December 24

Events

• 820: Byzantine Emperor Leo V is assassinated in the Palace Chapel.
• 1940: Submarine RHS Papanikolis, under Lt.Cdr. Miltiades Iatridis, torpedoes and sinks the Italian merchant Firenze (3952 BRT) in the Adriatic off Saseno Island
• 1944: Sir Winston Churchill arrives in Athens in an attempt to resolve the political crisis between EAM and the re-instated Greek government of Georgios Papandreou.
• 1947: The "Provisional Democratic Government" is set up, during the Greek Civil War, by the Communist Party of Greece with Markos Vafiadis as Prime Minister.
• 1947: Metropolitan Makarios of Kyrenia is elected Archbishop of Cyprus. (He is the predecessor of Makarios III).
• 1984: Policeman, Christos Matis, is killed by four assailants in a branch of the National Bank in Petralona, Athens. His service revolver was found in 2002 in the possession of members of the Revolutionary Organisation 17 November.
• 1989: The Revolutionary Organization 17 November raids Sykouri army base in Larisa, Greece and steals a quantity of anti-tank rockets and ammunition.

Births

• 1845: King George I of Greece.
• 1988: Stefanos Athanasiadis, footballer.

Deaths

• 820: Byzantine Emperor Leo V (assassinated)
• 2015: Danos Lygizos, actor, TV presenter