December 5

63 BC – Cicero gives the fourth and final of the Catiline Orations. 633 – Fourth Council of Toledo opens, presided over by Isidore of Seville. 1033 – The Jordan Rift Valley earthquake destroys multiple cities across the Levant, triggers a tsunami and kills many. 1082 – Ramon Berenguer II, Count of Barcelona is assassinated, most likely by his brother, Berenguer Ramon II. 1408 – Seeking to resubjugate Muscovy, Emir Edigu of the Golden Horde reaches Moscow, burning areas around the city but failing to take the city itself. 1456 – The first of two earthquakes measuring 7.2 strikes Italy, causing extreme destruction and killing upwards of 70,000 people. 1484 – Pope Innocent VIII issues the Summis desiderantes affectibus, a papal bull that deputizes Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger as inquisitors to root out alleged witchcraft in Germany. 1496 – King Manuel I of Portugal issues a decree ordering the expulsion of Jews from the country. 1560 – Thirteen-year-old Charles IX becomes king of France, with Queen Mother Catherine de' Medici as regent. 1578 – Sir Francis Drake, after sailing through Strait of Magellan, raids Valparaiso. 1649 – The town of Raahe (Brahestad) is founded by Count Per Brahe the Younger. 1757 – Seven Years' War: Battle of Leuthen: Frederick II of Prussia leads Prussian forces to a decisive victory over Austrian forces under Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine. 1766 – In London, auctioneer James Christie holds his first sale. 1775 – At Fort Ticonderoga, Henry Knox begins his historic transport of artillery to Cambridge, Massachusetts. 1776 – Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest academic honor society in the U.S., holds its first meeting at the College of William & Mary. 1831 – Former U.S. President John Quincy Adams takes his seat in the House of Representatives. 1847 – Jefferson Davis is elected to the U.S. Senate. 1848 – California Gold Rush: In a message to the United States Congress, U.S. President James K. Polk confirms that large amounts of gold had been discovered in California.