150 things happened on 11 November, from AD 308 to 2024. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1918 · 108 years ago
Early in the morning, Germany and the Allies, including Britain, signed an armistice in a railway carriage in a forest near Compiègne, in France. An armistice is an agreement to stop fighting. The fighting on land, at sea and in the air ended at 11 o'clock: t…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
Early in the morning, Germany and the Allies, including Britain, signed an armistice in a railway carriage in a forest near Compiègne, in France. An armistice is an agreement to stop fighting. The fighting on land, at sea and in the air ended at 11 o'clock: the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Every year on Remembrance Day, people in the UK keep a two-minute silence at 11 am to remember those who served and lost their lives in wars.
UK story
King Henry I of England, the fourth son of William the Conqueror, married Matilda, daughter of King Malcolm III of Scotland. She was crowned queen on the same day. Matilda was descended from England's old Anglo-Saxon royal family, which helped Henry's claim to the throne. Remembered as 'Good Queen Maud', she ruled the country for Henry several times while he was away, and every later English and British monarch is descended from her.
UK story
The Cenotaph, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, was unveiled on Whitehall in London as the UK's national memorial to those from Britain and its empire who died in the First World War. The word cenotaph comes from Greek and means 'empty tomb'. On the same day, the Unknown Warrior, a British serviceman whose name is not known, was buried in Westminster Abbey. In 1946 the Cenotaph was rededicated to remember those of the Second World War too.
UK story
During the Second World War, the Royal Navy attacked the Italian fleet at Taranto in the Battle of Taranto. It was the first naval attack in history carried out only by aircraft flying from a ship against other ships. Twenty-one Fairey Swordfish biplanes took off from the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious in the Mediterranean Sea. The raid took place over the night of 11 to 12 November.
UK story
The General Synod of the Church of England voted to allow women to become priests. Until then, only men could be priests in the Church of England. The General Synod is the church's governing body, a bit like its own parliament, which makes decisions about the church's rules. It was set up in 1970.
UK story
The House of Lords Act received royal assent, the monarch's formal approval, and became law. For centuries, several hundred members of the House of Lords had inherited their seats from their families. The new law took away that right, although 92 of these hereditary peers were allowed to stay until further changes were made. The House of Lords is one of the chambers of the UK Parliament.
UK story
War of 1812: British–Canadian forces repelled an American attack at the Battle of Crysler's Farm, forcing the United States to give up their attempt to capture Montreal.
UK story
Treaty of Sinchula is signed whereby Bhutan cedes the areas east of the Teesta River to the British East India Company.
UK story
Emperor Charles I of Austria relinquishes power.
UK story
New Zealand Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is dedicated at the National War Memorial, Wellington.
UK story
Queen Elizabeth II unveils the New Zealand War Memorial in London, United Kingdom, commemorating the loss of soldiers from the New Zealand Army and the British Army.
Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe saw a bright new star in the constellation Cassiopeia. It was really a supernova, the huge explosion of a star, and it is now called Tycho's Star. It is one of only eight supernovae in historical records that could be seen without a telescope. Tycho's very accurate measurements of the sky helped turn astronomy into a modern science.
Men on board the Mayflower, anchored near Cape Cod in North America, signed an agreement now known as the Mayflower Compact. It was the first set of rules for governing their new settlement, Plymouth Colony. The agreement included a promise of loyalty to King James I. Many of the settlers were Puritans who were unhappy with the Church of England.
German mathematician Gottfried Leibniz used integral calculus for the first time, to work out the area under a curve on a graph. Integration, as it is called, helps people calculate areas and volumes, and it is now used in many kinds of science. Leibniz and Isaac Newton are both credited with inventing calculus. Leibniz also worked on binary arithmetic, the counting system of 0s and 1s.
Albert Einstein and his former student Leó Szilárd were granted a US patent for the Einstein refrigerator, which they had invented together. It had no moving parts and needed only a source of heat to work. A patent is a legal right that stops other people copying an invention for a set time. Einstein is best known for his theory of relativity and the famous equation E = mc².
NASA launched Gemini 12, the tenth and final crewed flight of Project Gemini. It was commanded by James Lovell. On his first trip into space, Buzz Aldrin made three spacewalks, lasting five and a half hours in total. The spacecraft also joined up, or docked, with an uncrewed target vehicle called Agena while in orbit.
Space Shuttle Columbia launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on mission STS-5. It was the first mission to be officially called 'operational', after four earlier test flights. It was also the first shuttle mission to release communications satellites into orbit. Columbia, the first Space Shuttle to fly in space, landed five days later.
At Carnuntum, Emperor emeritus Diocletian confers with Galerius, Augustus of the East, and Maximianus, the recently returned former Augustus of the West, in an attempt to end the civil wars of the Tetrarchy.
Treaty of Granada: Louis XII of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon agree to divide the Kingdom of Naples between them.
Following pressure from Anglican bishop John Atherton, the Irish House of Commons passes An Act for the Punishment for the Vice of Buggery.
Second Battle of Khotyn in Ukraine: Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth forces under the command of Jan Sobieski defeat the Ottoman army. In this battle, rockets made by Kazimierz Siemienowicz are successfully used.
The F.H.C. Society, also known as the Flat Hat Club, is formed at Raleigh Tavern, Williamsburg, Virginia. It is the first college fraternity.
War of the Third Coalition: French, Austrian and Russian units suffered heavy losses at the Battle of Dürenstein.
The Virginia Military Institute is founded in Lexington, Virginia.
The State of Washington is admitted as the 42nd state of the United States.
Many cities in the Midwestern United States break their record highs and lows on the same day as a strong cold front rolls through.
Józef Piłsudski, appointed the commander-in-chief of Polish forces by the Regency Council, was entrusted with the creation of a national government for the newly independent Poland.
Latvian forces defeat the West Russian Volunteer Army at Riga in the Latvian War of Independence.
The Tomb of the Unknowns is dedicated by U.S. President Warren G. Harding at Arlington National Cemetery.
The plan for the United States Numbered Highway System was approved by the American Association of State Highway Officials.
The Shrine of Remembrance (pictured), a memorial to all Australians who have served in war, opened in Melbourne.
The Turkish parliament passes the Varlık Vergisi, a capital tax mostly levied on non-Muslim citizens with the unofficial aim to inflict financial ruin on them and end their prominence in the country's economy.
World War II: France's zone libre is occupied by German forces in Case Anton.
The People's Liberation Army Air Force is founded.
Kuwait's National Assembly ratifies the Constitution of Kuwait.
Rhodesia, led by Prime Minister Ian Smith (pictured), unilaterally declared independence from the United Kingdom.
Vietnam War: Operation Commando Hunt initiated. The goal is to interdict men and supplies on the Ho Chi Minh trail, through Laos into South Vietnam.
Vietnam War: Vietnamization: The United States Army turns over the massive Long Binh military base to South Vietnam.
Independence of Angola.
During a constitutional crisis, Governor-General Sir John Kerr (pictured) dismissed Prime Minister Gough Whitlam's government and dissolved the Parliament of Australia for a double-dissolution election.
Antigua and Barbuda joins the United Nations.
A sculpture honoring women who served in the Vietnam War is dedicated at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Russian mathematician Grigori Perelman posts the first of three preprint texts with his proof of the Poincaré conjecture. It remains the only of the Millennium Prize Problems in mathematics to be solved. He later refused both the prize money from Clay Mathematics Institute as well as the Fields Medal for his work.
After 30 years in power, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was succeeded by Mohamed Nasheed as president of the Maldives.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “The Armistice ends the fighting of the First World War”?
B: 1918. 1918 — that’s 108 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “The Royal Navy makes the first all-aircraft attack on a fleet”?
C: 1940. 1940 — that’s 86 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
B: The Armistice ends the fighting of the First World War. 1920: The Cenotaph is unveiled and the Unknown Warrior is laid to rest · 1918: The Armistice ends the fighting of the First World War · 1940: The Royal Navy makes the first all-aircraft attack on a fleet Find it on the page
“The Cenotaph is unveiled and the Unknown Warrior is laid to rest” happened in 1920. How many years ago was that?
B: 106 years. 2026 − 1920 = 106. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 11 November.
Well-known people who died on 11 November.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 11 November somewhere in the world.
Content note: these entries mention things like war, violence, deaths, disasters or crime. They are part of history, but they can be upsetting. Grown-ups and teachers: you may want to read them first. They come straight from Wikipedia and have not been rewritten for children.
Stories with a heading have been written for young readers by A Day in the Past, using the linked articles as sources. Other entries show text from Wikipedia’s “November 11” page and its “On this day” feed, written by Wikipedia contributors and shared under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. Each “Read more” link goes to the article an entry is based on. Photos are credited under each picture. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us.