Date·Lore

On This Day · The 308th day of the year

November 4

November 4 carries 10 recorded events spanning between 1493 and 2008. Christopher Columbus reaches the Leeward Islands.

♏ZodiacScorpio ◈BirthstoneTopaz ❀Birth flowerChrysanthemum

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed July 13, 2026

What happened on November 4?

November 4 is the 308th day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 1493 and 2008. Famous people born on November 4 include Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria, Charles K. Kao and Orlando Pace.

The shape of the day

November 4's record stretches 515 years, from 1493 to 2008. Its center of gravity is the 20th century, and conflict is a recurring thread.

Scorpio is the sign for November 4 — read more on the Scorpio page, or see November's birthstone & birth flower.

Released on November 4

Movies, games, albums & shows

2025

  • Game Europa Universalis V
  • Game Football Manager 26

2022

  • Game Goddess of Victory: Nikke
  • Game Harvestella

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 1493

    Christopher Columbus

    Christopher Columbus reaches the Leeward Islands.

  2. 1783

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Symphony No. 36 is performed for the first time in Linz, Austria.

  3. 1864

    American Civil War

    American Civil War: Confederate troops bombard a Union supply base and destroy millions of dollars in materiel at the Battle of Johnsonville.

  4. 1890

    City and South London Railway

    City and South London Railway: London's first deep-level tube railway opens between King William Street and Stockwell.

  5. 1918

    World War I

    World War I: The Armistice of Villa Giusti between Italy and Austria-Hungary is implemented.

  6. 1921

    Nazi Party

    The Saalschutz Abteilung (hall defense detachment) of the Nazi Party is renamed the Sturmabteilung (storm detachment) after a large riot in Munich.

  7. 1939

    World War II

    World War II: U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt orders the United States Customs Service to implement the Neutrality Act of 1939, allowing cash-and-carry purchases of weapons by belligerents.

  8. 1942

    Adolf Hitler

    World War II: Disobeying a direct order by Adolf Hitler, General Field Marshal Erwin Rommel begins a retreat of his forces after a costly defeat during the Second Battle of El Alamein. The retreat would ultimately last five months.

  9. 1970

    Salvador Allende

    Salvador Allende takes office as President of Chile, the first Marxist to become president of a Latin American country through open elections.

  10. 2008

    Barack Obama

    Barack Obama becomes the first person of biracial or African-American descent to be elected as President of the United States.

Famous birthday twins

Born on November 4

Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria

b. 1952

Head of the Coptic Church since 2012

Charles K. Kao

b. 1933

Chinese physicist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate

Orlando Pace

b. 1975

American football player

Walter Cronkite

b. 1916

American journalist, voice actor, and producer

Ayila Yussuf

b. 1984

Nigerian footballer

Traian Băsescu

b. 1951

Romanian captain and politician, 4th President of Romania

Klabund

b. 1890

German author and poet

Charles III Philip

b. 1661

Elector Palatine, German son of Landgravine Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt

Deaths

  • 1995Yitzhak Rabin
  • 1980Elsie MacGill
  • 1976Toni Ulmen
  • 1946Rüdiger von der Goltz
  • 1847Felix Mendelssohn
  • 1801William Shippen Sr.

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Charles Borromeo (Roman Catholic Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Emeric of Hungary
  • —Christian feast day: Felix of Valois
  • —Christian feast day: Joannicius the Great
  • —Christian feast day: Modesta
  • —Christian feast day: Our Lady of Kazan (Russian Orthodox Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Pierius
  • —Christian feast day: Blessed Teresa Manganiello

Historical facts, event summaries, and biographical lines above are adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) license. DateLore adds curation, structure, and original editorial commentary. DateLore is not affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation.

About the author

Roman Tailor compiles and reviews every date on DateLore. He's the writer and editor behind the site's editorial essays and the day-by-day almanac. Corrections and questions are welcome — read more about DateLore or get in touch.

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