World History Timeline

Timeline

42 events

18th century

  1. 1754 – 1763★★★★★

    French and Indian War

    Britain and France, with their Indigenous allies, fight for control of North America; France is defeated and loses most of its territory on the continent.

    War· United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France
  2. 1756 – 1763★★★★★

    Seven Years' War

    A global conflict among the European powers fought in Europe, North America and India; Britain gains colonial supremacy and Prussia confirms its great-power status.

    War· United Kingdom, France, Germany, Austria, Russia, Spain, United States, Canada, India
  3. April 19, 1775★★★★★

    Battles of Lexington and Concord

    The first clashes between colonial militia and British troops in Massachusetts begin the American Revolutionary War.

    WarRevolution· United States, United Kingdom
  4. October 17, 1777★★★★★

    British surrender at Saratoga

    British General John Burgoyne surrenders to the Continental Army at Saratoga, a victory that helps bring France into an alliance with the Americans.

    War· United States, United Kingdom
  5. October 19, 1781★★★★★

    British surrender at Yorktown

    General Cornwallis surrenders to American and French forces at Yorktown, Virginia, effectively ending major fighting in the American Revolutionary War.

    War· United States, United Kingdom, France

19th century

  1. June 18, 1812 – 1815★★★★★

    War of 1812

    The United States declares war on Britain; fighting in North America and at sea ends with the Treaty of Ghent and no change in borders.

    War· United States, United Kingdom, Canada
  2. March 6, 1836★★★★★

    Battle of the Alamo

    Mexican troops under General Santa Anna storm the Alamo in San Antonio, killing its Texan defenders; the battle becomes a symbol of the Texas Revolution.

    War· United States, Mexico
  3. 1846 – 1848★★★★★

    Mexican–American War

    War between the United States and Mexico following the US annexation of Texas; Mexico is defeated and loses about half of its territory.

    War· United States, Mexico
  4. April 12, 1861 – 1865★★★★★

    American Civil War

    War between the Union and the seceding Confederate states, centred on slavery, ending in Union victory and the abolition of slavery.

    War· United States
  5. April 12, 1861 – April 13, 1861★★★★★

    Battle of Fort Sumter

    Confederate forces bombard Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, opening the American Civil War.

    War· United States
  6. July 1, 1863 – July 3, 1863★★★★★

    Battle of Gettysburg

    Union forces defeat Robert E. Lee's army in Pennsylvania in the bloodiest battle of the Civil War, a turning point of the conflict.

    War· United States
  8. June 25, 1876 – June 26, 1876★★★★★

    Battle of the Little Bighorn

    Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors defeat the US 7th Cavalry Regiment led by George Armstrong Custer.

    War· United States
  9. December 29, 1890★★★★★

    Wounded Knee Massacre

    US Army troops kill hundreds of Lakota people, many of them women and children, at Wounded Knee, South Dakota.

    War· United States
  10. April 1898 – December 10, 1898★★★★★

    Spanish–American War

    The United States defeats Spain, gaining Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines, while Cuba is freed from Spanish rule.

    War· United States, Spain, Cuba, Philippines, Puerto Rico
  11. 1899 – 1902★★★★★

    Philippine–American War

    After Spain cedes the Philippines to the United States, forces of the Philippine Republic fight American rule but are defeated.

    War· Philippines, United States

20th century

  1. April 6, 1917★★★★★

    United States enters World War I

    The US Congress declares war on the German Empire, bringing the United States into World War I on the Allied side.

    War· United States, Germany
  2. September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945★★★★★

    World War II

    Germany invades Poland, starting the deadliest conflict in human history, which ends with Japan's formal surrender on 2 September 1945.

    War· Germany, Poland, United Kingdom, France, Russia, United States, Japan, China
  3. December 7, 1941★★★★★

    Attack on Pearl Harbor

    The Imperial Japanese Navy launches a surprise attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, bringing the United States into World War II.

    War· United States, Japan
  4. June 6, 1944★★★★★

    D-Day: the Normandy landings

    Allied forces carry out the largest seaborne invasion in history on the Normandy coast, opening a Western Front to liberate Western Europe.

    War· France, United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany
  5. April 1, 1945 – June 22, 1945★★★★★

    Battle of Okinawa

    One of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific War, causing heavy losses among soldiers and Okinawan civilians.

    War· Japan, United States
  6. May 8, 1945★★★★★

    Victory in Europe Day

    The Allies formally accept Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender, ending the Second World War in Europe.

    War· Germany, United Kingdom, United States, France, Russia
  7. August 6, 1945★★★★★

    Atomic bombing of Hiroshima

    The United States drops the first atomic bomb used in war on Hiroshima, killing tens of thousands instantly.

    WarDisaster· Japan, United States
  8. September 2, 1945★★★★★

    Surrender of Japan

    Japan signs the Instrument of Surrender aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, formally ending the Second World War.

    WarTreaty· Japan, United States
  9. June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1953★★★★★

    Korean War

    North Korean forces cross the 38th parallel; the war, drawing in US-led UN forces and China, ends in an armistice in 1953.

    War· South Korea, North Korea, China, United States
  10. November 1, 1955 – April 30, 1975★★★★★

    Vietnam War

    A conflict between North Vietnam and the Viet Cong on one side and South Vietnam, backed by the United States and its allies, on the other; it ends with the fall of Saigon in 1975.

    War· Vietnam, United States, Laos, Cambodia
  11. April 17, 1961 – April 20, 1961★★★★★

    Bay of Pigs Invasion

    CIA-backed Cuban exiles land at the Bay of Pigs in an attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro but are defeated within days.

    War· Cuba, United States
  12. 1962 – 1971★★★★★

    Operation Ranch Hand

    The US Air Force sprays herbicides, including dioxin-contaminated Agent Orange, over large areas of South Vietnam, with lasting health and environmental effects.

    WarDisaster· Vietnam, United States
  13. January 2, 1963★★★★★

    Battle of Ấp Bắc

    A smaller Viet Cong force repels an attack by South Vietnamese troops with US advisers near Mỹ Tho.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  14. August 2, 1964 – August 7, 1964★★★★★

    Gulf of Tonkin incident

    A clash between USS Maddox and North Vietnamese torpedo boats leads Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, enabling US escalation.

    WarPolitics· Vietnam, United States
  15. March 2, 1965 – November 2, 1968★★★★★

    Operation Rolling Thunder

    A sustained US aerial bombing campaign against North Vietnam.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  16. March 8, 1965★★★★★

    US Marines land at Đà Nẵng

    Two battalions of US Marines land at Đà Nẵng, the first American ground combat units deployed to Vietnam.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  17. November 14, 1965 – November 18, 1965★★★★★

    Battle of Ia Drang

    The first major battle between US Army forces and the North Vietnamese army, fought in the Central Highlands.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  18. January 21, 1968 – July 9, 1968★★★★★

    Battle of Khe Sanh

    North Vietnamese forces besiege the US Marine base at Khe Sanh in Quảng Trị; US forces abandon the base in July.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  19. January 30, 1968 – September 1968★★★★★

    Tet Offensive

    North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces attack more than 100 cities and towns in the South; despite heavy losses, the offensive erodes US public support for the war.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  20. March 16, 1968★★★★★

    Mỹ Lai massacre

    US soldiers of Charlie Company kill hundreds of unarmed civilians at Sơn Mỹ, Quảng Ngãi; the killings become public in 1969.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  21. March 30, 1972 – October 1972★★★★★

    Easter Offensive

    North Vietnam launches a large conventional offensive on three fronts in the South, including prolonged fighting at Quảng Trị.

    War· Vietnam, United States
  22. December 18, 1972 – December 29, 1972★★★★★

    Operation Linebacker II

    The United States carries out intensive B-52 bombing of Hanoi and Haiphong for twelve days, known in Vietnam as the "Điện Biên Phủ in the air".

    War· Vietnam, United States
  23. March 29, 1973★★★★★

    Last US combat troops leave Vietnam

    The last US combat units leave South Vietnam under the terms of the Paris Peace Accords.

    WarPolitics· Vietnam, United States
  24. April 30, 1975★★★★★

    Fall of Saigon

    North Vietnamese forces enter the Independence Palace; the Republic of Vietnam surrenders, ending the Vietnam War.

    WarPolitics· Vietnam, United States
  25. January 17, 1991 – February 28, 1991★★★★★

    Gulf War

    A US-led coalition launches Operation Desert Storm, expelling Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

    War· Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United States

21st century

  1. March 20, 2003 – December 2011★★★★★

    Iraq War

    A US-led coalition invades Iraq and topples Saddam Hussein, beginning a long period of occupation and conflict.

    War· Iraq, United States, United Kingdom
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