Major Events
- Jan 19 Peninsular War: After a ten day siege, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, orders British soldiers of the Light and third divisions to storm Ciudad Rodrigo
- Mar 26 Earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale destroys 90% of Caracas, Venezuela and kills an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 people
- May 11 British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the House of Commons, London. Ironically, descendants of both later stand for the same seat in Parliament at the same time but neither win.
- Jun 18 War of 1812 begins as US declares war against Britain
- Jun 24 Napoleon Bonaparte's Grand Armée numbering half a million begin their invasion of Russia by crossing the Nieman River
- Sep 7 Battle of Borodino: Napoleon Bonapartre wins a pyrrhic victory against Russian General Mikhail Kutuzov in the most ferocious battle of the Napoleonic era, 70,000 are killed
- Sep 18 Great Fire of Moscow burns out after 5 days, 75% of the city destroyed and 12,000 killed
- Dec 20 "Grimm's Fairy Tales" or "Children's and Household Tales" by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm is first published
- More 1812 Events
Did You Know?
Waltz introduced into English ballrooms; some observers consider it disgusting and immoral
Charles Dickens
Alexander H. Stephens
Charles Lewis Tiffany
Henry Wilson
Robert BrowningMore People Born in 1812
George Clinton
Spencer Perceval
John Bellingham
Mayer Amschel Rothschild
Isaac Brock
SacagaweaMore 1812 Deaths
Articles About 1812
Siege of Ciudad Rodrigo
British infantry storm the Spanish fortress of Ciudad Rodrigo during the Peninsular WarJanuary 19
Massive Earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela
Caracas lies in ruins after the deadly 1812 earthquakeMarch 26
Assassination of a British Prime Minister
Only one British Prime Minister has ever been assassinated, a fact that brought the only claim to fame for Spencer Perceval.May 11
Assassination of Spencer Perceval
British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham, drawing by John Heaviside ClarkMay 11
Great Fire of Moscow
Napoleon retreats from Moscow as it burns, in a painting by Viktor MazurovskySeptember 18
Rumpelstiltskin
Illustration from Andrew Lang's The Blue Fairy Book (1889)December 20
Famous Weddings in 1812
- Sep 12 Revolutionary leader Jose de San Martin (33) weds María de los Remedios de Escalada at Buenos Aires Cathedral in Argentina
Ludwig van Beethoven
James Madison
Napoléon Bonaparte
Robert Jenkinson