December 2 in History

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Historical Events on December 2

1244

Pope Innocent IV arrives at Lyon for the First Council of Lyon
1409

The University of Leipzig opens.
1697

St Paul's Cathedral is consecrated in London.
1763

Dedication of the Touro Synagogue, in Newport, Rhode Island, the first synagogue in what will become the United States.
1775

The USS Alfred becomes the first vessel to fly the Grand Union Flag (the precursor to the Stars and Stripes); the flag is hoisted by John Paul Jones.
1804

At Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte crowns himself Emperor of the French.
1805

War of the Third Coalition: Battle of Austerlitz: French troops under Napoleon Bonaparte decisively defeat a joint Russo-Austrian force.
1823

Monroe Doctrine: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President James Monroe proclaims American neutrality in future European conflicts, and warns European powers not to interfere in the Americas.
1845

Manifest destiny: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President James K. Polk proposes that the United States should aggressively expand into the West.
1848

Franz Joseph I becomes Emperor of Austria.
1851

French President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte overthrows the Second Republic.
1852

Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte becomes Emperor of the French as Napoleon III.
1859

Militant abolitionist leader John Brown is hanged for his October 16 raid on Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.
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

Puyi becomes Emperor of China at the age of two.
1917

World War I: Russia and the Central Powers sign an armistice at Brest-Litovsk, and peace talks leading to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk begin.
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: In a State of the Union message, U.S. President Herbert Hoover proposes a $150 million (equivalent to $2,150,000,000 in 2016) public works program to help generate jobs and stimulate the economy.
1939

New York City's LaGuardia Airport opens.
1942

World War II: During the Manhattan Project, a team led by Enrico Fermi initiates the first artificial self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction.
1943

World War II: A Luftwaffe bombing raid on the harbour of Bari, Italy, sinks numerous cargo and transport ships, including the American SS John Harvey, which is carrying a stockpile of World War I-era mustard gas.
1947

Jerusalem Riots of 1947: Riots break out in Jerusalem in response to the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine.
1950

Korean War: Battle of the Ch'ongch'on River ended, with decisive Chinese victory, UN forces were completely expelled from North Korea.
1954

Cold War: The United States Senate votes 65 to 22 to censure 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 Taiwan, is signed in Washington, D.C.
1956

The Granma reaches the shores of Cuba's Oriente Province. 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 U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield becomes the first American official to comment adversely 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.
1975

Laotian Civil War: The Pathet Lao seizes the Laotian capital of Vientiane, forces the abdication of King Sisavang Vatthana, and proclaims the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
1976

Fidel Castro becomes President of Cuba, replacing Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado.
1980

Salvadoran Civil War: Four American missionaries are raped and murdered by a death squad.
1982

At the University of Utah, Barney Clark becomes the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart.
1988

Benazir Bhutto is sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan, becoming the first woman to head the government of an Islam-dominated state.
1991

Canada and Poland become the first nations to recognize the independence of Ukraine from the Soviet Union.
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 following the Good Friday Agreement.
2001

Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
2015

San Bernardino attack: Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik kill 14 people and wound 22 at the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino, California.
2016

36 people die in a fire at a converted Oakland, California, warehouse serving as an artist collective.

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