5th Sept 1800	The French garrison surrendered the Maltese Islands to the British Navy, led by Capt. Alexander Ball, as part of the Mediterranean Fleet under the command of Admiral Lord Nelson
25 March 1802	At the Peace Treaty of Amiens, it was contemplated that "Malta, Gozo and Comino shall be restored to the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, and shall be held by it upon the same conditions on which the Order held them pervious to the war, and under (certain) stipulations."
16th May 1803	War  again broke out and Sir Alexander Ball was appointed 'His Majesty's Civil Commissioner for the Affairs of Malta and its Dependencies', thereby revoking previous intentions to return the islands to the Order of S. John.
1809 - 1810	British poet, Lord Byron, spent some pleasant months at Malta, where he is said to have found his inspiration for his work 'Don Juan' reflecting his own amorous experience.
1813	Sir Thomas Maitland was appointed Malta's first Governor.
30th May 1814	At the Peace Treaty of Paris, it was declared that the Maltese Islands would fall under the sovereignty of the British Crown. Hence Malta officially became a British colony and was henceforth ruled by Britain's Governors.
August 1830	Benjamin Disraeli, then a young man, visited the island colony of Malta.
November 1831	Sir Walter Scott spent 3 weeks at Malta, lodging for most of the time in the city which enchanted him, Valletta.
1835	Britain conceded a Constitution for the Maltese Islands whereby the Council of Government - consisting of seven members apart from the Lieutenant Governor, or head of Government - would now include 4 officers, 2 Maltese citizens and 1 Englishman.
1840 - 1841	Malta was among the countries visited by Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen when he left Denmark in pursuit of inspiration as well as to withdraw from the public eye before his latest work went public.
1849	In a rather radical Constitutional reform Britain allowed for the Council of Government to include 17 members, other than the islands' British Governor, Mr. Richard Moore O'Ferrall. This council included 13 Maltese citizens; 8 elected and 5 appointed military officers.
28th February 1883	Inauguration of the Malta Railway
1887	A Constitutional reform occurred during a time when the Council of Government included the Governor plus 20 other members, which included Maltese representation from the clergy, the military and the civilian population.
23rd-27th April 1913	The Eucharistic Congress - a Catholic global event - was held at Malta.
25th February 1919	Sir Filippo Sciberras convened the country's first National Assembly (Assemblea Nazzjonali), leading to the 1921 Constitution.
7th June 1919	The Bread Riots, popularly known as the 'Sette Giunio', mark another dark period in Maltese history. Four Maltese men were killed in clashes with British troops during a popular uprising. These were times of grave economic hardships in the post-WW1 years.
1921	Britain conceded a new Constitution for Malta, allowing the first Maltese Parliament, as a result of the meeting held in 1919 under the leadership of Sir Filippo Sciberras.
3rd February 1923	The Maltese national anthem, Lil din l-Art Ħelwa…, was first performed in public during a concert held for the occasion. The anthem, a humble yet patriotic prayer, was written by Malta's national poet, Dun Karm Psaila, and is played to the score composed by Robert Sammut M.D.
1939 - 1945	The Second World War 'officially' broke out in Europe following Hitler's invasion of Poland on September 1st, 1939. As a member of the British Empire, Malta thus officially became Nazi Germany's (distant) enemy. Then on the 10th June 1940, Italy entered the war as Germany's first ally, declaring war on Britain and France, and their dominions. This act brought some of the heaviest WW2 action to Malta.
11th June 1940	The first bombs were dropped on Malta, at around 7am, on the very morning after Italy entered the war. The Maltese islands were intensely blitzed, night and day, when the Luftwaffe set up aerial and naval bases in the south of Italy. This ordeal went on until 1943 when Italy surrendered.
16th January 1941	The HMS "Illustrious" limped into Malta’s Grand Harbour where her fallen and injured crew-members could be disembarked. She had been attacked by dive-bombers in the Straits of Sicily; the Luftwaffe’s first action in the Mediterranean.
15th April 1942	The Maltese people were awarded the George Cross by His Majesty King George VI of the United Kingdom, for their gallantry during the most arduous years of the second World War.
15th August 1942	Saved! The Santa Maria convoy restored hope for the Maltese Islands, when food provisions and munitions had run out. Now the Malta garrison and our population would continue to fight off the oppressors in this, Malta’s second Great Siege.
26th May 1942	When Rommel's Afrika Korps had the upper hand in the north African desert, an impatient British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, urged his general to engage the enemy immediately, banking on support via Malta. Churchill knew that it would be fatal for Britain to lose Malta, her prime strike and supply base in the central Mediterranean.
1943	Setting up of the General Workers' Union (G.W.U.)
1947	A new constitution for Malta was granted by Britain.
21st Sept 1964	Malta gained Independence from Britain and joins the United Nations.
1965	Malta became a member of the Council of Europe
13th December 1974	Ten years following their attainment of independence from the United Kingdom, the Maltese Islands now became a Republic. Sir Anthony Mamo, the last of Britain's Governors, an office by now conceded to a Maltese national, became the first President of the Republic.
31st March 1979	The British Military Base in Malta was retracted.
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