Welcome to Wikipedia

,

the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

From today's featured article

Union artillery in action at Cane Hill

The battle of Cane Hill was fought during the American Civil War on November 28, 1862, near the town of Cane Hill, Arkansas. Union troops under James G. Blunt had pursued Confederate troops commanded by Thomas C. Hindman into northwestern Arkansas, and Hindman saw an opportunity to attack Blunt while the latter was isolated. Confederate cavalry under John S. Marmaduke moved to Cane Hill to collect supplies. Blunt moved to attack Marmaduke on November 27. The Union advance made contact with Confederate troopers the next morning. The Confederates fell back to an elevation known as Reed's Mountain. Blunt continued to pursue after the Confederates abandoned Reed's Mountain, but his leading elements ran into an ambush. The Confederates then presented a flag of truce as a ruse to buy time. Hindman's army and Blunt's reinforced command fought the Battle of Prairie Grove on December 7, which retained Union control of Missouri and northwestern Arkansas. (Full article...)

Recently featured:

Did you know ...

Francis L. Sampson

... that German soldiers did not believe that Francis L. Sampson (pictured) was a non-combatant after his capture during the D-Day landings, because they had never seen a paratrooper chaplain before?
... that the hips of some 19th-century Fijian young women were tattooed with veiqia when they reached puberty?
... that the myth of Shunten, the legendary first king of Chūzan, was used to justify the 1872 annexation of Okinawa?
... that two best-seller lists initially classified The Children's Book of Virtues as non-fiction, but later moved it to their fiction charts?
... that Bahamian basketball player Waltiea Rolle moved to the United States at the age of 13 after being noticed while walking home from school?
... that the U.S. Air Force considered a bomber version of the F-22 Raptor known as the FB-22?
... that a new soccer team in Boise, Idaho, plans to play at a converted horse racing track?
... that geologist Gilbert Wilson was the fifth Wilson at school, so he was known as "Quintus"?
... that a medieval town in Poland disappeared?

In the news

Max Verstappen

Israel and Hezbollah agree to a 60-day ceasefire to halt the war in Lebanon.
In motorsport, Max Verstappen (pictured) wins the Formula One World Championship.
Following parliamentary elections, the Seimas elects Gintautas Paluckas as the prime minister of Lithuania.
The International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Mohammed Deif in its investigation of war crimes in Palestine.

On this day

November 28: Thanksgiving in the United States (2024); Bukovina Day in Romania

Skanderbeg

1443 – Having deserted the Ottoman army, Skanderbeg (pictured) arrived in the Albanian city of Krujë and, using a forged letter from Sultan Murad II to the governor of Krujë, became lord of the city.
1895 – The Chicago Times-Herald race, the first automobile race in the U.S., was held in Chicago.
1903 – SS Petriana struck a reef near Point Nepean, leading to Australia's first major oil spill and a debate over the White Australia policy.
2016 – LaMia Flight 2933 crashed near Medellín, Colombia, killing 71 people, many of whom were players from Chapecoense Football Club.

Manuel I Komnenos (b. 1118)
Magnus Olsen (b. 1878)
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (d. 1962)
Helen of Greece and Denmark (d. 1982)

More anniversaries:

Today's featured picture

The ocellated turkey (Meleagris ocellata) is a species of turkey residing primarily in the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, as well as in parts of Belize and Guatemala. It is a relative of the North American wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), although it is somewhat smaller. The body feathers of both sexes are a mixture of bronze and green iridescent color, with neither sex possessing the beard typically found in wild turkeys. Tail feathers of both sexes are bluish-grey with an eye-shaped, blue-bronze spot near the end with a bright gold tip. These spots, or ocelli (for which the ocellated turkey is named) have been likened to the patterning typically found on peafowl. This ocellated turkey was photographed near Tikal in the Petén region of Guatemala.

Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp

Recently featured:

Other areas of Wikipedia

Community portal – The central hub for editors, with resources, links, tasks, and announcements.
Village pump – Forum for discussions about Wikipedia itself, including policies and technical issues.
Site news – Sources of news about Wikipedia and the broader Wikimedia movement.
Teahouse – Ask basic questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Help desk – Ask questions about using or editing Wikipedia.
Reference desk – Ask research questions about encyclopedic topics.
Content portals – A unique way to navigate the encyclopedia.

Wikipedia's sister projects

Wikipedia is written by volunteer editors and hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization that also hosts a range of other volunteer projects: