Diocletian is acclaimed Roman Emperor by his soldiers following the assassination of Emperor Numerian. During his reign, he restored efficient government to the empire after the near anarchy of the 3rd century and laid the foundation for the Byzantine Empire in the East.
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On This Day in History: November 17
Explore the historical events that shaped our world on November 17th. From major milestones to cultural achievements, see what happened on this day in history. Dates for earlier events may be approximate.
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William II of England (William Rufus) is buried at Winchester Cathedral, England, after his death in a hunting accident.
King Baldwin I of Jerusalem dies, and his sister's son, Baldwin II, succeeds him as King of Jerusalem.
John Balliol is chosen as King of Scots by Edward I of England, leading to the beginning of the Scottish Wars of Independence.
The Battle of Posada takes place between the Wallachian forces and the Hungarian Empire, leading to a Wallachian victory.
Queen Elizabeth I ascends to the English throne, marking the beginning of the Elizabethan era, a period, when England asserted itself vigorously as a major European power in politics, commerce, and the arts. Her coronation took place in January 15 1559.
She instituted The the Elizabethan religious Settlement (effected with the Act of Supremacy and Act of Uniformity).During her reign, the kingdom was also threatened by grave internal divisions and the emergence of poverty and cost inflation on a new major scale, made worse by harvest failures. The years of 1594 to 1577 were particularly difficult and remarkable by the misery they engendered. More
The "First Thanksgiving" is celebrated by Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag Native Americans in Massachusetts.
Jean-Baptiste Lully, the Italian-born French composer, premieres his opera "Cadmus et Hermione" at the Palace of Versailles.
Sweden's King Charles XII assumes the throne at the age of 18, beginning his long and eventful reign.
The United States Congress holds its first session in Washington, D.C., marking the city's official establishment as the nation's capital.
The Suez Canal opens after 10 years of construction. The Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez. It is a key trade route between Europe and Asia. The Suez Canal went through a major one year expansion in 2014 and reopened in 2015. More
President Richard Nixon famously declared "Well, I'm not a crook" during a televised press conference on November 17, 1973. Questions had been intensifying about his role in the 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate complex and subsequent cover-up efforts as well as his personal finances. Less than nine months later, Nixon resigned to avoid impeachment.
His full quote was : "People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook. I've earned everything I've got". The ongoing investigations, the "Saturday Night Massacre," and the eventual revelation of the White House tapes (including an incriminating 18 1/2-minute gap) forced his resignation.