December 3

Events
Up to 1960
915 - Pope John X crowns Berengar I of Italy as Holy Roman Emperor.
1799 - War of the Second Coalition: Battle of Wiesloch - Austrian Lieutenant Field Marshal Szatary de Nagy-Mihaly defeats the French at Wiesloch.
1800 - War of the Second Coalition: Battle of Hohenlinden - French General Moreau decisively defeats Austrian Archduke John.
1818 - Illinois becomes the 21st State of the United States.
1834 - The Zollverein (German customs union) begins the first regular census in Germany.
1854 - Eureka Stockade rebellion occurs in Ballarat, Australia.
1904 - Jupiter's Moon Himalia is discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at the California Lick Observatory.
1910 - Modern Neon lighting is first demonstrated by Georges Claude at the Paris Motor Show.
1912 - Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro and Serbia sign an armistice.
1919 - The Quebec Bridge opens to traffic.
1925 - The Locarno Treaty is signed in London, creating post-war territorial settlements.
1927 - Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy's first movie, Putting Pants on Philip, is released.
1944 - Greek Civil War: Fighting breaks out in Athens between the Greek People's Liberation Army and Government forces supported by the British Army.
1959 - The current flag of Singapore is adopted.
1960 - The musical Camelot is first shown on Broadway.
From 1961
1967 - The first successful heart transplant operation is performed on Louis Washkansky by Dr. Christiaan Barnard in South Africa.
1970 - October Crisis: In Montreal, Quebec, British Trade Commissioner James Cross is released by the Front de la Liberation de Quebec, after 60 days in captivity.
1971 - Full-scale war erupts between India and Pakistan.
1972 - A Spantax Charter flight crashes on Tenerife, killing all 155 people on board.
1973 - The Pioneer 10 space probe sends back close-up images of Jupiter.
1974 - The Pioneer 11 space probe flies within 43,000 kilometers of Jupiter.
1976 - An assassination attempt is made on Bob Marley.
1979 - Ayatollah Khomeini becomes the first Supreme Leader of Iran.
1979 - In Cincinnati, Ohio, 11 fans are crushed to death in a race for seats before a The Who concert.
1984 - A deadly chemical leak occurs in Bhopal, India. 8,000 people die instantly, and thousands die in the years following the accident.
1989 - George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Malta, signifying an end to the Cold War.
1992 - The Greek oil tanker Aegean Sea, with 80,000 tonnes of crude oil, runs aground off Galicia, causing an oil spill, affecting around 300 kilometres of coastline.
1992 - UN Security Resolution 794 is passed, approving UN peacekeepers' intervention in Somalia.
1999 - NASA loses radio contact with the Mars Polar Lander before it enters the Martian atmosphere.
1999 - Six firefighters are killed in the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse fire in Massachusetts.
2007 - Kevin Rudd becomes Prime Minister of Australia.
2007 - Winter storms cause flooding of the Chehalis River in Washington, killing 8 people.
2009 - A suicide bombing in Mogadishu, Somalia, kills 25 people.
2012 - Typhoon Bopha strikes the Philippines, killing at least 475 people.
Births
Up to 1900
1368 - King Charles VI of France (d. 1422)
1483 - Nicolaus von Amsdorf, German theologian and reformer (d. 1565)
1596 - Nicola Amati, Italian violin maker (d. 1684)
1684 - Ludvig Holberg, Danish writer (d. 1754)
1722 - Hrihorii Skovoroda, Ukrainian philosopher, poet and composer (d. 1794)
1729 - Antonio Soler, Spanish composer (d. 1783)
1753 - Samuel Crompton, British inventor (d. 1827)
1755 - Gilbert Stuart, American painter (d. 1828)
1800 - France Preseren, Slovenian poet (d. 1849)
1826 - George B. McClellan, American general and politician, 24th Governor of New Jersey (d. 1885)
1833 - Carlos Finlay, Cuban physician and scientist (d. 1915)
1838 - Octavia Hill, British social reformer (d. 1912)
1842 - Phoebe Hearst, American philanthropist (d. 1919)
1842 - Ellen Swallow Richards, American ecologist and chemist (d. 1911)
1857 - Joseph Conrad, Polish-born British writer (d. 1924)
1864 - Anna Boberg, Swedish artist (d. 1935)
1867 - William John Bowser, 17th Premier of British Columbia (d. 1933)
1871 - Newton D. Baker, American politician (d. 1937)
1875 - Bernhard Lichtenberg, German priest and humanitarian (d. 1943)
1875 - Emile Delchambre, French rower (d. 1958)
1878 - Francis A. Nixon, American businessman (d. 1956)
1879 - Albert Asher, New Zealand rugby player (d. 1965)
1879 - Charles Hutchison, American actor, director and screenwriter (d. 1949)
1879 - Donald Matheson Sutherland, Canadian physician and politician (d. 1970)
1880 - Fedor von Bock, German field marshal (d. 1945)
1883 - Anton Webern, Austrian composer (d. 1945)
1884 - Rajendra Prasad, first President of India (d. 1963)
1884 - Walther Stampfli, Swiss politician (d. 1965)
1885 - Edward Lasker, German-American chess and Go player (d. 1981)
1886 - Manne Siegbahn, Swedish pacifist (d. 1978)
1887 - Prince Higashikuni of Naruhiko, Japanese royal and Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1990)
1895 - Anna Freud, Austrian-British psychoanalyst (d. 1982)
1895 - Teller Ammons, 27th Governor of Colorado (d. 1972)
1899 - Ikeda Hayato, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1965)
1900 - Ulrich Inderbinen, Swiss mountain guide (d. 2004)
1900 - Richard Kuhn, Austrian-German biochemist (d. 1967)
1901 1950
1901 - Mildred Wiley, American high jumper (d. 2000)
1902 - Mitsuda Fuchida, Japanese author (d. 1976)
1908 - Edward Underdown, English actor (d. 1989)
1911 - Nino Rota, Italian composer (d. 1979)
1914 - Irving Fine, American composer (d. 1962)
1917 - Wilhelm Brasse, Polish photographer (d. 2012)
1917 - Manuel Solis Palma, President of Panama (d. 2009)
1920 - Antonio Imbert Barrera, former President of the Dominican Republic (d. 2016)
1921 - Phyllis Curtin, American soprano (d. 2016)
1921 - John Doar, American lawyer (d. 2014)
1922 - Len Lesser, American actor (d. 2011)
1922 - Sven Nykvist, Swedish cinematographer (d. 2006)
1923 - Stjepan Bobek, Yugoslav-Croatian footballer (d. 2010)
1924 - John Backus, American computer programmer (d. 2007)
1925 - Kim Dae Jung, President of South Korea (d. 2009)
1927 - Andy Williams, American singer (d. 2012)
1928 - Muhammad Habibur Rahman, Prime Minister of Bangladesh (d. 2014)
1930 - Jean-Luc Godard, French-Swiss movie director and screenwriter
1930 - Raul M. Gonzalez, Filipino politician (d. 2014)
1930 - Yves Trudeau, Canadian sculptor
1931 - Franz Josef Degenhardt, German author (d. 2011)
1931 - Jaye P. Morgan, American singer and actress
1932 - Corry Brokken, Dutch singer (d. 2016)
1933 - Paul J. Crutzen, Dutch chemist
1934 - Viktor Gorbatko, Soviet-Russian cosmonaut
1934 - Abimael Guzman, Peruvian revolutionary and leader of the Shining Path
1935 - Eddie Bernice Johnson, American politician
1936 - Saburo Kawabuchi, Japanese footballer
1937 - Bobby Allison, American racing driver
1937 - Morgan Llywelyn, American-Irish author
1939 - Lee Israel, American author and literary forger (d. 2014)
1942 - Alice Schwarzer, German journalist, feminist and writer
1942 - Mike England, Welsh rugby player
1942 - Pedro Rocha, Uruguayan footballer (d. 2013)
1943 - Kiyoshi Tomizawa, Japanese footballer
1944 - Paul Nicholas, British actor and singer
1945 - Bozhidar Dimitrov, Bulgarian politician (d. 2018)
1948 - Ozzy Osbourne, English singer
1948 - Maxwell Hutchinson, English architect and broadcaster
1948 - Ove Joensen, Faroese rower and adventurer (d. 1987)
1949 - John Akii-Bua, Ugandan athlete (d. 1997)
1949 - Heather Menzies, Canadian-American actress and model (d. 2017)
1950 - Alberto Juantorena, Cuban athlete
1951 1975
1951 - Nicky Stevens, British singer (Brotherhood of Man)
1952 - Mel Smith, English comedian (d. 2013)
1953 - Franz Klammer, Austrian skier
1955 - Warren Jeffs, American polygamist
1955 - Alberto Tarantini, Argentine footballer
1956 - Ewa Kopacz, former Prime Minister of Poland
1959 - Eamonn Holmes, Northern Irish journalist
1960 - Daryl Hannah, American actress
1960 - Julianne Moore, American actress
1960 - Igor Larionov, Russian ice hockey player
1960 - Mike Ramsey, American ice hockey player
1961 - Adal Ramones, Mexican comedian and actor
1963 - Terri Schiavo, American patient in right-to-die case (d. 2005)
1964 - Tosh McKinlay, Scottish footballer
1965 - Andrew Stanton, American director, screenwriter, producer and voice actor
1965 - Katarina Witt, German figure skater
1966 - Flemming Povlsen, Danish footballer
1968 - Brendan Fraser, American-Canadian actor
1970 - Christian Karembeu, French footballer
1970 - Lindsey Hunter, American basketball player
1971 - Ola Rapace, Swedish actor
1971 - Frank Sinclair, Jamaican footballer
1971 - Henk Timmer, Dutch footballer
1971 - Keegan Connor Tracy, Canadian actress
1973 - Holly Marie Combs, American actress
1975 - Mickey Avalon, American rapper
From 1976
1976 - Byron Kelleher, New Zealand rugby player
1977 - Adam Malysz, Polish ski jumper
1978 - Dan Snow, British television presenter
1979 - Daniel Bedingfield, British singer
1980 - Anna Chlumsky, American actress
1980 - Jenna Dewan, American actress
1981 - Martin Canning, Scottish footballer
1981 - Liza Lapira, American actress
1981 - David Villa, Spanish footballer
1982 - Michael Essien, Ghanaian footballer
1983 - Stephen Donald, New Zealand rugby player
1985 - Laszlo Cseh, Hungarian swimmer
1985 - Amanda Seyfried, American actress
1986 - Radek Smolenak, Czech ice hockey player
1987 - Michael Angarone, American actor
1987 - Alicia Sacramone, American gymnast
1990 - Christian Benteke, Belgian footballer
1990 - Takuji Yonemoto, Japanese footballer
1992 - Joseph McManners, English actor
1994 - Jake T. Austin, American actor
2005 - Prince Sverre Magnus of Norway
Deaths
Up to 1900
312 - Diocletian, Roman Emperor (b. 244)
1048 - Al-Biruni, Iranian mathematician
1154 - Pope Anastasius IV
1265 - Odofredus, Italian jurist
1533 - Vasili III, Grand Prince of Moscow (b. 1479)
1552 - Saint Francis Xavier, Spanish missionary (b. 1506)
1610 - Honda Tadakatsu, Japanese general (b. 1548)
1765 - Lord John Philip Sackville, British cricketer (b. 1713)
1789 - Claude Joseph Vernet, French painter (b. 1714)
1815 - John Carroll, first Roman Catholic archbishop in the U.S. (b. 1735)
1839 - King Frederick VI of Denmark (b. 1768)
1845 - Gregor McGregor, Scottish adventurer (b. 1786)
1882 - Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1811)
1888 - Carl Zeiss, German lens maker (b. 1816)
1892 - Afanasy Fet, Russian poet (b. 1820)
1894 - Robert Louis Stevenson, British writer (b. 1850)
1901 2000
1902 - Robert Lawson, New Zealand architect (b. 1833)
1910 - Mary Baker Eddy, American religious leader (b. 1821)
1912 - Prudente Jose de Morais Barros, President of Brazil (b. 1841)
1919 - Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French impressionist painter (b. 1841)
1935 - Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom (b. 1868)
1939 - Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll (b. 1848)
1941 - Christian Sinding, Norwegian composer (b. 1856)
1949 - Maria Ouspenskaya, Russian-born American actress (b. 1876)
1956 - Mike Bandopadhyay, Indian-Bengali author (b. 1908)
1956 - Alexander Rodchenko, Russian painter and photographer (b. 1881)
1972 - Bill Johnson, American musician (b. 1872)
1973 - Emile Christian, American musician (b. 1895)
1979 - Dhyan Chand, Indian hockey player and Olympic gold medalist (b. 1905)
1980 - Oswald Mosley, British politician (b. 1896)
1981 - Walter Knott, farmer and creator of Knott's Berry Farm (b. 1889)
1984 - Vladimir Rokhlin, Soviet mathematician (b. 1919)
1987 - Luis Federico Leloir, Argentine chemist (b. 1906)
1989 - Fernando Martin Espina, Spanish basketball player (b. 1962)
1996 - Georges Duby, French historian specializing in the Middle Ages (b. 1919)
1999 - Jarl Wahlstrom, the 12th General of The Salvation Army (b. 1918)
1999 - Madeline Kahn, American actress and comedian (b. 1942)
1999 - Scatman John, American singer (lung cancer) (b. 1942)
2000 - Gwendolyn Brooks, American poet (b. 1917)
From 2001
2002 - Glenn Quinn, Irish actor (b. 1970)
2003 - David Hemmings, British actor (b. 1941)
2004 - Shiing-Shen Chern, Chinese mathematician (b. 1911)
2004 - Maria Perschy, Austrian actress (b. 1938)
2009 - Richard Todd, Irish-born actor (b. 1919)
2013 - Ida Pollock, English author and academic (b. 1908)
2013 - Ahmed Fouad Negm, Egyptian poet (b. 1929)
2013 - Ronald Hunter, American actor (b. 1943)
2014 - Herman Badillo, American politician (b. 1929)
2014 - Jacques Barrot, French politician (b. 1937)
2014 - Sjefke Janssen, Dutch cyclist (b. 1919)
2014 - Ian McLagan, English musician (b. 1945)
2014 - Luc Oursel, French businessman (b. 1959)
2014 - Giulio Questi, Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1924)
2014 - Walter Reyno, Uruguayan actor and director (b. 1935)
2014 - Nathaniel Branden, Canadian-American psychotherapist (b. 1930)
2015 - Scott Weiland, American musician (b. 1967)
2017 - John B. Anderson, American lawyer and politician (b. 1922)
2017 - Adam Darius, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1930)
2017 - Elmar Faber, German publisher (b. 1934)
2017 - Thomas Finlay, Irish judge and politician (b. 1922)
2017 - Kjell Opseth, Norwegian politician (b. 1936)
2017 - Ian Twitchin, English footballer (b. 1952)
2018 - Markus Beyer, German boxer (b. 1971)
2018 - Andrei Bitov, Russian writer (b. 1937)
2018 - Philip Bosco, American actor (b. 1930)
2018 - Geoff Murphy, New Zealand film director (b. 1938)
2018 - Josep Lluis Nunez, Spanish businessman (b. 1931)
2019 - Rawshan Ara Bachchu, Bangladeshi activist (b. 1932)
Obeservance
International Day for persons with Disabilities
International Day of the Basque language
Doctors' Day (Cuba)
December 03