Historical Events
- 1240 Mongols led by Batu Khan occupy and destroy Kyiv after an 8 day siege; out of 50,000 people in the city only 2,000 survive
- 1865 13th Amendment of the United States Constitution is ratified, abolishing slavery (except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted,) [1]
- 1877 Thomas Edison enters the offices of Scientific American and turns the crank on his cylinder phonograph, astonishing those present with the recording, "Good morning. How do you do? How do you like the phonograph?" [1]
- 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty signed; Ireland receives dominion status; partition creates Northern Ireland
- 1998 Hugo Chávez is elected President of Venezuela
- 2006 NASA reveals photographs taken by Mars Global Surveyor suggesting the presence of liquid water on Mars
- More Historical Events
Dec 6 in Film & TV
- 2002 "Adaptation" directed by Spike Jonze, starring Nicolas Cage and Meryl Streep premieres
Dec 6 in Music
- 1969 300,000 attend Altamont free concert in California, featuring The Rolling Stones. Marred by violence and four deaths.
Dec 6 in Sport
- 1992 San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice catches NFL record 101st touchdown in a 27-3 win over Miami Dolphins at Candlestick Park
Did You Know?
Aluminum capstone set atop Washington Monument, Washington, D.C., making it the tallest human-built structure in the world (overtaking Cologne Cathedral)
On December 6, 1884
Famous Weddings
- 1491 King Charles VIII of France (21) marries Anna Duchess of Brittany (14) giving France control over Brittany
- 1630 Painter Peter Paul Rubens (53) marries his second wife Helena (16) Fourment and the inspiration for his voluptuous female figures, in Antwerp
- 1930 Pablo Neruda marries Marie A Hagenaar Vogelzang in Batavia
Famous Divorces
- 1938 Actress Bette Davis (30) divorces musician Harmon Nelson (31) after more than 6 years of marriage
- 1982 US Senator Ted Kennedy divorces Joan Kennedy after 34 years of marriage
- 1988 Actor and comedian Robin Williams (37) divorces Valerie Velardi after 10 years of marriage
More Weddings & Divorces
Articles, Photos and Quiz
St Nicholas – The Man Behind Santa Claus
Saint Nicholas died on this day but happily the tradition associated with him of giving gifts to others, especially children, has survived the centuries.
December 6, 343 ADMongol Siege of Kyiv
Siege weapons and logistic supplies of the Mongol army laying siege to Kyiv
December 6, 1240Anglo-Irish Treaty
Signature page of the Anglo-Irish Treaty
December 6, 1921Weekly Quiz for December 2 - 8
What did FDR call Pearl Harbor in a speech to Congress a day after the attack? What was patented in the US in 1909 sparking the birth of the plastics industry?