Today in history, Dec 4th!

Some of the great historical events that happened today in history, on December 4th!

Today in history facts are from various sites including, but not limited too: the History Channel, The New York Times, WHG Historynet.com, HistoryOrb.com, and On This Day blogs from my blogroll.

http://hankeringforhistory.com/2012/12/04/today-in-history-dec-4th/

771	With the death of his brother Carloman, Charlemagne becomes sole ruler of the Frankish Empire.
1783	Gen. George Washington said farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern in New York.
1816	James Monroe of Virginia was elected the fifth president of the United States.
1861	The U.S. Senate, voting 36 to 0, expels Senator John C. Brekinridge of Kentucky because of his joining the Confederate Army.
1861	Queen Victoria of Britain forbids the export of gunpowder, firearms and all materials for their production.
1862	Winchester, Va., falls into Union hands, resulting in the capture of 145 Southern soldiers.
1863	Seven solid days of bombardment ends at Charleston, S.C. The Union fires some 1,307 rounds.
1872	The U.S. brigantine Marie Celeste is found adrift and deserted with its cargo intact, in the Atlantic Ocean between the Azores and Portugal.
1900	The French National Assembly, successor to the States-General, rejects Nationalist General Mercier’s proposal to plan an invasion of England.
1914	The first Seaplane Unit formed by the German Navy officially comes into existence and begins operations from Zeebrugge, Belgium.
1918	France cancels trade treaties in order to compete in the postwar economic battles.
1918	President Woodrow Wilson set sail for France to attend the Versailles peace conference.
1941	Operation Taifun (Typhoon), which was launched by the German armies on October 2, 1941, as a prelude to taking Moscow, is halted because of freezing temperatures and lack of serviceable aircraft.
1942	U.S. bombers struck the Italian mainland for the first time in World War II.
1945	The Senate approved U.S. participation in the United Nations.
1950	The University of Tennessee defies court rulings by rejecting five Negro applicants.
1952	The Grumman XS2F-1 makes its first flight.
1959	Peking pardons Pu Yi, ex-emperor of China and of the Japanese puppet-state of Manchukuo.
1978	Dianne Feinstein became San Francisco’s first woman mayor when she was named to replace George Moscone, who had been assassinated.
1980	The rock group Led Zeppelin announced it was disbanding after the death in September of drummer John Bonham.
1980	The bodies of four American nuns slain in El Salvador two days earlier were unearthed. (Five national guardsmen were later convicted of murder.)
1981	President Ronald Reagan broadens the power of the CIA by allowing spying in the United States.
1985	Robert McFarland resigns as National Security Advisor. Admiral John Poindexter is named to succeed.
1991	The last American hostages held in Lebanon are released.
1992	President George H.W. Bush ordered American troops to lead a mercy mission to Somalia, threatening military action against warlords and gangs who were blocking food for starving millions.
1995	The first NATO troops landed in the Balkans to begin setting up a peace mission.
2000	A Florida state judge refused to overturn Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush’s certified victory in Florida, and the U.S. Supreme Court set aside a ruling that had allowed manual recounts.
2001	The United States froze the financial assets of organizations allegedly linked to the terrorist group Hamas.
2006	Lacking the Senate votes to keep his job, embattled U.N. Ambassador John Bolton offered his resignation to President George W. Bush, who accepted it.