On This day December 26th

 

OTD

December 26th is the 360th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 5 days remain until the end of the year.

 Events

887 – Berengar I is elected as king of Italy by the lords of Lombardy. He is crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy at Pavia.

1709 – The opera Agrippina by George Frideric Handel premiered in Venice.

1723 – Bach led the first performance of Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes, BWV 40, his first Christmas Cantata composed for Leipzig.

1776 – American Revolutionary War: In the Battle of Trenton, the Continental Army attacked and successfully defeated a garrison of Hessian forces.

1799 – Henry Lee III's eulogy to George Washington in Congress declares him as "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."

1860 – The First Rules derby is held between Sheffield F.C. and Hallam F.C., the oldest football fixture in the world.

1871 – Thespis, the first Gilbert and Sullivan collaboration, debuts.

1898 – Marie and Pierre Curie announce the isolation of radium.

1919 – Babe Ruth of the Boston Red Sox is sold to the New York Yankees by owner Harry Frazee, allegedly establishing the Curse of the Bambino superstition.

1941 – British Prime Minister Winston Churchill addresses a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress.

1963 – The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "I Saw Her Standing There" are released in the United States, marking the beginning of Beatlemania on an international level.

1991 – The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union meets and formally dissolves the Soviet Union, ending the Cold War.

2004 – The 9.1–9.3 Mw Indian Ocean earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). One of the largest observed tsunamis, it affected coastal and partially mainland areas of Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Indonesia; the death toll is estimated at 227,898.

 

 Birthdays

1628 – John Page, English Colonial politician (d. 1692)

1716 – Thomas Gray, English poet and scholar (d. 1771)

1769 – Ernst Moritz Arndt, German writer and poet (d. 1860)

1837 – George Dewey, American admiral (d. 1917)

1891 – Henry Miller, American author and painter (d. 1980)

1933 – Caroll Spinney, American puppeteer and voice actor (d. 2019)

1939 – Phil Spector, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 2021)

1945 – John Walsh, American television host, producer, and activist, created America's Most Wanted

1947 – Carlton Fisk, an American baseball player

1986 – Hugo Lloris, French footballer

1994 – Colby Cave, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 2020)

 

Holiday Spotlight

  Junkanoo

  Junkanoo comes from a long history of enslaved people of the African diaspora in the Bahamas celebrating the holidays during the Christmas season. The tradition continued after emancipation from slavery. Today, it is a formal and organized parade with intricate costumes, music, and prizes.

 The word's etymology is disputed, but many believe it is named after John Canoe, the European name given to the chief of the Ahanta people. As per Edward Long, an 18th-century historian and slave owner, John Canoe was an ally soldier for Germany until he deserted them to support his Ahanta people and fought European control of the region. Since news of his victory reached Jamaica, he became a celebrated figure from Christmas of 1708 onwards. Twenty years after his victory, his stronghold was broken by Fante forces backed by the British. As a result, the Ahanta, Nzima (Akan), and Fante captives were taken as prisoners of war to Jamaica.

 Junkanoo includes motifs of battles in Akan fashion. Ahantan war masks and dance formations were also a part of the parade. Junkanoo is celebrated in music, dance, and costume parades across the English-speaking Caribbean. The parades are most prominent in the Bahamas. Junkanoo is also observed among the Black-Caribbean diaspora in Miami and Key West.

 

 

Other Include

Boxing Day

Day of Goodwill

Day After Christmas Day

National Candy Cane Day

National Thank-You Note Day

National Whiner's Day

Slovenia Independence Day

St. Stephen's Day (Ireland)

Synaxis of the Mother of God

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