Events in Bolivian History
- 1548-07-16 La Paz, Bolivia, is founded
- 1809-07-16 La Paz, Bolivia declares its independence from the Spanish Crown and forms the Junta Tuitiva led by Pedro Domingo Murillo, the 1st independent government in Spanish America
- 1825-08-06 Bolivia gains independence from Peru (National Day)
- 1836-11-11 Chile declares war on Bolivia & Peru
- 1839-01-20 Battle of Yungay, Chile defeats a Peruvian and Bolivian alliance
- 1879-03-23 War of the Pacific fought between Chile and the joints forces of Bolivia and Peru. Chile successfully takes over Arica and Tarapacá, leaving Bolivia a landlocked country.
- 1879-04-05 Chile declares war on Bolivia and Peru, starting the War of the Pacific.
- 1903-11-17 In the Treaty of Petropolis, Bolivia cedes the territory of Arce to Brazil; Bolivia gains rail and water outlets in the east
- 1904-10-20 Bolivia and Chile sign a treaty ending the War of the Pacific; recognizing Chile's possession of the coast, providing for construction of a railway linking La Paz, Bolivia, to Arica on the coast
- 1910-01-19 Germany & Bolivia end commerce and friendship treaty
- 1914-05-15 Bolivia becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
- 1929-06-03 Chile and Peru sign the Treaty of Lima, finally resolving their border dispute from the War of the Pacific (1879–83). Chile keeps Arica and Peru regains Tacna.
- 1933-05-10 Paraguay declares war on Bolivia
- 1933-12-20 Bolivia & Paraguay sign cease fire
- 1935-06-12 Weapons pact ends 3 year war of Gran Chaco (Bolivia vs Paraguay)
- 1935-06-14 Chaco War between Bolivia & Paraguay ends
- 1943-12-19 Military coup in Bolivia
- 1945-04-18 Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Bolivia established
- 1949-05-02 Bolivian state of siege proclaimed
- 1952-04-09 Hugo Ballivian's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalisation of tin mines
Che Guevara Begins Road Trip
1953-07-07 Che Guevara sets out on a trip through Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador
- 1959-04-19 Uprising in La Paz Bolivia, fails
- 1967-02-02 Bolivia adopts its constitution
- 1967-04-20 French author Régis Debray caught in Bolivia
- 1967-10-08 Guerrilla leader Che Guevara and his men are captured in Bolivia
- 1967-11-17 French author Régis Debray sentenced to 30 years in Bolivia
- 1969-09-26 Bolivia military coup under general Ovando Candia
Paul VI Wounded
1970-11-27 Pope Paul VI wounded in chest during a visit to Philippines by a dagger-wielding Bolivian painter disguised as a priest
- 1970-12-23 French author Régis Debray freed in Bolivia
- 1971-08-22 Bolivian military coup led by army Col. Hugo Banzer, drives out leftist President Juan José Torres
- 1971-11-05 Bolivia passes death penalty for political kidnapping
- 1976-10-13 A Bolivian Boeing 707 cargo jet crashes in Santa Cruz, Bolivia killing 100 (97, mostly children, killed on the ground)
- 1978-07-21 Bolivian military coup under General Juan Pereda, President Hugo Banzer flees
- 1979-11-01 Bolivia military coup under General Busch, President Guevara flees
- 1980-07-17 Bolivian military coup; General Garcia Meza becomes president
- 1982-07-19 Bolivian government resigns
- 1982-10-05 Hernan Siles Zuazo appointed president of Bolivia
- 1982-10-10 Hernan Siles Zuazo installed as president of Bolivia
Klaus Barbie Arrested
1983-01-26 Nazi Gestapo war criminal Klaus Barbie arrested in Bolivia
- 1984-06-30 Failed coup by cocaine growers in Bolivia
- 1986-08-28 Bolivia president Victor Paz Estensoro calls state of siege
Assassination Attempt
1988-08-08 US Secretary of State George P. Shultz narrowly escapes an assassination attempt in Bolivia
- 1989-08-06 Jaime Paz Zamora inaugurated as president of Bolivia
- 1993-11-04 Bolivia becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty
- 1994-06-08 7.8 earthquake strikes North Bolivia
- 1997-06-01 Hugo Banzer wins the Presidential elections in Bolivia.
- 2003-10-18 Bolivian Gas War: President Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, is forced to resign and leave Bolivia
Evo Morales Bolivia President
2006-01-22 Evo Morales is inaugurated as President of Bolivia, becoming the country's first indigenous president
- 2012-06-07 A bus falls into a ravine in La Paz, Bolivia, killing 16 and injuring 32 people
- 2012-12-01 8 people are killed and 36 injured after a bus overturns in Bolivia
- 2013-01-21 18 people are killed and 24 are injured after a bus falls down a ravine in Yungas, Bolivia
- 2013-01-24 17 people are killed and 34 are injured in a bus crash in Taperas, Bolivia
- 2013-08-24 30 people are killed in a gang battle involving flame throwers in Palmasola prison, Bolivia
- 2013-11-03 8 people are killed and 10 are injured after a turboprop plane crashes in northern Bolivia
- 2014-10-12 Evo Morales is re-elected President of Bolivia
Famous Bolivians
Evo Morales
Roberto Suárez Gómez