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James I Becomes Ruler
Was previosly ruling Scotland as James VI. After Queen Elizabeth died hierless James (cousin) inherited the throne. -
Charles I Becomes Ruler
Son of James I, listed as the shortest king ever to rule britain. He was 24 when he started ruling. -
King Charlies I marries
King Charles I married Henrietta Maria, daughter of Henry IV of France at St Augustine's Church, Canterbury, Kent. The marriage was not popular because she was a Catholic. -
Parliament Dismissed
Parliament were unhappy with the activities of Charles' chief minister, George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham. Buckingham had led a failed mission to Cadiz and it turned out that he was planning to help the French to put down the Protestant Huguenot uprising. Parliament moved to have Buckingham dismissed from office. Charles retaliated by dismissing parliament. -
Petition of Rights
A Major constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. It had points such as: Taxation without parliaments consent, forced loans, arbitrary arrest, imprisonment contrary to Magna Carta, forced billeting of troops, imposition of martial law and finally exemption of officials from due process. -
Buckingham Assassinated
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, was stabbed to death by naval lieutenant John Felton. -
MP's Arrested
Charles arrested nine members of the Commons for offences against the state. Three were imprisoned. This action by the King made him more unpopular. The King, defended his action by stating his belief in his own divine right saying that 'Princes are not bound to give account of their actions, but to God alone.' -
King of Scotland
Charles was crowned King of Scotland at Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh. -
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was elected to Parliament for the second time. He openly criticised Charles taxes and the level of corruption in the Church of England. -
Long Parliament
Charles had to have money to pay for an efficient army with which to defeat the Scots. However, he couldn't have the money until he agreed to Parliament's demands which included an Act which stated that parliament should meet once every five years and the arrest for treason of Strafford. Charles had no choice but to comply. (lasts 13 years) -
Nineteen Propositions
The Nineteen Propositions were issued by Parliament in the hopes of reaching a settlement with the King. They called for a new constitution recognising their own supremacy; demanded that ministers and judges should be appointed by parliament not by the King and also that all Church and military matters should come under the control of Parliament. -
First Battle of Newbury
Essex's force of tired wet and hungry Parliamentarians intended to rest at Newbury, a town sympathetic to the Parliamentarians. However, Rupert had arrived there first and Essex had no choice but to fight.
Essex moved the Parliamentarians before daybreak and secured the 'Round Hill', just south of Newbury. The surrounding countryside was criss-crossed with lanes and hedgerows which offered excellent cover for the foot soldiers but was quite unsuitable for horse. Parliament won the battle -
Battle of Marston Moor
This was the largest single battle of the Civil War involving 45,000 men. Although the Royalists were outnumbered, they decided to fight. They were defeated by Parliament. For the first time since the Civil War had began Rupert's cavalry were beaten by a Parliamentarian cavalry charge. -
Second Battle of Newbury
The Royalists were sandwiched between two Parliamentary forces. Each time Parliament made some gain they were beaten back by the Royalists. The battle, which lasted all day, ended in a draw. -
Battle of Naseby
The Parliamentarians broke their siege on Oxford and forced the Royalists into battle. Initially the Royalists took up a defensive stance but later the order to attack was given. The battle lasted just three hours and saw the death of most of the Royalist foot soldiers. It was a decisive victory for Parliament. Charles fled the battlefield as soon as it was apparent that he had lost both the battle and the war. -
Surrender to the Scots
Charles I surrendered to the Scots -
Charles I Imprisoned
The Scots handed Charles over to parliament. He was imprisoned in Holdenby House, Northamptonshire. -
Charles Escapes
Charles I escaped imprisonment and fled to Carisbrooke Castle, Isle of Wight -
Charles Recaptured
Charles was recaptured and sent to Windsor Castle -
Trial of King Charles begins
King Charles was tried for treason by a High Court of Justice specially set up for the trial. The court found Charles guilty and sentenced him to death. -
Death of Charles I
Charles Stuart, as his death warrant states, was beheaded on Tuesday, 30 January 1649. That morning, he called for two shirts to prevent the cold weather causing any noticeable shivers that the crowd could have mistaken for fear or weakness -
Execution
King Charles I was executed by beheading, outside Whitehall Palace, London. He was buried in St George's Chapel, Windsor -
Thomas Newton
He created the first steam engine which was used to pump water out of the mines.He is less known for inventing the steam engine compared to James Watt, who only bettered the Newcomen model. Newcomen helped begin the Industrial Revolution with this invention of steam power. -
King George III Ascends
King George III ascends to the throne of England. -
Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris ends French and Indian War (1754-1763). Canada east of the Mississippi River added to the British empire. -
Time to move
The Proclamation of 1763 issued by King George III after the end of the French and Indian War / Seven Years' War to organize the new North American empire and stabilize relations with Native Americans. No British settlements allowed west of the Appalachian mountains. Settlers already in these areas required to return east -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act doubling the duties on foreign goods reshipped from England to the colonies. A court is established in Halifax, Nova Scotia with jurisdiction over all of the American colonies in trade matters. -
Currency Act
The Currency Act prohibiting the colonists from issuing any legal tender paper money -
James Hargreaves invents
James Hargreaves invented the Spinny Jenny which revolutionized the textile industry. His improvements to his machine by the late 1700s allowed 80 threads to be working at a time. His invention definitely pushed and improved the Industrial Revolution -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was passed by the British Parliament as a means to pay for British troops on the American frontier. Colonists violently protest the first direct tax on the American colonies. Americans were forced to pay tax directly to England. and not to their own local legislatures in America. -
Quartering Act
The Quartering Act required American colonists to house British troops and supply them with food. -
Sons of Liberty formed
The Sons of Liberty is formed - a secret organization opposed to the Stamp Act -
Boston Merchants Boycott
Boston merchants begin a boycott of British luxury goods. -
Stamp Act Congress Attempts
The Stamp Act Congress prepares a resolution to be sent to King George III requesting the repeal of the Stamp Act -
Stamp Act repealed
Stamp Act repealed - Ben Franklin argued for repeal and warned of a possible revolution in the American colonies if the Stamp Act was enforced by the British military -
Watt Improves
Watt Improves the steam engine, making work more efficient. -
No Taxation without Representation
George Mason writes resolutions presented by George Washington to the Virginia House of Burgesses opposing taxation without representation -
Boston Massacre
Four workers shot by British troops in Boston. Red coats loose all respect from civilians. Everyone becomes outraged with the british. -
Louis XVI Trial
Commencement of the trial of Louis XVI. -
Tea Act
The Tea Act claiming a threepenny per pound import tax on tea arriving in the colonies and provides the British East India Company a virtual tea monopoly by selling directly to chosen tea agents, bypassing and underselling American merchants who acted as middlemen. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party occurs when activists disguise themselves as Mohawk Indians then board the ships and dump all 342 containers of tea into the harbor. The Colonial activists were believed to be organized by Samuel Adams and the "Sons of Liberty" group. Samuel Adams then began to make his case for independence to John Adams, his second cousin, and a wealthy merchant named John Hancock. -
Intolerable Acts
The Coercive Acts (called Intolerable Acts by Americans) in response to the rebellion in Massachusetts. The Coercive Acts included:
Massachusetts Government Act
Administration of Justice Act
Boston Port Act
Quartering Act -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress meets and declares its opposition to the Coercive Acts. The rights to "life, liberty and property" are asserted and delegates agree to a boycott English imports, place an embargo of exports to Britain and discontinue the slave trade. -
Lexington
Shots fired at Lexington and Concord where weapons depot destroyed. "Minute Men" force British troops back to Boston. George Washington takes command of the Continental Army. -
Battle of Bunker Hill
While the result was a victory for the British, they suffered heavy losses: over 800 wounded and 226 killed, including a notably large number of officers. The battle is seen as an example of a Pyrrhic victory, because the immediate gain (the capture of Bunker Hill) was modest and did not significantly change the state of the siege, while the cost (the loss of nearly a third of the deployed forces) was high. -
Presents Declaration
Thomas Jefferson presents the United States Declaration of Independence -
Sign Declaration
Members of Congress sign the United States Declaration of Independence -
Battle of Long Island
Battle of Long Island - British victory. Included George Washington who snuck away under the cover of darkness. -
Saratoga
The Battles of Saratoga (September 19 and October 7, 1777) conclusively decided the fate of British General John Burgoyne's army in the American War of Independence and are generally regarded as a turning point in the war. The battles were fought eighteen days apart on the same ground, south of Saratoga, New York. -
York Town
American victory at Yorktown terms discussed for the British surrender. The British army surrenders at Yorktown - a devastating effect on the British -
Treaty of Paris
Preliminary peace treaty signed in Paris recognising American independence and the British withdrawal from America. -
Louis XVI meeting
A meeting of the Estates-General was called by Louis XVI in Versailles to discuss and approve a new tax plan. -
The estates
Three Poitevin curés decide to join the Third Estate, leaving the Chambers of the Clergy. Accepting the proposition of the delegate Abbé Sieyès, the Third Estate proclaims itself "The National Assembly." A few liberal nobles and many clergy join the movement of the Third Estate. Tennis Court Oath: After being locked out of their meeting room, deputies of the Third Estate assembled on a tennis court and swore not to separate until a constitutional regime was established. -
National Assembly
The National Assembly appoints a committee of thirty members to draft a constitution. The National Assembly proclaims itself the Constituent National Assembly, with full authority and power to decree laws; their primary task is to draw up and adopt a constitution. Necker is dismissed. Demonstrations and speeches take place at the Palais–Royal. The electors of Paris form a standing committee and a citizens’ militia. -
Bastille is attacked
The storming and fall of the Bastille. -
Declaration of the Rights of Man
The Declaration of the Rights of Man was issued by The National Assembly. -
Women Storm Bastille
The women of Paris invaded Versailles. Parisians, led by a large number of women, march upon Versailles and force the royal family back to Paris, where they take up residence at the Tuileries. Louis XVI is considered by many a "Prisoner" in Paris. The Assembly, still in Versailles, declares, in the spirit of constitutional monarchy, its inseparability from the king. -
Attempt to Flee
Louis XVI and his family were arrested while trying to flee from France to get to Austria and safety with Marie Antoinettes familly. -
France vs Austria
France declared war on Austria -
Jacobins
Jacobin Insurrection, again thwarted by gestures by the King, but Jacobins continue to defy the Assembly. -
Danton Kills
Danton instigates the massacre of about 1,200 Royalists held in Parisian prisons. -
Louis XVI Guillotine
Louis XVI sentenced to the guillotine after he is found guilty due to the crimes he comminted on france while ruling. -
Commitee of Public Safety
Committee of Public Safety established. -
Marat on trial
Marat put on trial for complicity in September massacre but is acquitted. -
Marat Murdered
Marat, “the people’s friend,” murdered by Charlotte Corday. She is executed for her crime even though she did what she thought was best for france. Marat was murdered in his bath tub. -
Reign of Terror
Until July 1794
The Reign of Terror court sentenced 20,000 to 40,000 people to death. -
Robespierre Arrested
The National Convention arrested Robespierre after the horrors he committed -
Robespierre beheaded
Robespierre was beheaded after being found guilty in trial -
Royalist Majority
Elections produce a Royalist majority. Elections in 1798 and 1799 produce a more radical result and are annulled by the Directorate. -
Acts passed
First English Factory Acts are passed which makes conditions better for people working and living hard factory lives, especially children. -
Napoleon Crowned Emperor
Napoleon consecrated as Emperor. He crowns himself emperor and leads france into many battles. -
Law Reformed
The poor law is reformed in England.
