May 24, 1844★★★★★
Morse's first long-distance telegraph message
Samuel Morse sends "What hath God wrought" from Washington to Baltimore, inaugurating long-distance electric telegraphy.
Technology· United States
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Events this year
Ongoing
c. 15th century – c. 1860s★★★★★
The transatlantic slave trade
From the 16th to the 19th century, an estimated 12.5 million enslaved Africans were shipped across the Atlantic to the Americas, with profound consequences for both continents.
Economy· Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Senegal, Angola, Brazil, United States, Portugal, United Kingdom
1639 – 1853★★★★★
Japan's sakoku isolation policy
The shogunate expels the Portuguese and severely restricts foreign contact, allowing only Dutch and Chinese trade at Nagasaki.
PoliticsEconomy· Japan
1799 – 1849★★★★★
Ranjit Singh takes Lahore, founding the Sikh Empire
Ranjit Singh captures Lahore and unites the Sikh confederacies into an empire in the Punjab.
PoliticsDynasty· Pakistan, India
November 3, 1839 – 1876★★★★★
Tanzimat reforms begin
The Edict of Gülhane opens the Tanzimat, a series of reforms modernising Ottoman administration, law and the army.
Politics· Turkey