December 19 is the 353rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 12 days remain until the end of the year.
We have some interesting facts & historic events all about December 19th, including areas in religion, crime, health and more.
Keep reading for more interesting facts about December 19th in history!
Table of Contents
Global Celebrations
- Look For An Evergreen Day
- National Oatmeal Muffin Day
- Goa Liberation Day
Historic Events
What Happened On This Day – December 19
2012: Election of First female President of South Korea
Park Geun-hye is the eleventh President of South Korea and also holds the distinction of being the first female head of state in Northeast Asia. She assumed office in February 2013.
1984: Hong Kong Treaty Signed
Formally known as the Joint Declaration of the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the People’s Republic of China on the Question of Hong Kong, the Sino-British Treaty was signed by Zhao Ziyang of China and Margaret Thatcher of the United Kingdom in Beijing. The treaty decided the fate of Hong Kong as a territory of China from July 1, 1997.
1972: Apollo 17 returns to Earth
The last mission of the United States’ Apollo program spent 12 days in space and was the first human spaceflight launched at night from the United States. The three-member crew spent more time orbiting the Moon and on the surface of the Moon than during any other Moon landings. It was also the last time humans set foot on Earth’s only natural satellite.
1971: A Clockwork Orange released
The dystopian film was directed by Stanley Kubrick and was based on a novella of the same name by British author, Anthony Burgess. Based in a futuristic London, the film opened with critical acclaim, though the centrality of violence in it drew a lot of mainstream criticism. Today, the movie is considered to be one of the best movies of the 20th century.
1886: Sherlock Holmes’ The Adventure of Beryl Coronet begins on this date
The short detective story written by Arthur Conan Doyle and featuring detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend and assistant Dr. Watson began on this date with the theft of 3 precious crystals from a coronet. The story is the 11th in a series of 12 stories contained in The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
Famous Birthdays
Births On This Day, December 19
1980: Jake Gyllenhaal, American actor
1974: Ricky Ponting, Australian cricketer
1967: Criss Angel, American magician
1915: Édith Piaf, French singer-songwriter, actress
1906: Leonid Brezhnev, Soviet politician
Heartbreaking Deaths
Deaths On This Day, December 19
2012: Robert Bork, American lawyer, scholar, United States Attorney General
2009: Hussein-Ali Montazeri, Iranian theologian, scholar, activist
2008: Dock Ellis, American baseball player
2000: John Lindsay, American politician, 103rd Mayor of New York City
1848: Emily Brontë, English novelist
