TheMexican–American War led to the redrawing of national boundaries in North America. In theUnited States, massmigration to the new West Coast occurred, following the annexation ofCalifornia fromMexico with theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, and theCalifornia Gold Rush beginning, following the discovery of gold there, both in early 1848. On its northern border, the United States settled theOregon boundary dispute with the United Kingdom in 1846, thereby solving a domestic political crisis in the former nation. Meanwhile in Ireland, theGreat Famine began in 1845, causing the deaths of one million Irish people and forcing over a million more to emigrate. In 1848, the women's rights movement began with theSeneca Falls Convention in New York.
The last living person from this decade wasRobert Early, who died in 1960.
On July 3, 1844 the United States signed theTreaty of Wanghia with the Qing Empire.[1] The treaty established five U.S.treaty ports in China withextraterritoriality and was the first unequal treaty that the United States imposed on the dynasty.
The 1840s comprised the end of theTenpō era (1830–1844), the entirety of theKōka era (1844–1848), and the beginning of theKaei era (1848–1854). The decade saw the end of the reign ofEmperor Ninko in 1846, who was succeeded by his son,Emperor Kōmei.
TheSiamese-Vietnamese War (1841–1845) inCambodia erupted between Vietnam (then under the rule of theNguyễn dynasty) and Siam (under theHouse of Chakri). In the increasingly confrontational rivalry between Vietnam and Siam, the conflict was triggered by Vietnam's absorption of Cambodia and the demotion of the Khmer monarchs. Siam underRama III seized the opportunity to intervene as the tide of Khmer discontent rose against Vietnamese rule.[2]
First signing of theTreaty of Waitangi on 6 February 1840, atWaitangi,United Tribes of New Zealand (modern-dayNorthland Region,New Zealand), between Māori rangatira (chiefs and rulers) and representatives of theBritish Crown. The treaty between is considered the founding point of modern New Zealand. There were substantial differences between the Māori and English versions of the text, with the vast majority of rangatira signing the Māori version.[3] Perhaps the most prominent was that the Māori version (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) gave Queen Victoria 'kāwanatanga', a transliteration of the English word 'governorship', whereas the British version said Māori who signed the Treaty were cedingsovereignty. Other notable differences included a right of pre-emption clause in the English version, but not in the Māori version. In the Māori version of the Treaty, the use of the words 'kawanatanga' and 'tino rangatiratanga' (meaning 'absolute sovereignty') contributed to later differences of view between the Crown and Māori over how much authority rangatira would retain.[4] The British subsequently declared they had sovereignty over the islands in May, and later proclaimed theColony of New Zealand in 1841, despite Māori retainingde facto substantive sovereignty.[5] This would lead to theNew Zealand Wars between Māori and the British.
TheFirst Anglo-Afghan War had started in 1838, started by the British as a means of defendingIndia (under British control at the time) from the Russian Empire's expansion into Central Asia.[citation needed] The British attempted to impose a puppet regime on Afghanistan underShuja Shah, but the regime was short lived and proved unsustainable without British military support. By 1842, mobs were attacking the British on the streets ofKabul and the British garrison was forced to abandon the city due to constant civilian attacks. Duringthe retreat from Kabul, the British army of approximately 4,500 troops (of which only 690 were European) and 12,000camp followers was subjected to a series of attacks by Afghan warriors. All of the British soldiers were killed except for one and he and a few surviving Indian soldiers made it to the fort atJalalabad shortly after.[7] After theBattle of Kabul (1842), Britain placedDost Mohammad Khan back into power (1842–1863) and withdrew from Afghanistan.
TheSikh Empire was founded in 1799, ruled byRanjit Singh. When Singh died in 1839, the Sikh Empire began to fall into disorder. There was a succession of short-lived rulers at the centralDurbar (court), and increasing tension between theKhalsa (the Sikh Army) and the Durbar. In May 1841, theDogra dynasty (a vassal of the Sikh Empire) invaded western Tibet,[8] marking the beginning of theSino-Sikh war. This war ended in a stalemate in September 1842, with theTreaty of Chushul.
TheBritish East India Company began to build up its military strength on the borders of the Punjab. Eventually, the increasing tension goaded the Khalsa to invade British territory, under weak and possibly treacherous leaders. The hard-foughtFirst Anglo-Sikh War (1845–1846) ended in defeat for the Khalsa. With theTreaty of Lahore,[9] the Sikh Empire cededKashmir to the East India Company and surrendered theKoh-i-Noor diamond toQueen Victoria.
EmirBashir Shihab II controlled theMount Lebanon Emirate at the beginning of the 1840s. Bashir allied withMuhammad Ali of Egypt, but Muhammad Ali was driven out of the country. Bashir was deposed in 1840 when the Egyptians were driven out by an Ottoman-European alliance, which had the backing ofMaronite forces. His successor, EmirBashir III, ruled until 1842, after which the emirate was dissolved and split into aDruze sector and aChristian sector.
The revolutions were essentiallybourgeois-democratic in nature with the aim of removing the oldfeudal structures and the creation of independent national states. The revolutionary wave began inFrance in February, and immediately spread to most of Europe and parts of Latin America. Over 50 countries were affected, but with no coordination or cooperation among the revolutionaries in different countries. Six factors were involved: widespread dissatisfaction with political leadership; demands for more participation in government and democracy; demands for freedom of press; the demands of the working classes; the upsurge of nationalism; and finally, the regrouping of the reactionary forces based on the royalty, the aristocracy, the army, and the peasants.[10]
The uprisings were led by ad hoc coalitions of reformers, the middle classes and workers, which did not hold together for long. Tens of thousands of people were killed, and many more forced into exile. The only significant lasting reforms were the abolition ofserfdom in Austria and Hungary, the end ofabsolute monarchy in Denmark, and the definitive end of theCapetian monarchy in France. The revolutions were most important in France, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Italy, and the Austrian Empire, but did not reach Russia, Sweden, Great Britain, and most of southern Europe (Spain, Serbia,[11] Greece, Montenegro, Portugal, the Ottoman Empire).[12]
TheGreat Famine of the 1840s caused the deaths of one million Irish people and over a million more emigrated to escape it.[15] It is sometimes referred to, mostly outside Ireland, as the "Irish Potato Famine" because one-third of the population was then solely reliant on this cheap crop for a number of historical reasons.[16][17][18] Theproximate cause offamine was a potato disease commonly known aspotato blight.[19] A census taken in 1841 revealed a population of slightly over 8 million.[20] A census immediately after the famine in 1851 counted 6,552,385, a drop of almost 1.5 million in 10 years.[21]
The period of the potato blight in Ireland from 1845 to 1851 was full of political confrontation.[22] A more radicalYoung Ireland group seceded from the Repeal movement and attempted an armed rebellion in theYoung Irelander Rebellion of 1848, which was unsuccessful.
June 22,1848 – The French government dissolves the national workshops in Paris, giving the workers the choice of joining the army or going to workshops in the provinces.
November 4,1848 – France ratifies a new constitution. The Second Republic of France is set up, ending the state of temporary government lasting since the Revolution of 1848.
September 3,1843 – Popular uprising inAthens,Greece, including citizens and military captains, to require fromKing Otto the issue of a liberalConstitution to the state, which has been governed since independence (1830) by various domestic and foreign business interests.
August 10,1845 – The French Consul inZanzibar (M. Broquant) receives the final letter sent byEugène Maizan during his expedition into tropical Africa.[23]
January 23,1845 – TheUnited States Congress establishes a uniform date for federal elections, which will henceforth be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.
The first U.S. postage stamps have portraits ofBenjamin Franklin andGeorge Washington. Though highly collectable, they are far from being the most valuable.
The United States had five different Presidents during the decade. Only the1880s would have as many.Martin Van Buren was president when the decade began, but was defeated byWilliam Henry Harrison in theU.S. presidential election of 1840. Harrison's service was the shortest in history, starting withhis inauguration on March 4, 1841, and ending when he died on April 4, 1841.
Harrison's vice president,John Tyler, replaced him as President (the first such Presidential succession in U.S. history), and served out the rest of his term. Tyler spent much of his term in conflict with the Whig party. He ended his term having made an alliance with the Democrats, endorsingJames K. Polk and signing the resolution to annex Texas into the United States.
In thePresidential election of 1844,James K. Polk defeatedHenry Clay. During his presidency, Polk oversaw the U.S. victory in the Mexican–American War and subsequent annexation of what is now the southwest United States. He also negotiated a split of the Oregon Territory with Great Britain.
TheTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed in February 1848, marked the end of the Mexican–American War. By the terms of the treaty,Mexico formally ceded Alta California along with its other northern territories east throughTexas, receiving$15,000,000 in exchange. This largely unsettled territory constituted nearly half of its claimed territory with about 1% of its then population of about 4,500,000.[28][29]
The discovery of gold inNorthern California (and subsequent discourse about that discovery in 1848) led to theCalifornia Gold Rush. In October 1848, theSSCalifornia leftNew York Harbor, roundedCape Horn at the tip of South America, and arrived inSan Francisco after the 4-month-21-day journey. Thereafter, regularsteamboat service continued from the west to the east coast of the United States. During 1848, only an estimated 6,000 to 6,500 people traveled to California to seek gold that year.[30] By the beginning of 1849, word of the Gold Rush had spread around the world, and an overwhelming number of gold-seekers and merchants began to arrive from virtually every continent. In 1849, an estimated 90,000 people arrived inCalifornia in 1849—of which 50,000 to 60,000 were from the United States.[31][32] In 1850,California joined the union as the31st state.
TheRepublic of Texas haddeclared independence in 1836, as part of breaking away from Mexico in theTexas Revolution. The following year, an ambassador from Texas approached the United States about the possibility of becoming an American state. Fearing a war with Mexico, which did not recognize Texas independence, the United States declined the offer.[33]
In 1844,James K. Polk was elected the United States president after promising to annex Texas. Before he assumed office, the outgoing president,John Tyler, entered negotiations with Texas. On February 26, 1845, six days before Polk took office, the U.S. Congress approved the annexation. The Texas legislature approved annexation in July 1845 and constructed astate constitution. In October, Texas residents approved the annexation and the new constitution, and Texas was officially inducted into the United States on December 29, 1845, as the 28th U.S. state.[34] Mexico still considered Texas to be a renegade Mexican state, and never considered land south of theNueces River to be part of Texas. This border dispute between the newly expanded United States and Mexico triggered theMexican–American War.
When the war concluded, Mexico relinquished its claim on Texas, as well as other regions in what is now the southwestern United States. Texas' annexation as a state that tolerated slavery had caused tension in the United States among slave states and those that did not allow slavery. The tension was partially defused with theCompromise of 1850, in which Texas ceded some of its territory to the federal government to become non-slave-owning areas but gained El Paso.
Combat operations lasted a year and a half, from the spring of 1846 to the fall of 1847. U.S. forces quickly occupied the capital town ofSanta Fe de Nuevo México along the upper Rio Grande and began theConquest of California in Mexico'sAlta California Department. They then invaded to the south into parts of central Mexico (modern-day northeastern Mexico and northwest Mexico). Meanwhile, thePacific Squadron of theUnited States Navy conducted a blockade and took control of several garrisons on thePacific coast farther south in lowerBaja California Territory. The U.S. Army eventually captured the capitalMexico City, having marched west from the port ofVeracruz, where the Americans staged their first amphibious landing on theGulf of Mexico coast.
The 1848Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, forced onto the remnant Mexican government, ended the war and specified its major consequence, theMexican Cession of the northern territories of Alta California and Santa Fe de Nuevo México to the United States. The U.S. agreed to pay $15 million compensation for the physical damage of the war. In addition, the United States assumed $3.25 million of debt already owed earlier by the Mexican government to U.S. citizens. Mexico acknowledged the loss of their province, later the Republic of Texas (and now theState of Texas), and thereafter cited and acknowledged the Rio Grande as its future northern national border with the United States. Including Texas, Mexico ceded an area of approximately 2,500,000 square kilometres (970,000 sq mi) – by its terms, around 55% of its former national territory.[36]
The 1840s for Mexico were the end of thecentralist government and the waning years the "Age of Santa Anna". In 1834, PresidentAntonio López de Santa Anna dissolved Congress, forming a new government. That government instituted the new Centralist Republic of Mexico by approving a new centralist constitution ("Siete Leyes"), From its formation in 1835 until its dissolution in 1846, the Centralist Republic was governed by elevenpresidents (none of which finished their term). It called for the state militias to disarm, but many states resisted, includingMexican Texas, which won its independence in theTexas Revolution of 1836.
TheRepublic of the Rio Grande declared its independence from Mexico in January 1840. However, the border with Texas was never determined (whether theNueces River or theRio Grande). The new Republic fought a brief and unsuccessful war for independence, returning to Mexico late in the year.
In 1846,President Paredes and the Congress of Mexico declared war at the beginning of the Mexican–American War. Paredes' presidential successor was deposed in a coup, replaced byJosé Mariano Salas. Salas issued a new decree that restored theConstitution of 1824, ending the Centralist Republic and beginning theSecond Federal Republic of Mexico. After the conclusion of the Mexican–American War,José Joaquín de Herrera became the second president of Mexico to finish his term (Mexico's first president completed his in 1829). It was during this time that Yucatán reunited with Mexico. A decisive factor for the reunion was theCaste War of Yucatán (a revolt by the indigenousMaya population) for which Yucatán initially sought help from Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States, but ultimately reunited with Mexico for help.
Herrera peacefully turned over the presidency to the winner of the Federal Elections of 1850, GeneralMariano Arista. Despite being exiled from Mexico in 1848, Santa Anna wouldreturn to the presidency one last time during the1850s.
The 1840s saw the rise of theDaguerreotype. Introduced in 1839, the Daguerreotype was the first publicly announced photographic process and came into widespread use in the 1840s. Numerous events in the 1840s were captured by photography for the first time with the use of the Daguerreotype. A number of daguerreotypes were taken of the occupation of Saltillo during the Mexican–American War, in 1847 by an unknown photographer. These photographs stand as the first ever photos of warfare in history.
1840 –Louis Agassiz publishes hisEtudes sur les glaciers ("Study on Glaciers", 2 volumes), the first major scientific work to propose that the Earth has seen anice age.
May 15,1840 – Discovered by several workmen, theCuerdale Hoard becomes one of the largest haul of Viking-period jewellery, coins and other items totalling 8,600 finds.[45]
1840s – TheWenham Lake Ice Company, in collaboration withFrederic Tudor, played a pioneering role in the mass production and commercial distribution of ice on an industrial scale. This laid the groundwork for the eventual standardization of ice as a commonplace commodity for domestic and everyday use.[48]
Widespread interest to invest in rail technology led to aspeculative frenzy inBritain, known there asRailway Mania. It reached its zenith in 1846, when no fewer than 272Acts of Parliament were passed, setting up new railway companies, and the proposed routes totalled 9,500 miles (15,300 km) of new railway. Around a third of the railways authorised were never built – the company either collapsed due to poor financial planning, was bought out by a larger competitor before it could build its line, or turned out to be a fraudulent enterprise to channel investors' money into another business.
In the mid-1840s several harvests failed across Europe, which caused famines. Especially theGreat Irish Famine (1845–1849) was severe and caused a quarter of Ireland's population to die or emigrate to the United States, Canada and Australia.
ThePanic of 1837 triggered by the failingbanks in America is followed by a severe depression lasting until 1845.
Baseball – During the 1840s, "town ball" evolved into the modern game ofbaseball, with the development of the "New York game" in the 1840s. TheNew York Knickerbockers were founded in 1845, and played the first known competitive game between two organized clubs in 1846. The "New York Nine" defeated the Knickerbockers atElysian Fields inHoboken, New Jersey, by a score of 23 to 1.
Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort at home, 1841. Her dress shows the fashionable silhouette, with its pointed waist, sloping shoulder, and bell-shaped skirt.
Fashion in European and European-influencedclothing is characterized by a narrow, natural shoulder line following the exaggerated puffed sleeves of thelater 1820s fashion and1830s fashion. The narrower shoulder was accompanied by a lower waistline for both men and women.
May 23,1844 –PersianProphet TheBáb privately announces his revelation toMullá Husayn, just after sunset, founding theBábí faith (later evolving into the Baháʼí Faith as the Bábintended) in Shiraz, Persia (now Iran). Contemporaneously, on this day in nearby Tehran, was the birth of`Abdu'l-Bahá; the eldest Son ofBahá'u'lláh, Prophet-Founder of theBaháʼí Faith, the inception of which, the Báb'sproclaimed His own mission was to herald. `Abdu'l-Bahá Himself was later proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh to be His own successor, thus being the third "central figure" of the Baháʼí Faith.
January 13,1840 – The steamshipLexington burns and sinks in icy waters, four miles off the coast ofLong Island; 139 die, only four survive.
May 7,1840 – TheGreat Natchez Tornado: A massive tornado strikesNatchez, Mississippi, during the early afternoon hours. Before it is over, 317 people are killed and 109 injured. It is the second deadliest tornado in U.S. history.
April 25,1847 – ThebrigExmouth carrying Irish emigrants fromDerry bound forQuebec is wrecked offIslay with only three survivors from more than 250 on board.[69][70]
Thethird cholera pandemic happened during the 1840s, which researchers atUCLA believe may have started as early as 1837 and lasted until 1863.[72] This pandemic was considered to have the highest fatalities of the 19th-century epidemics.[73] It originated in India (inLower Bengal), spreading along many shipping routes in 1846.[72] Over 15,000 people died of cholera inMecca in 1846.[74] InRussia, between 1847 and 1851, more than one million people died in the country's epidemic.[75]
A two-year outbreak began inEngland and Wales in 1848, and claimed 52,000 lives.[76] In London, it was the worst outbreak in the city's history, claiming 14,137 lives, over twice as many as the 1832 outbreak. Cholera hitIreland in 1849 and killed many of theIrish Famine survivors, already weakened by starvation and fever.[77] In 1849, cholera claimed 5,308 lives in the major port city ofLiverpool,England, an embarkation point for immigrants to North America, and 1,834 inHull, England.[78] In 1849, a second major outbreak occurred in Paris.
October 1,1846 –Christ College, Tasmania, opens with the hope that it would develop along the lines of anOxbridge college and provide the basis for university education in Tasmania. By the 21st century it will be the oldest tertiary institution in Australia.
^Differences between the texts, URL: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/treaty/read-the-Treaty/differences-between-the-texts, (Manatū Taonga — Ministry for Culture and Heritage), updated 5-Oct-2021
^Belich, J. (2015).The new zealand wars and the victorian interpretation of racial conflict. Auckland University Press, p.21
^Ó Gráda, Cormac (2006),Ireland's Great Famine: Interdisciplinary Perspectives, Dublin Press, p. 7,ISBN978-1-904558-57-6
^Killen, Richard (2003),A Short History of Modern Ireland, Gill and Macmillan Ltd
^Vaughan, W.E; Fitzpatrick, A.J (1978), W. E. Vaughan; A. J. Fitzpatrick (eds.),Irish Historical Statistics, Population, 1821/1971,Royal Irish Academy
^Donnelly, James S. Jr. (1995), Poirteir, Cathal (ed.),Mass Eviction and the Irish Famine: The Clearances Revisited", from The Great Irish Famine, Dublin, Ireland: Mercier Press
^Palmer, Alan; Palmer, Veronica (1992).The Chronology of British History. London: Century Ltd. pp. 266–267.ISBN978-0-7126-5616-0.
^Buckner, Philip, ed. (2008).Canada and the British Empire. Oxford University Press. pp. 37–40,56–59, 114,124–125.ISBN978-0-19-927164-1.
^Romney, Paul (Spring 1989). "From Constitutionalism to Legalism: Trial by Jury, Responsible Government, and the Rule of Law in the Canadian Political Culture".Law and History Review.7 (1): 128.doi:10.2307/743779.JSTOR743779.S2CID147047853.
^Note: A new international boundary was drawn;San Diego Bay is one of the only two main natural harbors in California south ofSan Francisco Bay; the border was aligned from one Spanish league south of San Diego Bay east to theGila River –Colorado River confluence, to include strategic San Diego and its harbor.
^Two years after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, U.S. statehood was granted in 1850.
^Starr, Kevin and Orsi, Richard J. (eds.) (2000), pp. 50–54.
^Starr, Kevin and Orsi, Richard J. (eds.) (2000), pp. 57–61. Other estimates range from 70,000 to 90,000 arrivals during 1849 (ibid. p. 57).
^Starr, Kevin and Orsi, Richard J. (eds.) (2000), pp. 57–61.
^When the British decided they were going to bring Indians to Trinidad this year, most of the traditional British ship owners did not wish to be involved. The ship was originally namedCecrops, but upon delivery was renamed toFath Al Razack. The ship leftCalcutta onFebruary 16.
^First communicated to the Medico-Chirurgical Society of Edinburgh, November 10, and published in a pamphlet,Notice of a New Anæsthetic Agent, in Edinburgh, November 12.
.jpg)
.jpg)
