Leader of House of Commons
Appointed Leader of the House of Commons
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
2003 in Great Britain
Explore 195 historical events and records for Great Britain in 2003.
Historical records for Great Britain in 2003
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 40 of 195 unique records.
195Unique records
1 of 5Page
27Named events on this page
14Named people on this page
6Places on this page
January
Death of Roy Harris Jenkins
Dies at East Hendred in Oxfordshire after a heart attack
Death of Roy Jenkins
Death of Roy Jenkins
February
Economy of Great Britain
The Bank of England cuts interest rates to 3.75%, lowest for 50 yrs
Interest Rate Reduction
The Bank of England reduces its policy rate to 3.75 percent.
Interest Rates
The Bank of England cuts interest rates to 3.75%, lowest for 50 yrs
Demonstrations
At least 1 million demonstrate against the war in Iraq
Iraq War Protest
Addresses one of Britain's largest anti-war demonstrations.
Reform of Government
Traffic levels fall 25% on the 1st day of the congestion charge
Debut
Makes senior international debut aged 17, becoming the youngest player to represent England
Demonstrations
Nationwide demonstrations against war in Iraq
March
Economy of Great Britain
The FTSE-100 slumps to an 8 yr low
FTSE Market Low
Brown monitors financial conditions as the FTSE 100 falls to an eight-year low.
Invasion of Iraq
Unlike the first Gulf War or the war in Afghanistan (2001), this war had no explicit United Nations authorisation
Resignation of Robin Finlayson Cook
Robin Cook resigns over the Governments policy on war in Iraq
Resignation of Robin Finlayson Cook
Robin Cook resigns over the Governments policy on war in Iraq
Bombing of Iraq
The bombing of Iraq by the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Poland, Australia, and Denmark begins
Declaration of War
Blair wins Parliamentary vote over Iraq war but 139 party members defy him
Invasion of Iraq
Three Government ministers resigned in protest at the war, John Denham, Lord Hunt of King's Heath, and the then Leader of the House of Commons Robin Cook. The UK Parliament held a debate on going to war on March 18, 2003 where the Government motion was approved 412 to 149
Iraq War Vote
Wins Commons backing for military action in Iraq.
Resignation of John Denham
Three Government ministers resigned in protest at the war, John Denham, Lord Hunt of King's Heath, and the then Leader of the House of Commons Robin Cook
Resignation of Robin Cook
Three Government ministers resigned in protest at the war, John Denham, Lord Hunt of King's Heath, and the then Leader of the House of Commons Robin Cook
Resignation of Robin Finlayson Cook
Foreign minister Robin Cook resigns
Vote of Confidence
139 Laboor MPs vote against the war, but the Commons votes 412 to 149 in favour
Invasion of Iraq
According to Blair, the trigger was Iraq's failure to take a "final opportunity" to disarm itself of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons that US and British officials called an immediate and intolerable threat to world peace
Invasion of Iraq
Start of the conflict known as the Iraq War or Operation Iraqi Freedom in which a combined force of troops from the United States, alongside the United Kingdom, and smaller contingents from Australia and Poland.
Invasion of Iraq
The reasons for the invasion were "to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein's alleged support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people".
Operation Iraqi Freedom
Start of the conflict known as the Iraq War or Operation Iraqi Freedom in which a combined force of troops from the United States, alongside the United Kingdom, and smaller contingents from Australia and Poland
Battle of Umm Qasr
The Battle of Umm Qasr is the first military confrontation in the Iraq War, with its objective the capture of the port. Allied forces advanced across Southern Iraq and after an amphibious landing forces captured the new port area of Umm Qasr then spend several more days fighting through the old town of Umm Qasr encountering fierce resistance
Capture of Umm Qasr
Allied forces advanced across Southern Iraq and after an amphibious landing forces captured the new port area of Umm Qasr then spend several more days fighting through the old town of Umm Qasr encountering fierce resistance
Invasion of Iraq
Allied forces advanced across Southern Iraq and after an amphibious landing forces captured the new port area of Umm Qasr then spend several more days fighting through the old town of Umm Qasr encountering fierce resistance
Manager
Appointed manager of Leeds United
Battle of Umm Qasr
The port is declared safe and reopened
Constitution of Great Britain
In the 2003 Northern Ireland Assembly elections, the DUP overtake the UUP to become the largest party in Northern Ireland, achieving thirty seats to the UUPs twenty-seven
Election
In the 2003 Northern Ireland Assembly elections, the DUP overtake the UUP to become the largest party in Northern Ireland, achieving thirty seats to the UUPs twenty-seven
Invasion of Iraq
Travels to Spain, France, Italy & the Azores but fails to secure a United Nations resolution
Invasion of Iraq
British troops, in what was codenamed Operation (or Op) TELIC participated in the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. A total of 46,000 troops of all the British Services were committed to the operation at its start. Including 5,000 Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary sailors and 4,000 Royal Marines, 26,000 British Army soldiers, and 8,100 Royal Air Force
Operation TELIC
British troops, in what was codenamed Operation (or Op) TELIC participated in the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
Resignation of Robin Finlayson Cook
Resigns from the Cabinet over the war with Iraq
April
World Record
Breaks the London Marathon world record, 2 hrs 15 mins 25 secs
How these records were prepared
Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.