In British history

900 B.C.– 55 B.C.The Celts

55 B.C. – 450 A.D. The Romans

450 – 1066 The Anglo-Saxons

VIII – XI cent. The Viking Invaders

1066 – 1087 William the Conqueror

1066 – 1154 The Normans

1215 King John signs Magna Carta, to protect feudal rights against royal abuse

1236 The term Parliament is used officially for the first time to de­scribe the gathering of feudal barons and representatives of countries and towns summoned by the King

1265 First House of Commons: representatives from every shire and town are summoned to attend

1348–49 Black Death (bubonic plague) wipes out a third of England’s population

1555 Muscovy company – forerunner of other joint-stock companies – founded to promote English trade with Russia

1590–1613 Plays of Shakespeare written

1605 Gunpowder plot: Catholics try to blow up Houses of Parliament. Guy Fawkes executed in 1606

1665 Great Plague in London

1666 Great Fire of London

1694 Bank of England founded

1707 Union of England and Scotland as Great Britain

1759 Battle of Quebec: British conquer Canada

1775 American war of Independence begins. Britain loses American colonies

1776 American Declaration of Independence

1760–1830 Industrial Revolution

1801 Union of Great Britain are Ireland. The United Kingdom was created and its people are known collectively as the British

1831 Michael Faraday discovers magneto-electricity

1833 Britain abolishes slavery in all its colonies

1837–1901 Reign of Victoria – the British Empire has expanded to almost one-fifth of the world land mass and one-quarter of world population

1853–56 Crimean war against Russia. Florence Nightingale – foun­der of modern nursing

1863 The first underground line opened to passengers in London

1912 The Titanic Disaster with the loss of 1513 lives

1914–18 World War I: Britain, France and Russia fight against Ger­many, Austria and Italy

1922 Great Britain forms with Northern Ireland the United King­dom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

1939–45 World War II: Britain, France, USSR and USA fight against Germany, Italy, Japan

1940 W. Churchill becomes Prime

1940 Battle of Britain, in which RAF Fighter Command prevents Nazi invasion of England during the second world war

1944 D-Day: the landing of allies in Normandy (6 June)

1947 End of the British Empire. India and Pakistan are independent; all remaining colonies follow until 1980

1952 Elizabeth II

1973 Bratain joins the Common Market

1979–1990 M. Thatcher becomes Prime Minister

1982 Faulklands War

1991 Gulf War: US and European (Mainly British) forces liberate Kuwait in few days

1993 The Channel Tunnel opened (The Chunnel)

2005 London bombings. A series of July bomb attacks struck Lon­don’s public transport system. First six people were killed with 700 injured