Chapter Text
1480 or 1481 — The year in which Armand is born in the Vampire Chronicles. This date doesn't seem to match the show's chronology.
1508 — During s01e07, in mid-2022, Armand says: "What's a mediocre star to a 514-year-old vampire?" so, per s02e04, we can infer that this could be the year in which he is born in Delhi and named Arun, or bought from the brothel by Marius and renamed Amadeo at approximately age 15, or turned into a vampire at age 27.
Circa 1520-1525 — This is the estimated date for the painting Adoration of the Shepherds with a Donor, by Venetian painter Palma Vecchio (1480-1528), which Armand is made to pose for at age 20, according to s02e04. Seven years later, he is "stricken with illness" and turned. At some point after this, he is abducted by the Roman coven, indoctrinated and given the name Armand.
1556 — According to s02e03, "It was 1556 when the Rome coven sent [Armand] to lead the shambolic Paris coven."
November 7th, 1760 — Lestat de Lioncourt is born. In s01e07, in 1940, Louis says: "179 years in the Savage Garden. 148 years the blood-drinker, the bringer of death…" and Lestat says he was "born 1760," but the exact date is from book canon.
1769 — Nicolas de Lenfent is born, according to the plaque seen in s02e08.
May 5th, 1789 to November 9th, 1799 — The French revolution brings about the end of the feudal system and the monarchy.
1791 or 1794 — Lestat is turned into a vampire by Magnus. The quote above ("179 years...") fits 1791, but later he says: "I drank the waters in 1794." Note that, in the books, he's turned in 1781, and Lewis in 1791. Given that Armand becomes aware of him in 1795, 1794 is the most likely turning date.
July 27th, 1794 — Robespierre is beheaded.
1795 — Armand first senses Lestat, according to s02e03: "And though I managed to maintain a discipline and humility for 239 years as Satan's fool, by the time Robespierre was beheaded, I was, by any measure, failing." That same year, the Théâtre des Vampires is founded, according to the Talamasca files Daniel is given.
1796 — Nicolas de Lenfent dies, according to the plaque seen in s02e08.
Circa 1808 — At some point after Nicolas' death, Lestat "buried [him]self in the dirt, Port Neuilly, on the outskirts of Paris, and (...) lay there for a hundred years," according to his statement in the trial of s02e07.
July 1st, 1848 — Florence de Pointe du Lac is born, as shown in a shot of the family mausoleum in s01e05.
October 4th, 1877 — Louis de Pointe du Lac is born, according to his gravestone. In s01e07 he says he was "born in 1878," but his narration and the date of his turning match 1877 (see below).
September 6th, 1881 — Paul de Pointe du Lac is born, per a backstage shot of his gravestone shared by Rae Dawn Chong.
1903 — Claudia was "born 1903," according to s01e07, and her mother "died in childbirth," per a diary entry from s01e04.
1905 — Mr. de Pointe du Lac Sr. dies, per s01e01: "1910, the fall of the fifth year of my father's passing..."
1908 — Lestat "awoke in 1908," after "a century underground," and left Europe for the United States, according to s02e07.
Fall of 1910 — The beginning of Louis's story. Grace says it's "a month from [her] wedding day," but everything indicates more than a month will pass before she actually marries. At some point before her wedding, Louis meets Lestat.
Winter of 1910 — Louis and Lestat's courtship: "It was a cold winter that year, and Lestat was my coal fire."
Early 1911 — Louis brings Lestat home, then comes back with him to Rue Royale. There's a full moon in the sky during their walk (as pointed out in a tweet by @michaelmannyaoi), which could mean that this happened in mid-January, mid February, mid March, or mid April. However, it seems to still be winter, so it was most likely January or February.
Second half of April 1911 — Lestat kills Miss Lily, per "Miss Lily proved herself a poor substitute. And I don't take kindly to being avoided." and "Miss Lily died, Mr. du Lac. Two weeks ago."
May 2nd, 1911 — Grace gets married to Levi Freniere.
May 3rd, 1911 — Paul dies by suicide.
Between May 5th and 10th*, 1911 — Paul's funeral, followed by Louis's turning in the early morning of the following day. According to his narration, Louis is 33, which matches his birth date being 1877, not 1878.
[*] From a comment by Bilbo_Swaggins:
Paul died on May 3rd, 1911 and Catholics usually have funerals 3 days after the person's passing or within a week of the death, and they can't happen on Sundays in the 50 day period after Easter. Easter in 1911 was on April 16th, so Paul couldn't have had his funeral on May 7th, which was a Sunday. So the funeral was on any day from the 5th of May to the 10th, but not on the7th.
Second half of 1911 — At least a month and a half has passed since Louis was turned, when he attends a garden party at the du Lac home and realizes Grace is pregnant with twins. From s01e02: "Move half a mile away, don't come see your family for half a season."
1912 — The twins are born. Lestat loans Louis the money to buy the Fair Play Saloon and turn it into the Azalea: "From 1912 to 1917, I made a mountain of money, enough to retire and be buried like a pharaoh. But in the essential duties of the executor in charge, I had been most delinquent."
Early 1917 — Louis goes to visit Grace, who recently gave birth to Benny. It's possible that he hasn't visited since 1911: "Did you even meet the twins?"
February 1917 — Commissioner of Public Safety Harold Newman proposes Ordinance No. 4118, stipulating Storyville must be fully segregated by March 1st (see the Historic New Orleans Collection for more information on the real life mixed-race madam who challenged this ordinance in court). From s01e03: "While the domestic front simmered on diet and sanctioned infidelity, the Western Front started receiving American troops. New Orleans was the last stop before France for many young men. And City Ordinance 4118 tried to ensure Uncle Sam's money went into the right hands."
April 6th, 1917 — The US votes to declare war on Germany.
Second half of 1917 — It's the twins' birthday and Louis kicks the door in. From s01e03: "Six months and you just show up! You're not welcome in this home!"
September 1st, 1917 — The Times-Picayune reports on the murder of Alderman Fenwick, as seen in a shot of the newspaper in s01e03. Either this same night (the night immediately following the publication of this news piece) or in the days/weeks that follow, the Azalea, along with much of Storyville, is burned down in a race riot. Louis rescues Claudia* and asks Lestat to turn her. (In reality, Storyville was shut down by the army in 1917 and razed in 1939; but there were several incidents of racist violence against Black people across the United States during WWI, including in 1917.)
[*] Claudia's turning date in the books is September 21st, same as Michelle Rice. There is no confirmation that this is the case for the show.
October 28th, 1917 — Claudia starts writing in her diary, as seen in a shot in s01e04. She's fourteen, according to her entry from the end of that same episode: "…14-year-old baby doll body."
1920 or 1921 — Claudia celebrates her 17th birthday, as seen in the decorations in s01e04.
1923 — Jelly Roll Morton records and releases the "Wolverine Blues" in Richmond, Indiana. In the show, Lestat composes the original melody in 1917.
January 19th, 1923 — Florence dies.
Late January 1923 — Florence's wake, between three to seven days after the death. Grace is at least 30 at this point, as Louis has missed "Your nieces and nephew’s christenings, Grace's 30th," in the years since he apparently went no contact, after kicking in the door in 1917.
1923 — Claudia has "been 18 for seven months now". She tells Charlie she's 19 when she goes on her date with him. From s01e04: "1923-ish. Her date with Charlie."
January 5th, 1924 — Louis and Lestat find and read Claudia's diaries. (When they confront her, she is wearing the same outfit as when she kills the fisherman from s01e05, suggesting it's the same night: "What... What night is it?" "January 5th." "January. Always thought it would be summer.")
Early 1924 — Not long after, the police search Rue Royale, and, that same night, Claudia leaves home. From s01e05: "There would be no Roaring Twenties for us. We would be underground for seven years." Later, in 1940, Tom Anderson will comment "...seeing as it's been 17 years since we've spoken," indicating that they cut all contact at this point.
This floor seems to be inspired by The Great Flood of 1927, which also took place in January and inundated more than ten thousand square miles across twenty Louisiana parishes. [Addition by southernhummingbird.]
October 1929 — Beginning of the great depression. From s01e05: "As the depression set in on the nation, I barricaded myself within the dilapidating walls of 1132 Rue Royale."
1929-1930 — According to the news report Louis reads out loud, Claudia likely passes through Vanderbilt University, the College of Charleston, Lincoln University in Jefferson City, and the University of Alabama.
October 18th, 1930 — Louis de Pointe du Lac is declared dead.
November 11th, 1930 — The date of the diary entry concerning Bruce's assault of Claudia.
Late 1930 or early 1931 — Claudia comes back, and Lestat attacks her and Louis.
1934 — Lestat tries to give Louis the car as a gift. From s01e06: "That night three years ago, he means."
Spring of 1937 — Lestat sends Louis the "Come to me" recording, and Louis takes him back. From s01e06: "But in the spring of 1937, one broke through."
September 1st, 1939 — Germany invades Poland. Possibly that same night, Claudia tries to leave by train, and Lestat forces her to come back. From s01e06: "Louis, come. Listen here. (...) Germany's invaded Poland."
December 31st, 1939 — During the New Year's Eve Party, Claudia starts laying the ground for her plan.
November 23rd, 1939 — Claudia writes about the murder plot, as read out by Santiago in s02e07: "I shall be your angel of death, Lestat. You go on planning "our future together". Well, I've already planned yours. Not much time left, Lestat. Tick-tock, tick-tock."
January, 1940 — Lestat, Louis and Claudia meet with Tom Anderson about the Mardi Gras ball.
February 6th, 1940 — Murder party! Mardi Gras takes place 47 days before Easter, sometime in February. In s02e06, Roget confirms that he last communicated with Lestat via telegram in early February, 1940.
September 8th, 1941 — Claudia and Louis are in Ploiești, Romania, according to a diary entry seen in s01e04.
August 19th to 25th, 1944 — Liberation of Paris. Collaborators and people with suspected Nazi ties began being tried shortly after, and all the way through 1949. Given that Madeleine's hair was already long again by the time she meets Claudia, she was probably publicly humiliated and had her head forcibly shaved in late 1944.
April 30th, 1945 — Adolf Hitler commits suicide, which Louis references in his narration.
June 1945 — Louis and Claudia are still in a Romanian village when the return of the Louvre's art pieces begins, according to the radio host heard in s02e01.
Late June to July 1st, 1945 — The Venus de Milo returns to Paris, France. Claudia and Louis likely arrive with it.
1946-1949 — These are the dates of "The Paris albums," according to Rashid in s02e02, which suggests that Claudia and Louis spend approximately three years in Paris (which is confirmed in later episodes).
November 14th, 1945 — Claudia and Louis are already in Paris, according to a diary entry seen in s01e04: "We've arrived in Paris, what a relief! My whole dead self feels revitalized head to toe. We might be outsiders to both human and Parisian life, but I do appreciate both now with such fervor! Granted, I've never hated my body..." The timeline gets a little jumbled here: "Five months" pass between their arrival and the first sign of other vampires, according to s02e02, but French spring is March-June, and Louis says that it was spring when he met Armand while cruising the Parisian parks, so it remains unclear if we're counting five months from July (which would be November) or five months from November (which would be March).
1945 and 1946 — Claudia and Louis go see their plays "every night for a month," and then Claudia goes through a hazing and initiation process to join the coven, which lasts "weeks" according to a line from Claudia in s02e03. This post puts the date of Claudia's initiation ceremony on Sunday, June 30th, or Saturday, July 6th, based on the fact that Louis reading a newspaper dated Saturday, June 29th when Claudia invites him to the event.
Early 1947 — Louis starts trading in art.
Late 1947 or early 1948 — Per s02e04, "500 nights" or "a year and a half" pass since the premiere of Claudia's play (which must have taken some rehearsing). The premiere likely took place in late July or early August of 1946.
April 1949 — The early stages of the trial plot. The script, which Rashid hands to Daniel in s02e08, is dated April.
May 12, 1949 — End of the Berlin blockade by the Soviets. Contextualizing the coven's preparations for their kidnapping and sham trial, in s02e06, Louis says:"The Berlin blockade ended in May, the Geneva Convention was agreed in August."
June 21, 1949 — Theft of the Paris Observatory's lens, per the news report seen in s02e06.
June 23, 1949 — Theft of the color film for the Porte d'Orient screening, per another news report.
July 1949 — From s02e05: "July 1949. We broke into the same library every night that month."
September 5th, 1949 — This is the date of the news report seen in s02e06, about a group of "drunkards" climbing the Eiffel Tower.
September or October 1949 — Madeleine's turning. Armand makes his deal with the coven on the night that Louis turns Madeleine, and she leaves Paris properly with Claudia, likely moving somewhere in the outskirts: in s02e06, Claudia says they've been "burying bodies our meals outside Saint Denis" but it's unclear whether they've been away for some weeks or a couple months by the time they are abducted.
October or November 1949 — The trial takes place at least a month before the end of the year, per Santiago's "We used her as eyeshadow for the next month's performances."
November or December 1949 — The Talamasca folder that Daniel opens in s02e03, which includes news reports on the burning of the Theatre from Le Monde, is titled "Great Fire of 1949".
September 4th, 1973 — Louis and Daniel meet at Polynesian Mary's, a gay bar in San Francisco, and the first interview takes place, as seen on the cassette tape label in s01e01. Daniel is likely 20 years old: "In the eyes of a 20-year-old, you were wasting the gift," from s01e06. Louis attacks Daniel and attempts suicide.
September 8th, 1973 — On Saturday of that same week, after Armand calls Lestat, Louis convinces Armand to spare Daniel's life. Armand rewrites Daniel's memory and they drop him in a drug den. Armand says that "three days after we abandoned him," Louis asks to have his memory erased.
1979 — Daniel interviews then California Governor Jerry Brown for the Berkerley Barb, according to his LinkedIn. He must already have been a father at this time, based on the quote from his memoir: "I am in my Buick, staring in the rearview mirror at my daughter in the car seat, an hour after I gave Derek, a guy I don't know, the last 30 bucks I had. My editor reminds me, it's seven years before car seats are mandatory. My ex-wife reminds me, I never owned a Buick. This is the odyssey of recollection." (Car seats became mandatory in the USA in 1986.)
June 1981 — Daniel starts writing a series on Kaposi's sarcoma, which later will become the book "A Shadow on the Skin".
March 1982 — Daniel starts working as an investigative journalist (per LinkedIn).
1985 — From s02e02: "It's 1985. [Daniel] and Alice are at a brasserie, talking past each other, and she tells [Daniel] she's pregnant."
2000 — Louis's last kill. From s01e02: "I no longer kill. My last victim was in the year 2000."
Early June 2022 — In s01e01, Daniel receives Louis's letter: "In a week's time, in a setting of my choosing…"
June 14th, 2022 — Daniel arrives in Dubai, and the second interview begins: "I'm Daniel Molloy. It is 10:08 in the morning on June 14, 2022. I'm in the penthouse apartment of the Al Sharaf Towers across from Mister…"
June 26th, 2022 — The end of the second interview: this is the date of the newspaper (The New York Times, headlined "Nation faces changed abortion landscape") that Rashid uses to pass the trial's script to Daniel in s02e08: "...the newspaper you asked for this morning, Mr. Molloy."
Between June 30th and July 3rd, 2022 — Louis and Lestat's reunion in s02e08. These are the dates for Essence Festival 2022, which was meant to happen around the time Louis comes back to New Orleans ("I had two on the floor for New Edition at the Essence Festival. But that's all shuttered up now.") but seems to have been cancelled due to the hurricane ("Odette," probably named after the typhoon that hit the Philippines in 2021).
At least four months later — Daniel says "I've sold five million books in four months..." during his interview on a talk show, which gives us a minimum timeline for Louis's challenge to the world's vampires in the second season's finale.