October 31 in History

Historical Events on October 31

475

Romulus Augustulus is proclaimed Western Roman Emperor.
683

During the Siege of Mecca, the Kaaba catches fire and is burned down.
802

Empress Irene is deposed and banished to Lesbos. Conspirators place Nikephoros, the minister of finance, on the Byzantine throne.
1517

Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther posts his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg.
1587

Leiden University Library opens its doors after its founding in 1575.
1614

First performance of Ben Jonson's comedy Bartholomew Fair by the Lady Elizabeth's Men company at the Hope Theatre in London.
1822

Emperor Agustín de Iturbide attempts to dissolve the Congress of the Mexican Empire.
1861

American Civil War: Citing failing health, Union General Winfield Scott resigns as Commander of the United States Army.
1863

The Maori Wars resume as British forces in New Zealand led by General Duncan Cameron begin their Invasion of the Waikato.
1864

Nevada is admitted as the 36th U.S. state.
1903

The Purdue Wreck, a railroad train collision in Indianapolis, kills 17 people, including 14 players of the Purdue University football team.
1913

Dedication of the Lincoln Highway, the first automobile highway across United States.
1913

The Indianapolis Streetcar Strike and subsequent riot begins.
1917

World War I: Battle of Beersheba: The "last successful cavalry charge in history".
1918

World War I: The Aster Revolution terminates the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, and Hungary achieves full sovereignty.
1922

Benito Mussolini is made Prime Minister of Italy
1923

The first of 160 consecutive days of 100° Fahrenheit at Marble Bar, Western Australia.
1924

World Savings Day is announced in Milan, Italy by the Members of the Association at the 1st International Savings Bank Congress (World Society of Savings Banks).
1926

Last issue of the independent Italian newspaper Il Mondo, thereafter suppressed by the Mussolini regime
1938

Great Depression: In an effort to restore investor confidence, the New York Stock Exchange unveils a fifteen-point program aimed to upgrade protection for the investing public.
1940

World War II: The Battle of Britain ends: The United Kingdom prevents a possible German invasion.
1941

After 14 years of work, Mount Rushmore is completed.
1941

World War II: The destroyer USS Reuben James is torpedoed by a German U-boat near Iceland, killing more than 100 U.S. Navy sailors. It is the first U.S. Navy vessel sunk by enemy action in WWII.
1943

World War II: An F4U Corsair accomplishes the first successful radar-guided interception by a United States Navy or Marine Corps aircraft.
1956

Suez Crisis: The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal.
1961

In the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin's body is removed from the Lenin's Mausoleum, also known as the Lenin Tomb.
1963

A propane tank explosion at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum (now the Indiana Farmers Coliseum) in Indianapolis kills 74 people and injures another 400 during an ice skating show.
1968

Vietnam War October surprise: Citing progress with the Paris peace talks, US President Lyndon B. Johnson announces to the nation that he has ordered a complete cessation of "all air, naval, and artillery bombardment of North Vietnam" effective November 1.
1973

Mountjoy Prison helicopter escape. Three Provisional Irish Republican Army members escape from Mountjoy Prison, Dublin aboard a hijacked helicopter that landed in the exercise yard.
1979

Western Airlines Flight 2605 crashes on landing in Mexico City, killing 73 people.
1984

Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is assassinated by two Sikh security guards. Riots break out in New Delhi and other cities and around 3,000 Sikhs are killed.
1996

TAM Transportes Aéreos Regionais Flight 402 crashes in São Paulo, Brazil, killing 99 people.
1998

Iraq disarmament crisis begins: Iraq announces it would no longer cooperate with United Nations weapons inspectors.
1999

Yachtsman Jesse Martin returns to Melbourne after 11 months of circumnavigating the world, solo, non-stop and unassisted.
1999

EgyptAir Flight 990 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean near Nantucket, killing all 217 people on board.
2000

Soyuz TM-31 launches, carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station. The ISS has been crewed continuously since then.
2000

Singapore Airlines Flight 006 crashes on takeoff from Taipei, killing 83.
2002

A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas indicts former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow on 78 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice related to the collapse of his ex-employer.
2003

Mahathir bin Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia and is replaced by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, marking an end to Mahathir's 22 years in power.
2011

The global population of humans reaches seven billion. This day is now recognized by the United Nations as the Day of Seven Billion.
2014

During a test flight, the VSS Enterprise, a Virgin Galactic experimental spaceflight test vehicle, suffers a catastrophic in-flight breakup and crashes in the Mojave Desert, California,
2015

Metrojet Flight 9268 is bombed over the northern Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board.
2017

A truck drives in a crowd of people in Lower Manhattan, killing at least 8 people.

October 31 Birthdays

October 31 Deaths

Choose Another Date