December 31st, 1781

Born on December 31st, 1781

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 88,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 494 days, exactly on September 3rd, 2025, people who were born on December 31st, 1781 will be 89,000 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

31

Manu Attri

Badminton player

*December 31st, 1992, Meerut

65

Ferdinand Noack

German classical archaeologist and classical philologist (1865-1931)

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

86

Anthony Hopkins

Welsh actor and director (born 1937)

*December 31st, 1937, Port Talbot

65

Jacques Cartier

Breton maritime explorer of North America (1491–1557)

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

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

78

George Marshall

American army officer and statesman (1880–1959)

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

88

Giovanni Boldini

Italian painter (1842-1931)

*December 31st, 1842, Ferrara †January 12th, 1931, Paris

87

Elizabeth Arden

Canadian American businesswoman

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

88

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

King of Saudi Arabia since 2015

*December 31st, 1935, Riyadh

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

65

Bebe Neuwirth

American actress

*December 31st, 1958, Newark

51

Grégory Coupet

French association football player

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

93

Francesco Alberoni

Italian journalist and professor of sociology (1929–2023)

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

80

Ben Kingsley

English actor

*December 31st, 1943, Snainton

82

Alex Ferguson

Scottish association football manager and player (born 1941)

*December 31st, 1941, Govan

Same year
Born in 1781

67

George Stephenson

English civil and mechanical engineer and the "Father of Railways" (1781-1848)

*June 9th, 1781, Wylam †August 12th, 1848, Tapton House

60

Karl Friedrich Schinkel

Prussian architect, city planner and painter (1781–1841)

*March 13th, 1781, Neuruppin †October 9th, 1841, Berlin

67

Bernard Bolzano

Bohemian mathematician and priest (*1781 – †1848)

*October 5th, 1781, Prague †December 18th, 1848, Prague

44

Thomas Stamford Raffles

British statesman who founded Singapore (1781-1826)

*July 6th, 1781, Jamaica †July 5th, 1826, London

63

Adolphe Marbot

French general

*March 22nd, 1781, Altillac †June 2nd, 1844, Altillac

86

David Brewster

British astronomer and mathematician (1781–1868)

*December 11th, 1781, Jedburgh †February 10th, 1868, Melrose

49

Ludwig Achim von Arnim

German poet and novelist

*January 26th, 1781, Palais Wrangel †January 21st, 1831, Wiepersdorf manor

87

Louis François Dauprat

French composer

*May 24th, 1781, Paris †July 16th, 1868, Paris

65

José María Calatrava y Peinado

Prime Minister of Spain and Minister of State

*February 26th, 1781, Mérida †January 16th, 1847, Madrid

42

Eugène de Beauharnais

French nobleman, statesman, and military commander (1781–1824)

*September 3rd, 1781, Paris †February 21st, 1824, Munich

75

Jean-Baptiste Métivier

French architect (1781-1853)

*April 1st, 1781, Rennes †January 1st, 1857, Munich

58

Siméon Denis Poisson

French mathematician, mechanician and physicist (1781–1840)

*June 21st, 1781, Pithiviers †April 25th, 1840, Sceaux

77

Valentín Gómez Farías

President of Mexico (1781-1858)

*February 14th, 1781, Guadalajara †July 5th, 1858, Mexico City

45

Johann Baptist von Spix

Biologist (1781-1826)

*January 9th, 1781, Höchstadt an der Aisch †March 13th, 1826, Munich

57

Adelbert von Chamisso

German poet and botanist (1781–1838)

*January 30th, 1781, Châlons-en-Champagne †August 21st, 1838, Berlin

85

George Bruce

Scottish-American inventor and businessman

*July 5th, 1781, Edinburgh †July 6th, 1866, New York City

84

Sir William Parker, 1st Baronet, of Shenstone

British Royal Navy admiral (1781-1866)

*December 1st, 1781, Almington †November 13th, 1866, Shenstone

65

Friedrich Schmalz

German farmer

*June 25th, 1781, Zeitz †May 23rd, 1847, Dresden

74

Joaquín Manuel Fernández Cruzado

Spanish painter (1781-1856)

*December 24th, 1781, Jerez de la Frontera †January 31st, 1856, Cádiz

55

Francisco Espoz y Mina

Spanish military commander

*June 17th, 1781, Idocin †December 24th, 1836, Barcelona

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 1781 is a normal year and no leap year.

Calendar
December 1781