History of Great Britain

History of Great Britain

7th – 1st century BC – arrival of Celtic tribes

43 – 48 – Roman invasion of Britain, Britannia – the province – created

450 – 9th century – Raids on Britain by Angles, Saxons, and Jutes.

871 – Alfred, king of Wessex, halted the advance of Danes in England.

1066 – Norman conquest of England. The Saxon King Harold II was defeated at Hastings by William Duke of Normandy, who became William I (the Conqueror). William initiated the Domesday survey of property in England, which was completed in 1086.

1172 – Henry II began the English conquest of Ireland; effective English power was largely limited to the Irish Pale, around Dublin, until the 14th century.

1215 – King John conceded to the demands of powerful English barons and signed Magna Carta.

1338 – Beginning of Hundred Years’ War between England and France. Final defeat of English at the Battle of Castillon in 1453 saw the end of this conflict.

1455-1485 – The Wars of the Roses; the conflict between the Houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne. Edward IV became the first of the rulers of the House of York in 1461.

1485 – The Battle of Bosworth Field established Henry VII, the first of the Tudors, on the English throne. Henry VII began the process of establishing English supremacy over Ireland.

1534 – Henry VIII of England broke with Rome; by the Act of Supremacy he exerted control over the English Church. In 1541 he declared himself king of Ireland.

1558 – 1603 – Elizabeth I ascended to the English throne.

1588 – The invasion of Britain by Spain was thwarted by the defeat of the Spanish Armada.

1603 – Union of English and Scottish crowns. James VI of Scotland became James I of England, the first of the Stuart rulers.

1642 – Outbreak of English Civil War.

1649 – Charles I was beheaded, and a republic was declared. Oliver Cromwell’s ruthless supression of Irish rebellion culminated in the slaughter of an Irish garrison at Drogheda.

1653 – Oliver Cromwell dissolved Parliament and became Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, a position he retained until his death in 1659.

1660 – Restoration of the Stuart monarchy under Charles II.

1707 – Scotland was annexed to England > Great Britain

1801 – An Act of Union took effect which incorporated Ireland into Great Britain.

1837 – 1901 – the reign of Queen Victoria, 1876 – creation of India colony

1914-1918 – Great Britain and the other Allies fought the Central Powers during World War I. Although the Allies won, the war had shattering economic and social effects on the kingdom.

1921 – The Irish Free State was created. The British kingdom was renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

1940 – Victory in the air during the Battle of Britain prevented a German invasion.

1947 – The British colonies of India and Pakistan became independent nations. Many other British colonies became independent in the following years.

1982 – Great Britain defeated Argentine forces after Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands.

1979-1990 – Margaret Thatcher resigned as prime minister and was replaced by fellow Conservative John Major.

1991 – Large numbers of the armed forces took part in the Gulf War.