Browse Historical Events by Month:
The Bastille, a French royal fortress and prison and a symbol of the absolute power and tyranny of the French monarchy, is stormed by Paris revolutionaries.
It marked the beginning of a tumultuous period in the French Revolution, ultimately leading to the overthrow of the monarchy and the establishment of the French Republic. It is now commemorated in France as Bastille Day, a national holiday. More
President George Washington signs the Residence Act bill which approved the creation of a national capital on the Potomac River. The bill declared that the exact location was to be selected by President Washington. The initial shape of the federal district was a square from land donated by Maryland and Virginia, measuring 10 miles (16 km) on each side and totaling 100 square miles (259 km2). More
The United States takes possession of Detroit from the British during the American Revolutionary War, in accordance with the terms of the Jay Treaty, officially the Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation, was an agreement signed in 1794 between the United States and Great Britain. More
The U.S. House of Representatives notifies the Senate of the Impeachment of North Carolina's Senator William Blount for high crimes and misdemeanors. The Senate trial which did not begin until December,1798 ended on January 14, 1799, as the Senate dismissed the case on jurisdictional grounds, leaving many issues unsettled, most importantly the question, "was a senator a civil officer of the United States and therefore liable to impeachment?" Although the Senate failed to voice its opinion on that matter, its dismissal of the Blount case set a precedent that still holds today—a U.S. senator cannot be impeached. More
The U.S. Marine Corps, initially established on November 10, 1775, as the Continental Marines and disbanded after the Revolutionary War is formally re-established under President John Adams. Marines saw action in the quasi-war with France, landed in Santo Domingo, and took part in many operations against the Barbary pirates along the shores of Tripoli. The birth date of the United States Marine Corps is celebrated as November 10, 1975 More
After capturing Alexandria and crossing the desert, Napoleon Bonaparte and his French troops defeat the infantry and cavalry of the Mamluks, the soldiers of the Ottoman Turks, in a decisive victory at the Battle of the Pyramids, (also known as the Battle of Embabeh). The victory opened the doors to the conquest of Cairo. More
The Rosetta Stone is found in the Egyptian village of Rosetta, providing a key to deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. The large inscribed stone fragment was uncovered by the French officer Pierre François Xavier Bouchard on a tributary of the Nile near the Mediterranean coast east of Alexandria where Napoleon’s forces were constructing fortifications. More
Awikimate, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
President Thomas Jefferson officially announces the Louisiana Purchase from Francia on July 4, 1803, doubling the nation's size. The deal, which was finalized in Paris on April 30, 1803, added over 800,000 square miles, stretching from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. doubling the size of the country and supporting westward expansion.
Vice President Aaron Burr fatally shoots his long-time political antagonist Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton, a leading Federalist and the chief architect of America’s political economy, died the following day. More
Shawnee Chief Tecumseh calls on all Native peoples to unite and resist the growing loss land to the white settlers. proposing that if united, the various tribes had enough strength to stop the white settlers. More
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, declares Independence from Spain. Colombia is located primarily located in South America with insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuela to the east and northeast, Brazil to the southeast, Peru and Ecuador to the south and southwest, the Pacific Ocean to the west, and Panama to the northwest.
Venezuela declares its independence from Spain.
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, declares its independence from Spain. Argentina is located in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of 2,780,085 km², making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourth-largest country in the Americas, and the eighth-largest country in the world. Argentina's capital is Buenos Aires and has a 2023 reported population of 45.5 Million people.
Peru, officially The Republic of Peru, declares its independence from Spain. Peru is a country in western South America. It is bordered to the north by Ecuador and Colombia, to the east by Brazil, to the southeast by Bolivia, to the south by Chile, and to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean. Peru has a population of over 32 million, and its capital and largest city is Lima Peru's with a metropolitan population exceeding 11 Million people.
Peru is a megadiverse country, with habitats ranging from the arid plains of the Pacific coastal region in the west, to the peaks of the Andes mountains extending from the north to the southeast of the country, to the tropical Amazon basin rainforest in the east with the Amazon River. Peru is the 19th largest country in the world, and the third largest in South America.
The United States adopts a new flag on July 4, 1822 featuring 24 stars to represent the number of states in the union after Missouri's admission on July 4, 1821. This flag, authorized by the 1818 Act of Congress added a star for each new state while keeping 13 stripes. It was used for 14 years until 1836.
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American geographer Henry Rowe Schoolcraft officially identifies Lake Itasca in south-eastern Clearwater County, in the Headwaters area of north-central Minnesota as the source of the Mississippi River.
Schoolcraft's expedition, which included the Ojibwe guide Ozawindib, explored the Upper Mississippi River region and pinpointed the lake as the river's origin. Schoolcraft named the lake "Itasca," combining the Latin words "veritas" (truth) and "caput" (head), to signify its role as the true source.
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Enslaved Africans on the Cuban schooner Amistad, led by Joseph Cinque revolt against the Spanish officers and crew who were their captors and gained control of the ship near the coast of Cuba. They were being transported to a sugar plantation at Puerto Principe, Cuba after been captured In February of 1839 by Portuguese slave hunters from Sierra Leone.
They had been captured In February of 1839 when Portuguese slave hunters abducted a large group of Africans from Sierra Leone and shipped them to Havana, Cuba. Eventually the mutineers were captured and tried in the U.S. Courts. Where the U.S. Supreme Court render a decision to freed them in 1841. The case had important political and legal repercussions in the American abolition movement. More
The Act of Union to merge Upper Canada and Lower Canada into a single entity, called the Province of Canada, was passed by the British Parliament on July 23, 1840, with the effective date of February 10, 1841.
The act was intended to address political deadlock and the perceived need to assimilate the French-speaking population of Lower Canada, though it was viewed as unfair to Lower Canada due to its economic burden and the equal representation in the new assembly despite its larger population. The act did not grant responsible government immediately, which was a system where the executive council was accountable to the elected assembly. However, it set the stage for its eventual establishment in 1848. More.
Pioneer Day. Completing a treacherous thousand-mile exodus, an ill and exhausted Brigham Young and fellow members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) arrived in Utah’s Great Salt Lake Valley. The Mormon, as they were commonly known, viewed their pioneer arrival as the founding of a Mormon homeland. hence Pioneer Day. More
Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, declares its independence. Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and southwest. It has a population of around 5.5 million. More
