This Day That Year

December 22

in History

Vitellius Killed at the Stairs — An emperor's end on the steps of infamy
Rome, Roman EmpireClassical
69

Vitellius Killed at the Stairs

An emperor's end on the steps of infamy

As Vespasian was proclaimed Emperor of Rome, his predecessor Vitellius attempted to abdicate but was captured by a mob. Dragged through the streets and tortured, the deposed emperor met his end on the Gemonian stairs, the infamous steps where executed criminals were displayed. His death completed the bloody cycle of the Year of the Four Emperors and cleared the path for the Flavian dynasty.

69 AD
Marc Allegret Born — A French lens on cinema's earliest days
Basel, SwitzerlandEarly 20th Century
1900

Marc Allegret Born

A French lens on cinema's earliest days

In Basel, Switzerland, Marc Allegret was born into a family connected to French literary greatness, his mentor being the novelist Andre Gide. He would become a respected French film director and screenwriter, nurturing young talent including Brigitte Bardot and Jean-Paul Belmondo. His career spanned the formative decades of French cinema, from silent films to the New Wave's doorstep.

1900 AD
Cultural Revolution — Cultural Revolution: People's Daily posted the instructions of Mao Zedong that "The intellectual youth must go to the.
Period of sociopolitical turmoil in China (1966–1976)Late 20th Century
1968

Cultural Revolution

Cultural Revolution: People's Daily posted the instructions of Mao Zedong that "The intellectual youth must go to the.

The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by CCP chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his death in 1976. Its stated goal was to preserve Chinese communism by purging remnants of capitalist and traditional elements from Chinese society.

1968 AD