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On This Day in History — December 7
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Highlights of December 7
- 2015 — The JAXA space probe Akatsuki entered into orbit around Venus to study the planet's atmosphere, five years after its first attempt failed. Read more
- 2014 — The annual furry convention Midwest FurFest was targeted in an unsolved chlorine gas attack. Read more
- 2011 — The United States transferred its last base in the Al Anbar Governorate to the Iraqi government, ending the Anbar campaign. Read more
- 1995 — The Galileo spacecraft arrived at Jupiter, a little more than six years after it was launched by Space Shuttle Atlantis during Mission STS-34. Read more
- 1988 — A 6.8 Ms earthquake struck the Spitak region of Armenia, killing at least 25,000 people (aftermath pictured). Read more
- 1975 — The Indonesian military began a lengthy occupation of East Timor under the pretext of anti-colonialism. Read more
- 1972 — Construction workers found the remains of Martin Bormann near Lehrter Station in Berlin, ending a decades-long search after his conviction in absentia at the Nuremberg trials. Read more
- 1942 — Second World War: A small unit of Royal Marines launched Operation Frankton, in which they damaged six ships in the port of Bordeaux in German-occupied France. Read more
- 1936 — Australian cricketer Jack Fingleton (pictured) became the first player to score centuries in four consecutive Test innings. Read more
- 1862 — American Civil War: The Battle of Prairie Grove ended a Confederate attempt to regain control of northwestern Arkansas. Read more
- 1837 — British troops swiftly defeated rebels led by William Lyon Mackenzie and Anthony Van Egmond at the Battle of Montgomery's Tavern, the only major confrontation of the Upper Canada Rebellion. Read more
- 574 — Suffering from mental illness, Eastern Roman emperor Justin II had his general Tiberius proclaimed Caesar, adopting him as his own son. Read more
- 43 BC — Cicero, widely considered one of ancient Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists, was killed after having been proscribed as an enemy of the state. Read more
Events
- 2025 — British racing driver Lando Norris wins the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 2025 with McLaren. Read more
- 2025 — An attempted coup takes place in Benin, but is thwarted, and order restored. Read more
- 2024 — Battle of Damascus (2024): Syrian opposition forces enter the Rif Dimashq Governorate, reaching within 20 km of the capital Damascus. Read more
- 2017 — Aztec High School shooting: William Atchison kills two students at his former high school. Read more
- 2016 — Pakistan International Airlines Flight 661, a domestic passenger flight from Chitral to Islamabad, operated by an ATR-42-500 crashes near Havelian, killing all 47 on board. Read more
- 2015 — The JAXA probe Akatsuki successfully enters orbit around Venus five years after the first attempt. Read more
- 2014 — The annual furry convention Midwest FurFest is targeted in an unsolved chlorine gas attack. Read more
- 2005 — Rigoberto Alpizar, a passenger on American Airlines Flight 924 who allegedly claimed to have a bomb, is shot and killed by a team of U.S. federal air marshals at Miami International Airport. Read more
- 2003 — The Conservative Party of Canada is officially registered, following the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. Read more
- 1995 — The Galileo spacecraft arrives at Jupiter, a little more than six years after it was launched by Space Shuttle Atlantis during Mission STS-34. Read more
- 1995 — Khabarovsk United Air Group Flight 3949 crashes into the Bo-Dzhausa Mountain, killing 98. Read more
- 1995 — An Air Saint Martin (now Air Caraïbes) Beechcraft 1900 crashes near the Haitian commune of Belle Anse, killing 20. Read more
- 1993 — Long Island Rail Road shooting: Passenger Colin Ferguson murders six people and injures 19 others on the LIRR in Nassau County, New York. Read more
- 1988 — The 6.8 Ms Armenian earthquake shakes the northern part of the country with a maximum MSK intensity of X (Devastating), killing 25,000–50,000 and injuring 31,000–130,000. Read more
- 1987 — Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771, a British Aerospace 146-200A, crashes near Paso Robles, California, killing all 43 on board, after a disgruntled passenger shoots his ex-boss traveling on the flight, then shoots both pilots and steers the plane into the ground. Read more
- 1983 — An Iberia Airlines Boeing 727 collides with an Aviaco DC-9 in dense fog while the two airliners are taxiing down the runway at Madrid–Barajas Airport, killing 93 people. Read more
- 1982 — In Texas, Charles Brooks Jr., becomes the first person to be executed by lethal injection in the United States. Read more
- 1982 — The Senior Road Tower collapses in less than 17 seconds. Five workers on the tower are killed and three workers on a building nearby are injured. Read more
- 1972 — Apollo 17, the last Apollo Moon mission, is launched. The crew takes the photograph known as The Blue Marble as they leave the Earth. Read more
- 1971 — The Battle of Sylhet is fought between the Pakistani military and the Indian Army. Read more
- 1971 — Pakistan President Yahya Khan announces the formation of a coalition government with Nurul Amin as Prime Minister and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as Deputy Prime Minister. Read more
- 1965 — Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I simultaneously revoke mutual excommunications that had been in place since 1054. Read more
- 1963 — Instant replay makes its debut during the Army-Navy football game in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Read more
- 1962 — Prince Rainier III of Monaco revises the principality's constitution, devolving some of his power to advisory and legislative councils. Read more
- 1949 — Chinese Civil War: The Government of the Republic of China moves from Nanjing to Taipei, Taiwan. Read more
- 1946 — A fire at the Winecoff Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia kills 119 people, the deadliest hotel fire in U.S. history. Read more
- 1944 — An earthquake along the coast of Wakayama Prefecture in Japan causes a tsunami which kills 1,223 people. Read more
- 1942 — World War II: British commandos conduct Operation Frankton, a raid on shipping in Bordeaux harbour. Read more
- 1941 — World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor: The Imperial Japanese Navy carries out a surprise attack on the United States Pacific Fleet and its defending Army and Marine air forces at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. (For Japan's near-simultaneous attacks on Eastern Hemisphere targets, see December 8.) Read more
- 1936 — Australian cricketer Jack Fingleton becomes the first player to score centuries in four consecutive Test innings. Read more
- 1932 — German-born Swiss physicist Albert Einstein is granted an American visa. Read more
- 1930 — W1XAV in Boston, Massachusetts telecasts video from the CBS radio orchestra program, The Fox Trappers. The telecast also includes the first television advertisement in the United States, for I.J. Fox Furriers, which also sponsored the radio show. Read more
- 1922 — The Parliament of Northern Ireland votes to remain a part of the United Kingdom and not unify with Southern Ireland. Read more
- 1917 — World War I: The United States declares war on Austria-Hungary. Read more
- 1904 — Comparative fuel trials begin between warships HMS Spiteful and HMS Peterel: Spiteful was the first warship powered solely by fuel oil, and the trials led to the obsolescence of coal in ships of the Royal Navy. Read more
- 1842 — First concert of the New York Philharmonic, founded by Ureli Corelli Hill. Read more
- 1837 — The Battle of Montgomery's Tavern, the only battle of the Upper Canada Rebellion, takes place in Toronto, where the rebels are quickly defeated. Read more
- 1787 — Delaware becomes the first state to ratify the United States Constitution. Read more
- 1776 — Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, arranges to enter the American military as a major general. Read more
- 1732 — The Royal Opera House opens at Covent Garden, London, England. Read more
- 1724 — Tumult of Thorn: Religious unrest is followed by the execution of nine Protestant citizens and the mayor of Thorn (Toruń) by Polish authorities. Read more
- 1703 — The Great Storm of 1703, the greatest windstorm ever recorded in the southern part of Great Britain, makes landfall. Winds gust up to 120 mph, and 9,000 people die. Read more
- 1688 — Siege of Derry: 13 apprentice boys shut the gates of the town of Derry to a Jacobite army. Read more
- 927 — The Sajid emir of Adharbayjan, Yusuf ibn Abi'l-Saj is defeated and captured by the Qarmatians near Kufa. Read more
- 574 — Byzantine Emperor Justin II, suffering recurring seizures of insanity, adopts his general Tiberius and proclaims him as Caesar. Read more
- 43 BC — Marcus Tullius Cicero is assassinated in Formia on orders of Marcus Antonius. Read more
Born on December 7
- 2002 — Torri Huske, American swimmer Read more
- 2001 — Jalen McMillan, American football player Read more
- 2000 — Dane Belton, American football player Read more
- 1999 — Boo Buie, American basketball player Read more
- 1999 — Pavol Regenda, Slovak ice hockey player Read more
- 1998 — Tony Yike Yang, Canadian pianist Read more
- 1997 — Abi Harrison, Scottish footballer Read more
- 1997 — Tommy Nelson, American actor Read more
- 1994 — Pete Alonso, American baseball player Read more
- 1994 — Geno Chiarelli, American politician Read more
- 1994 — Yuzuru Hanyu, Japanese figure skater Read more
- 1994 — Hunter Henry, American football player Read more
- 1993 — Rahama Sadau, Nigerian actress Read more
- 1993 — Alex Singleton, American football player Read more
- 1992 — Sean Couturier, American-Canadian ice hockey player Read more
- 1991 — Eugenio Pisani, Italian race car driver Read more
- 1991 — Chris Wood, New Zealand footballer Read more
- 1990 — Cameron Bairstow, Australian basketball player Read more
- 1990 — David Goffin, Belgian tennis player Read more
- 1990 — Aleksandr Menkov, Russian long jumper Read more
- 1990 — Yasiel Puig, Cuban baseball player Read more
- 1990 — Urszula Radwańska, Polish tennis player Read more
- 1989 — Kyle Hendricks, American baseball player Read more
- 1989 — Philip Larsen, Danish ice hockey player Read more
- 1989 — Alessandro Marchi, Italian footballer Read more
- 1989 — Kevin Séraphin, French basketball player Read more
- 1988 — Nathan Adrian, American swimmer Read more
- 1988 — Angelina Gabueva, Russian tennis player Read more
- 1988 — Andrew Goudelock, American basketball player Read more
- 1987 — Aaron Carter, American singer-songwriter, rapper, dancer, and actor (died 2022) Read more
- 1986 — Billy Horschel, American golfer Read more
- 1986 — Nita Strauss, American guitarist Read more
- 1985 — Jon Moxley, American wrestler Read more
- 1984 — Aaron Gray, American basketball player Read more
- 1984 — Robert Kubica, Polish race car driver Read more
- 1984 — Milan Michálek, Czech ice hockey player Read more
- 1984 — Luca Rigoni, Italian footballer Read more
- 1983 — Mike Mucitelli, American mixed martial artist Read more
- 1983 — Al Thornton, American basketball player Read more
- 1982 — Lou Amundson, American basketball player Read more
Died on December 7
- 2024 — Doudou Adoula, Congolese atalaku and composer (born 1965) Read more
- 2023 — Benjamin Zephaniah, British writer and dub poet (born1958) Read more
- 2023 — Refaat Alareer, Palestinian professor and writer (born1979) Read more
- 2023 — Emiko Miyamoto, Japanese volleyball player (born 1937) Read more
- 2020 — Dick Allen, American baseball player and tenor (born 1942) Read more
- 2020 — Chuck Yeager, American aviator (born 1923) Read more
- 2019 — Ron Saunders, English football player and manager (born 1932) Read more
- 2017 — Steve Reevis, Native American actor (born 1962) Read more
- 2016 — Junaid Jamshed, Pakistani recording artist, television personality, fashion designer, occasional actor, singer-songwriter and preacher. (born 1964) Read more
- 2016 — Greg Lake, English musician (born 1947) Read more
- 2015 — Gerhard Lenski, American sociologist and academic (born 1924) Read more
- 2015 — Hyron Spinrad, American astronomer and academic (born 1934) Read more
- 2015 — Peter Westbury, English race car driver (born 1938) Read more
- 2015 — Shirley Stelfox, English actress (born 1941) Read more
- 2014 — Mark Lewis, American author and educator (born 1954) Read more
- 2013 — Édouard Molinaro, French actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1928) Read more
- 2013 — Chick Willis, American singer and guitarist (born 1934) Read more
- 2012 — Roelof Kruisinga, Dutch physician and politician, Dutch Minister of Defence (born 1922) Read more
- 2012 — Ralph Parr, American colonel and pilot (born 1924) Read more
- 2012 — Marty Reisman, American table tennis player and author (born 1930) Read more
- 2012 — Saul Steinberg, American businessman and financier (born 1939) Read more
- 2011 — Harry Morgan, American actor (born 1915) Read more
- 2010 — Elizabeth Edwards, American lawyer and author (born 1949) Read more
- 2010 — Kari Tapio, Finnish singer (born 1945) Read more
- 2008 — Herbert Hutner, American banker and lawyer (born 1908) Read more
- 2006 — Jeane Kirkpatrick, American academic and diplomat, 16th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (born 1926) Read more
- 2005 — Bud Carson, American football player and coach (born 1931) Read more
- 2004 — Frederick Fennell, American conductor and educator (born 1914) Read more
- 2004 — Jerry Scoggins, American singer and guitarist (born 1913) Read more
- 2004 — Jay Van Andel, American businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Amway (born 1924) Read more
- 2003 — Carl F. H. Henry American journalist and theologian (born 1913) Read more
- 2003 — Azie Taylor Morton, American educator and politician, 36th Treasurer of the United States (born 1933) Read more
- 1998 — John Addison, English-American composer and conductor (born 1920) Read more
- 1998 — Martin Rodbell, American biochemist and endocrinologist, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1925) Read more
- 1998 — George Wilson, American comics artist (born 1921) Read more
- 1997 — Billy Bremner, Scottish footballer and manager (born 1942) Read more
- 1995 — Kathleen Harrison, English actress (born 1892) Read more
- 1993 — Abidin Dino, Turkish-French painter and illustrator (born 1913) Read more
- 1993 — Félix Houphouët-Boigny, Ivoirian physician and politician, 1st President of Ivory Coast (born 1905) Read more
- 1992 — Richard J. Hughes, American politician, 45th Governor of New Jersey, and Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court (born 1909) Read more
Holidays & observances
Armed Forces Flag Day (India); Christian feast day:
Aemilianus (Greek Church); Christian feast day:
Ambrose; Christian feast day:
Buíte of Monasterboice; Christian feast day:
Maria Giuseppa Rossello; Christian feast day:
Sabinus of Spoleto; Christian feast day:
December 7 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Eve of the Immaculate Conception-related observances:
Day of the Little Candles, begins after sunset (Colombia); International Civil Aviation Day; National Heroes Day (East Timor); National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day (United States); Spitak Remembrance Day (Armenia)
Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “December 7”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.