December 1864 in History

Events in History

Historic Publication

Dec 8 James Clerk Maxwell's paper "A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field" is 1st read by the Royal Society in London (published by the Royal Society 1865)

Dec 8 Pope Pius IX publishes encyclical Quanta cura ("Syllabus errorum")

Event of Interest

Dec 8 The Clifton Suspension Bridge, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, is finally opened in Bristol, England, 5 years after his death

Historic Siege

Dec 10 General Sherman's armies reach Savannah & 12 day siege begins

Dec 13 Battle of Fort McAllister, Georgia

Declaration of War

Dec 13 War of the Triple Alliance: Paraguay officially declares war on Brazil, invades the next day

President of Paraguay Francisco Solano López

Dec 14 War of the Triple Alliance: Paraguay invades the Brazilian province of Mato Grosso
Dec 15 Battle of Nashville, Tennessee: Union forces under General George Thomas shatters General John Bell Hood's Confederate Army of Tennessee
Dec 15 Raid on Stoneman: Abingdon & Glade Springs, Virginia
Dec 16 Battle of Nashville ends after 4400 causalities
Dec 20 -Dec 27th] Battle of Ft Fisher, NC
Dec 21 General Sherman conquers Savannah, Georgia
Dec 24 Battle of Gordonsville, Virginia
Dec 28 Battle of Egypt Station, Mississippi

Birthdays in History

Dec 3 Herman Heijermans, Dutch writer (Kamertjeszonde, Diamond City), born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 1924)
Dec 12 Paul Elmer More, American critic and essayist, born in Saint Louis, Missouri (d. 1937)
Dec 13 Emil Seidel, German-American politician (36th Mayor of Milwaukee), born in Ashland, Pennsylvania (d. 1947)
Dec 23 Zorka of Montenegro, Princess of Serbia (d. 1890)
Dec 27 René Georges Hermann-Paul, French artist (d. 1940)
Dec 31 Robert G Aitken, American astronomer (Binary Stars), born in Jackson, California (d. 1951)

Deaths in History

Dec 2 Archibald Gracie III, Confederate brigadier general, dies in battle at Siege of Petersburg, Virginia aged 32
Dec 8 George Boole, English mathematician (Boolean algebra), dies at 49
Dec 10 Henry Schoolcraft, American geographer and geologist, dies at 71
Dec 21 Archduke Louis of Austria, 14th child of Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II and Feldmarschal-Leutnant of Austrian Imperial Army, dies at 80
Dec 31 George Mifflin Dallas, American politician (11th Vice President of the United States) and United States Minister to Russia, dies at 72