THIS DAY IN HISTORY: November 19,1863: Lincoln delivers Gettysburg Address

On November 19, 1863, at the dedication of a military cemetery at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, during the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln delivers one of the most memorable speeches in American history. In just 272 words, Lincoln brilliantly and movingly reminded a war-weary public why the Union had to fight, and win, the Civil War. Read more...


American Revolution
1776 : Congress pleads for soldiers
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/congress-pleads-for-soldiers

Automotive
1993 : Chevy Cavalier heads to Japan
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/chevy-cavalier-heads-to-japan

Civil War
1863 : President Lincoln gives his Gettysburg Address
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/lincolns-gettysburg-address

Cold War
1985 : Reagan and Gorbachev hold their first summit meeting
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/reagan-and-gorbachev-hold-their-first-summit-meeting

Crime
1976 : Patty Hearst out on bail
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/patty-hearst-out-on-bail

Disaster
1824 : Thousands perish in St. Petersburg flood
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/thousands-perish-in-st-petersburg-flood

General Interest
1942 : Soviet counterattack at Stalingrad
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/soviet-counterattack-at-stalingrad
1969 : Pele scores 1,000th goal
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pele-scores-1000th-goal
1977 : Sadat visits Israel
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sadat-visits-israel

Hollywood
1975 : One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest debuts
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/one-flew-over-the-cuckoos-nest-debuts

Literary
1899 : Poet and critic Allen Tate is born
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/poet-and-critic-allen-tate-is-born

Music
2003 : An arrest warrant is issued for Michael Jackson
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/an-arrest-warrant-is-issued-for-michael-jackson

Old West
1907 : Shane author Jack Schaefer is born
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/shane-author-jack-schaefer-is-born

Presidential
1831 : James A. Garfield is born
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/james-a-garfield-is-born

Sports
1966 : Notre Dame and MSU play to a classic tie
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/notre-dame-and-msu-play-to-a-classic-tie

Vietnam War
1967 : Chaplain Charles Watters receives Medal of Honor
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/chaplain-charles-watters-receives-medal-of-honor
1971 : Cambodians appeal for help
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/cambodians-appeal-for-help

World War I
1915 : British pilot makes heroic rescue
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/british-pilot-makes-heroic-rescue

World War II
1940 : Hitler urges Spain to grab Gibraltar
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hitler-urges-spain-to-grab-gibraltar

THIS DAY IN HISTORY: November 18, 1991. Terry Waite released

Shiite Muslim kidnappers in Lebanon free Anglican Church envoy Terry Waite after more than four years of captivity. Waite, looking thinner and his hair grayer, was freed along with American educator Thomas M. Sutherland after intense negotiations by the United Nations.
Waite, special envoy of the archbishop of Canterbury, had secured the release of missionaries detained in Iran after the Islamic revolution. He also extracted British hostages from Libya and even succeeded in releasing American hostages from Lebanon in 1986.

A total of 10 captives were released through Waite's efforts before Shiite Muslims seized him during a return mission to Beirut on January 20, 1987. He was held captive for more than four years before he was finally released.

During captivity, Waite said he was frequently blindfolded, beaten and subjected to mock executions. He spent much of the time chained to a radiator, suffered from asthma and was transported in a giant refrigerator as his captors moved him about.
Waite, 52, made an impromptu, chaotic appearance before reporters in Damascus after his release to Syrian officials. He said one of his captors expressed regret as he informed Waite he was about to be released.
"He also said to me: 'We apologize for having captured you. We recognize that now this was a wrong thing to do, that holding hostages achieves no useful, constructive purpose,'" Waite said.
The release of Waite and Sutherland left five Western hostages left in Beirut—three Americans, including Terry Anderson, and two Germans. The Americans would be released by December 1991, the Germans in June 1992.

Some 96 foreign hostages were taken and held during the Lebanon hostage crisis between 1982 and 1992. The victims were mostly from Western countries, and mostly journalists, diplomats or teachers. Twenty-five of them were Americans. At least 10 hostages died in captivity. Some were murdered and others died from lack of adequate medical attention to illnesses.
The hostages were originally taken to serve as insurance against retaliation against Hezbollah, which was thought to be responsible for the killing of over 300 Americans in the Marine barracks and embassy bombings in Beirut. It was widely believed that Iran and Syria also played a role in the kidnappings.

American Revolution

Fort Washington becomes Fort Knyphausen, 1776

Automotive

Volkswagen's "Dream Factory" opens in Resende, Brazil, 1996

Civil War

President Lincoln travels to Gettysburg, 1863

Cold War

Congress issues final report on Iran-Contra scandal, 1987

Crime

High-profile expert on exotic birds is sentenced for smuggling parrots, 1996

Disaster

Commuters die in subway fire, 1987

General Interest

Haig ends Battle of Somme, 1916

Mass suicide at Jonestown, 1978

Hollywood

Tom Cruise weds, again, 2006

Literary

Alice McDermott wins the National Book Award, 1998

Music

Billy Joel earns his first #1 album when 52nd Street tops the Billboard pop chart, 1978

Old West

Railroads create the first time zones, 1883

Presidential

Chester Arthur dies in New York, 1886

Sports

Sandy Koufax retires, 1966

Vietnam War

South Vietnamese conduct largest air assault to date, 1964

South Vietnamese fight first major battle after U.S. troops are withdrawn, 1969

Nixon appeals to Congress for funds for Cambodia, 1970

World War I

Battle of the Somme ends , 1916

World War II

Hitler furious over Italy's debacle in Greece, 1940

Benetton ‎does it again!