Today December 2nd in history click read more below to view detail events, deaths, births, Holidays and observances, and video clips in hisotry. Please comments, last database updated: Jan 17th, 2009
Events
1409 – The University of Leipzig opens.
1755 – The second Eddystone Lighthouse is destroyed by fire.
1804 – At Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself Emperor of the French, the first French Emperor in a thousand years.
1805 – Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Austerlitz – French troops under Napoleon Bonaparte defeat a joint Russo-Austrian force.
1823 – Monroe Doctrine: US President James Monroe delivers a speech establishing American neutrality in future European conflicts.
1845 – Manifest Destiny: US President James K. Polk announces to Congress that the United States should aggressively expand into the West.
1848 – Franz Josef I becomes Emperor of Austria.
1851 – Newly elected French President Charles Louis Bonaparte overthrows the Second Republic.
1852 – Napoleon III becomes Emperor of the French.
1859 – Militant abolitionist leader John Brown is hanged for his October 16th raid on Harper s Ferry.
1867 – At Tremont Temple in Boston, British author Charles Dickens gives his first public reading in the United States.
1899 – Philippine-American War: The Battle of Tirad Pass, termed The Filipino Thermopylae, is fought.
1908 – Child Emperor Pu Yi ascends the Chinese throne at the age of two
1920 – Following more than a month of Turkish-Armenian War, the Turkish dictated Treaty of Alexandropol is concluded –
1927 – Following 19 years of Ford Model T production, the Ford Motor Company unveils the Ford Model A as its new automobile.
1930 – Great Depression: US President Herbert Hoover goes before the United States Congress and asks for a US$150 million public works program to help generate jobs and stimulate the economy.
1939 – New York City s La Guardia Airport opens.
1942 – Manhattan Project: A team led by Enrico Fermi initiates the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction.
1943 – A Luftwaffe bombing raid on the harbour of Bari, Italy, sinks numerous cargo and transport ships, including an American Liberty ship, the John Harvey, with a stockpile of WWI-era mustard gas.
1946 – The British Government invites four Indian leaders, Nehru, Baldev Singh, Jinnah and Liaquat Ali Khan to obtain the participation of all parties in the Constituent Assembly.
1947 – Jerusalem Riots of 1947: Riots break out in Jerusalem in response to the approval of the 1947 UN Partition Plan.
1954 – Red Scare: The United States Senate votes 65 to 22 to condemn Joseph McCarthy for conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute.
1954 – The Sino-American Mutual Defense Treaty, between the United States and the Republic of China, is signed in Washington, D.C..
1956 – The Granma yacht reaches the shores of Cuba s Oriente province and Fidel Castro, Che Guevara and 80 other members of the 26th of July Movement disembark to initiate the Cuban Revolution.
1961 – In a nationally broadcast speech, Cuban leader Fidel Castro declares that he is a Marxist-Leninist and that Cuba is going to adopt Communism.
1962 – Vietnam War: After a trip to Vietnam at the request of US President John F. Kennedy, US Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield becomes the first American official not to make an optimistic public comment on the war s progress.
1970 – The United States Environmental Protection Agency begins operations.
1971 – Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Fujairah, Sharjah, Dubai, and Umm Al Quwain form the United Arab Emirates.
1972 – Gough Whitlam becomes the first Labor Prime Minister of Australia for 23 years.
1975 – Pathet Lao seizes power in Laos, and establishes the Lao People s Democratic Republic.
1976 – Fidel Castro becomes President of Cuba replacing Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado.
1977 – The first World Series Cricket supertest match played between Australia and West Indies
1980 – Four U.S. nuns and churchwomen, Ita Ford, Maura Clarke, Jean Donovan, and Dorothy Kazel, are murdered by a death squad in El Salvador.
1988 – Benazir Bhutto is sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to head the government of an Islam-dominated state.
1990 – A coalition led by Chancellor Helmut Kohl wins the first free all-German elections since 1932.
1993 – Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar is shot and killed in Medellín.
1993 – Space Shuttle program: STS-61 – NASA launches the Space Shuttle Endeavour on a mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope.
1999 – The United Kingdom devolves political power in Northern Ireland to the Northern Ireland Executive.
2001 – Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
2008 – Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat resigns after the 2008 Thailand political crisis.
Births
1578 – Agostino Agazzari, Italian composer and music theorist (d. 1640)
1694 – William Shirley, Colonial Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1771)
1703 – Ferdinand Konscak, Croatian explorer (d. 1759)
1710 – Bertinazzi, Italian actor and writer (d. 1783)
1738 – Richard Montgomery, Irish-born soldier (d. 1775)
1754 – William Cooper, American judge (d. 1809)
1760 – John Breckinridge, American politician (d. 1806)
1811 – Jean-Charles Chapais, French Canadian politician, Father of the Canadian Confederation (d. 1885)
1817 – Heinrich von Sybel, German historian (d. 1895)
1825 – Emperor Pedro II of Brazil (d. 1891)
1846 – Pierre Marie René Ernest Waldeck-Rousseau, French statesman (d. 1904)
1859 – Georges Seurat, French painter (d. 1891)
1863 – Charles Ringling, American circus owner (d. 1926)
1885 – George Richards Minot, American physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize (d. 1950)
1886 – Harry Burleigh, American composer (d. 1949)
1891 – Otto Dix, German painter and graphic artist (d. 1969)
1891 – Charles H. Wesley, author writer and Brother of Alpha Phi Alpha Inc. (d. 1987)
1892 – Leo Ornstein, Russian-born composer and pianist (d. 2002)
1894 – Warren William, American Broadway and film actor (d. 1948)
1895 – Harriet Cohen, British pianist (d. 1967)
1897 – Hovhannes Bagramyan, Marshall of the Soviet Union (d. 1982)
1898 – Indra Lal Roy, Indian pilot (d. 1918)
1899 – John Barbirolli, British conductor (d. 1970)
1899 – John Cobb, British racing driver (d. 1952)
1899 – Ray Morehart, American baseball player (d. 1989)
1901 – Raimundo Orsi, Argentine-born footballer (d. 1986)
1902 – Howard Koch, American screenwriter (d. 1995)
1906 – Peter Carl Goldmark, Hungarian-born recording engineer (d. 1977)
1910 – Russell Lynes, American art historian, photographer, author and managing editor of Harper s Magazine (d. 1991)
1914 – Adolph Green, American composer (d. 2002)
1914 – Ray Walston, American actor (d. 2001)
1914 – Bill Erwin, American actor
1917 – Sylvia Syms, American jazz singer (d. 1992)
1923 – Maria Callas, Greek soprano (d. 1977)
1924 – Alexander M. Haig, Jr., American soldier and politician
1924 – Vilgot Sjöman, Swedish writer and film director (d. 2006)
1925 – Julie Harris, American actress
1930 – Gary Becker, American economist, recipient of the Bank of Sweden Prize
1930 – David Piper, British race car driver
1931 – Edwin Meese, American lawyer, U.S. attorney general and presidential advisor
1931 – Nigel Calder, British science writer
1931 – Hatsumi Masaaki, founder and head of the Bujinkan Dojo organization
1931 – Wynton Kelly, American jazz pianist (d. 1971)
1933 – Michael Larrabee, American athlete (d. 2003)
1933 – K. Veeramani, Indian anti-caste activist
1934 – Andre Rodgers, baseball player (d. 2004)
1934 – Sissela Bok, Swedish philosopher and ethicist
1934 – Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone, Cardinal Secretary of State and Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church
1935 – David Hackett Fischer, American historian
1939 – Yael Dayan, Israeli writer and politician
1939 – Harry Reid, American politician
1939 – Francis Fox, Canadian politician, member of the Senate
1943 – Wayne Allard, American politician
1944 – Ibrahim Rugova, first President of Kosovo (d. 2006)
1944 – Botho Strauß, German author
1944 – Dionysis Savvopoulos, Greek musician and songwriter
1944 – Inger Davidson, Swedish politician
1945 – Penelope Spheeris, American film director
1946 – Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer (d. 1997)
1947 – Isaac Bitton, French rock band drummer (Les Variations)
1947 – Ivan Atanassov Petrov, Bulgarian neurologist
1947 – Tommy Jenkins, English football player
1948 – T. Coraghessan Boyle, American writer
1950 – Bob Kevoian, American radio personality
1950 – Amin Saikal, Afghan-Australian academic
1950 – Benjamin Stora, French historian
1951 – Adrian Devine, American baseball pitcher
1952 – Carol Shea-Porter, American Congresswoman
1954 – Dan Butler, American actor
1954 – Stone Phillips, American television journalist
1956 – Steven Bauer, American actor
1957 – Dagfinn Høybråten, Norwegian politician
1958 – Uladzimir Parfianovich, Belarusian canoer
1958 – George Saunders, American writer
1960 – Nicholas Dingley alias Razzle, British drummer (Hanoi Rocks) (d. 1984)
1960 – Rick Savage, British bassist (Def Leppard)
1962 – Kardam, Prince of Turnovo, titular Bulgarian royal family
1963 – Ann Patchett, American novelist
1963 – Ron Sutter, National Hockey League player
1963 – Dan Gauthier, American actor
1966 – Jinsei Shinzaki, Japanese professional wrestler
1968 – Lucy Liu, American actress
1968 – Nate Mendel, American bassist (Foo Fighters)
1968 – Rena Sofer, American actress
1968 – Chris Wedge, American animator
1968 – Darryl Kile, baseball player (d. 2002)
1970 – Treach, American rapper (Naughty by Nature)
1971 – Wilson Jermaine Heredia, American actor
1971 – Francesco Toldo, Italian Football Player
1972 – Sergei Zholtok, Latvian ice hockey player (d. 2004)
1973 – Graham Kavanagh, Irish footballer
1973 – Monica Seles, Yugoslavian-born tennis player
1973 – Jan Ullrich, German cyclist
1976 – Eddy Garabito, Dominican baseball player
1977 – Siyabonga Nomvethe, South African footballer
1978 – Nelly Furtado, Canadian singer and songwriter
1978 – Chris Wolstenholme, British bassist (Muse)
1978 – David Rivas, Spanish footballer plays
1978 – Jason Collins, American basketball player
1978 – Jarron Collins, American basketball player
1978 – Peter Moylan, Australian baseball player
1978 – Melissa Archer, American actress
1979 – Yvonne Catterfeld, German singer and actress
1979 – Michael McIndoe, Scottish professional footballer
1981 – Isabella Soprano, American pornographic actress
1981 – Danijel Pranjic, Croatian football player
1981 – Britney Spears, American singer
1982 – Matt Ware, American football player
1982 – Michelle Banzer, model/beauty queen
1982 – Pizon, American rapper/producer
1982 – Hristos Karipidis, Greek footballer
1983 – Bibiana Candelas, Mexican volleyball player
1983 – Chris Burke, Scottish footballer
1983 – Aaron Rodgers, American football player
1984 – Péter Máté, Hungarian footballer
1985 – Dorell Wright, American basketball player
1986 – Claudiu Keserü, Romanian football player
1987 – Teairra Mari, American R&B singer
1988 – Alfred Enoch, British actor
1988 – Soniya Mehra, Indian actress
1989 – Cassie Steele, Canadian actress
1990 – Hikaru Yaotome, Japanese actor and singer
Deaths
1348 – Emperor Hanazono of Japan (b. 1297)
1381 – John of Ruysbroeck, Flemish mystic
1463 – Archduke Albert VI of Austria (b. 1418)
1469 – Piero di Cosimo de Medici, ruler of Florence (b. 1416)
1515 – Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, Spanish general and statesman (b. 1453)
1547 – Hernán Cortés, Spanish explorer and conqueror (b. 1485)
1552 – Francis Xavier, Spanish Catholic missionary (b. 1506)
1615 – Louis des Balbes de Berton de Crillon, French general
1665 – Catherine de Vivonne, marquise de Rambouillet, French socialite (b. 1588)
1694 – Pierre Paul Puget, French artist (b. 1622)
1719 – Pasquier Quesnel, French Jansenist theologian (b. 1634)
1726 – Samuel Penhallow, English-born American colonist and historian (b. 1665)
1747 – Vincent Bourne, English classical scholar (b. 1695)
1748 – Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, English politician (b. 1662)
1774 – Johann Friedrich Agricola, German composer and organist (b. 1720)
1814 – Marquis de Sade, French writer (b. 1740)
1844 – Eustachy Erazm Sanguszko, Polish general and politician (b. 1768)
1849 – Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, wife of William IV of the United Kingdom (b. 1792)
1859 – John Brown, American abolitionist (b. 1800)
1860 – Alfred Bunn, British theatrical manager (b. 1796)
1888 – Namik Kemal, Turkish poet (b. 1840)
1892 – Jay Gould, American entrepreneur (b. 1836)
1899 – Gregorio del Pilar, Filipino general (b. 1875)
1918 – Edmond Rostand, French poet and dramatist (b. 1868)
1924 – Kazimieras Buga, Lithuanian philologist (b. 1879)
1931 – Vincent d Indy, French composer (b. 1851)
1936 – John Ringling, American circus owner (b. 1866)
1943 – Nordahl Grieg, Norwegian author and journalist (b. 1902)
1944 – Josef Lhévinne, Russian pianist (b. 1874)
1944 – Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, Italian writer (b. 1876)
1950 – Dinu Lipatti, Romanian pianist (b. 1917)
1953 – Reginald Baker, Australian athlete and actor (b. 1884)
1957 – Manfred Sakel, Polish psychiatrist (b. 1902)
1963 – Sabu Dastagir, Indian-born American actor (b. 1924)
1963 – Thomas J. Hicks, British-born runner (b. 1875)
1966 – Giles Cooper, Anglo-Irish playwright (b. 1918)
1968 – Adamson-Eric (Eric Adamson), Estonian painter (b. 1902)
1969 – Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov, Russian politician (b. 1881)
1974 – Max Weber, Swiss politician (b. 1897)
1976 – Danny Murtaugh, baseball player and manager (b. 1917)
1980 – Chaudhry Muhammad Ali, Pakistani politician (b. 1905)
1980 – Romain Gary, Lithuanian-born French writer (b. 1914)
1982 – Marty Feldman, British comedian, writer and actor (b. 1933)
1983 – Fifi d Orsay, Canadian actress (b. 1904)
1985 – Aniello Dellacroce, American gangster (b. 1914)
1985 – Philip Larkin, English writer and jazz critic (b. 1922)
1986 – Desi Arnaz, Cuban actor and band leader (b. 1917)
1986 – John Curtis Gowan, American psychologist (b. 1912)
1987 – Luis Federico Leloir, French-born chemist and Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1906)
1987 – Yakov Borisovich Zel dovich, Russian physicist (b. 1914)
1988 – Tata Giacobetti, Italian singer and lyricist (b. 1922)
1990 – Aaron Copland, American composer (b. 1900)
1990 – Robert Cummings, American film and television actor (b. 1908)
1993 – Pablo Escobar, Colombian drug dealer (b. 1949)
1995 – Robertson Davies, Canadian novelist (b. 1913)
1995 – Roxie Roker, American actress (b. 1929)
1997 – Shirley Crabtree, British professional wrestler (b. 1930)
1997 – Michael Hedges, American guitarist (b. 1953)
2002 – Ivan Illich, Austrian priest and philosopher (b. 1926)
2002 – Arno Peters, German historian (b. 1916)
2003 – Alan Davidson, British author (b. 1924)
2004 – Mona Van Duyn, American poet (b. 1921)
2004 – Alicia Markova, British ballerina (b. 1910)
2005 – Kenneth Lee Boyd, American convicted murderer (b. 1948)
2005 – Van Tuong Nguyen, Australian-born Vietnamese drug smuggler (b. 1980)
2005 – Nat Mayer Shapiro, American painter (b. 1919)
2006 – Mariska Veres, Dutch singer (Shocking Blue) (b. 1947)
2007 – Jennifer Alexander, Canadian ballet dancer (b. 1972)
2008 – Edward Samuel Rogers, Canadian entrepreneur (b. 1933)
2008 – Kathleen Baskin-Ball, American United Methodist Pastor
2008 – Odetta, American singer (b. 1930)
Holidays and observances
R.C. Saints – St Bibiana, Saint Chromatius
Laos – National Day
United Arab Emirates – National Day (independence from Britain, 1971)
International Day for the Abolition of Slavery – United Nations
