1847

Millennium:	2nd millennium
Centuries:	18th century – 19th century – 20th century
Decades:	1810s  1820s  1830s  – 1840s –   1850s   1860s   1870s
Years:	1844 1845 1846 – 1847 – 1848 1849 1850

Year 1847 (MDCCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar).

Events of 1847

January - June

• January 4 - Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government.
• January 13 - The Treaty of Cahuenga ended the fighting of the Mexican-American War in California.
• January 16 - John C. Fremont is appointed Governor of the new California Territory.
• January 30 - Yerba Buena, California is renamed San Francisco.
• February 5 - A rescue effort, called the First Relief, leaves Johnson's Ranch to save the ill-fated Donner Party. These California bound emigrants became snowbound in the Sierra Nevada in the winter of 1846–1847, and some had resorted to cannibalism to survive.
• February 22 - Mexican-American War: The Battle of Buena Vista - 5,000 American troops under General Zachary Taylor use their superiority in artillery to drive off 15,000 Mexican troops under Antonio López de Santa Anna defeating the Mexicans the next day.
• March 1
  • The state of Michigan formally abolishes the death penalty.
  • Faustin Soulouque declares himself Emperor of Haiti.
• March 9 - Mexican-American War: United States forces under General Winfield Scott invade Mexico near Veracruz.
• March 14 - Verdi's Macbeth (opera) premieres at Teatro della Pergola in Florence, Italy.
• March 29 - Mexican-American War: United States forces led by General Winfield Scott take Veracruz after a siege.
• April 15 - The Lawrence School, Sanawar is established.
• May 7 - In Philadelphia, the American Medical Association (AMA) is founded.
• June 1 - First congress of the Communist League, in London.
• June 27 - The first train journey in Denmark takes place, the train drove from Copenhagen to Roskilde

July - December

• July 1 - The United States issues its first postage stamps.
• July 24 - After 17 months of travel, Brigham Young leads 148 Mormon pioneers into Salt Lake Valley, resulting in the establishment of Salt Lake City.
• July 26 - Liberia gains independence.
• July 29 - Cumberland School of Law founded at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee. At the end of 1847 only 15 law schools exist in the United States.
• August 12 - US troops of general Winfield Scott begin to advance along the aqueduct around Chalco and Xochimilco lakes in Mexico
• August 20 - US troops defeat Mexican troops in Valencia, Mexico
• September 30 - The Vegetarian Society was formed in the United Kingdom. It remains the oldest in the world.
• October - Charlotte Brontë publishes Jane Eyre under the pen name of Currer Bell
• October 12 - German inventor and industrialist Werner von Siemens founds Siemens AG & Halske.
• October 31 - Theta Delta Chi founded at Union College.
• December 21 - Abd al-Kader surrenders and is imprisoned by the French.

Undated

• Ottoman Empire cedes Abadan Island to the Persian Empire.
• Founding of the Architectural Association School of Architecture
• Emily Brontë publishes Wuthering Heights under the pen name of Ellis Bell.
• The North Carolina General Assembly incorporates the railroad town of Goldsborough, and the Wayne county seat is moved to the new town.
• Radley College, a famous English public school was founded.

Ongoing events

• Mexican-American War (1846-1848)
• Great Irish Famine (1845-1849). This was the worst year of the famine, and is referred to as Black 47.
• New Zealand land wars (1843-1872)

Births

1847 in other calendars

Gregorian calendar	1847 MDCCCXLVII
Ab urbe condita	2600
Armenian calendar	1296 ԹՎ ՌՄՂԶ
Assyrian calendar	6597
Bahá'í calendar	3–4
Bengali calendar	1254
Berber calendar	2797
British Regnal year	10 Vict. 1 – 11 Vict. 1
Buddhist calendar	2391
Burmese calendar	1209
Byzantine calendar	7355–7356
Chinese calendar	丙午年十一月十五日 (4483/4543-11-15) — to — 丁未年十一月廿四日 (4484/4544-11-24)
Coptic calendar	1563–1564
Ethiopian calendar	1839–1840
Hebrew calendar	5607–5608
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	1903–1904
- Shaka Samvat	1769–1770
- Kali Yuga	4948–4949
Holocene calendar	11847
Igbo calendar
- Ǹrí Ìgbò	847–848
Iranian calendar	1225–1226
Islamic calendar	1263–1264
Japanese calendar	Kōka 4 (弘化4年)
Juche calendar	N/A (before 1912)
Julian calendar	Gregorian minus 12 days
Korean calendar	4180
Minguo calendar	65 before ROC 民前65年
Thai solar calendar	2390

January - June

• January 28 - Dorus Rijkers, Dutch naval hero (d. 1928)
• February 8 - Hugh Price Hughes, Methodist Social Reformer, First Superintendent of the West London Mission (d. 1902)
• February 11 - Thomas Alva Edison, American inventor (d. 1931)
• February 15 - Robert Fuchs, Austrian composer (d. 1927)
• February 16 - Philipp Scharwenka, Polish-German composer (d. 1917)
• March 3
  • Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish-born inventor (d. 1922)
  • Adelaide Neilson, English actress (d. 1880)
• March 4 - Karl Bayer, Austrian chemist (d. 1904)
• March 14 - Castro Alves, Brazilian poet (d. 1871)
• March 27 - Otto Wallach, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1931)
• April 10 - Joseph Pulitzer, Hungarian-born journalist and newspaper publisher (d. 1911)
• May 7 - Archibald Primrose, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1929)
• June 8 - Ida Saxton McKinley, U.S. First Lady (d. 1907)
• June 11 - Millicent Fawcett, British suffragist and feminist (d. 1929)

July - December

• July 9 - Wong Fei Hung, Chinese healer and revolutionary (d. 1924)
• July 25 - Paul Langerhans, German pathologist and biologist (d. 1888)
• August 14 - Robert Comtesse, member of the Swiss Federal Council (d. 1922)
• September 5 - Jesse James, American outlaw (d. 1882)
• October 1 - Annie Besant, English women's rights activist, writer and orator.(d. 1933)
• October 2 - Paul von Hindenburg, President of Germany (d. 1934)
• October 14 - Chiquinha Gonzaga, Brazilian composer (d. 1935)
• November 26 - Dagmar of Denmark, empress of Tsar Alexander III of Russia (d. 1928)
• December 7 - George Grossmith, English actor and comic writer (d. 1912)
• December 18 - Augusta Holmès, French composer (d. 1903)
• November 30 - Afonso Pena, Brazilian president (d. 1909)
• December 17 - Michel-Joseph Maunoury, French General during World War I (d. 1923)
• December 28 - Giuseppe Maria Giulietti, Italian explorer (d. 1881)
• date unknown - Hale Johnson, American temperance movement leader (d. 1902)

Deaths

• January - Abbasgulu Bakikhanov, Azerbaijani writer (b. 1794)
• January 19 - Charles Bent, first Governor of New Mexico Territory (assassinated)
• March 9 - Mary Anning, British paleontologist (b. 1799)
• April 30 - Archduke Charles of Austria, Austrian general (b. 1771)
• May 14 - Fanny Mendelssohn, German composer and pianist (b. 1805)
• May 29 - Emmanuel, marquis de Grouchy, French marshal (b. 1766)
• July 3 - Matěj Kopecký, puppeteer (b. 1775)
• September 4 - František Vladislav Hek, Czech patriot (b. 1769)
• September 13 - Nicolas Oudinot, French marshal (b. 1767)
• October 3 - Charles Hatchett, English chemist (b. 1765)
• October 22 - Negus Sahle Selassie of Shewa
• November 4 - Felix Mendelssohn, German composer (b. 1809)
• December 14 - Manuel José Arce, Central American politician (b. 1787)