The Second Millenium

We're back in 1814, which is a VERY bad year for Napoleon.

Napoleon starts off well, winning a series of victories over combined Russian-Prussian armies. But he has united so many European nations against him that his foes are able to capture Paris. Napoleon is dethroned and exiled to Elba (an island in the Mediterranean) and the French monarchy is restored. The victors restore France to its previous borders, reclaiming all captured French territory.

Pope Pius VII re-establishes the Jesuits, who had secretly continued to exist on a small scale.

Wellington, the British military genius who had defeated Napoleon several times, is offered command of British troops in North America. With large numbers of their soldiers freed up from fighting Napoleon, British leaders hope to reclaim the US. But after studying the situation, Wellington tells his economically-stressed empire that they can't win, and Britain and the US make a peace that is still in effect.

Remember the Kalmar union? In 1397, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, and Greenland had united into a single kingdom, although the different states kept some sovereignty. This year, Norway becomes independent and does not go back.

It's 1815!

Hey, does anybody remember that British army that had landed near New Orleans and didn't know that the war was over?

Britain might have given their commander secret orders not to give up New Orleans, regardless of any peace treaty. Britain would claim that New Orleans had always been theirs, because all of central North America was disputed. Anyway, in a massive military blunder, the US had not occupied a large plantation on high ground (the entire area was swampy) with deep-water wells that provided fresh water. The British army easily captured the plantation and launched their attack on New Orleans from there.

In a battle that became an American legend, the British fought so furiously that they actually reached the American defenses. And the Americans fought so ferociously that they drove the British back. The defeated soldiers boarded their ships and sailed east to invade sparsely-populated Alabama,. There they received two messages: the war was over, and Andrew Jackson was coming after them with a large army. They re-boarded their ships and left.

A grudging Europe would realize that the US was better left alone. Realizing that they could never annex Canada, the US eventually made peace with the Canadians, and today the Canadian-US boundary is the largest undefended border in the world. And decades after that, that Anglo-American alliance would alter the balance of world power.

We return to 1815.

Remember how several European nations had united to defeat Napoleon? This year, Austria, Britain and FRANCE form an alliance against Russia and Prussia. It's good to know that you can trust your friends.

The first commercial cheese factory opens in Switzerland.

With its armies freed up from fighting Napoleon, Spain invades its former South American colonies in order to end their independence.

Napoleon escapes from Elba, quickly raises a 140,000 man army, and captures Paris. He rapidly defeats the Prussians, British, and Dutch, and invades the Netherlands. And at Waterloo (now part of Belgium), Wellington hands Napoleon such a smashing defeat that it's all over. Napoleon is exiled to Saint Helena, never to escape, and the French monarchy is restored.

In Indonesia, Mount Tambora blows apart, killing about 92,000 people, mostly from poison gas. So much gas and dust enters the upper atmosphere that world-wide cooling lasts through 1816, causing world-wide crop failures and famine.

Serbia rebels against the Ottoman Empire, and peace is made when the Serbians are granted semi-independence.

A rock from Mars falls into France. Huh? Either from volcanoes or impacts from meteorites, Martian rocks were sometimes blasted into space through Mars' thin atmosphere and lower gravity. Much later, some of them drift into Earth's gravity and are pulled to the ground. There are 132 known Martian meteorites on Earth.

It's 1816, the "Year Without a Summer."

Fog stays for months in the north-east United States, with daily temperatures often going below freezing. Eastern Canada and western Europe also suffer.


Shaka, the greatest of the Zulu chiefs, begins his 12 year reign just east of the southern tip of Africa. A military genius, he brutally united the land, peacefully absorbing tribes and kingdoms when possible, and forcing forcing several tribes to flee to the west. He established an empire powerful enough to hold off the British, but was tricked into letting European traders in, who helped overthrow his empire decades later.

Shaka was assassinated by his half-brothers, who slaughtered his supporters but increased the size of the empire.



In the US, Richard Allen, a former slave, founds the African Methodist Episcopal denomination. Five Black Methodist churches secede to form the AME Church, and today it has about 2.5 million members.

Mary Shelley begins writing her autobiography "Frankenstein." She was a very unhappy person, to say the least.

A combined British-French fleet bombards, Algiers, forcing the ruler to free about 3,000 Christian slaves.

The stethoscope is invented. No, the doctors do not really keep them in the refrigerator.

Welcome to 1817!


Harvard Law School is founded.

Having thrown off the Spanish, Argentina sends an army to help Chile and Peru.

The first practical bicycle is invented in Germany.

The US begins building the Erie Canal. It will connect the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes when completed.

A massive cholera epidemic breaks out in Calcutta. Spread by Hindu pilgrims and British troops, it will each China, the Mediterranean, and south-east Asia, killing hundreds of thousands of people over the next seven years. An unusually cold winter will eventually end the epidemic.

Provoked by settlers seizing their territory, Seminole Indians in Florida had occasionally raided the south-east United States (which was not to blame). This year, the first of three Seminole Wars begins, as the US invades Florida without Spanish permission. 41 years later, a victorious United States will have won the costliest of all its Indian wars.

And now it's 1818, and you know what that means...

On January 3, Venus passes in front of Jupiter. Venus was on the same side of the Sun as Earth, while Jupiter was on the other side.

Chile declares itself independent of Spain.

The invading US Army, led by Andrew Jackson, begins winning victories over Florida Indians. And with twenty states, the US flag goes back to 13 stripes, and one star for every state. And Britain and the US set the 49th parallel as the boundary between the US and Canada, stretching from the Great Lakes to the Rocky mountains. Later, the boundary will be extended to the Pacific Ocean.

The hymn "Silent Night" is first performed in an Austrian church.

The Farmers' Almanac is first published. This annual production is still being issued, giving weather predictions,advice, and humor to American farmers.

1819 has just rolled in!

Kamehameha the Great, who had unified the Hawaiian Islands into a single nation, dies. His son takes over and quickly breaks the native religion apart, ending its control over much of Hawaiian society.

In "The Transcontinental Treaty," Spain cedes Florida to the US. In exchange, the US yields its claims to Texas. The boundary dispute between Spain and the US is settled, with Spain getting what is now the southwest United States. It is not true that Andrew Jackson invaded Florida without orders and seized it for the US.

After Simon Bolivar leads his troops in a major victory over Spain, Columbia becomes independent.

As economic hardship grips England, about 70,000 protesters assemble in Manchester to demand reform. The cavalry charges into the crowd, killing 15 and injuring about 550. Referred to as the Peterloo Massacre, it frightens Parliament into tightening control over the farmers.

Britain discovers Desolation Island just off the northern tip of Antarctica. This 1.2 square mile uninhabited wasteland has a small, sheltered harbor that was used by both American and British whaling ships.

Welcome to 1820!

In order, Russia, Ireland, and the US discover Antarctica. Two days after Russia had sighted the continent, an Irish captain becomes the first known man to set foot in Antarctica.

After 59 years on the Throne, Britain's King George III dies. And if you thought he was bad, wait until you hear about his son. George IV, who had been the actual ruler for the last nine years, begins his ten year reign. The new King lives an extravagant lifestyle while the population suffers economic hardship. The Prime minister ignores George while successfully handling the government, granting more freedom to Catholics, and improving the situation overall.

Minh Mang begins his 21 year reign over Vietnam. A strict Confucianist, he restricted Christian missionaries, opposed scientific advancement, allowed his military to become antiquated, resisted French influence, isolated Vietnam from foreign alliances, and had several rebellions. He was competent in carrying out his policies, but those policies did more harm than good.

The US passes "The Missouri Compromise," which might have prevented the American Civil War. "The Mason-Dixon line" is the southern boundary of Pennsylvania, but it had spread as an imaginary line across the US. Slavery was generally prohibited north of the line. Missouri, which is north of the line, was admitted as a slave state, while California (half of which is south of the line) is admitted as a free state. As western territories became states, slavery would be protected south of the line and forbidden north of the line. The Missouri Compromise lessened tensions by removing slavery from state control. It established a middle ground that allowed moderate politicians to favor the Compromise, rather than being pro or anti slavery.

In Greece, a small rebellion begins against their Ottoman rulers.

Ecuador's largest city declares itself independent of Spain.

It would be better for Spain if 1821 had never occurred.


Greece declares itself independent of the Ottoman Empire. The Turks quickly hang the Greek Orthodox Patriarch for failing to prevent the revolt, but the Greeks didn't like him anyway. After eight years of war, Greece wins, with the help of European allies.

Conquered by the Turks after the fall of the Byzantine Empire, by 1500 all of Greece was part of the Ottoman Empire. The Greek Orthodox Church was put in charge of much of the nation, and although Christians had to pay an extra tax, they were not heavily persecuted. Under Ottoman rule, the eastern Mediterranean became safe for Greek shipping, and Greece actually prospered. But an increasingly corrupt clergy and a failing Ottoman Empire brought in hardship. Catholic pirates were attacking Greek ships, and the nation decided to return to independence.

Venezuela defeats Spain and gains independence.

Napoleon dies in exile.

Peru declares itself independent of Spain.

The Republic of Grand Columbia is formed in northern South America, but it soon breaks apart into four nations.

Mexico, along with five small Central American nations, achieves independence.

Panama and the Dominican Republic (in the Caribbean Sea) declare themselves independent of Spain.

1822


Brazil declares itself independent. They defeat their Portuguese occupiers in a year and a half-long war that leads to 6,000 killed. To this day, however, Brazil speaks Portuguese, not Spanish.

In the United States, Harriet Tubman is born into a family of slaves. She later escapes, organizes the successful escapes of about 70 slave families, serves as a Union spy during the Civil War, and then campaigns for equal rights for Blacks and women.

Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the island of Hispaniola. When the Dominican Republic became independent last year, Haiti feared that the Spanish would reconquer it, so Haiti invaded. Despite fair treatment, in 1844, the Dominican Republic overthrew the Haitians and regained its independence.

The USN Alligator was a twelve-gun schooner that had captured over a dozen slave ships and pirate ships. In rescuing some American vessels captured by pirates in the Caribbean, the Alligator is attacked by three pirate schooners. The Alligator sinks or captures all three, but the next morning runs aground and has to be destroyed.

Freed Blacks from the US arrive in Liberia, establishing the city of Monrovia.

1823


Leo XII begins his six year reign as Pope. Unable to select a candidate, the cardinals chose him because they expected him to die soon. His unpopular policies led to several revolts in the Papal States. Despite trying to administer justice, he hurt Vatican finances. He put all education and charities under direct control, persecuted Jews, condemned Bible societies, and required Latin to be the only language allowed in secondary schools and courts.

Mexico had annexed most of Central America, but this year, Central America declares itself independent and descends into twenty years of civil war before breaking up into six nations.

The President of the United States alters history by issuing "The Monroe Doctrine." He declares that the Americas are no longer open to colonization, and that any attempt to re-colonize the Americas would be an act of war against the United States. Resented by Europe (and sometimes by America) the Monroe Doctrine has provided security to the entire New World by allowing American nations to develop without fear of European invasion. The US also pledges not to interfere with current European colonies, and not to meddle with the internal affairs of European nations.

"The Dark Night Sky Paradox" is formulated. If the universe is infinite and contains an infinite number of stars, why isn't the entire night sky filled with stars?

Construction of the British Museum begins.

Never before, has it been 1824!


The Monroe Doctrine, stated last year in an address to the American people, is proclaimed to the international community. The US announces that the Americas are no longer open to new colonization, and that the US will go to war with any European or Asian nation that invades any part of the Americas. Greeted with rage in Europe and pride in the US, the Monroe Doctrine is still in effect.

The major cause of World War i was the unjust colonization of African and Asian nations by Europe. The Americas were spared that colonization.

In California, the Chumash Indians begin a revolt against their Spanish oppressors. Over 2,000 Indians defeat the small Spanish forces, but then, newly-independent Mexico enters the conflict on the side of the Spanish. The Indians are driven into the mountains, and there is now a three-way claim to a large section of California.

The Burmese Empire launches an unsuccessful war against the British in northeast India. When it is over, the British expand their territory, and after two more wars, Britain conquers all of Burma in 1885.

The King and Queen of Hawaii visit London, where they both die of smallpox.

Charles X begins his six year reign over France. He tries to restore all the Monarchy's powers that had been lost during the French Revolution. With France consumed by rioting and rebellion, he eventually abdicates.

It's 1825!


The US builds the Erie Canal, connecting the Atlantic Ocean with the Great Lakes. It enables large cities, such as Chicago, to flourish with international trade. The central US now had ocean ports.

Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier, is elected to Congress, where he vigorously and unsuccessfully fights for the rights of American Indians.

Bolivia becomes independent. Spain has now lost everything in the New World except Cuba and Puerto Rico.

"The Corrupt Bargain" shows the strength of the American electoral system. The states vote for electors, and they vote for the President. But a five-way tie had left Andrew Jackson with the most votes, but not the majority. In such a case, the House of Representatives elects the President. Henry Clay (who was one of the five) persuaded the House to choose John Quincy Adams (another one of the five). As soon as he was elected, Adams made Clay Secretary of State.

Despite the rage of Jackson's supporters, the majority of Americans did not want him to be President. The House engaged in "sincere voting"--knowing that their first choice couldn't win, many of them voted for their second or third choice. The majority of the House preferred any of the other candidates besides Jackson. The election was honest and legal, and Andrew Jackson lost. And there was no corrupt bargain.

Uruguay secedes from Brazil.

Vietnam bans Christianity.

Now it's 1826. Already!

Victorious Turkish troops massacre thousands of Greek civilians as they strive to end Greece's war for independence.

Joseph Niepce takes the first photograph. The grainy black-and-white photo, on display in a museum, shows a view of his estate from an upper-story window.

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had ended their political rivalry and become friends. In their frequent correspondence, they both expressed their fear of what slavery was going to do to the United States. On July 4, the fiftieth birthday of the US, they both die within a few hours of each other.

A wealthy American rancher in east Texas (which was part of Mexico) establishes an independent republic. His neighbors and local Indians quickly repudiate him, and a small Mexican army, aided by a larger Texas militia, quickly ends the rebellion with no bloodshed. But a nervous Mexico begins moving more troops into Texas to keep the large number of American settlers under control.

Alcohol is banned at the West Point military academy, but cadets smuggled a large amount in for a Christmas party. With about 70 of the 250 cadets participating, drunken cadets staged "The Eggnog Riot." Two officers were bruised in subduing the students, twenty students were court-martialed, and the riot ended when an officer ordered all the students to go to chapel (Some were in their rooms, too drunk to participate). Jefferson Davis was one of the students involved, and he got away with it.

Welcome to 1827!


It is the last major battle fought only with sailing ships. Britain, France, and Russia unite with the Greek Navy to battle a combined Ottoman-Egyptian fleet. The Moslems have more ships, but most of them arre smaller. Using superior marksmanship, the Europeans win, and the Ottoman Empire is forced to acknowledge Greek independence two years later.

Remember the B&O Railroad from the Monopoly game? The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad is incorporated, becoming the first railroad in America offering commercial transportation of both people and freight. The fast-growing port of Baltimore, Maryland,needed a way to transport imports farther west if Baltimore were to continue to grow.

The US wins the brief Winnebago War, after a small group of Indians attack settlers trespassing on Indian lands. The defeated Indians are forced to cede their lead-mining areas to the US.

1828 is a really good year for Russia.


Pius VIII begins his two year reign as Pope. Thoroughly honest, he was so sick that he often signed documents written by his Secretary of State, who ruled the Papal States as an aristocrat. He condemned modern Bible translations, along with the Masons.

Russia invades Turkey, seizing territory that it still holds. The victorious Russian immediately invade Iran, seizing even more large areas that Russia still holds, and forcing Iran to pay reparations.

The Plymouth Brethren are formed in Ireland. Holding that the Bible is superior to all Church creeds, they are a network of independent churches. Loosely speaking, they are independent Baptists who practice unusually strong separation from the world.

The Portuguese monarchy had abolished the constitution and declared itself absolute rulers. When the King dies, civil war breaks out between the liberals who wanted to restore freedom (backed by France and Spain) and the absolutists (backed by the Catholic Church, because the liberals were seizing Catholic property). A British fleet, sent to protect Britain's interests, was fired on by both sides. After six years, the liberals win; they then persecute the Catholic Church for the next eight years.

About 100,000 Japanese are killed in a massive typhoon.

Small wars continue in South America as the newly-independent nations fight over territory and secession. By the end of the century, all boundaries are about what they are today. And about 32,000 Angolan slaves are sold in Brazil.

Still angry over his defeat four years ago, Andrew Jackson is elected the seventh President of the United States.

The electric motor is invented.

Welcome to 1829!

Greece achieves independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Robert Peel founds the London Police Force. Police officers are nicknamed "bobbies," a name they hold to this day.

The accordion and the typewriter are both patented.

Russia invades Turkey (again) and seizes some territory (again).

Britain outlaws sutti in India. Over 500 widows per years had committed suicide when their husbands died, many of them being forced to do it.

Vicente Guerrero is sworn as President of Mexico. A brilliant general in the war for independence, he immediately outlaws slavery, defeats a small Spanish invasion, and is shot by a firing squad, all in less than nine months.

1830


The Second Great Awakening begins. It spreads through the US, England, Scotland, and Germany, building up church attendance of various denominations. Believing that they could establish the Millennium through social reform, revivalists succeeded in winning large numbers of converts and correcting many legal abuses. Charles Finney, a Presbyterian who rejected Calvinism, was a leading American preacher who greatly influenced US Baptist churches. The biggest gainers were Baptists and Methodists, with Presbyterians a distant third.

In northern Africa, France invades Algeria and begins building its African empire.

A major uprising by Poland against its Russian occupiers is defeated next year, and Russia annexes Poland, declaring that it no longer exists as a nation. There will be a few more major uprisings, but all are defeated. Poland does not re-appear as a nation until after World War 1.

A group of Americans settle on Chichijima, an uninhabited island hundreds of miles from Japan. Their morally debauched colony becomes an important whaling supply station. So? More later.

Violating a treaty signed by George Washington, the US begins removing five Indian nations from the southeast United States to areas west of the Mississippi River. “I believed it was a wicked, unjust measure ... I voted against this Indian bill, and my conscience yet tells me that I gave a good honest vote, and one that I believe will not make me ashamed in the day of judgement.” David Crockett

President Andrew Jackson honestly believed that the tribes would be driven to extinction by the states if they were allowed to stay, pointing out that several northeastern Indian tribes had disappeared.



Joseph Smith, a professional con artist, founds the Mormon Church.

We return to 1830.

William IV begins his 17 year reign as King of Britain. He champions the rights of the poor, children, and slaves (getting slavery outlawed in most of the British Empire).

Not wanting to pay its debts to Algeria (part of the Ottoman Empire), France invades and conquers Algeria.

Newly-freed from the Ottoman Empire, Greece grants citizenship to Jews.

France overthrows its King, replacing him with his cousin. This ends the rule of the House of Bourbon and installs the House of Orleans.

Supported by France, the southern half of the Netherlands revolts. Eleven months later, Belgium becomes independent and remains so to this day. The Protestant north had dominated the Catholic south, and the Catholic Church had supported the rebellion.

The sewing machine and the lawn mower are patented.

1831 is a year of shame for the United States.

On the first day of the year, William Lloyd Garrison begins publishing The Liberator, an antislavery newspaper, in Boston, Massachusetts. Enraging the south but encouraging the abolitionist movemnt, the paper continues to be published until the US abolishes slavery after the American Civil War.


Almost ¼ of the American Indians forced to migrate from the southeast United States to Indian Territory in the west die on the “Trail of Tears.” President George Washington had begun a successful project in which five Indian Nations were granted large areas of good land in the south-east United States. Developing American customs, they would then, hopefully, be accepted by White Americans. Although the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional, President Andrew Jackson ignored the law, broke the treaty, and forced most of the Indians to migrate west to desert land in Oklahoma.


Believing that he had seen visions of Black angels fighting White angels, American slave Nat Turner leads a rebellion that kills about 60 Whites. Devastating the myth that the slaves were happy, slaves eagerly joined his army and enthusiastically murdered all the Whites they could find. The slaves were defeated on the second day, and White mobs and militias killed about 200 Blacks, most of whom were not involved.

Captured by the military, Turner unnerves his questioners by insisting that God really had sent him visions commanding him to lead the slaves in revolt, and that God would punish White Americans for practicing slavery. He is hanged a few months after the rebellion.