On This Day
What Happened on December 30 in History
8 events that happened on December 30, oldest first. Every entry is written in our own words and links to its source.
The Middle Ages
1460 (Julian calendar)
Richard, Duke of York, dies at Wakefield as Lancastrian forces win a Wars of the Roses victory.
York, who claimed the English throne, and his son Edmund died at or soon after the Lancastrian victory near Wakefield in Yorkshire. His eldest son later took the crown as Edward IV.
Source: nationalarchives.gov.uk
The Young Republic and the Civil War Era
1853
The United States and Mexico sign the Gadsden Purchase treaty.
U.S. minister James Gadsden negotiated the deal in Mexico City for land in what is now southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. The Senate cut the price to 10 million dollars, and the land gave a good southern route for a railroad.
Source: archives.gov; history.com
1896
Filipino reformer José Rizal is executed by a Spanish firing squad in Manila.
Spanish authorities convicted the writer and physician of rebellion and sedition after the Philippine Revolution broke out. His death made him a national hero, and December 30 is marked in the Philippines as Rizal Day.
Source: guides.loc.gov
The Early 1900s and the World Wars
1903
Fire sweeps through Chicago's Iroquois Theater during a holiday matinee.
A stage light ignited scenery during a packed performance attended largely by women and children, and many exits were locked or hard to find. More than 600 people died, and cities across the country tightened theater safety rules.
Source: history.com; guides.library.illinois.edu
1916
Grigori Rasputin, adviser to Russia's royal family, is murdered in Petrograd.
A group of nobles led by Prince Felix Yusupov killed the mystic, whom they blamed for his influence over Empress Alexandra. His body was later pulled from the Neva River, and the monarchy fell within months.
Source: history.com; npr.org
1922
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is formally established.
A congress of soviets approved a treaty joining Soviet Russia with the Ukrainian, Belorussian and Transcaucasian republics. The new state lasted until its breakup in 1991.
Source: history.com; history.com
1936
Autoworkers begin the Flint sit-down strike against General Motors.
Workers occupied GM's Fisher Body plants in Flint, Michigan, to demand recognition of the United Auto Workers. The strike ended in February 1937 when GM agreed to bargain with the union, a turning point for American labor.
Source: history.com; socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu
The Modern Era
2006
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein is executed in Baghdad.
An Iraqi court had sentenced him to death for the killing of more than 140 people from the town of Dujail in the 1980s. The hanging took place at dawn, and critics questioned the fairness of the proceedings.
Source: npr.org; scholarship.law.vanderbilt.edu