Today In History, 25 December: What Happened On This Day
Today in History: 25 December is celebrated globally as Christmas Day, commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. It’s one of the most popular festivals in the world and is especially hallowed by Christian-dominated nations.
Christmas also has a mass appeal, and there is probably not a soul in the world unaware of the significance of December 25th.
However, 25 December also holds a crucial place in world history apart from being Christmas Day.
From the births of one of the most influential politicians of Independent India and the key figure behind Partition, the invention of the Pendulum clock and crowning of the first Holy Roman Emperor to the demise of the greatest comic actor in history and a funk music legend, many pivotal events occurred on December 25.
Read on to learn about what happened on this day (Dec. 25) in sports, politics and art, along with famous birthdays and deaths in world history.
Historical Events On This Day
- In 800, Charlemagne was crowned the first Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III.
- In 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned the King of England, completing the Norman conquest of England.
- In 1656, Dutch astronomer and mathematician Christiaan Huygens created the first pendulum clock.
- In 1741, Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius introduced the Centigrade temperature scale.
- In 1868, US President Andrew Johnson granted an unconditional pardon to all confederates involved in the Civil War.
- In 1914, a Christmas truce occurred during World War I, with French, German and British soldiers engaging in burial ceremonies, prisoner swaps, football and singing.
- In 1989, Romanian Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife Elena were tried, convicted and executed on the charges of genocide and personal enrichment.
- In 1991, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev formally resigned as president of the Soviet Union, which soon dissolved into 15 separate countries.
- In 2021, NASA launched the largest optical telescope in space, the James Webb Space Telescope.
Sports Events Today
- In 1940, Australian cricket legend Don Bradman was dismissed for a duck in a match against Victoria.
- In 1984, Juventus and France midfielder Michel Platini was named Europe's best football player for the 2nd consecutive time after winning the Ballon d’Or award.
Music and Cinema Events Today
- In 1962, the film adaptation of Harper Lee’s iconic book, To Kill a Mockingbird, one of the best-selling books of all time, premiered to critical and commercial success.
- In 1989, music composer Leonard Bernstein conducted Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in East Berlin's Schauspielhaus to celebrate the fall of the Berlin Wall to an audience of 100 million globally.
- In 1990, Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Part III, starring Al Pacino, Andy Garcia and Diane Keaton, premiered.
Important Days
- Christmas Day - Annual Christian festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ
Also Read: Christmas Day 2022: Date, Origin, Significance, Celebration & More
Notable Deaths On This Day
| Sr No |
Death Year |
Personality |
| 1 |
1972 |
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, Indian lawyer, independence activist and politician who became the first Indian-born and the last Governor-General of India |
| 2 |
1977 |
Charlie Chaplin, British actor, comedian and filmmaker considered the greatest comic actor of all time and a pioneer of the film industry |
| 3 |
1995 |
Dean Martin, American singer, actor and comedian was was one of the biggest entertainers of the 20th century and part of the duo Martin and Lewis with comedian Jerry Lewis |
| 4 |
2006 |
James Brown, American singer and dancer known for his on-stage performances and funk songs like “I Got You” and “It's a Man's Man's World” |
| 5 |
2016 |
George Michael, English singer and one of the best-selling artists of all time known for his songs “Last Christmas” and “Careless Whisper” |
Famous Birthdays On This Day
| Sr No |
Birth Year |
Personality |
| 1 |
1861 |
Madan Mohan Malaviya, Indian scholar, educator and reformer who pioneered the nationalist movement in India, founded the Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha and co-founded the prestigious Banaras Hindu University |
| 2 |
1876 |
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Indian Muslim leader and politician who campaigned for a separate nation for Muslims and later became the founding father and first governor-general of Pakistan |
| 3 |
1878 |
Louis Chevrolet, Swiss-American race car driver and entrepreneur who co-founded the automobile company Chevrolet |
| 4 |
1899 |
Humphrey Bogart, one of the greatest American actors of all time, who became a Hollywood sensation during the 1940s and ‘50s with films like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon |
| 5 |
1918 |
Anwar Sadat, Egyptian President and Nobel Laureate who pushed for peaceful relations with Israel |
| 6 |
1924 |
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Indian politician, poet and leader of the nationalist party BJP, who served as the Prime Minister of India in 1996 and from 1998 to 2004 |
| 7 |
1949 |
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistani businessman and politician who served as the Prime Minister for three terms |
| 8 |
1954 |
Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, notorious Mexican drug lord |
| 9 |
1971 |
Justin Trudeau, Canadian politician and Prime Minister of Canada from 2015 to present |
| 10 |
1971 |
Dido, English singer best known for her hit singles "Here with Me" and "Thank You" from debut album No Angel |
Also Read | Today in History (24 December)
Also Read | Today in History (23 December)
