122 things happened on 23 November, from 534 BC to 2018. UK stories come first, then the rest of the world.
1887 · 139 years ago
Henry Moseley was an English physicist, born in Weymouth in Dorset. By studying the X-rays given off by different elements, he showed that each element's atomic number has a firm basis in physics. This put the elements of the periodic table in exactly the rig…
UK history first: stories from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
UK story
During the English Civil War, the poet John Milton published Areopagitica. In it, he argued against censorship, which is when the authorities control what people may print. He also opposed rules that made writers get permission before publishing, because he believed in the right to free expression. Milton later wrote Paradise Lost (1667), a long poem about Adam and Eve that made him one of history's greatest poets.
UK story
The very first episode of Doctor Who was broadcast on BBC television, with William Hartnell playing the Doctor. In the story, two schoolteachers called Ian and Barbara discover the Doctor and his time-travelling ship, the TARDIS, in a London junkyard. From the outside, the TARDIS looks like an old police box. Doctor Who went on to become the world's longest-running science fiction television show.
UK story
The Cocos Islands are transferred from the control of the United Kingdom to that of Australia.
According to ancient Greek writers, especially Aristotle, Thespis was the first person to act a character in a play. Other sources say he was the first to add a main actor alongside the chorus, a group who performed together. Thespis is often called the 'Inventor of Tragedy'. The word 'thespian', which means an actor, comes from his name.
The New York Times reported evidence from the American astronomer Edwin Hubble about the Andromeda Nebula. Many people believed it was part of our own galaxy, the Milky Way, but Hubble showed it was really a separate galaxy. He proved that many fuzzy objects once thought to be clouds of dust and gas were galaxies far beyond the Milky Way. His work helped to start the study of other galaxies.
French diver Jacques Mayol became the first person to freedive to a depth of 100 metres. Freediving means diving underwater while holding your breath, without breathing equipment such as scuba gear. Mayol held many world records in freediving. The 1988 film The Big Blue was inspired by his life story and that of his friend Enzo Maiorca.
The IBM Simon was introduced at COMDEX, one of the world's largest computer shows, in Las Vegas, USA. It was a mobile phone and a personal digital assistant, a small electronic organiser, all in one. It had a touchscreen and could send faxes and emails, so it is often called the first true smartphone. The Simon went on sale in 1994.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was elected President of Liberia, following a run-off vote held earlier in November. She became the first woman to be elected to lead a country in Africa. These were Liberia's first elections since 1997, and they marked the end of a period of change after the country's second civil war. She served as president from 2006 to 2018.
Blue Origin's New Shepard became the first rocket to fly to space and then return to Earth for a controlled, upright landing. New Shepard is fully reusable, which means it can fly again instead of being thrown away. It was built to take space tourists on short trips up to space and back. The rocket is named after Alan Shepard, the first American to travel into space.
Conquest of Seville by Christian troops under King Ferdinand III of Castile.
Dutch pacification campaign on Formosa: Soldiers from the Dutch East India Company (flag depicted) razed the village of Mattau, now part of modern-day Tainan, Taiwan.
African slaves in the Danish West Indies began an insurrection in one of the earliest and longest slave revolts in the Americas.
French and Poles defeat the Spanish at Battle of Tudela.
American Civil War: Battle of Chattanooga begins: Union forces led by General Ulysses S. Grant reinforce troops at Chattanooga, Tennessee, and counter-attack Confederate troops.
Mexican Revolution: The last of U.S. forces withdraw from Veracruz, occupied seven months earlier in response to the Tampico Affair.
Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the United States, signs the Willis–Campbell Act into law, prohibiting doctors from prescribing beer or liquor for medicinal purposes.
An Anglo-Ethiopian boundary commission in the Ogaden discovers an Italian garrison at Walwal, well within Ethiopian territory. This leads to the Abyssinia Crisis.
World War II: Romania becomes a signatory of the Tripartite Pact, officially joining the Axis powers.
World War II: Tarawa and Makin atolls fall to American forces.
World War II: The Deutsche Opernhaus on Bismarckstraße in the Berlin neighborhood of Charlottenburg is destroyed. It will eventually be rebuilt in 1961 and be called the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
World War II: The Lotta Svärd Movement is disbanded under the terms of the armistice treaty in Finland after the Continuation War.
French President Charles de Gaulle declares in a speech in Strasbourg his vision for "Europe, from the Atlantic to the Urals".
Representatives of the People's Republic of China attend the United Nations, including the United Nations Security Council, for the first time.
The Soviet Union makes its final attempt at launching the N1 rocket.
The Geneva Frequency Plan of 1975 goes into effect, realigning many of Europe's longwave and mediumwave broadcasting frequencies.
The Budapest Convention on Cybercrime is signed in Budapest, Hungary.
Space Shuttle Endeavour launches on STS-113 to the International Space Station carrying the Expedition 6 crew and the P1 truss.
Rose Revolution: Eduard Shevardnadze resigned as President of Georgia following weeks of mass protests over disputed election results.
The Holy Trinity Cathedral of Tbilisi, the largest religious building in Georgia, is consecrated.
Arab Spring: After months of protests in Yemen, President Ali Abdullah Saleh agreed to transfer power to Vice President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.
Founders of Italian fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana issue an apology following a series of offensive advertisements on social media promoting a fashion show in Shanghai, China, which was canceled.
Every answer is somewhere on this page. Have a go, then check!
In which year did this happen: “John Milton publishes Areopagitica, a defence of free speech”?
C: 1644. 1644 — that’s 382 years ago. Find it on the page
In which year did this happen: “The first episode of Doctor Who is shown on BBC television”?
A: 1963. 1963 — that’s 63 years ago. Find it on the page
Which of these happened first?
C: John Milton publishes Areopagitica, a defence of free speech. 1924: Edwin Hubble's evidence shows Andromeda is another galaxy · 1963: The first episode of Doctor Who is shown on BBC television · 1644: John Milton publishes Areopagitica, a defence of free speech Find it on the page
“Boris Karloff” happened in 1887. How many years ago was that?
C: 139 years. 2026 − 1887 = 139. Find it on the page
Famous people whose birthday is 23 November.
UK story
Boris Karloff, whose real name was William Henry Pratt, was an English actor. He became famous for playing Frankenstein's monster in the 1931 film Frankenstein, and he was a star of many horror films. He also narrated the 1966 animated television special How the Grinch Stole Christmas! and gave the Grinch his voice. That work won him a Grammy Award.
UK story
Henry Moseley was an English physicist, born in Weymouth in Dorset. By studying the X-rays given off by different elements, he showed that each element's atomic number has a firm basis in physics. This put the elements of the periodic table in exactly the right order. His work also revealed gaps in the table for elements that had not yet been discovered.
Well-known people who died on 23 November.
Festivals, holidays and saints’ days celebrated on 23 November somewhere in the world.
Labour Thanksgiving Day is a public holiday in Japan, held on 23 November every year. The law that created it calls it a day to respect people's work and to celebrate what is produced. It is also a day for people to give each other thanks. If 23 November falls on a Sunday, the holiday moves to the Monday.
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 23” 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.