November 13
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2017
Diversity in doll format
As a child, Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad made tiny hijabs for her Barbies so they would look more like her. And on this day in 2017, things came full circle: Mattel introduced the first official hijab-wearing Barbie doll, modeled after Ibtihaj. Amid widespread Islamophobia, the doll sent a simple message: Barbie could be Muslim too.
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© Dennis Van Tine—Geisler-Fotopres GmbH/Alamy; Photo Illustration Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Featured Event
© Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Terrorist attacks in Paris
On this day in 2015, terrorists staged coordinated attacks in Paris and its environs, the deadliest occurring at the Bataclan theater and concert hall; in all, at least 130 people were killed and more than 350 were wounded.
Featured Biography
Featured Biography
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St. Augustine—author of Confessions and The City of God, bishop of Hippo from 396 to 430 ce, and perhaps the most significant Christian thinker after St. Paul—was born in Numidia (now in Algeria) this day in 354.
Famous Birthdays
More on November 13
Erik de Castro/Reuters
2001
On the heels of the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan prompted by the deadly terrorist attacks of September 11, the army of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance captured the capital city of Kabul. [Take our quiz about the history of warfare.]
Jacques Langevin—Sygma/Getty Images
1985
Mount Ruiz in the Cordillera Central of the Andes, in west-central Colombia, erupted twice, burying the town of Armero on the Lagunilla River and killing an estimated 25,000 people. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about mountains.]
© 1980 United Artists Corporation
1980
Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull, a biopic about boxer Jake La Motta, had its world premiere and became an American classic, especially known for the Oscar-winning performance of Robert De Niro. [Test your knowledge of movies.]
© Russell McPhedran—Fairfax Media Archives/Getty Images
1974
Ronald DeFeo, Jr., shot and killed six members of his family at their home in Amityville, New York. The subsequent alleged haunting of the house was investigated by Ed and Lorraine Warren, and it inspired a best-selling book, The Amityville Horror (1977), and a series of film adaptations.
© The Walt Disney Company
1940
The animated film Fantasia had its first public screening, and it became one of Disney’s more controversial works, derided for its portentousness and praised for its stunning visual virtuosity. [Take our Disney quiz.]
© Universal History Archive—Universal Images Group/Getty Images
1918
Egyptian patriot Saad Zaghloul formed Al-Wafd al-Miṣrī (Arabic: “Egyptian Delegation”), the nationalist political party that was instrumental in gaining Egyptian independence from Britain. [How much do you know about Egyptian history?]
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
1916
During World War I a costly four-month Allied offensive against German positions along the Somme River ended. [Sort fact from fiction in our quiz about World War I.]
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University
1902
English author Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is first published in book form. The novella examines the horrors of Western colonialism, depicting it as a phenomenon that tarnishes not only the lands and peoples it exploits but also those in the West who advance it.
© Michael Nicholson—Corbis/Getty Images
1850
Robert Louis Stevenson—the Scottish essayist, poet, and author of fiction and travel books who was best known for his novels Treasure Island (1881), Kidnapped (1886), The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), and The Master of Ballantrae (1889)—was born. [Find out if any of Robert Louis Stevenson’s works made our list of the 12 novels considered the “greatest book ever written.” ]
Courtesy of the trustees of the British Museum; photograph, J.R. Freeman & Co. Ltd.
1770
George Grenville, the English politician whose policy of taxing the American colonies started the train of events leading to the American Revolution, died in London. [How much do you know about the American Revolution?]
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
1553
Lady Jane Grey, who became queen of England for nine days when she was 15 years old, was tried for high treason. She pleaded guilty, was sentenced to death, and executed in 1554.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
1002
English King Ethelred II launched an attack against Danish settlers in the St. Brice’s Day massacre. [Take our kings of England quiz.]