| 1687 | Father, Peter Garrick, arrives in England from France. |
| 1707 | Peter Garrick marries Arabella Clough of Lichfield. |
| 1717 | David Garrick born in Hereford on February 19. |
| 1717-1737 | Childhood and youth in Lichfield, with a brief stay in Lisbon ca. 1728 to learn the wine trade with an uncle. |
| 1725 | Brother, George Garrick, born on August 22. |
| 1735 | Attends Edial Hall School, studying under Samuel Johnson. |
| 1737 | Travels to London with Samuel Johnson; enrols at Lincoln's Inn but does not continue in the legal profession. |
| 1738-1741 | Pursues the wine trade in London with elder brother, Peter. |
| 1740 | First pieces he authored appear on stage: Lethe (at Drury Lane, April 1) and The Lying Valet (at Goodman's Fields, November 30). |
| 1741 | Summer season: acts in Ipswich in Farquhar's The Inconstant under the pseudonym "Mr. Lyddall." |
| 1741-42 | Debut on the London stage, playing Richard III at Goodman's Fields, October 19; his own name begins appearing on the playbills on November 23rd. |
| 1742 | Summer season at Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin. |
| 1742-45 | Actor at Drury Lane under Fleetwood's management. |
| 1745-46 | Actor and co-manager, with Thomas Sheridan, at Smock Alley Theatre, Dublin. |
| 1746 | Viennese dancer Eva Maria Veigel, known as "La Violette," arrives from the Continent to perform at the Haymarket Theatre. |
| 1746-47 | Actor at Covent Garden under John Rich's management. |
| 1747 | Becomes co-manager of Drury Lane, with James Lacy, where he manages and acts until his retirement. |
| 1749 | Marries Eva Maria Veigel, June 22. |
| 1749-72 | Makes London home at 27 Southampton Street. |
| 1751 | Summer visit to Paris. |
| 1754 | Purchases country home, a villa at Hampton. |
| 1763-65 | Makes the Grand Tour, with visits to Paris, Turin, Milan, Florence, Rome, Naples (staying for three months), Venice, Munich. |
| 1764 | Stricken with typhoid fever in Munich. |
| 1768 | Unauthorized The Dramatic Works of David Garrickpublished in three volumes. |
| 1769 | The Shakespeare Jubilee at Stratford, September 6-9. |
| 1772 | Moves London home to No. 5, The Adelphi. |
| 1774 | The Dramatic Works of David Garrick published in two volumes by R. Bald, T. Blaw and J. Kurt. |
| 1775-76 | Farewell season; retires and sells his share of Drury Lane. |
| 1776 | In March, incorporates the Theatrical Fund by a bill in Parliament; Final performance as Don Felix in Mrs. Centlivre's The Wonder, June 10. |
| 1779 | Dies in London, January 20. |
| 1779 | Buried in Poet's Corner, Westminster Abbey, February 1. Roubillac statue and collection of plays left to the British Museum. |
| 1779 | Brother George dies on February 3, just two days after David Garrick's funeral: "Davy wanted him." |
| 1822 | Eva Maria Garrick dies, October 16. |