December 31st, 1642

Born on December 31st, 1642

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 139,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 724 days, exactly on April 22nd, 2026, people who were born on December 31st, 1642 will be 140,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on December 31st?

December 31st, 1950

Korean War: North Korean troops attacked United Nations forces in the first of two battles at Wonju.

December 31st, 2010

28 tornadoes (one depicted) touched down in midwestern and southern United States, part of an outbreak that led to the deaths of nine people and large property damage.

December 31st, 1999

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin became acting president upon President Boris Yeltsin's unexpected resignation.

December 31st, 1998

The European Exchange Rate Mechanism froze the exchange rates of the legacy currencies in the eurozone, establishing the value of the euro.

December 31st, 1993

Brandon Teena, an American trans man, was raped and murdered in Humboldt, Nebraska; his death led to increased lobbying for hate crime laws in the United States.

December 31st, 1986

Three disgruntled employees set fire to the Dupont Plaza Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, killing more than 90 people and injuring 140 others, making it the second-deadliest hotel fire in United States history.

December 31st, 1972

Puerto Rican baseball player Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash en route to deliver aid to victims of that year's Nicaragua earthquake.

December 31st, 1965

Central African military officers led by Jean-Bédel Bokassa began a coup d'état against the government of President David Dacko.

December 31st, 1961

RTÉ, Ireland's first television network, began broadcasting.

December 31st, 1909

The Manhattan Bridge, connecting Lower Manhattan to Downtown Brooklyn and considered to be the forerunner of modern suspension bridges, opened to traffic.

December 31st, 1907

New York City held its first annual ball drop event in Times Square as part of New Year's Eve celebrations.

December 31st, 1862

The Battle of Stones River in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, began with an engagement in which both sides would suffer their highest casualty rates in the American Civil War.

December 31st, 1857

Queen Victoria announced the choice of Ottawa (pictured), then a small logging town, to be the capital of the British colony of Canada.

December 31st, 1775

American Revolutionary War: At the Battle of Quebec, British forces repulsed an attack by the Continental Army to capture Quebec City and enlist French Canadian support.

December 31st, 1759

Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000-year lease at £45 per annum to the St. James's Gate Brewery in Dublin and began brewing Guinness.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on December 31st

Same Day
Who's birthday is on December 31st?

78

Vernon Wells

Australian actor

*December 31st, 1945, Rushworth

84

Henri Matisse

French artist (1869–1954)

*December 31st, 1869, Le Cateau-Cambrésis †November 3rd, 1954, Nice

65

Jacques Cartier

Breton maritime explorer of North America (1491–1557)

*December 31st, 1491, Saint-Malo †September 1st, 1557, Saint-Malo

31

Manu Attri

Badminton player

*December 31st, 1992, Meerut

86

Anthony Hopkins

Welsh actor and director (born 1937)

*December 31st, 1937, Port Talbot

65

Ferdinand Noack

German classical archaeologist and classical philologist (1865-1931)

*December 31st, 1865, Burgholzhausen vor der Höhe †September 21st, 1931, Berlin

57

Rudy Gunawan

Badminton player

*December 31st, 1966, Surakarta City

49

Bas Böttcher

German writer and poetry slam performer

*December 31st, 1974, Bremen

96

Simon Wiesenthal

Jewish Austrian Holocaust survivor and Nazi hunter

*December 31st, 1908, Buchach †September 20th, 2005, Vienna

67

Vaughan Jones

New Zealand mathematician and Fields Medalist

*December 31st, 1952, Gisborne †September 6th, 2020, Nashville

70

James Remar

American actor

*December 31st, 1953, Boston

88

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

King of Saudi Arabia since 2015

*December 31st, 1935, Riyadh

78

George Marshall

American army officer and statesman (1880–1959)

*December 31st, 1880, Uniontown †October 16th, 1959, Washington, D.C.

65

Bebe Neuwirth

American actress

*December 31st, 1958, Newark

51

Grégory Coupet

French association football player

*December 31st, 1972, Le Puy-en-Velay

49

Andreas Vesalius

Flemish anatomist, physician and author (1514–1564)

*December 31st, 1514, Mont aux Potences - Galgenberg †October 16th, 1564, Zakynthos

87

Elizabeth Arden

Canadian American businesswoman

*December 31st, 1878, Woodbridge †October 18th, 1966, New York City

80

Ben Kingsley

English actor

*December 31st, 1943, Snainton

93

Francesco Alberoni

Italian journalist and professor of sociology (1929–2023)

*December 31st, 1929, Borgonovo Val Tidone †August 14th, 2023, Milan

38

Jan Smit

Dutch singer and TV presenter

*December 31st, 1985, Volendam

Same year
Born in 1642

84

Isaac Newton

English mathematician and physicist (1642–1727)

*December 25th, 1642, Woolsthorpe Manor †March 31st, 1727, Kensington

51

Mehmed IV

19th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1648 to 1687

*January 2nd, 1642, Constantinople †January 6th, 1693, Edirne

49

Suleiman II

Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1687 to 1691

*April 15th, 1642, Constantinople †June 22nd, 1691, Edirne

51

Claudio Coello

Spanish artist (1642-1693)

*March 2nd, 1642, Madrid †April 20th, 1693, Madrid

56

Marie Champmeslé

French actress

*February 18th, 1642, Rouen †May 15th, 1698, Paris

62

Philipp Jeningen

German Roman Catholic priest

*January 5th, 1642, Eichstätt †February 8th, 1704, Ellwangen

62

Johann Winckler

German theologian (1642-1705)

*July 13th, 1642, Golzern †April 5th, 1705, Hamburg

80

Johann Balthasar Burckhardt

Swiss politician (1642-1722)

*April 3rd, 1642, Basel †May 4th, 1722, Basel

73

Francis de Geronimo

Jesuit priest and missionary

*December 17th, 1642, Grottaglie †May 11th, 1716, Naples

60

Johann Christoph Bach I

German composer and organist

*December 6th, 1642, Arnstadt †March 31st, 1703, Eisenach

84

Giuseppe Sacripante

Italian cardinal

*March 19th, 1642, Narni †January 4th, 1727, Rome

64

Vincenzo da Filicaja

Poet from Italy (1642-1707)

*December 30th, 1642, Florence †September 24th, 1707, Florence

66

Andrea Pozzo

Painter of the Late Baroque (1642-1709)

*November 30th, 1642, Trento †August 31st, 1709, Vienna

65

Carolus Carlsson

(1642-1708)

*November 24th, 1642, Kalmar domkyrkoförsamling †April 14th, 1708, Dingtuna parish

86

Simon de la Loubère

French diplomat

*April 21st, 1642, Toulouse †March 26th, 1729, Montesquieu-Volvestre

64

Cornelis Evertsen the Youngest

Dutch admiral

*November 16th, 1642, Vlissingen †November 16th, 1706, Middelburg

58

Louis I, Prince of Monaco

Monegasque prince (1642-1701)

*July 25th, 1642, Prince's Palace of Monaco †January 3rd, 1701, Rome

88

Diego Morcillo Rubio de Auñón

Catholic bishop (1642-1730)

*January 3rd, 1642, Villarrobledo †March 12th, 1730, Lima

51

Johann Friedrich von Waldstein

Czech nobleman

*August 18th, 1642, Vienna †June 3rd, 1694, Duchcov

81

Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany

Grand Prince of Tuscany (1642-1723)

*August 14th, 1642, Florence †October 31st, 1723, Florence

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on December 31st

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day, New Year's Eve) which are celebrated on December 31st.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

No: With 365 days 1642 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
December 1642