1813-Congress of Chilpancingo declares Mexico independent from Spain
1860-Republican Abraham Lincoln of Illinois is elected the 16th President of the United States of America
1913-Mahatma Gandhi is arrested for leading Indian miners' march in South Africa
1917-Bolshevik Revolution begins with the bombardment of the Winter Palace in Petrograd during the Russian October Revolution
1939-World War II: "Sonderaktion Krakau" - a Nazi operation against academics, with 184 professors arrested in Kraków and deported
1950-Chinese offensive halts at Chongchon River, North Korea
1978-Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi places the country under military rule, allowing General Gholām Reza Azhāri to form a government
1986-President Reagan signs landmark immigration reform bill
1991-Russian President Boris Yeltsin outlaws the Communist Party
2012-Barack Obama is re-elected as U.S. President, defeating Republican candidate Mitt Romney