December is the twelfth and last month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars. It is one of seven months with the length of 31 days. December is the first month of meteorological winter in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, December is the seasonal equivalent to June in the Northern hemisphere, which is the first month of summer. December is the month with the shortest daylight hours of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest daylight hours of the year in the Southern Hemisphere.
December symbols: Its birth flower is the narcissus. The birthstones of December are the turquoise, zircon, and tanzanite. The zodiac signs for the month of December are Sagittarius (until December 21) and Capricorn (December 22 onwards).
Historical Events for December, 1854
Day of Week 3rd » Eureka Rebellion named Battle of the Eureka Stockade: More than 20 gold miners at Ballarat, Victoria, are killed by state troopers in an uprising over mining licences.
Day of Week 8th » In his Apostolic constitution 'Ineffabilis Deus', Pope Pius IX proclaims the dogmatic definition of Immaculate Conception, which holds that the Mary (mother of Jesus) called Virgin Mary was conceived free of original sin.
Famous Birthdays on December in 1854
13th » Herman Bavinck, Dutch theologian and churchman (d. 1921)
23rd » Henry B. Guppy, English botanist and author (d. 1926)
Famous Deaths for December 1854
9th » Almeida Garrett, Portuguese journalist and author (b. 1799)