Editing May 24 (section)

===1601–1900===
*[[1607]] &ndash; [[Jamestown, Virginia|Jamestown]], the first permanent English colony in [[North America]], is founded.<ref>{{cite book|first=Clifton|last=Daniel|title=Chronicle of America|publisher=Chronicle publication|year=1989|page=46|isbn=0-13-133745-9}}</ref> 
*[[1621]] &ndash; The [[Protestant Union]] is formally dissolved.
*[[1626]] &ndash; [[Peter Minuit]] buys [[Manhattan]].
*[[1667]] &ndash; The [[French Royal Army (1652–1830)|French Royal Army]] crosses the border into the [[Spanish Netherlands]], starting the [[War of Devolution]] opposing [[Kingdom of France|France]] to the [[Spanish Empire]] and the [[Triple Alliance (1668)|Triple Alliance]].
*[[1683]] &ndash; The [[Ashmolean Museum]] in [[Oxford]], England, opens as the world's first university museum.
*[[1689]] &ndash; The [[Parliament of England|English Parliament]] passes the [[Act of Toleration 1689|Act of Toleration]] protecting [[Protestantism|dissenting Protestants]] but excluding [[Roman Catholics]].
*[[1738]] &ndash; [[John Wesley]] is [[Born again (Christianity)|converted]], essentially launching the [[Methodism|Methodist movement]]; the day is celebrated annually by [[Methodists]] as [[Aldersgate Day]] and a church service is generally held on the preceding Sunday.
*[[1798]] &ndash; The [[Irish Rebellion of 1798]] led by the [[Society of United Irishmen|United Irishmen]] against British rule begins.
*[[1813]] &ndash; South American independence leader [[Simón Bolívar]] enters [[Mérida, Mérida|Mérida]], leading the invasion of [[Venezuela]], and is proclaimed ''El Libertador'' ("The Liberator").
*[[1822]] &ndash; [[Battle of Pichincha]]: [[Antonio José de Sucre]] secures the independence of the [[Presidency of Quito]].
*[[1832]] &ndash; The [[First Kingdom of Greece]] is declared in the [[London Conference of 1832|London Conference]].
*[[1844]] &ndash; [[Samuel Morse]] sends the message "What hath God wrought" (a [[Bible|biblical]] quotation, [[Book of Numbers|Numbers]] 23:23) from a committee room in the [[United States Capitol]] to his assistant, [[Alfred Vail]], in [[Baltimore]], [[Maryland]], to inaugurate a commercial [[Telegraphy|telegraph]] line between Baltimore and Washington D.C.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/collections/samuel-morse-papers/articles-and-essays/invention-of-the-telegraph |title=Invention of the Telegraph |website=Library of Congress |access-date=January 8, 2023}}</ref>
*[[1856]] &ndash; [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]] and his men [[Pottawatomie massacre|kill five slavery supporters at Pottawatomie Creek, Kansas]].
*[[1861]] &ndash; [[American Civil War]]: [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] troops occupy [[Alexandria, Virginia]], with Colonel [[Elmer E. Ellsworth]] becoming the first Union officer to be killed during the war.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Death of Colonel Ellsworth|url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-death-of-colonel-ellsworth-878695/|author=Edwards, Owen|website=smithsonianmag.com|publisher=Smithsonian Magazine|date=April 2011|access-date=May 24, 2024}}</ref>
*[[1873]] &ndash; [[Patrick Francis Healy]] becomes the first black president of a predominantly white university in the United States.<ref name="july31">{{Cite web|title=Today in History - July 31|url=https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/july-31/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628080321/https://www.loc.gov/item/today-in-history/july-31/|archive-date=June 28, 2020|access-date=June 29, 2020|website=Library of Congress}}</ref>
*[[1883]] &ndash; The [[Brooklyn Bridge]] in [[New York City]] is opened to traffic after 14 years of construction.
*[[1900]] &ndash; [[Second Boer War]]: The United Kingdom annexes the [[Orange Free State]].