A Brief History
This article presents a chronological list of notable events that happened on December 2nd. For each date below, please click on the date to be taken to an article covering that date’s event.
Digging Deeper
On December 2, 1804, at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself Emperor of the French, the first French Emperor in about a thousand years.
On December 2, 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte shocked the world as he crowned himself Emperor of the French by taking the crown from the Pope and plopping it on his own head.
On December 2, 1927, Henry Ford revealed the successor to his iconic Model T, the Ford Model A.
On December 2, 1954, the United States and the Republic of China, known to us today more familiarly as “Taiwan,” signed a mutual defense treaty that was really just the US promising to ensure the integrity of the island of Taiwan which claimed to be the “legitimate” government of China against any invasion or aggression from mainland/Communist China or perhaps the USSR.
On December 2, 1982, medical history was made when Barney Clark, a retired dentist, received a Jarvik 7 artificial heart at the University of Utah, the first time an artificial heart was implanted meant as a permanent solution and not just a temporary spot holder until a viable heart for transplant could be found.
On December 2, 1988, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, thus becoming the first ever female head of government of a modern Islamic country.
On December 2, 1993, Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar was shot (through the ears!) and officially killed in Medellín by Colombian National Police, although his brothers claim the death was a suicide.
On December 2, 2015, an American married couple of Pakistani descent (one a citizen, the other a legal resident) named Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik ruined the Christmas party being held by employees of the Inland Regional Center (a not-for-profit organization that assists 33,000 people with developmental disabilities as well as the families of those persons) in San Bernardino, California by crashing the party with guns blazing, killing 14 people and wounding another 22 victims.
On December 2, 2017, we celebrated National Mutt Day, that day when we acknowledge the union of pure-bred and non-pure-bred dogs that produce the most common type of canine of all, the humble but wonderful “mutt.”
On December 2, 2019, if you had not already waited in line for an hour or more, or more likely was smart and ordered yours online long ago, you may have not been enjoying your wine, beer, cheese, candy, or even Hot Wheel Car from your commercially purchased Advent Calendar!
On Saturday, December 2, 2023, superhero fans had their chance to be among the first in Cleveland, Ohio to see Merry Little Batman at 11:00AM at Atlas Cinemas Eastgate 10, 1345 SOM Center Road, Mayfield Heights, OH 44124!
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: Which event that occurred on today’s date would you like to learn more about?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Andrews, John and Matt Baker. Timeline of World History. Thunder Bay Press, 2020.
You can also watch video versions of this article on YouTube.