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The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment
1600-1800
Was the age of reason in all of Europe. Philosophy, Science, and Reason was in style. The Greek and Roman ideas, architecture, and government style were popular in the Enlightenment. The rich wore wigs and had controlled gardens with people even trying to control where their moles would be and how they would look. -
Gunpowder plot
Gunpowder plot
1603-1606
The Gunpowder Plot was a failed attempt to blow up King James I and the Parliament on November 5, 1605. The plot was organized by Robert Catesby who hoped to replace the country’s Protestant government with Catholic leadership. Around midnight on November 4, 1605, one of the conspirators, Guy Fawkes, was found in the cellar of the Parliament with 36 barrels of gunpowder. Fawkes and other conspirators in the plot were executed for treason. -
Charles I became king
Charles I became king
1625
Charles I became the king after his father’s death. Like his father, he had massive fights with parliament over money. He didn’t call Parliament into session for 11 years, and when he did, he asked for more money and parliament rebelled. -
Commonwealth begins
Commonwealth begins
1649-1660
The commonwealth was a period when Oliver Cromwell ruled over England. He made reforms that were unpopular with the people. When he died in 1658, Parliament asked Charles II to be king. After Cromwell died, he was dug up and put on trial and hanged. -
Glorious revolution
Glorious revolution
1688
James II was king of England, and often fought with Parliament. Parliament then asked Mary (James II's daughter, who was prodestant) and her husband William to come and try to overthrow James II. James II fled to France and Mary and William moved in. Parliament made them the rulers, and they made the Crown and Parliament equal in power. -
Montesquieu writes spirits of laws
Montesquieu writes spirits of laws
1748
Montesquieu’s primary book, "Spirit of the Laws," focused on separation of powers. He believed that no part of the government should have too much power over the rest of the state. His ideas were very popular with the American founding fathers. -
Invention of the spinning Jenny
July 12, 1770,
The Spinning Jenny was made by James Hargreaves. It would take cotton, wool, and flax, and turn them into thread. It was said to be named after his daughter Jenny, who had accidentally pushed over the spinning wheel she was using. -
Adam smith writes the wealth of nations
Adam smith writes the wealth of nations
1776
Adam Smith was one of the first men to advocate free market capitalism. He outlined this in his book, "The Wealth of Nations." This said that if markets were kept free from government regulation, the people participating in them would be richer, and to a further extent the government. He invented the term Laissez-faire. -
The first American textile factory
1789,
In 1789, Samual Slater came to America. British law forbade textile workers to share information or to leave the country. Slater memorized the details of Britain's innovative machines and built the first textile mill. -
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano
1789,
Olaudah Equiano was kidnapped at age 11 and taken to the West Indies. From there he went to Virginia, where he was purchased by Michael Henry Pascal, a captain of a ship, with whom he traveled widely. He bought his own freedom in 1766. After he settled in England, he became an active abolitionist, lecturing against the cruelty of slave owners. He died on March 31, 1745. -
The Estates General
May 5, 1789
The Estates General was a meeting of the three estates in time of France's great need. The Estates General hadn’t been called in 11 years, but rising anger in the population forced Louis XVI to call a session. Unfairness in the system caused the third estate to swear the tennis court oath. -
The Storming of the Bastille
July 14, 1789
The bastille was a converted prison, with only 7 prisoners. The main use was for storing gunpowder. The French people attacked the bastille and took the gunpowder being stored there. -
Louis XVI’s Death
January 21, 1793
After trying to flee the country, the people weren’t sure what to do with the royal family. Some wanted to use the king as a figurehead. Some thought it wiser to kill him. So on January 21, 1793 they executed him with the guillotine. -
The terror intensifies
September 17, 1793
After the death of the king, a law was made so if people showed any doubts about the revolution they would be arrested and most likely be guillotined. -
Marie Antoinette’s Death
October 16, 1793
Marie Antoinette was hated by most of the French people for her excessive spending. She was innocent of most of her crimes, but she was ruled guilty. Marie Antoinette was executed by the guillotine on October 16, 1793. -
The smallpox vaccine
1796,
The smallpox vaccine was the first vaccine to be developed against a contagious disease. The basis for vaccination began in 1796 when the English doctor Edward Jenner noticed that milkmaids who had gotten cowpox were protected from smallpox. In a few years smallpox was completely eradicated around the world. -
Ireland joined United Kingdom
1 January 1801,
In 1800, the Irish and the British parliament enacted the Acts of Union. The merger created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It took effect from 1 January 1801. -
The Battle of Leipzig
October 16-17, 1813
The battle of Leipzig was a defeat for Napoleon and France. The Coalition forced him to abdicate the throne and exiled him to an island called Elba. He stayed in Elba for 10 months before escaping back to France. -
The hundred days
March 20- June 22, 1815
Napoleon returned to France and assembled an army. The French people welcomed him back but England, Russia, Austria, and other countries united and formed the 7th coalition. Napoleon was defeated at the battle of Waterloo and sent to the island of St. Helena. -
Queen Victoria
May 24, 1819-1901,
Queen Victoria was one of the most famous Queen in English history. At 18 she took the throne and married Prince Albert, for love! After her beloved husband Albert died at the age of 42. The rest of her life she would wear black and have her husband’s clothes laid out everyday. -
Napoleon's death
May 5, 1821, Napoleon died on st. Helena from stomach cancer. He was buried in St. Helena but was moved to France in 1840. His burial site is in Les Invalides. -
The reform bill of 1832
June 7, 1832,
In 1832, Parliament passed a law changing the electoral system. This was a response to many years of people criticising the electoral system. This allowed landowners to vote. -
Slavery Abolition Act
August 1, 1833,
Parliament that abolished slavery in most British plantations, freeing more than 800,000 enslaved peoples. It took effect on August 1, 1834. Three days later, William Wilberforce died, the man who had been one of the main fighters of freedom in Parliament. -
Treaty of Nanjing
August 29, 1842,
The treaty of Nanjing was an unequal treaty. This treaty forced them to surrender their sovereignty. China was forced to cede Hong Kong, open ports, permit Christian missionaries, and legalize the opium trade. -
Invention of the telegraph
May 24, 1844,
Samuel Morse began working on the telegraph in 1832. He developed Morse Code, a set of dots and dashes that relate to particular letters of the alphabet. By 1838 he had presented his concept to the U.S. Congress. In 1844, the first message sent on the telegraph, “What hath God wrought?” was sent. -
The Crystal Place
1851,
It was built in 1851, to show off all the new inventions Britain made. The crystal place was only possible to make because of the industrial revolution. It was burned down on November 30, 1936. -
Treaty of Kanagawa
March 31, 1854,
The treaty of Kanagawa was a trade treaty made between the United States and Japan using gunboat diplomacy. It was signed on March 31, 1854, with the Shogunate and the U.S. It opened ports for trading with the U.S. -
The great stink of 1858
June 1, 1858,
The river Thames was a sewer to most of the people of London, who would dump waste into the river. The river was filled with waste and in the summer of 1858 the river was boiled and the stink flooded London. It got so bad that Parliament built sewers to contain it. -
Emmeline Pankhurst
July 15, 1858-1928,
Emmeline Pankhurst was a women’s rights suffragette. All her family, including her husband were involved. Pankhurst and her daughter Christabel, formed the Women's Party. They fought for equal pay, work, and equality. -
The telephone
February 14, 1876,
On February 14, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell applied for a U.S. patent for the telephone. The first “phone call” with a telephone occurred on March 10, 1876, from Alexander Graham Bell to Thomas Watson saying, “Mr. Watson—come here—I want to see you.” -
The lightbulb
1879,
Thomas Edison invented the light bulb 1879. Edison’s team had produced a light bulb that could last for 14.5 hours. Edison’s lamps had a lifetime of up to 1,200 hours. this filament became the standard for the Edison bulb for the next 10 years. -
The Berlin Conference
Nov 15, 1884,
In 1884, the world leaders met in Berlin to discuss regulating colonization and trade in Africa. It was also an effort to prevent conflict between nations. Established the guidelines for conquest. No African leaders were invited. -
The Boer War
Oct 11, 1899,
The Boer war was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the Boer (Dutch settlers) in Southern Africa from 1899 to 1902. A Boer ultimatum that the British should cease building up their forces in the region is what caused the war. The Boers had refused to grant political rights to non-Boer settlers. -
Bloody Sunday
January 22, 1905
On January 22, 1905, a group of workers led by priest Georgy Gapon marched to the Czar's Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to make their demands. Imperial forces opened fire on the demonstrators, killing and wounding hundreds. Strikes and riots broke out throughout the country in response to the massacre, to which Nicholas responded by promising Dumas to work toward reform. -
Treaty of Portsmouth
September 5, 1905,
The Treaty gave Japan control of Korea and Manchuria. Russian power was curtailed in the region, but it was not required to pay Japan's war costs. Theodore Roosevelt mediated the treaty and won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. -
The ford model T
October 1, 1908–1927,
The Model T, sold by the Ford Motor Company from 1908 to 1927, was the earliest effort to make a car that most people could actually buy. Released on October 1, 1908, the Ford Model T was a self-starting vehicle. Selling for $850, it was considered a reasonable value. -
The Assassination
June 28, 1914
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated on June 28, 1914 by Gavrilo Princip. Ferdinand’s driver took a wrong turn and stopped in front of Princip, who shot him. Princip was a member of the nationalist group Young Bosnia, and was only a few days too young to receive the death penalty. -
The Armenian Genocide
April 24, 1915
In 1908, Young Turks overthrew the Sultan. They wanted to Turkify Turkey, so that meant killing non Turks. The Armenians were Christian, and the Young Turks killed them. -
Rasputin’s Death
December 29, 1916
Prince Felix Yusupov, duke Dimitri Pavlovich, V.M. Purishkevich decided to kill Rasputin. They invite him to a party and convince him to come. Rasputin ate poisoned food, didn’t die, so they shot him, seemed dead but came back to life, shot him again, wrapped him up in a heavy carpet, chained the carpet, and dumped him in a frozen river. He was found later, ALIVE, and died of hypothermia. -
Nicholas II Abdicates
March 8, 1917
Workers' strikes raged in the capital city of Saint Petersburg. Nicholas Il, who had been visiting military headquarters, more than 400 miles away, began a journey home on March 13 to suppress the uprising. Just two days later, before he could even reach the capital, he abdicated the throne, leaving Russia without a sovereign for the first time since 1613. -
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk 1918
March 3, 1918
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, between the new Bolshevik government of Russia and the Central Powers, that ended Russia's participation in World War I. The treaty was signed at German-controlled Brest-Litovsk, after two months of negotiations. -
The Red Baron’s Death
April 21, 1918
While going after an enemy plane flown by Lt. May, Captain Brown caught up and started firing at the Red Baron. Australian troops on the ground were also firing at him. He was hit in the chest and went down. The allies treated his body with respect. -
The Death of Nicholas II and His Family
July 17, 1918
The royal family of Russia was Nicholas II, his wife Alexandra Feodorovna, and their five children: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, Anastasia, and Alexei. The Russian Imperial Romanov family were shot and bayoneted to death by Bolshevik revolutionaries. -
The Armistice of World War I
November 11, 1918
On Nov. 11, 1918, after more than four years of fighting and the loss of millions of lives, the guns on the Western Front fell silent. Although fighting continued elsewhere, the armistice between Germany and the Allies was the first step to ending World War I. The global reaction was one of mixed emotions: relief, celebration, disbelief and a profound sense of loss. -
Stalin Rises to Power
April 3, 1922
In 1912, Joseph Stalin served on the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party. The Soviet Union was founded in 1922, with Lenin as its first leader. Stalin had continued to move up, and in 1922 he became Secretary General, a role that enabled him to appoint his allies to government jobs. After Lenin died in 1924, Stalin won the power struggle for control of the Communist Party. By the late 1920s, he had become dictator of the Soviet Union. -
Reform Act of 1928
July 2, 1928,
A bill was introduced in March 1928 to give women the vote at the age of 2. There was little opposition in Parliament to the bill. It became law on 2nd July 1928. As a result, all women over the age of 21 could now vote.