- 0
| Jun 29 | The Globe Theatre burns down during a performance of Henry VIII. | Ref: 62 |
- 794
| Jan 08 | Church at Lindisfarne, England destroyed by Vikings. | Ref: 5 |
- 871
| Jan 06 | The Battle of Ashdown is fought between the Saxons and the Danes. | Ref: 17 |
- 979
| Apr 14 | Challenge to throne of King Aethelred II of England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1002
| Nov 13 | English king Ethelred II (The Unready) launches massacre of Danish settlers (St. Brice's Day Massacre). | Ref: 5 |
- 1065
| Dec 28 | Westminister Abbey opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1066
| Feb 28 | Westminster Abbey, the most famous church in England, opens its doors. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 25 | Last Anglo Saxon King of England Harold victorious at Battle of Stamford Bridge. | Ref: 10 |
| Sep 28 | William, Duke of Normandy, soon to be known as William the Conqueror, lands in Pevensey, England. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 14 | Normans under William the Conqueror defeat the English under Harold II at the Battle of Hastings. | Ref: 70 |
- 1077
| Jul 14 | The Bayeux Tapestry is first shown. | |
- 1085
| Dec 25 | The Doomsday Book. At the Christmas Council, William orders the creation of survey of property with their values and populations, county by county covering most of England. Commissioners were sent all over England, apart from the far north, to make a record of the population, value, state and ownership of the land. The book consisting of two volumes was completed by 1088. | |
- 1100
| Jul 13 | Abbey Church at Gloucester is dedicated. | |
- 1138
| Aug 22 | David I of Scotland is defeated at the battle of 'the Standard' in Yorkshire. | |
- 1150
| Mar 26 | Tichborne family of Hampshire England started tradition of giving a gallon of flour to each resident to keep deathbed promise | Ref: 2 |
- 1164
| Nov 02 | Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket, 45, began a six_year self_imposed exile in France. Once a close friend of England's Henry II, Thomas had more recently become an outspoken opponent of the king's royal policies. | Ref: 5 |
- 1170
| Dec 03 | Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket, 52, returned to England after six years of exile in France. (Becket would be martyred on December 29th of this year killed by soldiers sent by his former friend, English King Henry II.). | Ref: 5 |
- 1174
| Jul 07 | Henry II accepted his part, even though indirect, in the killing of Thomas Becket. He was whipped by the monks of Canterbury. | |
- 1180
| Jun 28 | A non-aggression treaty signed between Philip Augustus of France and Henry II of England. | |
- 1189
| Feb 06 | Riots of Lynn in Norfolk spread to Norwich England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1192
| Aug 05 | Richard the Lionheart wins Battle of Jaffa. | Ref: 10 |
- 1194
| Feb 04 | Richard I, King of England, is freed from captivity in Germany after paying Leopold O Fenrik VI's ransom of 100,000. | Ref: 2 |
- 1208
| Mar 24 | King John of England opposes Innocent III on his nomination for archbishop of Canterbury. | Ref: 2 |
- 1213
| May 15 | King John submits to the Pope, offering to make England and Ireland papal fiefs; names Stephen Langton Archbishop of Canterbury. Pope Innocent III lifts the interdict of 1208. | Ref: 2 |
- 1215
| May 12 | English barons serve ultimatum on King John. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 15 | In a meadow called Ronimed, between Windsor and Staines, England, King John of England sealed the Magna Carta, the first charter of English liberties. The Magna Carta is considered one of the most important historical documents defining political and human freedoms. | Ref: 4 |
- 1216
| Nov 12 | The Magna Carta is revised at King Henry's Council at Bristol. | |
- 1217
| Sep 12 | In the Treaty of Kingston, Prince Louis of France agreed to pay 10,000 marks to leave England. All property was returned to previous owners. The Scots surrender conquests in England. | |
- 1220
| Jul 07 | Stephen Langton returned to England and resumed the role of Archbishop of Canterbury, performed a ceremony in Canterbury in which relics from St. Thomas Becket are put in a tomb. 7th July became St. Thomas of Canterbury's Day, a major holy day. | |
| Jul 10 | London Bridge collapses during fire in which 3,000 die. | Ref: 10 |
- 1236
| Jan 24 | Henry III marries Eleanor of Provence. | Ref: 10 |
- 1241
| Dec 19 | The term "parliament" first used in official English royal document. | Ref: 10 |
- 1247
| Nov 22 | Robin Hood dies according to "A Lytell Geste of Robyn Hood" printed in 1495. | Ref: 62 |
- 1264
| May 14 | Simon de Montfort suprises Henry and Edward with early movements of his troops on the hills above the castle. Henry and Richard of Cornwall defend the centre and left of the castle, but Edward attacks the lighter armed Londoners to the right and forcing them to flee, follows them off the battle site. When he returns, he finds that Henry is trapped in the priory and gives himself up in exchange for his father's release. King Henry III is captured by his brother-in-law, Simon de Montfort, at the Battle of Lewes in the Baron's War, giving the barons victory over the crown. | Ref: 5 |
- 1265
| Jan 20 | The 1st English Parliament is called into session by Simon de Montfort, the Earl of Leicester. This is the first time ordinary people were brought to represent the country. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 23 | First English Parliament formally convened (some authorities). | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 04 | Battle of Evesham. Using the banners of Simon's son captured forces at Kenilworth, Edward approached Simon's position at Evesham. Simon was hemmed in the bend of the river Avon and forced to fight. Simon was defeated and killed. Simon's youngest son took refuge in Kenilworth castle, where prepared for a long siege, managed to hold out until December 1267. | Ref: 10 |
| Aug 04 | Simon de Montfort English baron, dies in battle. | Ref: 5 |
- 1276
| Nov 12 | Suspicious of the intentions of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the Prince of Wales, English King Edward I resolves to invade Wales. | Ref: 2 |
- 1296
| Apr 27 | Edward I defeats the Scots at the Battle of Dunbar. | Ref: 2 |
- 1297
| Sep 11 | Battle at Stirling Bridge. William Wallace, and Andrew De Moray leaders of the Scottish revolt in the South and North join forces and defeat the English army lead by Surrey at Stirling. The Scots caught the English forces as they crossed a bridge across the Forth. | Ref: 2 |
- 1298
| Jul 22 | King Edward I combines bowmen and calvary to defeat William Wallace's Scots at Falkirk. | Ref: 2 |
- 1314
| Jun 21 | The Scots, under Robert the Bruce, defeat Edward II's army at Bannockburn. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 24 | The forces of Scotland's King Robert I defeated the English in the Battle of Bannockburn. Scotland regains independence from England. | Ref: 70 |
- 1322
| Mar 16 | Battle of Boroughbridge. Thomas of Lancaster is defeated by forces loyal to Edward II. Thomas is executed near his own castle of Pontefract. | Ref: 17 |
| May 02 | Parliament of York declares that all legislation must be approved by both the king and parliament. | Ref: 17 |
- 1332
| Aug 12 | With help from English archers, Edward Baliol forwards his right to the Scottish throne by defeating David II of Scotland's followers at Dupplin Moor. | Ref: 5 |
- 1346
| Oct 17 | English forces defeat the Scots under David II during the Battle of Neville's Cross, Scotland. | Ref: 2 |
- 1348
| Apr 23 | King Edward the Third of England establishes The Order of the Garter. | Ref: 5 |
- 1360
| Mar 15 | France invasion army lands on English south coast, conquers Winchel. | Ref: 5 |
- 1367
| Apr 03 | John of Gaunt and Edward the Black Prince win the Battle of Najara, in Spain. | Ref: 2 |
- 1376
| Apr 28 | The "Good Parliament" establishes the right of the Commons to "impeach" Ministers. | |
| Apr 28 | English parliament demands supervision on royal outlay. | Ref: 5 |
- 1377
| Jun 22 | (or 23rd) Richard, the son of Edward the Black Prince, and grandson of Edward III, becomes King Richard II. | Ref: 62 |
- 1381
| Jun 10 | The Peasants' Revolt. A mob of peasants led by Wat Tyler, an eloquent war veteran, takes control of Canterbury and frees vagrant priest John Ball from prison. | |
| Jun 11 | Men of Kent begin marching to London. The "true commons" kill any tax collectors, lawyers, and royal officials they catch (except in Kent, where fear of French raiders leads them to spare anyone living within 12 leagues of the coast). They sack manor houses and monasteries and harass the king's mother. | |
| Jun 12 | Richard II comes to London and goes to the Tower. That evening the mob from Canterbury arrives, led by Wat Tyler. They have told royal messengers that they are comng to London to rescue the king and to destroy traitors. They ask to meet the king the next morning at Blackheath, where they camp. The rebels demand the heads of the Chancellor, the Treasurer, and Lancaster. | |
| Jun 13 | ?Richard, in a barge with some councilors, meets rebels at Blackheath. Richard wants to meet, but Chancellor and Treasurer advise against. Exchange between boat and shore takes place; barge returns to Tower. Richard addresses mob at Tower Hill, offering a pardon, which they scorn. A meeting is set for 7 o'clock the next morning at Mile End. The city is in flames that night. | |
| Jun 14 | King arrives at Mile End with mayor of London William Walworth and other dignitaries. Rebels present a petition to abolish the poll tax, end villeinage, and establish fair labor practices; they demand the right to land at 4p an acre and free use of forests. Richard agrees and promises to turn over anyone found a traitor by process of law. | |
| Jun 14 | The Peasant's Revolt, led by Wat Tyler, climaxes when rebels plunder and burn the Tower of London and kill the Archbishop of Canterbury. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 15 | A band of released prisoners drag Richard Imworth, head of Marshalsea prison, from St. Edward's chapel to Cheapside, where they behead him. The king's party prays at the desecrated chapel in the afternoon before meeting the rebels at Smithfield. The king promises to fulfill Tyler's demands. Reports are confused, but Tyler is rude to the king, picks a fight with a member of Richard's party, and is fatally wounded. Richard bravely subdues the mob, pardons the rebels, and bids them go home in peace. They disperse. Richard knights several of his companions, including the mayor of London. | |
- 1382
| Oct 06 | Parliament convened. The House of Commons petitions King Richard to sue for "truce or peace" with the Scots. | |
- 1386
| May 09 | Treaty of Windsor between Portugal-England. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 26 | King Richard II signs decree and that signature survives today-the oldest dated signature in history. | Ref: 10 |
- 1399
| Sep 30 | Henry Bolingbroke was proclaimed King Henry IV of England, the day after King Richard II abdicated the throne in his favor. | Ref: 10 |
- 1403
| Jul 21 | Henry IV defeats tSir Henry Percy (Hotspur) in the Battle of Shrewsbury in England. | Ref: 2 |
| Jul 23 | King Henry IV wins battle of Shrewsbury. | Ref: 10 |
- 1408
| Feb 19 | The revolt of Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, against King Henry IV, ends with his defeat and death at Bramham Moor. | Ref: 2 |
- 1417
| Dec 14 | Sir John Oldcastle, prototype for Shakespeare's Falstaff, is hanged and burned as a Lollard. | Ref: 5 |
- 1431
| Feb 21 | England begins trial against Joan of Arc. | Ref: 5 |
- 1439
| Jul 16 | Kissing is banned in England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1450
| May 08 | Jack Cade's Rebellion-Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 27 | Jack Cade defeats Stafford at Sevenoaks. | Ref: 62 |
- 1455
| May 22 | Open battle in England's 30-year War of the Roses (St Albans). Richard of York takes St Albans, kidnapping King Henry VI. | Ref: 5 |
- 1460
| Jul 10 | Yorkist defeat Lancastrians at Northampton and capture King Henry VI. | Ref: 10 |
- 1461
| Feb 02 | 2nd battle of St Alban's-Lancastrians defeat Yorkists. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 05 | Henry VI was deposed by Duke of York during War of the Roses. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 29 | Edward IV secures his claim to the English thrown in defeating Henry VI's Lancastrians at the battle of Towdon in the War of Roses. 33,000 die. | Ref: 2 |
- 1469
| Jul 26 | Yorkists beaten by Lancastrians at the Battle of Banbury (Edgecote). | Ref: 10 |
- 1470
| Mar 13 | The Lancasters defeat the Yorks at the battle of Stamforn. | Ref: 17 |
- 1471
| Apr 11 | Henry VI of England is deposed for losing the war of the roses. | Ref: 62 |
| Apr 11 | King Edward IV of England conquers London from Henry VI. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 14 | Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, who fought on both sides in the War of the Roses, is killed at age 42, at the Battle of Barnet with the defeat of the Lancastrians; King Henry VI deposed. | Ref: 2 |
| May 04 | In England, the Yorkists under King Edward IV defeat the Landcastians under ex-queen Margaretha at the battle of Tewkesbury. | Ref: 2 |
- 1475
| May 15 | Richard, Duke of York becomes youngest Knight of the British Empire at age 2 years 9 months. | Ref: 10 |
- 1477
| Nov 18 | William Claxton publishes the first dated book printed in England. It is a translation from the French of The Dictes and Sayings of the Philosopers, by Earl Rivers. | Ref: 2 |
- 1488
| Jun 11 | Battle of Sauchieburn, Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1491
| Feb 03 | During the War of the Roses, the army of York defeats the forces of Lancaster at Mortimer's Cross. The victory fixes Edward IV on the thrown. | Ref: 2 |
- 1496
| Feb 24 | England's Henry VII ends commercial dispute with Flanders. | Ref: 5 |
- 1497
| Jun 22 | Antitax insurrection in Cornwall suppressed at Blackheath. | Ref: 5 |
- 1504
| Apr 01 | English guilds/corp goes under state control. | Ref: 5 |
- 1509
| Jun 24 | Henry Tudor and Catherine of Aragon are coronated as King (Henry VIII) and Queen of England. (XDG, p 4A, 6/24/2000) | Ref: 83 |
- 1522
| Jan 30 | Duke of Albany takes captured French back to Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1529
| Oct 17 | Henry VIII of England strips Thomas Wolsey of his office for failing to secure an annulment of his marriage. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 03 | The first parliament for five years opens in England and the Commons put forward bills against abuses amongst the clergy and in the church courts. | Ref: 2 |
- 1530
| Mar 07 | King Henry VIII's divorce request is denied by the Pope Henry then declares that he, not the Pope, is supreme head of England's church. | Ref: 5 |
- 1531
| Jan 16 | English Reformation parliament's 2nd sitting. | Ref: 5 |
- 1532
| Mar 18 | English parliament bans payments by English church to Rome. | Ref: 5 |
- 1533
| Apr 13 | Anne Boleyn declared Queen publically. | |
| Jun 08 | Parliament extinguished Papal authority in England. | |
- 1535
| Jan 15 | Henry VIII declares himself head of English Church. | Ref: 5 |
- 1536
| Jan 29 | Anne Boleyn, wife of King Henry VIII, gives birth to a still born son. | |
| Apr 14 | English king Henry VIII expropriate minor monasteries. | Ref: 5 |
| May 20 | Henry VIII is betrothed to Jane Seymour. | |
| Jul 01 | Henry VIII's daughters, Elizabeth and Mary are declared illegitimate by Parliament. | |
- 1539
| Sep 04 | Henry VIII is betrothed to Anne of Cleves. | |
| Dec 27 | Anne of Cleves landed at Deal. | |
- 1540
| Jul 08 | Henry VIII abolishes all books containing errors and heresy. | |
- 1542
| Feb 11 | English parliament passes bill-treason for unchaste woman to marry king;Catherine Howard to die. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 24 | The English defeat the Scots at the Battle of Solway Moss, in England. | Ref: 2 |
- 1543
| Jul 01 | England and Scotland sign the Peace of Greenwich. | Ref: 2 |
- 1544
| May 17 | Scottish Earl Matthew van Lennox signs secret treaty with Henry VIII. | Ref: 5 |
| May 18 | Henry VIII orders the burning of books with news of the success of the Scottish army. | |
- 1545
| Jul 19 | King Henry VIII of England watches his flagship, Mary Rose, capsize as it leaves to battle the French. | Ref: 2 |
- 1546
| Dec 30 | King Henry VIII's will names Edward his heir. | |
- 1547
| Sep 10 | The Duke of Somerset leads the English to a resounding victory over the Scots at Pinkie Cleugh. 10,000 Scots are killed. | Ref: 2 |
- 1549
| Jan 21 | Parliament passed the first of four British Acts of Uniformity, this first requiring the exclusive use of the Book of Common Prayer (later called the First Prayer Book of Edward VI) in all public services of the Anglican Church. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 09 | In England, Parliament established a uniformity of religious services and the first Book of Common Prayer, as Anglicanism became the newly established national faith. | Ref: 5 |
- 1551
| Oct 28 | Edward VI proclaims new coinage for England. | |
- 1552
| Jan 23 | 2nd version of Book of Common Prayer becomes mandatory in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 24 | Privileges of the Hanseatic League in England are abrogated. | Ref: 5 |
- 1553
| Mar 01 | Edward VI opens Parliament. | |
| Mar 31 | Edward VI dissolves Parliament at Whitehall. | |
| Apr 29 | Flemish woman introduces practice of starching linen into England. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 20 | Mary Tudor proclaimed Queen of England. | |
| Sep 08 | City of Lichfield, England established. | Ref: 5 |
- 1554
| Jan 25 | Sir Thomas Wyatt gathers an army in Kent, rebels against Queen Mary. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 09 | Battle at London Sir Thomas Wyatt defeated. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 18 | Elizabeth is put into the Tower. | |
| May 19 | Elizabeth is released from the Tower to Woodstock. | |
- 1559
| May 08 | An act of supremacy defines Queen Elizabeth I as the supreme governor of the church of England. | Ref: 2 |
| May 10 | Scottish Protestants under John Knox uprise against queen-mother Mary | Ref: 2 |
- 1564
| Dec 31 | Willem van Orange demands freedom of conscience/religion. | Ref: 5 |
- 1568
| May 13 | Mary Queen of Scots is defeated by English at battle of Langside. | Ref: 5 |
- 1569
| Jan 11 | First recorded lottery in England is drawn at St Paul's Cathedral. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 15 | Westmoreland flees to Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1570
-
- 1571
| Jan 23 | Queen Elizabeth I opens Royal Exchange in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1575
| Jan 22 | English queen Elizabeth I grants Thomas Tallis & William Byrd music press monopoly. | Ref: 5 |
- 1577
| Sep 23 | William of Orange makes his triumphant entry into Brussels, Belgium. | Ref: 2 |
- 1578
| Mar 10 | Queen Elizabeth I gives Johan Casimir £20,000 to aid Dutch rebellion. | Ref: 5 |
- 1581
| Jan 16 | English parliament passes laws against Catholicism. | Ref: 5 |
- 1585
| May 19 | Spain confiscates English ships. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 14 | Sir Francis Drake sails for Spain. | |
| Dec 20 | English fleet & earl Robert Dudley van Leicester reach Vlissingen. | Ref: 5 |
- 1586
| Jan 01 | Sir Francis Drake launches a surprise attack on the heavily fortified city of Santo Domingo in Hipanola. | Ref: 2 |
| Oct 25 | The death sentence passed on Mary Stuart. | |
- 1587
| Mar 01 | English parliament leader Peter Wentworth confined in London Tower. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 12 | English parliament leader Peter Wentworth confined in London Tower. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 19 | Sir Francis Drake leads raid of 26 ships in Cadiz harbor destroying 30 Spanish galleons. | Ref: 10 |
- 1588
| May 30 | Spanish Aramada under Medina-Sidonia departs Lisbon to invade England. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 19 | After being dispersed by a storm, the Spanish Armada reassembles and enters the English Channel. | Ref: 62 |
| Jul 21 | English fleet defeats Spanish armada. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 28 | Spanish Armada sails to overthrow England's Queen Elizabeth I. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 29 | The English soundly defeated the Spanish Armada in the Battle of Gravelines. | Ref: 70 |
| Aug 07 | Midnight-British fleet begins its defeat of the Spanish Armada at Calais. | Ref: 10 |
| Sep 15 | The Spanish Armada, which attempted to invade England, is destroyed by a British fleet. | Ref: 2 |
- 1596
| Apr 24 | Pacificatie of Ireland drawn. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 01 | An English fleet under the Earl of Essex, Lord Howard of Effingham and Francis Vere capture and sack Cadiz, Spain. | Ref: 2 |
- 1597
| Mar 12 | England routes troops to Amiens. | Ref: 5 |
- 1598
| Aug 15 | Hugh O'Neill, the Earl of Tyrone, leads an Irish force to victory over the British at Battle of Yellow Ford. | Ref: 2 |
- 1601
| Jan 07 | Robert, Earl of Essex leads revolt in London against Queen Elizabeth. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 08 | Earl Robert Devereux of Essex armies draws into London. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 13 | John Lancaster leads first East India Company voyage from London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1603
| Mar 30 | Battle at Mellifont: English army under Lord Mountjoy beats Irish | Ref: 5 |
- 1604
| Jan 16 | At the Hampton Court Conference in England, John Rainolds presented to King James I the motion '...that there might bee a newe translation of the Bible.' Approved the next day, Rainolds' motion led to the 1611 publication of the Authorized (King James) version of the Bible. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 01 | William Shakespeare's tragedy "Othello" was first presented at Whitehall Palace in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1605
| Nov 05 | A plot to kill the King and all members of the Parliament is scheduled by planting 36 barrells of gunpowder under Parliament. The plot, conceived by Guy Fawkes with 10 accomplices, is intented to restore England to Catholicism, is uncovered the previous day. The conspirators were tried, convicted and beheaded. | Ref: 4 |
- 1606
| Apr 12 | England adopts the original version of the Union Jack as its flag. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 05 | Parliament establishes a national day of thanksgiving, "Guy Fawkes Day". | Ref: 4 |
- 1609
| Mar 12 | The Bermuda Islands become an English colony. | Ref: 2 |
- 1610
| Mar 21 | King James I addresses English House of Commons. | Ref: 5 |
- 1611
| Nov 01 | Shakespeare's romantic comedy "The Tempest" is first presented. | Ref: 5 |
- 1613
| Jun 29 | Shakespeare's Globe Theatre burns to the ground during Henry VIII. Audience escapes unharmed. | Ref: 10 |
- 1614
| Jun 07 | 2nd parliament of King James I, dissolves passing no legislation. | Ref: 5 |
- 1617
| Aug 23 | First one-way streets established in London; 17 specified including Thames St. and Pudding Lane. | Ref: 10 |
- 1618
| Jan 07 | Francis Bacon becomes English lord chancellor. | Ref: 5 |
- 1621
| May 03 | Francis Bacon accused of bribery. | Ref: 5 |
| May 31 | Sir Francis Bacon thrown into Tower of London for 1 night. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 18 | English parliament accept unanimously, Protestation. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 30 | English king James I cracks Protestation of Parliament. | Ref: 5 |
- 1622
| Jan 06 | Sir Edward Coke is sent to prison by England's James I for championing common law in face of royal prerogative. | Ref: 17 |
| Feb 08 | King James I disbands the English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
- 1624
| Feb 12 | English parliament comes together. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 10 | England declares war on Spain. | Ref: 5 |
- 1629
| Mar 10 | England's King Charles I dissolves Parliament and does not call it back for 11 years. | Ref: 70 |
- 1634
| Feb 25 | Irish captain Walter Devereaux kills duke Wallenstein. | Ref: 5 |
- 1640
| Apr 13 | (through May 5th) English Short Parliament forms. | Ref: 5 |
| May 03 | English Upper house accept Act of Attainder. | Ref: 5 |
| May 05 | English Short Parliament unites. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 11 | English Puritans introduced the "Root and Branch" petition to the Long Parliament in London. It demanded the English episcopacy, "with all its dependencies, roots and branches, be abolished." (The imagery comes from Malachi 4:1.). | Ref: 5 |
- 1641
| Feb 16 | English king Charles I accept Triennial Act. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 29 | Edward IV secures his claim to the English thrown in defeating Henry VI's Lancastrians at the battle of Towdon where 33,000 die in the War of the Roses. | Ref: 2 |
| May 12 | Prince Willem II (14) marries English princess Henriette Mary Stuart (9). | Ref: 5 |
- 1642
| Jan 04 | King Charles I with 400 soldiers attacks the English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 09 | English Queen Henriette Mary arrives in Hellevoetsluis Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 22 | Civil war in England begins as Charles I declares war on Parliament at Nottingham. | Ref: 2 |
| Oct 23 | The battle of Edgehill is fought in English Civil War. | Ref: 62 |
- 1643
| Jan 23 | Sir Thomas Fairfax takes Leeds for the Parliamentarians. | Ref: 5 |
| May 13 | Battle at Grantham: English parliamentary armies beat royalists. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 13 | In England, the Roundheads, led by Sir William Waller, are defeated by Royalist troops under Lord Wilmot in the Battle of Roundway Down. | Ref: 2 |
| Jul 27 | Cromwell wins the battle of Gainsborough. | Ref: 62 |
- 1644
| Jan 24 | Battle at Nantwich Cheshire Parliamentary armies win. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 02 | Parliamentarians under Cromwell victorious over Royalists at Battle of Marston Moor;4,000 dead. | Ref: 10 |
| Sep 01 | Montrose defeats the Covenanters at Tippermuir in Scotland. | Ref: 62 |
- 1645
| Apr 03 | English parliament accept Self-Denying Ordinance. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 14 | Oliver Cromwell's Scots army routs the king's army led by Charles I at Naseby. | Ref: 2 |
- 1646
| Apr 08 | First newspaper advertisement appears in the Imperial Intelligencer in England. | Ref: 10 |
| May 05 | King Charles I surrenders at Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1647
| Jun 04 | Parliamentary forces capture King Charles I and hold him prisoner. | Ref: 2 |
- 1648
| Apr 22 | English army claims king Charles I responsible for bloodshed. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 06 | Pride's Purge: Thomas Pride prevents 96 presbyterians from sitting in English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
- 1650
| Apr 27 | Scottish General Montrose defeated. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 03 | The English under Cromwell defeat a superior Scottish army under David Leslie at the Battle of Dunbar. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 29 | Henry Robinson opens first marriage bureau (England). | Ref: 5 |
- 1651
| Sep 03 | Battle of Worcester Scottish Royalists under Charles II defeated by Cromwell's Commonwealth. | Ref: 10 |
- 1652
| Dec 10 | Sea battle at Dungeness: Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp beats English fleet. | Ref: 5 |
- 1653
| Feb 28 | 3 Day Sea battle English defeat the Dutch. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 20 | Cromwell routes English parliament to house. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 04 | Barebones Parliment goes into session in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 12 | Barebone-parliament ends. | Ref: 5 |
- 1654
| Apr 12 | England, Ireland & Scotland unite. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 15 | England & Netherlands signs peace treaty. | Ref: 5 |
- 1655
| Apr 04 | Battle at Postage Farina, Tunis English fleet beats Barbarian pirates. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 28 | English Admiral Blake beats Tunen pirate fleet. | Ref: 5 |
| May 10 | Jamaica captured by English | Ref: 2 |
- 1657
| Feb 04 | Oliver Cromwell grants residency to Luis Caravajal. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 31 | English Humble Petition offers Lord Protector Cromwell the crown | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 03 | English Lord Protector Cromwell refuses crown. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 20 | English Admiral Robert Blake fights his last battle when he destroys the Spanish fleet in Santa Cruz Bay. | Ref: 2 |
- 1658
| Mar 17 | Pro-Charles II plot in England discovered. | Ref: 5 |
- 1659
| Apr 22 | Lord protector Cromwell disbands English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
| May 25 | Richard Cromwell resigns as English Lord Protector. | Ref: 5 |
| May 31 | Netherlands, England & France sign Treaty of The Hague. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 16 | General Monck demands free parliamentary election in Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 26 | Long Parliament reforms in Westminster. | Ref: 5 |
- 1660
| Jan 01 | General Moncks army battles with the Tweed on way to London. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 01 | Thomas Fairfax' New Model-army occupies York. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 03 | General Moncks army reaches London. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 16 | English Long Parliament disbands. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 25 | London Convention Parliament meets & votes to restore Charles II to the British throne. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 27 | Following England's Restoration, books by poet John Milton were ordered burned because of his attacks on the monarchy. Milton had advocated an elder-ruled (presbyterian) church government over that of bishop-ruled (episcopal). | Ref: 4 |
- 1661
| Jan 03 | In England, female actresses appear on stage for the first time. | Ref: 17 |
| Mar 28 | Scottish Parliament passed the Rescissory Act, which repealed the whole of the legislation enacted since 1633. Its effect was to overthrow Presbyterianism and to restore the Anglican episcopacy to Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 27 | Parliament confirms the Navigation Act. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 20 | Corporation Act enforced in England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1662
| May 19 | Uniformity Act of England goes into effect. | Ref: 5 |
| May 19 | England's King Charles II approved a bill requiring all ministers to assent publicly to the Anglican "Book of Common Prayer." | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 15 | Charles II grants charter to establish Royal Society in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 24 | Act of Uniformity requires English to accept book of Common Prayer. | Ref: 5 |
- 1663
| Jul 27 | British Parliament passes a second Navigation Act, requiring all goods bound for the colonies to be sent in British ships from British ports. | Ref: 2 |
- 1664
| Sep 07 | Without resistance, Dutch Governor Peter Stuyvesant surrenders New Amsterdam to a British naval force under Colonel Richard Nicolls, thus effectively ending the Dutch colonial presence in the New World. With the departure of the Dutch, the name of the promising settlement on lower Manhattan was changed to New York, in honor of the duke of York. | Ref: 10 |
- 1665
| Mar 04 | English King Charles II declares war on Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 03 | Victory of English fleet over Dutch in Battle of Lowestoft. | Ref: 10 |
- 1667
| Mar 31 | France/England sign anti-Dutch military accord | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 27 | English poet John Milton, 58, sold the copyright to his religious epic "Paradise Lost" for ten English pounds (less than $30). | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 18 | The Dutch fleet sails up the Thames River and threatens London. | Ref: 2 |
- 1668
| Mar 26 | England takes control of Bombay India | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 27 | English King Charles II gives Bombay to East India Company | Ref: 5 |
- 1670
| May 02 | King Charles II of England charters Hudson Bay Company. | Ref: 5 |
- 1671
| Jan 18 | Henry Morgan, the pirate, captures Panama from Spain on behalf of England and is knighted regardless of his ruthless techniques. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 22 | King Charles II sits in on English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
| May 09 | The crown jewels are stolen by Col Thomas Blood. He is captured and later freed by King Charles II. | Ref: 52 |
- 1672
| Mar 17 | England declares war on Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1673
| Mar 29 | English King Charles II accepts the Test Act: Roman Catholics are excluded from public functions. | Ref: 5 |
- 1675
| Jun 21 | Christopher Wren begins work on rebuilding St. Paul's Cathedral in London after the Great Fire. | Ref: 2 |
- 1678
| Feb 27 | Earl of Shaftesbury freed out of London Tower. | Ref: 5 |
| May 17 | King Charles II & Louis XIV sign secret treaty. | Ref: 5 |
| May 31 | The Godiva procession, commemorating Lady Godiva's legendary ride while naked, becomes part of the Coventry Fair. | Ref: 2 |
- 1679
| Jan 24 | King Charles II disbands English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
| May 27 | Parliament passes Habeas Corpus Act-arested person must come before judge to determine legality, no false arrest & imprisonment. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 22 | Monmouth defeats The Covenanters at Bothwell Brig in Scotland. | Ref: 62 |
| Oct 23 | Meal Tub Plot against James II of England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1681
| Mar 21 | 3rd Exclusion Parliament meets in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 12 | London woman publicly flogged for the crime of "involving herself in politics.” | Ref: 10 |
- 1683
| Jun 06 | Elias Ashmole opens the first public museum in Oxford, England The Ashmolean. | Ref: 10 |
| Dec 25 | English Whig-leader duke of Monmouth flees to Holland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1685
| Jul 06 | James II defeats James, the Duke of Monmouth, at the Battle of Sedgemoor, the last major battle to be fought on English soil. | Ref: 2 |
- 1687
| Apr 04 | James II issued a Declaration of Indulgence allowing full liberty of worship in England. The document allowed peaceable meetings of nonconformists and forgave all penalties for ecclesiastical offenses. | Ref: 5 |
- 1688
| Dec 20 | Prince Willem III's troops pull into London. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 22 | Pro-James II, Earl of Danby occupies York. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 23 | English king Jacob II flees to France. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 25 | English king James II lands in Ambleteuse, France. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 25 | Lord Delamere sides with King James II. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 28 | William of Orange makes a triumphant march into London as James II flees. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 31 | Pro-James II-earl of Devonshire occupies Nottingham. | Ref: 5 |
- 1689
| Jan 01 | Pro-James II-Earl of Danby occupies York. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 22 | England's "Bloodless Revolution" reaches its climax when parliament invites William and Mary to become joint sovereigns. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 22 | Lord Halifax becomes Speaker of English House of Lords. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 22 | Prince Willem III calls English parliament together. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 28 | English parliament ends king Charles II reign. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 13 | British Parliament adopts the Bill of Rights. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 20 | James II, the former British king, began a siege of Londonderry, a Protestant stronghold in Northern Ireland. | Ref: 3 |
| May 09 | English King Willem III declares war on France. | Ref: 5 |
| May 12 | England & Netherlands form League of Augsburg. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 01 | James II's 15-week siege of Londonderry, Ireland, ends in failure.It was a shaken and demoralized English column that returned to its northern Irish base at Newry on the evening of May 28, 1595. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 16 | English Parliament adopts Bill of Rights after Glorious Revolution. | Ref: 5 |
- 1690
| Feb 08 | Lord Halifax resigns as Lord Privy Seal. | Ref: 5 |
| May 20 | England passes Act of Grace, forgiving followers of James II. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 01 | Army of England's Protestant King William III defeats Roman Catholic King James II in Battle of the Boyne in Ireland (Now celebrated on July 12 as "The Battle of the Orange" ). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 12 | Protestant forces led by William of Orange defeated the Roman Catholic army of James II at the Battle of the Boyne in Ireland. | Ref: 17 |
- 1691
| Jan 18 | English king Willem III travels to The Hague. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 12 | William III defeats the allied Irish and French armies at the Battle of Aughrim, Ireland. | Ref: 2 |
- 1692
| Feb 13 | In the Glen Coe highlands of Scotland, thirty-eight members of the MacDonald clan are murdered by soldiers of the neighboring Campbell clan for not pledging allegiance to William of Orange. Ironically the pledge had been made but not communicated to the clans. The event is remembered as the Massacre of Glencoe. | Ref: 2 |
- 1694
| Dec 03 | English parliamentary election set for every 3 years. | Ref: 5 |
- 1695
| May 12 | English king Willem III departs to Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1696
| Feb 27 | English/Welsh nobles lay down Oath of Association. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 07 | English King Willem III departs Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1697
| Dec 02 | New St. Paul's cathedral, rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren, opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1701
| Jan 01 | Great Britain & Ireland union is in effect, creating United Kingdom. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 12 | Act of Settlement gives English crown to Sophia, Princess of Hanover. | Ref: 5 |
- 1702
| Mar 21 | Queen Anne Stuart addresses English parliament. | Ref: 5 |
- 1703
| Jul 31 | English novelist Daniel Defoe is made to stand in the pillory as punishment for offending the government and church with his satire The Shortest Way With Dissenters. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 27 | (or 28th) England & Portugal sign Methuen-Asiento-trade agreement. | Ref: 5 |
- 1704
| Jul 24 | Britain's Admiral George Rooke takes Gibraltar from the Spanish. | Ref: 2 |
- 1705
| Apr 16 | Queen Anne of England knights Isaac Newton at Trinity College. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 14 | The English Navy captures Barcelona in Spain. | Ref: 2 |
- 1707
| Apr 29 | English/Scottish parliament accept Act of Union, form Great Britain. | Ref: 5 |
| May 01 | England, Wales & Scotland form UK of Great Britain. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 23 | The first Parliament of Great Britain (England and Scotland) meets. | Ref: 2 |
- 1708
| Mar 27 | English pretender to the throne James III flees to Dunkerk | Ref: 5 |
- 1709
| Feb 02 | British sailor Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being marooned on the desert island of Juan Fernandez for 5 years, his story inspires "Robinson Crusoe". | Ref: 5 |
- 1710
| Dec 08 | Battle at Brihuega: English General Stanhope captured. | Ref: 5 |
- 1711
| Mar 08 | Antoin de Guiscard tries English premier Haley for murder. | Ref: 5 |
- 1714
| Jan 19 | Richard Steele publishes "The Crisis", defending Hanoverian success. | Ref: 5 |
- 1715
| Jul 20 | Riot Act passed in England making assembly of more than twelve persons on street unlawful. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 13 | Jacobite Rebellion in Scotland, defeat of the Jacobites at the Battle of Sheriffmuir. | Ref: 92 |
| Dec 22 | English pretender to the throne James III lands at Peterhead. | Ref: 5 |
- 1716
| Feb 06 | England & Netherlands renew alliance. | Ref: 5 |
- 1718
| Jul 11 | English fleet defeats the Spanish Fleet at Messina. | Ref: 62 |
| Dec 17 | England declares war on Spain. | Ref: 5 |
- 1720
-
- 1721
| Mar 09 | English Chancellor Exchequer John Aislabie confined in London Tower. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 03 | Robert Walpole becomes England's first Lord of the Treasury. | Ref: 5 |
- 1724
| Apr 01 | Henry Pelham becomes English minister of War. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 01 | Jonathan Swift publishes Drapier's letters. | Ref: 5 |
- 1727
| May 31 | France, England & Netherlands sign accord of Paris. | Ref: 5 |
- 1730
| May 15 | Following the resignation of Lord Townshend, Robert Walpole becomes the sole minister in the English cabinet. | Ref: 2 |
- 1731
| Apr 09 | British Captain Robert Jenkins loses an ear to a band of Spanish brigands, starting a war (10/19/1739) between Britain and Spain: The War of Jenkins' Ear. | Ref: 2 |
- 1734
| Dec 13 | England & Russia sign trade agreement. | Ref: 5 |
- 1735
| Sep 22 | First British Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole (elected 4/3/1721) moves into 10 Downing Street. | Ref: 10 |
- 1738
| Mar 28 | English parliament declares war on Spain (War of Jenkin's Ear) | Ref: 5 |
| May 09 | England routes fleet in Mediterranean Sea & West-Indies. | Ref: 5 |
- 1739
| Jan 14 | England & Spain signs 2nd Convention of Pardo. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 19 | England declares war on Spain over borderlines in Florida. The War is known as the War of Jenkins' Ear because the Spanish coast guards cut off the ear of British Captain Robert Jenkins (4/09/1731). | Ref: 2 |
- 1740
| Aug 01 | Thomas Arne's song "Rule Britannia" is performed for the first time. | Ref: 2 |
- 1741
| Mar 04 | English fleet under Admiral Ogle reaches Cartagena. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 09 | English fleet under Admiral Ogle begins assault on Cartagena. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 13 | Royal Military Academy forms at Woolwich. | Ref: 5 |
- 1742
| Feb 02 | British Walpole government resigns. | Ref: 5 |
| May 28 | First indoor swimming pool opens (Goodman's Fields, London). | Ref: 5 |
- 1743
| Jun 27 | English King George defeats the French at Dettingen, Bavaria. | Ref: 2 |
- 1745
| Jan 06 | Bonnie Prince Charlies army draws to Glasgow. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 18 | Bonnie Prince Charlie's troops occupy Inverness Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 20 | Bonnie Prince Charlie's troops occupy Fort August, Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 08 | "God save the King" is sung for the first time following the defeat of English forces by Jacobites. | Ref: 62 |
| Sep 21 | A Scottish Jacobite army commanded by Lord George Murray routs the Royalist army of General Sir John Cope at Prestonpans. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 28 | British National Anthem 'God Save King' sung for the first time at the Drury Lane Theatre. | Ref: 10 |
| Dec 04 | Bonnie Prince Charles reaches Derby. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 06 | Bonnie Prince Charlies army retreats to Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 10 | Bonnie Prince Charlies army draws into Manchester. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 17 | Bonnie Prince Charles army retreats to Scotland. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 18 | The Scots are defeated at Clifton Moor. | Ref: 62 |
| Dec 20 | Bonnie Prince Charlie's army meets de Esk. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 31 | Bonnie Prince Charlies army meets with de Esk. | Ref: 5 |
- 1746
| Jan 03 | Bonnie Prince Charlies army leaves Glasgow. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 14 | Bonnie Prince Charlie's army leaves Glasgow. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 17 | Charles Edward Stuart, the young pretender, defeats the government forces at the battle of Falkirk in Scotland. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 28 | Jacobite victory at the Battle of Falkirk. Earl Loudoun flees the “rout of Moy” to the safety of Skye, and sits out the rest of the Jacobite rising. | Ref: 92 |
| Feb 20 | Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Castle of Inverness. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 03 | Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Castle of Inverness. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 16 | Bonnie Prince Charles, leading the Scottish Jacobites, is defeated at the battle of Culloden by William Augustus, duke of Cumberland, breaking the Jacobite Rebellion, the last pitched battle fought in Britain. | Ref: 74 |
| Apr 27 | King George II wins the battle of Culloden defeating "James VIII & III". | Ref: 2 |
- 1749
| May 11 | British parliament accept Consolidation Act: fleet reorganization. | Ref: 5 |
- 1750
| Nov 16 | Westminster Bridge opens for traffic in London. | Ref: 10 |
- 1753
| Apr 05 | British Museum forms (opens in 1759). | Ref: 5 |
- 1756
| Jan 16 | England & Prussia sign Treaty of Westminster. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 20 | 146 British soldiers are imprisoned in a suffocating cell that gained notoriety as the "Black Hole of Calcutta. 123 will die. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 06 | British troops under Robert Clive occupy Fulta India. | Ref: 5 |
- 1757
| Jan 02 | British troops occupy Calcutta India. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 06 | English king George II fires minister William Pitt Sr. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 23 | Robert Clive defeats Indians at Plassey, wins control of Bengal. | Ref: 5 |
- 1758
| Dec 31 | British expeditionary army occupies Goree (Dakar) Senegal. | Ref: 5 |
- 1759
| Jan 15 | British Museum opens in Montague House, London. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 16 | British Museum opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
| May 01 | British fleet occupies Guadeloupe, West-Indies, on France. | Ref: 5 |
- 1761
| Jul 17 | First waterway in England Bridgewater Canal - opens linking Worsley and Manchester. | Ref: 10 |
- 1762
| Jan 04 | England declares war on Spain & Naples. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 05 | British take Grenada, West Indies, from French. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 12 | The British capture Cuba from Spain after a two month siege. | Ref: 2 |
| Oct 05 | The British fleet bombards and captures Spanish-held Manila in the Philippines. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 09 | British parliament accepts the Treaty of Paris. | Ref: 5 |
- 1763
| May 16 | Samuel Johnson meets his future biographer James Boswell in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1764
| Feb 21 | John Wilkes thrown out of English House of Commons for "Essay on Women". | Ref: 5 |
- 1765
| May 07 | Admiral Nelson's sailboat HMS Victory runs aground. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 16 | English Prime Minister Lord Greenville resigns and is replaced by Lord Rockingham. | Ref: 2 |
- 1766
| Mar 04 | The British Parliament repeals the Stamp Act, the cause of bitter and violent opposition in the colonies | Ref: 2 |
- 1770
| Apr 12 | In Parliament, the Townshend Revenue Act is repealed, except for the tax on tea. | Ref: 5 |
- 1771
| Jan 22 | Spain cedes the Falkland Islands to Britain. | Ref: 5 |
- 1772
| Nov 02 | The Morning Post of London first issued. | Ref: 10 |
- 1774
| Feb 22 | English House of Lords rules authors do not have perpetual copyright. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 25 | English Parliament passes Boston Port Bill. | Ref: 5 |
| May 20 | Parliament passes the Coercive Acts to punish the colonists for their increasingly anti-British behavior. The acts close the port of Boston. | Ref: 2 |
- 1777
| Feb 21 | English ambassador Joseph Yorke demands dismissal of Governor John de Graaff for saluting US flag. | Ref: 5 |
- 1779
| Dec 31 | English fleet beat Dutch Merchant vessels. | Ref: 5 |
- 1780
| Mar 26 | 1st British Sunday newspaper appears (British Gazette & Sunday Monitor) | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 20 | England declares war on Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1781
| Jan 06 | Battle of Jersey (Island in the UK). | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 03 | Dutch West Indies island of St Eustatia taken by the British. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 10 | Two women are tarred and feathered in Belfast for dating British soldiers, while in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, a Catholic girl is also tarred and feathered for her intention of marrying a British soldier. | Ref: 2 |
- 1782
-
| Feb 04 | British garrison surrenders to French & Spanish fleet. | Ref: 5 |
-
| Jul 01 | The lifting of the proscription against wearing of tartans in Scotland. | Ref: 62 |
| Sep 13 | The British fortress at Gibraltar comes under attack by French and Spanish forces. | Ref: 2 |
- 1783
| Apr 09 | Tippu Sahib drives out English from Bednore India. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 18 | English king George III fires government of Portland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1784
| May 11 | England & Tippu Sahib van Mysore sign peace treaty. | Ref: 5 |
- 1785
| Jan 01 | "Daily Universal Register" (Times of London) publishes first issue. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 13 | John Walter publishes first issue of London Times. | Ref: 5 |
- 1786
| Feb 24 | Charles Cornwallis appointed Governor-General of India. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 12 | Despite his failed efforts to suppress the American Revolution, Lord Cornwallis is appointed governor general of India. | Ref: 2 |
- 1787
| May 10 | Parliament impeaches Warren Hastings. | Ref: 5 |
| May 13 | Arthur Phillip sets sails with 11 ships from Portsmouth with 548 British male and 188 female convicts bound for Botony Bay, Australia. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 23 | HMS Bounty under Captain William Bligh, sets sail for the South Seas. | Ref: 10 |
- 1788
| Jan 01 | London's oldest running newspaper, The Daily Universal Register changes its name to The Times. | Ref: 5 |
- 1789
| Apr 28 | The crew of the British ship Bounty mutineed when the thirsty crew sees Captain Bligh using water for breadfruit plants. They set Captain William Bligh and 18 sailors adrift in a launch in the South Pacific. The rebel crew took over the British ship and set sail to Pitcairn Island. | Ref: 70 |
| Jun 09 | Captain Bligh and castaways from the mutiny on the not-so-good ship Bounty reach Timor. | Ref: 10 |
| Jun 14 | Captain William Bligh of the HMS Bounty arrives in Timor in a small boat. He had been forced to leave his ship when his crew mutinied. | Ref: 2 |
- 1790
| Jan 23 | Fletcher Christian and mutineers from the Bounty reach Pitcairn Island where they settle. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 11 | Chrysanthemums are introduced into England from China. | Ref: 5 |
- 1791
| Jul 05 | First British ambassador to the US appointed, George Hammond. | Ref: 10 |
| Dec 04 | Britain's Observer, oldest Sunday newspaper in world, first published. | Ref: 5 |
- 1794
| Jun 04 | British troops capture Port-au-Prince, Haiti. | Ref: 2 |
- 1795
| Apr 23 | William Hastings acquitted in England of high treason. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 16 | British capture Capetown. | Ref: 5 |
- 1796
| May 19 | The British put a tax on dogs. | Ref: 62 |
- 1797
| Feb 14 | The Spanish fleet is destroyed by the British under Admiral Jervis (with Nelson in support) at the battle of Cape St. Vincent, off Portugal. | Ref: 2 |
| Feb 18 | British Navy takes Island of Trinidad; Spanish Governor Chacon surrenders. | Ref: 10 |
| Feb 21 | Trinidad, West Indies surrenders to the British. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 22 | The last invasion of Britain takes place when some 1,400 Frenchmen land at Fishguard, in Wales. | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 02 | The Directory of Great Britain authorizes vessels of war to board and seize neutral vessels, particularly if the ships are American. | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 24 | Battle of Santa Cruz in Tenerife, Canary Islands; Capt. Horatio Nelson loses right arm. | Ref: 10 |
| May 02 | A mutiny in the British navy spreads from Spithead to the rest of the fleet. | Ref: 2 |
| Oct 11 | British naval forces defeat Dutch off Camperdown, the Netherlands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1798
| May 02 | The black General Toussaint L'ouverture forces British troops to agree to evacuate the port of Santo Domingo. | Ref: 2 |
| May 24 | Believing that a French invasion of Ireland is imminent, Irish nationalists rise up against the British occupation. | Ref: 2 |
| May 26 | British kill about 500 Irish insurgents at the Battle of Tara. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 24 | Russia & England sign Second anti-French Coalition. | Ref: 5 |
- 1799
| Jan 09 | Income tax introduced in Britain by Pitt the Younger; two shillings in the pound levied on all. | Ref: 10 |
| Feb 09 | Income Tax introduced in UK. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 12 | Political assassinations banned in Britain. | Ref: 10 |
- 1800
| Jan 08 | In London, the first soup kitchens were opened for the relief of the poor. | Ref: 5 |
- 1801
| Jan 01 | Effective today, the United Kingdom now includes England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. | Ref: 17 |
| Mar 08 | British drive French forces from Abukir, Egypt. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 02 | The British navy defeats the Danish at the Battle of Copenhagen. | Ref: 2 |
- 1803
| Jul 23 | Irish patriots throughout the country rebel against Union with Great Britain. | Ref: 2 |
| Jul 23 | Robert Emmett's insurrected in Dublin. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 23 | British Major General Sir Arthur Wellesley defeats the Marathas at Assaye, India. | Ref: 2 |
- 1804
| Jan 31 | British Vice-Admiral William Bligh's fleet reaches Curaçao. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 26 | Vice-Admiral William Bligh ends siege of Fort Amsterdam, Willemstad. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 28 | 31 English ship sail Suriname river demand transition colony. | Ref: 5 |
| May 06 | Suriname sold to English (until February 1816). | Ref: 5 |
- 1806
| Jan 08 | Britain occupies the Cape of Good Hope. | Ref: 17 |
| Jan 19 | Britain occupies the Cape of Good Hope. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 10 | The Dutch in Cape Town, South Africa surrender to the British. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 01 | Britain declares war on Prussia after seizure of Hanover. | Ref: 10 |
| Jun 27 | Buenos Aires captured by British. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 05 | A Spanish army repels the British during their attempt to retake Buenos Aires, Argentina. | Ref: 2 |
- 1807
| Jan 01 | Curaçao is taken by English (until March, 1816). | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 19 | British squadron under Admiral Duckworth forces passage of Dardanelles. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 25 | George Canning becomes British minister of Foreign affairs. | Ref: 5 |
- 1808
| Jan 01 | Sierra Leone becomes a British colony. | Ref: 5 |
- 1809
| Dec 26 | English invasionary troop leaves Vlissingen. | Ref: 5 |
- 1811
| Feb 05 | The insanity of George III leads to the Regency Act making the Prince of Wales, Prince Regent. | Ref: 17 |
- 1812
| Feb 07 | Lord Byron makes his maiden speech in House of Lords. | Ref: 5 |
- 1814
| Aug 13 | Britain Takes Over the Dutch Cape Colony. Britain was granted formal control of southern Africa's Cape of Good Hope by the Congress of Vienna after 8 years of British occupation. | Ref: 10 |
- 1815
| Apr 06 | English militia shoots prisoners, 100's killed. | Ref: 5 |
- 1816
| May 10 | English steamship "Defiance" arrives at Rotterdam harbor | Ref: 2 |
| Aug 14 | Remotest island in the world, Tristan da Cunha, annexed by the United Kingdom. | Ref: 10 |
-
- 1818
| Jun 02 | The British army defeats the Maratha alliance in Bombay, India. | Ref: 2 |
- 1819
| Mar 20 | The Burlington Arcade in London opens. | Ref: 62 |
- 1820
| Jan 12 | Royal Astronomical Society founded in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 10 | First British settlers arrive in Algoa Bay, South Africa. | Ref: 10 |
- 1821
| May 07 | Sierra Leone, Gambia & Gold Coast taken over by British forming British West Africa. | Ref: 10 |
- 1822
| Oct 20 | Sunday Times first published in England. | Ref: 10 |
- 1823
| Apr 22 | Baltic Club (Exchange) forms in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1824
| Jan 21 | Ashantees defeat British at Accra, West Africa. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 22 | A British force is wiped out by an Asante army under Osei Bonsu on the African Gold Coast. This is the first defeat for a colonial power. | Ref: 2 |
| Feb 16 | Athenaeum Club founded in London. | Ref: 5 |
| May 11 | British forces capture Rangoon. | Ref: 62 |
- 1826
| Oct 18 | The last lottery was held in England. | Ref: 62 |
- 1827
| Jan 17 | Duke of Wellington appointed British supreme commander. | Ref: 5 |
- 1828
| Apr 27 | Zoological Gardens at Regent's Park London, opens. | Ref: 5 |
- 1829
| Feb 02 | Madman Jonathan Martin sets York Cathedral afire, does £60,000 damage. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 29 | Greater London’s Metropolitan Police went into action. There was much opposition to the act of Parliament that authorized the police force. Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel had requested the act (the police were called ‘Bobbies’ in honor of him). The Bobbies first official headquarters were at Scotland Yard; and Scotland Yard became the official name of the police force. | Ref: 4 |
- 1831
| Apr 09 | Robert Jenkins loses an ear, starts war between Britain & Spain. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1832
| Mar 23 | British Parliament passes reform bill. | Ref: 5 |
- 1833
| Jan 01 | Great Britain gains sovereignity over the Falkland Islands. | Ref: 17 |
| Jan 03 | Britain seized control of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. (Almost 150 years later, Argentina seized the islands from the British, but Britain took them back after a 74-day war.) | Ref: 70 |
| Jan 23 | Joseph Pease, a Quaker, admitted to Parliament on his affirmation. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 23 | England passes a law making owning a slave illegal in realm after one year. 700,000 slaves freed. | Ref: 5 |
- 1834
| Apr 22 | St. Helena becomes British Crown Colony. | Ref: 10 |
| Jul 15 | Lord Napier of England arrives at Macao, China, as the first chief superintendent of trade. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 09 | Parliament passes the Municipal Corporations Act, reforming city and town governments in England. | Ref: 2 |
- 1836
| Apr 11 | English philanthropist George Mueller opens his famous orphanage on Wilson Street in Bristol. (By 1875, Mueller's orphanage was providing care for over 2,000 children.). | Ref: 5 |
- 1837
| Jun 30 | The pillory is no longer a means of punishment in the United Kingdom. | Ref: 62 |
- 1838
| Apr 09 | National Galley opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 30 | William (King) and Ada (daughter of Lord Byron) become the Earl and Countess of Lovelace. | |
| Sep 24 | Anti-Corn-Law League forms to repeal English Corn Law. | Ref: 5 |
- 1839
| Jan 19 | Aden conquered by British East India Company. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 24 | Charles Darwin elected member of Royal Society. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 26 | Jem Mason on Lottery wins first Grand National Steeplechase (Britain). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 05 | British naval forces bombard Dingai on Zhoushan Island in China and occupy it. | Ref: 2 |
| Aug 23 | Hong Kong taken by British in Anglo-Chinese opium war. | Ref: 10 |
| Oct 01 | The British government decides to send a punitive naval expedition to China. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 03 | The first Opium War between China and Britain broke out. | Ref: 70 |
- 1840
| Jan 05 | The emperor of China declares the English to be outlaws. | Ref: 62 |
| Jan 05 | Records show 95,820 licensed public houses in England on this date. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 06 | New Zealand becomes a British Colony with Treaty of Waitangi; rights of Maori tribes recognized. | Ref: 17 |
| Feb 06 | Waitangi Day; treaty signed between Britain & Maoris of New Zealand. | Ref: 5 |
| May 21 | New Zealand was declared a British colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 05 | Afghanistan surrenders to the British army. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 18 | The last boatload of British convicts land in Australia. | Ref: 62 |
- 1841
| Jan 07 | The British seize 10 forts at Chuenpi, China, in the first of the Opium Wars. | Ref: 17 |
| Jan 20 | During the First Opium War, China cedes the island of Hong Kong to the British with the signing of the Chuenpi Convention, an agreement seeking an end to the Anglo-Chinese conflict. | Ref: 3 |
| Jan 25 | The Oxford Movement in England reached its apex with the appearance of John Henry Newman's Tract No. 90. The storm of controversy which ensued brought the series (begun in 1833) to an end. Later, Newman resigned his Anglican parish and in 1845 converted to Roman Catholicism. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 26 | Britain formally occupied Hong Kong, which the Chinese had ceded to the British. | Ref: 70 |
| May 03 | New Zealand formally proclaimed British Colony. | Ref: 17 |
| Sep 24 | Sarawak obtained by Britain from Sultan of Brunei. | Ref: 5 |
- 1842
| Jan 13 | During the first British-Afghan War, British troops retreating from Kabul are ambushed and nearly annihilated at the Khyber Pass, even though the Afghans had promised them safe passage during their withdrawal from the Afghan capital. | Ref: 3 |
| May 14 | First edition of London Illustrated News. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 26 | Britain and China sign a peace treaty. | Ref: 62 |
- 1843
| Apr 05 | Queen Victoria proclaims Hong Kong a British crown colony. | Ref: 2 |
| May 04 | Natal proclaimed a British Colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 17 | The Maori uprisings in New Zealand against the British begin. | Ref: 62 |
| Jul 19 | Isambard Kingdom Brunel's steamship "The Great Britain" launched by Prince Albert. | Ref: 10 |
| Aug 08 | Natal (in South Africa) is made a British colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 01 | The News of the World, England's popular Sunday gossip rag, first published. | Ref: 10 |
| Oct 14 | British arrest Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell for conspiracy. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 04 | Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square 170 feet high - unveiled. | Ref: 10 |
- 1844
| Jun 06 | The first YMCA was officially founded in London by George Williams, a young draper’s assistant who had come to London to learn the drapery trade. At that time, wholesale drapery houses employed large numbers of young men, who were given room and board at their work places. They worked long hours and had poor living conditions. Williams sought permission to hold prayer meetings in his bedroom with other young men who, like himself, shared the Christian faith. Soon, the group expanded, drawing to it young men who were alone and lonely in the City of London. | Ref: 4 |
| Aug 06 | The telegraph is used to announce the birth of Queen Victoria's second son, Alfred Ernest, at Windsor. Within 40 minutes the news is printed and distributed in London by The Times . | |
- 1846
| Jan 25 | The dreaded Corn Laws, which taxed imported oats, wheat and barley, are repealed by the British Parliament. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 28 | Battle of Allwal, Brits beat Sikhs in Punjab (India). | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 10 | Battle of Sobraon, India;10,000 Sikhs killed by British in last battle of first Sikh War. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 20 | British occupy Sikh citadel of Lahore. | Ref: 5 |
- 1848
| Jan 01 | Britain takes Mosquito Coast from Nicaragua. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 29 | A rebellion against British rule is put down in Tipperary, Ireland. | Ref: 2 |
- 1849
| Jan 31 | Corn Laws abolished in Britain. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 21 | In the Second Sikh War, Sir Hugh Gough's well placed guns win a victory over a Sikh force twice the size of his at Gujerat on the Chenab River, assuring British control of the Punjab for years to come. | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 29 | Britain formally annexs Punjab after defeat of Sikhs in India | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 16 | British seize Tigre Island in Gulf of Fonseca from Honduras. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 17 | British seize Tigre Island in Gulf of Fonseca from Honduras. | Ref: 5 |
- 1850
| Jan 18 | British blockade Piræus, Greece to enforce mercantile claims. | Ref: 5 |
- 1851
| Jul 24 | British Window Tax is abolished. | Ref: 62 |
- 1852
| Oct 24 | The fictitious person John Doe is officially put to death to end the use of the name to hide the names of real or imagined witnesses in English courts. | Ref: 62 |
- 1853
| May 17 | Thorbeckes liberals win 2nd-Parliamentary election. | Ref: 5 |
- 1854
| Feb 17 | British recognize independence of Orange Free State (South Africa). | Ref: 5 |
-
| Oct 25 | A hopeless but gallant British cavalry charges against a heavily defended Russian force in the Crimean War, in the Battle of Balaklava, came to be known as "Charge of the Light Brigade". 673 men charged. 195 survived. | Ref: 2 |
- 1855
| Feb 05 | British government of Palmerston forms. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 29 | The London Telegraph is published for the first time. | Ref: 62 |
| Oct 08 | Arrow, a ship flying the British flag, is boarded by Chinese who arrest the crew, thus beginning the Second Chinese War. | Ref: 2 |
- 1856
| Jul 15 | Natal established as a British colony separate from Cape Colony. | Ref: 5 |
- 1857
| Jan 07 | The London General Omnibus Company begins operation. | Ref: 17 |
| Jan 29 | The Victoria Cross is instituted by Queen Victoria. | Ref: 17 |
| Mar 04 | Peace of Paris ends Anglo-Persian War. Shah recognizes Afghanistan independence. | Ref: 10 |
| May 10 | The Bengal Army in India revolts against the British. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 01 | Royal Navy destroys Chinese fleet in 2nd Anglo-Chinese War. | Ref: 10 |
| Jun 27 | British soldiers and others are massacred at Cawnpore, India. | Ref: 62 |
| Sep 20 | Delhi re-captured by British after three month seige. | Ref: 10 |
- 1858
| Mar 21 | British forces in India lift the siege of Lucknow, ending the Indian Mutiny. | Ref: 2 |
-
| May 15 | Royal Italian Opera opens in Covent Garden London. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 26 | Treaty of Tientsin ends Anglo Chinese War. Ports open, opium trade legalized. | Ref: 10 |
-
| Jul 26 | Baron Rothschild becomes the first Jew to be admitted to the British Parliament. | Ref: 62 |
| Aug 02 | Government of India transferred from East India Co. to the British government. | Ref: 10 |
- 1860
| Jan 28 | Britain formally returns Mosquito Coast to Nicaragua. | Ref: 5 |
- 1861
| Mar 23 | London's first tramcars, designed by Mr Train of New York, begins operating. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 31 | The first storm warnings are published by British Meteorological department. | Ref: 62 |
| Dec 04 | Queen Victoria of Britain forbids the export of gunpowder, firearms and all materials for their production. | Ref: 2 |
- 1862
| May 24 | Westminster Bridge across Thames opens. | Ref: 5 |
- 1864
| Jan 11 | Charing Cross Station opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 29 | Great Britain gives Isotope Islands back to Greece | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 23 | Dr. Livingstone returns to England. | Ref: 62 |
- 1865
| Mar 02 | British newspaper "Morning Chronicle" begins publishing. | Ref: 5 |
- 1867
| Mar 05 | An abortive Fenian uprising against English rule took place in Ireland. | Ref: 70 |
| Apr 01 | Singapore, Penang & Malakka become British crown colonies. | Ref: 5 |
| May 20 | Foundation stone at Royal Albert Hall, London, laid by Queen Victoria. | Ref: 5 |
- 1868
| Mar 12 | Great Britain annexes Basutoland in Africa. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 10 | Britain defeats King of Abyssinia at Magdala. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 09 | First British government of Gladstone forms. | Ref: 5 |
- 1870
| May 25 | Irish Fenians raid Eccles Hill, Québec. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 04 | British Red Cross founded seven years after International Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland | Ref: 10 |
| Sep 06 | The last British troops to serve in Austria are withdrawn. | Ref: 2 |
- 1871
| Mar 29 | Albert Hall is opened by Queen Victoria in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 29 | Trade unions legalized in England by an act of Parliament | Ref: 62 |
- 1872
| Jul 18 | The Ballot Act is passed in Great Britain, providing for secret election ballots. | Ref: 2 |
| Aug 15 | The first ballot voting in England is conducted. | Ref: 2 |
- 1874
| Feb 17 | Conservatives under Disraeli win first majority since 1841-Gladstone resigns as PM. | Ref: 10 |
| May 09 | Victoria Embankment, in London opens. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 10 | Fiji becomes a British possession. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1876
| Jan 01 | London patent office opens for business. | Ref: 10 |
- 1877
| Mar 12 | Great Britain annexes Walvis Bay at Cape colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 12 | British annex Transvaal, in South Africa. | Ref: 5 |
- 1878
| Feb 11 | First weekly Weather report published in UK. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 28 | First electric lights installed in Westminster Palace | Ref: 62 |
| Jun 04 | Cyprus ceded by Turkey to Britain for administrative purposes. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 12 | British take possession of Cyprus from Turkey. | Ref: 10 |
| Sep 12 | Cleopatra's Needle erected on the thames Embankment. | Ref: 10 |
| Dec 13 | First electric street lighting in London switched on by Paris company.Holborn viaduct first to get lit. | Ref: 10 |
- 1879
| Jan 02 | British battleship Thunder explodes in Gulf of Ismid, 9 die. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 12 | British Zulu War begins Lt-General Chelmsford invades Zululand. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 20 | British troops under Lord Chelmsford set camp at Isandlwana. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 22 | Eighty-two British soldiers hold off attacks by 4,000 Zulu warriors at the Battle of Rorke's Drift in South Africa. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 22 | 1,300 British killed by Zulus in Transvaal; solar eclipse at 1:02 p.m. in mid battle aids Zulus. | Ref: 10 |
| Jan 22 | Anthony Durnford British Colonel, dies in battle. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 22 | George Shepstone British political affiliate, dies in battle. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 29 | British troops of the 90th Light Infantry Regiment repulse a major attack by Zulu tribesmen in northwest Zululand. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 01 | Peace treaty signed with the Zulus by Britain | Ref: 62 |
- 1880
| Apr 24 | Amateur Athletic Association, governing body for men's athletics in England and Wales, is founded in Oxford, England. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 01 | Sir Frederick Roberts frees the British Afghanistan garrison of Kandahar from Afghan rebels. | Ref: 2 |
| Aug 02 | Britain's legal system finally switches to GMT when the Statutes (Definition of Time) Act takes effect. (Ref | |
- 1881
| Feb 26 | Natal British troops under General-Major Colley occupy Majuba Hill. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 18 | Natural History Museum of South Kensington England opens. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1882
| May 06 | Epping Forest England dedicated by Queen Victoria. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1884
| Jan 18 | General Charles Gordon departs London for Khartoum. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 02 | London prison for debtors closed. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 06 | British protectorate proclaimed over southeast New Guinea. | Ref: 5 |
- 1885
| Jan 17 | British beat Mahdists at Battle of Abu Klea in the Sudan (800-1000 killed). | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 31 | Great Britain declares Bechuanaland a protectorate | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 30 | Bechuanaland becomes a British protectorate. | Ref: 5 |
- 1886
| Jan 01 | Upper Burma is annexed by Great Britain. | Ref: 17 |
| Jan 27 | First British government of Salisbury resigns. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 23 | The London Times publishes the world's first classified ad. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 26 | First cremation in England takes place in Woking. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 27 | First British government of Salisbury resigns. | Ref: 5 |
- 1887
| Apr 04 | First Colonial conference opens in London. | Ref: 10 |
| May 26 | British East Africa Company chartered. | Ref: 10 |
| Jun 21 | Zululand is annexed by the British | Ref: 62 |
| Jun 21 | Britain celebrates golden jubilee of Queen Victoria. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 13 | Bloody Sunday occurs in Trafalgar Square, London as Socialist and Irish demonstrators fought | Ref: 62 |
- 1888
| May 12 | British protectorate over North Boreo and Brunei begins. | Ref: 10 |
- 1889
-
- 1890
| May 13 | Lord Salisbury offers Germany Helgoland in exchange for Zanzibar, Uganda & Equatoria. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 04 | Great Britain proclaims Zanzibar as a protectorate. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 18 | Uganda occupied by British East Africa Company. | Ref: 10 |
- 1891
| May 15 | British Central African Protectorate (now Malawi) is established. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 29 | Great Britain declares territories in Southern Africa up to the Congo to be within their sphere of influence. | Ref: 2 |
| Jul 31 | Great Britain declares territories in Southern Africa up to the Congo to be within their sphere of influence. | Ref: 2 |
- 1893
| Jan 13 | Britain's Independent Labor Party (a precursor to the current Labor Party) held its first meeting with Keir Hardie as its leader. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 14 | English Labour Party founded | Ref: 62 |
| May 10 | Imperial Institute in London opens | Ref: 2 |
- 1894
| Jan 01 | Manchester Ship Canal in England opens to traffic. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 16 | British troops occupy Ilorin, Gold Coast. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 11 | Uganda declared a British protectorate. | Ref: 10 |
- 1895
| May 03 | Rhodesia organised from British South Africa company territory South of Zambesi. | Ref: 17 |
- 1896
| Jan 18 | British troops occupy Kumasi, West Africa. | Ref: 5 |
| May 04 | Britain's first halfpenny newspaper, The London Daily Mail, published by Lord Northcliffe | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 27 | Zanzibar loses to England in a 38 minute war (9:02 AM-9:40 AM). | Ref: 5 |
- 1897
| Jan 26 | Battle at Bida Gold Coast British troops beat Nupe's army. | Ref: 5 |
| May 22 | The official opening of the Blackwall tunnel under the Thames | Ref: 62 |
| Nov 27 | British troops occupy Bida Gold Coast (Ghana). | Ref: 5 |
- 1898
| Apr 08 | Anglo-Egyptian forces under British General Horatio Kitchner defeat the Khalifa, leader of the dervishes in Sudan and 6,000 Sudanese, at the Battle of Atbara. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 09 | China leases Hong Kong's new territories to Britain for 99 years. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 02 | Sir Herbert Kitchner leads the British to victory over the Mahdists at Omdurman and takes Khartoum. Sudan becomes British. | Ref: 5 |
- 1899
| Apr 24 | Transvaal British Uitlanders ask Queen Victoria for aid. | Ref: 5 |
| May 17 | Foundation stone of the Victoria and Albert Museum laid by Queen Victoria. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 08 | Natal: British fall/burst out belegerd Ladysmith. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 18 | Fieldmarshal Lord Roberts appointed British supreme commander in South Africa. | Ref: 5 |
- 1900
| Jan 01 | British protectorates of Lagos, Northern & Southern Nigeria established. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 07 | Labour Party forms in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 18 | British troops occupy Monte Christo Natal. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 19 | British troops occupy Hlangwane Natal. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 27 | Conference in London calls for creation of a British labor party with Ramsay MacDonald as secretary. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 13 | British troops occupy Bloemfontein, Orange-Free state. | Ref: 5 |
| May 18 | Britain proclaims protectorate over kingdom of Tonga. | Ref: 5 |
| May 19 | Great Britain annexes Tonga archipelago. | Ref: 5 |
| May 24 | Britain annexes Orange Free State. | Ref: 5 |
| May 28 | Britain annexes Orange Free State (as Orange River Colony). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 09 | The Commonwealth of Australia is established by an act of British Parliament, uniting the separate colonies under a federal government. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 03 | British annex Natal (South Africa). | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 25 | England annexes Transvaal. | Ref: 5 |
- 1901
| Jan 02 | First municipal crematorium opens in England at Hull. | Ref: 17 |
| Feb 23 | Britain and Germany agree on a boundary between German East Africa and Nyasaland. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 15 | First British motorized burial. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 17 | Sir Francis Chichester, English adventurer; sailed solo around the world, is born. | Ref: 70 |
- 1902
| May 24 | Empire Day first celebrated in Britain. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 26 | England establishes Order of Merit. | Ref: 5 |
- 1903
| Mar 15 | The British complete the conquest of Nigeria. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 02 | London's Daily Mirror newspaper is first published. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 15 | The British parliament places a 15-year ban on whale fishing in Norway. | Ref: 2 |
- 1904
| Jan 11 | British troops massacre 1,000 dervishes in Somaliland. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 02 | British newspaper, "The Daily Mirror," begins publishing. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 28 | First daily wireless weather forecasts published (London). | Ref: 5 |
- 1905
| Apr 01 | British East African Protectorate becomes colony of Kenya. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 04 | British government of Balfour resigns. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 11 | British government of Campbell-Bannerman forms. | Ref: 5 |
- 1906
| Feb 10 | Britain's first modern & largest battleship "HMS Dreadnought" launched. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 15 | British Labour Party organizes. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 24 | "Census of the British Empire" shows England rules 1/5 of the world. | Ref: 5 |
| May 03 | British-controlled Egypt takes Sinai peninsula from Turkey. | Ref: 5 |
- 1907
| Feb 13 | English suffragettes storm British Parliament & 60 women are arrested. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 16 | The British cruiser Invincible, the world's largest, is completed at Glasgow shipyards. | Ref: 2 |
- 1908
| Jun 08 | King Edward VII of England visits Czar Nicholas II of Russia in an effort to improve relations between the two countries. | Ref: 2 |
| Aug 11 | Britain's King Edward VII meets with Kaiser Wilhelm II to protest the growth of the German navy. | Ref: 2 |
- 1909
| Mar 12 | British Parliament increases naval appropriations for Great Britain. | Ref: 2 |
- 1910
| Feb 01 | First British labour exchange opens. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1911
| Mar 09 | The funding for five new battleships is added to the British military defense budget. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 04 | The Masai sign a treaty with Great Britain giving up their lands in Laikipia, East Africa, to European Colonization. | Ref: 17 |
| May 15 | British house of commons accept Parliament Bill. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 01 | The first Trolleys start running in England, in Bradford and Leeds. | Ref: 4 |
| Aug 10 | The House of Lords in Great Britain gives up its veto power, making the House of Commons the more powerful House. | Ref: 2 |
- 1912
| Jan 30 | The British House of Lords opposes the House of Commons by rejecting home rule for Ireland. | Ref: 2 |
- 1913
| Jan 16 | British House of Commons accepts Home-Rule for Ireland. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 30 | House of Lords rejects Irish Home Rule Bill. | Ref: 5 |
- 1914
| Jan 01 | Northern & Southern Nigeria united in British colony of Nigeria. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 07 | The British House of Commons passes the Irish Home Rule Bill. | Ref: 2 |
| May 25 | British House of Commons passes Irish Home Rule. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 27 | British troops invade the streets of Dublin, Ireland, and begin to disarm Irish rebels. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 18 | The Irish Home Rule Bill becomes law, but is delayed until after World War I. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 17 | Great Britain declares Egypt a protectorate. | Ref: 5 |
- 1915
| May 17 | Last liberal British Government of Asquith falls. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 10 | Gilbert & Ellis islands annexed by Britain. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 12 | Britain annexes Gilbert & Ellice Islands. | Ref: 5 |
- 1916
| Jan 12 | Britain proclaims Gilbert & Ellice Island colony in the Pacific. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 28 | British declare martial law throughout Ireland. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 29 | Irish nationalists set the post office on fire in Dublin. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 29 | The Easter uprising in Dublin collapsed as Irish nationalists surrendered to British authorities. | Ref: 70 |
| May 24 | Last British-Indian contract workers arrive in Suriname. | Ref: 5 |
- 1917
| May 11 | Britain grants Royal Letters Patent to New Zealand. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 15 | Great Britain pledges the release of all Irish captured during the Easter Rebellion of 1916. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 19 | During World War I, King George V ordered the British royal family to dispense with German titles and surnames. The family took the name Windsor. | Ref: 70 |
- 1918
| Apr 01 | England's Royal Flying Corps replaced by Royal Air Force. | Ref: 5 |
- 1919
| Jan 02 | Anti-British uprising in Ireland. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 05 | British ships shell the Bolshevik headquarters in Riga. | Ref: 2 |
| May 03 | Afghánistán Emir Amanoellah begins war against Great Britain. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 08 | Treaty of Rawalpindi, British recognize Afghanistan's independence. | Ref: 5 |
- 1920
| Mar 31 | British parliament accept Irish "Home Rule"-law | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 24 | British Mandate over Palestine goes into effect (lasts 28 years). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 01 | British begin administration of Palestine. | Ref: 10 |
| Jul 23 | Kenya becomes a British crown colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 31 | British Communist Party formed in Cannon Street Station Hotel, London. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 11 | The Unknown Warrior is buried in Westminster Abbey, London. | |
| Dec 23 | Ireland divided into 2 parts, each with its own parliament. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 23 | King George V signs Home Rule Act. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 24 | Govt. of Ireland Act passed partitioning country into 6 counties of N. Eire, and 26 of Southern. | Ref: 10 |
- 1921
| Jan 20 | British submarine K5 leaves with man & mouse. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 18 | British troops occupy Dublin. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 01 | Rwanda ceded to England. | Ref: 5 |
| May 24 | British Legion is formed. | Ref: 5 |
| May 24 | First parliament for Northern Ireland elected. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 06 | British and Irish representatives sign a treaty in London providing for the creation of an Irish Free State. (XDG, p 11A, 12/07/2001) | Ref: 83 |
- 1922
| Mar 22 | British court sentences Mahatma Gandhi to 6 years in prison. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 14 | Republic rebels occupy 4 government courts in Dublin. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 07 | The Irish Republican Army cuts the cable link between the United States and Europe at Waterville landing station. | Ref: 2 |
| Sep 11 | British mandate of Palestine begins. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 18 | British Broadcasting Company (not yet 'corporation'). BBC, founded with John Reith as first mgr. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 14 | The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) begins the first daily radio broadcasts from 2LO at Marconi House. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 17 | Last British troops leave Ireland Freestate. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 23 | BBC Radio began daily newscasts. | Ref: 5 |
-
- 1923
| Feb 23 | Great Britain lowers import duty on German products from 26% to 5%. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 12 | Britain takes over Southern Rhodesia from British South Africa Co. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 08 | Labour/Liberals win British parliament. | Ref: 5 |
- 1924
| Jan 22 | Baldwin government resigns in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 01 | New British MacDonald government recognizes USSR. | Ref: 17 |
| Mar 06 | British Labour government cuts military budget. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 01 | Crown takes over Northern Rhodesia from British South Africa Co. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 23 | British Empire Exhibition opens at Wembley. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 02 | Britain's first crossword puzzle published in Sunday Express. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 22 | England orders Egyptians out of Sudan. | Ref: 5 |
- 1925
| Jan 29 | British Liberals choose David Lloyd George as party leader. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 12 | British government of Baldwin refuses to ratify Geneva agreement. | Ref: 5 |
| May 01 | Cyprus becomes a British Crown Colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 01 | Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs created in UK. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 16 | First weekly radio broadcasts from Britain to continent. | Ref: 10 |
- 1926
| Jan 21 | Belgian parliament accepts Locarno treaties. | Ref: 5 |
- 1927
| Jan 19 | British government decides to send troops to China. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 24 | British expeditionary force of 12,000 is sent to China to protect concessions at Shanghai. | Ref: 2 |
| Feb 12 | British expeditionary army lands in Shanghai. | Ref: 5 |
- 1928
| Jan 13 | The British War office abolishes the lance as a weapon of battle | Ref: 62 |
| Apr 26 | Madame Tussaud's waxworks exhibition opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
- 1929
| Nov 01 | Lundy, part of the British Isles, issue their own stamps. | Ref: 5 |
- 1930
| Jan 21 | First BBC broadcast from London | Ref: 62 |
| May 04 | Mahatma Gandhi is arrested by the British. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 16 | Mixed bathing is permitted for the first time in Hyde Park, London. | Ref: 10 |
| Jun 28 | More than 1,000 communists are routed during an assault on the British consulate in London. | Ref: 2 |
- 1931
| Jan 29 | Winston Churchill resigns as Stanley Baldwin's aide. | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 05 | Gandhi & British viceroy Lord Irwin sign pact. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 10 | British Labour party removes fascist sir Oswald Mosley. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 26 | New Delhi replaces Calcutta as capitol of British-Indies. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 20 | British House of Commons agrees for sports play on Sunday. | Ref: 5 |
| May 23 | Whipsnade Zoo opens in Whipsnade Beds England. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 15 | British naval force mutinies at Invergordon over pay. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 11 | British Statute of Westminster gives complete legislative independence to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, Newfoundland. | Ref: 5 |
- 1933
| Mar 14 | Winston Churchill wants to boost air defense. | Ref: 5 |
- 1934
| Sep 26 | Cunard Line's luxury liner Queen Mary launched. | Ref: 5 |
- 1935
| Mar 12 | England establishes 30 MPH speed limit for towns & villages. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 19 | The British fire on 20,000 Muslims in India, killing 23. | Ref: 2 |
- 1936
| Apr 01 | Orissa constituted a province of British India | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 07 | Britain's popular family vacation camping resort, Butlins, opens first branch at Skegness. | Ref: 10 |
| May 27 | The maiden voyage of the ship RMS Queen Mary began. The huge vessel set sail from Southampton, England headed for the New York Harbor in the U.S. | Ref: 4 |
| Nov 30 | London's famed Crystal Palace, constructed for the International Exhibition of 1851, is destroyed in a fire. (XDG, p 4A, 11/30/2002) | Ref: 83 |
- 1937
| Apr 01 | Aden becomes British crown colony. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 02 | Mrs. Wallis Warfield Simpson of Baltimore, MD, the woman who was the cause of King Edward VIII’s abdication of the British throne, was married this day to the former King (The Duke of Windsor). This was the storybook romance; the king in love with the commoner gives up his throne to spend the rest of his life with the woman he loves. They lived happily ever after ... in France. | Ref: 4 |
| Jul 23 | The Matrimonial Causes Act eases divorce in England and Wales. | Ref: 62 |
- 1938
| Feb 20 | Anthony Eden resigned as British foreign secretary in a dispute with Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain over the appeasement of Germany. | Ref: 70 |
| Apr 16 | Great-Britain recognizes Italian annexation of Abyssinia. | Ref: 5 |
- 1939
| Feb 25 | First Anderson bomb shelter in Britain erected in an Islington garden. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 28 | Great Britain recognizes Franco-regime in Spain. | Ref: 5 |
| May 19 | Churchill signs British-Russian anti-Nazi pact. | Ref: 5 |
| May 23 | British decoration, George Cross, first presented. | Ref: 5 |
- 1941
| Jan 21 | British communist newspaper "Daily Worker" banned. | Ref: 5 |
- 1942
| Aug 09 | British arrests Indian nationalist Mohandas K Gandhi. | Ref: 5 |
- 1945
| Mar 12 | The British Empire celebrates its first British Empire Day. | Ref: 5 |
- 1946
| Feb 14 | Bank of England nationalized. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 15 | Bank of England nationalized. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 01 | British Govt takes control of Bank of England, after 252 years. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 15 | British premier Attlee agrees with India's right to independence. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 02 | British Royal Military Academy established at Sandhurst. | Ref: 10 |
| May 01 | Fieldmarshal Montgomery appointed British supreme commander. | Ref: 5 |
| May 13 | Winston Churchill welcomed in Rotterdam. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 15 | British North Borneo Co transfers rights to British crown. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 13 | Britain transfers illegal immigrants bound to Palestine, to Cyprus. | Ref: 5 |
- 1947
| Jan 01 | Churchill delivers "Iron Curtain" speech | Ref: 62 |
| Jan 01 | Britain nationalizes its coal and communications industries. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 05 | Great Britain nationalizes its coal mines. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 10 | British stop ships Independence & In-Gathering from landing in Israel. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 13 | British troops replace striking truck drivers. | Ref: 2 |
| Feb 20 | Lord Mountbatten appointed as last viceroy of India. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 06 | Winston Churchill opposes the withdrawal of troops from India. | Ref: 2 |
| Jun 15 | The All-Indian Congress accepts a British plan for the partition of India. | Ref: 2 |
| Jul 01 | Brit Dominion Affairs office becomes Commonwealth Relations office. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 25 | New Zealand accedes to Statute of Westminster, becomes a dominion. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 26 | British transfer Heard & McDonald Islands (Indian Ocean) to Australia. | Ref: 5 |
- 1948
| Jan 12 | First Supermarket in UK opens. | Ref: 5 |
| May 15 | 28 year old British Mandate over Palestine ends. | Ref: 5 |
- 1949
| Apr 18 | The Republic of Ireland withdraws from British Commonwealth. | Ref: 2 |
| May 09 | Britain's first launderette opens in Queensway London. | Ref: 5 |
| May 17 | British government recognizes Republic of Ireland. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 24 | The Iron and Steel Act nationalizes the steel industry in Britain. | Ref: 2 |
- 1950
| Jan 06 | Britain recognizes Communist government of China. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 24 | Labour wins British parliamentary election. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 14 | First edition of British strip "Eagle". | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 27 | The modern state of Israel was officially recognized by the British government. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 25 | Coronation Stone, taken from Scone in Scotland by Edward I in 1296, stolen from Westminster Abbey by Scottish Nationalists & smuggled back to Scotland. The 485 pound stone was recovered in April 1951. | Ref: 5 |
- 1951
| Oct 25 | In a general election, England's Labour Party loses to Conservatives. Winston Churchill becomes prime minister, and Anthony Eden becomes foreign secretary. | Ref: 2 |
- 1952
| Jan 05 | Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrives in Washington to confer with President Harry S Truman. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 20 | British army occupies Ismailiya, Suez Canal Zone. | Ref: 5 |
| Feb 08 | Elizabeth becomes Queen of England after her father, King George VI, dies. | Ref: 2 |
| Oct 20 | Mau Mau uprising in Kenya, East Africa against British rule begins, quickly suppressed. | Ref: 10 |
- 1953
| Apr 16 | British royal yacht Britannica taken out of service. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 24 | Winston Churchill is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. | Ref: 2 |
| May 11 | Winston Churchill criticizes John Foster Dulles domino theory. | Ref: 5 |
- 1954
| Mar 24 | Great Britain opens trade talks with Hungary. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 25 | British raid Nairobi Kenya (25,000 Mau Mau suspects are arrested). | Ref: 5 |
| May 13 | Labour Party wins British municipal elections. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 19 | Egypt and Britain conclude a pact on the Suez Canal, ending 72 years of British military occupation. Britain agrees to withdraw its 80,000-man force within 20 months, and Egypt agrees to maintain freedom of canal navigation. | Ref: 2 |
| Nov 30 | Sir Winston Churchill celebrated his 80th birthday in London. The festivities were said to be the greatest ever held for a British subject. | Ref: 4 |
- 1955
| Feb 22 | British aircraft carrier Ark Royal sets sail. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 24 | British Army patrols withdraw from Belfast after 20 years. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 05 | Winston Churchill resigns as British PM, Anthony Eden succeeds him. | Ref: 5 |
| May 26 | Conservatives win British parliamentary election. | Ref: 5 |
- 1956
| Mar 09 | Weather forecasting phone line set up in London England. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 15 | Emergency crisis in North Ireland proclaimed after IRA strikes. | Ref: 5 |
- 1957
| Apr 01 | All of Great Britain was fooled this April Fool’s Day by England’s famous newscaster, Richard Dimbleby. The newscaster, wrapping up the day’s news on Panorama, the BBC’s current affairs program, reported about the “spring spaghetti crop in Italy.” The filmed report showed the spaghetti (some ten pounds of the stuff) being picked from a tree. Many Brits believed him, by Jove! One member of our staff remembers doing something similar by asking radio listeners to “send us $100 and we’ll send you 25 words or less.” | Ref: 4 |
| Oct 16 | Queen Elizabeth & Prince Philip visit Williamsburg Virginia. | Ref: 5 |
- 1958
| Jan 03 | The British create the West Indies Federation with Lord Hailes as governor general. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 30 | House of Lords passes bill allowing women in. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 12 | British Empire Day is renamed "Commonwealth Day". | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 10 | First parking meter installed in England (625 installed). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 23 | First 4 women named to peerage in House of Lords. | Ref: 5 |
- 1959
| Mar 03 | British government arrests Hastings Banda of Nyasaland, ends emergency crisis. | Ref: 5 |
| May 24 | Empire Day renamed Commonwealth Day in England. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 04 | Cayman Islands separated from Jamaica, made a crown colony. | Ref: 5 |
- 1960
| May 09 | Nigeria becomes a member of the British Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 27 | British Somaliland becomes part of Somalia. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 18 | In Britain, the News Chronicle & Daily Mail merge, & The London Evening Star merges with the Evening News. | Ref: 5 |
- 1961
| Jan 20 | Arthur M Ramsay becomes archbishop of Canterbury. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 29 | Britain is refused entry into the common market | Ref: 62 |
| Feb 01 | British minister Enoch Powell makes medical insurance more expensive. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 06 | First London minicabs introduced. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 15 | South Africa withdraws from British Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 17 | South Africa leaves British Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 27 | In England, Arthur Michael Ramsey was enthroned as the 100th Archbishop of Canterbury, the principal see of the Established Church of England. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 10 | England applies for membership in the European Common Market. | Ref: 5 |
- 1962
| Mar 03 | British Antarctic Territory is formed. | Ref: 5 |
| May 08 | London trolley buses go out of service | Ref: 2 |
| May 25 | The rebuilt Coventry Cathedral was consecrated | Ref: 62 |
- 1963
| Mar 22 | British Minister of War John Profumo denies having sex with Christine Keeler. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 22 | Profumo scandal at the Old Bailey in London; Minister John Profumo consorting with prostitutes. | Ref: 10 |
| Dec 10 | Zanzibar becomes independent within British Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 19 | Zanzibar becomes independent from UK. | Ref: 5 |
- 1964
| Sep 04 | Forth Road Bridge opens in England over the "Firth of Forth". | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 25 | Eleven nations give a total of $3 billion to rescue the value of the British currency. | Ref: 2 |
- 1965
| Mar 04 | David Attenbrough became the new controller of BBC2. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 26 | Republic of Maldives gains independence from Britain (Nat'l Day). | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 31 | Britain bans cigarette advertising on TV. | Ref: 10 |
| Oct 08 | Post Office Tower, highest building in London, opens. | Ref: 10 |
| Oct 11 | Rhodesia proclaimed independence from Britain by PM Ian D Smith. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 08 | British Indian Ocean Territory established joining Aldabra, Farquhar, Desroches, Chagos. | Ref: 5 |
- 1966
| Feb 05 | BBC opens a relay radio station on Ascension Island. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 04 | North Sea Gas was first pumped ashore by BP. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 31 | Labour Party wins British parliamentary election | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 09 | The statue of Winston Churchill is dedicated at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C. | Ref: 2 |
| Apr 16 | Rhodesian PM Ian Smith breaks diplomatic relations with Britain. | Ref: 5 |
- 1967
| Feb 27 | Antigua & St Christopher-Nevis become associated states of UK. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 01 | Queen Elizabeth Hall (South Bank Center) opens in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 18 | Torrey Canyon oil tanker disaster disgorges 30,000 tons of crude oil off Cornwall, England. | Ref: 17 |
| Jul 27 | Sexual offenses act in Britain decriminalises homosexual acts between consenting adults. | Ref: 10 |
| Aug 15 | England's Marine Offense Bill making pirate radio stations a crime goes into effect, pirate station Radio 355 closes down. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 10 | Gibraltar votes 12,138 to 44 to remain British. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 30 | BBC starts their own popular music radio station. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 29 | British troops withdraw from Aden. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 30 | Kuria Muria islands ceded by Britain to Oman. | Ref: 5 |
- 1968
| Apr 18 | London Bridge is sold to US oil company (to be erected in Arizona). | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 26 | Theatre censorship ends in Britain; the US musical Hair opens tomorrow with nude characters. | Ref: 10 |
| Nov 15 | The RMS Queen Elizabeth, in its day the largest ocean liner ever built, ends her last voyage as a passenger carrier. | Ref: 3 |
- 1969
| Mar 19 | British invade Anguilla. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 14 | British troops arrived in Northern Ireland to intervene in sectarian violence between Protestants and Roman Catholics. | Ref: 70 |
| Oct 27 | St Vincent & the Grenadines gains associated status with Britain. | Ref: 5 |
- 1970
| Jan 01 | Great Britain lowes the age for voting, making contracts and holding property to 18. | Ref: 17 |
| Mar 13 | 18 year olds in England can now vote. | Ref: 10 |
| Apr 24 | Gambia becomes a republic within the Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 23 | Two canisters of CS gas (type used by Britain in Northern Ireland) are thrown into the House of Commons | Ref: 62 |
- 1971
| Jan 11 | First "Quickie" Divorce granted in UK. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 14 | British begin internment without trial in Northern Ireland. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 10 | Two women are tarred and feathered in Belfast for dating British soldiers, while in Londonderry, Northern Ireland a Catholic girl is also tarred and feathered for her intention of marrying a British soldier. | Ref: 2 |
- 1972
| Jan 30 | Pakistan withdraws from the Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Jan 30 | Thirteen Roman Catholic civil rights marchers were shot to death by British soldiers in Northern Ireland on what became known as "Bloody Sunday." | Ref: 70 |
| Feb 17 | British Parliament votes to join European Common Market. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 24 | Great Britain imposes direct rule over Northern Ireland. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 30 | London takes over rule of Northern Ireland. (Northern Ireland Temporary Provisions Act). | Ref: 10 |
| Apr 19 | Bangladesh becomes a member of British Commonwealth. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 26 | Sir Francis Chichester, English adventurer; sailed solo around the world, dies at age 70. | Ref: 70 |
- 1973
| Mar 17 | Queen Elizabeth II opens new London Bridge. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 22 | Great Britain announces a plan for moderate Protestants and Catholics to share power in Northern Ireland. | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 13 | Great Britain cuts the work week to three days to save energy. | Ref: 2 |
- 1974
| Feb 28 | Labour Party wins British parliamentary election. | Ref: 5 |
| May 08 | 50 MPH speed limit in Britain lifted | Ref: 2 |
| May 14 | In the Anglican Church in England, the Rev. F. Donald Coggan, 64, was named the 101st Archbishop of Canterbury by Queen Elizabeth II, succeeding former Archbishop Michael Ramsey. | Ref: 5 |
| May 29 | Northern Ireland is brought under direct rule from Westminster. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 01 | Monmouthshire renamed Gwent & becomes part of Wales | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 12 | The first salmon was caught in the Thames river since the 1840's | Ref: 62 |
| Dec 22 | 2nd cease-fire between IRA & British; lasts until approximately April 1975. | Ref: 5 |
- 1975
| Jan 16 | The Irish Republican Army calls an end to a 25-day cease fire in Belfast. | Ref: 2 |
| Jan 24 | Rev. F. Donald Coggan, 66, was consecrated the 101st Archbishop of Canterbury (primate of Anglicanism). In the audience was Johannes Cardinal Willebrands Ä the first Vatican representative to attend this Anglican ceremony since the time of the Reformation. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 06 | British voters decide to remain in Common Market. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 11 | First oil pumped ashore from Britain's north sea oil fields. | Ref: 10 |
- 1976
| Feb 19 | Britain slashes welfare spending. | Ref: 2 |
| Mar 05 | Britain gives up on the Ulster talks and decides to retain rule in Northern Ireland indefinitely. | Ref: 2 |
- 1979
| Mar 28 | British government of Callaghan falls. | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 09 | First nude beach in Britain revealed at Brighton. | Ref: 10 |
- 1980
| May 05 | A siege at the Iranian embassy in London ended as British commandos and police stormed the building. | Ref: 5 |
| Dec 19 | Anguilla becomes a British dependency separate from St Kitts. | Ref: 5 |
- 1981
| Feb 24 | Buckingham Palace announced the engagement of Britain's Prince Charles to Lady Diana Spencer. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 13 | A scare occurred during a parade in London when a teen-ager fired six blank shots at Queen Elizabeth II. | Ref: 5 |
| Sep 21 | Belize gains independence from Britain (National Day). | Ref: 5 |
- 1982
| Apr 02 | Several thousand troops from Argentina seize the disputed Falkland Islands, located in the south Atlantic, from Britain. (Britain seized the islands back the following June.) | Ref: 70 |
| Apr 03 | Britain dispatches a naval task force to the south Atlantic to reclaim the disputed Falkland Islands from Argentina. (XDG, p 6A, 4/03/2003) | Ref: 83 |
| Apr 05 | Lord Carrington, British foreign secretary resigns due to Falkland Islands war. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 26 | Argentina surrenders to Britain on S Georgia near Falkland Island. | Ref: 5 |
| May 02 | Falklands War: Argentine cruiser General Belgrano sunk by British submarine Conqueror, killing more than 350 men. | Ref: 5 |
| May 03 | A British submarine sinks Argentina's only cruiser during the Falkland Islands War. | Ref: 2 |
| May 04 | British torpedo boat Sheffield off Falkland hit by Exocet rocket. | Ref: 5 |
| May 21 | British troops lands on Falkland Islands. | Ref: 5 |
| May 23 | BBC warns Britain will bomb Argentina. | Ref: 5 |
| May 26 | British ship Atlantic Conveyor & Coventry were hit in Falkland war. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 14 | The large Argentine garrison in Port Stanley (capital and only town in the Falkland Islands) was overrun by British troops, effectively ending the Falklands War . Argentina had invaded the British dependent territory(ies) in April 1982. During the brief war, Argentina suffered 655 killed, while Britain lost 236. | Ref: 4 |
| Jun 16 | Britain requests Argentina arrange for return of prisoners. | Ref: 5 |
| Jul 09 | Margaret Thatcher begins her 2nd term as British prime minster. | Ref: 5 |
| Oct 11 | English ship Mary Rose, which sank during an engagement with France in 1545, raised at Portsmouth, England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1984
| May 08 | Thames Barrier to stop flooding in London officially completed | Ref: 2 |
| Dec 19 | Britain and China signed an accord returning Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty on July 1st, 1997. | Ref: 70 |
- 1985
| Jan 23 | Debate in Britain's House of Lords was carried live on television for the first time. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 15 | Britain and Ireland signed an accord giving Dublin an official consultative role in governing Northern Ireland. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 27 | The British House of Commons approved the Anglo-Irish accord giving Dublin a consultative role in the governing of British-ruled Northern Ireland. | Ref: 70 |
| Dec 06 | UK joins US Star Wars project. | Ref: 5 |
- 1986
| Mar 04 | "Today" debuted in London as England’s newest national daily newspaper. It boasted a staff of 550 people, as compared with the 6,000 person staff over at the London Daily Express. | Ref: 4 |
| Mar 05 | "Today" tabloid launched (Britain's first national color newspaper). | Ref: 5 |
| May 24 | Margaret Thatcher becomes first British PM to visit Israel. | Ref: 5 |
- 1987
| Jan 12 | Britain's Prince Edward resigns from his Royal Marines training. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 11 | Margaret Thatcher became the first British prime minister in 160 years to win a third consecutive term in office. | Ref: 70 |
- 1988
| Jan 03 | Margaret Thatcher becomes Britain's longest-serving Prime Minister in 20th Century (elected 4/79) | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 11 | £ note ceases to be legal tender, replaced by £ coin. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 19 | Two British soldiers were shot to death after they were dragged from a car and beaten by mourners attending an Irish Republican Army funeral in Belfast, Northern Ireland. | Ref: 70 |
| Oct 20 | Britain ends suspects right to remain silent in crackdown on IRA. | Ref: 5 |
- 1989
| Nov 21 | The proceedings of Britain's House of Commons were televised live for the first time. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 26 | The proceedings of Britain's House of Commons were televised live for the first time. | Ref: 70 |
- 1990
| Jan 28 | "Independent on Sunday" begins publishing in London. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 31 | There are violent riots against the new British Poll Tax in London | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 01 | Last of Margaret Thatcher's original cabinet resigns, Deputy PM Sir Geoffrey Howe. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 14 | Michael Heseltine contests Thatcher's leadership of the party. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 22 | British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher failed to win reelection as leader of the Conservative Party (over differences on European Community policy) and announced her resignation after eleven years in office. | Ref: 4 |
| Nov 27 | Britain's Conservatives choose John Major to succeed Margaret Thatcher as party leader, paving the way for his appointment as Prime Minister. (XDG, p 4A, 11/27/2000) | Ref: 83 |
- 1991
| Mar 14 | The "Birmingham Six," imprisoned for 16 years for their alleged part in an IRA pub bombing, are set free after a court agrees that the police fabricated evidence. | Ref: 2 |
| May 14 | Britain's Queen Elizabeth the Second arrived in Washington to begin a two-week visit to the United States. | Ref: 6 |
- 1992
| Jan 15 | Cleaning woman finds intimate photos of Sarah Ferguson with US man. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 06 | Britain Radio Authority licenses Virgin & TV-AM radio licenses. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 20 | Fire erupted at Windsor Castle, Queen Elizabeth's official residence west of London, causing much damage. The queen and Prince Andrew pitched in to help save priceless artworks and other valuables housed in the fortress. The fire burned for 15 hours damaging or destroying nine principal rooms and over a hundred other rooms. It took a million and a half gallons of water to put out the blaze. The next five years would be spent restoring the Castle to its former glory. | Ref: 4 |
| Nov 26 | The British government announced that Queen Elizabeth II had volunteered to start paying taxes on her personal income, and would take her children off the public payroll. | Ref: 70 |
- 1993
| Apr 29 | Britain's Queen Elizabeth II announces that for the first time tours of Buckingham Palace would be opened to tourists to help raise money fior the repairs at fire-damaged Windsor Castle. (XDG, p 6A, 4/29/2003) | Ref: 83 |
| Dec 03 | Britain's Princess Diana, saying she was fed up with the media's intrusions into her life, announced that she would be limiting her public appearances. (XDG, p 4A, 12/03/2003) | Ref: 83 |
| Dec 15 | British premier major/Irish premier Reynolds signs Downing Street Declaration concerning Northern Ireland self determination. | Ref: 5 |
- 1994
| Jan 11 | Irish government announces end of a 20-year broadcasting ban on IRA. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 09 | IRA launch first of 3 mortar attacks on London's Heathrow Airport. | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 12 | Church of England ordains its first 33 women priests. | Ref: 5 |
| May 05 | Labour beats Conservatives in British local elections. | Ref: 5 |
| Nov 19 | First National Lottery draw in England. | Ref: 5 |
- 1995
| Mar 22 | Deputy Governor of Bank of England, Rupert Pennant-Rea, resigns following revelations of his affair with a freelance journalist. | Ref: 5 |
| May 10 | Britain lifts a 23-year ban on ministerial talks with Sinn Fein | Ref: 2 |
- 1996
| Jan 06 | Record $65.2 million British lottery won by 3 people (2-3-4-13-42-44). | Ref: 5 |
| Mar 07 | British Steel in Workington wins Lithuanian multi-million £ order. | Ref: 5 |
- 1997
| Apr 30 | Big Ben stops at 12:11 PM for 54 minutes. | Ref: 5 |
| Jun 09 | British lease on New Territories in Hong Kong expires | Ref: 5 |
| Aug 06 | British Prime Minister Tony Blair shook hands with Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams in the first meeting in 76 years between a British leader and the IRA's allies. | Ref: 70 |
| Sep 09 | Sinn Fein, the IRA's political ally, formally renounced violence as it took its place in talks on Northern Ireland's future. | Ref: 70 |
| Sep 11 | Scots voted to create their own Parliament after 290 years of union with England. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 24 | New British Library opens at St. Pancras, eight years late. | Ref: 10 |
- 1998
| Feb 27 | With the approval of Queen Elizabeth II, Britain's House of Lords agreed to end 1,000 years of male preference by giving a monarch's first-born daughter the same claim to the throne as any first born son. | Ref: 70 |
| Mar 06 | First time the British flag is flown over Buckingham Palace. | Ref: 5 |
| Apr 09 | The Northern Ireland peace talks concluded as negotiators reached a landmark settlement to end 30 years of bitter rivalries and bloody attacks. | Ref: 6 |
| May 23 | Official returns showed two convincing "yes" votes for the Northern Ireland peace accord in British-linked Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. | Ref: 6 |
| Jul 06 | Protestants rioted in many parts of Northern Ireland after British authorities blocked an Orange Order march in Portadown. | Ref: 70 |
| Nov 26 | In the first speech ever by a British prime minister to an Irish parliament, Tony Blair predicted that Northern Ireland's troubled peace accord would ultimately work because of a strengthened cooperative spirit uniting Britain and Ireland. | Ref: 70 |
- 1999
| Jan 31 | Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams arrives in New York after being granted a 48-hour visa so that he could take part in a conference on Northern Ireland. (XDG, p 4A, 1/31/2004) | Ref: 83 |
| Nov 06 | Australians rejected a referendum to drop Britain's queen as their head of state. | Ref: 70 |
- 2000
| Feb 11 | Britain stripped Northern Ireland's Protestant-Catholic government of power in a bid to prevent its collapse over the IRA's refusal to disarm. | Ref: 70 |
| May 04 | Londoners chose political maverick Ken Livingstone to be their first elected mayor. | Ref: 6 |
| Jul 05 | Actor Sean Connery is knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in a ceremony at the Palace of Holyrodhouse. | Ref: 9 |
| Jul 24 | Michael Stone, a pro-British paramilitary member, was freed from prison as part of Northern Ireland's 1998 peace accord after serving eleven years of a life sentence for murder. | Ref: 6 |
| Sep 03 | A French judge closed a two-year inquiry into the car crash that killed Princess Diana, dismissing all charges against nine photographers and a press motorcyclist, and concluding the accident was caused by an inebriated driver. | Ref: 6 |
- 2002
| Sep 22 | Biggest peaceful street protest in Britain by Countryside Alliance 407,791 march in London. | Ref: 10 |
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British History Chronology