Who's Who: Born on Christmas Eve Quiz

Answer: Servius Sulpicius Galba

Servius Sulpicius Galba was a nobleman who served in the government during the early years of the Roman Empire when the Julio-Claudian emperors reigned. He held the office of praetor (judge), Governor of Aquitania in Aquitaine Gaul, and was chosen as a consul in 33 AD.

It was Caligula who appointed him General in Upper Germany and Claudius who made him Governor of Africa; he also served as a general during Nero's reign. When the Praetorian Guard learned that Nero had fled Rome, they proclaimed Galba to be the new emperor shortly after Nero committed suicide. Galba, however, was not a successful emperor and within six months he was assassinated by members of the Praetorian Guard, the first ruler of a periode known as Year of the Four Emperors.

Answer: King John

John was the youngest son of King Henry II of England and his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine. With three older brothers, it was doubtful that John would inherit any significant territories - hence the nickname Lackland - in spite of the fact that he was clearly his father's favorite. John became king when his brother, Richard I, died.

He is perhaps best known in history for the signing of the Magna Carta. However, it must be said that he did not do so because he thought it was the right thing to do.

The barons were in an uproar over John's constant demands for money, and basically told John that it was either sign or die. In signing the document, John promised that no unusual taxes would be levied without the consent of the king's royal council, which, over time, became known as Parliament.

Answer: Benjamin Rush

Benjamin Rush, whose birthday was December 24 according to the Old-Style calendar, is considered to be one of the leaders of the Enlightenment in the United States. He was an active member of the Sons of Liberty, and even was consulted by Thomas Paine when he was writing the famous "Common Sense".

A representative for the state of Pennsylvania in the Continental Congress, Rush signed the Declaration of Independence. As a medical doctor he was present at some of the battles and was very outspoken when it came to criticizing the medical treatment that the wounded soldiers received.

He served as Surgeon General of the Continental Army. After the war Rush continued to practice his profession; he taught at the University of Pennsylvania, founded Dickinson College, and was a founding member of the Philadelphia Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons. Before Lewis and Clark began their famous expedition, Rush gave them a medical kit and some instructions for treating illness and injury.

He was an ardent abolitionist, and studied and wrote about treatments for patients with mental illness. After his death, several of his students established Rush Medical College in Chicago in his honor.

Answer: Christopher Carson

Kit Carson left his home in Missouri when he was sixteen years old to become a mountain man and trapper; he had been unhappily apprenticed to a saddle maker that had a business in Franklin, Missouri, at the eastern end of the Santa Fe Trail. He ran away when the opportunity presented itself, and worked at a variety of odd jobs until joining the likes of Mountain Men Jim Bridger, Old Bill Williams, and Ewing Young.

He eventually met John C. Fremont, and served as his guide on three westward expeditions. Together they participated in the Bear Flag Revolt (1846). Carson also served as a guide during the Mexican-American War (1846-48), and became the leader of the 1st New Mexico Volunteer Infantry during the American Civil War, participating in several conflicts with Native American tribes in the West.

He became the hero of many dime novels, portrayed as an Indian fighter; eventually he narrated his life story, which was published in a book called "Memoirs".

Answer: James Prescott Joule

Joule's father was a brewer, and as a young man, even though he was fascinated with science, he ran the family business. It was the family business, however, that led to his discoveries in the field of physics. It was when he wanted to replace the brewery's steam engines with electric motors that he became involved in scientific endeavors.

He wanted to determine which motor was more cost-effective and began a series of experiments. In one of his experiments he found it was cheaper to burn coal in a steam engine than the zinc used in an electric battery.

His experiments led to the formulation of the law of conservation of energy, which says that energy cannot be created or destroyed but is transferred or transformed.

Answer: Howard Hughes

There are actually conflicting stories about Hughes' date of birth; while his Certificate of Baptism noted a September 24th date, his aunt signed an affidavit that his birthday was December 24. Hughes lost both parents at a young age; he received, however, an inheritance that would help him become a filmmaker.

His films were a bit controversial. For example, the premier of his movie "Scarface" (1932) was postponed because some thought it too violent, and "The Outlaw" (1943) drew criticism due to Jane Russell's rather skimpy wardrobe.

He eventually gained controlling share of RKO Radio Pictures, which he later sold. He became involved in the Las Vegas real estate market, becoming the largest employer in Nevada at the time. Aviation was another one of his loves and it remained his main focus for the rest of his life.

In 2014 he was named #25 of the 51 Heroes of Aviation as determined by "Flying Magazine".

Answer: Bill Pickering

One of the pioneers of space exploration in the United States, Bill Pickering was actually born in New Zealand. He moved to the U.S. to attend college at Caltech, where he eventually earned a Ph.D in physics. In 1944 Pickering became involved with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at a time when it was an Army facility that was trying to develop new weapon systems; he became the director of the JPL in 1954. By 1958 the JPL became part of NASA, and began to focus on unmanned space flight. Pickering continued as director of the agency, leading many programs that have familiar names, such as Explorer 3, which discovered the Van Allen radiation belt.

Answer: Matthew Arnold

Matthew Arnold was appointed as Her Majesty's Inspector of Schools after applying for the job; he had a growing family and needed to find a better paying profession. As a school inspector he traveled by railway all over England, observing children at their lessons and listening to parents who were upset for one reason or another. So the job had two other benefits besides better pay - he came to an understanding of the society of his day, and he was more familiar with the new railway age than most other people.

Although he had published his poetry before taking the job, the job gave his poetry new meaning as he began to write about a variety of social problems. Today he known as a writer, who "instructs the reader about contemporary social issues", and is often called the third great Victorian poet after Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Robert Browning.

Answer: Selim III

Before he became Sultan, Selim III was deeply involved in artistic endeavors; he not only composed music (today he is associated with Classical Turkish Music), but also wrote poetry and encouraged others to do so as well. He became friends with Seyh Galib, who is considered to be one of the great Ottoman poets. Selim III was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807, a time that was characterized by reform movements in Europe, such as the French Revolution, and new political thought, such as the Enlightenment.

After he took office, Selim III instituted a policy known as the "New Order", whereby he passed reforms in an attempt to westernize his empire; these reforms were far reaching, affecting the military, taxation, provincial government, and more open communication with the West.

When he recognized Napoleon as emperor (1804) and declared war on Great Britain and Russia (1806), his Janissaries, members of the elite corps of his army, became concerned and mutinied. Selim III was assassinated in 1807.

Answer: George Patton IV

While the name George Patton is recognizable to every student of World War II, the soldierly lineage of the family goes further back in American history; one ancestor served in the Confederate States Army. When asked if he ever felt overshadowed by his father, Patton replied that he had been too busy to think about it.

This George Patton, who dropped the IV from his name after his famous father's death, served during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. As the leader of the llth Armored Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam, the standing order given was "Find The Bastards, Then Pile On". Sounds like his dad, huh? Interestingly, he met and befriended Manfred Rommel, son of the Desert Fox, at a meeting in Stuttgart, Germany, and maintained a 20-year friendship. Rommel, by the way, also had a December 24 birthday! Patton was award a Purple Heart after being wounded in Vietnam, and co-authored a book, "The Fighting Pattons".