England
History Timeline
Travel through our timeline of major events in England's history.
55 B.C.:
Julius Caesar leads a Roman invasion of what is now Britain. The Romans build 8,000 to 10,000 miles of road during the occupation.
1066 A.D.:
France's William, Duke of Normandy, defeats Harold II, the English Saxon King, at the Battle of Hastings. William becomes King.
1215:
Wealthy citizens force King John to sign the Magna Carta. The document gives English people basic rights.
1348:
A disease called the bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death, sweeps across England. It kills about one-third of the population.
1509-1603:
During the reigns of King Henry VIII and his daughter Elizabeth I, England splits from the Roman Catholic Church.
1837-1901:
Queen Victoria becomes England's longest reigning monarch. The prime minister and parliament become more powerful, and the country moves toward a democratic system of government.
1914-1918:
Britain and its allies, including the United States, battle Germany in World War I.
1939-1945:
Prime Minister Winston Churchill leads the British to victory against Germany, Japan and Italy in World War II.
1979:
Margaret Thatcher becomes the United Kingdom's first woman prime minister.
May 1997:
Tony Blair is elected Prime Minister.
July 1997:
After ruling Hong Kong for 155 years, Britain turns over control of the former colony back to China.
August 1997:
Diana, the Princess of Wales, dies from injuries suffered in a car crash in Paris, France.
2001:
Tony Blair supports the U.S.-led war in Iraq.
2002:
While most European Union-member countries adopt the euro as their new currency, Great Britain chooses to stay with its own currency, the pound sterling.