| |
Date |
Event(s) |
| 1 | 1788 | - 1788—1788: First steamboat demonstrated in Scotland
- 1788—1788: Law passed requiring that chimney sweepers be a minimum of 8 years old (not
enforced)
- 1788—1788: First slave carrying act, the Dolben Act of 1788, regulates the slave trade - stipulates
more humane conditions on slave ships
- 1788—1788: King George III's mental illness occasions the Regency Crisis - Edmund Burke and
Charles James Fox attack ministry of William Pitt - trying to obtain full regal powers for the
Prince of Wales
- 1788—1788: Gibbon completes Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
- 26 Jan 1788—26 Jan 1788: First convicts (and free settlers) arrive in New South Wales (left Portsmouth 13
May 1787) ? the 'First Fleet'; eleven ships commanded by Captain Arthur Phillip
|
| 2 | 1789 | - 28 Apr 1789—28 Apr 1789: Mutiny on HMS Bounty - Captain William Bligh and 18 sailors are set adrift
and the rebel crew ends up on Pitcairn Island
|
| 3 | 1790 | - 1790—1790: Forth and Clyde Canal opened in Scotland
|
| 4 | 1791 | - 1791—1791: John Bell, printer, abandons the long s' (the 's' that looks like an 'f')
- 1791—1791: Establishment of the Ordnance Survey of Great Britain
- 4 Dec 1791—4 Dec 1791: First publication of The Observer - world's oldest Sunday newspaper
|
| 5 | 1792 | - 1792—1792: Repression in Britain (restrictions on freedom of the press) - Fox gets Libel Act through
Parliament, requiring a jury and not a judge to determine libel
- 1792—1792: Boyle's Street Directory published
- 1792—1792: Coal-gas lighting invented by William Murdock, an Ayrshire Scot
- 1 Oct 1792—1 Oct 1792: Introduction of Money Orders in Britain
- 1 Dec 1792—1 Dec 1792: King's Proclamation drawing out the British militia
|
| 6 | 1793 | - 11 Feb 1793—11 Feb 1793: Britain declares war on France (1793-1802)
- 15 Apr 1793—15 Apr 1793: ?5 notes first issued by the Bank of England
|
| 7 | 1794 | - 1794—1794: Abolition of Parish Register duties
- 6 Oct 1794—6 Oct 1794: The prosecutor for Britain, Lord Justice Eyre, charges reformers with High
Treason - he argued that, since reform of parliament would lead to revolution and revolution
to executing the King, the desire for reform endangered the King's life and was therefore
treasonous
|
| 8 | 1795 | - 1795—1795: The Famine Year
- 1795—1795: Foundation of the Orange Order
- 1795—1795: Speenhamland Act proclaims that the Parish is responsible for bringing up the labourer's
wage to subsistence level - towards the end of the eighteenth century, the number of poor and
unemployed increased dramatically - price increases during the Napoleonic Wars
(1793-1815) far outstripped wage rises - many small farmers were bankrupted by the move
towards enclosures and became landless labourers - their wages were often pitifully low
- 1795—1795: Pitt and Grenville introduce The Gagging Acts' or 'Two Bills' (the Seditious Meetings and Treasonable Practices Bills) - outlawed the mass meeting and the political lecture.
- 1795—1795: Consumption of lime juice made compulsory in Royal Navy
|
| 9 | 1796 | - 1796—1796: Pitt's Reign of Terror': More treason trials - leading radicals emigrate
- 1796—1796: Legacy Tax on sums over ?20 excluding those to wives, children, parents and
grandparents
- 14 May 1796—14 May 1796: Dr Edward Jenner gave first vaccination for smallpox in England
|
| 10 | 1797 | - 1797—1797: England in Crisis, Bank of England suspends cash payments
- 1797—1797: Mutinies in the British Navy at Spithead and Nore
- 1797—1797: Tax on newspapers (including cheap, topical journals) increased to repress radical
publications
- 1797—1797: The first copper pennies were produced ('cartwheels') by application of steam power to
the coining press
- 22 Feb 1797—22 Feb 1797: French invade Fishguard, Wales; last time UK invaded; all captured 2 days later
- 26 Feb 1797—26 Feb 1797: First ?1 (and ?2) notes issued by Bank of England
|
| 11 | 1798 | - 1798—1798: First planned human experiment with vaccination, to test theories of Edward Jenner
- Feb 1798—Feb 1798: The Irish Rebellion; 100,000 peasants revolt; approximately 25,000 die - Irish
Parliament abolished (Feb-Oct)
- 1 Aug 1798—1 Aug 1798: Battle of the Nile (won by Nelson)
|
| 12 | 1799 | - 1799—1799: Foundation of Royal Military College Sandhurst by the Duke of York
- 1799—1799: Foundation of the Royal Institution of Great Britain
- 9 Jan 1799—9 Jan 1799: Pitt brings in 10% income tax, as a wartime financial measure
- 12 Jul 1799—12 Jul 1799: 'Combination Laws' in Britain against political associations and combinations
- 15 Jul 1799—15 Jul 1799: ?Rosetta Stone' discovered in Egypt made possible the deciphering (in 1822) of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics
|
| 13 | 1800 | - 1800—1800: Electric light first produced by Sir Humphrey Davy
- 1800—1800: Use of high pressure steam pioneered by Richard Trevithick (1771-1833)
- 1800—1800: Royal College of Surgeons founded
- 1800—1800: Herschel discovers infra-red light
- 1800—1800: Volta makes first electrical battery
- 2 Jul 1800—2 Jul 1800: Parliamentary union of Great Britain and Ireland
|
| 14 | 1801 | - 1801—1801: Grand Union Canal opens in England
- 1801—1801: Elgin Marbles brought from Athens to London
- 1 Jan 1801—1 Jan 1801: Union Jack becomes the official British flag
- 10 Mar 1801—10 Mar 1801: First census puts the population of England and Wales at 9,168,000. Population of Britain nearly 11 million (75% rural)
- 24 Dec 1801—24 Dec 1801: Richard Trevithick built the first self-propelled passenger carrying road loco
|
| 15 | 1802 | - 25 Mar 1802—25 Mar 1802: Treaty of Amiens signed by Britain, France, Spain, and the Netherlands ? the 'Peace of Amiens' as it was known brought a temporary peace of 14 months during the Napoleonic Wars ? one of its most important cultural effects was that travel and correspondence across the English Channel became possible again
|
| 16 | 1803 | - 1803—1803: Poaching made a Capital offense in England if capture resisted
- 1803—1803: Richard Trevithick built another steam carriage and ran it in London as the first
self-propelled vehicle in the capital and the first London bus
- 1803—1803: Semaphore signaling perfected by Admiral Popham
- 30 Apr 1803—30 Apr 1803: Louisiana Purchase: Napoleon sells French possessions in America to United States
- 12 May 1803—12 May 1803: Peace of Amiens ends ? resumption of war with France ? The Napoleonic Wars (1803-18l5)
- 23 Jul 1803—23 Jul 1803: First public railway opens (Surrey Iron Railway, 9 miles from Wandsworth to
Croydon, horse-drawn)
|
| 17 | 1804 | - 1804—1804: Matthew Flinders recommends that the newly discovered country, New Holland, be renamed 'Australia'
- 21 Feb 1804—21 Feb 1804: Richard Trevithick runs his railway engine on the Penydarren Railway (9.5 miles
from Pen-y-Darren to Abercynon in South Wales) this hauled a train with 10 tons of
iron and 70 passengers. It was commemorated by the Royal Mint in 2004 in the form of
A ?2 coin.
- 3 Mar 1804—3 Mar 1804: John Wedgwood (eldest son of the potter Josiah Wedgwood) founds The Royal
Horticultural Society
- 2 Dec 1804—2 Dec 1804: Napoleon declares himself Emperor of the French
- 12 Dec 1804—12 Dec 1804: Spain declares war on Britain
|
| 18 | 1805 | - 1805—1805: London docks opened
- 21 Oct 1805—21 Oct 1805: Admiral Nelson's victory at Trafalgar
- 2 Dec 1805—2 Dec 1805: Battle of Austerlitz; Napoleon defeats Austrians and Russians
|
| 19 | 1806 | - 1806—1806: Dartmoor Prison opened (built by French prisoners)
- 9 Jan 1806—9 Jan 1806: Nelson buried in St Paul's cathedral, London
|
| 20 | 1807 | - 25 Mar 1807—25 Mar 1807: Parliament passes Act prohibiting slavery and the importation of slaves from 1808 ? but does not prohibit colonial slavery
|
| 21 | 1808 | - 1808—1808: Gas lighting in London streets
- 13 Jul 1808—13 Jul 1808: 'Hot Wednesday' ? temperature of 101?F in the shade recorded in London
- 20 Dec 1808—20 Dec 1808: Beethoven premieres his Fifth Symphony, Sixth Symphony, Fourth Piano Concerto and Choral Fantasy together in Vienna
|
| 22 | 1809 | - 12 Feb 1809—12 Feb 1809: Birth of Charles Darwin
- 18 Sep 1809—18 Sep 1809: Royal Opera House opens in London
|
| 23 | 1810 | - 1810—1810: John McAdam begins road construction in England, giving his name to the process of
road metalling
|
| 24 | 1811 | - 5 Feb 1811—5 Feb 1811: Prince of Wales (future George IV) made Regent after George III deemed insane
|
| 25 | 1812 | - 11 May 1812—11 May 1812: Prime Minister, Spencer Perceval, assassinated ? shot as he entered the House of Commons by a bankrupt Liverpool broker, John Bellingham, who was subsequently hanged
- 18 Jun 1812—18 Jun 1812: Start of American 'War of 1812' (to 1814) against England and Canada
- Oct 1812—Oct 1812: Napoleon retreats from Moscow with catastrophic losses
|
| 26 | 1813 | - 1813—1813: Ireland: First recorded '12th of July' sectarian riots in Belfast
- 1813—1813: Jane Austen wrote 'Pride and Prejudice'
|
| 27 | 1814 | - 1 Jan 1814—1 Jan 1814: Invasion of France by Allies
- 6 Apr 1814—6 Apr 1814: Napoleon abdicates and is exiled to Elba
- 13 Aug 1814—13 Aug 1814: Convention of London signed, a treaty between the UK and the Dutch
- 24 Aug 1814—24 Aug 1814: The British burn the White House
- 29 Nov 1814—29 Nov 1814: 'The Times' first printed by a 'mechanical apparatus' (at 1100 sheets per hour)
- 24 Dec 1814—24 Dec 1814: Treaty of Ghent signed ending the 1812 war between Britain and the US
|
| 28 | 1815 | - 1815—1815: Trial by Jury established in Scotland
- 1815—1815: Davy develops the safety lamp for miners
- 18 Jun 1815—18 Jun 1815: The Battle of Waterloo: Napoleon defeated and exiled to St. Helena
|
| 29 | 1816 | - 1816—1816: Income tax abolished
- 1816—1816: For the first time British silver coins were produced with an intrinsic value substantially
below their face value ? the first official 'token' coinage
- 1816—1816: Climate: the 'year without a summer' ? followed a volcanic explosion of the mountain 'Tambora in Indonesia the previous year the biggest volcanic explosion in 10000 years
- 1816—1816: Large scale emigration to North America
- 1816—1816: Trans-Atlantic packet service begins
|
| 30 | 1817 | - 1817—1817: March of the Manchester Blanketeers; Habeas Corpus suspended
- 1817—1817: Constable painted 'Flatford Mill'
|
| 31 | 1818 | - 1818—1818: Manchester cotton spinners' strike
- 20 Oct 1818—20 Oct 1818: 'Convention of 1818' signed between the United States and the United Kingdom
which, among other things, settled the US-Canada border on the 49th parallel for most of its
length
|
| 32 | 1819 | - 1819—1819: Primitive bicycle, the Dandy Horse, becomes popular
- 1819—1819: Britain returns to gold standard
- 1819—1819: Singapore founded by Sir Stamford Raffles
- May 1819—May 1819: SS 'Savannah' first steamship to cross Atlantic reaching Liverpool 20 June 1819 (26
Days reaching Liverpool 20 June 1819 (26
Days mostly under sail)
- 16 Aug 1819—16 Aug 1819: Peterloo Massacre at Manchester ? a large, orderly group of 60,000 meets at St.
Peter's Fields, Manchester ? demand Parliamentary Reform ? mounted troops charge on the
meeting, killing 11 people and and maiming many others
|
| 33 | 1820 | - 1820—1820: Cato Street Conspiracy ? plot to assissinate British cabinet
- 1820—1820: Abolition of the Spanish Inquisition
- 29 Jan 1820—29 Jan 1820: Accession of George IV, previously Prince Regent
- 1 Aug 1820—1 Aug 1820: Regent's Canal in London opens
- 17 Aug 1820—17 Aug 1820: Trial of Queen Caroline to prove her infidelities so George IV can divorce her ?
George tries to secure a Bill of Pains and Penalties against her ? Caroline is virtually acquitted
because bill passed by such a small majority of Lords
|
| 34 | 1821 | - 1821—1821: Faraday publishes 'Principles of electro-magnetic rotation'
- 1821—1821: Constable paints 'The Hay Wain'
- 5 May 1821—5 May 1821: Napoleon Bonaparte dies on St Helena
|
| 35 | 1822 | - 14 Jun 1822—14 Jun 1822: Charles Babbage proposes a difference engine in a paper to the Royal Astronomical Society
|
| 36 | 1823 | - 1823—1823: New laws concerning marriage by license ? 'very troublesome' according to some the Act was repealed all in a hurry at the beginning of the next session
- 1823—1823: Peel begins penal reforms ? death penalty abolished for over 100 crimes
- 1823—1823: Rugby Football 'invented' at Rugby School
- 1823—1823: Rubberised waterproof material produced by MacIntosh
- 2 Dec 1823—2 Dec 1823: US President James Monroe delivers a speech establishing American neutrality in
future European conflicts (the 'Monroe Doctrine')
|
| 37 | 1824 | - 1824—1824: RSPCA established
- 1824—1824: Portland cement patented
- 4 Mar 1824—4 Mar 1824: Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) founded (called the 'National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck' until 1854)
- 10 May 1824—10 May 1824: National Gallery in London opens to the public
|
| 38 | 1825 | - 27 Sep 1825—27 Sep 1825: Stockton to Darlington Railway opens ? world's first service of locomotive-hauled passenger trains
|
| 39 | 1827 | - 1827—1827: Ohm's Law published
|
| 40 | 1828 | - 25 Oct 1828—25 Oct 1828: St Katharine Docks in London opened (designed by Thomas Telford)
|
| 41 | 1829 | - 1829—1829: London Metropolitan Police Force formed, nicknamed 'Bobbies' after Sir Robert Peel
- 1829—1829: Louis Braille invents his system of finger-reading for the blind
- 10 Jun 1829—10 Jun 1829: First Oxford/Cambridge Boat Race
- 6 Oct 1829—6 Oct 1829: George Stephenson's Rocket wins the Rainhill trials (it was the only one to
complete the trial!)
|
| 42 | 1830 | - 1830—1830: Uprisings and agitation across Europe: the Netherlands are split into Holland and
Belgium
- Jul 1830—Jul 1830: Revolution in France, fall of Charles X and the Bourbons ? Louis Philippe (the
Citizen King) on the throne
- 15 Sep 1830—15 Sep 1830: George Stephenson's Liverpool & Manchester Railway opened by the Duke of
Wellington ? first mail carried by rail, and first death on the railway as William Huskisson, a
leading politician, is run over!
|
| 43 | 1831 | - 1831—1831: A list of all parish registers dating prior to 1813 compiled
- 1 Jun 1831—1 Jun 1831: James Clark Ross discovers the North Magnetic Pole
- 1 Aug 1831—1 Aug 1831: 'New' London Bridge opens (replaced 1973) ? old bridge (which had existed for over 600 years) then demolished
|
| 44 | 1832 | - 1832—1832: Electoral Registers introduced
- 1832—1832: Electric telegraph invented by Morse
- 7 Jun 1832—7 Jun 1832: Reform Bill passed ? Representation of the People Act
|
| 45 | 1833 | - Jan 1833—Jan 1833: Britain invades the Falkland Islands
- 29 Aug 1833—29 Aug 1833: Factory Act forbids employment of children below age of 9
|
| 46 | 1834 | - 1834—1834: Babbage invents forerunner of the computer
- 18 Mar 1834—18 Mar 1834: 'Tolpuddle Martyrs' transported (to Australia) for Trades Union activities
- 1 May 1834—1 May 1834: Slavery abolished in British possessions
|
| 47 | 1835 | - 1835—1835: Christmas becomes a national holiday
- 1835—1835: First railway boom period starts in Britain construction of Great Western Railway
|
| 48 | 1836 | - 1836—1836: First Potato famine in Ireland
- 30 Jan 1836—30 Jan 1836: Telford's Menai Straits Bridge opened ? considered the world's first modern suspension bridge
- 25 Feb 1836—25 Feb 1836: Samuel Colt patented the 'revolver'
- 6 Mar 1836—6 Mar 1836: The Alamo falls to Mexican troops - death of Davy Crockett
- Jul 1836—Jul 1836: Inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris
|
| 49 | 1837 | - 1837—1837: Pitman introduces his shorthand system
- 1837—1837: P&O Founded
- 20 Jun 1837—20 Jun 1837: William IV dies - accession of Queen Victoria (to 1901)
- 1 Jul 1837—1 Jul 1837: Compulsory registration of Births, Marriages & Deaths in England & Wales -
Registration Districts were formed covering several parishes; initially they had the same
boundaries as the Poor Law boundaries set up in 1834
- 13 Jul 1837—13 Jul 1837: Queen Victoria moves into the first Buckingham Palace
- 20 Jul 1837—20 Jul 1837: Euston Railway station opens - first in London
|
| 50 | 1838 | - 28 Jun 1838—28 Jun 1838: Coronation of Queen Victoria at Westminster Abbey
|
| 51 | 1839 | - 1839—1839: First Opium War between Britain and China (to 1842) - Britain captures Hong Kong
- 1839—1839: Scottish blacksmith Kirkpatrick MacMillan refines the primitive bicycle adding a
mechanical crank drive to the rear wheel,thus creating the first true 'bicycle' in the modern
Sense
- 1839—1839: Charles Goodyear invented vulcanized rubber
|
| 52 | 1840 | - 1840—1840: Population Act relating to taking of censuses in Britain
- 1840—1840: Last convicts landed in NSW (some say 1842 or 1849, but these probably landed
elsewhere)
- 10 Jan 1840—10 Jan 1840: Uniform Penny Postage introduced nationally
|
| 53 | 1841 | - 1841—1841: Thomas Cook starts package tours
- 10 Feb 1841—10 Feb 1841: Penny Red replaces Penny Black postage stamp
- 6 Jun 1841—6 Jun 1841: June 6: First full census in Britain in which all names were recorded (Population 18.5M)
|
| 54 | 1842 | - 1842—1842: Income Tax reintroduced in Britain
- 30 Mar 1842—30 Mar 1842: Ether used as an anesthetic for the first time (by Dr Crawford Long in America)
- 29 Aug 1842—29 Aug 1842: Treaty of Nanking - End of First Opium War - Britain gains Hong Kong
|
| 55 | 1843 | - 1843—1843: First Christmas card in England
- 27 May 1843—27 May 1843: The Great Hall of Euston station opened in London
- 19 Jul 1843—19 Jul 1843: Brunel's 'Great Britain' launched
|
| 56 | 1844 | - 6 Jun 1844—6 Jun 1844: YMCA founded in London by Sir George Williams
|
| 57 | 1845 | - 1845—1845: Tarmac laid for first time (in Nottingham)
- 17 Mar 1845—17 Mar 1845: The rubber band patented by Stephen Perry
|
| 58 | 1846 | - 10 Sep 1846—10 Sep 1846: The sewing machine is patented by Elias Howe
|
| 59 | 1847 | - 1847—1847: US Mormons make Salt Lake City their centre
- Jan 1847—Jan 1847: An anesthetic used for the first time in England (James Simpson used ether to numb the pain of labour)
|
| 60 | 1848 | - 1848—1848: First commercial production of chewing gum
- 24 Jan 1848—24 Jan 1848: Gold found at Sutter's Mill, California - starts the California gold rush
- 11 Jul 1848—11 Jul 1848: Waterloo railway station in London opens
|
| 61 | 1849 | - 1849—1849: Florin (2 shilling coin) introduced as the first step to decimalisation - which finally
occurred in 1971!
|
| 62 | 1851 | - 1851—1851: Gold discovered in Australia
- 1 May 1851—1 May 1851: Great exhibition of the works of industry of all nations ('Crystal Palace' exhibition) opened in Hyde Park
|
| 63 | 1852 | - 1852—1852: Tasmania ceases to be a convict settlement
- 1852—1852: Wells Fargo established in USA
|
| 64 | 1853 | - 1853—1853: Vaccination against smallpox made compulsory in Britain
|
| 65 | 1854 | - 1854—1854: Cigarettes introduced into Britain
- 27 Mar 1854—27 Mar 1854: Britain declares war on Russia (Crimean War)
- 25 Oct 1854—25 Oct 1854: Battle of Balaklava in Crimea (charge of the Light Brigade)
|
| 66 | 1856 | - 1856—1856: End of Crimean War
- 29 Jan 1856—29 Jan 1856: Victoria Cross created by Royal Warrant, backdated to 1854 to recognise acts
during the Crimean War (first award ceremony 26 June 1857)
|
| 67 | 1857 | - 1857—1857: Work starts on the laying of the Transatlantic cable
|
| 68 | 1858 | - 1858—1858: 'The great stink' - smell of the River Thames forced Parliament to stop work
- 1858—1858: Royal Opera House opens in Covent Garden, London
|
| 69 | 1859 | - 1859—1859: Peaceful picketing legalised in Britain
- 25 Apr 1859—25 Apr 1859: Work started on building the Suez canal (opened 17 Nov 1869)
- 4 May 1859—4 May 1859: Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge opened at Saltash giving rail link between Devon
and Cornwall
- 24 Nov 1859—24 Nov 1859: Charles Darwin publishes 'The Origin of Species'
|
| 70 | 1860 | - 29 Aug 1860—29 Aug 1860: First tram service in Europe starts in Birkenhead
|
| 71 | 1861 | - 25 May 1861—25 May 1861: American Civil War begins
|
| 72 | 1862 | - 1862—1862: Lincoln issues first legal US paper money (Greenbacks)
- 20 Apr 1862—20 Apr 1862: First pasteurisation test completed by Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard
|
| 73 | 1863 | - 1863—1863: Football Association founded (UK)
- 1863—1863: Opening of state institution for criminally insane at Broadmoor, England
- 10 Jan 1863—10 Jan 1863: First section of the London Underground Railway opens
|
| 74 | 1864 | - 1864—1864: A man-powered submarine, 'Hunley' sank a Federal steam ship USS Housatonic at the entrance to Charleston harbour in 1864 - the first recorded successful attack by a submarine on a surface ship
- 11 Mar 1864—11 Mar 1864: The Great Sheffield Flood - over 250 died when a new dam broke while it was being filled for the first time
- 20 Aug 1864—20 Aug 1864: Red Cross established - Twelve nations sign the First Geneva Convention
- 8 Dec 1864—8 Dec 1864: Clifton Suspension Bridge over the River Avon officially opened
|
| 75 | 1865 | - 1865—1865: Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) becomes first woman doctor in England [she later became the first woman mayor in England, in Aldeburgh 1908]
- 1865—1865: First concrete roads built in Britain
- 14 Apr 1865—14 Apr 1865: End of American Civil War - slavery abolished in USA
- 14 Apr 1865—14 Apr 1865: Abraham Lincoln assassinated in Ford's Theatre by John Wilkes Booth
- 5 Jul 1865—5 Jul 1865: William Booth (1829-1912) founds Salvation Army, in London
|
| 76 | 1867 | - 1 Jul 1867—1 Jul 1867: The British North America Act takes effect, creating the Canadian Confederation
|
| 77 | 1868 | - 1868—1868: Last convicts landed in Australia (Western Australia)
|
| 78 | 1869 | - 1869—1869: Ball bearings, celluloid, margarine, and washing machines, all invented
- 23 Nov 1869—23 Nov 1869: Cutty Sark launched in Dumbarton
|
| 79 | 1870 | - 1870—1870: GPO takes over the privately-owned Telegraph Companies (nationalised)
- 1870—1870: Dr Thomas Barnardo opens his first home for destitute children
- 1870—1870: Water closets come into wide use
- 1870—1870: Diamonds discovered in Kimberley, South Africa
- 1 Oct 1870—1 Oct 1870: First British postcard - halfpenny post
|
| 80 | 1871 | - 27 Mar 1871—27 Mar 1871: First Rugby Football international, England v Scotland, played in Edinburgh
- 29 Mar 1871—29 Mar 1871: Opening of Royal Albert Hall, London
- 29 Jun 1871—29 Jun 1871: Trades Unions legalised in Britain, but picketing made illegal
|
| 81 | 1872 | - 1872—1872: Licensing hours introduced
- 1872—1872: Penalties introduced for failing to register births, marriages & deaths (Eng & Wales)
- 4 Dec 1872—4 Dec 1872: American ship 'Mary Celeste' is found abandoned by the British brig 'Dei Gratia' in the Atlantic Ocean
|
| 82 | 1874 | - 1874—1874: Factory Act introduces 56-hour week
- 5 Apr 1874—5 Apr 1874: Birkenhead Park opened, said to be the first civic public park in the world - features of it later copied in Central Park, New York
|
| 83 | 1875 | - 1875—1875: London's main sewage system completed
- 1 Jan 1875—1 Jan 1875: Midland Railway abolishes Second Class passenger facilities, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies followed during the rest of the year. (Third Class was renamed Second Class in 1956)
|
| 84 | 1876 | - 14 Feb 1876—14 Feb 1876: Alexander Graham Bell and Elisha Gray each file a patent for the telephone - Bell awarded the rights
|
| 85 | 1877 | - 1877—1877: Edison invents microphone and phonograph
|
| 86 | 1878 | - 1878—1878: Edison & Swan invent electric lamp
- 1878—1878: Red Flag Act in Britain limits mechanical road vehicles to 4mph
- 1878—1878: CID established at New Scotland Yard
|
| 87 | 1879 | - 18 Sep 1879—18 Sep 1879: Blackpool illuminations switched on for first time
|
| 88 | 1880 | - 1880—1880: Education Act: schooling compulsory for 5-10 year olds
- 1880—1880: Mosquito found to be the carrier of malaria
- 2 Aug 1880—2 Aug 1880: Greenwich Mean Time adopted throughout UK
|
| 89 | 1881 | - 1881—1881: Postal Orders introduced
- 1881—1881: Flogging abolished in Army and Royal Navy
- Sep 1881—Sep 1881: Godalming in Surrey became the first town in England to have a public electricity
supply installed (but in 1884 it reverted to gas lighting until 1904)
- 26 Oct 1881—26 Oct 1881: Gunfight at OK Corral
|
| 90 | 1882 | - 1882—1882: Fourth Eddystone Lighthouse completed
|
| 91 | 1883 | - 1883—1883: Statue of Liberty presented to USA by France
- 24 May 1883—24 May 1883: Brooklyn Bridge, New York opens (crosses East River)
- 1 Aug 1883—1 Aug 1883: Parcel post starts in Britain
- 27 Aug 1883—27 Aug 1883: Eruption of Krakatoa near Java - 30,000 killed by tidal wave
|
| 92 | 1884 | - 31 May 1884—31 May 1884: John Harvey Kellogg patents corn flakes
- 13 Oct 1884—13 Oct 1884: Greenwich made prime meridian of the world
|
| 93 | 1885 | - 1885—1885: Carl Benz builds the 'Motorwagen', a single-cylinder motor car
- 1885—1885: Gottlieb Daimler patents the world's first motorcycle
- 1885—1885: Eastman makes first coated photographic paper
- 1885—1885: Canadian Pacific Railway completed
- Mar 1885—Mar 1885: First UK cremation in modern times took place at Woking
- 5 Sep 1885—5 Sep 1885: The first train runs through the Severn Tunnel
- 29 Sep 1885—29 Sep 1885: First electric tramcar used at Blackpool
|
| 94 | 1886 | - 20 Jan 1886—20 Jan 1886: Mersey railway (under Mersey) opened by Prince of Wales
- May 1886—May 1886: Pharmacist John Styth Pemberton invents a carbonated beverage later named 'Coca-Cola'
- 29 May 1886—29 May 1886: Putney Bridge opens in London
|
| 95 | 1887 | - 1887—1887: Daimler produces a four-wheeled motor car
|
| 96 | 1888 | - 1888—1888: Convention of Constantinople guarantees free maritime passage through Suez Canal in war and peace
- 1888—1888: Jack the Ripper active in east London during the latter half of the year
- 1888—1888: County Councils set up in Britain
- 1888—1888: Dunlop invents pneumatic tyre
- 1888—1888: First box camera - George Eastman registers the trademark Kodak, and receives a patent
for his camera which uses roll film
- 20 Mar 1888—20 Mar 1888: Football League formed
|
| 97 | 1889 | - 1889—1889: Celluloid film produced
- 1889—1889: Dock Strike - docker's won their 'Docker's Tanner' 6 old pennies
- 31 Mar 1889—31 Mar 1889: Eiffel Tower completed (to mark centenary of French Revolution)
- 14 May 1889—14 May 1889: Children's charity NSPCC launched in London
- 3 Jun 1889—3 Jun 1889: Canadian Pacific Railway completed from coast to coast
- 28 Sep 1889—28 Sep 1889: Length of a metre defined
|
| 98 | 1890 | - 4 Mar 1890—4 Mar 1890: Forth railway bridge opens - took six years to build
- 4 Nov 1890—4 Nov 1890: City & South London Railway opens - London's first deep-level tube railway
and first major railway in the world to use electric traction
|
| 99 | 1891 | - 1891—1891: Primary education made free and compulsory
- 18 Mar 1891—18 Mar 1891: First telephone link between London & Paris
- 4 May 1891—4 May 1891: Fictional date when Sherlock Holmes throws Moriarty over Reichenbach Falls, then disappears for 3 years! (published in 1893)
- 24 Aug 1891—24 Aug 1891: Thomas Edison patents the motion picture camera
|
| 100 | 1892 | - 1892—1892: Electric oven invented
- 1892—1892: Shop Hours Act - limit 74 hours per week for under-18's
- 6 Oct 1892—6 Oct 1892: Alfred Lord Tennyson dies, aged 83, at his house Aldworth, near Haslemere
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| 101 | 1893 | - 1893—1893: Henry Ford's first car
- 1893—1893: Zip fastener invented
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| 102 | 1894 | - 1894—1894: Picture postcard introduced in Britain
- 1 Jan 1894—1 Jan 1894: Manchester Ship Canal opens
- 1 Mar 1894—1 Mar 1894: Blackpool Tower opens
- 30 Jun 1894—30 Jun 1894: Tower Bridge first opens
- 2 Aug 1894—2 Aug 1894: Death duties first introduced in Britain
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| 103 | 1895 | - 1895—1895: Sir Henry Wood starts Promenade Concerts in London
- 12 Jan 1895—12 Jan 1895: The National Trust founded in England
- 24 May 1895—24 May 1895: Henry Irving becomes the first person from the theatre to be knighted
- 28 May 1895—28 May 1895: Oscar Wilde sent to prison
- 12 Jul 1895—12 Jul 1895: First recorded motor journey of any length (56 miles) in Britain
- 17 Oct 1895—17 Oct 1895: First people in Britain to be charged with motor offences - John Henry Knight and James Pullinger of Farnham, Surrey
- Nov 1895—Nov 1895: X-rays discovered
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| 104 | 1896 | - 5 Apr 1896—5 Apr 1896: First modern Olympic Games held in Athens
- 2 Jun 1896—2 Jun 1896: Guglielmo Marconi receives a British patent (later disputed) for the radio
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| 105 | 1897 | - 1897—1897: Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector
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| 106 | 1898 | - 1898—1898: First photograph using artificial light
- 1898—1898: Zeppelin builds airship
- 1898—1898: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company founded
- 17 Mar 1898—17 Mar 1898: USS Holland launched, the first practical submarine
- 27 Jun 1898—27 Jun 1898: The first solo circumnavigation of the globe completed at Rhode island by
Joshua Slocum in Spray (started from Boston, Mass on Apr 24, 1895)
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| 107 | 1899 | - 6 Mar 1899—6 Mar 1899: Aspirin first marketed by Bayer
- 11 Oct 1899—11 Oct 1899: Start of Second Boer War
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| 108 | 1900 | - 1900—1900: School leaving age in Britain raised to 14 years
- 1900—1900: Central Line opens in London: underground is electrified
- 1900—1900: Escalator shown at Paris exhibition
- 9 Feb 1900—9 Feb 1900: Davis Cup tennis competition established
- 27 Feb 1900—27 Feb 1900: Labour Party formed
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| 109 | 1901 | - 1901—1901: Commonwealth of Australia founded
- 1901—1901: Hubert Cecil Booth patents the vacuum cleaner
- 22 Jan 1901—22 Jan 1901: Queen Victoria dies - Edward VII king
- 2 Feb 1901—2 Feb 1901: Queen Victoria's funeral - interred beside Prince Albert in the Frogmore
Mausoleum at Windsor Great Park
- Jun 1901—Jun 1901: Denunciation of use of concentration camps by British in Boer War
- 2 Oct 1901—2 Oct 1901: Britain's first submarine launched
- 12 Dec 1901—12 Dec 1901: First successful radio transmission across the Atlantic, by Marconi - Morse
code from Cornwall to Newfoundland
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| 110 | 1902 | - 1902—1902: Balfour's Education Act provides for secondary education
- 1902—1902: Cremation Act - cremation can only take place at officially recognised establishments,
and with two death certificates issued
- 1902—1902: Marie Curie discovers radioactivity
- 24 May 1902—24 May 1902: Empire Day (later Commonwealth Day) first celebrated
- 31 May 1902—31 May 1902: Treaty of Vereeniging ends Second Boer War
- 9 Aug 1902—9 Aug 1902: Coronation of Edward VII
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| 111 | 1903 | - 1903—1903: Workers' Education Association (WEA) formed in Britain
- 1903—1903: Women's Social and Political Union formed in Britain by Emmeline Pankhurst
- 1903—1903: Henry Ford sets up his motor company
- 14 Dec 1903—14 Dec 1903: First flight of Wilbur & Orville Wright
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| 112 | 1904 | - 1904—1904: Leeds University established
- 8 Apr 1904—8 Apr 1904: France and UK sign the Entente Cordiale
- 4 May 1904—4 May 1904: America takes over construction of the Panama Canal from the French
(completed 1914)
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| 113 | 1905 | - 1905—1905: The title 'Prime Minister' noted in a royal warrant for the first time - placed the Prime
Minister in order of precedence in Britain immediately after the Archbishop of York
- 1905—1905: Aliens Act in Britain: Home Office controls immigration
- 1905—1905: Germany lays down the first Dreadnought battleship
- 11 Apr 1905—11 Apr 1905: Einstein publishes Special Theory of Relativity
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| 114 | 1906 | - 1906—1906: Introduction of free school meals for poor children
- 10 Feb 1906—10 Feb 1906: Launching of HMS Dreadnought, first turbine-driven battleship
- 15 Mar 1906—15 Mar 1906: Rolls-Royce Ltd registered
- 26 May 1906—26 May 1906: Vauxhall Bridge opened in London
- 20 Sep 1906—20 Sep 1906: Launching of Cunard's RMS Mauretania on the Tyne
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| 115 | 1907 | - 1907—1907: New Zealand becomes a Dominion
- 1907—1907: Imperial College, London, is established
- 1907—1907: First airship flies over London
- 1907—1907: Lumiere develops a process for colour photography
- Jul 1907—Jul 1907: Leo Hendrik Baekeland patents Bakelite, the first plastic invented that held its
shape after being heated
- 1 Aug 1907—1 Aug 1907: Baden-Powell leads the first Scout camp on Brownsea Island
- 9 Nov 1907—9 Nov 1907: The Cullinan Diamond presented to Edward VII on his birthday
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| 116 | 1908 | - 1908—1908: Coal Mines Regulation Act in Britain limits men to an eight hour day
- 1908—1908: Separate courts for juveniles established in Britain
- 1908—1908: Lord Baden-Powell starts the Boy Scout movement
- 1 Jul 1908—1 Jul 1908: SOS became effective as an international signal of distress
- 12 Aug 1908—12 Aug 1908: First 'Model T' Ford made
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| 117 | 1909 | - 1909—1909: Beveridge Report prompts creation of labour Exchanges
- 1909—1909: Peary reaches the north pole
- 1909—1909: First commercial manufacture of Bakelite - start of the plastic age
- 1 Jan 1909—1 Jan 1909: Old Age Pensions Act came into force
- 16 Jan 1909—16 Jan 1909: Ernest Shackleton's expedition finds the magnetic South Pole
- 15 Mar 1909—15 Mar 1909: Selfridges department store opens in London
- 25 Jul 1909—25 Jul 1909: Bleriot flies across the Channel (36 minutes, Calais to Dover)
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| 118 | 1910 | - 1910—1910: Railway strike and coal strikes in Britain
- 1910—1910: Constitutional crisis in Britain
- 1910—1910: Dr Crippen caught by radio telegraphy; hanged 23 Nov at Pentonville
- 1910—1910: Madame Curie isolates radium
- 1910—1910: Halley's comet reappears
- 1910—1910: Tango becomes popular in North America and Europe
- 6 May 1910—6 May 1910: Edward VII dies - George V becomes King
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| 119 | 1911 | - 1911—1911: Parliament Act in Britain reduces the power of the House of Lords
- 1911—1911: British MPs receive a salary
- 1911—1911: First British Official Secrets Act
- 1911—1911: Rutherford: theory of atomic structures
- 1911—1911: Strikes by seamen, dock and transport workers (1911-1912)
- 2 Apr 1911—2 Apr 1911: Census: Population - England and Wales: 36 Million; Scotland: 4.6 Million; N Ireland: 1.25 Million
- 22 Jun 1911—22 Jun 1911: Coronation of George V
- 14 Dec 1911—14 Dec 1911: National Insurance introduced in Britain
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| 120 | 1912 | - 1912—1912: Irish Home Rule crisis grows in Britain
- 1912—1912: Britain nationalises the telephone system
- 1912—1912: Discovery of the 'Piltdown Man' - hoax, exposed in 1953
- 18 Jan 1912—18 Jan 1912: Captain Scott's last expedition - he and his team reach the south pole on Jan
18th; all die on the way back, their bodies found in November
- 14 Apr 1912—14 Apr 1912: The 'unsinkable' Titanic sinks on maiden voyage - loss of 1,513 lives
- 13 May 1912—13 May 1912: Royal Flying Corps (later the RAF) founded in Britain
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| 121 | 1913 | - 1913—1913: Third Irish Home Rule Bill rejected by House of Lords - threat of civil war in Ireland -
formation of Ulster Volunteers to oppose Home Rule
- 1913—1913: Suffragette demonstrations in London - Mrs Pankhurst imprisoned
- 1913—1913: Trade Union Act in Britain establishes the right to use Union funds for political
purposes
- 1913—1913: Invention of stainless steel by Harry Brearley of Sheffield
- 1913—1913: Geiger invents his counter to measure radioactivity
- 4 Jun 1913—4 Jun 1913: Emily Davison, a suffragette, runs out in front of the king's horse, Anmer, at the
Epsom Derby and dies
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| 122 | 1914 | - 1914—1914: Irish Home Rule Act provides for a separate Parliament in Ireland; the position of Ulster
to be decided after the War
- 1914—1914: Chaplin and De Mille make their first films
- 28 Jun 1914—28 Jun 1914: Archduke Ferdinand assassinated in Sarajevo
- 4 Aug 1914—4 Aug 1914: Britain declares war on Germany, citing Belgian neutrality as reason
- 5 Aug 1914—5 Aug 1914: British cableship Telconia cut through all five of Germany's undersea telegraph
links to the outside world
- 15 Aug 1914—15 Aug 1914: Panama Canal opened, the Canal cement boat 'Ancon' making the first official
transit (plans for a grand opening were cancelled due to the start of WW1)
- Oct 1914—Oct 1914: Battle of Ypres - beginning of trench warfare on western front
- 27 Nov 1914—27 Nov 1914: First policewoman goes on duty in Britain
- 16 Dec 1914—16 Dec 1914: German battleships bombard Hartlepool and Scarborough
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| 123 | 1915 | - 1915—1915: Junkers construct first fighter aeroplane
- 1915—1915: First automatic telephone exchange in Britain
- 19 Jan 1915—19 Jan 1915: First Zeppelin air raid on England, over East Anglia - four killed
- Feb 1915—Feb 1915: Submarine blockade of Britain starts
- Apr 1915—Apr 1915: Second Battle of Ypres - poison gas used for first time
- 25 Apr 1915—25 Apr 1915: Gallipoli campaign starts (declared ANZAC Day in 1916)
- 7 May 1915—7 May 1915: RMS Lusitania sunk by German submarine off coast of Ireland - 1,198 died
- 16 May 1915—16 May 1915: First meeting of a British WI (Women's Institute) took place in Llanfairpwll
(aka Llanfair PG), Anglesey
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| 124 | 1916 | - 1916—1916: Compulsory military service introduced in Britain
- Feb 1916—Feb 1916: Battle of Verdun - appalling losses on both sides, stalemate continues
- 24 Apr 1916—24 Apr 1916: Easter Rising in Ireland - after the leaders are executed, public opinion backs
independence
- 21 May 1916—21 May 1916: First use of Daylight Saving Time in UK
- 31 May 1916—31 May 1916: Battle of Jutland - only major naval battle between the British and
German fleets
- 5 Jun 1916—5 Jun 1916: Sinking of HMS Hampshire and death of Kitchener
- 3 Aug 1916—3 Aug 1916: Sir Roger Casement hanged at Pentonville Prison for treason
- 15 Sep 1916—15 Sep 1916: First use of tanks in battle, but of limited effect (Battle of the Somme 1 July to 18 Nov: over 1 million casualties)
- 7 Dec 1916—7 Dec 1916: Lloyd-George becomes British Prime Minister of the coalition government
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| 125 | 1917 | - 1917—1917: Battle of Cambrai - first use of massed tanks, but effect more psychological than actual
- 1917—1917: Ministry of Labour is established in Britain
- Feb 1917—Feb 1917: February revolution in Russia; Tsar Nicholas abdicates
- 16 Apr 1917—16 Apr 1917: Lenin returns to Russia after exile
- 17 Apr 1917—17 Apr 1917: USA declares war on Germany
- 26 May 1917—26 May 1917: George V changes surname from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor (Royal
proclamation on 17 July)
- Jul 1917—Jul 1917: Battle of Passchendaele - little gained by either side (Jul-Nov)
- 7 Nov 1917—7 Nov 1917: 'October' Revolution in Russia - Bolsheviks overthrow provisional government;
Lenin becomes Chief Commissar
- 6 Dec 1917—6 Dec 1917: Halifax (Nova Scotia) Explosion, one of the world's largest artificial non-nuclear
explosions to date: a ship loaded with wartime explosives blew up after a collision,
obliterating buildings and structures within two square kilometres of the explosion
- 9 Dec 1917—9 Dec 1917: British forces capture Jerusalem
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| 126 | 1918 | - 1918—1918: Vote for women over 30, men over 21 (except peers, lunatics and felons)
- 1918—1918: War of Independence in Ireland
- 18 Jan 1918—18 Jan 1918: Bentley Motors founded
- 8 Mar 1918—8 Mar 1918: Start of world-wide 'flu pandemic
- Jul 1918—Jul 1918: Second Battle of the Marne: last major German offensive in WW1 (Jul-Aug)
- 1 Oct 1918—1 Oct 1918: Arab forces under Lawrence of Arabia capture Damascus
- 11 Nov 1918—11 Nov 1918: Armistice signed
- Dec 1918—Dec 1918: First woman elected to House of Commons, Countess Markiewicz as a Sinn Fein
member refused to take her seat
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| 127 | 1919 | - 1919—1919: Britain adopts a 48-hour working week
- 1919—1919: Sir Ernest Rutherford publishes account of splitting the atom
- 15 Jun 1919—15 Jun 1919: Alcock and Brown complete first nonstop flight across the Atlantic
- 28 Jun 1919—28 Jun 1919: Treaty of Versailles signed
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| 128 | 1920 | - 1920—1920: Regular cross-channel air service starts
- 1920—1920: Marconi opens a radio broadcasting station in Britain
- 1920—1920: Thompson patents his machine gun (Tommy gun)
- Feb 1920—Feb 1920: First roadside petrol filling station in UK - opened by the Automobile Association
at Aldermaston on the Bath Road
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English
1843 - 1920 (76 years) 