134 things happened on 16 November, from 42 BC to 2022. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1992 · 34 years ago
Eric Lawes was using a metal detector in the village of Hoxne in Suffolk. He found the largest hoard of late Roman silver and gold ever discovered in Britain. It held 14,865 coins and about 200 pieces of silver tableware and gold jewellery, all carefully pack…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
When King Henry III died, his eldest son, Prince Edward, became King Edward I. Edward was on his way back from a crusade, a military expedition to the Holy Land, and did not reach England for nearly two years. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1274. As king, Edward conquered Wales, built castles there and helped make Parliament a permanent part of how England was governed.
UK story
Scottish explorer David Livingstone became the first European to see a huge waterfall on the Zambezi River in southern Africa. He named it Victoria Falls, after Queen Victoria. African people had long known the falls, which in the Lozi language are called Mosi-oa-Tunya, meaning 'the Smoke that Rises'. Lying on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe, they are 1,708 metres wide and among the largest waterfalls in the world.
UK story
English engineer John Ambrose Fleming was granted a patent for the thermionic valve, also known as a vacuum tube. A patent is an official record that protects an inventor's idea. The valve is a glass tube with the air taken out, and it controls the flow of electric current. Fleming is also known for the 'right-hand rule', which is used in physics.
UK story
Eric Lawes was using a metal detector in the village of Hoxne in Suffolk. He found the largest hoard of late Roman silver and gold ever discovered in Britain. It held 14,865 coins and about 200 pieces of silver tableware and gold jewellery, all carefully packed in a wooden chest. Buried some time after AD 407, the treasure is now kept in the British Museum in London.
UK story
American Revolutionary War: Fort Washington on Manhattan was captured from the Patriots by British and Hessian units.
UK story
Greek War of Independence: The London Protocol entails the creation of an autonomous Greek state under Ottoman suzerainty, encompassing the Morea and the Cyclades.
UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, was founded. Shaped by the Second World War, its mission is to build peace by helping countries work together on education, science and culture. UNESCO is based in Paris and now has 194 member states. It also helps to protect World Heritage Sites, which are special places of cultural or natural importance.
The Sound of Music, a musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, opened on Broadway in New York. It is based on Maria von Trapp's book about her family of singers. The story follows Maria, who becomes governess to a large family in Austria in 1938. She grows to love the children and their father, and together they plan to escape from Austria.
The Soviet Union launched the Venera 3 space probe from Baikonur, in what is now Kazakhstan. It carried a smaller probe designed to enter the atmosphere of Venus and float down to the surface on a parachute. Venera 3 went on to become the first spacecraft to reach the surface of another planet. It was part of the Venera programme, which sent eighteen probes to study Venus.
NASA launched Skylab 4, the third and final crew to live on Skylab, America's first space station. Astronauts Gerald Carr, Edward Gibson and William Pogue took off from Florida. Their mission lasted 84 days. While in space they carried out experiments, studied the Sun and observed a comet called Kohoutek.
A radio message was sent into space from the Arecibo Telescope in Puerto Rico, at a ceremony to mark the telescope's remodelling. The message was made of 1,679 bits of data that form a simple picture about humans and Earth. It was aimed at M13, a group of stars about 25,000 light years away. It was meant to show off human technology, not as a real attempt to chat with aliens.
In Pakistan's first open election for more than ten years, voters chose Benazir Bhutto to be Prime Minister. She became the first woman elected to lead a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country. Bhutto served as Prime Minister twice, from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 1996.
NASA launched Artemis I, the first flight of its Space Launch System rocket. There was no crew on board. The Orion spacecraft flew past the Moon twice and tested its heat shield before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. The mission marked NASA's return to the Moon after the Apollo programme and prepared the way for flights with astronauts.
The second edition of the Code of Justinian, a codification of Roman law by Byzantine emperor Justinian I (pictured), was published.
Emperor Li Jing sends a Southern Tang expeditionary force of 10,000 men under Bian Hao to conquer Chu. Li Jing removes the ruling family to his own capital in Nanjing, ending the Chu Kingdom.
With the help of Stephen III and Stephen Báthory, Vlad the Impaler ousted Basarab the Old and became the ruler of Wallachia for the third time.
Spanish conquest of Peru: Conquistador Francisco Pizarro orchestrated a surprise attack in Cajamarca, capturing the Inca emperor, Atahualpa.
American Revolutionary War: A Dutch fort on Sint Eustatius fired The First Salute to an American brig (pictured), marking the first international recognition of the American flag.
The Prussian heir apparent, Frederick William, becomes King of Prussia as Frederick William III.
Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Schöngrabern: Russian forces under Pyotr Bagration delay the pursuit by French troops under Joachim Murat.
American Old West: Missouri trader William Becknell arrives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, over a route that became known as the Santa Fe Trail.
Second relief of Lucknow: Twenty-four Victoria Crosses are awarded, the most in a single day.
Fisgard Lighthouse, built in the Colony of Vancouver Island, shines its first light, becoming the first permanent lighthouse in present-day British Columbia
American Civil War: In the Battle of Campbell's Station, Confederate troops unsuccessfully attack Union forces which allows General Ambrose Burnside to secure Knoxville, Tennessee.
The National Rifle Association of America receives its charter from New York State.
Indian Territory and Oklahoma Territory join to form Oklahoma, which is admitted as the 46th U.S. state.
World War I: Austro-Hungarian forces launched an assault against Serbian defensive positions at the Kolubara river, beginning the Battle of Kolubara.
The Federal Reserve Bank of the United States officially opens.
Qantas, Australia's national airline, is founded as Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services Limited.
The United States and the Soviet Union establish formal diplomatic relations.
World War II: In support of the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, the town of Düren is destroyed by Allied aircraft.
The Jussi Awards, the Finnish film award ceremony, is held for the first time at Restaurant Adlon in Helsinki.
The Temptations release their Greatest Hits album, which goes on to be the Billboard Year-End R&B album of 1967.
U.S. president Richard Nixon signed an act authorizing the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline to transport oil from the Beaufort Sea to the Gulf of Alaska.
The first line of Bucharest Metro (Line M1) is opened from Timpuri Noi to Semănătoarea in Bucharest, Romania.
About 30 million people watched the fictional couple Luke Spencer and Laura Webber wed on the television show General Hospital in the highest-rated hour in American soap opera history.
The Supreme Soviet of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic declares that Estonia is "sovereign" but stops short of declaring independence.
Pop group Milli Vanilli are stripped of their Grammy Award because the duo did not sing at all on the Girl You Know It's True album. Session musicians had provided all the vocals.
The first case of SARS, a zoonotic respiratory coronavirus disease, was recorded in Guangdong, China.
Half-Life 2 is released, a game winning 39 Game of the Year awards and being cited as one of the best games ever made.
Following a 31-year wait, Australia defeats Uruguay in a penalty shootout to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Space Shuttle program: Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on mission STS-129 to the International Space Station.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “A metal detectorist finds the Hoxne Hoard of Roman treasure”?
A: 1992. 1992 — that’s 34 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “David Livingstone sees the mighty Victoria Falls”?
A: 1855. 1855 — that’s 171 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
B: Edward I becomes King of England while far from home. 1992: A metal detectorist finds the Hoxne Hoard of Roman treasure · 1272: Edward I becomes King of England while far from home · 1855: David Livingstone sees the mighty Victoria Falls Find it on the page
“Edward I becomes King of England while far from home” happened in 1272. How many years ago was that?
A: 754 years. 2026 − 1272 = 754. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 16 November.
Well-known people who died on 16 November.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 16 November somewhere in the world.
The International Day for Tolerance was declared by UNESCO in 1995. It aims to make people more aware of the dangers of intolerance. Intolerance means refusing to accept people who are different from you. The day is a chance to think about respecting other people, whatever their beliefs, cultures or ways of life.
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 16” 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.