Timeline

1759 1799 The Enlightenment philosopher François-Marie is established as First Consul in Paris. Arouet, also known as Voltaire, publishes Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes publishes a Candide, a satire critical of French institutions of series of aquatints, titled Los Caprichos, that com- his day, including the , govern- ment on the ills of Spanish society. Within weeks, ment, and military. Voltaire is known for his writ- they are withdrawn from public sale, and only a ings in defense of civil liberties. formal order from the king of Spain keeps Goya 1762 from being called before the Inquisition. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Social Contract is pub- 1804 lished, inspiring political reforms, especially in Napoleon is proclaimed emperor by the French France. The publication states, “The legislative Senate. During his coronation he takes the power belongs to the people, and can belong imperial crown from Pope Pius VII and places to it alone.” It rejects the belief that the king is it on his own head. appointed by divine powers. 1808 1789 France occupies Spain; the The begins with the storming begins. of the Bastille. Church property is nationalized. Napoleon forces IV of Spain to abdicate George Washington is inaugurated as the first the throne and installs his brother Joseph president of the United States. Bonaparte as king of Spain. 1792 1812 The First Republic of France is declared. The United States declares war on Britain. 1793 Napoleon invades Russia. The guillotine is invented and introduced as a humane form of execution. 1813 , Russia, Austria, Sweden, and Britain Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette are executed defeat Napoleonic forces in the Battle of the during the Reign of Terror. Nations. Jean-Paul Marat is murdered. 1814 1798 Napoleon abdicates the throne and is banished General Napoleon Bonaparte invades Egypt and to the island of Elba. occupies the country until 1801. 1815 1833 Napoleon escapes from Elba on February 26 and The Carlist Civil Wars begin in Spain, primarily in marches on Paris. In June, he is defeated at the Basque Provinces. Carlos V refuses to recognize Battle of Waterloo in Belgium, marking the end Isabella, daughter of his brother Ferdinand VII, of the . as successor to the Spanish throne. Rural guerilla followers of Carlos V fight for the cause of the The Congress of Vienna restores legitimate Spanish Catholic tradition and against urban monarchs in France, Spain, and Italy and liberals to establish a rightful claim to the throne. reestablishes a balance of power in Europe. Belgium is decreed part of the newly formed 1847 kingdom of the Netherlands. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels join the first Marxist international organization, the About 1816–20 Communist League. Goya creates Contemptuous of the Insults in Spain. 1848 The Revolution of 1848 begins in France. The 1818 Second Republic of France is established. Chile declares independence from Spain after an eight-year revolt. James Marshall discovers gold at Sutter’s sawmill in Coloma, , in January. Revolutions take place in Spain and Portugal. California becomes a U.S. holding with the Liberia is founded to repatriate former American Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ended the slaves to Africa. Mexican-American War. 1819 1861 Spain cedes to the United States. The American Civil War begins. 1821 1865 Mexico gains independence under the Treaty of King Leopold II ascends to the throne in Belgium. Cordoba. 1866 1830 A new public works program begins in Brussels. Revolution in Paris; Louis Philippe, “the Citizen King,“ becomes king. 1869 Urban crowding is identified by the American 1831 physician George Beard as a cause of Belgium declares independence from the United neurasthenia. Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the first Belgian Constitution is ratified. 1870 Leopold I is proclaimed king of Belgium. The democratic Third Republic of France is established following the collapse of the empire of Napoleon III.

celebration and satire 1871 1892 France is defeated in the Franco-Prussian War, A Centennial of Independence is painted by Henri and Germany is unified. Rousseau in France.

1874 1893 The first Impressionist exhibition is held in Paris. Universal male suffrage is adopted in Belgium.

1883 1902 James Ensor is among the founding members Police batter universal suffrage demonstrators of Les XX (The Twenty), an exhibition society in Brussels. dedicated to promoting avant-garde art. After a disagreement with its secretary, Octave Maus, 1905 Ensor detaches himself from the group. Mark Twain publishes King Leopold’s Soliloquy, a work of political satire that condemns the actions 1884 of King Leopold in the Congo. The term art nouveau appears in print for the first time, describing the Belgian artists’ group 1908 Les XX. The Congo Free State is purchased by Belgium from King Leopold II and becomes the African 1885 colony of the Belgian Congo. King Leopold II takes control of the Congo Free State. Under Leopold’s administration, the state’s 1919 population decreases by about 50 percent due to Universal suffrage is granted in Belgium. murder, starvation, disease, and a lowered birth rate. Profits from Leopold’s exploitation of the 1929 Congo funded building projects and new infra- The Belgian painter James Ensor exhibits Christ’s structure in Brussels, Ostend, and Antwerp. Entry into Brussels publicly for the first time.

1888 Christ’s Entry into Brussels in 1889 is painted by James Ensor in Ostend, Belgium.

1890 Seventy-five thousand people demonstrate in the streets of Brussels for universal suffrage.

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