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Date |
Event(s) |
| 1 | 1681 | - 1681—1681: Second Test Act (against non-conformists) passed by Westminster Parliament
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| 2 | 1682 | - 1682—1682: Pennsylvania founded by William Penn
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| 3 | 1685 | - 1685—1685: James the Second (1685-1689, died 1701) - Monmouth rebellion and battle of
Sedgemoor - British Army raised to 20,000 men
- 1685—1685: Judge Jeffreys and the Bloody Assizes - 320 executed, 800 transported
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| 4 | 1688 | - 1688—1688: Hearth Tax abolished
- Nov 1688—Nov 1688: The Glorious Revolution: James II abdicates
- 5 Nov 1688—5 Nov 1688: William of Orange lands at Torbay
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| 5 | 1689 | - 13 Feb 1689—13 Feb 1689: William III and Mary II, daughter of James II, jointly take the throne (only William, however, has regal power)
- 24 May 1689—24 May 1689: Toleration Act passed for Protestant non-conformists
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| 6 | 1690 | - 20 May 1690—20 May 1690: England passes Act of Grace, forgiving Roman Catholic followers of James II
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| 7 | 1692 | - 1692—1692: Land Tax introduced - an annual tax on personal estate, public offices and land.
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| 8 | 1694 | - 1694—1694: Mary II death leaves William III as sole ruler
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| 9 | 1695 | - 1695—1695: Freedom of Press in England granted
- 1695—1695: Start of Dissenters' lists in parish registers, children born but not christened in the parish church, some were named 'Papist' and others 'Protestants'
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| 10 | 1698 | - 1698—1698: Duties (taxes) on entries in parish registers - repealed after five years
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| 11 | 1701 | - 1701—1701: Act of Settlement bars Catholics from the British throne
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| 12 | 1702 | - 11 Mar 1702—11 Mar 1702: First English daily newspaper The Daily Courant (till 1735)
|
| 13 | 1707 | - 16 Jan 1707—16 Jan 1707: Union with Scotland - Scots agree to send 16 peers and 45 MPs to English
Parliament
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| 14 | 1710 | - 1710—1710: Tax on Apprentice Indentures introduced
|
| 15 | 1711 | - 11 Aug 1711—11 Aug 1711: First race meeting at Ascot
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| 16 | 1712 | - 1712—1712: Toleration Act passed - first relief to non-Anglicans
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| 17 | 1714 | - 1714—1714: Landholders forced to take the Oath of Allegiance and renounce Roman Catholicism
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| 18 | 1715 | - 1 Aug 1715—1 Aug 1715: Riot Act passed
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| 19 | 1723 | - 1723—1723: The Workhouse Act or Test - to get relief, a poor person has to enter Workhouse
|
| 20 | 1727 | - 11 Jun 1727—11 Jun 1727: George I dies - George II Hanover becomes king
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| 21 | 1733 | - 1733—1733: Law forbidding the use of Latin in parish registers generally obeyed - some continued in
Latin for a few years
|
| 22 | 1739 | - 1739—1739: Wesley and Whitefield commence great Methodist revival
|
| 23 | 1741 | - 1741—1741: Benjamin Ingham founded the Moravian Methodists or Inghamites - Earliest Moravian
registers
|
| 24 | 1752 | - 3 Sep 1752—3 Sep 1752: Julian Calendar dropped and Gregorian Calendar adopted in England and
Scotland, making this Sep 14
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| 25 | 1754 | - 1754—1754: Hardwicke Act (1753): Banns required & Printed Marriage Register forms used. Quakers & Jews were exempt
|
| 26 | 1759 | - 1759—1759: Wesley builds 356 Methodist chapels
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| 27 | 1760 | - 25 Oct 1760—25 Oct 1760: George II dies - George III Hanover, his grandson, becomes king.
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| 28 | 1780 | - 1780—1780: Male Servants Tax
|
| 29 | 1783 | - 1783—1783: Duty payable on Parish Register entries (3d per entry - repealed 1794) - led to a fall in
entries!
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| 30 | 1784 | - 2 Aug 1784—2 Aug 1784: First mail coaches in England (4pm Bristol / 8am London)
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| 31 | 1785 | - 1785—1785: Sunday School Society founded to educate poor children.
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| 32 | 1788 | - 1788—1788: Law passed requiring that chimney sweepers be a minimum of 8 years old.
- 26 Jan 1788—26 Jan 1788: First convicts & free settlers arrive in New South Wales, eleven ships commanded by Captain Arthur Phillip
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| 33 | 1792 | - 1792—1792: Repression in Britain (restrictions on freedom of the press)
- 1 Dec 1792—1 Dec 1792: King's Proclamation drawing out the British militia
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| 34 | 1793 | - 15 Apr 1793—15 Apr 1793: £5 notes first issued by the Bank of England
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| 35 | 1794 | - 1794—1794: Abolition of Parish Register duties
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| 36 | 1795 | - 1795—1795: The Famine Year
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| 37 | 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
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| 38 | 1798 | - 1798—1798: First planned human experiment with vaccination, to test theories of Edward Jenner
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| 39 | 1801 | - 1801—1801: Grand Union Canal opens in England
- 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)
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| 40 | 1803 | - 1803—1803: Poaching made a Capital offense in England if capture resisted
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| 41 | 1805 | - 21 Oct 1805—21 Oct 1805: Admiral Nelson's victory at Trafalgar
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| 42 | 1811 | - 5 Feb 1811—5 Feb 1811: Prince of Wales (future George IV) made Regent after George III deemed insane
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| 43 | 1815 | - 18 Jun 1815—18 Jun 1815: The Battle of Waterloo: Napoleon defeated and exiled to St. Helena
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| 44 | 1816 | - 1816—1816: For the first time British silver coins were produced with an intrinsic value substantially
below their face value
- 1816—1816: Large scale emigration to North America
|
| 45 | 1819 | - 1819—1819: Britain returns to gold standard
|
| 46 | 1820 | - 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
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| 47 | 1828 | - 25 Oct 1828—25 Oct 1828: St Katharine Docks in London opened.
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| 48 | 1829 | - 1829—1829: London Metropolitan Police Force formed, nicknamed 'Bobbies' after Sir Robert Peel
|
| 49 | 1831 | - 1831—1831: A list of all parish registers dating prior to 1813 compiled
- 1 Aug 1831—1 Aug 1831: 'New' London Bridge opens, replacing the 600 year old bridge.
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| 50 | 1832 | - 1832—1832: Electoral Registers introduced
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| 51 | 1833 | - 29 Aug 1833—29 Aug 1833: Factory Act forbids employment of children below age of 9
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| 52 | 1834 | - 1 May 1834—1 May 1834: Slavery abolished in British possessions
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| 53 | 1835 | - 1835—1835: First railway growth period in Britain with construction of G. W. R.
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| 54 | 1837 | - 20 Jun 1837—20 Jun 1837: William IV dies - accession of Queen Victoria
- 1 Jul 1837—1 Jul 1837: Compulsory registration of Births, Marriages & Deaths in England & Wales -
Civil Registration Districts were formed
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| 55 | 1840 | - 10 Jan 1840—10 Jan 1840: Uniform Penny Postage introduced nationally
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| 56 | 1841 | - 6 Jun 1841—6 Jun 1841: June 6: First full census in Britain in which all names were recorded (Population 18.5M)
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| 57 | 1851 | - 1 May 1851—1 May 1851: Great exhibition of the works of industry of all nations ('Crystal Palace' exhibition) opened in Hyde Park
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| 58 | 1853 | - 1853—1853: Vaccination against smallpox made compulsory in Britain
|
| 59 | 1856 | - 29 Jan 1856—29 Jan 1856: Victoria Cross created by Royal Warrant, backdated to 1854 to recognise acts
during the Crimean War
|
| 60 | 1859 | - 1859—1859: Peaceful picketing legalised in Britain
- 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'
|
| 61 | 1860 | - 29 Aug 1860—29 Aug 1860: First tram service in Europe starts in Birkenhead
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| 62 | 1861 | - 25 May 1861—25 May 1861: American Civil War begins
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| 63 | 1862 | - 20 Apr 1862—20 Apr 1862: First pasteurisation test completed by Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard
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| 64 | 1864 | - 20 Aug 1864—20 Aug 1864: Red Cross established - Twelve nations sign the First Geneva Convention
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| 65 | 1865 | - 5 Jul 1865—5 Jul 1865: William Booth (1829-1912) founds Salvation Army, in London
|
| 66 | 1870 | - 1870—1870: GPO takes over the privately-owned Telegraph Companies (nationalised)
- 1870—1870: Water closets come into wide use
- 1 Oct 1870—1 Oct 1870: First British postcard - halfpenny post
|
| 67 | 1872 | - 1872—1872: Licensing hours introduced
- 1872—1872: Penalties introduced for failing to register births, marriages & deaths (Eng & Wales)
|
| 68 | 1874 | - 1874—1874: Factory Act introduces 56-hour week
|
| 69 | 1880 | - 1880—1880: Education Act: schooling compulsory for 5-10 year olds
|
| 70 | 1883 | - 1 Aug 1883—1 Aug 1883: Parcel post starts in Britain
|
| 71 | 1888 | - 1888—1888: County Councils set up in Britain
|
| 72 | 1890 | - 4 Nov 1890—4 Nov 1890: City & South London Railway opens - London's first deep-level tube railway
|
| 73 | 1891 | - 1891—1891: Primary education made free and compulsory
|
| 74 | 1892 | - 1892—1892: Shop Hours Act - limit 74 hours per week for under-18's
|
| 75 | 1894 | - 2 Aug 1894—2 Aug 1894: Death duties first introduced in Britain
|
| 76 | 1900 | - 1900—1900: School leaving age in Britain raised to 14 years
|
| 77 | 1901 | - 22 Jan 1901—22 Jan 1901: Queen Victoria dies - Edward VII king
|
| 78 | 1902 | - 1902—1902: Balfour's Education Act provides for secondary education
- 9 Aug 1902—9 Aug 1902: Coronation of Edward VII
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| 79 | 1906 | - 1906—1906: Introduction of free school meals for poor children
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| 80 | 1909 | - 1 Jan 1909—1 Jan 1909: Old Age Pensions Act came into force
|
| 81 | 1910 | - 1910—1910: Constitutional crisis in Britain
|
| 82 | 1911 | - 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
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| 83 | 1912 | - 1912—1912: Britain nationalises the telephone system
|
| 84 | 1913 | - 1913—1913: Suffragette demonstrations in London - Mrs Pankhurst imprisoned
|
| 85 | 1914 | - 4 Aug 1914—4 Aug 1914: Britain declares war on Germany, citing Belgian neutrality as reason
- Oct 1914—Oct 1914: Battle of Ypres - beginning of trench warfare on western front
|
| 86 | 1915 | - 1915—1915: First automatic telephone exchange in Britain
- 16 May 1915—16 May 1915: First meeting of a British WI took place in Llanfairpwll, Anglesey
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| 87 | 1916 | - 1916—1916: Compulsory military service introduced in Britain
- 21 May 1916—21 May 1916: First use of Daylight Saving Time in UK
|
| 88 | 1918 | - 1918—1918: Vote for women over 30, men over 21 (except peers, lunatics and felons)
- 8 Mar 1918—8 Mar 1918: Start of world-wide 'flu pandemic
- 11 Nov 1918—11 Nov 1918: Armistice signed
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| 89 | 1919 | - 1919—1919: Britain adopts a 48-hour working week
|
| 90 | 1920 | - Feb 1920—Feb 1920: First roadside petrol filling station in UK - opened by the Automobile Association
at Aldermaston on the Bath Road
|
| 91 | 1921 | - 19 Jun 1921—19 Jun 1921: Census: Population - England and Wales: 37.9 Million; Scotland: 4.9 Million; N Ireland: 1.25 Million
|
| 92 | 1922 | - 1922—1922: Law of Property Act - the manorial system effectively ended
|
| 93 | 1923 | - 1923—1923: Roads in Great Britain classified with A and B numbers
|
| 94 | 1926 | - 1926—1926: Adoption of children is legalised in Britain
- 3 May 1926—3 May 1926: General Strike begins. Lasts until May 12 (mine workers for 6 months more)
|
| 95 | 1928 | - 1928—1928: Women over 21 get vote in Britain - same qualification for both sexes
|
| 96 | 1929 | - 1929—1929: Abolition of Poor Law system in Britain
- 1929—1929: Minimum age for a marriage in Britain now 16 for both sexes, with parental consent (or a licence) needed for anyone under 21
|
| 97 | 1931 | - 26 Apr 1931—26 Apr 1931: Census: Population - England and Wales; 40 Million; Scotland: 4.8 Million; N Ireland: 1.24 Million
|
| 98 | 1932 | - 1932—1932: Great Hunger March of unemployed to London
|
| 99 | 1935 | - 1935—1935: London adopts a 'Green Belt' scheme
|
| 100 | 1936 | - 5 Dec 1936—5 Dec 1936: Edward VIII abdicates (announced Dec 10)
|
| 101 | 1937 | - 12 May 1937—12 May 1937: Coronation of King George VI
- 28 May 1937—28 May 1937: Neville Chamberlain becomes Prime Minister - policy of appeasement towards
Hitler
|
| 102 | 1938 | - 1938—1938: Principle of paid holidays established in Britain
- 29 Sep 1938—29 Sep 1938: Chamberlain visits Hitler in Munich - promises 'peace in our time'
|
| 103 | 1939 | - 1939—1939: Start of evacuation of women and children from London
- 1939—1939: Coldest winter in Britain since 1894, though this could not be publicised at the time
- 3 Sep 1939—3 Sep 1939: Britain and France declare war on Germany
|
| 104 | 1940 | - 11 May 1940—11 May 1940: National Government formed under Churchill
- 13 May 1940—13 May 1940: Germany invades France
- 25 Jun 1940—25 Jun 1940: Fall of France to Germany
- 7 Sep 1940—7 Sep 1940: Germany launches bombing blitz on Britain, the first of 57 consecutive nights of
bombing
- 15 Sep 1940—15 Sep 1940: Battle of Britain: massive waves of German air attacks decisively repulsed by the
RAF
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| 105 | 1941 | - 1941—1941: Britain introduces severe rationing
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| 106 | 1944 | - 6 Jun 1944—6 Jun 1944: D-Day invasion of Normandy
|
| 107 | 1945 | - 8 May 1945—8 May 1945: VE Day (Victory in Europe)
- 26 Jul 1945—26 Jul 1945: Labour win UK General Election - Churchill out of office
- 29 Jul 1945—29 Jul 1945: BBC Light Programme starts
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| 108 | 1946 | - 1 Jan 1946—1 Jan 1946: First civillian flight from Heathrow Airport
|
| 109 | 1947 | - 1947—1947: Most severe winter in Britain for 53 years at start of the year - heavy snow and much
flooding later
- 1 Apr 1947—1 Apr 1947: School leaving age raised to 15 in Britain
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1678 - 
