Wikipedia:Selected anniversaries/December 20

December 20:

Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky

• 1803 - As part of the Louisiana Purchase, New Orleans was transferred from France to the United States.

• 1860 - South Carolina seceded from the United States, leading to the American Civil War.

• 1917 - The Cheka, the first Soviet secret police, was founded. Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky (pictured) was appointed as its leader.

• 1995 - The NATO-led IFOR began peacekeeping in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

• 1999 - Portugal transferred sovereignty of Macau to the People's Republic of China.

Recent days: December 19 – December 18 – December 17

More anniversaries:

• November 30
• December 1
• December 2