An Empire Proclaimed in the Enemy's Palace: Germany, 1871
On January 18, 1871, Prussia's Wilhelm I was proclaimed German Emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, forging a new empire in the palace of a defeated France.
Tales from the year 1871
The Dawn Paris Rose Up: Birth of the Paris Commune
On March 18, 1871, Parisian workers and soldiers defied the French government, seized the city's cannons, and launched the Paris Commune — the world's first workers' government.
Play Ball! The First Game of Professional Baseball, 1871
On May 4, 1871, the Fort Wayne Kekiongas beat Cleveland 2-0 in the first game of the first all-professional baseball league — before a few hundred shivering fans.
The Province That Bet Everything on a Railway
On July 20, 1871, British Columbia became Canada's sixth province after Ottawa promised to absorb the colony's debt and build a transcontinental railway.
Chicago Burns: The Great Fire That Ended on October 10, 1871
The Great Chicago Fire burned October 8 to October 10, 1871, killing an estimated 300 people and leaving 100,000 homeless — and the city rebuilt itself into a modern metropolis.