December 09

Gothic War: The Byzantine general Belisarius enters Rome unopposed; the Gothic garrison flees the capital.

Byzantine general Belisarius entered Rome unopposed in 536 after Gothic defenders abandoned the city, marking a key moment in the Gothic War.

Battle of Marj Ardabil: The Khazars annihilate an Umayyad army and kill its commander, al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah al-Hakami.

In 730, Khazar forces crushed an Umayyad army at Marj Ardabil, slaying commander al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah al-Hakami and halting the Caliphate’s northern expansion.

The first battle between the forces of Švitrigaila and Sigismund Kęstutaitis is fought near the town of Oszmiana (Ashmyany), launching the most active phase of the Lithuanian Civil War.

In 1432, the armies of Švitrigaila and Sigismund Kęstutaitis clashed near Oszmiana, igniting the fiercest stage of the Lithuanian Civil War over the Grand Ducal throne.

The Virgin of Guadalupe first appears to Juan Diego at Tepeyac, Mexico City.

In 1531, the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared to Juan Diego at Tepeyac Hill near Mexico City, starting the devotion of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

The Qing dynasty of China, led by Emperor Hong Taiji, invades Joseon.

In 1636, Emperor Hong Taiji’s Qing forces invaded Joseon Korea, defeating its defenses and imposing tributary status on the kingdom.

Glorious Revolution: Williamite forces defeat Jacobites at Battle of Reading, forcing James II to flee England. (Date is Old Style; the date in the New Style modern calendar is 19 December.)

On December 9, 1688 (Old Style), Williamite troops triumphed at the Battle of Reading, compelling King James II to abandon England during the Glorious Revolution.

American Revolutionary War: British troops and Loyalists, misinformed about Patriot militia strength, lose the Battle of Great Bridge, ending British rule in Virginia.

In 1775, Patriot forces repelled British and Loyalist troops at the Battle of Great Bridge, ending British governance in Virginia during the American Revolutionary War.

French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel, in a memoir read to the Academy of Sciences, coins the terms linear polarization, circular polarization, and elliptical polarization, and reports a direct refraction experiment verifying his theory that optical rotation is a form of birefringence.

In 1822, Augustin-Jean Fresnel introduced the concepts of linear, circular, and elliptical polarization and demonstrated optical rotation as a form of birefringence.

Patriot forces led by General Antonio José de Sucre defeat a Royalist army in the Battle of Ayacucho, putting an end to the Peruvian War of Independence.

In 1824, General Antonio José de Sucre’s Patriot army delivered a decisive victory at the Battle of Ayacucho, ending Spanish rule in Peru and securing independence.