0537 – The Hagia Sophia was completed on the 27th December in the year 537.

1831 – Charles Darwin embarked on his journey aboard the HMS Beagle on the 27th December 1831, during which he began to formulate the theory of evolution.

1836 – The worst ever avalanche in England occurred at Lewes, Sussex, on the 27th December 1836, killing 8 people.

1845 – Ether anesthetic was used for childbirth for the first time on the 27th December 1845, by Dr. Crawford Long in Jefferson, Georgia.

1901 ~ Marlene Dietrich the German – American actress and singer was born on the 1901 (died 1992).

1922 – Japanese aircraft carrier Hōshō became the first purpose built aircraft carrier to be commissioned in the world on the 27th December 1922.

1927 – Show Boat the first true American musical, opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre on Broadway on the 27th December 1927.

1932 – Radio City Music Hall, the “Showplace of the Nation”, opened in New York on the 27th December 1932.

1939 – Erzincan in Turkey was hit by an earthquake on the 27th December 1939, killing 30,000 people.

1941 – Mike Pinder the English singer-songwriter and keyboard player from The Moody Blues was born on the 27th December 1941.

1944 – Mick Jones the English guitarist and songwriter from Foreigner was born on the 27th December 1944.

1948 – Gérard Depardieu the French actor was born on the 27th December 1948.

1952 – David Knopfler the Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist from Dire Straits was born on the 27th December 1952.

1966 – The Cave of Swallows, the largest known cave shaft in the world, was discovered in Aquismón, San Luis Potosí, Mexico on the 27th December 1966.

1968 – Apollo 8 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on the 27th December 1968, ending the first orbital manned mission to the Moon.

1978 – Spain became a democracy after 40 years of dictatorship on the 27th December 1978.

1978 – The Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station in the South Pole recorded temperatures of 7.5 °F (−13.6 °C) on the 27th December 1978, making it the highest temperature to ever be recorded in the South Pole.

1985 – Palestinian guerrillas killed 18 people inside Rome, Italy and Vienna airports on the 27th December 1985.

1986 ~ Torah Bright the Australian professional snowboarder and Olympic gold medalist was born on the 27th December 1986. Torah Bright won a Gold medal in the Halfpipe at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and a Siver medal in the Halfpipe at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Torah Bright verified online: Twitter.com/TorahBright  | Facebook.com/TorahBright | YouTube video:  Winter Olympics profile: Torah Bright video…

1988 ~ Hayley Williams the American lead singer and songwriter from rock band Paramore was born on the 27th December 1988.

2004 – Radiation from an explosion on the magnetar SGR 1806-20 reached Earth on the 27th December 2004, making it is the brightest extrasolar event known to have been witnessed on the planet.