﻿ December 2 | This day in history
This Day In History
Thursday, July 18, 2019
On This Day


in 1409

The University of Leipzig...
The University of Leipzig opens. The University of Leipzig, located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. Famous alumni include Goethe, Wagner, Nietzsche, Angela Merkel and multiple Nobel Prize winners in Physics, Chemistry and Literature.
University of Leipzig, Leipzig, university

in 1805

Battle of Austerlitz
Battle of Austerlitz The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition. On 2 December 1805, a French army, commanded by Emperor Napoleon I, decisively defeated a Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Tsar Alexander I and Francis II of Holy Roman Empire, after nearly nine hours of difficult fighting. The battle took place near Austerlitz (Slavkov u Brna) about 10 km (6.2 mi) south-east of Brno in Moravia, at that time in the Austrian Empire (present day Czech Republic). The battle is often regarded as a tactical masterpiece.
Napoleonic Wars, Austerlitz, battle

in 1942

Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi
Manhattan Project: A team led by Enrico Fermi initiates the first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction. Enrico Fermi had been the first to use a neutron to produce the radioactive change of one element to another. On 2 December 1942 he initiated the atomic age with the first self-sustaining chain reaction, after which he became known as "father of the atomic bomb". Michael H. Hart ranked him #76 in his list of the most influential figures in history.
Enrico Fermi, Manhattan Project, nuclear chain reaction


in 1859
Georges Seurat

Georges Pierre Seurat was a French Post-Impressionist painter and draftsman. He is noted for his innovative use of drawing media and for devising a technique of painting known as pointillism. His large-scale work A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte (1884–1886), Seurat's most famous painting, altered the direction of modern art by initiating Neo-impressionism, and is one of the icons of 19th century painting.
in 1898
Indra Lal Roy

Indra Lal Roy was the first Indian flying ace. He served in the First World War with the Royal Flying Corps and its successor, the Royal Air Force. He claimed 5 aircraft destroyed (including 1 shared), and 5 'down out of control' wins (including another shared) in just over 170 hours flying time.
in 1978
Nelly Furtado

Nelly Kim Furtado is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer and actress. Furtado grew up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
in 1981
Britney Spears



in 1594
Gerardus Mercator

Gerardus Mercator was a cartographer, born in Rupelmonde in the Hapsburg County of Flanders, part of the Holy Roman Empire. He is remembered for the Mercator projection world map, which is named after him. This proved very useful to many later navigators who could (using his map) sail across the entire ocean on approximately straight paths (called rhumb lines). He died in Duisburg.
in 1814
Marquis de Sade
