1476 – Vlad the Impaler (Dracula) defeats Basarab Laiota with the help of Stephen the Great and Stephen V Báthory and becomes the ruler of Wallachia for the third time.
1778 – In the Hawaiian Islands, Captain James Cook becomes the first European to visit Maui.
1784 – The Catholic Apostolic Prefecture of the United States established.
1789 – A national Thanksgiving Day is observed in the United States as recommended by President George Washington and approved by Congress.
1863 – United States President Abraham Lincoln proclaims November 26 as a national Thanksgiving Day, to be celebrated annually on the final Thursday of November. (Since 1941, it has been on the fourth Thursday.)
1917 – The National Hockey League is formed, with the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators, Quebec Bulldogs, and Toronto Arenas as its first teams.
1922 – Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon become the first people to enter the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in over 3000 years.
1922 – Charles M. Schulz, American cartoonist, created Peanuts (d. 2000) was born.
1922 – The Toll of the Sea debuts as the first general release film to use two-tone Technicolor. (The Gulf Between was the first film to do so, but it was not widely distributed.)
1938 – Porter Goss, American soldier and politician, 19th Director of the CIA was born.
1938 – Rich Little, Canadian-American comedian, actor, and singer was born.
1942 – “Casablanca,” set in the Vichy-controlled Moroccan city of Casablanca during World War II, starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, has its world premiere at the Hollywood Theater in New York. The movie goes on general release in January the following year. The film was nominated for eight Oscars and wins 3 Oscars including Best Picture.
1944 – World War II: A German V-2 rocket hits a Woolworth’s shop on New Cross High Street in London, United Kingdom, killing 168 people.
1944 – World War II: Germany begins V-1 and V-2 attacks on Antwerp, Belgium.
1950 – Korean War: Troops from the People’s Republic of China launch a massive counterattack in North Korea against South Korean and United Nations forces (Battle of the Ch’ongch’on River and Battle of Chosin Reservoir), ending any hopes of a quick end to the conflict.
1968 – Vietnam War: United States Air Force helicopter pilot James P. Fleming rescues an Army Special Forces unit pinned down by Viet Cong fire. He is later awarded the Medal of Honor.
1986 – Iran–Contra affair: U.S. President Ronald Reagan announces the members of what will become known as the Tower Commission.
2000 – George W. Bush is certified the winner of Florida’s electoral votes by Katherine Harris, going on to win the United States presidential election, despite losing in the national popular vote.
2008 – The 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks (often referred to as 26/11) were more than ten coordinated shooting and bombing attacks that took place across Mumbai in India. These were carried out by Islamic terrorists from Pakistan. The attacks, which drew widespread condemnation from around the world, began on 26 November 2008, and lasted until 29 November. At least 173 people were killed and about 308 wounded.
2011 – NATO attack in Pakistan: NATO forces in Afghanistan attack a Pakistani checkpost in a friendly fire incident, killing 24 soldiers and wounding 13 others.
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