Vintage News · Odd history for November 18

What Happened On November 18

Q: What happened on November 18?

1803: The Battle of Vertières, the last major battle of the Haitian Revolution, is fought, leading to the establishment of the Republic of Haiti, the first black republic in the Western Hemisphere. 1095: The Council of Clermont begins: called by Pope Urban II, it led to the First Crusade to the Holy Land. 1865: "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" was published, becoming the first great success of American author Mark Twain. 1583: The Siege of Godesberg, the first major siege of the Cologne War, began. 1210: Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, was excommunicated by Pope Innocent III after Otto commanded him to annul the Concordat of Worms. 1889: Elisha P. Ferry is inaugurated as first governor of Washington. 1760: The rebuilt debtors' prison, at the Castellania in Valletta, receives the first prisoners. 1626: The new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is consecrated. 1493: Christopher Columbus first sights the island now known as Puerto Rico. 1302: Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Unam sanctam, claiming spiritual supremacy for the papacy.

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10 odd things that happened on November 18

1803 First ever
The Battle of Vertières, the last major battle of the Haitian Revolution, is fought, leading to the establishment of the Republic of Haiti, the first black republic in the Western Hemisphere.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1095 First ever
The Council of Clermont begins: called by Pope Urban II, it led to the First Crusade to the Holy Land.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1865 First ever
"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" was published, becoming the first great success of American author Mark Twain.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1583 First ever
The Siege of Godesberg, the first major siege of the Cologne War, began.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1210 Oddly true
Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, was excommunicated by Pope Innocent III after Otto commanded him to annul the Concordat of Worms.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1889 First ever
Elisha P. Ferry is inaugurated as first governor of Washington.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1760 First ever
The rebuilt debtors' prison, at the Castellania in Valletta, receives the first prisoners.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1626 Oddly true
The new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is consecrated.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1493 First ever
Christopher Columbus first sights the island now known as Puerto Rico.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
1302 Oddly true
Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Unam sanctam, claiming spiritual supremacy for the papacy.
Read more →
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Observed today

2020The Utah monolith, built sometime in 2016 is discovered by state biologists of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. Wikipedia →
2013NASA launches the MAVEN probe to Mars. Wikipedia →
2012Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria becomes the 118th Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. Wikipedia →
2003The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules 4–3 in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that the state's ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional and gives the state legislature 180 days to change the law making Massachusetts the first state in the United States to grant marriage rights to same-sex couples. Wikipedia →
2002Iraq disarmament crisis: United Nations weapons inspectors led by Hans Blix arrive in Iraq. Wikipedia →
1999At Texas A&M University, the Aggie Bonfire collapses killing 12 students and injuring 27 others. Wikipedia →
1996A fire occurs on a train traveling through the Channel Tunnel from France to England causing several injuries and damaging approximately 500 metres (1,600 ft) of tunnel. Wikipedia →
1993In the United States, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is approved by the House of Representatives. Wikipedia →
1993In South Africa, 21 political parties approve a new constitution, expanding voting rights and ending white minority rule. Wikipedia →
1991Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon release Anglican Church envoys Terry Waite and Thomas Sutherland. Wikipedia →
1991After an 87-day siege, the Croatian city of Vukovar capitulates to the besieging Yugoslav People's Army and allied Serb paramilitary forces. Wikipedia →
1991The autonomous Croatian Community of Herzeg-Bosnia, which would in 1993 become a republic, was established in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Wikipedia →
1987King's Cross fire: In London, 31 people die in a fire at the city's busiest underground station, King's Cross St Pancras. Wikipedia →
1985The first comic of Calvin and Hobbes is published in ten newspapers. Wikipedia →
1983Aeroflot Flight 6833 is hijacked en route from Tbilisi to Leningrad. After returning to Tbilisi, the aircraft is subsequently raided on the ground, resulting in seven deaths. Wikipedia →
1978The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet makes its first flight, at the Naval Air Test Center in Maryland, United States. Wikipedia →
1978In Jonestown, Guyana, Jim Jones leads his Peoples Temple to a mass murder–suicide that claimed 918 lives in all, 909 of them in Jonestown itself, including over 270 children. Wikipedia →
1971Oman declares its independence from the United Kingdom. Wikipedia →
1970U.S. President Richard Nixon asks the U.S. Congress for $155 million in supplemental aid for the Cambodian government. Wikipedia →
1963The Bell Telephone Company introduces the first push-button telephone. Wikipedia →
1961Vietnam War: United States President John F. Kennedy sends 18,000 military advisors to South Vietnam. Wikipedia →
1949The Iva Valley Shooting occurs after the coal miners of Enugu in Nigeria go on strike over withheld wages; 21 miners are shot dead and 51 are wounded by police under the supervision of the British colonial administration of Nigeria. Wikipedia →
1947The Ballantyne's Department Store fire in Christchurch, New Zealand, kills 41; it is the worst fire disaster in the history of New Zealand. Wikipedia →
1944The Popular Socialist Youth is founded in Cuba. Wikipedia →
1943World War II: In the first action of the Berlin Air Offensive, four hundred and forty Royal Air Force planes bomb Berlin causing only light damage and killing 131. The RAF loses nine aircraft and 53 air crew. Wikipedia →
1940World War II: German leader Adolf Hitler and Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano meet to discuss Benito Mussolini's disastrous Italian invasion of Greece. Wikipedia →
1929Grand Banks earthquake: Off the south coast of Newfoundland in the Atlantic Ocean, a Richter magnitude 7.2 submarine earthquake, centered on the Grand Banks, breaks 12 submarine transatlantic telegraph cables and triggers a tsunami that destroys many south coast communities in the Burin Peninsula. Wikipedia →
1928Release of the animated short Steamboat Willie, the first fully synchronized sound cartoon. Wikipedia →
1918Latvia declares its independence from Russia. Wikipedia →
1916World War I: First Battle of the Somme: In France, British Expeditionary Force commander Douglas Haig calls off the battle which started on July 1, 1916. Wikipedia →
1910In their campaign for women's voting rights, hundreds of suffragettes march to the British Parliament in London. Several are beaten by police, newspaper attention embarrasses the authorities, and the march is dubbed Black Friday. Wikipedia →
1909Two United States warships are sent to Nicaragua after 500 revolutionaries (including two Americans) are executed by order of José Santos Zelaya. Wikipedia →
1905Prince Carl of Denmark becomes King Haakon VII of Norway. Wikipedia →
1903The Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty is signed by the United States and Panama, giving the United States exclusive rights over the Panama Canal Zone. Wikipedia →
1901Britain and the United States sign the Hay–Pauncefote Treaty, which nullifies the Clayton–Bulwer Treaty and withdraws British objections to an American-controlled canal in Panama. Wikipedia →
1889Elisha P. Ferry is inaugurated as first governor of Washington. Wikipedia →
1883In the "day of two noons", American and Canadian railroad companies institute four standard continental time zones, ending the confusion of thousands of local times. Wikipedia →
1872Susan B. Anthony and 14 other women are arrested for voting illegally in the United States presidential election of 1872. Wikipedia →
1867An earthquake strikes the Virgin Islands, triggering the largest tsunami witnessed in the Caribbean and killing dozens. Wikipedia →
1863King Christian IX of Denmark signs the November constitution that declares Schleswig to be part of Denmark. This is seen by the German Confederation as a violation of the London Protocol and leads to the German–Danish war of 1864. Wikipedia →
1812Napoleonic Wars: The Battle of Krasnoi ends in French defeat, but Marshal of France Michel Ney's leadership leads to him becoming known as "the bravest of the brave". Wikipedia →
1809Napoleonic Wars: In a naval action, French frigates defeat British East Indiamen in the Bay of Bengal. Wikipedia →
1803The Battle of Vertières, the last major battle of the Haitian Revolution, is fought, leading to the establishment of the Republic of Haiti, the first black republic in the Western Hemisphere. Wikipedia →
1760The rebuilt debtors' prison, at the Castellania in Valletta, receives the first prisoners. Wikipedia →
1730The future Frederick the Great of Prussia is granted a pardon by his father and is released from confinement. Wikipedia →
1626The new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is consecrated. Wikipedia →
1601Tiryaki Hasan Pasha, an Ottoman provincial governor, routs the Habsburg forces commanded by Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria who were besieging Nagykanizsa. Wikipedia →
1493Christopher Columbus first sights the island now known as Puerto Rico. Wikipedia →
1421St Elizabeth's flood: A dike in the Grote Hollandse Waard in the Netherlands breaks, killing about 10,000 people. Wikipedia →
1302Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Unam sanctam, claiming spiritual supremacy for the papacy. Wikipedia →
1210Pope Innocent III excommunicates Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV for invading the Kingdom of Sicily after promising to recognize papal control over it. Wikipedia →
1105Maginulfo is elected Antipope Sylvester IV in opposition to Pope Paschal II. Wikipedia →
1095The Council of Clermont begins: called by Pope Urban II, it led to the First Crusade to the Holy Land. Wikipedia →
401The Visigoths, led by king Alaric I, cross the Alps and invade northern Italy. Wikipedia →
326The old St. Peter's Basilica is consecrated by Pope Sylvester I. Wikipedia →

From The Guardian Archives — On This Day

2024The Guardian
Alan Jones charged with two further offences against a ninth alleged victim
The former Sydney talkback radio star, who denies any misconduct, is now facing 26 charges, including indecent assaul…
Read on The Guardian →
2014The Guardian
Data visualisation and analysis: a one-day workshop
Learn to use infographics and present complex information in simple, elegant and beautiful ways.• Date: Wednesday 18…
Read on The Guardian →
2002The New York Times
Korean Kidnappings: The South's Wound
News from Japan about citizens kidnapped by North Korea many years ago enrages relatives of nearly 500 South Koreans…
Read on NYTimes.com →

Headlines via The Guardian Open Platform · Historic front pages via the NYT Archive API

Facts from Wikipedia On This Day API (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia. Thumbnails CC BY-SA. Headlines via The Guardian Open Platform and the NYT Archive API. Historic pages via Library of Congress Chronicling America. Curated by OddlyTrue.