Date·Lore

On This Day · The 349th day of the year

December 15

December 15 carries 10 recorded events spanning between 687 and 2013. Pope Sergius I is elected as a compromise between antipopes Paschal and Theodore.

♐ZodiacSagittarius ◈BirthstoneTurquoise ❀Birth flowerHolly

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed July 13, 2026

What happened on December 15?

December 15 is the 349th day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 687 and 2013. Famous people born on December 15 include L. L. Zamenhof, Gustave Eiffel and Henri Becquerel.

The shape of the day

December 15 carries an unusually long memory — its events reach back as far as 687. Most of the weight falls in the 20th century, where conflict is a recurring thread.

Sagittarius is the sign for December 15 — read more on the Sagittarius page, or see December's birthstone & birth flower.

Released on December 15

Movies, games, albums & shows

2023

  • Game Trinity Fusion

2022

  • Game Melatonin
  • Game The Crackpet Show
  • Game Blacktail
  • Game River City Girls 2

2021

  • Game Aeterna Noctis
  • Movie Spider-Man: No Way Home

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 687

    Pope Sergius I

    Pope Sergius I is elected as a compromise between antipopes Paschal and Theodore.

  2. 1025

    Constantine VIII

    Constantine VIII becomes sole emperor of the Byzantine Empire, 63 years after being crowned co-emperor.

  3. 1778

    American Revolutionary War

    American Revolutionary War: British and French fleets clash in the Battle of St. Lucia.

  4. 1862

    American Civil War

    American Civil War: The Battle of Fredericksburg ends in a Union defeat as General Ambrose Burnside withdraws the Army of the Potomac across the Rappahannock River.

  5. 1893

    Symphony No. 9 (Dvořák)

    Symphony No. 9 ("From the New World" a.k.a. the "New World Symphony") by Antonín Dvořák premieres in a public afternoon rehearsal at Carnegie Hall in New York City, followed by a concert premiere on the evening of December 16.

  6. 1914

    World War I

    World War I: The Serbian Army recaptures Belgrade from the invading Austro-Hungarian Army.

  7. 1939

    Gone with the Wind (film)

    Gone with the Wind (highest inflation adjusted grossing film) receives its premiere at Loew's Grand Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.

  8. 1942

    World War II

    World War II: The Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse begins during the Guadalcanal campaign.

  9. 1970

    Venera 7

    Soviet spacecraft Venera 7 successfully lands on Venus. It is the first successful soft landing on another planet.

  10. 2013

    South Sudanese Civil War

    The South Sudanese Civil War begins when opposition leaders Dr. Riek Machar, Pagan Amum and Rebecca Nyandeng vote to boycott the meeting of the National Liberation Council at Nyakuron.

Famous birthday twins

Born on December 15

L. L. Zamenhof

b. 1859

Polish linguist and ophthalmologist, created Esperanto

Gustave Eiffel

b. 1832

French architect and engineer, co-designed the Eiffel Tower

Henri Becquerel

b. 1852

French physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate

Albert IV, Duke of Bavaria

b. 1447

Duke of Bavaria from 1503 to 1508

Uziel Gal

b. 1923

German-Israeli engineer, designed the Uzi gun

Hans Carossa

b. 1878

German author and poet

Deaths

  • 1966Walt Disney
  • 1950Vallabhbhai Patel
  • 1890Sitting Bull
  • 1675Johannes Vermeer
  • 1161Wanyan Liang
  • 1025Basil II

Holidays & observances

  • —Bill of Rights Day (United States) 2nd Amendment Day (South Carolina)
  • —Christian feast day: Drina Martyrs
  • —Christian feast day: Drostan (Aberdeen Breviary)
  • —Christian feast day: John Horden and Robert McDonald (Episcopal Church (USA))
  • —Christian feast day: Maria Crocifissa di Rosa
  • —Christian feast day: Mesmin
  • —Christian feast day: Valerian of Abbenza
  • —Christian feast day: Virginia Centurione Bracelli

Historical facts, event summaries, and biographical lines above are adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) license. DateLore adds curation, structure, and original editorial commentary. DateLore is not affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation.

About the author

Roman Tailor compiles and reviews every date on DateLore. He's the writer and editor behind the site's editorial essays and the day-by-day almanac. Corrections and questions are welcome — read more about DateLore or get in touch.

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