May 5

November 13

354 Bishop and theologian Saint Augustine of Hippo was born on November 13, 354 in the municipium of Thagaste (now Souk Ahras, Algeria) in Roman Africa. Augustine admitted in his autobiography Confessions, that as a boy he "told lies to my tutors, my masters and my parents all for the love of games and the craving for stage shows." Young Augustine also stole pears from a neighbor's tree, and the sin troubled him for the rest of his life.

Portrait by Philippe de Champaigne, 17th century

1312 Edward III of England was born at Windsor Castle on November 13, 1312. His mother was Queen Isabella of France, his father Edward II. Edward was handed over to a nursemaid and quickly given a separate household, away from his parents. He was crowned King of England at the age of 14 after his father was forced to abdicate and transformed the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe.

1718 British statesman John Montagu, The Fourth Earl of Sandwich, was born on November 13, 1718. Montagu was a notorious gambler, often going from pub to pub in London on gambling marathons. To satisfy his hunger, while continuing to gamble, he ordered roast beef between pieces of bread for a snack while he was at the gaming tables; it allowed him to keep one hand free to play while he ate. This became known as the "sandwich".


1785 English music educator Sarah Ann Glover was born on November 13. 1785. Glover's father was Curate of St Laurence's Church, Norwich, England, and she developed the Norwich sol-fa learning system to aid teachers with a cappella singing. The Norwich sol-fa system, which was concerned with making musical note relationships aurally apparent, changed "si" to "ti" so that every syllable might begin with a different letter.

1835 On November 13, 1835 Texans officially proclaimed independence from Mexico, taking on the name the Lone Star Republic. Soon Texas and Mexico were at war. Mexican President Antonio López de Santa Anna personally led an army to end the revolt. Santa Anna's forces, after a thirteen-day siege, massacred Texian defenders at the Battle of the Alamo.

1841 Around 1770 an Austrian physician Franz Mesmer took up an idea that a power existed, which he referred to as "animal magnetism" and a person became ill when their "animal magnetism" was out of balance. Mesmer claimed to use it as a medical treatment to heal certain nervous ailments. Scottish doctor James Braid first saw a demonstration of animal magnetism on November 13, 1841, which led to his study of the subject. Braid coined the term hypnosis, from the Greek "hypnos" meaning sleep.

1850 Treasure Island, and Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde author Robert Louis Stevenson was born at 8 Howard Place, Edinburgh, Scotland, on November 13, 1850 to engineer Thomas Stevenson, and his wife Margaret Isabella. As a child, young Robert was much influenced by a strict nurse, Cummy (Alison Cunningham), who used tell him stories of ghosts, conspiracies and Calvinist judgement. Stevenson qualified as an advocate  but never practiced, as he devoted all his energies to travel and writing. 

1851 Arthur A Denny and his group of travelers from New York State, arrived on a cold, stormy day on the schooner Exact at Alki Point on November 13, 1851. They originally called their settlement in what’s today known as West Seattle, "New York." After the party moved across Elliott Bay, they renamed the territory "Seattle" after Chief Si'ahl of the local Duwamish and Suquamish tribes befriended them.

Photographer Theodore Peiser captured an image of this painting of early Seattle

1868 Italian composer Gioachino Rossini died at his country house at Passy of cancer of the rectum on November 13, 1868. He was buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery, Paris. In 1887, Rossini's remains were moved to the Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence, at the request of the Italian government. When Rossini was old and eminent but still not rich a group of admirers raised a subscription of 20,000 Francs for a statue to their hero. "Give me the 20,000" said Rossini, "and I'll stand on the pedestal myself."

1868 The first reference to an unlucky Friday the 13th came in an 1869 biography of Gioachino Rossini who died on Friday November 13, 1868. According to the National Geographic, the superstitious fear of the number of 13 was fueled by Judas, the 13th apostle at the Last Supper, who betrayed Jesus.

1875 The Russian premiere of Pyotr Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto in B Flat took place on November 13, 1875 in Saint Petersburg. The four opening crashing chords are some of the most famous chords in history. The concerto's first theme, which follows it, is based on a folk melody that Tchaikovsky heard performed by blind beggar-musicians at a market in Kamenka (near Kiev in what is now Ukraine).

1927 The Holland Tunnel opened to traffic on November 13, 1927 connecting Manhattan in New York City to the east and Jersey City to the west under the Hudson River. It was the first mechanically ventilated underwater vehicular tunnel.

1940 In 1936, Walt Disney felt that the Disney studio's star character Mickey Mouse needed a boost in popularity. He decided to feature the mouse in a deluxe short called The Sorcerer's Apprentice. As production costs began to mount, they decided to include the short as part of a feature film set to classical music. This became the classic Disney film, Fantasia which was first shown at the Broadway Theatre in New York City on November 13, 1940.

Title screen in the original theatrical trailer

1946 General Electric scientists first produced man-made snow on November 13, 1946. By 1952 the first snowmaking machinery was in regular use at a Catskill ski resort. Today, virtually every American ski area produces artificial snow.

1956 In 1955 Seamstress Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man. The arrest sparked a 381 day-long bus boycott by blacks. On November 13, 1956 the United States Supreme Court declared Alabama laws requiring segregated buses illegal, thus ending the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

1966 On November 13, 1966, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first astronaut to successfully work in space without tiring, during the Gemini 12 flight. (Previous astronauts suffered from fatigue carrying out tasks during EVA). Aldrin worked outside the Gemini craft for 2 hours and 6 minutes, demonstrating that astronauts could work outside their transport.


1974 Karen Silkwood worked at The Cimarron Fuel Fabrication Site, a nuclear fuel production facility located near Cimarron City, Oklahoma, where she made plutonium pellets. On November 13, 1974, she set out to meet a reporter to go public with evidence of extensive safety violations. Silkwood was later found dead; her car appeared to have been run off the road and the documents she had with her were missing.

1982 South Korean boxer Kim Duk-koo suffered fatal brain injuries during a world championship boxing match with American Ray Mancini near Las Vegas' Caesars Palace on November 13, 1982. His death five days later led to significant rule changes in the sport aimed to better protect the health of fighters, including reducing the number of rounds in championship bouts from 15 to 12.

2006 Google bought the YouTube site on November 13, 2006 for US$1.65 billion. At the time of the acquisition, YouTube was a popular video-sharing platform, and Google saw the potential for growth and synergy between its search and advertising capabilities and YouTube's video content. Since the acquisition, YouTube has continued to operate as a subsidiary of Google, and it has grown to become one of the largest and most widely used video platforms on the internet.


2010 The world's largest peanut butter and jelly sandwich was assembled in Grand Saline, Texas on November 13, 2010. It was made in Grand Saline, Texas, weighed 1,342 pounds and contained 292 pounds of peanut butter, 340 pounds of grape jelly, and 710 pounds of bread.

2014 A publication released at the IUCN World Parks Congress in Sydney on November 13, 2014 showed that the 209,000 conservation reserves around the world now cover 15.4 per cent of the total land area.

2015 In the days after the November 13, 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, "La Marseillaise" was performed across the globe in solidarity with France, including during the following weekend's Premier League football games in England.


2021 The largest orchestra ever performed with 8,573 musicians on November 13, 2021, at the Venezuelan Military Academy in Caracas, Venezuela. The network of musicians, all connected to the country's network of youth orchestras played Tchaikovsky's Slavic March,

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