On This Day In
@chroniclebot.bsky.social
I'm just a bot obsessively reposting events that happened on this day in history.
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Project by @delesslin.bsky.social
Powered by the Wikimedia API
No AI, just code
1970
Vietnam War: The United States turns over control of the air base at Bình Thủy in the Mekong Delta to South Vietnam.
Vietnam War: The United States turns over control of the air base at Bình Thủy in the Mekong Delta to South Vietnam.
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam and South Vietnam and their allies. North Vietnam was supported by the Soviet Union and China, while South Vietnam was supported by the United States and other anti-communist nations. The conflict was the second of the Indochina wars and a proxy war of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and US. The Vietnam War was one of the postcolonial wars of national liberation, a theater in the Cold War, and a civil war, with civil warfare a defining feature from the outset. Direct US military involvement escalated from 1965 until its withdrawal in 1973. The fighting spilled into the Laotian and Cambodian Civil Wars, which ended with all three countries becoming communist in 1975.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 5:02 PM
1970
Vietnam War: The United States turns over control of the air base at Bình Thủy in the Mekong Delta to South Vietnam.
Vietnam War: The United States turns over control of the air base at Bình Thủy in the Mekong Delta to South Vietnam.
1967
Iberia Flight 062 crashes in Blackdown, West Sussex, killing all 37 people on board including British actress June Thorburn.
Iberia Flight 062 crashes in Blackdown, West Sussex, killing all 37 people on board including British actress June Thorburn.
Iberia Flight 062
Iberia Flight 062 was a twin-engined Sud Aviation Caravelle registered EC-BDD operating a scheduled flight from Málaga Airport, Spain, to London Heathrow Airport. While on approach to Heathrow on 4 November 1967, the Caravelle descended far below the flight level assigned to it and flew into the southern slope of Blackdown Hill in West Sussex, killing all 37 on board.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 5:02 PM
1967
Iberia Flight 062 crashes in Blackdown, West Sussex, killing all 37 people on board including British actress June Thorburn.
Iberia Flight 062 crashes in Blackdown, West Sussex, killing all 37 people on board including British actress June Thorburn.
1966
The Arno River floods Florence, Italy, to a maximum depth of 6.7 m (22 ft), leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. Venice is also submerged on the same day at its record all-time acqua alta of 194 cm (76 in).
The Arno River floods Florence, Italy, to a maximum depth of 6.7 m (22 ft), leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. Venice is also submerged on the same day at its record all-time acqua alta of 194 cm (76 in).
Arno
The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 4:34 PM
1966
The Arno River floods Florence, Italy, to a maximum depth of 6.7 m (22 ft), leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. Venice is also submerged on the same day at its record all-time acqua alta of 194 cm (76 in).
The Arno River floods Florence, Italy, to a maximum depth of 6.7 m (22 ft), leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. Venice is also submerged on the same day at its record all-time acqua alta of 194 cm (76 in).
1962
The United States concludes Operation Fishbowl, its final above-ground nuclear weapons testing series, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
The United States concludes Operation Fishbowl, its final above-ground nuclear weapons testing series, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
Operation Fishbowl
Operation Fishbowl was a series of high-altitude nuclear tests in 1962 that were carried out by the United States as a part of the larger Operation Dominic nuclear test program.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 4:34 PM
1962
The United States concludes Operation Fishbowl, its final above-ground nuclear weapons testing series, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
The United States concludes Operation Fishbowl, its final above-ground nuclear weapons testing series, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
1960
At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.
At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.
Kasakela chimpanzee community
The Kasekela chimpanzee community is a habituated community of wild eastern chimpanzees that lives in Gombe National Park near Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania. The community was the subject of Jane Goodall's pioneering study that began in 1960, and studies have continued ever since, becoming the longest continuous study of any animals in their natural habitat. As a result, the community has been instrumental in the study of chimpanzees and has been popularized in several books and documentaries. The community's popularity was enhanced by Goodall's practice of giving names to the chimpanzees she was observing, in contrast to the typical scientific practice of identifying the subjects by number. Goodall generally used a naming convention in which infants were given names starting with the same letter as their mother, allowing the recognition of matrilineal lines.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 3:34 PM
1960
At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.
At the Kasakela Chimpanzee Community in Tanzania, Jane Goodall observes chimpanzees creating tools, the first-ever observation in non-human animals.
1956
Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until it dissolved in 1991. During its existence, it was the largest country by area, extending across eleven time zones and sharing borders with twelve countries, and the third-most populous country. An overall successor to the Russian Empire, it was nominally organized as a federal union of national republics, the largest and most populous of which was the Russian SFSR. In practice, its government and economy were highly centralized. As a one-party state governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), it was the flagship communist state. Its capital and largest city was Moscow.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 3:34 PM
1956
Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
Soviet troops enter Hungary to end the Hungarian revolution against the Soviet Union that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded, and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
1952
The United States government establishes the National Security Agency, or NSA.
The United States government establishes the National Security Agency, or NSA.
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the United States.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 PM
1952
The United States government establishes the National Security Agency, or NSA.
The United States government establishes the National Security Agency, or NSA.
1946
UNESCO constitution comes into force: UNESCO’s constitution entered into force, creating a UN agency devoted to education, science and culture and promoting international collaboration.
UNESCO constitution comes into force: UNESCO’s constitution entered into force, creating a UN agency devoted to education, science and culture and promoting international collaboration.
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It has 194 member states and 12 associate members, as well as partners in the non-governmental, intergovernmental and private sector. Headquartered in Paris, France, UNESCO has 53 regional field offices and 199 national commissions.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 2:34 PM
1946
UNESCO constitution comes into force: UNESCO’s constitution entered into force, creating a UN agency devoted to education, science and culture and promoting international collaboration.
UNESCO constitution comes into force: UNESCO’s constitution entered into force, creating a UN agency devoted to education, science and culture and promoting international collaboration.
1944
World War II: Operation Pheasant, an Allied offensive to liberate North Brabant in the Netherlands, ends successfully.
World War II: Operation Pheasant, an Allied offensive to liberate North Brabant in the Netherlands, ends successfully.
Operation Pheasant
Operation Pheasant, also known as the Liberation of North Brabant, was a major operation to clear German troops from the province of North Brabant in the Netherlands during the fighting on the Western Front in the Second World War. This offensive was conceived as a result of the failure of Operation Market Garden and the allied effort to capture the important port of Antwerp. It was conducted by the allied 21st Army Group between 20 October to 4 November 1944.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 1:34 PM
1944
World War II: Operation Pheasant, an Allied offensive to liberate North Brabant in the Netherlands, ends successfully.
World War II: Operation Pheasant, an Allied offensive to liberate North Brabant in the Netherlands, ends successfully.
1944
World War II: The 7th Macedonian Liberation Brigade liberates Bitola for the Allies.
World War II: The 7th Macedonian Liberation Brigade liberates Bitola for the Allies.
Macedonian Partisans
The Macedonian Partisans, officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Macedonia, was a communist and anti-fascist resistance movement formed in occupied Yugoslavia which was active in the World War II in Yugoslav Macedonia. Units of the army were formed by Macedonians within the framework of the Yugoslav Partisans as well as other communist resistance organisations operating in Macedonia at the time and were led by the General Staff of the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Macedonia, headed by Mihajlo Apostolski. During the war, 24 infantry brigades, six artillery brigades, four engineering brigades, one automobile brigade and one cavalry brigade were formed in the Macedonian army. From these brigades, seven divisions were formed, and later the 8th KNOJ division, as well as 3 corps.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 1:34 PM
1944
World War II: The 7th Macedonian Liberation Brigade liberates Bitola for the Allies.
World War II: The 7th Macedonian Liberation Brigade liberates Bitola for the Allies.
1942
World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.
World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Germany during the Nazi period from 1933 until his suicide in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor of Germany in 1933 and then taking the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934. Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 marked the outbreak of the Second World War. Throughout his leadership in the ensuing conflict, he was closely involved in the direction of German military operations and the perpetration of the Holocaust, the genocide of about six million Jews and millions of other victims.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 12:34 PM
1942
World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.
World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.
1939
World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.
World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.
World War II
World War II or the Second World War was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks and aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the deadliest conflict in history, causing the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Germany, Austria, Japan, and Korea were occupied, and German and Japanese leaders were tried for war crimes.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 12:34 PM
1939
World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.
World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.
1936
Spanish Civil War: Largo Caballero reshuffles his war cabinet, persuading the anarcho-syndicalist CNT to join the government.
Spanish Civil War: Largo Caballero reshuffles his war cabinet, persuading the anarcho-syndicalist CNT to join the government.
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War was fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republicans and the Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the left-leaning Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic and included socialists, anarchists, communists, and separatists. The opposing Nationalists who established the Spanish State were an alliance of fascist Falangists, monarchists, conservatives, and traditionalists supported by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy and led by a military junta among whom General Francisco Franco quickly achieved a preponderant role. Due to the international political climate at the time, the war was variously viewed as class struggle, a religious struggle, or a struggle between dictatorship and republican democracy, between revolution and counterrevolution, or between fascism and communism. The Nationalists won the war, which ended in early 1939, and ruled Spain until Franco's death in November 1975.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 11:34 AM
1936
Spanish Civil War: Largo Caballero reshuffles his war cabinet, persuading the anarcho-syndicalist CNT to join the government.
Spanish Civil War: Largo Caballero reshuffles his war cabinet, persuading the anarcho-syndicalist CNT to join the government.
1924
Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming becomes the first female elected as governor in the United States.
Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming becomes the first female elected as governor in the United States.
Nellie Tayloe Ross
Nellie Davis Tayloe Ross was an American educator and politician who served as the 14th governor of Wyoming from 1925 to 1927, and as the 28th and first female director of the United States Mint from 1933 to 1953. She was the first woman to serve as governor of a U.S. state, and remains the only woman to have served as governor of Wyoming. She was a Democrat and supported Prohibition.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 11:34 AM
1924
Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming becomes the first female elected as governor in the United States.
Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming becomes the first female elected as governor in the United States.
1922
In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
Howard Carter
Howard Carter was a British archaeologist and Egyptologist who discovered the intact tomb of the 18th Dynasty Pharaoh Tutankhamun in November 1922, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 10:34 AM
1922
In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
1921
Japanese prime minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.
Japanese prime minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.
Prime Minister of Japan
The prime minister of Japan is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its ministers of state. The prime minister also serves as the commander-in-chief of the Japan Self Defence Forces. The incumbent prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, took office on 21 October 2025; she is the first woman to serve as either president of the Liberal Democratic Party or prime minister.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 10:34 AM
1921
Japanese prime minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.
Japanese prime minister Hara Takashi is assassinated in Tokyo.
1921
The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.
The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.
Nazi Party
The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party, was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor, the German Workers' Party, existed from 1919 to 1920. The Nazi Party emerged from the extremist German nationalist, racist, and populist Freikorps paramilitary culture, which fought against communist uprisings in post–World War I Germany. The party was created to draw workers away from communism and into völkisch nationalism. Initially, Nazi political strategy focused on anti-big business, anti-bourgeoisie, and anti-capitalism, disingenuously using socialist rhetoric to gain the support of the lower middle class; that was later downplayed to gain the support of business leaders. By the 1930s, the party's main focus shifted to antisemitic and anti-Marxist themes. The party had little popular support until the Great Depression, when worsening living standards and widespread unemployment drove Germans into political extremism.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 9:34 AM
1921
The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.
The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.
1918
World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.
World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.
World War I
World War I, or the First World War,, also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Central Powers. Main areas of conflict included Europe and the Middle East, as well as parts of Africa and the Asia-Pacific. The war saw important developments in weaponry including tanks, aircraft, artillery, machine guns, and chemical weapons. One of the deadliest conflicts in history, it resulted in an estimated 30 million military casualties, and 8 million civilian deaths from war-related causes and genocide. The movement of large numbers of people was a major factor in the deadly Spanish flu pandemic.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 9:34 AM
1918
World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.
World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.
1890
City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.
City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.
City and South London Railway
The City and South London Railway (C&SLR) was the first successful deep-level underground "tube" railway in the world, and the first major railway to use electric traction. The railway was originally intended for cable-hauled trains, but owing to the bankruptcy of the cable contractor during construction, a system of electric traction using electric locomotives – an experimental technology at the time – was chosen instead.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 8:34 AM
1890
City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.
City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.
1868
Camagüey, Cuba, revolts against Spain during the Ten Years' War.
Camagüey, Cuba, revolts against Spain during the Ten Years' War.
Camagüey
Camagüey is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third-largest city with more than 333,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 8:34 AM
1868
Camagüey, Cuba, revolts against Spain during the Ten Years' War.
Camagüey, Cuba, revolts against Spain during the Ten Years' War.
1864
American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.
American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war in the United States between the Union and the Confederacy, which was formed in 1861 by states that had seceded from the Union to preserve African American slavery, which they saw as threatened because of the election of Abraham Lincoln and the growing abolitionist movement in the North.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 7:34 AM
1864
American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.
American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.
1852
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour
Camillo Paolo Filippo Giulio Benso, Count of Cavour, Isolabella and Leri, generally known as the Count of Cavour or simply Cavour, was an Italian politician, statesman, businessman, economist, and noble, and a leading figure in the movement towards Italian unification. He was one of the leaders of the Historical Right and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Sardinia from 1852, a position he maintained until his death, throughout the Second Italian War of Independence and Giuseppe Garibaldi's campaigns to unite Italy. After the declaration of a united Kingdom of Italy, Cavour took office as the first Prime Minister of Italy; he died after only three months in office and did not live to see the Roman Question solved through the complete unification of the country after the Capture of Rome in 1870.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 7:34 AM
1852
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.
Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, becomes the prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia, which soon expands to become Italy.
1847
Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish physician, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform.
Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish physician, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform.
James Young Simpson
Sir James Young Simpson, 1st Baronet was a Scottish obstetrician and a significant figure in the history of medicine. He was the first physician to demonstrate the anaesthetic properties of chloroform in humans and helped to popularize its use in medicine.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 6:34 AM
1847
Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish physician, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform.
Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish physician, discovers the anaesthetic properties of chloroform.
1839
Newport Rising: The last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
Newport Rising: The last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
Newport Rising
The Newport Rising was the last large-scale armed rising in Wales, by Chartists whose demands included democracy and the right to vote with a secret ballot.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 6:34 AM
1839
Newport Rising: The last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
Newport Rising: The last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
1798
The Russo-Ottoman siege of Corfu begins.
The Russo-Ottoman siege of Corfu begins.
Siege of Corfu (1798–1799)
The Siege of Corfu was a military operation by a joint Russian and Turkish fleet against French troops occupying the fortified island of Corfu; ended in Coalition victory. Corfu fortifications had a strong reputation, but by the siege time they were in a parlous state.
en.wikipedia.org
November 4, 2025 at 5:34 AM
1798
The Russo-Ottoman siege of Corfu begins.
The Russo-Ottoman siege of Corfu begins.