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TIMELINE / 1850 to After 1930
Date
Country
Theme
1850
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
January: the birth of Mihai Eminescu, who is considered to be the most important Romanian poet of
the 19th century.
1850 - 1860
France
Economy And Trade
Foundation of numerous banks: the Crédit Industriel et Commercial (1859), the Credit Lyonnais
(1863) and the Société générale (1864).
1850
France
Migrations
First wave of Italian immigrants to France.
1850 - 1860
France
Rediscovering The Past
Excavations of the French scholar, archaeologist and Egyptologist Auguste Mariette (1821–81) in
Egypt.
1850 - 1900
Austria
Economy And Trade
The majority of fezzes worn as modern headgear in the Ottoman Empire during the second half of
the 19th century are produced in the Austrian Empire.
1850
Austria
Travelling
Archduke Maximilian visits Asia Minor and Egypt.
1850 - 1855
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
The painters of the School of Posillipo (Naples) develop a new style of more natural observation of
landscapes and everyday life.
1850s - 1860s
Italy
Travelling
Mountaineering on the Alps becomes a sport and tourism activity. Local people had always climbed
mountains. Since the end of the 18th century, scientists had started exploring the Alps for scientific
purposes (Mont Blanc was first climbed in 1786). In 1857, Irish mountaineer John Ball starts climbing
the Dolomites and writing guidebooks about them.
mid 19th - mid 20th
Greece
Migrations
Many Greeks settle in Egypt during the second half of the 19th century. Khedive Muhammad ‘Ali
supports Greek participation in the development of Egypt, especially in her contribution to the cotton
industry.
1850s
United Kingdom
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Britain also holds a stake in the development of railways in the Near East. Egypt, as part of a global
transport network and under British sponsorship, has a railway network before Norway does.
1850s
United Kingdom
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Crimean War brings thousands of British soldiers to Constantinople. After the war, certain
innovations can be traced back to it – such as beards! There is a craze for things all things Turkish;
the Turkish commander even becomes something of a folk hero in Britain.
1850 - 1900
Austria
Migrations
During the second half of the 19th century the mass migration of Czech-speaking farmers to Vienna
to work for Viennese industries finally amounts to half the Viennese population.
1850
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
First photography of Arab monuments such as the Alhambra and the Great Mosque of Córdoba. The
development of photography sheds new light on these monuments and these first photographs are
important documents on Arab remains in Spain.
1850 - 1860s
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
Rafael Contreras begins to make models from the Alhambra that are shown in international
exhibitions and acquired by many museums and schools of design. The models are used as examples
of wall decoration in the Alhambresque style.
1850 - 1929
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
The style of the Neo-Mudéjar artistic movement is used in buildings and artworks, especially ceramic
and metalware. These pieces are displayed in different international exhibitions (e.g. London 1851,
Paris 1878).
1850
Spain
Rediscovering The Past
First photography of the Islamic monuments and remains in Spain such as the Great Mosque of
Córdoba and the Alhambra palace.
2nd half of the 19th
century
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Parnassism is a French literary style that grew up as a reaction to Romanticism. Advocating “Art for
art's sake”, it rejected lyricism: Leconte de Lisle and José-Maria de Heredia are notable poets of this
style.
Circa 1850 - Circa 1900
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Realist movement, which emerges as a reaction to Classicism, focuses on the faithful
reproduction of the “reality” of daily life in both town and country. This movement, which affected
literature and painting in particular, shocked some people. Orientalism (i.e. the painters Fromentin,
Ingres and Gérôme) favoured subjects inspired by travel to the Near East.
1850
France
Fine And Applied Arts
A Burial At Ornans by the Realist painter Gustave Courbet.
1850s - 1870s
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The crinoline underskirt increases the volume of women’s skirts.
1850 - 1900
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
The painting by Max Liebermann, Die Gänserupferinnen (1872), exemplifies Impressionism in art at
this time.
1850 - 1870
Germany
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Surveillance, spying and so on, creates fear and leads to political persecution of musicians (e.g. both
Richard Wagner and Gottfried Semper are forced into exile). Music of this era falls under the label
“late Romanticism” (i.e. when emotional expression and freedom of style are enhanced), and new
genres are born; i.e. symphonic poetry (Franz List) and musical drama (Richard Wagner’s Tristan and
Isolde, 1865).
1851
United Kingdom
Rediscovering The Past
When the Great Exhibition of All Nations opens in London, as well as showcasing technological
progress, it also exposes the public to Egyptian, Mesopotamian and other ancient cultures, thus
fostering an appetite for museums.
1851
Romania
International Exhibitions
Wallachia and Moldavia participate in the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations,
organised at the Crystal Palace in London. Their products are exhibited in the Ottoman pavilion.
1851 - 1895
Jordan
Reforms And Social Changes
Between 1866 and 1871 two administrative districts are created: qada (district) of Ajlun and qada of
al-Salt. Ajlun is part of Hawran mutasarrifiyyat (province), while al-Salt is part of al-Balqa
mutasarrifiyyat. In 1872 a new administrative region comprising al-Salt, Karak and al-Jawf (Tafila is
integrated in 1892) is formed with Ma’an as the administrative centre, subsequently replaced by
Karak in 1895.
1851 - 1853
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Verdi composes the so-called popular trilogy (Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La traviata), consolidating
his fame and reaching full musical and dramatical maturity.
1851
Greece
International Exhibitions
Greece is represented by a small stand at the Great Exhibition in London among the Levantine states.
1851
United Kingdom
International Exhibitions
At the Great Exhibition of this year are some examples of Islamic design influenced by Owen Jones,
who had “discovered” Al-Andalus (Andalusian) Islamic architecture. Jones was brother-in-law to the
architect J. W. Wild who designed St Mark’s Church in Alexandria.
1851
Spain
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
While the Barcelona–Mataró railway is under construction, another line is in progress between Madrid
and Aranjuez, opened in 1851, and a third between Langreo and Gijón, in Asturias. By the end of the
19th century most Spanish cities will be linked by train.
1851
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Lendas e Narrativas published by Alexandre Herculano (1810–77), a collection of historical short
stories set in the context of medieval times and the “Reconquista” process, the Iberian Christian
military movement to recover Muslim-occupied territories (10th–15th centuries).
1851 - 1868
Portugal
Political Context
Regeneration, led mainly by Minister Fontes Pereira Melo (who gives the period name – Fontism) is a
peaceful political cycle of global innovation started in 1851. The kingdom is tired of political unrest.
Conditions are created for the middle classes and foreign investors to support economic expansion,
the development of infrastructure and industrialisation.
1851
Portugal
Economy And Trade
Launch of an ambitious plan of modernisation and the stable Regeneration period mostly led by
Minister Fontes Pereira de Melo (1819–87) (and named Fontism after him) Infrastructure building,
industrial production and business laws are promoted. Porto wine production and trade thrives and
exports increase until the 1860s.
1851
Portugal
International Exhibitions
At “The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations“ in London, Portugal shows 1,293
products from almost all the regions.
1851
Germany
International Exhibitions
The First World Fair is opened by Prince Albert in London.
1851
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Ottoman steamship company Şirket-i Hayriyye is founded. It provides regular and rapid
transportation from Istanbul to points along the Bosporus, replacing the oar-drawn kayıks that had
monopolised this traffic since the 18th century.
1851
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
Ottoman Academy of Sciences (Encümen-i Danış) opens.
1852 - 1870
France
Cities And Urban Spaces
Georges Haussmann’s works in Paris cover all areas of city planning: streets and boulevards,
reconstruction of buildings, parks and street furniture, drainage networks and water supply facilities,
equipment and monuments.
1852
Italy
Political Context
Cavour (Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, 1810–61), the architect of the diplomatic strategies that
allowed Italian unification, becomes prime minister of the Kingdom of Sardinia (he will remain prime
minister until his death).
1852
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Enactment of a code for Craft Guild regulations offers workers some protection in the Austrian
monarchy.
1852
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
13 December: Under the framework of the Regeneration modernisation, the adoption of the decimal
metric system based on the legal mètre of France is decreed by Queen Maria II. This decree
establishes a ten-year deadline for its full enforcement, but the whole process will take longer than
that.
1852
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Ato Adicional de 1852 (Additional Act) abolishes the death penalty for political crimes, which had not
been enforced since 1834. In 1867, in the reign of King Luís I, the abolition of the death penalty is
extended to all kinds of crime, except for those under military jurisdiction. Only in 1911 will total
abolition be proclaimed by the Republican regime.
1852 - 1870
France
Political Context
After an authoritarian period (1852–60), during which time freedoms are severely restricted and
political opponents are forced into exile, the Second Empire is declared and the political climate
becomes more liberal and the economy grows.
1852
Turkey
The steamship company Şirket-i Hayriyye is founded.
Reforms And Social Changes
1852
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
A museum of ancient costumes (Elbise-i Atika) is opened in Hippodrome (İstanbul) where old
costumes of Janissaries are exhibited on mannequins.
1853
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
14 February: installation of the first electric telegraph lines in the Romanian territories, connecting
Iaşi with Cernăuţi.
1853
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
A Treaty of Maritime Peace in Perpetuity is concluded between Britain and the Trucial Coast rulers.
Britain assumes the right to police maritime peace and commits to protecting the sheikhdoms from
external interference and attack.
1853 - 1890
Lebanon
Economy And Trade
Antun Bey Najjar, a merchant who made his fortune in Constantinople, builds Khan Antun Bey in
1853. It becomes a great business center and the building served for many institutions such as
Beirut’s foreign consulates, the Ottoman administration, postal services, merchants’ offices and
Beirut’s first bank, Imperial Ottoman.
1853 - 1856
Greece
Political Context
The Crimean War starts in October 1853. On one side is the Russian Empire and on the other the
Ottoman Empire, the British Empire, France and the Kingdom of Sardinia. Greece participates with a
volunteer corps of 1,000 men as one of Russia’s few allies.
1853
Spain
Migrations
The ban on emigration to America is lifted. Under the Constitution of 1869 free emigration for all the
inhabitants is recognised on payment of a fee, which remains until 1873.
1853
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
1 July: Portugal starts to use the first adhesive postal stamps on letters, postcards and parcels, in the
reign of Queen Mary II. Bearing the Queen’ s effigy they are inspired by the first British stamp.
1853
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of Victor Hugo’s Les Châtiments.
1853 - 1856
Turkey
Political Context
War between Russia and the Ottoman Empire and its allies France, UK and Piedmont-Savoy. The
Crimean War is a consequence of rivalry over the Eastern Question and France’s support of Catholic
claims and Russia’s support of Orthodox claims to control the holy sites in Jerusalem. Russia seeks to
exploit Ottoman political weakness to gain diplomatic rights for Orthodox subjects of the Empire.
Peace established by the Treaty of Paris (1856).
1853
Germany
Economy And Trade
Levi Strauss & Co founds the first company to manufacture blue jeans.
1853
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Antun Bey Najjar, a merchant who made his fortune in Constantinople, builds Khan Antun Bey in
1853. It becomes a great business centre and the building is used by many institutions such as
Beirut’s foreign consulates, the Ottoman administration, postal services, merchants’ offices and
Beirut’s first bank, Imperial Ottoman.
1853 - 1856
Turkey
Migrations
The Crimean War causes an exodus of the Crimean Tatars, about 200,000 of whom move to the
Ottoman Empire in continuing waves of immigration.
1854
Tunisia
Travelling
A contingent of the Tunisian army is called upon to participate alongside the Ottoman Empire, France
and England in the Crimean War.
1854
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
20 August: inauguration of the first railway of Romania, linking Baziaș to Oravița (in Banat). Used at
first to transport coal, it was opened for passenger transportation in 1856. In the United
Principalities, the first railway line, built by the British company J.T. Barkley and J. Staniforth, was
inaugurated 31 October 1869.
1854 - 1870
France
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of workers’ housing includes the utopian city of Familistère de Guise in Aisne (also called
the “Social Palace”), set up by Jean-Baptiste André Godin between 1859 and 1870.
1854
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Leopoldo Alinari, with his brothers Romualdo and Giuseppe, opens in Florence one of the first
photography workshope – Fratelli Alinari.
1854
United Kingdom
Political Context
Russia’s expansion to the Black Sea and the Caucasus encroach on, seize and annex Ottoman
possessions. Britain and France support Ottoman resistance, targeting the Russian naval base in
Crimea. Britain provides military and naval support to the Ottoman armed force.
1854
Austria
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Semmering Railway is the first mainline railway to pass through mountainous territory.
1854
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Sa‘id Pasha’s accession to the Viceroyalty of Egypt provides French businessman Ferdinand de
Lesseps new impulse to develop the Suez Canal.
1854
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Heinrich Göbel invents the light bulb.
1854
Turkey
Economy And Trade
Ottoman Empire obtains its first foreign loan.
1854
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
English amateur archaeologist Frank Calvert (1828–1908) begins excavations in Troy.
1854
Turkey
Political Context
The Tanzimat Council appoints a City Ordering Commission (Intizam-ı Şehir Heyeti), comprising
Ottoman and foreign residents, charged with developing new regulation to transform the structure of
Instanbul into a municipal government. It recommends establishment of a commission to enforce
urban regulations and improve the city's physical make-up, financed through a separate tax
structure.
1855 - 1856
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
In Moldavia (22 December 1855) and then in Wallachia (20 February 1856) a law for the
emancipation of the gypsy slaves of private owners is passed. Gypsies belonging to the church and to
the state had already been liberated.
1855
France
International Exhibitions
The first World Fair/Expo (Exposition universelle) of industrial products takes place at the ChampsElysées, Paris, from 15 May to 15 November. More than five million visitors attend and 25 states and
their colonies are represented.
1855
France
Travelling
From 1855, the spa towns of eastern France are developed: at Vittel, and at Contrexéville near
Plombieres-les-Bains in the Pyrenees, where Napoleon III stays.
1855
Lebanon
Reforms And Social Changes
A school is built by the Jesuits in Ghazir (Kisruwan district).
1855
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
The Caffé Michelangelo in Florence becomes a meeting place for artists and republican intellectuals
close to Giuseppe Mazzini, in opposition to academic and official environments.
1855
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Inauguration of the Egyptian Museum in Florence. The bulk of its holdings are the items collected by
Ippolito Rossellini during the 1828–29 Franco-Tuscan expedition to Egypt, together with the Egyptian
antiquities that the Medici family had collected during the 18th century.
1855
Italy
Political Context
The Kingdom of Sardinia participates in the Crimean war as part of the Anglo-French alliance against
Russia.
1855
Spain
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The railways law, Ley General de Caminos de Hierro (Law of the Iron Roads) establishes principles for
the railway and its public and private development. It specifies a rail width that is wider than the
European rail. Its continued use still causes problems for rail connections between Spain and France
today.
1855
Spain
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The government introduces a law establishing the telegraphic network in Spanish territory, marking
the beginning of telecommunications in Spain. Its objective is to link every important city and the
provincial capitals.
1855 - 1867
Spain
Economy And Trade
The Madoz law introduced in 1855 provides for the state confiscation and sale of the rest of the
Church properties and also of municipal properties.
1855
Portugal
International Exhibitions
Portugal is present at “Exposition Universelle des Produits de l’Agriculture, de l’Industrie et des
Beaux-Arts”, with 441 stands, exhibiting agricultural products and commodities. King Pedro V (1837–
61) has a pivotal role in boosting the national presence.
1855
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
A school is built by the Jesuits in Ghazir (Kisruwan district).
1855
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The earliest railway line within the Empire is opened between Costanta and Cernovoda (in presentday Romania).
1855
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
9 September: Telegraphic communication is introduced within the empire.
1855
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Ahmed Cevdet Paşa, historian, jurist and conservative Tanzimat reformer, completes the first
volumes of Târih-I Cevdet (History of Cevdet), which deals with Ottoman history, 1774–1826.
1856
Romania
Political Context
At the Congress of Paris peace conference, Wallachia and Moldavia are put under the collective
guarantee of the Great Powers (Austria, Russia, Prussia, Piedmont, the UK and France), while
remaining under Ottoman sovereignty. The Russian protectorate over the Romanian countries is
ended. Moldavia receives the southeast of Bessarabia.
1856
Romania
Economy And Trade
The internationalisation of the Danube through the Treaty of Paris has a positive influence on the
development of Romanian commerce.
1856
Morocco
Political Context
In 1856 a treaty is signed, initiated by Britain in order to strengthen its influence over Morocco and
to maintain its naval supremacy in the Mediterranean, which hugely undermines Moroccan
sovereignty. This treaty wrested control over the extent of European penetration away from the
governing institution of Morocco the Makhzen. The advantages gained by European traders,
combined with their superior technique and the quantity of capital behind them, enabled then to
monopolise most of the sea trade and to reduce Moroccan players to mere intermediaries.
1856 - 1860
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
Ildefonso Cerdá designs the "extension" of Barcelona in 1859. The orthogonal design of the streets
creates a new neighbourhood: El Ensanche/L’Eixample. The development of wide streets such as
Diagonal or Paseo de Gracia allows a new construction style, Modernismo/Modernisme, with buildings
by Antonio Gaudí and Puig i Cadafalch.
1856
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
The Portugaliae Monumenta Historica is published. Acknowledged as a historian, Alexandre Herculano
is commissioned by Academia das Ciências de Lisboa to compile this collection of old documents that
are at risk of disappearing and being dispersed throughout convent archives. He undertook this task
in 1853–54.
1856
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Inauguration of the first Portuguese railway between Lisbon and Carregado, 36,454 km north of
Lisbon, by King Pedro V and innumerable guests, transported in 14 wooden carriages pulled by two
locomotives. The first train trip lasts 40 minutes. A steam engine is adapted to move the
locomotives.
1856
Turkey
Political Context
28 February: Under diplomatic pressure, the Sublime Porte is forced to declare the Imperial Rescript
of Reforms (Islahat Fermanı), giving the empire admission to the Concert of Europe. The Rescript
states the equality of Muslims and non-Muslims before law, the right of non-Muslims to be admitted
to government and military service, and abolition of the poll tax and freedom in education for nonMuslims.
1856
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
A Neanderthal is discovered and examined by Johann Carl Fuhlrott and Hermann Schaaffhausen.
Rudolf Virchow, friends with the famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, claims that the
Neanderthal is not prehistoric man. He is wrong.
1856
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
İstimlak Nizamnamesi (Regulation for Expropriation) issued.
1856
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Fire in Aksaray district, İstanbul, destroys more than 650 buildings and is a major turning point in the
history of İstanbul’s urban form. Italian architect Luigi Storari is appointed to carry out the rebuilding of the area, which is to conform to the new pattern: hence it is to be regular with straight
and wide streets.
1856
Turkey
Economy And Trade
The Ottoman Bank is established by English capitalists with capital of ₤500,000 (equivalent to about
US$52 million in 2007). Established on a small scale, the bank becomes an imperial bank by 1863.
1856
Turkey
Political Context
30 March: The Paris Treaty marks the end of the Crimean War (1853–56); the Ottoman Empire is
admitted into the Concert of Europe.
1857
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
Promulgation of the Fundamental Pact by Muhammad Pasha Bey: a “Declaration of Rights” in 11
points. The pact guarantees Tunisians and also foreigners their civil and political rights, security of
persons and properties, equality before the law, etc.
1857
Tunisia
Political Context
Promulgation of the Fundamental Pact by Muhammad Pasha Bey: a “Declaration of Rights” in 11
points. The pact guarantees Tunisians and also foreigners their civil and political rights, security of
persons and properties, equality before the law, etc.
1857
Romania
Economy And Trade
March: the first oil refinery in Romania is built by Teodor Mehedinţeanu at Râfov, Prahova.
1857
France
Travelling
Development of resorts and the creation of the seaside resort of Arcachon on the Atlantic in southwest France, which is inaugurated by Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie.
1857
France
Visit by the Ambassador of Persia, Ferouk Kahn, to Napoleon III.
Travelling
1857 - 1863
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
A paved road, 6 meters wide, is built between Beirut and Damascus. It facilitates the circulation of
the diligence (the transport company’s horse-drawn vehicles).
1857
Austria
Travelling
Sidi Muhammad Bey of Tunis presents a pair of pistols to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria.
1857
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
The Ley de Instrucción Pública (Law of Public Education) establishes three stages of education:
primary, secondary and university. Primary school is compulsory for all children (boys and girls)
providing the basis for combatting illiteracy.
1857
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Creation of the Museum of the Geological Commission currently called the Museum of Geology of
Portugal. It is established under the auspices of the Geological Commission from specimens collected
by the Portuguese pioneers of geology Carlos Ribeiro, Nery Delgado, Pereira da Costa, Paul Choffat
and others.
1857
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The public telegraph service becomes available, one year after its first official connection between the
Royal Palace and the Parliament. The Morse telegraph system is also used in the international
connection to the telegraphic network in Spain, on the border of Elvas and Badajoz.
1857
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of Gustave Flaubert’s novel Madame Bovary.
1857
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Angelus, by the Realist painter Jean-François Millet.
1857 - 1812
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
A reaction to Naturalism and Parnassism, Symbolism focuses on the imagination and spirituality.
Inspired by Charles Baudelaire, the aesthetic developed (i.e. Verlaine, Rimbaud and Mallarmé) and
triumphed at the theatre, in music and in the fine arts.
1857 - 1859
Germany
Economy And Trade
The Great Depression, which starts in the United states with the panic of 1857, represents the first
global economic crisis.
1857
Turkey
Migrations
Ottoman Refugee Code/Immigration Law is issued. Forced migrants-turned-settlers are given 70
donums (about 17 acres) to start farming.
1857
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
March: The Ministry of Public Education is founded.
1858
Tunisia
Cities And Urban Spaces
Under the reign of Muhammad Pasha Bey a major reform is carried out: the capital, Tunis, is
established as a municipal town and a city council is elected. Further municipal towns were created in
other parts of the country: Sfax, Sousse and Kairouan among others.
1858
Romania
Political Context
19 August: the Ottoman Empire, Austria, Russia, Prussia, Piedmont, the UK and France sign the Paris
Convention marking the creation of the United Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia, with separate
rulers, legislative and executive powers, and only two institutions in common (Supreme Court of
Appeals and central legislative commission). The convention replaces the Organic Regulations,
becoming the new constitution of the United Principalities.
1858
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
Through the Paris Convention signed in August 1858 by Russia, the UK, France, Piedmont, Prussia,
Austria and the Ottoman Empire the privileges and ranks of the Romanian aristocracy in Moldavia
and Wallachia are abolished.
1858
France
Travelling
Development of pilgrimages in France, in particular to Lourdes, thanks to faster modes of transport
such as rail.
1858 - 1910
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
Vienna’s newly constructed Ringstrasse covers an area of approximately 2,400,000m2 (240
hectares).
1858
Italy
International Exhibitions
An industrial exhibition is held in Turin.
1858 - 1859
Greece
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Telephone communication is established between the cities of Piraeus and Syros (underwater), and
Athens and Patras.
1858
Austria
Economy And Trade
A unified silver currency the Guilder (Gulden) is introduced throughout the Austrian-Hungarian
Empire.
1858
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
Opening of the Isabel II channel, the water system of Madrid diverting water from the river Lozoya to
the new fountain in San Bernardo street in the centre of Madrid.
1858
Germany
Political Context
King Wilhelm I – later Kaiser (Emperor) of the Second Empire – assumes his regency.
1858 - 1870
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Planning project for Galata and Karaköy in İstanbul. They are important centres for international
trade.
1858
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
6 June: Promulgation of the Land Law regulating private property in agricultural areas.
1859 - 1861
Romania
Political Context
Union of Moldavia and Wallachia. In January 1859 Alexandru Ioan Cuza is elected ruler of both
Moldavia and Wallachia, the double election being recognised by the Great Powers and the Ottoman
Empire. In November 1861 the sultan issues a ferman approving the political and administrative
union of Moldavia and Wallachia during Cuza’s reign. The United Principalities could now have a
single government and parliament.
1859 - 1902
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
On the eve of Italian national unification, Italy has only 1,758 km of railways (Piedmont 803 km,
Lombardy and Veneto 500 km, Tuscany 256 km, Papal States 101 km, Kingdom of Two Sicilies 98
km). After unification in 1860, there is great development of railways, which by 1902 total 15,613
km.
1859
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The Casati Law is passed in the Kingdom of Sardinia (and in 1860 extended to the rest of Italy) that
defines the organisation of the educational system, from primary school to university. The system is
aimed more at educating the ruling elite than the illiterate masses. Humanities are given a much
higher status than scientific and technical education.
1859 - 1861
Italy
Political Context
The Kingdom of Sardinia, backed by France, wages war against the Austrian Empire and annexes
Milan. Pro-unification insurrections in central Italy; Garibaldi leads an expedition of 1,000 volunteers
in Southern Italy. Italy is unified under King Victor Emanuel II (formerly King of Sardinia) as a
constitutional monarchy.
1859 - 1885
Greece
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the so-called classical trilogy – namely the Academy of Athens, the National Library
of Greece and the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens – which is designed by the brothers
Theophilus and Christian Hansen.
1859 - 1860
Morocco
Political Context
The Tétouan war of 6 February 1860: the Spanish, seeking to extend the borders of Ceuta and
Melilla, exploit a raid by a neighbouring tribe against a redoubt built outside the walls of Ceuta to
launch a major military action and occupy Tétouan. To end the occupation of Tétouan, the Moroccan
state was obliged to pay a significant sum (20 million douros), which it was unable to do. As a result,
it was forced to seek a foreign loan that it was able to pay back using customs revenues.
1859 - 1873
Morocco
Political Context
Reign of Muhammad Ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman: with a view to overhauling the machinery of
administration, Muhammad IV creates an administrative school, the Madrasa Makhzenia, and
proceeds to modernise financial and tax services. He also thought about modernising the army, both
in terms of soldier training and equipment. This was eventually achieved by his son Mulay al-Hasan I.
1859
Serbia
Political Context
The Hatišerif (Turkish edict) is issued in 1838, allowing the Sovjet (Council) to limit the powers of
Prince Miloš Obrenović. Unwilling to accept this however, Miloš abdicates and leaves Serbia in 1839.
Prince Mihailo Obrenović reigns for a short time before the Karađorđević Dynasty regains the Serbian
throne in 1842. The 1858 Svetoandrejska skupština (Assembly convened on St Andrew’s Day)
decides on a change of dynasty, overthrowing Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević and reinstating Miloš
Obrenović. A 37-strong deputation from the Assembly, with a massive, heavily armed entourage,
leaves Belgrade for Bucharest to bring the newly elected prince back to the country, marking the
beginning of Miloš’ second, but short-lived reign, which ends when he dies in 1860.
1859 - 1860
Spain
Political Context
War declared on Morocco. Battles of Castillejos (Fnidq) and Wad-Ras. A peace agreement is signed
with the Moroccan Sultan leaving Tetouan under Spanish rule.
1859
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Johann Phillipp Reis invents the telephone.
1859
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Sokaklara Dair Nizamname (Regulation for Streets) issued.
1859
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
İbrahim Şinasi completes his stage comedy Şâir Evlenmesi (Marriage of a Poet), the first theatre play
written by an Ottoman Turkish author.
1859
Austria
Political Context
Defeat of the Austrians by a French and Sardinian Army at the Battle of Solferino on 24 June sees
terrible losses on both sides.
1859
Austria
Political Context
At the Peace of Zürich (10 November) Austria cedes Lombardy, but not Venetia, to Napoleon III; in
turn, Napoleon hands the province over to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
1860 - 1900
Tunisia
Cities And Urban Spaces
Following development of the Port of La Goulette, new districts relating to trade and industrial
activities are born. The neighbourhood is given the name of “Little Sicily”, which is suggestive of its
role as host to a poor immigrant population mainly from southern Italy.
1860
Tunisia
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The restoration of the Aqueduct of Zaghouan is completed, running water arrives in Tunis.
1860 - 1863
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Restoration of the Zaghouan Aqueduct, Tunisia’s largest water-service network, allows supply to the
capital and its suburbs.
1860
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
7 November: on the initiative of painter Gheorghe Panaitescu-Bardasare, a School of Fine Arts and an
art gallery are founded in Iaşi.
1860
France
Travelling
First trip by Napoleon III to Algeria; the second will take place in 1865.
1860s - 1908
Jordan
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
After centuries of neglect the creation of new administrative units late in the 19th century
strengthens the Ottoman presence in Transjordan. This trend materialises in the construction of
administrative buildings in newly established or re-established towns and investment in
infrastructure. New towns mean new roads: Amman, Jerash and Madaba are linked by paved roads
and in 1906 Madaba is linked with Karak. Construction of the Hijaz Railway and lines of
communication results in extensive urban development along the railway. However, it also creates
social disparities and tensions.
1860 - 1918
Jordan
Fine And Applied Arts
Newcomers to Transjordan, whether from neighbouring Arab countries such as Syria, Palestine and
Hijaz or from further afield such as Caucasus, bring with them not only artefacts of their home
culture, including personal ornaments, weapons, costumes and treasured items, but also the
necessary skills and social habits that help them to adapt in their new homeland.
1860 - 1921
Jordan
Economy And Trade
Palestinian and Damascene merchants have long-established trade relations with Transjordan
villages. There is a steady trade between al-Salt and Nablus, Karak and Hebron and between Ma’an
and Gaza. Large families of these merchants move to these towns. They build many structures and
become major landowners and form the elite of Transjordan society. These merchants become the
dominant economic force and open up Transjordan to regional trade.
1860 - 1921
Jordan
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Due to the very diverse composition of the Transjordanians with their different backgrounds – Arabs
and non-Arabs, Muslims and Christians, settlers and nomads – Transjordan becomes the melting pot
for different cultures. This is reflected in very diverse cultural artefacts (fashion and costumes,
musical instruments and music, and dances) but more importantly in traditions and social behaviour.
1860 - 1870
Jordan
Reforms And Social Changes
By the 1860s, population density has decreased drastically. The border of the sawn cultivated land
had been pushed westwards under the pressure of the nomadic tribes from the east. Several reasons
are suggested for this decline, including maladministration and the taxation policies of the Ottoman
Empire. Some of the regions south of Ajlun, including Amman area, and along the escarpment of the
Jordan valley were almost completely abandoned. Recovery starts during the last quarter of the 19th
century.
1860
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
The unification of Italy leads to urban expansion outside the old city walls, which have lost their
defensive value. Medieval urban buildings are often demolished in order to build monumental
architecture.
1860 - 1870
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
In opposition to academic painting, the Macchiaioli movement (Telemaco Signorini, Vincenzo
Cabianca and Silvestro Lega) experiments with “spot painting”, based on the strong contrast between
light and shadow.
1860
Italy
Political Context
The right to vote is reserved for a small elite of men who have certain levels of income and
education: only 2.2% of the Italians can vote.
1860 - 1865
Greece
Fine And Applied Arts
Both Nikolaos Gyzis and Nikiphoros Lytras win scholarships to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts,
Munich.
1860 - 1874
Greece
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Konstantinos Paparrigopoulos writes a five-volume History of the Greek Nation, a highly influential
historiographical work about the continuity of Greek history since antiquity.
1860
Austria
Migrations
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) is born in Moravia; he emigrates from Moravia to Vienna.
1860
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
The Manises pottery begins to produce objects in lustreware.
1860
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Fine And Applied Arts
The icon “Seven Holy Teachers” (Sedmochislenitzi) is painted by the most significant representative
of Christian religious art in Macedonia, Dicho Krstevic Zograph, at the peak of his creativity. It
represents the Slav missionaries Sts Cyril and Methodius and their disciples Clement, Nahum,
Gorazd, Sabbas and Angelarij in a solo composition. His icons are distinguished by bright colour and
baroque features.
1860
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The birth in Prilep of the first Macedonian composer Atanas Badev (d. 1908). He studied music in
Russia and was conductor of several school choirs and of the first city choir in Prilep.
1860 - 1870
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Marko K. Cepenkov (1829–1920) was born in Prilep. Among the greatest collectors of Macedonian
oral folk literature, during the 1860s he was prolific in recording folklore creations. The importance of
his collecting activities lies not only in the volume but also in the diversity of folklore traditions
recorded, including proverbs, sayings, tales, songs, riddles, charms, beliefs, dreams and
interpretation, and children's games.
1860
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Grigor Prlichev's epic poem "The Serdar", written in Greek, wins first prize at the annual poetry
competition held in Athens. Prlichev (1830–93) was born in Ohrid. This prolific Macedonian poet and
translator was a dedicated advocate of introducing the native spoken language in Macedonian
schools. He was referred to as a second Homer, having translated the "Iliad" into the Macedonian
language.
1860
Lebanon
Political Context
Yusuf Bek Butros Karam, a Lebanese Maronite born in 1823 fights in the 1860 civil war and leads a
rebellion in 1866-67 against the Ottoman Empire’s rule in Mount Lebanon. His proclamations have
been interpreted as an early expression of Lebanese nationalism.
1860
Lebanon
Political Context
A full-scale war erupts between Maronites and Druze. Napoleon III of France sends 7,000 troops to
Beirut and helps impose a partition: Druze control of the territory is recognised as the fact on the
ground, and the Maronites are forced into an enclave. This is ratified by the Concert of Europe in
1861.
1860
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Under the liberal educational reforms, Lyceu Nacional de Aveiro (Aveiro High School) is the first
school in Portugal to occupy a building designed specifically for this function. Previously schools
occupied existing buildings, often old convents. The school had been created as Colégio de Aveiro in
1848.
1860
Portugal
Travelling
Travelling became a great cultural and social phenomenon with Romanticism. The “Grand Tour”
through the countries of the known world, namely around the Mediterranean, became a means of
developing cultural and social skills. Travel became refined and even a simple journey to the
countryside required such accessories as this travel case for meals.
Circa 1870 - Circa 1900
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Impressionist painters capture the effects of light in outdoor and everyday scenes.
1860 - 1910
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
Realism (a backlash to both Classicism and Romanticism) is exemplified by French artist Gustave
Courbet’s Die Steinklopfer (1849), although long before then Albrecht Dürer had painted his highly
realistic Junger Feldhase (1502).
1860
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
October: First private newspaper to be published by Turkish journalists,Tercüman-ı Ahvâl, published
by Agah Efendi and İbrahim Şinasi.
1860
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
October: Journalists İbrahim Şinasi and Agah Efendi publish the first private Muslim newspaper
Tercümân-ı Ahvâl (Interpreter of Events).
1861
Tunisia
Political Context
Muhammad Sadiq Bey promulgates a constitution limiting his powers. Tunisia’s first constitution is
the culmination of the reformist policies of the 19th-century Husaynid beys.
1861
France
Travelling
Embassy sent by King Mongkut of Siam (now Thailand) to Napoleon III.
1861 - 1921
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Urban growth in Italy: Naples is the biggest city (1861: 447,000; 1921: 772,000), but population
growth is higher in Rome, the “political capital city” (1871: 244,000; 1921: 692,000) and in Milan,
the “industrial capital city” (1861: 96,000; 1921: 719,000). (Rounded to nearest 1,000.)
1861
Italy
International Exhibitions
First Italian National Exhibition of Agricultural and Industrial Products and Fine Arts opens in
Florence.
1861 - 1921
Italy
Migrations
The Italian population grows from 22 million in 1861 to almost 33 million in 1901, to 38.4 million in
1921. Part of the increases are due to annexations of new territories. During the same period
average annual migration to European and Mediterranean countries is 99, 000 in the 1860s
and170,000 in the 1910s, peaking in the 1900s at 251,000. Average annual migration to nonEuropean countries is 22,000 in the 1860s and 213,000 in the 1910s, peaking in the 1900s at
351,000. (Figures, rounded to the nearest 1,000, include both permanent and temporary migration.
1861
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
The pre-unification laws on the protection of cultural heritage of the individual Italian states remain in
force even after unification. Until 1902, different Italian regions are thus subject to different
disciplines.
1861
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Collection of Macedonian poems compiled by the Miladinov brothers is published in Zagreb.
Konstantin Miladinov (1830–62), a prominent Macedonian poet, folklorist and educator is a major
contributor. Despite a reference to Bulgarian songs in the title, the folk literature recorded by the
Miladinovs originated mostly from the areas of Struga, Ohrid, Prilep, Kukush and Bitola.
1861
Lebanon
Political Context
In the aftermath of the Lebanese civil war in 1860, the Ottoman authorities impose a new system of
government for the mountain districts of Lebanon. Formerly, the region had been divided into two
districts, one with a Maronite Christian administrator and the other with a Druze. The Ottomans
combine them into a single district, known as the mutasarrifiyya.
1861 - 1876
Turkey
Political Context
France
Rediscovering The Past
Reign of Sultan Abdülaziz.
1862
Creation of the Museum of Celtic and Gallo-Roman Antiquities by Napoleon III in Saint-Germain-enLaye.
1862
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The British India Company establishes a regular steamer service in the Arabian Gulf, first as a mail
service, and later enhanced by cargo and passenger services.
1862
Italy
Economy And Trade
Law on the unification of currencies passed: the lira becomes the Italian currency.
1862
Portugal
International Exhibitions
The “International Exhibition on Industry and Art” in London distinguishes Portugal with 165 Medals
of Honor and 240 mentions.
1862
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Picnic on the Grass by Édouard Manet marks a transition from Realism to Impressionism
1862
Germany
Political Context
Otto von Bismarck becomes prime minister of Prussia.
1862
Turkey
Travelling
Steamship company Fevâid-I Osmâniyye is founded.
1862
Turkey
Travelling
April: Sultan Abdülaziz visits Egypt.
1863
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The literary society Junimea, which had an important role in promoting Romanian literature, is
founded in Iaşi. In 1867 it begins publishing a periodical in which the works of Romanian writers
appear and also translations from worldwide literature.
1863
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
December: the National Gathering of the United Principalities adopts the law through which the land
owned by monasteries (more than a quarter of Romania’s surface) becomes property of the state.
1863 - 1889
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the 167.5 m high Mole Antonelliana in Turin, initially conceived as a synagogue. It
soon becomes the city’s landmark building.
1863 - 1885
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Opening of applied art schools, often attached to museums: Industrial Museum of Turin (1863),
Artistic Industrial Museum of Rome (1873), Naples (1882) and Palermo (1885).
1863
Italy
Travelling
The Club Alpino Italiano is founded in Turin. Its goal is “to promote the knowledge of mountains, and
especially of Italian mountains, their ascent and scientific expeditions”. In 25 years, membership
reaches 4,500 with 34 local branches. By 1900 it had built 57 mountain huts.
1863
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Bedrich Smetana's (1824–1884) opera Verkaufte Braut (The Bartered Bride) had its first performance
in Prague.
1863
Morocco
Political Context
The intention of the trade treaty signed with France in August 1863 is to curb the damaging effects of
protectionism and to limit the extent of European penetration but, subverted from its original
purpose, it becomes one of the causes of the protectionism problem. The Dahir of June 1864 then
proclaimed freedom of trade throughout the Sharifian Empire. The conventions of 1856, 1860–1 and
1863 established the legal bases for relations between Morocco and Europe. Europe’s influence then
began to grow.
1863
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
On 18 October, under the rule of Khedive Isma‘il, the Egyptian Museum opens in the Caireen district
of Bulaq under the management of French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette, known as Mariette Pasha.
1863
Egypt
Migrations
Muhammad Sa‘id Pasha dispatches part of a Sudanese battalion to help stop a rebellion against the
Second Mexican Empire.
1863 - 1879
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
Education attracts renewed interest during Isma‘il Pasha’s era. His government establishes schools
and reviews students’ expenses, including their living expenses, which sees the restoration of the
Diwan (or ministry) of Schools that Sa‘id had annulled. Now as the education budget increased,
gradually, the government also returned to dispatching missions to Europe, mostly to France. A
number of primary schools were established across the country: from Alexandria in the north to
Minya in the south.
1863
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
The painters Mariano Fortuny y Marsal and Francisco Lameyer travel to North Africa. Fortuny buys
different artworks and textiles for his collection.
1863
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of the novel Amor de Perdição (Fatal Love) by Camilo Castelo-Branco (1825–90). Written
very quickly, this romance has everything to be a major work of passion: tragic intensity, speed of
action, balance of characters and simplicity of style.
1863
Turkey
International Exhibitions
Sergi-i Umumi-I Osmani (Ottoman General Exhibition), its format borrowed from Western
exhibitions, is opened in İstanbul.
1864
Tunisia
Political Context
The popular uprising sounds the death knell for reform. The great figure of this insurrection, ‘Ali bin
Ghedham, comes from the region of Kasserine.
1864
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
Dimitrie Bolintineanu, the Minister of Religion and Public Instruction, organises in Bucharest an
exhibition displaying works of contemporary Romanian artists, the most important of the time being
painters Theodor Aman, Gheorghe Tattarescu and Carol Popp de Szathmari.
1864
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
14 April: the Commune Law is adopted by which cities and towns become urban communes, led by a
mayor and a council. All urban communes must have a fire department and a hospital.
1864
Romania
Political Context
14 May: coup d’état of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, who dissolves parliament and proposes a new
constitutional project, which is voted the same month and ratified by the Ottoman Empire and the
guaranteeing Powers in June 1864. The Statute Expanding the Paris Convention assigned greater
power to the prince and the government.
1864
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
4 August: establishment of the General Directorate of the Post and the Telegraph in the United
Principalities.
1864
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
19 August: establishment of Bucharest’s city hall. Bucharest had been the United Principalities’
capital since 1861.
1864
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
26 August: Alexandru Ioan Cuza promulgates the first Romanian land reform, which transforms
peasants into owners of the land on which they had been working on the estates of the aristocracy.
Peasants are also freed from the duties they had to perform for the nobility.
1864
Romania
Economy And Trade
27 October: foundation of the Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
1864
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
14 November: a School of Fine Arts (which today is the National University of Art) is founded in
Bucharest by painters Gheorghe Tattarescu and Theodor Aman.
1864
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
December: the law of public instruction establishes free, compulsory primary education.
1864 - 1865
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Qawasim and other sheikhdoms of the Arab littoral are held by Britain to sign a Treaty pledging
to abstain from any interference with British Gulf Telegraph installations and to punish any
aggressions made against them.
1864
Lebanon
Travelling
Inauguration of the Capuchin cathedral dedicated to Saint Louis IX King of France. The Capuchins
had arrived in Beirut in 1628, practising their rites in the old Saint George church where the current
Maronite cathedral now stands. Before moving to their present location the Capuchins built their first
church, also dedicated to Saint Louis, in Beirut in 1732.
1864
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
A governmental survey reveals the existence of 443 friendly societies (Società di mutuo soccorso), all
located in Central and Northern Italy (Milan has 38 societies with a total of 9,923 members, Turin 13
with 14,864 members). Their number and membership grows considerably over time until the
development of modern welfare.
1864
Greece
Political Context
The Ionian islands are incorporated within the newly established Greek State.
1864
Lebanon
Political Context
Dawud Pasha (the mutasarrif [governor] of Lebanon, appointed by the Ottomans) restores to
Lebanon a part of its lost territory, establishes for the Druze a school in Abayh that still bears his
name and struggles against the feudal lords in the south and the clerical party in the north.
1864
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Creation of the Carmo Archaeological Museum by the Portuguese Association of Civil Architects,
which in 1867 adopts the title of Royal Association of Civil Architects and Portuguese Archaeologists.
The museum is located in the ruins of medieval Convento do Carmo, destroyed by the 1755
earthquake.
1864
Portugal
Economy And Trade
Banco Nacional Ultramarino is established in Lisbon, as the issuing bank for Portuguese overseas
territories. BNU has a significant role in supporting the economic development of the country and the
former colonies. Its savings, investment and issuing role facilitates the currency circulation
throughout them.
1864
Portugal
Economy And Trade
The unpopular tobacco monopoly is ended by parliamentary law. Hereafter tobacco will be auctioned
and exploited by those offering the best price to the state. Some of the main tobacco companies
merge into bigger companies to ensure its exploration. The Companhia Lisbonense de Tabacos,
founded in 1865, becomes a major player.
1864
Germany
Political Context
As a consequence of the Prussian–Danish war, Denmark retracts its demand for Schleswig and
Holstein.
1864
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The chemist Julius Lothar Meyer (1830–95) develops the first periodic table of chemical elements.
1864 - 1910
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
During this period the Beirut Tram covers 12 km around Beirut’s centre. It runs until 1910.
1864
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Imperial decree orders that all civil servants have to light one or two street gas lamps in front of their
houses both in summer and winter.
1865
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
The first showing of the “Living Artists Exhibition” (for painters and sculptors), organised by painter
Theodor Aman, takes place in Iaşi. The annual organisation of such an exhibition is established by a
decree issued in December 1864.
1865
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The new-born Italian state approves a civil code that places women in a subordinate position in the
family. Boys and girls can inherit equally, but married women need “marital authorisation” to manage
their property. Male and female adultery are treated differently. The “defence of honour” is accepted
as attenuating circumstance in murder cases.
1865 - 1867
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The worst of the five cholera epidemics that hit Italy during the 19th century kills more than
160,000. The most affected towns are always Naples and Palermo.
1865
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The royal yacht Mahroussa is built for Isma‘il Pasha, the Khedive of Egypt.
1865
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
1 May: Santa Apolónia Central Railway Station of Lisbon, connecting to the East and North Railways,
is inaugurated. It is sited in the north bank of the Tagus River, close to Praça do Comércio in Lisbon.
It is an example of 19th-century iron buildings.
1865
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
The stuccoes of the corridor of the Monserrate Palace are inspired by those of Alhambra Palace in
Granada. The profusion of columns is considered to recall those in the Hypostyle Hall of the Cordova
Mosque.
1865
Portugal
International Exhibitions
“A Exposição Internacional”, in Porto, is the first international exhibition organised in Portugal.
Designed by the English architect Thomas Dillen Jones, it follows the London model and was
conceived to accommodate the Portuguese International Exhibition.
1865
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Bom-senso e Bom-gosto (Good Sense and Good Taste) by Antero de Quental (1842–91) is an open
letter published as pamphlet, replying to and ridiculing the poetry of António Feliciano de Castilho
(1800–75) and urging young writers to take a revolutionary position instead. This controversy
became known as the "Questão Coimbrã” (the Coimbra Question).
1865
Turkey
Political Context
Formation of Young Ottoman opposition against the bureaucratic domination of Ali Paşa and Fuad
Paşa.
Circa 1865 - Circa 1900
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Naturalism, a literary movement that draws inspiration from descriptions of life, science and
documentary observation, and which on occasion makes use of crude vocabulary to give it greater
veracity, causes widespread offence. The movement was led by Émile Zola, with his RougonMacquart cycle.
1865
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Sultan ‘Abd al-‘Aziz orders the building of a hospital known as the military infirmary. It will later be
turned into a courthouse after the French Mandate and then become the Insitute of Fine Arts of the
Lebanese University.
1865
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first comprehensive physics textbook in Turkish, Mehmed Emin Derviş Paşa’s (1817–79) Usul-i
Hikmet-i Tabiiyye (Elements of physics) is published in Istanbul.
1866
Romania
Political Context
February: because of his authoritative regime, Cuza is forced to abdicate by a coalition of
conservative and liberal-radical politicians.
1866
Romania
Political Context
14–20 April: plebiscite leading to German Prince Carol de Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen being elected
ruler of the United Principalities and recognised by the Ottoman Empire in October. On 13 July a new
constitution is adopted, based on the Belgian one from 1835.
1866
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
Qawasim lands are divided among the four sons of Sheikh Sultan bin Saqr following his death. The
number of Trucial States rises from five to nine.
1866
Austria
Migrations
Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen from south-western Germany is elected as Prince of Romania.
1866
Italy
Economy And Trade
A law confiscates the properties of religious orders and congregations, and establishes a state fund to
support the clergy and monks.
1866
Italy
Political Context
Italy participates in the Austro-Prussian War on the side of Prussia and annexes Venice.
1866
Greece
Fine And Applied Arts
Nikiphoros Lytras takes up a professorship at the School of the Arts in Athens.
1866
Greece
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The poet Kostis Palamas publishes his first collection of verse entitled the Songs of My Fatherland. A
major figure on the Greek literary scene, Palamas writes the Olympic Anthem and is nominated for
the Nobel Prize for Literature.
1866
Greece
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Emmanuel Roidis, one of Greece’s most influential authors, publishes his novel Pope Joan, which is
translated into a number of languages.
1866
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first Egyptian stamps are issued on 1 January.
1866 - 1867
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
In 1866 the School of Irrigation and Architecture is inaugurated at al-Za‘faran Saray in ‘Abbasiyya in
Cairo; it then transfers to Mustafa Fadil Saray at Darb al-Jama‘iz in 1867. The School provides a
study programme of five years: a preparatory year followed by a further four years; two years
respectively specialising in irrigation and architecture.
1866
Spain
Economy And Trade
Financial crisis during the last years of Queen Isabel II's government because of public investments
in the construction of the railway.
1866
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Werner von Siemens invents the dynamo.
1866 - 1905
Germany
Economy And Trade
Henri Nestlé founds the company Nestlé, which becomes the world’s largest corporation for
comestible goods.
1866 - 1871
Germany
Economy And Trade
Formation of the North German Confederation in 1866/7 sees a federation of the 22 independent
states of northern Germany, with nearly 30 million inhabitants. It was the first modern German
nation-state and the basis for the later German Empire (1871–1918).
1866
Turkey
Economy And Trade
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
İzmir-Aydın railway is built.
1866
The Civil Medical School is opened.
1866
Austria
Political Context
Following defeat at the Battle of Königgrätz (3 October), at the Peace of Vienna, Austria is forced to
cede the Venetian province to Italy.
1867
Romania
Political Context
The centre of present-day Transylvania is integrated into the Hungarian kingdom after the creation of
the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. Partium and Banat had already been included in Hungary.
1867
Romania
Economy And Trade
4 May: proclamation of the law for the introduction of a new monetary system and for the issuing of
national coins; 1870 is the year when the first Romanian coins are minted in Romania having
previously been minted abroad.
1867
Romania
International Exhibitions
At the International Exposition held in Paris, the United Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia have
their own pavilions.
1867
Romania
International Exhibitions
On the occasion of the International Exposition of Paris a book with information about Romania’s
agriculture, commerce, industry and resources is published in Paris by a commission coordinated by
Alexandru Odobescu.
1867
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
The Pietroasa Treasure is displayed at the International Exposition in Paris.
1867
France
International Exhibitions
The exposition known as the Universal World Exhibition of Art and Industry – the seventh World
Expo/Fair and the second held in Paris after that of 1855; it ran from 1 April to 3 November 1867 on
the Champ-de-Mars in Paris; 41 countries were represented.
1867
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
The Austrian Museum of Applied Arts purchases the minbar from the Ibn Tulun Mosque in Cairo.
1867
Italy
Economy And Trade
Law on the abolition of religious bodies: the real estate properties of 25,000 religious bodies are
auctioned.
1867
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Around 60 per cent of men and 80 per cent of women are unable to sign their marriage certificate
because they are unable to write.
1867
Italy
Political Context
Uprising in Rome demanding unification with Italy. At the same time, Garibaldi leads an expedition of
volunteers that enters the Papal States and tries to seize Rome. Roman rebels are defeated and
executed. Garibaldi is defeated by Papal troops backed by a French expeditionary corps (France
protects the Papal States).
1867
Italy
Travelling
The Società Geografica Italiana is founded. In 1869-70, it organises an exploratory expedition to East
Africa, in 1875 to Tunisia and in 1876 to Ethiopia. Many other journeys to Africa, and also to Central
Asia, South America and Papua follow. Such travels generally combined scientific purposes and
political agendas.
1867
United Kingdom
International Exhibitions
The Paris Exhibition is the major international exhibition of the century. In the aftermath of the
Crimean War (1854–56), when France, Britain and Turkey ally against Russia, there is a boost of
friendship with and interest in the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan visits the Paris Exhibition and then
continues to London where he was made a Knight of the Garter.
1867
United Kingdom
Political Context
The 1850s and 1860s sees close political, commercial and cultural relations between the Ottoman
Empire and Britain. The zenith of this relationship is the state visit of Ottoman Sultan ‘Abd al-‘Aziz to
France and then Britain. The Prince of Wales then reciprocates with a visit to Constantinople,
Damascus and Jerusalem in 1869.
1867
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
The Austrian-Hungarian compromise creates a dual-monarchy that has common ministries only for
foreign affairs, defence and public finance.
1867
Egypt
Travelling
Khedive Isma‘il Pasha visits Paris and then London, where he is received by Queen Victoria and
welcomed by the Lord Mayor. He attends a British Royal Navy fleet review alongside the Ottoman
Sultan.
1867
Spain
Rediscovering The Past
Foundation of the Museo Arqueológico Nacional in Madrid following the European movement to create
national museums holding the remains of a country's past in tandem with the development of
archaeology as a discipline. The museum covers prehistory to modern times, and from its opening in
1871 Spanish Moorish objects are displayed in its Medieval galleries.
1867
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Febo Moniz published by Joaquim Pedro de Oliveira Martins (1845–94). Subtitled "Romance Histórico
Português do Século XVI", the action takes place in Lisbon in 1580. The protagonist is the prosecutor
Febo Moniz, the sole representative of the state to protest against the acclamation of Philip II of
Spain as King of Portugal.
1867
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The opening of the Lisbon Astronomical Observatory, Portugal’s national observatory, which has legal
responsibility for national timekeeping. It is located in the Tapada da Ajuda, a green area in the west
of Lisbon.
1867
Portugal
Economy And Trade
First phylloxera disease reaches the Portugal countryside. Porto wine and Portuguese wine production
in general is reduced dramatically. This disease causes economic, financial and social distress and
leads to the abandonment of vineyard farms. The loss of revenues and unemployment increases
emigration, especially to Brazil.
1867 - 1880
Portugal
Economy And Trade
Phylloxera Commission created by the government in order to protect vineyards from the disease. To
combat the disease demands new methods of planting and production. New organisations of wine
producers claim from central government the preservation of regional varieties as well as the
definition and defence of Port and Douro wine “Denominação de Origem Controlada”.
1867
Portugal
International Exhibitions
At the “Exposition Universelle” in Paris, the Portugal Pavilion employs a neo-Manueline architectural
style. The exoticism is a symbol of the Portuguese Empire built by the discoveries of the 15th and
16th centuries.
1867
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Birth of the poet António Nobre (1867–1900). Só, written during his exile in Paris (1892), is the only
work published in his lifetime. The nostalgia of this work, a landmark of the symbolist movement, is
tempered by a certain self-irony, alternating a symbolist refined vocabulary with a more colloquial
one. He influenced the work of the main Portuguese modernists.
1867
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
July: The first Portuguese major Civil Code is entrusted to António Luís Seabra (1798–1895), the first
methodical code maker in Portugal. It is intended to meet the liberal need to regulate the juridical
system as happened with French Napoleonic Code. One of its main concerns is the regulation of civil
marriage. The Code will remain in force for nearly a century.
1867
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Foundling wheels for babies left anonymously to be cared for were used between the 15th and the
19th century. From 1867 they are gradually abolished and replaced by asylums for orphans,
foundlings and abandoned older children. Organised childcare is promoted from 1870 through the
foundation of childcare centres and public support for families.
1867
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Premiere of the opera Roméo et Juliet by Charles-François Gounod.
1867 - 1885
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
King Ludwig II of Bavaria sets in motion the building of his second palace, Linderhof (1869–85), the
smallest of the large palaces he had built, and the only one he lived to see completed. The king’s
penchant for the so called Moorish style can be seen in several elements, such as the Moorish Kiosk
(1867) and the Moroccan House (1878). The King’s House on the Schachen (1869–72), built with a
Turkish Hall by Georg von Dollmann, further attests to Ludwig’s admiration for the “Oriental” style.
1867
Turkey
International Exhibitions
The Ottoman Empire participates in the International Exhibition in Paris. The Ottoman pavilions are
designed in İstanbul by a self-taught French architect named Léon Parvillée in collaboration with the
Italian architect Barborini. Sultan Abdülaziz travels to Paris at the invitation of Emperor Napoleon III
to attend the opening of the World Exhibition.
1867
Turkey
Travelling
Sultan Abdülaziz makes state visits to European powers.
1867
Turkey
Political Context
8 June: The Egyptian governor receives from the Sublime Porte the title of “khedive,” which provides
him legislative independence.
1867
Austria
Travelling
Sultan ‘Abd al-‘Aziz visits Vienna on 18 July.
1868
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
29 April: the Romanian Philharmonic Society is founded by conductor Eduard Wachmann with the aim
of organising a permanent symphony orchestra. The inaugural concert takes place in the same year
on 15 December.
1868
Lebanon
Rediscovering The Past
Luigi Palma di Cesnola, the American Consul in Cyprus, gives a collection of Cyprian pottery to the
Syrian Protestant College (now the American University) in Beirut. This event is the first step towards
the foundation of the Archaeological Museum of the American University.
1868
Lebanon
Travelling
Foundation of the Archaeological Museum of the American University of Beirut after Luigi Palma di
Cesnola gives a collection of Cypriot pottery to the newly formed university.
1868
Austria
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The railway across the Brenner Pass (via the Alps) opens.
1868
Austria
Migrations
Michael Latos is born in Croatia (Austrian Empire) in 1828. He later deserts the Austrian army and
flees to the Ottoman Empire, where he makes a military career as Omar Pasha and becomes Minister
of War in 1868.
1868 - 1883
Italy
Migrations
Different circular letters by the Minister of Interior place obstacles on migration: migrants are
supposed to have work contracts or to prove they have enough funding to repatriate. Such circular
letters have only limited effect. Landowners put pressure on government to discourage migration.
1868
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Gualberta Alaide Beccari (a feminist with republican ideas, much influenced by Mazzini) founds the
periodical La donna, which campaigns for women’s rights. La donna’s main contributor is Anna Maria
Mozzoni, who since 1865 had campaigned against “marital authorisation” and for women’s right to
vote.
1868 - 1874
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the Abdeen Palace in Cairo begins in 1868 and inauguration takes place some six
years later.
1868 - 1886
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
A Law School is established during Isma‘il Pasha’s era in 1868. Known then as the School of
Management and Languages, the two schools separate in 1882 and remain as such until July 1886.
That year, it becomes the School of Law with two departments, primary and high.
1868
Spain
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The “Generation of ‘68” writers begin to publish after the 1868 revolution; the group is named by one
of its members, Leopoldo Alas, known as Clarín. Their characteristics are middle-class consciousness
and a realist style. Authors in this group include Pedro Antonio de Alarcón, José María Pereda, Benito
Pérez Galdós and Emilia Pardo Bazán.
1868
Spain
Political Context
Carlist wars, economic crisis (1866–68) and disgruntlement with Queen Isabel II and the government
explode in the September revolution known as La Gloriosa. The revolution is followed by six years of
democratic government under Amadeo I, from the Italian Saboya family, (1870–73) and then under
the first Spanish Republic (1873–74), causing the 3rd Carlist war.
1868
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The birth of José Viana da Motta (d. 1948). Pianist, composer, conductor and pedagogue, he studied
piano and composition in Berlin and performed in concerts around the world. He was professor of
Piano at the Conservatory of Geneva and Director of the Conservatório Nacional de Lisboa,
maintaining his concert career alongside teaching.
1868 - 1886
Germany
Cities And Urban Spaces
Ludwig II (r. 1864–86) had several palaces built during his reign. The most famous among these are
Neuschwanenstein (1868–92, still in construction when Ludwig died), Neues Schloss Herrenchiemsee
(1878–86, built along the lines of Versailles, but never completed), and Linderhof (1869–85), the
only palace the king lived to see completed.
1868
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
29 June: Namık Kemal and Ziya Paşa publish oppositional weekly newspaper in London, where they
had fled to.
1869
United Kingdom
Rediscovering The Past
The opening of the Suez Canal sparks a second burst of British popular interest in ancient Egypt.
1869
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Timişoara is the first city in Romania to use horse-drawn trams for public transportation. In
Bucharest they are introduced in 1871.
1869
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
Opening of the new State Opera House in Vienna.
1869
Austria
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria attends the opening of the Suez Canal on 17 November.
1869
Austria
Travelling
Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria visits Jerusalem.
After 1869
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
Banyan (Hindu) merchants from British India increase their commercial, shipping and banking
activities throughout the Trucial Coast, particularly within the pearling sector. Soon the Banyan
becomes the main financiers, controlling all processes involving the preparation and pricing of pearls
for export to Europe.
1869
Greece
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The railway line from the Thesion district in central Athens to the Port of Piraeus opens.
1869 - 1878
United Kingdom
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Under French direction the Suez Canal opens in 1869, improving the route to India. Britain then
acquires a financial interest in the Canal in 1875. When in 1878 Cyprus becomes part of the British
Empire, another fuelling station on the imperial route to India is achieved.
1869
United Kingdom
Political Context
Built largely with French expertise and capital, the Suez Canal shortens the journey to India. The
British government secures a major financial interest in the Canal in 1876, and its security becomes a
major British interest for the following century.
1869
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Khedive Isma‘il commissions a French company to construct the first bridge across the River Nile in
Cairo, the Qasr al-Nil Bridge.
1869
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Opera House is inaugurated in November 1869 with Verdi’s Opera Rigoletto. In attendance,
seated in the Royal loge, are Khedive Isma‘il Pasha, Empress Eugénie and her husband Napoleon III,
and François Joseph I of Austria.
1869
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
With completion of the Suez Canal a number of dignitaries and high-profile personalities arrive in
Egypt for the inauguration, including Empress Eugénie of France.
1869
Egypt
Travelling
Khedive Isma‘il Pasha visits Britain.
1869
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Installation of the first public telephone line in Romania (in Bucharest between the Minister of
Internal Affairs and the Central Post Office).
1870 - 1875
United Kingdom
Rediscovering The Past
Academic interest and geopolitical concerns combine to stimulate the state-of-the-art mapping of
Palestine. There is strong interest in the lands of the Bible. In addition, following the opening of the
Suez Canal, threats to British routes to India loom from the north, first from Russia and then from
the Ottoman Empire and Germany.
1870
France
Cities And Urban Spaces
From 1870, the suburbs appear around major French cities such as Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux and
Marseille.
1870
France
Political Context
The Third Republic had a difficult start: the Treaty of Versailles with Prussia granting Alsace and
Lorraine to the German Empire, and repression of the Commune. After a period known as the “Moral
Order”, the Opportunist (1879–98) or Radical Republic (1898–1914) set up a large number of
reforms in all areas, which include among others: a law on primary education (1881–2); a law on
freedom of the press (1881); the restoration of the law on divorce (1884); a law allowing Trades
Unions (1884); and a law on the separation of Church and State (1905).
1870
France
Travelling
From 1870 onwards, as the peripheries around the big French cities like Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux and
Marseille start growing, they develop into a real suburban belt around the city.
Around 1870 - Around
1920
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
The period marks the peak of the pearling industry as the main export-commodity industry of the
Gulf region.
1870
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Renewal and urban modernisation of Rome starts with the opening of a long road linking Porta Pia
(where the Italian army broke into the city in 1870) to the Quirinale Palace, residence of the King
(formerly a papal palace). The headquarters of some ministries are located along this road.
1870 - 1912
Italy
Political Context
In 1870, taking advantage of French defeat at the hands of Prussia, the Italian army captures Rome,
which becomes the capital of Italy. The Pope considers Italian rule on Rome to be illegitimate and
bans Catholics from participating in Italian political life. In the following decades the ban is
progressively lifted to counter socialist growth.
1876 - 1899
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
Extensive emigration of intellectuals from Macedonia to neighbouring countries and Russia. With
unfavourable conditions at home for science and research, many Macedonian students stay in the
country where they studied to contribute to the development of science, culture and arts. They often
organised societies such as the Sofia Circle of Macedonian Students run by Petar Pop-Arsov (1872–
1941), which began issuing Loza newspaper in 1882.
1870
Lebanon
Political Context
Ottomans appoint Rustam Pasha as mutasarrif (governor). He is an equally firm and economical
administrator.
1870
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Publication of Joao de Deus’s Cartilha Maternal, a beginner’s reading book that was to be in use for a
long time. João de Deus was a follower of Maria Montessori’s pedagogical theories and founded in
Portugal the “Escola Nova” movement.
1870s - 1900s
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The corset introduces the fashion for a more slender figure.
1870
France
Political Context
The Franco-Prussian War: France's defeat to Prussia results in the abdication of Napoleon III.
Proclamation of the Third Republic.
1870
Germany
Economy And Trade
The Deutsche Bank is founded by Georg von Siemens.
1870 - 1913
Germany
Economy And Trade
The rail network transforms German industry, and merchant shipping multiplies.
Since 1870
Germany
Migrations
The so-called Ruhrpolen migrate to the Ruhr, where many work in coal mining.
1870
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Fire in Beyoğlu (İstanbul) destroys about 3,000 houses; 80 people are killed. After that incident using
brick and stone to build houses becomes obligatory.
1870
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Ahmed Mithat Efendi (1844–1912), who introduced the novel from the Ottoman community begins to
publish Letaif-I Rivayat (Finest Stories), which includes long stories and novellas.
1871
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
Alexandru Odobescu sends an archaeological questionnaire to teachers all over the country, who
have to return information about archaeological discoveries or vestiges of antique monuments
existing in the areas where they live or work.
1871
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Fréjus Rail Tunnel under Alps, between Italy and France, inaugurated (12.8 km long).
1871
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
24 December: first world performance of the new opera by Verdi, Aida, set in ancient Egypt, at the
Khedivial Opera House in Cairo.
1871
Greece
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Nikolaos Politis publishes the first volume of his pioneering work on Greek folklore, Study of the Life
of Modern Greeks: Modern Greek Mythology.
1871 - 1877
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Jezira Bridge is constructed in 1871 and opens to traffic in 1877. The intention is to link the districts
of Dokki and Bulaq al-Dakrur with Zamalek. Construction requires redirection of the Nile bed.
1871
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Giuseppe Verdi’s Egyptian-themed Aida premiers in Cairo on 24 December.
1871 - 1896
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
By the end of the 19th century tram lines have increased in cities. Madrid has horse-drawn trams
from 1871 and Barcelona from 1872 but the first city with an electric tram is Bilbao in 1896, followed
by Cartagena.
1871
Spain
Rediscovering The Past
Voyage of the frigate Arapiles to the Near East. The ship was commissioned by the Spanish
government to travel to the Near East with Spanish archaeologists and curators to document ancient
monuments and buy antiquities. It sailed from Naples to Greece, Istanbul, Rhodes, Cyprus, Lebanon
and Egypt and brought back drawings, notes and artworks to be kept in the Museo Arqueológico
Nacional of Madrid.
1871
France
Political Context
When the people of Paris refuse to accept defeat and take up arms the Versailles-based government
resist and harshly repress the "Commune".
1871
Germany
Political Context
The German Empire, a union of sovereign states and free cities, is established under Prussian
leadership.
1871
Germany
Cities And Urban Spaces
Berlin becomes the imperial capital.
1871 - 1910
Germany
Cities And Urban Spaces
The second Industrial Revolution sees massive immigration; the population rises from 41 to 65
million, and from only eight cities with no more than 100,000 inhabitants, more than 48 cities are
formed.
1871 - 1914
Germany
Cities And Urban Spaces
The process of urbanisation begins: in 1907 Berlin had more than 2 million citizens of which around
40% are locals, 20% German immigrants and 40% foreign immigrants.
From 1871
Germany
Economy And Trade
The capital market is enlivened by France’s payment of 5 million French francs, paid to Germany as
compensation following the war between the two countries (1870–1).
From 1871 - 1914
Germany
Economy And Trade
Germany’s industrial production is now six times what it had been.
1871
Turkey
Economy And Trade
Ottoman railway policy is formulated by the decree of Sultan Abdülaziz to establish a main line
between İstanbul and Baghdad, with secondary lines to the Black Sea and Mediterranean coasts.
1871
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann (1822–90) begins excavations in Troy.
1872 - 1874
Tunisia
Cities And Urban Spaces
The city of Tunis benefits from the first installation of public street lighting. An English company
builds a gasometer and installs the pipelines necessary to supply gas for street lighting of the city’s
main arteries.
1872
Austria
Economy And Trade
Foundation of the Austrian Agricultural University in Vienna.
1872 - 1891
Austria
International Exhibitions
The Kunsthistorisches Museum (Museum of Fine Arts) in Vienna is built.
1872
United Kingdom
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Italian composer Verdi is commissioned by the Egyptian Khedive to compose the opera Aida for
celebrations to mark the opening of the Suez Canal. Later Verdi is also commissioned to compose the
Egyptian National Anthem.
1872 - 1874
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
O Desterrado (The Outcast), a sculpture by António Soares dos Reis (1847–89) is an idealised selfportrait. It conveys the collective feelings of his contemporary intellectuals and the feelings of
loneliness and longing common to those who had left their homeland. The sculptor’s romantic
sensibility enabled him to shape feelings and psychological tensions in the marble.
1872
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Impression, Sunrise by the Impressionist painter Claude Monet.
1872 - 1879
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
As a consequence of the Kulturkampf the influence of the Catholic Church is limited in Germany.
1873 - 1877
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Khayr al-Din undertakes reform of the Tunisian economy.
1873 - 1877
Tunisia
Political Context
The regency of Khayr al-Din, the Grand Vizier reformer, who reorganises institutions and the
economy. His major cultural works are the creation of Sadiki College and major reform of the
Zaytuna Mosque.
1873
Romania
International Exhibitions
Two Romanians are members of the international jury of the Vienna International Exposition:
agronomist and economist P.S. Aurelian and doctor Carol Davila.
1873
Romania
Travelling
The first tourism organisation from Romania, called the Alpine Association of Transylvania, is founded
in Braşov.
1873 - 1947
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
The government of British India administers the Trucial Coast.
1873
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of a new water-supply pipeline from the Alps to Vienna.
1873
Austria
International Exhibitions
Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria opens the Weltausstellung, Vienna’s World Trade Fair.
1873
Austria
International Exhibitions
A copy of the decoration from the Tomb of Khnumhotep is exhibited in the Egyptian Pavilion of the
World Trade Fair.
1873
Austria
International Exhibitions
At the World Trade Fair in Vienna, the Austrian Museum of Applied Art purchases a pair of jugs from
Tunisia for the museum.
1873
Austria
Rediscovering The Past
The Austrian archaeologist Alexander Conze organizes excavations in Samothrace.
1873
Greece
Economy And Trade
Foundation of the Greek Stock Market.
1873 - 1894
Morocco
Political Context
Reign of Mulay al-Hasan I: Mulay al-Hasan I maintains the political independence of the country. He
attempted to adapt the country to its new circumstances and employed a policy of reforms, affecting
all areas of political and economic life, to improve the management of public affairs.
1873
Spain
Economy And Trade
Development of the Minas de Riotinto (Huelva, Andalucía). Bought by a British company, the mines
bring important economic progress to this region. The dangerous chemicals used in metal extraction
spark the first environmental protest by mine workers. (The first fooball match took place in this
mine, thanks to the British engineers.)
1873
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first railway in Macedonia runs from Thessalonica via Skopje to Belgrade. Its construction,
financed with foreign investments, began in 1871 and the track to Skopje is finished in 1873. The
Skopje–Mitrovica line is completed in 1878. In 1888 it is connected to Serbian railways at the border
crossing Zibevche near Vranje.
1873
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Construction of the first railway station in Macedonia in Skopje.
1873
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
A primary school building to be built in wood attracts the attention of visitors to the Portuguese stand
at the “Weltausstellung” (world exposition) in Vienna.
1873
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
The development of Classical Archaeology is strongly influenced by Heinrich Schliemann in the
second half of the 18th century when for example he finds the “Gold of Troy”.
1873
Germany
Economy And Trade
The Krupp Corporation is the largest industrial concern in Europe.
1873 - 1880
Germany
Economy And Trade
The economic crash known as the Gründerkrise sees companies and banks shut down and a rise in
unemployment and social dissatisfaction.
1873 - 1878
Germany
International Exhibitions
The Moorish Kiosk, built for the World Exhibition in Paris in 1878, was subsequently bought for
Linderhof Palace Park by Ludwig II. The Moroccan House, which was actually built in Morocco for the
International Exhibition in Vienna in 1873 and acquired by a private individual after the king’s death,
was bought by the German state in 1980 and reconstructed in the Palace Park in 1998.
1873
Germany
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Levi Strauss, a German citizen in exile in America, requests the patent for blue Jeans.
1873
Lebanon
Economy And Trade
Beirut Water Works factory is founded, providing water for daily use by the Lebanese people, taking
water from Nahr al-Kalb and distributing it through an extensive water network.
1873
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
First art exhibition in İstanbul, organised by Şeker Ahmed Paşa.
1873
Turkey
International Exhibitions
Ottoman participates in Vienna World Exhibition with a faithful full-scale replica of the Sultan Ahmed
Fountain near Hagia Sophia in İstanbul. Ottoman artisans crafted the details of the façade panels,
and the most of the materials were brought from Turkey.
1873
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
Heinrich Schliemann finds what he calls “Priam’s Treasure” in Troy.
1873
Turkey
Political Context
1 April: Namık Kemal’s play Vatan Yahud Silistre arouses patriotic sentiments in İstanbul.
1874
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
18 April: decree for the founding of the Commission of Public Monuments to record the public
monuments on Romanian territory and to ensure their conservation.
1874
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
Issue of the first sanitation law in the United Principalities. The sanitation system is organised
hierarchically and a Superior Medical Council, with a consultative role, is created.
1874
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Joseph Strauss composes the opera Die Fledermaus.
1874
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The first Emirati historian Abdullah Saleh al-Mutawa’ is born in Sharjah.
1874
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
Kasper von Zumbusch (1830–1915) begins work on a monument to Empress Maria Theresia, situated
on Maria-Theresien-Platz at the Ringstrasse in Vienna.
1874
Egypt
Migrations
Khedive Isma‘il attempts to reduce slave trading and extends Egypt’s rule in Africa. Managing to
annex Darfur in 1874, he is prevented from further expansion into Ethiopia when his army is
defeated by the Emperor Yohannes IV.
1874 - 1885
Spain
Political Context
Restoration of the monarchy. A military uprising under General Martínez Campos in Sagunto against
the Republic returns the throne to the Bourbon Dynasty, with Alfonso XII (son of Isabel II) as King.
1874
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Beginnings of the Macedonian amateur theatre in Veles initiated by educator and playwright Jordan
Hadzi Konstantinov-Dzinot (1821–82). Professional theatres open in the late 19th century. Vojadan
Chernodrinski (1875–1951) is considered one of the founders of the Macedonian theatre. The
premiere for his best-known play, the tragedy Macedonian Bloody Wedding was held in Sofia,
Bulgaria, on 7 November 1900.
1874 - 1890
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
“Medicine is a social science, and politics is nothing more than medicine on a large scale”, Rudolf
Virchow stated in defence of public health and the building of hospitals in Berlin (i.e. Friedrichshain
(1874), Moabit (1875, now closed) and Am Urban (1890); even parks and playgrounds were
important to improve city life for the proletariat, Virchow continued.
1874
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the residential blocks of Akaretler (Istanbul) by the architect Agob Balian. They are
built for the elite staff of the nearby Dolmabahçe Palace.
1875
Tunisia
Rediscovering The Past
The Saint Louis Museum in Carthage is founded in the former seminary of the White Fathers.
1875
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
The creation of Sadiki College based on a modern concept of education: the school separates from
the mosque and a distinction is made between educational structures and those of the religious life.
1875 - 1893
Romania
Political Context
Creation of the first Romanian political parties: the Liberal Party (1875), the Conservative Party
(1880), the Radical-Democratic Party (1888), and the Social-Democratic Party of Romanian
Labourers (1893).
1875
France
Rediscovering The Past
Creation of the French School of Rome (excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum).
1875
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Gray, Paul and Co, a British Company, establishes a shipping office in Lingah, a city within Qawasim
territory, located on the Persian littoral of the Arabian Gulf. The port first served for mail delivery and
as a transshipment centre for traffic to and from Bahrain and the Trucial Coast. Later until 1902 all
pearls from the Trucial Coast were exported to British India via this port.
1875
Lebanon
Reforms And Social Changes
Maronite clergy move their school from Ghazir to Beirut. Granted the title of university by the
authorities, which allows it to grant academic degrees, mainly doctoral degrees in philosophy and
theology, the school takes the name of Saint Joseph’s University. Faculties and institutes are founded
in subsequent years including, in 1883, a Faculty of Medicine.
1875
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Edmund Count Széchényi establishes Turkey’s first fire brigade in Istanbul.
1875
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
Gray, Paul and Co, a British Company, establishes a shipping office in Lingah, a city within Qawasim
territory, located on the Persian littoral of the Arabian Gulf. The port first served for mail delivery and
as a transshipment centre for traffic to and from Bahrain and the Trucial Coast. Later until 1902 all
pearls from the Trucial Coast were exported to British India via this port.
1875 - 1887
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
Lingah, on the Persian littoral of the Gulf, serves as a conduit for the Trucial Coast’s imports from
British India, including cloth, coffee, flour and rice. It is governed as a free port under Qawasim
administration.
Late 19th century
Greece
Cities And Urban Spaces
Mavrokordatos Mansion is built in the Kipseli neighbourhood in Athens for the well-known political
family of that name.
Late 19th century
Greece
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the Greek Orthodox Church of Evangelismos in Brăila, Romania.
1875
Greece
Rediscovering The Past
Excavations begin at Olympia under the German archaeologist Ernst Curtius; they continue under
German leadership until World War II.
Late 19th century
Greece
Rediscovering The Past
The “early conservator” Panagiotis Kaloudis works on the restoration of the Chaironia Lion.
1875
Austria
Migrations
Gustav Mahler (1860–1911) is born in Kalištĕ in Bohemia; he emigrates from there to Vienna in
1875.
1875 - 1878
Serbia
Political Context
During the 1875 Bosnia-Herzegovina rebellion against Ottoman authority, the principalities of Serbia
and Montenegro provide the insurgents with moral, material and military support, which leads to the
first Serbo-Turkish War in 1876. Having been a long time in preparation, the rebellion is widespread
and raises questions not only about Serbia but also about the East, thus becoming an event of
European importance. Its outcome is the convocation of the Berlin Congress (1878), at which both
Serbia and Montenegro gain independence, and Austria-Hungary takes over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
1875 - 1876
Egypt
Economy And Trade
In December 1875 Stephen Cave and John Stokes are sent by the British Government to inquire into
the finances of Egypt. Their report, published in April 1876, advises that in view of the perceived
“waste and extravagance” it is necessary for foreign powers to interfere to restore credit.
1875
Egypt
Migrations
The Egyptian Geographic Society is established by a decree of Khedive Isma‘il Pasha on 19 May
1875. Its first president is the German botanist, traveller and ethnologist Georg August Schweinfurth.
1875
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
The Dictionary of Three Languages by Gjorgji Pulevski (d. 1893) is published in Belgrade. It shows
the political context and coexistence of Macedonians, Albanians and Turks in the territory of
Macedonia. It gives words in Macedonian, Albanian and Turkish in three columns. Pulevski was also
the author of the Dictionary of Four Languages.
1875 - 1876
Portugal
Economy And Trade
In 1875 the French government convenes the Diplomatic Conference of the Metre that proclaims the
Metre Convention. Portugal receives the tenth copies of the metric and kilogram standards.
1875
Portugal
Travelling
Aware that Portuguese empirical knowledge of Central Africa was being overtaken by other countries,
the “Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa” is founded to "promote and assist the study and progress of
geography and related sciences in Portugal". To raise awareness of the colonial Portuguese
possessions in Africa and Asia was also a goal.
1875
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Opening of the Palais Garnier.
1875
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Maronite clergy move their school from Ghazir to Beirut. Granted the title of university by the
authorities, which allows it to grant academic degrees, mainly doctoral degrees in philosophy and
theology, the school takes the name of Saint Joseph’s University. Faculties and institutes are founded
in subsequent years.
1875
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of the novel Taaşşuk-u Talat ve Fitnat (The Romance of Talat and Fitnat) by Şemseddin
Sami (1850–1904). This book is considered to be the starting point of the Ottoman novel.
1876
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
19 February: birth of the great Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncuşi, author of sculptures such as
Mademoiselle Pogany, The Kiss, Bird in Space, and The Endless Column. His works are today
exhibited in museums in France, the USA and Romania.
1876
Romania
Reforms And Social Changes
Foundation of the Romanian Red Cross.
1876
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
In Rome, Luigi Pigorini founds the National Prehistoric Ethnographic Museum, enriching with new
acquisitions the ethnographic and prehistoric collection previously belonging to the Kircher Museum,
founded in the 17th century.
1876
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
Following the curtailment of academic freedom in the university, a group of professors expelled from
Madrid University introduces in Spain a new education system under the Institución Libre de
Enseñanza (Free Institution for Education), a secular private project that would modernise all levels
of the education system between 1876 and 1936. This initiative was to have an important impact on
some of the most important Spanish intellectuals.
1876
United Kingdom
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
In 1870, after attending universities in Edinburgh and London, Scottish-born Alexander Graham Bell
(1847–1922) immigrates to Canada before becoming professor of vocal physiology at Boston. There,
in pursuit of a device to help the deaf, Bell invented the telephone, which he patented in February
1876 only days ahead of other rivals. It was not until 10 March 1876 that the famous words “Mr
Watson, come here; I want you” were transmitted by telephone. He formed the Bell Telephone
Company in 1877.
1876
Portugal
Political Context
Partido Histórico and Partido Reformista merge into the Partido Progressista in September. Power
alternation with the Partido Regenerador framed rotativism. They were able to carry out some urgent
reforms but in the end the system soon degenerated into political conformism.
1876 - 1881
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
The "Urban General Improvements Plan for Lisbon" (Commission of 1876–81) designs wide, straight
roads – modern boulevards – to define orthogonal blocks for buildings, with roundabouts,
pavements, vegetation and street furniture namely at Avenida 24 de Julho, Avenida da Liberdade and
covering the area from Picoas to Campo Grande.
1876
Portugal
International Exhibitions
“Centennial International Exhibition” Philadelphia, USA. Support for visitors and accommodation of
the Portuguese Commissariat were the main purposes of a stylish and exotic Portugal Pavilion.
1876 - 1909
Turkey
Political Context
Reign of Sultan Abdülhamid II.
1876
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Dance at Le moulin de la Galette by the Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
1876
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Robert Koch discovers bacteriology.
1876
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
By 1876 Beirut has increased 10–12 times its size in 1841. Eleven districts are added and Danish
acting Consul Julius Loyvted draws the new map and presents it to Sultan ‘Abd al-Hamid II. Banks,
quarantine office, quays, railway office, telegraph, post office, police stations and offices for foreign
agencies are all established in the existing city centre.
1876
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
The construction of Dolmabahçe Mosque by Agob Balian.
1876
Turkey
Political Context
23 December: Promulgation of the first Ottoman constitution.
1877 - 1881
Romania
Political Context
After Parliament declares Romania’s independence (May 1877), Romania participates alongside
Russia in the Russian-Ottoman war. The Congress of Berlin (1878) recognises the independence of
Romania, which receives the greater part of Dobruja, but cedes the south of Bessarabia to Russia. In
March 1881 Romania is proclaimed a kingdom. Prince Carol and his wife Elizabeth are crowned as
King and Queen of Romania in May in Bucharest.
1877 - 1882
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
Ion Georgescu, considered to be the first Romanian modern sculptor, studies in Paris, where he
exhibits his first works.
1877
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
The Austrian glass manufacture Lobmayr produces glass cups in the Oriental Style.
1877
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The “Coppino Law” makes elementary schools mandatory and free of charge.
1877
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
The Viennese Stock Market is completed to a design by Theophil Hansen.
1877
Austria
Migrations
Karl Krauss (1874–1936) is born in Jičín in Bohemia; he emigrates from Bohemia to Vienna in 1877,
where his famous journal Die Fackel (The Torch) is published in 1898.
1877
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Yaqub Sanu‘ founds the satirical magazine Abu Naddara early in this year. It has immediate and wide
appeal to both the literate and the illiterate, who find someone to read it to them.
1877
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
Ponte Dona Maria Pia, a bridge over the Douro River, completes the Lisbon–Porto railway line.
Designed by Gustave Eiffel and Théophile Seyrig, the bridge keeps the beauty of the Douro
unchanged. It was built where the banks are closer. It was named after the Queen.
1877
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Birth of Teixeira de Pascoaes (d. 1952). This poet was the main representative of the aesthetic and
doctrinal movement called “saudosismo”, a form of existentialism, and a leader of the movement
Renascença Portuguesa. In 1910 he launched in Porto the magazine A Águia, the main resource of
the “saudosismo” movement .
1877
Portugal
Travelling
Hermenegildo Capelo, Roberto Ivens and Serpa Pinto appointed to organise an expedition to southern
Africa. After a briefing by Silva Porto in Bié, they chose separate itineraries. Capelo and Ivens focus
on the Kwanza and Kuangu rivers and on the Yaka people. Serpa Pinto picks the Zambezi River and
eventually reaches the Transvaal.
1877 - 1878
Turkey
Migrations
Mass Balkan migration. After the Russo-Turkish War (called the ’93 War by Turks) between 1 and 1.5
million people are driven from the Balkans to the Ottoman heartlands.
1877
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
German archaeologist Carl Humann (1839–96) begins excavating Pergamon. He would later conduct
excavations in Zincirli (1888) and Magnesia (1892).
1877
Turkey
Political Context
19 March: Opening of the parliament.
1878 - 1921
Jordan
Cities And Urban Spaces
Centrally positioned in the northern part of Jordan at the edge of the cultivated lands and the desert,
thus having access to both ecological zones and demographies, Amman is the perfect choice for the
capital of the Emirate of Transjordan. It develops rapidly from small village to relatively big town
within a few decades. Being one of the important stations on the Hijaz Railway adds to its geopolitical
and economic significance.
1878 - 1906
Jordan
Migrations
Circassian and Chechen refugees settled by the Ottomans help to create new agricultural villages in
Transjordan. Two waves of immigrants reach Jordan between 1878 and 1906. The first wave (1878–
84) settles in Amman, Wadi al-Sir and Jerash, and the second wave (1901–06) in Na’ur, al-Zarqa,
Sukhna, Rusayfa and Suwaylih. A Turkmen community founds a village at al-Rumman in the area of
Jerash. Christian families from al-Salt establish new villages in al-Fuhays and Rumaymin while
Christian settlers from Karak settle in Madaba. Palestinian and Damascene merchants to settle in alSalt, Karak, Ajlun and, later, Amman.
1878 - 1881
Greece
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Iliou Melathron is designed by architect Ernst Ziller as the residence of the archaeologist Heinrich
Schliemann and his family.
1878
United Kingdom
Political Context
Uprisings in the Balkan Ottoman territories lead to disproportionate reprisals. Popular protests in
Britain oppose support for the Ottoman Empire. In contrast to the Crimean War, Britain provides no
military aid to the Ottomans in their war with Russia. Diplomatic support is rewarded however, with
Britain’s occupation of Cyprus confirmed at the Congress of Berlin.
1878
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
Opening of Lisbon Botanical Garden. During the 19th century Portugal aspires to reach the level of
economic and social “progress” of other European countries in, for example, education and teaching.
Natural History Museum and the Lisbon Botanical Garden were important institutions for scientific
research and the exchange and circulation of ideas and natural knowledge.
1878
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
28 September: The first electric lighting on the terrace of the Citadel of Cascais to celebrate the 15th
birthday of future King Carlos I (ruling from 1889). A ball commemorates the electric lighting
premiere. The daily press celebrate the occasion, saying that the electric light turned the entrance
and the royal residence balconies into “a clear and luminous day’’.
1878
Portugal
International Exhibitions
At the Paris “Exposition Universelle”, the Portuguese Pavilion sets up a sophisticated, emblematic
scenario, portraying the monasteries of Batalha and Jerónimos, two of the magnificent symbols of the
15th and 16th Portuguese Discoveries.
1878 - 1890
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
The anti-Socialist laws known as Sozialistengesetz prohibit socialist organisations, meetings and
publications.
1878
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
Turkey
Political Context
The Law School is opened.
1878
3 March: Russo-Turco Treaty of St Stefano defines Bulgaria, which includes present-day Bulgaria,
present-day Macedonia and northern Greece.
1878
Turkey
Political Context
13 March: Abdülhamid II dissolves parliament.
1878
Austria
Political Context
In June the signatories at the Congress of Berlin grant Austria the right to occupy and fully
administer Bosnia and Herzegovina for an undetermined period.
1879
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
18–20 January: the National Theatre of Bucharest premieres the comedy A Stormy Night by Ion Luca
Caragiale, the greatest Romanian playwright. It is Caragiale’s first staged play and is a great public
success.
1879
France
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Creation of the telephone network in France.
1879
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
A British-enforced Treaty is signed to ensure the mutual surrender of fraudulently absconding debtors
in the pearling industry. It is signed by the Trucial Sheikhs in the presence of Haji Abdul Rahman, the
Residency Agent at Sharjah, and Haji Abdul al-Qasimi, the Residency Munshi who had been deputed
from Bushire to convey the directives of the British Resident.
1879
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
Hans Makart (1840–84) designs the “Makart Parade” to celebrate the Silver wedding anniversary of
the Imperial couple, Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and Empress Elisabeth (“Sisi”).
1879 - 1882
Egypt
Political Context
The ’Urabi Revolution, led by Colonel Ahmed ’Urabi, erupts in February 1879 and continues until
1882. It is the first revolution of the modern age in Egypt.
1879
Spain
Rediscovering The Past
Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola and his daughter discover the cave paintings of Altamira. De Sautuola
and Juan Vilanova y Piera in an 1880 publication identify them as Palaeolithic, meeting scepticism
and ridicule until the discovery of similar paintings elsewhere results in recognition of their findings in
1902. Famous for drawings and polychrome paintings of animals and human hands the cave is now a
national museum and World Heritage site.
1879 - 1888
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
Pablo Iglesias founds the Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE – Spanish Socialist Party) in 1879;
under his leadership the socialists institute the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT – General
Workers' Union) in 1888, with liberals in power. At the same time the anarchist movement creates
associations that later will become trade unions.
1879
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
11 October: The labour association Voz do Operário is founded in Lisbon by Custódio Gomes and
Custódio Braz Pacheco, two factory workers in the tobacco industry, to defend the rights of the
workers more disrespected and threatened than ever by the tobacco industry crisis of 1879.
1879
Germany
Economy And Trade
The German Empire moves from a free-trade system to protective duty.
1879
Germany
International Exhibitions
The Great Industrial Exposition is held at the Lehrter Bahnhof in Berlin, where one of main attractions
is the first electric locomotive from Siemens & Halske.
1879
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
4 May: Judicial reform extends the administrative authority of Ministry of Justice over mixed courts.
1880 - 1890
Tunisia
Fine And Applied Arts
It was the era of eclecticism. The French Protectorate builds the regency’s infrastructure in the
European classical tradition, constructing monuments in the impressive Greco-Roman style.
1880 - 1914
Tunisia
Migrations
Italian and French farmers settle in agricultural areas of the Regency of Tunis.
1880
Romania
Economy And Trade
29 April: promulgation of the law for the founding of the National Bank of Romania.
1880
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
Grigore Tocilescu’s book Dacia before the Romans is awarded the grand prize of the Academic
Society, for the best work on the history of Dacia before the Roman conquest.
1880 - 1920
France
Economy And Trade
The industrial boom is fuelled by technological innovations (i.e. electricity, cinema, the car and
aeroplane). Advances in metallurgy results in construction of the Eiffel Tower in 1889.
1880
France
Rediscovering The Past
Excavations of French Egyptologist Gaston Maspero (1846–1916) in Egypt.
1880
Lebanon
Migrations
A small number of Lebanese people emigrate to the USA, the first of a wave of migration abroad.
1880 - 1887
Italy
Economy And Trade
Italy is hit by the international agricultural crisis and annual per capita income decreases.
1880 - 1887
Italy
Migrations
As a consequence of agricultural crisis, mass migration starts.
1880 - 1889
Italy
Migrations
Average annual Italian migration (temporary and permanent, to nearest 1,000): France 37,000; USA
24,000; Argentina 39,000; Brazil 22,000.
1880
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Anna Maria Mozzoni and Paolina Schiff (an academic) found the League for the Promotion of Women’s
Interests, the first feminist organisation in Italy.
1880s - 1910s
Italy
Travelling
The growth of a European middle class and the improvement of transportation make tourism possible
for increasing numbers of European citizens. According to very tentative estimates, 450,000 foreign
tourists visited Italy in 1897 and 900,000 in 1911.
1880 - 1893
Greece
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Greece
Migrations
The Corinth Canal opens.
1880 - 1920
Approximately 400,000 Greeks migrate to America due to widespread unemployment and economic
problems.
1880s
United Kingdom
Migrations
European Zionism initiates a small migration, mostly from Russia – especially after the pogroms – to
Palestine. Among the Jewish community in Palestine are ancestors of Jewish migrants from the 15th
and 16th centuries who fled the Iberian Peninsula after their expulsion by Ferdinand and Isabella.
1880
Morocco
Political Context
The intention of the 1880 Madrid Conference, reflected in the agreements signed by Morocco under
the reign of Mulay al-Hasan I and the countries of Europe, is to enhance the benefits of reform in
Morocco and to provide a legal and regulatory framework for Mulay al-Hasan I. Following these
agreements, the European countries won the right to own land and assets throughout Morocco. The
agreements were the result of globalisation of Moroccan business.
1880 - 1910
Spain
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The emergence of musical nationalism. Various musicians and composers, such as Isaac Albéniz,
Enrique Granados and Manuel de Falla, develop musical styles identified with Spanish traditions and
folklore, including flamenco.
1880s onwards
Spain
Travelling
Travelling to North Africa, Egypt or the Turkish Empire becomes part of the leisure travels of wealthy
families of Spain.
1880
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Celebration of the third centenary of the death of Luís de Camões. His poetry is considered the
epitome of Portuguese literature both for The Lusiads, the epic national poem in which Vasco da
Gama tells the history of Portugal to the Samorim (king) of Calcutta upon his arrival in India in 1498,
and for his love sonnets.
1880
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
The 11th International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archaeology is held in Lisbon. This
important conference gives international recognition to the dynamism that Portuguese archaeology
has demonstrated since 1850.
1880
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
The remains of the poet Luís de Camões and the explorer Vasco da Gama are moved to the
Jerónimos Monastery. Vasco da Gama and Luís de Camões (north and south side respectively), the
two main representatives of the 16th-century The Lusiads epic poem, are honored and rest beside
members of the Avis dynasty buried in Jerónimos.
1880
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
3 October: Barbadinhos steam pumping station is inaugurated. The water from the Alviela Canal
starts to be pumped thus increasing the water supply to Lisbon.
1880
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of the novella O Mandarim (The Mandarin) by Eça de Queirós (Queiroz) (1845–1900).
1880 - 1900
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Trends in painting in this period include: "Post-Impressionism" (i.e. Cézanne, Gauguin, ToulouseLautrec, van Gogh); Pointillism (i.e. Seurat, Signac); Symbolism (i.e. Moreau, Puvis de Chavannes,
Redon); Les Nabis (i.e. Bonnard, Denis, Sérusier, Vuillard) and Primitivism (i.e. Matisse, Rousseau).
Late 19th century - Early
20th century
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Art Nouveau, a movement of the so-called Belle Époque, favours curves and decoration inspired by
plant forms, and media such as stained glass. Art Deco, which followed in the so called Golden
Twenties, affected architecture and the arts and crafts in particular on account of its preponderance
for symmetry.
1880
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Soirées de Médan, a collection of short stories by Guy de Maupassant, Émile Zola, etc., is
considered to be the Naturalist manifesto.
1880 - 1900
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
The painting by Franz von Stuck, Die Sünde (1893), exemplifies the period in art known as PostImperialism and Symbolism.
1880 - 1914
Germany
Migrations
More than 5 million migrants from Russia and the Habsburg Empire journey through Germany on
their way to America.
Since 1880
Germany
Migrations
Foreign workers (especially from Austria-Hungary, Russia and Poland) arrive in the German Empire in
increasing numbers to work in seasonal agriculture.
From 1880
Germany
Migrations
As the process of Industrialisation in the so-called Ruhrgebiet region develops, Polish miners and
farmhands migrate to the Ruhr, which becomes a place known as Ruhrpoland.
From 1880
Germany
Migrations
Germany’s colonisation of Namibia, Tanzania, Cameroon and Togo.
1880 - 1900
Germany
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The era of “Naturalism” in literature (i.e. the works of Hauptmann, Holz and Schlaf) is characterised
by a reality without embellishment or subjective insight (the radicalisation of realism).
1880
Germany
Travelling
The dome of Cologne is completed (construction began in 1248). It is the tallest church building in
the world at the time.
1881 - 1920
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Crises, both within the country’s social structures and the national economy, are the result of the
protectorate’s grip over all the regency’s administration.
1881 - 1883
Tunisia
Political Context
At the metropolitan palace, Muhammad Sadiq Bey signs the treaty imposed by the French
Protectorate known as the Treaty of Bardo (or Treaty of Kasser al-Sa‘id). This is followed by the
Convention of Marsa in 1883. The Regency of Tunis passes from Ottoman suzerainty to French
domination.
1881 - 1884
Tunisia
Political Context
Tunisians put up stiff resistance to French occupation without any external support. The Sublime
Porte, itself threatened by the Western powers, limits the show of protest against the French
occupation.
1881
France
International Exhibitions
The Paris-based International Exhibition of Electricity presents the telephone and light bulbs.
1881
France
Reforms And Social Changes
The (Jules) Ferry Law establishes free, compulsory and secular primary education for all French
children.
1881
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
Designs for a telephone network in Vienna.
1881
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Construction of the telephone network in Vienna.
1881
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first Italian telephone services run by private companies start operating.
1881
Italy
International Exhibitions
The first Italian National Industrial Exhibition is held in Milan.
1881 - 1901
Italy
Migrations
2,251,463 people migrate from Italy; 67 per cent of them go to the USA.
1881
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
At La Scala Theatre in Milan, premiere of Excelsior, mimic ballet by Luigi Manzotti, music by
Romualdo Marenco. Through 11 allegorical scenes glorifying 19th-century scientific and industrial
progress (steam-engine, electric light, telegraph, Suez Canal, Fréjus Rail Tunnel, etc.), it celebrates
the triumph of Light over Obscurantism.
1881
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Giovanni Verga (1840–1922) publishes the novel I malavoglia (published in English as The House by
the Medlar-Tree), which describes the life of a family of Sicilian fishermen. Verga was the most
important author of the Italian realist school known as verismo.
1881
United Kingdom
Economy And Trade
When the Ottoman Empire is declared bankrupt, an Ottoman Public Debt Commission is established
made up of an international body – mainly British, French and German – to manage the Empire’s
finances. This becomes a form of veiled European control of Turkey’s economy. This followed a
similar imposition of financial control over Egypt’s finances.
1881
Austria
Economy And Trade
The Osterreichische-Alpine Montan-Gesellschaft is founded to mine the rich iron resources of northwest Styria.
1881
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
Birth of Pablo Picasso in Málaga. In Spain Picasso’s birth date would be established as the boundary
between works of art in the Academic style and the avant-garde style.
1881
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of Portugal Contemporâneo, by Joaquim Pedro de Oliveira Martins (1845–94). Detailed
analysis of the events between 1826 and 1868, it is considered the most clear-sighted study of
Portugal in the 19th century. The author makes a general criticism of Portuguese liberalism,
presented as a historical account.
1881
Portugal
Travelling
With a thorough knowledge of the African hinterland, António da Silva Porto appeals to the Sociedade
de Geografia to sponsor a plan for the scientific and commercial exploitation of Africa. The remote
hinterland was about to be discovered by explorers and Africa’s boundaries defined by the colonial
powers.
1881
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Werner von Siemens develops the tram.
1881
Austria
Political Context
The alliance of the three Emperors of Germany, Russia and Austria recognise the Habsburg Empire’s
predominance in the western Balkans. In June, Austria reaches an agreement with King Milan I of
Serbia, whereby Austria promises to support an eventual Serbian expansion in the south, while
Serbia agrees to exclude any agreement with other powers without Austria’s prior approval.
1882
Tunisia
Migrations
Inauguration of the new Catholic Cathedral in Tunis, designed in the monumental Greco-Roman style,
in line with the image France intends to convey in the early days of its protectorate over the regency.
1882
Tunisia
Rediscovering The Past
The Alaoui Museum is founded in the bey’s palace in Bardo, in a wing of the complex formerly used to
host the bey’s harem.
1882 - 1888
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
Swiss engineers Carl Culmann and Arnold Burkly-Ziegler are contracted to develop a water supply
network for Bucharest.
1882
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
In Bucharest the first electric generators are installed and used to illuminate some important
buildings of the city (the Royal Palace, the Cotroceni Palace, the National Theatre), Victory Avenue
and Cişmigiu Park.
1882
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
Grigore Tocilescu begins to research the remains of the Roman town Tropaeum Traiani (modern
Adamclisi in Dobruja).
1882 - 1884
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
On the occasion of the 1884 General Exhibition of Turin, construction of the Rocca (castle) and the
Borgo Medievale (medieval village) in Parco del Valentino (Valentino Park) in order to promote
appreciation for 15th-century Piedmont architecture. In 1884, the Municipality of Turin buys part of
this area, where it will later locate the Civic Museums.
1882
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Gotthard Rail Tunnel between Italy and Switzerland opens (14.9 km). The construction work had
started in 1872.
1882
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Brera Picture Gallery, originally created by Maria Teresa of Austria in 1776, becomes an independent
museum.
1882
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
In order to fight malaria, Parliament approves a law on drainage of swamps. Malaria plagues about
one-third of Italian territory, where 10 per cent of the population lives.
1882
Italy
Political Context
Electoral reform: the right to vote is extended to 7 per cent of the Italian population, by lowering the
age limit (from 25 to 21) and the level of income required.
1882
Italy
Political Context
The Triple Alliance formed (Italy, Germany, Austria-Hungary).
1882 - 1896
Italy
Political Context
Italy’s first African war: in 1882 Italy starts colonial expansion in the Horn of Africa; in 1890, Eritrea
becomes an Italian colony. Afterwards, Italy attempts to penetrate into Ethiopia and suffers a
crushing defeat at Adwa (the biggest African victory over a colonial army): Italy loses 4,000 Italian
and 2,000 colonial soldiers. The Crispi government resigns.
1882
Italy
Travelling
The municipality of Cervia (on the Adriatic Sea) builds a bathing establishment explicitly intended for
the middle class: previously a prerogative of the elite, beach tourism starts to become a more widely
practised activity.
1882 - 1898
United Kingdom
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Weaponry is developed with lethal effect during the 19th century. The Civil War in the United States
stimulates this expansion, but weapons of mass destruction – notably the Maxim gun – spread with
European imperial ambitions. A huge disparity of power is created, shown by British military victories
in Egypt (1882) and Sudan (1898).
1882
United Kingdom
Reforms And Social Changes
With the British occupation of Egypt comes growth in European-imported ideas and fashions. Egypt
becomes a significant tourist destination for wealthier Europeans. English and French –especially
French – become commonly used languages.
1882
United Kingdom
Political Context
Britain also acquires indirect control over Egypt, with an occupying army and control over Egyptian
finances and administration. Egyptian tourism flourishes and with it a superficial economic
development – an affluent class, construction of railways and building projects. However, European
cultural influences in Egypt are mostly French.
1882
Serbia
Political Context
The first king of Serbia in the modern age is Milan Obrenović, Prince (1822–82) and King (1882–89).
From the start of his independent reign, Knez Milan works to build up the military, and sides with
Russia in his foreign policy. He declares war on Turkey in 1876, but it ends in Serbia’s defeat due to
poorly prepared diplomatic policy. The signing of the Treaty of San Stefano (made between the two
countries after the Russo-Turkish War) is followed by an about-face in Knez Milan’s policy as he turns
more and more to Austria-Hungary. A decision by the Congress of Berlin in 1878 grants Serbia
independence, while the Secret Convention (between Serbia and Austria-Hungary) binds AustriaHungary into declaring Serbia a kingdom in 1882.
1882
Egypt
Political Context
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
Britain occupies Egypt.
1882
Madrid has two "extensions": the first had been designed by the Marquis of Salamanca in 1860; the
second, in 1882, is a modern design by Arturo Soria known as “Ciudad Lineal” (linear city), a plan for
an elongated urban formation. The city will consist of a series of functionally specialised parallel
sectors.
1882
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The concession for telephone lines is signed and they are first installed in Lisbon and Porto. The first
telephone list of Lisbon is published with 22 numbers located around 1.5 km from the telephone
exchange. Public telephone cabins were installed and opened from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. though always
available to firemen, police and doctors.
1882
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
White Houses of Capri by naturalist painter António Carvalho da Silva Porto (1850–93) represents the
new interest in travelling and other cultures.
1882
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Inauguration of the first public kindergarten in Lisbon and Porto by followers of the Froebel method.
The pupils, aged from 3 to 7 years, are divided into four age groups, each with a classroom; the plan
includes a games room, toilets, offices and a refectory. The method respected the learning rhythm of
the children and created didactic tools.
1882
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Thinker by the sculptor Auguste Rodin.
1882
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Robert Koch discovers the cause of tuberculosis.
1882
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
Birth of İbrahim Çallı (d. 1960). He was a prominent painter who was sent to Paris between 1910 and
1914 where he studied in the workshop of Fernand Cormon.
1882
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
28 September: Bayezid Kütüphânesi, the first public library in İstanbul is founded.
1883 (18 October) - 1883
(30 October)
Romania
Political Context
30 October: by signing a treaty with Austro-Hungary, to which Germany adheres the same day and
Italy in 1888, Romania becomes part of the Triple Alliance.
1883
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
6 June: the death of Romanian composer Ciprian Porumbescu, at the age of only 29. One of the
melodies he composed will be adopted for Albania’s national anthem in 1912.
1883
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
A credit-fuelled “construction fever” explodes in Rome and in the other urban centres.
1883
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
In Milan, the first thermoelectric power station in Europe is inaugurated.
1883
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Inauguration of the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome, in the Exhibition Palace by Pio Piacentini.
It is intended to focus on “national” art.
1883 - 1914
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Sheikh Saqr II bin Khalid bin Sultan al-Qasimi, ruler of Sharjah, is also acknowledged as one of the
greatest poets of his time. He is the grandfather of the current Sheikh of Sharjah (Sheikh Sultan bin
Mohammad al-Qasimi).
1883
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Czech writer Frank Kafka is born in Prague; he dies in Klosterneuburg, Austria, in 1924.
1883 - 1903
Egypt
Economy And Trade
The Egyptian Exchange, one of the oldest stock markets in the Middle East, traces its origins to 1883
when the Alexandria Stock Exchange is established, followed by the Cairo Stock Exchange in 1903.
1883
Egypt
Travelling
Arriving in Egypt as diplomatic agent and Consul-General of Britain, Sir Evelyn Baring’s (Lord
Cromer’s) first task is to demand that Khedive Muhammad Tawfiq should abandon Sudan. Tawfiq
consents reluctantly, but having done so he then does everything he can to ensure success of the
policy that Baring has been sent to carry out.
1883 - 1926
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of Antonio Gaudí’s buildings related to Ildefonso Cerdá's Plan and the new urban space
in Barcelona. Gaudí is the most important of the architects in the Catalan Modernismo/Modernisme
movement, which relates to European movements such as Jungendstil and Art Nouveau. Inspired by
nature, the style is mostly developed in architecture but also found in painting and decorative arts.
1883
Portugal
Travelling
A Commission of Cartography is created to prepare an atlas of all Portuguese colonies and map three
expeditions to Africa. The first expedition (1884–85), undertaken by Roberto Ivens and Hermenegildo
Capelo, starts in Moçâmedes in Angola (in present-day Namibia) aiming to reach to the east coast.
The expedition members would face risks from hunger, cold, harsh nature, the wildlife and the tsetse
fly.
1883 - 1889
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Imperial Chancellor Otto von Bismarck initiates German social laws and the basic system for a
modern social state.
1883 - 1927
Germany
Travelling
The warehouse district known as Speicherstadt Hamburg develops.
1883
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
Opening of the School of Fine Arts (Sanâyi-i Nefise Mektebi) by Osman Hamdi Bey. It consists of
sections for painting, sculpture and architecture.
1883
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
Osman Hamdi Bey, Ottoman administrator and archaeologist excavates in Nemrud. Publication of his
book Le Tumulus de Nemroud-Dagh.
1883
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Namık Kemal writes Renan Müdafanamesi (Critique of Renan), a book on Islam and science.
1883
Austria
Political Context
In October, the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef concludes a secret alliance with the Hohenzollern King
of Romania, Carol I, against Russia.
1884
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
12 October: Timişoara is the first European city where electric street lighting is introduced not only
on some streets, but also across the entire city. An electric plant is built and 731 incandescent lamps
with coal filament installed, covering an area of 10 km2.
1884
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The inauguration of the first railway line (Buzău–Mărăşeşti) designed and built by Romanian
engineers.
1884
France
Reforms And Social Changes
Unionism (“workers’ and employers professional associations”) becomes legal in France.
1884 - 1919
Lebanon
Economy And Trade
The old Egyptian port undergoes several important changes: buildings are extended, a commercial
tribunal is constructed, and the land area is expanded by infilling with rocks brought by railway from
Nahr al-Kalb.
1884 - 1885
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
First experiments of electric street lighting in Turin and Milan.
1884
Italy
International Exhibitions
The General Italian Exhibition in Turin attracts 3 million visitors.
1884 - 1885
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Cholera epidemic causes 7,000 deaths in Naples and 2,500 in Palermo (out of a total 21,000 deaths).
The government starts programmes of urban renewal in Naples and other towns (the most effective
tool to prevent new epidemics).
1884
Serbia
Political Context
The first Serbian railway and railway bridge is built in Belgrade.
1884
Serbia
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first Serbian railway and railway bridge is built in Belgrade.
1884 - 1885
Portugal
Political Context
Berlin Conference called by Portugal to regulate European colonisation and convened by German
Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. The Portuguese government presents the "Pink Map”, a project uniting
the colonies of Angola and Mozambique through the corridor of land that separates them. The
proposal is rejected by England although endorsed by the majority of countries.
1884
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Estacio Pharmacy in Porto founded in 1883 starts to produce the first pills for medication. The
preparation of manipulated medicines in the apothecaries of the Catholic monasteries and convents
(Boticas de Convento) is replaced by the production of medicines by laboratory pharmacies.
1884 - 1888
Portugal
Travelling
The Muatiânvua Expedition to Angolan’s Lunda territory led by Major Henrique de Carvalho provides
exceptional scientific data on meteorology, zoology, ethnography and linguistics and photographic
records. This second great expedition aims to counter the diversion of trade from Malanje to Zaire
implemented by other colonial countries.
1884 - 1890
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Gottlieb Daimler develops the petrol engine and Rudolf Diesel invents the diesel engine.
1884
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
The goal in founding the Society for German Colonization was to acquire colonial territories overseas.
1884 - 1885
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Germany establishes protectorates in south-west Africa, Cameroon, Togo, East Africa and New
Guinea.
1884
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
7 May: An industrial school for girls is opened in İstanbul.
1885
Romania
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
8 May: The renowned Romanian soprano Hariclea Darclée makes her debut at the Paris Opéra, as
Marguerite in Charles Gounod’s Faust.
1885
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
After the 1884–85 cholera epidemic hits Naples (the fourth cholera epidemic hitting the city since
1835), the government starts a redevelopment plan to clear Naples of slums and improve its
sewerage and water systems. Similar renewal plans will be extended to other cities.
1885
Egypt
Economy And Trade
Alexandria’s Futures Market is one of the oldest in the world. The first recorded local cotton
transaction takes place in 1885 in Café de l’Europe on the Place des Consuls, later renamed
Muhammad ‘Ali Square. It is here that cotton merchants meet and cut deals based on supply and
demand for the long staple, Karnak and Menuf, or the short to medium staple, Ashmuni, Giza and
Zagora. Over the years, deals extend to cottonseed varieties such as Hull, Afifi and Sakellaridis.
1885 - 1889
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The singer Salama Hijazi turns to acting with the Kirdahi and al-Haddad troupes. Through his
contributions, many musical theatre troupes emerge such as Aziz Eed, Naguib al-Rihani and ‘Ali alKassar. As one of the first artists to travel abroad, Hijazi achieves worldwide acclaim for his musical
and theatrical works. Warmly welcomed in Italy, Syria and Tunisia, he is granted awards of
appreciation by many international governments. Hijazi’s statue stands at the Museum of Napoli.
1885
Spain
Political Context
Death of King Alfonso XII. Alfonso XIII born posthumously. Pacto de El Pardo: agreement between
liberals and conservatives to rule the country by turns. Regency of Queen María Cristina until 1902
when King Alfonso XIII comes of age.
1885
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Fine And Applied Arts
The earliest portrait in Macedonian art that is not part of religious depiction, a portrait of a child is
painted by Dimitar Andonov of Papradishte (1859–1954). Dimitar Andonov was one of the last
Macedonian “zographs” (icon painters) and the founder of Macedonian profane art.
1885
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
O Grupo Do Leão painted by Columbano Bordalo Pinheiro is a landmark in 19th-century painting both
for its quality and for its subject matter. The depicted group of artists in the Leão beer house were
linked to the Portuguese Naturalist and Realist painting movement. This work became famous and
marked the beginning of a period of great artistic activity.
1885
Portugal
International Exhibitions
“Exposition Universelle”, Antwerp. Sponsored by the Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa and Banco
Nacional Ultramarino, the Portuguese Pavilion reflects a strong Islamic influence.
1885
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The birth of Guilhermina Suggia (d. 1950). This great Portuguese cellist was a pupil of Pablo Casals,
with whom she lived for some years. The two were considered the world’s greatest cellists. She
played as a soloist with prestigious orchestras. She devoted the last years of her life to teaching but
continued to give concerts.
1885
Portugal
Travelling
21 June: the expedition of Roberto Ivens and Hermenegildo Capelo reaches Quelimane, Mozambique,
after 14 months. Throughout their 8,300 km expedition across the African hinterland, Ivens wrote
and drew sketches and maps, while Capelo collected specimens of plants, rocks and animals. The
constant desertions and sickness and death of the bearers increased the danger and uncertainty.
1885
Portugal
Travelling
20 September: After their return to Lisbon a triumphal reception was offered to Capelo and Ivens by
several Portuguese associations. During the solemn session organised by the Sociedade de Geografia
de Lisboa (SGL) at the Teatro Real de S. Carlos, following their lectures, the explorers receive the
SGL gold medal from King Luís I.
1885 - 1887
Portugal
Travelling
The third great expedition, undertaken by Serpa Pinto and Augusto Cardoso, aims to establish a
trade corridor between the eastern region of lakes, and the coast of Mozambique. Major Serpa Pinto
fell ill and was replaced by Augusto Cardoso who reached Quelimane after a journey of 2,500 km
lasting 20 months, during which some agreements were signed with African chiefs.
1885
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Part of the Old Serail in Zahlé is used to house the local prison, with severe overcrowding. The prison
was moved to a better location in 2009. Still known as the Old Serail, the restored monument today
serves as the Town Hall and houses the offices of the municipality and a museum illustrating Zahlé’s
history.
1886
Tunisia
Travelling
Muhammad Sadiq Bey on a visit to Algiers is received by Napoleon III.
1886
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Legislation passed prohibiting children under the age of 9 from working in factories and mines and
those under the age of 12 from working at night.
1886
Greece
Fine And Applied Arts
Nikolaos Gyzis, one of Greece’s most important 19th-century painters, becomes professor at the
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich.
1886
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
Completion of the construction of Avenida da Liberdade in Lisbon. Engineer Frederico Ressano Garcia
(1847–1911) followed Joseph Pezarat’s plans. Inspired by Haussmann’s Parisian boulevards, Avenida
da Liberdade is testimony to the economic boom of the Fontismo period, with new residential areas
built for investment and profit.
1886
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Opening of D. Luís I road bridge over the Douro River in Porto. At the time this iconic bridge held the
record for the longest iron arch in the world (180 m.) It was a huge advance for the urban traffic
network since it allowed a road connection between Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia over the Douro.
1886
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Augusto Hilário (1864–96), the quintessential fado singer of Coimbra, enrols at the University of
Coimbra and became a symbol of “Coimbra Serenade”. "Fado Hilário" is his best known work as a
composer and writer.
1886
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler invent the modern automobile.
Since 1886
Germany
Travelling
Seven weeks after the death of King Ludwig II in 1886, Neuschwanstein Castle – built in order that
the king could withdraw from public life – opened to the public.
1886
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
26 February: Mihri Müşfik Hanım, one of the first female painters of renown, is born.
1887
France
Travelling
The birth of the French Riviera, originally frequented by wealthy English patrons.
1887 - 1918
Austria
Migrations
The son of an Austrian general, Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha becomes King of Bulgaria; he
leaves Bulgaria and immigrates to Germany in 1918.
1887 - 1906
Jordan
Reforms And Social Changes
In 1887 a land register is established for the district of Ajlun. In the district of al-Balqa communal
land is converted to private ownership. In 1906 the land register is extended to southern regions
including al-Salt, Karak, Tafila and Ma’an. As a consequence many agricultural villages are founded
and re-founded in the area between Amman and Karak, leading to a significant increase in
agricultural production, especially cereal crops.
1887
Italy
Economy And Trade
Adoption of a protectionist policy aimed at boosting industrial development.
1887
Italy
Economy And Trade
Federation of Italian Cooperatives is funded (from 1893 known as the League of Cooperatives).
1887
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
After long silence, Verdi composes a new opera on a text by Arrigo Boito: Othello, based on
Shakespeare’s tragedy. In Othello, Verdi adopts a more fluent narrative structure that goes beyond
the traditional division into separate units (arias, duets, concertatos, choirs).
1887 - 1914
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Thanks to improved public health services and living conditions there has been a strong decrease in
the annual number of deaths by disease since 1887 (e.g. deaths from measles have decreased by 73
percent; from diptheria by 86 per cent; from smallpox by 99 per cent).
1887
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
El-Hakaneia Palace on Manshieh Square in Alexandria is designed by Alfonso Maniscalco in the
Beaux-Arts tradition. Constructed as the seat of the “Mixed Tribunals” the building is still used as a
courthouse today.
1887
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of A Relíquia (The Relic) by Eça de Queirós. The novel criticises the hypocrisy of the
Portuguese society.
1887
Portugal
Travelling
The Naval Academy is founded for teaching and research on Portuguese tropical medicine. Its
purpose is to provide access to tropical medicine for general medical students and as a specialty for
naval doctors. The Academy had a small laboratory for some diagnostic tests.
1887
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Emil Berliner invents the phonograph.
1887
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The foundation, under Wassa Pasha’s rule, of the port of Beirut on the eastern part of the Saint
George Bay on Beirut’s northern Mediterranean cost, west of Beirut River. It is one of the largest and
busiest ports on the eastern Mediterranean.
1887
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
Osman Hamdi Bey excavates in Saida.
1888 - 1892
Tunisia
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Establishment of the Tunisian Post and Telegraphs Office; during this time the first Tunisian postage
stamp was issued and the Hôtel des postes (Post Office building) was inaugurated in Tunis.
1888 - 1893
Tunisia
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Completion of the Port of La Goulette; a large, modern complex accessible to large vessels, brings
development to the city of Tunis.
1888 - 1893
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Completion of the Port of La Goulette. After five years in construction, the port complex opens to
trade on 28 May 1893.
1888
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Austria’s Legislation is passed for the mandatory insurance of workers (employees).
1888 - 1889
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of Piazza Esedra (now Piazza della Repubblica) in Rome, designed by Gaetano Koch. The
newly built palaces with porticos around the square are opposite the Terme di Diocleziano (Baths of
Diocletian) and connect the area of Termini railway station to via Nazionale, providing an attractive
entrance to the city.
1888 - 1890
Italy
Economy And Trade
Italy
Migrations
Tariff war with France.
1888
The first law on migration introduces measures aimed at preventing a married woman from migrating
without her husband’s consent; at preventing men to migrate to avoid military service; and at
granting migrants some protection against abuses.
1888
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
First comprehensive law on health services.
1888
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Burgtheater (National Theatre) moves from its former residence at the Hofburg (Imperial Castle)
to purpose-built premises at the Ringstrasse.
1888
Spain
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Building of a submarine (aparato de profundidades) designed by a naval officer, Isaac Peral. The boat
(22 x 2.87 metres) is driven by electric engines and has a periscope and three torpedos. In spite of a
successful test, the Spanish Navy decides not to put the prototype into production.
1888
Spain
International Exhibitions
The Barcelona Universal Exhibition held in the Parc de la Ciutadella from April to December attracts
exhibitors from 22 countries and more than two million visitors. The park displays monuments in the
Modernismo/Modernisme and Neo-Mudéjar styles.
1888
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
A movement to awaken national awareness leads to the establishment of many independent
associations of Macedonian emigrants, such as the Macedonian Literary Society established by Gjorgji
Pulevski in Sofia in 1888.
1888
Portugal
International Exhibitions
Portuguese Industrial Exhibition in Avenida da Liberdade in Lisbon.
1888
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of Os Maias by Eça de Queirós. A mature romance and perhaps his best known. Focused
on the saga of the Maia family through three generations, it debates the issue of the country’s
destiny, in the context of the Constitutionalist ennobled bourgeoisie, whose good intentions end up
capsizing.
1888
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Birth of Fernando Pessoa (d. 1935) is the classic author of Portuguese modernism. His books are
published under different names, which he called heteronyms (not pseudonyms), each one
corresponding to a cycle of experimental attitudes, which unfold in contradictions.
1888
Portugal
Travelling
The neo-Manueline Palace of Bussaco, modelled on the Manueline Belém Tower of Lisbon is
commissioned by King Carlos I as a royal retreat. It combines the architectural fashion of castle
romanticism (German Burgenromantik) with the neo-Manueline gothic style that evokes the
Portuguese Discoveries.
1888
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
Julius Stinde writes Frau Buchholz im Orient. He has already documented the cities of Cairo,
Jerusalem, Athens, and Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey).
1888
Turkey
Economy And Trade
The Agricultural Bank (Ziraat Bankası) is founded as the first state-funded bank of the empire.
1888
Turkey
Travelling
12 August: Direct rail connection is established between Paris and İstanbul.
1889
Romania
International Exhibitions
The two Romanian pavilions at the International Exposition in Paris – a restaurant and a pavilion for
wine tasting – are built by architect Ion Mincu, who uses elements of traditional rustic Romanian
architecture.
1889 - 1900
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
Archaeologist Alexandru Odobescu publishes in France a book about the Pietroasa Treasure (a
historical description and a study on antique silver work).
1889
France
International Exhibitions
The Exposition universelle of 1889 in Paris is the tenth registered World Fair held from 6 May to 31
October. It commemorates the French Revolution on the occasion of its centenary. The Eiffel Tower is
built for this Expo.
1889
France
Political Context
The World Fair in Paris showcases the development of the latest industrial processes, and the Eiffel
Tower is constructed for it.
1889
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Establishment of the National Roman Museum, in the stunning structure of the Terme di Diocleziano
(Baths of Diocletian) in Rome.
1889
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Establishment of the Museum of the pre-Roman Antiquities of Latium in the 16th-century Villa Giulia,
in Rome. The museum would be later renamed the National Etruscan Museum.
1889
Greece
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Founding of the first commercial unit for electricity in Athens. The Royal Palace was the first building
in the capital to benefit from electric lighting.
1889
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Deutsche Volkstheater (German People’s Theatre) opens in Vienna.
1889
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
The Social Democratic Party is founded during the Hainfeld Congress.
1889
Portugal
Political Context
10 October: Coronation of King Carlos I (28 September 1863 – 1 February 1908) Despite the King’s
attempt to reform the political system, the growing urban influence of the Republican Party and the
people´s discontent were fostered by cash payments made to the Royal House.
1889
Portugal
International Exhibitions
At the Paris “Exposition Universelle” Bordalo Pinheiro’s (1846–1905) famous ceramics decorating the
interior of the Portuguese Pavilion are a main attraction for the cosmopolitan visitor.
1889
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The inauguration of the Eiffel Tower and the use of iron in architectural structures.
1889 - 1917
Germany
Travelling
Kaiser Wilhelm II visits the Ottoman Empire three times, in 1889, 1898 and 1917. On his second
official tour he visits Constantinople, Haifa, Jaffa, Jerusalem, Beirut and Damascus, largely to show
his support for Ottoman sultan ‘Abd al-Hamid II whose Empire was already unstable. The strong
connection between the countries is further cemented by a gift from the Kaiser to ‘Abd al Hamid: a
“German fountain” that stands in Jerusalem to this day.
1889
Turkey
International Exhibitions
Although the Ottoman government does not participate in the 1889 Paris Exhibition, the architecture
of the Sultan Ahmed Fountain (from the Vienna Exhibition in 1873) is recycled in the exhibition in the
Pavilion of Turkish Tobacco.
1890 - 1920
Tunisia
Cities And Urban Spaces
The 20th century is undoubtedly one of urbanisation. Outside the Arab medina a new city develops to
host the many Europeans who have arrived to promote development of the colonial economy.
1890 - 1900
Tunisia
Fine And Applied Arts
Construction of public and private buildings in the arabisance style, which proposes a synthesis of
European architectural styles with Arab and Spanish-North African architecture.
1890 - 1910
Tunisia
Migrations
Emergence of a new European-inspired city outside the Arab medina with a multitude of buildings
built in the European style.
1890 - 1892
Romania
Cities And Urban Spaces
In Bucharest a fire tower is built from the plans of the chief architect of the city, George Mandrea. It
is both a watchtower, used by firemen to keep the city under observation to rapidly intervene in case
of a fire, and a reservoir for water distribution in the eastern part of Bucharest.
1890
France
Reforms And Social Changes
On 1 May, Labour Day is celebrated for the first time.
1890s
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
There is a notable increase in the activity of foreign powers – especially Ottoman Turkey, France and
Russia – in the Gulf region. Germany also makes its first appearance. The main interests for all of
them are economic and geostrategic.
1890
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Cavalleria rusticana by Pietro Mascagni (1863–1945) has a great success, marking the beginning
of verismo (Italian realism) in music, which intends to portray the world of peasants and the poor
through strong and passionate drama. The singing style changes radically, leaving behind the
aesthetics of bel canto and turning to reciting, even shouting, and spoken parts in the most exciting
dramatic moments.
1890
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
For the first time, trade unions organise celebrations for May Day as the International Worker’s Day.
1890
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
The Alexandria Sporting Club is built; it is one of the oldest clubs in Egypt.
1890 - 1920
Spain
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
“Alhambrismo” in music. From 1890 many composers produce pieces showing the influence of the
Alhambra, e.g.Chapi's Los Gnomos de la Alhambra (1889), Debussy’s Lindaraja (composed in 1901)
and La puerta del vino (1912–13). The most important piece is the first movement of Noches en los
Jardines de España (1909–15) by Manuel de Falla, titled "En los Jardines del Generalife".
1890
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
Suffrage established for men aged 25 years and above. Although the 1812 Constitution had
theoretically established “universal” suffrage for men, during most of the 19th century it had been
limited to men above a certain economic level. It was not until 1931, under the Second Republic, that
the suffrage became truly universal, including women.
1890 - 1908
Portugal
Political Context
The British Ultimatum (11 January 1890) pressures Portugal to withdraw from southern Africa
resulting in popular outrage and unrest. The bankruptcy of 1892, anti-monarchic sentiment against
King Carlos I, the cost of living and unfulfilled popular needs are major drivers of the Republican
movement.
1890
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
The railway station of Rossio (Lisbon) designed by the Portuguese architect José Luís Monteiro, begun
in 1886 and inaugurated on 23 November of 1890. Located in the historical centre, the Rossio station
follows the neo-Manueline architectural style and is an important building of the 19th-century late
Romantic style.
1890 - 1899
Italy
Migrations
Average annual Italian migration (temporary and permanent, to nearest 1,000): France 26,000, USA
51,000; Argentina 37,000; Brazil 58,000.
1890 - 1910
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
The paintings by Heinrich Vogeler, Das Konzert (Sommerabend) (1893), and Gustav Klimt, Der Kuss
(1908), exemplify the period in art known as Jugendstil or Art Nouveau.
1890s - Around 1900
Germany
Migrations
After the United States, the German Empire was the most popular country of immigration.
1890s
Germany
Migrations
The Prussian policy of Abwehrpolitik sees Polish seasonal workers in agriculture forced to leave the
German Empire during winter.
1890 - 1910
Germany
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The era of Modern literature (i.e. the works of Hesse, Hauptmann, Mann and Zweig) is characterised
by pluralism, the merging of Art Nouveau, Symbolism, Impressionism, etc.
1890s
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Sigmund Freud formulates his theory of psychoanalysis in Vienna.
1890
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Emperor Wilhelm II dismisses Bismarck; and so begins the era of the emperor’s personal regiment.
1890
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Khan Antun Bey Square evolves after the construction of the great Ottoman jetty and quays from
1890 that changes the design of the urban area.
1890
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
16 September: Sailing frigate Ertuğrul sinks while returning from a goodwill voyage to Japan off the
coast of Oshima in a typhoon that kills all but 69 of its 609 crew.
1890
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
Müfide Kadri is born (d. 1912). One of the early female painters, she took private classes from
Osman Hamdi Bey.
1891
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Monetary reform: the administration of the protectorate decides to replace the Tunisian monetary
unit the “piastre” with the French Franc.
1891
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
The Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna purchases the Karabakh carpet in Istanbul.
1891
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
First Chambers of Labour (territorial trade unions) founded in Milan.
1891
Greece
Economy And Trade
An insurance company for sea transportation is founded on the island of Chios.
1891
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
October: Domitilia de Carvalho is the first woman to study at the University of Coimbra. She is
obliged to wear black, sober costumes and a discreet hat to go unnoticed among her male
colleagues. A brilliant student she graduated in mathematics (1894), philosophy (1895) and medicine
(1904).
1891
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Founding of the Pan-German League (Allgemeine Deutsche Verband; since 1894 the General German
Association or Alldeutscher Verband) to advance an active, nationalistic German foreign policy in
Europe and overseas.
1891
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
Fausto Zonaro (1854–1929) arrives in İstanbul as an independent artist. He receives the title of court
painter in 1896.
1891
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
13 June: The Archaeology Museum in Istanbul is opened.
1891 - 1892
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
Osman Hamdi Bey excavates in Lagina.
1891
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Ahmed Vefik Paşa dies. Besides his administrative positions, he is regarded as a precursor of Turkish
cultural nationalism and remembered also for contributing to the development of Western theatre in
the empire by translating French plays.
1892 - 1914
Tunisia
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Development of the railway network connects the city of Tunis with its hinterland. The network
serves the large cities by connecting them with the agricultural centres created by colonisation.
1892 - 1914
Tunisia
Economy And Trade
Development of a railway network connecting the city of Tunis with its hinterland.
1892 - 1895
Romania
Political Context
In 1892 a delegation of 237 Romanians sends Emperor Franz Joseph a Memorandum protesting
against the discriminatory effects of the union of Transylvania with Hungary (1867). In 1893 the
signatories of the petition are sent for trial at the end of which, in May 1894, they are sentenced to
prison. However, in 1895 the Emperor amnesties them.
1892
France
Rediscovering The Past
Excavations at Delos and Delphi by the French School of Athens.
1892
France
Reforms And Social Changes
The Law on Health and Hygiene at work is passed.
1892
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
The British government effectively becomes the ruler of the Trucial Coast when the sheikhs are
forced to pledge that neither they nor their descendants will enter agreements with or grant
territorial rights to any government or their representatives other than Britain.
1892 - 1898
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Hydroelectric power plants are built in Tivoli (1892) and Paderno d’Adda (1898) and the power they
generated is transported to, respectively, Rome and Milan.
1892
Italy
Political Context
Italian Socialist Party founded.
1892
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Muntazah Palace is constructed for Khedive ‘Abbas, which he uses as both a hunting lodge and
residence for his companion.
1892
Egypt
Travelling
The Greco-Roman Museum of Alexandria is created.
1892
Spain
International Exhibitions
European and American Historical Exhibitions held in the Palacio de la Biblioteca y Museos
Nacionales, Madrid, celebrating the fourth centennial of the discovery of America.
1892
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
18 August: Praça de Touros do Campo Pequeno (Campo Pequeno Bullring) opens its doors with a
gala show. Built in an area assigned to the Casa Pia (educational establishment for children in need)
by the city of Lisbon in 1889 the bullring was designed by the architect António José Dias da Silva
(1848–1912) and inspired by Madrid's bullring.
1892
Portugal
Economy And Trade
13 June: bankruptcy is declared in Portugal causing tremendous popular outrage. The deficit in the
public finances, the dependence on foreign funding and incipient industrialisation are contributing
factors to this crisis.
1892
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Fatma Âliye (1862–1939), female novelist and publisher, publishes Muhâdarât (Reminiscence). Her
feminist attitude was apparent in her rejection of marriage for economic reasons, believing in the
need for women to join the workforce.
1893
Qatar
Political Context
The Battle of al-Wajba is a victory for Sheikh Jassim and Qatar. This represents a decisive moment in
the nation's history, asserting Qatar's independence from direct Ottoman interference.
1893
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
Creation of the first analytical laboratory as part of the services that later became the Pasteur
Institute, initially providing a rabies treatment service, and then offering a vaccination centre.
1893
Austria
Rediscovering The Past
The Egyptian authorities give the head of a Sphinx of Sesostris III to the Kunsthistorisches Museum
in Vienna.
1893 - 1895
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of Piazza Vittorio Emanuele (today Piazza della Repubblica) in Florence, after clearing
the area of the Ancient Market.
1893 - 1894
Italy
Economy And Trade
A comprehensive law on banking establishes the Bank of Italy, which starts operating on 1 January
1894.
1893
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
At the age of 80, Verdi composes his last opera, Falstaff, an opera buffa that opens new avenues
towards the theatre of the 20th century. The music underscores all the subtle nuances of the
psychology of the different characters.
1893
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Manon Lescaut by Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) has a great success in Turin and Puccini becomes
the most promising opera composer of the new generation.
1893
Greece
Rediscovering The Past
Foundation of the National Archaeological Museum of Athens.
1893
Portugal
Rediscovering The Past
Creation of the Portuguese Ethnological Museum, which in 1906 opened its doors to the public at the
Jerónimos Monastery in the Belém area of Lisbon. The museum is currently designated the National
Museum of Archaeology.
1893 - 1902
Turkey
Migrations
72,000 Muslims and Jews are forced out of Bulgaria. Unlike earlier migrants, they are resettled in
towns in Thrace as well as in rural areas of central and eastern Anatolia.
1893
Turkey
International Exhibitions
At the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago, the main Ottoman pavilion refers to the Sultan
Ahmed Fountain, but it experiments with a different approach, being designed as an exhibition
building.
1894 - 1898
France
Political Context
The Dreyfus Affair: Captain Dreyfus is unjustly accused of espionage, is militarily degraded, and then
deported at the end of the trial. The writer Émile Zola denounces this situation in a pamphlet entitled
J’accuse. The case divides France; it is recognised that Dreyfus is innocent.
1894 - 1913
Italy
Economy And Trade
The chemical industry takes off. The production of fertilisers grows from 85,700 tons in 1894 to 1
million tons in 1913.
1894
Italy
Travelling
The Touring Club d’Italia is founded. Its main goal is “to make Italians know Italy”. It conceives of
tourism as a tool for the cultural growth and modernisation of the country.
1894 - 1908
Morocco
Political Context
Having ascended to the throne too young, Mulay ‘Abd al ‘Aziz must act under the regency of his
father mulay al-Hasan I’s chamberlain for almost six years. Upon his father death in 1900, Mulay
‘Abd al ‘Aziz took up the reins of power and made clear his desire to restructure the governing
institution of Morocco, the Makhzen. He worked on the modernisation of the army and stabilisation of
the currency. He relaunched the project to ensure universal application of the tartib tax, which he
wanted to apply to all foreigners and protégés. This project naturally displeased the consular corps.
1894 - 1900
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Qasim Amin publishes his book Les Egyptiens in French in 1894. In it he rejects the negative claims
against the traditions of Oriental society made by Duke Drocom in his book, L’Egypte et les
Egyptiens. In defence of Islam, Amin compares the rights of women according to Islam with those of
civilized European women. In 1899, he then publishes The Emancipation of Women, which is severely
criticized. In 1900, Amin refutes the arguments of his critics with The New Woman, a work that
provides fresh fuel to his ardent battle for the emancipation of women.
1894 - 1900
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Salon des Cent (Salon of the One Hundred) neither focused on any one school of art nor paid
attention to any of the official bodies.
1894
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Otto Lilienthal invents the glider.
1895
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Romanian Maritime Service, the first civil naval institution of Romania, is founded. It is intended
to buy and build ships and it ensures passenger and freight transportation on the route Brăila–
Constanţa–Istanbul, later extended to Alexandria and to ports on the eastern shore of the
Mediterranean: Pireu, Smyrna, Haifa and Beirut.
1895
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
9 December: the first electric tramway is introduced in Bucharest.
1895
Romania
Economy And Trade
Promulgation of the Mining Law, which stipulates separation between the ownership of land and of
the subsoil resources, which, except for oil, belong to the state. Concessions of oil exploitation by the
state (in cases where the owner of the land did not want to do it) are regulated.
1895
Austria
Rediscovering The Past
A statue of an athlete is found in Ephesus, Turkey; ‘Abd al-Hamid II, the Ottoman Sultan at the time,
gives it as a gift to the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I.
1895
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Gugliemo Marconi makes the first successful experiments of radio broadcasts.
1895 - 1913
Italy
Economy And Trade
Major growth of iron and steel industry: cast iron production rises from 9,000 tons in 1895 to
426,000 tons in 1913; steel production rises from 50,000 tons in 1895 to 933,000 tons in 1913.
1895
Italy
International Exhibitions
Opening of the First International Art Exhibition of the City of Venice, known as the Venice Biennale.
The exhibition – organised to bring the city out of isolation – meets with great public acclaim
(224,000 visitors).
1895
Greece
Political Context
Prime Minister Charilaos Trikoupis declares that Greece is bankrupt.
1895
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first car in Portugal, a Panhard et Levassor, is personally imported from Paris by the fourth Count
of Avilez. The Lisbon Customs did not know how to tax this awkward item. Was it a farm machine or
a locomotive? They chose the second option. Count Jorge Avilez drove from Lisbon to his farm in
Santiago do Cacém at 15 km an hour.
1895
France
Castel Béranger by Hector Guimard is in the Art Nouveau style.
Fine And Applied Arts
1895
France
Fine And Applied Arts
The Maison de l'Art nouveau by Samuel Bing.
1895
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Roentgen ray (X-Ray) is discovered by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen.
1895
Turkey
Rediscovering The Past
German archaeologist Theodor Wiegand begins to excavate ancient Greek city of Priene. He would
start to excavate in Miletos in 1896.
1896
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
Creation of Khaldunia. The purpose of this institution located near the Zaytuna Mosque was to spread
scientific knowledge among the Arab communities, and especially among students of Zaytuna
University. Its name refers to the great Arab thinker Ibn Khaldun.
1896
France
Travelling
Tsar Nicolas II visits France and inaugurates the Pont Alexandre III bridge in Paris.
1896
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Austrian composer Anton Bruckner dies.
1896
Austria
Political Context
Russia recognises Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg, a former Austrian officer, as the new Prince of Bulgaria.
1896 - 1914
Italy
Economy And Trade
Sustained economic growth (except for short crises in 1900 and 1907–08); industrialisation makes a
leap forward.
1896
Greece
Travelling
Revival of the Olympic Games.
1896
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
First X-ray made in Portugal by Henrique Teixeira Bastos, Professor of Physics at Coimbra University.
In 1895 Roentgen had discovered X-rays and the news was published in Portugal in the newspaper
Novidades in January 1896. This first X-ray of the right hand of a boy with bone tuberculosis was
made one week after.
1896
Germany
International Exhibitions
The Great Industrial Exposition opens at Treptower Park, south of central Berlin.
1896
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Recaîzâde Mahmud Ekrem publishes the novel Araba Sevdası (A Carriage Affair). He was prominent
in literary circles and promoted the Westernisation of Ottoman Turkish literature.
1897
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
Creation of the French civil hospital provides a surgery and two general medical services to meet the
needs of the European population from the outset.
1897
Romania
Fine And Applied Arts
The National School of Architecture is founded as a section of the School of Fine Arts in Bucharest. It
becomes an independent institution in 1904, under the name the Superior School of Architecture.
1897 - 1899
Romania
Travelling
Romanian biologist and speleologist Emil Racoviță participates in the Belgian Antarctic Expedition, the
first winter research expedition in the Antarctica region.
1897 - 1898
Italy
Political Context
Widespread demonstrations and riots against high bread price. The government uses the army to
repress protests: in Milan 85 demonstrators are killed.
1897
Greece
Political Context
Defeat of the Greek Army during the Greek–Turkish War.
1897
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
Gustav Klimt (1867–1918) founds, along with other Viennese artists, the Viennese Secession, a
society of Austrian Art Nouveaux artists.
1897 - 1909
United Kingdom
Cities And Urban Spaces
Charles Rennie Mackintosh (b. Glasgow, Scotland 1868; d. London, England 1928), artist, designer
and architect, is perhaps best known for the Charles Rennie Mackintosh building at Glasgow School of
Art, which was built in two stages (1897–9 and 1907–9) due to lack of funding. Designed in the Art
and Crafts style, and owing much to Scotland’s baronial tradition, Mackintosh eschewed the
architectural styles of Greece and Rome in his design. Achieving the acclaim he felt he deserved in
Europe, Mackintosh’s originality was never fully appreciated in the United Kingdom, except by a few
loyal supporters and patrons, during his lifetime.
1897 - 1904
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
Formation of the Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum (now the Bode Museum), proposed by Wilhelm von Bode,
and built by Ernst von Ihne and Max Hasak.
1897
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
On 9 January 1897 and in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Ottoman Sultan ‘Abd al-Hamid
II’s coronation, a clock tower is built near the Grand Serail, Beirut, to make up for the absence of a
public clock indicating mandatory Muslim prayer times especially as many foreign institutions had
built Western-style clock towers.
1898 - 1899
Romania
Travelling
Bazil G. Assan is the first Romanian to go on an expedition around the world, taking the route
Constanța–Istanbul–Cairo–Ceylon–China–Japan–Pacific Ocean–USA–Europe.
1898
Italy
Political Context
Anarchist Gaetano Bresci kills the King Umberto I, in revenge for the protesters killed in Milan in
1898. Victor Emanuel III becomes King of Italy.
1898
United Kingdom
Political Context
Sudan is in possession of the Egyptians until a Sudanese revolt under the Mahdi severs the
connection. It is brought back to Anglo-Egyptian rule with a military conquest led by an Egyptian
army officered by the British. Control of Sudan facilitated British colonial expansion in Sub-Saharan
Africa.
1898
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Shahin Pasha Aqueduct, constructed under Muhammad ‘Ali and located between the Omar Shah and
Tukuz Tamar (Darb el-Jamamiz) aqueducts, is infilled with earth.
1898 - 1902
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The British begin construction of the first Dam across the Nile in 1898 and work continues to 1902.
Opened on 10 December 1902, the Aswan Low Dam is a gravity (masonry) buttress dam on the Nile
in Aswan.
1898
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
The lost of the last overseas territories causes a big crisis. It is the moment for important writers and
intellectuals such as Unamuno and Joaquin Costa, all members of what is called "Generación del ‘98”
(Generation of ’98) to analyse the reasons for the crisis and look critically at Spain's past and its
future.
1898
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The teaching of astronomy as an individual science starts, taking advantage of the astronomy
teaching experience acquired since 1837 at the Lisbon Polytechnic School. This school was meant to
provide training for cartography surveys and military preparation.
1898
Portugal
Economy And Trade
Industrialist Alfredo da Silva refounds CUF (Companhia União Fabril), in Barreiro in the beginning of
the 20th century. CUF produced soap, candles and vegetable oils, later becoming a leader of the
fertilizer and other chemical products sector. Da Silva gave residential quarters and free education to
all his employees nationwide.
1898 - 1917
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
Foundation of the Deutsche-Orient Gesellschaft (DOG) in Berlin is to promote research in the field of
“Oriental” archaeology and bring it to a wider audience. One of the first archaeological excavations
undertaken by the DOG was in Babylon, with the discovery of the Ishtar Gate (now at the Museum of
the Ancient Near East in Berlin). DOG was responsible for finds at Tell el-Amarna, the capital of the
Pharaonic Empire where the famous bust of Queen Nefertiti was found (now at the Neues Museum).
Kaiser Wilhelm II assumed patronage of DOG in 1901.
1898 - 1900
Germany
Political Context
Development and rearmament (Aufrüstung) of the German Navy.
1898
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Ayşe Sıdıka (d.1903), the first female Ottoman pedagogue, publishes Usûl-i Talim ve Terbiye Dersleri
(Lectures on Methods of Teaching and Education). She was the instructor for courses in geography,
ethics and handicrafts at the Female Teachers’ Seminary in İstanbul.
1899
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
By 1899 private British, French and other European arms dealers import some 20,000 rifles into the
Trucial Coast region and Oman annually.
1899 - 1904
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of the new Synagogue in Rome (architects: Vincenzo Costa and Osvaldo Armanni), an
imposing building of eclectic style, with decorative elements inspired by Assyro-Babylonian
architecture.
1899 - 1920s
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
Construction of some remarkable Liberty-style buildings, such as the Villino Florio in Palermo and the
new building of Palazzo Montecitorio (seat of the Italian Chamber of Deputies in Rome), both by
Ernesto Basile, some pavilions for the 1902 national exhibition in Turin, and the small Coppedè
neighbourhood in Rome. Overall, however, Liberty style leaves a smaller mark on Italian cities than
eclecticism.
1899
Italy
Economy And Trade
In Turin, Giovanni Agnelli founds the car factory FIAT.
1899
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Prince Muhammad ‘Ali Tawfiq is responsible for opening the Al-Manyal Palace Museum in 1899, which
is set in a large garden of thirty feddans (approx 31 acres).
1899
Egypt
Economy And Trade
The National Bank of Egypt introduces notes in denominations of 50 piasters, and one, five, ten, 50
and 100 Egyptian pounds.
1899
Egypt
Migrations
British diplomat Alfred Mitchell-Innes was appointed Under-Secretary of State for Finance in Egypt.
1899
Egypt
Travelling
British diplomat Alfred Mitchell-Innes is appointed Undersecretary of State for Finance in Egypt.
1900 - 1920
Tunisia
Fine And Applied Arts
Art Nouveau marks the city’s landscape.
1900 - 1910
Tunisia
Migrations
The colonial era: social and cultural life are organised around Europeans striving for modernity and
accustomed to the cultural life of European cities; hence construction of theatres, hotels, casinos, etc.
1900s
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
British records note that an industry of weaving fine sheep’s-wool ‘aba’ (cloaks) had been developed
in Sharjah but, as insufficient quantities were being made to meet local demand, they were also
imported from Bahrain and al-Ahsa. Most of the cloth used in the Trucial States at the time was
imported from India and elsewhere.
1900 - 1930s
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Reforms And Social Changes
Wealthy pearl merchants from the Arabian Gulf establish new educational institutions on the Trucial
Coast. In addition to religious subjects, the schools – housed in purpose-built structures with proper
classrooms – offer an expanded curriculum. In Sharjah, al-Taimiyyah (later al-Islah) and al-Nabudah
schools are established.
1900 - 1930s
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Reforms And Social Changes
Sharjah’s Taimiyyah School, which also incorporated a library, would send promising students farther
afield to continue their studies. Students from outside Sharjah were offered free board and
accommodation at the school.
1900s - 1915
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Reforms And Social Changes
Media from Egypt and India critical of British politics penetrates the Trucial Coast. The Cairo-based
newspapers Al-Mu’ayyad and Al-Liwa have numerous subscribers on the Trucial Coast.
1900
Romania
International Exhibitions
At the International Exposition in Paris, Romania has four pavilions, the central one designed by
French architect Jean-Camille Formigé.
1900
Romania
Travelling
Al. Saabner-Tuduri publishes a book on the Mineral Waters and the Spas of Romania, the first paper
about Romanian balneology, which used to be a very important component of Romanian tourism.
1900
France
Economy And Trade
The first line of the Paris Metro is built for the second Universal Exhibition.
1900
France
International Exhibitions
The World Fair in Paris as the symbol of the Belle Époque with its theme “the balance of a century”.
The exhibition bequeaths to Paris several buildings including the Petit Palais and the Grand Palais.
1900
France
Reforms And Social Changes
The law on the working conditions of women and children (Millerand Law) decreases the working day
to 11 hours.
1900
Lebanon
Migrations
A group of about a dozen Lebanese, dissatisfied with the dismal prospect of earning a livelihood from
the stubborn northern Lebanese soil, set out to stake their claim on the mythical riches in the new
land of Australia.
1900 - 1908
Jordan
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Hijaz Railway is developed by ‘Abd al-Hamid II (1876–1908) for various reasons, not least of which is
to strengthen the Empire’s control in an area that is the only window for the Ottomans to trade with
the Far East after the British took control of the major international trade routes (Suez Canal and
Arab-Persian Gulf). Supported by Germany, which is seeking control in this area to oppose the
British, work on the project, and inauguration of stations coincides with the annual anniversary of the
Sultan’s accession on 1 September. The line reaches Amman in 1903, Ma’an in 1904 and Mudawwara
in 1906. The 1,450 km railway reaches Medina in 1908.
1900 - 1909
Italy
Economy And Trade
Annual per capita income increases by 18.5% during the decade because of industrialisation.
1900
Italy
International Exhibitions
In the 19th and 20th centuries, Italian companies participate in many international exhibition, such
as the 1900 Paris World Fair.
1900 - 1909
Italy
Migrations
Italians who had migrated to the USA, Argentina and Brazil repatriate to Italy in large numbers
during the 1900s: the annual average is 119,857 from the USA; 31,712 from Argentina; 19,864 from
Brazil.
1900
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Law on “state quinine” passed: in order to fight malaria, the state will produce quinine and sell it at a
low price not only in the 5,000 pharmacies, but also in the 27,000 tobacconists.
1900
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Birth of the celebrated poet Mubarak bin Saif al-Nakhi in Sharjah.
1900
Greece
Fine And Applied Arts
Foundation of the National Gallery in Athens. Its chief curator is the acclaimed painter Georgios
Iakovidis.
1900
Egypt
Travelling
On a visit to Britain, ‘Abbas Hilmi II tells the authorities that he thinks the British have carried out
good work in Egypt. He declares himself ready to cooperate with British officials administering Egypt
and Sudan.
1900
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
By this year Portugal has 8,345 km of telegraphic lines and 443 telegraphic stations. The telegraph is
an urban phenomenon hand in hand with city development. Due to the demand for telegraphic
operators, several schools were created. Submarine cables assured the telegraphic service between
Portugal and the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Africa.
1900
Portugal
International Exhibitions
At the Paris “Exposition Universelle et Internationale”, the Portuguese pavilion is called “Portugal and
Portuguese Overseas Colonies”. Inside, on the ground floor, are two main exhibitions: one on the
works of João Vaz (1859–1931) painter of harbours and fishing scenes, the other on natural forest
products such as cork.
1900 - 1909
Italy
Migrations
Average annual Italian migration (temporary and permanent, to nearest 1,000): France 57,000; USA
233,000; Argentina 73,000; Brazil 30,000.
1900
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The establishment of the beneficence “Nobel Prize” by Alfred Nobel.
1900
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Planck’s Law, which describes electromagnetic radiation.
1900
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin invents the zeppelin, a steerable airship.
1900 - 1940
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Bagdadbahn (the so-called Bagdad Railway project) was built through a section of the Ottoman
Empire (Turkey, Syria and Iran) and stretched for around 3,200 km. Together with the Hijaz Railway
(opened 1908–closed 1920) it was constructed under the auspices of ‘Abd al-Hamid II, primarily to
facilitate pilgrims wanting to travel directly from Damascus to Medina and Mecca. The German
Empire was the main sponsor of this huge infrastructure project: the director of engineering was
Heinrich August Meißner (responsible for several railways in the Ottoman Empire) and many German
manufacturers (i.e. Friedrich von Krupp AG, and Borsig) grew as a result of its construction.
However, while both railways strengthened the Sultan’s reputation, there were important military and
economic uses as well, for the Ottomans were federates of the German Empire during World War I.
1900 - 1940
Germany
Travelling
Building of the "Bagdadbahn" ("Bagdad railway"), a railway- section in the Ottoman Empire with a
length of around 3200 km through Turkey, Syria and Iran. Together with the "Hedjaz railway" it was
built under Abdul Hamid the second. He wanted to facilitate the pilgrimage, as people could travel
from Damaskus to Medina and Mekka directly.
1900
Turkey
International Exhibitions
As if to compensate for its absence from the Paris 1878 and 1889 exhibitions, the Ottoman
government spends a considerable sum on the pavilion for the Paris Internation Exhibition of 1900,
designed by the French architect Adrien-René Dubuisson.
1901
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Russian Steam Navigation and Trading Company begin commercial and passenger operations in
the Gulf.
1901
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo paints The Fourth Estate, showing workers on strike. The painting will
become an icon of the workers’ movement.
1901
Italy
Migrations
Comprehensive law on migration creates the Commissariato generale per l’emigrazione and
introduces other measures aimed at ensuring migrants’ welfare, such as medical inspections on
boats.
1901 - 1910
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Giacomo Puccini consolidates his reputation. He develops a very personal language that is deeply
rooted in the Italian melodic tradition, despite his attention to international trends and his choice of
exotic subjects (Madama Butterfly, La fanciulla del West, Turandot).
1901 - 1914
Italy
Political Context
Almost uninterrupted rule by Giovanni Giolitti, who allows more freedom of action to trade unions,
introduces some social reforms and makes some openings for Socialists and Catholics.
1901
Italy
Travelling
Liguria (the region of Genoa) is the Italian region with the highest number of foreigners (12,000). It
has a mild climate that attracts foreigners escaping north Europe’s harsh climate for health reasons.
All through the 19th and early 20th centuries, many foreigners affected by tuberculosis and other
illness resided in Italy for extended periods.
1901 - 1903
Greece
Political Context
Under the leadership of King Constantine I and Prime Minister Eleftherios Venizelos, Greece defeats
the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria during the Balkan Wars.
1901
Greece
Economy And Trade
The Greek Chamber of Commerce is founded in Alexandria, Egypt, with Emmanouil Benakis as its
president.
1901
United Kingdom
Travelling
Age 42, a young and energetic Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon, visits the Arab Gulf sheikhdoms to
confirm treaties of British protection of them, a policy that prevails until 1970.
1901
United Kingdom
Political Context
The British Viceroy, Lord Curzon, visits the sheikhdoms of the Gulf to confirm treaties of protection
that exclude other European powers. Iraq and Arabia fall under a British- Indian sphere of influence
with the Indian rupee as the principal currency. Curzon’s policy lasts until 1970.
1901
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
Otto Wagner designs and overseas construction of the Viennese metro, the Wiener Stadtbahn.
1901 - 1909
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
Under the Ottoman Sultan ‘Abd al-Hamid, the Hijaz Railway is built, running from Istanbul to the
Medina (Madinah) province.
1901
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Fine And Applied Arts
One of the founders of Macedonian modern art, Lazar Lichenoski (d. 1964) is born in Galichnik. After
graduating from Belgrade Art School he attended prestigeous art schools in Paris. He is best known
for his landscapes, which reveal the harmonious beauty of nature through endless views from the
peak of Bistra Mountain. Lichenoski introduced expressionism in Macedonian art.
1901
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
31 August: Inauguration of the first electric tram route in Lisbon, connecting Cais do Sodré to
Ribamar (Algés). The more efficient electric tramway, with tracks, overhead power lines and the
construction of Santos Central Power Station, replaces the popular “Americanos” horse-drawn trams
of Lisbon.
1901
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
The Sociedade Promotora de Belas Artes (1861) and the Grémio Artístico (1890) created by the
Grupo do Leão (1880) merge into the National Society of Fine Arts (SNBA) headed by Malhoa
Columbano and António Ramalho. In Porto, the Centro Artístico Portuense (CAP) (founded in 1870)
did not survive the death of the painter Silva Porto in 1903.
1901
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Posthumous publication of the Livro de Cesário Verde, a compilation of the poetry of Cesário Verde
(1855–86) by his friend, Silva Pinto, author of the Preface. An original poet who described a world
previously unknown to poetry, Cesário Verde completely modernised the traditional style of the
Portuguese lyricism.
1901
Turkey
Cities And Urban Spaces
Izmir Clock Tower is built to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Abdülhamid II’s accession to the
throne. It is designed by Levantine French architect Raymond Charles Père.
1902
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
The Qawasim and other sheikhs of the Arab littoral agree by Treaty to prohibit the import of arms
into their territories.
1902
Italy
International Exhibitions
First International Exhibition of Modern Decorative Arts in Turin, featuring the best production of
architecture, furniture and applied arts.
1902 - 1903
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
The Italian state buys the 15th-century building of Villa Borghese in Rome and the park around it,
including the astounding collection of paintings and sculptures that the villa housed. The villa will be
transformed into the Borghese Gallery and Museum.
1902 - 1909
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
First Italian national laws on the protection of cultural heritage. The new laws establish the principle
of inalienability of national heritage and create a state administration (with national and local
branches) dedicated to caring for cultural heritage.
1902
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Legislation passed prohibiting children under the age of 12 from working, women from working in
mines and under-age women from working at night. First provisions for maternity leave (four weeks
after delivery).
1902 - 1920
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
In 1902, age 19, King ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn ‘Abd al-Rahman, along with a small army, returns to Riyad to
reclaim his family legacy. Managing to take Riyad, ‘Abd al-Rahman then begins to unify modern
Saudi Arabia.
1902
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Birth of writer Stale Popov in Melnca, Mariovo Region. He began writing early immortalising tales
from Macedonian folk tradition about Itar Pejo (Smart Pejo). He achieved eminence after publication
of his first novel Patchwork Life. His talent lay in introducing themes from social life. His other wellknown novels are Kalesh Angja and Tole Pasha.
1902
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
Opening of Santa Justa Lift, an iconic example of iron architecture. Planned since 1874, it was
designed to bridge the 25 metre gap in height between Ouro and Carmo streets, thus making
pedestrian traffic between Lisbon’s hills easier. The inauguration of the gangway by King Carlos I is
held on 10 July.
1902
Portugal
Travelling
Inauguration of the Escola de Medicina Tropical de Lisboa (Lisbon Academy of Tropical Medicine),
founded like its European counterparts to provide specialised training, spread knowledge and
undertake field research. One of its main subjects was sleeping sickness for whose treatment the
Academy undertook five field missions (1904–11) to São Tomé and Mozambique.
1902
Lebanon
Rediscovering The Past
Opening of the Archaeological Museum of the American University of Beirut. It is the third oldest
museum in the Mashriq, after those in Cairo and Istanbul.
1902
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Nazım Hikmet Ran, famous Turkish poet, playwright and novelist, is born.
1903
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
British Viceroy and Governor-General of India, Lord Curzon, visits the Trucial sheikhs at Sharjah to
reaffirm Britain’s commitment to “guardianship and protection” and the British Government’s position
as “your overlords and protectors”. Curzon asserts that continued British control of India depends on
maintaining British supremacy in the Gulf.
1903
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
The Wiener Werkstätte, an association of designers such as Joseph Hofmann and Koloman Moser is
founded, covering all aspects of design from fashion to furniture.
1903
Serbia
Political Context
A military coup brings about restitution of the Karađorđević Dynasty.
1903
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
The House of Arab Antiquities opens on 28 December 1903, located on Bab al-Khalq Square which is
famous for its Islamic infrastructure: the mosques of Ahmad ibn Tulun and Muhammad ‘Ali, and the
Citadel of Saladin. The Museum is only the second concrete-iron building to be constructed after the
Egyptian Museum.
1903
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Fine And Applied Arts
A founder of contemporary Macedonian art, Nikola Martinoski is born in Krushevo (d. 1973). He
learned painting in the Skopje workshop of the icon painter Dimitar Andonov, and in Bucharest and
Paris. His distinctive expressionist style depicts social themes and portraits, influenced by Macedonian
frescos and the modern Parisian school. His outstanding work is the painting "Mother and Child".
1903
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
The Slav-Macedonian Scientific Literary Society, also known as the St Petersburg Colony, is
established. It plays an important role in the national awakening of Macedonians and raising the
issue of the independence of Macedonia within the international community.
1903
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
Publication in Sofia of On Macedonian Matters by Krste Petkov Misirkov (1874–1926). This book was
a starting point in explaining factors about Macedonian people as a distinct nation and laid the
foundations of the Macedonian modern language and grammar.
1903
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
A large part of the richly ornamented south facade of Qasr al-Mushatta – one of the most important
works of early Islamic architecture – was presented as a gift from the Ottoman Sultan ‘Abd al-Hamid
II to Emperor Wilhelm II and transported from Jordan to Berlin via rail and sea.
1903
Austria
Political Context
The young King Alexander of Serbia is brutally murdered in an officers’ conspiracy in June. The
replacement of the pro-Austrian Obrenović Dynasty by the pro-Russian House of Karađorđević under
Peter I, changes the balance of power in the Balkans.
1904
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Theodor Herzl, founder of the Zionist movement, dies.
1904
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936), Italian dramatist, novelist, poet and short story writer, publishes the
novel Il fu Mattia Pascal. In 1934, he will be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
1904
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Law on free distribution of quinine to peasants and workers in malaria-infested areas.
1904
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
First general strike at a national level held as a protest at police violence against workers (in
repeated instances, the police had opened fire against workers on strike, killing several of them).
1904
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
First performance of Leoš Janáček’s (1854–1928) opera Janufa.
1904
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Egyptian Geological Museum (EGM) is established and opened to the public as part of the
Egyptian Geological Survey (EGS), founded earlier in 1896. The Museum supports the theses that
Egyptians are pioneers in extraction and utilization of metals and stones, the essential basics of
civilization, and that they were the first to discover gold and copper and mine them from the Eastern
Desert and Sinai.
1904 - 1912
Spain
Political Context
After the loss of its last colonies, Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines, Spain focuses on North Africa
in the framework of the colonial interests of other European powers such as France, the UK and
Germany. After different international talks and agreements – Spanish–French Agreement (1904),
Algeciras Conference (1906), Cartagena Declarations (1907) – Spain and France sign in November
1912 the Treaty establishing the French and Spanish Protectorates in Morocco.
1904
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
Avenida Ressano Garcia, a main residential area and development axis opens in the north of Lisbon
as part of the “Avenidas Novas” plan. Part of a later phase of the Lisbon Improvements Plan, led by
Frederico Ressano Garcia, it also included sanitation improvement. Today the street is known as
Avenida da República.
Around 1914 - 1918
Germany
Economy And Trade
In 1914 Germany becomes the biggest industrial nation within Europe as a result of munitions
production before and during World War I.
1904
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Publication of Max Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Weber is known as the
originator of social science.
1905 - 1907
Romania
Travelling
The construction of the seaside resort Mamaia, on the shore of the Black Sea, which became and
remains one of the most popular Romanian resorts.
1905
France
Reforms And Social Changes
On 29 June, the working day for minors is reduced to eight hours.
1905
Italy
Economy And Trade
Nationalisation of the railways.
1905
Italy
Travelling
The Automobile Club d’Italia is founded.
1905 - 1936
Greece
Travelling
Tourists flock to Delphi from all over the world attracted mainly by its archaeology. The guestbook of
the Hotel Pythios Appolon provides a glimpse of the cosmopolitan atmosphere at Delphi during the
first quarter of the 20th century.
1905
Morocco
Political Context
Emperor Wilhelm II visits Tangiers on 3 March 1905, keen to prevent diplomatic isolation of his
country and to safeguard Germany’s economic interests.
1905
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
The Egyptian Olympic Athletes Club is built in Alexandria.
1905
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first film in the Balkans is shot by the Manaki brothers. Pioneers of Macedonian film, Janaki
(1878–1945) and Milton (1880–1964) shot their first film only 10 years after the Lumiere Brothers. It
shows their grandmother Despina spinning wool. Their first film of ethnographic value was shot soon
after. It documents celebration of the feast of Sts Cyril and Methodius in front of the church devoted
to these saints in Bitola.
1905
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
Publication of the journal Autonomous Macedonia begins in Belgrade. This attempt to propagate the
idea of an independent state initiated by Grigorie Tashkovic ends after only a few issues.
1905 - 1916
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Physician Albert Einstein formulates his Theory and publishes Relativity: The Special and General
Theory.
1905
Germany
Migrations
Foundation of the German field-workers central office (Deutsche Feldarbeiter Zentralstelle; later
Deutsche Arbeitszentrale), initiated by the Prussian Ministry of Agriculture, in order to control workbased migration to Germany.
1906
Tunisia
Rediscovering The Past
The Archaeological Museum of Sfax is established in one of the city’s hotels.
1906
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The German Hamburg–America Line offers a steamer service between Europe and the Gulf.
1906
Romania
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
18 March: Romanian pilot and inventor Traian Vuia tests in France (near Paris) his heavier-than-air,
fully self-propelled, fixed-wing aircraft. The plane leaves the ground and flies at a height of 1 m for a
distance of about 12 m, but the engine cuts out and it comes down.
1906
France
Reforms And Social Changes
Introduction of a compulsory weekly rest period of 24 hours (voted on 3 July).
1906
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Simplon Tunnel between Domodossola (Italy) and Brig (Switzerland) inaugurated. The construction
works had started in 1898. At the time, it was the longest tunnel in the world (19.7 km).
1906
Italy
International Exhibitions
International Exhibition in Milan to celebrate the opening of the Simplon Tunnel. The main focus is on
transport. There are 35,000 exhibitors, coming from dozens of different countries, and more than 5
million visitors.
1906
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Italian poet Giosuè Carducci (1835–1907) is awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.
1906
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Sibilla Aleramo (pseudonym of Rina Faccio, 1876–1960) publishes Una donna (A woman), a
fictionalised memoir that describes a woman’s desperate struggle to assert her individuality in a
male-dominated society. The book is considered a feminist manifesto.
1906
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Ethnographer Lamberto Loria (1855–1913) creates an Ethnography Museum in Florence.
1906
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The Confederazione Generale del Lavoro (CGL – national confederation of trade unions) is founded.
Argentina Altobelli becomes Secretary General of the Farm Workers Union (the first woman to
become national union leader).
1906
Greece
Travelling
The Intercalated or Olympic Games are held in Athens. An international multi-sport event, many
people consider them to be the Olympic Games. The International Olympic Committee refers to them
as the “Second International Olympic Games in Athens”.
1906
Morocco
Political Context
The Algeciras Conference of 1906 endorses the intervention of Western powers in Morocco, granting
special rights to both Spain and France.
1906
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
Opening of the Lyceu Maria Pia, Lisbon, the first secondary school for girls. Though planned since
1887, female access to secondary level education faced lengthy resistance from Parliament. In 1888
the government was authorised to set up girls’ secondary schools run by district, municipal and
charitable entities in Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra.
1906
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Alois Alzheimer describes a type of dementia, Alzheimer’s, for the first time.
1906
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
In celebration of the 30th year of ‘Abd al-Hamid II as sultan of the Ottoman Empire, the Tell Clock
Tower is erected in Tripoli as a gift to the city. It is similar to the Jaffa Clock Tower and many others
throughout the Empire.
1906
Lebanon
Cities And Urban Spaces
Hotel Kadri is built in Zahlé. In 1914 it is taken over by the Turkish army and used as a military
headquarters.
1906
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The Ottoman government decides to build the Electric Tramway Station in Beirut. The electric
tramway passes through Beirut on seven tram lines built in 1891 heading to the coast and linking
Beirut and Mameltein.
1906
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The second railway in Lebanon is opened connecting with the first line at Riyaq and running to
Aleppo, connecting it with Beirut.
1907 - 1912
Tunisia
Political Context
The Young Tunisians found the first French-language newspaper Le Tunisien. Echoes of their militant
action are seen in the riots of Djellaz on 11 November 2011 and the tramway accident on 8 February
1912.
1907
Lebanon
Travelling
Khalil Pasha (1864–1923), commander of the Turkish Sixth Army during World War I orders the
creation of the Hamidi Public Garden, which later becomes the Sanayeh Garden. It is one of the
oldest public open-air spaces in the capital.
1907
Austria
Reforms And Social Changes
Introduction of the general equal franchise means that all Austrian male citizens have the right to
vote for members of the parliament; prior to 1907 only males paying a minimum amount of tax were
allowed a vote.
1907
Morocco
Political Context
Colonial rivalries: the Moroccan crisis brings about a new raft of trade agreements between the
English and the French, with the participation of the Spanish, sharing out Morocco and Egypt, which
is greeted with dismay by Moroccans.
1907 - 1912
Morocco
Political Context
A series of incidents provoke the intervention of the French army when in August 1907 the French
land in Casablanca and occupy Oujda, Casablanca and Fez, despite opposition from Germany.
1907
Spain
International Exhibitions
Colonial Exhibition in Paris. After the success of the first international exhibition known as the Great
Exhibition in London in 1851, international exhibitions become more specialised as colonial
exhibitions from 1866. These exhibitions, held in European cities until 1948, depict life in the colonial
territories.
1907
Spain
Reforms And Social Changes
Creation of the Junta para Ampliación de Estudios e Investigaciones Científicas (JAE) (Board for
Advanced Studies and Research), a public institution founded to provide scholarships for Spanish
university students to attend European universities. Intended to promote contact with European
culture and science, this public programme created a basis for reforms needed in education, culture
and science. The JAE, ideologically related to the Institución Libre de Enseñanza (Free Institution for
Education), was abolished by Franco’s government in 1938 and replaced by the Consejo Superior de
Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC – Higher Council for Scientific Research) in 1939.
1907
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Fine And Applied Arts
Gjorgji Zografski paints what is considered to be the earliest depiction of an actual historic event. It
shows the plundering raid on the village of Papradishte near Veles that occurred in 1884.
1907 - 1920
Portugal
Cities And Urban Spaces
In Aveiro, art nouveau buildings are associated with a local middle class looking for cultural and
social status. Some are “brasileiros”, coming back from Brazil to their homeland, and investors in
trade and industrial businesses, thus contributing to local economic development. The art nouveau of
Aveiro is inspired by French patterns.
1908
Tunisia
Reforms And Social Changes
The School of Pasha Street, the first school for Muslim girls, opens in Tunis.
1908
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Cities And Urban Spaces
The population of Sharjah has reached around 19,000 inhabitants. The suq boasts some 200 shops,
with a multicultural mix of local and resident merchants, pearl traders, and trade-related
professionals originating from as far away as India and East Africa. The Emirate of Sharjah as a
whole is estimated as having around 45,500 inhabitants at this time.
1908
France
Reforms And Social Changes
Manifestation of French suffragettes for women’s right to vote.
1908
Greece
Fine And Applied Arts
An exhibition by members of the Omada Technis (Art Group), which includes Nikolaos Lytras,
Konstantinos Parthenis, Konstantinos Malea and others, reacts to the conservative academicism of
the Munich school.
1908
Portugal
Political Context
1 February: The assassination of King Carlos I and his heir-apparent Prince Royal Luis Filipe in
Terreiro do Paço in central Lisbon, fomented by, among other things, the King’s appointment of João
Franco as head of government in 1906; with the King’s consent he set up a dictatorship one year
later. Queen Amelia and Prince Manuel escape and the prince is enthroned as King Manuel II.
1908
Germany
Political Context
Austria-Hungary annexes the Ottoman provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Following international
protests, Germany shows solidarity with Austria.
Since 1908
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Women are admitted to study at German universities.
1908
Turkey
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Turkey
Political Context
Hijaz Railway is opened.
1908
4 July: Young Turk Revolution.
1908
Turkey
Political Context
23 July: The Constitution of 1876 is restored and the Committee of the Union and Congress (CUP)
takes control over the administration.
1908
Austria
Political Context
The Austrian Government proclaims the annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina and the evacuation of
Austrian troops from the Sanjak on 6 October. The Austrian annexation then escalates into a major
international crisis, which sees Serbia’s future hope to establish a Yugoslav empire shattered.
1909
France
Reforms And Social Changes
On 7 December the law is passed guaranteeing the payment of wages at regular intervals (every 15
days for workers, every month for employees).
1909
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Filippo Marinetti publishes the Futurist Manifesto in Le Figaro.
1909
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Filippo Tommaso Marinetti (b. Alexandria, Egypt, 1876, d. Bellagio, Italy, 1944) publishes the
Futurist Manifesto. The Futurist artistic movement emphasised speed, energy, vitality, and the power
of machine and technology. Marinetti also glorified violence and war, which he considered “the
world’s only hygiene”.
1909
United Kingdom
International Exhibitions
Heliopolis, Egypt, in this year, sees one of the first aviation exhibitions with an “Aviation Week”.
While, initially, aviation was a sport, during World War I it became a weapon. It is only after the end
of the war that aviation starts to be used as a form of “mass” transport for the wealthy.
1909
Egypt
Economy And Trade
Trading had hardly started that day (30 April) at Shari‘ al-Borsa al-Jadida or New Bourse Street when
it was announced that Raphael Suares, the leading laissez-faire banker-industrialist in Egypt, had
passed away. The Bourse closed for the rest of the day. It was largely thanks to Saures’ efforts that
Cairo had a bourse in the first place. His unexpected and early death meant that Suares missed by
only a few months the imposition of the first ever bourse regulations.
1909 - 1926
Spain
Political Context
Military actions in northern Morocco to prevent attacks by local tribesmen around Melilla are very
unpopular in Spain because of forced levies. The levy decree of 1909 causes uprisings in Barcelona
and other Catalonian cities known as Semana Trágica/Setmana Tràgica (Tragic Week). Spain is
ultimately successful in the lengthy Rif War (1921–26) in preserving its rule over northern Morocco
although in 1921 its army retreats with huge losses.
1909
Turkey
Fine And Applied Arts
A Turkish group of painters, Association of Ottoman Painters, is founded by students from the Fine
Arts Academy in İstanbul.
1909
Turkey
Political Context
The 31 March Incident (31 Mart Vakası/Olayı or Hadisesi) is a rebellion on 13 April (31 March in
official Rumi calendar) in Constantinople against restoration of the constitutional system. It is the
culmination of the Ottoman countercoup that attempted to end the Second Constitutional Era in the
empire and the newly established influence of the Committee of Union and Progress in order to
reaffirm Abdülhamid II as absolute monarch.
1909
Turkey
Political Context
27 April: Unseating of Sultan Abdülhamid II and accession of Sultan Mehmed V.
1910
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
27 April: the establishment of the Historical Commission of Romania, which is intended to publish
critical editions of the Romanian medieval chronicles.
1910 - 1920
France
The Spanish community is France’s most important.
Migrations
1910
France
Reforms And Social Changes
On 28 December, the Act establishing the Labour Code is passed.
1910 - 1912
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Maternity fund for female workers established. Voluntary pension fund established.
1910
Austria
Cities And Urban Spaces
When Adolf Loos designs the Michaelaplatz in Vienna for the textile company Goldman & Salatsch,
unusually, there is no ornamentation around the windows.
1910
Spain
International Exhibitions
“Meisterwerke muhammedanischer Kunst” (Masterpieces of Islamic Art) exhibition in Munich
displaying more than 3,600 artefacts. The exhibition gives Islamic art and archaeology a new push in
the academic world and is considered a turning point in the orientalist view of and romantic passion
for Islamic art and culture.
1910
Portugal
Political Context
The Republic is proclaimed in Lisbon on 5 October. King Manuel II is forced to exile in England
together with his mother Queen Amelia who ends up in her homeland France. A Provisional
Government is set up, headed by Teófilo Braga, a well-known respected jurist and writer. The new
cabinet ruled until the first republican Constitution was enacted.
1910 - 1919
Italy
Migrations
Average annual Italian migration (temporary and permanent, to nearest 1,000): France 44,000; USA
157,000; Argentina 32,000; Brazil 13,000.
1910 - 1930
Germany
Fine And Applied Arts
Foundation of the Pergamon Museum (including the Museum of Islamic Art), conceptualised by
Wilhelm von Bode, and built by Alfred Messel and Ludwig Hoffmann.
1910
Germany
International Exhibitions
A groundbreaking exhibition on Islamic art opens in Munich, “Ausstellung von Meisterwerken
Muhammedanischer Kunst”.
1910 - 1925
Germany
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The era of Expressionism in literature (i.e. the works of Benn, Kafka, Lasker-Schüler, Mann and
Döblin) is influenced by the human experience of World War I and other influences such as
Darwinism, Friedrich Nietzsche’s “despair of civilisation” and Freud’s Psychoanalytic theory.
1911
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
The Qawasim and other sheikhs of the Arab littoral sign a Treaty with the British that enjoins them to
request permission from the British Resident in the Arabian Gulf prior to responding to foreign
requests for pearling or sponge-fishing rights along the Trucial Coast.
1911
Lebanon
Travelling
A private residence in Beirut’s Zokak el-Blat quarter is turned into the Robert Muawad private
museum, presenting precious collection of fine arts and antique pieces.
1911
Italy
Cities And Urban Spaces
In Rome, inauguration of the neoclassical monument to King Victor Emanuel II (built after clearing
the Capitol Hill area of medieval buildings) and of the new building for the National Gallery of Modern
Art, built for the Fine Arts International Exhibitions, combining elements of different styles
(neoclassical, neo-Renaissance, Liberty).
1911
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Italy is the first country to use a plane in war (the Italo-Turkish war, for the conquest of Libya).
Planes cannot carry heavy weights, so the pilot carries in his pocket 1 kg bombs that he drops
manually.
1911
Italy
International Exhibitions
To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Italian unification, international exhibitions are organized in
Rome, Florence and Turin.
1911 - 1912
Italy
Political Context
Italo-Turkish war: Italy gains possession of Libya and the Dodecanese Islands.
1911
Greece
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Alexandrian poet Constantine P. Cavafy publishes his poem Ithaca.
1911 - 1930
Spain
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo designs dresses, cloaks and tunics influenced by Arab and North African
garments such as the abas or the bournous. He is best known for his dresses inspired by the
garments of Antiquity such as his Delphos dresses, or in the orientalist style.
1911
Portugal
Political Context
April: First Republican Constitution enacted. Manuel de Arriaga is elected as the first President. It is
believed that the Republic will address the economic crisis and promote progress. Though bringing
together political forces, the regime is too vague to achieve the necessary economic and social
reforms and soon ends up in political fragmentation and infighting.
1911
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
The painters Dórdio Gomes (1890–1976) and Guilherme de Santa Rita (1889–1918) introduce
modernism in Portugal. Largely unaccepted by the critics, as was happening in other European
countries, the main focus of the modernists was to fight against the conservatism of techniques and
themes still cherished by Portuguese art consumers.
1911
Portugal
Reforms And Social Changes
28 May: Carolina Beatriz Angelo (1878–1911), a gynaecologist, succeeds in voting in the 1911
elections. Challenged at the poll because she is a woman and therefore ineligible to vote, she insists,
replying that she is “a doctor, over 21 and head of a family” and therefore she fulfils all the
conditions required to vote. The electoral law is revised soon after this event.
1911
Portugal
Travelling
12–20 May: The 4th International Congress of Tourism is held in Lisbon organised in collaboration
with the Sociedade de Propaganda (founded 1906). Before the end of the meeting (18 May), the
provisional government of the newly proclaimed Portuguese Republic (5 October 1910) creates a
Bureau of Tourism at the Ministério do Fomento (Ministry of Development).
1911 - 1913
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
The international reputations of the Orientalist, archaeologist and investigator of inscriptions Ernst
Herzfeld and art historian Friedrich Sarre were assured when they found 8,000-year old (6th-century)
painted pottery known as Samarra-Ware. Some of these finds from Samarra are in the Museum of
Islamic Art, Berlin.
1911
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Foundation of the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gesellschaft (later Max-Planck-Gesellschaft).
1911
Lebanon
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
In the reign of Yusuf Pasha, the train station in Beirut begins operating and is connected to the
Syrian city of Homs with a single track. From the 1920s to the 1940s It formed the terminus of the
Orient Express line.
1912 - 1929
Austria
Rediscovering The Past
The Austrian archaeologist Hermann Junker organises an excavation to Giza in Egypt.
1912 - 1920
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Giorgio de Chirico’s first metaphysical paintings (L’enigma dell’ora, 1912; Le muse inquietanti, 1916;
Ettore e Andromaca, 1917; Il Grande Metafisico, 1917).
1912
Italy
Economy And Trade
Law establishes state monopoly of life insurance and creates the Istituto nazionale delle assicurazioni
(INA).
1912
Italy
Political Context
The right to vote is extended to all men above the age of 30 (or aged 21 if they completed primary
school). The Pope allows Catholics to vote.
1912 - 1913
Greece
Political Context
The Treaty of Sèvres is ratified after the victory of the Balkan Wars and the end of World War I.
Consequently, Greece gains administration of the area of Smyrna.
1912
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Italian writer Scipio Slataper publishes his autobiography in which he describes the multinational
character of the Littoral (the countryside around his home in Trieste).
1912
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Jaroslav Hašek (1883–1923) publishes his parody on the Austrian army, The Good Soldier Švejk.
1912
Morocco
Political Context
Mulay ‘Abd al ‘Aziz is deposed and replaced by his brother Mulay ‘Abd al-Hafiz (1908–12), who is
proclaimed ruler in Marrakesh on 6 August 1907. He was then obliged to sign the treaty establishing
the protectorate in Fez on 20 March 1912.
1912
Morocco
Political Context
In November 1912 the Madrid Convention makes northern Morocco a Spanish protectorate.
1912 - 1913
Serbia
Political Context
The First Balkan War begins in October 1912 between Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro and the
Ottoman Empire; Montenegro is accused of igniting it by attacking Skadar. At the request of Turkey,
an armistice is concluded in December 1912. Negotiations in London fail and the war continues into
1913. A Peace Treaty is signed in London in May 1913. Turkey surrenders all territories west of the
Enos-Midija. The Serbian Navy withdraws from the sea; in November 1912, Albania is formed due to
Austrian pressure.
1912
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Bulaq Abu-l-‘Ala Bridge is inaugurated during the reign of Khedive ‘Abbas Hilmi II. It is seen as an
architectural marvel that will link Cairo with Zamalek Island.
1912
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Muhammad Husayn Haykal publishes the first volume of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. He intended the
book to create a cultural intermarriage between the East and West and hoped it would lead to a new
intellectual revolution by providing an example to the West.
1912
Spain
Fine And Applied Arts
Foundation of the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas, an important step in the progress of applied
arts and design, especially because its main objective is the education of workers, students and the
public in the styles, decoration and other aspects of the applied arts.
1912
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM)
Migrations
First publication of the Macedonian and Russian language journal Makedonski Golos (Macedonian
Voice). Krste Petkov Misirkov and Dimitrija Chupovski, central figures of the Slav-Macedonian
Scientific Literary Society, were largely responsible for its publishing.
1912
Portugal
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The first Portuguese experimental psychology laboratory is created in the new Faculty of Humanities
of the University of Coimbra by Professor Joaquim Augusto Alves dos Santos (1866–1924). The
laboratory enabled the development of research on knowledge and memory and had a major impact
on pedagogy and republican didactics.
1912
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
A reaction to academic teaching of the National Society of Fine Arts (SNBA) emerges in 1911 with the
first free exhibition of young modernist painters. This is highlighted in the first Exhibition of the
Humoristas of 1912, which includes painters Cristiano Cruz, Almada Negreiros, Eduardo Viana, Stuart
de Carvalhais, José Pacheko and Emmerico Nunes and sculptor Diogo de Macedo.
1912
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Paul Claudel's de L'Annonce faite à Marie opens at the Théâtre de l'Œuvre, a Symbolist theatre set up
as a reaction to André Antoine’s “Naturalist” Théâtre Libre.
1912 - 1913
Turkey
Migrations
Balkan Wars. Large wave of Muslims and Jews flee the Balkans for Ottoman lands to the south. This
involuntary migration is estimated to involve 64,000 persons.
1913
Romania
Political Context
In 1913 Romania participates in the Second Balkan War and under the Treaty of Bucharest receives
the south of Dobruja from Bulgaria.
1913
Italy
Fine And Applied Arts
Umberto Boccioni made the sculpture Unique Forms of Continuity in Space, considered a masterpiece
of Italian Futurism.
1913
Italy
Migrations
Italian migration reaches its peak: 870,000 Italians migrate abroad.
1913
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Grazia Deledda (1871–1936) publishes the novel Canne al vento. Thirteen years later, she will be
awarded the Nobel Prize (the second woman to be Nobel laureate in literature).
1913
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Average life expectancy, which in 1861 was 30 years, is now 47 years.
1913
Austria
Fine And Applied Arts
Egon Schiele (1890–1918) becomes a member of the Bund Österreichischer Künstler (Society of
Austrian Artists).
1913
Serbia
Political Context
The Second Balkan War begins due to a quarrel between Serbia and Bulgaria over the division of
joint conquests. Bulgaria attacks Serbia and Greece in 1923; the Bulgarians are defeated on both
fronts. Subsequently, Turkey and Romania declare war on Bulgaria and the Bulgarians soon request
an armistice. The war ends with a Peace Treaty signed in Bucharest in August 1913. During the
Balkan Wars, Serbia expands its territory by 39,500 square kilometres.
1913 - 1914
Portugal
Political Context
Afonso Costa is appointed Prime Minister. Republican achievements fall short of people’s
expectations, fuelling the resistance of monarchists, capitalists and landlords. Inflation, public debt,
trade deficit, strikes, the rise of anarcho-syndicalism, middle-class disillusion, and fear of communism
will invite the establishment of the 1915 military dictatorship.
1913
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
February–March: Amadeo Sousa Cardoso, at the invitation of Walter Pach (1883–1958), exhibits
eight works at the Armory Show (1st Show of European Art, USA) in New York, Chicago and Boston.
The Chicago art collector Arthur J. Eddy acquires three paintings by Cardoso and promotes his work
in his book Cubists and Post-Impressionism book, emphasising his colour techniques.
1913
France
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of Marcel Proust’s Du côté de chez Swann.
1913 - 1917
Germany
Cities And Urban Spaces
The last palace (Cicilienhof) of the House of Hohenzollern (a dynasty of former princes, electors,
kings and emperors) was built under Wilhelm II. The palace hosted the Conference of Potsdam in
1945.
1913
Turkey
Political Context
23 July: Edirne retaken by the Ottoman Army under the command of Enver Paşa.
1913
Turkey
Political Context
23 January: Bab-ı Ali coup d'état in the empire (Turkish: Bâb-ı Âlî Baskını) results in Grand Vizier
Kamil Paşa being driven from power and replacement of Minister of War Nazım Paşa by İsmail Enver.
Effectively ending the London Peace Conference, it marks a significant point in the Ottoman
government's progress towards centralisation, giving de facto power to the triumvirate known as the
Three Pashas.
1914
Qatar
Economy And Trade
Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim regulates the activity of pearling. He issued and publishes the first written
document on pearling activities identifying the start and the end dates of the season and the dividend
rates of workers in pearling dhows.
1914s
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Economy And Trade
Around 1914, 80 per cent of the Trucial Coast’s labour force is involved in the wider pearling sector,
including 950 major pearl merchants, 1,300 pearling ship-owners and some 21,000 general
employees. The remainder are employed in agriculture, fisheries and other forms of commerce. Gulf
pearling exports amount to 2 million pounds sterling.
1914
Romania
Political Context
Death of King Carol I. As he only had one daughter, who died at the age of three, Ferdinand, his
fraternal nephew, had been designated heir to the Romanian throne in 1880.
1914
Romania
Rediscovering The Past
Vasile Pârvan initiates archaeological digs at Histria (Dobruja), the earliest documented city in the
territory of Romania, and in 1915 discovers the ruins of the ancient Greek city Istros.
1914
France
Reforms And Social Changes
The first French Doctorate in literature, Docteur en lettres, is received by a woman.
1914 - 1918
France
Political Context
The First World War, which left millions dead in France, leaves a lasting impact on society.
1914
United Kingdom
Political Context
War catches the people by surprise: British troops are fighting the Ottomans on three fronts. They
are repelled at Gallipoli, pushed back in Southern Arabia, and British forces are captured in Iraq. By
the end of the war these setbacks are reversed and Britain and her allies occupy Constantinople,
Egypt, Iraq and the Levant.
1914
Austria
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Austrian expressionist writer Georg Trakl commits suicide following his experiences in battle
during World War I.
1914 - 1918
Serbia
Political Context
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
The duration of World War I.
1914
Laying of the Foundation Stone of the University of Fuad I.
1914
Egypt
Political Context
On 25 July, at the onset of World War I, ‘Abbas Hilmi II is in Constantinople where he suffers wounds
to his hands and cheeks during a failed assassination attempt. On 5 November of that same year,
when Britain declares war on Turkey, ‘Abbas is accused of deserting his country because he did not
return home forthwith. In addition, because the British believe that he has been plotting against their
rule, when the Ottoman Empire joins the central powers in the war, Britain declares Egypt an
independent Sultanate under British Protectorate on 18 December, and ‘Abbas is deposed.
1914 - 1920
Spain
Economy And Trade
Due to Spain's neutrality in World War I, the economy witnesses increased production and industrial
growth. The end of the war produces the beginning of a crisis that causes the end of the monarchy in
1931.
1914
Lebanon
Political Context
The privileged position enjoyed by Lebanon is ended by the Ottomans in World War I: Lebanon’s
semi-automous status is abolished and Mount Lebanon, an important territory at the international
level, is put under martial law by the Ottomans. The Turkish commander Jamal Pasha occupies
Lebanon militarily.
1914
United Kingdom
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The Welsh poet and writer Dylan Marlais Thomas is born in Swansea on 27 October 1914. His best
known works include the poem “Do not go gentle into that good night” (1951) and the play for voices
Under Milk Wood (written 1951, first broadcast 1954). In later life, Thomas encouraged his
reputation as a “roistering, drunken and doomed poet”; dying prematurely in New York in 1953.
1914
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
With the outbreak of World War I, the modernist movement thrives in Portugal with the return from
France of a group of avant-garde artists including the painters Manuel Bentes (1885–1961), Eduardo
Viana (1881–1967), José Pacheko (1885–1934) and Amadeo de Souza Cardoso, and the sculptors
Diogo de Macedo (1889–1959), and Francisco Franco (1885–1955).
1914 - 1926
Portugal
Economy And Trade
Crisis of the First Republic (1914–26). Lack of political stability due to the absence of parliamentary
majorities able to undertake much-needed reforms, together with the political consequences of
Portugal’s participation in World War I from 1916, contributes to the deterioration of the economic
situation, hastening the fall of the Republican regime.
1914
Germany
Political Context
The heir apparent of Austria, Franz Ferdinand, is murdered in Sarajevo by a member of the Serbian
intelligence service known as the “Black Hand”. As a consequence, the Austrian government issues
an ultimatum to Serbia; Germany declares war on the Russian Empire and on France; and Great
Britain declares war on the German Empire.
1914 - 1918
Germany
Political Context
World War I is declared and fought.
1914 - 1918
Germany
Migrations
One in every ten members of the workforce in the German Empire is foreign (many of them prisoners
of war).
1914
Turkey
Reforms And Social Changes
The School of Fine Arts for female students (İnâs Sanâyi-i Nefise Mektebi) is opened.
1914
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
A school for theatre (Dârülbedayi) is founded.
1914
Austria
Political Context
On 28 June the heir-apparent Archduke Francis Ferdinand is shot in Sarajevo by a Bosnian youth of
Serb origin.
1914
Austria
Political Context
Austria declares war on Serbia in July: she is supported by Russia, France and Britain. Turkey and
Bulgaria enter the war on the side of the German–Austrian Alliance.
1914
Turkey
Political Context
29 October: German warships, officially designated as Ottoman vessels, shell Russian Black Sea
ports, an action that leads the Ottoman Empire to enter World War I.
1915
Qatar
Political Context
The Ottomans suddenly abandon Doha, leaving behind guns, shells and ammunition.
1915 - 1918
Italy
Economy And Trade
When the war breaks out, the state takes a leading role in organising industrial production. Dramatic
growth of steel, mechanic, chemical and textile productions. Workers in industries of strategic value
are submitted to military discipline.
1915 - 1918
Italy
Political Context
Italy participates in World War I on the side of the UK, France and Russia, despite widespread
opposition to entering the war. On the Austrian front, Italy suffers a crushing defeat at Caporetto in
1917, but wins in 1918. In Libya, Arab revolt: Italy keeps control only of coastal towns. Casualties
are 650,000 military deaths, 950,000 wounded, 600,000 prisoners of war or missing.
1915
Lebanon
Political Context
Turkish commander Jamal Pasha initiates a blockade of the entire eastern Mediterranean coast.
Lebanon witnesses thousands of deaths from widespread famine and plague.
1915
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
In the 1910s several modernist painters such as Eduardo Viana rejected the current teaching of
academic naturalism, still deeply rooted in the national taste. Their focus was the cubism, futurism
and Dada movements in Paris, but also the Orphism of French painters Sonia and Robert Delaunay,
living in Portugal in 1915–16.
1915
Portugal
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Publication of the only two issues of Orpheu magazine, thanks to the contribution of the most gifted
figures of the modernist group. Without anything specifically programmatic, the magazine shows an
iconoclastic irreverence, seeking notoriety by scandalising those holding traditional attitudes and
customs.
1915
Germany
Migrations
Introduction of the Legitimationszwang in Prussia allows police to tag foreign workers and their
German employers.
1915
Turkey
Political Context
Allied forces occupy İstanbul (16 March); Greece occupies İzmir (15 May).
1916
Qatar
Political Context
Treaty with the UK. This recognises Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim as the ruler of Qatar, and places the
sheikhdom under British maritime protection.
1916 - 1918
Romania
Political Context
After two years of neutrality, Romania fights in the World War I on the side of the Triple Entente. At
the end of the war, following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and of the Russian
Empire, the national gatherings of Bessarabia, Transylvania, Banat and Bukovina vote for their union
with the Romanian kingdom. Greater Romania is thus created.
1916
France
Migrations
First Chinese immigration wave to France: 35,000 Chinese workers are recruited to France during
World War I.
1916
Jordan
Political Context
Sykes–Picot Agreement signed by the British, French and Russian governments on 16 May 1916
concerning the division of Ottoman lands in Greater Syria between the two colonial powers, the UK
and France. According to this secret treaty southern Syria (Palestine and Jordan) and Iraq are to fall
under British mandate and Syria and Lebanon under the French.
1916 - 1920
Jordan
Political Context
Supported by the UK, on 10 June 1916 Husayn ibn ‘Ali, the Sharif of Mecca, declares the Great Arab
Revolt against the Turks with the aim of establishing an independent Arab state under his leadership
in Bilad al-Sham (Greater Syria). Aqaba in Jordan is captured in 1917, becoming the headquarters of
the northern army headed by Husayn’s son Prince Faysal, who becomes King of Syria in 1920. British
promises to Sharif Husayn have contradicted other secret agreements of the UK with its allies, e.g.
Sykes–Picot. These mandates put an end to the Arab Kingdom of Syria under King Faysal on 24 July
1920.
1916
United Kingdom
Political Context
British interests in the Middle East are driven partly by the British Indian administration and partly by
the strategic alliance with France. Mark Sykes for Britain and George Picot for France come to a
diplomatic agreement to divide the Ottoman Levantine possessions for their respective countries.
This conflicts with an earlier British promise of independence.
1916 - 1917
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
The Arab Revolt begins on 10 June 1916 led by the Governor of Mecca (Makkah), Sharif Husayn ibn
‘Ali, and his sons, the amirs ‘Ali and Faisal. His forces seize the city of Riyad and force the small
Ottoman garrison to seek refuge in the local fortress. Another of Husayn’s sons, Amir Abdallah,
manages to surround and then take the town of Ta’if.
1916 - 1917
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
Rebel clans allied to Sharif Husayn attack Jeddah (Jidda) and other seaports along the Arabian coast
of the Red Sea.
1916
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
By the end of July 1916, the seaports of Jeddah, Yanbu and Rabigh are in Arab hands. This allows the
British to increase their supply of arms and equipment to the Arab forces fighting in the Hijaz.
1916 - 1917
Egypt
Economy And Trade
More paper currency enters circulation: the 25 piaster together with the five and 10 piaster.
1916
Lebanon
Political Context
Turkish authorities publicly execute 21 Syrians and Lebanese in Damascus and Beirut, respectively,
for alleged anti-Turkish activities; the place of execution in each city will be renamed Martyrs'
Square.
1916
Austria
Political Context
Death of Emperor Francis Joseph and accession of Emperor Charles I to the Austro-Hungarian throne.
1916
Austria
Political Context
Romania declares war on the Central Powers: Germany, Austria and Bulgaria.
1916
Portugal
Political Context
Germany declares war on Portugal. Portugal enters World War I, complying with international
commitments in Europe and defending the Portuguese strategic possessions in Africa, mainly Angola
and Mozambique. The Portuguese army fought on the western European Front and in the south of
Angola (border with Namibia) and the north of Mozambique (Nevala).
1917 - 1920
France
Cities And Urban Spaces
The planning and development of several cities in Morocco (Casablanca, Fez, Marrakech, Meknes and
Rabat) are carried out by French architects.
1917 - 1918
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
In June 1917 the coastal city of Aqaba in Jordan becomes the new base for Faisal’s army, renamed
the “Arab Northern Army”. Attacks on the Hijaz Railway continue, extending now as far north as
southern Jordan. T. E. Lawrence, “Lawrence of Arabia” himself led reconnaissance parties into Syria
and made contact with Arab nationalists in Damascus. The spectacular victory of the Egyptian
Expeditionary Force (EEF) at the Third Battle of Gaza (Beersheba) in October 1917, and the
subsequent British advance into the Jordan Valley, gave renewed impetus to Faisal’s “railway war”
further east. Meanwhile, Amir Faisal, with Lawrence as his adviser, had captured the seaport of Wejh
(al-Wagh) on the Red Sea, 150 km north of Yanbu. From there, Faisal’s men spent most of 1917
attacking the Hijaz Railway. Small raiding parties blew up sections of track, destroyed bridges, water
towers and even some weakly defended railway stations. The British, planning to invade Palestine,
were keen for the Arab rebels to keep the 12,000 Ottoman troops tied down in Medina (Madinah).
1917
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Strong cultural pressure at this time puts constraints on female performers. When the singer Munira
al-Mahdiyya begins her career, she is the first female Muslim performer to appear onstage.
1917 - 1968
Portugal
Political Context
Major Sidónio Pais takes power on 5 December and is elected President on 21 April 1918. Continuous
unrest leads to a military coup by General Gomes da Costa in 1926 followed by a dictatorship.
António de Oliveira Salazar become Finance Minister (1928–32) and then Prime Minister until 1968.
The Estado Novo dictatorship lasted for 48 years.
1917
Germany
Political Context
The United States declares war on the German Empire.
1917
Turkey
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
The conservatoire (Dârülelhân) is founded.
1918
Lebanon
Migrations
The Lebanese buy homes from the Italians and Jews, who are moving away. They learn about
clothes, home improvements, insurance and credit. Businesses are branching out, with dry goods and
notions business replaced by grocery stores, butcher shops, coffee houses and sales of farm produce
from vehicles.
1918 - 1939
Austria
Migrations
Danilo I Prince of Montenegro is forced to leave his kingdom following its integration with Yugoslavia.
He then seeks exile in Austria and dies in Vienna in 1939.
1918 - 1919
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
600,000 die in the Spanish influenza pandemic.
1918
Greece
Reforms And Social Changes
The General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) is founded.
1918 - 1920
Saudi Arabia
Political Context
Squabbling among the allies (those that had betrayed the Arab Revolution) delays the signing of the
Peace Treaty with the Ottomans, which is being negotiated at Sèvres in France up until 10 August
1920. The Treaty confirmed French and British possession of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan and
Iraq in the guise of League of Nations mandates. Sharif Husayn ibn ‘Ali is rewarded for his leadership
of the Arab Revolt with international recognition of the Hijaz as an independent kingdom.
1918
Egypt
Migrations
George Park begins building work on Alexandria Opera House, known also as Sayyid Darwish
Theatre, which opens in 1921.
1918
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Najib al-Rihani introduces a new type of theatre known as Musical Theatre or Operette. Cooperating
with the famous Egyptian singer and composer Sayyid Darwish and the actor and writer Badi‘ Khayri,
together, they produce several successful Operettes.
1918
Spain
Political Context
Spain's neutrality in World War I brings important economic upturn.
1918
Lebanon
Political Context
British General Edmund Allenby and Faysal I, son of Sharif Husayn of Mecca, move into Palestine with
British and Arab forces, thus opening the way for the occupation of Lebanon.
1918
Austria
Political Context
The Peace (or Treaty) of Bucharest between Romania and Austria.
1918
Austria
Political Context
Armistice between Austro-Hungary and the Entente Powers (France, Russia and the United Kingdom).
1918
Austria
Political Context
Emperor Charles I renounces his participation to the government of Germany-Austria (Deutsch
Österreich). The Austrian republic is founded in Vienna.
1918
Germany
Political Context
Woodrow Wilson declares his “14 points” program in front of Congress.
1918 - 1933
Germany
Political Context
Germany
Migrations
The Weimar Republic.
1918 - 1933
With the establishment of the Weimar Republic, the number of migrant workers declines rapidly.
1918
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
The so-called November Revolution results in the withdrawal of Emperor Wilhelm II; the Council of
People’s Deputies (SPD and USPD members) take over government.
1919
United Kingdom
Rediscovering The Past
At the Paris Peace conference held after the end of the World War I, the Ottoman provinces of Basra,
Baghdad and Mosul are unified into Iraq, governed by Britain, under a League of Nations mandate.
Gertrude Bell helps found the Iraq Museum (1926) and draft antiquities laws.
1919
France
Reforms And Social Changes
The official working day is recognised as eight hours; the official working week is set at 48 hours.
1919 - 1920
Lebanon
Economy And Trade
New currency is adopted when the Lebanese Bank is linked to the Syrian Bank.
1919
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Law 1176/1919 abolishes “marital authorisation” and allows women to practise most professions and
to take up public employment. But some limitations on women working persist: they are still not
allowed to become magistrates, diplomats and police officers or reach the highest grades in the civil
service.
1919 - 1920
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
The “Two Red Years”: 2 million unemployed. Introduction of compulsory old-age, unemployment and
disability insurances. High inflation and decrease of salaries. Intense workers’ mobilisation: strikes
and occupations of land, factories and shipyards. Trade unions achieve minimum wage, 8-hour
working day and recognition of factory commissions.
1919
Italy
Political Context
Introduction of universal male suffrage and of an electoral system of proportional representation. The
Popular Party (antecedent to the Christian Democrats) is founded. Mussolini creates the first Fascio di
combattimento (embryo of the Fascist Party).
1919
Italy
Travelling
The Ente nazionale per le industrie turistiche (ENIT – a state-funded body aimed at promoting
tourism in Italy) is founded. In the last decades of the 19th century, local associations and bodies
aimed at promoting tourism started to be created, under public or private initiative.
1919 - 1934
Morocco
Political Context
Moroccan resistance is spirited, and provokes many Berber revolts. Following the surrender of
Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Alkrim, who led the peasant revolts in the Rif (1919–26), France launched a
campaign of “pacification” that lasted until 1934.
1919
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Taha Husayn is appointed Professor of History at Fuad I University, where, through his own will and
craving for knowledge, he becomes the leader of the Arab cultural renaissance.
1919
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
The 1919 Egyptian Revolution is a milestone, not only in terms of the nationalist struggle, but also in
the history of popular revolutions in general. Its overall influence, extending well beyond the politics
and political parties of Egypt, exceeds the impact of the earlier ’Urabi Revolution.
1919
Spain
Cities And Urban Spaces
The beginning of the Madrid subway system, the first in Spain, heralding a major advance in public
transport in cities.
1919
Austria
Political Context
Austria signs the Peace of Saint-Germain-en-Laye with the Entente Powers.
1919
Germany
Political Context
On signature of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany must face up to its responsibility to make
reparation payments, abandon territory and let go of its colonies. The League of Nations is founded.
After 1918
Germany
Migrations
Forced migration rises and more than 10 million people (within Europe) are displaced. Berlin
temporarily becomes the centre for Russian immigrants.
1919
Germany
Reforms And Social Changes
Rudolf Steiner, originator of the Waldorfpädagogik, opens the first Steiner School in Stuttgart (the
basis of which is human anthropology).
1920
Tunisia
Political Context
The first Tunisian political party is established as the Constitutional Liberal Party of Tunisia: “Le
destour’’. In a pamphlet published anonymously in Paris, one of its founders, Abdelaziz al-Thalibi,
specified the party’s demands.
1920 - 1921
Jordan
Political Context
The people of Transjordan, encouraged by the UK, establish local governments in Ajlun, Balqa and
Karak. British advisers are assigned to help these governments.
1920
Italy
International Exhibitions
First Milan Fair of industrial products: 1,233 exhibitors (including 224 foreigners) and 360,000
visitors.
1920 - 1922
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Philosopher, senator and minister of education (1920–21) Benedetto Croce promotes the approval of
the first law on safeguarding the natural landscape.
1920 - 1922
Greece
Political Context
Following the “Asia Minor catastrophe”, almost 1.5 million Greek nationals arrive as refugees at
Greece’s coastal regions, for example at Pontus, having been uprooted from their homes in Asia
Minor (Anatolia).
1920
United Kingdom
Political Context
The letter from the British Foreign Secretary, Arthur Balfour, to Lord Rothschild in November 1917
offers British support to Zionist aspirations for Palestine to be a national home for Jews. This is
internationally confirmed by the League of Nations handing over Palestine to Britain as a Mandate.
1920
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
Tal‘at Harb Pasha founds Banque Misr.
1920
Lebanon
Political Context
France takes control over Lebanese territory after the San Remo Conference.
1920
Austria
Political Context
The population of Carinthia in southernmost Austria votes in favour of remaining within Austria.
1920
Portugal
Fine And Applied Arts
Although it reproduces a traditional technique, the use of azulejo (ceramic tilework) meets the need
for modernisation of shops and public buildings in main cities throughout Portugal at the beginning of
the 20th century.
1920s - 1930s
Germany
Rediscovering The Past
The Museum of Islamic Art, the German Oriental Society and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York, undertake two excavations during which several iwans and stucco ornaments, as well as
numerous other finds from houses, in layers of occupation from the late Sasanian period through to
the early Islamic periods, are found. The stucco finds form the foundations for later stylistic
developments in Samarra. Many of the stuccos are now found at the Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin,
and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
1920
Germany
Political Context
Foundation of the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP); the party’s first selection for the
German Reichstag is on 6 July.
1920
Germany
Political Context
The Conference of San Remo was an international meeting convened to decide which parts of its
territories the Ottoman Empire would lose, to become the mandated territory under the League of
Nations. For example, France received mandated territory for Syria and Lebanon (and King Faysal of
Iraq goes into exile after losing Greater Syria to the French).
1920
Turkey
Political Context
23 April: Formation of Turkish National Assembly in Ankara.
1920
Turkey
Political Context
10 August: Treaty of Sévres, which divides Anatolia between the Allies, Greeks, Armenians and
Kurds.
1921
Jordan
Political Context
By August 1921 this British policy has been changed and it is decided to establish the Emirate of
Transjordan under the leadership of Husayn ibn ’Ali’s son, Prince ‘Abdallah, who will become King of
Jordan in 1946.
1921
Italy
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
The number of motorvehicles grows rapidly; by 1921 there are 30,000 motorcyles, 34,000 cars,
1,000 buses and 22000 trucks circulating in Italy.
1921
Italy
Economy And Trade
Electricity production is 4,450 million kWh.
1921
Italy
Rediscovering The Past
Inauguration of the National Museum of Palazzo Venezia, in the 15th-century palace that used to
house the Embassy of the Republic of Venice in Rome. The museum progressively focuses on applied
arts: ceramics, furniture, silverware, jewellery, arms and armours, carpets and a variety of other
items dating from the Middle Ages to modern times.
1921
Italy
Reforms And Social Changes
Some 12 per cent of men and 20 per cent of women are unable to sign their marriage certificate
because they cannot write, a considerable improvement in literacy rates since 1867.
1922
Greece
Migrations
Many thousands of refugees arrive from Asia Minor.
1922
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Mrs Dawlat Abyad writes a play to address the various problems experienced by Egyptian women in
the early 20th century.
1922
Egypt
Political Context
Britain declares Egyptian independence, but retains control of Egyptian foreign policy and the basic
administration of the country. On 15 March of this year, Fuad I issues a decree changing his title
from Sultan of Egypt to King of Egypt.
1922
United Kingdom
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Irish writer and poet James Augustine Aloysius Joyce’s (1822–1941) best-known work Ulysses is
published in this year.
1922
United Kingdom
Political Context
Of the 32 counties of Ireland, twenty-six southern counties vote to secede from the United Kingdom
to become the Irish Free State.
1922
United Kingdom
Political Context
Following Ireland’s decision to secede from the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland immediately
exercises its right to opt out of the new dominion and remain one of the four countries of the United
Kingdom.
1922
Turkey
Migrations
Exchange of population between Greece and Turkey.
c. 1923
Greece
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Building of the Arzan-Amatovo Dam in Kilkis.
1923
Egypt
Reforms And Social Changes
Huda Sha‘rawi becomes the first president of the Egyptian Feminist Union having returned from the
International Woman Suffrage Alliance Congress in Rome.
1923
Turkey
Political Context
24 July: Treaty of Lausanne, which officially dissolves the Ottoman Empire.
1923
Turkey
Political Context
30 August: Final battle in western Anatolia results in the collapse of the Greek army.
1923
Turkey
Political Context
29 October: Proclamation of the Republic of Turkey. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk becomes the first
president of Turkey.
1924
Austria
Economy And Trade
The counterstamp of Austrian Maria Theresia Thaler (“MTT”) is seen on silver bullion coins from the
Arabian mint in Najd.
1925
Qatar
Economy And Trade
Sanat al-Tabaa: the year in which a relentless storm hits Qatar and the Gulf region, destroying many
of the pearling and fishing fleets and killing more that 8,000 people.
1925
France
Fine And Applied Arts
Promotion of Art Deco at the International Exhibition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts, Paris.
1925
Germany
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
Oskar Barnack invents the compact camera.
1926
Italy
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Puccini’s last opera Turandot, which he left unfinished, is performed at La Scala in Milan under the
direction of Arturo Toscanini.
1926
Egypt
Great Inventions Of The 19th
Century
On 4 December, in the city of Luxor, the Minister of Transportation, Muhammad Mahmud along with
a group of Ministers inaugurates the Luxor–Aswan Railway. The railway is considered one of Mahmud
Pasha’s greatest accomplishments as Minister of Transportation.
1927
United Arab Emirates (Sharjah)
Political Context
The British dismiss a former teacher of al-Taimiyyah School and a Qadi in Sharjah for sympathising
publicly with the Tawhidi (Wahhabi) movement in Najd.
1927
Egypt
Travelling
King Fuad I of Egypt’s visit to Italy.
1927
United Kingdom
Political Context
The Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act renames parliament to reflect the change following secession
of Southern Ireland. The state is now known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland.
1927
Germany
Travelling
The first stage of the racing circuit Nürburgring is constructed comprising the old “North loop” built
around the village of Nürburg in the Eifel mountains.
1932
Qatar
Economy And Trade
Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim grants the Anglo-Persian Oil Company a two-year exploration licence in
Qatar.
1934 - 1940
Egypt
Cities And Urban Spaces
The Post Museum is established in February 1934; it opens to the public in January 1940.
1938
Qatar
Cities And Urban Spaces
Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim builds the famous Al Zubarah Fort, in the town of Al Zubarah to protect
the northern border.
1938
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Abbas Mahmud al-Akkad writes his only novel Sarah in which he relates a personal experience with
the only woman he loved. According to al-Akkad’s view women were to be respected and admired,
and this appreciation for women is expressed in three books he wrote where he demands the full
participation of women in building Egyptian society.
1939
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Zaki Najib Mahmud receives a Literary Distinction Award.
1940
Qatar
Economy And Trade
Dukhan, Qatar, Oil Well No. 1 completed at a depth of 1,733 m, producing around 4,480 barrels of oil
per day.
1943
Qatar
Reforms And Social Changes
Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim starts to make plans to build the first hospital, in al-Jasra Qatar, which
will be opened in 1947. During 1943, Sheikh Abdullah establishes some of the first modern schools in
Qatar.
1946
Egypt
Migrations
Zog I, King of the Albanians, and most of his family, leave England and settle in Egypt at the behest
of King Faruq.
1952
Egypt
Migrations
Having been forced to abdicate, On 26 July, Faruq leaves Egypt for Italy. He passes away in Rome in
1965 and his body is brought back to Egypt to be buried in al-Rifa‘i Mosque.
1960
Egypt
Music, Literature, Dance And
Fashion
Egyptian television begins to broadcast six hours daily on 21 July 1960.