Akagi was the second aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) to enter service, and the first large or "fleet" carrier. She was converted to an aircraft carrier while still under construction to comply with the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922, and figured prominently in the development of the IJN's revolutionary doctrine that grouped carriers together, concentrating their air power. The ship and her aircraft first saw combat during the Second Sino-Japanese War in the late 1930s. During the Pacific War, she took part in the Attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 and the invasion of Rabaul in the Southwest Pacific in January 1942 as flagship of the First Air Fleet. Over the next several months her aircraft bombed Darwin, Australia, assisted in the conquest of the Dutch East Indies, and helped sink a British heavy cruiser and an Australian destroyer in the Indian Ocean Raid. After bombarding American forces on Midway Atoll during the Battle of Midway in June, Akagi and the other carriers were attacked by aircraft from Midway and three American carriers. Akagi was severely damaged, and she was scuttled by Japanese destroyers to prevent her from falling into enemy hands. ( Full article...)

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From Wikipedia's new and recently improved content:

• ... that the town of Datça petitioned in 2008 to have the British Museum's Lion of Knidos (pictured) returned to Turkey?
• ... that the organ in Christ Church, Port Sunlight, is believed to be the largest extant four- manual Willis II organ still in its original condition and in everyday use?
• ... that there are an estimated 90,000 Muslims in Angola?
• ... that the Anthony House in Adams, Massachusetts, is the birthplace of women's rights advocate Susan B. Anthony?
• ... that Abdallah Deng Nhial has served as cabinet minister in both Sudan and South Sudan?
• ... that the long-spined limpet cultivates a garden of brown algae?
• ... that 15 Cheyne Walk in London was home to Admiral Sir John Balchen, Temple West, artists Cecil Lawson and Henry Ryall, Lord and Lady Courtney, and politicians James and Rupert Allason?

• Former President of South Africa and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela (pictured) dies at the age of 95.
• The United Nations Security Council passes resolution 2127, creating MISCA in response to civil conflict in the Central African Republic.
• China's first lunar rover mission, Chang'e 3, launches successfully.
• Clashes between anti-government protesters and government supporters leave four people dead and fifty-seven injured in Bangkok.
• Demonstrations and civil unrest continue in Ukraine following the suspension of a tentative European Union Association Agreement.
• The Rugby League World Cup concludes with Australia defeating New Zealand in the final.

Recent deaths: Paul Walker – Tabu Ley Rochereau

December 7: Day of the Little Candles in Colombia; Armed Forces Flag Day in India; Pearl Harbor Day in the United States

• 43 BC – Cicero, widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists, was killed after having been proscribed as an enemy of the state.
• 1869 – American outlaw Jesse James committed his first confirmed bank robbery in Gallatin, Missouri.
• 1936 – Australian cricketer Jack Fingleton became the first player to score centuries in four consecutive Test innings.
• 1949 – Chinese Civil War: The government of the Republic of China relocated from Mainland China to Taipei ( Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall pictured) on the island of Taiwan.
• 1988 – A 6.9  M_w earthquake struck the Spitak region of Armenia, killing at least 25,000 people.

More anniversaries: December 6 – December 7 – December 8