim McDowell removes an over 20-pound tumor when he performs the first ever
  • 1826: The Eggnog Riot which had started Christmas Eve at the U.S Military Academy in West Point comes to an end.
  • 1831: 1 out of 5 slaves on the island of Jamaica takes part in the Great Jamaican Slave Revolt. This revolt would be ultimately unsuccessful.
  • 1837: During the Second Seminole War, Over 1,000 troops are led by American General Zachary Taylor against Seminoles at the Battle of Lake Okeechobee.
  • 1868: An unconditional pardon is given to all Confederate veterans from U.S President Andrew Johnson.
  • 1914: Christmas is celebrated on the Western Front during World War I through a series of cobbled together truces.
  • 1941: The occupation of Hong Kong by Japanese forces begins when the Battle of Hong Kong ends during WWII.

Famous Birthdays on December 25

  • English mathematician and physicist, Isaac Newton is born in 1642.
  • French composer and violinist, Jean-Joseph de Mondonville is born in 1711.
  • German physician and scholar, Johann Jakob Reiske is born in 1716.
  • American humanitarian, nurse and founder of the American Red Cross, Clara Barton is born in 1821.
  • German chemist and Nobel Prize laureate, Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus is born in 1876.
  • Swiss-American businessman and co-founder of Chevrolet, Louis Chevrolet is born in 1878.
  • American businessman Conrad Hilton is born in 1887.
  • American actor Humphrey Bogart is born in 1899.