1866 in the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
 1866 in the United Kingdom: |
| Other years |
| 1864 1864 in the United Kingdom Events from the year 1864 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Viscount Palmerston, Liberal-Events:* 11 January — Charing Cross railway station in London opens.... | 1865 1865 in the United Kingdom Events from the year 1865 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Viscount Palmerston, Liberal , Lord John Russell, Liberal-Events:... | 1866 | 1867 1867 in the United Kingdom Events from the year 1867 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Earl of Derby, Conservative-Events:* 5 March — Fenian rising in Ireland.... | 1868 1868 in the United Kingdom Events from the year 1868 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — Queen Victoria*Prime Minister — Earl of Derby, Conservative , Benjamin Disraeli, Conservative , William Ewart Gladstone, Liberal... |
| Sport |
| 1866 English cricket season 1866 English cricket season -External sources:* -Annual reviews:* John Lillywhite's Cricketer's Companion , Lillywhite, 1867* Arthur Haygarth, Scores & Biographies, Volume 9 , Lillywhite, 1867... |
Events from the year 1866 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
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Incumbents
- Monarch — Queen Victoria
- Prime Minister — Lord John RussellJohn Russell, 1st Earl RussellJohn Russell, 1st Earl Russell, KG, GCMG, PC , known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was an English Whig and Liberal politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century....
, LiberalLiberal Party (UK)The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
(until 28 June), Earl of DerbyEdward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of DerbyEdward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, KG, PC was an English statesman, three times Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and to date the longest serving leader of the Conservative Party. He was known before 1834 as Edward Stanley, and from 1834 to 1851 as Lord Stanley...
, ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Events
- 12 January — Royal Aeronautical SocietyRoyal Aeronautical SocietyThe Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a multidisciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community.-Function:...
is formed in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. - 11 May — London bank Overend, Gurney and CompanyOverend, Gurney and CompanyOverend, Gurney & Company was a London wholesale discount bank, known as "the bankers' bank", which collapsed in 1866 owing about 11 million pounds, equivalent to £981 million at 2008 prices.-Early years:...
collapses precipitating a financial crisisFinancial crisisThe term financial crisis is applied broadly to a variety of situations in which some financial institutions or assets suddenly lose a large part of their value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and many recessions coincided with these...
. - 18 June — Lord RussellJohn Russell, 1st Earl RussellJohn Russell, 1st Earl Russell, KG, GCMG, PC , known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was an English Whig and Liberal politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century....
loses a vote of no confidence1866 vote of no confidence against the government of the Earl RussellThe 1866 vote of no confidence against the government of the Earl Russell occurred when the Government of John Russell, 1st Earl Russell was defeated on Parliamentary reform proposals on 18th June 1866....
against his government. - 26 June — Lord Russell resigns as Prime Minister, following splits in the Liberal PartyLiberal Party (UK)The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
over parliamentary reform. The Earl of DerbyEdward Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of DerbyEdward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby, KG, PC was an English statesman, three times Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and to date the longest serving leader of the Conservative Party. He was known before 1834 as Edward Stanley, and from 1834 to 1851 as Lord Stanley...
takes over, leading a minority ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
administration. - 5 July — Marriage of Princess HelenaPrincess Helena of the United KingdomPrincess Helena was a member of the British Royal Family, the third daughter and fifth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert....
, third daughter of Queen Victoria, to Prince Christian of Schleswig-HolsteinPrince Christian of Schleswig-HolsteinPrince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein was a minor German prince who became a member of the British Royal Family through his marriage to Princess Helena of the United Kingdom , the fifth child and third daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of...
. - 23 July to 25 July — Demonstrations in Hyde ParkHyde Park, LondonHyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
in favour of parliamentary reform turn violent. - 27 July — The Transatlantic telegraph cableTransatlantic telegraph cableThe transatlantic telegraph cable was the first cable used for telegraph communications laid across the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. It crossed from , Foilhommerum Bay, Valentia Island, in western Ireland to Heart's Content in eastern Newfoundland. The transatlantic cable connected North America...
is successfully completed, allowing transatlantic telegraphTelegraphyTelegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages via some form of signalling technology. Telegraphy requires messages to be converted to a code which is known to both sender and receiver...
communication for the first time. - 1 August — The National Olympian Association (promoted by John Hulley of Liverpool and Dr William BrookesWilliam Penny BrookesDr. William Penny Brookes was an English surgeon, magistrate, botanist, and educationalist especially known for his promotion of physical education and personal betterment...
of the Wenlock Olympian Society Annual GamesWenlock Olympian Society Annual GamesThe Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games, dating from 1850, are a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games. They are held each year in Much Wenlock in Shropshire, England.-Overview:...
) stages the first National Olympian Games field events at The Crystal PalaceThe Crystal PalaceThe Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
in South LondonSouth LondonSouth London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
. - September
- Great Tea RaceThe Great Tea Race of 1866The Great Tea Race of 1866 was an unofficial competition between the fastest clipper ships of the China tea trade to bring the season's first crop of tea to London in 1866....
ends in London, narrowly won by the clipper ship TaepingTaepingThe Taeping was a clipper ship built in 1863 by Robert Steele of Greenock. Taeping participated in The Great Tea Race of 1866 and narrowly defeated the Ariel...
. - General Post OfficeGeneral Post OfficeGeneral Post Office is the name of the British postal system from 1660 until 1969.General Post Office may also refer to:* General Post Office, Perth* General Post Office, Sydney* General Post Office, Melbourne* General Post Office, Brisbane...
begins erection of hexagonal pillar boxes to the design of John PenfoldJohn PenfoldJohn Wornham Penfold was a surveyor and architect born in Haslemere, Surrey where he is also buried. The house in which he once lived, "Penfolds", is still to be found near the centre of the town....
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- Great Tea Race
- 12 December — The Oaks explosionThe Oaks explosionThe Oaks explosion occurred at the Oaks Colliery, near Stairfoot, Barnsley, South Yorkshire on 12 December 1866 killing more than 380 miners and rescuers. The disaster happened after a series of explosions caused by flammable gases ripped through the workings...
in the Barnsley seam in YorkshireYorkshireYorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
kills 361 coal miners; a subsidiary explosion the following day killing 27 rescuers.
Undated
- Mae Hen Wlad fy Nhadau is adopted as the national anthem of Wales.
- A choleraCholeraCholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
epidemic in London causes over 5,000 deaths. - Invention of the clinical thermometer by Thomas Clifford Allbutt.
- John Langdon DownJohn Langdon DownJohn Langdon Haydon Down was a British doctor best known for his description of a relatively common genetic disorder that is now called Down syndrome.-Education:...
describes Down syndromeDown syndromeDown syndrome, or Down's syndrome, trisomy 21, is a chromosomal condition caused by the presence of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. It is named after John Langdon Down, the British physician who described the syndrome in 1866. The condition was clinically described earlier in the 19th...
. - Elizabeth Garrett AndersonElizabeth Garrett AndersonElizabeth Garrett Anderson, LSA, MD , was an English physician and feminist, the first woman to gain a medical qualification in Britain and the first female mayor in England.-Early life:...
opens the St Mary's Dispensary where women could seek medical advice from exclusively female practitioners. - Morris ChairMorris ChairA Morris chair is an early type of reclining chair. The design was adapted by William Morris's firm, Morris & Company from a prototype owned by Ephraim Colman in rural Sussex, England. It was first marketed around 1866....
introduced by William MorrisWilliam MorrisWilliam Morris 24 March 18343 October 1896 was an English textile designer, artist, writer, and socialist associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Crafts Movement...
. - Cadbury's first sell cocoa for drinking.
- Colman's mustard receives a Royal WarrantRoyal WarrantRoyal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to those who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, so lending prestige to the supplier...
. - General Post OfficeGeneral Post OfficeGeneral Post Office is the name of the British postal system from 1660 until 1969.General Post Office may also refer to:* General Post Office, Perth* General Post Office, Sydney* General Post Office, Melbourne* General Post Office, Brisbane...
writes to all urban householders without a front door letter boxLetter boxA letter box, letterbox, letter plate, letter hole, mail slot, or mailbox is a receptacle for receiving incoming mail at a private residence or business...
urging them to provide one. - The Society of St. John the EvangelistSociety of St. John the EvangelistThe Society of St John the Evangelist is an Anglican religious order for men. The members live under a rule of life and, at profession, make monastic vows of poverty, celibacy and obedience. The SSJE was founded in 1866 at Cowley, Oxford, England, by the Father Richard Meux Benson, a priest in the...
("Cowley Fathers") is founded by Richard Meux BensonRichard Meux BensonRichard Meux Benson was a priest in the Church of England and founder of the Society of St. John the Evangelist, the first religious order of monks in the Anglican Communion since the Reformation...
at Cowley, OxfordCowley, OxfordCowley in Oxford, England, is a residential and industrial area that forms a small conurbation within greater Oxford. Cowley's neighbours are central Oxford to the northwest, Rose Hill and Blackbird Leys to the south, New Headington to the north and the villages of Horspath and Garsington across...
, the first stable Anglican religious orderAnglican religious orderAnglican religious orders are communities of laity and/or clergy in the Anglican Communion who live under a common rule of life. The members of religious orders take vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and lead a common life of work and prayer...
for men since the ReformationEnglish ReformationThe English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
. - John Graham ChambersJohn Graham ChambersJohn Graham Chambers was a Welsh sportsman. He rowed for Cambridge, founded inter-varsity sports, became English Champion walker, coached four winning Boat-Race crews, devised the Queensberry Rules, staged the Cup Final and the Thames Regatta, instituted championships for billiards, boxing,...
founds the Amateur Athletic Club, drawing up rules for athletic competition.
Publications
- George EliotGeorge EliotMary Anne Evans , better known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, journalist and translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era...
's novel Felix Holt, the RadicalFelix Holt, the RadicalFelix Holt, the Radical is a social novel written by George Eliot about political disputes in a small English town at the time of the First Reform Act of 1832.In January 1868, Eliot penned an article entitled "Address to Working Men, by Felix Holt"...
. - Mrs Oliphant’s novel Miss MarjoribanksMiss MarjoribanksMiss Marjoribanks is an 1866 novel by Margaret Oliphant. It follows the exploits of its heroine, Lucilla Marjoribanks, as she schemes to improve the social life of the provincial English town of Carlingford....
. - John Robert SeeleyJohn Robert SeeleySir John Robert Seeley, KCMG was an English essayist and historian.-Life:He was born in London, the son of R.B. Seeley, a publisher. Seeley developed a taste for religious and historical subjects...
's controversial and anonymous work Ecce Homo. - Hesba StrettonHesba StrettonHesba Stretton was the pen name of Sarah Smith , an English writer of children's books. She concocted the name from the initials of her five siblings and the name of a neighbouring village.-Early life:...
’s children’s story Jessica's First Prayer serialised in Sunday at Home; as a book, it sells one and half million copies. - A. C. Swinburne's Poems and Ballads.
Births
- 17 April — Ernest Starling, physiologist (died 19271927 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1927 in the United Kingdom.1927 saw the renaming of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, recognising in name the Irish free state's independence, it having come into existence with the Anglo-Irish Treaty...
) - 7 June — Ernest William HornungErnest William HornungErnest William Hornung , known as Willie, was an English author, most famous for writing the Raffles series of novels about a gentleman thief in late Victorian London....
, author (died 19211921 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1921 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George V*Prime Minister - David Lloyd George, coalition-January to June:* 1 January - Car tax discs introduced....
) - 26 June — George Herbert, 5th Earl of CarnarvonGeorge Herbert, 5th Earl of CarnarvonGeorge Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon was an English aristocrat best known as the financial backer of the search for and the excavation of Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.-Biography:...
, financier of Egyptian excavations (died 19231923 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1923 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George V*Prime Minister - Andrew Bonar Law, Conservative Party , Stanley Baldwin, Conservative-Events:...
) - 28 July — Beatrix PotterBeatrix PotterHelen Beatrix Potter was an English author, illustrator, natural scientist and conservationist best known for her imaginative children’s books featuring animals such as those in The Tale of Peter Rabbit which celebrated the British landscape and country life.Born into a privileged Unitarian...
, children's author (died 19431943 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1943 in the United Kingdom. This year is dominated by World War II.-Incumbents:*Monarch – King George VI*Prime Minister – Winston Churchill, coalition-Events:* 1 January – Utility furniture first becomes available....
) - 21 September — H. G. WellsH. G. WellsHerbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
, writer (died 19461946 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1946 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George V*Prime Minister - Clement Attlee, Labour-Events:* 1 January** The first international flight from London Heathrow Airport, to Buenos Aires....
) - 12 October — Ramsay MacDonaldRamsay MacDonaldJames Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
, Prime MinisterPrime Minister of the United KingdomThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
(died 19371937 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1937 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch – King George VI*Prime Minister – Stanley Baldwin, national coalition , Neville Chamberlain, national coalition-Events:...
) - 8 November — Herbert Austin, 1st Baron AustinHerbert Austin, 1st Baron AustinHerbert 'Pa' Austin, 1st Baron Austin KBE was an English automobile designer and builder who founded the Austin Motor Company.-Background and early life:...
, car designer (died 19411941 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1941 in the United Kingdom. This year is dominated by World War II.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George VI*Prime Minister - Winston Churchill, coalition-Events:...
) - 30 November — Robert BroomRobert BroomProfessor Robert Broom was a Scottish South African doctor and paleontologist. He qualified as a medical practitioner in 1895 and received his DSc in 1905 from the University of Glasgow...
, paleontologist (died 19511951 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1951 in the United Kingdom. This is the year of the Festival of Britain and a general election bringing a change of government.r-Incumbents:*Monarch — King George VI...
) - date unknown — Ethna CarberyEthna CarberyEthna Carbery was an Irish journalist, writer and poet. She is best-known for the ballad Roddy McCorley and the Song of Ciabhán; the latter was set to music by Ivor Gurney. Along with Alice Milligan she published two Irish nationalist magazines.-Life:Anna Johnston was born in Ballymena, County...
, Irish poet (died 19021902 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1902 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King Edward VII*Prime Minister - Robert Cecil, Marquess of Salisbury, Conservative , Arthur Balfour, Conservative-Events:...
)
Deaths
- 23 January — Thomas Love PeacockThomas Love PeacockThomas Love Peacock was an English satirist and author.Peacock was a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and they influenced each other's work...
, satirist (born 17851785 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1785 in the Kingdom of Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - George III of the United Kingdom*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:...
) - 27 January — John GibsonJohn Gibson (sculptor)John Gibson, was a Welsh sculptor.-Early life:He was born near Conwy, Wales, his father being a market gardener. To his mother, whom he described as ruling his father and all the family, he owed the energy and determination which carried him over every obstacle.When he was nine years old the...
, sculptor, (born 17901790 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1790 in the Kingdom of Great Britain. This is a General Election year.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:...
) - 6 March — William WhewellWilliam WhewellWilliam Whewell was an English polymath, scientist, Anglican priest, philosopher, theologian, and historian of science. He was Master of Trinity College, Cambridge.-Life and career:Whewell was born in Lancaster...
, scientist, philosopher, and historian of science (born 17941794 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1794 in the Kingdom of Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:* 23 March - British troops capture Martinique from the French....
) - 5 April — Thomas HodgkinThomas HodgkinThomas Hodgkin was a British physician, considered one of the most prominent pathologists of his time and a pioneer in preventive medicine. He is now best known for the first account of Hodgkin's disease, a form of lymphoma and blood disease, in 1832...
, physician (born 17981798 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1798 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:* May–September - Irish Rebellion: Irish rebels stage an uprising against British rule....
) - 1 December — George EverestGeorge EverestColonel Sir George Everest was a Welsh surveyor, geographer and Surveyor-General of India from 1830 to 1843.Sir George was largely responsible for completing the section of the Great Trigonometric Survey of India along the meridian arc from the south of India extending north to Nepal, a distance...
, geodesist (born 17901790 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1790 in the Kingdom of Great Britain. This is a General Election year.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:...
)