Timeline of British history

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This is a timeline of British history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political events in the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see History of England, History of Wales, History of Scotland, History of Ireland, Formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and History of the United Kingdom.
 Centuries: 1st BC1st2nd3rd4th5th6th7th8th9th10th11th12th13th14th15th16th17th18th19th20th21stRefs
== 1st century BC ==
Year 	Date 	Event
55 BC	1 January	Roman General Julius Caesar invades Great Britain for the first time, gaining a beachhead on the coast of Kent.
54 BC	? 	Caesar invades for the second time, gaining a third of the country. These two invasions are known as Caesar's invasions of Britain.
== 1st century ==
Year	Date	Event
43 	? 	Aulus Plautius leads an army of forty thousand to invade Great Britain. Emperor Claudius makes Britain a part of the Roman Empire. This is known as the Roman conquest of Britain.
50 	? 	London is founded.
61 	? 	Boudica's organised rebellion against the Romans is defeated.
== 2nd century ==
Year	Date	Event
122 	? 	Emperor Hadrian orders a wall to be built to mark Roman territory of Britain in the north.
197 	? 	Britain is divided into two parts – Britannia Superior and Britannia Inferior.
== 3rd century ==
3rd Century Britain: Wikipage
Year 	Date	Event
206 	? 	Governor Lucius Alfenus Senecio repairs Hadrian's Wall and appeals for help from the Emperor against the northern tribes.
208 	? 	Emperor Septimius Severus and his son Caracalla take personal command of the army in Britain.
209 	? 	Severus and Caracalla lead an expedition against the Caledonii, and build forts at Cramond and the Tay estuary.
210 	? 	Caracalla leads an expedition against the rebellious Maeatae tribe.
211 	? 	4 February – Severus dies at York, while preparing another expedition against the northern rebels.
Caracalla, now Emperor, abandons territory north of Hadrian's Wall, and returns to Rome
c. 214 	? 	Britain divided into two provinces, Britannia Superior and Britannia Inferior, with administrative centres at London and York respectively
c. 220 	? 	Saxons raid south-east coast; forts built at Reculver and Branodunum (Brancaster).
245 	? 	Many thousands of acres of modern-day Lincolnshire are inundated by a great flood.
255 	? 	Work begins on a riverside wall in London.
259 	? 	Rebel leader Latinus Postumus proclaims Britain as part of his "Empire of the Gauls".
270 	? 	Construction of forts along the Saxon Shore begins in response to increased raiding.
273 	? 	Stone walls built around St Albans.
274 	? 	Postumus's Gallic Empire is reabsorbed into the Roman Empire under Aurelian.
277 	? 	Imperial edict lifts restrictions on British wine production.
General Victorinus puts down revolt, and settles Burgundian and Vandal prisoners in Britain.
286–296	 	Britannic Empire
287 	? 	Mausaeus Carausius takes power in Britain and proclaims himself Emperor
289 	? 	Carausius defeats Emperor Maximian in a naval battle.
293 	? 	Finance minister Allectus murders Carausius and seizes power; employs Frankish mercenaries.
296 	? 	Julius Constantius defeats Britons near Silchester, killing Allectus; prevents retreating Franks from sacking London
297 	? 	Re-building of forts near Hadrian's Wall begins.
Constantius returns to Gaul.
First mention on record of the Picts attacking from the north in Eumenius' Panegyrici Latini.
== 4th century ==
== 5th century ==
== 6th century ==
== 7th century ==
== 8th century ==
== 9th century ==
== 10th century ==
== 11th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1017	? 	Cnut the Great is crowned king of England in London.
1034	25 November 	Malcolm II of Scotland dies at Glamis. He is succeeded as king of Scotland by his grandson Duncan I the Diseased of Scotland.
1035	12 November 	Cnut dies. He is succeeded as king of England, Denmark and Norway by his son Harthacnut.
1040	17 March 	Harold Harefoot dies at Oxford. Harthacnut, his brother, succeeds him as king of England.
1040	14 August 	Duncan the Diseased is killed in action at Elgin, Moray attempting to suppress a rebellion by Macbeth, King of Scotland, Mormaer of Moray, who replaces him as king of Scotland.
1042	8 June 	Harthacnut dies, probably due to a stroke after excessive drinking at a wedding in Lambeth. He is succeeded as king of England by his brother Edward the Confessor.
1057	15 August 	Battle of Lumphanan: Macbeth is killed in battle at Lumphanan by Duncan the Diseased's son Malcolm III of Scotland. He is succeeded as king of Scotland by his stepson Lulach.
1058	17 March 	Lulach is assassinated by Malcolm III, who succeeds him as king of Kingdom of Scotland.
1066	5 January 	Edward the Confessor dies, probably after a series of strokes. He is succeeded as king of England by his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson.
1066	28 September	Norman conquest of England: William the Conqueror, duke of Normandy, lands with an army at Pevensey.
1066	14 October 	Battle of Hastings: Harold Godwinson is killed in battle against the forces of William the Conqueror at Battle, East Sussex, causing the collapse of his army.
1066	25 December 	William the Conqueror is crowned king of England at Westminster Abbey.
1078	? 	The construction of Tintern Abbey begins.
1086	12 june 	A census begins whose results would be collected in the Domesday Book.
1087	9 September 	William the Conqueror dies at Rouen. He is succeeded by one son, Robert Curthose, as duke of Normandy and by another, William II of England, as king of England.
1093	13 November 	Battle of Alnwick (1093): Malcolm III and his eldest son are ambushed and killed at Alnwick by an army of knights led by Robert de Mowbray, earl of Northumbria.
1100	2 August 	William II is killed by an arrow through the lung while hunting in the New Forest. He is succeeded by his brother Henry I of England.
1100	? 	The White Tower of London is completed.
== 12th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1135	1 December 	Henry I dies of illness.
1135	22 December	Stephen, King of England is crowned king of England at Westminster Abbey.
1137	? 	The Anarchy: Stephen enters Normandy in an attempt to conquer it from Empress Matilda, his rival for the succession in Normandy and England.
1137	? 	Gruffudd ap Cynan, king of Gynedd, dies. He is succeeded by his son Owain Gwynedd.
1154	24 October 	Stephen dies of a stomach disease. He is succeeded as king of England by Henry II of England, grandson of Henry I.
1164	? 	Henry II issues the Constitutions of Clarendon, which provided that members of the Catholic Church accused of serious crimes would be tried and sentenced in secular courts.
1170	28 November	Owain dies.
1170	29 December	Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury, is murdered in Canterbury Cathedral by followers of Henry II.
1189	6 July 	Henry II dies of illness at Château de Chinon. He is succeeded as king of England by his son Richard I of England.
1192	December 	Richard is captured near Vienna on the orders of Leopold V, Duke of Austria, duke of Austria, while returning from the Crusades.
1194	4 February 	Richard is released following the payment of fifty tons of silver to Austria.
1194	? 	Battle of Aberconwy: Llywelyn the Great defeats his uncle Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, one of two princes of Kingdom of Gwynedd, in battle.
1199	6 April 	Richard dies of a crossbow wound sustained two weeks earlier during a siege of Château de Châlus-Chabrol. He was succeeded as king of England by his brother John, King of England.
== 13th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1209	November 	The pope Pope Innocent III excommunicates John.
1215	15 June 	John agrees to Magna Carta, granting political rights including the right to a fair trial to his barons.
1216	19 October 	John dies of illness. He is succeeded as king of England by his son Henry III of England.
1237	25 September	Henry III and Alexander II of Scotland sign the Treaty of York, under which the latter renounced his claims on English territory in Northumberland, Cumberland and Westmorland.
1240	11 April 	Death of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, prince of Wales; Dafydd ap Llywelyn succeeds to the throne of Gwynedd.
1246	25 February 	Death of Dafydd ap Llywelyn; Llywelyn ap Gruffudd succeeds to the throne of Gwynedd (he does not claim the title of prince of Wales until 1258).
1249	6 July 	Death of Alexander II, king of Scots; Alexander III succeeds to the throne of Scotland.
1263	2 October 	Battle of Largs, an inconclusive battle, is fought between Haakon IV of Norway and the Scots.
1264	14 May 	Simon de Montfort leads rebel English barons to defeat Henry III at the Battle of Lewes.
1266	2 July 	Scotland and Norway sign the Treaty of Perth under which Scottish control of the Western Isles is acknowledged.
1267	September 	Henry III of England recognises the authority of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in Wales.
1272	16 November 	Death of Henry III, Edward I succeeds to the English throne.
1277	July 	England annexes Wales, a state of affairs which lasted until 1283.
1279	? 	Statute of Mortmain.
1282	11 December 	Death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, prince of Wales; Dafydd ap Gruffudd succeeds to the throne of Gwynedd.
1283	3 October 	Death of Dafydd ap Gruffudd; English conquest of Wales.
1287	? 	Revolt of Rhys ap Maredudd in Wales.
1294	29 September	Revolt of Madog ap Llywelyn in Wales.
1297	11 September	William Wallace and the Scots defeat the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge.
== 14th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1305	23 August 	Capture and execution of Scottish resistance fighter William Wallace by the English on a charge of treason.
1307	7 July 	Death of Edward I, Edward II accedes to the English throne.
1314	24 June 	Decisive victory for Scotland over England at the Battle of Bannockburn.
1316	28 January 	Revolt of Llywelyn Bren in South Wales.
1322	16 March 	Edward II defeats a rebellious baronial faction at Battle of Boroughbridge.
1327	25 January 	Edward III usurps the English throne.
1327	21 September 	Edward II is killed.
1328	? 	England recognises Scotland's independence in the Treaty of Edinburgh–Northampton
1338	? 	Edward III claims the throne of France, initiating the Hundred Years' War.
1348	June 	The Black Death first arrives in England and ultimately kills c. one third of the population.
1356	19 September 	Battle of Poitiers.
1377	21 June 	Death of Edward III, his grandson Richard II accedes to the English throne.
1381	30 May – November	Peasants' Revolt of 1381.
1392	? 	Statute of Praemunire.
1399	30 September 	Henry Bolingbroke usurps the English throne becoming Henry IV.
== 15th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1413	20 March 	Henry IV dies and is succeeded by his son, Henry V.
1415	25 October	Henry V is welcomed back to England after a major victory at the Battle of Agincourt, France.
1422	31 August 	Henry V dies and is succeeded by his son, Henry VI.
1471	21 May 	Henry VI is murdered and Edward IV is restored to the English throne.
1483	9 April 	Death of Edward IV, Edward V accedes to the throne.
1485	22 August 	The Battle of Bosworth Field ends the Yorkist reign of Richard III and ushers in Tudor reign, with the reign of Henry VII.
1487	16 June 	The Battle of Stoke is fought between Henry VII and Lambert Simnel a Yorkist claimant to the throne. It is the last battle of the Wars of the Roses.
== 16th century ==
Year	Date 	Event
1509	22 April 	England – Henry VIII crowned and married to Catherine of Aragon.
1513	9 September 	England and Scotland – James IV and thousands of Scots killed in defeat at the battle of Flodden.
1513	21 September 	Scotland – James V crowned King.
1516	? 	England – Royal Mail is originally established.
1521	? 	England – Lutheran writings begin to circulate.
1525	? 	England – Henry VIII seeks an annulment of his marriage, which is refused.
1526	? 	England – Cardinal Wolsey orders the burning of Lutheran books.
1532	? 	Scotland – Creation of the College of Justice and the Court of Session.
1534	3 November 	Act of Supremacy passed by Henry VIII
1534	18 December 	England – Treasons Act 1534.
1535	22 June 	England – Execution of Cardinal John Fisher.
1535	6 July 	England – Execution of Thomas More.
1536	6 October 	England – Execution of William Tindale in Antwerp.
1542	14 December 	Scotland – Mary, Queen of Scots, accedes to the Scottish throne.
1547	28 January 	England – Edward VI crowned King.
1549	6 June – 17 August	England – Prayer Book Rebellion in south-west.
1553	July 	England – Mary I accedes to the throne.
1558	17 November 	England – Elizabeth I accedes to the throne.
1559	April 	England – Act of Supremacy 1559.
1559	2 May 	Scotland – John Knox returns from Geneva to promote Calvinism.
1560	1 August 	Scotland – Parliament legislates protestant reformation of the Church of Scotland.
1563	4 June 	Scotland – Witchcraft Act 1563.
1567	24 July 	Scotland – The Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, abdicates and flees Scotland after an uprising by Protestant lords
1571	May 	England – Treasons Act 1571.
1582	14 April 	Scotland – Establishment of the University of Edinburgh by Royal Charter.
1587	8 February 	England and Scotland – Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire.
1588	8 August 	England – Spanish Armada destroyed.
1592	? 	Scotland – James VI enacts the "Golden Act" recognising the power of Presbyterianism within the Scottish church.
== 17th century ==
Year 	Date 	Event
1603 	24 March 	England – Death of Queen Elizabeth I. James VI of Scotland crowned King of England (as James I of England).
1605 	5 November 	England and Scotland – The Gunpowder plot is uncovered, in which Guy Fawkes and others attempted to blow up the king, James VI and I and the Parliament of England.
1606 	10 April 	England – King James I issues the First Virginia Charter, establishing the Colony of Virginia in North America.
1618 	29 October 	England – Execution of Sir Walter Raleigh
1625 	27 March 	England and Scotland – Death of James VI and I.
1639–1644	? 	England and Scotland – At war in what became known as the Bishops' Wars.
1640 	November 	England – The Long Parliament summoned.
1642 	22 August 	England – English Civil War begins (see Timeline of the English Civil War).
1652 	? 	England – Tea arrives in Britain.
1666 	2 – 6 September	England – The Great Fire of London ravages the city.
1688 	11 December 	England – The Glorious Revolution replaces James II with William III.
1689 	April 	Scotland – The Claim of Right Act 1689 is enacted by the Parliament of Scotland.
1689 	16 December 	England – The Bill of Rights 1689 is enacted by the Parliament of England.
1694 	27 July 	England – The Bank of England is established.
== 18th century ==
Year 	Date 	Event
1707 	1 May 	The Kingdom of Great Britain comes into being,Acts of Union 1707 parliament.uk, accessed 13 September 2011Making the Act of Union 1707 scottish.parliament.uk, accessed 13 September 2011England – Profile BBC, 13 September 2011The Creation of the United Kingdom of great britain in 1707 Historical Association, accessed 13 September 2011 and Queen Anne becomes its first monarch.
1713 	11 April 	Signing of the Treaty of Utrecht ends the War of the Spanish Succession.
1714 	1 August 	Queen Anne dies. Accession of George I, Elector of Hanover.
1721 	3 April 	Robert Walpole becomes the first Prime Minister of Great Britain.
1727 	11 June 	King George I dies and George II ascends the throne.
1742 	16 February 	Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington becomes Prime Minister.
1743 	27 August 	Henry Pelham becomes Prime Minister.
1754 	16 March 	Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle becomes Prime Minister.
1755 	15 April 	Samuel Johnson published his A Dictionary of the English Language.
1756 	16 November 	William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire becomes Prime Minister.
1757 	29 June 	Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1760 	25 October 	King George II dies and George III ascends the throne.
1762 	26 May 	John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute becomes Prime Minister.
1763 	16 April 	George Grenville becomes Prime Minister.
1764 	? 	The Castle of Otranto is written and published, which was the first-ever story classed as a gothic horror story.
1765 	13 July 	Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham becomes Prime Minister.
1766 	30 July 	William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham becomes Prime Minister.
1768 	14 October 	Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton becomes Prime Minister.
1770 	28 January 	Frederick North, Lord North becomes Prime Minister.
1775 	19 April 	The American War of Independence begins.
1776 	4 July 	The Declaration of Independence is created and the new country is recognised as the USA.
1777–1779	November 1777 – July 1779	The world's first iron bridge called The Iron Bridge, is built-in Shropshire.
1782 	27 March 	Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1782 	4 July 	William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne becomes Prime Minister.
1783 	2 April 	William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland becomes Prime Minister.
1783 	4 September 	The American War of Independence ends with the Treaty of Paris.
1783 	19 December 	William Pitt the Younger becomes Prime Minister.
1785 	1 January 	The Times is first published and becomes the first newspaper to have borne that name, lending it to numerous other papers around the world, such as The New York Times.
== 19th century ==
Year 	Date 	Event
1801 	1 January 	The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland comes into being,Acts of Union 1800 parliament.uk, accessed 8 August 2021 and King George III becomes its first monarch.
1801 	17 March 	Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth becomes Prime Minister.
1804 	10 May 	William Pitt the Younger becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1805 	21 October 	The naval Battle of Trafalgar takes place.
1806 	11 February 	William Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville becomes Prime Minister.
1807 	25 March 	The Slave Trade Act 1807 is passed.
1807 	31 March 	William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1809 	4 October 	Spencer Perceval becomes Prime Minister.
1810 	 	Discovery of the first complete Icthyosaur by Mary Anning
1812 	8 June 	Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool becomes Prime Minister.
1815 	18 June 	The Battle of Waterloo takes place.
1815 	20 November 	The Napoleonic Wars ends.
1819 	 	SS Savannah undergoes the first steamship transatlantic crossing.
1820 	29 January 	King George III dies and George IV ascends the throne.
1821 	5 May 	The Guardian is first published, as The Manchester Guardian.
1823 	 	Discovery of Plesiosaurus Mary Anning
1825 	27 September 	The Stockton and Darlington railway, the world's first public passenger railway, opens.
1827 	12 April 	George Canning becomes Prime Minister.
1827 	31 August 	F. J. Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich becomes Prime Minister.
1828 	22 January 	Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington becomes Prime Minister.
1828 	 	Discovery of Pterodactylus by Mary Anning
1829 	13 April 	The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 is passed.
1830 	26 June 	King George IV dies and William IV ascends the throne.
1830 	22 November 	Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey becomes Prime Minister.
1832 	7 June 	The Great Reform Act is passed, doubling the franchise.
1833 	28 August 	The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 gains royal assent, banning slavery throughout the British Empire.
1834 	? 	The Conservative Party is founded.
1834 	16 July 	William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne becomes Prime Minister.
1834 	14 August 	The New Poor Law is passed.
1834 	17 November 	Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1834 	10 December 	Robert Peel becomes Prime Minister.
1835 	18 April 	William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1837 	20 June 	The reign of Queen Victoria begins.
1838 	1 August 	The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 enters into force, abolishing slavery in the British Empire.
1840 	10 January 	The first postage stamps (Penny Post) come into use.
1840 	June 	Vaccination for the poor is introduced.
1841 	30 August 	Robert Peel becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1842 	Summer 	The first peacetime income tax is introduced.
1846 	27 January 	The Corn Laws are repealed.
1846 	30 June 	John Russell, 1st Earl Russell becomes Prime Minister.
1848 	Late February 	The Communist Manifesto is published by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
1850 	 	The East Coast Main Line opens.
1851 	1 May 	The Great Exhibition opens.
1852 	23 February 	Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby becomes Prime Minister.
1852 	19 December 	George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen becomes Prime Minister.
1853–1856	16 October 1853 – 30 March 1856	The Crimean War is fought between Russia and a British alliance who feared Russian expansion in the Balkans, resulting in allied victory.
1854 	? 	Doctor John Snow discovers that cholera is from contaminated water
1855 	6 February 	Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston becomes Prime Minister.
1855 	29 June 	The Daily Telegraph is first published.
1858 	20 February 	Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1859 	12 June 	Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1861 	14 December 	Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, dies at the age of 42.
1863 	10 January 	The London Underground opens, the oldest underground railway network in the world.
1865 	29 October 	John Russell, 1st Earl Russell becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1866 	28 June 	Edward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby becomes Prime Minister for the third time.
1867 	15 August 	The 1867 Reform Act doubles the franchise and the Dominion of Canada was created.
1868 	27 February 	Benjamin Disraeli becomes Prime Minister.
1868 	29 May 	The last public execution is carried out.
1868 	3 December 	William Ewart Gladstone becomes Prime Minister.
1869 	 	The West Coast Main Line opens.
1870 	17 February 	The Elementary Education Act 1870 is passed, introducing universal education in England and Wales.
1872 	6 August 	The Education (Scotland) Act 1872 expands access to primary education and makes it compulsory in Scotland.
1874 	20 February 	Benjamin Disraeli becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1880 	23 April 	William Ewart Gladstone becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1880 	26 August 	The Elementary Education Act 1880 is passed, making primary schooling compulsory in England and Wales.
1885 	23 June 	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury becomes Prime Minister.
1885 	25 June 	The Reform Act 1885 is passed.
1886 	1 February 	William Ewart Gladstone becomes Prime Minister for the third time.
1886 	21 June 	Construction begins on Tower Bridge in London.
1886 	25 July 	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1887 	November 	The fictional detective Sherlock Holmes first appears in print.
1892 	15 August 	William Ewart Gladstone becomes Prime Minister for the fourth time.
1894 	5 March 	Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery becomes Prime Minister.
1895 	25 June 	Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury becomes Prime Minister for the third time.
1896 	4 May 	The Daily Mail is first published.
== 20th century ==
Year 	Date 	Event
1900 	27 February 	The Labour Party is founded.
1901 	22 January 	Queen Victoria dies and Edward VII ascends the throne.
1902 	12 July 	Arthur Balfour becomes Prime Minister.
1902 	9 August 	Coronation of Edward VII and Alexandra.
1902 	31 May 	Treaty of Vereeniging ends the Second Boer War.
1903 	September 	The Lib-Lab pact enables Labour to break into national politics.
1904 	8 April 	Entente Cordiale signed between Britain and France
1905 	5 December 	Henry Campbell-Bannerman becomes Prime Minister.
1908 	5 April 	H. H. Asquith becomes Prime Minister.
1908 	27 April 	The Summer Olympics open at White City in London.
1908 	27 October 	Parliament approves old age pensions.
1910 	6 May 	Edward VII dies and George V ascends the throne.
1911 	22 June 	Coronation of George V and Mary.
1912 	13 April 	Royal Flying Corps established.
1912 	14 – 15 April 	The RMS Titanic sinks after hitting an iceberg. Over 1500 crew and passengers die.
1914 	4 August 	World War I: Great Britain declares war on Germany in response to the invasion of Belgium.
1914 	5 November 	Britain declares war on the Ottoman Empire.
1916 	6 December 	David Lloyd George becomes Prime Minister.
1918 	6 February 	Women get the vote for the first time – women over the age of 30 who met a property qualification could vote as a result of the Representation of the People Act 1918.
1918 	1 April 	The Royal Air Force is founded, becoming the first independent air force in the world.
1918 	11 November 	World War I ends.
1919 	1 December 	Nancy Astor becomes the first woman to take her seat in parliament.
1921 	 	The Great Britain road numbering scheme.
1922 	18 October 	The BBC is founded as the British Broadcasting Company.
1922 	23 October 	Bonar Law becomes Prime Minister.
1923 	22 May 	Stanley Baldwin becomes Prime Minister.
1924 	22 January 	Ramsay MacDonald becomes Prime Minister.
1924 	4 November 	Stanley Baldwin becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1926 	4 May – 12 May 	The 1926 United Kingdom general strike takes place.
1928 	2 July 	Women receive the right to vote on the same terms as men (over the age of 21) as a result of the Representation of the People Act 1928.
1928 	September 	The first film with dialogue is shown in Britain, The Jazz Singer.
1928 	30 September 	Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin.
1929 	5 June 	Ramsay MacDonald becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1931 	? 	The Dominion of Canada later has more recognition as Canada.
1934 	30 November 	The LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman built in Doncaster becomes the first steam locomotive to reach .
1935 	7 June 	Stanley Baldwin becomes Prime Minister for the third time.
1936 	20 January 	George V dies and Edward VIII ascends the throne.
1936 	5 – 31 October 	The Jarrow March protest occurs.
1936 	10 December 	Edward VIII abdicates the throne over his proposal to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson. Automatic accession of George VI.
1937 	12 May 	Coronation of George VI and Elizabeth.
1937 	28 May 	Neville Chamberlain becomes Prime Minister.
1937 	30 June 	First available in the London area, the 999 telephone number is introduced as the world's first emergency telephone service.
1938 	3 July 	The LNER Class A4 4468 Mallard built in Doncaster breaks the land speed record for the fastest steam locomotive, reaching ; the record still stands.
1939 	3 September 	British entry into World War II.
1940 	10 May 	Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister.
1945 	8 May 	World War II ends in Europe.
1945 	26 July 	Clement Attlee becomes Prime Minister.
1945 	24 October 	Britain becomes a founding member of the United Nations.
1947 	15 August 	India gains independence from Britain.
1948 	1 January 	British Rail is established.
1948 	5 July 	The National Health Service is founded, bringing state-funded healthcare to all.
1948 	29 July – 14 August 	London hosts the 1948 Summer Olympics.
1948 	14 November 	Birth of Charles, Prince of Wales.
1950 	15 August 	Birth of Anne, Princess Royal.
1950 	29 August 	British troops arrive to support US forces in the Korean War.
1951 	26 October 	Sir Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1952 	? 	Autocode, regarded as the first compiled programming language, is developed by Alick Glennie.
1952 	6 February 	Death of George VI. Automatic accession of Elizabeth II.
1953 	25 April 	James Watson and Francis Crick publish their discovery of the structure of DNA.
1953 	2 June 	Coronation of Elizabeth II.
1954 	6 May 	Roger Bannister breaks the four-minute mile with a time of 3:59.4.
1955 	6 April 	Anthony Eden becomes Prime Minister.
1955 	22 September 	Commercial television starts with the first ITV broadcast.
1956 	17 October 	Britain opens its first nuclear power station, Calder Hall.
1957 	10 January 	Harold Macmillan becomes Prime Minister.
1958 	5 December 	The British motorway system opens with the M6 Preston bypass.
1960 	19 February 	Birth of Prince Andrew, Duke of York.
1961 	1 July 	Birth of Diana, Princess of Wales.
1963 	27 March 	The first report of the Beeching cuts – a railway restructuring plan – was published, The Reshaping of British Railways.
1963 	19 October 	Alec Douglas-Home becomes Prime Minister but lasts only 363 days.
1964 	10 March 	Birth of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.
1964 	16 October 	Harold Wilson becomes Prime Minister.
1965 	24 January 	Death of Sir Winston Churchill.
1965 	8 November 	The death penalty is abolished officially.
1967 	27 July 	The Sexual Offences Act 1967 legalises homosexuality between men over 21.
1967 	27 October 	The Abortion Act 1967 is passed, legalising abortion on certain grounds.
1969 	2 March 	Concorde, the world's first supersonic airliner, makes its maiden flight.
1970 	19 June 	Edward Heath becomes Prime Minister.
1971 	15 February 	Decimal Day; the United Kingdom introduces a decimalised currency.
1972 	22 January 	The United Kingdom signs the Treaty of Accession in a ceremony in Brussels which was attended by Prime Minister Edward Heath in preparedness for membership of the European Communities from 1 January 1973.
1973 	1 January 	The United Kingdom joins and becomes a member state of the European Communities.
1974 	4 March 	Harold Wilson becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
1975 	5 June 	The United Kingdom chooses to remain a member state of the European Communities in a non-binding referendum.
1976 	5 April 	James Callaghan becomes Prime Minister.
1976 	September 	Britain becomes the first major Western state to be forced to ask to borrow money from the International Monetary Fund.
1978 	25 July 	Louise Brown becomes the first human in history to be born via in vitro fertilisation.
1979 	4 May 	Margaret Thatcher becomes the first female Prime Minister.
1979 	27 August 	The IRA kill the Queen's cousin Lord Mountbatten.
1981 	24 June 	The Humber Bridge opens, the longest single-span bridge in the world.
1981 	29 July 	Wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer.
1982 	21 June 	Birth of Prince William of Wales.
1982 	2 April – 14 June 	The Falklands War is fought against Argentina, resulting in a British victory and the United Kingdom reclaiming the Falkland Islands.
1982 	2 November 	Channel 4 launches across most of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
1984–1985	6 March 1984 – 3 March 1985	The UK miners' strike takes place, a major strike and protest to prevent Margaret Thatcher's government from closing down the British coal mining industry.
1984 	15 September 	Birth of Prince Harry of Wales.
1986 	25 December 	The Christmas episode of the soap opera EastEnders becomes the most-watched programme in the United Kingdom with a viewing of 30.1 million.
1988 	3 March 	The Liberal Democrats are founded.
1989 	12 March 	Tim Berners-Lee invents the World Wide Web.
1990 	28 November 	John Major becomes Prime Minister.
1991 	18 – 26 May 	Helen Sharman becomes the first British person and the first European woman in space.
1994 	6 May 	The Channel Tunnel opens, the first physical connection between the United Kingdom and France.
1996 	? 	A sheep named Dolly becomes the first mammal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell.
1997 	2 May 	Tony Blair becomes Prime Minister.
1997 	1 July 	The United Kingdom hands Hong Kong back to China, marking the end of the British Empire.
1997 	31 August 	Diana, Princess of Wales, dies due to a traffic collision in Paris.
1999 	6 May 	First elections to the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly take place which will now be responsible for aspects of Scotland and Wales's governance.
1999 	2 December 	The Good Friday Agreement comes into effect, two agreements intended to bring about the end of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
1999 	31 December 	The Millennium Dome and London Eye are opened to mark the new millennium.
== 21st century ==
Year	Date 	Event
2002	9 February 	Princess Margaret dies.
2002	30 March 	Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother dies aged 101.
2003	20 March – 1 May 	The United Kingdom, alongside the US, invades Iraq.
2005	9 April 	Wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles.
2007	27 June 	Gordon Brown becomes Prime Minister.
2010	11 May 	David Cameron becomes Prime Minister.
2011	29 April 	Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton.
2012	30 March 	The Shard tops out in construction, becoming the tallest building in Western Europe.
2012	27 July – 12 August	London hosts the Olympic Games for the third time.
2013	17 July 	Same-sex marriage is legalised in the United Kingdom.
2013	22 July 	Birth of Prince George of Cambridge.
2014	18 September 	The Scottish independence referendum takes place; Scotland decides to remain part of the United Kingdom.
2015	2 May 	Birth of Princess Charlotte of Cambridge.
2015	9 September 	Elizabeth II becomes the longest-reigning monarch in British history.
2015	15 December 	Tim Peake becomes the first British ESA astronaut to board the International Space Station.
2016	23 June 	The United Kingdom votes to leave the European Union.
2016	13 July 	Theresa May becomes the second female Prime Minister.
2016	5 – 21 August 	Great Britain ranks second on the 2016 Summer Olympics medal table with 27 Gold Medals, the best result since 1908.
2018	23 April 	Birth of Prince Louis of Cambridge.
2018	19 May 	Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
2019	15 January 	The motion to approve the Brexit withdrawal agreement – otherwise known as the "meaningful vote" – was rejected 202–432. This was the largest defeat on a government motion in history.
2019	24 July 	Theresa May formally tenders her resignation as prime minister to Elizabeth II, and is succeeded by Boris Johnson.
2020	31 January 	The United Kingdom leaves the European Union.
2020	23 March – 2021 	A national lockdown takes place due to the coronavirus pandemic. Freedom of movement is restricted and this becomes enforceable in law. Non-essential shops and services close.
2022	6 February 	Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years on the British throne.
2022	8 September 	Elizabeth II dies aged 96. Automatic accession of Charles III. Aged 73, he becomes the oldest person to accede to the throne.
2022	20 October 	Liz Truss resigns as prime minister after 44 days, making her the shortest-serving prime minister in British history.
2022	25 October 	Rishi Sunak becomes the first prime minister of Asian descent.
2023	6 May 	Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.
2024	5 July 	Keir Starmer becomes Prime Minister.
== See also ==
* Timeline of Cornish history
* Timeline of English history
* Timeline of Irish history
* Timeline of Scottish history
* Timeline of Welsh history
== References ==
==Further reading==
* Langer, William. An Encyclopedia of World History (5th ed. 1973); highly detailed outline of events online free
* Morris, Richard B. and Graham W. Irwin, eds. Harper Encyclopedia of the Modern World: A Concise Reference History from 1760 to the Present (1970) online
 
British