1879
Centuries: 18th century - 19th century - 20th century
Decades: 1820s 1830s 1840s 1850s 1860s - 1870s - 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s
1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 - 1879 - 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884
Events
- January 11 - Anglo-Zulu War begins
- January 22 - Zulu troops massacre British troops at Isandhlwana
- February 12 - At New York City's Madison Square Garden the first artificial ice rink in North America opens.
- February 15 - Women's rights: American President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the United States Supreme Court.
- December 28 - The central part of the Tay Rail Bridge in Dundee, Scotland collapses as a train passed over it, killing 75.
- December 30 - The Pirates of Penzance is first performed (Paignton, Devon, England)
- December 31 - Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time (Menlo Park, New Jersey.
- Hall effect discovered by Dr. Edwin Hall
- Somerville College founded
- Stefan-Boltzmann law discovered by Jožef Stefan
- Dual Alliance formed by Germany and Austria-Hungary
Births
- January 3 - Grace Coolidge, First Lady
- January 13 - Melvin Jones, founder of Lions Clubs International
- January 28 - Francis Picabia, painter, poet
- February 22 - J. N. Bronsted, physical chemist.
- March 14 - Albert Einstein, scientist.
- March 30 - Coen de Koning, Dutch speed skater
- October 29 - Leon Trotsky - Russian revolutionary
- December 18 - Paul Klee, Swiss artist
- December 21 - Joseph Stalin - Soviet leader
Deaths
- February 11 - Honore Daumier, caricaturist/painter.
- February 11 - Willem J van Zeggelen, Dutch author.
- March 30 - Thomas Couture, French painter and teacher.