Major Events
- Feb 27 The Trades Union Congress and the Independent Labour Party (formed in 1893) meet in London, resulting in a Labour Representative Committee and eventually the modern UK Labour Party in 1906
- Mar 14 Dutch botanist Hugo de Vries rediscovers Gregor Mendel's laws of heredity and genetics
- Mar 14 US currency goes on the gold standard after Congress passes the Currency Act
- Mar 20 US Secretary of State John Hay announces that all nations to whom he sent notes calling for an 'open door' policy in China have essentially accepted his stance
- Apr 16 US Post Office issues its first stamp booklets containing 12, 24, or 48 two-cent stamps [1]
- Jun 29 The Imperial Chinese Court issues what is essentially a declaration of war against foreigners in China, blaming them for hostilities and giving license to the Boxers for even greater ferocity
- Aug 15 Chinese Empress Dowager Cixi, her family, and court retainers flee Peking for Xi'an as foreign troops move through the capital in an attempt to quell the Boxer Rebellion
- Sep 3 With a proclamation by General Lord Roberts, Britain annexes the Boer Republic of South Africa
- Oct 4 In a final confrontation, around 4,000 Ashantis are defeated by the British in the Gold Coast (Ghana)
- Oct 12 First modern submarine is commissioned by the US Navy as the USS Holland, named for its designer John Philip Holland
- Oct 16 Great Britain and Germany sign the Yangtze Agreement, agreeing to maintain the territorial integrity of China and support the "Open Door" policy called for by the US Secretary of State
1900 in Music
- Jan 14 Giacomo Puccini's opera "Tosca", with a libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, premieres at Teatro Costanzi in Rome, Italy
- May 22 American inventor Edwin S. Votey receives a patent for the pneumatic piano player
1900 in Sport
- May 20 Second modern Summer Olympics (Games of the II Olympiad) opens in Paris and continues for five months
- Jul 11 Charlotte Cooper beats Hélène Prévost to become the first female Olympic tennis champion and the first individual female Olympic champion in any sport
- Aug 8 1st International Lawn Tennis Challenge (precursor to Davis Cup) begins at Longwood Cricket Club in Massachusetts, won 3-0 by the US over the British Isles
- Aug 9 1st International Lawn Tennis Challenge, Boston, MA: Dwight Davis and Holcombe Ward beat Ernest Black and Herbert Roper Barrett 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to give the US an unassailable 3-0 lead over the British Isles
- Aug 19 Start of the first and only Olympic cricket match as Great Britain defeats France by 158 runs in Paris
- Oct 28 II Summer (Modern) Olympic Games in Paris end after five months; no opening or closing ceremonies are held
Did You Know?
The first modern submarine, designed and built by John Philip Holland, USS Holland, is acquired by the U.S. Navy
More People Born in 1900
Fun Fact About 1900
First prize of 100,000 francs is offered for communication with extraterrestrials, with Martians excluded because they are considered too easy
More 1900 Deaths
Famous Weddings in 1900
- Jul 1 Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand (36) weds countess Sophie Chotek (32) in Reichstadt, Bohemia
- Aug 22 Oil tycoon Edward L. Doheny (44) weds Carrie Estelle Betzold in New Mexico Territory
- Oct 2 Belgium crown prince Albert von Saksen-Coburg weds Elisabeth of Bayern
More Weddings in 1900
Nicholas II
Robert Gascoyne-Cecil
Wilhelm II
William McKinley