| - 1711 Rinaldo, Handel's first opera for London stage, premiered |
| - 1742 Messiah, oratorio by Handel premiered in Dublin |
| - 1791 - 5 4 London symphonies by Haydn |
| - 1798 Creation, oratorio by Haydn first performed |
| - 1807 Britain declares Slave Trade illegal. |
| - 1800 Company of Surgeons are awarded their Royal Charter & became Royal College of Surgeons of England. |
| - 1808–09 Russia conquers Finland from Sweden in Finnish War. |
| - 1814-16 Anglo-Nepalese War between Nepal(Gurkha Empire) & British Empire. |
| - 1888 (August) Jack Ripper is believed to have begun murdering. |
| - 1888 (November) Jack Ripper is believed to have murdered his last victim. |
| - 1801 Kingdom of Great Britain & Kingdom of Ireland merge to form United Kingdom. |
| - 1812–15 War of 1812 between United States & United Kingdom |
| - 1813–1907 contest between British Empire & Imperial Russia for control of Central Asia is referred to as Great Game. |
| - 1721 Brandenburg concertos by J.S. Bach |
| - 1724 St John Passion by J.S. Bach |
| - 1727 St Matthew Passion composed by J.S. Bach |
| - 1733 Hippolyte et Aricie, first opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau French |
| - 1741 Goldberg Variations for harpsichord published by Bach |
| - 1749 Mass in B Minor by J.S. Bach assembled in current form |
| - 1751 Art of Fugue by J.S. Bach |
| - 1762 Orfeo ed Euridice, first "reform opera" by Gluck, performed in Vienna |
| - 1786 Marriage of Figaro, opera by Mozart |
| - 1787 Don Giovanni, opera by Mozart |
| - 1788 Jupiter Symphony (Symphony No.41) composed by Mozart |
| - 1791 Magic Flute, opera by Mozart |
| - 1723 Four Seasons, violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi, composed |
| - 1803 War breaks out between Britain & France; this is considered by some to be beginning of Napoleonic Wars. |
| - 1804 Haiti gains independence from France & becomes first black republic. |
| - 1804 Austrian Empire founded by Francis I. |
| - 1804 Napoleon crowns himself Emperor of French. |
| - 1805 Battle of Trafalgar eliminates French & Spanish naval fleets & allows for British dominance of seas, a major factor for success of British Empire later in century. |
| - 1805 Napoleon decisively defeats a Austrian-Russian army at Battle of Austerlitz. |
| - 1815 Congress of Vienna redraws European map. Concert of Europe attempts to preserve this settlement, but it fails to stem tide of liberalism & nationalism that sweeps over continent. |
| - 1815 Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo brings a conclusion to Napoleonic Wars & marks beginning of a Pax Britannica which lasts until 1870. |
| - 1861 Russia abolishes serfdom. |
| - 1863–1865 Polish uprising against Russian Empire. |
| - 1867 United States purchased Alaska from Russia. |
| - 1805–48 Muhammad Ali modernizes Egypt. |
| - 1801–15 Barbary War between United States & Barbary States of North Africa |
| - 1804–10 Fulani Jihad in Nigeria. |
| - 1803 United States buys out France's territorial claims in North America via Louisiana Purchase. This begins U.S.'s westward expansion to Pacific referred to as its Manifest Destiny which involves annexing & conquering land from Mexico, Britain, & Native Americans. |
| - 1800 inception of Second Great Awakening for United States. |
| - 1801 Thomas Jefferson elected President of United States by United States House of Representatives, following a tie in Electoral College (United States) |
| - 1801 Ranjit Singh crowned as King of Punjab. |
| - 1803 Wahhabis of First Saudi State capture Mecca & Medina. |
| - 1804–15 Serbian revolution erupts against Ottoman rule. Suzerainty of Serbia recognized in 1817. |
| - 1806 Holy Roman Empire dissolved as a consequence of Treaty of Pressburg. |
| - 1808–14 Spanish guerrillas fight in Peninsular War. |
| - 1809 Napoleon strips Teutonic Knights of their last holdings in Bad Mergentheim. |
| - 1810 University of Berlin is founded. Among its students & faculty are Hegel, Marx, & Bismarck. German university reform proves to be so successful that its model is copied around world (see History of European research universities). |
| - 1810 Grito de Dolores begins Mexican War of Independence. |
| - 1810s–20s Most of Latin American colonies free themselves from Spanish & Portuguese Empires after Latin American wars of independence. |
| - 1812 French invasion of Russia is a turning point in Napoleonic Wars. |
| - 1816 Year Without a Summer: Unusually cold conditions wreak havoc throughout Northern Hemisphere, likely caused by 1815 explosion of Mount Tambora. |
| - 1816–28 Shaka's Zulu Kingdom becomes largest in Southern Africa. |
| - 1817 Principality of Serbia becomes suzerain from Ottoman Empire. Officially independent in 1867. |
| - 1819 modern city of Singapore is established by British East India Company. |
| - 1819 Théodore Géricault paints his masterpiece Raft of Medusa, & exhibits it in French Salon of 1819 at Louvre. |
| - 1820 Missouri Compromise |
| - 1820 Liberia founded by American Colonization Society for freed American slaves. |
| - 1821 Mexico gains independence from Spain with Treaty of Córdoba. |
| - 1821 Peru declares its independence from Spain. |
| - 1822–23 First Mexican Empire, as Mexico's first post-independent government, ruled by Emperor Agustín I of Mexico. |
| - 1821–30 Greece becomes first country to break away from Ottoman Empire after Greek War of Independence. |
| - 1822 Prince Pedro of Portugal proclaimed Brazilian independence on September 7. On December 1, he was crowned as Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil. |
| - 1823–87 British Empire annexed Burma (now also called Myanmar) after three Anglo-Burmese Wars. |
| - 1825 Erie Canal opened connecting Great Lakes to Atlantic Ocean. |
| - 1826–28 After final Russo-Persian War, Persian Empire took back territory lost to Russia from previous war. |
| - 1827 Death of William Blake |
| - 1825–28 Argentina-Brazil War results in independence of Uruguay. |
| - 1830 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is established on April 6, 1830. |
| - 1830 July Revolution in France. |
| - 1830 Belgian Revolution in United Kingdom of Netherlands led to creation of Belgium. |
| - 1830 Greater Colombia dissolved & nations of Colombia (including modern-day Panama), Ecuador, & Venezuela took its place. |
| - 1830 November Uprising in Poland against Russia. |
| - 1831 France invades & occupies Algeria. |
| - 1831-33 Egyptian–Ottoman War. |
| - 1832 British Parliament passes Great Reform Act. |
| - 1833 Slavery Abolition Act bans slavery throughout British Empire. |
| - 1833–76 Carlist Wars in Spain. |
| - 1834 German Customs Union is formed. |
| - 1834 Spanish Inquisition officially ends. |
| - 1834 - 59 25 Imam Shamil's rebellion in Russian-occupied Caucasus. |
| - 1835–36 Texas Revolution in Mexico resulted in short-lived Republic of Texas. |
| - 1836 Battle of Alamo. |
| - 1837–1838 Rebellions of 1837 in Canada. |
| - 1837–1901 Queen Victoria's reign is considered apex of British Empire & is referred to as Victorian era. |
| - 1838–40 Civil war in Federal Republic of Central America led to foundings of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, & Costa Rica. |
| - 1839–51 Uruguayan Civil War |
| - 1839–60 After two Opium Wars, France, United Kingdom, United States & Russia gained many concessions from China resulting in decline of Qing Dynasty. |
| - 1840: New Zealand is founded, as Treaty of Waitangi is signed by Māori & British. |
| - 1844 Persian Prophet Báb announces his revelation on May 23, founding Bábísm. He announced to world of coming of "He whom God shall make manifest". He is considered forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh, founder of Bahá'í Faith. |
| - 1844 First publicly funded telegraph line in world—between Baltimore & Washington—sends demonstration message on May 24, ushering in age of telegraph. This message read "What hath God wrought?" (Bible, Numbers 23:23) |
| - 1844 Millerite movement awaits Second Advent of Jesus Christ on October 22. Christ's non-appearance becomes known as Great Disappointment. |
| - 1844 Dominican War of Independence from Haiti. |
| - 1845 Unification of Kingdom of Tonga under Tāufaʻāhau (King George Tupou I) |
| - 1845-1846 First Anglo-Sikh War |
| - 1845–72 New Zealand Land Wars |
| - 1845–49 Irish Potato Famine led to Irish diaspora. |
| - 1846–48 Mexican-American War leads to Mexico's cession of much of modern-day Southwestern United States. |
| - 1846–47 Mormon migration to Utah. |
| - 1847–1901 Caste War of Yucatán. |
| - 1848-1849 Second Anglo-Sikh War |
| - 1848 Communist Manifesto published. |
| - 1848 Revolutions of 1848 in Europe |
| - 1848 Seneca Falls Convention is first women's rights convention in United States & leads to battle for suffrage & women's legal rights. |
| - 1848–58 California Gold Rush |
| - 1850 Little Ice Age ends around this time. |
| - 1851 Great Exhibition in London was world's first international Expo or World's Fair. |
| - 1851–52 Platine War ends & Empire of Brazil has hegemony over South America. |
| - 1851–60s Victorian gold rush in Australia |
| - 1851–64 Taiping Rebellion in China is bloodiest conflict of century. |
| - 1853–56 Crimean War between France, United Kingdom, Ottoman Empire & Russia |
| - 1854 Convention of Kanagawa formally ends Japan's policy of isolation. |
| - 1855 Bessemer process enables steel to be mass produced. |
| - 1856 World's first oil refinery in Romania |
| - 1857–58 Indian Rebellion of 1857 |
| - 1859 Origin of Species published. |
| - 1861 - 5 4 American Civil War between Union & seceding Confederacy |
| - 1861–67 French intervention in Mexico & creation of Second Mexican Empire, ruled by Maximilian I of Mexico & his consort Carlota of Mexico. |
| - 1862–1877 Muslim Rebellion in northwest China. |
| - 1863 Bahá'u'lláh declares His station as "He whom God shall make manifest". This date is celebrated in Bahá'í Faith as Festival of Ridván. |
| - 1863 Formation of International Red Cross is followed by adoption of First Geneva Convention in 1864. |
| - 1864–66 Chincha Islands War was an attempt by Spain to regain its South American colonies. |
| - 1864–70 War of Triple Alliance ends Paraguayan ambitions for expansion & destroys much of Paraguayan population. |
| - 1865–77 Reconstruction in United States; Slavery is banned in United States by Thirteenth Amendment to United States Constitution. |
| - 1865-April 9, 1865 Robert E. Lee surrenders Army of Northern Virginia (26,765 troops) to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, effectively ending American Civil War. |
| - 1865-April 14, 1865, United States President Abraham Lincoln is assassinated while attending a performance at Ford's Theater, Washington, D.C.. He dies approximately nine hours after being shot on April 15, 1865. |
| - 1866 Successful transatlantic telegraph cable follows an earlier attempt in 1858. |
| - 1866 Austro-Prussian War results in dissolution of German Confederation & creation of North German Confederation & Austrian-Hungarian Dual Monarchy. |
| - 1866–1868 Famine in Finland. |
| - 1866–69 After Meiji Restoration, Japan embarks on a program of rapid modernization. |
| - 1867 Canadian Confederation formed. |
| - 1867 Principality of Serbia passes a Constitution which defines its independence from Ottoman Empire. International recognition followed in 1878. |
| - 1868 Expatriation Act is approved by Congress, guaranteeing U.S. citizens right to expatriate. Coupled with 14th Amendment to U.S. Constitution approved only one day later, Expatriation Act allows U.S. citizens to renounce federal citizenship in order to regain Constitutional rights ceded by U.S. citizens as defined by 14th Amendment. |
| - 1868 14th Amendment to U.S. Constitution was approved. |
| - 1869 First Transcontinental Railroad completed in United States on May 10. |
| - 1869 Suez Canal opens linking Mediterranean to Red Sea. |
| - 1870–71 Franco-Prussian War results in unifications of Germany & Italy, collapse of Second French Empire, breakdown of Pax Britannica, & emergence of a New Imperialism. |
| - 1871–1872 Famine in Persia is believed to have caused death of 2 million. |
| - 1871–1914 Second Industrial Revolution |
| - 1870s-90s Long Depression in Western Europe & North America |
| - 1872 Yellowstone National Park is created. |
| - 1873 Maxwell's A Treatise on Electricity & Magnetism published. |
| - 1874 Société Anonyme Coopérative des Artistes Peintres, Sculpteurs, & Graveurs, better known today as Impressionists organize & present their first public group exhibition at Paris studio of photographer Nadar. |
| - 1874 British East India Company is dissolved. |
| - 1874–1875 First Republic in Spain. |
| - 1875–1900 26 million Indians perished in India due to famine. |
| - 1876 Bulgarian revolt against Ottoman rule. |
| - 1876–1879 13 million Chinese died of famine in northern China. |
| - 1876–1914 massive expansion in population, territory, industry & wealth in United States is referred to as Gilded Age. |
| - 1877 Great Railroad Strike in United States may have been world's first nationwide labor strike. |
| - 1877–78 Following Russo-Turkish War, Treaty of Berlin recognizes formal independence of Principality of Serbia, Montenegro & Romania. Bulgaria becomes autonomous. |
| - 1878 First commercial telephone exchange in New Haven, Connecticut. |
| - 1879 Anglo-Zulu War in South Africa. |
| - 1879–83 Chile battles with Peru & Bolivia over Andean territory in War of Pacific. |
| - 1880–1881 First Boer War. |
| - 1881 First electrical power plant & grid in Godalming, Britain. |
| - 1881–1899 Mahdist War in Sudan. |
| - 1882 British invasion & subsequent occupation of Egypt |
| - 1883 Krakatoa volcano explosion. |
| - 1884–85 Berlin Conference signals start of European "scramble for Africa". Attending nations also agree to ban trade in slaves. |
| - 1884–85 Sino-French War led to formation of French Indochina. |
| - 1885 "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson is published. Scotland |
| - 1885 Singer begins production of 'Vibrating Shuttle' which would become Model T of sewing machines. America |
| - 1886 Russian-Circassian War ended with defeat & exile of many Circassians. Imam Shamil defeated. |
| - 1888 Slavery banned in Brazil. |
| - 1889 Eiffel tower was inaugurated in Paris. |
| - 1889 Mirza Ghulam Ahmad establishes Ahmadi Muslim Community. |
| - 1889 End of Brazilian Empire & beginning of Brazilian Republic |
| - 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre was last battle in American Indian Wars. This event represents end of American Old West. |
| - 1891 Basketball was invented. |
| - 1893 World's Columbian Exposition was held in Chicago celebrating 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in New World. |
| - 1894 - 5 1 After First Sino-Japanese War, China cedes Taiwan to Japan & grants Japan a free hand in Korea. |
| - 1895–1896: Ethiopia defeats Italy in First Italo–Ethiopian War. |
| - 1896 Olympic Games revived in Athens. |
| - 1896 Philippine Revolution ends declaring Philippines free from Spanish rule. |
| - 1896 Ethiopia defeated Italy at Battle of Adwa. |
| - 1896 Klondike Gold Rush in Canada. |
| - 1897 Gojong, or Emperor Gwangmu, proclaims short-lived Korean Empire: lasts until 1910. |
| - 1898 United States gains control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, & Philippines after Spanish-American War. |
| - 1898–1900 Boxer Rebellion in China is suppressed by an Eight-Nation Alliance. |
| - 1898–1902 One Thousand Days war in Colombia breaks out between "Liberales" & "Conservadores", culminating with loss of Panama in 1903. |
| - 1899 Second Boer War begins (-1902); Philippine-American War begins (-1913). |
| - Clara Barton, nurse, pioneer of American Red Cross |
| - Sitting Bull, a leader of Lakota |
| - John Burroughs, Naturalist, conservationist, writer |
| - Benito Juárez, Mexican President |
| - Davy Crockett, King of wild frontier, folk hero, frontiersman, soldier & politician |
| - Jefferson Davis, Confederate States President |
| - William Gilbert Grace, English cricketer |
| - Baron Haussmann, civic planner |
| - Franz Joseph I of Austria, Emperor of Austria & brother of Mexican Emperor |
| - Chief Joseph, a leader of Nez Percé |
| - Ned Kelly, Australian folk hero, & outlaw |
| - Elizabeth Kenny, Australian Nurse & found an Innovative Treatment of Polio |
| - Sándor Körösi Csoma, explorer of Tibetan culture |
| - Fitz Hugh Ludlow, writer & explorer |
| - John Muir, Naturalist, writer, preservationist |
| - Florence Nightingale, nursing pioneer |
| - Charles Stewart Parnell, Irish political leader |
| - Dr. Jose P. Rizal, Filipino hero, novelist, liberator |
| - Sacagawea, Important aide to Lewis&Clark |
| - Ignaz Semmelweis, proponent of hygienic practices |
| - Dr. John Snow, founder of epidemiology |
| - F R Spofforth, Australian cricketer |
| - William Wilberforce, Abolitionist, Philanthropist |
| - Hong Xiuquan inspired China's Taiping Rebellion, perhaps bloodiest civil war in human history |
| - Karl Marx wrote Communist Manifesto, promoted change in labor system of Europe |
| - P. T. Barnum, showman |
| - David Belasco, actor, playwright, theatrical producer |
| - Sarah Bernhardt, actress |
| - Edwin Booth, actor |
| - Dion Boucicault, playwright |
| - Mrs Patrick Campbell, actress |
| - Anton Chekhov, playwright |
| - Buffalo Bill Cody, Wild West legend, & showman |
| - Baptiste Deburau, Bohemian–French actor & mime. |
| - Eleonora Duse, actress |
| - Henrik Ibsen, playwright |
| - Edmund Kean, actor |
| - Charles Kean, actor |
| - Lillie Langtry, actress, socialite |
| - Frédérick Lemaître, actor |
| - Jenny Lind, opera singer called Swedish Nightingale |
| - Céleste Mogador, dancer |
| - Lola Montez, exotic dancer |
| - Adelaide Neilson, actress |
| - Annie Oakley, Wild West, sharp-shooter |
| - Lillian Russell, singer, actress |
| - George Bernard Shaw, playwright |
| - Edward Askew Sothern, actor |
| - Ellen Terry, actress |
| - Cap Anson, baseball player |
| - Gentleman Jim Corbett, heavyweight boxer |
| - Big Ed Delahanty, baseball player |
| - Bob Fitzsimmons, heavyweight boxer |
| - Pud Galvin, baseball player |
| - Olympic Games, 1894 IOC is formed, & first Summer Olympics games are held in Athens, Greece in 1896 |
| - Dr William Gilbert 'WG' Grace, cricketer |
| - Peter Jackson, heavyweight boxer |
| - James J. Jeffries, heavyweight boxer |
| - Old Hoss Radbourn, baseball player |
| - Tom Sharkey, heavyweight boxer |
| - John L. Sullivan, heavyweight boxer |
| - John Montgomery Ward, baseball player |
| - Evangelis Zappas, Founder of International Modern Olympic Games |
| - John Jacob Astor III, Real Estate |
| - Abraham Lincoln, United States President |
| - Commodore Perry, U.S. Naval commander, opened door to Japan |
| - Andrew Carnegie, Industrialist, philanthropist |
| - Jay Cooke, Finance |
| - Henry Clay Frick, Industrialist, art collector |
| - Jay Gould, Railroad developer |
| - Meyer Guggenheim Family patriarch, mining |
| - Daniel Guggenheim (copper) |
| - E. H. Harriman, Railroads |
| - Henry O. Havemeyer (sugar), art collector |
| - George Hearst, Gold |
| - James J. Hill (railroads) – Empire Builder |
| - Andrew W. Mellon, Industrialist, philanthropist, art collector |
| - J.P. Morgan, banker, art collector |
| - George Mortimer Pullman (railroads) |
| - Charles Pratt Oil, founder of Pratt Institute |
| - Cecil Rhodes diamonds, mining magnate, founder of De Beers. |
| - John D. Rockefeller, Oil, Business tycoon, philanthropist |
| - Levi Strauss, clothing manufacturer |
| - Cornelius Vanderbilt, Shipping, Railroads |
| - William Chapman Ralston, Businessman, Financier, founder of Bank of California. |