134 things happened on 5 December, from 63 BC to 2025. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1914 · 112 years ago
Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition began. Its aim was to make the first crossing of Antarctica over land. The expedition did not manage to cross the continent. Instead, it became famous as an epic story of endurance. It is seen as the…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
English sailor Francis Drake raided the port of Valparaíso on the Pacific coast of South America. He had just sailed through the Strait of Magellan, a narrow sea route linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. This was part of his famous voyage of 1577 to 1580, the second ever to sail all the way round the world. Drake later helped fight the Spanish Armada in 1588.
UK story
James Christie, a Scottish auctioneer, held his first sale in London. At an auction, things are sold to whoever offers the most money. Christie founded the auction house that still carries his name, Christie's. He lived from 1730 to 1803.
UK story
Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition began. Its aim was to make the first crossing of Antarctica over land. The expedition did not manage to cross the continent. Instead, it became famous as an epic story of endurance. It is seen as the last great expedition of the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
UK story
The Football Association (FA) banned women's football in England from being played at league grounds. The ban stayed in place for 50 years. The FA, formed in 1863, is the oldest football association in the world. Women's football has been played in England for more than a century.
UK story
The Preston Bypass, the United Kingdom's first motorway, opened to the public. It was about 13 kilometres long and ran around the east side of Preston in Lancashire, crossing the River Ribble. It was designed by James Drake, a surveyor working for Lancashire County Council. The road later became part of the M6 motorway.
UK story
Queen Elizabeth II launched Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) in the United Kingdom. She made a call from Bristol to the Lord Provost, the civic leader, of Edinburgh. STD meant people could dial long-distance calls themselves. Before that, they needed help from a switchboard operator.
UK story
The Civil Partnership Act came into effect, and the first civil partnership was registered in the United Kingdom. The law let same-sex couples form a civil partnership, with rights and responsibilities very similar to marriage. In 2019 it was changed so that opposite-sex couples could form civil partnerships too.
UK story
World War II: Great Britain declares war on Finland, Hungary and Romania.
In a message to the US Congress, President James K. Polk confirmed that large amounts of gold had been found in California. Gold had first been found at Sutter's Mill in January 1848. The news brought about 300,000 people to California, helping it grow fast and become a US state in 1850. The gold rush also had terrible effects on the Native Californians who already lived there.
In Montgomery, Alabama, USA, people began refusing to ride the city's buses. They were protesting against segregation, the unfair laws that kept Black and white passengers apart. The boycott started four days after Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat. It lasted more than a year, until a US Supreme Court ruling against bus segregation took effect.
NASA launched the first test flight of its Orion spacecraft, with no crew on board. It blasted off on a Delta IV Heavy rocket from Cape Canaveral in Florida. Orion is now used in the Artemis programme to explore the Moon and can carry four astronauts. Part of it, the service module, is provided by the European Space Agency.
Cicero gives the fourth and final of the Catiline Orations.
Fourth Council of Toledo opens, presided over by Isidore of Seville.
Seeking to resubjugate Muscovy, Emir Edigu of the Golden Horde reaches Moscow, burning areas around the city but failing to take the city itself.
Pope Innocent VIII issued the papal bull Summis desiderantes affectibus, which gave the Dominican inquisitor Heinrich Kramer the explicit authority to prosecute witchcraft in Germany.
King Manuel I of Portugal issues a decree ordering the expulsion of Jews from the country.
Ten-year-old Charles IX becomes king of France, with Queen Mother Catherine de' Medici as regent.
The town of Raahe (Swedish: Brahestad) is founded by Count Per Brahe the Younger.
Seven Years' War: Prussian troops under Frederick the Great defeated Austrian forces at the Battle of Leuthen (pictured).
American Revolutionary War: Continental Army colonel Henry Knox arrived at Fort Ticonderoga in New York to arrange the transport of 60 tons of artillery (depicted) to support the siege of Boston.
Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest academic honor society in the U.S., holds its first meeting at the College of William & Mary.
Former U.S. President John Quincy Adams takes his seat in the House of Representatives.
Jefferson Davis is elected to the U.S. Senate.
Chincha Islands War: Peru allies with Chile against Spain.
New Haven Symphony Orchestra of Connecticut performs its first concert.
National Guards and Sokol volunteers protested in Zagreb, leading to an armed clash with regiments of the Home Guard and former Common Army.
The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified, repealing Prohibition in the United States.
Abyssinia Crisis: Italian troops attack Wal Wal in Abyssinia, taking four days to capture the city.
Mary McLeod Bethune founds the National Council of Negro Women in New York City.
The 1936 Soviet constitution, also known as the "Stalin constitution", was adopted.
World War II: In the Battle of Moscow, Georgy Zhukov launches a massive Soviet counter-attack against the German army.
World War II: Allied air forces begin attacking Germany's secret weapons bases in Operation Crossbow.
Flight 19, a group of TBF Avengers, disappears in the Bermuda Triangle.
The American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge and form the AFL–CIO.
Vietnam War: For his heroism in battle earlier in the year, Captain Roger Donlon is awarded the first Medal of Honor of the war.
Lloyd J. Old discovers the first linkage between the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and disease—mouse leukemia—opening the way for the recognition of the importance of the MHC in the immune response.
The "glasnost meeting" took place in Moscow, becoming the first demonstration in the Soviet Union after World War II and marking the beginning of the civil rights movement in the country.
Battle of Gazipur: Pakistani forces are defeated as India cedes Gazipur to Bangladesh.
Gough Whitlam took office as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia and formed a duumvirate with his deputy Lance Barnard, ending 23 years of Liberal–Country Party government.
Egypt breaks diplomatic relations with Syria, Libya, Algeria, Iraq and South Yemen in retaliation to preventing President Anwar el-Sadat from pursuing negotiations with Israel at the Tripoli confer.
Dissolution of the Military Junta in Argentina.
Leonid Kravchuk is elected the first president of Ukraine.
The Budapest Memorandum is signed at the OSCE conference in Budapest, Hungary.
Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lanka's government announces the conquest of the Tamil stronghold of Jaffna.
Space Shuttle Endeavour launches on STS-108, carrying the Expedition 4 crew to the International Space Station.
Commodore Frank Bainimarama overthrows the government in Fiji.
The International Olympic Committee bans Russia from competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics for doping at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “Britain's first motorway, the Preston Bypass, opens”?
B: 1958. 1958 — that’s 68 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition sets out”?
C: 1914. 1914 — that’s 112 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
C: Francis Drake raids Valparaíso on his voyage round the world. 1914: Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition sets out · 1958: Britain's first motorway, the Preston Bypass, opens · 1578: Francis Drake raids Valparaíso on his voyage round the world Find it on the page
“Francis Drake raids Valparaíso on his voyage round the world” happened in 1578. How many years ago was that?
C: 448 years. 2026 − 1578 = 448. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 5 December.
UK story
Christina Rossetti was an English poet and writer. She wrote romantic poems and also devotional ones, which are poems about religious faith. Her best-known works include the long poem 'Goblin Market' and the short poem 'Remember'. She died in 1894.
Well-known people who died on 5 December.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 5 December somewhere in the world.
The evening of 5 December comes just before the Feast of St Nicholas on 6 December. In folk tales from the Alps, Saint Nicholas visits children that night and gives small gifts to those who have behaved well. He is joined by Krampus, a horned creature said to punish naughty children. In Austria, the evening is called Krampusnacht.
Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.
Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “December 5” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.