Historical eventApril 201828

René Caillié

French explorer René Caillié reached Timbuktu in present-day Mali, and later received a 9,000-franc prize from the Société de Géographie for being the first European to return with a description of the city.

In context

When
Sunday, April 20 1828198 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
19th century · 1820s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

Russia, Greece and some other countries used the Julian calendar into the early 20th century, so local records may show a date up to 13 days earlier.

At a glance

Dates: From 1828.

What happened

French explorer René Caillié reached Timbuktu in present-day Mali, and later received a 9,000-franc prize from the Société de Géographie for being the first European to return with a description of the city.

April 20 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1828René Caillié
  2. 2010Deepwater Horizon explosion
  3. 2010Deepwater Horizon
  4. 2012Bhoja Air Flight 213
  5. 2013Moment magnitude scale
  6. 2015Garowe attack
  7. 2020Price of oil
  8. 2021Derek Chauvin
  9. 2021Trial of Derek Chauvin
  10. 2023SpaceX
  11. 2023SpaceX Starship

Also in 1828

  • December 1Cisplatine WarReturning to Buenos Aires with troops who fought in the Cisplatine War, Juan Lavalle (pictured) deposed provincial governor Manuel Dorreg…
  • May 19United States CongressThe United States Congress passed the largest tariff in the nation's history, which resulted in severe economic hardship in the American…
  • April 14LexicographyLexicographer Noah Webster copyrighted the first edition of his dictionary of American English
  • December 19Nullification crisisNullification crisis: American vice president John C. Calhoun's South Carolina Exposition and Protest, written to protest the Tariff of A…
  • February 21Cherokee PhoenixThe inaugural issue of the Cherokee Phoenix, the first newspaper in a Native American language, was published.

Everything we record for 1828 →

Sources

Cite this page

“René Caillié”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/ren-cailli-1828-april-20, accessed October 24, 2026.

Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.

Questions about this entry

When did René Caillié happen?

April 20 1828 — 198 years ago, on a Sunday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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