This article is intended to show a timeline of the history of Belfast, Northern Ireland, up to the present day.
Pre-Historic Ice Age – peoples from Alba (modern Scotland) cross the frozen Irish Sea and began populating Ireland via Ulster. These inhabitants would later be supplanted or assimilated by the Gaels. Iron Age – c. 1300 BC the first permanent settlements develop in Ireland. The Giant's Ring and McArt's Fort are both constructed on sites near modern Belfast.
500–1099 c. 500 – The village of Béal Feirste is part of the area of Ulster that is in the kingdom of Dál Riata (until c. 700 AD) 665 – A battle is fought between clans at the Ford of Belfast
1100–1399 1177 – The village of Belfast comes under the ownership of John de Courcy after acquiring land in Ulster with the Norman victory at the Battle of Downpatrick. De Courcy would order castles to be built in Belfast and nearby Carrickfergus. 1306 – First mention of the chapel on the Ford of Belfast in the papal taxation rolls 1315 – Edward Bruce invades Ulster and receives homage from his father-in-law, the Earl of Ulster, as "King of Ireland". Edward is later killed at the Battle of Faughart in 1318.The Bruces in Ireland, 1315–18. Robin Frame. Cambridge University Press, 28 July 2016. Irish Historical Studies, Volume 19, Issue 73, March 1974, pp. 3–37 The Bruce Invasion and County Louth, 1315–18. Brendan Smith, Journal of the County Louth Archaeological and Historical Society, Vol. 22, No. 1 (1989), pp. 7–15. County Louth Archaeological and History Society
1400–1599 1503 – The Earl of Kildare declares the fortification on the former site of Belfast Castle illegal and has it pulled down.Our own country, descriptive, historical, pictorial, Volumes 3–4, 1878. p.111. Via Oxford sUniversity, Google Books. 1512 – Earl of Kildare has a structure built by the public on the site of Belfast Castle demolished. 1534 – Henry VIII splits England from the Roman Catholic Church with the First Act of Supremacy, opening the door for Protestantism. 1542 – Henry VIII has the Irish Parliament declare him King of Ireland effectively unifying Ireland for the first time as one political entity. 1552 – Belfast Castle is rebuilt and fortified by Sir James Croft, Lord Deputy of Ireland, and put under the command of Hugh Mac Neil Og. 1555 – Hugh Mac Neil Og is killed by Scottish raiders and command of Belfast Castle is granted to Randolphus Lane. 1571 – Belfast Castle and surrounding lands are granted to Sir Thomas Smith by Elizabeth I during the Enterprise of Ulster. 1573 – The 1st Earl of Essex pledges to conquer territory in Ulster at his own expense but is diverted by a storm when his convoy leaves Liverpool and is forced to winter in Belfast. 1574 – Gaelic lord Sir Brian MacPhelim and his entourage are lured to Belfast Castle by the Earl of Essex under the pretense of negotiations and a feast. They are betrayed and captured and eventually sent to Dublin where they are executed. 1597 – The beginning of the Nine Years War that saw the English garrison in Belfast Castle captured and executed by Ulster Rebels. The uprising would go on to devastate areas of Ireland including the Lagan Valley. 1598 – Sir John Chichester, who's lands include Belfast, is killed in the Battle of Carrickfergus. His brother, Sir Arthur Chichester, acquires his holdings in Carrickfergus, Belfast and the Lagan Valley.
1600–1699 1603 – Conn O'Neill and his men are arrested after a skirmish with English soldiers en route to Belfast. O'Neill was attempting to acquire wine in Belfast after running out during a feast in Castlereagh. O'Neill would later escape after being imprisoned in Carrickfergus Castle and receive a pardon from James I for his daring. 1605 – Arthur Chichester is appointed Lord Deputy of Ireland by James I, an office he will hold for a decade. Chichester sets out to develop Belfast into a town by hiring craftsman from Britain and having millions of bricks fired for construction. The small population of Belfast at this time consists of Scots, English and Manx. 1606 – Migration begins from lowland Scotland to Ulster with the encouragement of Hugh Montgomery. 1607 – Flight of the Earls sees the self-imposed exile of Gaelic lords of the O'Neill and O'Donnell clans who leave Ulster in a power vacuum. James I decides to re-distribute the land and make the migration from Britain to Ulster royal policy resulting in the Plantation of Ulster. Overwhelming response comes from lowland Scotland to eastern Ulster and the demographic shift sees the advent of Ulster-Scots people. 1611 – The last version of Belfast Castle on its original site is completed on the order of Arthur Chichester. 1613 – Chichester is elevated to the Peerage of Ireland and granted the title Baron Chichester. 1613 – Belfast is constituted as a corporation of a sovereign and given twelve burgesses and a commonalty with two representatives in Parliament. 1636 – Henry Lesley, Bishop of Down, summons Church of Ireland ministers to a meeting in Belfast and rebukes them on 10 August for being influenced by Presbyterianism from Scottish migrants. 1640 – Thomas Wentworth, then Lord Deputy of Ireland, purchases Carrickfergus' trade monopolies and endows them on Belfast. The Customs House is also moved to Belfast, effectively redirecting trade from Carrickfergus to Belfast. 1641 – Catholics revolt in the 1641 Rebellion and the rebels gain control of most of the province of Ulster. Large numbers of protestants are killed and sectarian fighting breaks out nationally. This develops into the Irish Confederate War which continues until the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland. 1644 – Scottish commander Robert Monro, when given command of English and Scottish forces in Ulster, seizes Belfast. He later refuses to cede it to George Monck, the commander chosen by the English Parliament after its victory in the First English Civil War. Monro is eventually taken prisoner in 1648. 1667 – Belfast produces half of Ireland's supply of butter, which is heavily used by the Irish. Butter is also sold at a premium in Europe, with the Dutch paying the highest prices and the French ordering the largest quantities. 1688 – James II is deposed by Parliament in favour of his son-in-law and daughter, William of Orange and Mary, who are crowned co-monarchs as a result of the Glorious Revolution. 1689 – Belfast is seized by Ulster Protestants during an uprising against James II. Belfast is then captured without a fight following the Break of Dromore by Richard Hamilton and his mainly Catholic Irish Army. Later that same year, a large Williamite expeditionary force arrives in Belfast Lough and lays siege to Carrickfergus. Belfast is captured by a Williamite detachment led by Henry Wharton after the Jacobites abandon the town without resistance. 1690 – William of Orange arrives in Belfast, where surprised onlookers stare in silence, until cheering breaks out. A representative from the Belfast Corporation implores William to "pull the stiff neck of every papist down." William responds in broken English that he "came to see the people of Ireland settled in a lasting peace." On 12 July, Williamite forces defeat the Jacobite army at the Battle of the Boyne. James II flees the field and goes into exile in France. 1691 – Final Williamite victory in Ireland at the Battle of Aughrim results in the Treaty of Limerick ending the Williamite War in Ireland. 1691 – More Penal Laws begin to be passed which restrict the religious, political and economic activities of Catholics, 'dissenters' of other Protestant denominations, and members of other religions, in order to formalise the Protestant Ascendency in Ireland.
1700–1799 1700s – Ulster industrialises and Belfast grows to become a major producer of linen and other goods. 1708 – Belfast Castle is destroyed by fire on 25 April. The land is repurposed for other use. 1737 – The city's first newspaper, the Belfast News Letter is established. 1740 – Belfast is affected by the Great Frost and subsequent drought that hits Ireland. 1759 – Population of Belfast is estimated to be 8,000. 1771 – Aggrieved by high rents and evictions, 1,200 men from the Protestant Hearts of Steel gang surround Belfast Barracks demanding the release of a farmer imprisoned there. They are fired upon by the garrison, resulting in violence, rioting and arson. The Sovereign (mayor) of Belfast releases the prisoner, fearing further destruction. The revolt spreads to mid-Ulster, the group joining forces with Armagh's Hearts of Oak. The Irish Parliament passes a special act and sends troops into Ulster to put down the unrest. 1778 – During the American Revolution, a privateer ship called "The Ranger", captained by John Paul Jones, appeared in Belfast Lough on 28 April. The American ship engaged and captured the Royal Navy vessel stationed there, HMS Drake, prompting the Sovereign of Belfast to write to Dublin Castle for military assistance. When none materialized, the men of Belfast formed their own independent militia called it the Volunteer Corps. This force would later put pressure on the Dublin Parliament to reform. 1780 – Political debate in Belfast led by Ulster Presbyterians effected by the Penal Laws and inspired by the Scottish Enlightenment discusses reforms in Ireland including the full enfranchisement of Irish Catholics. 1783 – Belfast sends delegates to the Irish Parliament in Dublin in an attempt to give Catholics voting rights but fail. 1784 – At a convention for the Volunteer Corps, Belfast members defied all the other Irish brigades and declared that they would allow Catholics to join their ranks. 1784 – St. Mary's in Chapel Lane holds its first mass on 30 May The chapel was built with funds raised by Protestant businessmen to accommodate the increasing population of Catholics migrating from west Ulster to Belfast. The mostly Presbyterian 1st Belfast Volunteer Company paraded to the chapel yard and gave the parish priest a guard of honour, with many Belfast Protestants present to celebrate the event. The Roman Catholic population of Belfast was only around 400 at the time. 1784 – Plans are drawn up for the White Linen Hall (now the site of Belfast City Hall) along with new modern streets (now Donegall Square and Donegall Place). 1786 – The River Farset is covered over to create High Street, and the ford across the Lagan is removed. 1788 – Construction of the Linen Hall Library is completed. 1788 – Construction of Donegall Square and Donegall Place is completed. 1789 – Upon learning of the first waves of uprising in France, the Belfast Newsletter publishes an editorial praising the actions and ideals of what would become the French Revolution. 1790 – Inspired by the events the French Revolution, a movement led by Presbyterians lobbies the Irish Parliament for reform; the Northern Whig party is formed.< 1791 – Volunteer Corps members gather at The Exchange on Warring Street in Belfast to celebrate the fall of the Bastille. They marched to the White Linen Hall (modern day Belfast City Hall) where they fired a volley salute to the French revolutionaries. A declaration was presented extolling the French people and inviting their support for revolution in Ireland. 1791 – The Society of United Irishmen is formed in Belfast by Theobald Wolfe Tone, James Napper Tandy and Thomas Russell. 1792 – The Belfast Harp Festival takes place with the aim of reviving Irish traditional music. 1793 – The United Irishmen split over the Reign of Terror in France with some condemning the violence and others applauding the action to further revolution.