1905

1905 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. It was marked by political upheaval, scientific advances, and shifts in international power dynamics that had lasting effects into the 20th century.

In Russia, the Bloody Sunday massacre on January 22 sparked widespread protests and strikes, triggering the 1905 Russian Revolution. The unrest contributed to the creation of the State Duma and the October Manifesto, which promised limited constitutional reforms and laid groundwork for a constitutional framework within the empire.

In East Asia, the Russo-Japanese War continued through the year and concluded later in 1905 with the Treaty of Portsmouth, brokered by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. The agreement affirmed Japan’s emergence as a major regional power and altered the balance of power in the Pacific.

In Europe, the union between Sweden and Norway dissolved in 1905, leading to Norway’s independence and the election of Haakon VII as king, after a peaceful process that resolved the constitutional crisis between the two realms.

In science, Albert Einstein published four major papers in the journal Annalen der Physik in 1905. These works introduced special relativity, explained the photoelectric effect, provided a molecular-kinetic account of Brownian motion, and established the equivalence of mass and energy, contributions that collectively marked what is often called Einstein’s annus mirabilis and helped inaugurate modern physics.

The year thus featured significant political reforms, key diplomatic outcomes, and foundational advances in science that influenced subsequent historical and intellectual developments.