1838

Events 
 January 10 – a fire destroys Lloyd's Coffee House and the Royal Exchange in London.
 April 30 – Nicaragua declares independence from the Central American Federation (See Nicaragua's early history)
 May – The People's Charter drawn up in the United Kingdom demanding universal suffrage.
 May 26 – USA: Trail of Tears – forced relocation of the Cherokee tribe, killing at least 8,000.
 1 August – Trinidad and Tobago: Slavery officially abolished
 7 September – The paddlesteamer Forfarshire foundered on the Farne Islands, UK, giving rise to the fame of Grace Darling, who rescued nine passengers.
 November 3 India: The Bombay Times and Journal of Commerce is founded. This paper was later renamed to The Times of India in 1861
 November 5 – Central American Civil War begins with Honduras' separation from the Central American Federation.
 December – Beginning of Pastry War: Mexico invaded by French forces

 Births 
 January 4 – General Tom Thumb, American circus performer and entertainer (d. 1883)
 January 6 – Max Bruch, German composer (d. 1920)
 January 16 – Franz Brentano, German philosopher and psychologist (d. 1917)
 February 6 – Henry Irving, English actor (d. 1905)
 February 10 – Gustav Oelwein, founder of Oelwein, Iowa (d. 1913)
 February 18 – Ernst Mach, Austrian physicist and philosopher
 March 3 – George William Hill, American astronomer
 April 3 – John Willis Menard, African-American politician
 April 8 – Ferdinand von Zeppelin, German inventor
 April 12 – John Shaw Billings, M.D., American military and medical leader
 April 16 – Martha McClellan Brown, American temperance movement leader
 May 10 – John Wilkes Booth, the man who killed United States President Abraham Lincoln.
 May 20 – Jules Méline, French statesman
 September 23 - Victoria Woodhull - the first woman to be up for candidate for the President of the United States.
 September 28 – Sai Baba of Shirdi, Indian national saint (d. 1918)
 November 29 – Giovanni Losi, Italian Combonian catholic missionary (d. 1882)

 Deaths 
 January 3 – Prince Maximilian of Saxony
 January 5 – Anthony Van Egmond, rebel leader in Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837 {died in jail}
 February 21 – Silvestre de Sacy, linguist
 March 13 – Poul Martin Møller, philosopher
 April 9 – Piet Uys, Voortrekker leader (in battle)
 May 17 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand, French diplomat
 July 19 – Christmas Evans, preacher
 August 17 – Lorenzo Da Ponte, librettist for Mozart
 August 21 – Adelbert von Chamisso, German writer
 September 1 – William Clark, American explorer
 October 1 – Charles Tennant, Scottish chemist and industrialist
 November 21 – Georges Mouton, count of Lobau, Marshal of France