Editing December 20 (section)

==Events==
===Pre-1600===
*[[AD 69]] &ndash; [[Antonius Primus]] enters [[Rome]] to claim the title of [[Roman emperor|Emperor]] for [[Nero]]'s former general [[Vespasian]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Alexander Fraser Tytler (lord Woodhouselee.) |title=Elements of general history. Ed. by B. Turner |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xYQBAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA210 |year=1858 |page=210}}</ref>
*[[1192]] &ndash; [[Richard I of England]] is captured and imprisoned by [[Leopold V, Duke of Austria|Leopold V]] of Austria on his way home to England after the [[Third Crusade]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Chronicle Books |title=Chronicle of the Royal Family |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ivo9okUs30wC |date=1 March 1993 |publisher=Chronicle Communications |isbn=978-1-872031-20-0 |page=51}}</ref>
*[[1334]] &ndash; [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|Cardinal]] Jacques Fournier, a [[Cistercians|Cistercian]] monk, is elected [[Pope Benedict XII]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Peter |last=Partner |title=The Lands of St. Peter: The Papal State in the Middle Ages and the Early Renaissance |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bZ6eJuZfTAEC&pg=PA327 |year=1972 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-02181-5 |pages=327}}</ref>

===1601–1900===
*[[1803]] &ndash; The [[Louisiana Purchase]] is completed at a ceremony in [[New Orleans]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Lee |first=A |title=Making America, making American literature: Franklin to Cooper |publisher=Rodopi |location=Amsterdam Atlanta, GA |year=1996 |isbn=9789051839098 |page=347}}</ref>
*[[1808]] &ndash; [[Peninsular War]]: The [[Second Siege of Zaragoza|Siege of Zaragoza]] begins.
*[[1832]] &ndash; [[HMS Clio (1807)|HMS ''Clio'']] under the command of Captain Onslow arrives at [[Port Egmont]] under orders to [[Reassertion of British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (1833)|take possession]] of the [[Falkland Islands]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Brown |first=David |title=The Royal Navy and the Falklands War |publisher=L. Cooper |location=London |year=1987 |isbn=9780850520590 |page=28}}</ref>
*[[1848]] &ndash; [[1848 French presidential election|French presidential election]]: Having won the popular vote in a landslide, [[Napoleon III|Louis Napoleon Bonaparte]] is inaugurated in the chamber of the [[Palais Bourbon|National Assembly]] as the first (and only) president of the [[French Second Republic]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=De Luna |first=Frederick A. |title=The French Republic Under Cavaignac, 1848. |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=1969 |publication-place=Princeton, New Jersey |pages=365–395}}</ref>
*[[1860]] &ndash; [[South Carolina]] becomes the first state to attempt to [[secession|secede]] from the United States with the [[South Carolina Declaration of Secession]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Cole Blease |last=Graham |title=The South Carolina State Constitution: A Reference Guide |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MMqpKirVOzMC&pg=PA16 |year=2007 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-29299-6 |page=16}}</ref>

===1901–present===
*[[1915]] &ndash; [[World War I]]: The last Australian troops are evacuated from [[Gallipoli Campaign|Gallipoli]].
*[[1917]] &ndash; [[Cheka]], the first [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] secret police force, is founded.
*[[1924]] &ndash; [[Adolf Hitler]] is released from [[Landsberg Prison]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Adolph Hitler Leaving Landsberg Prison |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/285709 |website=www.metmuseum.org |date=20 December 1924 |access-date=27 April 2020}}</ref>
*[[1940]] &ndash; ''[[Captain America Comics]]'' #1, containing the first appearance of the superhero [[Captain America]], is published.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rizzo |first1=Marco |last2=Licari |first2=Fabio |title=Marvel's Captain America: The First 80 Years |date=2021 |publisher=[[Titan Publishing Group]] |page=20 |isbn=978-1787737174}}</ref>
*[[1941]] &ndash; [[World War II]]: First battle of the [[American Volunteer Group]], better known as the "[[Flying Tigers]]", in [[Kunming]], China.
*[[1942]] &ndash; World War II: [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service|Japanese air forces]] bomb [[Kolkata|Calcutta]], [[British Raj|India]].
*[[1946]] &ndash; ''[[It's a Wonderful Life]]'' premieres at the [[Globe Theatre (Broadway, New York City)|Globe Theatre]] in [[New York City|New York]] to mixed reviews. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130119035038/http://www.eeweems.com/capra/_wonderful_life.html <nowiki>[1]</nowiki>]
*  1946   &ndash; [[1946 Nankai earthquake|An earthquake in Nankaidō, Japan]] causes a tsunami which kills at least one thousand people and destroys 36,000 homes.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Walker |first1=Brett L. |title=A Concise History of Japan |date=26 February 2015 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-107-00418-4 |page=292 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NGt2BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA292 |language=en}}</ref>
*[[1948]] &ndash; [[Indonesian National Revolution]]: The Dutch military [[Operation Kraai|captures Yogyakarta]], the temporary capital of the newly formed Republic of Indonesia.
*[[1951]] &ndash; The [[Experimental Breeder Reactor I|EBR-1]] in [[Arco, Idaho]] becomes the first [[nuclear power|nuclear power plant]] to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.
*[[1952]] &ndash; A [[United States Air Force]] [[Douglas C-124 Globemaster II|C-124]] [[1952 Moses Lake C-124 crash|crashes]] and burns in [[Moses Lake, Washington]], killing 87 of the 115 people on board.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/news/article_d49b70f6-4bc1-11e2-81ab-001a4bcf887a.html |title=Washington State C-124 Crash Remembered |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313221017/http://www.columbiabasinherald.com/news/article_d49b70f6-4bc1-11e2-81ab-001a4bcf887a.html |archive-date=2017-03-13}}</ref>
*[[1955]] &ndash; [[Cardiff]] is proclaimed the capital city of [[Wales]], United Kingdom.<ref>{{cite book |author=David Williams |title=About Cardiff |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dpfspxo6OBMC&pg=PA21 |year=2005 |publisher=Graffeg |isbn=978-0-9544334-2-0 |pages=21}}</ref>
*[[1957]] &ndash; The initial production version of the [[Boeing 707]] makes its first flight.
*[[1960]] &ndash; [[Vietnam War]]: The [[Viet Cong|National Liberation Front of South Vietnam]], popularly known as the Viet Cong, is formally established in Tân Lập village, present day [[Tây Ninh|Tây Ninh province]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Cheng Guan |last=Ang |title=The Vietnam War from the Other Side |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4OgLBUXHikIC |year=2002 |publisher=RoutledgeCurzon |isbn=0-7007-1615-7 |page=55}}</ref>
*[[1967]] &ndash; A [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] [[Budd Metroliner]] exceeds {{convert|155|mph|km/h|order=flip}} on their New York Division, also present-day [[Amtrak]]'s Northeast Corridor.
*[[1968]] &ndash; The [[Zodiac Killer]] murders his first two officially confirmed victims, David Arthur Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, on Lake Herman Road in [[Benicia, California]], United States.<ref>{{cite book |last=Graysmith |first=Robert |title=Zodiac |publisher=Berkley |year=1976 |page=1 |isbn=978-0-425-09808-0 |url=https://archive.org/details/zodiac00gray_0/page/14}}</ref>
*[[1970]] &ndash; [[Koza riot]]: After a series of hit-and-runs and other vehicular incidents involving [[United States|American]] service personnel, roughly 5,000 [[Ryukyuan people|Okinawans]] take to the streets, clashing with American law enforcement in protest against the [[United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands|U.S. occupation of Okinawa]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Inoue |first=Masamichi S. |title=Okinawa and the U.S. Military: Identity Making in the Age of Globalization |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] |year=2007 |isbn=978-0231138918 |location=New York City |page=53 |language=en}}</ref>
*[[1973]] &ndash; [[Assassination of Luis Carrero Blanco]]: A [[car bomb]] planted by [[ETA (separatist group)|ETA]] in [[Madrid]] kills three people, including the [[Prime Minister of Spain]], Admiral [[Luis Carrero Blanco]].<ref>{{cite web |author1=Luis R. Aizpeolea |title=The day ETA struck a lethal blow to the Franco regime |url=https://elpais.com/elpais/2013/12/18/inenglish/1387374599_382537.html |website=[[El País]] |date=18 December 2013}}</ref>
*[[1977]] &ndash; With the approval of the [[State Council of the People’s Republic of China|State Council]], [[China]]’s two largest newspapers, the ''[[People’s Daily]]'' and the ''[[Guangming Daily]]'', publish in full for the first time the [[Second round of simplified Chinese characters|Second Chinese Character Simplification Scheme]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Zhao |first1=Shouhui |title=Planning Chinese Characters: Reaction, Evolution or Revolution? |last2=Baldauf |first2=Richard B. Jr. |publisher=[[Springer Publishing]] |year=2008 |isbn=9780387485768 |location=Dordrecht |page=62 |language=en}}</ref>
*[[1984]] &ndash; The [[Summit Tunnel fire]], one of the largest transportation tunnel fires in history, burns after a [[Freight rail transport|freight train]] carrying over one million liters of [[gasoline]] derails near the town of [[Todmorden]], England, in the [[Pennines]].
*  1984   &ndash; [[Disappearance and death of Jonelle Matthews|Disappearance of Jonelle Matthews]] from [[Greeley, Colorado]].  Her remains were discovered on July 23, 2019, located about {{convert|15|mi|abbr=on|order=flip}} southeast of Jonelle's home.<ref>{{cite web |title=Remains Found in Weld County Identified |publisher=Greeley Police Department |first=Detective Robert |last=Cash |date=July 25, 2019 |url=https://greeleypd.com/recovery-of-jonelle-matthews/ |access-date=July 27, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Remains of Jonelle Matthews dug up by work crew 34 years after she vanished, Greeley police say—Then 12-year-old disappeared after middle school Christmas concert |first=Kieran |last=Nicholson |publisher=The Denver Post |date=July 25, 2019 |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2019/07/25/jonelle-matthews-remains-found-greeley-police/ |access-date=July 27, 2019}}</ref> The cause of death "was a gunshot wound to the head."<ref name="Pietsch">{{cite news |title=Man Charged With Murder in 1984 Killing of Colorado Girl Taken From Home |work=[[The New York Times]] |first=Bryan |last=Pietsch |date=October 13, 2020 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/13/us/steven-pankey-murder-kidnapping.html |access-date=24 October 2020}}</ref>
*[[1985]] &ndash; [[Pope John Paul II]] announces the institution of [[World Youth Day]].
*[[1987]] &ndash; In the worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry ''[[MV Doña Paz|Doña Paz]]'' sinks after colliding with the oil tanker [[MT Vector|MT ''Vector'']] in the [[Tablas Strait]] of the [[Philippines]], killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).
*[[1988]] &ndash; [[War on drugs]]: The [[United Nations]] agrees upon and promulgates the [[United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances]], one of three major drug control treaties currently in force.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Gilmore |first=William C. |date=1991 |title=The 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances |journal=Marine Policy |volume=15 |issue=3 |page=2 |via=Elsevier Science Direct}}</ref>
*[[1989]] &ndash; The [[United States invasion of Panama]] [[Deposition (politics)|deposes]] [[Manuel Noriega]].
*[[1991]] &ndash; A Missouri court sentences the Palestinian militant Zein Isa and his wife Maria to death for the [[Murder of Tina Isa|honor killing of their daughter Palestina]].
*[[1995]] &ndash; [[NATO]] begins peacekeeping in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia]].
*  1995   &ndash; [[American Airlines Flight 965]], a [[Boeing 757]], crashes into a mountain 50&nbsp;km north of [[Cali]], [[Colombia]], killing 159 of the 163 people on board.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 21, 1995 |title=American Airlines jet crashes in the Andes |work=[[CNN]] |url=http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9512/colombia_crash/10am_update/index.html |access-date=May 6, 2009}}</ref>
*[[1999]] &ndash; [[Macau]] is [[Transfer of sovereignty over Macau|handed over]] to [[China]] by [[Portugal]].
*[[2004]] &ndash; A gang of thieves [[Northern Bank robbery|steal £26.5 million]] worth of currency from the [[Donegall Square]] West headquarters of [[Northern Bank]] in [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]], United Kingdom, one of the largest [[bank robbery|bank robberies]] in British history. 
*[[2004]] &ndash; [[Cave Story]] releases to the public. <ref>{{Cite web |last=quence |date=2024-12-20 |title=Nicalis celebrates Cave Story's 20th anniversary |url=https://gonintendo.com/contents/44023-nicalis-celebrates-cave-story-s-20th-anniversary-with-special-video-message |access-date=2024-12-21 |website=GoNintendo |language=en}}</ref>
*[[2007]] &ndash; [[Elizabeth II]] becomes the oldest monarch in the history of the United Kingdom, surpassing [[Queen Victoria]], who lived for 81 years and 243 days.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Witchell |first1=Nicholas |title=The Queen: A constant amid gale-force changes |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34172529 |work=BBC News |access-date=27 April 2020 |date=8 September 2015}}</ref>
*  2007   &ndash; The ''[[Portrait of Suzanne Bloch]]'' (1904), by the Spanish artist [[Pablo Picasso]], and ''O Lavrador de Café'' by Brazilian modernist painter [[Cândido Portinari]], are stolen from the [[São Paulo Museum of Art]] in Brazil. Both will be recovered a few weeks later.<ref>{{cite news |author=MacSwan, Angus |title=Security questioned in Picasso theft in Brazil |url=http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20071221/ten-uk-brazil-picasso-d3877cb_1.html |date=2007-12-21 |publisher=[[Reuters]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071230164038/http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20071221/ten-uk-brazil-picasso-d3877cb_1.html |archive-date=2007-12-30}}</ref>
*[[2019]] &ndash; The [[United States Space Force]] becomes the first new branch of the United States Armed Forces since 1947.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/12/20/politics/trump-creates-space-force/index.html |title=With a signature, Trump brings Space Force into being |date=December 20, 2019 |first=Ryan |last=Browne |publisher=CNN}}</ref>
*[[2024]] &ndash; Six people are killed and over 200 are injured when an anti-Islam activist [[2024 Magdeburg car attack|drives a car into a crowd]] at a Christmas market in [[Magdeburg]], [[Germany]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/20/world/europe/germany-christmas-market-crash.html |title=Driver Rams Christmas Market in Germany, Injuring Dozens |date=20 December 2024 |last=Schuetze |first=Christopher |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>