December 6

December 6 is the 340th day (341st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 25 days remaining.

Events

• 963 - Leo VIII is elected Pope.
• 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev under Danylo of Halych and Voivode Dmytro falls to the Mongols under Batu Khan.
• 1534 - The city of Quito in Ecuador is founded by Spanish settlers led by Sebastián de Belalcázar.
• 1768 - The first edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica is published.
• 1790 - The U.S. Congress moves from New York City to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• 1845 - Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity was founded at Yale College by Louis Manigault, Horace Spangler Weiser, and Stephen Ornsby Rhea.
• 1849 - American abolitionist Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery.
• 1865 - The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, banning slavery.
• 1877 - The Washington Post newspaper is first published.
• 1884 - The Washington Monument in Washington D.C. is completed.
• 1907 - A coal mine explosion at Monongah, West Virginia kills 362 workers.
• 1917 - Finland declares its independence from Russia.
• 1917 - Halifax Explosion: In Canada, a munitions explosion kills more than 1900 people and destroys part of the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia.
• 1921 - The Anglo-Irish Treaty is signed in London by British and Irish representatives
• 1922 - One year to the day after the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State comes into existence.
• 1933 - U.S. federal judge John M. Woolsey rules that the James Joyce novel Ulysses is not obscene.
• 1947 - The Everglades National Park in Florida is dedicated.
• 1957 - Project Vanguard: A launchpad explosion thwarts the first United States attempt to launch a satellite.
• 1965 - Pakistan's Islamic Ideology Advisory Committee recommended that Islamic Studies be made a compulsory subject for Muslim students from primary to graduation level.
• 1969 - Meredith Hunter is killed by Hell's Angels during The Rolling Stones's concert at the Altamont speedway in California.
• 1971 - Pakistan snaps diplomatic ties with India following New Delhi's recognition of Bangladesh.
• 1971 - King Faisal of Saudi Arabia condemns Indian aggression on Pakistan.
• 1973 - The United States House of Representatives votes 387 to 35 to confirm Gerald Ford as Vice President of the United States (on November 27, the Senate confirmed him 92 to 3).
• 1975 - Balcombe Street Siege: An IRA Active Service Unit takes a couple hostage in Balcombe Street, London.
• 1977 - South Africa grants independence to Bophuthatswana, although it is not recognized by any other country
• 1978 - Spain approves its latest constitution in a referendum.
• 1989 - École Polytechnique Massacre: Marc Lépine kills 14 young women in Montreal, Quebec.
• 1991 - In Croatia, forces of the Yugoslav People's Army bombard Dubrovnik after laying siege there since May.
• 1992 - In Ayodhya, India, Hindus belonging to the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party demolish the Babri Masjid, a 16th century mosque.
• 1997 - A Russian Antonov AN-124 transport cargo plane crashes into an apartment complex near Irkutsk, Siberia, killing 67.
• 2005 - David Cameron becomes leader of the UK Conservative Party, defeating David Davis.

Births

• 846 - Hasan al-Askari, Shia Imam (d. 874)
• 1285 - King Ferdinand IV of Castile (d. 1312)
• 1421 - King Henry VI of England (d. 1471)
• 1478 - Baldassare Castiglione, Italian diplomat and author (d. 1529)
• 1550 - Orazio Vecchi, Italian composer (baptism) (d. 1605)
• 1586 - Niccolo Zucchi, Italian astronomer (d. 1670)
• 1608 - George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle, English soldier (d. 1670)
• 1637 - Sir Edmund Andros, English governor in North America (d. 1714)
• 1640 - Claude Fleury, French historian (d. 1723)
• 1642 - Johann Christoph Bach, German composer (d. 1703)
• 1721 - James Elphinston, British philologist (d. 1809)
• 1721 - Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes, French statesman (d. 1794)
• 1778 - Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, French physicist and chemist (d. 1850)
• 1792 - King William II of the Netherlands (d. 1849)
• 1805 - Adolf Reubke, German organ builder (d. 1875)
• 1805 - Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin, French magician (d. 1861)
• 1823 - Friedrich Max Müller, German orientalist (d. 1900)
• 1833 - John Singleton Mosby, American Confederate guerrilla leader (d. 1916)
• 1841 - Frédéric Bazille, French painter (d. 1870)
• 1849 - August von Mackensen, German field marshal (d. 1945)
• 1863 - Charles Martin Hall, American chemist (d. 1914)
• 1872 - William S. Hart, American actor (d. 1946)
• 1875 - Evelyn Underhill, British poet (d. 1941)
• 1886 - Joyce Kilmer, American poet (d. 1918)
• 1890 - Rudolf Schlichter, German artist and writer (d. 1955)
• 1890 - Yoshio Nishina, Japanese physicist (d. 1951)
• 1892 - Sir Osbert Sitwell, British author (d. 1969)
• 1896 - Ira Gershwin, American lyricist (d. 1983)
• 1898 - Alfred Eisenstaedt, German-born photojournalist (d. 1995)
• 1898 - Gunnar Myrdal, Swedish economist, recipient of the Bank of Sweden Prize (d. 1987)
• 1900 - Agnes Moorehead, American actress (d. 1974)
• 1903 - Tony Lazzeri, American baseball player (d. 1946)
• 1905 - James J. Braddock, American boxer (d. 1974)
• 1908 - Pierre Graber, Swiss Federal Councilor (d. 2003)
• 1913 - Eleanor Holm, American swimmer (d. 2004)
• 1917 - Kamal Jumblatt, leader of the Lebanese Druze (d. 1977)
• 1919 - Paul de Man, Belgian-born literary critic (d. 1983)
• 1920 - Dave Brubeck, American pianist and composer
• 1920 - George Porter, British chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2002)
• 1921 - Otto Graham, American football player (d. 2003)
• 1928 - Bobby Van, American singer (d. 1980)
• 1929 - Alain Tanner, Swiss filmmaker
• 1929 - Nikolaus Harnoncourt, German conductor
• 1930 - Daniel Lisulo, Prime Minister of Zambia
• 1933 - Henryk Górecki, Polish composer
• 1936 - David Ossman, American comedian
• 1942 - Peter Handke, Austrian writer
• 1945 - Shekhar Kapur, Indian filmmaker
• 1945 - Larry Bowa, baseball player and Major League manager
• 1948 - JoBeth Williams, American actress
• 1948 - Keke Rosberg, Finnish race car driver
• 1950 - Joe Hisaishi, Japanese composer
• 1952 - Rick Charlesworth, Australian cricketer, politician, hockey player, and coach
• 1953 - Tom Hulce, American actor
• 1953 - Gary Ward, American baseball player
• 1955 - Steven Wright, American comedian
• 1955 - Rick Buckler, British drummer (The Jam)
• 1956 - Peter Buck, American guitarist (R.E.M.)
• 1956 - Randy Rhoads, American guitarist (d. 1982)
• 1958 - Xander Berkeley, American actor
• 1958 - Nick Park, British filmmaker and animator
• 1961 - David Lovering, American drummer (The Pixies)
• 1962 - Janine Turner, American actress
• 1967 - Hacken Lee, Hong Kong singer
• 1971 - Richard Krajicek, Dutch tennis player
• 1971 - Ryan White, American AIDS activist (d. 1990)
• 1976 - Colleen Haskell, American television personality
• 1977 - Kevin Cash, baseball player
• 1977 - Andrew Flintoff, England cricketer
• 1977 - Paul McVeigh, Irish footballer
• 1979 - Tim Cahill, Australia footballer
• 1980 - Steve Lovell, British footballer
• 1983 - Bryan Habana, South African rugby player
• 1986 - Cintia Dicker, Brazilian model
• 1988 - Adam Greenberg, American civil rights leader
• 1993 - Elian Gonzalez, Cuban subject of child custody battle

Deaths

• 1185 - King Afonso I of Portugal (b. 1109)
• 1352 - Pope Clement VI (b. 1291)
• 1562 - Jan van Scorel Dutch painter and architect
• 1618 - Jacques-Davy Duperron, French cardinal (b. 1556)
• 1658 - Baltasar Gracián y Morales, Spanish writer (b. 1601)
• 1672 - King John II Casimir of Poland (b. 1609)
• 1675 - John Lightfoot, English churchman (b. 1602)
• 1718 - Nicholas Rowe, English poet and dramatist (b. 1674)
• 1746 - Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish songwriter (b. 1665)
• 1771 - Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist (b. 1682)
• 1779 - Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, French painter (b. 1699)
• 1788 - Jonathan Shipley, British bishop and politician (b. 1714)
• 1867 - Jean Pierre Flourens, French physician (b. 1794)
• 1868 - August Schleicher, German linguist (b. 1821)
• 1882 - Anthony Trollope, British author (b. 1815)
• 1882 - Alfred Escher, Swiss politician and railroad entrepreneur (b. 1819)
• 1889 - Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States of America (b. 1808)
• 1892 - Ernst Werner von Siemens, German inventor and industrialist (b. 1816)
• 1949 - Leadbelly, American musician (b. 1885)
• 1951 - Harold Ross, American magazine editor (b. 1892)
• 1955 - Honus Wagner, baseball player (b. 1874)
• 1956 - Dr. Bhimji Ramji Ambedkar, Indian Minister of Law (b. 1891)
• 1961 - Frantz Fanon, West Indian psychiatrist and writer (b. 1925)
• 1976 - João Goulart, President of Brazil (b. 1918)
• 1985 - Burr Tillstrom, American puppeteer (b. 1917)
• 1988 - Roy Orbison, American singer, guitarist, and songwriter (b. 1936)
• 1989 - Frances Bavier, American actress (b. 1902)
• 1991 - Sir Richard Stone, British economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913)
• 1993 - Don Ameche, American actor (b. 1908)
• 1997 - Billy Bremner, Scottish footballer (b. 1942)
• 2001 - Sir Peter Blake, New Zealand sailor and environmentalist (b. 1948)
• 2002 - Philip Berrigan, American civil rights activist (b. 1923)
• 2003 - Carlos Manuel Arana Osorio, President of Guatemala (b. 1918)
• 2003 - Jerry Tuite, American professional wrestler (b. 1966)
• 2004 - Raymond Goethals, Belgian football coach (b. 1921)
• 2005 - Charly Gaul, Luxembourg cyclist
• 2005 - Devan Nair, 3rd President of Singapore (b. 1923)

Holidays and observances

• R.C. Saints - optional memorial of Saint Nicholas
• Also see December 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Canada - National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women
• Finland - Finland Independence Day (from Russia, 1917)
• Spain - Constitution Day

External links

• BBC: On This Day

December 5 - December 7 - November 6 - January 6 — listing of all days