Events on Dec 11
- 0384St. Damasus I ends his reign as Catholic Pope
- 1419Heretic Nicolaas Serrurier exiled from Florence
- 1572Spanish troops begin siege of Haarlem
- 1618Russia and Poland signs Peace treaty of Dailino
- 1620103 Mayflower pilgrims land at Plymouth Rock (12 / 21 NS)
- 1665"Messiah" Sjabtai Tswi festival in Smyrna
- 1688King James II arrested
- 1710Battle of Villa Viciosa (France beat Habsburgers)
- 1718Battle at Frederikshall Norway
- 17191st recorded display of Aurora Borealis in US (New England)
- 18121st newspaper on Curacao (Curacao Gazette & Commercial Advertiser)
- 1816Citizens of Geneva thwarted Savoyard invaders
- 1816Indiana becomes 19th state
- 18441st dental use of nitrous oxide, Hartford, Connecticut
- 18661st yacht race across Atlantic Ocean
- 18721st black US gov took office, Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback (La)
- 1882Victorien Sardous "Fedora, " with Sarah Bernhardt, premieres in Paris
- 1888French Panama Canal company fails
- 189311 fishing ships wash up at Wadden Sea, 22 killed
- 1901Marconi sends 1st transatlantic radio signal, Cornwall to Nfld
- 1903British forces under MacDonald and Young march into Tibet
- 1905British government of Campbell-Bannerman forms
- 1906US President Roosevelt attacks abuses in the Congo
- 1909Canadian Football exhibition game played in Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx, Hamilton Tigers beat Ottawa Rough Riders, 11-6 before 15,000
- 1909Colored moving pictures demonstrated at Madison Square Garden, New York City
- 1914Stockton Street Tunnel (San Francisco) completed
- 1916David Lloyd George forms British war government
- 191713 black soldiers hanged for alleged participation in Houston riot
- 1917German-occupied Lithuania proclaims independence from Russia
- 1919Boll weevil monument dedicated in Enterprise, Ala
Born on Dec 11
- 1566Manuel Cardoso: Composer
- 1676Johann Georg Weichenberger: Composer
- 1712Francesco Algarotti: Italian Earl / encyclopedic (Viaggio in Russia)
- 1757Charles Wesley: Composer
- 1758Carl Friedrich Zelter: Composer
- 1781David Brewster: Scotland, United Kingdom -- Physicist / inventor (kaleidoscope)
- 1783Max von Schenkendorf: German poet
- 1793Pietro Coppola: Composer
- 1797Hiram Paulding: Rear Admiral (Union Navy), died in 1878
- 1801Grabbe: Writer
- 1810Alfred de Musset: Paris, France -- Writer (Un Caprice, Bettine)
- 1823Yury Nikolayevich Golitsin: Composer
- 1835Adolf Stoecker: German anti semite / Prime Minister
- 1836Jan Boissevain: Dutch politician / ship owner
- 1838Emil Rathenau: German industrialist (AEG)
- 1838Whitney Eugene Thayer: Composer
- 1840Kemal Bey: Turkey -- Poet / author (Fatherland-1872)
- 1843Robert Koch: German bacteriologist (TB, cholera, Nobel 1905)
- 1849Ellen Key: Swedish theory / author / feminist (Courageous Woman)
- 1855Julian Edwards: Composer
- 1856Georgi V Plechanov: Russian revolutionary theorist
- 1856Plechanow: Writer
- 1863Annie Jump Cannon: United States -- Stellar spectroscopist (Harvard-classification)
- 1868Ernst Henrik Ellberg: Composer
- 1874Paul Wegener: German actor / director (Student of Prag)
- 1876Mieczyslaw Karlowicz: Composer
- 1882Fiorello La Guardia: (Mayor-R-New York City, 1933-45)
- 1882Max Born: Germany -- Physicist (quantum mechanics, Nobel 1954)
- 1889Paul Kornfeld: Writer
- 1898Nils J E Ferlin: Swedish poet (Barfotabarn)
Died on Dec 11
- 0711Justitianus II: Emperor of Byzantium, dies at about 42
- 1282Llywelyn ab Gruffydd: Monarch of North Wales (1246-77)
- 1282Michael VIII: Paleologus, Byzantine Emperor (1259-82)
- 1573Alardus / Eilard de Waterlant: Duke of Alva, hanged
- 1582Fernando Alvarez de Toledo: Marquis of Soria, dies at about 75
- 1595Philip III van Croij: Prince of Chimay / General, dies at 69
- 1610Adam Elsheimer: German Painter / cartoonist / etcher, buried at 32
- 1610Forges Dimitri 2: Czar of Russia, murdered
- 1748Ewald G von Kleist: German lawyer / inventor of condensator, dies at 55
- 1756Theodor A Freiherr von Neuhoff: German adventurer / King
- 1817Max von Schenkendorf: German poet, dies at 34
- 1831John George Schetky: Composer, dies at 55
- 1847Moritz Grave von Strachwitz: German poet, dies at 25
- 1857Francois Henri Joseph Castil-Blaze: Composer, dies at 73
- 1891Johan C J van Schagen: Dutch Poet / writer (Narrenwijsheid)
- 1899Andrew "Andy" Wauchope: British General Major, dies in battle
- 1899Lord Winchester: British Marquis / major, dies in battle
- 1902Matthias Hohner: German manufacturer (harmonica), dies at 68
- 1911Thomas Ball: US Sculptor / Painter / singer, dies at 92
- 1918Ivan Cankar: Slavic Author (Hlapec Jernej), dies at 42
- 1930Friedrich von Bernhardi: German war theorist / historian, dies at 81
- 1933Emile C Wauters: Belgian Painter (Van der Goes Klooster), dies at 87
- 1955Franz Adolf Syberg: Composer, dies at 51
- 1955Johan C Altorf: Sculptor (October 3 Monument), dies at 79
- 1964Percy Kilbride: Actor (Ma & Pa Kettle), dies at 76
- 1964Sam Cooke: Rock vocalist, shot to death at 29
- 1967Howard Freeman: Actor (Double Dynamite), dies after illness in New York City
- 1967Richard Stohr: Composer, dies at 93
- 1967Victor De Sabata: Composer, dies at 75
- 1968Nadine Riga: Dies of cerebral hemorrhage at 59
Historical events on December 12
- 0627Battle at Nineveh: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius beats Perzen
- 10981st Crusaders capture and plunder Mara Syria
- 1479Jews are expelled from Schlettstadt Alsace by Emperor Frederick III
- 1524Pope Clement VII approves Organization of Jewish Community of Rome
- 1527Composer Adrian Willaert moves from Milan to Venice
- 1653Barebone-parliament ends
- 1677Brandenburgs army occupies Stettin
- 1700Utrecht / Overijssel / Buren / Leerdam / Ijsselstein adopt Gregorian calendar
- 1787Pennsylvania becomes 2nd state to ratify US constitution
- 1791Bank of US opens
- 1792In Vienna, Ludwig Von Beethoven (22) receives 1st lesson in music composition from Franz Joseph Haydn
- 1800Washington DC established as capital of US
- 1822Mexico officially recognized as an independent nation by US
- 1862Battle of Dumfries, Virginia
- 1862Naval Engagement at Yazoo River, MS (USS CAIRO torpedoed)
- 1870Joseph Rainey (SC) became 1st black sworn into House of Reps
- 1871Jules Janssen discovers dark lines in solar corona spectrum
- 1878Joseph Pulitzer begins publishing "St. Louis Dispatch"
- 18841st Test match played at the Adelaide Oval
- 1897Anti-Jewish violence breaks out in Bucharest Romania
- 18981st 1st-class game between NSW and Tasmania
- 18991st case of plague on Oahu, Hawaii
- 1899George F Bryant of Boston patents the wooden golf tee
- 1900National Negro Anthem, "Lift Every Voice & Sing, " composed
- 1901Marconi receives 1st transatlantic radio signal, England to US
- 1903Roger Casement completes report about abuses in Belgian Congo
- 1904CMS McClellans "Leah Kleschna, " premieres in New York City
- 1906Oscar Straus, 1st Jewish government member, appointed Secretary of Commerce
- 1912R Friml / O Harbachs musical "Firefly, " premieres in New York City
- 1913"Mona Lisa, " stolen from Louvre Museum in 1911, recovered
Born on December 12
- 1574Anne van Denemarken: Daughter of Danish King Frederik II
- 1579Heinrich Steuccius: Composer
- 1630Olof Rudbeck: Composer
- 1660Peter Rabus: Poet / translator (Liberated Britanje)
- 1673Ahmed III: 23rd Sultan of Turkey (1703-30)
- 1685Lodovico Giustini: Composer
- 1712Charles Alexander: Duke of Lotharingen
- 1715Gennaro Manna: Composer
- 1745John Jay: Diplomat / Governor (NY)
- 1792Alexandros Ypsilanti: Greek resistance fighter
- 1805Henry Wells: Founder (American Express Co and Wells Fargo & Co)
- 1806Stand Watie: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1871
- 1818Paul Octave Hebert: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1880
- 1821Gustave Flaubert: France -- Novelist (Madame Bovary)
- 1830Joseph Orville Shelby: Brigadier General (Confederate Army), died in 1897
- 1832Abraham C Wertheim: Dutch banker / MP (liberal)
- 1833Matthias Hohner: German manufacturer (harmonica)
- 1835Georges Jean Pfeiffer: Composer
- 1838Sherburne W Burnham: United States -- Astronomer (binary stars)
- 1848William Vanderbilt: Yachtsman (donated Vanderbilt Cup)
- 1859Edward Bradley: Horse owner (1st to own 4 Kentucky Derby winners)
- 1859Maurice Donnay: French playwright (Lovers)
- 1863Edvard Munch: Norway -- Painter / print maker (The Scream)
- 1866Alfred Werner: Switzerland -- Chemist (Nobel 1913)
- 1874Volter A Kilpi: Finnish writer (Alastalon salissa)
- 1875Desiderius A Stracke: Flemish Jesuit / literature historian
- 1875Karl R G von Rundstedt: German gen-Field Marshal (Normandy)
- 1879Friedrich Christiansen: Nazi Commander Wehrmacht Netherland
- 1879Laura Hope Crews: United States -- Actress (Camille, Gone with the Wind)
- 1879Percy Fletcher: Composer
Died on December 12
- 0884Carloman: Co-king of France (879, 882-884)
- 1112Tancred: Monarch of Galilea / Edessa / Antioch
- 1263Hakon IV: Gamli, King of Norway (1217-63)
- 1677Jacob Binckes / Benckes: Dutch Admiral (Chatham), dies in battle
- 1772Johann Gottfried Seyfert: Composer, dies at 41
- 1777Albrecht von Haller: Swiss Physician / biologist / author, dies at 69
- 1777Benjamin Russen: Rev, executed at Tyburn England for rape
- 1788Joseph Gibbs: Composer, dies at 88
- 1812John Malchair: Composer, dies at 82
- 1836Giuseppe Farinelli: Composer, dies at 67
- 1843Willem I Frederik: King of the Netherlands (1814-40), dies at 71
- 1872Willem A Schimmelpenninck van der Oye: Dutch politician, dies at 72
- 1877Jose M de Alencar: Brazilian writer / Minister of Justice, dies at 48
- 1880Michel Chasles: French Mathematician (geometry), dies at 83
- 1889Robert Browning: English Poet (Ring & Book), dies at 77
- 1912Luitpold von Bayern: Prince-regent of Bayern, dies at 91
- 1914Watkins Lewis: Black man lynched in Shrevport, Louisiana
- 1920Olive Schreiner: South African writer (Healing Imagination), dies at 75
- 1920Paul Lacome: Composer, dies at 82
- 1921Henrietta Leavitt: Cepheid period-luminosity relation discover
- 1923Raymond Radiguet: French journalist / writer (Ball du Comte), dies at 20
- 1926Jean Richepin: French Poet / writer (Contes sans morale), dies at 77
- 1927Heinrich Reitsch: Composer, dies at 67
- 1932Egon Richter: Writer
- 1933Theodore Moses Tobani: Composer, dies at 78
- 1937Alfred Abel: Actor (Dr Mabuse, Metropolis), dies at 57
- 1939Douglas Fairbanks: Actor (Zorro, 3 Musketeers, Robin Hood), dies at 56
- 1956Lorenzo Perosi: Composer, dies at 83
- 1957Robert Frank Kurka: Composer, dies at 35
- 1959Russell Simpson: Actor (Abraham Lincoln), dies at 79
Events on Dec 13
- 1294Pope Coelestinus V ends term
- 1545Council of Trent (19th ecumenical council) opens
- 1570Sweden / Denmark signs Peace of Stettin
- 1572Spanish army beats Geuzen fleet under Admiral Lumey
- 1577Sir Francis Drake sets sail from England to go around world
- 1621Emperor Ferdinand II delegates 1st anti-Reformation decree
- 1642New Zealand discovered by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman
- 1668Jean Racines "Britannicus, " premieres in Paris
- 1734England and Russia sign trade agreement
- 1742Willem KH Friso tests his mothers potatoes
- 17591st music store in America opens (Philadelphia)
- 1769Dartmouth College in New Hampshire received its charter
- 17741st incident of Revolution-400 attack Ft William and Mary, New Hampshire
- 1816Patent for a dry dock issued to John Adamson, Boston
- 1823Gioacchino Rossini arrives in London
- 1843"A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens published, 6,000 copies sold
- 1861Battle of Alleghany Summit, West Virginia
- 1864Battle of Ft McAllister, Georgia
- 18791st federal fish hatching steamer lauched (Wilmington Delaware)
- 1889Belgium rules on women / child labor law
- 18951st complete execution of Gustav Mahlers 2nd Symphony
- 1900Battle at Nooitgedacht: generals The la Rey / Smuts beat Britten
- 1901Test debut of S F Barnes vs. Aust SCG, took 5-65 in 1st innings
- 1903Italo Marcioni patents ice cream cone (NJ)
- 1903Wright Bros make 1st flight at Kittyhawk
- 1907George Gunn scores 119 on Test debut vs. Australia SCG
- 1907German Emperor Wilhelm II visits Amsterdam
- 1913Mona Lisa stolen in August 1911 returned to Louvre
- 1916Avalanche kills 10,000 Austrian and Italian troops in 24 hours in Tyrol
- 1916Esme Stuart Lennox Robinsons premieres in Dublin
Born on Dec 13
- 1521Sixtus V [Felice Peretti / "Montalto"]: Bishop of Fermo / Pope (1585-90)
- 1533Erik XIV Wasa: King of Sweden (1560-69)
- 1553Henry IV: 1st Bourbon-king of Navarre / France (1572 / 89-1610)
- 1724Aepinus [Franz UT Hoch]: German Physician / physicist
- 1732Jean-Claude Trial: Composer
- 1740Franz Xaver Schnitzer: Composer
- 1770John Clarke-Whitfeld: Composer
- 1797Heinrich Heine: Germany -- Poet / lyricist (Schubert, Liszt)
- 1810Clark Mills: United States -- Sculptor (Freedom, Armed Liberty)
- 1816Clement Claiborne Clay: MC (Confederacy), died in 1882
- 1816E Werner von Siemens: German artillery officer / inventor
- 1818Mary Todd Lincoln: 1st lady (1861-65)
- 1819Edwin George Monk: Composer
- 1835Phillips Brooks: Episcopal Bishop / composer (Little Town of Bethlehem)
- 1838Marie-Alexis Castillon de Saint-Victor: Composer
- 1843George Stephanescu: Composer
- 1850Iver Paul Fredrik Holter: Composer
- 1853Joseph Sickman Corsen: Musician / composer / screenwriter
- 1858Jakab Gyula Major: Composer
- 1863Johannes Weiss: German New Testament Scholar
- 1865Gustav Luders: Composer
- 1871Herman T Colenbrander: Dutch historian
- 1871Russell W Porter: Vermont, United States -- Explorer (Alaska)
- 1874Ludwig Curtius: German archaeologist (Die antike Kunst)
- 1877Mykola Dmytrovich Leontovych: Composer
- 1886Lambertus J van Apeldoorn: Lawyer (martial law)
- 1889Clarence Loomis: Composer
- 1890Marc Connelly: McKeesport, Pennsylvania -- Playwright (One Minute Please)
- 1892Brand Dirck Ochse: Filmer / co-founder (Polygoon)
- 1893Curt Jurgens: Munich, Germany -- Actor (Enemy Below, Longest Day)
Died on Dec 13
- 0838Pippijn I: King of Aquitania
- 1048Al-Biruni: Arabic royal astrologer, dies at 74
- 1124Callistus II [Guido di Borgogna]: Italian Pope (1119-24)
- 1126Hendrik IX [the Black]: Duke of Bayern (1120-26)
- 1250Frederick II: German Emperor (1212-1250), dies at 55
- 1404Albrecht: Duke of Bavaria, dies at 74
- 1521Manoel I "the Great": King of Portugal (1495-1521), dies at 52
- 1565Konrad von Gesner: Naturalist, dies at 49
- 1603Franciscus Vieta: Mathematician, dies in Paris at 63
- 1622Jan Campanus: Composer, dies at 50
- 1672Jan II Kazimierz: King of Poland (1648-68), dies at 63
- 1693Dodoftei: Romanian metropolitan of Moldavia / writer (Saint Lives)
- 1729Anthony Collins: Engl philosopher (On Liberty & Necessity), dies at 53
- 1738Gotthard Wagner: Composer, dies at 59
- 1769C F Gellert: Writer, dies at 54
- 1774Susanne K von Klettenberg: German friend of Goethes mother, dies at 50
- 1793Johann Joachim Christoph Bode: Composer, dies at 63
- 1812Marianne von Martinez: Composer, dies at 68
- 1814Charles Joseph Prince of Ligne: Belg Field Marshal / author, dies at 79
- 1862Conrad Feger Jackson: US Union Brigadier General, dies in battle at 49
- 1862Maxcy Gregg: US Confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at 48
- 1862Thomas Reade Rootes Cobb: Confederate Brigadier General, dies in battle at 39
- 1863Friedrich Hebbel: Writer, dies at 50
- 1881August Senoa: Croatian writer (Kletva [The Curse]), dies at 43
- 1894Sarah Parker Remond: US / Italian abolitionist, dies at 68
- 1898George Frederick Bristow: Composer, dies at 72
- 1919Amintore Galli: Composer, dies at 74
- 1924Samuel Gompers: Organizer (American Federation of Labor), dies at 74
- 1929Knut Algot Hakanson: Composer, dies at 42
- 1942Eleanor Everest Freer: Composer, dies at 78