November 17 facts for kids

November 17 is the 321st day of the year (322nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 44 days remain until the end of the year.

November 17th is a day filled with many important events throughout history, from the crowning of kings to major scientific discoveries and significant political changes. Let's explore some of the key moments that happened on this date.

Historical Events on November 17

Early History and Kingdoms (Before 1600)

• 1292 – John Balliol became the King of Scotland. His reign was short but important for Scottish history.
• 1405 – The Sultanate of Sulu was created by Sharif ul-Hāshim of Sulu. This was an important Islamic state in Southeast Asia.
• 1494 – French King Charles VIII took control of Florence, Italy, during the Italian War of 1494–1495.
• 1558 – A new era began in England! Queen Mary I of England passed away, and her half-sister, Elizabeth I, became queen. This marked the start of the famous Elizabethan era.

Major Changes and Discoveries (1601–1900)

• 1603 – The famous English explorer and writer Sir Walter Raleigh went on trial for treason.
• 1775 – The city of Kuopio, Finland was officially founded by King Gustav III of Sweden.
• 1777 – The Articles of Confederation were sent to the states for approval in the United States. This was an early step in forming the U.S. government.
• 1796 – During the French Revolutionary Wars, French forces won an important victory against the Austrians in Italy at the Battle of the Bridge of Arcole.
• 1800 – The United States Congress met for the very first time in Washington, D.C..
• 1820 – Captain Nathaniel Palmer became the first American to see Antarctica. A part of Antarctica, the Palmer Peninsula, is named after him.
• 1831 – Ecuador and Venezuela officially separated from Gran Colombia, becoming independent nations.
• 1869 – The amazing Suez Canal was opened in Egypt. This canal connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea, making sea travel much shorter between Europe and Asia.
• 1894 – H. H. Holmes, a famous criminal, was arrested in Boston, Massachusetts.
• 1896 – The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League started playing. This was one of the first ice hockey leagues to allow players to be traded and hired.

Modern Times and Global Events (1901–present)

• 1903 – The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party split into two main groups: the Bolsheviks (meaning "majority") and the Mensheviks (meaning "minority").
• 1939 – Nine Czech students were executed after protests against the Nazi occupation. This sad event led to International Students' Day being celebrated in many countries.
• 1947 – American scientists John Bardeen and Walter Houser Brattain discovered the basic ideas behind the transistor. This invention was a huge step for the electronics revolution of the 20th century.
• 1950 – Lhamo Dondrub was officially named the 14th Dalai Lama, a very important spiritual leader.
• 1962 – President John F. Kennedy officially opened Washington Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C.
• 1969 – During the Cold War, the Soviet Union and the United States began important talks in Helsinki, Finland. These talks, called SALT I, aimed to limit the number of strategic weapons each side had.
• 1970 – The Soviet Union landed Lunokhod 1 on the Moon. This was the first remote-controlled robot to explore another world!
• 1973 – During the Watergate scandal, U.S. President Richard Nixon famously told reporters, "I am not a crook."
• 1989 – The Velvet Revolution began in Czechoslovakia. A student protest in Prague was stopped by police, which sparked a peaceful uprising that eventually overthrew the communist government.
• 1993 – The United States House of Representatives approved the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a major trade deal.
• 2000 – Alberto Fujimori was removed from his position as president of Peru.
• 2003 – Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger began his term as the governor of California.
• 2019 – The first known case of COVID-19 was traced to a man in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China.

Famous Birthdays on November 17

Historical Figures (Before 1900)

• AD 9 – Vespasian, a Roman emperor.
• 1749 – Nicolas Appert, a French chef who invented canning, a way to preserve food.
• 1755 – Louis XVIII, a king of France.
• 1790 – August Ferdinand Möbius, a German mathematician and astronomer, famous for the Möbius strip.
• 1887 – Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, a famous English field marshal during World War II.
• 1896 – Lev Vygotsky, a Belarusian-Russian psychologist and philosopher.

Modern Personalities (1901–present)

• 1902 – Eugene Wigner, a Hungarian physicist and mathematician who won a Nobel Prize.
• 1906 – Soichiro Honda, a Japanese engineer and businessman who co-founded the Honda Motor Company.
• 1925 – Rock Hudson, a popular American actor.
• 1937 – Peter Cook, a well-known English comedian and actor.
• 1938 – Gordon Lightfoot, a famous Canadian singer-songwriter.
• 1942 – Martin Scorsese, a highly respected American film director and producer.
• 1944 – Danny DeVito, a popular American actor, director, and producer.
• 1944 – Lorne Michaels, a Canadian-American producer who created Saturday Night Live.
• 1944 – Tom Seaver, a legendary American baseball pitcher.
• 1948 – Howard Dean, an American physician and politician who served as Governor of Vermont.
• 1952 – Cyril Ramaphosa, the current President of South Africa.
• 1960 – RuPaul, a famous American drag queen performer, actor, and singer.
• 1966 – Jeff Buckley, an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.
• 1966 – Sophie Marceau, a well-known French actress.
• 1978 – Rachel McAdams, a popular Canadian actress.
• 1983 – Christopher Paolini, an American author, known for his fantasy novels.
• 1986 – Nani, a famous Portuguese footballer.

Notable Deaths on November 17

Historical Figures (Before 1900)

• 375 – Valentinian I, a Roman emperor.
• 594 – Gregory of Tours, a Roman bishop and saint.
• 1231 – Elizabeth of Hungary, a princess and saint known for her charity.
• 1494 – Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, an Italian philosopher during the Renaissance.
• 1558 – Mary I of England, the Queen of England.
• 1796 – Catherine the Great, a powerful empress of Russia.

Modern Personalities (1901–present)

• 1917 – Auguste Rodin, a very famous French sculptor.
• 1929 – Herman Hollerith, an American statistician who invented early data processing machines.
• 1959 – Heitor Villa-Lobos, a famous Brazilian guitarist and composer.
• 1968 – Mervyn Peake, an English poet, author, and illustrator.
• 1990 – Robert Hofstadter, an American physicist who won a Nobel Prize.
• 2006 – Ferenc Puskás, a legendary Hungarian footballer.
• 2013 – Doris Lessing, a British novelist and poet who won a Nobel Prize.
• 2021 – Young Dolph, an American rapper.

Holidays and Observances

• Athens Polytechnic Uprising Remembrance Day (Greece)
• Christian feast days:
  • Elizabeth of Hungary
  • Gregory of Tours (Roman Catholic Church)
  • Hilda of Whitby
• International Students' Day
• Martyrs' Day (Orissa, India)
• Presidents Day (Marshall Islands)
• World Prematurity Day

See also

In Spanish: 17 de noviembre para niños