Main Page

Welcome to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit. 5,131,817 articles in English

Arts Biography Geography

History Mathematics Science

Society Technology All portals

From today's featured article Replicas of the "Twin Sisters", cannons used in the Battle of San Jacinto The Runaway Scrape was the 1836 escape of Texas residents from the encroaching Mexican Army of Operations under the command of Antonio López de Santa Anna during the Texas Revolution. Civilian evacuations began on the Gulf Coast in January after the vanguard of the Mexican army crossed the Rio Grande to quell the insurrection of American colonists and Tejanos (Mexicans born in Texas). Weeks later, news of the Battle of the Alamo and the Goliad massacre created a state of panic. Sam Houston was the Texas commander-in-chief of raw recruits who had little or no combat experience. Fleeing civilians moved in tandem with Houston's troops for protection, as he sought a safe training camp for his soldiers. The pursuing Mexican army had orders to execute all rebel combatants, and it cut a swath of destruction in its search for them. After a mere three weeks training near the Brazos River, the Texas troops finally parted ways with the civilians, who were given a military escort to safety. Houston turned his army southeast and engaged the Mexican army at the April 21 Battle of San Jacinto that resulted in Santa Anna's surrender. (Full article...) Recently featured: 1994 Atlantic hurricane season Mantis William O'Connell Bradley Did you know... The Ten-Faced Samantabhadra stupa ... that on the 3,077-metre (10,095 ft)-high Golden Summit stands a 48-metre (157 ft)-tall stupa of the Ten-Faced Samantabhadra (pictured)? ... that after death of Muhammad al-Mahdi's father, al-Mahdi appointed Uthman ibn Sa'id al-Asadi as his representative, making al-Asadi the main link between al-Mahdi and the Shia community? ... that Marshal Lin Biao attempted to flee China from Qinhuangdao Shanhaiguan Airport, but was killed when his plane crashed in Mongolia? ... that Interstate 97 is the shortest 2-digit mainline Interstate and only intracounty 2-digit Interstate in the contiguous United States? ... that the art historian Graham Reynolds wrote the catalogue raisonné of the works of John Constable? ... that Gobioolithus is a type of fossil bird egg that often contains embryos with well-developed wings? ... that Peregrin Saxon was the first Bishop of Bosnia to reside in Bosnia since Ponsa was driven out by heretics a century earlier? ... that Joe's Steaks + Soda Shop in Philadelphia changed its business name in 2013 because the name it had used for 64 years was controversial?

In the news Atsede Baysa At least 64 people are killed and more than 340 others injured in an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Ethiopians Lemi Berhanu Hayle and Atsede Baysa (pictured) win the men's and women's Boston Marathon, respectively. A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hits Ecuador, killing at least 480 people and injuring more than 4,000 others. Two earthquakes kill at least 40 people and injure more than 3,000 others across Kyushu, Japan. Volodymyr Groysman is appointed Prime Minister of Ukraine following the resignation of Arseniy Yatsenyuk. Ongoing events Recent deaths: Victoria Wood Estelle Balet Bill Gray Malick Sidibé On this day... April 21: Fast of the Firstborn begins at dawn (Judaism, 2016) Henry VIII of England 900 – A debt was pardoned by the Datu of Tondo on the island of Luzon, as inscribed on the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, the earliest known written document found in the Philippines. 1509 – Henry VIII (pictured) became King of England, following the death of his father Henry VII, eventually becoming a significant figure in the history of the English monarchy. 1863 – After the Ottoman Empire exiled him from Baghdad, Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, began his twelve-day stay in the Garden of Ridván where he declared his mission as "He whom God shall make manifest". 1914 – Mexican Revolution: The United States detained a German steamer carrying materiel for the Mexican federal government. 1970 – In response to a long-running dispute over wheat production quotas, the Principality of Hutt River proclaimed its secession from Western Australia. More anniversaries: April 20 April 21 April 22

Today's featured picture An illustration from 1896 edition of James Fenimore Cooper's The Last of the Mohicans. Set during the French and Indian War, the novel details the transport of two young women to Fort William Henry. Among the caravan guarding the women are the frontiersman Natty Bumppo, the Major Duncan Heyward, and the Indians Chingachgook and Uncas. In this scene, Bumppo (disguised as a bear) fights against the novel's villain, Magua, as two of his compatriots look on. Illustration: Frank T. Merrill; restoration: Chris Woodrich Recently featured: Deepwater Horizon explosion Mandarin duck Libra (constellation)

Other areas of Wikipedia

• Community portal – Bulletin board, projects, resources and activities covering a wide range of Wikipedia areas.
• Help desk – Ask questions about using Wikipedia.
• Local embassy – For Wikipedia-related communication in languages other than English.
• Reference desk – Serving as virtual librarians, Wikipedia volunteers tackle your questions on a wide range of subjects.
• Site news – Announcements, updates, articles and press releases on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation.
• Village pump – For discussions about Wikipedia itself, including areas for technical issues and policies.

Wikipedia's sister projects

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

	Commons Free media repository		MediaWiki Wiki software development		Meta-Wiki Wikimedia project coordination
	Wikibooks Free textbooks and manuals		Wikidata Free knowledge base		Wikinews Free-content news
	Wikiquote Collection of quotations		Wikisource Free-content library		Wikispecies Directory of species
	Wikiversity Free learning materials and activities		Wikivoyage Free travel guide		Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus

Wikipedia languages

This Wikipedia is written in English. Started in 2001 (2001), it currently contains 5,131,817 articles. Many other Wikipedias are available; some of the largest are listed below.

• More than 1,000,000 articles:
  • Deutsch
  • Español
  • Français
  • Italiano
  • Nederlands
  • 日本語
  • Polski
  • Русский
  • Svenska
  • Tiếng Việt
• More than 250,000 articles:
  • العربية
  • Bahasa Indonesia
  • Bahasa Melayu
  • Català
  • Čeština
  • فارسی
  • 한국어
  • Magyar
  • Norsk bokmål
  • Português
  • Română
  • Srpski
  • Srpskohrvatski
  • Suomi
  • Türkçe
  • Українська
  • 中文
• More than 50,000 articles:
  • Bosanski
  • Български
  • Dansk
  • Eesti
  • Ελληνικά
  • English (simple form)
  • Esperanto
  • Euskara
  • Galego
  • עברית
  • Hrvatski
  • Latviešu
  • Lietuvių
  • Norsk nynorsk
  • Slovenčina
  • Slovenščina
  • ไทย

Complete list of Wikipedias