Timeline March 1861

Events in March 1861 6

• 1857 – 1861 Buchanan presidency 15th President — 1857 to 1861 James Buchanan served as the 15th President from March 4, 1857 to March 4, 1861. His inability to address the slavery crisis allowed the Southern states to begin seceding, leaving Lincoln to inherit the Civil War.
• 1861 Emancipation of the Russian serfs Tsar Alexander II abolishes serfdom Tsar Alexander II issued the Emancipation Manifesto, freeing over 20 million serfs across the Russian Empire. The reform granted peasants personal freedom and land rights, though heavy redemption payments limited its impact. It was one of the largest single acts of social reform in 19th-century Europe.
• 1861 – 1865 Lincoln presidency 16th President — led Union through Civil War Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President from March 4, 1861 until his assassination on April 15, 1865. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation (1863), freeing slaves in Confederate states, and guided the nation through its greatest crisis.
• 1861 Kingdom of Italy proclaimed Italian unification completed The Kingdom of Italy was formally proclaimed after decades of nationalist movements and wars.
• 1861 Proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy Unification The formal act that unified the various states of the peninsula under King Victor Emmanuel II.
• 1861 – 1878 Victor Emmanuel II First King of unified Italy Victor Emmanuel II became the first king of unified Italy during the Risorgimento.