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The Wikipedia Main Page

Welcome to the Wikipedia tour. My name is Denis, and I will be your guide. This trip will show you the diversity of the content on Wikipedia, some of its most unusual articles, the inner workings of the project, its policies and debates, and everything you need to know to become a contributor. Don't worry about getting lost - I will be with you during the whole trip.

What you see below is the Main Page of Wikipedia. You've probably seen it before, but pay a closer look. Much of the content below is updated daily by our open community of editors. The featured article, for example, is picked from the list of featured articles. These are pages which have undergone a community review process. The Did you know section in the lower right comes exclusively from our latest article additions. Also take a look at all the other languages Wikipedia is available in!

Welcome to Wikipedia

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the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.

6,910,654 articles in English

From today's featured article

Section of the trail in Shawangunk, New York

The Walden–Wallkill Rail Trail, also known as the Jesse McHugh Rail Trail, is a 3.22-mile (5.18 km) rail trail between the village of Walden and the hamlet of Wallkill. The two communities are located in Orange County and Ulster County, respectively, in upstate New York. The trail is part of the former Wallkill Valley Railroad's rail corridor. The railway was the first to operate in Ulster County. Passenger service ended in 1937; the opening of the New York State Thruway and decreased freight traffic caused the line to close in 1957. The land was purchased by the towns of Montgomery and Shawangunk in 1985 and converted to a public trail. The portion of the trail in Shawangunk was formally opened in 1993 and named after former town supervisor Jesse McHugh. After seven years of discussion, the route was paved between 2008 and 2009. The trail includes an unofficial, unimproved section to the north of Wallkill, and is bounded by NY 52 and NY 208. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Reverse of History Instructing Youth, featuring Martha Washington

... that Martha Washington's portrait on the 1896 US one-dollar silver certificate (pictured) is the most recent time that a woman has been featured on US paper money?
... that Dalibor Riccardi, a head of state of San Marino, has played more than 70 matches in the country's football league?
... that at the 2024 Democratic National Convention, vice presidential nominee Tim Walz was booed for visiting the "wrong" Pennsylvanian gas station chain?
... that Eunus, a Syrian slave and reputed prophet, led a slave revolt in Sicily against the Roman Republic?
... that China was once the "Kingdom of Bicycles"?
... that Alan Rosen once sold 2,400 cheesecakes in four minutes to television shoppers?
... that Checheyigen's political acumen ensured that her family became one of the most powerful in the Mongol Empire?
... that the Martha Heasley Cox Center for Steinbeck Studies houses a John Steinbeck archive of more than 50,000 items?
... that "Buy Cash" is the speaker of the House of Assembly of Eswatini?

In the news

Justin Welby

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby (pictured) announces his resignation as a result of the John Smyth abuse scandal in the Church of England.
In Zhuhai, China, 35 people are killed in a vehicle-ramming attack.
Alliance for Change, led by Navin Ramgoolam, wins the Mauritian general election.
A suicide bombing by the Balochistan Liberation Army at the Quetta railway station, Pakistan, kills 32 people.
The German ruling coalition collapses over disagreements on economic policies.

On this day

November 15

Deodoro da Fonseca

1760 – The chapel of the newly constructed Castellania in Valletta, Malta, was consecrated.
1859 – Sponsored by Greek businessman Evangelos Zappas, the first modern revival of the Olympic Games took place in Athens.
1889 – Brazilian emperor Pedro II was overthrown in a coup led by Deodoro da Fonseca (pictured), while the country was proclaimed a republic.
1922 – During a general strike in Guayaquil, Ecuador, police and military fired into a crowd, killing at least 300 people.
1959 – Two men murdered a family in Holcomb, Kansas; the events became the subject of Truman Capote's non-fiction novel In Cold Blood, a pioneering work of the true crime genre.

Madeleine de Scudéry (b. 1607)
Sara Josephine Baker (b. 1873)
Charles Thomson Rees Wilson (d. 1959)
Margaret Mead (d. 1978)

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From today's featured list

BTS received the award for five consecutive years from 2017 to 2021.

The Mnet Asian Music Award for Best Music Video is an award presented annually by CJ E&M (Mnet) at the Mnet Asian Music Awards. The event was launched in 1999 as the Mnet Video Music Awards and was primarily a music video–centered awards ceremony, modeled after the MTV Video Music Awards. In 1999, the inaugural Mnet Asian Music Award for Best Music Video was presented to Lee Seung-hwan for the video "A Request". Among artists who have received the accolade more than once, BTS (pictured) holds the distinction for the most wins in the category, winning for five consecutive years between 2017 and 2021. Four artists have won the award twice: BigBang, Psy, 2NE1, and Blackpink. BTS, in addition, has received the most nominations in the category with six. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

Sherman's March to the Sea was a military campaign of the American Civil War conducted through Georgia by Major General William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army. The campaign began on November 15, 1864, with Sherman's troops leaving Atlanta, recently taken by Union forces, and ended with the capture of the port of Savannah on December 21. His forces followed a "scorched earth" policy, destroying military targets as well as industry, infrastructure, and civilian property, disrupting the Confederacy's economy and transportation networks. The operation debilitated the Confederacy and helped lead to its eventual surrender. This picture shows an engraving by Alexander Hay Ritchie depicting Sherman's March to the Sea.

Engraving. credit: Alexander Hay Ritchie; restored by Adam Cuerden

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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: