| |
Date |
Event(s) |
| 1 | 1755 | - 1755—1827: Canal construction began
Period of canal construction began in Britain (till 1827)
|
| 2 | 1827 | - 1827: Ohm's Law
Ohm's Law published
|
| 3 | 1828 | - 25 Oct 1828: St Katharine Docks
St Katharine Docks in London opened (designed by Thomas Telford)
|
| 4 | 1829 | - 1829: London Metropolitan Police Force
London Metropolitan Police Force formed, nicknamed 'Bobbies' after Sir Robert Peel
- 1829: Louis Braille
Louis Braille invents his system of finger-reading for the blind
- 10 Jun 1829: Oxford/Cambridge Boat Race
First Oxford/Cambridge Boat Race
- 6 Oct 1829: George Stephenson's Rocket
George Stephenson's Rocket wins the Rainhill trials (it was the only one to
complete the trial!)
|
| 5 | 1830 | - 1830: Uprisings and agitation across Europe
Uprisings and agitation across Europe: the Netherlands are split into Holland and Belgium
- Jul 1830: Fall of Charles X
Revolution in France, fall of Charles X and the Bourbons - Louis Philippe (the
Citizen King) on the throne
- 15 Sep 1830: Liverpool & Manchester Railway opened
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!
|
| 6 | 1831 | - 1831: A list of parish registers compiled
A list of all parish registers dating prior to 1813 compiled
- 1 Jun 1831: North Magnetic Pole
James Clark Ross discovers the North Magnetic Pole
- 1 Aug 1831: 'New' London Bridge opens
'New' London Bridge opens (replaced 1973) old bridge (which had existed for over 600 years) then demolished
|
| 7 | 1832 | - 1832: Electoral Register
Electoral Registers introduced
- 1832: Electric telegraph invented
Electric telegraph invented by Morse
- 7 Jun 1832: Representation of the People Act
Reform Bill passed - Representation of the People Act
|
| 8 | 1833 | - Jan 1833: Falkland Islands
In December 1832, two naval vessels were sent by the United Kingdom to reassert British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (Spanish: Islas Malvinas), after the United Provinces of South America (part of which later became Argentina) ignored British diplomatic protests over the appointment of Luis Vernet as governor of the Falkland Islands and a dispute over fishing rights.
- 29 Aug 1833: Factory Act
Factory Act forbids employment of children below age of 9
|
| 9 | 1834 | - 1834: Babbage
Babbage invents forerunner of the computer
- 18 Mar 1834: Tolpuddle Martyrs
'Tolpuddle Martyrs' transported (to Australia) for Trades Union activities
- 1 May 1834: Slavery abolished
Slavery abolished in British possessions
|
| 10 | 1835 | - 1835: First railway boom
First railway boom period starts in Britain construction of Great Western Railway
- 25 Dec 1835: Christmas
Christmas becomes a national holiday
|
| 11 | 1836 | - 1836: First Potato famine
First Potato famine in Ireland
- 30 Jan 1836: Menai Straits Bridge opened
Telford's Menai Straits Bridge opened, considered the world's first modern suspension bridge
- 25 Feb 1836: Samuel Colt
Samuel Colt patented the 'revolver'
- 6 Mar 1836: Death of Davy Crockett
The Alamo falls to Mexican troops - death of Davy Crockett
- Jul 1836: Arc de Triomphe
Inauguration of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris
|
| 12 | 1837 | - 1837: Pitman shorthand
Pitman introduces his shorthand system
- 1837: P&O Founded
P&O Founded
- 20 Jun 1837: King William IV dies
William IV dies - accession of Queen Victoria (to 1901)
- 1 Jul 1837: Compulsory registration of Births, Marriages & Deaths in England & Wales
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: Buckingham Palace
Queen Victoria moves into the first Buckingham Palace
- 20 Jul 1837: Euston Railway station
Euston Railway station opens - first in London
|
| 13 | 1838 | - 28 Jun 1838: Coronation of Queen Victoria
Coronation of Queen Victoria at Westminster Abbey
|
| 14 | 1839 | - 1839: First Opium War
First Opium War between Britain and China (to 1842) - Britain captures Hong Kong
- 1839: Kirkpatrick MacMillan
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: Charles Goodyear
Charles Goodyear invented vulcanized rubber
|
| 15 | 1840 | - 1840: Census
Population Act relating to taking of censuses in Britain
- 1840: Last convicts landed in NSW
Last convicts landed in NSW (some say 1842 or 1849, but these probably landed
elsewhere)
- 10 Jan 1840: Penny Postage
Uniform Penny Postage introduced nationally
|
| 16 | 1841 | - 1841: Thomas Cook
Thomas Cook starts package tours
- 10 Feb 1841: Penny Red
Penny Red replaces Penny Black postage stamp
- 6 Jun 1841: First full census
June 6: First full census in Britain in which all names were recorded(Population 18.5M)
|
| 17 | 1842 | - 1842: Income Tax reintroduced
Income Tax reintroduced in Britain
- 30 Mar 1842: Ether used as an anesthetic
Ether used as an anesthetic for the first time (by Dr Crawford Long in America)
- 29 Aug 1842: Treaty of Nanking
Treaty of Nanking - End of First Opium War - Britain gains Hong Kong
|
| 18 | 1843 | - 1843: First Christmas card
First Christmas card in England
- 27 May 1843: Great Hall of Euston station opens
The Great Hall of Euston station opened in London
- 19 Jul 1843: SS Great Britain
Brunel's 'Great Britain' launched
|
| 19 | 1844 | - 6 Jun 1844: YMCA founded
YMCA founded in London by Sir George Williams
|
| 20 | 1845 | - 1845: Tarmac laid for first time
Tarmac laid for first time (in Nottingham)
- 17 Mar 1845: Rubber band patented
The rubber band patented by Stephen Perry
|
| 21 | 1846 | - 10 Sep 1846: Sewing machine is patented
The sewing machine is patented by Elias Howe
|
| 22 | 1847 | - 1847: Mormons
US Mormons make Salt Lake City their centre
- Jan 1847: Anesthetic used for the first time in England
An anesthetic used for the first time in England (James Simpson used ether to numb the pain of labour)
|
| 23 | 1848 | - 1848: Chewing gum
First commercial production of chewing gum
- 24 Jan 1848: California gold rush
Gold found at Sutter's Mill, California - starts the California gold rush
- 11 Jul 1848: Waterloo station opens
Waterloo railway station in London opens
|
| 24 | 1849 | - 1849: Florin introduced
Florin(2 shilling coin) introduced as the first step to decimalisation - which finally occurred in 1971!
|
| 25 | 1851 | - 1851: Gold Rush
Gold discovered in Australia
- 1 May 1851: 'Crystal Palace' exhibition
Great exhibition of the works of industry of all nations ('Crystal Palace' exhibition) opened in Hyde Park
|
| 26 | 1852 | - 1852: Tasmania
Tasmania ceases to be a convict settlement
- 1852: Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo established in USA
|
| 27 | 1853 | - 1853: Vaccination against smallpox
Vaccination against smallpox made compulsory in Britain
|
| 28 | 1854 | - 1854: Cigarettes introduced into Britain
Cigarettes introduced into Britain
- 27 Mar 1854: Crimean War
Britain declares war on Russia (Crimean War)
- 25 Oct 1854: charge of the Light Brigade
Battle of Balaklava in Crimea (charge of the Light Brigade)
|
| 29 | 1856 | - 1856: End of Crimean War
End of Crimean War
- 29 Jan 1856: Victoria Cross created by Royal Warran
Victoria Cross created by Royal Warrant, backdated to 1854 to recognise acts
during the Crimean War (first award ceremony 26 June 1857)
|
| 30 | 1857 | - 1857: Transatlantic cable
Work starts on the laying of the Transatlantic cable
|
| 31 | 1858 | - 1858: The great stink
'The great stink' - smell of the River Thames forced Parliament to stop work
- 1858: Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House opens in Covent Garden, London
|
| 32 | 1859 | - 25 Apr 1859: Work Started on the Suez canal
Work started on building the Suez canal (opened 17 Nov 1869)
- 4 May 1859: Royal Albert Bridge opened
Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge opened at Saltash giving rail link between Devon
and Cornwall
- 24 Nov 1859: The Origin of Species published
Charles Darwin publishes 'The Origin of Species'
|
| 33 | 1860 | - 29 Aug 1860: First tram service in Europe starts
First tram service in Europe starts in Birkenhead
|
| 34 | 1861 | - 25 May 1861: American Civil War begins
American Civil War begins
|
| 35 | 1862 | - 20 Apr 1862: First pasteurisation test
First pasteurisation test completed by Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard
|
| 36 | 1863 | - 1863: Football Association founded
Football Association founded (UK)
- 1863: Broadmoor opens
Opening of state institution for criminally insane at Broadmoor, England
- 10 Jan 1863: London Underground
First section of the London Underground Railway opens - In 1855 an Act of Parliament was passed approving the construction of an underground railway between Paddington Station and Farringdon Street via King's Cross which was to be called the Metropolitan Railway.
|
| 37 | 1864 | - 1864: First recorded successful attack by a submarine on a surface ship
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: Great Sheffield Flood
The Great Sheffield Flood - over 250 died when a new dam broke while it was being filled for the first time
- 20 Aug 1864: Red Cross established
Red Cross established - Twelve nations sign the First Geneva Convention
- 8 Dec 1864: Clifton Suspension Bridge
Clifton Suspension Bridge over the River Avon officially opened
|
| 38 | 1865 | - 1865: First woman doctor in England
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) becomes first woman doctor in England [she later became the first woman mayor in England, in Aldeburgh 1908]
- 1865: Last convicts landed in NSW
First concrete roads built in Britain
- 14 Apr 1865: End of American Civil War
End of American Civil War - slavery abolished in USA
- 14 Apr 1865: Abraham Lincoln assassinated
Abraham Lincoln assassinated in Ford's Theatre by John Wilkes Booth
- 5 Jul 1865: Salvation Army founded
William Booth (1829-1912) founds Salvation Army, in London
|
| 39 | 1867 | - 1 Jul 1867: Canadian Confederation
The British North America Act takes effect, creating the Canadian Confederation
|
| 40 | 1868 | - 1868: Last convicts landed in Australia
Last convicts landed in Australia (Western Australia)
|
| 41 | 1869 | - 1869: Washing machines
Ball bearings, celluloid, margarine, and washing machines, all invented
- 23 Nov 1869: Cutty Sark
Cutty Sark launched in Dumbarton
|
| 42 | 1870 | - 1870: General Post Office
GPO takes over the privately-owned Telegraph Companies (nationalised)
- 1870: Dr Thomas Barnardo
Dr Thomas Barnardo opens his first home for destitute children
- 1870: Water closets
Water closets come into wide use
- 1870: Diamonds
Diamonds discovered in Kimberley, South Africa
- 1 Oct 1870: First British postcard
First British postcard - halfpenny post
|
| 43 | 1871 | - 27 Mar 1871: First Rugby Football international
First Rugby Football international, England v Scotland, played in Edinburgh
- 29 Mar 1871: Royal Albert Hall
Opening of Royal Albert Hall, London
- 29 Jun 1871: Trades Unions legalised
Trades Unions legalised in Britain, but picketing made illegal
|
| 44 | 1872 | - 1872: Licensing hours introduced
Licensing hours introduced
- 1872: Penalties introduced
Penalties introduced for failing to register births, marriages & deaths (Eng & Wales)
- 4 Dec 1872: Mary Celeste
American ship 'Mary Celeste' is found abandoned by the British brig 'Dei Gratia' in the Atlantic Ocean
|
| 45 | 1874 | - 1874: 56-hour week
Factory Act introduces 56-hour week
- 5 Apr 1874: Birkenhead Park opened
Birkenhead Park opened, said to be the first civic public park in the world - features of it later copied in Central Park, New York
|
| 46 | 1875 | - 1875: London's main sewage system completed.
Joseph Bazalgette, a civil engineer and Chief Engineer of the Metropolitan Board of Works, was given responsibility for the work. He designed an extensive underground sewerage system that diverted waste to the Thames Estuary, downstream of the main centre of population. Six main interceptor sewers, totalling almost 100 miles (160 km) in length, were constructed, some incorporating stretches of London's 'lost' rivers. Three of these sewers were north of the river, the southernmost, low-level one being incorporated in the Thames Embankment.
- 1 Jan 1875: Second Class passenger facilities abolished
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)
|
| 47 | 1876 | - 14 Feb 1876: Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell and Elisha Gray each file a patent for the telephone - Bell awarded the rights
|
| 48 | 1877 | - 1877: Edison invents microphone
Edison invents microphone and phonograph
|
| 49 | 1878 | - 1878: Electric lamp invented
Edison & Swan invent electric lamp
- 1878: Red Flag Act in
Red Flag Act in Britain limits mechanical road vehicles to 4mph
- 1878: CID established
Criminal Investigation Department established at New Scotland Yard
|
| 50 | 1879 | - 18 Sep 1879: Blackpool illuminations
Blackpool illuminations switched on for first time
|
| 51 | 1880 | - 1880: Education Act:
Education Act: schooling compulsory for 5-10 year olds
- 1880: Malaria
Mosquito found to be the carrier of malaria
- 2 Aug 1880: Greenwich Mean Time
Greenwich Mean Time adopted throughout UK
|
| 52 | 1881 | - 1881: Postal Orders introduced
Postal Orders introduced
- 1881: Flogging abolished
Flogging abolished in Army and Royal Navy
- Sep 1881: First town with electricity supply
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: Gunfight at OK Corral
Gunfight at OK Corral
|
| 53 | 1882 | - 1882: Fourth Eddystone Lighthouse completed
Fourth Eddystone Lighthouse completed
|
| 54 | 1883 | - 1883: Statue of Liberty
Statue of Liberty presented to USA by France
- 24 May 1883: Brooklyn Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge, New York opens (crosses East River)
- 1 Aug 1883: Parcel post starts in Britain
Parcel post starts in Britain
- 27 Aug 1883: Eruption of Krakatoa
Eruption of Krakatoa near Java - 30,000 killed by tidal wave
|
| 55 | 1884 | - 31 May 1884: Kellogg's corn flakes
John Harvey Kellogg patents corn flakes
- 13 Oct 1884: Greenwich made prime meridian
Greenwich made prime meridian of the world
|
| 56 | 1885 | - 1885: Carl Benz
Carl Benz builds the 'Motorwagen', a single-cylinder motor car
- 1885: Gottlieb Daimler
Gottlieb Daimler patents the world's first motorcycle
- 1885: first coated photographic paper
Eastman makes first coated photographic paper
- Mar 1885: First UK cremation in modern times
First UK cremation in modern times took place at Woking
- 5 Sep 1885: Severn Tunnel
The first train runs through the Severn Tunnel
- 29 Sep 1885: Blackpool Trams
First electric tramcar used at Blackpool
|
| 57 | 1886 | - 20 Jan 1886: Mersey railway opened
Mersey railway (under Mersey) opened by Prince of Wales
- May 1886: Coca-Cola
Pharmacist John Styth Pemberton invents a carbonated beverage later named 'Coca-Cola'
- 29 May 1886: Putney Bridge
Putney Bridge opens in London
|
| 58 | 1887 | - 1887: Daimler produces a four-wheeled motor car
Daimler produces a four-wheeled motor car
|
| 59 | 1888 | - 1888: Suez Canal
Convention of Constantinople guarantees free maritime passage through Suez Canal in war and peace
- 1888: Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper active in east London during the latter half of the year
- 1888: County Councils
County Councils set up in Britain
- 1888: Pneumatic tyre invented
Dunlop invents pneumatic tyre
- 1888: First box camera
First box camera - George Eastman registers the trademark Kodak, and receives a patent for his camera which uses roll film
- 20 Mar 1888: Football League
Football League formed
|
| 60 | 1889 | - 1889: Celluloid film
Celluloid film produced
- 1889: Dock Strike
Dock Strike - docker's won their 'Docker's Tanner' 6 old pennies
- 31 Mar 1889: Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower completed (to mark centenary of French Revolution)
- 14 May 1889: NSPCC charity launched
Children's charity NSPCC launched in London
- 3 Jun 1889: Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway completed from coast to coast
- 28 Sep 1889: Length of a metre defined
Length of a metre defined
|
| 61 | 1890 | - 4 Mar 1890: Forth railway bridge opens
Forth railway bridge opens - took six years to build
- 4 Nov 1890: City & South London Railway opens
City & South London Railway opens - London's first deep-level tube railway
and first major railway in the world to use electric traction
|
| 62 | 1891 | - 1891: Primary education
Primary education made free and compulsory
- 18 Mar 1891: London & Paris
First telephone link between London & Paris
- 4 May 1891: Reichenbach Falls
Fictional date when Sherlock Holmes throws Moriarty over Reichenbach Falls, then disappears for 3 years! (published in 1893)
- 24 Aug 1891: Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison patents the motion picture camera
|
| 63 | 1892 | - 1892: Electric oven invented
Electric oven invented
- 1892: Shop Hours Act
Shop Hours Act - limit 74 hours per week for under-18's
- 6 Oct 1892: Alfred Lord Tennyson
Alfred Lord Tennyson dies, aged 83, at his house Aldworth, near Haslemere
|
| 64 | 1893 | - 1893: Henry Ford
Henry Ford's first car
- 1893: Zip fastener invented
Zip fastener invented
|
| 65 | 1894 | - 1894: Picture postcard
Picture postcard introduced in Britain
- 1 Jan 1894: Manchester Ship Canal
Manchester Ship Canal opens
- 1 Mar 1894: Blackpool Tower opens
Blackpool Tower opens
- 30 Jun 1894: Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge first opens
- 2 Aug 1894: Death duties
Death duties first introduced in Britain
|
| 66 | 1895 | - 1895: Promenade Concerts
Sir Henry Wood starts Promenade Concerts in London
- 12 Jan 1895: The National Trust
The National Trust founded in England
- 24 May 1895: Henry Irving
Henry Irving becomes the first person from the theatre to be knighted
- 28 May 1895: Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde sent to prison
- 12 Jul 1895: First recorded motor journey of any length
First recorded motor journey of any length (56 miles) in Britain
- 17 Oct 1895: First motor offences
First people in Britain to be charged with motor offences - John Henry Knight and James Pullinger of Farnham, Surrey
- Nov 1895: X-rays discovered
X-rays discovered
|
| 67 | 1896 | - 5 Apr 1896: First modern Olympic Games
First modern Olympic Games held in Athens
- 2 Jun 1896: Guglielmo Marconi
Guglielmo Marconi receives a British patent (later disputed) for the radio
|
| 68 | 1897 | - 1897: Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison patents the Kinetoscope, the first movie projector
|
| 69 | 1898 | - 1898: First photograph using artificial light
First photograph using artificial light
- 1898: Zeppelin airship
Zeppelin builds airship
- 17 Mar 1898: USS Holland launched
USS Holland launched, the first practical submarine
- 27 Jun 1898: First solo circumnavigation of the globe
The first solo circumnavigation of the globe completed at Rhode island by
Joshua Slocum in Spray (started from Boston, Mass on Apr 24, 1895)
|
| 70 | 1899 | - 6 Mar 1899: Aspirin
Aspirin first marketed by Bayer
- 11 Oct 1899: Second Boer War
Start of Second Boer War
|
| 71 | 1900 | - 1900: School leaving age
School leaving age in Britain raised to 14 years
- 1900: Central Line
Central Line opens in London: underground is electrified
- 1900: Escalators
Escalator shown at Paris exhibition
- 9 Feb 1900: Davis Cup
Davis Cup tennis competition established
- 27 Feb 1900: Labour Party formed
Labour Party formed
|
| 72 | 1901 | - 1901: Commonwealth of Australia
Commonwealth of Australia founded
- 1901: Vacuum cleaner
Hubert Cecil Booth patents the vacuum cleaner
- 22 Jan 1901: Queen Victoria dies
Queen Victoria dies - Edward VII king
- 2 Feb 1901: Queen Victoria's funeral
Queen Victoria's funeral - interred beside Prince Albert in the Frogmore
Mausoleum at Windsor Great Park
- Jun 1901: Concentration camps
Denunciation of use of concentration camps by British in Boer War
- 2 Oct 1901: Britain's first submarine launched
Britain's first submarine launched
- 12 Dec 1901: Radio transmission across the Atlantic
First successful radio transmission across the Atlantic, by Marconi - Morse
code from Cornwall to Newfoundland
|
| 73 | 1902 | - 1902: Balfour's Education Act
Balfour's Education Act provides for secondary education
- 1902: Cremation Act
Cremation Act - cremation can only take place at officially recognised establishments, and with two death certificates issued
- 1902: Marie Curie
Marie Curie discovers radioactivity
- 24 May 1902: Empire Day
Empire Day (later Commonwealth Day) first celebrated
- 31 May 1902: Treaty of Vereeniging
Treaty of Vereeniging ends Second Boer War
- 9 Aug 1902: Edward VII
Coronation of Edward VII
|
| 74 | 1903 | - 1903: Workers' Education Association (WEA)
Workers' Education Association (WEA) formed in Britain
- 1903: Women's Social and Political Union
Women's Social and Political Union formed in Britain by Emmeline Pankhurst
- 1903: Henry Ford
Henry Ford sets up his motor company
- 14 Dec 1903: First flight
First flight of Wilbur & Orville Wright
|
| 75 | 1904 | - 1904: Leeds University established
Leeds University established
- 8 Apr 1904: Entente Cordiale
France and UK sign the Entente Cordiale
- 4 May 1904: Panama Canal
America takes over construction of the Panama Canal from the French (completed 1914)
|
| 76 | 1905 | - 1905: Prime Minister
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: Aliens Act in Britain
Aliens Act in Britain: Home Office controls immigration
- 11 Apr 1905: Special Theory of Relativity
Einstein publishes Special Theory of Relativity
|
| 77 | 1906 | - 1906: Free school meals
Introduction of free school meals for poor children
- 10 Feb 1906: HMS Dreadnought
Launching of HMS Dreadnought, first turbine-driven battleship
- 15 Mar 1906: Rolls-Royce Ltd
Rolls-Royce Ltd registered
- 26 May 1906: Vauxhall Bridge
Vauxhall Bridge opened in London
- 20 Sep 1906: RMS Mauretania
Launching of Cunard's RMS Mauretania on the Tyne
|
| 78 | 1907 | - 1907: New Zealand
New Zealand becomes a Dominion
- 1907: Imperial College, London
Imperial College, London, is established
- 1907: First airship flies over London
First airship flies over London
- 1907: colour photography
Lumiere develops a process for colour photography
- Jul 1907: Bakelite
Leo Hendrik Baekeland patents Bakelite, the first plastic invented that held its shape after being heated
- 1 Aug 1907: Baden-Powell
Baden-Powell leads the first Scout camp on Brownsea Island
- 9 Nov 1907: Cullinan Diamond
The Cullinan Diamond presented to Edward VII on his birthday
|
| 79 | 1908 | - 1908: Coal Mines Regulation Act
Coal Mines Regulation Act in Britain limits men to an eight hour day
- 1908: Separate courts for juveniles
Separate courts for juveniles established in Britain
- 1908: Lord Baden-Powell
Lord Baden-Powell starts the Boy Scout movement
- 1 Jul 1908: SOS
SOS became effective as an international signal of distress
- 12 Aug 1908: First Ford Model T
First 'Model T' Ford made
|
| 80 | 1909 | - 1909: Beveridge Report
Beveridge Report prompts creation of labour Exchanges
- 1909: Peary reaches the north pole
Peary reaches the north pole
- 1909: First commercial manufacture of Bakelite
First commercial manufacture of Bakelite - start of the plastic age
- 1 Jan 1909: Old Age Pensions Act
Old Age Pensions Act came into force
- 16 Jan 1909: Ernest Shackleton
Ernest Shackleton's expedition finds the magnetic South Pole
- 15 Mar 1909: Selfridges
Selfridges department store opens in London
- 25 Jul 1909: Bleriot flies across the Channel
Bleriot flies across the Channel (36 minutes, Calais to Dover)
|
| 81 | 1910 | - 1910: Railway and coal strikes
Railway strike and coal strikes in Britain
- 1910: Constitutional crisis in Britain
The 1909 People's Budget was a product of then British Prime Minister H. H. Asquith's Liberal government, introducing many unprecedented taxes on the wealthy and radical social welfare programmes to Britain's political life. It was championed by Chancellor of the Exchequer David Lloyd George and his strong ally Winston Churchill, who was then President of the Board of Trade; the duo was called the "Terrible Twins" by contemporaries
- 1910: Dr Crippen
Dr Crippen caught by radio telegraphy; hanged 23 Nov at Pentonville
- 1910: Madame Curie
Madame Curie isolates radium
- 1910: Halley's comet
Halley's comet reappears
- 1910: Tango becomes popular
Tango becomes popular in North America and Europe
- 6 May 1910: Edward VII dies
Edward VII dies - George V becomes King
|
| 82 | 1911 | - 1911: Parliament Act
Parliament Act in Britain reduces the power of the House of Lords
- 1911: British MPs receive a salary
British MPs receive a salary
- 1911: Official Secrets Act
First British Official Secrets Act
- 1911: theory of atomic structures
Rutherford: theory of atomic structures
- 1911: Strikes by seamen, dock and transport workers
Strikes by seamen, dock and transport workers (1911-1912)
- 2 Apr 1911: Census
Census: Population - England and Wales: 36 Million; Scotland: 4.6 Million; N Ireland: 1.25 Million
- 22 Jun 1911: George V
Coronation of George V
- 14 Dec 1911: National Insurance
National Insurance introduced in Britain
|
| 83 | 1912 | - 1912: Irish Home Rule crisis
Irish Home Rule crisis grows in Britain
- 1912: Britain nationalises the telephone system
Britain nationalises the telephone system
- 1912: Discovery of the 'Piltdown Man'
Discovery of the 'Piltdown Man' - The significance of the specimen remained the subject of controversy until it was exposed in 1953 as a forgery, consisting of the lower jawbone of an orangutan deliberately combined with the skull of a fully developed modern human.
- 18 Jan 1912: Captain Scott's last expedition
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: Titanic sinks
The 'unsinkable' Titanic sinks on maiden voyage - loss of 1,513 lives
- 13 May 1912: Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps (later merged with the Royal Naval Air Service to become the RAF) founded in Britain
|
| 84 | 1913 | - 1913: Third Irish Home Rule Bill rejected by House of Lords
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: Suffragette demonstrations
Suffragette demonstrations in London - Mrs Pankhurst imprisoned
- 1913: Trade Union Act
Trade Union Act in Britain establishes the right to use Union funds for political purposes
- 1913: Stainless steel invented
Invention of stainless steel by Harry Brearley of Sheffield
- 1913: Geiger Counter
Geiger invents his counter to measure radioactivity
- 4 Jun 1913: Emily Davison
Emily Davison, a suffragette, runs out in front of the king's horse, Anmer, at the Epsom Derby and dies
|
| 85 | 1914 | - 1914: Irish Home Rule Act
Irish Home Rule Act provides for a separate Parliament in Ireland; the position of Ulster to be decided after the War
- 1914: Chaplin and De Mille
Chaplin and De Mille make their first films
- 28 Jun 1914: Archduke Ferdinand
Archduke Ferdinand assassinated in Sarajevo
- 4 Aug 1914: Britain declares war on Germany
Britain declares war on Germany, citing Belgian neutrality as reason
- 5 Aug 1914: British cableship Telconia
British cableship Telconia cut through all five of Germany's undersea telegraph
links to the outside world
- 15 Aug 1914: Panama Canal opened
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: Battle of Ypres
Battle of Ypres - beginning of trench warfare on western front
- 27 Nov 1914: First policewoman
First policewoman goes on duty in Britain
- 16 Dec 1914: German battleships
German battleships bombard Hartlepool and Scarborough
|
| 86 | 1915 | - 1915: Junkers
Junkers construct first fighter aeroplane
- 1915: Automatic telephone exchange
First automatic telephone exchange in Britain
- 19 Jan 1915: Zeppelin air raid
First Zeppelin air raid on England, over East Anglia - four killed
- Feb 1915: Submarine blockade
Submarine blockade of Britain starts
- Apr 1915: Second Battle of Ypres
Second Battle of Ypres - poison gas used for first time
- 25 Apr 1915: Gallipoli campaign
Gallipoli campaign starts (declared ANZAC Day in 1916)
- 7 May 1915: RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania sunk by German submarine off coast of Ireland - 1,198 died
- 16 May 1915: Women's Institute
First meeting of a British WI (Women's Institute) took place in Llanfairpwll
(aka Llanfair PG), Anglesey
|
1827 - 1915 (88 years)