100 Years Ago Today

[Jimbuna]

11th November 1921

The body of the American Unknown Soldier is buried at Arlington National Cemetery for Armistice Day.


Armistice Day observers at The Cenotaph in London.


Armistice Day is observed by the Allied countries. Members of the British Legion, a veteran’s support group, lays a wreath at the French Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.


Ship Losses:

Kaleva (Sweden) The schooner was driven ashore at Deal, Kent United Kingdom. Her crew were rescued. She was a total loss.
Rex (Finland) The auxiliary sailing ship was lost on this date.
Walhalla (France) The cargo ship ran aground at Rotterdam, Netherlands. She was refloated on 20 November.

[Jimbuna]

13th November 1921

Takahashi Korekiyo becomes the new Prime Minister of Japan following the assassination of his predecessor Hara Takashi. Takahashi gained prominence during the Russo-Japanese War when he raised foreign loans critical for Japan’s war effort.


The jeweled arch at Arlington National Cemetery is illuminated following the burial of the Unknown Soldier and the opening of the Washington Naval Conference.


The first aerial refueling takes place as Wesley May manually carries a five-gallon can of gasoline to another plane in midair (more practical experiments using a hose will be carried out in 1923)


Ship Losses:

Elpis (Greece) The cargo ship ran aground off Conejera, Balearic Islands, Spain. Her crew were rescued. She was declared a total loss.

[Jimbuna]

14th November 1921

A group of veterans petition President Harding at the White House to release political prisoners imprisoned for opposing the war.


The trial begins for actor Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, who is accused of the manslaughter of actress Virginia Rappe. The case is one of the first major scandals of Hollywood.


President Harding signs the treaty officially ending the state of the war between the United States and Germany.


Ship Losses:

Nevis (United Kingdom) The sailing ship ran aground on Cabrera, Balearic Islands, Spain and was wrecked. Her crew were rescued.
Perth (United Kingdom) The cargo ship came ashore at Greymouth, South Island, New Zealand and was wrecked.

[Jimbuna]

16th November 1921

French Marshal Ferdinand Foch receives an honorary degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.


Collection of photographs of British soldiers killed during the Great War received by the Imperial War Museum.


A soldier poses next to a U.S. Ordnance Department 4000-pound demolition bomb.


Ship Losses:

City of New York (Canada) The steamer sank in Lake Ontario.
Dove (United Kingdom) The schooner was wrecked on Fogo Island, Newfoundland.

[Jimbuna]

17th November 1921

Spanish troops in Morocco in the Rif region. Spanish forces are preparing for a counterattack following their heavy defeat earlier this year at the hands of Riffian Berbers.


Ship Losses:

Poolena (United Kingdom) The cargo ship struck submerged wreckage in the Bristol Channel 5 nautical miles (9.3 km) off Minehead, Somerset and sank. Her crew survived.

[Jimbuna]

18th November 1921

League of Nations discusses the border dispute between Albania and Yugoslavia after the latter’s troops occupied the Mirdita region of Albania.

[Jimbuna]

19th November 1921

Charles, the former ruler of Austria-Hungary, goes into exile to the island of Madeira, Portugal following his failed attempts to retake the crown of Hungary.

[Jimbuna]

20th November 1921

Around 60-70 Muslim rebel prisoners captured by the British suffocate to death in an overcrowded and closed train wagon in the Malabar region of India. The incident garners further support for the Indian independence movement.


Evelyn G (United States) The 13-gross register ton motor vessel was wrecked at Point Arden (58°09′30″N 134°10′30″W) in Stephens Passage in the Alexander Archipelago in Southeast Alaska after her gasoline engine broke down and she drifted ashore. Her crew of two survived.
Ferm (United Kingdom) The cargo ship was wrecked at St. Shott's, Newfoundland. Her crew were rescued.
Sea Eagle (United States) The tug foundered in a storm off Yaquina Head, lost with all nine crew.

[Jimbuna]

21st November 1921

The Dominion of Canada adopts its new Coat of Arms.


Ship Losses:

San Francisco (United States) The cargo ship caught fire at New York and was beached.

[Jimbuna]

22nd November 1921

Soldiers pose with President Harding’s Thanksgiving turkey.


French Marshal Foch participates in a ceremony honoring American Revolutionary War hero Marquis de Lafayette in Washington, D.C.

[Jimbuna]

23rd November 1921

A procession of elephants greets Edward, Prince of Wales’s visit to Baroda, British Raj.


Ship Losses:

Faithful (United Kingdom) The schooner came ashore at Carrick Head, Cornwall. Her crew were rescued.

[Jimbuna]

24th November 1921

Captain William Corcoran Eustis, personal assistant to General John J. Pershing during the Great War, has passed away from pneumonia due to complications from the Spanish Flue.


Ship Losses:

City of New York (flag unknown) The cargo ship foundered 10 nautical miles (19 km) off Stony Point, New York United States with the loss of nine lives.
Florentina (Spain) The cargo ship caught fire at Valencia. She was towed out of port and beached. She broke in two and was declared a total loss.

[Jimbuna]

25th November 1921

Crown Prince Hirohito of Japan is named prince regent, as his father Emperor Taishō’s (pictured) mental and physical health deteriorates.


Ship Losses:

Fountains Abbey (United Kingdom) The cargo ship ran aground at Red Head, Forfarshire. Her crew were rescued.

[Jimbuna]

27th November 1921

"Lost Battalion" CO Charles W. Whittlesey (CMH) Disappears, Likely Suicide.


Marshal Foch, commander of the Army of France during World War One, met with Sioux Indian leaders during a visit to Bismarck, North Dakota, smoked a peace pipe in a ceremony, and was given the honorary name of "Watapech Wakiga" ("Charging Thunder").

[Jimbuna]

28th November 1921

American politician Parly P. Christensen, as chairman of the Russian trade relations commission, meets with Lenin. In the meeting, Lenin predicts a future war between Japan and the U.S.


A member of the Women’s Police Reserve halts traffic for children to cross a street in New York. Regular traffic officers are currently guarding strike-breaking milk delivery drivers.


Ship Losses:

Carrie Clark (United States) The barge foundered in a gale and fog between Barnegat, New Jersey and Sandy Hook.
Governor Robie (United States) The barge foundered in a gale and fog between Barnegat, New Jersey and Sandy Hook.
Losna (Norway) The cargo liner came ashore 20 nautical miles (37 km) east of the mouth of the Great Fish River, South Africa.[308] All on board were rescued. She was abandoned as a total loss on 5 December.
Sylvanus (United States) The 281-foot (85.6 m) schooner barge sank in 85 feet (26 m) of water in the North Atlantic Ocean off New Jersey during a storm.
Vogue (United Kingdom) The schooner sprang a leak and was abandoned with the loss of a crew member. The survivors were rescued.