Dec. 14 1901 - 1st Table Tennis Tournament

1901 - 1st table tennis tournament is held (London Royal Aquarium)

Dec. 13 1862 Battle of Fredricksburg

The battle opened south of the city at 8:30 a.m. on December 13 1862. It would be one of Robert E. Lee's greatest defeats and would remind the Union that the South was not to be taken lightly. Gen. Burnside would suffer a stinging defeat that would lead to his eventual replacement. At the end of the days of fighting both sides would realize this was a long evil war that had much fighting left.

Dec. 12 1996 - Uday Hussein attempted assassination

Although his status as Saddam Hussein's eldest son made him the prospective successor to his father, Uday fell out of favor with Saddam for his extravagance and recklessness. He was by all accounts a sadist and pervert par excellence.

Uday sustained permanent injuries during an assassination attempt possibly instigated by his younger brother Qusay in December 1996. Struck by eight bullets while driving his Porsche, Uday was initially believed to be paralyzed. Evacuated to Ibn Sina Hospital, he was treated by a Cuban medical team and eventually recovered his ability to walk, albeit with a limp.

Dec. 11 1792 - King Louis XVI faced charges of Treason

In 1792, France’s King Louis XVI went before the Convention to face charges of treason. Louis was convicted, and executed the following month.

Dec. 10 2000 - Bush's Lawyers file brief with US Supreme Court

Bush's lawyers file briefs with the United States Supreme Court saying that the hand recount violates the United States Constitution's guarantee of equal protection. Gore's lawyers say the issue is the importance of counting every vote.

Dec. 9 1992 - US Marines begin Operation Restore Hope in Somalia

In 1992 the UN authorized the American peacekeeping force to lead a restoration of humanitarian efforts. The US Marines came ashore at Mogadishu on December 9, 1992. They were authorized to use any means necessary to restore order and deliver food to thousands of starving Somalis. By March the famine conditions had become much better under strong supervision from the United States.

By late in 1993, the situation had changed, Somali gangs led by Al Qaeda had shot down a US Military Helicopter. It was well chronicled in the book "Blackhawk Down."

Dec. 9 1990 - Lech Walesa elected President of Poland

Lech Walesa was elected President of Poland ushering in free elections in the former Communist State. He declared a war "on the top" and upset many political parties. He ran for re-election in 1995 but lost.

Dec. 8 1987 - Occupied Palestinians start "intefadeh" (uprising) against Israel

Palestinian's begin their intefadeh (or uprising) in frustration to Israeli rule over the Occupied Territories. Many people believe this is the begining of Modern Terrorism because most problems in the Middle East can be directly traced back to the Palestinian-Israeli problems.

Dec. 8 1863 - Abraham Lincoln announces plan for Reconstruction of South

One of his many grand accomplishments Abraham Lincoln began to devise his plans to bring the South back into the Union. He favored a lenient policy and wanted to reunite. But many of his proponents had different plans.

He wanted the Re-United State to accept the President and take a Oath of the Constitution. It was today that Lincoln unveiled this plan and gradually began to bring the Confederacy back into the Union.

Dec. 7 1988 - Earthquake in Armenia

Spitak, Armenia saw a 7.2 magnitude earthquake strike on this day in 1988. 25,000 lives were lost. An entire city (Spitak) was destroyed and due to poor infrastructure many more lives were lost.

In 1990, a Monument was erected in Washington to commemorate the massive aid that was donated to Armenia in its time of need. That monument is shown above.

Dec. 7 1941 - "a date which will live in infamy."

With those words, Franklin Roosevelt plunged the US into the Second World War. It was December 7th and the Japanese had just bombed Pearl Harbor. The final death toll that day was 2300 americans. It ended up defining a generation and setting the stage for America growing into a Super Power.