Despite popular culture that frequently associates Christmas to December 25th, the alleged date of Jesus Christ's birth in the biblical vicinity Bethlehem, December 25th also turns out to be the date when significant events in history ever occurred regardless of year. Whether jolly or melancholic, it has been the date of commemoration for numerous events etched in mankind's history.
1. December 25, 1642
Isaac Newton was born.
English scientist Isaac Newton, notable for his Laws of Motion, was born on December 25th, as documented under the Julian Calendar which was in use at the time of his birth year, 1642.
Isaac Newton's birthday was classified to January 4, 1643 when a new dating reform was implemented in Britain, the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750 which ceased the use of the Julian Calendar with the Gregorian Calendar, and changed the start of the year from March 25th to January 1st.
Woolsthorpe-by-Colsterworth, the hamlet in Lincolnshire county of England where Newton was born.
2. December 25, 1962
The film adaptation of the novel, "To Kill A Mockingbird," was released.
American novelist Harper Lee had her bestselling novel, "To Kill A Mockingbird", made into a motion picture under director Robert Mulligan, producer Alan J. Pakula, screenplay writer Horton Foote, and starred actors Gregory Peck, Mary Badham, Phillip Alford, John Megna, Ruth White, Paul Fix, Brock Peters, and Frank Overton.
Promotional poster for "To Kill A Mockingbird"
Gregory Peck in the movie, "To Kill A Mockingbird", as Atticus Finch.
3. December 25, 1989
Former Romanian president Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife were shot dead in a firing squad.
The trial of Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu concluded in the death sentence and execution of former Romanian President and General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife, Elena Ceaușescu. Execution was held in Bucharest, the present capital of Romania.
The charges filed against the two political figures were numerous. One was genocide, killing over 60,000 victims. Another was attempted reign of military control by subversion of state power by organizing armed actions against the people and state which resulted to the deliberate destruction of public property through city-wide explosions. Ill-gotten wealth was also compromised by the Ceaușescus by undermining the national economy and by trying to flee the country using funds of over $1 billion deposited in foreign banks.
Nicolae Ceaușescu with his wife Elena Ceaușescu
4. December 25, 1990
Foundations for the World Wide Web (WWW) were established.
British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee had established the foundations for a working Web on Christmas Day 1990. Earlier that time, Berners-Lee even wrote a proposal in March 1989 for "a large hypertext database with typed links" but the idea garnered little engagement.
According to Wikipedia, Berners-Lee built all the tools necessary for a working Web:
1. The HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) 0.9;
2. The HyperText Markup Language (HTML);
3. The first Web browser (named WorldWideWeb, which was also a Web editor);
4. The first HTTP server software (later known as CERN httpd)
5. The first web server https://info.cern.ch ;and,
6. The first Web pages that described the project itself.
The basic Hypertext model of British computer scientist Berners-Lee.
5. December 25, 1991
Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as President of USSR.
In a televised speech, former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev formally proclaimed his resignation as President of the United Soviet Socialist Republics.
"I hereby discontinue my activities at the post of President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics."
A news article with Gorbachev featured in the headlines the next day on December 26, 1991
The Soviet flag was lowered and gave rise to the Russian tri-colored flag.
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