Date·Lore

On This Day · The 338th day of the year

December 4

December 4 carries 10 recorded events spanning between 1259 and 2006. Kings Louis IX of France and Henry III of England agree to the Treaty of Paris, in which Henry renounces his claims to French-controlled territory on continental Europe (including Normandy) in exchange for Louis withdrawing his support for English rebels.

♐ZodiacSagittarius ◈BirthstoneTurquoise ❀Birth flowerHolly

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed July 13, 2026

What happened on December 4?

December 4 is the 338th day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 1259 and 2006. Famous people born on December 4 include Fred Armisen, Francisco Franco and Mark Robson (film director).

The shape of the day

From 1259 to 2006, December 4 gathers 747 years of history. Most of the weight falls in the 20th century, where politics and nation-building recur.

Sagittarius is the sign for December 4 — read more on the Sagittarius page, or see December's birthstone & birth flower.

Released on December 4

Movies, games, albums & shows

2025

  • Game Baseless
  • Game Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
  • Game Flotsam
  • Game Routine

2023

  • Game Picayune Dreams

2021

  • Game Icarus

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 1259

    Louis IX of France

    Kings Louis IX of France and Henry III of England agree to the Treaty of Paris, in which Henry renounces his claims to French-controlled territory on continental Europe (including Normandy) in exchange for Louis withdrawing his support for English rebels.

  2. 1865

    North Carolina

    North Carolina ratifies 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, followed two days later by Georgia, and U.S. slaves were legally free within two weeks.

  3. 1893

    First Matabele War

    First Matabele War: A patrol of 34 British South Africa Company soldiers is ambushed and annihilated by more than 3,000 Matabele warriors on the Shangani River in Matabeleland.

  4. 1909

    Montreal Canadiens

    The Montreal Canadiens ice hockey club, the oldest surviving professional hockey franchise in the world, is founded as a charter member of the National Hockey Association.

  5. 1928

    Cosmo Gordon Lang

    Cosmo Gordon Lang was enthroned as the Archbishop of Canterbury, the first bachelor to be appointed in 150 years.

  6. 1939

    World War II

    World War II: HMS Nelson is struck by a mine (laid by U-31) off the Scottish coast and is laid up for repairs until August 1940.

  7. 1978

    Assassinations of George Moscone and Harvey Milk

    Following the murder of Mayor George Moscone, Dianne Feinstein becomes San Francisco's first female mayor.

  8. 1982

    China

    The China adopts its current constitution.

  9. 1986

    Port of Savannah

    The MV Amazon Venture oil tanker begins leaking oil while at the port of Savannah in the United States, resulting in an oil spill of approximately 500,000 US gallons (1,900,000 L).

  10. 2006

    Jena Six

    Six black youths assault a white teenager in Jena, Louisiana.

Famous birthday twins

Born on December 4

Fred Armisen

b. 1966

American actor and musician

Francisco Franco

b. 1892

Spanish general and dictator, Prime Minister of Spain

Mark Robson (film director)

b. 1913

Canadian-American director and producer

Erwin von Witzleben

b. 1881

Polish-German field marshal

Horst Buchholz

b. 1933

German actor

Jay-Z

b. 1969

American rapper, producer, actor, and co-founder of Roc-A-Fella Records

Franz Xavier Wernz

b. 1844

German religious leader, 25th Superior General of the Society of Jesus

Deaths

  • 2012Vasily Belov
  • 1969Fred Hampton
  • 1798Luigi Galvani
  • 1679Thomas Hobbes
  • 1642Cardinal Richelieu
  • 1131Omar Khayyam

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Ada
  • —Christian feast day: Anno II
  • —Christian feast day: Barbara, and its related observances: Barbórka, Miners' Day in Poland
  • —Christian feast day: Barbara, and its related observances: Eid il-Burbara, a holiday similar to Halloween in honor of Saint Barbara. (Russia, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Turkey)
  • —Christian feast day: Bernardo degli Uberti
  • —Christian feast day: Clement of Alexandria (Anglicanism, Eastern Catholicism)
  • —Christian feast day: Giovanni Calabria
  • —Christian feast day: John of Damascus

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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