FullerData.com - US / UK History

	Notice of Revocation of Independence      United Kingdom Timeline - United States
	BC55 Caesar's first British expedition AD43 Roman Conquest of Britain begun by Emperor Claudius - Camulodunum (Colchester) captured and becomes first Roman Base in England AD60 Revolt of Boudicca (Boadicea) c80-85 Campaign of Agricola in southern Scotland c85 Battle of Mons Graupius, massive defeat of Caledonians by Roman forces 122 Beginning of Hadrian's Wall (completed 126) 180 Beginning of the 'decline of the Roman Empire' (Gibbon) - Defeat of Romans in Caledonia - they retreat behind Hadrian's Wall 247 1,000th anniversary of founding of Rome 304 St Alban first Christian martyr in Britain [Anglo-Saxon Chronicles say 286] 321 Sunday declared a statutory holiday by the Christian church 367 Invasion of northern England by Picts and Scots 406/412 Probable end of Roman military occupation of Britain c400 - c600 Migration and settlement of Angles, Jutes and Saxons 537 Death of King Arthur [Note: He is not mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles] c541 Bubonic plague devastates Europe 597/8 St Augustine lands in Kent - converts King Ethelbert - introduces Roman Christian Church to England 604 St Paul's Cathedral in London founded c800 Book of Kells 802 Norsemen plunder Iona 827 Egbert King of Wessex and Mercia effectively first king of England (d. 839) 838 Norse establish permanent base at Dublin 844 Kenneth I MacAlpin, king of Scots, becomes King of Picts - start of Scottish kingdom 865-874 Danish army conquers north-eastern third of England 871 Alfred (the Great) crowned king of England 872 Curfew (couvre feu) introduced at Oxford by King Alfred to reduce fire risks 878 Norse fail in attempt to conquer Wessex 880 Treaty of Wedmore: England divided between Alfred the Great of Wessex (the south and west) and the 'Danelaw'(the north and east) 891 Beginning of Anglo-Saxon Chronicle marks revival of learning in England 899 Death of King Alfred the Great 937 Athelstan of Wessex defeats Scots, north Welsh and Norse at Brunanburh c960 Edinburgh held by King of Alba 980 Vikings renew assault on England 1002 Sveyn of Denmark devastates England: King Aethelred (the Unready) pays him 24,000 pounds of silver to stop 1004 Vikings explore the North American coast 1007 King Aethelred pays Sveyn another 36,000 pounds of silver 1010 London Bridge torn down by Vikings with grappling irons - (Olaf II Haraldsson, later St Olaf, took part) 1012 King Aethelred pays Sveyn another 48,000 pounds of silver; but next year Sveyn pushes him off the throne 1016 Canute (Knut, son of Sveyn) becomes king of Denmark, Norway and England (d. 1035) c1030 Guido of Arezzo introduces first practical form of musical notation, enabling melodies to be sung on sight 1035 Death of Canute: the Danish empire splits up 1040 Macbeth murders Duncan and takes the throne of Scotland (d. 1057) Lady Godiva, wife of earl of Mercia, rides naked through Coventry as a protest against taxes 1042 Edward the Confessor King of England 1052 Building of Westminster Abbey starts 1066 Edward the Confessor dies - Harold II reigned for 9 months. Battle of Stamford Bridge: Harold II defeats Norwegian invasion. Invasion of England by Duke William of Normandy - Battle of Hastings. William crowned King of England at Winchester. 1072 King Malcolm III of Scotland submitted to William the Conqueror 1081 Building of Tower of London starts 1086 Completion of Domesday Book 1096 First crusade begins c1100 First record of football in England 1110 Introduction in England of Pipe Rolls, recording exchequer payments 1119 Military order of the Knights Templar founded 1120s First references in Scotland to Burghs and Sheriffs 1135 Stephen seizes the throne of England 1138 Battle of The Standard 1166 Establishment of trial by jury 1170 Murder of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral 1172 Pope decrees that Henry II of England is feudal lord of Ireland 1175 Treaty of Falaise signed - William the Lyon surrenders Scottish crown to King Henry II of England 1189 Richard I 'Lionheart' becomes king of England (d. 1199) - acknowledges the independence of Scotland 1190 Opening of the Third Crusade 1192 Richard I held for ransom on his way back from the Crusade 1199 Richard I dies having spent most of his reign abroad - succeeded by his brother John 1228 First recorded mention of the Royal Mint 1231 Cambridge University organised and granted Royal Charter 1248 Charter granted to Oxford University by Henry III 1265 Start of English Parliament 1272 Eighth (and last) crusade 1277 Edward I embarks on the conquest of Wales 1283 Annexation of Wales to England 1290 Death of the 'maid of Norway,' heiress to the Scottish crown. Jews expelled from England. 1292 King Edward I awards Scottish crown to John Baliol ('Toon Tabard') 1295 Signing of the "Auld Alliance" between Scotland and France - one of the world's oldest mutual defence treaties 1296 Annexation of Scotland by England. Beginning of uprising led by William Wallace. 1297 Battle of Stirling Bridge, defeat of English Army 1298 Battle of Falkirk, Edward I defeats William Wallace c1300 Earliest western reference to manufacture of gunpowder 1305 Trial and execution of William Wallace 1306 Robert the Bruce crowned King Robert I of Scots 1312 Knights Templars suppressed in France 1314 Battle of Bannockburn - Scots under Robert the Bruce routed the English led by Edward II - resulted in Scottish independence. Edward II banned football in London. Great European famine. c1320 Invention of escapement clocks, and first practical guns 1327 Deposition and regicide of King Edward II of England 1328 Treaty of Northampton, formalised peace between England and Scotland 1329 Death of Robert the Bruce; succeeded by King David II of Scots 1332 Climatic catastrophe in eastern Asia - 7 million people drowned - black rats driven west (eventually causing Black Death in Europe) 1338 Edward III asserts his claim to the French throne - 'Hundred Years War' begins (to 1453) 1349 Black Death reaches England (entered Europe in 1346) 1356 Battle of Poitiers: Black Prince (son of Edward III) captures the French king, John the Good 1360 Edward II and John the Good (still in captivity) make peace - but it only lasted for 9 years 1362 English becomes official language in English Parliament and Law Courts 1369 Hundred Years War restarts 1372 Naval battle off La Rochelle: Castilians defeat the English fleet - tide begins to turn against the English in Aquitaine 1375 Truce in the Hundred Years War - England lost most of her possessions in France 1382 First translation of the Bible into English, by John Wycliffe. Great earthquake in Kent 1397 Dick Whittington first becomes Lord Mayor of London 1399 Deposition of King Richard II; Henry IV establishes Lancastrian dynasty 1412 Foundation of the University of St Andrews 1415 (St Crispin's Day): Battle of Agincourt 1422 Infant Henry VI (9 months old) on throne of England 1431 Death of Joan of Arc 1451 University of Glasgow founded 1453 End of Hundred Years' War. Battle of Stamford Bridge first in Wars of the Roses (1455-87). 1457 First recorded mention of golf in Scotland 1460 King James II of Scots killed by an exploding cannon at Kelso 1468 Orkney and Shetland Islands acquired from Norway by Scotland 1477 Edward IV bans cricket 1480 Spanish Inquisition begins 1483 Murder of the princes in the Tower; their uncle Richard III becomes king 1484 Introduction of bail for defendants in legal courts. English first used for parliamentary statutes 1485 Battle of Bosworth Field; Richard III killed - beginning of Tudors (Henry VII). Formation of the Yeomen of the Guard 1492 Christopher Columbus discovers the West Indies 1495 Foundation of the University of Aberdeen (as King's College) 1503 Marriage of King James IV of Scots and Margaret Tudor 1507 Suggestion put forward that the New World be named America in honour of Amerigo Vespucci 1509 Henry VIII becomes king of England (to 1547) 1512 Admiralty founded in London. The "Auld Alliance" treaty with France - all Scottish citizens became French and vice versa. 1529 Diet of Speyer: origin of the word Protestant 1534 Reformation of the Catholic Church in England church (Henry VIII) 1536 Dissolution of monasteries starts in England 1547 English replaced Latin in church services in England and Wales. Death of Henry VIII (Edward VI to 1553). Ivan the Terrible takes title 'Tsar of all the Russias'. 1549 Wedding ring finger changed from right to left hand. First Act of Uniformity in England made Catholic Mass illegal. 1558 French take Calais, last English possession in France. 1558-1603 Reign of Elizabeth I - Policy of Plantation begins. System of Counties adopted. 1561 Spire of St Paul's, highest in England, destroyed by fire 1562 African slave trade starts 1569 Elizabeth I approved Sunday sports 1571-1572 Presbyterianism introduced into England by Thomas Cartwright 1578 Earliest Quaker registers begin 1583 Foundation of Cambridge University Press by Thomas Thomas. University of Edinburgh founded 1585 Foundation of Oxford University Press. Shakespeare started seriously to write about this time. 1586 Camden Britannia, first topographical survey of England 1587 Raleigh's second expedition to New World lands in North Carolina - first child born in the New World of English parents, Virginia Dare (Aug 18). Introduction of potatoes to England 1588 Defeat of Spanish Armada (had set sail from Lisbon May 20) 1591 Trinity College, Dublin, founded 1593 British statute mile established by law 1601 First use of fruit juice as a preventative for scurvy by James Lancaster. East India Company founded 1603 Death of Elizabeth I: union of Scottish and English crowns - under King James VI of Scots and I of England 1604 Robert Cawdrey A Table Alphabeticall - first English dictionary 1605 Gunpowder plot at Westminster (Guy Fawkes) 1606 Adoption of Union Jack as the flag of "Great Britain". The London Company chartered to colonise Virginia 1607 Jamestown, Virginia, founded by English settlers, who begin growing tobacco. 1620 The Mayflower reaches America - founds Plymouth, New England. Manufacture of coke patented by Dud Dudley 1622 First English newspaper appeared Weekly News 1624 Monopoly Act in England: patents protected. 1625 Death of King James VI & I 1629 Parliament dissolved by King Charles I - did not meet for another 11 years 1639 Act of Toleration in England established religious toleration 1640 Charles I forced to recall Parliament due to Scottish invasion 1641 Charles I's policies cause insurrection in Ulster and Civil War in England. 50,000 Irish killed in an uprising in Ulster. 1642 Charles I raises his standard at Nottingham - First Civil War in England (to 1649) 1645 Battle of Naseby: Parliament's New Model Army crushes the Royalist forces. Battle of Philiphaugh in Scotland. 1646 Royalists sign articles of surrender at Oxford 1649 King Charles I executed. Commonwealth declared. Cromwell's Irish campaign starts. King Charles II proclaimed King of Scots and England in Scotland 1649-1660 Commonwealth Period - Oliver Cromwell 1651-1652 The second English Civil War. Battle of Worcester. Scottish prisoners transported to the English settlements in America. 1653 Commonwealth registers start. Commonwealth changed into Cromwell's Protectorate. Under the Act of Settlement Cromwell's opponents stripped of land. 1657 Post Office established by Act of Parliament. A few Jews permitted to settle in England 1658 Death of Oliver Cromwell 1658-1660 Richard Cromwell (son of Oliver) Lord Protector 1659 First known cheque to be drawn 1660s Quaker-Scottish colony was established in East New Jersey Restoration of British monarchy (Charles II) 1661 Board of Trade founded in London Hand-struck postage stamps first used 1665 Great Plague of London (July-October) kills over 60,000 1666 Great Fire of London, after a drought beginning 27 June. 1668 British East India Company obtains control of Bombay 1671 Thomas Blood caught stealing the Crown Jewels 1672 War with Holland (to 1674) - British Army increased to 10,000 men 1682 Pennsylvania founded by William Penn 1688 Edward Lloyd's Coffee House - later became Lloyd's of London. The Glorious Revolution: James II abdicates - William of Orange lands in England - William of Hanover and Mary, daughter of James II, jointly take the throne - (only William, however, has regal power). 1695 Freedom of Press in England. 1702 Anne Stuart becomes Queen. War of Spanish Succession (1702-1713). 1704 Battle of Blenheim. 1709 First Copyright Act passed Bad harvests throughout Europe - bread riots in Britain 1713 Treaty of Utrecht concludes the War of the Spanish Succession. By this year there are some 3,000 coffee houses in London. 1714 Queen Anne Stuart dies - George I Hanover becomes king (1714-1727) 1720 South Sea Bubble, a stock-market crash on Exchange Alley - government assumes control of National Debt 1725-1726 Treaty of Hanover: France, Prussia, England v. Spain, Austria 1730 Irish famine 1742 England goes to war with Spain - incited by William Pitt the Elder (Earl of Chatham) for the sake of trade 1746 Battle of Culloden - last battle fought in Britain - 5,000 Highlanders routed by the Duke of Cumberland and 9,000 loyalists Scots - Young Pretender Charles flees to Continent, ending Jacobite hopes forever - the wearing of the kilt prohibited 1754 First British troops not belonging to the East India Company despatched to India 1756 The Seven Years War with France (Pitt's trade war) begins 1757 India: The Nawab of Bengal tries to expel the British, but is defeated at the battle of Plassy - the East India Company forces are led by Robert Clive Black Hole of Calcutta - 146 Britons imprisoned, most die. The foundation laid for the Empire of India. 1758 India stops being merely a commercial venture - England begins dominating it politically - The East India Company retains its monopoly although it ceased to trade 1760 George II dies - George III Hanover, his grandson, becomes king. The date conventionally marks the start of the so-called "first Industrial Revolution" 1762 France surrenders Canada and Florida 1763 Treaty of Paris - gives back to France everything Pitt fought to obtain - (Newfoundland [fishing], Guadaloupe and Martininque [sugar], Dakar [gum]) - but English displaces French as the international language. 1773-1858 The East India Company governs Hindustan 1773 Boston Tea Party 1774 First recorded cricket match (some say 1719, Londoners v Kentish Men) 1775 Battle of Lexington: first action in American War of Independence (1775-1783) Irish unrest 1776 American Declaration of Independence 1784 Pitt's India Act - the Crown (as opposed to officers of the East India Company) has power to guide Indian politics. First edition of The Times (called The Daily Universal Register for 3 years). 1788 First slave carrying act, the Dolben Act of 1788, regulates the slave trade - stipulates more humane conditions on slave ships. King George III's mental illness occasions the Regency Crisis - Edmund Burke and Charles James Fox attack ministry of William Pitt - trying to obtain full regal powers for the Prince of Wales. 1789 The French Revolution begins - storming of the Bastille 1793 England declares war on France (1793-1802). Execution of Louis XVI - Reign of Terror starts in France 1797 England in Crisis, Bank of England suspends cash payments. 1798 The Irish Rebellion; 100,000 peasants revolt; approximately 25,000 die - Irish Parliament abolished. 1799 Foundation of Royal Military College Sandhurst by the Duke of York. Foundation of the Royal Institution of Great Britain. 1800 Parliamentary union of Great Britain and Ireland. British trade accounts for about 27% of world trade 1801 Union Jack official British flag 1802 Treaty of Amiens signed by Britain, France, Spain, and the Netherlands - the "Peace of Amiens," as it was known, brought a temporary peace of 14 months during the Napoleonic Wars - one of its most important cultural effects was that travel and correspondence across the English Channel became possible again. Regular mail service started between England and India 1803 Peace of Amiens ends on 12 May - resumption of war with France - The Napoleonic Wars (1803-18l5). Louisiana Purchase: Napolean sells French possessions in America to United States. 1804 Spain declares war on Britain 1805 Admiral Nelson's victory at Trafalgar. 1806 Napoleon attempts European economic blockade of Britain 1807 Parliament passes Act prohibiting slavery and the importation of slaves from 1808 - but does not prohibit colonial slavery. 1808 Peninsular War (1808-1814). 1811 Luddite uprisings (machine breaking) in the Midlands against weaving frames started - went on until 1815 - groups of workmen rebelled against the increased mechanisation of textile production by destroying the new machinery - government fears revolutionary conspiracy - damaging property or taking Luddite oaths become capital offences 1812 Start of American "War of 1812" (to 1814) against England and Canada. Napoleon retreats from Moscow with catastrophic losses. 1814 Invasion of France by Allies. Napoleon abdicates and is exiled to Elba. 1815 The Battle of Waterloo: Napoleon defeated and exiled to St. Helena 1816 Large scale emigration to North America 1820 Accession of George IV, previously Prince Regent. Abolition of the Spanish Inquisition 1821 Napoleon Bonaparte dies on St Helena 1823 Rugby Football 'invented' at Rugby School. Monroe Doctrine: President James Monroe warns European powers not to interfere in the American continent 1826 University College, London established. 1830 George IV dies - his brother, William IV, accedes to the throne. Revolution in France, fall of Charles X and the Bourbons - Louis Philippe (the Citizen King) on the throne. Uprisings and agitation across Europe: the Netherlands are split into Holland and Belgium. 1834 Slavery abolished in British possessions Babbage invents forerunner of the computer 1835 Christmas becomes a national holiday Word 'socialism' first used 1838-1849 The Chartist Movement - a working-class movement for the extension of the franchise - 6-point charter: universal suffrage, secret ballot, annual elections, payment of Members, no property qualification for MPs, equal electoral districts 1839 First Opium War between Britain and China (to 1842) 1840 Treaty of Waitangi signed - Maori chiefs in New Zealand recognise British sovereignty in return for tribes being guaranteed possession of their lands 1842 British massacred in Khyber Pass End of Opium War - Britain gains Hong Kong 1843 First Christmas card in England. Brunel's 'Great Britain' launched. Skiing becomes a sport 1844 Companies Act in Britain - companies must register 1848 General revolutionary movement throughout the Continent ('Year of Revolution'). California gold rush. Marx and Engels The Communist Manifesto 1850 Britain has 39.5% of world merchant shipping tonnage 1854 Allied armies land in Crimea Cigarettes introduced into Britain 1855 First London pillar boxes. London sewers modernised after fourth major outbreak of cholera. Florence Nightingale introduces hygiene into military hospitals in Crimea 1856 End of Crimean War. 1857-8 Indian Mutiny 1858 East India Company dissolved. 1859 Darwin publishes Origin of Species. Peaceful picketing legalised in Britain 1860 Garibaldi's 'Red Shirts' conquer Sicily and Naples. Second Maori War in New Zealand (to 1870) 1861 American Civil War begins. Prince Albert dies. 1863 Football Association founded. London's first Underground Railway opens. 1865 End of American Civil War - slavery abolished in USA. First concrete roads built in Britain. 1867 Dominion of Canada founded. USA buys Alaska from Russia. 1868 Last convicts landed in Australia (Western Australia) 1870 Britain possesses 43% of world's merchant steam tonnage 1871 Trades Unions legalised in Britain, but picketing made illegal. Commissions in British armed forces no longer to be purchased 1875 London's main sewage system completed. Peaceful picketing permitted again. Britain takes 42% share in Suez Canal 1876 Victoria proclaimed Empress of India. Battle of Litttle Big Horn - last major North American Indian victory. 1879 First telephone exchanges opened in London & Manchester Zulu war 1880 Education Act: schooling compulsory for 5-10 year olds. Britain possesses half world's merchant steam tonnage. 1881 First Boer War - Transvaal independence recognised 1882 Institution of 'the Ashes' in cricket. 1883 Eruption of Krakatoa near Java - 30,000 killed by tidal wave 1884 Greenwich Mean Time made prime meridian of the world. First appearance of Oxford English Dictionary (not completed until 1928). 1887 Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee. 1890 London's first electric Underground 1897 Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee 1899 Start of Second Boer War 1900 Relief of Ladysmith. Relief of Mafeking. School leaving age in Britain raised to 14 years. 1901 Commonwealth of Australia founded. Queen Victoria dies - Edward VII king. Denunciation of use of concentration camps by British in Boer War. 1902 Empire Day (later Commonwealth Day) first celebrated. Treaty of Vereeniging ends Second Boer War. 1907 New Zealand becomes a Dominion. Imperial College, London, is established. 1910 Constitutional crisis in Britain. Edward VII dies - George V king. 1911 Parliament Act in Britain reduces the power of the House of Lords. British MPs receive a salary. 1912 Irish Home Rule crisis grows in Britain. The 'unsinkable' Titanic sinks on maiden voyage - loss of 1,513 lives. Royal Flying Corps (later the RAF) founded in Britain. 1914 Archduke Ferdinand assassinated in Sarajevo. Britain declares war on Germany, citing Belgian neutrality as reason. Battle of Ypres - beginning of trench warfare on western front. First Zeppelin air raid on England. 1915 Submarine blockade of Britain starts. Second Battle of Ypres - poison gas used for first time. Gallipoli campaign starts. Lucitania sunk by German submarine off coast of Ireland - 1,198 died. Junkers construct first fighter aeroplane. 1916 Battle of Verdun - appalling losses on both sides, stalemate continues. Battle of Jutland - only major naval battle between the British and German fleets. Sinking of HMS Hampshire and death of Kitchener. Battle of the Somme - first use of tanks by Britain, but of limited effect - over 1 million casualties. 1917 February revolution in Russia; Tsar Nicholas abdicates. USA declares war on Germany. Battle of Cambrai - first use of massed tanks, but effect more psychological than actual. Battle of Passchendaele - little gained by either side. October Revolution in Russia - Bolsheviks overthrow provisional government; Lenin becomes Chief Commissar. Balfour Declaration: Britain will support a Jewish state in Palestine. British forces capture Jerusalem. George V adopts Windsor as surname. 1918 Second Battle of the Marne: last majot German offensive. Armistice signed. Civil war in Ireland. 1919 Treaty of Versailles. Britain adopts a 48-hour working week. 1920 First meeting of the League of Nations. Further civil war in Ireland. Oxford University admits women to degrees. 1921 Irish Free State and Northern Ireland formed. Irish Regiments of British Army disbanded 1922 BBC established as a monopoly, and begins transmissions. 1923 Mussolini becomes dictator of Italy. Massive inflation in Germany leads to collapse of the currency. Canberra made Federal Capital of Australia. 1924 First Labour government, headed by Ramsay MacDonald. Death of Lenin; succeeded by Stalin. 1927 German economy collapses on 'Black Friday'. 1931 Collapse of the German banking system; 3,000 banks there close. Unemployment in Germany reaches 5.66M. Empire State Building completed in New York 1932 Great Hunger March of unemployed to London. 1933 Hitler becomes chancellor of Germany. 1934 Hitler becoms Fuehrer of Germany. Mao Tse-tung's 'Long March' starts in China 1935 Italy invades Abyssinia. London adopts a 'Green Belt' scheme. 1936 George V dies; Edward VIII king. Spanish Civil War starts. Duke of York becomes George VI. 1937 Chamberlain becomes Prime Minister in Britain - policy of appeasement towards Hitler. German planes bomb Guernica in Spain. Japanese forces invade China. Alan Turing publishes outline of his 'Turing Machine'. 1938 Germany invades and annexes Austria. Chamberlain visits Hitler in Munich - promises 'peace in our time'. 1939 Germany annexes Czechoslovakia. Germany invades Poland. Britain and France declare war on Germany. First air-raid on Britain. British Expeditionary Force (BEF) sent to France. 'First flight' of Canadian troops sail for Britain - 7,400 men on 5 ships. Start of evacuation of women and children from London. 1940 National Government formed under Churchill. Germany invades France. Evacuation of British Army at Dunkirk. Fall of France. Germany launches bombing blitz on Britain. Battle of Britain in the air ends with British victory. Trotsky assassinated on Stalin's orders. 1941 Germany invades Russia. First Canadian armoured regiments arrive in Britain. Japan attackes US fleet at Pearl Harbour. USA enters the War. Canadian forces given operation role in defending south coast of England. 1942 Over 1,000 bombers raid Cologne. Abortive raid on Dieppe, largely by Canadian troops. Germans defeated at Stalingrad. Battle of El Alamein - Montgomery defeats Rommel. Invention of world's first programmable computer by Alan Turing in co-operation with Max Neumann - used to crack German codes. 1943 'Dam Buster' raids on Ruhr dams by RAF. Allies invade Italy. Round-the-clock bombing of Germany begins. 1944 Allies enter Rome. D-Day invasion of Normandy. First V1 flying bombs hit London. First V2 rocket bombs hit London. Allies enter Germany. Battle of the Bulge: German counter-offensive. Berlin surrounded by Russian troops. Hitler commits suicide. VE Day. UN Charter signed. Atomic bombs dropped on Japan. VJ Day. 1946 Churchill fist uses the term 'Iron Curtain' in a speech. 1948 British Railways nationalised. UN sanctions the creation of the State of Israel - first Israel/Arab war. Gandhi assassinated. Policy of apartheid starts in South Africa. National Health Service (NHS) begins in Britain. British Citizenship Act : all Commonwealth citizens qualify for British passports. 1949 NATO formed. Russians explode their first atomic bomb. 1950 Korean War starts. China invades Tibet. UN Building completed in New York. 1952 George VI dies; Elizabeth II queen, returns from Kenya. Identity Cards abolished in Britain. US explodes Hydrogen Bomb. Britian explodes her first atomic bomb. 1953 Coronation of Elizabeth II. Death of Stalin: Malenkov becomes Premier of USSR. End of the Korean War. USSR explodes Hydrogen Bomb. 1956 Britain and France invade Suez. Britain constructs world's first large-scale nuclear power station in Cumberland. 1957 Sputnik I launched by Soviet Union - first artificial satellite. Treaty of Rome to create European Economic Community (EEC) of six countries: France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg - became operational Jan 1958. Britain explodes her first hydrogen bomb, at Christmas Island. 1958 USS Nautilus travels under the polar ice cap. USA begins to procuce Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). USA launches its first satellite - space race with the USSR begins. 1959 Empire Day becomes Commonwealth Day. European Free Trade Association (EFTA) established as an alternative to the EEC. USSR lands unmanned Lunik on the moon. 1960 Macmillan 'wind of change' speech in South Africa. Seventeen African colonies become independent this year. Sharpeville Massacre in South Africa. Russian Sputnik orbits carrying two live dogs. International Agreement to reserve Antarctica for scientific research. 1961 Yuri Gagarin first man in space - followed shortly afterwards by Alan Shepard. Betting shops legal in Britain. Berlin Wall built. 1962 US Ranger 4 lands on the moon. Cuba missile crisis - brink of nuclear war. Britain passes Commonwealth Immigrants Act to control immigration. 1963 President Kennedy assassinated in Dallas, Texas; Aldous Huxley died the same day. Valentina Tereshkova first woman in space. France vetoes Britain's entry into EEC. 1964 China explodes an atomic bomb. 1965 First US raids against North Vietnam Britain enacts first Race Relations Act. 1966 World Cup won by England at Wembley (4-2 in extra time v West Germany) 1967 Six Day War in Middle East - closes Suez Canal for 8 years (until 1975). Withdrawal from East of Suez by mid-70s announced. Russian spacecraft Venus IV makes soft landing on Venus. 1968 Beginning of disturbances in N Ireland. Commenwealth Immigration Act further restricts immigrants. Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy both assassinated in USA. Apollo 8 orbits the moon with a crew of 3 and returns to earth safely. 1969 Maiden flight of Concorde. First men land on the moon (Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin). Open University established in Britain, teaching via radio and TV. 1971 'Greenpeace' founded. 1972 Britain imposes direct rule in Northern Ireland. Strict anti-hijack measures introduced internationally, especially at airports. 1973 Britain enters Common Market (with Ireland and Denmark). Vietnam ceasefire agreement signed. Several new 'counties' formed in Britain. US Mariner satellite transmits detailed pictures of Venus and Mercury. India becomes the sixth nation to explode a nuclear device. 1975 Margaret Thatcher becomes leader of Conservative party (in opposition). End of Vietnam war. Suez canal reopens (after 8 years closure). First North Sea oil comes ashore. First personal computers (PC) introduced. 1976 'Cod War' between Britain and Iceland. Deaths exceeded live births in E&W for first time since records began in 1837. Death of Mao Tse-tung. Viking 1 & Viking 2 landed on Mars. 1977 Queen's Silver Jubilee celebrations in London. 1979 Withdrawal of Royal Navy from Malta. Margaret Thatcher becomes first woman Prime Minister. SAS storm Iranian Embassy in London to free hostages. John Lennon assassinated in New York. 1981 US Space Shuttle (Columbia) launched. Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer. 1982 Argentinians raised flag in South Georgia. Argentina invades Falkland (Malvinas) Islands. Royal Navy fleet sails from Portsmouth for Falklands. Ceasefire in Falklands. 1984 Bomb explodes at Tory conference hotel in Brighton - 4 killed. 1985 Wreck of Titanic found (sank 1912) 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident - radiation reached Britain 2 May 1989 Berlin Wall torn down 1990 Margaret Thatcher resigns as Conservative party leader (and Prime Minister). Iraq invades Kuwait. Nelson Mandela released in South Africa. 1991 Helen Sharman is first British Astronaut in Space. 1993 Ratification of Maastricht Treaty, established the European Union (EU). Elizabeth II becomes first British Monarch to pay Income Tax. 1997 Labour landslide victory in Britain (Tony Blair replaces John Major as Prime Minister). Diana, Princess of Wales killed in car crash. Mars landing by American Rover. Hong Kong returned to China. 1998 Good Friday peace agreement in Northern Ireland - effectively implemented when separate N Ireland parliament created in Dec 1999. 1999 European Monetary Union begins - UK opts out. Hereditary Peers no longer have right to sit in House of Lords. Separate parliaments created for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland (but not for England). World population reaches 6 billion (estimate). 2000 An Air France Concorde crashes on take-off at Paris. US Presidential election counting issues. 2001 Outbreak of Foot & Mouth disease in UK - lasted until October. Mir space station successfully ditched in the Pacific. Massive terrorist attack on the United States - commercial planes hi-jacked and crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Centre (destroying it) and the Pentagon.