November 18 in History

The Battle of Vertières, the last major battle of the Haitian Revolution, is fou

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

November 18 spans 55 recorded events across recorded history, from 326 to 2020. Below is a curated digest of the most significant moments tied to this date.

By · — Wikipedia

Historical Events 55 events 326 – 2020

More major events on November 18

The featured story and these ranked highlights form a quick summary. Every recorded event remains available in the chronology below.

  1. 1985 The first comic of Calvin and Hobbes is published in ten newspapers. Source
  2. 1889 Elisha P. Ferry is inaugurated as first governor of Washington. Source
  3. 2003 The 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. Source

Did you know

In 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. This featured entry focuses on the immediate decision and its direct historical impact.

Did you know

The revolution was one of the only known slave rebellions in human history that led to the founding of a state which was both free from slavery and ruled by former captives. This helps explain why the event mattered beyond the initial announcement.

Did you know

In 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 had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.

Did you know

In 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 had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.

Did you know

In 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 had consequences that extended beyond the first headline. The key context is the institutions involved, the policy shift, and how the public response evolved afterward.

326 Old_St._Peter's_Basilica
The old St.
Peter's Basilica is consecrated by Pope Sylvester I.
Wikipedia source
401 Visigoths
The Visigoths, led by king Alaric I, cross the Alps and invade northern Italy.
Germanic people of late antiquity and the early Middle Ages
Wikipedia source
1095 Council_of_Clermont
The Council of Clermont begins: called by Pope Urban II, it led to the First Crusade to the Holy Land.
1095 Catholic Church synod starting the First Crusade
Wikipedia source
1105
Maginulfo is elected Antipope Sylvester IV in opposition to Pope Paschal II.
Person who claims to be the legitimate pope
Wikipedia source
1210 Pope_Innocent_III
Pope Innocent III excommunicates Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV for invading the Kingdom of Sicily after promising to recognize papal control over it.
Head of the Catholic Church from 1198 to 1216
Wikipedia source
1302 Pope_Boniface_VIII
Pope Boniface VIII issues the Papal bull Unam sanctam, claiming spiritual supremacy for the papacy.
Head of the Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303
Wikipedia source
1421 St._Elizabeth's_flood_(1421)
St Elizabeth's flood: A dike in the Grote Hollandse Waard in the Netherlands breaks, killing about 10,000 people.
Flooding of the Grote Hollandse Waard, an area in what is now the Netherlands
Wikipedia source
1493 Christopher_Columbus
Christopher Columbus first sights the island now known as Puerto Rico.
Italian navigator and explorer (1451–1506)
Wikipedia source
1601 Tiryaki_Hasan_Pasha
Tiryaki Hasan Pasha, an Ottoman provincial governor, routs the Habsburg forces commanded by Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria who were besieging Nagykanizsa.
Ottoman commander in the Long Turkish War
Wikipedia source
1626 St._Peter's_Basilica
The new St.
Peter's Basilica in Rome is consecrated.
Wikipedia source
1730 Frederick_the_Great
The future Frederick the Great of Prussia is granted a pardon by his father and is released from confinement.
King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786
Wikipedia source
1760 Debtors'_prison
The rebuilt debtors' prison, at the Castellania in Valletta, receives the first prisoners.
Prison for people unable to repay a debt
Wikipedia source
1809 Napoleonic_Wars
Napoleonic Wars: In a naval action, French frigates defeat British East Indiamen in the Bay of Bengal.
1803–1815 series of wars led by Napoleon
Wikipedia source
1812 Battle_of_Krasnoi
Napoleonic 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".
1812 battle in Russia during the French retreat
Wikipedia source
1863 Christian_IX
King 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 source
1867 1867_Virgin_Islands_earthquake_and_tsunami
An earthquake strikes the Virgin Islands, triggering the largest tsunami witnessed in the Caribbean and killing dozens.
Earthquake and tsunami in the Caribbean
Wikipedia source
1872 Susan_B._Anthony
Susan B.
Anthony and 14 other women are arrested for voting illegally in the United States presidential election of 1872.
Wikipedia source
1883 Time_zone
In the "day of two noons", American and Canadian railroad companies institute four standard continental time zones, ending the confusion of thousands of local times.
Area that observes a uniform standard time
Wikipedia source
1889 Elisha_P._Ferry
Elisha P.
Ferry is inaugurated as first governor of Washington.
Wikipedia source
1901
Britain 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.
1901 treaty between the United States and Great Britain
Wikipedia source
1903 Hay–Bunau-Varilla_Treaty
The Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty is signed by the United States and Panama, giving the United States exclusive rights over the Panama Canal Zone.
1903 treaty between U.S. and Panama establishing the Panama Canal Zone
Wikipedia source
1905 Haakon_VII
Prince Carl of Denmark becomes King Haakon VII of Norway.
King of Norway from 1905 to 1957
Wikipedia source
1909 Warship
Two United States warships are sent to Nicaragua after 500 revolutionaries (including two Americans) are executed by order of José Santos Zelaya.
Ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare
Wikipedia source
1910 Suffragette
In 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 source
1916 World_War_I
World 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.
Global conflict from 1914 to 1918
Wikipedia source
1918 Latvia
Latvia declares its independence from Russia.
Country in Northern Europe
Wikipedia source
1928 Steamboat_Willie
Release of the animated short Steamboat Willie, the first fully synchronized sound cartoon.
1928 American animated short film
Wikipedia source
1929
Grand 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.
Earthquake and tsunami in eastern Canada
Wikipedia source
1940 World_War_II
World War II: German leader Adolf Hitler and Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano meet to discuss Benito Mussolini's disastrous Italian invasion of Greece.
Global conflict (1939–1945)
Wikipedia source
1943 Battle_of_Berlin_(RAF_campaign)
World 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 source
1947 Ballantynes_fire
The Ballantyne's Department Store fire in Christchurch, New Zealand, kills 41; it is the worst fire disaster in the history of New Zealand.
1947 fire in Christchurch, New Zealand
Wikipedia source
1949 Iva_Valley
The 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.
Locality in Enugu, Nigeria
Wikipedia source
1961 Vietnam_War
Vietnam War: United States President John F.
Kennedy sends 18,000 military advisors to South Vietnam.
Wikipedia source
1963 Bell_Telephone_Company
The Bell Telephone Company introduces the first push-button telephone.
American telecommunications firm
Wikipedia source
1970 Richard_Nixon
U.S.
President Richard Nixon asks the U.S. Congress for $155 million in supplemental aid for the Cambodian government.
Wikipedia source
1971 Oman
Oman declares its independence from the United Kingdom.
Country in West Asia
Wikipedia source
1978 McDonnell_Douglas_F/A-18_Hornet
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet makes its first flight, at the Naval Air Test Center in Maryland, United States.
American carrier-capable multirole strike aircraft
Wikipedia source
1978 Jonestown
In 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.
Peoples Temple cult settlement in Guyana, led by Jim Jones
Wikipedia source
1983 Aeroflot_Flight_6833
Aeroflot 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 source
1985 Calvin_and_Hobbes
The first comic of Calvin and Hobbes is published in ten newspapers.
Comic strip by Bill Watterson
Wikipedia source
1987 King's_Cross_fire
King's Cross fire: In London, 31 people die in a fire at the city's busiest underground station, King's Cross St Pancras.
1987 tube station fire in London, England
Wikipedia source
1991
Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon release Anglican Church envoys Terry Waite and Thomas Sutherland.
Second-largest branch of Islam
Wikipedia source
1991 Battle_of_Vukovar
After an 87-day siege, the Croatian city of Vukovar capitulates to the besieging Yugoslav People's Army and allied Serb paramilitary forces.
1991 Croatian War of Independence siege
Wikipedia source
1991 Croatian_Republic_of_Herzeg-Bosnia
The autonomous Croatian Community of Herzeg-Bosnia, which would in 1993 become a republic, was established in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Unrecognized proto-state in the Balkans (1991–1996); now part of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Wikipedia source
1993 North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement
In the United States, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is approved by the House of Representatives.
Trade bloc in North America (1994–2020)
Wikipedia source
1993 South_Africa
In South Africa, 21 political parties approve a new constitution, expanding voting rights and ending white minority rule.
Country in Southern Africa
Wikipedia source
1996 1996_Channel_Tunnel_fire
A 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.
Non-fatal train incident
Wikipedia source
1999 Texas_A&M_University
At Texas A&M University, the Aggie Bonfire collapses killing 12 students and injuring 27 others.
Public land-grant university in College Station, Texas, US
Wikipedia source
2002 Iraq_disarmament_crisis
Iraq disarmament crisis: United Nations weapons inspectors led by Hans Blix arrive in Iraq.
Early 2000s diplomatic crisis
Wikipedia source
2003 Massachusetts_Supreme_Judicial_Court
The 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 source
2012 Pope_Tawadros_II_of_Alexandria
Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria becomes the 118th Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria.
Head of the Coptic Church since 2012
Wikipedia source
2013 NASA
NASA launches the MAVEN probe to Mars.
American space and aeronautics agency
Wikipedia source
2020 Utah_monolith
The Utah monolith, built sometime in 2016 is discovered by state biologists of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.
Metal pillar in Utah, US
Wikipedia source

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