- February 10
- British Queen Victoria marries her cousin Albert von Saksen-Coburg. [1] [729.51]
- February 12
- Housatonic Railroad opens. [1]
- February 16
- American Charles Wilkes discovers Shackleton Ice Shelf, Antarctica. [1]
- March 23
- Draper takes first successful photo of the Moon (daguerrotype). [1]
- May 1
- The Post Office of the United Kingdom puts 1-penny adhesive stamps on sale, valid for pre-payment of mailing letters within the country up to 1/2 ounce as of May 6. [1] [5] [269.369] [1135] [1397.10]
- May 6
- The United Kingdom adhesive postage stamps and prepaid stamped envelopes, values 1 penny and 2 pence, become valid for use within the country. [55.59] [655.7] [1049.1555] [1135] [1154.938] [1397.10] [1841.304]
- May 7
- Tornado strikes Natchez, Mississippi, USA, killing 317. [1]
- May 8
- Alexander Wolcott patents Photographic Process. [1]
- May 21
- New Zealand becomes a British colony. [1]
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- June 10
- An assassin fires a shot at Queen Victoria. [729.51]
- July 4
- Cunard Line 700-ton wooden paddlewheeler Britannia first sets out from Liverpool, England, bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia on the first transatlantic crossing with a scheduled end. [5] [89.35] [150.35] [274.7]
- October 7
- King William II is proclaimed King of the Netherlands. [626.221]
- October 8
- First Hawaiian constitution is proclaimed. [1]
- December 2
- William H Harrison is elected President of US, with John Tyler as Vice-President. [1]
- December 31
- Jamaica adopts currency of Great Britain. [768.40]
1841
- January 5
- James Clark Ross (United Kingdom) is first to enter pack ice near Ross Ice Shelf. [1]
- January 7
- British ships begin attack on Chinese forts at Canton River. [695.58]
- January 20
- China cedes Hong Kong to the British. [1] [1394.8]
- January 26
- Hong Kong proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain. [1]
- March 22
- Cornstarch patented by Orlando Jones. [1]
- June 14
- First Canadian (Province of Canada) parliament opens in Kingston, Ontario. [1]
- (month unknown)
- A falling meteorite causes a fire in Chiloe Archipel, Chile. [521]
- July 5
- Thomas Cook opens first travel agency. [1]
- July 17
- British humor magazine Punch is first published. [1]
- August 21
- John Hampson first patents the Venetian blind in the United States. [1] [5]
- September 9
- Great Lakes steamer Erie sinks off Silver Creek, New York, kills 300. [1]
- September 24
- Sarawak obtained by Britain from Sultan of Brunei. [1]
- October 10
- Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (6th time) of Mexico. [118.61]
- November 2
- Akbar Khan successfully revolts against Shah Shuja in Afghanistan. [1]
- November 16
- N.E. Guerin of New York patents cork-filled life preserver. [1]
- November 25
- 35 Amistad survivors return to Africa. [1]
- December 29
- King/grand duke Willem II installs Order of Eikenkroon. [1]
1842
- January 6
- 4,500 British and Indian troops leave Kabul, massacred before India. [1]
- January 12
- Franciscan nuns begin missionary work on Netherlands Antilles. [1]
- February 21
- First known sewing machine is patented in US, to John Greenough of Washington DC. [1]
- March 30
- First surgical operation using ether as anaesthetic (to remove a neck cyst), performed by Dr. Crawford Long on James Venable, in Jefferson, Georgia, USA. [1] [55.18] [1191.314]
- April 13
- Lord Rosse successfully casts 72-inch (183cm) mirror for a telescope. [1]
- May 5
- City-wide fire burns for over 100 hours (Hamburg, Germany). [1]
- May 8
- Versailles to Paris train catches fire; 50 die. [1]
- May 30
- John Francis attempts to assassinate Queen Victoria. [1]
- August 9
- US-Canada border defined by Webster-Ashburton Treaty. [1]
- August 14
- Seminole War ends in the USA; Indians removed from Florida to Oklahoma. [1]
- August 18
- The Sultan of Brunei appoints Charles James Brooke rajah of Sarawak on the island of Borneo. [459.15]
- September 4
- Work on Köln cathedral recommences after 284-year hiatus. [1]
- October 26
- Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (6th time) as President of Mexico. [118.61]
- November 22
- Mount Saint Helens in Washington state, USA, erupts. [1]
- December 19
- US recognizes independence of Hawaii. [1]
1843
- January 4
- Royal Academy (Technical Hague court) Delft opens. [1]
- January 5
- In Marked Tree, Arkansas, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake occurs. Strongest to occur in the region since the 1811-12 sequence. Damage severe at Memphis, Tennessee; the earth sinks in places near New Madrid, Missouri. [53]
- February 2
- US and British settlers in Oregon Country choose governmental committee. [1]
- March 4
- Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (7th time) of Mexico. [118.61]
- May 4
- Great Britain annexes Natal. [1]
- May 18
- United Free Church of Scotland forms. [1]
- May 22
- A massive wagon train of 1,000 settlers and 1,000 head of cattle sets off down the Oregon Trail from Independence, Missouri, USA. (The Great Emigration finally arrives in October, completing the 2,000-mile journey in five months.) [1] [5] [129]
- July 2
- An alligator falls from the sky during a thunderstorm in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. [1]
- July 19
- SS Great Britain is launched by Prince Albert from Bristol, England. The ship is the largest to date, the first ocean-going ship built of iron. [272.637]
- August 8
- Natal (in South Africa) is made a British colony. [1]
- August 16
- Opening of Kursaal casino in Homburg. Operators François and Louis Blanc run roulette with one zero instead of two, and also with improved players' odds at trente-et-quarante. [187.208] (August 17 [811.128])
- October 4
- Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (7th time) as President of Mexico. [118.61]
- October 13
- B'nai B'rith founded in New York, USA. [1]
- November 13
- Mount Rainier in Washington State erupts. [1]
- December 4
- Manila paper (made from sails, canvas and rope) is patented, in Massachusetts, USA. [1]
- December 6
- Amsterdam-Utrecht railway opens. [1]
- December 13
- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is published in England; 6,000 copies sold. [1]
1844
- February 27
- Dominican Republic gains independence from Haiti. [1]
- February 28
- 12-inch gun aboard USS Princeton explodes. [1]
- April 12
- Texas became a US territory. [1]
- May 8
- Karl XIV Johan [Jean B Bernadotte], King of Sweden/Norway, dies. [1]
- May 24
- Samuel Morse sends first telegraph message "What Hath God Wrought?" from US Capitol to his assistant Alfred Vail in Baltimore, Maryland. [408.148] [457]
- May 25
- First telegraphed news dispatch is published in Baltimore Patriot in Maryland, USA. [1]
- June 4
- Antonio López de Santa Anna becomes President (8th time) of Mexico. [118.61]
- June 6
- The Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) is founded in London, England. [1] [5]
- June 15
- Goodyear patents vulcanization of rubber. [1]
- June 27
- Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Mormon leaders, are killed by a mob in Carthage, Illinois, USA. [1]
- August 8
- Brigham Young is chosen as Mormon Church head following Joseph Smith death. [1]
- September 12
- Antonio López de Santa Anna resigns (8th time) as President of Mexico. [118.61]
- November 6
- Spain grants Dominican Republic independence. [1]
- December 3
- Roman Catholic Society Apostole of Prayer forms. [1]
- December 4
- James K Polk is elected 11th President of US, George M Dallas as Vice President. [1]
- December 11
- First dental use of nitrous oxide, in Hartford, Connecticut, USA. [1]
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