Early Modern
Battles of Saratoga (1777): Turning Point of the Revolution
American victory: Burgoyne surrendered some 5,800 men on 17 October 1777, and France entered the war as an ally of the United States.
All Articles
Every Chronicle article on world history, newest first: battles, empires, disasters, discoveries and revolutions.
Early Modern
Canton System (1757): How China Controlled Trade with the West
Western maritime trade with China was restricted to Canton under Qing supervision until the Treaty of Nanking abolished the system in 1842.
Early Modern
Fall of Isfahan (1722): The Afghan Siege Ends Safavid Power
Shah Sultan Husayn abdicated in October 1722 and Mahmud Hotaki took the throne, ending effective Safavid rule and opening years of invasion and civil war.
Early Modern
Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations (1776): Birth of Economics
The book became the founding text of classical economics and a lasting influence on debates about free trade, markets and the role of government.
Early Modern
Hampton Court Conference (1604): James I Meets the Puritans
Most Puritan demands were rejected, minor changes were made to the Prayer Book, and a new English translation of the Bible was authorised.
Early Modern
Valladolid Debate (1550–1551): Las Casas versus Sepúlveda
The panel of judges issued no clear collective verdict, but Sepúlveda's case for conquest was not officially endorsed and the debate shaped later Spanish policy.
Contemporary
Eyjafjallajökull Eruption (2010): The Ash Cloud Over Europe
European airspace was largely closed for about six days, about 100,000 flights were cancelled, and aviation ash rules were rewritten.
Contemporary
Brexit Referendum (2016): The UK Vote to Leave the European Union
Leave won with 51.9 per cent; David Cameron resigned, and the United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020.
Contemporary
Soweto Uprising (1976): Students Against Apartheid Education
Police killed students on the first day and hundreds of people in the months of unrest that followed; the Afrikaans decree was dropped and resistance to apartheid revived.
Contemporary
Yang Liwei and Shenzhou 5 (2003): China's First Astronaut
China became the third country, after the Soviet Union and the United States, to send a human into orbit on its own spacecraft.
Contemporary
Iranian Revolution 1979: The Fall of the Shah and Khomeini's Rise
The Pahlavi monarchy collapsed and Iran became an Islamic Republic led by Ayatollah Khomeini, confirmed by referendum on 30-31 March 1979.
Contemporary
USS Pueblo Incident (1968): US Spy Ship Seized by North Korea
North Korea held the 82 surviving crew for 11 months, releasing them on 23 December 1968; the ship itself was never returned.