A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on December 31st. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On December 31, 192 AD, Roman Emperor Commodus was assassinated by his own inner circle, setting the stage for The Year of the Five Emperors in 193.
On December 31, 192, Roman Emperor Commodus was assassinated, one of many Roman emperors that met an untimely end.
On December 31, 1695, a tax on windows went into effect in England, which resulted in many people boarding up or bricking up their windows so that they would not be subject to the tax.
On December 31, 1759, Arthur Guinness contracted for a lease on four acres of land in Dublin, Ireland, where he promptly commenced to brewing Guinness dry stout beer, a now world famous brew.
On December 31, 1771, a future President of the United States of America and an avid card player named George Washington visited Alexandria, Virginia, where he purchased two new packs of cards at a cost of two shillings and played cards at night (he lost).
On December 31, 1853, one of the strangest dinner parties held to that point in history occurred when the Crystal Palace Park of London was host to a dinner inside the mold of an extinct dinosaur.
On December 31, 1993, transgender person Brandon Teena was raped and murdered.
On December 31, 2010, the Central and Southern portion of the US was bombarded with 37 tornadoes, leaving nine people dead, more injured, and much damage across mainly Missouri and Mississippi, but also including Arkansas, Oklahoma, Illinois, and Louisiana.
Rizin Fighting World Grand Prix -IZA no mai- was a mixed martial arts event held by Rizin Fighting Federation that took place at the Saitama Super Arena on December 31, 2015.
On December 31, 2018, History and Headlines took a look at one of the most popular New Year’s Resolutions that Americans claim to be dedicated to, at least as tallied by Google searches.
On December 31. 2019, we looked back on some of the best videos published by various history themed YouTube channels from 2019.
For some on on December 31st, 2019, raising up your glasses for a toast happened with a sparkling glass of chilled Champagne.
On December 31, 2020, we looked back on some of the best videos published by various education themed YouTube channels from 2020.
On December 31, 2020, we looked back on some of the best videos published by various history themed YouTube channels from 2020.
On December 31, 2021, we took a look back at the year that was just ending, with no particular reason for optimism.
On December 31, 2021, we looked back on some of the best videos published by various history themed YouTube channels from 2021.
On December 31, 2022, we looked back on some of the best videos published by various history themed YouTube channels from 2022.
On December 31, 2023, we took a look back on those notable people that died in 2023.
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.