Calendar date · December

What happened on December 22

On December 22, 69: Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs.

Events

60

across history

Notable births

50

Notable deaths

50

Zodiac

Capricorn

Featured moment · 69

Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs.

AD 69 (LXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the consulship of Galba and Vinius. The denomination AD 69 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

People

Born on December 22

Callan McKenna 2006– Scottish footballer (born 2006)
Joe Anders 2003– American-British actor (born 2003)
David Datro Fofana 2002– Ivorian footballer (born 2002)
Camila Osorio 2001– Colombian tennis player (born 2001)
Jack Draper 2001– British tennis player (born 2001)
Joshua Bassett 2000– American actor and singer (born 2000) G Hannelius 1998– American actress and singer
Latto 1998– American rapper (born 1998)
Casper Ruud 1998– Norwegian tennis player (born 1998)
Show 9 more — notable births on December 22
Rúben Lameiras 1994– Portuguese footballer (born 1994)
Sergi Darder 1993– Spanish footballer (born 1993)
Raphaël Guerreiro 1993– Footballer (born 1993)
Meghan Trainor 1993– American singer-songwriter (born 1993)
Michaela Hončová 1992– Slovak tennis player
Nick Johnson 1992– American basketball player (born 1992)
Moonbyul 1992– South Korean rapper (born 1992)
DaBaby 1991– American rapper (born 1991)
Jean-Baptiste Maunier 1990– French actor and singer (born 1990)

People

Died on December 22

Chris Rea English musician and producer (1951–2025)
Leon Coates English composer (1937–2023)
Ram Dass American spiritual teacher (1931–2019)
Paddy Ashdown British politician (1941–2018)
Simcha Rotem Warsaw Ghetto Uprising veteran
Herman Sikumbang Indonesian pop rock band
Gonzalo Morales Sáurez Costa Rican painter (born 1945)
Chad Robinson Australian rugby league footballer
Peter Lundblad Swedish singer and songwriter
Show 9 more — notable deaths on December 22
Freda Meissner-Blau Austrian politician and activist (1927–2015)
John Robert Beyster American scientist and entrepreneur
Christine Cavanaugh American actress (1963–2014)
Joe Cocker English singer (1944–2014)
Bernard Stone Chicago alderman (1927–2014)
Diomedes Díaz Colombian vallenato artist (1957–2013)
Hans Hækkerup Danish politician (1945–2013)
Oscar Peer Swiss novelist, playwright and philologist
Chuck Cherundolo American football player and coach (1916–2012)

Timeline

Every December 22 on record

  1. 69 Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs.

    Calendar year

    AD 69 (LXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the consulship of Galba and Vinius. The denomination AD 69 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

  2. 401 Pope Innocent I is elected, the only pope to succeed his father in the office.

    Head of the Catholic Church from 401 to 417

    Pope Innocent I was the bishop of Rome from 401 to his death on 12 March 417. From the beginning of his papacy, he was seen as the general arbitrator of ecclesiastical disputes in both the East and the West. He confirmed the prerogatives of the Archbishop of Thessalonica, and issued a decretal on disciplinary matters referred to him by the Bishop of Rouen.

  3. 856 Damghan earthquake: An earthquake near the Persian city of Damghan kills an estimated 200,000 people, the sixth deadliest earthquake in recorded history.

    Earthquake in Iran

    The Damghan earthquake or the Qumis earthquake occurred on 22 December 856 in Khorasan province, Abbasid Caliphate. 9, and a maximum intensity of X (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale. The meizoseismal area extended for about 350 kilometres (220 mi) along the southern edge of the eastern Alborz mountains of present-day Iran including parts of Tabaristan and Gorgan.

  4. 880 Luoyang, eastern capital of the Tang dynasty, is captured by rebel leader Huang Chao during the reign of Emperor Xizong.

    City in Henan, China

    Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast. As of December 31, 2018, Luoyang had a population of 6,888,500 inhabitants with 2,751,400 people living in the built-up area made of the city's five out of six urban districts and Yanshi District, later being conurbated.

  5. 1135 Three weeks after the death of King Henry I of England, Stephen of Blois claims the throne and is privately crowned King of England, beginning the English Anarchy.

    King of England from 1100 to 1135

    Henry I, also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in 1087, Henry's elder brothers Robert Curthose and William Rufus inherited Normandy and England, respectively, thereby leaving Henry landless.

  6. 1216 Pope Honorius III approves the Dominican Order through the papal bull of confirmation Religiosam vitam.
  7. 1489 The forces of the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, take control of Almería from the Nasrid ruler of Granada, Muhammad XII.
  8. 1769 Sino-Burmese War: The war ends with the Qing dynasty withdrawing from Burma forever.
  9. 1788 Nguyễn Huệ proclaims himself Emperor Quang Trung, in effect abolishing on his own the Lê dynasty.
  10. 1790 The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Alexander Suvorov and his Russian armies.
  11. 1807 The Embargo Act, forbidding trade with all foreign countries, is passed by the U.S. Congress at the urging of President Thomas Jefferson.
  12. 1808 Ludwig van Beethoven conducts and performs in concert at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna, with the premiere of his Fifth Symphony, Sixth Symphony, Fourth Piano Concerto and Choral Fantasy.
  13. 1825 The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., burns.
  14. 1851 India's first freight train is operated in Roorkee, to transport material for the construction of the Ganges Canal.
  15. 1864 American Civil War: Savannah, Georgia, falls to the Union's Army of the Tennessee, and General Sherman tells President Abraham Lincoln: "I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the city of Savannah".
Show 15 earlier entries from December 22
  1. 1885 Itō Hirobumi, a samurai, becomes the first Prime Minister of Japan.
  2. 1888 The Christmas Meeting of 1888, considered to be the official start of the Faroese independence movement.
  3. 1890 Cornwallis Valley Railway begins operation between Kentville and Kingsport, Nova Scotia.
  4. 1891 Asteroid 323 Brucia becomes the first asteroid discovered using photography.
  5. 1894 The Dreyfus affair begins in France, when Alfred Dreyfus is wrongly convicted of treason.
  6. 1906 An Mw  7.9 earthquake strikes Xinjiang, China, killing at least 280.
  7. 1920 The GOELRO economic development plan is adopted by the 8th Congress of Soviets of the Russian SFSR.
  8. 1921 Opening of Visva-Bharati College, also known as Santiniketan College, now Visva Bharati University, India.
  9. 1937 The Lincoln Tunnel opens to traffic in New York City.
  10. 1939 Indian Muslims observe a "Day of Deliverance" to celebrate the resignations of members of the Indian National Congress over their not having been consulted over the decision to enter World War II with the United Kingdom.
  11. 1940 World War II: Himara is captured by the Greek army.
  12. 1942 World War II: Adolf Hitler signs the order to develop the V-2 rocket as a weapon.
  13. 1944 World War II: Battle of the Bulge: German troops demand the surrender of United States troops at Bastogne, Belgium, prompting the famous one word reply by Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe: "Nuts!"
  14. 1944 World War II: The People's Army of Vietnam is formed to resist Japanese occupation of Indochina, now Vietnam.
  15. 1945 U.S. President Harry S. Truman issues an executive order giving World War II refugees precedence in visa applications under U.S. immigration quotas.

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