December 17 in History
What happened on December 17 in history?
A chronological timetable of historical events that occurred on december 17 in history. Historical facts of the day in the areas of military, politics, science, music, sports, arts, entertainment and more. Discover what happened on december 17 in history.
?>2010
Mohamed Bouazizi immolates himself, the catalyst for the Tunisian revolution and the subsequent Arab Spring.
2002
Congolese parties of the inter Congolese Dialogue sign a peace accord in the Second Congo War, providing for transitional government and elections within two years.
1990
Jean-Bertrand Aristide wins Haiti’s first free election.
1989
The Simpsons, television’s longest-running animated series, makes its US debut.
1989
Fernando Color de Mello becomes Brazil’s first democratically elected president in nearly 30 years.
1981
Red Brigade terrorists kidnap Brigadier General James Dozier, the highest-ranking U.S. NATO officer in Italy.
1965
Ending an election campaign marked by bitterness and violence, Ferdinand Marcos is declared president of the Philippines.
1952
Yugoslavia breaks relations with the Vatican.
1950
The French government appoints Marshal de Lattre de Tassigny to command their troops in Vietnam.
1948
The Smithsonian Institution accepts the Kitty Hawk – the Wright brothers’ plane.
1944
The German Army renews the attack on the Belgian town of Losheimergraben against the defending Americans during the Battle of the Bulge.
1944
U.S. approves end to internment of Japanese Americans. U.S. Major General Henry C. Pratt issues Public Proclamation No. 21, declaring that Japanese American “evacuees” from the West Coast could return to their homes effective January 2, 1945.
1943
U.S. forces invade Japanese-held New Britain Island in New Guinea.
1939
In the Battle of River Plate near Montevideo, Uruguay, the British trap the German pocket battleship Graf Spee. German Captain Langsdorf sinks his ship believing that resistance is hopeless.
1938
Italy declares the 1935 pact with France invalid because ratifications had not been exchanged. France denies the argument.
1927
U.S. Secretary of State Frank B. Kellogg suggests a worldwide pact renouncing war.
1903
Near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Orville and Wilbur Wright make the first successful flight in history of a self-propelled, heavier-than-air aircraft.
1886
At a Christmas party, Sam Belle shoots his old enemy Frank West, but is fatally wounded himself.
1861
The Stonewall Brigade begins to dismantle Dam No. 5 of the C&O Canal.
1399
Tamerlane’s Mongols destroy the army of Mahmud Tughluk, Sultan of Delhi, at Panipat.