Deaths on 4 December
2000s
Princess Birgitta of Sweden
2024
Swedish princess (1937–2024)
Bob McGrath
2022
American actor and singer (1932–2022)
Patrick Tambay
2022
French racing driver (1949–2022)
Shashi Kapoor
2017
Indian actor and producer (1938–2017)
Patricia Robins
2016
British author of short stories and novels (1921-2016)
Bill Bennett
2015
Canadian politician (1932–2015)
Robert Loggia
2015
American actor (1930–2015)
Yossi Sarid
2015
Israeli politician (1940–2015)
Claudia Emerson
2014
American academic, writer and poet
V. R. Krishna Iyer
2014
Indian judge (1915–2014)
Vincent L. McKusick
2014
American judge
Jeremy Thorpe
2014
British politician (1929–2014)
Joana Raspall i Juanola
2013
Catalan writer and librarian
Vasily Belov
2012
Soviet-Russian writer, poet, and dramatist
Jack Brooks (American politician)
2012
American politician (1922–2012)
Miguel Calero
2012
Colombian footballer (1971-2012)
Tony Deane-Drummond
2012
British Army general (1917–2012)
Sonia Pierre
2011
Human rights advocate from the Dominican Republic
Sócrates
2011
Brazilian footballer (1954–2011)
Hubert Sumlin
2011
American blues guitarist and singer (1931–2011)
King Curtis Iaukea
2010
American professional wrestler (1937–2010)
Liam Clancy
2009
Irish folk singer (1935–2009)
Pimp C
2007
American rapper (1973–2007)
K. Ganeshalingam
2006
Ross A. McGinnis
2006
American soldier and Medal of Honor recipient (1987–2006)
Errol Brathwaite
2005
New Zealand writer
Gregg Hoffman
2005
American film producer (1963–2005)
Elena Souliotis
2004
Greek soprano
Iggy Katona
2003
American racing driver (1916–2003)
Henck Arron
2000
First Suriname Prime Minister (1936–2000)
1900s
Rose Bird
1999
American judge (1936–1999)
Margaret Landon
1993
American writer known for 'Anna and the King of Siam' (1903–1993)
Frank Zappa
1993
American musician (1940–1993)
Henry Clausen
1992
American lawyer (1905–1992)
Osman Achmatowicz
1988
Polish professor of chemistry (1899–1988)
Arnold Lobel
1987
American illustrator and writer (1933–1987)
Rouben Mamoulian
1987
American film and theatre director (1897–1987)
Jack Mercer
1984
American voice actor (1910–1984)
Jeanne Block
1981
American psychologist (1923–1981)
Francisco Sá Carneiro
1980
Portuguese politician (1934–1980)
Stanisława Walasiewicz
1980
Polish-American athlete (1911–1980)
Don Warrington (Canadian football)
1980
Canadian football player
Tommy Bolin
1976
American guitarist (1951–1976)
Benjamin Britten
1976
English composer and pianist (1913–1976)
W. F. McCoy
1976
British politician
Hannah Arendt
1975
German and American historian and philosopher (1906–1975)
Shunryū Suzuki
1971
Japanese Buddhist monk who popularized Zen in the US
Fred Hampton
1969
African-American activist (1948–1969)
Bert Lahr
1967
American actor (1895–1967)
Constance Davey
1963
Australian psychologist (1882–1963)
József Galamb
1955
Hungarian-American mechanical engineer
George Shepherd, 1st Baron Shepherd
1954
British politician
Jesse L. Brown
1950
United States Navy officer (1926–1950)
Frank Benford
1948
Thomas Hunt Morgan
1945
American biologist (1866–1945)
Richárd Weisz
1945
Hungarian Greco-Roman wrestler (1879–1945)
Roger Bresnahan
1944
American baseball player and manager (1879–1944)
Juhan Kukk
1942
Estonian politician (1885–1942)
Fritz Löhner-Beda
1942
Austrian writer and librettist (1883–1942)
Borghild Holmsen
1938
Norwegian pianist, music critic and composer (1865–1938)
Tamanishiki San'emon
1938
Japanese sumo wrestler (1903–1938)
Johan Halvorsen
1935
Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist (1864 - 1935)
Charles Richet
1935
French physiologist, Nobel laureate and spiritualist (1850–1935)
Stefan George
1933
German symbolist poet and translator
Edmund Wojtyła
1932
Polish doctor (1906–1932)
Ivana Kobilca
1926
Slovenian painter (1861–1926)
Charles Dow
1902
American journalist (1851–1902)
1800s
Caradog (Griffith Rhys Jones)
1897
Welsh conductor
John Tyndall
1893
Irish physicist (1820–1893)
William Sturgeon
1850
English electrical engineer and inventor (1783–1850)
Gregor MacGregor
1845
Scottish soldier, adventurer, and con man (1786–1845)
David Daniel Davis
1841
British physician (1777–1841)
John Leamy (merchant)
1839
American merchant
Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool
1828
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1812 to 1827
Before 1800
Luigi Galvani
1798
Italian scientist (1737–1798)
John Gay
1732
English poet and playwright (1685–1732)
Richard Ferrier
1728
MP for Great Yarmouth
Empress Meishō
1696
Emperor of Japan from 1629 to 1643
Thomas Bartholin
1680
Danish physician, mathematician and theologian (1616–1680)
Thomas Hobbes
1679
English philosopher and political theorist (1588–1679)
William Drummond of Hawthornden
1649
16th/17th-century Scottish poet
Cardinal Richelieu
1642
French statesman and clergyman (1585–1642)
Nicholas Ferrar
1637
English scholar, courtier and church innovator 1592–1637
Alexander Hume
1609
Scottish poet
Maerten de Vos
1603
Flemish painter (1532–1603)
John Willock
1585
Scottish church leader (1515–1585)
Georg Joachim Rheticus
1576
Austrian astronomer and mathematician (1514–1576)
Adolph VIII, Count of Holstein
1459
Count of Holstein-Rendsburg
Charles I, Duke of Bourbon
1456
French noble (1401–1456)
Valentina Visconti, Duchess of Orléans
1408
Italian noble (1371–1408)
Janisław (archbishop of Gniezno)
1341
Henry Burghersh
1340
14th-century Bishop of Lincoln, Treasurer of England, and Chancellor of England
Pope John XXII
1334
Head of the Catholic Church from 1316 to 1334
Theobald II of Navarre
1270
King of Navarre from 1253 to 1270
Aymer de Valence (bishop)
1260
13th-century Bishop of Winchester
William the Lion
1214
King of Alba from 1165 to 1214
Omar Khayyam
1131
Persian polymath and poet (1048–1131)
Anno II
1075
Archbishop of Cologne from 1056 to 1075
Suairlech ind Eidnén mac Ciaráin
870
Irish abbot and bishop
Carloman I
771
King of the Franks (r. 768–771) of the Carolingian dynasty
John of Damascus
749
Christian monk, priest, hymnographer and apologist (675/6–749)