1896
Battle of Adwa
Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II, with a hundred thousand men and modern rifles, crushed an Italian invasion in the northern mountains of Ethiopia.
Becquerel's Radioactivity
Henri Becquerel left a uranium salt on a wrapped photographic plate in a drawer and found, when he developed it, a clear image.
Plessy v. Ferguson
The Supreme Court ruled seven to one that "separate but equal" accommodations on Louisiana railroads did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment.
Herzl's Jewish State
A Viennese journalist shaken by the Dreyfus trial published a slim book arguing that Europe's Jews needed a state of their own.
Marconi Files Wireless Patent
The twenty-two-year-old Italian Guglielmo Marconi, finding no interest in his home country, moved to London and filed the first patent for a system…
First Modern Olympics
In the marble stadium Herodes Atticus had built in Athens, a Frenchman named Coubertin staged the first modern Olympic Games with 241 athletes from fourteen…
Cross of Gold Speech
At the Democratic convention in Chicago, the thirty-six-year-old William Jennings Bryan electrified delegates with a demand to coin silver and free farmers…
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Frequently asked
What happened in the year 1896?
Saeculum lists 8 events from 1896. The most significant is Battle of Adwa: Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II, with a hundred thousand men and modern rifles, crushed an Italian invasion in the northern mountains of Ethiopia.
What era was 1896 part of?
1896 falls within the Industrial Age (1801-1900). Steam, empire, and the unmaking of the old order.
Which regions saw notable events in 1896?
The events from 1896 span Africa, Europe and North America.