Browse Historical Events by Day: What Happened on November 2nd?

Scipio Africanus defeats Hasdrubal at the Battle of Baecula during the Second Punic War.

The Battle of Actium occurs, leading to the defeat of Mark Antony and Cleopatra by Octavian (Augustus) and the establishment of the Roman Empire.

Emperor Otto III of the Holy Roman Empire dies at the age of 21, leaving a power vacuum in Europe.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is destroyed by order of the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.

Saladin captures Jerusalem from the Crusaders, leading to the Third Crusade.

The Council of Vienne, convened by Pope Clement V, opens in France to address various church matters, including the suppression of the Knights Templar.

King Richard III of England is crowned at Westminster Abbey, marking the beginning of his short reign.

John Paul Jones Sails to the British Isles. after given command of the newly built Ranger. He took several prizes before arriving in Brest, France in May 1778 where he was hailed as a hero. Operating out of Brest, Jones led a cruise to the Irish Sea capturing or destroying small vessels. This cruise made Jones a household name in Britain. More

South Dakota is admitted to the United States of America becoming the 40h State.

North Dakota is admitted to the United States of America becoming the 39th State.

Russia declares war on Turkey, following the shelling of Russian ports and the sinking of Russian ships in the Black Sea by Turkey,

Great Britain and France declared war on Turkey respecting their agreement with Russia, widening the conflict of World War I.

The Balfour Declaration was a public statement issued by the British government in 1917 during the First World War announcing its support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine, then an Ottoman region with a small minority Jewish population. The statement came in the form of a letter from Britain’s then-foreign secretary, Arthur Balfour, addressed to Baron Lionel Walter Rothschild, More

Howard Hughes flies the H-4 Hercules nicknamed the Spruce Goose. It was the largest, heaviest and most expensive plane ever built. Yet aside from a one-mile test flight at 70ft (20m), it never flew again. The plane was designed under an Air Force contract to carry 750 troops or one Sherman tank up to 5,000 miles and at a cruising speed above 250 mph at up to 21,000ft (6,400m) across the Atlantic, thus avoiding Nazi U-boats.. Shortages of materials and in-fighting with business partner Henry Kaiser meant that the only prototype ever built was not completed until 1947, two years after the war ended. More

The obscenity trial of Penguin Books for publishing DH Lawrence’s novel Lady Chatterley’s Lover ends with their acquittal. The verdict is seen as a major victory for freedom of expression in Britain and liberalizing the cultural landscape. It is also believed that it helped shift views on major human rights issues including legalization of homosexuality and abortion, the abolition of the death penalty and divorce reform. More

Generals in the South Vietnamese Army depose President Ngo Dinh Diem and assassinate Diem and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu. More

NASA Astronaut Bill Shepherd and cosmonauts Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev become the first crew to reside onboard the station. Expedition 1 spent four months onboard completing tasks necessary to bring the ISS "to life" and began what is now more than 20 years of continuous human presence in space. More

George W. Bush is reelected as President of the United States, defeating John Kerry.