Date·Lore

On This Day · The 337th day of the year

December 3

December 3 carries 10 recorded events spanning between 1799 and 2009. War of the Second Coalition: Battle of Wiesloch: Austrian Lieutenant Field Marshal Anton Sztáray defeats the French at Wiesloch.

♐ZodiacSagittarius ◈BirthstoneTurquoise ❀Birth flowerHolly

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed July 13, 2026

What happened on December 3?

December 3 is the 337th day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 1799 and 2009. Famous people born on December 3 include France Prešeren, Ellen Swallow Richards and Franz Klammer.

The shape of the day

December 3's recorded history is unusually compressed, gathered within recent centuries rather than reaching into antiquity. Its center of gravity is the 20th century, and conflict is a recurring thread.

Sagittarius is the sign for December 3 — read more on the Sagittarius page, or see December's birthstone & birth flower.

Released on December 3

Movies, games, albums & shows

2025

  • Movie Five Nights at Freddy's 2

2024

  • Game Antonblast

2021

  • Game Chorus

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 1799

    War of the Second Coalition

    War of the Second Coalition: Battle of Wiesloch: Austrian Lieutenant Field Marshal Anton Sztáray defeats the French at Wiesloch.

  2. 1818

    Illinois

    Illinois becomes the 21st U.S. state.

  3. 1904

    Moons of Jupiter

    The Jovian moon Himalia is discovered by Charles Dillon Perrine at California's Lick Observatory.

  4. 1938

    Nazi Germany

    Nazi Germany issues the Decree on the Utilization of Jewish Property forcing Jews to sell real property, businesses, and stocks at below market value as part of Aryanization.

  5. 1959

    Flag of Singapore

    The current flag of Singapore is adopted, six months after Singapore became self-governing within the British Empire.

  6. 1992

    Oil tanker

    The Greek oil tanker Aegean Sea, carrying 80,000 tonnes of crude oil, runs aground in a storm while approaching A Coruña, Spain, and spills much of its cargo.

  7. 1994

    Taiwan

    Taiwan holds its first full local elections; James Soong elected as the first and only directly elected Governor of Taiwan, Chen Shui-bian became the first directly elected Mayor of Taipei, Wu Den-yih became the first directly elected Mayor of Kaohsiung.

  8. 1997

    Ottawa

    In Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, representatives from 121 countries sign the Ottawa Treaty prohibiting manufacture and deployment of anti-personnel landmines. The United States, People's Republic of China, and Russia do not sign the treaty, however.

  9. 1999

    NASA

    NASA loses radio contact with the Mars Polar Lander moments before the spacecraft enters the Martian atmosphere.

  10. 2009

    2009 Hotel Shamo bombing

    A suicide bombing at a hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia, kills 25 people, including three ministers of the Transitional Federal Government.

Famous birthday twins

Born on December 3

France Prešeren

b. 1800

Slovenian poet and lawyer

Ellen Swallow Richards

b. 1842

American chemist, ecologist, and educator

Franz Klammer

b. 1953

Austrian skier and race car driver

Aleksey Drozdov

b. 1983

Russian decathlete

Herman Heijermans

b. 1864

Dutch author and playwright

Gilbert Stuart

b. 1755

American painter

Zlata Filipović

b. 1980

Bosnian-Irish diarist

Alberto Juantorena

b. 1950

Cuban runner

Deaths

  • 1919Pierre-Auguste Renoir
  • 1894Robert Louis Stevenson
  • 1815John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore)
  • 1533Vasili III of Russia
  • 1532Louis II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Abbo of Auxerre
  • —Christian feast day: Pope Abraham of Alexandria (Coptic, 6 Koiak))
  • —Christian feast day: Adrian (Ethernan)
  • —Christian feast day: Birinus
  • —Christian feast day: Cassian of Tangier
  • —Christian feast day: Emma (of Lesum or of Bremen)
  • —Christian feast day: Francis Xavier
  • —Christian feast day: Blessed Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer zu Gleifheim

Historical facts, event summaries, and biographical lines above are adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) license. DateLore adds curation, structure, and original editorial commentary. DateLore is not affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation.

About the author

Roman Tailor compiles and reviews every date on DateLore. He's the writer and editor behind the site's editorial essays and the day-by-day almanac. Corrections and questions are welcome — read more about DateLore or get in touch.

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