What happened in 1839
20 events North America 5, Europe 9, Asia 1, Middle East 4, Latin America 1
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Highlights of 1839
- Jan 20Latin AmericaBattle of Yungay: Chile defeats the Peru–Bolivian Confederation, leading to the restoration of an independent Peru.
- Feb 11North AmericaThe University of Missouri is established, becoming the first public university west of the Mississippi River.
- Mar 9North AmericaThe Pastry War between France and Mexico ends.
- Apr 19EuropeThe Treaty of London establishes Belgium as a kingdom, with its independence and neutrality guaranteed by the great powers of Europe. Half of the Limburg province of Belgium is added to the Netherlands, giving rise to a Belgian Limburg and Dutch Limburg (the latter being joined (from September 5) to the German Confederation).
- Jun 27AsiaThe emperor of the Sikh Empire, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, dies at 58.
- Jul 23Middle EastFirst Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Ghazni – British forces capture the fortress city of Ghazni in Afghanistan.
North America5
- Feb 11The University of Missouri is established, becoming the first public university west of the Mississippi River.
- Feb 24William Otis receives a U.S. patent for the steam shovel.
- Mar 9The Pastry War between France and Mexico ends.
- Nov 11The Virginia Military Institute is founded in Lexington, Virginia.
- Nov 27The American Statistical Association is founded in Boston, Massachusetts.
Europe9
- Jan 6Night of the Big Wind: Ireland is struck by the most damaging cyclone in 300 years.
- Mar 9The Anti-Corn Law League is founded in Manchester, England.
- Apr 19The Treaty of London establishes Belgium as a kingdom, with its independence and neutrality guaranteed by the great powers of Europe. Half of the Limburg province of Belgium is added to the Netherlands, giving rise to a Belgian Limburg and Dutch Limburg (the latter being joined (from September 5) to the German Confederation).
- Apr13 May – First Rebecca Riots targeted against turnpikes in Wales, at Efailwen in Carmarthenshire.
- May 7The Bedchamber Crisis in the United Kingdom: Following the announcement by Prime Minister Lord Melbourne that he intends to resign, Robert Peel asks (for political reasons) that Queen Victoria dismiss some of her personal attendants, Ladies of the Bedchamber, as a condition for his forming a government. Victoria refuses to accept the condition and Melbourne is persuaded to stay on as Prime Minister.
- May 22Former British statesman Lord Durham, as President of the New Zealand Company, formally asks the British government for permission to colonize New Zealand, and to establish a colonial government under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom.
- Aug 31The First Carlist War (Spain) ends with the Convenio de Vergara, also known as the Abrazo de Vergara ("the embrace in Vergara"; Bergara in Basque), between liberal general Baldomero Espartero, Count of Luchana and Carlist General Rafael Maroto.
- Nov 4Newport Rising: Between 5,000 and 10,000 Chartist sympathisers march on Newport, Monmouthshire, to liberate Chartist prisoners; around 22 are killed when troops fire on the crowd. This is the last large-scale armed civil rebellion against authority in mainland Britain and sees the most deaths.
- Nov 17Giuseppe Verdi's first opera, Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio, opens in Milan.
Asia1
- Jun 27The emperor of the Sikh Empire, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, dies at 58.
Middle East4
- Jan 19The British Aden Expedition captures Aden.
- Jul 1Abdülmecid I (1839–1861) succeeds Mahmud II (1808–1839) as Ottoman Emperor.
- Jul 23First Anglo-Afghan War: Battle of Ghazni – British forces capture the fortress city of Ghazni in Afghanistan.
- Tanzimat starts in the Ottoman Empire.
Latin America1
- Jan 20Battle of Yungay: Chile defeats the Peru–Bolivian Confederation, leading to the restoration of an independent Peru.