World History Timeline

Timeline

341 events

20th century

  1. April 13, 1919★★★★★

    Jallianwala Bagh massacre

    Troops under General Reginald Dyer fire on an unarmed crowd in Amritsar, killing hundreds and fuelling anti-colonial sentiment.

    Politics· India, United Kingdom
  2. May 4, 1919★★★★★

    May Fourth Movement

    Beijing students protest the Paris Peace Conference's Shandong decision, sparking a wave of nationalism and cultural renewal.

    PoliticsCulture· China
  3. June 28, 1919★★★★★

    Treaty of Versailles

    The peace treaty ending the war between Germany and the Allies is signed in the Hall of Mirrors, imposing war guilt, territorial losses and heavy reparations on Germany.

    Treaty· France, Germany, United Kingdom, United States, Italy
  5. 1921★★★★★

    Mongolian Revolution of 1921

    With Soviet Red Army support, Mongolian revolutionaries led by Sükhbaatar take power, paving the way for a socialist state.

    Revolution· Mongolia, Russia
  6. July 1921★★★★★

    Chinese Communist Party founded

    The First National Congress meets in Shanghai, formally founding the Chinese Communist Party.

    Politics· China
  7. January 1922★★★★★

    Insulin first used to treat diabetes

    In Toronto, insulin isolated by Frederick Banting's team is first injected into a diabetic patient, turning a fatal disease into a manageable one.

    ScienceDisease· Canada
  8. October 28, 1922★★★★★

    March on Rome

    Benito Mussolini's Fascists march on Rome; King Victor Emmanuel III appoints Mussolini prime minister, beginning Fascist rule in Italy.

    Politics· Italy
  9. November 4, 1922★★★★★

    Discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb

    Archaeologist Howard Carter discovers the nearly intact tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings, causing a worldwide sensation.

    CultureExploration· Egypt
  10. December 6, 1922★★★★★

    Irish Free State established

    Under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State is established as a self-governing dominion of the British Commonwealth.

    Politics· Ireland, United Kingdom
  11. December 30, 1922★★★★★

    Founding of the Soviet Union

    The Treaty on the Creation of the USSR unites Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the Transcaucasian Federation into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

    Politics· Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan
  12. September 1, 1923★★★★★

    Great Kantō earthquake

    A powerful earthquake and ensuing fires devastate Tokyo and Yokohama, killing more than 100,000 people.

    Disaster· Japan
  13. October 29, 1923★★★★★

    Republic of Turkey proclaimed

    The Grand National Assembly proclaims the Republic of Turkey, with Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk) as its first president.

    PoliticsRevolution· Turkey
  14. January 21, 1924★★★★★

    Death of Lenin

    Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet state, dies after a series of strokes, opening a power struggle won by Stalin.

    DeathPolitics· Russia
  15. March 3, 1924★★★★★

    Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate

    The Turkish parliament abolishes the caliphate, ending an institution dating back to the first caliphs of Islam.

    PoliticsReligion· Turkey
  16. March 12, 1925★★★★★

    Death of Sun Yat-sen

    The revolutionary revered as the 'Father of the Nation' of the Republic of China dies in Beijing.

    Death· China, Taiwan
  17. 1926★★★★★

    Founding of Caodaism

    Caodaism, a syncretic religion, is formally founded in Cochinchina, with its Holy See at Tây Ninh.

    Religion· Vietnam
  18. 1926★★★★★

    Death of Phan Châu Trinh

    Reformist Phan Châu Trinh dies in Saigon; his funeral becomes a nationwide patriotic demonstration.

    Death· Vietnam
  19. 1926 – 1928★★★★★

    Northern Expedition

    The National Revolutionary Army under Chiang Kai-shek marches north, defeats the warlords and nominally reunifies China.

    War· China
  20. January 26, 1926★★★★★

    Baird demonstrates television

    John Logie Baird demonstrates a mechanical television system transmitting live moving images in London.

    Technology· United Kingdom
  22. May 20, 1927 – May 21, 1927★★★★★

    Lindbergh's solo transatlantic flight

    Charles Lindbergh flies solo and nonstop from New York to Paris in the Spirit of St. Louis.

    TechnologyExploration· United States, France
  23. October 6, 1927★★★★★

    The Jazz Singer premieres

    The Jazz Singer, the first feature-length film with synchronised dialogue, premieres in New York, launching the era of talking pictures.

    CultureArtTechnology· United States
  24. September 28, 1928★★★★★

    Fleming discovers penicillin

    Alexander Fleming notices Penicillium mould killing bacteria, paving the way for the antibiotic era.

    Science· United Kingdom
  25. 1929★★★★★

    Hubble shows the universe is expanding

    Edwin Hubble publishes the relation between galaxies' distances and recession velocities, evidence that the universe is expanding.

    Science· United States
  26. January 15, 1929★★★★★

    Birth of Martin Luther King Jr.

    Martin Luther King Jr., leader of the American civil rights movement, is born in Atlanta, Georgia.

    Birth· United States
  27. October 24, 1929 – October 29, 1929★★★★★

    Wall Street Crash of 1929

    The New York stock market collapses in late October, heralding the Great Depression that spreads around the world.

    Economy· United States
  28. February 3, 1930★★★★★

    Founding of the Communist Party of Vietnam

    A conference chaired by Nguyễn Ái Quốc (Hồ Chí Minh) in Hong Kong merges Vietnamese communist groups into the Communist Party of Vietnam.

    Politics· Vietnam, Hong Kong
  29. February 10, 1930★★★★★

    Yên Bái mutiny

    Vietnamese colonial soldiers organised by the VNQDĐ mutiny at Yên Bái; the revolt fails and Nguyễn Thái Học is executed.

    WarRevolution· Vietnam, France
  30. February 18, 1930★★★★★

    Discovery of Pluto

    Clyde Tombaugh discovers Pluto at Lowell Observatory; in 2006 it is reclassified as a dwarf planet.

    Science· United States
  31. March 12, 1930 – April 6, 1930★★★★★

    Gandhi's Salt March

    Gandhi leads a nonviolent march to Dandi to make salt in defiance of the British salt tax, launching the civil disobedience movement.

    PoliticsRevolution· India
  32. July 13, 1930 – July 30, 1930★★★★★

    First FIFA World Cup

    The first World Cup is held in Uruguay; the hosts win the title, beating Argentina 4–2 in the final.

    Culture· Uruguay
  33. November 2, 1930★★★★★

    Coronation of Haile Selassie

    Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned Emperor of Ethiopia as Haile Selassie I; he reigned until 1974 and became a symbol of African independence.

    DynastyPolitics· Ethiopia
  34. September 18, 1931★★★★★

    Mukden Incident

    Japan's Kwantung Army stages a railway explosion near Mukden as a pretext for invading Manchuria.

    War· China, Japan
  35. June 24, 1932★★★★★

    Siamese revolution of 1932

    The People's Party (Khana Ratsadon) stages a bloodless coup, transforming Siam from an absolute to a constitutional monarchy.

    RevolutionPolitics· Thailand
  37. January 30, 1933★★★★★

    Hitler appointed Chancellor of Germany

    President Paul von Hindenburg appoints Adolf Hitler Chancellor; the Nazis rapidly dismantle Weimar democracy and establish a dictatorship.

    Politics· Germany
  39. 1934 – 1935★★★★★

    Long March

    The Chinese Red Army retreats thousands of kilometres from Nationalist forces; Mao Zedong emerges as leader during the march.

    WarPolitics· China
  40. July 17, 1936 – April 1, 1939★★★★★

    Spanish Civil War

    Nationalists led by Francisco Franco fight the Republicans; Franco's victory leads to a dictatorship lasting until 1975.

    War· Spain
  41. 1937★★★★★

    Picasso paints Guernica

    Pablo Picasso completes Guernica in response to the bombing of the Basque town during the Spanish Civil War; it becomes an enduring anti-war icon.

    Art· France, Spain
  42. April 26, 1937★★★★★

    Bombing of Guernica

    German and Italian aircraft supporting the Nationalists bomb the Basque town of Guernica, an event depicted in Picasso's famous painting.

    WarDisaster· Spain, Germany, Italy
  43. July 7, 1937★★★★★

    Marco Polo Bridge Incident

    A clash between Japanese and Chinese troops near Beijing begins the full-scale Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945).

    War· China, Japan
  44. December 13, 1937 – 1938★★★★★

    Nanjing Massacre

    After capturing Nanjing, the Imperial Japanese Army kills large numbers of Chinese prisoners and civilians over several weeks.

    War· China, Japan
  45. September 30, 1938★★★★★

    Munich Agreement

    Britain, France, Italy and Germany agree to Germany's annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland, the high point of the appeasement of Hitler.

    TreatyPolitics· Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Czechia
  46. November 9, 1938 – November 10, 1938★★★★★

    Kristallnacht

    An organised pogrom against Jews across Germany and Austria destroys thousands of shops and synagogues, with about 30,000 people arrested.

    PoliticsReligion· Germany, Austria
  47. December 1938★★★★★

    Discovery of nuclear fission

    Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann discover the fission of uranium nuclei; Lise Meitner and Otto Frisch explain the process shortly after.

    Science· Germany
  48. May 1939 – September 1939★★★★★

    Battles of Khalkhin Gol

    Soviet and Mongolian forces under Georgy Zhukov defeat the Japanese on the Mongolian–Manchurian border.

    War· Mongolia, Japan, Russia, China
  49. August 23, 1939★★★★★

    Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact

    Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union sign a non-aggression pact with a secret protocol dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of influence.

    Treaty· Germany, Russia, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland
  50. 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
Timeline · World History Timeline