Slaves in Texas learned they were free 900 days late: Lincoln's proclamation took effect on 1 January 1863, but it was announced in Galveston only on 19 June 1865, now celebrated as Juneteenth.

1863 · 1865 · apart: 2 years

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The event

• Emancipation Proclamation1863 · Washington. On 1 January 1863, in the middle of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln declared free the slaves in the territories in rebellion against the Union. The proclamation turned the war into a fight to end slavery and opened the Union army to Black soldiers. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery throughout the United States in 1865.

19th century

More amazing facts

• 1861 Alexander II signed the manifesto freeing the serfs on 3 March 1861 (19 February Old Style); the very next day Lincoln became US president.
• 1861 1861: Russia abolished serfdom, and a united Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed in Turin.
• 1861 · 1888 Russia abolished serfdom in 1861 and the USA slavery in 1865; Brazil was the last country in the Americas to abolish slavery, only in 1888.
• 1863 · 1901 The founder of the Red Cross won the first Nobel Peace Prize while living in a care home.
• 1864 In 1864 Spain seized Peru's bird-dropping islands.
• 1864 Olivier salad was invented in the 1860s by Lucien Olivier, a chef of French and Belgian origin at Moscow's Hermitage restaurant.

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