November 19 in History

Significant events that happened on this day.

Today

Historical Events

2006

Nintendo released the Wii gaming console in North America, revolutionizing how people interacted with video games

The Wii's motion-controlled gameplay brought gaming to families and non-gamers worldwide, with people of all ages swinging controllers to bowl, play t...

1998

Vincent van Gogh's "Portrait of the Artist Without His Beard" sold for $71.5 million at auction

The painting, one of only two self-portraits without van Gogh's iconic beard, set a record at the time. Ironically, van Gogh sold only one painting du...

1990

Pop duo Milli Vanilli were stripped of their Grammy Award after admitting they didn't sing on their own album

The scandal rocked the music industry when Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan confessed they had lip-synced everything, with studio musicians providing the ac...

1985

Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev held their first summit meeting in Geneva, beginning the end of the Cold War

Major

The two leaders famously broke away from their handlers for a private fireside chat that lasted much longer than scheduled. Despite disagreements over...

1977

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat became the first Arab leader to officially visit Israel

Major

Sadat's historic journey to Jerusalem shocked the world and broke decades of Arab-Israeli hostility. He addressed the Knesset and met with Prime Minis...

1969

Apollo 12 astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean made the second manned landing on the Moon

Major

Conrad's first words upon stepping onto the lunar surface were "Whoopie! Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that's a long one for me,"...

1959

Ford Motor Company announced it was discontinuing the Edsel, one of the most spectacular failures in automotive history

Despite extensive market research and a massive advertising campaign, the Edsel became synonymous with commercial failure. The car lost Ford $350 mill...

1942

The Soviet Red Army launched Operation Uranus, the counteroffensive that would encircle German forces at Stalingrad

Major

This brilliant pincer movement trapped over 250,000 German soldiers in one of World War II's most decisive battles. The operation marked the beginning...

1863

A crowd of 15,000 people gathered to watch the dedication of a cemetery, but barely noticed Lincoln's short speech

Edward Everett, the main speaker, delivered a two-hour oration before Lincoln's brief remarks. The crowd was reportedly still shuffling and settling w...

1863

Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Pennsylvania

Major

In just 272 words and about two minutes, Lincoln redefined the Civil War as a struggle for human equality and democracy. The speech was so short that...

1794

The United States and Great Britain signed Jay's Treaty, narrowly avoiding another war just 11 years after independence

The treaty resolved lingering disputes from the Revolutionary War and prevented what seemed like inevitable conflict. While it was deeply unpopular in...

1493

Christopher Columbus first arrived at the island of Puerto Rico on his second voyage to the Americas

Columbus named the island San Juan Bautista (Saint John the Baptist), though the names would later be switched with the capital city. The indigenous T...

Fun Facts from November 19