December 4 is the 338th day (339th on Leap Year s) of the Gregorian Calendar . There are 27 days remaining.
- 771 - Austrasia n King Carloman dies, leaving his brother Charlemagne King of the now complete Frankish Kingdom.
- rs conquer Sidon .
- 1259 - Kings Louis IX Of France and Henry III Of England agree to the Treaty Of Paris , in which Henry renounces his claims to French -controlled territory on continental Europe (including Normandy ) in exchange for Louis withdrawing his support for English rebels.
- 1563 - The final session of the Council Of Trent is held (it opened on December 13 , 1545 ).
- 1619 - 38 Colonists from Berkeley Parish in England disembark in Virginia and give thanks to God (this is considered to be the first Thanksgiving in the Americas ).
- 1639 - Jeremiah Horrocks made the first observation of a Transit Of Venus . ( November 24 under the Julian Calendar .)
- 1674 - Father Jacques Marquette founds a mission on the shores of Lake Michigan to minister to the Illiniwek (the mission would later grow into the city of Chicago, Illinois ).
- engages the Swedish army commanded by Field Marshal Simon Grundel-Helmfelt .
- 1783 - At Fraunces Tavern in New York City , US General George Washington formally bids his officers farewell.
- 1791 - The first issue of '' The Observer '', the world's first Sunday Newspaper , is published.
- 1829 - In the face of fierce opposition, British governor Lord William Bentinck carries a regulation declaring that all who abetted Suttee in India were guilty of culpable Homicide .
- - At Waynesboro, Georgia , forces under Union General Judson Kilpatrick prevent troops led by Confederate General Joseph Wheeler from interfering with Union General William T. Sherman 's campaign destroying a wide swath of the South on his march to the Atlantic Ocean from Atlanta (Union forces did suffer more than three times the Confederate casualties, however).
- 1867 - Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry (better known today as the Grange Movement ).
- 1872 - The crewless American ship '' Mary Celeste '' is found by the British brig ''Dei Gratia'' (the ship was abandoned for 9 days but was only slightly damaged).
- 1875 - Notorious New York City politician Boss Tweed escapes from prison and flees to Cuba , then Spain .
- 1906 - Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., the first intercollegiate Greek-letter Fraternity in the United States established for men of African descent, was founded at Cornell University .
- 1918 - US President Woodrow Wilson sails for the World War I peace talks in Versailles , becoming the first US president to travel to Europe while in office.
- 1921 - The Virginia Rappe Manslaughter trial against Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle ends in a hung Jury .
- , Zofia Kossak-Szczucka and Wanda Filipowicz set up Żegota .
- , resistance leader Marshal Tito proclaims a provisional democratic Yugoslav government in-exile.
- 1943 - US President Franklin D. Roosevelt closes the Works Progress Administration .
- 1945 - By a vote of 65 to 7, the United States Senate approves United States participation in the United Nations (the UN was established on October 24 , 1945).
- 1951 - Mir Waiz Maulvi Muhammad Yusouf appointed President of Azad Kashmir Government.
- 1952 - Great Smog Of 1952 : A cold fog descends upon London, combining with air pollution and killing up to 12,000 in the weeks and months that follow.
- 1958 - Dahomey (present-day Benin ) becomes a self-governing country within the French Community .
- and South Vietnam ese forces engage Viet Cong troops in the Mekong Delta .
- 1969 - Black Panther members Fred Hampton and Mark Clark are shot and killed in their sleep during a raid by 14 Chicago police officers.
- 1969 - Surfer Greg Noll rides a 65-foot Wave on the North Shore Of Oahu , still the highest ever recorded.
- 1971 - UN Security Council calls emergency session to consider deteriorating situation between India and Pakistan .
- 1977 - Jean-Bédel Bokassa , president of the Central African Republic , crowns himself Emperor Bokassa I of the Central African Empire .
- 1977 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 653 is hijacked and crashes in Tanjong Kupang, Johor , killing 100.
- 1978 - Following the murder of Mayor George Moscone , Dianne Feinstein becomes San Francisco, California 's first woman mayor (she served until January 8 , 1988 ).
- 1979 - The Hastie fire in Hull , kills three schoolboys and eventually leads police to arrest Bruce George Peter Lee .
- 1980 - The rock group Led Zeppelin formally announce their breakup.
- 1981 - South Africa grants "homeland" Ciskei independence (not recognized outside South Africa).
- 1982 - The People's Republic Of China adopts its current Constitution .
- 1991 - Journalist Terry Anderson is released after 7 years in captivity as a hostage in Beirut (he was the last and longest-held American hostage in Lebanon ).
- 1991 - US airline Pan Am ends operations.
- orders 28,000 US troops to Somalia .
- 1993 - A truce is concluded between the government of Angola and UNITA rebels.
- 1994 - Pakistan wins World Hockey Championship after 12 years, beating the Netherlands by four goals to three, in Sydney .
- 1998 - '' Unity '', the second module of the International Space Station , is launched.
- " with the United States Patent And Trademark Office less than three months after his death in the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks in the United States .
- 2005 - Tens of thousands of people in Hong Kong Protested For Democracy and called on the Government to allow Universal And Equal Suffrage .
- 1555 - Heinrich Meibom , German historian and poet (d. 1625 )
- 1580 - Samuel Argall , English adventurer and naval officer (d. 1626 )
- 1585 - John Cotton , American Puritan leader (d. 1652 )
- 1595 - Jean Chapelain , French writer (d. 1674 )
- 1612 - Samuel Butler , English poet (d. 1680 )
- 1660 - André Campra , French composer (d. 1744 )
- 1670 - John Aislabie , English politician (d. 1742 )
- 1713 - Gasparo Gozzi , Italian critic and dramatist (d. 1786 )
- 1777 - Madame Récamier , French writer (d. 1849 )
- 1795 - Thomas Carlyle , British writer and historian (d. 1881 )
- 1798 - Jules Armand Dufaure , French statesman (d. 1881 )
- 1835 - Samuel Butler , British writer (d. 1902 )
- 1849 - Crazy Horse , Oglala Sioux chief (d. 1877 )
- 1852 - Orest Khvolson , Russian physicist (d. 1934 )
- 1861 - Lillian Russell , American singer and actress (d. 1922 )
- 1866 (O.S.) - Wassily Kandinsky , Russian-born abstract painter (d. 1944 )
- 1875 - Rainer Maria Rilke , Austrian poet (d. 1926 )
- 1892 - Francisco Franco , dictator of Spain (d. 1975 )
- 1895 - Fung Yu-lan , Chinese philosopher (d. 1990 )
- 1903 - Cornell Woolrich , American writer (d. 1968 )
- 1908 - Alfred Hershey , American bacteriologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine (d. 1997 )
- 1912 - Pappy Boyington , American pilot (d. 1988 )
- 1914 - Rudolf Hausner , Austrian artist (d. 1995 )
- 1916 - Ely Jacques Kahn, Jr. , American writer (d. 1994 )
- 1921 - Deanna Durbin , Canadian actress and singer
- 1922 - Gérard Philipe , French actor (d. 1959 )
- 1931 - Alex Delvecchio , Canadian hockey player
- 1934 - Victor French , American actor (d. 1989 )
- 1934 - Wink Martindale , American game show host
- 1937 - Max Baer, Jr. , American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer
- 1938 - Yvonne Minton , Australian soprano
- 1939 - Freddy Cannon , American musician
- 1940 - John Cale , Welsh classical and rock musician and multi-instrumentalist for The Velvet Underground
- 1942 - Gemma Jones , British actress
- 1942 - Roh Tae-woo , President Of South Korea
- 1944 - Dennis Wilson , American musician and singer ( The Beach Boys ) (d. 1983 )
- 1945 - Roberta Bondar , Canadian astronaut and scientist
- 1949 - Jeff Bridges , American actor
- 1953 - Rick Middleton , Canadian Ice Hockey player
- 1955 - Dave Taylor , Canadian ice hockey player
- 1957 - Eric S. Raymond , American open source advocate
- 1958 - Steve Sailer , American political commentator
- 1960 - Glynis Nunn , Australian athlete
- 1961 - Frank Reich , American football player
- 1963 - Sergei Bubka , Ukrainian pole vaulter
- 1964 - Marisa Tomei , American actress
- 1966 - Fred Armisen , American actor and musician
- 1969 - Lucas Radebe , South-african footballer
- 1969 - Jay-Z (Shawn Carter), American rapper
- 1972 - Nikki Tyler , American actress
- 1973 - Tyra Banks , American model
- 765 - Jafar Sadiq , Shia Imam (b. 702 )
- 771 - Carloman , King of the Franks (b. 751 )
- 1075 - Archbishop Anno II of Cologne
- 1123 - Omar Khayyám , Persian poet, astronomer, mathematician, and philosopher (b. 1048 )
- 1214 - William I Of Scotland
- 1270 - Theobald V Of Champagne , King of Navarre
- 1334 - Pope John XXII (b. 1249 )
- 1340 - Henry Burghersh , English bishop and chancellor (b. 1292 )
- 1459 - Adolf VIII , Duke of Southern Jutland (b. 1401 )
- 1576 - Rheticus , Austrian mathematician (b. 1514 )
- 1585 - John Willock , Scottish reformer
- 1609 - Alexander Hume , Scottish poet
- 1642 - Armand Jean Du Plessis, Cardinal Richelieu , French statesman (b. 1585 )
- 1649 - William Drummond Of Hawthornden , Scottish poet (b. 1585 )
- 1679 - Thomas Hobbes , English philosopher (b. 1588 )
- 1680 - Thomas Bartholin , Danish physician, mathematician, and theologian (b. 1616 )
- 1696 - Empress Meisho Of Japan (b. 1624 )
- 1732 - John Gay , British playwright (b. 1685 )
- 1784 - Wiseman Claget , British classical scholar (b. 1721 )
- 1798 - Luigi Galvani , Italian physicist (b. 1737 )
- 1845 - Gregor MacGregor , British con-artist
- 1926 - Ivana Kobilca , Slovenian-born painter (b. 1861 )
- 1933 - Stefan George , German poet (b. 1868 )
- 1935 - Johan Halvorsen , Norwegian composer (b. 1864 )
- 1935 - Charles Robert Richet , French physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1850 )
- 1945 - Thomas Hunt Morgan , American geneticist, recipient of the Nobel Prize In Physiology Or Medicine (b. 1866 )
- 1956 - Alexandr Rodchenko , Russian painter and photographer (b. 1891 )
- 1967 - Bert Lahr , American actor (b. 1895 )
- 1969 - Fred Hampton , American activist (b. 1948 )
- 1976 - Tommy Bolin , American guitarist (b. 1951 )
- 1976 - Benjamin Britten , British composer (b. 1913 )
- 1980 - Francisco Sá Carneiro , Prime Minister Of Portugal (b. 1934 )
- 1980 - Stanislawa Walasiewicz , Polish-born athlete (b. 1911 )
- 1993 - Frank Zappa , American musician and composer (b. 1940 )
- 1997 - Richard Vernon , British actor (b. 1925 )
- 2005 - Gregg Hoffman , American film producer (b. 1963 )
December 3 - December 5 - November 4 - January 4 — Listing Of All Days
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