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On This Day in History — November 15
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Highlights of November 15
- 2012 — Xi Jinping replaced Hu Jintao as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, succeeding as the paramount leader of China. Read more
- 2000 — Edoardo Agnelli, son of the industrialist patriarch Gianni Agnelli, was found dead under a bridge on the outskirts of Turin, Italy. Read more
- 1988 — The Soviet spacecraft Buran, a reusable vehicle built in response to NASA's Space Shuttle program, was launched, uncrewed, on its only flight. Read more
- 1959 — Two men murdered a family in Holcomb, Kansas; the events became the subject of Truman Capote's non-fiction novel In Cold Blood, a pioneering work of the true crime genre. Read more
- 1943 — The Holocaust: In the Romani Holocaust, Nazi official Heinrich Himmler ordered that the Romani were to be put "on the same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps". Read more
- 1922 — During a general strike in Guayaquil, Ecuador, police and military fired into a crowd, killing at least 300 people. Read more
- 1922 — Fountain of Time, in Chicago's Washington Park, was dedicated as a tribute to 100 years of peace between the United States and Great Britain following the Treaty of Ghent. Read more
- 1908 — As a result of numerous atrocities in the territory, the Congo Free State was annexed to Belgium to form the Belgian Congo. Read more
- 1889 — Brazilian emperor Pedro II was overthrown in a coup led by Deodoro da Fonseca (pictured), while the country was proclaimed a republic. Read more
- 1864 — American Civil War: Union army general William Tecumseh Sherman (pictured) began his March to the Sea, inflicting significant damage to property and infrastructure using scorched-earth tactics on his way from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia. Read more
- 1859 — Sponsored by Greek businessman Evangelos Zappas, the first modern revival of the Olympic Games took place in Athens. Read more
- 1760 — The chapel of the newly constructed Castellania in Valletta, Malta, was consecrated. Read more
- 655 — Penda of Mercia and Æthelhere of East Anglia were defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria at the Battle of the Winwaed in Yorkshire, England. Read more
Events
- 2022 — The world population reached eight billion. Read more
- 2020 — Lewis Hamilton wins the Turkish Grand Prix and secures his seventh drivers' title, equalling the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher. Read more
- 2017 — A flood a few miles outside of Athens results in the death of 25 people. Read more
- 2016 — Hong Kong's High Court bans elected politicians Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung from the city's Parliament. Read more
- 2012 — Xi Jinping becomes General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and a new seven-member Politburo Standing Committee is inaugurated. Read more
- 2010 — A fire in a high-rise apartment building in Shanghai, China kills 58 people. Read more
- 2007 — Cyclone Sidr hits Bangladesh, killing an estimated 5,000 people and destroying parts of the world's largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans. Read more
- 2006 — Al Jazeera English launches worldwide. Read more
- 2003 — The first day of the 2003 Istanbul bombings, in which two car bombs, targeting two synagogues, explode, kill 25 people and wound 300 more. Read more
- 2002 — Hu Jintao becomes General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and a new nine-member Politburo Standing Committee is inaugurated. Read more
- 2001 — Microsoft launches the Xbox game console in North America. Read more
- 2000 — A chartered Antonov An-24 crashes after takeoff from Luanda, Angola, killing more than 40 people. Read more
- 2000 — Jharkhand officially becomes the 28th state of India, formed from eighteen districts of southern Bihar. Read more
- 1994 — A magnitude 7.1 earthquake hits the central Philippine island of Mindoro, killing 78 people, injuring 430 and triggering a tsunami up to 8.5 m (28 ft) high. Read more
- 1990 — The Communist People's Republic of Bulgaria is disestablished and a new republican government is instituted. Read more
- 1990 — Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on STS-38, a classified mission for the Department of Defense. Read more
- 1988 — In the Soviet Union, the uncrewed Shuttle Buran makes its only space flight. Read more
- 1988 — Israeli–Palestinian conflict: An independent State of Palestine is proclaimed by the Palestinian National Council. Read more
- 1988 — The first Fairtrade label, Max Havelaar, is launched in the Netherlands. Read more
- 1987 — In Brașov, Romania, workers rebel against the communist regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu. Read more
- 1987 — Continental Airlines Flight 1713 crashes during takeoff from Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado, killing 25. Read more
- 1985 — A research assistant is injured when a package from the Unabomber addressed to a University of Michigan professor explodes. Read more
- 1985 — The Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed at Hillsborough Castle by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Irish Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald. Read more
- 1983 — Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus declares independence; it is only recognized by Turkey. Read more
- 1979 — A package from Unabomber Ted Kaczynski begins smoking in the cargo hold of a flight from Chicago to Washington, D.C., forcing the plane to make an emergency landing. Read more
- 1978 — A chartered Douglas DC-8 crashes near Colombo, Sri Lanka, killing 183. Read more
- 1976 — René Lévesque and the Parti Québécois take power to become the first Quebec government of the 20th century clearly in favor of independence. Read more
- 1971 — Intel releases the world's first commercial single-chip microprocessor, the 4004. Read more
- 1969 — Cold War: The Soviet submarine K-19 collides with the American submarine USS Gato in the Barents Sea. Read more
- 1969 — Vietnam War: In Washington, D.C., 250,000–500,000 protesters staged a peaceful demonstration against the war, including a symbolic "March Against Death". Read more
- 1968 — The Cleveland Transit System becomes the first transit system in the western hemisphere to provide direct rapid transit service from a city's downtown to its major airport. Read more
- 1967 — The only fatality of the North American X-15 program occurs during the 191st flight when Air Force test pilot Michael J. Adams loses control of his aircraft which is destroyed mid-air over the Mojave Desert. Read more
- 1966 — Project Gemini: Gemini 12 completes the program's final mission, when it splashes down safely in the Atlantic Ocean. Read more
- 1965 — Craig Breedlove sets a land speed record of 600.601 mph (966.574 km/h) in his car, the Spirit of America, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Read more
- 1959 — Four members of the Clutter family are murdered near Holcomb, Kansas, by Perry Smith and Richard Hickock, a crime later detailed by Truman Capote in his 1966 non-fiction novel In Cold Blood. Read more
- 1957 — Short Solent 3 crashes near Chessell. Read more
- 1955 — The first part of the Saint Petersburg Metro is opened. Read more
- 1951 — Nikos Beloyannis, along with 11 comrades, is sentenced to death for attempting to reestablish the Communist Party of Greece. Read more
- 1943 — The Holocaust: German SS leader Heinrich Himmler orders that Gypsies are to be put "on the same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps". Read more
- 1942 — World War II: The Battle of Guadalcanal ends in a decisive Allied victory. Read more
- 1938 — Nazi Germany bans Jewish children from public schools in the aftermath of Kristallnacht. Read more
- 1933 — Thailand holds its first election. Read more
- 1928 — The RNLI lifeboat Mary Stanford capsizes in Rye Harbour with the loss of the entire 17-man crew. Read more
- 1922 — At least 300 are massacred during a general strike in Guayaquil, Ecuador. Read more
- 1920 — The first assembly of the League of Nations is held in Geneva, Switzerland. Read more
- 1920 — The Free City of Danzig is established. Read more
- 1917 — Eduskunta declares itself the supreme state power of Finland, prompting its declaration of independence and secession from Russia. Read more
- 1899 — Second Boer War: Battle of Chieveley, a British armored train is ambushed and partially derailed. British lose the battle, with 80 soldiers captured, along with war correspondent Winston Churchill. Read more
- 1889 — Brazil is declared a republic by Marshal Deodoro da Fonseca as Emperor Pedro II is deposed in a military coup. Read more
- 1884 — The Berlin Conference of 1884–1885 met on 15 November 1884, and after an adjournment concluded on 26 February 1885, with the signature of a General Act, regulating the European colonisation and trade in Africa during the New Imperialism period. Read more
- 1864 — American Civil War: Union General William Tecumseh Sherman begins his March to the Sea through Georgia towards the city of Savannah. Read more
- 1849 — Boilers of the steamboat Louisiana explode as she pulls back from the dock in New Orleans, killing more than 150 people. Read more
- 1842 — A slave revolt in the Cherokee Nation commences. Read more
- 1806 — Pike Expedition: Lieutenant Zebulon Pike spots a mountain peak while near the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It is later named Pikes Peak in his honor. Read more
- 1777 — American Revolutionary War: After 16 months of debate the Continental Congress approves the Articles of Confederation. Read more
- 1760 — The secondly-built Castellania in Valletta is officially inaugurated with the blessing of the interior Chapel of Sorrows. Read more
- 1705 — Rákóczi's War of Independence: The Habsburg Empire and Denmark win a military victory over the Kurucs from Hungary in the Battle of Zsibó. Read more
- 1688 — Prince William III of Orange lands a Dutch army at Brixham, beginning the 1688 invasion of England to challenge the rule of King James II and setting in motion the events that would lead to the Glorious Revolution. Read more
- 1533 — Francisco Pizarro arrives in Cuzco, the capital of the Inca Empire. Read more
- 1532 — Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire: Commanded by Francisco Pizarro, Spanish conquistadors under Hernando de Soto meet Incan Emperor Atahualpa for the first time outside Cajamarca, arranging for a meeting in the city plaza the following day. Read more
Born on November 15
- 2001 — TyTy Washington Jr., American basketball player Read more
- 1997 — Paula Badosa, Spanish tennis player Read more
- 1996 — Kim Min-jae, South Korean footballer Read more
- 1995 — Blake Pieroni, American swimmer Read more
- 1995 — Karl-Anthony Towns, Dominican-American basketball player Read more
- 1994 — Ekaterina Alexandrova, Russian tennis player Read more
- 1994 — Emma Dumont, American actress and model Read more
- 1994 — Bryce Cartwright, Australian rugby league player Read more
- 1994 — Alejandro Saab, American voice actor, YouTuber, and VTuber Read more
- 1993 — Arik Armstead, American football player Read more
- 1993 — Paulo Dybala, Argentine footballer Read more
- 1993 — Melitina Staniouta, Belarusian rhythmic gymnast Read more
- 1992 — Dylan Bundy, American baseball player Read more
- 1992 — Sofia Goggia, Italian skier Read more
- 1992 — Minami Minegishi, Japanese singer Read more
- 1992 — Kevin Wimmer, Austrian footballer Read more
- 1991 — Maxime Colin, French footballer Read more
- 1991 — Shailene Woodley, American actress Read more
- 1989 — Jona Viray, Filipino singer Read more
- 1988 — B.o.B, American rapper, songwriter, and producer Read more
- 1988 — Quanitra Hollingsworth, American-Turkish basketball player Read more
- 1988 — Morgan Parra, French rugby player Read more
- 1988 — Billy Twelvetrees, English rugby player Read more
- 1987 — Sergio Llull, Spanish basketball player Read more
- 1986 — Winston Duke, Tobagonian-American actor Read more
- 1986 — Coye Francies, American football player Read more
- 1986 — Sania Mirza, Indian tennis player Read more
- 1986 — Jerry Roush, American singer-songwriter Read more
- 1985 — Lily Aldridge, American model Read more
- 1985 — Charron Fisher, American basketball player Read more
- 1985 — Simon Spender, Welsh footballer Read more
- 1984 — Asia Kate Dillon, American actor and producer Read more
- 1983 — Dominic Carroll, Gibraltarian runner Read more
- 1983 — Sophia Di Martino, English actress Read more
- 1983 — Aleksandar Pavlović, Serbian basketball player Read more
- 1983 — Fernando Verdasco, Spanish tennis player Read more
- 1983 — John Heitinga, Dutch footballer and coach Read more
- 1982 — Rio Hirai, Japanese actress Read more
- 1982 — Benjamin Krause, German rugby player Read more
- 1982 — Giaan Rooney, Australian swimmer Read more
Died on November 15
- 2024 — Celeste Caeiro, Portuguese pacifist (born 1933) Read more
- 2024 — Béla Károlyi, Romanian-American gymnastics coach (born 1942) Read more
- 2024 — Jon Kenny, Irish comedian and actor (born 1957) Read more
- 2024 — Yuriko, Princess Mikasa, Japanese princess (born 1923) Read more
- 2023 — Žarko Laušević, Serbian actor (born 1960) Read more
- 2017 — Lil Peep, American singer and rapper (born 1996) Read more
- 2016 — Mose Allison, American pianist and songwriter (born 1927) Read more
- 2015 — Gisèle Prassinos, French author (born 1920) Read more
- 2015 — Herbert Scarf, American economist and academic (born 1930) Read more
- 2015 — Saeed Jaffrey, Indian-British actor (born 1929) Read more
- 2014 — Jack Bridger Chalker, English painter and academic (born 1918) Read more
- 2014 — Lucien Clergue, French photographer and educator (born 1934) Read more
- 2014 — Valéry Mézague, Cameroonian footballer (born 1983) Read more
- 2014 — Reg Withers, Australian soldier and politician, Australian Minister for the Capital Territory (born 1924) Read more
- 2013 — Sheila Matthews Allen, American actress and producer (born 1929) Read more
- 2013 — Glafcos Clerides, Cypriot lawyer and politician, 4th President of Cyprus (born 1919) Read more
- 2013 — Mike McCormack, American football player and coach (born 1930) Read more
- 2012 — Théophile Abega, Cameroonian footballer and politician (born 1954) Read more
- 2012 — Luís Carreira, Portuguese motorcycle racer (born 1976) Read more
- 2012 — Maleli Kunavore, Fijian rugby player (born 1983) Read more
- 2012 — K. C. Pant, Indian politician, 18th Indian Minister of Defence (born 1931) Read more
- 2012 — Frode Thingnæs, Norwegian trombonist, composer, and conductor (born 1940) Read more
- 2011 — Oba Chandler, American murderer (born 1946) Read more
- 2010 — Larry Evans, American chess player and journalist (born 1932) Read more
- 2010 — Ed Kirkpatrick, American baseball player (born 1944) Read more
- 2010 — William Edwin Self, American actor, director, and producer (born 1921) Read more
- 2009 — Serbian Patriarch Pavle II (born 1914) Read more
- 2008 — Grace Hartigan, American painter (born 1922) Read more
- 2007 — Joe Nuxhall, American baseball player and sportscaster (born 1928) Read more
- 2006 — David K. Wyatt, American historian and author (born 1937) Read more
- 2005 — Adrian Rogers, American pastor and author (born 1931) Read more
- 2005 — Arto Salminen, Finnish journalist and author (born 1959) Read more
- 2004 — Elmer L. Andersen, American businessman and politician, 30th Governor of Minnesota (born 1909) Read more
- 2004 — John Morgan, Welsh-Canadian actor and screenwriter (born 1930) Read more
- 2003 — Ray Lewis, Canadian runner (born 1910) Read more
- 2003 — Dorothy Loudon, American actress and singer (born 1925) Read more
- 2003 — Laurence Tisch, American businessman, co-founded the Loews Corporation (born 1923) Read more
- 2003 — Speedy West, American guitarist and producer (born 1924) Read more
- 2001 — Frances Hawkins, American politician and teacher, member of the Nevada State Assembly (born 1921) Read more
- 2000 — Edoardo Agnelli, son of industrialist Gianni Agnelli (born 1954) Read more
Holidays & observances
America Recycles Day (United States); Christian feast day:
Abibus of Edessa; Christian feast day:
Albert the Great; Christian feast day:
Blessed Caius of Korea; Christian feast day:
Didier of Cahors; Christian feast day:
Francis Asbury and George Whitefield (Episcopal Church); Christian feast day:
Blessed Hugh Faringdon; Christian feast day:
Leopold III, a public holiday in Lower Austria and Vienna.; Christian feast day:
Malo; Christian feast day:
Mechell; Christian feast day:
November 15 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics); Day of the German-speaking Community of Belgium (German-speaking Community of Belgium); Day of the Imprisoned Writer (International observance); Independence Day, unilaterally declared in 1988. (Palestine); King's Feast (Belgium); National Tree Planting Day (Sri Lanka); Peace Day (Ivory Coast); Republic Proclamation Day (Brazil); Shichi-Go-San (Japan); Republic Day (Northern Cyprus); The beginning of Nativity Fast (Eastern Orthodox)
Events, births and deaths from Wikipedia contributors, “November 15”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Lists are selections; the full record lives at the source.