7 December It Happened Today

1783  William Pitt is made British prime minister and chancellor of the exchequer at the age of 24.

1817  Death of Rear-Admiral William Bligh, previously captain of HMS Bounty when the crew mutinied.

1915  Birth of American actor Eli Wallach.

1917  President Woodrow Wilson declares war on Austria.

1941  Japanese aircraft attack the US navy base at Pearl Harbour in Hawaii. President Roosevelt called it “a day that will live in infamy”.

1982  Charles Brooks Jr becomes the first American to die by lethal injection.