History of Europe

10 December anniversaries to remember

The only vivente rege election and the seventeenth-century partition treaty. The beginning of the French Empire and the only independent Nobel prize for a Polish woman. And also the only declaration of war by Poland in the 20th century and the execution of Beria. What do these events have in common? They all took place in December.

As usual, all TOP10 items come from articles published by us. You can find more anniversaries every day on the "Historical Curiosities" page and on the Facebook profile "Historical anniversary for every day".

What are the December dates you should keep in mind?

December 2, 1804

On December 2, 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned Emperor of the French at the Paris Cathedral of Notre-Dame. The coronation mass was celebrated by Pope Pius VII. From then on, the Little Corporal could focus solely on waging wars. One of the clashes. that was the slaughter at Borodino, the bloodiest battle since the invention of gunpowder ...

Coronation of Napoleon and Josephine in the painting by Jacques Louis David.

December 6, 1656

On December 6, 1656 in Radnot, Hungary, the treaty on the partition of Poland was concluded. It was joined by:Sweden, Brandenburg, Transylvania, Cossacks and representatives of Prince Bogusław Radziwiłł. All this happened during the so-called the Swedish Deluge, commemorated in the novel by Sienkiewicz. However, do the events depicted in The Deluge contain at least a hint of historical truth?

Jerzy Rakoczy Castle in Radnot.

December 9, 1922

On December 9, 1922, the National Assembly elected Gabriel Narutowicz as President of the Republic of Poland. He was the first president of the Second Polish Republic. The position did not bring him happiness - he was murdered a week later. Hardly anyone remembers today that Narutowicz was also a member of the Masonry, which for centuries influenced the fate of Poland - for good and for bad ...

Józef Piłsudski and Gabriel Narutowicz the day after the latter was elected president.

December 10, 1911

On December 10, 1911, Maria Skłodowska-Curie received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. She obtained it on her own for the discovery of polonium and radium, isolation of pure radium and research on the chemical properties of radioactive elements. However, if it weren't for a man, Skłodowska-Curie would probably never have been awarded a Nobel Prize winner!

Maria Skłodowska-Curie with her husband in the laboratory in 1904.

December 11, 1941

On December 11, 1941, Poland declared war on another country for the only time in the 20th century. After all, the conflicts with Soviet Russia and the Third Reich were not formally initiated by either side. However, everything went wrong with this formal dismissal. The enemy was at the other end of the globe and, in addition, the declaration of war ... he did not accept.

Poland declared war on Japan four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The photo shows the immediate preparations for the strike of the second wave of attack on Pearl Harbor aboard the Akagi aircraft carrier.

December 13, 1981

On December 13, 1981, martial law was introduced in Poland. As early as at midnight, ZOMO troops began arresting opposition activists. We all know the curfew and the stories of our relatives about the tanks in the streets. But do we know what it looked like from Moscow's perspective?

T-55A tanks during the introduction of martial law in Zbąszyń.

December 18, 1529

On December 18, 1529, Zygmunt II August was elected King of Poland. It was the vivente rege election , made while the reigning Sigismund the Old was still alive. Queen Bona Sforza pushed her, but later fell into conflict with her son and left Poland. She took twenty-four carts filled with valuables with her.

Sigismund II Augustus in the painting by Łukasz Cranach the Younger from 1553.

December 23, 1953

On December 23, 1953, six months after his arrest on suspicion of being a hidden agent of imperialism, Lavrenty Beria was shot. And although it is hard to believe, he - a criminal with the blood of thousands of people on his hands - invented de-Stalinization. Paradoxically, it was precisely the attempt to break with the bloody terror that cost him his life.

Before Beria began de-Stalinization, he was close to the leader's family. The photo shows him holding his daughter, Svetlana, on her lap.

December 25, 1658

On December 25, 1658, after a two-day siege, Stefan Czarniecki captured the former castle of Danish kings in Koldynga. It was only after the third strike that the Poles managed to break into the castle, where a fierce fight broke out, during which the dragon got into the gunpowder store and set the fuse. Part of the castle blew up with the Swedes defending it, the rest was taken by the Poles.

Fragment of Józef Brandt's painting entitled "Czarniecki pod Koldyngą".

December 27, 1918

On December 27, 1918, the Greater Poland Uprising broke out. The impetus for it was the arrival of Ignacy Jan Paderewski in Poznań the day before. The famous composer not only influenced the formation of the independent Polish State, but also played in a duet in his youth with the builder of the record-breaking American bridges, Rudolf Modrzejewski.

Piłsudski and Paderewski during the ride a few days after the outbreak of the Greater Poland Uprising.