771 - Austrasian King Carloman dies, leaving his brother Charlemagne King of the now complete Frankish Kingdom.
1110 - First Crusade: The Crusaders conquer Sidon.
1259 - Kings Louis IX of France and Henry III of England agree to the Treaty of Paris, in which Henry renounces his claims to French-controlled territory on continental Europe (including Normandy) in exchange for Louis withdrawing his support for English rebels.
1563 - The final session of the Council of Trent is held (it opened on December 13, 1545).
1619 - 38 colonists from Berkeley Parish in England disembark in Virginia and give thanks to God (this is considered by many to be the first Thanksgiving in the Americas).
1676 - Battle of Lund: A Danish army under the command of King Christian V of Denmark engages the Swedish army commanded by Field Marshal Simon Grundel-Helmfelt.
1783 - At Fraunces Tavern in New York City, US General George Washington formally bids his officers farewell.
1791 - The first issue of The Observer, the world's first Sunday newspaper, is published.
1829 - In the face of fierce opposition, British governor Lord William Bentinck issues a regulation declaring that all who abetted suttee in India were guilty of culpable homicide.
1864 - American Civil War: Sherman's March to the Sea
1867 - Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry (better known today as the Grange).
1872 - The crewless American ship Mary Celeste is found by the British brig Dei Gratia (the ship was abandoned for 9 days but was only slightly damaged).
1875 - Notorious New York City politician Boss Tweed escapes from prison and flees to Cuba, then Spain.
1881 - The first edition of the Los Angeles Times is published.
1906 - Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity in the United States established for men of African descent, is founded at Cornell University.
1909 - 1st Grey Cup game was played. The University of Toronto Varsity Blues defeated the Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club 26–6.
1918 - U.S. President Woodrow Wilson sails for the World War I peace talks in Versailles, becoming the first US president to travel to Europe while in office.
1921 - The Virginia Rappe manslaughter trial against Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle ends in a hung jury.
1942 - Holocaust: In Warsaw, Zofia Kossak-Szczucka and Wanda Filipowicz set up the Żegota organization.
1942 - Carlson's patrol during the Guadalcanal Campaign ends.
1943 - World War II: In Yugoslavia, resistance leader Marshal Tito proclaims a provisional democratic Yugoslav government in-exile.
1943 - U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt closes down the Works Progress Administration, because of the high levels of wartime employment in the United States.
1945 - By a vote of 65 to 7, the United States Senate approves United States participation in the United Nations (the UN was established on October 24, 1945).
1951 - Mir Waiz Maulvi Muhammad Yusouf is appointed President of Azad Kashmir Government.
1952 - Great Smog of 1952: A cold fog descends upon London, combining with air pollution and killing at least 12,000 in the weeks and months that follow.
1954 - The first Burger King is opened in Miami, Florida, United States
1958 - Dahomey (present-day Benin) becomes a self-governing country within the French Community.
1967 - Vietnam War: US and South Vietnamese forces engage Viet Cong troops in the Mekong Delta.
1969 - Black Panther Party members Fred Hampton and Mark Clark are shot and killed in their sleep during a raid by 14 Chicago police officers.
1971 - The UN Security Council calls an emergency session to consider the deteriorating situation between India and Pakistan.
1971 - The Indian Navy attacks the Pakistan Navy and Karachi.
1971 - The Montreux Casino in Switzerland is set ablaze by someone wielding a flare gun during a Frank Zappa concert; the incident would be noted in the Deep Purple song "Smoke on the Water".
1977 - Malaysia Airlines Flight 653 is hijacked and crashes in Tanjong Kupang, Johor, killing 100.
1978 - Following the murder of Mayor George Moscone, Dianne Feinstein becomes San Francisco, California's first female mayor (she served until January 8, 1988).
1979 - The Hastie fire in Hull, kills three schoolboys and eventually leads police to arrest Bruce George Peter Lee.
1981 - South Africa grants independence to the Ciskei "homeland" (not recognized by any government outside South Africa).
1982 - The People's Republic of China adopts its current constitution.
1984 - Hezbollah militants hijack a Kuwait Airlines plane, killing four passengers.
1991 - Journalist Terry A. Anderson is released after 7 years in captivity as a hostage in Beirut. He was the last and longest-held American hostage in Lebanon.
1991 - Captain Mark Pyle pilots Clipper Goodwill, a Pan American World Airways Boeing 727-221ADV, to Miami International Airport ending 64 years of Pan Am operations.
1992 - Somali Civil War: President George H. W. Bush orders 28,000 US troops to Somalia in Northeast Africa.
1993 - A truce is concluded between the government of Angola and UNITA rebels.
1998 - The Unity Module, the second module of the International Space Station, is launched.
2005 - Tens of thousands of people in Hong Kong protest for democracy and call on the Government to allow universal and equal suffrage.
2006 - An adult giant squid is caught on video by Kubodera near the Ogasawara Islands, 1,000 km (620 miles) south of Tokyo.
2008 - Political crisis in Canada: Governor General Michaëlle Jean grants the request of Prime Minister Stephen Harper to prorogue Parliament until January 26, 2009, averting a motion of no-confidence by the new opposition coalition led by the Leader of the Opposition Stéphane Dion, and the New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton, with Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe as a coalition partner.
