Today is Thursday, December 17, the 351st day of 2009. There are 14 days left in the year.
1538 _ Pope Paul III excommunicated England's King Henry VIII
1718 _ England declares war on Spain
1777 _ France recognizes independence of English colonies in America
1914 _ Great Britain declares Egypt a protectorate
1920 _ Japan receives League of Nations mandate over Pacific islands
1923 _ Greek king George II overthrown by army/republic
1944 _ U.S. Army announces end of excluding Japanese-Americans from West Coast; Japanese-Americans are released from detention camps
1963 _ Choi Doo-sun forms government in South Korea
1986 _ Davina Thompson makes medical history by having the first heart, lung and liver transplant (Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, England)
1991 _ Cleveland Cavaliers beat Miami Heat 148-80, by record 68 points