December 10th - 19th
10th December
Events
1768 – The first edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica is published
1901 – The first Noble
Prize ceremony is held in Stockholm
on the fifth anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death.
The first winners of the Noble Prize included Wilhelm Rontgen, for Physics; Jacobus Henricus van t’Hoff, Chemistry; Emil Adolf von Behring, Physiology or Medicine; Sully Prudhomme, Literature and Henry Dunant and Frederic Passy, Peace.
1936 – Edward VIII signs the Instrument of Abdication
1953 – British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill receives the Nobel Prize for literature
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| Daguerreotype by Antoine Claudet (c. 1843) |
The only
child of Lord Byon and his wife Lady Bryon, Anne Isabella Noel Bryon. Ada is chiefly known for her work on Charles
Babbage’s proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine.
Deaths
The youngest
son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfield and Countess Augusta Caroline
Sophie Reuss-Ebersdorf.
Aged 6,
Leopold was given the honorary commission of the rank of colonel in the Imperial
Russian Army. Six year later he was promoted to the rank of Major-General.
1815, Leopold
received a British citizenship, where at Carlton House he married Princess
Charlotte of Wales. The marriage only lasted for 2 years after Charlotte
suffered a mischarge and gave birth to a stillborn son during November. The next day Charlotte died.
1830,
Leopold who was offered the throne of an independent Greece in the London
Protocol of February 1830, but Leopold who showed sings of interest turned the
offer down.
November
1830, a National Congress was established in Belgium to create a new
constitution for the new state. The
Congress decided that Belgium would be a popular, constitutional monarchy. After a search for a monarch, Leopold, was
reluctant to accept the throne.
December
1865, Leopold died, and he was interred in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Notre-Dame
de Laeken.
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| Alfred Bernhard Nobel |
Nobel born
1833, was the third son of Immanuel Nobel, an inventor and engineer and his
wife Karolina Andriette Ahisell. Nobel
the only brother to survive into adulthood.
He held 355 different patents. The
synthetic element nobelium is named after Nobel. He also owned Bofors, changing it from an
iron and steel producer to a major manufacturer of cannon and other armaments. Having read the premature obituary which
condemned his from profiting from the sale of arms, Nobel bequeathed his
fortune to the Nobel Prize institute.
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| Alfred Nobel Grave |
1891 Nobel moved from Paris to Sanremo, Italy after having been accused of high treason from France for the selling of Ballistite. Nobel died from a stroke and he is buried in Norra begravningsplatsen in Stockholm.
11th December
Events
1282 – Battle of Orwein Bridge, where the last native Prince of
Wales, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd is killed at Cilmeri, near Builth Wells
1688 – The Great Seal of the Realm is thrown into the River Thames, as James
II of England is trying to flee to France.
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| Portrait by Antoine-François Callet |
1936 –
Edward VIII’s abdication as King of the United
Kingdom and the British Dominions beyond the seas, and Emperor of India becomes
effective.
Births
1921 –
Liz Smith – English actress. Born Betty Gleadle. Known for her roles in “I didn’t Known You
Cared” (1975-1979), “2point4 Children” (1991-1999) and “The Vicar
of Dibley” (1994-1996)
Deaths
1937 –
Hugh Thackeray Turner (84) – English architect and painter. Turner was the apprentice to architect Sir George
Gilbert Scott and worked under his son.
Turner’s buildings included Wycliffe Building (1884), The Croft (1902)
and Mead Cottage, Guildford. He also
designed the Phillips Memorial Cloister on the riverside in Godalming,
commemorating the bravery of Jack Phillips, the hero on board the RMS Titanic,
1912.
12th December
Events
1866 –
The worst mining disaster in England, the Oaks Explosion kills 361 miners and rescuers.
Births
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| Sinatra in Pal Joey (1957) |
Deaths
 |
| Douglas Fairbanks, late 1910s |
1939 – Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. (56) – American actor, producer and screenwriter.
Born Douglas
Elton Thomas Ullman, 1883. He was the
son of Hezekiah Charles Ullman and his wife Ella Adelaide Marsh. Aged 18, Fairbanks found his first role
Broadway role in “Her Lord and Master”, 1902.
1915
Fairbanks signed a contact with Triangle Pictures. His first film was titled “The
Lamb”. The following year, 1916, Fairbanks
established his own company, The Douglas Fairbanks Film Corporation.
Fiarbanks
was known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films including “The Thief
of Baghdad”, “Robin Hood” and “The Mask of Zorro”. His last silent film was the lavish “The
Iron Mask” (1929). Fairbanks acted in the first talkies “The Taming of Shaw”
(1929). This film and subsequent films
were poorly received. The last film that
Fairbanks stared in the British production “The Private Life of Don Juan”
(1934).
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| Douglas Fairbanks's grave, Hollywood Forest Cemetery, Los Angeles |
Two years
later, his widow, Lady Ashley, whom Fairbanks had married during 1936, moved
his remains to an elaborate marble monument featuring a long rectangular
reflecting pool, raised tomb and classic Greek architecture in Hollywood Forest
Cemetery, Los Angeles.
13th December
Events
1758 –
The Duke William the English transport ship, sinks in
the North Atlantic, killing over 360 people
1928 –
George Gershwin’s “An
American in Paris”
is first performed
Births
1914 –
Larry Noble – English comedian and actor. Noble started in the production of “Reluctant
Heroes”, “Dry Rot” and had guest appearance in “Last of the
Summer Wine” and “Blake’s 7”.
Deaths
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| Grese in August 1945, while awaiting trial |
22-year-old
Grese sentenced to death at the Belsen trial, she was the youngest woman to die
judicially under British law. Grese was
nicknamed the “Hyena of Auschwitz”. Executed at Hamelin prison, which
was carried out by British executioner, Albert Pierrepoint assisted by Regimental-Sergeant-Major
Richard Anthony O’Neil.
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| Josef Kramer, in Celle awaiting trial, August 1945. |
1945 – Josef Kramer – Commandant of Auschwitz-Birkenau and of Bergen-Belsen concentration camps. Dubbed the Beast of Belsen. Executed at Hamelin prison, which was carried out by British executioner, Albert Pierrepoint.
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| Elisbaeth Volkenrath in 1945 |
1945 – Elisabeth Volkenrath – Polish-German supervisor at several Nazi
contraction camps. Executed at Hamelin
prison, which was carried out by British executioner, Albert Pierrepoint.
14th December
Events
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| Joseph-Michael and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier |
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| Orville and Wilbur Wright in 1905 |
1903 – The Wright Brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright make
their first attempt to fly with the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North
Carolina
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| Ronald Amundsen circa 1923 |
1911 – Ronald Amundsen’s team become the first to reach the South Pole
1918 –
The 1918 General
Election, is the first
where women are permitted to vote.
Births
 |
| Roger Fry 1928 self-portrait |
1895 – George VI of the United Kingdom
1908 –
Claude Davey – Welsh rugby player. Notably played for Sale and Swansea.
Deaths
 |
| Portrait based on the unfinished Athenaeum
Portrait by Gilbert Stuart, 1796 |
1799 – George Washington (67) – First President of the United States
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1860 – George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of
Aberdeen (76) –
Scottish-English politician, Prime Minister.
Born 1784,
the son of George Gordon, Lord Haddo and his wife Charlotte Baird. Educated at Harrow and St. John’s College,
Cambridge. Hamilton-Gordon was made Earl
of Aberdeen following the death of his grandfather, George Gordon, 3rd
Earl of Aberdeen, 1801. Travelling
Europe and when returning to Great Britain he founded the Athenian Society.
1813,
following the death of his wife, Catherine Hamilton, Hamilton-Gordon signed the
Treaty of Toplitz after having been appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary to Austria. 1814,
Hamilton-Gordon was one of the British representatives at the Congress of
Chatillon, which led to the negotiations of the Treaty of Paris.
1828,
Hamilton-Gordon served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and until 1830
served as Foreign Secretary. Having
resigned with Wellington over the Reform Bill 1832.
Serving as Secretary
of State for War and Colonies between 1834 and 1835 and Foreign Secretary
between 1841 and 1846. Along with Robert
Peel, Hamilton-Gordon resigned over the issues of the Corn Law. Following the death of Peel, 1850,
Hamilton-Gordon became the leader of the Peelites. Following the downfall of the Conservative
government under Lord Derby, Hamilton-Gordon formed a new government. During his premiership Hamilton-Gordon was unable
control the power and talented politicians, withing the Aberdeen Ministry. He also took Britain into the Crimean War,
which resulted in being very unpopular. Hamilton-Gordon
retired from politics.
Hamilton-Gordon
died 1860 and is buried at St. John the Evangelist, Great Stanmore.
1861 –
Albert, Prince Consort of the United
Kingdom (42)
15th December
Events
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| Theatrical pre-release poster |
2001 –
The Leaning Tower of
Pisa reopens after
11 years and $27,000,000 spent to stabilize it, without fixing its famous lean
Births
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| J. Paul Getty in 1944 |
1892 – J. Paul Getty – American-English businessman and art collector. Getty is infamously frugal, notably negotiating his grandson, John Paul Getty III, Italian kidnapping ransom in 1973.
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| Harold Abrahams in 1921 |
Deaths
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| Daniel Rutherford mezzotint engraving after a portrait by Sir Henry Raeburn |
1819 – Daniel Rutherford (70) – Scottish chemist and physician
16th December
Events
1850 –
The Charlotte Jane and the Randolph bring the first of the Canterbury Pilgrims to
Lyttelton, New Zealand
1880 –
The outbreak of the First
Boer War between the
Boer South African Republic and the British Empire
Births
 |
| Jane Austen Portrait, c. 1810 |
1775 – Jane Austen – English novelist. Austen notable works include “Sense and Sensibility” (1811), “Pride and Prejudice” (1813), “Mansfield Park” (1814) and “Emma” (1816).
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| Mary Russell Mitford, after Benjamin Robert Haydon, 1824 |
1787 – Mary Russell Mitford – English author and playwright. Best known for “Our Village” is collection of 100 literary sketches of rural life.
Deaths
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| Commodore James, 1784 painted by Joshua Reynolds |
17th December
Events
1835 –
The second Great Fire
of New York destroys
50 acres of New York’s Financial District.
1865 –
First performance of the Unfinished Symphony by Franz Schubert
1892 –
First issue of Vogue is published
Births
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| Sir Humphry Davy, Bt by Thomas Phillips |
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| Joseph Leopold Ford Hermann Madox Hueffer |
Deaths
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| Kaspar Hauser, 1830 |
1833 – Kaspar Hauser (21) – German feral child. Hauser claimed that that he had grown up in total isolation of a darkened cell. Hauser was stabbed, by a stranger who lured Hauser to the Ansbach Court Garden, while giving him a bag. When searching the Gardens, policeman Herriein, he found a small purpose, which contained a note, reading.
"Hauser will be able to tell you quite
precisely how I look and from where I am. To save Hauser the effort, I want to
tell you myself from where I come _ _ . I come from from _ _ _ the Bavarian
border _ _ On the river _ _ _ _ _ I will even tell you the name:
M. L. Ö."
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| Kaspar Hauser's grave Stradfriedhof, Ansbach |
Hauser was buried at Stradfriedhof in Ansbach.
Born
1812. Anderson was the daughter of Newson
Garrett and wife Louisa Dunnell, the second of eleven children. Anderson was the first woman to qualify in
Britain as a physician and surgeon.
Anderson was the co-founder of the New Hospital for Women, Euston Road,
London, also the founder of the London School of Medicine for Women.
Anderson was
also active in the women’s suffrage movement. Becoming a member of the Central Committee
of the National Society of Women’s Suffrage.
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| Elizabeth Garrett Anderson grave St. Peter and St. Paul's Church, Aldeburgh |
1908, Elizabeth Anderson was elected mayor of Aldeburgh, the first female mayor in England. Anderson was buried in the churchyard of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church, Aldeburgh.
18th December
Events
1966 –
Saturn’s moon Epimetheus is discovered by astronomer Richard
Walker.
Births
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| Portrait by John Russell |
1707 – Charles Wesley – English missionary and composer. Widely to have written 6,500 hymns.
Deaths
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| Captain Sir John William Alcock KBE DSC |
Born 1892. Educated at Stockport and Lytham St.
Annes. Alcock became interested in
flying at the age of 17. Whilst employed
Alcoch met the French pilot Maurice Docrocq,
Docrocq took
Alcock as a mechanic to Brooklands, where Alcock obtained his pilot licence at
Docrocq’s flying school.
During the
First World War Alcock served with the Royal Naval Air Service as a warrant
officer instructor. Alcock received a
commission as flight sub-lieutenant during December 1915. It was at Gallipoli, that Alcock and his crew
were taken prisoner.
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| John Alcock's grave Southern Cemetery, Manchester |
Having retired from the Royal Air Force in March 1919. However, Alcock is best remembered for piloting the first non-stop transatlantic flight from St. John’s Newfoundland to Clifden, Connemara, Ireland, with navigator Lieutenant Arthur Whitten Brown. Both men were honoured at Windsor Castle, King George V awarded them with the Knights Commanders of the Order of the British Empire.
Alcock was
piloting the new Vickers amphibious aircraft, the Viuckers Viking in the first
post war aeronautical exhibition in Paris, when crashing in the fog at
Cottevrard, near Rouen. Alcock was
buried at Southern Cemetery, Manchester.
19th December
Events
1924 –
The last Rolls-Royce Silver
Ghost is sold in
London
Births
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| Ralph Richardson in 1949 |
Deaths
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| The only undisputed portrait of Brontë, from a group portrait by her brother Branwell |
Born 1818,
the daughter of Patrick Bronte and Maria Branwell. Emily was the last but one of the Bronte children. Here siblings being Maria, Elizabeth, Charlotte,
Branwell and youngest sister Anne. The
family moved to the parsonage at Howarth.
During adult
hood Emily, taught at Law Hill School, Halifax.
Emily’s health broke under the stress of the 17-hour workday. Having then
return back home and remain to do most of cooking, ironing. 1842, Emily accompanied Charlotte to Heger
Pensionnat, Brussels.
Emily who
wrote under the name of Ellis Bell is best remembered for her novels “Wuthering
Heights” (1847).
Emily died the same year as her brother, Branwell. She is buried at the family fault St. Michael and All Angels’ Church, Haworth
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