A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on December 16th. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On December 16, 1497, Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama passed the Great Fish River in what is now South Africa on his voyage around the Southern tip of Africa to reach India by sea, a previously not accomplished feat by European sailors.
On December 16, 1773, Americans proved that they were not willing to be pushed around by a government that levied onerous taxes upon them, and this displeasure was expressed in the civil act of defiance known to us today as The Boston Tea Party.
On December 16, 1838, one of the greatest defeats of a large military force by a much smaller force took place with incredibly lopsided results when the Boers (also known as Voortrekkers or Afrikaners) of South Africa fought the Zulu warriors at ‘Blood River’ (also known as Ncome River) in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa.
On December 16, 1863, after bungling the defense of Chattanooga, Confederate Army General Braxton Bragg was replaced as Commander of the Army of Tennessee by General Johnston.
On December 16, 1901, British artist and conservationist Beatrix Potter self-published the book that would launch her literary career, The Tale of Peter Rabbit, a book that would sell 45 million copies.
On December 16, 1938, world famous dictator and villain Adolf Hitler directed his Nazi German Empire (Reich) to issue a new medal, one only for mothers of German ethnicity living within Germany or later within other areas incorporated into the Reich.
On December 16, 1965, General William Westmoreland, the American commander in Viet Nam, requested an additional 243,000 US troops to go with the 184,300 US military men already in South Viet Nam.
On December 16, 2013, we celebrated our 100th post by going back to December 16, 1838 when the Ncome River in South Africa became the Blood River at what is known as The Battle of Blood River where the river ran red with blood!
On December 16, 2013, TheLongTone nominated the article for a popular creepypasta character titled “The Rake (cryptid)” for deletion.
For a chance to view an advance virtual screening of the American disaster film Greenland on Wednesday, December 16, 2020 at 7:00 PM, please click the link at http://stxtickets.com/GRNLNDHH to RSVP.
Coming-of-age drama fans had their chance to be among the first in Cleveland, Ohio to see The Tender Bar on Thursday, December 16, 2021 at 7:00 PM at Atlas Cinemas Eastgate 10 in Mayfield Heights, Ohio!
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: Which event that occurred on today’s date would you like to learn more about?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Andrews, John and Matt Baker. Timeline of World History. Thunder Bay Press, 2020.
You can also watch video versions of this article on YouTube.