Stuart Britain

The Stuarts had ruled Scotland since 1371, but James VI of Scotland was the first Stuart king of England.

1603 James VI of Scotland becomes James I of England uniting the two kingdoms

1605 Guy Fawkes is thwarted when he tries to blow up Parliament.

1606 The Union Flag adopted as the National Flag

1620 The Pilgrim Fathers set sail for New England from Plymouth, aboard the 'Mayflower'

1624-30 War with Spain

1626-29 War with France

1629 Parliament dissolved by King Charles

1642 - 1651 Civil War

1649 King Charles executed

1649-1650 Cromwell's conquest of Ireland

1650 - 1652 Cromwell's conquest of Scotland

1652 Tea arrives in Britain

1653 Cromwell proclaimed Lord Protector

1660 Restoration of the Monarchy under King Charles II

1664-1665 The Great Plague breaks out and up to 100,000 people die in London

1666 Great Fire of London

1689 English Bill of rights 1689

From now on England's monarchs would rule in partnership with Parliament. All Catholics barred from the English throne.

1692 William III massacres the Jacobites at Glencoe

1707 Act of Union between Scotland and England. The Scottish parliament was dissolved and England and Scotland became one country.

Georgian Britain

In 1714 the British throne passed to a German family, the Hanoverians.

1714 George of Hanover, Germany succeeds Queen Anne to the Throne

1721 Sir Robert Walpole becomes the first Prime Minister

1746 Bonnie Prince Charlie is defeated at the Battle of Culloden

1757 First canal in Britain is completed

1776 America declares independence from Britain

1780's Industrial Revolution Begins

1783 Steam powered cotton mill invented by Sir Richard Arkwright

1788 First convict ships are sent to Australia

1796 Edward Jenner invented a vaccination against small pox

1800 Act of Union with Ireland

1801 The first census. Population of Britain 8 million. Ireland made part of the United Kingdom

1804 Richard Trevithick built the first steam locomotive

1805 Lord Nelson defeats Napoleon at the Battle of Trafalgar

1807 Abolition of Slave Trade

1815 Duke of Wellington defeats Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo

1825 World's first railway opens between Stockton and Darlington

1829 Robert Peel set up the Metropolitan Police force

1834 The Poor Law set up workhouses, where people without homes or jobs could live in return for doing unpaid work.

1837 Queen Victoria becomes Queen at the age of 18

The Victorians lived over one hundred and fifty years ago during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837 to 1901) and was a time of enormous change in this country. In 1837 most people lived in villages and worked on the land; by 1901, most lived in towns and worked in offices, shops and factories. Britain managed to build a huge empire during the Victorian period. It was also a time of tremendous change in the lives of British people. In 1837 most people lived in villages and worked on the land; by 1901, most lived in towns and worked in offices, shops and factories.

During Queen Victoria's reign:

• Britain became the most powerful and richest country in the world, with the largest empire that had ever existed, ruling a quarter of the world's population.
• Towns and cities got piped water, gas and, by the end of the century, electricity
• The number of people living in Britain more than doubled from 16 million to 37 million, causing a huge demand for food, clothes and housing.
• Factories and machines were built to meet this demand and new towns grew up, changing the landscape and the ways people lived and worked.
• Railways, originally built to transport goods, meant people could travel easily around the country for the first time. Railways brought new foods to towns and cities.
• Soldiers were at war all over the world especially in 1850 - 1880.
• Many households had a servant or servants – in 1891, 2 million servants were recorded in the census
• Seaside holidays were 'invented' (became popular).
• Police Force 'invented'.
• At the beginning of the Victorian period crossing the Atlantic took up to eight weeks. By 1901 it took about a week.
• New cookers and gadgets for the home were invented.

1840 The first postage stamps (Penny Post) came into use

1842 Mines Act ended child labour

1845 - 1849 Ireland suffered the Great Potato Famine when entire crops of potatoes, the staple Irish food, were ruined. The famine was a consequence of the appearance of blight, the potato fungus. About 800,000 people died as a result of the famine. A large number of people migrated to Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia.

1850s The first post boxes were built

1851 The Great Exhibition. Census showed just over half of Britain's population (of 20 million) lived in towns

1854 Crimean War

1854 A cholera epidemic led to demands for a clean water supply and proper sewage systems in the big cities

1856 Britain defeats Russia in the Crimean War

1860 The first public flushing toilet opens

1861 Death of Prince Albert

1863 London Underground opens. The foundation of the Football Association

1868 Joseph Lister discovers disinfectant

1868 The last public hanging

1869 The first Sainsbury's shop open in Dury Lane, London

1870 Education Act means school for everyone

1871 Queen Victoria opens the Albert Hall

1876 Alexander Bell invented the telephone. Primary education was made compulsory

1877 The first public electric lighting in London

1883 First electric railway

1887 The invention of the gramophone

1891 Free education for every child

1901 Population of Britain 40 million

Modern Britain

1902 Britain defeats Dutch settlers in Boer War in South Africa

1902 The first old age pension

1914 1918 First World War. Compulsory military service and food rationing introduced

1920 Republic of Ireland gains independence

1937 Sir Frank Whittle invents the Jet Engine

1939 - 1945 The Second World War

1951 Festival of Britain

1952 Elizabeth II becomes Queen

1953 Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II

1973 Britain joins the European Community

1979 Margaret Thatcher becomes Britain's first woman prime minister

1982 Falklands War

1991 Gulf War

1991 Sir Tim Berners Lee invents the World Wide Web

1994 Channel Tunnel links Britain back to the European continent

1999 Welsh national assembly and Scottish parliament

2003 The Second Gulf War

2003 England Wins the Rugby World Cup

Date: 2015-01-29; view: 1565